Technically speaking, the Thelemic Order of the Golden Dawn is a name for the Outer Order (First Order), but it is also used for the Order as a whole as a matter of convenience. The Thelemic Order of the Golden Dawn is, in essence, dedicated to the same Spiritual Task as any other Golden Dawn or Magical Order: To prepare the aspirant to "become more than human" or to "attain the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel." In terms of the planes of progress, the Order is threefold: the Outer Order (First Order), the Inner Order (Second Order), and the Secret Order (Third Order) in the Inmost Sanctuary of the Soul. In Truth there is only One Order, but it has three divisions, or aspects, if you Will, relative to the process of initiation.

Between the First and Second Orders there is a veil, called the Veil of Paroketh; and between the Second and Third Orders there is another veil, called the Veil of the Abyss. Each one of these veils represents an ordeal between one Order to the next. The Way of Initiation is beset with ordeals no matter how we may approach the Great Work; and those who attempt to evade an ordeal are unworthy of the title "Initiate." An ordeal of initiation is meant to make, not break us. In terms of the Qabalistic Tree of Life, the Outer Order encompasses the Elemental Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, called Malkuth, Yesod, Hod and Netzach; the Inner Order encompasses the Spiritual Sephiroth called Tiphareth, Geburah and Gedulah (also called Chesed); and the Inmost or Secret Order encompasses the Supernal Sephiroth called Binah, Chokmah and Kether.

The grades of other Orders using similar initiatory symbolism can be linked, by Adepts, to their equivalent grades in the Order without confusing the planes. Synthesizing the Many into One is part of the plan. But there is more than meets the eye in this regard. There are grades within grades, elements within elements, and worlds within worlds. The connections will become crystal clear to those of you who diligently do your research. The well-informed Initiate will be able to easily associate and integrate other systems with the system of the Order, which is universal and all-embracing by its very nature. It is a simple skeletonic system upon which the Initiate can build a complex body of boundless connections and spiritual experiences. There is no limit to the extent of its practical application in the Great Work of Initiation, and it is for those individuals who would like to use the system as a series of grades or stepping stones to the sublime summit of the Mystic Mountain of Illumination.

Below is a brief summary of the magical and mystical grades of the Order. Three of the grades listed below (Neophyte, Dominus Liminis, and Babe of the Abyss) are not actual grades. The Neophyte is a probationary grade, the Dominus Liminis is the passage between the First and Second Orders, and the Babe of the Abyss is the passage between the Second and Third Orders.