Great Work (Thelema): Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 21:32, 20 February 2025

The seal of the A∴A∴

Thelema

Core topics
The Book of the Law • Aleister Crowley • True Will 93 (Thelema) • Magick
Mysticism
Thelemic mysticism • Great Work • Holy Guardian Angel The Gnostic Mass
Thelemic texts
Works of Crowley • Holy Books of Thelema • Thelemite texts
Organizations
A∴A∴ • Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (EGC) Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO) Open Source Order of the Golden Dawn (OSOGD) Typhonian Order (TO) • Order of Chosen Priests
Deities
Nuit • Hadit • Horus • Babalon • Chaos (mythology) Baphomet • Choronzon • Ankh-f-n-khonsu • Aiwass • Ma'at}}
Related topics
Stele of Revealing • Abrahadabra • Unicursal hexagram Abramelin oil • Thoth tarot deck • Aeon
*The Holy Books of Thelema*
Works of Crowley (Libri) • Thelemite texts

Cryptognosticism
"Three Parts of the Wisdom of the Whole Universe" Alchemy • Astrology • Theurgy Movements Ariosophy • Freemasonry Rosicrucianism • Theosophy • Thelema • Wicca Orders Knights Templar • Ordo Templi Orientis Scottish Rite Freemasonry Topics Christian Kabbalah • Hermetic Qabalah People Aleister Crowley • François Rabelais Francis Dashwood and the Hellfire Club

This article is about a Thelema topic

Within Thelema, the Great Work is the spiritual endeavor aimed at realizing one's True Will and achieving a profound mystical union with Nuit, the Thelemic personification of the infinite and boundless expanse of the universe. This path, crafted by Aleister Crowley, draws inspiration from Hermetic alchemy and the Hermetic Qabalah. The cornerstone of Thelema is the Book of the Law, received by Crowley in 1904 through a communication with the entity Aiwass. This text became the central scripture, heralding a new Aeon for humanity and outlining the principles of Thelema. The core purpose of Thelema is twofold: to discover one's unique True Will, or life's purpose, and to attain mystical union with the universal consciousness. Crowley described the Great Work as the unification of opposing forces, be it the individual with the universal or the ego with the non-ego. The techniques to achieve these goals are collectively termed "Magick", encompassing Western ceremonial magic, meditation, Hermetic Qabalah, tarot, and yoga. In Thelema, these practices are dedicated to the worship of Nuit, the goddess of Infinite Stars and Space. In the framework of Thelema's magical Order A∴A∴, the Great Work of the Probationer Grade involves self-knowledge, understanding the nature and powers of one's own being. Yet, Crowley emphasized that the Great Work is not confined to specific milestones; it is a continuous process. Achieving the Great Work necessitates extensive preparation, including comprehensive knowledge of the Hermetic Qabalah, disciplined meditation, and invoking spiritual entities. The pinnacle of this path lies in the discovery and manifestation of one's True Will, as expressed in the Benediction of Crowley's Gnostic Mass.

True Will and Union

Main article: True Will

Thelema is a path intended to do two interrelated things: to enable one to learn one's True Will; and to achieve union with Nuit, the Thelemic personification of the infinite and boundless expanse of the universe. This unification of opposites, the individual and the universal, is reiterated by Crowley in his book Magick Without Tears:

The Great Work is the uniting of opposites. It may mean the uniting of the soul with God, of the microcosm with the macrocosm, of the female with the male, of the ego with the non-ego.

The techniques for accomplishing these goals Crowley called Magick, a word he used to describe Western ceremonial magic (especially invocations and eucharistic ceremonies) supported by Buddhist meditation, Hermetic Qabalah, English Qaballa,^{[Note 1]} tarot, and Rāja yoga, all set in the context of the Worship of heavenly bodies of Nuit, the goddess of "Infinite Stars and Infinite Space".

Within the system of the magical Order A∴A∴, the Great Work of the Probationer Grade is considered to be the pursuit of self-knowledge to, as Crowley said in The Confessions of Aleister Crowley, "obtain the knowledge of the nature and powers of my own being." However, Crowley continues, the Great Work should also be something that is integrated into the daily life of all: "I insist that in private life men should not admit their passions to be an end, indulging them and so degrading themselves to the level of the other animals, or suppressing them and creating neuroses. I insist that every thought, word and deed should be consciously devoted to the service of the Great Work. 'Whatsoever ye do, whether ye eat or drink, do all to the glory of God.'"}} Although Crowley often discussed the idea of "succeeding" or "accomplishing" in the Great Work, he also recognized that the process is ongoing. ^{[Note 2]}

According to Crowley's system, accomplishing the Great Work requires a great deal of preparation and effort. The program consists of several key elements, including a thorough knowledge of the Hermetic Qabalah (especially the Tree of Life), disciplined concentration (i.e., meditation), the development of one's body of light (to experience other planes), and the consistent and regular invocation of certain deities or spiritual beings (i.e., the assumption of god forms).

