~ SEPT. 12th - 30th, 2008 ~

(the latest entries are always added to the top)

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. - AL I:40

Tuesday September 30th 2008 – 10:15am Mark Underwood sent me an email about his magazine. He's writes, "Heres a blurb about 'Another Mirror' for you to post on your blog. Pete said if anyone is interested in receiving a copy to email us for details." ....... He then adds: "Another Mirror at the End of the Road examines the divergent interests of Thelemic subculture, Magickal groups and their literature, Oc/cult beliefs and practices, and other areas of Mind Control techniques to present a wealth of information which may not be readily known to the average budding avatar.  We are open to many paths of enlightenment and do not exclude materials which sometimes are not in alignment with commonly held consensual realities.  We seek to challenge the perceptions and limitations inherent within individual awareness and beacon toward an awakening of higher levels of consciousness and a self-actualized achievement of control utilizing a variety of systems of mind development. ... Our first edition of the periodical presented an interview with a key member of the notorious Solar Lodge—Frater Shiva as well as a review of his comprehensive chronicle of the activities and philosophies of the Solar Lodge entitled ‘Inside Solar Lodge—Outside the Law:  True Tales of Initiation and High Adventure’.  It also includes a thorough and detailed history of the magical group known as Fraternitas Saturni and its connection with the Ordo Templi Orientis written by Peter R. Koenig. ..... The second edition (Autumn Equinox) features an article on the children of Aleister Crowley entitled 'Offspring of the Beast', a piece on Crowley's physician Dr. William Brown Thomson written by J. Edward Cornelius, and a feature on P.B. Randolph and Sexual Magick in the 19th Century by T Allen Greenfield as well as a review section which examines 'The Allende Letters and the VARO Edition of the Case for the UFOs' by Morris Jessup and Carlos Allende, 'Liber Thirty-One' by Frater Achad (edited by T Allen Greenfield), 'The Carnival of Life and Death' by James Shelby Downard, 'Inventing Witchcraft--A Case Study in the Creation of a New Religion' by Aidan A. Kelly, and the dvd 'In Search of the Great Beast 666'.  ... Contact address: Gammon House Publishing, Post Office Box 6128, Wheeling, WV 26003 ... Email address: friends_of_gammon_house@yahoo.com

6:05am Miguel writes, "I know I've been kind of quiet lately, but I just wanted to let you know that you have been on my mind and I hope that providence is providing you with all that you need to continue to manifest your Thelema." ..... Reply: It is, thanks for asking.

6:00am Christian Fitzharris wites, "Thank you so much for continuing to make public the intimate magical work of Major Grady Mc Murtry. I was so inspired to hear that you had made more of his work available to the public. I find his poetry inspirational as both a model for all Thelemites to follow writing their own lyrical work and as an invocational tool to be used by one who knows. I know that much money and effort goes into offering the best "free" entertainment on the internet and I appreciate the time, effort, and personal drive that has been injected into bringing the poetry of Brother Grady to our homes and consciousness." ........ Reply: Thanks!

5:55am Here is an excerpt from my writings - "Many magicians who study esoteric anatomy have heard of the Kundalini which is a Sanskrit word that literally means ‘coiled.’ The Kundalini is essentially pure ‘elemental’ energy often referred to as an internal Goddess. She is portrayed as a Serpent coiled three times, biting her own tail as she sleeps at the base of our spine. The lowest coil refers to the ‘tendency’ [i.e. Guna] known as Tamas. This ‘negative’ force promotes inactivity, a death-like quality of inertia. The middle coil refers to the ‘tendency’ [i.e. Guna] known as Rajas. This is a ‘positive’ fiery, active force. The highest coil is ‘neutral’ and is known as Sattva, or purity and literally implies existence. Regarding these three Gunas, Aleister Crowley has written - “The Scourge, the Dagger, and the Chain, represent the three alchemical principles of Sulphur, Mercury, and Salt. These are not the substances which we now call by these names; they represent "principles," whose operations chemists have found it more convenient to explain in other ways. But Sulphur represents the energy of things, Mercury their fluidity, Salt their fixity. They are analogous to Fire, Air and Water; but they mean rather more, for they represent something deeper and subtler, and yet more truly active. An almost exact analogy is given by the three Gunas of the Hindus; Sattvas, Rajas, and Tamas. Sattvas is Mercury, equable, calm, clear; Rajas is Sulphur, active, excitable, even fierce; Tamas is Salt, thick, sluggish, heavy, dark.” (BOOK 4, 1972 pg. 65) In the western tradition the three coils of Kundalini are pathways suggesting a more positive interpretation of the Gunas, the lowest being that of Knowledge, then Perfection and finally Truth."

5:45am For the history buffs: On this date in 1630 one of the Mayflower’s passenger’s named John Billington was hanged; thus becoming the first person in the New World to hold the distinction of being executed. It seems he had made many enemies aboard the ship as a "foul mouthed miscreant" and "knave," and he even took punishment for insulting Captain Myles Standish and another passenger he willfully murdered named John Newcomen; a crime for which he was hung. He had a wife and two sons and one of Billington’s direct descendants would even become a U.S.President named James Garfield. …...…… and it was on September 30, 1888 that the the third and fourth victims of Jack the Ripper were found. Elizabeth Stride had her throat cut, but nothing in the shape of any mutilations due to the Ripper having been interrupted. He had to look elsewhere. This is when he found Catherine Eddowes in Mitre Square. Her throat was cut and her face, stomach and other parts were badly mutilated.

Monday September 29th 2008 – 7:00pm This is to let some of my students (and readers) know that due to health issues I am tired more than not, I nap often during the day and my focus toward serious magickal questions is limited. Please bear with me if I don't answer your emails or if my replies seem brief ...

