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soteriology

Mystical Union

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

1,069 passages · 18 traditions
neoplatonism: 279 passagesneoplatonism279christian_mysticism: 254 passageschristian_mysticism254egyptian: 96 passagesegyptian96western_esoteric: 83 passageswestern_esoteric83gnosticism: 79 passagesgnosticism79renaissance_hermeticism: 73 passagesrenaissance_hermeticism73hinduism: 42 passageshinduism42taoism: 36 passagestaoism36hermeticism: 27 passageshermeticism27platonism: 26 passagesplatonism26sufism: 26 passagessufism26theosophy: 19 passagestheosophy19greek_mystery: 13 passagesgreek_mystery13buddhism: 10 passagesbuddhism10jewish_mysticism: 3 passagesjewish_mysticism3celtic: 1 passageceltic1native_american: 1 passagenative_american1upanishads: 1 passageupanishads1
neoplatonism279
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter I
Hermes, the God who presides over language, was formerly very properly considered as common to all priests; and the power who presides over the true science concerning the Gods 18 is one and the same in the whole of things. Hence our ancest…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter II
We shall, therefore, deliver to you the peculiar dogmas of the Assyrians; and also clearly develop to you our own opinions; collecting some things from the infinite writings of the ancients, but others from those particulars which were comp…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter III
In the first place, therefore, you say, “ it must be granted that there are Gods .” Thus to speak, however, is not right on this subject. For an innate knowledge of the Gods is coexistent with our very essence; and this knowledge is superio…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter V-a
In the next place, let us direct our attention to the solution of your inquiries. There is, therefore, the good itself which is beyond essence, and there is that good which subsists according to essence; I mean the essence which is most an…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter VIII-b
Hence, through these things such a corporeal-formed division as you introduce, is demonstrated to be false. It is, indeed, especially necessary not to propose any thing of this kind; but if this should appear to you to be requisite, yet yo…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter IX-a
I consider you, therefore, as asking, for it is your inquiry, “ Why, since the Gods dwell in the heavens alone, there are invocations by theurgists of terrestrial and subterranean Gods? ” For 45 what you assert in the beginning is not true…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter X-a
After these things, you again subjoin another division for yourself, “ in which you separate the essences of the more excellent genera by the difference of passive and impassive .” But neither do I admit this division. For no one of the mo…”
Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter XII
You also say, “ that invocations are directed to the Gods as to beings that are passive, so that not only dæmons are passive, but likewise the Gods .” This, however, is not the case. For the illumination which takes place through invocation…”
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christian_mysticism254
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 10, Section 1c
It is spoken of by ail the Christian Mystics as the root of our being, or as the spark, or the Synteresis, etc. Our perfection consists in this ultimate reality, which is each man’s self, shining through his whole being and transforming it…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 10, Section 1d
If Time be thought of as an infinite series of finite numbers Eternity is the sum of that series and not its process. But the name may be applied loosely to the process, though this is generally to be avoided. According to St. Thomas, Et…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 1, Section 1a
51 CHAPTER I Dionysius the Presbyter, to his fellow-Presbyter Timothy. 45 45 The name of St. Paul’s companion is intended to give colour to the writer’s pseudonym. See Introduction, p. 1; cf. iii. 2. What is the purpose of the discou…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 1, Section 1b
For even as things which are intellectually discerned 52 52 i. e. The Transcendent Truths which are beyond ordinary knowledge. νοητά . The word νοῦς = Mind in the sense not merely of abstract intellect but of the spiritual personality.…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 1, Section 1c
59 59 ὡς οὐκ ὄντος ἴχνους τῶν ἐπὶ τὴν κρυφίαν αὐτῆς ἀπειρίαν διεληλυθότων. Two interpretations of this passage are possible: (1) Those who have penetrated the hidden Depths cannot describe the Vision (cf. Dante, Par. xxxiii. 55–66) ; (2…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 1, Section 1d
And we press upwards to those beams which in the Holy Scripture shine upon us; wherefrom we gain the light which leads us unto 55 the Divine praises 64 64 πρὸς τοὺς θεαρχικοὺς ὕμνους. Either (1) “leads us to declare the Divine praises”; or…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 1, Section 1e
These mysteries we learn from the Divine Scriptures, and thou wilt find that in well-nigh all the utterances of the Sacred Writers the Divine Names refer in a Symbolical Revelation 72 72 ἐκφαντορικῶς καὶ ὑμνητικῶς. to Its beneficent Emanat…”
Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 1, Section 1f
And in all the other Divine enlightenments which the occult Tradition of our inspired teachers hath, by mystic Interpretation, accordant with the Scriptures, bestowed upon us, we also have been initiated: apprehending these things in the pr…”
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egyptian96
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 4 (part 13)
