The Magus’s Maximalism
The development and expansion of mind proceeds through the continual neutralization and integration of the dualities from which the manifested world is constructed.
Therefore, for the Magus who strives to accelerate their evolution, the ability to clearly identify binaries, bring them into awareness, and then neutralize them becomes an essential condition of a successful Way.
We have already said that the aspiration to “neutrality” can be fraught with errors rooted in insufficient awareness of the very nature of dualities.
Any binary can be examined on several levels. The first — the “surface” or “existential” level — consists in recognizing a duality as it appears in experience, by identifying its aggregate. For example, we observe that day replaces night and distinguish the binary day/night. Its androgynous term — as we have already clarified— is twilight, and its integral is the day in the sense of a full 24-hour cycle.
Clearly, in the “real” world only androgynous manifestations exist; the poles of binaries are, to a large extent, epistemological categories. Yet disclosing and identifying them is a crucial condition of the process of awareness itself.
But if we set ourselves the task of understanding the nature of this binary, we arrive at the next level of comprehension — the “essential,” or substantive, level. What distinguishes day from night is the presence or absence of bright light. Thus, from the binary day/night we arrive at the duality light/darkness.
Again we find ourselves in the initial situation: we can consider this binary superficially, treating light and darkness as interdependent categories — light as photon flux significant for our vision, and darkness as any photon flux whose intensity is insufficient for our eyes to perceive. But if we deepen this understanding, a seemingly casuistic question appears: is a single photon light or darkness? From the standpoint of our vision — darkness. From a deeper standpoint — light. In this way we approach an absolute category that is impossible in the manifested world, yet without which thinking finds no foothold for integration: darkness as the complete absence of photons.
This seemingly philosophical, reality-detached conclusion immediately collapses the house of cards of habitual constructions. From this point of view, what does the phrase “after night, day always comes” actually mean? Both night and day are merely gradations of light; night is not darkness even in an obviously physical sense. It follows that the “darkness” after which light comes is not true darkness, but only a weaker gradation of that same light. True darkness is under no obligation to be replaced by light.
Consider another example. We all know that “wounds heal,” but if we follow a simple logical chain similar to the one above, it becomes entirely clear that a wound that heals is not a real wound — not the absolute pole of the binary.
The Magus strives not merely to reach such “terminal” categories in awareness but, being thoroughly pragmatic, to draw practical conclusions from them. If a wound is only a gradation of a state, if fatigue is only a gradation of the ability to walk, then they need not be treated too seriously. Thus the Magus, as a warrior, simply does not pay attention to the “difficulties” that knock the ground out from under an ordinary person’s feet.
At the same time, in striving for maximal manifestation, the Magus discovers within themselves (and around themselves) “absolute” categories as well — “real” poles of binaries. Then, for example, the Magus understands that one can neutralize the binary light/darkness (in its “terminal” sense) not by the method offered by “habitual” life — not by timidly labeling a weaker light as “darkness” — but by genuinely holding both categories in mind at once. Their integral may be emptiness/fullness, simultaneously containing both the possibility of light and the possibility of darkness.
In the same way, those “wounds” which the Magus nonetheless recognizes as wounds are not gradations of health: they never heal. And the binary wholeness/woundedness is neutralized not by the cowardly claim that “this will pass,” but by the integral life/death — both categories being simultaneously and wholly present in the Magus’s mind.
Thus, the world of the Magus is not “black-and-white”; it is simultaneously and wholly both black and white. The Magus is a maximalist in the strictest sense of the word, and only such a mode of thought makes it possible to achieve those unidirectional flows of mind that make successful both the particular and the absolute realizations of the Magus.
Overcoming Duality
Pitfalls of the Middle Way
Balance and Compromise
Effortless Effort
Absence of Resistance
The Restless Tranquility of the Magus
Sealing the Breaches
Passions of the Magus
It is very tempting – to identify within oneself some unhealed wound and support its unhealed state for years. One can even turn this into the magician-maximalist’s lifetime endeavor 🙂 At least there will be something to fill the inner emptiness.
Much more tempting is to declare the wound ‘healed’ or ‘absent’, ignore it and layer over it a bunch of shiny trinkets, disregarding the ongoing internal process of decay. Both options – wallowing in one’s pain and ignoring that pain – are equally fruitless and hopeless. The honesty of a magician – if there is pain – to acknowledge that it is there, but not to turn it into suffering and not to let it influence the Path.
I know. It is very difficult. But – deadly wounds are curable. And there is no need to put on shiny trinkets. One must seek the remedy.
The question is not about treatability or untreatability. The question is what to consider real. Any treatable ‘deadly wound’ – of course, should be treated if it can be treated – it should be treated. The question is not to consider the treatable ‘deadly’ wound as ‘deadly’. Since it is treatable – it is not ‘deadly’, it is temporary and absolute. But in the life of a magician, there are not only such relative, illusory categories. That’s what the conversation is about.
If it hurts – it is real. Whether the soul hurts or the body. Pain is a call: help me! Help yourself! And, yes, one can just look at it and live with it and be in pain.
light-shadow; darkness-creation
How can it not interfere with the path if you don’t know the world without it? Maybe you remember something, like from kindergarten. And perhaps understanding death and the wound is such a path, and I even did it when I told you. I was indeed afraid, even under the threat of death to tell, remember, on the bear’s advice, and I didn’t tell, though I thought I was dying quite seriously. And I didn’t even know if I was alive.
