Aleister Crowley/Abilities

Aleister Crowley, acclaimed as the greatest magician in history and de-facto ruler of the Science Side as Board Chairman of Academy City, has immense power, knowledge and influence at his disposal.

For most of Toaru Majutsu no Index, little was shown to back up the claims surrounding his prowess, with Aleister remaining in the shadows in the Windowless Building, having others or technology carrying out important tasks for him. Only at the climax of World War III, when Aleister personally took action to deal with Fiamma of the Right after he saw too much, were his abilities glimpsed and his true power hinted.

As Aleister became more active in the latter part of Shinyaku Toaru Majutsu no Index, more of his capabilities were shown, with the full extent becoming apparent as the events surrounding his master plan and his past headed towards a climax.

This article covers all of Aleister Crowley's abilities and tools, both Magic and Science, as well as the ones in-between and outside of these categories - the two sides which he split the world into.

Abilities
Aleister is referred to as the greatest magician in history, though little was initially shown to back up this claim, with him always being shown to having others or technology to do important tasks. He is said to have been known for his ability to spiritually knock people to the ground, through the use of imitative magic without preparation. However, it has been hinted that Aleister is immune to Teleport attacks through either the use of magic or technology. Furthermore, through the use of technology, Aleister has the apparent ability to sever solid objects, through how much an extent is unknown, though it can be assumed that he can easily sever a man's head if he wanted to.

When talking to the other Magic Gods, or bizarre magicians as he refers to them, he says that he "let" the world's strength handle Othinus, implying that he can handle Othinus on his own. His magic is such that he has enough confidence to attack the magic gods of that realm, and with the Magic God's parameters at hand, he was capable of swapping out the spell they used to enter the world with one which weakened them without them realizing until it had been embedded. His willpower, channeled through Kihara Noukan's Anti-Art Attachment, has been shown to take a strange form which is capable of killing a Magic God.

Aleister's statements indicate that he has possessed a method of separating one's memories from their personality at least since his time with the Golden Dawn. He also possesses ways of calling in the unheard of, using combinations of existing methods, having experimented in summoning a great demon never before seen and not mentioned in any holy text during his time in Egypt, and said to learn this method to break through the common view of the world with something which could be found anywhere.

Aleister has experience and knowledge pertaining to and, two of the various methods he has used to measure his limits.

State of Existence
Likely through years of research and discipline, Aleister has achieved a higher form of existence, allowing him to, and is referred to as being in a different dimension.

In this state, Aleister's body can be injured, however he cannot be killed as simply as a normal person. After Tsuchimikado Motoharu shot him multiple times, he bled and collapsed like a normal person, but Karasuma Fran sensed a kind of invisible miasma escaping the supposedly lifeless and unmoving corpse with murderous intent and could tell with certainty that he could reboot himself at any time.

Aleister had the potential and opportunity to become a Magic God, however he rejected becoming one and choose to remain "human" instead, taking measures to make sure that he would not become a Magic God.

It is later revealed that Aleister has brought forth many possible versions of himself and sealed them all within his body. During various times Aleister has emerged, such as the time with Fiamma, a momentarily branched-off alternative version of himself appeared and disappeared in an instant, in a manner which Aleister compared to the concept of. Following his battle with Kamijou Touma and the subsequent attack by Coronzon, the many possible versions of Aleister were released into the world. Aleister said that this was bound to happen from the moment he left his life support device to deal with the problems resulting from the actions of Kihara Yuiitsu and Karasuma Fran, and even if Touma and Coronzon had not appeared, he would have branched out almost endlessly, creating every version of himself born from the various 'ifs'.

According to Tree Diagram and Reading Thoth 78, the number of options available to Aleister and the number of branches they would lead to are 1,083,092,867. Though Aleister mentioned that once he brought multiple versions of himself into the world it became apparent they would only clash and not be expected to work together if not contained, after being released from being sealed within his single body, the possible versions of himself have displayed a high degree of coordination, speaking and acting together. Many of the alternative versions embody the various impressions left from Aleister's appearance; man, woman, adult, child, saint, sinner, etc, isolated and brought to life. These manifested possibilities formed an army and came to be referred to as Crowley's Hazards.

