Temple of Set

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The Temple of Set , and Temple of Seth ( ToS ) is an occult , satanic American Association of path on the left hand which, in 1975 by former members of the Church of Satan , led by Michael Aquino after a falling out with Anton LaVey founded . The Temple of Set refers to the ancient Egyptian deity Seth , who is seen as a living self and a creative, activating force. The goal of the members is self-deification.

Emergence

The Temple of Set is a spin-off of the Church of Satan from Anton LaVey based on the Book of Coming Forth by Night , which Aquino says was personally dictated to him by Satan . Under the leadership of Church of Satan Magister Michael Aquino, a schism ensued because LaVey's sale of offices led to some resentment. Aquino sees himself as the second " Tier 666 " after Aleister Crowley . Aquino is still an active member of the Temple of Set, but gave up the office of high priest after growing criticism of his leadership style.

organization

The members of the Temple of Set devote themselves to the study of metaphysical relationships. Members can acquire knowledge of Setian philosophy and magic within two years . The Temple of Set charge an annual membership fee of 80 US dollars , to cover administration costs. The representatives and employees of the Temple of Set are volunteers.

philosophy

The philosophy of the Temple of Set is called "enlightened individualism" and propagates individual, experimental strategies of self-realization, which are described with the hieroglyphic term Kepher or "Xeper" (in the spelling of the ToS).

Xeper is symbolized by the scarab . The goal is the "psychic rebirth" and the achievement of immortality within the Temple of Set. The philosophy of the Temple of Set was documented in 1975 in the founding document Book of Coming Forth by Night , of which Aquino claimed that the ancient Egyptian god Seth had given him the word Xeper in the meaning of “becoming”, during the “North Solstice X Working”, too known as "The Santa Barbara Working". Xeper was reinterpreted in 1996 by Don Webb in a more concentrated translation as "Coming into existence".

Membership is divided into six degrees of initiation:

  1. Setians
  2. Adept / Adept
  3. Priest / Priestess
  4. Magister / Magistra
  5. Magus / Maga
  6. Ipsissimus / Ipsissima

A priesthood is possible from the third degree. A full member can only become a person who is awarded the degree of adept by a priest, which is possible after a probationary period of no more than two years. For the priesthood there are no specific criteria for recognition and no specifications for working with new initiators, so that recognition of the second degree is arbitrary.

Literature (english)

  • US Department of the Army: Temple of Set. In: Religious Requirements and Practices of Certain Selected Groups: A Handbook for Chaplains . University Press of the Pacific, 2002, ISBN 0-89875-607-3 .
  • Stephen E. Flowers : Lords of the Left Hand Path . Runa Raven Press, 1997, ISBN 1-885972-08-3 .
  • Don Webb : The Seven Faces of Darkness . Runa Raven Press, 1996, ISBN 1-885972-07-5 .
  • Don Webb: Uncle Setnakt's Essential Guide to the Left Hand Path . Runa Raven Press, 1999, ISBN 1-885972-10-5 .
  • Don Webb: Mysteries of the Temple of Set: Inner Teachings of the Left Hand Path . Runa Raven Press, 2004, ISBN 1-885972-27-X .

Literature (German)

  • Joachim Schmidt: Satanism. Myth and Reality. Diagonal-Verlag, Marburg 2003, ISBN 3-927165-66-2 .
  • Nevill Drury: Magic. From shamanism and the cult of witches to techno-pagans. AT-Verlag, Aarau / Munich 2003, ISBN 3-85502-930-X .
  • Frank Lerch: Nightworks. The black magic of creation. Bohmeier, Lübeck 2001, ISBN 3-89094-307-1 .
  • Frater Eremor: In the power of Satan's set. The path of dark initiation. Second Sight Books, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-935684-02-9 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. Joachim Schmidt: Satanism - Myth and Reality ; Marburg 2002; P. 138.
  2. Peter-Robert König : The OTO phenomenon RELOAD. Volume 3. Working group for questions of religion and belief, Munich 2011, p. 332.