Hermes Trismegistus

Greetings Brethren and Fellows,

The following is an article written by Bro. William C. Blaine 33 Degree. It is focused on the fundamentals of the Philosophy of Hermes Trismegistus. It features a mostly speculative and historical outlook; as will be evident throughout the work. Let me know what you think...

An article by Bro. William C. Blaine 33 Degree

HERMES TRISMEGISTUS
by William C. Blaine 33 degree
THE NEW AGE - JANUARY 1964

The culture and civilization which has come down to us is our
precious heritage. Too often, we take for granted the arts and
sciences which, "stone by stone," have been erected by others for
our living Temple. To re-appraise and appreciate the dedicated
lives of great men is both instructive and fitting. One of the
greatest men of all time, one who is legendary since he embodies
the sciences, the arts and the philosophy of the ancient world was
Hermes Trismegistus.

There is no historical record, as such, of this great Egyptian, but
tradition states that he flourished about 2670 B.C.

"Hermes Trismegistus" is the Greek equivalent for the Egyptian,
"Thoth" and means "The Thrice Great," "The Master of Masters."
Albert G. Mackey's monumental Encyclopedia of Freemasons states
that Hermes or Thoth was a celebrated Egyptian priest, legislator
and philosopher. He is said to have written thirty-six books on
theology and philosophy and six books on medicine. All have been
lost.

Mackey further states that Eusebius claimed that Hermes introduced
the art of writing into Egypt.

It is interesting to conjecture that Hermes, after his death, was
deified, and became known as the god of wisdom. Clemens
Alexandrinus speaks of him as the "scribe of the gods," "the
secretary of Osiris," "the greatest god of them all," and "the Lord
of divine words".

Works are extant in papyri and on temple walls, treating of Hermes'
studies of geography, astronomy, ritual, myths and medicine. The
forty-two books attributed to him were subdivided into six
divisions. The first consisted of ten books and dealt with laws,
deities and the education of priests. The second, also consisting
of ten books, treated of sacrifices, offerings, prayers, hymns, and
festive processions. The third group, also ten in number, was
called hieroglyphics and was a repertory of cosmographi cal,
geographical information. The fourth division, of four books, was
devoted to astronomy and astrology. The fifth group, of two books,
contained a collection of songs in honor of the gods and a
description of royal life and its duties. The sixth, and last
group, contained six books known collectively as the pastophorous.
These dealt with medical subjects.

These writings, known as Hermetic philosophy, were imparted,
tradition says, to the great Greek philosophers Pythagoras, Plato,
Aristotle and Herodotus, and served, in part, as a basis for their
approach to God and the affairs of men.

During the early Roman period, one of the great writings attributed
to Hermes, De Potestate et Sapienta Divina (On Divine Power and
Knowledge), was especially studied in the schools of higher
learning. This treatise, consisting of fifteen chapters, treated
subjects as the nature of God, the origin of the world, the
creation and fall of man, and the Divine Illumination which is the
sole means of his (man's) deliverance.

The life work of Hermes seems to have been in the direction of
planting the seed of truth rather than establishing a school of
philosophy which would dominate the world's thought. Nevertheless,
many of the great Mysteries found their source in these earliest
Hermetic teachings. The Mysteries of Osiris and Isis, in Egypt;
Cybele and Dionysus in Asia Minor, and the Eleusinian Mysteries of
Demeter in Greece were but the outgrowth and development of Hermes'
philosophy. Some of our Masonic degrees find their spiritual
ancestor in Eleusis and Egypt.

Joseph Fort Newton, in The Builders says: "Masons, tiring of the
endless quarrels of sects, turned for relief to the ancient
Mysteries as handed down in their tradition - the old, high, heroic
faith in God and in the soul of man as the one unconquerable thing
on earth. If, as Aristotle said, it be the mission of tragedy to
cleanse and exalt us, leaving us subdued with a sense of pity and
hope and fortified against ill fortune - it is permitted us to add
that in simplicity, depth and power; in its grasp of the stupidity
of evil and the splendor of virtue, its revelation of that in our
humanity which leads it to defy death, giving up everything, even
life itself, rather than defame, defile or betray its moral
integrity; and in its prophecy of victory of light over shadow -
there is not a drama known among men like the Third Degree of
Masonry."

