Esoteric Order of Dagon
Encyclopedia
The Esoteric Order of Dagon is a fictional cult
in the Cthulhu mythos
of H. P. Lovecraft
.
after Captain Obed Marsh returned from the South Seas with the dark religion circa 1838. It quickly took root due to its promises of expensive gold artifacts and fish, which were desired by the primarily-fishing town.
The central beings worshipped by the Order were the Deep Ones, Father Dagon
, Mother Hydra, and, to a lesser extent, Cthulhu
. The Deep Ones were seen largely as intermediaries between the various gods, rather than as gods themselves. Even so, the cultists sacrificed various locals to the Deep Ones at specific times in exchange for a limitless supply of gold and fish.
The Esoteric Order of Dagon (meeting in what Derleth described as "a one-time Masonic hall" ) had three oaths which members had to take. The first was an oath of secrecy, the second, an oath of loyalty, and the third, an oath to marry a Deep One and bear or sire its child.
The Order was seemingly destroyed when one of Obed Marsh's lost descendants sent the U.S. Treasury Department to seize the town. As a result, the town was more or less destroyed, and the Order was thought disbanded.
Source: H. P. Lovecraft "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" and August Derleth "The Trail of Cthulhu"
(not to be confused with the occult order known as the Esoteric order of Dagon - see external links below) was founded in 1973 and is devoted to scholarship related to H.P. Lovecraft and the works of the Weird Tales
school of writers. Its current Official Editor is critic and scholar S.T. Joshi. Quarterly mailings of the APA (which are a collation of zine
s by individual members) are often used as a test-bed for critical work on Lovecraft and other weird tales writers. All mailings are permanently archived in the Lovecraft Special Collection at John Hay Library
of Brown University
.
) and Bill Wallace. In 1973 Roger Bryant, an Ohio devotee, began the EOD under its current name.
Early charter members included Claire Beck (who had printed and published, under his Futile Press imprint, an edition of Lovecraft's Commonplace Book); Harry Morris Jr; Meade Frierson; Stuart David Schiff, publisher of Whispers (Magazine/Anthologies)
; R. Alain Everts; Ben Indick; Ken Faig Jr (who joined with 7th mailing and has been continuously in the APA until the present day); Dirk W. Mosig
; David Drake
; Robert Weinberg
; J. Vernon Shea
; Chet Williamson
; Tom Collins; Crispin Burnham; Will Hart; Glenn Lord
.
Further members came and went—those still in the EOD today include S.T. Joshi; Scott Connors; David E. Schultz; Donald R. Burleson; and Leigh Blackmore
; Past members include George Wetzel; Bernadette Bosky; Larry Baker;Robert M. Price
; David C. Smith
With the 14th mailing, Roger Bryant stepped down as official Editor and Joe Moudry was elected in his place as EOD's second Official Editor. Moudry relinquished his place as Official editor to Bernadette Bosky with the 26th mailing, whose term was short-lived. In Oct 1980 Mollie Werba became the EOD's fourth Official Editor. Werba (who married member Donald Burleson) continued until 1987, when S.T. Joshi became the fifth official Editor of the EOD, a position he has continued to occupy for over twenty years.
, A. Langley Searles
(died 7 May 2009) and others. Further members included Steve Mariconda, Ken Neily and other important scholars in the field of Lovecraft studies.
By the beginning of 1992, EOD was well past its 70th mailing and in Sept 1997 celebrated its 100th mailing. The 150th mailing occurred in April 2010.
More recent members have included Douglas A. Anderson
, John Goodrich, Alan Gullette, and Todd Fischer.
Longtime member and EOD historian Ben Indick died in September 2009.
The EOD APA has a strong membership which will likely see it continue for many years to come. Other current members include Scott Briggs, Fred Phillips, Danny Lovecraft (Australia), Martin Andersson (Sweden), Jim Dapkus, T.R. Livesey, John Haefele, Steve Walker, Graeme Phillips (UK), Henrik Harksen (Denmark), Michael Ashley
(UK), Derrick Hussey (publisher of Hippocampus Press
), John Navroth, W.H. Pugmire, T.E. Grau and Juha-Matti Rajala (Finland).
