inclusion of this statement in this first chapter assumes additional significance. Numbers are infinite. For
example, there can be countless manifestations of things which are viewed as quarters of wholes or as
quartets of complete wholes. At the same time the “4-principle” is rigid in itself and is thus a fixed component
of the OU.
5.
Help me, o warrior lord of Thebes, in my unveiling before the Children of men!
The “warrior lord of Thebes” is Amon (Amun/Amen), the patron warrior-neter of Thebes ( Uast), generally
portrayed as a ram or as a man wearing a twin-plumed headdress. This statement suggests the
forthcoming catalyst of the Age of Satan [or Set/HarWer], symbolized by the Ram of Mendes ( Ba-neb-
Tettu), as a transitional phase between the Æons of Horus and Set. Note the emphasis given to the term
“Children”, implying an elect body of initiates rather than the human species as a whole.
6.
Be thou Hadit, my secret centre, my heart & my tongue!
“Hadit” means “inspired utterance”. “Had” is also the “secret center” of the word Abrahadabra,
described by Crowley as the Magical Formula of the Æon of Horus. The “abra” prefix & suffix each
translate hieroglyphically as “heart of Ra” or “purification of Ra”, which would render the entire Formula
as an “inspired utterance from the heart of Ra”.
107 An excellent introduction is Peter Gorman’s Pythagoras: A Life (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1979). For a [much] more
extensive treatment, the 2- volume set The Secrets of Ancient Geometry by Tons Brunes (Copenhagen, Denmark: “The
Ancient Geometry” [Nygaardsvej 41, Copenhagen 0], 1968).
- 72 -
7.
Behold! it is revealed by Aiwass the minister of Hoor- paar-kraat.
Harpokrates is Horus the Younger, the later Osirian corruption of the Great Horus (HarWer). Hence
the authenticity of Aiwass as an OU entity seems doubtful. More probably he is a SU idealization of Crowley’s
own personality. The Book of the Law is most coherently viewed as an “inspired utterance” of the neteru
identified in #I-1 and #I-2, not a statement by Aiwass on behalf of a corrupted god-image.
8.
The Khabs is in the Khu, not the Khu in the Khabs.
Khabs is the hieroglyphic term for the gods of the 36 Dekans [or for stellar gods in general]. Khu may
be translated from the hieroglyphic in several ways. Crowley preferred “spirit”. It may also mean “fire” or
“flame”. Corresponding translations would be: “The stellar gods are conceived by one’s spirit; they do not
impart it.” -or- “The stellar gods are within the flame; they do not create it.” 108
If the “spirit” or “flame” is presumed to be the Black Flame of primal separate intelligence
109
identified in the Diabolicon, then the two translations are identical.
The stellar neteru [as opposed to
those signified by other symbols] are identified as aspects or Forms of the Primal Form of separate
intelligence.
9.
Worship then the Khabs, and behold my light shed over you.
Attention is properly directed towards the stellar neteru and what they symbolize. One personification of
these neteru [according to the imagery of the Age of Satan] may be found in the Diabolicon. Other, more
complex interpretations are now being developed through the Orders of the Temple of Set. 110
10. Let my servants be few & secret: they shall rule the many & the known.
This affirms the principle of initiatory elitism [as opposed to egalitarian mob-rule]. The recurrent tragedy
of human political history is that, whenever the elitist principle is abandoned de facto - whether or not it was
previously admitted de jure - corruption and disintegration of the host culture invariably results.
11. These are fools that men adore; both their Gods & their men are fools.
A sharp and succinct statement concerning the inauthenticity of the world’s prior religious systems.
Crowley disregarded this admonition, needlessly encumbering his speculations and calculations concerning
were so often confusing and inconclusive, he had no one to blame but himself.
12. Come forth, o children, under the stars, & take your fill of love!
Crowley interprets this straightforwardly as a statement that sexual or artistic love should be indulged
openly and innocently, and that an empathy with Nuit will be one of the consequences. It may also be that
one’s vision, magical abilities, and emotional sensitivity will be heightened at night, when Solar light and
radiation are at least partially shielded. 111
108 Cf. J. Norman Lockyear, The Dawn of Astronomy (Cambridge: MIT Press,
1964). Lockyear, an eminent 19th-century British astronomer, developed a theory that the Egyptian neteru - and the temples and
artifacts dedicated to them - were closely integrated with astronomical phenomena. Although he accompanied his argument with
extensive documentation, the theory was initially considered too radical to have substance. Recent archæological discoveries
have prompted the reprinting and reconsideration of this book.
109 The Diabolicon is a retelling of the legend of John Milton’s Paradise Lost as seen through the eyes of Satan and his fellow
archdæmons. It was composed by me over the first several months of 1970 in Vietnam and “nearby areas”, and when
complete was sent to Anton LaVey as a gift to the Church of Satan, wherein it became a keystone of its mythology until
1975. It is reprinted in my The Church of Satan ebook. The “Black Flame” was the medium by which humanity was
awakened to self-conscious isolate existence (the “great sin” of Satan and those inspired of him.
