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intogenshin · 8 months ago

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Altruism in Sumeru

I've always been intrigued by the religious undertones of the Akademiya (named Sumeru Institute of Religious Decree in Chinese) and how it connects to the rest of the thematic elements of the region

Religion is a path to truth the same way knowledge is a path towards god

The interconnectedness of nature through both isn't lost on me either

This is the region inspired mainly on India, and though there's very palpable influence of Hindu and Buddhism around the nation, the Akademiya itself doesn't particularly look like the religious institutions of either

A poem of Bengali author Rabindranath Tagore is referenced in Alhaitham's teaser. Tagore is pretty known in China, placing within the 12 most known foreign authors in the country, and his work is studied in schools. That is to say, the main audience of the game could easily recognize the reference to the poem if they paid attention

I bring him up because his work might have also influenced the world building around the Akademiya as well: Tagore defines religion not as a set of beliefs, but as an expression of ideals that seek the well being of a community. His reasoning drew from Indian traditions, especially the concept of Brahman or "the universal consciousness" which originated creation and therefore exists in everything. Therefore, his worldview was one of unity with the world; nature, community, man and god as one, and this unity could only be achieved through introspection and humanistic values such as altruism. Religion is in this sense a code of ethics for the wellbeing of the community.

Tagore was a very significant historical figure in several aspects, but one that stands out is his commitment to education: he valued the arts alongside the sciences, and sought to teach children of lower classes through non conventional methods; the opposite of what Azar and the sages promoted in the game

These themes of community, education, arts, altruism all together take the spotlight in Sumeru through one character: Kaveh

Nahida says Kaveh is closest to understand what it means to be a nation of wisdom, and again this can be reinforced by the influence of Mr Tagore

Kaveh is inspired by Iranian culture, which includes the religion of Zoroastrianism. The lore around the Akademiya also takes a lot from this religion, the names of the darshans and the House of Daena are concepts in the religion

In the collection The Religion of Man, an entire chapter is dedicated to the prophet Zarathustra who founded Zoroastrianism. Tagore writes:

There can be hardly any question that he was the first man we know who gave a definitely moral character and direction to religion and at the same time preached the doctrine of monotheism

Zarathustra was the greatest of all the pioneer prophets who showed the path of freedom to man, the freedom of moral choice, the freedom from the blind obedience to unmeaning injuctions

Though surrounded by believers in magical rites, he proclaimed in those dark days of unreason that religion has its truth in its moral significance, not in external practices of imaginary value; that its value is in upholding man in his life of good thoughts, good words and good deeds

The revelation he announces is to him no longer a matter of sentiment, no longer a merely undefined presentiment and conception of the Godhead, but a matter of intellect, of spiritual perception of knowledge. This is of great importance, for there are probably not many religions of so high antiquity in which this fundamental doctrine, that religion is a knowledge or learning, a science of what is true, is so precisely declared in the tenets of the Gathas. It is the unbelieving that are unknowing; on the contrary, the believing are learned because they have penetrated into this knowledge

Tagore connects his beliefs of altruism and community, influenced by the Hindu concept of Brahma, to the virtue of sacrifice in Zoroastrianism:

It has been a matter of supreme satisfaction to me to realize that the purification of faith which was the mission of the great teachers in both communities, Persia and India, followed a similar line. We have already seen how Zarathustra spiritualized the meaning of sacrifice, which in former days consisted in external ritualism entailing bloodshed. The same thing we find in the Gita, in which the meaning of the word Yajna has been translated into a higher significance than it had in its crude form.

According to the Gita, the deeds that are done solely for the sake of the self fetter our soul; the disinterested action, performed for the sake of giving up of self, is the true sacrifice. For creation itself comes of the self-sacrifice of Brahma, which has no other purpose; and therefore, in our performance of the duty which is self-sacrificing, we realize the spirit of Brahma

Tagore also concludes:

The ideal of Zoroastrian Persia is distinctly ethical

Throughout the Sumeru chapter, we find that the meaning of wisdom isn't realized in discovering or amassing knowledge, but on using knowledge the correct way and respecting rules created for the protection of the community. In this sense, wisdom is ethics, and ethics seek collective well being like in Zoroastrianism

It isn't odd then, that all three talent books describe the motto of Zoroastrianism: good thoughts, good words, good deeds

#kaveh #genshin lore #short post

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katie-the-bug · 10 months ago

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IN WHICH Katie continues to complain about books she knew beforehand would be bad

Still reading the Left Behind series. Finished Apollyon. God I'm tired.

The cast, for those just tuning in:

The Tribulation Force: Rayford Steele, freelance pilot and evangelist; Buck Williams, freelance writer for God; Chloe Williams, Buck's pregnant wife, Rayford's daughter; Tsion Ben-Judah, internet-famous evangelist and ex-rabbi; Ken Ritz, charter pilot and new convert; David Hassid, techie and the group's man inside the Antichrist's bureaucracy; Floyd Charles, unemployed doctor.

The Bad Guys: Nicolae Carpathia, Antichrist and beloved leader of the Global Community; Peter Mathews, Pope of Enigma Babylon One World Faith.

Others: Hattie Durham, Nicolae's pregnant ex, rescued by the Tribulation Force, who are trying to make her convert; Chaim Rosenzweig, Israeli scientist and friend to Nicolae, Buck, and Tsion. There's also the two witnesses, resurrected saints who do nothing but yell about Jesus and cause natural disasters.

