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Franz Bardon’s Hermetic Yoga — Part 2: The Practice of Magical Evocation

Bardon’s second and third volumes do not pick up where Initiation Into Hermetics (IIH) leaves off, but instead present two additional options for exploring the work of Hermetic initiation. Thus, it is not strictly necessary for the practitioner of Bardon’s system to make practical use of either The Practice of Magical Evocation (PME) or The Key to the True Quabbalah (KTQ). Not every magician will utilize evocation; likewise, not every Hermetist will need to activate the various major and minor channels within the subtle body. These are the primary tasks of these two books, as we shall see.

Corpus Hermeticum, the most complete and important of ancient Hermetic scriptures to have come down to us, presents a path of ascent from Earth to Heaven. Other books make it know that this path passes through the planetary spheres, in each of which the Hermetist leaves behind an enveloping sheath identified with a negative moral quality or sin. It is implicit that, for each sin shed, a corresponding virtue will unfold as a natural consequence. The idea, basically, is that a sin is only a warped version of a virtue, and that said virtues are inherent to the divine Intellect (Nους) within a person. Take, as an illustration, a blinder being removed from a lantern; the light is already shining brightly inside, but cannot be seen through the slat of metal covering it over.

Bardon’s PME more or less follows on from this scheme. Once, in the practice of IIH, the magician is capable of safe and consistent mental and astral travel (steps 8 and 9 of IIH), he or she is prepared to conduct this “rising on the planes” (to use a common phrase in modern-day Western occultism). It is not as simple, however, as just traveling from one sphere to the next in sequence. Contact must be made with intelligences of any given sphere, at which point those intelligences are individually evoked. That is, one has not “mastered” a given sphere until one has drawn one or more of the planar intelligences to manifestation on Earth.

A few points need to be made clear. Those familiar with other, popular forms of “evocation” only may think that evocation is usually done of demonic forces, and that these forces are constrained or bound to the magician’s service. Bardon would be the first to say that this is nothing but rank sorcery. A Hermetic magician is less concerned with binding demons to find hidden treasures, and the like, than he is with making friends with intelligences of higher order. Some of the beings he will meet in the spheres will be individual souls at various points within their own development, while others will be angelic in nature. Either way, they are to be tested (to see whether benevolent or malevolent), and then either befriended or rejected. Once befriended, a planar being may then be asked for permission to evoke. The practitioner of Hermetic evocation need never evoke a being against its will! To do so is not only criminal, it is also counterproductive.

In Hindu Tantra, it is known that each chakra is “ruled” by a specific Devatā. As one raises one’s awareness from chakra to chakra (viewed as microcosmic anchors of the corresponding planes), the relevant deva is invoked and then made the subject-object of identification. Thus, one sees oneself as the deva and the deva as oneself, never denying that the deva is independent of the individual psyche (jīvā) but exists within the Immanent-Transcendent Self (Ātmā). The same concept obtains for the evoked beings of Hermetic evocation. In order to befriend an entity, the magician must first empathize with it; he must then be able to fully identify with that entity and with the forces of its home-sphere in order to be able to make a temporary home for it on the physical plane and then gently welcome it to that home. Thus, Bardon’s evocation is first a process of invocation (drawing-inward and identification) followed by evocation (projecting outward). Even the better-known demonic evocation of popular occultism (such as that taught in Crowley’s Thelema, etc.) uses the method of first invoking and then evoking the being in question, though the sorcerer usually does not realize it. Just as the Hermetic or Tantric evocation of a devonic intelligence begins to awaken the seven upper chakras (or the planetary sephiroth, depending upon model) the sorcerer’s evocation of a demonic or asuric intelligence draws consciousness down into the cthonic and infernal lower chakras (qlippoth); that which is evoked is always invoked first, whether we realize it or not, and so activated within the soul of the individual.

>>5475
One of Franz Bardon’s fondest hopes was to present to the seekers of the world a system of initiation and practice which could be begun and applied safely on one’s own. As a guru or master is generally necessary for guidance, this was quite a difficult task he set for himself. To safeguard the budding Hermetist from going too far astray, he included numerous warnings in his writing, but went one better: he built safeguards into his books to ensure that those working from his teachings would not fall off the ledge. Among these safeguards includes the fact that each and ever spheric intelligence included in The Practice of Magical Evocation was personally vetted by Bardon himself, and each one gave its word to him that any student of Bardon’s work who contacted it would come to no harm by its actions. In other words, the student of Bardon already has a few friends in each sphere along the way. Though personal exploration is encouraged, even necessary, there is always a place to start, a contact to make which has already been established beforehand. This is a point of practical importance for the magician-to-be!

