Golden Dawn Blog by Frater Yechidah

As initiates progress through the Outer Order a number of obstacles can get in their way, which can distract them from the Work and slow or stall their progress. Just as some people try to rush through the grades, others might become stuck in their current grade and end up with too much of that element. The problem is particularly apparent in the grades of Practicus and Philosophus, which relate to the elements of Water and Fire respectively. These two elements are the extremes and these grades are not on the Middle Pillar, like Zelator and Theoricus, so they are intrinsically more imbalanced. Dwelling too long in these grades, in particular, but also in any of the other grades, can create an extreme over-abundance and imbalance of that element in a person, to the point of it being potentially dangerous. The paths leading to these Sephiroth, and certain other parts of the Golden Dawn system, attempt to mitigate the intense imbalance of these grades, but ultimately ...

There is a continuing lack of understanding regarding the placement of the grades upon the Tree of Life, particularly in terms of their elemental associations. I addressed some of the Golden Dawn reasoning behind the seemingly inconsistent placement of the Air grade of Theoricus in the watery Sephirah of Yesod (Luna) and the Water grade of Practicus in the airy grade of Hod (Mercury) in my article Reconciling An Elemental Inconsistency in Issue 6 of Hemetic Virtues. Here, however, I will highlight another aspect, which sheds light on the placement of the elements with the Sephiroth, or, conversely, sheds light on the choice of colours employed. Let us skip Zelator for now, which is Earth and Malkuth, and focus on the three primary elements of Air, Water, and Fire (Yesod/ Theoricus, Hod/Practicus, and Netzach/Philosophus respectively). The Sephirah of Yesod is coloured violet (or purple) in the Queen Scale (the most commonly employed of the four Colour Scales). The colour of Air is yel...

Traditionally the Officers in a GD ceremony were required to be of at least a certain grade, and thus these Officers would be dropped from subsequent initiations (such as the Sentinel, being a Neophyte, being dropped from Zelator onwards) to ensure that such an Officer would not be employed in an initiation above their own grade. The traditional grade requirements for holding office are: Sentinel - Neophyte Stolistes and Dadouchos - Zelator Keryx - Theoricus Hegemon - Practicus Hiereus - Philosophus Hierophant - Adeptus Minor (usually ZAM) For some interesting alternative perspectives on the suggested or required grade of the Officers in an initiation, check out this post by Morgan Drake Eckstein .