K YBALI O - Forgotten Books€¦ · Introduction 9 race may be traced back to Hermes Even the most ancient teachings of India un doubtedly have their roots in the original Hermetic

THE

KYBAL I ON

A STUDY OF

THE HERMETIC PH ILOSOPHY OF

ANCIENT EGYPT AND

GREECE

THREE INITIATES

un 07 m un-m ule”

THE YOGI PUBLICATION SOCIETY

MASONIC TEMPLE

CHICAGO, ILL

C o p r x,; 1 1 t 1 9 3 6

COPYRI GHT 1 908

THE YOG I PUBLICATION SOC IETY.

Entered at Stat ioner’s Hall

All rights reserved

HERMES TRISMEG ISTUSKNOWN BY THE ANClENT

EGYPTIANS

THE GREAT GREAT!

AND

MASTER OF MASTERSTHIS LITTLE VOLUME OF HERMETIC TEACHINGS

IS REVERENTLY DEDICATED

CONTENTS

0m m . Paar .

Introduction

I I . Seven Hermetic PrinciplesMental Transmutation

The Divine ParadoxVI I . “ The All” inAll

VI I I . Planes of Correspondence

Vibration

X. PolarityRhythmCausation

Gender

Hermetic Ax ioms

INTRODUCTION.

We take great pleasure in presenting tothe attentionof students and investigatorsof the Secret Doctrines this little workbased uponthe world-old Hermetic Teachings. There has been so little writtenupon this subject, notwithstanding thecountless references to the Teachings inthe many works upon occultism, that themany earnest searchers after the ArcaneTruths will doubtless welcome the appearance of the present volume.

The purpose of this work is not theenunciation of any special philosophy ordoctrine, but rather is to give to the students a statement of the Truth that willserve to reconcile the many bits of occultknowledge that they may have acquired,but which are apparently opposed to eachother and which often serve to discourage

7

8 Introduction

and disgust the beginner in the study.

Our intent is not to erect a new Temple ofKnowledge, but rather to place in thehands of the student a Master-K ey withwhich he may open the many inner doorsin the Temple of Mystery through themain portals he has already entered.

There is no portion of the occult teachings possessed by the world which havebeen so closely guarded as the fragmentsof the Hermetic Teachings which havecome down to us over the tens of centurieswhich have elapsed since the lifetime of itsgreat founder, Hermes Trismegistus, thescribe of the gods,

” who dwelt in oldEgypt in the days when the present raceof men was in its infancy. Contemporarywith Abraham, and, if the legends be true,an instructor of that venerable sage

,

Hermes was, and is, the Great Central Sunof Occultism, whose rays have served toillumine the countless teachings whichhave been promulgated since his time. Allthe fundamental and basic teachings embedded inthe esoteric teachings of every

Introduction 9

race may be traced back to Hermes. Eventhe most ancient teachings of India undoubtedly have their roots in the originalHermetic Teachings.

From the land of the Ganges many ad

venced occultists wandered to the land of

Egypt, and sat at the feet of the Master.From him they obtained the Master-K ey

which explained and reconciled their divergent views, and thus the Secret Doctrinewas firmly established. From other landsalso came the learned ones, all of whomregarded Hermes as the Master of Masters, and his influence was so great that inspite of the many wanderings from thepath onthe part of the centuries of teachers in these difierent lands, there may stillbe found a certain basic resemblance andcorrespondence which underlies the manyand often quite divergent theories entertained and taught by the occultists of thesedifi erent lands today. The student of

Comparative Religions will be able to perceive the influence of the Hermetic Teachings in every religion worthy of the name,

1 0 Introduction

now known to man, whether it be a deadreligion or one infull vigor inour owntimes . There is always a certaincorrespondence in spite of the contradictoryfeatures, and the Hermetic Teachings actas the Great Reconciler.The lifework of Hermes seems to havebeen inthe direction of planting the greatSeed-Truth which has grown and blossomed inso many strange forms, ratherthan to establish a school of philos!

ophy which would dominate the world’s

thought. But, never theless, the or iginal truths taught by him have beenkept intact in their original purity bya few men in each age, who, re

fusing great numbers of half-developedstudents and followers, followed the Hermetic custom and reserved their truth forthe few who were ready to comprehendand master it. From lip to ear the truthhas been handed down among the few.

There have always beena few Initiates ineach generation, inthe various lands of

the earth, who kept alive the sacred flame

Introduction 1 1

of the Hermetic Teachings, and such havealways been willing to use their lamps tore-light the lesser lamps of the outsideworld, when the light of truth grew dim,

and clouded by reasonof neglect, and whenthe wicks became clogged with foreignmatter. There were always a few to tendfaithfully the altar of the Truth, uponwhich was kept alight the Perpetual Lampof Wisdom. These men devoted theirlives to the labor of love which the poethas so well stated in his lines

0, let not the flame die out ! Cherishedage after age in its dark cavern—in itsholy temples cherished. Fed by pure ministers of love—let not the flame die out 1 ”

These men have never sought popularapproval, nor numbers of followers . Theyare indifferent to these things, for theyknow how few there are in each generationwho are ready for the truth, or who wouldrecognize it if it were presented to them.

They reserve the “ strong meat for men,”

while others furnish the “milk for babes .They reserve their pearls of wisdom for

1 2 Introduction

the few elect, who recognize their valueand who wear them in their crowns, instead of casting them before the materialistic vulgar swine, who would trample theminthe mud andmix them with their disgusting mental food. But still these menhavenever forgottenor overlooked the originalteachings of Hermes, regarding the passing onof the words of truth to those readyto receive it, which teaching is stated inThe Kybalionas follows Where fallthe footsteps of the Master, the ears of

those ready for his Teaching openwide.”

And again: “When the ears of the student are ready to hear, thencometh thelips to fill them with wisdom.

’ But theircustomary attitude has always beenstrictlyin accordance with the other Hermeticaphorism, also inThe Kybalion: The

lips of Wisdom are closed, except to theears of Understanding.

There are those who have criticised thisattitude of the Hermetists, and who haveclaimed that they did not manifest theproper spirit in their policy of seclusion

Introduction 1 3

and reticence. But a moment ’s glanceback over the pages of history will showthe wisdom of the Masters, who knew thefolly of attempting to teach to the worldthat which it was neither ready or willingto receive. The Hermetists have neversought to be martyrs, and have, instead,sat silently aside with a pitying smile ontheir closed lips, while the

‘heathen ragednoisily about them ’ in their customaryamusement of putting to death and torturethe honest but misguided enthusiasts whoimagined that they could force upona raceof barbarians the truth capable of beingunderstood only by the elect who had ad

vanced along The Path.

And the spirit of persecution has not asyet died out inthe land. There are certainHermetic Teachings, which, if publicly promulgated, would bring down uponthe teachers a great cry of scorn andrevilement from the multitude, who wouldagain raise the cry of Crucify lCrucify.

In this little work we have endeavoredto give you an idea of the fundamental

1 4 The Kybalion

teachings of The Kybalion, striving to

give youthe working Principles, leavingyou to apply them yourselves

,rather than

attempting to work out the teaching in detail. I f you are a true student

, youwillbe able to work out and apply these Principles—if not, thenyou must develop yourself into one, for otherwise the HermeticTeachings will be as “words, words,words” to you.

THE. THREE Inm rns.

CHAPTER I.

THE Hnnun'r lc PH ILOSOPHY.

The lips of wisdom are closed, ex cept to the ears of

Understanding. —The K ybalion.

From old Egypt have come the fundamental esoteric and occult teachings whichhave so strongly influenced the philosophiesof all races, nations and peoples, for several thousand years. Egypt, the home ofthe Pyramids and the Sphinx, was thebirthplace of the Hidden Wisdom andMystic Teachings . From her Secret Doctrine all nations have borrowed. India,Persia, Chaldea, Medea, China, Japan,Assyria, ancient Greece and Rome, andother ancient countries partook liberally atthe feast of knowledge which the Hiero

phants and Masters of the Land of Isis sofreely provided for those who came pre

1 5

1 6 The Kybalion

pared to partake of the great store ofMystic and Occult Lore which the masterminds of that ancient land had gatheredtogether.In ancient Egypt dwelt the great Adeptsand Masters who have never been surpassed, and who seldom have been equaled,during the centuries that have taken theirprocessional flight since the days of theGreat Hermes. In Egypt was located theGreat Lodge of Lodges of the Mystics. At

the doors of her Temples entered the Neo

phytes who afterward, as Hierophants,Adepts, and Masters, traveled to the fourcorners of the earth, carrying with themthe precious knowledge which they wereready, anxious, and willing to pass ontothose who were ready to receive the same.All students of the Occult recognize thedebt that they owe to these venerable Masters of that ancient land.

But among these great Masters of Ancient Egypt there once dwelt one of whomMasters hailed as

“The Master of Masters. Thisman, if

‘man” indeed he was,

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

1 8 The Kybalion

name of Thoth. Years after, the people ofAncient Greece also made him one of theirmany gods—calling him Hermes, the godof Wisdom.

” The Egyptians revered hismemory for many centuries—yes, tens ofcenturies—calling him ‘the Scribe of theGods,

” and bestowing upon him, distinctively, his ancient title, Trismegis

tus, which means ‘the thrice-greatthe great-great ’ ‘the greatest-great

etc. Inall the ancient lands, the name ofHermes Trismegistus was revered, thename being synonymous with the Fountof Wisdom.

Evento this day, we use the term “hermetic” inthe sense of “ secret “

sealedso thatnothing canescape ’ etc., and thisby reasonof the fact that the followers ofHermes always observed the principle ofsecrecy intheir teachings. They did notbelieve in “casting pearls before swine,

”

but rather held to the teaching milk forbabes ; meat for strong men,

” both of

which maxims are familiar to readers of

the Christian scriptures, but both of which

The Hermetic Philosophy 1 9

had been used by the Egyptians for centuries before the Christian era .

And this policy of careful disseminationof the truth has always characterized theHermetics, even unto the present day. The

Hermetic Teachings are to be found inalllands, among all religions, but never identified with any particular country, nor withany particular religious sect. This because of the warning of the ancient teachers against allowing the Secret Doctrine tobecome crystallized into a creed. The wisdom of this cautionis apparent to all students of history. The ancient occultism ofIndia and Persia degenerated

,and was

largely lost, owing to the fact that theteachers became priests, and so mixedtheology with the philosophy, the resultbeing that the occultism of India and Persia has beengradually lost amidst the massof religious superstition, cults, creeds andgods . So it was with Ancient Greeceand Rome. So it was with the HermeticTeachings of the Gnostics and Early Christians

,which were lost at the time of Con

20 The Kybalion

stantine, whose iron hand smothered philosophywith the blanket of theology, losingto the Christian Church that which was itsvery essence and spirit, and causing it togrope throughout several centuries beforeit found the way back to its ancient faith,the indications apparent to all careful ohservers in this Twentieth Century beingthat the Church is now struggling to getback to its ancient mystic teachings.

But there were always a few faithfulsouls who kept alive the Flame

,tending it

carefully, and not allowing its light to become extinguished. And thanks to thesestaunch hearts

,and fearless minds, we

have the truth still with us. But it is notfound in books, to any great extent. It hasbeen passed along from Master to Student ;from Initiate to Hierophant ; from lip toear. When it was written down at all, itsmeaning was veiled in terms of alchemyand astrology, so that only those possessing the key could read it aright. This wasmade necessary inorder to avoid the persecutions of the theologians of the Middle

The Hermetic Philosophy 2 1

Ages, who fought the Secret Doctrine withfire and sword ; stake, gibbet and cross.

Even to this day there will be found butfew reliable books on the HermeticPhilosophy

,although there are countless

references to it in many books written on

various phases of Occultism. And yet, theHermetic Philosophy is the only MasterK ey which will openall the doors of theOccult Teachings !In the early days

,there was a compila

tionof certainBasic Hermetic Doctrines,passed on from teacher to student, whichwas known as “THE KYBALION,

” the

exact significance and meaning of the termhaving been lost for several centuries. Thisteaching, however, is known to many towhom it has descended, from mouth to ear,onand on throughout the centuries. I ts

precepts have never been written down, orprinted

,so far as we know. It was merely

a collectionof maxims, axioms, and precepts, which were non-understandable tooutsiders

,but which were readily under

stood by students, after the ax ioms,

22 The Kybalion

maxims, and precepts had been explainedand exemplified by the Hermetic Initiatesto their NeOphytes. These teachings reallyconstituted the basic principles of The

Art of Hermetic Alchemy, which, contrary to the general belief, dealt in themastery of Mental Forces, rather thanMaterisl Elements—the Transmutation of onekind of Mental Vibrations into others, instead of the changing of one kind of metalinto another. The legends of the “Philoso

pher’s Stone ’ which would turn base metal

into Gold, was an allegory relating to Hermetic Philosophy, readily understood byall students of true Hermeticism.

Inthis little book, of which this is theFirst Lesson, we invite our students to examine into the Hermetic Teachings, as setforth in THE KYBALION,

and as ex

plained by ourselves, humble students ofthe Teachings, who, while bearing the titleof Initiates, are still students at the feetof HERMES, the Master. We herein give

youmany of the maxims, axioms and precepts of THE KYBALION. accompanied

The Hermetic Philosophy 23

by explanations and illustrations which wedeem likely to render the teachings moreeasily comprehended by the modern student, particularly as the original text ispurposely veiled inobscure terms .The original maxim s, axioms, and pre

cepts of“THE KYBALION are printed

herein, in quotation marks, the propercredit being given. Our own work isprinted inthe regular way, in the body ofthe work. We trust that the many students to whom we now offer this little workwill derive as much benefit from the studyof its pages as have the many who havegone onbefore

,treading the same Path to

Mastery throughout the centuries that havepassed since the times of HERMES TRISMEGISTUS—the Master of Masters—theGreat-Great. In the words of THE KY

BALION

Where fall the footste of the Master, the ears ofthose ready for his caching open wide.

—TheK ybalion.

When the ears of the student are read to hear, thenc om e th the lips to it

'

ll them Wi t h isdom.

’—Thegoalion.

24 The Kybalion

So that according to the Teachings, thepassage of this book to those ready forthe instruction will attract the attention ofsuch as are prepared to receive the Teaching. And, likewise,when the pupil is readyto receive the truth, then will this littlebook come to him, or her. Such is TheLaw. The Hermetic Principle of Causeand Effect, in its aspect of The Law of Attraction, will bring lips and ear togetherpupil and book in company. So mote it be !


26 The Kybalion

VI . THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSEAND EFFECT.

VI I . THE PRINCIPLE OF GENDER.

These Seven Principles will be discussedand explained as we proceed with these lessons. A short explanation of each, however, may as well be given at this point .

THE PRINCIPLE OF MENTALISM .

“THE ALL is MIND ; The Universe is Mental. ”The K ybalion.

This Principle embodies the truth thatAll is Mind.

” It explains that THEALL (which is the Substantial Realityunderlying all the outward manifestationsand appearances which we know under theterms of The Material Universe ’ the“Phenomena of Life” ; Matter” ; Euergy

”; and, in short, all that is apparent

to our material senses ) is SPIRIT, whichin itself is UNKNOWABLE and UNDEFINABLE, but which may be consideredand thought of as AN UNIVERSAL, IN

SevenHermetic Principles 27

FINITE, LIVING MIND. It also explainsthat all the phenomenal world or universeis simply a Mental Creationof THE ALL,

subject to the Laws of Created Things, andthat the universe, as a whole, and in itsparts orunits, has its existence inthe Mindof THEALL, in which Mind we

“ live andmove and have our being. This Principle, by establishing the Mental Nature ofthe Universe, easily explains all of the varied mental and psychic phenomena thatoccupy such a large portionof the publicattention, and which, without such explanation, are non-understandable and defyscientific treatment. Anunderstanding ofthis great Hermetic Principle of Mentalism enables the individual to readily graspthe laws of the Mental Universe, and toapply the same to his well-being and ad

vancement. The Hermetic Student is enabled to apply intelligently the great Mental Laws, instead of using them in a haphazard manner. With the Master-K ey inhis possession, the student may unlock themany doors of the mental and psychic tem

28 The Kybalion

ple of knowledge, and enter the same freelyand intelligently. This Principle explainsthe true nature of “Energy,

” “Power,

”

and “Matter,” and why and how all these

are subordinate to the Mastery of Mind.

One of the old Hermetic Masters wrote,long ages ago : “He who grasps the truthof the Mental Nature of the Universe iswell advanced onThe Path to Mastery.

And these words are as true tod ay as atthe time they were first written. Withoutthis Master-K ey, Mastery is impossible,and the student knocks in vainat the manydoors of The Temple.

II. THE PRINCIPLE OF CORRESPONDENCE.

“As above,so below ; as below, so above.

—TheKybalion.

This Principle embodies the truth thatthere is always a Correspondence between

,

the laws and phenomena of the variousplanes of Being and Life. The old Hermetic axiom ran in these words As

above, so below ; as below, so above And

SeuenHermetic Principles 29

the grasping of this Principle gives onethe means of solving many a dark paradox,and hidden secret of Nature. There areplanes beyond our knowing, but when weapply the Principle of Correspondence tothem we are able to understand much thatwould otherwise beunknowable to us. ThisPrinciple is of universal application andmanifestation, onthe various planes of thematerial, mental, and spiritual universeit is an Universal Law. The ancient Hermetiste considered this Principle as one of

the most important mental instruments bywhich manwas able to pry aside the obstacles which hid from view the Unknown.

