Aleister Crowley

[Musicman]

Just been reading his new bio "A Makick Life" and am finding it fascinating. Learning about his childhood you get the picture on why he became the way he did especially towards the opposite sex re: his hatred for his mother. Anyway wanted to know what others thought of Crowley. Iknow he did a lot of drugs and was prone to exageration including sexual deviant behaviours but I think also there's a side of him that produced a body of work that benefits mankind...Looking forward to hearing your responses...

 

[Ophiel]

While I am not a 'fan' of Crowley, find his material troublesome to cipher through (and ultimately not worth the effort for me), I, too, am fascinated by the personality that produced so much work. The Thoth deck remains one of my favorites.

I think one has to be adventuresome and eccentric to pioneer at least a leg of the 20th century occult movement. From what I understand, Crowley pushed the envelope often exploring the boundaries of things. I have not read much by or about him, but did pick up the biography recently, "Do What Thou Wilt!" I think that's the title.

I look forward to what others in the group have to say about the beast! LOL.

 

[catlin]

I posted my opinion about Beasty Boy in another thread before the move but I am willing to sum it up. Ok, he did a great deal to spread word of tarot and magic(k) and I think we shoudee his d?bauche life partly as product of his time and biography and partly due to his love for eccentric behaviour.

Personally I do not like this guy although I got a copy of the book Thot in my book shelf.

 

[Temperance413]

I guess you could say he was a deviant, but if you look closely at the reasons why he was called a Satanist, was because he was trying to disprove the Catholic Church. He was into the Kabbalah, and he was trying to tell the people not to get too hooked on dogma and the strict thought of the church at that time. There was more to the whole scheme of things than everybody originally thought.
I won't excuse his behavior, but look at some of our rock stars today and what they get away with and are still well loved.
Not to mention one President of the United states that I will not mention.........

 

[truthsayer]

when i bought the thoth deck 15 years ago, i had no idea who aleister crowley was or what he represented. a friend tried to explain to me but she didn't know enough about him to give me a clear idea. so i read w/ the deck up to 2 years ago when i started learning more and more about his life. even tho i feel the deck isn't of itself evil, it reminds me of the vile way he treated women. i understand he had severe mother issues and really needed to be a patient of sigmnd freud who was also living at that time. he may have been what we would call a serial sex offender today. he probably would have ended up in prison these days. then the circumstances behind why his wife commited suicide are just atrocious. the hell he must have put that poor woman thru. evidently, they had a child they adored but the girl died and crowley blamed his wife. i'm sure there was more to it but... it's beyond me how lady frieda harris dealt w/ him.

i think it must be something inherent in genius that creates deviances in behavior or personality. i think a trait that tends to stand out is narcissism. i think crowley has to be the worst i know of. another one i can think of is albert einstein. he ignored his wife and children for his obsession for his work. i think she later divorced him and he took another lady companion. as long as the companion centered her attention on his needs things were fine but it didn't work both ways. einstein did many great things that changed the world and is known for his altruism. however, his shoddy treatment of ppl in in personal relationships discolors that for me. dr. seuiss(theodore guiss) is another. his first wife emeshed herself in helping him write the stories. yet when she got old, he dropped her for a younger woman. so she committed suicide. he also hated children. i have problems celebrating his achievements b/c of that.

maybe i'm holding standards too high but it's my opinion. take it or leave it. i doubt i will ever be able to read w/ the thoth again. since i object so strongly to crowley's lifestyle, i would feel like a hypocrite to continue my approval of the deck.

 

[Greenman]

i really don't think one should judge a man by his 'political correctness', especially someone who lived in a different era. this is not to excuse his atrocious behavior, just to put it into perspective.
he pioneered quite a few frontiers, including holding the altitude record for mountain climbing for over 35 years!
but it's his writing is that earned both his fame and his controversy. my feeling is that as a poet he was very mediocre. his other writings were somewhat better. but the Book of Thoth is a different matter. if he is remembered for nothing else, that will be okay. this is his legacy, and it's my (well documented) opinion that it is the greatest tarot work ever penned.
so everything else that can be said about Crowley (good OR bad) falls by the wayside as far as i'm concerned. he wrote the Book of Thoth, and that's enough!

 

[mystic]

Agreed.

Although unorthodox and illegal at best, Crowley was a metaphysical genius.

Lady Harris and he developed one of the most penetrating decks ever put in print, and it will remain so for many generations to come.

The deck will be one I use for a very long time.......

 

[All Is One]

I can basically deal with whatever I've heard about Crowley (not that much, as I'm learning today in your posts!) because the Thoth deck and the book and much of his work in correspondences does in fact convince me that he was a genius (an evil genius, perhaps).

The idea of Dr. Seuss hating children chills my soul. I learned to read by myself, sort of, and it was almost solely using his books.

Even Einstein??

I'm not losing my faith in the basic goodness in all forms of life, but I'm a bit

er... wobbled.

Thanks for the information: Truth is Light
Knowledge is Power

 

[arizonagirl]

truthsayer wrote: "dr. seuiss(theodore guiss) is another. his first wife emeshed herself in helping him write the stories. yet when she got old, he dropped her for a younger woman. so she committed suicide. he also hated children. i have problems celebrating his achievements b/c of that."

Reminds me of the renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright who left his first wife with 6 or so kids and moved in with his mistress.

 

[january]

This may be a bit off the thread, but what was the Aleister Crowley/Led Zeppelin connection? I read ( I think in Hammer of the Gods) that Jimmy Page (Zep guitarist) bought Crowley's home in the early 70's. Were the bandmates students of Crowley? Their lyrics were mystical and Pagan-esque and hinted a mistrust of women (am I opening a can o' worms?) And now, having a bit of Tarot knowledge, I'm beginning to make some "maybe" connections. I was just wondering!

Musicman, by your screen name I just thought you may have the answer! After reading this thread, I think I may pick up AC's bio.

~ january