Aleister Crowley Magick in Theory and Practice

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sublime that it is unsuited to the solution of the petty puzzles of our earthly existence. In the light of the
Qabalah, the shadows of transitory things are instantly banished.
The YI KING is the most satisfactory system for general work. The MASTER THERION is engaged in the
preparation of a treatise on the subject, but the labour involved is so great that He cannot pledge Himself to
have it ready at any definite time. The student must therefore make his own investigations into the meaning
of the 64 hexagrams as best he can.
The Yi King is mathematical and philosophical in form. Its structure is cognate with that of the Qabalah; the
identity is so intimate that the existence of two such superficially different systems is transcendent testimony
to the truth of both. It is in some ways the most perfect hieroglyph ever constructed. It is austere and sublime,
yet withal so adaptable to every possible emergency that its figures may be interpreted to suit all classes of
questions. One may resolve the most obscure spiritual difficulties no less than the most mundane dilemmas;
and the symbol which opens the gates of the most exalted palaces of initiation is equally effective when
employed to advise one in the ordinary business of life. The MASTER THERION has found the Yi King
entirely satisfactory in every respect. The intelligences which direct it show no inclination to evade the
question or to mislead the querent. A further advantage is that the actual apparatus is simple. Also the system
is easy to manipulate, and five minutes is sufficient to obtain a fairly detailed answer to any but the most
obscure questions.
With regard to the intelligences whose business it is to give information to the diviner, their natures differ
widely, and correspond more or less to the character of the medium of divination. Thus, the geomantic
intelligences are gnomes, spirits of an earthy nature, distinguished from each other by the modifications due to
the various planetary and zodiacal influences which pertain to the several symbols. The intelligence governing
Puella is not to be confused with that of Venus or of Libra. It is simply a particular terrestrial daemon which
partakes of those natures.
The Tarot, on the other hand, being a book, is under Mercury, and the intelligence of each card is fundamentally
Mercurial. Such symbols are therefore peculiarly proper to communicate thought. They are not gross, like the
geomantic daemons; but, as against this, they are unscrupulous in deceiving the diviner.
This does not mean that they are malignant. They have a proper pride in their office as Oracles of Truth; and they
refuse to be profaned by the contamination of inferior and impure intelligences. A Magician whose research is fully
adapted to his Neschamah will find them lucid and reliable.
The Yi King is served by beings free from these defects. The intense purity of the symbols prevent them from
being usurped by intelligences with an axe of their own to grind.
Malicious or pranksome elementals instinctively avoid the austere sincerity of the Figures of Fu and King Wan.
It is always essential for the diviner to obtain absolute magical control over the intelligences of the system
which he adopts. He must not leave the smallest loop-hole for being tricked, befogged, or mocked. He must
not allow them to use casuistry in the interpretation of his questions. It is a common knavery, especially in
geomancy, to render an answer which is literally true, and yet deceives. For instance, one might ask whether
some business transaction would be profitable, and find, after getting an affirmative answer, that it really
referred to the other party to the affair!
There is, on the surface, no difficulty at all in getting replies. In fact, the process is mechanical; success is
therefore assured, bar a stroke of apoplexy. But, even suppose we are safe from deceit, how can we know that
the question has really been put to another mind, understood rightly, and answered from knowledge? It is
obviously possible to check one s operations by clairvoyance, but this is rather like buying a safe to keep a
brick in. Experience is the only teacher. One acquires what one may almost call a new sense. One feels in
one s self whether one is right or not. The diviner must develop this sense. It resembles the exquisite sensibility
of touch which is found in the great billiard player whose fingers can estimate infinitesimal degrees of force, or
the similar phenomenon in the professional taster of tea or wine who can distinguish fantastically subtle differences
of flavour.
It is a hard saying; but in the order to divine without error, one ought to be a Master of the Temple. Divination
affords excellent practice for those who aspire to that exalted eminence, for the faintest breath of personal
preference will deflect the needle from the pole of truth in the answer. Unless the diviner have banished
utterly from his mind the minutest atom of interest in the answer to his question, he is almost certain to
influence that answer in favour of his personal inclinations.
The psycho-analyst will recall the fact that dreams are phantasmal representations of the unconscious Will of
the sleeper, and that not only are they images of that Will instead of representations of objective truth, but the
image itself is confused by a thousand cross-currents set in motion by the various complexes and inhibitions of
his character. If therefore one consults the oracle, one must take sure that one is not consciously or unconsciously
bringing pressure to bear upon it. It is just as when an Englishman cross-examines a Hindu, the ultimate
answer will be what the Hindu imagines will best please the inquirer.
The same difficulty appears in a grosser form when one receives a perfectly true reply, but insists on interpreting
it so as to suit one s desires. The vast majority of people who go to fortunetellers have nothing else in mind
but the wish to obtain supernatural sanction for their follies. Apart from Occultism altogether, every one
knows that when people ask for advice, they only want to be told how wise they are. Hardly any one acts on
the most obviously commonsense counsel if it happens to clash with his previous intentions. Indeed, who
would take counsel unless he were warned by some little whisper in his heart that he was about to make a fool
of himself, which he is determined to do, and only wants to be able to blame his best friend, or the oracle,
when he is overtaken by the disaster which his own interior mentor foresees?
Those who embark on divination will be wise to consider the foregoing remarks very deeply. They will [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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