Sources of Power
Although broadly speaking, Power surrounds everything and everyone, mastering it — that is, channeling it from the undifferentiated Ocean of vital Power into an individual stream of conscious power — is the principal task both of incarnation in general and of the Magical Ways.
Moreover, if a being wishes to transcend the limits of an inefficient mode of functioning — to embark on the Way of Magic, the Way of Freedom — it encounters a sharp problem: a lack of Power even to take the very first step in that direction.
We have already said that Tradition solves this problem by organizing the flow of Power into so-called Magical Chains, which originate in the Spring of Power of highly realized beings — gods or Enlightened Masters — and transmit the initial surplus of Power necessary to break the chains of the consumer world from one link to another. It is precisely such an initial impulse that provides the momentum required to overcome the First Abyss.
At the same time, maintaining the Chain is of immense importance — Power received from outside but not passed on can turn from help into shackles, and neglecting the Source of Power, severing the connection, deprives Power of free flow.
In other words, for Power to flow freely along a Chain without binding its carriers or turning against them, every participant in that Chain must be its transparent conduit, remembering where they received Power from and where they must pass it on.
If a student, having received an infusion of Power from a Master, either pretends that the Master is merely a ‘conduit’ through which Power reached them, or refuses to pass Power on to their own student, the Vessel becomes overfilled, with all the risk of cracking or even shattering.
When Tradition warns students of the danger of ingratitude, it is less concerned with preserving the “status” of Masters than with the safety and effectiveness of the students themselves.
Likewise, when speaking of the necessity to pass Power on further, the point is, above all, a necessary stage in the Master’s development.
Even when the Magus has progressed far along the Way and has learned to generate energy independently, he must never forget the source of his Power. This does not apply only to Masters. It concerns places that can provide Power, books or films that acted as catalysts in one’s progress, or some pivotal events that helped one move forward on the Way of realization.
In effect, the higher the transparency, the more spring-like the traveler’s mind, and the more freely and without delay Power flows through them, the more effective his progress; the fewer the murky and dark regions of the mind where predators and parasites may nest.
It is well known that any stagnant spring will eventually silt up and may dry out. In the same way, the condition for the flow of Power is an unbroken contact between the preceding and succeeding links of its transmission. And just as each Monadic nature, being a kind of Absolute, reaches its full actualization in the pleromic unity of the cosmos, so each embodied being in the chain of Power transmission reaches maximal effectiveness.
Of course, this movement is not without destructive forces, and it would be strange if everything were so smooth and easy.
Finding the threshold that separates integration into the Chain from integration into an Egregore is in fact quite difficult.
At the same time, the former gives freedom, while the latter makes one a slave, even though it confers a feeling of security.
The single most important condition for avoiding absorption into an egregore is the same transparency in the flow of Power. An Egregore always leaves something “outside the picture”; it conceals its predatory nature, and to do so it needs shadows and hiding places. Accordingly, an Egregore always requires dogmas, “blind trust,” and untestable axioms. Magic, by contrast, rests primarily on the voice of the heart and on verifying every idea and concept by personal experience. Accordingly, the Magus must avoid any dogmatism, accept into his practice only what resonates with him, and neither accept nor reject blindly any ideas or methods without testing them personally for effectiveness and compatibility with his personal Way.
Thus, by remembering his sources, accumulating and passing Power along the Chain, and at the same time avoiding its being vampirized by anyone, the Magus gains a chance to slip ‘between two fires’ into a genuine and effective mode of existence.
Again these first step and first abyss – complete intrigue.
No one wants to let go of the tasty cutlet. Predators will squeal, get angry, bite, hate, and convince the naive traveler of his absolute correctness. I want to say thank you to my Teacher, without him I would have had no chance of walking my Path, seeing my distractors, and becoming who I have become. I think there’s no such chance in the future either.
Are you saying that without a teacher, attempts to walk the path of freedom and knowledge will be futile?
Without a teacher, attempts to walk the path of freedom and knowledge will be suicidal. There must be an authority, a teacher, an image, a Creator to whose qualities Creation would appeal. Without this authority, attempts to hold onto the path of freedom and knowledge will be futile.
An obligatory condition is the intention to go. Without it, the Teacher is unheard.
And if there is intention, but no Teacher (person), what remains? Search? Choose another path? Use books and films? Thank you in advance for the answers.
