College of Thelema: Thelemic Education

Can anyone give me an example of a ritual or ceremony that makes use of the IAO-INRI formula ?

Greetings,
I have a very elementary question. In both 777 & 7761/2 there are attributions 31 bis & 32 bis after the regular 31 & 32 column attributions, Can u tell me what these mean? or why they exist? thanks

@Uni_Verse said

"Recently I have been exploring the idea of THELEMA as the Word upon the final breath of the British Empire in my poetry. It has turned into a lengthy piece, and sparked a desire to share the notion to hear what others might think.

At the core is a comparison of the moralistic view the British had of their Empire and the philosophy expounded through Thelema.
One may argue that from the perspective of the British it was their moral duty to spread the concept of law to the "undeveloped nations." Just as Crowley saw it as his duty to reveal the Law to all the peoples of the World.

This lead to the formation of an Empire expressely British, that faced especially British problems and evolved as opposed to falling apart as is the case with most Empires.
The British Empire eventually 'crumbling' not necessarily due to outside forces,instead a collapse of the British Will to rule and spread "Law."
For, Britain, very much like a parent saw it as their duty to develop the countries under their steward ship:
Beginning as colonies, evolving towards semi-autonomous states, members of the Commonwealth and eventually entirely independent nations within a "family" of nationalistic states with common roots in British law and ideology.

The subsequent appearance of Crowley, along with "the Law" in many ways part of the natural evolution of the Empire from a material ideal (of a single nation ruling others) to that of a spiritual one ( numerous, separate distinction nations joined together in brotherhood beneath a single ideal ).

This can be seen in many ways. One distinct example is how the colonies "grew up," learned to "speak" (English), eventually granting them the ability to express their desires (via the English Word) and use the very ideas manipulated by the European powers against them.

Crowley and Thelemas distinct place in this drama upon closer examination. Becoming a manifestation of both the most positive and negative aspects of the British Empire. With the people eventually projecting their Shadow onto him, wishing to ignore his symbolic representation of the Empire with all its glory and faults on display.

OK, this post is starting to get really long and I have not even finished my research/writing. However, the topic has caused me some excitement, so I thought to share some of my thoughts so far. Has anyone else considered this? Have some ideas, thoughts or insights to share? Eventually, I need to finish my poetic piece, till then I was hoping for an intellectual exchange."

...On the inspiration of a whim my desire to elaborate may stem from the fact that I am British born, however ideologically, as far from British as possible, in that I am not a monarchist; if that is what the essence of "Britishness" means ultimately? to cut a long story short. Thelema is the last relevant contribution of the British empire in my opinion(And there is nothing humble about it) as far as the poetic.." last breath" well i suppose that is up for anybody's personal interpretation. As far as British Colonization the effects are extremely complex and far reaching, whereby if you overstand that language is the extension of thought(and it is) then we see represented by various "broken-English" or "Pigeon-English"dialects in commonwealth countries, the evidence of an assimilation of a foreign thought process into the English language or vice versa in it's manifested metamorphosed(or fragmented) state.

The answer to the question is yes.

@Jim Eshelman said

"It's a step-by-step manual on illumination through laya yoga."

Not to digress too far away from the topic, but once again i find myself in a situation whereby for political reasons i would find it extremely useful to be able to disseminate esoteric knowledge and practices under an exoteric situation and/or organization for example Christianity; and the good thing is that no nominal Christian can understand/interpret the book of revelations any way , so a step by step manual on illumination through laya yoga with Revalations being the main text or a central text may be exactly what i'm looking for!

I am interested in Qabalistic interpretations of the biblical book of revelations, any ideas??

I don't see why any exoteric framework cannot be used for any purpose the magician so desires, although some frameworks would naturally be a better fit than others. I see it as a matter of politics, Christianity definitely has a large fan base.

@Aegis55 said

"

While chaos and rigid periodicity are at odds, chaos and observable, relatively stable cycles are not necessarily so. At least not to my mind. In other words, watching the morning weather report has enough of a statistical degree of accuracy that I can usually plan my day pretty well. But it's not always right.

"

you are right in that "chaos theory"{which is not equivalent but related to chaos in the colloquial sense} is not at odds with relatively stable cycles but demonstrates that every once so often there is a change or sometimes drastic change or "quantum leap" {in the colloquial sense} of apparently periodic systems, these are the "bifurcations" of that system. my point is that the Aeonic cycle cannot be consistently every 2200 yrs or 2500yrs or whatever it is supposed to be, due to these bifurcations. And that the concept that it was/is may have been largely due to the knowledge available at the time. Dynamical Systems theory is a new branch of mathematics{hence the title} which was not discovered till late in last century. In the first article "Chaos and the Millennium" this concept is explained clearly, amongst others, in lay man's terms.

@Aegis55 said

"I've been hesitant to respond because Chaos theory is not my field. My understanding of it is limited.

But for what it's worth, regarding cycles - If it is assumed (a view not shared by some but not everyone) that the Aeonic cycles are astrologically related, and if it is assumed (a view shared by some but not shared by everyone) that such an astrological relationship implies a process affected by the material planets, then the article would seem to suggest that there does exist the statistical possibility that the cycle could be affected by unexpected, outside, material influences affecting the motion of the planets (chaos). "

Those articles were selected a bit randomly just to introduce the idea to any whom wished to investigate further. For one, bifurcation theory is not referring to changes caused by unexpected, outside, material influences but to the nature of the "dynamical system" itself predicated by it's initial conditions whether they be astrological cycles, or cycles within the evolution of human consciousness which is ultimately what we are talking about directly or indirectly.

