April 1993 e.v. Thelema Lodge Calendar/Newsletter Mailed free within 100 miles of San Francisco California Printed edition otherwise: $12 per year North America, $12 per year surface overseas, $24 per year air mail overseas. Copyright (c) O.T.O. and the Individual Authors, 1993 e.v. Limited license is hereby granted to reproduce this file without fee, with this message intact. This license expires April 1994 e.v. unless renewed in writing. No charge other than reproduction costs is permitted under this license to the receivers of copies of this file without O.T.O. written permission. Ordo Templi Orientis P.O. Box 2303 Berkeley, CA 94702 USA Editorial offices: OTO-TLC Editor P.O.Box 430 Fairfax, CA 94978 (CIS 72105,1351) Location: Lodge & most events: 544 31st St., Oakland (Moving in May 1993 e.v. to 328 49th St., Oakland) Phone: (510) 658-3280 Compuserve: 72105,1351 Calendar events in the San Francisco Bay Area for April 1993 e.v., in brief. Always call the contact phone number before attending. Some are limited in size, change location and may be subject to other adjustments. When you call, you don't get lost or disappointed. Initiations are private. Donations at all OTO events are welcome. ************************************************************************* REMEMBER! Events are usually held at 544 31st Street unless otherwise noted or marked as: "Call to attend". The Lodge will be moving to 328 49th St. in Oakland in late April and May. Call for all events, especially in that some events will be moving to the new location before others. 4/4/93 LOP & Adviser Council 3:33 PM (510) 658-3280 Thelema Ldg 4/5/93 Thelema Lodge meeting 8:00 PM (510) 658-3280 Thelema Ldg 4/8/93 First Day of Liber AL (510) 527-2855 Sirius Oas. 4/9/93 Second Day of Liber AL (SF) (415) 221-5649 Independant 4/10/93 Third Day of Liber AL 7:30 PM (510) 658-3280 Thelema Ldg 4/11/93 Gnostic Mass 4:18 PM (510) 658-3280 Thelema Ldg 4/17/93 Initiations, Call to attend (510) 658-3280 Thelema Ldg (Third Degree) ************************************************************************* EDITORIAL Thelema Lodge Rents a House ! When this Lodge Master first rented his new apartment last June along with the Lodge Secretary & Treasurer it was not planned that the entire Lodge should also move into the space. Unfortunately, circumstances dictated the necessity to do such. It was apparent right from the start that the space was too small. Still we had to make due with what we had, knowing that it was only temporary. Plans were immediately put into motion to begin looking for a larger space once sufficient funds had been raised to allow us another move. Now, with the funds donated graciously by many Thelemites we have located just such a space. Thelema Lodge is pleased to announce that effective immediately the Lodge begins moving into the eighth location in it's sixteen years in the Bay Area. We have rented an entire house! People who are familiar with the space will especially appreciate that our new location has more than twice the amount of room. Four bedrooms instead of three, two full bathrooms (upstairs and down), a living room and another large room for Lodge Meetings and lectures. There is a big kitchen with a lot of counter space and a separate dining room. A huge basement is available for storage, with the potential of a serious work area ... and of course a Temple space! The address of the new location is: 328 49th Street in Oakland (see map with this calendar). IMPORTANT INFO TO KNOW IN THIS TRANSITION! We will still be renting our apartment at the previous address at 544 31st Street throughout the month of April. It is very IMPORTANT that everyone becomes aware that, although we are moving, the Temple will temporarily be staying at 31st Street till the end of the month of April. All events scheduled on April Calendar which require Temple space will be held at 31st Street! We will be keeping the same phone number (510-658-3280), and if there is any confusion on where an event is being held please call for details! Since we are moving the undisputed largest amount of stuff you can cram into one little apartment, attic and basement during this month it is an extremely good idea to call before coming over, to be certain where and if any scheduled event is being held. We apologize for any inconvenience, incurred by our membership that this move might make. In the long run it's for the best. Also, if you flip to our Calendar page at the end of this newsletter, you'll quickly notice that absolutely NOTHING is scheduled or listed from Sunday April 18th to Friday April 30th ... this has been left open for moving Thelema Lodge and those who inhabit its premises. Each night we will attempt to do just a little bit of shuffling around from house to house rather than killing ourselves with moving everything in one day, especially since we still must work full-time jobs in the interim. Unfortunately, only a little can be done each night; but in some ways this will be easiest on all of us. Again, sorry for any inconvenience this might cause. Hopefully in early May we'll be up and running again as if nothing ever happened. Look for the New lodge/House Warming Party Coming in May! The Feast for the Writing of The Book of the Law This year, as with previous years, the 'Three Days of the Writing of the Book of The Law' will be held at three separate locations. The First Feast & reading will be held on Thursday, April 8th and