Ptolemaic Astral Ascent Mysticism

Michael Hoffman, updated 2025/04/07‘

_{Site Map: Astral Ascent Mysticism}

Contents:

• How Many Spheres Is Most Useful Above the Fixed Stars?
• August 1, 2022 Updated Model
• Basic Astral Ascent Mysticism Cosmology
• The Three Experiential Mental Worldmodels
• Mapping the Basic Astral Ascent Model to the Three Experiential Worldmodels
• Commentary/Design Reasons
• The Three Experiential Mental Worldmodels
• Update/Cleaned up: Cleaned Up Scheme After Critiquing Hanegraaff Hermetic Spirituality Book

• November 10, 2020: Original Posting/ Research
• 3-Level Model of Ego Transcendence Mapped to 10-Level Geocentric Cosmological Ascent Mysticism
• 2-Level Model of Ego Transcendence Mapped to 10-Level Geocentric Cosmological Ascent Mysticism
• The Entheogen Engine for Experiencing Ascent
• Labelling the Cosmology as Ptolemic or as Geocentric
• The 2-Level Egodeath Cosmology
• The 3-Level Egodeath Cosmology
• The Ptolemaic Cosmology (Mystical Geocentric)
• The Sphere of the Fixed Stars
• Ptolemaic geocentric system by Portuguese cosmographer and cartographer Bartolomeu Velho, 1568
• Cosmological Review
• The Eighth Reveals the Ninth (The Discourse on the Eighth & Ninth)
• List of Levels in the Geocentric Cosmology per the Discourse on the 8th & 9th
• Metaphor/Analogy for Altered-State Death and Rebirth
• Jesus from Outer Space
• Mithraism – Where Was Astral Ascent Mysticism Incorporated
• Modern Cosmology – A Different Potential for Mystic Altered State Mythemes
• Cygnus X-1 (Rush, 1977)
• Astronomy Domine & Interstellar Overdrive (Pink Floyd, 1967)
• See Also

How Many Spheres Is Most Useful Above the Fixed Stars?

Objections to this picture:

• Puts the Elect (creatures) on same level as God (creator).
• Redundant undifferentiated sphere 9 (crystalline) & 10 (prime mover).

Solution: Move elect below God, merge sphere 9 + 10, The result = Davidson Sep 2024 video “What is Hermeticism?” picture at 12:42. In that diagram, 10 outside spheres = God, sphere 9 = transcend eternalism; spirit; integrated possibilism/eternalism. in this image w/ 10 spheres + outside, you can delete sphere 9 + 10 with no change. outside sphere 8 would be “transcend eternalism”.

Just noticed: God is within a sphere. clouds are higher than God. God is a helpless puppet controlled by the cloud gods, held captive prison slave kidnapped. So this image is actually has spheres 9, 10, & 11. level 12 outside spheres. Needless multiplication. argument from cosmos items: a 9-sphere model is best. even that has play, re: has a level 10 outside of sphere 9. I vote for a 10-level, 9-sphere sysetms, on the argument from physical cosmos: we are given:

7 planets
sphere of the fixed stars
implies outside fixed stars
earth

by committing to a 9 -sphere, 10-level system, easy straigthfwd to write & name levels:

level 10) outside spheres, God, Source
sphere 9) outside eternalism; hyper-eternalism; integrated possibilism/eternalism; transcend eternalism; qualified possibilism-thinking. eternalism model not only retained, but also integrated with Possibilism mental model of time, self, and control.
8) fixed stars = eternalism , eternalism model finally retained – but not integrated.
7) sphere 7 = Saturn
1) moon = 1st Psilocybin session = 1/8 eternalism model retained.
0) earth, elements: possibilism

Images, Diagrams

https://prints.sciencesource.com/featured/3-medieval-zodiac-science-source.html – shows jpg:
https://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large/3-medieval-zodiac-science-source.jpg —

https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/364080/view/illustration-of-the-ptolemaic-world-system has picture:
https://media.sciencephoto.com/image/v7000043/800wm/V7000043-Illustration_of_the_Ptolemaic_world_system.jpg —

7 spheres above the fixed stars. Region outside the spheres has {cut right trunk} & {right foot forward}. Bull faces right; POV outside the cosmos.

I prefer this elegant, least-confusion, 9-sphere, 10-level model: it fits well w/ heremetic texts, and fits pretty well with the renaissance elaborated model. Also the scientists say each sphere has 4 spheres, so, we’re always talking – in such diagrams — in terms of a simplification. So, let us simplify! Not add unhelpful spheres that don’t map to the actual physical cosmos bodies. Put precession of equi precession of the equinoxes in sphere 9, put God outside that sphere. Mithraism system is the result.

