In an effort to demonstrate that no idea is big enough to explain existence, Buckminster Fuller once described the universe as “non-simultaneously apprehended”. As the universe is not experienced all at once, but sequentially through space-time, we would need to apprehend all phenomena simultaneously (including that which hasn’t occurred yet) in order to account for the entire universe. As simultaneous apprehension is impossible, so too is a theory that explains everything.

This spells bad news for theories that already claim to account for everything, such as every religion and philosophy previous to postmodernism.

The idea that there is no such thing as absolute truth is a central belief of postmodern magic, and although Fuller’s ‘non-simultaneously apprehended universe’ has been used in the past to validate this idea, it is largely pioneering research in the fields of Transactional Psychology and Quantum Physics that informs the postmodern magical worldview.

Postmodern thought has made a number of significant contributions to a freer, less dogmatic world. For instance, there’s constructivism, the idea that many of our perceptions of the world are created by ourselves, through social and historical processes; contextualism, the understanding that meaning is dependent on context, and so phenomena is also interpreted as well as perceived; and pluralism, the recognition that there are many contexts, and so no one context is privileged in and of itself.

However, postmodernism is easily misunderstood: decide that constructivism applies to all phenomena instead of just some, and you end up with no metaphysical or universal truth; misunderstand contextualism by confusing interpretation with experience, and you deny the existence of a reality beyond the self; mistake pluralism for equality, and ‘nothing is true, everything is permitted’.

Sadly, we have arrived at an accurate description of magic in the 21st Century, where the absolute truth is finally out: the universe is devoid of all value, beyond the relative usefulness of a given worldview in providing personal satisfaction for the postmodern magician!

Has the last three hundred years of Western magical development really found its conclusion in a narcissistic dead end?

Magic is suffering from the misrepresentation of postmodernism, and the abuse of Fuller’s ‘non-simultaneously apprehended universe’, as an argument for an existence devoid of truth, is just one example amongst many of the postmodern extremism that has infected Western occultism.

Although it is true that no idea may account for the entire universe, is it not true that some ideas account for more of the universe than others? Truth most certainly does exist, although it can only ever be known partially through ideas, and to a degree commensurate with the breadth, depth and width of an individual’s direct apprehension of the universe.

In other words, the greater the awareness of the individual, then the greater the apprehension of Truth; the greater the apprehension of Truth, then the greater the inadequacy of ideas at expressing that Truth.

Buckminster Fuller was a mystic, not an egomaniac.

Moles

The relative nature of the personal worldview, or ‘reality tunnel’, has been explored at great length in the excellent works of Robert Anton Wilson. Indeed, Prometheus Rising has the rather strange effect of making you feel a little less dogmatic, and a little freer, simply by reading it.

But just like Buckminster Fuller, RAW has become a casualty of postmodern extremism. I don’t think it is unfair to say that this is largely due to his own work.

Robert Anton Wilson described a certain stage within the magician’s initiatory career as the Chapel Perilous:

In researching occult conspiracies, one eventually faces a crossroad of mythic proportions (called Chapel Perilous in the trade). You come out the other side either stone paranoid or an agnostic; there is no third way. I came out agnostic.  Chapel Perilous, like the mysterious entity called "I," cannot be located in the space-time continuum; it is weightless, odorless, tastless and undetectable by ordinary instruments. Indeed, like the Ego, it is even possible to deny that it is there. And yet, even more like the Ego, once you are inside it, there doesn't seem to be any way to ever get out again, until you suddenly discover that it has been brought into existence by thought and does not exist outside thought. Everything you fear is waiting with slavering jaws in Chapel Perilous, but if you are armed with the wand of intuition, the cup of sympathy, the sword of reason, and the pentacle of valor, you will find there (the legends say) the Medicine of Metals, the Elixir of Life, the Philosopher's Stone, True Wisdom and Perfect Happiness. That's what the legends always say, and the language of myth is poetically precise. For instance, if you go into that realm without the sword of reason, you will lose your mind, but at the same time, if you take only the sword of reason without the cup of sympathy, you will lose your heart. Even more remarkably, if you approach without the wand of intuition, you can stand at the door for decades never realizing you have arrived. You might think you are just waiting for a bus, or wandering from room to room looking for your cigarettes, watching a TV show, or reading a cryptic and ambiguous book. Chapel Perilous is tricky that way.

