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 clipped from synkronos23.vox.com
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I’m very pleased to introduce Synkronos23 (http://synkronos23.vox.com/). She’s a truthseeker and researcher of many, if not all, the same topics that you are familiar with - the occult, astrology, ancient civilizations, the origins of religion (astrotheology), magick, secret societies, and conspiracy. Her knowledge of the material, both academic and experiential, is noteworthy. Join us for a discussion of classical occult concepts and their relationship to the modern aeon.
Thanks Synkronos23!
The movie "The Secret" has made quite a splash. It is being promoted by some of the most mainstream media entities ever created. There has also been quite a bit of praise for it in alternative press as well. IMO, it is time for another take on this cinematic chicanery. Thankfully, Stuart Davis provides it in an article he recently wrote -- "The Secret - The Spirituality of Narcissism."
Here is an excerpt from the end of the article, summing it up quite nicely:
Rhonda Byrne's Secret is bad Self-Help masquerading as mysticism. Broadly, "spirituality" can mean anything. So when we say spirituality, what level of spirituality are we talking about? What altitude of awareness are we coming from, what level of "spirit" are we referring to? I'm not saying The Secret is not spiritual. I'm saying it's a very low-level of spirituality masquerading as a high one. What it uses as enticements (become wealthy, get a better job, get a lover) are very telling. It is appealing to a person's desire to attain, acheive, and better their personal station. It is promising you a better STORY. And that is indeed one altitude of spirituality. But it's the bottom, and inflating it can end up keeping people stuck in the cycle of suffering even longer. Because the self is addicted to its STORY. The Self is the end of all stories.
Now contrast The Secret with The Mystery. The Mystery, to me, includes all four domains (inner, outer, individual, collective) and does not privilege one over the other. It engages them as tetra-arising. It includes them as inextricably inter-woven, yet distinct in important ways. The Mystery includes every altitude in every domain, and values each of them, but also understand their differences. The Mystery includes every methodology, every ontology or Way of Knowing, but it also understands what they do, and what they don't do. The Secret is but a method, and it will not set you free from The Story. In fact, it will probably suck you deeper into it. It promises money, power, increased attraction, and tells you it is "spiritual" practice. Your story could become so comfortable, why would you ever forfeit it?
Here is an important question: What level of YOU wants to get rich? What altitude of YOU wants a new house, a better lover, an improved Story?
Here's what I feel is a healthier approach. Use the right tool for the right job. The right decoy for the right level. I think it is GOOD to improve our financial station. I think it is GOOD to have an exciting love life. That's why I have a financial advisor. That's why I see a therapist. I need to work on my self. I want to improve my relative reality. But I don't need to invoke "the Universe" or quantum mechanics or magical-narcissistic mysticism to do so. That's tremendously misguided. Want to find your Self? See Swami Sally. Want to get a new house? A better blow job? See Suze Ormon and Dr Ruth. Stop it with this Secret delusion. It's offensive and detrimental to our work in the Mystery.
Perhaps worst of all, until we are truly FREE -free from the Source of Suffering, free from desire, clutching, the assault of our false identities and all their Stories- until we are that FREE, we cannot really be available to help others become FREE. And that my friends, is the hokey pokey.
After the discussion the other day with Kent of The Kentroversy Papers about occult symbolism in rock music, I couldn't resist posting the lyrics (and video) of this song by the 80's metal powerhouse, Iron Maiden. Nothing subliminal here at all - this particular piece is so overflowing with occult symbolism that it is over-the-top.
"O God of earth and altar
Bow down and hear our cry
Our earthly rulers falter
Our peolple drift and die
The walls of gold entomb us
The swords of scorn divide
Take not thy thunder from us
But take away our pride"
(excerpt from an English hymnal written by G. K. Chesterton)
Just a babe in a black abyss
No reason for a place like this
The walls are cold and souls cry out in pain
An easy way for the Blind to go
A clever Path for the Fools who know
The Secret of the Hanged Man - the smile on his lips
The Light of the Blind you'll see
The venom that tears my spine
The Eyes of the Nile are opening - you'll see
She came to me with a Serpent's kiss
As the Eye of the Sun rose on her lips
Moonlight catches silver tears I cry
So we lay in a black embrace
And the seed is sown in a holy place
And I watched and I waited for the Dawn
The Light of the Blind you'll see
The venom that tears my spine
The Eyes of the Nile are opening - you'll see
Bind all of us together
Ablaze of hope and free
No storm or heavy weather
Will rock the boat you'll see
The time has come to close your eyes
And still the wind and rain
For the one who will be king
The Watcher in the Ring
It is you
The study of astrology is inextricably linked to ancient civilizations and the origins of religion (astrotheology). Most are familiar with the 12 signs of the zodiac, the times of the solar year that they represent, and maybe even their characteristics. Of course, just like all occult studies, there is an exoteric and esoteric understanding of these concepts.
