Liber LXV: The Little Boat and the Pale Image
The parables of the Holy Books of Thelema
“Moreover I beheld a vision of a river. There was a little boat thereon; and in it under purple sails was a golden woman, an image of Asi wrought in finest gold. Also the river was of blood, and the boat of shining steel. Then I loved her; and, loosing my girdle, cast myself into the stream.
I gathered myself into the little boat, and for many days and nights did I love her, burning beautiful incense before her. Yea! I gave her of the flower of my youth. But she stirred not; only by my kisses I defiled her so that she turned to blackness before me. Yet I worshipped her, and gave her of the flower of my youth. Also it came to pass, that thereby she sickened, and corrupted before me. Almost I cast myself into the stream.
Then at the end appointed her body was whiter than the milk of the stars, and her lips red and warm as the sunset, and her life of a white heat like the heat of the midmost sun. Then rose she up from the abyss of Ages of Sleep, and her body embraced me. Altogether I melted into her beauty and was glad.
The river also became the river of Amrit, and the little boat was the chariot of the flesh, and the sails thereof the blood of the heart that beareth me, that beareth me. O serpent woman of the stars! I, even I, have fashioned Thee from a pale image of fine gold.”
–Liber LXV, II:7-16
This is one of the most well-known parables from Liber LXV and it is by far one of my favorites for its beautiful imagery, poetic narrative, and endless inspiration. The parable tells the story of an Initiate who sees a golden statue of Isis, or Asi as she is called, in a boat on a river and falls to worshipping her. This encounter leads to transformation — of the statue, of the Initiate, and ultimately of the entire world that the Initiate had known before. Let’s go…
“Moreover I beheld a vision of a river. There was a little boat thereon; and in it under purple sails was a golden woman, an image of Asi wrought in finest gold. Also the river was of blood, and the boat of shining steel. Then I loved her; and, loosing my girdle, cast myself into the stream.”
It is useful to note here at the start that this parable appears in the second chapter of Liber LXV, and that chapter is often connected with the element of Air. This means that we can expect to encounter some of the usual attributions of that element: Yetziratic forms, thoughts, dreams, ideas, and other aspects of mind.
With that, it is not surprising that the parable begins with a vision. The river of blood can be understood to represent life or perhaps consciousness. The boat on the river is made of steel and is symbolic of a goal, like spiritual attainment. The purple sails indicate royalty, or perhaps they are the color of wine to indicate the promise of ecstasy. The golden statue of Isis is the centerpiece.
The narrator of the parable is an Initiate, a seeker who is drawn by the sight of the beautiful golden statue in the boat. The loosening of the girdle shows that the Initiate is letting go of worldly concerns, losing any sense of shame or selfishness that might hold him back before casting himself into the stream of life to pursue this vision of Isis.
This may be familiar ground for those on the spiritual path. Many go all-in and make life changes in order to pursue their Will. Part of that pursuit is the identification of bad habits, negative people, areas of life that hold us back and may need to be paused or discontinued entirely if we are to fully move ahead without distraction.
With the goal in sight, the initiate abandons his worldly ties and swims out to the boat.