At the beginning of the book, most of our heroes are off to Israel for the meeting of the 144,000 Jewish witnesses, knowing that this will mark them as enemies of the Global Community in general and the Antichrist in particular and expose them to potential reprisal. Perhaps I'm too sensible for a thriller novel, but that's stupid.

Buck, Chloe, and Tsion are going, and Rayford has work, but "pregnant, Hattie Durham had been left home fighting for her life against poison in her system." The Tribulation Force harps on how much they care for Hattie, but leaving her alone while she's possibly dying indicates it's all talk.

David has designed a number of "handheld electronic organizers" that can access position data, connect to the internet, and make calls. In other words, he's invented smartphones.

Nicolae takes some time out of his day to try and threaten the two witnesses into no longer messing with Israel's water supply. A valiant effort, but one doomed to fail because somehow the guys spreading drought and disease have the blessing of a loving God.

In a review of the professions represented by the Tribulation Force, Chloe is said to be "without a specialty." Not coincidentally, she's the only woman. I'm pretty sure if she were a man something she studied in college would have come up by now, but as it is the extent of Chloe's abilities and character is Woman.

Chaim argues against Nicolae being the Antichrist by saying "He seeks world peace, disarmament, global unity," to which Chloe replies "My point exactly." As Jesus said, "Cursed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the Antichrist." Or something like that.

Meanwhile, we return to a dangling plot threat from the last book: was Amanda, Rayford's second dead wife in three years, a traitor? The answer will not surprise you! She wasn't. All the evidence against her was faked by Nicolae, who already has a personal vendetta against the Tribulation Force despite them being seven people operating out of a basement.

The Meeting of the Witnesses happens, and Nicolae makes a suitably dramatic entrance in a helicopter just as Tsion is trying to read John 3:16. Points for timing.

Pope Peter (II) gives a little speech to the 144,000, representing how the authors think proponents of religious tolerance talk. He offers "the blessings of the universal father and mother and animal deities," advertises his religion, which "includes and affirms and accepts the major tenets of all the world's great religions," and refers to a "multilayered plural godhead." The idea of all the world's religions forming seamlessly into one faith is utter nonsense, but given the choice between that and True Christianity, I'll take the father and mother and animal deities any day.

Nicolae gives his own speech, and the two witnesses pull a funny prank where they make him thirsty and turn the water he tries to drink into blood. He immediately starts cursing them and threatening to kill them. I suppose this is the witnesses' roundabout way of trying to tell the audience he's the Antichrist, since they don't dare say it out loud for reasons that are never made entirely clear.

Nicolae later describes this as an attempt to poison him, and, while he embellishes the incident somewhat, he doesn't need to - they tried to make him drink blood. In no world is that not an attempt to poison someone. Hell, do it on a large enough scale, like the two witnesses are doing to Israel, and it counts as biological warfare!

In Chapter 4, Hattie's baby dies, probably because the authors didn't know what to do with the idea of the Antichrist's child. Hattie's immediate response is an overwhelming desire to kill Nicolae and avenge her child. My ship is home to a thriving coral reef ecosystem BUT now I have a new pipe dream for this series: I want Hattie to get that sonofabitch. She has the strongest motive out of any of the major characters and, unlike the Tribulation Force, she doesn't believe Nicolae is fated to survive another year, so she'll actually TRY. In a good story, she'd be the hero - the only one with a desire, a drive, and a willingness to act. In the story as it is, the authors just want us to laugh at her.

The narration says of the scene in a bar that "Not all the couples were made up of both sexes." Much shock. How scandal.

While he's planning his team's daring escape from Chaim's house, Chloe accuses Buck of "playing Spiderman." RESPECT. THE. HYPHEN.

Tsion implores his audience to tell people that the catastrophes befalling the Earth are "God's way of getting their attention." I will reiterate that these catastrophes are deadly. God's way of getting people's attention to to kill them.

Ken says something trite about Hattie, and Rayford says, "Ritz, you've got to be on the feminist' top ten most wanted list." Addendum to my pipe dream: I want Hattie to kill Rayford too.

Chaim is letting the Tribulation Force stay in his house and convert his staff, meaning he's surrounded by Christians. He's taking it very well and he thinks that the "seal of God" that they can see on each other is just a silly little joke. I aspire to have his level of tolerance.

We learn that Ken has a considerable pile of gold stashed away, because he makes a lot of money, spends none of it, and shared the authors' weird beliefs about money even before converting to Christianity. He buried it under the airport he usually works from, which he is thinking of buying - a situation bearing an odd resemblance to a Biblical parable. That feels like it should be intentional but I really doubt it is.

Precisely because they were dumb enough to go out in public where Nicolae could target them, the Tribulation Force has to make a daring midnight escape, during which Ken is killed and the position of my favorite character is left wide open. At least they know where he hid all his gold?

Buck also gets left behind, which is an issue, because it was him being charged with yet another murder that made the escape necessary. He just goes back to Chaim's house and waits for the whole thing to blow over for what ends up being five months.

Another judgement comes in which the sun loses a third of its brightness. The authors interpret this as causing deep cold weather. Now, I'm not an astronomer yet, but I'm pretty sure that a loss of solar luminosity that large would actually move the sun's habitable zone, possibly removing Earth from the area of the Solar System where liquid water, and thus life as we know it, is possible. On the plus side, maybe Venus will cool down a bit.

Chaim describes Israel as the "land where the name Jesus Christ is anathema." Once again the authors express their understanding of Judaism as a religion whose defining characteristic is hating Christ.

