If a person wishes to reach a goal or to become proficient with something, and then dedicates themselves to a certain amount of practice or to the path that leads to that goal, and these proficiencies and goals also lead them to become a happier and more enlightened person, and thus closer to God, isn't this then a part of their True Will? Perhaps a better starting point for this post is the question, what is Will?
Will is one of the five faculties that our human consciousness can be divided into, the other four being Intellect, Emotion, Imagination, and Memory. The New Oxford American Dictionary defines it as "the faculty by which a person decides on and initiates action", and also as "a deliberate or fixed desire or intention", and "the thing one desires or ordains". Will is integral within the practice of magick, just look at Crowley's definition of magick, "the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will." This is why it is important to understand exactly what it is, and how your Will and your True Will can differ. Your True Will is that which comes from your higher self, and ultimately comes down to attainment of unity with your higher(enlightened/fully realized) self and thus with divinity. This is not to say that it is a desire to become a god, but a desire and intention to become one with God regardless of what name or names you may use for Divinity. I fall into the school of thought that everything works within certain levels of vibration. As such, I recognize that if a person does regular meditations and pathworkings that bring them into contact with Divinity, then they will naturally raise their vibrational levels and thus slowly move toward that unity. Which brings us back to my original question, if a person actively seeks a goal which makes them feel happier or more complete and it also serves to make them a more enlightened person then is this not an extension of True Will?
As an example, Joe Snuffy has a goal of playing a musical instrument. When he takes the time to seek out a teacher and sets a certain amount of daily practice time, it shows his devotion to this intent. This is an exercise of his Will. Now, as he practices and plays it makes him happier overall in his life. He is attaining a goal which makes him feel more accomplished, and let's say that at the same time his music offers a different way for him to see the world around him and thus makes him a more enlightened person. In this case, his dedication to learning that instrument was in line with his True Will, which brought him closer to unity with God. Now, let's extend that into the realm of magickal pursuits. Joe wants a better job, and after taking some courses and writing up his resume is still having trouble landing that dream job. He decides to do a spell to help push himself in the right direction. After considering exactly how to do it, he settles on doing a ritual which will help to bring out the qualities in himself that he believes the employers are looking for in that field of work. He does this by creating a talisman that is charged with the energies of a Sphere on the Tree of Life that embodies these qualities. Through this working he must ritually invoke that sphere and its energies which are at a higher vibrational level than our physical world in Malkuth, and as such closer to Divinity. This, then, is a brush with Divinity and as such helps to raise Joe's natural vibrational level. In this case, his working served both his Will to help get that job and his True Will of Unity.
In no way am I saying that magickal acts are the only way to attain that unity, nor am I saying that magick cannot be used for less divine reasons. We all know that our worldy desires do not always have such high aims. I, for one, have used magick for more worldy pursuits and I am sure I am not the only one. Going back to our example, Joe could have chosen simply to do his ritual in order to remove his competition for that job or done a working specifically to bring that job to him instead of bringing out the qualities in him. Am I saying that there is anything wrong or evil in these choices? No, not at all. These are simply other choices that are open to Joe. Ultimately though, it is the paths we choose in order to attain our goals that define who we are and whether or not we become closer to that Unity with God. And, in order to better choose which paths to walk, we must be knowledgeable of our Will and our True Will and where each leads. Sometimes, they will be one and the same and other times they will be vastly different directions.
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