Freemasons, Rosicrucians and Opus Dei are waiting for you! How to join a secret society. All club rules

Organization of secret societies for dummies

For the search phrase “secret societies” search system Yandex provides no less than 15,000,000 links. Really, is this a lot or a little? For the area of intentions, for compiling a sociological cross-section of modern society and the mood of young people, perhaps a lot. But from the point of view of the practical implementation of these intentions, it is incredibly small, especially if we take into account the percentage of intentions and their implementation, which tends to the impossible for the simple arithmetic reason that it is impossible to divide by zero.

Oddly enough, quite a significant portion of these links (we can talk about approximately 7–10%) lead to sites and blogs of young and very young people who set out to create their own secret society or “revive” an already known one, but not represented in their region of residence author of a website or blog. Taking into account the presence in modern world only one and a half dozen secret (or equated to them by public opinion)42 societies in the totality of no more than one and a half hundred of their various origins and branches43, we have to admit that the practice of creating secret societies is currently either a completely undeveloped topic, or a topic that is obviously associated with numerous difficulties and difficult to develop.

The reasons for the emergence of secret societies and the circumstances of their creation can be reconstructed almost exclusively from the internal documents of the corresponding secret societies, while documents of official history can serve here only as auxiliary material and provide the researcher with only indirect evidence and insignificant facts. This determines the actual unknowability of the real circumstances of the creation of certain secret societies: after all, it would be ridiculous to rely on both historical and indisputable facts to "founding legends" and traditional myths community groups. However, no one has canceled the combinatorial method, which allows us to at least partially get closer to the truth in studying both the objective conditions for the creation of a particular secret society and the subjective motivations of its creators.

The authors of numerous conspiracy theological works have succeeded a lot in this field, whose pens include many secret societies created on paper, either that never existed in history (more precisely, in the available historical evidence), or that existed in reality, but had completely different characteristics (according to the available historical evidence ). These conspiracy artifacts usually embody both the personal characteristics, fears and doubts of the authors, and a considerable part of the “collective unconscious”, the generalized characteristics, fears and doubts of human society in different times, V different countries ah and in their different social strata.

In the same context as conspiracy theorists, it would be fair to also mention “esotericists,” if we accept this name for a wide range of people who are seriously involved in the study of esoteric traditions, members of secret societies, practicing individually, or simply interested in reading relevant literature. Their circle became wide in Europe during the Enlightenment, during the decline of influence official church and the growing availability of unofficial religious and occult literature. Since then, these two processes have only been developing and covering increasingly vast territories of the inhabited world, therefore the circle of “esotericists” continues to grow steadily. Sooner or later, about half of these people come to the idea of creating their own “support group”, and here the concept of a secret society comes to their aid (provided that the person involved abandons the intention to practice individually). Acting as a “teacher” (founder of the tradition), or “first student” (successor of the tradition, “discoverer of ancient scrolls”, “listener of the last will of the last teacher”, “witness of the appearance of the spirit - the bearer of tradition”, etc.), he establishes his own secret society and provides it with both external signs, such as an administrative structure and rules of admission, and internal ones, that is, he creates the corresponding founding myth and develops the basic postulates of the doctrine.

Without a doubt, one can argue endlessly about the presence or absence of a fundamental difference between “ancient” and “modern” secret societies, their comparative advantages and disadvantages, but this is not our task in this article. We would like to present here, if possible, a clear and easy-to-understand algorithm for creating a secret society from available materials: first of all, these are people.

Speaking about religious secret societies, C. W. Heckerthorn (“Secret Societies of All Ages and Countries”) writes: “From the most ancient times, religion had its own secret societies, that is, they arose from the period when the true religious knowledge of the first people - consisted , it should be noted, from the concept of the universe and the Eternal Power that produced it, and the laws by which it was supported - little by little they began to be lost in the general mass of the human race. True knowledge was mainly preserved in the ancient mysteries, although they had already moved one degree away from the primitive, innate wisdom, representing only a type instead of a prototype. It is the phenomena of external, temporary nature, instead of the reality of internal and eternal nature, of which the external world is an external manifestation... Comparative mythology reduces all apparently contradictory and opposing beliefs to one primitive, basic, true concept of nature and its laws.”

In the same way, on the external plane of existence, the mechanism for creating secret societies is more or less the same throughout human history.

To make it easier to understand this truly universal mechanism, it would be logical to take as an illustration a completely unexpected literary work in this regard and use its example to demonstrate most of the ones known in the world. this moment signs and properties of secret societies at the founding stage.

Vladimir Dmitrievich Bonch-Bruevich

CLEAN PLATES SOCIETY

Everyone sat around the table on the terrace. There were three children at the table: two girls and a boy. They tied up their napkins and sat quietly, waiting for the soup to be served to them.

Vladimir Ilyich looked at them and spoke quietly.

Soup was served. The children ate poorly; almost all the soup remained in their bowls. Vladimir Ilyich looked disapprovingly, but said nothing. The second one was served. Same story: again almost everything was left on the plates.

– Are you a member of the Clean Plate Society? – Vladimir Ilyich suddenly asked loudly, turning to the girl Nadya, who was sitting next to him.

“No,” Nadya answered quietly and looked at the other children in confusion.

- And you? And you? – he turned to the boy and girl.

“No, we are not a member,” answered the children.

- How are you? Why so late?

– We didn’t know, we didn’t know anything about this society! - the children said in a hurry.

- In vain. It's a shame! It has been around for a long time.

- We didn’t know! – Nadya said disappointedly.

- However, you are not suitable for this society. They won’t accept you anyway,” Vladimir Ilyich said seriously.

- Why? Why won't they accept it? – the children asked vying with each other.

- How why"? What kind of plates do you have? Look! How can you be accepted when you leave everything on your plates?

