Folly

Frater Supra N. :
History of O.T.O.
Fratres Sabazius X° et AMT IX°
Joining the O.T.O.
Frater Supra N. :
Trees
Frater WLLM
Luna
Frater WLLM
Metamorphose
Academia Masonica
Frater Supra N. :
Novus Ordo Seclorum
Frater WLLM
They Keep Calling Me
Frater WLLM
A Day in the Life
Frater Supra N. :
The Powers of the Sphinx
Frater WLLM
Yule Tidings
Frater WLLM
10-7-96
Frater WLLM
Shiraz
Stick This (Reviews)

ALL ARTWORK BY FR. Aleph 211

 Ordo Templi Orientis
Peace, Tolerance, Truth. Salutation on all points of the Traingle.

Respect to the Order.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: GREETING AND HEALTH.

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.

Ordo Templi Orientis, the Order of Oriental Templars (O.T.O.) is a serious Order, dedicated to the high
purpose of securing the Liberty of the Individual and his or her advancement in Light, Wisdom,
Understanding, Knowledge, and Power. This is accomplished through Beauty, Courage, and Wit on the
Foundation of Universal Brotherhood.

In its current form, the O.T.O. has existed for more than a century. Its philosophy encompasses all
branches of the Secret Wisdom of the Old Aeon as well as being the first Old Aeon Order to accept The
Book of the Law (received by E.A. Crowley in 1904ev) and reorganize in accordance with the needs of
Modern Humanity. This Document contains a message of a revolution in thought, culture, and religion,
based upon its supreme injunction, The Law of Thelema (DO WHAT THOU WILT). This is no license
for indulgence, but a command to discover one's own unique True Will and accomplish it, leaving others
to do the same.

The Order's structure is Masonic in nature, structured through ten degrees. In them, the Order attempts
to instruct the Individual, by allegory and symbol, into the Mystery, thereby assisting each to discover
their own True Will. Every Man and Woman, free, of full age, and of good report has an indefeasible
right to the first three degrees.

In Kansas City, the Order is represented by Ra-Heru-Behutet Camp, a duly chartered body of the O.T.O.
and is accepting correspondences from potential candidates for Initiation into our growing membership,
or other interested parties.

Love is the law, love under will.

RA-HERU-BEHUTET CAMP IS THE FIRST AND ONLY OFFICIAL BODY OF THE O.T.O.
IN THE GREATER KANSAS CITY AREA.
TALONS
Volume II; Number 1
Published Sporadically

Copyright © 1999 Ra-Heru-Behutet Camp, Ordo Templi Orientis, and the original authors

Opening title sequence by Fr. MSNV. Music: Sands of Edfu (excerpt), the official theme music of Ra-
Heru-Behutet Camp

Editorial Policy
The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of
Ra-Heru-Behutet Camp, or Ordo Templi Orientis. Items published in Talons are NOT edited for content.

Subscriptions:
Since Talons is published sporadically, we have no subscription policy at this time. The cost per issue is
$2.00

Submissions:
Submissions and inquiries may be sent to Talons c/o the Camp address below. Please do NOT send
original art or printed materials. The preferred method of submission is by e-mail, or 3 1/2" PC floppy
disk when possible. Materials will not be returned unless accompanied by a S.A.S.E. and a specific
request for such. Questions about our policies may be directed to the Camp contact addresses below.

Editor:
Fr Supra N
supran@juno.com

Ra-Heru-Behutet Camp O.T.O.

P.O. Box 2154
Olathe, KS 66051-2154
(913) 829-3568 (messages only)
http://behutet.com
behutet@aranya.com

Ordo Templi Orientis

International Headquarters
P.O. Box 684098
Austin, TX 78768

U.S. Grand Lodge Homepage:

http://otohq.org/oto
 FOLLY
(A NEW TIME, A NEW DAY...)

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.

Shortly after joining the Order and chartering this Camp five years ago, I began to discover (rather
rapidly, and with the subtlety of a sledgehammer) that the attitude of those in the local pagan/new-age
comnmnity toward O.T.O., or anything remotely associated with Aleister Crowley for that matter, was
one of distaste, to say the very least. It seemed that everyone I mentioned it to would immediately say,
"Oh, man, I know someone who knew someone do tried to 'do' the Book of the Law and went totally
insane," or some such nonsense. I discovered recently that everyone was talking about the same
"someone," who determined that the phrases 'Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law,' and,
'Love is the law, love under will,' meant he had the inalienable right to indulge in every passing whim,
with no regard for the opinions, feelings, not to mention the rights of others. The Law of Thelema only
works if we realize that once we claim universal liberty for ourselves, EVERYONE ELSE ALSO has a
right to that same freedom. Whether they choose to lay claim to it is up to each individual. Thelema, by
its nature, cannot be forced onto anyone who does not accept it. Because ultimate freedom implies
ultimate responsibility--that one takes for one's own actions--some believe it is safer to avoid Thelema
altogether. Some people need that crutch (read MASTER/MISTRESS) upon which they may blame their
actions and problems. As it is written, "the slaves shall serve."

In that spirit, let me say for the record that Ordo Templi Orientis, DOES NOT, as a part of its ritual
practice, indulge in any of the following: sacrifices (human or animal), letting of blood, live sex acts, or
illicit drugs. Locally, we're a group of professionally-minded people, extremely devoted to the Order and
its principles, albeit ridiculously busy with mundane affairs. I hope this helps clear things up a bit.

Love is the law, love under will.

Frater Supra N , Ra-Heru-Behutet Campmaster

 History of Ordo Templi Orientis
This account of the history of our Order was laboriously researched by Frater Sabazius X° (Supreme and Holy King ofthe
U.S. Grand Lodge of O.T.O.) and was taken verbatim from the U.S. Grand Lodge Website, at this link:
http://www.otohq.org/oto/history.html

Although officially founded at the beginning of the 20th century e.v., O.T.O. represents a surfacing and
confluence of the divergent streams of esoteric wisdom and knowledge which were originally divided
and driven underground by political and religious intolerance during the dark ages. It draws from the
traditions of the Freemasonic, Rosicrucian and Illuminist movements of the 18th and 19th centuries, the
crusading Knights Templars of the middle ages and early Christian Gnosticism and the Pagan Mystery
Schools. Its symbolism contains a reunification of the hidden traditions of the East and the West, and its
resolution of these traditions has enabled it to recognize the true value of Aleister Crowley's revelation
of The Book of the Law.

Carl Kellner

The Spiritual Father of Ordo Templi Orientis was Carl Kellner (Renatus, Sept. 1, 1851 - June 7, 1905),
a wealthy Austrian paper chemist. Kellner was a student of Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism and Eastern
mysticism, and traveled extensively in Europe, America and Asia Minor. During his travels, he claims to
have come into contact with three Adepts (a Sufi, Soliman ben Aifa, and two Hindu Tantrics, Bhima
Sena Pratapa of Lahore and Sri Mahatma Agamya Paramahamsa), and an organization called the
Hermetic Brotherhood of Light1. In 1885, Kellner met the Theosophical and Rosicrucian scholar, Dr.
Franz Hartmann (1838 - 1912). He and Hartmann later collaborated on the development of the "ligno-
sulphite" inhalation therapy for tuberculosis, which formed the basis of treatment at Hartmann's
sanitarium near Saltzburg. During the course of his studies, Kellner believed that he had discovered a
"Key" which offered a clear explanation of all the complex symbolism of Freemasonry, and, Kellner
believed, opened the mysteries of Nature. Kellner developed a desire to form an Academia Masonica
which would enable all Freemasons to become familiar with all existing Masonic degrees and systems.

Academia Masonica

In 1895, Kellner began to discuss his idea for founding an Academia Masonica with his associate
Theodor Reuss (Merlin or Peregrinus, June 28, 1855 - Oct. 28, 1923). During these discussions, Kellner
decided that the Academia Masonica should be called the "Oriental Templar Order." The occult inner
circle of this Order (O.T.O. proper) would be organized parallel to the highest degrees of the Memphis
and Mizraim Rites of Masonry, and would teach the esoteric Rosicrucian doctrines of the Hermetic
Brotherhood of Light, and Kellner's "Key" to Masonic symbolism. Both men and women wonld be
admitted at all levels to this Order, but possession of the various degrees of Craft and High-Grade
Freemasonry would be a prerequisite for admission to the Inner Circle of O.T.O.

Unfortunately, due to the regulations of the established Grand Lodges which governed Regular
Masonry, women could not be made Masons and would therefore be exchlded by default from
membership in the Oriental Templar Order. This may have been one of the reasons that Kellner and his
associates resolved to obtain control over one of the many rites, or systems, of Masonry; to reform the
system for the admission of women.

The discussions between Reuss and Kellner did not lead to any positive results at the time, because
Reuss was very busy with a revival of the Order of Illuminati along with his associate Leopold Engel
(1855-1931) of Dresden. Kellner did not approve of the revived Illuminati Order or of Engel. According
to Reuss, upon his final separation with Engel in June of 1902, Kellner contacted him and the two
agreed to proceed with the establishment of the Oriental Templar Order by seeking authorizations to
work the various rites of high-grade Masonry.

Masonic Foundations

Theodor Reuss, in addition to being the head of his revival of the Bavarian Order of Illuminati, was also
the Grand Master of the Swedenborgian Rite of Freemasonry in Germany (charter dated July 26, 1901
from W. Wynn Wescott). Special Inspector for the Martinist Order in Germany (charter dated June 24,
1901 from Gérard Encausse), and Magus of the High Council in Germania of the Societas Rosicruciana
in Anglia (letter of authorization dated Feb. 24, 1902 from W. Wynn Wescott). With Kellner's
assistance, Reuss applied to English Masonic scholar, John Yarker3 (1833-1913) to purchase charters to
operate three systems of high-grade Freemasonry known as the Antient and Primitive Rite of Memphis
of 97°, the Ancient Oriental Rite of Mizraim of 90°, and the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of 33°
(Cernau Council of New York, 1807).

Reuss received letters-patent as a Sovereign Grand Inspector General 33° of the Cernau Scottish Rite
from Yarker dated September 24, 1902. According to a published transcript, Yarker issued on the same
date a warrant to Reuss, Franz Hartmann and Henry Klein to operate a Sovereign Sanctuary 33°-95° of
the Scottish, Memphis and Mizraim rites. Yarker issued a second charter confirming Reuss's authority to
operate said rites on July 1, 1904; and Reuss published a transcript of an additional confirming charter
dated June 24, 1905. Reuss commenced publication of a masonic journal, The Oriflamme, in 1902.