Crowley's Hazard
The Crowley's Hazards (クロウリーズ・ハザード) are manifested 'what if' possibilities of Aleister Crowley, which he had previously brought forth and subsequently bound to his body. Following the events of December 11th, these alternative Crowleys were released into the world and became a disaster bearing his name.

Some of these parallel Crowleys have relatively normal human appearances but many of the others have inhuman and monstrous forms. However, none of them can be said to be truly normal possibilities - they are Aleister Crowley after all. As well as possessing various appearances, the Crowley's Hazards also possess varying abilities. Some of them have mastered magic like the prime Aleister while others have given up on it altogether. Although they have been brought forth through abnormal means and branched out from many "what if" possibilities, their existences will not be negated by the Imagine Breaker.

The prime Aleister is capable of guiding the bizarre Crowleys to a certain extent though unable to fully control them, and has no compunctions about killing them and using them to take the recoil from magic. Their deaths act as a blood sacrifice and have the effect of defragging and optimizing the prime Aleister, bringing more power to the surface.

Some of the manifested Crowleys include:

Spiritual Tripping
Aleister's primary combat magic is Spiritual Tripping (霊的蹴たぐり), a technique used by his teacher Allan Bennett, which involves the users linking themselves to targets and forcing images into their mind in order to manifest illusionary weapons which have the same effects on the target as a real one would have.

When using this magic, Aleister forms a gesture relating to the weapon he wishes to use against his target. The visual is used to drive an image into the target's mind and create a foothold to influence their thoughts, having them picture the weapon. Several small numbers scatter from his hand like sparks, then the indicated weapon manifests, though it is only visible to the one who is being targeted. As noted by Aleister himself, using such exchanges to seal off an opponent's options and guide their thoughts into a dead end is a fundamental part of magical combat, fundamentals being something he places great emphasis on as an expert. Aleister's top-rate skill is such that he can instill an image with details which would normally be impossible to tell from a simple gesture (e.g. color, shape, weight, texture, sheen, hardness, follow-ons), even if the image is that of something that the target has never seen before. In order for Spiritual Tripping to be effective, the target has to witness the gestures the user makes and has to be able to 'picture' the image in their mind. If the target's perception is distorted, there is a chance that Spiritual Tripping may not function properly.

The illusionary weapons only affect the intended targets and as such, will not affect or be affected by obstacles or surroundings (for example, if a gun is used to shoot a target inside a building from the outside through a window, the physical distance and atmospheric conditions won't change the accuracy of the shot, and the shot will pass through without breaking the window), through the movements of the target as a result of the attack will affect their surroundings as normal. Even if a Spiritual Tripping attack hits a target with enough destructive power to destroy the world several times over, only they will be affected by it. Though normal obstacles won't impede Spiritual Tripping attacks, it is still possible to intercept them through magical means and Imagine Breaker.

Rooted in the target's imagination, Spiritual Tripping draws out destructive power from their own mind. As such, it works well with the Blasting Rod, which amplifies magic to ten times what the target imagines it to be.

Weapons Aleister has manifested using this magic and their associated numbers include:
 * Flintlock pistol: 32, 30, 10
 * Claymore: 1, 27, 5
 * Rapier: 13, 5, 32
 * Shields, Bows: Numbers not known.
 * Big Bang Bomb (ビッグバン爆弾): Number not known. An imaginary aerial support weapon with the destructive power found at the creation of the universe, used by Aleister through the gesture of raising a hand to mime peering through a pair of military binoculars used to designate attack coordinates via laser or GPS.
 * Gamma knife: Number not known.
 * Gold staff with a spherical head: Number not known. Symbolizes the sun.
 * Silver scythe: Number not known. Symbolizes the moon.

Aside from the aforementioned weapons, Aleister suggested the forcibly implanted imagination from Spiritual Tripping could be used for surgical tools and methods, such as X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, blood tests, gas chromatography, ultrasound, centrifuges, transmission electron microscopes, polymerase chain reaction DNA tests and a cyclotron particle accelerator.

Archetype Controller
Aleister Crowley has the Archetype Controller (原型制御 (アーキタイプコントローラー) ), allowing him control over, a psychological concept for a common understanding or sense of values that developed as each member of a race or group dealt with an identical problem in the same way. Somehow Aleister can create, send them out of the world, and even destroy them.