Video title: What is Hermeticism?
Channel: ReligionForBreakfast, Sep. 20, 2024
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COYJi9CKrGI&t=762s
The writer of this episode is Paul Davidson; his blog “Is that in the Bible?”:
https://isthatinthebible.wordpress.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primum_Mobile#Spherical_variations – “Spherical variations – The total number of celestial spheres was not fixed. In this 16th-century illustration, the firmament (sphere of fixed stars) is eighth, a “crystalline” sphere (posited to account for the reference to “waters … above the firmament” in Genesis 1:7) is ninth, and the Primum Mobile is tenth. Outside all is the Empyrean, the “habitation of God and all the elect”.”

Spheres or levels 9-11 are the most indeterminate/ redundant/ undifferentiated/ conjectural/ artificial.

What seems most useful for Egodeath theory is a 10-level model with two sphere or levels that are higher than fixed stars / eternalism: the highest level of consciousness = 9, outside of fixed stars, ie, integrated possibilism/eternalism thinking; and then God, above that. ie, I’d place the Elect in sphere 9, and God in sphere 10.

I really like the elegance of that picture from Paul Davidson video. 10, outside the spheres, can be God, Source. 9, outside fixed stars, can be transcendence of heimarmene/ eternalism. 8, fixed stars, is clear-cut in all systems, = Fate – nevermind Davidson’s confusion, and Hanegraaff’s, and fellow scholars.

The confused scholars fixate on just one vague text, Poimandres, that gives them the impression that the highest level of fate is 7, Saturn – while at the same time, they know, from all other texts and models, fixed stars = Fate = Demiurge, thus the highest level of Fate is sphere 8, fixed stars. Their confused and contradictory, waffling, and THE REASON THEY AVOID SAYING “FIXED STARS” AND “SPHERE 8” AND “FATE” TOGETHER, IS, THEY KNOW THEY CARRY TWO CONTRADICTORY SYSTEMS.

The Unresolved Two Contradictory Cosmos Models from Hanegraaff & Davidson etc

is comparable to the inconsistent number of levels beyond sphere of the fixed stars:

The bane of autists is the AWFUL Poimandres phrase:

“the 7 planetary spheres of Fate”

— AS IF sphere 8 fixed stars is NOT Fate!

That is the source of the confusion that causes Hanegraaff to write:

“Whether the fixed stars should be included [with Saturn, sphere 7] or should rather be associated with the Ogdoad [sphere 8] remains an open question for me.” – p. 294, footnote 114, Hermetic Spirituality and the Historical Imagination: Altered States of Knowledge in Late Antiquity, by Wouter Hanegraaff, 2022

DOES POIMANDRES, OR DOES IT NOT, PUT FATE AT OGDOAD?
https://egodeaththeory.org/2020/11/11/mythemes-in-the-hermetic-discourse-on-the-eighth-and-ninth/

The Key Lack & Problem: Hermetic Texts Don’t Explicitly Say “Fixed Stars = Fate”

Model 1 (Poimandres): Highest Fate Level is Saturn

Sphere 7 (Saturn) – permitted or possibly implied by vague Poimandres, but generally rejected by ancients & scholars.

Solving this problem is important enough to mention in footnote 114, but is more important than that.

Resolving this disparity is so important, there should have been a chapter in Hanegraaff w/ ramifications of holding fixed stars as being Above Fate vs. = Fate.

Hanegraaff throughout book outright asserts “the Ogdoad above the heimarmene” – p. 258, Hermetic Spirituality and the Historical Imagination: Altered States of Knowledge in Late Antiquity, by Wouter Hanegraaff, 2022
oah

Is is possible to quote hermetic texts to prove Hanegraaff is wrong? also quote Hanegraaff in same book, asserting that fixed stars are heimarmene! as if Ogdoad != sphere of the fixed stars! the infamous Y split of his arg’n:

Hanegraaff et al‘s Fatal Contradiction:
Fate = fixed stars = sphere 8 = Ogdoad = above Fate [great summary of analysis!]

Summarizing the contradiction warranting a clear definite pick of model:

Hanegraaff makes these 3 assertions (page numbers available):

• fixed stars = Fate
• Ogdoad = above Fate
• Ogdoad = sphere of fixed stars

Thus footnote 114: “Whether the fixed stars should be included [with Saturn, sphere 7] or should rather be associated with the Ogdoad [sphere 8] remains an open question for me.”

