The Seven Hermetic Principles

This is merely my take on universal principles as designated in the Kybalion, you could regard this article, or rather these seven articles, as an expounded commentary on the metaphysics behind these principles, and my own interpretation of said principles.

The Kybalions seven Hermetic principles, and the contents of the Kybalion generally, purportedly continue in the philosophical tradition originating in Hermes and expounded in the Corpus Hermeticum, now called the Hermetic Tradition.

The Principle of Mentalism

Mentalism is a form of monistic idealism that posits the primacy of mind, and identifies mind with God, as an absolute. An absolute is that which there is no privation; lack of, this is to suggest that everything is mind, that the apparently physical is the manifestation of the mind; the form of the idea. You consider your mind your own, and irreconcilably different from the minds of those around you, and you are somewhat justified in believing this to be so: the appearance of individuation is no mistake, the singular minds individuation serves the purpose of creating definition, as in defined being, which is necessary for Gnosis. 

To digest this effectively, consider that a thing is in essence defined by borders and therefore things relative to itself, the border of what is apparently my being is that which distincts me from that which is relative to me. Pure God; mind would be totally undifferentiated, and therefore undefined as in any monistic metaphysic. As such, in order to gain any sense of defined being, individuation is necessary. This use of individuation is synonymous to manifestation, imagination (the mind’s process of making manifest; imaging), ideation, limit and definition. Of course there is nothing that can limit an absolute since nothing exists except the absolute: this limit is self-imposed and therefore illusory, which makes the term imagination that much more vindicated.

Our own minds as you’re familiar with them exist as an individuation of mind, which is an ultimately illusory limitation self-imposed for the sake of definition. In any monistic system, everything “proceeding” from the Absolute is deemed an emanation, and because those emanations are rooted in the Absolute, and prior emanations, they will reference those prior emanations and the Absolute: this is called Correspondence, which will be detailed in the next article. However, this Correspondence is why we experience mind the way we do as of now, within a body, itself an emanation of the soul, it is also why we experience imagination the way we do now. Our own minds and imaginations are ultimately the exact same as those of God, only under the illusion of individuation, imagined to be as we are.

THE ALL is MIND; The Universe is Mental.

The Kybalion

THE ALL cannot transfer or subtract a portion of itself, nor can it reproduce or multiply itself—in the first place there would be a taking away, and in the second case a multiplication or addition to THE ALL, both thoughts being an absurdity. Is there no third way in which MAN creates! Yes, there is—he CREATES MENTALLY! And in so doing he uses no outside materials, nor does he reproduce himself, and yet his Spirit pervades the Mental Creation.

The Kybalion

Following the Principle of Correspondence, we are justified in considering that THE ALL creates the Universe MENTALLY, in a manner akin to the process whereby Man creates Mental Images.

The Kybalion

Mathematical and measurable proof of the existence of but One Mind, One force and One substance would give to man absolute control over matter, the power to create, even as God creates, and within the same limitations.

Walter Russell

Man is mind. Man is matter. Mind and matter are One. God is Mind.

Walter Russell

The Principle of Correspondence

The Principle of Correspondence refers to a correspondence between things as they are “above”, to things as they are “below”, the things in question being the same thing in principle both “above” and “below”. This sameness in above-ness and below-ness is why correspondence is perhaps more accurately known as self-referentiality. The “above” being the macrocosm; the large scale order and the “below” being the microcosm; the small scale order. 

The relationship between the two is one of continued self-definition, let’s say for instance there exists a principle subsisting of its own nature— as that principle continues to define itself, the process of which is identical to emanation and individuation, that continued definition will mimic the whole of the principle in question, in other words it will reference itself— because it is subsisting of its own nature. An absolute for instance, God or Mind, must subsist of its own nature because it is absolute and nothing exists apart from it, therefore everything that exists will refer to the Absolute, everything is thereby self-referential.

The process described previously is identical to the process of emanation and individuation. An emanation, whether it be an emanation of God, or the emanation of the human soul, or anything else, can never be a thing beyond that which emanates it. The sum total and whole of reality is an emanation of God, all emanations— since they are that which emanates— will refer to that which emanates. For instance, a human body refers to its soul— it is a defined aspect of its soul and displays the nature of the soul since it is indistinct from said soul. This is an observation of self referentiality: the emanation refers to that which emanates, the form of the self refers to the soul itself. 

