Christianity, Paganism, and the Golden Dawn

by Alpha Omega Imperator

David Griffin

In recent years, the differences between one Golden Dawn order and the other have become more and more clear. The greatest strength of today's Golden Dawn community is our diversity. This same diversity from one order to the other, however, makes the choice for aspirants where to seek training extremely important. All Golden Dawn orders today are not the same today at all.

On the one hand, there are G.D. orders like the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the outer order of the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha Omega with the stated mission "to make magicians." In the A.O., we teach Magick from day one and are non-sectarian in our approach. Whereas numerous G.D. orders exclude Thelemites or even all but Christians, in the A.O. we admit and advance Christians, Pagans, Jews, Muslims, Thelemites, etc. - all on an equal basis.

Orders like the S.R.I.A., which admit only Christians, view the entire Rosicrucian tradition as a "Christians only" affair. Christian Sectarian G.D. orders typically suppress Magick to various degrees in favor of Christian Mysticism. Such orders typically also seek to minimize Pagan Golden Dawn elements, dubiously claiming that the G.D. is primarily a "Christian" tradition. In reality the G.D. is not a religion at all, but rather a non-sectarian system of spiritual development.

Pat Zalewski, Chief of the "Order of the Golden Dawn" (co-led by Martin Thibeault) wrote earlier this week:

"When I see people banging on about paganism in the GD it indicates how little they understand of the second order and its sheaths."

"The association to Kether of CRC and Jesus Christ shows a standard association of Rosicrucianism and Christianity which some modern day GDists want to rewrite entirely, along with a few other things. Kether places CRC directly under Christ, so there is no mistake here and that is the highest name. Embedded in the RC manifestos there is certainly enough veiled biblical material to indicate this as well."

"The second order of the RR et AC brings on the concept of redemption through death, and as far as I am aware is not a general pagan concept..." - Pat Zalewksi

Clearly, the above argument attempts to minimize the importance of Pagan elements and influences in the GD. As a practicing Pagan, I am not entirely unbiased in this matter. Still, since my approach to the Golden Dawn is non-sectarian, I remain somewhat objective despite my personal religious faith.

Any interpretation of the entire R.R. et A.C. as "primarily Christian" is, however, in my opinion, a gross oversimplification and even a distortion of the history of Western spirituality.

To begin with, the Secret Chiefs of the Third Order of the Golden Dawn recently shed new, essential light on the true nature of the grades of the R.R. et A.C., which you can read about HERE. This material shows clearly that the themes of Second Order initiations (death, sojourn in the world beyond death, and rebirth) find their roots in the cycles of nature. Although one level of symbolism in R.R. et A.C. initiations is clearly Christian influenced, there are equally profound Pagan levels of symbolism as well. Take, for example, the death of Osiris and the miraculous birth of Horus through the magical power of the Mother Goddess, Isis. This, it may be argued, is the actual myth underlying the initiatic cycle of the Second Order, merely dressed up in symbols palatable to Christians.

Contrary to claims of G.D. Christian sectarians, the initiatic symbols in the R.R. et  A.C. are not at all exclusively Christian.

Dionysos and Cross

Take, for example, the Assyrian Du-zi (Babylonian Tammuz, or Sumerian Dummuzi) the Egyptian Orisis, the Anatolian Mithras, the Syrian Adonis, the Hebrew Tamheur, and the Phrygian Attis, or Greek Dionysus.

Madonna with Christ Child

ALL of these were dying-and-reborn solar-gods. They were all consorts of the Great Mother - All suffered death, sojourned through the underworld, and were reborn. 

Babylonian Goddess mother Semiramis with divine child Tammuz

Although Christian theology certainly add its own twist on things, his universal solar myth nonetheless remains the likely primeval form of the resurrection story as told in the New Testament.

Egyptian Goddess mother Isis with her child Horus

The earliest known celebration of the rebirth of the sun (on Winter Solstice) in ritual was that of the ancient Babylonians of Mesopotamia, who celebrated their “Victory of the Sun-God” festival on December 25th. This Babylonian cult, especially the cult of mother and child (Semiramis and Nimrod and later as Ishtar and Tammuz) spread out from Babylon over the entire world, only the names changed; Nimrod was renamed in Egypt as “Osiris” and Semiramis became “Isis,” long before the birth of Jesus was adored as “Madonna with her child”. . . .

Christmas, the birth of the Son, was transplanted to the pagan celebrations of the Winter Solstice, the rebirth of the sun, some 1,600 years ago, centuries before the English language emerged from its Germanic roots. This is probably why the words for the two mythic concepts of sun and son are so similar, because the pagan Winter Solstice and Yuletide was overlaid with Christmas.

Tammuz’s Winter Solstice festival, commemorating the yearly death and rebirth of vegetation, corresponded to the festivals of the Phoenician and Greek Adonis and of the Phrygian Attis, both dying-and-reborn sun gods associated, like Tammuz, with a sacred tree. As already mentioned, the Babylonian myth of Tammuz, the dying god, bears not only a close resemblance to the Greek myth of Adonis, but also links with the myth of Osiris. 

These dying-and-reborn sun gods are all connected to a very ancient cult of tree-worship. It would appear probable that Tammuz, Attis, Osiris, and the deities represented by Adonis and the Celtic Diarmid were all developed from an archaic god of fertility and vegetation, the central figure of a myth which was not only as ancient as the knowledge and practice of agriculture, but had existence even in the archaic hunting period. 

Tammuz Tree

Traces of the Tammuz-Osiris story in various forms are found all over the area occupied by the peoples from Sumeria to the Druids of the British Isles. Some authorities suggest that apparently the original myth was connected with tree and water worship and the worship of animals. Adonis sprang from a tree; the body of Osiris, pursued by Seth, was concealed in a tree, which grew round the sea-drifted chest in which he was concealed. And Diarmid concealed himself in a tree when pursued by Finn. . . .

Finn

In mythology, Tammuz, like Jesus, was born on December 25th and associated with a tree. At the time of the Winter Solstice, the past sun god would die, his branches stripped from him and one piece, the seed, would enter the fire on “Mother-night” as a log. The next morning, the new triumphant sun god was born from the fire as a tree, the “Branch of God,” who was celebrated for bringing divine gifts to men. So it looks like Tammuz was the original Yule log. Tammuz is identified with Adonis, the Semitic name meaning “lord.” Here, again we find the same cosmic pair of mother and child, and again the association with a tree. . . .

Pagan Survival in Scandinavia : Rolling a Jul Log

Another Pagan Remnant in Scandinavia: The Julbock (Yule Ram)
Such Rams pulled Thor's Chariot According to Nordic Paganism

The week long celebration of “Saturnalia,” a period of unrestrained or orgiastic revelry and licentiousness from the 17th to the 23rd of December, was the Roman version of this very ancient Babylonian “Victory of the Sun-God” cult. 

