Writings of British mystic Aleister Crowley on occult practices influenced the development of Neopaganism, various religious movements that arose chiefly in the United Kingdom and the United States in the late 1900s and that combine worship of pagan nature deities, particularly of the earth, with benign witchcraft. Chapter 44 of the book is a ritual named the Mass of the Phoenix. The ritual has been performed by many practitioners during the years, including Robert Anton Wilson, who describes his experience with it in Cosmic Trigger II: Down to Earth. [9] Editions [ edit ] Ecstasy: This comes from the Greek word "ekstasis," which itself comes from "existanai," which refers to a coming out of (a) place or to come out of. In its most literal sense, then, ecstasy refers to a kind of joyous transcendence of self. This might have been a veiled warning about what will follow, but is actually the first lie in the book; occult historian Francis King has carefully determined the date on the imprint is inaccurate by at least a year. [5]

Probably my favorite is "Practice a thousand times, and it becomes difficult; a thousand thousand and it becomes easy; a thousand thousand times a thousand thousand, and it is no longer Thou that doeth it, but It that doeth itself through thee." This seems a comment on the previous chapter [i.e., Lie #15, The Gun Barrel:]; the Stag-Beetle is a reference to Keph-ra, the Egyptian God of Midnight, who bears the Sun through the Underworld; but it is called the Stag-Beetle to emphasise [sic; British variant spelling:] his horns. Horns are the universal hieroglyph of energy, particularly of Phallic energy.The Book of Lies should be called The Book of Crap. It's so full of shit. I hated this crap! This is really crap, seriously. I regret the €8 I paid for this! I had so many better things to do with that money. Samadhi: In HINDUISM is: a state of deep concentration resulting in union with or absorption into ultimate reality. In BUDDHISM is: the meditative concentration that is the final step of the Eightfold Path. in JAINISM is: spiritual self-fulfillment. Enlightenment. Fascinating, often humorous, and mostly perplexing. Crowley was a modern-day mystic/pagan/occultist/Freemason, but mostly he seems to have enjoyed crafting paradoxes for the credulous.

Several chapters and a photograph in the book reference Leila Waddell, whom Crowley called Laylah, and who, as Crowley's influential Scarlet Woman, acted as his muse during the writing process of this volume. Death implies change and individuality… The birth of individuality is ecstasy; so also is its death. The 16th key of the Tarot is "The Blasted Tower". In this chapter death is regarded as a form of marriage. Modern Greek peasants, in many cases, cling to Pagan belief, and suppose that in death they are united to the Deity which they have cultivated during life. This is "a consummation devoutly to be wished" (Shakespeare). Aleister Crowley sometimes said [7] that this could not have happened the way he remembered it, since The Book of Lies had not yet come out when he joined the O.T.O. As previously mentioned, however, Wilson claims that the book lies about its publication date. That said, I enjoyed this work. We aren’t forced to read the analysis… which is indeed thought-provoking and intelligent. The poetry is often evocative and lovely, and it’s definitely worth flagging some passages for use in invocation or prayer.

Also, "A red rose absorbs all colors but red; red is therefore the one colour that is not...All that we know of Man, Nature, God, is just that which they are not." I found that "The Book of Lies" could read easily as modern poetry or accessible spiritual advice that doesn't speak exclusively to practitioners of Crowley's cult. Crowley additionally played chess, painted, experimented with drugs, criticized society and practiced astrology, hedonism, bisexuality. Crowley also claimed a Freemason, but people dispute the regularity of his initiations with the United Grand Lodge of England.