The loss of sunlight and solar power causes an energy crisis, and the narration puts the death toll in the hundreds of thousands. The very next page, Tsion describes the catastrophes as an "attention-getter." I'm going to repeat myself ad nauseam, but this is how the authors justify their God killing so many people - it gets the attention of the survivors.

Later on Chaim asks the real questions - "Why can he not get people's attention through wonderful miracles, as he did in the Bible? Why make things worse and worse until a person has no choice?" The authors, via Buck, try to shoot this down, but Chaim is right. God's tactics are abusive and coercive, and trying to tell us that he's loving is the icing on the cake.

Hit character limit. More coming. So, so tired.

#katie reads left behind #left behind #long post #stay tuned #tw miscarriage

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to-wound-the-earth-itself · 21 days ago

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YOU ARE A SOUL OF INTEREST, ATTAR OF THE DIVINE. TELL ME OF THAT WHICH YOU CALL GODHEAD. I AM A SCHOLAR OF SUCH, MUST ADD TO MY KNOWLEDGE.

[THOTH]

Ho! A fellow scholar! I would be glad to.

Before I may explain the Godhead, I must explain the Seven Hundred Divines of the Marque of Kesh and their story. I hope you are a fair reader, friend, for it is one long in the telling.

The story is a song, which does not translate lyrically to the tongue of Union. Here it is as scripture transcribed by a Unity librarian of one hundred years ago, which I pray is still interesting to you. I will write it it for you here.

"In ancient times, in olden times when the world was younger, the God Camandra was king of the world."

"And His world was fair, and did shine with light, but it was a harsh light, like the reflections in a sword; and His rule was harsh like the rule of Rum in the beginning of the world."

"And in the hundredth century of the rule of the God Camandra, king of the world, His seven sons did array themselves against Him, and their purpose was in the undoing of His tyranny that had lasted a hundred centuries; and there was to be a great conflict."

"And so His seven sons each sought for their armies one hundred of the just and righteous; for it was known that even one hundred swords could not kill God, and that no one could match the fearsomeness of Camandra; but in a contest of the soul fearsomeness counted for little, and righteousness was mighty."

"And they made terrible war upon the tower of Camandra, and laid them low; and soon they faced Him, with their seven hundred warriors, and the war they made in Heaven was more terrible even than their war upon the earth."

"And the God Camandra was shattered in Heaven; that is, the mind; even as the seven hundred were slain upon the earth."

"And Camandra remained on the earth and was made low, and the seven hundred remained in Heaven and were made Gods."

"And the God-no-longer Camandra's seven sons were each struck seven mortal wounds, and did flee to the east, where they fell, and their bodies were the mountains of Kesh, and their wounds the surrounding canyons.

"And the spirits of the seven hundred were given over to mortal humanity in the city of An Kesh, and the kingdom of the God-no-longer also in the Marque of Camandra, and the struggle continued for ever, until the end of all things."

Thus the Seven Hundred Divines of the Half Army of the Marque of Kesh are the incarnations of the seven hundred warriors of the Seven Sons of Camandra on earth, who were just and righteous in all things, and were Gods, and lend their Divinity to their incarnation. Each has their own unique story as recorded in the song of the Great Road, which tells of the army's march to the tower of Camandra and the collection and deeds of the first seven hundred, and displays the tenets of their righteousness.

So named, the Godhead is the collective Divinity of the seven hundred, having begun to be venerated as a condensed image of God as a matter of simple convenience over the decades.

I hope this pleases you, fellow scholar, and that it is not so long and convoluted as to be dull. I pray you reach out again if you have further questions! I am a preacher, after all, and thus do always enjoy telling of Divinity.

{ATTAR}

#lancer #lancer rp #lancer rp blog #lancer oc rp #lancer rpg #lancer oc

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engineer-gunzelpunk · 21 days ago

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The Daemonic Theory Of Engine Sentience: The Hermetic/Alchemical School

Now I introduce everyone to the schools of thought of engine animation. The introduction to the Daemonic Theory of Engine Animation is here

The first of these ideas is the Hermetic school:

“Hermetic” is derived from the idea of Hermeticism, a branch of mysticism said to be derived from the archetypal magician, Hermes Trimagistus and the works and writings attributed to him, which posits a very strongly ordered, top-down cosmos generally, where humans can achieve unity with the Godhead through the magical arts. One way of doing so is the mastery of the art known as “Alchemy”.

Popularly understood to be the pursuit of vulgar material wealth through the transformation of base materials into gold, the true quest (Great Work) is to create the Philosopher’s Stone, that Holy Grail said to be the key to eternal life, perfect health, enlightenment and happiness.

Implicit in this philosophy is the idea that it is to service mankind, not reserved greedily for oneself; but it is not for everyone to pursue.

The Hermetic theory of engine animation posits that an alchemical, metallurgical process is the channel that brings the Fire down into the locomotive’s shell and brings it life and sentience. The base iron, copper and brass is transformed through the medium of the Divine Fire into a living, thinking being. Through the manipulation of chemical and metallurgical elements, the achievement of the Philosopher’s Stone, or in this case, real sentient artificial life, is sought after.

The real challenge is not so much that it happened, but the study as to why it worked, in this space and time. Of the three strands, the Hermetic strain is probably the most self-reflective in its study as to why.

This theory bears some sympathy to Tanzig’s First Theory of Machine Sentience, in that life is created through the manipulation of material elements; in this case, the old art of alchemy meeting the new science of metallurgy.

Whats more, it that non-faceless vehicles all being created and rapidly appearing at the same time is the culmination of decades, centuries of work in such arts parallel with the development of the machine (which sort to liberate humanity from toil, alas such an aim has not been achieved…).