I ts use even tore aside the Veil of Isis tothe extent that a glimpse of the face of thegoddessmight be caught. Just as a knowledge of the Principles of Geometry enablesman to measure distant suns and theirmovements, while seated in his observatory, so a knowledge of the Principle of

Correspondence enables Man to reason intelligently from the Known to the Un

The Kybalion

known. Studying the monad,he under

stands the archangel.

THE PRINCIPLE OF VIBRATION .

Nothing rests ; everything moves ; everything vibrates.

”—The K ybalion.

This Principle embodies the truth thateverything is in motion” ;

“ everythingvibrates ” ;

“nothing is at rest” ; factswhich Modern Science endorses

,and which

each new scientific discovery tends to verify. And yet this Hermetic Principle wasenunciated thousands of years ago, by theMasters of Ancient Egypt . This Principle explains that the difl’erences betweendifferent manifestations of Matter

,Eu

ergy, Mind, and even Spirit, result largelyfrom varying rates of Vibration. FromTHE ALL,

which is Pure Spirit, down tothe grossest form of Matter, all is in vibration—the higher the vibration, the higherthe position in the scale. The vibration ofSpirit is at such an infinite rate of intencity and rapidity that it is practically at

SevenH ermetic Principles 3 1

rest—just as a rapidly moving wheel seemsto be motionless . And at the other end ofthe scale

,there are gross forms of matter

whose vibrations are so low as to seem at

rest . Between these poles, there are mile

lions upon millions of varying degrees ofvibration. From corpuscle and electron,atom and molecule, to worlds and universes, everything is invibratory motion.

This is also true on the planes of energyand force (which are but varying degreesof vibration ) ; and also on the mentalplanes (whose states depend upon vibrations ) and even onto the spiritual planes.Anunderstanding of this Principle, withthe appropriate formulas, enables Hermetic students to control their own mentalvibrations as well as those of others. The

Masters also apply this Principle to theconquering of Natural phenomena, in various ways . He whounderstands the Principle of Vibration, has grasped the sceptre

of power,” says one of the old writers.

32 The Kybalion

Iv. THE PRINCIPLE or POLARI'I‘Y.

Everything is Dual ; everything has poles ; everything has its pair of opposites ; like and unlike are the

same ; opposites are identical innature, but difl erent indegree ; ex tremes meet ; all truths are but half-truths ; allparadox es may be reconciled. —The Kybalion.

This Principle embodies the truth thateverything is dual” ;

“ everything hastwo poles” ;

“ everything has its pair ofopposites,

’ all of which were old Hermeticaxioms . It explains the old paradoxes,that have perplexed so many, which havebeen stated as follows Thesis and antithesis are identical in nature, but differentin degree” ;

“ opposites are the same, differing only in degree

”;“ the pairs of op

posites may be reconciled’ ‘extremes

meet” ;“ everything is and isn ’t, at the

same time all truths are but halftruths” ;

“ every truth is half-false“there are two sides to everything,

”etc .,

etc ., etc. It explains that in everythingthere are two poles, or opposite aspects,and that ‘opposites” are really only thetwo extremes of the same thing, with many


34 The Kybalion

Hard and Soft” ! Between “Black andWhite” ! Between “ Sharp and Dull” !Between “Noise and ! uiet

” ! BetweenHigh and Low ” ! Between “Positiveand Negative The Principle of Polarity explains these paradoxes

,and no other

Principle can supersede it. The same Principle operates on the Mental Plane. Letus take a radical and extreme examplethat of “Love and Hate,

”two mental

states apparently totally different . Andyet there are degrees of Hate and degreesof Love

,and a middle point in which weuse

the terms “Like or Dislike,” which shade

into each other so gradually that sometimes we are at a loss to know whether we“ like” or “dislike” or “neither.” Andall are simply degrees of the same thing, as

youwill see if youwill but think a moment.And, more than this (and considered of

more importance by the Hermetists ) , it ispossible to change the vibrations of Hateto the vibrations of Love, in one

’s own

mind,and in the minds of others . Many

of you, who read these lines, have had per

SevenHerricetic Principles 35

sonal experiences of the involuntary rapidtransition from Love to Hate, and the reverse, in your owncase and that of others .And you will therefore realize the possibility of this being accomplished by theuse of the Will

,by means of the Hermetic

formulas . Good and Evil” are but thepoles of the same thing, and the Hermetistunderstands the art of transmuting Evilinto Good, by means of an application ofthe Principle of Polarity. In short, theArt of Polarization” becomes a phase ofMental Alchemy ’ known and practicedby the ancient and modern Hermetic Masters. Anunderstanding of the Principlewill enable one to change his own Polarity,as well as that of others, if he will devotethe time and study necessary to masterthe art.

V. THE PRINCIPLE OF RHYTHM .

Everything flows, out and in; everything has its

tides ; all things rise and fall ; the pendulum-swingmanifests ineverything ; the measure of the swing to theright is the measure of the swing to the left ; rhythmcompensates.”—The K ybalion.

36 The Kybalion

This Principle embodies the truth thatin everything there is manifested a measured motion, to and fro ; a flow and inflow ; a swing backward and forward ; apendulum-e movement ; a tide-like ebband flow ; a high-tide and low -tide ; between the two poles which exist in accordance with the Principle of Polarity described a moment ago. There is alwaysan action and a reaction ; an advance anda retreat ; a rising and a sinking. This isin the affairs of the Universe, suns, worlds,men, animals, mind, energy, and matter.This law is manifest in the creation anddestruction of worlds ; in the rise and fallof nations ; in the life of all things ; andfinally in the mental states of Man (and itis with this latter that the Hermetists findthe understanding of the Principle mostimportant ) . The Hermetists have graspedthis Principle, finding its universal application, and have also discovered certainmeans to overcome its effects in themselvesby the use of the appropriate formulas andmethods. They apply the Mental Law of


Neutralization. They cannot annul thePrinciple, or cause it to cease its operation,but they have learned how to escape itsefiects upon themselves to a certain degreedepending upon the Mastery of the Principle. They have learned how to USE it,instead of being USED BY it. In this andsim ilar methods, consist the Art of theHermetists. The Master of Hermetics polarizes himself at the point at which hedesires to

'

rest, and then neutralizes theRhythmic swing of the pendulum whichwould tend to carry him to the other pole .

All individuals who have attained any de

gree of Self-Mastery do this to a certaindegree, more or less unconsciously, but theMaster does this consciously, and by theuse of his Will, and attains a degree of

Poise and Mental Firmness almost impossible of belief onthe part of the masseswho are swung backward and forward likea pendulum. This Principle and that ofPolarity have been closely studied by theHermetists; and

' the methods of counteracting,neutralizing, and USING them form

38 The Kybalion

an important part of the Hermetic MentalAlchemy.

THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT.

Every Cause has its Bflect ; every Efl ect has itsCause ; everything happens according to Law Chance isbut a name for Law not recognized ,

there are manyplanes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law .

”

The K ybalion.

This Principle embodies the fact thatthere is a Cause for every Efiect ; anEfiect from every Cause. It explains thatEverything Happens according to Law” ;that nothing ever “merely happens” ; thatthere is no such thing as Chance ; thatwhile there are various planes of Causeand Effect, the higher dominating thelower planes, still nothing ever entirelyescapes the Law. The Hermetists understand the art and methods of rising abovethe ordinary plane of Cause and Effect,to a certain degree, and by mentally risingto a higher plane they become Causers mstead of Effects . The masses of peopleare carried along, obedient to environ


ment ; the wills and desires of othersstronger thanthemselves ; heredity ; suggestion ; and other outward causes movingthem about like pawns onthe Chessboardof Life. But the Masters, rising to theplane above, dominate their moods, characters, qualities, and powers, as well as theenvironment surrounding them, and become Movers instead of pawns. They helpto PLAY THE GAME OF LIFE, insteadof being played and moved about by other

Principle instead of being its tools. TheMasters obey the Causation of the higherplanes, but they help to RULE ontheirownplane. Inthis statement there is condensed a wealth of Hermetic knowledgelet him read who can .

vn. rHE PRINCIPLE or GENDER.

Gender is ineveryt everything has its Masenline and Feminine Princip es ; Gender manifests on all

planes.- Thc K ybalion.

VI I . THE PRINCIPLE OF GENDER .

This Principle embodies the truth that

40 The Kybalion

there is GENDER manifested in everything— the Masculine and Feminine Principles ever at work. This is true not onlyof the Physical Plane, but of the Mentaland even the Spiritual Planes . On thePhysical Plane, the Principle manifests asSEX, on the higher planes it takes higherforms, but the Principle is ever the same.No creation, physical, mental or spiritual,is possible without this Principle. Annuderstanding of its laws will throw lighton many a subject that has perplexed theminds of men. The Principle of Genderworks ever inthe direction of generation,regeneration, and creation. Everything,and every person, contains the two Elements or Principles, or this great Principle, within it, him or her. Every Malething has the Female Element also ; everyFemale contains also the Male Principle.If you would understand the philosophy ofMental and Spiritual Creation, Generation,and Re-generation, you must understandand study this Hermetic Principle. It contains the solution of many mysteries of


CHAPTER III.

MENTAL TRANSMUTATION.

Mind (as well as metals and elements) may betun-muted, from state to state; do to degree ; condition to condition ; pole to pole ; vi ration to vibration.True Hermetic Transmutation is 9. Mental Art. —ThcKybalion.

As we have stated, the Hermetists werethe original alchemists, astrologers, andpsychologists, Hermes having been the

founder of these schools of thought. Fromastrology has grown modern astronomy ;from alchemy has grownmodern chem.

istry ; from the mystic psychology hasgrown the modern psychology of theschools. But it must not be supposed thatthe ancients were ignorant of that whichthe modern schools suppose to be theirexclusive and special property. The records engraved on the stones of AncientEgypt show conclusively that the ancients

43

44 The Kybalion

had a full comprehensive knowledge of

astronomy, the very building of the Pyramids showing the connection between theirdesign and the study of astronomicalscience. Nor were they ignorant of Chemistry, for the fragments of the ancientwritings show that they were acquaintedwith the chemical properties of things ; infact, the ancient theories regarding physics are being slowly verified by the latestdiscoveries of modernscience, notablythose relating to the constitution ofmatter.Nor must it be supposed that they wereignorant of the so-called modern discoveries in psychology—onthe contrary, theEgyptians were especially skilled in thescience of Psychology, particularly in thebranches that the modernschools ignore,but which, nevertheless, are being uncovered under the name of ‘psychic science ’

which is perplexing the psychologists ofto-day, and making them reluctantly admitthat “ there may be something in it afterall.The truth is, that beneath the material

Mental Transmutation 45

chemistry, astronomy and psychology ( thatis, the psychology in its phase of

“brainthe ancients possessed a knowl

edge of transcendental astronomy, calledastrology ; of transcendental chemistry,called alchemy ; of transcendental psychology, called mystic psychology. They possessed the Inner Knowledge as well as theOuter Knowledge

,the latter alone being

possessed by modernscientists . Amongthe many secret branches of knowledgepossessed by the Hermetists, was thatknown as Mental Transmutation, whichforms the subject matter of this lesson.

Transmutation is a term usually employed to designate the ancient art of thetransmutation of metals—particularly of

the base metals into gold. The wordTransmute ’ means ‘to change from onenature, form, or substance, into another ;to transform”

(Webster) . And accordingly, Mental Transmutation means theart of changing and transforming mentalstates, forms, and conditions, into others.So you may see that Mental Transmuta

46 The Kghalian

tion is the “Art of Mental Chemistry,” if

you like the term—a form of practicalMystic Psychology.

But this means far more than appearson the surface . Transmutation, Alchemy,or Chemistry, on the Mental Plane is important enough in its effects, to be sure,and if the art stopped there it would stillbe one of the most important branches ofstudy known to man. But this is only thebeginning. Let us see why !The first of the Seven Hermetic Prin

ciples is the Principle of Mentalism, the

axiom of which is “THE ALL is Mind ;the Universe is Mental

,

’ which means thatthe Underlying Reality of the Universe isMind ; and the Universe itself is Mentalthat is,

“ existing in the Mind of THEALL. We shall consider this Principlein succeeding lessons, but let us see theeffect of the principle if it be assumed tobe true.If the Universal is Mental inits nature,

then Mental Transmutation must be the artof CHANGING THE CONDITIONS OF


THE UNIVERSE, along the lines of Matter, Force and Mind. So you see, therefore, that Mental Transmutation is reallythe Magic of which the ancient writershad so much to say in their mystical works,and about which they gave so few practicalinstructions. If All be Mental, then theart which enables one to transmute mentalconditions must render the Master thecontroller of material conditions as well asthose ordinarily called ‘mental. ’

As a matter of fact, none but advancedMental Alchemists have been able to at

tain the degree of power necessary to control the grosser physical conditions, suchas the control of the elements of Nature ;the production or cessation of tempests ;the production and cessation of earthquakes and other great physical phenomena. But that such menhave existed, anddo exist to-day, is a matter of earnest belief to all advanced occultists of allschools . That the Masters exist, and havethese powers, the best teachers assure theirstudents

,having had experiences which

48 The Kybalion

justify them insuch belief and statements.

These Masters do not make public ex hibitions of their powers, but seek seclusionfrom the crowds of men, inorder to betterwork their way along the Path of Attainment. We mention their existence, at thispoint, merely to call your attention to thefact that their power is entirely Mental,and operates along the lines of the higherMental Transmutation, under the Hermetic Principle of Mentalism. The Universe is Mental ’—The Kybalion.

But students and Hermetists of lesserdegree than Masters—the Initiates and

Teachers—are able to freely work alongthe Mental Plane, inMental Transmutation. In fact all that we call psychicphenomena mental influence mental science ’ new-thought phenomena,etc., operates along the same general lines,for there is but one principle involved, nomatter by what name the phenomena becalled.

The student and practitioner of MentalTransmutationworks among the Mental


50 The Kghalian

may be changed or transmuted in accordance with the earnest desire, will, and‘treatments” of person desiring changedconditions of life. The public are so generally informed regarding these things atpresent, that we do not deem it necessaryto mention the same at length, our purposeat this point being merely to show theHermetic Principle and Art underlying allof these various forms of practice, goodand evil, for the force can be used in opposite directions according to the HermeticPrinciples of Polarity.

In this little book we shall state thebasic principles of Mental Transmutation,that all who read may grasp the Underlying Principles, and thus possess theMaster-Key that will unlock the manydoors of the Principle of Polarity.

We shall now proceed to a considerationof the first of the Hermetic Seven Principles—the Principle of Mentalism

, inwhich is explained the truth that THE

ALL is Mind ; the Universe is Mental,in the words of The Kybalion. We ask the


close attention, and careful study of thisgreat Principle

, onthe part of our students, for it is really the Basic Principleof the whole Hermetic Philosophy, and ofthe Hermetic Art of Mental Transmutation.

CHAPTER IV.

THE ALL .

“Under, and back of, the Universe of Time, Spaceand Change, is ever to be found The Substantial Realitythe Fundamental Trut —The K ybalion.

Substance ’ means : that whichunder

lies all outward manifestations ; the os

sence ; the essential reality ; the thing initself, etc. Substantial ’ means : actually existing ; being the essential element ;being real,

” etc. “Reality” means : “ thestate of being real ; true, enduring ; valid ;fixed ; permanent ; actual, etc.Under and behind all outward appear

ances or manifestations, there must alwaysbe a Substantial Reality. This is the Law .

Man considering the Universe, of which heis aunit, sees nothing but change in matter,forces, and mental states . He sees thatnothing really IS, but that everything is

53

54 The K ybalion

BECOMING and CHANGING. Nothingstands still—everything is being born,growing

,dying—the very instant a thing

reaches its height, it begins to declinethe law of rhythm is in constant operation—there is no reality, enduring quality, fixity

,or substantiality in anything—nothing

is permanent but Change. He sees allthings evolving from other things, and resolving into other things—a constant aotion and reaction ; inflow and outflow ;building up and tearing down ; creationand destruction ; birth, growth and death.

Nothing endures but Change. And if hebe a thinking man, he realizes that all ofthese changing thingsmust be but outwardappearances or manifestations of someUnderlymg Power—some Substantial Reality.

All thinkers, in all lands and inall times,have assumed the necessity for postulatingthe existence of this Substantial Reality.

All philosophies worthy of the name havebeen based upon this thought. Men havegiven to this Substantial Reality many

The All 55

names—some have called it by the term of

Deity (under many titles ) ; others havecalled it “The Infinite and Eternal Euergy ’ others have tried to call it Matter —but all have acknowledged its existence. It is self-evident—it needs no

In these lessons we have followed theexample of some of the world ’s greatestthinkers, both ancient and modem—theHermetic Masters—and have called thisUnderlying Power—this Substantial Reality—by the Hermetic name of THE

ALL,

” which term we consider the mostcomprehensive of the many terms appliedby Man to THAT which transcends namesand terms.We accept and teach the view of the

great Hermetic thinkers of all times, as

well as of those illumined souls who havereached higher planes of being, both of

whom assert that the inner nature of THEALL is UNKNOWABLE. This must beso, for naught by THE ALL itself cancomprehend its ownnature and being.

