They work to attain union with the One Quintessence and instruct genuine seekers in these Mysteries. Because of this, they have a unique importance for the evolution of the human race in revealing humankind's full potential and disclosing how this potential can be realized.

  One of the ways in which Perennialists achieve states of Higher Consciousness is through esoteric operations of supersensible devotional ecstasy in which sexual energy is channeled and transformed into supersensible wisdom and ecstasy. There are diverse forms of sexuality, from wanton, egomaniacal, lascivious sexuality to the total lack of sexual desire whatsoever.

  The three primary aspects of supersensible devotional ecstasy are:

• Supersensible: The attainment of a supernal state; locating one's consciousness in one's Higher Self
• Devotional: Unconditional self-giving love; ardent and dedicated loyalty and affection for the beloved
• Ecstasy: Dedicating oneself to the psychic and physical sexual experience
  
  

  In gaining discernment of supersensible devotional ecstasy, neither the achievement of locating one's consciousness in the supersensible realm (a mystic or prophetic trance state), the abandoning oneself to the psychic and physical sexual aspect of supersensible sexuality, nor the unconditional self-giving, devotional love aspect must be allowed to over-balance the other two. All three essences must be in appropriate balance and effectively distinguished from each other. Otherwise persons may delusively believe that achieving supersensible consciousness is sufficient in itself, when it is not. Persons may delude themselves into thinking that abandoning oneself to the intense and exotic ecstasy involved in sexual passion is, in itself, a complete giving of oneself to the beloved, when it is not. And a person may delusively believe that the complete emotional and intellectual giving of oneself is abandoning oneself to sexual ecstasy, when it is not. Such self-delusion is a threat to one's essence and must be made evident to persons who indulge in it, so they can correct these ontological, intellectual and emotional deficiencies.

  If one or the other of these three essences is allowed to become dominant, the entire reality of supersensible devotional ecstasy is compromised. If the element of supersensible consciousness is over-stressed, to the detriment of the other two essences, the result is fantasy and mysteriousness. If the devotional aspect is over-emphasized the result is obsession, infatuation and intoxication. If the sexual ecstasy essence is given preference over the other two essences, the result is immoderate or unhinged physical desire, lasciviousness , and lust.

  Perennialist supersensible devotional ecstasy involves:

1. A male and a female engaging in Platonic dialectical interchange through which they achieve a supersensible state of consciousness
   
   
2. A male and a female engaging in Perennialist supersensible sexuality, physically and psychically, through which they achieve a supersensible state of consciousness and supersensible orgasm
   
   
3. Both the female and the male achieving Perennialist Discernment of what they have experienced and achieved: engaging in the Essence of supersensible sexual love

  It is possible for students and initiates in the Perennial Tradition to attain varying levels of supersensible consciousness through studying and engaging in Perennialist supersensible devotional ecstasy and NOT achieve discernment, since discernment is a highly advanced and transcendent achievement. Individuals may be so lacking in intellectual and emotional intelligence and discernment that they can experience varying levels of supersensible states of consciousness and not realize it. The experience seems to them to be highly enjoyable and highly emotionally and/or sexually charged, but they are incapable of discerning it as the achievement of a supersensible state of consciousness which requires psychological and intellectual discernment to comprehend. Unfortunately, their lack of discernment means that they are incapable of employing the achievement of a supersensible state of consciousness, as should be, to advance their personal intellectual, emotional, and spiritual development.

That Which is Above is Like That Which is Below
  According to the Perennial Tradition, the human being is a miniature universe. All that is found in the Cosmos can be found within each individual, and the same principles that apply to the Universe apply in the case of the individual being. The human being is the microcosm of the macrocosm. The whole of the Universe is of the same essence as any part of it. In the same vein, each element of terrestrial life is active in a supersensible counterpart. We do not live a terrestrial life and then later live a supersensible life which is shorn of elements such as sexuality, which are delusively misidentified as evil. That brand of Puritanist clap-trap is the very opposite of true spirituality. Supersensible sexuality is active in all its supersensible aspects: sex organs, sex acts, sexual feelings, and sexual ecstasy.

