A NEVER-ENDING LEARNING EXPERIENCE

In our Order, the journey of learning and discovery never ends. After graduating from the Academia Serpentis, every canonical member is required to pursue further studies appropriate to their rank.

These studies are mandatory for anyone wishing to take the examination for the next grade or to qualify for administrative roles.

Samaelite Philosophical Formation for Hiereús
Education Program | Full Curriculum

Ontological Grounding, Philosophical Discipline, and Symbolic Praxis

✦ INTRODUCTION

The Hiereús in the Ordo Adamantis Atri is not a representative of belief, nor a spiritual intermediary. The Samaelite Hiereús is an operator of symbolic structure, a performer of metaphysical gesture, and above all, a thinker of the sacred. His vocation is neither pastoral nor authoritarian: it is ritual-philosophical.

The Samaelite Philosophical Formation exists to prepare the Hiereús for this responsibility in the administrative offices, in the liturgical duties, but first and foremost in his future grades.

It is not catechetical. It is rigorously philosophical, metaphysically dense, and inseparable from the aesthetic and liturgical demands of the Order.

This path exists to create liturgical philosophers — individuals capable of thinking, designing, and enacting Samaelite truth through rite, speech, and silence.

✦ PURPOSE

The formation of the Hiereús is grounded in three fundamental movements:

  1. Ontological Interiorization – absorbing the Samaelite conception of Being as contradiction, tension, Pharmakon

  2. Symbolic Competence – understanding, handling, and generating ritual and iconographic structures

  3. Theoretical Articulation – the capacity to transmit, explain, and defend Samaelite thought in both esoteric and exoteric contexts

The program fosters autonomy, not dogma. A Hiereús is not only a man of faith: he is a vector of metaphysical structure.

✦ STRUCTURE

The program is composed of six doctrinal-philosophical domains, each of which corresponds to a level of interior formation.

Each domain includes:

  • Doctrinal texts (Treatise, Breviary, Esalogy, Codex Serpentis)

  • Classical and modern philosophical sources

  • Academic studies

  • Exercises (writing, meditation, liturgical composition)

  • A final Hiereús Thesis and oral disputatio

✦ METHOD

The education of the Hiereús requires contemplative depth and theoretical exactitude. The Order does not ask for blind faith, but for lucid interiority.

Each module includes:

  • Doctrinal study

  • Philosophical reflection

  • Composition of a ritual artifact: a homily, icon, neologism, or rite

  • Critical questioning: self-inquiry as sacrament

Every gesture of the Hiereús must be symbolically justified and ontologically aware. He must speak only when speech becomes structure.

The Hiereús is the one who knows that the sacred is not given, but must be coiled around, opened, bled, thought, and only then — performed. His role is not simply to repeat the liturgy, but to compose it from within.

MODULE I – METAPHYSICS: The Pharmakon and the Fractured Ontology of Being

Samaelite Sources:

  • Treatise of Samaelite Doctrine, chapters: "Metaphysics", "Theological Method"

  • Exalogy of the Serpent, vols. I (ch.2), II (ch. 3-4), V (ch. X-XI)

  • Breviarium Samaelitae, Theses I & VI

Classical & Traditional Sources:

  • Plato, Phaedrus (276a–278e) – the duality of pharmakon

  • Parmenides, Fragments (esp. B2, B3, B6, B8)

  • Aristotle, Metaphysics, Book XII

Contemporary References:

  • Jacques Derrida, Plato's Pharmacy (in Dissemination)

  • Giorgio Agamben, Language and Death

  • Reiner Schürmann, Heidegger on Being and Acting

  • Jean-Luc Nancy, The Inoperative Community

Supplementary Readings:

  • Heidegger, The Principle of Reason

  • Pierre Hadot, Philosophy as a Way of Life (Ch. 1-2)

  • Thomas Sheehan, Making Sense of Heidegger (Ch. 3: Being as Meaning)

Exercises:

  • Compose a 1200-word essay: "Pharmakon as Ontological Engine"

