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Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
"While some writers have regarded magic as psycho-therapeutic work (Francis King and Israel Regardie, for example), others have characterized it as the discovery of the unity within all duality, the truth behind all illusions. W. B. Yeats sought knowledge of what he called 'the single energetic Mind,' and its pole, 'the single Memory of nature,' both of which he believed could be evoked by symbols. But I like Florence Farr's definition of magic best: 'Magic is unlimiting experience.' That is, magic consists of removing the limitations from what we think are the earthly and spiritual laws that bind or compel us. We can be anything because we are All." 
- Mary K. Greer, Women of the Golden Dawn

Founded by three British Freemasons (Mathers, Woodman, and Westcott) in 1887

"The Order of the G.D. [Golden Dawn] is an Hermetic Society whose members are taught the principles of Occult Science and the Magic of Hermes." - Israel Regardie's The Golden Dawn

"The Hermetic tradition was both moderate and flexible, offering a tolerant philosophical religion, a religion of the (omnipresent) mind, a purified perception of God, the cosmos, and the self, and much positive encouragement for the spiritual seeker, all of which the student could take anywhere." - Tobias Churton, Professor of Western Esotericism at the University of Exeter

Hermetic: c.1600 (implied in hermetically), 'completely sealed,' also (1630s) 'dealing with occult science or alchemy,' from L. hermeticus, from Gk. Hermes, god of science and art, among other things, identified by Neoplatonists, mystics, and alchemists with the Egyptian god Thoth as Hermes Trismegistos 'Thrice-Great Hermes,' who supposedly invented the process of making a glass tube airtight (a process in alchemy) using a secret seal." (online etymology dictionary)

Major Hermetic works

The Corpus Hermeticum... 17 books with dialogues between Poimandres (also known as Nous and God) and Hermes... through a meditative state, the secrets of the universe are made clear to Hermes.

The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus... It conceptualizes the 'As above, so below' or rather, 'That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracle of the One Thing.'" as translated by Dennis W. Hauck

Trismegistus (Thrice Great)

Three parts of the wisdom: alchemy (philosopher), astrology (priest), and theurgy (king). 

"They called him Trismegistus because he was the greatest philosopher and the greatest priest and the greatest king." (The Pymander) while some say 'He was called Trismegistus on account of his praise of the trinity, saying there is one divine nature in the trinity.'" (Suda, 10th century) 

Alchemy... "Commonly misunderstood as a futile effort to turn lead into gold, as a precursor of modern chemistry, or as a primitive form of depth psychology, alchemy is actually a complex, wide-reaching, and subtle assemblage of disciplines, united by a common theoretical structure but extending into nearly every imaginable field of human experience." (Encyclopedia of the Occult, John Michael Greer)

Astrology... "The art and science of divination by the position of sun, moon, planets, and stars relative to a position on the surface of the earth... the position of stars and planets at any given moment can be interpreted as a map of the subtle forces and factors in play at that moment. When a person is born, an event takes place, or a question is asked, the characteristics of the exact moment in time when these things happen are mirrored in the heavens, and can be read by those who know how." (Encyclopedia of the Occult) Hermes claims Zoroaster discovered this and taught it to man. Beyond the physics of the movement of planets, it holds value as symbols in the mind of The All, or God. 

Theurgy... "There are two different types of magic, both completely opposite of each other. The first is Goatia, black magic reliant upon an alliance with evil spirits (i.e. demons). The second is Theurgy, divine magic reliant upon an alliance with divine spirits (i.e. angels, archangels, gods)." - Giovanni Pico della Mirandola's Apology

Theurgy is "The Science or art of Divine Works" and is the practical facet of the Hermetic art of alchemy. - (Garstin p. 6) Alchemy is seen as the 'key' to theurgy, [Garstin p. vi] the 'ultimate goal of which is to become united with higher counterparts, leading to the attainment of Divine Consciousness.' [Garstin, E.J. Langford (2004). Theurgy or The Hermetic Practice. Berwick: Ibis Press.] 

"O son, how many bodies we have to pass through, how many bands of demons, through how many series of repetitions and cycles of the stars, before we hasten to the One alone?" - The Way of Hermes p. 33 

The Golden Dawn combines Jewish Kabbalah, ancient Egyptian and Greek mysteries, Christianity, and numerous other Western esoteric traditions. Gardnerian Wicca is rooted in the Golden Dawn. It is open to both sexes, treated as equals

Religious tolerance

"There is nothing contrary to your civil, moral, or religious duties." 

"Remember that you hold all Religions in reverence, for there is none but contains a Ray from the Ineffable Light that you are seeking." - Neophyte initiation ceremony, G.D.

Rosicrucians

A mystical/mythical Christian organization of the 17th century, its history is a mystery. The anonymous Fama Fraternitatis of 1610 described the secret order's founding of enlightened learning in the Hermetic and Christian mysteries. Its founder is Christian Rosenkreutz (C.R.C).

Another manifesto, Confessio Fraternitatis, surfaced in 1615. The Rosicrucian Order is described in more detail, and firmly takes issue with the Papacy. A third text, The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz, is an alchemical fantasy that bears little association with the previous documents.

