Israel Regardie - The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic.pdf

VOLUME ONE
considerable erudition and which well warrants re-publication by itself as an
introduction to the study of the Qabalah.)
In this connection I would like to recommend The Rosy Cross Unveiled by
Christopher McIntosh, which purports to give a history, mythology and the rituals of an
occult order (published by Aquarian Press Ltd. 1980).
In as much as both Mathers and Westcott had dual mottoes, it should be remarked
that one was for use in the Outer Order of the Golden Dawn, the other being reserved of the
Inner Order of the R.R. et A.C.
S.D.A. was the abbreviation of the motto Sapiens Dominabitur Astris chosen by a
Fraulein Anna Sprengel of Nuremberg. Though polemics are outside the scope of this
introduction, in all fairness to the enquiring student I should mention a highly critical and
destructive study of the Order entitled The Magicians of the Golden Dawn by Ellic Howe. It is
mentioned here because amidst all of its prejudicial criticism which is not difficult to
demolish, there is some significant historical data of considerable value.
There is also, I should mention, my own account of the Golden Dawn history at
some length -- What You Should Know About the Golden Dawn (Falcon Press, Phoenix,
Arizona, 1983). In addition to tracing some of the obscurities relating to the origins of the
Order, it provides a bird's eye view of its teachings that might be of value to the current
reader. The Order provided initiation into the Mysteries in a highly organized and
systematic manner.
INITIATION
Initiation is the preparation for immortality. Man is only potentially immortal.
Immortality is acquired when the purely human part of him becomes allied to that spiritual
essence which was never created, was never born, and shall never die. It is to effect this
spiritual bond with the highest, that the Golden Dawn owes all its rituals and practical
magical work.
Initiation means to begin, to start something new. It represents the beginning of a
new life dedicated to an entirely different set of principles from those of what Wilhelm
Reich once contemptuously termed "homo normalis." With the enormous development of
scientific pragmatism, it is conceivable that sometime in the near or distant future, robots or
computers will be invented that will, to all intents and purposes, free man from the daily
drudgery of common toil. If and when that occurs, what will the average man do with his
leisure time? Despite the claims of various protagonists of the free future of man. I doubt
that many will turn their time and energy to the pursuit of the Great Work in any of its
forms. Most of them will continue to hunt, fish, travel in recreation vehicles, drink beer and
grow fat, watch television more and more, concentrate on spectator sports, and continue
their lives on a thoroughly prosaic and mundane level. If there are excursions into outer
space, with a view of setting up colonies outside of the earth, I am far from certain that the
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