3:45pm Jerri is sending me "Astral hugs and kisses and brocolli" ... adding "... can't I send you veggies in the astral plane at least???" ... Reply: Aughhhhhhhh!!!! The pain, the pain! I'm melting, feeling healthy, "What a world, what a world."

3:30pm Luna watched one of my favorite 'recommended' movies - THE SUICIDE CLUB. She writes, "I am watching Suicide Club. What comes to mind is the brilliance of our old favorites: "If", "Oh, Lucky Man" and "Hospital Britannia". and ... "Poison"... remembering a critique of "Poison" I remember that our friend John Waters said of this film:  "My faith in youth has been restored". Thank you for turning me on to Suicide Club" .... and later she added - "Gotta just love the film...and the Carpenters tool is too funny. I watched it through, and slept on it...and still feel that this film is subtler than anything I have seen in a long long time....with the mind control aspect and the satire on incidents that happened here in our country. thanks again for the tip..." ..... Reply: Glad you enjoyed it. It is a classic and now go out and rent the movie 'Noriko's Dinner Table' ... it explains the Suicide Club movie and maybe, just maybe someone might actually notice that long ago, in a time between sleep, my email address listed above was changed to 'BERKELEY STATION 54' and realize why!

6:45am For the history buffs: On this date in 1989 what became known as the “Great Berkeley Keystone Gestapo Massacre on the Ordo Templi Orientis by the Berkeley Police Department” occurred in which two houses along with Thelema Lodge OTO were raided for drugs. What really shocked the Police Review Commission, who were investigating the incident, was that the police issued a major drug raid on a Friday night, in of all places Berkeley, where many people were either harassed or arrested and all they got to show for it was ‘nine marijuana seeds.’ One PRC commissioner said to the effect that if the police had swept Telegraph Avenue near campus they would have gotten better results. Anyway, the entire gruesome story has been serialized in a story titled MEMOIRS OF AN OTO INITIATE, Being an Historical Romp into a Quasi-Magickal Fraternity in California [CORNELIA Issues No.4-18]

Sunday September 28th 2008 – 7:15am To everyone, thanks for your concern but to answer some of your frantic questions - don't panic with me cancelling October's schedule here at my Clerk House. It doesn't mean that I'm that sick. [mentally maybe, physically no] It just means that I have a bunch of hospital tests in October, maybe early November but none of the dates are confirmed as yet. I don't want to find out at the last minute that I have to go into the hospital on a Friday or Saturday and do lectures or hold an Open House when I get home. It is better for me to outright cancel everything until the test dates are known and then reschedule my Clerk House around them. Make sense? Anyway, sorry for getting some of you worried. But thanks for all your emails.

7:05am Frank asks - "I think what you are doing is great. You've been publishing alot of Grady's stuff on your website of late. Does your A.'.A.'. lineage own the copyrights or from whom do you get permission? Just curious." ..... Reply: According to Grady's 'Last Will and Testament' ... there is no mention of anyone getting 'copyright' over his writings. In effect, everything that he's ever written is given to humanity. No one owns his writings, ourselves included. Of course, this is with the exception of 'formating'; you cannot in theory take something that he's written and reproduce it verbatim from a previously copyrighted book without permission but you can re-typeset it and make it your own. I think this is part of the beauty of the man, the beauty of Thelema, if what he's written is to be appreciated by generations and generations, let no person own it. Yes, Grady McMurtry was not part of the 'Slave Gods.'

6:45am Here is the latest edition to Grady McMurtry's archive; it is Preface to THE HOLY BOOKS written by Maj. Grady Louis McMurtry X° for the 1983 edition of "ΘΕΛΗΜΑ: The Holy Books of Thelema." [Maine, Samuel Weiser, Inc] pgs. vii -xxvi. ...  Enjoy.

6:10am Luna writes, "J 93! As I journey around the freakin' world watching stuff from remote viewing station hooked up to the moon satellite, getting caught up in many diversions on my way...and continuing to do so......I thought I'd take a minute to tell you how much I appreciate you! all my love atcha! and astral hugs too! 93s  )O(  ." ....... Reply: Being born under the Sign of Cancer, I can say for a fact, nothing seems to bring smiles more than the Moon!  Thanks.  I can always use astral hugs.

6:00am For the history buffs: One of the most famous people in ancient China was a wise philosopher named Confucius (circa 551-479 BC) whose birthday is celebrated on this date. He was born in the village of Zou in the country of Lu. His original name was K’ung Ch’iu. …...…. And the Canadian cult leader Roch Theriault, who was obsessed with anatomy and medicine, performed crude intestinal surgery on a woman name Boislard by slicing open her abdomen and ripping out a piece of infected intestine with his bare hands on this date in 1988. He then ordered another follower to stitch up the wound with a needle and thread. After she died the next day in agonizing pain, he sawed off the top of her head and then had sex with her torso. Before burying the woman, he removed a rib, which he wore around his neck. He was finally arrested and charged with murder after another cult member, whose arm had been hacked off by Theriault with a meat cleaver, told hospital authorities what had happened to him. At his trial in 1993, even more horrific tales came to light. The cult leader had burned women with a welding torch, put vice-grips on their nipples, and cut their fingers off with a wire cutter; all in an attempt apparently to drive the devil out of them. Theriault also demanded sex from all of the women members to increase the number of cult members through children. Also, revealed was the story that after a new member of the cult, one who had just escaped from a mental hospital, beat a child at the compound, Theriault performed "surgery" on the childe to save her but she died and as punishment, Theriault castrated the man. After authorities learned about some of the activities at the ranch, they removed all of the children. The 1993 trial came to an abrupt end when Theriault pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to life in prison and to this day he remains incarcerated. ……….. and on September 28, 1989 the U.S. government allegedly shot down and recovered a UFO at Moriches Bay in Long Island.