  This is an aspect of Plato's concept of Forms or Archetypes: The universe's essence possesses Forms or Archetypes that are to be found at all levels and strata of the universe and make up the constitutive (that which creates the essence) elements of the universe.

  As in the universal, so in the individual. There is the supersensible body; corresponding to that there is a physical body; there is a universal, supersensible mind and intelligence; corresponding to that is a specific human mind and human intelligence.

  So, just as I have a mind, my Higher Self possesses a supersensible mind. Just as a human male possesses a physical penis or a woman possesses a physical vagina, so, in supersensible reality we have a supersensible penis or vagina. There is in the supersensible realm a gender essence of sexual attraction and merging between male and female, just as in the physical realm.

  There is, in supersensible reality, a function and a purpose for sexual energy, sexual release, and sexual ecstasy. The terrestrial human being--body and soul--is involved with Forms which are exact archetpes of elements within the more inclusive supersensible reality (Macrocosm).

   Just as on the physical plane, sexuality (sexual energy, sexual expression of love, sexual reproduction, sexual release in orgasmic ecstasy) has many functions essential to human existence, in the supersensible realm, sexuality has corresponding, essential functions in relation to that higher realm. As we learn to live and act in, have our consciousness and our being in our Higher Self, we gain understanding of what those functions of supersensible sexuality are.

  It is necessary for us to gain comprehension of the macrocosmic, supersensible essence of sexuality and understanding of the microcosmic, terrestrial essence of sexuality. Sexuality is one of the primary manifestations of love; sexual love involves valuing and caring for another through desiring to provide that person sexual fulfillmlent, pleasure and ecstasy. If that desire is absent from a relationship it lacks an essential element of love. The relationship may involve any number of other, positive elements--intellectual compatibility, respect, mutual interests, and so on, but if the essence of desire to provide the other sexual pleasure and ecstasy is absent, the relationship is stunted and incomplete.

  A person who lacks the desire to love a partner sexually is undeveloped because of egomania: being totally or primarily concerned with one's own interests, comforts, and desires and minimally or not at all interested in their partner's interests, comforts, and desires.

  Perennialist supersensible devotional ecstasy requires Unconditional Love. The Loved One must be felt by the lover as Supernally Valuable. The Loved One must be felt by the lover as so precious that there would be nothing that the lover would not do for the Loved One. If one's own proclivities, biases, and preferences are more important than the Loved One, then the lover's love is flawed. To participate effectively in supersensible sexuality, persons must be intellectually discerning enough to realize that genuine love involves giving oneself entirely to the beloved, not foolishly allowing oneself to believe that one should hold back their privacy, their work, their family, their friends, or their time to themselves.

  Supersensible devotion, as an expression of unconditional love, requires that lovers give themselves to their beloved totally, without limit. One's love for the beloved becomes as important as one's own life; the beloved becomes the center of one's life. Supersensible devotion requires that lovers attain a level of psychological discernment and intelligence which allows them to fully comprehend how indispensable the beloved is to their very existence, while retaining their own sense of self and personal autonomy which Fromm describes, so that love for the beloved does not degenerate into dependency or obsession. Lovers must be wise and disciplined enough to order their lives in such a manner that nothing extrinsic is allowed to interfere with one's expression of love for the beloved.

"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight For the ends of being and ideal grace. I love thee to the level of every day's Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light. I love thee freely, as men strive for right. I love thee purely, as they turn from praise. I love thee with the passion put to use In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith. I love thee with a love I seemed to lose With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath, Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death. How Do I Love Thee? (Sonnet 43) by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

  One feature of the Perennial Tradition's esoteric teaching about supersensible devotional ecstasy most difficult to grasp is the element of the necessity of Valuing and appreciating being allowed access to the Teaching concerning supersensible sexuality and the distinct privilege of being allowed to study and participate in this High Teaching.

