My Best Thoughts for 2023

Introduction

2023 started with an immense desire to step up my creator game. This included experimenting with YouTube’s community tab and sharing reflections to connect with my audience better. Based on personal experiences, these were messages to my former self — syntheses that resonated with others, provoking discussions and some incredibly inspiring comments. Time passed, and some shared that my posts are usually at the right time based on their situation. Others added they actually collect them in a folder.

Appreciating the support, moved by such words, I decided to curate and (slightly) comment on the best. That is based on likes, engagement, and my opinion. Put differently, I’ll say a few words about it and move to the next chronologically.

Extraordinary Results

“With or without magick, extraordinary results require extraordinary effort…”

This emphasizes that magick follows a natural law. Hence, a ‘successful working’ to accomplish something in the physical world of action doesn’t eliminate the need to take action. It increases the probability of taking the right kind of such.

Self-Esteem and Confidence

“Become so good your lack of self-confidence/self-esteem no longer matters.”

— While 95% of self-help books obsess about confidence, this may not be what many of us should focus on. No matter how high, that can’t make up actual skill(s), knowledge, understanding, proficiency, and experience. On the contrary, building those inevitably increases one’s confidence. So do that and leave obsessions with self-confidence to those lacking the mentioned.

The People from the Past

” A significant harm people from the past can do is drag you back to your old self, thoughts, and paradigms.”

— Depending on where you are in your journey, getting back to your better (current) state may require days of effort after dealing with a person from the past.

” A significant harm people from the past can do is drag you back to your old self, thoughts, and paradigms.”

— While magick can show you that in a rather drastic way, that’s not mandatory. Coupled with honesty, a simple life inventory will give you the clarity needed to make a distinction.

Yesterday and Tomorrow

“Don’t let yesterday determine tomorrow…”

— Going hand-in-hand with the former, this doesn’t require magick. A mere honesty and reminder you have self-worth will do just fine.

Geburah and Decisions

“Geburah can improve your decision-making when in a dilemma, yet it won’t increase the number of decisions you can make.”

— Called the ‘Sacrificial Priest,’ Geburah sacrifices the wrong or less optimal choices for the greater good. It is the force to use when struggling with critical long-term decisions, yet it won’t help make for poor decision-making with day-to-day tasks and willpower-depletion.

Passions, Habits, and Goals

“Hod’s intellect and reasoning are useless at best without Netzach’s passions and emotions (fueling them). The rational brain only rationalizes the decisions the emotional has already made. Following your passion is not required. Being passionate about the reasons behind your habits and goals is.”

— As evident in Dion Fortune, Christopher Hyatt, and Baba Shiv’s works, Hermetic Qabalah and behavior psychology agree that though ‘following your passion’ isn’t always good advice, being emotionally invested and even passionate about your habits and goals is essential to success.

Parents and Coaches

“Ensure gurus and coaches you follow do not substitute abusive parental figures. Parents can mess up your childhood, gurus — your life. Avoiding trauma is not always possible for the child, but the (grown-up) adult has the power to prevent it from affecting their future. A big part of that is breaking free from, not replacing, the oppressor…”

— Being a personal favorite, I don’t think t need this needs any additional comments. It’s a healthy reminder to take responsibility for your own self and state(s). On the self-help side, it implies being mindful of gurus instilling a sense of guilt and shame because of not being (enough) disciplined, productive, jacked, etc., reinforcing personality deficits. On the occult — be very careful of organizations you may consider joining and the full spectrum of outcomes that will have. For self-helpers, I suggest Marissa Peer‘s discussions of ‘being enough’ for the occultist — Mark Stavish’s Egregores.

Magick and the Law of Attraction

“Magick systematically makes one take advantage of the Law of Attraction based on one’s goals and situation.”

— Much of practical magick is based on attuning your sphere of being to a particular, current, entity or force. And this implies immensely increasing awareness of its aspects and manifestation in your and the lives of those around you.

Celebrating All Wins

“Expecting others to give you a prize for overcoming difficulties and obstacles is just as ridiculous as not doing it yourself. Not celebrating your small wins prevents celebrating the big ones…”

— Taking yourself for granted is a sure way to deprive your life of joy and excitement. On the contrary, incorporating some self-congratulations and rewarding reasonably and regularly brings light despite going through a darker period.