Saturday September 27th 2008 – 12:45pm Here is a piece of Tarot  trivia ... did you know that each King in a deck of regular playing cards actually represents a great King from history:

Spades       - King David

Hearts       - Charlemagne

Clubs        - Alexander, the Great

Diamonds  -      Julius Caesar

4:40am For the history buffs: On this date in 1726 a 25 year old maidservant named Mary Toft from Godalming, England became the subject of considerable controversy when she gave birth to sixteen rabbits, according to her doctors John Howard. He sent immediate letters to some of England’s greatest doctors and scientists asking for help investigating the delicate situation and among those who came to his assistance were Nathaniel St Andre, the surgeon-anatomist to King George I and Sir Richard Manningham, the most famous obstetrician in London. In their presence, Toft gave birth to several more dead rabbits. When the doctors questioned her she claimed that during her pregnancy she had an intense craving for roast rabbit, which she tried to catch in the garden and which she admired in the village market, and that she dreams about rabbits. Based on this evidence the doctors explained that these births were the result of “maternal impressions”, contending that a pregnant woman’s experiences could be imprinted directly on the fetus at conception and this is what caused the birth defects of her children to look like rabbits. Surprisingly the ‘rabbit birthings’ were actually exposed as a hoax, but not before many of London’s most eminent doctors had been thoroughly taken in by the concept. …..….. and it was on September 27, 1789 that Cagliostro was arrested by order of the Pope and becomes one of the last official arrests by the Apostolic Court of the Inquisition in Italy.  No charges were ever officially presented to any court due to the fact that all those who could testify against him were dead thanks to the inquisition. It was decided to throw him in prison anyway, where he would later die. …....…. And how can I forget to mention that on September 27, 1911 Rose Edith Kelly, aka Mrs. Aleister Edward Crowley, was taken off to a sanatorium for alcoholic dementia by the family doctor and certified insane. She later recovered, divorced Aleister Crowley, remarried and tried to forget the Great Beast 666. ……… and on September 27, 1923 Norman Mudd took the Oath of Probationer in the AA becoming Frater Omnia Pro Veritate, which means ‘All for Truth.’ …..…… and finally, on September 27, 1955 Pierre Arnold Bernard died at the age of 80. His real name was Peter Coon although he was widely known as ‘Oom the Omipotent.’ He was born in Leon, Iowa, in 1875, the son of a barber, and he followed in his father’s trade in and around Chicago and later in California. He later moved to New York in 1909 and taught Hatha Yoga at his ‘New York Sanskrit College.’ Most historians agree that this enigmatic character was largely responsible for establishing the eastern art of sexual Tantra in America with his Tantrik Order, but where he got his teachings from no one is quite sure. He became notorious throughout newspapers and journals as a spiritual leader and philosopher as well as a philanderer, seducer of women and purveyor of scandalous indecencies. The sister of Aleister Crowley’s Scarlet Woman Leah Hirsig, or Alma Hirsig, was once a member of the Tantrik Order. She wrote an expose on Oom the Omipotent in a book titled My Life in a Love Cult, A Warning to All Young Girls.

Friday September 26th 2008 – 3:00pm Mick writes, "The new Grady stuff on the website is lots of fun to go through. Gradually I'm getting a sense of the man - if only just the broadstrokes. It strikes me that in many ways Grady was his magick - the work, realized, inseperable from the man. Maybe that suggests one definition of the magus?" ..... Reply: Isn't this true for all of us? We are 'our' magick by definition and our incarnation is simply exploring what this implies? Grady is neat simply because, by studying his life - as to how it manifested, how he saw it and how he realized what his True Will (i.e. incarnation) actually was - it gives us clues as to how we should view our own lives. Yes, to me, Grady's greatest gift ... is an example of how a magician must explore their lives in their quest of a Soul's Code.

11:15am Yes Carol, your Aries attitude should bite its tongue for the next month during this Mercury Retrograde; whether you are right or wrong. [Oh, I'm sorry, you once told me you're never wrong.] Anyway, you might also stop referring to your boyfriend as "my Dutlik" [i.e. dumb Texas limp-dick] in your emails. If he finds out it might cause issues with MR in Libra.

11:00am Evelyn replied - "Hi again Jerry and thank you. You are so sweet to go into such detail on the blog. You are right of course - it is indeed a time for inward reflection of which I have been doing a lot of. The trick is not to tip the balance with self pity or other negative emotions." ..... Reply: So true! But knowing how to act is half the battle won!

7:25am Evelyn writes, “As for the Mercury Retrograde - tell me about it!!! The question is, as a Libra, can I run away from myself?” … Reply: Not even if Mercury wasn’t retrograding! You’re kinda stuck with yourself unless you’re a Gemini and then you can simply deny everything and blame your other guy! ... Anyway, we tend to think that all our natal planet’s energies are always directed toward outward expression but rarely do astrologers examine what it implies when the planet is retrograde which means that part of the energy is now directed inward, away from the world. Such qualities often give us a deeper sensitivity in regards to the planet and the house in which it falls; like Libra or it can 'fuel' discontent. Now remember, there are two types of people in the world; the proverbial slaves and the proverbial Kings. The slaves simply go about the world as pawns to the forces that are put into motion and more often than not they get ‘whacked’ during a Mercury Retrograde. In truth, all ‘issues’ coming to the surface during a Mercury Retrograde should not be dealt with in the mundane which is why astrologers warn people not to sign anything during this period and avoid confrontations or official, legal type of stuff which represents aspects of 'communication' ruled by Mercury. … So what does a Retrograde in Libra mean? Well, Libra rules the planet Venus and together they represent one’s desire and ability to establish personal relationships with others, more so with spouses, partners and lovers. Libra dictates our expectations in everyone and what we are looking for. For this reason Libra is often seen as ruling marriage, sometimes even establishing business partners and friends. Some astrologers claim that Libra also reveals enemies. In all cases, in this sign a person quests for a Balance between all extremes. Although this sign is ruled primarily by Venus, the Goddess of Love and Beauty from a positive point of view, since this is a masculine sign, sitting on the opposite side of the scales, hidden under the surface lays Saturn. If the scales tip in this direction the sign is bathed in dishonesty, intense scheming, and deception and inevitably unscrupulous behavior emerges toward others; Saturn eats it's children [i.e. loved ones]. Now remember, Mercury rules 'communication' and people should bite their tongue and think before saying things to their mate, spouse or anyone during this period whom you might care about and especially; commit 'nothing' into writing!!! It could come back to haunt you. ... This should be a time for 'Self Reflection' on matters related to Venus in Libra; coming to terms with issues internally rather than escalating them in the mundane.

