I recently finished reading the book, Divine Magic: The Seven Sacred Secrets of Manifestation, A New Interpretation of the Classic Hermetic Manual, The Kybalion, by Doreen Virtue. Most of the examples and ideas that I write about here come from this book. Her book attempts to simplify and explain Hermetic teachings so that more people can grasp and benefit from them.
The Kybalion was published in 1908 with the intention to practically teach the principles shared by Hermes Trismegistus, an ancient Egyptian philosopher. Scholars cannot agree when Hermes was alive, but it is uniformly believed that he lived “before Christ”. His teachings can be used to understand and utilize the natural laws of the Universe for yourself and the highest good. As a student of the Science of Mind, I am reminded that most of the world’s philosophies have overlapping beliefs that date back for millennia. Due to the threat of religious persecution, Hermetic teachings went underground and were shared over many years in secret and only by word of mouth. These teachings seem to profess those common threads through all of the world’s religions, but with a more scientific approach.
The Seven Sacred Principles as explained in The Kybalion are as follows:
- Mentalism: The All is Mind; The Universe is Mental.
- Correspondence: As above, so below; as below, so above.
- Vibration: Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.
- Polarity: Opposites are identical in nature but different in degree.
- Rhythm: Everything flows in and out
- Cause and Effect: There are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law.
- Gender: Everything has its Masculine and Feminine principles.
Mentalism: The All is Mind; The Universe is Mental
We are an extension of the Creator, which is infinite, creative, and unerring intelligence. We are one with this Divine Mind. The author, Doreen Virtue, offers an example. While the character, Hamlet, is both Hamlet and Shakespeare. And yet, Shakespeare is not identical to Hamlet and Hamlet is not identical to Shakespeare. And, because the Creator is in all of us, the more we recognize its presence in us, we rise in the spiritual experience of life.
Correspondence: As above, so below; as below, so above
Our reality is divided into three planes: physical, mental, and spiritual with each plane operating according to the same spiritual laws. With this knowledge, you can elevate your life experience to higher planes of experience. Since we live in human bodies, it is important to acknowledge the physical existence of matter, but also to know that we are so much more. So, it’s taught not to live life as if life is merely an illusion, as if it doesn’t matter. We are having an experience here on Earth for a reason, although we may not always know why.
Vibration: Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates
Science has proven that everything in the Universe moves, even if it looks stationary. However, the atoms of all objects are constantly vibrating. The slowest vibratory rates are found in matter, especially inanimate objects. We can apply this knowledge to attract, repel, or change objects or situations. What are ways you can keep your vibration high or raise it up? I do that by listening to uplifting music, avoiding the news, and practicing gratitude.
Polarity: Opposites are identical in nature but different in degree
For example, prosperity and poverty are merely ends of the same pole, but vibrating at very different rates. This is true of the temperature and the ideas of hot and cold. Hermetists transmute undesirable situations and emotions to desirable ones by changing the vibration to the highest end of the pole. Play with the idea and envision a mercurial thermometer, with poverty at the bottom and prosperity at the top. If you feel constricted in the area of money, visually imagine your experience moving up to prosperity. If you were living in true prosperity, what would that look like? Where would you live? What would you be doing? How would you feel? Keep monitoring your thoughts. Where are they living? In prosperity or poverty? That is from where you will manifest your experience. You can use your will to increase the vibration of your own mind. Our mental states are the same but differ by degree. You have the power to change it for your benefit and others.
Rhythm: Everything flows in and out
Like a pendulum, the Universe operates in a predictable way. Like the tides, all things rise and fall. The night and the day. By mastering the rhythms, Hermetists become immune to downward turns in life. As with the poverty/prosperity thermometer, you can also visualize the different areas of your life and focus your attention on what you do want, not what you don’t. Try it as it relates to health (illness to perfect health), love (loneliness to true love, career (meaningless work to fulfilling career), and psychic abilities (blocked to cleared). It doesn’t mean that you won’t have a rise and fall of each, but with your faith and attention on the positive, you ride the waves with more ease, grace, and success. The pendulum’s swing is not as wide.
Cause and Effect: There are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law
Nothing happens by chance or accident. You can master your life when you become conscious of your thoughts and actions. This idea resonates through the above principles. As stated in the Bible, “it is done to you as you believe”. Unearth and heal your false beliefs and watch your life change. I work with my clients to do this with amazing results.
Gender: Everything has its Masculine and Feminine principles
This does not mean traditional male and female human bodies. It focuses on energies. Feminine energy is attracting and masculine is creating. To manifest, you must either attract what you want or create it. Used together, the masculine principle directs energy toward the feminine principle, which starts the creative process. Both are needed for the highest results. You could sit around waiting and willing what you want, but it is so much more powerful when you show the Universe that you mean it by taking steps toward your goal.
The Kybalion supports the notion that there is more than meets the eye and more to what we can currently measure with science. The book states the following: “There’s much evidence that ancients knew about and practiced astronomy, chemistry, and psychology. They possessed the inner knowledge as well as outer knowledge, while scientists usually only have outer knowledge. Transmutation* was among the many secret branches of knowledge possessed by Hermetists.” I am truly excited to see what happens when science re-embraces these currently unseen factors. We have made so many technological strides in the last century. As consciousness rises, we will see more and more advancement, but with the consciousness of love and knowing that what we do to one affects the whole. My vision for the world is one of collaboration and building each other up with the use of new technologies and ancient principles while also taking care of Mother Earth, who has held us so lovingly for eons. As we get back to nature and ourselves, we see these principles working more and more around us and we can integrate any new technology with a higher consciousness. It will allow us more time to be in community and be truly present with each other. As we are more present with ourselves and others, we will create beauty beyond what can now be imagined.
(*Transmutation” usually refers to the ancient art of transmuting metals, particularly base metals, into gold. The word “transmute” means “to change from one nature, form, or substance, into another” (Webster’s). And accordingly, “mental transmutation” means the art of changing and transforming mental states, forms, and conditions into others.)