Be it known that

"The 'True and Invisible' Rosicrucian Order is a shared 'state of mind,' not an actual organized society." - Paul Foster 

Golden Dawn's emphasis is connection with the 'soul' or 'egregore [group soul]' of the Rosy Cross

The Rose is "love in all its forms, from the most spiritual levels of compassion to the most earthy of passions. It is balanced by the lily, the symbol of purity." (Encyclopedia of the Occult)

The Rosy Cross... Some believe "the cross represents the human body and the rose represents the individual's unfolding consciousness." (Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis, Our Traditional and Chronological History)

The Rosicrucian Fellowship describes it as an Invisible College of mystic sages, formed of a higher entity, holding the symbolic name of Christian Rosenkreuz in order 'to prepare a new phase of the Christian religion to be used during the coming age now at hand, for as the world and man evolve so also must religion change.' They are 'persons who have been exalted (verzueckt) to God, and who have remained in that state of exaltation, and have not died' nobody knew what became of them, and yet they remained on the earth. (Franz Hartmann, Life & Prophecies of Paracelsus, 1493... 1541)

"These sages, whose number is small, are children of light, and are opposed to darkness. They dislike mystification and secrecy; they are open and frank, have nothing to do with secret societies and with external ceremonies. They possess a spiritual temple, in which God is presiding." (Karl von Eckartshausen) "Theirs is a work which aims to encourage the evolution of humanity, they have labored far back into antiquity--under one guise or another." (Max Heindel, Brothers of the Rose Cross)

The Rose is silence, while the Cross is "salvation, to which the Society of the Rose-Cross devoted itself by teaching mankind the love of God and the beauty of brotherhood, with all that they implied." (Baxter, James. Sir Francis Bacon and The Rosy Cross)

It is also known as the Philosopher's Stone, the "ultimate product of the alchemist." (Heindel, Max. Freemasonry and Catholicism, Part VII)

In the Golden Dawn, 'The Ritual of the Rose Cross,' provides spiritual protection, allowing one a meditative state. It is the primary symbol of the Second Order. The Rosy Cross bears "attributes for the Elements, Planets, Zodiac, Hebrew alphabet, alchemical principles, the hexagram and pentagram, the sephiroth of the Tree of Life, and the formula of INRI." (Regardie, Israel)

The motto of the Zelator Adeptus Minor is inscribed on the back side of the Rosy Cross. It reads: "The master Jesus Christ, God and Mana" on the bottom, and between four Maltese crosses, in the center, it reads: "Blessed be the Lord our God who hath given us the Symbol Signum." 

"Established in 2004 the temple of 'The Rose-Cross' is a Lamen or badge synthesizing a vast concourse of ideas, representing in a single emblem the Great Work itself... the harmonious reconciliation in one symbol of diverse and apparently contradictory concepts, the reconciliation of divinity and manhood. It is a highly important symbol to be worn over the heart during every important operation. It is a glyph, in one sense, of the higher Genius to whose knowledge and conversation the student is eternally aspiring. In the Rituals it is described as the Key of Sigils and Rituals." (Regardie, The Golden Dawn)

Israel Regardie

Dr. Francis Israel Regardie (17 Nov 1907 - 10 Mar 1985, motto Ad Maiorem Adonai Gloriam, or 'To the greatness of the Lord') joined Felkin's Hermes Temple of the Stella Matutina in 1934. He is best known for publishing The Golden Dawn, thereby breaking the vow of secrecy. 

Aleister Crowley 

Edward Alexander (Aleister) Crowley (1875-1947) joined the Isis-Urania Temple in Nov 1898 and attained Adeptus Minor Jan 1900. He was disgusted with initiation based solely on worldly prosperity. In 1903, Aleister Crowley, the 'magical heir apparent' to Mathers, defected to form his own organizations, publishing G.D. rituals in his Equinox.

"Science is always discovering odd scraps of magical wisdom and making a tremendous fuss about its cleverness." (Aleister Crowley, The Confessions of Aleister Crowley: An Autohagiography)

Practices

The Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP) purifies the environment as 'evil spirits' (undesired, unconscious thought forms) are told to vacate. 

Visualization

"Let the Neophyte consider a point as defined in mathematics - having position, but no magnitude - and let him note the ideas to which this gives rise. Concentrating his faculties on this, as a focus, let him endeavor to realize the Immanence of the Divine throughout Nature, in all her aspects." - First Knowledge Lecture, cf. Regardie's Golden Dawn

As the 'Big Bang,' occurs within an infinitesimally small point which includes the universe's entirety, this 'primitive point' is compared/contrasted with the universe's initial point of creation. It is described in the Zohar: The Book of Enlightenment:

"...Deep within the spark gushed a flow imbuing colors below, concealed within the concealed of the mystery of the Infinite. The flow broke through and did not break through its aura. It was not known at all until, under the impact of breaking through, one high and hidden point shone. 
Beyond that point, nothing is known. So it is called Beginning, the first command of all."

"At heart we are all powerful, beautiful, and capable of changing the world with our bare hands." (Dianne Sylvan, The Body Sacred)

"Therefore, let there be beauty and strength, power and compassion, honor and humility, mirth and reverence within you." (Doreen Valiente, Charge of the Goddess)






Rituals of the Outer Order

Neophyte Ritual
Zealator Ritual
Theoricus Ritual
Practicus Ritual
Philosophus Ritual

Rituals of the Inner Order

Portal Ritual
Adeptus Minor Ritual
Equinox Ceremonies
Consecration and Corpus Christi Ceremony

Ceremonial Magic

  • Evocation Ritual
  • Talisman Consecration Ritual
  • Ritual for Invisibility
  • Ritual for Self-Transformation
  • Ritual for Spiritual Development
  • The Bornless Ritual for the Invocation of the Higher Genius
  • Requiem Ceremony