These rites, along with the Swedenborgian Rite, were adopted as integral elements within the overall
scheme of the Order. The Swedenborgian Rite included a version of the Craft degrees, and the Cernau
Scottish Rite and the Rites of Memphis and Mizraim provided a selection of the workable "high grades"
as nearly complete as had ever existed. Together, they provided a complete system of Masonic initiation
at the disposal of the Order. With the incorporation of these rites, the Order was enabled to operate as a
completely independent Masonic system. Reuss and Kellner together prepared a brief manifesto for their
Order in 1903, which was published the next year in The Oriflamme. Kellner died on June 7, 1905, and
Reuss assumed full control of the Order. With the assistance of co-founders Franz Hartmann and
Heinrich Klein, Reuss prepared a Constitution for the Order in 1906.

O.T.O. Under Reuss

Rudolph Steiner (1861-1925), who was at the time the Secretary General of the German branch of the
Theosophical Society, was chartered in 1906 as Deputy Grand Master of a subordinate
O.T.O./Memphis/Mizraim Chapter and Grand Council called "Mystica Aeterna" in Berlin. Steiner went
on to found the Anthroposophical Society in 1912, and ended his association with Reuss in 1914.

On June 24, 1908, Dr. Gérard Encausse (Papus, 1865-1916) organized an "International Masonic and
Spiritualist Conference" in Paris, which Reuss attended. At this conference, Encausse received, for no
money, a patent from Reuss to establish a "Supreme Grand Council General of the Unified Rites of
Antient and Primitive Masonry for the Grand Orient of France and its Dependencies at Paris." The year
before, Encausse, along with Jean Bricaud (1881-1934) and Louis-Sophrone Fugairon (b. 1846), had
organized l'Église Catholique Gnostique, the Gnostic Catholic Church, as a schism of l'Église
Gnostique, a neo-Albigensian church founded in Paris in 1890 by Jules Doinel (1842-1903). It is
believe! that Reuss received episcopal consecration and primatial authority in l'Église Catholique
Gnostique from Encausse and Bricaud at this conference. Encausse's involvement in O.T.O., per se, is
unclear.

Also at this conference, Dr. Arnold Krumm-Heller (Huiracocha, 1879-1949) was chartered as Reuss's
official representative for Latin America. Krumm-Heller developed his own order called Fraternitas
Rosicruciana Antiqua (F.R.A.). According to his son, Parsival, he never founded any O.T.O. Lodges,
initiated any members into O.T.O., or appointed any O.T.O. officers.

O.T.O. Under Reuss and Crowley

As a journalist, Reuss travelled frequently to England. On one such trip, he met Aleister Crowley
(Baphomet, Oct. 12, 1875 - Dec. 1, 1947), whom he admitted to the three degrees of O.T.O. in 1910. On
April 21, 1912, Reuss issued a charter to Crowley, for no money, appointing him, National Grand
Master General X° of O.T.O. for Great Britain and Ireland. Crowley's appointment included authority
over an English language rite of the lower (Masonic) degrees of O.T.O. which was given the name
"Mysteria Mystica Maxima," or M:.M:.M:.. On June 1, 1912, a National Grand Lodge for the Slavonic
Countries was established under Czeslaw Czynski. Franz Hartmann died on August 7, 1912.

In September of 1912, Reuss published the "Jubilee Edition" of the Oriflamme, which was the first issue
of the Oriflamme to discuss O.T.O. in any detail, and it was almost entirely devoted to O.T.O. matters.
Kellner, Reuss and Crowley were listed as X° members of O.T.O. Also in 1912, Crowley published the
Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:., in which M:.M:.M:. was identified as the British Section of the O.T.O.,
which "includes all countries where English is generally spoken." O.T.O. was described in this
document as

...a body of initiates in whose hands are concentrated the wisdom and knowledge of the following
bodies:

1. The Gnostic Catholic Church.

2. The Order of the Knights of the Holy Ghost.
3. The Order of the Illuminati.
4. The Order of the Temple.
5. The Order of the Knights of St. John.
6. The Order of the Knights of Malta.
7. The Order of the Knights of the Holp Sepulchre.
8. The Hidden Church of the Holy Grail.
9. The Rosicrucian Order.
10. The Holy Order of Rose Croix of Heredom.
11. The Order of the Holy Royal Arch of Enoch.
12. The Antient and Primitive Rite of Masonry (33 degrees).
13. The Rite of Memphis (97 degrees).
14. The Rite of Mizraim (90 degrees).
15. The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Masonry (33 degrees).
16. The Swedenborgian Rite of Masonry.
17. The Order of the Martinists.
18. The Order of the Sat Bhai.
19. The Hermetic Brotherhood of Light,
20. The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn,
and many other orders of equal merit, if of less fame. It does not include the A :. A :. with which august
Body it is, however, in close alliance.

The Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:. also gave the following scheme of organization for the Order:

O Minerval
I M.
II M..
M:.
III
P:.M:.
Companion of the Holy Royal Arch of Enoch
IV Prince of Jerusalem
Knight of the East and of the West
Sovereign Prince of Rose Croix. (Knight of the Pelican and Eagle.)
V
Member of the Senate of Knight Hermetic Philosophers Knights of the Red Eagle.
Illustrious Knight (Templar) of the Order of Kadosch, and Companion of the Holy Graal.
VI Grand Inquisitor Commander, Member of the Grand Tribunal.
Prince of the Royal Secret.
Very Illustrious Sovereign Grand Inspector General.
VII
Member of the Supreme Grand Council.
VIII Perfect Pontiff of the Illuminati.
IX Initiate of the Sanctuary of the Gnosis
X Rex Summus Sanctissimus (Supreme and Most Holy King).

The September, 1912 issue of the Oriflamme included a similar listing of a ten-degree system.

I Prüfling [Probationer]
II Minerval
III Johannis-(Craft-) Freimauer [Craft Freemason]
IV Schottischer-(Andreas-) Mauer [Scottish Mason]
V Rose Croix-Mauer
VI Templer-Rosenkreuzer
VII Mystischer Templer
VIII Orientalisher Templer
IX Vollkommener Illuminat [Perfected Illuminatus]
X Supremus Rex

Thus, by 1912, Crowley and Reuss had condensed the system of Craft and high-grade Freemasonry into
a workable system of ten numbered degrees which incorporated the teachings and symbolism of a
number of additional occult and mystical societies. Kellner's three degree Academia Masonica formed
the VII°, VIII° and IX° of this system. The tenth degree (X°), "Rex Summus Sanctissimus," or
"Supremus Rex," designated the National Grand Master General of O.T.O. for a particular country,
region, or linguistic group. The ultimate authority in the Order worldwide was vested in the Frater
Superior or Outer Head of the Order (O.H.O.).

The National Grand Masters General had the authority to appoint their own representatives, called
"Viceroys," in other countries with the same dominant language. Viceroys could also be accorded the X°
by the O.H.O. The National Grand Masters General were expected to conduct the business of O.T.O. in
accordance with the O.T.O. Constitution, but largely without day-to-day supervision by the international
headquarters or "Central Office."

The Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:. included photographs of Crowley's manor-house in Scotland, called
Boleskine, which served as a "Profess-House" of the Order. It also included a list of dues and fees for
each degree, as well as a list of "afliliation fees," whereby Freemasons could affiliate directly at the level
corresponding to their own degree in Masonry. These lists were reprinted in the 1914 issue of the
Oriflamme, along with the degree titles from Crowley's Manifesto translated into German.

In 1912, the system of O.T.O., despite its, various influences, remained principally Masonic. In the
Jubilee Edition of the Oriflamme, Reuss stated that O.T.O. "is not a masonic order, pure and simple, but
every member of our Order, man or woman...must proceed through the craft degrees of Freemasonry,
also those of high-grade Freemasonry, before they can be illuminated and initiated members of our
Order." However, the United Grand Lodge of England, to whom Crowley technically owed Masonic
allegiance, objected to the performance of the Craft Degrees in England outside of its jurisdiction, and
objected to the admission of women into Freemasonry. Therefore, Crowley included the following
stalement in his Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:.

The O.T.O., although an Academia Masonica, is not a Masonic Body so far as the craft degrees are
concerned in the sense in which that expression is usually understood in England; and therefore in no
way conflicts with, or infringes the just privileges of, the United Grand Lodge of England.

On February 15, l913, Crowley adopted a constitution for the M:.M:.M:., subject to the General
Constitution of O.T.O. On March 19, 1913, Crowley and Reuss jointly chartered James Thomas
Windram (Mercurius, 1877-1939) as the O.T.O.'s official representative in South Africa. Later in 1913,
while visiting Moscow, Crowley composed the Gnostic Mass, which he "prepared for the use of the
O.T.O., the central ceremony of its public and private celebration, corresponding to the Mass of the
Roman Catholic Church."

World War 1 broke out on July 28, 1914. Crowley moved to New York in October of 1914; the
following year finding employment as a writer for George Sylvester Viereck's periodicals The
Fatherland and The International, and as managing editor for the latter. In December of 1914, Crowley
appointed Charles Stansfeld Jones (Parzival, 1886-1950) as Sovereign Grand Inspector General VII°
and Crowley's personal representative in the City of Vancouver. In March of 1915, Windram appointed
Ernest W. T. Dunn VII° (Maximus) as Acting Viceroy for Australasia.

Despite his earlier disclaimer about the Craft Degrees in the Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:., Crowley
remained uncomfortable with the Masonic character of the O.T.O., for a number of additional reasons:

• In contrast with Reuss, Crowley believed that women could not be initiated as Freemasons;
though he thought that they ought to be able to be initiated into O.T.O.
 • He was frustrated with the elaborate preparations required to stage Masonic initiations, and with
the length of the Masonic rituals and their excessive wordiness. Crowley perceived these factors
to be impediments to successful implementation among modern working people.
• He believed that the symbolic content of the Masonic rituals had become garbled nearly to the
point of uselessness.
• He wished to use the system of O.T.O. to help spread the teachings of Thelema.

For these reasons, Crowley undertook to prepare revised rituals which would convey the significance of
the Craft and high degrees concisely and dramatically, which would be suitable for the initiation of both
men and women, which not infringe on the just privileges of the United Grand Lodge of England, and
which would convey the basic teachings of Thelema. Crowley did so around 1915, and adopted the
revised rituals for use in his own section of O.T.O., the M:.M:.M:..

Crowley wrote about his revised rituals to Arnold Krumm-Heller on June 22, 1930:

Reuss was in the habit of initiating people with the merest skeleton rituals boiled down from those of
Continental Masonry. There was, to put it plainly, no order or decency in the proceeding. He realized
that perfectly well, and it was one of the reasons for his asking me to reconstruct the whole system of
initiation.

I made a comparative study of numerous rituals to which I had access, and produced a series which were
perfected up to and including the 6th degree (equivalent to the Kadosh) and these were worked in
London with the greatest success.

I must here pause to point out that the fundamental and essential change which is necessary in any
rituals with which I have anything to do is the complete renunciation of the cult of the slave-gods. It is
impossible for free men to acknowledge any system which is bound up with the fetishes of savages
whose only motive for action is the fear born of their ignorance.

