Hermeticism

Hermes Trismegistus depicted as European in a medieval rendering.

Hermeticism is a set of philosophical and religious beliefs(Churton p. 5) based primarily upon the writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus (sometimes seen as a syncretism of two or three deities). These beliefs have had the impact of effecting magic traditions and further, the impact of serving as a set of religious beliefs. Whatever the impact of the beliefs, they stem from teachings and books accredited to Hermes Trismegistus, who is put forth as a wise sage and Egyptian priest, commonly seen as synonymous with the Egyptian god Thoth.

Hermeticism is closely related to occultism: avoiding persecution through secrecy (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 227)
, focusing on the concept of God, astrology, alchemy, and theurgy. The traditional secrecy surrounding Hermetic philosophy gave rise to the term "hermetically sealed" (Hall The Secret Teachings of All Ages p. 95)
and many Hermeticists still feel uncomfortable throwing their pearls to swine. (Three Initiates p. 18)
In Islam, the Hermetic cult was accepted as being the Sabians mentioned in the Qu'ran in 830 CE.(Churton pp. 26-7)

Etymology

The word "Hermeticism" is derived from "Hermetic" which is in turn derived from "Hermes". Hermes is taken from an ancient Greek root, "Herm" which means "vitality" or "the active, positive, radiant principle of Nature" (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 223)
. In essence, the masculine principle.

History

The Corpus Hermeticum

According to tradition, cult of Thoth arose in Ancient Egypt several millennia ago, as the religion of the Egyptian philosophical elite. (Hall, The Secret Teachings of All Ages pp. 39-40)
After centuries of falling out of favor, as did all pagan religions, Hermeticism was reintroduced to the West when, in 1460 CE, a man named Leonardo brought the Corpus Hermeticum to Pistoia. He was one of many agents sent out by Pistoia's ruler, Cosimo de'Medici, to scour European monasteries for lost ancient writings. (The Way of Hermes, p. 9)

Believed originally to predate Plato and Moses, much of the fascination with Hermeticism disappeared with the analysis in 1614 CE by Isaac Casaubon, a Swiss philologist. Casaubon analyzed the Hermetic texts for linguistic style and concluded that they were written after the start of the Christian Era. (The Way of Hermes, p. 9)
Other scholars analyzing the Greek texts for linguistics came to similar conclusions. Walter Scott places their date shortly after 200 CE, while Sir W. Flinders Petrie places them between 200 and 500 BCE. (Abel and Hare p. 7)
Plutarch's mention of Hermes Trismegistus dates back to the first century CE (1-100 CE) suggesting that Scott dated the work after its true date. (Hoeller)

However, E. A. Wallis Budge, uses different reasoning. Budge, in discussing the Egyptian text, The Book of the Dead, clearly stated that the earliest version of The Book of the Dead found was not necessarily the earliest version that existed. Budge argued that one cannot claim that an earlier version does not exist simply because it has not been found. (Budge p. xiii)
Budge maintains that The Book of the Dead itself was drastically rewritten, reorganized, and amended several times in Egypt, creating four distinct versions which have been found. These versions stretch over a millennium, from the Fifth Dynasty (2498 BCE - 2345 BCE) to the Twentieth Dynasty (1186 BCE - 1073 BCE). (Budge pp. ix-x)

In 1945 CE, Hermetic writings were among those found near Nag Hammadi, in the form of one of the conversations between Hermes and Asclepius from the Corpus Hermeticum, and a text about the Hermetic mystery schools, On the Ogdoad and Ennead, written in the Coptic language, the last form of the Egyptian writing style. (Way of Hermes, pp. 9-10)
An older version was indeed found, and still may not be the earliest. It is claimed that many of the older versions that would be found in the Great Library of Alexandria, were destroyed in 391 CE when the Romans burnt the library down. (Hall The Secret Teachings of All Ages p. 96)

The concepts discussed within the Corpus Hermeticum, even if the Coptic book was from the earliest version, are distinctly ancient Egyptian. This includes the concept, "All is one, all is from the One". (Way of Hermes, p. 10)

Hermeticism as a religion

Not all Hermeticists consider their beliefs a religion. Many alloy the beliefs of their own Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, or Islam with their mystical ideas. Others hold that all great religions have a few mystical truths at their core, and all religions point to the esoteric tenets of Hermeticism.

