Kybalion: A Study of the Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece by Three Initiates

Kybalion: A Study of the Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece Reviews

• 
  Jann

  This is NOT a book on magic (as in the description from goodreads). It explains the "science" of spirit or "All-That-Is". It resonated with me, and from it my interest in hermetic philosophy was ignited.
• 
  Nathan

  This stands as one of the most important books I've read about the nature of reality and the supersensible universe. As with any work intending to teach through words something that is larger and exponentially more complex than language will always require careful study. And though this book is not long by page standards, it requires careful, slow study if one is to get the maximum weight of the material.
  
  If you are unable to let go of the question of whether there is more to the universe than meets the eye, this should be on your reading list. If the idea of supersensible realms of experience do not drive you, or you think the idea of anything that cannot be seen with the objective eye is absurd, save yourself time and don't bother with this.
  
  For me, this may stand as the most important piece of instruction I've received, even though I feel like I understood most of the ideas before. This work neatly organized and illustrated the differences between seemingly similar phenomena like vibration and rhythm, polarity and correspondence, etc. I'd give it 7 stars if I could. ;-)
• 
  Greg

  this book explains everything. Why study quantum physics when it is all here in a few basic principles. This is my bible.
• 
  David Acevedo

  Kuddos to the people who aim to give away "secrets", hidden from the layman for centuries, without really giving them! This book is a waste of time. It says too much and doesn't really say anything that you cannot find already in pop culture. My guess is that if your approach in reading it is to discover how to develop magical and telekinetic powers, you are only fooling yourself (truth be told, this is one of those books that led me to where i am today: an atheist, though not a bitter one, thank you very much). If your approach is purely scholarly in the occult, then you'll probably end up giving this book two stars instead of one, as I just did. It has nothing of value, and is way too close to the Law of Attraction-The Secret bullshit. In any case, it's all bollocks!
  
  Finally, I'm appalled at how many people gave 5 stars to this piece of codswallop! If this is a micro of a bigger representation of the world, then there are too many people out there who do not really know how to live their lives; and need bogus authors that cannot even dignify to print their real names on a book to teach them how to live them. Ridiculous.
  
  On the other hand, I find it ludicrous that so many people are drawn to this emtpy literature. I mean, Paulo Coehlo is one of the most prolific and best-paids authors! And his books, while crappy, have been read by millions and can be found and the book section of almost any multinational drugstore. One of my professors compared this phenomenon to the advent of light literature, or its American sister, "lite lit". Do the experiment. Ask people if they read. If they say "yes", aske them what they read. If the start with "The Alchemist", "The Secret", "The DaVinci Code", "Kybalion", or for that matter, the Bible, you already know these people are book illiterate sophists that haven't really had a taste or the chance to try true literature.
  
  Serious literature is not meant to give you any answers. It's meant to raise you even more questions. It's meant to make you think. It doesn't offer you solutions. It gives you more problems to solve. It challenges you.
• 
  Khalid Muhammad Abdul-Mumin

  Profound, Thoughtful
  and
  Poignant.
  
  Last Read: June 16th, 2021
  
  First edit: 12042022
  Ancient wisdom that transcends
  Spacetime, the Cosmos and the Infinite Multiverses
  while also tearing away the veils that lie between
  the Metaphysical, Supernatural, Exoteric, Esoteric and ephemeral philosophical concepts like a nictating membrane sliding off to reveal hidden wonders never before imagined possible to perceive. And then combining these insights into an undeniable whole that seems like the rantings of an insane mystic.
  
  The absolute Hard Meat for Mankind while the Milk has been given to the Babes amongst us.
  "The Lips of Wisdom are Sealed Except to the Ears of Understanding"
• 
  Brett C

  I thought this book was OK. I would be lying if I said this "changed my life" or "everyone needs to read this". This is by no means the be-all/end-all philosophical approach to alter your life...but results may vary for other users.
  
  The book does a good job at listing and explaining the seven Hermetic principles. The principles of:
  1. Mentalism
  2. Correspondence
  3. Vibration
  4. Polarity
  5. Rhythm
  6. Causation
  7. Gender
  
  These principles can be applied to anyone from any faith or spiritual background. The book reads well while giving meaningful example and explanations to each principle. While reading I clearly understood the concepts and could apply them to my own life.
  
