Michael Sternbach

Yes indeed. Phrasing a question a certain way may facilitate interpretation of the Yijing's response. However, the answer will always be in there regardless.

...and us from them, as they are wearing masks too. Continuously driving home the belief that we all are prone to be helpless victims of a stray bug. This is a disempowering precept indeed... Both for "us" and for "them".

Personally, I put my mask on where it's mandatory to wear one and rip it off the moment I leave that kind of zone. I don't need a potentially harmful vaccine, thanks. I trust my natural immunity, no matter what the fear mongers would have me believe. As a matter of fact, in every epidemic, only a part of the exposed individuals are actually being infected. Now I realize not everybody is a sage. I don't look down on people volunteerily wearing masks and taking other precautions. I understand how they feel, for I have once been there myself. If they wish to play by those rules imparted by medical orthodoxy, well, that's their own choice and business, at the end of the day. Everybody bears the responsibility for what they choose to believe and energize themselves, in my view. That said, I wish there was a greater understanding that fear is not only the mind killer (Dune), but also the immunity killer. Whereas faith in our natural resistance and health boosts it big time. Additionally, while the world holds its breath waiting for pharma industry to bestow us with a vaccine or remedy, nature provides us with so many ways to avoid infection in the first place as well as to treat it in those cases in which it manifests itself.

Hi Bums, I just came across a quote from Barbara Marciniak, a metaphysical author I have known and appreciated for many years. Written back in 2005, the following words from her "Path of Empowerment" seem to be highly relevant to the current 'pandemic panic', once we are ready to look behind the scenes: This is not to say that (as some claim) covid-19 doesn't exist. I present this simply as an encouragement to look at the deeper issues at work. A view based on fear and pessimism can only aggravate the existing situation...

I suggest that you study all spiritual systems that appeal to you in one way or another and take from each whatever may satisfy a need or answer a question. Much like a painter chooses from their palette whatever colour serves to complete the picture they have before them. Except that in this case, the picture that you are painting is yourself in your unmistakable uniqueness... Your individuality in its highest unfolding. And the path that leads you there must be your very own as well: For it's a path that you alone can recognize and know how to tread. And only you carry the responsibility for every step you take! Isn't it amazing that every religion that we know of has been created by an individual walking such a path to their own fulfillment? Freely perusing whatever preexisting philosophies and methods they found in their time and place. Best of luck on your journey! Michael

Oh. So may I ask, what are you "into"? I always imagined those notorious three girlfriends you had at one time were kind of pretty...

Well...

Oh bother! Soon you will start educating me on that Mantak Chia retaining stuff that newbies frequently start threads on because they got in trouble with it!

I am glad... It seems like you caught my drift!* *A drift is part of the blacksmithing process where a pin is hammered into a formed, forged hole (as in a hinge hole which will accommodate a hinge-pin). ... This pin is usually caught or retrieved by a blacksmith's apprentice. Thus, the specific phrase “catch my drift” could well come from this process.

F***! Only five times in one night?! I'd rather raise my bar on that!

Right. And yet nothing is left undone.

Daoism influenced Zen in the latter's emphasis on accepting things in their "suchness" - that is, not labelling them as either good or bad. "To enter the Buddha Way is to stop discriminating between good and evil and to cast aside the mind that says this is good and that is bad." A Primer of Soto Zen: A Translation of Dogen's Shobogenzo Zuimonki "When everyone in the world sees beauty, Then ugly exists. When everyone sees good, Then bad exists." Dao De Jing, chapter 2 In conjunction with this kind of philosophical outlook, both Daoism and Zen teach doing away with the complexities caused by social conditioning and returning to one's original "child-like" nature. In regards to practical methodology, zazen practice with its emphasis on developing the Lower Dantien (Tanden in Japanese) can be seen, in part, as a simplified version of certain Daoist approaches to chi cultivation.

