Ordo Templi Orientis

De Lege Libellum - Liber CL

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This is a mystical-religious epistle by Aleister Crowley (writing as "TO MEGA THERION"), first published in *The Equinox* in 1919, within the tradition of Thelema — the occult philosophical system he founded. The text expounds the core Thelemic law ("Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law") by elaborating four emanations said to spring from it: Light, Life, Love, and Liberty. Its central argument is that human suffering arises from the perceived duality between self and not-self, and that discovering and unifying one's "True Will" — a transcendent, singular purpose inherent to each person — dissolves this duality and constitutes genuine freedom. Crowley makes the distinctive move of equating rigorous self-discipline and even obedience to a spiritual master with *greater* liberty, not less, arguing that scattered desires are the real bondage. He also offers a numerological argument that Love and Will are identical (both equaling 93 in Greek gematria), framing magical and erotic union as a universal formula for spiritual attainment. Notable for its combination of grandiose prophetic register with an unusually candid personal confession of Crowley's own ongoing failures and wavering, the text aims to encourage spiritual aspirants by presenting the author's imperfection as evidence that surpassing him is achievable.

De Lege Libellum - Liber CL

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