The Kybalion: Centenary Edition
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- Create Date：2021-11-07 08:52:50
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Three Initiates
- ISBN：0143131680
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Summary
The most popular occult work of the twentieth century--now in a hardbound edition that evokes the original volume， with a new introduction by scholar of mysticism Richard Smoley。
For generations， readers have debated the origins and studied the knowledge of this mysterious exploration of Hermetic wisdom， attributed to "Three Initiates。"
Now in its second century， The Kybalion is restored to hardcover in a beautiful vegan-leather casing with gold stamping， acid-free paper， black-foil page edges， and a red ribbon place marker。 This commemorative volume evokes the appearance of the occult landmark's first edition。
The new introduction by Richard Smoley， a celebrated scholar of mystical traditions， makes this a historical keepsake。
For generations， readers have debated the origins and studied the knowledge of this mysterious exploration of Hermetic wisdom， attributed to "Three Initiates。"
Now in its second century， The Kybalion is restored to hardcover in a beautiful vegan-leather casing with gold stamping， acid-free paper， black-foil page edges， and a red ribbon place marker。 This commemorative volume evokes the appearance of the occult landmark's first edition。
The new introduction by Richard Smoley， a celebrated scholar of mystical traditions， makes this a historical keepsake。
Reviews
sushiroll
，
En mi viaje tratando de entender el por qué estamos aquí， este libro llegó a mi como si me estuviera buscando。 Me ayudó a ordenar ideas que ya tenía， a veces sentía que estaba leyendo mis pensamientos。
Simon
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Details the 7 Hermetic Principles of Mentalism， Correspondence， Vibration， Polarity， Rhythm， Cause and Effect and Genders and how the universe is a mental projection of the All， which I agree with。 Establishes the importance of the Greater Work of Mind and how Hermès wrote the Kybalion and laid the foundations of Mental Alchemy。 Great book， and works well with other thought systems like Stoicism where Polarity is considered， for example。
Cristian S
，
Un gran libro iniciático
Stefan Gugler
，
It's a bit difficult to rate。 The Kybalion is said to contain the main teachings of Hermes Trismegistus， who is the name sake of the Hermetic 'philosophy' （more on these quotes later）。 Hermes is a figure of legends， maybe even vaguer than Jesus themself， so it's hard to pinpoint him。 There are various other texts （the Hermetica） that might have been written directly by （compiled and attributed to） Hermes （see my review on Corpus Hermetcum treatises Poimandres and Asclepius） but I thought it migh It's a bit difficult to rate。 The Kybalion is said to contain the main teachings of Hermes Trismegistus， who is the name sake of the Hermetic 'philosophy' （more on these quotes later）。 Hermes is a figure of legends， maybe even vaguer than Jesus themself， so it's hard to pinpoint him。 There are various other texts （the Hermetica） that might have been written directly by （compiled and attributed to） Hermes （see my review on Corpus Hermetcum treatises Poimandres and Asclepius） but I thought it might be interesting to walk it backward and read a 'modern' interpretation first。 What exactly I am rating is a bit elusive: Is it the philosophical argument and thought that went into writing it？ Is it Hermes' or the Three Initiates that are rated？ I don't know， but bear with me。The Kybalion is divided into seven principles， namely the principle of mentalism， correspondence， vibration， polarity， rhythm， cause/effect， and gender。The principle of mentalism states that everything is mental。 It's not elaborate enough but it feels a bit like German idealism which preceded （with Hegel， for instance） the Three Initiates （at 1900） but not Hermes。 This is another issue: some of the teachings are so vague that from a modern （that is 1900） point of view， they can easily be made fit a modern theory （see later， principle of vibration）。 In a way I think it was a nice elaboration of mentalism and definitely the Good Stuff was retained， namely that we have our own optimism in our hand and we are able to change things just by willing it。 It's decent self-help （and reminded me of Gurjieff here） but I'm unclear of how much credit they deserve。The principle of correspondence felt a but like a scam。 They go like "everything is warm or cold"， see， everything has two sides of the same stuff。 I feel this is mostly linguistic confusion。 You assert a binary and then point out that it is a binary？ How would that work for color （as conceptualized in 1900 or even 2000 years ago？）。 Now the principle of vibration: I liked in a way， that they tried to be very close to science （despite asserting here and there that "modern science doesn't yet dare to explore that"， justifying that we haven't found a particular effect like telepathy）。 But an interesting thing happens: "everything is vibration"， and then "oh， see， Einstein says electromagnetism is vibration， particles are waves！"。 