3 ms·

> (in)famous occultist Aleister Crowley was asked if magic is "real" e.g. can you actually do physical things like light a fire with your mind. His answer was b

• _yb2s 2y ago
  Perhaps, but Crowley actually claimed to be capable of that type of physical magic, and still dismissed it. I’m not sure what to make of that- he was brilliant but probably both crazy and dishonest.
  • cratermoon 2y ago
    > I’m not sure what to make of that Easy. Crowley was a grifter taking advantage of credulous people for his own ends. "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun."
    • _yb2s 2y ago
      Grifter is uncharitable for someone that is dealing with esoteric things relating to the unconscious where words fail, and who openly admits that what he says isn't intended to be taken as literal truth- I mean he even titled his books things like "the book of lies." His intended audience is too intelligent to be easily "grifted" or to take him literally. In the words of Garek (Deep Space Nine): Doctor: What I want to know, out of all of the stories you've told me, which ones were true and which ones weren't? Garek: My dear doctor, they're all true. Doctor: Even the lies? Garek: Especially the lies. Source: https://youtu.be/4n8j6z8fQ_c?feature=shared https://youtu.be/4n8j6z8fQ_c?feature=shared