Chicago Gnosis Podcast

Guided Practices | Relaxation, Self-Observation, and the Mantra Om (ओम्)

Stress and tension are the norm for modern Western life.  Relaxation is essential for entering a state of meditation, for without profound serenity, it is impossible to clearly observe the contents of our own mind and arrive at comprehension. Learn how to enter a state of lucid equanimity through pronouncing and prolonging the mantra Om (ओम्), a sacred syllable of divine import. By saturating our mind, heart, and body with superior influences, we strengthen the consciousness, minimize suffering, and enter the region of spiritual clarity.

Guided Practices | How to Relax

A preliminary relaxation exercise to prepare for concentration, serenity, and meditation. By establishing a firm but relaxed posture, meditators can forget the body and withdraw attention within. When the body is calm and suspended, the consciousness can investigate and understand new phenomena within the screen of the imagination.

Guided Practices | The Rune Ur (ᚢ)

A continuation on our practical series of runic yoga, an ancient mystical practice encoded within the Nordic language (Futhark ᚠᚢᚦᚨᚱᚲ). The Rune Ur (ᚢ) is the second letter of this sacred alphabet. From the solar, projective forces of the Rune Fah (ᚠ, the Divine Father) emanates the lunar, receptive powers of divine femininity, Ur (ᚢ, the Divine Mother). Ur or the Hebrew אור Aur is the light of spiritual consciousness, born in us through this profound exercise. Discover how to connect with the eternal feminine through this rune, so as to empower your heart and ability to positively impact your community.

Resources:

• The Rune Fah PowerPoint Presentation
• The Runes Course (Glorian Publishing)
• The Magic of the Runes (Samael Aun Weor)

Guided Practices | Retrospection

A basic technique for remembering one's thoughts, emotions, impulses, behaviors, and activities. By serenely visualizing the events of the day and recalling them upon the screen of lucid imagination, the consciousness strengthens its ability to perceive and understand situations, interrelationships, virtues, errors, and solutions. Through dispassionately reviewing voluntarily evoked imagery, we begin to probe the underlying, psychological causes of suffering, discovering the way to transform pain into wisdom.

Guided Practices | The Mantra O

A simple, fundamental exercise for charging the heart, elevating our mood, and empowering our spirituality. By vocalizing and prolonging the vowel O, we saturate our emotional center with divine energy, so as to protect it against negativity through the power of superior emotion.

Gnostic Kabbalah 03 The Legacy of the Initiates

Spiritual initiates from every religion have existed, conveying their teachings through diverse scriptures, allegories, and symbols. The Jewish mystics were no different. However, their knowledge was codified in such a way as to provide accessibility and insight for those who were trained to read, interpret, and understand with an awakened consciousness. This lecture builds on Kabbalah: The Doctrine of Soul and Spirit, describing how five elements of Medieval Judaism can inform our understanding of initiatic life, specifically through Aggadah (narrative tradition), Halakah (Jewish law), Piyyut (liturgical prayer), Merkavah mysticism (the science for creating the soul), and The Sefer Yetzirah (a profound scripture of magical, initiatic import).

Guided Practices | Spiritual Defense Against Danger (Fons Alpha Et Omega Prayer)

This Latin prayer is exceptional for rejecting negativity, encouraging positivity, and strengthening profound introspection of the mind. These sacred mantras can provide spiritual defense in times of danger, particularly physical crises. Mentally pronounce these words in public, and aloud in the privacy of your own home. Concentrate on the presence of divinity in your heart, and supplicate for aid, guidance, and protection wherever and whenever you need it.

Resource:

• Be Protected in Moments of Danger: Use the Prayer Fons Alpha et Omega (Glorian Publishing Video)

The Voice of the Silence 04 The Seven Sounds

"Before thou set'st thy foot upon the ladder's upper rung, the ladder of the mystic sounds, thou hast to hear the voice of thy inner GOD in seven manners.

"The first is like the nightingale's sweet voice chanting a song of parting to its mate. The second comes as the sound of a silver cymbal of the Dhyanis, awakening the twinkling stars. The next is as the plaint melodious of the ocean-sprite imprisoned in its shell. And this is followed by the chant of Vina. The fifth like sound of bamboo-flute shrills in thine ear. It changes next into a trumpet-blast. The last vibrates like the dull rumbling of a thunder-cloud.

"The seventh swallows all the other sounds. They die, and then are heard no more." ―The Voice of the Silence

Discover the kabbalistic significance of the seven mystical sounds, which symbolize how the soul or consciousness ascends, through the initiatic path, up the famous kabbalistic Tree of Life, specifically the seven inferior Sephiroth: Malkuth (physicality), Yesod (vitality), Hod (emotions), Netzach (mind), Tiphereth (willpower), Geburah (divine consciousness), and Chesed (Innermost Spirit, Atman). This lecture explains the relationship of the seven mystical sounds with the crucifixion of the Intimate Christ, whose seven esoteric utterances resound within the initiate dying to psychological impurity upon the sacrificial cross of alchemy.

Gnostic Kabbalah 02 The Doctrine of Soul and Spirit

This lecture builds on Kabbalah: The Yoga of the West, outlining the cultural, psychological, and spiritual contexts of Jewish mystical traditions. Kabbalah possesses a rich corpus embodying multiple levels of meaning and practice, codified within introductory, intermediate, and advanced knowledge. Discover these three tiers of instruction through the writings of Gershom Scholem, Manly P. Hall, Dion Fortune, Samael Aun Weor, and the Zohar.

Guided Practices | Candle Concentration Practice

Fire possesses mystical properties, which is why many religious traditions, cultures, and mythologies equate it with the divine presence. Through serene observation of a candle, practitioners can develop preliminary concentration. While watching the flame in the beginning, the mind will start to think and wander. However, with continuity of application, we establish profound attention without exertion or thought. The beauty of this simple practice is to become cognizant of our perception's qualities: are we attentive and clear, or clouded and distracted? Gently recalling the practice, again and again, we redirect, clarify, and strengthen our attention, thereby preparing our consciousness for authentic meditation.