Within the mystical and philosophical system Crowley developed, the practitioner's core task is discovering and manifesting True Will. The realization of this True Will is itself the Great Work, as expressed in the Benediction at the end of Crowley's Gnostic Mass, where the Priest blesses the congregation with the words:

The LORD bring you to the accomplishment of your true Wills, the Great Work, the Summum Bonum, True Wisdom and Perfect Happiness.

Methods

Magick

Main article: Ceremonial magic

According to Crowley, there is a single definition of the purpose for ritual magick: to achieve Union with God through "the uniting of the Microcosm with the Macrocosm". Since this process is so arduous, it is also acceptable to use magick to develop the self (i.e. one's body of light) or to create ideal circumstances for the Work (e.g. having access to a place in which to do ritual undisturbed). There are many kinds of magick, but the categories of ritual that Crowley recommends include banishing unwanted forces, various forms of invocation, and the eucharist, which "consists in taking common things, transmuting them into things divine, and consuming them."

Tree of Life

The Tree of Life largely defines the path of attainment. The aspirant begins in Malkuth, which is the everyday material world of phenomena, with the ultimate goal being at Kether, the sphere of Unity with Nuit. Through various exercises and practices, the aspirant attains certain spiritual and mental states characterized by the sephiroth ascending the Tree. Crowley considered a deep understanding of the Qabalah essential to the Thelemite. "The whole subject must be studied in Book 777, and the main attributions committed to memory: then when by constant use the system is at last understood—as opposed to being merely memorized—the student will find a fresh light break in on him at every turn as he continues to measure every item of new knowledge that he attains by this Standard. For to him, the Universe will then begin to appear as a coherent and a necessary Whole."}} The practice of the Middle Pillar is especially important.

The Tree of Life is a tool used to categorize and organize various mystical concepts. At its simplest level, it is composed of ten spheres, or emanations, called Sephirot (singular. "sephira"), connected by twenty-two paths. Each sephira and path is assigned various ideas, such as gods, cards of the Tarot, astrological planets, and signs, elements, and so forth. The sephiroth is represented by the planets and the paths by the characters of the Hebrew alphabet, which are subdivided by the five elements, the seven classical planets, and the twelve signs of the Zodiac. Crowley's Liber 777

Concentration

Another key element to Thelemic mysticism is the ability to concentrate. This skill has two modalities: the first is the rapid, accurate, and efficient movement of thought (which is the realm of magick), and the other is the stopping of thought altogether (which is accomplished in Yoga). In the first, it is the manipulation of all ideas into one idea, and in the second is the taking of that one thought and reducing it to nothing. ^{[Note 3]}

Concentration is essentially the prerequisite for all sustained success, not only in spiritual practices but in day-to-day life as well. The general program for developing concentration is borrowed almost wholly from the practice of Yoga within the Hindu and Buddhist systems. Crowley gives a general overview of the techniques in two books: Eight Lectures on Yoga and in the section called "Mysticism" in Magick (Book 4).

Body of light

Main article: Body of light

Crowley referred to the 'augoeides', a Greek term for the body of light, and connected it with 'the Knowledge & Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel' associated with each human being. He stressed that the body of light must be built up through the use of imagination and that it must then be animated, exercised, and disciplined. According to Asprem (2017):

The practice of creating a "body of light” in imagination builds on the body-image system, potentially working with alterations across all of its three modalities (perceptual, conceptual, and affective): an idealized body is produced (body-image model), new conceptual structures are attached to it (e.g., the doctrine of multiple, separable bodies), while emotional attachments of awe, dignity, and fear responses are cultivated through the performance of astral rituals and protections from "astral dangers" through the simulation of symbols and magical weapons.

Crowley explains that the most important practices for developing the Body of Light are:

1. The fortification of the Body of Light by the constant use of rituals, by the assumption of god-forms, and by the right use of the Eucharist.
2. The purification and consecration and exaltation of that Body by the use of rituals of invocation.
3. The education of that Body by experience. It must learn to travel on every plane; to break down every obstacle which may confront it.

