Source Mysticism * Optimize Thinking * Improve Memory, Concentration & Creativity * Activate Higher Consciousness
Perfume Alchemy
http://perfumealchemy.weebly.com/index.html
"SPIRIT IN A BOTTLE"
by Iona Miller, (c)2011
The Law of Vibration
Psycho-Sensory Response to Scent
Perfume Alchemy: the Art and Science
All the physical matters are composed of vibration.--Dr. Max Planck
"...that the human brain can change its own structure and function with thought and experience, turning on its own genes to change its circuitry, reorganize itself and change its operation, is the most important alteration in our understanding of the brain in 400 years." (Norman Doidge, MD,
The Brain that Changes Itself, 2011)
Psycho-Sensory Response to Scent
Perfume Alchemy: the Art and Science
All the physical matters are composed of vibration.--Dr. Max Planck
"...that the human brain can change its own structure and function with thought and experience, turning on its own genes to change its circuitry, reorganize itself and change its operation, is the most important alteration in our understanding of the brain in 400 years." (Norman Doidge, MD,
The Brain that Changes Itself, 2011)
ETHEREAL SPIRITS: The history of fragrances is as old as old as the history of humanity. Who knows when the first person noticed they could rub a pleasant scent onto their skin to good effect? Ancient recipes can evoke mystic even ancestral memories from the cauldron of the unconscious, temporarily transporting us to by-gone times. As essence, perfumery is intimately related to alchemy with its primary process of distillation of gross materials into fine. Fragrant oils, some of which survived millennia in their ancient bottles, are among the most cherished items ever produced by mankind.
WISDOM ART: Perfumery is an olfactory art form -- a Tantric and Hermetic art. When it is personalized in a signature scent, and used for balancing the personality, it adds another dimension of pleasure to life -- one that is shared with others. Naturally, organic perfumes best replicate the essence of by-gone eras. Pure organic scents are naturally the most attractive and inspiring, and work best with the body's chemistry.
ELAN VITAL: Most esoteric perfumery books are based on the Doctrine of Signatures. But the fragrances of many essences differ in effect from the healing or magical use. Scent can be luminous and illuminating, infusing the air with its olfactory mystique. Perfumery provides easy entry into the mystic arts and you can extend your studies outward from there, for personal transformation and activating your potential life force.
SOURCE MYSTICISM: Thus from it earliest beginnings the human personality is in constant mystical motion. Reaching inwardly toward the self and outwardly toward the world in ever-new encounters, forever changing, man from childhood onward passes through all the stages of transformation mysticism. And just as the beginning of source mysticism extends back into an unknown sphere prior to the emergence of the ego, so does the end of immortality mysticism extend into an unknown realm beyond the extinction of the ego. The inexplicable fact that man's very center is an unknown creative force which lives within him and molds him in ever-new forms and transformations, this mystery which accompanies him throughout his life, follows him even into death and beyond. So the circle closes, and man ends as he began, a homo mysticus. --Erich Neumann
Thus, then, having overcome the World of the Elements, does the Adept stand equilibrated in Tiphareth. In that equilibrium he must set forth upon the greatest magical adventure which has yet befallen him, to win the knowledge and conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel, otherwise called his holy Genius. Equilibrium is vitally necessary to him in this quest, for the fulfillment which he seeks will not come about unless in accordance with the aphorism, "As Above, so below." ...The Holy Guardian Angel is a beam transmitted from...that Supernal region which even in symbolic representation defies dimension...this Being of living light and love whom the Adept, and he alone, is to know as his Angel. ...the Reality which is named in occult doctrine as the Holy Guardian Angel is the same which underlies the pale abstraction, Grace. Now, the mind of the Adept will not, as we have said, be universalized, but it will be vastly expanded and inspired. Again, this quality of inspiration is proper to the Sphere of Tiphareth, which is the reason why that Sphere must be attained before the fullness of inspiration can be sought: but the fullness of inspiration is not found even in Tiphareth until one's Angel is one's Dionysus. Under this inspiration the Adept develops, until at last he knows the Gate of Daath wellnigh as his Angel knows it (p. 103). --Denning & Phillips/The Magical Philosophy, Vol. IV
Apuleius describes Socrates' genius (daimonion) as follows: He is "a private patron and individual guide, an observer of what takes place in the inner person, guardian of one's welfare, he who knows one most intimately, one's most alert and constant observer, individual judge, irrefutable and inescapable witness, who frowns on evil and exalts what is good." If one 'watches him in the right way, seeks ardently to know him, honors him religiously," then he shows himself to be "the one who can see to the bottom of uncertain situations and can give warning in desperate situations, can protect us in dangerous situations, and can come out to rescue when we ar in need." He can intervene "now through a dream and now through a sign [synchronistic event], or he can even step in by appearing personally to fend off evil, to reinforce the good, to lift up the soul in defeat, to steady our inconstancy, to lighten our darkness, to direct what is favorable toward us and to compensate what is called evil.--Marie Louise vonFranz/Projection and Re-Collection in Jungian Psychology
A Vibrational Field Always Acts Holistically
Essence of Mind-Body-Spirit
All creation is governed by law. The principles that govern the outer universe, discoverable by scientists, are called natural laws. But subtler laws rule the hidden spiritual planes and the inner realm of consciousness.
Cosmic order and physics are governed by universal principles, called Laws. The traditional Law of Vibration shows us that everything vibrates - everything is energy. Physics says the same. The scientific law of frequency guides the process of manifestation of all matter. Sound and light pattern and re-pattern matter (Gariaev). What we formerly called Vibration, we now term Resonance, or entrainment -- synchronization to an external rhythm. In quantum physics, it is called entanglement. The principle of entrainment is universal, appearing in physics, magic, alchemy, music, sacred geometry, chemistry, pharmacology, biology, medicine, psychology, sociology, astronomy, architecture, and other disciplines.
We are simply "connected," embedded in a nested series of scales from the microcosm to the macrocosm. Each of us is a "universe within." Our essence is the same as Cosmos. This principle makes it possible for us to synchronize with specific subtle energies and memories or intuitions of the future. Without mastering physics, we can still obtain an understanding of the holistic nature of the universe and ourselves, which gives insight and motivation for our journey into the deeper levels of existence. It is enough to know that science backs up many metaphysical notions about the nature of reality.
As curious as it may first seem, perfumes are one such gateway to enrichment, understanding, experience, and healing through self-awareness. Our ancestors amassed and codified an extraordinary array of observations, which they followed with experimental practice in magic and alchemy. It is a group of experiments one makes largely on oneself, with self-knowledge as the elusive process goal.
Source Field
The "Akashic records" are described as an energetic pattern, a frequency like a tuning fork vibration. Ervin Laszlo formulated a “connectivity hypothesis,” which includes the existence of a universal “psi-field” or, the "Akashic field.” (Laszlo 1993, 2003, 2004) - a subquantum field, in which everything that has ever happened remains permanently holographically recorded. This hidden dimension is the experiential realm of soul, dreams and imagination, as well as our unlived potential.
Similar, if not identical to Jung's "Collective Unconscious," this "Akashic Field" is a subtle communication network that underlies physical reality, holistically connecting every point in space with every other point, and every thing with every other thing, non-locally. This communication network operates in the realm of pure information underlying empirical existence. It does not rely on the transport of physical energy, so interactions occur instantaneously regardless of physical separation and without any channel for mechanistic transport of energy. It works because this field exists within us in the void spaces that constitute most of the physical space we occupy.
This is the source of direct wisdom or gnosis. By going into and then past the experience of symbols, we can experience the consciousness that created them. This creative state is a source of healing, re-birth and re-creation. Some symbols offer access to memories of the past, some reveal future potentials, others can lead us to our inner healer -- the part of us that can provide the energy we need to restore balance and harmony within ourselves. We can call up our courage, clarity and discernment, resilience, self-esteem, emotional regulation or problem-solving skills, using traditional techniques from antiquity that are tried through the Ages, sometimes with a modern scientific twist.
