Chapter 6 - The Devine Paradox - The Kybalion

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Episode Transcript

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Chapter six, the divine paradox.The half wise, recognizing the comparative unreality
of the universe, imagine that theymay defy its laws. Such are vain
and presumptuous fools, and they arebroken against the rocks and torn asunder by
the elements of reason of their folly. The truly wise, knowing the nature

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of the universe, use laws againstlaws, the higher against the lower,
and by the art of alchemy,transmute that which is undesirable into that which
is worthy, and thus triumph.Mastery consists not in abnormal dreams, visions,
and fantastic imaginings or living, butin using the higher forces against the

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lower, escaping the pains of thelower planes by vibrating on the higher.
Transmutation, not presumptuous denial, isthe weapon of the master, the cavallion.
This is the paradox of the universe, resulting from the principle of polarity,
which manifests when the all begins tocreate. Parken to it, for

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it points the difference between half wisdomand wisdom. While to the infinite all
the universe, its laws, itspowers, its life, its phenomena are
as things witnessed in the states ofmeditation or dream. Yet to all that
is finite, the universe must betreated as real, and life and action

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and thought must be based thereupon accordingly, although with an ever understanding of the
higher truth, each according to itsown claim and laws. Were the all
to imagine that the universe were indeedreality, then woe to the universe,
for there would then be no escapefrom lower to higher divine word. Then

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would the universe become a fixity,and progress would become impossible. And if
May, and owing to half wisdom, acts and lives and thinks of the
universe as merely a dream, akinto his own finite dreams, then indeed
does it so become for him,And like a sleep walker, he stumbles

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ever around and around in a circle, making no progress, and being forced
into an awakening at last by hisfalling, bruised and bleeding over the natural
laws which he ignored. Keep yourmind ever on the star, but let
your eyes watch over your footsteps,lest you fall into the mire by reason

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of your upward gaze. Remember thedivine paradox, that while the universe is
not still, it is, Rememberever, the two poles of truth,
the absolute and the relative. Bewareof half truths. What Hermetis know as
the law of paradox is another aspectof the principle of polarity. The medic

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writings are filled with references to theappearance of the paradox in the consideration of
the problem of life and being.The teachers are constantly warning their students the
error of omitting the other side ofany question, and their warnings are particularly
directed to the problems of the absoluteand the relative, which perplex all students

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of philosophy, and which cause somany to think and act contrary to what
is generally known as common sense.And we caution all students to be sure
to grasp the divine paradox of theabsolute and relative, lest they become entangled
in the mire of the half truth. With this in view, this particular

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lesson has been written. Read itcarefully. The first thought that comes to
the thinking man after he realizes thetruth that the universe is a mental creation
of the all, is that theuniverse and all that it contains is a
mere illusion, unreality against which ideahis instincts revolt. But this, like

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all other great truths, must beconsidered both from the absolute and the relative
points of view. From the absolutepoint of view, of course, the
universe is in the nature of anillusion, a dream, a phantas megoria.
As unsubstantiality must ever be connected withthe idea of a created universe when

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it is contrasted with the idea ofthe all. No matter what may be
our beliefs concerning the nature of bothphilosopher, metaphysician, scientist, and theologian
all agree upon this idea, andthe thought is found in all forms of
philosophical thought, in religious conceptions,as well as in the theories of the

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respective schools of metaphysics and theology.So the Hermetic teachings do not preach the
unsubstantiality of the universe in any strongerterms than those more familiar to you,
although their presentation of the subject mayseem somewhat more startling. Anything that has
a beginning and an ending must bein a sense real and untrue, and

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the universe comes under the rule inall schools of thought, from the absolute
point of view, there is nothingreal except the all, no matter what
terms we may use in thinking ofor discussing the subject, whether the universe
be created of matter or whether itbe a mental creation in the mind of
the all. It is unsubstantial,non enduring, a thing of time,

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space and change. We want youto realize this fact thoroughly before you pass
judgment on the hermetic conception of themental nature of the universe. Think over
any and all of the other conceptionsand see whether this be not true of
them. But the absolute point ofview shows merely one side of the picture.