The scheme which Bardon presents is impeccably complete, starting from the start and working on only once each level has been fully integrated. Rather than jumping straight into the planetary spheres, the student of Bardon begins with the four elemental regions. As elemental equilibrium has already been established in the first five steps of IIH, the magician is in good stead to explore the elements intimately. Next, the sublunary sphere — composed of the lunar-zodiacal mansions — is integrated. Only then does the Hermetist move on to the lunar sphere, then the sphere of Mercury, Venus, Sol, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, in turn. If one makes it this far, the spheres beyond Saturn may be explored, but by this point, evocation has become outmoded, because, as the spheres become more and more rarified, the experience of “traveling to” each one becomes more and more a unitive experience.

Though of relatively minor import, so-called “magical powers” (siddhis) are developed throughout this process. It is generally not necessary to evoke a being to perform a specific task; once the virtues of a given sphere are integrated, the magician need only draw from the bottomless well of that sphere’s power (or śakti, with which he has become identified) to manifest his will. Once again, Bardon is clear that such abilities are only to be used to aid the ailing, and never to fulfill petty desires (which should have been well and truly stripped-out, by this point). The importance of the magical powers is primarily in the unification with the Śakti, or divine power, Herself, as she manifests in and through any particular universal force.

Just as Tantra provides a Hindu with a specific set of tools leading toward the Unitive Realization, so too does evocation for the Hermetist. The Yogi need never practice Tantra, though the Tantrika is, by definition, a Yogi; likewise, the Hermetist need never practice spheric magic, though the spheric magician is inherently a Hermetist. Tantra and spheric evocation are not by any means “lesser” methods, but instead kits for those who are called to use them for their spiritual growth and the liberation of others. Ultimately, in Realization, all magical powers become instantly available when they are needed.

Franz Bardon’s Hermetic Yoga — Part 3: The Key to the True Quabbalah

In traditional Hindu Yoga, much of the work of the āsanas and prānāyāmas is for the “cleaning out” of the nādīs — the nerve-channels of the subtle, transphysical nervous system. These anatomical exercises not only tone and condition the body, but also the mind and that which yokes the mind and body together as a unit during one’s lifetime. In some forms of Tantra, this process is augmented by the occult magical practice of intoning phonemes (the sounds individual letters make, or syllables which encapsulate them or make them pronounceable singularly) within individual regions of the body (and, thus, intersections or plexuses of nādīs). This practice is accompanied by visualizations which invoke particular devas or Mahādevas, setting into motion a very particular flow of śakti (power, energy) within the corresponding channels. The goal of this approach is, in part, to clear out those channels very rapidly, and to get the śaktis moving through them sooner rather than later. Those who teach these methods acknowledge that they are potentially quite dangerous, and will only release the operative details to those who have been well and thoroughly prepared through the baptisms of Water and of Fire (often in the form of consistent ceremonial worship in the Tantric fashion) and the more usual Yoga practices.

A great deal of a student’s work in Initiation Into Hermetics (IIH) serves as the necessary preparation to a very similar process contained in The Key to the True Quabbalah (KTQ). As I said before, one must have mastered at least through step 8 of IIH to engage in the work of KTQ, and not all students of Bardon will even find themselves ready for, or requiring, KTQ’s particulars. It is also recommended that, prior to moving beyond the first few steps of KTQ, the Hermetist has practiced The Practice of Magical Evocation (PME) at least through the “zone girdling the Earth” — Bardon’s idiosyncratic title for the astral region corresponding to the forces and beings of the lunar zodiacal mansions.

As an interesting aside, this earth-girdling zone and its devas are of great historical importance in the practical work of Hermetic talismanic magic. Manuals of this art, such as the famous Picatrix of Islamic-Hermetic derivation, involve the invocation of these devonic powers by way of appropriate astrological timing as well as the inscription and/or intonation of relevant letters and words of power. Relevant to this discussion is the fact that these talismans are noted not only for their effectiveness in achieving so-called “practical”, or material, ends, but also for their visionary-mantic and even therapeutic efficacy. In other words, a thorough course of this lunar-zodiacal talismanry could form a gentle sort of Hermetic-Tantric practice! [Practical information on the practice thereof may be found in Nigel Jackson's Celestial Magic: Principles and Practises of Talismanic Theurgy, 2003, Capall Bann Publishing, or compiled by the sufficiently advanced student of Bardon's PME.]