56 The Kybalion

THE ALL, initself, is and nmst everbe UNKNOWABLE. They regard all the

theories, gnesses and specnlations Of the

the im er m tm e Of THE ALL as but thechildish efiorts of mortal minds to graspthe secret of the Infinite. Such efforts

from the verynature of the task. One pursuing such inquiries travels around andaround inthe labyrinth of thought, untilhe is lost to all sane reasoning, action or

conduct , and is utterlyunfitted for the work

frantically runs around and around the

circling treadmill wheel of his cage, traveling ever and yet reaching nowhere —at theend a prisoner still, and standing justwhere he started.

And still more presumptuous are thosewho attempt to ascribe to THE ALL the

personality, qualities, properties, characteristics and attributes of themselves,ascribing to THE ALL t he human emo


58 The K ybalion

regions unknowable and unthinkable, andw ith the same tendency as that of Theology. And consequently, both Religion andPhilosophy mean to us things having rootsin Reality

,while Theology and Meta

physics seem like broken reeds, rooted inthe quicksands of ignorance, and affordingnaught but the most insecure support forthe mind or soul of Man. We do not insistupon our students accepting these definitions—we mention them merely to showour position. At any rate

, youshall hearvery little about Theology and Metaphysics inthese lessons . )But while the essential nature of THE

ALL is Unknowable,there are certain

truths connected with its existence whichthe human mind finds itself compelled toaccept. And an examination of these t e

ports form a proper subject of inquiry,particularly as they agree with the reportsof the Illumined onhigher planes . And tothis inquiry we noesr invite you.

THAT which is the Fundamental Truth—the Subatantisl Reality—is beyond true naming, but the WiseMen call it THE ALL.

”—The Kybalion.

The All 59

Inits Essence, THE ALL is UNKNOWABLThe K ybalion.

“ But, the report of Reason must be hospitably re

ceived, and treated with respect. ’—Thc K ybalion.

The human reason, whose reports wemust accept so long as we think at all, informs us as follows regarding THE ALL,

and that w ithout attempting to remove theveil of the Unknowable :

( 1 ) THE ALL must be ALL that REALLY IS . There can be nothing existingoutside of THE ALL, else THE ALL

would not be THE ALL.

(2 ) THE ALLmust be INFINITE, forthere is nothing else to define, confine,bound, limit or restrict THE ALL. Itmust be Infinite in Time, or ETERNALit must have always continuously existed,for there is nothing else to have ever created it, and something cannever evolvefrom nothing, and if it had ever notbeen, even for a moment, it would not‘be now ,

—it must continuously exist forever, for there is nothing to destroy it, andit can never not-be, evenfor a moment.because something cannever become noth

60 The Kybalion

ing. It must be Infinite inSpace—it mustbe Everywhere, for there is no place outside of THE ALL—it cannot be otherwisethan continuous inSpace, without break,cessation, separation, or interruption, forthere is nothing to break, separate, or interrupt its continuity, and nothing w ithwhich to “fill in the gaps . It must beInfinite in Power, or Absolute, for thereis nothing to limit, restrict, restrain, confine, disturb or condition it—it is subjectto no other Power, for there is no otherPower.

(3 ) THEALLmust be IMMUTABLE,

or not subject to change inits real nature,for there is nothing to work changes uponit ; nothing into which it could change,norfrom which it could have changed. It cannot be added to nor subtracted from ; increased nor diminished ; nor becomegreater or lesser inany respect whatsoever. I t must have always been, and mustalways remain, just what it is now—THEALL—there has never been, is not now,

The All 6 1

it canchange.

THE ALL being Infinite, Absolute,Eternal and Unchangeable it must followthat anything finite, changeable, fleeting,and conditioned cannot be THEALL. Andas there is Nothing outside of THE ALL,

in Reality, thenany and all such finitethings must be as Nothing in Reality. Nowdo not become befogged, nor frightenedwe are not trying to lead you into theChristian Science field under cover of Hermetic Philosophy. There is a Reconciliationof this apparently contradictory stateof affairs. Be patient, we w ill reach it in

We see around us that which is calledMatter, which forms the physicalfoundationfor all forms. I s THE ALLmerely Matter ! Not at all ! Matter cannot manifest Life or Mind, and as Life andMind aremanifested inthe Universe, THEALL cannot be Matter, for nothing riseshigher than its own source—nothing isever manifested in an efiect that is not in

62 The Kybalion

the cause—nothing is evolved as a cousequent that isnot involved as an antecedent.And then Modern Science informs us thatthere is really no such thing as Matterthat what we call Matter is merely “ interrupted energy or force,

” that is, energyor force at a low rate of vibration. As arecent writer has said Matter has meltedinto Mystery. Even Material Science hasabandoned the theory of Matter, and nowrests on the basis of “Energy.

”

Then is THE ALL mere Energy or

Force ! Not Energy or Force as the materialistsuse the term s, for their energy andforce are blind, mechanical things, devoidof Life or Mind. Life and Mind can neverevolve from blind Energy or Force, for thereason given a moment ago :

“Nothingcanrise higher than its source—nothingis evolved unless it is involved—nothingmanifests in the efiect, unless it is in thecause. And so THE ALL cannot be mereEnergy or Force, for, if it were, then therewould be no such things as Life and Mindinexistence, and we know better thanthat.

The All

for we are Alive and using Mind to consider this very question, and so are thosewho claim that Energy or Force is Every

What is there then higher than Matteror Energy that we know to be existent inthe Universe ! LIFE AND MIND ! Lifeand Mind inall their varying degrees of

unfoldment ! “Then,” you ask,

“do youmean to tell us that THE ALL is LIFEand MIND ! ” Yes ! and No ! is our answer. If youmean Life and Mind as wepoor petty mortals know them, we say N0 !THE ALL is not that ! ‘But what kind ofLife and Mind do you mean ! ” youask.

The answer is “LIVING MIND, as farabove that which mortals know by thesewords, as Life and Mind are higher thanmechanical forces, or matter—INFINITELIVING MIND as compared to finite Lifeand Mind. We mean that which theillumined souls mean when they reverentlypronounce the word : “SPIRITl”

THE ALL is Infinite Living Mindthe Illumined call it SPIRIT !


The K ybalion

Mind, at the same time acknow ledging thatwe cannot fully understand it . We musteither do this or stop thinking of the matter at all.Let us now proceed to a consideration of

the nature of the Universe,as a whole and

in its parts . What is the Universe ! Wehave seen that there can be nothing outsideof THE ALL . Then is the Universe THEALL ! N0, this cannot be, because the Universe seems to be made up of MANY, andis constantly changing, and in other waysit does not measure up to the ideas that weare compelled to accept regarding THEALL, as stated in our last lesson. Then ifthe Universe be not THE ALL, then itmust be Nothing— such is the inevitableconclusion of the mind at first thought .But this will not satisfy the question, forwe are sensible of the existence of the Universe. Then if the Universe is neitherTHE ALL, nor Nothing, what can it be !Let us examine this question.

If the Universe exists at all,or seems to

ex ist, it must proceed in some way from

The Mental Universe 67

THE ALL—it must be a creation of THEALL . But as something can never comefrom nothing, from what could THE ALLhave created it ! Some philosophers haveanswered this question by saying that THEALL created

'

the Universe from ITSELF— that is, from the being and substance ofTHE ALL. But this will not do, for THEALL cannot be subtracted from

,nor di

vided, as we have seen, and then again ifthis be so, would not each particle in theUniverse be aware of its being THE ALLTHE ALL could not lose its knowledgeof itself

,nor actually BECOME an atom,

or blind force, or lowly living thing. Somemen

,indeed

,realizing that THE ALL is

indeed ALL, and also recognizing thatthey

,the men

,existed, have jumped to the

conclusion that they and THE ALL wereidentical, and they have filled the air withshouts of “ I AM GOD,

”to the amusement

of the multitude and the sorrow of sages .

The claim of the corpuscle that ‘I am

Man !” would be modest in comparison.

But, what indeed is the Universe, if it

68 The Kybalion

be not THEALL, not yet created by THEALL having separated itself into fragments ! What else can it be—of what elsecan it be made ! This is the great quest ion.

Let us examine it carefully. We findhere that the ‘Principle of Correspondence ( see Lesson I. ) comes to our aidhere. The Old Hermetic axiom,

As aboveso below,

” may be pressed into service atthis point. Let us endeavor to get aglimpse of the workings onhigher planesby examining those on our own. The

Principle Of Correspondence must applyto this as well as to other problems .Let us see ! On his own plane of being,

how does Man create ! Well, first, he maycreate by making something out of outsidematerials . But this will not do, for thereare no materials outside of THE ALL withwhich it may create . Well, then, secondly,Man pro-creates or reproduces his kind bythe process of begetting, which is selfmultiplication accomplished by transferring a portion of his substance to hisOffspring. But this will not do, because


THE ALL cannot transfer or subtract aportion of itself, nor can it reproduce ormultiply itself—in the first place therewould be a taking away, and inthe secondcase a multiplication or addition to THEALL, both thoughts being an absurdity.

Is there no third way in which MANcreates ! Yes

,there is—he CREATES

MENTALLY ! And in so doing he usesno outside materials, nor does he reproduce himself, and yet his Spirit pervadesthe Mental Creation.

Following the Principle of Correspondence, we are justified inconsidering thatTHE ALL creates the Universe MENTALLY, ina manner akinto the processwherebyMancreates Mental Images . And,here is where the report of Reason talliesprecisely with the report of the Illumined,as shown by their teachings and writings .Such are the teachings of the Wise Men.

Such was the Teaching of Hermes.THE ALL can create in no other wayexcept mentally, without either using material (and there is none to use) , or else

70 The Kybalion

reproducing itself (which is also impossible ) . There is no escape from this conclusionof the Reason, which, as we havesaid, agrees with the highest teachings of

the Illumined. Just as you, student, maycreate a Universe of your own in yourmentality, so does THE ALL create Universes in its own Mentality. But yourUniverse is the mental creation of a FiniteMind, whereas that of THE ALL is thecreation of an Infinite. The two are Similar in kind, but infinitely different in degree. We shall examine more closely intothe process of creation and manifestation,as we proceed. But this is the point tofix in your minds at this stage : THEUNIVERSE, AND ALL IT CONTAINS, ISA MENTAL CREATION OF THE ALL.

Verily, indeed, ALL IS MIND !

THE ALL creates in its Infinite Mind countlessUniverses, which ex ist for aeons of Time—and t, toTHE ALL, the creation, development, decline an deathof a million Universes is as the time of the twinklingof aneye.

” —The K ybalion.

“ The Infinite Mind of THE ALL is the womb ofUniverses.

—The K ybalion.


The Principle of Gender ( see Lesson I.and other lessons to follow ) is manifestedon all planes of life, material, mental andspiritual. But, as we have said before,“Gender” does not mean “ Sex”—sex ismerely a material manifestation of gender.Gender ’ means relating to generationor creation. And wherever anything isgenerated or created, on any plane, thePrinciple of Gender must be manifested .

And this is true even in the creation ofUniverses.

Now do not jump to the conclusion thatwe are teaching that there is a male andfemale God, or Creator. That idea ismerely a distortion of the ancient teachings onthe subject. The true teaching isthat THE ALL, in itself, is above Gender,as it is above every other Law, includingthose of Time and Space. It is the Law,

from which the Laws proceed, and it is ,not

subject to them. But when THE ALL

manifests on the plane of generation orcreation, then it acts according to Law andPrinciple, for it is moving on a lower plane

72 The Kybalion

of Being. And consequently it manifeststhe Principle of Gender, inits Masculineand Feminine aspects, on the Mental Plane,of course.This idea may seem startling to some of

you who hear it for the first time, but youhave all really passively accepted it inyour everyday conceptions. You speakof the Fatherhood of God, and the Motherhood of Nature—of God, the DivineFather, and Nature the Universal Mother—and have thus instinctively acknowledgedthe Principle of Gender in the Universe.Is this not so !But, the Hermetic teaching does not imply a real duality—THE ALL is ONEthe Two Aspects are merely aspects ofmanifestation. The teaching is that TheMasculine Principle manifested by THEALL stands, in a way, apart from the

actual mental creation of the Universe. Itprojects its Will toward the FemininePrinciple (which may be called Nature ’

whereupon the latter begins the actualwork of the evolution of the Universe, from


74 The Kghalian

examines the thoughts, ideas and images ofthe “Me. “As above, so below,

” remember, and the phenomena of one plane maybe employed to solve the riddles of higheror lower planes.Is it any wonder that You

, the child, feelthat instinctive reverence for THE ALL,

which feeling we call religion ’ - that respect, and reverence for THE FATHERMIND ! Is it any wonder that, when youconsider the works and wonders of Nature,you are overcome with a mighty feeling which has its roots away down in yourinmost being ! It is the MOTHER MINDthat youare pressing close up to, like ababe to the breast.Do not make the mistake of supposingthat the little world you see around youthe Earth, which is a mere grain of dust inthe Universe—is the Universe itself. Thereare millions upon millions of such worlds,and greater. And there are millions ofmillions of such Universes in existencewithin the Infinite Mind of THE ALL.

And even in our own little solar system


there are regions and planes of life farhigher than ours, and beings compared towhich we earth-bound mortals are as theslimy life-forms that dwell on the ocean ’sbed when compared to Man. There are beings with powers and attributes higherthan Man has ever dreamed of the gods ’

possessing. And yet these beings wereonce as you, and still lower—and you willbe even as they, and still higher, in time,for such is the Destiny of Man as reported

And Death is not real, even inthe Relative sense—it is but Birth to a new lifeand You shall go on, and on, and on, tohigher and still higher planes of life

, for

aeons upon aeons of time. The Universeis your home, and you shall explore itsfarthest recesses before the end of Time.You are dwelling in the Infinite Mind ofTHE ALL, and your possibilities and op

portunities are infinite, both intime andspace. And at the end of the Grand Cycleof Aeons, when THEALL shall draw backinto itself all of its creations—youwill go

76 The Kybalion

gladly, for youwill thenbe able to knowthe Whole Truth of being At One withTHE ALL. Such is the report of theIllumined—those who have advanced wellalong The Path.

And, in the meantime, rest calm andserene—youare safe and protected by theInfinite Power of the FATHER-MOTHER

Within the Father-Mother Mind, mortal children areat home. —Ths Kybalion.

There is not one who is Fatherless, nor Motherlessinthe Universe. —1 'he Kybalion.

CHAPTER VI.

THE DIVINE Pasanox .

The half-wise, recognizing the comparative unrealityof the Universe, imagine that they may defy its Lawssuch are vain and presumptuous fools

,and they are

broken against the rocks and torn asunder by the elements by reason of their folly. The truly wise, knowing the nature of the Universe, use Law against laws ;the higher against the lower ; and by the Art of Alchemytransmute that which is undesirable into that which isworthy, and thus triumph. Mastery consists not inabnormal dreams, Visions and fantastic imaginings or living, but inusing the higher forces against the lowsescapin the sins of the lower planes by vibrating onthe hig er. ansmutation, not presumptuous denial, isthe weapon of the Master. —The Kybalion.

This is the Paradox of the Universe,resulting from the Principle of Polaritywhich manifests when THE ALL beginsto Create—hearken to it for it points thedifierence between half-wisdom and wisdom. While to THE INFINITE ALL,

the Universe, its Laws, its Powers, itsLife, its Phenomena, are as things wit

1 7

78 The Kybalion

neesed in the state of Meditation orDream ; yet to all that is Finite, the Universe must be treated as Real, and life,and action, and thought, must be basedthereupon, accordingly, although with anever understanding of the Higher Truth.

Each according to its ownPlane and Laws.Were THE ALL to imagine that the Universe were indeed Reality, then woe to theUniverse, for there would be then no es

cape from lower to higher, divineward

then would the Universe become a fix ityand progress would become impossible.And if Man

,owing to half-wisdom, acts

and lives and thinks of the Universe asmerely a dream (akin to his own finitedreams ) then indeed does it so become forhim ,

and like a Sleep-walker he stumblesever around and around in a circle, makingno progress, and being forced into anawakening at last by his falling bruisedand bleeding over the Natural Laws whichhe ignored. K eep your mind ever on theStar

,but let your eyes watch over your

footsteps,lest you fall into the mire by

The Divine Paradox 79

reason of your upward gaze. Rememberthe Divine Paradox, that while the Universe IS NOT, still IT IS . Remember everthe Two Poles of Truth—the Absolute andthe Relative. Beware of Half-Truths .What Hermetists know as “ the Law ofParadox is an aspect of the Principle ofPolarity. The Hermetic writings are filledwith references to the appearance of theParadox inthe consideration of the problems of Life and Being. The Teachers areconstantly warning their students againstthe error of omitting the “ other side” ofany question. And their warnings areparticularly directed to the problems ofthe Absolute and the Relative, which perplex all students of philosophy, and whichcause so many to think and act contrary towhat is generally known as ‘commonsense.” And we caution all students to besure to grasp the Divine Paradox of theAbsolute and Relative, lest they become en.

tangled in the mire of the Half-Truth .

With this in View this particular lesson hasbeen written. Read it carefully !

80 The Kybalion

The first thought that comes to the thinking man after he realizes the truth that theUniverse is a Mental Creation of THE

ALL, is that the Universe and all that itcontains is a mere illusion ; anunreality ;against which idea his instincts revolt.But this, like all other great truths, mustbe considered both from the Absolute andthe Relative points of View. From the

Absolute Viewpoint, of course, the Universe is in the nature of an illusion, adream, a phantasmagoria, as compared toTHE ALL in itself. We recognize thiseven in our ordinary View, for we Speakof the world as

“ a fleeting show” thatcomes and goes, is born and dies—for theelement of impermanence and change,finiteness and unsubstantiality, must everbe connected with the idea of a created Universe when it is contrasted with the ideaof THE ALL,

no matter what may be ourbeliefs concerning the nature of both.