There was about three feet of rubbish on the top of the same; and from the circumstance of the bones and part of the coffin being all found together, it appeared as if the coffin had been brought to that spot and there unpacked.--H. Raven.…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 4 (part 19)
Chapp. 30B, 164, 37B and 148. Although these chapters were found at Hermopolis, the city of Thoth, it does not follow that they were drawn up there. 5. See Birch, in Bunsen, Egypt's Place in Universal History , vol. V., p. 125; Navill…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 4 (part 20)
6. The Pyramid of Pepi II. , 1. 665. 7. In reading Egyptian religious texts, the existence of the heavenly Annu, which was to the Egyptians what Jerusalem was to the Jews, and what Mecca still is to the Mubammadans, must be remembered.…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 4 (part 27)
For the variant vignettes see Naville, Todtenbuch , Bd. L, Bl. 8o. 2. One of the two variant vignettes shows the deceased in the act of adoring Ra, and in the other the deceased kneels before Ra, Thoth, and Osiris; see Naville, Todtenbu…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 4 (part 28)
The Chapter of bringing a boat in the underworld. Vignette: A boat. Chapter C. The Chapter of making perfect the khu , and of making it to enter into the boat of Ra, together with his divine followers. Vignette: A boat containing a comp…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 5 (part 4)
Horus in his rage tore from her head the royal diadem; but Thoth gave her a helmet in the shape of a cow's head. In two other battles fought between Horus and Typhon, Horus was the victor. Identity of the deceased with Osiris. This is the…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 6 (part 4)
This chapter was found inscribed upon one of the linen wrappings of the mummy of Thothmes III., and a copy of the text is given by Naville (Todtenbuch, Bd. L, Bl. 179); for a later version see Lepsius, Todtenbuch, Bl. 75, where many inte…”
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 6 (part 8)
i-nek ba-k am neteru Cometh to thee thy soul which is among the gods. 5. uab ba-k am neteru Pure is thy soul among the gods. 6. anx Ausar anx ba din Netat anx Pepi pen As liveth Osiris, and as liveth the soul in Netat, so liveth Pepi this…”
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western_esoteric83
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 5 (part 1)
Click to view THE TEMPTATION OF EVIL From Cædmon. INTRODUCTION THE mystic tradition in Christian Times is preserved, apart from all questions and traces of Instituted Mysteries, in the literature of Christian Mystical Theology; it is a lar…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 5 (part 2)
The anonymous Cloud of Unknowing belongs, I believe, to the early part of the fifteenth century, and it is to be classed among the most signal presentations of the conditions and mode of the Union which I have met with in Christian literatu…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 5 (part 4)
Blessed and Holy are those who receive the experience of God in the dilucid contemplation, but sanctity and benediction and all in all is that state wherein contemplation is ineffably unified, by a super-eminent leap over of love, with that…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 5 (part 5)
The technicalities of the occult sciences may seem hard to the beginner, and they are actually hard like the wilderness, because they are barren wastes, but they are in words of one syllable if compared with the little catechisms of eternal…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 5 (part 6)
It is the calculus of probabilities on the basis of experience in respect of empirical things. Putting it aside, on the fringe of the whole circle there are further a few score of follies which one would not term the grades of preparation…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 9 (part 1)
CHAPTER II The Rituals of Transcendental Magic § 1. The Arbatel of Magic THE term transcendental must not be interpreted in any exalted or philosophical sense when it is used, informally and conventionally enough, in such a connection as t…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 9 (part 4)
The sources of occult wisdom, it proceeds, are, firstly, in God; secondly, in spiritual essences--that is to say, the Angelical Hierarchy; thirdly, in corporeal creatures, the reference being probably to the signatura rerum of Paracelsus; f…”
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 12 (part 3)
O most sweet Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the great living God, Thou hast Performed most mighty miracles by the sole power of Thy most precious Name, and hast enriched the poor most abundantly, so that by force thereof the demons flee away, th…”
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gnosticism79
Gospel of Philip | Section 1a
(Above image of the Gospel of Thomas courtesy of the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity, Claremont Graduate University) Visit the Bookstore for a complete selection of translations and books about The Nag Hammadi Library The Nag Hamma…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1c
And Jesus said, “Whoever will not eat my flesh and drink my blood has no life within him.” What does he mean? His flesh is the word and blood the holy spirit. Who has received these has food and drink and clothing. I condemn those who sa…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1d
When the child is grown, however, then the father turns over all he possesses. THE LOST Those who have gone astray are those born of the spirit. And they are usually lost because of the spirit. So from one single breath of spirit the fir…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1f
