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{{Short description|International occultist organization}}
{{Short description|International occultist organization}}
{{More citations needed|date=March 2010}}
{{Infobox organization
{{Infobox organization
| name = Illuminates of Thanateros
| name = Illuminates of Thanateros
Line 13: Line 12:
<br />Ray Sherwin
<br />Ray Sherwin
| purpose = [[Chaos magic]] society
| purpose = [[Chaos magic]] society
| region_served = Worldwide
| region_served = Australia, Austria, Brazil, British Isles, Bulgaria, Germany, North America, South America, Switzerland
| website = {{URL|https://iotbritishisles.com/}}<br />{{URL|https://iot-na.thanateros.org/}}
| website = {{URL|https://iotbritishisles.com/}}<br />{{URL|https://iot-na.thanateros.org/}}
| remarks =
| remarks =
}}
}}
{{chaos magic}}
{{chaos magic}}
The '''Illuminates of Thanateros''' ({{IPAc-en|ᵻ|'|lj|u:|m|ᵻ|,|n|ᵻ|t|s|_|Q|v|_|,|T|æ|n|@|'|t|Er|oU|s}}) is an international [[magical organization]] that focuses on practical group work in [[chaos magic]]. The idea was first announced in 1978, while the order proper was formed in 1987. This [[fraternity|fraternal]] magical society has been an important influence on some forms of modern [[occultism]]. It has been described as "an unprecedented attempt of institutionalising one of the most individualising currents in the history of ‘Western learned magic’."{{sfn|Otto|2020|p=762}}
The '''Illuminates of Thanateros (IOT)''' ({{IPAc-en|ᵻ|'|lj|u:|m|ᵻ|,|n|ᵻ|t|s|_|Q|v|_|,|T|æ|n|@|'|t|Er|oU|s}}) is an international [[magical organization]] that focuses on practical group work in [[chaos magic]]. The idea was first announced in 1978, while the order proper was formed in 1987. This [[fraternity|fraternal]] magical society has been an important influence on some forms of modern [[occultism]]. It has been described as "an unprecedented attempt of institutionalising one of the most individualising currents in the history of ‘Western learned magic’."{{sfn|Otto|2020|p=762}}


The IOT has been described as "the Order for 'serious' Chaos Magicians in the same way that the OTO exists for 'serious' Thelemites."<ref>[[Phil Hine|Hine, Phil]]. ''[http://www.textfiles.com/occult/ERIS/cc.txt Condensed Chaos: An Introduction to Chaos Magic]''. New Falcon Publications. {{ISBN|1-56184-117-X}}</ref> The IOT is considered to be an occult{{sfn|Greer|2003}}{{page needed|date=July 2022}} or neoshamanic<ref>Gallagher, Eugene V, Ashcraft, W Michael (2006). [https://books.google.com/books?id=oZiScvbS6-cC&pg=RA2-PA102&dq=Illuminates+von+Thanateros Introduction to New and Alternative Religions in America]. Greenwood Publishing Group. {{ISBN|0-275-98712-4}}</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2022}} organization.
The IOT has been described as "the Order for 'serious' Chaos Magicians in the same way that the [[Ordo Templi Orientis|OTO]] exists for 'serious' Thelemites."{{sfn|Hine|1995|p={{pn|date=January 2023}}}} The IOT is considered to be an occult{{sfn|Greer|2003|page=303}} or neoshamanic{{sfn|Versluis|2006|p=102}} organization.


==Name==
==Name==
The name "Thanateros" is a combination of the names "[[Thanatos]]" and "[[Eros]]"— the Greek gods of death and sex, respectively. The idea is that sex and death represent the positive and negative methods of attaining "magical consciousness". The word "Illuminates" is used in accordance with the claimed tradition of calling such societies — in which those who have mastered the secrets of magic help bring others to mastership — "the [[Illuminati]]".
The formal name of the group is ''The Magical Pact of the Illuminates of Thanateros''.{{sfn|Greer|2003|p=240}} The name "Thanateros" is a combination of the names "[[Thanatos]]" and "[[Eros]]"— the Greek gods of death and sex, respectively. The idea is that sex and death represent the positive and negative methods of attaining "magical consciousness". The word "Illuminates" refers to the claimed tradition of calling such societies — in which those who have mastered the secrets of magic help bring others to mastership — "the [[Illuminati]]".

Its formal name is ''The Magical Pact of the Illuminates of Thanateros'',{{sfn|Greer|2003|p=240}} which is usually shortened to "''the Pact''".