5:45am pm For the history buffs: September 26 is Saint Cyprian and Justina Day. Cyprian was a great philosopher and renowned sorcerer, a native of Carthage who had dealing with demons. At the age of ten he was sent by his parents, as a preparation for a sorcerer’s career, to Mount Olympus, which the pagans called the dwelling of the gods. Here there were a multitude of idols in which demons dwelled. On this mountain Cyprian studied all manner of diabolical arts: he mastered various demonic transformations, learned how to change the nature of the air, to bring up winds, produce thunder and rain, disturb the waves of the sea, cause damage to gardens, vineyards and fields, to send diseases and plagues upon people; and in general he learned a ruinous wisdom and diabolical activity filled with evil. In this place he saw a numberless legion of demons, with the prince of darkness at their head; some stood before him, others served him, still others cried out in praise of their prince, and some were sent into the world in order to corrupt people. As for Justina. Although she came from pagan parents, she inevitably became a devout Christian. Legend has it that Cyprian sought to bring Justina, a virgin as pure as blinding light, to ruin but she foiled three separate attacks by his demons with the sign of the cross. For whatever reasons, Cyprian wondered about the power of such a symbol and, deciding to see its effects, he made the cross upon himself. Immediately demons of all shape and sizes began jumping from his body and fleeing. In his joyousness, now bathed in utter freedom, Cyprian embraced Christianity. He would rise up to become a powerful Bishop while Justina became the head of a convent. Sadly, during the vile reign of Diocletian both Cyprian and Justina were seized and taken to Damascus where they were shockingly tortured. With their Christian faith never wavering they were brought before Diocletian at Nicomedia, where at his command they were beheaded on the bank of the river Gallus. ............ and to continue: on September 26, 1901 Madame Horos and her husband supposedly raped a sixteen year old girl named Daisy Adams who was an initiate of their bogus Lodge of the Hermetic Order of The Golden Dawn Lodge. From the sacred Temple, which was nothing more than the bedroom of the ‘swami’, a voice cried out, according to official court documents, of a girl saying, “Oh, Theo don’t ...” , but the courts proved that Theo did. ............ and on September 26, 1930 Dr. Leo Louis Martello was born in Dudley, Massachusetts. He claimed descent from a long line of Sicilian Witches. He gained notoriety on All Hallows Eve in 1970 by arranging the now infamous “Witch-in” in New York City's Central Park. At first the New York City Parks Department outright refused to issue a permit. However, they changed their minds when Leo secured the services of the New York Civil Liberties Union and threatened a lawsuit on behalf of a minority religion whose rights were being violated. The Witch-in was attended by 1,000 persons, and was filmed and made into a documentary by Global Village. In time, Leo founded the Witches Anti-Defamation League which later became known as the Witches Anti-Discrimination Lobby, or WADL. It was dedicated to ensuring all Witches' religious rights. By the late 1980's chapters of the League had been established in every state in the US. Although he published many books he is most remembered for: It's Written in the Cards (1964), It's Written in the Stars (1966), Weird Way of Witchcraft (1969), The Hidden World of Hypnotism (1969), Black Magic, Satanism and Voodoo (1972), Understanding the Tarot (1972) and Witchcraft: The Old Religion (1973). Dr. Leo Louis Martello passed away on June 29, 2000. 

Thursday September 25th 2008 – 10:45am While hunting through old disks for items that I might up-load onto this website I came across an old article that I wrote back in 1995 titled A SYNOPSIS OF OTO LEADERSHIP, A Brief History of The Ancient Order of The Oriental Templars Also known as THE ORDO TEMPLI ORIENTIS. I have edited this piece and updated it slightly. Click HERE if you'd like to read it.

7:30am To compliment the story that is found in ON KNOWING ALEISTER CROWLEY PERSONALLY which was written by Hymenaeus Alpha 777 where he talks about Crowley's I-Ching Sticks ... I have uploaded an old article that I wrote back in the mid-1990s title 'ALEISTER CROWLEY'S I-CHING STICK.'  Enjoy.

6:55am Well, by popular demand I'm forced to once again up-load, format and add 'A Serious Qabalistic Study of 666' onto this website ... click HERE for deatils. Any suggestions would be welcomed, or additions ...

6:15am Here is a quote circa 1946 - "Grady published one of his poems during this period. It appeared a magazine published by students at the University of California, where he had enrolled. The poem was titled The Cyclops (written in 1942), and it appeared in the Spring 1946 issued of The Occident, A Literary Magazine." ... It is from IN THE NAME OF THE BEAST, A biography of Grady Louis McMurtry, disciple of Aleister Edward Crowley Volume One - 1918-1962, by J. Edward Cornelius, RED FLAME No. 12 [CA: Berkeley] 2005, pg. 104. ... I have up-loaded scans of this magazine, click HERE to view them and as with all the new stuff that I've been adding, it's listed on the CONENTS page.

