The Kybalion (Three Initiates)

The text presents itself as based on Hermetic Teachings, stating its purpose is to reconcile opposed bits of occult knowledge by offering a Master-Key. Hermes Trismegistus is identified as the founder who dwelt in old Egypt, contemporary with Abraham, called "scribe of the gods." All esoteric teachings of every race are said to trace to him; advanced occultists from the Ganges went to Egypt and sat at his feet. The truth was passed from lip to ear among few Initiates who never sought popular approval. Three Kybalion aphorisms on readiness are quoted, and the policy of seclusion is defended against critics. The text states it gives working Principles, leaving application to the student. Chapter I identifies Egypt as the birthplace of Hidden Wisdom, from which all nations borrowed. The Great Lodge of Lodges was located there; Neophytes who entered became Hierophants, Adepts, and Masters who spread knowledge worldwide. Hermes is described as Master of Masters, father of Occult Wisdom, founder of Astrology, discoverer of Alchemy. His date is fixed before Moses. The Egyptians deified him as Thoth; the Greeks as "Hermes, the god of Wisdom." "Trismegistus" means "thrice-great." The term "hermetic" derives from his followers' secrecy. The Teachings appear in all lands but are identified with no particular country or sect, per a warning against crystallization into creed. The occultism of India, Persia, Greece, Rome, and the Gnostics is said to have been lost through mixing theology with philosophy. Faithful souls kept the Flame alive, passing truth from Master to Student; when written, meaning was veiled in alchemical and astrological terms to avoid persecution. "THE KYBALION" is a compilation of Basic Hermetic Doctrines consisting of maxims, axioms, and precepts that constituted the principles of "The Art of Hermetic Alchemy," dealing with Mental Forces rather than Material Elements. The Philosopher's Stone is called an allegory. The authors call themselves humble students bearing the title of Initiates. Original maxims appear in italics; their explanations in regular type. Two Kybalion aphorisms are quoted again, and the Law of Attraction is invoked to bring pupil and book together. The text closes with "So mote it be!"

The text opens by quoting The Kybalion on the Seven Hermetic Principles as the Magic Key, then lists them: Mentalism, Correspondence, Vibration, Polarity, Rhythm, Cause and Effect, and Gender. Each is explained in turn. Mentalism declares that THE ALL is an Universal, Infinite, Living Mind and the Universe is a Mental Creation of THE ALL, explaining mental and psychic phenomena. Correspondence holds that laws and phenomena on various planes of Being correspond, enabling reasoning from the Known to the Unknown. Vibration asserts that nothing rests and everything vibrates, with differences between manifestations resulting from varying rates of vibration. Polarity states that everything is dual, that opposites are identical in nature but different in degree, illustrated by heat and cold, light and darkness, love and hate, and good and evil. The art of polarization is a phase of Mental Alchemy. Rhythm describes a measured to-and-fro motion in all things. The Hermetists apply the Mental Law of Neutralization to escape its effects. Cause and Effect holds that everything happens according to Law; the Hermetists rise to higher planes to become Causers rather than Effects. Gender states that Masculine and Feminine Principles exist in everything on all planes, working toward generation and creation. The text warns against degrading interpretations of this principle. Chapter III, Mental Transmutation, identifies the Hermetists as original alchemists, astrologers, and psychologists possessing both Inner and Outer Knowledge. Mental Transmutation is the art of changing mental states into others. If the Universe is Mental, this art becomes the means of changing conditions of the Universe, identified as the "Magic" of ancient writers. Advanced Masters can control physical conditions; lesser practitioners work on the Mental Plane. Modern treatments and affirmations are described as imperfect formulas of the Hermetic Art. The chapter closes by announcing that the Principle of Mentalism will be considered next.