Once one has established the elemental equilibrium, mastered mental travel, and become well-acquainted with the “fifth element” of ākāśa (variously translated as “space” or “ether”, referring to the subtle plasmic mind-stuff back of both the physical and astral worlds), one is considered to be prepared not only for theurgic-spheric evocation a la PME, but also for the tonal-ākāśic magic of KTQ.

>>5478
This “tonal-ākāśic magic” takes multiple steps of inner training above and beyond the work of IIH steps 1 through 8, and carries one into the practices of steps 9 and 10 serving as aids to the techniques of astral travel and unitive bhakti yoga. The first few steps mostly involve, as in similar tantric practices aforementioned, intoning specific sounds mentally-astrally within corresponding bodily organs, glands, and nerve plexuses. Color visualizations, kinesthetic sensations, and musical notes are gradually built on to each in sequence until, eventually, one’s entire subtle nervous system is buzzing with with śaktis of varying intensities. Again, as with the tantric practices, this both cleans out the subtle plumbing, and begins to move force of appropriate intensities through all of the pipes and streams of the system. Though Bardon only hints at this point, all of this is ultimately in service to drawing one’s awareness every higher and further inward to the divine processes running behind creation, preservation, and dissolution. Just as in Yoga, the Hermetist’s consciousness — and all of his śaktis — merge into the Mahāśakti. This temporary samādhi, which coincides perfectly with the goal of IIH step 10’s devotional concentration discipline, also unlocks numerous magical powers. The remainder of KTQ’s work deals with discovering which of these powers the Hermetist needs for this life’s mission, and then setting about to master those specific abilities in turn. This is done by entering deeply into oneself and, while in this meditative state, activating the appropriate sequence of “letters” (the energy channels developed up to this point), thus routing a great deal of divine power through a very specific course which results in the desired manifestation.

Bardon’s “quabbalistic magic” is the very real speaking-into-existence of a miracle — of the sort promised and not delivered by so many throw-away evangelical prosperity gospel paperbacks. A great deal of discipline is required to master these literally biblical methods of prayer, discipline by which the magician truly becomes an agent of the demiurgic Logos.

[Note to the Reader: If you are at all interested in actually practicing Bardon's system — and literally any Hermetist ought to at least be tempted! — I highly recommend that you follow Bardon's teachings step-by-step with rigor and discipline. Skipping through "the basic stuff" will only come back to haunt you later, and any rushing will cause you to have to double back and redo a lot of things until full mastery is reached. I also suggest that one pick up a copy of Rawn Clark's collection of commentaries, A Bardon Companion, available at his website of the same title. Clark's commentaries are especially valuable on KTQ, as the published versions of KTQ are evidently based on an unpolished manuscript which contains a very few notable typos (though no major mistakes, as at least one publisher of the book in English translation says) and omits some points which make practice of the material much more straightforward. As such, Clark's supplement can significantly smooth the road ahead.]

Nice thread. It deserves to be on the front page.

Yea, this was inspiring, and I thank you for this.

This is a nice write-up, but I'd be surprised if it manages to hold up within the mind of a beginner. Thats not a knock against you; I just firmly believe that most people (pashus & viras) have a next to zero chance of overcoming karmic influence on their own (i.e. without a genuinely-realized guru). This is simply because such people lack an unchanging point of reference (i.e. nondual realization) which maintains clarity/sanity and thus protects them against the persuasiveness of confusing surroundings. For example, there will come many times when it appears that nothing will work towards relieving one's suffering, and there will be many times when one is vulnerable to delusional thinking (e.g. conversing with so-and-so deities, messiah complexes, emotional-rationalization, wishful thinking etc.). In order to prevent such pitfalls and spiritual dead-ends, one must remain grounded at all times in absolute, objective reality (i.e. nonduality, samadhi, etc.).. and if that is not possible, then the next best thing is to put oneself under the protection of a physical guru (jivanmukti) who possesses such a quality. Only an extremely rare amount of people (divya) can successfully tread the yogic/tantric path on their own, but then again, it is only possible for them because they already pre-possess the karmic conditions for naturally-inclined tranquility. Most people simply do not have this, and it also very common for such people to falsely/arrogantly believe they do.. but in reality that is just another delusional trapping which goes nowhere.

>>6373
You are right, but most people also don't end up on the magical/spiritual path. There is a lower chance of pashus and viras earnestly attempting to tread it, and most of them will choose the LHP…

>>6373
>>6375
I'm interested in all of this, however I'm thrown off by all the oriental terminology, since I've never really researched Yoga, Tantra, and all that stuff, and I would not even know where to begin. Who are pashus and viras? Why would they choose the left hand path?

