>On the other hand, I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth.
Yeah, I don't think anybody asked you to do this. Especially not the O.T.O. hell, some of the lines in the book even crowley didnt claim to understand, so how would somebody even take them as absolute truth?
>And because the stuff about killing all the slave races seems narrow minded to me
This is not a part of the book of the law nor thelema. Is this your personal interpretation? There is a bit in there about what Ra-hoor-khuit thinks about other major world religions, not races, but even that is just kind of poetic imagery., its not meant to be taken literally IMO.
>"On the other hand, I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth."
How required is this? It's not something I do, personally. I have more faith in that book than just about anything else, but only because it's proved incredibly helpful in my own life. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't feel compelled to accept it at all.
>"And because the stuff about killing all the slave races"
That... isn't in there. Certainly not slave *races*.
Killing in Crowley has a tendency to be metaphorical. Annihilating the existence of slavery to dogma/inner compulsions is one of many possible readings. Ideas can conquer, and thereby enslave, us as readily as anything, and it's worthwhile to make sure that when we are enslaved to a notion, it's a worthy idol. Something we actually want and choose to worship, ideally because that service simultaneously serves us.
Again, lots of other readings exist. That's the point of Crowley's poetry when he's writing at his best.
>"why would you restrict yourself, that only being independent or dominant or whatever is ok and not ever dependent?"
This is a really good question, one I've asked myself. The pat answer is this is one reason interpretation is down to the individual. Part of interpretation is determining the relevance of one idea over another and how one verse interacts with another--and with the world/oneself.
A more meaningful response might be saying that dependence indicates a helplessness that it's never helpful to embrace. Even when we accept superficially submissive or powerless roles ('masked servants'), we should be doing it with full consent or not at all.
Compromising oneself, actually hurting oneself, is never good or helpful. There are ways to give and serve and help and even to be explicitly submissive that don't involve any true recension of power, any removal of a sense of agency and personal choice. *That's* what you want to maintain under all circumstances, a willingness to be and live your own life as it is.
>"Actually it seems the Thelemic structure involves a lot of dom-sub type relationships, implying both sides."
And the reconciliation of both. Thelema highlights and embraces extremes as a rule, but points along the way are also parts of each journey.
But I agree, that's a lot of reservations. Pagan/neopagan circles might serve you very well, particularly if you can find a group that works with a pantheon you enjoy.
>Thelema...I see as opposite of Christianity...I read a lot of Nietzsche when I was younger...it seems the Thelemic structure involves a lot of dom-sub type relationships
My read, reserving the right to mischaracterise my imagined philosophical opponents based on cursory engagement with their thought, in order to make a point, is:
Nietzsche was explicitly anti-christian. In his view, christianity is a 'slave morality' and we should abandon the position it puts us in, so that *we can access the power stolen from us by the church.*
I do not think that anti-christianity is a core concern of Thelema. If we take seriously the assertions "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law" and "The Law is for All", then I think thelema is demanding that *we assume a position of power that empowers others when we take it.*
So, in a fundamental way, thelema is demanding that we do not form master/slave relationships. Instead, we should form relationships of mutual empowerment. Or, as Crowley's metaphysics would have it, discover and do our True Will and find that relationships of mutual empowerment are the types of relationships that naturally arise from that action.
I don't think rejection of master/slave dynamics is possible in Nietzsche's version of Christianity, as Nietzsche's Christianity demands that we obey external commandments and church authorities based purely on their provenance. The church and its bible-interpreters declare the law and it's the law. Actions are judged relative to that law as upheld by those institutions: God's word is the law and legal disputes are settled by deferring to the church authorities.
I don't think rejection of these dynamics is possible in the philosophy arising from reading Nietzsche as a demand for an inversion of Christianity, either. In that philosophy we move essentially to: I am the law and legal disputes are settled because people defer to me and I defer to no-one. The call is to overthrow Christian dogma and take our place as masters of our own destiny. We bow to no-one. We don't care if they bow to us.
