Spiritual Technology

The group was established in 1996 by the Serbian psychologist and occultist Živorad Mihajlović Slavinski and is considered the successor to the Ecclesia Gnostica Alba (EGA). The EGA operated as one of the first Gnostic churches in Yugoslavia between 1986 and 1996 ("Gnostic" here designating affiliation with modern esoteric currents drawing on Gnosticism rather than any Christian denomination), maintaining close ties with Michael Bertiaux's Gnostic Voudon tradition and Kenneth Grant's Typhonian Order (usually referred to as the "Typhonian O.T.O." by Grant, Slavinski, and their followers, this designation has been legally contested and the organization's current official name is the Typhonian Order). The group's practices are primarily oriented toward spiritual healing and mental well-being, situating the movement within the broader framework of "New Age" spirituality. Consequently, affiliation remains flexible and non-exclusive, allowing members to integrate these techniques with other spiritual or religious beliefs. Members can attain certification as "Masters" in specific techniques, such as PEAT (Primordial Energy Activation and Transcendence), enabling them to facilitate sessions for clients. Advanced practitioners may further qualify as "Masters of Masters," granting them the authority to certify new Masters. These certified practitioners are active not only across the former Yugoslav states but also throughout Western Europe, Russia, the United States, and Egypt, forming a decentralized transnational network that represents a significant expansion beyond the localized Yugoslav esoteric focus of the EGA. The group emphasizes the subjective experience and experimentation of the practitioner over dogmatic adherence. This approach was emphazised by Slavinski throughout all his bibliography, where he described Spiritual Technology as a spiritual tool tailored to the modern individual, through its promise of fast results. While the primary objective of the methodology is the neutralization of polarities and psychological liberation, this process is understood by Slavinski as a gateway to Gnosis, a goal more explicitly foregrounded in his writings than in everyday practitioner discourse. The EGA initially adopted the Enlightenment Intensive, the technique originally developed by Charles Berner (1929–2007), later known as Yogeshwar Muni, and Slavinski subsequently developed his own adaptation, the Gnostic Intensive. Both aim to facilitate a direct, transitory, gnostic experience, though the practice of Intensives is now peripheral within the current framework. The organizational structure remains largely decentralized, relying on the charisma of Slavinski's legacy and the perceived efficacy of his methods to maintain cohesion. Following Slavinski's death on February 5th, 2022, no formally designated successor emerged. Leadership competition has since developed informally, centered less on control of the "Spiritual Technology" name than on claims to the correct interpretation and application of his techniques. This has resulted in the diversification of methods, with several practitioners developing their own derivative techniques and brands. Due to this decentralization, exact membership numbers are difficult to verify; however, based on workshop participation and engagement with the group's materials, a conservative estimate suggests between 5,000 and 6,000 practitioners. The findings presented in this work are based on five years of fieldwork conducted across multiple periods for the author's doctoral thesis, consisting of participant observation and in-depth interviews with current and former members, as well as individuals personally close to Slavinski. The author approached the field as an external researcher without prior affiliation with the group, conducting sessions as a participant-observer.