In 1915 or 1916, Aleister Crowley wrote "An Intimation with Respect to the Constitution of the Order"
(Liber CXCIV), which developed the ideas set forth in Reuss's 1906 O.T.O. Constitution, Crowley's
1913 M:.M:.M:. Constitution, and in Crowley's Manifesto. Gerard Encausse died on October 25, 1916.
Charles Détré (Téder, 1855-1918) succeeded Encausse, and also appears to have received the X° of
O.T.O. for France, but he died only two years later. In 1916, Reuss moved to Basle, Switzerland. While
there, he established an "Anational Grand Lodge and Mystic Temple" of O.T.O. and the Hermetic
Brotherhood of Light at Monte Verità. Monte Verità was a utopian commune near Ascona founded in
1900 by Henri Oedenkoven and Ida Hofmann, which functioned as a center for what the historian James
Webb would later call the. "Progressive Underground."

On January 22, 1917, Reuss published a manifesto for this Anational Grand Lodge, which was called
Verità Mystica. On the same date, he published a revised version of his 1906 O.T.O. Constitution, with a
"Synopsis of Degrees" and an abridgment of The Message of the Master Therion appended. In his
revised constitution, Reuss included many of the provisions of Crowley's M:.M:.M:. Constitution of
1913. However, in this document, as in many of Reuss's documents about O.T.O., he emphasized the
Masonic character of the Order.

In May of 1917, Crowley's Lodge in England was raided and closed down by the police, allegedly over
charges of "fortune telling" against one of the members. However, Crowley's work for Viereck's anti-
British publication The Fatherland may have caused the authorities to suspect Crowley's Lodge of
unpatriotic activities. All Lodge records were seized. Crowley was forced to temporarily resign the
Grand Mastership in favor of C.S. Jones to ease the situation for the remaining members. The Lodge
was never completely restored.

In Ascona, Reuss held an "Anational Congress for Organising the Reconstruction of Society on Practical
Cooperative Lines" at Monte Verità from August 15-25, 1917. This Congress included readings of
Crowley's poetry (on August 22) and a recitation of Crowley's Gnostic Mass (on August 24 -- for O.T.O.
members only). The announcement for this congress stated: "There are two centres of the O.T.O., both
in neutral countries, where enquiries can be lodged by those interested in the aim of this congress. One is
at New York (U.S. of America), the other at Ascona (Italian Switzerland)." Crowley was living in New
York at the time; so, evidently, he and Reuss were the only active National Heads of O.T.O. in 1917.

Reuss had his secretary, "J. Adderley" (Isabel Adderley Oedenkoven), send a copy of the announcement,
along with a copy of Crowley's Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:., to the United Grand Lodge of England,
hoping that the Grand Lodge would send a representative. It did not; but William Hammond, the Grand
Lodge Librarian, wrote to Reuss after the congress and asked for additional information. During Reuss's
correspondence with Hammond, Reuss reminded Hammond that they had met in 1913/14, and Reuss
had provided him with copies of the Oriflamme and Crowley's Equinox, which, he said, "give details
about O.T.O."

Reuss was clearly impressed with Thelema. Crowley's Gnostic Mass, which Reuss translated into
German and had recited at his Anational Congress at Monte Verità is an explicitly Thelemic ritual. In an
undated letter to Crowley (received in 1917), Reuss reported excitedly that he had read The Message of
the Master Therion to his group at Monte Verita, and that he was translating The Book of the Law into
German. He added, "Let this news encourage you! We live in your Work!!!"

On October 24, 1917, Reuss issued a charter to Rudolf Laban de Laban-Varalya (1879-1958) and Hans
Rudolf Hilflker-Dunn (1882-1955) to operate a III° O.T.O. Lodge in Zurich, called Libertas et
Fraternitas. On November 3, 1917, de Laban became the Grand Master of the Anational Grand Lodge
Verità Mystica. Later that month he closed Verità Mystica and moved his center of operations to Zurich.
In March of 1918, Crowley published the Gnostic Mass in The International. Reuss published his
German translation of the Gnostic Mass the same year.

In a note at the end of his translation of the Gnostic Mass, Reuss referred to himself as, simultaneously,
the Sovereign Patriarch and Primate of the Gnostic Catholic Church, and Gnostic Legate to Switzerland
of the Église Gnostique Universelle, acknowledging Jean Bricaud (1881-1934) as Sovereign Patriarch of
that church. The issuance of this document can be viewed as the birth of the Thelemic E.G.C. as an
independent organization under the umbrella of O.T.O., with Reuss as its first Patriarch.

World War I ended on November 11, 1918. De Laban left Switzerland in November. In February of
1919, the Libertas et Fraternitas Lodge dropped its O.T.O. connections and became strictly a Masonic
Lodge. It later became regularized under the Swiss Grand Lodge Alpina. Although no O.T.O. bodies
remained in Switzerland, Reuss continued to confer O.T.O. degrees upon individuals. While Reuss
persisted in asserting the Masonic authority of O.T.O., Crowley continued to move M:.M:.M:. further
from Freemasony. In October of 1918, Crowley prepared another substantial revision to the Order's
initial rituals, this time altogether abandoning the term "Masonry" and the characteristic emblems, signs,
grips, etc. of the Craft degrees. He presented his revised rituals to Reuss for order-wide adoption. In
March of 1919, Crowley issued The Equinox, Volume III, No. 1 (the "Blue Equinox"), which contained a
number of important O.T.O. documents, including:
 • Liber LII: The Manifesto of the O.T.O.
• Liber CXCIV: An Intimation With Respect to the Constitution of the Order
• Liber CI: An Open Letter to Those Who May Wish to Join the Order
• Liber CLXI: Concerning the Law of Thelema
• a revised version of Liber XV: The Gnostic Mass.

Crowley's Liber LII: The Manifesto of the 0.T.0. was based nearly word-for-word on Crowley's 1912
Manifesto of the M:.M:.M:.. Thelemic salutations were added, references to officers were updated,
references to "guineas" were changed to their equivalents in dollars, two names of contributing
organizations were deleted (The Rosicrucian Order and the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn); the
table of fees and the photographs of Boleskine were deleted, the statement "It [O.T.O.] does not in any
way infringe the just privileges of duly authorized Masonic Bodies" was added after the list of
contributing organizations, and the Masonic disclaimer quoted previously was changed to:

The O.T.O., although an Academia Masonica, is not a Masonic Body so far as the 'secrets' are concerned
in the sense in which that expression is usually understood; and therefore in no way conflicts with, or
infringes the just privileges of, the United Grand Lodge of England, or any Grand Lodge in America or
elsewhere which is recognized by it.

On May 10, 1919. Reuss issued a Warrant to Hans Rudolph Hilfiker, Dr. E. Pargaetzi, R. Merlitschek,
and M. Bergmaier to form a Supreme Council of the Cernau Scottish Rite for Switzerland in Zurich. On
the same date, Reuss issued a "Gauge of Amity" document to Matthew McBlain Thomson, founder of
the ill-fated "American Masonic Federation." The document recognized Thomson as a IX° member of
O.T.O. On September 18, 1919, Reuss was reconsecrated by Bricaud, thus receiving the "Antioch
Succession," and re-appointed as "Gnostic Legate" to Switzerland for Bricaud's Église Gnostique
Universelle.

Crowley returned to England in December of 1919. In 1920, Reuss published his Program of
Construction and Guiding Principles of the Gnostic Neo-Christians: 0.T.O. In this document, Reuss set
forth his ideas for a (highly regimented) utopian society. The principles of this society were to be based
on ideas from Thelema (The Book of the Law and aphorisms of the Master Therion are quoted and
explained); along with more traditional ideas from Rosicrucianism, Gnosticism, and Yoga; and the
"progressive" socio-political ideas prevalent at Monte Verità.

On July 17, 1920, Reuss attended the Congress of the "World Federation of Universal Freemasonry,"
held at the Libertas et Fraternitas Lodge in Zurich. This conference was intended to take up the work of
Papus's "International Masonic and Spiritualist Conference" held in Paris in 1908. Reuss, with Bricaud's
authorization, advocated the adoption of the religion of Crowley's Gnostic Mass as the "official religion
for all members of the World Federation of Universal Freemasonry in possession of the 18° of the
Scottish Rite." Reuss's efforts in this regard were a failure, and he quarreled with Matthew McBlain
Thomson (who was elected Honorary President of the International Masonic Federation) over
jurisdictional issues. Reuss left the congress after the first day.

C.S. Jones had resigned from O.T.O. in 1919, but had continued to correspond with Reuss; and on May
10, 1921, Reuss chartered Jones as X° for the "United States of North America." On the same date, he
chartered Heinrich Tränker (Recnartus, 1880-1956), who headed several esoteric organizations within a
movement termed "Pansophia," as X° for Germany.
On July 30, 1921, Reuss issued another "Gauge of Amity" document, this time to H. Spencer Lewis, the
founder of A.M.O.R.C., the San Jose, California based Rosicrucian organization. This document also
recognized Lewis as a VII° member of O.T.O. Crowley had met Lewis previously in 1918 in New York,
and was not impressed with him. Reuss returned to Germany in September of 1921, settling in Munich.
On September 3, 1921, Reuss chartered Carl William Hansen (Kadosh, 1872-1936) as X° for Denmark.
In October of 1921, upon Dunn's resignation, Crowley appointed Frank Bennett as his Viceroy to
Australia.

CROWLEY'S SUCCESSION

There is some reason to believe that Reuss suffered a stroke in the Spring of 1920, but this is not entirely
certain. Crowley wrote to W.T. Smith in March of 1943:

the late O.H.O., after his first stroke of paralysis, got into a panic about the work being carried on...He
hastily issued honorary diplomas of the Seventh Degree to various people, some of whom had no right
to anything at all and some of whom were only cheap crooks.

Shortly after appointing him his Viceroy for Australia, Crowley appears to have corresponded with
Frank Bennett and discussed with him his doubts about Reuss's continuing ability to effectively govern
the Order. It would appear that Reuss discovered the correspondence; he wrote Crowley an angry,
defensive response on November 9, 1921, in which he appeared to distance himself and O.T.O. from
Thelema, which, as shown above, he had previously embraced. Crowley replied to Reuss's letter on
November 23, 1921, and stated in his letter, "It is my will to be O.H.O. and Frater Superior of the Order
and avail myself of your abdication -- to proclaim myself as such." He signed the letter "Baphomet
O.H.O." In a diary entry for November 27, 1921, Crowley wrote: "I have proclaimed myself O.H.O.
Frater Superior of the Order of Oriental Templars." Reuss died on October 28, 1923 e.v.

In his Confessions, Crowley recounts that Reuss "resigned the office [of O.H.O.] in 1922 in my favour."
In a letter to Heinrich Tränker dated February 14, 1925, Crowley stated the following:

Reuss was very uncertain in temper, and in many ways unreliable. In his last years he seems to have
completely lost his grip, even accusing The Book of the Law of communistic tendencies, than which no
statement could be more absurd. Yet it seems that he must have been to some extent correctly led, on
account of his having made the appointments of yourself and Frater Achad, and designating me in his
last letter as his successor.