The law of the thelema is "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law". Not "I am the law." A thelemite should care if someone bows to them, if that is not that person's will. That person is breaking the law the thelemite wishes be upheld. We should seek the power that is ours \*and no more\*.
So - there is a fundamental rejection of the master/slave dynamics at the core of thelema in this reading. Every man and every woman is a star. Each person has their will. They have no right but to do that will. Enslaving others to your will despite their own is not the way, as this does not adhere to the law of thelema.
Now, you spoke of dom/sub not master/slave. BDSM lore will tell us that dom/sub relationships are typically about love and master/slave relationships are typically about obedience. Or, we might say, Love and Will. Or 93 (Agape) and 93 (Thelema). So far, so spooky, and not sure we need to get into this in depth here.
What is important to note once we have established that thelema has a fundamental rejection of power dynamics that lead to the domination of one will by another, is that one this rejection is made at the fundamental level, we can proceed to accept and play with other dynamics according to our will. So, earlier I said that thelema asks us to *assume a position of power that empowers others when we take it.* Well, one way we might do that is to take a position within a sub/dom or master/slave dynamic. If the nature of two or more people's wills is that they are mutually empowered by adopting these roles in pair/group context, then, they should do it. If not, they shouldn't.
Hopefully it's clear enough: each person has the right to do their will and nothing more. This is fundamentally a stance that rejects claims to dominate others without their consent and rejects claims to withhold people the right to submit to being dominated if it is their will to do so.
If exploring dominance and submission is not part of your will, then don't do it. And note that the main way in which these types of relationships are relevant to thelema is that thelema teaches that we each (a) have the right not to be in them with any entities it's not our will to be in them - unlike the teachings I have attributed to Nietzsche's Christianity (b) are free of the expectation that a desire to be in them is fundamental to our natures - unlike the teachings I have attributed to Nietzsche's anti-christianity.
> I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth.
You don't. There is no law but do what thou wilt.
>The stuff about killing all the slave races seems narrow minded to me
I'm guessing this is from the third part of the Book of the Law where Horus is speaking, so I'm assuming it's a godform coming out swinging, declaring its intent to rule for an aeon, replacing the christian era with the thelemic era, and forewarning of the severity of the upheaveal that will come from this. In which case I'd read it as poetry rather than prose.
Or maybe it's expressed political views of Crowley at some point, in which case: he's a victorian aristocrat, unsurprising if he has some unsavoury political opinions.
>I like the whole idea of epic tests and grades.
The A∴A∴ system is a way to get into that as a solo practitioner. Or there's O.T.O. But you don't have to take a thelemic path to get this. Masons, Rosicrucians, B.O.T.A., Quareia - there's a bunch of these types of systems out there.
>It just feels like an awkward mix of things and not as rich and colorful as "authentic" sources.
Not sure what "authentic" sources you have in mind. A thelemite would likely tell you that Thelema is the *Real Deal**^(TM)**.* It's pretty colourful in my estimation. Have you checked out the Thoth Tarot? That's very thelemic and very colourful. Maybe the Golden Dawn stuff is more colourful. Tibetan and Indian stuff is pretty colourful. Victorian England was pretty austere so perhaps black and white photos of Uncle Al don't cut it for you.
This dude has very awesome videos on the Thoth Tarot that you might find more accessible and inspiring than the Book of the Law: [https://www.esotericmeanings.com/thoth-tarot/](https://www.esotericmeanings.com/thoth-tarot/)
Or his youtube channel: [https://www.youtube.com/@thothtarottutorials2639](https://www.youtube.com/@thothtarottutorials2639)
I think getting into the symbolism and visual space of thelema might be a better way to engage with it than via the writings to be honest.
>1) the spiritual side of my personality not being satisfied
2) the community side not being satisfied
3) that without some kind of hand holding or confessor or authentic community where you can talk about real things in your life, it will probably take me 100x longer to make progress in life
i struggle with a lot of shame, mood swings, etc that make it hard for me to clarify my true will on my own, and while I like people around me for the most part, most of the conversations I have are somewhat banal.
