Without doubt, this one-sided mode of dealing with the problem is due largely to the pernicious Western practice of subordinating consciousness, or regarding it as a "by-product" of molecular motion.
[[Vol.
1, Page]] 328 THE SECRET DOCTRINE.
referred to as Spirit and matter.
To "Spirit" is referable every manifestation of consciousness, reflective or direct, and of unconscious purposiveness (to adopt a modern expression used in Western philosophy , so-called) as evidenced in the Vital Principle, and Nature's submission to the majestic sequence of immutable law.
"Matter" must be regarded as objectivity in its purest abstraction -- the self-existing basis whose septenary manvantaric differentiations constitute the objective reality underlying the phenomena of each phase of conscious existence.
During the period of Universal Pralaya, Cosmic Ideation is nonexistent; and the variously differentiated states of Cosmic Substance are resolved back again into the primary state of abstract potential objectivity.
Manvantaric impulse commences with the re-awakening of Cosmic Ideation (the "Universal Mind") concurrently with, and parallel to the primary emergence of Cosmic Substance -- the latter being the manvantaric vehicle of the former -- from its undifferentiated pralayic state.
Then, absolute wisdom mirrors itself in its Ideation; which, by a transcendental process, superior to and incomprehensible by human Consciousness, results in Cosmic Energy ( Fohat ) .
Thrilling through the bosom of inert Substance, Fohat impels it to activity, and guides its primary differentiations on all the Seven planes of Cosmic Consciousness.
There are thus Seven Protyles (as they are now called), while Aryan antiquity called them the Seven Prakriti, or Natures, serving, severally, as the relatively homogeneous basis, which in the course of the increasing heterogeneity (in the evolution of the Universe) differentiate into the marvellous complexity presented by phenomena on the planes of perception.
The term "relatively" is used designedly, because the very existence of such a process, resulting in the primary segregations of undifferentiated Cosmic Substance into its septenary bases of evolution, compels us to regard the protyle* of each plane as only a mediate phase assumed by Substance in its passage from abstract, into full objectivity.
Cosmic Ideation is said to be non-existent during Pralayic periods, for the simple reason that there is no one, and nothing, to perceive its effects.
There can be no manifestation of Consciousness, semi-consciousness, or even "unconscious purposiveness," except through the [[Footnote(s)]] ------------------------------------------------- * The term Protyle is due to Mr.
Crookes, the eminent chemist, who has given that name to pre-Matter , if one may so call primordial and purely homogeneous substances, suspected, if not actually yet found, by Science in the ultimate composition of the atom.
But the incipient segregation of primordial matter into atoms and molecules takes its rise subsequent to the evolution of the Seven Protyles.
It is the last of these -- having recently detected the possibility of its existence on our plane -- that Mr.
Crookes is in search of.
[[Vol.
1, Page]] 329 THE UNIVERSAL ILLUSION.
vehicle of matter; that is to say, on this our plane, wherein human consciousness in its normal state cannot soar beyond what is known as transcendental metaphysics, it is only through some molecular aggregation or fabric that Spirit wells up in a stream of individual or sub-conscious subjectivity.
And as Matter existing apart from perception is a mere abstraction, both of these aspects of the A BSOLUTE -- Cosmic Substance and Cosmic Ideation -- are mutually inter-dependent.
In strict accuracy -- to avoid confusion and misconception -- the term "Matter" ought to be applied to the aggregate of objects of possible perception, and "Substance" to noumena; for inasmuch as the phenomena of our plane are the creation of the perceiving Ego -- the modifications of its own subjectivity -- all the "states of matter representing the aggregate of perceived objects" can have but a relative and purely phenomenal existence for the children of our plane.
As the modern Idealists would say, the co-operation of Subject and Object results in the Sense-object or phenomenon.
But this does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that it is the same on all other planes; that the co-operation of the two on the planes of their septenary differentiation results in a septenary aggregate of phenomena which are likewise non-existent per se , though concrete realities for the Entities of whose experience they form a part, in the same manner as the rocks and rivers around us are real from the stand-point of a physicist, though unreal illusions of sense from that of the metaphysician.
It would be an error to say, or even conceive such a thing.
From the stand-point of the highest metaphysics, the whole Universe, gods included, is an illusion; but the illusion of him who is in himself an illusion differs on every plane of consciousness; and we have no more right to dogmatise about the possible nature of the perceptive faculties of an Ego on, say, the sixth plane, than we have to identify our perceptions with, or make them a standard for, those of an ant, in its mode of consciousness.
The pure object apart from consciousness* is unknown to us, while living on the plane of our three-dimensional World; as we know only the mental states it excites in the perceiving Ego.
And, so long as the contrast of Subject and Object endures -- to wit, as long as we enjoy our five senses and no more, and do not know how to divorce our all-perceiving Ego (the Higher Self) from the thraldom of these senses -- so long will it be impossible for the personal Ego to break through the barrier which separates it from a [[Footnote(s)]] ------------------------------------------------- * Cosmic Ideation focussed in a principle or upadhi (basis) results as the consciousness of the individual Ego.
