Dion Fortune (1891-1946), founder of The Society of the Inner Light, is recognized as one of the most luminous figures of 20th-century esoteric thought. A prolific writer, pioneer psychologist, powerful psychic, and spiritualist, she dedicated her life to the revival of the Western Mystery Tradition. She was also a member of the Order of the Golden Dawn, whose members included at various times such people as A.E. Waite, Aleister Crowley, and W.B. Yeats.

THE MYSTICAL QABALAH

Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC

Contents

CHAPTER 1

The Yoga of the West

1. Very few students of occultism know anything at all about the fountain-head whencetheir tradition springs. Many of them do not even know there is a Western Tradition.Scholarship is baffled by the intentional blinds and defences with which initiates bothancient and modern have wrapped themselves about, and concludes that the fewfragments of a literature which have come down to us are medieval forgeries. They wouldbe greatly surprised if they knew that these fragments, supplemented by manuscripts thathave never been allowed to pass out of the hands of initiates, and completed by an oraltradition, are handed down in schools of initiation to this day, and are used as the bases ofthe practical work of the Yoga of the West.

2. The adepts of those races whose evolutionary destiny is to conquer the physical planehave evolved a Yoga technique of their own which is adapted to their special problemsand peculiar needs. This technique is based upon the well-known but little understoodQabalah, the Wisdom of Israel.

3. It may be asked why it is that the Western nations should go to the Hebrew culture fortheir mystical tradition ? The answer to this question will be readily understood by thosewho are acquainted with the esoteric theory concerning races and sub-races. Everythingmust have a source. Cultures do not spring out of nothing. The seed-bearers of each newphase of culture must of necessity arise within the preceding culture. No one can denythat Judaism was the matrix of the European spiritual culture when they recall the fact thatJesus and Paul were both Jews. No race except the Jewish race could possibly haveserved as the stock upon which the new dispensation was to be grafted because no otherrace was monotheistic. Pantheism and polytheism had had their day and a new and morespiritual culture was due. The Christian races owe their religion to the Jewish culture assurely as the Buddhist races of the East owe theirs to the Hindu culture.

4. The mysticism of Israel supplies the foundation of modern Western occultism. It formsthe theoretical basis upon which all ceremonial is developed. Its famous glyph, the Tree ofLife, is the best meditation-symbol we possess because it is the most comprehensive.

5. It is not my intention to write a historical study of the sources of the Qabalah, but ratherto show the uses that are made of it by modern students of the Mysteries. For althoughthe roots of our system are in tradition, there is no reason why we should be hidebound bytradition. A technique that is being actually practised is a growing thing, for the experienceof each enriches it and becomes part of the common heritage.

6. It is not necessarily incumbent upon us to do certain things or hold certain ideasbecause the Rabbis who lived before Christ had certain views. The world has moved onsince those days and we are under a new dispensation. But what was true in principlethen will be true in principle now, and of value to us. The modern Qabalist is the heir of theancient Qabalist, but he must re-interpret doctrine and re-formulate method in the light ofthe present dispensation if the heritage he has received is to be of any practical value tohim.

7. I do not claim that the modern Qabalistic teachings as I have learnt them are identicalwith those of the pre-Christian Rabbis, but I claim that they are the legitimate descendantsthereof and the natural development therefrom.

8. The nearer the source the purer the stream. In order to discover first principles we mustgo to the fountain-head. But a river receives many tributaries in the course of its flow, andthese need not necessarily be polluted. If we want to discover whether they are pure ornot, we compare them with the pristine stream, and if they pass this test they may well bepermitted to mingle with the main body of waters and swell their strength. So it is with atradition: that which is not antagonistic will be assimilated. We must always test the purityof a tradition by reference to first principles, but we shall equally judge of the vitality of atradition by its power to assimilate. It is only a dead faith which remains uninfluenced bycontemporary thought.

9. The original stream of Hebraic mysticism has received many tributaries. We see its riseamong the nomad starworshippers of Chaldea, where Abraham in his tent among hisflocks hears the voice of God. But Abraham has a shadowy background in which vastforms move half-seen. The mysterious figure of a great Priest-king, "born without father,without mother, without descent; having neither beginning of days nor end of life,"administers to him the first Eucharistic feast of bread and wine after the battle with theKings in the valley, the sinister Kings of Edom, "who ruled ere there was a king in Israel,whose kingdoms are unbalanced force."

10. Generation by generation we trace the intercourse of the princes of Israel with thepriest-kings of Egypt. Abraham and Jacob went thither; Joseph and Moses were intimatelyassociated with the court of the royal adepts. When we read of Solomon sending to Hiram,King of Tyre, for men and materials to aid in the building of the Temple we know that thefamous Tyrian Mysteries must have profoundly influenced the Hebrew esotericism. Whenwe read of Daniel being educated in the palaces of Babylon we know that the wisdom ofthe Magi must have been accessible to Hebrew illuminati.