will be sponsored by Sirius Oasis. Call Glen Turner at (501) 527-2855 for details and directions. The second-Friday, April 9th, will be hosted in San Francisco beginning at 7:30pm. Call Jim Graeb or Jewel at (415) 750-1405 for details regarding this Feast and reading. The reading of the Third Chapter and Feast will be sponsored at Thelema Lodge (at the 31st Street location) on Saturday night, the 10th at 7:30pm. Call for details (510) 658-3280. Help for the feasts will be greatly appreciated at all three events. Please bring food and drink! Apology to All Thelema Lodge Members During the course of my monthly paper shuffling, I left the Lodge Meeting off the calendar page for March. I apologize for the confusion and inconvenience. I will do all I can to see that it doesn't happen again. -- Secretary, H.Herndon. Abramelin Oil Now Available There are numerous projects which have been planned behind the scenes at Thelema Lodge with the hope of bringing into birth something really worthwhile for our community. One such project, which we are proud to say is finally off the ground, is that our Lodge is now offering some of the best Abramelin Oil produced anywhere in our Order. In the past, few could dispute the quality and purity of the oils produced out of Thelema Lodge. This was due to the loving care of Lotte Lieb. When Lotte decided to no longer produce Abramelin Oil, the Bay Area lost a much valued resource. Recently our Lodge Treasurer, Marlene Smith, spent months tracking down companies across the United States and Canada which could provide her with the proper ingredients for a new batch of Abramelin Oil. Her effort of love and aspiration was driven by the quest to find the purest extracts and oils possible. The greatest difficulty was in finding fresh Galangal Oil, which had not been diluted by water or other ingredients or had gone rancid and was spoiled. Galangal Oil is highly volatile and rancidity quickly occurs. Most oils of Abramelin are made with a 'perfumed' type of Galangal which is an easy substitute to obtain. Although this does go rancid, it is not a pure extract, and when mixed with other ingredients the Abramelin Oil is not completely pure. After almost a year of research Marlene found only one company in the United States which produces a pure pressure-extract of the Galangal root, without any 'perfume' substitute. Once quality Galangal Oil was obtained, the final preparation was done in conjunction with the expertise and aid of Lotte Lieb to again produce Abramelin Oil equal to the quality Lotte has produced in previous years. It was a success. Abramelin Oil can be purchased at Thelema Lodge any time you visit. In the past 'one dram' was offered for $31 but now (due to the quantity produced) we are able to offer the same amount for only $20. Mail orders will be taken but only for quantities of five or more, plus a $5.00 Shipping & Handling fee. Checks should be made payable to Marlene Smith. Stores are welcome to inquire about our discounts. The Lending Library Recently we have received notice of which books from the donated Library of the late Stephen Alexander will be staying in the Bay Area. According to his Last Will & Testament it was his personal wish that his entire library go to the Grand Lodge in New York, but Hymenaeus Beta has graciously given at least one third as a donation to Thelema Lodge. We are keeping most of the books on Magick! Almost every volume by Aleister Crowley, Regardie, Levi, John Dee, The Golden Dawn and others will remain here. Thelema Lodge's library will almost triple. We extend our greatest appreciation to Hymenaeus Beta for this gift. Further, we wish to announce that with this rather large donation of books the policies of The Lending Library will be changing. If you are interested please contact the Lodge for further info. ************************************************************************* from the Grady Project: Angel Far My mind is as bleak as the steppes of the Moon And as cold as the Uranian air My heart is as hot as the bright-side moon Exploding in a solar flare And with the lion love of my fiery boon I burn in Her glorious hair The galaxies Are Arrow-Trees Plummed by Maat's fierce love's A glowing see That holds the worlds together. 1/14/62 - Grady L. McMurtry Published in "McMurtry: Poems" (London & Bergen: O.T.O., 1986 e.v.), and in "The Grady Project" #3 (March 1988 e.v.). ************************************************************************* Crowley Classics For a change of pace, here are Crowley's marginal notes to his "Diary of a Drug Fiend". Like many authors, Crowley did not like to stop re-working his published writings. We have seen in past issues of the "TLC" how his marginal notes to separate poems were later edited and published in "The Works of Aleister Crowley". The same was done for "Vision and Voice" with an annotated version published long after the first appearance in "Equinox", Vol. I. Crowley's method was to take copies of the earlier editions and comment in the margins. Some of these commented books were handed to editors, while others were given or sold to collectors and friends. Many of these annotated copies have surfaced at the Warburg Institute collection in London, the Humanities Research Center at the U of Texas in Austin, and in other University and estate collections. Gerald Yorke ("G.J.Y." in the parenthetic notes below) made a practice of copying down these marginalia, and this present set came to O.T.O. in the 1970s via Francis (Israel) Regardie. The page and paragraph references are to the first edition. Most of the notes which follow identify people on whom the characters were based and indicate sources of inspiration. Copyright (c) OTO, 1993. -oOo- A.C. annotations to the Abbey of Thelema Library Copy of the "Diary of a Drug Fiend" Dedication. Alostrael = Leah Hirsig Telepylus. Vulgarly called Collegium ad Spiritum Sanctum, Cefalu, Sicily. Established April 1, 1920 e.v. Astarte Lulu Panthee. Daughter of The Beast 666 by Ninette Fraux (Shumway) Born Nov. 26 1920 e.v. at Cefalu. Preface. Line 1. i.e. a truly imagined story. 