  Appreciation allows the person not only to understand the meaning of the transformative material, but to discern the IMPORTANCE AND SIGNIFICANCE of the material. Persons can then gain the higher discernment that they are truly blest by being allowed to study such Higher Knowledge. Students have only gained full comprehension of the material when they realize, through appreciation, that they are being given a supernal opportunity.

  Only an appreciative person (student or initiate) can fully value the privilege of being allowed to study and participate in advanced teaching concerning supersensible devotional ecstasy. To the complacent, merely curious, self-satisfied, or indifferent person, advanced teachings seem commonplace and lackluster--nothing special--so such persons are unable to be allowed access to Higher Teachings and thus is unable to advance.

  The sexual aspect of the human being is an essence, not something that can be suppressed or ignored, without negative consequences in human relationships, in human health, and in diminished functioning: physically, spiritually, psychically, and intellectually. The creation and expression of sexual energy is essential to complete human life. Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy can be seen as the activation of supersensible sexual sense organs and emotions.

  As with all such esoteric knowledge, the phenomenon of Perennialist supersensible sexuality is dangerous in the sense that such knowledge can be misunderstood and misused. But such misuse and misunderstanding can be averted, and this current essay has that as one of its several objectives. Learning about and participating in Perennialist Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy places one in the potentially dangerous realm of the Supersensible Mysterium.

  The danger of the Supersensible Mysterium as a domain can be likened to the terrestrial danger of embarking on an open sea. You do not want to try to navigate the open sea unless you have previously worked to attain definite seamanship skills. Otherwise your very life can be in jeopardy. You should not try to navigate the Open Sea of the esoteric mysteries of Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy unless you have worked to attain the ability to discern truth, have worked to develop a being which speaks truth, follows through on commitments, and continually examines oneself for outcroppings of egomania and works to eradicate these defects. Otherwise your very being can be in jeopardy.

  Study this essay very carefully, making certain that you understand all the prerequisites for participation in Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy, making certain that you are able to follow through with what participation in this highly esoteric Work requires. Otherwise you could enter into this dangerous domain and commit the treacherous act of self-betrayal by failing to give yourself entirely to the demands of this supersensible Work.

"The deeper secrets and laws of our being are self-protected; to learn them requires an adaptation of character and purpose, and a humility of mind and spirit, inconsistent with those displayed by the perverse or merely curious enquirer. To understand, let alone practically to explore, the Hermetic Mystery is not for every one--at least, at his present state of evolutional unfolding. . . . Only to those whose spiritual destiny has already equipped them with a certain high measure of moral and intellectual fitness will even a rough notional apprehension of it be practicable." Mary A. Atwood, Hermetic Philosophy and Alchemy, 1850

  Perennialist teachers in all embodiments of the tradition instruct initiates (advanced students) in how to aggregate (collect and preserve) and apply sexual and supersensible energy in their personal work. Perennialists see the Beautiful as the Good manifesting itself in the visible elements of nature. The erotic desire for the beautiful body is not only a desire for the person (as body), but also a desire for the Beauty manifested in the person (as both body and soul). Perennialist Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy involves a man and a woman participating in the Spiritual Essence of Beauty: Both exulting in:

• The physical beauty of the other person: their body, their style, their sophistication, their artistic nuance, and their elegance
• The emotional, intellectual, and linguistic beauty of the other person's thought and expression
• The beauty of their openness and unreserve in totally giving themselves physically, emotionally, and verbally, in total abandon to the Beloved and to the occasion

The Perennial Tradition views sexual energy and activity as an essential factor in both terrestrial and supersensible activity. This appraisal stands in sharp contrast to the orthodox Christian, Jewish, and Islamic religions which see sex as essentially negative or evil, to be tolerated merely for the purpose of procreation. Spurious, concocted psychological theories such as those of Sigmund Freud were then made to appear to authenticate these besotted reactionary religious views of sex.

  In most persons in contemporary society, the libidinous drives are thwarted or corrupted, resulting in psychological disorders of one form or another. Freud's psychoanalytic technique--a silent therapist listening to the free associations and dreams of the patient--was a gigantic fraud, resulting in persons becoming more miserable rather than more functional.

