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The Dynamics of Equilibrium (Version 1)
Hymenaeus Alpha
To erect the temple of the Supernals there must be a foundation in fact. Failure to recognize this can result only in futility. It is the purpose of this paper to examine the present possibilities for the establishment of the Thelemic order as a force. In order to do so we must first determine those potentialities and trends inherent in the present day world of economics.
Economics encompasses in broad scope all those factors of mundane existence that form the foundation of our social structures. It is the essence of utility, as Magick is the essence of dreams. In our analysis we must take note of the two basic forms of economics – these are the Economics of Scarcity and the Economics of Abundance. All phenomena relating to the manner of living of a people may be referred to one of these as criterion. As such it is necessary that these terms be defined: The Economics of Scarcity is defined as that condition wherein the human machine must perform the bulk of the work required to maintain the existence of society as a whole. The Economics of Abundance is defined as that condition wherein at least ninety per cent of the work required to maintain a social system is performed by energy extraneous to the human body. There are many gradations of working economies that will be found to be in-between states of one of these. The present day trend is from Scarcity to Abundance. I say trend because an Economics of Abundance is not at the moment a fact; nor has it ever existed. This is not to say that isolated groups have not always enjoyed the abundance available—our cultural heritage could not have been carried on without it. This trickle of limited abundance to those of privilege, however, is not to be confused with the flood tide of abundance that will shortly be available – nor are the results of the one to be confused with the possibilities of the other. We thus find ourselves faced with the necessity of examining two questions in order to clarify the dynamics by which an equilibrium of balanced forces between the mundane and the supernal may be sup and maintained. These questions are, (1) what foundation in mundane fact best supports the Supernal Hierarchy, (2) in what manner will the Supernal Hierarchy best be able to reciprocate and enlighten the mundane. Being reciprocal upon each other these two questions are at the same time one—and as the answer is the completion of the Great Work upon Earth it is also the symbol of the Universe.
What foundation in mundane best supports the Supernal Hierarchy? For answer we refer to Liber AL and quote “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law”. The best support of the supernal by the mundane, therefore, is a condition wherein it is a natural function for the mundane to do its Will in accord with supernal law. In order that this may be true it is therefore necessary that there exist a state of economics whose every impact upon the lives of those to whom it ministers will be of such a nature as to encourage them in the fulfillment of their basic Will. In other words a social structure so designed as to produce, and give every encouragement to, the maximum number of the best instruments possible. In analogy this may be compared to that technique of American industry known as the “straight line process”. This method of producing goods combines all the operations necessary to process a product, from raw material to finished article in one machine. The impetus is the unidirectional and the method highly efficient. The comparison is, of course, merely superficial. The object is to indicate the harmony that it is possible to attain in any given process with correct design. The question of design in economics is important because of the effect any given economic system has on the thought trends of those who live in it. In primitive society we have the first form of religion which is demon worship, or the placating of a malignant Nature. This has been brought to an advanced state of philosophy in the Oriental, and agrarian, nations. The emergence of the White School of Magick came only when the tools of agriculture had developed sufficiently to enable a limited abundance to be produced. There might still be evil spirits in Nature, but at least there was something to be thankful for. The Yellow School has existed from the time it was realized that Man is merely another part of the universe—and should be regarded as such. It is dependent upon no particular set of economics because its Adepts have removed themselves from the human mass. The White and the Black Schools, however, being products of mass consciousness are directly affected by economic trends. Christianity is a case in point. This religion is based on a White doctrine – the transmuting of that which is base into that which is celestial, which should teach us that Existence is pure joy – a doctrine capable of popular support under certain ideal conditions. It has been capable of being carried on as such, however, only by Initiates. Once popularized it fell by necessity into the province of the prevailing economics of scarcity—and the unidirectional trend of scarcity is to take the joy out of existence. That which was necessary became that which was moral, that which was pure became that which was corrupt. On the other hand the unidirectional trend of abundance, as shown in those instances where a fairly large group has had access to same, is to make existence a joy. Once this root cause is established firmly, the emergence of the White doctrine becomes a natural function and the pure promptings of the soul are free to express themselves. Such a foundation in mundane fact would best support the Supernal Hierarchy.