Saturnalia

The winter solstice fell within the Saturnalia and was referred to as the “Natalis Solis Invicti” (the “Nativity of the unconquered Sun”). Saturnalia was celebrated from December 17th to January 1st in the Roman Empire. The Roman Emperor Aurelian blended Saturnalia with a number of birth celebrations of savior Gods from other religions, into a single holy day: December 25th. In Roman mythology, the sun represents male divinity, and the “Natalis Solis Invicti” was the “return of the sun god” born of the Mother Goddess. 

Deo Sol Invictus

This day represented the hope and faith that from within the darkest and coldest night (the winter solstice) there would be born a “Lord of Light” (“the unconquered sun”). This sun god would die at the summer solstice at the height of his power (the longest and warmest day), from which point the days would get colder and colder until he was reborn again the following winter. This yearly cycle of a “dying and resurrected” sun deity could be found in many of the world’s ancient religions. . . . 

Some historians of religion see the eventual choice of December 25, made perhaps as early as 273 CE. After decades of arguing by Church Fathers about the correct date of Jesus’ birth (was it March 25, April 18, May 20, November 17, or was it January 6?), finally the eventual choice of December 25 was decided upon.

However, this decision reflects a convergence of the theological anxieties of the Origen and other Church Fathers about mythic pagan gods and the Church’s identification of God’s son with the celestial sun. Again, December 25 already hosted two other related festivals: “Natalis Solis Invicti” (the Roman “birth of the unconquered sun,” or “Deus Sol Invictus”), and the birthday of Mithras, the Iranian “Sun of Righteousness,” whose worship was popular with Roman soldiers. (Deus Sol Invictus, “the unconquered sun god,” was a religious title applied to at least three distinct divinities during the later Roman Empire; El Gabal, Mithras, and Sol.)

Thus, after much argument, the developing Christian Church adopted this date as the birthday of their savior, Jesus. The people of the Roman Empire were accustomed to celebrating the birth of a sun god on that day, so it was easy for the church to co-opt the people’s attention to Jesus’ birth. 

Birth of Mithras: Dec. 25

The festival of Saturnalia and the birthday of Mithras could now be celebrated as the birthday of Christ! As one theologian puts it: “What better way to challenge the Pagans than to usurp their holidays?”

Mithras with Shepherds

The Babylonians also celebrated their “Victory of the Sun-God” festival on December 25th. Preceding Christianity by many centuries, the pagan worship of Mithras, the Persian savior, became common throughout the Roman Empire, particularly among the Roman civil service and military. Mithraism is now recognized as a syncretic Hellenistic mystery religion that developed in the Eastern Mediterranean in the 2nd and 1st centuries BCE and was practiced in the Roman Empire beginning in the 1st century BCE.  Mithraism was the prime competitor religious cult to Christianity until the 4th century.

Mithras had many parallels with the Christian god: followers believed that he was born of a virgin on December 25th, circa 500 BCE, his birth in a cave was witnessed by shepherds and by gift-carrying Magi. This was celebrated as the “Birthday of the Unconquered Sun.” Mithras was known to his followers as “The light of the world,” or “The Good Shepherd,” and exhorted his followers to share ritual communion meals of bread and wine. During his life, he performed many miracles, cured many illnesses, and cast out devils. He celebrated a Last Supper with his 12 disciples. He ascended to heaven at the time of the spring equinox, about March 21st. . . .

Mithras and 12 Signs of Zodiac

Attis, born of a virgin and changed into a fir-tree, was another sun- or vegetation-god whose story bears a striking resemblance to the Christ story. Wherever the Christian worship of Jesus and the pagan worship of Attis were active in the same geographical area in ancient times, Christians “used to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus on the same date; and pagans and Christians used to quarrel bitterly about which of their gods was the true prototype and which the imitation.” 

Attis

Since the worship of Cybele was brought to Rome in 204 BCE, about 250 years before Christianity, it is obvious that if any copying occurred, it was the Christians that copied and later co-opted the traditions of the pagans. They were simply grafted onto stories of Jesus’ life in order to make Christian theology more acceptable to pagans in the Roman Empire. 

Thus, in conclusion,  attempts to minimize or suppress Pagan elements in the Golden Dawn, as well as to claim that the grades of the Golden Dawn's Rosicrucian Second Order, the R.R. et A.C., are purely "Christian" may be clearly seen for what they truly are - as merely involving the co-option scenario of the role of the pre-Christian, Greco-Roman dying-and-reborn savior gods by the crypto-pagan dying-and-reborn savior god, Christ.

"When I see people banging on about paganism in the GD it indicates how little they understand"

- Pat Zalewski

Viewing Christ as a crypto-pagan dying-and-reborn savior God is admittedly a bit of an extreme position. Is it, however, any more extreme than sloppy reconstructionists trying to rebuild the Golden Dawn as exclusively Christian according to a purely sectarian agenda?

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The Secret Chiefs UNVEILED (Part II): On the True Nature of Golden Dawn Lineage

by Golden Dawn

Imperator David Griffin

His Holiness Dalai Lama

"All major spiritual traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness. The important thing is they should be part of our daily lives."  

- His Holiness Dalai Lama

In a desperate attempt to divert attention from the still fomenting Satanism & SRIA scandal (here), SRIA/GD leaders are wheeling back out every controversial topic they can think of. First they resumed spreading massive misrepresentations about the Secret Chiefs (refuted here). Now they are trying desperately to divert attention with a rehash of discussing the true nature of Golden Dawn lineage.

Today's Golden Dawn community is made up of a continuum between two poles. On the one hand, we have traditionalist Golden Dawn orders like S.L. MacGregor Mathers' Alpha Omega that view the Golden Dawn as a living, evolving tradition and are Magical in their approach to spiritual development. 

At the opposite end of the spectrum, reconstructionist Golden Dawn orders see the Golden Dawn as a dead object of historical curiosity to be reconstructed. Most reconstructionist G.D. orders are led by SRIA members and are primarily Mystical in their approach. For a thorough analysis of the fundamental difference between Magick and Mysticism, see my previous articles here and here.

SRIA is a Trinitarian Christian segregationist, Freemasonic society dedicated to amateur historical research. SRIA is not an accredited academic institution and its research can not be considered as reliable scientific data.

For example one SRIA/GD leader this week wrote:

"If people claim that [MacGregor Mathers] was part of a mysterious Third order (and all that that entails) then the answer is simple enough - they have to prove it. So far there is much talk but no one has stepped up to the plate to bat- nor will they in my opinion."

In reality, the above argument has been refuted over and over, and solid evidence presented, for example here, here, here, here, and here, yet no meaningful factual dialogue whatsoever has ensued - not even once. Instead, SRIA/GD leaders merely repeat their same arguments over and over in violation of all academic protocol, propaganda style, pretending they have never received any answer.

