Éliphas Lévi, Transcendental Magic
Astral Light in Lévi
Lévi describes the astral light as saturated with images and reflections of objects. The soul recalls these through its diaphane, while stronger waking impressions ordinarily obscure the panorama. He also gives the medium both helpful and harmful uses, comparing it with a horse reflecting its rider. Its meaning depends on direction and use rather than inherent goodness.
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In the sources
Principal account
InterpretationLévi describes the astral light as saturated with images and reflections of objects. The soul recalls these through its diaphane, while stronger waking impressions ordinarily obscure the panorama.
Further detail
InterpretationHe also gives the medium both helpful and harmful uses, comparing it with a horse reflecting its rider. Its meaning depends on direction and use rather than inherent goodness.
Context & interpretation
This entry follows Lévi’s argument in Waite’s English translation. The entry concerns the proposed medium, without presenting its physiological claims as established measurements. The correspondences are attributed to this occult synthesis rather than presented as a universal account of every earlier tradition.
Original passages
Source 1
Transcendental Magic
saturated with all kinds of images or reflectionsOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: Éliphas Lévi, Transcendental Magic; active reader leaf 95
Exact passage checked against active scan text and original-leaf mapping; scan line breaks normalised.
- Edition
- IMJ-0026-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0026-E001-P0095
- Original scan leaf
- 95
- Recorded leaf number
- 95
- Current Reader position
- 89
- Reader verification
- Source-preserving update confirmed
Source 2
Transcendental Magic
ever reflecting the armour of his riderOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: Éliphas Lévi, Transcendental Magic; active reader leaf 113
Exact passage checked against active scan text and original-leaf mapping; scan line breaks normalised.
- Edition
- IMJ-0026-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0026-E001-P0113
- Original scan leaf
- 113
- Recorded leaf number
- 113
- Current Reader position
- 107
- Reader verification
- Source-preserving update confirmed