The Wisdom of Hypatia: Ancient Spiritual Practices for a More Meaningful Life (57 page)

Theurgy is a practice that was developed in the cultural context of ancient polytheistic Paganism, and so I will present it from that perspective, that is, as a means of contacting gods and daimons, negotiating with them, and seeking their aid. If you are Pagan or Wiccan, you will find this viewpoint very familiar. However, as I explained in chapter 9, Christian Neoplatonists, such as St. Dionysius, adapted the polytheistic perspective to monotheism by interpreting the gods and daimons as angels. So in the monotheistic theurgy taught by St. Dionysius and others, the object is communication with angels as mediators between humans and God. Therefore, in the discussion of theurgy you can

think of gods and daimons in this way if that makes more sense to you. But perhaps you think of angels as a superstitious idea left over from the Middle Ages. In that case you may find the perspective of depth psychology more reasonable.311 The gods correspond to the archetypes of the collective unconscious and daimons correspond to the complexes in the personal unconscious that have grown out of the archetypes. Both have a solid grounding in biology and have an enormous impact on our psychological well being, but we cannot access them directly (because they are unconscious). Therefore, we have to use techniques and practices that activate them, so that they intervene in conscious experience and interact with us. Theurgy is simply a collection of techniques developed over the ages for doing this. Now let’s listen in as Hypatia explains how to do it.

Symbols

Hypatia resumes her exposition. “When things that are informed by the divine

Ideas, whether they are found externally in physical reality or internally in psychical reality, are used in theurgy, they are called
symbols
,
tokens
, or
signs
, but we can understand better their role in theurgy if we begin by looking at the root meanings of the Greek words. They refer to things put together or devised, agreed upon signals,

passwords, passports, or indeed any tokens or signs. More generally, they may refer to pledges, pacts, covenants, or agreements, or to tokens of these relations. Further, they may refer to a communion or connection between two parties. Thus, in the context

of theurgy a
symbol
is a password or sign, given to us by the gods, in token of and to facilitate our communion with them.”

Hypatia explains that a
symbol
brings together (
symballein
) two things. She begins with the most concrete meaning: “In ancient times the parties to an agreement might

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break a small bone, pottery shard, or coin into two pieces; the two parts, each retained by one of the parties, fit together like lock and key. So also a seal impression in wax or clay, such as made by a signet ring, is a
symbol
, a good metaphor for the impression of the Forms on matter. The material Form or embodied Idea is the signature or im-primatur reflecting the sanction of the god. The symbol is a sign of goodwill, and thus in theurgy of a god’s goodwill. The signet ring and like tokens are proofs of identity, the passwords and secret signs that allow one to proceed and, in a theurgic context, to approach and contact the gods. Such a password can take the form of
sign and response
, and so also in theurgy there can be an interchange of signs. The god gives the signs; if you respond appropriately, you will be admitted. So also, the symbol becomes a token of the agreement, treaty, contract, pact, or covenant between the parties; here, between the god and the theurgist. In particular, the symbol as secret sign leads to its meaning as allegory, omen, portent, or occult sign.” (And through these senses we arrive at the ordinary meanings of the English word “symbol.”)

Hypatia continues. “The signs and symbols are in the ‘lineages’ or ‘chains’ of the

gods, which I’ve already explained (chapter 8). By these chains we are elevated to the gods; through them the symbols are connected to the divine Forms or Ideas. They are

in the gods as the gods are in them. They are found everywhere, as the
Chaldean Oracles
attest:

Paternal Nous sows symbols all throughout the World;

He thinks the Thoughts, called Beauties Inexpressible.312

“Literally, the
Nous
intuitively-thinks (
noei
) the Ideas (
Noêta
).

“Once you understand the general principles of signs and symbols, you can see

that they take many different forms: anything in the god’s lineage, anything partaking of the divine Idea.

