|
|
 A COMPENDIUM BY FRATER D.M.T.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
A∴A∴
Membership
"Every man must overcome his own obstacles, expose his own illusions. Yet others may assist him to do both, and they may enable him altogether to avoid many of the false paths, leading no whither, which tempt the weary feet of the uninitiated pilgrim. They can further insure that he is duly tried and tested, for there are many who think themselves to be Masters who have not even begun to tread the Way of Service that leads thereto. Listen, we pray you, with attention: for once only does the Great Order knock at any one door. Here, therefore, we pause, that you may thoroughly search yourself, and consider if you are yet fitted to take an irrevocable step." [Liber LXI]
The Order of the A∴A∴
As to the meaning of the acronym "A∴A∴" 666 (Aleister Crowley) was not very clear leaving some variations in Greek via his writings and his disciples; there are two: Aster Argos and Astron Argon. The first, in fact, means "Bright Star" (not "Silver"), apparently he deceived himself by spelling the word wrongly, but if we add his letters, we get the value 983 , which, making a theosophical reduction to its root we have 9+ 8 + 3 = 20 = 2, evoking Arcane II, the "Silver Star Priestess"; already the second results in 451 that, making a reduction we have 4 + 5 + 1 = 10 = 1, the Magician's card.
The meaning of "Silver Star" was chosen as the Silver Star rises at dawn above the "Golden Dawn", which means the new transmutation of the "Great White Brotherhood" (since the first Golden Dawn was one of the manifestations of it in our plan). The Great White Brotherhood has the objective spiritual evolution of mankind and has previously manifested itself through various scholars, among them John Dee, Eliphas Levi, Gerard Encausse (Papus), Mme Blavatsky, etc.
The "Silver Star", according to (the controversial) Kenneth Grant, means the "Star Sirius" that is visible in all parts of the Earth, the Sun of which our Sun is reflex, and of great importance in the Egyptian culture.
This site uses as an address the Latin version "astrum argenteum" a variant of the "astrum argentum" - the nomenclature used by Frater Ever (Marcelo Ramos Motta), which reduced to 2, evoking the Silver Star Priestess, the "Silent Being", as well as the sum of the acronyms A∴A∴ = 1 + 1 = 2). But in practice, we always use the acronym.
The symbol of the order is Sigillum Sanctum Fraternitatis A∴A∴, the Sacred Seal of A∴A∴ also called the "Star of Babalon":
The Eye of Horus is also frequently used:
Since the death of the founders Frater DDS (George Cecil Jones) in 1953 and Frater OM (Aleister Crowley) in 1947, the Order was left without universal leadership. OM pointed out as his successor Frater Saturnus (Karl Germer) who at the same time did the same with the Brazilian Frater Adjuvo (Marcelo Motta), responsible for the coming of A∴A∴ to our country. Frater DDS, retired from his magical work, apparently, not specifying an official successor.
Without official leadership, the Order is organized into independent "cells" from Frater OM. The higher-ranking member of the group then becomes responsible for it, being duly updated of the progress of his disciples and disciples of the same and so on. It was agreed to use the term "line of frater x, y or z" for identification of these groups, but in fact there is only one lineage of A∴A∴: that of Frater OM. (Frater DDS apparently did not give a sequel to the external work of this manifestation of the Great White Brotherhood).
The official positions of the order are four namely:
- Cancellarius - means "chancellor". Its function is similar to that of the secretary. It has equivalence to the god Thoth, as scribe and responsible for communication and internal circulation of materials. Corresponds to the degree of Adeptus Minor.
- Imperator - means "director, commander". Its function is the management or administration of the Order. Corresponds to the god Horus - Apophis and to the degree of Adeptus Major.
- Præmonstrator - from the Latin monstrare "show, display, teach". Its duty corresponds to the preservation of the form and structure of the Fraternity and promulgation of the teachings under the order of the Order of the S.S. and to the degree of Adeptus Exemptus .