According to Crowley, the role of the body of light is broader than simply being a vehicle for astral travel — he writes that it is also the storehouse of all experience. "In Magick, on the contrary, one passes through the veil of the exterior world (which, as in Yoga, but in another sense, becomes "unreal" by comparison as one passes beyond) one creates a subtle body (the instrument is a better term) called the body of Light; this one develops and controls; it gains new powers as one progresses, usually utilizing what is called "initiation:" finally, one carries on almost one's whole life in this Body of Light, and achieves in its own way the mastery of the Universe."

The benefit of astral travel is essentially one of education: it is akin to exploring one's own spiritual universe: "Every Magician possesses an Astral Universe peculiar to himself" and understanding its fundamental components so that the one can eventually master it. The general object is the "control of the Astral Plane, the ability to find one's way about it, to penetrate such sanctuaries as are guarded from the profane, [and] to make such relations with its inhabitants as may avail to acquire knowledge and power, or to command service".

Also, "one's apprehension of the Astral Plane must be accurate, for Angels, Archangels, and Gods are derived therefrom by analysis. One must have pure materials if one wishes to brew pure beer".

Crowley believed that what was experienced during "astral travel" was not relevant in terms of what is "real" or "unreal". He thought that the only value to this practice is in the utility it provides to the practitioner: "The 'reality' or 'objectivity' of these symbols is not pertinent to the discussion. [...] The Magician must not accept [my] account of the Astral Plane, [my] Qabalistic discoveries, [my] instructions in Magick. They may be correct in the main for most men; yet they cannot be wholly true for any save [myself], even as no two artists can make identical pictures of the same subject [...] What one sees and hears is 'real' in its way, whether it be itself, or distorted by one's desires, or created by one's personality [...] The true, the final test, of the Truth of one's visions is their Value. The most glorious experience on the Astral plane, let it dazzle and thrill as it may, is not necessarily in accordance with the True Will of the seer; if not, though it be never so true objectively, it is not true for him, because not useful for him."}} He believed that the body of light is more important than simply for astral travel—that it is also the storehouse of all experiences. "In Magick, on the contrary, one passes through the veil of the exterior world (which, as in Yoga, but in another sense, becomes 'unreal' by comparison as one passes beyond) one creates a subtle body (instrument is a better term) called the Body of Light; this one develops and controls; it gains new powers as one progresses, usually by means of what is called 'initiation': finally, one carries on almost one's whole life in this Body of Light, and achieves in its own way the mastery of the Universe."}}

Numerical methods

Numerological methods such as gematria, isopsephy, and English Qaballa are key to understanding Thelemic texts and scriptures, many of which, including The Book of the Law, are written in abstract, poetic, and often cryptic language. Through the use of one or more of these methods, the normally opaque meaning of the texts can be made clear.

Magical record

A magical record is a journal or other source of documentation containing magical events, experiences, ideas, and any other information that the magician may see fit to add. There can be many purposes for such a record, such as recording evidence to verify the effectiveness of specific procedures (per the scientific method that Aleister Crowley claimed should be applied to the practice of magic) or to ensure that data may propagate beyond the magician's lifetime. Benefits of this process vary, but usually include future analysis and further education by the individual and/or associates with whom the magician feels comfortable in revealing such intrinsically private information.

Crowley was highly insistent upon the importance of this practice. As he writes in Liber E, "It is absolutely necessary that all experiments should be recorded in detail during, or immediately after, their performance ... The more scientific the record is, the better. Yet the emotions should be noted, as being some of the conditions. Let then the record be written with sincerity and care; thus with practice it will be found more and more to approximate to the ideal. "Other items he suggests for inclusion include the physical and mental condition of the experimenter, the time and place, and environmental conditions, including the weather.

Milestones

Crowley often wrote that every practitioner's path will be unique. He also wrote that two major milestones are fundamental to Thelemic mysticism, which he called the knowledge of and conversation with one's Holy Guardian Angel and the crossing of the Abyss. Crowley wrote, "the two crises—the Angel and the Abyss—are necessary features in every career. The other tasks are not always accomplished in [any given order]".