Because an emanation refers to that which emanates, the emanation itself will continue to emanate— since it refers to a nature that emanates. This continued process of emanation, which is forever self-referential, can be visualized perfectly with a fibonacci spiral, which refers to itself as it spirals ad infinitum at a ratio of 1:Φ. 

Self-referentiality can be practically observed in the incommensurability of magnets, that is, if you cut a magnet in half, you don’t get a north and south pole of a magnet— but rather two whole new dipole magnets. This practical analogue illustrates both self referentiality and the process of individuation/emanation. The new magnets refer to the nature of the magnet from which they are derived, in that they contain 2 poles instead of only a north or south pole, and in doing so they become in essence an individuation of the whole from which they were derived.

That which is above is like to that which is below, and that which is below is like to that which is above, to accomplish the miracles of the one thing.

The Emerald Tablet

“But how, I said, or from what substance are the elements of nature made?” He said, “Of the will, and counsel of God; which taking the word, and beholding the beautiful world imitated it, and so made this world, by the principles and vital seeds or soul-like productions of itself.”

The Corpus Hermeticum

The Principle of Vibration

The Principle of Vibration as referred to in the Kybalion describes a theorem wherein not only do all things vibrate, but that the apparent variation between those things is purely due to variation in the rate at which those things vibrate.

Though this is wholly correct it does not succinctly capture the underlying truth. The reality is that there exists one substance, which for the sake of comprehension we will call the aether, and that all apparent variations in substance, be they states of matter or elemental variations— are merely variations in the motion of this one substance. This one existent substance, from which all appearances of substance are derived, is the substrate of form— and consequently the medium by which form is made manifest. This is why the aether is referred to as a medium, though I find that this oftentimes imprints a very literal and thereby incorrect notion of the aether as purely a kind of cosmic medium onto the receptor. 

This aether is the quintessence of all form, since spatiality is the attribute of manifest form, and manifest form is essentially motion in the aether— it is accurate to say that space and spatiality is the attribute of the aether. This is why the term “space”, which isn’t a thing in itself but an attribute of things, is heavily reified as an objective existent thing in itself that is capable of acting as a medium and having properties of its own.

The Principle of Vibration is a form of substance monism, which states that only one substance exists, and that all apparent variations are not in substance but in the modality of the one substance. This substrate substance, which for the sake of comprehension we have called the aether, is also necessarily the substance of the Monad, the two must be inextricably linked. That would be to say that the aether is analogous to the substance of God or Mind. Other analogous terms would be anima mundi; the world soul, perhaps spirit generally, and the Holy Spirit, which acts as an agent for communication between the divine and mundane.

The Hermetic Teachings are that not only is everything in constant movement and vibration, but that the “differences” between the various manifestations of the universal power are due entirely to the varying rate and mode of vibrations.

The Kybalion

The Hermetists teach that this Ethereal Substance is of extreme tenuity and elasticity, and pervades universal space, serving as a medium of transmission of waves of vibratory energy, such as heat, light, electricity, magnetism, etc. The Teachings are that The Ethereal Substance is a connecting link between the forms of vibratory energy known as “Matter” on the one hand, and “Energy or Force” on the other; and also that it manifests a degree of vibration, in rate and mode, entirely its own.

The Kybalion

The substance of Mind is the one prechemical substance which is the source of all the elements and the compounds of the elements, all of which are but appearances. These appearances register the action of the process of thinking, and disappear back into their source of an absolute temperatureless state of motion-in-inertia. The material substance of Mind is an all pervading ether which is indivisible, inseparable, indestructible, unalterable and unchangeable; but potentially it contains the appearance of all these dimensions of separability in the states of motion which register the dynamic process of thinking. The words “spirit” and “ether” are used to express the tenuity of the dimensionless universe, as “solidity” is used to express the compactness of the apparently measurable universe.