For example, he can change the current archetype of Academy City that could be called as man's worship of science into an archetype that science is heretical. Kihara Noukan states that this power is so great that despite leaving the magic side, he is still the archetype of modern Western magic of the Golden period and are still strongly influenced by him to this day. Kihara Yuiitsu, herself, is the one who refers to Aleister as the "Archetype Controller" and because of that key factor, she sees him as an insurmountable being, with Noukan commenting that fighting him would result in a fate worse than death for them.

The nightmarish culmination of Aleister's work, the Archetype Controller allows him to divide portions of humanity (be it between good and evil, like and dislike, east and west, north and south, capitalist and socialist, or any other from of division) and pit them against each other, twisting definitions to crush the minority. However there are some methods which can apparently counteract its influence. In the case of Tsuchimikado Motoharu, he is a double spy on both the Magic Side and the Science Side; when he attacked Aleister after breaking the promise between them, Aleister could turn him towards one side to rob him of the other, but the first side, magician or esper, would still move to kill. Yuiitsu also considered that if all of humanity were to become Kiharas, as per her plan, they would all be the same and the Archetype Controller wouldn't be able to work on them as before.

Aleister apparently made use of the Archetype Controller in order to make Kihara Enshuu hole up inside a prison like it was a luxury hotel while thinking it was her own idea, overturning her murderous schedule and joy of being needed, something which Yuiitsu considered would have normally been incredibly difficult.

Curses
Aleister is a proficient user of curses, capable of utilizing a variety of lethal and debilitating curses. During the destruction of the Golden Dawn, the magicians who survived being struck down by Aleister were said to bear a curse that took away their possibilities for success in life, dooming their choices to end in failure for the rest of their lives.

Abracadabra
Among the pieces of magic Aleister has created which are viewed as great achievements, there is one based on perhaps the most famous magic phrase in the world, Abracadabra (アブラカダブラ). Though it is well known in an occult-mocking context, it is more often included in magic circles and charms than spoken incantations. The effects are that of a curse reversal (呪詛返し); when an enemy casts a curse, it will divert or send it back at the enemy. As such it is widely known as a protective charm.

However Aleister makes use of it in a different manner, having found a new interpretation and worked it into his magical system. His usage makes use of the curvature of a curse; a concept arising in many cultures, with examples such as having a doll taking the target's place or the target diverting their enemy's aim by escaping inside a magic circle drawn on the ground. It also uses the countless numbers of existing curses, which are travelling across the world like high-speed wireless internet connections. Similar to how a curved light-reflecting mirror can focus light on a single point, using supposedly harmless sunlight to start fires, the curse reversal is instead used to capture an existing curse, slightly twist it and redirect it onto a target. As he is using someone else's curse, the curse can't be traced back to him and he doesn't need to refine magic power to make use of it.

In the case of curse cast on Misaka Mikoto, the magic circle consists of an upside-down triangle with the letters of Abracadabra arranged in a regular fashion. The true name given to the curse-reversal circle says the following; "I supply lightning for thy death" (汝の死に雷光を与えよ). When the curse hit, Mikoto was hit as though struck by lightning, with severe bleeding and convulsions.

Karma
Karma (業(カルマ)) is a Magic which Aleister used to prevent the Tsuchimikados and Karasuma Fran from escaping Academy City and guide the group to the Windowless Building.

Karma is carried by a pair of constructs which spawned in the vicinity of a shadowy, cursed magical sword, which was embedded into Tsuchimikado Maika's chest. The constructs initially consist of either a silver handcuff-like ring or a device resembling a bicycle (with a maximum of one of each at a time) which drop down near the sword, then extend chains to form a vaguely humanoid frame which is then filled with a rainbow light in place of flesh. If either is destroyed, another will spawn to take its place, and if one moves out of range of its target and can no longer pursue it, it will vanish to conserve the stock.

