The science of consciousness and energetics is probably the world's oldest science. Unlike exoteric science, which limits itself to merely observing, with instrumentation, and drawing conclusions from such observations; conscioussness and energetics (c&e) attunes with, feels into, becomes with the object being studied: again with instrumentation. This typically includes rituals, ritual objects and/or systems of divination. There are times that merely observing is not enough. The primary instrument used in energetics are ourselves.
The way that c&e as a science is different from exoteric science begins with the way we use the word know, or knowledge. We use in in the ancient meaning of the word, the Greek gnosis, the Hebrew daath. It goes beyond mere intellectual understanding of something, or 'knowing in the head': it implies intimate connection with, and commitment to, the thing known. It implies 'knowing in the heart', as well as the head.
C&e is popularly called 'metaphysics', but strictly speaking metaphysics is a philosophy term referring to first principles of reality, and we generally avoid it here. We do however use 'metaphysical' to refer to energies for which no exoteric scientific instrument exists to detect or measure.
In some books, books on the Golden Dawn for example, the subject matter of c&e is called magic. This is unfortunate, for magic implies a defiance of the laws of (exoteric) science. As a science, c&e is not about defying exoteric science. Rather, it is about employing its methods to various realities, and the results may or may not transcend the knowledge of exoteric science: but such transcendence for that sake alone is not the goal of c&e.
Some have questioned whether consciousness and energetics is a philosophy rather than a science. Science deals with some particular aspect of reality arbitrarily abstracted from the whole by the human mind. Philosophy is concerned with the whole problem of what being is. But many things that pervade the whole, gravity for instance and its relationship in relativity to space and time, are nonetheless considered science. C&e deals with energy, which pervades the whole in a way similar to gravity; and so thus is similarly considered science.
Nonetheless, consciousness and energetics as a science depends on certain underlying principles which are philosophical. We hold a theistic universe, created by God. The "fundamental stuff" is will, or desire, which we call yearning. (See the Philosophy document for a discussion of philosophical views in the perspective of the history of philosophy.) We hold a Hegelian postulate: all things are changing, and have their reality in the changing: therefore all things are processes. Furthermore since energy is defined as the capability to effect change, it is more than merely a phenomenon, as exoteric science takes it; it is the essence of existence. We hold the Jungian view that human beings consist of an ego and a Greater Self, and that both relationships and events in an individual's life are parts of this Greater Self. (See the Consciousness document for a detailed discussion of this and other Jungian principles.) Philosophy is however a discipline with strict and 'head' based rules, and not admitting to our stance of 'plunging in'. These underlying principles are more arguably a spirituality rather than a philosophy.
Of energy, there is known to many cultures around the world, a 'male' and 'female' variety, called spirit and soul respectively. In some cultures and traditions, especially the Kabalistic culture, there is multiplexed into soul and spirit ten varieties of energy, the sephiroth. These energies are received and used by our bodies metaphysically by the seven chakras. Some chakras receive two energies; except for that there is a one-to-one correspondence between sephiroth and chakras. The correspondences are:
| Kether | Crown (7th) |
| Chokmah, Binah | Third-eye (6th) |
| Chesed, Geburah | Throat (5th) |
| Tiphareth | Heart (4th) |
| Netzach, Hod | Solar Plexus (3rd) |
| Yesod | Pubic (2nd) |
| Malkuth | Root (1st) |
THE FOUR ELEMENTS: Multiplexed into male-female energies, and into the ten sephiroth, but especially Malkuth, are the four elements: Earth, Air, Water, Fire. These energies must be understood metaphysically, as do the sephiroth. For instance, water as an energetic element is more than just wet.