Very unusual impressions from the article, not for the first time. It is amazing to observe similar conclusions to my own, but through another path. We have so many ‘orientals’ (rather – pseudo-orientals), but there is practically no sensible position of the Western magician. And here, please!
In general, I agree with the maximalist approach. I have always assumed it means something slightly different – maximum efficiency. But irreconcilable clarity in perception of reality should also be included here.
As for the unhealed wound – it’s unclear. Maybe examples are simply needed? I thought about it, is it not talking about things like awareness of one’s own mortality? In my opinion, only something like that could be referred to as unhealed. The inevitability of physical death will not leave you, and no therapy will help reconcile yourself with this fact. Overall, there shouldn’t be too many such wounds. I would refer all duhkha of Buddhism here, but by no means experiences like ‘a wounded heart’. Isn’t that correct?
All areas of darkness between particles of light – manifested absolute darkness. Absolute darkness possesses all properties of darkness.
The totality of all light particles, with the dark areas excluded – manifested absolute light. Absolute light possesses all properties of light.
Dark areas between light particles – potential (unmanifested) absolute light.
The totality of light particles, with the dark areas excluded – potential (unmanifested) absolute darkness.
Thus, everything is simultaneously – absolute light (manifested and potential) and absolute darkness (manifested and potential)
One can control darkness/light – by absorbing light and emitting light.
One can control light/darkness – by absorbing darkness and emitting darkness.
By emitting light, we absorb darkness. By emitting darkness, we absorb light.
Reflecting darkness – we reflect light too – creating a border of manifested and unmanifested light and darkness.
Reflecting all light to an absolute point – we obtain absolute light, reflecting all darkness to a point – we obtain absolute darkness.
Beyond this border, from which light and darkness were reflected, – there is no light and no darkness, neither manifested nor potential. There is what may be filled or not filled by them, and it is outside the categories of light and darkness.
The wound – androgynous binar of wholeness and destructiveness (Edges of the wound – WHOLENESS, connected by a bridge from the outer surface of the wound to its bottom, the middle of the wound – DESTRUCTED tissue). By the way, the binar (the opposite) of the wound is not the integrity of the skin and underlying tissues, but keloid scar (edges of the skin are whole, the middle of the scar is filled with tissue more than necessary and protrudes above the skin level)
Healing/non-healing of a wound in a living organism – the balance of the binar life/death. Wounds inflicted on stone – do not heal. Wounds inflicted on the sea – do not heal either. The first preserve for millennia (including in the form of runes), while the latter close immediately after extraction of the instrument that wounded it. Which of them is more absolute?
The exploration of the absolute androgyn is new, unconventional, and interesting, thus raises questions. What is the absolute for merging opposites – (wholeness of edges and destructiveness of the middle – for the wound)? Their proportion? Their spatiotemporal relationships? The maximum manifestation of all their properties? The maximum correspondence to the ideal image of androgyn from the microcosm? Something else?
The article further reveals and deepens the topic, the semantic axis passing through the entire blog.
Very indicative are specific examples. Light and Darkness – this can be called classic, but the wounds…
How many will manage to go through all their Battles without receiving a single wound? I don’t think so. Even ‘not real wounds’ leave scars after healing. And real ones… It is no wonder some of them are still called Sacred, implying their fatality. One should not idealize the concept of ‘Sacred wound’. It, more accurately, the presence of accompanying circumstances, can easily organize the dispatch of an unfortunate traveler ‘to the other world’.
As it is known, the best remedy for headaches, and at the same time for all wounds – is the guillotine. However, it has a side effect – it destroys problems together with their bearer.
Therefore, even a wounded Magician does not become suicidal (overtly or covertly), nor a blissfully idiotic person, who feels that everything is ‘good, bright, and wonderful!’ at the same time when the Power is whisking away from them, and the flock of predators around has already begun their feast.
Neutralizing the binar integrity/woundedness allows one to continue moving even in the face of previous, seemingly catastrophic circumstances.
The integral life/death in consciousness makes the Magician simultaneously Totally Alive and Finally Dead. This is the absolute maximalism of the Magician.
P.S. Special thanks to the Author for their book on Runes, which brings Oddish inspiration and Spirit of Runes into the world!
The Fire of Spirit burns! Knowledge lives! Power flows!
In one of the main Western myths, about the Grail, there was an unhealed wound and an unasked question, what hurts?. It is not shouts into the void about different pains.
I also thought about this:
In my opinion, almost the entire world process is built on development due to pain.
And even a small satisfaction produced a strange effect of relaxation in me.
I think that, yes, the Path does not ignore the wound… So the Path does not ignore happiness, is just as difficult. All this is words and it is quite complicated for me to explain. In my opinion, we all, up to love and creativity, do EVERYTHING in the motives of “stimulus-reaction”. and remained adequate to the path itself.
How much longer are you going to dwell on the word ‘path’? When will you understand that it’s not about terminology, but about the state of being? You need to learn to just be yourself. Learn to listen to yourself and do what you think is right. That’s it.
Interesting and complex.