Magick Without Tears

Cara Soror, 26 Mental Processes Two Only Are Possible Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. "Occult" science is the most difficult of them all. For one thing, its subject-matter includes the whole of philosophy, from ontology and metaphysics down to natural history. More, the most rarefied and recondite of these has a direct bearing upon the conduct of life in its most material details, and the simplest study of such apparently earthbound matters as botany and mineralogy leads to the most abstruse calculations of the imponderables . With what weapons, then, are we to attack so formidable a fortress? The first essential is clear thinking. In a previous letter I have dealt to some extent with this subject; but it is so important that you must forgive me if I return to it, and that at length, from the outset, and in detail. Let us begin by having our own minds clear of all ambiguities, ignoring for the purpose of this argument all metaphysical subtleties. l I want to confine it to the outlook of the "plain man." What do we do when we "think"? There are two operations, and only two, possible to thought. However complex a statement may appear, it can 1. I mean criticisms such as "Definition is impossible"; "AIl arguments are circular"; "All propositions are tautological." These are true, but one is obliged to ignore them in aU practical discussions. 194