  I will most likely read this again and my opinion may or may not change. Until then, thanks for reading my review!
• 
  David

  This book was written in the early 20th century and while it argues the validity of its teachings on the basis of a misinterpreted view of the antiquity of Hermes Trismegistus's writings, it is still interesting and applicable philosophically. Hermeticism in general took a hit when it was realized his writings took place a few centuries into the A.D. time period rather than in the early period of the ancient Egyptian kingdom. He was incorrectly viewed as the father of alchemy, mathematics and other disciplines, and so there was a let down when it was proven his writings took place at a much, much later time.
  
  These authors are presenting a concise introduction to the core principles of Hermeticism, and it serves as a nice introduction to Hermetic philosophy. Their writing style can be a bit juevenille at times, with many of broad-sweeping statements on an idea's importance and bursting into emphatic usage of all CAPS and frequently ending sentences with exclamation points! Also, there are a few too many statements made to the tune of "what modern science has failed to understand" or "as modern scientists have come to understand", that are so horribly vague that it makes the book sound a bit unscholarly. In and around such statements they often slip into a tone of arrogance, which seems to be common behavior when a writer/debator needing to prove a point finds their quiver empty of any detailed intellectual examples and have to resort to "it's so obvious" scoffing, intimidating the reader to acquiesce instead of building up their logic respectfully.
  
  I greatly appreciated the concise, accessible manner in which Hermeticism was discussed in this work. I felt I learned a lot that I'll be able to retain for the future and that owes more to their ability to teach than to my interest in the subject. However, they needed to stay off the court where the big boys (ie, scientists) play. They don't belong there, and it makes them sound like charlatans when they try to argue the scientific superiority of Hermeticism with pockets empty of solid examples. Besides, their writing has merit and philosophical value without trying to elevate themselves to a place where they can make broad-sweeping statements that place science in the backseat of a scholar's search for knowledge.
• 
  Nguyên Trang

  Thời đọc Tên của đóa hồng, tôi đã thấy rất đồng cảm với huynh hung thủ Jorge rằng chân lý của nhân loại vốn đã được viết ra từ lâu rồi. Nếu được chọn ra sách để gìn giữ muôn đời bởi trong đó bao hàm chân lý vạn vật thì chắc chắn phải có Kỳ thư Kybalion.
  Trong 30 năm trải nghiệm và chiêm nghiệm (thông qua cuộc sống, sách vở và thiền định), tôi cũng rút ra được một số điều. Có những điều khi phát hiện ra cảm giác như mình đại ngộ, vô cùng sung sướng. Hôm nay, khi đọc Kỳ thư Kybalion, tôi nhận thấy tất cả những hiểu biết lớn lao nhất bao năm của mình đều đã được đúc kết trong cuốn sách này rồi. Trong sách có một câu mà tôi thấy quá đúng với mình: Môn sinh của triết học Hermetic không nén được mỉm cười khi đọc và nghe về các "lí thuyết mới". Vâng, những điều là đại ngộ, "lí thuyết mới"bừng sáng trong tôi đều đã được viết ra từ lâu rồi.
  Ngoài ra, Kỳ thư Kybalion ở một số chỗ còn đưa tôi lên một tầng khác mà bản thân tôi chưa nhận ra. Tuy nhiên, tôi không thấy phí phạm 30 năm tìm kiếm bởi tôi tin nếu mình đọc cuốn sách này năm 6 tuổi thì với tôi, nó cũng chỉ như một cuốn cẩm nang thông thái nhưng dễ quên. Những hành trình trí tuệ này, theo bản thân tôi, tôi phải tự đi, tự khai phá và tới thời điểm này, khi thấy nó được đúc kết từ xa xưa, thì chỉ có thể nói là mình đã đi đúng đường và đang đúng lúc mắc kẹt thì có người chỉ lối.
  Đọc Kỳ thư Kybalion, đúng như ba người khai ngộ viết lại, có thể thấy triết học bí truyền Ai Cập này là gốc rễ (hay trùng hợp) cho tất cả những triết lý về sau, dù có biến tướng, như triết học phương tây (với khởi đầu là duy tâm), Phân tâm học (tính đa tầng của tâm trí), Thiên chúa (về thần khí) và đặc biệt là Phật giáo (rất nhiều khái niệm trùng khớp).
  Đến phần thực hành (viết rất ít) trong cuốn này thì tôi thấy bản thân đã thực hành trong cuộc sống từ lâu. Và phái thiền của Phật giáo theo tôi là trên một tầng so với thực hành này. Tuy nhiên, không có nghĩa là Phật giáo cao hơn Kybalion. Cuốn sách nhỏ này rõ ràng mới chỉ là một tóm lược. Thật sự rất muốn vừa là Phật tử vừa thành môn đệ Hermetic.
  Sau cuốn sách này thì tôi sẽ tiếp tục tìm hiểu thêm về Hermetic và vẫn tiếp tục đọc các sách thông thường vì theo tôi, một nền tảng cơ bản bao giờ cũng là cần thiết.
• 
  Darius

