A few things…

Fundraising for Poverty

Next week I will be living on a strange diet of cheap foodstuffs as I participate in ‘Live Below the Line’. Basically I eat for $2 a day (AUD), experience a brief window into poverty and raise money via donations for those who are REALLY experiencing it. You can find out all about it here and donate towards my program here: https://www.livebelowtheline.com.au/me/peregrin

I’ve had a really great response from magical and Pagan folk so far, which makes me smile like a loony. THANKS – and please spread the word.

Repeat of Seasonal Rant

One of my old ‘Pagany’ friends posted a nice little thing on Facebook recently. It was all about the descent of Australia “into winter” and how it “is” really Samhain here (the whole of Australia) not Beltain. Listen to this wisdom:

In the Southern Hemisphere the celebration of Samhain (pronounced sow-wen) is officially on April 30. However the actual celestial moment of Samhain is on Sunday May 5 and corresponds with a balsamic moon, which is the equivalent energy. The reason these dates are different is the first is the traditional day, the day decided long ago by our ancestors and the second date is the actual time when the Earth and Sun line up to create the moment within such sundials as Stone Henge, and its different because the earth and the sun and everything else in our galaxy hasn’t moved in a consistently predictable way.

I am not going to even go into funny moons and the “equivalent” energy to ancient Celtic festivals, but as I have said before (and will keep saying), none of these concepts apply to the whole of Australia (and perhaps not anywhere in Oz). Samhain and Beltaine are Celtic in origin, and we have no prehistoric “sun-dials” like Stonehenge . The Eight Sabbat cycle does not neatly switch. Even the concept of “winter” is alien to much of this land, and most of the traditional European motifs and myths concerning winter do not relate to our cold time at all. We (antipodean Pagans) have to keep reiterating this as the awareness of the unique and wonderful songs and seasons of our land, where we actually live, is still to be heard by many folk.

Links of Interest

I was tantalized by a recent Wild Hunt post which mentioned the current research of one of my favourite academics, Ronald Hutton. His research will not be published for a few more years, but early information includes:

• It appears that more men than women were killed in several areas;
• Most victims were not burned alive, but after execution by another means, such as strangulation or beheading, to dispose of a body deemed unworthy of a Christian burial;
• Where there was strong centralized government, there were fewer executions of witches: the body counts soared wherever a heavily localized system of justice effectively put the accusers in charge of the trials. Small German states were one example of this latter situation, Scotland another.
• Areas of Celt cultural influence had far less witch trials;
• Professional inquisitors made very little money from witch trials.

Makes one think, hey? And there is a nice little interview with the good Prof over at the Cherry Hill Seminary website.

And while in a Pagan mood, coming soon is the Green Man Quarterly, a “new project based in Melbourne, Australia that aims to present an in depth exploration of Pagan, Witchcraft and Occult issues.” This is one of the most exciting developments in Australian Pagan publishing for a long time. I know that the editorial team will produce a fine magazine filled with in-depth and quality material. It already has some great contributors. You can subscribe here: http://greenmanmagazine.com/purchase.html

And speaking of Green Men, check out the latest Sulis Manoeuvre post by Rebsie Fairholm: “Shurdington Green Man” Rebsie has perhaps the finest advice on the complex figure of the Green Man ever written:

Reducing him to a “fertility” figure is also doing him a bit of a disservice, as he’s more than just the face of Beltane bonking.

Indeed. THANKS

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A Witchcraft to Sink Your Teeth Into – review of A Deed without a Name.

Lee Morgan has delivered a corker of a first book; easily read, engaging, intriguing, poetic and deep. I have no hesitation in recommending it highly. Lee is clear in her intention:

It is my aim to make the practical implications of this [new] witchcraft scholarship available through the lens of my own occult experience, namely in Traditional Witchcraft.

Since of course there is precious little evidence that any traditional religious Witchcraft existed in pre-modern Europe, this is an interesting intention. Witchcraft has been, and remains for the majority a word for malefic magic and practice. Folk did not self-identify as ‘witches’, much less as Pagan-religious Witches, until the early 20^th century. Lee is able to accommodate this academic consensus within a practical book on traditional Witch methods and world-views by her own subtle and deep poetic vision, obviously borne out of years of profound and even troublesome experience.