When wanton women see a man sitting alone, the man is overcome. They fondle him and pollute him. When wanton men see a beautiful woman sitting alone, they overcome her, and she is violated and polluted. But when spirits see a man and his…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1h
Now the woman and man are one in the chamber with the bed, and those so joined will not come apart again. Eve and Adam separated because when they joined it was not in the chamber with the bed. ADAM’S SOUL The soul of Adam came into being…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1i
His seed was Jesus, and the plant was the cross.” The tree of life in the middle of that garden of paradise is an olive tree, and from the olive tree comes chrism, and from that oil comes the resurrection. THE WORLD EATS BODIES The world e…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1j
In the world these are the true people. They are the attendants of the bridal chamber. POWER AND WEAKNESS In this world, power and weakness mingle when man and woman have sex. Joining is different in the eternal realm, though we use the…”
Gospel of Philip | Section 1k
If you become light, light will share you. If you are of those from above, one of those from above will rest in you. If you become a horse or a donkey or bull or dog or sheep or another animal that is wild or tame, then neither a person n…”
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renaissance_hermeticism73
Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter LXV — How the Passions of the Mind can Work of Themselves Upon Another's Body | Chapter LXV, Section 1b
For as the smell of musk doth penetrate, so something of either bad or good is derived from anything bad or good by those that are nigh to them; which may continue a long time. Now, if the foresaid passions have so great a power in the pha…”
Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter LXVII — How the Mind of Man May Be Joined With the Mind of the Stars, and Intelligences of the Celestials, and, Together With Them, Impress Certain Wonderful Virtues Upon Inferior Things | Chapter LXVII, Section 1
CHAPTER LXVII. How the Mind of Man May Be Joined With the Mind of the Stars, and Intelligences of the Celestials, and, Together With Them, Impress Certain Wonderful Virtues Upon Inferior Things . The philosophers, especially the Arabians, s…”
The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | INTRODUCTION-h
The primal idea of Pythagoras, which Bruno worked out to a more distinct development is this: numbers are the beginning of things; in other words numbers are the cause of the existence of material things; they are not final, but are always…”
The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | INTRODUCTION-i
The life of man is more than an experience or trial; it is an effort, a struggle to reproduce and represent upon earth some of that goodness, beauty, and truth which are diffused over the universe and constitute its harmony. Long, slow, an…”
The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | INTRODUCTION-j
The body is in the soul, the soul is in the mind, the mind is in God. The life of the soul is the true life of the man. Of all his various faculties, that which rules all, that which exalts our nature, is Thought. By means of it we rise…”
The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | INTRODUCTION-l
There he passed the first day of that imprisonment which was to last for eight years. The next day he went over the lagoon in a gondola, in the company of his jailors, who took him to the prison of the Holy Office, and left him there. Lev…”
The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | First Dialogue-c
Hence he cries: "O mountain of Parnassus, where I abide! Muses, with whom I converse! Fountain of Helicon, where I am nourished. Mountain, that affordest me a quiet dwelling-place! Muses, that inspire me with pro found doctrines. Fount…”
The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | First Dialogue-d
Some are called in vain to put in a ready appearance, and are chiefly those which proceed from the lower instincts, and which obey the reason either not at all, or very little; and forcing himself to prevent their actions and condemn those…”
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hinduism42
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter II, Section 1d
For his mind is steady whose senses are under his control. The man who ponders over objects of sense forms an attachment to them; from (that) attachment is produced desire; and from desire anger is produced ; from anger results want of dis…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter IV, Section 1a
CHAPTER IV. The Deity said: This everlasting (system of) devotion I declared to the sun, the sun declared it to Manu , and Manu communicated it to Ikshvâku. Coming thus by steps, it became known to royal sages. But, O terror of (your) fo…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter IV, Section 1b
The acts of one who is devoid of attachment, who is free , whose mind is fixed on knowledge, and who performs action for (the purpose of) the sacrifice are all destroyed. Brahman is the oblation; with Brahman (as a sacrificial instrument)…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter V, Section 1a
CHAPTER V. Ar g una said: O K ri sh n a! you praise renunciation of actions and also the pursuit (of them). Tell me determinately which one of these two is superior. The Deity said: Renunciation and pursuit of action are both instrument…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter V, Section 1b
For the enjoyments born of contact (between senses and their objects) are, indeed, sources of misery; they have a beginning as well as an end . O son of Kuntî! a wise man feels no pleasure in them. He who even in this world, before his r…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter VI, Section 1a
CHAPTER VI. The Deity said: He who, regardless of the fruit of actions, performs the actions which ought to be performed, is the devotee and renouncer; not he who discards the (sacred) fires , nor he who performs no acts. Know, O son of P…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter VI, Section 1b