- We'll finish eating now! “And the children began to eat up everything that was left on their plates.”

- Well, unless you improve, then we can try. There they also give out badges to those whose plates are always clean,” continued Vladimir Ilyich.

– And badges!.. And what badges? - the children asked. - How to get there?

- We need to apply.

- And to whom?

The children asked permission to leave the table and ran to write a statement. After some time, they returned to the terrace and solemnly handed the paper to Vladimir Ilyich. Vladimir Ilyich read it, corrected three mistakes and wrote in the corner: “We must accept.”

There is absolutely nothing strange in the fact that, using the example of this twice-imagined “secret society” (because it is imagined, in fact, by a fictional character, who only borrowed the outer shell from a famous historical figure), it is possible to establish certain patterns that ensure the completely non-illusory success of this enterprise as for the “creator” of the secret society, and for his “new initiates”. Let's leave aside the Soviet habits of Vladimir Ilyich with his statements and resolutions and concentrate on the spiritual side of the process.

A person, throughout his entire time on earth, lives in the feeling of the presence of a certain reality, which is real only for him, subjective, but at the same time recognized by all the people around him as the only truly existing and objective one. A person is more or less aware of it; more precisely, he has an established image of the surrounding reality, which integral part enters into his very personality. And suddenly he suddenly realizes that this personal, internalized and habitual reality of his is not what it seems to him, that it turns out that in parallel with him in this objectively existing and familiar world there is something that he did not suspect or think about, that exists outside of his perception and sensations and leads his own life. Any discovery of this kind slightly shifts the framework of a person’s subjective reality and knocks him out of the usual pattern. His personal reality, which usually envelops his personality in a dense cocoon and creates comfortable conditions for her life (like a mother’s womb before birth), receives a hole and becomes open to external influence, and the person himself becomes vulnerable, subject to outside influences and loses self-confidence. Naturally, the size of this “hole” directly depends on the significance of the discovery and on the characteristics of the individual. In this case, children appear in the story, and it is obvious that just as the child’s personality itself is more susceptible to influence than an adult’s, so the child’s reality has even much thinner walls than the adult’s reality.

The most important thing here is that going beyond the boundaries of familiar reality is at the same time a transition to a state of borderline reality - transcendence, that is, in fact, the very borderline state is imitated, which is considered mandatory for the implementation of a full-fledged mystical initiation and the achievement of which numerous initiation rituals of well-known secret societies are aimed at. In other words, the very fact of revealing to the children the existence of a secret society marks the beginning of their initiation, because the story clearly shows their active rapport - an interested and empathic reaction, sympathy and desire to learn more and, if possible, take part.

In no case should we underestimate the secret nature of the described society, since it is well known that secrecy entails.

Among the purely psychological techniques that have an irresistible effect on the characters in the story, it is worth noting that it is no coincidence that Vladimir Ilyich threw out “Why was it so late?” - after all, in this way the theoretically existing society is given authority and indirectly communicated that “everyone” or “many” are already members of it. people worthy of all approval and respect, implied exemplary people, role models.

It is also important that, again, implicitly and indirectly main character makes children understand that members of this society can, or are allowed, or should look down on all other people, that members of society have “something” that allows them to behave this way, because it would not initially occur to potential candidates, that there may be no good reason for such an attitude. Consequently, elementary logic forces us to assume that the members of this society are endowed upon initiation with certain distinctive properties that take them beyond the framework of ordinary human existence, or at least the sector familiar to children.

And this assumption is justified when children learn that in order to join a secret society they must satisfy certain conditions that carry clear signs of asceticism. They must radically change their lifestyle (if there are few responsibilities, as is the case with children, the introduction of even one new one is very sensitive), and this change will make them special, not like everyone else, and they will have to be responsible for clear and the unfailing fulfillment of new duty.

It is emphasized that an imaginary person with a stick will not stand over them, that the new responsibility is imposed on them not so much from the outside, but so as to become their internal need. This is generally not so much a duty as an order to change internally, to become different, which is why children have increased anxiety and an increased sense of the significance of the moment. This is nothing more than an incentive for self-improvement, prescribed in all the charters and constitutions of spiritual and mystical societies known in history. As the ritual of Masonic initiation into disciples says, “we accustom our spirit to indulge in sublime feelings, to think about honor and virtue, for only by controlling our inclinations and our character can we bring our spirit into that fair balance that constitutes wisdom, that is, the knowledge of life.” .

In general, it is important that entry into a secret society is conditioned by the completion of some preparatory work. Any initiation is, as you know, a search for an unknown new or old, which suddenly became known to have existed, but disappeared. We have already said that having learned the very fact of the existence of a new, unknown reality, the candidate has already found himself in a borderline reality, beyond which a new life awaits him, a renewal of his personality and the acquisition of new properties bestowed by initiation. It is logical, therefore, that from the very threshold of the threshold of the secret sanctuary he begins to work on himself, on changing his own personality. For him this is no longer a beginning, but a continuation of spiritual work in the name of dedication. And with this work, he, as a candidate, is strikingly different from all other people, actually becoming Kadosh - “separated, sanctified.”

At the same time, the candidate knows and understands that his own opinion about the path he has taken and the successes made along this path, about his own achievements, means almost nothing, because they will be judged by members of society who have already been initiated. They will decide whether it is worth accepting him into their midst, whether he is ready to share with them the privileges and responsibilities inherent in equal membership in a select number of “set apart.” The concept of self-initiation is only a later invention of the human mind, spoiled by the availability of information, while the most ancient esoteric traditions operate with the concept of a select circle, at their own will accepting or rejecting a new member seeking familiarization with its secrets.

