Aleister Crowley was an English occultist, philosopher, ceremonial magician, poet, painter, novelist and mountaineer. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the prophet entrusted with guiding humanity into the Æon of Horus in the early 20th century. A prolific writer, he published widely over the course of his life.
The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, more commonly the Golden Dawn, was a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Known as a magical order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was active in Great Britain and focused its practices on theurgy and spiritual development. Many present-day concepts of ritual and magic that are at the centre of contemporary traditions, such as Wicca and Thelema, were inspired by the Golden Dawn, which became one of the largest single influences on 20th-century Western occultism.
A magical organization or magical order is an organization or secret society created for the practice of initiation into ceremonial or other forms of occult magic or to further the knowledge of magic among its members. Magical organizations can include Hermetic orders, Wiccan covens and circles, esoteric societies, arcane colleges, witches' covens, and other groups which may use different terminology and similar though diverse practices.
Thelema is a Western esoteric and occult social or spiritual philosophy and new religious movement founded in the early 1900s by Aleister Crowley (1875–1947), an English writer, mystic, occultist, and ceremonial magician. The word thelema is the English transliteration of the Koine Greek noun θέλημα, "will", from the verb θέλω : "to will, wish, want or purpose."
Rosicrucianism is a spiritual and cultural movement that arose in Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts announcing to the world a new esoteric order. Rosicrucianism is symbolized by the Rosy Cross or Rose Cross.
Ordo Templi Orientis is an occult secret society and hermetic magical organization founded at the beginning of the 20th century. The origins of O.T.O. can be traced back to the German-speaking occultists Carl Kellner, Theodor Reuss, Heinrich Klein, and Franz Hartmann. In its first incarnation, O.T.O. was intended to be modelled after and associated with European Freemasonry and as such in its early years only Freemasons could seek admittance.
Baphomet is a deity allegedly worshipped by the Knights Templar that subsequently became incorporated into various occult and Western esoteric traditions. The name Baphomet appeared in trial transcripts for the Inquisition of the Knights Templar starting in 1307. It first came into popular English usage in the 19th century during debate and speculation on the reasons for the suppression of the Templar order. Baphomet is a symbol of balance in various occult and mystical traditions, the origin of which some occultists have attempted to link with the Gnostics and Templars, although occasionally purported to be a deity or a demon. Since 1856 the name Baphomet has been associated with the "Sabbatic Goat" image drawn by Éliphas Lévi, composed of binary elements representing the "symbolization of the equilibrium of opposites": half-human and half-animal, male and female, good and evil, etc. Lévi's intention was to symbolize his concept of balance, with Baphomet representing the goal of perfect social order.
Reuben Swinburne Clymer was an American occultist and modern Rosicrucian Supreme Grand Master of the FRC, perhaps the oldest continuing Rosicrucian organization in the Americas. He practiced alternative medicine, and wrote and published works on it as well as the teachings of Paschal Beverly Randolph (1825-1875), alchemy, nutrition, religion, sex magic and spiritualism. This led to a number of conflicts with Harvey Spencer Lewis (1883-1939) and the AMORC, FUDOSI, Aleister Crowley, and even the American Medical Association.
The Rose Cross is a symbol largely associated with the legendary Christian Rosenkreuz; Christian Kabbalist, alchemist, and founder of the Rosicrucian Order. The Rose Cross is a cross with a rose at its centre, often red, golden or white and symbolizes the teachings of a Western esoteric tradition with Christian tenets.
Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers, born Samuel Liddell Mathers, was a British occultist. He is primarily known as one of the founders of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a ceremonial magic order of which offshoots still exist. He became so synonymous with the order that Golden Dawn scholar Israel Regardie observed in retrospect that "the Golden Dawn was MacGregor Mathers."
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas and currents are united since they are largely distinct both from orthodox Judeo-Christian religion and Enlightenment rationalism. Esotericism has pervaded various forms of Western philosophy, mysticism and religion, pseudoscience, art, literature, as well as music—and continues to influence intellectual ideas and popular culture.
Sex magic is any type of sexual activity used in magical, ritualistic or otherwise religious and spiritual pursuits. One practice of sex magic is using sexual arousal or orgasm with visualization of a desired result. A premise posited by sex magicians is the concept that sexual energy is a potent force that can be harnessed to transcend one's normally perceived reality.
Babalon is a goddess found in the occult system of Thelema, which was established in 1904 with the writing of The Book of the Law by English author and occultist Aleister Crowley. The spelling of the name as "Babalon" was revealed to Crowley in The Vision and the Voice. Her name and imagery feature prominently in Crowley's "Liber Cheth vel Vallum Abiegni".
The Blue Equinox, officially known as The Equinox: Volume III, Number I, is a book written by the English occultist Aleister Crowley, the founder of Thelema. First published in 1919, it details the principles and aims of the secret society O.T.O. and its ally the A∴A∴, both of which were under Crowley's control at the time. It includes such topics as The Law of Liberty, The Gnostic Mass, and Crowley's "Hymn to Pan".
Jan van Rijckenborgh was a Dutch-born mystic and founder of the Lectorium Rosicrucianum, a worldwide esoteric Rosicrucian movement.
Hermetic Qabalah is a Western esoteric tradition involving mysticism and the occult. It is the underlying philosophy and framework for magical societies such as the Golden Dawn, Thelemic orders, mystical-religious societies such as the Builders of the Adytum and the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross, and is a precursor to the Neopagan, Wiccan and New Age movements. The Hermetic Qabalah is the basis for Qliphothic Qabala as studied by left-hand path orders, such as the Typhonian Order.
Frank Bennett (1868 – November 1930) was an Australian chemist who was disciple of occultist Aleister Crowley a member and later head of the Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.) in that country. He was a member of Crowley’s A∴A∴ and is often referred to by one of the magical names that he used in that Order: Frater Progradior,.
Fairfax Academy is a secondary school with academy status in the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, in north Birmingham. The school was established in 1959. The school has a sixth-form, with a new sixth-form centre which opened in September 2013.
Gnostics was a 1987 four-part drama-documentary series made by Border TV for Channel 4 (UK). It was re-broadcast in 1990. The writer of the series, Tobias Churton, also released an accompanying book.
The Kabbalistic Order of the Rose-Cross was France's first ever occult society, established by Stanislas de Guaita and Joséphin Péladan in 1888. Its structure and teaching had similarities and intersections with the first Martinist Order—Ordre des Supérieurs Inconnus—founded by Gérard Encausse, and has an emphasis on Christian Kabbalah as its domain of study and direction of spiritual work.
