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ecosophia
As mentioned in an earlier post, I've decided to make the teachings of the Octagon Society, the first of three levels of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy, freely available here. If you didn't read that post, please do so -- it explains what the OSA was and is, summarizes its history, and explains what the teachings are meant to accomplish. You can also find all the earlier OSA posts here. Since the lessons are meant to be done in sequence, if you're just joining us now, please go back to the beginning and start there. The tools you'll need for this work, as explained earlier, are a notebook and a pen, along with patience and privacy. One piece of advice: read the whole lesson from start to finish at least twice before you begin the work. It was quite common for people back in the day to read only part of the lesson, misunderstand it, and either get the instructions scrambled or fly off the handle completely. We are dealing with emotionally difficult issues here, and it's worth taking the time to be sure you understand the instructions.
The paper below marks the completion of your work in the Octagon Society and provides instructions for those who are interested in going further, to the Order of the Temple of Solomon. You can only do this once you have finished the work of the Octagon Society, and an examination must be taken in order to show that you've done that work. There is also a membership fee, to pay the expenses of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy website now under construction.
I am currently revising the Temple papers and preparing them for the website. The first two steps are complete and the rest are coming along nicely. Without giving too many spoilers, I'll mention that the Order of the Temple of Solomon involves work of the same general kind as the Octagon Society, but focuses on your aspirations, intentions, and ways of dealing with the world rather than the legacies of your past. It also includes a traditional initiation ritual. Finally, those who complete a certain portion of the work will be eligible for certification as teachers of spiritual alchemy.
This is the last post in this series. The rest of the material will be available only to members, and the website now under construction will be the venue through which that is provided. I will post announcements here as the work of rebuilding the Order proceeds.
The Octagon Society
Congratulations on your advancement to the rank of 8/8 in the Octagon Society. You've completed your spiritual journey through our ranks. As an 8/8 you have complete access to all Eight Laws: the Law of Acceptance, the Law of Happiness, the Law of Joy, the Law of Peace, the Law of Forgiveness, the Law of Strength, the Law of Teaching, and the Law of Unconditional Love.
Please don't feel that having attained the rank of 8/8 you're a full-fledged alchemist. You probably aren't. Like most of us, you've most likely made some progress on your spiritual path but you haven't reached the end of the path just yet.
You're invited to revisit the Eight Laws and engage in the suggested tasks again at regular intervals in the future. The second time through this process you'll learn even more about yourself and the Divine. In fact, we encourage you to go through this process a total of eight times. The Octagon Society is built on the number eight:
• Eight Laws
• Eight ranks, 1/8 through 8/8
• Eight separate and distinct tasks for each rank
• Eight repetitions of the process of working with the Eight Laws
• Eight foundations for the work of the Order of the Temple of Solomon
• Eight preparatory skills for the work of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy
• Eight officers in the Council of Guardians
• Eight affiliated orders and organizations*
(*The eight affiliated organizations in the heyday of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy were as follows:
• Universal Gnostic Church
• Universal Seminary
• Order of the Universal Monk
• Order of the Universal Nun
• Order of Spiritual Alchemy
• Holy Order of the Golden Dawn
• Modern Order of Essenes
Of these, the Ancient Order of Druids in America is active and the Order of Spiritual Alchemy is in the process of becoming active again. The remaining groups are currently dormant. This may change if there is enough interest in any of them.)
The Examination
Once you have completed the work of the Octagon Society and attained the rank of 8/8 you are eligible to seek membership in the Order of the Temple of Solomon, the second of the three levels of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy. In the Order of the Temple you will be able to take your studies of spiritual alchemy to the next level and add alchemical work with your thoughts to the work you have already done with your feelings. In order to do so, however, you must pass an examination in the work of the Octagon Society, and pay a lifetime membership fee of US$80.00. This is the ony fee you will be required to pay at any point for membership in the OSA.
