[6] It was founded after the 1963 publication of its holy book, Principia Discordia,[7] written by Greg Hill with Kerry Wendell Thornley, the two working under the pseudonyms Malaclypse the Younger and Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst.

[10] The foundational document of Discordianism is Principia Discordia, fourth edition (1970), written by Malaclypse the Younger, an alias of Gregory Hill.

[8] Principia Discordia often hints that Discordianism was founded as a dialectic antithesis to more popular religions based on order,[11] although the rhetoric throughout the book describes chaos as a much more underlying impulse of the universe.

[18] The sect of Discordianism founded by Malaclypse the Younger and Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst is known as the Paratheo-Anametamystikhood of Eris Esoteric (POEE), a non-prophet irreligious disorganisation.

[27] Since the first edition, various approaches to a Discordian organization chart – called in the work is "disorganization" and later "disorganizational matrix" – have differed from volume to volume, but have included especially the House of the Apostles of Eris, which is inclusive of the founders as the Apostles, of the Golden Apple Corps and Holders of the Sacred Chao, of the priesthood and saints, of the episkoposes, and even of "heretical" or "protestant" internal opponents of some of these, but not inclusive of the popes, legionnaires, disciples, and various other parties.

[28] But the House of the Apostles of Eris continued to be credited as the sanctioning body of the later editions, and remained the top division of the POEE "Eristocracy".

[23] "DOGMA III – HISTORY 32, 'COSMOGONY'" in Principia Discordia, states:[30] In the beginning there was VOID, who had two daughters; one (the smaller) was that of BEING, named ERIS, and one (the larger) was of NON-BEING, named ANERIS.The sterile Aneris becomes jealous of Eris (who was born pregnant), and starts making existent things non-existent.

Cusack points out that this is "distilled into a teaching about the ultimate fate of humans: 'so it shall be that non-existence shall take us back from existence and that nameless spirituality shall return to the Void, like a tired child home from a very wild circus.

[34] The Hand of Eris has appeared in a public-outreach publication by NASA,[35] though planetary symbols play only a minor role in modern astronomy.

[36] The "Original Snub" is the Discordian name for the events leading up to the judgement of Paris, although more focus is put on the actions of Eris.

Having been snubbed, Eris creates a golden apple with the word kallisti (Ancient Greek: καλλίστη, 'for the prettiest') inscribed in it.

This, the Apple of Discord, is a notable symbol in Discordianism for its inclusion in the Sacred Chao,[37] and is traditionally described as being made of gold.

[46] A unique symbol created in Discordianism, the Sacred Chao is said to have been devised by the Apostle Hung Mung in ancient China.

[49] Operation Mindfuck is an important practice in the Discordian religion, in which "all national calamities, assassinations, or conspiracies" are publicly attributed to the Bavarian Illuminati, an 18th-century secret society, in an attempt to "sow the culture with paranoia".

[52] Operation Mindfuck uses many of the recurring themes of Discordianism, including "hidden knowledge, secret societies, chaos magic, ancient cults, mysterious rituals and conspiracy theories".

[53] Stuart Rathbone described it as "a deliberate campaign of revolutionary disinformation" and notes that "many of these topics have had a lasting impact on anarchism, the pseudo-sciences and even mainstream culture.

[55] In 1978, a copy of the work from Kerry Thornley, under the title The Principia Discordia or How the West Was Lost, was placed in the HSCA JFK collections as document 010857.

[57] The Discordian movement encompasses a diverse array of works, both real and fictitious, that explore themes of chaos, satire, and alternative spirituality.

Chasing Eris by Brenton Clutterbuck provides an in-depth examination of Discordianism's impact on various aspects of culture and society, offering interviews and insights into the movement's global reach and influence.

[60] Academic interest in Discordianism has grown over the years, with scholars examining its role in the broader context of new religious movements (NRMs) and its reflection of the social and cultural upheavals of the 20th century.

[5] However, David G. Robertson writes that "Although Hill and Thornley started Discordianism as a joke, then, they came in time to believe, if not entirely trust, in Eris.

This approach mirrored the broader countercultural movements that sought to upend conventional thinking and embrace new forms of expression.

The trilogy’s mix of conspiracy theory, satire, and occultism deeply resonated with the countercultural mindset and has been credited with influencing later works in both literature and popular culture.

In particular, Discordianism's embrace of paradox and chaos has inspired movements that reject traditional religious hierarchies in favor of more fluid and adaptable structures.