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From: tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com (nagasiva)
Newsgroups: alt.magick,alt.magick.tyagi,talk.religion.misc
Subject: Re: The One True Way of Thelema! (was Re: Bye!)
Date: 30 May 1997 10:14:31 -0700
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Reply-To: john.sentrax@mail.ndirect.co.uk (John Everall)
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[from thelema93-l@hollyfeld.org: john.sentrax@mail.ndirect.co.uk (John Everall)]

>John Everall wrote:
>>
>> In relation to recent discussions, there is a passage from Crowley's
>> "Confessions" that seems pertinent. Would anybody like to enter into a
>> discussion of the ramifications of this statement?
>>
>> Crowley "Confessions" page 901(cheap Bantam paperback edition purchased
>> second-hand due to impecunious situation!)
>>
>> "The essence of every missionary message has been to assimilate the taught
>> to the teacher; and it has always been accompanied by bribes and threats.
>> My message is exactly opposed to any of this. I say to each man and woman,
>> 'You are unique and sovereign, the centre of an universe. However right I
>> may be in thinking as I do, you may be equally right in thinking otherwise.
>> You can only accomplish your object in life by complete disregard of the
>> opinions of other people.'"

Solis:
>This is just another one of those moments where Uncle Al either
>contradicts himself, or appears a hipocrite:  as a teacher, he certainly
>expected his students to assimilate his teachings, no?  In fact:  you
>seem to have assimilated THIS teaching, since you find it pertinant.  If
>you follow this advice you will not learn anything from the mistake of
>others: you will not evolve beyond the errors of those that came before
>you.

Well, I don't know that I have assimilated the above simply because I find
it pertinent, I just think that it is possibly a valid observation.
Sometimes a complete break with tradition & received opinion produces
interesting results. Luigi Russolo, the Italian Futurist, was entirely
ignorant of music, so he decided to become a composer! But his 'music' was
composed entirely of noise(this in 1915), a step forward entirely without
precedent, but which had a significant influence on the development of 20th
Century music.

Also errors can be useful. Man Ray developed his Rayograms because of an
error in the photographic process. I know musicians who compose using only
glitches(errors). Crowley's Cairo working can also be perceived to be based
on error, as Crowley maintains that it contradicted everything he learned
in the GD about magical practice. Einstein's theories were only developed
because he applied certain theories which he didn't realize were considered
erroneous in the Physics community.

 My interpretation of what Crowley is advocating, is that it it is similar
to Blake's; "one must develop one's own system, or be enslaved by another
man's".

  Crowley's psychological make-up is too complex for me to know what he
wanted as a teacher. Perhaps he wanted people to challenge him? rather than
accept his ideas.

Best, John Everall.
-- 
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