“Love is the law, love under will.” It sounds beautiful, but what does it really mean in practice?
Everyone remembers the first half.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. It’s quoted endlessly, painted on walls, inked on skin. And too often, it’s misunderstood.
But Thelema isn’t a call to unrestrained freedom. It’s a call to something much more precise, and much more difficult. That’s why the second half matters.
Love is the law, love under will.
This isn’t poetic filler tacked on for mystique. It’s the key to everything. Without it, you don’t have Thelema. You have chaos wearing a spiritual mask.
So let’s look deeper. Because if you want to live by the Law of Thelema, you don’t just need to discover your Will, you need to understand how Love moves through it.
Thelema Isn’t a Free-for-All
Let’s clear up the most common misunderstanding first.
“Do what thou wilt” doesn’t mean “Do whatever you want.” It doesn’t mean indulgence without responsibility or action without consequence. It doesn’t give you permission to ignore compassion or decency. If anything, it demands more from you, because it asks you to uncover the deepest truth of your being and act in full alignment with it.
Thelema is not egoism dressed in robes. It is a razor’s edge of purpose.
And Love? That’s not the soft part. That’s the hard part. It’s where the Work becomes realized.
What Does “Love Under Will” Mean?
The phrase is often glossed over, repeated without context. But there’s a specific and vital structure here.
Love under Will. Not in opposition to it. Not in place of it. Directed by it.
Love, in this formula, isn’t just affection or romance. It’s a force, the drive toward union, the attraction between one star and another star, the compulsion of one thing to merge with another. It’s what unites the divided.
That’s why Crowley writes in Liber AL vel Legis:
“There is no bond that can unite the divided but love.”
The world is full of seeming separation. Love is the binding agent, but only when governed by True Will.
Love, untethered, can become obsession, codependence, manipulation. That’s love above Will, chaotic, blind, and misdirected.
But Love under Will? That’s divine.
Agape and Thelema: The Formula of 93
It’s no accident that both Agape (Greek for divine, unconditional love) and Thelema (Will) add up to 93 in Greek isopsephy. That number isn’t just numerology. It encodes a relationship: Love and Will, equal in weight, inseparable in power.
This is the formula. You are not asked to give up Love in pursuit of Will. Nor to abandon Will in a flood of feeling. Thelema demands integration, Love flowing in the service of purpose, and purpose held with compassion.
To act in Will without Love is to become rigid, cold, and destructive.
To act in Love without Will is to become lost, entangled, and powerless.
Balance is the Law.
Love as a Force of Unity
From the perspective of Nuit, “Every man and every woman is a star.” Each of us is a radiant, individual center of consciousness. But stars don’t exist in isolation. They move in relation, in gravitational dance.
Love is the law that governs that dance.
This isn’t sentimental. It’s structural. It’s metaphysical. When you recognize another being as a star, not an object, not a role, not a mistake, you are practicing Love under Will.
It doesn’t mean letting everyone into your orbit. Boundaries are part of Will. But when you act from alignment, even your no can be an act of Love.
What Love under Will Looks Like
So what does Love under Will look like?
Sometimes, it’s gentle. Sometimes, it’s fierce, but it’s always conscious.
- Saying the hard thing, not to wound, but to liberate.
- Holding boundaries, not from fear, but to protect alignment.
- Engaging in creative endeavors, not for applause, but in service to your divine purpose.
- Supporting others on their path, even when it doesn’t match yours.
- Acting from compassion, not sentimentality.
It also means loving yourself. Not indulgence, but true respect. Because if you don’t love yourself, you’ll misuse your Will. And if you don’t know your Will, your love will wander without purpose. Both are needed. Together, they generate motion and meaning.
A Simple Exercise: Aligning Love and Will
Try this brief daily alignment:
- Sit quietly. Close your eyes. Breathe.
- Bring awareness to your heart center.
- Ask: “How does Love want to move through me today, in service of my Will?”
- Wait. Let the answer rise, however softly.
- Then act on it, even if it’s small.
It might be making amends. Starting a long-delayed project. Saying yes. Saying no.
If it’s real, it will feel like something clicking into place, even if it’s scary.
The Real Work Begins Here
Thelema isn’t just about rituals or mastering esoteric symbols. It’s about living a life so attuned to your divine purpose that every act becomes sacred.
That’s why this formula matters:
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
Love is the law, love under will.
The second line isn’t a footnote. It’s the breath in the body of the Work. It’s the current that keeps Will from becoming dry, lifeless, or cruel.
So speak it. Practice it. Ask yourself:
Is this act an expression of Love under Will?
If the answer is yes, you’re not just quoting the Law. You’re living it.
Love is the law, love under will.