• Fate = fixed stars
• fixed stars = sphere 8
• sphere 8 = Ogdoad
• Ogdoad = above Fate

DOES NOT ADD UP – DOES NOT COMPUTE – CONTRADICTION

IF the writer of Poimanders or “8 reveals 9” thinks fixed stars = above fate, that author CANNOT hold that fixed stars = Fate or that rising higher than Saturn puts you above Fate.

9) Ennead above Fate
8) Ogdoad above Fate (!)
7) Saturn – Fate
6) Jup – Fate
5) Mars – Fate
4) Sun – Fate
3) Venus – Fate
2) Mer – Fate
1) Moon – Fate
0) Earth – Fate

Model 2 (everyone else): Highest Fate Level is Fixed Stars

Though Scholars Know and Say That’s Standard – The Result in Practice Is Two Contradictory Models: Fixed Stars = Above Fate, vs. Fixed Stars = Fate

Given that I cannot quote hermetic texts to prove that fixed stars = Fate, I have to fall back to quoting the inconsistent scholars when, during discussing heremtic texts, teh scholars randomly & inconsistently (but correctly) mention and asssert that “fixed stars = Fate”.

Hanegraaff & Davidson say: following Poimandres,

“Fate = the 7 planets, then you rise above planets THEREFORE ABOVE FATE to read magically labelled vague hazy “the Ogdoad” (they ALWAYS go silent here and avoid saying “fixed stars”, b/c that would reveal their inconsistency & confusion – confusion from ancient writers & confusion from these scholars).

Like the ancient tradition of over-hyping Amanita causes 1st-generation entheogen scholarship to overhype magic-realm mythic Amanita as the uber super-psychedelic, WAY better than Psilocybin.

BUT, Also Hanegraaff & Davidson:

“Everyone knows Fate = fixed stars = sphere 8”.

— contradicting the BAD WRITING OF THE ANCIENTS in Poimandres that caused Justin Sledge to remark, what a bad unphilosophical MESS the Hermetica are, compared to proper Philosophy.

11) Empyrean – God & Elect
10) Primum Mobile
9) crystalline – waters above the firmament –
8) fixed stars – firmament

Simple 10-level model per Egodeath theory:

10) God; Source; the hidden, uncontrollable source of control-thoughts. above your spirit. either a sphere or, region outside sphere.
9) outside fixed stars – integrated possibilism/eternalism – prime mover, Pleroma. your spirit rises to here.
8) fixed stars – firmament

https://www.bing.com/search?q=Primum+Mobile – “Outermost moving sphere: Primum Mobile is the outermost moving sphere in classical, medieval, and Renaissance astronomy. Causes rotation of all inner spheres in the geocentric model. The ninth heaven in the Ptolemaic universe. Beyond the sphere of fixed stars. Moves the underlying spheres in a rapid rotation. In Dante, the physical origin of life, motion, and time. Enclosed by the Empyrean, the mind of God.”

August 1, 2022 Updated Model

April 7, 2025 revision

Basic Astral Ascent Mysticism Cosmology

The Standard Reference Model per the Egodeath Theory of Psychedelic Eternalism

The goal is to simply and usefully relate, by defining a standard reference model:

• mental model transformation re: eternalism
• cosmos model of Hermetism, Gnosticism, Christian, renaissance, Mithraic, neoplatonic.
• the art genre of mushroom-trees (Left/ possibilism/ branching/ unstable vs. Right/ eternalism/ non-branching/ stable)

Mapping Cosmic Spheres, Mental Models, Mushroom-Tree Motifs, & Level Names

April 7, 2025

Mapping Cosmic Spheres, Mental Models, Mushroom-Tree Motifs, & Level Names

sphere # – cosmos body – mental model – mushroom-tree – name
————————————
10 – outside all spheres – source of control-thoughts – God, Source.
9 – outside fixed stars – possibilism/eternalism – {floating feet}, {balance} – spirit; Elect, pleroma, Empyrean, prime mover, Primum Mobile, crystalline waters
8 – fixed stars – eternalism – {Right}, {non-branching} – soul – firmament
7 – Saturn – 7/8 eternalism – body
6 – Jupiter – 6/8 eternalism
5 – Mars – 5/8 eternalism
4 – Sun – 4/8 eternalism
3 – Venus – 3/8 eternalism
2 – Mercury – 2/8 eternalism
1 – Moon – 1/8 eternalism
0 – Earth – possibilism – body – {Left}, {branching} – sublunary, elements