Walter Russell

Just as the spokes of a wheel appear to change into a solid disk when set rapidly in motion so does Mind substance appear to change into a complexity of forms and degrees of apparent solidity in accord with the variable speed of motion of electrically accumulated potential. Also as the dimensions and numbers of the spokes of a wheel give the appearance of greater or less solidity according to the speed of their motion, so do the elements appear more or less solid in accord with the closeness or openness of their orbits and their integration. All of man’s elements are the same in substance. Their apparent difference is due to difference in dimension only. Man’s concept of substance is the result of his concept of a physical universe of many substances. Man’s concept of a spiritual universe is that of a substanceless universe. Man differentiates between the spiritual and the physical universes simply because one responds to his senses and the other does not. When the range of man’s senses includes the entire range of light, he will then know that there is no difference between the spiritual and physical except variance in motion, which variance does not constitute a difference in substance.

Walter Russell

The Principle of Polarity

When people think of polarity, they think of a kind of dual aspect principle, wherein two opposed forces contrast one another and subsequently define one another— not unlike how courage is defined by its differentiation from fear. Dualism is characterized by a universal two-ness consisting of two irreconcilable primordial principles. No universal two-ness exists, however this kind of dual aspect principle is certainly plainly observable— so what is the nature of that principle? Polarity. Polarity consists of a single underlying principle, the manifestation of which travels in opposite directions— a polarizing impulse. This creates the appearance of poles, one being defined relative to the other, and the point from which both poles manifest.

To get a finer grasp on the cause and mechanics of polarity, we will examine perhaps the most principally antecedent example of polarity: polarity in field theory and magnetism. The point from which the previously mentioned polarizing impulse occurs is necessarily counterspatial; negative space or the plane of inertia, which is why the polarizing impulse occurs to begin with, rather than a simple line traveling forward from a point. One pole will have a positive, masculine electric charge and the other a negative, feminine electric charge. Positive electricity is the state of motion wherein electricity dominates magnetism, negative electricity is the state if motion wherein magnetism dominates electricity. Electricity is the universal generative power, which manifests and generates form, magnetism is the universal radiative power, which unmanifests and degenerates form, magnetism pulls towards inertia.

All forms are both electric and magnetic, a poles polarity is determined by the predominance of either electricity (generation/integration) or magnetism (radiation/disintegration), one pole has a preponderance of generoactivity (+♂️) and the other radioactivity (-♀️). If the manifestation of form is considered the action of mind, thought, then the resulting unmanifestation is the reaction. One pole has a preponderance of generation and contraction, which is cooling and compacting like ice, and the other of radiation, increased radioactivity results in heat, which also unmanifests just as ice turns to steam and disintegrates when heated. Radiation, disintegration and unmanifestation is of course a return to inertia, the pull towards inertia is also why magnetic attraction takes place, between the preponderantly radioactive pole and the preponderantly generoactive pole on two separate magnets, there exists a plane of inertia, which acts as a vacuum.

A magnets polarity is also incommensurate, you cannot isolate a north or south pole by cutting the magnet in half, you’ll only get two new north and south poles. This is important because it indicates that the poles, as with the plane of inertia between the poles, have no spatial locus, no Cartesian value and are counterspatial. Spatiality is not a principle reality, or even a thing in itself, only really being a manifestation of the underlying principle, being an attribute thereof. The generation of a line in nature for instance, does not begin at a point and go forward— because this would indicate the point as spatial, rather, the lines travel forward from the counterspatial point in opposite directions, which is polarization.

With all that said, let’s continue to analyze and discuss the broader applications of polarity. Because reality is self referential, the whole of reality will express universal principles by virtue of their universality, the Principle of Polarity is no different. We can observe an apparent dual aspect nature in just about everything, but the importance of the recognition of polarity lies in the fact that it means that the apparently opposed dual aspects are in fact one in the same principle thing, one pole being defined in contrast to its opposite. Take emotions for instance, happiness and sadness are apparently polar opposites, and yet one is defined by the other, to what significance is sadness without happiness to compare to and vice versa? Or take the polar opposition between hot and cold, both serving as abstract poles on the scale of temperature. The difference between two polar opposites is but a difference of degree, if those two are in principle the same thing.

Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of
opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature,
but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half‑truths; all
paradoxes may be reconciled.

The Kybalion

Imagine God’s hands pulling the invisible ONE IDEA of Father-Motherhood apart to divide it into two visible forms, each of which are one half of the ONE IDEA. Instead of the invisible, formless and changeless One Idea, God has thus created PAIRS OF OPPOSITELY CONDITIONED HALVES OF MANY IDEAS. That is what is called POLARITY, which means the division of one condition into two equal opposites.

