Tau (Hebrew). The last letter of the Hebrew alphabet often used by Crowley to indicate the fundament.

Minerval. The Minerval Degree (0°) is an introductory Initiate degree in which the aspirant is considered an “honored guest” of O.T.O. rather than a full member. The Minerval degree is designed to allow the aspirant to decide whether or not to pursue full membership, and to allow potential sponsors the opportunity to decide whether to support the aspirant’s application for full membership. Minervals may begin preliminary novitiate training under an E.G.C. Bishop towards ultimate ordination to the Diaconate and/or Priesthood in Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica, but they are not eligible for ordination or for service as an officer of a Local Body.

The Initiation Ritual of the Minerval Degree.

Man & Brother.

Woman and Sister.

The First Degree (I°) bestows full membership upon the initiate. A First Degree initiate may retire from active participation in O.T.O., but the spiritual link forged between the initiate and the Order during the ceremony of the First Degree will remain throughout the initiate’s life. An initiate of the Second Degree is eligible for ordination as a deacon of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica.

The Initiation Ritual of the First Degree.

Magician.

The Initiation Ritual of the Second Degree.

Master Magician.

The Initiation Ritual of the Third Degree.

Perfect Magician & Companion of the Holy Royal Arch of Enoch.

The Initiation Ritual of the Fourth Degree.

Sovereign Prince Rose-Croix, and Knight of the Pelican & Eagle.

Knight of the Red Eagle, and Member of the Senate of Knight Hermetic Philosophers.

The Initiation Ritual of the Fifth Degree.

Illustrious Knight (Templar) of the Order of Kadosch, and Companion of the Holy Graal.

Grand Inquisitor Commander, and Member of the Grand Tribunal.

Prince of the Royal Secret.

The Initiation Ritual of the Sixth Degree.

Theoreticus, and Very Illustrious Sovereign Grand Inspector General.

Magus of Light, and Bishop of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica.

Grandmaster of Light, and Inspector of Rites & Degrees.

Episcopal consecration in Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica is conferred as part of the Seventh Degree.

The VII° degree is the first degree level at which instruction regarding sex magic is conferred to the initiate.

De Natura Deorum is given for study and practice.

Perfect Pontiff of the Illuminati.

Epopt of the Illuminati.

The VIII° degree continues instruction regarding sex magic.

De Nuptiis Secretis Deorum cum Hominibus is given for study and practice.

Initiate of the Sanctuary of the Gnosis.

The IX° degree continues instruction regarding sex magic.

Liber C vel Agape vel Azoth is given for study and practice.

Liber CDXIV vel De Arte Magica is given for study and practice.

IXº Emblems and Mode of Use is given for study and practice.

Liber CLXXXVI Gnosticorum Missa Minor is given for study and practice.

Rex Summus Sanctissimus. The Tenth Degree (X°) is held by the National Grand Master General of O.T.O. in a particular country.

The X° degree continues instruction regarding sex magic.

Liber CCCLXVII vel De Homunculo is given for study and practice.

Initiate of the Eleventh Degree (This degree is technical, and has no relation to the general plan of the Order).

The XI° degree continues instruction regarding sex magic.

Frater Superior, and Outer Head of the Order.

A∴A∴

The A∴A∴ is a spiritual organization described in 1907 by occultist Aleister Crowley. Its members are dedicated to the advancement of humanity by perfection of the individual on every plane through a graded series of universal initiations. Its initiations are syncretic, unifying the essence of Theravada Buddhism with Vedantic yoga and ceremonial magic. The A∴A∴ applies what it describes as mystical and magical methods of spiritual attainment under the structure of the Qabalistic Tree of Life, and aims to research, practise, and teach "scientific illuminism."

Aiwass

Aiwass is the figure who is said to have dictated The Book of the Law to Aleister Crowley on the three days it was written in 1904.

A.M.O.R.C.

The Rosicrucian Order, Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis (AMORC), is a worldwide mystical, Rosicrucian, educational, humanitarian and fraternal organisation founded by Harvey Spencer Lewis.

