Ceremonial initiation. Contemplative mindfulness. Heroic practice. These are the tools of the Knights Regnum. Here you can find links to information about our order, the history, and the methods of chivalry that we practice in meetings — both virtual and local. Our purpose can be found in the Article II of our Constitution:
We, the Knights Regnum Caelestis, in order to secure a peaceful and harmonious bastion of righteousness within the universe, do submit ourselves to the service of Light, Life, and Eternity, and these following several purposes.
—Article II. Purpose, Constitution of the Knights Regnum Caelestis
1. The sublime revelry of good and wholesome instruction to all well-regulated individuals of the ancient degrees of initiation as passed to us from time immemorial.
2. The intimate detail of peace and harmony between all sentient beings, alive and capable of choice.
3. The study of the chivalric path of heroism through archetypal practice.
4. The practice and study of the “Path of the Exalted.”
5. And the promotion of charity, relief, hope, valor, virtue, truth, and faith.
Ceremonial Initiation
This term often becomes confused with ritual magic or religious ceremony. While both can perform as a ceremonial initiation, the Knights Regnum make use of Ceremonial Initiation to unveil allegorical truths that we believe have been passed on from time immemorial to the benefit of humankind. From the not-so-ancient teachings of Hermetic Qabbalah, to Alchemy and beyond, our degrees of initiation concern several allegorical symbols that reflect processes in the mind and development of the self.
When we say “ceremonial,” we mean ritualized and symbolic. This normally takes the form of an initiatory degree. We use the term Degree to mean not only a level of advancement, but the special ceremony that elevates a member to that new level of membership. There are three degrees in the Knights Regnum, and they are the Aspirant of the Five Elements of Creation, Companion of the Seven Heavens, and Master of the Temple of Equilibrium. Within each of these ceremonies is a moral lesson, symbolic message about the psychology of a person, and the general goals and precepts of our order.
Contemplative Mindfulness
Some of the most difficult work of each member is performed alone in practiced meditations. Mindfulness, we know after decades of research in the field, leads to a healthier state of being. Not only does the anterior cingulate gyrus grow after mindfulness training (the part of the brain associated with decision making and self-regulation), but the amygdala shrinks and a reliance upon reacting instead of responding diminishes.
In the Knights Regnum, contemplative practices and mindfulness meditation are critical to participation. Every member is expected to practice some sort of mindfulness. We do not dictate what that mindfulness must be, but we do have our own tradition that we maintain and curate. We call this the Path of the Exalted — a method of mindfulness in silent meditation, guided meditation, and heroic practice.
Heroic Practice
We are now at a point in understanding the constructs of “identity” that we know that the state of “I/me/my” changes regularly and fluidly. Our behaviors are more determined by our environment and immediate goals than any long term commitment to ideals or beliefs. It is the repeated learning of behavioral archetypes that influences the systems of decision making that allow for our day-to-day identity to remain anywhere near remotely perceptible.
In the Knights Regnum, we maintain the practice of not only role playing in our meetings (as all ceremonial orders do), but also personal role play practice as our highest selves. We do this in table top role playing games, digital role playing games, and live action role playing games. In performing these behavioral constructs repeatedly, we cement the person we want to be into our daily lives.
The question of free will in psychology is still debated, and we take the stance that we do have free will, but not exactly as it is imagined. Free will begins when you, the actor, take on the responsibility of growing and learning better behaviors than you were taught in your development (including negative coping mechanisms), and replace those behaviors with the goal behaviors that you create. In the Knights Regnum, our degrees of initiation and teachings provide the road map for the Path of the Exalted, set the tone for our goal behaviors, and give us a structure and format for that in the creative process of role playing.
The bulk of this website is devoted to expressing and archiving the story we tell for our heroic practice. Find more in Heroic Practice.
Contemplative Practice | Heroic Practice | History