Golden Dawn Blog by Frater Yechidah

The Book of the Tomb , an AO document comprising a series of instructions (including a Flying Roll) on the construction of the Vault of the Adepti, has been published online by Nick Farrell on his website and can be found here . Some of it has already been in print, including in Regardie's black brick, but this copy is much more complete, with a number of illustrations to boot. This is a very important document for all Golden Dawn orders, especially those currently attempting to construct a Vault.

"Do not be too quick to force a spiritual technique to make sense; otherwise, you may, out of ignorance, modify it into powerlessness." - Lyam Christopher Thomas

Recently the topic of fear stopping one's progress has come up, specifically in relation to the use of certain types of magic, but it is an important point for us all in general. I have already shared somewhat on this topic in a previous post entitled Fear is Failure , but I have the following to add, or reiterate, here: Firstly it is important to post the quote from one of the ceremonies: "Fear is failure, so be thou without fear. For he who trembles at the Flame and the Flood and at the Shadows of the Air, hath no part in God." There is also a reference to this in the essay entitled On the General Guidance and Purification of the Soul which is given to the Practicus: "Humble thyself before thy God, yet fear neither man nor spirit. Fear is failure and the forerunner of failure; and courage is the beginning of virtue. Therefore fear not the Spirits, but be firm and courteous with them, for thou hast no right either to despise or to revile them, and this too may lea...

"It should be noted that in magic the process of integration is continual and cyclical. The three stages of theurgic integration (purification, consecration, and union) occur over and over again, on a variety of levels, throughout one's magical lifetime." - Ciceros, The Essential Golden Dawn

Gnostic priest Jordan Stratford made an interesting post on the Golden Dawn lately, to which I'd like to make a few responses to (unfortunately commenting is disabled there). "Known as the Order of the Golden Dawn , the group attracted some of the greatest artistic and philosophical minds of turn-of-the-century London, including fantasists Arthur Machen, Algernon Blackwood, Dracula creator Bram Stoker, Fu Manchu creator Sax Rhomer, occultists Arthur Edward Waite (creator of the popular tarot deck), Samuel Liddel Macgregor Mathers, überweirdo Aleister Crowley, and famed Irish poet WB Yeats." Firstly, I love the description of Crowley as "überweirdo". However, the mention of Bram Stoker is perhaps misleading, as I discovered when I inquired about his potential membership on my blog last year. While not all of the membership lists have been published, it seems that Stoker is among none of them, although he was perhaps known to some of the Golden Dawn's me...

"With each of the schisms and quarrels which have occurred from time to time, various official documents have been lost, or, what is simply criminal, deliberately destroyed. Unvelievable though it may sound, the attitude seems to have been, 'If I can't make use of these papers. then nobody shall. Into the fire they go.' When one of the Chiefs of a North county Temple died many years ago, it is alleged that his widow promptly seized all his Order manuscripts and, so we are told, destroyed them. Very much the same sort of thing has occurred in other of the Temples. This lamentable behaviour has been confined to no particular group. Where there have been students of the Order this insane attitude has always manifested itself. There is, so I am told, an individual in charge of one of the Temples whose understanding of certain magical matters is not too profound. Rather than acknowledge this, which would have been forced upon him were documents on these subjects distributed...

The Dadouchos (Greek for "Torch-bearer") is the Consecrator of the Temple, its members, and its candidates. He is represented by the god-form Thaum-Esh-Neith (Neith), and his station is in the South of the Temple, symbolising Heat and Dryness, which is the Place of the Guardian of the Lake of Fire and the Burning Bush. He is charged with the task of preparing the Lamps and Fires of the Temple for the Opening, and to watch over the Censer and the Incense for the duration of the ceremony. He wears a black collar with a lamen depicting a white Fylfot Cross on a black background, and carries the Censer of Incense. He bears a special relationship with the Stolistes in the Temple. The feminine form of Dadouchos is Dadouche , but Dadouchos is often used in practice for both sexes.

Issue 8 of Hermetic Virtues has recently been released, containing the following excellent articles: + The Rosicrucian Impulse: Magic, Mysticism and Ritual by Chic Cicero + The Tower, another new Tarot trump by Harry Wendrich + Abramelin and the Golden Dawn by Nick Farrell + Magical Maturity by Dean F. Wilson + Ain Soph and the Golden Dawn by Harry Wendrich + Review of a Previously Unpublished Alchemical Manuscript by Samuel Scarborough + The Alchemical Room by Tommy Westlund + A Solo Equinox Ritual by Samuel Scarborough To obtain a copy, click here . To read my article on Magical Maturity, check here .

The Phylax (Greek for "Guard" or "Sentinel") is the Watcher Without, the guardian of the temple. He is represented by the god-form Anoup emp Emenet (Anubis of the West) and is the counterpart of the Keryx, the Watcher Within. His station is without the Portal of the Hall, and it is his duty to keep out intruders, which is represented by the Sword he carries. He is also charged with preparing the candidate, and wears a black collar with a lamen depicting a white eye on a black background, indicative of the ever watchful gaze of Anubis of the West. The feminine form of Phylax is Phylakissa , but Phylax is often used in practice for both sexes.

There are numerous Offices to be held in Golden Dawn rituals, particularly in the early grades, where, for example, 11 people must hold Office for a Neophyte ceremony (the 7 floor officers and the 4 dais officers [technically the Hierophant has a place on the dais and floor]). This number becomes less as each grade passes by, with only a handful of Adepts dealing with the higher grade initiations. Below are listed the "floor officers" (i.e. those who actively partake in the initiations) that most will be familiar with, along with a short description of their overall roll. Chief Officers Hierophant - Initiating priest Hiereus - Sacrificial priest Hegemon - Spiritual guide Lesser Officers inside the Temple Keryx - Herald and Watcher Within Stolistes - Preparer and purifier Dadouchos - Torch-bearer and consecrator Lesser Officers outside the Temple Phylax - Sentinel and Watcher Without