- Præmonstrator - "general" - above all the above is this charge. At least the person in charge must have the degree of Adeptus Exemptus. It is only known to use this post once by Crowley, in authorizing the issuance of a document (Book Four, Part I). At the time he signed as N∴ (Nemo, a generic name for one who takes the degree of Magister Templi).
There are references to other positions, such as that of Grand Neophyte, Speaker and Treasurer, but the four above are the most important. If necessary, the rule of equivalence of degree to a certain position can be relaxed, as happened with JFC Fuller (Frater Per Ardua), who in the degree of Probationer was given the position of Cancellarius and an honorary degree of Adeptus Minor (Frater Non Sine Fulmine).
If necessary, positions may be filled by the members of ancestry.
The System of the A∴A∴
"Blind is not blind." This statement fully reflects the axis of the Order's system of instruction. The pupil is evaluated by a series of duties explicit in the Liber 185 document , by others proposed by the instructor and by himself, where his success will be the basis for the instruction of his future disciples. All documents of the Order are available on this website or distributed on the internet, since A∴A∴ presents itself without mysteries open to any analysis and study, where not only literature is responsible for knowledge, but also oral tradition.
The structure of the Order is composed of 10 degrees, all equivalent to a sephirah of the Tree of Life . There is also the Student of A∴A∴ which is only presented to the Fraternity system, having no link with it.
The founders developed the method called "Scientific Enlightenment", published in "The Equinox", the official organ of Ordo A∴A∴ which must be fully studied, in spite of the freedom of choice of the one who best pleases the candidate within the confines of the Fraternity.
The candidate must know that by accepting the Probationist ticket, he will enter into a sphere of events and tests of the system, where he will be constantly measured by A∴A∴ in several aspects, since it it is more of an order of ordeals than conventional teachings. In addition, you should keep a journal of your practices and thoughts that will serve as an assessment of progress.
According to Frater OM (Aleister Crowley):
"A magical oath is the most irresistible of moral forces, it is an affirmation of the true will, being the link between human consciousness and the divine consciousness of the nature of being. It does not express the true will, arouses forces of opposition, weakening man according to the seriousness of the commitment ."
Each person is a star, and as such needs a proper method of instruction that should be perceived by the instructor. His sensitivity to the pupil's weaknesses will be of paramount importance in the conduct of the process, since man only evolves by overcoming his fears and weaknesses, otherwise we would be creating only theorists.
Quantity of knowledge does not reflect evolution, as well as practices without theoretical basis is wasted time, hence the need for an instructor. The assessment is made by the compliments of the duties offered and the sensitivity of your guide because only someone who is in your grade or beyond can recognize the one you are in.
One of the norms of the Order is that a member knows only his instructor and in future his instructed. The purpose of this rule is to prevent members of the same degree from working together, which is forbidden, since A∴A∴ it is an individual work order. However, occasionally, members are known because of the evolution of the media and the small group of people that characterize this medium, but those really on the Path avoid evading the proposed Frater Therion.
An individual can only be expelled from A∴A∴ on one occasion: if you use the Order for personal financial gain. Here is a comment: money is not forbidden, since funds are needed for the maintenance of any service (abbey, copies of Libri, robes, prints etc.) No fee or fee is charged, and the responsible member is responsible for determining the method of raising funds.
Another prohibition concerns instruction: no one is authorized to indicate any methods for realizing the "Knowledge and Conversation with the Holy Guardian Angel". This is an extremely personal method which the initiate must discover by virtue of his own virtues, though assisted by the instructor.
If it is the Will of the individual, who proclaims his departure to his instructor, but after Zelator's degree, the initiate has only two points to reach: the Pyramid City or the lonely towers of the Abyss.
For details read One Star in Sight sub figurâ CDLXXXIX.