  • Glossary creation: Define 10 key terms from module readings in Samaelite dialectical terms

  • Oral colloquium with an Exegetes: Respond to 3 theological paradoxes involving Being and Death

MODULE II – ONTOLOGY: Polemos, Neikos, Philia: The Architectures of Multiplicity

Samaelite Sources:

  • Treatise, chapters: "The Creation", "Qliphoth"

  • Exalogy, vol. I (ch.3), II (ch.5,6,11), III (ch.3,4) V (ch. 4,5,6)

  • Breviarium, Theses II, III, V

Classical & Traditional Sources:

  • Heraclitus, Fragments (esp. B53, B80)

  • Empedocles, Fragments (esp. B17, B26, B35, B115)

  • Aristotle, Physics Book I-III

Contemporary References:

  • G. Colli, La Sapienza Greca, vol. II

  • Catherine Malabou, The Ontology of the Accident

  • Jean-Luc Marion, Being Given

  • Quentin Meillassoux, After Finitude

Supplementary Readings:

  • Gilles Deleuze, Difference and Repetition (Introduction, Ch. I)

  • Cornelius Castoriadis, The Imaginary Institution of Society

Exercises:

  • Compose an essay: "Conflict as the Precondition of Identity"

  • Conduct a group disputatio (if possible): "Is Polemos a theological category or a metaphysical one?"

MODULE III – DIALECTICS: Contradiction as Path to Aletheia

Samaelite Sources:

  • Treatise, "Theological Method"

  • Breviarium, Theses V, VII, X

Classical & Traditional Sources:

  • Plato, Parmenides, Theaetetus

  • Plotinus, Enneads, esp. V.3, VI.9

  • Dionysius the Areopagite, Mystical Theology

Contemporary References:

  • Jean-Luc Nancy, The Sense of the World

  • Slavoj Žižek, The Parallax View

  • Georges Bataille, Inner Experience

  • Michel Henry, The Essence of Manifestation

Supplementary Readings:

  • Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace

  • Emanuele Severino, The Essence of Nihilism

Exercises:

  • Compose a fictive dialogue between two theological positions in conflict (1000-1500 words)

MODULE IV – LOGIC & LANGUAGE: The Fiction of Meaning and the Architecture of Speech

Samaelite Sources:

  • Treatise, chapters: "Free Will and Human Nature", "Theological Method"

  • Esalogia del Serpente, vol. IV (entirely)

  • Breviarium, Thesis VIII

Classical & Traditional Sources:

  • Aristotle, Organon (esp. Categories, De Interpretatione)

  • Augustine, De Magistro

  • Aquinas, De Veritate, Q1, Q14

Contemporary References:

Supplementary Readings:

  • Giorgio Agamben, The Sacrament of Language

  • J.L. Austin, How to Do Things with Words

Exercises:

  • Invent a new liturgical term: define it semantically, symbolically, and theologically

  • Compose a 1000-word essay: "Language as Pharmakon and Ritual Tool"

  • Conduct a self-analysis of language use during rites: What remains silent?

MODULE V: ANTHROPOLOGY: Man as Tragic Animal, Ritual Being

Core Doctrinal Texts

  • Treatise, Ch. “Humanity and Animality”, “Elements of Samaelite ethic”, “Free will and human nature”

  • Exalogy, Vol. II (chp.6), III (ch. 10) , VI (ch. 1,, 2)

Classical Sources

  • Plato, Timaeus

  • Cicero, De Natura Deorum

  • Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Books II–V

  • Aristotle, Politics (Book I), De Anima

Contemporary Academic Works

  • Ernst Cassirer, An Essay on Man

  • René Girard, Violence and the Sacred

  • Roger Callois, The man and the sacred

  • Robert Hertz, The pre-eminence of the right hand: A study in religious polarity

