1.
An Open Epistle
on the Birth of the AA
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of
the Law. - AL
I:40
"... there are many that swim, and
find no boats.
Be it thy task to aid them."
The Electric Silence
I have some trepidation writing
about the AA because I know I'm going to offend someone, somewhere, who
believes that they know the whole Truth about our noble Order. I do not know
why so many individuals, especially outsiders, blindly believe whatever they've
read as if it were the gospel. As for myself, I strongly believe by my oaths
which state that mystery is the enemy of Truth. I am torn between simply
quoting Aleister Crowley's literature which fosters a myth about our
organization, its beginning and early history, or being truthful and examining
the harshness of its reality. For starters, it's no secret, although Crowley tried very hard to bring initiates into the Order,
most members during Crowley's
lifetime fell by the wayside and only a small handful ever practiced the
teachings. One of the founding members of the Order, Frater Per Ardua Ad Astra
(J.F.C.Fuller 1878-1966), said it best when he wrote that "the AA never
existed outside Crowley's
imagination." Was this the bitterness of an old friend or just plain
honesty? Or is the truth found somewhere in the middle?
To
properly understand our Order we must examine some of the facts regarding the
life of Aleister Edward Crowley. He was born on October 12th in 1875. In his
youth he found himself being transferred from one school to another, until he
and his mother finally settled in London.
In 1894 he attended King's College where he developed a strong interest in
mountain climbing. In October of the following year he left King's College to
attend Cambridge.
With the urge to 'master' mountains racing in his blood, Crowley
often traveled to Switzerland
during his vacations to climb in the Alps. It
was during one of his vacations in Zermatt,
Switzerland
that he met a gentleman named Julian L. Baker. It seems that both shared a
strong interest in magic and alchemy. In time Baker introduced him to George
Cecil Jones who, in turn, would introduce the young Crowley to the Hermetic Order of the Golden
Dawn. A little over a month after Crowley turned
twenty three, on November 18th 1898, he received initiation into the First or
Outer Order of this fraternity at the Isis-Urania
Temple in London. He took the magical motto of
Perdurabo for his Neophyte (0=0) degree, which literally means I will endure
till the end.
The
initiatory structure of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was based
primarily upon the ancient Qabalistic Tree of Life. In the first Order, after
the Neophyte degree, the initiate began working the lowers spheres of the Tree
from Malkuth-10 (Zelator 1=10) upward to Netzach-7 (Philosophus 4=7).
Over
the next few years Crowley's
life became intensely complicated. Magic had become his everything and he
progressed rapidly through the degrees of the Golden Dawn, but problems were on
the horizon. In his introductory History Lection of the AA titled Liber LXI
vel CAVSAE, Crowley
attempted to explain this period by stating, "We must pass over the
unhappy juggleries which characterized the next period. It has throughout
proved impossible to elucidate the complex facts. We content ourselves, then,
with observing that the death of one of his two colleagues, and the weakness of
the other, secured to S.R.M.D. the sole authority." What Crowley is telling us is that of the original
three founding members of the Golden Dawn, Dr. William R. Woodman died in 1891,
Dr. William Wynn Westcott discreetly resigned and that left Samuel Liddell
MacGregor-Mathers (Deo Duce Comite Ferro) in control. The 'unhappy juggleries'
of this period became further complicated when MacGregor-Mathers and his wife
left London and moved to Paris. From there they both found it
exceedingly difficult to control the Isis-Urania
Temple. To make a long
story short, in Mather's absence certain London Adepts decided to depose him as
Head of the Golden Dawn and attempted to create their own link with the Secret
Chiefs.
