|
Aleister Crowley Diary Entry Sunday, 1 January 1899
Notes of Astral Travel
No. 18. To see Sappho. January 1st 1899.
Up.
Angel figure comes toward me apparently but I still ascend. Surprised at length of journey.
Arrive. Assume a divine figure—some doubt—eventually that of Diana. I call Sappho. She appears.
Small dark woman, wonderful skin, copper sheen but brown.
Lovely face—expression of intense desire. Wild floating hair. Almost a mad look.
She kneels to me. I comfort her. Extending my hands, which she kisses. White astral of women weeping behind. They are her lovers.
After awhile I bring her into circle, raise her, caress her forehead. I change into my usual shape. She is amazed. I explain my love for her and we rise together, embracing, to a place where angels greet us. We are told to go between the pillars into the temple. Here is the immense kneeling figure of some Oriental Deity.
Human face, arms, body and feet but behind us a lion's body.
She makes the 0=0 sign to me. Same here. Testing all round. Satisfactory. Figure rises, blesses us. We embrace. I kneel before Sappho. "You have given me of your strength, and brought me into this place of blessing; I will give you of mine".
She holds my hands in hers: glorious tinglings and passion flow into me like live fire. I rise to her bosom and kiss her passionately. I notice that I am a woman. Restraint advised by angel. With calmness, therefore, I pass within her body. I at once feel all her feelings. Great joy and glory. We become an immense bird (what bird?) brown and colour and take one part in some ceremony. The other priest being the man-lion. We rise again in human shape but larger.
Kingly figure, venerable, beautiful, (Tiphereth) with flaming sword of dazzling whiteness. This he extends to us. His attendants (angelic figures) make melody. This sword is placed in our mouth—immediately a song breaks from us, an infinite intolerable song. After we finish this, sword returned to king.
Notice a sun (the sun?) below.
Bird again. We flit round the sun in its fiery flames and molten substance.
I wish to return. I cannot separate myself—I am absorbed in Sappho. After some failures I call Acheirah thrice. He appears, I explain the trouble. He smites with the sword and we are again two human beings as met. I am on left of Sappho.
[. . .] hands stretched out; we receive influx. I notice our positions and complain that the position is wrong. I explain.
"I would have been divided so that Sappho in departing took of my left side. I leave my love with her, but my strength belongs to God".
He explains that my idea is wrong and that we were so divided that I might receive the influx of strength, and she that of mercy.
We return, conversing, into the temple. I say to her. "Enter with me the temple of the living God!"
We enter. She kneels at altar, adores L of U and waves censer.
We shake hands (1=10 grip) kiss and part. She promises me to dwell in the temple sometimes and to hover about me and watch me work and aid me when I call her.
I kneel at altar, adoring L of U, but watching her upward and eastward flight. She looks back over her right shoulder at me amourously waving her hand. I call once again to her, and then turn and adore L of U. Then with Q X return to body.
[The following narrative is the version of this Astral Vision that was printed in "The Temple of Solomon the King (Book III)" in The Equinox vol. I No. 2.]
No. 18. To see Sappho.
“With bewildering speed I was carried upwards, and in the midst of my flight an angel approached me apparently to aid me, yet I tarried not, but still ascended. On, on I flew, until at length I became surprised at the great distance of my journey.
“Eventually I arrived in a strange land, and after some perplexity assumed a divine figure, which I believe to be that of Diana. Then I called Sappho, and immediately she appeared before me, a small dark woman with a wonderful skin and a copper sheen on her dark hair. Her face was very lovely, but her expression was ablaze with intense desire, and through her wild floating hair could be seen her eyes, in which glittered madness.
“On seeing me, she knelt down before me, and I, trying to comfort her, extended my hands to her, which she in turn kissed. Behind her stood the white astrals of weeping women—these were her many lovers.
“After a while I brought her into the circle in which I was standing, and raising her up, caressed her upon the forehead. Then I changed to my usual shape, at which she was exceedingly amazed, and only comforted when I told her of my great love for her. Thereupon we rose together, embracing, to a place where angels greeted us. Here we were told to go between the pillars into the temple ; which we did, and saw in front of us an immense kneeling figure of some Oriental Deity.
"Before us glared a human face above a human body with arms and feet; but behind it, it was as the body of a lion.
"Sappho then gave me the 0°=0° sign, which I returned, whereupon the great figure rose and blessed us, and we embraced. Then I knelt before Sappho and said :
“ ‘You have given me of your strength and brought me into this place of blessing; I will now give you of mine.’
“For answer she held my hands in hers, and wonderful tinglings of glory and passion flowed into me like live fire. I raised my head to her bosom, and kissed her passionately, and then I noticed that I too was a woman!
“An angel approached me and advised restraint, and so with a great calmness I passed within her body, and at once felt all her passion and longings. A mighty joy and glory encompassed me, and we became a great brown bird taking part in a mystic ceremony, the priest being the great man-lion ; then again we rose and re-assumed human shape, but larger than before.
“Now we saw standing before us a venerable, beautiful and kingly figure (Tiphereth), holding a flaming sword of dazzling whiteness. This he extended to us, whilst his attendants, who were angelic figures, sang a low, melodious tune. Then he placed it in our mouth, when at once there rushed from our lips an infinite and intolerable song, which presently ceased, when the sword was returned to the king.
“Then I noticed that the sun was burning below us, so once again assuming the form of the brown bird, we flitted round the sun, bathing in its fiery flames and molten substance.
“Presently I wished to return; but could not separate myself from her, for I was absorbed in Sappho. Becoming desperate, I called thrice unto Acheirah, who soon appeared; whereupon I explained to him my trouble. Seizing his sword, he smote at us, and we were again two human beings, just as when we met, I on the left of Sappho, whose hands were stretched out. We received the influx, and then I noticed our positions, and complained that they were wrong; for I would have been divided, so that Sappho in departing took of my left side. I left my love with her, but my strength belonged to God.
“This I explained to Acheirah, but he told me my idea was wrong, and that we were so divided that I might receive the influx of strength, and she that of mercy.
“So we returned into the temple, conversing, I saying to her: ‘ Enter With me the temple of the living God!’
“This she did, following me, and then knelt down at the altar, and waving a censer adored the Lord of the Universe.
“After this was at an end, we clasped our hands (1°=10° grip), kissed, and parted; she promising me that she would dwell in the temple sometimes, and hover about me, and watch me work, and aid me when I called her.
“Then I knelt before the altar, in adoration of the Lord of the Universe; but watched her upward and eastward flight, whilst she looked amorously back at me over her right shoulder, waving her hand to me. Once only did I call her, and then, once again turning to the Lord of the Universe with the sign of the Qabalistic Cross, returned to the body.”
|