It is far too easy when reading the above quote (and RAW’s work in general) to assume that occultism is an intellectual pursuit – a simple game of interpretation. RAW states the Chapel presents itself when ‘researching occult conspiracies’. However, it is evident from his book Cosmic Trigger that by ‘researching’ Bob actually means taking part in the occult conspiracy by actually performing magic.

It doesn’t help that Bob goes on to claim that there are only two possible results or ‘exits’ to the Chapel – paranoia or agnosticism – which has the effect of reducing the magical quest to nothing but a question of belief.

Is it any wonder then that ‘the Medicine of Metals, the Elixir of Life, the Philosopher's Stone, True Wisdom and Perfect Happiness’, the Crown of the Great Work, is now considered a rather antiquated and flowery way of talking about the intellectual realisation of the relative nature of all perception?

It is not for me to judge whether RAW attained to the Goal, but is it really possible to complete the magical quest and still have the option of leaving the Chapel insane?  Is really possible to attain to such an experience and leave as a model agnostic?

Is it possible Bob failed to mention a third, secret exit?

For me, achieving the goal of the magical quest can only result in what I consider to be the only sane worldview there is: Gnosticism. The worldview or ‘reality tunnel’ of the Gnostic is not chosen as a model, but given through direct experience. No amount of belief shifting can substitute for this experience.

Yes, the Gnostic appreciates the arbitrary nature of all ideas, but he or she also knows of an objective truth beyond reason. No genuine teacher has ever preached literally, or claimed the truth is to be found in any idea.  But preach they must - it is better to point some in the right direction at the risk of deluding others, than settling for helping no one at all.

What function then does it serve to preach the extreme postmodernism of a universe completely subjective and relative?

There is no doubt about it; RAW was a mystic (see Cosmic Trigger for an account of his mystical experiences). I don’t think I am being overly generous when I say I believe Bob preached model agnosticism partly as the necessary next step in introducing magic to the world at large, and partly as a refusal to talk about that which is beyond idea, and so risk muddying the waters.

There is a scene in Maybe Logic: The Lives and Ideas of Robert Anton Wilson, where Bob takes great pains to explain exactly what Korzybski’s ‘The map is not the territory’ means. It is very easy here to think that Bob is simply promoting the idea of an observer created universe – i.e. the map is not the territory means we all perceive with our own peculiar ‘maps’ of reality.  However, Bob takes great care to bring attention to what is actually meant by ‘territory’, without actually ascribing any other idea to it.

(It is worth noting that in his later years RAW considered himself a Buddhist and a Taoist).

I admire RAW’s integrity in refusing to talk about that which cannot be talked about, but for what it is worth, I think this approach has deluded just as many people as any of the more ‘explicit’ magical teachings.

Happy rainbow people

The greater freedoms afforded by postmodernism, in conjunction with the dawn of the Information Age, has encouraged a glorious growth in diversity of magical traditions within the Western magical community.

However, the insanity of extreme postmodernism has encouraged the delusion that all of these traditions are of equal value.

As a result, magic has become vague and generalised. The plethora of mystical experiences are reduced to ‘gnosis’, early stages of childhood are confused with enlightenment, rationalisation is confused with meditation, beliefs are confused with perception, superstitious worldviews are mistaken for magical consciousness, the pragmatism of pre-industrial sorcery considered commensurate with post-industrial materialism.

There is only one golden rule here: all that matters is if a worldview works for you!

Unfortunately, this approach is indicative of a failure to understand the nature of genuine magical tradition.