In a letter to Charles Stansfeld Jones dated Sun in Capricorn, Anno XX (Dec. 1924 - Jan. 1925),
Crowley said, "in the O.H.O.'s last letter to me he invited me to become his successor as O.H.O. and
Frater Superior." Reuss's letter designating Crowley his successor as O.H.O. has not been found, but no
credible documentation has surfaced which would indicate that Reuss ever designated any alternative
successor.

O.T.O UNDER CROWLEY

Aleister Crowley served as the Outer Head of the Order from 1922 until his death in December of 1947.
Crowley's first act as O.H.O. was to reconfirm the charters of Jones and Tränker as Grand Masters for
North America and Germany, respectively. Tränker, on Jones's recommendation, invited Crowley to
formally assume leadership of O.T.O. as well as of the various organizations included in the Pansophical
movement, at a conference to be held at Hohenleuben, near Weida, in the summer of 1925. The other
attendees of the conference were: Heinrich and Helene Tränker; Karl Germer (Saturnus, Jan. 22, 1885 -
Oct. 25, 1962), at the time Tränker's secretary and publisher); Albin Grau; Eugen Grosche; Martha
Künzel; Henri Birven; a gentleman named Hopfer; Crowley; Crowley's associates Dorothy Olsen, Leah
Hirsig, Norman Mudd; and others.

The results of the conference were mixed. The attendees were divided over Crowley's teachings and The
Book of the Law, of which they had previously been largely unaware (it had only recently been
translated into German). There were personality conflicts as well. Fraulein Künzel and Herr Germer
went with Crowley. Herr Tränker, Grau, Hopfer and Birven decided to keep the Pansophical Lodge
independent from the Master Therion. Herr Grosche originally sided with Crowley, but he and Germer
quarreled, and Grosche decided to remain independent. After the closure of the Pansophical Lodge in
1926, Grosche regrouped a number of the ex-Pansophists to found the Fraternitas Saturni. Fratemitas
Saturni recognized Crowley's status as a prophet, and accepted the Law of Thelema in a modified form;
but Grosche insisted on keeping it independent from O.T.O. and under his own, rather than Crowley's,
authority. Fraternitas Saturni continues to the present day in Germany, Canada and elsewhere, and does
not represent itself as being O.T.O.

Tränker apparently attempted to lay claim to the title of O.H.O. of O.T.O. for himself in 1925, but it
appears that he was not widely recognized as such and that he ceased his efforts in this direction by
1930, when he and H. Spencer Lewis began to work together directly (but unsuccessfully) to establish a
German branch of A.M.O.R.C.

AGAPÉ LODGE

Agapé Lodge No. 1 had been established in 1915 in Vancouver, B.C., Canada under the authority of
Jones and Crowley. In the 1930's, Wilfred Talbot Smith (1885-1957), a charter member of Agapé Lodge
No. 1, moved from Vancouver on instructions from Crowley to work with Jane Wolfe (1875-1958), who
had been a student of Crowley's at Cefalu, to establish Agapé Lodge No. 2 in Los Angeles, California.
Smith and Wolfe gathered a group together in Hollywood, California, and along with Regina Kahl
(1891-1945), began to celebrate the Gnostic Mass on a weekly basis on Sunday, March 19, 1933. Agapé
Lodge No. 2 held its first meeting in 1935. Agapé Lodge contributed greatly to Crowley's publishing
efforts, and Crowley appointed Smith (Ramaka) as X° for the U.S.A. Later, Agapt Lodge No. 2 moved
to Pasadena, California, and was headed by John W. "Jack" Parsons (Belarion, 1914-1952), a respected
chemical engineer and aerospace pioneer. Parsons was instrumental in the founding of both the
California Institute of Technology's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and of Aerojet General.

Karl Germer

When World War II broke out in 1939, international communications became increasingly disrupted and
civilian travel was limited. Crowley became very dependent on foreign representatives, being unable to
travel himself. Karl Germer, Crowley's German representative, was arrested by the Gestapo and
confined in a Nazi concentration camp for "seeking students for the foreign resident, high-grade
Freemason, Crowley." Released early in the War through the efforts of the American Consul, Germer
traveled ultimately to the United States, where, as Grand Treasurer General and Crowley's second in
command, he conducted much of the business of O.T.O. On March 14, 1942, Crowley wrote to Germer:
"I shall appoint you my successor as O.H.O. . . . A complete change in the structure of the Order, and in
its methods is necessary. The secret is the basis, and you must select the proper people." The other
European branches of O.T.O. were largely destroyed or driven underground during the War. The Latin
American branches of Krumm-Heller's F.R.A. maintained a light contact with Germer until the early
1960s.

By the end of the Second World War in 1945, only Agapé Lodge in Pasadena, California was still
functioning. There were isolated O.T.O. initiates in various parts of the world. Although Crowley
received visits from O.T.O. members in England, no Lodge work had been conducted there since the
police raid of 1917. Initiations were very rare outside of California. Krumm-Heller in Mexico performed
no O.T.O. initiations, but sent a candidate, Dr. Gabriel Montenegro (Frater Zopiron or Theophilos), to
California for initiation.

GRADY MCMURTRY

During the Second World War, two Californian O.T.O. members, Grady Louis McMurtry (Oct. 18,
1918 - July 12, 1985) and Frederick Mellinger (Merlinus, 1890-1970) (Mellinger was originally a
refugee from Nazi Germany), traveled to Europe on military assignments. McMurtry went earlier and
visited Crowley on several occasions while on leave. Mellinger visited Crowley after McMurtry was
rotated back to the United States.

There was a good rapport between Crowley and McMurtry, and Crowley respected McMurtry's military
experience. In 1943, Crowley personally conferred the IX° of O.T.O. upon McMurtry and made him a
Sovereign Grand Inspector General of the Order, and gave him the Magical Name he was to use from
then on, Hymenaeus Alpha, 777. In 1944, Crowley began discussing with McMurtry the possibility of
assuming the "Caliphate." Crowley wrote to McMurtry on Sept. 28, 1944: "I hope you will prefer my
plan for your career as my Fides Achates, alter ego, Caliph, & so on." On November 21, 1944, he wrote
to McMurtry again:

'The Caliphate.' You must realize that no matter how closely we see eye-to-eye on any objective subject,
I have to think on totally different premises where the Order is concerned. One of the (startling few)
commands given to me was this: 'Trust not a stranger: fail not of an heir.' This has been the very devil
for me. Fr:. [Saturnus] is, of course, the natural Caliph; but there are many details concerning the actual
policy or working which hit his blind spots. In any case, he can only be a stopgap, because of his age; I
have to look for _his_ successor. It has been Hell; so many have come up with amazing promise, only to
go on the rocks....But -- now here is where you have missed my point altogether - I do not think of you
as lying on a grassy hillside with a lot of dear sweet lovely woolly lambs, capering to your flute! On the
contrary. Your actual life, or 'blooding,' is the sort of initiation which I regard as the first essential for a
Caliph. For -- say 20 years hence the Outer Head of the Order must, among other things, have had the
experience of war as it is in actual fact to-day.

The title "Caliph," while perhaps appealing somewhat to the sense of humor of both men as a pun on the
abbreviation for California (the State of McMurtry's residence and the location of Agapé Lodge), is from
the Arabic word Khalifa, meaning "deputy." It was historically used in early Islam to designate the
successor to the Prophet, the worldwide Commander of the Islamic Faithful. Crowley's use of the term
as applied to Germer and McMurtry was parallel for O.T.O.

In 1946, Crowley entrusted McMurtry with documents of emergency authorization to take charge of the
entire work of the Order in California, which included the only functional O.T.O. Body at the time.
Crowley additionally appointed McMurtry his personal representative in the U.S.A., whose authority
was to be considered as Crowley's own. These two charters, dated respectively March 22, 1916 and
April 11, 1946, were subject only to Karl Gcrmer's approval, veto or revision. Germer was well
informed of McMurtry's charters from Crowley, as he had attended the Agapé Lodge meeting at which
McMurtry had presented them. In addition, in a letter to Germer dated June 19, 1946, Crowley informed
Germer that "The only limitation on his [McMurtry's] power in California is that any decision which he
takes is subject to revision or veto by yourself," thus removing the requirement for prior approval by
Germer.

On June 6, 1947, Crowley wrote to Germer:

You seem in doubt too about the succession. There has never been any question about this. Since your
re-appearance you are the only successor of whom I have ever thought since that moment. I have,
however, had the idea that in view of the dispersion of so many members, you might fmd it useful to
appoint a triumvirate to work under you. My idea was Mellinger, McMurtry, and, I suppose, Roy
[Lefingwell], though I have always been a little doubtful about the trustworthiness of the last.

On June 17, 1947, six months before his death, Crowley wrote to McMurtry and informed him that
while Germer was to be Crowley's successor as Head of O.T.O., McMurtry should hold himself
prepared to succeed Germer.

Crowley, while trusting in Karl Germer's ability to govern the Order as his successor, evidently did not
trust in Germer's ability to find and designate an appropriate successor for himself. In what appears to
have been an additional contingency measure in the event that McMurtry died of became incapacitated,
Crowley also advised Mellinger to hold himself ready as a possible successor to Germer, in a letter dated
July 15, 1947. However, Mellinger did not receive any assignments of the kind given to McMurtry, and
Crowley never used the term "Caliph" in reference to Mellinger.

O.T.O UNDER GERMER

Crowley died on December 1, 1947; and in accord with his wishes Karl Germer became O.H.O. of
O.T.O., serving from late 1947 until his death in 1962. Agapé Lodge continued in Southern California
until 1949, after which the Lodge ceased to hold regular meetings. The records of Agape Lodge,
consisting of minutes of meetings, annotated copies of rituals, lists of members initiated to various
degrees in O.T.O., correspondence, and financial records, were conserved by Jane Wolfe and various
members of the Lodge.

Following Crowley's death, his will was probated and the executors began receiving his property for
shipment to Germer. Germer received most of the materials from Crowley's estate and eventually took
them with him to his final home at Westpoint in Calaveras County, California.