Beauty Way
Just as Beauty has a positive effect on your being, deprivation of Beauty can lead to disharmony. Loss of Beauty is akin to shamanic "loss of soul," and requires retrieval of that sense for healing. Psychosensory therapy forms the core of trauma treatment. Even olfactory input creates extrasensory activity that alters brain function and the way we respond to stimuli. In other words, new sensory input can change memories and their power over us. This is especially true for implicit memories, stored without cognition. This process of brain modification is called neuro-platisticity. Evidence of this concept began a revolution in thinking about the brain.
Scents can help us unlearn or de-couple emotional reactions. Once the traumatic memory is brought into working memory, if it's dislodged before activation, the triggering stimulus is disconnected from the response and the emotion is extinguished. Memories can be triggered and diffused. Scent often triggers memories and memories trigger scent. Encoding is state-related, completed at high norepinepherine and dopamine levels, while the prefrontal cortex is shut down.
If you seek mastery over a situation without new skills to ensure success, the memory is triggered without the healing sense of safe haven, increasing the compulsion to seek mastery. Subconsciously, you may reenact the trauma by repeatedly exposing yourself to a similar trauma. Scent can help you build and anchor a safe haven within. That haven de-links the emotional experience from a trauma, essentially making it just an ordinary memory. Once done, the event no longer means distress.
Wisdom Through Beauty
Beauty is an emotional value which affects our volitional and appreciative nature. It is not inherent in any thing, but is our own pleasure regarded as the quality of a thing or event. It is neither intrinsic nor objectified. It is the first-hand experience of a state of consciousness. It may not be in the eye only, but beauty is in the beholder. Yet the beholder doesn't stand on the outside looking in, but becomes the object of contemplation. When the focus of contemplation is the self, a complex feedback loop manifests of self contemplating self manifesting self, contemplating self.
Beauty as a state of consciousness is described in the Qabala and Hermetic Philosophy as the sphere Tiphareth, on the Tree of Life. In psychological terms it implies transcendence of the realm of personality and intimate knowledge of the transpersonal self. It corresponds with healing, creativity, genius, and bliss states or unitive experiences. The direct path to this sphere on the Tree of Life is called "ART", and concerns itself with the paradoxical melding of the opposites. Art had its origin in magic. It is the path of transcendence from personality to Self, through the Middle Way. Art is the explication or unfolding of the transformative process. Through art, common experience is transformed to archetypal, timeless experience. Art is nature transformed. Art shapes our perception of things outside ourselves, and embodies the workings of inner life.
Archetype, ritual, myth, and dream are other manifestations of this same parataxic mode, as is expressive therapy. It is characterized by the production of images who meaning is not clear or categorical (Gowan, 1975). In parataxic mode, symbols or images are used in a private or idiosyncratic manner. Through art, they can be shared with others, expressing feeling and transmitting understanding. In contrast, in the creative mode (Tiphareth) meaning is more or less fully cognized symbolically, with ego present.
The Path to Beauty
Jung claimed, the essence of darkness is gold. It symbolizes the sphere of meaning, divine beauty, the inner glow that results from the merging of human and divine. Art reflects the cosmic creative process.The evolution of art mirrors our liberation from time, space and personality. No longer bound by normal sensory frames, we are removed from time and desire.
Through the magick of art we give birth to our vision of reality. This imaginal reality has the occult or hidden ability to radically transform us. Art is the secret of the secret art. We gain independence through the construction of images in both science and art. Art is therapeutic magic. It mediates the Great Unknown through the power of self-expression as the inner becomes the outer. We turn ourselves inside-out.
We are works of art. Our consciousness is a formative power which grows stronger when we aspire toward artful living with increasing devotion and passionate intensity. When we keep knocking at that door, we realize our inspirations. There is a resonate feedback loop that intensifies the process enough to keep desire alive through dry periods.
We can immerse ourselves in the imaginative process at will. Image crafting is a metaphysical art. Rhythm is the essence of that art. In fallow periods, we incubate. We plumb our depths with the perceptual field independence of a mystic. Art is an aesthetic mystical experience.
Art is an upwelling. Creativity is a constant. Netzach is the sphere of fire on the mental plane, psychosensory enrichment, including symbolic awareness. It means "remembrance" but with more acute realization than ever before. The goal is kept before the mind's eye with imagery. Creative imagination is the force which transforms spiritual energies into manifestation, making the concealed reality visible. We have intuitive access to the collective pool and to our cultural destiny. We discover our originality.
Art expands our consciousness. It can be prophetic. Imagination flows through us, welling up from our core. Netzach brings stabilization and experiential realization that we are vehicles for creative process. A series of realizations accelerates artistic development. Living from love, we enter more fully into the stream of higher consciousness which pulls us along in its current -- the flow state. We become more creative and appreciative of beauty.
Artistry is the result of a renewed ability to perceive and express harmony, proportion, and balance. In Netzach, we learn to refine our mental images by loving them into being. We also blossom under the influence of the creative process. Mental and emotional, cognitive and affective processes are harmonized and stabilized and the 25th Path of Art opens to Tiphareth -- Beauty.
Psychosensory Integration
Psychosensory integration is a way of sensing and interpreting experience that sensitizes you to your changing system before problems become ingrained. Even autistics with little interest in their surroundings can become intrigued by scent. Perfumes can help us create a dialogue with nature and our own deep nature -- our essence. But you may not find these effects in mass-produced commercial products, which can be highly adulterated. A true magical formula elicits a specific predetermined response -- a liquid genie from a bottle set free. Fragrant desire is born of the essence of reality.
Certain oils and incenses require magic in their production. When the finest ingredients are employed, the body can be used to awaken the soul. Psychosensory response is an arcane science that works on the subconscious and conscious mind, eliciting real effects. Certain scents stimulate certain responses or psychic centers. Sometimes we are aware of our reactions; sometimes not. Psychosensory initiation experiences are pathways to specific states of consciousness.
The cosmic creation process continues to this day, through every living moment, a dance of creation and destruction. It takes place in the quantum flux. It takes place in our hearts. The heart of perfumes is linked to the heart of dreams, which is the root of imagination. Alchemy is about spontaneous emergence through radical transformation. Our own 'essence' is the object of that magical metamorphosis. It is our soul that is distilled and refined, like perfumes and herbal remedies.
Sacred essences feed the soul, which inherently recognizes their healing potential. Perfumes that match energies with aspects of your personal essence, planetary and other powers are a traditional way of exploring and deepening your relationship with the Source Field. The more frequently a stimulus and response occur in association with each other, the stronger the association becomes until it can be recalled at will. It can help us access the genius of our potential, by creating stability, balance and an affinity for higher consciousness. We are grounded, yet open to the Cosmos.
Energy Body
What we now called the Energy Body was formerly termed the 'subtle body' in Theosophy. Each plane (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual domain or scale) has a fine vehicle of consciousness that allows you to navigate those dimensions. Different traditions have different names for these aspects of the Soul, including shamanic body, Astral Body, Body of Bliss, Light Body, Rainbow Body, Diamond Body, Immortal Body or Merkabah. Crowley suggested initiates develop and control the Body of Light to penetrate the mysteries of the Universe for greater consciousness and well-being. It is a time-tested process of awakening to -- and aligning with -- the Evolutionary Self. Each level has a form:
- Etheric body (vehicle of prana)
- Emotional or Astral Body (vehicle of desires and emotions)
- Mental body (vehicle of the concrete or lower mind)
- Causal body (vehicle of the abstract or higher mind)
In the far East, they are related to kundalini, prana, meridians and Chi or Ki energy and the Chakra system. Drains to these vital centers in the energy body depress the vitality of your physical mindbody system. Our health relies on keeping these centers in balance. Recent work in biophysics links them to our biophotonic nature. Healers or energy therapists use this intimate connection in their mind-body-spirit work, sensing and adjusting fields. Many claim the bioenergetics of subtle energy is the basis of the medicine of the future.
We now know the body has a resonant Heart Field, for example, that extends far from the skin boundary. Entangled Minds is a paranormal theory of psi or telepathy that proposes a quantum link. Under certain circumstances, minds like particles that appear to be isolated are actually instantaneously connected through space and time (Radin). Distance healing is mediated by such nonlocal mind. Non-local is a scientific word for "infinite" accepted by quantum physics, but people and particles are different. Still, such terms help us pretend we comprehend the Mystery that is incomprehensible yet usable, because it is a natural part of our own essence and being.