That (mental condition), in which the mind restrained by practice of abstraction, ceases to work; in which too, one seeing the self by the self , is pleased in the self; in which one experiences that infinite happiness which transcends the…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter VII, Section 1a
CHAPTER VII. The Deity said: O son of P ri thâ! now hear how you can without doubt know me fully, fixing your mind on me, and resting in me, and practising devotion. I will now tell you exhaustively about knowledge together with experien…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter VIII, Section 1a
CHAPTER VIII. Ar g una said: What is that Brahman, what the Adhyâtma, and what, O best of beings! is action? And what is called the Adhibhûta? And who is the Adhiya g ña, and how in this body, O destroyer of Madhu? And how, too, are yo…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter IX, Section 1b
Thus those who wish for objects of desire, and resort to the ordinances of the three (Vedas), obtain (as the fruit) going and coming. To those men who worship me, meditating on me and on no one else, and who are constantly devoted, I give…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter X, Section 1a
CHAPTER X. Yet again, O you of mighty arms! listen to my excellent words, which, out of a wish for your welfare, I speak to you who are delighted (with them). Not the multitudes of gods, nor the great sages know my source; for I am in ev…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XI, Section 1d
I cannot be seen, as you have seen me, by (means of) the Vedas, not by penance, not by gift, nor yet by sacrifice. But, O Ar g una! by devotion to me exclusively, I can in this form be truly known, seen, and assimilated with, O terror of…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XII, Section 1
CHAPTER XII. Ar g una said: Of the worshippers, who thus, constantly devoted, meditate on you, and those who (meditate) on the unperceived and indestructible, which best know devotion? The Deity said: Those who being constantly devoted, and…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XIII, Section 1a
CHAPTER XIII. The Deity said: This body, O son of Kuntî! is called Kshetra , and the learned call him who knows it the Kshetra g ña. . And know me also, O descendant of Bharata! to be the Kshetra g ña in all Kshetras. The knowledge of…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XIII, Section 1b
The supreme spirit in this body is called supervisor, adviser , supporter, enjoyer, the great lord, and the supreme self also. He who thus knows nature and spirit, together with the qualities, is not born again, however living . Some by c…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XIV, Section 1a
CHAPTER XIV. The Deity said: Again I will declare (to you) the highest knowledge, the best of (all sorts of) knowledge, having learnt which, all sages have reached perfection beyond (the bonds of) this (body). Those who, resorting to this…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XIV, Section 1b
who is not averse to light and activity and delusion (when they) prevail, and who does not desire (them when they) cease ; who sitting like one unconcerned is never perturbed by the qualities ; who remains steady and moves not, (thinking) m…”
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XVIII, Section 1c
Agriculture, tending cattle, trade, (this) is the natural duty of Vai s yas, And the natural duty of S ûdras, too, consists in service. (Every) man intent on his own respective duties obtains perfection . Listen, now, how one intent on on…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 1
OM: Here follows Instruction in Union. Union, here as always in the Scriptures of India, means union of the individual soul with the Oversoul; of the personal consciousness with the Divine Consciousness, whereby the mortal becomes immortal,…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 2
Union, spiritual consciousness, is gained through control of the versatile psychic nature. The goal is the full consciousness of the spiritual man, illumined by the Divine Light. Nothing except the obdurate resistance of the psychic nature…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 14
This becomes a firm resting-place, when followed long, persistently, with earnestness. We must seek spiritual life in conformity with the laws of spiritual life, with earnestness, humility, gentle charity, which is an acknowledgment of the…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 16
The consummation of this is freedom from thirst for any mode of psychical activity, through the establishment of the spiritual man. In order to gain a true understanding of this teaching, study must be supplemented by devoted practice, fait…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 22
The will may be weak, or of middle strength, or intense. Therefore there is a spiritual consciousness higher than this. For those of weak will, there is this counsel: to be faithful in obedience, to live the life, and thus to strengthen the…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 23
Or spiritual consciousness may be gained by ardent service of the Master. If we think of our lives as tasks laid on us by the Master of Life, if we look on all duties as parts of that Master's work, entrusted to us, and forming our life-wor…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 25
In the Master is the perfect seed of Omniscience. The Soul of the Master is in essence one with the Oversoul, and therefore partaker of the Oversoul's all-wisdom and all-power. All spiritual attainment rests on this, and is possible because…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 26
