Magick in Theory and Practice (Section 1)

which inhabits il, and take possession. To do this by force is neither easy nor justifiable, because the magical being of the other was incarnated in accordance with its Will. And “Thou hast no right but to do thy Will.” One should hardly strain this sentence to make one’s own will include the will to upset somebody else’s will! 1 Moreover, it is extremely difficult thus to expatriate another magical being ; for though, unless it is a complété microcosm like a human being, it cannot be called a star, it is a little bit of a star, and a part of the body of Nuit. But there is no call for ail this frightfulness. There is no need to knock the girl down, unless she refuses to do what you want, and she will always comply if you say a few nice things to her.2 You can always use the body inhabited by an elemental, such as an eagle, hare, wolf, or any convenient animal, by making a very simple compact. You take over the res- ponsibility for the animal, thus building it up into your own magical hierarchy. This represents a tremendous gain to the animal. 3 It competely fulfils its ambition by an alliance of this extremely intimate sort with a Star. The magician, on the other hand, is able to transform and retransform himself in a thousand ways by accepting a retinue of such adhérents. In this way the projection of the “astral” or Body of Light may be made absolutely tangible and practical. At the same time, the magician must réalisé that in undertaking the Karma of any elemental, he is assuming a very serious responsibility• The bond which unités him with that elemental is love; and, though it is only a small part of the outfit of the magician, it is the whole of the outfit of the elemental. He will, therefore, suffer intensely in case of any error or misfortune occuring to his protégée. This feeling is rather peculiar. It is quite instinctive with the best men. They 1. Yet it might happen that the Will of the other being was to invite the Magician to indwell its instrument. 2. Bspecially on the subject of the Wand or the Disk. 3. This is the magical aspect of eating animal food, and its justifica¬ tion, or rather the réconciliation of the apparent contradiction between the carnivorous and humanitarian éléments in the nature of Homo Safiens. — 90 —