  I read most of the book and I won't waste another goddamn second on this sorry excuse of wasted ink. If Hermes Trismegistus reincarnates now and reads this "work" he would stab himself to death.
  
  To whoever is reading this, please do yourself a favor and look up a short summary of this book. You'll be saving yourself a lot of precious time and energy. What the writer did here is try to invoke mystery through exaggerations and over-elaborations on points that could be summed up in a pamphlet. This reads like an Alice Bailey wannabe rolled a spliff and read the Wikipedia article on Hermeticism. Don't get me started on how many goddamn times the author just jams THE ALL, THE ALL, THE ALL in your eyes, repeats the same ideas and keeps mentioning a truckload of times what he wrote in the first few sections.
  
  I won't type more than what I have. If you've never read anything in this genre before, this is basically The Secret but on acid. Look up genuine books on Hermeticism and dabble into authors with a proper history on occult and esoteric studies.
• 
  Desiree Finkbeiner

  This book changed my entire spiritual view of the universe and strengthened my faith in God, but in new ways. It also helped me understand with greater efficacy the teachings of Jesus Christ. Though the Christ is not mentioned in this text, is was a useful tool in improving my understanding about how he worked the miracles, and the universal laws that govern even God. The principals here are open-ended enough that they may help those from virtually any faith gain greater understanding for the workings of the universe and how they apply to creation.
• 
  Rosi

  I first read "The Kybalion" in 1998. It changed the way I recognized spirituality, the principles and the universe. I am reading it again and it is even more enlightening than the first time. These seven hermetic laws, the Principle of Mentalism (Mind), Correspondence (Analogy), Vibration (Nothing rests - everything moves - everything vibrates), Polarity (Duality), Rhythm(Everything flows, out and in - everything has its tides - all things rise and fall - the pendulum swing manifests in everything - the measure of the swing to the right is the measure of the swing to the left - rhythm compensates), Cause and Effect (Karma), and Gender (Gender is in everything - everything has its Masculine and Feminine Principles - Gender manifests on all planes) are meant to be recognized and applied to our lives.
  
  This is was and is one of my favorite books.
• 
  Gwyndyllyn

  
  The Kybalion is known as "the master key" for a reason. These are the aphorisms set forth my Hermes Trismegistus, known also as Thoth. I have studied this book over and over, and each time, I get it at a deeper level. In all seriousness, if you only read and study one occult text in your entire life, this should be the one.
• 
  Andréa Carvalho

  O livro foi meu primeiro contato com a filosofia hermética. Interessante perceber a influencia que teve em todas as denominações religiosas e/ou espirituais em maior ou menor grau. New age é praticamente uma cópia com variações interpretativas. Algumas coisas do Jung também remetem bastante.
  Deu para entender melhor as origens de algumas teorias e doutrinas e acredito que verei com um novo olhar muitas coisas.
• 
  Kelly

  I decided to read this book after talking to a fascinating character at a goth club I frequent who reminded me of Gregor Samsa (post transformation) wearing an ascot. I forwardly asked what books he read, as I knew he must be a wizard with a wonderful reading list. He then told me about the Kybalion. After I realized the Kybalion was an in-depth look at the Seven Hermetic Laws that I learned about in Laurie Cabot’s Power of the Witch, I decided to check it out.
  
