Have you ever been part of a formal Order?

I answered this last night but decided to trash that response and answer again.

If you mean western masonic style order than yes. I was a member of the OTO for about 14 years.

Though not masonic influenced I am also a member of the Chthonic Auranian Temple (formerly the CAOTO) and the Sangreal Sodality.

If you want to extent the definition of magical order a bit than there are a few more.

I hold initiations into every major school of Tibetan Dharma, some people call these orders. I mainly practice within the Nyingma and Bon lines.

I have also been initiated to the 2nd degree in a coven that worked more or less along the lines of Paul Husons system.

I had answered before that I like Orders for networking and group magic, but as teaching bodies they have failed.

Thats the part of the answer that I needed to address. I think the OTO has failed in its original mission of teaching the secrets of the upper degrees or evolving their current. However I have met a few people who seem to have learned a lot in various GD and AA lineages, so I really cannot say that they failed at their task.

That said, even within the context of these orders, I think the best approach is to find a mentor or two to work with both in and outside of the orders system. Most really dedicated and motivated people in highly structured magical orders seem to wind up learning in spite of the group rather than because of the group. Just my experience I could be wrong.

Argent asked in my last attempt if I was an advocate of purely self study. I am not an advocate of self study at all. It is a last resort. Even with all the crap that sometimes comes along with being in a group, studying with others and from capable teachers can greatly speed your progress.

Ask me anything