2 from bottom. Quoted by E.A.Poe in 'Ligeia' Last line. Liber Legis. Page 3(4). Peter Pendragon. A composite figure, but mostly imagined - i.e. he is my idea of a fairly common type. The worst elements are drawn accurately from one Cecil Maitland, son of the Revd. Maitland (of a junior branch of the family of the Earls of Lauderdale), a renegade Romish priest notorious in the 'Oxford Movement'. p. 3(4). last line. Family affairs imaginary, invented for the convenience of explaining his social and financial position. Not in view of the 'Solution' on pp 348, 349 which had not occurred to my mind. 4. para 6. I idealized from The Grange, Redhill, Surrey where I lived from 1881 to 1886. e.v. 5. line 2. Psychology taken from Sieveking's article, referred to infra. para 6. Mr. Wolfe. Character from the late E.T.M.Dennes, my own lawyer. 6. para 2. Cafe Wisteria. Cafe Royale. 3. Suggested by a settlement I made myself and certain troubles arisen with the trusteeship in 1921-22. (I later became the trustee. G.J.Y.) 7. para 4. Fordham. Frank Harris. 5. Vernon Gibbs. Herbert Vivian. 1. Some of P.P's psychology is borrowed from my own psychology. I will mark any notable passages of this kind with a GR:Psi 8. para 3. Figure of a young-old man. Lord Alfred Douglas. His jackal. T.W.H. Crosland 5. Dialogue verbatim and ensuing scrap accurately reported. (A.C. scratch out his name for the Earl of Bumble. G.J.Y.) 9. para 5. The head waiter, M Blot, for many years maitre d'hotel at Cafe Royale 6. Respective ages of F(rank) H(arris) and A(lfred) D(ouglas). Following speech actually made. 10. para 2. 'Across...' and para 7. GR:Psi 12. line 4. See Sasaki Shigetz on Shinto in The International para 5. A Handsome Welshman. Augustus John. 13. para 5. An actual speech 8. A fat German Jew. Jacob Epstein 9. A voluble genial man. Gordon Craig. 14. para 4. A red headed slut. Mary Rodker, nee Butts. 4. A German woman of the lowest class. Gretel ---, wife of Capt (now Gen.) J.F.C.Fuller last para. Violet Beach. Iris Tree, daughter of Beerbohm Tree, a once notorious barnstormer. 15. para 4. Lou. Purely imaginary: hardly even a wish-phantasm. I don't know at all where I got her. para 5. GR:Psi 16. para 4. Physical description, partly memory, partly report, and partly a wish-phantasm of my daughter, Lola Zaza Crowley. 17. para 1. King Lamus ruled Telepylus, the City of the Laestrygonians in the Odyssey. 6. King Lamus. As nearly as possible an accurate self-portrait in all respects. I merely avoided physical stigmata which would have made identification impossible to miss. 18. para 2. GR:Psi 19. para 2. Au chien qui fume, a workman's cafee in the Halles in Paris. But the description given later is of the Golden Calf, a bad cabaret started in London (Heddon Street, off Regent Street) in 1912 by Freda Strindberg. 20. para 3. Percy Wyndham Lewis: The description is flattering. 4. GR:Psi 5. A shrill-voiced Danish siren. Freda Strindberg, one of the dramatist's loose wives - 'relict or derelict', I said, in Equinox I, VIII p (Page not goven. G.J.Y.) 5. One of her professional entertainers. A Lesbian imported from Spain via the Place Pigalle. 21. para 4. See Equinox I, 3 Supplement. Wrote 'The Star in the West' on my Work, and was my colleague for some years - till his wife dragged him down. para 6. Quoted from Sieveking's article. 22. Last para. Telepylus. Cefalu: see S. Butler 'The authoress of the Odyseey' for the identification. 23. para 1. This sort of silly talk was current in London for years. The 'Sunday Express' was silly eno' to publish it - and a lot more - Nov 26, 1922 e.v. I foresaw the storm which would break on the publication of this book: it was my deliberate intention to answer this sort of charge in advance. 24. para 2. Published in The English Review 1922 e.v. 27. para 1. From Sieveking. para 3. 4. GR:Psi 28. para 4 See Liber VII. 7. 'Your kiss is bitter with cocaine. Observed, psychological effects and all during the experiments at Cefalu 1920 e.v. 30. para 4. Sieveking 31. para 2. My studio at 2 (or 33) Avenue Studios Fulham Road London S.W. 7. 'There are four gates...' Quoted from Liber Legis I. 32. para 7. Miss Fatma Hallaj Izeh Kranil (See International). The incident of her collapse actually took place, from the mixed stimulants as described. 33. para 3. from bottom. The original from a poem written in Tunis, June '20, to Leah Hirsig - is inscribed on the 'Hell' wall of the Chambre des Cauchemars (i.e. A.C.'s bedroom G.J.Y.) in the Abbey at Cefalu. For 'love' read 'cunt'. (The word 'cunt' has been heavily scratched out so as to be illegible G.J.Y.) 34. para 3 from bottom. Anhalonium Lewinnii. I made many experiments on people with this drug in 1910 and subsequent years. 35. 