The Book of Lies?
Mr. Crowley describes The Book of Lies by saying, "This book deals with many matters on all Planes of the very highest importance. It is an official publication for Babes of the Abyss, but is recommended even to beginners as highly suggestive." What better description than one from the author himself? So, Crowley says this book "deals with many matters on all Planes of the very highest importance" but what exactly does that mean? To The Hidden Ones, the book is clearly an effort to describe the nature of many things within the higher Planes of Correspondence (/Existence if you prefer the term). The book attempts to give the reader a firm understanding of the structure of the Universe as a whole and in great depth. The book is highly symbolic and requires an understanding of certain forms of symbolism to understand. However, as it is the purpose of The Hidden Ones to reveal obscure, esoteric, occult, and other forms of hidden knowledge we will be slowly attempting to offer our interpretations of this piece of A. Crowley literature. We do not claim final authority or infallibility when it comes to this work and readers are encouraged to offer differing viewpoints and interpretations. We do not offer our interpretations from thin air or without some validation as the author has provided some brief interpretation and commentary on the book. We ensure that our interpretations are consistent with the author's. So then, why not just read the author's commentary? By all means, you should. However, anyone familiar with Crowley knows that he is often guilty of interpreting symbolism with more symbolism and even intentionally trying to further muddy the water about some of his work. This behavior is most likely an effort to ensure that a proper amount of self-understanding is possessed by those that would study his work. That being said, even these interpretations we are going to offer cannot be truly understood unless you have the proper knowledge and understanding within yourself. Try as we might, none of us can force anyone to see or understand anything. In the end, understanding the acquisition thereof is the responsibility of each of us, personally.
Also, let it be known that we here at The Hidden Ones do not follow any gurus, mystics, teachers, prophets, scientists, authors, philosophers, or just any one source of knowledge. We do not believe that anyone is infallible nor any doctrine. Mr. Crowley provided us with a vast library of knowledge to sift through but he also provided a bit of his own dogma, his own spin, and his own ideas. That being the case, he has most certainly produced some questionable material and was even of questionable moral fiber. This, however, should not deter the reader from pursing an understanding of his work. Even a liar can tell the truth. Even a killer can save a life. So even a person of poor character or questionable morality can provide knowledge or perspective.
Also, let it be known that we here at The Hidden Ones do not follow any gurus, mystics, teachers, prophets, scientists, authors, philosophers, or just any one source of knowledge. We do not believe that anyone is infallible nor any doctrine. Mr. Crowley provided us with a vast library of knowledge to sift through but he also provided a bit of his own dogma, his own spin, and his own ideas. That being the case, he has most certainly produced some questionable material and was even of questionable moral fiber. This, however, should not deter the reader from pursing an understanding of his work. Even a liar can tell the truth. Even a killer can save a life. So even a person of poor character or questionable morality can provide knowledge or perspective.
The Structure of the Book
The Book is arranged into many small chapters. Each chapter is like a poem, hymn, spell, etc. We will deal with each Chapter individually and decode them in that manner. The information is not chronological nor do you need to understand a previous chapter to understand any certain chapter. However, knowledge builds upon knowledge. You may find that with new understanding you can revisit a previous chapter to better understand it.
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Chapter by Chapter
Below you will find each chapter that we have decoded. By clicking the title of the chapter, you will be redirected to a separate page that will deconstruct the chapters line by line. There may even be images, graphs, links, etc. to aid in the descriptions. Be sure to visit back often as there are 93 chapters in the book and we plan to deal with each and every one of them in time. Also, if you have an alternative interpretation that is well thought out and sensible, we would love to publish your work for you. We will give full credit as it is due, no doubt.
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