What is your favorite Aleister Crowley book & why?

I would like to point out that the fact that Crowley has for so long (and is continually) villified in our popular culture speaks to his credit. Most of what society at large considers to be valuable to me is usually absolute garbage, and what it casts away and/or ignores is very often treasure. You have to take a few steps back, actually many steps back, to realize that a lot of the crap out there is being shoved down people's throats and most of society is basically being sheep-herded. We pretty much live in a plutocracy, or rule by a very small minority of wealthy people, who control media outlets, textbook manufacturers, and of course oil and gas companies and other big corporations. These people do not have the best of intentions for all of us in mind. So again, the fact that thousands of times more people will recognize Lady Gaga's name before they recognize Aliester Crowley's speaks very much to his credit. If Crowley were popular, I would really question his credibility.

The true test of his merit, however, is to read his writings. I own copies of The Book of Thoth and 777, and have read The Book of the Law. The latter is absolutely breathtaking, albeit short, and my favorite is The Book of Thoth. Why? It's very comprehensive. It ties together many aspects of Egyptology, mythology, religion, philosophy, and especially the Tarot and Kabbalism. It provides one of the most in-depth explorations of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life.

Was Crowley an "evil" man? I would say no, that is, no more or less than you or I or anyone else. Was he a Satan worshipper? Absolutely not. Was he misunderstood and villified--you already know the answer to that. Crowley was all about empowering people, and shared his knowledge freely. This is the kind of knowledge that many in the elite are familiar with but try to keep a lid on. They would much prefer that people, rather than being empowered, are praying to their "Lord and Shepherd" and believing that they are "sinners," basically rotten from the start. Crowley's work (and you have to remember that a lot of his writings were actually channeled, and so cannot be directly attributed to him) supports my notion that we are all equal, and all divine. We are taught that this is vain and "sinful, but can this be said considering the belief is that we are ALL divine spiritual beings? Anyway, you can choose to believe what you want, because it's all about experience.

Maat



Edited to add the "Why?" part!

[edit on 8-7-2010 by maatunidy]

Originally posted by maatunidy
I

T my favorite is The Book of Thoth. Why? It's very comprehensive. It ties together many aspects of Egyptology, mythology, religion, philosophy, and especially the Tarot and Kabbalism. It provides one of the most in-depth explorations of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life.

Was Crowley an "evil" man? I would say no, that is, no more or less than you or I or anyone else. Was he a Satan worshipper? Absolutely not. Was he misunderstood and villified--you already know the answer to that.
Maat



[edit on 8-7-2010 by maatunidy]

I agree with what you say. The book of Thoth does connect Egyptology, Tarot and Kabbalah. I have Crowley's tarot deck which I believe was painted by Lady Harris. For practical use however I prefer the Rider/Waite deck drawn by Pamela Coleman Smith.

In my opinion Crowley was not evil at all - just eccentric. He liked being called the beast. That shows a strength of character. To be able to face a lot of hatred you need to be strong. It is a kind of game; to deliberately allow you character to become notorious and yet maintain a lot of friends and admirers.
.

reply to post by crowdedskies


To inspire such hatred in others and revel in it is the sign of an unbalanced individual and certainly not someone I would expect to have a deep spiritual message worth embracing. It is a sign of classic sociopath behavior. Most sociopaths are very smart and it would seem this one still has an effect on people.Then again, it is a practice in humility to learn something useful from something you find vulgar, arrogant and repulsive.

Originally posted by Mumbotron
reply to post by crowdedskies

 

To inspire such hatred in others and revel in it is the sign of an unbalanced individual and certainly not someone I would expect to have a deep spiritual message worth embracing. It is a sign of classic sociopath behavior. Most sociopaths are very smart and it would seem this one still has an effect on people.Then again, it is a practice in humility to learn something useful from something you find vulgar, arrogant and repulsive.

He may have been misunderstood or bullied as a child - who knows. We all play the game of life , in a different way. I can see from your previous post that you do not think very much of Crowley. Nobody does and that is why some of us really try and understand why did he revel in notoriety.

As I said in a previous post, sometimes we need people willing to go to the fringe and look at darkness in the face. I know that some people will remind me of serial killers, etc. But Crowley was a gentleman in many ways and when he did his stunts, only his life was at stake.