Such use of propaganda rhetorical strategies makes it clear that SRIA is not merely an amateur research society as it purports to be, but deliberately employs propaganda methods in a dishonest attempt to manipulate esoteric organisations and entire communities.

Moreover, when examining controversial topics, SRIA/GD leaders insist that only historical data may be considered as "evidence" or "proof" of anything. This ridiculous propaganda game has gone on now for over a decade.

For example ne SRIA/GD propaganda agent this week issued a "challenge" to the Secret Chiefs to "prove" their existance by telling him the super secret decoder ring password he has invented to "test" them. Considering how this SRIA/GD leader has deliberately ignored all actually presented evidence for years, this is obviously just the latest in many years of cheap propaganda ploys.

As we see yet again in the above example, SRIA/GD agents always insist on an inappropriate, overly narrow, definition of "evidence" in order to stifle any meaningful, scholarly dialogue. The Golden Dawn, unlike SRIA, is not an amateur research club, but rather a initiatic spiritual tradition, similar to the great initiatic spiritual traditions of the East, such as Zen or Tibetan Buddhism.

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche
Shambhala Buddhist Lineage

Frequently, what is of the very essence to initiatic spiritual traditions is dismissed by SRIA/GD amateur historians as irrelevant, as it does not fit into their arbitrary, deliberately over-narrow definition of "evidence."

Therefore, discussion of controversial issues in the Golden Dawn, such as the Secret Chiefs or Golden Dawn lineage has remained stagnant for decades, due to SRIA/GD leaders refusing to even look at the evidence that actually has been presented, insisting on a yardstick that completely misses the point when it comes to the great initiatic spiritual traditions of the world. It is noteworthy that they have even threatened their students with expulsion should they examine the actual evidence for themselves either.

We recently witnessed the clash of these diametrically opposed approaches to the Golden Dawn in  Part 1 of "The Secret Chiefs UNVEILED" (here), On the True Nature of the Secret Chiefs. When considering the true nature of Golden Dawn lineage, this fundamental difference in approach between G.D. traditionalists and SRIA/GD reconstructionists comes into even sharper focus.

The greatest problem is that SRIA/GD reconstructionists view Golden Dawn lineage merely as a matter of historical curiosity. This week, one SRIA/GD author wrote:

"Lineage does not matter. All that matters is to do the work."

Curiously, the author wrote this comment in reply to his article entitled The Death of Alpha Omega Lineage. The question naturally arises, if lineage does not matter to this author, then why is he obsessed with debunking Alpha Omega lineage?

The short answer is "power and control." SRIA/GD leaders are terrified of the spiritual lineages/practices the Secret Chiefs have now made available to the entire Golden Dawn community, as control and domination of the community is slipping through their fingers.

The Death of Alpha Omega Lineage claims that, since all outer order Alpha Omega temples ceased operation for a time, Alpha Omega lineage ceased to exist in the 1940s. This argument is shocking not because of the allegations it makes, but in that it reveals that SRIA/GD leaders still do not even understand the true nature of Golden Dawn lineage, even though I have explained this over and over for years, for example here, here, here, here, and here.

The problem is that amateur SRIA/GD "historians" understand Golden Dawn lineage only as though it were merely the sort of formalistic "lineage" one encounters in Freemasonic groups like SRIA. In Freemasonry, lineage indeed amounts to little more than a formal means of mutual recognition, using paper trails of charters to establish so-called regularity.

In the Alpha Omega, we do have our charters, etc., which we are very proud of, but we also understand there is more to spiritual lineage than mere paper trails of charters.

What SRIA/GD leaders pretend still not to understand, is that the Golden Dawn is first and foremost a spiritual tradition. Therefore, charters and such are by no means all that matter.

"In all of the great initiatic spiritual traditions, both East and West, lineage carries with it a set of spiritual practices that lead to specific states of spiritual realization."

Let us return, for a moment, to the SRIA/GD argument that: "Lineage does not matter. What matters is to do the work." This is certainly half true. "To do the work," however, one must first have the necessary spiritual practices, as is also the case with Buddhist lineages, for example.

Spiritual lineages, in reality, boil down to sets of spiritual practices transmitted by spiritual traditions across time, each that carries with it a specific state of spiritual attainment. In the case of the Golden Dawn, one can legitimately argue that all Golden Dawn groups that use the spiritual practices contained in Israel Regardie's The Golden Dawn each has a certain amount of spiritual lineage, because spiritual lineage is embedded in the spiritual practices themselves.

In recent years, the Golden Dawn's Secret Chiefs have made their existence and their presence known by releasing vast quantities of hitherto unknown Golden Dawn material, including essential spiritual lineages/practices that lead to even more rapid and effective spiritual attainment.

SRIA/GD leaders, desperate not to lose power, domination, and control over the Golden Dawn community, desperately refuse to admit is that Golden Dawn, Hermetic, and Rosicrucian lineages do not begin and end with what Israel Regardie published. Using their usual inappropriate yardstick, they also scream daily across the Internet that there is no "historical proof" that the Secret Chiefs even exist.

All of this is completely irrelevant. What really matters is the effectiveness for spiritual growth of the newly released spiritual practices themselves. And effective they are, as is proven by "the work" itself!

Academic anthropologist, Leslie McQuade, explains this with the following scientific analogy:

"There are two ways to trace your heritage as a physical human being, just as there are two ways to trace your spiritual heritage.  SRIA would have you believe there is only one-way: that of paper documentation.  This equates in physical terms to birth certificates, which clearly show who begot who.  If records have been destroyed, whether purposely or accidentally, or were never issued in the first place, one finds a dead end to the genealogical search. 

In our modern age though, things have changed significantly.  The DNA in our cells carries important information about our physical heritage which, unlike paper records, cannot be altered to suit expediency or political agendas. 

We are all familiar with the idea that birth records can be altered to hide problematic sires.  We similarly know that the genetic record cannot lie.  For example, documents may show that the red hair you have is a result of a long lost Scottish ancestor. The genetic record however, shows that you are in fact the milkman’s child. 

Spiritual lineage is best equated to this genetic record.  This is because although the names of your ancestors cannot be shown, the result of their physical presence in your genetic makeup is undeniable.  The Golden Dawn spiritual lineages/practices recently released by the Secret Chiefs while they may not obey the artificial construct of a Freemasonic paper-trail, do confer upon the practitioner certain undeniable characteristics of spiritual attainment, thus proving their authentic existence as much as red hair or shovel-shaped incisors."

- Leslie McQuade

SRIA/GD leaders are so desperate to retain power, they would completely deny access to these superior Golden Dawn lineages/spiritual practices to their students. For SRIA/GD leaders who claim to be spiritual stewards, this is an unspeakable abdication of responsibility and act of aggression against their students.