Germer was a quiet and reclusive man, and primarily interested in publishing Crowley's writings.
Several O.T.O. members helped him with this, but, aside from promotion of those already initiated, no
new initiations were given. Germer notified McMurtry and others that O.T.O. was to be incorporated
and governed by a triumvirate of officers, but this incorporation was never accomplished under Germer's
headship of O.T.O. Germer did charter an O.T.O. Camp in England under Kenneth Grant, a III°
member, but closed the Camp and expelled Grant from O.T.O. membership on July 20, 1955 when he
learned that Grant had become associated with Grosche's Fraternitas Saturni, had circulated a manifesto
for the a new Lodge of O.T.O.under the joint authority of Germer and Grosche, and had begun to
modify the O.T.O. rituals, all without notice to Germer.
Germer also took an interest in the efforts of Hermann Metzger (Paragranus, 1919-l990) in Switzerland.
Metzger was a student of a surviving member of Reuss's Swiss section of the O.T.O. named Felix
Lazerus Pinkus (1881-1947), but had no original connection with Crowley's O.T.O. Germer appointed
Mellinger to supervise Metzger's regularization into Crowley's O.T.O., but Germer and Metzger fell into
disagreement toward the end of Germer's life. Frederic Mellinger wrote after Germer's death that
Metzger had failed to satisfy the program of instruction set forth for Metzger by Germer under
Mellinger's tutelage. According to one source, Metzger claimed to have chartered Gabriel Montenegro
as X° for the United States. However, Montenegro never claimed any such authority, and never even
mentioned any O.T.O. appointment from Metzger to his O.T.O. colleagues in the U.S.

O.T.O. members in California actively sought to influence Germer to reopen public access to O.T.O.

Concern was expressed in correspondence that a failure to initiate new O.T.O. members would result in
the ultimate demise of O.T.O. In 1959, McMurtry had called a meeting in Los Angeles, to which
members of Agapé Lodge and others were invited, with the purpose of attempting to create a unified
front to pressure Karl Germer into resuming OTO initiations. McMurtry was ready to invoke his
authorizations from Crowley in support of this idea. Dr. Montenegro opposed the idea, and the others
failed to lend any support; the idea was abandoned. Montenegro wrote to McMurtry on Nov. 21, 1960 to
memorialize his opposition to the idea.

Germer authorized McMurtry to form a nucleus of new O.T.O. public access, but Germer and McMurtry
had a falling out over a personal loan and other matters. Whatever differences they may have had, there
is not the slightest suggestion that Germer even considered vetoing or revising McMurtry's charters from
Crowley. McMurtry lost his job in California due to health problems and moved to Washington, D.C. in
March of 1961. Here he taught Political Science at George Washington University while working as a
Management Analyst for the U.S. Government. He also directed the Washington Shakespeare Society.

Interregnum

Germer died on October 25, 1962 without having designated a successor. Germer's last will and
testament named his wife Sascha and Frederick Mellinger the executors of his estate in the matter of
property held for O.T.O. Sascha was an elderly lady of less than sound mind, and cut herself off from
the surviving members of O.T.O. in California. Germer's estate was never probated. Some ranking
members, including Grady McMurtry, were not notified of Germer's death for several years, causing a
long delay before the question of succession to leadership of O.T.O. was properly addressed.

Metzger in Switzerland published a claim to being the Outer Head of the Order, based on a private
election represented to have been held in Switzerland on January 6, 1963. Ranking members of O.T.O.
outside of Switzerland, including Frederick Mellinger, whom Germer had appointed as Metzger's
mentor, were not informed of Metzger's purported election until after the alleged fact. A copy of
Metzger's manifesto was sent to Wilfred Smith, who had been dead since 1957. Metzger was not
generally accepted as head of the Order outside his own group. Sascha made a half-hearted attempt to
send Germer's O.T.O. property material to Metzger, but this was blocked by Mellinger in a letter dated
Sept. 25, 1963 which denounced Metzger as a fraud. Metzger later incorporated his system of O.T.O. as
part of a new organization of his own formulation, the "Ordo Illuminatorum," which purported to be a
revival of the order of the Illuminati. Metzger died in 1990.

Kenneth Grant (b. 1924) also asserted a claim to being Outer Head of the Order; but he had previously
been expelled from membership by Germer. Mr. Grant disputes his expulsion, claiming that he never
recognized Karl Germer as head of O.T.O. However, Grant's own writings from the 1950's, in particular
the manifesto of New Isis Lodge, refer to Frater S (Saturnus, i.e. Karl Germer) as the international head
of O.T.O. Grant's organization asserts that O.T.O. had ceased to be a membership organization in its
traditional sense of having Lodges and conferring degrees ceremonially. Grant's organization also
ignores the Gnostic Mass, which is, according to Crowley, "the central ceremony of [O.T.O.'s] public
and private celebration."

O.T.O. Under McMurtry

When McMurtry became aware of the critical condition into which the Order had fallen after Germer's
death, he was impelled to invoke his documents of emergency authorization from Crowley, and assume
the title "Caliph of O.T.O.," as specified in Crowley's letters to McMurtry from the 1940s. For the two
witnesses he believed were necessary for this act, he chose Dr. Israel Regardie (1907-1985) and Gerald
Yorke (1901-1983). McMurtry referred to these two as the "Eyes of Horus," as the two most prominent
surviving personal students of Crowley. He advised them of his plans to reconstitute the O.T.O. using
his letters of charter from Crowley, and requested their support, which was offered. McMurtry
completed the activation of his Caliphate by June of 1969, with a letter to Hermann Metzger of
Switzerland.

Upon activation of the Caliphate, surviving O.T.O. members from the Germer and Crowley years were
invited to join with McMurtry to resume regular operations of O.T.O. At that time there were less than a
dozen surviving older O.T.O. members in the United States. Soror Meral, Soror Grimaud, Mildred
Burlingame and Gabriel Montenegro indicated willingness to see the O.T.O. accessible to the general
public. Ray Burlingame had died some years before, and Dr. Montenegro died on July 14, 1969, before
an organizational meeting could be held. Frederick Mellinger had re-established his contacts with the
Theosophical Society and had been essentially inactive in O.T.O. since approximately 1956, except to
write his letter blocking the probate of Germer's will in favor of Metzger in 1963. Mellinger died on
August 29, 1970. In 1969 and 1970, McMurtry, Burlingame and Sorores Meral and Grimaud began to
perform initiations. On December 28, 1971, the Ordo Templi Orientis Association was registered with
the State of California to form a legal entity for O.T.O.

Sascha Germer died in April of 1975, and in 1976 when her death became known, the O.T.O.
Association under McMurtry obtained a court order for delivery of the remnant of the O.T.O. archives
that had been in her custodianship. This order was issued, recognizing Grady McMurtry as the
authorized representative of O.T.O., by the Superior Court in Calaveras County, California, and filed
July 27th, 1976.

Under McMurtry, as Caliph or acting Head of O.T.O., several attempts were made to attract new
members to O.T.O. and to make the Order known to the public. In 1970, O.T.O. published Crowley's
Thoth Tarot Cards, illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris, from the Dublin address. Response was slow, but a
few new members were initiated through efforts centered in Dublin, California at The College of
Thelema and in San Francisco at the Kaaba Clerk House. The San Francisco activity collapsed, and one
new member resigned. Activity continued for two years in Dublin, and then was transferred to Berkeley,
California.

In 1977, McMurtry held O.T.O. initiations at his home in Berkeley, California, and began a group there.
O.T.O. was incorporated under the laws of the State of California on March 26th, 1979 e.v. Those who
had claimed in print to be O.T.O. members or who were known to be former members were notified of
the formation of this corporation, and given a period of time to file a claim to continued membership,
according to a precedent established earlier by Karl Germer. The corporation attained Federal Tax
exemption as a religious entity under IRS Code 501(c)3 in 1982.

Challenge in Court

A substantial effort was made to assume control of O.T.O. by Marcelo Ramos Motta (1931-1987) under
the name "Society Ordo Templi Orientis." Mr. Motta had been a personal A ∴A ∴ student of Karl
Germer for a number of years, but had never formally obtained a charter to Initiate or operate a Lodge.
In fact, he had never even been formally initiated into O.T.O. After Germer's death, Motta asserted a
claim to being Germer's successor, and formed an O.T.O. group in his native country of Brazil. Motta at
first recognized Kenneth Grant as head of O.T.O., but rescinded this recognition on learning that Grant
had been expelled by Germer. Motta ultimately came to the United States to claim the Crowley
copyrights. He first sued Samuel Weiser, Inc., a publisher of many of Crowley's works, for copyright
and trademark infringement; maintaining that he was the sole representative of Crowley's O.T.O. This
case was decided in Weiser's favor by the U.S. District Court in Maine. The Judge found that Motta's
representations regarding O.T.O. did not meet the test of legal existence. O.T.O. under McMurtry was
not a party to this case, and did not factor in the judgment.

During the proceedings in Maine, O.T.O. under McMurtry served Motta with a suit to be heard in the
9th Federal District Court in San Francisco. The San Francisco case was concluded in 1985, with Motta
again losing. O.T.O. under McMurtry was recognized by the Court to be the continuation of the O.T.O.
of Aleister Crowley, and the exclusive owner of the names, trademarks, copyrights and other assets of
O.T.O. McMurtry was found to be the legitimate head of O.T.O. within the United States. The 9th
District decision also recognized O.T.O. under McMurtry as a legal membership entity. This decision
was appealed and upheld. Grady McMurtry died on July 12, 1985, following the original decision of the
9th District Court, but the process of appeal established that O.T.O. continued as a corporation.

O.T.O. Today

Rather than designate his own successor, McMurtry desired that his successor be chosen by vote of the
Sovereign Sanctuary of O.T.O. after his death. The election was held on September 21, 1985, with the
two surviving members of Agapé Lodge participating, and Frater Hymenaeus Beta was elected to
succeed Frater Hymenaeus Alpha as Caliph and acting O.H.O. of O.T.O. Hymenaeus Beta continues in
office to this day.

In early 1996, a new corporation was founded to carry on the work of the U.S. Grand Lodge of O.T.O,
while the existing corporation reorganized itself as the International Headquarters of O.T.O. On March
30, 1996, Sabazius X° was appointed as National Grand Master General for the U.S. Grand Lodge.

Acknowledgments

In addition to materials in the O.T.O. archives, the published writings of the following protagonists and historical researchers were consulted in preparing
this essay: Calvin C. Burt, W.B. Crow, Isaac Blair Evans, Antoine Faivre, S.E. Flowers, René Le Forestier, Joscelyn Godwin, Dr. J.A. Gottlieb, Ellic Howe,
Francis King, Peter-Robert König, Helmut Möller, William G. Peacher, M.D., Martin P. Starr, John Symonds, M. McBlain Thomson, A.E. Waite, James
Webb, and John Yarker.