3. Simon Iff, a wish-phantasm of myself as an old man. See my novel. (Refers to the Simmon Iff stories I think. I know of no such novel. G.J.Y.) para 8. I entered at King's College Hospital London before going to Cambridge but never studied. My knowledge is due to later reading and experience. 42. para 1. Incidents of my own marriage suggested the obstacle. 43. para 1 and 2. These two men are together Alex. Coote, late of the Vigilance Society. 44. para 4. A fact. Messrs. Dunhill can confirm. 45. para 3. A.C. 'Rosa Inferni'. 46. para 3. Suggested by my own experience of a honeymoon - 1903-4. 40. para 3. Doris Gomez or Carlyle, a mistress of mine when in New York. 51. bottom. Gwendolen Otter. A lady who cultivates literary lions, and dabbles a little herself. 51. line 6. A private joke. 53. para 4. Kind of hotel near the Etoile. Stayed there myself on my own honeymoon. 55. 6. 'kisses'. By changing the word from p. 33 I meant to hint that neither was correct. 63. para 1. I often do this. 7. Elgin Eccles. Imaginary figure, partly composed of a man named Laurence Felkin. 65. para 4. Mademoiselle Haidee Lamoureux. Drawn partly from Jane Cheron (see my Three Poems to her in Eq. I. V and partly from a friend of hers. 66. 1. Petit Savoyard. An actual restaurant on the Butte - a great favourite of mi(ne). 88. para 6,7. GR:Psi 90. para 3. I once had my lawyer's clerk bring me money to Paris. 94. line 4. after 'gentlemen' add '! By heaven,' 95. para 1. A real restaurant in the Bois where I go sometimes. 98. para 3. ... When we came in. a frequent experience of mine. 99. para 6. For 'and she told him' read 'and she told me' 102. (Above Chapter VIII) I am surprised on looking through this book An XIX to note the invariable expression of dislike and contempt for Italians. I was not aware I felt a tithe of this. 104. para 3. Italy. 106. para 4. A picture of my own (Now in my possession G.J.Y.) 107. 4. 'obstruse' should read 'abstruse' 110. last para but 1. Italy 112. para 3. at the Caligula. The Tiberio: I stayed there in 1920. 114. para 3. Italy. last para. Gatto Frotto. A purely imaginary haunt, so far as I know. 116. para 3. Lloyd George. An unscrupulous, ignorant, imbecile and ignoble demagogue of the period. 117. top. The Fauno Ebbrio. Almost any wine-shop: I know several. 118. para 2. Italy. 121. para 2. GR:Psi 6. Italy 122. para 2. Italy. 4. This man. Drawn from somebody I once knew, but I can't think of the name. 123. para 6. Italy. 124. para 4. from bottom. Italy. 126. para 8. Italy. 128. para 1. A tall bronzed Englishman. Mostly from Smart, English Voice- Counsul in New York during the war. 130. bottom. Norway. I went here in 1897. 132. bottom. strengstens verboten. 134. 3. Italy. 134. para 6. Italy. 135. para 7. the girl at the desk, 'fished about in the drawer'. Not 'Ele pecahit dans sa culotte' as Aumont thought. (G.Aumont, I think, translated the book into French, but the translation was never published. G.J.Y.) 136. bottom. Italy. 137. paras 1,2,6 and 8. Italy. To the latter A.C. added 'The first complimentary word about the Italians.' 139. para 3. Italy. 6 Gambrinus. Also called Esposito - when the Germans were called Huns. 144. para 8. Mabel Black. Partly a well-known boot-fetichist in London, partly Myriam Deroxe, a dope-fiend mistress. 149. para 4. "There was a girl there...". later introduced as 'Lala'. Leah Hirsig. 151. "Thirst!" Insert title "Morphine". By me. First published in the English Review in 1913. I had at that time no experience of morphine at all. 154. para 2. Olya. A prostitute - accurated (sic G.J.Y.) portrayed - whom I loved in Moscow in 1913. 159. middle. Oscar Eckenstein. I climbed with him from 1898 to 1904. The lesson in glissading is authentic. 160. para 2. A Himalayan expedition. To Kanchenjuhga in 1905. The incident is authentic. do 3. For Mauvis read mauvais. 163. para 6. Pieced together from odd memories of various adventures. 165. para 5. Lillie Fitzroy. Partly the "Baroness Else von Freytag- Loringhaven' a colleague of Ezra Pound. 167. para 5. 'that American nigger.' Really 'Leon' a pal of Walter Gray, a musical negro, friend to myself and Roddie Minor in New York. 171. para 3. at least, so Doris Gomez found the first time she tried it - at 36 W 40th St. New York in 1915. 178. last line. I got this answer from the colleague of a chemist whom I had know for 20 years and seen alive and well two days before in May '22. 197. line 8 from bottom. 'doctor'. Imaginary - the typical G.P. 198. para 5. Imagined from a patient, an old woman who got me some morphia in New Orleans in 1917-. 199. Line 10. Andrew McCall. Wish-phantasm of Dr. Murry Leslie, who treated my wife's dipsomania in vain. do 13. Sloane Square. No 89. do 14. A rich old woman. Mrs. Harley. 205. para 2. Maisie Jacobs. A pure wish phantasm - a girl I want to meet. 209. para 1. My Screen (New York 1919) "Dead Souls". 2. Bill Waldorf. Bob Chandler, N.Y. painter. 211. para 8. She put some elsewhere. (probably her cunt. G.J.Y.) 212. para 2. See p. 106. But she had heard of it at school and seen pictures 213. para 7. This design - and numerous other details from my own magical cabinet. 215. para 1. "The Magician". The novel he scissors-and-pasted about me. para 2. The old man. This is one of the Masters whom I have met on the Astral Plane. 217. para 2. 'Io Pan Pan Pan! etc. I invented this mantra in my Great Magical Retirement on Montauk August 1919. 233. para 1. 'but the idea of being driven mad by hynotists...' Delusion of a certain Hon John Harris. 