If you cannot lie to them, confuse them, if you cannot confuse them; take to their throat like dogs.

Flattery corrodes even the noblest of destinies.

To win the hearts of man, look, talk, and act as they do. Then subvert them.

Initiation, be it into a religious tradition or institution, or into a „private religious fraternity, breaches the boundaries of religious mystery and faith. Rituals that are obscured in secrecy and mystic epiphany propel one into a new physiological, and psychological dawning. Initiation rites evoke a new panorama of religious faith, approachable in this thesis under the auspices of psychology, sociology, and theology. Through ritual initiation the mystic journey of the soul, a reenactment of the romantic history of the soul, and a recapitulation of a divine heritage of the immortality of the soul are often portrayed in a stage of pageantry and solemnity.

Through initiation into the obscure and secretive mystery schools of religion, aptly hidden in the shadows of history, the seeker arrives at a knowledge and conversation with the Holy, the Other that satiates the intolerable ache of the soul to know itself and its creator. Instinct and a primal condition of religion latent in the human genealogy are awakened in ritual initiation. Initiation is meant to instill an indwelling, an epiphany, which activates in the human brain matrix, an innate sense of religion and the mystery of God. Initiation overcomes a spiritual poverty of the soul, exulting a primal condition that annexes the differences between Mankind and the mystery of God.

The virtue of mysticism and magic to the human condition is prevalent. The motive of world religious traditions is that all men and women perceive to a certain degree, the everlasting wail of the Buddhist „First Noble Truth,‟ that everything is sorrow and religion consoles them by either an authoritative denial or perpetuation of this truth. This psychological ply is done via transgression of the situation itself, or by promising amends in other states of existence. A fundamental problem is that religions, without exception, often fail and become decrepit at the first tests of history and culture. The claim of religion is to excel, and incidentally, make obsolete the judgments of reason by reconciling mysticism and science. In this formula, a direct experience and more importantly expression of intelligences superior in kind to any incarnate human occur. Preconceptions of religion and the arts and sciences of the occult by the initiated scholar breed spiritual materialism and secular demonisation.

Esoteric religion presupposes ideals of a discarnate intelligence or experience of ultimate reality, regardless of whatever linguistic

Eliade highlights initiation as a repetitive symbolism, retrogression to the chaotic primordial events that shaped the proto-history of the species, thus a common theme in initiation is a reenactment of the interaction betwixt the divine hierarchy and the ancient world. All initiatory rites induce a physiologic and psychological rebirth, a resurrection by iconographic symbols embedded into the psyche of the postulant. Eliade classifies initiations into two categories: puberty rites and specialized initiations. Puberty rites are ceremonies by virtue of which adolescent members of the community gain access to sexuality and knowledge, often accompanied by dramatic pageants, not excluding corporal and genital mutilations. Specialized initiations are secret ceremonies where individuals undergo psychological transformation and become emissaries or protégés of the divine hierarchy invoked during initiations.

Ritual initiation in Freemasonry and the mystery schools of Christianity, such as Gnostic traditions, Rosicrucian Fraternities, and monastic institutions of Catholicism are commemorative, petitionary and instinctual. Eliade fails to approach ritual initiation from the panorama of a scholar-practitioner. There must be a concern with the insider-outsider approach to Religious studies, for the mantle between scholar and practitioner often is blurred in subjectivity. Various scholars masquerading as practitioners have charged at times Masonic preceptors with misconduct of ethics, sexuality, and unenlightened behavior to say the least. These charges upon the psychology and style of initiation often are due to preexisting aversion to the occult arts and sciences in Freemasonry with its often-erotic mysteries. Arguably, spiritual egotism injects itself here into the vague impression between scholar and practitioner. Eliade often brings a banal, yet informed prospect of rites and symbols of initiation.

In the area between religion and secularism, between scholar and practitioner, a shade emerges as a sort of „Trojan Horse,‟ pitting the speculative debate of confessional vs. secular-academic against cyclic inconclusiveness. How does an academic insider of a prescribed religion promulgate experience and expression objectively? Is it conceivable for one to be thrust within a certain initiatic religious tradition, in this writer‟s case, Freemasonry, while remaining an objective scholar? Alternatively, is it permissible in principle for a practitioner to engage academia? Initiation is the reconciler here. The scholar-practitioner must look impartially upon this issue.

The scholar-practitioner who has failed in initiation, or simply not undertaken the ordeals of initiation, perpetuates a homespun movement whose teachers have not received the teachings and the accompanying spiritual transmission with a recognized lineage. Initiation allows the postulant new archetypes of life and death compounded with dynamic worldviews. To allow initiation unto the unfit is not only severely damaging to all aspects of the aspirants,  It also is disastrous for the teacher and student. Naturally at this point the question arises, what is Freemasonry and "Masonic initiation?" For risk of a sufficient passing grade, and expulsion from the Masonic Lodge and fraternity, I cannot go into detail concerning the secrets of Masonic symbolism and iconography.

