Book of Thoth first impression...

[Cassandra022]

So I won a copy of Mr. Crowleys own take on the Thoth off ebay for very very cheap. Figured since I only have the Banzhaf's keyword book right now, might as well see what Crowley himself had to say, despite some warnings here i've seen that it is not the most uh, clear/approachable of texts...

I got a 1977 published copy of the book which smells most delightfully of old paper. I cracked it open a bit and decided to skip ahead to the description of the majors, specifically the section on the Fool.

It's not really dense reading per se, and I've certainly read grad texts that were worse to get through, but...the man does go on and on, doesn't he? Let me tell you about various cultural takes (with varying degrees of accuracy - 'if we assume tarot comes from the egyptians' made me smile given what we now know factually of tarot history) and go on and on about those with not the best transitions and here is how they are all in the card, there you go.

It's actually pretty interesting reading, and doesn't feel like it'd take too long to get through if I had the time right now to actually sit down and read, but yes, i must say...if someone was looking to use this as a guide to actually READ...might not go so well :0

note: i've never read anything by crowley before except some of those letters posted online so, yeah. first impressions indeed.

 

[Laura Borealis]

I made the mistake of trying to read it from the beginning. Page 4 threw me for a while, until I decided to do what you did, and skip to the relevant parts!

 

[Nica]

Oh wow! Did you win the Book of Thoth and green looking large Thoth in the modern green box? I tried to bid on that lot as well : ) Good for you!

The world of the Thoth is like a vortex to me, but we're all in this together! Cheers!

 

[Richard]

Crowley's BoT is the only Thoth book I have. With only two exceptions (necessitated by Crowley's "Tzaddi is not the Star" revelation) it uses the standard Golden Dawn astrological and Tree of Life correlations, so it is not really foreign turf to those who have some acquaintance with GD Tarot theory (on which, for example, the Rider-Waite is based).

 

[Cassandra022]

I made the mistake of trying to read it from the beginning. Page 4 threw me for a while, until I decided to do what you did, and skip to the relevant parts!

yeah, i took a look at the first part of the book and er...decided to save that for a later time, LOL

 

[Cassandra022]

Oh wow! Did you win the Book of Thoth and green looking large Thoth in the modern green box? I tried to bid on that lot as well : ) Good for you!

The world of the Thoth is like a vortex to me, but we're all in this together! Cheers!

nope, just the book...i already have two thoth decks, trying to resist getting any more because two copies of a deck is plenty...it is a vortex! :0

Crowley's BoT is the only Thoth book I have. With only two exceptions (necessitated by Crowley's "Tzaddi is not the Star" revelation) it uses the standard Golden Dawn astrological and Tree of Life correlations, so it is not really foreign turf to those who have some acquaintance with GD Tarot theory (on which, for example, the Rider-Waite is based).

tbh, though i've read a bit ABOUT the GD, but haven't read any primary source material before (nor have I actually read Waite's pictoral key...tried when I was much younger and totally couldn't stick with it) so yeah...

 

[Laura Borealis]

yeah, i took a look at the first part of the book and er...decided to save that for a later time, LOL

I decided it was deliberate on Crowley's part, to drive off those who didn't have the balls to read on.

I had a professor like that in college. It was a religious studies class on some interesting topic, though I forget what it was now. The first day, the classroom was so crowded that people were sitting on windowsills and standing round the back. She came in and looked at us over her glasses for a long moment, then proceeded to orate for the next hour in a dry, monotonous voice about very boring stuff. The second day, the crowds had thinned considerably. She came in and saw those of us who had persevered, flashed a big grin and said "That's much better!" And she was totally different than she'd been on the first day: funny, sarcastic and charismatic. Her first-day act had been a sieve to screen out those who didn't really care about the subject matter.

I'm pretty sure Crowley does the same kind of thing with some of his writing.

 

[Zephyros]

tbh, though i've read a bit ABOUT the GD, but haven't read any primary source material before (nor have I actually read Waite's pictoral key...tried when I was much younger and totally couldn't stick with it) so yeah...

The PKT is very simply, a dull book. It just tells you things, and tells you to take his word for it, since you aren't and never will be smart enough to grasp what he's talking about. The Book of Thoth, on the other hand... is a great book. I read it once from cover to cover, and didn't get much of it, now I'm reading it a lot slower, taking time to understand, research and really assimilate what he says. I wouldn't call it difficult, but in a way it's a Tarot deck all by itself; it assumes you know a lot about many different subjects and doesn't "waste" time with the small, beginner (read: everyone who isn't Crowley) things.

 

[Fianic]

Once you learn qabalah, astrology and thelema, the book of thoth will make a lot more sense, and you'll find it extremely profound.

 

[Cassandra022]

Once you learn qabalah, astrology and thelema, the book of thoth will make a lot more sense, and you'll find it extremely profound.

lol, given how many others things i have to/want to study besides tarot and the like,n i doubt i'll ever learn enough about qabalah and thelema to find it all that profound.

But my ignorance doesn't seem to bother my ability to read with this deck so I'm fine with that :] I'll settle for amusing/interesting with some useful insights.

laura_borealis - I find your theory makes a lot of sense! And that professor's approach sounds epic