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Rating: In the new collection of short stories by Aleister Crowley The Golden Twigs recently published by Arcoiris, the great Franco Pezzini writes in the introduction, regarding the story The Stone of Cybele, that "The return of pagan gods is, after all, a literary topos to which the prophetic role consecrated for Crowley by the revelation of Cairo (the Book of the Law presumably transmitted to him by a messenger of the Egyptian god Horus, 1904) offers substantial experiential content." The theme of the return of pagan gods is part of all romantic and fantastic literature of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It's impossible not to mention Arthur Machen and his "Little People," which links back to Celtic paganism. Or the masterpiece novel by Jean Ray Malpertuis. But neopaganism continues to have its influence even today in various sectors. In the music scene, the so-called apocalyptic folk has always been attracted to paganism. The early Current 93, especially at the beginning of their career, were devout followers of Crowley. Their name actually derives from The 93rd Current, a definition of the Thelema religion, the philosophy developed by the Great Beast at the beginning of the 20th century. But also worth mentioning are Death In June who cited him in the album “The World That Summer” featuring the famous phrase "Love is the law, love under will."
The Golden Twigs differs, however, from the previous collection by the same publisher The Beast's Tales where the material had been assembled in a disparate manner. It is indeed a thematic anthology that saw its first publication in 1988 and is conspicuously inspired by The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion by James G. Frazer (1854-1941), a work of crucial importance concerning cultural anthropology and the history of religions. The Golden Bough is also cited in the story by H.P. Lovecraft The Call of Cthulhu.
The first draft dates back to 1916 (when Crowley signed as Mark Wells) for the American magazine “The International.” The project was slated for publication in 1930 but was abandoned. The Golden Twigs comprises 8 stories. The basis of Frazer's theory is that the archaic beliefs of different populations "document present contiguities among them and reveal traces even in homegrown folklore" as always writes Pezzini who rightly notes how the studies of the Scottish anthropologist have influenced the film genre of Folk Horror whose masterpiece is the film The Wicker Man (1973).
The opening The King of the Wood is the story most connected to Frazer's studies. The central theme from which Frazer's The Golden Bough develops concerns the story of Rex Nemorensis, a priest of Diana in the temple of Nemi, a survival of an ancient cult within the historical context of ancient Rome. Crowley is skillful, in reproducing the story in which the king of the Nemi wood is to be sacrificed, in using dark and very strong symbols. The Stone of Cybele is perhaps the best story. The dichotomy between Christianity and paganism is at the heart of this lurid story. The ancient cult of the goddess Cybele is evoked here, awakened through a black stone, by the female protagonist Cotys who ends up transforming into a cruel priestess subjugating the priests of the Christian cult. Her cousin Claude de looks very much like an autobiographical portrait of Crowley himself.
Noteworthy are also The Mass of Saint Sécaire, a grim story of black magic (where a toad is crucified) very “crowleyan” influenced by Là-bas by J. K. Huysmans, and The God of Ibreez where the virgin priestess Krasota, after taming King El-Gebel, will commit suicide through the ritual of eroto-comatose lucidity, a sexual practice of the Ordo Templi Orientis (the religious organization of which the Beast 666 was part).
Crowley wasn't a great writer, but these stories are still filled with a particular perverse charm. I am sure the few decadents who remain will know how to appreciate them.
Aleister Crowley – “The Golden Twigs” – 229 pages – Edizioni Arcoiris – Euro 14 - 2021
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