The Gnostic Pagan School
- INITIATION COURSE -
[Page 2]
1. ORIENTATION This course is designed to bring an in-depth view
of The Gnostic Pagan Tradition & the Message of Modern Gnosticism to as
wide an audience as possible, as well as to provide a comprehensive on-line
Initiation course for interested students.
Download what you need, but please respect the fact
that this material is copyright protected by 1ST GENERATION.
The Course is offered free of charge. However
readers will have to “wing it” as we must restrict ourselves to 3 answers per
student. There are 3 quizzes & a final exam each Initiate may request. The
sections for the quizzes & final are noted on these pages.
Please do not use the School material for any
commercial venture or copy on any other site.
ASSIGNMENT #1. Establish a permanent place in your living
area for an image of The Earth Goddess & maintain a vigil light in front of
it. An ikon of Isis would be the most appropriate choice of image considering
that she represents Orientation & Earth, and is the central deity of The
Gnostic Pagan Tradition.
Observance of this assignment creates a sacred
space in the Initiate’s home & establishes an externalized link between the
student & The School. Burning incense in the morning and at night while
meditating on the attributes of The Goddess is a form of Bhakti
Yoga.
a) BOOKS & SUPPLIES
Initiates can expect to spend a minimum of appx. $300 - $400 U.S. for
the books & supplies required for the Course. You will also need access to
a computer & personal email address. Thanks to the generosity of various
individuals & organizations who have posted free information on the
Internet, Initiates will in effect be saving $thousands$ on books that would
otherwise have to be purchased.
The materials listed below are absolutely mandatory
for the successful completion of the Course. You may be able to buy some of the
books used or even copy material off the web—and, of course, paperback versions
are the least expensive. The public library is another good source.
We are in the process of downloading links to many
of the subjects on the list.
You can also check our store. It’s always best if
you can fashion materials for yourself. However, if you still require products,
it helps a little if you purchase them through this site. Many other items may
be located on linked sites on our KultureNotes page.
In addition to fully exploring the website,
Initiates are also recommended to obtain the original copies of all Reviewed
material including CD’s.
BOOKS
THE GNOSTIC SCRIPTURES/ A New Translation by Bentley
Layton, Doubleday
RICHARD HITTLEMAN’S YOGA 28 Day Exercise Plan, Workman
Publishing Company
THE BIBLE/Old & New Testaments [King James Version]
THREE BOOKS OF OCCULT PHILOSOPHY/The Foundation
Book of Western Occultism
by Henry Cornelius Agrippa of Nettesheim/Translated
by James Freake, Llewellyn Publications
TRANSCENDENTAL MAGIC by Eliphas Lévi
translated by A.E. Waite, published by Samuel Weiser, Inc.
THE BOOK OF THOTH by Aleister
Crowley, Samuel Weiser, Inc.
MAGICK: BOOK FOUR•LIBER ABA by Aleister
Crowley, Samuel Weiser, Inc.
THE BOOK OF LIES by Aleister Crowly, Samuel Weiser,
Inc.
ALEISTER CROWLEY AND THE HIDDEN GOD by Kenneth
Grant, Skoob Books Publishing, London
THE HERMETICA by Timothy Freke & Peter Gandy,
Penquin Putman Inc.
BOOK OF RUNES
PARKER’S ASTROLOGY and/or THE COMPLEAT ASTROLOGER by Julia &
Derek Parker, Dorling Kindersley, Inc.
THE PORTABLE JUNG, edited with an
Introduction by Joesph Campbell, Penquin Books
MAN AND HIS SYMBOLS by Carl Jung,
Doubleday
THE I CHING/Book of Changes, Richard Wilhelm
Translation, Foreward by C.G. Jung, Bollingen Series XIX, Princeton University
Press
TAROT MADE EASY by Nancy Garen, A Fireside Book,
Simon & Schuster
FOUR GREAT PLAYS BY CHEKHOV [The Sea Gull/The
Cherry Orchard/Three Sisters/Uncle Vanya] translated by Constance Garnett,
Bantam World Drama, Bantam Books.