For the chain beasts, the gear symbolizes the sun, male and acceleration, while the handcuff viewed as a ring represents the moon, female and stagnation. The two work in symmetry to draw out a non-existent element. As described in and, the chain symbolic weapon is used to bind wandering thoughts and unlike a fire wand or wind dagger, is not a physical tool but a way for the spell user to gain subconscious control. The cuff's chain is to bind and prevent movement while the gear's chain is to carry force to accelerate movement. Working in tandem to accelerate or stagnate, with the gear moving forward and the cuff opening and closing, they can shift the color schemes pictured in opponents' hearts and disrupt their spells which have a color component. They can also bend the light around their body to conceal things in or behind them.

The concept of involves one's own actions inviting the result they will receive. An example of karmic retribution would be killing a person and their child subsequently pursuing you to take revenge. If a chain beast is destroyed, the one who destroyed them bears the karma of doing so. This manifests as a vague haze with the same rainbow coloration, which seeps out of the air and vanishes as it thinly surrounds the perpetrator. The more beasts are destroyed, the more karma is gathered, becoming stronger and thicker, with the negative effects growing more apparent as it snowballs. Even destroying the karma such as with Imagine Breaker will cause one to bear the karma of killing karma.

Thelema
One of Aleister Crowley's key accomplishments is the creation of the religion, school of thought and magical format, known as Thelema. Heavily influenced by Aleister's desire to find the proper rules and answers that the god who created the world could not, as well as his journey to Egypt and his contact with the entity Aiwass, it is derived from Aleister's research and the secrets he learned from Aiwass, recorded in Thelema's central tennet, the Book of the Law. Having devised and conveyed the system, Aleister is a master of its applications and it forms a key part of his plan.

A key concept in Thelema is the Aeons; Aeons (時代</rb>(</rp>アイオーン</rt>)</rp>), divisions of human history which Aleister named after Egyptian deities, and each characterized by certain forms of belief and expression. The three primary Aeons are the Aeon of Isis (イシスの 時代</rb>(</rp>アイオーン</rt>)</rp>), the time of primitive religions before Christianity's establishment, the Aeon of Osiris (オシリスの 時代</rb>(</rp>アイオーン</rt>)</rp>), a period of stagnation during which humanity worshiped a single god during the spread of Christianity, and the Aeon of Horus (ホルスの 時代</rb>(</rp>アイオーン</rt>)</rp>), where it is believed humanity will enter a time of self-realization and self-actualization, achieving a true awakening after the downfall of Christianity. The Aeons influence other aspects of Thelema, such as the Thoth Tarot, whose Major Arcana, unlike the Golden-style Tarot which tell the story of the Son of God to draw on part of his power and enter the realm of god with a human body, start at the birth of Christianity and follow it through to its destruction at Armageddon and to the new Aeon arriving afterwards, aimed at destroying the 'closed ceiling' of god's territory and bringing humanity to the next stage above it. Aleister and his plan, as well as Aiwass, are stated to be within the Aeon of Horus.

A number of Aleister's displayed capabilities might fall under the field of Thelema, however for most of them this hasn't been verified at present. Methods applied by Aleister which are known to belong to Thelema include:
 * The methods that he had implemented for the Power Curriculum Program, the use of drugs in adolescents to induce paranormal phenomena, were revealed to be derived from the Temple of Thelema.
 * The core of the Anti-Art Attachment, an energy transfer device which allows the wielder to access Aleister's power and techniques, which was devised by Aleister, incorporates a number of Thelemic elements, including a curse reversal triangle with ''.

Phase-related Magic
Having a strong knowledge of the phases as well as the 'sparks' and 'spray' produced as they collide, Aleister has developed a technique to direct the sparks and spray produced from the phase collisions resulting from his own use of magic, and have them strike opponents. He is also capable of absorbing the spray from that magic recoil into his body, injuring himself but preventing others from being affected by the negative effects.

He was capable of detecting and breaking into the Hidden World of the true Gremlin, which even Magic God Othinus was unable to detect and breach as she manipulated the world's phases. He has also devised a large-scale ceremony in order to destroy the phases through Aiwass's power and position as an angel from the bottommost layer above the Pure World.

Modern Western Magic
Having developed the foundation of modern Western magic, Aleister is familiar with its workings and can interfere with any spells constructed based on an understanding made through that filter, neutralizing them or causing them to backfire. This is the primary reason he can fly through magic without fear of being brought down, as the common anti-flight spells were constructed in this format. He is also skilled using modern Western magic, as seen with the use of a city-scale Banner of the West against Coronzon.

