The podcast An Infinite Path was started in early 2018. Actually it was rebooted in 2018 after a few years of a prior podcast called Novelty Generators. Novelty Generators was themed around the philosopher Alfred North Whitehead’s concept that the universe, meaning the divine, is always pushing mankind to new forms of creativity through originality, or novelty.
Since a symbol or logo is a critical part of the branding of any venture, being the initial image you see to identify with an associated person, product, or service, the logo for Novelty Generators was set against a backdrop of a star field to give it a very cosmic feeling. The reason for this is a much deeper conversation, but it related to the podcast being often centered around a guests latest personal venture which used more of their creative skillset than let’s say, every single for-hire job on spaceship Earth would. Thus, one must metaphorically look to the stars to see creative potential.
As the venture continued it started getting more into areas of off the beaten path thought. Subjects such as occultism and esotericism started popping up due to their relationship with the expansion of consciousness which is a key theme of the venture along with balance. Various ancient spiritual practices such as Alchemy, Shamanism, Mysticism, Hermatism, and Magic have been ground zero for wisdom or old knowledge and thus started popping up recurrently. These practices are very deep and a crucial secret doorway to a full understanding of not only the nature of reality, but what it truly is to be a more free willed and actualized human being in the realm of Earth. So a reboot was done as the podcast basically began to focus on broader overarching themes of not only personal growth and creativity, but balance and the expansion of consciousness which many of these spiritual philosophical subjects entail. For as Alice Bailey said “Symbols are the outer and visible forms of the inner spiritual realities.”
Esotericism is internal. It happens on the inside and is about each individual's unique, creative, inner journey in life. Much of what is esoteric, must be experienced because putting it into language is a degradation of a life-transforming internal gnosis. Meaning a knowing that something is the case through having personally experienced it. A mystical experience can be defined as union with the divine. So, why would one want to have gnosis or a mystical experience? For two reasons, for healing (mental or physical) and for the expansion of consciousness. How does one have a mystical experience? There are many ways, years of time working in deep meditation, a ritual magical practice, extreme isolation, lucid dreaming, a psychedelic experience, mountaineering, scuba diving, or many other forms of extreme physical activity such as a pilgrimage are various potential ways. All of which are not easy and can be great amounts of work.
After the experience occurs, it is often times life-changing or somewhat life-transforming. Although there may be similar themes which are shared in common, the specifics are difficult if not impossible to convey to others. Because it was given to you and specifically for you at that place at the time. Thus metaphor, myth, and symbolism was born many bazillion years ago as a more effective tool for communicating aspects of old world wisdom to others who had had these experiences and knew how to feel into a underlying subtext of information. For one can not be told what the Matrix is, they must experience it for themself. Thus self-discovery and deciphering are keys to doorways to secret codes of the mystery of life. So as a story is told, or a symbol drawn, or a metaphor written, the subconscious mind, which can also be thought of as a deeper aspect of the heart, not the everyday monkey brain, can read further and decipher or decode deeper aspects of what experiential wisdom is being transmitted. For discovery is experiential in itself and you won't be able to receive it until you are developed enough to do so. Hence, much of what is esoteric, meaning inside, or what is occult, meaning hidden, exists in metaphor or symbolism. Speaking to you as a mirror at your current level of understanding based on exposure to personal experience.
Since much of symbolism existed before written language, it has a very long history and mystery and the study of it is a 5000 hour conversation. The cave painting at Lascaux France of deer and elk being hunted by men with spears or the releafs of birds and lions at the dolmens of Göbekli Tepe come immediately to mind. Dan Brown is a fictional writer who created such world famous novels such as Angels & Demons and The Da Vinci Code. His work features recurring themes of cryptography, keys, symbols, codes, art, and conspiracy theories. His lead character throughout many of his books, Robert Langdon is the man he secretly wishes he could be. He is a professor of Religious Iconology and Symbology at Harvard University and travels the world solving ancient puzzle mysteries in a similar style to Indiana Jones, also exploring ancient tombs just with less booby traps or large centipedes and tarantulas. The Langdon character is an encapsulation of many of our collective interests in the mystery of symbols. For the unknown reason to many that symbols speak to an older, higher, wiser version of ourselves.