==History==
==History==
===Early===
===Early===
In the late 1970s, Ray Sherwin and [[Peter J. Carroll|Peter Carroll]], two young [[United Kingdom|British]] occultists interested in [[ritual magic]], began to publish a magazine called ''[[The New Equinox]]''. Both men were connected with a burgeoning occult scene developing around The Phoenix, a metaphysical bookshop in [[London]]'s [[East End of London|East End]]. Having grown dissatisfied with the state of the magical arts and the deficiencies they saw in the available occult groups, they published a small announcement in a 1978 issue of their magazine, announcing the creation of the Illuminates of Thanateros (IOT).<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Chaos Magician - VICE |url=https://www.vice.com/amp/en/article/3ba5an/chaos-magician-132-v15n10 |access-date=2022-06-27 |website=www.vice.com}}</ref> They described this order as a new kind of magical order, one based on a hierarchy of magical ability rather than invitation and a magical [[meritocracy]]. They described the IOT as a "spiritual heir" to the [[Zos Kia Cultus]] and a "fusion of [[Thelema|Thelemic]] Magick, [[Tantra]], The Sorceries of Zos and [[Tao]]".<ref>''[[The New Equinox]]'', 1978</ref>
In 1976, Ray Sherwin and [[Peter J. Carroll|Peter Carroll]], two young [[United Kingdom|British]] occultists interested in [[ritual magic]], began to publish a magazine called ''[[The New Equinox]]''. Both were connected with a burgeoning occult scene developing around The Phoenix, a metaphysical bookshop in [[London]]'s [[East End of London|East End]]. Dissatisfied with the state of the magical arts and the deficiencies they saw in the available occult groups, they announced the creation of the Illuminates of Thanateros in a 1978 issue of their magazine.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Chaos Magician - VICE |url=https://www.vice.com/amp/en/article/3ba5an/chaos-magician-132-v15n10 |access-date=2022-06-27 |website=www.vice.com}}</ref> They described this order as a new kind of magical order and a [[meritocracy]] with strict admission criteria, where membership was based on demonstrable magical ability, rather than on invitation by members. They described the IOT as a "spiritual heir" to the [[Zos Kia Cultus]] and a "fusion of [[Thelema|Thelemic]] Magick, [[Tantra]], The Sorceries of Zos and [[Tao]]".<ref>''[[The New Equinox]]'', 1978{{incomplete citation|date=January 2023}}</ref>

Subsequently, the group has sought to legitimize itself less through tradition and more through results-based experimentation.{{sfn|Duggan|2014}} Its formation was heavily influenced by [[Anarchy|anarchic]] and [[Counterculture|countercultural]] ideas and in their descriptions of the practice of [[chaos magic]], "chaos is depicted not simply as a cosmic force, but as a call to action and destabilization against the establishment and against reality itself."{{sfn|Meletiadis|2023}}


===Ice magick controversy===
===Ice magick controversy===
In the early 1990s the order experienced a [[Schism (religion)|schism]] as a result of conflicts about the doctrine of 'ice magick',<ref>{{cite book |title=The Blood of the Saints |author=Chapman, Alan |author-link=Alan Chapman (writer) |author2=Barford, Duncan |author2-link=Duncan Barford |publisher=Heptarchia Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-9563321-0-3 |pages=284–285}}</ref> a major proponent of which was [[Ralph Tegtmeier]].<ref name=icewar>{{cite web |title=The Ice War |url=http://galdrnet.com/kaos/icemage.html#The%20Ice%20War |author=Carroll, Peter J. ("Stokastikos") |publisher=Chaos International 23 }}</ref>
In the early 1990s the order experienced a [[Schism (religion)|schism]] as a result of conflicts about the doctrine of 'ice magick',<ref>{{cite book |title=The Blood of the Saints |author=Chapman, Alan |author-link=Alan Chapman (writer) |author2=Barford, Duncan |author2-link=Duncan Barford |publisher=Heptarchia Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-9563321-0-3 |pages=284–285}}</ref> a major proponent of which was [[Ralph Tegtmeier]].<ref name=icewar>{{cite web |title=The Ice War |url=http://galdrnet.com/kaos/icemage.html#The%20Ice%20War |author=Carroll, Peter J. ("Stokastikos") |publisher=Chaos International 23 }}</ref>


