Gnostic Association of Cultural and Anthropological Studies
Gnostic Association of Cultural and Anthropological Studies
The Gnostic Association of Cultural and Anthropological Studies was one of the largest occult groups to operate among Spanish-speaking people. It was founded in 1952 by Samuel Aun Weor (d. 1977), a native of Colombia. Weor studied with German esotericist Arnold Krumm Heller, a leader in the Ordo Templi Orientis. Over the years Weor became an accomplished esotericist and teacher and began to write books in Spanish. His central teachings appeared in his 1961 volume, The Perfect Matrimony.
Weor sought to synthesize the many occult, magical, and yogic materials he had absorbed, resulting in a system of occult sexuality. He believed that humanity could be redeemed by the transmutation of sexual energies and that God manifests as both Father (knowledge) and Mother (love). The "perfect marriage" occurs when two people who know how to love unite. Individuals could transform themselves into gods with the fire of love. Weor taught that during the sexual act, individuals are charged with universal magnetism. The true white magician practices what is known as karazza and ends the union before any semen is spilled. Transmuting the creative energies, so that orgasm does not occur and therefore semen is not released, is equated with the committing of an act of sexual magic. The success of the magic is experienced by the awakening of the kundalini energy, which is pictured as stored at the base of the spine, which then travels up the spine. When it reaches the brain, individual consciousness awakens.
The association spread first through South and Central America, then traveled to Spain and Portugal before it penetrated Europe. It came to New York and Los Angeles in the 1970s and spread across the United States in the Spanish-speaking communities. Through the 1970s and 1980s, many of Weor's books were translated into English and other languages. An English language periodical, The Gnostic Arhat, was begun in 1987. The first international congress of the association occurred in 1986 in Montreal. Last known address: P.O. Box 291488, Los Angeles, CA 90029.
Sources:
Almarez, Anita Ford. Simple Introduction to the Ancient Science of Gnosis. Chicago: Gnostic Association, n.d.
Weor, Samuel Aun Weor. Manual of Practical Magic. Los Angeles: Gnostic Association, 1988.
——. Manual of Revolutionary Psychology. Los Angeles: Gnostic Association, 1987.
——. The Perfect Matrimony. New York: Adonai Editorial, 1980.