To access what some people call the ‘tradition’ of witchcraft we need to first understand that witchcraft as we know it is a myth. But this is no to say it doesn’t exist. The ‘nameless deed’ that lies behind that myth is part of the eternal nature of mankind.

This identification with the myth of Witchcraft is what enables this book to do its work. The reader becomes aware very early on that Lee is poet as well as a Witch, and her poetic vision shines throughout her words and practices. Ronald Hutton draws similar attention to Starhawk’s poetic nature – “The tendency of The Spiral Dance was not to explain or to instruct so much as to intoxicate”. So too with A Deed Without a Name; it is a wonderful journey into and through a consciously embraced myth. Yet, like The Spiral Dance, there is also practical instruction in the book, and more invitations to the reader to produce their own works. Indeed, Lee Morgan may well do for Traditonal Witchcraft what Starhawk did for feminist Wicca.

Lee consciously uses the term Witchcraft as a means of opening up the ‘possibility of a brotherhood of the Other’ – the fey folk, those shunned because of innate connections with the Otherworld or the dead, those destined to be marked by the Gods or dragged into the Underworld for service. In this she gives a valuable service to these folk who often find no place in non-traditional or New Age spirituality, or even magical groups that should know better.

Lee Morgan

One of the criticisms I have seen levelled at the book is that it is too sparse in detail and specifics on its many topics. Personally, I think this scarcity is a strength and it is obvious that Lee knows, on many levels, what she is writing about.  The introductory nature of the chapters allows the reader to be motivated and inspired, but does not provide enough information for the rash idiot percentage to wander off fully armed, or so they think, and get themselves and others in deep trouble. True, most clinical psychologists would hate this book to be read by their schizophrenic patients, but most occultists will laud its careful revealing and the constant reminders of the need for protection and mental integration.

Lee ranges widely with an eye for synthesis, drawing on British, Italian, Grecian, Irish, Norse, western occult and even Hoodo for her work. She makes links between trial records of the Early Modern Witch-hunt across continents and incorporates current academic thinking into her myth and practice. There are chapters and sections on cosmology, links with ‘shamanism’, Witch pacts, ontology, Imps, entering the Otherworlds, the Dead, Faery folk, ritual space, exorcism and a lovely Bestiary too.

There is much in the book that obviously stems from Lee’s own experiences and tradition, lore, story and cosmology. As said, Lee knows her stuff. Take this example from the chapter ‘Riding Plants’, concerned with the use of herbs and plant drugs, where Lee is at pains to spell out the importance of the Witches’ correct relationship with the spirit of the plant:

But due partially to the modern drug culture, very few people are able to look at entheogens (I use this term rather than hallucinogens because it suggests their sacred function) in anything other than a materialist and consumerist manner. They look at the plants (marijuana or ‘magic mushrooms’) like a product that they can get some fun sensation out of. Instead, if one wishes to cultivate ‘plant familiars’ and learn to ‘ride plants’ it would be better to master the art of ‘riding’ those that don’t have such potent inner fire, the non entheogens. The spirits of these plants are not so powerful and less likely to end up riding you!

Her discussions on the dead, the fetch-mate, the triad of the Witch, the place and the Otherworld and other areas are all real, solid and full of traditional lore. Personally, I do not think this was ever, until very recently called ‘witchcraft’, but it is the same ‘deed without a name’ regardless.

Like the mythic hedge-crosser, the journeyman between our world and the Otherworld, so well discussed by Lee, this book attempts to span two worlds – the mythic and the scholarly. Because of my limited knowledge I am not sure how well it does this. Lee brings in academic references at some points, but forgoes them when they are needed elsewhere. I would love to have seen references used more freely. But, then again, it is not an academic work…

Lee’s Blog (click for awesome)

Another personal bug-bear is the subtle decrying of Christianity, for example as ‘flesh-hating’. Lee is wise enough to know one cannot talk about Christianity in any homogenous way at all, and that some Christianities may be like this, but not all, and that the ultimate mystery and truth of Christianity is centred on the holiness of the flesh, as it there where we partake of the mystery of Christ.  I’ve talked about this before.

Similarly, I think on one or two occasions Lee does not do the western occult traditions justice. In good wise-woman, or depending on your view, Witch, fashion she is not above using elements of western occultism in her correspondences and Necromantic rite whilst declaring them earlier as have a less complex, and by implication a reductive, view of the inner world and beings thereof. Lee’s criticisms of occultists lumping various interior beings and parts of the self as ‘aspects of the higher self’ may be true of western magicians of her acquaintance, but certainly not of mine, or any of the modern authorities on the subject.