Also, how does this whole Hermetic "ascent" influence one's life?

>>6389

The essence of Yoga is actually very easy to understand. The word 'yoga' translates to 'union', or 'to yoke together'. This process concerns the unification of consciousness and matter. It can also be perceived as the unification of form and formlessness, stillness and activity, etc. The bottomline is that one's experience of reality transitions from an incomplete and subjective duality-based experience, to a nondual experience that is characterized by unchanging, all-pervasive consciousness.. untouched by suffering and death. This nondual state is what is meant by 'oneness with everything'. One literally experiences the underlying nature of all things that exist in a manifested state, to such an extent that all notions of separation or discrimination are viewed as superficial/illusory appearances, characterized by impermanence.

According to Patanjali's Yoga Sutras (you should probably start with Vivekananda btw), yoga boils down to two concepts: abhyasa and vairagya. Abhyasa means 'constant practice', and vairagya translates to 'dispassion', that is, non-attachment to sensory experiences, both good and bad. It is critical to realize that dispassion is the crux of yoga, because it is the means by which one becomes liberated from karmic bondage that is responsible for perpetual suffering, ignorance, cyclic death & rebirth, etc.

In regards to Pashus, Viras & Divyas… those terms have multiple connotations, but in yogic practice they refer to the three types/grades of practitioners. Pashus are the lowest tier. They are most imprisoned by karmic influence, and therefore they lack the consciousness/understanding necessary to engage in spiritual practice beyond empty gestures/rituals. Viras is the middle stage, often referred to as the 'heroic' stage. These practitioners realize that karmic bondage causes suffering and so therefore they endeavor to liberate themselves both for themselves and for the benefit of others as well. However, their understanding of dharma (cosmic order, truth, teaching, etc.) is indirect and exists primarily on the (incomplete) level of intellectual conceptualization. Lastly, Divya is the highest stage of practitioner, which is characterized by firsthand realization of nondual reality. However, this is not to say that a divya's realization is permanent. A divya must continually work at making this realization permanent through concentrated meditation. Once a divya becomes firmly grounded in nondual realization regardless of circumstance, then it can be said that the divya is a permanently liberated individual (i.e. jivanmukta).

The other poster above mentions 'left hand path', and without getting into it too much, it can be said that the LHP can be interpreted in multiple contexts. For example, in Tantra, there is a LHP (vamachara tantra) that is considered unorthodox/unnecessary, but leads to liberation nonetheless. However, this path has little to do with Western notions of LHP thats typically bandied about these days. That (Western distortion) has little to nothing to do with actual yogic practice; as I've mentioned earlier about vairagya, dispassion is the crux of yoga. Modern notions of LHP are typically synonymous with opposite intentions, that is, its often utilized as an excuse to grasp at sensory desires and attachments while under the delusion of wishfully believing one is becoming 'spiritual' or 'powerful'. In my view, tantra only comes into play once a practitioner is faced with the task of strengthening/stablizing nondual realization. To me, that is its function. I'm aware that "tantra" can technically be practiced by anyone, but without a prior attainment of nondual realization, I find such practices to be unsubstantial Pashu activities.

>>6389
http://chestofbooks.com/new-age/spirituality/tantra/Mahanirvana-Tantra/The-Three-Temperaments.html

I prefer the classification that doesn't involve tantra, though. Specifically the one explained on the Lesson 1 of The Arcane Formulas. You might want to read it: http://www.yogebooks.com/english/atkinson/1909arcaneformulas.pdf

When pashus and viras discover magick, most of the time they end up trying to use it to feed their animalistic or passional-ridden nature. Acquiring money, power over other people, women… Basically what LHP is all about. Most of them feel little appeal to RHP stuff and spiritual disciplines such as yoga, instead attempting to use divine power for materialistic and egotistical purposes. Zero transcendence, that's what an immature being will do with a power beyond it's comprehension. Pearls before swine.
They don't make it far on magick and fall as easy preys for the spiritual entities they try to evoke and control (even though they are already enslaved and controlled by their desires). If one of them somehow manages to amass enough power, they'll destroy themselves with it most likely.
I'll quote an old post that expands upon this:

>The Adepts of the Mystery Schools of Greece and Egypt, where modern magic originated, defined magic into three categories:

1 - Theurgy ("God-Work"): The practice of magic for the purpose of spiritual evolution.

2 - Thaumaturgy ("Wonder-Work"): The practice of magic by an accomplished theurgist from a place of wisdom and enlightenment for the purpose of aiding mankind.

