The Seven Hermetic Principles. “The Principles of Truth are Seven; he who knows these, understandingly, possesses the Magic Key before whose touch all the Doors of the Temple fly open.” — The Kybalion.
In a world increasingly shaped by fleeting trends and surface-level insights, the timeless wisdom of the Seven Hermetic Principles offers a profound invitation to journey inward—toward the architecture of reality itself.
Rooted in ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman esoteric traditions, these principles are not mere philosophical musings; they are the foundational laws that govern the seen and unseen dimensions of existence.
Whether you’re seeking clarity in chaos, mastery over your mental states, or a deeper understanding of the spiritual mechanics behind creation, the Hermetic teachings provide a map.
Each principle is a key—unlocking doors to self-awareness, cosmic alignment, and the alchemical transformation of consciousness.
Let us begin this exploration with reverence and curiosity, as we step into the sacred geometry of truth.
I. THE PRINCIPLE OF MENTALISM.
“THE ALL is MIND; The Universe is Mental.” — The Kybalion.
This principle conveys the truth that “All is Mind.” It explains THE ALL (the Substantial Reality underlying all outward manifestations and appearances known as “The Material Universe,” the “Phenomena of Life,” “Matter,” “Energy,” and everything perceptible to material senses) is SPIRIT.
This SPIRIT is inherently UNKNOWABLE and UNDEFINABLE, yet it may be regarded and contemplated as a UNIVERSAL, INFINITE, LIVING MIND.
It further elucidates that the entire phenomenal world or universe is merely a Mental Creation of THE ALL, governed by the Laws of Created Things. The universe, both as a whole and in its individual parts or units, exists within the Mind of THE ALL, within which we “live and move and have our being.”
This Principle, by affirming the Mental Nature of the Universe, provides a coherent explanation for the diverse mental and psychic phenomena that captivate significant public attention and, without such an explanation, remain incomprehensible and resistant to scientific analysis.
An understanding of the profound Hermetic Principle of Mentalism allows an individual to readily comprehend the laws governing the Mental Universe and utilize them for personal well-being and progress.
The Hermetic Student is empowered to apply the great Mental Laws with intelligence and purpose, rather than in an arbitrary manner. With the Master-Key in hand, the student can unlock the numerous doors of the mental and psychic temple of knowledge, entering them freely and with discernment.
This principle explains the true nature of “Energy,” “Power,” and “Matter,” showing how all these are subordinate to Mind. Long ago, an ancient Hermetic Master stated: “He who grasps the truth of the Mental Nature of the Universe well on The Path to Mastery.”
These words are just as relevant today they were when first written. Without this Master-Key, true Mastery cannot be achieved, and the seeker will knock in vain at the many doors of The Temple.
II. THE PRINCIPLE OF CORRESPONDENCE.
“As above, so below; as below so above.” — The Kybalion.
This principle highlights the idea that there is always a connection between the laws phenomena across different levels of existence and life
The ancient Hermetic axiom goes: “As above, so below; as within, so without” Understanding this principle provides a way to unravel many of nature’s mysteries and paradoxes While there are realms beyond our comprehension, applying the Principle of Correspondence allows us to grasp knowledge that would otherwise remain inaccessible.
This principle applies to everything—whether physical, mental, or spiritual—and is considered a universal law.
Ancient Hermetic thinkers saw it as one of the most powerful tools for uncovering hidden truths. By using it, they believed people could move past barriers that kept the unknown out of reach. It was said to lift the mystical “Veil of Isis,” allowing a rare glimpse into deeper spiritual realities.
Just as a knowledge of the Principles of Geometry enables man to measure distant suns and their movements, while seated in his observatory, so a knowledge of the Principle of Correspondence enables Man to reason intelligently from the Known to the Unknown. Studying the monad, he understands the archangel.
III. THE PRINCIPLE OF VIBRATION.
“Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.” — The Kybalion.
This Principle embodies the truth that “everything is in motion”; “everything vibrates”; “nothing is at rest”; facts which Modern Science endorses, and which each new scientific discovery tends to verify. And yet this Hermetic Principle was enunciated thousands of years ago, by the Masters of Ancient Egypt.