Human nature is weak, and the soul residing in an earthly body is invariably prone to idolatry and idolatry, therefore the concession that most of the secret societies known to us make to human nature and which Vladimir Ilyich also makes, even more attracting children to his society with the message about that members of this society are entitled to external insignia. Not only any member of modern secret societies, but also anyone more or less knowledgeable in their specifics knows how much attention is often paid to external attributes, regardless of the real significance of these objects in the ideology and symbolic content of the organization. The ancient commandment to honor the Creator, but not the creature, does not always find a lively response in the souls of the initiated.

In general, the society created by the imagination of the character in the story, or more precisely, its external properties described, are formulated quite thoughtfully and professionally, so to speak, regardless of how much or, on the contrary, how little he thought about their formulation. But it is also impossible not to note the significant organizational and - more importantly - ideological miscalculations leading to the Clean Plate Society repeating the fate of so many spiritual organizations previously created in the history of the Earth.

The goals of the society are not declared. New initiates are in the dark, for which they sacrifice familiar reality and change their lifestyle. Clean plates act in this case as a means, not an end. Even if it were stated that the plates should be clean to make life easier for mom, since it would then be easier for her to wash them, that would already be a statement of purpose. The goal must be of a moral and spiritual nature, and this position was wonderfully formulated by V. Pelevin in “Generation P” through the lips of one of his characters: “But it’s not just grandmothers who can stand behind the grandmothers, right? Because then it’s purely unclear - why are some in front and others behind?”

The founding legend is not stated. Every secret society necessarily has a founding legend, namely an epic account of an event in the past that laid the foundation for the existence of the organization. Typically, the further back in time a given event is, the more importance is attached to it and the more authority a given society expects to have.

The most important thing is that dedication has no continuation. This story has been repeated countless times from generation to generation. Without being afraid to lie, we can confidently say that with minimal statistical error, it was repeated during the creation of all known world secret societies, all religious denominations and all political parties and community groups. Usually created by passionaries, spiritualized leaders, they were then deprived of their leader, who either had time or did not have time to leave his successors with knowledge about the purpose of the organization’s existence, its origin and the means of achieving the stated goal. If the doctrine was not formulated, the niche was filled with the inventions of the successors, becoming an independent doctrine, taking the name of the doctrine that the founder proclaimed. If the founder managed to formulate a doctrine, it was passed on from generation to generation with greater or less accuracy, acquiring along the way interpretations, comments, additions and also often radically changing, while maintaining the original name that connected it with the founder.

So, Vladimir Ilyich is definitely not planning any continuation. Having signed the children’s applications and accepted them into his society, he does nothing further and presumably moves the next day to Moscow, for example, because summer is over and it’s time to get to work in the Kremlin. Left without a charismatic leader, children are left to their own devices, and two paths are open to them.

The first way: without seeing dramatic changes in their own lives after taking on new responsibilities, without a leader who has not communicated a spiritual purpose, without knowing that they are continuing a long tradition of dedication, without seeing the practical consequences of their work worth special attention, children may become disillusioned with their newfound dedication and “stop playing it.” However, the consequences of this are extremely serious: children are disappointed in the very ideas of a new reality, charismatic leadership, clean plates, self-improvement, helping their mother, joining a chosen circle. A well-worn, but not lost in meaning maxim: “We are responsible for those we have tamed.”

Whether the second way is better or worse is very difficult to decide. Because it consists in the fact that the most passionate of the children in such a situation can take on the role of leader and either act at his own peril and risk, explaining that he is doing this in the absence of the creator, or begin to command on behalf of the creator, insisting on connection with him, real or spiritual, which he supposedly has and which, by the will of the creator, is inaccessible to other members of society. It is clear that society is being transformed into a society of a new creator, and it will depend on him whether he will repeat the mistakes of the first creator and be satisfied with the first few manifestations of his power, or whether he will develop goals, ideology, rituals and everything else for society.

No matter what anyone says, Ilyich’s precepts can lead to many extraordinary thoughts, even if they are put into completely banal and self-evident logical chains.

From the book Human Image as the Basis of the Art of Healing - Volume I. Anatomy and Physiology author Husemann Friedrich

I-organization A person, despite the intactness of his senses, would still not be able to experience the world as “reality” if his entire organism were not built from the world thanks to the I and for the I. This means that a person really participates through the senses in the world,

From the book The Wind of the Nagual or Farewell to Don Juan author Smirnov Terenty Leonidovich

About the secret aspects of prayer My advantage as a researcher of various esoteric methods is that I had the unique opportunity to trace the transformative effect of prayer on human consciousness simultaneously from two positions, from two parallel levels -

From the book Golden Rules of Feng Shui. 10 simple steps to success, prosperity and longevity author Ogudin Valentin Leonidovich

Results of the impact of the “secret arrows” of roads A road aimed directly at the front door of a house brings bad luck to its residents and creates a predisposition to accidents. The road, directed at an angle to the house, contributes to the leakage of money. If she comes up with

From the book Theosophical Archives (collection) author Blavatskaya Elena Petrovna

“Historical” Zoroaster and Zarathustra of the secret scriptures Translation - K. Leonov Well-known gross historical errors and miscalculations are often nothing more than deliberate distortions of them subsequently, for they leave a false impression in the mind of the student, from

From the book Teaching of Life author Roerich Elena Ivanovna

author Roerich Elena Ivanovna

[The danger of various societies for the study of esotericism] I read your letter with all attention and must say that what pleased me most was that, apparently, now you are not a member of any pseudo-occult societies or organizations. After all similar organizations now what

From the book Teaching of Life author Roerich Elena Ivanovna

[Problems in the work of spiritual and educational societies] Regarding regroupings, it seems to me that a sharp division into the aspiring and gifted and the underachieving is rarely encountered. There is always a middle element, which can serve as a sufficient engine for less

