posted September 01, 2013 07:02 AM            

one can't deny that if you speak about occultists in the past century this guy will show up!

and before i start linking all his books here, i found this blog, where they did a lot of the 'hard work' for us, i'll divide into two next posts, copied and pasted from it, the first stuff about him that is true, secondly stuff you heard about him that isn't true.

posted September 01, 2013 07:10 AM            

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10. Aleister Crowley wrote Gerald Gardner’s Wiccan initiation rituals.
Gerald Gardner

Gerald Gardner

OK, no, Gardner didn’t pay Crowley to write the Wiccan initiation rituals. And it’s not that Crowley sat down to write initiation rituals for Wicca. What happened, apparently, was this: Gardner took a bunch of Crowley’s writings, and material from Liber AL vel Legis, and sort of cut and pasted them with a few words changed and a few words added. From this he created initiation rituals, the Charge of the Goddess, the Drawing Down the Moon ritual, and more. For the full account, see Rodney Orpheus’ essay, “A New and Greater Pagan Cult: Gerald Gardner & Ordo Templi Orientis.”

9. Aleister Crowley knew the founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard.
Aleister Crowley L. Ron Hubbard

L. Ron Hubbard

And by know him, we mean… well, Aleister Crowley at least heard about L. Ron Hubbard – enough that he got “fairly frantic” when contemplating the idiocy that he was hearing about. Look, that’s about as well as we think anyone should know L. Ron Hubbard. The lack of any real contact, however, didn’t stop Hubbard from claiming that Crowley was his “very good friend,” as you can hear in this recording where Hubbard pronounces Crowley’s name wrong, discusses a book by Crowley that doesn’t exist, and concludes by saying that Crowley is “Very, very, something or other.”

Aleister Crowley had learned about Hubbard’s friendship with Jack Parsons, who at the time was Master of Agapé Lodge No. 2, one of the American lodges of Aleister Crowley’s Ordo Templi Orientis. Hubbard and Parsons had started a business together and began the ridiculous Babalon Working. Crowley was right to be frantic; the business partnership ultimately ended in shambles, Hubbard ran off with Parsons’ boat, and went on to start his sci-fi religion, Scientology.

8. Aleister Crowley was actually a nice guy with a good sense of humor.

The common defect of all mystical systems previous to that of the Aeon whose Law is Thelema is that there has been no place for Laughter.
Just, not always at the same time. Aleister Crowley’s best humor was often at someone else’s expense, but overall he had a kind heart and a deep concern for the well-being of every man, woman, and child alive. Indeed, in 1924 he dedicated his life to serving humankind, and from then on he worked tirelessly and exclusively for the cause of human liberty.

It would be impossible to survey Crowley’s extraordinary wit in this small space. Suffice to say, all of his prose is packed with humor. Aleister Crowley’s original writing is far funnier than any of the parodies of his work. Below are a few short examples of his excellent jests. If you have any other favorite witticisms from Aleister Crowley, please share in the comments!

“One would go mad if one took the Bible seriously; but to take it seriously one must be already mad.” — Liber ABA, Part II, Chapter XVI

“May the New Year bring you courage to break your resolutions early! My own plan is to swear off every kind of virtue, so that I triumph even when I fall!” — Moonchild

“Theosophist: A person who talks about Yoga, and does no work.” – Liber ABA, Glossary

“Some men are born sodomites, some achieve sodomy, and some have sodomy thrust upon them…” — The Scented Garden of Abdullah the Satirist of Shiraz

“[I adopt the phrase 'Holy Guardian Angel'] Because since all theories of the universe are absurd it is better to talk in the language of one which is patently absurd, so as to mortify the metaphysical man.” — The Temple Of Solomon the King in The Equinox I, no. 1.

7. Aleister Crowley inspired the counterculture movement of the 1960s.
Aleister Crowley Timothy Leary

Timothy Leary as Aleister Crowley

Most people are quite aware of Aleister Crowley’s censored appearance on the cover of Sgt. Pepper among the Beatles’ other heroes. Few, though, have gone on to ask why Aleister Crowley made the cut. John Lennon made the connection clear in an interview with Playboy when he said that “The whole Beatle idea was to do what you want, right? To take your own responsibility.” Lennon was paraphrasing “Do what thou wilt,” which is one of the central precepts of Thelema, the religion founded by Aleister Crowley. Thelema is the Greek word which means “will” and teaches that we each must discover our individual inmost nature, described as the “True Will.”

