The Principal of Correspondence

Yesterday, I left the perfumery a bit earlier than usual, arriving at the casita with enough time to fully experience and take some time breathing in the spectacular biome of Santa Fe at sunset. At first I was just standing in awe, looking out at the landscape and sky, then as the mind began to settle down, I closed my eyes and visualized roots streaming down from my feet into the red, rocky earth.

All of a sudden the wind kicked up, so I connected with the elemental and felt the clarifying, clearing vibes that the wind offers us. As I did so, I perceived the note of “petrichor” a rather earthy scent that rises from dry soil when the rain falls. Thus, I was reminded of nourishing elemental water which is so important here in the high desert. I opened my eyes, and in the distance, traveling quite quickly, fog and rain clouds were heading our way.

I then looked straight above me and noticed the last rays of the setting sun, elemental fire, were hitting the clouds as in the opening photo. Sun, as an example of elemental fire, creates life and relates to creativity, passion, the spark of life and intuition.

As I walked back to our casita, past the fragrant and gently swirling open of the daturas buzzing with the sounds of nectar hunting honey bees filled my being. It’s at that moment that I noticed how the colors of the sky, in that one sacred moment, mirrored the color of the datura flowers.

⛰💨💧🔥

Auspiciously, or rather "correspondently", I have been re-visiting The Kybalion by Three Initiates, "a study of basic hermetic teachings that outline an ageless wisdom. In ancient times (and even today) these teachings were not understood by the lay person, but were readily understood by students, after the axioms and principles had been explained and exemplified by the Hermetic Initiates and Masters to their Neophytes. The Kybalion was originally written in the early 1900's and is now in the public domain. A priceless gem!"1

Just before arriving back at our casita I had listened to a brief outline of the Seven Hermetic Principals, the second being The Principal of Correspondence which "embodies the truth that there is always a Correspondence between the laws and phenomena of the various planes of Being and Life. The old Hermetic axiom ran in these words: "As above, so below; as below, so above." And the grasping of this Principle gives one the means of solving many a dark paradox, and hidden secret of Nature. There are planes beyond our knowing, but when we apply the Principle of Correspondence to them we are able to understand much that would otherwise be unknowable to us. This Principle is of universal application and manifestation, on the various planes of the material, mental, and spiritual universe — it is an Universal Law. The ancient Hermetists considered this Principle as one of the most important mental instruments by which man was able to pry aside the obstacles which hid from view the Unknown. Its use even tore aside the Veil of Isis to the extent that a glimpse of the face of the goddess might be caught. Just as a knowledge of the Principles of Geometry enables man to measure distant suns and their movements, while seated in his observatory, so a knowledge of the Principle of Correspondence enables Man to reason intelligently from the Known to the Unknown. Studying the monad, he understands the archangel." 2

1. & 2. The Kybalion

Allegory of the Four Elements

At the new perfumery in Santa Fe, New Mexico I recreated the sprawling boards I had in Agoura onto two boards, one vertical and one horizontal.

The arrival of my new glass distillation unit that I brought down from Kymia Arts in Taos had me moving things around in the lab which resulted in the reconfiguration of images on the horizontal board. One of my treasures, the promo for artist Mark Ryden's 2007 The Tree Show, had to be moved when a small type case and Greg's antique clock ended up blocking the piece.

While carefully removing the pins from the piece I became curious of how he using using the alchemical symbolism. The painting is titled Allegory of the Four Elements. In the piece you see four young girls sitting at what appears to be a tea party on top of a tree stump, under an oak. Each girl has a different colored dress with one of the alchemical elements on the front as well as a related animal totem on top of their heads. What unites them are those large soulful eyes that Mark paints so well.

Some of the symbols are rather easy to interpret, although I have not discerned the story Mark is telling. The girls are drinking mercury, associated with spirit/the mind, why did he choose mercury? Is it because there are references to Mercury, also called Hermes, being the vital force, the hermaphrodite that is both masculine and feminine as well as neither—the great trickster?

I thought the three babies in the nest represented the three elements that compose the prima materia: mercury, salt and soul but then upon further observation with a magnifying glass, I saw that on their chests are the letters C, P and M. After some speculation I realized that they stood for cardinal, fixed and mutable, the modalities of the zodiac, also called quadruplicities.

While searching for information about the painting I came across a quote from Mark in reference to The Tree Show that I thought you, my dear readers, would appreciate:

“The show is about our relationship with nature,” Ryden explains over lunch. “There are many different parts to it, but you know, some people look at these massive trees and feel a sort of spiritual awe looking at them, and then other people just want to cut them up and sell them. It’s amazing how people can look with such different screens. Some see a tree as a commodity, an inanimate material to use for themselves, or even worse like it’s some kind of heroic thing to cut down this tree that’s taken 2,000, 3,000 years to grow. Like in the vintage photos of these lumberjacks, when they line up — it’s just mind-boggling how they do that. And it’s mind-boggling that it’s still going on today.”