From the book Miracle of Health author Pravdina Natalia Borisovna

Neutralization of secret arrows After this, look carefully again to see if the three most important energy points of the house: the door, stove and bed are under the influence of “secret arrows”. If you find something that confuses you, for example, factory pipes looking into your

From the book Rock of those who imagine themselves to be gods author Sidorov Georgy Alekseevich

Chapter 3. The essence of secret societies Modern historians are trying to prove to us that Freemasonry is a rather late phenomenon. That it took shape at the beginning of the 18th century, and before that there were no secret societies and there could not have been. Freemasons don't count. It was purely professional

From the book The Complete History of Secret Societies and Sects of the World author Sparov Victor

From the book Astrology of Sex. Your Zodiac Guide to Love and Passion by Davis Rowan

From the book From Mother's Sayings. Auroville. City of the future by Aurobindo Sri

Organization Are special methods of work, organization, and coordination necessary for the construction of Auroville? You cannot live without discipline. Even the body's functions are subject to the strictest discipline. As soon as it weakens somewhere, illness begins. What should be the nature of this

From the book Comte de Gabalis, or Conversations about the Secret Sciences author de Villars Nicolas Montfaucon

First conversation about the secret sciences May the soul of Count de Gabalis appear before God, who died, as I was just informed, of an apoplexy. Know-it-all gentlemen will not fail to note that this kind of death is not uncommon for people who cannot keep secrets

From the book Masonic Testament. Hiram's Legacy by Knight Christopher

3. LIGHT OF SECRET KNOWLEDGE

From the book About Heaven, the World of Spirits and Hell author Swedenborg Emmanuel

Heaven consists of countless societies 41. The angels of each heaven do not all live in one place, but are divided into small and large societies depending on the difference in the good of love and faith of each of them; those who are similar in good form one society. The blessings in heaven are varied

There are a large number of large organizations, about the type of activity of which most people know practically nothing. And, as we know, everything unknown or known, but not completely, always causes a lot of rumors and speculation. Therefore, secret societies that prefer to remain in the shadows are credited with organizing universal conspiracies and communicating with otherworldly forces.

In fact, most of these “interest circles” are much more harmless than they are trying to make us believe, although among them there are some that actually influenced world history. We decided to study the history of the 10 most famous and powerful secret organizations to figure out when they finally appeared and why and whether they still exist.

Illuminati

The Illuminati most often refers to the “Order of the Illuminati” of Professor Adam Weishaupt, which existed in the 1700s. His task was the comprehensive improvement of the church and the achievement of general prosperity. The ruler of Bavaria, Karl Theodor, called the Illuminati one of the branches of the illegal community of Freemasons and announced criminal prosecution of members of the society, putting an end to history in 1787. Officially, the order ceased to exist, but it is believed that its remaining members did not abandon their cause and simply went underground. The Illuminati is credited with organizing the Great French Revolution, the assassination attempt on John F. Kennedy, and the impact on world politics in the modern world.

Opus Dei

The organization was founded in 1928 by Catholic priest Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer. From Latin, the name of the society is translated as “The Work of God,” and what they do is help them find the path to holiness without renouncing everyday life. Most of its members are ordinary people: businessmen, workers, teachers, housewives, who appearance are no different from their colleagues. And although the organization does not hide the location of its headquarters, it receives a wide variety of criticism. Due to the closed nature of the community, some Catholic priests consider it dangerous; in addition, Opus Dei is often associated with the use of practices that are characteristic of sects. All this creates a certain aura of mystery around the society, due to which it is often attributed to some kind of secret Catholic society. Adding fuel to the fire of speculation and rumors was Dan Brown, who portrayed Opus Dei in The Da Vinci Code as secret sect, hiding important information.

Templars

The official name of the order is “The United Religious, Military and Masonic Orders of the Temple and St. John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes and Malta.” This is a modern offshoot of Freemasonry and is not related to the Poor Knights of Christ, founded by a group of knights in 1119. But the order was made after his example in order to preserve the spirit of this organization. The Order is part of the York Rite and for membership it is necessary to be exclusively a Christian who has completed all the degrees of the Royal Arch, and in some jurisdictions also the degrees of the Crypt.

Black hand

South Slavic secret nationalist organization appeared in 1911. According to one version, it arose as an offshoot of the People's Defense group, which sought to unite all Slavic peoples. The organization's goal was to fight for the liberation of the Serbs who were under the rule of Austria-Hungary. It included Serbian army officers and some government officials. The Black Hand was associated with a group of terrorists who killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose death sparked the outbreak of the First World War. In 1917, by order of the King of Serbia, Alexander I Karageorgievich, the organization was liquidated, and its head, Colonel Dragutin Dmitrievich, and his entourage were shot.

Assassins

The Neo-Ismaili Nizari organization was formed in the 11th century. The society was founded by Hassan ibn Shabbat. Their internal system was built on a strict hierarchy, where the transition to the next level was accompanied by mystical rituals. In the ideology of the sect, the main role was given to anti-feudal, communist and national liberation motives. The assassins have firmly established the reputation of hired killers without fear or reproach, always carrying out their orders. It is believed that the sect ceased to exist in 1256, after the fortresses of Alamut and Meymundiz were taken. According to other sources, some assassins managed to escape and founded a caste of hereditary killers in India. The traditions of assassins were most clearly preserved in the actions of terrorist Muslim sects such as Jihad and Hezbollah, and especially in the fidayeen units.

Thule Society

This occult political German society included all those who later became Hitler's closest advisers. The official name of the organization was the Group for the Study of German Antiquity. They were engaged in researching the origin of the Aryan race. Thule - mythical northern country from ancient Greek legends - Nazi mystics considered it the capital of ancient Hyperborea. All participants in society considered the Aryans as a superior race that had lived since the prehistoric era and Atlantis, and the inhabitants of that same Thule were the descendants of the Aryans who managed to escape from Atlantis. Another part of society, which did not believe so much in all sorts of mystical tales, was more interested in the fight against Jews, communists and freemasons. In 1919, Thule members created political organization"German Workers' Party", of which Adolf Hitler became a member. The Thule Society existed until 1933.