6:00am For the history buffs: The Old Ferry Inn, Horning, in Norfolk, England had been an old mead house for centuries, dating back to Roman times when it was the site of a ferry crossing by the river. Legend has it that the haunting began due to an incident that happened centuries ago. This is when a group of monks were sitting outside drinking one afternoon when a pretty young local girl was seen walking along the nearby river bank. The monks, who were very drunk, grabbed the young girl and dragged her inside the mead house where they all proceeded to rape her. So violent was their attack that she died as a result of her ordeal. To hide the evidence of their drunken sins, the brothers dragged her body outside and threw it into the river. The ghost of this girl has been making her appearance known every twenty years at the site of her tragic end. The last noted sighting occurred on this date, the 25th of September in 1936. This is when her ghost was seen in a passageway of the Ferry Inn by the then landlord. He had dozed off in a chair and was awakened by the sound of a rustling of a dress. Looking up, he was terrified to see a figure of a girl in her early 20’s wearing a long greenish dress. What struck him the most was the girl’s face, which was unbelievably beautiful but deathly-white, and it had a painful look of suffering. The ghost slowly glided across the room and vanished through the front door. Although terrified the landlord followed and, upon opening the door, he saw the ghost disappearing into the river near the ferry. A guest staying at the inn that night also witnessed the apparition. Then, if this tragedy wasn’t enough for the site, on April 26, 1941 the Old Ferry Inn was destroyed by a direct hit from a German bomb during World War II. Twenty-two people died.

Wednesday September 24th 2008 – 6:30pm Paul writes - "Congrats on the laptop! The Grady poems and scans are a blast, the doodle was especially nice."

4:45pm I added another rare poem written by Grady McMurtry into his Poetry Section titled AW HELL. When I released RED FLAME No.1 The Poetry of Grady McMurtry back in 1994 we had yet to discover this little gem which appeared in a newsletter known as NEPENTHE. The magazine was published shortly after World War II but unfortunately it contains no copyright information or year. It was simply released by Earl Singleton of the M.I.T. Graduate House in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since we know that Grady McMurtry registered as an undergraduate at the University of Berkeley in 1947 it is presumed that he made connections during this period which enabled him to submit the poem Anyway, not only have I added the poem into the poetry section but I scanned the original newsletter and posted it on this web site as well. I'd recommend checking it out because Grady has a drawing at the top of the poem. Cute!

4:00pm Check out the THE MILITARY ENGINEER (magazine) March 1944 issue (Vol. XXXVI No. 221) that I just posted. ... Here is a blub: "That April Lt. Grady McMurtry submitted a poem/song he had written a few years earlier in 1942 to the Society of American Military Engineers for possible publication in their magazine, The Military Engineer. The ‘song’ was titled The Combat Engineer and was published in the March 1944 issue (Vol. XXXVI No. 221). Soon after that the editor, Col. J. Franklin Bell, wrote Grady a rather nice letter dated March 6th 1944, in which he states “I am writing to express our high appreciation of your co-operation in preparing the song titled The Combat Engineer which appears in the current issue of The Military Engineer, and to express the hope that its display is entirely to your liking.” Grady was elated. His song would become one of the many sung by the Combat Engineers during World War Two.That April Lt. Grady McMurtry submitted a poem/song he had written a few years earlier in 1942 to the Society of American Military Engineers for possible publication in their magazine, The Military Engineer. The ‘song’ was titled The Combat Engineer and was published in the March 1944 issue (Vol. XXXVI No. 221). Soon after that the editor, Col. J. Franklin Bell, wrote Grady a rather nice letter dated March 6th 1944, in which he states “I am writing to express our high appreciation of your co-operation in preparing the song titled The Combat Engineer which appears in the current issue of The Military Engineer, and to express the hope that its display is entirely to your liking.” Grady was elated. His song would become one of the many sung by the Combat Engineers during World War Two." ......... from: IN THE NAME OF THE BEAST, A biography of Grady Louis McMurtry, disciple of Aleister Edward Crowley, Volume One - 1918-1962, by J. Edward Cornelius - RED FLAME No. 12 [CA: Berkeley] 2005, pg. 67

7:35am Here is an excerpt from IN THE NAME OF THE BEAST, A biography of Grady Louis McMurtry, disciple of Aleister Edward Crowley Volume One - 1918-1962 pg.27 - "Grady’s first poem, Ballet Sol, also became one of his first published pieces, appearing alongside The Parish Parson in the July 1941 issue of Lou Goldstone’s publication Fantasia. Lou Goldstone was a well-known science-fiction illustrator and would later become a frequent visitor to the South Orange Grove Avenue residency of the OTO by the mid-40’s. Grady, or possibly Jack Parsons, brought him there. Lou Goldstone would later be responsible for introducing his friend, L. Ron Hubbard, to the OTO in August of 1945."  ... I added the above quote because I have just up-loaded scans of the original 'Fantasia' magazine onto this website. Click HERE to view them.

6:30am This is to let everyone know that if you have any Grady articles etc that are already in 'WORD' format [not PDF] then I'd love to get a copy so that I can add it to this official 'Grady' website. Also, any volunteers out there for typesetting into WORD short articles and pieces that have been written by Grady or are about Grady? My goal is is get as much of Grady's stuff on-line as possible.

6:15am This is just a simple reminder ... RUN AWAY!!! MERCURY STARTS RETROGRADING today in Libra, a Cardinal Sign ruled by Venus, and it will remain such until around October 15th. All areas of communication normally Balanced (Libra) under the rulership of Venus can be seriously affected. This is not going to be a good Mercury Retrograde for some!!! Love can easily become a four-letter word! Ouch! 

6:05am Last night David Solinas wrote, “Did it come yet? I am more excited than you I think... :) 93's”  ... to which I replied, “Dave 93 Yes it came & I almost did too!  :)-  On the way to pick up my son I stopped by the Post Office and found a delightful package waiting for me. A big heart-felt 'THANKS' goes out to you for the kind gift of a laptop; it made me smile, brought joy and took my mind off issues which I don't need to focus on right now regarding my health. It is a treasured gift and much needed, more than you'll ever know. I meant to write you earlier but health issues have me sleeping a lot of late. The Gods are sometimes snickering … Again, thanks! No, MUCH THANKS!!!! 93 93/93 Jerry.”

