Conception Dictionary

Spiritualism Properly, the philosophy, religion, or pneumatological science held by those who believe in the universal spirit as the cosmic originant of all the hierarchies of evolving monads; its opposite is materialism. Spiritualism is "in philosophy, the state or condition of mind opposed to materialism or a material conception of things.

Theosophy, a doctrine which teaches that all which exists is animated or informed by the Universal Soul or Spirit, and that not an atom in our universe can be outside of this omnipresent principle -- is pure Spiritualism. As to the belief that goes under that name, namely, belief in the constant communication of the living with the dead, whether through the mediumistic powers of oneself or a so-called medium -- it is no better than the materialisation of spirit, and the degradation of the human and the divine souls. Believers in such communications are simply dishonouring the dead and performing constant sacrilege. It was well called 'Necromancy' in days of old" (TG 307).

The modern movement which began about the middle of the 19th century, mainly with the Fox sisters, embraces a large range of differing beliefs, so that any strictures directed against certain phases of it may justly be resented by those to whom such strictures do not apply. But the characteristic doctrine which identifies Spiritualism or astralism as such, is the belief that it is possible for the living to communicate with the departed spirits of the deceased. Theosophy, however, holds that at death the personality disintegrates, the individuality of the person passing into the devachanic state, while its lower components gradually fade out in the kama-loka. It is impossible to obtain communications with the ego in devachan, except when a purely impersonal love of one human being for another reaches into the devachanic condition and comes into spiritual rapport with the devachani. A far lower rapport may be established with the astral or kama-lokic remains which have been left behind to disintegrate in the lower regions of the astral light.

All the apparent proofs of identity of "spirit" can be accounted for otherwise than by supposing the actual presence of the departed individual in the seance room. Such communications as are received evince no knowledge beyond that which we already have, and show no signs of emanating from a high source -- and almost invariably such communications are trifling and paltry. Mediumship and seances are most harmful practice, as they open the door to the entry of pernicious obsessing influences from the lower astral realms. Moreover such practice may obstruct and retard the natural decomposition of the discarded lower elements of the deceased, and thus keep alive his kama-rupa beyond the term of its natural astral death. The appeal of astralism is very powerful to those who feel convinced that they have thereby obtained assurance of immortality and of the continued existence of their lost loved ones.

(See also: Spiritualism , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

nonhuman birth: The phenomenon of the soul being born as nonhuman life forms, explained in various scriptures.

For example, Saint Manikkavasagar's famous hymn (Tiruvasagam 8.14):

"I became grass and herbs, worm and tree. I became many beasts, bird and snake. I became stone and man, goblins and sundry celestials. I became mighty demons, silent sages and the Gods. Taken form in life, moveable and immovable, born in all, I am weary of birth, my Great Lord."

The Upanishads, too, describe the soul's course after death and later taking a higher or lower birth according to its merit or demerit of the last life (Kaush. U. 1.2, ‚hand. U. 5.35.10, Brihad. U. 6.2).

These statements are sometimes misunderstood to mean that each soul must slowly, in sequential order incarnate as successively higher beings, beginning with the lowest organism, to finally obtain a human birth. In fact, as the Upanishads explain, after death the soul, reaching the inner worlds, reaps the harvest of its deeds, is tested and then takes on the appropriate incarnation - be it human or nonhuman - according to its merit or demerit.

Souls destined for human evolution are human-like from the moment of their creation in the Sivaloka. This is given outer expression in the Antarloka and Bhuloka, on earth or other similar planets, as the appropriate sheaths are developed. However, not all souls are human souls. There are many kinds of souls, such as genies, elementals and certain Gods, who evolve toward God through different patterns of evolution than do humans.

One cause of unclarity is to confuse the previously mentioned scriptural passages with the theory of biological evolution developed by Charles Darwin (1809 -1882), which states that plant and animal species develop or evolve from earlier forms due to hereditary transmission of variations that enhance the organism's adaptability and chances of survival. These principles are now considered the kernel of biology. Modern scientists thus argue that the human form is a development from earlier primates, including apes and monkeys.

The Darwinian theory is reasonable but incomplete as it is based in a materialistic conception of reality that does not encompass the existence of the soul. While the Upanishadic evolutionary vision speaks of the soul's development and progress through reincarnation, the Darwinian theory focuses on evolution of the biological organism, with no relation to a soul or individual being.

See: evolution of the soul, kosha, reincarnation, soul.