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
in the Cthulhu mythos
Cthulhu Mythos
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe, based on the work of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.The term was first coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent of Lovecraft, who used the name of the creature Cthulhu - a central figure in Lovecraft literature and the focus...
of H. P. Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
.
Esoteric Order of Dagon in the mythos
Esoteric Order of Dagon was the primary religion in InnsmouthInnsmouth
Innsmouth is a fictional town in the writings of H. P. Lovecraft, part of the Lovecraft Country setting of the Cthulhu Mythos.Lovecraft first used the name "Innsmouth" in his 1920 short story "Celephaïs" , where it refers to a fictional town in New England...
after Captain Obed Marsh returned from the South Seas with the dark religion circa 1838. It quickly took root due to its promises of expensive gold artifacts and fish, which were desired by the primarily-fishing town.
The central beings worshipped by the Order were the Deep Ones, Father Dagon
Dagon
Dagon was originally an Assyro-Babylonian fertility god who evolved into a major northwest Semitic god, reportedly of grain and fish and/or fishing...
, Mother Hydra, and, to a lesser extent, Cthulhu
Cthulhu
Cthulhu is a fictional character that first appeared in the short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published in the pulp magazine Weird Tales in 1928. The character was created by writer H. P...
. The Deep Ones were seen largely as intermediaries between the various gods, rather than as gods themselves. Even so, the cultists sacrificed various locals to the Deep Ones at specific times in exchange for a limitless supply of gold and fish.
The Esoteric Order of Dagon (meeting in what Derleth described as "a one-time Masonic hall" ) had three oaths which members had to take. The first was an oath of secrecy, the second, an oath of loyalty, and the third, an oath to marry a Deep One and bear or sire its child.
The Order was seemingly destroyed when one of Obed Marsh's lost descendants sent the U.S. Treasury Department to seize the town. As a result, the town was more or less destroyed, and the Order was thought disbanded.
Source: H. P. Lovecraft "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" and August Derleth "The Trail of Cthulhu"
Esoteric Order of Dagon in Media
- In the movie DagonDagon (film)Dagon is a 2001 horror film directed by Stuart Gordon and written by Dennis Paoli. Despite the title, the plot is actually based on H. P. Lovecraft's novella The Shadow Over Innsmouth rather than on his earlier short story "Dagon" .-Plot:...
, the Esoteric Order of Dagon appears as the primary antagonist. - In the movie CthulhuCthulhu (2007 film)Cthulhu is a 2007 American horror movie, directed by Dan Gildark and co-written by Grant Cogswell and Daniel Gildark. The film is loosely based on the short story "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" by H. P. Lovecraft....
, hero Russ's father is the head of the Esoteric Order of Dagon. - The Esoteric Order is also featured in many Call of Cthulhu role-playing gameCall of Cthulhu (role-playing game)Call of Cthulhu is a horror fiction role-playing game based on H. P. Lovecraft's story of the same name and the associated Cthulhu Mythos.The game, often abbreviated as CoC, is published by Chaosium.-Setting:...
supplements. - The Esoteric Order of Dagon briefly appears in the Anno Dracula seriesAnno Dracula seriesThe Anno Dracula series by Kim Newman—named after Anno Dracula , the series' first novel—is a work of fantasy depicting an alternate history in which the heroes of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula fail to stop Count Dracula's conquest of Great Britain, resulting in a world where vampires are common and...
story "The Other Side of Midnight". - The Esoteric Order of Dagon is a primary antagonist in the video game Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the EarthCall of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the EarthCall of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth is a Lovecraftian horror first-person action-adventure game developed by Headfirst Productions and published by Bethesda Softworks in 2005, in conjunction with 2K Games. The game was released for the PC and Xbox systems; the Xbox version is officially...
