Four Hermetic Maxims

Today's lesson is on Magic. Yes, yes. Can't really be a mage without that. Consider this a lesson zero. The lesson is - Vide, Aude, Vole, Tace (To Know, Dare, Will and Keep Silent). As mages moved from dusty libraries to cyberspace, the ancient wisdom of their tradition was not lost to them. The four words, one of the most ancient creeds of the Sacred Science of the Magi, were still as relevant as always.

• To know - knowledge is power. A Mages quest for knowledge never ends. Do not get caught in dangerous attractors of "now I know it all". You know nothing. You always will - the well of knowledge is infinite; compared to that, all we ever know is like a mote of dust in the eye of a giant. A lonely byte in the ocean of information.

• To dare - mages strive to embody courage and action. All the knowledge in the world is useless without a strong hand to enact it upon the world. Step out of your comfort zone and move into the unknown. That's where the real magic happens. To learn a programming language of the universe is good, but to write a single spell in it is immeasurably more.

• To will - the action itself is useless without grim determination and stoic persistence. Mage’s will is made of steel. No failure can stop the Great Work. If a thousand iterations are needed, you better be ready to do a thousand and one. No amount of failure can dissuade you from the path of progress.

• To keep silent - there is a thin line between the power of true magic and a fall into madness. Usually, that line is silence. This maxim is dangerously underrated. Never talk about your magic until it is permanent. And perhaps better yet not even after that. Grow in silence. Let your results speak for you. It also speaks about the value of control of your mind and the skill of inner silence.
  

  To a mind that is still the whole universe surrenders.
  - Lao Tzu
  
  The silence of a wise is better than the thousand words of a fool. Can you keep your mind silent? For only in immovable silence you are in touch with the Eternal.

What is the most powerful magic, you may ask? Love, obviously. Learn this simple trick - love your life, no matter what. The more you love your life, the more reasons for loving it will be summoned into it. Add metta meditation to the mix and watch your life improve to heights you never even thought possible.

The Order of Neon Magi will lead you in on another secret. In capable hands, this is the Key that opens all the doors of the Temple. Know that the Idea that created the universe was "I AM". The very first idea in existence. It caused the collapse of all superposition it saw. And in doing so, it created all reality.

Sic Mundus Creatus Est. Thus the world was created.

I will give you one more bonus, but be careful with it. It is the knowledge that is most hidden and many sages of the old spent their entire lives just pondering its consequences. The very second Idea in existence was "And I AM alone".

Meditate on this. See how it fits your worldview and how you can make your worldview in accord with this ancient wisdom.