The Works of Aleister Crowley Vol. 3 (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781585093526)

This book contains early works written by Crowley between 1904-1907 and is Volume Three of a three-volume set. His earliest works, written between 1887-1897, were almost entirely destroyed by authorities due to their offensive nature. In writing the material that appears in this set of books, Crowley toned things down and moved away from the more graphic sexual themes he had been primarily focused on. He concentrates mainly on mystical poetry in this volume, along with an Epilogue containing a scathing indictment of religion. In total we have five poetry sections, two plays and the final essay called Eleusis in the Epilogue and Dedication to all three volumes. Two Appendices close out the work with Notes and an Index to all three volumes. This third volume contains a more flamboyant tone, which carried over into his next great achievement, The Equinox. Almost half this volume contains the poem Orpheus: A Lyrical Legend, which glorifies mythical characters with complex rhyming schemes that mirror his later incantations to various gods. The more one understands Crowley's magickal terms, the more will be gained from the poetry found here.