“If the Kingdom be Ruled According to the Tao” : Politics as “Eastern Wisdom” in Aleister Crowley’s Reception of the Daodejing
The fascination with the “Eastern Wisdom” exhibited among esoteric movements in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century is often understood as an interest in spirituality. Existing research has focused on how these movements took an interest in beliefs in doctrines like karma and reincarnation, as well as in practices of meditation and divination. Although this characterisation is broadly
