This series of articles, originally written as a book, outline the gnostic psychological work: its motivation, philosophy, and practice for the awakening of consciousness.

“Desire is the venom of the soul; temptation is the snake. Few creatures living can transform venom into nectar.”

To transform venom into nectar is to be transform your soul, to transmute lead into gold. In ordinary terms, this means to become a better person. In extra-ordinary terms, it is means complete transcendence of our current level of consciousness. All the mystical traditions agree that this possible, and this book operates upon that premise.

The articles build upon each other, so it is best to read them in order.

Cease not to seek day and night and remit not yourselves until ye find the purifying mysteries which will purify you and make you into a refined light, so that ye will go on high and inherit the light of my kingdom.

- Jesus, Pistis Sophia, ch. 100

The lowest part of man is irrational and subjective and is related with the five ordinary senses. The highest part of man is the world of intuition and objective spiritual consciousness. In the world of intuition, the archetypes of all things in nature develop. Only those who have penetrated into the world of objective intuition, only those who have reached the solemn heights of Noetic thought are truly awakened and illuminated.

– Samael Aun Weor, The Perfect Matrimony

To say the unexamined life is not worth living, as Socrates did, puts one in alignment with basic gnostic values.

The examination begins with deep introspection, sparking the development of a profound inner life.

The inner life grows, little by little, until the endpoint of complete enlightenment.

To some, it seems that the ‘self’ is a simple, ordinary, and boring concept. Really, nothing is further from the truth.

The more we look, the more mysteries we find.

Every moment is experienced without the slightest effort. No exertion is required to experience anything.

Do not confuse this statement with thinking, or with feeling, or with acting.

How much effort is required to see a child’s face for the first time? How much effort does it take to experience the water running over your hands as you wash them?

When the mind is without obstruction, there is no effort needed.

Our experience of life is a series of impressions. Everything is an impression. Our life is a continuous flow of impressions.

Each moment is an impression of life. Each moment, a new impression.

Things happen, but what we experience is an impression of that event.

The impressions of life strike the mind (and therefore consciousness), and the mind reacts.

The mind reacts unconsciously because it is conditioned to do so.

We can divide the transformation of impressions into four areas:

1. Historical impressions: the transformation of past impressions which arrived through a sensory, psychological, or spiritual channels at some point in the past. These are related to our memories.

2. Sensory impressions: the transformation of external impressions as they occur in daily life.

3. Psychological impressions: the transformation of the impressions which originated within the mental continuum opposed to external impressions.

4. Spiritual impressions: the transformation of impressions which originate from the consciousness (beyond the mind), which are then received by the mental continuum.

O Fortune, Like the moon you are changeable, ever waxing and waning.

Hateful life, first oppresses, and then soothes as fancy takes it;

Poverty, and power it melts them like ice.

Fate – monstrous and empty, you whirling wheel, you are malevolent, well-being is in vain and always fades to nothing, shadowed and veiled you plague me too;

Now through the game I bring my bare back to your villainy.

Fate is against me in health and virtue, driven on and weighted down, always enslaved.

So at this hour without delay pluck the vibrating strings;

Since Fate strikes down the strong man, everyone weep with me!

– Carmina Burana, Fortune Empress of the World

It is completely ordinary for a person to lack any degree of self-reflection. Although it appears mundane, it is an extraordinary event to spend some time in self-reflection about the day, or life in general.

Nevertheless, the information obtained by such effort is usually found to be somewhat superficial, and moreover, unsatisfactory. Often, simple self-reflection leads to false reasoning and wrong ideas.

What is real, and what is true? What is just our fantasy? So many choices in life, and who knows what they are really doing with it?

It is not possible using simple, subjective introspection to penetrate the illuminating void. It is not possible using simple, subjective introspection, to deeply comprehend the ego. Therefore, meditation is necessary.