Aurum Solis Vs. Golden Dawn Options

Hello all!

I have some questions about the Aurum Solis.

Over the past year I have become interested in the occult, mainly in Ceremonial Magick. Most of the info that I have read has been from the net and I have found a plethora of articles and sites that deal with the Golden Dawn but very little about the A.S. What little I have found about them intrigues me quite a bit, and, seeing it recommended a number of times, I purchased "Mysteria Magica" by Denning & Phillips.

So, what I am wondering about is what are the differences between the G.D. and the A.S. I understand that the former is a Rosicrucian style and the latter is Ogdoadic and from what I can tell, Ogdoadic has something to do with the number eight and deals mostly with Greek gods and seems to use the Greek language more so than Hebrew. Other than that I'm lost to the major differences between the two. The rest look to be more... for want of a better term, minor. For instance the Golden Dawn uses the Kabbalistic Cross and the Aurum Solis use the Calyx. They seem to be the same ritual to me! The G.D. has the LBRP; Aurum Solis has Setting of the Wards. Again, to my unseasoned eye, same thing! From reading articles and people's comments about magic and the occult, it is the subtlties that have the most impact. After all, the "Devil IS in the details".... I just can't see the little bugger! lol

Any help appreciated

-- G.L.B.

p.s. I apologize if I seem a bit incoherent. It's 0744 est , I just got home from work and my head feels like it's full of oatmeal

The Magical Philosophy was originally published in five volumes, Vol. 1, The Robe and the Ring, Vol. 2, The Apparel of High Magic, Vol. 3, The Sword and the Serpent, Vol. 4, The Triumph of Light and Vol. 5, Mysteria Magica. They were published by Llewellyn Publications in 1981. I was lucky enough to purchase the set. I had also purchased a complete set of the Equinox which was reprinted around 1970-something. I foolishly sold it (the Equinox) for bread money during some tough times...*sigh* (what an ass!)
To my knowledge the Sword and the Serpent hasn't been modified in its reissue copy...it does contain some rather valuable info. If you guts are looking for something in particular from it, I'd be glad to email some pdf'd scanned pages... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)