William G. Gray

William G. Gray (1913-1992) was a British occultist, the founder of the magical order the Sangreal Sodality and author of many books. He wrote extensively on the topics of ritual magic, Hermetic Qabalah, the nature of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life. His focus was on the mystical unification of humanity with divinity. For Gray, the purpose of developing contact with higher beings is the joint pursuit of the good and the avoidance of evil in the world and in oneself. In many of his works he places a high value on the use of magic for personal development towards these ends.

His major contribution to the Western mystery tradition and the occult was the development of "The Rite of Light," also called the "Sangreal Sacrament". This was regarded by many, including Israel Regardie,Fact|date=September 2008 as having given ritual expression to the innermost mysteries of the esoteric orders in a way that did not limit itself to any given religious orientation.

Just before his death he asked author Alan Richardson to write his biography. For this reason leaders of the Sangreal Sodality call Richardson Gray's "official biographer". The book, "The Old Sod - The Odd Life & Inner Work of William G. Gray," by Alan Richardson & Marcus Claridge was published by Ignotus Press in 2003.

angreal Sodality

The Sangreal Sodality is a magical fraternal order created by British occultist and author William G. Gray in 1980. Its chapters, branches, and membership have spread to Latin America, North America, Eastern Europe, Europe, South Africa and the United States.

"Sangreal" is taken to refer to the "best aspects of human nature". The term "" refers to a fraternity, especially a lay movement in the Roman Catholic Church. Its purpose is to "foster union of the divine with the human through service to both".

In 1976 William G. Gray published the "Rite of Light".In November 1980, on a visit to Jacobus Swart in Johannesburg, South Africa, he had a vision that resulted in the clarification of what William Gray has referred to as the "Sangreal Concept". [William Gray's unpublished autobiography excerped on www.yahoo.group.sangreal-sodality.com] In June of 1982 Antonio Delfino in Brazil founded the first Sangreal Temple in South America. This temple was known as Colegio Capitular Pitagoras. Jacobus Swart was named Gray's heir, one of two spiritual successors. [Alan Richardson and Marcus Claridge, "The Old Sod" Ignotus Press, 2004,page 213ff ]

Marcia L. Pickands claims that in 1990 when retiring from active service within the Sangreal Sodality, William G. Gray asked her as one of his two spiritual successors. [ (See private letters from William G. Gray to Marcia L. Pickands (1990-1992)] This interpretation is hotly contested by Jacobus Swart, who was William Gray's heir as well as successor. [ "The Founding and Development of the Sangreal Sodality" By Jacobus Swart available on the sangreal-sodality group moderated by Jacobus Swart]

Bibliography

*"Lessons Learned from Occult Letters" (1949 [privately owned manuscript] )
*"Ladder of Lights, or Qabalah Renovata" (1968/1981/2008 [Helios/Weisers/Sangreal Sodality Press] )
*"The Office of the Holy Tree of Life" (1970/1986 [The Sangreal Foundation/Weisers] incorporated into "Sangreal Rituals and Ceremonies"] )
*"Inner Traditions of Magic" (1970/1978 [Helios/Weisers] )
*"Seasonal Occult Rituals" (1970/1986 [Helios/Weisers] [incorporated into "The Sangreal Rituals and Ceremonies")
*"Magical Ritual Methods" (1971 [Helios/Weisers] )
*"Magical

*"Exorcising The Tree of Evil: How To Use The Symbolism Of The Qabalistic Tree of Life To Recognise And Reverse Negative Energy" (1974/1984/2002 [Helios/Weisers/Kima Global] [originally "The Tree of Evil"] )
*"The Rollright Ritual" (1975/1990 [Helios/Llewellyns] [republished as "By Standing Stone and Elder Tree")
*"A Self Made by Magic" (1976/ [Weisers/Llewellyns] )
*"The Rite of Light: A Mass of the Western Inner Mystery Tradition" (1976 [incorporated into "The Sangreal Sacrament"] )
*"The Talking Tree" (1977/1991 [Weisers/Llewellyns] [republished as "Growing the Tree Within"] )
*"An Outlook on Our Inner Western Way" (1980/2008 [Weisers/Sangreal Sodality Press] )
*"Western Inner Workings (Sangreal Sodality Series Volume I)" (1983 [Weiser] )
*"The Sangreal Sacrament (Sangreal Sodality Series Volume II)" (1983 [Weisers] )
*"Concepts of Qabalah (Sangreal Sodality Series Volume III)" (1984/1990 [Weisers] [later republished as "Qabalistic Concepts"] )
*"Sangreal Rituals and Ceremonies (Sangreal Sodality Series Volume IV)" (1986 [Weisers] )
*"The Novena of the Tree of Life" (1987 [The Sangreal Press] )
*"The Sangreal Tarot: A Magical Ritual System of Personal Evolution" (1988 [Weisers] )
*"Temple Magic: Building the Personal Temple Gateway to Inner Worlds" (1988 [Llewellyns] )
*"Between Good and Evil: Polarities of Power" (1989 [Llewellyns] )
*"The Simplified Guide to the Holy Tree of Life" (1973/1989 [Labrys/The Sangreal Press] )
*"By Standing Stone and Elder Tree: Ritual and the Unconscious"(1990 [Helios/Llewellyns] [republication of "The Rollright Ritual"] )
*"Evoking the Primal Goddess: Discovery of the Eternal Feminine Within" (1990 [Llewellyns] )
*"Growing the Tree Within: Patterns of the Unconscious Revealed by the Qabbalah" (1991 [Weisers/Llewellyns] [republication of "The Talking Tree"] )
*"Qabalistic Concepts: Living the Tree" (1984/1997 [Weisers] [republication of "Concepts of Qabalah"] )
*"Condensation of Kabbalah" (eBook published by Jacobus G. Swart)
*"Language of the Gods" (eBook published by Jacobus G. Swart)

See also

* Esotericism
* Hermeticism

References

External links

* [http://www.sangrealsodality.org/ The Sangreal Sodality International]
* [http://www.geocities.com/sangreal_sodality/ Website by US Member about the Sangreal Sodality]