← Home
Psychic Self-Defence (Dion Fortune) · 122 of 129

20. Methods Of Defence IV-b

From being in the midst of turmoil one is suddenly raised high above it and sees all the circumstances of one’s life spread out like a bird’s-eye view, as one might see the land from a high place, and one knows intuitively the out come of the matter. All emotional turmoil ceases, and one is like a ship hove-to, securely riding out the storm. When this occurs to me, the memory of my past incarnations is always vividly present also. It is this simultaneous wakening of the past which makes me feel that the voice is that of my own Higher Self, and not of another entity. It is my belief that in times of spiritual crisis the man that has faith in the law of God can rise up and invoke its protection and a seeming miracle will be performed for his benefit. Yet there can be no breach of natural law; there fore such a miracle must simply be an example of the working of a law with which we are as yet unfamiliar, just as an eclipse appears to the savage as a miracle, but to the astronomer as a natural phenomenon which he can forecast with accuracy. What is it that induces this change of control in our lives? We are familiar with the fact that the engine of a car has three speeds and a reverse. May it not be that our minds are also geared, and that it is a changing of gears which induces psychism? Are there not times when we get into reverse and the ape and tiger within us take charge? Behind the physical plane lies the astral plane, and behind the astral plane lies the mental plane, and behind the mental plane lies the spiritual plane, each plane acting as plane of causation to the one beneath it, and each in turn being controlled from the subtler plane above it. When we “change gear,” consciousness is shifted from a denser to a subtler plane and we begin to move among remoter and remoter causes of which the happenings upon the physical plane are the end-results; we manipulate these causes and the results are immediately effected. When we change gear from the physical to the astral, we find’ ourselves upon the plane of psychic consciousness and the lesser magic. Supposing a psychic combat is taking place between two occultists, if one of them is of such a grade that he can change gear again, so that consciousness is lifted from the astral to the mental plane, he will be in the sphere of the greater magic and be in full control of the situation. The other can make no stand against him. But what happens in the case of the rare and mystic soul who can shift consciousness once again and engage the gears of a purely spiritual power? He has outclassed the adept. There are many souls who have this mystical spiritual consciousness although they have no occult knowledge. Between the higher and the lower modes of thought there is a great gulf fixed across which they leap precariously. If in a time of crisis they are able to rise up in faith and enter into this mystical consciousness and be still, they will have the upper air of any occultist who relies upon nothing save the technique of occultism. The question of mystical consciousness is, however, outside the scope of our present enquiry, which is concerned with psychic methods and the traditional technique of the occultist. Different temperaments will employ different methods, and the mystical method does not appeal to everybody. The occultist does not ignore the Christ-force, however; he recognises it as among the hierarchy of supreme forces of the universe, although he may not be prepared to assign to it the exclusive position which it occupies in the heart of the Christian mystic. In the Western Tradition it is symbolised by Tiphareth, the central Sephira of the Ten Holy Sephiroth of the Qabalistic Tree of Life. The Christ-force is the equilibriating, compensating, healing, redeeming, purifying factor of the universe.
§ Ask Guru about this passage →
Themes
Christ Forcecosmology

In Western Hermetic Qabalah, the specific harmonizing cosmic force symbolised by Tiphareth, the central Sephira of the Tree of Life — the equilibriating, compensating, healing, redeeming, and purifying factor of the universe, recognised by the occultist as one power among the hierarchy of supreme cosmic forces rather than assigned the exclusive position it holds for the Christian mystic. Distinct from logos (the ordering principle through which the universe was created, not this specific mediating/healing Sephirotic force) and trinity (a claim about the Godhead's internal three-personed structure, not a single emanation's function within a tenfold system).

The passage explicitly discusses the 'Christ-force' as an equilibrating factor symbolised by Tiphareth.

All passages →
Cosmic Consciousnessanthropology

A state of awareness transcending ordinary human consciousness, often involving unity with the universe or higher dimensions.

The text describes a state where one sees 'all the circumstances of one's life spread out like a bird's-eye view' and knows intuitively the outcome.

All passages →
Divine Providencetheology

Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity.

The text refers to 'faith in the law of God' and protection invoked through it, implying a divine ordering.

All passages →
Emanation Hierarchycosmology

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 text describes a hierarchy of planes (physical, astral, mental, spiritual) where each acts as a plane of causation to the one beneath it.

All passages →
Higher Selfanthropology

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 author explicitly identifies the voice heard during this state as that of their 'own Higher Self'.

All passages →
Magical Willpraxis

The doctrine that human volition, cultivated by discipline and emancipated from passion and servitude, is the primary instrument of magical operation — will confirmed by persistent acts acquires causal power over self, others, and nature; distinct from faith and from mere desire.

The text describes how changing consciousness planes allows one to 'manipulate these causes and the results are immediately effected,' implying will over reality.