110 The classic 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey represented the Black Flame as
a rectangular monolith as a less-shocking version of Arthur Clarke’s overtly- Satanic Childhood’s End. Historically as the
Greek Promethean Fire, the Spear of Odin, and similar images it has appeared throughout human history. Within the Temple
of Set are several specialized Orders, each focusing upon different manifestations of the Gift of Set (as it is now called).
111 The A.'.A.'. might arguably be described as the G.'.D.'. plus sex, and the O.T.O. as Freemasonry plus sex. It certainly made
both successor organizations more fun then their predecessors.
- 73 -
13. I am above you and in you. My ecstasy is in yours. My joy is to see your joy.
A straightforward sexual statement concealing a more subtle truth: The essence of the Gift of Set,
emitted from the stars, is captured and sustained in the persons of the Elect. The intelligence of the Gift, both
chaotic (HarWer) and composed (Set), takes pleasure in the generation and preservation of similar
qualities in the Elect. For their part, the Elect experience a unique exhilaration at night, especially when
exposed to starlight.
14. Above, the gemmèd azure is
The naked splendour of Nuit;
She bends in ecstasy to kiss
The secret ardours of Hadit.
The wingèd globe, the starry blue,
Are mine, O Ankh-f-n-Khonsu.
Crowley’s poetic rendering of the juxtaposition of Nuit and “Hadit” on the Stele of Revealing. His
misidentification of Behdety is again apparent, as the lover of Nuit was a god of the Earth, not [either] Horus.
This verse - an exc
erpt of a longer poem included by Crowley in “The Temple of Solomon the King”
in Equinox
#I-7 - does not appear in his original Liber Legis manuscript, which raises the question why, despite
Aiwass’ admonitions to the contrary, Crowley later modified what he published as the Book of the Law.
The name “Ankh-f-n-Khonsu” translates to “[He whose] Life is in Khonsu”. Khonsu or Khons was the
Moon-neter of Thebes, son of the family triad Amon/Mut/Khons. By the time of the XXVI Dynasty, the
priesthoods at Thebes and Memphis were among the few remaining non-Osirian centers of learning. During the
New Empire, Amon was usually combined with Ra as Amon-Ra, which explains the Solar disc and Ra-Harakte
on the stele of a Theban priest.
15. Now ye shall know that the chosen priest & apostle of infinite space is the prince-priest
the Beast; and in his woman called the Scarlet Woman is all power given. They shall gather
my children into their fold: they shall bring the glory of the stars into the hearts of men.
Woman are herein defined. They are charged to bring the A.'.A.'. into existence and to promulgate its doctrines
to society in general. Both of these tasks they indeed undertook, and their successful accomplishment was a
necessary precondition of the Age of Satan and Æon of Set.
16. For he is ever a sun, and she a moon. But to him is the winged secret flame, and to her the
stooping starlight.
Crowley interpreted this verse as a simple identification of the Beast and Scarlet Woman with “Hadit”
and Nuit respectively. He further hypothesized an analogy to the Yang/Yin interrelationship of Chinese
cosmology. To me this latter interpretation seems more substantive, implying as it does that complementary
magical influences would be required for the Æon of Horus to exert its full influence.
17. But ye are not so chosen.
Crowley excuses this particular comment as being directed to “the other worshippers of Nuit” besides the
Scarlet Woman and himself. I read it as establishing to all readers of the Book of the Law that there would be
but one “prince-priest the Beast”. The pathetic posturing of the many self-proclaimed “reincarnations” of
Aleister Crowley speaks for itself.
18. Burn upon their brows, o splendrous serpent!
The Uræus cobra, worn on the forehead, was the symbol of Egyptian kingship. More precisely, the pharaoh’s
role was that of a priest-king: a divinely inspired and sanctioned guardian of the initiatory Elect of Egypt. Nuit
announces Crowley’s ascent to this station as Magus of the Æon. Once again the authenticity of the Book of
the Law is subtly evidenced, as the exclusive symbolism of the Uræus is unmistakable. “This is the Uræus
which came forth from Set.” - Utterance #683, Pyramid Texts.
19. O azure-lidded woman, bend upon them!
Nuit is the “azure-lidded woman”. Considered together with verse #I-18, this implies that the priest-
king powers and perceptions of the Beast and Scarlet Woman will be more fully realized during the hours of
- 74 -
darkness. Horus, however, is a deity of daylight; consider the three 12-1 PM transmissions of the Book of the
Law itself.
20. The key of the rituals is in the secret word which I have given unto him.
Crowley believed this word to be “Abrahadabra”, symbolizing the union of complementary concepts
through ritual. He explored its construction via Cabalistic numerological techniques, arriving at various
numbers which he believed significant to the Æon of Horus. While the Hebrew Cabala possesses no OU
validity, Crowley insisted - presumably as a consequence of his G.'.D.'. training - upon trying to use it as a
device for systematizing his philosophy. His diaries reveal his exhaustive efforts in this vein and the many
pointless “results” he achieved.
