The Practice of Enochian Magick

by Aleister Crowley, Lon Milo DuQuette (Introduction)

Enochian magick is a powerful system of ceremonial magic based on the 16th-century writings of John Dee and Edward Kelly, who claimed that their information was presented to them directly from angels. It is named after the biblical prophet Enoch and is perhaps the most powerful and elegant of all magical systems. Dee and Kelley’s work has formed the basis for countless magical systems, such as the Golden Dawn, and has inspired magicians from all the generations that followed, including the famed Aleister Crowley. This book presents readers with the Enochian selections from the Equinox, a magical journal published by Aleister Crowley. It features Crowley’s distillation of the work of Dee and Kelley along with an introduction by Lon Milo DuQuette, master occultist.

Genres: Occult, Magick

272 pages, Paperback

Published December 1, 2019

About the author

Aleister Crowley was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, novelist, mountaineer, and painter. He founded the religion of Thelema, proclaiming himself as the prophet destined to guide humanity into the Æon of Horus in the early 20th century. A prolific writer, Crowley published extensively throughout his life.
Born Edward Alexander Crowley in Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, he was raised in a wealthy family adhering to the fundamentalist Christian Plymouth Brethren faith. Crowley rejected his religious upbringing, developing an interest in Western esotericism. He attended Trinity College, Cambridge, focusing on mountaineering and poetry, and published several works during this period. In 1898, he joined the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, receiving training in ceremonial magic from Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers and Allan Bennett. His travels took him to Mexico for mountaineering with Oscar Eckenstein and to India, where he studied Hindu and Buddhist practices.
In 1904, during a honeymoon in Cairo with his wife Rose Edith Kelly, Crowley claimed to have received "The Book of the Law" from a supernatural entity named Aiwass. This text became the foundation of Thelema, announcing the onset of the Æon of Horus and introducing the central tenet: "Do what thou wilt." Crowley emphasized that individuals should align with their True Will through ceremonial magic.
After an unsuccessful expedition to Kanchenjunga in 1905 and further travels in India and China, Crowley returned to Britain. There, he co-founded the esoteric order A∴A∴ with George Cecil Jones in 1907 to promote Thelema. In 1912, he joined the Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.), eventually leading its British branch and reformulating it according to Thelemic principles. Crowley spent World War I in the United States, engaging in painting and writing pro-German propaganda, which biographers later suggested was a cover for British intelligence activities.
In 1920, Crowley established the Abbey of Thelema, a religious commune in Cefalù, Sicily. His libertine lifestyle attracted negative attention from the British press, leading to his expulsion by the Italian government in 1923. He spent subsequent years in France, Germany, and England, continuing to promote Thelema until his death in 1947.
Crowley's notoriety stemmed from his recreational drug use, bisexuality, and criticism of societal norms. Despite controversy, he significantly influenced Western esotericism and the 1960s counterculture, and remains a central figure in Thelema.

Reviews

[Sasha Grankin]

Great collection that include The Vision & The Voice, the real prize of this tome. DuQuette's intro is incredible as always hes great at setting up the context. Vel Chanokh took a few rereads to wrap my head around, but I know DuQuette has a book on the subject so it might be easier to just go in with that. Similar ideas minus Crowley-speak.

Vision & The Voice is beautiful, & triumphant. Crazy shit really but worth reading and rereading. Packed with ideas & gorgeous imagery. Kind of a jump from the rest of the book but understanding such context is important. Lovely

[Drew]

The classic The Vision and the Voice retitled to fit Lon's new editorial series of books curating different selections found in The Equinox journal.

[Mitchell]

This book will feel repetitive if you’ve read DuQuette’s book on Enochian magick or the Vision and the Voice. That said there’s enough useful notes in here to make me favorable to this book.