(See also: Nonhuman birth , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Number People usually think of number as merely a varying multiplicity of units, a plurality of individuals, which is correct enough. Yet "Number lies at the root of the manifested Universe: numbers and harmonious proportions guide the first differentiations of homogeneous substance into heterogeneous elements; and number and numbers set limits to the formative hand of Nature" (Blavatsky) -- a strictly Pythagorean vision and conception.

Our reasoning minds lend a spurious reality to abstractions; and from this viewpoint the genuine realities appear in the guise of such abstraction. Number is such an apparent abstraction; we know it only by its effects in that world which seems to us so real, and of which we regard number as an attribute. Yet nothing can be more fundamental than number.

As Balzac said, number is an entity, a divinity; the creative Logos itself is called the Number, meaning number one, arising out of no-number or the zero. After this we have the duad, triad, etc. For the Pythagoreans number was a creative, emanationally formative power, and the Hebrew Sepher Yetsirah (Numbers of Creation) gives out the whole process of evolution in numbers, while in China the I Ching speaks of celestial numbers. All esoteric systems set great store by numbers -- some systems more so than others. For "we see the figures 1, 3, 5, 7, as perfect, because thoroughly mystic, numbers playing a prominent part in every Cosmogony and evolution of living Beings" (SD 2:35).

See also SEPHIROTH

(See also: Number , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

Koran al-Qur'an (Arabic) (from qara to read)

Book, reading; the holy scripture of Islam, regarded by Moslems as the word of God (Allah) as delivered to his prophet Mohammed. The Koran explains that in heaven there is the mother of the book, well concealed. Piece by piece it was sent down to the prophet by means of an angel, spirit, or the angel Gabriel. Mohammed issued these revelations serially, each one being called a reading (qur'an) or a writing (kitab), and each particular one was also called a sura (a series) -- a word now used for each section or chapter, of which there are 114.

Mohammed dictated these suras to his immediate followers, who memorized them. But when some of these original reciters had lost their lives in the conflicts which occurred after the death of Mohammed, Omar suggested to Caliph 'Abu-Bekr (the successor of Mohammed) that they be reduced to writing. The commission to collect as many as possible of the narrations or parts of the revelations was given to Zaid, a native of Medina who had often acted as an amanuensis to Mohammed. This collection became the first Koran, which Azid wrote down in Arabic. Some years later a second redaction was made and all previous parts or manuscripts were burned: Zaid dictated the work to four scribes, and these four copies have come down to our own day.

The contents of the Koran are varied both in style and material: a declaratory style predominates; denunciations abound; idolatry and deification of any beings or things are condemned -- especially in regard to the worship of Jesus as the son of God, although Jesus and Moses are both regarded as holy prophets. A similarity to the Jewish Bible is observable, even to attributing customs of the Jews to the Arabs. Allah is glorified as the one, all-powerful God, and Mohammed as his prophet. Believers receive special instruction, and terrible punishments are threatened for nonbelievers. The doctrines of heaven and hell in the Moslem conception are forcefully presented.

See also: Koran, al-Qur'an, Quran

(See also: Koran, al-Qur'an, Quran , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Trinity The divine powers at the head of every theogony. In the Christian Trinity, the original idea of a triune divinity is preserved but has become confused and adapted to theological speculation. If the Holy Ghost is regarded as feminine, as it was in primitive Christianity, we have the trinity of Father-Mother-Son.

The present manner of the procession of the Holy Ghost in the Occident is due to the early theological quarrels which was one of the main causes of the final rupture between the Greek Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Churches -- the filioque ("and from the son") controversy. The Orthodox held with the original procession of Father, Holy Ghost, and Son, while in the West the Holy Ghost or Spirit has become a kind of emanation from the Father or Son, or both of them, and is scarcely distinguishable in its attributes from the Son; while the place of Mother has been filled in the Roman Catholic Church by Mary who, though the mother of Jesus, nevertheless is not a member of the Trinity.

But there is another trinity besides that of Father-Mother-Son, that of the one divine root and its dual aspects -- a conception altogether lost in Christianity. The Christian God is at best but a Demiourgos or inferior creative power, and his necessary attributes clash irreconcilably with those pertaining to the supreme hierarch of our universe; but in many of the sayings of Jesus and in the Epistles of Paul is clear evidence of the true teachings as to the Trinity and the relation of the Father and the Son.

In the orthodox Christian view of its theological Trinity the three persons of the Godhead are not three gods but one God, and yet three Persons or individuals. So that we have one Godhead who is three-in-one, and yet one-in-three, which is not three gods, nor yet one God, but both. Moslems aver that the Christian Trinity is not one God in three aspects, but actually three gods manifesting as one, and the strict monotheism of Islam refuses to admit the logical monstrosity. The Christian Churches lost sight of the mystical origin of its own trinity out of the neo-Pythagorean and Neoplatonic mysticism.