  • Tim Ingold, Culture and perception of the Environment

  • Philippe Descola, Beyond Nature and Culture

Exercises

  • Write an “Initiatory Autobiography” of your path into the Ordo

  • Compose a Themelia on Death as Ontological Catalyst

MODULE VI — THEOLOGY: Constructing the Sacred Without Transcendence

Core Doctrinal Texts

  • Treatise, Ch. “Samaelite Liturgy”, “Eschatology”, “The concept of Serpentiformity” “Creation”

  • Breviary, Theses IX–XI

  • Exalogy, Vol. III, VI

  • Codex Adamantis

Classical Sources

  • Dionysius the Areopagite, Divine Names

  • Augustine, Confessions (Book XI–XIII)

  • Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy

  • Alphonso de Ligorio, Theologia Moralis (Latin text)

Contemporary Academic Works

  • Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and the Profane

  • Paul Tillich, Theology of Culture

  • Jan Assmann, Religion and Cultural Memory

  • Karl Jaspers, Way to Wisdom

  • Justo L. González, The Story of Christianity vol. I & II

  • Augusto Guerriero, Quaesivi et non inveni (facultative reading)

  • Augusto Guerriero, Inquietum est cor nostrum (facultative reading)

Exercises

  • Compose a complete theological commentary on the Ierà.

  • Reflect: “Can theology exist without a God?”

Final Submission

Philosophical Thesis (121.000  characters) + Defense (oral) in front of a commission of three Exegetes or Gemini.

Path of Doctrinal Ascent for the Samaelite Exegetes

Theological Instruction, Ontological Precision, and the Hermeneutics of the Sacred

✦ INTRODUCTION

The Via Exegetica is the most elevated pedagogical and initiatory path within the doctrinal structure of the Ordo Adamantis Atri. It is not simply an academic curriculum; it is a system of intellectual tension and ontological sharpening, designed for those who, having already traversed the liturgical and philosophical domains of the Hiereús, are now entrusted with the preservation, expansion, and internal harmonization of Samaelite theology.

The Exegetes are not administrators. They are interpreters of the Ineffable, curators of rupture, and engineers of the Sacred Word. Their responsibility is neither purely pastoral nor purely theoretical — it is to safeguard the possibility of Truth within a system that has no dogma, no godhead, and no fixed horizon.

Thus, the Exegetical path requires a transgressive fidelity: a form of rigorous flexibility in which doctrine is neither constructed nor received, but instead extracted from the deep structure of the real — and ritually re-inscribed.

✦ PURPOSE

The Via Exegetica was established to develop:

  • Advanced hermeneutical capabilities for doctrinal creation and interpretation

  • Deep metaphysical fluency in ontology, language, apophasis, and contradiction

  • Competence in symbolic and ritual design

  • Theoretical autonomy in confronting esoteric, heretical, and inter-theological systems

  • The ability to train and examine Hiereús in their philosophical formation

This is not a program with answers. It is a map of necessary risks, constructed through reading, writing, ritual, confrontation, and disarticulation.

✦ STRUCTURE

The Via Exegetica is divided into six primary domains, each of which corresponds to a theological capacity of the Exegete:

  1. Hermeneutics & Scriptural Construction – mastery over interpretive theory and theological text creation

  2. Symbologenesis & Iconic Language – ability to design metaphysical images and symbolic orders

  3. Comparative Negative Theology – deep engagement with apophasis and silence across mystical systems

  4. Esoteric Historiography – understanding the genealogical structure of sacred memory

  5. Advanced Ontology – capacity to construct post-dialectical metaphysical systems

  6. Liturgical Architecture – design and deployment of new rites and philosophical rituals

Each domain includes doctrinal readings (Treatise, Codex, Breviary), classical and modern sources, and creative-practical exercises.

✦ METHOD

The Exegetical formation proceeds in four overlapping movements:

  1. Immersion – intense study of texts, myths, metaphysical patterns

  2. Distillation – synthesis into personal formulations, icons, and liturgies

  3. Articulation – verbal and written exposition through commentary and sermon

  4. Revelation – creation of theological material for internal use and transmission

The process is not linear, and Exegetes are encouraged to inhabit domains simultaneously, embracing inconsistency, paradox, and philosophical error as sacred instruments of clarification.

