In any religion, a monk is largely defined by the manner of discipline that is proscribed to them by the faith which they uphold. For the Silsilah Monks, that discipline is called Hijira, an arabic word that means "the breaking of bonds." Hijira, a term that is used to denote a philosophy of life, a set of exercises, and even, among other things, a witch's card game, can only be begun in earnest by those who've acknowledged the adversarial nature of this world and are committed to using this fact to their benefit. Within the discipline of Hijira, every problem is an opportunity, and every curse will be transformed into a blessing, but only if you are willing to strive against the forces that would break you so that they can make you stronger and perhaps, someday, free.
The Silsilah Monks know well that there is no other way to Divinity but through Hell, and the sacred practice of Hijira is the key to becoming powerful once one's fallen into the hands of the Devils and the Damned.
The Chain of Commend: Anasbesti, Effendi, and the sorry state of the Amerced
by Propater Simon Z.
Internal Hejira: The Grim Philosophy of the Silsilah Monks
by Propater Simon Z.
The Lost Myth of St. Sysyphus
an excerpt from The Goddess Path
External Hejira
Physical Exersizes and Ritual Observances for all Chain Monks from Beginner to Advanced.
Esoteric Hejira
Rules and Recommendations for Some of the Basic Magical Exersizes.
Mankind doesn't fit in very well with the rest of the animal kingdom, and that alien quality of man is what we seek to understand. On the surface, we are clearly beasts, one certainly doesn't need a degree in veterinary medicine to see that, but human beings are also undeniably something else, and the Ahd al-Jann would see that pure human potential for something greater than a mere mechanical service to our genetic drives set free and writ large.
The Silsilah Monks exist to understand the flesh that we believe contains, and often controls, our spirits. We seek to understand the ways of animals so that we can transcend them, and in mastering these animal bodies which contain our spirits, unleash the full potential, and numerous benefits, of both. Our studies run from the meditative and the athletic often to the ecstatic and the lycanthropic as well, and can encompass such diverse fields as yoga, zoology, anthropology, the martial arts and the medical sciences, and much, much more.
We are empirical idealists in search of apotheosis, and we've begun this long search at our skins.