The gifts of the planets
Image: Based on “The Philosopher’s Stone” Heinich Khunrath
“The Sun spoke: 'I will shine all the more."
Moon promised to light up her course in Sun's wake. She added that she had already engendered Fear, Silence, Sleep, and Memory that would be useful to human beings.
Saturn announced that he was already the father of Justice and Necessity.
Jupiter spoke: 'So that the future race might not totally devote themselves to war, I have already fathered for their benefit Fortune, Hope, and Peace.'
Mars said that he was already the father of Struggle, Wrath, and Strife.
Venus asserted without hesitation: 'To them, Master, I will yoke Desire, Pleasure, Laughter so that the souls akin to me, who suffer the most horrid condemnation, might not be punished beyond measure.'
God was greatly pleased, my child, when Venus said this.
'And I will make human nature,' Mercury said, 'and entrust to them Wisdom, Moderation, Persuasion, and Truth. I will not cease to join with Invention. Moreover, I will forever benefit the mortal life of future humans born under my zodiacal signs. The signs that the father and Craftsman entrusted to me are wise and intelligent. I will benefit the race all the more when the movement of the stars that overlie them are in harmony with the natural energy of each individual.'
God, the Master of the world, rejoiced when he heard this speech and ordered that the tribe of humans be made.” - The Kore Kosmou
“A Galactic Embrace” image courtesy of NASA
The kore Kosmou
The Kore Kosmou, meaning “Pupil of the Cosmos,” is an ancient Hermetic text whose title evokes the image of an eye. Unlike many Hermetic writings in which Hermes Trismegistus instructs Asclepius or his son Tat, here the Egyptian goddess Isis imparts sacred teachings to her son Horus
In our year of unprecedented planetary alignments, it is interesting to reflect on how the ancient Hermeticists understood the planets - as archetypal powers that generate the emotional and psychological capacities of humanity.
Moreover, these ancient astronomers observed the influence of the sun, moon, stars, and planets on the emotions of humans and animals and believed that all energies hold the potential for good because they come from the divine. They saw emotional energies that we often regard as negative to be part of the divine creative order itself.
Why would aspects such as struggle and strife be considered a gift coming directly from the divine cosmic order? According to Mystery School teachings, self-mastery is cultivated when we guide all energies through the will, under the direction of the heart, from a state of balance and wholeness. As a quote from Dave Lanyon, the head of the Modern Mystery School of the Western world, "All boundaries in life should be held by Love and not hatred."
Is it even possible to hold a boundary with Love? According to Mystery School teachings, yes, it is possible to hold boundaries that honor both the self and/or your loved ones with loving application towards the opposing party, and that this is a state of both balance and grace. The teachings are that to do otherwise, builds negativity into our energy structure rather than positive aspects such as love and forgiveness. We can find evidence of this difficult truth when we think back to the last time we got angry and lashed out, even to a socially acceptable degree - the rest of our day may have felt off in some way.
SILVERY WATER AND STARRY EARTH
In the ancient alchemical text The Book of the Silvery Water and Starry Earth, written in Egypt around 900 CE and attributed to Muhammad ibn Umail, similar themes emerge.
In his, “Letter from the Sun to the Waxing Moon”, the Sun and the Moon discuss their union. At one point, the Moon says, "...I need your works, O Sun, without interruption, because you are of perfect character, the father of all lights, the high light, the great Master and Lord. I am the waxing moon, moist and cold, and you are the sun, warm and dry." And later the Sun replies, "If you do this, and if you do me no harm, O Moon, and if my body will return, then I will give you a new virtue of penetration and after this you will be powerful in the battle of the fire of liquefaction and purgation and there will no longer be any diminishing, or darkness ... and you will not fight me anymore because you will not be rebellious anymore."
This ancient symbolism speaks of the union of opposites within each of us - acceptance of our qualities that we may try to hide. However, when we see their value and use them with mastery, we become unified and authentically whole.
The planet Mercury, image courtesy NASA
COMBATTING RETROGRADE ENERGIES
And then what about those energies of the planets that can be particularly challenging, like Mercury when it is in retrograde?
According to Mystery School teachings, initiatory processes, such as the adept initiation called the Empower Thyself initiation, are designed to strengthen one’s capacity to remain centered amidst the currents of life by anchoring in high-frequency healing light into the physical and energetic structure. So rather than being unconsciously swept along by emotional, environmental, or planetary influences, the initiate has the tools and the energetic capacity to wield these tools in order to cultivate the awareness necessary to observe these forces and choose how to respond to them.