It’s not easy to explain, to whom has not heard before about this matter, the complex and multiple facets deduced by Crowley in the simple axiom “Do what thou wilt.”
It is a sentence that contains the complexity of the Thelema thought, hiding in its words that some would consider simple, even if I don’t know how much it can be considered easy to understand or to imitate the libertarian ideas to which Crowley was referring.

“Do what thou wilt”, the Thelemic slogan by definition, can not be understood without investigating the concept of the “True Will”.

Firstly, we have to make a distinction between desire and will, even if they may be synonyms you don’t have to think that they possess the same value.

The desire, representing just the contemplation of an ideal, it doesn’t implicate anything else other than the admiration that you can have for something and it´s like pointing out a hope that usually remains conjugated on conditional tense in which there is still something that blocks us to complete the action that would finally turn a desire into an action of conquest, the real act of a true will.

It´s the desire that evolves into will, when we finally understand that to reach ours dreams we have to make consequently and stop to contemplate in order to final touch the object of ours fantasy.

The word Thelema (Θελημα) in Greek means Will, this one doesn’t come from the Ego but from more personal experiences, internals and unconscious that develops the final aim of this life or incarnation; it is, in an extreme synthesis, the expression of the universal will that manifest itself in the facts that you live.

If you follow your real Will, you might have the impression that also the Universe is transmitting your same vibrations, you will read signals in which you´ll understand that you´re doing well and you´ll perceive an harmony that embraces the All. Even if something is not going where you want, you´ll understand that you´are going astray from you Will: understand the lessons given by your error in order to came back on track it´s an experience that every one lives continuously.

Be familiar with your inner Will corresponds in Thelema to be able to talk with our Holy Guardian Angel that express itself with sensations and sentiments, our inner divinity.

The Will sometimes could agree with your passions but, as it doesn´t come from personality or Ego, you could be shocked recognizing that something unexpected is the only path to follow.

Recognizing yourself in different acts is an evident signal that we´re starting to know ourselves in deeper, changing your mind about point of views it is a real cancellation of the positive or negative duality through a superior understanding.

Liber AL
For pure will, unassuaged of purpose, delivered from the lust of result, is every way perfect.
The Perfect and the Perfect are one Perfect and not two; nay, are none! [ I – 44/45]

When we apply the Thelemic witticism to our True Will, we realize that we succeed to realize in actions our will and we give a deeper sense to each decision, like there is a common denominator in every smaller action that unconsciously push us to follow something and not something else.

“Do what thou wilt” let us keep in mind that we should be the chief of our more intimate choice as well the parson that you love, passions and actions. It represents a load-bearing thought of the philosophy and the practice in Thelema, the implied meaning opens the horizon of the phrase to the infinitive and let the concept easy to be misunderstood.

I´m ending this little text reporting some illuminated phrase that have inspired my article. I thank you A. Moscato quoting some extract from his book “Ars Gratia Artis”.

<<The True Will is composed by more parts; they aren´t just various experience that little by little have been jointed all together and, overlapping the original state of our birth, they have led us to be what we appear to be to the others, but it´s also about experiences that, for many different reasons, they have been hidden from the outside and represent our subconscious storage, as well as the unconscious; in the end there are all that experiences that complete our orbit and, with the infinitive possibility of chance, as they haven´t been yet accomplished, they keep real difficult to be understood with an absolute precision.>>

<<the True Will can be understood as a “legitimate desire” and an harmonic group of universal and naturals laws, it´s about the fall of every brake undue and unnecessary inhibition as a result of intoxication of divinity. Each action should be accomplished in the most absolute freedom and naturalness. Put limits to yourself, or worse, to the others, when there is not a truly reason that justifies it, is a great crime against yourself and the humanity itself.>>

<< The True Will is in accordance with the laws governing the Macrocosm.>>

*artwork by Barry William Hale 2015*