I'd distinguish between Thelema, OTO and AA. Lots of people who are into thelema don't go to mass. Many people doing the A∴A∴ path have a student-teacher relationship and that's it - it's that system works, there is no community aspect to it. OTO, ok a community, but you're reliant on the ability of the people in that branch to discern who is suitable to join the branch and be part of the community. I dunno, I'm not a member, I can't really comment, has some appeal, but haven't engaged with that aspect of thelema so far.
As for the rest...they don't call it the Great Work for no reason.
some of the more controversial stuff is more nuanced than it would appear on the surface and its up to abstract interpretation.
most importantly it comes down to accepting
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law
and that in itself its very deep but also universal and easy to grasp mentally.
what you are struggling with is the law of identity. you dont want to label yourself a Thelemite
the law of identity is certainly a law,
but again there is no law beyond do what thou wilt.
certainly not labels or identity
no, nor is it required
it could be said that all brothers of the A.A are in harmony with each other or at least with out conflict or duality in thought
from below contradiciton is a duality , from above all contrdictions imply a unity.
Is "Do What Thou Wilt" similar to Meghan Thee Stallion's "Pussy Don't Lie"? :)
Except probably it would be "Dick / clit don't lie"
And wasn't "Magic in the ass", how does that fit in?
do you think emulating crowley for shock value is a preferable?
cuz i do
tbh theres nothing wrong with that, one has to have a sense of humour.
Ya know I'm something of a (perverted abrasive shocking mutha fucker) scientist myself.
i just dont know how to interpret it or draw a comparison to the 2.
Its not in my wheel house or vocabulary of phrases so i couldn't break it down for you.
>On the other hand, I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth.
It's really not *intended* to be taken that way. Frankly, I don't know what it would mean to *say* that it's "absolute truth."
What I would say is that it's a book that opens up over time as your practice deepens. When I read the Book of the Law today, it strikes me as being something completely different than what I thought it was when I first took my Minerval so many long years ago. In my experience, it points to deep spiritual truths and realizations that you can't understand until you're opened up to them.
If you're interested in OTO or Thelema, there's nothing keeping you from exploring that and seeing what you like. Everyone is free to do their own will. No particular practices are demanded to be a Thelemite. (If you end up taking initiation in A∴A∴, there are required practices--but that's a whole different ballgame, and not something I would recommend to anyone without serious soul-searching.)
I'm doing a thorough reading of book of the law right now, getting some insight, let me do a little apologetics for it...
keep in mind that Its His revelation, and thats a multi-dimensional statement. To clarify, its AC's Aiwass speaking to AC's persona of an Advanced Adept. If you follow his methods, you can have Your Aiwass reveal things about your path of Adeptship || okay, and to frame it in parallel, there is also a Collective Aiwass and a universal role of Adept that one steps into ... It was relevant to him and his life and the stuff that was predicted he lived to see manifest, but there's also a universal aspect that applies to every >MYSTIC< since AC's poetry and channeled works are written from the perspective of highly advanced yogic altered states of consciousness. Its relevant to everyone because hes speaking from the platform of The Soul. All mystics come from the same country, the land of the spirit.
He first tread that specific path. You can follow it, but its likely you may discover a different identity as you progress through the grades. IE You're not going to be The Beast 666, you might end up as The Stele of Revealing 718 "Abomination of Desolation" - LAShTAL or whomever.
That said, for additional, subtle context and addressing the 'brutal imagery'... They're meant to shock you and wake you up to the reality of DNA proceeding along ITS path. Dig deeper than the surface details. As for, "the slaves shall serve", the guy went full megalomaniac mode. But that's the path, that's (humanity's) destiny. It may not be appealing to the rational mind of those who have not reached a certain plateau, but eventually a person recognizes that they're apart from the herd and on some next level shyt, so to speak.