235. para 1. Cecil Maitland once shot himself in this inefficient way. 242. para 3. ... 'they fill up.' NOT 'they fit up'. Para 4 'many' NOT 'may'. 243. last line. Mme. Daubignac's. Nobody in particular. 250. line 6. from bottom. 'Do as thou wilt'. Done during the writing of this book, by a crank and a crook named Philp Lee Warner. 252. para 2. I met Muahdsley earlier in 1904 and studied with him for awhile. 253. line 12. from bottom. 'with acrid venom' NOT 'with acid venom'. 264. line 1(5). from bottom. 'All we were asked to do was' NOT 'All we were asked was'. 274. the poem. First published in "The Winged Beetle". 275. the quotation in para 2. Quoted from the Preface to "White Stains". 278. last para. Another song. Written to Marie Lavroff (Roehling) New York. 282. para 1. from bottom. Ko Yuen. A fact. 290. para 5. For 'Destiny' read 'Providence'. 304. last two line(s) of last para but one. I did this in 1900. 307. paras 1 and 2. Italy. 309. para 5. A fair haired boy. Howard, son of Ninette Fraux Shumway born in wedlock. para 8. an even smaller boy. Hansi, natural son of Leah Hersig and Edward Carter. 313. top 2 lines. My 8(degree) = 3(square) robe. para 3. Athena and Cypris. Jane Wolfe and Ninette. do 8. 'eat in silence' Except when Gabsis (sic? G.J.Y.) are present, and one shouts to cover the noise they make in eating. 315. line 11. to any artificial chemical process. (A.C. adds 'artificial' G.J.Y.) 320. last para. two people absolutely rotten. Mary Rodker nee Butts and Cecil Maitland. 321. para 4. 'were' NOT 'was' so extreme. 325. para 1. from bottom. Italy 335. Add to the list of reasons: 1. A. My cough is much better this morning. Ergo, the treatment is doing me good. Ergo, take a dose now! 337. Add to the list of reasons: 28. I have succeeded in stopping. It has no power over me. I can take it when I choose. I will take it now. I left out this from Freudian reasons. This is my own trouble. I stop heroically, lose all fear, start again, avoid counting doses lest I start a 'fear-complex' and am well into the habit again before I am aware. The remedy is to destroy the fear of forming the fear-complex! 345. para 5. The refectory. Describes the house we call The Umbilicus as the former is called The Horsel. 5. Volcanic islands. The Lipari Islands. 348. Last line but one. This deduction was made on the spur of the moment from memory of the facts of the story. They were not chosen to make the issue seem plausible 353. para 2. Altered from 'where Crowley is' - a proverb long current. ************************************************************************* Archivist Anecdotes Friends & Acquaintances of Aleister Crowley Part IV Arnold Bennett Aleister Crowley writes that, "... Arnold Bennett had gratified the public with a highly spiced description of me in Paris Nights".<<"The Confessions of Aleister Crowley", Edited by John Symonds & Kenneth Grant, Hill and Wang, NY, 1969, pg.405>> This account of Crowley's 'spiced description' is briefly mentioned in John Symonds' book "The Great Beast" where he states that Crowley, "...returned to Europe wearing a heavily jewelled red waistcoat and the largest ring that Arnold Bennett had ever seen on any hand! We know about this splendid waistcoat and this outsize ring because Bennett conveniently recorded them for us in his Journal on the 22nd of April 1904, and also made use of them and their owner for one of his characters in Paris Nights."<<"The Great Beast, The Life of Aleister Crowley" by John Symonds, Roy Publishers, NY, 1952, pg.63>> Unfortunately Symonds quotes the date wrong, but gets the general idea right. In "The Journal of Arnold Bennett"<<"The Journal of Arnold Bennett>>, Viking Press,Inc./The Literary Guild, NY, 1933, pg.169. The Archives of HA File No.5>> the actual date is Tuesday April 26th. Arnold Bennett also states that "I rather liked him" regarding Crowley. The following month both of these gentleman met again; and this is recorded in Mr.Bennett's Journal briefly, "I dined at the Chat Blanc. Aleister Crowley was there with dirty hands, immense rings, presumably dyed hair, a fancy waistcoat, a fur coat, and tennis shoes."<> This is a better description of Aleister Crowley than a "heavily jewelled red waistcoat and the largest ring I ever saw on a human hand", which although interesting doesn't paint as good a picture of the Great Beast. One gentleman with independent means spent most of his life just hanging around the Cafe Royal and was preoccupied with writing down everything he overheard. His diaries are massive and have priceless stories of such famous individuals as Oscar Wilde, D.H.Lawrence, Augustus John and of course Aleister Crowley. His name was St.John Terrapin. In these private diaries there is a funny story of Crowley and Bennett at the Cafe Royal which deserves to be quoted at length. Terrapin writes, "I was pleased to see Bennett establish his interest in the Domino Room by arriving with a guest of his own the following day - none other than Aleister Crowley, the Beast himself". "Having ordered drinks, Crowley began what became an animated conversation with the apocalyptic statement: 'Christianity has collapsed. It can no longer serve humanity - if ever it did. A new aeon for mankind has commenced. My Holy Guardian Angel, Aiwass, has appeared before me to dictate a new Book of the Law.' "Crowley was deadly serious, but Bennett had difficulty in keeping a straight face." "'You must give me the details when your angel finishes his task,' he remarked." "'That I will certainly do, but already I can tell you the basis of the New Law. There shall be no law beyond "Do what thou wilt". The word of Sin is restriction. On no account live within your own skin ...'" "Bennett's mouth, which was always half open, gaped wider as the Beast continued, his narrowed eyes making him look more Mongolian than ever."