Saturday, October 16, 2010

Eating and drinking with Crowley

Last week, one of my sisters sent me a link to Aleister Crowley's rice recipe. Now, I know that some have expressed surprise that Crowley was a foodie; but for me, it makes perfect sense that he was. After all, this is the same man that liked good drinks, good drugs, and good cigars. It is only natural that he would also like good food. And being the picky bastard that he was---of course, he is going to have recipes.

I don't remember the book that it is in (someone will put the title in the comment section), but I remember a story about Crowley casting a money spell and then spending the last of the money he had on a big dinner. It takes guts to do that. And yes, his spell worked. Aleister understood the principles of focusing on your desired outcome, rather than wallowing in your fears (something that I find that many magicians, myself included, and Law of Attraction users have difficulties coping with [knock the Law of Attraction all you want, but remember that there is a grain of occult truth in it]).

Despite being a complete a**, I honestly think that Crowley would have been a fine person to sit down and have dinner with. I would attempt to have a conversation with the man, but I fear my intellect is a little sub-par (ain't all of us sub-par in the intellect department when compared to Aleister?). I would not dare take my wife along---Uncle Al would say mock her food allergies. Then again, if me and Crowley started to talk about politics, her eyes would glaze over.

So yes, I would consider have a meal with Aleister Crowley (can you say that you wouldn't be attempted?), though I would draw a line and not consider drinking tea out of his head (have you seen the Crowley teapot?). That is not foodie behavior; that is just bizzare.

4 comments:

Robert said...

I think the purchase before the spell worked was ice cream. I could be wrong on that.

Morgan Drake Eckstein said...

Hmmm...you might be right. It has been years since I read the story.

Unknown said...

Dinner with Crowley... To me this would a feast of mind and sustenance. Not too mention the thought of a good wine, cigar and even a game of chess! He is one of the many luminaries with whom I would have loved to sit down with. Mathers, Westcott, Felkin, Fortune, Yeats, Horniman... to name a few. Many adepts & authors now alive also.
I agree that my intellect would also be "sub-par". But what the H#ll.

Personally, I find it interesting that the man still draws either deeply positive or negative comments from the Occult and mundane worlds. The way I look at it is, if it was not for the Old Crow most of what we all practice would not be. I wonder how the present Occult world would accept him if he was just starting out now today. Would the present systems accept and welcome him with all his faults and ideas or summarily push him aside?

So to him I toast:
Over the lips and past the tongue pull up you pants Al, dinner is done!

Thanks Morgan for another great article.
Stan

Unknown said...

Speaking of the teapot, have you seen the teacup that goes with it? I'm not sure I could ever get used to drinking out of the Beast's head.

Dinner with Al I think I could handle.