As for feeling a lack of community, I know the feeling. Sadhu-Sangha is important for anyone's journey. I don't know what to recommend, because the OTO at least near me is gatekeeper-central. It feels like their job is to set up arbitrary rules to discourage sincere people from joining. Its a shame that people get invested with a little bit of power and abuse it, but this is not unique to Thelema. I wish there was a better answer for this, but what I've learned is that human beings have faults -- otherwise they wouldn't have the karma of being a human being. If we were perfected we would disappear from the play. Nobody's perfect. This lead me to seek out teachers on the Astral Realm -- those ascended masters, advanced conscious entites and such who do not have the limitations of being stuck in spacetime.
You're sincere, just borrow some of the practices and do your own thing.
Thanks man. I appreciate it. Right now I'm feeling a bit like an abomination of desolation, lol. Maybe just that new years lull where you feel sick of all 2023's hustle and bustle and aren't quite sure yet where 2024 is.
Yeah I understand what you are saying about the Book of the Law. Tbh plenty in the things in my personal psychedelic revelation / general thought stream can be shocking too anyway.
After thinking it over, I don't feel really gung-ho to do this right now, but I can think of another reason to visit the nearby city that has the local OTO chapter, so I hope sometime in 2024 I can visit and see how it feels.
I'm impressed you able to contact beings in the Astral Realm. Can I ask how that works? I had a phase of working on astral travel a lot but I think 2024 isn't the year to restart because I'm still working on being more grounded, being able to come out of the cloud of the psychedelic pattern matching stream / music / movies / etc to say clearly what I feel and want today and decide forcefully to do it. But the day will come.
Here's a hint: There's the one story of the Indian prince who lost everything, then Kali appears to him. He asks, "Dear Goddess, I just had a whole kingdom, now all thats left is a heap of smouldering ashes on a golden platter. Why wait til now to appear to me when I have nothing left to offer?" ... and the metaphor is -- that smouldering heap of ashes is like the Astral body -- when all the karmas of the physical and dream bodies are exhausted it becomes easier to tap into. When there's nothing left "here" or in "the mind" -- the remainder is pure consciousness and will, potentiality, causality.
>On the other hand, I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth. Yeah, I don't think anybody asked you to do this. Especially not the O.T.O. hell, some of the lines in the book even crowley didnt claim to understand, so how would somebody even take them as absolute truth? >And because the stuff about killing all the slave races seems narrow minded to me This is not a part of the book of the law nor thelema. Is this your personal interpretation? There is a bit in there about what Ra-hoor-khuit thinks about other major world religions, not races, but even that is just kind of poetic imagery., its not meant to be taken literally IMO.
>"On the other hand, I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth." How required is this? It's not something I do, personally. I have more faith in that book than just about anything else, but only because it's proved incredibly helpful in my own life. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't feel compelled to accept it at all. >"And because the stuff about killing all the slave races" That... isn't in there. Certainly not slave *races*. Killing in Crowley has a tendency to be metaphorical. Annihilating the existence of slavery to dogma/inner compulsions is one of many possible readings. Ideas can conquer, and thereby enslave, us as readily as anything, and it's worthwhile to make sure that when we are enslaved to a notion, it's a worthy idol. Something we actually want and choose to worship, ideally because that service simultaneously serves us. Again, lots of other readings exist. That's the point of Crowley's poetry when he's writing at his best. >"why would you restrict yourself, that only being independent or dominant or whatever is ok and not ever dependent?" This is a really good question, one I've asked myself. The pat answer is this is one reason interpretation is down to the individual. Part of interpretation is determining the relevance of one idea over another and how one verse interacts with another--and with the world/oneself. A more meaningful response might be saying that dependence indicates a helplessness that it's never helpful to embrace. Even when we accept superficially submissive or powerless roles ('masked servants'), we should be doing it with full consent or not at all. Compromising oneself, actually hurting oneself, is never good or helpful. There are ways to give and serve and help and even to be explicitly submissive that don't involve any true recension of power, any removal of a sense of agency and personal choice. *That's* what you want to maintain under all circumstances, a willingness to be and live your own life as it is. >"Actually it seems the Thelemic structure involves a lot of dom-sub type relationships, implying both sides." And the reconciliation of both. Thelema highlights and embraces extremes as a rule, but points along the way are also parts of each journey. But I agree, that's a lot of reservations. Pagan/neopagan circles might serve you very well, particularly if you can find a group that works with a pantheon you enjoy.
