Things have changed a lot since the inception of our project, and we thought it best to set down exactly what happened in what order, so that it can be made clear what relationship the fraternal order the Companions of the Glyph has to the magickal order known as the Aurum Solis--Order of the Sacred Word.
The Aurum Solis (Gold of the Sun) was founded in Britain in 1897, arising from the membership of an antiquarian society, itself founded in the eighteenth century. Unlike the Rosicrucian tradition of the Golden Dawn, the Aurum Solis is an Ogdoadic tradition, tracing its mystical teachings through Byzantium and the Near and Middle East. The word "Ogdoadic" means "pertaining to the number eight", and is chosen for its rich associations ranging from the eight notes of the completed musical scale to Pythagorean lore, wherein eight is called the number of perfection. The concepts of regeneration and completion can be seen to follow on the heels of the number eight in much the same fashion as the idea of planetary correspondences associate themselves with the number seven..
The philosophic viewpoints expressed by such thinkers as Plotinus, Proclus, Avicenna, Salomon Ibn Gabirol and Marsilio Ficino are central to the tradition, producing a sort of "evolved neoplatonism" uniquely suitable to a modern mind.
The Companions of the Glyph, on the other hand, are a great deal younger than that, being known by that name for only about 6 years as of this writing. The Companions began as Oregon's Universitas Occidentis (O.U.O.), a group of folks who got together weekly or bi-weekly to study matters of import within the general area of study known as "Western Esotericism" Just prior to this time, Fr. Adsum Iterum had come across a collection of books called "The Magickal Philosophy" by Denning and Phillips which outlined the Aurum Solis and was suitably impressed by what he read therein. As much as he might wish for there to be a magickal order as described in the books, contact with it did not seem forthcoming, so he elected to choose the method of pure research. Behaving as if he were a welcome member of the order, he proceeded to build the temple, craft the tools and generally jack into the egregore by whatever methods were at his disposal. Shortly after he had begun, he added the work Planetary Magick to his shelf, then a few others. He was thus engaged when the O.U.O. was formed.
Like the Companions of the Glyph, the O.U.O. was conceived as an essentially ecumenical body, but it was decided by vote to use the rites and ceremonies of the Aurum Solis, as they seemed the most flexible and appealing. In very short order, the ferment of the O.U.O. provided the distillate of the Companions, and the Glyph Project was born.
In the beginning, we wondered what would become of our venture. Fr. A. felt that he could write a book about it and maybe spend the rest of his life marketing it while the others nodded and concentrated on Making Everything OK. Further, he reasoned that if one wanted to get in touch with magickal people, one ought to make a big magickal noise, er--artifact.
After 3 years of working with the Glyph, treading it's round, evaluating it, it seemed as if a logjam of missed connections and fouled information began to break up and allow a clear path. On the night when Fr. A. consecrated the Tessera of his temple, he inadvertently made contact with what remained of the Order in America. The next day he began negotiations with a publisher for the Book of the Glyph and the day after that, he was invited to join the Order proper. The Book of the Glyph was carefully crafted to support--indeed, to encourage--the reprinting of the Magickal Philosophy, but was eventually withdrawn from the publisher (while simultaneously being rejected by the publisher) on 02Feb99 and marketed elsewhere. The companions grew to a small, but dedicated core of folks drawn from local Thelemites, sub-genii, artisans and the ex-Golden Dawn. 19May01, Fr. Adsum Iterum was initiated into the Order Aurum Solis, becoming Fr. Auxilior Arti. A few months later, the current crop of websites and discussion groups cropped up, and less than a year after that the Grand Commanderie in the UK severed any connection to the North American lodges. These lodges have announced their intention to continue the Work under charter and so continue much as before, representing the ogdoadic current in the New World. Fr. Auxilior Arti is currently attached to the Citadel of Ouroboros (Seattle), under the Minneapolis Commanderie, the Ordo Astrum Sophiae.
As the Companions have always been an organization both ecumenical and democratic, the matter of it's rites and ceremonies is a matter of vote, and currently stands with the choice made (Sub Rosa Nigra forms of Aurum Solis rites) but allows for variation at the will of the liturgist. In summary: the Companions of the Glyph are not in any way officially associated with the Aurum Solis, but some of its members have been and continue to support the Work and goals of the lodges in which they were initiated.
For more information about the Ogdoadic Tradition, see these sites:
The Official Aurum Solis Page (currently withdrawn)
The Officially recognized e-list