If mankind is creating actual artificial living creatures that aren’t simply automata on a regular basis, then a kind of spiritual evolution of mankind must have taken place for it to be even possible. Humans being able to achieve true sentient life reflects such a shift in spiritual consciousness.

This can even be reflected in the locomotive evolution themselves, in the further improvement of the form; and whats more, such sentient artificial life can learn and grow too in intellect and understanding.

Of the locomotives on Sodor, it is ex-Furness Railway NWR #2 Edward that demonstrates this evolution, from arrogant hot-blood (red) to venerable elder of the NWR(blue), and somehow he has achieved Eternal Youth in appearance and in his personality.

Some of the greatest theoreticians of natural philosophy and science like Sir Issac Newton were keen alchemists and this was the state of things until the rise of modern science.

Like the other theories, it can show flaws; namely that it seems to have an over-emphasis on a kind of overarching meta-theory, and forget that the creation of locomotives with sentience isn’t some byproduct of man’s search for divinity… but the entire point. The true question is why, and how.

***

Locomotives associated with this tendency may be called Terrestrials. The link with the Earth and its natural elements may have them manifest either a certain balanced serenity or a wild, impish, Fae-like tendency. A lot of them can be quite wild at heart and even a bit scary.

Genius Loci, Fae, and Elemental daemons can give rise in some locomotives; like the mysterious Proteus, who seems very Fae-like in his mannerisms.

#Ttte headcanons #ttte fandom #ttte fanfiction #ttte #thomas and friends #The Daemonic Theory Of Engine Sentience #Occultism #hermeticism #magick #fictional magick

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faithpartnersassembly · 1 month ago

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Church Manual

Faith Partners Assembly

Proclaiming the Oneness of God and Salvation in Jesus’ Name

“There is one God, and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.” – 1 Timothy 2:5

Section 1:

Statement of Faith

We, the members of Faith Partners Assembly, affirm the following truths as the foundation of our faith:

One God

There is one eternal, indivisible God, the Almighty Creator, who has revealed Himself as Father in creation, Son in redemption, and Holy Spirit in regeneration. He is not three persons but one God fully manifested in Jesus Christ (Deuteronomy 6:4; Colossians 2:9).

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the one God incarnate, the fullness of the Godhead bodily. He is both fully God and fully man, born of the virgin Mary, crucified for our sins, resurrected on the third day, and ascended to heaven (Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1, 14).

Salvation

Salvation is received through repentance, water baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in other tongues, as taught in Acts 2:38 (Acts 4:12; Acts 10:44-48).

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the one God, indwelling believers to empower, sanctify, and guide them. The infilling of the Holy Spirit is a distinct experience following conversion, evidenced by speaking in tongues (John 14:17; Acts 2:4).

Scripture

The Bible is the inspired, infallible Word of God, our sole authority for faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16).

The Church

The church is the body of believers who have obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ, living in holiness and unity to fulfill His mission (Ephesians 4:4-6).

Eternal Destiny

Jesus Christ will return to judge the living and the dead. The saved will live eternally with Him, while the unrepentant will face everlasting punishment (Revelation 20:11-15).

Section 2:

Core Practices

Our practices reflect our commitment to the apostolic faith:

Worship

Services are vibrant and Spirit-led, featuring prayer, singing, preaching, and the operation of spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).We exalt Jesus Christ as the one true God in all we do.

Prayer

Prayer is offered in the name of Jesus Christ, seeking His power, guidance, and presence (John 14:13-14).

Scripture Teaching

The Word of God is preached and taught with emphasis on the oneness of God and the Acts 2:38 message of salvation.

Baptism and Holy Spirit Infilling

Every believer is urged to repent, be baptized in Jesus’ name, and seek the baptism of the Holy Spirit with tongues as evidence.

Holiness

We pursue a lifestyle of holiness, modesty, and separation from worldly sins, reflecting God’s nature (1 Peter 1:15-16).

Giving

Tithes and offerings support the church’s mission and the needs of the saints, given joyfully to Jesus Christ (Malachi 3:10).

Outreach

We preach the gospel of Jesus’ name to all, baptizing and discipling new believers into the apostolic faith.

Section 3:

Church Governance

Faith Partners Assembly is structured to uphold apostolic doctrine:

Leadership

Pastor:

The pastor is the spiritual overseer, called by God to preach, baptize, and shepherd the flock in the truth of Jesus’ name.

Elders:

Mature saints assist the pastor in teaching and maintaining doctrinal purity.

Deacons:

Faithful members serve practical needs, such as finances and benevolence.

Membership

Members are those who have repented, been baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, and received the Holy Spirit with tongues, committing to holiness and church life.

New members complete a discipleship course on Oneness doctrine and Acts 2:38 salvation.

Decision-Making

The pastor, guided by Scripture and prayer, leads with counsel from elders and affirmation from the congregation.

Section 4:

Sacraments and Ordinances

We observe these apostolic practices:

Water Baptism

Baptism is an essential step of salvation, performed by immersion in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, as commanded in Acts 2:38.It is administered to repentant believers who confess Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Baptism of the Holy Spirit

The infilling of the Holy Spirit is a distinct experience, marked by speaking in tongues, received through faith and prayer following water baptism (Acts 2:4; Acts 19:6).

Communion

The Lord’s Supper is observed regularly, remembering Jesus’ sacrifice and celebrating His deity and atonement (1 Corinthians 11:23-25).

