Magic and the occult have always interested people. Someone is doing this rather superficially, someone is trying to make money on it. And someone is striving in this area to achieve such a result in order to rise above the world.
And just one of these people was Samuel Mathers, the founder of the famous Golden Dawn movement.
Rise
The Order of the Golden Dawn was officially formed in 1887. But 7 years before that, the key events for its appearance took place.
In 1880 A. F. Woodward (an English Masonic clergyman) discovered ancient manuscripts in a Rosicrucian library. They, in his opinion, carried great secrets. After 7 years, they were in the hands of the London Rosicruiner William Westcott.
He successfully deciphered these records and realized that he became the owner of the teachings on the ritual ceremonies of the Rosicrucians.
He also found a note from Anna Sprengel in this book. It had her address on it. Westcott contacted this woman. She gave him the idea of creating an organization in England"Golden Dawn".
Westcott was faced with the task of developing the secret rituals in detail. He entrusted this task to a Jewish acquaintance from Scotland. The name of this Jew is Samuel Little Mathers (there is another interpretation of his surname - Liddle Mathers). He devoted a lot of time to the study of secret knowledge. And at first he gave the impression of a harmless and strange boy.
But after 3 years from the beginning of the "Golden Dawn" was marked by the confrontation between Mathers and Westcott. And Samuel took the lead more and more.
Concept
The Hermetic Order "Golden Dawn" received this status for a reason. This is a society in which the concepts of the occult and the magical teachings of Hermes are comprehended. It developed magical traditions that were formed in Europe many centuries before the founding of the Order.
The knowledge of the Rosicrucians played a huge role in its formation. Its magical structure covered all areas of occult theories and practices.
The Golden Dawn had a huge impact on the esoteric currents that formed in the 20th century. She created the foundations of ritual magic.
Leaders and priorities
The Order of the "Golden Dawn" has set such priorities for itself: magical secret ceremonies, initiation rites in Masonic lodges, obtaining secret knowledge and potential.
Besides Mathers, the initial leaders here were two Williams: Westcott and Woodman.
A photo of Westcott during the formation of the Order is placed below.
Introducing alsoto your attention a photo of Woodman in the same period.
Thanks to them, contact was established with the followers of Steiner's anthroposophical treatises and with many influential people before the reign of Nazism. After Woodman died and Wescott left the Golden Dawn, only Mathers became its full master.
The next head here was William Butler Yeats.
Some famous people were members of the society, for example:
- Sachs Romer is a writer.
- Florence Farr is a theater director.
- Alan Bennet – engineer.
- Aleister Crowley is an architect.
About Mathers himself
Mathers was a rather mysterious person. At one time he was an active member of the Celtic society, fighting for the revival of the Stuart clan. Once he called himself Jacob the Fifth and an immortal adept. From the people who were part of the "Golden Dawn", he demanded total submission. To do this, he used his astral connection with the mysterious flagships of the order. He very zealously protected her from other members of society, arguing that not everyone can withstand such a load. And the secret leaders gave him sacred knowledge and rituals. And then he shared them with the Order. In 1892, in Paris, he established a branch, located in his system above the main branch. Thus, the Order of the Golden Dawn received the status of an external community. This is how the internal organization was formed.
Rituals of the orderThe "Golden Dawn", developed by Mathers, was based on the legend of the grave of the founder of the Rosicrucians - Christian Rosicrucian.
In this process, the candidate entered the tomb, which had seven walls, an altar and a tomb. Mathers himself lay down in the coffin. He portrayed the same founder there. The walls here were all covered in symbols. At the end of the ceremony, the initiate had to swear to guard the secret and devote himself to the great teachings.
Mathers warned that if the secret were broken, the adept would be paralyzed. This is how the secret leaders will punish him.
As head of the Paris branch, Mathers showed the traits of a dictator. He once stated that he was the only one chosen to transfer to the "Third Order", where you can communicate with invisible lords.
Paris branch named "Ruby Rose and Golden Cross".
Teachings
The Golden Dawn training course is presented as a percentage, where:
- 50% is Kabbalah.
- 20% dedicated to Enochian magic.
- 15% - Tarot card values.
- 10% - astrology.
- 5% - geomancy.
This is the so-called synthetic teaching. Here the priority was given to depth. Various components are consolidated according to their internal common meaning. A harmonious system is formed. In it, each element is related to others by the law of ratios.
Order of the "Golden Dawn" was able to link a variety of teachings into a single whole. And the method of connection was the vision of perfectthe laws of the world. According to this concept, there is a natural connection between all objects and phenomena.
The student had to understand and consolidate the meaning of the Sefirot. To do this, he studied the potential of the planets using astrology.
To learn how to read Tarot cards correctly, it was necessary to master the basics of Kabbalah and astrological science.
The symbols in geomancy were associated with the horoscope and the Hebrew alphabet.
To comprehend Enochian magic, one had to be excellent at all other knowledge.
The Role of Kabbalah
The leaders of this order largely based their teachings on Kabbalah.
The order itself arose on the ideas of the Rosicrucians. In its symbolism there is a rose and a cross. This does not conflict with Kabbalistic foundations. After all, the Rosicrucians themselves developed Kabbalism.
