What Is The Kybalion? A Beginner’s Guide to the 7 Hermetic Principles
- Bex
- Aug 4, 2025
- 7 min read
This post is part of my new series: “The Most Googled Spiritual Questions about Esoteric Astrology, Past Lives & Ancient Wisdom''
Every week, I take one of the most-searched questions about astrology, past lives, the soul, ancient history, or the hidden realms and break it down using ancient wisdom, sidereal astrology, and everything I’ve learnt through my own spiritual path.
INTRODUCTION
If you’ve ever stumbled upon the phrase “The lips of wisdom are closed, except to the ears of Understanding”, you’ve already touched the mystery of The Kybalion. But what is The Kybalion? Why is it suddenly everywhere in spiritual and esoteric circles? And what does it have to do with your soul purpose?
In this post, I’ll walk you through the origins of this mysterious text, its 7 Hermetic Principles, and how they’re still relevant today, especially if you’re on a journey of awakening, exploring your soul contract, or working with sidereal astrology.
WHAT IS THE KYBALION?
The Kybalion is a short esoteric text first published in 1908 by a group (or possibly one person) calling themselves “The Three Initiates.” It presents a concise summary of Hermetic philosophy, a spiritual framework said to originate from the ancient Egyptian sage Hermes Trismegistus.
Although the book itself is modern, its teachings are inspired by timeless spiritual laws believed to govern the universe. These laws are known as the 7 Hermetic Principles.
It’s not a religion, and it’s not dogma. It’s more like a spiritual operating system, one that can help you better understand how energy, polarity, vibration, and cause-and-effect influence your thoughts, your reality, and even your karmic path.
THE 7 HERMETIC PRINCIPLES EXPLAINED SIMPLY- (a more thorough explanation is at the end if you wish to read it,)
Each principle in The Kybalion is a lens for understanding how the universe works, on both a cosmic and personal level.
1. The Principle of Mentalism
"The All is Mind; the Universe is Mental."Everything begins in the mind. This principle teaches that reality originates as thought. If you can master your thoughts, you can influence your outer world.
➡ Try this: Track your most repeated thoughts this week. What kind of world are they building?
2. The Principle of Correspondence
"As above, so below; as below, so above."Patterns repeat across dimensions. The macrocosm (stars, planets, cosmos) reflects the microcosm (you, your inner world). This is why astrology works, especially sidereal astrology, which aligns more closely with the current sky.
➡ Working with your soul contract? Look for mirrored patterns between your birth chart and your life story.
3. The Principle of Vibration
"Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates."Every thought, emotion, and object is in constant motion. Higher vibrations align with joy, love, and connection. Lower vibrations resonate with fear, judgment, and scarcity.
➡ Try this: Play with your energetic frequency. What happens when you intentionally raise it?
4. The Principle of Polarity
"Everything is dual; everything has poles."Light and dark, love and hate, peace and chaos, they’re not separate but part of the same spectrum. Understanding polarity helps you navigate extremes without losing balance.
➡ Journal prompt: What’s one area in your life where you're seeing only one side of the polarity?
5. The Principle of Rhythm
"Everything flows, out and in; all things rise and fall."Energy moves in cycles. Emotions, seasons, spiritual growth, they all follow a rhythm. Resistance causes suffering. Surrender brings alignment.
➡ Use this principle during retrograde seasons or emotional low, they’re part of the rhythm.
6. The Principle of Cause and Effect
"Every cause has its effect; every effect has its cause."Nothing happens by chance. Your energy, decisions, and even unspoken intentions ripple out into the universe. Manifestation is not magic,it’s alignment with causality.
➡ Working with manifestation codes or quantum rituals? This is the principle behind them.
7. The Principle of Gender
"Gender is in everything; everything has its Masculine and Feminine principles."This isn’t about biology. Masculine energy creates direction, focus, logic. Feminine energy embodies flow, intuition, receptivity. True creation comes from their balance.
➡ Explore how you express both energies in your spiritual practice.
IS THE KYBALION ACTUALLY ANCIENT?
No, at least, not in the form we have it today. The Kybalion is a modern reinterpretation of older teachings. While it draws inspiration from the Hermetica (texts linked to Hermes Trismegistus), it was likely written by William Walker Atkinson, a New Thought writer.
That said, the principles themselves feel ancient because they echo truths found in Egyptian, Greek, Babylonian, and Vedic spiritual systems.
HOW IS THIS CONNECTED TO SIDEREAL ASTROLOGY AND SOUL CONTRACTS?
If you’ve had a sidereal astrology reading with me, you’ll know your chart reflects not just your personality, but your soul’s evolution. Many of my clients are drawn to The Kybalion because they’re remembering their deeper purpose. These principles help you make sense of:
Why karmic patterns keep repeating
How to alchemise shadow into wisdom
When to move, rest, or create based on universal cycles
It’s one of the most aligned frameworks I’ve come across for decoding your soul contract.