Is this what makes for kindred spirits? The theory also suggests mind fields are bioentangled with the rest of the universe. Matter is basically an abstraction, a description of physical information, consisting largely of human experience, a 3D model of the world, which can be used to put those reactions into a specific meaningful frame. We experience meaningful correlations between our intentions and their manifestations. Healing happens, as do premonitions, visions and transformation.
As the science of fields progressed, this bioelectronic Field Body became recognized as an instantaneous regulator of the gross biochemical system. We are, in fact, essentially electro-magnetic beings made of 'frozen Light," after all, as the ancients indicated. Our essence is that of a Quantum Biohologram. Such field phenomena have been linked to Intentionality -- our ability to manifest our thoughts and desires. But the fact remains we still don't know what mind, energy, or even electricity are, but we can work with them. After all, "metaphysics" means "beyond physics." Consciousness remains a mystery though we participate in the Cosmos.
The various attributes and phenomenology of the subtle body are frequently described with obscure symbolism, but scent is recognized as one of the easiest ways of activating and regulating the energy body. Astral projection describes the process of separation of the subtle body from the physical for its sojourns in the inner Cosmos.
Perfume Journeys
A sacred scent can initiate a "perfume journey" to an otherwise hidden realm (Patterson) . A healing retreat can last 3 minutes, 3 hours, or three days. However, it can continue to "fund" and inspire your refreshed spirit a much longer time. A "perfume journey" uses the mind to enter one's healing states. States of mind or consciousness can manifest, for example, as the "placebo effect" in medical terminology -- or in emotional terms, faith healing. Science shows they can boost the immune system. Magical scents lead us on a journey to our ultimate creative state of mind which is the source of our dreams and imagination -- the sacred ground of our Being.
You might call this state "the Source," "the Creator," "the Goddess," "Higher Power," "No Self," "Holy Guardian Angel," "the Dragon," or "God force" within. In Jungian terms it would mean an experience of the healing power of the transpersonal Self. Healing is an act of creation, and that part of us, our creative spirit or the God within, speaks most vividly through dreams and imagination. Even Einstein considered imagination more important than knowledge.
Such a waking dream is a mystical expression of imagination and creative mind which is what ritual and ceremony help invoke. There is safety in ritual and ceremony -- secureness in it. It is another symbolic act of commitment to an inner faith. Ceremony by-passes the mind or intellect; it boggles it. It is a way of opening to a state of grace or faith, and these are integral aspects of mystical healing, as are color, tone, sacred geometry and scent.
How we behave is largely shaped by how we think and feel about what is happening in the environment. This means how we "feel" in the emotional sense, as well as in the opinion sense. This thinking-feeling is a deeper zone than behavior, which is mostly acted outside the self. This zone lies beneath the surface, a zone of thoughts and emotions, competing and dancing with each other to create patterns that shape our behaviors, but are themselves merely reflecting the even deeper patterns of limitation or dis-ease. Belief systems and personal mythology -- gateway to the transpersonal dimension -- are even deeper zones of inner experience.
Ritual Use
Ceremony reminds you of something you already have within you, but don't usually notice. It brings it to surface awareness. Because ceremonies are not rational, they confuse the rational mind. They appeal to the senses and take us outside of our usual ego experiences and beyond the experience of the rational or intellectual ego mind into the realm of pure archetypes, such as those represented on the qabalistic Tree of Life. We find these healing states of consciousness, beyond the rational mind, in the mystic.
This level where we are ALL ONE is a very healing state of consciousness. At surface levels we experience a causal world. At deeper levels of the psyche we can make the quantum leap in consciousness to a seemingly timeless/spaceless realm where we can experience ourselves differently. This is the eternal realm of primordial forces, which connects us with timelessness and a sense of immortality. It doesn't mean we are literally immortal, but we can connect with that sense of renewal. We glmpse it when we waft a sacred scent that temporarily lifts us from the mundane with its 'heavenly' fragrance.
Consciousness exists like an ocean. Jung spoke of it. The mystics call it the Father (or Mother), the Source, Great Spirit, etc. Communing with this energy, experiencing this state of consciousness, was the practice of shamans from the beginning of human history. They developed many techniques for "getting there." Consciousness always strives to take on form, and spirit urges us to cast off gross form and return to primordial unity.
What creates the space/time continuum may be the interaction of consciousness with the other fields that exist, such as the plenum or Akasha, the time field, EM fields, gravitational fields, and the "strong" and "weak" force within our atoms. These fields are virtually inseparable; they nest within one another. They lie within us. At the level of the still-elusive unified field theory they are one -- and we are that. This WE ARE level is experiential -- gnosis.
TIPHARETH, "Beauty", Sphere of the Sun
Tiphareth is the heart level Sphere of Beauty, and Perfect Equilibrium of the Minor Adept. In alchemy it symbolizes Death & Rebirth. It is the Causal Plane portal of Universal Mind, or the Self. The translation from the Astral to the Causal Plane is as dramatic as that between Physical and Astral. It requires the development of a more subtle aspect of the Body of Light, so the soul may experience that level of awareness. The Causal Body is called a Diamond Body, or the Ruach -- the moral soul.
Tiphareth means Divine Beauty, Equilibrium, Compassion and Creativity. These qualities imply harmony or rhythm of proportions such as those expressed in the geometrical form of the Golden Mean, and the ethical dictum the Golden Rule. Both suggest balance and the application of proper force and form. Tiphareth represents a comparatively high spiritual initiation. Here the entire life is dedicated to spiritual devotion, in a 24 hour-a-day ritual. This initiation to a Way of Life is experienced as a death for the ego. It leads to spiritual rebirth and ascension to higher imaginal realms in mystic ecstasy. The Great Work becomes the priority of one's existence.
The spiritual bud formed in Yesod, flowers in Tiphareth in Enlightenment. Many systems describe this grade through various images; Self, Holy Guardian Angel, Philosopher's Stone, Universal Mind, Brahm, or self-realization.
1. Physical Plane: Tiphareth represents the Vision of the Harmony of Things, and is the point on the Tree of Life of maximum equilibration. This same formula is represented in mathematics as the Vector Equilibrium Matrix. The Cube is a magickal symbol for Tiphareth. The VEM is an octahedron-within-a-cube, which is also the atomic structure of the diamond.
2. Astral Plane: A contemplative life in harmony with spiritual principles becomes the primary ritual. The magical images for Tiphareth include a magickal or divine child; a resplendent king, and a sacrificed God. These represent stages in the Mystery of Death and Rebirth. Tiphareth also corresponds with the Egyptian god, Osiris. Initiation on the path to God-Realization turns one's attitudes upside-down. Devotion to the Great Work; Pride.
3. Causal Plane: In the Causal, the Vision of Harmony indicates that all spiritual progress comes through the principle of Love. It implies the highest ethical standards in both behavior and thought. The Syntaxic Mode means one has a precise cognitive awareness concerning the relative value of mystical experiences, and has the verbal creativity for expression. Thus psychology can express in words what mystics experience through intuition. Syntaxic Mode includes Tantric sex, creativity, alpha states, etc. It verges of knowledge Ecstasy, but is mainly inspirational in quality.
4. Archetypal Plane: Tiphareth is the Royal Marriage of the Soul and the Divine. The projections of anima or animus have been returned to their proper level in the unconscious. The King and Queen are united: Spirit and Soul are distinct but conjoined. The aspirant enters a period of exploration of soul by spirit for psychic fecundation. This union with the Self, uniting all opposites is an illumined lunacy.
Tiphareth, symbolizes the central essence of manifest creation -- the Higher Self. This Self represents the fullest extension and potential of an individual, and provides transcendent experiences of the highest spiritual value which come from beyond one's own personal powers. To gain access to the Causal Plane means to transcend one's individual personality level and contact the inner, spiritual resources of the Self. "Self" acquires a double meaning for the aspirant which is both personal and transcendent.
Israel Regardie describes the faculties of the Causal Body in The Garden of Pomegranates:
Below the Abyss is the Ruach, or Intellect, that part of one's individual consciousness which becomes aware of things, desires them, and tries to attain them. It is a "machine" created, evolved, or invented by the Self for investigating the nature of the Universe. It is that portion of oneself consisting of sensation, perceptions, and thoughts, emotions, and desires. The Ruach comprises the fourth, fifth, sixth, seven, and eighth Sephiros, whose attributions are respectively Memory, Will, Imagination, Desire and Reason.
