Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Using the Masonic style grade system there are five basic catego-
ries or if you like grades:
Theodor Reuss
Victor Neuberg
Rose Kelly
1. Book of Lies
Magical Cunnilingus
Blood magick
COMMENTATORARY
Reuss founded his new OTO in 1906, a year after the death
of his Karl Kellner, his superior in then magical order. He
obviously felt liberated by the death of his teachers.! In a
letter to David Curwen, quoted by (Starr 2003:22), Crowley
wrote that the the secret as at that time possessed by the
Order was in a very crude and unscientific form and there
was no explanation of the conditions which had to be
brought about to get it to work. Indeed the secret has been
in development ever since. Indeed it could be said that the
secret passed out of the stewardship of the OTO long
before Crowleys death. Hence the reliance in 1986, by
members of the caliphate OTO on popular works by
Mogg Morgan: Plate 14
Francis King. Ie why would they need to read King if they
knew it already from internal sources? (Satyr 2002)
Homoeroticism
It was November 1909, just ten years after the Oscar Wilde
trial, when Victor Neuberg and Crowley made that fateful
walk out into Algeria mountains. They took with them Calls
of the 30 Aethyrs, the famous Enochian text of John Dee,
with the intention of making the calls in the desert. Israel
Regardie, in his introduction to the magical record of this
time, published as The Vision and the Voice," implies that
Crowley had deliberately brought his Enochian notebook
Seth the Ombite: Plate 15
for the purpose of repeating his earlier experiments. It
could be said that it was at this moment that Crowley and
Neuberg were about to rediscover sexual magick albeit in
its homoerotic guise. They climbed mount Sallel Addin in
order to call the fourteenth# Aethyr. It obviously wasnt that
successful as on their decent Crowley received an instruc-
tion to return to the summit and have another go. They
made a circle of small stones, tracing words of power in the
sand. In the centre they built an altar and placing them-
selves in the sight of the sun Neuberg made love to
Crowley. This was a public sacrifice to the god Pan. The
footnote to this passage says that this was by the XI degree
OTO formula. Regardie (1972: 134fn) rather coyly comment-
ing that Crowley constantly sought to glorify and excuse
[IT] at the same time.
Rose Kelley
Crowleys first wife Rose Kelly was the medium for the
reception of the holy book received one hundred years ago.
Perhaps a controversial statement to some who focus on
Crowleys statement that he entered the room alone. But
examination of all the factors points towards Rose Kelleys
assistance in the reception of Liber Al. The third chapter
contains instructions for a simple but effective sexual ritual.
In its description of Cakes of Light it keys into a very
ancient Egyptian rites that revolves around the magical
techniques of ejaculations/spitting, licking and swallow-
ing.& The following is based on Alex Bennetts paper Eu-
charist Magick.
23. For perfume mix meal and honey & thick leavings of red
wine: then oil of Abramelin and olive oil, and afterward soften &
smooth down with rich fresh blood.
24. The best blood is of the moon, monthly: then the fresh blood
of a child, or droppings from the host of heaven; then of en-
emies; then of the priest or the worshippers; last of some beast,
no matter what.
25. This burn: of this make cakes & eat unto me. This hath also
another use; let it be laid before me, and kept thick with perfumes
of your orison: it shall become full of beetles as it were and
creeping things sacred unto me.
[Digression if time]
Then the priest shall write these curses in a book and wash them
off into the water of bitterness; and he shall make a woman drink
the water of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that
brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain.
And the priest shall take the cereal offering of jealously out of
the womans hand and shall wave the cereal offering [cakes of
light!!] before the Lord and bring it to the altar; and the priest
shall take a handful of the cereal offering, as its memorial portion
and burn it upon the altar, and afterward shall make the woman
drink the water.
And when he has made her drink the water, then, if she has
defiled herself and has acted unfaithfully against her husband, the
water that brings the curse shall enter her body and cause bitter
pain, and her body shall swell, and her thigh shall fall away, and
the woman shall become an execration among her people. But if
the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, then, she shall be
free and shall conceive children.