11. This ancient mystical tradition of the Hebrews possessed three literatures: the Booksof the Law and the Prophets, which are known to us as the Old Testament; the Talmud, orcollection of learned commentaries thereon; and the Qabalah, or mystical interpretationthereof. Of these three the ancient Rabbis say that the first is the body of the tradition, thesecond its rational soul, and the third its immortal spirit. Ignorant men may with profit readthe first; learned men study the second; but the wise meditate upon the third. It is astrange thing that Christian exegesis has never sought the keys to the Old Testament inthe Qabalah.

12. In Our Lord's day there were three schools of religious thought in Palestine: thePharisees and the Sadducees, of whom we read so frequently in the Gospels; and theEssenes, who are never referred to. Esoteric tradition avers that the boy Jesus benJoseph, when His calibre was recognised by the learned doctors of the Law who heardHim speak in the Temple at the age of twelve, was sent by them to the Esseniancommunity near the Dead Sea to be trained in the mystical tradition of Israel, and that Heremained there until He came to John to be baptised in the Jordan before commencing hismission at the age of thirty. Be that as it may, the closing clause of the Lord's Prayer ispure Qabalism. Malkuth, the Kingdom, Hod, the Glory, Netzach, the Power, form the basaltriangle of the Tree of Life, with Yesod, the Foundation, or Receptacle of Influences, asthe central point. Whoever formulated that prayer knew his Qabalah.

13. Christianity had its esotericism in the Gnosis, which owed much to both Greek andEgyptian thought. In the system of Pythagoras we see an adaptation of the Qabalisticprinciples to Greek mysticism.

14. The exoteric, state-organised section of the Christian Church persecuted and stampedout the esoteric section, destroying every trace of its literature upon which it could layhands in striving to eradicate the very memory of a gnosis from human history. It isrecorded that the baths and bakehouses of Alexandria were fired for six months with themanuscripts from the great library. Very little remains to us of our spiritual heritage in theancient wisdom. Everything that was above ground was swept away, and it is only with theexcavation of ancient monuments the sands have swallowed that we are beginning torediscover its fragments.

15. It was not until the fifteenth century, when the power of the Church was beginning toshow signs of weakening, that men dared to commit to paper the traditional Wisdom ofIsrael. Scholars declare that the Qabalah is a medieval forgery because they cannot tracea succession of early manuscripts, but those who know the manner of working of esotericfraternities know that a whole cosmogony and psychology can be conveyed in glyph whichmeans nothing to the uninitiated. These strange old charts could be handed on fromgeneration to generation, their explanation being communicated verbally, and the trueinterpretation would never be lost. When in doubt as to the explanation of some abstrusepoint, reference would be made to the sacred glyph, and meditation thereon would unfoldwhat generations of meditation had ensouled therein. It is well known to mystics that if aman meditates upon a symbol around which certain ideas have been associated by pastmeditation, he will obtain access, to those ideas, even if the glyph has never beenelucidated to him by those who have received the oral tradition "by mouth to ear."

16. The organised temporal force of the Church availed to drive all rivals from the field anddestroy their traces. We little know what seeds of mystical tradition sprang up only to becut down during the Dark Ages; but mysticism is inherent in the human race, and althoughthe Church had destroyed all roots of tradition in her group-soul, nevertheless devoutspirits within her fold rediscovered the technique of the soul's approach to God anddeveloped a characteristic Yoga of their own, closely akin to the Bhakti Yoga of the East.The literature of Catholicism is rich in treatises on mystical theology which reveal practicalacquaintance with the higher states of consciousness though a somewhat naiveconception of the psychology thereof, thus revealing the poverty of a system which doesnot avail itself of the experience of tradition.

17. The Bhakti Yoga of the Catholic Church is only suitable for those whose temperamentis naturally devotional and who find their readiest expression in loving self-sacrifice. But itis not everybody who is of this type, and Christianity is unfortunate in not having anychoice of systems to offer its aspirants. The East, being tolerant, is wise, and hasdeveloped various Yoga methods, each of which is pursued by its adherents to theexclusion of the others, and yet none would deny that the other methods are also paths toGod for those to whom they are suited.

18. In consequence of this deplorable limitation on the part of our theology many Westernaspirants take up Eastern methods. For those who are able to live in Eastern conditionsand work under the immediate supervision of a guru this may prove satisfactory, but itseldom gives good results when the various systems are pursued with no other guide thana book and under unmodified Western conditions.

19. It is for this reason that I would recommend to the white races the traditional Westernsystem, which is admirably adapted to their psychic constitution. It gives immediateresults, and if done under proper supervision, not only does it not disturb the mental orphysical equipoise, as happens with regrettable frequency when unsuitable systems areused, but it produces a unique vitality. It is this peculiar vitality of the adepts which led tothe tradition of the elixir of life. I have known a number of people in my time who mightjustly be considered adepts, and I have always been struck by that peculiar ageless vitalitythey all possessed.

