Golden Dawn Blog by Frater Yechidah

[Edit 2012: I should point out that further research, contemplation, and discussion has led me to believe my prior views on sashes held by officers was wrong. The documents themselves make it clear that they were worn by officers in the original ritual, and many of my other points can be easily argued against. I leave the post intact for the sake of the debate, but I recommend any group wishing to follow the traditional Golden Dawn system keep the sashes for officers.] In a recent discussion with Nick Farrell on his blog the topic of officers wearing grade sashes in ritual came up. Both he and I are of the opinion that these should not be worn when holding an office, for a number of reasons: They can be impractical. An officer has enough to wear with a robe, tabard/cloak, collar and lamen, and so forth. Adding a sash to the mix only makes things more cumbersome. The Initiate may be, for practical reasons, of a lower grade than the office requires. For example, there may not ...

I don't have the time. I'm not in the mood. I'll do it later. These are but a few of the more obvious excuses that we come up with for not doing things, particularly our magical work (though it applies to all areas of our lives). When we embark on our spiritual quest, or attempt to advance to the next level, our ego panics; how is it going to retain its seat of power if you engage contact with the Higher Self or attempt progress that will diminish selfishness and a limited mindset? So it fights you. And it has to fight, because this could be a life or death matter for it, or, more likely, the toppling of a false king from his throne. The Tower of Babel and the Kings of Edom. Excuses are one of the ego's greatest tricks. They can be very insidious and convincing, and as you adapt to combat them, so too does the ego adapt its repertoire of excuses so that they become more complex and subtle. Suddenly you think that you're the one who originated with the thought...