Philosopher,metaphysician

,scientist and

theologian all agree upon this idea, andthe thought is found inall forms of philo


82 The Kybalion

conceptions, and see whether this be nottrue of them.

But the Absolute point of View showsmerely one side of the picture—the otherside is the Relative one. Absolute Truthhas been defined as “Things as the mindof God knows them,

while Relative Truthis “Things as the highest reason of Manunderstands them.

’ And so while to THEALL the Universe must be unreal andillusionary, a mere dream or result of

meditation—nevertheless, to the finite

minds forming a part of that Universe,and Viewing it through mortal faculties,the Universe is very real indeed, and mustbe so considered. In recognizing the Ahsolute view, we must not make the mistakeof ignoring or denying the facts and phenomena of the Universe as they presentthemselves to our mortal faculties—we arenot THE ALL, remember.To take familiar illustrations, we allrecognize the fact that Matter

“ exists” toour senses—we will fare badly if we donot. And yet, even our finite minds under


stand the scientific dictum that there is nosuch thing as Matter from a scientific pointof View—that which we call Matter is heldto be merely an aggregation of atoms

,

which atoms themselves are merely agrouping of units of force, called electronsor “ ions,

” Vibrating and in constant circular motion. We kick a stone and we feelthe impact—it seems to be real, notwithstanding that we know it to be merely whatwe have stated above . But remember thatour foot, which feels the impact by meansof our brains

,is likewise Matter, so con

stituted of electrons,and for that matter

so are our brains . And, at the best, if itwere not by reason of our Mind

,we would

not know the foot or stone at all .Then again, the ideal of the artist orsculptor, which he is endeavoring to re

produce in stone or on canvas,seems very

real to him . So do the characters in themind of the author, or dramatist, whichhe seeks to express so that others may recognize them. And if this be true in thecase of our finite minds , what must be the

84 The Kybalion

degree of Reality in the Mental Imagescreated in the Mind of the Infinite ! Oh,friends, to mortals this Universe of Mentality is very real indeed—it is the onlyone we can ever know, though we rise fromplane to plane

,higher and higher in it.

To know it otherwise, by actual experience,we must be THE ALL itself. It is truethat the higher we rise in the scale—thenearer to “ the mind of the Father” wereach—the more apparent becomes the illusory nature of finite things, but not untilTHE ALL finally withdraws us into itselfdoes the vision actually vanish.

So, we need not dwell upon the featureof illusion . Rather let us, recognizing thereal nature of the Universe

,seek to under

stand its mental laws, and endeavor to usethem to the best effect in our upward progress through life, as we travel from planeto plane of being. The Laws of the Universe are none the less “Iron Laws” because of the mental nature. All, exceptTHE ALL

, are bound by them. What isIN THE INFINITE MIND OF THEALL


is REAL in a degree second only to thatReality itself which is vested in the natureof THE ALL.

So, do not feel insecure or afraid—we

are all HELD FIRMLY IN THE INFINITE MIND OF THE ALL, and there isnaught to hurt us or forus to fear. Thereis no Power outside of THEALL to affectus. So we may rest calm and secure .

There is a world of comfort and securityin. this realization when once attained.

Then calm and peaceful do we sleep,rocked in the Cradle of the Deep”—resting safely onthe bosom of the Ocean ofInfinite Mind, which is THE ALL . InTHE ALL, indeed, do

‘we live and moveand have our being.

Matter is none the less Matter to us,while we dwell on the plane of Matter, although we know it to be merely an aggre

gation of“ electrons,

” or particles ofForce, vibrating rapidly and gyratingaround each other in the formations of

atoms ; the atoms in turn vibrating andgyrating, forming molecules, which latter

86 The Kybalion

in turn form larger masses of Matter.Nor does Matter become less Matter, whenwe follow the inquiry cftill further, andlearn from the Hermetic Teachings, thatthe Force of which the electrons arebut units is merely a manifestation of theMind of THE ALL, and like all else in theUniverse is purely Mental in its nature.While on the Plane of Matter, we mustrecognize its phenomena—we may controlMatter (as all Masters of higher or lesserdegree do ) , but we do so by applying thehigher forces . We commit a folly whenwe attempt to deny the existence of Matterin the relative aspect. We may deny itsmastery over us—and rightly so—but weshould not attempt to ignore it in its relative aspect, at least so long as we dwellupon its plane.Nor do the Laws of Nature become lessconstant or effective, when we know them,

likewise, to be merely mental creations.

Theyare in full effect onthe various planes .We overcome the lower laws, by applyingstill higher ones— and in this way only.


But we cannot escape Law or rise above itentirely. Nothing but THE ALL can es

cape Law—and that because THE ALL isLAW itself, from which all Laws emerge.The most advanced Masters may acquirethe powers usually attributed to the godsof men ; and there are countless ranks ofbeing, in the great hierarchy of life, whosebeing and power transcends even that ofthe highest Masters among men to a degree unthinkable by mortals, but even thehighest Master, and the highest Being,must bow to the Law, and be as Nothing inthe eye of THE ALL. So that if eventhese highest Beings, whose powers exceedeven those attributed by men to their gods—if even these are bound by and are subservient to Law,

then imagine the presumption of mortal man, of our race andgrade, when he dares to consider the Lawsof Nature as

“unreal,” visionary and

illusory, because he happens to be able tograsp the truth that the Laws are Mentalin nature, and simply Mental Creationsof THE ALL. Those Laws which THE

88 The Kybalion

ALL intends to be governing Laws arenotto be defied or argued away. So long as

the Universe endures, will they endurefor the Universe exists by virtue of theseLaws which form its framework and whichhold it together.The Hermetic Principle of Mentalism,

while explaining the true nature of the

Universe upon the principle that all isMental, does not change the scientific conceptions of the Universe

,Life, or Evolu

tion. In fact, science merely corroboratesthe Hermetic Teachings. The latter merelyteaches that the nature of the Universe isMental, while modern science has taughtthat it is “Material” ; or (of late) that itis “Energy” at the last analysis. The

Hermetic Teachings have no fault to findwith Herbert Spencer ’s basic principlewhich postulates the existence of an “ Infinite and Eternal Energy, from which all

things proceed.

” In fact, the Hermeticsrecognize in Spencer ’s philosophy the highest outside statement of the workings ofthe Natural Law s that have ever been pro


90 The Kybalion

ciple of THE ALL is Mind ; the Universeis Mental—held in the Mind of THEALL.

” He will find that the other six of

the Seven Principles will “fit into” his

scientific knowledge, and will serve to bringout obscure points and to throw light indark corners. This is not to be wonderedat, when we realize the influence of theHermetic thought on the early philoso

phers of Greece, upon whose foundationsof thought the theories of modern sciencelargely rest. The acceptance of the FirstHermetic Principle (Mentalism) is the

only great point of difl’erence betweenModern Science and Hermetic students,and Science is gradually moving towardthe Hermetic position in its groping in thedark for a way out of the Labyrinth intowhich it has wandered in its search forReality.

The purpose of this lesson is to impressupon the minds of our students the factthat, to all intents and purposes, the Universe and its laws, and its phenomena, are

just as REAL, so far as Man is concerned,

The Divine Paradox 9 1

as they would be under the hypotheses ofMaterialism or Energism. Under anyhypothesis the Universe inits outer aspectis changing, ever-flowing, and transitoryand therefore devoid of substantiality andreality. But (note the other pole of thetruth) under any of the same hypotheses,we are compelled to ACT AND LIVE asif the fleeting things were real and substantial. With this difierence, always, between the various hypotheses—that underthe old views Mental Power was ignoredas a Natural Force, whileunder Mentaliemit becomes the Greatest Natural Force.And this one difi’erence revolutionizes Life,to those whounderstand the Principle andits resulting laws and practice.So, finally, students all, grasp the ad

vantage of Mentalism,and learn to know,

use and apply the laws resulting therefrom. But do not yield to the temptationwhich, as The Kybalionstates, overcomesthe half-wise and which causes them to behypnotized by the apparent unreality of

things, the consequence being that they

92 The Kybalion

wander about like dream-people dwellingin a world of dreams, ignoring the practical work and life of man, the end beingthat ‘they are broken against the rocksand torn asunder by the elements,by reasonof their folly. Rather follow the exampleof the wise, which the same authoritystates, use Law against Laws ; the higheragainst the lower ; and by the Art ofAlchemy transmute that which is undesirable into that which is worthy

,and thus

triumph. Following the authority,let us

avoid the half-wisdom (which is folly)which ignores the truth that “Masteryconsists not in abnormal dreams

,visions ,

and fantastic imaginings or living,but in

using the higher forces against the lowerescaping the pains of the lower planes byvibrating onthe higher.” Remember always

,student, that Transmutation, not

presumptuous denial, is the weapon of theMaster. The above quotations are fromThe Kybalion, and are worthy of beingcommitted to memory by the student.We donot live in a world of dreams, but


inan Universe which,while relative

,is real

so far as our lives and actions are concerned. Our business in the Universe isnot to deny its existence

, but to LIVE.

using the Laws to rise from lower to higher—living on, doing the best that we canunder the circumstances arising each day,and living, so far as is possible, to ourhighest ideas and ideals. The true Meaning of Life is not known to men onthisplane—if, indeed, to any—but the highestauthorities, and our own intuitions, teachus that we w ill make no mistake in livingup to the best that is in us, so far as ispossible, and realizing the Universal tendency in the same direction in spite ofapparent evidences to the contrary. Weare all on The Path—and the road leadsupward ever

,with frequent resting places .

Read the Message of The Kybalion—andfollow the example of “ the wise” avoiding the mistake of ‘the half-wise” whoperish by reason of their folly.

CHAPTER VII .

THE ALL ” IN ALL .

While All is inTHE ALL, it is equally true thatTHE ALL is inAll. To him who truly understands thistruth hath come great knowledge. —The Kybalion.

How often have the majority of peopleheard repeated the statement that theirDeity (called by many names ) was

“All inAll, and how little have they suspectedthe inner occult truth concealed by thesecarelessly uttered words ! The commonlyused expression is a survival of the ancient

Hermetic Maxim quoted above. As the

Kybalionsays To him who trulyunderstands this truth, hath come great knowledge. ’ And, this being so, let us seek thistruth, the understanding of which meansso much. In this statement of truth—thisHermetic Maxim—is concealed one of the

95

96 The Kybalion

greatest philosophical, scientific and t e

ligious truths.

We have given youthe Hermetic Teaching regarding the Mental Nature of theUniverse—the truth that the Universe isMental—held in the Mind of THE ALL.

As the Kybalion says, in the passagequoted above : “All is inTHE ALL.

”

But note also the co-related statement,that : “ It is equally true that THE ALL isinALL. This apparently contradictorystatement is reconcilable under the Law ofParadox. It is, moreover, an exact Hermetic statement of the relations ex istingbetw een THE ALL and its Mental Universe. We have seen how “All is in THEALL —now let us examine the otheraspect of the subject.The Hermetic Teachings are to the efl’ectthat THE ALL is Imminent in remaining within; inherent ; abiding within

’ itsUniverse

,and in every part, particle,unit,

or combination, within the Universe. Thisstatement is usually illustrated by the

Teachers by a reference to the Principle


98 The Kybalion

giving them their vitality, spirit, andaction. Whose is the “ spirit” of the charactors that we know as Micawber, OliverTwist, Uriah Heep—is it Dickens, or haveeach of these characters a personal spirit,independent of their creator ! Have theVenus of Medici, the Sistine Madonna, theAppollo Belvidere, spirits and reality oftheir own, or do they represent the spiritual and mental power of their creators !The Law of Paradox explains that bothpropositions are true, viewed from theproper viewpoints. Micawber is bothMicawber, and yet Dickens. And, again,while Micawber may be said to be Dickens,yet Dickens is not identical with Micawber.Man, like Micawber, may exclaim : The

Spirit of my Creator is inherent within me—and yet I am not HE ! ’ How difl

’erent

this from the shocking half-truth so vociferously announced by certain of the halfwise, who fill the air with their raucouscries of : I Am God !” Imagine poorMicawber, or the sneaky Uriah Heep, crying “I Am Dickens” ; or some of the

“The All

”inAll 99

lowly clods in one of Shakespeare ’s plays,

grandiloquently announcing that “ I AmShakespeare !” THE ALL is in theearth-worm, and yet the earth-worm is farfrom being THE ALL . And still thewonder remains

,that though the earth

worm ex ists merely as a lowly thing,created and having its being solely withinthe Mind of THE ALL—yet THE ALL isimmanent in the earth-worm, and in theparticles that go to make up the earthworm. Canthere be any greater mysterythan this of “All in THE ALL ; and THEALL in All!The student will, of course, realize that

the illustrations given above are necessarily imperfect and inadequate, for theyrepresent the creation of mental images infinite minds

,while the Universe is a crea

tion of Infinite Mind—and the differencebetween the two poles separates them.

And yet it is merely a matter of degreethe same Principle is in Operation—thePrinciple of Correspondence manifests

1 00 The Kybalion

each—“As above, so Below ; as Below,so

above.And, in the degree that Manrealizes theexistence of the Indwelling Spirit immanent within his being, so will he rise inthespiritual scale of life. This is what spiritual development means—the recognition,realization, and manifestation of the Spiritwithin us. Try to remember this lastdefinition—that of spiritual development.It contains the Truth of True Religion.

There are many planes of Being—manysub-planes of Life—many degrees of existence in the Universe. And all dependuponthe advancement of beings inthe scale, ofwhich scale the lowest point is the grossestmatter, the highest being separated onlyby the thinnest division from the SPIRITof THE ALL. And, upward and onwardalong this Scale of Life, everything is

moving. All are on the Path, whose endis THE ALL. All progress is a ReturningHome. All is Upward and Onward

,in

spite of all seemingly contradictory ap


1 02 The Kybalion

perhaps we will give a better idea of whatis meant.This Involuntary stage of Creation is

sometimes called the “Outpouring” of theDivine Energy

,just as the Evolutionary

state is called the “ Indrawing.

” The

extreme pole of the Creative process isconsidered to be the furthest removed fromTHE ALL, while the beginning of theEvolutionary stage is regarded as thebeginning of the return swing of the pendulum of Rhythm—a

“ coming home ’ ideabeing held in all of the Hermetic Teachings .The Teachings are that during the Outpouring, the vibrations become lower andlower until finally the urge ceases, and thereturn swing begins . But there is this difference

,that while in the “Outpouring”

the creative forces manifest compactly andas a whole

,yet from the beginning of the

Evolutionary or “ Indrawing” stage, thereis manifested the Law of Individualization—that is, the tendency to separate intoUnits of Force, so that finally that which

“The All

”inAll 1 03

left THE ALL as unindividualized energyreturns to its source as countless highlydeveloped Units of Life, having risenhigher and higher in the scale by meansof Physical, Mental and Spiritual Evolution.

The ancient Hermetists use the wordMeditation, in describing the process

of the mental creation of the Universe inthe Mind of THE ALL, the word Contemplation ’ also being frequently employed. But the idea intended seems to bethat of the employment of the DivineAttention. Attention is a word derivedfrom the Latin root, meaning

‘ to reachout ; to stretch out, and so the act of

Attention is really a mental reachingout ; extension

”of mental energy, so that

the underlying idea is readily understoodwhen we examine into the real meaning ofAttention.

The Hermetic Teachings regarding theprocess of Evolution are that, THE ALL,

having meditated upon the beginning of

the Creation—having thus established the

1 04 The Kybalion

material foundations of the Universehaving thought it into existence—thengradually awakens or rouses from its

Meditation and in so doing starts intomanifestation the process of Evolution, onthe material

,mental and spiritual planes,

successively and in order. Thus the upward movement begins—and all begins tomove Spiritward. Matter becomes lessgross ; the Units Spring into being ; thecombinations begin to form ; Life appearsand manifests in higher and higher forms ;and Mind becomes more and more inevi

dence—the vibrations constantly becominghigher. In short, the entire process of

Evolution,in all of its phases, begins, and

proceeds according to the established Lawsof the “ Indrawing process. All of thisoccupies aeons upon aeons of Man’s time,each aeon containing countless millions ofyears, but yet the Illumined informus thatthe entire creation, including Involutionand Evolution

,of an Universe, is but

“as

the twinkle of the eye” to THE ALL. At

the end of countless cycles ofnone of t ithe,


1 06 The Kybalion

Metaphysical field of speculation, althoughour purpose is merely to show the futilityof such speculation. We allude to the

question which inevitably comes to themind of all thinkers who have ventured toseek the Truth. The question Is “WHYdoes THE ALL create Universes ! ” The

question may be asked in different forms,but the above is the gist of the inquiry.