Scholar of obscure religious movements, Tobias Churton, describes it stating: "The Hermetic tradition was both moderate and flexible, offering a tolerant philosophical religion, a religion of the (omnipresent) mind, a purified perception of God, the cosmos, and the self, and much positive enocuragement for the spiritual seeker, all of which the student could take anywhere."(Churton p. 5)

Religious and philosophical texts

Though many more have been falsely attributed to the work of Hermes Trismegistus, Hermeticists commonly accept there to have been 42 books to his credit. However, most of these books are reported to have been destroyed in 391 CE when the Romans burnt down the Library of Alexandria. It is further reported that the volumes saved from the flames were buried in the desert, the locations known only to the few initiates of mystery schools.(Hall The Secret Teachings of All Ages p. 96)

There are three major works which are widely known texts for Hermetic beliefs:

The Corpus Hermeticum is the body of work most widely known and is the aforementioned Greek texts. These sixteen books are set up as dialogues between Hermes and a series of others. The first book involves a discussion between Poimandres (also known as Nous and God) and Hermes, supposedly resulting from a meditative state, and is the first time that Hermes is in contact with God. Poimandres teaches the secrets of the Universe to Hermes, and later books are generally of Hermes teaching others such as Asclepius and his son Tat.

The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus is a short work which coins the well known term in occult circles "As above, so below." The actual text of that maxim, as translated by Dennis W. Hauck is "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracle of the One Thing." (Scully p. 321)
The tablet also references the three parts of the wisdom of the whole universe, to which Hermes claims his knowledge of these three parts is why he received the name Trismegistus (thrice great, or Ao-Ao-Ao meaning "greatest").

As the story is told, this tablet was found by Alexander the Great at Hebron supposedly in the tomb of Hermes. (Abel & Hare p. 12)
Such a story assumes a mortal Hermes, whether or not the name is correct.

The Kybalion: Hermetic Philosophy, is a book published in 1912 anonymously by three people calling themselves the "Three Inititates", and their identities are suspected to be now known. Claims are made to the book existing in verbal form, prior to publication, and passed around in various occult "circles", or groups. Many of the Hermetic principles are explained in the book.

Thoth, the ibis-headed god of Knowledge, closely related, if not equivalent, to Hermes Trismegistus.

In addition, there is The Book of Thoth, written by Hermes Trismegistus, said to be the key to immortality. To those acquainted to its use, it is said to give them power over the spirits of the air and subterranean divinities. Within it lies the One spiritual path. Some have claimed that this is the Tarot that has been in possession of the Gypsies for centuries.(Hall The Secret Teachings of All Ages pp. 96-7)

The three parts of the wisdom of the whole universe

Hermes Trismegistus is accredited with the name Trismegistus, meaning the "Thrice Great" or "Thrice Greatest" because, as he claims in The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus, he knows the three parts of the wisdom of the whole universe. (Scully p. 322)
The three parts of the wisdom are alchemy, astrology, and theurgy.

Alchemy - The Operation of the Sun - For Hermeticism, Alchemy is not the changing of physical lead into physical gold. (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 227)
Rather, one attempts to turn themselves from a base person (symbolized by lead) into an adept master (symbolized by gold). The various stages of chemical distillation and fermentation, among them, are metaphorical for the Magnum Opus (Latin for Great Work) performed on the soul. (Scully p. 11)

Astrology - The Operation of the Moon - Hermes claims that Zoroaster discovered this part of the wisdom of the whole universe, astrology, and taught it to man. (Powell pp. 19-20)
In Hermetic thought, it is likely that the movements of the planets have meaning beyond the laws of physics and actually holding metaphorical value as symbols in the mind of The All, or God. Astrology has influences upon the Earth, but does not dictate our actions, and wisdom is gained when we know what these influences are and how to deal with them.

Theurgy - The Operation of the Stars - There are two different types of magic, according to Giovanni Pico della Mirandola's Apology, completely opposite of one another. The first is γοητεια,Goëtia, black magic reliant upon an alliance with evil spirits (i.e. demons). The second is Theurgy, divine magic reliant upon an alliance with divine spirits (i.e. angels, archangels, God).(Garstin p. v)

Theurgy translates to "The Science or art of Divine Works" and is the practical aspect of the Hermetic art of alchemy. (Garstin p. 6)
Furthermore, alchemy is seen as the "key" to theurgy (Garstin p. vi)
, the ultimate goal of which is to become united with higher counterparts, leading to the attainment of Divine Consciousness. (Garstin p. 6)

Hermetic beliefs

Hermeticism is a panentheist belief system which teaches that there is One God, or one "Cause", of which we are all a part. These beliefs are claimed to have come from Egypt and have strong philosophical ties to that land. Also it often subscribes to the notion that other beings such as angels, demons, ascended masters and elementals exist in the Universe.