The Three Experiential Mental Worldmodels

3 – qualified possibilism-thinking; integrated possibilism/eternalism
2 – basic eternalism-thinking
1 – naive possibilism-thinking; basic possibilism-thinking

Mapping the Basic Astral Ascent Model to the Three Experiential Worldmodels

3 – qualified possibilism-thinking = {outside fixed stars}
2 – basic eternalism-thinking = {fixed stars}
1 – naive possibilism-thinking = {Earth}

3 – possibilism/eternalism = {outside fixed stars}
2 – eternalism = {fixed stars}
1 – possibilism = {Earth}

3 – qualified possibilism-thinking = {the Empyrean}
2 – basic eternalism-thinking = {the sphere of the fixed stars}*
1 – naive possibilism-thinking = {the sublunary realm (Earth)}

* and {the sphere of Saturn}, which highlights the moment/function of sacrifice when switching to eternalism-thinking. That’s a dynamic, but the above is meant to depict a static view.

For some more detail, picture development of “basic eternalism-thinking” (and in the late phase of that, {sacrifice child}), as spread across the series of peak windows (or a series of celestial spheres/gates).

Eternalism-thinking is developed in the tightcog state in between peak windows too.

Commentary/Design Reasons

Baseline General Purpose Simplified Ptolemaic astral ascent mysticism model.

Designed to be in between complicated models and the Egodeath theory; it can readily converse with diverse complex models and with a suitable expression of the Egodeath theory.

Needs to have a slot for God (source of control thoughts)

Needs to have a region above fixed stars, for ppl who transcended no-free-will / eternalism; ie: Returned to possibilism-thinking consciousness experiential SoC after returning to baseline, remembering/ comprehending the eternalism experiential realization. All specific instances of this model are too complex; to speak coherently to them without taking on unneeded arb complexity, here is my abstracted model that can readily map to any particular such cosmology while also readily usefully mapping to the Egodeath theory (the 3 actual mental worldmodels sequence that’s the real cognitive phen’y referent):

The Three Experiential Mental Worldmodels

3 – qualified possibilism-thinking
2 – basic eternalism-thinking
1 – naive possibilism-thinking

The goal in this scheme is to emphasize the different “lived” experiential modes instead of only focusing on underlying metaphysical epistemological model. “foo-thinking” here doesn’t mean theoretical metaphysical model (“I believe in eternalism block universe with no-free-will”);

rather, it means practical utilizing and (cog phen’y) experiencing of of egoic mental structures at arm’s length while dis-identified from those intact, preserved structures, a la Ken Wilber, even while theoretically/ metaphysically/ philosophically believing in no-free-will / eternalism / block universe/ uncontrollable source of personal control-thoughts.

Even if metaphysically there are only two worldmodels (possibilism vs eternalism), re: experiential cog pheny, there are three mental worldmodels, when you consider the relevant thing, the combination of stage+state:

3) transcendent stage, tightcog state
2) transcendent stage, loosecog state
1) egoic stage, tightcog state

sum that up by “three experiential worldmodels”. naive inexperienced egoic mental worldmodel; that sequence proceeds:

4) transcendent worldmodel, tightcog state (long-term)
3) transcendent worldmodel, loosecog state (restored to stable)
2) egoic worldmodel, loosecog state (unstable/transient/mortal/perishable)
1) egoic worldmodel, tightcog state

Sometimes use the simplest, 2-level model (1st-order model):

2) eternalism
1) possibilism

It’s just less detail. More clarity, less precision. Interesting to start there then double each to form 4-level sequential scheme: (2nd-order model):

2b) eternalism tightcog (qualified possibilism-thinking)
2a) eternalism loosecog (basic eternalism-thinking)
1b) possibilism loosecog (unstable possibilism-thinking)
1a) possibilism tightcog (naive possibilism-thinking)

qualified possibilism-thinking = my Feb 1988 after finding limits of control and why; now that enlightenment = block universe preexisting control thoughts, “How then are we to live??”

How do I act as a controller king now that I’ve seen the true king?

How do I practically (on the surface) act as a control agent, now that I know about the (underlying) uncontrollable source of control thoughts?

Arriving at that problem = entering the era of “qualified possibilism-thinking”.

In contrast, arriving at era/short phase of discovering eternalism-thinking = learning to restore stable control in the loose cognition state/ peak window (across a series of sessions).

“basic eternalism-thinking” is not for ever-after mundane practical life as an exposed controller; it’s for during the peak window.

Ever-after life is conducting mundane daily life after transforming to restore stable control during the peak window of experiencing eternalism.

