"All spiritual development comes from within the individual, arising from discipline and self-improvement.  No man can increase the spirituality of another.  To attempt to do so is to disregard one of the most fundamental laws of nature -- the law of Karma.  Man earns wisdom by right thought and right action.  The legitimate schools of the ancient wisdom, and the legitimate teachers of the doctrine offer spirtuality to no one.  They merely indicate a path of action, which, if follows with consecration and intelligence over a long period of years, will result in certain improvement of character and knowledge." -- Manly P. Hall, Words to the Wise, page 30 *********************************************************************************************************** "We cannot remind our readers too often that the Great Initiator comes in the Silence to the higher conciousness, and is never a human, however supernatural and secluded.  All that can be done by the Servants of the Masters on the physical plane is the preparatation of the candidate." -- Dion Fortune, The Training and Work of an Initiate, page 52 \*********************************************************************************************************** "In stating that the isolated student could now be his own initiate, one important phrase is rendered imperative. And that is he must be persistent and as thoroughgoing and exacting as if her were an initiator in a regularly constitute Golden Dawn temple under the constant scrutiny of officialdom and higher adept authorities.  The responsibility for progress is thus placed inexorably on the student or candidate himself." -- Israel Regardie, The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic, page 9 *********************************************************************************************************** "Here you prove that you have truly attained thus far of your own strength, and after, you may progress by the higher Soul within you." -- from the Portal Ritual of the Golden Dawn *********************************************************************************************************** "The solitary worker is to some extent hoisting himself by his own boot straps.  But not entirely, for inner help is always at hand -- and aspiration, sincerely, and constantly, held, will bring inner help and guidance.... the actual presence and cooperation of inner beings, built generally over time, as faith, familiarity, and knowledge increase, can bring about considerable progress, even for individuals who may be spirituality and psychologically uplifted, their auras cleansed, informed, and changed, by higher presence acting in any of the ways or the levels that pertain for a magical group." -- Gareth Knight, "Images of Growth in the Hermetic Arts," The Golden Dawn Journal;  Book III, The Art of Hermes, page 218 *********************************************************************************************************** "...just because self-initiation is possible, that doesn't make it easy.  Nor should it be done lightly.  This path requires you to be your own task master, and have your wits about you enough to see when you're cheating yourself, being lazy, or in other ways compromising egomaniac, is leading you astray, or leeching money off to you.  It's all a matter of where you turn your attention: To the teacher outside or within." -- Richard Kaczynski, "Self-Initiation," Mezlim, Vol. IV, Issue # 1, Candlemas 1993 ***********************************************************************************************************