Ordo Templi Orientis

Grand Lodge of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Membership

If you are interested in joining O.T.O., please contact the UKGL Querent Secretary on membership@oto-uk.org.

The structure of O.T.O., like that of Freemasonry and the ancient mystery schools, is based on a series of initiations or degrees, most of which are conferred ceremonially. In the Rituals of these degrees, O.T.O. seeks to instruct the individual by allegory and symbol in the profound mysteries of Nature, and thereby to assist each to discover his or her own true Identity.

The degrees of O.T.O. are divided into three Grades or “Triads”: the Hermit, the Lover, and the Man of Earth, as shown in the accompanying table:

Triad Degree Title(s)
The Third / Man of Earth 0° Minerval
I° Man and Brother / Woman and Sister
II° Magician
III° Master Magician
IV° Perfect Magician & Companion of the Holy Royal Arch of Enoch
Perfect Initiate, or Prince of Jerusalem
Outside all Triads: Knight of the East and West
The Second / Lover V° Sovereign Prince Rose-Croix & Knight of the Pelican and Eagle; Knight of the Red Eagle; Member of the Senate of Knight Hermetic Philosophers
VI° Illustrious Knight (Templar) of the Order of Kadosch & Companion of the Holy Graal
Grand Inquisitor Commander; Member of the Grand Tribunal
Prince of the Royal Secret
VII° Theoreticus; Very Illustrious Sovereign Grand Inspector General
Magus of Light; Bishop of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica
Grandmaster of Light; Inspector of Rites and Degrees
The First / Hermit VIII° Perfect Pontiff of the Illuminati; Epopt of the Illuminati
IX° Initiate of the Sanctuary of the Gnosis
X° Rex Summus Sanctissimus
XI° Initiate of the Eleventh Degree (technical; outside general plan)
XII° Frater Superior; Outer Head of the Order

Every man and woman of full age, free, and of good report, has an indefeasible right to the first three degrees of O.T.O. These “first three degrees” actually include all the degrees in the Man of Earth Triad; as the Minerval is considered a prologue to the First Degree, and the Fourth and P∴I∴ Degrees are considered pendants to the Third Degree.

The Man of Earth degrees follow a pattern based on the symbolism of the chakras and the stages of Kundalini Yoga. They also represent, in dramatic form, the Individual's Path in Eternity. In the 0°, the Ego, a wandering God, is attracted to the Solar System. In the I°, the Child experiences Birth. In the II°, the Man or Woman experiences Life. The III° represents the Death of the individual, and the IV° represents the world beyond Death, the glorified state of the Initiate. In the P∴I∴ Degree, the Initiate symbolically achieves ultimate Perfection, and the entire cycle is withdrawn into Annihilation.

Chakras correlating with O.T.O. degrees

Of these Stations upon the Path, all but the II° represent single critical experiences. We are however concerned with Life in all its variety, and therefore all degrees above P∴I∴ are elaborations of the II°, a progressive instruction in how to live, since in a single ceremony it is hardly possible to sketch, even in the briefest outline, the Teaching of Initiates with regard to Life. The V°–IX° rituals and teachings are therefore instructions in the Mastery of Life. There is instruction in Hermetic Philosophy, Qabalah, Magick and Yoga, all intended to prepare the candidate for the sex magical techniques of the highest degrees of O.T.O.

In addition to the official O.T.O. instructions, many of the local O.T.O. Lodges, Oases and Camps offer supplementary instruction to their members. The particular form of this supplementary instruction depends on the character and capabilities of the particular local body; it may be provided in the form of classes, seminars, study programs, or publications.