Genuine Tradition

Human beings are composed of many dimensions, one of which is the metaphysical. I am here using this term in its original Greek sense – a metaphysic is simply a language for describing mystical/profound experience. Every genuine magical tradition to have graced the surface of this planet describes the metaphysical ‘plane’ as the root of all others, in the sense that it transcends but includes all other experience. These traditions state that if you carry out a certain practice (such as Vipassana, or the K and C of the HGA) on a daily basis, a developmental process will begin with predictable, recognisable stages, that will eventual culminate in what can be considered the completion of the metaphysical process, sometimes referred to as the Great Work, illumination or enlightenment.

As the metaphysical is as much a part of being human as having a body or taking a shit, given enough time any group of humans will eventually produce a good magician who will produce a metaphysic (like the A.’.A.’., or Tantra, or Buddhism, etc) to describe their experience of what it means to be human at the most profound level. This is why there are a startling number of traditions that all appear to be describing the same phenomena, but in different terms.

As these genuine traditions are an expression of the metaphysical process, and therefore concerned solely with the plane of profound/mystical experience, it is never a simple matter of choosing a worldview and reaping the intended results. There is a tradition peculiar to each magician that will bring him or her to the goal and will present itself naturally, or rather magically, at a certain stage in metaphysical growth.

There is only one golden rule with genuine tradition: all that matters is if a worldview works for you in completing the Great Work.

Strangely enough, examples of Genuine Tradition can be found (albeit in the esoteric schools) in the three major monotheistic religions of the West:

Sufism, Hasidism, Christian Mysticism.

Then there are of course the Sacred Traditions of the East:

Hinduism, Buddhism, Taosim.

Not forgetting a number of African traditions (although most traditions labelled under 'African Diaspora' are not genuine tradition – see below), such as those practiced by the Yoruba.

And of course, the focus of this site - Magick.

It should be noted that initiation into one of these traditions does not guarantee the expression of the metaphysical process, just as the process can manifest itself without requiring an initiation into one of these traditions.

Pseudo-tradition

However, not everyone has personal, direct experience of the metaphysical. As a result, some misunderstand the metaphysical teachings of genuine tradition and promote a degenerated version, usually ‘confusing the planes’ by believing the Goal of the metaphysical process to be a mental, emotional or physical event.

These traditions are pseudo-traditions, only offering the outward appearance of a genuine tradition, regardless of whether effective practical magic is taught. All magical traditions that do not afford metaphysical process or mystical experience are at best pseudo-traditions. Syncretism is the ultimate example of this, as are magical traditions that ascribe to a superstitious view of the world (which is sometimes confused with magical consciousness or the experience of synchronicity as a permanent adaptation or state) best described in developmental psychology as the ‘magic’ and ‘mythic’ stages of development – see Paganism, Wicca, Heathenism, Theosophy, New Ageism, etc.

A tell tale sign of a pseudo-initiate is an emphasis on practical results at the expense of experiencing the Truth, or a contentment with rationalisation or emotionalism/intuitionism over direct experience of the Truth.

Counter-tradition

Whereas pseudo-tradition is simply a case of tradition cut off from the metaphysical, there are those traditions that actively oppose the metaphysical process. These traditions are counter-traditions. Any tradition that advocates a refusal to take part in the dissolution of the ego in the divine is counter-initiatory (such as Satanism and Setianism), as are those traditions that traffic with entities that prohibit the metaphysical process, or restrict the magician to working solely within that tradition. The line between pseudo and counter tradition is easily crossed, as pseudo-traditions can easily be appropriated by the counter-tradition as a means of subverting genuine seekers.

All counter traditions are based on a misunderstanding of the metaphysical process, and operate from a basis of (usually subconscious) fear. The Counter-tradition has its basis in confusion, and so the secret master of all counter-initiates, regardless of whom they worship, is Choronzon.

Why the long face?

It should not be assumed that simply because a tradition is a pseudo-tradition or even a counter-tradition that it has nothing to offer, or that any benefits gained from practicing such a tradition are invalid.