Holy Guardian Angel

Wikipedia article: Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel

Even though the Holy Guardian Angel (or HGA) is, in a sense, the “higher self”, it is often experienced as a separate being, independent from the experiencer. In the system of the A∴A∴ magical order, the single most important goal is to consciously connect with one's HGA, a process termed “Knowledge and Conversation.” By doing so, a magician becomes fully aware of their own True Will. For Crowley, this event was the single most important goal of any practitioner of magick: "It should never be forgotten for a single moment that the central and essential work of the Magician is the attainment of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel. Once he has achieved this, he must, of course, be left entirely in the hands of that Angel, who can be invariably and inevitably relied upon to lead him to the further great step—crossing of the Abyss and the attainment of the grade of Master of the Temple."

In most of his writings, Crowley described the Holy Guardian Angel as one's "Silent Self", at times equitable with one's deepest unconscious. In later writings, he insisted that the HGA is an entirely separate and objective being. Whichever position is taken, the object remains the same—to gain an intimate spiritual connection so that one's True Will can become fully known and manifested. This event occurs in the Sphere of Tiphareth] when using the Tree of Life as a guide.

Crowley wrote Liber Samekh as an example of a ritual designed specifically for attaining the Knowledge and Conversation with one's HGA. In his notes to this ritual, Crowley sums up the key to success: “INVOKE OFTEN.” Another detailed description of the general operation is given in The Vision and the Voice, Aethyr 8.

Crossing the Abyss

Wikipedia article: Abyss (Thelema)

After one attains the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel, a practitioner may choose to then reach the next major milestone: the crossing of the Abyss, the great gulf or void between the phenomenal world of manifestation and its noumenal source, that great spiritual wilderness which must be crossed by the practitioner to attain mastery.

According to Crowley, Choronzon is the Dweller in the Abyss; he is there as the final obstruction. If he is met with the proper preparation, then he is there to destroy the ego, which allows the practitioner to move beyond the Abyss. If unprepared, then the unfortunate traveler will be utterly dispersed into annihilation. Both Choronzon and the Abyss are discussed in Crowley's Confessions (ch. 66).

City of the Pyramids and the Night of Pan

Wikipedia article: Night of Pan

The City of the Pyramids is the home to those practitioners that have crossed the great Abyss, having spilled all their blood in the Graal of Babalon. They have destroyed their earthly ego-identities, becoming nothing more than piles of dust (i.e. the remaining aspects of their True Selves without the self-sense of "I"). Within, they take on the name or title of Saint or Nemo (Latin for No-Man or No-One). In the system of A∴A∴ they are called Masters of the Temple. It is a step along the path of spiritual purification and a spiritual resting place for those who have successfully shed their attachments to the mundane world.

The City exists under the Night of Pan, or N.O.X. The playful and lecherous Pan is the Greek god of nature, lust, and the masculine generative power. The Greek word Pan also translates as All, and so he is “a symbol of the Universal, a personification of Nature; both Pangenetor, "all-begetter," and Panphage, "all-devourer." Pan is both the giver and the taker of life, and his Night is that time of symbolic death where the practitioner experiences unification with Nuit through the ecstatic destruction of the ego-self. In a less poetic symbolic sense, this is the state where one transcends all limitations and experiences oneness with the universe.

Notes

↑ Crowley developed Liber Trigrammaton with the intention of using it for Qabalistic purposes, but he found the results unsatisfactory and did not further pursue this application. While some interpretations of The Book of the Law suggest the prediction of an English Qaballa, this system was developed after Crowley's time and was not part of his original teachings.
↑ "The Quest of the Holy Grail, the Search for the Stone of the Philosophers—by whatever name we choose to call the Great Work—is therefore endless. Success only opens up new avenues of brilliant possibility. Yea, verily, and Amen! the task is tireless and its joys without bounds; for the whole Universe, and all that in it is, what is it but the infinite playground of the Crowned and Conquering Child, of the insatiable, the innocent, the ever-rejoicing Heir of Space and Eternity, whose name is MAN?"
↑ "For concentration does indeed unlock all doors; it lies at the heart of every practice as it is of the essence of all theory, and almost all the various rules and regulations are aimed at securing adeptship in this matter. All the subsidiary work—awareness, one-pointedness, mindfulness and the rest—is intended to train you to this."

