Tag Archives: life

Thou then, who hast trials and troubles, rejoice because of them, for in them is Strength, and by their means is a pathway opened unto that Light. How should it be otherwise, O man, whose life is but a day in Eternity, a drop in the Ocean of time; how, were thy trials not many, couldst thou purge thy soul from the dross of earth? Is it but now that the Higher Life is beset with dangers and difficulties; hath it not ever been so with the Sages and Hierophants of the past? They have been persecuted and reviled, they have been tormented of men; yet through this also has their Glory increased. Rejoice therefore, O Initiate, for the greater thy trial the greater thy Triumph. When men shall revile thee, and speak against thee falsely, hath not the Master said, “Blessed art thou!”?

Aleister Crowley, adapted from an Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn manuscript, Liber Libræ sub figurâ XXX, The Book of the Balance, verse 1–4 [also]

Hermetic quote Crowley Golden Dawn Liber Librae Libræ XXX how otherwise o man life but a day in eternity drop in ocean time were trials not many couldst purge soul dross earth

“You love the sea, don’t you, Captain?”

“Yes, I love it! The sea is everything. It covers seven-tenths of the globe. Its breath is pure and healthy. It is an immense desert where a man is never alone, for he can feel life quivering all about him. The sea is only a receptacle for all the prodigious, supernatural things that exist inside it; it is only movement and love; it is the living infinite, as one of your poets has said. And in fact, Professor, it contains the three kingdoms of nature — mineral, vegetable, and animal. This last is well represented by the four groups of zoophytes, by the three classes of articulata, by the five classes of mollusks, by three classes of vertebrates, mammals and reptiles, and those innumerable legions of fish, that infinite order of animals which includes more than thirteen thousand species, only one-tenth of which live in fresh water. The sea is a vast reservoir of nature. The world, so to speak, began with the sea, and who knows but that it will also end in the sea! There lies supreme tranquillity. The sea does not belong to tyrants.”

Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea [Amazon, Bookshop, Publisher, Local Library]

Hermetic quote Verne Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea everything breath pure healthy immense desert man never alone feel life quivering prodigious supernatural movement love living infinite

SATAN-TYPHON. O Sun, my brother, is it thy will that I have speech with thee? For I have lain with thee nine moons in the womb of our mother; for we have loved as none have loved; for I am closer knit with thee than light and darkness, or that life and death!

Aleister Crowley, The Rite of Sol from The Rites of Eleusis.

Hermetic quote Crowley Rite of Sol Rites of Eleusis satan typhon sun brother thy will speech nine moons womb mother loved none close knit light darkness life death

“The Devil” is, historically, the God of any people that one personally dislikes. This has led to so much confusion of thought that THE BEAST 666 has preferred to let names stand as they are, and to proclaim simply that AIWAZ — the solar-phallic-hermetic “Lucifer” is His own Holy Guardian Angel, and “The Devil” SATAN or HADIT of our particular unit of the Starry Universe. This serpent, SATAN, is not the enemy of Man, but He who made Gods of our race, knowing Good and Evil; He bade “Know Thyself!” and taught Initiation. He is “the Devil” of the Book of Thoth, and His emblem is BAPHOMET, the Androgyne who is the hieroglyph of arcane perfection. The number of His Atu is XV, which is Yod He, the Monogram of the Eternal, the Father one with the Mother, the Virgin Seed one with all-containing Space. He is therefore Life, and Love. But moreover his letter is Ayin, the Eye; he is Light, and his Zodiacal image is Capricornus, that leaping goat whose attribute is Liberty. (Note that the “Jehovah” of the Hebrews is etymologically connected with these. The classical example of such antinomy, one which has led to such disastrous misunderstandings, is that between NU and HAD, North and South, Jesus and John. The subject is too abstruse and complicated to be discussed in detail here. The student should consult the writings of Sir R. Payne Knight, General Forlong, Gerald Massey, Fabre d’Olivet; etc. etc., for the data on which these considerations are ultimately based.)

Footnote to the text of Chapter XXI Of Black Magic of the Main Types of the Operations of Magick Art and of the Powers of the Sphinx in Magick in Theory and Practice by Aleister Crowley

Hermetic quote Crowley Magick in Theory and Practice serpent satan enemy man gods good evil know thyself initiation devil baphomet androgyne hieroglyph arcane perfection

Let the Aspirant live the Life Beautiful and Pleasant. For this freedom hath he won. But let each act, especially of love, be devoted wholly to his true mistress, Nuit.

Aleister Crowley, Liber NU sub figura XI

Hermetic quote Crowley Liber NU XI let aspirant live life beautiful pleasant freedom won each act especially love devoted wholly true mistress nuit

If you’re too terrified of life and love and the earth to fuck me, just lie in the dark and groove on being flesh, on feeling desire because another human being, a strange and unknown human being, is naked and open to you.

Mary Sativa, Acid Temple Ball [Amazon, Local Library]

Hermetic quote Sativa Acid Temple Ball too terrified life love earth fuck me lie in the dark groove on being flesh feeling desire strange unknown another human naked open to you