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the_real_simon_iff |
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Post subject: LAM retouched
 Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 11:53 AM
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Joined: Nov 07, 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Munick / Germany
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93!
I was often wondering why the famous AC portrait of LAM nearly everywhere seems to be retouched, thus looking like this:
Nearly all google picture searches will show you this one. I have a contemporary photograph of the painting which shows some kind of ornamental crown of hearts on the head, and I also found it (exclusively web-wide it seems) on P.R. Koenig's site:
Although it looks like it is added on the second pic, I see it here on my photograph also, and this is also the way one can find it in the photograph collection of the Harry Ransom Research Center. I don't have the Blue Equinox at hand, so I do not know which version is in there.
Any thoughts on the crown? Or its removal?
Love=Law
Lutz
EDIT: PLEASE USE THE PICTURE UPLOADED TO THE GALLERIES (AND STILL THE LAST UPDATED ON THE LEFT) FOR REFERENCE BECAUSE THE ONE FROM KOENIG'S SITE LOOKS SO RETOUCHED. |
_________________
"The Resistance to Change is intellectual Death, Insanity [...] the first clause in the Oath of the Black Brothers. The Law of Thelema is the Essence of Life, because of its perfect elasticity."
Last edited by the_real_simon_iff on Aug 03, 2008 - 12:09 PM; edited 1 time in total
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ianrons |
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Post subject: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 12:16 PM
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Joined: Jul 02, 2004
Posts: 669
Location: U.K.
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| Could it be a spinal cord? LAM is, after all, the bija of Muladhara chakra. |
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OKontrair |
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Post subject: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 01:28 PM
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Joined: Dec 18, 2004
Posts: 200
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The Blue Equinox version is very cleaned up - no background and no hat, even the edges of his furry cape have been trimmed. It includes the two mystic - not apparently Enochian - characters at bottom left and is titled 'The Way'. I am looking at the Weiser edition of the Blue Equinox so not necessarily evidential.
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herupakraath |
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Post subject: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 02:40 PM
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Joined: Jun 10, 2007
Posts: 36
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ianrons wrote: › LAM is, after all, the bija of Muladhara chakra.
How can that be determined from a painting?  |
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kidneyhawk |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 02:49 PM
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Joined: Jun 02, 2006
Posts: 1122
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Quote: ›
How can that be determined from a painting?
Well...it's a DRAWING! 
I agree, though, that simply because LAM=Muladhara Bija Mantra that LAM (the entity or thing represented by AC's sketch) does not necessarily equal that Mantra or Chakra per se.
There is a small but fairly clean and clear reproduction of the original drawing as it is framed in Outside The Circles Of Time.
I've never before seen the "hat."
Kyle |
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the_real_simon_iff |
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Post subject: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 03:33 PM
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Joined: Nov 07, 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Munick / Germany
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kidneyhawk wrote: › I've never before seen the "hat."
93!
I uploaded it to the galleries, maybe Paul and Ian can approve it. It does not look retouched, it comes from a collection of photographs of Croowley's art named "New York Collection", which I thought were more or less contemporary photographs.
Strange...
Love=Law
Lutz |
_________________
"The Resistance to Change is intellectual Death, Insanity [...] the first clause in the Oath of the Black Brothers. The Law of Thelema is the Essence of Life, because of its perfect elasticity."
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ianrons |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 03:49 PM
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Joined: Jul 02, 2004
Posts: 669
Location: U.K.
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| Paul has always dealt with the Galleries and approvals and stuff but I've assumed it's OK and gone ahead, whilst he's out getting a tan. |
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ptoner |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 04:32 PM
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Joined: Jul 10, 2006
Posts: 92
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IMHO it looks like the top photo has had the Crown of hearts rubbed out...
anyone else notice this... if you look closely it appears to have very faint line where the edges of the crown should be and even the motled marks of the lines of hearts.
Picture 2 has had everything external from the actual image removed henced giving it a touched up quality...
Seems to me that the crown was orginally susposed to be there then later removed...
Why? |
_________________
PTNR27
93 93/93
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OKontrair |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 04:34 PM
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Joined: Dec 18, 2004
Posts: 200
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In Remembering Aleister Crowley by Kenneth Grant (between pp26,27) there is an image of this picture without the headgear but with a vague smudged out ghost of where it once was. As the actual picture passed directly from AC to Grant I conclude that the alteration was done by AC.
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ianrons |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 04:42 PM
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Joined: Jul 02, 2004
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Quote: › As the actual picture passed directly from AC to Grant I conclude that the alteration was done by AC.
I don't quite follow. Why couldn't the alteration have been done by Grant? |
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OKontrair |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 05:18 PM
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Joined: Dec 18, 2004
Posts: 200
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Yes, of course it could but the appearance of the hatless version in the 1919 Blue equinox inclines me to think that AC approved that form. My Blue Equinox is 1972 which is not true in other respects so may not be in this, maybe someone with a 1919 copy can confirm. The Harry Ransome version is from photos taken of AC's New York exhibition so the only version of Lam + hat is very early.