Knights of the Golden Ring

In the 1850s and 1860s, a paramilitary organization, the Knights of the Golden Ring, operated in the Midwestern United States. The society was created by Southern sympathizers who wanted to create states where slavery would be legal. The intended areas of action were to be Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean islands. The most famous members of the organization were Abraham Lincoln's assassin John Wilkes Booth and the outlaw Jesse James. After the arrest of the leaders and the confiscation of weapons by the government in 1864, the organization ceased to exist.

Sons of Liberty

The organization was founded in 1765 by Samuel Adams. The goal of the society members was to fight for self-determination of the North American colonies. Their motto was “No taxes without representation.” The policy of social resistance included the distribution of thematic pamphlets, protests and open violent acts against the British authorities, for which their activities were equated to criminal and began to be persecuted. After the repeal of the Stamp Act in 1766, the organization dissolved itself.

Skull and Bones

This is one of the oldest student secret societies in the United States. It arose in 1832 at the instigation of Yale University Secretary William Russell, who decided, together with 14 like-minded people, to create a secret fraternity. They accepted into their club only people from the American aristocracy, Anglo-Saxon origin and Protestant religion. Rumor has it that the only requirement for entry these days is that the candidate must be a leader in his or her own campus. The society included US presidents, senators, judges Supreme Court, because of which it began to be considered a kind of underground group uniting political elite. Society meetings are held twice a week, but what is discussed and done at them remains a closely guarded secret.

Masons

The official date of the emergence of Freemasonry is considered to be 1717, but there are documents dating back to 1300 years in which Freemasons are already mentioned. Masonic meetings are held in a ritual form, and candidates for regular Freemasonry must believe in a Supreme Being. The Masons themselves say that their goal is moral improvement, the development and preservation of fraternal friendship and charity. It is believed that the community strives to achieve political influence throughout the world. The most famous members of the society were Winston Churchill, Mark Twain, James Buchanan, Bob Dole, Henry Ford, Ben Franklin and many others. In total, about 5 million people around the world are members of the society.

In the world for centuries-old history There were many different mysterious organizations: from ridiculous to militant. Each such community in its own way represents a story of human stupidity and error.

Mikhail Vinogradov about the world behind the scenes

In 2012, world news agencies reported the decryption of a mysterious document, originally designated as the Codex Copiale. There is no provenance, as well as information about the current owner of the manuscript. According to some reports, the 105-page manuscript, bound in green and gold glazet, was discovered in the archives of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR back in the 1970s.

A group of scientists from different countries managed to crack the code and read the mysterious book. It turned out that written in German The 18th century code contains the initiation ritual of the German secret (similar to the Masonic) society, which was called Oculisten("Eye Opener").

Members of the secret society were ophthalmological surgeons from the Lower Saxon city of Wolfenbüttel, who imagined themselves as healers and guardians of all medical knowledge about the structure of the eye and vision. It is known that they were engaged in the treatment of cataracts. But no one except the initiates had any idea what was happening behind the scenes of this secret society, where the newcomer was taught to “see” by plucking hair from his eyebrows. After it was possible to decipher other pages of the manuscript, it turned out that Oculisten had another mission - to monitor the Freemasons.

The documents of this secret society included the completely secret rituals of free masons, up to the highest degrees of Freemasonry. Now they are quite well known, but at that time such information could only be obtained through espionage. It is possible that the Oculisten were either spies or a splinter group of Freemasonry created to protect their core rituals if the Roman Catholic Church decided to deal with them the same way they did with .

It is not clear why the secret society of Irish-born miners in the coal mines of Pennsylvania in Liverpool, England and Canada was called "Molly Maguires"(Molly Maguires). According to employees at Lehigh University, this was the name of an Irish Catholic woman who refused to leave her home when the Protestant English kicked her out. The first mention of this organization is found on the pages of The Liverpool Mercury newspaper dated May 10, 1853.

In the anthracite fields of Pennsylvania, members of the secret organization Molly Maguires replaced absent unions, campaigning against meager wages and shorter hours. working day from the time of the stock market crash of 1873 until 1878, when, after arrests and executions, the society was dissolved. Working conditions in mines, with complete absence security measures were appalling. Deaths and serious injuries occurred hundreds of times a year.

The Irish miners of this underground organization used against the American coal trusts the proven tactics of intimidation and violence that they followed in their struggle against Irish landowners during the so-called “Land War” (or in Irish Cogadh na Talún) between 1870- x to the 1890s. However, modern historians do not have a unanimous opinion about the Molly Maguires’ commitment to bloody acts.

Members of the Molly Maguires organization were accused of murder, arson, kidnapping and other criminal offenses. Members of the society were brought to trial on the basis of the testimony of a private detective from the Pinkerton agency, Irishman James McParlan, also known as James McKenna.

But "the Molly Maguires themselves left virtually no evidence of their existence, let alone their goals and motivations." Even before the investigation began, based on his personal observations, McParlan believed that the Molly Maguires, under the pressure of their activity, adopted the new name “The Ancient Order of Hibernians.” After the investigation began, he estimated that there were about 450 members of this organization in one of the districts.

It is difficult to accurately answer the question of why there are so many perverts among the British establishment. Perhaps the closed nature of establishments for boys played a role here. Although there were enough similar institutions among French and Spanish Catholics, as well as among the Orthodox brethren in Greek monasteries.

On May 25, 1895, the English celebrity was escorted to a London prison after his conviction for sodomy. In the Victorian era, articles that sent people to jail for homosexuality were especially popular.