I really admire Enmerkar’s attitude towards Teachers and students; I am thrilled. I dream of participating in Enmerkar’s seminars again. At the seminar of the Circle of Veles, Enmerkar used during the process of hunting for power, and told a story of his that I remembered. And appropriated for himself :). If allowed, I will lay out my understanding. A teacher should not tell a student to feel this or that. The student enlightens themselves and gains experience. The teacher only provides pushes of power and protects from falling when they deem it necessary. But in no way do they expect devotees. Ultimately, the root of each student originates from God. And the student’s task is to independently uncover from what God they are and choose which emanation of God to represent in embodiment on Earth. To be a representative of God is a great responsibility. It exists in understanding and manifestations, not in the mania of grandeur that is encountered everywhere among teachers as well as students. Thank you, Enmerkar, for your work.
“, and told a story of his that I remembered. And appropriated for himself :).” This is not my mania of grandeur. Your approach is close to me, pleasant, and understandable.
Brighter, any attempts are always better than simply lying on the couch. Yes, the results may not be noticeable to you right away… yes, going alone is long and not easy… just go, don’t give up. And believe me, as much as that phrase may seem trite to you – ‘The Teacher appears when the student is ready’, it is indeed true… in about 90% of cases 🙂
Brighter, do you want to hear the Teacher? Free your consciousness, leaving only fire and ice. Become transparent, let the Flow flow through you.
I think not everything is so categorically defined, otherwise the first among the first would not have traveled their path :)) Attempts to maintain on the path of knowledge can and should be made by anyone who follows this path, regardless of whether they currently have a teacher or not. Everything is individual. The colossal source and vector of your strength lie within you. If you become a friend to yourself, you will never be alone.
Every time I read your articles, I mentally thank you, Enmerkar. With your help, it is much easier to understand even the most complex things. You help overcome the difficulties of the Path. Thank you once again.
Thank you, Enmerkar, for your works, for reading them adds to my Clarity
Here’s what’s interesting, in my opinion. When a person steps onto the Path, there regularly arises a desire to abandon the previous segments of life, so to speak, ‘leave the past in the past’, ‘let go of the burden of mistakes’, ‘start a new life’, and many similar variations. At the same time, a paradox arises (essentially, a destructor): seemingly, the person has been reborn from the ashes, and nothing prevents them from moving forward to new and new achievements, but not so fast. It turns out that when we renounce the days and events we have lived through, attributing them to ‘mistakes of youth’, we simultaneously cut off those sources of Strength that, in fact, have led us to the conscious decision to walk Our Path. In our past, be it received advice, a film seen, a book read, a personal insight (or anything else individually different), lies the conditions of our present victories. And consequences without causes do not occur (nothing emerges from nothing). Ancient wisdom was not in vain when they said that a person who starts a new life every day is pitiful. It is important not to forget that we, who we are now, have been forged by our preceding actions and judgments, and the opportunities to achieve set goals arose from the sources of strength gained along this path.
Maybe I am slightly going beyond the topic of the article, but nonetheless. You wrote nothing about the nature of the source of Power, which creates the feeling that Power is Power, regardless of its source.
Could you comment on the situation when, for example, a person is born strongly connected to the sefirah Geburah and Martian energies (without discussing why he was born this way). And he receives a lot of Power from the destruction of something. Do you consider this to be quite normal and it is his nature, or do you lean towards the opinion that these are manifestations of predation? I am interested in your opinion because based on your other articles, it creates the impression that you lean towards the second option. But that would be thinking for you.
Power – awareness – is a product of induction. And it always carries the imprint, resolvable, of what induced it. And this sometimes almost imperceptible imprint, nevertheless, often determines the direction of further unfolding of consciousness. And regarding the described situation – not every destruction gives Power. Only that destruction which frees up space for something new and more valuable than what has outlived its time – can serve for development.
“Only that destruction which frees up space for something new and more valuable than what has outlived its time – can serve for development.”
Every destruction somehow frees up space for something new. But how valuable it will be. I don’t know, in my opinion, this is somewhat incorrect – an erupting volcano does not “think” about how much new animals/birds/plants/cities will be more valuable than the old ones. It simply erupts.
That’s right, but an erupting volcano does not strive to cause harm. Among people, especially in a demonized environment, destruction for the sake of destruction, that is, a destructive impulse, is often encountered, and such aspirations, even if they ultimately serve a good goal, harm those who produce them.
And what is the purpose of the photo with Israel Regardie and Charles Cicero in this article?