Crysti Couture

This second installment of my little mini-series will mainly be about the Thelemic groups that I am personally knowledgeable about. For those readers who have been tagging along, I hope that my unintended exclusion of certain groups is not irksome to you.

The purpose of discussing these different groups  is to show how one Philosophy can be applied in different formats, yet still with the same singular goal of ‘Do What Thou Will’ and to discover one’s own True Will.

The methods of practice are essentially the same among the groups. The same Libers and same curriculum but employed in slightly varied methods. It is interesting to note that each group has an emphasis all of their own. The most distinguishable symbol and methodology of practice among all studies is the devoted use of the Kabbalah Tree of Life, which we will discuss in further detail on the next installment.

As the Tree of Life is an allegorical map of the Universe, so is the Tree a map of ourselves.

{Rosicrucians} Although not a Thelemic order by any extent of the definition, I believe that it is important to mention the Rosicrucians in this article, as they were an important precursor to some of the more modern Thelemic thought and practice that we know today. The Rosicrucians can be said to be the beginnings of Freemasonry and practiced many esoteric beliefs that were thought to be heretical at the time.

Rosicrucianism, at the most basic and simplistic level, can be described as a fusion of Christian and Egytptian thought. It was said to be established in 46 C.E. by a small group of intellectuals that were enlightened and initiated by Mark, one of the disciples of the Christian prophet, Jesus.

As centuries went by and the Rosicrucian Order continued it’s work, Hermeticism, Alchemy, Astrology, Qabalah and Gnosticism became cornerstones of the study.

{Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn} Taking on the history of the HOGD is an enormous and daunting task to say the least. A very concise and rich history of the establishment of the HOGD can be found HERE.

To an attempt a summary of the modern history of the HOGD, I will start out by saying that it was established in 1888 by Dr. William Wynn Westcott and Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers. The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a complex body of teaching and ritual magical practice brought together Kabbalistic cosmology, the Rosicrucian initiation system, ritual magic, Egyptology, astrology, tarot, and various other such magical and occult streams. 

The HOGD is certainly the influnce behind the establishment behind Thelema, Wicca and Western mysticism in general. The grade structure found in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn is identical to that of Freemasonry and the Astrum Argentum (A∴A∴) and is based on the positions of the Tree of Life.

Aleister Crowley was an initiate of the Golden Dawn and his inclusion was met with a lot of controversy and resentment due to having been initiated to the Order on a higher degree by his friend S.L. MacGregor Mathers. Much more on this subject can be found in the history linked above.

However, due to this blatant shunning, Aleister went off to create his own branch, based off of a similar grade structure, yet with a differently flavored energy.

{Astrum Argentum} After having been met with so much of the internal drama that the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn had shown, Aleister Crowley branched off and started the Astrum Argentum. The A∴A∴, as it has come to be known, is very similar to Ordo Templi Orientis, but is a separate organization altogether.

I like to think that what makes the A∴A∴ different is that individual study is highly encouraged. Now, I know that Thelema itself is a highly individualized philosophy, but in this specific group of Astrum Argentum (which means Silver Star in Latin) all study is expected to be completed alone, and at the end of each prescribed course of study, you take a test, perform a few rituals and move on to the next degree.

{Ordo Templi Orientis} This is the organization I feel most closely tied with as I am a seeking my Minerval (introductory initiation) very soon and am most familiar with it’s curriculum.

O.T.O has an interesting history in regards to it’s establishment. It was originally intended as a branch of Freemasonry but then good ol’ Mr. Crowley came about and turned the OTO into the awesome group I know and love today. The practice of Thelema is the object of study and the relaization of Self Gnosis (knowledge) is key.

The purpose and mission of OTO is BEST described with the below statement:

It offers a rational basis for universal brotherhood and for universal religion. It puts forward a scientific statement which is a summary of all that is at present known about the universe by means of a simple, yet sublime symbolism, artistically arranged. It also enables each man to discover for himself his personal destiny, indicates the moral and intellectual qualities which he requires in order to fulfil it freely, and finally puts in his hands an unimaginably powerful weapon which he may use to develop in himself every faculty which he may need in his work.

-Aleister Crowley, Confessions

Other tenets that the OTO holds close are the following statements, which are derived from Aleister Crowley’s “Book of the Law”:

1. Do What Thou Will.

2. Love is the Law, love under will.

3. Every man and every woman is a star.

I like to think that the O.T.O. is different from the Astrum Argentum in that the O.T.O. is a universal brotherhood and everyone is quite close knit, or at least are intended to be.

Here are some GREAT resources for the readership to do their own research:

U.S. Grand Lodge of the Ordo Templi Orientis
Scarlet Woman Lodge, What is O.T.O?
Thelemapedia Entry for Ordo Templi Orientis

I hope that this semi-brief overview of some of the history of Thelema and it’s current more common organizations was useful to you. If there is anything you would like to impart, please do so in the comments section.