"The extreme effectiveness of the magical practices speaks for itself. The Alpha Omega has proven this to Adepts and Initiates from across the entire Golden Dawn community, who came to our International Golden Dawn Festivals and saw for themselves."

Here is what Golden Dawn members from around the world say about spiritual lineages recently released by the Secret Chiefs, available for the entire Golden Dawn community to practice today:

"To anyone who doubts the existence of the physical Secret Chiefs or the authenticity of their Golden Dawn teachings, if you would have attended the Festival, you would have seen it for yourself. I along with many others who did attend, ARE the proof of its power and authenticity. The Festival was open to anyone who wanted to come, so no one who was not here can rightfully deny the authenticity or power of the new material. I attended the whole week of the Festival and I can personally attest to just how powerful the  supplementary Magick newly released by the Secret Chiefs really is." 

- Frater O.B., Alvin, TX

"The spiritual practices hidden behind the symbols of the Golden Dawn are finally being revealed. The Golden Dawn is finally becoming what it should have been since the beginning." 

- Soror FL, Atlanta, GA

"The new material is astonishing in the simplicity of the techniques and the purity of energy. I could really feel that this is what the Golden Dawn was meant to be. If anyone of those present had their doubts about the authenticity of the Secret Chiefs, it truly has been cleared out by the material released the second day alone." 

- VH Frater K, Berlin, Germany

Frater ATLV, Houston, TX 

"A new unbroken oral tradition and direct transmission instead of just the same old stuff from books. 

I attended the entire week of this year's Festival. I truly feel that the Magical material newly released by the Secret Chiefs brings the AO back to a state of unprofaned wisdom and authenticity that has not been seen in the Golden Dawn since the schism of 1903.  

To those who may criticize or deny these new teachings. You had the chance to come and you could have seen it for yourself. My experiences over the week, although short was proof of the potency of the new teachings. I feel honored to be one of the very few in the world who have received this knowledge until now." 

- Frater ATLV, Houston, Texas  

"The vibration very efficient - overall, interesting and energizing. in concept." 

- Soror SKH, Montenegro

"The supplemental materials for the Neophyte grade fits like hand in glove. Some of it is advanced, but when you see it together with the rest of the material it is simple and obvious. You can see that the original material is for learning purposes and the supplemental material is for practical application of the old material. It seems like a natural extension. It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of this historical moment. This Festival has been a page turner in my life."  

- Frater NTI, Gothenburg, Sweden 

"Basically, I felt the purity of the newly released supplemental Magick and it not being tainted by past energy of others. It all feels so clean and undiluted. Working with this GD Magic is a rare experience. When working with GD Magick from published material, you just don't get that undiluted power." 

- Soror LET, Melbourne, Australia

"The fantastic new energy that shined into my being as we did the advanced Neophyte meditation and the rectified Middle Pillar touched my Soul. First to silence, peace, and fulfilment and later brought tears to my eyes. I could really feel the solar energy and the feeling that it stayed with me."

- Soror DSLO, Ostersund, Sweden 

"I have been practicing Golden Dawn Magick for 25 years and I have never experienced a meditation so profound and effective as the 2.0 version of the Neophye Meditation transmitted to us this week from the Secret Chiefs. Understanding that this is just the barest foreshadowing of what is to come, I am thrilled for the future. Truly, a new day for the Golden Dawn. We have been waiting and we have been answered." 

- Soror PPAS, Amsterdam, Holland

"J'ai resenti les effets sur le corps. Tres bons. On le resents immediatemnet."  

- Frater JR, Duola, Cameroon

"I have been practicing the Magick Golden Dawn for 11 years. I was quite astonished today when I learned the newly released Magick. No one is grafting anything onto the Golden Dawn."  

- Frater C.F., Mexico City, Mexico 

"Just reading some of the new rituals unveiled in the Neoophyte grade is enough to develop an astonishing spiritual exaltation. I was so surprised to experience this before even actively performing the rituals. 

After some 26 years of working with Golden Dawn ritual and basing magical operations on the structures of the Neophyte grade ritual, it finally makes sense. 

I have been perpetually groping towards this level of understanding and now it is as though the light has been switched on. The world's great esoteric streams all use certain methods of blinding and encrypting teachings in their outer grades. Finally we can experience this authenticity of lineage here in the outermost grade of the Golden Dawn."

- Frater IVIOL, Manchester, England

In case you missed, you can still read Part I of The Secret Chiefs Unveiled HERE.

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Sexuality and the Golden Dawn

by guest blogger

Soror Sophia

Soror Sophia, here. I am here this morning with David Griffin, GH Frater Lux ex Septentrionis, Archon Basileus of the  Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega and the Imperator of its outer order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. David is also the author of the groundbreaking, Ritual Magic Manual, so sought after that new copies can today not be had for less than $999 on Amazon Marketplace.

David is here today to discuss Sexuality and the Golden Dawn with us.

Welcome, David. It is nice to have you here, and discuss these things with you.

Thank you, it is nice to be here.

The entire subject of esoteric sexuality and the Golden Dawn is highly controversial. We live in a period when openness toward sexuality and sexual content is a hallmark of Western attitude. Yet, the idea that teachings on sexuality are part of the Golden Dawn has caused quite a stir in the Golden Dawn community. I asked you here to update this interview because of comments this week in the Golden Dawn community. First off, Pat Zalewski wrote:

"I am still amazed that people ask about sexuality and the GD in terms of a physical sex act. I was just chatting to a person who was convinced there was a secret teaching about it. Garstin, who was an AO chief in the 1930's and one of the few in that order who held the 7=4 (I know of no other 7=4's that were not chiefs in the AO), made this point abundantly plain in his 'Theurgy or Hermetic practice', (pp 32-33). He rejects this totally from the western perspective.  

In symbolic form the sex act is in the form of a conjunction, and is used often in alchemy and in ritual. I have some issues with Garstin's structure in his work but not his content. In chapter 3 of his book on Theurgy the subject of the egg and serpent are alluded to. Go back to my Alchemy and Ritual book, and you'll see why I chose that alchemy text to describe the outer order rituals. The whole concept of the sexual aspect egg and serpent was visible in plain sight, but not alluded to because it was symbolic only." -Pat Zalewski

Nick Farrell also this week wrote:

"The same applied to Bristol. Hope Hughes fell out with Dion Fortune over a Binah ritual which was run by Inner Light. It cant have been long before she died, but involved a woman lying on the altar with black candles. All Binah to me, but Hughes' agents felt that it was black magic pure and simple. They were worried about the turn that polarity magic was taking in Inner Light. Fortune did not have sex magic as part of her workings but her contacts suggested earthing it afterwards if they could not manage the power. But he added that had nothing to do with the order. Maybe this offended the Bristol lot." -Nick Farrell

I am really glad to see that both Pat Zalewksi and Nick Farrell are beginning move a lot closer my position and that of the Alpha Omega on the question of sexuality and the Golden Dawn. There are still important differences in our positions, that I will make clear during the interview, but the Golden Dawn community has matured a lot in recent years on the whole question of sexuality.