The Higher Mystery of Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy
  Socrates was said to have been initiated into the Greater Mystery of Love (supersensible sexuality) by Diotima, "a wise woman" or sage. This was termed the Mystery of Love, because Love involves, among other elements, the heartfelt desire of each partner to help the other partner achieve ecstasy and fulfillment. This Greater Mystery is essentially a series of procedures for realizing a state of higher consciousness while concommitantly achieving sexual fulfillment. Sexual acts are carried out for the express purpose of ascending to the mystical height where, as Plato explains, we experience "everlasting possession of the Good" and "hold converse with other pure souls and know of ourselves the clear light everywhere, the light of Truth."

  Throughout the world today, sexuality is perverted and distorted by patterns of male or female dominance. With male dominance, control is most often physical, whereas with female dominance the exercise of control over the other is usually emotional.

  One of the main dynamics of Perennialist sexual practice is to conceive of and practice sexual intercourse as an expression of self-giving instead of using or being-used. Most cultures produce mental patterns in which sex is seen--and thus only seems legitimate--as a process of using a sexual partner or being used by a sex partner. Males in most cultures are conditioned to see themselves as only truly masculine and powerful if they emotionally and sexually dominate one or more females. In most cultures, females are mentally and emotionally patterned to feel that they are only truly female if they are subordinate to a male. A faux counter-revolution has taken place in America and other parts of the world in which some women have become dominant over males.

  With Perennialist supersensible sexuality there is no tincture of coercion, either physical or emotional. Each partner genuinely desires to give pleasure to and receive pleasure from the other in a genuine mutual relationship of love and self-giving. A practitioner of Perennialist Sexuality might express it in this manner: "I take immense pleasure in pleasuring you."

  Such love is poignantly expressed by the character, Jane Eyre, (in the novel by that name written by Charlotte Bronte). "Never did I weary . . . of conducting him where he wished to go: of doing for him what he wished to be done. And there was a pleasure in my services, most full, most exquisite . . . He loved me so truly, that he knew no reluctance in profiting by my attendance: he felt I loved him so fondly, that to yield that attendance was to indulge my sweetest wishes."

  Supersensible sexuality, as taught and practiced in the Perennial Tradition, involves completely open, uninhibited, unbridled sexual expression of love. Adoration of the beloved is expressed in Perennialist spiritual sexuality in an earthy, explicit, riotous, even raunchy manner. There is no place for prim, prissy, square-toed, prudish, straitlaced, puritanical priggishness in this type of irrepressible expression of deep affection.

  Shakespeare, in Romeo and Juliet, reveals the essence of love as an infinite element which one gives without thought of return, because love increases by being given to the beloved and one loves the beloved more than oneself.

"My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep;
"The more I give to thee, the more I have,
"For both are infinite. . .
"By heaven, I love thee better than myself."


"And when love speaks,
the voice of all the gods
Make heaven drowsy with the harmony."
(Love's Labors Lost)

"The ability to love as an act of giving depends on the character development of the person. It presupposes the attainment of a predominantly productive orientation; in this orientation the person has overcome dependency, narcissistic omnipotence, the wish to exploit others, or to hoard, and has acquired faith in his own human powers, courage to rely on his powers in the attainment of his goals." Erich Fromm. The Art of Loving

"So she thoroughly taught him that one cannot take pleasure without giving pleasure and that every gesture, every caress, every touch, every glance, every last bit of the body has its secret, which brings happiness to the person who knows how to wake it. She taught him that after a celebration of love the lovers should not part without admiring each other, without being conquered or having conquered, so that neither is bleak or glutted or has the bad feeling of being used or misused."

Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha

  In the first phase of supersensible devotional ecstasy, partners participate in dialectical interchange, ² each partner explaining her or his personal sexual desires and means of achieving orgasm. The other partner then learns to perform as has been delineated, with feedback from the other partner on an ongoing basis. In Perennialist supersensible sexual activity, the male and female both achieve the psychic ability of telepathy, so each is able to communicate through extra-sensory means. The supersensible sexuality procedures can be carried out simultaneously or each partner "making love" to the other partner individually. The higher aspect of supersensible sexuality occurs when each partner realizes sexual fulfillment and ecstasy, while simultaneously achieving an enhanced state of consciousness.