All the great religious and philosophical systems of antiquity contained a divine or spiritual triadic unity as the cosmic source and focus of all beings and things, out of which emanate the universe and all that is in it. Examples are the Osiris-Isis-Horus of Egypt or the Brahma-Vishnu-Siva of India; yet these triads of gods are emanated reflections or representatives on lower planes of the still more sublime and ineffable triadic mystery above and beyond them.

(See also: Trinity , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

Conjunction A conjunction of two heavenly bodies occurs when, as seen from the earth, they are in the same ecliptic longitude, according to astrology; or in the same right ascension, according to astronomy. More than two bodies appearing in exact conjunction is an exceedingly rare occurrence. The planets and the sun and moon are usually considered, but the fixed stars may be included. Such conjunctions have always been held in astrology to indicate, prefigure, or cause important events and changes, and to mark the changes of cycles. The conjunctions of Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars together are specially mentioned. The conjunctions of the sun and moon are related to human and animal physiological conception. Also, the fact that the planetary orbits have nodes and apsides with their own periods of revolution, affords us material for the calculation of many longer periods.

See also ANNUS MAGNUS.

(See also: Conjunction , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Holy of Holies Equivalent to the Latin Sanctum sanctorum, referring to the sacred place in temples or churches from which all but the chief priest or hierophant were excluded. In pre-Christian times the ancient temples each had its especial sanctuary, in which was placed an altar or receptacle of some kind, be it ark, box, or some similar thing, perhaps even a sarcophagus.

The Holy of Holies in theory was the seat, residence, or sanctuary of the god or goddess to whom the temple had been consecrated; and piety always considered that the divine power was present there. A similar series of ideas clothes the chancel and its contained altar in Christian Churches even today.

The Holy of Holies, however, must not be confused with initiation chambers also contained in many temples and caves of antiquity, in which during the rites of initiation the neophyte entered, was initiated, and thereafter left the sacred precincts as reborn. In ancient Egypt the holy of holies par excellence of this latter type was the King's Chamber in the Great Pyramid; and the coffer there was the sarcophagus used for initiation purposes. The sarcophagus was symbolic of the female principle, as from the feminine principle of nature, as a mother, was born the new "child" or disciple, now become a twice-born. The idea of the twice-born was that the physical birth came from the human mother, while the mystic birth took place from the womb of nature, of which the initiation chamber was the emblem. Hence at a much later date arose the phallic idea of the Jews that the human female womb was the maqom (the place).

Although part of the Hindu ceremonies necessitated a passing through the golden cow, as an emblem of Mother Nature, the neophyte did this in the same stooping position that was done in passing through the gallery in the ancient pyramids of Egypt.

"The ceremony of passing through the Holy of Holies (now symbolized by the cow), in the beginning through the temple Hiranya gharba (the radiant Egg) -- in itself a symbol of Universal, abstract nature -- meant spiritual conception and birth, or rather the re-birth of the individual and his regeneration: the stooping man at the entrance of the Sanctum Sanctorum, ready to pass through the matrix of mother nature, or the physical creature ready to re-become the original spiritual Being, pre-natal Man" (SD 2:469-70).

Holy of Holies has a specific meaning in connection with the Jewish tabernacle, as explained in Exodus, referring to the inner part, the western division of the tabernacle. Three of the sides of the holy place were the walls of the tabernacle itself, while the fourth or eastern end of the sanctum was closed by a curtain or veil -- upon which were the figures of the cherubim -- suspended from four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold. The intention was to have this Holy of Holies in the shape of a perfect cube, the length, breath, and height being each ten cubits. In this sanctuary was placed the Ark of the Covenant or Testament, made of shittim wood overlaid with gold.

Upon the Ark was the golden mercy-seat (the kapporeth), also two golden cherubim facing towards the center. Instead of being a "sarcophagus (the symbol of the matrix of Nature and resurrection) as in the Sanctum sanctorum of the pagans, they had the ark made still more realistic in its construction by the two cherubs set up on the coffer or ark of the covenant, facing each other, with their wings spread in such a manner as to form a perfect yoni (as now seen in India). Besides which, this generative symbol had its significance enforced by the four mystic letters of Jehovah's name, namely ; or  meaning Jod (membrum Virile, see Kabala);  (He, the womb);  (Vau, a crook or a hook, a nail), and  again, meaning also 'an opening'; the whole forming the perfect bisexual emblem or symbol or Y(e)H(o)V(a)H, the male and female symbol" (SD 2:460). However, "the worship of the 'god in the ark' dates only from David; and for a thousand years Israel knew of no phallic Jehovah" (SD 2:469).