Manly P. Hall, 33rd degree Mason and Hermetic scholar, however, claims that Hermeticism has foremost inspired three movements, the Illuminati, Freemasonry, and the Rosicrucians. (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 226)
There has also been The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn which has fallen into ruin. Outside of these three orders, at least, Hermeticism is a personal spiritual path which rewards open mindedness and personal logical deduction.

Ideally, a Hermeticist should be completely openminded, thinking for themselves, and bring the spiritual truths into physical manifestation in their own way. The good teachings, from any teacher, should be weeded out by the false ones. (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 248)

God and reality

In the Hermetic view, all is in the mind of The All, the Hermetic conception of God, as expressed in the Kybalion: "We have given you the Hermetic Teaching in regarding the Mental Nature of the Universe - the truth that 'the Universe is Mental - held in the Mind of THE ALL.'" (Three Initiates p. 96)

Everybody and Everything in the universe is part of this entity. As everything is mental, it is also a vibration (Three Initiates p. 137)
. All vibrations vibrate from the densest of physical particles, through mental states, to the highest spiritual vibrations. In Hermeticism, the only difference between different states of physical matter, mentality, and spirituality is the frequency of their vibration. The higher the vibration, the further it is from base matter. (Three Initiates pp. 138-47)

Classical elements

The four classical elements of earth, water, air, and fire are used often in alchemy, and are alluded to several times in the Corpus Hermeticum. However, it should be noted that these elements represent ideas rather than physical elements. Fire is the ascending, active, masculine principle, which is kept from going too far with air, which represents rational thought. Water is the descending, reflective, emotional feminine principle, which is kept from going too far by earth, which represents a solid, practical foundation in the real world.

Mental gender, polarity, and duality

Hermeticists take to heart one of the primary ideas of Taoism, yin and yang. The implementation of this Taoist principle, which may or may not have been discovered independently, has been split across many teachings.

Yin and Yang, the shared concept between Hermeticism and Taoism

The primary place where it has had an impact is in the principle of duality. Duality states that everything has two sides, two opposing attributes which make up the same thing. This idea is sucked up into the concept of polarity almost immediately:

"Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be reconciled." (Three Initiates p. 149)

Polarity takes duality and moves a few steps further, saying that there are an infinite number of degrees between one side of a duality, and the other side. If you pick two things of different temperature, something else can be hotter than one of them, and colder than the other. (Three Initiates p. 151)
Likewise you can turn one side of a duality into another, but not into a different thing. For example, hot and cold being opposites, you can turn hot into cold, and cold into hot, but you cannot turn hot into sharp, or sharp into cold; nor can hot be turned into courage or fear. (Three Initiates p. 154)

Mental Gender is the part of yin and yang that polarity and duality do not deal with. Yin is feminine and yang is masculine, and these principles which are viewed as a special case of polarity, are put into the masculine (action) and feminine (thought) principles.

As above, so below

The Magician displaying the Hermetic concept of "as above, so below." It is thought that the modern Tarot may be based on The Book of Thoth.

These words circulate throughout occult and magical circles, and they come from Hermetic texts. The concept was first laid out in The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus, in the words "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above, corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracles of the One Thing." (Scully p. 321)

In accordance with the various levels of reality: physical, mental, and spiritual, this relates that what happens on any level happens on every other. This is however more often used in the sense of the microcosm and the macrocosm. The microcosm is oneself, and the macrocosm is the universe. The macrocosm is as the microcosm, and vice versa; within each lies the other, and through understanding one (usually the microcosm) you can understand the other. (Garstin p. 35)

Reincarnation

There are mentions in Hermeticism about reincarnation. As Hermes states:

"O son, how many bodies we have to pass through, how many bands of demons, through how many series of repetitions and cycles of the stars, before we hasten to the One alone?" (Way of Hermes p. 33)

Manly P. Hall also claims that there is a general acceptance among Hermeticists for constant reincarnation between both sexes, as in some way integral, but not absolutely vital, within Hermeticism. (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 234)