Still these are minor, personal concerns which few else would share. So I have no hesitation in giving this lovely book – which reproduced very well on the  iPad Kindle app – a hearty vote of approval. It is highly recommended for any and all interested in Witchcraft in any form.

A Deed Without a Name: Unearthing the Legacy of Traditional Witchcraft  by Lee Morgan.

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Review: the Last Scabbard by Josephine McCarthy

Before I decided to review this book I checked if it was ‘spiritual fantasy’, a genre which generally does not agree with me, particularly if self-published. Spiritual fantasy authors often think they have something ‘important’ to say are at the forefront of my mind when I remember Phil Rickman‘s heartfelt words words:

I mean, have you read some of this crap? The most embarrassing thing is that people who can’t write are usually the very last to realise they can’t write. Even if you scream in their faces, YOU CAN’T FUCKING WRITE! they just think you’re jealous because they’ve mastered in a couple of weeks something that took you years of heartache, false-starts and terrible disappointments.

Fortunately this book is not ‘spiritual fantasy’, Josephine can write and is big enough to take a few criticisms now and then (she lives on Dartmoor and is probably kept by cats that see off the Baskerville hound before breakfast). Not that much criticism is called for at all. The book is a wonderful, engaging, well written example of the better class of occult fiction. Based in part on real, strange and uncanny ‘coincidences’ in Josephine’s life and magical development, it has much to offer both the casual reader and seasoned magician.

The Last Scabbard is comprised of three sections, or books, those of Sword, Stone and Judgement. The novel is broad and deep in its scope, stretching from mythic prehistory until the present day with notable events integrated along the way – including the foundation of the Golden Dawn. The fictional account of this offered by Josephine is bloody marvellous, and has to be read to be believed. It includes the full list of known historical characters, some notable Franco interlopers and a few fictional folk. I loved the inclusion of ‘poor sick Mr Firth’ of Sheffield, offering possible links to Dion Fortune in any future novels, which I am sure there will be.  The ceremonial magic to establish the Order in Josephine’s account does not go well:

Beings passed from the inner worlds to the outer worlds, passing through the doorway created by the sword. But the doorways were not filtered by careful magic, and terrible powers passed into the room before flowing out into the world…There was no filter, there were no guardians; no one was taking notice as the greatest disaster of modern time was secretly and quietly unfolding…

Soon Europe would be huddled in fear as these powers manifested themselves through humanity in the form of world wars, sadistic serial killers, vicious pandemics and untold greed…1888 would be a year that everyone would remember as the year that first London, and then Britain lost its innocence.

Fiction it may be, but there are important principles and concerns here and there is clearly not enough ‘careful magic’ being carried out in today’s magical and Pagan communities. Nor are there enough humble folk carefully trained to discern such things, as the single of twelve ‘watchers’ in this fictional ceremony, a female magician who has the Sight to see the ‘terrible dark beings’ let loose upon the world. It is important that this is a woman, as the damage and egotism which causes havoc in the novel is connected with malformed and self focused masculinity, divorced from the body and the Land. This form of masculinity is summed up in this stark and moving paragraph when one of the early characters rests after sexually forcing himself upon a dependant woman clairvoyant, used as much for her Sight as her body:

He flopped his hand to her body in a gesture designed to build bridges where there were none. His hand fell to her public hair which was smeared with the juice of his hating and the lubrication of a soul unloved. He removed his hand as if stung. He found such fluids as distasteful as he found himself.

Josephine explores this theme of warped masculinity and a responsive femininity with deftness, avoiding stereotypes and creating a wonderful lead character, a woman of profound connection and individuality, Lumis. This exploration alone would mark the novel as a must read for all male magicians, and the warning from an inner, feminine source given to the main character is as true in the real magical community and world as in Josephine’s fictional one:

Harken to the true heart of a man who loves nothing but himself, for he shall be the downfall of all that is beautiful in this world.

The calamity caused by the ill formed creation of the Golden Dawn is part of a thread of the abuse of power, misogyny and ego-damage that stretches across time, with reincarnation, soul groups and attraction acting as a pivot. Such themes are normally handled terribly badly by occultists who turn their hand to fiction writing, and often make me wince. Josephine avoids this trap by crafting her writing to a fine degree and allowing her own inspirational forces and intuition to have voice and place. There are passages within the novel that moved and connected me to a deep inner reality as fully and clearly as Dion Fortune at her best.