Men have striven hard to answer thisquestion, but still there is no answerworthy of the name. Some have imaginedthat THE ALL had something to gain byit,but this is absurd

,for what could THE

ALL gain that it did not already possess !Others have sought the answer in the ideathat THE ALL “wished something to

love ; and others that it created for pleasure

,or amusement ; or because it “was

lonely” ; or to manifest its power —allpuerile explanations and ideas, belongingto the childish period of thought.Others have sought to explain themystery by assuming that THE ALL

found itself “ compelled” to create, by

“The All

”inAll 1 07

reason of its own internal nature —itscreative instinct. This idea is in ad

vance of the others, but its weak point liesin ; the idea of THE ALL being “ com

pelled by anything, internal or external.If its “ internal nature,

”or

“ creative instinct , compelled it to do anything, thenthe “ internal nature” or

“ creative instinct” would be the Absolute, instead of

THE ALL, and so accordingly that partof the proposition falls. And, yet, THEALL does create and manifest

,and seems

to find some kind of satisfaction in so

doing. And it is difficult to escape theconclusion that in some infinite degree itmust have what would correspond to an“ inner nature,

” or “ creative instinct,

” inman, with correspondingly infinite Desireand Will. It could not act unless it Willedto Act ;and it wouldnotWill to Act, unlessit Desired to Act ; and it would not Desireto Act unless it obtained some Satisfactionthereby.

’

And all of these things wouldbelong to an “ Inner Nature, and mightbe postulated as existing according to the

KB The Kybalion

Law of Correspondence. But, still, we

prefer to think of THE ALL as acting

ternal as well as external. That is the

problem which lies at the root of difficulty—and the dificulty that lies at the root of

Strictly speaking, there cannot be saidto be any

“Reason” whatsoever for THEALL to act, for a

“ reason” implies a“ cause,

” and THE ALL is above Causeand Efiect, except whenit Wills to becomea Cause, at which time the Principle is setinto motion. So, yousee, the matter isUnthinkable, just as THE ALL is Unknowable. Just as we say THE ALL

merely IS —so we are compelled to say

that “THE ALL ACTS BECAUSE IT

ACTS. At the last, THE ALL is AllReason in Itself ; All Law in Itself ; AllAction in Itself—and it may be said, truthfully, that THE ALL is Its Own Reason ;its ownLaw ; its ownAct—or still further,that THE ALL ; Its Reason; Its Act ; isLaw ; are ONE,

all being names for th


1 1 0 The K ybalion

Inner Nature conclusion,—still the

legends have it that HERMES,the Great,

when asked this question by his advancedstudents, answered them by PRESSINGHIS LIPS TIGHTLY TOGETHER andsaying not a word, indicating that thereWAS NO ANSWER . But, then, he mayhave intended to apply the axiom of hisphilosophy, that The lips of Wisdomare closed, except to the ears of Understanding, believing that even his ad

vanced students did not possess the Understanding which entitled them to the Teaching. At any rate, if Hermes possessed theSecret, he failed to impart it, and so far asthe world is concerned THE LIPS OFHERMES ARE CLOSED regarding it.And where the Great Hermes hesitated tospeak

,what mortal may dare to teach !

But,remember

,that whatever be the

answer to this problem, if indeed there bean answer the truth remains that“While All is in THE ALL, it is equallytrue that THE ALL is in All.” The

Teaching onthis point is emphatic. And,

“The All

”inAll 1 1 1

we may add the concluding words of thequotation To him who truly understands this truth

,hath come great knowl

edge. 7


1 1 4 The Kybalion

nomena, knownas the Three Great Planes,

I . The Great Physical Plane.

III . The Great Spiritual Plane.

These divisions are more or less artificial and arbitrary, for the truth is thatall of the three divisions are but ascending degrees of the great scale of Life, thelowest point of which is undifi erentiatedMatter, and the highest point that ofSpirit. And, moreover, the difl erentPlanes shade into each other, so that nohard and fast division may be made be !

tweenthe higher phenomena of the Physical and the lower of the Mental ; or betweenthe higher of the Mental and thelower of the Physical .Inshort, the Three Great Planes may be.

regarded as three great groups of degreesof Life Manifestation. While the purposesof this little book do not allow us to enterinto anextended discussion of, or explana

Planes of Correspondence 1 1 5

tion of, the subject of these differentplanes, still we think it well to give a general description of the same at this point .At the beginning we may as well consider the question so often asked by theneophyte, who desires to be informed re

garding the meaning of the word “Plane,”

which term has been very freely used, andvery poorly explained

,In many recent

works upon the subject of occultism. The

question is generally about as follows“ Is a Plane a place having dimensions, oris it merely a condition or state ! ” Weanswer “No

,not a place, nor ordinary

dimension of space ; and yet more than astate or condition. It may be consideredas a state or condition

,and yet the state

or condition is a degree of dimension, ina scale subject to measurement. Somewhat paradoxical, is it not ! But let usexamine the matter. A “dimension,

”you

know, is‘a measure ina straight line, re

lating to measure, etc. The ordinarydimensions of space are length, breadth,and height

,or perhaps length, breadth,

1 1 6 The Kybalion

height,thickness or circumference. But

there is another dimension of createdthings,

” or “measure ina straight line,”

known to occultists, and to scientists aswell, although the latter have not as yetapplied the term “dimension to it—andthis new dimension, which, by the way, isthe much speculated-about Fourth Dimension, is the standard used indetermining the degrees or “planes .”

This Fourth Dimension may be calledthe Dimension of Vibration. It is afact well known to modern science, as wellas to the Hermetists who have embodiedthe truth intheir Third Hermetic Principle,

” that “ everything is in motion ;everything vibrates ; nothing is at rest.From the highest manifestation, to thelowest, everything and all things Vibrate.Not only do they vibrate at different ratesof motion, but as in different directionsand ina different manner. The degrees ofthe rate ’ of vibrations constitute thedegrees of measurement on the Scale of

Vibrations—inother words the degrees of


1 1 8 The Kybalion

and have their existence solely withintheInfinite Mind of THE ALL.

The Hermetists sub-divide each of theThree Great Planes into Seven MinorPlanes, and each of these latter are alsosub-divided into seven sub -planes, all divisions being more or less arbitrary, shading into each other, and adopted merelyfor convenience of scientific study andthought.The Great Physical Plane, and its SevenMinor Planes, is that division of the phenomena of the Universe which includes allthat relates to physics, or material things,forces, and manifestations. It includes allforms of that which we call Matter, andall forms of that which we call Energy orForce. But youmust remember that theHermetic Philosophy does not recognizeMatter as a “ thing in itself,

” or as havinga separate existence even in the Mind ofTHE ALL. The Teachings are that Matter is but a form of Energy—that is, Energy at a low rate of vibrations of a certain kind. And accordingly the Hermetists


classify Matter under the head of Energy,and give to it three of the Seven MinorPlanes of the Great Physical Plane.These Seven Minor Physical Planes areas follows

The Plane of Matter (A) .The Plane of Matter (B ) .The Plane of Matter (C ) .The Plane of Ethereal Substance.

The Plane of Energy (A) .The Plane of Energy (B ) .The Plane of Energy (C ) .

The Plane of Matter (A) comprises theforms of Matter in its form of solids,liquids, and gases, as generally recognizedby the text-books on physics. The Planeof Matter (B ) comprises certainhigherand more subtle forms of Matter of theexistence of which modern science is butnow recognizing, the phenomena of Radiant Matter, inits phases of radium, etc.,belonging to the lower sub-division of thisMinor Plans. The Plane of Matter (C )

1 20 The Kybalion

comprises forms of the most subtle andtenuous Matter, the existence of which isnot suspected by ordinary scientists. The

Plane of Ethereal Substance comprises thatwhich science speaks of as “The Ether,

”

s substance of extreme tenuity and elasticity, pervading all Universal Space, andacting as a medium for the transmissionof waves of energy, such as light, heat,electricity, etc. This Ethereal Substanceforms a connecting link between Matter

( so-called ) and Energy , and partakes ofthe nature of each. The Hermetic Teachings, however, instruct that this planehas seven sub-divisions (as have all of theMinor Planes ) , and that infact there are

sevenethers , instead of but one.

Next above the Plane of Ethereal Substance comes the Plane of Energy (A) ,which comprises the ordinary forms of

Energy known to science, its seven subplanes being, respectively, Heat ; Light ;Magnetism ; Electricity, and Attraction

( including Gravitation, Cohesion, ChemicalAfinity, etc.) and several other forms of


1 22 The Kybalion

The classification of the Seven MinorMental Planes is more or less satisfactoryand arbitrary (unless accompanied by elabC rate explanations which are foreignto thepurpose of this particular work) , but wemay as well mention them. They are asfollows

The Plane of Mineral Mind.

The Plane of Elemental MindThe Plane of Plant Mind.

The Plane of Elemental MindThe Plane of Animal Mind.

The Plane of Elemental MindThe Plane of Human Mind.

The Plane of Mineral Mind comprisesthe “ states or conditions ’ of the units orentities

, or groups and combinations of thesame, which animate the forms known tous as “minerals, chemicals, etc. Theseentities must not be confounded with themolecules, atoms and corpuscles themselves, the latter being merely the materialbodies or forms of these entities, just as a


man ’s body is but his material form andnot “himself. These entities may becalled “ souls” in one sense, and are livingbeings of a low degree of development

,life.

and mind—just a little more than the unitsof “ living energy which comprise thehigher sub-divisions of the highest Physical Plane. The average mind does notgenerally attribute the possession of mindsoul

,or life, to the Mineral kingdom, but

all occultists recognize the existence of thesame

,and modern science is rapidly mov

ing forward to the point—of-View of theHermetic

,in this respect. The molecules,

atoms and corpuscles have their ‘lovesand hates” ; likes and dislikes ;

“ attraetions and repulsions” ;

‘aflinities and non

afinities,” etc., and some of the more dar

ing of modern scientific minds have expressed the opinion that the desire andwill

,emotions and feelings, of the atoms

differ only indegree from those of men.

We have no time or space to argue thismatter here . All occultists know it to bea fact. and others are referred to some of

1 24 The Kybalion

the more recent scientific works for outsidecorroboration. There are the usual sevensub-divisions to this plane.The Plane of Elemental Mind (A) comprises the sta te or condition, and degree ofmental and vita l development of a class ofentities unknown to the average man, butrecognized to occultists . They are invisible to the ordinary senses of man, but,nevertheless, exist and play their part ofthe Drama of the Universe . Their degreeof intelligence is betw een that of the mineral and chemica l entities on the one hand,and of the entities of the plant kingdom onthe other. There are seven sub—divisionsto this plane

,also.

The Plane of Plant Mind, in its sevensub-divisions, comprises the states or conditions of the entities comprising the kingdoms of the Plant World

,the vital and

mental phenomena of which is fairly wellunderstood by the average intelligent person, many new and interesting scientificworks regarding “Mind and Life inPlants” having been published during the


1 26 The Kybalion

and in certain combinations . The highestforms are semi-human in intelligence .

The Plane of Human Mind,in its seven

sub-divisions, comprises those manifestations of life and mentality which are commonto Man, in his various grades, degrees,and divisions . In this connection, we wishto point out the fact that the average manof to-day occupies but the fourth sub—division of the Plane of Human Mind

,and only

the most intelligent have crossed the borders of the Fifth Sub-Division. It hastaken the race millions of years to reachthis stage

,and it will take many more years

for the race to move on to the sixth andseventh sub—divisions

,and beyond. But,

remember, that there have been races before us which have passed through thesedegrees, and then onto higher planes . Ourown race is the fifth (with stragglers fromthe fourth ) which has set foot upon ThePath. And, then there are a few advancedsouls of our ownrace who have outstrippedthe masses, and who have passed onto thesixth and seventh sub-division, and some

Planes of Correspondence 1 27

few being still further on. The man of theSixth Sub-Division will be The SuperMan” ; he of the Seventh will be

“The

Over-Man.

In our consideration of the Seven MinorMental Planes

,we have merely referred to

the Three Elementary Planes in a generalway. We do not wish to go into this subjcet 1 1 1 detail in this work, for it does notbelong to this part of the general philosOphy and teachings. But we may say thismuch, in order to give youa little cleareridea of the relations of these planes to themore familiar ones the ElementaryPlanes bear the same relation to the Planesof Mineral, Plant, Animal and HumanMentality and Life, that the black keys onthe piano do to the white keys. The whitekeys are suflicient to produce music, butthere are certain scales, melodies, and harmonies

,in which the black keys play their

part , and in which their presence is necessary. They are also necessary as

“ connecting links of soul-condition ; entitystates, etc., between the several other

1 28 The Kybalion

planes, certain forms of development beingattained therein—this last fact giving tothe reader who can “ read betw een the

lines” a new light upon the processes ofEvolution

,and a new key to the secret door

of the “ leaps of life” between kingdomand kingdom. The great kingdoms of Elementals are fully recognized by all occultista, and the esoteric writings are full ofmention of them. The readers of Bulwer ’s‘ ! anoni ’ and similar tales will recognizethe entities inhabiting these planes of life.Passing on from the Great Mental Plane

to the Great Spiritual Plane, what shall wesay ! How can we explain these higherstates of Being

,Life and Mind, to minds

as yet unable to grasp and understand thehigher sub-divisions of the Plane of HumanMind ! The task is impossible. We canspeak only in the most general terms. How

may Light be described to a man born blind-how sugar, to a man who has never tastedanything sweet—how harmony, to one borndeaf !All that we can say is that the Seven


1 30 The Kybalion

who may without irreverence be called“The Gods,

” so high in the scale of Beingare they, their being, intelligence andpower being akin to those attributed bythe races of men to their conceptions ofDeity. These Beings are beyond even thehighest flights of the human imagination,the word “Divine” being the only one ap

plicable to them. Many of these Beings, aswell as the Angelic Host, take the greatestinterest in the afi’airs of the Universe andplay an important part inits afi’airs. TheseUnseen Divinities and Angelic Helpers extend their influence freely and powerfully,in the process of Evolution

,and Cosmic

Progress . Their occasional interventionand assistance in human afiairs have ledto the many legends

,beliefs, religions and

traditions of the race,past and present.

They have super-imposed their knowledgeand power upon the world

,again and again,

all under the Law of THE ALL, of course.But, yet, even the highest of these ad

venced Beings exist merely as creations of,

and in,the Mind of THE ALL, and are


subject to the Cosmic Processes and Universal Laws. They are still Mortal. We

may call them gods if we like,but still

they are but the Elder Brethren of theRace, —the advanced souls who have outstripped their brethren, and who have fore

gone the ecstacy of Absorption by THEALL, in order to help the race onits upward journey along The Path . But

,they

belong to the Universe, and are subject toits conditions—they are mortal—and their

plane is below that of Absolute Spirit.Only the most advanced Hermetists areable to grasp the Inner Teachings regarding the state of existence, and the powersmanifested on the Spiritual Planes. The

phenomena is so much higher than that ofthe Mental Planes that a confusion of ideaswould surely result from an attempt to describe the same. Only those whose mindshave been carefully trained along the linesof the Hermetic Philosophy for years—yes,those who have brought with them fromother incarnations the knowledge acquiredpreviously—cancomprehend just what is

1 32 The Kybalion

meant by the Teaching regarding theseSpiritualPlanes. Andmuch of these InnerTeachings is held by the Hermetists as

being too sacred, important and even dan

gerous for general public dissemination.

The intelligent student may recognize whatwe mean by this when we state that themeaning of “ Spirit” as used by the Hermetists is akinto “Living Power” ,

“Animated Force” “ Inner Essence “Es

sence of Life, etc., which meaning mustnot be confounded with that usually andcommonly employed in connection with theterm, i. e., religious ; ecclesiastical ; spirituelle ; ethereal ; holy, etc., etc. To occultists the word “ Spirit” isused in the senseof The Animating Principle, carryingwith it the idea of Power, Living Energy,Mystic Force, etc. And occultists knowthat that which is known to them as Spiritual Power may be employed for evil aswell as good ends ( in accordance with thePrinciple of Polarity) , a fact which hasbeen recognized by the majority of religions in their conceptions of Satan, Reslze


1 34 The Kybalion

—and such souls make the return journey,paying the terrible penalty according tothe invariable Law.

In conclusion we would againremind youthat according to the Principle of Correspondence, which embodies the truth : As

Above so Below ; as Below, so Above, all

of the Seven Hermetic Principles are infull operation onall of the many planes,Physical, Mental and Spiritual. The Principle of Mental Substance of course appliesto all the planes, for all are held in theMind of THE ALL. The Principle of Correspondence manifests in all, for there is acorrespondence, harmony and agreementbetween the several planes. The Principleof Vibration manifests on all planes, infactthe very differences that go to make the‘

planeS’ arise from Vibration, as we have

explained. The Principle of Polarity manifests on each plane, the extremes of thePoles being apparently opposite and contradictory. The Principle of Rhythm manifests oneach Plane, the movement of thephenomena having its ebb and flow , rise

Planes of Cor respondence 1 35

and flow , incoming and outgoing. The

Principle of Cause and Efi ect manifests oneach Plane, every Efi ect having its Causeand every Cause having its cfi ect . The

Principle of Gender manifests on eachPlane, the Creative Energy being alwaysmanifest, and operating along the lines ofits Masculine and Feminine Aspects .

“As Above so Below ; as Below,so

Above. This centuries old Hermeticaxiom embodies one of the great Principlesof Universal Phenomena . As we proceedwith our consideration of the remainingPrinciples, we will see even more clearlythe truth of the universal nature of this

great Principle of Correspondence.