Let me say from the outset that there is no "right" or "wrong" regarding various positions about spiritual sexuality in today's Golden Dawn community. As I have said over and over, there is no "One True Golden Dawn." I believe that the diversity in today's Golden Dawn community is precisely our greatest strength.

One of the best things about having such a rich and diverse Golden Dawn community is that it gives people choices, which is always a good thing. When it comes to spiritual sexuality, people have pretty clear choices. 

People who understand the role spiritual sexuality plays in the great spiritual traditions of the world, whether Tantra or Taoism in the East, or the Hermetic or Rosicruican traditions in the West, are better off with the Alpha Omega.

Why? Because we are the only Golden Dawn order that offers traditional spritual practices in the highest grades that include spiritual sexuality. Even then, such teachings are of the variety "go home and practice with your husband, wife, or partner(s) depending on your gender, sexual orientation and relationship style.

There are orders led by Neo-Golden Dawn scholars like Pat Zalewksi and Nick Farrell, who understand that spiritual sexuality has a place in the Golden Dawn, but argue that this only symbolical. Then there are Neo-Golden Dawn with pretty sex-negative attitudes that take the position that spiritual sexuality has no place at all in the Golden Dawn. This gives people clear choices.

Yes, but what about articles written by one order with headlines like: "BEWARE! Sex Magic is NOT part of the Golden Dawn!" and "Absurd Claims of Golden Dawn Sex Magic!"?

There has been way too much fear mongering marketing and even flame wars in the Golden Dawn community, and this has caused nearly irreparable damage to the reputation of the Golden Dawn overall as a tradition. We as a community, have put that sad past behind us now though, and there is no point on dwelling on it. As things stand now, the Golden Dawn community is maturing and celebrating in the diversity between us.

Yes, I am one of those people who was put off to the whole Golden Dawn due to all of the infighting and negative marketing. I am glad to see that the Golden Dawn seems to have grown beyond that. Still, as someone who isn’t an Adept of the order, I find the whole sexuality issue confusing. I am hoping by having you on the air we can clear things up for people like me, who are interested in the topic, but are also put off by fuss.

Let me start by asking you this question that has most likely crossed the mind of many-to-be initiates of your order. If I was to join your order today, can I continue my education through the Golden Dawn grades without getting involved in any practical sex magic?

The answer to your question is a resounding yes. To begin with, we need to get clear on what is actually meant by 'sex magic'. Neither the original Golden Dawn, the Stella Matutina, nor has our order, the Alpha et Omega ever employed nor do we today employ physical sexual activity in ritual, in the sense that is sometimes ascribed to certain rituals of the OTO. We also do not endorse the sort of ritualistic sexual experimentation carried out by Aleister Crowley.

Aleister Crowley

There are no orgies in the Alpha et Omega, nor are we an order of hedonists. The teachings of spritual sexuality are only in the higher grades, and the topics of sex and magic are taught only according to classical Hermetic and Alchemical principles. It is no different than taking a sex-ed class. You don’t really expect to go there to practice sex hands on. Frankly, it would have been easy for us to just skip the whole topic and avoid the controversy like others have done. We chose, however, to put the tradition before convenience because we firmly believe in being true bearers of the torch of the classical, traditional Golden Dawn.

I have read some tough stuff on other Golden Dawns websites attacking you with slogans like "No sex magic in the Golden Dawn!," and accusing you that all of this is "just a red herring designed to take advantage of lower desires." One Golden Dawn leader has even written that "sexual alchemy has nothing to do with the Golden Dawn or the magic of Light."

The idea that positive sexual transformation isn’t part of the magic of Light is akin to saying before someone attains spiritual enlightenment they need to castrate themselves. Yesod is as much part of the Tree of Life as Kether. The word Yesod means foundation and we associate this emanation with the genitals in human body. The foundation of the whole Tree of Life lies in this sexual energy that has the corresponding Divine Name El Chai (God the Ever Living). 

We talk in the Golden Dawn about the middle path. This path takes us right from the material world to the highest Divine crown through the beautiful solar fire we associate with being an adept. It does so through the foundation of the Great Work – the living energy of sacred sexuality. Frankly, sexual alchemy has everything to do with the magic of Light because it is its foundation according to the Golden Dawn and western occultism.

I believe one of the reasons many people formed an opinion that sex magic and the Golden Dawn are incompatible stems from a prevalent belief that "If Regardie didn't publish it, then it ain't Golden Dawn," since Regardie’s book is the primary guide for Golden Dawn teachings for modern Golden Dawn practitioners.

These are, however, drawbacks to relying exclusively on published content as one’s guide to the teachings of a secret society that existed in an era that requires a lot more discretion when it comes to sensitive topics such as sexuality.

One of the things to remember is that the Golden Dawn didn’t emerge out of a vacuum. It has its roots in much older traditions. The Golden Dawn is both a Hermetic and a Rosicrucian order. Our critics fail to consider two things.

First of all, Mathers had his own teachers that he called Secret Chiefs since he was sworn to protect their real identities. The same holds true for my teachers in the Alpha Omega as well, who are Hermetic Masters from Hermetic and Rosicrucian traditions that vastly pre-date the Golden Dawn. Like Mathers, I am also sworn to protect their identies, although the A.O. has repeatedly offered to share some of their advanced teachings with the rest of the Golden Dawn community.

The other thing that our critics fail to consider is that S.L. MacGregor Mathers died before he could ever finish developing the Golden Dawn system. The Golden Dawn is a ten grade system corresponding to the Sephiroth on the Qabalistic Tree of Life, beginning with Neophyte and Zelator at the bottom of the tree, and ending with the Magister Templi, Magus, and Ipssissimus grades on top. Mathers was only half way through putting the teachings together when he died in a flu epidemic that burned through Europe.

S.L. MacGregor Mathers

Yeah. I remember you talking about this before. Didn't you finish some of this development in your Ritual Magic Manual?

Yes. I did. Mathers had only finished integrating Enochian and Qabalistic magic for the Elements, but not for Planetary and Zodiacal magic before he died. I finished this integration in 1999. There are a few essential things I would have done differently today, but in 1999 I did not have the benefit of the guidance of my Hermetic Masters in Continental Europe that I have today.

When we talked in the past, you had mentioned to me that one the advanced teachings you received from these Hermetic Masters include secret techniques concerning Hermetic Inner Alchemy. You also mentioned that this involves both love and sexuality.