Another brilliant strength of the novel is that Josephine has not produced a simple good versus evil story, with all she personally valorises at one end of the spectrum and the godly unwashed at the other. True, the character of one of the central ‘baddies’ could be more developed, but the narrative itself is subtle and complex intertwined with some truly impressive myth making and storytelling. All is seamlessly beyond the individual, yet intimately dependent on individual choices and actions, from incarnation to incarnation in an ever-flowing outpouring that seeks to express the deepest spiritual truth.

Josephine’s writing is skillful and deft, and while the book is not in the Booker Prize category it is far better than the normal range of occult fiction selling today. I was completely drawn in and lost in several parts of the book and simply stunned by some phrases:

Within me is exhaustion. Within me is a pain so profound I call it God.

True to the magical worldview, a goodly part of the book takes place within the inner realms, though this is not immediately apparent. And this section of the book explores and enlivens traditional Qabalistic knowledge wonderfully. It is a delight to see several excellent twists in this section, including a complete reversal of the power relations between a magician and a servitor as Truth dawns. It made me smile and nod

Overall this is a great novel, which will teach, inform, inspire, and entertain the reader. It certainly did for me, and I await further novels in the same series with eagerness. It has high production values, an easy to read layout and font and truly magical cover art by Josephine’s partner, Stuart Littlejohn. It is highly recommended for all magicians, Pagans and others interested in these themes. Congratulations, Josephine

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Interview with Robert Buratti – Crowley, Art and the Esoteric

Early version of the Moon Tarot Trump by A.C.

As mentioned in this post, a few weeks back I met Robert Buratti of Buratti Fine Arts when I visited an exhibition of Aleister Crowley’s art. My immediate impression of Robert was of a nice chap, full of intelligence, sensitivity and deep knowledge of both Art and the Esoteric. He displays these qualities admirably in this interview he kindly gave MOTO. Thanks, Robert

MOTO: Robert thanks very much for the interview. Tell us first, about the Crowley exhibition. Can you describe it a little, please?

RB:  Essentially “The Nightmare Paintings: Aleister Crowley” comprises thirteen original works created by Aleister Crowley between 1920 and 1922, during his time in Sicily. At this time he was establishing the infamous “Abbey of Thelema”, and the resulting works are an amazingly insightful look into his state of mind at the time. The works were previously shown at the Pomidou Centre and Palais de Tokyo, Paris in 2008.

MOTO:  I understand you are the driving force behind the exhibition? What motivated you to create it, and how hard was it organise?

RB:  The motivation came from a personal interest in Crowley, Thelema and the whole genre of esoteric and occult art. Part of the original aim behind opening my own gallery was to enable me to show the kind of artwork which most commercial galleries overlook. I believe that the genre of occult art is a very important one, and deserves more mainstream attention.

My work as an art dealer puts me in touch with a range of collectors and museums around the world, and along the way I tend to get my hands on some really amazing and rare artwork and ephemera. The difficulty in organising “The Nightmare Paintings” came mainly from the geographic isolation of Perth itself, and meant multiple trips to Europe and many midnight phone calls to negotiate and coordinate the details. I can see why these kinds of exhibitions rarely come to Australia given the expense and time involved, but I’m committed to bringing more shows like this to the country. The public response to “The Nightmare Paintings” has been exceptional, and reinforces my belief that it’s an important mission to continue.

MOTO: And the title, “The Nightmare Paintings”- where does that originate?

The infamous Abbey…

RB:  It’s a direct reference to the central temple room of the Abbey of Thelema known as the “Chamber of Nightmares”. Given that these works were created in that space at such a key time, I felt it appropriate to re-label the works under this banner. It was also a case of my marketing head needing a strong branding concept to pull the messaging and placement of the show together. The title seems to have stuck now, and has itself sparked a lot of curiosity from the public and media.

MOTO:  With Crowley of course, we are looking at what may be called ‘esoteric’ or ‘occult’ art. There was a loose tradition of esoteric art, or at least non-conformist spiritual art, in the west before Crowley, for example, Blake. And contemporaries to Crowley, such as Duchamp, were influenced in some measure by occultism. But how much did Crowley fit into such a ‘tradition’ and how much did he radicalise and change it, like he did with western magic?

