THE
ARCANE
ARCHIVE
a cache of usenet and other text files pertaining
to occult, mystical, and spiritual subjects.


TOP | MYSTICISM | PSYCHOACTIVES

Was Al afraid of Al?

To: alt.magick,alt.magick.chaos,alt.magick.serious,alt.magick.tyagi
From: catherine yronwode 
Subject: Re: Was Al afraid of Al?
Date: Sat, 24 Mar 2001 23:01:02 GMT

Satyr wrote:
> 
> In article <3ABC10B7.500F@luckymojo.com>, "catherine yronwode"
>  wrote:

> >  He was also a man addicted to several drugs who also experiemnted 
> > with various non-addictive drugs. In my limited experience (53 yeas 
> > as the hippie child of beatniks), the types of drugs (and i include 
> > alcohol and tobacco here) that one ingests will have a formative 
> > effect on the quality of one's thoughts. It has long been my belief 
> > that the inconsistencies in Crowley's work probably stem from the 
> > effects of the different stimulant, narcotic, and psychedelic drugs 
> > he was using when he wrote various passages. Had he been a mere 
> > drunk or a mere heroin junkie, we could expect some consistency -- 
> > but such was not the case. 
> > 
> > Just 2 cents from a practical observer of life,  cat yronwode
> 
> There is always something funny when a hippie stands and points the
> finger of puritanical judgement.
> 
> Thanx for the comic relief!

I did not point the finger of puritanical judgement -- i just gave an
opinion as to why Crowley's themes and statements may have varied so
much during his life. 

Drugs affect the neurobiology of the mind in varying ways. Some
interfere with the serotonin system, some with the dopamine system, some
activate other hormes or neurotransmitters. We all know this,
instinctively if not medically, when we refer to one drug as "mellow"
and another as "speedy" and another as "halucinogenic."

The thoughts one has (and hence the writing one may produce) when stoned
on marijuana are far different than those one has when stoned on alcohol
-- and both differ from the thoughts one has when stoked on coffee ...
or speed. Likewise, the effect of psilocybin is quite different from the
effect of coacaine upon the mind. And Crowley took most of these driugs
-- and more, including ether, hashish, and heroin -- he says as much in
his autobiograhy. 

What i was saying is that since Crowley took a lot of different drugs,
the drugs he took at various times undoubtedly affected his mental state
in various ways -- and in my opinion, his mental state may have varied
enough to produce seeming inconsistencies in what he wrote over the
years. 

How you managed to twist that into a false assumption that i was
puritanical and then make fun of me is something only you can explain --
but puritanical judgement was definitely not what i intended, hence your
risibility was ill-founded. 

Cordially, 

cat yronwode

The Arcane Archive is copyright by the authors cited.
Send comments to the Arcane Archivist: tyaginator@arcane-archive.org.

Did you like what you read here? Find it useful?
Then please click on the Paypal Secure Server logo and make a small
donation to the site maintainer for the creation and upkeep of this site.

The ARCANE ARCHIVE is a large domain,
organized into a number of sub-directories,
each dealing with a different branch of
religion, mysticism, occultism, or esoteric knowledge.
Here are the major ARCANE ARCHIVE directories you can visit:
interdisciplinary: geometry, natural proportion, ratio, archaeoastronomy
mysticism: enlightenment, self-realization, trance, meditation, consciousness
occultism: divination, hermeticism, amulets, sigils, magick, witchcraft, spells
religion: buddhism, christianity, hinduism, islam, judaism, taoism, wicca, voodoo
societies and fraternal orders: freemasonry, golden dawn, rosicrucians, etc.

SEARCH THE ARCANE ARCHIVE

There are thousands of web pages at the ARCANE ARCHIVE. You can use ATOMZ.COM
to search for a single word (like witchcraft, hoodoo, pagan, or magic) or an
exact phrase (like Kwan Yin, golden ratio, or book of shadows):

Search For:
Match:  Any word All words Exact phrase

OTHER ESOTERIC AND OCCULT SITES OF INTEREST

Southern Spirits: 19th and 20th century accounts of hoodoo, including slave narratives & interviews
Hoodoo in Theory and Practice by cat yronwode: an introduction to African-American rootwork
Lucky W Amulet Archive by cat yronwode: an online museum of worldwide talismans and charms
Sacred Sex: essays and articles on tantra yoga, neo-tantra, karezza, sex magic, and sex worship
Sacred Landscape: essays and articles on archaeoastronomy, sacred architecture, and sacred geometry
Lucky Mojo Forum: practitioners answer queries on conjure; sponsored by the Lucky Mojo Curio Co.
Herb Magic: illustrated descriptions of magic herbs with free spells, recipes, and an ordering option
Association of Independent Readers and Rootworkers: ethical diviners and hoodoo spell-casters
Freemasonry for Women by cat yronwode: a history of mixed-gender Freemasonic lodges
Missionary Independent Spiritual Church: spirit-led, inter-faith, the Smallest Church in the World
Satan Service Org: an archive presenting the theory, practice, and history of Satanism and Satanists
Gospel of Satan: the story of Jesus and the angels, from the perspective of the God of this World
Lucky Mojo Usenet FAQ Archive: FAQs and REFs for occult and magical usenet newsgroups
Candles and Curios: essays and articles on traditional African American conjure and folk magic
Aleister Crowley Text Archive: a multitude of texts by an early 20th century ceremonial occultist
Spiritual Spells: lessons in folk magic and spell casting from an eclectic Wiccan perspective
The Mystic Tea Room: divination by reading tea-leaves, with a museum of antique fortune telling cups
Yronwode Institution for the Preservation and Popularization of Indigenous Ethnomagicology
Yronwode Home: personal pages of catherine yronwode and nagasiva yronwode, magical archivists
Lucky Mojo Magic Spells Archives: love spells, money spells, luck spells, protection spells, etc.
      Free Love Spell Archive: love spells, attraction spells, sex magick, romance spells, and lust spells
      Free Money Spell Archive: money spells, prosperity spells, and wealth spells for job and business
      Free Protection Spell Archive: protection spells against witchcraft, jinxes, hexes, and the evil eye
      Free Gambling Luck Spell Archive: lucky gambling spells for the lottery, casinos, and races