FIVE PLAYS OF STRINDBERG [Creditors/Crime and Crime/The
Dance of Death/Swanwhite/The Great Highway] translated by Elizabeth Sprigge,
Anchor Books, Double Day & Company, Inc.
A DREAM PLAY by August Strindberg
NO EXIT by Jean-Paul Sartre
WAITING FOR GODOT by Samuel
Beckett
ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND & THROUGH THE
LOOKING GLASS by Lewis Carroll/illustrated by John Tenniel [a
good, affordable edition is Reader’s Digest Best Loved Books for Young Reader’s
series, Choice Publishing, Inc.]
THE LITTLE PRINCE by Antoine de
Saint Exupéry, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc.
BLEAK HOUSE by Charles Dickens
THE IDIOT by Fyodor Dostoevsky
MY LIFE by Isadora Duncan
THE GOLDEN BOUGH by James George Frazer
THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO by Karl Marx
& Friedrich Engles
BASIC WRITINGS ON POLITICS AND PHILOSOPHY/Karl Marx
& Friedrich Engels, edited by Lewis S. Feuer, Anchor Books, Doubleday
& Co.
THE THIRD INTERNATIONAL AFTER LENIN by Leon Trotsky,
Pathfinder Press, Inc.
THE REVOLUTION BETRAYED/Trotsky
THE LEFT OPPOSITION IN THE U.S. 1928-31 by James P.
Cannon, Monad Press
SUPPLIES
BOOK OF LIFE [also called Book of Shadows for
Initiates private notes & progress charting]
BOOK OF THOTH TAROT DECK
RYDER TAROT DECK
RUNES [Initiates can make their own]
CEREMONIAL ROBE [Black or White]
ALTAR [This will vary according to
Initiates’ environment]
Images of The Goddess & The God
2 White Beeswax Candles
Incense container/holder
Chalice
Wand
Plate
Knife
Bell
ANNOITING OIL:
3 parts Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 part Frankincense Oil
1 part Myrrh Oil
1 [Your Choice]
b) ORIGIN OF THE GNOSTIC PAGAN TRADITION In 1996 a core group of original members,
along with more recent Initiates interested in promoting Modern Gnosticism and
Social Revolution, perceived that a new Window of Gnosis had opened to the
world and created this web site. From its conception in 1966 The Founding Document has been in
a process of evolution that continues to this day. New Initiates have as
equally an effective influence on the expression of the Tradition as the
original members (who defer public involvement in order to avoid Reactionary
Leadership Syndrome and authoritarian hierarchal structures within the reconstituted
group.)
The history of the Tradition is a collective one
and this foundation is in accord with the Early Gnostic rejection of
authoritarian centralization.
Each Initiated Member forms the center of this
Gnostic Collective.
ASSIGNMENT #2. Read The Founding Document & email
a brief (1-2 page) critique, stating points of agreement, dissent or ideas that
may be unclear to you. As is the case with all Assignments, there are no
“right” or “wrong” answers.
ASSIGNMENT #3. Begin a
Book of Life or Magickal Journal that will include all Assignments as well as
any personal notations of your spiritual journey. This may include clippings,
photos, etc. It is suggested that new entries include an astrological heading,
particularly the position of the Moon. This information is available on annual
Moon Sign paperpacks obtainable at most bookstores. This journal should remain
strictly private. A plain black book with an Ankh drawn or painted on the front
cover is appropriate.
ASSIGNMENT #4. Begin an
in-depth study of the links to religions, sects & cults listed on Page 1. Also begin to
read the Bible from start to finish. Take as long as you need for a thorough
examination of the extensive & varied material. The School does not
necessarily agree with all the views expressed on these sites. The ability to
advocate views contrary to the Initiate's own contributes to the Modern Gnostic
virtues of critical thinking & discernment.
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Updated 05/07