✦ FINAL CONSECRATION

The path culminates in an Exegetical Thesis (363.000 characters) that serves not as a declaration of knowledge, but as a ritual exposition of insight, grounded in Samaelite philosophy and offered to the Collegium Gemini for critical engagement.

✦ ETHOS

The Via Exegetica operates under three unshakable principles:

  1. Nothing is known without rupture.

  2. Theology begins where language fails.

  3. Doctrine is not given — it is torn from silence.

This path is not optional. It is the spiritual and intellectual obligation of those entrusted with the name “Exegetes.”

The serpent does not teach. It coils around the Real until it bleeds.

I. Hermeneutics & Scriptural Construction: How to create, interpret, and control sacred meaning

Readings

  • Treatise, Ch. “The Theological Method”

  • Lexicon Exegetes — all symbol glossaries

  • Paul Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory

  • Hans-Georg Gadamer, Truth and Method

  • Michel de Certeau, The Mystic Fable

  • Frank Kermode, The Genesis of Secrecy

Exercises

  • Produce a Samaelite pericope (invented “scriptural” passage + interpretation)

  • Draft a training guide on Exegesis of Silence and Absence

II. Symbologenesis & Iconic Language: The serpent that speaks through the image

Readings

  • Breviary, Thesis IX

  • Esalogy of the Serpent, Vol, III

  • Jean Baudrillard, Simulacra and Simulation

  • Aby Warburg, Mnemosyne Atlas

  • Carl G. Jung, Man and His Symbols

  • Georges Didi-Huberman, Fra Angelico: Dissemblance and Figuration

Exercises

  • Compose a 3-tiered iconological structure (image–myth–theory)

  • Curate a Samaelite “liturgical image map” for ritual use

III. Comparative Negative Theology: Theology through absence, contradiction, and apophasis

Readings

  • Dionysius the Areopagite, Mystical Theology

  • Meister Eckhart, Selected Sermons

  • Jean-Luc Marion, God Without Being

  • Michael Sells, Mystical Languages of Unsaying

  • Gershom Scholem, Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism

  • Alain de Libera, Mystique et philosophie

Exercises

  • Compose a homiletic text without positive assertions

  • Define a Samaelite eschatology of “dissolution into unknowability”

IV. Esoteric Historiography & Religious Genealogies: How truth arises in time without becoming history

Readings

  • Mircea Eliade, Myth of the Eternal Return

  • Jan Assmann, Cultural Memory and Early Civilization

  • Michel Foucault, Archaeology of Knowledge

  • Frances Yates, Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition

  • Pierre Hadot, Philosophy as a Way of Life

  • Giorgio Colli, After Nietzsche

Exercises

  • Create a Chronologia of Samaelite concept-formation

  • Compose a fictive epistolary correspondence between early Samaelite mystics

V. Advanced Ontology & Dialectical Collapse: What remains when even tension collapses

Readings

  • Reiner Schürmann, Broken Hegemonies

  • Quentin Meillassoux, After Finitude

  • Giorgio Agamben, The Use of Bodies

  • François Laruelle, The Superposition

  • Emanuele Severino, Techne and Destiny

Exercises

  • Construct a Samaelite concept beyond tension (e.g. Pre-Polemic Immanence)

  • Write a theological reflection titled: When the Serpent Eats Itself Twice

VI. Theory of Rite & Liturgical Architecture: Designing sacred acts as philosophical events

Readings

  • Treatise, Ch. “The Samaelite Liturgy”

  • Esalogy of the Serpent Vol. Vi

  • Victor Turner, The Ritual Process

  • Claude Lévi-Strauss, The Raw and the Cooked

  • Henri Corbin, Temple and Contemplation

  • Roberto Calasso, Ka / The Celestial Hunter

Exercises

  • Design a full Samaelite rite for a rare event (e.g., Rite of the First Silence)

  • Draft a document: “On the Training of the Hierurgical Voice”

Final Submission

The Exegetical Thesis (363.000+ characters)

  • Public Disputation