1). Tiphareth of the Physical Plane is "normal" ego consciousness;
2). Tiphareth of the Astral Plane is a vision of the radiant form of the Self;
3). Tiphareth of the Causal Plane means crystallization of the subtle Diamond Body, Self-Actualization, Self-Realization, Individuation, or creation of the Philosopher's Stone;
4). Tiphareth of the Archetypal Plane means nothing less than an incarnation of spirit, a spiritual Master.
Building the causal body requires the mystic consciously attempt to find release from the triple-illusions of time, space and personality (or ego), through meditation -- or alternatively come to see that all existence is in fact the body of God. Meditation takes the place of ritual or ceremony which gave access to the Astral Plane.
There is no further need for the rituals of the astral or visionary mode to stabilize contact with the archetype of Self in "the world of creation". Rather, the entire life is consecrated and devoted to mystical philosophy and practice. The beauty of Tiphareth is the transition from procedures which we use to reach toward and contact the divine to the reception of grace. Grace is that which pulls the soul toward Kether. That which pulls the attention is grace. Mystic meditation is fruitless without Grace.
Deep Consciousness
Genetic consciousness acts on the DNA material inherited from one's parents. Following the laws of genetics, it creates a physical being who can sense and interact with material reality. Current evidence suggests DNA is a holographic projector of the individual genetic blueprint.
Memories of space/time consciousness are stored as an undifferentiated sense of being. The psychic consciousness creates the various aspects of the energy body (Myss). They are connected to the physical body through such structures as the ego, the astral body, and the meridian system. Our conscious awareness is usually limited to just a segment of the ego, but the ego reacts with material reality also.
Anytime you turn your attention within and become receptive to yourself, you enter a whole new world of experience, which is just as real in effects as the outer world. When you change your attitudes, you change all the patterns entrained with them. You can facilitate change within yourself and cooperate with your personal growth or evolution. The only problem is getting around the habitual ego identity with its resistances to change, mainly fear and pain. Sometimes a guide or therapist can help provide assurance for overcoming challenges and blocks.
You can experiment with this yourself, simply by asking yourself a few simple questions: What would you like to have happen? When it isn't happening, how do you know its not? And where do you feel that in your body? And what's it "like"? By this means you create your own psychophysical metaphor for your personal experience, whether it comes from dreamlife or some problem, experience, or a childhood trauma. Another clue to healing might be found in your favorite fairy tale, a pattern you may tend to repeat.
Healing Sense
You are an active part in the healing process, learning psychological self-care. There are periods in the life of every person when certain events and situations demand greater inner strength, courage, faith, stamina, energy, understanding, optimism, inner security, and self-confidence. These times may be of a personal, familial, social, or even planetary nature. It could be a personal illness, the illness of a loved one or financial crisis, self-acceptance, pain or fear issues.
Scent is an important part of the Beauty Way, an aesthetic enhancement of your being no matter what trials come. Flowing with the experience through the progression of multi-sensory images provides the pathway to healing. The experience of finding an inner healing state is invaluable, as it teaches firsthand that the healer is within. The healing process and myth are deeply engrained in our lives, as individuals and societies.
Healing, the highest form of creativity, is an adaptation as well as a restoration. Each culture evolves its own variations on health and disease, and shamanic, medical, psychological and spiritual aid in recovery from physical and mental distress. 'Healing' can come on many levels, but is not always synonymous with 'curing.' We can often heal on the spiritual or emotional levels, even if the body is not cured.
Mythic Living
Personal mythology is sacred psychology alternative awareness. Jung suggested that each individual life is based on a particular myth. By discovering that myth, we can live it consciously and adapt ourselves to our destiny, thus harmonizing inner and outer experience, and allowing our true individuality to emerge.
But mythic living doesn't necessarily mean living one myth, since the patterns of all god/goddess forms are within us. The myth does not provide us with a blueprint for daily living concerning what we should or ought to do. Instead, it helps us in the process of discovering who we are, where we come from, and where we are going. They spark our sense of discovery and urge us to question and go deeper. Qabalistic pathworking is a systematic exploration of mythical forms using the 'magical images', eternal patterns we embody in our individuality. It helps us balance our experience by bringing in the missing ingredients of wholeness, and corresponding scents help open these pathways to higher consciousness.
Everything in the Universe is flowing, in interpenetrating motion. Holographic images are pictures captured in light and hold the feeling of events and emotions so they may be viewed again as a learning tool. We can "consult" with our ancestors. In recent decades modern science has verified what the ancient traditions intuited long ago. In both tangible and mysterious ways, we are all interconnected, and any one of us can have a profound effect on the whole. Occultists concluded your vibrational frequency determines your experience of life. They claim this is how thoughts become things.
If you accept the perennial mystical teaching that, at the level of consciousness, we are not only interconnected, but are actually one Self seeing through many eyes, then it should be clear that, like it or not, in the way we conduct our inner and outer lives, each of us is in fact always having an effect on the whole. What would you do if you realized that the entire human endeavor, the evolution of consciousness itself, depended on your willingness to transform your own consciousness?
Ceremony reminds you of something you already have within you, but don't usually notice. It brings it to surface awareness. Because ceremonies are not rational, they confuse the rational mind. They appeal to the senses and take us outside of our usual ego experiences and beyond the experience of the rational or intellectual ego mind into the realm of pure archetypes, such as those represented on the qabalistic Tree of Life. We find these healing states of consciousness, beyond the rational mind, in the mystic.
This level where we are ALL ONE is a very healing state of consciousness. At surface levels we experience a causal world. At deeper levels of the psyche we can make the quantum leap in consciousness to a seemingly timeless/spaceless realm where we can experience ourselves differently. This is the eternal realm of primordial forces, which connects us with timelessness and a sense of immortality. It doesn't mean we are literally immortal, but we can connect with that sense of renewal. We glmpse it when we waft a sacred scent that temporarily lifts us from the mundane with its 'heavenly' fragrance.
Consciousness exists like an ocean. Jung spoke of it. The mystics call it the Father (or Mother), the Source, Great Spirit, etc. Communing with this energy, experiencing this state of consciousness, was the practice of shamans from the beginning of human history. They developed many techniques for "getting there." Consciousness always strives to take on form, and spirit urges us to cast off gross form and return to primordial unity.
What creates the space/time continuum may be the interaction of consciousness with the other fields that exist, such as the plenum or Akasha, the time field, EM fields, gravitational fields, and the "strong" and "weak" force within our atoms. These fields are virtually inseparable; they nest within one another. They lie within us. At the level of the still-elusive unified field theory they are one -- and we are that. This WE ARE level is experiential -- gnosis.
TIPHARETH, "Beauty", Sphere of the Sun
Tiphareth is the heart level Sphere of Beauty, and Perfect Equilibrium of the Minor Adept. In alchemy it symbolizes Death & Rebirth. It is the Causal Plane portal of Universal Mind, or the Self. The translation from the Astral to the Causal Plane is as dramatic as that between Physical and Astral. It requires the development of a more subtle aspect of the Body of Light, so the soul may experience that level of awareness. The Causal Body is called a Diamond Body, or the Ruach -- the moral soul.
Tiphareth means Divine Beauty, Equilibrium, Compassion and Creativity. These qualities imply harmony or rhythm of proportions such as those expressed in the geometrical form of the Golden Mean, and the ethical dictum the Golden Rule. Both suggest balance and the application of proper force and form. Tiphareth represents a comparatively high spiritual initiation. Here the entire life is dedicated to spiritual devotion, in a 24 hour-a-day ritual. This initiation to a Way of Life is experienced as a death for the ego. It leads to spiritual rebirth and ascension to higher imaginal realms in mystic ecstasy. The Great Work becomes the priority of one's existence.
The spiritual bud formed in Yesod, flowers in Tiphareth in Enlightenment. Many systems describe this grade through various images; Self, Holy Guardian Angel, Philosopher's Stone, Universal Mind, Brahm, or self-realization.