That is correct. The Alpha Omega is a Hermetic order, and thus our attitude toward the relationship between sexuality and spirituality is as it has always reflected the initiatic teachings of the Hermetic tradition. For 2,000 years, the Hermetic tradition has radically diverged from the sexually repressive attitudes of the Roman Catholic Church.

I am aware that there are Golden Dawn orders that have moved in a decidedly Roman Catholic direction. I noticed a recent YouTube video that one such order released conflate the Egyptian Goddess, Isis, with the virgin Mary. The Roman Catholic church has been doing this sort of stuff for Centuries as a tactic to try to wipe out Paganism, have they not?

The Hermetic tradition has never been a Roman Catholic one. Again, this gives people more choices. The Hermetic tradition is different though, having managed to survive DESPITE the Vatican and its Holy Inquisition. In reality, the history of the Hermetic tradition is filled with a friendly relationship with Pagan movements, not a hostile one. Even the Neophyte ritual in the Golden Dawn instructs to hold all religions in high regard, as there is truth to be found in all of them!

The Hermetic tradition does not see sexuality as anything in any way sinful. We don't see any real distinction between spirit and flesh either. This mistaken distinction unfortunately became enshrined early on in Christianity. There were from the very beginning, however, Gnostic Christian groups that fully embraced the spiritual importance of sexuality and the mysteries of spiritual sexuality. These have been recently referred to as the "Magdalene Mysteries" and were even mentioned in the film, "The DaVinci Code".

In the Hermetic tradition, we see the human body as an essential aspect of spirit. Our bodies are the vehicles or Temples of Spirit.

Everything you have told me so far makes perfect sense. It is unfortunate to see how it ruffled some feathers. I can’t say for sure what went through their minds. It could be jealousy especially among groups that don't have these teachings. It could also be that some people have projected too much of the sex negative attitudes of their upbringing or religious beliefs onto a Hermetic system like the Golden Dawn.

I can understand some people's feathers being ruffled - but the work of our order is not about stroking people's egos. It's about finally making advanced Hermetic spiritual technology and accelerated energetic evolution available to people. And as far as other groups not having access to the advanced Hermetic and Rosicrucian spiritual practices that fill the higher grades of the Alpha Omega, there is no reason for them to be jealous. We have offered repeatedly to share these teachings with other Golden Dawn groups, even as late as our International Conclave of Golden Dawn Adepti earlier this year. They chose not to come. That is their choice. I am a firm believer in respecting people's free will. The offer to share still stands though.

Neo-Golden Dawn scholars like Pat Zalewski and Nick Farrell are busy creating their own teachings for the higher grades of their orders. It remains to be seen what spiritual value these self-made teachings have, but one thing is already certain. Fresh Neo-Golden Dawn teachings add to the over-all diversity of our Golden Dawn community. For this reason, I am quite proud of Neo-Golden Dawn scholars in our community.

I can totally understand the position Pat Zalewski and Nick Farrell are taking on sexuality. Heck, if I had not received the advanced spiritual practices of Hermetic Internal Alchemy, that uses the fires of both sexuality and love as internal fires for spiritual transmutation, it would be natural for me also to argue that the sexual symbolism permeating the entire rituals, tools, and magic of the Golden Dawn, is purely symbolical.

OK. I can guess from everything we discussed so far that you disagree with the statement made by another Golden Dawn figure who wrote that spiritual sexuality in the Golden Dawn is a red herring designed to take advantage of lower desires.

Absolutely! Statements like this are themselves red herrings - intended to frighten people away from the Alpha Omega! I have no beef with those who want to run their own orders like the Roman Catholic church, because I value diversity in our community. I just hope they will no longer hamstring the entire Golden Dawn tradition with fear mongering marketing.

In the highest teachings of the Hermetic and Rosicrucian traditions, love and sexuality are understood precisely as they are in the highest teachings of the Taoist and Tantric alchemical traditions in the East. In all genuine alchemical traditions, no matter where they are found around the world, love and sexuality are viewed as two primary motors for spiritual development.

I honestly find it odd when people are project Victorian ethics on a society like the Golden Dawn t- hat was marked by its progressive attitude since 1888! In the classical Golden Dawn, the concept of sexual polarity lies at the very heart of the GD system. 

The Golden Dawn was revolutionary in admitting both men and women on an equal basis already in 1888. The concept of sexual polarity permeates the entire symbolism of the Golden Dawn's rituals and teachings. On this point, Pat Zalewki's and Nick Farrell's position you quoted above have evolved into full agreement with mine.

The notion of sexual polarity also permeates the Qabalah, as any serious researcher will attest. In a similar vein one can see that the same concept of sexual polarity permeates much of the work of A.E. Waite and is particularly evident in his 'Holy Kabbalah' and in much of the imagery of his rituals for the higher grades of Waite’s, Fraternity of the Rosy Cross.

A.E. Waite

Even in BOTA, which developed out of the Alpha et Omega, Paul Case's successor, Ann Davies, gave considerable prominence to the concept of sexual polarity, Ann Davies also delivered a long and lengthy series of lectures on this very subject, some of which recommended the sexual practice of 'Karezza.' In short, the concept of sexuality is inextricably involved with the Mysteries, and particularly as found within the Golden Dawn, Alpha et Omega, and Stella Matutina systems.

This certainly does not sound like there is "no evidence of spiritual sexuality in the Golden Dawn" as some Neo-Golden Dawn groups have claimed. The fact that teachings regarding spiritual sexuality have always been primarily transmitted in the Golden Dawn and Alpha et Omega via oral tradition does not mean there is no evidence of these things.

Golden Dawn historian Ithell Colquhoun, for example, wrote an important biography of S.L. MacGregor Mathers. This biography does have certain errors and is flawed in a number of respects. Colquhoun is quite right, however, to give some prominence to the question of the importance of sexual energies within the Golden Dawn. In fact many of Colquhoun's speculations or intuitions, based on slender evidence, have been proven by subsequent research to be very accurate.

Ithell Colquhoun

Particularly noteworthy is Colquhoun's mention of an oral tradition regarding sexuality within the original HOGD as well as in the Alpha et Omega. Colquhoun also mentions that, in her opinion, the sexual aspects should appear in the highest grades of any occult fraternity, including the projected Third Order of the original Golden Dawn, as is presently the case in the Third Order of Mathers’ Alpha et Omega today.

Colquhoun further discusses actual rituals pertaining to sexual polarity performed by early members of the Golden Dawn. In particular, she discusses at length the unpublished "Lilith" ritual of A.E. Waite that she found at the Warburg Institute. Finally, Colquhoun also discusses issues pertaining to Golden Dawn ritual and tantra groups regarding sexual polarity and the role of women in both tantra groups as well as in the original Golden Dawn.