This Principle explains that the differences between different manifestations of Matter, Energy, Mind, and even Spirit, result largely from varying rates of Vibration. From THE ALL, which is Pure Spirit, down to the grossest form of Matter, all is in vibration — the higher the vibration, the higher the position in the scale.
The vibration of Spirit occurs at an infinitely high rate of intensity and rapidity, rendering it virtually motionless—much like a swiftly spinning wheel appears still. Conversely, at the opposite end of the spectrum, there exist dense forms of matter with vibrations so slow that they also seem motionless. Between these two extremes lies an immense range of countless degrees of vibration.
From corpuscle and electron, atom and molecule, to worlds and universes, everything is in vibratory motion. This is also true on the planes of energy and force (which are but varying degrees of vibration); and also on the mental planes (whose states depend upon vibrations); and even on to the spiritual planes.
An understanding of this Principle, with the appropriate formulas, enables Hermetic students to control their own mental vibrations as well as those of others.
The Masters also apply this Principle to the conquering of Natural phenomena, in various ways. “He who understands the Principle of Vibration, has grasped the sceptre of Power,” says one of the old writers.
IV. THE PRINCIPLE OF POLARITY.
“Everything is Dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be reconciled.” — The Kybalion.
This Principle embodies the truth that “everything is dual”; “everything has two poles”; “everything has its pair of opposites,” all of which were old Hermetic axioms.
It sheds light on the age-old paradoxes that have puzzled many, expressed in statements like: “Thesis and antithesis are identical in nature but differ in degree”; “opposites are essentially the same, only varying by degree”; “opposing pairs can be reconciled”; “extremes converge”; “everything simultaneously is and isn’t”; “all truths are partial truths”; “every truth has an element falsehood”; “there are two sides to everything,” and so on.
It explains that in everything there are two poles, or opposite aspects, and that “opposites” are really only the two extremes of the same thing, with many varying degrees between them.
To illustrate: Heat and Cold, although “opposites,” are really the same thing, the differences consisting merely of degrees of the same thing.
Opposites like hot and cold, light and dark, or love and hate aren’t truly separate—they’re just different degrees of the same thing. There’s no clear point where heat becomes cold or light becomes dark. These are all part of a spectrum, and their differences come from how much they vibrate.
This principle applies not just to physical things, but also to thoughts and emotions. Love and hate, for example, are two ends of the same emotional scale.
Between them lies a range of feelings like like and dislike, which can shift gradually. With awareness and willpower, we can even transform hate into love—this is part of what Hermeticists call Mental Alchemy.
Understanding polarity helps us change our own emotional state and influence others. Good and evil, too, are just polarities of the same essence. Mastering this principle means learning how to shift from one pole to another—turning negativity into positivity through conscious effort.
V. THE PRINCIPLE OF RHYTHM.
“Everything flows, out and in; everything has its tides; all things rise and fall; the pendulum-swing manifests in everything; the measure of the swing to the right is the measure of the swing to the left; rhythm compensates.” — The Kybalion.
This Principle embodies the truth that in everything there is manifested a measured motion, to and fro; a flow and inflow; a swing backward and forward; a pendulum-like movement; a tide-like ebb and flow; a high-tide and low-tide; between the two poles which exist in accordance with the Principle of Polarity described a moment ago.
There is always an action and a reaction, an advance and a retreat a rising and a sinking. This is in the affairs of the Universe, suns, worlds, men, animals, mind, energy, and matter.
This law is evident in the creation and destruction of worlds, the rise and fall of nations, the existence of all living things, and, most notably, in the mental states of humanity (which the Hermeticist regard as the most significant aspect for understanding the principle).
The Hermeticist have comprehended this Principle, recognizing its universal application, and have devised specific methods and formulas to mitigate its effects within themselves.
They apply the Mental Law of Neutralization. They cannot annul the principle, or cause it to cease its operation, but they have learned how to escape its effects upon themselves to a certain degree depending upon the Mastery of the Principle. They have learned how to USE it, instead of being USED BY it. In this and similar methods, consist of the Art of the Hermetists.
