Magick in Theory and Practice (Section 2)

The object is to possess a Body wkicli is capable of doing easily any particular task tbat may lie before it. There musî be no sélection of spécial expérience which appeals to one’s immédiate desire. One must go steadily through ail the possible pylons. Frater Perdurabo was very unfortunate in not having magical teachers to explain these things to Him. He was rather encouraged in unsystematic working. Very fortunate, on the other hand, was He to hâve found a Guru who instructed Him in the proper principles of the technique of Yoga, and He, having suffirent sense to recognize the universal application of those principles, was able to some extent to repair His original defects. But even to this day, despite the fact this His original inclination is much stronger towards Magick than towards mysticism, he is much less competent in Magick.1 A trace of this can be seen even in His method of combining the two divisions of our science, for in that method He makes concentration bear the Cross of the Work. This is possibly an error, probably a defect, certainly an impurity of thought, and the root of it is to be found in His original bad discipline with regard to Magick. If the reader will turn to the account of his astral journeys in the Second Number of the First Volume of the Equinox, he will find that these experiments were quite capricious. Even when, in Mexico, He got the idea of exploring the 30 Aethyrs systemat- ically, He abandoned the vision after only 2 Aethyrs had been investigated. 1. Reconsideration of these remarks, at the request of a loyal colleague, compels Him to admit that this may not be the case. It is true that He has been granted ail Mystical Attainment that is theoretically possible, while His powers in Magick seem to be uneven and imperfect. Despite this, it may yet be that He has compassed the Possible. For Mystical Attainments are never mutually exclusive; the trance of Sorrow (for example) is not incompatible with the Béatifie Vision, or the “Universal Joke”. But in Magick any one Operation debars its performer from accomplishing some other. The reason of this is that the Oath of any Work bonds the Magi- cian once and for ail to be the principles implied therein. See Chapter XVI Part I. Further, it is obviously possible to reach the essence of anything without interfering with other things which obstruct each other. Cross- country journeys are often scarcely practicable. 204 —