Why I detest the notion of authority.

In general, it is common and acceptable to regard authority figures as valid sources of information and as trusted, responsible adults, which gives them almost mystical power over people to dictate behaviour and trends.

However, for practitioners, this blind trust as a life strategy can result in a decline in critical thinking, individual responsibility, and free choice.

In contrast, practitioners must cultivate a discerning mind, be critical of claims made by accepted authorities, and weigh different views and their own experience before drawing any conclusions.

Furthermore, as the field of occult science is dynamic, encompassing diverse philosophies, systems, and worldviews that are simultaneously available for review, it is better not to adhere to a single authoritative perspective but to cultivate an individual one.

Even in science, much of what we currently regard as fact may be refuted by subsequent generations of researchers. Still, rigorous and repeated testing has demonstrated certain repetitive phenomena as scientifically valid truths, which is great for practical purposes rather than philosophical adaptation. Newton's laws of motion and Darwin's theory of evolution are two examples of scientific theories that have withstood the test of time and are supported by abundant evidence.

However, for the practitioner, it is best to consider these only in terms of practicality, such as the phenomenon of cause and effect and the idea that personal maturation and progress can be achieved in one's own life and psyche.

Certain persons are frequently regarded as authorities in the occult and treated as such to some degree and to almost mystical degrees, which is a mistake made by our tendency to look for outside solid truth.

It is crucial to remember that these individuals did not possess absolute knowledge; rather, they held personal opinions and interpretations, and their understanding of the matter was most certainly incomplete or incorrect, regardless of the aura of authority then held.

This is particularly true for the early generations of occult researchers, who often had few resources and relied on inaccurate translations, popular science of their time, or unverifiable phylosophiecal ideas.

Modern research and researchers in fields such as archaeology, physics, and psychology have shown that many of these older traditional doctrines were essentially false or seriously deficient.

For instance, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn is notorious for adapting the magical system to align with its beliefs and base dogmas.

For example, their interpretation and adaptation of the Enochian system present difficulties for practitioners simply because they broke the system to fit their four-element narrative.

When in fact that system has no such physicality or philosophical relation to the Ideal of the four elements or cardinal directions.

This is one example of why blindly adhering to a particular teaching is flawed and may even result in psychic fracture, a well-known and clear danger of using the Enocian adaptation of the Golden Dawn.

It is imperative to question authority and to thoroughly assess the facts they present by comparing teachings from different sources within the same magical systems.

There is a matter of the personal life and pattern of behaviour of occult authorities, for example, in the case of Alister Crowley and his correspondence system, which, although it yielded some practical value, is also a very misleading and reductionist system, which may lead to internal conflicts when used as a practical system rather than an interesting idea.

It is not advisable to confuse the qualities of characters with deities, so the idea that Aphrodita, as a beautiful woman, is the same as Ishtar because of similarly shared traits or characteristics. Is just reductionist and falted leading to wrong and degraded practice when working with goddesses.

It’s like saying all men are the same because they want only one thing, just because of a biological drive for sex, which is the reason our species still exists. (goes the same way for women and money).

Alister Crowley was known to be an unpleasant man, with a considerably inflated ego and an addict of heroin and cocaine, ending his life in poverty, missery and isolation.

All of these are signs of immaturity and a lack of willingness to undergo the internal process initiated by the spirits. So in short, at his time, a pioneer for sure, but in the landscape of modern reality. A deranged and dangerous practitioner to consider an Authority.

Despite these shortcomings, many occultists and magicians still adhere to Crowley's teachings because he is regarded as an authority, which is sufficient for these practitioners to accept his words as gospel and to avoid the responsibility of critical thinking and the pursuit of personal gnosis.

It is unreasonable to view individuals whose lives have proven to be total failures, especially since contemporary practitioners have access to superior knowledge, advanced magical technologies, and psychological tools for personal development.

I particularly find it frustrating to run into people who claim to be informed about Hebrew texts and reject my own interpretation because often their ideas are based on politically biased translations.

However, because their ego-based sense of authority or belief is so strong, it doesn't matter that Hebrew is my mother tongue, and, in addition, I am highly proficient in my own language and can read those texts in the original, It is a psychological effect of immaturity to claim that since someone is a celeb then his openiun are an expression of the true. Which applies to all sorts of Occult authorities, regardless of their actual knowledge of any subject.

A good example is the completely ridiculous, faltered, and retarded use of psadu-Hebrew by Kenneth Grant in his book The Night Side of eden part 1.

It is completely a fabricated set of lies to be regarded as an attempt to establish himself as a knowledgeable person, which, at least on the matter of Hebrew, he wasn’t.

It puts every other work he ever produced under a clear and strong question mark.

To summarize more clearly, a text translated from Hebrew into Greek, then Latin, then German or French, and finally English, is worth little in terms of accuracy.

And how about the so prevalent spirit-influenced or channelled information that is so prevalent today?

This must be taken in the context of practical usefulness rather than as biblical-level teaching, or with dogmatic fanaticism because of the authority status of the author or channeler.

If we follow the example of John Dee, who demonstrates the maticulus commitment and intensity necessary to employ spiritual divination to obtain important information.

Very few modern authorities have ever had that kind of systematic, meticulous investment in channeling or spirit communication.

And on top of that practitioner of occultism are always carrying past influences stemming from their religious upbringing and the thinking frames of their time, including John Dee.

The psychological condition of current time practitioners is therefore often superior to that of medieval occultists, who exclusively saw visions of devils and angels and had no acknowledgement of the validity of polytheistic societies.

As a result, when attempting to access the "lunar reservoir of pictures," the more flexible, emotionally mature, and psychologically healthy a person is, the better the material produced.

In addition, contemporary language is richer in many respects than that of past occultists, as it now includes concepts unavailable earlier, drawn from fields such as informatics, NLP, psychology, and science. 

Movies, electronic music, psytrance, fantasy novels, and science fiction books, as well as video games, have significantly enhanced our ability to visualize, imagine, and comprehend metaphysical ideas.

Not long ago, idly daydreaming and imagining were punishable by beating and frowned upon as a waste of time.

Today, imagination and visualisation, and even immersion in one's own thoughts and daydreaming, are permitted and, in some subcultures, even encouraged as a form of practice.

An occultist can benefit substantially from understanding the mechanics of computers when explaining the workings of the mind.

All study topics should be approached with a critical, questioning perspective, and it's essential to be mindful of the shortcomings and prejudices of those who have come before us when we study their systems.

While drawing on others' expertise and experience may be beneficial, it's crucial to think independently and not simply accept others' opinions and analyses without question.

It's crucial to attend to our mental and emotional health and to be mindful of the potential negative consequences that specific ideas or habits may have on our well-being, because every system has faulty mental loops that can trap practitioners into false beliefs.

Ultimately, it is up to each practitioner to choose the practices and knowledge that are useful and pertinent to them and to approach their studies with an open, discerning mind.