The Master of Hermetics polarizes himself at the point at which he desires to rest, and then neutralizes the Rhythmic swing of the pendulum which would tend to carry him to the other pole.
People who have developed some level of self-mastery often resist emotional swings without realizing it. But a true Master does this deliberately, using their willpower to stay mentally balanced and strong. This level of control is hard for most people to imagine, as they are constantly pulled back and forth by life’s ups and downs—like a pendulum.
This Principle and that of Polarity have been closely studied by the Hermetists, and the methods of counteracting, neutralizing and USING them form an important part of the Hermetic Mental Alchemy.
VI. THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT.
“Every Cause has its Effect; every Effect has its Cause; everything happens according to Law; Chance is but a name for Law not recognized; there are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law.” — The Kybalion.
This Principle embodies the fact that there is a Cause for every Effect; an Effect from every Cause. It explains that: “Everything Happens according to Law”; that nothing ever “merely happens”; that there is no such thing as Chance; that while there are various planes of Cause and Effect, the higher dominating the lower planes, still nothing ever entirely escapes the Law.
The Hermetic understand the art and methods of rising above the ordinary plane of Cause and Effect, to a certain degree, and by mentally rising to a higher plane they become Causers instead of Effects.
The masses of people are carried along, obedient to environment; the wills and desires of others stronger than themselves; heredity; suggestion; and other outward causes moving them about like pawns on the Chessboard of Life.
But the Masters, rising to the plane above, dominate their moods, characters, qualities, and powers, as well as the environment surrounding them, and become Movers instead of pawns. They help to PLAY THE GAME OF LIFE, instead of being played and moved about by other wills and environment. They USE the Principle instead of being its tools.
The Masters obey the Causation of the higher planes, but they help to RULE on their own plane. In this statement there is condensed a wealth of Hermetic knowledge, let him read who can.
VII. THE PRINCIPLE OF GENDER.
“Gender is in everything; everything has its Masculine and Feminine Principles Gender; manifests on all planes.” — The Kybalion.
This Principle embodies the truth that there is GENDER manifested in everything — the Masculine and Feminine Principles ever at work.
This is true not only of the Physical Plane, but of the Mental and even the Spiritual Planes. On the Physical Plane, the Principle manifests as SEX, on the higher planes it takes higher forms, but the Principle is ever the same. No creation, physical, mental or spiritual, is possible without this Principle. An understanding of its laws will throw light on many a subject that has perplexed the minds of men.
The Principle of Gender works ever in the direction of generation, regeneration, and creation.
Every person and everything contains both masculine and feminine energies. A man also carries the feminine aspect, and a woman also holds the masculine. To truly understand how mental and spiritual creation, generation, and regeneration work, you need to study this Hermetic Principle. It helps explain many of life’s deeper mysteries.
This principle has nothing to do with distorted or harmful teachings that misuse the idea of gender for lustful or degrading purposes. Such practices are a misuse of a sacred natural law.
Reviving old, corrupt ideas like phallic worship can damage the mind, body, and spirit. Hermetic philosophy has always warned against these twisted interpretations that lead to indulgence, immorality, and a misuse of nature’s true principles.
This principle has nothing to do with distorted or harmful teachings that misuse gender for lustful or degrading purposes. Such practices are a misuse of a sacred natural law and can harm the mind, body, and spirit.
Hermetic philosophy strongly warns against these corrupt interpretations, which twist nature’s principles into indulgence and perversion. If you’re seeking that kind of teaching, Hermeticism is not the path, it offers no support for such views. To those with pure intentions, this principle reveals profound truths; to those with base desires, it becomes distorted.
The Seven Hermetic Principles offer more than abstract philosophy, they are living keys to understanding the nature of reality, consciousness, and creation. Whether you’re navigating emotional landscapes, exploring spiritual truths, or designing tools for transformation, these laws provide a timeless framework for mastery.
As you integrate these teachings, remember, true wisdom lies not just in knowing, but in applying. Let these principles guide your journey inward and outward, as you align with the deeper rhythms of the cosmos and the creative power within.
Let them guide you toward greater clarity, alignment, and mastery, as you walk the path of conscious evolution. The Temple doors are open, step through with intention.
PS
PARADIGM SHYFT 