The Eye in the Triangle: An Interpretation of Aleister Crowley

Israel Regardie was, in his own right, a brilliant man and accomplished occultist, and this biography of his longtime friend and colleague is beautiful, informative, poignant, honest, and riveting. I highly recommend to anyone interested in the occult, the history of the Western Esoteric Tradition, secret societies, and obscure magical fun. This is the book that the so-called "most evil man in history" truly deserves to put the story right so we can fully appreciate the life and works of an inarguably brilliant, if almost entirely misunderstood, mystical philosopher.

In the introduction to the Book of Lies, Crowley makes a statement to the effect that -to the uninitiated- his work is intended to be infuriating nonsense. Anyone hoping to glean anything from it needs either an incredible amount of free time or an excellent interpreter. I, for one, hate riddles. I would never have taken the time to "figure Crowley out," so I was glad to have Regardie as an interpreter.Regardie's personal relationship with Crowley and his insight into Crowley's practice make this book truly exceptional. In life, Crowley actively sought to sensationalize himself and biographers have generally followed his lead. Regardie refuses to do so, and this book is perhaps even fairer to Crowley than Crowley deserves.There are, however, some things for the prospective buyer to be aware of. First, this book is more an apology for Crowley than a comprehensive biography. The author assumes that the reader has some familiarity with the other books on Crowley, and addresses only those points that he believes other biographers (primarily Symonds) have gotten wrong or missed entirely. The author only covers the years 1898-1914 and entire episodes of Crowley's life are missing (e.g. there is no discussion of his life in Sicily).Similarly, the author presumes a high-level of literacy in the occult, and digresses at-length into its minutiae. He fails to define most of the arcane terms used, so the casual reader (like me) will often be lost and sometimes bored (I found myself skipping pages here and there).But even without this contextual knowledge, I enjoyed the book immensely. The author clearly understands Crowley's thought, right down to the bedrock, and the portrait of him that emerges from this book is unexpected. As a general matter, I have no interest in ritual magick. But the author brings Crowley's mindbending and unique insights into religion, psychology, philosophy and (especially) yoga into sharp focus. Open-minded readers in each of these disciplines will find this book relevant and rewarding.

Israel Regardie who knew Crowley does not, as so many biographers, fall into the two convenient categories, when it comes to categorizing the man: the degenerate 'Black Magus' or misunderstood 'Prophet'. Instead Regardie focus on understanding Crowley using his memories of him, his writing and actions, and looking through the lens of the psychoanalytic world view of Wilhelm Reich (Regardie made a living as a Reichian therapist and chiropractor). Regardie is very open with the reader about his naivety when first coming into contact with Crowley and the nature of their later falling out; and it's a joy to 'listen' as the old man share scenes from his time with Crowley.Regardie gives his valuable insights into Crowley's psyche to us. However, as a biography, the book is lacking - it covers Crowley's life up to 1914, so I'd suggest reading another before this one (I can recommend Do What Thou Wilt: A Life of Aleister Crowley by Lawrence Sutin). Besides assuming the reader already knows the major events of Crowley's life, it also assumes a basic knowledge in the western esoteric tradition.So to sum up: a great book to get to know who Aleister Crowley was, but it's not for the casual reader, and it's not suitable as the first biography.

Excellent insight into the mind of Crowley. Definitely an essential read for any one interested in the study of Magick. New Falcon books are always top quality when it comes to the printing itself.9393/93

This is the best biography of Crowley I have ever read. Regardie was close to him for a few years, as his secretary. A very objective, informative, and fascinating read. Crowley was a very difficult person to love, but sure as hell an interesting character to read about.

Great. The author keeps a perfect balance between a personal approach, a mystic approach and an objective approach.Regardie guides the reader through the interpretation of selected Crowley writings, which very much facilitates the immersion into the evolving transcendentalism of this mythological figure. It's interesting to appreciate how the perspective of both Crowley and Regardie had become profoundly relevant (almost prophetic) in our time.

I really enjoyed this book. I have read many biographical and auto-biographical books on Crowley. Israel Regardie presents a fresh, clear picture that answered many questions I had about Crowley's meditations and spiritual exercises.

I love the style of writing by Israel, can not put the book down. Over 500 pages long...

An excellent book about Crowley! A book written by a magician about a magician, this is an essential book to read for those interested in Aleister Crowley. Israel Regardie has a no b/s style of writing that is easy to read and fascinating, there is a plethora of books available on Crowley and this is one of the few that should be bothered with.

Best biography on Crowley, by his favourite student!