Page 00010 of the Sacred PUD with fnords. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.And Historia Discordia is back! Dearest Eris decided to give us an unexpected end-of-summer week off due to some Markoff Chaney-style technical website hijinxery, Hail Eris!, but nothing lasts forever, so it’s time to get back on the horse…
First up, a post meant for last week’s Illuminatus! Group Reading. Usually, we post an Eris of the Month entry every 23rd, but we’ll post that tomorrow on the 24th, just to give a little slap back to Our Lady of Confusion for her testiness.
I’m a little late to the fnord party, as this weird word was apparently first introduced into the Illuminatus! (Amazon) lexicon way back on page 280 and shows up here again in Week 30—just the same I thought I’d play a little catch up, although I really have no great fnord insights to share other than to point out the first known appearance of this weirdo word was in the 4th ed. of Principia Discordia.
Fnord sticker by Greg Hill. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.The only other fnords I’ve seen—other than those that allegedly appear in Illuminatus!—are a bunch of fnord stickers that Greg Hill produced to help promote the book. In this regard, Hill was an exuberant cheerleader for this truly Discordian effort, and as previously posted here at Historia Discordia helped RAW concoct an Illuminatus! review by a certain Mordecai Zwack.
To further illustrate Hill’s involvement—with RAW, Robert Shea and Illuminatus!—I post a letter here for your probable reading enjoyment from Hill to RAW in the year of our Goddess, 3141. This was during the period that Hill was living in NYC. Hill mentions a poster-collage he was contemplating / working on at this time that had “fizzled out,” although he later shared a rough version of it with RAW.
Letter from Greg Hill to RAW, dated September 9, 1975, Page 00001. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.Letter from Greg Hill to RAW, dated September 9, 1975, Page 00002. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
Letter from Greg Hill to RAW, dated September 9, 1975, Page 00003. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.Poster by Greg Hill for Illuminatus!, circa 1975. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
Jerry Milton BrooksHill talks about being unproductive, as this was a depressive period for him; he’d recently separated from his wife Jeanetta and had taken a dismal bank clerk job in NYC. Hill also mentions a recent visit with Kerry Thornley in Atlanta, and shares Kerry’s theory about the JFK assassination and how one of the supposed conspirators, Slim Brooks (who Kerry believed was actually Jerry Milton Brooks) was one of the chosen five to receive a 1st ed. copy of Principia Discordia, which is available at long last in Historia Discordia: The Origins of the Discordian Society (Amazon).
On page 2 of Hill’s letter, he recounts a synchronistic moment between he, Thornley and the spirit of RAW, which probably cemented even more in poor Kerry’s mind that RAW was an evil agent of the Illuminati who possessed paranormal powers and could deliver thunder bolts on request!
On page 3, Hill mentions another can of worms in Thornley’s head concerning a party in a Atlanta that is discussed in more depth in my latest book about all of this craziness, Caught in the Crossfire: Kerry Thornley, Lee Oswald and the Garrison Investigation (Amazon).
Towards the end, Hill inquires if there’s any news about Sirius, which of course was referring to RAW’s famous July 23rd encounter. The Secret Chiefs, I assume, also refers to the July 23rd Dog Days experience. Who “Nichols at Voice” was, I have no idea, unless it’s a reference to The Village Voice. As for Leary, he was still in prison at this point, but it was not long after—in April of ‘76—that California Governor Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown granted Leary’s release.
Hill finishes with a philosophical point—which is a bit over my head—although I think it’s referring to that quote by Alfred Korzybski of which RAW was so fond: “The map is not the territory.”
“Zap ‘em at Gnostica” refers—I believe—to a series of esoteric workshops that RAW was part of in San Francisco at this time sponsored by Gnostica magazine called Gnosticon. Here are some scans from the Gnosticon newsletter that includes RAW’s bio and a description of the workshops he presented, which consisted of his early explorations into Leary’s Eight Circuit Model of Consciousness.
Gnostica newsletter on RAW's talk, Page 00001. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.Gnostica newsletter on RAW's talk, Page 00002. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.Gnostica newsletter on RAW's talk, Page 00003. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
RAW Bavarian Illuminati Letter to Joanna Wilson, dated September 15, 1973.Some good stuff being done by esoteric scholar, Christian Greer, who received a research fellowship to dive into the New York Public Library’s Timothy Leary archives established last year.