See also ARK

(See also: Holy of Holies , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Sephiroth (Hebrew, Jewish). The ten emanations of Deity; the highest is formed by the concentration of the Ain Soph Aur, or the Limitless Light, and each: Sephira produces by emanation another Sephira.

The names of the Ten Sephiroth are -

1.     Kether - The Crown;

2.     Chokmah - Wisdom;

3.     Binah - Understanding;

4.     Chesed- - Mercy;

5.     Geburah - Power;

6.     Tiphereth - Beauty;

7.     Netzach - Victory;

8.     Hod -  Splendour;

9.     Jesod_Foundation; and

10.  Malkuth - The Kingdom.

The conception of Deity embodied in the Ten Sephiroth is a very sublime one, and each Sephira is a picture to the Kabbalist of a group of exalted ideas, titles and attributes, which the name but faintly represents. Each Sephira is called either active or passive, though this attribution may lead to error; passive does not mean a return to negative existence; and the two words only express the relation between individual Sephiroth, and not any absolute quality.

(See also: Sephiroth , Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,)

Woman In philosophy, symbolizes the mother aspect of nature or feminine characteristic of the universe always found in the triads of Father-Mother-Son (changed in the Christian scheme to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost -- the Holy Spirit in primitive Christianity always being considered feminine). From time immemorial it has been customary to associate primordial spirit-substance, later becoming matter, with the cosmic feminine principle represented symbolically by a horizontal line); and spirit has always been associated with the masculine principle (represented by a vertical line); but the words feminine and masculine are merely borrowed from human beings, and the characteristics of originating cosmic principles were far better expressed by pairs of opposites such as negative and positive.

In cosmogenesis, the feminine principle is represented by the waters of space or great deep, often called the womb of nature. From this figure of speech was born the conception found in some ancient cosmogonies, such as the Hebrew, of the ark, containing all the germs of lives of a universe and pictured as resting or moving on the cosmic waters. Another symbol for the feminine principle was that of the lotus, which likewise rests upon the water, finally rising above it when it blossoms. One symbol of the universe in germ before any aspect of manifestation occurs is the matripadma or closed "mother lotus," before the cosmic blossom has been quickened by spirit into expanding into becoming the universe. It is also referred to as devamatri (the divine mother), the matrix from which all the suns and planets were born.

In the cosmogony of the Hebrew Qabbalah, the first Sephirah which emanates from latent divinity is at times represented as feminine; yet when this feminine emanation becomes creative it is then represented as conjoining masculine traits with its own, so that at this stage it is envisaged as masculine-feminine. This first spiritual emanation, emanating from itself the next phase of cosmogonical production, is termed the Shechinah, the mother of all the successively emanated Sephiroth. Thus the Shechinah is an echo of archaic Hindu cosmogonic speculation, corresponding to pradhana or prakriti.

In theosophic cosmogony space is often called the Great Mother before cosmic activity commences and, at the opening of manvantara, Father-Mother with space becomes emanative and is called svabhavat or mother-space. Svabhavat is the emanation from cosmic space or darkness -- so called because its utter and undiluted essential spirit is virtually beyond the reach of the light of mind as manifested in humanity.

Metaphors such as woman and mother are always symbolical when referring to motherhood, and have no associations with physical sex, for "esotericism ignores both sexes. Its highest Deity is sexless as it is formless, neither Father nor Mother; and its first manifested beings, celestial and terrestrial alike, become only gradually androgynous and finally separate into distinct sexes" (SD 1:136n). This was clearly understood originally, so that there was no degrading or misinterpreting of these figures of speech. With descending cycles, however, humanity's religious conceptions equally materialized: the key ideas having been forgotten or lost, abstractions became concreted into materializations, a masculine Creator or feminine Creatrix were then placed at the summit of the various pantheons, and early religious philosophy -- which was as scientific as it was religious and philosophical -- cast upon the background of the spatial universe images of human surroundings and way of life; so that the deities in the mythologies finally became human images, more powerful but equally swayed by passion, driven by impulse, and restricted by these even as human beings are. Such projection of human attributes into the cosmic spaces led to a still more materialized visioning of the divinities, so that the feminine or productive characteristics of nature in the popular religious mythologies finally gave way before the masculine, and the earlier, essentially beautiful idea of the mother of nature was swallowed up in the purely masculine traits of national divinities, many of them distinctly male and evil, such as the Jewish Jehovah, who waxed wroth and smelt the sweet savor of burnt sacrifices, or again the Greek Zeus swayed by ignoble passions.

