expansion that will affect this picture one way or another? What about expenses involved and skills required?
(4) Exactly what is this “crisis” referred to in the Book of Coming Forth by Night? Is it something that can be
pinned down, or is it simply a vague omen? Are we being unduly paranoid, or are we being practical and
resourceful? What is the rate of speed at which all this will happen?
(5) What is the function of magic in Setamorphosis? Is it only a “blind” as John Dee employed it, or does it
have substantive value?
(6) How do these relatively independent and isolationist notions square with the Temple’s status as an
organization incorporated under the laws of a secular state? Are we thus not bound to support the state and tie our
fortunes to it?
(7) Is the Temple having a bad case of Star Trek-itis? [Do the High Priest’s famous pointed eyebrows mean
that he is also part Vulcan?] Is it true that Carpathia Forge is building a starship out in the Nevada desert? If
Einstein were wrong, how come Hiroshima got a crew cut? Leading to: How much of all this is mere speculation,
and how much of it is reliable fact?
Department of Contingency Planning
The DCP has an interesting history. Approximately one week after the appearance of Setamorphosis, Magister
Grumboski sent an “eyes only” memorandum to the Executive Director, outlining some of the strategic and logistical
implications of the first problem.
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This was followed on 2/5 with a letter from the Executive Director to Priest Lynn Norton, asking him to
organize and coordinate a DCP. Finally on 3/13 Priest Norton sent out an initial descriptive letter concerning the
DCP to about ten Setians of various degrees who had expressed an interest in working on the project.
Included in the 3/13 letter were many of the logistical/strategic considerations introduced by Shai
[Grumboski] and the Todal [Murray], as well as Norton’s own sketch of the configuration of the DCP.
Interspersed with the serious points of the letter were some snatches of humor [i.e. “Martians may land in
space ships.”]. This caused an incident or two of treeclimbing by individuals who wondered if (a) we were becoming
raving paranoiacs, or (b) we had reason to suspect that Martians actually would be landing in space ships.
So, before we go any further, let me emphasize a couple of points:
The first is that the DCP [and the entire
Temple, for that matter] is not a “finished product”. It is a working
proposition which will be refined and elaborated upon as it gets underway. So there is no reason for anyone to climb
a tree just because he sees a phrase or two in print that startles him. These things will all work themselves out as our
knowledge and capabilities grow.
The important thing is that no one “suffer in silence”. If you have a comment or an idea - pro or con - let’s hear
it. That is Xeper.
Another point is that a magician without a sense of humor might as well hang it up. We will be dealing with
problems and situations that will be both serious and depressing. In spite of this we need to maintain optimism,
creativity, and imagination. The ability to smile - indeed to poke fun at ourselves on occasion - is important. It
prevents us from taking ourselves too dogmatically [which would result in a “freezing” of opinions]. It enables us to
serve as our own worst critics, which is important to the maintenance of a sense of perspective. It allows criticism of
theories without ego-insult to their authors. Finally it is a “safety-valve” to release tensions between individuals
without harm to them or to the Temple. If there is a subject which you cannot “stand” seeing lampooned or
caricatured, it is a sign that your philosophy is becoming rigidified in that area. Think about it.
A final point relative to DCP is that any sort of projection for the future is bound to be vague. Frankly we don’t
know what’s actually going to happen until it does. In the meantime we are faced with a rather simple choice: Plan
for the worst and be pleasantly surprised if it doesn’t occur; or plan for the best and be unpleasantly surprised if it
doesn’t occur.
As the future develops, and as our own expertise in estimating it increases, we’ll be more and more able to
position ourselves at a practical medium between the two extremes. But we have to get our feet wet first, and the
DCP is a first move towards doing just that.
The DCP is not intended to be the only part of the Temple that is concerned with the First Problem. We are all
concerned with it. But the DCP is in a position to be a collecting and coordinating agency for the project. As you
have comments and ideas that impact upon it, please send them along to Priest Norton. And, of course, if you are
not now involved with the DCP and would like to work with it, let him know that as well.
Communications
The Executive Director has asked Priest Ronald Barrett of San Francisco to ride herd on this item.
What it boils down to is this: At the present time the Temple is oriented towards written communications via
the mail, and towards verbal communications via face-to-face meetings and the telephone. Our communications
systems affect what we say, the speed with which we can react to it, and the patterns in which the organization will
expand.
If in fact one or more of our present communications systems should break down or prove unreliable, the
Temple would be hamstrung to a certain extent. [During the recent Canadian mail strike, for example,
communications with our Canadian members came to an abrupt standstill. The Executive Director was able to
arrange certain key lines of communication via diplomatic channels, but you see the general point.]