The Beatles were only the first of many counterculture rock musicians in the 1960s to openly cite Aleister Crowley as an influence. Led Zeppelin‘s guitarist Jimmy Page was very interested in Aleister Crowley and he remains a prominent Thelemite today. We have even recently learned that Frank Zappa was reading Crowley in 1968.

Apart from rock stars, who helped to popularize the writings of Aleister Crowley, we can also look at some of the people who revolutionized western culture in other, perhaps more deep and lasting ways. To start with, let’s consider where these musicians may have heard about Aleister Crowley. Perhaps the most likely candidate is Harry Smith, a Thelemite whose influence on folk and rock music cannot be overstated. Aleister Crowley also once dined with Aldous Huxley in Berlin, and the rumor goes that Crowley introduced him to peyote. Timothy Leary saw himself as continuing Crowley’s work, and said so on national television. Check out this clip:

These are only a few of the major streams of influence that Aleister Crowley had in shaping the counterculture movement of the 1960s. There is much more to explore, including Crowley’s efforts to make Eastern philosophy more accessible to the West, which helped to inspire the whole New Age movement. For more complete explorations, you can start by reading the best biographies of Aleister Crowley:

Perdurabo: The Life of Aleister Crowley, by Richard Kaczynski
Aleister Crowley: The Biography, by Tobias Churton

6. Aleister Crowley was one of the earliest published homoerotic poets in the UK.
Aleister Crowley homoerotic poet

Aleister Crowley in his Cambridge years, 1895-1898

At a time when it was illegal to be gay in the UK, when being convicted of sodomy could mean hard labor, Aleister Crowley was publishing verse that could have easily landed him in prison. Indeed, many of Aleister Crowley’s books were banned and/or burned because of the sexuality portrayed in them. Crowley was bisexual and wrote poetry across the spectrum of taboo, whether homosexual or not.

As a notable example, Aleister Crowley published White Stains in Amsterdam in 1898, under the pseudonym of George Archibald Bishop. All but a few copies of the first edition of this book were seized and destroyed by British customs. This came only three years after Oscar Wilde was sent to prison for his poetic allusions to homosexuality.

Later in Crowley’s life, he would continue to write sexual poetry which still shocks people to read even in the 21st century of the common era. For perhaps the most stunning example of this, see his poem inspired by his love of Leah Hirsig entitled Leah Sublime.

5. Aleister Crowley faked his own death.
Fernando Pessoa on Portuguese currency

No, we’re not claiming that Aleister Crowley is still alive and hanging out with Elvis. His death in 1947 was very real and his body was cremated. But before that, in 1930, Aleister Crowley worked with his friend Fernando Pessoa to fake his death at the Boca do Inferno near Lisbon. Crowley left a sad note about heartbreak at the top of this dangerous rock formation, the implication being that he had jumped to his death. Pessoa, the celebrated Portuguese poet, followed up by feeding suggestive ideas to the local papers concerning the occult symbols that Crowley had used to decorate his note, and telling them that he had seen Crowley’s ghost the next day. The papers ran with it, and announced Crowley’s suicide, much to the amusement of both Crowley and Pessoa. Some weeks later, Crowley arrived unannounced at an exhibit of some of his paintings in Berlin. For more about Fernando Pessoa and his brief friendship with Aleister Crowley, see The Magical World of Fernando Pessoa.

4. Aleister Crowley was a spy who worked for the Allies during World War II.
Aleister Crowley v-sign

Aleister Crowley and Winston Churchill against Hitler

We’ve written here before about some of Aleister Crowley’s activities during World War II. In our post, “V for Victory,” we explained how Crowley’s idea to use the “v-sign” as a magical foil to the Nazis’ swastika was picked up by Churchill. In that same post, we discussed Crowley’s French propaganda poem, “La Gauloise,” and how it was received by de Gaulle, set to music and played on BBC radio. We also discussed this briefly and provided some fun graphics along these lines in our post, “The Answer to 1984 is 666.”

Ian Fleming, the future author of the James Bond novels, was at that time a Navy intelligence officer. He knew Crowley and hatched several schemes to use Crowley to feed misinformation to the Nazis through Rudolph Hess. it is widely speculated that the eventual capture of Hess was thanks to Aleister Crowley’s work as a spy.

Crowley also seems to have done this in World War I when he created some badly written pro-German propaganda, clearly intended to make the Germans look bad.

You can learn all about Aleister Crowley’s activities as a spook in Secret Agent 666, by Richard Spence.

3.Aleister Crowley tore up his British passport and declared independence for Ireland.