Kabbalah
Aleister is experienced in use of both the standard Sephiroth and the inverse Qliphoth, and even built up his own, different third tree from scratch in the Windowless Building.

During his initiation into the Golden Dawn in his early 20s, he successfully performed a Telesma summoning ceremony using an alternative arrangement of the GD Tarot based around the Qliphoth. In his final battle with the reproduced Mathers, while using an enhancement based on the, Aleister made use of the Qliphoth to neutralize the hellfire from his banishment of Uriel which had been redirected at him by Mathers in. causing the flames, which might have rivalled a nuclear weapon in firepower, to burst and the embers to turn into sweet-smelling white flower petals. His experience with the Qliphoth's dangerous knowledge rendered the Qliphah Puzzle 545 unable to control him.

Aside from standard methods of crossing between sephirah, Aleister has also conducted research into alternative methods of passing between them and discovered an abyss between them which could not be passed through even when binding Tarot cards with a path. Looking for another way to cross it, he devised and conducted a summoning experiment in 1909, seeking to become one with this abyss so as to not take spiritual damage while crossing it, though his objective was not achieved and he instead encountered Coronzon.

Christian Magic
While Aleister generally detests Christianity and its God, he has made use of Christian magic on several occasions, most notably during his final confrontation with the reproduced Mathers, where Aleister took up a Bible from the church where he and Rose were wed, in order to protect it and the formless things residing within it.
 * St. Margaret-based anti-demon spell: Aleister made use of the legend of, who overcame a demon and put it under her foot, stepping on Coronzon in order to diminish her power prior to sealing her.
 * Pentagrammaton-based Enhancement: At the start of his final battle with the reproduced Mathers, Aleister made use of a spell derived from the, the five letters (Y-H-Sh-V-H) used to represent the Son of God, to enhance her body and build it up to a higher level. The pentagrammaton is itself derived from the (Y-H-V-H), four letters which inadequately represent God, held to be unpronounceable and unfathomable by humans. The spell is based around how people seek a salvation they can understand, with a bridge being constructed with the addition of the Sh, and the combination of the three aspects of the trinity (the father, the son and the holy spirit) to allow humanity to see salvation for themselves. After the initial incantation, Aleister's body was purified and enveloped by a white light, with white wings emerging from her back and forming a halo above her hand, and a sweet aroma scattering around her like lily flowers.
 * Stigmata-based Ascension: As the battle with the reproduced Mathers progressed and even as he was injured by his opponent, Aleister's purified body continued to synchronize with the Son of God. As a result, he eventually acquired the Stigmata, the wounds from the crucifixion and the proof of a Saint. The result of this synchronization was something which, once achieved, could be unleashed without the time, limbs and range of motions denied to Aleister from the damage inflicted to him by Mathers. Rather than the number of wounds Aleister had being a countdown to his defeat as Mathers had thought, they were a countdown to his ascension. When this countdown was completed, with his body purified and synchronized, and with the trigger common to the Son of God's legends, Aleister's body transformed into a mass of pure white light which even burst through the atmosphere and reached space, inundating the surrounding area with energy and disrupting the supply of power to the reproductions' grimoires, causing them to come apart and revert to Tarot cards.
 * St. Christopher's Staff: During the battle, Aleister wielded a twisted silver staff which became a palm tree, and possessed a weight greater than its volume and density suggested, based on the symbol and legend of . After seeking to serve the greatest master and serving the devil for a time, he repented and helped travellers across a dangerous river. One day, the saint helped the Son of God in the form of a child, who weighed as much as the entire world on his shoulders, nearly drowning in the process and learning whom he carried afterwards, coming to see his true lord in the staff he carried.
 * Uriel Banishment: When Mathers summoned the four Archangels of fire (Michael), water (Gabriel), wind (Uriel) and earth (Raphael), Alesiter made use of a spell to banish Uriel, dragging the other archangels with it as the result of their connection, derived from the angel's excommunication from canon by . Twirling her staff around and scrapping its bottom along the ground, scattering sparks and setting it ablaze, Aleister spoke an incantation, then a protective circle appeared around her, followed by a wave of hellfire across the 180 degrees in front of her. The flames erupting from the depths of the earth rejected the angel said to be the protector of the gates of hell, like a red light covering red writing, dragging the others down with it and causing the four to dissolve like a false image as the massive flames continued onwards to Mathers. Mathers was able to redirect the hellfire using a spell based on the of the Son of God casting a  out of a man and into a herd of swine.