What is the basic philosophy that Hermes left to us as a legacy?
Largely, they may be considered as consisting of seven principles:

MENTALISM: This principle states that "ALL is Mind." It explains
that God is the Substantial Reality which underlies all the outward
manifestations and appearances of the material universe and all
that is apparent to our senses. The ALL is spirit which in itself
is unknowable, and undefinable, but which may be considered and
thought of as a Universal, Infinite, Living Mind. It also explains
that all the phenomenal world or universe is simply a Mental
Creation of the ALL, subject to the laws of created thi ngs and
that the universe in its parts or units bas its existence in the
Mind of the ALL.

CORRESPONDENCE: There is always a correspondence or analogy between
the laws of phenomena and the various planes of Being and Life.
The old Hermetic axiom stated: "As above, so below; as below, so
above." The ancient Hermetists considered this principle as one of
the most important mental instruments by which man was able to pry
aside the obstacles which hid truth from view. Just as a knowledge
of the principles of geometry enables man to measure distant suns
and their movements, a knowledge of corresponde nce enables man to
reason intelligently from the known to the unknown.

VIBRATION: All things are in constant motion. The difference
between different manifestations of matter, energy, mind and even
spirit result largely from varying rates of vibration. From the
ALL, which is pure spirit, EVERYTHING is in vibration - the higher
the vibration, the higher its position in the scale. A proper
understanding of this principle was said to enable Hermetic
students to control their own mental vibrations as well as those of
others.

POLARITY: Everything is dual. In everything about us there are two
poles, or opposite aspects, which are, in fact, only the two
extremes of the same thing, with many varying degrees between them.
For example, heat and cold, although opposites, are really the same
thing, the difference consisting merely of degrees of the same
thing. There is no such thing as absolute heat or absolute cold.
The same principle manifests itself in the case of light and
darkness, which, again, are the same thing, the differe nce being
between varying degrees between the two poles of the phenomena.

RHYTHM: This principle holds that in everything there is manifested
a measured motion, to and fro, a flow and an in-flow, a swing
backward and a swing forward. There is always an action and a
reaction, an advance and a retreat. This is the rhythm of the
universe, suns, worlds, men, mind, energy and matter.

CAUSE AND EFFECT: This principle embodies the teaching that there
is a cause for every effect and an effect for every cause. It
explains that everything happens according to law-that nothing
"merely happens." There is no such thing as chance. While there
may be varying levels of cause and effect, nothing escapes this
law. The Hermetic philosopher believes that by self-mastery and by
rising mentally to a higher plane he becomes a "cause" rather than
an "effect." The masses of people are carried along, obe dient to
their environment. The wills and desires of others stronger than
themselves, heredity, suggestion, and other outward causes move
them about like pawns on a chessboard of everyday living. But the
Hermetic master, rising to the plane above, dominates his mood,
character, qualities and powers, as well as the environment that
surrounds him, and becomes a "mover" instead of a pawn. He helps to
play the game of life, instead of being played and m oved about by
other wills and surroundings.

GENDER: There is gender manifested in everything. On the physical
plane, the principle manifests itself as sex. No creation is
possible without this law. This principle is constantly working in
the direction of generation, regeneration and creation. We find,
for example, a distinct manifestation of gender among the
corpuscles, ions or electrons that constitute the basis of matter
and which, by forming certain combinations, create the atom. The
formation of the atom is really due to the clustering of ne gative
ions or electrons around a positive one. The positive electrons
exert their influence upon the negative, causing the latter to
assume new combinations and thus "create" or "generate" the atom.

Thus, the principles, or philosophies, expressed by Hermes is of a
deeply esoteric and mystical nature. Any study of this sage
requires careful analysis to separate the true from the
traditional. Where one begins and the other leaves off, it is
difficult to tell, but the Light coming to us from across the
centuries is nevertheless fundamental and a part of our treasured
spiritual and cultural heritage. Let us "ponder well" the
philosophy of Hermes Trismegistus.

I have not yet discussed this on my site and I would love to hear your feedback on the article.

Regards,
Bro. Daniel Brown