An illuminating snippet Christian has just posted is one of the infamous Bavarian Illuminati Letterheads sent from RAW to Leary’s wife Joanna in 1973 while Tim was serving time in the slammer.
Also included is some notebook stationary (created by Harold Lord Randomfactor) initiating RAW into the Discordian Society, courtesy of Discordian Society founder Mal-2 (aka Gregory Hill).
In the spirit of such long ago Illuminati inspired correspondences, we bring to you now—back by popular demand!—your very own pristine Discordian Bavarian Illuminati Letterhead (PDF)!
Download, share, write your Congresscritter, or hold it in your hand while you agitate loudly on street corners!
Brought to you by the Ancient Illuminated Seers of Bavaria (AISB).
On page 291 of Illuminatus! (Amazon), Saul realizes he has been a puppet of The Grayface, which is another nod and wink to Discordianism, namely “The Curse of Greyface” written by Mal-2 (aka Greg Hill) that first appeared in the 4th edition the Principia Discordia.
Curse of Greyface
After reading this passage, Lady L., F.A.B. (aka Louise Lacey) remarked: “The problem in the world today is that the hunch-brains are united.”
Since launching historiadiscordia.com (on JFK Assassination Day last year) we’ve had—upon occasion—some rather eyebrow-raising visitors to the site, among them the Dept. of Justice, not to mention the Church of Scientology, and most recently the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of Defense.
We welcome you!
One can only speculate why THEY would be interested in little ol’ us, though I no doubt suspect that certain agencies in our gubmint have long been trying to get a handle on just exactly what Discordianism “is” and to determine if it’s a threat to National Security. (Why anyone would fear a religion based on the worship of the Greek Goddess of Chaos and Discord is beyond me!)
Department of Homeland Security visits to historiadiscordia.com.Department of Homeland Security visits to historiadiscordia.com.
Department of Defense visits to historiadiscordia.com.
As seen in the assembled screen shots—which were captured during a couple of the DHS and DOD visits—at one point THEY hit the Illuminati tag, a Discordian connection that dates back to the glory days of Operation Mindfuck (OM) when Kerry Thornley—in cahoots with his other Discordian miscreants—cooked up the modern day Bavarian Illuminati (The World’s Oldest And Most Successful Conspiracy).
Another fine example of OM courtesy of Ho Chi Zen (aka Kerry Thornley). Letter to John M. Fisher of the American Security Council Foundation, dated August 8, 1970. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
Discordianism—as Erisian history instructs—has enjoyed a long association with the Illuminati (which may secretly run the U.S. Government!) as well as certain other Governmental branches (because we all know where “true” chaos comes from!) among them the military, and in particular the Pentagon which is incorporated into the Sacred Chao, that most holiest of all Discordianism symbols.
Original printing of the Sacred Chao which served as a frontispiece to the 1st ed. Principia Discordia. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
The Sacred Chao is a twist of sorts on Taoism’s Yin and Yang, depicting as it does the opposing forces of The Pentagon and The Golden Apple, also known in Discordianism as the Hodge and Podge. The Pentagon—according to Discordian mythos—represents the Aneristic Principle (Apparent Order) in counterbalance to The Golden Apple, which represents The Eristic Principle (Apparent Disorder.) To find out more about all this you will have to consult your pineal gland and call me when the brain swelling goes down.
The 1st edition Principia Discordia lists several Orders of Eris, one of which is the Knights of the Five Sided Temple, “a movement that is specifically Anti-Discordian. Such people are almost invariably found to be either bureaucrats or militarists (frequently both). The Five Sided Temple referred to is The Pentagon Bldg. itself where there is an incredible concentration of Knights. In your own experiences with military service and bureaucracies, you will notice many people with a heavy tendency towards the Eristesque Principle, but every so once in awhile you will find a person who is absolutely wound up in all sorts of fantastic and technical formal order which due to its own weight ends up only in a comical-absurd cross-reference maze of nothing; and such a person who lives, thinks and breathes in such terms—he is a Knight.”
Knights of the Five Sided Temple illustration by Greg Hill from the 1st ed. Principia Discordia. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
As you can see, Discordianism has long been connected to the Pentagon, which some may also find confusing, because many people considered those old school Discordians just a bunch of long haired pot smoking no-good hippie types—which of course many of them were!—so the Discordian Society’s apparent veneration the Five Sided Temple might appear a bit perplexing to some. However, all of these five-sided Discordian endeavors were simply a means to demonstrate the dichotomy found in Discordianism—the Aneristic vs. Eristic principles—which is not unlike the ol’ good vs. evil dualism of Christianity, because without one you couldn’t have the other. (Maybe.)