6:00am The 'new' Grady stuff which I uploaded last night and this morning is an article called TALES FROM THE CALIPH, Continuity in the Order from the O.T.O. Newsletter Vol. I, No.2 Autumn 1977, pgs. 3-5 and another strory written by Grady titled KARL'S KARMA from O.T.O. Newsletter Vol. II, No.5 Summer Solstice 1978, pgs. 3-5 ... and I've also uploaded and formatted The Warrior-Troubadour, The Life & Times of Grady Louis McMurtry which is a lengthy biography that I wrote for RED FLAME, A Thelemic Research Journal, Issue No.1 The Poetry of Grady Louis McMurtry [Ca: Berkeley] July 1994. Yes, our website finally has a 'biographical sketch' as to who Grady actually is! It's about time, no? ... Anyway, I hope everyone is enjoying my efforts.

5:45am For the history buffs: On this date in 1541 the great Renaissance physician, alchemist and occult philosopher known as Paracelsus, died under mysterious circumstances at the age of 48 at the White Horse Inn in Salzburg. He was there to keep an appointment with the prince-archbishop, Duke Ernsty of Bavaria when, according to legend, he simply collapsed. Some believe that he was poisoned. After his death his bones were dug up several times, moved and reburied. Paracelsus had been born Theophrastus Philippus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim in Einsielden, Switzerland circa 1493 but he egotistically picked the pseudonym, which means ‘beyond Celsius’, to imply that he was a greater physician than the then-revered Roman physician Aulus Cornelius Celsius. He once invited the faculty of his college to a lecture in which he promised to teach ‘The Greatest Secret of ALL Medicine.’ He then proceeded to uncover a dish containing a pile of stinking shit in all its glory. No one was amused. Apparently they missed the concept of ‘putrefactive fermentation.’ ………. And Jacques Vallee was born on this date near Paris, France in 1938. Along with his mentor Dr. J. Allen Hynek, Dr. Vallee carefully studied the question of UFOs for many years. Jacques Vallee’s research has taken him to almost every country in the world. He is considered one of the leading experts in UFO phenomena and has written several well respected scientific books on the subject such as Passport to Magonia, Dimensions: A Casebook of Alien Contact, Confrontations: A Scientist’s Search for Alien Contact, Revelations: Alien Contact and Human Deception, and The UFO Experience: A Scientific Inquiry. As a side note: Jacques Vallee served as the real-life model for Francois Truffaut in Steven Spielberg’s classic film Close Encounters of the Third Kind. ……… and September 24, 1947 is the date given in a ‘classified executive order’ supposedly signed by President Truman and sent to Secretary of Defense James Forrestal, authorizing him to establish a board of experts who would be answerable only to the President himself and to be known as Majestic-Twelve (MJ-12). Their job was to investigate the crash of a Flying Saucer near Roswell, New Mexico in July 1947. This MJ-12 document appeared to be the ‘smoking gun’ that the Roswell incident, long the subject of rumor and speculation, had really happened but many, even within the UFO field, claim that it is a hoax. ………. And finally, on September 24, 1996, near Georgeville, Pennsylvania two children, a little girl and a boy, both age 9, swore that they saw a weird looking light blue creature walking through a cornfield near their school, moving its arms back and forth like a soldier. They described it s being about four-feet tall, with long arms that ended in three fingers. It had a tube-like appendage lying on top of its head and dangling down in the rear and its eyes were low, where a nose should have been. The creature was in view for about nine minutes.

Tuesday September 23rd 2008 – 10:55am Yes, I've been busy. I have finished adding the third and final instalment of Grady McMurtry's stories ON KNOWING ALEISTER CROWLEY PERSONALLY. This story, like the previous, ends with a 'To be continued' but regretably this was the last issue of the O.T.O. Newsletter. The story appeared in the O.T.O. Newsletter, Berkeley, California Vol. III, No.10&11 [Double Issue] Winter 1979-Spring 1980, pgs. 3-6. Click HERE if you'd like to read it.  After today, you can find all these stories listed on the Contents page.

10:25am Well, on a more positive side, I just finished computer entering the second instalment of Grady McMurtry's stories ON KNOWING ALEISTER CROWLEY PERSONALLY. Click HERE if you'd like to read the story, it's From the O.T.O. Newsletter (Berkeley, California) Vol. III, #9 Summer, August 1979, pgs. 3-7.  Enjoy.

10:00am Regarding my health issues that I posted on my blog; Rey from New Mexico writes, "Holy Chao! This is not pleasant news at all. How are you doing today? What were the test results? I take it that all the details were not shared on your blog, but I would like to know how serious this is, if you are so inclined?  :(."  ...  and from Dave in Florida, he writes, "My heart felt support and engergy is being sent towards you. All the best. I have sent you a present to celebrate the Equinox. ... I would certainly help you out if I was local. These are the moments when I am sorry I am so far away. Hopefully they will find a cause and it can be corrected. So yeah stay positive. You are loved by many." ... and from Jay, "I'm a bit saddened to hear about the state of your health. If leaping laughter could heal I would try my hand at it. While I don't have a vehicle I would be far more than happy to help any other way I possibly could. Let me know." ... and Paul writes, "I'm sorry to hear the tests went so badly. Keep your spirits up." ... and Luna writes, "I'm rooting for you and sending you all my love and astral good vibes!"  ... and from Carol, I can't repeat what she wrote but I wish she lived closer. ... and from Frank, "Stay positive!!!" ... and from Jerri, she writes, "Thanks for posting about your health...I am worried about you!!! But yes, we must stay positive. ... Really, take care of yourself and take it easy. We want you to stay with us a little bit longer!!!! " ... and to the dozen plus other emailers - thanks for thinking about me. I don't want to alarm everyone needlessly so I won't give all the gruesome details until all the dots are dotted and things confirmed but it seems like my old body is slowly reminding me of what years of abuse can do ... but such is life. Ya got to laugh, otherwise you'll go mad. I'm trying to keep positive until I go through all the tests next month and get the results to see what 'new' part of my body has now gone astray ... still, there is the off chance that I'm doing OK and its merely a minor setback. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

9:15am I'm starting to computer enter all of Grady McMurtry's stories, in particluar the series titled ON KNOWING ALEISTER CROWLEY PERSONALLY. Click HERE if you'd like to read the first instalment which is from From the O.T.O. Newsletter (Berkeley, California) Vol. II, #7&8 [Double Issue] Winter-Spring, May 1979, pgs. 3-6.  Enjoy.