Crowley on the A∴A∴ and Oaths
"These blind ordeals presumably refer to such aptitude tests, such as those by little. In ancient mysteries, it was possible to distinguish the formal ordeals. A young man would enter a temple to be started, and he knew well that his life depended and that any ordeal proposed to him, of course, appears only as pure formality. In the room of Freemasonry for example, he may swear absolutely willing to keep silence under the pain of having his throat cut, his tongue torn, and everything else, and the oath to be broken later.
In the A∴A∴, which is a genuinely Magical Order, there are no extravagant oaths. The candidate is pledged quite simply to himself only, and his obligation binds him merely 'to obtain the scientific knowledge of the nature and powers of my own being'. There is no penalty attached to the breach of this resolution; yet, just as this resolution is in contrast with the oaths of other orders in respect of simplicity and naturalness, so also with regard to the penalties. To break away from the A∴A∴ does actually involve the most frightful dangers to life, liberty and reason. The slightest mistake is visited with the most inexorable justice.
What actually happens is this. When a man ceremonially affirms his connection with the A∴A∴ he acquires the full powers of the whole Order. He is enabled from that moment to do his true will to the utmost without interference. He enters a sphere in which every disturbance is directly and instantly compensated. He reaps the reward of every action on the spot. This is because he has entered what I may call a fluid world, where every stress is adjusted automatically and at once.
Thus, normally, suppose a man like Sir Robert Chiltern (in An Ideal Husband) acts venally. His sin is visited upon him, not directly, but after many years and in a manner which has no evident logical connection with his offence. If Chiltern had been a probationer of A∴A∴ his action would have been balanced at once. He had sold an official secret for money. He would have found within a few days that one of his own secrets had been betrayed, with disastrous consequence to himself. But furthermore, having switched on a current of disloyalty, so to speak, he would have found disloyalty damaging him again and again, until he had succeeded in destroying in himself the very possibility of ever again being disloyal. It would be superficial to regard this apparently exaggerated penalty as unjust. It is not sufficient to pay an eye for an eye. If you have lost your sight, you do not stumble over something once; you keep on stumbling, again and again, until you recover your sight.
The penalties of wrong-doing are applied not by the deliberate act of the Chiefs of the order; they occur in the natural course of events. I should not even care to say that these events were arranged by the Secret Chiefs. The method, if I understand it correctly, may perhaps be illustrated by an analogy. Suppose that I had been warned by Eckenstein always to test the firmness of a rock before trusting my weight to it. I neglect this instruction. It is quite unnecessary for Eckenstein to go all over the world and put unreliable rocks in my way — they are there; and I shall come across them almost every time I go out climbing, and come to more or less grief whenever I meet them. In the same way, if I omit some magical precaution, or make some magical blunder, my own weakness will punish me whenever the circumstances determine the appropriate issue.
It may be said that this doctrine is not a matter of Magick but of common sense. True, but Magick is common sense. What, then, is the difference between the Magician and the ordinary man? This, that the Magician has demanded that nature shall be for him a phenomenal mode of expressing his spiritual reality, The circumstances, therefore, of his life are uniniformly adaptcd to his work.
Another example: The world reveals itself to the lawyer in a totally different way than it does to the carpenter, and the same event, occurring to the two men, will suggest two different trainings of thought and lead the two, to different results.
My errors of judgment, due to the annihilation of my ego and the consequent lack of direction felt by my body and mind, produced its immediate effect. I did not understand the extent of my error and even its real cause, however, I felt compelled to return to my own orbit."
[Aleister Crowley - Confessions] |
The Structure of the A∴A∴
Of purely spiritual character, the Ordo A∴A∴ is divided into three main orders namely:
- The G.D. : "Golden Dawn" (not the "old Golden Dawn order") - which comprises the degrees of Neophyte to the degree of Dominus Liminus (or not).
- The R. C. : "Rosy Cross" - which comprises the degrees of Adeptus Minor to Adeptus Exemptus.
- To S.S. : "Silver Star" or Collegium Summum) - the manifestation above the abyss, which comprises the degrees of Magister Templi to Ipsissimus, is the same for all White Fraternities and where traditionally there are the Secret Chiefs of the Order.
