A Rose Veiled in Black: Art and Arcana of Our Lady Babalon

Aleister Crowley’s magical philosophy of Thelema had a major transformative effect on modern occult studies, ushering in a new era of esoteric revelation for the twentieth century and beyond. Among Thelema’s more enigmatic figures is the Lady Babalon, a manifold goddess embracing the powers of the Divine Harlot, Initiatrix, Creator and Destroyer. Her first appearance, however, was centuries earlier in the context of the anelic occult operations of Elizabethan Magus John Dee. ’A Rose Veiled in Black’ is a groundbreaking interdisciplinary anthology of twelve essays and rituals of Babalon by scholars, practitioners, artists and researchers of Thelema. Exploring occult themes of sacrifice, magical liberation, prophecy, witchcraft, and abomination, it marks a watershed publication for the discourse on this important and previously neglected aspect of Thelemic Studies. The written works are enhanced by an offering of original and visionary art from contemporary practitioners, each exploring the magical arcana from a ritually embodied perspective. Authors include Erik Davis, Gordan Djurdjevic, Amodali Zain, Daniel A. Schulke and Manon Hedenborg-White, author of the influential Babalon study The Eloquent Blood (Oxford University Press, 2019).