He put the book [of Thoth] into my hand and I read aloud the
first formula which was written. I enchanted the skies, the earth,
the world of the night, the mountains and the waters: I under-
stood clearly what birds were saying, as well as fish and the four-
footed beasts. Then I read aloud the second formula that was
written, and I saw the sun appear with its escort of gods. I saw
the moon at its rising and all the stars of the sky in their places.
[end digression]
In the blood magick of Liber Al, the blood types are listed in
descending order of strength:
Conclusion
One of the key differences revolves around this issue of safe sex.
The first Thelemites werent much concerned with contraception,
in fact they almost certainly believed that contraception might
somehow spoil the elixir or form a barrier to the unimpeded flow
of sexual energy. The results were several unplanned pregnancies,
the burden of which fell largely on the women. These Thelemites
were in no way new men. In fact I was surprised to learn that
abortion was prohibited amongst members of the OTO, perhaps
an indication of everyones, men and womens, social conserva-
tism (Starr 2003: 287).
There are few who would really trust these matters entirely to the
gods and the power of magick. Afterall why should we trust the
gods to look after our sexual health?
Oral sex is certainly safer and conforms to the doctrine if you
want to succeed succeed.
well that probably more than enough to get you going. Sexual
magick has changed a lot since Crowley although the original
Thelemic material has proved itself versatile enough to thrive in
modern times.
Mary Hedger
Seth the Ombite: Plate 21
Notes
5 Lunar number
Vain Observance
Mogg Morgan: Plate 22
The screen of the choir opens in response to the knocking of a
hand thrust out of a huge mantle. From the folds of it emerge
three books. The wearer of the mantle places them symmetrically
upon the altar in the middle and at each end. The clock strikes
twelve. At the twelfth stroke, the black coped priest extends his
hands in the form of a cross. He stands rigid, silently invoking
the magick powers....... Four oclock. The flames of the great
candles waver. The celebrant goes back to the sacristry to vest
himself with maniple, stole and chasuble. He covers the chalice
with a black veil, a chalice mixed in reverse, first the water and
then the wine. He takes also a reliquary closed with three seals. It
contains three human heads so old that they might be skulls of
the first sons of Adam (Able, Cain and Seth). Great astrologers,
mutters the priest, your dust prophesies. The flame of your
hearts still inspires; and the more because you are dust, and your
hearts have gathered the wisdom found beyond the tomb. The
priest begins to say the gospel of St John, reversing the sense. He
says instead of The word was made flesh, The flesh was made
word. The celebrant takes some of the dust from the reliquary
and puts it into the chalice.... Be Blessed, breath of death,
blessed a thousand times more than the bread of life, for you
have not been harvested by any human hands nor did any human
creature mill and grind you. It is the evil God alone who took you
to the mill of the sepulchre, so that you should thus become the
bread of revelation. The celebrant takes the host and mixes it
with more dust from the reliquary. He eats and drinks the bread
and wine. After dragging the cross from the altar, he tears off his
vestments, and tramples them under his naked foot. O cross, I
cast you down, in memory of the ancient Master of the Temple,
because you are the instrument of torture of Jesus. I cast you
down because you preach punishment and shame to those who
would emancipate themselves and repudiate slavery. I cast you
down because your reign is finished, and it is no longer necessary
for men to return to darkness and despair. They can arise to find
the spirit of the Mani which is the Holy Ghost. Looking down
at the torn vestments and at the discarded ornaments, the cel-
ebrant says: These ornaments, badges of authority, serve only
to conceal the nakedness which is alone agreeable to our God
Seth the Ombite: Plate 23
and our Lady. You remind men of the lie of the false apostle
Peter. There is a long silence, and then the priest again takes up
his incantations. Life listen; Death speak. He regards the relics.
All powerful dust that from the east came to salute the star,
Jesus of the Mani. First you, Gaspard, who bring riches to relieve
our poverty, give us the wisdom of the future and the precious
gift of our counsel. You, Melchior, proud old man of the long
beard, you who offer incense to humility. You, Balthazar, who are
the closet to us, you who love the Queen of the Sabbat. Un-
loose the all-powerful passion of my senses, wed me to blind
ecstasy that I shall be inspired, if not by grace, at least by desire.
10 The blind eye of Horus and the eye that weeps are the
appropriate terms her.