After returning to baseline (tight cog) SoC, you no longer experience eternalism; you merely remember experiencing eternalism but you experience possibilism (now knowing it’s illusory or just a perspectival overlay).

You experience possibilism while remembering experiencing eternalism. That’s the mental model “qualified possibilism-thinking”.

Update/Cleaned up: Cleaned Up Scheme After Critiquing Hanegraaff Hermetic Spirituality Book

Luther Martin’s book is on its way, to confirm this updated model. He writes about cosmology and Heimarmene/Fate in late antiquity.

November 10, 2020: Original Posting/ Research

10 – the Empyrean – God and the Elect
9 – the Prime Moving sphere (if omitted, Empyrean = 9)
8 – the sphere of the Fixed Stars – Heimarmene; fate
7 – the sphere of Saturn – sacrifice
6 – the sphere of Jupiter
5 – the sphere of Mars
4 – the sphere of the Sun
3 – the sphere of Venus
2 – the sphere of Mercury
1 – the sphere of the Moon
the sublunary sphere; the Earth (Earth, Water, Air, then Fire)

The 2-level and 3-level schemes of Transcendent Knowledge are equivalent and interchangeable. First you have Possibilism, then you have both Possibilism and Eternalism as two distinct tools at your disposal.

The firmament is the sky as a dome.
https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=firmament

3-Level Model of Ego Transcendence Mapped to 10-Level Geocentric Cosmological Ascent Mysticism

Summary of the mapping of the Egodeath theory’s Possibilism/Eternalism scheme mapped to geocentric ascent mysticism, expressed as a 3-level scheme/model:

3 – Transcending no-free-will Eternalism after repudiating dependence on Possibilism-premised control – the Prime Mover sphere (First Mover, Primum Mobile), and then the Empyrium of supreme power where God and the Elect dwell.
That’s during the 2nd half of the peak initiation session after repudiating Possibilism-premised control, and during the ordinary state and altered state after that.
Combines both of the distinct mental worldmodels and cognitive mental psychological structures: Egoic thinking and Transcendent Thinking; freewill and no-free-will; Possibilism and Eternalism.
This is transcending the block-universe worldline snake.

2 – Experience of no-free-will Eternalism – sphere of Saturn (when/where Possibilism is sacrificed), sphere of the Fixed Stars.
This is the block-universe worldline snake.

1 – Naive freewill Possibilism thinking – Earth, sphere of the moon, sphere of Mercury, sphere of Venus, sphere of the Sun, sphere of Mars, sphere of Jupiter.

2-Level Model of Ego Transcendence Mapped to 10-Level Geocentric Cosmological Ascent Mysticism

Summary of the mapping of the Egodeath theory’s Possibilism/Eternalism scheme mapped to geocentric ascent mysticism, expressed as a 2-level scheme/model:

2 – No-free-will Eternalism after repudiating dependence on Possibilism-premised control – sphere of Saturn (when/where Possibilism is sacrificed), sphere of the Fixed Stars, the Prime Mover sphere (First Mover, Primum Mobile), and then the Empyrium of supreme power where God and the Elect dwell.
That’s during the 2nd half of the peak initiation session after repudiating Possibilism-premised control, and during the ordinary state and altered state after that.
Combines both of the distinct mental worldmodels and cognitive mental psychological structures: Egoic thinking and Transcendent Thinking; freewill and no-free-will; Possibilism and Eternalism.
This is the block-universe worldline snake and transcending the worldline snake.

1 – Naive freewill Possibilism thinking – Earth, sphere of the moon, sphere of Mercury, sphere of Venus, sphere of the Sun, sphere of Mars, sphere of Jupiter.

The Entheogen Engine for Experiencing Ascent

From my main article (https://egodeaththeory.wordpress.com/2020/11/30/the-entheogen-theory-of-religion-and-ego-death/)

Transcending astral fatedness involved ingesting holy food, ambrosial water, and astrological medicine (Fowden 1986).

Fowden, G. The Egyptian Hermes: A Historical Approach to the Late Pagan Mind. Princeton: Princeton University, 1986.

Labelling the Cosmology as Ptolemic or as Geocentric

Geocentric-Cosmology Ascent Mysticism (150 B.C. – 1543 A.D.)

The label “Ptolemaic Astral Ascent Mysticism” focuses on ‘Astral’, indicating the sphere of the Fixed Stars (travelling up through Heimarmene; Eternalism).

Ptolemy was a bit late (150 A.D.); the system goes back to Hipparchus (150 B.C.), so it could be more broadly useful to label it, when not focusing on mathematical computations, as “the geocentric system” — a more direct label for this cosmology, that sidesteps or downplays the issue of mathematical computation.