Sense-Making Rituals

“The more sense-making and enjoyable a ritual is, the more significant the impact it produces.”

— Surely, there are caveats to this, as (specific) names and words impact the psyche no matter what. Yet, generally, the first is crucial for maximally influencing it, whereas the second is for actually engaging it.

Tolerance to Discomfort

“Fear, doubt, and insecurities will always be there. Do things anyway. Don’t try to build confidence. Build tolerance to feeling uncomfortable”

— Complimenting number two, this aims to shift your focus from the mindless obsession with confidence. Based on personal experience, the tolerance to feeling uncomfortable is much more doable and powerful. Plus, this way, you have both your comfort and the ability to engage in not-necessarily enjoyable yet necessary activities. You simply do them, ignoring the often quite persistent discomfort. Then you revert to enjoying your comfort zone with the piece of mind you got the important. If self-discipline is doing the right things, whether you like it or not, this can be viewed as a form of it. Self-confidence isn’t required. Truly reliable skills, proficiency, and experience are.

Your Own Philosopher

” Practicing Magick implies becoming your own philosopher…” 

— Influenced by Thelemic and LHP books, this encourages finding your own meaning(s) and developing your cosmogeny. It also reminds (low-key) that philosophy should always be the byproduct of life and magick and never precede them.

Magick and Systems

“Magick does not eliminate the necessity for habits and systems. It helps you build better ones and be more effective…”

Self-explanatory, this one also emphasizes that magick doesn’t replace the need to strive to do your best in Assiah. It facilitates that to a degree based on the operator’s proficiency.

Biohackers and Magicians

“What biohackers do with their body and brain, magicians do with their mind and soul…”

Self-explanatory, this one also emphasizes that magick doesn’t replace the need to strive to do your best in Assiah. It facilitates that to a degree based on the operator’s proficiency.

Biohackers and Magicians

“What biohackers do with their body and brain, magicians do with their mind and soul…”

— The first attain peak performance through diet, exercise, and supplements. The second —activates particular aspects of their psyche based on circumstances. Both perform experiments, both are alchemists and being both is the best, as magick can make you aware of the optimization you need the most.

Essence and Personality

“Develop a personality that won’t hinder but support and nourish the growth of your essence…”

— Informed by the 4th Way teachings, this one is acquiring the skills and knowledge to better connect with and express your essence.

Seeing Spirits

“Seeing spirits isn’t necessary. Expreriencing the results of the working is…”

— This aims not to prevent focusing on getting visual contact, freeing your mind for the outcome and the truly important magick reveals. Dion Fortune and Scott Stenwick agree that seeing the spirit may diminish the working’s impact.

Magick and Natural Law

“Magick does not break natural law; it allows you to take advantage of it…”

— As magickal books stress, you are the gate between the deeper worlds. Sure, synchronicities are not just thoughts. They are experiences encompassing places, media, nature, events, people, etc. Yet, without you, they are no longer synchronicities. As LHP scholars stress, you are the biggest mystery.

Magick sheds Light

“Magick primarily doesn’t create anything; It sheds light on what’s already there to appreciate, accomplish, and overcome…”

— Consider the mentioned regarding attuning yourself to a particular force and its correspondences, and do a rough estimation of the results.

Nourish your Excitement

“The more you nourish your excitement the less discipline you need…”

— Self-help obsesses about preparing for the times when you lack motivation and excitement. I suggest using systems and routines, reducing those to a minimum, and then seeing what works best.

2023

This is one of the things I accomplished this year, and you best believe this channel played a massive role. I hope the same applies to you. Let me know if it does. I’d like to thank everyone and say the names of Genghis Ghalahad, Keith Crook, WichoSuavee, Maxim Metodiev, greengoddess73, and apprentice364 (on IG) — also, to all my Etsy customers. As the methods I follow advocate, you inspire me to strive for excellence with every piece. Speaking of that, the covered posts balanced Magick and Personal Development, as to me they go hand-in-hand. I’d be happy to know if you would appreciate me including more of the second in 2024, or should I do that elsewhere? Either way, I’ll be glad to have you on board, and I wish you a phenomenal 2024.