Tag: philosophy

Twenty-six centuries ago, Lao-tze already noted that freedom from one’s own ideas is the mark of the “moderate man,” as my English translation puts it. We could change this adjective to prudent, wise, superior. If there is one trait that distinguishes low, immature, unevolved natures, it is attachment to what they think and believe. From this attachment, —these chains,— which can only be interpreted as a manifestation of vanity and stupid presumption, the days go by, and time does not improve the plastered being, the being hostile to everything new and different. Moderation, if we were to define it in the sense used in this passage from the Tao Te Ching, would be the capacity to give in and accept what is different—an unimaginable virtue for the presumptuous who considers himself to be the center of the universe.

Knowing the gruesome details of a black magic ritual, one can notice without a doubt that the operator materializes his evil and repulsive will beforehand. From this, to say that the magic works is an understatement. All the difficulty of the preparation, the effort involved, the need for continuous reaffirmation of the vow, the mental focus and stimulation in favor of the malevolent objective… all this before the consummation of the terrible ritual, the voluntary act with no possible return. The conscience of the one who operates such a monstrosity dies forever; psychologically, it is a road with no return, a road that can only lead to more and more darkness, if not to madness or suicide. It is unbelievable to see how deep human nature is capable of descending, how unlimited is its potential for evil… the impulse is to spit in its face and curse endlessly at this cursed species.

There have been two hundred pages of this “Papus” and I confess to having no idea what was in them. From the very beginning, the endless analogies, the creative mathematics, the subliminal semantics, the pantacles, the tables that follow tables and tables, and I put myself to size up the boredom of the god who planned all this for an investigator like “Papus” to unravel his creation. If this is so, it is certain that this god must have exploded with joy at this “Papus” who, by putting the puzzle together, has freed him from loneliness. It is as if he had found a companion to play with. However, with the impartiality of a psychologist, I would diagnose that this god is one step away from suicide.