To take the examination, once you have completed the Octagon Society work, please send an email to orderofspiritualalchemy (at) gmail (dot) com. Include your legal name, your year of birth, and the state or province and the country where you presently live. You will receive the examination by email in return. Complete it and email it back, and further instructions will follow. Only if you pass the examination will you be asked to pay the lifetime membership fee. Thereafter you may proceed to the further lessons the OSA has to teach.
Membership in the Order of Spiritual Alchemy is open to men and women of good character without reference to religion, ethnicity, nationality, or country of origin.
Heritage of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy
The history and origins of the Order of Spiritual Alchemy were discussed in the first post in this sequence. While the OSA has been dormant for some years its lineage remains unbroken. On 8 September 2021, Chief Guardian Charlene Mullen appointed John Michael Greer to the Council of Guardians and resigned her position in his favor. The return of the OSA to active operation is now under way, and anyone interested in contributing time and effort to this project will be very welcome. Those who complete the work of the Octagon Society lessons, pass the examination, and become members in good standing may also be eligible to be appointed to a seat on the Council of Guardians.
As circumstances permit, a website, a moderated forum for members, and copies of the Octagon Society lessons in several convenient formats will become available. I will post details here as the process unfolds.
Adept Master Alchemists:
William Robert Harrison, III 1878 - 1894
Jonathan Alden 1894 - 1911
Mrs. Jonathan Alden 1911 - 1923
Chief Guardians of the Temple:
James Fillmore Harris 1923 - 1928 Clarence Rutherford 1928 - 1934
William Eugene Thompson 1934 - 1938
Olive (Mrs. William) Thompson 1938 - 1943
Hellen (Mrs. Clarence) Rutherford 1943 - 1947
Juliet Ashley 1947 - 1965
Rhodonn Starrus (Matthew Shaw) 1965 - 1971
Betty Jean McCloud Reeves 1971 - 1982
John F. Gilbert 1982 - 1999
Rita Baker 1999 - 2005
Charlene Mullen 2005 - 2021
John Michael Greer 2021 –
Universal Monk and Nun
Date: 2021-10-21 06:18 pm (UTC)Re: Universal Monk and Nun
Date: 2021-10-21 06:40 pm (UTC)As far as I know both orders were founded by Rhodonn Starrus aka Matthew Shaw, one of the founders of the UGC; I don't happen to know when.
Re: Universal Monk and Nun
Date: 2021-10-21 10:32 pm (UTC)-Anthony, working through the preliminary lessons currently
Re: Universal Monk and Nun
Date: 2021-10-22 02:56 am (UTC)The UGC is an oddity even among independent sacramental churches. The main textbook of its clergy training program was William James' The Varieties of Religious Experience, which upholds a pluralistic vision of spirituality -- the idea is that religion is between you and the object or objects of your worship. James' definition of religion is "the feelings, acts, and experiences of individual men in their solitude, so far as they apprehend themselves to stand in relation to whatever they may consider divine" -- and that's very much the definition that the founders of the UGC had in mind. The church, to them, is simply a structure to help individuals seek the divine.
Thus its monastic orders have no fixed template for vows. The vows each monk or nun takes are specifically those commitments to the divine that matter to that one person, after extensive reflection and discernment.
Re: Universal Monk and Nun
Date: 2021-10-22 07:19 am (UTC)Re: Universal Monk and Nun
Date: 2021-10-22 05:39 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-21 06:39 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-21 06:41 pm (UTC)Halfway
Date: 2021-10-21 07:01 pm (UTC)The offer for formatting is still there; I use a professional formatter but I can pay her fee as a donation to the cause, if no one else knows how to do it for free.
I plan to apply for the society and continue the lessons, as well as apply to be considered on the Council of Guardians, but seeing as I'm only halfway, others might get there before me. Either way, I'm happy to see things moving along!
Re: Halfway
Date: 2021-10-22 02:57 am (UTC)Re: Halfway
Date: 2021-10-22 07:12 am (UTC)Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders, by nine authors. My therapist said this one is a bit less fun, and also includes mindfulness exercises. ISBN: 978-0190686017
Mind Over Mood I was able to find for $26 in paperback, but in my case, I would have to pay import fees since this book is inevitably not in my country (the closest one is in the UK). If someone in one of the Anglo countries is willing to look at it, that would be a help.
