Customer Reviews

The Mystical and Magical System of the A .'. A .'. - The Spiritual System of Aleister Crowley & George Cecil Jones Step-by-Step

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Apologies to those who came here and only found the expensive second-hand copies. THE BOOK IS IN PRINT. Amazon only ordered a small quantity and they sold out in an hour or two. They will order more, and we will send them more - but, perhaps, they want to give the second hand copies a chance to sell (priced at $700-$2,000) before they push the $49 virgin copies. Thank you very much for your interest - we manufactured a really high quality product and want to get it into your hands.

I've been a student of Aleister Crowley's writings for over 30 years. This book is the best of its kind! Never, until now, have I read so much solid information on Thelemic magick and mysticism between two covers. Mr. Eshelman has described the A.'.A.'. grades, as his title says, "step by step." He describes a thorough course of spiritual training leading from the earliest beginning stages to the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel -- what other systems might call conscious union with God -- and beyond. It's hard to get complete information on these topics, even if you read every Crowley book there is. But he has it all here. Plenty of solid information, packed from beginning to end. What I liked best: It's a comprehensive discussion of the A.'.A.'. training and testing in magick, yoga, and Kabbalah. Yet at the same time, the book has personality! You get a clear feeling that there are real people doing this miraculous magical and spiritual work today -- not just some obscure dead people -- real 21st Century folks. And you get some flavor of what they might be like. It's clear that this is a living tradition, not a curio of history. I'm glad he didn't sterilize it to death. There is also plenty of new perspective and insight so that even old, familiar information is made new and fascinating. And he avoided the politicization which has so often marred writings on this sort of topic, focussing on the work and its principles rather than on squabbles of personalities. And yes, like other reviewers have said, the book is very nicely made. I'd like to have a few more quality hardcovers like this in my library. Especially when they're as good on the inside as on the outside, like this one.

I got my first copy of this book in 1993 in a home-grown photocopy shop edition. It is a real pleasure to see the book has matured, through three editions, to a beautiful, high quality hard cover edition. About content? If you gather and organize all of the notes and remarks and instructions about the A.'.A.'. from every Aleister Crowley book you've ever seen, you will be close to having the sparse skeleton of this book by James Eshelman -- but very little of its flesh. Life is breathed into it by the many years of the author's personal experience in the A.'.A.'. grades as aspirant, and later as teacher to others. He not only knows the facts, but really understands the system of magick, mysticism, and spiritual progress, and explains it so the reader can understand it too. The book rocks! Eshelman is the clearest and most intelligent writer on Thelema in the last 20 years. His work is solidly grounded in the traditions -- he has always been known for doing his homework -- but he also reaches past the traditional. While others are indulging in reprint after reprint (usually of someone else's work!), he is known for building on the foundations of his predecessors without simply disregarding them or attempting to demolish them. You won't see as much of the innovative in this particular work, since its main purpose seems to be to explain and deliver the A.'.A.'. system, step by step, as established by its founders, Aleister Crowley and George Cecil Jones. Too much author innovation would have weakened this particular book; but, as an example, he's the first writer I have ever seen remark that all of the various themes and tasks traditional to the 6=5 Grade (Adeptus Major) are summarized in the doctrines of Karma Yoga. By mentioning this, he makes all of those themes come alive. He's the only one to explain clearly what Liber Mysteriorum is, and its relationship to the Dominus Liminis grade tasks. The 6=5 and 7=4 chapters are much expanded and improved compared to the first edition seven years ago; they seem to come much more from personal experience and understanding, whereas they used to sound much more theoretical (as they probably were back then). The book itself is very well made. The binding, in particular, looks as if it will last a lifetime. This new edition has 70-80 photographs and illustrations, is very well organized, and both practical and inspiring. I wish it had an index, but will have to settle for a very complete Table of Contents.

I must admit that I wasn't surprised when I purchased this book. Every book I have ever bought published by the College of Thelema has surpassed all of my expectations. Most are in the form of pamphlets and spiral bound books privately distributed via their web site and all have earned my highest recommendation.

This seems to be their first publication with public circulation in mind and has been published in the Aleister Crowley tradition of the highest quality regardless of expense. I really doubt the College of Thelema is making a profit on this one. The book is smyth-sewn and beautifully bound using the highest quality acid-free vellum paper, boards and cloth. The cover and spine are stamped with detailed silver engravings. The Sigillum Sanctum Fraternitatis A .'. A .'. engraving is so breathtaking, it must be seen to be believed. The quality is unmatched by books selling for several times the price. This book will last for generations and is a beautiful addition to any library.

The book is divided roughly in half with the Appendices containing the founding documents of the A .'. A .'. system taking up slightly less than half the text. The slightly larger half is the authors presentation of the A .'. A .'. system. Whereas Aleister Crowley is difficult to read and often obscure, Jim Esheleman provides an extremely well written and clear description of the A.'. A .'. system. The requirements of each grade of the A .'. A .'. system are described in a clear and complete manner. Jim Eshelman uses copious references to original source material to substantiate his text. There have been many variations and interpretations of Aleister Crowley's A .'. A .'. system introduced by other lineages and organizations, but you can rest assured this book describes the system exactly as formulated by Aleister Crowley and George Cecil Jones.