If you’d like to find out more about the hidden history of Discordianism, Illuminism and its sinister connections to not only the U.S. Government, but all governments of the world, I would encourage you (and THEM) to pick up a copy of Historia Discordia: The Origins of the Discordian Society while copies last!
On page 274, a “grinning young man with a Frisco-style Jesus Christ hair-and-beard” welcomes Joe Malik and Simon Moon to the Joshua Norton Cabal located at “a normal but untypically clean hippie hangout” which perfectly describes Greg Hill and his San Fran abode during that late-60s period chronicled in Illuminatus! (Amazon).
Greg Hill pictured at his 'normal but untypically clean hippie hangout' with Sister Deacon Iona K. Fioderovna and her daughter, Nancy. Joshua Norton Cabal missive, dated May 23, 1970, announcing the disappearance of Malaclypse the Younger. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
On page 275 the character of Doc Iggy (short for Dr. Ignotum P. Ignotius) is formerly introduced. Doc Iggy—according to Discordian lore—was the successor of Malaclypse the Younger (aka Mal-2), Omnibenevolent Polyfather of Virginity in Gold (OPVIG)—both of course being alter egos of Greg Hill, as documented in the following pronouncement dated Syaday 3136 (May 23, 1970).
As for the Joshua Norton Cabal, Greg Hill once described it this thusly:
“The 1969 Discordian Society was an exchange between independent artists of various kinds. Norton Cabal was just me and my characters and I used the other cabals as sort of a laboratory. In return, other Discordians would bounce their stuff off of me. We would toss in ideas and anybody could take anything out. It was a concept stew. Principia was my product from my perspective. Thornley, and Wilson and Shea, had other perspectives, which had substantial influence on me. It was mutual, but without the exchange each would have done something similar anyway. The exchanging of ideas and techniques broadened and encouraged all of us.”
As noted on Page 276, Emperor Joshua Norton—although a pauper—issued his own currency which some considered a joke but was just the same accepted by many businesses in old San Fran. To this end, Wilson and Shea mention a couple of anarchists—William Green and Lysander Spooner—who also tried to establish their own respective currencies but were put down by The Man.
Emperor Norton's currency.
It was in this spirit that the early Discordians came up with their own alternate currency (flaxscript) as outlined in this “statement of policy” that Greg Hill—still in his incarnation of Malaclypse the Younger—drew up in 3135 (1969).
Courtesy of the Discordian Archives. Please do not widely distribute this information. One Ton of Flax issued by Malaclypse the Younger.
One Ton of Flax issued by Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst.
On page 282, the Yin Revolution is mentioned in passing, which happened to be a phrase and conceptual framework that Kerry Thornley was tinkering around with in the late-60s/early-70s as found in this article from 1970 by Chairman Lao (aka Kerry Thornley) on “Yin Revolution.”
Kerry Thornley, Says the Chairman, dated December 1970. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
Here’s an assortment of goodies Roldo Odlor sent to Greg Hill around the mid-80s during the same period he created the cover artwork for Historia Discordia: The Origins of the Discordian Society (Amazon). Roldo is also known for his artistic work with Kerry Thornley on the Goetia Discordia.
And, in case you missed it, check out these other letters to Hill in Part 00001 of this series.
Letter Package from Roldo Odlor to Greg Hill, mid-1980s. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.Envelope postmarked 1984 from Roldo Odlor to Greg Hill. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.Letter from Roldo Odlor to Greg Hill, mid-1980s. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
Here’s a rough pencil sketch by Greg Hill from the late-60s depicting the Discordian Sacred Chao in a swirling vortex of fire!
Greg Hill sketch of an early version of the Sacred Chao, late 1960s. Courtesy of the Discordian Archives.
Since launching historiadiscordia.com (on JFK Assassination Day last year) we’ve had—upon occasion—some rather eyebrow-raising visitors to the site, among them the Dept. of Justice, not to mention the Church of Scientology, and most recently the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of Defense.
If you’d like to find out more about the hidden history of Discordianism, Illuminism and its sinister connections to not only the U.S. Government, but all governments of the world, I would encourage you (and THEM) to pick up a copy of Historia Discordia: The Origins of the Discordian Society while copies last!