What about the argument put forth by certain Golden Dawn leaders that it allegedly is well established fact that S. L. MacGregor Mathers and his wife Moina lived in a "celibate marriage" and that this proves that there is no spiritual sexuality in the classical Golden Dawn tradition?

Look. No one in the Golden Dawn community really believes that any longer, with maybe one exception. Even Nick Farrell has written that S.L. MacGregor Mathers' wife was "frigid" and that Mathers himself was "having an affair with the maid in Paris." Even though Nick likes to write sensationalistic tabloid stuff of questionably veracity like this, the above does show that not even Farrell takes the "celibate marriage" argument seriously.

In reality, no reputable Golden Dawn historian has ever presented a single shred of evidence to support  the "celibate marriage" myth about the Mathers. If those inventing such myths had any real evidence, they would have produced it long ago. All the proponents of the "celibacy myth" have done until now is to quote one letter from Moina Mathers to Annie Horniman completely out of context.

Annie Horniman

Even in this letter, Moina Mathers does not actually say she lived in a celibate marriage with Golden Dawn founder, S.L. MacGregor Mathers. What she does say is that their marriage is "pure." Contrary to the interpretation of the chastity myth proponents, marital purity is not necesarily the same thing at all as chastity. It more likely refers to marital fidelity. To interpret this as making it "well established fact that the Mathers were "chaste" is merely to project prudish, Victorian attitudes towards sexuality onto the Golden Dawn. In reality, the Golden Dawn was quite progressive since its inception.

Moina Mathers

What then do the Mathers and other early Golden Dawn Adepts actually say about sexuality and the Golden Dawn in their writings?

To begin with, sexuality is treated somewhat more explicitly in certain original Theoricus Adeptus Minor documents written by Mathers, particularly in one paper known as 'The Opening of the Knowledge of the Masculine and Feminine Potencies necessary unto the the manifestation of all things, symbolized in the diagram of the Flaming Sword between MTTRVN and SNDLPVN'.

Next it should also be noted that the once Chief Adept in Anglia, Florence Farr, also alludes to a sexual doctrine in the Golden Dawn Flying Roll XIII, entitled "Secrecy and Hermetic Love."

Florence Farr

More importantly, however, in a letter to Annie Horniman dated 8 January 1896, from S.L. MacGregor Mathers himself writes:

"I must ask you, whenever matters of sex arise in the Order, and you are asked for instruction thereon: to refer them to G.H. Frater N.O.M." -SL Macgregor Mathers

S.L. MacGregor Mathers

It should be noted that Mathers here asks Horniman to obtain direct or oral teaching on the subject from Golden Dawn Chief Wynn Westcott, and he does not refer her to any documents issued by the Order. This is a clear reference to the Golden Dawn oral tradition on this subject.

Wynn Wescott

Next, Moina Mathers, writing to the relatively prudish Annie Horniman, attributes teachings on the "Sex question" to a much "higher grade" than 5=6. In fact, in the aforementioned 1895 letter misquoted by A.O. detractors, Moina Mathers actually writes to Anne Horniman:

"Knowing as yet only something of the composition of the human being as a Theoricus Adept, you are really not in a position to form an opinion on these subjects . . . discussed as . . . the human sexual connection. . . . So if one of these . . .come up you would have to refer the question to a member of a much higher grade than Theoricus Adept." -Moina Mathers

In short, Horniman was upset about a sexual instruction and wrote complaining to Mrs. Mathers. who responded that Horniman was unfit to judge matters concerning spiritual sexuality because she did not possess the complete instructions of a "much higher grade."

Moina Mathers

Then there is the letter that Moina Mathers wrote to Paul Foster Case, explicitly alluding to teachings in relation to sexual polarity in the Higher Grades of the Alpha et Omega:

Paul Foster Case

"Care et V.H. Frater Perseverantia, 

As I hear that the Sex Theory subject has been under discussion in Thoth Hermes Temple, I should like to say a few words to you on the subject. I regret that anything on the Sex question should have entered into the Temple at this stage for we only begin to touch on sex matters directly, in quite the higher Grades. In fact, we only give a rather complete explanation of this subject in that Grade where the Adept has proved to be so equilibrated and spiritualized that he is complete lord of his passional self. Believe me, this is not mere theory. I am not speaking to you from a merely theoretical point of view ." -Moina Mathers

Finally, there is case of female Alpha et Omega initiate, Dion Fortune, who like Paul Foster Case went on to found her own occult school. Having joined the Alpha et Omega in 1919 Dion Fortune quickly aroused the anger of Moina Mathers as too independent for her grade level. Trouble began when Dion Fortune published a work entitled "The Philosophy of Love and Marriage" in 1925. Moina Mathers objected to Dion Fortune’s open disclosure teachings on sexual polarity in the higher grades of the Alpha et Omega. Several other statements Dion Fortune published in the Occult Review irritated Moina Mathers so much that it ultimately led to Dion Fortune leaving the AO.

Dion Fortune

Here is one such statement Dion Fortune made, and I quote:

"The management of the sex forces is an exceedingly important thing in occultism..." -Dion Fortune

Here is another one:

"Those who have entered into the deeper aspects of occultism know that Kundalini, the Serpent Force which lies curled up at the base of the spine, is really the sex force which has its centre in the sacral plexus from which issue the nerves which govern the reproductive organs. In the normal way, this force is fully absorbed in its physiological functions, but there are two ways of rendering it available for other purposes, for its psychic aspect it is a very important potency on the Inner Planes; it can be sublimated above its natural plane of expression, as done by the ascetic; or it can be degraded." -Dion Fortune

From the conflicts between Moina Mathers and both Paul Foster Case and Dion Fortune, we see clear and compelling evidence of the sexual mysteries in the Golden Dawn and Alpha et Omega. These were, however, and still remain the most carefully guarded treasures of the Alpha Omega today. The conflicts with Paul Foster Case and Dion Fortune also show to what lengths Moina Mathers actually went to protect the sanctity of these mysteries.

You have presented a compelling argument. Before we move on, do you have anything else you would like to say in response to those who have tried the paint these mysteries as out of sync with the Golden Dawn?

How about if I let the words of former Alpha et Omega initiate, Dion Fortune answer some of these absurd notions. I quote:

"Anybody who regards sex as evil, or is in any way afraid of it or self-conscious about it, had better leave occultism alone; for it is only through a perfectly naturalistic attitude towards giving of life that life force can be handled. Let it never be forgotten that there is no such things as sex force per se, but that it is simply the life force on a particular level, and that through this level the force must pass every time it rises and descends on the planes." -Dion Fortune

Finally, there can no better rebuttal to those who like to condemn spiritual sexuality playing any role at all in the Golden Dawn than the words of Moina Mathers herself. I quote here from a circa 1900 interview about the Mathers' “Rites of Isis" in Paris. Moina writes:

"How can we hope that the world will become purer and less material when one excludes from the Divine, which is the highest ideal, part of its nature which represents at one and the same time the faculty of receiving and giving - that is to say love itself and its highest form---love the symbol of universal sympathy? That is where the magical power of women is found." -Moina Mathers

To Moina Mathers words, I would only like to add that this is also where the magical power of men is found.