Walter Russell

Sex is the motive power behind force and motion. Sex is the apparent division of the father-mother substance of Mind into apparent opposites. This division is due to the opposite desires of electricity and magnetism, expressed in the action and reaction of the thinking process.

Walter Russell

The Principle of Rhythm

The Principle of Rhythm goes hand in hand with the Principle of Polarity, as rhythm refers to the motion and movement between two given poles. Take for instance a pendulums swing, consider one pole its swing to the left and the other its subsequent swing to the right. The rhythm therein is the orderly movement from one pole to the other. The Kybalion states that, “The measure of the swing to the right is the measure of the swing to the left; rhythm compensates.” This is referred to as the Law of Compensation, rhythm compensates one action with its equal, opposite reaction.

These principles are universal principles, as such they are present in both the nature of the relationship between manifestation and unmanifestation, as well as within all manifest phenomenon— because manifestation has a polarizing nature in addition to the polarity between manifestation and unmanifestation. That being said, there exists a rhythm between the manifestation, integration or generation of things and the subsequent unmanifestation, disintegration and degeneration of those things. Up to the summit of integration is growth, past this summit decay becomes dominant.

So too does there exist a rhythm between two poles of manifest phenomena, this is observed as an ebb and flow within nature, the rising and lowering of the tides to the waxing and waning of the moon. There is also a rhythm in subtle, more noumenal happenstance, the rhythm between emotional poles should be noted and carefully considered and observed— we often drift on the tides of our idle moods without ever realizing it. The Kybalion teaches a practice called, “The Law of Neutralization”, wherein one allows the emotional pendulums to pass beneath them via recognition of the rising and lowering tides of idle moods, and in bringing this to conscious awareness he can limit or wholly negate its negative affection on his consciousness.

Rhythm observes and relays the motion of an action and its consequent reaction. Action and reaction is repetitive and self referential, you could even say reproductive, as such the rhythm between the two tends to be reproduced. Reaction is followed by another action, unmanifestation is followed by manifestation. The initial swing to the left will have an equal swing to the right, the subsequent swing to the left may appear to differ— though its reaction will be equal. This reproductive principle allows for the development of a given manifestation, rather than perpetual sameness repeated over and over, which makes unmanifestation and the rhythm between the two quite necessary.

Everything flows out and in; everything has its tides; all things rise and fall; the pendulum-swing manifests in everything, the measure of the swing to the right, is the measure of the swing to the left; rhythm compensates.

The Kybalion

The universe of motion is a swinging of the cosmic pendulum from the stability of concept in inertia to the instability of the image of concept in motion, and back again to the stability of memory of concept in inertia. Concept precedes motion. Motion begins in concept. Concept takes place in inertial equilibrium. Motion is born of opposition to equilibrium. The universal balance cannot be upset. No state other than an equilibrium is possible. The concept of an action designed to upset the universal balance by overcoming inertia is, when executed as an action, simultaneously opposed by a reaction designed to restore that balance. The result of action and reaction is to create the illusion of stability through a division of the force of action and reaction into apparent opposites. An opposed state is an unstable state which simulates stability through motion in equal and opposite actions and reactions.

Walter Russell

The Principle of Causation

The Principle of Causation, also called the Principle of Cause and Effect, on the surface seems to merely strip the agency from the concept of “chance”— suggesting that in a unified, monisitic system (a Monad), no such an agent as defined by “mode of activity not subject to force, law, order or purpose” could possibly exist, as this would generally imply that there exists something beyond that unified system that might disorder it, if no such a thing exists beyond the the unified system, then no such a thing as chance can exist. 

In short, the surface level of Causation is a denial of chaos, for nothing exists beyond the Absolute that might disorder it— and it couldn’t disorder itself because whatever apparent “disorder” is caused is self-contained and arranged, and therefore an order. It is said that every cause has its effect, and every effect it’s cause, suggesting there is no true chance, nor effectless cause, nor causeless effect. In fact, it almost denies the concept of probability in a sense. In that the probability of whatever happened having happened must be 100%, because it in fact happened and there is no causeless effect. The unfolding of happenstance within reality is not the roll of a die 20, but rather rooted in respective causes both obvious and subtle.