"No exoteric religious system has ever adopted a female Creator, and thus woman was regarded and treated, from the first dawn of popular religions, as inferior to man. It is only in China and Egypt that Kwan-yin and Isis were placed on a par with the male gods" (SD 1:136n). The aspects of Isis, for instance, are familiar enough: as the mother with her child, and as the faithful spiritual consort of Osiris -- these were for easier understanding by the populace; but in the sanctuary Isis remained universal cosmic nature, the cosmic producing mother, the goddess whose veil of nature no mere human had ever raised. Plutarch recorded an inscription addressed to Isis: "I am everything which has been, and which is, and which shall be, and no one has ever drawn my veil" (De Iside at Osiride); to which were added "the fruit of my womb became the Sun" (Proclus, Commentary on the Timaeus, 1:82).

In China, however, the ideal cosmic feminine was named Kwan-yin, the mother of mercy and knowledge, what in Hindustan is called mahat or cosmic buddhi; she is called the triple of Kwan-shai-yin "because in her correlations, metaphysical and cosmical, she is the 'Mother, the Wife and the Daughter,' of the Logos, just as in the later theological translations she became 'the Father Son and (the female) Holy Ghost' -- the Sakti or Energy -- the Essence of the three" (SD 1:136).

With the Gnostics truth itself was portrayed as a disrobed divinity, every part of her cosmic form being numbered and lettered. This divine wisdom they called Sophia, virtually the same as the Qabbalistic Shechinah. Even in the modern Occident, instinct has determined that justice shall be pictured as feminine, as also liberty and peace. "The Gnostic Sophia, 'Wisdom' who is 'the Mother' of the Ogdoad . . . is the Holy Ghost and the Creator of all, as in the ancient systems. The 'father' is a far later invention. The earliest manifested Logos was female everywhere -- the mother of the seven planetary powers" (SD 1:72n).

(See also: Woman , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

Holy of Holies Equivalent to the Latin Sanctum sanctorum, referring to the sacred place in temples or churches from which all but the chief priest or hierophant were excluded. In pre-Christian times the ancient temples each had its especial sanctuary, in which was placed an altar or receptacle of some kind, be it ark, box, or some similar thing, perhaps even a sarcophagus.

The Holy of Holies in theory was the seat, residence, or sanctuary of the god or goddess to whom the temple had been consecrated; and piety always considered that the divine power was present there. A similar series of ideas clothes the chancel and its contained altar in Christian Churches even today.

The Holy of Holies, however, must not be confused with initiation chambers also contained in many temples and caves of antiquity, in which during the rites of initiation the neophyte entered, was initiated, and thereafter left the sacred precincts as reborn. In ancient Egypt the holy of holies par excellence of this latter type was the King's Chamber in the Great Pyramid; and the coffer there was the sarcophagus used for initiation purposes. The sarcophagus was symbolic of the female principle, as from the feminine principle of nature, as a mother, was born the new "child" or disciple, now become a twice-born. The idea of the twice-born was that the physical birth came from the human mother, while the mystic birth took place from the womb of nature, of which the initiation chamber was the emblem. Hence at a much later date arose the phallic idea of the Jews that the human female womb was the maqom (the place).

Although part of the Hindu ceremonies necessitated a passing through the golden cow, as an emblem of Mother Nature, the neophyte did this in the same stooping position that was done in passing through the gallery in the ancient pyramids of Egypt.

"The ceremony of passing through the Holy of Holies (now symbolized by the cow), in the beginning through the temple Hiranya gharba (the radiant Egg) -- in itself a symbol of Universal, abstract nature -- meant spiritual conception and birth, or rather the re-birth of the individual and his regeneration: the stooping man at the entrance of the Sanctum Sanctorum, ready to pass through the matrix of mother nature, or the physical creature ready to re-become the original spiritual Being, pre-natal Man" (SD 2:469-70).

Holy of Holies has a specific meaning in connection with the Jewish tabernacle, as explained in Exodus, referring to the inner part, the western division of the tabernacle. Three of the sides of the holy place were the walls of the tabernacle itself, while the fourth or eastern end of the sanctum was closed by a curtain or veil -- upon which were the figures of the cherubim -- suspended from four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold. The intention was to have this Holy of Holies in the shape of a perfect cube, the length, breath, and height being each ten cubits. In this sanctuary was placed the Ark of the Covenant or Testament, made of shittim wood overlaid with gold.

