Will and Imagination

I am trying to make the way that I personally explain Hermetica unfold for each person as they read, as this is a very voluminous subject and the symbolism is thickly layered. Most things in hermeticism are meant to be discovered individually per the operator so these posts are thought experiments, meant to stimulate people minds into thinking about their own personal truths. Also I think carefully about what i choose to write about in sequence so it relates my own experience as well, so i will put the link to my previous post here(The principles of Hermeticism [http://www.spellsofmagic.com/read_post.html?post=255008] ) as well as i will post the link to this thread at the end of the latter post.

After we Gain an understanding of the principles of hermeticism, which give us basis to understand our nature and the nature of our environment, we naturally begin to gravitate towards pondering of our place in these principles. This is where the Tools of Imagination and Will come into play.
"At the very root of the whole matter we find that the Creative Power of the universe does not create through will, but through imagination, imaging, feeling, and knowing. To suppose that [the universe] must will things to happen would be to suppose that [the universe] had some opposing force to contend with.
Will power may be necessary in its place, but as a creative agency it is non-existent; it is not creative but directive; and used from this standpoint it is a wonderful force; whereas, used from any other angle, it becomes destructive and will mentally weary the one using it. To feel that we have to will things to happen casts doubt into the face of Creation and presupposes that Life is not Self-Existent and Self-Propelling.
Imagination taps the very roots of Being and utilizes the same Power that brought the worlds forth from Chaos.... Imagination is the power of the word, while will is the directive agency, denoting the purpose for which the word is spoken.
Man reproduces the power to create and, in his own life, controls his destiny through the activity of his word. This word cannot be willed; but it can be imagined, or imaged forth, into expression."-The Science of Mind, by Ernest Shurtleff Holmes
From this we can begin to understand the roles of will and imagination in magic.
Here i must contend those who would propose that "belief and energy" are that which magic is composed of. Belief does not propel the planets in their orbits any more than it propels magic through the planes of reality. Magic can and does happen when void of belief, or with belief present. Belief is confidence in the truth or existence of something not immediately susceptible to rigorous proof, and by definition exist separately from the action or entity of magic.
As for "energy", The most important property of energy is that it is conserved — that is,the total energy of an isolated system does not change with time. This is known as the law of conservation of energy.Energy can,however,change form;for example, it can be turned into mass and back again into energy.
So, as energy is used in magic, it is not one of the necessary personal tools one uses to create change in the nature of ones being.Energy exists in a constant value, only being changed by imagining this change and using force of will to cause this imagined change to become reality.
The philosophy of the nature of the magus is that they are each a unique and autonomous center of individual consciousness, energy, will, and imagination. [some say soul, I refer to the qualia of an individual] Analogically similar to a star as a celestial body, possessing its own fuel and light, operating un-interfered with save in its heavenly course being affected gravitationally by the presence of other stars.
So as the principles in which hermetic philosophic understanding of reality operate we comprehend now that will and imagination are the personal tools we have to effect cause upon our own reality and in turn affect the "gravitational" realities of those around us.

now let us define each;
IMAGINATION;
the faculty of imagining, or of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses.
+
WILL;
the faculty of conscious and especially of deliberate action; the power of control the mind has over its own actions: the freedom of the will.
=
MAGIC;
the art of producing a desired effect or result through the use of the latter.

We can now begin to apply the actual principles of hermeticism to these precepts of Will and Imagination. The principle of correspondence; we can see the imagination in our own minds as the direct correlate force of nature that exists in the 10th dimensional reality of "ALL things". The imagination is the possibility of anything, and the will is the descent through the lower dimensions to formation. We also see the principle of gender; the passive and creative imagination as the female aspect and the aggressive and acting force of will as the male aspect. together they form the neutral "child" of magical workings.
The varying principles that define the vibrational nature of the universe can be seen in the high frequency vibration of the raw imagination before it has imagined anything, through the coagulation of idea and form, and finally creation of the concept, then the will of acting upon this concept; putting this vibration from unconscious imagination through to subconscious thought, conscious construction of an idea, and causal emanation from the self out into the world.
As I stated before all these ideas build upon each other, they all relate, and the more connections are made in the mind of the individual the more one can use those connection to create a larger vibratory effect.

thankyou arca that helped a great deal in understanding where you are coming from xx

It was explained very well and in detail. Always feel like I am sitting behind a desk again, when reading your stuff. Can almost here a professor and smell the chalk dust. lol

Hermeticism is such a beautiful school of philosophy. Probably why I love reading your contributions.