Crowley
believed that these people failed miserably, writing, "The rituals were
elaborated, though scholarly enough, into verbose and pretentious nonsense: the
knowledge proved worthless, even where it was correct: for it is in vain that
pearls, be they never so clear and precious, are given to the swine. The
ordeals were turned into contempt, it being impossible for any one to fail
therein. Unsuitable candidates were admitted for no better reason than that of
their worldly prosperity. In short, the Order failed to initiate." Further
difficulties arose. Those now in charge refused to initiate Crowley into the inner or Second Order
properly known as Rosae Rubeae et Auriae Crucis which means 'The Ruby Rose and
the Golden Cross.' Like the previous Order, it worked off certain spheres on
the Qabalistic Tree of Life. This Order encompassed the spheres of Tiphereth-6
(Adeptus Minor 5=6), Geburah-5 (Adeptus Major 6=5) and Chesed-4 (Adeptus
Exemptus 7=4).
In
disgust Crowley left London
for Paris and,
under the guidance of S. L. MacGregor Mathers, he was given initiation on
January 23rd 1900 into the Second Order as an Adeptus Minor 5=6. His new motto
was Parzival. One of the major requirements for an Adeptus Minor working out of
Tiphereth was to swear at their initiation to seek their Higher Genius, or
Augoeides. They were not required to know their Holy Guardian Angel at this
point, but to only acknowledge an aspiration to pursue him and his guidance.
This quest would dominate Crowley's
life over the next few years.
After
Crowley left Mathers in Paris
and returned to London
all hell broke loose. The story gets even more complicated depending upon who
is spinning the tale. One fact is certain, on March 25th 1900 he received a
letter from Mrs. E. A. (Dorothea) Hunter, known as Soror Dea Data, stating that
the London Second Order of the Golden Dawn did not recognize his initiation in Paris. It was a difficult
period for Crowley in regards to his magic and
spirituality, the end result being that he left London and embarked in traveling worldwide.
He describes this period in Liber Causae as he, "was driven of the
Spirit into the Wilderness, where he abode for six years, studying by the light
of reason the sacred books and secret systems of initiation of all countries
and ages." The first leg of his venture into the wilderness took him by
ship from London to New
York in route to Mexico.
He continued traveling widely over the next few years to such places in the Far
East as Ceylon and India. He also
headed to Egypt and France, finally arriving back in Scotland where
he owned an estate called Boleskine.
In
July of 1903 Crowley traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland
to visit his old friend, the artist Gerald Kelly. It was here that he met his
first wife, Gerald's sister Rose Edith Kelly. Although they became instantly
infatuated with each other, Rose was already engaged to another man whom she
didn't love. To alleviate this tragic situation they acted impulsively by
enloping
and getting
married on August 12th 1903 at Dingwall,
Scotland. It
was a drastic solution to Rose's engagement problem.
Shortly
afterwards the newly married couple embarked for Egypt, posing as the Prince and
Princess Chioa Khan. The following year is probably the most important in Crowley's entire life. It
deserves a much more lengthy explanation than a mere paragraph because the
events which occurred effected the rest of Crowley's life. Basically, on three
successive days in April of 1904, he 'received' The Book of the Law,
eventually titled Liber AL vel Legis. This new 'bible' was dictated by
Aiwass, an invisible entity who claimed to be the minister of Hoor-Paar-Kraat
and a messenger from the forces ruling the planet during the Aeon of Aquarius.
The new decree given to mankind was "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole
of the Law." It seemed that Christianity was dead and a new era of
'Crowleyanity' was at hand, an idea which obviously appealed immensely to
Aleister Crowley. When Crowley returned to London he was deeply
inspired with these revelations of a new age dawning. He was often seen in
local cafes spewing forth the laws of his new religion to anyone who would give
him an ear. He particularly enjoyed the atmosphere around the Café Royal, which
was considered the center of literary and artistic life in London. It is believed that he first entered
the Café around 1897, shortly after leaving Cambridge, and, like many creative people of
that period, he fell in love with the restaurant. Now, after returning from
Cairo, he was often seen in the Domino Room, a section of the Café Royal
frequented by such dignitaries as Arnold Bennett, G. K. Chesterton and Jacob
Epstein to name but a few. Many of these individuals record fascinating tales
of Crowley's verbal rants in regards to his new law-"Do what thou
wilt" and the death of Christianity. Their stories are interesting, funny
and often portray a unique image of the Great Beast in his early Thelemic
years.