  I have mixed feelings about this book, although I disliked the pretense that it was written by the mysterious ‘Three Initiates’ instead of the more likely author being William Walker Atkinson, an American New Thought author and attorney. Three Initiates indeed! Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of esoteric teachings passed down in secret mystery cults from the dawn of time as much as the next person, I just also like honesty about what’s in the Kool-Aid I’m about to drink. Check this out: “With the aid of the Kybalion, one may go through any occult library anew, the Old Light from Egypt illuminating many dark pages, and many obscure subjects.” That’s a helluva ballsy claim from a book written by an attorney in the early 20th century. I can just see Brendan Fraser as the lead character in a film adaptation--or maybe Tom Hanks?
  
  The Laws are these:
  The Law of Mentalism (The All is Mind, the Universe is Mental)
  The Law of Correspondance (As Above, So Below)
  The Principle of Vibration (Nothing Rests, Everything is in Motion)
  The Principle of Polarity (Everything is Dual)
  The Principle of Rhythm (Everything Flows Out and In; Everything has Tides)
  The Principle of Cause and Effect –self explanatory, I think
  The Principle of Gender- Gender is in everything, everything has Masculine and Feminine Principles
  
  I can see where much of New Age philosophy can be traced to the ideas in these laws, especially around the ‘Law of Vibration’ in terms of people ‘raising their vibration’ as another term for enlightenment. The Law of Mentalism also reminds me of the idea in Hinduism that Brahma dreamed the Universe into existence and that all the cycles of life, death, and rebirth are part of his dream. The fact that the author also espouses reincarnation is another indicator that these ‘Laws’ are a lot of mishmashed ideas from various world religions. This is not to say that I disagree with the Laws, in fact quite the opposite, but more in how the Kybalion presents them in all manner of high-falutin’, overly woo-woo language that makes me roll my eyes.
  
• 
  Flybyreader

  This is the closest I came to believing in something more powerful than anything I’ve known. In Hermetic philosophy, I found western scientific proofs and reasoning reflecting beautifully on the mental and spiritual phenomena that we find difficult to explain. I have to sleep on it and read it again and again to make better sense of it but I think I’ve finally found my bible.
• 
  Aaron

  Culty schlock written by some Ninteenth Century charlatan. The warning sign is when the book starts off with the admonition that only the enlightened will be able to grasp the secret wisdom contained herein - and those who are skeptical are simply too tainted and asleep to be able to understand ‘the truth’. It’s the false defense of cult members and snake oil salesmen the world over. In fact, this book reeks of the bollocks that would later come to be ‘The Secret’ and all of that ‘law of attraction’ BS. Skip this and read the Corpus Hermeticum if you’re interested in ancient mystical practices and want them simply narrated ‘as they were’.
• 
  Markham Anderson

  More laughable than the religions which it scorns but which pretend to less. It has no respect for the intelligent examination or application of its own tenets; and even as a second-grader I could certainly have traced the path through which its arguments lose their own framework every few pages.
  
  Excerpt p.58: "There are certain truths connected with [THE ALL's:] existence which the human mind finds itself compelled to accept." I found the following "truths" not compelling; the book must take as great liberty with the definition of "human mind" as it does with several even more common terms, such as "philosophy", "theology", "metaphysics", and "universe".
• 
  Iván Daniel

  Tenemos una visión tan absolutista de nuestro entorno, de nuestra realidad, que nos negamos rotundamente al cambio,"pese a que este cambio es una Ley Universal", y el kybalion es como un mapa mental que condiciona nuestra interpretación de las cosas.
  No es una verdad, es una semi verdad que debe ir tomada da la mano de la convicción más profunda de nuestro ser, es cambio continuo, no es un enemigo con el cual luchar, sino más bien es fuerza natural, similar al viento. No se puede cambiar la fuerza y el sentido del viento, pero si se “aborda con confianza y espíritu de aprendizaje” se puede ajustar la dirección de las velas de nuestras naves, para llegar a nuestro destino.
  