While the ignorant multitudes worshiped the house of the sun's reflection, which in the case described would be the Bull, the wise revered the house of the sun's actual dwelling, which would be the Scorpion, or the Serpent, the symbol of the concealed spiritual mystery. [2]
This division was called Ezekiel's wheel and was completed in the following way: First came the ascending signs (euphermerized into patriarchs), Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, and the group concluded with Virgo-Scorpio. Then came the turning-point, Libra. After which, the first half of the sign of Virgo-Scorpio, was duplicated and transferred to lead the lower, or descending group of Microcosm which ran down to Pisces, or Noah (deluge). To make it clearer, the sign Virgo-Scorpio, became simply Virgo, and the duplication, Scorpio, was placed between Libra, the seventh sign (which is Enoch, or the angel Metatron, or Mediator between spirit and matter, or God and man). It now became Scorpio (or Cain), which sign or patriarch led mankind to destruction, according to exoteric theology; but, according to the true doctrine of the wisdom-religion, it indicated the degradation of the whole universe in its course of evolution downward from the subjective to the objective. [4]
It is clear how revered the sign of Leo is to the wisdom-religion. Of course, when these points are all considered as a whole, the implications for the coming New Age are rather revealing. This doctrine indicates that we are currently in the Age of Virgo, not Pisces, and instead of the Age of Aquarius that we have been led to expect - we will enter, esoterically, the Age of Leo as the sun will be dwelling in the house of the Lion. This new age will be signified by the height of solar power - power for those that worship the sun, and all that represents.... and to aid by his powerful paw in lifting up the sun up to the summit of the zodiacal arch. This visible connection between the constellation Leo and the return of the sun to his place of power and glory, at the summit of the Royal Arch of heaven, was the principal reason why that constellation was held in such high esteem and reverence by the ancients. ... "The lion was adored in the East and West by the Egyptians and the Mexicans. The chief Druid of Britain was styled a lion." [5]
Then, indeed, will the secret religions of the world include once more the raising to initiation by the Grip of the Lion's Paw. [6]
Behind the veil of all the hieratic and mystical allegories of ancient doctrines, behind the darkness and strange ordeals of all initiations, under the seal of all sacred writings, in the ruins of Nineveh or Thebes, on the crumbling stones of old temples and on the blackened visage of the Assyrian or Egyptian sphinx, in the monstrous or marvellous paintings which interpret to the faithful of India the inspired pages of the Vedas, in the cryptic emblems of our old books on alchemy, in the ceremonies practised at reception by all secret societies, there are found indications of a doctrine which is everywhere the same and everywhere carefully concealed.
- Eliphas Levi, Introduction to Dogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie
One of the most famous occultists of all time, Eliphas Levi's work is considered crucial.
Astute readers will recall that Levi, a native of Paris, was responsible for the drawing of the Goat of Mendes, symbolising Baphomet. Again, this hideous figure represents the "astral light" among many other occult concepts.
... the great materialistic progress which we have venerated for so long is on the verge of bankruptcy. We can no longer believe that we are born into this world to accumulate wealth and abandon ourselves to mortal pleasures. We see the dangers and realize that we have been exploited for centuries. We were told the twentieth century was the most progressive that the world has ever known, but unfortunately the progression was in the direction of self-destruction.
To avoid a future of war, crime, and bankruptcy, the individual must begin to plan his own destiny, and the best source for the necessary information comes down to us through the writings of the ancients. The greatest knowledge of all time should be available ... in a book that would be a monument, not merely a coffin.
Is it likely that Hall was assisted in more than just access to materials? No one can answer that for certain, but keep a few things in mind: Hall was raised from age 16 to 19 by a Rosicrucian group, he was associated with a myriad of other societies, including Freemasonry, he was also familiar with most every mystical and esoteric practice that was ever known in the past several thousand years, and probably some that weren't so well known.The first question Mr. Claude Bragdon, American mystic, asked Mr. Hall after their first meeting in New York in 1937 was: “Mr. Hall, how do you know so much more about the mathematics of Pythagoras than even the authorities on the subject?” Standing beside both these dear American friends of mine, I was wondering with trepidation in my heart what reply Mr. Hall would make. “Mr. Bragdon,” answered Mr. Hall quickly, unhesitatingly, and with a simultaneous flash of smile in his eyes and on his lips, “you are an occult philosopher. You know that it is easier to know things than to know how one knows those things.”
As Hall wished during his lifetime for people to turn away from their base instincts toward the spiritual and philosophical pursuits, his great work accomplishes that. The Secret Teachings of All Ages has been recognized as one of the foremost books on spirituality, the occult, and ancient myth and symbolism ever written. Although never out of print, when the Reader's Edition was published in 2003, the book became even more popular. In an effort to understand Manly Hall and his great work a bit more, we're pleased to bring you an interview with Mitch Horowitz, the publisher of The Secret Teachings of All Ages, Reader's Edition. Thanks very much to Mitch for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions.Certain Rosicrucian scholars have given special appellations to these three phases of the sun: the spiritual sun they called Vulcan; the soular and intellectual sun, Christ and Lucifer respectively; and the material sun, the Jewish Demiurgus Jehovah; Lucifer here represents the intellectual mind without the illumination of the spiritual mind; therefore it is "the false light." The false light is finally overcome and redeemed by the true light of the soul, called the Second Logos or Christ. The secret processes by which the Luciferian intellect is transmuted into the Christly intellect constitute one of the great secrets of alchemy, and are symbolized by the process of transmuting base metals into gold. (p. 142)
Can you describe your initial reactions
to reading The Secret Teachings of All Ages and why you and others
(myself included) find it such a compelling work?
