The Equinox: Keep Silence Edition, Vol. 1, No. 2

The Equinox #1.02

by Aleister Crowley

Serving as the official text of the A/ A/, the Equinox Volume 1 has proven an elusive addition to the occultist's library. With only a few printings available in over one hundred years, copies of this text fetch upward of $2,000 per book. Now, this text is available at an affordable price. Unedited, and unabridged, this printing contains all the original text and images (B&W) released in the original 1909 printing by Crowley himself. Only now, it is in paperback, and within reach of ownership. (Hardcover available by Spring 2014). The editor and publisher have made no attempt to add to this work in any manner. There is no need for improvement, as these works stand as classics in occult literature even today. The Equinox (subtitle: "The Review of Scientific Illuminism") is a series of publications in book form that serves as the official organ of the A/ A/, a magical order founded by Aleister Crowley (although material is often of import to its sister organization, Ordo Templi Orientis). Begun in 1909, it mainly features articles about occultism and magick, while several issues also contain poetry, fiction, plays, artwork, and biographies. Sections/Chapters: Frontpages Editorial Liber O [vel Manus et Sagittae sub Figura VI] The Herb Dangerous (Part II): The Psychology of Hashish. By Oliver Haddo Reviews The Garden of Janus. By Aleister Crowley The Dream Circean. By Marital Nay The Lost Shepherd. By Victor B. Neuburg A Handbook of Geomancy The Organ in King's Chapel, Cambridge, By G. H. S. Pinsent A Note on Genesis The Five Adorations. By Dost Achiha Khan Illusion D'amoureux. By Francis Bendick The Opium-Smoker Postcards to Probationers. By Aleister Crowley The Wild Ass. By Alys Cusack The Sphinx at Gizeh. By Lord Dunsany The Priestess of Panormita. By Elaine Carr The Temple of Solomon the King (Book II) Amongst the Mermaids. By Norman Roe Ave Adonai. By Aleister Crowley The Man-Cover. By George Raffalovich Stewed Prunes and Prism: The Tennyson Centenary. By A. Quiller, Jr. Stop Press Reviews

Genres: Thelema, Occult, Magick, Metaphysics, Nonfiction

422 pages, Hardcover

First published February 13, 2014

About the author

Aleister Crowley was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, novelist, mountaineer, and painter. He founded the religion of Thelema, proclaiming himself as the prophet destined to guide humanity into the Æon of Horus in the early 20th century. A prolific writer, Crowley published extensively throughout his life.
Born Edward Alexander Crowley in Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, he was raised in a wealthy family adhering to the fundamentalist Christian Plymouth Brethren faith. Crowley rejected his religious upbringing, developing an interest in Western esotericism. He attended Trinity College, Cambridge, focusing on mountaineering and poetry, and published several works during this period. In 1898, he joined the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, receiving training in ceremonial magic from Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers and Allan Bennett. His travels took him to Mexico for mountaineering with Oscar Eckenstein and to India, where he studied Hindu and Buddhist practices.
In 1904, during a honeymoon in Cairo with his wife Rose Edith Kelly, Crowley claimed to have received "The Book of the Law" from a supernatural entity named Aiwass. This text became the foundation of Thelema, announcing the onset of the Æon of Horus and introducing the central tenet: "Do what thou wilt." Crowley emphasized that individuals should align with their True Will through ceremonial magic.
After an unsuccessful expedition to Kanchenjunga in 1905 and further travels in India and China, Crowley returned to Britain. There, he co-founded the esoteric order A∴A∴ with George Cecil Jones in 1907 to promote Thelema. In 1912, he joined the Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.), eventually leading its British branch and reformulating it according to Thelemic principles. Crowley spent World War I in the United States, engaging in painting and writing pro-German propaganda, which biographers later suggested was a cover for British intelligence activities.
In 1920, Crowley established the Abbey of Thelema, a religious commune in Cefalù, Sicily. His libertine lifestyle attracted negative attention from the British press, leading to his expulsion by the Italian government in 1923. He spent subsequent years in France, Germany, and England, continuing to promote Thelema until his death in 1947.
Crowley's notoriety stemmed from his recreational drug use, bisexuality, and criticism of societal norms. Despite controversy, he significantly influenced Western esotericism and the 1960s counterculture, and remains a central figure in Thelema.

Reviews

[_Liebert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Further mixture of brilliant clarity and if-not-yet-tedious simplicity, and obscurity (and the still-so-rare Hume quotation) - I've never read so many poems and already there's too much of the Qabalistic number gymnastics for me to follow - where generally all has been much terminology, but also curious accounts and the approach to (vehemently striking down) semantics is refreshing. Even if it's not noteworthy The Dream Circean is notably (as in, purely as footnote for criticism, for this earlier case has it as briefly as, say, Gogol may) flawed for too-euphemistically being 'of its time', a simpler counterpart to the previous book's The Magic Glasses, though its 'main moral' as a tragedy I do accept; instead shite centrally within The Man-Cover should suffice as exemplifying the problems of its worst, if my suggestion would be to skip rather than see and misleadingly take it as having followed the footsteps of its companions.

[Peter Alvarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freaking beautiful Poetry and Mysticism and Short Stories.....Worth a Read!!!

[Shaun Phelps · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of arrogant puffery with moments of interest. I'll admit I prefer the fiction over the rest of the content.

[william m manzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic Crowley

The second in series a great deal regarding GD initiation . Unless you are very interested in Thelema and I am then try something lighter