The four elements have their corresponding directions. For this, there are earth-oriented directions, and sky-oriented directions. The correspondences are:
| Earth-oriented | Sky-oriented | |
| Fire | South | East (Aries) |
| Air | East | West (Libra) |
| Water | North | North(Cancer) |
| Earth | West | South(Capricorn) |
There are also complementary color pairs associated with the elements. Complementary color pairs are subjective, that is, when you look at a colored object and then look at a dead-black object or close the eyes tightly, you will briefly see the complementary color of that object. The pairs are:
| Fire | Red and greenish-blue |
| Air | Yellow and purple |
| Water | Medium blue and orange |
| Earth | White and black |
In yoga theory there are five Tattwas, or energies, corresponding to the four elements plus Spirit. These are:
| Akasa | Spirit | egg-shape, black |
| Vayu | Air | circle, light blue |
| Tejas | Fire | triangle, red |
| Apas | Water | crescent, silver/white |
| Prithivi | Earth | square, yellow |
NUMEROLOGY: Numerology is the study of the energetic qualities of the integer numbers, especially 0 through 10, 12, 13 and 24. They are:
| 0 | Everything and nothing |
| 1 | Source, Light(God-light), Kether, conjunction |
| 2 | Duality, opposition or opposites, Chokmah, yin |
| 3 | Manifestation, Binah, Saturn, yang, trine |
| 4 | Order, Chesed, Jupiter, square |
| 5 | Justice, Geburah, Mars |
| 6 | Harmony, Balance, Center, Tiphareth, Heart, Sun, sextile |
| 7 | Rest, resistance, Netzach, Venus, elimination |
| 8 | Alternation, Hod, Mercury, transformation, semisquare |
| 9 | Gateway, sexuality, Yesod, pubic chakra, Moon |
| 10 | Completed non-recurring cycle, manifested nature, root chakra, Malkuth |
| 12 | 3 times 4, recurring cycles, dodekagram, semisextile |
| 13 | 9 sephiroth + 4 elements, tridekagram |
| 24 | 6 times 4 or 12 times 2, endless recurring cycles |
RIGHT/LEFT: There are also energetic connotations to right and left. Right is associated with the 'pillar of severity': sephiroths Hod, Geburah and Binah; the right hand and eye, with defensiveness. Note Matthew 5:29-30, the right hand and eye are mentioned. Left is associated with the "pillar of mercy'; sephiroths Netzach, Chesed and Chokmah; the left hand and eye, vulnerability.
In the exoteric world, energy is thought of quite differenty than in c&e. Energy is defined as the 'capacity to do work'. Work is defined as moving an object through a force, or an electric charge through a potential difference. Heat is recognized as energy. Energy is 'believed' only if it can be measured with a meter or other instrument. In practice however, there is much energy that is inferred even when no instrument is present or possible to measure it.
The c&e definition of energy is the capability to effect change. Exoteric energy would of course satisfy this definition. The c&e definition is a broader definition. Furthermore, since an underlying philosophical postulate in c&e is change, or processes, energy is thus an essence to all existence, as stated above. It is not merely a phenomena, as exoteric science takes it as. In general, the energy we deal with in c&e is not measureable with any kind of meter or instrument.
Many ask why we are called a 'mystery school'. What's the mystery? We call it that first because we are in the tradition of past mystery schools in studying c&e. And beyond that, we seek to keep alive and teach the values of tribal society as a valid political concept: values such as bottom-up organization of society, consensus rule, accountability-driven politics and relationships, shamans or religious leaders as coaches and mentors, hermaphroditic theories of sexuality, and initiation based on personal transformation and ritualized death and rebirth. But beyond even that, we call it that to make a statement about our use of the word know, or knowledge. To exoteric science, a mystery is a problem to be solved. To us, a mystery is something to know in the heart - but generally not in the head. Finally, mystery is a statement about the nature of science as we see it. Science is more than just the effort to explain, deduce or solve problems - solve 'mysteries'. In spiritual practices, one stands in the face of a question or a mystery, not to answer the question or solve the mystery, but to be open to what the question teaches us. And that teaching, and learning from it, is also science.