“For example, a symbol may be
material
. To cite an ancient example, gold and golden colored objects, such as the stone citrine, are in the lineage of the sun, itself in the lineage of the god Helios. So also are animals, such as the cock, which welcomes the sun, and plants, such as the heliotrope, which turns toward the sun. Hot spices, such as cinnamon, are symbols of the sun, and may be used in ritual food, offerings, or incense.

Obviously images of the sun or of the god Helios participate in the Form of the sun

and may be used as symbols. More abstractly, various ‘characters’—gestures, figures, and geometric shapes that participate in the divine Form—may be used. Such figures

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may be written, drawn, or engraved, or they may be uttered or otherwise enacted in

time.

“Symbols need not be so material,” Hypatia continues. “For example, a poem cel-

ebrating the sunrise or a hymn to Helios may serve as a symbol. Indeed, the symbols

need not be external at all, but may be constructed or imagined in your mind, and

contemplated and offered to the gods upon that most sacred altar: your soul.

“Traditionally the celestial gods—those associated with the planets and stars—

are important mediators by which the Ideas
proceed
into the material world and by which we
return
to the gods, and so astrological correspondences are important symbols, and astrological considerations enter into the timing of theurgic rites.”

“Excuse me, Master,” interrupts Athanasius, a student with an argumentative

streak, “but doesn’t the divine Plotinus ridicule astrologers and prove that the stars and planets cannot determine human characteristics or their fates, and that heredity is the stronger cause?”

Heculianus, Cyrus’ older brother, a Christian student devoted to philosophy and

literature, raises his hand and Hypatia nods in his direction. “On the contrary, in Book 1 of the
Third Ennead
he wrote that those who look at the stars and read their writing, and interpret it by the method of analogy, can predict the future.”

“You are both correct,” says Hypatia, “but the divine master’s teachings are more

complicated. The stars and the entire sphere of the sky above us affect conditions on earth, the seasons, the climate, the tides, the flooding of the Nile, the growth of plants, and the life cycles of animals. All farmers, herders, and sailors know this. People born in different lands and tropics, under different parts of the sky, have different appearances and characteristics. The philosophers of the Porch, too, teach that this world is a single Cosmic Body, coordinated and harmonious, an organism with sympathetic

connections among all its parts. Therefore you can see that in the material world there are many influences on the fate of an individual: heredity, as Plotinus said, but also the circumstances of one’s time and place of birth. These may be a consequence of our

prior lives—the rewards or punishments of Providence—as the young philosopher

Hierocles says. Perhaps we may read some of this fate in the planets and the stars by means of analogy. But Plotinus also teaches that the stars and planets can affect only those things below them, that is, in the material world and in our bodies and lower

souls. It is the body and lower soul that is subject to fate. The upper soul, which harbors a spark of the divine, has the power of choice, and may choose to ascend to the divine the path of trust 275

realms and elevate itself above fate. This is the freedom we achieve by the ascent to the divine, and in this freedom we become godlike. Furthermore, don’t forget:

All the heavens are inside us;

both the light of life resides there

and the origin of heaven.313

“Master,” Herculianus asks, “are you referring to the Microcosm?”

“Exactly,” Hypatia replies. “For all the planets move inside our souls, conjoining,

opposing, and aspecting each other, as they do in the heavens. These celestial gods

grant Seven Divine Gifts. Jupiter gives peace, generosity, law, and good government, Mercury grants reason and eloquence, while Venus gives us joy and love. Mars brings

generosity and Saturn contemplation; the haste of the former ought to be tempered

by the deliberateness of the latter. The Moon keeps the body and soul continuously

moving, and her gift is procreation. But there will be order in the Microcosm only if the Moon periodically looks toward the Sun, for he is the god within, who grants us

intelligence and prophesy.

“So let us return to the Ascent by Trust. You do not need to believe in astrological prediction or astrological influences to use astrological correspondences in theurgy; what is important is their symbolism. For the Zodiac and the planets—with their risings, settings, aspects, and so forth—are symbolic systems, and we can use these symbols just like other signs and tokens, to connect to the divine energies that they symbolize. They are by no means essential, but many theurgists have found them useful.”