Thus when it was time for An Infinite Path to be rolled out a new, a logo was chosen which was actually more like a crest, symbol, sigil, or emblem. Logo’s are typically type while a corporate symbol is typically a single closed shape or small series of shapes which can be recognizable as a silhouette. Multinational corporations logos and symbols are actually quite basic for their instant recognizability solely to convey a brand. However, the goal with the emblem for this venture was for it to have a feel similar to many of the older and quite frankly more mysterious symbols from the days of an older time of engravings in old books, family crests, relics, tombs, or even forgotten civilizations.
The symbol entails six main components and we will go through each of them, highlighting their importance and why they were chosen, starting from the outside and working our way in. So in some ways we’ll be going from exoteric, meaning outside, to mesoteric, meaning middle, to esoteric meaning inside or the core. As most things have an outer exoteric surface which is seen by the many because they are easy (For example accept Jesus Christ as your lord and personal savior) but anybody waiting around the pick up order area of the In-N-Out burger can do that since it takes no skill and yields virtually no reward. While the inner levels take work, effort, sophistication, and spiritual growth and are much harder. Thereby they are for the few to access initially by doing research in old libraries or on the better parts of the internet followed by direct personal experiences out in beautiful nature all while having some level of excellent teachings from wise elders. Again, it is work, and difficult work at that. Yet it’s infinitely worth all the effort to get there. So due to our order of operations we will continue down the rabbit hole and save the best for last. Outermost first and innermost last. Since so much of what gives gnosis or knowledge goes to those who pace themselves and allow for time, space, and of course concentration.
The Sun & Moon
On the outermost perimeter of the symbol are the rays or the sun. Corresponding to a moon in various phases of new, full, half, waxing and waning.
The Sun and moon both have profound importance to the ancients. For they are divine opposites, with neither having greater importance over one another. The ancient alchemists called the mind “the sun” and the heart “the moon,” for to them strength, reason, and logic were masculine, paternal, solar powers; while love, beauty, intuition, and kindliness were feminine, maternal, and lunar qualities. So we could think of the sun as a representation of male with the moon as a representation of female. Gold and silver were blended in the great alchemical enterprises, for the gold of the sun and the silver of the moon were not dead metals but living aspects in nature and esoteric to human life. These traits highlight duality and opposites; namely, that rhythm and polarity are two of the building blocks and fabric of the material world. One rules the day and promotes growth, the other rules the night and promotes decay, making them both luminaries. Both are the same things in opposite directions.
In the East, teachings of Yang and yin organized into a higher unity under the harmonious influence of Ch’i are regarded as the source of all existence, as well as its symbol. One is black, and one is white and an ancient secret to deciphering the message of these two teaching tools is the balance point between them. Which can most amply be seen in the rare occurrence of a solar eclipse. When the two celestial bodies, which both happen to be the exact same size in the sky, form a union of one, during a very rare time, to create a unique portal.
This is a balance of opposites and and balance of power being shown to man. Through alignment of light and dark, positive and negative, female and male, growth and decay, and mind and heart lead to emotional stability and power within us. For example, a society of patriarchy, where men call all the shots ruling the entire show and women are heavily de-valued, leads us astray. Or similar problems would stem from, every thoughts it has been extremely rare to see, a solely matriarchal society in which it is flipped the other way around. We can only find progress in a society of equal level of philosopher kings and queens. Wise elders of both sexes balancing out each others energetic traits and strengths. For balance in nearly all areas is a secret to life.
The sun and moon are oftentimes if not the majority of the time found on esoteric and occult artwork for very specific reasons. Some of the initial hints of which have just been given to you. Our 2019 short film Balanced Opposites takes a deeper look at the balance of these two cosmic spheres, via some ancient wisdom given to us through the balance of our sun and moon. Shared through live-action footage as well as a world heritage of esoteric, alchemical, and master work art.