Upon the Ark was the golden mercy-seat (the kapporeth), also two golden cherubim facing towards the center. Instead of being a "sarcophagus (the symbol of the matrix of Nature and resurrection) as in the Sanctum sanctorum of the pagans, they had the ark made still more realistic in its construction by the two cherubs set up on the coffer or ark of the covenant, facing each other, with their wings spread in such a manner as to form a perfect yoni (as now seen in India). Besides which, this generative symbol had its significance enforced by the four mystic letters of Jehovah's name, namely ; or  meaning Jod (membrum Virile, see Kabala);  (He, the womb);  (Vau, a crook or a hook, a nail), and  again, meaning also 'an opening'; the whole forming the perfect bisexual emblem or symbol or Y(e)H(o)V(a)H, the male and female symbol" (SD 2:460). However, "the worship of the 'god in the ark' dates only from David; and for a thousand years Israel knew of no phallic Jehovah" (SD 2:469).

See also ARK

(See also: Holy Ghost , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Scorpio The scorpion; eighth sign of the zodiac, in astrology a watery, fixed sign, the night house of Mars. Its physiological correspondence in the human being is the organs of reproduction. Metaphysically, Scorpio stands for one of the four Maharajas of the four quarters and corresponds to the eagle of the four sacred animals. This sign originally formed part of Virgo-Scorpio, and was later made into a separate sign.

A curious medieval European representation of the zodiac, called Ezekiel's Wheel (cf IU 2:461-2), places Scorpio as equivalent to Adam-Eve. "The Adam of the first chapter is the spiritual, therefore pure androgyne, Adam Kadmon. When woman issues from the left rib of the second Adam (of dust), the pure Virgo is separated, and falling 'into generation,' or the downward cycle, becomes Scorpio, emblem of sin and matters" (IU 2:463).

It was alleged by ancient Hindu philosophers that the sun when located in this division of the zodiac is called Vishnu and relates to the 12th skandha of Bhagavata (12 Signs of the Zodiac). In other respects, Scorpio is intimately and even causatively connected with the human organs of reproduction and their functioning, because it is a spiritually and otherwise productive and generative sign -- functions which are primordially spiritual and which therefore have their reflection in all the lower hierarchical ranges emanating from the original spiritual productive power. Although Vishnu in other senses is looked upon as the sustainer or continuer, this is achieved by a constant efflux of productive or generative energy from the original cosmic power.

If the twelve sons of Jacob in the Hebrew scheme are made equivalent to the twelve signs of the zodiac, Dan is assigned to Scorpio; Dan is described as a serpent by the way, who bites the horse's heels and causes the rider to fall backward -- and one must here remember the role always ascribed in archaic occultism to the serpent: the Agathodaemon or the Kakodaemon, the serpent of wisdom and the serpent of evil.

In the Brahmanical zodiac Vrischika corresponds to Scorpio and its deity is Kamadeva, the Hindu god of love. "The sign in question properly signifies the Universe in thought or the universe in the divine conception.

"It is properly placed as the sign opposite to Rishabham [Taurus] or Pranava. Analysis from Pranava downwards leads to the Universe of Thought, and synthesis from the latter upwards leads to Pranava (Aum)" (12 Signs of the Zodiac).

(See also: Scorpio , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

Tara-daitya (Sanskrit) A daitya or danava described in the Puranas as practicing such severe spiritual and intellectual tapas as a yogi, that the gods feared lest he surpass them; therefore he was slain by Vishnu.

One is reminded of the Hebrew story in Genesis, where the 'elohim fear lest man, represented by Adam, should eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge and become like unto them. The conception behind these jealousies of divinities is a warning in popular form that while the noblest human duty is to become like the gods -- our spiritual parents -- yet before we can, we must have brought forth from within ourselves the divinity latent there, lest we bring disharmony and the selfish interests of the human material world into the serene and law-abiding cosmic spheres of the divinities.

(See also: Tara-daitya , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

Mana (Sanskrit) [from the verbal root man to think]

Opinion, conception, idea; also self-conceit, arrogance, pride (especially in the compound aham-mana). In Buddhism, one of the six evil feelings or one of the ten fetters to be discarded. As a neuter noun, consideration, respect, honor. In astrology the name of the tenth mansion or house.

Mana [from the verbal root ma to measure] as a masculine noun means dwelling, building, house; as a neuter noun, measuring, dimension, computation as of time; in philosophy, proof, demonstration.

