Seven Sacred Hermetic Principles

  A review of Hermetic Principles as discovered by author Doreen Virtue:                Divine Magic ~ The Seven Sacred Secrets of Manifestation (2006)

“Where fall the footsteps of the Master, the ears of those ready for his teaching open wide.  When the ears of the student are ready to hear then cometh the lips to fill them with Wisdom”.   The Kybalion

“The lips of wisdom are closed, except to the ears of Understanding”. The Kybalion

In ancient Egypt, there was a great spiritual teacher who wrote books and lectured about  the power of the mind to create and heal.   His teachings were so profound and revolutionary that he was linked withThoth, the Egyptian god of writing and mysticism as well as Hermes, the Greek messenger dieity.  

This teacher is most commonly called Hermes Trismegistus which means Thrice Great or Three Times Great.  The meaning and reference to this title is unknown.  While scholars can’t agree on the dates of Hermes’s life...  it is believed that he was a contemporary (and perhaps teacher) of Abraham.   There is also controversy over “The Emerald Tablet” often attributed to Hermes.

Hermetic philosophy was incorporated into mystical Jewish teachings 

and the Alexandrian branch of  Gnosticism.

 Hermetists studied in secret,  since it was dangerous to write or verbalize any spiritual principle other than the reigning religions.  To do so was to risk being killed as a “heretic” or witch.   The term  “hermetically sealed” comes from this absolute secrecy surrounding Hermeticism.

Today....  it’s a study and practice as well as a healthy way to live.  

A complilation of Hermetic doctrines known as the “kyballion” was passed verbally from teacher to student.... from lip to ear.    Following are the Seven Sacred principles that are studied and practiced to this day.

Seven Sacred Principles

These are normally studied in chronological order as they build upon one another.

1. The All is mind,  the universe is mental.  

The Kybalion refers to the Creator as “The All” infinite and unerring intelligence, wisdom, and creativity.   Since the All is everywhere, Mind is everywhere.

2. Correspondence:  “ As above, so below;  as below, so above.”

Hermetists divide the world into three planes: physical, mental, and spiritual.  Each plane operates by the same spiritual laws.  If you understand the laws of one plane, then you’ll understand the law of the other planes.

3. Vibration:  “Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.”

Everything in the universe moves…. even so called inanimate objects that are filled with vibrating atoms and the energy of The All.  The difference between the varying planes of existence is merely in their vibrational rate of movement.  Hermetists apply this principle by accelerating or decelerating the vibrational rate of objects or situation that they wish to attract, change, or banish.

4. Polarity:  “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.”

Every experience and choice is the same in truth.  What appears to be opposite is actually the same, but with different degrees of the same ingredients.  Prosperity and poverty are not opposites.  They are merely ends of the same pole, vibrating at different rates.  Each situation in your life has such a pole, vibrating at different rates.  Each situation in your life has such a pole, with extremes at either end, and vibrational increments in between.  

Hermetists use this principle to transmute unwanted situations and emotions into something more desirable, merely by changing their vibration to the highest end of each pole.

5. Rhythm:  “Everything flows, out and in; everything has its tides; all things rise and fall; the pendulum-swing manifests in everything; the measure of the swing to the right is the measure of the swing to the left; rhythm compensates.”   

The universe operates in precise and predictable rhythms.  If you allow these rhythms to master you, then your moods and life will fluctuate up and down.   However, by mastering the rhythms, you become immune to downward turns in emotions or life experiences.

6. Cause and Effect:  “Every cause has its effect; every effect has its cause; everything happens according to Law; chance is but a name for Law not recognized.  There are many planes of causation but nothing escapes the Law.” 

This is a perfectly ordered Universe, and nothing happens by chance or accident.  There is always a cause behind every effect.  Life mastery occurs when you become a conscious cause of the effects you desire, instead of being carried along by the wills or desires of others.  You can use this principle to effect healings and manifestation.

7. Gender:   Gender is in everything; everything has its masculine and feminine principles;  gender manifests on all planes.”  

This principle isn’t referring to traditional male-female genders, as in human bodies.  It instead discusses masculine and feminine energies.  Each person has both energies within them, since the entire Universe is composed of both.  These energies are equally powerful and interdependent upon each other to form creations.  Female energy is magnetic and attracting.  Male energy is electric and creating.  Banishing (releasing) and attracting are the basis of divine magic.  To manifest, you must either attract your desire or create it.  To enjoy a steady flow of abundance, understand and work with the steady flow of giving and receiving…. as this principle teaches.

The Principles of Truth are Seven; he who knows these, understandingly, possesses the Magic Key before whose touch all the Doors of the Temple fly open.  The Kybalion