THE GREAT SECRET By Carl Llewellyn Weschcke How many times has someone promised to reveal "the Great Secret" that will bring you Wealth, Health, Power and Love? Like many people, I am sure this has happened to you more than once. Well, did you get this Great Secret? Or, should I ask, did it bring you the Wealth, Health, Power and Love you wanted? I bet not, regardless of how much money you paid for that Great Secret. But, that doesn't mean there isn't a Great Secret that will enable you to obtain all the material things you want. A half-century ago, a little recognized American occultist named Ophiel told me that the greatest contribution from the eastern world to western esotericism was to be found in the Hindu Tantric practices involving the Tattwas. Later I learned that work with the Tattwas had been incorporated into the magical practices of the famous Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn back in the late 1800's. And then, in 1971, a brilliant Australian teacher, Dr. Jonn Mumford, taught me how to activate the Tattwas in my own mind. And why! That's where the Great Secret starts - in your MIND. What are these Tattwas? The Tattwas are the five elements (not four, not 92, and not 110) that make up the foundations of our Material World in combination with the two fundamental 'forces' of Consciousness and Energy. The Tattwas are the forms of Energy behind the manifestation of all Matter. Remember Einstein's famous equation E=mc² where "E" stands for Energy and "m" stands for Matter? It demonstrates that every substance in the world is made up of these five elemental energies. Universal Mind, including our individual minds, is itself Energy and it is this energetic connection that enables you with your mind to access and work with these fundamental energies and forces behind all material manifestation. The Tattwas are represented in printed images that are then called Yantras. A Yantra is defined by Mumford as "a tool for focusing the mind, encouraging conception, and invoking or evoking elemental forces." (All quotations in this article are taken from his book, "Magical Tattwas" 1997 which is included with 25 Tattwa cards and one ritual card in a boxed set)  It is also important to more clearly describe the function of the Tattwa cards as "'information storage and retrieval devices' of amazing potency. They are the primary building blocks from which all magical symbols, sigils, talismans, ciphers and designs are composed." "The Tattwa 'triggers' the psychic layers of our mind through the compressed power of it's geometrical shape, the primal colors vibrating forth, and the implied numerical concepts in each shape."          The Miracle of the One Thing Through Mind, everything is connected and it is by means of powerful symbols that your mind enters into the five elements. Look at the following table: ElementTattwaEnergy TypeManifest StateSymbolShapeColor (Eastern)ChakrasLocation EarthPrithiviMechanical EnergyCongeal-mentCubeSquareYellowMuladharaPelvic Floor WaterApasChemical EnergyFluid Pre-cipitationCrescent MoonCrescentSilverSwadhis-thanaBelow Navel FireTejasThermal EnergyIncand-ensceneTetra-hedronEquilateral TriangleRedManipuraabove Navel AirVayuElectrical EnergyGaseous VaporsSphereCircleSky BlueAnahataHeart Ether (Spirit)AkashaNuclear EnergyStellar SpaceEgg (Cosmic)OvalIndigo, Black, Violet VishuddaThroat It is by means of our mental image that we are able to relate to the elemental energy of the particular tattwa. Each image stirs up a host of associations intrinsic to their nature and human history. Earth: stability, security, beginnings and foundations. The Deep Unconscious, the Id. Also instigating or starting anything new, or anew. Water: childhood, oceans, mystery, recurring cycles, wishes, romance, and wonder. The Preconscious dream (astral) world, emotion and relationships. Also fertilizing, germination, irrigation, networking, organizing for cooperative work. Fire: fires, sex, blood, passion, danger, warmth, ambition, burning desire. Action driven by motivation. Also creativity, optimism, transformation and transmutation. Air: completeness, rings, wholeness, reincarnation, recurrence (but not recurring cycles). Unbridled Imagination. Also testing by nature's elements, emotional reevaluations. Ether: birth/creation, fertility, eternity/infinity/immensity, Deity, space. Fresh insights leading to new growth and change. Also rapid growth. Earlier I mentioned 25 Tattwa Cards. The Tattwas are not manifest in the physical world in their full purity, but always in combinations. We refer to these combinations as one containing the "seed" of itself or another - thus 25 combinations. Eyes are the Doorway to the Soul Do you remember that poetic phrase so often used between lovers? It does contain truth, and 2,500 years ago the Samkhya masters employed the unique practice of Tratak to "burn" the image of the chosen Tattwa into your mind. Look at this image of the Tattwa for "Fire - seed of Air" which combines the elemental energies of Fire and Air. As you look, the colors almost turn three-dimensional. Now, to perform tratak you need to stare at the center of this image without blinking for as long as you can stand it. As you do so, the colors will start to "flash" around the edges and the image will almost float off the card. Now close your eyes and you will see an after image in complementary colors floating before your Third Eye. (Some people will have better results by staring at a white space instead of closing their eyes.) The more you do this work with each of the twenty-five compound images - reaching the point when you can see the after images at will - the more easily you will enter into the elemental energies through your mind. To our knowledge, The Magical Tattwa Cards are the first time this natural physiologic process of 'flashing colors' has been made available in printed cards. And it is also the first time that the Tattwa elements have been presented for use in divination/scrying, along with chakra stimulation, systematic daily meditations, Mind Magic to actually shape the future, the making of flashing talismans, and psychic stimulation for clairvoyance. More on this later. And, Now, THE REAL SECRET The real secret is that it takes work to train the mind to such new levels of awareness and ability to actually interact with the world of matter at the Quantum Level where change is possible. Here it is where you can actually shape "reality" - the physical world where we live and breath and where PRACTICAL MAGIC can be carried out. And that's one of the points of this article - to make magic really work, effectively and efficiently, you start from within the mind at the appropriate energy levels. The same principle applies to the development of the 'psychic' skills of divination and clairvoyance, astral travel, and balanced spiritual growth. The twenty-five Tattwa Cards provide the tools for a complete system for Self-Development in the most efficient and convenient method I've discovered in 65 years of study. The accompanying book not only details the applications in magical and spiritual work but outlines a simple program of daily meditation to quickly and naturally develop your magical and psychic skills. Outward manifestation and INNER POWER I have emphasized the practical applications of magic and divination for two reasons: 1.In this material world, we need all the help we can get to live a good life. These skills will enable you to multiply all your own aptitudes, training and education for outer (material) world success. 