The Law of Attraction: the Framework
You’ve probably heard about the Law of Attraction. A lot of people are familiar with the movie and book The Secret by Rhonda Byrnes. But there are literally hundreds of other books with varying interpretations on this topic that may have brought it to your attention.
The Law of Attraction has been presented as spiritual, religious, or even secular. It is incredibly versatile in it’s application.
Basically, the Law of Attraction is a concept that sums up the workings of the Universe as, “like attracts like.”
Your thoughts create your reality, so to change your reality you need to align your thoughts with what you want, whatever you want. Your thoughts can bring about the healing of illness, more loving relationships, the accomplishment of long-held goals and dreams, and financial prosperity.
Let’s take a closer look at the philosophy behind the Law of Attraction, through the perspective of those who use magic to deliberately co-create their lives with the mysterious forces at work in the Universe.
HERMETICISM
If you have taken Witchcraft 101, you may have already benefited from studying the Hermetic principles and understanding how to apply them to your practice of magic. Let’s review four of the seven Hermetic principles that form the larger framework in which the Law of Attraction operates.
Related: The Five Other Principles of Magic
The core teachings of Hermeticism are powerful lessons that explain the management of energies in the universe, and how the universe function. It is believed that these laws or principles were first written before 300 B.C. in ancient Egypt. They have stood the test of time and can be identified in several ancient spiritual and philosophical traditions: Egyptian, Greek, Indian Vedic and more.
Hermeticism emerged into the 20th century in the form of a mysterious book called the Kybalion. It was published in 1908, by authors known only as “Three Initiates.”
Scholars consider this source “neo-Hermeticism,” because it is clearly influenced by modern occult teachings, but the basic framework it lays out, known today as the Hermetic Principles, is rooted in the older teachings.
The Law of Attraction is actually not one of the Hermetic laws, but the phrase appears as an aspect of the Principle of Cause and Effect.
And it is related to each the seven interrelated principles particularly the Principle of Cause and Effect, the Principle of Correspondence, the Principle of Mentalism and the Principle of Vibration.
Principle of Correspondence
Starting with the Principle of Correspondence which states “as above, so below; as below, so above.”
The Kybalion describes the Universe as have three general planes of existence: physical, mental and spiritual. Others talk about it as the macrocosm being the Universe or the above or spiritual realm and the microcosm being the Earth or the below or the physical realm
Thought, a non-physical entity, forms the mental realm and is the thread that connects the realms. When you send a thought or intention into the non-physical, it exists there. And because what exists above must also exist below, it eventually manifests in the physical.
As above so below.
Related: Principle of Correspondence
Principle of Vibration
The Principle of Vibration states that “nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.”
Everything in this universe is made of energy, whether it is found in the physical, mental or spiritual realm. And every particle is in constant motion or in other words, everything vibrates.
Every thought you think has a unique vibration, which effects your emotional vibration, and in turn effects you physical vibration. The frequency of these vibration depends on the nature of the originating thought. Positive thoughts vibrate at higher frequencies and feel better physically, while negative thought vibrations are low and feel unpleasant or sometimes painful.
It’s impossible to remain positive at all times, but your physical average or dominant frequency matches the frequency of your dominant thoughts.
Remembering that “like attracts like” according to the Law of Attraction, your physical vibration will attract similar frequencies. By intentionally thinking thoughts, aligned with what you want, you will attract circumstances that allow for the manifestation to take place.
Related: Principle of Vibration
Principle of Cause and Effect
The Law of Cause and Effect, says that “Every cause has its effect; every effect has its cause.”
This may be obvious when observing the physical plane. If you drop a drinking glass, it falls to the ground and breaks. If you pour water on a fire, it is extinguished. If you flip a switch, a light comes on.
These effects are easy to trace to the action or the cause.
There are other things that are less easy to explain or are called chance or luck. Winning the lottery, unpredicted weather patterns, death. But the Principle of Cause and Effect says that there is no such thing as chance, only unrecognized Law.
This means that we experience and observe the effects of causes on the physical plane, but we also experience and observe the effects of causes on the mental and spiritual plane.