[Read more about the structure of the Order in the A∴A∴ Initiation section.]
Order Membership
The A∴A∴ is the system of spiritual attainment established by Aleister Crowley and George Cecil Jones in the early 1900s, as a modern expression of the Inner School of wisdom that has existed for millennia. Its central aim is simply to lead each aspirant toward their own individual attainment, for the betterment of all humanity. The course of study includes a diversity of training methods, such as Qabalah, Raja Yoga, ceremonial magick, and many other traditions. A∴A∴ is not organized into outer social organizations, fraternities or schools; rather, it is a magical Order based on the time-tested power of individual teacher-student relationships, under the guidance of the masters of the Inner School.
The Order of A∴A∴ adheres to the guidelines set forth in Liber Collegii Sancti sub figura CLXXXV by Aleister Crowley and other foundational documents.
In the original structure of A∴A∴, there was no Student program. It happened that they were absorbing a very large number of unprepared Probationers who invalidated the evolution of the system. Then as a means of filtering the candidates, such a portal was instituted.
The first step in the Order is that of the Grade of Student. This grade takes no less than three months, but can take more if needed. The Student phase of preparation for work in A∴A∴ begins by acquiring a specific set of reference texts, notifying A∴A∴ of the same, and studying the texts for at least three months. The Student may then request Examination. After testing, one will then be received as a Probationer of the Order, and given to a Neophyte (at least that degree) for guidance and further testing.
The Student of A∴A∴ aims to learn the purposes of the Order and to begin to understand the work system of the Fraternity and its main method the Scientific Enlightenment. To do this, he must pass and speak the language of the instructor, and this occurs with the readings of the books indicated in this link. It is expected that the candidate will have a good command of the English language, since most of the literature is in that language, just as a better understanding of the sacred books should be made in the English original.
From him, there is no obligation to demand any task, because it is at the door of the system and still does not suffer the charges of it. At the end of the reading, it will be examined by the instructor in order to know their use of the knowledge acquired for their own independence in the search for technical answers because A∴A∴ is more to an order of ordeals than conventional teachings. Afterwards, if approved, he will go to the care of a Neophyte in order to pass to the degree of Probationer.
[Read more about the necessary studies in the A∴A∴ Curriculum section.]
Initiate Membership
The A∴A∴ could be seen to represent two separate spiritual currents that differ in one fundamental way. There is the internal current (or order) and the external organization. There is the internal current which informs the Order and the external organization which provides the teachings. The internal current consists of a sempiternal Order whose members have attained and achieved the highest forms of spiritual awareness through personal study, self-initiation and individual experience. It is the true and invisible Order, which has operated under various guises throughout history, and comprised of dedicated initiates pledged in service to humanity for the high purpose of furthering global spiritual evolution. No teacher or external group can accept you into this inner order. Admittance can only be obtained through self-initiation.
Any person or organizations claiming to represent the A∴A∴ can only connect you to the external organization in one of its many forms, which provides the training and resources necessary to accomplish the tasks of the external order. Yet true initiation is an internal process between you and what we term as the Holy Guardian Angel that will guide you to the threshold of the inner Order - if that be your chosen Path.
There are several groups who claim to hold the "true lineage" of the outer organization of the A∴A∴ The truth being that as the original order grew it splintered and became more. That fracturing is what has allowed the one true source to shine its light throughout the world, much like the rays of an eternal sun. This enables the A∴A∴ to grow and teach the maximum amount of people. That is the inherent nature of the system itself and what it was essentially designed to accomplish.
If you are called to begin this journey, we earnestly invite you to contact the A∴A∴. Each branch of the A∴A∴ has something unique to offer. Ideally aspirants are drawn to the branch best suited to their individual pursuit of spiritual attainment. A∴A∴ works with the Clerk House model and adhere to the tenets of The Book of the Law.
[Read more about the initiations in the A∴A∴ Initiation section.]
