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The Nature of Reality

During a recent philosophical conver­sation, a friend of mine asked: “Do we really create our own realities?” That’s a tough question to answer directly because it depends on the precise definitions of the words “we”, “create”, and “reality”, none of which are reliable when the topic at hand is one that purports to dismantle the entire framework of conscious perception. That said, what follows is a somewhat roundabout approach to a possible answer.

Defining Thelema

Many years ago, while corresponding with my good friend Hagios Xao, I came up with the idea of composing a little treatise on the relationship between magick and Thelema. I never got around to pinning down the subject matter, but I had a notion that the headline would play on the title of Magick Without Tears.

There were a few ways I could go with that: “Thelema Without Magick” for instance, or perhaps something like “Thelema Without Crowley.” A clever literary device, if somewhat obvious. But inasmuch as my aim would be to prompt a re-examination of the assumptions that underlie our thinking on these topics, some such provocative title would fit the bill nicely. Or at least that was the plan…

Contemplative Practice

I’ve concluded after more than two years of experience of daily “silent sitting” meditation that it may well be impossible (or, at least, very unproductive) to seri­ously engage in the practice of ceremonial magick without also engaging in some sort of non-conceptual contemplative practice on a regular basis. By “regular”, I mean more than the cursory five- or ten-minute session once or twice a week. The rule of thumb for physical exercise, two or three times a week for at least twenty minutes each time, doesn’t seem like enough to overcome the poor attentional habits most of us have built up over the course of our lifetimes.