The Mahdi Times The Mahdi Times Issue #26 January 2015 | Page 51

at all, its meaning was
veiled in terms of alchemy
so that only those
possessing the key could
read it aright. This was
made necessary in order to
avoid the persecutions of
the theologians of the
Middle Ages, who fought
the Secret Doctrine with
fire and sword; stake,
gibbet and cross. Even to
this day there will be found
but few reliable books on
the Hermetic Philosophy,
although there are
countless references to it
in many books written on
various phases of
Occultism. And yet, the
Hermetic Philosophy is the
only Master Key which will
open all the doors of the
Occult Teachings!
In the early days, there was
a compilation of certain
Basic Hermetic Doctrines,
passed on from teacher to
student, which was known
as "THE KYBALION," the
exact significance and
meaning of the term having
been lost for several
centuries. This teaching,
however, is known to many
to whom it has descended,

from mouth to ear, on and
on throughout the
centuries. Its precepts have
never been written down,
or printed, so far as we
know. It was merely a
collection of maxims,
axioms and precepts, which
were non-understandable
to outsiders, but which
were readily understood by
students, after the axioms,
maxims and precepts had
been explained and
exemplified by the
Hermetic Initiates to their
Neophytes. These
teachings really
constituted the basic
principles of "The Art of
Hermetic Alchemy," which,
contrary to the general
belief, dealt in the mastery
of Mental Forces, rather
than Material Elements the Transmutation of one
kind of Mental Vibrations
into others, instead of the
changing of one kind of
metal into another.
The legends of the
"Philosopher's Stone"
which would turn base
metal into Gold, was an
allegory relating to
Hermetic Philosophy,