Ireland had a special place in Crowley’s heart. He called himself an Irishman inThe Book of Lies, wrote a poem for St. Patrick’s Day, and even penned a Declaration of Independence of the Irish Republic. He also had some thoughts on an improvement to the flag of Ireland in flashing colors, which he expressed in a letter to the editor of the New York Times, published July 21, 1915:

“The true flag of Ireland is a red sunblaze on a green ground. This is symbolical not only of Ireland’s geographical position as the sentinel of the western gate of Europe, but of her traditional history.”

Here’s our rendition of Crowley’s description for a new Irish flag:
Irish Flag as proposed by Aleister Crowley

Irish Flag as proposed by Aleister Crowley

Ireland today faces many issues for which Aleister Crowley would certainly be able to offer some guidance. We have written before on Irish politics, including the blasphemy law and the Euro crisis which has created much difficulty for Ireland.

2. Aleister Crowley was the Great Beast 666 prophesied by John the Divine.

No, really. People sometimes think that Aleister Crowley was joking around or just trying to shock people by calling himself ΤΟ ΜΕΓΑ ΘΗΡΙΟΝ DCLXVI (The Great Beast 666). But he really meant it and there are good reasons to think he may have been right. Crowley himself gives a full account of how this happened in his piece, “The Master Therion–A Biographical Note,” as well as in The Equinox of the Gods and part 4 of Liber ABA.

T Polyphilus and Soror Sphinx explore this fascinating aspect of Aleister Crowley in an article published in Reality Sandwich, entitled “The Great Beast Was Here,” where they write:

In 1904, Crowley received a text as a result of magical invocation: The Book of the Law. The law the book contained may be summed up in these words: “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love under will.” With the arrival of this new law, Crowley believed the old world order was completely overturned — destroyed by fire, as it were — and a new age dawned. He called his new system Thelema (Greek for “will”), and identified himself with the Great Beast of Revelation. Accordingly, Thelema declares Christianity obsolete, along with all other world religions, even while putting to use their most potent spiritual techniques, symbolism, and mythic narratives.

The Mark of the Beast

The Mark of the Beast also makes a great tattoo

Far from being a horrific catastrophe, the word “apocalypse” really means an unveiling, a revelation. Since 1904 we have seen tremendous changes throughout society all over the globe. From the perspective of early Christians like John the Divine, the overturning of the old religions was a frightening prospect. From our perspective today, it is a welcome and overdue change. Today, whether people are conscious of Crowley’s magical workings or not, most have come to accept the inherent divinity and liberty of every individual as a self-evident fact of life.

Aleister Crowley also designed his own Mark of the Beast, which we have struck in a coin commemorating our 2012 campaign. A few of these coins are still available exclusively through this website.

1. Aleister Crowley was a solar myth.

When Aleister Crowley was asked during a trial to explain his office, Crowley replied, “‘The Beast 666′ only means ‘sunlight’. You can call me ‘Little Sunshine.’”

In some ways, it is easier to believe that Aleister Crowley is a myth than to believe that he could have been a single, mortal human being. In this myth of Aleister Crowley we find a person who has excelled in three completely distinct careers, which he classifies as “the Secret Way of the Initiate, the Path of Poetry and Philosophy, and the Open Sea of Romance and Adventure.” Aleister Crowley points out that in truly great men, we might find one or two of these facets, but never all three. He concludes:

… in this particular instance all three careers are so full that posterity might well be excused for surmising that not one but several individuals were combined in a legend, or even for taking the next step and saying: This Aleister Crowley was not a man, or even a number of men; he is obviously a solar myth. — The Confessions of Aleister Crowley, Part 1, Prelude

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posted September 01, 2013 07:18 AM            

http://ac2012.com/2011/12/20/aleister-crowley-myths-busted/

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Ten Crowley Myths Busted by AC2012
Posted on December 20, 2011 by ac2012

There are too many myths about Aleister Crowley to list them all or attempt to prove them false. We have, however, occasionally addressed some of the more persistent and troubling false rumors spread about Aleister Crowley. Here are ten such myths, including links to the stories where we have busted them.

10. Myth: Aleister Crowley was a black magician.

Few things could be further from the truth, and Aleister Crowley directly contradicts this myth.

Aleister Crowley the poet“I have been accused of being a ‘black magician.’ No more foolish statement was ever made about me. I despise the thing to such an extent that I can hardly believe in the existence of people so debased and idiotic as to practice it.”

