To the popular mind, it seems almost synonymous with magic, and it is generally believed that its followers are all devoted to black magic, wear a scarlet robe covered with cabalistic signs and sit among strange instruments, with a black cat for a companion, to compose evil philters by means of the help of satanic invocations.
Even among educated people, superior to these superstitions, an erroneous concept of the thing persists.
Contents
The etymology of the word itself, from the Latin occultus, should make us understand that occultism is the science of what is hidden.
Instead, they too often regard it with contempt as absurd and impractical, associating it in their minds with dreams and good fortune, hysteria and necromancy, the search for the elixir of life and the philosopher’s stone.
| Attribute | Description |
|---|---|
| Definition | The term “occult” refers to secret or hidden knowledge that is beyond the realm of ordinary understanding. It involves practices, rituals, and beliefs that are meant to uncover the hidden aspects of the universe and human existence. |
| Etymology | Derived from the Latin word “occultus,” meaning hidden or secret. |
| Nature | Encompasses a wide range of topics including magic, alchemy, astrology, divination, and esoteric knowledge. It often involves the study of supernatural forces and the manipulation of unseen energies. |
Occult amateurs on the other hand always speak as if the occult side of things were intentionally hidden and as if the knowledge which by rights should be the prerogative of all men, was purposely hidden by the caprice or selfishness of some individuals .
The truth is that nothing is – or can be – hidden from our eyes except by our limitations, and that every man, as he evolves, sees the world ever wider because he is capable of seeing its beauty and nature in greater abundance. glory.
To counter these assertions one could adduce the well-known fact that at each of the great initiations, which mark progress on the path of higher evolution, a well-defined series of new notions is imparted to the neophyte.
This is perfectly true, but new knowledge can only be given to the neophyte because he has developed to the point where he can grasp its meaning.
Knowledge is no more willfully kept hidden from ordinary humanity than knowledge of analytical geometry is kept hidden from a child who has not yet learned the multiplication table.
When that child has reached the necessary development to understand quadratic equations, the teacher will be ready to explain the rules to him. Similarly when a man has acquired the necessary qualifications to receive the knowledge imparted at a certain initiation, he is immediately initiated.
But the only way to achieve the ability to assimilate higher knowledge is to try to understand our present conditions and to order our lives intelligently in accordance with the established facts.
Occultism is therefore the study of the hidden side of nature, or rather it is the study of all nature rather than just the small part of it investigated by modern science.
At our present stage of development the part of nature unknown to most men is out of all proportion greater than that which is known, for they have developed but a small part of the faculties which they possess.
The ordinary man therefore bases his philosophy (if he has one) on absolutely insufficient data; his actions are modeled more or less in accordance with the very few laws of nature that he knows and consequently both his theory of life and his daily practice are far from accurate.
| Time Period | Key Developments | Influence |
|---|---|---|
| Ancient Times | Early practices of divination, magic, and astrology in various cultures such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Greece. | Foundations of mystical traditions and esoteric knowledge. |
| Middle Ages | Alchemy, Gnosticism, and Kabbalistic studies became prominent. | Influenced by religious and philosophical thought, often in opposition to orthodox Christianity. |
| Renaissance | Revival of Hermeticism, magic, and astrology; increased interest in ancient texts and occult practices. | Integration of occult knowledge with emerging scientific thought. |
| 19th-20th Century | Rise of spiritualism, theosophy, and modern occult movements. | Shaped contemporary views on mysticism and alternative spirituality. |
The occultist and the broader concept of nature
He takes into account those forces of the higher planes whose action is hidden from the eyes of the materialist and thus shapes his life in conformity with the whole code of natural laws rather than with a small fragment of it.
The man who knows nothing of occultism hardly realizes the greatness and gravity of the limitations he has in every sense and the only way to symbolize them is to imagine a form of consciousness even more limited than ours and see in what way it would differ from this.
Let us suppose that it is possible for the existence of a consciousness capable of perceiving only solid matter: it would not perceive the other states, liquid and gaseous, being non-existent for it in the same way as etheric, astral and mental forms are for ordinary man .
| Concept/Practice | Description | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Magic | The practice of influencing events through supernatural forces. | Central to many occult traditions, emphasizing the power of will and intention. |
| Alchemy | The study of transformation, particularly the transmutation of base metals into gold and the pursuit of the philosopher’s stone. | Symbolizes spiritual transformation and enlightenment. |
| Astrology | The belief that the positions and movements of celestial bodies influence human affairs. | Used for divination and understanding personal destiny. |
| Divination | Techniques such as tarot, scrying, and numerology used to gain insight into the past, present, and future. | Helps individuals uncover hidden knowledge and guidance. |
Evidently such a consciousness could not have an adequate concept of the world in which we live. It would find that solid matter, the only one it can perceive, continually undergoes extraordinary changes about which it would not be possible to formulate any rational theory.
For example, every time a downpour takes place the solid matter of the earth would undergo a change; in many cases it would become softer and heavier, but the reason for this change would be a fortiori incomprehensible to the hypothetical consciousness under consideration.
