General Advice for Initiates
Excerpts from "Liber Librae, The Book of the Balance" by Aleister Crowley, inspired by G.D. rituals
0.
Learn first -- Oh thou who aspirest unto our ancient Order! -- that
Equilibrium is the
basis of the Work. If thou thyself hast
not a sure foundation, whereon wilt thou stand
to direct
the forces of Nature?
1.
Know then, that as man is born into this world amidst the Darkness of
Matter, and the
strife of contending forces; so must his
first endeavor be to seek the Light through
their
reconciliation.
2.
Thou then, who hast trials and troubles, rejoice because of them, for
in them is
Strength, and by their means is a pathway opened
unto that Light.
3.
How should it be otherwise, O man, whose life is but a day in
Eternity, a drop in the
Ocean of time; how, were thy trials
not many, couldst thou purge thy soul from the
dross of
earth?
4.
Rejoice therefore, O Initiate, for the greater thy trial the greater
thy Triumph. When
men shall revile thee, and speak against
thee falsely, hath not the Master said,
"Blessed art
thou!"?
5.
Yet, oh aspirant, let thy victories bring thee not Vanity, for with
increase of Knowledge
should come increase of Wisdom. He
who knoweth little, thinketh he knoweth much;
but he who
knoweth much hath learned his own ignorance. Seest thou a man wise
in
his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool, than of
him.
6.
Be not hasty to condemn others; how knowest thou that in their place,
thou couldst
have resisted the temptation? And even were it
so, why shouldest thou despise one
who is weaker than
thyself?
7.
Thou therefore who desirest Magical Gifts, be sure that thy soul is
firm and steadfast;
for it is by flattering thy weaknesses
that the Weak Ones will gain power over thee.
Humble
thyself before thy Self, yet fear neither man nor spirit. Fear is
failure, and the
forerunner of failure: and courage is the
beginning of virtue.
8.
Therefore fear not the Spirits, but be firm and courteous with them;
for thou hast no
right to despise or revile them; and this
too may lead thee astray. Command and
banish them, curse
them by the Great Names if need be; but neither mock nor revile
them, for so assuredly wilt thou be led into error.
9.
A man is what he maketh himself within the limits fixed by his
inherited destiny; he is
a part of mankind; his actions
affect not only what he calleth himself, but also the
whole
universe.
10.
Worship, and neglect not, the physical body which is thy temporary
connection with the
outer and material world. Therefore let
thy mental Equilibrium be above disturbance by
material
events; strengthen and control the animal passions, discipline the
emotions
and the reason, nourish the Higher Aspirations.
11.
Do good unto others for its own sake, not for reward, not for
gratitude from them, not
for sympathy. If thou art
generous, thou wilt not long for thine ears to be tickled by
expressions of gratitude.
12.
Remember that unbalanced force is evil; that unbalanced severity is
but cruelty and
oppression; but that also unbalanced mercy
is but weakness which would allow and
abet Evil. Act
passionately; think rationally; be Thyself.
13.
True ritual is as much action as word; it is Will.
14.
Remember that this earth is but an atom in the universe, and that
thou thyself art but
an atom thereon, and that even couldst
thou become the God of this earth whereon
thou crawlest and
grovellest, that thou wouldest, even then, be but an atom, and one
amongst many.
15.
Nevertheless have the greatest self-respect, and to that end sin not
against thyself.
The sin which is unpardonable is knowingly
and wilfully to reject truth, to fear
knowledge lest that
knowledge pander not to thy prejudices.
16.
To obtain Magical Power, learn to control thought; admit only those
ideas that are in
harmony with the end desired, and not
every stray and contradictory Idea that presents
itself.
17.
Fixed thought is a means to an end. Therefore pay attention to the
power of silent
thought and meditation. The material act is
but the outward expression of thy thought,
and therefore
hath it been said that "the thought of foolishness is sin."
Thought is the
commencement of action, and if a chance
thought can produce much effect, what
cannot fixed thought
do?
18.
Therefore, as hath already been said, Establish thyself firmly in the
equilibrium of
forces, in the centre of the Cross of the
Elements, that Cross from whose centre the
Creative Word
issued in the birth of the dawning Universe.
19.
Be thou therefore prompt and active as the Sylphs, but avoid
frivolity and caprice; be
energetic and strong like the
Salamanders, but avoid irritability and ferocity; be flexible
and attentive to images like the Undines, but avoid idleness and
changeability; be
laborious and patient like the Gnomes,
but avoid grossness and avarice.
20.
So shalt thou gradually develop the powers of thy soul, and fit
thyself to command the
Spirits of the elements. For wert
thou to summon the Gnomes to pander to thine
avarice, thou
wouldst no longer command them, but they would command thee.
Wouldst thou abuse the pure beings of the woods and mountains to fill
thy coffers and
satisfy thy hunger of Gold? Wouldst thou
debase the Spirits of Living Fire to serve thy
wrath and
hatred? Wouldst thou violate the purity of the Souls of the Waters to
pander
to thy lust of debauchery? Wouldst thou force the
Spirits of the Evening Breeze to
minister to thy folly and
caprice? Know that with such desires thou canst but attract
the Weak, not the Strong, and in that case the Weak will have power
over thee.
21.
In true religion there is no sect, therefore take heed that thou
blaspheme not the
name by which another knoweth his God;
for if thou do this thing in Jupiter thou wilt
blaspheme
IHVH and in Osiris IHShVH. Ask and ye shall have! Seek, and ye shall
find!
Knock, and it shall be opened unto you!