Again， we don't know what Hermes said， 2000 years ago， but even if he said something like "everything is vibration" it would be more like "not even wrong" because what would he refer to。 Accidentally 'correct' statements have a much different epistemic status if they are correct for wrong reasons （or no reasons， as the Hermeticists rarely give reasons [that satisfy me， that is]）。 They abuse quite a bit of science but it didn't bother me too much as 1900 legit was an exciting time for fundamental physics。Polarity， rhythm， cause and effect were of varying quality。 Some modern physics suggests that cause and effect might be wrong or that not everything is a wave （say string theory is false， loop quantum gravity is correct， hence everything is discrete 。。。 but Hermeticism isn't able to figure that out， because all they do is assert， not research）。 Rhythm felt like a placeholder to yield 7 principles。 Similarly， not sure how the principle of polarity is not the same as correspondence。Lastly， in gender， a lot of funny things happened。 First the good: They straight up allude that sex is not gender， eliciting an approving Obama face from me。 Then it goes weird， outlining what these genders mean。 A lot was not intelligible to me but what is interesting is that it is very obvious that men wrote the text。 We see this in many historic and ancient texts where the cultists somehow realize that women are also important （I suppose to the benefit of their theories 。。。） but also live in an extreme patriarchy。 Hence the texts feel always a bit like "men are the strong and they bring money and stuff and do all the things; then there are women， who are nice and help the man， and might even be much more rational [even if a bit boring， hehe]; but men wouldn't survive without them， they are very important to help the men。" The role of Mary in the Bible。 "*Behind* every successful man there stands a woman"。 Always only in contrast to men， always as an enabler or helper。 There's no use going to deep as the text is very old。 It just makes sense to point it out， since they have a whole chapter on gender。I think what is a bit disappointing is that （like most esoteric texts） they don't reason so much as they just assert things。 I'm aware that there is mysticism and religion， and tradition is their main way of obtaining knowledge， so in a way it's on brand， but as an outsider， it's very hard to be sold on it。 It helped me a tiny bit to understand Eco a bit better but yeah， that's about that。It's a fine read but don't read it if you don't have a good reason， it's not like *illuminating* or anything。 。。。more
Alissa Taylor
，
This is a fairly quick and easy read。 I believe it must be a boiled down version of a greater work because it quotes The Kybalion frequently。 But I appreciated the synthesized version here。 I loved the description and explanation of "The All"。 This is a fairly quick and easy read。 I believe it must be a boiled down version of a greater work because it quotes The Kybalion frequently。 But I appreciated the synthesized version here。 I loved the description and explanation of "The All"。 。。。more
Lou
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 MyFirstThoughts™
Nick Urban
，
Overall awesome book。 Should be required reading as it opens your eyes to new perspectives。 The Hermetic axioms are a meta-framework for all life。 Only by acknowledging the laws of the universe can you make optimal decisions。Highly recommended to anyone curious about the fundamental laws millennia ahead of "modern science"。 Overall awesome book。 Should be required reading as it opens your eyes to new perspectives。 The Hermetic axioms are a meta-framework for all life。 Only by acknowledging the laws of the universe can you make optimal decisions。Highly recommended to anyone curious about the fundamental laws millennia ahead of "modern science"。 。。。more
Summer Nicole
，
this book holds the secrets to the universe。。。 Really。 So I suggest you read it。
t evans
，
A Breath of fresh air。An excellent insight to the hidden works bringing a great understanding and plenty of thought provoking formulas to new understandings
Paco The Poet
，
"The universe is mental。"Same "The universe is mental。"Same 。。。more
Black Carrie
，
The lips of Wisdom are closed， except to the ears of understanding 。 That’s definitely a favorite quote of mine 。 This book does a great job of explaining the principles & hidden agendas but besides that it really didn’t hold enough weight for me 。 I’m on a journey of self discovery I’m sure if I didn’t believe in GOD & certain aspects of the Bible I could’ve enjoyed this book better 。
Ali Can
，
I get how there are valuable lessons in here。 But man this book is as boring as staring at a wall and completely dehydrating whilst doing so。
Carolina
，
Essa é a primeira vez que eu li o Caibalion e não vou dizer que entendi tudo de primeira。 Entretanto， dá pra ver que tem muito ouro a ser extraído daqui， e só leituras atentas e tempo para assimilação é que tornarão o conhecimento desse livro realmente aproveitável no nosso dia a dia。 Vale a pena se aprofundar no estudo das leis herméticas - e se você que está lendo isso for falante de português， recomendo demais a série de palestras sobre o livro no canal Nova Acrópole Brasil com a prof。 Lúcia Essa é a primeira vez que eu li o Caibalion e não vou dizer que entendi tudo de primeira。 Entretanto， dá pra ver que tem muito ouro a ser extraído daqui， e só leituras atentas e tempo para assimilação é que tornarão o conhecimento desse livro realmente aproveitável no nosso dia a dia。 Vale a pena se aprofundar no estudo das leis herméticas - e se você que está lendo isso for falante de português， recomendo demais a série de palestras sobre o livro no canal Nova Acrópole Brasil com a prof。 Lúcia Helena Galvão， tem me ajudado e muito a compreender o Caibalion melhor。 。。。more