20. On the other hand, however, I can only endorse what all the gurus of the EasternTradition have always averred — that any system of psycho-spiritual development canonly be safely and adequately carried on under the personal supervision of anexperienced teacher. For this reason, although I shall give in these pages the principles ofthe mystical Qabalah I do not consider it would be in anybody's interest to give the keys toits practice even if by the terms of the obligation of my own initiation I were not forbiddento do so. But, on the other hand, I do not consider it fair to the reader to introduceintentional blinds and misinformation, and to the best of my knowledge and belief theinformation I give is accurate, even if incomplete.

21. The Thirty-two Mystical Paths of the Concealed Glory are ways of life, and those whowant to unravel their secrets must tread them. As I myself was trained, so can anyone betrained who is willing to undergo the discipline, and I will gladly indicate the way to anyearnest seeker.

CHAPTER 2

The Choice of Path

1. No student will ever make any progress in spiritual development who flits from systemto system; first using some New Thought affirmations, then some Yoga breathingexercises and meditation-postures, and following these by an attempt at the mysticalmethods of prayer. Each of these systems has its value, but that value can only berealised if the system is carried out in its entirety. They are the calisthenics ofconsciousness, and aim at gradually developing the powers of the mind. The value doesnot lie in the prescribed exercises as ends in themselves, but in the powers that will bedeveloped if they are persevered with. If we intend to take our occult studies seriously andmake of them anything more than desultory light reading, we must choose our system andcarry it out faithfully until we arrive, if not at its ultimate goal, at any rate at definitepractical results and a permanent enhancement of consciousness. After this has beenachieved we may, not without advantage, experiment with the methods that have beendeveloped upon other Paths, and build up an eclectic technique and philosophy therefrom;but the student who sets out to be an eclectic before he has made himself an expert willnever be anything more than a dabbler

2. Whoever has any practical experience of the different methods of spiritual developmentknows that the method must fit the temperament, and that it must also be adapted to thegrade of development of the student. Westerners, especially such as prefer the occult tothe mystic Path, often come seeking initiation at a stage of spiritual development which anEastern guru would consider exceedingly immature. Any method that is to be available forthe West must have in its lower grades a technique which can be used as a steppingstone by these undeveloped students; to ask them to rise immediately to metaphysicalheights is useless in the case of the great majority, and prevents a start from being made.

3. For a system of spiritual development to be applicable in the West it must fulfil certainwell-defined requirements. To begin with, its elementary technique must be such that it isreadily grasped by minds that have in them nothing of the mystic. Secondly, the forces itbrings to beat to stimulate the development of the higher aspects of consciousness mustbe sufficiently powerful and concentrated to penetrate the relatively dense vehicles of theaverage Westerner, who makes nothing whatever of subtle vibrations. Thirdly, as fewEuropeans, following a racial dharma of material development, have either the opportunityor the inclination to lead the life of a recluse, the forces employed must be handled in sucha way that they can be made available during the brief periods that the modern man orwoman can, at the commencement of the Path, snatch from their daily avocations to giveto the pursuit. They must, that is to say, be handled by a technique which enables them tobe readily concentrated and equally readily dispersed, because it is not possible tomaintain these high psychic tensions while living the hard-driving life of the citizen of aEuropean city. Experience proves with unfailing regularity that the methods of psychicdevelopment which are effectual and satisfactory for the recluse produce neuroticconditions and breakdowns in the person who pursues them while compelled to endurethe strain of modern life.

4. So much the worse for modern life, some may say, and adduce this undeniable fact asan argument for modifying our Western ways of living. Far be it from me to maintain thatour civilisation is perfect, or that wisdom originated and will die with us, but it appears tome that if our karma (or destiny) has caused us to be incarnated in a body of a certainracial type and temperament, it may be concluded that is the discipline and experiencewhich the Lords of Karma consider we need in this incarnation, and that we shall notadvance the cause of our evolution by avoiding or evading it. I have seen so manyattempts at spiritual development that were simply evasions of life's problems that I amsuspicious of any system which involves a breach with the group-soul of the race. Not amI impressed by a dedication to the higher life which by peculiarities of clothing and bearingand by the manner of cutting, or omitting to cut, the hair. True spirituality never advertisesitself.

5. The racial dharma of the West is the conquest of dense matter. If this were realised itwould explain many problems in the relationships of West and East. In order that we mayconquer dense matter and develop the concrete mind we are endowed by our racialheritage with a particular type of physical body and nervous system, just as other races,such as the Mongolian and the Negro, are endowed with other types.
(Continues...)Excerpted from THE MYSTICAL QABALAH by DION FORTUNE. Copyright © 1998 Society of Inner Light, London. Excerpted by permission of Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC.
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