1. Physical Plane: Tiphareth represents the Vision of the Harmony of Things, and is the point on the Tree of Life of maximum equilibration. This same formula is represented in mathematics as the Vector Equilibrium Matrix. The Cube is a magickal symbol for Tiphareth. The VEM is an octahedron-within-a-cube, which is also the atomic structure of the diamond.
2. Astral Plane: A contemplative life in harmony with spiritual principles becomes the primary ritual. The magical images for Tiphareth include a magickal or divine child; a resplendent king, and a sacrificed God. These represent stages in the Mystery of Death and Rebirth. Tiphareth also corresponds with the Egyptian god, Osiris. Initiation on the path to God-Realization turns one's attitudes upside-down. Devotion to the Great Work; Pride.
3. Causal Plane: In the Causal, the Vision of Harmony indicates that all spiritual progress comes through the principle of Love. It implies the highest ethical standards in both behavior and thought. The Syntaxic Mode means one has a precise cognitive awareness concerning the relative value of mystical experiences, and has the verbal creativity for expression. Thus psychology can express in words what mystics experience through intuition. Syntaxic Mode includes Tantric sex, creativity, alpha states, etc. It verges of knowledge Ecstasy, but is mainly inspirational in quality.
4. Archetypal Plane: Tiphareth is the Royal Marriage of the Soul and the Divine. The projections of anima or animus have been returned to their proper level in the unconscious. The King and Queen are united: Spirit and Soul are distinct but conjoined. The aspirant enters a period of exploration of soul by spirit for psychic fecundation. This union with the Self, uniting all opposites is an illumined lunacy.
Tiphareth, symbolizes the central essence of manifest creation -- the Higher Self. This Self represents the fullest extension and potential of an individual, and provides transcendent experiences of the highest spiritual value which come from beyond one's own personal powers. To gain access to the Causal Plane means to transcend one's individual personality level and contact the inner, spiritual resources of the Self. "Self" acquires a double meaning for the aspirant which is both personal and transcendent.
Israel Regardie describes the faculties of the Causal Body in The Garden of Pomegranates:
Below the Abyss is the Ruach, or Intellect, that part of one's individual consciousness which becomes aware of things, desires them, and tries to attain them. It is a "machine" created, evolved, or invented by the Self for investigating the nature of the Universe. It is that portion of oneself consisting of sensation, perceptions, and thoughts, emotions, and desires. The Ruach comprises the fourth, fifth, sixth, seven, and eighth Sephiros, whose attributions are respectively Memory, Will, Imagination, Desire and Reason.
1). Tiphareth of the Physical Plane is "normal" ego consciousness;
2). Tiphareth of the Astral Plane is a vision of the radiant form of the Self;
3). Tiphareth of the Causal Plane means crystallization of the subtle Diamond Body, Self-Actualization, Self-Realization, Individuation, or creation of the Philosopher's Stone;
4). Tiphareth of the Archetypal Plane means nothing less than an incarnation of spirit, a spiritual Master.
Building the causal body requires the mystic consciously attempt to find release from the triple-illusions of time, space and personality (or ego), through meditation -- or alternatively come to see that all existence is in fact the body of God. Meditation takes the place of ritual or ceremony which gave access to the Astral Plane.
There is no further need for the rituals of the astral or visionary mode to stabilize contact with the archetype of Self in "the world of creation". Rather, the entire life is consecrated and devoted to mystical philosophy and practice. The beauty of Tiphareth is the transition from procedures which we use to reach toward and contact the divine to the reception of grace. Grace is that which pulls the soul toward Kether. That which pulls the attention is grace. Mystic meditation is fruitless without Grace.
Deep Consciousness
Genetic consciousness acts on the DNA material inherited from one's parents. Following the laws of genetics, it creates a physical being who can sense and interact with material reality. Current evidence suggests DNA is a holographic projector of the individual genetic blueprint.
Memories of space/time consciousness are stored as an undifferentiated sense of being. The psychic consciousness creates the various aspects of the energy body (Myss). They are connected to the physical body through such structures as the ego, the astral body, and the meridian system. Our conscious awareness is usually limited to just a segment of the ego, but the ego reacts with material reality also.
Anytime you turn your attention within and become receptive to yourself, you enter a whole new world of experience, which is just as real in effects as the outer world. When you change your attitudes, you change all the patterns entrained with them. You can facilitate change within yourself and cooperate with your personal growth or evolution. The only problem is getting around the habitual ego identity with its resistances to change, mainly fear and pain. Sometimes a guide or therapist can help provide assurance for overcoming challenges and blocks.
You can experiment with this yourself, simply by asking yourself a few simple questions: What would you like to have happen? When it isn't happening, how do you know its not? And where do you feel that in your body? And what's it "like"? By this means you create your own psychophysical metaphor for your personal experience, whether it comes from dreamlife or some problem, experience, or a childhood trauma. Another clue to healing might be found in your favorite fairy tale, a pattern you may tend to repeat.
Healing Sense
You are an active part in the healing process, learning psychological self-care. There are periods in the life of every person when certain events and situations demand greater inner strength, courage, faith, stamina, energy, understanding, optimism, inner security, and self-confidence. These times may be of a personal, familial, social, or even planetary nature. It could be a personal illness, the illness of a loved one or financial crisis, self-acceptance, pain or fear issues.
Scent is an important part of the Beauty Way, an aesthetic enhancement of your being no matter what trials come. Flowing with the experience through the progression of multi-sensory images provides the pathway to healing. The experience of finding an inner healing state is invaluable, as it teaches firsthand that the healer is within. The healing process and myth are deeply engrained in our lives, as individuals and societies.
Healing, the highest form of creativity, is an adaptation as well as a restoration. Each culture evolves its own variations on health and disease, and shamanic, medical, psychological and spiritual aid in recovery from physical and mental distress. 'Healing' can come on many levels, but is not always synonymous with 'curing.' We can often heal on the spiritual or emotional levels, even if the body is not cured.
Mythic Living
Personal mythology is sacred psychology alternative awareness. Jung suggested that each individual life is based on a particular myth. By discovering that myth, we can live it consciously and adapt ourselves to our destiny, thus harmonizing inner and outer experience, and allowing our true individuality to emerge.
But mythic living doesn't necessarily mean living one myth, since the patterns of all god/goddess forms are within us. The myth does not provide us with a blueprint for daily living concerning what we should or ought to do. Instead, it helps us in the process of discovering who we are, where we come from, and where we are going. They spark our sense of discovery and urge us to question and go deeper. Qabalistic pathworking is a systematic exploration of mythical forms using the 'magical images', eternal patterns we embody in our individuality. It helps us balance our experience by bringing in the missing ingredients of wholeness, and corresponding scents help open these pathways to higher consciousness.
Everything in the Universe is flowing, in interpenetrating motion. Holographic images are pictures captured in light and hold the feeling of events and emotions so they may be viewed again as a learning tool. We can "consult" with our ancestors. In recent decades modern science has verified what the ancient traditions intuited long ago. In both tangible and mysterious ways, we are all interconnected, and any one of us can have a profound effect on the whole. Occultists concluded your vibrational frequency determines your experience of life. They claim this is how thoughts become things.
If you accept the perennial mystical teaching that, at the level of consciousness, we are not only interconnected, but are actually one Self seeing through many eyes, then it should be clear that, like it or not, in the way we conduct our inner and outer lives, each of us is in fact always having an effect on the whole. What would you do if you realized that the entire human endeavor, the evolution of consciousness itself, depended on your willingness to transform your own consciousness?
 Astral Body Asleep, 1968, Abdul Matti Klarwein
|
 Astral Body Awake, 1969, Abdul Matti Klarwein
|
The Divine Law of Vibration states that nothing rests, everything moves, every thing vibrates. The lower the vibration, the slower the vibration; the higher the vibration the faster the vibration.
The difference between the manifestations of the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual results simply from different levels of vibrating energy, or frequencies. So, while the feelings of fear, grief and despair vibrate at a very low frequency, the feelings of love, joy and gratitude vibrate much quicker.
The most common unit of measure for frequency is the Hertz, which is one vibrational cycle per second. So a frequency of 460 Hz means that there are 460 cycles of vibration occurring every single second.