In a zeal to appreciate and make the best of my connection with the Masonic Order, scholar-practitioners experience difficulty in defining and placing Freemasonry. Is it religion, philosophy, a system of morals, or what? It may be well at this juncture to clear up the theory that Masonry is not a religion, though it contains marked religious elements and many religious references. A Brother may legitimately say, if he wishes, and many do say, "Masonry is my religion" but he is not justified in classifying and holding it out to other people as a Religion. A Mason is religious, but should not profess Freemasonry as a religion. Reference to the Masonic Grand Lodge Constitutions makes it quite clear that the system is one meant to exist outside and independently of religion; nonetheless, Freemasonry is a religious fraternity. All the Order requires of its members is a belief in Deity and personal conformation to the Moral Law, every Brother being free to follow whatsoever form of religion and mode of worship he pleases.

Importantly neither is Masonry a philosophy; albeit behind it lies a large philosophical background not appearing in its surface-rituals and doctrine, but left for discovery to the research and effort of Masonic Brethren. That philosophical background is a Gnosis or an ordained knowledge, a teaching as old as the world, one which has been shared alike by the Vedics and Tantrics of the Orient, the Egyptian, Chaldæan and Orphic Initiation systems, the Pythagorean and Platonist schools, and all the Mystery Temples of both the past and the present, Christian or otherwise. Notice the increasing sensationalism of the mystery schools and secret societies with their inclusions in popular culture and literature, such as: Holy Blood, Holy Grail, The Da Vinci Code {its sequel The Solomon Key no doubt will feature vast misconceptions of Freemasonry}, and popular films like National Treasure. Esotericism is swiftly gaining a resurgence of romanticism and popularity.

Masonic initiations include emic and etic language. Emic language; those terms used by the believers or the observed group, and etic language; distinctions and descriptions made by outside observers, at once break down and erect barriers between the profane and the initiated. Initiation experiences supersede language, often creating a meta-language of codes, iconology that become embedded in the Initiate‟s psyche. All initiations, including consecrations in the Masonic Lodge, must have at least three phases, though these phases can be repeated within the same ritual. The first, or pre-liminal phase prepares the candidate for initiation. This is done in many ways but the goal of all of them is to develop in the candidate a sense of separation from his or her former life.

Those first phase preparations that are directed towards the candidate, as opposed to those that are directed towards the ritual conductors or ritual space, generally fall into two groups, physical/psychological and magical, though many groups do not always show a clear delimitation between physical, psychosocial and magical levels of awareness. Almost all groups use forms of sensory deprivation in their initiatory rites. The most common forms of this are the blindfold or hoodwink and the binding of the body in one or more places with cord or rope.

The second phase is that which might be called the „initiation proper.‟ In this phase the candidate goes through a process that will eventually bring him or her into the group or tradition. In magical orders or religions this phase is often magical in nature and is said to have specific effects on the candidate that he or she may not be aware of but will bring about the necessary connection to that groups magical current. Integration into the Masonic fraternity is the final phase. It can be difficult to pinpoint where this phase starts in the ritual. In some instances it occurs only after the candidate is declared to be a member of the group or tradition in question and the secrets pertaining to the new initiate‟s grade or rank within the group are given. In some magical groups this phase begins before the magical current of that group is placed within the candidate.

This phase may continue through to the end of the ritual itself or may end earlier. Integration techniques are often quite simple. For instance almost all initiating groups within the Western Mysteries read to the new initiate a series of instructions pertaining to the teachings of their new grade. In indoor lodge or temple settings the new initiate is often seated in a particular quarter of the ritual space reserved for members of the same grade. This is seen in the initiations of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn as well as in the second and third Masonic degrees of the Blue Lodge. The three phases of initiation are markedly similar to the phases of a rite de passage, consisting of preliminal, liminal, and post-liminal phases, so much so that we may, as an etic delineation, identify initiations as a form of rites de passage, as numerous others have already done. As rites de passage, initiations are a subclass of ritual. Therefore we can say that initiations are ritual processes directed towards a subject, being one or more candidates, and having some effect on those men and women. At the end of a successful initiation ritual, the new initiate has a new status within the group. This change of status is expressed within the ritual and is produced by the ritual. Exactly how this occurs will vary. The effect may simply be declarative in nature; the ritual Preceptor, using his {or her} authority as such, declares the candidate a member and therefore he or she is. It may also include psychological factors, based on the identification of the candidate with all others who have undergone the ritual before. It may include mystic factors.

Etically, we can say that initiations, as rites of passage, must have as their object a transforming effect upon their subjects. This transformation can be observed as a change of status for the subject. This change of status may be understood by the practitioners in a number of different ways; mundane, magical, or spiritual. From both and emic and etic perspective, initiations are always first-time rituals that cannot be repeated for the same candidate. This is especially true for non-magical rituals. The author is aware of people who have been given an initiation twice, after an extended period of time, before being given the next initiation in the initiatory process. It is arguable that because this repeated initiation does not change the status of the candidate within the group, it is not actually an initiation but simply an act of ritual with a magical and not an initiatory purpose. This is fully in line with the literal definition of initiation as well as agreeing with the common usage of the term. It is for this reason that second marriages or the birth of a second child are excluded from a general definition of initiation even though they are considered rites de passage.