aristasian reminiscence

The Aristasian Reminiscence

An (unauthorized) retrospective guide to the Feminine Celestial Empire.

Welcome to the Aristasian Reminiscence Project! What’s Aristasia? Goodness, I’m not quite sure even where to begin, and yet… that’s the topic of this site, is it not?

You can find a map of this entire site here. To begin, one must be clear that Aristasia no longer exists as a movement as far as I’m aware. Aristasia was often said to be many things, amongst which one finds:

• A creepy right-wing cult, with unclear and often unsettling origins, and every bit the disturbing associations one would expect of esoteric "traditionalists" from the mid-20th century.
• An S&M fetish organization, due to their early interest in, and promotion of, corporal punishment as part of their activities, which they claimed were consensual and completely not-sexual.
• A spiritual movement, worshiping God as Mother (and following a monotheistic feminine religion, known as Déanism) that exists to this day and takes many forms, a lot of which differ greatly from what Aristasia originally taught.
• A live-action roleplaying game featuring elaborate lore concerning another world where everyone is feminine.
• A micronation where women sought to secede from the aesthetics and ethos of the modern world and live together in the past.
• A Guénonian Traditionalist sect, who put a rather unique feminine spin on things, and believed we were living in an aesthetic, moral, and philosophical Dark Age, with grace and femininity having been replaced with patriarchal chaos.
• A lesbian separatist group, where they sought to build and curate all-feminine spaces and events, both online and off - this last one being how Aristasia was, initially presented to me, at very least...

Are any of these characterizations even remotely accurate, though? Many have been presented and pushed heavily, by tabloid sources, legitimate media and researchers, and even by Aristasians themselves. You’ll all have to ultimately draw your own conclusions. Via this site, perhaps I can gain and provide some clarity to the topic, though.

In theory, the "meaning" of Aristasia should be fairly clear-cut - they are essentialists, after all. Alas, it isn't so, and hours can be spent puzzling over the real meaning of this or that fact of Aristasian life.

TVtropes's page on Aristasia

The movement's history is complicated; so far, I've only covered a a small part of it, but I recommend reading about the group's origins there. You can also check out the page about Aristasian beliefs, then head to the page about Aristasian life. Be sure to read the Storm Clouds page, focusing on the massively problematic aspects entwined with Aristasia during its existence.

Other parts of interest might include the section on the lore surrounding Aristasia, or the page of essays and audio lectures produced by Aristasians over the years. I do encourage you to read the page about this site itself to better understand my perspective. Please visit the changelog for regular updates on this strange endeavor. To visit, and (one might hope?) follow this site on Neocities, click here.

But who...?

Call me Claire Mayhew. I never quite considered myself Aristasian, and never met any Aristasians in person. I was first exposed to Aristasia as a thirteen-year-old looking for LGBTQ resources online. I was able to participate and lurk their various forums and chatrooms because I childishly lied about my age. They would likely have never spoken to me had this not been the case. I posted rarely using several different names, some of which I don't even remember, almost always just to ask questions.

Later, when I became an adult, I had an Aristasian persona in Second Life for roleplay ("life theatre", they call it) back in the late aughts, and attended parties, lectures, and church services there. I guess that I counted as an outer-circle Aristasian-in-Telluria? Unsure here.

Either way, this site has no connection whatsoever to the so-called "Old Guard" Aristasians or later Chelouranyans, and is in no way endorsed by them. Aristasia as a movement no longer exists online, and nor does Chelouranya.

I'm also not a Filianist nor affiliated with any Déanic groups, though I appreciate what those groups are doing to preserve Aristasian material while investigating the unsavory parts.

As of March of 2024-ish, I've noticed that this site has inspired renewed interest in Aristasia and its precursor groups. I'm not affiliated with any other sites about Aristasia, though, and while anyone is welcome to ask questions, please note that I've no interest in reviving this.

Perhaps connect...

You can contact me here. Oh, and for whatever reason or perhaps precisely none at all, we've now got a small chatbox below where one may leave a short, public message if you happen to wander into this corner of the web. Consider signing and leaving a mark.

aristasia?

Though it no longer exists, Aristasia was a group of women who abandoned men and the modern world. Instead, they made their own country, just for ladies, with an elaborate belief system and mythology.

Fond of a unique form of roleplaying they called “life theatre," Aristasians were active online and in the UK for some three decades, with murky, secretive origins.

Oh, and early on? They also practiced in-character physical punishment, which they claimed was for correction rather than sadomasochistic purposes.

The group dissolved in the mid-2010s. Was it a roleplaying game, a unique fandom, a goddess-based religion, a lesbian separatist commune, or a sketchy right-wing cult?

why reminisce?

This unofficial guide aims to shed light on Aristasia by compiling archived materials, accounts, and context. I was part of the Second Life Aristasian community. I guess I was considered an outer-circle member.

Aristasia no longer aligns with my values, but I still miss the people involved. While I’m not endorsing Aristasia in any of its incarnations, it had a lasting impact, both positive and negative, on lots of people.

Even after its dissolution, traces persist, both online and offline. It introduced Filianism to the broader spiritual community and held other meaningful aspects worth further exploration.

Welcome

Welcome to the Aristasian Reminiscence! Since you've found this peculiar website, please consider signing the guestbook. You can also contact me if you've questions. To visit, and (one might hope?) follow this site on Neocities, click here.

While not featuring any overt nudity, nor pornography, this site is not appropriate for minors. It discusses sensitive subjects (such as sadomasochism, physical abuse, and even fascism) and presents links to archived material without content warnings. Proceed at your own risk.

As is traditional on neocities itself and the small web, I am providing the buttons above if one would like to link to this site. Please download them yourself. Do not hotlink, and do not link to this site from sites primarily featuring content for minors.

Keep in Mind

Regardless of what any past Aristasians or adjacent would've thought, this site and its webmistress will always be LGBTQ-friendly (obviously), and decidedly unwelcoming to TERFs, racists and other bigots (including misandrists). Lets all try to be better.

Aristasia's history as a queer women's movement is important to remember when trying to understand it, and that was how I originally found links to it.

Nevertheless, earlier Aristasian groups have been criticized for associations with right wing politics. Almost all of these criticisms are justified, and we will explore them. Read the Storm Clouds section for more on that.

I also want to say that the Aristasians I knew online (only) (circa 2000-2010) were, for the most part kind and genuine people. This situation is strange and complicated, and I admit I don't fully grasp how this all transpired.