The Great Beast: The Life and Magick of Aleister Crowley - John Symonds

Title: The Great Beast: The Life and Magick of Aleister Crowley
Author: John Symonds
Publisher: Mayflower Books Ltd / Granada Publishing Limited
Format: Paperback
Edition: Mayflower paperback edition, revised by the author, 1973
ISBN: 0583121950

Condition: Second-hand. Fair. The covers and spine show heavy rubbing, creasing, edge wear and worn corners, with pronounced wear along the spine. A photographed gutter has opened noticeably, indicating binding wear, and the visible pages are age-toned. Please see photos for the exact copy available.

John Symonds' biography of Aleister Crowley traces Crowley's life, occult career and role in twentieth-century ceremonial magic, including the Golden Dawn and Thelema. Revised by Symonds for this 1973 Mayflower edition, it is an important early post-war biography of one of modern occultism's most influential and controversial figures.

Symonds knew Crowley and later became his literary executor, giving the book unusual proximity to its subject while also offering a frequently critical interpretation. This vintage edition will particularly interest readers and collectors of Thelema, Aleister Crowley, ceremonial magic and modern occult history.