I would like to discuss now some of the basics of sexuality and the Golden Dawn, if you don’t mind. You mentioned earlier that one of the Hermetic teachings is to see the physical body as the seat of both consciousness and spirit. Am I correct?

That's right. In Hermetic Science we define Spirit and Soul in very specific ways though. To put it most simply we see Spirit quite as solar and stellar energy. We see Soul as the energetic aspect of our natures. Our Mother is the Earth. She gives us the matter for our physical bodies. Our Father is the Sun, and gives us our vital energy that is the essence of life itself.

So in Hermetic Science, you define Spirit and Flesh as energy and matter?

That's right. But we take this even a step further. The Hermetic tradition has been saying that spirit and flesh are two forms of the same thing for thousands of years. Interestingly, thanks to Einstein, science recently confirmed this, although science says it using slightly different language. Modern physics says that matter and energy are two forms of the same thing, just existing as different frequencies of vibration. Einstein even defined this relationship mathematically.

Hermetics takes this notion yet a step further though, and science is on the verge of to proving this as well. Hermetics say that consciousness itself is a function of this one thing that is both spirit and flesh, or matter and energy as modern science calls these things. This is an absolute cornerstone of Hermetic philosophy. You find this same notion repeated in numerous of the world's other great spiritual traditions as well, especially in the East.

Ah! Since energy and matter, or Spirit and Flesh are different forms of the same thing, and since consciousness is a function of the body, then by affecting the body you also affect consciousness.

Absolutely. This is an important principle of the Great Work!

It is the true basis of Hermetic alchemy. We transform our consciousness by transmuting the matter of the physical body into energy. This is the very essence energetic evolution put into its simplest terms.

But where do love and sexuality come in?

In all of the classical alchemical texts you find alchemists cooking the "prima materia" in flasks called Athanors. The same is true in internal alchemy, except that everything is inside of you. Your physical body itself is the athanor and the matter of your body is the true "prima materia." In inner alchemy, everything you find in the alchemical texts are really allegories for things inside of you.

Even the fire that heats the athanor is inside of you. In internal alchemy, it is the subtle fires of the body itself that we use to "cook" the matter of our bodies into ever purer forms of energy. Love and sexuality are two essential and extremely powerful of these subtle inner fires.

You mean we transform our physical bodies into energy by cooking our matter with love and sex?

Yes! This is exactly what you do in Hermetic Internal Alchemy.

I think most people back in the day would have been bothered by this kind of thinking.

Precisely - and this is one important reason why this knowledge has been kept so hidden for thousands of years. If this had come out only few hundred years ago - we could have all gotten burned at the stake for such "heretical" notions.

Sounds pretty dangerous to me.

Dangerous? Historically - you bet it was. And this is why the myth of alchemy as a gold cooking pseudo-science has been so useful. It allowed initiates to preserve and secretly communicate the actual techniques of Royal Art of Alchemy using analogies that would not get us burned at the stake!

Yep. Early Christianity posed a serious danger to the survival of the Royal Art of the ancient Egyptians, so the great Adepts of the past became very creative to keep they mysteries intact.

Believe it or not, certain great Initiates even managed to encode and hide many important principles of Hermetic Science in the stories and rites of the Christian church itself. In things like the mass, the eucharist, and the use of bread and wine. This initiatic meaning of these things would be a blog in itself though.

Well ... things have certainly changed today. At least you can talk about these things openly today without fear of getting burned alive!

This is true. But this doesn't mean that there is no danger at all in discussing these things openly even today. Just look at all the heat I took and fear mongering attacks against the Alpha Omega just because of my openness about this!

Is there anything that you would like to add David, in conclusion?

I would only like to underscore that our order, Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega and our outer order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, are inheritors of the highest wisdom of 2,000 years of Hermetic tradition. As such, we teach all three spiritual disciplines that have been the primary spiritual practices of the Hermetic tradition for over two millennia: Hermetic Magic, Alchemy, and Astrology.

Hermetic Science teaches that material life on planets is just a caterpillar stage to life as pure energy - inside the Sun and stars - at the fast end of the universe vibrating at the speed of light! In truth - the Royal Art of Alchemy is the Hermetic Science of energetic development - of evolution of Soul.

True alchemical transmutation - Lead into Gold - uses love and sexuality as subtle fires - to grow a Solar Body of Light - or, in other words, to cultivate a Soul - we do this by transmuting our physical bodies (Lead or Prima. We do this by transmuting our physical bodies (Lead or Prima Materia) - into pure Solar energy (Gold or Spirit). The ultimate goal of the Great Work (or Opus Magnum) of alchemical transmutation - is for to ascend at death into the Solar Dimension - inside of starlight and the Sun - thus becoming consciously immortal.

You also find this same notion of love and sexuality as transmutative fires of our bodies in all the great spiritual traditions of the East - In Tantra as Kundalini - In Taoism, as Chi and Ching ... and as LVX (Lux) in the Hermetic tradition.

The great news is that we do not have to go looking for this wisdom in the East. We have our own tradition of spiritual sexuality right here in the West in the Hermetic initiatic tradition.

Finally, I think it would be wise to repeat what i said at the beginning of this interview. I have now demonstrated historical precedence in the Golden Dawn supporting the position on spiritual sexuality held by the Alpha Omega. Again, this does not mean, however, that there is any sort of "right" or "wrong" position about spiritual sexuality in today's Golden Dawn community. Our diversity gives people choices!

When it comes to spiritual sexuality, people actually have pretty clear choices. People who understand the role spiritual sexuality in the great spiritual traditions of the world, including Tantra and Taoism - in addition to the Hermetic and Rosicruican traditions - are better off with the Alpha Omega. Why? Because we are the only Golden Dawn order that includes spiritual teachings about these things in the highest grades.

There are also orders led by Neo-Golden Dawn scholars like Pat Zalewksi and Nick Farrell, who understand that spiritual sexuality does have a place in the Golden Dawn, but argue that this is only symbolical and involves no actual spiritual practices. Then there are Neo-Golden Dawn orders who teach that spiritual sexuality has no place at all in the Golden Dawn and hold a pretty dim view of sexuality in general.

All of this is great. It gives people clear choices.

As always, I am not saying that the Alpha Omega is the "best" order or that we are in any way "better" than anyone else.

Only that we DO things differently!

Click HERE to explore our Outer Order, undergraduate level Magical training program, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn!"

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