And Kabbalah seemed to be the development of the occult current of Ancient Egypt. Its Golden Dawn leaders saw it as a universal tool. And by design, the adept comprehended the language and concepts of Kabbalah. And the adoption of the Jewish religion was an optional action.
In the teachings of the order, a lot of space was given to Egyptian deities and symbols. Even the temples of this organization were named in tribute to these gods.
And many adherents of the "Golden Dawn" adhered to the position of the Egyptian roots of Kabbalah.
Hierarchy
Since the Order of the "Golden Dawn" paid great attention to Kabbalah, he studied its basics. These are 10 Sefirot. They were seen as levels of man's ascent to the great mystery. This is the wayfrom penetration into matter to the highest spiritualization.
And the degrees of the Order of the Golden Dawn were formed according to the principle of these levels. There were also 10 of them.
They are listed below:
| Sefira | Astrological position | The Order and the plans of being | Degree in Order |
| First: Keter | Main driving force |
Third Order. Mental design |
10 - Ipsissimus |
| Second: Hochma | Zodiac | 9. Magician | |
| Third: Binah | Correspondence to Saturn | 8. Master in the temple | |
| Fourth: Chesed | Correspondence to Jupiter | Paris branch. Astral Intention | 7. Free Adept |
| Fifth: Gevura | Correspondence to Mars | 6. Senior Adept | |
| Sixth: Tiphereth | Sun analogy | 5. Adept with junior status. | |
| Seventh: Netzach | Analogy with Venus and fire. | 4. Philosopher | |
| Eighth: Year | Analogy with Mercury and water | Order of the Golden Dawn. Physical design. | 3. Adept with practical knowledge |
| Ninth: Yesod | Parallel with the Moon and air | 2. Adept with a theoretical base | |
| Tenth: Malchut | Earth analogy | 1. Zelator (newbie) |
This table does not include the sefira Daath. Its designation is the abyss. It just doesn't have an equivalent in degrees of organization. In this hierarchy, the Sephira ascending above Daath were conditionally called the Third Order. This is the level of invisible adepts, people without a material shell. And Mathers claimed that it was with them that he established a connection.
The acquisition by a person of one degree or another was realized by a special ritual.
Moreover, the first 5 rituals were borrowed from found manuscripts. The rest are the designs of the leaders of the Order.
The main attributes of temples
Order of the "Golden Dawn" had 5 temples. They were arranged according to the principle of Masonic lodges. The following attributes stood out in the temples:
- Pair of symbolic pillars. The right one is white with black images. Left - black with white. Their meaning is a reflection of the dualism of the world.
- Altar. In its shape, it resembled a double cube. According to the concept of the Order, it is a folded sephirotic cross. It is formed by 10 squares. Each corresponds to one sefira.
On the altar were symbols of all the elements. They focused on the cardinal points. Between them was the emblem of the Order.
The equipment of the altar was changed for a certain ritual:
- Enochian Tablets.
- Tarot cards,depicted large on the walls.
The entrance to the temple was arranged from the western side. A novice was brought from here - an initiate.
Features of rituals
Participants in each ritual were:
- The initiate himself.
- The Hierophant is the head priest.
- Priest - gave candidates tests.
- Hegemon is a guide.
- Torchman - lighter of the path.
- Preparer - Cleansing candidates with water.
- Caller - announced the beginning and end of the ritual.
- Guard - protection from unauthorized persons.
The standard ceremony algorithm is as follows:
- All outsiders leave the room. The prayer of the Order of the Golden Dawn sounds, praising the Lord of the Universe.
- The candidate is brought into the room. His eyes are covered with a bandage. He himself is tied with a rope three times. This is spiritual blindness and the chains of matter. Before entering the holy zone, it was cleansed with water. The initiate swore allegiance to the Order. In this, 6 ministers formed a hexagram around the candidate.
Here prayer words differ from standard church texts. They follow the unawakened mysteries of the soul. For example, the following text of the prayer of the Order of the Golden Dawn sounded (excerpt below):
“The voice of my eternal soul said to me: Allow me to be on the road of Darkness. Perhaps I will find the Light there. I am the only one in the Dark…”.
These words were spoken by the hierophant after the initiate's oath.
The initiate, led by the hegemon, walked around the room several times. In turn, the priest and the hierophant put up obstacles for him. On every circlecarried out the procedure of purification with water and fire. And at that moment he was obliged to call the one in front of him. And from this minister he was instructed.
The Hierophant explained to the beginner the concepts of balance and interchangeability of opposites.
- The neophyte knelt before the altar, listening to the last phrases from the three main ministers.
- The bandage was removed from his eyes. He saw the light, the faces of the servants. Received brief explanations of key symbols, as well as passwords and special characters. He was assigned his tasks and actions for obtaining the next degree.
- Completion of the ceremony. Mystical meal.
Conclusion
The Order of the Golden Dawn is a rather mysterious organization. Its leaders pursued the highest spiritual goals. For this, many teachings were correctly assimilated. As a result, their own religion was formed here. Although it had analogies with Kabbalah, Egyptian beliefs and Judaism, it acquired a unique status.