"If, however, you are talking about the potential for individual human consciousnesses to collectively expect a particular result in such a way that their expectations create that result on the quantum level, then as regarding the cycles of the Aeons, one could argue that they are *within *the system and being shaped by it instead of taking the role of system shapers. Alternatively, one might argue that even within the system, the potential exists for the influence of chaos."

as far as particulars like "expectation on a quantum level" goes that is somewhat of another matter. Chaos theory shows that the very nature of the system is Chaotic and is not a mere influence, but has hitherto been perceived as "periodic" under the old paradigm. however a bifurcation may be considered a "quantum leap". The shapers are definitely within the system, however I for one may argue that the astrological bodies are not exterior to the system nor the human mind.

"I believe someone the other day mentioned the importance observation in addition to theory. The more practical side of my answer is that the observed condition of the cycles appears to be stable at present. The theory is open for discussion, and the rest will be determined by further observation."

Chaos theory has gone far beyond the theory stage into the observation and application stage, and has been observed even in our solar system; that is to say, our solar system has been demonstrated to be chaotic.

the following articles would be helpful and are more elaborate and specific than the previously posted

www.ralph-abraham.org/articles/MS%2392.Millennium/millennium.pdf

www.ralph-abraham.org/articles/MS%2346.Myth/ms46.pdf

and regarding quantum expectation

www.ralph-abraham.org/articles/MS%23119.Fuzzylumps/fuzzylumps.pdf

www.ralph-abraham.org/articles/MS%2325.Thought/ms25.pdf

www.ralph-abraham.org/articles/MS%23106.Tworlds/tworld.pdf

also of interest may be Terrence Mckenna's time wave or novelty theory

www.viewzone.com/timewavex.html

You are welcome O MasterTherion! To Teach, one must capture one's audience, and in these days, work hard to retain; a very entertaining endeavour but at least we have started out on the right foot. Good luck!

And if not why not? Since AC claimed Mathematics is the language of "God" upon which the Qabalah and the whole GD system is based. Of particular interest is "Chaos Theory" or "Bifurcation Theory" and it's Model of the Universe that it is Not(although it is almost) periodic? This has gone beyond mere theory and has been demonstrated even in our Solar System! Specifically in regards to the assumption or interpretation that Aeon's must be periodic as to a specific number of years? And if there was to be an alternative interpretation, what other elements might this affect to mitigate such an interpretation?

www.dtu.dk/centre/BioComplex/English/Research/BioFys.aspx

www.pnas.org/content/75/12/5743.full.pdf

I wonder if Magickal Techniques can be employed in the "Physical Healing" of others, and if so to what extent? Furthermore what particular techniques might one use?

Just curious has there ever been any distinction between the robes of male and female practitioners?

@Jim Eshelman said

"Yes. Not the biggest difference, but a significant difference.
"

Thank you. what would you say was the biggest difference?

@Jim Eshelman said

"Temple of Thelema was created to be, and primarily is, a group system. All members are free to interact with all members, and do so routinely within the framework of their own Temple. It's functional mechanism is group ceremonial working."

So then would you say this is the major difference between the two systems?

@Jim Eshelman said

"

"how strict and what is the structure of interaction between members?(for example Is it strictly vertical? or both vertical and lateral?)"

I don't understand the question."

the question assumes a pyramid hierarchal structure, vertical interaction would be interaction strictly with those or one higher up or lower on the pyramid while lateral would imply interaction with members of the same grade. although it is related but not directly implied would this include social interactions? or is this generally frowned upon? thanks for your replies.

Are there any specific requirements for acceptance into the T.o.T.? And if so what are they? furthermore what is the level of confidentiality regarding members identities? how strict and what is the structure of interaction between members?(for example Is it strictly vertical? or both vertical and lateral?) Finally does the A.A. officially recognize the T.o.T. degrees? would one cease working the T.o.T system when one began working the A.A. system? or do both simultaneously?

@danica said

"
@_aLL_seEIng_eYe_ said
"By Common Sense I meant sound practical judgement, I guess it is harder to get more specific than that, to me this is not exclusively but still directly related to a realistic evaluation of one's personal experience, an understanding of human psychology and human limitations, requires detachment to a certain degree and is antithetical to denial

Dictionary.com defines it as

–noun
sound practical judgment that is independent of specialized knowledge, training, or the like; normal native intelligence.

This is strikingly harmonious with my own understanding excepting that I was considering whether "initiatory Knowledge" was an exception to the rule."

if we understand it as discernment, I would specifically atribute it to Malkuth and the Neophyte grade ( see for example column L in Liber 777).

by the way, aLL_seEIng_eYe, H.G.Gadamer dedicated a whole big section of his book "Truth and Method" to the concept of common sense and its development in the western world, an all the philosophical implications of that particular development."

Thank you Danica, i will look into it at my earliest convenience.

By Common Sense I meant sound practical judgement, I guess it is harder to get more specific than that, to me this is not exclusively but still directly related to a realistic evaluation of one's personal experience, an understanding of human psychology and human limitations, requires detachment to a certain degree and is antithetical to denial

Dictionary.com defines it as

–noun
sound practical judgment that is independent of specialized knowledge, training, or the like; normal native intelligence.

This is strikingly harmonious with my own understanding excepting that I was considering whether "initiatory Knowledge" was an exception to the rule.

This may be the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle for me regarding which direction to follow. The are no question differences between races or ethnic groups if you prefer. how do these differences affect or not affect the relationship between student and mentor in a Golden Dawn type initiatory system? How do these differences affect choice of approach toward the great work in general. Are the True Will of different ethnic groups in conflict with one another? either genetically or otherwise? does the T.o.T. or A.:A.: have any policy directly pertaining to racial tolerance issues and/or discrimination? The Nature vs Nurture issue also arises, which factor is more relevant? genetics or environment/education?