Peter Carroll learned more about the racial doctrines that Ralph was teaching, and criticized him for it. That led to an untenable conflict between Peter and Ralph, which culminated in Ralph and all of his followers seceding from the IoT. The vast majority of German and Swiss members left the order, which constituted about 30% of the order's total membership.<ref>Mayer, Gerhard (2008). ''Arkane Welten: Biografien, Erfahrungen und Praktiken zeitgenössischer Magier''. Ergon Verlag. {{ISBN|978-3-89913-618-0}}</ref> [[Ralph Tegtmeier]] and a few others were subsequently [[excommunication|excommunicated]].<ref name="icewar" />
Peter Carroll learned more about the racial doctrines that Tegtmeier was teaching, and criticized him for it. That led to an untenable conflict between Carroll and Tegtmeier, which culminated in Tegtmeier and all of his followers seceding from the IoT. The vast majority of German and Swiss members left the order, which constituted about 30% of the order's total membership.<ref>Mayer, Gerhard (2008). ''Arkane Welten: Biografien, Erfahrungen und Praktiken zeitgenössischer Magier''. Ergon Verlag. {{ISBN|978-3-89913-618-0}}</ref> Ralph Tegtmeier and a few others were subsequently [[excommunication|excommunicated]].<ref name="icewar" />


After publishing ''Liber Kaos'', Carroll retired from active participation in the order, though he remains on good terms with many of the longstanding members.<ref>{{cite web |title=Message 0 |url=http://specularium.org/index.php?option=com_blog&view=comments&pid=5&Itemid=137 |author=Carroll, Peter J. |date=Dec 16, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120714152429/http://specularium.org/index.php?option=com_blog&view=comments&pid=5&Itemid=137 |archive-date=2012-07-14 }}</ref>
After publishing ''Liber Kaos'', Carroll retired from active participation in the order, though he remains on good terms with many of the longstanding members.<ref>{{cite web |title=Message 0 |url=http://specularium.org/index.php?option=com_blog&view=comments&pid=5&Itemid=137 |author=Carroll, Peter J. |date=Dec 16, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120714152429/http://specularium.org/index.php?option=com_blog&view=comments&pid=5&Itemid=137 |archive-date=2012-07-14 }}</ref>
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[[File:Iot ritual.jpeg|upright|thumb|IOT ritual; an anonymous costumed adept presenting an invocation of the deity Azathoth]]
[[File:Iot ritual.jpeg|upright|thumb|IOT ritual; an anonymous costumed adept presenting an invocation of the deity Azathoth]]


==See also==
===Recent===
The group claims to have been "constantly evolving" and become highly diverse,<ref>{{cite web |title=On Considering the History of the IOT |date=23 May 2024 |url=https://iotbritishisles.com/2022/05/23/on-considering-the-history-of-the-iot/ |website=IOT British Isles |access-date=2024-06-05 |ref=none}}</ref> and has grown to include local representations in additional regions such as [[Bulgaria]],<ref>{{cite web |title=IOT – Българска сатрапия |url=https://bulgaria.iot-d.de/ |website=IOT Bulgaria|access-date=2024-06-05 |ref=none}}</ref> [[France]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Cyber Temple Burgundi |url=https://burgundi.thanateros.live/ |website=IOT Temple Burgundi |access-date=2024-06-05 |ref=none}}</ref> [[Greece]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Το IOT στην Ελλάδα |url=https://greece.iot-d.de/ |website=IOT Greece |access-date=2024-06-05 |ref=none}}</ref> [[Poland]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Iluminaci Thanaterosa |url=https://iotpl.thanateros.org/ |website=IOT Poland |access-date=2024-06-05 |ref=none}}</ref> It maintains various social media channels and regularly offers events that are open to non-members.<ref>{{cite web |title=IOT Seminare |url=https://iot-d.de/?page_id=33 |website=IOT Germany |access-date=2024-06-05 |ref=none}}</ref>
*[[Magical organization]]