However, I’d like to take this principle deeper with an examination of coincidence and synchronicity in the context of meaning between two synchronized effects not being best described by the purely mechanical input-output nature described prior, but rather by the order and structure necessitated by a unified system. This does of course join hand in hand with the Principle of Correspondence, as correspondence describes the synchronized nature of all expressions within a unified system. Observation of these two principles eliminates coincidence in the context of two things coinciding by way of chaos or pure chance, rather suggesting that coincidence is moreso a synchronicity or co-occurrence wherein there exists either a shared root cause or a direct correspondence of root causes which reacts as an apparent coincidence. What man calls chance, random, chaos and coincidence is merely ignorance of the causes of observed effects.

All of the apparently distinct things in observable manifest reality coincide in existence at this very moment, all of reality is rooted in the same cause. Actions beget reactions which beget actions, likewise for causes and effects, lineages of causes correspond due to their shared origin in a single point. All of these apparently distinct things are expressions of a unified system. Synchronicities are often recognized intuitively, though one might not be able to articulate the reason as to why they feel as if there’s more to the coincidence than chance, it is an intuitive recognition of Correspondence and Causation.

Every Cause has its Effect; every Effect has its Cause; everything happens according to Law; Chance is but a name for Law not recognized; there are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law.

The Kybalion

Let it then be clearly understood that the universe of Mind is that which man characterizes as “the spiritual universe” and that the universe of dimension is man’s “physical universe”. One is cause. The other is effect. One is real. The other is illusion. Man has to do with illusion during those periods in which he is forming the idea of himself as illusion; so, therefore, it is necessary that he shall understand the dimensions of the universe of illusion in order that he may control them.

Walter Russell

The Principle of Gender

The Latin meaning of Gender is to reproduce; to bring forth. Gender is in essence, the same thing as Polarity; Masculinity and Femininity are in essence, the only Polarity. The Masculine pole is predominantly integrative; manifestative, whereas the Feminine pole is disintegrative; unmamifestative. The Masculine principle is that which resists inertia to manifest form, the Feminine is that which assists inertia to unmanifest form. Inertia is unmanifest potential.

The Feminine is the reaction to action, which results in a reproduction of action. Generation reacts in degeneration which inspires regeneration and so on. This is why Gender is the reproductive principle. Two poles that are clearly both manifest, even though the crux of the Feminine pole is unmanifestative, differ in their predominance of one principle over the other. Both poles of Gender are present in everything, something is characterized as Masculine by predominance of generation over degeneration, and Feminine by vice versa. A positive pole would be characterized by predominance of generation, though it both gravitates and radiates, and the negative pole by predominance of degeneration, though it both radiates and gravitates.

In assistance towards inertia, or unmanifestation, the Feminine also records memory, the memory; soul of manifest things is carried into inertia much like memories are carried into the deep of your own unconscious mind. The memory of the manifestation now in inertia is developed again as it is bound to manifest again, unmanifestation is followed by manifestation, this is reproduction. 

The dynamic of Gender, that between Masculinity and Femininity, between manifestation and unmanifestation, is necessary for the continued development of manifest form. If that manifest form, or image, could not be broken down and reproduced— it would not develop, it would be much like an eternal freeze frame. Thankfully this is not so, and manifestation, with the cooperation of unmanifestation, is perpetual, which means that reality continues to be defined perpetually; the image of the Absolute develops.

Biological sex is a physical manifestation of the Principle of Gender, an animals sex designating their role in this universal principle of reproduction— rather than labelling women as degenerative by nature, the reality is that women are moreso like the catalyst for regeneration. The action of the seed of the man reacts and culminates in sexual reproduction, this is an excellent example of the dynamic of Gender.

Gender is in everything; everything has its Masculine and Feminine Principles; Gender manifests on all planes.

The Kybalion

Sex is the apparent division of the father-mother substance of Mind into apparent opposites. This division is due to the opposite desires of electricity and magnetism, expressed in the action and reaction of the thinking process.

Walter Russell

This universe of motion is a universe of PRODUCTION, DESTRUCTION and REPRODUCTION. All form is produced by the male, electropositive, plus action of the charging, electric oscillation of the universal life principle, is destroyed by the female, electronegative, minus reaction of the discharging, magnetic oscillation, and is reproduced through the union of both by radio-active regeneration in inertia.

Walter Russell