Image by Jules Jacot Guillarmod, via Wikimedia Commons
In 2016, we brought you a rather bizarre story about the rivalry between poet William Butler Yeats and magician Aleister Crowley. Their feud was over the customs of occult society. Hermetic Order of the Golden DawnBut it was also about poetry, at least for Crowley. Crowley envied Yeats’ literary talent. Yates could not say the same about Crowley. However, although Yates did not necessarily respect his enemy, he feared him, like almost everyone else. As Yeats’ biographer Written a few months after Crowley’s death 1947. “In the olden days men and women lived in fear of his evil eye.”
The press called Crowley “the most evil man in the world,” he identified himself as the Antichrist, labeled himself “The Beast 666,” and did more than enough to enhance his reputation. (Crowley may have been the inspiration for the “wild beast” in Yeats’s The Second Coming.) Although Crowley never achieved the literary acclaim he had hoped for, he continued to write prolifically after being expelled from the Golden Dawn by Yeats and others in 1900. He also wrote poems, novels, criticism, and manuals on sexual magic, ritual, and symbolism during his famous mountaineering expeditions.
Throughout his life, Crowley wore many hats: a mountaineer, a chess prodigy, a scholar, a painter, a yogi, and the founder of what he called a religion. Thelema. He was also a heroin addict and, by many accounts, an extremely abusive cult leader. Whatever Crowley’s legacy may be, his influence on the occult and counterculture is undeniable. To delve into the history of either is to meet a mysterious, strange, bald figure whose theories have inspired everyone from L. Ron Hubbard and Anton LaVey to Jimmy Page and Ozzy Osbourne.
Without Crowley, it’s hard to imagine the dark weirdness of the ’60s, and the resulting deluge of cults and esoteric art. For some occult historians, the Age of Aquarius actually began 60 years ago, when Crowley called the “Aeon of Horus.” For many others, Crowley’s influence is inexplicable, his writing incoherent, his presence in polite conversation jarring. These are understandable attitudes. But if you’re a Crowley fan, or just curious about this legendary occultist, here’s a rare opportunity to hear Crowley’s own poems and spells.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Playlist
The liner notes for the CD containing this audio state: “Although this recording was previously available as a ‘bootleg’, this is the first official release and, to the label’s knowledge, contains the only known recording of Crowley.” Recorded on wax cylinders around 1920, the audio has been digitally processed, but “surface noise may be evident.” (Stream it above or Click here for this YouTube playlist.) Admittedly, it’s often difficult to understand what Crowley is saying, but that has to do not only with the quality of the recordings, but also with his cryptic language. The first five songs consist of “The Call of the First Aethyr” and “The Call of the Second Aethyr.” Other titles include “La Gitana,” “The Pentagram,” “The Poet,” “Hymn to the American People,” and “Excerpts from the Gnostic Mass.”
It is unclear under what circumstances Crowley made these recordings and why, but like many of his books, they combine occult liturgy, mythology, and his own literary utterances. Love him, hate him or remain indifferent, there’s no getting around it. Aleister Crowley had a huge influence on the 20th century and beyond, even if only a few people seriously tried to understand what he was up to with sex magic, blood sacrifices, and all that. extremely vulgar poem.
Note: An earlier version of this post appeared on the site in 2017.
Related content:
Aleister Crowley and William Butler Yeats engage in an occult battle pitting white magic against black magic (1900)
Aleister Crowley: The Most Evil Man in the World chronicles the life of a strange occultist, poet, and mountaineer
josh jones I’m a writer and musician based in Durham, North Carolina. please follow him @jdmagness
Source: Open Culture – www.openculture.com