Its manifestation varies with the degree of upadhi , e.g.
, through that known as Manas it wells up as Mind-Consciousness; through the more finely differentiated fabric (sixth state of matter) of the Buddhi resting on the experience of Manas as its basis -- as a stream of spiritual INTUITION.
[[Vol.
1, Page]] 330 THE SECRET DOCTRINE.
knowledge of things in themselves ( or Substance ) .
That Ego, progressing in an arc of ascending subjectivity, must exhaust the experience of every plane.
But not till the Unit is merged in the ALL, whether on this or any other plane, and Subject and Object alike vanish in the absolute negation of the Nirvanic State (negation, again, only from our plane ), is scaled that peak of Omniscience -- the Knowledge of things-in-themselves; and the solution of the yet more awful riddle approached, before which even the highest Dhyan Chohan must bow in silence and ignorance -- the unspeakable mystery of that which is called by the Vedantins, the P ARABRAHMAM.
The doctrine of the periodic restoration or recurrence of all things to their original state after vast cycles.
The Pralaya period is described as a resolution of all differentiated states back into the primary undifferentiated state, followed by a new Manvantaric cycle, constituting periodic cosmic restoration.
Describing the divine only by negation—God transcends all positive categories and concepts; the via negativa.
The final mystery (Parabrahmam) is described as 'unspeakable,' beyond even the highest Dhyan Chohan's comprehension, known only through 'silence and ignorance' — the divine described by what it is not and the negation of all categories.
The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.
The passage states that the co-operation of Subject and Object produces phenomena on every plane of the septenary differentiation, making each plane a legible analogue of the others, and explicitly warns against identifying one plane's perceptions with another's.
A state of awareness transcending ordinary human consciousness, often involving unity with the universe or higher dimensions.
The passage describes 'Seven planes of Cosmic Consciousness' and the ultimate state of Omniscience where the Unit merges in the ALL, transcending all individual and planar limitation.
Narratives or doctrines of cosmic origin — how heaven, earth, and the primordial deities first came into being. The Kojiki's deities born alone on the Plain of High Heaven, Voluspo's Ginnungagap, Genesis's tohu wa-bohu, the Timaeus's Demiurge fashioning the Receptacle, the Hesiodic Theogony, the Kalevala's egg-cosmogony, Egyptian Nun-and-Atum. Distinct from emanation_hierarchy (structural-ontological cascade), letters_of_creation (mechanism of creation), and apocatastasis/frashokereti (end-state restoration); cosmogony is temporally-narrative beginning.
The passage narrates the process of cosmic manifestation: from undifferentiated Pralayic state, through re-awakening of Cosmic Ideation, emergence of Substance, Fohat's impelling, and primary differentiations into the Seven Protyles.
The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.
The ultimate reality (Parabrahmam) is presented as radically beyond all perception and knowledge, with even the highest beings bowing in 'silence and ignorance' before it.
The doctrine that the divine is present within all things and the universe itself, pervading creation rather than remaining solely transcendent above it. Distinct from unity_of_being (the general claim that all existence is one substance, agnostic about whether that substance indwells its parts) and from kingdom_within (the divine present specifically IN THE INDIVIDUAL human, accessible without mediation) — divine_immanence is the general pervading-presence claim applied to all of creation, not a human-specific indwelling.
Cosmic Ideation is described as focussed in a principle or upadhi resulting in individual consciousness, implying the divine mind pervades and manifests through all planes of being.
A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above.
The passage describes a structured cascade from Cosmic Ideation through seven planes (Protyles/Prakriti) down to full materialization, each level a 'mediate phase' of the one above.
Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.
The passage describes 'the Knowledge of things-in-themselves' as the peak of Omniscience, attainable only when the Unit merges in the ALL and Subject/Object vanish, implying direct experiential knowledge beyond discursive reason.
The deeper aspect of the individual's own consciousness aligned with divine or spiritual truth, distinct from the ego or everyday personality — a locus of guidance and identity that can speak with its own recognisable 'voice' in moments of crisis, carrying memory or knowledge the ordinary self lacks. Distinct from inner_light (a static luminous quality or spark, not an alternate seat of identity and agency) and kingdom_within (the claim that the divine realm generally is present inside the individual, not this specific personal higher consciousness).
The passage distinguishes the 'all-perceiving Ego (the Higher Self)' from the personal Ego bound to the five senses, and describes Buddhi as a more finely differentiated fabric resting on Manas.
A non-physical dimension of reality, interpenetrating the physical world, populated by forces, beings, and forms ordinarily imperceptible to physical senses and instruments, that can affect embodied life without being seen — Dion Fortune's 'mind-side of nature,' the astral plane of Western esotericism broadly construed. Distinct from astral_light (a specific transmitting medium or fluid operating within this realm, not the realm itself), pleroma (the divine fullness at the summit of a cosmic hierarchy, not a parallel plane coextensive with ordinary life), and animism (particular indwelling spirits bound to specific natural objects, not the general unseen dimension itself).