At the very leading edge of biophysics today, scientists are recognizing that the molecules in our bodies are actually controlled by these frequencies. In 1974, Dr. Colin W.F. McClare, Ph.D, an Oxford University Bio-Physicist, discovered that frequencies of vibrating energy are roughly one-hundred times more efficient in relaying information within a biological system than physical signals, such as hormones, neurotransmitters and other growth factors.
Although most frequencies exist outside of our normal range of perception, all can be perceived as both colors and sounds. So the color blue is also heard as the musical key of D, which vibrates at 587 Hz. But what is most interesting is that, if a frequency is vibrating fast enough, it emits as a color of Light.
If we wanted to convert sound to Light, we would simply raise its frequency forty octaves. This results in a vibration in the trillions of cycles per second. So, if a pianist could press a key above the eighty-eight keys that exist on a piano, that key would produce Light. They could create a chord of Light in the same way they can create a chord of sound. And it would be seen as colors of Light because it would be moving at the speed of Light.
The philosophical and scientific basis for this Law of Vibration can be found in quantum physics and in Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. Energy is related to matter and the speed of Light. This is Einstein’s famous E = mc2 equation.
When two frequencies are brought together, the lower will always rise to meet the higher. This is the principle of resonance. So, when a piano is tuned, a tuning fork is struck, and then brought close to the piano string that carries that same musical tone. The string then raises its vibration automatically and attunes itself to the same rate at which the fork is vibrating.
Using this principal of resonance, we can actually increase the speed at which the molecules in our bodies vibrate, through our thoughts of love, joy and gratitude. When atoms slow down, third dimensional matter is created; when they speed up, the higher dimensions of consciousness can be reached. And the higher our consciousness is raised, the closer to the fountainhead or Source we become.
Brainwave Synchronization
Brainwave synchronization is the ability of the brain to synchronize with external stimuli such as visual and/or audio. Brainwave synchronization is also referred to by scientists as Frequency-Following Effect, Photonic Stimulation, Photonic Driving, and Visual and/or Brainwave Synchronization. Brainwave synchronization is very effective for changing from one brain wave state to a targeted brainwave state, such as deep relaxation.
Perfume helps us interface directly with the structure and/or function of neurons, or neural pathways, for self-improvement, treatment of problems, or exploration. Methods used include meditation, drugs/pharmaceuticals, psychological techniques and technology from drumming, light rhythms, to electronics.
EEG frequencies include Gamma (higher than 30Hz); Beta (14-30Hz); Alpha (7.5-13Hz); Theta (3.5-7.5Hz); and Delta (less than 4Hz). They are linked to behaviors, subjective feeling states, physiological correlates, etc. Improved neuroregulation in the basic functions is related to their underlying rhythmic mechanisms.
Alpha and Theta are conducive to deep relaxation and release from critical thinking; it frees the imaginative, emotional mind. The brain automatically responds to inputs at certain frequencies. Entrainment is the process of synchronization, where vibrations of one object will cause the vibrations of another object to oscillate at the same rate. External rhythms, such as an audio CD, can have a direct effect on the psychology and physiology of the listener. We can control our mind patterns and enter different states of being (mental relaxation, study, etc.).
When the mind is entrained with a scent, sound or vibration that reflects the thought patterns it responds to certain frequencies behaving as a resonator. If you combine psychosensory stimuli it works better, especially with a simple ritual, which need not be formal or magical in nature. It can be during a bath, rising at dawn to appreciate the day, or acknowledging the setting sun, or grounding in your favorite natural place.
Binaural beats are continuous tones of subtlety different frequencies, which are delivered to each ear independently in stereo via headphones. If the left channel's pitch is 100 cycles per second and the right channel's pitch is 108 cycles per second, the difference between the two equals 8 cycles per second. When these sounds are combined they produce a pulsing tone that waxes and wanes in a "wah-wah" rhythm. The brain resonates with this differential.
Binaural beats are not an external sound; rather they are subsonic frequencies heard within the brain itself. These frequencies are created as both hemispheres work simultaneously to hear sounds that are pitched differed by key mathematical intervals (window frequencies). The brainwaves respond to these oscillating tones by following them (entrainment) and both hemispheres begin to work together. Communication between the two sides of the brain is associated with flashes of creativity, insight and wisdom.
Like sound waves, the brain has its own set of vibrations it uses to communicate with itself and the rest of the body. Rhythm manages the entire range of activation and arousal in your bioelectrical field. One role advocated for rhythmic activity is that of time binding, harnessing brain electrical activity. Brainwaves indicate the arousal dimension, and arousal mediates a number of conditions. Changes in sympathetic and parasympathetic arousal "tunes" the nervous system.
Underarousal leads toward Unipolar or Reactive Depression, Attention Deficit Disorder, chronic pain and insomnia. Overarousal is linked with anxiety disorders, sleep onset problems, nightmares, hypervigilance, bipolar, impulsive behavior, anger/aggression, agitated depression, chronic nerve pain and spasticity.
A combination of under- and over-arousal causes anxiety and depression, as well as ADHD. If we are used to chaos, we will create trauma/drama in our lives to self-stimulate whether the result is positive or negative. We need to get our needs for excitement and novelty met in positive ways, so we don't "act out" or "act in".
Instabilities in certain rhythms can be correlated with tics, obsessive-compulsive disorder, aggressive behavior, rage, bruxism, panic attacks, bipolar disorder, migraines, narcolepsy, epilepsy, sleep apnea, vertigo, tinnitus, anorexia/bulimia, suicidal ideation and behavior, PMS, multiple chemical sensitivities, diabetes, hypoglycemia, and explosive behavior.
Alpha
In Alpha, we begin to access the wealth of creativity that lies just below our conscious awareness - it is the gateway, the entry point that leads into deeper states of consciousness. Alpha waves aid relaxation and overall mental coordination, calmness, alertness, inner awareness, mind/body integration and learning. Alpha is ideal for imaging positive changes in your beliefs and behavior. Focus on what you WANT, not what you don't want.
Theta
Theta waves mean 'slow" activity connected often with creativity, intuition, daydreaming or recalling emotions and sensations. Focus is internal in this state between waking and sleep. Under stress it may manifest as distraction, lack of focus. The senses are withdrawn from the external world and focused on the inner one. Children under 7 are in Theta most of the time, so have difficulty distinguishing the real from imaginary. It is the twilight state we normally only experience fleetingly as we awaken or drift off to sleep. We are in a waking dream, vivid imagery flashes before the mind's eye and we are receptive to information beyond our normal conscious awareness. Theta has also been identified as the gateway to learning and memory. Theta meditation increases creativity, enhances learning, reduces stress and awakens intuition and other extrasensory perception skills.
Meditative techniques using sound, sight, or awareness may generate particular wave patterns whose fields induce resonance in the brain. Millennia of human trial and error have determined that certain ‘sacred’ worlds, visual images, and mental exercises exert uniquely desired effects, causing multiple systems to vibrate and pulse at certain frequencies. When our minds and bodies resonate with these spiritual exercises the pineal begins to ‘vibrate’ at frequencies that weaken its multiple barriers to DMT formation and release.
The mindbody is electronic, but it is rooted in the luminosity of its invisible ground. Living systems are very sensitive to tiny energy fields and resonance phenomena, both locally and at a distance. They allow the cells of the body to work together instantaneously and symphonically. All biological processes are a function of electromagnetic field interactions. EM fields are the connecting link between the world of form and resonant patterns. EM fields embody or store gestalts, patterns of information. Biochemical action and bioelectronic action meet at the quantum-junction.
We can return to Nature and our nature, collectively preparing a paradigm shift for a new shared reality and trajectory of physical, emotional, cognitive and spiritual coherence. The silent frictionless flow of living intelligence is beyond words and conceptual constructs. We are a process of recursive self-generation. This continuum, which is our groundstate or creative Source, is directly discoverable in the immediacy of the emergent embodied moment, in the living Light that generates our Being.
Split brain experiments have shown we are of “two minds” -- one rational, linear, time-bound, and cognitive while the other is emotional, holistic, intuitive, artistic. Even when we know what we should do we do what we want. The main distinction is between thinking and feeling, objective analysis and subjective insight. Each half has its own way of knowing about our being and perceiving external reality. Either mode can lead or follow, or conflict, keeping knowledge such as traumatic memories, from the other.