In
April of 1905 Crowley was tempted to leave England again for a chance to climb
Kangchenjunga or K2 which straddles the
Chinese-Kashmiri border. Unfortunately this climb would end in tragedy with the
summit never being reached. Crowley then
traveled around India, first
staying in Calcutta before moving on to Burma with his
wife and daughter who had recently joined him. While he was in Kandy, Burma
he looked up his old friend Allan Bennett whom he had first met while they both
were members of the Golden Dawn.
During
the winter of 1905-6 Aleister Crowley, his wife Rose and their child headed for China, where he
pondered his fate, his future and wondered what the purpose was behind his
incarnation. He was tormented. He felt he was put on Earth for something, but
what? He came to realize "the purpose of his life formulated in these
words, The Obtaining of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian
Angel." (The Equinox of the Gods, p.58) He commenced to
complete the mystical undertaking known as the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the
Mage in the hope of discovering his Holy Guardian Angel. In some respects he
succeeded. He recognize and accepted the fact that Aiwass was none other than
his own personal Holy Guardian Angel. This would be a turning point in Crowley's life. His walk
across China
had lasted about four months.
On
March 22nd 1906 he arrived at the port
of Hai Phong, in French Indo-China
which is now in North
Vietnam. Here he said farewell to Rose and
child, sending them home to Scotland.
As for himself, Crowley headed to Shanghai to visit with an
old flame named Elaine Simpson. He arrived on April 6th. During his visit he
performed various invocations of his Guardian Angel. His diaries plainly show
that Aiwass was evoked and that he communicated to Crowley remarkable visions. Especially on
April 20th & 21st. However, when he publishes his diaries of this period in
The Equinox Volume I, Number 8 he omits all the visions and the words of
Aiwass. This has often puzzled some historians who do not realize that Crowley came to believe
that this entire period was but a morbid dream, an ordeal which should be
ignored. He writes, "Decided to reject results of 20th and 21st, and go on
as if they had never happened." (Eq.I:8 pg.21) Why he rejected them
is never adequately explained. On April 21st he left Shanghai,
boarding the Empress of India ocean liner bound for Vancouver,
Canada from which he took a
train to New York.
During his travels he was constantly, almost daily, invoking his angel.
Six
years from whence he "was driven of the Spirit into the Wilderness," Crowley finally returned to Liverpool.
He arrived on June 2nd of 1906.
Once
in England, Crowley contacted George Cecil Jones, Frater
D.D.S. 7=4 who was his original sponsor and mentor in the Hermetic Order of the
Golden Dawn. As he put it in Liber Cavsae, he "laid his achievements
humbly at the feet of a certain adept D.D.S." He told Jones all his
accomplishments of the previous six years which culminated with him obtaining
the knowledge and conversation of his Holy Guardian Angel. Jones, whom it was
believed had the authority to do so, "welcomed him brotherly and admitted
his title to the grade which he had so hardly won." In other words, he
confirmed Crowley's accomplishments and he
acknowledged that Crowley
was, in fact, acting as 7=4 or Adeptus Exemptus.
In
Aleister Crowley's diaries on July 29th 1906 is the very first indication that
he was considering the formation of a new Order. He writes, "D.D.S. and P.
discuss a new O, D.D.S. wants Authority." This marked the beginning, the
birth of the AA. However, Jones was not sure if they had the authorization to
do such. He wanted an official sanction to come from a higher authority other
than themselves. He wanted the Secret Chiefs, whom had earlier guided the
Golden Dawn, to give their approval.
In
the mean time, until such an authority was given, they both agreed that they
should go ahead and try to put together a new system of teachings. This is
referred to in Liber Cavsae wherein Crowley writes, "Thereupon these two
adepts conferred together, saying: May it not be written that the tribulations
shall be shortened? Wherefore they resolved to establish a new Order which
should be free from the errors and deceits of the former one." It is no
secret that Liber AL vel Legis commands that all the rituals of the
previous Aeon were to be abrogated, or cast out. Which, of course, implies the
rituals of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. These, as Crowley pointed out, had been elaborated into
verbose and pretentious nonsense with their ordeals turned into contempt and it
being impossible for any initiate to fail therein. Crowley was obvious elated that his sacred
volume foretold that the responsibility of disseminating its message was to
fall upon him in order to prepare new formulas. He and Jones immersed
themselves in this quest. They wanted to achieve where everyone in the Golden
Dawn had failed, in short, to simply initiate their candidates.
