The Western Gate

The Complete Flying Rolls of the Golden Dawn
Samuel Sacrborough
Kerubim Press

The Flying Rolls were a series of instructions and ‘articles’ circulated between members of the highbrow and elitist (oh stop it you street urchin Prole) Golden Dawn society, prominent occult and esoteric order formed in the year gruesome Jack delivered his signature across the East End of London.
These were pretty much the internal ‘thinkings’ and ‘musings’ of those members on various topics from Skrying, Tattwas, Astrology et al.…in fact a hotch potch of all the jamboree bag of talents and abilities one would wish to attain. They are perhaps the emails, the private messages and ‘For Your Eyes Only’ of the day. Although they have been released widely in various forms on internet forums and groups as well as unsolicited underground printed material they have been, all! we are told, collected here in one tome, and not just collected but chosen, credited for a complete resource.
The book makes for light reading despite also during study some questionable theories. This is before of course the advent of ‘New Science’ and sub molecular and Outer Cosmic knowledge, the universe since those Victorian stuffy lodges has become both vaster outwards and complex inwards. However, as with all things there is much to be gained from the capacity of the human mind to formulate that which can be assessed given the knowledge held before them.
As with most literature of this nature a good understanding and perhaps working knowledge of the Kabbalah-Qabalah-Qabbalah would be suggested, I write the many ways to spell the tradition as there are many ways in which Qa-Ka- Ba-Bba- La-Lah-קַבָּלָה is viewed, and therefore we can only say with assuredly -it, alike the spelling variations, has become speculative.
The Flying Rolls do provide us with a good insight into the thought process not only of the Order but gives us insight into the formative foundation which became the Western Tradition. For better or worse.
Most lectures will concern themselves in one way or another with the force of imagination, perhaps the quote on the lecture of Imagination most telling~ viz Flying Roll No5~ “The Uninitiated interpret Imagination as something “Imaginary” in the popular sense of the word i.e. something unreal. But imagination is a reality, When a man imagines he actually creates a form on the astral or even on some higher plane.“
All ritual henceforth whether it be Skrying, Tattwa vision, Astral work or channelling or what not derives from imagination, and yes, most exercises are written of from the perspective example of it being, of course, a man as the operator. We can forgive this, being as the top-hated moustached gentleman of the day still viewed females as little more than a servant and a plaything. It should be said of course the females in the Golden Dawn were somewhat formidable, in fact in a few short decades since the formation of The Golden Dawn the suffragette movement were about to give the demanding masters a few things to think about.
The book is fine compilation and perhaps for completists of Golden Dawn material essential. Being, as stated, The Golden Dawn were instrumental in the Western Tradition, any that followed that path, and that includes, like it or not, Gardnerian Wicca, and many offshoots all G.D. material is worthy of study for both scholar and curious.
Yes, there is some cringeworthy and embarrassing thoughts in some of the lectures, there is much forehead slapping and groaning and also! some ‘mmm’s and the eye looks upward at at spark of revelation perhaps unheard before or explained in a different manner that ignites a welcome “mmm, yes,” and a satisfying nod of the head. Not many, to be sure, but each a welcome push to keep the cartload rolling along the cobbled menagerie.
This edition, there have been others, is well researched and explains where flying rolls were obtained from, i.e. from whom, and extensively allows us into the nature of edits or which of those were used, which were better, and why. It should be noted that-Each flying Roll was copied out by the members receiving them, thus some lost and we are left with perhaps in some cases an interpretation that was not from the originator, but all this is noted and well crafted in the book.
Illustrations where provided are crisp and clean with no awful copy from some water damaged original that serves no use whatsoever.
In all, despite the quirky nature of our great-great-grand forbearers, illumination is provided albeit handed down to us now as an an old Edison Filament dim coil, but shows the light none the less. It must be remebered of course! Just as Edison stole the patent of the Light bulb from Joseph Swan so most of all the literature from the Golden Dawn itself is plagiarised, appropriated and transcribed from various manuscripts and Masonic orders. There are new fresh ideas that seep into the G.D’s psyche and reinterpretations of old ideas, not least the way the paths were now assigned to the ‘Tree of Life’ as interpreted by Victorian Middle Aged men of influence. But you walk as ye find, and wander as ye will.
A background to The Golden Dawn and certainly Kabbalah would be a good place to start before a mud sludge paddle in the swamp of these internal papers and, yes, at the end of the day, did I enjoy it, of course! for all the right as well as wrong reasons.

A list of the titles of each flying rolls listed as such;-

Notice, and a Subject for Contemplation
A Subject for Contemplation
Subject for Contemplation: Purity and Will
Remarks upon Subject for Contemplation
Three Suggestions on Will Power
Notes on Procedure for Receiving and Forwarding Flying Rolls
An Example of Mode of Attaining to Spirit Vision
Some Thoughts on Imagination
Concerning Flying Roll II
Alchemy
Tracing a Pentagram by Geometry
Right and Left Pillars
The Symbolism of Self-Sacrifice and Crucifixion in the 5=6 Grade
Clairvoyance
Telesmatic Images and Adonai
Secrecy and Hermetic Love
Talismans and Flashing Tablets
Man and God
The History of the Rosicrucian Order
The Symbolism of the Seven Sides
Progress in the Order
Aims and Means of Adeptship
The Elementary View of Man
Know Thyself
Free Will
Tattwa Visions
On Horary Astrology
Essay on Clairvoyance and Traveling in the Spirit Vision
Planets to Tattvas, a Supplement to XII
The Principia of Theurgia or the Higher Magic
On the Value of Magic Implement and Insignia in Methods of Divination
On Lieutenants
Tattwas and Skrying and Hierophant’s Making 0=0 Sign
Correspondence Between the Enochian and Ethiopic Alphabets
The Theban Letters
Visions of Squares upon the Enochian Tablets
An Exorcism
On the General and Particular Exordium of the Z Documents
Of Skrying and Traveling in the Spirit Vision