If ever I was facing something evil I owuld enlist the help of somebody like him. It is a bit like saying that every cop is a criminal and every sinner a saint. To fight evil you have to know it. And how many people know evil and yet do not use it against felllow men. Very few , and Crowley was one of them.

PS: I do not believe in the word Sociopath. I even started a thread on it.



[edit on 9-7-2010 by crowdedskies]

Originally posted by Mumbotron
reply to post by crowdedskies

 

To inspire such hatred in others and revel in it is the sign of an unbalanced individual and certainly not someone I would expect to have a deep spiritual message worth embracing. It is a sign of classic sociopath behavior. Most sociopaths are very smart and it would seem this one still has an effect on people.Then again, it is a practice in humility to learn something useful from something you find vulgar, arrogant and repulsive.

He may have been misunderstood or bullied as a child - who knows. We all play the game of life , in a different way. I can see from your previous post that you do not think very much of Crowley. Nobody does and that is why some of us really try and understand why did he revel in notoriety.

As I said in a previous post, sometimes we need people willing to go to the fringe and look at darkness in the face. I know that some people will remind me of serial killers, etc. But Crowley was a gentleman in many ways and when he did his stunts, only his life was at stake.

If ever I was facing something evil I would enlist the help of somebody like him. It is a bit like saying that every cop is a criminal and every sinner a saint. To fight evil you have to know it. And how many people know evil and yet do not use it against felllow men. Very few , and Crowley was one of them.

PS: I do not believe in the word Sociopath. I even started a thread on it.




[edit on 9-7-2010 by crowdedskies]

so, did anybody ever come forth and decode the list of letters & numbers? (found near the end of the OP)


Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com

Originally posted by therealnews
You have to look toward the light, and cast Crowleys books, teachings, and ideas out of your thoughts and life. It is pure evil and if you chose that road, the light will abandon you, you will never see it.

I am always curious when people talk about the light - What does the light represent to you ? Have you experienced it personally ? Or are you using the word light in a metaphorical sense - light as in good and dark as in evil ? and how many hideous atrocities were committed by various religious / spiritual leaders throughout human history that were convinced they stood illuminated in that said light you speak of ?

Originally posted by spiritualgirl

He is noted for being a dark man. Didnt he poop on the floor when he met the dalai lama or something weird?

A lot of apocryphal stories like that about Crowley have arisen, most of which are completely false. His one time secretary, Dr. Israel Regardie, who eventually fell out with him, wrote the Crowley biography "The Eye In The Triangle: An Interpretation of Aleister Crowley".

Regardie criticizes much of Crowley's personal behavior, but also criticizes those who made up such stories even more. Regardie relates that while Crowley lived the lifestyle of a bohemian poet, he was nevertheless a perfect Victorian gentleman in his demeanor.

Originally posted by doctor j and inmate c5779
so, did anybody ever come forth and decode the list of letters & numbers? (found near the end of the OP)

Crowley believed that this was done by Frater Achad (Charles Stansfeld Jones), and the proofs were given by Achad in his Liber 31.

You be the judge.

reply to post by Masonic Light


Also, in "A Garden of Pomegranates" Regardie mentions how indebted he is to Crowley, who he called a poet, he even dedicates the book to "Ankh-f-n-Khonsou" which is a clear reference to Crowley

Originally posted by belidged
reply to post by thewheelturns

 

You obviously missed this part from The Book of Law

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
The study of this Book is forbidden.
It is wise to destroy this copy after the first reading.
Whosoever disregards this does so at his own risk and peril.
These are most dire.
Those who discuss the contents of this Book are to be shunned by all, as centres of pestilence.
All questions of the Law are to be decided only by appeal to my writings, each for himself.
There is no law beyond Do what thou wilt.
Love is the law, love under will.
The priest of the princes, Ankh-f-n-khonsu

And you must have missed the part when I said this part specifically was added later, to scare people off. Let them shun, let me be the centre of pestilence. It's right up my alley. Let let lock me up, let them round me up. Death will only make me stronger.

my fav crowley book is the Book of the Law
[edit on 7/9/2010 by southerndemolay]

[edit on 7/9/2010 by southerndemolay]

[edit on 7/9/2010 by southerndemolay]

I likd Diary of a Drug Fiend
I haven't read many of his other works though

Originally posted by Masonic Light
reply to post by thewheelturns

 

For entertainment only, his best is his autobiography, published as "The Confessions of Aleister Crowley".

For his more serious work, I'd say either Liber Aleph or the Book of Thoth.