3 - Goetia ("Sorcery"): The practice of magic for selfish, harmful or materialistic means by one who had undergone no spiritual training or development.

Unlike the Theurgist, who can work literal wonders through his having developed his energetic and mental bodies in the process of his spiritual evolution (ie. healing through the projection of his excess vital energy, control of the elements to command weather, call fire, levitate, etc. through his attunement to the elemental energies which underlay reality, among many others), the sorcerer has to work with a weak, imbalanced energetic body and untrained mind, and as such resorts to making pacts with spirits, utilizing pre-prepared sigils or spells, talismans and alchemical spagyrics, etc.

This is what western magic has mostly devolved down to these days, since the rise of Christianity lead to persecution and the eventual destruction of any competing spiritual path. [End of quote]

I'm not sure if I can answer properly to your second question (I'm not yet an initiate). You are supposed to perfect yourself on every aspect while on this plane of counsciousness, getting closer and eventually ascending to higher planes (spiritual evolution) until COUNSCIOUSLY merging with The All.
While perfecting yourself on this incarnation and getting closer to the next plane of counsciousness (theurgy), you gradually unlock the so called supernatural powers (thaumaturgy). They are consequences of spiritual development, not the main goal (like siddhis). On Franz Bardon's system they are also trained to aid both your development and humanity on its ascent. I will give you three examples:

-Clairvoyancy: Being able to see what's happening on the immaterial layer that surrounds us, energies, entities… helps a lot.
-Directly contacting and learning from great masters, psychically, via akashic trances, etc… William Mistele (bardonistic initiate and spheric magician) contacted Swami Rama and got a taste of the shaktipat his master had given him.

>Swami Rama, when he was a young student of a master, threatened to kill himself if his master did not bestow on him shaktipat. Shaktipat is basically a free gift, something for nothing that a master bestows so that another individual can taste or experience the master’s essence.
>I took the liberty one time of psychically connecting to Swami Rama and asking him to pass to me a taste of this exact shatkipat his master had given him. Swami Rama sat for nine hours when he first experienced his shaktipat. I got the same thing but for nine minutes. This was an exquisite, incomparable experience of having perfectly embodied within oneself one’s opposite. For a male, this is the experience of perfectly being one with a divine woman within oneself. It is sheer ecstasy.

And last… -Becoming a spheric magician. I'm just fond of the idea.

Perfecting yourself means literally that -at first- but then it can be more accurately described as attaning a closer union with Spirit. (Egohood, then expanding gradually into Cosmic counsciousness.) A man who has "graduated" this plane of counsciousness but hasn't yet ended his incarnation is called a Jivanmukti. He habitates both the lower plane on which his body resides and the higher plane where he belongs.

>>6400
>>6401
Thanks for the detailed explanation.
Indeed the idea of spiritual ascension, of perfecting your soul and experiencing the divine sounds much more interesting than learning to do a few tricks to summon demons to satisfy petty desires.
That's like "the deal with the devil" which lead Faust to the demise of his soul.

I was already considering starting to read the Arcane Teachings and Formulas, I'll definitely do that.

>>6401
I remember that thread you just quoted, and I thank you for posting that. I'm working on perfecting myself and initiating myself, but it's very interesting to see how egoist and, if I may use the term, how Satanic I can be when I consider the possibilities I could do with magic. But as >>6450
mentions, I don't wish to become 'a fallen soul', as I really wish that I can become a being that can help everyone. I will see with time if this ideal will be shattered, but I wish I won't become a monster after learning more magic. I just want to help myself so that I can help the others.

Mind me, I just wanted to open up.

>>6453
That's right. After all, is there a single person who wouldn't be tempted by the power that people on this board promise you comes with magic?

I think perfecting yourself also means not letting yourself get carried away by the promise of ecstatic intercourse with succubi, the control over people's minds, quick money, or whatever. They sure sound interesting, but… I don't know.

I once read a post here which was something along the lines of: "I encourage people to have sex with succubi, so they will be forcefully greenpilled to deal with all the shit that comes with it."
I guess there must be a downside to evoking demons, as one would expect…

>>6400
so you're the writer of the site you linked to in >>5480

whoa

what brings you here?

Beautiful post.

I truly appreciate any new insight or info on IIH. Thank you, OP.

>>5447
An excellent explanation of IIH, showing Bardon to be ever more the teacher than one would initially find.

If anyone finds the post quoted in >>6401 please can you link to it? I'll scour freedomboard for it in the meantime.