In what manner will the Supernal Hierarchy best be able to reciprocate and enlighten the mundane? Again we turn to Liber AL and this time quote “Love is the law, love under will”. The word of the Law is Thelema. Will. Let us examine the manner in which this Will is best transmitted from the Supernals to the mundane. To do so we must analyze the possibilities of this abundance we have been speaking of. This, of course, is speaking only of the popular manner and is not construed as applying to the higher Initiation. In this we must remember the statement made earlier concerning the application of extraneous energy to the social structure. Increase in extraneous energy means a decrease in man-hours of labor in a far greater than direct ratio. This is our primary consideration. We have the alternative of a small percentage of the population being employed full time or most of the population working a small amount of the time. The second is the better procedure except in emergencies such as war. Under normal circumstances, however, the population will have the bulk of time on their hands as leisure. Those who wish can have all their time as leisure. The reason for this may not be obvious so I will elaborate. Once an abundance is established within a specified status quo of the population the system of distribution of those goods and services need make no distinction between persons. The distribution, just as the Law is for all. It is far simpler and less wasteful of manpower to plan on providing each citizen with an abundance than to complicate the distribution with varying degrees of “worthiness”. For instance ,a man refuses to work. Would this deprive him of his equitable distribution? Not at all. It must be remembered that manual labor is by far the most wasteful method of doing work, from a viewpoint of energy consumption, as well as the slowest. Manuel labor in industry is to be discouraged – it slows down the production too much. But how will industry be maintained if no one is forced to work? The answer is a matter of initiative replacing incentive. In such a set-up there can only be two methods of achieving prominence. One is by entering into competition for those positions available in industry and government – the other is by achieving distinction as a leader in some field of thought or research such as science, literature, philosophy, religion, etc. More of it later. At the moment we are interested in the impact of leisure and abundance on the thought processes of a mass. The result is to accentuate the individualities of those who compose the “mass”.
In “The Book of the Law” it is said “Let my servants be few and secret”. This is so now and would continue to be so for the simple reason that few people have both the initiative and ability necessary to go into the subject deeply. This does not mean , however, that there cannot be a favorable attitude to and support of same by the general population. The impetus engendered by leisure and abundance would be in this direction. Abundance frees the mind from what have been the necessities of mundane existence, “making a living”, etc, and leaves it undistorted. Leisure provides the necessary time in which to utilize this freedom. Acceptance of the Law is not necessarily automatic—it is merely the obstacles to the acceptance of same that have been removed. The ground is thus prepared. The work of presenting Thelema remains to be done. That religion which postulates “The poor will always be with us” no longer has a foundation. The concept that the Will of the Individual is the most important consideration possible has a fertile field. Under such a condition would the Supernal Hierarchy best be able to reciprocate and enlighten the mundane.
Having investigated the two basic questions it is now left to determine the feasibility of an Economy of Abundance emerging during the present aeon; also we may deal at greater length with the consequences of such an occurrence. In “The Book of the Law” it is written “Also reason is a lie; for there is a factor infinite & unknown; & all their words are skew-wise”. It is this factor, infinite and unknown, that places uncertainty upon any interpretation of trends. Nevertheless, we shall presently see if our interpretation is justified. To gain a proper overall perspective of the present economic trend towards abundance we must briefly review economic history. This may be condensed very simply as follows—during the entire course of human history up until the time of the industrial revolution there was one basic engine for doing work—the human engine. The extraneous energy of tamed animals, water wheels, windmills, etc accounted for approximately two percent of all work done. With the introduction of the thermal dynamics in the form of coal and petroleum there came about the well termed “Industrial Revolution”. Once this was established it became an axiom that “Machine tools are the instruments of social change”. The root of this lies in the fact that more work can be done more cheaply by machines than by men – which is the root cause of industrial unemployment. Now it has been argued that industrialization does not cause unemployment because more jobs are created thereby. This is true only in the first phase of the plant expansion curve. During the initial industrialization of any given area the labor and capital needed in plant construction and consumer exploitation of any given area does provide more jobs than are eliminated. Once this critical phase is passed, however, this argument no longer holds true. Not only is there a tapering off of plant construction, but we have also rapid advances in technology whereby smaller plants are able to produce more goods with less labor. We have here the basic factor which undermines both labor and capital. Labor is undermined because from the inflection point forward the more machines there are installed the less employment there will be. This is born out by the following example of a highly industrialized nation. From the United Sates Statistical Abstract we quote the following:
The peak of industrial employment in the United States, prior to the present war, was in 1919 and not 1929 as popularly supposed. Capitol is undermined in the following manner. Industrialization is a virile force in economics as long as there is an expansion of plant capacity – this is true not only because of the additional employment offered (not forgetting that with advanced technology one new plant can turn out the produce of several obsolete plants with less labor) but because as long as there is a new plant to be constructed there is opportunity for capital and investment. When there is opportunity for investment there is demand for capital; when capital is in demand there is a high interest rate—the wages of capital. Once the inflection point is reached the entire system becomes senile. There will be new plants built until the saturation point is reached, but it will be a tapering off process. This is fatal. As less plants are being built there is less demand for capital. Capital, therefore, becomes a surplus on the market. Being a surplus the amount it can demand as wage decreases—in the competition between those who have capital for the dwindling amount of investment available, the interest rate must undergo a progressive decline. Again we may refer to the United States for example. During the industrial growth of the nation plant expansion was at such a rate to give basis for considering 5 to 6% interest as normal. Once the inflection point was reached, however, there was a steady decline until by the time the United States began supplying the United Nations with Lend-Lease, the interest rate for new capital had become a fraction of a percent. War expansion is a temporary measure and has no effect upon the long term trend. With capital a surplus and interest negligible those institutions that depend on investment for income become endangered. Thus banks and insurance companies, (with most of their assets liquid), endowed institutions, and the “vested” interests in general face bankruptcy through loss of income.
With the progressive ruin of labor and the cumulative bankruptcy of capital it is inevitable that, sooner or later, a crisis ensue. A series of such have occurred. This type of crisis is to be differentiated from the “financial panic” type which may be manipulated through monetary control. There is financial panic as well as general unemployment in such a circumstance, but the cause is different. The cause lies in the unidirectional trend inherent in industrial economics once the inflection point is reached. This trend is the previously expounded paradox that the more goods there are produced, the less labor will be needed and the more machines there are installed the less plants will be in use. It is the advance in technology that makes this paradox a fact. In the United States we have had three depressions attributable to this cause. The dates are 1900, 1920, and 1929. Depressions of similar nature have affected the other nations of the Western world. It is thought provoking to compare the economics of the Eastern world in this respect, at approximately the same dates, but in no other country has the cause and effect been so well illustrated. The reason is that the United States of America has the highest rate of consumption of extraneous energy per capita of any nation on earth. Being the most advanced industrially and therefore the best example of technology applied to economics, it is the testing ground on which present day concepts of private enterprise will either be proven or dis-proven. In this respect it might well be pointed out that the primary reason why industrial North America lagged behind the rest of the world in recovering from the 1929 depression was this advanced stage of technology. One more illustration should conclude this argument. As previously mentioned the high point of industrial labor was reached in 1919. As a consequence there was a depression in 1920. Consumer exploitation had reached a high stage of development by then, however, and capital while entering upon the senile stage, was still in the prime of its maturity. It was, therefore, not difficult to introduce a few devices of paper credit and carry on “business as usual”. One of these devices was installment buying whereby the dwindling purchasing power of a wage earner could be mortgaged to future commitments. Another was the expansion of service facilities to the saturation point. Perhaps the most important was the creation of paper credit on the stock market whereby the values of existing plants were greatly exaggerated. This was possible only as long as there was confidence in the soundness of business – as was well illustrated in the manner by which this “paper house” fell apart. The watering process having reached a saturation point, it remained only for a few of the larger operators to sell out—when this happened there was a general tendency to tighten up. Once this happened the smaller operators and stockholders lost confidence and there was a panic to sell. Had this stock been on a sound basis this would have resulted in only a minor fluctuation. Being mostly paper, however, the result was a crash right down to the foundation. Once a modern industrial depression is under way it moves in a vicious spiral and competition becomes the death of trade. Competition demands lower prices, lower prices demand lower costs, lower costs demand more efficient machines, more efficient machines cause more unemployment, resulting in loss of purchasing power, less purchasing power demands lower prices and down the spiral goes. In this we have our crisis.