My only criticisms are that I would have liked to hear more of the author's personal experience with the system and would have especially enjoyed an index.

Following the schism of 1900, when the original Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (one of the 19th century's most advanced organizations of practicing magicians) broke apart into separate groups, the young Aleister Crowley, a high grade initiate of the Order, became disallusioned. Feeling that the Order had abrogated its spiritual mandate in favor of internal social friction, Crowley left Europe in a search for the roots of that mandate. Returning to England in 1909, Crowley reformulated the spiritual system of the original Golden Dawn, amplifying it with eastern yoga techniques he had studied with Saivites in India and Buddhists in Sri Lanka. The result is one of the West's most uncompromising, comprehensive and sophisticated courses of spiritual cultivation. This book is a detailed presentation of that course of training, whose name Crowley concealed by the initials A.'.A.'.. Following Crowley's death in 1947, the original A.'.A.'. organization has gradually evolved and expanded to encompass a number of independently operating lineages, who look to the original system's structure to guide their modern operations. This A.'.A.'. system is probably one of the most talked about and least understood aspects of the Crowley legacy. This book goes a very long way towards righting that imbalance - by presenting the founder's normative conception of the Order's sequence of work. Each grade from Student through Exempt Adept is discussed in turn, always with an eye towards the actual practice of the requisite tasks. The insight this provides into the architecture and spiritual intent of the system is tremendous. I first aquired the older 2nd edition of this book in 1997, and it changed and deepened my entire understanding of Thelemic Magick. That edition was spiral bound and privately distributed. This welcome new edition has been extensively augmented with additional text, professional binding, and lavish illustrations. In many ways it is finally getting the presentation it deserves. The author, James Eshelman, has been an initiate of A.'.A.'. for over 20 years and is a student of Phyllis Seckler, who at 84 (in 2000) is one of the seniormost living representatives of A.'.A.'., having been initiated in the 1930's. The Jane Wolfe, or Soror Estai lineage of A.'.A.'. which derives through Phyllis and her own teacher Jane Wolfe has been initiating now for something like 30 years, and Eshelman therefore brings his own and his lineage's experience to the text. The book is not written only for Estai initiates, however, though it does provide much facinating information on the history and protocols of the author's own A.'.A.'. line. The book details the normative system as laid out by its' founders which is held in common, at least in spirit if not always in practice, by all A.'.A.'. groups. There is also prevision for solo individual working of the system. My highest recommendation.

I can whole heartedly recommend this book. Basically what has been done with this book is compiling into a flowing sensible presentation of the A.'.A.'. ststem. To get this material in the past required going back and forth between several other books. This book has the required material collected and organized into a very well arranged method, which is excellent for the progress of the Adept. Of course, eventually all will need to acquire a few more books, but this one will definitely ,"Get you going", in the right way. The book is a hard cover and excellently bound. Again, highly recommended for Thelemic Adepts and researchers.

This is a beautiful new edition of a book which has served students of mysticism and magick for many years. Concise, thoughtful, and painstakingly researched, this book serves as a virtual roadmap to the mystical and magical heights available to those who apply themselves to the system of the A.'.A.'.. Even those with purely academic interest will enjoy this work as an important reference for all manner of spiritual and psychological questions. My very highest recommendation!

This book is the clearest description and explanation of the A .'. A .'. System I have ever read. Step-by-Step, the author takes the reader through each of the A .'. A .'. Grades, from Student to Exempt Adept. I have been a Student of Aleister Crowley's Equinox for over 20 years and thought I had a good grasp of the A .'. A .'. System. But while reading this volume, insight after insight presented itself to my mind and the System and Purpose became amazingly clear. This book is a must for every student of the A .'. A .'. System who would like to start this amazing process. All material required to allow an aspirant to Work the entire System, from Student to Exempt Adept, is provided.

I was also impressed with the quality used in the construction of this deluxe hard bound book - this book was built to last! The photographs of Aleister Crowley, Karl Germer, and other Key Leaders of the A .'. A .'. are absolutely incredible and many are extremely rare to find in public works of occult literature. I was also amazed to see the actual photograph's of rare A .'. A .'. regalia.

This is the best book on Thelema Magick since the Death of Aliester Crowley. Over the years many people have had the chance to hear Jim teach. This book is like setting in Jim's living room and hearing his profound knowledge of the A.'A.'. system.
Anyone can follow the A.'.A.'. system and do his or her own work. You really need nothing but this book and a few of Crowley's books to find the true path. THis is by far the best, bar none, book on Thelema Magick in 60 years.
Thank you James for your fine contibution to magicial litature. This book is one of the best of all time.

This book one of the most important tool to follow the system of the A.'.A.'.. The book covers all the necessary matters and explains all the details related to run them. It is an indispensable work to follow the system of this Order.