(Originally mentioned in our Guide to the Aleister Crowley 2012 Campaign Ad.)

9. Myth: Aleister Crowley advocated pedophilia.

Aleister Crowley was one of the strongest advocates for children’s rights of his time. He was against all forms of child abuse, and has said that if he were in political power, he’d have parents who bully their children arrested. Moreover, he was unequivocal that abuse of anyone’s rights is contrary to his religious philosophy of Thelema.

“… acts invasive of another individual’s equal rights are implicitly self-aggressions. … Such acts as rape, and the assault or seduction of infants, may therefore be justly regarded as offences against the Law of Liberty, and repressed in the interests of that Law.”

(Originally posted in our post, Pedophiles in Wales.)

8. Myth: Aleister Crowley died alone in poverty.

When Aleister Crowley died, he had regular visitors in his beautiful home on top of a hill, overlooking the chalk cliffs where he learned to climb as a young man. He lived in this home, called Netherwood, with a number of other intellectuals. He kept a strong-box full of cash under his bed — property of his Thelemic organization, Ordo Templi Orientis. That he never took any of this money, though he could have easily done so, attests to his lack of material need at the end of his life.

“…the beast [Aleister Crowley] remained in good spirits, enjoying the comings and goings of Aleister Ataturk and the other children, who adored him in turn. Crowley did, however, remain in bed. The day before he died, he talked calmly and at length with MacAlpine. The following day was a still one but at the moment of Crowley’s death, which came quietly, the curtains in his room were caught in a gust of wind and a peal of thunder was heard. ‘It was the gods greeting him’ said MacAlpine.”

(Originally mentioned in our post, Drugs and the Deathbed.)

7. Myth: Aleister Crowley advocated rape.

Of course not. Aleister Crowley upheld the rights of the individual. These rights do not extend to violating the rights of others. See the quote and link in #9 above, and here’s another one:

“To use legal or financial constraint to compel either abstention or submission, is entirely horrible, unnatural and absurd.”

(Originally quoted in our post, Pedophiles in Wales.)

6. Myth: Aleister Crowley was a drug addict and a failure.
Aleister Crowley Diary of a Drug Fiend

Aleister Crowley’s novel, “Diary of a Drug Fiend” is a celebration of sacramental drug use and of overcoming addiction.

Aleister Crowley was prescribed heroin for his asthma, a common medical practice at the time, and he became addicted like anyone would. He later used heroin recreationally and sacramentally, as he did with many drugs including cocaine, hashish, ether, peyote, and pretty much anything that he could get his hands on to try. He was after all a scientist, trained as a chemist even, a mystic, and a psychonaut.What do you expect?

Crowley’s writing production never decreased as he got older, and in fact some of his best works (like The Book of Thoth and Magick Without Tears) were accomplished at the end of his life.

(We addressed this issue in our post, Drugs and the Deathbed.)

5. Myth: Aleister Crowley worked for the Nazis.

V for Victory with Mark of the BeastAleister Crowley demonstrated that he was the first to publish a “V Sign,” and he claimed to have invented Churchill’s use of the gesture in WWII as a magical foil to the Nazis’ use of the swastika.

Learn more in our two posts concerning this subject, V for Victory and The Answer to 1984 is 666.

4. Myth: Aleister Crowley sacrificed male children.

In his book, Magick, Aleister Crowley referred to masturbation jokingly and dysphemistically as child sacrifice. See our post, Guide to the Aleister Crowley 2012 Campaign Ad, for more details.

According to Crowley’s diaries, he performed this “sacrifice” about 150 times per year from 1912-1928. That is a moderate amount of masturbation, but it would be an impossible number of murders which would make Aleister Crowley dozens of times more murderous than the infamous Countess Elizabeth Báthory.

3. Myth: Aleister Crowley was the wickedest man in the world.

The tabloid article which gave Crowley this title also accused him of passing out drugs which made a person “…capable of participating in practices which no normal person could conceive of, much less describe.” Wait, what??

Read all about this in our post, Guide to the AC2012 Campaign Ad.

2. Myth: Aleister Crowley was the father of Barbara Bush.

Snopes has yet to deal with this issue; in the meantime, please pass along this link: Crowley/Bush April Fool’s joke!

1. Myth: There’s nothing magical about a shark eating a sea-lion.

A Shark Eating a Sea Lion

As it turns out, there actually is something magical about a shark eating a sea-lion.

“Magick is the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will. … Every intentional act is a Magickal act.”