8:30am NOTE: In Grady McMurtry's senior year at UC Berkeley on the G.I. Bill [circa 1947] is found a six page typescript probably written for submission in classes that he was taking regarding a fictitious 'Hollywood production' titled 'Space Tides.' Obviously something based on the lengthy sci-fiction poem written by Grady. He titled his piece 'ONE WORLD OR NONE' ... if you'd like to read it, click HERE.

8:00am I added another unpublished poem by Grady Louis McMurtry into his poetry section. It's titled THE BLACK MESSIAH. Click HERE to check it out.

4:00am For the history buffs: On this date in 1838 Victoria Clafin Woodhull was born in Homer, Ohio. Her family was forced to abruptly leave Homer after her father, Reuben Claflin, was accused of insurance fraud. Victoria received little education and spent most of her childhood with her family's traveling medicine show. She and her sister named Tennessee started Woodhull and Claflin's Weekly, a periodical which advocated, among other things, women's suffrage, short skirts, spiritualism, lots of free love, vegetarianism, birth control, and legalized prostitution. She was often referred to as “Mrs. Satan” by polite society. Although laws prohibited women from voting, there was nothing stopping women from running for office, which she did in 1872 against Ulysses S. Grant on the Equal Rights ticket with Frederick Douglass as her running mate. However, besides being a woman her foes pointed that she was too young to run for President, being only 35. She also spent election day in jail on charges of distributing obscene material which accused the Reverend Henry Beecher of adultery with a parishioner. In 1878 she moved to England where she published a monthly paper which dealt with palmistry, astrology, and, of all things, high finance. This noted spiritualist and clairvoyant died in North Park, Bremons, Worcestershire on June 9, 1927. ……..… and I should mention that on September 23, 1880 David Lang was walked across the front yard of his home near Gallatin, Tennessee in full view of his wife and children. As he turned and waved, saying, “I’ll be back in a few minutes” - he suddenly disappeared right in his tracks, never to reappear.  Over the years the grass on the exact spot where Lang vanished often comes up stunted and yellow. People who have stood near the spot have also reported hearing faintly a call for help, over and over until it faded away. …...….. and it was on September 23, 1939 that Aleister Crowley wrote his patriotic poem England Stand Fast at the outbreak of World War II. …...….. and Sigmund Freud died on this date in 1939 in England at age 83. He grew up to become one of the most influential figures in the world, crafting the comprehensive and controversial theories of psychoanalysis. Aleister Crowley commented on Freud’s techniques in his diary on February 19th 1930 writing, “The psychoanalysts have taken all the kick out of vice. Instead of being a glorious revolutionary, you are only a nasty infant who has never grown out of it. Similar remarks apply to virtue.” ……....... and finally, on September 23, 1968, Francesco Forgione; Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, more commonly known simply as Padre Pio died of natural causes at the Franciscan Monastery of San Giovanni Rotondo in Southern Italy. For over fifty years, first starting on September 20, 1918, Padre Pio bore the wounds, or stigmata, of Christ’s Passion on his hands and his feet. Thousands of people visited him every single year while he was alive to be cured of their bodily and spiritual ills, even more visit his tomb. He was born on May 25, 1887.

Monday September 22nd 2008 - The Autum Equinox! – 5:30pm Thanks all for the concerns about my health [see 2:15pm posting] and yes, it doesn't look all that good but I'm trying to keep positive until I have the actual tests next month and see the results. Tonight I'm simply curling up with a six pack and watching a video; I've chosen a classic called All that Jazz.

5:00pm Paul writes, re: posting Grady's poetry - "It's good to see so much Grady material being made available to those who would like to check out his rich legacy. Crowley said something to the effect that poetry is the geyser of the unconscious and Grady''s feelings ran along a similar vein. Thanks for giving so much essential source material of a truly thelemic character to us hungry little chicks out here in the wilderness."

2:15pm Well folks, I spent the morning at the doctors. Last months they took numerous vials of blood and had me doing all sorts of tests all month; today I found out that I failed them all miserably. Aughhhh. I'm not doing as well as I had hoped and it looks like they're going to schedule me into Highland Hospital in the hopes to figure out why ... as to when I do not know but it'll be a bunch of tests on numerous days; one being so invasive that their talking about anesthesia and knocking me out cold while they probe [?] around insider me. I was told to prepare for being there between two to four hours for this one. Great. And that’s the easy test! I may need some chauffeuring around, any takers? I don’t know the dates yet but as soon as I find out, I’ll let you all know. ... Still, I'm keeping a stiff upper lip and I'm not letting this minor setback get me down.

8:25am I have added a new piece onto the website which is titled THE MAGICKAL THESIS OF GRADY LOUIS McMURTRY. It can be found listed on Contents Page and The Poetry of Grady Louis McMurtry main page or you can click HERE.

