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Aleister Crowley Diary Entry Monday, 13 March 1922
2.5 P.M. Small [dose of Heroin] to help sleep, on account of this evening's Work. I have a long conference with young Booth-Clibborn [Arthur Booth-Clibborn] (aet 29-30). When I say long, I mean from 8.30 or so to past 1.30 A.M. and I think he left chiefly because he knew of my insomnia. I put the Law before him; he recognized it as a battle-cry; he feels it in him to be a leader of men; I think we understand each other thoroughly (within limits.) I got this Thelema message for him: CCXX II 49. I must therefore hatch him out. He has the blood, the tradition, the practical sense; Leah [Leah Hirsig] can make him out C-i-C in the field. He is in financial straits because of his pride—his! the poor parasite of the terrene crust who could be God's archangel if he would only do his Will. He is groping to express himself by writing, which is only one way of acting; and he falls over his own feet by trying to lift himself by them. If he were self-slain and born to himself, how he could speak and write—lightnings and thunders of the old General without his hounds of hell and death. He has vision too. In practice, he must write his mother for ample cash to start on—pledging himself to pay it back, not from fear, but because money should not be allowed to count—say £93 or £418 .0.0.—He should than go to Alostrael [Leah Hirsig] at once, and say: I am the babe in the egg: in you is all power given: The Beast has sent me to take command of the active promulgation of the Law; and I am the First of those who work under the new regimen. (i.e. that in which the Beast is inactive) He should then take his own independent measures and proceed on his own absolute responsibility, merely referring to Alostrael as to the symbol of the Egg from which he came, his nourishment and inspiration. Memorandum: To learn the youth's given name (which must, I think, be qabalistically renewed [?]) and examine it thoroughly. (Preliminary remarks Booth = BOTh or BYTh or Teth for Tau [all in Hebrew] i.e. 472 or 408 or 81 or 17??? Clibborn = Nar-special word, for which I need Liber D.)
(P.S. He was too cowardly to sign this. He was premeditating treachery and swindling me: but he feared terribly.)
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