I’m mapping the 2-level or 3-level scheme to the 10-level scheme of Ptolemaic geocentric cosmology, which was used for various mystic initiation progress systems, including:
o Mithraism. https://www.amazon.com/Origins-Mithraic-Mysteries-Cosmology-Salvation/dp/0195067886
o Hermes Trismegistus (the very name, thrice-greatest Hermes, suggests a 3-level scheme). Hermetic Corpus. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermetica
o Christian cosmology.
o Magic mysticism.

Ptolemaic system (mathematical formulation: 150 A.D.; concepts: 150 B.C.)
https://www.britannica.com/science/Ptolemaic-system —
“Geocentric system/model – A mathematical model of the universe formulated by the Alexandrian astronomer and mathematician Ptolemy about 150 A.D., published in his Almagest and Planetary Hypotheses.

“A geocentric cosmology; assumes Earth is stationary and at the centre of the universe.

“The principles of this model were known to earlier Greek scientists, including the mathematician Hipparchus (c. 150 B.C.). The principles culminated in an accurate predictive model with Ptolemy.

“The resulting Ptolemaic system persisted until Earth was displaced from the centre of the universe in the 16th and 17th centuries by the Copernican system  (1543 A.D.).

https://www.britannica.com/science/Copernican-system —
“Copernican system – model of the solar system centred on the Sun, with Earth and other planets moving around it, formulated by Nicolaus Copernicus, published in 1543 A.D. as De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri VI (“Six Books Concerning the Revolutions of the Heavenly Orbs”).“

The 2-Level Egodeath Cosmology

2 – Eternalism experiencing & the Eternalism mental model, while retaining, distinctly, the Possibilism mental model.

1 – Possibilism experiencing & the Possibilism mental model

The 3-Level Egodeath Cosmology

3 – The hidden uncontrollable controller & creator of all thoughts; Controller X; the Puppetmaster, and puppets who have both the Possibilism & Eternalism mental models.

2 – Eternalism experiencing & the Eternalism mental model

1 – Possibilism experiencing & the Possibilism mental model

The Ptolemaic Cosmology (Mystical Geocentric)

• 10 – the Empyrean
  the Empyrian
  the Empirium
  the Empirian
  Outside of the moving spheres.
  The highest part of heaven.
  HEAVEN EMPIRIUM – DWELLING PLACE OF GOD AND OF ALL THE ELECT
  Empyrium = supreme power
  CELUM EMPIRIVM HABITACVLVM DEI ET OMNIVM ELECTORVM
  CELUM EMPYRIUM HABITACULUM DEI ET OMNIUM ELECTORUM
  In the Hermetic doctrine of “the Eighth and Ninth”, ‘Ninth’ includes the Prime Mover sphere and the Empyrean, like treating Earth along with Moon as “step 1”.
• 9 – the Primum Mobile sphere
  the Prime Mover sphere
  the Prime Moving sphere
  the First Moved sphere
  the First Mover sphere
  the Ninth sphere
  Transcending no-free-will.
  Not Ancient, but Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance.
  The outermost moving sphere that moves around the earth in 24 hours, carrying the inner moving spheres with it.
  REVOLVCAO DO PRIMO MOBILE EM 24 ORAS
  REVOLUCAO DO PRIMO MOBILE EM 24 ORAS
  https://www.bing.com/search?q=Primum+Mobile

• 8 – the sphere of the Fixed Stars
  the moving sphere (orb) of the Fixed Stars
  the Eighth sphere
  Eternalism-thinking; no-free-will; Heimarmene-ruled.

• 7 – Saturn
  the sphere of Saturn; the moving sphere (orb) of Saturn
  Seems functionally equivalent to penetrating the Fixed Stars.
  Father Time. Sacrifices the child-self; repudiation of Possibilism-premised thinking.
• 6 – Jupiter
  the sphere of Jupiter; the moving sphere (orb) of Jupiter
• 5 – Mars
• 4 – Sun
• 3 – Venus
• 2 – Mercury
• 1 – Moon
  the sphere of the Moon
  The Lunar sphere; the moving sphere (orb) of the Moon; the sphere of Luna

• Earth (Earth, Water, Air, then Fire)
  The sublunar sphere; the sublunary sphere
  https://www.bing.com/search?q=sublunary+sphere

The Sphere of the Fixed Stars

Gnosticism
https://www.thelemistas.org/en/MSS/Wetzel/Gnosticism

“Gnostics hold that esoteric knowledge and self-control enable transcending the flawed creation of the demiourgos. The first, pre-cosmic creations of the demiourgos are the archons (rulers), which rule the seven Ptolemaic planets [Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn] and the sphere of fixed stars. The rule of the demiourgos and the archons is heimarmene (fate), which is cruel, tyrannical and oppressive.”

