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Correspondence from Aleister Crowley to James Windram
[Undated: circa May 1914]
Care Frater,
Equinox V appendix p 164 line 3 word 3. I wrote you a long letter 3 or 4 days ago before getting yours of the 21 April with enclosure, for which many thanks. If there were only 99 other just persons it would be all right. As a matter of fact there is a sort of glimmer of hope of escaping the full catastrophe to which your draft has notable contributed. These people don't wish to proceed to extremities as long as one can keep them on sending them something on account. They know there is nothing to be got out of it.
I rather want you to make a rule to do an Astral of some sort every day unless there is a strong reason against it. You must absolutely make up your mind about visions, you say with regard to your Burmese Temple "I could not tell you what the people were like or how they were dressed". Please imagine yourself being cross-examined under torture with this proviso, that the inquisitor is satisfied with any answers you returned. That is really the situation. As soon as you can send me some visions which are all wrong, one can show you why they are wrong, and by that means enable you to correct. I must rub it into you every time I write that you should do day-dreams. These two visions that you described seem to me more of an astral. We do not want anything so material that it refuses to obey the will. One of the most important things in this astral work is to be able to see anything you want to see. The whole thing is a dodge for getting control of the mind in certain respects. You see from the point of view of the Master of the Temple all these planes are so many illusions, useful illusions no doubt which need understanding, but after all only illusions. You are quite right to say that there is plenty of work on the other side of the obstacle. Once you get hold of the laws which govern the Astral plane so-called, you are very much better equipped for magical problems. I put in this sentence to soothe the magician after my cruel remarks about illusion.
You have already had a good deal of experience of things quite material enough to set houses on fire. But the difficulty is that they are apt to play these games instead of setting down to the work that you want them to do. Control of the Astral Plane will help you enormously with this. You want to be alert, your astral body always on the watch. I have been saved from endless catastrophes entirely through this. To show you how useful it might be, I think there would be no harm in the Kaffirs knowing that you are a great magician. You could give the leader a talisman against the Speck with the Horns. It would work all right, the natives would do anything for you. That fact at least would get well known among the Whites and you would be regarded as a jolly useful associate with any venture which depended on the goodwill of the niggers.
I sent you out Rituals. As soon as I get [?] to myself I am making a fair copy of the Ne varietur kind which I will then have copied accurately and sent to you. Of course there is no money to have them printed.
In your position as a Rex Summus Sanctissimus you need have no hesitation in using the ceremonial effect [?] in any practical way that seems advisable. In making talismans on G.D. [Golden Dawn] lines—and that part of the G.D. was all right—the whole secret was to treat the talisman as the candidate for initiation. And in working up a movement you can treat the candidate for Initiation as a talisman.
The balance for the Charter should be submitted to Reuss [Theodor Reuss], who by the way is S [?] Reuss, but there wasn't very much to remit, was there? I thought the idea was to give him ten guineas more as a compliment than as a payment. Please send my fraternal greetings to Yardley [Lewis Yardley].
If you affiliate or initiate anyone, remember that you must have another VII° man to make a pair for your executive, and that the whole of his fees must be sent here. After we have got that you keep all the fees yourself with the exception of a capitation tax for us. Would 25 per cent be too much? The three members of the Executive must always be in good standing with us at least for the present. We have this house of retirement and you will shortly get a pamphlet about it. You will notice that you have the right to be entertained there the rest of your life, as befits your royal rank, which is rather nice for you. We have a mortgage of £900 on it and a friendly mortgage of £500 of a protective character. I regret to say that the trustees have pawned most of the valuables of the Temple. However all this is favorable in the event of things coming to a crisis. But it is really extraordinary how the money turns up at the last moment.
I enclose blanks of one chapter of your holy book, which will come one day, though heaven knows when. The man who is doing it is always having bad health.
Yours fraternally.
P.S. It is very nice of you to suggest this visit to S[outh] A[frica] but at present I see no possibility of any kind. November or December might do . . . but goodness knows whether I should be able to pay my fare.
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