A brother posted recently on Facebook about how the current polemic in U.S. politics is influencing the experiences of people at their local camps, oases, and lodges. It can hardly be said that Aleister Crowley had no political leanings, but I’ve seen a metric ton of arguments from various people explaining that AC’s politics were perfect, and just so happened to align with their own.
I shall endeavor to avoid doing such a thing in this post.
“Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.”
At the core of everything we do in Thelema, those eleven words form the core of our approach to manifestation in this existence. Likewise, we recognize the inherent rights of all other incarnated beings to do the same. Every man and every woman is a Star, after all.
We all have our particular orbits. We interpret things differently, we apply things differently. We believe different things.
And that’s fine. Variety is the spice of life.
And now I’m going all subjective, all that objectivity stuff above be darned.
Darned to heck.
At the end of the day, in my opinion, the thing we’re actually working on here on planet Earth is the betterment of our personal lives and the lives of everyone else incarnating. I think we do this by granting ourselves the right to do our Will, and respecting others as they seek to do their Will, as long as it isn’t infringing on anyone else’s Will. True Will is not likely to infringe on anyone else’s expression of their true Will. I think.
And if it does, two dark stars and all that.
I don’t think we’re here to make the world Lefter or Righter. I think those are some interpretations. What brings us together as Thelemites is something beyond the temporary politics of the trailer planet. We’re here for the things we learn about as we go through the degrees of the Man of Earth triad, and beyond. It doesn’t matter that my politics haven’t changed since 1992, but somehow I went from conservative centrist to radical leftist in the eyes of society at large. That’s not why we joined the O.T.O. It isn’t a political organization.
That said, I’d like to quote Sabazius X* from NOTOCON 15 in Austin, TX:
“… don’t let yourself get shanghaied onto sleazy campaign steamers by scare tactics, superstition, sentimentality, or vague promises of economic advantage. Hold onto your own vision and principles, and vote them. If you can find candidates who actually advocate your principles, support them. Perhaps more importantly, actively oppose candidates who espouse views and policies that are inimical to your principles. If you have the energy and contacts, maybe you should consider being a candidate yourself for some local office.
And if you want to support Thelemic principles in a political way, I suggest you use Liber Oz as your guide; not the phony, intentionally divisive, celebrity culture, pseudo- issues cooked up by the political parties and their servants in the media.”
I bolded the part about being a candidate myself. He didn’t, like, shout it or anything. He just said it. I happen to think it’s a great idea.
And Liber Oz is the only thing that should guide our treatment of others, in my opinion, when it comes to basic human rights, and how we treat one another in society, online, and especially when we get together as Thelemites to celebrate the things we hold most dear.
Also, I’ll totes vote 93 every chance I get.