Section 5:

Moral and Ethical Standards

We live to honor Jesus Christ:

Holiness: Dress modestly, strictly avoid alcohol, tobacco, and immorality, and pursue purity in all things.

Love: Love God by obeying His Word and love others through selfless service.

Integrity: Be honest, faithful, and diligent in all dealings.

Witness: Share the truth of Jesus’ name and the apostolic gospel boldly.

Section 6:

Church Discipline

To preserve holiness and unity:

Sin is addressed lovingly but firmly, with steps of private rebuke, elder counsel, and, if unrepented, exclusion from fellowship (Matthew 18:15-17).

Restoration is sought through repentance and renewed obedience to Acts 2:38.

Section 7:

Mission Statement

Faith Partners Assembly exists to:

Worship Jesus Christ as the one true God.

Preach salvation through repentance, baptism in Jesus’ name, and the Holy Spirit infilling.

Prepare believers for His return through holiness and apostolic truth.

Adopted: April 08, 2025

#Church manual

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mysticalblizzardcolor · 3 months ago

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When we begin to see the divinity in everyone,

then we will see that we are all One.

The Focus for True Global Unity

#hare krishna #iskcon #krishna #bhakti #vedic #srila prabhupada #bhagavad gita

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orthodoxadventure · 2 years ago

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I praise the Godhead, unity in three persons, For the Father is light, The Son is light, And the Spirit is light. But the light remains undivided, Shining forth in oneness of nature, Yet in the three rays of the persons.

-- From the Lenten Triodion

#Holy Trinity #Orthodox Christianity #Christianity #Lent #Religion

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hiding1ntheforest · 1 year ago

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In Devotion to the One: Theurgy, Neoplatonism & Ritual

Theurgy is derived from the Greek words “theos” meaning “God” and “ergos” meaning “working”, resulting in “God-working.” The word was first used in the Neoplatonist text the “Chaldean Oracles” and refers to the process of working through the several divine emanations in order to achieve henosis, or unity with the One. I personally find theurgy to be an extremely fascinating though equally as complex topic, and I aim to explain it’s origins, philosophy, and practical application in this blog post.

Origins

Theurgy itself is rooted in early Neoplatonism and each emanation is described by its founder, Plotinus. The One, also referred to as God or in some cases the Godhead, is the origin point of all things. A popular neoplatonist symbol is that of a dot encircled by a larger circle- the One is that dot and the larger circle is all other multitudes of emanation. The one is inherently good and beautiful and this goodness may descend through each level. The Nous, also referred to as the Intellect, is the conscience of the cosmos, and the Soul may refer to that of the individual or the universe. The Soul is the unified life-form of all living things. Theurgy was an essential element of the Hellenic faith, though can also be found in various sects of Christianity as well as Gnosticism.

Philosophy, Porphyry vs. Iamblichus

Perhaps the most prominent figure contributing to the practice and philosophy of theurgy is the Syrian philosopher Iamblichus. He was a Neoplatonist, although he differed from earlier Platonic thinkers as he emphasized the necessity of ritual for union with the divine. Porphyry, another Neoplatonist philosopher whom Iamblichus studied under, argued for a more ascetic approach and the salvation of the soul. He also believed that unification with the One was a contemplative, introspective process, and that ritual was a distraction from this goal. Porphyry along with Plotinus felt that material was impure and could essentially corrupt the immaterial. Plotinus also stated that matter was an ontological evil. Matter was a product of the Soul which generated all life, and through the action of creation, generated matter as well. Iamblichus adopts a somewhat different approach to theurgy, arguing against Porphyry’s view of solitude and intellectualization as being what motivates the outcome of theurgy while highlighting the practical use of rituals. Furthermore, he opposes Porphyry’s denunciation of the Hellenic and Egyptian rites, which he writes of extensively in his work “On the Mysteries of the Egyptians, Chaldeans, and Assyrians.” Iamblichus reasoned that one can reach this synthesis with God by purifying oneself and navigating the various multitudes of emanation through devotional acts towards the divine and the use of symbols, characterizing this process as being cosmogonic and anagogic in nature.

Ritual

Before beginning a theurgic ritual, or any ritual involving communion with the divine, it is important to purify oneself. This is recorded extensively in various pieces of Hellenic literature at the time. The Hellenes believed in a concept called Miasma, which is a state of spiritual impurity. Miasma is accumulated through disrupting the natural order of things or going against the Gods. There is both lesser and greater miasma. For example, lying or any non virtuous act would be a form of lesser miasma. Greater miasma would include something such as killing somebody, which is why soldiers were believed to have more severe miasma. To become spiritually pure, one may enter katharsis through performing katharmos or using khernips. Katharmos is typically used when one has accumulated more serious miasma and there are records of soldiers performing it. However, khernips is used when someone has only lesser miasma. Khernips is a type of sacred water used to wash oneself in order to get rid of these impurities before ritual. The water is typically made using water from a natural source and then burning and submerging herbs into it. It is also important to note that this did not mean the Hellenes viewed themselves as naturally impure, dirty beings. As I had written earlier, the good and the beautiful descend through each level of emanation, including us. There are metaphysical vices that one must cleanse themself from. You may then wash your hands with this while repeating hymns or calling out to the divine in some way. Sunthemata, or tokens containing sympathies of the divine in the material realm, were also used to invoke a certain deity. According to Iamblichus, these tokens were intentionally weaved into the universe by the divine. Sunthemata can include anything from herbs to visual symbols. Epithets of the gods and nomina barbara are also forms of vocal sunthemata. You may also use an idol or anything containing a physical depiction of the deity. A theurgic ritual is typically a highly euphoric and fulfilling experience where one’s connection to the divine is truly centered and fully explored. Another important thing to keep in mind is Iamblichus wrote that every theurgist should perform a ritual to the extent that they can. This means, do what feels comfortable to you and what you’re confident in and be aware of your skill level. A theurgic ritual will only be effective if you have the ability and means to make it, so do not attempt to do anything extremely complex or above your level of knowledge and experience.