He is the Teacher of all who have gone before, since he is not limited by Time. From the beginning, the Oversoul has been the Teacher of all souls, which, by their entrance into the Oversoul, by realizing their oneness with the Oversoul, ha…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 29
Thence come the awakening of interior consciousness, and the removal of barriers. Here again faith must be supplemented by works, the life must be led as well as studied, before the full meaning can be understood. The awakening of spiritual…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 39
Or meditative brooding on what is dearest to the heart. Here is a thought which our own day is beginning to grasp: that love is a form of knowledge; that we truly know any thing or any person, by becoming one therewith, in love. Thus love h…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 40
Thus he masters all, from the atom to the Infinite. Newton was asked how he made his discoveries. By intending my mind on them, he replied. This steady pressure, this becoming one with what we seek to understand, whether it be atom or soul,…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 45
Subtle substance rises in ascending degrees, to that pure nature which has no distinguishing mark. As we ascend from outer material things which are permeated by separateness, and whose chief characteristic is to be separate, just as so man…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I | Sutra 51
When this impression ceases, then, since all impressions have ceased, there arises pure spiritual consciousness, with no seed of separateness left. The last psychic veil is drawn aside, and the spiritual man stands with unveiled vision, pur…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book II | Sutra 1
The practices which make for union with the Soul are: fervent aspiration, spiritual reading, and complete obedience to the Master. The word which I have rendered 'fervent aspiration' means primarily 'fire'; and, in the Eastern teaching, it…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book II | Sutra 39
Where there is firm conquest of covetousness, he who has conquered it awakes to the how and why of life. So it is said that, before we can understand the laws of Karma, we must free ourselves from Karma. The conquest of covetousness brings…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book II | Sutra 41
To the pure of heart come also a quiet spirit, one-pointed thought, the victory over sensuality, and fitness to behold the Soul. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God, who is the supreme Soul; the ultimate Self of all beings…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book II | Sutra 42
From acceptance, the disciple gains happiness supreme. One of the wise has said: accept conditions, accept others, accept yourself. This is the true acceptance, for all these things are what they are through the will of the higher Self, exc…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book II | Sutra 45
Soul-vision is perfected through perfect obedience to the Master. The sorrow and darkness of life come of the erring personal will which sets itself against the will of the Soul, the one great Life. The error of the personal will is inevita…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book III | Sutra 8
But this triad is still exterior to the soul vision which is unconditioned, free from the seed of mental analyses. The reason is this: The threefold power we have been considering, the triad of Attention, Contemplation, Meditation is, so fa…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book III | Sutra 34
By perfectly concentrated Meditation on the heart, the interior being, comes the knowledge of consciousness. The heart here seems to mean, as it so often. does in the Upanishads, the interior, spiritual nature, the consciousness of the spir…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book IV | Sutra 7
The works of followers after Union make neither for bright pleasure nor for dark pain The works of others make for pleasure or pain, or a mingling of these. The man of desire wins from his works the reward of pleasure, or incurs the penalty…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book IV | Sutra 25
For him who discerns between the Mind and the Spiritual Man, there comes perfect fruition of the longing after the real being of the Self. How many times in the long struggle have the Soul's aspirations seemed but a hopeless, impossible dre…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book IV | Sutra 29
He who, after he has attained, is wholly free from self, reaches the essence of all that can be known, gathered together like a cloud. This is the true spiritual consciousness. It has been said that, at the beginning of the way, we must kil…”
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book IV | Sutra 31
When all veils are rent, all stains washed away, his knowledge becomes infinite; little remains for him to know. The first veil is the delusion that thy soul is in some permanent way separate from the great Soul, the divine Eternal. When th…”
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taoism36
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 1
The Tao that can be trodden is not the enduring and unchanging Tao. The name that can be named is not the enduring and unchanging name. (Conceived of as) having no name, it is the Originator of heaven and earth; (conceived of as) having a n…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 4
The Tao is (like) the emptiness of a vessel; and in our employment of it we must be on our guard against all fulness. How deep and unfathomable it is, as if it were the Honoured Ancestor of all things! We should blunt our sharp points, and…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 14
We look at it, and we do not see it, and we name it 'the Equable.' We listen to it, and we do not hear it, and we name it 'the Inaudible.' We try to grasp it, and do not get hold of it, and we name it 'the Subtle.' With these three qualitie…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 16
