Freemasonry is an old and respected organization. It has been around for centuries and continues to thrive today.
The fraternity encourages people to come together in order to help themselves and others with moral or charitable acts.
However, there are many people who believe that Freemasons are a group of devil worshippers with dark secrets in their history.
One of the most famous figures in this conspiracy theory was the occultist Aleister Crowley (1875-1947).
Was Aleister Crowley a Freemason?
While there are some interesting connections with Freemasonry in his life, it appears as if none of them turned out to be true.
Even so, this does not discount all of these theories about him being involved somehow – just maybe not directly with Masons themselves.
Still though, even if you do believe what others say about him being a member of Freemasonry, it can’t be proven. It is all up for interpretation in the end.
A lot has been said about this although none of them are known to be true facts by most people who researched them.
For example, there were some theories that he was involved with a group or lodge at some point but not any specific one (such as Golden Dawn).
Others believed his connections went much deeper than just being an ordinary Mason – more like even becoming part of its upper echelon system which governs everything behind closed doors on behalf of Royalty and high-ranking individuals within these organizations themselves.
Still though, since no records support either claims made against him, it is difficult to say with any certainty if this was truly the case or not.
Aleister Crowley & His Masonic Rituals
Aleister Crowley was a member of many societies and groups.
It is possible that some of these affiliations were ties to Freemasonry, but there are also other organizations he could have been involved with as well.
In the late 1800s through the early 1900s, Aleister Crowley practiced magic rituals that had Masonic symbolism in them.
Some people who believe his connection to Freemasons come from this fact alone although Wikipedia states differently, even claiming Aleister was being funded by Freemason (even though he was not a member).
Who Was Aleister Crowley?
Aleister Crowley was an English occultist who founded the religion of Thelema.
He became associated with Freemasonry when he published a number of articles in several Masonic journals, including “The Builder.”
Crowley’s religious system is based upon The Book of the Law which he claimed to have translated from ancient Egyptian writings found on various papyri and stone tablets.
Although some scholars believe that these were not just written by Aleister Crowley alone but also his mother, Emily Bertha Bishop (1848-1917).
What Was He Like?
Even though many people attempted to make him out as evil or demonic, this simply wasn’t true about Aleister Crowley.
In fact, there are even reports coming from a man who was his secretary for several years, John Symonds (1908-1986).
According to this person, Aleister Crowley had some rather positive characteristics.
For example, he would often help out complete strangers and even give all of the money in his pocket to someone else on one occasion when they needed it more than him.
Why Is Aleister Crowley So Famous?
Aleister Crowley was an extremely talented and intelligent person.
For example, he spoke seven languages (including English which is not a language) and could read five others including ancient Greek and Latin.
He also had extensive knowledge of history, philosophy, literature as well as science to name just a few subjects that interested him in depth.
As a result of his abilities in these areas, Aleister Crowley developed into what would be considered the best mountaineer in Britain at one time when climbing mountains became popular during his lifetime.
In addition to this, Aleister Crowley worked on published poetry books such as White Stains which included homo-erotic themes back then.
This work has since been banned due to its controversial nature even in today’s literature.
Aleister Crowley’s 666?
Many people believe that Aleister Crowley was “the beast” mentioned in the Bible’s Book of Revelations.
This is because of the way that his name adds up when put into a certain order.
“A L I E S T E R C R O W L E Y” can be rearranged to spell “666.” Some people claim this was proof he was Satan’s right-hand man during the end days.
However, it is known that Aleister Crowley did not believe in either Satan or God.
Instead of this, he followed the religion of Thelema which focuses on personal liberty and self-betterment through one’s own will. This was opposed to Christianity which teaches people to give up their free thought for a set of rules.
Also known as “Do What Thou Wilt,” many followers today still use these principles when referring back to Aleister Crowley even though his work has been banned by several countries due to its controversial nature (including Russia).
What Is The Religion of Thelema?
The religion of Thelema focuses on the theory that humans are actually spiritual beings known as “the heart-soul” which is basically our true self.
According to this belief, we should act in accordance with nature and do whatever makes us happy (sometimes referred to as “Do What Thou Wilt”).
Aleister Crowley’s work states that there will be a time when everyone follows these rules after following different religions for so long. This means people would no longer need churches or other structures made specifically for worshiping one god/deity.
Some of Aleister Crowley Famous Books…
Although he wrote many books over the course of his lifetime, some of Aleister Crowley’s most famous ones include:
– The Book Of Lies (1912)
– Magick In Theory And Practice (1929)
– Diary Of A Drug Fiend (1922)
…and more. Even though these are still considered controversial today, they have had a great impact on literature as well as other aspects including psychology and science.
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Conclusion
- Was Aleister Crowley a Freemason?
- Was he evil or was he misunderstood?
- Was his work banned for any reason other than its controversial nature?
These are just some of the questions that come up when researching this man.
It’s clear though that he had an incredible knowledge of Freemasonry, history, philosophy, and science which allowed him to grow into the extremely talented and intelligent person that he was.