Unfortunately, the talented Wilde met with the illegitimate son of an English officer and a Spanish baroness, who later became the writer and poet George Cecil Ives. In 1892, Ives tried to attract the attention of a celebrity to the problems of homosexuals, but he, to his great disappointment, did not express the slightest interest in the fate of persecuted gays.

In 1897, Ives created the secret Order of Chaeronea - OrderHehronei. In order to stop the oppression of the gay community, this alleged admirer of antiquity named his brainchild in honor of the Battle of Chaeronea that took place in August 338 BC, when the Sacred Band of Thebes, allegedly consisting of friends-lovers. The mistake was a misinterpretation of a Greek word meaning “close or intimate friend,” although it is possible that some warriors used their comrades as sexual partners.

Examining the corpses of the dead, Philip began to cry and said: “Let those who suspect them of being the perpetrators or accomplices of anything shameful die an evil death.”

Centuries later, a tiny group of Oxford scribes translating ancient Greek texts found nothing more valuable in them than the popularization - alas, sometimes literally - of same-sex relationships. Based on their own perversions, the degenerates of the century before last raised the defense of homosexuality and other sexual perversions to their crap standards.

The brains of these figures were as bad as their morals. You had to be a genius to entrust the task of public (!) defense of the “honor and dignity” of fagots to the corrupt members of the underground society!

In 1912, first the English-speaking and then the world community learned partial details of the activities of the secret Leopard People Society, operating in West Africa. The existence of such a cult is so secret in the countries of the Dark Continent, where hundreds of people die every year from the claws and teeth of predators, it is difficult to determine whether an onlooker-tourist or an aborigine was torn to pieces by a beast, or whether he died at the hands of killers imitating a leopard attack.

In the 1950s, a significant portion of the Yoruba people practiced Islam or Christianity, but they still have strong ancient beliefs. Among the most authoritative secret societies in Africa, the ones most often named are Egungun, Oro and Ogboni. In addition to the secret societies of leopards and crocodiles, there is also a secret baboon society.

Little is known about the motives of the members of these societies. For example, whether they are engaged or not. Often, white colonialists invented stories about supposedly savage and barbaric tribes to justify their illegal and blasphemous acts in Western-conquered countries.

Retelling, chapter fifteen. My comments are in italics.

The translation is presented for informational purposes, all rights belong to the copyright holders.

How to create a guild, college or secret society
Author: Wolfgang Baur

About community goals, initiation, structure, secrets and enemies

Worldbuilding is most often about people, places, magical changes on a global scale. But the smallest aspects that focus in themselves all the features of the setting are the totality of it social structures: Orc tribes, bard colleges, thieves guilds, vampire clans, even church hierarchy and knightly orders. How can these elements be designed to make the world more attractive and playable? According to the author, the social design of these communities is critical in engaging players in the world and the game.

Here are the key elements to consider when designing a (community) or guild. They can be applied to most RPGs.

Distinctive common goals and exceptions
Unlike tribes and peoples, a (community) is usually a voluntary association that is not necessarily tied to a specific location. Brotherhoods of priests, conclaves of wizards, craft guilds and orders of paladins themselves decide who will become their members, for which the candidate must first complete training or prove his qualifications. In other words, such (community) societies are essentially clubs and, like all clubs, they may admit newcomers often, rarely or never at all.

Founding members are usually some of the most influential members of the (com)society for obvious reasons (due to the "seniority" of the member, due to knowledge of internal procedures, sometimes as a reward for patronage), so that in some cases the goals of the (com)society coincide with personal goals of this group. Imagine, for example, an archmage who wants to capture the queen of the genies; the head of a goldsmith's guild, eager to create the greatest work of art ever seen; a legless, secretive alchemist who hopes to climb the mountain and build a temple for his holy wife. They each have a purpose, and as founders, they must be persuasive, powerful, or wealthy enough to make others share their goals.

However, in most cases, the goals of a (community) are much larger and more ambitious and far exceed any personal goals - otherwise it will not survive the founding generation. These goals must exceed the capabilities of any one person, require joint efforts and change the entire world in some way. These must be big goals because people are not inclined to join and fight for something small. And perhaps we should recognize that (the) monsters require a similar level of motivation (from those who decide to fight them).

So what could it be? big goal? The details will vary depending on your world, but perhaps they involve awakening an imprisoned deity, creating a library of all knowledge, exploring the far reaches of the world, collecting all forms of magical ores, and precious stones, caring for the poor and sick, protecting the elven forests from deforestation, destroying all traces of blasphemous heresy. Or goals more related to power: restoration royal family on the throne, the enslavement of all humanity by the lich-queen, or the creation of a theocracy of the One True Goddemon.

Initiation and initiation rituals
Who makes these goals a reality? Those who volunteer their efforts as apprentices and apprentices, who are born into a cult or (community), who support it with money or services, or those who undergo initiation through an ordeal.

The key moment for the game is when the character tries to join such a group. Such a moment simply must include at least a little drama and suspense (tension). Ultimately, he may be voted out, at the behest of the cult's deity, due to a poor fortune-telling result or a bad omen. A longtime adversary may thwart a character's attempt to join (community) by delaying it temporarily or permanently. To begin with, you will have to work a little. Here are 10 possible ways to perform a dedication or initiation:

1) Washed in Blood: initiation as a trial by combat. The initiate must engage in real or symbolic battle with an illusory opponent, a terrible monster, or an apprentice of (com)society. The victory can be formal - unless the opponent replaces the fake monster with a real one. And in the case of a duel with an armed enemy, the goal may be more a demonstration of steadfastness, iron endurance or good manners than, in fact, the victory itself.

