We Need an Anchor
There’s an old hymn that begins with the words,
In times like these you need a Savior, in times like these, you need an anchor. Be very sure, be very sure, your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock.
I don’t know about you, but I am definitely in need of an anchor right about now.
Social, political and natural storms are raging. Even the planets of the cosmos are moving in unusual ways! Listening to media interpretations and the opinions of one extreme or the other do not help. But it does seem wise to know enough to be able to make decisions that may need to be made as far as basic needs and safety are concerned.
What, you might ask, does any of this have to do with the 7 Hermetic Laws of Ancient Kemet?
For me, the things we are experiencing have everything to do with them. Cosmic truths and principles can be an anchor in times like these. They give us the perspectives we need to understand and navigate the external and internal upheavals that humanity creates for itself periodically. Like now.
There are seven Hermetic Principles. They are: Mentalism, Correspondence, Vibration, Polarity, Rhythm, Causation and Gender.
They were written by Hermes Mecurius Trismegitus: the Thrice Great, Master of Masters, the Greatest Great.
He was also known as Tehuti or Thoth.
The teachings we have available today are fragments of his works which were originally passed down from teacher to student orally and by direct instruction and practice. They are based on Hermes Divine revelation received in his conversation with Poimandres (the Mind of the Universe}.
The first Principle of Mentalism teaches that:
“The ALL is Mind; the Universe is Mental” (The Kabalion)
Not mental in the linear, masculine only, individualistic understanding of Western Culture that comes to mind when many of us hear the word mental, but in the spherical, feminine-inclusive, communal, inclusivity of the concept of ALL. The ALL includes everything and everyone everywhere – without exception. And the nature and Essence of this ALL is unconditional, extravagant, endless, compassionate LOVE. It is so much more than mental — it is consciousness.
It knows everything about everything because It permeates and infuses everything. It is incomprehensively more in Essence and energy than politics, social injustice and anything else humans can conjure up to create pain, horror, or despair. Our biggest challenge right now is to hold on to this conceptual anchor. The ALL is the greatest Truth.
So we see and experience and hear about the horrors and wrongs and are energetically tempted to believe that that is all there is. But it’s not. We have experiences that affect or damage our bodies, our minds and devastate our souls and those experiences become all that we can see. But we have the capacity to see more with our mind of the ALL within us.
For example, I grew up in an alcoholic household with a father who lived the street life, including women, drinking up the money, week long binges and the resulting arguments between my parents. My mother was the perfect co-dependent. As a result, that was the lens through which I saw life and understood the masculine and the feminine. As I did the inner work, and kept coming back to the anchor of the ALL – over and over and over again, I was able to experience the masculine within myself, as reliable, trustworthy, and loving. And the feminine within as independent, self-accepting and loving. I was also able to experience a deep love for both my parents before they died and to appreciate the gifts they left me. I give thanks for and embrace my lineage! It is not easy work. But it is more than worth the effort.
I have to come back to the anchor of the ALL within, every day. Because It brings me to a place of stability when the world is swirling around me in turmoil. I do what I can, from my location, in the sphere of influence of which I am part, to help make things better. To speak truth, to withdraw my consent from what I do not experience as right or holy. To help someone else. To treat every human being with the respect I want even if they’ve done nothing to deserve it. To take care of myself and my loved ones.
The work is energetic — Spiritual. Because there is only one Essence, one Power, one Energy that infuses all of it! LOVE. The ONE. The ALL.
Making sure our anchor holds, and grips the solid rock, means remembering that there is infinitely more to our existence than what we experience with our senses. How do we get in touch with that Immortal ALL within on a regular basis?
I have found one of the most simple, free, powerful ways to get in touch and stay in touch with this Spiritual Anchor, is regular, daily, meditation – indoors and/or in nature. In the morning and/or in the evening. With or without music. Sitting or lying down. Alone or with others. Whether it’s quiet or noisy. Consistently getting in touch with the Immortal Essence that lives in each of us can help us stay in touch with what is true: The All is Mind; the Universe is Mental. Staying connected to this reality allows us to participate in creating a world in which LOVE actually prevails.
This is my anchor.
I call it God.
What is your Anchor?