How do I apply?
Applications may be sent to one of the chancellors of the A∴A∴ lineages listed on the contact page. Regardless of your choice in this matter, we wish you the best as you pursue your own Great Work. May you attain your True Will!
Student F.A.Q.
- What is the A∴A∴?
The Astrum Argentum is an occult order founded by Aleister Crowley and George Cecil Jones in 1907, dedicated to spiritual evolution, heir to the Order of the Golden Dawn that operated strongly between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Its basis is Christian and Jewish mysticism, being a mixture of several elements, including Eastern ones. The most striking influences are Kabbalah, Yoga and ceremonial magic. The Order has the Law of Thelema as the central moral code.
- How does it work?
The Order consists of eleven degrees or levels, organized into three groups, the Orders of the SS, the RC and the GD respectively. In the A∴A∴, blind is not blind guide and progress is measured by this series of degrees. A person is admitted by an Instructor who is at least one degree ahead in the system. This person in turn responds to her instructor and so on in sequence along the degrees.
- Individual work?
The first purpose of the Order is to confer Initiation and the second is to prepare persons for initiation by instructions. But it is not a system of group or collectivities. It is a method of individual training and development. The student progresses in self-knowledge and gradually matures into spiritual awareness and awakens to the Great Work.
- Is there a cost?
A∴A∴ is an order of purely spiritual principles and therefore there are no financial costs: there are no fees, gloves or monthly fees. Experience has shown that there is no action that does not induce a corresponding reaction, therefore, the association involves the investment of time and space to devote ourselves to unravel intrinsicities of our True Nature.
- Next steps
The person who is prepared to enter into a lifelong relationship to magic and mysticism must first acquire a basic knowledge of the subject in which he will dive. He should begin by becoming a "Student of Mysteries", familiarizing himself with the instructions of the A∴A∴ and the classics about occultism and religion.
- What is the "Student of the Mysteries"?
From its beginning, the A∴A∴ philosophy supports the admission of any persons interested in the instruction and practice of the "Scientific Enlightenment". That is, anyone can write to the A∴A∴ and request contact with a Neophyte, who (if everything agrees) will admit him as a Student.
The Student of Mysteries program was introduced in 1912, with publication in The Equinox Vol. I No. 7, as follows:
"Due to the unnecessary tension cast on the Neophytes by unprepared people totally ignorant of the basics taking the Oath of the Probationer, the Imperator of A∴A∴, under the seal and authority of VVVVV, commands that all persons wishing to become a Probationer of the A∴A∴ must first spend three months as a Student of the Mysteries. He must possess the following books: [...] {See: A∴A∴ Curriculum}. An examination of these books will be done. The student should demonstrate an in-depth knowledge in them, but not necessarily understand them in any deeper sense. Upon passing the examination, he may be admitted to Probationer's degree."
- What is the Student Curriculum?
Many believe the correct Student Curriculum is the one published in The Equinox Vol. III No. 1 (Blue Equinox), containing a series of seven or eight dozen occult classics. This expanded curriculum is of considerable importance, however, it is not the primary curriculum of the Student of Mysteries of the A∴A∴. As the text itself makes clear:
"A∴A∴ does not offer exam in this course, but recommends these books as the basis of a library." {See: A∴A∴ Curriculum}
- How to advance to Probationer?
To put it more generally, a person who is prepared to enter into a lifelong relationship to magic and mysticism must first look for something on the subject! She must educate herself in the classics, absorb the most popular literature, and develop a sufficient basis for her to understand and participate in a reasonable discussion of such matters. Once he has that basis, and has shown willingness - or rather, enthusiasm - to invest time and effort into the subject, he may be admitted to Probationary Degree.
[Source: A∴A∴ Astrum Argentum]
|
BACK TO THELEMAGICK LIBRARY
Proof read and edited by Frater D.M.T. © Thelemagick.
[ » Primary Source: Astrvm Argentvm « ]
Love is the law, love under will.
|
|
