Magick in Theory and Practice (Section 3)

There must always be some slight pang of pain in a true Astral Vision ; it hurts the Self to hâve to admit the existence of a not- Self ; and it taxes the brain to register a new thought. This is true at the first touch, even when exaltation and stimulation resuit from the joy of making an agreeable contact. There is a deeper eiïect of right reaction to a strange Self: the impact invariably tends to break up some complex in the Seer. The class of ideas concerned has always been tied up, labelled, and put away. It is now necessary to unpack it, and rearrange its contents. At least, the annoyance is like that of a man who has locked and strapped his bag for a journey, and then finds that he has forgotten his pyjamas. At most, it may revolutionise his ideas of the business, like an old bachelor with settled plans of life who meets a girl once too often. Any really first-class Astral Vision, even on low planes, should therefore both instruct the Seer, and préparé him for Initiation. Those failing to pass this test are to be classed as “practice”. One ïast observation seems fit. We mnst not assert tiie “reality” or “objeclivity ’ of an Astral Being on no better evidence than the subjective sensation of its independent existence. We must insist on proof patent to ali qualified observers if we are to establish the major premiss of Religion: that there exists a Conscious Intelligence independent of brain and nerve as we know them. If it hâve also Power, so mueh the better. But we already know of inorganic forces; we hâve no evidence of inorganic conscious Mind. How can the Astral Plane help us here? It is not enough to prove, as we easily do, the correspondences between Invocation and Apparition \ We must exclude coincidence 1 2, telepathy3, and subconscious knowledge. 4 Our praeter-human Intelligence 1. The Master Therion’s regular test is to Write the name of a Force on a card, and conceal it; invoke that Force secretly, send His pupil on the Astral Plane, and make him attribute his vision to some Force. The pupil then looks at the card; the Force he has named is that written upon it. 2. The most famous novel of Fielding is called uIom Jones”. It happened that Frater Perdurabo was staying in an hôtel in London. — 256 —