The (state of) vacancy should be brought to the utmost degree, and that of stillness guarded with unwearying vigour. All things alike go through their processes of activity, and (then) we see them return (to their original state). When thin…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 20
When we renounce learning we have no troubles. The (ready) 'yes,' and (flattering) 'yea;'-- Small is the difference they display. But mark their issues, good and ill;-- What space the gulf between shall fill? What all men fear is indeed to…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 23
Abstaining from speech marks him who is obeying the spontaneity of his nature. A violent wind does not last for a whole morning; a sudden rain does not last for the whole day. To whom is it that these (two) things are owing? To Heaven and E…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 28
Who knows his manhood's strength, Yet still his female feebleness maintains; As to one channel flow the many drains, All come to him, yea, all beneath the sky. Thus he the constant excellence retains; The simple child again, free from all s…”
Tao Te Ching | Chapter 32
The Tao, considered as unchanging, has no name. Though in its primordial simplicity it may be small, the whole world dares not deal with (one embodying) it as a minister. If a feudal prince or the king could guard and hold it, all would spo…”
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hermeticism27
Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1b
But when He raised His head, I see in Mind the Light, [but] now in Powers no man could number, and Cosmos grown beyond all bounds, and that the Fire was compassed round about by a most mighty Power, and [now] subdued had come unto a stand.…”
Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1c
And when she saw that Form of beauty which can never satiate, and him who [now] possessed within himself each single energy of [all seven] Rulers as well as God's own Form, she smiled with love; for 'twas as though she'd seen the image of M…”
Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1d
Thou seem'st, He said, O thou, not to have given heed to what thou heardest. Did I not bid thee think? Yea do I think, and I remember, and therefore give Thee thanks. If thou didst think [thereon], [said He], tell me: Why do they merit d…”
Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1e
To the first zone he gives the Energy of Growth and Waning; unto the second [zone], Device of Evils [now] de-energized; unto the third, the Guile of the Desires de-energized; unto the fourth, his Domineering Arrogance, [also] de-energized;…”
Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1f
All this befell me from my Mind, that is Man-Shepherd, Word (Logos) of all masterhood, by whom being God-inspired I came unto the Plain of Truth. Wherefore with all my soul and strength thanksgiving give I unto Father-God. 31. Holy art T…”
Corpus Hermeticum 4: The Epistles | Section 1b
And having raised themselves so far they sight the Good; and having sighted it, they look upon their sojourn here as a mischance; and in disdain of all, both things in body and the bodiless, they speed their way unto that One and Only One.…”
Corpus Hermeticum 5: The Discourse of Hermes to Asclepius | Section 1a
Though Unmanifest God Is Most Manifest 1. I will recount to thee this sermon (logos) too, O Tat, that thou may'st cease to be without the mysteries of the God beyond all name. And mark thou well how that which to the many seems unmanifest…”
Corpus Hermeticum 5: The Discourse of Hermes to Asclepius | Section 1b
Would that it were possible for thee to get thee wings, and soar into the air, and, poised midway 'tween earth and heaven, behold the earth's solidity, the sea's fluidity (the flowings of its streams), the spaciousness of air, fire's swiftn…”
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platonism26
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1e
And I rather imagine that Cebes is referring to you; he thinks that you are too ready to leave us, and too ready to leave the gods who, as you acknowledge, are our good rulers. Yes, replied Socrates; there is reason in that. And this indi…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1f
And being dead is the attainment of this separation; when the soul exists in herself, and is parted from the body and the body is parted from the soul-that is death? Exactly: that and nothing else, he replied. And what do you say of anoth…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1g
And he attains to the knowledge of them in their highest purity who goes to each of them with the mind alone, not allowing when in the act of thought the intrusion or introduction of sight or any other sense in the company of reason, but wi…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1p
or are they each of them always what they are, having the same simple, self-existent and unchanging forms, and not admitting of variation at all, or in any way, or at any time? They must be always the same, Socrates, replied Cebes. And wh…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1q
Then reflect, Cebes: is not the conclusion of the whole matter this?-that the soul is in the very likeness of the divine, and immortal, and intelligible, and uniform, and indissoluble, and unchangeable; and the body is in the very likeness…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1s
The lovers of knowledge are conscious that their souls, when philosophy receives them, are simply fastened and glued to their bodies: the soul is only able to view existence through the bars of a prison, and not in her own nature; she is wa…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1ad
