The Magick of Aleister Crowley: A Handbook of the Rituals of Thelema [Paperback]

Lon Milo Duquette (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2003

Aleister Crowley's ascension into the pantheon of alternative gurus was cemented by his appearance on The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover. Unfortunately, he was known more for his reputation as "The Beast 666" and "The Wickedest Man in the World." All well and good for publicity, but this infamy eclipsed his teachings, as did his technical and opaque writing style, meant more for adepts contemporary to him than the average modern reader. Enter Lon Milo DuQuette to decipher and explain Crowley's texts and more important rituals. Formerly titled The Magick of Thelema, this revised edition features extensive corrections, a new introduction, and a new ritual, "The Rites of Eleusis." This is the perfect introductory text for readers who wonder what the works--rather than the myth--of Aleister Crowley are all about. DuQuette takes the mystery out of both the rituals themselves and Crowley's writing in this modern grimoire. Step by step, he presents a course of study in plain English, with examples of rituals and explanations of their significance. DuQuette also includes a course of study for Crowley's original works with an extensive bibliography and fastidious footnotes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is an eye-opener of a book. It is a nice guide to Aleister Crowley. Highly recommended reading. -- Lee Prosser, Ghostvillage.com

About the Author

Lon Milo DuQuette has been involved with occult studies since the late 60s and has become an acknowledged and widely-recognized authority within the world of modern occultism. He is the U.S. Deputy Grand Master of the O.T.O. and lives with his wife Constance in Costa Mesa, CA

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Weiser Books (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578632994
• ISBN-13: 978-1578632992
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,230 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #79 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Witchcraft
  • #80 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Wicca

More About the Author

LON MILO DUQUETTE

Author of 15 critically acclaimed books (translated in 11 languages) on Magick and the Occult, Lon Milo DuQuette is one of the most respected and entertaining writers and lecturers in the field of the Western Mystery Traditions.

Since 1975 he as been a national and international governing officer of Ordo Templi Orientis, one of the most influential magical societies of the 20th Century. He is currently the Order's United States Deputy Grand Master. He is an internationally recognized authority on tarot and western ceremonial magick. Although he takes these subjects very seriously, he tries not to take himself too seriously. This rare combination of scholarship and humor has earned him in the last 20 years a unique and respected position in American spiritual and esoteric literature.

DuQuette appears occasionally on television and radio as a guest expert on subjects involving the occult. He is a contributor to the Magical Egypt DVD series' and a host on the new series, The Great Work.

He is a faculty member of the Omega Institute in Reinbeck New York, and Robert Anton Wilson's Maybe Logic Academy.

He is also a professional musician/singer/songwriter.

He lives in Costa Mesa, California with his wife of 43 years, Constance.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Content and Firmly Planted Pages, April 26, 2004

By 

P. Stranger (CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Magick of Aleister Crowley: A Handbook of the Rituals of Thelema (Paperback)

First a bit of a note about the physical form of the book:

The earlier edition of this book was called Magick of Thelema, and it had one horrible flaw. The binding was so poor that the act of reading the thing actually made the pages fall out. My copy now sits in a small three-ring binder. Knowing this, I ran up to the local bookstore and worked the spine of the new edition (with apologies to the future owner). Happily all the pages stayed intact. That's almost enough for me to pay for the book all over again.

Now, the contents:

The new chapter is a FAQ on Crowley. It addresses all those lovely topics that usually crop up in an initial conversation with someone (e.g., black magic, sex, drugs). It's far from a biography, and it reads as more than a bit apologetic (do all Thelemites harbor a bit of shame about The Beast?). Regardless, the answers are better than the ones usually dished out on a platter of "you just don't understand" with a side of "shut the hell up."

The rest of the content falls into three categories. First you have the standard reprints, with Crowley's commentary, of the major rituals of Thelema (as well as a few throwbacks from the Golden Dawn era). Second, you have Duquette's comments on the rituals. These are scattered around are only valuable in rare cases. For example, at one point he explains his view of the mysterious "averse" pentagram, but then he later interjects a personal anecdote involving a bit of misfortune with a scalpel. (If you've seen his book on the Goetia, then you'll probably agree that it's a wonder that Lon's managed to live so long.) Finally, you have original text by Duquette. This part is genuinely interesting as it's written at a very down-to-earth level without a trace of condescension.

Flipping through the contents, I think this book works well as an introduction to Thelema as a whole, but it's not at all sufficient on its own. Luckily, it covers a large enough area of the topic that the reader can search the Internet to fill in the gaps. I would hand this to someone with an initial interest in Thelema. If they came back, I'd pass them a copy of Magick in Theory and Practice.

You should probably not buy this if you have a copy of the earlier Magick of Thelema. Otherwise, it's probably the best of the non-Crowley introductions to Thelema that you'll find. Of course, what's really needed is some new (non-biographical) content.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A GREAT BOOK IS NOW BETTER, December 27, 2003

By 

Renus Hyena - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Magick of Aleister Crowley: A Handbook of the Rituals of Thelema (Paperback)

Lon Milo Duquette confesses in his opening words that The Magick of Aleister Crowley is a 10th anniversary re-launch of his 1993 classic, The Magick of Thelema, and that everything in the MOT is also found in this new re-named edition. However, he goes on to inform us that this is more than just a face-lift of an old title.

He's added new chapters and updated material including a very useful Frequently-Asked-Questions about Aleister Crowley, and new material on the inner secrets of Crowley's Gnostic Mass, and the Rites of Eleusis.

The old Magick of Thelema was hands down the best introduction to the works of A.C. ever written. The Magick of Aleister Crowley is definitely a case of the "best" getting "better".

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Original and Stunning, December 19, 2003

By 

Frater S.P.R.V. (Indiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Magick of Aleister Crowley: A Handbook of the Rituals of Thelema (Paperback)

In the seemingly unending parade of biographies based on
the life - both factual and fanciful - of the "evilest man in the
world", this work stands as a stunningly original book as it
is the only one that invites the reader to draw their own
picture of the master magickian based on his magick alone.
Originally published in 1993 as The Magick of Thelema, this
edition is corrected and expanded, containing both an
Aleister Crowley FAQ - which contains the answers to all
the classic sensationalistic questions - and a sample from
Crowley's Rites of Eleusis, an excellent example that
Thelemic magick a) contains elements of pure magickal
drama meant to bring enlightenment en masse, and b) is not
simply a narcissistic system of self-deification, but in many
ways is a willed methodology of varied and artful
invocation. And Lon DuQuette's intellectual and
experiential proficiency on the subject of ritual magick in
general and Crowley in particular is revealed in the fact that
this is an excellent book for any magickal practitioner who
is looking for either an objective, lucid introduction to
Crowley's rituals or simply a guide to reacquaint themselves
with the nuts and bolts of Thelemic thought.