Higher Supersensible States and Experiences Achieved Through Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy

  Plato and Iamblicus both taught that philosophers (lovers and seekers of wisdom) do not try to escape permanently from the body but to overcome the confusions of physical embodiment by allowing the Divine to take its seat in one's own body. Every part and aspect of the body becomes a point of focus for supersensible sexuality: the face, the breast, the outline of a leg, the sexual organ, the overall appearance of the entire body, the loving smile or word.

  Whereas the physical function of sexual interchange is misunderstood by most to be mere reproduction or being-used for another's pleasure, the higher purpose of supersensible sexuality is the activation of the supersensible sex organs and functions in the supersensible being, the achievement of higher, supersensible states of consciousness, including supersensible orgasm. For some persons allowed the privilege of participating in supersensible sexuality, this is the first time they have actually experienced higher awareness in the supersensible realm.

  Perennialist instruction in supersensible sexuality involves working with all aspects of the initiate: emotions, beliefs, attitudes, desires, aspirations, potentialities, proclivities, misconceptions, repressions, understandings, and goals. Perennialist instruction in higher supersensible sexuality involves working assiduously to rid the initiate of all bigoted, priggish emotional and intellectual indoctrinations which impede their full sexual realization and expression. It also requires the attainment of an enlightened awareness of the beauty and power of supersensible sexuality.

  One aspect of Perennialist supersensible sexuality is to manifest a sexual soul-mate through aspiration-envisioning.



  Sexuality comprises a unique, complex domain which involves, among many other elements, trance, a psychological state induced by (or as if induced by) a magical incantation; synonym: enchantment, spell. Any person who is unable--or unwilling--to feel or enter into this "spell," is emotionally, psychically, and intellectually deficient. It is emotionally fulfilling to eagerly allow oneself to fall under the spell of sexuality and it is rewarding to observe the beauty of other persons who allow themselves to fall under this spell. ³

  Perennialist supersensible devotional ecstasy is a complex phenomenon involving one's physical being, mental and emotional states, and specific activities and experiences. Supersensible sexuality as a physical, intellectual, and meditative act provides a direct connection to the Divine, to the supersensible domain. Supersensible sexuality activates natural cosmic energy, an immense, universal force that can merge your Higher Self, your soul, your divine essence with your supersensible and physical bodies. It is so much more than just an exchange of fluids with someone else to create a baby, and it is more than just pleasure-seeking. Perennialist, supersensible sexuality involves but goes beyond physical sensations of pleasure and genital orgasm, and emotional ecstasy. Training in Perennialist, supersensible sexuality involves the attainment of "mindfulness," heightened awareness, expanded consciousness, channeling of sexual energy, and ecstatic states. Part of the essence of Perennialist, supersensible sexuality is the attainment of transcendent states and experiences--including supersensible orgasm, extraordinary inspiration, and a merging with the Life Force. Since sexual energy is one of the major sources of our connection to the life force, the benefits to physical, emotional, and mental health are obvious.

  The intellectually, sexually and spiritually-deficient person looks at all aspects of sexuality as nothing more than their own egomaniacal practices and attitudes: "using" another person for one's personal satisfaction; depraved, immoral, reprobate acts forced on a person who becomes one's sexual creature; allowing another person to use oneself; or dismissing sexual activity altogether because of egomania. The intellectually, sexually, and spiritually-deficient person thus misconstrues Perennialist instruction in supersensible sexuality as nothing more than their own perverse conduct and practice or the perverted practices of their own lurid imagination.