See also PRAMANA

(See also: Mana , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

MANDRAKE

 There has long been an association of the mandrake root with magic; indeed in popular culture of a half century or more ago, there was a fictional comic strip character known as "Mandrake the Magician". Circe used the root in her brews and in Genesis 30:14 it figures as a love potion. However, it no longer seems to be especially psychedelic and unlike mushrooms or peyote cactus doesn't appear to offer much in the way of inner transformation or enlightenment. Perhaps botanical species evolve out of their human-bonding natures. The Chinese claim it to be a youth restorer, i.e. an aphrodisiac, and insist that when you pull it from the ground, it actually screams. It makes up a considerable portion of Chinese herbology, although they call it "ginseng."

Probably, we no longer understand how to use it properly, having been too long plied with substitutes for the real thing. It was common at one time for unscrupulous merchants to carve the quite similar bryony root into the shape of a mandrake root and sell it.

Our word, "mandrake", is merely the shortened form of the Greek Mandragoras. It was once believed to be an emetic, a pain-killer, an assistance to conception and a producer of drowsiness. John Allegro suggests that we can probably connect mandragoras to Nam-Tar-Agar, the Sumerian word for "the sacred mushroom", the same from which modern psychedelics derive.

(See also: MANDRAKE , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)

akasha: (sanskrit) "Space." The sky. Free, open space. Ether, the fifth and most subtle of the five elements - earth, air, fire, water and ether.

á      Empirically, the rarified space or ethereal fluid plasma that pervades the universes, inner and outer.

á      Esoterically, mind, the superconscious strata holding all that exists and all that potentially exists, wherein all happenings are recorded and can be read by clairvoyants.

I

t is through psychic entry into this transcendental akasha that cosmic knowledge is gathered, and the entire circle of time - past, present and future - can be known. Space, akasha, in this concept is a positive substance, filled with unseen energies and intelligences, in contrast with the Western conception that space is the absence of everything and is therefore nothing in and of itself. The Advayataraka Upanishad (2.1.17) describes five levels of akasha which can be yogically experienced:

á      guna rahita akasha (space devoid of qualities);

á      parama akasha (supreme space),

á      maha akasha (great space),

á      tattva akasha (space of true existence) and

á      surya akasha (space of the sun).

See: mind, (universal mind), psychic ability.

(See also: Akasha , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Krishna krsna (Sanskrit) Black, dark, dark blue; the most celebrated and eighth avatara of Vishnu. Hindus consider him their savior, and he is worshiped as the most popular of their gods. Krishna was born some 5000 years ago, the incarnated human spiritual power that closed the dvapara yuga -- his death in 3102 BC marked the beginning of kali yuga. He was the son of Devaki and the nephew of Kansa, who parallels King Herod.

The life of Krishna bears interesting and occasionally striking similarities to the legends of other spiritual teachers. The lives of all those great spiritual messengers were recorded by initiates in the language of symbol and allegory. Krishna's conception, birth, and childhood are in essentials a prototype of the New Testament story.

One portion of the Mahabharata, the Bhagavad-Gita, contains the teachings given by Krishna to Arjuna as his guide and spiritual instructor, teachings which are the quintessence of the highest yoga. The details of Krishna's life are symbolically given in the Puranas.

(See also: Krishna, krsna , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Twelve Steps (12-Step path, 12-Step program, 12-Step way): Theistic system that advances recovery from various addictions and compulsive behaviors. It involves meditation and prayer.

The 12-Step path of Alcoholics Anonymous emphasizes cultivating a relationship with one's conception of God, a Higher Power, a Creative Force, or a Oneness in the Universe.

(See also: Twelve Steps , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

Spiritualism. In philosophy, the state or condition of mind opposed to materialism or a material conception of things. Theosophy, a doctrine which teaches that all which exists is animated or informed by the Universal Soul or Spirit, and that not an atom in our universe can be outside of this omnipresent Principle - is pure Spiritualism.

As to the belief that goes under that name, namely, belief in the constant communication of the living with the dead, whether through the mediumistic powers of oneself or a

so-called medium - it is no better than the materialisation of spirit, and the degradation of the human and the divine, souls. Believers in such communications are simply dishonouring the dead and performing constant sacrilege. It was well called "Necromancy" in days of old. But our modern Spiritualists take offence at being told this simple truth.

(See also: Spiritualism , Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,)

Your personal constitution, which is your individual metabolic make-up, helps determine how your mind and body will instinctively react when confronted with and how much effect any stimulus, as a specific taste or emotion, will have on you. This inborn metabolic pattern is called Prakriti. The personality traits most prized or the qualities disliked all equally arise from these tendencies inherent in your prakriti.