Well, I always considered it important to keep my personal space clear from intrusion. I would also come to the aid of a handful of individuals that I feel connected to. Would I be ready intervene beyond that? It depends... Nothing wrong with protecting some innocent beings in need. For that matter, I occasionally donate moderate amounts to organizations whose purpose is to help animals. And I find myself most inclined to do so, when I am told exactly to what end the money is going to be used, be it for the street dogs in Romania or some bears kept in a cage under horrific circumstances... That makes things more personal for me. However, beyond giving some advice when it's solicited, I avoid getting involved in things that only concern others and especially people that have their own share in creating a particular situation. Now a ladyfriend of mine is of a somewhat different mind. When we had a car in front of us racing over the highway at breakneck speed and (in her view) with little control, she was about to call the cops. But I told her, 'hey, chill, my dear, that's not our problem... Just keep enough distance between us and them, so you can still stop in case that car is going to hit the wall'. And she listened to me and let it go its way. On another occasion, she got worked up about a guy who had received a 'corona credit' allegedly for his company but used privately for buying a Lamborghini. "Why do you care?", I asked her. "That's not really hurting anyone, is it?" She replied: "I am a member of the company's supervisory board... If I don't sue the idiot, I will be in trouble myself!" "Well, I wouldn't put myself in such a position in the first place", I said. To this, she first objected for a moment; then she admitted I was right. Now this lady typically feels victimized by circumstances seemingly beyond her control. And I watch her and can't help wondering why she has taken those circumstances upon herself in the first place? Is she perhaps seeking out challenges in the outer world to calm her inner demon down? Every so often, when we attack others (however justified we may feel to do so), aren't we in truth attacking our own projections? Bottom line: Sometimes our actions may be "karmic", even though they serve some good. Sometimes they are not "karmic", even though they may seem improper in the conventional view. And only the kind of wisdom that takes the bigger picture into account can tell one from the other.

This led me to question: What do we mean when we talk about "the world"? Many cultivators feel they are "not made for this world" - implying that they are experiencing difficulty dealing with certain aspects of it. What are those aspects, though? What exactly is that we feel at odds with? Society? Our culture? Our own body? Physical reality as such? Can we actually draw a line where "we" end and "the world" begins? I think the answer to these questions really matter. For instance, I may be feeling alienated from of society (or certain parts thereof), while still having confidence in my ability to deal with the physical environment that surrounds me. Just some early morning thoughts...

Michael, I would try homeopathy with an experienced practitioner if I were you. It heals all kinds of things that conventional medicine can't deal with well. IME. Be free to PM me if you want to learn more. Cheers

Apech, I agree with your view of physical experience essentially being about about learning lessons. Simply because every so often that is the view that makes the most sense and that is the most helpful. However, sometimes the lesson seems to be not to f***ing care about lessons and just enjoy living!

That's okay. It might just be a side effect of your experiments with mercury. Oh, so making a magic mirror is what this is all about. I was thinking alchemy, however, as you know all hermetic sciences/arts are interrelated, and a similar recipe can indeed be found already in Hellenistic alchemy. Neither would I - the classical seven are doing fine standing on their own. But if you do wish to extend the formula to include a metal representing Uranus, then what about Neptune and Pluto (as well as hypothetical further 'outers')? I surely agree to this. Generally speaking, the origin of an information is of little consequence in the occult sciences, what matters is its ongoing viability and applicability. Too bad Jack ripped himself into pieces that way . Does that make him Jack the Ripper? Anyway... RIP, Jack!

Hi Nungars Which alchemist suggested adding bismuth to Paracelsus' Electrum Magnum? Is he the very same one who provided that recipe you shared? The only modern alchemist that comes to mind ascribing a central role to Bismuth is Archarion. Not sure if he has been translated to English. Traditionally sometimes metallic Antimony was seen in a similar light like the seven planetary metals, however - representing planet Earth. And Bismuth is really similar to Antimony - in fact, its name may have been derived from the Arabic name for Antimony (although it should be mentioned that that is not the only theory as to the origin of its name). The recipe you gave is rather interesting. I would suggest using an infrared thermometer for monitoring the changing temperature. And do make sure you attempt this only in a well ventilated place, better yet under a fume hood. Those mercuric fumes are nothing you want to mess with!