The Triangle
The triangle has had many meanings through time and through various cultures and civilizations. Usually to represent a trinity of three. With a common dynamic within Theology being the Father, Sun, Holy Spirit or the holy trinity. In an effort to identify how a symbol speaks to you not not to others, it’s also good to extract out your own personal mystery meanings from symbols which you may find are more legit than what others or larger systems say. Thus the relationship I personally derive from the triangle is that of a relationship I term the third way.
In an attempt to understand the nature of reality, we are usually presented with two primary ways. Or directions, systems, or thought processes. They are two offered choices of looking at the world and formulating a cosmology behind how one decides to look their way into beginning to navigate life. They are two sanctioned and allowed paths to follow by the majority of modern industrial society. And are the only two. What I’m about to share is designed to show you the secret third way in life. An infinite path that not only empowers you, but is being re-discovered at this time space vector for humanity. It was long known ago to the ancients, but has been suppressed because of its capability to empower you, the creative individual, should you choose to experience it.
We start with a single point in space. A place of harmony and balance. That point is spread out into a horizontal line. The end of the line of each side represents the two main claimed systems of knowledge - science and religion. Science will go on the left because those who are more scientifically based tend to be more left leaning liberal in their politics and religion will go on the right as those more religiously based tend to be more right leaning conservative in their politics.
A young child may ask early in their life “where did I come from?” and based upon the parent or guardians background and childhood, they will likely give them an answer based on either of these two systems. Evolution or creation. A primary controversy of the Western world involves ongoing, recurring cultural, political, and theological disputes about the origins of the Earth, of humanity, and of other life. Within the religious world, creationism was once widely believed to be true, but since the mid-19th century evolution by natural selection had been established as a claimed empirical scientific fact. These are the basic answers these two systems put forth to that young child. This further extends into the species as a whole with future generations regarding their suspicions on origin.
What is offered in the following is a third way which when brought together forms a third point at the center above from these two. A three pointed shape or a triangle. It is intended to empower the individual who must first have eyes to see and ears to hear. It is not a path of science or a path of religion but a path of magic. It uses the aim of religion with methods similar to that of silence. Thus, the lower left corner of the triangle represents science, the lower right, religion, and the top peak magic. Encapsulating and summarizing the magic and enchantment of the world and that there are many paths to the mountain top. So one could put a S in the lower left triangular corner, a R in the lower right, and an M in the center top position.
A side note on the An Infinite Path symbol is that it has gone through a couple iterations. Like all things that are in constant motion and never set in stone, it will likely go through more in the future. The very first version of the logo contained the litter A larger in the symbol which essentially formed a smaller triangle within a outer larger triangle. This was eventually changed because child pornographers oftentimes use a similar dynamic of a smaller symbol within or next to another same but larger symbol to imply adult and child in a coded way and find one another. The FBI has databases on these various symbols used by child pornography rings so those can be found if you care to research this horrendously dark subject a bit yourself. This is something I of course did unconsciously before becoming aware of this fact, yet I mention it because it’s important to have a back pocket knowledge of shadow workings in the world. If you want to know what’s really going on, it’s often very ugly. Yet knowing about it allows you to transmute it by learning and growing from it. It’s also very unfortunately quite rampant in dark occult circles of power within politics and the entertainment industry. Which not only use symbols but also coded language to communicate their nefarious behaviors. So of course symbols can have a good hidden connotation or a very bad one as well. The other reason the symbol went through a major initial iteration was because of the connection of the smaller triangle essentially containing an eye within the triangle, otherwise known as the Eye of Providence.
The eye in the triangle combined with sun rays around it’s perimeter did have an affiliation with this symbol. Most universally known for it being on the US one dollar bill. There are many theories of why that is and we will explore it a bit more in detail when we get to the eye part of this fun train.