Relevance to Germanic paganism

Theurgy did not only exist amongst the Greeks and Egyptians, as many different cultures across the globe understood the importance of uniting with their creator. Since this account focuses heavily on Germanic paganism, it would only make sense to discuss the relevance of theurgy within these cultures. Acts of devotion are a significant part of any pre-Christian religion, especially those of sacrifices. Although I did not discuss it in this post, animal sacrifice was a crucial element to theurgy according to Iamblichus and Julian the Apostate later attempted to revive this custom. Of course, the Germanic tribes were no stranger to sacrifices whether they be for a good harvest or simply as a dedication to the Gods. This is further demonstrated when we look at the etymology of the word blót, which translates to “serving God” in Gothic. Moreover, there are several instances of deities being invoked in various charms, as I have discussed in previous articles. Idols and effigies were also used, sometimes in quite theatrical processions. For the sake of length, I won’t linger on this too much, but the idea of “God-working” is certainly there. Seeing that all Indo-European religions are interrelated in some way, it’s understandable that each culture would have some conception of uniting with God. This will be further discussed in my next blog post!

Summary

Theurgy, which translates to “God-working,” is reaching henosis or unity with the One by working through the multitudes of emanation. It’s philosophy was heavily influenced by Neoplatonist thinkers such as Plotinus and Porphyry while it’s practice was largely shaped by Iamblichus. The former argues for asceticism and contemplation while the latter pushed for the use of rituals. The Hellenes believed a theurgic ritual could be carried out upon cleansing oneself of all spiritual impurities, or miasma. This was achieved by entering Katharsis. Although theurgy specifically is of Hellenic origins, many other pre-Christian cultures all had their own idea of and method of uniting with the divine.

#paganism #neoplatonism #plotinus #porphyry #iamblichus #theurgy #gnosticism #germanic paganism #philosophy #esotericism #occult #occultism

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Paramārthasāra of Acharya Abhinavagupta : “The Essence of the Teachings on the Highest Truth”

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The first 50 verses – Abhinavagupta

I take refuge in you alone, Sambhu, who are beyond maya, transcendent, without beginning, one, existent in all beings in myriad forms, refuge of all, and immanent in all animate and inanimate creation. ||1

Overwhelmed by the chain of misery that begins with his birth in the womb and terminates with his physical death, a disciple asked Lord Adhara about supreme wisdom. The teacher [Adhara] instructed him on the essence of the supreme wisdom by means of the Adhara Karikas, which Abhinavagupta recasts, modifying them from the point of view of the Saiva tradition.|| 2,3

The supreme Lord creates this universe consisting of four eggs (anda): the Sakti egg, the maya egg, the prakrti egg, and the prithvi egg, out of the glory of his own divine Sakti. ||4

Commentary:The supreme Lord creates this universe consisting of four eggs (anda): the Sakti egg, the maya egg, the prakrti egg, and the prithvi egg, out of the glory of his own divine Sakti. An anda is a sphere that contains in it a series of phenomenal elements and serves as a sheath that covers and hides the divine nature of the Absolute. (i) Sakti, the divine power of God projecting itself externally and covering the Absolute with the pure creation. Manifesting diversity within unity, it hides the basic absoluteness and the perfect unity of the Absolute God and contains in it the four pure tattvas from Sakti to pure Vidya.

(ii) The sphere of Maya pushes into oblivion the natural purity and divine potency of the Absolute, covers it with five sheaths or limiting elements called kancukas and presents the Absolute as a finite being called Purusa. It contains in it seven tattvas from Maya to Purusa.

(iii) The sphere of Prakriti covers Purusa with all psychic elements, senses, organs, subtle objective elements called tanmatras, three gunas and four gross elements upto water. It contains twenty-three tattvas from Prakriti to water.

(iv) Prithvi as an anda or sphere covers the Absolute with the solid gross existence. It contains prithvi-tattva alone and consists of the whole solid existence in the universe.

(v) Siva-tattva lies beyond all these four andas.

The above mentioned four spheres contain thirty-five tattvas and cover the pure and divinely potent absolute consciousness with fine, subtle, gross and solid creation. The Absolute God creates them playfully in the process of the manifestation of His Godhead. He creates them out of His own self in the manner of reflections and covers His real self with them. Such creation is something like a kind of transmutation which is different from transformation. Neither God nor His divine power under goes any change or transformation while appealing in the form of all these created tattvas which shine in His psychic light as the reflections of His own divine powers.