RB:  This is a really interesting question and sits at the crux of the argument for Crowley’s artwork as part of a wider art history. For years his work has been discarded as unimportant due to the difficulty of locating it within the various period movements of art history. In fairness, this task was never really properly attempted, and most researchers were either interested in art or magick, but not both, so they failed to align the two concepts. I disagree vehemently that art critics can truly understand and dissect occult art without having any practical experience of the concepts contained. Studying Crowley’s art without also studying Crowley’s magick is like studying music by reading notation and never hearing the music played.

The trick is looking to the intent of the work itself, and also to Crowley’s influences at the time of creating it. When reading Crowley’s diaries from the Cefalu period, we see clear mentions of Paul Gauguin and other artists who were specifically interested in the concept of “artist as prophet” and art as a spiritual practice.

On the whole, the “tradition” of esoteric and occult art is in flux. Most writers still debate on exactly who should be labelled an “occult artist” and which movements were specifically affected by occult philosophy. While it’s widely agreed that Symbolism and Surrealism had very strong links to the occult, it’s seen as a passing phase in its infancy which was weeded out once the movement became influential. I believe that a great deal of research and discussion needs to be undertaken to properly position esoteric and occult influences within the artworld and properly validate the aims of specific artists before they’re added to the category.

Crowley’s influence reaches to strange and eldritch places…

As far as Crowley is concerned, as was his modus operandi in all other areas, he existed outside of any accepted “tradition” yet held much of the same intent as the early Symbolists, particularly Gauguin. His method and techniques were certainly influenced by them, yet his process and ultimate end far transcended them. In many ways, when at Cefalu, Crowley solved the puzzle of art/ death/ spirit that had plagued Gauguin his whole life. He was ultimately successful in the art realm where many more revered painters had lost their way.

MOTO:  The official T-shirt of the exhibition quotes one of Crowley’s sacred works, Liber ABA  – “All art is magick”. This ties with a core concept in Crowley’s cosmology which collapses the boundary between the ‘mundane’ and the ‘spiritual’, declaring magick to be that which causes change in accordance with will, not simply classical ritual magic. Yet this declaration that ‘All art is magick’ is hardly a mainstream view, or indeed that of traditionalism, one of the major schools of esoteric art in the 20^th century. Schuon, for example clearly delineates the difference between spiritual art (a vehicle for spiritual presences) and profane art, created solely for human consumption. What’s your take on this – is all art magical?  Will the graphic design for the next Liberal party conference be a magical act? (Note for non-Australians: our Liberal Party is right wing conservative. Go figure.)

RB:  Yes, that’s correct. Crowley’s artistic theory was in complete alignment with his magical view of the universe. This is one of the reasons why it’s difficult to place him within any existing artist movement, as he looked at the world very differently to many artists of his era. The Liber ABA quote “All Art is Magick” has become the motto of the show, and a way to quickly and simply explain Crowley’s artistic theory. It’s a concept which most people will agree with, and makes the premise of the exhibition immediately accessible.

I agree with Schuon’s delineation between “profane art” and “spiritual art” but disagree with his definition of “art” itself.  Personally I feel that all true creative acts are magical but argue that the term, “Art” just like “Artist” is one of the most overused and abused in contemporary society. Not every painting is Art and not every person who picks up a brush can call themselves an Artist. True Art has a true intent, be it transformational, communicative or expressive. It has a deeper element in its conceptual creation which by default makes it a physical talisman for the energy present at its point of creation. You can see this across all major periods in history where the key works from great Artists have a certain, often undefinable quality. If you’ve ever seen the large scale works of Rothko, Motherwell, Blake and Basquiat in person, you’ll understand how Art can affect you.

I wouldn’t consider an IKEA ready-made photocanvas “Art” given its intent (or entire lack thereof), and argue that the definition of bad or poor art to be derived from its underlying intent. If the artist is painting to simply meet a market, it’s very obvious. If they’re creating in line with a true intent, whatever that may be, you can feel a magical act which is still happening on the canvas. This is the case with Aleister Crowley’s artwork, and during his time in Cefalu, he took the concept of intent to an entirely new level in his approach to finding the Will of the artwork itself.

Will the next graphic design for the next Liberal party conference be a magical act? Hmmm, possibly but it will take some serious magick to clean up the current political state of affairs.