<<"The Private World of St John Terrapin" by Chapman Pincher Sidgwick & Jackson, London, 1982, pg.190. The Archives of HA File No.11>> In this book there are a lot of Crowley/Bennett stories to quote, but space in this publication is limited. Its best to say these two shared a friendship in an odd sense of the term. Years later Aleister Crowley would write to Arnold Bennett begging him for help and money: Dear Arnold Bennett, I am sure you remember me as habitually wearing the largest ring that you ever seen on any human hand. As the enclose shows I have been blackjacked and am only just beginning to pick myself up. I am sure that you will help me to secure a full public investigation of this abominable business. All sorts of un-English methods are being used to stifle the discussion. They seem principally to rely on bringing me to actual starvation before I can get back at them. For the honour of English letters, Strike!<<"The Great Beast" by John Symonds cont. pg.239>> Yours sincerely Aleister Crowley He would enclose a copy of an "Open Letter to Lord Beaverbrook" all in hope to obtain "social justice". There is no record of Bennett ever responding back. -Frater Archivist Further Reading "Arnold Bennett, A Biography" by Reginald Pound, William Heinemann LTD London. The Archives of HA File No.1358. ************************************************************************* Poetry THE SWORD I. Laughter Laughter, the sword Power/Cuts Lashes Out That, else love Which do you choose? II. Power I am laughter In your darkened halls You who take life too seriously You who would not love for free You who do not even pursue To Banish the Illusion Around your will so willfully I grieve at the sound of your intrusion I avoid your dark hearts skillfully Only to love you anyway, I stand at the break of day. III. Cuts Skillfully cross-dressing with the winds, sHe begins to find hir hidden self - That obscured for so long Against society's laughter, That which exists Rewards in the here-after. -- Bryan R. Olson 0 Degree ************************************************************************* Qabalah "Sepher Yetzirah" (4th Installment) [Adapted to conform to the Golden Dawn correspondences in 1976 e.v. with parenthetic notes by Bill Heidrick from the Kalisch and Stenring translations. This rendering of the "S.Y." is made in the public domain as a way of paying dues of another kind. The notes are in curly brackets: {}, and are not part of the original text. The "Sepher Yetzirah" is the ultimate basis of the Golden Dawn system of correspondences embodied in Crowley's "Liber 777".] Chapter Five. Section One. The twelve simple letters HB:Heh, Vau, Zain, Chet, Tet, Yod, Lamed, Nun, Samekh, Ayin, Tzaddi & Qof symbolize, as it were, the organs of sight, hearing, smell, speech, digestion or swallowing, touch or coition, work, walking, anger, mirth, thinking or meditation, sleep* {The Golden Dawn changed these qualities around quite a bit in disregard of a relatively uniform version in the manuscripts of the SEPHER YETZIRAH. In the following sections, the Golden Dawn term will be given first and then a version from the Kalisch translation: e.g. "Golden Dawn term (Kalisch term)".} Section Two. The twelve simple consonants HB:Heh, Vau, Zain, Chet, Tet, Yod, Lamed, Nun, Samekh, Ayin, Tzaddi & Qof symbolize also twelve oblique points {The Order of the Golden Dawn says, in order: North East, HB:Heh ; South East, HB:Vau ; East Above, HB:Zain ; East Below, HB:Chet ; North Above, HB:Tet ; North Below, HB:Yod ; North West, HB:Lamed ; South West, HB:Nun ; West Above, HB:Samekh ; West Below, HB:Ayin ; South Above, HB:Tzaddi ; and South Below, HB:Qof. The Kalish translation gives in the same order for the letters: East Height, North East, East Depth, South Height, South East, South Depth, West Height, South West, West Depth, North Height, North West, North Depth.}. They grew wider and wider to all eternity, and these are the boundaries of the world. {In the Golden Dawn theory, as developed by Paul Foster Case, the posthumous founder of B.O.T.A., these 12 directions are the locations of the twelve edges of the "Cube of Space" which has for faces the first six double letters. Some Qabalistic studies attempt to define a diamond shape in three dimensions. In any event, this section is possibly the origin of the Masonic Temple of Solomon, which fills the universe through its duplication -- like three- dimensional tiles fitting together.) Section Three. The twelve simple letters HB:Heh, Vau, Zain, Chet, Tet, Yod, Lamed, Nun, Samekh, Ayin, Tzaddi & Qof fundamentally, having been designed, established, combined, weighed and exchanged by Him, He performed by them: twelve constellations in the world, twelve months in the year, and twelve organs in the human body, male and female. (Chapter Five to be continued.) ************************************************************************* Primary Sources ALEISTER AND HIS PUBLISHERS. This item is actually the last page attached to the marginal notes on "Diary of a Drug Fiend", see above in "CROWLEY