The
next important event regarding our Order is mentioned in Crowley's Confessions. Here he writes,
"D.D.S. came to see me: we celebrated the Autumnal Equinox (Sept. 22nd
1906) and reconstructed the old Neophyte Ritual of the GD, eliminating all
unnecessary features and quintessentializing the magical formulae" (p.532)
He further makes mention of this period in The Equinox I:8, September:
"24-30 During this period Frater P. was preparing, under the guidance of
D.D.S., a certain ritual of initiation. This was to combine the Eastern and the
Western methods." (p.35) Crowley
notes that on September 30th, "Concluded a draft of Sun in Aries by
Mercury." The ritual was called Liber DCLXXI vel Troa.
Crowley attempted this
ritual, only in part and recorded in his diaries, "Tested new R. and
behold it was v.g." or very good. (Oct.9th 1906) Good or not, the new
initiation ritual would undergo numerous changes and additions, none of which
have survived in copy. The only known copy of the manuscript of Liber DCLXXI
vel Troa is found at Syracuse University in New York State.
The copy in Syracuse
is the final form which was typed out in 1908. On the title page, under Liber
DCLXXI vel Troa, is scribbled "a versified Ritual for the Feast of the
Equinox." On the first page Crowley
gives a brief historical perspective which is worth quoting
in full:
The Spelling
of the Name of Adonai by the Ritual of the Pyramid being the
form of Initiation to the Grade
of Neophyte in the M______ of I______ (Ritual
issued to appointed Officers,
who must pass the test of efficiency).
O.M. a 7=4 of
the GO having been permitted on the 9th October 1906 to
perceive the vision of IAO did
duly write out for the third time this ritual following,
it having been in its crude form
of assistance to him in obtaining the chrism aforesaid.
The skeleton
of this ritual was laid down (adapted from the 0=0 of GD) by
G.H. Fra. D.D.S. on (Libra) nox
(Libra) preceding, written out in sketch by G.H. Fra.
O.M. on 30th Sept, and revised
by him on 7th Oct. and other dates. The final draft
was submitted by O.M. to D.D.S.;
and together did they consult, making slight
alterations. This present
printed ritual has received the Imprimatur of P.N. V.V.V.V.V.
8=3 Magister Templi on (Libra)
nox (Libra) 1908."
[Editor's
Note: M______ of I______ = Mysteries of Initiation. Obviously GO
is a
typo, referring to Golden Dawn, or GD. And P.N. before Crowley's motto of
V.V.V.V.V.
stands for Pater Noster.]
Crowley gives further
refers to the formation of his new Order cryptically in a piece titled The
Electric Silence. In this piece he refers to himself as a ship builder of
an Ark trying
to save humanity.
This then
endured for a space; and with his aid I began ship-building.
"For" (said he)
"there are many that swim, and find no boats. Be it thy task to
aid them. Of my journey to the
House he spake nothing. But in the shipbuilding
came the fair man my brother to
my help; and one evening as we sate at meal
he said: May it please you to
enter the House; for there is prepared for you a
goodly bedchamber. But I would
not at that time; for I was ashamed, being
unclothed; not understanding
that in the House robes are provided by him that
is appointed to provide them.
Thus we
laboured, and built many fair shallops upon the model of that
wherein we sailed.