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The other side is the relative one. Absolute truth has been defined as
things as the mind of God knowsthem, while relative truth is things as
the highest reason of man understands them. And so while to the all the
universe must be unreal and illusionary,a mere dream or result of meditation,

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nevertheless, to the finite minds forminga part of that universe and viewing it
through mortal faculties, the universe isvery real, indeed, and must so
be considered. In recognizing the absoluteview, we must not make the mistake
of ignoring or denying the facts andphenomena of the universe as they present themselves

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to our mortal faculties. We arenot the all. Remember to take familiar
illustrations. We all recognize the factthat matter exists to our senses. We
will fare badly if we do not, and yet even our finite minds understand
the scientific dictum that there is nosuch thing as matter. From a scientific

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point of view, that which wecall matter is held to be merely an
aggregation of atoms, which atoms themselvesare merely a grouping of units of force
called electrons or ions, vibrating andinconstant circular motion. We kick a stone
and we feel the impact. Itseems to be real, notwithstanding that we

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know it to be merely what wehave stated above. But remember that our
foot, which feels the impact bymeans of our brains, is likewise matter,
so constituted of electrons, and forthat matter, so are our brains.
And at the best, if itwere not by reason of our mind,
we would not know the foot orstone at all. Then again,

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the ideal of the artists or sculptor, which he is endeavoring to reproduce in
stone or on canvas, seems veryreal to him. So do the characters
in the mind of the author ordramatist which he seeks to express so that
others may recognize them. And ifthis be true in the case of our
finite minds, what must be thedegree of reality in the mental images created

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in the mind of the infinite Ofriends to mortals, This universe of mentality
is very real. Indeed, itis the only one we can ever know,
though we can rise from plane toplane, higher and higher in it
to know it otherwise, but actualexperience, we must be the All itself.

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It is true that the higher werise in the scale, the nearer
to the mind of the Father wereach, the more apparent becomes the illusory
nature of finite things. But notuntil the All finally withdraws us into itself
does the vision actually vanish. Sowe need not dwell upon the feature of
illusion. Rather, let us,recognizing the real nature of the universe,

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seek to understand its mental laws andendeavor to use them to the best effect
in our upward progress through life aswe travel from plain to plain of being.
The laws of the universe are nonethelessiron laws. Because of the mental
nature, all except the All,are bound by them. What in the

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infinite mind of the All is realin a degree second only to that reality
itself, which is vested in thenature of the All. So do not
feel insecure or afraid. We areall held firmly in the infinite mind of
the All, and there is naughtto hurt us or for us to fear.

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There is no power outside of theAll to affect us, so we
may rest calm and secure. Thereis a world of comfort and security in
this realization, when wants attained,then calm and peaceful. Do we sleep
locked in the cradle of the deep, resting safely on the bottom of the
ocean of infinite mind, which isthe all in the all? Indeed do

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we live and move and have ourbeing. Matter is none the less matter
to us while we dwell on theplane of matter, although we know it
to be merely an aggregation of electronsor particles of force, vibrating rapidly and
gyrating around each other in the formationsof atoms, the atoms in turn vibrating

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and gyrating, forming molecules, whichlatter in turn form larger masses of matter.
Nor does matter become less matter whenwe follow the inquiry still further and
learn from the hermetic teachings that theforce of which the electrons are but units,
is merely a manifestation of the mindof the All, and like all

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else in the universe, is purelymental in its nature. While on the
plane of matter, we must recognizeits phenomena. We may control matter,
as all masters of higher or lesserdegrees do, but we do so by
applying the higher forces. We commita folly when we attempt to deny the

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existence of matter in the relative aspect. We may deny its mastery over us,
and rightly so, but we shouldnot attempt to ignore it in its
relative aspect, at least so longas we dwell upon its plane. Nor
do the laws of nature become lessconstant or effective when we know them likewise

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to be merely mental creations. Theyare in full effect on the various planes.
We overcome the lower planes by applyingstill higher ones, and in this
way only, But we cannot escapelaw or rise above it entirely. Nothing
but the all can escape law,and that is because the All is law

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itself, from which all laws emerge. The most advanced masters may acquire the
powers usually attributed to the gods ofmen, And there are countless ranks of
being in the great hierarchy of lifewhose being in power transcends even that of
the highest masters among men, toa degree unthinkable by mortals. But even

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the highest master and the highest beingmust bow to the law and be as
nothing in the eye of the All. So that if even these highest beings,
whose powers exceed even those attributed bymen to their gods, if even
these are bound by and are subservientto law, then imagine the presumption of

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mortal man of our race and grade, when he dares to consider the laws
of nature as unreal, visionary,and illusory, because he happens to be
able to grasp the truth that thelaws are mental in nature, and imply
mental creations of the All. Thoselaws which the All intends to be governing.

