Warlock's Library #5

I am on an Aleister Crowley mission at the moment, studying his system of Thelema at this time (among other systems) and I have just finished three books relating to him that I will review in due course, including this one.

Sandy Robertson as a young lad one day asked his father who Crowley was. The look of horror on his father's face was enough for him to delve into Crowley's history and become a prolific collector of Crowleyana as it's called.

Collected here are artworks, personal photographs, articles and newspaper clipping of the man who was to be dubbed "The Wickedest Man in the World" by the British Press. Crowley did everything in his power to become recognised by the world, partially as a Great Magickian but unfortunately his notoriety got the better of him, and he wasn't taken seriously by the British People much to his chagrin.

Getting expelled from Sicily by Mussolini certainly didn't help, along with his reputation as a drug fiend, the deaths at his Sicily Thelema Abbey (including one of his own children) and his association with many Scarlet Women such as Leah Hirsig (The Ape of Thoth) with whom he sought to produce a mythical in-the-flesh Moonchild. This book doesn't go into the magickal rites of his system Thelema, but discusses his childhood raised into a family of strict (and wealthy) Plymouth Brethren, he was happy to discard as soon as he was able. It was his own mother that labelled him as "The Beast 666" for his chaotic ways, and that name stuck to him. Crowley wasn't a Satanist though, as he was a member of The Golden Dawn, O.T.O, his own society A∴A∴ (Arcanum Arcanorum), and finally his own system of Thelema that was a mixture of magickal systems including Qabala(Kabbalah), Enochian and Egyptian Mysteries.

The book attempts to explain Aleister Crowley as a man, and also as a Magickian and gives evidence of differring degrees from picturing him as a leading figure in Occultism to a conniving con-man who used his influence to take money from his followers for his various schemes. Such 'evidence' is supplied in a letter titled "The Memoir of 666" by Alan Burnett-Rae who claims to have rented a flat to Crowley and explains his eccentric behaviour, wild stories and apparent lack of assets and money.

Also described within is his various quarrels with other occult personalities such as the Head of the Golden Dawn MacGregor Mathers and the poet W.B Yeats who desired to see Crowley removed from the Golden Dawn. From Robertson's own collection of Crowleyana he provides pictures of the Thelema Abbey, poems, plays and stories written by Crowley, and discusses the influence Crowley had on horror fiction such as Dennis Wheatley's occult villain Mocata from The Devil Rides Out, who was portrayed by Charles Grey in the Hammer Film of the same name.

Lastly Robertson briefly mentions a Lovecraft-Crowley connection, and finishes with discussing Crowley's influence in the modern world, from featuring on The Beatles album Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, to influencing Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page as well as Ozzy Ozbourne's song "Mr Crowley" and a mention in David Bowie's song "Quicksand" from his album Hunky Dory (Closer to the Golden Dawn/immersed in Crowley's uniform of imagery). More recently Crowley's influence found it's way into Carl McCoy's 80/90s Gothic Rock Band Fields of the Nephilim with such songs as Moonchild and Love Under Will.

If you are interested in learning more about Crowley this is a good place to start, because to understand Crowley the Magickian, you also have to know and understand Crowley the man.

Requiem Chevalier Vampire: Tome 8

Written by French writer Pat Mills (Slaine - 2000 AD) and artist Olivier Ledroit, this darkly fascinating and very twisted comic series is translated into English and published by Heavy Metal magazine about once a year in their monthly issues. The comic itself is normally split into 'parts' within the issue.

For readers not familiar with the comic, you can read about the background to the story and characters here: Requiem Chevalier Vampire

In this issue, we see a Hellfire Club meeting in Greenwich Village hosted by Aleister Crowley and his latest Scarlet Woman, Leah Hirsig (featured above) aka The Ape of Thoth. The purpose of this event is to consecrate Leah to Aiwass, the Dark Mysterious God who helped Crowley scribe THE BOOK OF THE LAW.

In attendance is Journalist Horatio Burton of Union Jack Magazine who recently described Crowley as “The Wickedest Man in the World.” After declining a glass of menstrual blood from the ‘Ape of Thoth’, Crowley shows Burton his latest painting of the Ape, which is a demonic visage of Leah painted as the “Queen of Dead Souls.”

Crowley dedicates Leah to Aiwass as Alostrael – The Womb of God, where she will become his vessel to give birth to a ‘Moonchild’. Vowing to write about this blasphemy in his paper, Crowley beckons him to the painting once more where the spirit of Aiwass in the spirit form of a mandrill tears him limb from limb, cursing him to limbo for all eternity.

In Resurrection now, we meet the vampire selves of Crowley and Leah, where Crowley is now known as Black Sabbath and Leah as Aiwass in her/his Mandrill form where they consummate their forbidden love with the taboo of different species. Requiem has just destroyed The Convent of Blood, trying to rescue his Earthly beloved Rebecca who is now a Lamia. Requiem is battling Otto, his vampire advocate who was responsible for Rebecca’s earthly demise. If a Lamia can kill her murderer in Resurrection they will be set free. (see comic page above).

Otto gets the upper hand on Requiem, who in his astral body returns to his proper vampire form to then face off an Inquisitor who has slain an army of zombies and in his spare time feeds off orgasmic energies, thus denying any party he targets any lustful satisfaction.

Taking her vampire form once more at the request of Black Sabbath, Leah seduces Requiem to subdue him and release his mind from his endless desire of Rebecca, only to have their orgasms stolen. Requiem expresses his utter dissatisfaction in Leah’s seduction, and in a final, desperate attempt to please him, she takes her mandrill form once more while riding him, asking him if her mandrill form is gross (exhilarating) enough for him. The story continues….
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I have followed this comic for several years now, and it’s only published in Heavy Metal Magazine once or twice a year. To be honest I get it for the superior, twisted art of Ledroit than the story, but on this occasion Mills has outdone himself with his penmanship.

I’ve always admired Aleister Crowley from afar. I’ve read the BOOK OF THE LAW and seen a documentary about his life, but haven’t had the chance to read any of his works or investigate his life fully. After reading this issue, I am quite keen to pursue knowledge of this enigma of a man, and must say I am intrigued by these Scarlet Women and why he referred to Leah as “The Ape Of Thoth”. So I am beginning my investigation on Crowley, The Scarlet Woman and Thelema.

If this story interests you, you can find the current tome split across two sections in the March 2010 issue of Heavy Metal magazine. You can find a preview of the issue, and what the cover art looks like here.