. - The Esoteric Order of Dagon is a primary protagonist, of sorts, in the novel "Other Nations" by T&P Marsh
- The Esoteric Order of Dagon is one of the main enemies of the New Earth Government in the CthulhuTechCthulhuTechCthulhuTech is a science-fiction and horror roleplaying game created by Wildfire LLC and published by Sandstorm that combines elements of the Cthulhu Mythos with anime-style mecha, horror, magic and futuristic action...
RPG, where it employs giant aquatic mechaMechaA mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
to fight the forces of humanity.
E.O.D. Amateur Press Association
The Esoteric Order of Dagon amateur press associationAmateur press association
An amateur press association is a group of people who produce individual pages or magazines that are sent to a Central Mailer for collation and distribution to all members of the group.-Organisation:...
(not to be confused with the occult order known as the Esoteric order of Dagon - see external links below) was founded in 1973 and is devoted to scholarship related to H.P. Lovecraft and the works of the Weird Tales
Weird Tales
Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
school of writers. Its current Official Editor is critic and scholar S.T. Joshi. Quarterly mailings of the APA (which are a collation of zine
Zine
A zine is most commonly a small circulation publication of original or appropriated texts and images. More broadly, the term encompasses any self-published work of minority interest usually reproduced via photocopier....
s by individual members) are often used as a test-bed for critical work on Lovecraft and other weird tales writers. All mailings are permanently archived in the Lovecraft Special Collection at John Hay Library
John Hay Library
The John Hay Library is the second oldest library on the campus of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Located on Prospect Street, opposite the Van Wickle Gates, it replaced the outgrown former library, now Robinson Hall, as the main library on the campus...
of Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
.
History
As early as 1971 an APA dedicated to the study of the life and works of Lovecraft had been proposed by Texan writer Joseph F. Pumilia (a member of the famous Turkey City Writer's WorkshopTurkey City Writer's Workshop
Turkey City Writer's Workshop is a peer-to-peer, professional science fiction writer's workshop in Texas. Founded in 1973 and still ongoing today, it was consciously modeled after the east coast Milford Writer's Workshop...
) and Bill Wallace. In 1973 Roger Bryant, an Ohio devotee, began the EOD under its current name.
Early charter members included Claire Beck (who had printed and published, under his Futile Press imprint, an edition of Lovecraft's Commonplace Book); Harry Morris Jr; Meade Frierson; Stuart David Schiff, publisher of Whispers (Magazine/Anthologies)
Whispers (Magazine/Anthologies)
Whispers was probably the most widely respected and one of the most ambitious of the new horror and fantasy fiction magazines of the 1970s. It became at least as visible and nearly as influential as a series of mostly original anthologies in the 1980s....
; R. Alain Everts; Ben Indick; Ken Faig Jr (who joined with 7th mailing and has been continuously in the APA until the present day); Dirk W. Mosig
Dirk W. Mosig
Yōzan Dirk W. Mosig is a psychologist, historian, literary critic and ordained Zen monk noted for his critical work on H. P. Lovecraft. He was born in Germany and lived for several years in Argentina before emigrating to the United States. He received his Ph.D at the University of Florida in...
; David Drake
David Drake
David Drake is an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran who has worked as a lawyer, he is now one of the premier authors of the military science fiction subgenre.-Biography:...
; Robert Weinberg
Robert Weinberg
Robert Allan Weinberg is a Daniel K. Ludwig Professor for Cancer Research at MIT and American Cancer Society Research Professor; his research is in the area of oncogenes and the genetic basis of human cancer. Weinberg is also affiliated with the Broad Institute and is a founding member of the...
; J. Vernon Shea
J. Vernon Shea
Joseph Vernon Shea was an American author of horror, fantasy, poetry, and essays; and a correspondent of H. P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and August Derleth....
; Chet Williamson
Chet Williamson
Chet Williamson is the author of nearly twenty books and over a hundred short stories published in The New Yorker, Playboy, Esquire, and many other magazines and anthologies.-Biography:...