2) Strong in Mind: the subject can be tested for memory, courage and knowledge of the arcane sciences, subjected to an hours-long interview, asked to sing or recite something, answer in a dead language or retell an ancient story, theorize about the creation of spells and artifacts lost to centuries. The purpose may be a torturous vocal defense of the world (?) or a test of the subject's endurance before he fails. Indeed, IQ is a great way to evaluate candidates for the scientific (community) community, and an ever-increasing number of tasks to test these skills can create a sense of increasing tension and difficulty in a gaming session.

3) Generous Giver: The subject may be required to show generosity of spirit and open his wallet. Initiation may include bribes and gifts to the guild leader, endless libations (banquet) for newly acquired brothers and sisters, offerings in the form of small spells, symbolic animals, jewelry, rings, knives or other objects significant to the (community). The richer the initiate, the more expensive the gifts should be, the exact number can be indicated as "lots and lots" of horses, gold bars, necklaces or what have you. Failure to provide the required number of gifts will certainly embitter those who were passed over, which will affect the outcome of the vote.

4) Bound by Magic: The candidate must take a magical oath or undergo a ritual of binding and submission to ensure the safety of the secrets of the (community) or to ensure obedience to the will of the guildmaster, or to ensure the honesty of members within the thieves' guild ("By taking this oath, you cannot lie to your brothers or the head of the order") . These obligations don't have to be entirely negative or forceful: members of the wizards guild can gain the ability to sense or read magic upon entering the guild, and members of the thieves guild gain night vision like a cat (in general, there should be some benefit).

5) Ceremonial Sacrifice: The applicant may be required to sacrifice something very valuable - a magical item, a relic, blood and hair. He may be subjected to ritual castration, a vow of chastity, or poverty. The subject is warned about such things in advance, but knowing and acting out are two different things. Clearly write down this point during development so that no questions arise during the game.

6) God's Anointed: The subject must visit several shrines, undergo a sacred ritual, or overcome several difficult trials that are significant to members of the (community), such as a knight's vigil or the anointing of priests. A candidate can be accepted or rejected higher power, he may experience a vision, a prophecy, or receive a sign of blessing. A candidate may be rejected forever or until the (community) reopens its doors to newcomers if he fails to receive such a sign or vision.

7) Returned from Darkness: The candidate may have to endure narcotic visions, prolonged fasting, deliberate poisoning, spend time in isolation or complete darkness, or undergo other torturous ritual dangerous to physical or mental health. He or she may be subjected to various temptations, spiritual and secular temptations, offered comfort, water, food or other help, which he or she must reject.

8) Recognized by the Elite: The candidate must charm, deceive, or work hard to persuade the founders, leaders, or elite of (community) to vote for his promotion in the organization's hierarchy. If he fails to convince them, he cannot advance, despite all his merits.

9) Lock without Key: The candidate receives arcane knowledge, items, a familiar, or new magic and must master it or master it in some way. Until he solves the riddle of this test, the initiation will not be completed and he will not be able to become a full member of the group.

10) Tested and Marked by the Finger of Fate: The candidate comes into the sight of some powerful entity - a demon, angel, dragon, archmage or some kind of arbiter - who peers into his soul and decides whether he is worthy to join the order. If the candidate fails, he is returned to the world, rejected, and advised to complete a few tasks or gain deeper understanding before returning. “You have not satisfied the Secret Master - move on and develop skills and wisdom until next time.” If the candidate succeeds, some sign will appear on his body: a tattoo, a halo, horns, a change in eye color or another sign that clearly shows that this person is one of the followers of the Secret Master.

Open, closed and secret (community) societies
Crafts and thieves' guilds, knightly and monastic orders, colleges of magicians, cults, aristocratic clubs and secret societies are all organizations dedicated to some kind of group actions and goals. But they are structured differently when speaking publicly. Craft guilds keep their technology secret and mages hide their secret knowledge. Knights may be open to the world, but hide their fighting techniques and battle commands, the meaning of flags, special maneuvers or training methods. Monastic brotherhoods have both public duties and internal rules(See Zeb Cook's essay on secret cults (chapter 14)). Both cults and secret societies hide their activities from others, especially if their goals are malicious.

Therefore, you should carefully consider what the public image of the (community) will be, its internal procedures and trade secrets. Even societies known for charity, honesty and good-heartedness may hide secrets known only to the top, related to questionable sources of funding, politics, the treatment of wealthy donors, or harsh rules aimed at men and their position in the order. Thus, the cult of animals and human sacrifice will take very specific measures to prevent rumors about their real activities.

The developer must decide what secrets the (community) keeps and how to protect them from outsiders. Pressure from authorities, economic dependence, shame and guilt, powerful oaths, threats to family or friends, magical coercion, invisible demonic surveillance - something helps (community) protect its inner secrets.

In general, a (society) can be open to everyone, with all its secrets except for some minor part relating to finance, theology or magical knowledge. Or it may be that access is open to all, with only the most devout few being initiated. Anyone can join, but not everyone can move up in the hierarchy, since the (community) has an outer and an inner circle of members. The inner circle knows the real goals of the organization, while the outer circle works on public issues that may be related to those goals or serve as a cover. In other words, a (community) community can have multiple levels of participation and commitment. At each subsequent level, the character learns more and more secrets and experiences an “aha!” moment of enlightenment, having received an explanation for some actions of (community) that were previously incomprehensible. The developer’s task is to clearly show what information is available at what level.

Finally, an extreme form of "us-them" thinking, where any internal information is kept secret, and everyone who is not a member of the group is seen as dangerous, unbelieving, and a threat to the greater goals of (community). Typically groups organized in this way are called cults, although "Wall Street banking firm" would also work. If you're designing a vampire clan, Cthulhu cult, or similar (society), be careful about shaping its secret history and punishment for breaking the secret. These will likely become plot points for GMs or part of the setting's story. Sometimes it is worth specifying the specific forms of punishment or retribution that are applied to those who betray the secrets of the cult: death by drowning for former servants of Dagon, murder by sunlight or bleeding for traitors to the ancient clan. If it's part of the world's history (lore), it can be used in the adventure and plot.