I might compare him to a person who began by maintaining generally that mind is the cause of the actions of Socrates, but who, when he endeavored to explain the causes of my several actions in detail, went on to show that I sit here because…”
Plato: Phaedo | Section 1aj
No other proof is needed, he said; for if the immortal, being eternal, is liable to perish, then nothing is imperishable. Yes, replied Socrates, all men will agree that God, and the essential form of life, and the immortal in general, will…”
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sufism26
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | PROLOGUE-a
HEARKEN to the reed-flute, how it complains, Lamenting its banishment from its home: "Ever since they tore me from my osier bed, My plaintive notes have moved men and women to tears. I burst my breast, striving to give vent to sighs, And t…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | PROLOGUE-b
Knowest thou why thy mirror reflects not? Because the rust has not been scoured from its face. If it were purified from all rust and defilement, It would reflect the shining of the SUN Of GOD.6 O friends, ye have now heard this tale, Whic…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY I-a
The Prince and the Handmaid. A prince, while engaged on a hunting excursion, espied a fair maiden, and by promises of gold induced her to accompany him. After a time she fell sick, and the prince had her tended by divers physicians. As,…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY II
The Oilman and his Parrot. An oilman possessed a parrot which used to amuse him with its agreeable prattle, and to watch his shop when he went out. One day, when the parrot was alone in the shop, a cat upset one of the oil-jars. When the oi…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY III-c
If thou neglectest regard and care for it, Thou wilt quench at midnight the lamp of union." In one 'twas said, "Quench that torch without fear, That in lieu of one thou may'st see a thousand joys, For by quenching the light the soul is rejo…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY IV
Another Tyrannical Jewish King. A certain Jewish king, the same who is referred to in the Sura "Signs of the Zodiac," I made up his mind to utterly exterminate the Christian faith, and with that view he set up a huge idol, and issued comman…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY V-b
Again, know that self-exertion springs from weakness; Relying on other means is a blot upon perfect trust. Self-exertion is not more noble than trust in God. What is more lovely than committing oneself to God? Many there are who flee fro…”
The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY V-c
The skill taught by God to the silkworm Is a learning beyond the reach of the elephant. The earthly Adam was taught of God names, 4 So that his glory reached the seventh heaven. He laid low the name and fame of the angels, 5 Yet blind ind…”
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theosophy19
The Secret Doctrine | Page 2 (part 2)
"When Buddhi absorbs our E GOtism (destroys it) with all its Vikaras, Avalokiteshvara becomes manifested to us, and Nirvana, or Mukti, is reached," "Mukti" being the same as Nirvana, i.e. , freedom from the trammels of "Maya" or illusion.…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 3 (part 8)
Moreover, the Secret Doctrine teaches: -- ( c ) The fundamental identity of all Souls with the Universal Over-Soul, the latter being itself an aspect of the Unknown Root; and the obligatory pilgrimage for every Soul -- a spark of the former…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 4 (part 4)
I T IS THEY WHO ARE THOU, ME, HIM, OH L ANOO. T HEY, WHO WATCH OVER THEE, AND THY MOTHER EARTH. [[Vol. 1, Page]] 34 THE SECRET DOCTRINE. 2. T HE ONE RAY MULTIPLIES THE SMALLER RAYS. L IFE PRECEDES FORM, AND LIFE SURVIVES THE LAST ATOM…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 5 (part 2)
Even so of persons and things, which, dropping out of the to-be into the has-been, out of the future into the past -- present momentarily to our senses a cross-section, as it were, of their total selves, as they pass through time and space…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 5 (part 6)
(See Weber, Max Muller, etc.) We labour under the impression that Colebrooke, "the highest authority" in such matters, had long ago settled the question by showing, that "the Hindus were in this instance the teachers, not the learners." [[V…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 5 (part 7)
is explained in Vishnu Purana as: "that which is the unevolved cause, is emphatically called by the most eminent sages Pradhana, original base, which is subtile Prakriti, viz., that which is eternal, and which at once is (or comprehends) wh…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 5 (part 8)
The mystery in the hierarchy of the Anupadaka is great, its apex being the universal Spirit-Soul, and the lower rung the Manushi-Buddha; and even every Soul-endowed man is an Anupadaka in a latent state. Hence, when speaking of the Univers…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 6 (part 1)
The Secret Doctrine by H. P. Blavatsky -- Vol. 1 [[Vol. 1, Page]] 53 THE STATE OF PARANIRVANA. STANZA II. C OMMENTARY. 1. . . . . W HERE WERE THE BUILDERS, THE LUMINOUS SONS OF MANVANTARIC DAWN ( a )? . . . . IN THE UNKNOWN…”
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greek_mystery13
Orphic Hymns | Hymn IV. FIRE
IV. TO FIRE. The FUMIGATION from SAFFRON. O Ever untam'd Fire, who reign'st on high In Jove's dominions ruler of the sky; The glorious sun with dazzling lustre bright, And moon and stars from thee derive their light; All taming pow'r, æther…”
Orphic Hymns | Hymn X
X. TO PAN * The FUMIGATION from VARIOUS ODORS I Call strong Pan, the substance of the whole, Etherial, marine, earthly, general soul, Immortal fire; for all the world is thine, And all are parts of thee, O pow'r divine. p. 131 Come, blessed…”