Old meets new in the wonderful ambience of Burrati Fine Arts

MOTO:  Robert, if every willed act is a magical act, then so is this exhibition. And you certainly seem to have invested a lot of time, energy and resources into making it so – there’s lectures, a magical circle and altar in the middle of the gallery, links to public performances of Crowley’s Gnostic Mass by the local Lodge of the OTO. What are you hoping to achieve magically from this exhibition and how much does it mean to you personally?

RB: Yes, the exhibition itself is designed as a talisman of sorts, and I believe it’s certainly had an effect. Like the paintings themselves, the exhibition space is part of an overall creative act which requires particular attention and design. I wanted to provide a perfect setting for the paintings themselves which was in line with the intent of their creation, and those who have noticed the little touches have appreciated it.

For me personally, this exhibition means a great deal, and pushes me to another level as a curator. In studying Crowley’s artwork, I’ve stretched my ideas about the true spiritual nature of Art, but also about spirituality itself. Crowley extended his magical philosophies to every part of his life, and there’s no reason why artistic exhibitions shouldn’t carry a similar approach. The lectures so far have been strongly attended with a range of those new and experienced in the field which is always nice. The Gnostic Mass performance is schedule for February and has been so popular the local OTO are organising a second session.

MOTO:  You are a member of the Crowleyan OTO yourself, aren’t you? Can you tell us a little about this, and how it intersects with your professional and personal work in the art field?

RB: I’m a member of both the Ordo Templi Orientis and the A:.A:.

I tend to keep my professional life apart from my personal, but this exhibition has seen a very happy and fruitful crossover. I’m a great believer that you find success by following your passion, so inevitable my obsessions will overlap at times! The local OTO community is a mix of some amazingly talented and insightful people, and the strength and warmth of the national community is something which always takes me by surprise. Having their support in this exhibition has been priceless.

MOTO:  There are other paintings and works in the exhibition, modern manifestations of the magical current of Crowley, aren’t there? Can you tell us about these, and the artists – are they OTO members also?

RB:  The works are created by a range of contemporary artists both inside and outside of the OTO, but all with a fascination for Crowley. The works are actually based on the only surviving record of the images which adorned Crowley’s Chamber of Nightmares, an essay by Crowley circa 1920. Written as a tourist’s introduction to the Sicilian village, it contained a catalogue of his paintings on the walls of the Abbey of Thelema. The piece remained unpublished during Crowley’s lifetime. The selection of work in this exhibition is inspired by these writings, and each artist selected a tract from the essay and re-created the images that Crowley described. The resulting exhibition has been a real highlight, and will be expanded when it opens in Sydney next year.

One of the great things about this side of the project is the chance to give artists their first commercial exhibition alongside more notables such as Barry William Hale.

MOTO:  It’s a real treat to have a quality exhibition like this showing – much less open – here in Perth. Was there any reason, besides proximity to your life that you chose Perth? And where is the exhibition going next?

RB: Perth itself is a very special place spiritually with a long history of consciousness, and I felt that it was important to bring the exhibition here first. The local response has shown that this was the right decision, and hopefully it can prompt people to look further into esoteric philosophy as a whole, and increase the understanding of Crowley and Thelema. It also had the benefit that I could test the concept in my own gallery before taking it interstate.

From here the exhibition will travel to Sydney in October 2013, but in the meantime the works will be further studied and analyzed as part of the ongoing research into Crowley and esoteric art.

MOTO:  And will Perth – or anywhere else in Australia – have more esoteric or magical art exhibitions from you in the future?

Rosaleen Norton

RB:  Absolutely. I’m committed to continuing the work, and already have a handful of new esoteric exhibitions coming here over the next few years. The next major show will be an expanded version of a concept previously held in Perth called “Windows to the Sacred”. It is a group exhibition of esoteric art showcasing various approaches and periods, and will include original work by Aleister Crowley, Rosaleen Norton, Barry William Hale, and Danie Mellor. The exhibition will be held at the S.H Ervin Gallery (National Trust of Australia) in Sydney, which is one of the country’s leading public museums. This is set to be the first major museum exhibition of esoteric and occult art in Australasia to date and will open in August 2013. Further details will be announced shortly.

MOTO:  Thank you again for the interview, Robert. Finally, is there any online presence of the exhibition international MOTO readers can connect with? Or merchandise to help feel the love from Perth?