Status and power
Having decided who can join the (community) and how, let’s consider its internal hierarchy. Guildmaster, archmage, vampire prince, baron leading the knightly brotherhood - there are no main problems with the appointment. But who are their main supporters? How does one advance in rank from novice to page, squire, knight, master sergeant, commander and finally marshal? How many levels are there in the cult hierarchy?

Come up with several titles, make it clear that the organization recognizes them, give examples in the world's bible of who most often ends up in what position (candidate requirements). It's not necessary to list all the ranks of a weaver's guild if it plays a minor role in the setting, but if you're creating a world of secret monster-hunting organizations, you'll need to decide who signs the invoices when fighters go over budget on gear in pursuit of Bigfoot.

Finally, make it clear how big the organization is and how much influence it has. This could be as simple as listing the members of a gang of thieves or as complex as listing the network of sires and ghouls in a vampire city. Note that a small organization is not necessarily weaker than a large order with thousands of members. The Circle of Eight in the world of Greyhawk dominates its history and mythology, all its members are important. You can come up with a similar group of representatives of various forces in your world.

Need for competitors
One of the underappreciated aspects when designing a guild or society is rivals, competitors and worst enemies. After all, if achieving what you wanted was so easy, everything would have ended long ago. The enemy may be another (community) striving for the same values, or pursuing goals so disgusting that all sane people want to prevent them. Perhaps the goals of society run counter to the plans of the state. The enemy can be an archmage monitoring the actions of the (community) or a free alliance of street urchins and smart adventurers.

It is not so important who will play the role of opponent, as the fact that there are those who know their true goals. When the characters join the (community), they accept these enemies as their own. This gives the GM an excellent reason for conflict - if the enemy is clearly defined and understandable to use, with their own goals, hierarchy, tools, spies and magical artifacts. Ideally, have an initiation ritual that the characters can pass or fail in order to infiltrate their opponents for espionage.

Identification marks
An essential part of designing any college, guild or society is what it will look like for the players. The author believes that the simplest solution is to use one symbol, item of clothing, secret word or other identifier to the maximum. The Cult of the Red Star uses red stars, the Loyal Alchemist Guild uses the pelican (symbol of loyalty), the Order of the Immortal Light uses solar symbols.

This is, of course, trivial, but the point is so that players can recognize the nature of the cult at first glance. And for a school of magicians with their lions, snakes, ravens and badgers, it will be easy to use these symbols to indicate the characters of the characters. There's nothing wrong with repeated descriptions like "you see a man with ashen hair and a snake tattoo," as that's the easiest way to tell characters that they're dealing with a Slytherin alumnus. This works great for all open, public organizations and helps them identify each other, and of course it makes it easier for villains to recognize and target the heroes of the game.

13 Unusual World-Building Communities
1. The Alchemists Guild, which discovered the fountain of youth.
2. An order of inquisitors who can sniff out any lie.
3. A brotherhood of minotaurs and rangers specializing in dungeon exploration and plunder.
4. Order of paladins that robs the rich.
5. The cult of slave traders who believe that people are better off living in slavery.
6. A secret society of werewolves who want to gain power over unsuspecting residents.
7. Guild of magicians seeking to become liches and immortal spirits.
8. The Thieves Guild, which does charity work for orphans.
9. Trade guild of gnomes, specializing in transportation using griffins and aircraft.
10. A community of singers who support an invisible wall that protects the world from demonic hordes.
11. An order of priests dedicated to collecting knowledge and mapping the world.
12. A society of women, among whom there are oracles and prophets, who wish the world stability and security.
13. The order of assassins guarding the fortress where the roots of Yggdrasil and the Fruit of Knowledge lie.

Conclusion
Why bother? Because secret (s)ocieties are the greatest villains and greatest heroes your world. They will survive any attempt to destroy them. The mega-villain can be killed, but his followers will live to strike and take revenge. A hero who falls in the service of the Order of Saint Arik knows that even though he sacrifices his life, others will take up his banner and continue his work.

Well-designed (com)societies can echo throughout the process of worldbuilding. Make them mythical, epic, mysterious, secretive or nasty, but make them understandable, organized, active and passionate about their goals. And your reward will be conflict, drama and great acting.

Since the Order is a closed secret society, special requirements are imposed on the candidate upon entry. This must be a person who has reached the age of majority, has no criminal record and is striving to change himself and the world around him. Since the Order’s activities are aimed at studying a large amount of non-standard information in all fields, the candidate upon entry must be able to prove his ability to learn, flexibility of mind, his desire to accept and adhere to the rules of the Order, as well as detail and convincingly reveal the reasons for his desire to join the ranks of the Order .

The process of acceptance into the ranks of the Illuminati takes place in stages. The first step to join is for the candidate to fill out the contact form below. It is necessary to fill in all the fields provided as detailed and clearly as possible, do not use false information, expressive expressions and advice, do not ask questions. The administration of the Order selects suitable candidates and sends them further orders. As a rule, these are small tasks for collecting/processing information or conversations with members of the Order using available information technologies. Based on the voting results, it becomes clear whether the candidate has a chance of joining or not.

If the candidate fully meets all the requirements and is worthy to join the secrets of the Order, he becomes a full-fledged Illuminati of the first degree of Initiation - Disciple (ST I).

Application for admission to the Order

Before submitting your application, please read the “Questions and Answers” section and make sure that you meet the requirements for candidates for entry. If the decision on your candidacy is positive, be prepared to confidentially provide more detailed information.