Other Magic
Aleister is capable of using a flying broom like that of a Witch and one of his alternative possibilities, the prime Aleister following the possibility diffusion and the original body's infestation, makes use of one.

Aleister is experienced in the use of blood sacrifices in magic, a sacrifice which he has also referred to his Blood Sign (血の供儀). In the past, a blood sacrifice was used to empower the curse which he used to destroy the Golden Dawn. During the attack on the British Commonwealth by the Crowley's Hazards following their diffusion, the deaths of the Crowley's Hazards were used as a planet-wide blood sacrifice to defrag the prime Aleister and optimize her magical power like a superconductor. During this process, a red haze manifested around the prime Aleister which could form a blood red magic circle as a shield capable of deflecting attacks at supersonic speeds and scattering their power, or extend from her palm like a spear to pierce an opponent.

During the struggle against the reproduced Mathers, Aleister made use of a spell primarily based around (who is omitted from later grimoires but maintains influence in the world), incorporating elements of, , the  and blood sacrifice as well as Aleister's concept of every man and woman being a star. After a while preparing and chanting an incantation at an altitude of 1km, Aleister dived towards the target and her body became a red light as she descended to deliver a scarlet impact. Babalon's categorization as one who stands opposite of angels as the, although far removed from common examples like or Lucifer, leaves an opening for interference and intervention, such as by Mathers' Belzébuth. The initial dive was intercepted, though the second shot which Aleister transferred and fired out of the A.A.A. sent Mathers flying, though it wasn't enough to deliver a finishing blow.

Aleister has knowledge of Astrology, having read the stars in order to determine his daughter's name. He also has knowledge of Sex Magic (性魔術). He is also knowledgeable in the use of oil, candles, sticks, powders, mist and incense, often used in the construction of ceremonial grounds, and made use of a windborne powder to spook a horse in order to get its rider out of harm's way.

Magic Items

 * Blasting Rod (<rb>衝撃の杖</rb><rp> (</rp><rt>ブラスティングロッド</rt><rp>) </rp>): A spiritual item once wielded by Aleister's teacher, Allan Bennett, with the power to amplify the effects of magic to ten times what the target thinks it will be.

Super Sonic Striker
The Super Sonic Striker (<rb>極超音速衝撃波圧縮打撃砲</rb><rp> (</rp><rt>スーパーソニックストライカー</rt><rp>) </rp>), or S.S.S. for short, is a weapon constructed by Aleister using his scientific knowledge and materials found in the Naked Shopping Center in Piccadilly Circus.

It resembles a spiky shield, with modified thick pipes in place of the spikes at the front, and a tightly-packed bunch of thick tubes and hoses at the back. These connect to an air compressor and an acetylene gas tank normally used for welding. A grip similar to those of a bicycle's brakes is used to open and close the shield-like collection of pipes. There are also a few knobs.

The weapon detonates a mixture of acetylene, oxygen and hydrogen, and uses the pipes to aim the shockwave in one direction, forcing it out at around Mach 9.8. Tightened together, the shockwave forms a spear, and spread out, it forms a wall. Similar to how artificial diamond dust and impurities are mixed in to increase the cutting power of an industrial cutter using water to slice through thick steel, the barrels are filled with an abrasive made from mechanically grinding down titanium alloy screws to increase damage from the shockwave. Aleister used the weapon against the reproduced Dion Fortune, firing off five shots before tossing the unit out of the window at her, causing the gas tank to explode.

Other
Other scientific tools which Aleister had considered using during the battle with the reproduced Mathers included an ultra-low temperature bondage liquid, a planetary core vibration magma cannon and a magnetosphere compression EM wave cannon. She also made use of micro rocket engines, the size of 500ml bottles, to fly and reach an altitude of 1km.