Both pseudo and counter-traditions can provide positive changes in the self and success in materialistic terms – such as in career or business, love life, social role, etc. and can teach very useful magical techniques, with ‘real world’ results. Hence the staggering number of ‘good’ magicians, in the materialistic sense, that have never come across metaphysical experience. Many magical traditions are necessary and indispensable stepping-stones on the way to beginning the metaphysical process, and the expression of genuine tradition.

However, there is no escaping it: both pseudo and counter traditions either fail to engage with or completely ignore that part of reality that just so happens to include but transcend every other part of reality. This means that no matter how profound an experience, no matter how materialistically successful, no matter how well developed the self is as a result of practicing a pseudo-tradition, the magician will only ever know himself, and the rest of the universe, at a superficial level.

Special K

Aleister Crowley once found the need to revert to the old English spelling of magick, in an effort to make a distinction between his ‘art and science of causing change to occur in conformity with will’ and stage trickery or illusionism.

Times have changed since Crowley’s day. I increasingly find that more and more people are using the word magic in its original sense, and so in the past I’ve never really felt the need to use an alternate spelling.

However, in light of the mess of the contemporary magical scene, I very much feel the need to make a new distinction.

When I talk about magic, I no longer wish to reference materialism, superstition, extreme postmodernism and pseudo or counter traditions.

As such, from now on I will make the necessary distinction by spelling my magic with a k.

The Royal Art

Magick is the art, science and culture of experiencing truth.

This definition includes both subjective and relative truth, or perception, and objective and absolute truth, or enlightenment.

Any act therefore is an act of magick, if awareness is brought to that action. The practice of magick is the exercise and growth of conscious awareness, an expansion of the self in all directions and on all levels of experience.

This means magick isn’t just about obtaining a material result or attaining the goal of enlightenment, although the latter is most definitely the ultimate goal of genuine tradition. It includes both practicality and mysticism, and the mastery of every level or plane of experience in between.

In light of the above, does getting high, only conjuring for material results, pretending to ‘belief shift’, or indulging a regressive tradition (especially those that belong to the magic/myth stages of development), really sound like magick to you?

It is time we addressed the stupidity of extreme postmodernism in our magical community. I think the best way to start is by teaching people to spell correctly (groan).

POSTSCRIPT 

Counter-tradition is not the same thing as the Left Hand Path, Tantra, Black Magick (i.e. using magick for ‘negative’ ends, such as cursing), working with entities such as Satan, Set, Baphomet, Lilith, the Goetia, demons in general or other supposedly ‘negative’ entities.

Although I site both Satanism and Setianism as examples of counter-tradition, it is the approach or attitude of these traditions that determine them as counter-initiatory. It is possible to work with any entity, including both Satan and Set, and still remain within genuine tradition.

However, counter-tradition IS synonymous with the concept of the Black Brothers, and Rene Guenon often refers to counter-initiates as ‘Satanists’. For the sake of clarity, I will only use the terms counter-tradition, counter initiate, or Black Brother(s) on this site when referring to the counter-tradition.

Obverse

Genuine tradition is not the same thing as the Right Hand Path, White Magick (i.e. using magick for ‘positive’ ends, such as healing), working with entities such as angels, classical gods and goddesses, such as Venus and Mercury, or other ‘positive’ entities.

It is possible to work with entities from the sited examples of genuine tradition, such as the Hindu pantheon, and still remain in the counter or pseudo-tradition. However, this will usually be a case of failing to understand or implement these traditions. For instance, it is possible to work with Kali without recognising her transcendental aspect, and so fail to experience union with Her as a result of ignorance.

However, genuine tradition IS synonymous with the Great White Brotherhood and the A.’.A.’.. For the sake of clarity, I will only use these three terms on this site when referring to the genuine tradition, but it should be remembered that I am not simply referencing a Western phenomenon when I use the term Great White Brotherhood or A.’.A.’..