Orphic Hymns | Hymn LXXV. THE MUSES
LXXV. TO THE MUSES. The FUMIGATION from FRANKINCENSE. Daughters of Jove, dire-sounding and divine, 1 Renown'd Pierian, sweetly speaking Nine; p. 206 To those whose breasts your sacred furies fire Much-form'd, the objects of supreme desire:…”
Orphic Hymns | Hymn LXXVI. MNEMOSYNE, or the GODDESS of MEMORY
LXXVI. To MNEMOSYNE, or the GODDESS of MEMORY * . The FUMIGATION from FRANKINCENSE. THE consort I invoke of Jove divine, Source of the holy, sweetly-speaking Nine; p. 215 Free from th' oblivion of the fallen mind, By whom the soul with inte…”
Orphic Hymns | Hymn LXXVII. AURORA
LXXVII. TO AURORA. The FUMIGATION from MANNA. HEAR me, O Goddess! whose emerging ray Leads on the broad refulgence of the day; Blushing Aurora, whose celestial light Beams on the world with red'ning splendours bright: Angel of Titan, whom w…”
The Golden Verses of Pythagoras | Section 4 (part 2)
Wherein have I done amiss? What have I done? What have I omitted that I ought to have done? 43. If in this examination thou find that thou hast done amiss, reprimand thyself severely for it; 44. And if thou hast done any good, rejoice.…”
The Golden Verses of Pythagoras | Section 5 (part 1)
p. 9 NOTES ON THE GOLDEN VERSES OF PYTHAGORAS FROM THE COMMENTARIES OF HIEROCLES. The Golden Verses may be divided into two parts, the first treating of the Practical or Human Virtues, whose aim is the making of Good Men; and the second,…”
The Golden Verses of Pythagoras | Section 5 (part 3)
"Thou shalt not hope what thou ought'st not to hope," knowing the nature of all things, and what is possible. 55. The Gods near at hand are virtue and truth. p. 17 59, 60. The fatal strife is caused by our inclination "madly to run cou…”
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buddhism10
The Dhammapada | Chapter II, Section 1b
A Bhikshu (mendicant) who delights in earnestness, who looks with fear on thoughtlessness, [25. Childers explains this island again as the state of an Arhat (arahatta-phalam). 28. Cf. Childers, Dictionary, Preface, p. xiv. See Vinaya,…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XI, Section 1c
I had formerly translated anibbisan, as not resting (anirvi s an), but the commentator seems to authorise the meaning of not finding (avindanto, alabhanto), and in that case all the material difficulties of the verse seem to me to disappear…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XIII, Section 1b
(4) Arhat, the venerable, the perfect, who has reached the highest stage that can be reached, and from which Nirvâ n a is perceived (sukkhavipassanâ, Lotus, p. 849). See Hardy, Eastern Monachism, p. 280; Burnouf, Introduction, p. 209; K…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XV, Section 1a
p. 53 CHAPTER XV. HAPPINESS. 197. Let us live happily then, not hating those who hate us! among men who hate us let us dwell free from hatred! 198. Let us live happily then, free from ailments among the ailing! among men who are ail…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XX, Section 1b
Weber renders it by 'Gedeihen,' but the commentator distinctly explains it as 'vast knowledge,' and in the technical sense the word occurs after vidyâ and before medhâ, in the Lalita-vistara, p. 541. 283. A pun, vana meaning both 'lust'…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XXV, Section 1a
p. 85 CHAPTER XXV. THE BHIKSHU (MENDICANT). 360. Restraint in the eye is good, good is restraint in the ear, in the nose restraint is good, good is restraint in the tongue. 361. In the body restraint is good, good is restraint in spee…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XXV, Section 1b
Nâmarûpa is here used again in its technical sense of mind and body, neither of which, however, is with the Buddhists âtman, or 'self.' Asat, 'what is not,' may therefore mean the same as nâmarûpa, or we may take it in the sense of what is…”
The Dhammapada | Chapter XXVI, Section 1c
405. Him I call indeed a Brâhma n a who finds no fault with other beings, whether feeble or strong, and does not kill nor cause slaughter. 406. Him I call indeed a Brâhma n a who is tolerant with the intolerant, mild with fault-finders,…”
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jewish_mysticism3
The Book of Concealed Mystery (Siphra Dtzenioutha) | 1h
35: "Ye shall not do iniquity in judgment, in dimension, in weight, and in measure." (Where these four are mystically intimated.) 37. (There is one) rigorous judgment (of severity),another that is not rigorous (that is, of the kingdom). T…”
The Kabbalah Unveiled | Introduction, Section 1j
(Here a reason is adduced from the proposed text itself, showing how the last letter of this form of the Tetragrammaton, namely, I, Yod , may be said to symbolize the bride, since p. 57 [paragraph continues] God himself might behold in tha…”
Sefer Yetzirah (The Book of Formation) | Section 1f
The Third Path is the Sanctifying Intelligence, and is the basis of foundation of Primordial Wisdom, which is called the Former of faith, and its roots, Amen; and it is the parent of Faith, from which virtues doth Faith emanate. The Fourth…”
celtic1
The Mabinogion | Tale TALIESIN-h
I have been with my Lord in the manger of the ass: I strengthened Moses through the water of Jordan; I have been in the firmament with Mary Magdalene; I have obtained the muse from the cauldron of Caridwen; I have been bard of the harp to L…”
native_american1
The Soul of the Indian | Chapter I-a
THE GREAT MYSTERY Solitary Worship. The Savage Philosopher. The Dual Mind. Spiritual Gifts versus Material Progress. The Paradox of “Christian Civilization.” The original attitude of the American Indian toward the Eternal, the “Great My…”
upanishads1
Îsâ-Upanishad | Îsâ, Section 1a
p. 308 p. 309 VÂ G ASANEYI-SA M HITÂ-UPANISHAD, SOMETIMES CALLED Î S ÂVÂSYA OR Î S Â-UPANISHAD p. 310 p. 311 VÂ G ASANEYI-SA M HITÂ-UPANISHAD. 1. ALL this, whatsoever moves on earth, is to be hidden in the Lord (the Self). When thou…”