Exactly how Crowley used “Abrahadabra” as a ritual key is obscure. He did observe that it contains 11
letters, and that the (1)=[10], (2)=[9], (3)=[8], etc. grades of the G.'.D.'. and A.'.A.'. incorporated an
elevenfold base [which was rather at odds with the tenfold Cabalistic Tree of Life]. He also felt the word to be
a “corrected” version of the older term “abracadabra” (a pyramidal word-puzzle based upon the a-b- c-d
sequence).
21. With the God & the Adorer I am nothing: they do not see me. They are as upon the earth; I am
Heaven, and there is no other God than me, and my lord Hadit.
Crowley saw this as describing the Stele of Revealing. I read it rather as a statement of the true nature
of “God”, i.e. the mechanical, inertial cosmos (OU) (Nuit) as opposed to God the bearded dignitary on the
ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
The OU presence and proof of the existence of the collective neteru [or a unified “God”] is, as are
universal truths generally, both simple and self-evident: the consistency of OU mechanisms, e.g. “natural
law”. Such consistency, represented by Nuit, is only recognizable from an external point of perspective,
e.g. Hadit.
22. Now, therefore, I am known to ye by my name Nuit, and to him by a secret name which I will
give to him when at last he knoweth me. Since I am Infinite Space, and the Infinite Stars
thereof, do ye also thus. Bind nothing! Let there be no difference made among you between
any one thing & any other thing; for thereby cometh hurt.
The secret name, revealed in the 12th Æthyr of Liber 418 ( The Vision and The Voice), was that of Babylon
or Babalon, incorporated by Crowley into the seal of the A.'.A.'.. Again Nuit is shown to comprise the OU.
The adjuration of this passage lays bare the terrible secret of all forms of God/nature worship: the forcing of
all deviant will towards uniformity and conformity to the cosmic inertia. Difference or independence of any
sort - particularly intellectual separation - is alien and anathema to Nuit.
23. But whoso availeth in this, let him be chief of all!
A Magus - (9)=[2] A.'.A.'., V° Church of Satan, or V° Temple of Set - is in fact an individual who
succeeds in achieving a perspective of separation from the OU and, from that point of perspective, Uttering
a Word [=formulating a philosophy] to alter that universe in some fashion. Thus the creation or
enhancement of a magical æon exists not merely in the SU of the Magus, but [as his Task] extends outward
into the OU, changing it throughout its entire substance. The Magus thus refashions, if only to a subtle degree,
the identities of the neteru/“God”.
Nuit’s reaction is predictably one of inertia. The change is resisted, but once accomplished it is reinforced.
Once a Magus has successfully completed his Task, he becomes obsolete as such and must either revert to the
function of Magister Templi [since the OU now incorporates his Word] or take the oath of Ipsissimus and
venture into a still-larger universe.
24. I am Nuit, and my word is six and fifty.
25. Divide, add, multiply, and understand.
Crowley divided 6 by 50 and got 0.12, which he thought might signify his 0=2 equation. His other
attempts to solve the mathematical riddles of these verses were unsuccessful, though he attributed one or two
Cabalistic symbols to the numbers that resulted. He did not, however, uncover the word of Nuit. That word is
“inertia”, whose letters, numbered per the Eng
lish alphabet [cf. the Book of Coming Forth by
Night]=76=13=4. 50÷6=8. 50+6=56. 50x6=300. 8+56+300=364=13=4= key number concealing the
sacred decad of Pythagoreanism (1+2+3+4=10). Cf. also Crowley’s most significant Book 4.
- 75 -
26. Then saith the prophet and slave of the beauteous one: Who am I, and what shall be the
sign? So she answered him, bending down, a lambent flame of blue, all- touching, all
penetrant, her lovely hands upon the black earth, & her lithe body arched for love, and her
soft feet not hurting the little flowers: Thou knowest! And the sign shall be my ecstasy, the
consciousness of the continuity of existence, the unfragmentary non-atomic fact of my
universality.112
The response to Crowley’s appeal for confirmation of his identity was this endorsement of his belief that
he was in fact the Beast 666. The most subtle and meaningful of all signs was given - a reminder of his ability to
sense the omnipresence and comprehensiveness of Nuit. Such an experience would have been impossible for
one of lesser vision than a Magus, because a Magus, by definition, must first comprehend the totality of what
presently exists before Uttering a Word to exert change upon it.
27. Then the priest answered & said unto the Queen of Space, kissing her lovely brows, and the
dew of her light bathing his whole body in a sweet-smelling perfume of sweat: O Nuit,
continuous one of Heaven, let it be ever thus; that men speak not of Thee as One but as
None; and let them speak not of thee at all, since thou art continuous!
Crowley’s ecstatic recognition of the sign, and hope that mankind generally will not transcend inertia by
achieving a point of perspective similar to his [from which Nuit may be seen “from outside”]. Presumably
this follows #I-5 and #I- 10, in which only Elect initiates may presume to “see the goddess unveiled”.
28. None, breathed the light, faint & faery, of the stars, and two.
Nuit validates the concept that she is all-inclusive, hence cannot be distinguished from any other thing
known to her. [The Set/HarWer juxtaposition is distinct and apart from the OU.] Yet the OU is not a
homogenous whole; it is everywhere separated into complementary parts: +/- magnetic fields, matter/