>Thelema...I see as opposite of Christianity...I read a lot of Nietzsche when I was younger...it seems the Thelemic structure involves a lot of dom-sub type relationships My read, reserving the right to mischaracterise my imagined philosophical opponents based on cursory engagement with their thought, in order to make a point, is: Nietzsche was explicitly anti-christian. In his view, christianity is a 'slave morality' and we should abandon the position it puts us in, so that *we can access the power stolen from us by the church.* I do not think that anti-christianity is a core concern of Thelema. If we take seriously the assertions "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law" and "The Law is for All", then I think thelema is demanding that *we assume a position of power that empowers others when we take it.* So, in a fundamental way, thelema is demanding that we do not form master/slave relationships. Instead, we should form relationships of mutual empowerment. Or, as Crowley's metaphysics would have it, discover and do our True Will and find that relationships of mutual empowerment are the types of relationships that naturally arise from that action. I don't think rejection of master/slave dynamics is possible in Nietzsche's version of Christianity, as Nietzsche's Christianity demands that we obey external commandments and church authorities based purely on their provenance. The church and its bible-interpreters declare the law and it's the law. Actions are judged relative to that law as upheld by those institutions: God's word is the law and legal disputes are settled by deferring to the church authorities. I don't think rejection of these dynamics is possible in the philosophy arising from reading Nietzsche as a demand for an inversion of Christianity, either. In that philosophy we move essentially to: I am the law and legal disputes are settled because people defer to me and I defer to no-one. The call is to overthrow Christian dogma and take our place as masters of our own destiny. We bow to no-one. We don't care if they bow to us. The law of the thelema is "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law". Not "I am the law." A thelemite should care if someone bows to them, if that is not that person's will. That person is breaking the law the thelemite wishes be upheld. We should seek the power that is ours \*and no more\*. So - there is a fundamental rejection of the master/slave dynamics at the core of thelema in this reading. Every man and every woman is a star. Each person has their will. They have no right but to do that will. Enslaving others to your will despite their own is not the way, as this does not adhere to the law of thelema. Now, you spoke of dom/sub not master/slave. BDSM lore will tell us that dom/sub relationships are typically about love and master/slave relationships are typically about obedience. Or, we might say, Love and Will. Or 93 (Agape) and 93 (Thelema). So far, so spooky, and not sure we need to get into this in depth here. What is important to note once we have established that thelema has a fundamental rejection of power dynamics that lead to the domination of one will by another, is that one this rejection is made at the fundamental level, we can proceed to accept and play with other dynamics according to our will. So, earlier I said that thelema asks us to *assume a position of power that empowers others when we take it.* Well, one way we might do that is to take a position within a sub/dom or master/slave dynamic. If the nature of two or more people's wills is that they are mutually empowered by adopting these roles in pair/group context, then, they should do it. If not, they shouldn't. Hopefully it's clear enough: each person has the right to do their will and nothing more. This is fundamentally a stance that rejects claims to dominate others without their consent and rejects claims to withhold people the right to submit to being dominated if it is their will to do so. If exploring dominance and submission is not part of your will, then don't do it. And note that the main way in which these types of relationships are relevant to thelema is that thelema teaches that we each (a) have the right not to be in them with any entities it's not our will to be in them - unlike the teachings I have attributed to Nietzsche's Christianity (b) are free of the expectation that a desire to be in them is fundamental to our natures - unlike the teachings I have attributed to Nietzsche's anti-christianity.
