Students are guided through a gradual path according to the Indian Sāṁkhya model of the planets and their archetypal forces. Each sphere governs a metaphysical principle and the paths which connect them are modes through which the preceding sphere acts on the subsequent, e.g., the Solar sphere governing the principle of Purpose is enacted onto the Lunar sphere governing Subjective Experience through the mode of meditative introspection, as the initial function of mind for the purpose of self-realization is to observe itself in stillness; followed by the optimized Lunar faculty of sustained attention applied to the Martian sphere of Force through psychophysical discipline suited to individual preference and necessity such as yogāsana, martial arts, dance etc.; purifying the subtle channels, dissolving afflictive emotions and enhancing concentration; and so on.
On completion of the sequence up to the Saturnian sphere of Limitation, the student will possess comprehensive understanding of body-mind, the elemental theory of traditional medicine, the essential structures of all metaphysics, the inner mechanics of yoga, and the symbiotic relationships between them towards realization of worldly and spiritual fulfillment as one.
Syllabus:
Meditative Introspection - Purpose {Sun] > Subjective Experience [Moon]
The Sun—being the gravitational center around which the planets orbit—rules the principle of cohesion and purpose contrasting the dispersion of nihilism. The aim of existential clarity must be decisive in order to drive sustained effort along the student’s journey.
The Moon rules subjective experience, that is, the space of the mind and its contents such as habitual thoughts and emotions as well as visionary experiences.
Observation of the mind for the purpose of existential clarity is meditative introspection.
While Purpose propels practice, Subjective Experience receives the effects of practice. Just as the Moon reflects the Sun’s light, the student progresses through the paths [driven by purpose] and the mirror of mind naturally reflects transformation.
Psychophysical Discipline - Subjective Experience [Moon] > Force [Mars]
Mars rules force; the force to act, to strive, to protect, to cut that which does not serve, etc.
The focus of meditative introspection is mobilized through psychophysical discipline. Through training of body-mind, obstacles in meditation are removed and coarse afflictive emotions are pacified.
As long as the essential points of subtle-body purification are applied, the mode of discipline—such as yogāsana, dance, martial arts, and qigong—is primarily dependent on what the practitioner enjoys. However, one must be pragmatic such as in the case where certain tightness in the body prevents proper posture in meditation, one should stretch and so on.
Shedding of Unwholesome Conduct - Force [Mars] > Organization [Mercury]
Mercury rules organization, from basic conceptual formation which shapes cognition to communication and understanding.
It is not that Mars forces change, but rather the taste of bliss as a result of purifying the body-mind through psychophysical discipline results in a natural falling off of habits which dilute or contradict that bliss. Whether the consumption of a toxic substance or residual nihilistic thought patterns, the foundations which necessitated such tendencies break down through raw abundance of life-force, and one simply notices.
Harmony With Nature - Organization [Mercury] > Purpose [Sun]
Following the collapse of prior physical and mental habit structures, a new structure must be built in accordance with Purpose.
The student now studies the elements which make up the cosmos and body-mind, their relationships and effects on one’s experience of reality. One comes to understand one’s own elemental constitution, its particular inclinations and afflictions, and how to mitigate them through a remedial lifestyle including diet, sleep, bodily conduct, sensory intake, and mental states which harmonize with natural law. Such is the concern of traditional medical systems of India, China, and their derivatives; and it is encouraged for the student at this point to establish a relationship with a competent traditional physician.
This path crosses the previous path of psychophysical discipline [see above map] implying synergy; the underlying mechanics of the former path are now understood, and the combined effect of both serves to profoundly enhance one’s being.
Existential Clarity - Purpose [Sun] > Meaning [Jupiter]
Jupiter rules meaning, and thus all matters concerning existential matters, philosophy; metaphysics.
Graphically in the arrangement of the spheres and paths, the Sun is pierced by the trajectory from Mercury to Jupiter. This implies that through the Mercurial faculty of intellect, purpose—which at the beginning was a mere intuition of some notion of self-realization—is now penetrated and completely clarified by definitive meaning. The student at this stage comes to understand precisely all possible ways of understanding reality and discovers through pure reasoning, the sensibility of living single-pointedly in service of transcendent wisdom for the benefit of others.
Aesthetic Alignment - Meaning [Jupiter] > Resonance [Venus]
Venus rules perception of beauty, pleasure, love, and comfort; all which operate on the basis of resonance.
This is the third and final passive path signified by a downward vertical trajectory. As with the paths of meditative introspection and shedding of unwholesome conduct, one merely observes the changes which occur—this time as a result of existential clarity’s effect on that which we resonate with and thus desire.
Desire is the defining force of our realm and the default ruler of all mundane existence, and for the ruler of the realm to be brought under the dominion of transcendent purpose entails catastrophic consequences for habitual worldly relations. Beauty, love, and pleasure are now subservient to the cause of transcendent wisdom, and that which is misaligned no longer sustains lasting desire—and is thus abandoned.
Withdrawal - Resonance [Venus] > Limitation [Saturn]
Saturn rules limitation; immutable structures such as time, death, and consequence.
Having lost one’s habitual life of chasing mundane pleasure and comfort for its own sake, one is left inwardly alienated from the conventional world and its patterns. One cannot unlearn the truths realized up to this point, but realization is not yet visceral enough to sustain total fulfillment in the absence of one’s former crutches. There is no option other than to enter a period of deliberate solitude with the sole focus of intensive practice and deepening of insight. Here equipped with all the powers one has gathered so far, the student fully confronts the terror and sorrow of reality. If desire-resonance is king of this realm, death-limitation is queen. Entering the darkness of her womb one gestates in the fluid of contemplation.
This path crosses the previous path of existential clarity, implying that the truths learned intellectually on that path are now being sealed into irreversible embodiment.
Initiation - Limitation [Saturn] > Compulsion [North Node]
The North Node rules compulsion, one’s driving force disembodied from purpose which knows no limit. Obsession, fixation, affliction so strong beyond hope of pacification or mutability.
The student emerges from the womb of Saturn reborn through initiation as a sovereign above the dualistic dominion of death and mundane desire. The form of the sovereign corresponds to the transmutation of one’s immutable fixation.
The trajectory of this path is the shape of a bow with the path of existential clarity as the arrow, signifying that initiation through the bestowal by one’s esoteric preceptor is the means by which one’s ultimate aim is decisively fired.
Transmutation - Compulsion [North Node] > Purpose [Sun]
This path runs horizontally signifying neither passive observation nor active acquisition but rather steady continuation and repetition of the transmutative experience introduced through initiation.
The solar sphere of purpose and thus one’s core sense of identity is routinely generated as the sovereign deiform fueled by the very compulsion it transmutes.
Dissolution - Purpose [Sun] > Dissolution [South Node]
The South Node rules exhaustion; the complete emptying of an impulse, completion.
The perfection of self with even one’s immutable compulsion transformed into wisdom, is dissolved into inexpressibility.
The arrow of existential clarity fatally impales the sphere of purpose, so that one’s realization of one’s ultimate aim itself does not become an object of grasping. Gnosis is attained.
Integration - Dissolution [South Node] > Purpose [Sun]
Gnosis is fed back into the circuit and circulated, refining every sphere and path according to one’s inclination.
Release
All structure is released. Gnosis self-sustains without cause or condition.