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


== Sources ==
=== Works cited ===
*{{cite book |last1=Duggan |first1=Colin|chapter=Chapter 41: Chaos Magick |editor-last1=Partridge |editor-first1=Christopher |title=The Occult World |publisher=Routledge |year=2014 |isbn=978-0415695961}}
*{{cite book |last1= Otto|first1= Bernd-Christian|author-link1= |last2= |first2= |author-link2= |last3= |first3= |author-link3= |last4= |first4= |author-link4= |last5= |first5= |author-link5= |display-authors=|author-mask1= |author-mask2= |author-mask3= |author-mask4= |author-mask5= |editor-last1= Fuchs|editor-first1= Martin|editor-link1= |editor-last2= |editor-first2= |editor-link2= |editor-last3= |editor-first3= |editor-link3= |editor-last4= |editor-first4= |editor-link4= |editor-last5= |editor-first5= |editor-link5= |display-editors= et al.|editor-mask1= |editor-mask2= |editor-mask3= |editor-mask4= |editor-mask5= |translator-last1= |translator-first1= |translator-link1= |translator-last2= |translator-first2= |translator-link2= |translator-last3= |translator-first3= |translator-link3= |translator-last4= |translator-first4= |translator-link4= |translator-last5= |translator-first5= |translator-link5= |display-translators= |translator-mask1= |translator-mask2= |translator-mask3= |translator-mask4= |translator-mask5= |others= |name-list-style= |date= |year= 2020|orig-date= |chapter= The Illuminates of Thanateros and the institutionalisation of religious individualisation|script-chapter= |trans-chapter= |chapter-url= |chapter-url-access= |chapter-format= |title= Religious Individualisation|script-title= |trans-title= |title-link= |url= |url-status= |url-access= |format= |type= |series= |language= |volume= |edition= |publication-place= |location= |publisher= De Gruyter|publication-date= |page=|pages= |at= |no-pp= |arxiv= |asin= |asin-tld= |bibcode= |bibcode-access= |biorxiv= |citeseerx= |doi= 10.1515/9783110580853-038|doi-access= free|doi-broken-date= |eissn= |hdl= |hdl-access= |isbn= |ismn= |issn= |jfm= |jstor= |jstor-access= |lccn= |mr= |oclc= |ol= |ol-access= |osti= |osti-access= |pmc= |pmc-embargo-date= |pmid= |rfc= |sbn= |ssrn= |s2cid= |s2cid-access= |zbl= |id= |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date= |via= |quote= |script-quote= |trans-quote= |quote-page= |quote-pages= |mode= |postscript= |ref=}}
*{{cite book |title=The New Encyclopedia of The Occult |last1=Greer |first1=John Michael |page= |publisher=[[Llewellyn Worldwide]] |year=2003 |isbn=1-56718-336-0}}
*{{cite book |title=The New Encyclopedia of the Occult |last=Greer |first=John Michael |author-link=John Michael Greer |publisher=Llewellyn Worldwide |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-56718-336-8}}
*{{cite book |author-link=Phil Hine |last=Hine |first=Phil |year=1995 |url=http://www.textfiles.com/occult/ERIS/cc.txt |title=Condensed Chaos: An Introduction to Chaos Magic |publisher=New Falcon Publications |isbn=1-56184-117-X}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Meletiadis |first1=Vasileios M. |title=“Book Zero” through the Years |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/arie/aop/article-10.1163-15700593-tat00004/article-10.1163-15700593-tat00004.xml?language=en |journal=Aries|date=17 Aug 2023|doi=10.1163/15700593-tat00004|doi-access=free }}
*{{cite book |last1= Otto|first1= Bernd-Christian|year= 2020|chapter= The Illuminates of Thanateros and the institutionalisation of religious individualisation|title= Religious Individualisation|publisher= De Gruyter|doi= 10.1515/9783110580853-038|doi-access= free}}
*{{cite book |last= Versluis|first= Arthur|year= 2006|chapter= North American Esotericism|editor-last1= Gallagher|editor-first1= Eugene V|editor-last2= Gallagher|editor-first2= W Michael|title= Introduction to New and Alternative Religions in America vol. 3|publisher= Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0275987169}}


==External links==
==External links==

Latest revision as of 16:47, 26 June 2024

Illuminates of Thanateros
AbbreviationIOT
Formation1978
PurposeChaos magic society
Region served
Worldwide
Key people
Peter J. Carroll
Ray Sherwin
Websiteiotbritishisles.com
iot-na.thanateros.org
Part of a series on
Chaos magic
Chaos star
Key concepts
Notable figures
Organisations

The Illuminates of Thanateros (IOT) (/ɪˈljuːmɪˌnɪts ɒv ˌθænəˈtɛroʊs/) is an international magical organization that focuses on practical group work in chaos magic. The idea was first announced in 1978, while the order proper was formed in 1987. This fraternal magical society has been an important influence on some forms of modern occultism. It has been described as "an unprecedented attempt of institutionalising one of the most individualising currents in the history of ‘Western learned magic’."[1]

The IOT has been described as "the Order for 'serious' Chaos Magicians in the same way that the OTO exists for 'serious' Thelemites."[2] The IOT is considered to be an occult[3] or neoshamanic[4] organization.