The wind could raise clouds of dust and transport them from one place to another, but such movement of solid matter would remain completely unexplained to a being without the concept of the existence of air.
Without dwelling on other examples of something so obvious, we can clearly see how colossal would be the insufficiency of the concept of the world that a consciousness limited to solid matter alone would form.
However, we do not realize with equal ease the fact that our consciousness is as much below that of man who has developed his faculties, as this hypothetical consciousness is below that which we currently possess.
| Organization/Figure | Description | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn | A secret society devoted to the study and practice of the occult, metaphysics, and paranormal activities. | Influenced modern Western occultism and magical practices. |
| Aleister Crowley | An influential occultist, writer, and ceremonial magician. | Developed the philosophy of Thelema and authored key texts on magic. |
| Helena Blavatsky | Co-founder of the Theosophical Society, promoting spiritual development and the study of ancient wisdom. | Bridged Eastern and Western esoteric traditions, influencing New Age thought. |
Students of Theosophy are known, theoretically at least, that there is a hidden side of everything, or to be more precise an unseen side, and they also know that in most cases this unseen side has a much greater importance than that of that which is visible to the physical eye.
To express the same idea from another point of view, the senses through which we obtain all the knowledge we have of external objects are still imperfectly developed and therefore the impressions they transmit to us are partial.
For example, what we see around us in the world is certainly not all there is to see and anyone who would take the trouble to cultivate their senses would find that the more they managed to do so, the fuller and richer their life would become.
Those who love nature, art, music can find here a vast field of inexpressible delight and intensified joys, as long as they take the trouble to develop the necessary requisites; and above all there is the possibility, for those who love their fellow men, to understand them better and consequently to be much more useful to them.
At present we are only halfway up the scale of evolution and therefore our senses are only halfway developed. But it is possible to climb the ladder sooner, it is possible, by arduous work, to make our senses what the senses of all men will be in the distant future.
The man who has succeeded in doing this is often called a seer or clairvoyant.
| Tradition | Culture/Region | Primary Focus | Unique Attribute |
|---|---|---|---|
| Occult | Western | Hidden knowledge, magic, alchemy. | Emphasis on secret knowledge and supernatural practices. |
| Mysticism | Various | Direct experience of the divine, spiritual enlightenment. | Focus on personal spiritual experiences and union with the divine. |
| Shamanism | Indigenous Cultures | Healing, spiritual journeys, interaction with spirits. | Use of altered states of consciousness and ritualistic practices. |
The Clairvoyant
Clairvoyant is a beautiful word, it means “one who sees clearly” but it has been extremely degraded and badly applied, so that people resort to all sorts of deceptions and impostures with gypsies who for a little money tell the servant the color of the boy’s hair. great lord who will marry her, or with certain establishments in Bond Street in London where the future is revealed to aristocratic customers for a guinea.
All this is irregular and unscientific, in many cases it is actually charlatanism and extortion. […]
I assert this after many years of study and experiments: it is possible for man to develop his senses so that he can see much more of the wonderful world in which we live, part of whose existence is not even suspected by ordinary man, who he lives contentedly in the midst of complete darkness and calls it light.
Two thousand five hundred years ago the greatest of the Indian Masters, Gautama the Buddha, said to his disciples:
“Do not complain, do not cry, do not pray, but open your eyes and see. The truth is all around you only if you want to remove the blindfold and look; and it is wonderful, stupendous, superior to anything that men have ever dreamed or desired, and endures forever.”
With these words the Buddha meant much more than I am quoting them for, but the development of the senses is also a step forward on the path that leads to the glorious goal of perfect understanding.
If this development does not yet put us in possession of the whole truth, it at least allows us to see a good part of it; it frees us from a number of common misconceptions, and clarifies for us many points which to those not instructed in this science are mysteries and insoluble problems.
It shows us that all these things were problems and mysteries to us only because we saw such a small part of the facts, because we looked at things from below, considering them as isolated and disconnected fragments, instead of looking above them to a point of view from which they appear understandable as parts of an immense whole.
It decides many controversial questions at a time, such as that of man’s survival after death; explains many of the strange things the Church tells us; it dispels ignorance and fear of the unknown by providing us with an orderly and rational scheme.
In addition to all this, it also opens up a new world to us as regards our daily life, a new world that is also part of the old.
It shows us that, as I said at the beginning, there is a hidden side to all things, and that even our most common actions often produce results that without this study we would have always ignored resistance.
It also gives us the explanation of what is commonly called telepathy, since we see that just as there are vibrations of heat, light, or electricity, so there are vibrations produced by thought, although these, being in more tenuous matter, are not perceptible. to our physical senses.
The vibrations of thought
By studying these vibrations we see how thought works, and we learn that it is an extraordinary power for both good and evil (a power that we all unconsciously use, up to a certain point) and that we can use it with a hundredfold effectiveness if we understand the way in which it acts.
English 
Spanish