This
piece is often overlooked by AA scholars but it is an important piece
none-the-less. It points out that, by their own admittance, Crowley & Jones
were creating an organization along the lines as they understood initiation, or
along similar lines of the Golden Dawn. Although they were doing such without
having authority or guidance from the Secret Chiefs, it implies that the
'ship-builder' was offered entrance into the House but he felt unworthy. This
refers to an event which occurred on December 10th 1906. It marked an important
milestone in the establishment or birth of the AA. In his diaries Aleister
Crowley notes, "Jones says Ou Me is 8=3. I say Mollie Lee rhymes with
both. This purifies and consecrates me, so that I feel 'I am the master' quite
genuine - without scrupple or difference. No personality." Ou Me is a
reference to Crowley's
7=4 motto or Ou Mh (The NOT). If you do not realize the significance of Crowley's entry then in
his Confessions he made it clearer when he wrote, "In the month of
December the Secret Chiefs formally invited me, through G.R. Frater D.D.S., to
take my place officially in the Third Order." (p.533) It must be
remembered that no member of the original Hermetic Order of The Golden Dawn
ever achieved higher than an Adeptus Exemptus 7=4 or beyond the sphere of Chesed
on the Tree of Life. It is no secret that they all failed to make the
connection and join with the Secret Chiefs above the Abyss. In some ways they
were restricted by the Old Aeonic belief that these final three spheres on the
Tree of Life were of such an exalted nature that only those not 'in the flesh'
could ever attain them. The idea of becoming one of these Secret Chiefs while
still in one's mortal shell, had not dawned on many of them.
All
this changed when Aleister Crowley became a Magister Templi 8=3. He now resided
in the Third Order. He had become one of the Secret Chiefs. He took the motto
Vi Veri Vniversum Vivus Vici (By the power of Truth, I, in my lifetime, have
conquered the Universe).
This
single event gave Crowley
the authority that he and Jones had earlier sought. Many individuals do not
understand the full implications, however, in One Star in Sight it
states that members of the Third Order "are each entitled to found Orders
dependent on themselves on the lines of the R. C. and G. D. orders, to cover
types of emancipation and illumination not contemplated by the original (or
main) system. All such orders must, however, be constituted in harmony with the
AA as regards the essential principles." In other words, here Aleister
Crowley acknowledges the source of his own authority which enabled him to begin
the First and Second Orders of his AA. It is difficult for some to grasp the nature
of the Inner School or Third Order wherein the Holy
of Holies resides. Many people assume that by taking initiation into a
legitimate branch of Crowley's
AA that they have entered this Order. They have not. They have merely entered
one of many outer vehicles which disseminate portions of its Wisdom as a means
of guiding humanity forward toward spiritual self realization. According to
magickal tradition, the Qabalistic Tree of Life is divided into three mystery
schools. The First and the Second Orders of the AA are respectively called the
GD and the RC. These Orders are what Crowley
and Jones founded in 1906 when they determined to create a new Order. The Inner School
or Third Order known as SS always existed. Aleister Crowley did not create
this.
In
other words, when Aleister Crowley entered into the Third Order, the Hermetic
Order of the Golden Dawn had already fallen into disgrace. Initiations had
failed. There were no Outer Schools. Crowley
realized that he had to establish such in order to have a vehicle to
disseminate his teachings. Thus he created what we commonly term 'the AA.' The
difficulty which aspirants often have is their inability to distinguish when Crowley is talking about
the First, the Second or the Third Orders. In truth, he is never quite clear on
this matter. Part of the problem deals with the name itself and the
interpretation of the meaning behind the sacred letters of AA. According to Crowley, the over-all
structure of his new Order as depicted upon the Tree of Life is known as the Astron
Argon. It is a Greek phrase meaning 'Silver Star'. It is the structure
whose center is Tiphereth, our personal Sun or Star. When an initiate joins the
AA they are joining the Astron Argon but not its Inner School.
The easiest way to understand the difference is to realize that Astron Argon
when written in Greek has a numerical value of 451. It is the same value as the
Greek words Konx Om Pax which literally means 'Light in Extension,' the
gift of our Star. The confusion often arises because the Third Order of the Astron
Argon is called the SS which many have interpreted to mean 'Silver Star.'
Indirectly it does, however, Astron Argon is not the true meaning behind
the letters AA of the Inner
School. This is secret.
