The Seven Elements of Man

(As promised... a bit of a diversion from discussing work...)

The First Element of Man is perishable matter.

The Second Element of Man is is the portion of the Universal Agent which gives him life.

The Third Element of Man is is the reflection of his perishable substance in the Astral Light - coincident with him, but not visible to his earthly eye.

The Fourth Element of Man is made up of all the desires he feels by his material senses - this part is not real being, nor is it transitory being, but a result of being.

The Fifth Element of Man is that which says "I am" whereby a man knows himself from other men; and with it there is an intelligence of lower things, but no intelligence of things higher.

The Sixth Element of Man is the pure understanding - eternal and co-extensive with all infinity of time and space, real and imperishable, invisible to the eyes of Man.

The Seventh Element of Man is the Soul from God.

~attributed to the teaching of Zoroaster

I found this interesting when I had happened across it. For those who do not know, Zoroaster was credited with the creation and development of Monotheism. Zoroastrianism preceded Christianity by a good six hundred years. I should add here that I am by no means a religious person, however, I find comparative research of religions intriguing as I enjoy tracing the roots of things that are. Interestingly, where Christianity is concerned, a measure of Zoroastrian Philosophy was "borrowed" and incorporated into the writing of the Christian Bible. For that matter, the Christian Bible is essentially an encyclopedia of every religion that preceded Christianity.

Every religion, to include Zoroastrianism, has its primary foundational roots deep in Hermetic Philosophy and Wisdom. For that matter, every "-ology" that exists today was born from Hermetic Philosophy... every science, each of the religions, modern medicine, the varying forms of "magic", and most forms of modern philosophy. Hermetic Philosophy is quite literally tens of thousands of years old. The teachings of Thoth/Hermes date back up to 36,000 years prior to Christianity.

Here are another seven elements, but these elements are the seven primary Hermetic Principles:

The Principle of Mentalism ~ The ALL is Mind, the Universe is Mental.

The Principle Correspondence ~ As it is Above so it is Below, as below so above.

The Principle of Vibration ~ Nothing rests... all things vibrate, all things move.

The Principle of Polarity ~ Everything is dual. Everything has poles. Everything has its pair of opposites. Like and unlike are the same. Opposites are identical in nature, varying only in degree. Extremes meet, all truths are but half truths. All paradoxes may be be reconciled.

The Principle of Rhythm ~ Everything flows... out and in. Everything has tides. All things rise and fall. The pendulum swing manifests in All things. The swing to the right is the measure of the swing to the left. Rhythm compensates.

The Principle of Cause and Effect ~ Everything is cause and effect. Every effect has its root cause, everything happens according to the Law. Chance is but a name for Law not recognized. There are many planes of Causation, but nothing escapes the Law.

The Principle of Gender ~ Gender is in everything. Everything has its masculine and feminine principles. Gender manifests on all planes.

~ From The Kybalion (which I highly recommend)

Now then, if we compare these two very different sets of seven elements, in them we can identify various bits from the Christian Bible which have clearly been pilfered, expanded upon, and altered to conceal their direct origin. Make no mistake, there are clearly some excellent philosophies found in the Bible. I will never discount that. What I will say however, is that Christianity is not at all what people think it to be.