So delete conclude and insert conjecture, surmise, hazard, presume, speculate, ruminate or guess.
The more I look at this picture the more I think that it only wants a bit of greenery coming out of the top to become a prize winning turnip.
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ianrons |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 05:37 PM
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Joined: Jul 02, 2004
Posts: 669
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| Thanks for the clarification. I don't have a 1919 Blue Equinox so this is helpful... |
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sonofthestar@Gmail.com |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 05:38 PM
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Joined: Jul 14, 2005
Posts: 271
Location: The United States of America
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Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
Seems to be a furry cape, but is it really?
Yes, a spinal cord is quite possible!
And what appears to be some hat or crown, could also be part of a serpent’s body from which the head ushers forth---into what, if you turn the drawing upside down and appreciate it from that perspective?
One could also say he looks like a baby that still resembles a fetus, wrapped in a fuzzy blanket!
The drawing can be understood in many a way.
As for the hearts, ………..
Love is the law, love under will. |
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ianrons |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 05:52 PM
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Joined: Jul 02, 2004
Posts: 669
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| Doesn't it look more like it's *behind* the figure than on top of its head? |
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sonofthestar@Gmail.com |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 05:57 PM
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Joined: Jul 14, 2005
Posts: 271
Location: The United States of America
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Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
Ianrons,
The head would extend upwards if you were looking down at it; it lacks for shading behind that dome!
Love is the law, love under will. |
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ianrons |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 06:01 PM
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Joined: Jul 02, 2004
Posts: 669
Location: U.K.
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| I may be being dense, but that comment doesn't make sense to me. Could you please elucidate? |
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sonofthestar@Gmail.com |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 06:08 PM
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Joined: Jul 14, 2005
Posts: 271
Location: The United States of America
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Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
There is another way to see it. Add shading right behind where the head joins the serpent neck, and then turn the drawing upside down.
It would then look as though the very top of the cranium were extending a little over where the neck actually joined the head. That small section of the neck would be implied, and not actually visible.
Imagine if the background were black and there were stars all about, and Lam was "reaching" his destination!
Love is the law, love under will. |
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nashimiron |
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Post subject: Bearded cleric in oily chin insertion
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 06:09 PM
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Joined: Jul 14, 2005
Posts: 269
Location: Innsmouth
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If the thing with hearts was his neck, it would look like he's trying to insert his pointy chin into the cleft beneath. 
But the disposition of the "crown" makes it look like it's been added later, as it doesn't obscure his impressive pate in any way.
Maybe Grant Photoshopped it on to further some sinister agenda...
Or maybe Crowley Photoshopped it to test Grant in some way. |
_________________
I fell off the Qliphothic tree and hit every branch on the way down...
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OKontrair |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 01, 2008 - 06:11 PM
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Joined: Dec 18, 2004
Posts: 200
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Yes it does look as if it's behind. Or did seeing as it's been removed.
Getting rid of that feature of the picture strikes me as an improvement. Why should an artist not tweak his masterpiece?
What provenance is there for the name LAM anyway? In 1919 AC was calling it 'The Way' and as late as 1945 referred to it to Grant as 'The Lama'. He says there/then that it was drawn from life. Hearts 'n' all?
Maybe symbolically LAM2 is 'heartless'.
In Blue Equinox version as well as a clean up the two mysterious characters have moved further away from the image. So I tentatively deduce that some editorial/presentational thought was given to the image at/about that time.
OK |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 02, 2008 - 07:48 PM
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Joined: Oct 22, 2006
Posts: 60
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adonia444 |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 02, 2008 - 08:18 PM
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Joined: Aug 14, 2006
Posts: 333
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| It brings us to the log in page.... |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 03, 2008 - 12:50 AM
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Joined: Oct 22, 2006
Posts: 60
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Hmmm - It seems that the 3 dots in the address bar must be replaced with:
mage.php
for it to open ? |
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lashtal |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 03, 2008 - 02:26 PM
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Site Admin
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| You need to log in to the Galleries to see it properly... |
_________________
Paul
Owner & Editor
LAShTAL.COM
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IAO131 |
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Post subject: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
Posted: Aug 06, 2008 - 04:40 AM
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Joined: Nov 09, 2007
Posts: 210
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93,
The second one looks obviously doctored, both the 'crown of hearts' above him and the extremely white background behind him. Also, if you look in Voice of the Silence you'll see the top photo, not the bottom.
"LAM is, after all, the bija of Muladhara chakra."
Huh?
IAO131 |
_________________
* Journal of Thelemic Studies *
.: http://iao131.cjb.net :.
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Iskandar |
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Post subject: Re: RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: LAM retouched
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