RB:  There is a dedicated website set up for the exhibition at www.aleistercrowley.com.au which has details of upcoming events, press and merchandise on offer.

MOTO:  THANKS

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No Sex (Magic) Please, We’re British

Mr Crowley, by Mr Crowley

Last week I wandered down to Burrati Fine Arts to see ‘The Nightmare Paintings‘, a small exhibition of Aleister Crowley’s art. It was well worth the visit. Perth doesn’t always get such events, so it’s something you just have to do. Now Uncle Alick’s writings and life have never inspired me to even consider Thelema as a path, philosophy or wot not. And I still think he misunderstood heaps about the Golden Dawn (the so called ‘elemental’ grades for a start).

Misgivings aside however, Crowley is certainly a prominent Beast. It seems like you can’t wander across the esoteric net these days without coming across pronouncements of new-new Aeon currents and magical formulae expressed by arcane numbers. And above all else, be amazed at how often these numbers refer to Crowley’s most influential contribution to Western esotericism – sex magic.

Crowley of course did not start western sex magic, but he definitely put a certain spin on it, tarted the whole process up and inspired hundreds of lesser imitators and wannabes for the last century. So much so that these days many people think the classical Golden Dawn secretly taught sex magic also. Ho hum. Now, despite risking a thunderous, roaring volley of accusations of being anti-sex and infected by Victorian morality, the simple fact is there is no evidence the Golden Dawn taught sex magic, even at its highest levels.

And just to be clear; I am saying there is no evidence. If new evidence is discovered, I’ll happily change my tune.

Bishop Allen Greenfield is no stranger to the part sexual magic played and plays in the western gnosis. In fact, he’s studied and written an awful lot on the subject. In his The Authentic Magical Tradition in the 18th & 19th Centuries he clearly describes the authentic tradition as holding a “traditionally secret approach to sexuality as a means of transcendence”. He also categorically states that this tradition “did not make it into” the Golden Dawn because of Victorian morality and therefore the GD style of  ”strictly above the waist magick” misses the point.

Naturally, I heartily disagree with the good Bish that the GD tradition misses the point; many and varied forms of non-sexual contact magic have served and continue to serve magicians across the world, leading them to service, transformation and fulfilment. I do however agree with his opinion that sexual magic was not part of the classical (pre 1903) Golden Dawn. And the other day I saw comments from Pat Zalewski and Nick Farrell echoing this view. So, that’s a neat little argument from authority, isn’t it?

In fact, the whole notion of sexuality and sexual expression was a bit of a powder-keg and a persistent difficultly for the Order – just like it was in society as a whole back then.

The Golden Dawn, being a progressive institution, we might expect to have been sexually liberated.  The accounts of the Order that we have tell a different story.  With a few notable exceptions, the Golden Dawn was as much subject to late-Victorian morals as the rest of society.” – Gordon Strong, forthcoming, The Golden Dawn: Priest and Priestess – the Key to Ritual Magic, published by Silent Eye Press 2013.

J.W. Brodie-Innes

This does not mean the Golden Dawn rituals and teachings are devoid of the symbolism, connections, motifs and structures for sexual magic. Greenfield is also clear that early antecedents to the Golden Dawn, such as The Society of Eight, held the ‘authentic’ tradition. It is therefore reasonable to assume some influence from the ‘authentic’ tradition entered the Golden Dawn. This influence, like so much of the accumulated western magical tradition, is often ‘buried’ within the GD corpus. Just as modern magicians are daily finding new treasures in the vast richness that is the Z Document (now 120 years old) so too are there many other depths waiting to be brought out. As I have said before, this exegetical form of magic is a hallmark of the RR et AC, and each adept personally creates her own gnosis by interacting with the tradition. It is never revealed from outside, much less a part of some secret and codified ‘higher’ teaching of an Order.

It is possible certain elements of the ‘authentic tradition’ concerning sexuality entered or were revived in Orders associated with the post-classical Golden Dawn, most notably the Cromlech Temple. The CT may have, in some ways, functioned as a higher or third Order of the Golden Dawn, and many of its mysteries remain hidden even today. Its chief officer and originator of most of its original material was J.W. Brodie-Innes, a man to whom there is more to meet the eye of even the most dedicated occult historian.