Under ideal circumstances, obviously, our present orientation is the best. The mails are cheap & quick, and
photocopy & offset machines permit quick & economical duplication of data. Perhaps the mails will continue to be
reliable; perhaps not. The point is not to get caught with our pants down if the postal system becomes unusable,
that’s all.
Barrett is presently investigating radio as an interesting alternative. It has both advantages and disadvantages,
of course. But it is conceivable that the Temple could work out a contingency communications system based upon
HAM radio between nations, states, cities; and upon Citizen’s Band AM/SSB radio within local areas. This is just
one of many alternatives for us to think about.
But, as with DCP, we have to consider such things in advance of an actual crisis. There wouldn't have been
much point in Noah starting to build the ark once the rain began to fall, right?
Communications Funding
This only becomes a really major problem if we are talking in terms of radio. I do not foresee the Temple
acquiring any CB equipment; that is an individual concern. It is possible - not necessarily probable -that we might
want to own and operate HAM equipment on an organizational basis. But this is a long-range consideration which
we should not worry about until the entire subject has been discussed and developed a good deal more.
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Nature of “The Crisis”
The Book of Coming Forth by Night is not clear about this. As a rule of thumb, I am inclined to consider it a
reference to the general socio-econopolitical deterioration that the Club of Rome et al. project for the next half-
century or so. [For details, consult M
ankind at the Turning Point on the Temple Reading List.]
I do not think that the crisis is going to be short-range or of instantaneous impact [such as nuclear war or a
coup d’etat]. Particularly while we are a young organization, there is no way we can plan for or react against short-
range developments. But we can anticipate, plan for, and surmount long-range scenarios. Our exclusively-internal
orientation, our lack of red tape, our forecasting machinery, our contingency plans, and our sensitivity as the Elect
of Set are all very real advantages which we possess and others do not.
What is the function of magic in this?
In the nine months since the advent of the new Æon, it has become clear that many preexisting notions of
magic were inefficient if not outright nonsensical. I will be issuing Priesthood letters on this subject, and of course
many of you have already grasped the important axioms on your own. To date I have developed this subject only at
the Magistry level via a letter to the Masters.
At any rate, magic is not merely a “blind”, nor should Dee’s work be interpreted as only a cover-up operation
for his cipher/spying work. That was a component of his work, but not nearly the entire story. In the near future
there will be a Priesthood letter on magic, and the Scroll and the Ruby Tablet will develop the topic at the I°/II°
level. But it is necessarily the case that a great percentage of this information will be transmitted on an individual-
to-individual basis.
Is the Temple, in discussing its survival in a future context which does not include the survival of
the United States or other host countries, being treasonable or revolutionary in a political sense?
No. We would be treasonable or revolutionary only if we deliberately or actively worked towards overthrow of
the state, or if, through intentional withholding of political information, we in effect contributed towards state
downfall or overthrow.
But it is not treasonable for the Temple to simply be unconcerned with the political issues of the United States
or any other country when we formulate our own policies.
In fact the principle of the separation of religion and state requires a true religion to avoid concerning itself
with governmental matters of host countries. In the United States a church which works avowedly either for or
against the government is liable to lose its tax-exempt status on precisely these grounds.
The point in our case is that the Temple will not state its policies and doctrines relative to political/
governmental policies and doctrines. Rather we will state our position relative to Set, his Temple, and his
Priesthood.
Incorporation & tax-exemption do not signify either approval of the Setian religion by the state or the
bestowing of special privileges upon us.
Incorporation is a device for ensuring the protection of the Temple within the state’s legal structure, by
enabling the Temple to be regarded as a “legal person” for purposes of property ownership and court standing. It
permits the Temple a legal existence apart from the individuals who constitute it.
As for the exemption ruling, it too expresses neither approval nor disapproval of our religious philosophy per
se. It merely recognizes the fact that we are a legitimate and true religion by establishing that the state does not
have the right to tax us.
When we accepted the exemption, we agreed thereby to reciprocate - to keep our organizational policies and
assets out of any political campaigns. Legally the exemption ruling is a sort of “pact of mutual nonintervention” -
which is what the separation of religion and state is all about.
So the Temple will develop its plans regarding the future as it sees fit, in keeping with our understanding of
the Will of Set and without regard to any national or governmental fortunes.
As individuals, Setians themselves may have certain obligations of citizenship to their respective countries.
