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Aaron I can't speak for JSM ( that's for the editors) although i thought your piece in JSM2 was great and i really hope there will be more egyptology in future issues - but as for Mandrake Speaks* - please do - as a discussion piece it would be excellent - your thesis sounds great - is that already submitted and published?? I think there maybe is need for an uptodate assessment of the whole sethian development - most previous stuff is either too sectarian or too dismissive - imo bb/93 mogg * Mandrake Speaks may well be part of an iminent podcast -----Original Message----- From: Society for The Academic Study of Magic [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Aaron Cheak Sent: 04 April 2006 23:26 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [ACADEMIC-STUDY-MAGIC] Sethain Well, if there's genuine interest, I could put together something much more polished. Perhaps this could work for JSM. But certainly I could tidy up these brief emails into a short piece for your newsletter. ~ Aaron At 06:07 AM 4/04/2006 +0100, you wrote: >Aaron > >That's really informative - would make a good little article - >i'd be happy to reprint even that small summary in my newsletter mandrake >speaks - >personally i was quite (pleasantly) surprised at the way these interesting >issues have emerged over time amongst the sethians. > >bb/93 > >mogg > > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Society for The Academic Study of Magic >[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Aaron Cheak >Sent: 04 April 2006 16:12 >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Re: [ACADEMIC-STUDY-MAGIC] Sethain > > >Oh, and as to the reasons ... > >Aquino *wants* the Temple of Set (ToS) to proceed under new leadership; he >intends the ToS to continue after the death of its founder (i.e. Aquino). >Hence Don Webb, hence Zeena, hence Patty Hardy. Thus, it is quite likely >that Aquino would not have reassumed his High Priest mantle if the Schrecks >didn't cause the schism they did. Upon finding a suitable new High >Priestess, Aquino seems to have stepped down again. > >Zeena, however, claims that as much as Aquino was willing to hand over the >reigns (e.g. to her), he still exercised control over the ToS by means of >behind the scenes politicking (primarily through the Council of Nine). This >position would appear to be supported by the wealth of correspondence that >transpired behind the scenes at the time of the Schrecks' schism. > >Further to the differences between the Church of Satan (CoS), ToS and the >Storm (which I mentioned only in brief in a previous post) ... > >These are self-evident as soon as one compares LaVey's _Satanic Bible_, >Aquino's "Black Magic" essay in _The Crystal Tablet of Set_, and the >Schrecks' _Demons of the Flesh_. The divergences are in fact quite drastic. >LaVey is barely interested in Seth or the Left Hand Path other than as >diabolical synonyms. He is interested in the ego and it's gratification. >Man is a natural animal. Aquino thinks the left hand path (LHP) is >consistent with Socratic contemplation of eternal forms, and that Seth is >himself the very form of isolate self consciousness which enables the >contemplation of said forms. He is interested in the Self (with a capital >S). Man (or rather, his psyche or soul) is non-natural. The Schrecks >emphasise the feminine nature of the LHP and Seth's role as a violent >initiator. They are interested in cultivating non-dual consciousness to >effect liberation---the same goal as the right hand path---but through >left-handed *means*. [1] Man---the physical body---holds the energies >(Shakti, kundalini) necessary to liberation. > >[1] This is a fundamental difference between the ToS and the Storm: The ToS >define the left and right hand paths as having different *ends* (LHP = >separation of Self from Nature; RHP = union of Self with Nature). The Storm >sees the left and right hand paths as both seeking the same end >(liberation); the paths differ only in the *means* employed towards this >end (the left hand path effects liberation in this life, is dangerous, is >taboo breaking; the right hand path effects liberation over many >incarnations, is safe, is orthodox). Also, whereas the ToS seeks to exalt >the Self of Psyche against the natural cosmos, the Storm seeks to dissolve >the ego/Self/intellect to effect a non-dual relationship with the cosmos. >Also, for the ToS the cosmos is a dead mechanism (as per scientific >materialism); for the Storm it is living and animated (as per the tantric >notion of the world as power/Shakti/prakrti) > >More could be said. I've only touched on some very basic points. > >~ Aaron > > > >At 11:46 PM 4/04/2006 +1000, you wrote: > >At 09:26 AM 4/04/2006 -0400, you wrote: > > > >>If memory serves (and correct me if it doesn't), Aquino stepped down to > >>be replaced by Don Webb, who then was replaced by Zeena LaVey/Schreck > >>for a very short time. After that, Zeena broke off from the ToS, and > >>Aquino became high priest again. I'm not sure as to the reasons behind > >>Lilith's rise and fall, if they could be called that, or if the high > >>priesthood has changed more recently. > > > > > >Yes, this is all correct. I would only add that Aquino has stepped down > >since taking up the mantle after the Schreck's schism, and Patty Hardy is > >now the current High Priestess of the ToS.