The hemispheres are meant to work in concert with one another. Interactive hemispheric feedback is used to treat disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, ADD, addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and a host of other dysfunctions. Disorders of under-arousal include depression, attention-deficit disorder (ADD), chronic pain and insomnia. Overarousal includes anxiety disorders, problems getting to sleep, nightmares, ADHD, hypervigilance, impulsive behavior, anger/aggression, agitated depression, chronic nerve pain, and spasticity.
Because the brain is functionally “plastic” in nature, creating and exercising new neural pathways can retrain neural circuitry. In meditation, the halves of the brain become synchronized and exhibit nearly identical patterns of large, slow brainwaves. Rhythmic pulses can modulate collective neuronal synchrony. Then, both lobes automatically play in concert.
Rhythm regulates the entire spectrum of activation and arousal by kindling, or pulling more and more parts of the brain into the process. Disorders related to under- and over- arousal, including attentional and emotional problems, can be stabilized by self-organizing restructuring. Depressions, anxiety, worry, fear, and panic can be moderated. Stimulating neglected neural circuitry creates new pathways, improving equilibrium and long-term change, essentially “tuning” the nervous system.
Perfume Alchemy: Gift of the Spirits
Beguiling perfumes are an easy and wonderful way to begin the inner adventure. Their "universal language of the heart" galvanizes a botanically induced response that lifts mood and attitude. Consecrated oil is a perfect compliment to any sensuous siren. The palette of perfumery is a scent-organ with many notes, multi-colored and chromatic, whose elusive qualities are enigmatic.
The astral form of essences is spirit-bound and purely quintessential. The aromatic image is a tender assault on the senses. Fragrance is flowers flight. Perfume casts its glamour over our breath, unlocking memories and dreams as its unseen veil unfurls. It allows us a peek behind the transcendent Veil of the Universe, layer upon layer of fascination, into a moment of perfection.
The alchemy of scent is the exclusive topic of this book. Aromatic plants and oils have always been valued and used for their unique properties. Of course, the aesthetic quality of odors is enhanced when their source is purely natural, that is without synthetic additives found in commercial perfumes. All scents prescribed for ancient rituals were naturally organic. Essential oils from magical plants form the heart of perfume alchemy.
RenaSCENT
Ancient initiatory schools and shamanic wisdom traditions of indigenous peoples are the source for the codification of perfume alchemy. It is part of a larger spiritual technology for altering states of consciousness -- a matrix of transformation. Pure essential oils and resins are the material basis of this psychosensory science-art. Scents "feed" the soul; they nourish the imagination. Scents are our bodies' best gifts to the magician, ritualist and spiritual seeker. To speak to the emotions, to the animal spirit, to the part of us that believes in and works magick, use scent. Burn incense.
Perfume Alchemy is a subtle energy activation system. Renascent, reborn or revived sacred scents urge us to spring again into being or vigor. That moment can be the end of the Lie of separation and an utter change in self-image. We linger with the scent in a timeless place. The sense of smell is hooked directly into the brain and helps us encode the strongest holistic memories for our experience. Smell a scent again and the whole experience comes flooding back as a virtual reality. Scents go straight into long-term memory. If you want incense imbued with your specific magickal or spiritual purpose and your energy, make it from scratch.
Three purposes of perfumes in ritual include: 1) a means for spirits to manifest making a temporary body from smoke; 2) a pleasing offering or sacrifice through resonating or amplifying each spirit or angel's vibratory frequency; 3) to evoke particular spirits in ritual with formula made from the corresponding letters of its name. They have other specific uses, such as the scent for calling on one's Guardian Angel, which helps stabilize the consciousness of the higher self. Planets, days of the week, angels and demons all have their own perfumes, according to their nature.
Akasha, the universal Field, extends outward from the Cosmos to deep within the heart. Both heaven and earth are contained within it -- including fire, air, water and earth, both sun and moon, both lightning and stars. From this deep unconscious Source we draw our vital energy, our elan vital. It appears to us as the Voice of the Silence, awakening our psychic senses. If you are receptive, an answer or guidance may come from Sky or Earth or any direction.
Psychological Equilibrium
Initiation opens a communication link between the aspirant and this divine guiding principle -- our inner genius -- fostering balance in the personality as the firm foundation for spiritual development. Maat or 'Balance' was the prime expression of the Egyptian Mystery Schools, because it gave order and meaning to life. In the East, it is called the Tao, a dynamic blending of yin and yang. Balance helps you to achieve the goals you want in life and to manifest your dreams. You can easily integrate this wisdom tradition in your own life. Empowerment comes through grounding and centering, and scents can help us achieve that.
As science has demonstrated, smell is the only sense that acts directly on the brain. The properties of the oils and resins directly stimulate the limbic system or "emotional" part of the brain, modulating the rational blocks to achieving harmony. Scents can make us either more relaxed or more alert. Perfume Alchemy can help you to shift your energy into the energetic form you want or need to be. It can provide a focus on multiple levels: physical, emotional, psychological, or intuitional. Caring for your soul opens an inner resource of great power you can depend upon. You connect with your 'gift of discernment.' We learn to work with our higher selves and with the voices of the ancient ones.
Practicing this wisdom art helps purify and support our energy bodies and fosters holistic health and psychic abilities, including vision and foresight. We leave thought behind for the direct experience of gnosis. It brings a fresh perspective to our understanding of both our inner and outer worlds. Through Perfume Alchemy, the essence or essential nature of each person is "distilled" and refined much like the fragrant soul of the flower or resin is drawn and liberated from the gross botanical matter, purifying and concentrating it. The use of life-enhancing fragrances is easily integrated into any lifestyle.
Perfume of the Stone
Perfumes and incense are also used in conjunction with self-observation, meditation and Qabalistic pathworking. To communicate with the divine realm, it is necessary to understand the inner planes and learn to navigate these without coming under the influence of negative, unbalanced energies. When the mind is stable and quiet, the Voice of the Spirit can be heard; it is the voice of the Intuition, and reveals all true knowledge.
Perfume alchemy, used in conjunction with astrology and other healing arts, can help you identify and pursue your higher purpose and unlock your hidden potential for higher consciousness. Perfume Alchemy supports the balancing and healing process by relieving pain, healing dis-ease, fighting stress and instilling a sense of well being. It produces noticeable effects, subtly shifting energies and adjusting the whole mindbody hologram through vibratory resonance. Essences can also help you ground and focus your intentionality. In conjunction with ritual, it can open the door to mystical experiences.
Alchemy of Scent
Both alchemy and perfumery are laboratory practices. Many works have dealt with general perfumery; both from the technical as well as the creative standpoints, but none have sought to unravel the mysteries of the art of perfume alchemy. The few Occult or New Age books which do provide planetary, zodiacal, or metaphysical attributions are, for the most part, based on the ancient Doctrine of Signatures or on the Medicinal Herbal Pharmacopoeias of old.
The Doctrine of Signatures is an old system wherein herbs, plants, and flowers were assigned either to Planetary rulership, or to parts of the human anatomy based on the color and shape of the plant; hence a kidney shaped leaf is believed to heal kidney ailments and a red flower is thought to cure blood diseases. The color associations, which are linked to astrology, are even more simplistic. For example, all red flowers belong to Mars; all yellow plants fall under the rulership of the Sun, etc. Coincidentally, some of these attributions have since proved valid, but as with all generalizations, the margin for error is great. This system of attributions, however, has no valid application in perfumery, since it did not have anything to do with scent.
Medicinal attributions are based on the organic principle of the plant and its ingestion as a tonic or tea, but NOT on the fragrance of the plant and the sensory response that the scent elicits. An alchemical essence is formulated to elicit a specific "psycho-sensory, subliminal response". It is not simply an elegant fragrance. The sensory response to a given fragrance dictates the formulation of an incense or perfume. For example: Chamomile when taken as a medicinal tea acts as a mild sedative, while the fragrance of Chamomile when inhaled, acts as a "solar" cerebral stimulant.
So, even if you think you know your herbs and scents, the approach of perfume alchemy follows this simple rule that distinguishes the scent from other attributes.