This world, with infinite kinds of bhuvanas (regions in creation), with its infinite variety of physical bodies and sense organs, exists within [the four eggs]. Having assumed the form of a fettered being (pashu), Siva alone is the embodied enjoyer of all this [the created world] in them [the eggs]. ||5

As a pure crystal assumes hues of different kinds, in the same way the supreme Lord also assumes the forms of gods, men, animals, and trees. ||6

Just as the reflection of the moon appears to be moving in flowing water and to be unmoving in still water, in the same way the Self, who is the same as the supreme Lord, appears to exist as embodied beings [equipped] with sense organs in different bhuvanas (regions in creation). ||7

Just as the invisible Rahu (the shadow of the earth), when appearing on the disc of the moon [at the time of a lunar eclipse] becomes visible, in the same way, the Self though present everywhere becomes perceptible in the mirror of the intellect (buddhi) by [the perception of] sense objects. ||8

As a face shines forth in a spotlessly clean mirror, in the same way the supreme Lord who is of the nature of illumination shines forth in the buddhi (intellect) tattva that has been purified following the descent of divine grace by the Lord. (śaktipāta). || 9

The universe, composed of the thirty-six tattvas, manifests itself in the highest tattva [Paramasiva], which is of the nature of illumination, full-in-itself, endowed with infinite [modes] of shakti, [including the powers of] will, knowledge, and action , which is free from thought constructs, pure, ever at rest, and which is devoid of origination and dissolution. ||10-11

Just as variety in the form of a city, village, etc., when seen in a mirror is not separate [from the mirror], yet it [the variety of objects] appears differentiated [in the mirror] as a city, village, etc., and also as different from the mirror. Similarly the universe, though not existing as different from the pure self-experience of the highest Bhairava, appears as the world, differentiated and different from [Bhairava], the supreme tattva. ||12-13

Dividing the five Saktis [one on each level of the five tattvas,] Paramasiva manifests [himself] as the five tattvas, namely, Siva, Sakti, Sadasiva, Iswara, and Vidya. ||14

The supreme Lord’s great freedom, which is capable of accomplishing the most difficult task, is called the Goddess Maya-sakti. It serves Paramasiva as a veil to hide Himself. ||15

Enveloped by maya Sakti, the bodha (Siva’s self-aware, pure consciousness) becomes defiled and accepts the condition of purusa, a fettered being, upon being fully bound by kalа (limitation with respect to time), kala (the limited capacity to do just a little), niyati (limitation with respect to causation), raga (the limited interest in a particular something), and avidya (limited capacity to know just a little) kancukas. ||16

[The limiting concepts expressed by thoughts like:] “Now,” “something,” “this,” “completely,” ” I know” (“I know only now and know just a little and just this much of it quite completely”) together with maya are said to be the six internal sheaths (kancukas). ||17

The husk existing on a grain of rice, though existing separately, appears inseparable from the grain. But [the fettered being, who similarly seems attached to his fetters] attains purity by turning towards Siva through Yoga and treading on his path. ||18

Prakriti is of the nature of happiness, sorrow, and delusion and [from it emerge] the internal sense organs, the intellect (buddhi) [the understanding sense that forms definite conceptions], the mind (manas), [the organ of such thinking as gives rise to indefinite ideations (about phenomena)] and the ego (ahamkara), [the egoist sense that connects such psychic activates with the finite subject.] which are the instruments for determinate cognition (niscaya), volition (sankalpa), and false conception of one’s Self (abhimana), respectively. ||19

The sense organs, having sound and so on as their object of knowledge, are hearing, touch, sight, taste, and smell. The organs of action are the organs of speech, grasping, locomotion, excretion, and procreation. ||20

The subtle objects [experienced by the sense organs] are devoid of differentiation. These are the five subtle elements (tanmatras): sound (sabda), touch(sparsa), form(rupa), taste(rasa) and smell(gandha). ||21

From the intermixing of these [subtle elements] are born the gross objects, the five gross elements, namely, ether, air, fire, water, and earth. ||22

Creation, extending from prakrti down to prithvi (earth), covers pure consciousness by providing a physical body in the same way a husk covers a grain of rice. ||23

Among the sheaths, the innermost [subtlest one] is the Anava-mala. The six kinds of sheaths (kancukas) made from maya, etc., form the subtle sheath. The outermost and gross covering is the physical body. The Self (Atman) is covered by these three kinds of sheaths. ||24

On being subjected to the darkness of ignorance, he [the Self], though one by his very nature, knows himself as many in the form of the infinite variety of limited subjects and objects. ||25

Just as [sugar cane] juice, jaggery, sugar, and gur, etc. are only [different forms or states of the same thing] sugar cane juice, so all beings abide in the supreme Lord Sambhu in different states or forms. ||26

[Notions like] “stream of pure awareness ,” “the witness,” “the vital breath ,” “the all-pervasive body,” “the Universal,” and “the individual” are only conventionally true on the empirical plane. They have no actual existence. ||27

A snake does not exist in a rope, yet it can frighten someone to death. The power of delusion is so great that it is not possible to know its true nature. ||28

Similarly, merit and demerit, heaven and hell, birth and death, joy and sorrow, varna (caste), and asrama (stages of life), etc., though non-existent in the pure Self, arise by the strength of delusion. ||29

This darkness [of delusion], which is manifested through [apparently] existing objects, makes one experience the non-self in things which in fact are identical with the Self. ||30

The experience of the Self in the not-self, such as the physical body or the vital air, is like darkness superimposed on darkness. It can be likened to a boil formed on the burned [part of the body]. ||31

Just as a spider [ensnares himself] in his web, so he [the embodied man in the world] binds himself by experiencing worldly objects like the physical body, the vital breath, intellectual knowledge, and the expanse of sky. ||32

Lord ParamaSiva liberates himself from bondage by loosening its grip through the glory of knowledge of the Self. Thus bondage and liberation are his divine play. ||33

Creation, maintenance, and dissolution [and the states of] waking , dreaming, and dreamless sleep , appear in him [the supreme Lord] in the fourth state, but even in that state he reveals himself as not covered [i.e., not affected] by them. ||34

