Choronzon

The name and figure of Choronzon appear in literature that traces to John Dee and Edward Kelley’s 16th‑century Enochian material and were reinterpreted and popularized by Aleister Crowley and later Thelemic writers. In that reception Choronzon becomes named as the 'Dweller in the Abyss' and a force encountered in ceremonial evocation; Crowley framed Choronzon as an instantiation of the chaotic, dispersive forms of the Abyss rather than as a stable, independent individual.

Accounts vary between sources. Aleister Crowley's writings and summaries describe the Abyss as 'filled with all possible forms' and present Choronzon as shapeshifting or an aggregate of transient forms; Crowley's Bou Saâda evocation narrative (as summarized in secondary sources) includes a version in which an attack took the form of 'a naked savage'. Victor B. Neuburg’s differing account (as cited by critics) reports an alternate apparition ('a foreman builder... called "P.472"'), illustrating contradictory descriptions across sources.

Esoteric sources, notably Crowley and subsequent Thelemic commentary, characterize Choronzon primarily as a dispersive, illusory force: presenting many forms that assert illusory individuality and thereby confusing or destabilizing an aspirant. Crowley and Thelemic interpreters attribute to Choronzon shape‑changing, the capacity to produce deceptive, fragmentary appearances, and—when properly engaged in initiation—the function of effecting ego‑destruction (ego‑dissolution) as a test for the adept. Ceremonial accounts also report breaches of containment and aggressive behavior in specific evocation narratives, though those accounts are disputed in the sources.