I posted this before in debates but it was completely ignored. Opinions probably would have sucked anyways haha. So...
I am wondering if we can bring Hermeticism into the current day and age. Now I understand both that plenty of people are still convinced such things as angels, demons, divinagion, etc objectively exist just as I'm aware plenty of people find use of occult practices silly, immature, and unnecessary. So, let's look at some Hermetic beliefs.
1) There is an "all" that transcends all forms of theism, in which every aspect of reality participates.
2) Within this reality things exist such as angels, demons, elementals, etc.
3) There is a single truth given to man by God in antiquity.
4) "As above, so below", what happens on one plane of existence happens on all others. Man is the microcosm of the universe and the universe is the macrocosm.
5) Practice of alchemy is crucial. Not just the transmutation of lead to gold but understanding the process of transformation, how to bring a natural body top perfection.
6) Astrology, that the movements of the planets hold more meaning than the physical, they are symbols in the mind of God.
7) Theurgy, simply put is ritual magic.
Sadly, the rest gets into reincarnation, morality, and creation stories belonging to all religions. I don't want to vet into this, but I'd like to translate the above ideas into supportive psychological ideology under which a level headed and rational person can fall under the category of Hermetic in this day and age.
1) This just translates to an interconnectedness of the universe. Not even necessarily in a mystical way. What happens on the universe around us certainly affects our lives, our mind is not creating the world around us. This would be a healthy view because not only can it help us look outside our minds but belief in objective reality is needed for any real evolution in human understanding. Hell, science itself is meaningless without belief in objective reality.
2) In a way these things do exist. We would be lying or ignorant to say otherwise. These things exist within the human mind. No, it's not exactly the same as them objectively existing but it is still important. First off, these beliefs severely influence how many view the world. They have a great psychological impact. I mean belief has a great power over the mind, and as long as belief in them lasts they must be treated as more than the unicorns and fairies they are ignorantly and bigotedly compared to.
3) Simply there is one objective reality. However this must work fluidly with #2 as BELIEF / psychology is an aspect of objective reality.
4) Twofold. Firstly we are a creation of the universe, for each individual we really are the microcosm. By understanding the universe we can understand ourselves, our place, etc. Secondly, as stated already what we do affects the universe and what the universe does affects us. We are not separate from the universe. The smallest - largest event has some effect on the universe, even if not measurable or considered unimportant.
5) What negative can be found in seeking internal balance / peace and one's own ideal of self perfection?
6) Tougher but look at it like this: no, god may not exist and no, the movement of the stars has contains no secret knowledge. But this concept asks us to realize the importance of symbolism to the mind, and the power they contains. We can use personal symbolism to empower ourselves as well as affect those around this. Also ties into #2.
7) A simple mix of #6 and #7 as well as trying to affect the world around us. You can call magic(k) immature or whatever you want but it does get results.
Thoughts?
I am wondering if we can bring Hermeticism into the current day and age. Now I understand both that plenty of people are still convinced such things as angels, demons, divinagion, etc objectively exist just as I'm aware plenty of people find use of occult practices silly, immature, and unnecessary. So, let's look at some Hermetic beliefs.
1) There is an "all" that transcends all forms of theism, in which every aspect of reality participates.
2) Within this reality things exist such as angels, demons, elementals, etc.
3) There is a single truth given to man by God in antiquity.
4) "As above, so below", what happens on one plane of existence happens on all others. Man is the microcosm of the universe and the universe is the macrocosm.
5) Practice of alchemy is crucial. Not just the transmutation of lead to gold but understanding the process of transformation, how to bring a natural body top perfection.
6) Astrology, that the movements of the planets hold more meaning than the physical, they are symbols in the mind of God.
7) Theurgy, simply put is ritual magic.
Sadly, the rest gets into reincarnation, morality, and creation stories belonging to all religions. I don't want to vet into this, but I'd like to translate the above ideas into supportive psychological ideology under which a level headed and rational person can fall under the category of Hermetic in this day and age.
1) This just translates to an interconnectedness of the universe. Not even necessarily in a mystical way. What happens on the universe around us certainly affects our lives, our mind is not creating the world around us. This would be a healthy view because not only can it help us look outside our minds but belief in objective reality is needed for any real evolution in human understanding. Hell, science itself is meaningless without belief in objective reality.
2) In a way these things do exist. We would be lying or ignorant to say otherwise. These things exist within the human mind. No, it's not exactly the same as them objectively existing but it is still important. First off, these beliefs severely influence how many view the world. They have a great psychological impact. I mean belief has a great power over the mind, and as long as belief in them lasts they must be treated as more than the unicorns and fairies they are ignorantly and bigotedly compared to.
3) Simply there is one objective reality. However this must work fluidly with #2 as BELIEF / psychology is an aspect of objective reality.
4) Twofold. Firstly we are a creation of the universe, for each individual we really are the microcosm. By understanding the universe we can understand ourselves, our place, etc. Secondly, as stated already what we do affects the universe and what the universe does affects us. We are not separate from the universe. The smallest - largest event has some effect on the universe, even if not measurable or considered unimportant.
5) What negative can be found in seeking internal balance / peace and one's own ideal of self perfection?
6) Tougher but look at it like this: no, god may not exist and no, the movement of the stars has contains no secret knowledge. But this concept asks us to realize the importance of symbolism to the mind, and the power they contains. We can use personal symbolism to empower ourselves as well as affect those around this. Also ties into #2.
7) A simple mix of #6 and #7 as well as trying to affect the world around us. You can call magic(k) immature or whatever you want but it does get results.
Thoughts?