2.Successful outer world manifestations are a measure of the success of your mental training, and it is here that your attainment of real Inner Power becomes part of your life-long journey to wholeness. Some "teachers" advocate giving up material things to focus only on selfless 'spiritual' goals. Often these same teachers recommend that you donate your material wealth to them to carry on their work. Sometimes you will see them living in fine mansions and being driven about in expensive cars. Why is their work different than your own? I believe that turning your back upon the material world is to ignore the gift of Life and the essence of the "Plan" for the continual growth and evolution of each person and of humanity as a whole. We are caretakers of this planet and need both knowledge and skills to work within natural principles to fulfill the purpose of our being. Don't give your wealth away to charlatans or waste it on empty promises! You have an obligation to learn and apply these Inner Powers in the here and now of this world we live in. Always do the best you can, and then learn more so you can do better. Divination & Fortune-Making At every moment YOU live within a "situation" when the various Tattwic Forces are focused in a unique manner that includes space, time and a circle of other people. What this situation is either affects you or provides you with an opportunity to bring your own inner powers to bear to improve the situation for your own needs. There are many ways to determine the nature of the situation - Astrology, Dream Analysis, Numerology, Oracles of one sort or another, Tarot - all with particular values. Now Dr. Mumford has made this modern adaptation of a 2,500 year old system in order that you may directly perceive the energetic matrix. Dr. Mumford provides a complete interpretation of each card as a "navigational guide" to answer specific and well-thought out questions. He points out that each of us is Divine, and that the very word "divination" asserts our connection with the universal creative forces within which we have our being. Your act of divination not only reads the moment in relation to your question but immediately affects its outcome. "Fortune-telling" is fortune-making, so be careful in what you ask for - neither too specific nor not specific enough. Real divination is to awaken your divine powers, and is best performed within a ritual context which is completely described in the 288 "Magical Tattwas" book and facilitated with one additional ritual card in the complete set - 26 cards in all. Scrying, Clairvoyance & Astral Travel Scrying is taught through a twenty-eight day cycle of exercises building your visionary skills followed by focused concentration/meditations on the Tattwa Card of choice as a "gateway" to a particular level of the astral plane and communication with those spiritual beings and forces. In this program, most people will begin to see auras, learn to see "the body as an extension of the mind" for remote viewing and astral projection, and evoke spirits. A complete program of scrying is described to evoke imagery from the Unconscious Mind, otherwise known as the Collective Unconscious by means of the Tattwa Cards. Chakra Stimulation & Healing Each of the pure Tattwas is associated with one of the five major chakras that are in turn associated with particular areas of the body and particular psychological states. Through the ability you will have now learned to internalize the color and shape of each element you can now use them to stimulate particular chakra points on the body in the healing of both physical and psychological problems. The book guides you to use visualization on the body area in association with a particular silent sound (Bija Mantra) and breathing sequence that further empower the chakras to affect desired change. Practical Magic to Shape the Future Now, back to the beginning I told you that it is by means of our mental image that we are able to relate to the elemental energy of the particular tattwa. Dr. Mumford's book includes a complete program for utilizing this image-making power to become image-projecting through which you evoke the pure primal energy of a chosen tattwa to  surround the image of the outcome of that which you desire. You've no doubt read about "creative visualization" but now you know the great secret by which creative visualization is given nuclear power! Yes, this takes more work than simple spell-casting, but remember the Einstein formula of E=mc² where "E" stands for Energy and "m" stands for Matter. Whatever is material contains an enormous quantity of energy - hence you have to pour an enormous quantity of energy into your visualization to make it materialize. Sometimes this does happen in simple spell-casting and wishful thinking powered by emotions, candle-burnings, incense-burnings, chanting, dancing, etc. but those are all more convoluted and chancy ways to bring about the materialization of imaged desire. Tattwic empowerment is the more direct and efficient way. Yes, the training involves takes more work than simpler methods, but it not only is more sure in its results but the mental training itself is permanent and applies in every avenue of your life. "Mental Magic is the occult science of altering the physical circumstances in your life, employing psychic or nonphysical means to mediate a transformation." Think of that word, transformation: To transform means to make change, to shape the future. To transform is to affect an electric current (a transformer). That's it - we bring about change when we charge the image with energy - the electric current that we impose over the desired outcome through the powerful Tattwic image that connects our mind with the Universal Mind - the Source of All. A Complete System I promised you a "Complete System for Self-Development" and that is what the "Magical Tattwa Card" set of Tattwa Cards and 288 page book provides. Yes, it is a training program that involves work - but work is the energy that must be input if you want output - the output of a system of transformation of Self and Your World. Yes, it costs money (which is another form of energy), but the sooner you place your order the sooner you take the first step to your new life. Other resources for recommended reading: McCoy: Making Magic, chapter 10 Michaels: Essence of Tantric Sexuality Regardie: Golden Dawn Mumford: Chakra & Kundalini Workbook - from Amzon