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posted September 01, 2013 10:59 AM            

This is a discussion on what is true and isn't about him, for people who managed to get a hold off and read some of his books, not just quotes here and there.

with just the 'ideas' out there about him of course he comes up as a messed up in the head person.

posted September 01, 2013 11:38 AM            

so a lot of people, even those who despise him with a passion, use his decks quite often when they want a clear message.

posted September 01, 2013 12:27 PM            

The symbolic language of the Thoth deck was not designed by Crowley. Read Book T of the golden dawn, it's all there already. Way before the CrowleyHarris deck was even conceived of. All the pelicans he added later were added out of envy for Waite (he envied him which is a factual fact!)

My mother from whom I got all the funny blood told me to stay away from it, not soil myself or anything. I had really filthy dreams when I was toying with the idea of buying it, like I was falling into the 3d version of the deck feeling somehow free from god and all, I didn't like it, an somehow I was queasy in the dream too. Plus te magician looks obscene, that face gives me te creeps

I will buy the hermetic deck though, this one must be alright

Purely empathetically I am having a hard time believing AC actually did magic.

posted September 01, 2013 12:47 PM            

OT
personally the wildwood tarot is the one that i'd get next if my playing cards stop working for me (but i hope not i love them so much because they're kind of really direct with me)

but yes not a secret Crowley and Waite hated each other, and i think both took a lot from each other yet would never acknowledge it.

I don't think Crowley ever said all that knowledge was his own, but he is the reason a lot of other people have it to...i don't know if he created his larger than life persona so people would get news of what he wrote...as evidently until he came across some writings not many of those who did spread the word about them.

posted September 01, 2013 01:01 PM            

Just to say another thing I find scary is this relativism as far as good and evil go. If Crowley didn't do magic I did and once I started dabbling I found out for sure once you get there good and evil are absolute and they exist, one has to choose a side to be on. Seeing the Devil would sit by my bed when I was 19 guess what I'd rather choose the other side

posted September 01, 2013 01:07 PM            

of course google it and who knows what you may find.

but other things if we bring numbers into matters as i love to do....

A.C was born on the 12th day of the month, so born a self sacrifice victim, one ready to do the worst to himself to get knowlege, but they usually share it with others. (i linked one of linda goodmans star sign cards on the numbers forum and it is telling)

Secondly his life is a 7 derived from a 43....lets read what all books say about this number, keeping in mind the ancient Chaldean, thought this was the number of 'bad luck' not 13, and would never name anyone with letters that add up to it....matches how his own ego problem put people off in his younger years...

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This name gives one a fertile imagination. Frank, without a worry as to the consequences. Nobody can deny that they have a point; the problem is the directness with which matter is stated. And so, they will be targeted, hounded. They can get into trouble even for highlighting the obvious. They do feel the fear, but they do it anyway! This is the number of the marked man, quite often after achieving a position of eminence. Their words will destroy others, and themselves! But they believe that they hold the moral high ground (and often, they actually do), regardless of the numbers that try to convince them otherwise. Personal life is shaky. Public welfare is close to their heart, even if they don't achieve much in this direction.

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posted September 01, 2013 01:14 PM            

He was someone trying to be accepted who got rejected, and a lot of his behaviors reflect back on that. that is the 'okay the world rejects me for what i am, so i will reject it and mock it to for what it is!'

posted September 01, 2013 02:30 PM              

No worries I actually dld his bks a long time ago. It's still in my hard drive

posted September 01, 2013 03:03 PM            

these people clearly weren't the 'target' audience, specifically with the book i quoted, which were letter exchanges with people he's known for long.

of course it is best to stay away from magic. look at one of the refuted myths above, he actually loathed the thing. and one of the few times he denied things he was accused of.

but a lot of people confuse who the media said he was, (and his ego didn't help things when he was younger)...with who he really was.

though i also get what you mean, we are in the age of 'fast' everything that a lot of people don't really value the intellect that much at all anymore.

posted September 02, 2013 04:35 PM            

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Originally posted by Diplopoda:
Spells aren't scholarly. They're about life and death. Did u read Harry potter? Yeah imagine it being real with real deaths.

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No of course spells aren't

I was referring to studies of tarot, symbolism, mythology, the works

posted September 04, 2013 11:48 AM            

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Originally posted by Diplopoda:
Spells aren't scholarly. They're about life and death. Did u read Harry potter? Yeah imagine it being real with real deaths.

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errr yeah, I know that, you know that...we all know that, but i guess if you felt the need to reconfirm it that is fine to lol