Do What Thou Wilt
"The word of the Law is Thelema.* Who calls us Thelemites will do no wrong, if
he look but close into the word. For there are therein Three Grades, the Hermit, and the Lover, and the man of Earth. Do what
thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." Liber al vel Legis 1:39-40
These verses express the heart of the revolutionary message contained within the Book of the Law.
It is a radical declaration of human independence from religious and social rule . . . a statement
that every man and woman should be free to do his or her own will. Yet with this freedom there also lies responsibility. It
is not an open call to anarchy and riotous existence.
Before we "stars" can enjoy the freedom of choosing our own orbit, we must first learn self discipline,
turn within to know ourselves, and then understand the nature of our will before pursuing it.
I met a young man recently who obviously came from a good background. Well groomed, well spoken,
and well mannered, he impressed me as someone who had the world as his oyster, to steal an old phrase. He was unmarried and
unencumbered. The early death of his wealthy parents left him free to choose any path. It was a position that many would identify
as total freedom to pursue his will without obstruction. But his choice was alcoholism. We rarely saw him when he wasn't intoxicated.
This man was not following his will. Instead, he was in pursuit of physical pleasure. The body was in control. The Khu was
in the Khabs.
An examination of the verses may help in reaching a better understanding of the word will as defined
by Nuit.
There is an asterisk beside the word "Thelema" in the first sentence. That is because in the original
text, the word was spelled from the Greek alphabet, and the letters cannot be reproduced in this computer without acquiring
specific software.
The word Thelema means "will." Like all parts of this amazing book, however, there seems to be secret
messages in the use of the Greek letters. There also is a message behind the use of the word Thelema instead of the more simplified
word "will."
Crowley wrote volumes attempting to get to the root of these messages. His book The Law Is For All
includes at least three different numerical formulas, linking to each of the Greek letters that seem to contain messages.
Crowley said the word goes beyond a simple statement of "will." He wrote that it could be translated
to say "let will and action be in harmony." Or it implies that this is "will in the higher sense of magical one-pointedness."
He said "Do what thou wilt need not only be interpreted as license or even as liberty . . . The
passage might be read as a charge to self-sacrifice or equilibrium."
Verse 40 gives us a new riddle. Nuit refers to the word Thelema when she reveals that if we examine
or "look but close into the word" there can be found "Three Grades, the Hermit, and the Lover, and the man of Earth."
Crowley noticed that the word Thelema breaks into three vowels, each one of them, when spoken aloud,
giving out a different sound of breath. The-Le-Ma. That the sounds represent the grades, Crowley suggested that they are grades
from three points on the Tree of Life; Binah (just under Kether and representing the Third Order), Tiphereth (in the center
and representing the Second Order) and Malkuth (at the bottom and representing the Man of Earth).
From Liber 418: "The man of earth is the adherent. The lover giveth his life unto the work among
men. The hermit goeth solitary, and giveth only of his light unto men."
As newcomers and students of occult sciences, we are fortunate if we find ourselves on a level with
Malkuth.
The verse concludes: "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law."
Crowley notes there are three parts to what he called the Law of Thelema. Following this verse there
also is to be found: "Love is the law, love under will." And finally: "There is no law beyond Do what thou wilt."
"Each action or motion," Crowley wrote, "is an act of love, the uniting with one or another part
of Nuit; each such act must be under will, chosen so as to fulfill and not to thwart the true nature of the being concerned."
From this we must ask who's law is this? The answer, of course; it is a law of the New Order. It
is the law of Nuit, our creator. It was the law under which we lived when the Earth was pure. It is the law of Eden.
Copywrite - James Donahue