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Laws are not to be defied orargued away. So long as the
universe endures, will they endure.For the universe exists by virtue of these
laws, which form its framework andwhich hold it together. The hermetic principle
of mentalism, while explaining the truenature of the universe upon the principle that

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all is mental, does not changethe scientific conceptions of the universe, life
or evolution. In fact, sciencemerely cooperates the hermetic teachings. The latter
merely teaches that the nature of theuniverse is mental, while modern science has
taught that it is material or oflate that it is energy. In the

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last analysis, the Hermetic teachings haveno fault to find with Herbert Spencer's basic
principle, which postulates the existence ofan infinite and eternal energy from which all
things proceed. In fact, theHermetics recognize in Spencer's philosophy the highest outside
statement of the workings of the naturallaws that have ever been promulgated. And

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they believe Spencer to have been areincarnation of an ancient philosopher who dwelt in
ancient Egypt thousands of years ago,and who later incarnated as Heraclitus, the
Grecian philosopher who live BC. Fivehundred. And they regard his statement of
the infinite and eternal energy as directlyin the line of the Hermetic teachings,

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always with the addition of their owndoctrine that his energy is the energy of
the mind of the all. Withthe master key of the Hermetic philosophy,
the student of Spencer will be ableto unlock many doors of the inner philosophical
conceptions of the great English philosopher,whose work shows the results of the preparation

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of his previous incarnations. His teachingsregarding evolution and rhythm are in almost perfect
agreement with the Hermetic teachings regarding theprinciple of rhythm. So the student of
Hermetics need not lay aside any ofhis cherished scientific views regarding the universe.
All he is asked to do isgrasp the underlying principle of the all is

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mind, and the universe is mental. Held in the mind of the all,
he will find that the other sixof the seven principles will fit into
his scientific knowledge, and will serveto bring out obscure points and to throw
light in dark corners. This isnot to be wondered at when we realize
the influence of the Hermetic thought ofthe early philosophers of Greece, upon whose

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foundations of thought the theories of modernscience largely rest. The acceptance of the
first Hermetic principle mentalism is the onlygreat point of difference between modern science and
Hermetic students, and science is graduallymoving toward the Hermetic position in its groping
in the dark for a way outof the labyrinth into which it has wandered

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in its search for reality. Thepurpose of this lesson is to impress upon
the minds of our students the factthat to all intents and purposes, the
universe and its laws and its phenomenaare just as real so far as man
is concerned, as they would beunder the hypothesis of materialism or energism,

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and under any hypothesis, the universein its outer aspect is changing, ever
flowing and transitory, and therefore devoidof substantiality and reality. But note the
other pole of the truth. Underthe same hypothesis, we are compelled to
act and live as if the fleetingthings were real and substantial. With this

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difference always between the various hypotheses thatunder the old view's mental power was ignored
as a natural force, while undermentalism it becomes the greatest natural force.
And this one difference revolutionizes life tothose who understand the principle in its resulting

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laws in practice. So finally,students all grasp the advantage of mentalism and
learn to know, use, andapply the laws resulting therefrom but do not
yield to the temptation which, asthe Kabalian states, overcomes the half wise,
and which causes them to be hypnotizedby the apparent unreality of things,

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the consequence being that they wander aboutlike dream people dwelling in the world of
dreams, ignoring the practical work inlife of man, the end being that
they are broken against the rocks andtorn asunder by the elements by reason of
their folly. Follow the example ofthe wise, which the same authority states,

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use law against law, the higheragainst the lower, and by the
art of alchemy transmute that which isundesirable into that which is worthy, and
thus triumph. Following the authority,let us avoid the half wisdom, which
is folly, which ignores the truththat mastery consists not in abnormal dreams,

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visions and fantastic imaginings or living,but in using the higher forces against the
lower, escaping the pains of thelower planes by vibrating on the higher.
Remember always, student, that transmutation, not presumptuous denial, is the weapon
of the master. The above quotationsare from the Kabalion and are worthy of

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being committed to memory by the student. We do not live in a world
of dreams, but in a universewhich, while relative, is real so
far as our lives and actions areconcerned. Our business in the universe is
not to deny its existence, butto live, using the laws to rise
from lower to higher, living ondoing the best that we can under the

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circumstances, arising each day, andliving so far as is possible to our
biggest ideas and ideals. The truemeaning of life is not known to men
on this plane, if indeed toany, but the highest authorities and our
own intuitions teach us that we willmake no mistake in living up to the

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best that is in us, sofar as is possible, and realizing the
universal tendency in the same direction.In spite of apparent evidence to the contrary.
We are all on the path,and the road leads upward, ever
with frequent resting places. Read themessage of the Kabalion, and follow the

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example of the wa eyes, avoidingthe mistake of the half wise, who
perish by reason of their falling.End of Chapter six