Beguiling perfumes are an easy and wonderful way to begin the inner adventure. Their "universal language of the heart" galvanizes a botanically induced response that lifts mood and attitude. Consecrated oil is a perfect compliment to any sensuous siren. The palette of perfumery is a scent-organ with many notes, multi-colored and chromatic, whose elusive qualities are enigmatic.
The astral form of essences is spirit-bound and purely quintessential. The aromatic image is a tender assault on the senses. Fragrance is flowers flight. Perfume casts its glamour over our breath, unlocking memories and dreams as its unseen veil unfurls. It allows us a peek behind the transcendent Veil of the Universe, layer upon layer of fascination, into a moment of perfection.
The alchemy of scent is the exclusive topic of this book. Aromatic plants and oils have always been valued and used for their unique properties. Of course, the aesthetic quality of odors is enhanced when their source is purely natural, that is without synthetic additives found in commercial perfumes. All scents prescribed for ancient rituals were naturally organic. Essential oils from magical plants form the heart of perfume alchemy.
RenaSCENT
Ancient initiatory schools and shamanic wisdom traditions of indigenous peoples are the source for the codification of perfume alchemy. It is part of a larger spiritual technology for altering states of consciousness -- a matrix of transformation. Pure essential oils and resins are the material basis of this psychosensory science-art. Scents "feed" the soul; they nourish the imagination. Scents are our bodies' best gifts to the magician, ritualist and spiritual seeker. To speak to the emotions, to the animal spirit, to the part of us that believes in and works magick, use scent. Burn incense.
Perfume Alchemy is a subtle energy activation system. Renascent, reborn or revived sacred scents urge us to spring again into being or vigor. That moment can be the end of the Lie of separation and an utter change in self-image. We linger with the scent in a timeless place. The sense of smell is hooked directly into the brain and helps us encode the strongest holistic memories for our experience. Smell a scent again and the whole experience comes flooding back as a virtual reality. Scents go straight into long-term memory. If you want incense imbued with your specific magickal or spiritual purpose and your energy, make it from scratch.
Three purposes of perfumes in ritual include: 1) a means for spirits to manifest making a temporary body from smoke; 2) a pleasing offering or sacrifice through resonating or amplifying each spirit or angel's vibratory frequency; 3) to evoke particular spirits in ritual with formula made from the corresponding letters of its name. They have other specific uses, such as the scent for calling on one's Guardian Angel, which helps stabilize the consciousness of the higher self. Planets, days of the week, angels and demons all have their own perfumes, according to their nature.
Akasha, the universal Field, extends outward from the Cosmos to deep within the heart. Both heaven and earth are contained within it -- including fire, air, water and earth, both sun and moon, both lightning and stars. From this deep unconscious Source we draw our vital energy, our elan vital. It appears to us as the Voice of the Silence, awakening our psychic senses. If you are receptive, an answer or guidance may come from Sky or Earth or any direction.
Psychological Equilibrium
Initiation opens a communication link between the aspirant and this divine guiding principle -- our inner genius -- fostering balance in the personality as the firm foundation for spiritual development. Maat or 'Balance' was the prime expression of the Egyptian Mystery Schools, because it gave order and meaning to life. In the East, it is called the Tao, a dynamic blending of yin and yang. Balance helps you to achieve the goals you want in life and to manifest your dreams. You can easily integrate this wisdom tradition in your own life. Empowerment comes through grounding and centering, and scents can help us achieve that.
As science has demonstrated, smell is the only sense that acts directly on the brain. The properties of the oils and resins directly stimulate the limbic system or "emotional" part of the brain, modulating the rational blocks to achieving harmony. Scents can make us either more relaxed or more alert. Perfume Alchemy can help you to shift your energy into the energetic form you want or need to be. It can provide a focus on multiple levels: physical, emotional, psychological, or intuitional. Caring for your soul opens an inner resource of great power you can depend upon. You connect with your 'gift of discernment.' We learn to work with our higher selves and with the voices of the ancient ones.
Practicing this wisdom art helps purify and support our energy bodies and fosters holistic health and psychic abilities, including vision and foresight. We leave thought behind for the direct experience of gnosis. It brings a fresh perspective to our understanding of both our inner and outer worlds. Through Perfume Alchemy, the essence or essential nature of each person is "distilled" and refined much like the fragrant soul of the flower or resin is drawn and liberated from the gross botanical matter, purifying and concentrating it. The use of life-enhancing fragrances is easily integrated into any lifestyle.
Perfume of the Stone
Perfumes and incense are also used in conjunction with self-observation, meditation and Qabalistic pathworking. To communicate with the divine realm, it is necessary to understand the inner planes and learn to navigate these without coming under the influence of negative, unbalanced energies. When the mind is stable and quiet, the Voice of the Spirit can be heard; it is the voice of the Intuition, and reveals all true knowledge.
Perfume alchemy, used in conjunction with astrology and other healing arts, can help you identify and pursue your higher purpose and unlock your hidden potential for higher consciousness. Perfume Alchemy supports the balancing and healing process by relieving pain, healing dis-ease, fighting stress and instilling a sense of well being. It produces noticeable effects, subtly shifting energies and adjusting the whole mindbody hologram through vibratory resonance. Essences can also help you ground and focus your intentionality. In conjunction with ritual, it can open the door to mystical experiences.
Alchemy of Scent
Both alchemy and perfumery are laboratory practices. Many works have dealt with general perfumery; both from the technical as well as the creative standpoints, but none have sought to unravel the mysteries of the art of perfume alchemy. The few Occult or New Age books which do provide planetary, zodiacal, or metaphysical attributions are, for the most part, based on the ancient Doctrine of Signatures or on the Medicinal Herbal Pharmacopoeias of old.
The Doctrine of Signatures is an old system wherein herbs, plants, and flowers were assigned either to Planetary rulership, or to parts of the human anatomy based on the color and shape of the plant; hence a kidney shaped leaf is believed to heal kidney ailments and a red flower is thought to cure blood diseases. The color associations, which are linked to astrology, are even more simplistic. For example, all red flowers belong to Mars; all yellow plants fall under the rulership of the Sun, etc. Coincidentally, some of these attributions have since proved valid, but as with all generalizations, the margin for error is great. This system of attributions, however, has no valid application in perfumery, since it did not have anything to do with scent.
Medicinal attributions are based on the organic principle of the plant and its ingestion as a tonic or tea, but NOT on the fragrance of the plant and the sensory response that the scent elicits. An alchemical essence is formulated to elicit a specific "psycho-sensory, subliminal response". It is not simply an elegant fragrance. The sensory response to a given fragrance dictates the formulation of an incense or perfume. For example: Chamomile when taken as a medicinal tea acts as a mild sedative, while the fragrance of Chamomile when inhaled, acts as a "solar" cerebral stimulant.
So, even if you think you know your herbs and scents, the approach of perfume alchemy follows this simple rule that distinguishes the scent from other attributes.
REFERENCES
Bradley, Raymond, The Body's Heart Field, http://media.noetic.org/uploads/files/s5_mccraty.pdf
Laszlo, E. 1993. The Creative Cosmos. Edinburgh: Floris. 21
Laszlo, E. 2003. The Connectivity Hypothesis: Foundations of an Integral Science of Quantum, Cosmos, Life, and Consciousness. Albany, NY: State University of New York (SUNY) Press.
Laszlo, E. 2004. Science and the Akashic Field: An Integral Theory of Everything. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions.
Myss, Caroline. 2001. Energy Anatomy.
Radin, Dean, "Entangled Minds, http://media.noetic.org/uploads/files/s5_radin.pdf
Bradley, Raymond, The Body's Heart Field, http://media.noetic.org/uploads/files/s5_mccraty.pdf
Laszlo, E. 1993. The Creative Cosmos. Edinburgh: Floris. 21
Laszlo, E. 2003. The Connectivity Hypothesis: Foundations of an Integral Science of Quantum, Cosmos, Life, and Consciousness. Albany, NY: State University of New York (SUNY) Press.
Laszlo, E. 2004. Science and the Akashic Field: An Integral Theory of Everything. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions.
Myss, Caroline. 2001. Energy Anatomy.
Radin, Dean, "Entangled Minds, http://media.noetic.org/uploads/files/s5_radin.pdf
(c) 2011, Iona Miller; All Rights Reserved