I was astounded at the depth of learning in the book and at the author's willingness to take seriously subjects that were often dismissed as fantasy. When Hall wrote the book, for example, mainstream academia was closed off to questions of re-dating the great pyramids or of whether the Delphic oracle provided a mediumistic experience similar to that of Victorian spiritualism. Due to current archeological research, academics have now come around to seeing the Oracle at Delphi in the manner presented by Hall -- i.e., as a kind of ancient channeled reading -- and, while there remains overwhelming resistance to the pyramid question within academia, that subject has come to public attention through the interest of legitimate independent scholars. So, the Secret Teachings was not only ahead of its time, but took measure of all range of unusual subject matter that had not been given its proper due.
Like most readers I was dismayed that the book was so physically difficult to read, being oversized and featuring small typefaces and so forth. I thought: What if this book could be re-set in standard text and read a more straightforward manner? I found that such an approach brought out a readerly dimension to Hall's writing that was not otherwise apparent. So, I had the entire work scanned, re-typed, and fully redesigned. In so doing, I attempted to retain as many of the original illustrations as possible -- and certainly those that were key to the text. It was a really interesting experience turning the Secret Teachings back into a veritable manuscript and seeing it as a might have looked when it rolled off Hall's typewriter.
It really is astonishing that he wrote the book by age twenty-seven. That is one of the true mysteries of his achievement. Especially since some of his earliest writings -- such as his letters from abroad -- reveal no particular virtuosity. Some people have speculated that he had a photographic memory or was a kind of savant, which I think may be valid. Regarding other possibilities, such as some kind of supernormal communication or some such, it it simply too speculative to say. But this is an area that I am in real question about.
That's an interesting question. In once sense, it is a matter of sobering caution that Hall's vast knowledge of different spiritual systems failed to feed his own personal life in certain obvious ways -- for example, he was taken advantage of by various figures toward the end of his life. He did, of course, maintain some friendships (Bela Lugosi, Burl Ives). But as far as his general existence, he was a fairly ascetic man -- probably as a result of his single-minded work style than anything else.
Yes, I am friendly with the current director of PRS Obadiah Harris and have had the privilege of entering Hall's vault there, among other things.
I very much admire the writing of Richard Smoley and Jay Kinney, the founders of Gnosis magazine. Their book "Hidden Wisdom" is as good a primer to esoteric subjects as one is likely to find. I also like a classic work called (unfortunately!) "The Black Arts" by Richard Cavendish -- a much finer book than its title might reflect.
It is remarkable that the new edition is building a contemporary readership for Hall. He is probably one of the only occult writers of his era who is actually growing in popularity. One could argue that our times reflect his own: A wide gap between haves and have-nots; an entertainment-obsessed society; a great deal of emphasis on money-making at the expense of ethics. But I think the popularity of his book has to do mostly with the fact that the new edition permits the book to be discovered for the very first time among many readers -- and the quality of his work is of a kind all its own.
Overwhelmingly positive. I've not gotten a single negative remark that I can recall. People are delighted that book is not only readable, but also affordable. It creates a first-time experience for many people who owned but could never read the previously edition because of its physical unwieldiness.
Sure -- I actually just made an agreement this past Friday with the publisher Bantam. Here is blurb that is just now being sent to the publishing media:
"Tarcher/Penguin Editor-in-Chief Mitch Horowitz' first book, OCCULT AMERICA: The Secret History of How Mysticism Conquered America, was preempted by Bantam. A book populated by a wonderful cast of spiritual gadflies, adventurers, and impresarios, OCCULT AMERICA tells the story of how a young America hosted, transformed and was ultimately transformed by the mystical philosophies and practices of the Old World."
The book deals with personalities such as Manly P. Hall, Paul Foster Case, Edgar Cayce, and many, many others who remade the occult in America in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and, in so doing, helped lay the groundwork for the revolutions in alternative spirituality that marked our own generation.
In
1926, Fulcanelli – an obvious pseudonym – wrote “Le
Mystère des Cathédrales” – The Mystery
of the Cathedrals. The publication not merely created a renewed
interest in the how and the why of the Gothic cathedrals, but
also raised the question who Fulcanelli was.
Several names have since been put forward, tall stories have been
spun, including how Fulcanelli was over a hundred years old, did
not die, but instead disappeared. It is now generally believed
that the man at the origin of the mystery was René Schwaller
– the man who, with the addition of “de Lubicz”
to his name, would later make a name for himself as an Egyptologist,
performing detailed analyses that would inspire the likes of John
Anthony West. 