The following individuals provided substantial assistance in the form of historical information and/or criticism: William Breeze, Martin P. Starr, Parsival
Krumm-Heller, Soror Meral, Soror Grimaud, Lon Milo DuQuette, James T. Graeb, Bjarne Salling Pedersen, and P.-R. König.
 Notes

1. The Hermetic Brotherhood of Light was a mystical society which claimed descent from the late 18th century Austrian Masonic/Rosicrucian body
known as the Fratres Lucis. The Fratres Lucis, also known as the Asiatic Brethren or Initiated Brethren of the Seven Cities in Asia, was derived
from the earlier German Order of the Golden and Rosy Cross. The Hermetic Brotherhood of Light also appears to have had connections with the
Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor, which was a mystical society which surfaced publicly in England in 1884 under the auspices of Max Theon
(AKA Louis-Maximilian Bimstein, 1850-1927). The origins of the H.B. of L. are unclear, but there is some evidence linking it with the
Brotherhood of Luxor, which was involved in the founding of the Theosophical Society as well as with the aforementioned Fratres Lucis; and
with the latter's 19th century English spiritualist namesake. Born in Poland, Theon travelled widely in his youth. In Cairo, he became a student of
a Coptic magician named Paulos Metamon. Theon came to England in 1870, where he recruited the violin-maker Peter Davidson (1842-1916) to
establish an "Outer Circle" of the H.B. of L. They were joined in 1883 by Thomas H. Burgoyne (AKA Thomas Dalton, 1855-1895), who later
wrote a book summarizing the basic teachings of the H.B. of L., titled The Light of Egypt. The function of this "Outer Circle" of the H.B. of L.
was to offer a correspondence course on practical occultism; which set it apart from the Theosophical Society. Its curriculum included a number
of selections from the writings of Hargrave Jennings and Paschal Beverly Randolph2.

2. P.B. Randolph (Oct. 8, 1825 - July 29, 1875) was a noted medium, healer, occultist and author of his day, and counted among his personal
friends Abraham Lincoln, Hargrave Jennings, Kenneth McKenzie, Eliphas Levi, Napoleon III, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, and General Ethan Allen
Hitchcock. Randolph's Order claimed descent from the Rosicrucian Order (by charter of the "Supreme Grand Lodge of France"), and taught
spiritual healing, western occultism and principals of race regeneration through the spirtualization of sex.

3. Yarker was elected Absolute Sovereign Grand Master of the Oriental Rite of Mizraim in 1871. He was installed as Grand Master 96° of the
Sovereign Sanctuary of the Antient and Primitive Rite of Memphis for England by Harold J. Seymour on Oct. 8, 1872. Seymour had in turn
received his letters-patent from Jacques Etienne Marconis de Negre on June 21, 1862. Yarker received letters-patent for the Cerneau Ancient and
Accepted Scottish Rite from Theo. H. Tebbs of the Combined Canadian S.G.C. of that Rite on January 12, 1884. Yarker was elected Imperial
Grand Hierophant 97° of the Rite of Memphis on November 11, 1902

4. Those attending the congress were: Reuss (representing the Sov. Sanctuary of Memphis and Mizraim Rites for Germany, Grand Orient of the
Scottish Rite in Germany, and the National Grand Lodge of the United Scottish, Memphis and Mizraim Rites for Great Britain and Ireland); H.R.
Hilfiker, R. Merlitschek, and M. Bergmaier (representing the Grand Orient of the Scottish Rite in Switzerland [based on a Reuss Charter dated
May 10, 1919]), Dr. E. Pargaetzi (representing the Sov. Sanctuary of the Scottish, Memphis and Mizraim Rites for France); A. Spilmer
(representing the Grand Lodge of Colombia), H. Schütz (representing Prince Alexander of Greece, Grand Protector of Greek Freemasonry); John
Anderson (representing the National Grand Lodge of Scotland); and Matthew McBlain Thomson (representing the American Masonic
Federation, the Grand Lodge of Washington, D.C., and the Grand Orient of Cuba).
 Joining the O.T.O.
A How-To, Step-by-Step Guide

Now that you've read an in depth account of the history of Ordo Templi Orientis, some of you readers
may be interested in learning how to join. This process, though it involves some periods of waiting, is
neither difficult nor time consuming.

There are two types of membership in the O.T.O., Associate and Initiate. Associate Membership is more
of an affiliation and a sort of "statement of support" of the Order, for lack of better terminology. It
requires no physical presence and is rather non-intrusive into one's lifestyle. If you would like to apply
for Associate Membership in the O.T.O, please send a check or money order for $10.00 for your first
year's Associate dues to:

Ordo Templi Orientis

Associate Memberships
P.O. Box 430
Fairfax, CA 94978 U.S.A.

Initiate Membership is a bit more involved. It is only conferred by a physical ceremony in which the
candidate MUST be present to participate (sorry, "astral" initiations are not acknowledged as legitimate).
It also involves financial responsibilities, which are primarily limited to annual dues and a fee for each
initiation taken. The dues and fee schedule for Associate Membership the Man of Earth Series of
Degrees (OO--P\I\O) in the US is as follows:

Membership Category Initiation Fee Annual Dues TOTAL

Associate $10 --- $10
0° $36 $36 $72
I° $36 $36 $72
II° $72 $36 $108
III° $108 $72 $180
IV° $144 $100 $244
P:.I:. no increase $31 $31

The Annual Dues are remitted to Grand Lodge and the Initiation Fees are retained by the Initiating Body
for local expenses.

Though it is written that every man and woman "who is free, of full age, and of good report has an
indefeasible right to the first three degrees of O.T.O.," what does this archaically worded passage
actually mean? Let us break it down clause by clause. Free means not incarcerated. Full Age means at
least eighteen years of age, no exceptions. Good Report is a leftover term from Freemasonry, which
means that the candidate is approved for initiation by the Lodge. The First Three Degrees includes the
whole Man of Earth Series of Degrees from Minerval through P:.I:.
If one were interested in O° (Minerval) Initiation, the process begins with contact. One must decide it is
their will to become a member, then contact us to make it happen. After contact has been established,
the potential candidate is then invited to a discussion to find out more of what the OTO is about. If the
candidate still so desires, a Preliminary Application and Pledge Form is provided, and it is filled out on
the spot. Two other members of at least the First Degree must sponsor all new candidates. Dues and fees
are generally collected when the application has been signed. Once this point has been reached, there is
a mandatory thirty day waiting period between the submission of paperwork to Grand Lodge and the
initiation itself.

Once the initiation has taken place, participation in our other local functions is not mandatory, but
strongly recommended. Before the candidate may advance to the next degree, a few conditions must be
satisfied. The first of which is time. Because the initiations set off a magical chain-reaction within, it
takes time for the full effects to mature within one's self. This minimum time period between degrees is
generally one year, with a few exceptions here and there. The second condition is that a certain set of
lessons and secrets pertinent to each degree be learned. The third is that the candidate must will to
proceed. No one is ever required to proceed further than they are ready.

This is a simple overview of how to gain admission into Ordo Templi Orientis. Any further questions,
comments, or inquiries should be directed to the contact points listed in the front of this issue.

Fra:. Supra N:.

 The trees shelter the ground as
a mother would her young,
while the green grass blankets the
ground hiding her treasures
from the probing eye.
Life and death walk hand in hand
as this thing man calls life
goes eternally forward.
In the expanse of eternity
nothing is good or bad, these
are only man's labels.
Leaving the world of problems
and conflict behind, i step into
the Unity of nature.
Behind this beauty there exists
One Mind, each of us a fragmentation.
We contain this One Mind
within each of us, our
personalities and egos
are the fragments.
i did not, could not, create
such beauty or magnificence,
only that Self that dwells
in the Light can create such beauty.
The personal ego of each individual
is totally different from another,
each arising from foreign genes,
environments, biases, and fears.
Above the body rises the spiritual
leader of man, his own savior.
This Being, along with ourselves and those like him,
contain everything that is,
was, or will be.
We cast our shadows upon the earth,
each as magnificent as the first or last,
each a spirit trapped in matter.
The world of matter is an essential
phase in our development,
nothing about it is evil.
Those who say life and things
contained within are seperate
show their ignorance of the
Unity behind the contending forces of nature.
The hawk uses the wind to fly,
 never saying this is bad or good.
Man must learn to harness and
work in harmony with these forces,
not change or destroy them.
Work with materials given
but do not destroy those unused or
unwanted.

Kulta Kultainen Valkkya Roskatta

solve et coagula

Fra:. WLLM
 Luna's silvery smile shines over
Her sleeping children, each lost
Within the eternal night of fear.
All await Her call to awake in
the glistening morning of life.

Love called, only her gentle

Lullaby became fused with matter,
To be sullied and forgotten
beneath the layers of self.

Knowledge demanded blind reign

Crowning reason ultimate god,
Forgetting reality and perfection
Are phantasms after the rain.

Faith, the bastard son of false

religion blocks the light
From man's kingdom, the initiate
Being shunned and locked away.

"Far beyond our world of sense

Shines brilliance and glory", the
False religions lie in their ignorance.
The brilliance is here and within.

Covenants forgotten beneath layers

of dust defeat their eternal purpose,
only the hand and heart of the Lover
may reveal truth lost and fragmented within.

Light and matter, god and man

each identical, different by name.
Subject and object, Lover and loved,
all are one but never the same.

i write these words with a

dual purpose in mind,
to reach a person and to illuminate the two,
but with these desires
the goal is one.
To join into none.

These ramblings spill forth without

 thought or regret, the train of reason
tumbles off the rails of thought
to leave the message hidden, lost.

Lover, hear my soft voice mingling

through these words, reaching out
to capture your ear and heart.
Help in my search for our divine spark.

Fra:. WLLM
Metamorphose
I'm not the first
And I surely won't be the last
To take a few steps upon this path
And to question my own past
Because they told me there was a light-
It didn't matter whom I'd ask-
So seeking out its central source
Became my chosen task

It started innocent enough-

They were showing me the way
They taught me how to think
And they taught me how to pray
I followed the instructions
And I played by all the rules
Trying to avoid the pitfalls
Of madmen, slaves and fools

But skeletons danced before me

Showing their joy-veiled fear
The shame hid in each 'IN HOC SIGNO VINCES'-
The toil, war, blood, and tears
And that's when I saw
The senseless atrocity
And walked away
From her hypocrisy

I know there's something there

And it sounds easy to find
Though it seems they say, "to truly see,
You must willingly go blind."
But their reward just isn't worth it
And I refuse to play that game-
That someone would be denied
Just because they'd never heard His name

I was told I must be wary

In selecting a school of thought
And to run like hell if someone tried to tell me
True wisdom can be bought
Or if power is offered in exchange
For a 'tryst,' or a 'special exam'
Or if they tell me I must think their thoughts
And forget about who I am

Though the charlatan loves to wear those masks

I've learned to see through them all
Be they the leper, the lamb, the matron who feeds them
Or someone else I can't recall-
And that's when I heard
That silent stranger's voice
Telling me I actually
Had a choice

It said, "there's something there,

But it can only be found
Through prayer and meditation
And planting yourself on level ground.
It's not material,
Nor is it physical-
It lay between the conscious
And subliminal…"

I asked for proof-I was given a box

And was asked what I most desired
My answer was "the Truth…"
It was all that I required
The voice replied, "in this box
You may find your Truth today
You may even find your 'God,'
But you'd really have to pray…"

I prayed long and hard-

Performing every rite I knew
Wondering if it was worth it,
And if it weren't, what I'd do
Because I'd beat this path so long
Learning strength and futility
And if the voice was just another scam
I'd know the depths of humility

I opened the box when the signs were right

And much to my surprise,
The only thing inside was a mirror-
I was staring into my own eyes
That's when I was stunned-
What could I make of it all
And then I understood that voice's
Pure angelic call

Saying, "there's something here,

And it's easily found
If you start planted firmly
On level ground
It's a simple truth
And the path is clear
If you can find the strength within yourself
To conquer your own fears…"

For I am the first

And I surely will be the last
To turn the key that unlocks the door
To my future and my past...
 Academia Masonica
DISCLAIMER: Please bear in mind when reading this article that the opening account did not take place
in the OTO whatsoever, but rather within the jurisdiction of Ancient Free and Accepted Masonry.
Though Ordo Templi Orientis descended from Freemasonry, the world of "Regular Masonry" has
nothing to do with us, holds no authority over us, is deeply rooted in Old Aeon mindsets and ideologies,
and does not recognize the "equality" (for lack of a better term) promoted by the Law of Thelema.