Causation

One tenet of Hermeticism, which may be the sole work of The Kybalion is the tenet of causation. Causation is in a simplified form, simply cause and effect. Each cause has its effect and each effect has its cause. However, when brought up to Kybalion levels, this principle states that there is no such thing as chance, but rather that chance is undiscovered law, organization in the chaos. (Three Initiates p. 171)
(see Chaos Theory)

The argument The Kybalion makes on this issue, is that The All is the Law, and as nothing can be outside of The All, nothing can be outside of the Law. The idea of something happening by chance would be, in their opinion, outside of the Law. (Three Initiates p. 173)

Morality, good and evil

Hermes explains in Book 9 of the Corpus Hermeticum that Nous brings forth both good and evil, depending on if he receives input from God or from the demons. God brings good, while the demons bring evil. Among those things brought by demons are:

"adultery, murder, violence to one's father, sacrilege, ungodliness, strangling, suicide from a cliff and all such other demonic actions." (Way of Hermes p. 42)

This provides a clearcut view that Hermeticism does indeed include a sense of morality. However, the word good is used very strictly, to be restricted to use to the Supreme Good, God. (Way of Hermes p. 28)
It is only God (in the sense of the Supreme Good, not The All) who is completely free of evil to be considered good. Men are exempt of having the chance of being good, for they have a body, consumed in the physical nature, ignorant of the Supreme Good. (Way of Hermes p. 47)

Among those things which are considered extremely sinful, is the focus on the material life, said to be the only thing that offends God:

"As processions passing in the road cannot achieve anything themesleves yet still obstruct others, so these men merely process through the universe, led by the pleasures of the body." (Way of Hermes pp. 32-3)

It is troublesome to oneself to have no "children". This is a symbolic description, not to mean physical, biological children, but rather creations. Immediately before this claim, it is explained that God is "the Father" because it has authored all things, it creates. Whether father or mother, one must create, do something positive in their life, as the Supreme Good is a "generative power". The curse for not having "children" is to be imprisoned to a body , neither male (active) nor female (thoughtful), leaving that person with a type of sterility, that of being unable to accomplish anything. (Way of Hermes p. 29)

Creation legend

In Hermeticism, the origin belief is not taken literally, but an attempt is made to understand it metaphorically. (Hall The Hermetic Marriage p. 228)
The tale is given in the first book of the Corpus Hermeticum by God's Nous to Hermes Trismegistus after much meditation.

It begins as God creates the elements after seeing the Cosmos and creating one just like it (our Cosmos) from its own constituent elements and souls. From there, God, being both male and female, holding the Word, gave birth to a second Nous, creator of the world. This second Nous created seven powers (often seen as Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the Sun and the Moon) to travel in circles and govern destiny.

The Word then leaps forth from the matterializing elements, which made them unintelligent. Nous then made the governors spin, and from their matter sprang forth creatures without speech. Earth then was separated from Water and the animals (other than Man) were brought forth from the Earth.

The Supreme Nous then created Man, hermaphorditic, in his own image and handed over his creation. Man carefully observed the creation of his brother, the lesser Nous, and received his and his Father's authority over it all. Man then rose up above the spheres' paths to better view the creation, and then showed the form of God to Nature. Nature fell in love with it, and Man, seeing a similar form to his own reflecting in the water fell in love with Nature and wished to dwell in it. Immediately Man became one with Nature and became a slave to its limitations such as gender and sleep. Man thus became speechless (for it lost the Word) and became double, being mortal in body but immortal in spirit, having authority of all but subject to destiny.

The tale does not specifically contradict the theory of evolution, other than for Man, but most Hermeticists fully accept evolutionary theory as a solid grounding for the creation of everything from base matter to Man. (Way of Hermes pp. 18-20)

Hermetic brotherhoods

Hermeticism, being opposed by the Church, became a part of the occult underworld, intermingling with other occult movements and practices. The infusion of Hermeticism into occultism has given it great influence in Western magical traditions. Hermeticism's spiritual practices were found very useful in magical work, especially in Theurgic (divine) practices as opposed to Goëtic (profane) practices, due to the religious context from which Hermeticism sprang forth.