6:20am Well, after some time now I’ve finally finished a major project that I've been working on. I have typeset and uploaded all of Gray Louis McMurtry’s poems onto this website. It has been an ordeal but it has been something that I’ve wanted to do for many years and it’s (almost) finally completed. There are a few other things I want to add. I only hope my readers appreciate his poetry as much as I do, it has been inspiring. I've also included some poems which are not found in any other source, not even in what I've previously released in Red Flame. For instance, in this collection I have released the 'tome' that Grady penned during the Korean War which he called MEMO PENCILLED ON A HELMET SKULL which runs for one entire page! In 1969, Grady would comment upon his poetry, writing - “I have been writing poetry since I was a teenager. Much to the amazement & shock of my ‘Okie’ family who, I suspect, probably thought it was a sure indication that I was ‘queer’. But it has always been a very positive thing. Something I did for my own amusement. Or edification. It would not be until relatively recently that I would see its fantastic potential in re initiation. To know that, by reaching ‘out’ in that blind, groping, intuitive sense, that I really could, when lucky, bring down ‘fire from heaven’.” He continued, “Much of my poetry is ‘writing poetry.’ i.e. bumbling along, putting sentences together, imitating, even if only sometimes subconsciously because it was the last book of poetry I read, somebody else in their style, technique. But then, once in awhile, I start writing ‘as a poet’. The floodgates of inspiration open. You are acting as the ‘hand & pen’ for some universe outside the span of time. And it is at times like that, that one must most beware, at least in my experience, of ‘tampering with the product’. And then will come those lines of initiatory experience that will tell you, rather than you tell them. Or even ‘write’ them, for they are being written for you. To you thru you, as it were, from somebody else. Or at least from somewhere else. Much of my initiatory experience has come from ‘letting it flow,’ and then trying to understand it later, even if it didn’t seem to make much sense at the time. As the Greek poets used to say, ‘from the Gods’. And you wouldn’t believe how many times I have been absolutely amazed as what I have ‘told’ myself, as it were, when thinking about it later. And then sometimes I have even told myself things that I have never been able to understand even to this day." ... Anyway if you'd like to check out his poetry click HERE and let me know what you think.

6:15am for the history buffs: According to the J. R. R. Tolkien’s 1954 classic The Lord of the Ring, this is the birthdate of both Bilbo Baggins and Frodo Baggins; one born in 2890 (Third Age) and the other in 2968 (Third Age). …….. and it was on September 22, 1692 that the last eight people were hung for witchcraft in Salem Massachusetts. One being Martha Corey whose husband died a few days earlier. The death toll now reached twenty people hanged, or crushed, with well over 200 arrested. The Boston jail, as well as Salem’s, was packed to the point of over crowding.

Sunday September 21st 2008 – 6:00am For the history buffs: Herbert George Wells was born on this date, in Bromley, Kent in 1866. His father was a shopkeeper and a professional cricketer until he broke his leg. He wrote The Island of Dr. Moreau which uses the Satanic Litany from the German ritual of Da Tierdrama. Remember: “Are we not men?” ………. And it was on September 21, 1924 that Leah Hirsig sent a letter to Aleister Crowley stating, “I hereby renounce the title of Scarlet Woman and pass it on to the Scarlet Concubine” of your desire. …….. and on this date in 1935 the Profess House of Ordo Templi Orientis at 1746 Winona Boulevard in Hollywood, Californian was officially elevated to full Lodge status, becoming Agape Lodge No.2. The Lodge Master was Wilfred T. Smith. …..…. And the prolific American author Stephen Edwin King was born on this date at the Maine General Hospital in Portland, Maine in 1947. His best-selling horror novels usually have a small-town or rural settings. Many of his works have been filmed, including Carrie (1974), Salem’s Lot (1975), The Shining (1978), Firestarter (1980), Pet Sematary (1983), Christine (1983) and Needful Things (1991), to mention but a few. …….. And on that note I’d also like to mention that Angelo Rossitto died on this date in 1991. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska during 1908. He was  known as ‘Little Angelo’ because he stood only 2 foot 11 inches high. He was an actor who starred in dozens of old movies such as the classic 1932 MGM picture titled Freaks. He spent the remainder of the 1930s playing bit parts including a pygmy in Cecil B. DeMille’s movie The Sign of the Cross, one of the three Little Pigs in Laurel and Hardy’s Babes in Toyland and one of the forest creatures in Max Reinhardt’s visual feast A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1935) in which Mickey Rooney and Kenneth Anger also starred. Due to his stature, Angelo was also the stand-in for Shirley Temple. In 1939, Angelo co-founded the Little People of America organization with initially seven members, now the society has a membership that runs into the thousands. He continued acting right up into the seventies His favorite, if not most notable, role was playing ‘Master Blaster’ in the film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985). After sixty years in show business, Angelo retired to a rest home in Fairfax, Hollywood. His remaining years were happy ones until his illustrious life ended on this date at the age of 83. …….... and finally, on September 21, 1995 eyewitnesses in a temple on the outskirts of Delhi, India began reporting that their Hindu statue of Ganesh, the Hindu God of wisdom and learning, was drinking milk. It was considered such a miracle that the stock market and the federal government closed down in India so that thousands of people could ‘feed’ the statue. Television, radio and newspapers eagerly covered this unique phenomenon, and even skeptical journalists held their milk-filled spoons to the gods and watched, humbled, as the milk simply disappeared. One person who considered the thousands of people who had already feed Ganesh, explained, “It cannot be a hoax. Where would all that milk go to? It just disappeared in front of my eyes.” Within weeks the phenomenon spread as statues of Ganesh, throughout Hindu temples worldwide, began drinking milk. While the media and scientists still struggle to find an explanation, many Hindus believe this was a sign that a great teacher had been born to save the world. At the Southall temple in London where thousands had also witnessed a similar miracle of a drinking statue, the chairman Mr. Bharbari offered his explanation: “All I know is that our Holy Book says that wherever evil prevails on earth then some great Soul will descend to remove the bondage of evil so that right shall reign. We believe this miracle, and those happening at other Hindu temples, may be a sign that a great Soul has descended, like Lord Krishna or Jesus Christ."

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