The passage explicitly posits seven planes of consciousness and perception beyond the physical, accessible only to entities on those planes, with human consciousness 'unable to soar beyond transcendental metaphysics.'
The doctrine that the cosmos unfolds as a structured descent of spirit into matter — a directional process traced stage by stage from an unconditioned principle down through successive planes to full materialization — complemented by its own eventual return ('evolution'). Distinct from emanation_hierarchy (the static structure of the resulting levels of the cascade) and cosmogony (a single originating event rather than an ongoing staged process) in naming the directional cosmic PROCESS of descent itself, paired with its own complementary ascent.
The entire passage is structured around the directional process of Spirit descending into Matter through seven planes, from 'abstract potential objectivity' to 'full objectivity,' with each Protyle a 'mediate phase' in this staged descent.
The divine reason, word, or ordering principle through which the universe was created; mediates between the transcendent God and the material world.
Cosmic Ideation (the 'Universal Mind') functions as the ordering and creative principle through which the universe manifests, mediating between the undifferentiated Absolute and differentiated phenomena.
The Hermetic doctrine that THE ALL is Mind, and the Universe is mental in nature — a created thought held in the mind of THE ALL. Distinct from unity_of_being in specifying WHAT the underlying oneness is (mind, not an unspecified single substance), and from logos (a mediating ordering word BETWEEN a transcendent God and a separate material world) in collapsing that mediation entirely — under mentalism there is no world outside mind to mediate to.
The passage states that 'Matter existing apart from perception is a mere abstraction' and that phenomena are 'the creation of the perceiving Ego — the modifications of its own subjectivity,' collapsing the world into mind/consciousness.
The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.
The individual Ego is described as progressing through an arc of ascending subjectivity exhausting every plane, mirroring the cosmic structure in its own development.
The absolutely simple, undivided first principle from which all multiplicity and existence flows.
The Absolute in its Pralayic state is described as undifferentiated, unitary potentiality from which all septenary multiplicity flows, and the ultimate goal is the 'Unit' merging in the ALL.
The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.
The passage describes the state where 'the Unit is merged in the ALL' and 'Subject and Object alike vanish in the absolute negation of the Nirvanic State' as the peak of Omniscience, a merging of individual with the absolute.
The dissolution of binary oppositions (male/female, inner/outer, above/below) as a mark of spiritual completion.
The Nirvanic State is described as the point where 'Subject and Object alike vanish in the absolute negation' — the dissolution of the fundamental binary opposition as the mark of the highest attainment.
Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.
The passage employs paradox extensively: the universe including gods is an illusion yet concrete for its inhabitants; negation is 'only from our plane'; the highest knowledge is bowing in 'silence and ignorance.'
The Hermetic doctrine that apparent opposites are identical in nature but differ in degree — two extremes of the same scale (hot/cold, love/hate) — such that one pole can be shifted toward its opposite by a change of degree ('mental transmutation'). Distinct from opposites_transcended (a completion-state marking the path's end, not this doctrine's active technique) and magical_equilibrium (balance held BETWEEN two forces, not identity-by-degree of what looks like two forces).
Spirit and Matter, Subject and Object, Cosmic Ideation and Cosmic Substance are presented as mutually inter-dependent aspects of a single Absolute, not ontologically separate but differing in degree of manifestation.
The doctrine that reality has two registers — an Absolute truth as the divine or ultimate mind knows it, and a Relative truth as finite human reason perceives and must act on — with both held as legitimate on their own plane rather than the second being simply an error to correct. Distinct from apophatic_theology (a claim about how the divine may be described, by negation) and unity_of_being (a claim that being is ultimately one) in being a claim about two coexisting registers of truth-claim itself.
The passage's central argument is that the whole universe including gods is an illusion from the highest metaphysical standpoint, yet 'concrete realities for the Entities of whose experience they form a part' — explicitly holding both registers as legitimate on their own plane.
The soul's journey back to its divine origin, reversing the fall into matter through stages of purification or illumination.
The ultimate goal described is the merging of the Unit in the ALL, the Nirvanic State where Subject and Object vanish, and the approach to the 'unspeakable mystery of the PARABRAHMAM' — a reversal of the involutionary descent.
The Hermetic doctrine of a measured swing or pendulum motion between poles — action and reaction, flow and outflow, rise and fall — operating in mental, physical, and cosmic-historical registers alike. Distinct from apocatastasis (cosmic-scale eschatological restoration after vast cycles) in naming a constant, ever-present oscillation rather than a singular restorative event.
The Pralaya/Manvantara cycle is explicitly described as a pendulum between dissolution (all resolved into undifferentiated potentiality) and manifestation (re-awakening of Cosmic Ideation and emergence of Substance).
The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.
The passage explicitly states that Cosmic Substance and Cosmic Ideation are 'mutually inter-dependent' aspects of the ABSOLUTE, and that the ultimate state is their dissolution into undifferentiated unity.