Ptolemaic geocentric system by Portuguese cosmographer and cartographer Bartolomeu Velho, 1568

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Bartolomeu_Velho_1568.jpg
“Figure of the heavenly bodies — An illustration of the Ptolemaic geocentric system by Portuguese cosmographer and cartographer Bartolomeu Velho, 1568 (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris)”

Cosmological Review

Cosmological Review
by K∴∆∴ & Rufus Opus
https://headforred.blogspot.com/2010/06/cosmological-review.html

“The cosmology I use is based on the system used by the Hermetic magicians of the first through third centuries AD as recorded in the Corpus Hermeticum, specifically the Divine Pymander.

“In this system, the Earth is the manifest physical realm and is at the center of a series of concentric spheres. Within the physical sphere are the four spheres of the elements. Closest to the Earth is the sphere of Earth, followed by Water, Air, and then Fire. These four elemental spheres combine to form the Sphere of Sensation, the physical realm.”

“The Celestial Spheres consist of:
1-7 The Seven Planetary Spheres, the Heavens.
8 The Sphere of the Fixed Stars.
9 The Sphere of the Prime Mover.
[10 The Empyreum, outside the spheres. Not listed here – mh]

“Agrippa and the Hermetic authors of the Corpus Hermeticum began numbering the spheres at 1: the sphere of the Moon.”

The Eighth Reveals the Ninth (The Discourse on the Eighth & Ninth)

Update April 7, 2025: yesterday I read David Litwa’s new book, Hermetica I (Litwa, 2025).

See Mythemes in the Hermetic Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth
https://egodeaththeory.wordpress.com/2020/11/11/mythemes-in-the-hermetic-discourse-on-the-eighth-and-ninth/

The geocentric model here has ultimate levels of “the Eighth” and “the Ninth”. A key phrase in this document: “The Eighth reveals the Ninth.”

the Ninth = the hidden uncontrollable controller, invisible God the Creator and cloud-hidden Puppetmaster, the controller operating the hand which visibly protrudes from the cloud. That hand indirectly “reveals” the ever-hidden controller of the hand, hidden by the cloud. The Empyrean, dwelling place of God outside the spheres of the cosmos.

There is no intervening distinct “Primum Mobile” moving planetary sphere/orb in this system.

the Eighth = Heimarmene, the sphere of the Fixed Stars; fatedness; no-free-will

List of Levels in the Geocentric Cosmology per the Discourse on the 8th & 9th

the Ninth – the Empyrean – God. Indirectly visible from the Eighth.
the Eighth – the sphere of the Fixed Stars – Heimarmene; fate
the Seventh – the sphere of Saturn – sacrifice. Discourse starts here.
the Sixth – the sphere of Jupiter
the Fifth – the sphere of Mars
the Fourth – the sphere of the Sun
the Third – the sphere of Venus
the Second – the sphere of Mercury
the First – the sphere of the Moon
the sublunary sphere; the Earth (Earth, Water, Air, then Fire)

__________________

The Election of Hermes Trismegistus, from The Discourse on the Eighth & Ninth
https://www.renaissanceastrology.com/hermeticelection.html —

“The Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth is an account of a Hermetic initiation.

“The initiate first attains to the wisdom of the first seven spheres [Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn], that of the planets.

“The initiate is then instructed and then initiated by Hermes Trismegistus into the mysteries of the 8th sphere, that of the fixed stars or the Empyrean [sic? ‘Empyrean’ should be moved to the next step. -mh].

“The initiate is then instructed and then initiated by Hermes Trismegistus into the 9th sphere, the sphere of God[sic; the name of the sphere of God is the Empyrean, which the author wrongly placed above. -mh].”

Metaphor/Analogy for Altered-State Death and Rebirth

Ptolemaic Astral Ascent Mysticism is an ancient Western metaphor-system for altered-state death & rebirth.

In Ptolemaic Astral Ascent Mysticism, penetrating past the sphere of Saturn & fixed stars is the most important transformation.

I don’t much care for Modern astrology; it’s less mystical.