Rafael Morningstar
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Excelente libro， posee información de sumo interés y me ha ayudado a tener una cosmovisión más amplia a la que ya tenía。
Cin Serretti
，
A great book for a basic overview of hermetic philosophy。
William Wallo
，
Certainly thought-provoking， though perhaps a bit too wrapped up in New Age aphorisms。 Not too dissimilar from Hindu and stoic philosophy that I’ve read in the past。
Ghost
，
Despite the controversy surrounding the book I think it's good。 It is not EXACTLY Hermeticism， but personally， I don't care。 It's an interesting read that can get people interested in the topic of Hermetics。 Keep an open mind while reading， don't just disregard a piece of work because it isn't what you expect。 Question expectations and do further research if something in the book strikes your fancy。 Despite the controversy surrounding the book I think it's good。 It is not EXACTLY Hermeticism， but personally， I don't care。 It's an interesting read that can get people interested in the topic of Hermetics。 Keep an open mind while reading， don't just disregard a piece of work because it isn't what you expect。 Question expectations and do further research if something in the book strikes your fancy。 。。。more
M●13RA
，
another way， another language and another great timless book of telling the truth and opening your doors of perception 9。5/10
Donnie Ibis
，
Certified cringe！
Fabian
，
A classic and a key reading for seekers of wisdom and esoteric knowledge。
Kash
，
كتاب الكباليون يتكلم عن المبادئ الهرمسية السبعة。 الكتاب ما حسيته ثقيل وطويل بالعكس يركز في المهم ويعطيك الحكمة من الأخر。 تحتاج تقرأ بين السطور。المبادئ هذي ممكن تكون ثقيلة عليك لو أول مره تطلع عليها وقد تحتاج وقت لهضمها ومراجعة الكتاب مره اخرى。 نصيحتي خذ ملاحظاتك من الكتاب واكتب ملخص لها。 وزي ما يقول الكتاب أبدأ مارسها في حياتك。مازلت بتعلم منها。。。
Luke
，
This is a very interesting read， as in it falls in this category of something that I have both read and have not read before。 Some parts of the material inside this text feels familiar， like an old friend coming to greet me。 And other parts feel refreshingly new， as if I am being introduced to new friends that I know who are genuine （much like those I have worked with at my job）。 This book was recommended to me by someone at my job， and I honestly could not thank them enough。 The Kybalion is a b This is a very interesting read， as in it falls in this category of something that I have both read and have not read before。 Some parts of the material inside this text feels familiar， like an old friend coming to greet me。 And other parts feel refreshingly new， as if I am being introduced to new friends that I know who are genuine （much like those I have worked with at my job）。 This book was recommended to me by someone at my job， and I honestly could not thank them enough。 The Kybalion is a book that lists and explains the different Laws within Hermetic Philosophy。 Not based in theology or metaphysics， as that is made clear， but based in from what I understand， mental energy that exists both in the mental and physical sphere。 From a logical standpoint， it seems very floaty in theory， meaning that there isn’t a lot of defense for said laws written in a formal logical manner。 But rather， the laws are laid out first in a mystical sense， then presented by the author（s） with anecdotal information that scientists have embraced many aspects of said law that was being explained。 I assume many of those with a background in formal logic wouldn’t be that impressed with this， I found it surprisingly refreshing， as this is somewhat my first experience with material that is more on the mystical side of things。 The only reason It’s at 4 stars （and a little bit）， is due to the chapter towards the end titled Mental Gender。 I felt that the chapter on Gender preceding this one did a decent job at explaining masculinity and femininity as having polarity with one another （as both are extremes we fluctuate to and fro， a common theme within the book）， the Mental Gender chapter felt like it took that a step further by adding hierarchical language， reminding me of certain IDW “Intellectuals” who write self-help books for young， disenfranchised men。 Perhaps I misinterpreted that portion of the text， and I am willing to revisit it if I have indeed done so。 Nevertheless， The Kybalion is a book I’d recommend for those who want a general and accessible text into Hermetic and mystic philosophy that isn’t rooted or stifled by difficult linguistic games。 。。。more
Hilary "Fox"
，