All passages →
Psychic Attackpraxis

The doctrine and practice of one person deliberately inflicting harm on another through trained will, mind-power, or occult technique alone, without physical contact — producing exhaustion, illness, breakdown, or death in the victim; recognised cross-culturally as witchcraft, hexing, or the evil eye, and treated in Western esotericism as a genuine occult hazard requiring diagnosis and defence rather than dismissed as superstition. Distinct from magical_will (the general doctrine that trained volition has causal power, of which this is one malevolent application) and from spirit_conjuration (which subordinates an already-existing summoned spirit, rather than directing the operator's own power at a person).

The passage discusses 'psychic combat' between occultists and methods of defence against such interference.

All passages →
Sefirot Treecosmology

The diagrammatic arrangement of the ten Sephirot as a structured 'Tree of Life' mapping divine and cosmic forces.

The text directly mentions the 'Qabalistic Tree of Life' as a symbol for the Christ-force.

All passages →
Sephirotcosmology

The ten attributes or emanations through which the Ein Sof (Infinite) reveals itself and creates the universe in Kabbalistic theology.

The passage explicitly references the 'Ten Holy Sephiroth of the Qabalistic Tree of Life' in relation to the Christ-force.

All passages →
Soul Migrationcosmology

The transmigration of the soul across lives.

The author states that during this state, 'the memory of my past incarnations is always vividly present also.'

All passages →
Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

The passage details shifting consciousness from denser to subtler planes (physical to astral to mental to spiritual) as a form of ascent.

All passages →
Related passages · 11 parallels
neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 419
“Section 3 3. The Soul once seen to be thus precious, thus divine, you may hold the faith that by its possession you are already nearing God: in the strength of this power make upwards towards Him: at no great distance you must attain: there…”
Shared concept: Emanation Hierarchy — 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. (derived)
hinduism|Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I|Sutra 50
“The impress on the consciousness springing from this perception supersedes all previous impressions. Each state or field of the mind, each field of knowledge, so to speak, which is reached by mental and emotional energies, is a psychical st…”
Shared concept: Cosmic Consciousness — A state of awareness transcending ordinary human consciousness, often involving unity with the universe or higher dimensions. (derived)
renaissance_hermeticism|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…”
Shared concept: Soul Migration — The transmigration of the soul across lives. (derived)
hinduism|Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book III|Sutra 38
“Through the weakening of the causes of bondage, and by learning the method of sassing, the consciousness is transferred to the other body. In due time, after the spiritual man has been formed and grown stable through the forces and virtues…”
Shared concept: Higher Self — 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. (derived)
theosophy|The Secret Doctrine|Page 19 (part 2)
“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 DOCTRI…”
Shared concept: Cosmic Consciousness — A state of awareness transcending ordinary human consciousness, often involving unity with the universe or higher dimensions. (derived)
theosophy|The Secret Doctrine|Page 54 (part 3)
“It is those who are unable to create the spiritual immortal man, who project the senseless model (the Astral ) of the physical Being; and, as will be seen, it was those who would not multiply, who sacrificed themselves to the good and salva…”
Shared concept: Higher Self — 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. (derived)
jewish_mysticism|The Kabbalah Unveiled|Introduction, Section 1a
“p. 43 SPRA DTzNIOVThA (SIPHRA DTZENIOUTHA); OR, THE BOOK OF CONCEALED MYSTERY. CHAPTER I. 1. Tradition .--"The Book of Concealed Mystery" is the book of the equilibrium of balance. [The word "Dtzenioutha" is difficult to translate, but…”
Shared concept: Sephirot — The ten attributes or emanations through which the Ein Sof (Infinite) reveals itself and creates the universe in Kabbalistic theology. (derived)
neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 161
“Section 5 5. Still more unreasonably: There are men, bound to human bodies and subject to desire, grief, anger, who think so generously of their own faculty that they declare themselves in contact with the Intelligible World, but deny that…”
Shared concept: Divine Providence — Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity. (derived)
neoplatonism|Iamblichus: On the Mysteries|Chapter XXVII-a
“Moreover, neither is it sufficient to assert, “ that nature, art, and the sympathy of things in the universe, as if they were the parts of one animal, contain premanifestations of certain 188 things with reference to each other; nor that bo…”
Shared concept: Divine Providence — Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity. (derived)
renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori)|First Dialogue-m
“Thus everything has an impetus towards its beginning retrogressively, and progressively towards its end and perfection, as Empedocles well said, and from which sentence I think may be inferred that which the Nolan said in this octave: The s…”
Shared concept: Spiritual Ascent — A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source. (derived)
christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 1)
“p. 224 CHAPTER XI. INCARNATION—THE CELESTIAL VIRGIN. The doctrine of the incarnation of Christ, or, to express it in other words, of the awakening of the germ of divine self-knowledge in man, is so grand, that it is impossible to form a…”
Shared concept: Christ Force — In Western Hermetic Qabalah, the specific harmonizing cosmic force symbolised by Tiphareth, the central Sephira of the Tree of Life — the equilibriating, compensating, healing, redeeming, and purifying factor of the universe, recognised by the occultist as one power among the hierarchy of supreme cosmic forces rather than assigned the exclusive position it holds for the Christian mystic. (derived)