In the past, this column has generally taken the form of an analysis of Masonic ritual and what we, as a
descendent order, therefrom inherit. This edition will be different in that it will focus more on the
business end of how lodges generally run and the process for becoming a member of that fraternity. To
this end, the following is taken from an unpublished account of a Masonic business meeting, taking
place in a lodge chartered in 1899 ev:

"…and so it was. It was the greatest scandal ever to befall our well-ordered lodge. It began innocently
enough, and the candidate met or surpassed every single criterion to be accepted into our fraternity. He
was a man, of lawful age, bore a tongue of good report and came well-recommended. And with the
passing of the Thirteenth Amendment to our nation's Constitution, he satisfied the most important
prerequisite, that of being free-born.

His credentials were impressive. I should know, I was a member of the committee appointed for his
investigation after the preliminary ballot on his petition. In fact, his reputation in his community was of a
higher calibre than that of many of my brethren. The candidate did, however, feature one characteristic
which, though it should have had no bearing whatever, could not be overlooked: he was black. We, of the
investigation committee, which included the Worshipful Master, the Senior Deacon, and the Senior
Warden (myself) saw no reason for race to be a bar to membership, his credentials spoke well enough for
him.

It was the first incidence of this occurring in known local history. Since this fact about the candidate was
disclosed, attendance at our meetings twice doubled, and heated debate ensued from both those approved
of the candidate and those opposed to the mere idea. Finally, the date arrived on which we would perform
the duty of voting upon his petition for degrees. We (the committee) had asked the candidate to appear
briefly before the meeting began, that those of the Lodgemight acquaint themselves with him, and he
them. Everyone was very very cordial and hospitable.

After he left, the meeting began, with the lodge being opened in due and ancient form. The business
proceeded as usual, visiting brethren from two distant states were introduced and accommodated, and the
Worshipful Master then ordered we ballot on the petition. The Senior Deacon proceeded to prepare the
ballot box while the Worshipful Master informed the Lodge that they 'were about to ballot on this
petition. You will proceed in the usual order, remembering that the white balls elect, and the black reject.'

The vote proceeded as usual. There were twenty-three eligible voting members present. When the last
brother seated himself, the Worshipful Master thrice inquired whether all eligible had voted, then bade the
Senior Deacon take charge of the ballot for inspection by the Master and Wardens. According to the
Constitution and By-Laws under which out jurisdiction falls, when balloting on a petition, regardless of
how many votes to elect have been placed in the ballot box-it takes only three votes to reject to 'blackball'
a prospective candidate. If there are fewer than three votes to reject, the Master and Wardens announce
that 'it is clear' at their respective stations. Regardless of the ballot, the Worshipful Master ultimately
passes judgement, and has the prerogative of overturning the result of the ballot, should he so choose.
The Senior Deacon presented the ballot to the Junior Warden, who inspected the ballot and made the grim
announcement, 'It is dark in the South.' The ballot was then brought to me for my inspection. Of those
twenty-three who voted, nineteen chose to elect the candidate. Five chose to reject. A wave of horror
washed over me, and I had no choice at that point other than to announce, 'It is dark in the West.' We all
looked to the Worshipful Master in the East and awaited his pronouncement. 'It is dark in the East.' My
heart sank. A sudden chill and a lingering silence filled the room. It was all we could do to finish the
meeting, closing in due and ancient form. That was a dark day for our august fraternity. That day I was
ashamed to be a Freemason…"

It would be abhorrent but understandable if this had occurred a hundred years ago-maybe understandable
even as recently as fifty years ago, in certain parts of the Southern United States. But this occurred in
Kansas City in April 1999ev, and I was that Senior Warden. I was horrified. As a brief sum up of the
above story, the candidate was rejected solely on the basis of his skin color. The Worshipful Master was
as horrified as I was, and sent a letter of resignation to the Grand Lodge of Missouri. The Grand Master
talked him out of it. He saidthe reason he had not exercised his prerogative was that he felt the candidate's
reputation should have been enough to warrant his admission, and had decided beforehand that he would
call the results of the vote as they stood, also citing the unfairness of the "non-majority vote" system (as
old as the fraternity itself). He later regretted his decision to do so.

This fall, I will be installed as Worshipful Master of that Lodge, and to right that horrible wrong done to
the candidate, I will be invite him back next year and he will be welcomed into Freemasonry. Two Grand
Masters of Missouri have declared publicly that the fraternity "does not discriminate on the basis of race,"
and in the lastest issue of Missouri's masonic newsletter, the same statement was issued in print, as well. I
(and several like-minded members of my Lodge) plan to hold them to it. It will be my prerogative, after
all. The worst that could happen to me for doing so would be being brought up on "Masonic Charges" for
abuse of power. Though charges could be filed, I doubt that much would come of them. If something
were to come of them, then it would truly be a case of pearls before swine, and I would abandon this
vestige of the Osirian Aeon. And if nothing comes of it, nothing comes of it. I wish it had never
happened, but then if it hadn't, I wouldn't be able to make a difference.

Fra:. Supra N:.

 NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM
"Fortify ye an island!" AL; III, 4

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.

i welcome you all to the maiden voyage of this vessel's travellings. The pilot has trained himself with
virtual reality (really, virtue-al?) runs and we feel the ship's elasticity shall endure. With all salutations
aside, welcome and get ready to begin.

In the modern world the masses stumble about blindly following major trends and sterile conditions,
only to boo or hiss whenever someone alien reveals their belief's essence. Stresses inherent in any
"civilized" system cause a rift between spiritual and mundane (sorry, earthly) aspects of the human
psyche, being the true definition of chaos coined by Hesiod, i.e. the gap between heaven and earth. Even
as beliefs get bastardized so do words, invoking that ominous phrase, "the pen is mightier than the
sword."

Look around: the antiquated slave cults projected their "sins" and fears into everything, again Midas'
touch sterilizes. Their lower evolutionary mindset robs those around them of vision. It's no wonder their
christ hasn't shown up in 2000 years or spoken with their leaders-in-their-faith. The last time he was
here it got ugly (Koran 4: 156-159).

And that brings me to the point (yes, there is a point for all of this): the less stress, the better the system.
This does not mean stop working or being a productive person; just flow a little better and ride out the
storm with me. A method i use is knowing their systems as stepping stones on the path, readily knowing
divergence could capsize or disrupt course. One is reminded of the vital current erased from the
forehead of the golem--from spare parts or clay--leaving it a shell, truth became death.

From personal experience, the holidays starting at Thanksgiving serve up a plethora of mixed feelings
and stresses. Finding the truths behind modern holy days can ease the nausea, knowing their points of
diversion as a necessary evil to reveal their gems--Kulta Kultainen Valkkya Roskatta. Case in point:
Christmas in the Roman/Catholic is only seen in its hideous Catholic persona. But what about the
Roman, pre-Nicean, holy days? Hold on to your hats!

Natilis Invinci Solis

Birth of the Unconquered Sun

Hmmm-- that resembles something--i wonder what? Sure, you can send me responses, but i'm not done
yet.

We contain the strength and determination as our forefathers did; this is a new age and we are its
children. No, not always looking for one, one, one! We are the one in our unity. Since the inception of
this nation, individual freedom has been our watchword--our responsibility. Specialization is an
offspring of Henry Ford's Model T style naziism, desecrating and creating an amnesia-stricken populace.
More stresses are added to the system bringing it off balance and off course; thine eye is not single (see
Liber 536 pg. 20, 21).
The inquisition was long ago, left behind for the new world as founded by our forefathers. Their
birthday comes a year before our celebration, enlivening the solidarity of brotherhood and duty. It is a
great honor to have Frater Supra N\ as a link to this guiding force. Here in the heartland, spirits are good
and work has begun. As the seed nourishes in winter gloom, come May Morn it reveals its bloom.

Poetry is nice, but it is too flowery for my purposes. As alluded to in a previous paragraph, responses
from you are welcome, nay--wanted. Ravings are the method of the madman; you all remember taboo,
don't you? They storm about the eye but the temple still stands, a proud pilgrimage of star-like vessels.
Through any response, we get closer to getting the work done. Go through the 'Magical Link' and
respond to other groups. i know you already do, but it never hurts to remind. Networking sounds a lot
like pathworking to a fisherman. Also, during this time of planning for next year's celebration,
communication between groups eases stress (albeit joyfully endured) of getting mundane technicalities
worked out.

i again thank you for coming along for the ride; hopefully the waters will remain tranquil and stress-free.
The method described earlier should arouse a sliver of pride, proud of who and what we are. Trance-
ending anal disputes elevate up and ease the strains of misunderstanding and fear. May every day be
your holy day, and i will be with you again come spring.

Love is the law, love under will.

Fra:. WLLM
 They Keep Calling Me
Which is stronger: an atomic blast, or an ancient
river flowing over the rocks of time?
You are the blast,
We are The River.
You were destroyed ere you were created,
Death your infant
Scream.
Life became that cruel slap of consciousness announcing
your trance
of Sorrow. The sudden violence of reality moulding your dreams
into Nightmares,
.Styx of waters the in you drowning
The steady undercurrent washed you along, finally
bringing you to shore.
The land seems strange,
you plod along in amnesia
becoming a Wanderer of the Waste.
The beat of your heart, lapping on the beach of remembrance.
Coursing through your veins, feeding the tributaries of
Your senses
We flow.
We are your sustenance,
Your blood.
Entire nations rise and fall beneath your skin as you sleep
in vanity,
Forgetting.
Dive into the pools of radiance flowering
Your being
Find the current driving the stream.