It thus having been shown that industry cannot expand indefinitely, and that when it ceases to expand it dies a natural death, there remains only to be shown at what stage this is most likely to come about, what real and terrible dangers there are involved and the only possible solution other than a state of chaos. This stage will come about when the declining curve of wages and interest rate can no longer support the industrial machine even when subsidized by the Federal government. This last is very important. In 1920 industry had sufficient capital to finance its on recovery. In 1930 this was no longer the case and it therefore became necessary for the National Treasury to finance not only the wage earner with unemployment compensation, but also to subsidize industry and farming with loans and financial backing from many different types of alphabetical agencies. When this subsidy was partly withdrawn in `1937 we had a “recession”. the dangers involved are both very real and very terrible. The life of every American citizen depends upon the continued and uninterrupted flow of that extraneous energy which makes it possible to support 130,000,000 people in an area that was capable of supporting only a few thousand Indians. That more white men were able to support themselves by farming does not apply to the present day because our 130,000,000 people do not support themselves by agriculture. It must be realized that, that which was a fact 100 years ago is not necessarily a fact today. The situation is rapidly approaching saturation—when this point is reached many things will happen at once. Unemployment will have reached a new peak, all business will be stagnant and the National debt will be astronomical. This has happened before without fatal consequences—what makes this so special? It is special because those depressions that have proceeded it were on a smaller scale and the government cannot this time finance another recovery without disastrous inflation. With or without inflation the result will be the same. Power plants and the transportation firms may be kept operating by troops if necessary, but 20,000,000 or more unemployed and their dependents cannot be kept docile many years without confidence. Not in America. Confidence in business has been shattered once and will be again. Confidence in government will be when it has been shown that government can no longer deal with the situation. The civil disorder that will then arise from the panic of desperation and fear will engulf the forces of law and order. Every type of violence from the hi-jacking of food convoys to the destruction of vital installations by unreasoning mobs. Inflation would only quicken and increase the catastrophe. Such is the inevitable dead end of any nation that commits itself to such a high rate of energy consumption unless there is a change in the operating procedure. It has been said that the Communist Revolution in Russia was such a change. This is not true because Czarist Russia was not industrial. Not can there be a Communist Revolution in America because such a revolution would entail exactly what we have been speaking of – chaos. The paralyzing of all energy transmission. Once the industrial machine is stopped dead center it can only be started again by building up gradually as has been the case in all industrial nations. This takes years and the bulk of our population would have either starved or been killed by mob action. Nor can the Fascist State be the answer. If such a governmental control did seize power it could prolong the issue a few years through war, but the end result would be the same.
Now having made an analysis of our problem it is only left to form a synthesis of that which must be done to correct it, discuss the methods by which it may be applied and determine whether or not it has the desired bearing on the topic under consideration: the erection of the Temple of the Supernals in a foundation of material fact. As previously pointed out it is the loss of purchasing power and unemployment that brings the crisis to a head – and yet we have all the facilities necessary for the producing of an abundance. The answer is to devise a method by which this abundance may be distributed to the individual. The only equitable basis of distribution is the citizenship of the individual concerned. Such a system may be instituted by a national election. Will this have the desired result? the answer is that it will—but to complete the paper it will be necessary to determine the reasons therefore. The mechanism of government whereby a system of distribution may function must be set up along the following general outline. There must be a board of scientists whose task will be to determine the energy needs of the nation for allotted periods of time. Election to this board must only come through the ranks of the industries they represent. The method of doing same is the selection of candidates from immediately below a position and the appointment of one of those to fill the position by the executive immediately above. By these two tests are initiative and ability brought to their highest degree. Also government is non-political. It being possible to become a success only through the limited number of industrial positions the competition will be terrific. At the same time those to whom the seeking of knowledge through science, religion, philosophy, the arts, etc, is more important are given every freedom and every encouragement. Educational facilities, unhampered by lack of funds, can be expanded to the saturation point. The great middle section which is not ambitious or talented will find their hobby or pleasure somewhere in this vast program of educating the American people for living. Through this freedom and encouragement research in all fields of knowledge will receive and unprecedented impetus. It is true that not every potato farmer has the brains to rise to this level – but a surprisingly large number have. the kings would still be kings, the dogs would still be dogs – but the plane of existence will have been raised far beyond any heights we know of today. this is the end product in the evolution of economized government. In America it is ready to be tested. Our task is to attend this birth with skill and fortitude. Thus I proclaim the Era of Abundance in the Aeon of Horus, the Crowned and Conquering Child, whereby the glory of the stars will be brought into the hearts of men and the winged secret flame shall wed the stooping starlight.
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