Your thoughts, can eventually manifest on the physical plane, with no clear causal relationship. Everything you experience can be traced back to your thoughts, emotions and actions. This is why it is important to act in alignment with what you want. The results sometimes feel like magick, but it is the Principle of Cause and Effect acting in accordance with the Laws of the Universe.
Related: Principle of Cause and Effect
Principle of Mentalism
The Principle of Mentalism states that “the Universe is Mind; the Mind is the Universe”
Some may argue that this is the most important principle to understand when it comes to the Law of Attraction. It basically means that the fundamental make-up of the Universe is consciousness or what is today understood as information. In other words, the Universe is one infinite mind with limitless possibilities.
I’ve shared this analogy with you before but in case you haven’t heard it, I’ll share again. Your consciousness is the top of an iceberg the small portion that lives above the water line. The part of the iceberg that is submerged is your subconscious. It is the vast majority of the mass but you are not aware of it. The water that each of our iceberg minds floats in is the sea of collective unconscious. The icebergs appear separate but they’re all connected by the divine mind.
Everything that exists started as a thought in the collective unconscious.
It may seem abstract but think about it on a smaller scale: inventions, technology, art, etc. None of this could exist without someone first thinking of making it. Hermeticism claims that all naturally-occurring phenomena originated in the divine mind.
Witches and other magickians know that we can focus our intention for a specific outcome. In doing so, we plug our individual mind into the Universal mind creating a channel for our desires to flow from the spiritual plane into the physical.
Related: Principle of Mentalism
Other Principles
There are three other principles: Polarity, Gender and Rhythm. Each one helps to paint the complete picture of how the Universe operates. In some ways, they are relevant to the Law of Attraction. For example, the Principle of Rhythm offers insight into the divine timing of manifestation. But, I don’t feel like they are relevant enough that we should spend time talking about them now.
LANGUAGE
I think what often throws people off about the Kyballion and the Principles discussed within is the language. The idea of the “spiritual realm” is an obstacle to someone who doesn’t see themselves as spiritual. And discussion of “divinity” is off-putting to the atheist or agnostic witch.
Some of these neo-Hermetic or New Thought concepts don’t align with certain religions. One example is monotheistic belief systems that center around a deity called, “God” who is responsible for creation. This doesn’t leave room for the individual to be a co-creator.
If your worldview is formed by the idea that science and spirituality have clear edges, or that anything that can’t be proven through scientific method should be dismissed, you may struggle with these concepts as well.
Interestingly, a growing number of authors have been connecting the phenomenon of the Law of Attraction to emerging discoveries in the field of quantum physics—including some of the quantum scientists themselves. Many of the discoveries remain theoretical, but it is hard to ignore the implications.
But don’t get caught up in the language. Or, simply shift your definition of words like God, divinity, spirituality, and the like to align with your own beliefs. Or, learn to automatically translate them as you hear them.
Anyway, the “God” of Hermeticism predate monotheism and is envisioned as an all-encompassing force that is within our physical existence. This divine entity is also described as “the One,” “the Creator,” and “the Supreme Good.” And “the All” includes “the One.”
So the idea of divinity is misleading because it makes the assumption that there is a distinction between the divine and us. But as part of “the All” we are part of the divine, whatever you want to call it.
And, through the law of attraction we become the co-creators of our lives and the Universe.
Continue your journey and share your experiences on the Mumbles and Things Facebook page.
There is a group on Facebook and it was made for you. It is a safe and supportive place for New Age* practitioners to gather and grow their personal power while encouraging one another.
If you are a newbie hoping to learn how to become a witch or are experienced and would like to learn from like-minded folks, this group is for you.
*Metaphysical, Pagan, New Age, Lightworkers, Energy Workers, Shamans, Wiccan, Neo-Pagan, Witches, Angel Workers, Healers, Psychics, Spiritualists, and so many others fall under the umbrella of "New Age."
Join the Community Group.
Now it’s your turn!
Have you ever attracted something (good or bad) into your life because you obsessed over it? What was it? Think about a time you felt out of control or like something was happening to you. Can you pinpoint the Cause? What can you learn from that experience?