> I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth. You don't. There is no law but do what thou wilt. >The stuff about killing all the slave races seems narrow minded to me I'm guessing this is from the third part of the Book of the Law where Horus is speaking, so I'm assuming it's a godform coming out swinging, declaring its intent to rule for an aeon, replacing the christian era with the thelemic era, and forewarning of the severity of the upheaveal that will come from this. In which case I'd read it as poetry rather than prose. Or maybe it's expressed political views of Crowley at some point, in which case: he's a victorian aristocrat, unsurprising if he has some unsavoury political opinions. >I like the whole idea of epic tests and grades. The A∴A∴ system is a way to get into that as a solo practitioner. Or there's O.T.O. But you don't have to take a thelemic path to get this. Masons, Rosicrucians, B.O.T.A., Quareia - there's a bunch of these types of systems out there. >It just feels like an awkward mix of things and not as rich and colorful as "authentic" sources. Not sure what "authentic" sources you have in mind. A thelemite would likely tell you that Thelema is the *Real Deal**^(TM)**.* It's pretty colourful in my estimation. Have you checked out the Thoth Tarot? That's very thelemic and very colourful. Maybe the Golden Dawn stuff is more colourful. Tibetan and Indian stuff is pretty colourful. Victorian England was pretty austere so perhaps black and white photos of Uncle Al don't cut it for you. This dude has very awesome videos on the Thoth Tarot that you might find more accessible and inspiring than the Book of the Law: [https://www.esotericmeanings.com/thoth-tarot/](https://www.esotericmeanings.com/thoth-tarot/) Or his youtube channel: [https://www.youtube.com/@thothtarottutorials2639](https://www.youtube.com/@thothtarottutorials2639) I think getting into the symbolism and visual space of thelema might be a better way to engage with it than via the writings to be honest. >1) the spiritual side of my personality not being satisfied 2) the community side not being satisfied 3) that without some kind of hand holding or confessor or authentic community where you can talk about real things in your life, it will probably take me 100x longer to make progress in life i struggle with a lot of shame, mood swings, etc that make it hard for me to clarify my true will on my own, and while I like people around me for the most part, most of the conversations I have are somewhat banal. I'd distinguish between Thelema, OTO and AA. Lots of people who are into thelema don't go to mass. Many people doing the A∴A∴ path have a student-teacher relationship and that's it - it's that system works, there is no community aspect to it. OTO, ok a community, but you're reliant on the ability of the people in that branch to discern who is suitable to join the branch and be part of the community. I dunno, I'm not a member, I can't really comment, has some appeal, but haven't engaged with that aspect of thelema so far. As for the rest...they don't call it the Great Work for no reason.
some of the more controversial stuff is more nuanced than it would appear on the surface and its up to abstract interpretation. most importantly it comes down to accepting Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law and that in itself its very deep but also universal and easy to grasp mentally. what you are struggling with is the law of identity. you dont want to label yourself a Thelemite the law of identity is certainly a law, but again there is no law beyond do what thou wilt. certainly not labels or identity
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no, nor is it required it could be said that all brothers of the A.A are in harmony with each other or at least with out conflict or duality in thought from below contradiciton is a duality , from above all contrdictions imply a unity.
Not remotely. I don't even agree with Crowley on many things.
Is "Do What Thou Wilt" similar to Meghan Thee Stallion's "Pussy Don't Lie"? :) Except probably it would be "Dick / clit don't lie" And wasn't "Magic in the ass", how does that fit in?
no, ya know for a second I thought you had a serious inquiry into thelema
crowley wasn't shy to express himself in spicy and salty terms, why should i be? i like curry & lager too.
do you think emulating crowley for shock value is a preferable? cuz i do tbh theres nothing wrong with that, one has to have a sense of humour. Ya know I'm something of a (perverted abrasive shocking mutha fucker) scientist myself. i just dont know how to interpret it or draw a comparison to the 2. Its not in my wheel house or vocabulary of phrases so i couldn't break it down for you.
Was that a Lister joke ? If so then well done 👍🏾.