Traditional cosmos diagrams are in Latin.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=ptolemaic+cosmology

missing from Ptolemaic cosmology:
o Asteroid belt
Neptune – Invisible to the eye. The only planet found by math prediction. First viewed in 1846.
o Uranus
o Pluto

Antiquity knew of only 5 planets (in the modern sense of ‘planet’):
Mercury
Venus
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn

Antiquity had 7 planets; 7 planetary moving spheres/orbs:
Moon
Mercury
Venus
Sun
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn

Jesus from Outer Space

Book:
Jesus from Outer Space: What the Earliest Christians Really Believed about Christ
Richard Carrier
http://amzn.com/1634311949
October 20, 2020

“The earliest Christians believed Jesus was an ancient celestial being who put on a bodysuit of flesh, died at the hands of dark forces, and then rose from the dead and ascended back into the heavens.

“But the writing we have today from that first generation of Christians never says where they thought he landed, where he lived, or where he died.

“The idea that Jesus toured Galilee and visited Jerusalem arose only a lifetime later, in unsourced legends written in a foreign land and language.

“Many sources repeat those legends, but none corroborate them. Why?

“What exactly was the original belief about Jesus, and how did this belief change over time?

“Richard Carrier is a philosopher and historian.

“Summarizes for a popular audience the scholarly research on these and related questions.

“Modern attempts to conceal, misrepresent, or avoid the actual evidence calls into question the entire field of Jesus studies–and present-day beliefs about how Christianity began.”

Mithraism – Where Was Astral Ascent Mysticism Incorporated

Mithraism was cosmological. Transcending Heimarmene (Saturn/fixed stars) led to moving the pole of the fixed stars.

From my 2006 main article:
http://www.egodeath.com/EntheogenTheoryOfReligion.htm#_Toc177337630 —

“Astral ascent mysticism centers around the dangerous gateway or “fatal” boundary crossing – the sphere of the fixed stars – representing the apprehension of Heimarmene and its control of one’s thoughts. The stars wind around the world in a spiral pattern over time; this pattern is depicted by the Heimarmene-snake wrapped around the cosmos, cosmic egg, or Mithraic lion-headed gatekeeper figure.”

Modern Cosmology – A Different Potential for Mystic Altered State Mythemes

Traditional geocentric cosmology is much more interesting than the trendy meme, flat Earth.

Cygnus X-1 (Rush, 1977)

The modern cosmology has some cool potential, such as the excellent altered-state song, about the black hole journey:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MlYgt-QdMI —

Song: Cygnus X-1 Book I: The Voyage
Album: A Farewell to Kings
Artist: Rush
Lyrics: Neil Peart – he is a leading altered-state esotericist.
Year: 1977
https://www.google.com/search?q=rush+lyrics+Cygnus+X-1

Lyrics analysis at Egodeath.com:
http://egodeath.com/rushlyrics.htm#xtocid22949

Lyrics – for Scholarly Analysis

“In the constellation of Cygnus
There lurks a mysterious, invisible force [hidden source of control-thoughts]
The black hole of Cygnus X-1
Six stars of the Northern Cross
In mourning for their sister’s loss
In a final flash of glory
Nevermore to grace the night“

Invisible to telescopic eye
Infinity, the star that would not die
All who dare to cross her course [can’t look at the source of control thoughts and live, as monolithic, autonomous control agent]
Are swallowed by a fearsome force
Through the void to be destroyed
Or is there something more?
Atomized at the core [loose cognitive association binding dis-integrates the egoic personal control system]
Or through the astral door [{transformation gate}]
To soar

I set a course just east of Lyra
And northwest of Pegasus
Flew into the light of Deneb
Sailed across the Milky Way
On my ship, the Rocinante
Wheeling through the galaxies
Headed for the heart of Cygnus
Headlong into mystery

The X-ray is her siren song, my ship cannot resist her long
Nearer to my deadly goal, until the black hole
Gains control [control is experientially removed from egoic personal control system upon perceiving the uncontrollable hidden source of control-thoughts]

Spinning, whirling, still descending
Like a spiral sea, unending!

Sound and fury drowns my heart
Every nerve is torn apart!

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Geddy Lee / Alex Lifeson / Neil Peart

Cygnus X-1, Book I: The Voyage lyrics © Core Music Publishing, Ole Core Music Publishing, Anthem Core Music Publishing

Astronomy Domine & Interstellar Overdrive (Pink Floyd, 1967)

Interstellar Overdrive (Pink Floyd)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFdn7LA56uE

Astronomy Domine (Pink Floyd, 1967)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UbNbor3OqQ

Favored Image

{cut right trunk}

See Also

Site Map > Astral Ascent Mysticism
https://egodeaththeory.org/nav/#Astral-Ascent-Mysticism