Any recommendations for books on the Occult?

Alright, can you please show me some excerpts from the hermetic corpus and post their isomorphic equivalents in the form of excerpts from the Kybalion ?

>which traditions are the oldest of its kind?
Neoplatonism
>everything from Plotinus through Proclus
Kabbalah
>Has roots in Jewish mysticism. The Bahir and the Sefer-Yetzirah are the oldest pre-Kabbalah texts.
Taoism
>Tao Te Ching obviously. Although, there is a bit of scholarship that suggests the Nei-Yeh predates it. For neidan (inner alchemy), the Cantong Qi is the first text on Taoist alchemy.

Imagine willingly and unironically investing time into occultism
/X/-tier niggers

The Principle of Correspondence(Kybalion)
“As above, so below, as below, so above. As within, so without, as without, so within.”

The actual text of that maxim, as translated by Dennis W. Hauck from The Emerald Tablet(Hermetica) of Hermes Trismegistus, is: "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracle of the One Thing." Thus, whatever happens on any level of reality (physical, emotional, or mental) also happens on every other level.

It is repackaged occult and Hermetic concepts that is simplified and stripped of nuance to make it palatable for modern minds.

There are so many problems with that image that I don't know where to begin.

You have not beginned in the first place, that's why.

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For starters: occultism is fucking bullshit

Why? You don't understand?

>“As above, so below, as below, so above. As within, so without, as without, so within.”

Yes, to ''As above, so below, as below'', no to the rest, as it is not found in the Emerald Tablet. What do you think that even meant in the historical context of the Emerald tablet.

Also ask yourself, what practical application is there from the Kybalion?

Pretty much ^

>Yes, to ''As above, so below, as below'', no to the rest, as it is not found in the Emerald Tablet.

That's the Principle of Correspondence and is present in both, that's all that matters.
>What do you think that even meant in the historical context of the Emerald tablet.
Principle of Correspondence
This principle, however, is more often used in the sense of the microcosm and the macrocosm. The microcosm is oneself, and the macrocosm is the universe. The macrocosm is as the microcosm and vice versa; within each lies the other, and through understanding one (usually the microcosm) a person may understand the other.
>Also ask yourself, what practical application is there from the Kybalion?
All the Principles are Laws, Natural Laws that are always in effect no matter what.

The Kybalion is hermeticism, but it is hermeticism simplified and translated to our current times.

The issue with the Kybalion is that W. W. Atkinson, who wrote it, wanted to separate himself from the metaphysical currents of his time, then he bashed on Christian Science, New Thought and plain metaphysics, whilst heavily drinking from them.

It's a good book, but for it to be good you have to read many others. It's a great condensation of esoteric knowledge, but not at all explained, rendering it almost opaque.

I only started to get it after reading the Tao Te Ching. Boehme and Levi also furthered my understanding of it.

But imo this book made more harm than good. It opened way for new agers to use spout pseudo hermetic nonsense mixed with a misunderstanding of quantum physics and call it both spirituality and science.

It is a good book. But there are so many caveats.

Furthermore, the seven principles are condensations of currents.

Rhythm condenses cycles like astrological cycles.

Polarity is gender, and the movement between them is rhythm. Rhythm is cause and effect. Vibration is rhythmic oscillation. It's seven laws that are one.

It's a good book, but it doesn't explain anything. It's a good book to go back to, however. And it's not the best book to begin with. It's better to know other traditions deeply before delving into it.

By this I mean, it's important to know hermeticism (the traditional one); kabbalah, Taoism, martinism et cetera. Not all of them, but some knowledge will be of use.

Let's see, the image places an image of the yin-yang next to a definition of dualism that says "everything is dual", but the yin-yang originates from the Tao, which makes Taoism a non-dual religion. Second, yin and yang are not opposites in the sense of one side negates the other and vice-versa, but rather they are complementary and interpenetrating principles. If yin and yang were truly opposites, the ying-yang would be drawn with a straight line down the middle indicating concrete boundaries. Thirdly, the yin-yang image is reversed. Fire, masculinity, mountains, and the sun are yang symbols, whereas water, femininity, seas, and the moon are yin symbols. Furthermore, yin always precedes yang because life begins in manifestation. Or in alchemical terms, in order for the manifest to exist, the non-manifest must "coagulate" into the manifest, which is the first thing that occurs in creation. The yin-yang as a whole in harmony represents the androgyne, reunification with the Tao.

In short, without all the unnecessary painful ramble, the Yin and Yang are polar opposites, Light and Darkness, Male and Female, Sun and Moon, Knowledge and Ignorance. All of which itself manifest in everything because everything is Gender, everyone has both Masculine and Feminine principles. Period.
>Opposites are identical in nature, but different in Degree
>Extremes meet
>All paradoxes may be reconciled

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And therefore Everything is Dual.
Everything has poles
Everything has its pair of Opposites.

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>Everything is dual
Yet, everything comes from Tao/Brahman/The Godhead

Yet, Opposites will always be Present, so Dualism is part of the The All(Tao/Brahman/Monad) or Nature, if you will.