New Crowley Biography?

mac22

Currently, Eliphas Levi, Master of the Cabala, the Tarot and the Secret Doctrines by Thomas A. Williams

The Return of the Dead: Ghosts, Ancestors, and the Transparent Veil of the Pagan Mind by , Claude Lecouteux

The Sacred Center: The Ancient Art of Locating Sanctuaries by John Michell

Mac22
 

mac22

I found the Churton biography quite interesting and more balanced then most. Then again Crowley IS one of most multifaceted people to do a biography of. :D

Mac22
 

Grigori

Aeon418 said:
Have you finished it yet, Grigori?
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Not yet, I'm going slowly with this one, a lot of other stuff on my reading list that I'm obligated to finish. But I am enjoying some fun time with Churton from time to time :)
 

Ross G Caldwell

Aeon418 said:
Here's a couple of vids of Tobias Churton giving a talk during a book signing event earlier this year at Watkins Books in London. (The quality of some of the questions during the Q&A session is a bit... :rolleyes:)

Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPEmn4knfQE

Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPNZgK-648I
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Thanks for that Aeon. I think this little lecture is a great advertisement for his book. He's a commonsense guy with a lot of respect for Crowley. It's cool that he found out about him through the mountaineering angle. If I ever meet John Yorke I'll have to remember not to get a "frisson" when I hold the Janus wand (but hey, I get a frisson when I hold a Milanese coin minted in Filippo Maria Visconti's time, but my excuse is that I'm a tarot historian).

I'm about half-way through the book and occasionally I can't put it down. He's got his take on Crowley, and often has insights or ways of putting things that I hadn't thought of. I noted a quote on page 106, for instance:

"Aiwass speaks like Crowley's daimon let loose, smashing up the subtle defences of his intellect and offering him the impetus to see off Mathers. It is odd that Crowley did not immediately recognize Aiwass's voice as that of his own True Self, or Holy Guardian Angel: the Beast set free; such seems clear in Why Jesus Wept, and Rose must have seen through him. As his mother called him the Beast, Rose brought him to Aiwass."

I thought that was a neat insight, like many others in the book that come in offhand comments. Churton seems like the kind of person who would have become Crowley's friend, like Gerald Yorke, rather than a disciple. He is a sympathetic storyteller, non-judgmental, but clearly understands Crowley's personal flaws (e.g. Crowley didn't practise "the kind of chastity to make a girl feel secure", etc. He understands both sides of the issue and doesn't try to do a Symonds and damn Crowley at every turn)

Absolutely recommended. It should be read (and the videos Aeon linked watched) before Kaczynski if the reader is not already conversant with the main details of Crowley's life.

It is not strictly chronological, but mainly so.

There was somebody on another thread who felt that Sutin or somebody really didn't shine a light on Crowley's spiritual side, what motivated him. I think Churton's biography really does just that; the reader should come away with an appreciation for what drove Crowley, whether or not you agree with everything he (Churton) says. Not an exhaustive biography - we have Kaczynski for that - but a great "take" on his life, with plenty of letters and diary entries I hadn't seen before (I can't wait for Breeze's edition of the Confessions to come out, that's for sure).

On the physical side, it is much lighter and less textually dense than Kaczynski - you can read it quite comfortably sitting down or in bed.
 

Aeon418

Ross G Caldwell said:
I think this little lecture is a great advertisement for his book. He's a commonsense guy with a lot of respect for Crowley.
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That's the impression I get too. Commonsense, down-to-earth, and with a sense of humour. Perfect qualifications for a Crowley biographer. Plus he clearly doesn't have a problem with the spiritual dimension of the Crowley story. He handles it in a very matter-of-fact way. Some past biographers have seemed to feel uncomfortable with this side of Crowley and have either held it at arms length or else felt the need to resort to a kind of dismissive ridiculing scepticism that diverts attention and makes the subject matter "safe".

In the lecture Churton's comments on fear were spot on. Why is it so difficult to treat Crowley as an important thinker? Why do so many objections get raised when it's perfectly ok to talk about really controversial figures. Churton uses Hitler as an example. Hitler's life and influence is regularly discussed and viewed as a serious subject. This is inspite of the fact that he was ultimately responsible for the deaths of around 6 million Jews. But Aleister Crowley trumps this in the annuls of wickedness and depravity and deserves to be ignored because ....... he killed a cat when he was a boy. Eh? :confused:
Ross G Caldwell said:
"Aiwass speaks like Crowley's daimon let loose, smashing up the subtle defences of his intellect and offering him the impetus to see off Mathers. It is odd that Crowley did not immediately recognize Aiwass's voice as that of his own True Self, or Holy Guardian Angel: the Beast set free; such seems clear in Why Jesus Wept, and Rose must have seen through him. As his mother called him the Beast, Rose brought him to Aiwass."

I thought that was a neat insight, like many others in the book that come in offhand comments.
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Actually I'm going to have to disagree with you here Ross. :)

There are a couple of minor "technical quibbles" in Churton's narrative and this is one of them. It does indeed seem strange to "ordinary common sense" that Crowley didn't immediately recognize Aiwass as his HGA. But the emergence of conscious certainty does not always occur straight away. Crowley may have recognised Aiwass on some level, but ordinary consciousness is usually the last place where the penny drops. With hindsight things like this can seem obvious, but there is often a maturation period where the connection slowly filters down through the different levels of consciousness.
 

mac22

The lecture was indeed an "advertizement" but was very informative. His comments about fear were correct. Then again Crowley was a VERY complex man... I've studying him 40 yrs read nearly EVERYTHING by him & about him and still find new things about him. Churton has added his light to the rest in order to better see Crowley in all his complexity. IMHO Churton's book is the most overall balanced of the lot.

mac22
 

Grigori

I've finally finished. I enjoyed it immensely, its easily the most fun of the biographies. The video clip is really good, I think it highlights the authors sensibility and humour which shows through in the book.

For a first Crowley biography, or even just a good read, I'd recommend it. I've not read Secret Agent 666 yet, and it seems a lot has comes from that, so will have to add that to my list for one day soon also.
 
Which Thoth? Majors / Minors