The Book of the Law: Liber Al Vel Legis [Hardcover]

Aleister Crowley (Author), Rose Edith Crowley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2004

"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." This oft-misunderstood phrase, which forms the basis for Crowley's practice of Magick, is found in The Book of the Law. Dictated to Crowley in Cairo between noon and 1 pm on three success days in April 1904, the Book of the Law is the source book and key for Crowley students and for the occult in general.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

For the first time the Book of the Law is offered in a deluxe, hardcover edition fittingly issued in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Liber AL vel Legis's transmission to Crowley.

About the Author

Aleister Crowley (1875-1947) was a magus, poet, sexual athlete, mountaineer, traitor, drug fiend, and Prophet of a New Eon. He has been dubbed "The Wickedest Man in the World." Author of 777, Diary of a Drug Fiend, and Book of Lies, as well as many other books, Crowley, with Freida Harris, also created the bestselling Thoth Tarot Deck.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Red Wheel Weiser; Centennial Edition edition (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578633087
• ISBN-13: 978-1578633081
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (99 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #78,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Mental Health > Dreams

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

180 of 196 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Should you buy this book? July 17, 2000

By Novus Focus

Format:Paperback

I love this book and read it again and again. Should you buy this book though? Well the entire text is available online all over the place. If you use a decent search engine like Google.com you will have no trouble finding it. So the reason for buying this book is if you wanted a nice bound copy of the text (In which case you have probably already read it a few times and know that's what you want and do not even need to bother reading this review).

If you aren't familiar with this book and you are curious I recommend first taking a look at it online and then purchasing "The Law Is for All : The Authorized Popular Commentary of Liber Al Vel Legis, the Book of the Law". The book of the law was kind of hard for me to read the first few times. "The Law is for All" is the Book of the Law with a Commentary by Aleister Crowleys. Parts of the commentary can really help out in studying the book of the law. Also I recommend visiting some of the thelemic websites out there (search "thelema"). Terms like Thelema, Nuit, Hadit, Khabs, Khu, Ankh-af-na-Khonsu, and Hoor Paar Kraat don't make much sense and are a little intimidating without a little outside commentary. There is also a very short paper called "Duty" by Aleister Crowley available on the internet which I think explains the major concepts of Thelema quite well. Highly recommended.

53 of 57 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars To be studied, not simply read... September 2, 2004

By S. Craft

Format:Paperback

All the other reviews here express how I feel about this book. I would only like to add one more detail:

The Book of the Law requires serious, scholarly study. You will not understand it on the first read. Not unless you have Crowley's comments at hand, which is indeed a necessary companion to this text if you wish to understand it. Many people have put their lives into studying this book and still have not uncovered all of its hidden meanings. This is not a book that you can simply pick up and read one time through. Consider it as being similar to a full college course, because it will likely take that long to get a substantial understanding of it.

Crowley's comments on this text are published in "The Law Is For All," although I believe it's out of print. However, here is a link to a site with free electronic versions of various comments to this text, one of which is Crowley's own --> http://www.hermetic.com/220/index.html

I'll end this review with one of my favorite passages from Liber AL (the technical name of The Book of the Law):

"Remember all ye that existence is pure joy; that all the sorrows are but as shadows; they pass & are done; but there is that which remains."

~2:9

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gnosis for the New Age June 17, 2005

By R. Frost

Format:Paperback

Regardless of how some people may feel about Crowley, his works stand on their own. "The Book of the Law", is his most personal, central work, and Thelemite or no, you would have to lack a soul if you did not at the very least find much of the language contained therein as being quite beautiful, insightful, and inspired. This book will hit you in the head like a ton of bricks, and its prose and music is very comparable to many ancient religious writings, and we have the benefit of knowing that it has never lost anything in translation as it was originally written in the English language. For comparable writings....try "The Nag Hammadi Library", Carl Jungs "Seven Sermons to the Dead", and "The Holy Fire of St. Michael" by Richard Michael Willoughby.