The Satanic Pipe Smoker

[misterlowercase]

Something really interesting is that he once lived at No. 93 Jermyn St.

Jermyn St. is a pretty important historical avenue for pipesmokers.
Then, the Berkeley connection,

in 1943, Grady Louis McMurtry, US Army Company Commander, met and was hanging out with Crowley:

"I would sit down with Crowley at 93 Jermyn Street, playing chess with him, drinking brandy and smoking perique. The black-out blinds would be on the windows. We could hear the German bombers upstairs with their motors revving up and down. The British anti-aircraft over in Trafalger Square would be blasting away, making sheet lightning in the night."

McMurtry lived in Berkeley after the war, and was working at the Campus Smoke Shop.

The neighborhood he lived in was also where Philip K. Dick (my favorite writer) was living.

Robert Anton Wilson (another great writer) lived around there later on in the early 70's.
Drucquer's was down the street too, at 2201 Shattuck Ave.
http://www.cornelius93.com/photos-berkeleytour.html
All very cool how these things seem to tie together somehow.

"... just reading Grant's memoirs of Crowley, where it mentions that, at least at the end of his life, Crowley was as much a fan of Latakia as of Perique. Grant mentions that Crowley kept his tobacco tins near his desk (as do I!), and he had one labeled with a Hebrew Lamed for the Latakia, another with the Hebrew Pe for Perique. Grant mentions getting Crowley some Perique at the Dunhill store."

 

[perdurabo]

You know Crowley wasn't a Satanist, Deathmetal. Solarist possibly. Or just Telemite. Definitely a heavy Rumper. :rofl:

 

[perdurabo]

I can't wait to get my hands on the new Unabridged Confessions, whenever it's released. My old trade paperback copy has been to Europe twice and traveled throughout the States with me. It's a great read and to think, it was dicatated to Leila Waddell. Crowley must've smoked a lot of perique during those sessions, among other arcane subjects and substances.

 

[perdurabo]

The editors cut some material from the original manuscript, this material is supposed to be added back in.
As far as the magickal writings of Crowley, it's not for beginners. Its written in code and purposely written in certain cases to miss lead. You probably know this. It's common knowledge now.

I refer people to Kraig's Modern Magick, Poke Runyon, and Franz Bardon. Modern Magick is the desert island book. If there was a great disaster and you need to keep one book for the future of mankind, Modern Magick would be that book. Behind that Franz Bardon.
If you are into Thelema, Lon Milo DuQuette is a source to go by. He is a genius at sifting through the b.s. His Enochian Angel Magick book is genius and another desert island book.
Crowley is an example of how far you can go to unlocking your own magickal style and symbolism and make it work for you. That was what he was all about. I may be preaching to the choir here, but many don't know about magick and misunderstand Crowley. Oh yea, those OTO folks.... :rofl:

 

[deathmetal]

Satanism, hermeticism, new thought, Hinduism and Euro-Paganism have a lot of overlap. A good thing to contemplate while lighting up a Rumper...

 

[deathmetal]

Crowley was probably smoking something like this blend, a version with a rum topping. There are many perique blends from this era where the tin says "cut from the carrot". I don't think the pure in pure perique necessarily means its 100% St. James Parish Perique, maybe just a marketing gimmick.

That's possible, but contra-indicated by his statement that he received it in ropes shipped from the USA and that he had to cut it himself. Hence, the assumption that he also soaked it in Perique. Unfortunately, he is not 100% clear on the topic.
But I'd like to score some of that tobacco!

 

[deathmetal]

I think it was mentioned in the articles cited, and if not, I'll have to dig it up. I agree about cutting plugs. It's a great sensation.
Another data point is that he acquired some kind of Latakia-only blend later, by the sound of things.

 

[okiescout]

"You know Crowley wasn't a Satanist, Deathmetal. Solarist possibly. Or just Telemite. Definitely a heavy Rumper."
Struggling to keep up with you guys on this, Perdurabo. Do you mean Thelemite? He wrote or at least inspired that book didn't he?

Odd duck to say the least. Knew his tobacco though.

 

[deathmetal]

Do you think the Pure Perique tin above is the same as 100 % st. James Parish blending perique?

I don't know. My guess is not, simply because the audience for pure Perique would be limited, but maybe it was for blending.

 

[7ach]

I love Haddos Delight! Reading this thread all I could think about was this song Mr crowley

 

[perdurabo]

Yes, Okiescout Thelemite would be correct. That slip made it past the last edit.
I think Death solved the mystery per the short story that he quotes. Crowley was one of the characters in that story(the name of that story escape me). He describes the character cutting the perique and soaking it in rum. Am I correct on this, Deathmetal?

 

[deathmetal]

In the story, he refers to it as "the pure Perique of St. James’ Parish Louisiana."
In The Diary of a Drug Fiend, he refers to how he acquires it. "I imported some tobacco, rolls of black Perique, the best and purest in the world. By-and-by, I got tired of cutting it up, and sent it to a tobacconist for that purpose."
There were other references, but these two are the clearest. Nothing about the soaking, which I suppose could have happened before it was sent to him -- but that sounds more like Navy style tobacco than Perique -- so by deduction, he did the soaking afterwards. As to what "soaked" means, that's more open to interpretation.

 

[perdurabo]

Yea, I just found it "Not the Life and the Adventures of Sir Roger Bloxam." No rum soaking mentioned. My bad.

 

[deathmetal]

He leaves us little puzzles, and I wish I knew the answer. From all that I saw, it looked like he ordered some kind of Perique that was actual St. James Perique and not Navy style "perique," and since it came in ropes, had to soak it himself.
That leaves us with Rum/Per, and thank the dark gods for that!

 

[perdurabo]

I received some Gawith Hoggarth &Co Rum Twist today. First time I've tried a rope. Cut some up and packed a new clay pipe. Two minutes into the bowl and I was amazed that I'd had this tobacco before. Yea, it's as close to Rum/Per as any tobacco could be. Same dark fired sweet notes. It's missing the raisin/fig notes, though. I just found a new unicorn. Rope tobacco.

 

[perdurabo]

The Satanic Pipe Smoker. Sounds better than: The Ultra-Will Manipulator Pipe Smoker. Sort of draws one into the thread. Adversary and all.

 

[hawke]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3LvhdFEOqs

Mr. Crowley, what went on in your head?

Oh, Mr. Crowley, did you talk to the dead?

Your life style to me seemed so tragic

With the thrill of it all

You fooled all the people with magic

Yeah, you waited on Satan's call
Mr. Charming, did you think you were pure?

Mr. Alarming, in nocturnal rapport

Uncovering things that were sacred

Manifest on this Earth

Conceived in the eye of a secret

And they scattered the afterbirth
Mr. Crowley, won't you ride my white horse?

Mr. Crowley, it's symbolic, of course

Approaching a time that is classic

I hear that maidens call

Approaching a time that is drastic

Standing with their backs to the wall
Was it polemically sent

l want to know what you meant

I want to know, I want to know what you meant, yeah

 

[perdurabo]

Scarface, the rum twist rum flavor is light. I got little hints of rummy sweetness. Nothing like GL Pease Sextant. Have not had the Rum Flake.