Fra:. WLLM
 A Day in the Life
Cool dawn breaks--crashing over the river,
stark like a magnum blast.
Grey lifeless faces and slogans
fight to break free through barbed wire (painted and real)
and escape from the sides of this temple's pillars.
Green, metal boxes sing their electrified melodies
as the dregs of society's losses stretch and straggle into consciousness--
emerging from their cage to kiss the bleak, mournful morning
and scavenge for nourishment.
The beauty and glory of the day blazes away
(oh god, is it sweltering) over the yard
where steel buffalo stampede past
dead roads and houses (this ain't "conjunction junction").
Crippled frogs somersault through thistle and cattails
while masters of street art, hiding from helicopters,
struggle to finish decorating petrol reserve tanks
before being discovered--the stripy hole is no fun.
Day gives way to dusk--
dulling the jagged edges of visions
which cut so deeply only hours before.
Whirling clouds of insects hover and dive through
twisted steel and decayed concrete ruins
of a forgotten structure long rendered derelict.

Above the weeds, the last rusty rays of the sun

creep through distant steel spans
and the wind carries with it a strong aroma--
as if Juan Valdez torched his toiling fields.
Now it's dark.
Tiny fires shine up and down the banks
and the Zombie Boys arrive for the nightly liturgy--
a communion with nature (here?)--
The local residents serve up their poisoned fish
(eating anything from this river is a dangerous gamble,
what with all the pollution and debris,
you never know what the catch of the day is)
over moldy bread and exchange the day's war stories.
the litanies begin--
the wine is passed--
the blessing administered--
the pipe is passed--
and silent contemplation gives way to mental exhaustion.
The Zombie Boys depart.
The locals crawl back into their cages
and crickets sing lullabies to all.

Fra:. Supra N:.

 The Powers of the Sphinx
The following is a collection of thoughts about the four powers of the Sphinx as understood by myself
on 10-13-96ev. In no way is this a complete overview or "official" explanation of these powers, only one
person's thoughts at one point in time.

TO KNOW: Everything that has not been experienced must be confronted and its difficulties
transcended. Use your senses as a farmer exploits a swine to discover the shroom. Know what is real and
right for conceptualism, therefore is truth found from their aversion. Find the current driving the stream;
the knowledge of yourSelf then becomes your vessel. Know yourself as its Captain setting sail from
Nothing into Infinity, the stars as your guide. Know the centers of power and their courses--constriction
disturbs the flow and could capsize your ship. Through knowledge comes understanding of not and its
freedom, the slavery of the senses justified through love. Know nothing as the secret of everything.

TO WILL: Will-Focus-Direct. If this seems like a question then you are already lost--to the wise it is a
sure and powerful path. Air is of no use in its dispersion; fire destroys, blazing out of control; earth
breaks and erodes, or suffocates the soul; even spirit decays to breed demons and disease. Knowledge is
wasted if not directed, love sterile if not willed. Through knowledge came your secret self; through
direction it accomplishes its Will.

TO DARE: Exceed indeed, yet know before addiction succeed! Fear nothing, for an undaring soul is
afraid of everything. Failure is weighted for its worth, its nuisance laughed away in understanding and
victory. Conquer a mountain if it is in your way; devour like a beast the virgin as your sacramental feast!
Dare to petition the Powers for your rightful position amongst them: overhead, beneath the earth, among
the shells--anywhere you dare to go. "Do what thou wilt" is your birth-rite, the covenant of the Powers!
Do not and you cease to do your Will, the waters of eternity washing you away--lost. Your vessel sinks
due to structural collapse and lies amid graveyards of broken ships and shells. If failure derives from
doing not and normalcy from just enough, then the obvious secret of success is to exceed!

TO KEEP SILENT: Silence is the voice of Understanding; it is the source of creation, the origin of
existence. Issued forth are we from the void of nothing to reflect ourSelf, to behold Eternity, to look into
the eyes of God. Desecration occurs through dispersion and leads to destruction. To give voice to silence
profanes its sanctuary and corrupts the word. Know, Will, Dare, and indeed, Keep Silent nourishes your
seed. That is where Will is formulated and focused apart from hostile influences, the secret of secrets is
partially unveiled. Understanding clouded in jumbled words that have no meaning, yet received
wavelike through the gate of Silence.

Fra:. WLLM
 Yule Tidings
Stalking the calm perimeter of my mind
Forgotten is this world, tasseled troubles
left behind.
Vaulted visions never approaching the encampment
as sparks of wonder filter in.

A black, battered, but regal hawk

Perches over me, taking flight
To find solace in my quarters.
How strange is hindsight,
My altar is missing.

Unthinking, i cradle my visitor

In arms of love, levitating to
Freedom out in the night.
What strange occurrences before the Light.

On my return perched again is another evening tiding.

Now sits its mate gracing my heart,
as she too seeks solace at invisible altar.
Once more i release my visitor, this one
cradled in a blanket.

Think this strange vision is finished?

Wait my friends, i haven't related all:
As i carried her from my quarters
Her brood began to fall!

Her eggs fell to the floor before we left,

Some breaking open to reveal newly born chicks
As others cracked running about.
A comical skirmish or a child's trick?

Upon my return, chirping and scampering filled

my ears, while in my eyes were missing tears.
They were collected between the left
corner of the doorway, taking nourishment
From a dog's bowl.

Mesmerized about them stood three

beasts: one red, one black, and one whose
 coat cannot be described, guarding the flock
On their hatching and our crossing.

i cannot remember when they left or

really why they came, being busy gathering
their broken shells. Not only shells, but also
their placenta--a green after-birth.

With that, the World walks in.

Hidden is my Pandora's Box
Guarded by three beasts shaped as dogs;
Hope tucked away within,
untouched by original sin

Fra:. WLLM
 10-7-96
Adrift within the chaotic waves of the Abyss
I cry "Save me my Goddess!"
Her soft whispery response lost in the rush of the Sea:
Lost is her cry "To me! To me!"

Instinct takes over, Man now becomes Beast,

"Come unto me is a foolish word, for it is I who go!"
The NuMan has regained his might,
Remembering His power, Bearer of the Light!

The Void is filled by the radiance of a million sons

Blazing knowingly with the Essence of the One.
Redeemed and enlightened, salvation reclaimed for the shells,
The Conversation is Remembered: We feel Power saves.

I AM NOTHING without Her,

A mere shell longing to be filled whole.
I AM NOTHING within Her,
Joining the twain, body and soul.

My Will is to attain;
The breaks building girders
To fortify my resolve;
Love dissolving all the pain.

The Bearer of Light blackened by his burden,

Cast out amongst the shells.
The Vessel of Night scorned by her lovers,
A true marriage of Heaven and Hell.

Fra:. WLLM
 Shiraz
(re 8/1/98 ev)

Oh, It was a day -- I was a stranger in a strange land

And local customs were so unclear - I had planned

For a day of brilliant intensity

And intense it was; the lights and music, the visions and the voices
At the end of morning's business, I was left with many choices…
With my mind in a state of elated frenzy
I was on, and when I'm on, you just can't turn me off-
So hey, there it was, suddenly without just cause-
I thought the only thing that I could do was raise a glass of Shiraz…

The afternoon was refreshing. I was taken on the Grand Tour-

The equipment was exquisite in the dungeonette, but I'd been in that house before

(it was the house of the first "girl" that twisted me…)
And five Masters toasted and joked - wondering what to do,
And I stepped aside, awestruck, and from that moment on I knew
That the words of those five Masters interested me…
I was on, and when I'm on, you just can't turn me off-
With a glass of Shiraz in my hand I turned to the artist from down South
And said, "This is what true living is all about…"

That night, my hostess told me that I knew nothing of love

And that struck me, and stuck with me-A concept far above

And beyond anything that I was…

I know life, and I know death, of this I have no doubt,
But love, O love, is evasive and elusive, so until I seek her out
I'll just have another glass of Shiraz…
Because I'm on, and when I'm on, you just can't turn me off…
 STICK THIS!!
(Reviews)
An Introduction to Chaos Magick by Adrian Savage. Published by Magickal Childe, Inc. An excellent
overview of a much maligned system. Where we have confronted normans misunderstanding of "Do
what thou wilt," the chaos magician is considered lawless and nonsensical. The book itself is more like a
pamphlet, easily read in one sitting so as to cause ready absorption. Ideological pokes and taunts are
mixed with stingful ravings--yet valid to our times. His examples stand well to get their points across,
slicing at certain 'touchy' egos which require the axe. It is truly an introduction, something to make your
mouth water. The suggested reading seems like a treasure-trove of eclectic knowledge, a springboard to
further research. He also introduces personalities and associations most people do not know much about,
but whose influence permeates several systems. This book should be read and then lent to someone else,
sort of like a chain letter to inflame discussion and response. He even comes so close as to invoke a Paul
Revere-like plea; is it hype or a Red Coat reunion?
Fra:. WLLM

The Hiram Key by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas. Published by Element Books. To begin with,
the subtitle of this book is "Pharaohs, Freemasons and the Discovery of the Secret Scrolls of Jesus." This
book is quite an enjoyable read--sort of an esoteric, Indiana Jones-style journey through history. It also
makes several outrageous claims and some mighty hazy and abstract assumptions due to lack of viable
historical evidence. The main points of the book are far too numerous to attempt to mention; I tried
several times before completing this sentence while writing this. To briefly summarize: Ancient Egypt
had a "King-Making" ritual which was lost when the last pharaoh who knew its secret was murdered by
a rival pharaoh's henchmen in persuit of that secret (which, they believe, is the origin of the Masonic 3
legend of Hiram Abiff). They then claim that a radical Judaic/Hebraic sect (via the Moses connection to
Egyptian royalty) maintained a "secret brotherhhod," which was, at least a couple of millennia ago, led
by Jesus and his "henchmen" (disciples). From there, the "true" Christian sect created several "scrolls of
wisdom" which they hid under Herod's Temple in Jerusalem. The Knights Templar then discovered
these "scrolls" while setting up their base in Jerusalem, leading the authors to belive that this was the
origin of the York Rite Royal Arch Degree ceremony. Where is all this leading? Read it and find out! It
is a storehouse of information about the development of Judaism and Christianity. Even though it's not
totally believable in several places, such as their explanation of the circumstances behind the creation of
the Shroud of Turin... I've talked overmuch already. It's a good read.
Fra:. Supra N:.

Masks of the Illuminati by Robert Anton Wilson. I'm not sure who publishes it now or even if it's still in
print. Mine is an old copy. At any rate, this was my first excursion into the world of Mister Wilson. I
wish I had read it years ago. But this is a lovely fictional romp through early 20th century England with
Albert Einstein, James Joyce, and the naive main character, Sir John. Sir John is, throughout the entire
story, tormented and pranked upon by a certain Mister Aleister Crowley. Wilson has created a
wonderful characterization of Uncle Al, and the inside jokes to Thelemites and Discordians abound
relentlessly, producing laughs on nearly every page. Another good read if you haven't read it already. I
always seem to be the last to know about these things...
Fra:. Supra N:.