Magick in Theory and Practice (Section 2)

There is some sort of vague and indeterminate relation between the Astrals and the Materials ; and it is possible, with great expérience, to deduce facts about material things from the astral aspect which they présent to the eyes of the Body of Light.1 This astral plane is so varied and so changeable that several clairvoyants looking at the same thing might give totally different accounts of what they saw; yet they might each make correct déductions. In looking at a man the first clairvoyant might say : “The lines of force are ail drooping”; the second : “It seems ail dirtv and spotty”; a third; “The Aura looks very ragged.” Yet ail might agréé in deducing that the man was in ill-health. In any case, ail such déductions are rather unreliable. One must be a highly skilled man before one can trust one’s vision. A great many people think that they are extremely good at the business, when in fact they hâve onlv made some occasional shrewd guesses (which they naturallv remember) in the course of hundreds of forgotten failures. The onlv way to test clairvoyance is to keep a careful record of every experiment made. For example, Frater O. M. once gave a clairvoyant a waistcoat to psychometrize. He made 56 State- ments about the owner of the waistcoat ; of these 4 were notably rightj 17, though correct, were of that class of statement which is true of almost everybody. The remainder were wrong. It was concluded from this that he showed no evidence of any spécial power. In fact, his bodily eyes — if he could discern Tailoring — would hâve served him better, for he thought the owner of the vest was a corn-chandler, instead of an earl, as he is. The Magician can hardi y take too much trouble to develop this power in himself. It is extremely useful to him in guarding himself against attack; in obtaining warnings, in judging character, and especially in watching the process of his Ceremonies. I. This is because there is a certain necessary correspondence between planes; as in the case of an Anglo-Indian’s liver and his temper. The relation appears “vague and indeterminate” only in so far as one happens to be ignorant of the laws which State the case. The situation is analo- gous to that of the chemist before the discovery of the law of “Combining Weights”, etc. 145