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(Note: For a complete history of Mountain Center, go to Fra. P.X.'s essay, "High Magick's Mountain.")
The property now known as Mountain Temple Center was originally purchased over thirty years ago by Michael and Shari Crowley as their private Phoenix residence. Though it still serves that purpose, it has also become a major local gathering place for the neopagan and esoteric community. This function began in the early 1990s when Michael Crowley formed a coven for Gardnerian Wicca in his home, cultivating a longstanding interest in paganism.
The decade of the 1990s saw a flowering of activity upon "The Mountain," including dozens of pagan gatherings and parties, classes and lectures on esoteric subjects. In 1994, Mountain Center first sponsored an official Golden Dawn temple, which has proven to be its most successful endeavor yet. 1994 also saw the inauguration of the Arizona University of Magick (AUM), which still exists today in the form of a regular lecture series (see our Events page.)
Mountain Center consists of a three-level residence containing a magical/spiritual library of several thousand volumes (one of the largest private libraries of its kind in the Southwest), a large collection of herbs and ointments, a general meeting space/ritual area, and a more secluded Temple chamber above for G.D. and other more sacred ceremonies. Outside is a large walled circle for public gatherings and ceremonies.
Two white wolf hybrids also live here, which seems to discourage the intrusion of unwanted visitors (e.g., burglars) and the occasional irate mob of pitchfork-wielding peasants.
Mountain Center promotes the exploration of all paths in magic and spirituality. Here one will find aspirants pursuing Wicca, Mystical Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Tantra, Chaos Magick, Thelema, and native religions (including the Afro-Carribbean traditions of Santeria and Voudon) as well. We are a very eclectic group, promoting all and hindering none. We are all firm in our position that as many are the breaths of man, so too are the ways to God.
All photographs are (c) 2001-2008 by Mountain Temple Center and may not be reproduced without permission.