Sources

More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Great_Work_(Thelema) ]

Thelema personalities and topics
Core topics	The Book of the Law • Aleister Crowley • True Will • 93 (Thelema) • Magick
Personalities	List of Thelemites (Article @ ^WP} • Ankh-af-na-khonsu • Aleister Crowley • Kenneth Anger • Allan Bennett • William Breeze (Hymenaeus Beta) • Émile Brugsch • Mary Butts • Marjorie Cameron • Lon Milo DuQuette • Jeanne Robert Foster • J. F. C. Fuller • Karl Germer • Kenneth Grant • Allen H. Greenfield • Lady Frieda Harris • Leah Hirsig • Christopher Hyatt • Augustus Sol Invictus • Charles Stansfeld Jones • George Cecil Jones • Richard Kaczynski • Carl Kellner • Rose Edith Kelly • James Lees • Grady Louis McMurtry • Mogg Morgan • Marcelo Ramos Motta • Nema Andahadna • Victor Benjamin Neuburg • Sara Northrup • Jack Parsons • Israel Regardie • Theodor Reuss • C.F. Russell • Phyllis Seckler • Helen Parsons Smith • Wilfred Talbot Smith • Leila Waddel (Laylah) • James Wasserman • Sam Webster • Jane Wolfe • Gerald Yorke
Organizations	A∴A∴ • Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica • Fraternitas Saturni • O∴A∴A∴ • Open Source Order of the Golden Dawn • Ordo Templi Orientis • Typhonian Order
Concepts and ideas	Abyss • Aeon • Astrotheology • English Qaballa • Great Work • Hermetic Qabalah • Holy Guardian Angel • Magical formula • Night of Pan
Magick	Abrahadabra • Ceremonial magic • Enochian magic • Eroto-comatose lucidity • Goetia • Obeah and wanga • Sex magic
Ceremony and ritual	Banishing • Bornless Ritual • Cake of Light • Gnostic Mass • Mass of the Phoenix • Rites of Eleusis
Godforms and Dieties	Aiwass • Babalon • (Whore of Babylon) • Baphomet • ("The Beast") • Chaos • Choronzon • Hadit • Harpocrates • Heru-ra-ha • Ma'at • Nuit • Therion
Symbolism	Ankh • Number of the beast • Pentagram • Rose Cross • Stele of Revealing • Tree of Life • Unicursal hexagram
Related topics	Abbey of Thelema • Abramelin oil • Babalon Working • Boleskine House • Egyptian mythology • Freemasonry • Gnosticism • Hermeticism • Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn • Magical organization • Rosicrucianism • Stele of Revealing • Thelemapedia • Western esotericism
Thelemite texts	The Book of the Law • Liber AL vel Legis • The Equinox • 777 and Other Qabalistic Writings of Aleister Crowley • Magick (Book 4) • The Confessions of Aleister Crowley • The Book of Lies (by Crowley) • Liber OZ (Liber 77) • The Equinox of the Gods • The Law is for All • Konx Om Pax • The Book of Thoth (by Crowley} • The Vision and the Voice • Little Essays Toward Truth • Eight Lectures on Yoga • Magick Without Tears • The Blue Equinox • Liber Aleph • Moonchild (novel) • Diary of a Drug Fiend • White Stains • Clouds without Water • Collected Works of Aleister Crowley 1905-1907 • The Stratagem and other Stories • The Holy Books of Thelema • Libri of Aleister Crowley • Thoth tarot deck • Works of Aleister Crowley • Category:Thelemite texts Thelema texts - an index from the Internet Sacred Text Archives

Ordo Templi Orientis
Eclesiastical arm	Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica • Thelema • O.T.O. / Dianetics nexus
Outer Heads and Caliphs	• Carl Kellner (1895–1905) • Theodor Reuss (1905–1923) • interregnum (1923–1925) • Aleister Crowley (1925–1947) • Karl Germer (1947–1962) • interregnum (1962–1969) • Grady Louis McMurtry (1969–1985) • William Breeze (1985–present)
Derivative	Society Ordo Templi Orientis (SOTO) • Typhonian Order (TOTO) • O.T.O. / Dianetics nexus

Outline of spirituality ● List of occult terms ● List of occultists ● Outline of spirituality

Outline_of_alchemy ^↗ - A philosophical tradition recognized as protoscience, that includes the application of Hermetic principles, and practices related to mythology, religion, and spirituality.
List of occult terms ^↗ - Terms used supernatural beliefs and practices, encompassing such phenomena as those involving mysticism, spirituality, and magic in terms of any otherworldly agency. It can also refer to other non-religious supernatural ideas like extra-sensory perception and parapsychology.
List of occultists ^↗
Outline of spirituality ^↗ - refers to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality, an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of their own being, or the "deepest values and meanings by which people live."

Agape Lodge ● Abbey of Thelema ^↗ ● List of Thelemites ^↗ ● Members of Ordo Templi Orientis ^↗