CLASSICS". Crowley sent this proposal to Collins (later Harper Collins and later still Harper & Row, publishers of BOTH "Diary of a Drug Fiend" by Crowley and "Painted Black" by Carl Raschke! Short is the memory of the press! -oOo- This is the original Synopsis accepted by Wm Collins without a line of the book having been written. I had in fact no detailed idea of how the story would develop. -- 31 Wellington Square Chelsea The Diary of a Drug-Fiend I Paradiso 1. At the Cafe Royale 2. The Night Club 3. A German spy 4. The honeymoon 5. Capri 6. The limit of horror 7. Return to England II Inferno 1. The brake 2. Too late to stop 3. Privation 4. Degradation 5. Moral annihilation 6. Crawling from agony to agony 7. Suicidal attempts 8. The bottomless pit III Purgatorio 1. The Saviour 2. Rebuilding the moral temple 3. Opposition to recovery 4. German spy and pussyfooter in league 5. Flight to freedom 6. A glimpse of Paradise 7. The angels at the gates 8. We re-enter. List of people Self, Augustus John, Epstein, Lilian Shelley, Boy Billy, Euphemia Lamb, Gordon Craig, Austin Harrison, Raymond Radclyffe, Frank Harris, 'Bosie' Douglas, T.W.Crosland, Frank Strindberg. Conditions 50,000 words. Delivered in 4 weeks. Pounds40 down and Pounds5 weekly till finished in advance of royalties. Serial rights, movie rights, separable. -- This synopsis was accepted June 1, 1922 e.v. but the Pounds5 weekly was to be paid as Pounds20 on July 3. Beresford suggested fewer chapters of more words each. ---- ************************************************************************* Last Month's Mystery Illustration The seal shown last month is a rubber book stamp of the Hermetic Brotherhood of Atlantis, Luxor and Elphante. This organization was an affiliate of the Hermetic Brotherhood of Light, Fraternitas Lucis Hermeticae, the immediate precursor of O.T.O. For more on the Hermetic Brotherhood, read Clymer's "R.C. Fraternity in America" -- with a grain of salt. For more on B.P.Randolph, see Robert North's "Sexual Magic", Magickal Chile, 1990. Mr. North was kind enough to write to us when he saw the seal in the March "TLC". ************************************************************************* Mystery Illustration For an extended view of the arcane device below, visit Thelema Lodge in May. [This is a street map] ************************************************************************* From the Outbasket Here are the annual demographics of the O.T.O. from Agape Grand Lodge. Membership totals from Grand Lodge accounts at end February 1993 e.v.: 2,288 all, 1,880 of which are initiates. ADV -------------------------------- 91 Associates ------------------------ 317 Minervals ------------------------- 660 Ist Degrees ----------------------- 485 IInd Degrees ---------------------- 290 IIIrd Degrees --------------------- 221 IVth Degrees ---------------------- 125 Vth Degrees ------------------------ 70 Higher Degrees ---------------------- 29 Known addresses by regions at end February 1993 e.v. (Associates and initiates both) Total: 2,060 in 35 countries UNITED STATES TOTAL ------------------------ 1,181 Alabama ---------------------------- 13 Alaska ----------------------------- 1 Arizona ---------------------------- 37 Arkansas --------------------------- 4 California ------------------------- 317 (North Cal: 187) (South Cal: 130) Colorado --------------------------- 9 Connecticut ------------------------ 14 Delaware --------------------------- 3 Dist. of Columbia ------------------ 1 Florida ---------------------------- 36 Georgia ---------------------------- 47 Guam ------------------------------- 1 Hawaii ----------------------------- 8 Idaho ------------------------------ 2 Illinois --------------------------- 38 Indiana ---------------------------- 41 Iowa ------------------------------- 4 Kansas ----------------------------- 7 Kentucky --------------------------- 8 Louisiana -------------------------- 16 Maine ------------------------------ 2 Maryland --------------------------- 7 Massachusetts ---------------------- 13 Michigan --------------------------- 15 Minnesota -------------------------- 15 Mississippi ------------------------ 2 Missouri --------------------------- 6 Montana ---------------------------- 1 Nebraska --------------------------- 17 Nevada ----------------------------- 3 New Hampshire ---------------------- 7 New Jersey ------------------------- 21 New Mexico ------------------------- 7 New York -------------------------- 133 North Carolina --------------------- 8 Ohio ------------------------------- 19 Oklahoma --------------------------- 19 Oregon ----------------------------- 72 Pennsylvania ----------------------- 29 Puerto Rico ------------------------ 9 Rode Island ------------------------ 4 South Carolina --------------------- 2 South Dakota ----------------------- 1 Tennessee -------------------------- 10 Texas ------------------------------ 45 Utah ------------------------------- 20 Virginia --------------------------- 12 Washington ------------------------- 56 West Virginia ---------------------- 3 Wisconsin -------------------------- 16 EUROPE TOTAL ------------------------------- 615 BELGIUM --------------------------- 3 BOSNIA-HERCEGOVINA ----------------- 15 BULGARIA -------------------------- 6 CROATIA --------------------------- 58 DENMARK --------------------------- 17 ENGLAND --------------------------- 121 FRANCE ---------------------------- 19 GERMANY --------------------------- 85 GREECE ---------------------------- 2 N & S IRELAND/ERIE ---------------- 2 ITALY ----------------------------- 14 NETHERLANDS ----------------------- 6 NORWAY ---------------------------- 60 PORTUGAL -------------------------- 1 SCOTLAND -------------------------- 3 SLOVENIA -------------------------- 64 SPAIN ----------------------------- 3 SWEDEN ---------------------------- 16 SWITZERLAND ----------------------- 5 WALES ----------------------------- 1 YUGOSLAVIA ------------------------ 114 CANADA TOTAL ------------------------------- 165 Ontario ---------------------------- 45 British Columbia ------------------- 39 Alberta ---------------------------- 46 Quebec ----------------------------- 35 OCEANIA & ASIA TOTAL ------------------------ 79 AUSTRALIA -------------------------- 46 JAPAN ------------------------------ 13 NEW ZEALAND ------------------------ 20 PANAMERICA (exp. US&CAN) TOTAL -------------- 13 BRAZIL ----------------------------- 4 ECUADOR ---------------------------- 1 GUADELOUPE ------------------------- 5 MEXICO ----------------------------- 1 PANAMA ----------------------------- 1 PERU ------------------------------- 1 AFRICA TOTAL --------------------------------- 7 NIGERIA ---------------------------- 4 SOUTH AFRICA ----------------------- 2 TOGO ------------------------------- 1 ************************************************************************* FROM THE HISTORY HEAP MARCH Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law -- Liber AL vel Legis I:40 April 1, 1915 H.Spencer Lewis organizes a spurious and clandestine Rosicrucian body, calling it AMORC, on 'All Fools Day'. April 1, 1975 Sascha Germer dies. April 2, 1886 Charles Stansfeld Jones is born. April 2, 1920 Aleister Crowley 'officially' establishes the Abbey of Thelema at Cefalu. April 2, 1948 This is the birth date of the Aeon of MAAT, or MA-ION according to Frater Achad. April 6, 1861 Stanisla de Guaita is born in France. April 7, 1807 Pierre Michel Eugene Vintras is born in Baxeux, France. April 8, 1904 The First Chapter of "The Book of The Law" is received by Aleister Crowley in Cairo. April 8, 1909 Victor Neuburg signs the Oath of Probationer joining the A.'. A.'. April 9, 1904 Aleister Crowley receives the Second Chapter of "The Book of The Law" in Cairo at noon. April 10, 1904 The Third Chapter of "The Book of The Law" is dictated to Aleister Crowley, thus completing the volume. April 10, 1934 Aleister Crowley begins a lawsuit against Nina Hamnett for slander she makes against him in her book "The Laughing Torso". He would lose the case. Although the Court of Appeal would later admit Crowley was given a bum deal and should have won, a new trial never took place. April 10, 1936 Followers of the Sacred Atlantean text 'The Codex Pappus', using true grit, "established" the first Gnomon Temple in Burnette, Indiana under the leadership of Mr.Jimmerson. April 14, 1934 As Aleister Crowley was leaving a London courtroom a young, nineteen-year old girl named Deidre ran up to him asking, "Couldn't I be the mother of your child?" ... He granted her that 'honor' and young Ataturk was the result. April 17, 1900 Aleister Crowley 'briefly' captures The Vault of the Adepts in London wearing full Highland dress, a black mask over his face, a dagger at his side and a gold cross on his breast, acting on Mathers' behalf. The Adepts called the police and had him removed. April 20, 1923 Norman Mudd arrives at the Abbey of Thelema at Cefalu. April 25, 1900 In a letter to Lady Gregory, W.B.Yeats writes, "... Crowley, a quite unspeakable person. He is I believe seeking revenge for our refusal to initiate him. We did not admit him because we did not think a mystical society was intended to be a reformatory." April 28, 1727 Mr.Joques de Livron Joachim la Tour de la Case Martines Depasqually, the founder of the Martinist, was born on this date. April 29, 1917 Florence Farr dies at the age of 57. April 29, 1969 Grady Louis McMurtry arrives in California from Washington D.C. April 30, 1923 Aleister Crowley transfers the Abbey of Thelema at Cefalu to Norman Mudd. Love is the law, love under will. -- Liber AL vel Legis I:57 A.O.583 VIIIth Degree ************************************************************************* April 1993 e.v. Thelema Lodge Calendar (April events) Mailed free within 100 miles of San Francisco California Ordo Templi Orientis P.O. Box 2303 Berkeley, CA 94702 USA Editorial offices: OTO-TLC Editor P.O.Box 430 Fairfax, CA 94978 (CIS 72105,1351) Location: Lodge & most events: 544 31st St., Oakland (Moving in May 1993 e.v. to 328 49th St., Oakland) Phone: (510) 658-3280 ************************************************************************* Please feel free to forward this file to any BBS willing to take it NIA & ASIA TOTAL ------------------------ 79 AUSTRALIA -------------------------- 46 JAPAN ------------------------------ 13 NEW ZEALAND ------------------------ 20 PANAMERICA (exp. US&CAN) TOTAL -------------- 13 BRAZIL ----------------------------- 4 ECUADOR ---------------------------- 1 GUADELOUPE ------------------------- 5 MEXICO ----------------------------- 1 PANAMA ----------------------------- 1 PERU ------------------------------- 1 AFRICA TOTAL --------------------------------- 7 NIGERIA ---------------------------- 4 SOUTH AFRICA ----------------------- 2 TOGO ------------------------------- 1 ***************************************************************