1 38 The Kybalion

The Hermetic Teachings are that notonly is everything in constant movementand vibration, but that the difi

’erences

between the various manifestations of theuniversal power are due entirely to thevarying rate and mode of vibrations. Notonly this, but that even THEALL, in itself,manifests a constant Vibration of such aninfinite degree of intensity and rapid motion that it may be practically consideredas at rest

,the teachers directing the atten

tion of the students to the fact that even onthe physical plane a rapidly moving object

( such as a revolving wheel) seems to beat rest. The Teachings are to the efi’ectthat Spirit is at one end of the Pole of

Vibration, the other Pole being certain extremely gross forms of Matter. Betweenthese two poles are millions upon millionsof difi

’erent rates and modes of vibration.

Modern Science has proven that all thatwe call Matter and Energy are but modesof vibratory motion

,

” and some of themore advanced scientists are rapidly moving toward the positions of the occultists

Vibration 1 39

who hold that the phenomena of Mind arelikewise modes of vibration or motion. Letus see what science has to say regardingthe question of vibrations in matter andenergy.

In the first place, science teaches that allmatter manifests, in some degree, thevibrations arising from temperature orheat. Be an object cold or hot—both beingbut degrees of the same things—it manifests certain heat Vibrations, and in thatsense is inmotion and vibration. Then allparticles of Matter are in circular movement, from corpuscle to suns. The planetsrevolve around suns

,and many of them

turn on their axes . The suns move aroundgreater central points

,and these are be

lieved to move around still greater, andso on, ad infinitum . The molecules of whichthe particular kinds of Matter are com

posed are in a state of constant vibrationand movement around each other andagainst each other. The molecules are composed of Atoms, which, likewise, are inastate of constant movement and vibration .

1 40 The Kybalion

The atoms are composed of Corpuscles,sometimes called “electrons,

” “ions,”etc.,

which also are ina state of rapid motion,

manifest a very rapid state and mode of

vibration. And, so we see that all formsof Matter manifest Vibration, in accord

tion.

And so it is with the various forms of

Energy. Science teaches that Light, Heat,Magnetism and Electricity are but formsof vibratory motion connected insome waywith, and probably emanating from the

Ether. Science does not as yet attempt toexplainthenature of the phenomena knownas Cohesion, which is the principle of Molecular Attraction; nor Chemical Aflinity,which is the principle of Atomic Attraction; nor Gravitation ( the greatest mystory of the three) , which is the principleof attractionby which every particle or

mass of Matter is bound to every other

particle or mass. These three forms of

Energy are not as yet understood by sci


1 42 The Kybalion

Scientists have ofiered the illustrationofa rapidly moving wheel, top, or cylinder,to show the efi ects of increasing rates ofvibration. The illustration supposes a

wheel, top, or revolving cylinder, runningat a low rate of speed—we will call this

revolving thing “the object ” infollow ing

out the illus tration. Let us suppose theobject moving slowly. I t may be seenreadily, but no sound of its movement reachesthe ear. The speed is gradually increased.

In a few moments its movement becomes sorapid that a deep growl or low note may beheard. Then as the rate is increased thenote rises one in the musical scale. Then,the motion being still further increased, thenext highest note is distinguished. Then,one after another

,all the notes of the

musical scale appear, rising higher andhigher as the motion is increased. Finallywhen the motions have reached a certainrate the final note perceptible to humanears is reached and the shrill, piercingshriek dies away

,and silence follows . No

sound is heard from the revolving object,

Vibration 1 43

the rate of motion being so high that thehuman ear cannot register the vibrations .Then comes the perception of rising degrees of Heat. Then after quite a time theeye catches a glimpse of the object becoming a dull dark reddish color. As the rateincreases

,the red becomes brighter. Then

as the speed is increased,the red melts into

anorange. Then the orange melts into ayellow. Then follow,

successively, theshades of green

,blue

,indigo

,and finally

violet, as the rate of speed increases . Thenthe violet shades away

,and all color disap

pears, the human eye not being able toregister them. But there are invisible raysemanating from the revolving object, therays that are used in photographing

,and

other subtle rays of light. Then begin tomanifest the peculiar rays known as the“X Rays, etc., as the constitution of theobject changes. Electricity and Magnetismare emitted when the appropriate rate ofvibration is attained.

When the object reaches a certain rateof vibration its molecules disintegrate, and

1 44 The Kybalion

resolve themselves into the original ele

ments or atoms. Then the atoms, following the Principle of Vibration, are sepa

rated into the countless corpuscles of whichthey are composed. And finally, eventhecorpuscles disappear and the object maybe said to be composed of The EtherealSubstance. Science does not dare to followthe illustration further, but the Hermetiststeach that if the vibrations be continuallyincreased the object would mount up thesuccessive states of manifestation andwould inturn manifest the various mentalstages, and then on Spiritward, until itwould finally re-enter THE ALL, which isAbsolute Spirit. The object, however,would have ceased to be an ‘object ’ longbefore the stage of Ethereal Substance wasreached, but otherwise the illustrationiscorrect inasmuch as it shows the efiect of

constantly increased rates and modes of

vibration. It must be remembered, intheabove illustration, that at the stages at

which the object throws ofi vibrationsof light, heat, etc., it is not actually

“re


1 46 The Kybalion

phenomena of telepathy mental influence, and other forms of the actionandpower of mind over mind, with which thegeneral public is rapidly becoming ac

quainted, owing to the wide disseminationof occult knowledge by the various schools,cults and teachers along these lines at thistime.Every thought

,emotion or mental state

has its corresponding rate and mode of

Vibration. And by an effort of the will ofthe person, or of other persons, thesemental states may be reproduced, just as amusical tone may be reproduced by causinganinstrument to Vibrate at a certainrate—just as color may be reproduced in thesame way. By a knowledge of the Principle of Vibration, as applied to Mental Phenomens , one may polarize his mind at anydegree he wishes, thus gaining a perfectcontrol over his mental states, moods, etc .In the same way he may affect the mindsof others, producing the desired mentalstates in them. In short, he may be ableto produce on the Mental Plane that which

Vibration 1 47

science produces on the Physical Planenamely

,

“Vibrations at Will.” This powerof course may be acquired only by theproper instruction, exercises, practice, etc.,the science being that of Mental Transmutation, one of the branches of the HermeticArt .

A little reflection on what we have saidwill show the student that the Principle ofVibration underlies the wonderful phenomena of the power manifested by the Masters and Adepts, who are able to apparently set aside the Laws of Nature, butwho, in reality, are simply using one lawagainst another ; one principle againstothers ; and who accomplish their resultsby changing the vibrations of material ohjeeta, or form s of energy, and thus performwhat are commonly called “miracles .”

As one of the old Hermetic writers hastruly said : “He who understands the Princible of Vibration, has grasped the sceptreof Power.


1 50 The Kybalion

all truths are but half-truthsevery truth is half-false” ;

“ there are twosides to everything” ;

“ there is a reverseside to every shield,

” etc., etc.The Hermetic Teachings are to the effectthat the difference between things seemingly diametrically opposed to each otheris merely a matter of degree. It teachesthat “ the pairs of opposites may be reconciled,

’ and that “ thesis and anti-thesis areidentical in nature, but different in degree ” ; and that the

“ universal reconciliation of opposites is effected by a recognition of this Principle of Polarity. The

teachers claim that illustrations of thisPr inciple may be had onevery hand

, andfrom anex am ination into the real natureof anything. They begin by showing thatSpirit and Matter are but the two poles,

of

the same thing,the intermediate planes

being merely degrees of vibration. Theythey Show that THE ALL and The Manyare the same, the difference being merelya matter of degree of Mental Manifestation. Thus the LAIV and Law s are the

Polarity 1 51

two opposite poles of one thing. Likewise,PRINCIPLE and Principles . Infinite Mindand finite minds.Then passing onto the Physical Plane,

they illustrate the Principle by showingthat Heat and Cold are identical in nature,the differences being merely a matter of

degrees. The thermometer shows manydegrees of temperature, the lowest polebeing called ‘cold, and the highest‘heat. Between these two poles are manydegrees of “heat” or

“ cold,” call them

either and youare equally correct. The

higher of two degrees is always “warmer,while the lower is always “ colder Thereis no absolute standard—all is a matter ofdegree. There is no place onthe thermometer where heat ceases and cold begins. Itis all a matter of higher or lower vibrations . The very terms “high ’ and ‘low

,

”

which we are compelled to use, are butpoles of the same thing- the terms are relative. So with “East and West” —travelaround the world in an eastward direction,and youreach a point which is called w es

1 52 The Kybalios

a t your sta rting point, and youreturnfromthat westward point. Travel far enoughNorth, and youwill find yourself travelingSouth, or Vice versa.

Light and Darkness are poles of the

them. The musical scale is the same

starting w ith“ C” youmove upward until

youreach another“ C,

”and so on, the dif

fcrenees betweenthe two ends of the boardbeing the same, w ith many degrees betweenthe two extremes. The scale of color isthe same—higher and lower Vibrationsbeing the only difference betweenhigh Violet and low red . Large and Small are relative. So are Noise and ! uiet ; Hard andSoft follow the rule. Likewise Sharp andDull. Positive and Negative are two polesof the same thing, with countless degreesbetween them.

Good and Bad arenot absolute—we callone end of the scale Good and the otherBad, or one end Good and the other Evil,according to the use of the terms. A thingis “ less good” than the thing higher in the


1 54 The Kybalion

where. Where youfind one thing youfindits opposite—the two poles.

And it is this fact that enables the Hermetist to transmute one mental state intoanother, along the lines of Polarization.

Things belonging to difierent classes cannot be transmuted into each other, butthings of the same class may be changed,that is

, may have their polarity changed.

Thus Love never becomes East or West,or Red or Violet—but it may and Oftendoes turn into Hate and likewise Hatemay be transformed into Love, by changingits polarity. Courage may be transmutedinto Fear, and the reverse. Hard thingsmay be rendered Soft. Dull things becomeSharp . Hot things become Cold. And so

on, the transmutation always being be

tween things of the same kind of differentdegrees . Take the case of a Fearful man.

By raising his mental vibrations along theline of Fear-Courage, he can be filled withthe highest degree of Courage and Fearlessness . And, likewise, the Slothful manmay change himself into an Active

,Ener

Polarity 1 55

getic individual, simply by polarizing alongthe lines of the desired quality.

The student who is familiar with theprocesses by which the various schools ofMental Science, etc.

,produce changes in

the mental states of those following theirteachings, may not readily understand theprinciple underlying many of thesechanges . When, however, the Principle ofPolarity is once grasped, and it is seen thatthe mental changes are occasioned by achange of polarity a sliding along thesame scale—the matter is more readilynuderstood. The change is not in the natureof a transmutationof one thing into another thing entirely different but ismerely a change of degree in the samethings, a vastly important difference. Forinstance, borrowing an analogy from thePhysical Plane, it is impossible to changeHeat into Sharpness, Loudness, Highness,etc ., but Heat may readily be transmutedinto Cold, simply by lowering the vibrations. In the same way Hate and Love aremutually transmutable ; so are Fear and

1 56 The Kybalion

Courage. But Fear cannot be transformedinto Love,nor can Courage be transmutedinto Hate. The mental states belong to innumerable classes, each class of which hasits opposite poles, along which transmutationis possible.The student will readily recognize thatin the mental states, as well as inthe phenomena of the Physical Plane, the twopoles may be classified as Positive andNegative, respectively. Thus Love is Positive to Hate ; Courage to Fear ; Activityto Non-Activity, etc., etc. And it will alsobe noticed that even to those unfamiliarwith the Principle of Vibration, the Positive pole seems to be of a higher degreethan the Negative, and readily dominatesit. The tendency of Nature is in the direction of the dominant activity of the Positive pole.In addition to the changing of the poles

of one ’s ownmental states by the operation

of the art of Polarization, the phenomenaof Mental Influence, in its manifold phases,shows us that the principle may be ex


1 58 The Kybalion

transmuted to Courage and similar positive mental states. A little study will Showyou that these mental changes are nearlyall along the line of Polarization, thechange being one of degree rather thanof kind.

A knowledge of the existence of thisgreat Hermetic Principle will enable thestudent to better understand his ownmental states, and those of other people.He will see that these states are all matters of degree

,and seeing thus, he will be

able to raise or lower the vibration at will- to change his mental poles

,and thus be

Master of his mental states, instead ofbeing their servant and slave. And by hisknowledge he will be able to aid his fellowsintelligently, and by the appropriate methods change the polarity when the same isdesirable. We advise all students to familiarize themselves with this Principle of P0larity, for a correct understanding of thesame will throw light onmany difficult sub

jects.

CHAPTER XI.

RHYTHM .

Everything flows out and in; eve

5has its

tides; all things rise and fall ; the pendulum g manifests in everything ; the measure of the swing to theright, is the measure of the swing to the left ; rhythmcompensates. -The Kybalion.

The great Fifth Hermetic Principle—thePrinciple of Rhythm—embodies the truththat in everything there is manifested ameasured motion ; a to-and-from movement ; a flow and inflow ; a swing forwardand backward ; a pendulum-like movement ;a tide-like ebb and flow ; a high-tide and alow -tide ; between the two-poles manifestonthe physical

,mental or spiritual planes .

The Principle of Rhythm is closely connected with the Principle of Polarity described in the preceding chapter . Rhythmmanifests between the two poles established

1 59

1 60 The Kybalion

by the Principle of Polarity. This doesnot mean, however, that the pendulum of

Rhythm swings to the extreme poles, forthis rarely happens ; in fact, it is difficultto establish the extreme polar

‘

opposites inthe majority of cases. But the swing isever toward first one pole and then theother.There is always an action and reaction;an advance and a retreat ; a rising and asinking ; manifested in all of the airs and

phenomena of the Universe. Suns, worlds,men, animals, plants, minerals, forces,energy, mind and matter, yes, even Spirit,manifests this Principle. The Principlemanifests in the creation and destructionof worlds ; in the rise and fall of nations ;in the life history of all things ; and finallyin the mental states of Man.

Beginning with the manifestations of

Spirit—of THE ALL—it will be noticedthat there is ever the Outpouring and theIndrawing ; the Outbreathing and Inbreathing of Brahm,

”as the Brahmans

word it. Universes are created ; reach their


1 62 The Kybalion

atoms,molecules, and all masses of matter,

swing around the circle of their nature.There is no such thh g as absolute rest, orcessation from movement

,and all move

ment partakes of Rhythm. The principleis of universal application. It may be applied to any question, or phenomena of anyof the many planes of life. It may be applied to all phases of human activity.

There is always the Rhythmic swing fromone pole to the other. The Universal Pendulum is ever in motion. The Tides ofLife flow in and out, according to Law.

The Principle of Rhythm is well understood by modern science

,and is considered

a universal law as applied to materialthings . But the Hermetists carry the principle much further, and know that its manifestations and influence extend to themental activities of Man

,and that it ao

counts for the bewildering succession ofmoods

,feelings and other annoying and

perplexing changes that we notice in ourselves . But the Hermetists by studyingthe Operations of this Principle have

Rhythm 1 63

learned to escape some of its activities byTransmutation.

The Hermetic Masters long since discovered that while the Principle of Rhythmwas invariable

,and ever in evidence in

mental phenomena, still there were twoplanes of its manifestation so far as mentalphenomena are concerned. They discovered that there were two general planesof Consciousness, the Lower and theHigher

,the understanding of which fact

enabled them to rise to the higher planeand thus escape the swing of the Rhythmicpendulum which manifested on the lowerplane. In other words, the swing of thependulum occurred on the UnconsciousPlane

,and the Consciousness was not af

fected. This they call the Law of Neutralization. Its operations consist in the raising of the Ego above the vibrations of theUnconscious Plane of mental activity, so

that the negative-swing of the pendulum isnot manifested in consciousness

,and there

fore they are not affected . It is akin torising above a thing and letting it pass be

1 64 The Kybah'

on

neath you. The Hermetic Master, or advanced student, polarizes himself at thedesired pole, and by a process akin torefusing to participate inthe backwardswing, or, if youprefer, a

“denial” of its

influence over him,he stands firm inhis

polarized position, and allows the mentalpendulum to swing back along the unconscious plane. All individuals who have attained any degree of self-mastery, aecom

plish this, more or less unknowingly, andby refusing to allow their moods andnegative mental states to afiect them, theyapply the Law of Neutralization. The

Master, however, carries this to a muchhigher degree of proficiency, and by theuse of his Will he attains a degree of Poiseand Mental Firmness almost impossible ofbelief on the part of those who allow themselves to be swung backward and forwardby the mental pendulum of moods andfeelings.

The importance of this will be approciated by any thinking person who realizeswhat creatures of moods, feelings and emo


1 66 The Kybalion

swings, although we may escape be ing carried along with it.There are other features of the operationof this Principle of Rhythm of which wewish to speak at this point . There comesinto its operations that which is knownas

the Law of Compensation. One of the definitions or meanings of the word Compensate” is,

‘to counterbalance,” which is the

sense in which the Hermetistsuse the term .

It is this Law of Compensation to whichthe Kybalionrefers when it says

“The

measure of the swing to the right is themeasure of the swing to the left ; rhythmcompensates.The Law of Compensation is that theswing in one direction determines the swingin the opposite direction, or to the oppositepole—the one balances, or counterbalances, the other. On the Physical Planewe see many examples of this Law. The

pendulum of the clock swings a certain distance to the right, and then an equal distance to the left. The seasons balance eachother in the same way. The tides follow

Rhythm 1 67

the same Law . And the same Law is manifested in all the phenomena of Rhythm.