And sure thing about the formatting. I am one of your Magic Monday paypal donors, so you might already have my email. Once you're ready to send the final document, I'll contact my formatter and it usually takes just a few days.
Re: Halfway
Date: 2021-10-22 05:41 pm (UTC)Re: Halfway
Date: 2021-10-22 09:49 pm (UTC)Re: Halfway
Date: 2021-10-23 06:51 pm (UTC)Re: Halfway
Date: 2021-10-23 07:17 pm (UTC)Mind Over Mood
Date: 2021-10-22 10:11 pm (UTC)(They also have the Clinician's Guide to Mind Over Mood, https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/clinicians-guide-to-mind-over-mood_christine-a-padesky_dennis-greenberger/253683/item/5270092 .)
(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-21 07:54 pm (UTC)--David BTL
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Date: 2021-10-22 03:01 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-21 10:53 pm (UTC)—Princess Cutekitten
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Date: 2021-10-22 02:58 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 03:02 am (UTC)—Princess Cutekitten
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Date: 2021-10-21 11:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 02:59 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-21 11:55 pm (UTC)I'm working on the fifth law today, Forgiveness. What I've found in the past, is when you think you sincerely have forgiven someone, at some point things can come to mind again, and you catch yourself getting wound up again. I'm perceiving that there are different levels of forgiveness, requiring constant work. I need to go read the comments for that lesson and see what others have experienced working with forgiveness. (I copy off the lessons, but don't always have time for reviewing comments.)
And that issue of remembering something, and getting wound up again? That's especially true for myself. Forgiving oneself seems almost harder than forgiving others. I'm glad to have access to these lessons, and advance from ruminating over the past to processing what happened and moving along emotionally. I'm sure this is a lifetime process!
Joy Marie
(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 03:00 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 02:35 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 03:01 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 02:43 am (UTC)I'm at 2/8 at the moment.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 03:01 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 03:06 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 08:22 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 03:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-22 05:47 pm (UTC)If there's ever enough interest to revive the Seminary, it's going to take a lot of work by a lot of people to get it going again.
Diligence
Date: 2021-10-22 09:21 pm (UTC)I am glad to hear when I finish this training and pass the exam I would have the opportunity to expand on this work. $80 seems like the bargain of the century, even if that training were half as useful as this.
whd
(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-24 03:11 pm (UTC)Sadness
Date: 2021-12-11 08:56 pm (UTC)I know you have also dealt with a devastating loss, so I think you will understand what I’m going through with this material. Imagining ways to be happy after the death of a loved one seems unrealistic and disrespectful. Do you have any advice for processing sadness in a healthy way? I’ve found the advice mostly helpful and cathartic with the other emotions, but the sadness I feel seems like it’s too big for this and needs a more powerful technique (possibly because I’m not very good at dealing with sadness and may have a lifetime of it to work through, or possibly because when I think I am making things better I am actually making them worse, or possibly just because I have a lot of it, including a lot that is still very fresh, I’m not sure).
Sincerely,
Jessi Thompson
anotheramethyst
Re: Sadness
Date: 2021-12-12 01:15 am (UTC)My experience -- which may or may not be suitable for you; my losses were different from yours, and of course every person has unique emotional needs and patterns -- was that what worked was to accept the sorrow, remind myself regularly that this is something that most people have to deal with in their lives, and try to go on with life. That kept me from getting sucked too deep into the grief, and so I processed it a little at a time over a period of several years. Once I had some distance and perspective on it, and could see that other parts of my life were okay, I was able to handle more of it, and by then I could also start making goals for my life and channeling my emotions into energy for those purposes. But it was a slow process, very much "one day at a time."
I hope this helps.
Re: Sadness
Date: 2021-12-12 02:18 am (UTC)I think it helps me deal with the severity somehow, by putting it in a bigger perspective.
Thank you