Chapter IV defines Substance, Substantial, and Reality, then states that under all outward appearances there must be a Substantial Reality, which is the Law. Man perceives only change in matter, forces, and mental states; nothing is permanent but Change. A thinking man concludes that changing things must be manifestations of an Underlying Power. All thinkers and philosophies have postulated this Reality, naming it variously as Deity, Infinite Energy, or Matter. The text follows the Hermetic Masters in calling it "THE ALL." The inner nature of THE ALL is taught to be UNKNOWABLE; theologians' and metaphysicians' speculations are dismissed as childish. A distinction is drawn between Religion and Theology, and between Philosophy and Metaphysics, the former pair being rooted in Reality, the latter in ignorance. Reason's report follows: THE ALL is ALL that really is; it is Infinite in Time, Space, and Power; and it is Immutable. Finite, changeable things must be as Nothing in Reality. THE ALL is not Matter, which cannot manifest Life or Mind; nor is it mere Energy or Force, which are blind and mechanical. THE ALL is Infinite Living Mind, which the Illumined call SPIRIT. Chapter V opens by stating the Universe is Mental, held in the Mind of THE ALL. Spirit is defined as the highest conception of Infinite Living Mind. The Universe is neither THE ALL (being many and changing) nor Nothing (being sensed as existing). It must proceed from THE ALL, but not by subtraction or division of its substance. Applying the Principle of Correspondence, the text examines how Man creates: not from outside materials, not by reproduction, but mentally. THE ALL likewise creates the Universe mentally. The Universe is a mental creation of THE ALL; all is Mind. The Principle of Gender is then discussed: THE ALL is above Gender, but manifests Masculine and Feminine aspects when creating. The Masculine Principle projects its Will toward the Feminine Principle (Nature), which performs the evolution. This is compared to the "I" and "Me" in human mentality. The text notes that the Earth is a grain of dust among millions of worlds and universes, that higher beings exist, and that Man's destiny is to ascend through higher planes. Death is described as birth to a new life. At the end of the Grand Cycle, THE ALL draws back its creations, and Man will know the Whole Truth of being at One with THE ALL.

The chapter opens with a quotation from The Kybalion distinguishing the half-wise, who defy the Universe's laws and are broken by the elements, from the truly wise, who use higher laws against lower and transmute the undesirable into the worthy. Transmutation, not presumptuous denial, is the weapon of the Master. The text identifies this as the Paradox of the Universe, resulting from the Principle of Polarity. To THE INFINITE ALL the Universe is as things in Meditation or Dream; to the Finite it must be treated as Real. If THE ALL imagined the Universe were Reality, progress would be impossible. If Man acts as though the Universe is merely a dream, he stumbles in a circle until the Natural Laws he ignored force an awakening. The Divine Paradox is stated: while the Universe IS NOT, still IT IS. The Law of Paradox is an aspect of the Principle of Polarity. From the Absolute viewpoint the Universe is illusion; from the Relative viewpoint it is very real to finite minds. Absolute Truth is "Things as the mind of God knows them"; Relative Truth is "Things as the highest reason of Man understands them." Illustrations include matter existing to the senses though composed of electrons, and the artist's ideal seeming real. The Laws of the Universe are Iron Laws to all except THE ALL, who is Law itself. The text assures readers they are held in the Infinite Mind and no outside power can affect them. Lower laws are overcome by applying higher ones; nothing escapes Law except THE ALL. The Hermetic Principle of Mentalism does not change scientific conceptions. Herbert Spencer's "Infinite and Eternal Energy" is recognized as aligned with Hermetic Teachings; Spencer is believed to have been a reincarnation of an ancient Egyptian philosopher. The text concludes by urging students to grasp the advantage of Mentalism, to live using the Laws to rise from lower to higher, and to avoid the half-wisdom that ignores practical life. All are on The Path, and the road leads upward.

The chapter opens by quoting the Hermetic Maxim that while All is in THE ALL, THE ALL is in ALL, identifying the common phrase "All in All" as a survival of this maxim. The text recalls the teaching that the Universe is Mental, held in the Mind of THE ALL, and states that the apparently contradictory claim that THE ALL is in ALL is reconcilable under the Law of Paradox. The Hermetic Teachings hold that THE ALL is Imminent in its Universe and every part within it. The Teacher illustrates by having the student form a Mental Image, using examples of an author creating characters or a painter forming an image. The student finds the thinker is immanent in the image. The text cites Shakespeare's characters, Dickens's Micawber, Oliver Twist, and Uriah Heep, and sculptures such as the Venus of Medici and the Apollo Belvidere. The Law of Paradox holds both propositions true: Micawber is both Micawber and Dickens, yet not identical with Dickens. The text applies this to Man and the earthworm, stating THE ALL is immanent in both while neither is THE ALL. Spiritual development is defined as the recognition and manifestation of the Spirit within. All beings move upward along the Scale of Life toward THE ALL. The text describes the Creative Cycle: THE ALL projects its Will toward Becoming, Vibration lowers until gross Matter manifests (Involution), then the return swing (Evolution) begins, with the Law of Individualization separating Units of Force that rise through Physical, Mental, and Spiritual Evolution. THE ALL awakens from its Meditation, and at the end of countless cycles withdraws its Attention; the Created and Creator are merged. The text addresses why THE ALL creates, dismissing answers involving gain, love, pleasure, loneliness, or compulsion by internal nature. THE ALL is declared to act because it acts, being All Reason, Law, and Action in Itself. The text relates that HERMES, asked this question, pressed his lips together and said nothing. The chapter closes by restating the maxim.