Anhalonium Lewinii

Anhalonium lewinii is a now-defunct name for peyote (lophophora williamsii). Peyote, or ‘peyotl’, is a small, blue-green spineless cactus which grows in dry regions of Mexico and some parts of the United States. When Crowley writes about using anhalonium, he typically means ingesting drops of a tincture prepared from a peyote extraction.

Aur Rub

Aurum Rubeum. Red Gold.

B

B

Brandy.

BAFOMIThR

Crowley's spelling of Baphomet as revealed to him during the period of a vision called the Amalantrah Working in 1918.

Bb

Blessed brethren

Gnostic Mass

Aleister Crowley wrote The Gnostic Mass in 1913 while traveling in Moscow, Russia. The structure is similar to the Mass of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church, communicating the principles of Crowley's Thelema. It is the central rite of Ordo Templi Orientis and its ecclesiastical arm, Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica. The ceremony calls for five officers: a Priest, a Priestess, a Deacon, and two acolytes. The end of the ritual culminates in the consummation of the eucharist, consisting of a goblet of wine and a Cake of Light. See HERE for further information and the text of the Gnostic Mass.

Golden Dawn.

The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was an organization devoted to the study and practice of the occult, metaphysics, and paranormal activities during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Known as a magical order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was active in Great Britain and focused its practices on theurgy and spiritual development.

The Golden Dawn system was based on hierarchy and initiation like the Masonic Lodges; however women were admitted on an equal basis with men. The "Golden Dawn" was the first of three Orders, although all three are often collectively referred to as the "Golden Dawn." The First Order taught esoteric philosophy based on the Hermetic Qabalah and personal development through study and awareness of the four Classical Elements as well as the basics of astrology, tarot divination, and geomancy. The Second or "Inner" Order, the Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis (the Ruby Rose and Cross of Gold), taught magic, including scrying, astral travel, and alchemy. The Third Order was that of the "Secret Chiefs", who were said to be highly skilled; they supposedly directed the activities of the lower two orders by spirit communication with the Chiefs of the Second Order.

The Holy Guardian Angel is representative of one’s truest divine nature. The term is equivalent with the Genius of the Golden Dawn, the Augoeides of Iamblichus, the Atman of Hinduism, and the Daemon of the gnostics.

In the system of Magick, the single most important goal is to consciously connect with one’s HGA, a process termed “Knowledge and Conversation.” By doing so, the magician becomes fully aware of his own True Will. For Aleister Crowley, this event was the single most important goal of any adept.

K

k.t.l. (κ.τ.λ.)

Initialism of και τα λοιπά ‎(kai ta loipá): etc (an abbreviation of etcetera)

Kteis (or K)

Vagina.

kusseln

Oral sex.

L

M∴M∴M∴

On April 21, 1912, Theodor 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∴ 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.”

In the A∴A∴ (1º = 10^o): The title of the grade is derived from the Greek neophutos, meaning newly planted.  The Neophyte grade is the first grade in which true initiation takes place, and the candidate set in fertile spiritual soil in which to grow.  The Neophyte is charged with the task of attaining "control of the nature and powers of [his] own being." This is prosecuted through the acquisition and use of the technique of Rising on the Planes, i.e. by acquiring perfect control of the Astral Plane.  Initiation into the grade of Zelator is conferred after a minimum of eight months.

In the A∴A∴ (0º = 0^o):  This grade exists primarily for the candidate to prove himself capable of executing the Great Work, and to prepare him for his initiation into the A\A\ proper.  His principal business is to begin such practices as he my prefer, and to write a careful record of the same for one year.  In this, he is charged with the tasks of attaining a "scientific knowledge of the nature and powers of his own being".

Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis. The second order or level of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, usually known by the initials R. R. et A. C. It included the grades of zelator adeptus minor, theoricus adeptus minor, adeptus major, and adeptus exemtis. The group was formed in 1892 by S. L. M. Macgregor Mathers, with William W. Westcott as Chief Adept.

