Site Index | The Sorcerer Guild

Every page of this website is listed below, in the order of the main menu, with a line on what each contains.

The Guild

What Is the Sorcerer Guild?An introduction to the Guild, what its members do, and what it is not.
History of the GuildFrom the Thursday Workroom of 1971 to the present, with a chronology and the list of Guildmasters.
The FoundersShort lives of Ambrose Tolland, Imogen Castellane and Margit Anselm.
Aims and PrinciplesThe three aims of the Articles, the Rule of the Bench, and the principles of the Guild.
Structure and GovernanceWorkrooms, Chapterhouses, the Council of Wardens, the Guildmaster and the General Convocation.
The Seal of the GuildThe double ring, the star of seven points, the lamp and the motto.

The Art of Ritual MagicA working definition, the purposes of a rite, and four ways of explaining how it works.
Ceremonial PracticeThe Hall, the instruments, the seven parts of a rite and the Rite of the Four Gates.
The Daily PracticeThe Lamp, the Gates and the Record, with a sample entry and a plan for the first month.
Elements, Planets and CorrespondencesTables for the four elements, the seven planets and the twelve signs, and how to use them.
Planetary Days and HoursThe order of the days, full tables of the hours, and a reckoner for any date and place.
Invocation and EvocationCalling in and calling forth: the difference, the method, and why both are taught late.
Talismans and SigilsMaking, consecrating and releasing a talisman, the planetary squares, and the modern sigil.
DivinationThe lots, the cards, the figures, the glass and the sky, with rules of good practice.
The Ethic of the ArtThe Five Charges given to every Apprentice, with a commentary.
Glossary of TermsThe words used in the Guild and in ceremonial magic generally.

The Course of StudyThe Papers, the bench, the mentor, the seven Books, and the piece that completes each grade.
The Seven GradesFrom Apprentice under the Moon to Elder under Saturn, in three Halls.
InitiationWhat an admission is, how an Apprentice is received, and what is never asked.
The Hearth CourseThe full course for members who work alone, at a distance from any Chapterhouse.

MembershipWho may petition, what membership involves, the dues, privacy and leaving.
How to PetitionThe six steps from the first letter to admission as Apprentice.
Chapterhouses and WorkroomsThe fourteen Chapterhouses and thirty-one Workrooms, with notes on visiting.
Questions and AnswersThe questions most often put to the Warden of the Gate.

The Guild CalendarThe four Convocations, Founders' Night, open evenings and the dates announced.
The LibraryThe Common Book, the printed works of the Guild, the library at Lantern House and the archive.
Contact the GuildThe officers to write to, and what the Guild cannot help with.
PrivacyWhat this website does not collect, and how letters to the Guild are treated.

The Guild RecordThe journal of the Guild: all published papers, addresses and reports.
Report of the General Convocation, 2026The Warden of the Seal on the fifty-fifth General Convocation.
The Problem of ResultsHow to judge honestly whether a working has succeeded.
Notes on the Planetary HoursPractical notes and a worked example on reckoning the hours.
The Circle Is Not a WallThe circle understood as a frame for attention.
A Winter Solstice AddressThe Guildmaster's address for the Convocation of the Long Night, 2025.
Banishing: The First Skill and the LastWhy closing is taught before opening.
On Keeping the RecordA founder's instructions of 1978, reprinted from the archive.
Why We MemorizeWhy rites are learned by heart, and how to learn one.