I actually didn't get that far, as I was stuck with the image of the lotus. It grows from the muddy ground (earth) through the water towards the air and Sun (fire). This can be seen as a symbol for the gradual transformation of "low emotions" to "high emotions", in keeping with the gradual alchemical transformation I have spoken about above. With reference to this, it also seems telling that the chakras are often symbolized by lotus flowers whose petals (hopefully) open as the result of transformational processes. From this we also learn that higher frequencies of emotion are associated with light and spirit, lower frequencies with darkness and matter (read: materialism). The alchemical process is to ever turn one into the other.

Nunga, First off, an after-thought (or two) on your previous post: Well, didn't Crowley say somewhere in the Book of Thoth that Anubis is actually another form of Thoth (Hermes)? Comes to mind that the Greek words 'aer' and 'aether' are in fact related to each other. Nevermind. I forgot my comment on it too! Yup squared? Wow, I am really overwhelmed by this kind of agreement! Ok, now to your latest post in reply to me: As well as in SO many forum debates! I did make an attempt to overlay the Tree of Life with your astrological scheme, but I did not get very far... The sephiroth just don't seem to match up with the positions of the planets in the latter! On another note, while I can see how Venus and Mars may represent our instinctive drives working through our 'lunar' unconscious mind, your model implies that Jupiter and Saturn stand in a similar relationship to our 'solar' conscious mind. Now this does make sense in certain terms, but do you have any thoughts to share on this? Sure. Just like the signs of the zodiac can be divided into diurnal and nocturnal ones, so can the classical planets. Here, Jupiter and Saturn, along with the Sun, are considered diurnal - note that all these, unbeknownst to the ancients who came up with the theory, are gaseous bodies! Venus and Mars, along with the Moon, are of nocturnal nature - and hey, all these consist of solid rock! Only Mercury - always the odd ball - can be either diurnal or nocturnal, depending on whether he rises before or after the Sun (i.e., if he is on an earlier or later degree of the zodiac than the latter). This doctrine (almost forgotten in modern astrology) was traditionally commonly used to help determine a planet's strength in a chart, depending on whether its own nature was or wasn't in line with the nature of the chart overall, that is, with its being a 'day chart' or a 'night chart' (the Sun being above or below the horizon respectively). But little has been said by the classical authors about the implications of the two planetary types in terms of psychological functions (which was not exactly astrology's strength in pre-Jungian days)... And that's where the scheme you worked out really seems to come in handy, even including Mercury's ambivalent position in it.

Mercury is generally seen not as representing any of the four elements but as being 'quintessential' or belonging to ether, the 'fifth element'. Whereas from another perspective he has affinity with the air element, so that seems to be a pretty good match. Also, fire, water and air are the 'three kabbalistic mothers'. Is there another, but inverted triangle in your model - whose top line horizontally connects Jupiter and Saturn, with the Sun in its centre and (perhaps) sharing Mercury with the other triangle on the bottom? Sun, Jupiter and Saturn are considered the diurnal bodies (within the visible solar system) in traditional astrology.

Your mention of the Splendor Solis is interesting. The alchemical trinity presented in this and many other books is comprised by the polarity of the Sun and the Moon plus Mercury as a third and mediating element. Here is one version of plate 1: The depictions of the Sun and the Moon are obvious enough in this illustration, Mercury is symbolized by the figures standing on top of the frame (winged calves!). Now, running from memory, I think this ties in rather nicely with your 'astro tree' model of the unconscious and the conscious mind and the mediating agent between them? And of course, it goes without saying that the Serpent Staff of Hermes (aka Mercury) is all about the union and balance of the solar with the lunar 'power'. Which in turn is linked to the chakra system: Anybody who wants to know more about the three spinal channels as they relate to the polar forces of the Sun and the Moon - and their balance - should refer to Avalon's classic The Serpent Power. I do think it's quite amazing how all these concepts line up with and supplement each other, given a certain perspective.

Just happened to come across this song... Found it talks about the ancient art of alchemy and how she would feel about what people made out of her over the ages...

All these are representative of the same trinity in my view. And there are yet more analogous expressions of it throughout various metaphysical systems. In Christian terms, the Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit corresponds with it.

Moreover, as (quoting the linked text) what we are dealing with here essentially seems to be the same trinity again that I introduced above, based on Platonism, with its three distinct levels of matter, soul (pneuma) and spirit!