  In the Perennialist Tradition, an initiate or seeker must work assiduously to gain true understanding of the sacredness and supernal value of the type of sexual intercourse that this tradition involves and instructs in. The appraisal that an initiate has gained essential understanding of the essence of Perennialist sexual intercourse and therefore can be allowed the privilege of participating in study of this sacred rite is viewed as a High spiritual achievement that requires that the initiate has previously overcome any possible negative conceptions or feelings and has achieved a thorough understanding of the unique, supernal conception of sexual love which the Perennial Tradition teaches.

  In the Perennial Tradition, one of the major purposes for understanding and experiencing supersensible sexuality is in preparation for a Higher Life. Through experiencing supersensible orgasm, you are reminded of--and actually experience--your true being in the eternal plenum. The sense of serenity, oneness, and ecstasy one derives from supersensible orgasm is a glimpse of what spiritual experiences are like. For many, supersensible orgasm can be their first interaction with spirituality. As initiates gain experiential knowledge of their Higher Self, "an inner world is revealed to them. This moment, when first experienced, is one of greatest rapture for students. An inner light is shed over the whole external world, and a second life begins for them. Through their being there pours a divine stream from a world of divine rapture.

  In our terrestrial life, we experience rapture or ecstasy in a limited number of ways: intellectual ecstasy produced by gaining efficacious understanding of a phenenomen, artistic rapture resulting from creative production of new art objects, and sexual-emotional ecstasy through transmuting the act of sexual love into an experience of Supersensible Sexuality. In preparation for "a world of divine rapture" we gain comprehension of ecstasy through experiencing and discerning the higher essence of supersensible sexuality.

  For terrestrial beings, supersensible orgasm involves physical orgasm, as well as psychic, extrasensory orgasm, through physical or psychic sexual activity with a loved one. Experiencing supersensible orgasm in-person with a physical love-partner is certainly most common, but supersensible orgasm may also be achieved through verbally or textually interchanging explicit psychic sexual acts, through mental and psychic intercourse with a love-partner who is not physically present. This capability of achieving supersensible orgasm through either physical contact or through verbally or textually interchanging sexually explicit psychic sexual acts is a highly esoteric element of the Perennial Tradition. For a terrestrial being to achieve both physical and supersensible orgasm through verbally or textually interchanging, it is necessary that the person have achieved advanced mastery of the mystic art of Platonic dialectical interchange. For terrestrial beings, Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy involves achieving simultneous experience of one's physical being and one's supersensible being.

  The capability of achieving supersensible orgasm through dialectically interchanging psychically, in-person or virtually, with a love partner is a High Achievement. Each person is able to achieve supersensible orgasm through experiencing the loved one as actually, psychically present and engaging in sexual activity with that person. ⁴

The essence of Supersensible Devoional Ecstasy involves:

1. Each person theurgically⁵ creating a sexual event in which both participate.
   
   
2. A beautifully raw, beautifully raunchy sexual act being transmuted into a Self-Giving, Loving act of Love-Making and Devotion to the Beloved, through the alchemical magic of unlimited self-giving to the Beloved. The sex act becomes a work of art.
   
   [This is an introductory essay on the Perennialist teaching concerning Supersensible Sexuality. Other essays deal with such subjects as Esoteric Supersensible Sexuality, Perennialist Psychic Reality, and Supersensible Love. If you sincerely feel you have a definite, genuine interest in this subject and feel you would like to study more advanced essays and exercises currently available on this Website, contact the author (normanlivergood@yahoo.com) and if your interest proves genuine through dialectical interchange with the author, then you will be directed to the first advanced essay entitled Esoteric Supersensible Sexuality.]
   
   
   If you would like to comment on this essay, please send your comments to the email address provided above.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

   Notes
   
   ⁰ Marsha Keith Schuchard, Blake's Sexual Path to Spiritual Vision (Blake was influenced by secret kabbalistic and tantric rituals designed to transcend the bonds of social convention).
   