The pendulum, with a short swing in onedirection, has but a short swing in theother ; while the long swing to the rightinvariably means the long swing to the left.An object hurled upward to a certainheight has an equal distance to traverse onits return. The force with which a pro

jectile is sent upward a mile is reproducedwhen the projectile returns to the earth onits return journey. This Law is constantonthe Physical Plane, as reference to thestandard authorities will show you.

But the Hermetists carry it still further.They teach that a man ’s mental states aresubject to the same Law. The man whoenjoys keenly, is subject to keen suffering ;while he who feels but little pain is capableof feeling but little joy. The pig suffersbut little mentally, and enjoys but littlehe is compensated. And on the other hand

,

there are other animals who enjoy keenly,

but whose nervous organism and temperament cause them to suffer exquisite degrees

1 68 The Kybalion

of pain. And so it is with Man. There aretemperaments which permit of but low de

grees of enjoyment, and equally low degrees of suffering ; while there are otherswhich permit the most intense enjoyment,but also the most intense sufl ering. The

rule is that the capacity for painand pleasure, in each individual, are balanced. TheLaw of Compensation is in full operationhere.But the Hermetists go still further inthis matter. They teach that before one isable to enjoy a certaindegree of pleasure,he must have swung as far, proportionately, toward the other pole of feeling.

They hold, however, that the Negative isprecedent to the Positive in this matter,that is to say that in experiencing a certain degree of pleasure it does not followthat he will have to “pay up for it” witha corresponding degree of pain ; on the contrary, the pleasure is the Rhythmic swing,according to the Law of Compensation, fora degree of pain previously experiencedeither in the present life, or in a previous


1 70 The Kybalion

its pleasant and unpleasant sides: The

things that one gains are always paid forby the things that one loses. The rich possess much that the poor lack, while thepoor oftenpossess things that are beyondthe reach of the rich. The millionaire mayhave the inclination toward feasting, andthe wealth wherewith to secure all the dainties and luxuries of the table,while he lacksthe appetite to enjoy the same ; he enviesthe appetite and digestion of the laborer,who lacks the wealth and inclinations ofthe millionaire, and who gets more pleasure from his plain food thanthe millionairecould obtain even if his appetite were notjaded, nor his digestion ruined, for thewants, habits and inclinations differ. Andso it is through life. The Law of Compensation is ever in operation

,striving to bal

ance and counter-balance, and always succeeding in time, even though several livesmay be required for the return swing of

the Pendulum of Rhythm.

CHAPTER XII

Every Cause has its every Eflsct has itsto Law ; Chance is

but a t are manyplanes of causation, but escapes the Law.

The K ybalion.

The great Sixth Hermetic Principle—thePrinciple of Cause and Effect—embodiesthe truth that Law pervades the Universe ;that nothing happens by Chance ; thatChance is merely a term indicating causeexisting but not recognized or perceived ;that phenomena is continuous, withoutbreak or exception.

The Principle of Cause and Efiect nuderlies all scientific thought, ancient andmodern, and was enunciated by the Hermetic Teachers inthe earliest days. Whilemany and varied disputes between the

1 71

1 72 The Kybah’

on

many schools of thought have since arisen,these disputes have been principally uponthe details of the operations of the Principle, and still more often upon the meaning of certainwords. Theunderlying Principle of Cause and Effect has beenacceptedas correct by practically all the thinkers ofthe world worthy of the name. To thinkotherwise would be to take the pheno

'

menaof the universe from the domainof Law

and Order, and to relegate it to the controlof the imaginary something which menhave called Chance.A little consideration will show anyonethat there is in reality no such thing aspure Chance . Webster defines the word“Chance” as follows : “A supposed agentor mode of activity other than a force, lawor purpose ; the operation or activity ofsuch agent ; the supposed efiect of suchan agent ; a happening ; fortuity ; casualty,etc. But a little considerationwill showyou that there canbe no such agent asChance, inthe sense of something outside of Law—something outside of Cause


1 74 The Kybalion

related to any cause. And this is the sensein which the term is generally employed.

But when the matter is closely examined,it is seen that there is no chance whatsoever about the fall of the dice. Eachtime a die falls

,and displays a certain

number,it obeys a law as infallible as that

which governs the revolution of the planetsaround the sun. Back of the fall of thedie are causes

,or chains of causes, running

back further than the mind can follow. The

position of the die in the box ; the amountofmuscular energy expended in the throw ;the condition of the table, etc., etc., all arecauses

,the effect of which may be seen .

But back of these seen causes there arechains of unseen preceding causes, all ofwhich had a bearing upon the number ofthe die which fell uppermost.If a die be cast a great number of times,

it will be found that the numbers shownwill be about equal

,that is

,there will be

an equal number of one-spot,two-spot, etc.,

coming uppermost. Toss a penny in theair, and it may come down either

“ heads”

Causation 1 75

or“ tails” ; but make a sufficient number

of tosses, and the heads and tails will abouteven up. This is the operation of the lawof average. But both the average and thesingle toss come under the Law of Causeand Effect

,and if we were able to examine

into the preceding causes, it would beclearly seen that it was simply impossiblefor the die to fall other than it did, underthe same circumstances and at the sametime. Given the same causes, the same results will follow. There is always a“ cause” and a “because” to every event.Nothing ever ‘happens without a cause,or rather a chain of causes.

Some confusion has arisen in the mindsof persons considering this Principle

,from

the fact that they were unable to explainhow one thing could cause another thingthat is, be the

“ creator” of the secondthing. As a matter of fact

,no “ thing”

ever causes or ‘creates another “ thing.

Cause and Effect deals merely withevents .” An “ event” is “ that which

comes, arrives or happens, as a result or

1 76 The Kybalion

consequent of some preceding event.” N0event creates another event, but is

merely a preceding link inthe great orderlychain of events flowing from the creativeenergy of THE ALL. There is a continuity between all events precedent, consequent and subsequent. There is a relationexisting between everything that has gonebefore, and everything that follows. A

stone is dislodged from a mountain sideand crashes through a roof of a cottage inthe valley below. At first sight we regardthis as a chance effect, but whenwe examine the matter we find a great chainof

causes behind it. Inthe first place therewas the rain which softened the earth supporting the stone and which allowed it tofall ; then back of that was the influence ofthe sun, other rains, etc., which graduallydisintegrated the piece of rock from alarger piece ; then there were the causeswhich led to the formation of the mountain,and its upheaval by convulsions of nature,and so onad infinitum . Then we might follow up the causes behind the rain, etc.


1 78 The Kybalion

events hundreds of years from now. Oneof the series of events arising from the tinybit of soot was the writing of these lines,which caused the typesetter to performcertainwork ; the proofreader to do likewise ; and which will arouse certainthoughts inyour mind, and that of others,which in turn will afiect others, and so on,and on, and on, beyond the ability of manto think further—and all from the passageof a tiny bit of s oot, all of which showsthe relativity and association of things,and the further fact that there is nogreat ; there is no small ; in the mind thatcauseth all .”

Stop to think a moment. If a certainmanhadnot met a certain maid, away backinthe dim period of the Stone Age—youwho are now reading these lines would notnow be here. And if, perhaps, the samecouple had failed to meet, we who nowwrite these lines would not now be here.And the very act of writing, onour part,and the act of reading, on yours, will affectnot only the respective lives of yourself and

Causation 1 79

ourselves, but will also have a direct, or

indirect, afiect upon many other peoplenow living and who will live in the ages tocome. Every thought we think, every act

we perform, has its direct and indirect t esults which fit into the great chainof Causeand Efi ect .

We do not wish to enter into a consideration of Free-Will, or Determinism, in thiswork, for various reasons . Among the

many reasons, is the principal one thatneither side of the controversy is entirelyright—in fact , both sides are partiallyright, according to the Hermetic Teachings. The Principle of Polarity showsthat both are but Half-Truths—the opposing poles of Truth. The Teachings arethat amanmay be both Free and yet boundby Necessity, depending upon the meaningof the terms, and the height of Truth fromwhich the matter is examined. The ancient writers express the matter thusThe further the creation is from the

Centre, the more it is bound ; the nearerthe Centre it reaches, the nearer Free isit.

1 80 The Kybalion

The majority of people are more or lessthe slaves of heredity, environment, etc.,

and manifest very little Freedom . Theyare swayed by the opinions, customs andthoughts of the outside world, and also bytheir emotions, feelings, moods, etc. Theymanifest no Mastery, worthy of the name.

They indignantly repudiate this assertion,saying,

“Why, I certainly am free to act

and do as I please—I do just what I wantto do, but they fail to explainwhencearise the “want to” and “

as I please.

”

What makes them “want to” do one thingin preference to another ;what makes them“please” to do this, and not do that ! I s

there no “because ’ to their “pleasing”

and wanting ’ ’ i The Master can changethese “pleases and “wants” into othersat the opposite end of the mental pole. Heis able to “Will to will,

” instead of to willbecause some feeling, mood, emotion, or

environmental suggestionarouses a tendency or desire withinhim so to do.

The majority of people are carried alonglike the falling stone, obedient to environ


1 82 The Kybalion

But, onhigher and on lower, the Lawis always inoperation. There is no suchthings as Chance. The blind goddess hasbeenabolished by Reason. We are able tosee now , with eyes made clear by knowledge, that everything is governed by Universal Law—that the infinite number of

laws are but manifestations of the OneGreat Law—the LAWwhich is THE ALL.

It is true indeed that not a sparrow dropsunnoticed by the Mind of THE ALL—thateven the hairs on our head are numberedas the scriptures have said. There is nothing outside of Law ; nothing that happenscontrary to it. And yet, do not make themistake of supposing that Man is but ablind automaton—far from that . The Hermetic Teachings are that Man may useLaw to overcome laws

,and that the higher

will always prevail against the lower,until

at last he has reached the stage in whichhe seeks refuge in the LAW itself

, andlaughs the phenomenal laws to scorn. Are

youable to grasp the inner meaning of

this !

CHAPTER XIII.

Gender is ineverythin everything has its Masculine and Feminine Princip e

,

s Gender manifests on all

planes. -The K ybalion.

The great Seventh Hermetic Principlethe Principle of Gender—embodies thetruth that there is Gender manifested ineverything—that the Masculine and Feminine principles are ever present and activein all phases of phenomena, on each andevery plane of life. At this point we thinkit well to call your attention to the factthat Gender, in its Hermetic sense, and Sexin the ordinarily accepted use of the term,

are not thex

same.

The word “Gender is derived from theLatin root meaning “ to beget ; to procreate ; to generate ; to create ; to produce.

1 88

1 84 The Kybalion

A moment ’s considerationw ill show youthat the word has a much broader andmoregeneralmeaning thanthe term “ Sex ,

” the

latter referring to the physical distinctions

is merely a manifestationof Gender onacertain plane of the Great Physical Planethe plane of organic life. We wish to impress this distinctionuponyour minds, forthe reason that certain writers, who haveacquired a smattering of the Hermetic Philosophy, have sought to identify this Seventh Hermetic Principle with wild and fanciful, and often reprehensible, theories andteachings regarding Sex.

The oflice of Gender is solely that of oreating, producing, generating, etc., and itsmanifestations are visible on every planeof phenomena. It is somewhat difi cult toproduce proofs of this along scientific lines,for the reason that science has not as yetrecognized this Principle as of universalapplication. But still some proofs are

forthcoming from scientific sources. Inthefirst place, we find a distinct manifestation


1 86 The Kybalion

Negative Poles of Electricity (aocalled ) .Now a word at this point regarding thisidentification. The public mind has formedan entirely erroneous impression regarding the qualities of the so-called ‘Negative pole of electrified or magnetizedMatter. The terms Positive and Negativeare very wrongly applied to this phenomennonby science. The word Positive meanssomething real and strong, as comparedwith a Negative unreality or weakness .Nothing is further from the real facts ofelectrical phenomena. The so-called Negative pole of the battery is really the pole inand by which the generation or productionof new forms and energies is manifested.

There is nothing “negative ’ about it. Thebest scientific authorities now use the word“Cathode” in place of “Negative,

” theword Cathode coming from the Greek rootmeaning “descent ; the path of generation,etc .

” From the Cathode pole emerge theswarm of electrons or corpuscles ; from thesame pole emerge those wonderful rays”

Gender 1 87

which have revolutionized scientific conceptions during the past decade. The Cathodepole is the Mother of all of the strange

phenomena which have rendereduseless theold text-books, and which have caused manylong accepted theories to be relegated tothe scrap-pile of scientific speculation. The

Cathode, or Negative Pole, is the MotherPrinciple of Electrical Phenomena, anJ ofthe finest forms of matter as yet known toscience. So you see we are justified inrefusing to use the term “Negative”

our consideration of the subject, and ininsisting upon substituting the word“Feminine” for the old term. The factsof the case bearus out in this, without taking the Hermetic Teachings into consideration. And so we shall use the word“Femmine”

'

inthe place of “Negative” inspeaking of that pole of activity.

The latest scientific teachings are thatthe creative corpuscles or electrons areFeminine ( science says they are composed of negative electricity” -we say

they are composed of Feminine energy ) .

1 88 The Kybals'

on

A Feminine corpuscle becomes detachedfrom, or rather leaves, a Masculine corpuscle, and starts onanew career. I t activelyseeks a unionw ith a Masculine corpuscle,beingurged thereto by thenatural impulseto create new forms of Matter or Energy.

One writer goes so far as to use the term‘ it at once seeks, of its ownvolition, a

union, etc. This detachment andunitingform the basis of the greater part of theactivities of the chemical world. WhentheFeminine corpuscle unites w ith a Masenline corpuscle, a certain process is begun.

The Feminine particles vibrate rapidlyunder the influence of the Masculine enorgy, and circle rapidly around the latter.The result is the birth of a new atom.

This new atom is really composed of aunionof the Masculine and Feminine electrons, or corpuscles, but whenthe umon1 8formed the atom is a separate thing, having certainproperties, butno longer manifesting the property of free electricity.

The process of detachment or separationof the Feminine electrons is called ‘ioniza


1 90 The Kybalion

garding the operationof the two principlesof Gender in the production and manifestationof various forms of energy, etc., butwe do not deem it expedient to go intodetail regarding the same at this point,because we areunable to backup the samewith scientific proof, for the reason thatscience has not as yet progressed thus far.But the example we have given you of thephenomena of the electrons or corpuscleswill show youthat science is on the rightpath, and will also give you a general ideaof theunderlying principles.

Some leading scientific investigatorshave announced their belief that in the

formation of crystals there was to be foundsomething that corresponded to sex

activity, which is another straw showingthe direction the scientific winds are blowing. And each year will bring other factsto corroborate the correctness of the Hermetic Principle of Gender. It will be foundthat Gender is in constant operation andmanifestation inthe field of inorganic matter, and inthe field of Energy or Force.Electricity is now generally regarded as

Gender 1 91

the “Something into which all otherforms of energy seem to melt or dissolve.

The Electrical Theory of the Universe ’

is the latest scientific doctrine, and is growing rapidly inpopularity and general aoceptance. And it thus follows that if weare able to discover in the phenomena ofelectricity—even at the very root andsource of its manifestations—a clear andunmistakable evidence of the presence ofGender and its activities, we are justifiedin asking youto believe that science at lasthas offered proofs of the existence inalluniversal phenomena of that great Hermetic Principle—the Principle of Gender.It is not necessary to take up your timewith the well known phenomena of theattraction and repulsion ’ of the atoms ;chemical affinity ; the

‘loves and hatesof the atomic particles ; the attractionorcohesion between the molecules of matter.These facts are too well known to needextended comment fromus. But, have youever considered that all of these things aremanifestations of the Gender Principle !

1 92 The Kybalion

Canyou not see that the phenomena isonall fours” with that of the corpusclesor electrons ! And more than this, can younot see the reasonableness of the HermeticTeachings which assert that the very Lawof Gravitation—that strange attraction byreason of which all particles and bodies ofmatter in the universe tend toward eachother—is but another manifestation of thePrinciple of Gender, which operates in thedirection of attracting the Masculine to theFeminine energies, and vice versa l We

cannot ofier youscientific proof of this atthis time—but examine the phenomena inthe light of the Hermetic Teachings onthesubject, and see if youhave not a betterworking hypothesis than any ofiered byphysical science. Submit all physical phenomens to the test, and you will discernthe Principle of Gender ever in evidence.Letus now pass on to a consideration ofthe operation of the Principle onthe Mental Plane. Many interesting features arethere awaiting examination.


1 94 The Kybalion

minds the active and passive minds,etc.,

etc. The theories of the variouswriters differ from each other, but thereremains the underlying principle of the

duality of mind.

”

The student of the Hermetic Philosophyis tempted to smilewhen he reads and hearsof these many “ new theories ’ regardingthe duality of mind, each school adheringtenaciously to its own pet theories, andeach claiming to have “discovered thetruth .

” The student turns back the pagesof occult history, and away back in the dimbeginnings of occult teachings he finds references to the ancient Hermetic doctrineof the Principle of Gender on the MentalPlane—the manifestation of Mental Gender. And examining further he finds thatthe ancient philosophy took cognizance ofthe phenomenon of the “dual mind,

” andaccounted for it by the theory of MentalGender. This idea of Mental Gender maybe explained in a few words to studentswho are familiar with the modern theoriesjust alluded to. The Masculine Principle

Mental Gender 1 95

of Mind corresponds to the so-called Oh

jective Mind ; Conscious Mind ; VoluntaryMind ; Active Mind, etc. And the Feminine Principle of Mind corresponds to theso-called Subjective Mind ; Sub-consciousMind ; Involuntary Mind ; Passive Mind,etc. Of course the Hermetic Teachings donot agree with the many modern theoriesregarding the nature of the two phases ofmind, nor does it admit many of the factsclaimed for the two respective aspectssome of the said theories and claims beingvery far-fetched and incapable of standingthe test of ex periment and demonstration.