The
next important period in AA history occurred in 1907. During this year Aleister
Crowley wrote many documents which came to be called the Holy Books. Some of
these are considered to be Class A or documents which can not be changed in
either the style of a letter or punctuation. Their message is considered to be
the utterance of an Adept. It might be easier for some to consider these works
as being inspired, rather than actually authored by Aleister Crowley, even
though he did, in fact, write them.
In
October of 1908 Crowley
began the magickal workings described in John St. John (The Equinox
I:1). This working is quite remarkable and in itself warrants an entire chapter
but, for the purpose of this article, I only wish to point out one critical
thing. Although he typed out the final form of Liber DCLXXI vel Troa it
would be short lived. While meditating in 'The Hanged Man' position within his
sacred pyramid, Crowley
asks his Holy Guardian Angel for guidance and on October 4th 1908 he
acknowledges, "I now sit down to meditate on this new ritual." He
then gives a short, brief outline of this new ritual in John St. John.
What it entails is taking Liber DCLXXI vel Troa and modifying it yet
again into a truer AA ritual. In some respects Liber DCLXXI vel Troa was
still very much an Old Aeonic ritual because it required a candidate to be
taken through the ritual by two individuals, a Hegemon and a Hiereus. In the
modified version Crowley
makes Troa a ritual of self initiation, between just the candidate and his
Angel. This new ritual became known as Liber Pyramidos, Liber vel DCLXXI or
671. On the typed copy of Liber Pyramidos it states that "This is
the actual MS 671 referred to in John St. John." Underneath this, in
parentheses, is written "John St. John is the diary of a magical
retirement undertaken by A.C. in Paris
in 1908 and published in Vol. I Number 1 of the Equinox.)" The reason Troa
all but disappeared is because Liber Pyramidos became the real ritual of
a Neophyte in Crowley's
AA. On the cover of Troa, in Crowley's
handwriting, is boldly scribbled, "Not for Publication" which does
not mean, as some assert, that the ritual must remain secret. To the contrary
it simply means the ritual is no longer valid. It has been replaced by Liber
Pyramidos.
This
brings us up to a convenient stopping place.
In Conclusion
All
in all, the early history of the Order is webbed in contradictions. Depending
upon whom you're reading, the story changes considerably. What we wanted you to
realize is that Aleister Crowley and George Cecil Jones created the First and
Second Orders, plain and simple. These Orders are not, as some would have you
believe, an ancient fraternity which has been around for centuries even though
its own paperwork implies otherwise. Yes, the principles are as old as the
hills and its aspirations very noble but, in truth, it is simply a modern
rendition on old themes. The first major question which needs to be addressed
by yourself is whether or not these two individuals had the authority to create
an Order? We believe, in all honesty, that they did.
However,
thanks to modern technology, more and more 'outsiders' are beginning to
question the phantoms of our Order's history due to the availability of
information which Aleister Crowley could never have foreseen being accessible.
We can not stay in Crowley's
frame of mind regarding our fraternity forever. Let's put it into perspective.
When Crowley
was born, Alexander Graham Bell had not yet invented the telephone. Cars and
airplanes were but a dream. Mystery Schools could still keep secrets. We can
not ignore that advancements made by mankind are moving rather rapidly.
Computers, the Internet and paper shufflers in general are making it almost
impossible to contain secrets. We do not consider this wrong, baneful or a
mistake of the Gods. We have no intention to challenge the Gods as to how they
should disseminate information. However, we are acknowledging the need to face
the phantoms of our plane, the times are simply changing and we are not quite
sure of the implications. Our branch of the AA feels strongly that we must
embrace the inevitable and realize that the New Aeon is young and still in its
infant stage. We can not cling to the old beliefs forever. We must constantly
reflect upon outward changes in society as being stability. In other words, it
seems that the methods whereby humanity embraces self realization are radically
mutating. If we do not reflect upon the strides which humanity is making in the
outer world, we'll be left by the side of the road as a spiritual path. Mystery
Schools, in the Old Aeonic sense, are dead, simply because Mystery is the enemy
of Truth.
Love is the law, love under will. - AL I:57
Frater
A.
[Note: There are a few obvious typing errors
corrected in some quotes.]