Determined by the doshic state of your parents at the time of your conception, your constitution is influenced by your parents' genetics also. And once set along with the tendencies, it cannot be altered. However, one can learn to adjust so as to reduce distortions, prevent imbalances and treat them when necessary. Also learn the whys and hows of dealing with others. Knowing your own constitution thus allows you to understand the workings of your mind and body better, thereby allowing greater control over the traits through planned and adequate changes incorporated into your lifestyle.

(See also: Know yourself , Ayurveda, Ayurvedic Dictionary, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Zeus (Greek) Chief of the manifested gods of the Greek pantheon, represented in poetic and mythologic story as throned in the heavens, gathering the clouds and refreshing the earth with rains and winds, also sending storms and lightning, his chief weapon being the thunderbolt with which he strikes those who work against his will.

Zeus, in the conception of the ancient Greek philosophers who nearly all were initiate-thinkers, was not the highest god. It was because all public mention of the cosmic hierarch was forbidden that Homer omitted to mention this first principle, and even the secondary, the Chaos and Aether of Orpheus and Hesiod, commencing his cosmogony with Night, which Zeus reverences -- Night here being equivalent to the Hindu pradhana-prakriti.

Zeus was not always portrayed as the ineffable cosmic principle, as in the dramas of Aeschylus, especially in his trilogy on Prometheus. "In the case of Prometheus, Zeus represents the Host of the primeval progenitors, of the pitar, the 'Fathers' who created man senseless and without any mind; while the divine Titan stands for the Spiritual creators, the devas who 'fell' into generation. The former are spiritually lower, but physically stronger, than the 'Prometheans': therefore, the latter are shown conquered. 'The lower Host, whose work the Titan spoiled and thus defeated the plans of Zeus,' was on this earth in its own sphere and plane of action; whereas, the superior Host was an exile from Heaven, who had got entangled in the meshes of matter. They (the inferior 'Host') were masters of all the Cosmic and lower titanic forces; the higher Titan possessed only the intellectual and spiritual fire. This drama of the struggle of Prometheus with the Olympic tyrant and despot, sensual Zeus, one sees enacted daily within our actual mankind: the lower passions chain the higher aspirations to the rock of matter, to generate in many a case the vulture of sorrow, pain, and repentance" (SD 2:421-2). This inferior host is the various classes of the lunar pitris; whereas the higher host, collectively represented by Prometheus, is the aggregate of the agnishvatta-pitris or agni-dhyanis.

Again, "between Zeus, the abstract deity of Grecian thought, and the Olympic Zeus, there was an abyss. . . . Zeus was the human soul and nothing more, whenever shown yielding to his lower passions, -- the jealous God, revengeful and cruel in its egotism or I-am-ness" (SD 2:419). In another aspect Zeus is the deity of the fourth root-race, while his father, Kronos, represents the third root-race.

Some of the deities in the Greek pantheon were often represented in a hermaphrodite aspect, thus Zeus is occasionally depicted with female breasts; while one of the Orphic hymns, which was sung during the Mysteries, says: "Zeus is a male, Zeus is an immortal maid."

The Latin Jupiter was equivalent to the Greek Zeus, so that the following citation refers to both deities: "The four-fold Jupiter, as the four-faced Brahma -- the aerial, the fulgurant, the terrestrial, and the marine god -- the lord and master of the four elements, may stand as a representative for the great cosmic gods of every nation. While passing power over the fire to Hephaistos-Vulcan, over the sea, to Poseidon-Neptune, and over the Earth, to Pluto-Aidoneus -- the aerial Jove was all these; for AEther, from the first, had pre-eminence over, and was the synthesis of, all the elements" (SD 1:464).

Zeus, as the Father of the Gods, was Aether itself, and hence by the Greeks was sometimes called Zeus-Zen, precisely as the Latin races called Jupiter Pater Aether (father ether).

(See also: Zeus , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

Honey, Honey-dew Used by some ancient writers as a symbol for wisdom, the idea being that just as the bees (emblem of initiates) gather nectar or honey (knowledge) from the flowers (of life) and digest it into honey, so are the experiences of human life stored in the memory, and the knowledge so garnered is digested into wisdom. The priestesses of certain Greek temples were called Melissai (bees).

In the ancient Scandinavian conception of the World Tree (Yggdrasil), the dew that fell from this cosmic tree was called honey-dew, and was gathered by the bees -- the initiates who through successes in passing the rites are enabled to bring themselves into synchronous harmony with the different cosmic powers and planes, and thus become channels or interpreters of cosmic wisdom to humanity.

The idea is akin to the real meaning of the ambrosia of the ancient Greeks, which was the food of the gods -- standing for the ancient wisdom.

(See also: Honey, Honey-dew , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)