The chapter opens with the axiom "As above, so below; as below, so above," and states that the Second Hermetic Principle embodies the truth of harmony and correspondence between the planes of Manifestation, Life, and Being. The Hermetic Philosophy divides the Universe into three great classes: the Great Physical Plane, the Great Mental Plane, and the Great Spiritual Plane, described as artificial divisions shading into one another along a scale from undifferentiated Matter to Spirit. The text addresses what a "Plane" is, concluding it is a degree of dimension on the "Fourth Dimension," called "The Dimension of Vibration." Everything vibrates at different rates and directions; these degrees constitute the planes. Each Great Plane is sub-divided into Seven Minor Planes, each into seven sub-planes. The Great Physical Plane includes matter, forces, and manifestations; Matter is classified as Energy at a low rate of vibration. The Seven Minor Physical Planes are listed: Matter (A) through (C), Ethereal Substance, and Energy (A) through (C), each described. The Great Mental Plane comprises forms of living things. Its Seven Minor Planes are: Mineral Mind, Elemental Mind (A), Plant Mind, Elemental Mind (B), Animal Mind, Elemental Mind (C), and Human Mind. The average man is said to occupy the fourth sub-division of the Plane of Human Mind; the man of the Sixth Sub-Division is "The Super-Man" and of the Seventh "The Over-Man." The Elementary Planes are compared to black keys on a piano relative to the white keys. The Great Spiritual Plane is described in the most general terms, the task of explaining it being called impossible. On its Seven Minor Planes exist Angels, Archangels, Demi-Gods, Masters, Adepts, and "The Gods," who remain mortal and subject to Universal Laws. The term "Spirit" in Hermetic usage means "Living Power" or "Animated Force," not the common religious sense. Spiritual Power may be employed for evil as well as good; those who misuse it are swung back by Rhythm to the furthest extreme of Material existence. The chapter concludes by stating that all Seven Hermetic Principles operate on all planes, and restates the axiom of Correspondence.

The text presents the Third Hermetic Principle, Vibration: nothing rests, everything moves, vibrates, and circles. Early Greek philosophers recognized it; it was lost for centuries; nineteenth-century science re-discovered it. The Hermetic Teachings hold that differences between manifestations arise from varying rates and modes of vibration, and that even THE ALL manifests vibration so intense it appears at rest. Spirit is one pole, gross Matter the other. Science confirms matter and energy are modes of vibratory motion. The text details vibration at every level from corpuscles to suns, identifies light, heat, magnetism, and electricity as vibratory forms connected to the Ether, and notes that Cohesion, Chemical Affinity, and Gravitation remain unexplained but are inclined to be vibratory. The Ethereal Substance serves as a connecting link between Matter and Energy. An illustration of a revolving object follows: increasing speed yields musical notes, silence, heat, a color progression from red through violet, invisible rays, X-rays, electricity, magnetism, molecular disintegration, atomic separation, and the Ethereal Substance. The Hermetists extend this to mental stages and re-entry into THE ALL. Mental phenomena involve vibrations; telepathy operates by induction. Mental Transmutation allows polarization of the mind at will. Masters and Adepts perform apparent miracles by changing vibrations. The Fourth Principle, Polarity, states that everything has two poles, a pair of opposites identical in nature but different in degree. Old paradoxes are explained by this. Illustrations include Spirit and Matter, THE ALL and The Many, Heat and Cold, East and West, Light and Darkness, the musical scale, color, Good and Bad. On the Mental Plane, Love and Hate and Courage and Fear are poles with degrees between. Transmutation is possible only between things of the same class, changing polarity rather than kind. A fearful man may raise vibrations toward Courage; a slothful man toward Activity. The Positive pole dominates the Negative. Mental Induction allows one mind to change another's polarity, as in mental treatments. The text concludes that knowledge of Polarity enables mastery of mental states.