; Tom Collins; Crispin Burnham; Will Hart; Glenn Lord
Glenn Lord
Glenn Lord has been an agent, editor, and publisher of the prose and poetry of fellow Texan Robert E. Howard , and the first and most important researcher and scholar of Howard’s life and writings.- Biography :...
.
Further members came and went—those still in the EOD today include S.T. Joshi; Scott Connors; David E. Schultz; Donald R. Burleson; and Leigh Blackmore
Leigh Blackmore
Leigh David Blackmore is an Australian horror writer, critic, editor, occultist and musician. He served as the second President of the Australian Horror Writers Association . His work has been nominated twice for the Ditmar Award, once for fiction and once for criticism...
; Past members include George Wetzel; Bernadette Bosky; Larry Baker;Robert M. Price
Robert M. Price
Robert McNair Price is an American theologian and writer. He teaches philosophy and religion at the Johnnie Colemon Theological Seminary, is professor of biblical criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute, and the author of a number of books on theology and the historicity of Jesus, including...
; David C. Smith
David C. Smith (author)
David C. Smith, born August 10, 1952, is an American author of fantasy, horror, and suspense fiction, a medical editor, and an essayist. He is best known for his heroic fantasy novels, including his collaborations with Richard L. Tierney featuring characters created by Robert E...
With the 14th mailing, Roger Bryant stepped down as official Editor and Joe Moudry was elected in his place as EOD's second Official Editor. Moudry relinquished his place as Official editor to Bernadette Bosky with the 26th mailing, whose term was short-lived. In Oct 1980 Mollie Werba became the EOD's fourth Official Editor. Werba (who married member Donald Burleson) continued until 1987, when S.T. Joshi became the fifth official Editor of the EOD, a position he has continued to occupy for over twenty years.
The Modern E.O.D
Joshi brought in new members including Marc Michaud of Necronomicon PressNecronomicon Press
Necronomicon Press is an American small press publishing house specialising in fiction, poetry and literary criticism relating to the horror and fantasy genres. It is run by Marc A. Michaud....
, A. Langley Searles
A. Langley Searles
A[rthur] Langley Searles was an American chemist, a science fiction enthusiast and bibliographer and historian of the field, from Bronxville, New York....
(died 7 May 2009) and others. Further members included Steve Mariconda, Ken Neily and other important scholars in the field of Lovecraft studies.
By the beginning of 1992, EOD was well past its 70th mailing and in Sept 1997 celebrated its 100th mailing. The 150th mailing occurred in April 2010.
More recent members have included Douglas A. Anderson
Douglas A. Anderson
Douglas Allen Anderson is an author and editor on the subjects of fantasy and medieval literature, specializing in textual analysis of the works of J. R. R...
, John Goodrich, Alan Gullette, and Todd Fischer.
Longtime member and EOD historian Ben Indick died in September 2009.
The EOD APA has a strong membership which will likely see it continue for many years to come. Other current members include Scott Briggs, Fred Phillips, Danny Lovecraft (Australia), Martin Andersson (Sweden), Jim Dapkus, T.R. Livesey, John Haefele, Steve Walker, Graeme Phillips (UK), Henrik Harksen (Denmark), Michael Ashley
Mike Ashley (writer)
Michael Ashley is a British bibliographer, author and editor of science fiction, mystery, and fantasy.He edits the long-running Mammoth Book series of short story anthologies, each arranged around a particular theme in mystery, fantasy, or science fiction...
(UK), Derrick Hussey (publisher of Hippocampus Press
Hippocampus Press
Hippocampus Press is an American publisher of fantasy, horror and science fiction, and specializes in reprints or first editions of work by authors such as H. P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith. One of its major projects is the 5-volume set of Lovecraft's Collected Essays...
), John Navroth, W.H. Pugmire, T.E. Grau and Juha-Matti Rajala (Finland).