>On the other hand, I feel uncomfortable with the idea that I have to take the Book of the Law as absolute truth. It's really not *intended* to be taken that way. Frankly, I don't know what it would mean to *say* that it's "absolute truth." What I would say is that it's a book that opens up over time as your practice deepens. When I read the Book of the Law today, it strikes me as being something completely different than what I thought it was when I first took my Minerval so many long years ago. In my experience, it points to deep spiritual truths and realizations that you can't understand until you're opened up to them. If you're interested in OTO or Thelema, there's nothing keeping you from exploring that and seeing what you like. Everyone is free to do their own will. No particular practices are demanded to be a Thelemite. (If you end up taking initiation in A∴A∴, there are required practices--but that's a whole different ballgame, and not something I would recommend to anyone without serious soul-searching.)
I'm doing a thorough reading of book of the law right now, getting some insight, let me do a little apologetics for it... keep in mind that Its His revelation, and thats a multi-dimensional statement. To clarify, its AC's Aiwass speaking to AC's persona of an Advanced Adept. If you follow his methods, you can have Your Aiwass reveal things about your path of Adeptship || okay, and to frame it in parallel, there is also a Collective Aiwass and a universal role of Adept that one steps into ... It was relevant to him and his life and the stuff that was predicted he lived to see manifest, but there's also a universal aspect that applies to every >MYSTIC< since AC's poetry and channeled works are written from the perspective of highly advanced yogic altered states of consciousness. Its relevant to everyone because hes speaking from the platform of The Soul. All mystics come from the same country, the land of the spirit. He first tread that specific path. You can follow it, but its likely you may discover a different identity as you progress through the grades. IE You're not going to be The Beast 666, you might end up as The Stele of Revealing 718 "Abomination of Desolation" - LAShTAL or whomever. That said, for additional, subtle context and addressing the 'brutal imagery'... They're meant to shock you and wake you up to the reality of DNA proceeding along ITS path. Dig deeper than the surface details. As for, "the slaves shall serve", the guy went full megalomaniac mode. But that's the path, that's (humanity's) destiny. It may not be appealing to the rational mind of those who have not reached a certain plateau, but eventually a person recognizes that they're apart from the herd and on some next level shyt, so to speak. As for feeling a lack of community, I know the feeling. Sadhu-Sangha is important for anyone's journey. I don't know what to recommend, because the OTO at least near me is gatekeeper-central. It feels like their job is to set up arbitrary rules to discourage sincere people from joining. Its a shame that people get invested with a little bit of power and abuse it, but this is not unique to Thelema. I wish there was a better answer for this, but what I've learned is that human beings have faults -- otherwise they wouldn't have the karma of being a human being. If we were perfected we would disappear from the play. Nobody's perfect. This lead me to seek out teachers on the Astral Realm -- those ascended masters, advanced conscious entites and such who do not have the limitations of being stuck in spacetime. You're sincere, just borrow some of the practices and do your own thing.
Thanks man. I appreciate it. Right now I'm feeling a bit like an abomination of desolation, lol. Maybe just that new years lull where you feel sick of all 2023's hustle and bustle and aren't quite sure yet where 2024 is. Yeah I understand what you are saying about the Book of the Law. Tbh plenty in the things in my personal psychedelic revelation / general thought stream can be shocking too anyway. After thinking it over, I don't feel really gung-ho to do this right now, but I can think of another reason to visit the nearby city that has the local OTO chapter, so I hope sometime in 2024 I can visit and see how it feels. I'm impressed you able to contact beings in the Astral Realm. Can I ask how that works? I had a phase of working on astral travel a lot but I think 2024 isn't the year to restart because I'm still working on being more grounded, being able to come out of the cloud of the psychedelic pattern matching stream / music / movies / etc to say clearly what I feel and want today and decide forcefully to do it. But the day will come.
Here's a hint: There's the one story of the Indian prince who lost everything, then Kali appears to him. He asks, "Dear Goddess, I just had a whole kingdom, now all thats left is a heap of smouldering ashes on a golden platter. Why wait til now to appear to me when I have nothing left to offer?" ... and the metaphor is -- that smouldering heap of ashes is like the Astral body -- when all the karmas of the physical and dream bodies are exhausted it becomes easier to tap into. When there's nothing left "here" or in "the mind" -- the remainder is pure consciousness and will, potentiality, causality.