The Kybalion。This is a New Age book of philosophy of sorts that is meant to reveal the secrets of Hermeticism to the world。 The author of it remains obscure， but there is a decent idea that the person who cobbled it together was indeed one of the forefathers of New Age Thought。 This book still sells an insane amount of copies and is highly lauded by a wide group of people。 Hey， without this book we wouldn't get such classics as The Secret or， you know， Blavatsky's reams of writing。 Which should The Kybalion。This is a New Age book of philosophy of sorts that is meant to reveal the secrets of Hermeticism to the world。 The author of it remains obscure， but there is a decent idea that the person who cobbled it together was indeed one of the forefathers of New Age Thought。 This book still sells an insane amount of copies and is highly lauded by a wide group of people。 Hey， without this book we wouldn't get such classics as The Secret or， you know， Blavatsky's reams of writing。 Which should pretty much tell you all you need to know about how I feel about it。 The Kybalion is alternatively so dense that I found my eyes glazing over while reading it or so utterly offensive to my sensibilities that I had to stop and put it down for a few minutes to figure out just what it was I was feeling。 There are good ideas in here - don't get me wrong - but some of it is just downright grating to me。 It trots out old concepts newly polished to make them seem unique and is just so much of what bothers me about New Age thought in general。Everything vibrates， so if you're anxious you just need to lower your vibrations and then you'll be calm。 You can think your way out of depression。 Everything has both genders so therefore gender identity means nothing。 Love and hate are the same， just different vibrations。 Everything， everything is in your mind。 So you can think your way out of， you know， everything including depression。Oh， also？ If you have a good life， you deserve it。 If you have a bad life， you deserve it。 If you didn't do anything to deserve either thing？ Well， it was probably your past life's actions。Better luck next time。Ugh。 。。。more
Alexander Shotkoski
，
eh
Antonieta Barquero
，
Son enseñanzas para toda la vida， para transmutar nuestro ser y nuestra mente。 Me gustó mucho， lo leí hace tiempo pero sus enseñanzas siguen estando presentes todos los días。 Espero más adelante hacer una segunda lectura。
Jason Baldauf
，
While the subject matter is thought provoking， I quickly found myself becoming distracted by the many self references in the book to itself。 The number of times that "The Kybalion" is written is astronomical。 That quickly lead me to further research these Three Initiates and who they may be。 My research led me to William Walker Atkinson， a Pennsylvania lawyer who wrote many New Thought publications under various pseudonyms。 My interest waned from there and I had to force myself to finish the boo While the subject matter is thought provoking， I quickly found myself becoming distracted by the many self references in the book to itself。 The number of times that "The Kybalion" is written is astronomical。 That quickly lead me to further research these Three Initiates and who they may be。 My research led me to William Walker Atkinson， a Pennsylvania lawyer who wrote many New Thought publications under various pseudonyms。 My interest waned from there and I had to force myself to finish the book。 I probably should have started my study of Hermeticism with The Corpus Hermetica， which is where I will go next。 I encourage those interested to do the same and skip this one。 。。。more
Jerrod
，
This is a personal favorite。 Very similarly to how I read the Dhammapada， I can read this book over and over。 I like to read portions of each prior to meditation。 To read and meditate on the text。 It has been quite a few years since I read the Kybalion， and it did not disappoint。
Ethan Berman
，
If somebody is seeking genuine insight into profound esoteric truths， they are better off delving deeply into the works of Plato。 Truly， a complete dive through Plato， perhaps aided by Pierre Grimes， would unlock entirely new paradigms of thought for those seeking stimulation through thought。 However， the Kybalion is a weirdly inoffensive entry to useful forms of thinking。 The chapters on Polarity and Gender are particularly compelling， if even by accident， in our hyper-empirical， falsification If somebody is seeking genuine insight into profound esoteric truths， they are better off delving deeply into the works of Plato。 Truly， a complete dive through Plato， perhaps aided by Pierre Grimes， would unlock entirely new paradigms of thought for those seeking stimulation through thought。 However， the Kybalion is a weirdly inoffensive entry to useful forms of thinking。 The chapters on Polarity and Gender are particularly compelling， if even by accident， in our hyper-empirical， falsification obsessed age。 One of the great powers of Hermes was his duality， and the realm of the involuntary， non-ordered， and subconscious is an area practically abandoned since the Classical Age。 Read casually， it serves as a breezy entry into important concepts like Being/Becoming and the universality of laws。 Much more sinister tomes exist than the Kybalion， and taken not as an entry work into the occult， but rather as a palette cleanser to switch toward pre-materialist thinking， readers could do much worse。 。。。more
Nicole
，
A brilliant insight into the ancient yet relevant principles of human thought。
Gabo deOz
，