   ¹ Supersensible: Beyond the range of what is perceptible by the senses; not belonging to the experienceable physical world; referring to the Higher world. The Supersensible Plenum is a domain distinct from, though inclusive of, our ordinary world of terrestrial existence. The Supersensible Eternal Plenum is the hypostasis, a continuum containing all elements (beings, objects, events, processes); everything that comes into eternal being or temporal existence passes into it. Our participation in this Supersensible Plenum can become an actual, active "partaking of the life eternal and the higher powers of the heavenly ones" as Iamblicus indicated. These higher powers include supersensible sexuality. I am using the term "supersensible" instead of "spiritual" because the latter term has, through ill-usage, become associated with connotations of "airy-fairy," insubstantial, unreal, and imaginary.
   
   I am also using the term "supersensible" instead of "spiritual" because the former term is more accurate and precise in this context. The type of sexuality explicated in this essay is, in its essence, of a higher nature. Persons who engage in Perennialist sexual interchange do so as they achieve supersensible awareness and being.
   
   ²   Engaging in genuine Platonic dialectical interchange within the study and practice of supersensible devotional ecstasy requires that a Perennial Teacher examine and approve the suitability of applicants, initiate, be involved in, directly or indirectly, and guide the process. The Perennial Teacher is able to bring participants in dialectic or supersensible sexuality into varying levels of higher consciousness, depending on the work which the participants carry out under the Teacher's supervision. Until these participants have achieved Discernment, they will be unable to comprehend the complete nature of their experience or be able to initiate dialectic or supersensible sexual activity on their own.
   
   ³ Like all elements of human life, the spell of sexuality can be misused. But that should not be misused as an excuse to avoid the wonderful spell of sexuality or to mischaracterize it as intrinsically negative in nature.
   
   ⁴ It is necessary to make clear that Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy is Not merely a concept, an ideal, or a fictional or merely imaginary phenomenon; it is an actual physical, psychic, and supersensible reality which has been and is being experienced by humans. Supersensible sexuality has been proven, through actual physical and psychic experience, to be achievable. By participating in Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy the individual can attain discernment of the essence of sexuality or ecstasy in the Supersensible Realm.
   
   ⁵ Each person creates an actual sexual event by asserting what they are doing and what they are feeling in explicit, graphic detail. This constitutes a theurgical, magical, performatory act in which the speaker's utterance itself creates the act and event it describes. Each person is able to actually, physically experience the acts of love-making that both are creating. Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy does NOT involve mere phantasyzing, portraying in the mind by phantasy. It involves actual emotional and physical experience of events and actions performed by the other, the beloved, and the actions performed by oneself. To actually create sexual acts of love-making, both participants use the processes of Aspirational envisioning during waking soul life and Spiritual Manifesting. These are specific techniques which one can learn to master. Aspirational envisioning during waking soul life is distinguished from dreaming during sleeping soul life. In waking soul life, the soul engages in autonomous activity, such as aspirational envisioning, as one erases or shuts out all one experiences of the external world and creates an alternate reality. An aspiration is a kind of lucid dream (we aspire to be or have something just as we dream of having or being something) and waking aspirational envisioning is a kind of deliberate, conscious lucid dreaming and a form of conscious manifesting. In sleeping soul life, the soul engages in lucid dreaming. In waking soul life, "while awake in the forming of mental pictures, one makes oneself as independent of the external world of the senses as one is in a dream. Both participants in Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy become fully conscious, wakeful participants in the aspirational reality. Thereby, . . . any illusory quality of the lucid dream falls away. The [wakeful] dreamers create their dream pictures as realities, ... [even though] they remain conscious of the fact that they are living in "self-created" [aspirations or waking, lucid dreams]. Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy is, at its deepest level, the experience of the essence of sexual intercourse in the supersensible realm by terrestrial Perennialist initiates.
   
     The experience of oneness with the beloved that one achieves in Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy is an indispensible element in the realization of Onenesss with the Divine All.
   
     Supersensible Devotional Ecstasy is precisely the spiritual condition described by Iamblicus: "There is another ultimate underlying potency of the soul which is superior to the whole realm of nature and generated existence. Through it we are enabled to attain communion with Higher Beings, of being transported beyond the scenes and arrangements of this world, and of partaking of the Life Eternal and the higher powers of the heavenly ones." Iamblicus (250-325 CE), The Egyptian Mysteries