I agree with you here, together with Liber 777 those 2 books are among Crawley's best, despite the fact that in reference to the Golden Dawn it is better to read Israel Regardie then Crawley. He was the most wickedest man is the world but quiet often I ask myself if something was not in a correct place in his brain.

Crawley has the reputation to have been mad and mentaly disordered and probably he was.

Originally posted by Shadowflux
reply to post by therealnews

 

Owning books and reading books are two very different things, as are reading books and understanding books. If you truly understood the books you claim to have owned you would understand that they are not evil nor are the intentions of those who put the theory into practice.

Most religions deal only with a lower level of manifestation whereas this system of thought deals with all levels of manifestation going all the way back to the unmanifest levels of the godhead. It's heavy stuff and it's not for everyone but it, in one way or another, ties into every other religion (excluding cults and the like)

I will, however, agree with you on it's potency. To use your analogy, fire is dangerous, destructive, unpredictable but it is also our first invention and is necesary to the existence and survival of the human race. Improper use of fire can kill you but in the hands of one with knowledge and experience it can create beautiful works of art by converting sand to glass or raw metal into statues.

Good statement, that's why religious scripts are often absolutely unknown by those who believe in that religions, be this because they never have read the book, be this because they do not understand what it says.
Thus, telling the truth about what it says is an impossible mission since you need first some 20 years of hard study and general knowledge to be able to understand the scientific means of all those scriptures.

Tell any Christian that there God is at same time 0, 8 and pi and all is yourself or that all they dream of is a pair 'a dice and they put you in an hospital for mentally disabled.

But, some day maybe they will all understand the game of 3/4/5, who knows, wonders can happen at any time.

One of those reasons why you always heal, always conceal and never reveal. They will shoot you anyway if you do.

Originally posted by frozenspark

Originally posted by Shadowflux

I love all these people that have to condemn Crowley as a "sex cult leader" and some cheap theatrical Satanist, you make it clear that you know very little about that of which you speak.

That is essential what he was. I wouldn't say he was "cheap theatrical" Satanist.. he was very powerful and influential Satanist. A twisted, morally corrupt man, and anyone who disagrees is clearly delusional.

Anyone who disagrees is clearly delusional? I wonder if you realize how arrogant that sounds. I completely disagree because I actually know what im talking about, I have read every reputable source by and about Crowley. What have you read? A few articles on christian websites no doubt.

Crowley was not a Satanist in any way shape or form, he was a brother of the Right Hand Path, not the Left. I mean, you do realize that "Satanists" worship an entity called Satan, don't you?? That is, in essence, the most basic description of a Satanist that exists... Crowley, for the most part, worshipped Deities that were mainly of Egyptian origin. Can you please explain to me how Egyptian gods are Satanic?? Or are you of the opinion that any other-worldy force that isn't "little lord jesus" is Satanic.

Furthermore, if its not too much to ask, could you provide a link to one of your sources that proves that Aleister worshipped the devil?

My favourite book by Crowley has to be "Book 4" which is essentially a vast collection of all Crowley's best work. Also, The "Magical record of the beast 666" is amazingly accessable to the average reader, it is his personal diary during one of the most important periods of his life when he was experimenting with his own system of sexual magick.


The best book ABOUT Crowley, however, is "Perdurabo" by Richard Kaczynski... It is the definitive biography in my opinion and nothing else even comes close.

Originally posted by asturel13



The best book ABOUT Crowley, however, is "Perdurabo" by Richard Kaczynski... It is the definitive biography in my opinion and nothing else even comes close.

Haven't read it so I can't comment on it. However, my favorite biography is Regardie's "The Eye In The Triangle: An Interpretation of Aleister Crowley".

I mention this one because Regardie was a close personal associate of Crowley's, and therefore could write from personal experience.

For me without a doubt "Across the Gulf", extremely ispiring.

Originally posted by crowdedskies
His book 777 is a very good reference book. However it is not something to read. Just something to refer to. I use it often.

The Book of Law is an odd one. I keep it for a specific reason.

Otherwise, I don't give Crowley that much importance. I must admit though that he had a very practical approach to magic and this is the one thing I like about him. For example , he would always urge people to try and resolve something through normal means first. This in itself is an application of magic. Why use rituals and magic without first trying to make something happen by conversation and action.

i agree with that quote of his. If it doesn't succeed, then try using magick to get things done.