07 Aug The Wickedest Man in the World
Surely you’ve heard of 666, the number of the Mark of the Beast? The reference is from the Book of Revelations of the Christian Bible and denotes the Devil or Satan. Aleister Crowley audaciously chose this number as his moniker.
Most if not all of modern Western occultism has been influenced by Aleister Crowley (12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) and his religious philosophy of Thelema. He was a larger-than-life character of much theatricality, media savvy, and drama, always with an eye to his historical legacy. Crowley was a prolific writer of articles, poetry, and books including The Book of the Law, (“Do What Thou Wilt Shall Be the Whole of the Law”) and Magick in Theory and Practice. He was bisexual and had numerous wives and consorts, several of whom he christened the Scarlet Woman, a goddess who was a sexually-free woman. Crowley wrote at length about his sexual and drug addictions and his efforts to stop heroin.
Crowley’s Thelema is a system of ceremonial magick (with a “k” to differentiate it from stage and entertainment magic), beliefs and rituals intended to influence matter and develop the magickian personally and spiritually. Modern psychological tenets such as the use of affirmations, will, and intention all have magickal properties. Crowley visited L.A. in November 1915 and described Angelenos as a “cinema crowd of cocaine-crazed sexual lunatics.” (Like he should talk! Lol) His followers believe he was the Avatar of the New Age.
Aleister Crowley was a noted influence on Led Zepplin, and his picture appeared on the cover art of Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band. Noted followers in Spiritual L.A. include Kenneth Anger, Cameron, Jack Parsons, Paul Foster Case and BOTA, Israel Regardie, and Satanists of all persuasions. There are several local Thelema groups teaching and practicing magick — you can find them on Meetup or by Googling Thelema or the Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO).
Some say L Ron Hubbard and Scientology were heavily influenced by Aleister Crowley’s work, although the Church denies it. It is, however, a fact that in 1945 Hubbard moved into Jack Parson (see page xxx) ’s Pasadena mansion and collaborated on a magickal ritual called the “Babalon Working.” It is also true that Hubbard married Jack Parson’s lover, Sara, (the sister of his wife), a noted Crowley-ite. Whether or not they defrauded Parsons of his life’s savings when they eloped depends on who you ask.
Aleister Crowley died in poverty and addiction, but his myth and influence live on.
This is an excerpt from Catherine Auman’s book Guide to Spiritual L.A.: The Irreverent, the Awake, and the True
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