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| | The Open Source Order of the Golden Dawn |
 | | The Golden Dawn purports to be primary inheritor of the "Mysteries of the Rose and Cross", the foundational doctrines of Western esoteric philosophy, tracing its roots to the mystery religions of ancient Egypt and Greece, Mithraism, and Gnosticism. |
 | | The Golden Dawn's Hermetic roots came together from the philosophies of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks, with Gnosticism and Neo-Platonism merging in the second and third century; with influence from the Moslem Sufis brought to Europe by Crusader orders; the Qabalaitself influenced by Neo-Platonism -- and alchemy, merging in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. |
 | | At its core, the philosophy of the Golden Dawn is one of perfectible humanism; that by use of the esoteric tools and techniques passed down from antiquity, a human being can advance in spiritual knowledge and magical power, and with hard work and discipline, come to control his or her own destiny. |
| www.osogd.org /library/biscuits/history.html (6720 words) |
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