"Inner Guide Meditation" to contact HGA
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The title sounds incredibly lame, but I found this the other day in the used bookstore for cheap. I flipped it over and saw rave reviews from Israel Regardie, Delores Ashcroft-Norwicki, Gareth Knight and 2 other names I didn't immediately recognize. Flipped it open and saw Regardie also wrote the introduction. Flipped through it and saw it was all about Tarot, Astrology and Jungian archetypes... so, I bought it.
Turns out, it is supposed to be an incredibly easy way to contact your "Inner Guide" and is very methodical. It also seems to jibe with everything I've learned thus far from BOTA and my reading of Crowley material. I Googled it and saw that it was the major inspiration for "21st Century Mage," by Jason Alexander Newcomb which I bought a while ago and was somewhat disappointed by (it is supposed to be various ideas for a modern 'homemade' version of the Abramelin Operation, but it was vague enough to be useless for me, personally).
This "Inner Guide Meditation" book is quite different. Right off, the author explains the process in the first chapter called "Basic Concepts." He then explains the details and follows up with a Q+A.
I'd never heard of it before, but it's supposed to be a "classic." I can see why already by page 33... using your natal chart, you learn how the archetypes of the Tarot work with you personally and how to contact and work with them all. For the first time, the idea that each person "had his own pack of demons and angels," as Lon Milo Duquette might put it really made sense to me. The author's explanation of how these living beings needs project "out there" whatever is neglected "in here" is concise and believable without leaving a bunch of unanswered questions, as is usually the case. And his frequent reference to the internal sun strikes me as very Crowley-influenced. In the "suggested reading," the author only lists Book of Thoth, however.
I'm looking forward to trying this. It reminds me of the success I had using one of Will Parfitt's seemingly simpleton techniques.
The lengthy quotations from Jung and Plato put the whole thing in perspective and add legitimacy to the author's claims right off the bat. This looks to be a "get-to-the-point" sort of book, which is my favorite. Not just a bunch of theory. A step-by-step method with just enough guidance.
I'd be particularly interested, of course, to see if Jim has ever read this book and what he thinks of it.
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I've read it, and it's a very curious book. IMO it's not about contacting the HGA, but about using guided visualizations or Jungian "active imagination" to encounter various "spirit guides" of the sort that are popular these days with wiccans, neo-pagans, and self-styled shamans. This is all tied in with a detailed theory of the natal horoscope as a map of the psyche.
It struck me that the author was very intent on telling you what your intimate inner experiences were going to be like, and suggesting that if you experienced things differently you were doing it wrong.
If it appeals to you, go for it, and let us know how it works for you.
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The only thing I've read that sounds like what you're describing coincided with what I learned through BOTA. For example, that your True Inner Guide will radiate love, will not try to cajole you or criticize you, will not judge you or others, will not try to intimidate you, etc. He does compare the Inner Guide to the Guardian Angel. This Inner Guide becomes the mediator between you and the archetypes... so, it is supposed to be the HGA.
As far as the inner experiences, in general, he pretty much said how anything unfolded was correct if it unfolds naturally (ie. the appearances are whatever they are without struggle to imagine them a certain way, etc.). I'm not very far in, like I said, but so far the only thing I've read that sounds as you describe it are the same things described in BOTA. And these are things he's supposedly learned by trial and error working with a bunch of people and aggregating the experiences.
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@DavidH said
"Just curious, do most of you think that the esoteric Christian's "Cosmic Christ" or "Christ Within" is the same thing as the HGA?"
I'm not real familiar with that terminology. Sounds like it could be, but it would depend on the surrounding text, I suppose. I saw those terms in a book about auras once a long time ago. At the time it struck me as weird to be mixing Jesus in with "occulty" stuff*, but I'm sure I'd feel different now. I think the book was crap, though. Co-authored by a husband-wife team.
*I should mention this was about 1993-94 when I had a very different view about Christianity.
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Directly from the BOTA website (of which I am not affiliated):
"Builders of the Adytum is a modern Mystery School.
Adytum is the Greek word for Inner Shrine or Holy of Holies. Like Jesus, who many believe was trained in Qabalah, members of the Order aspire to build the Inner Temple, to construct the Holy of Holies within. People of all faiths are welcome to study the teachings of this Order. B.O.T.A. recognizes Qabalah as the root of Judaism and Christianity. Its ultimate purpose is to hasten the true Brotherhood of mankind and to make manifest the truth that love is the only real power in the universe." -
@Nudor said
"Directly from the BOTA website (of which I am not affiliated):
"Builders of the Adytum is a modern Mystery School.
Adytum is the Greek word for Inner Shrine or Holy of Holies. Like Jesus, who many believe was trained in Qabalah, members of the Order aspire to build the Inner Temple, to construct the Holy of Holies within. People of all faiths are welcome to study the teachings of this Order. B.O.T.A. recognizes Qabalah as the root of Judaism and Christianity. Its ultimate purpose is to hasten the true Brotherhood of mankind and to make manifest the truth that love is the only real power in the universe."
"I don't see the word "Cosmic Christ"or "Christ Within" in that paragraph, nor do I remember reading the phrase in any of the work.
The Adytum is the Holy of Holies.I believe the lessons said that Tiphareth is the Christ center once or twice in the lessons I studied, possibly, but that's nothing new. Diagrams in many books always represent Christ as an archetype there, often with Buddha and everyone else... K&C of the HGA is located in Tiphareth in Crowley's work.
This thread already got into that subject.
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gmugmble, now that I am more into the book, I see your point!
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he mentions 7 Guides... so, why he compares it to the HGA must be a matter of ignorance, I suppose (unless I'm ignorant about the HGA and there really are 7 of them!)
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he does give a lot of "this is how it is" instruction. His advice makes sense (to me) and seems pretty sensible, but I can see how it might bug some people. If I try this method, I will definitely follow the advice here because it makes sense, imo.
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