Stélé of Revealing

The Stélé of Revealing is an Egyptian religious artifact dating from the 26th dynasty. It is a wooden tablet overlaid with stucco and painted with mythological scenes and hieroglyphic writing. It was made to commemorate the death of a Theban priest of the god Mentu named Ankh-f-n-khonsu. It is especially sacred to Thelemites because it is through this artifact that the Law of Thelema was revealed to Aleister Crowley in 1904 e.v., inaugurating the New Aeon of Horus. Soon after discovering the Stele in a museum in Cairo, Crowley received the mystical communication known as The Book of the Law. Much of what Crowley discovered in the Stele of Revealing "set the stage" or formed the basis for these channeled verses. More information is available HERE.

Thelema

Thelema is the name of the philosophical school and religious matrix established in 1904 with the writing of Liber AL vel Legis (The Book of the Law) by Aleister Crowley and stands on the central axiom, the Law of Thelema. The Law is summed up in two phrases from the Book:

     “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law” (AL I:40) and

     “Love is the law, love under will” (AL I:57)

The central goal of a Thelemite (as adherents refer to themselves) is to discover and perform his or her True Will, which is generally defined as the innermost Nature or proper life course of the individual.

There are also strong political, ethical, aesthetic, and cultural aspects to Thelema. Although there is no strict literal doctrine concerning these matters, Aleister Crowley wrote many articles and essays regarding his ideas about the proper behavior of individual Thelemites and for an ideal Thelemic society. These ideas have continued to develop into modern times. However, the primary themes involve personal freedom, a recognition that men and women have an inherent divine nature, and that Love is the basis of the Great Work.

True Will

The phrase "True Will" is often used to indicate the specific and essential meaning of the concept of Will in Thelema, especially as in the Law of Thelema - "Do what though wilt, shall be the whole of the Law" (AL I:40) as opposed to the more general meaning of the word as it is used outside of Thelema.

The concept postulates that each individual has a unique and incommensurable inherent nature (which is identical to their "destiny") that determines their proper course in life, that is the mode of action that unites their purest personal will with the postulated course that preexists for them in the universe.

The idea is that to the extent that one is pure in their will, one is carried along effortlessly by the momentum of the universe like an expert sailor allowing the current to carry the ship along its intended course with minimal effort.  To the extent that one is not pure in their will, they are tossed about aimlessly like a piece of drift wood on a stormy sea. In other words, one's effectiveness or impotence in life is determined by how purely they adhere to their True Will.

W

Word of the Equinox

In 1907 Crowley began the tradition of issuing a new “Word” at each equinox. These were sent to each member of the A\A\ (Neophyte and above) in good standing. Commonly issued on Crowley’s personal stationary featuring his “Mark of the Beast” or a lamen of the O.T.O. imprinted in red. Sometimes sent on unmarked paper or in a hand-written letter but most often typed on small pieces of stationary.

The manner in which Crowley received each of these oracular Words varied from equinox to equinox. While many were derived utilizing a sex-magick rite of one sort or another, there was no consistency in the method. Sometimes the Word was chosen days before the actual Equinox and at other times after—working alone or with others. At times, he would “hear” the Word, in other instances the Word was given through an assistant or received in a vision. There is also a versified Ritual of the Ceremony of the Equinox incorporating aspects of the Neophyte ritual which remains unpublished and was utilized by Crowley on certain occasions. Many Lineages carry on with this tradition, in one form or another, today.

To the Word of the equinox Crowley would append an Oracle and an Omen, a practice he began in the early 20’s. The Oracle was chosen via bibliomancy. That is, he would open a Holy book to a random page (most often Liber AL) and using either his thumb or ring, (at times just dropping his signet ring of Ankh-af-na-khonsu on the open page), and where ever his thumb or ring came to rest was the Oracle given for that Equinox. The Omen was a Yi King reading utilizing a unique method developed by Crowley.

See HERE for a complete listing of the Words.