• 
  Mike Randall

  This book is exactly the way the universe works, and not at all the way it works. To those who have travelled far in their search for the truth, it holds the secrets to everything. To the uninitiated, it is a "tough read." Actually, being written in 1908, it is on the tougher side, but honestly I found the Great Gatsby harder to understand. ALL in all, this book holds the answers few people (and scientists) know to be the truth.
• 
  Nathan

  This book details a deep and elegant philosophical system which ostensibly dates back to the early Egyptian dynasties, and was first put forth by the legendary Hermes Trismegastus, also known at Thoth. Colorful origins aside, it is a fascinating and internally consistent system for looking at and understanding the universe, both in its material and more numinous manifestations.
• 
  Alex Hernández

  Definitivamente no es un libro que pueda ser comprendido solamente por medio del análisis racional y, por tanto, es conveniente leerlo en más de una ocasión y con ciertas distancias temporales para notar cómo la madurez va cambiando las maneras de ver el mundo e interpretar sus expresiones.
• 
  Ayşe

  Kadim felsefenin ana konusu olan evrenin yasalarını içeren bir eser. Bu 7 yasayı genel hatlarıyla, okuru yormadan, bir fikir sahibi olmak amacıyla okunabilecek bir kaynak.
  Daha önce okuduğum kitaplardan temel bilgim olduğundan beni yeterince doyurmayan bir eser oldu. Örneğin Michael Talbot’un Holografik Evren kitabı daha bilimsel tabanlı, detaylıca anlatılan, benim için daha faydalı bir eser olmuştu. İlgilenenlere önerim olsun.
  Kybalion ise beni yormasın ama çok detaya inmeden fikir sahibi olayım derseniz önereceğim bir kitap oldu.
  Youtube kanal��m:
  https://www.youtube.com/user/ayseum
• 
  Jaryl

  This was one of the first books I came across on my awakening journey. It's not spirituality per se, but the metaphysical principles governing the mechanics of the universe which must observed in any kind of energy work, sorcery, or vibrational metaphysics to manipulate reality. It is relevant to any religious, magickal or spiritual path. I have seen how some have a problem with this book, but it's not an intellectual exercise. You can only conclude that this book is legitimate if you put these principles into action like a scientist and observe the results for yourself.
• 
  Jon

  A highly practical theoretical foundation for spiritual matters. It does not contain specific day-to-day advice, but examines our general perspective and introduces tools to understand new phenomena as we live it.
• 
  Robert S.

  One of the cherished keys to unlocking the door of understanding reality.
• 
  AL

  After my first slow read, I want to read this again and again until it���s a part of me.
• 
  Davide Delli Gatti

  Il primo libro new age della storia: una collezione di fatti pseudoscientifici obsoleti e interpretazioni mediocri dei concetti dell'ermetismo
  Andate a leggere il Corpus Hermetico piuttosto
• 
  Desiree Finkbeiner

  I've yet to read anything written or collaborated by William Walker Atkinson that I didn't love. Hermetic philosophy lifts the vibration of truth seekers by identifying principals of eternal weight and substance, universal law, and ethereal mystery into palpable language easy for most open minds to understand. This book, as additional study companion to other volumes of sacred text, expands and expounds arcane schools of thought into well-explained discourses. The understanding will come in varying degrees depending on the student and is meant to grow spiritual understanding of divine intelligence precept upon precept. Though the Kybalion is only a simple introduction to Hermetic philosophy, it's a great place to begin understanding the concepts of mental creation, thought vibration and it's effects on the ether etc
  Is it possible to control the energies around us? Yes, but not everyone masters it in this plane of existence. Further study and practicing mental craft will be required to gain enough knowledge to become a 'master', but this little book will point you in the right direction to begin your journey to becoming one with THE ALL, thus wielding the power of mental creation... At least, within a finite degree.
  A warning goes out to any individual who attempts to use the powers of heaven for unrighteous ends: simple physics apply. What goes around comes around, so create wisely. :)