Chapter XI on Rhythm, the Fifth Hermetic Principle, describes a measured to-and-fro motion between two poles on physical, mental, or spiritual planes, connected to Polarity. The principle manifests in suns, worlds, living things, and human moods. The Hermetists discovered two planes of consciousness—the Lower and the Higher—and that the pendulum's swing occurs on the Unconscious Plane without affecting consciousness; this is the Law of Neutralization. The Master polarizes at a desired pole and refuses the backward swing. The Law of Compensation states that the swing in one direction determines the swing in the opposite. The Hermetists extend this to mental states, teaching that capacity for pain and pleasure are balanced, and that the Negative is precedent to the Positive, connecting this to reincarnation. The chapter closes noting the Law balances gains and losses throughout life. Chapter XII on Causation, the Sixth Hermetic Principle, states that Law pervades the Universe and nothing happens by Chance; Chance is cause not recognized. The text uses dice and a dislodged stone to illustrate chains of causes. It clarifies that Cause and Effect deals with events forming a continuous chain from THE ALL's creative energy. Addressing Free Will versus Determinism, the text states both are partially right: the majority are slaves of heredity and environment, while the Masters use Will to change their desires, becoming Movers rather than Pawns. The Masters serve on Higher Planes and rule on the Material Plane. The text concludes that everything is governed by Universal Law, which is THE ALL, and that Man may use Law to overcome laws until reaching refuge in the LAW itself.

The text opens with the Seventh Hermetic Principle of Gender, distinguishing Gender from Sex: Gender derives from a Latin root meaning to beget, procreate, generate, create, produce, while Sex is merely a manifestation of Gender on the plane of organic life. Scientific proofs are offered: electrons form atoms through clustering of negative corpuscles around a positive one. The text substitutes "Feminine" for "Negative," identifying the Cathode pole as the source of electrons and rays. A Feminine corpuscle detaches from a Masculine corpuscle and seeks union with it, producing a new atom; this is called ionization. The Masculine principle directs energy; the Feminine performs the active creative work. The text mentions crystals, the Electrical Theory of the Universe, and asks whether attraction, chemical affinity, and gravitation are manifestations of Gender. Chapter XIV addresses the dual-mind idea in modern psychology, citing Thomson J. Hudson's 1893 theory of objective and subjective minds and other writers' theories of conscious and subconscious, voluntary and involuntary, active and passive minds. The Hermetic doctrine of Mental Gender is presented as the ancient explanation: the Masculine Principle corresponds to the Objective, Conscious, Voluntary, Active Mind; the Feminine to the Subjective, Subconscious, Involuntary, Passive Mind. The text describes the Hermetic method: students examine consciousness and find "I Am" splits into "I" and "Me." The "Me" comprises feelings, habits, knowledge, and body-consciousness; the student sets these aside. The "Me" is a "mental womb" requiring energy from the "I." The "I" Will's the "Me" to act and witnesses the creation. The "I" is Masculine (Aspect of Being); the "Me" is Feminine (Aspect of Becoming). Telepathy, suggestion, and hypnotism are explained through projection of the Masculine Principle's vibratory energy toward another's Feminine Principle. The average person dwells in "Me" consciousness with an inactive "I"; strong persons manifest the Masculine Will. The chapter concludes by stating the work's purpose is to furnish a master-key rather than an extended account of psychic phenomena.

The chapter opens with a quotation from The Kybalion on the Law of Use: knowledge must be expressed in action. The text warns against Mental Miserliness and presents Hermetic Axioms with comments. The first axiom states that to change one's mood one must change one's vibration; Will directs Attention and Attention changes Vibration. The second axiom instructs that to destroy an undesirable mental vibration one should apply Polarity and concentrate on the opposite pole, illustrated by cultivating Courage to displace Fear. The third axiom states that Rhythm may be neutralized by the Art of Polarization; the Master rises to a Higher Plane of Consciousness by polarizing on the Higher Self. The fourth axiom states that one may use the laws of higher planes of Causation to overcome those of lower planes; advanced Hermetists become Causes rather than merely Caused. A quotation from The Kybalion compares the wise man to a swimmer and the ordinary man to a log. The chapter closes with the axiom that True Hermetic Transmutation is a Mental Art, and the statement that THE ALL is MIND.