Famed mystic spends 40 days, 40 nights on Esopus Island
In August of 1918, Aleister Crowley spent 40 days and 40 nights on Esopus Island, a small sliver of land made up of mammoth bedrock at River Mile 84 off the coast of Staatsburg.
Crowley, the self-proclaimed prophet who was one of the figures on The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper album, and heralded in the Ozzy Osborne song “Mr. Crowley,” went to the island that summer to enjoy a “magical retirement” with a goal to translate the Chinese philosophical text, the Tao Te Ching.
His friends gave him money for food and camping supplies – all of which he used on rope and 50 gallons of red paint, telling them he would be “fed by the ravens.”
Curious locals and fans brought him food, drugs and kept him company as he painted slogans on the rocks including “Do What Thou Wilt” and “Every Man and Every Woman is a Star,” meditated and reportedly experienced visions of his past lives (all of whom were notable figures, including a famed Taoist, a pope, and a magician). His profound experience on Esopus Island led him to more explorations throughout Europe, before reportedly dying from a heroin overdose in 1947.
Before Crowley, previous incarnations of Esopus Island include the British using the island prior to attacking the City of Kingston during the Revolutionary War. It was also believed to be a site where Indian councils were held by members of the Lenape.
In June 2021, according to the online Occult Encyclopedia, modern day occultist and author Travis McHenry “paddled an inflatable kayak across the Hudson River to Esopus Island. Over the course of several days, he secluded himself in private meditation…and performed an invocation of Anubis, initiating himself as a Priest of Anubis using the ritual initiation passed to him by the Coven of the Catta, as written by Frederick Santee.”
In today’s realm, Esopus Island is part of the Margaret Lewis State Park and is accessible only by boat. There are no remnants of Crowley’s paintings, though there are stone structures and carved stones of unknown origins. There is a fire pit and benches on the west side, and remnants of a sandy beach to the east. And unlike Crowley’s 40 days and nights, camping is allowed by permit only. https://parks.ny.gov/parks/millsnorrie/details.aspx
