Illuminati of Thanateros

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Illuminati of Thanateros ( IOT ) (today also officially: The Magical Pact of the Illuminates of Thanateros - German: The Magical Pact of the Illuminates of Thanateros ) is an occult , international order originally founded in 1978 , which deals with chaos magic . The new word Thanateros put the esoteric grouping together from the Greek words thánatos (death) and eros (love).

history

In the late 1970s, two British occultists interested in ritual magic , Ray Sherwin and Peter Carroll , began publishing a magazine called The New Equinox . Both were part of the occult scene around a metaphysical bookstore called The Phoenix in London's East End . Since they did not “feel at home” in existing occult groups, in 1978 they announced in their magazine the establishment of their own magical order, the hierarchy of which should be performance-oriented - a magical meritocracy . One wanted to adopt elements of Zos Kia Cultus (see: Austin Osman Spare ), shamanism , tantra and Daoism . Sherwin and Carroll named their order Illuminates of Thanateros (IOT) in reference to the gods Thanatos and Eros .

They began to publish monographs in which they described their system of magical practice, chaos magic . Some had been articles in The New Equinox ; others were intended as instruction for members of their order. In the 1980s they began to gain followers in the UK , Germany and Austria . Sherwin soon turned away from what seemed too conventional to the project.

Carroll published Liber Null and Psychonautik and changed the magical direction of the IOT, which was expressed in the proper name "The Magical Pact of the Illuminati of Thanateros" . In October 1986, the founding year, Carroll and the German Ralph Tegtmeier , who bears the religious name Frater Neonfaust I.309 , presented some exercises in a former monastery near Bonn-Ramersdorf during a four-day public seminar .

structure

The IOT is an occult order that grants free initiations in the successive grades of Magus, Adept, Initiate and Neophyte.

There are different offices, such as the archivist and the insubordinator . The insubordinator has the task of advising the Magister Templi (leader of a local group) and pointing out errors. Members from the 2 ° and 3 ° can be ordained as " priests ".

The IOT consists largely of small, partially autonomous temples that are divided into geographical sections (Great Britain, USA , Germany, Brazil , etc.). An indication from 1991 speaks of 16 temples worldwide.

Members are obliged to maintain secrecy about internal affairs and the identities of other members.

symbolism

The emblem of the IOT is a black circle with eight evenly radially outgoing rays, also black. The template for this is the "Banner of Chaos" from the fantasy novels by Michael Moorcock .

literature

Web links