We point to the phases of agreementmerely for the purpose of helping the student to assimilate his previously acquiredknowledge with the teachings of the Hermetic Philosophy. Students of Hudson willnotice the statement at the beginning of hissecond chapter of “The Law of PsychicPhenomena, that The mystic jargonof the Hermetic philosophers discloses thesame general idea ’ —i. e., the duality ofm ind . If Dr. Hudson had taken the time

1 96 The Kybalion

and trouble to decipher a little of themystic jargon of the Hermetic Philosophy, he might have received much lightupon the subject of the dual mind —butthen, perhaps, his most interesting workmight not have been written. Let us nowconsider the Hermetic Teachings regarding Mental Gender.The Hermetic Teachers impart their instruction regarding this subject by biddingtheir students examine the report of theirconsciousness regarding their Self. The

students are hiddento turn their attentioninward upon the Self dwelling within each.

Each student is led to see that his consciousness gives him first a report of theexistence of his Self—the report is IAm .

” This at first seems to be the finalwords from the consciousness, but a littlefurther examination discloses the fact thatthis “ I Am” may be separated or splitinto two distinct parts, or aspects, whichwhile working in unison and in conjunction,yet, nevertheless, may be separated inconsciousness.


1 98 The Kybalion

as being certain knowledge gathered together inhis mind, and thus forming a partof himself. This is the “Me” of a man.

But we have proceeded too hastily. TheMe” of many men may be said to consistlargely of their consciousness of the bodyand their physical appetites, etc . Theirconsciousness being largely bound up withtheir bodily nature, they practically

‘ livethere.

” Some meneven go so far as toregard their personal apparel as a part oftheir Me, and actually seem to considerit a part of themselves . A writer has humorously said that ‘men consist of threeparts—soul, body and clothes . Theseclothes conscious” people would losetheir personality if divested of their clothing by savages upon the occasion of a shipwreck. But even many who are not so

closely bound up with the idea of personalraiment stick closely to the consciousnessof their bodies being their “Me.” Theycannot conceive of a Self independent ofthe body. Their mind seems to them to bepractically a something belonging to

Mental Gender 1 99

their body—which in many cases it is indeed.

But as man rises in the scale of consciousness he is able to disentangle his“Me” from his idea of body, and is ableto think of his body as “belonging to” themental part of him. But even then he isvery apt to identify the Me entirelyw ith the mental states, feelings, etc., whichhe feels to exist within him. He is very aptto consider these internal states as identical with himself, instead of their beingsimply ‘things” produced by some part ofhis mentality

,and existing within him

of him,and in him ,

but still not “himself.He sees that he may change these internalstates of feelings by an efiort of will, andthat he may produce a feeling or state ofan exactly opposite nature, in the sameway, and yet the same

“Me” exists. Andso after a while he is able to set asidethese various mental states, emotions,feelings, habits, qualities, characteristics,and other personal mental belongings—heis able to set them aside in the “not-me”

200 The Kybalion

collectionof curiosities and encumbrances,as well as valuable possessions. This re

quires much mental concentration andpower of mental analysis onthe part ofthe student. But still the task is possiblefor the advanced student, and eventhosenot so far advanced are able to see, intheimagination, how the process may be performed .

After this laying-aside process has beenperformed, the student will find himself inconscious possession of a “ Self” whichmay be considered in its “ I” and “Me”

dual aspects . The “Me” will be felt to bea Something mental in which thoughts,ideas, emotions, feelings, and other mentalstates may be produced. It may be considered as the “mental wom as the ancients styled it—capable of generatingmental ofispring. It reports to the consciousness as a ‘Me ’ with latent powers of creation and generation of mental progeny of

all sorts and kinds. I ts powers of creativeenergy are felt to be enormous. But stillit seems to be conscious that it must re


202 The Kybalion

tion and generation. There is this dualaspect inthe mind of every person. The“ I” represents the Masculine Principle ofMenta l Gender—the Me ’

represents theFemale Pr inciple. The I represents theAspect of Being ; the

“Me” the Aspect ofBecoming. Youw ill notice that the Prin.

ciple of Correspondence operates on thisplane just as it does upon the great planeupon which the creation of Universes isperformed. The two are similar in kind,although vastly difierent indegree. As

above, so below ; as below, so above.These aspects of mind—the Masculineand Feminine Principles—the I and theMe —considered in connection with thewell-known mental and psychic phenomena,give the master-key to these dimly knownregions ofmental operation and manifestation. The principle of Mental Gender givesthe truth underlying the whole field of thephenomena of mental influence, etc.The tendency of the Feminine Principle

is always in the direction of receiving impressions

,while the tendency of the Mas

Mental Gender 203

culine Principle is always in the directionof giving out, or expressing. The Feminine Principle has a much more varied fieldof operation than has the Masculine Principle. The Feminine Principle conductsthe work of generating new thoughts, concapts, ideas, including the work of the imagination. The Masculine Principle contents itself with the work of the ‘Will,inits varied phases . And yet without theactive aid of the Will of the MasculinePrinciple, the Feminine Principle is apt torest content with generatingmental imageswhich are the result of impressions re

ceived from outside, instead of producingoriginal mental creations .Persons who can give continued attentionand thought to a subject actively employboth of the Mental Principles—the Feminine inthe work of active mental generation

,and the Masculine Will instimulating

and energizing the creative portion of themind. The majority of persons really employ the Masculine Principle but little, andare content to live according to the

204 The Kybalion

thoughts and ideas instilled into the Mefrom the “ I” of other minds. But it isnot our purpose to dwell upon this phaseof the subject, which may be studied fromany good text-book upon psychology, withthe key that we have givenyouregardingMental Gender.The student of Psychic Phenomena isaware of the wonderful phenomena classified under the head of Telepathy ; ThoughtTransference ; Mental Influence ; Suggestion ; Hypnotism, etc. Many have soughtfor an explanation of these varied phasesof phenomena under the theories of thevarious “dual mind” teachers. And in ameasure they are right

,for there is clearly

a manifestation of two distinct phases of

mental activity. But if such students willconsider these “dual minds” inthe lightof the Hermetic Teachings regarding Vibrations and Mental Gender, they will seethat the long sought for key is at hand.

In the phenomena of Telepathy it is seenhow the Vibratory Energy of the MasculinePrinciple is projected toward the Feminine


206 The Kybalion

minds and wills of other persons, whomthey allow to do their thinking and willingfor them. How few original thoughts or

original actions are performed by the average person ! Are not the majority of per

sons mere shadows and echoes of othershaving stronger w ills or minds thanthemselves ! The trouble is that the averageperson dwells almost altogether in hisMe consciousness, and does not realizethat he has such a thing as an He ispolarized in his Feminine Principle ofMind, and the Masculine Principle, inwhich is lodged the Will, is allowed to re

maininactive and not employed.

The strong men and women of the worldinvariably manifest the Masculine Principle of Will, and their strength dependsmaterially upon this fact. Instead of living upon the impressions made upon theirminds by others, they dominate their ownminds by their Will, obtaining the kind ofmental images desired, and moreover dominste the minds of others likewise, in thesame manner. Look at the strong people ,

Mental Gender 207

how they manage to implant their seedthoughts in the minds of the masses of thepeople

,thus causing the latter to think

thoughts in accordance with the desiresand wills of the strong individuals. This iswhy the masses of people are such sheeplike creatures

,never originating an idea of

their own, nor using their ownpowers ofmental activity.

The manifestation ofMental Gender maybe noticed all around us in everyday life.The magnetic persons are those who areable to use the Masculine Principle in theway of impressing their ideas upon others .The actor who makes people weep or cryas he wills, is employing this principle.

And so is the successful orator,statesman.

preacher, writer or other people who arebefore the public attention. The peculiarinfluence exerted by some people over others is due to the manifestation of MentalGender, along the Vibratorial lines aboveindicated. In this principle lies the secretof personal magnetism

,personal influence,

fascination,etc., as well as the phenomena

m The Kybalion

generally groupedunder thename of Hyp

of as psychic”will have discovered the

Suggestion, by which term is meant theprocess or method whereby an idea is

transferred to, or“ impressed upon” the

mind of another, causing the second mindto act inaccordance therewith. A correct

in order to intelligently comprehend thevaried psychical phenomena which Suggestion underlies . But

, still more is a knowledge of Vibration and Mental Gender necessary for the student of Suggestion. For

the whole principle of Suggestion dependsupon the principle of Mental Gender andVibration.

It is customary for the writers andteachers of Suggestion to explain that it isthe ‘objective or voluntary ’ mind whichmake the mental impression

, or suggestion,


2 1 0 The Kybalion

capable of intelligent classification andstudy, instead of being very much inthedark. The principle “works out” in practice, because it is based upon the immutable universal laws of life.We shall not enter into an extended dis

cussion of, or description of, the variedphenomena of mental influence or psychicactivity. There are many books

,many of

them quite good,which have been written

and published onthis subject of late years .The main facts stated in these variousbooks are correct, although the severalwriters have attempted to explain the phenomena by various pet theories of theirown. The student may acquaint himselfwith these matters

,and by using the theory

of Mental Gender he will be able to bringorder out of the chaos of conflicting theoryand teachings, and may, moreover, readilymake himself a master of the subject if hebe so inclined. The purpose of this workis not to give an extended account of psychic phenomena

,but rather to give to the

student a master-key whereby he may nu

Mental Gender 2 1 1

lock the many doors leading into the partsOf the Temple Of Knowledge which he maywish to explore . We feel that in this consideration Of the teachings Of The Kybalion, one may find anexplanation which willserve to clear away many perplexing difliculties—a key that will unlock many doors .What is the use Of going into detail regarding all of the many features of psychicphenomena and mental science, providedwe place in the hands of the student themeans whereby he may acquaint himselffully regarding any phase Of the subjectwhich may interest him . With the aid OfThe Kybalion one may go through anyoccult library anew

,the old Light from

Egypt illuminating many dark pages, andobscure subjects . That is the purpose Ofthis book. We do not come expounding anew philosophy

,but rather furnishing the

outlines Of a great world-Old teachingwhich will make clear the teachings Ofothers—which will serve as a Great Reconciler Of difi ering theories, and Opposingdoctrines.


2 1 4 The Kybalion

from The Kybalion, which states it forcibly. Knowledge without Use and Expression is a vain thing, bringing no good toits possessor, or to the race. Beware OfMental Miserliness, and express into Aotion that which youhave learned. Studythe Axioms and Aphorisms, but practicethem also.

We give below some Of the more important HermeticAxioms, from The Kybalion,with a few comments added to each. Makethese your own, and practice and use them,

for they are not really your ownuntil youhave Used them.

TO change your mood or mental statechange your vibration.

—The Kybalion.

One may change his mental vibrationsby an efiort Of Will, in the direction Ofdeliberately fixing the Attention upon amore desirable state. Will directs the Attention, and Attention changes the Vibration. Cultivate the Art Of Attention, bymeans Of the Will, and youhave solvedthe secret Of the Mastery Of Moods andMental States .

Hermetic Ax ioms 21 5

To destroy an undesirable rate of

mental vibration, put into operation the

Principle of Polarity and concentrate uponthe opposite pole to that which youdesireto suppress. K ill out the undesirable bychanging its polarity.

—The Kybalion.

This is one Of the most important Of theHermetic Formulas . It is basedupontruescientific principles . We have shown youthat a mental state and its opposite weremerely the two poles Of one thing, andthat by Menta l Transmutation the polaritymight be reversed . This principle is knownto modern psychologists, who apply it tothe breaking up Of undesirable habits bybidding their students concentrate upon theopposite quality. If youare possessed OfFear, do not waste time trying to

“killout Fear, but instead cultivate the quality Of Courage, and the Fear will disappear. Some writers have expressed thisidea most forcibly by using the illustrationOf the dark room. Youdo not have toshovel out or sweep out the Darkness, butby merely opening the shutters and l

2 1 6 The K ybalion

ting inthe Light the Darkness has disappeered. TO kill out a Negative quality,concentrate upon the Positive Pole Of thatsame quality, and the vibrations will gradually change from Negative to Positive,until finally youwill become polarized onthe Positive pole instead of the Negative.The reverse is also true, as many havefound out to their sorrow, when they haveallowed themselves to vibrate too constantly on the Negative pole Of things. Bychanging your polarity youmay masteryour moods, change your mental states, remake your disposition

,and build up char

acter. Much Of the Mental Mastery Of theadvanced Hermetics is due to this application Of Polarity, which is one Of the important aspects of Mental Transmutation.

Remember the Hermetic Axiom (quotedpreviously) , which saysMind (as well as metals and elements )

may be transmuted from state to state ;degree to degree ; condition to condition ;pole to pole ; vibration to vibration.

”

The Kybalion.


2 1 8 The Kybalion

The Hermetists also teach that the Law Of

Neutralization enables one, to a great extent, to overcome the operation Of Rhythmin consciousness . As we have ex plained,there is a Higher Plane Of Consciousness,as well as the ordinary Lower Plane, andthe Master by rising mentally to the HigherPlane causes the sw ing Of the mental pendulum to manifest on the Lower Plane, andhe

,dwelling onhis Higher Plane, escapes

the consciousness of the swing backward.

This is efi ected by polarizing onthe HigherSelf, and thus raising the mental vibrations Of the Ego above those Of the ordinary plane Of consciousness. It is akin torising above a thing, and allowing it topass beneath you. The advanced Hermetist polarizes himself at the Positive PoleOf his Being—the “ I Am ” pole ratherthan the pole Of personality, and by re

fusing” and “denying” the operation OfRhythm

,raises himself above its plane Of

consciousness,and standing firm in his

Statement Of Being he allows the pendulumto swing back onthe Lower Plane without

Hermetic Ax ioms 2 1 9

changing his Polarity. This is accom

plished by all individuals who have at

tained any degree Of self-mastery, whetherthey understand the law or not. Suchpersons simply refuse to allow themselves to be swung back by the pendulumOf mood and emotion, and by steadfastlyafi rming the superiority, they remain polarized onthe Positive pole. The Master,Of course, attains a far greater degree Ofproficiency, because he understands thelaw which he is overcoming by a higherlaw, and by the use Of his Will he attainsa degree Of Poise and Mental Steadfastness almost impossible Of belief on thepart Of those who allow themselves to beswung backward and forward by the mental pendulum Of moods and feelings.

Remember, always, however, that youdo not really destroy the Principle OfRhythm, for that is indestructible. Yousimply overcome one law by counter-balancing it with another, and thus maintainan equilibrium. The laws Of balance andcounter-balance are in operation on the

220 The Kybalion

mental as well as onthe physical planes,and an understanding Of these laws onables one to seem to overthrow laws,whereas he is merely exerting a counterbalance.Nothing escapes the Principle of Cause

and Efiect, but there are many Planes Of

Causation, and one may use the laws Of

the higher to overcome the laws of thelower. —The Kybalion.

By an understanding Of the practice Of

Polarization, the Hermetists rise to ahigher plane Of Causation and thus counter-balance the laws Of the lower planes OfCausation. By rising above the plane Ofordinary Causes they become themselves,in a degree, Causes instead Of being merelyCaused. By being able to master theirownmoods and feelings, and by being ableto neutralize Rhythm , as we have alreadyex plained, they are able to escape a greatpart Of the operations Of Cause and Effecton the ordinary plane. The masses Of people are carried along, obedient to their environment ; the wills and desires Of others


222 The Kybalion

rule onthe lower. They Obey the lawscoming from above them, but ontheir ownplane, and those below them, they rule andgive orders. And, yet, inso doing, theyform a part of the Principle, instead of

Opposing it. The wise man falls in withthe Law , and by understanding its movements he Operates it instead Of being itsblind slave. Just as does the skilled swimmer turn this way and that way, goingand coming as he will, instead Of being asthe log which is carried here and thereso is the wise man as compared to the ordinary man—and yet both swimmer andlog ; wise man and fool, are subject toLaw . He who understands this is well onthe road to Mastery.

” —The Kybalion.

In conclusion let us againcall your attention to the Hermetic Axiom

True Hermetic Transmutation is aMental Art . —The Kybalion.

In the above axiom,the Hermetists teach

that the great work Of influencing one ’s environment is accomplished by MentalPower. The Universe being whollymental,

Hermetic Ax ioms 223

it follows that it may be ruled only byMentality. And in this truth is to befound an explanation of all the phenomenaand manifestations of the various mentalpowers which are attracting so much at

tention and study in these earlier yearsof the Twentieth Century. Back of andunder the teachings of the various cultsand schools, remains ever constant theprinciple of the Mental Substance Of theUniverse. If the Universe be Mental inits substantial nature

,then it follows that

Mental Transmutation must change theconditions and phenomena Of the Universe.If the Universe is Mental

,then Mind must

be the highest power affecting its phenomena. If this be understood then all theso-called ‘miracles and wonder-workings” are seen plainly for what they are.

“THE ALL is MIND ; The Universe isMenta —The Kybalion.

FIN! !

Documents

K YBALI O - Forgotten Books€¦ · Introduction 9 race may be traced back to Hermes Even the most ancient teachings of India un doubtedly have their roots in the original Hermetic