118 | 119 | 120 | 121 | 122 |
1 | 46 | 93 | 139 | 185 |
'Thine arm then serveth thee both for a warning and for a record. Thou shalt write down thy daily
progress in these practices, until thou art perfectly vigilant at all times over the least action that
slippeth from the least of thy fingers.
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3] See Chapter Two. 144
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'Thus bind thyself, and thou shalt be for ever free.' (4) The practices which Crowley suggests in Liber
Jugorum are good for a general training of the Will rather than having an intrinsic value. They
include:
'a. Avoid using some common word, such as "and" or "the" or "but"; use a paraphrase.
b. Avoid using some letter of the alphabet, such as "t", or "s" or "m"; use a paraphrase.
c. Avoid using the pronouns and adjectives of the first person; use a paraphrase.
d. Avoid lifting the left arm above the wrist.
e. Avoid crossing the legs.
f. Avoid thinking of a definite subject and all things connected with it, and let that subject be one
which commonly occupies much of thy thought, being frequently stimulated by sense-perceptions or
the conversation of others,
g. By some device, such as the changing of thy ring from one finger to another, create in thyself two
personalities, the thoughts of one being within entirely different limits from that of the other, the
common ground being the necessities of life ... Of thine own ingenium devise others.' (5)
These can be incorporated into the practices of your retirement, but should be regarded as
supplementary not central. The rigour of the razor could also be modified to a less damaging and
masochistic form of reminder, and they could be used a day at a time rather than for the whole week.
The practices of Liber Jugorum have the distinct advantage of keeping the practitioner alert and better
able to avoid distractions; for one-pointedness of mind is one of the essentials of this work.
The maintenance of a record in your Magical Diary of all practices (no matter how trivial) and of all
results or extraordinary events is the fourth and most important requirement. This magical record will
enable you to look back over the retirement and assess the cause of apparently irrational and
unconnected happenings, which can act as pointers to your development by creating an overall
pattern.
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