ANother great post Arc.
You are so ful of great info! I agree, i do enjoy reading your posts:)

Any more on hermeticism, will be greatly appreciated!
Will

I love your posts they are very well thought out and explained, i really enjoy reading them. More?!

thank you so much guys:) yes i have a ton more to come, i am going to try to link each one to the last so the information flows a bit better it is easy to get lost in the minutia of hermeticism.

Now that we understand the immense importance of having an imagination free of fantasy and a will free of ego, we can begin to discuss the techniques that can be utilized to increase the operators proficiency of will and imagination. The techniques that i propose here are ones that i use or that i see the value in personally. Let it be known that the techniques of making will and imagination potent are infinite in number as well as degree of quality. as i stated before the extremely personal nature of hermetic magic dictates one follows their own path within the philosophies presented.

The only true exercise in will is one of self-denial. The adjective "ascetic" derives from the ancient Greek term asksis (practice, training or exercise). Originally associated with any form of disciplined practice, the term ascetic has come to mean anyone who practices a renunciation of worldly pursuits to achieve higher intellectual and spiritual goals.
These acts of will can vary greatly in degree. One example from Isreal Regardie's "The Tree of Life" states someone could deny themselves a subconscious habit, such as crossing the right leg over the left, or itching your ear. For each transgression one would take a razor and cut the forearm or leg. This pain consequence of the subconscious mind and body disobeying the "Royal Will" of the magi would train all aspects of the mind, from conscious to sub, to be reflections of the will of the operator. this practice could be seen to many as self mutilation, and i would not recommend letting this practice be known to those around if you choose to utilize it. i have tried it and it is very potent, although i used this when i was first beginning to understand that i really had no control over my will and i wanted an extreme solution.
Another great technique is fasting. This can vary greatly in degrees of severity as well, from denying oneself soda or meat for a period of time, to not eating or drinking water at all while the sun is up. this is all a personal choice and one should endeavor to create their own will training exercises. also one should always be vigilant in changing these practices where need may arise. if you have mastered not eating cheese, it may be time to step it up a bit and really entertain the thought of pursuing loftier goals.
Also, when beginning the pursuit of the knowledge of your true nature of being, an important step is to create a regimen of meditation and ritual. adherence to this increases willpower exponentially.
Now to the imagination. most of us here are aware of the plenitude of visualization techniques used in magic work. let it only be stated that the complexity of the imagery used(complexity in terms of visualization not only refers to the visual representation of your image, but the way you interact with this thought form in all its aspects. you should be able to touch hear smell see and taste your visualizations. you may even be able to utilize sensory input not normally recognized in your waking life)is directly related to the complexity of the skill gained when using said technique.
There is one particular visualization technique that we will talk about here, because it is of vital import to the operator of any high magical rite. the creation of the astral body. one must take their time, weeks or months, to create this image in your mind, for one is required to place their entire consciousness into this "body" to be able travel through the astral, recognize and record their travels, and bring them to waking life with the intent of utilizing them in their working. in hermetics astral travel is not a skill used for pleasure or for the sake of the fact that it exists. it is used for the sole purpose of gaining insight to the true nature of ones being, and to contact the higher self for reunification with your true nature.
so one would dedicate time in their daily ritual to reaching a meditative state, and creating a tactile mental body, observing in great detail all aspects of this body.
That being said, daily exercise of the will through the techniques mentioned or ones that are discovered on your own, as well as daily meditation and visualizations are important tools used to hone the all important WILL and IMAGINATION of the operator of HIGH MAGIC.

arca i think its realy nice of you to let us into your realms of thoght thankyou for sharing