Using the teachings and imagery of the Jewish Kabbalah and Christian Mysticism, Hermetic Theurgy was used effectively and in a context more easily understood by Europeans in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

A few primarily Hermetic occult orders were founded in the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance. Hermetic magic underwent a 19th century revival in Western Europe (Regardie p. 17), where it was practiced by people such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, Aurum Solis, Ragon, Kenneth M. Mackenzie, Eliphas Lévi, Frederick Hockley, William Butler Yeats, and Arthur Machen. (Regardie pp. 15-6)

Rosicrucianism

Rosicrucianism was a Hermetic/Christian movement dating back to the 15th century. It has officially fallen out of existence in the 19th century, though some claim it merely fell into complete secrecy. It consisted of a secretive inner body, and a more public outer body under the direction of the inner body.

This movement was symbolized by the rose (feminine) and the cross (masculine) which came together to symbolize God or rebirth. This is very similar to the Egyptian use of the ankh. However, these also led to false accusation that the order practiced grotesque orgy rituals.

The Rosicrucian Order consisted of a graded system (similar to The Order of Freemasons) in which members moved up in rank and gained access to more knowledge, for which there was no fee. Once a member was deemed able to understand the knowledge, they moved on to the next grade.

There were three steps to their spiritual path: philosophy, qabbalah, and divine magic. In turn, there were three goals to the order: 1) the abolition of monarchy and the institution of rule by a philosophical elect, 2) reformation of science, philosophy, and ethics, and 3) discovery of the Panacea.

The order claimed that secrecy was needed because "powerful people" opposed, and hindered, them. They promised that the time was coming when all their knowledge would, by mandate of God, be revealed to all. They already accepted any person who was seeking their enlightenment. They also claimed that the "Christian Church" wielded great power, but misused it, and thus were doomed to destruction. Furthermore, they condemned what they deemed "pseudo-alchemists and philosophers" whom strayed from God's path.

Amazing claims were made of these men, including that they worked miracles, could shapeshift, and teleport where they wished, among them. (Hall The Secret Teachings of All Ages pp. 455-66)

The only source dating the existence of the Rosicrucians as far back as the 17th century are a pair of German pamphlets: the Fama and the Confessio Fraternitatis. Many scholars believe these to be hoaxes, and that antedating Rosicrucian orginisations are the first appearance of any real Rosicrucian fraternity. Modern R.C. orginisations such as the AMORC claim to possess documents dating their existence as far back as classical Greece and Egypt, but these sources are not available to non-members.

Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn

The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn claims descent from the Rosicrucians, officially instituted in 1887 CE. Unlike the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia, the Golden Dawn was open to both sexes, and treated both as equal. The order was a specifically Hermetic society, teaching the arts of alchemy, qabbalah, and the magic of Hermes along with the principles of occult science. Israel Regardie claims that there are many, many orders who know what they do of magic from what has been leaked out of the Golden Dawn by what he deems "renegade members."

The order maintained the tightest of secrecy by severe penalties for loose lips. Overall, the general public was left oblivous to the actions and even existence of the Golden Dawn, making the policies a success. (Regardie pp. 15-7) This secrecy was broken first by Aleister Crowley, in 1905 CE, and later by Israel Regardie himself in 1940 CE, giving a detailed account of the order's teachings to the general public. (Regardie p. ix)

Hermeticism's relationship with other systems

Hermeticism's similarities with other schools of thought and interactions are many. It has relations with Buddhism, Christianity, Gnosticism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Occultism, Taoism, Trancendentalism, Wicca and other forms of Paganism, and Zoroastrianism.

Notes

References

*Churton, Tobias. The Golden Builders: Alchemists, Rosicrucians, and the First Freemasons. New York: Barnes and Noble, 2002.
* Published Posthumously

*Hoeller, Stephan A. On the Trail of the Winged God: Hermes and Hermeticism Throughout the Ages. 1996. [1]

*

External links

* A Different Da Vinci Code The missing pieces of Leonardo's puzzle point to plain and simple Hermeticism (altreligion.about.com article).
* An introduction to Hermeticism by Paul Newall (2004)
* Online version of The Kybalion (1912)
* Online Version of Manly P. Hall's The Secret Teachings of All Ages
* Online Version of the Corpus Hermeticum, version translated by John Everard in 1650 CE from Latin version
* Online Version of The Virgin of the World of Hermes Trismegistus, version translated by Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland in 1885 CE
* The Kybalion Resource Page

Hermeticism: Encyclopedia BETA

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