If astrology seems like a silly belief for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, it is worth remembering that ancient people were much more aware of the rhythms of

nature—of the earth, stars, and planets—than most of us are today. Most of the civilizations around the Mediterranean used a lunar calendar, so religious and civic activities varied with the phases of the moon. Agriculture was dictated by the rising and setting of certain stars and by the solstices and equinoxes; the rising of Sirius signaled the flooding of the Nile, which brought the fertile silt, and so on. Furthermore, the stars and planets—

which are still awe-inspiring, if we let them be so—were understood as
visible gods
, and so it seemed natural that they would influence the earthly realm. Astrology also became a symbolic system for talking about human personality types, which some contemporary

psychologists still find useful.

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How can we, who have not grown up in these ancient traditions, learn these divine

signs and symbols? Sometimes they have been handed down by tradition and can be

learned from ancient mythology. The more recent work of depth psychologists, such as Jung, can also be helpful, as can dictionaries of symbolism. But none of these sources should be accepted uncritically. At very least, they should be tested by your own intuition, for your individual nous participates in these same Ideas. (Hypatia would say that the gods place the symbols in our souls as well as in the material world; that is, they are in the collective unconscious.) Practices such as the Contemplation of Nature (Ch. 11) can reveal divine symbols. True symbols are not arbitrary; they are numinous. There are also cultural symbols, especially from the various religious and spiritual traditions, of course, and these can be very potent, even though they are not universal.

“In the final analysis,” Hypatia concludes, “we must learn the tokens and symbols

from the gods themselves: they teach us the appropriate signs and responses. One of

the principal ways to learn them is by theurgy, which is therefore the means as well as the end. By theurgy we learn the rites and symbols for more advanced theurgy.

For example, the goddess Hecate revealed the theurgical techniques in the
Chaldean
Oracles
to Julian the Theurgist. In a hymn, our Synesius prays for the illumination of his intellect (nous) by the symbols.

O Father, wisdom’s Fount, dispel with light,

From Thy breast make my nous, my mind full bright;

Comfort my heart by wisdom’s beam from Thee,

And give Thy sign and token, for the way

That leads to Thee; and from my life and prayers

The darker daimons ever drive away.”314

Invocation

An important function of theurgy is to allow communication with divine beings or, in psychological terms, with archetypes and their derivative complexes. Signs and symbols are used to activate these spiritual principles—to invoke them into consciousness—so that our ordinary selves can communicate and even negotiate with them, for they function as autonomous personalities.

As Hypatia begins to explain the process to her students, Cyrus asks, “Is it true that theurgists can command gods and daimons to do their will?

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She shakes her head and replies, “When you invoke the gods you do not in any

sense command them to come to you. Nevertheless, your actions, including the invo-

cations, are instrumental in the god’s arrival. I can explain this by analogy. You cannot order the sun to shine, but by uncovering and cleaning your windows you can allow the sunlight in. So also, you cannot order a god to come, but by proper theurgic cleansing of your soul, you may make it a suitable receptacle for the divine presence.”

To update Hypatia’s analogy somewhat, light follows its own law and sunlight contains all the colors. You cannot command a certain color to descend from the sun, but you can put a colored filter over a window to admit only one color, bathing everything in that hue. Or you can paint an object or make it of a material that reflects only one color; for example a golden object manifests the yellow light in the sun’s rays. That is, by appropriately skilled means, you can create a receiver that is “tuned” to a particular color as a radio receiver is tuned to a radio frequency. So also in theurgy. Although all the gods are everywhere, like the colors in the sunlight, the theurgist arranges suitable receivers or receptacles that are tuned to a particular god or divine force. This tuning is accomplished by means of divine symbols. Like one half of a broken token, the symbols match and engage the divine energy, causing it to resonate and reflect, illuminating the world and the theurgist’s soul with this energy. Psychologically, the symbols activate an archetype or complex. Like all analogies, these are imperfect and should not be taken too literally. Nevertheless, it’s astonishing how much theurgy can be learned from them, and you will be rewarded for contemplating them carefully.