The waking state corresponds to the universe (visva) because of differentiation. The dreaming state corresponds to illumintation ( tejas) on account of the dominance of light. The state of dreamless slumber corresponds to understanding (prajna), a s this state is characterised by massive knowledge, and the fourth (turiya) state is beyond all these. ||35

Just as the vast expanse of sky is not defiled by clouds nor smoke nor dust, so the supreme Being is not affected by the changes of maya.||36

When the ether in one jar is filled with dust, the ether in other jars is not then defiled. This is also true for those souls that undergo differentiation with respect to joy and sorrow. || 37

The supreme Lord seems still when the various elements are still; glad when they are glad; gloomy when they are gloomy; but truly he is not so. ||38

The great God, having first eradicated the delusion of taking the non-self and insentient substances as self, shatters afterwards the other delusive conception of taking the (all inclusive) self as non-self. || 39

When in this way the two illusions are successfully rooted out completely, the exalted adepts have fulfilled their aim, and there cannot be any duty left for them to accomplish. || 40

Thus by the power of meditation on unity, the trinity of prthivi (earth), prakrti and maya that had revealed itself in objective form, becomes reduced to simple being. ||41

Just as a belt, a ring, or a bracelet, irrespective of their differentiation, appear simply as gold, so the universe, irrespective of its differentiation, appears as simple being. ||42

This is the Brahman (supreme being), supreme, pure, still, undifferentiated, equable, complete, deathless, real, that rests in the Sakti who has consciousness as its form. || 43

On the other hand , anything un touched by illumination (bha) expressed as the powers of will, knowledge, and action is like a flower-in-the sky it does not exist. [Illumination consists of the powers of will, knowledge, and action held in perfect equilibrium]. ||44

Initially the Lord of the lords creates the whole phenomenon within His own divine, potent and eternally existent aspect named Siva, by handling the trident of His divine powers. || 45

Commentary:The conative, cognitive and creative powers of God are His three primary powers known as iccha-sakti, jnana-sakti and kriya-sakti. The symbolic trident of Siva is suggestive of these three divine powers which constitute His essential nature. Siva, coming face to. face to such powers through His awareness, that is, becoming fully aware of His natural divine powers, becomes prone or inclined towards creation. Such a situation is described as holding in His hand the trident of three divine powers. His conative power is His iccha-sakti, which is depicted in Upanisadic passages like “Tadaiksata, bahu syam, prajayeya iti”. The basic reality visualizes, “Let me become many, let me be born (in many forms)” and so on. Before creating the phenomenon externally as an objective existence, God creates it within His own self known as Siva. His will to create a particular type of phenomenon presupposes its existence inside His awareness, because nothing particular could have otherwise become the object of His conation, or creation. The phenomenon appears initially in Him and that is due to His cognitive power. It shines clearly in Him as the object to be created and is thus created there actually through His creative power. Its outward creation is due to the phenomenal growth of His kriya-sakti. A worldly creator also follows such process. He creates only that thing outwardly which is initially created by him in his own self. A painter creates initially a wonderful form in his own will and then he illuminates it thoroughly while forming a clear idea about it in his mind and afterwards he starts to paint it actually on a board. So does the Lord create the phenomenon in His own subjective self before manifesting it outwardly and objectively. That is the interior creation which the couplet in hand is meant to express.

And again, he [Paramasiva] accomplishes the task of the external creation of the three eggs with their infinite variety in order to find him self in the external world [as innumerable subjects and objects] through the process of expansion of his five Saktis. || 46

The five divine powers of the Lord are: cit or pure consciousness, ananda or blissfulness, iccha or conative power, jnana or cognitive power and kriya or creative porwer. These powers shine in Him as His own self. Their outward manifestation reflects them as the creation of the objective existence consisting of three spheres of Maya, the causal creation, Pracriti, the subtle creation and Prthvi, the gross creation. The whole of such creation is complexly wonderful. It is the outward or objective manifestation of the essential nature of God. Here He finds out His own self in an objective aspect and that is His ‘bahiratma-labha’

[yogin contemplates]: “Putting thus playfully the machine of the circle of divine powers in motion, I am myself the Lord, with purity as my nature, working at the highest post as the master hero of the infinite wheel of Saktis or divine powers!” || 47

Commentary: Concluding the discussions noted above, an aspirant realizes that he is not a finite being but the great Lord who is the only hero having the multitudes of divine powers as His heroins. He feels actually that he is himself activating playfully the whole circle of such powers, the primary one among which are five: (1) cit, (2) ananda. (3) iccha, (4) jnana, and (5) kriya. Their amalgamated unity appears in twelve forms in the process of all psychic activities of all beings and are known as Sakti-cakra or the group of twelve Kalis. Such Kalis absorb in them the psychic activities of all subjects, the functions of their psychic apparatus and the objective elements that become foci of such activities. A successful practitioner of Saivism realizes and visualizes such fact through his personal experience.

“It is in Me that the universe reveals itself as [inanimate objects like] jars as in a mirror! From Me the universe emanates just as the manifold variety of the dream world emanates from the dreaming person!” ||48

“Just as it is the very nature of a body to be its limbs like hand, feet etc. so is the whole phenomenon my own form! Just as it is light which shines in the form of all existent substances, so do I myself glitter as all existence!” || 49

“Though in fact I do not have any body or senses or organs, and do not commit any deeds, yet I see, hear, smell and I alone compose wonderfully different sastras like Siddhantas, Agamas and logical treatises. || 50

with notes of Balajinath Pandit"

#esoteric #occult #hinduism #shiva #tantra #goddess #shakti #bhairava #sanatanadharma

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