Name[edit]

The formal name of the group is The Magical Pact of the Illuminates of Thanateros.[5] The name "Thanateros" is a combination of the names "Thanatos" and "Eros"— the Greek gods of death and sex, respectively. The idea is that sex and death represent the positive and negative methods of attaining "magical consciousness". The word "Illuminates" refers to the claimed tradition of calling such societies — in which those who have mastered the secrets of magic help bring others to mastership — "the Illuminati".

History[edit]

Early[edit]

In 1976, Ray Sherwin and Peter Carroll, two young British occultists interested in ritual magic, began to publish a magazine called The New Equinox. Both were connected with a burgeoning occult scene developing around The Phoenix, a metaphysical bookshop in London's East End. Dissatisfied with the state of the magical arts and the deficiencies they saw in the available occult groups, they announced the creation of the Illuminates of Thanateros in a 1978 issue of their magazine.[6] They described this order as a new kind of magical order and a meritocracy with strict admission criteria, where membership was based on demonstrable magical ability, rather than on invitation by members. They described the IOT as a "spiritual heir" to the Zos Kia Cultus and a "fusion of Thelemic Magick, Tantra, The Sorceries of Zos and Tao".[7]

Subsequently, the group has sought to legitimize itself less through tradition and more through results-based experimentation.[8] Its formation was heavily influenced by anarchic and countercultural ideas and in their descriptions of the practice of chaos magic, "chaos is depicted not simply as a cosmic force, but as a call to action and destabilization against the establishment and against reality itself."[9]

Ice magick controversy[edit]

In the early 1990s the order experienced a schism as a result of conflicts about the doctrine of 'ice magick',[10] a major proponent of which was Ralph Tegtmeier.[11]

Peter Carroll learned more about the racial doctrines that Tegtmeier was teaching, and criticized him for it. That led to an untenable conflict between Carroll and Tegtmeier, which culminated in Tegtmeier and all of his followers seceding from the IoT. The vast majority of German and Swiss members left the order, which constituted about 30% of the order's total membership.[12] Ralph Tegtmeier and a few others were subsequently excommunicated.[11]

After publishing Liber Kaos, Carroll retired from active participation in the order, though he remains on good terms with many of the longstanding members.[13]

IOT ritual; an anonymous costumed adept presenting an invocation of the deity Azathoth

Recent[edit]

The group claims to have been "constantly evolving" and become highly diverse,[14] and has grown to include local representations in additional regions such as Bulgaria,[15] France,[16] Greece,[17] Poland.[18] It maintains various social media channels and regularly offers events that are open to non-members.[19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Otto 2020, p. 762.
  2. ^ Hine 1995, p. [page needed].
  3. ^ Greer 2003, p. 303.
  4. ^ Versluis 2006, p. 102.
  5. ^ Greer 2003, p. 240.
  6. ^ "A Chaos Magician - VICE". www.vice.com. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  7. ^ The New Equinox, 1978[full citation needed]
  8. ^ Duggan 2014.
  9. ^ Meletiadis 2023.
  10. ^ Chapman, Alan; Barford, Duncan (2009). The Blood of the Saints. Heptarchia Press. pp. 284–285. ISBN 978-0-9563321-0-3.
  11. ^ a b Carroll, Peter J. ("Stokastikos"). "The Ice War". Chaos International 23.
  12. ^ Mayer, Gerhard (2008). Arkane Welten: Biografien, Erfahrungen und Praktiken zeitgenössischer Magier. Ergon Verlag. ISBN 978-3-89913-618-0
  13. ^ Carroll, Peter J. (Dec 16, 2010). "Message 0". Archived from the original on 2012-07-14.
  14. ^ "On Considering the History of the IOT". IOT British Isles. 23 May 2024. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  15. ^ "IOT – Българска сатрапия". IOT Bulgaria. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  16. ^ "Cyber Temple Burgundi". IOT Temple Burgundi. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  17. ^ "Το IOT στην Ελλάδα". IOT Greece. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  18. ^ "Iluminaci Thanaterosa". IOT Poland. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  19. ^ "IOT Seminare". IOT Germany. Retrieved 2024-06-05.

Works cited[edit]

External links[edit]

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