FAQs
Is The Kybalion a religious book?No, it’s a spiritual text that outlines universal laws. You can apply its teachings no matter your belief system.
Who wrote The Kybalion?It was published by “The Three Initiates” in 1908. Most researchers believe it was William Walker Atkinson.
Is it connected to ancient Egypt?Indirectly. The book draws inspiration from the Hermetica, which is tied to Egyptian-Greek esoteric traditions.
Can I use The Kybalion for manifestation?Yes, especially through the principles of Mentalism, Cause and Effect, and Vibration. Many modern manifestation teachings are rooted in this.
A Closer Look at the 7 Hermetic Principles
An advanced exploration of the core teachings of The Kybalion (1908), with connections to Hermetic philosophy and ancient cosmology.
1. The Principle of Mentalism
“The All is Mind; the Universe is Mental.”This foundational concept proposes that the universe originates from an infinite, unknowable source referred to as “The All.” It mirrors the concept of Nous in Neoplatonism and Pymander in the Corpus Hermeticum, where all reality is perceived as arising from a single Divine Mind. According to this view, matter and even time and space are secondary to consciousness.
Reference: The Kybalion, Chapter II; Corpus Hermeticum I (Poimandres): “All things come from Mind, which is God.”
This principle underpins Hermetic metaphysics and anticipates later idealist philosophies, where the nature of reality is fundamentally mental or consciousness-based.
2. The Principle of Correspondence
“As above, so below; as below, so above.”This principle teaches that there is harmony and structural similarity between the different levels of reality: spiritual, mental, and physical. It suggests that the divine macrocosm reflects itself in the human microcosm, and vice versa.
Reference: Emerald Tablet, line 2: “That which is below is like that which is above, and that which is above is like that which is below.” Also echoed in Hermetica III and X.
This principle forms the basis of disciplines like astrology, alchemy, and sacred geometry, and aligns with Platonic cosmology where earthly forms mirror divine archetypes.
3. The Principle of Vibration
“Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.”This principle asserts that all things, from the most ethereal to the most dense, are in constant motion. Nothing is truly still. The apparent solidity of matter is an illusion caused by vibrations at different frequencies. Vibration is not just physical but mental and spiritual.
Reference: The Kybalion, Chapter IX. Though not directly found in the Corpus Hermeticum, the idea of pneuma (spirit or breath) as a subtle, moving substance between spirit and matter is consistent with this.
In later esoteric and alchemical systems, this concept appears as the foundation for the refinement or transmutation of energy.
4. The Principle of Polarity
“Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites.”This principle teaches that opposites are not separate, but are extremes of the same continuum. Light and darkness, love and hate, hot and cold exist on the same spectrum and differ only in degree.
Reference: The Kybalion, Chapter X. Parallels exist in Gnostic texts and the writings of Zosimos of Panopolis, who described transformation through reconciliation of opposites.
Understanding polarity is essential for mastering mental transmutation, a process in Hermetic practice where negative states are shifted by recognising and moving along the same pole toward its opposite.
5. The Principle of Rhythm
“Everything flows, out and in; everything has its tides.”This principle explains that all phenomena rise and fall, advance and retreat, in accordance with universal cycles. Everything in nature, including emotions, states of consciousness, and events, follows patterns of movement, much like tides or pendulums.
Reference: The Kybalion, Chapter XI. This rhythmic principle is echoed in Hermetica Book IV and in ancient Egyptian cosmology, which revolved around cycles of birth, decay, and renewal.
Recognising rhythm helps the initiate maintain inner equilibrium during periods of change or flux and to operate in harmony with cosmic timing.
6. The Principle of Cause and Effect
“Every Cause has its Effect; every Effect has its Cause.”This principle affirms that nothing happens by accident. Everything arises from law. Each action, intention, or condition is a cause that sets off a chain of effects. There is no true randomness, only causes that are not yet seen or understood.
Reference: The Kybalion, Chapter XII. This is mirrored in Corpus Hermeticum XVI: “Nothing happens without cause; all things are according to divine reason (Logos).”
Advanced Hermetic practice seeks to elevate the soul beyond the mechanical reactions of causality by aligning with divine will and conscious creation.
7. The Principle of Gender
“Gender is in everything; everything has its Masculine and Feminine Principles.”This principle is not limited to biological sex. It states that Masculine (active, projective) and Feminine (receptive, generative) energies exist on all planes, mental, spiritual, and physical. Creation requires the union and balance of these polar forces.
Reference: The Kybalion, Chapter XIII. Similar patterns appear in Hermetica II and XIII, where Mind is described as the Father and the Cosmos as the Mother.
In esoteric alchemy, this principle is linked to the sacred marriage or “coniunctio oppositorum”, a union of opposites that births transformation and spiritual illumination.
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