It may not be a coincidence that the Master of the Temple in Eric Ericson’s rip roaring occult novel of the same name is also a Scot named ‘Innes’. This fictional Innes is described as handsome, sturdy, young for his age and with the look of someone who spent much time outdoors, something that could have been said of the real Mr Innes. The novel is wonderfully researched and happily conflates Golden Dawn lodge work with OTO styled sex magic along with some nifty creations by the author himself. Whoever ‘Eric Ericson’ was/is, he certainly knew his stuff.

Anyway, I digress. Brodie-Innes was also likely a magical mentor and teacher of Dion Fortune during her early years of magical training. It seems then a possibility that some of her ideas on sacred sexuality and the feminine may have stemmed from this venerable Scottish leader of the Golden Dawn. Certainly there are magical sexual themes and explorations within the unpublished Aura Papers of the CT. I’ve been able to publish a few of these here, but most at this stage remain unpublished. Look at Aura Paper 23, Concerning Sex on the Aura to get a sense of what I mean.

Any practical magical exploration of these themes however is best conducted well outside the gaze of the Neophyte and indeed the Outer Order. In this light we can again read the much quoted letter from Moina Mathers to Paul Foster Case, a letter used by those who believe the GD taught sex magic to ‘prove’ their argument:

I regret that anything on the Sex question should have entered into the Temple at this stage for we only begin to touch on sex matters directly, in quite the higher Grades. In fact, we only give a rather complete explanation of this subject in that Grade where the Adept has proved to be so equilibrated and spiritualized that he is complete lord of his passionate self. Believe me, this is not mere theory.

Moina Mathers

There is nothing here that indicates methods and processes for physical sexual magic were taught at all, only information on “sex matters” at a very high grade. The “not mere theory” clause is obviously used to emphasise the implicit warning that “sex matters” not be approached before the adept is completely in control of his “passionate self”.

Annie Hornimann, as Theoricus-Adeptus Minor, was also given the brush off by Moina back in 1895, a few short years after the Inner Order had begun. Either the Mathers had nothing much to teach on the subject and were temporizing or the matter was indeed far above the Adeptus Minor grades. The ‘high level’ nature of this subject is I think a crucial point, whether or not the Mathers at some point developed some theories about it all.

Personally, it is only now after 25 years of intense esoteric practice and a bucket load of grace that I think I understand what sacred sexuality actually entails. What this ‘is’ is not easily explained. From a Qabalistic perspective I would say we can’t even begin to understand sacred sexuality without the Tipharetic level of consciousness, a point of view affirmed by the few authentic esoteric traditions that ‘teach’ the subject.

So really, as a magical community we should say very little about the practice of sex magic and a lot about how we move towards valuing sex as sacred. The way to do this is through our own personal spiritual unfoldment, not through any magical sexual practice at all. During the unfoldment process we need to approach sex from a moral perspective which guides us to make choices as if we were already at the deeper level of consciousness that fully understands sex as sacred. This is the function of ethical choices and disciplined behaviour. All the authentic esoteric traditions would agree with this.

The dangers of prematurely acting within the sexual-magic realm are real, as are the results which are sadly visible in any modern Neo-Pagan and magical community. The Golden Dawn arrangement of the Outer and Inner Orders limits these dangers – if adhered to. Any form of magic, traditional or sexual, within the Golden Dawn is only ever conducted as part of Inner Order work. The integrity of the Order’s method of transformation is predicated on this structure which follows the traditional esoteric approach to spiritual unfoldment of: renunciation of the false self (Outer Order), followed by re-creation of a functional-magical self (Inner Order) to eventually embody the revelation of the eternal verities (symbolised by the Third Order).

Rose Cross

Modern magical groups that flaunt or revise this system and bring magic into the early grades damage the coherence and the integrity of a sophisticated approach to magical development. Simply put, we cannot use magic to re-create a self that is still in a process of renunciation. Any non-traditional redactions of the methods of the RR et AC to include physical sexual magic should be limited to the Inner Order, if undertaken at all. This is just plain sense. In fact, I would say a rough rule of thumb would assign the practices to the Chesedic Adeptus Exemptus grade. Tiphareth would integrate the concept of sacred and magical sexuality within the newly developing self. Geburah would limit and transform personal and transpersonal hindrances to this reality, leaving Chesed as the sphere of any operations. Indeed, “quite the higher Grades” as Moina would put it. Maybe the ol’ girl knew a thing or two after all?

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