Where such obligations do not conflict with the Setian religion, the Temple takes no position concerning them -
again because of our non-concern with political or governmental matters. Where there appears to be a conflict, we
will consider each case on an individual basis before rendering an opinion. Here again we must be careful to ensure
that Temple positions are dictated by our religious principles, and are not merely “votes” concerning political issues.
Are we being “Closet Trekkies”, or is the second problem of Setamorphosis a different thing
altogether?
It is not entirely coincidental that the Æon of Set happened to occur at a time when escape-from-Earth themes
are in vogue, the Star Trek revival being the most spectacular.
The influence of a magical æon extends throughout the entire civilization of its time; indeed the Word and
Formula of an æon are simply a condensation of the “theme” of the æon. Moreover if you look closely enough, you
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will see that the Temple has identified and pinpointed the practical and appealing components of the escapist
themes, while rejecting factors that are irrelevant or illogical.
In the case of Star Trek, for example, we do not assume the existence of a stable “home base”, nor of a series of
adventures on populated planets, nor of a static human condition.
Setamorphosis presupposes a third stage of human evolution. It may or may not involve linear space-
travel; that is just one of the possibilities. It is entirely disassociated from governmental order of any sort, being a
phenomenon on a far more profound scale. Finally it is not a question of spacial relocation, either permanent or
temporary, but of transformation into an entirely new existence - a Coming Into Being.
Hence the Temple and the Star Trek revival are two different animals. In fact, you will find that many
supposed similarities are actually the result of unconscious projections of Setian themes and principles into Star
Trek episodes!
The High Priest’s Pointed Eyebrows
It is logically improbable to assume that such a chance feature possesses extraterrestrial significance.
Is Carpathia Forge building a Starship in the Nevada Desert?
Not just yet.
If Einstein were wrong, how come so many authorities think he’s right, and how come practical
applications of his theories work?
I addressed myself to only one Einstein theory - the one that states that faster-than-light travel is impossible.
And my rejection of that theory was actually based upon my acceptance of another Einstein theory - being that all
motion is relative. My statement is merely that a theory arguing for a fixed velocity of light is inconsistent with one
which states that all motion is relative. Period.
Other Einsteinian theories dealing with nuclear physics, gravitation, field theory, etc. are not affected. As for
arguing that a fixed velocity for light must exist because a great many people think it does, that is a logical fallacy
known as “authoritarian argument”. Tell Columbus and Copernicus all about it!
How much of Setamorphosis is speculation, and how much is fact?
The answer is that it is mostly somewhere in-between. “Speculation” is unsubstantiated imagination, while
“fact” is rock-hard evidence.
Because Setamorphosis deals with the future, and because it deals with a higher stage of human evolution, it
cannot be factual or exact. It must emphasize inductive, not deductive patterns of reasoning. But at th
e same time
the precepts upon which its essential argument is based are not whimsical; they have all been researched quite
extensively. For example, the Einsteinian component was written after about four days’ reading in about a dozen
high-level physics texts. [“Genesis III” was even more rigorous, calling for about thirty biological, genetic, and
anthropological references.]
Nevertheless I assume that Setamorphosis must have a wide margin for error. If we knew all about it, we’d be
“there” already!
The theory is something which will Xeper as we go along. Hence it is not cast as a doctrine, but rather as a
working hypothesis. So let us talk about it, refine it, and develop it as more information is discovered.
Some Additional Considerations
(1) As a result of Setamorphosis, one very interesting distinction between Adepts and the Priesthood has come
to light. It is that the Adept ability to view the future from a totally-detached and objective vantage-point is both
limited and fragile.
It may not seem so to the Priesthood intellect, but many of the precepts of Setamorphosis can be unnerving
and frightening to those of lesser initiatory cohesion. It rips the rug out from conventional notions of our
evolutionary future, just as “Genesis III” ripped the same rug out from our evolutionary past. This isn’t ring-around-
the-rosie witchcraft; it's the very fabric of human existence being rewoven. It is “heavy stuff”.
Among I° and even some II° Setians, there will be a very strong psychological tendency to “run and hide” from
data that demolishes sacred cows. [Remember how impressionable you were in your I° and II° days.] So have a care
about what you say to whom. This is not to say that you should not discuss this material with I°s and II°s. But do not
expect them to understand it as “automatically” as a III° would.
(2) Must the Temple be obsessed with Setamorphosis? No. This is a “grand design” for the future - something
which will Xeper gradually and intricately. The degree to which we can influence it - or even identify it - is open to
question. We should be alert to it and aware of it, that is all.
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In the meantime we are individual magicians and philosophers with a multitude of interests, aptitudes,
The Temple of Set II Page 37