The Ouroboros
Next up on our tour down de-coding lane is the Ouroboros. Which is a Greek word meaning "tail devourer," and is thought to be one of the oldest mystical symbols in the world. It can be perceived as enveloping itself, where the past, which is the tail, appears to disappear but really moves into an inner domain or reality, vanishing from view yet still existing elsewhere.
The ouroboros typically has several meanings interwoven into it. First of all is the symbolism of the serpent biting, eating, or devouring its own tail. This symbolizes the cyclic nature of the universe: creation out of destruction, life out of death. The ouroboros eats its own tail to sustain its life, in an eternal cycle of renewal. It is sometimes depicted in a lemniscate shape as well.
The serpent biting its own tail is first seen as early as 1600 years BC in Egypt as a symbol of the sun, and represented the travels of the sun disk. From there it moved to the Phoenicians and then to the Greeks, who gave it its name, Ouroboros, which means devouring its tail.
In mythology, the Oroborus is a symbol representing the Milky Way galaxy. Myth surrounding it refers to a serpent of light residing in the heavens. The Milky Way is this serpent, and viewed at galactic central point near Sagittarius, it takes on the known shape of a circular pattern. Important for many ancients who used the galaxy to calculate cosmic and earth cycles.
It is found in Gnosticism and alchemy representing cyclical natural life and the fusion of opposites. It also symbolizes the transcendence of duality and was related to the solar God Abraxas, and signified eternity and the soul of the world.
In alchemy, it represents the spirit of Mercury, a substance that permeates all matter, and symbolizes continuous renewal as a snake is often a symbol of resurrection, due to it appearing to be continually reborn as it sheds its skin. Also often symbolizing the cycle of life and death, and harmony of opposites. As a symbol of the eternal unity of all things, the cycle of birth and death from which the alchemist sought release and liberation. It unites opposites: the conscious and unconscious mind. Alchemically, the ouroboros is also used as a purifying glyph. The alchemical textbook, Chrysopoeia (gold making) of Kleopatra contains a drawing of the ouroboros representing the serpent as half light and half dark, echoing symbols such as the Yin Yang, which illustrates the dual nature of all things, but more importantly, that these opposites are not in conflict but harmony.
The Ouroboros appears in many other cultures and settings as well… the Serpent Jormungand of Norse legend, one of the three children of Loki and Angrboda, grew so large that it could encircle the world and grasp its tail in its teeth. It guarded the Tree of Life, and is often depicted as an ouroboros. In Hindu, you have the dragon circling the tortoise which supports the four elephants that carry the world. The Aztec serpent God Quetzalcoatl was depicted similarly, and Chinese alchemical dragons have both similar shapes and meaning. It can also been seen on the perimeter of domed or flat Earth illustrations symbolizing the theory that there is endless land beyond the poles.
The Hand
Our most front and center major element of this mashup is a single human hand with open palm and outstretched fingers. The hand has a very long history of usage in occult or esoteric symbolism. Two of the main uses being the Hamsa Hand of the East and the Philosophers Hand of the West.
The Hamsa, or Hand of Fatima as it’s also called, is typically seen as an up-side down hand with an eye in center used as a protective amulet by both Jews and Muslims. The name hamsa is derived from the Semitic root meaning “five.” Called the Hand of Fatima by Muslims, named for the daughter of Mohamed, and is sometimes said to symbolize the five pillars or tenets of Islam. In Jewish use, it is sometimes called the hand of Miriam, after the biblical heroine. The eye in hand is considered a powerful talisman against the ‘evil eye,’ and is usually worn around the neck or hung on walls or over the doors of homes and businesses.
That’s more of an exoteric point of view from two more traditional structures claiming it is essentially a defense mechanism for those said to portray a hand of goodness or good luck. A more esoteric perspective on the hand comes from the hand of the philosophers or what was called “The hand of the Mysteries” by the incredible Manly Palmer Hall. He wrote of it much in his seminal book The Secret Teachings of All Ages. A beautiful illustration of the “Hand of the Mysteries,” was illustrated by Hall’s collaborator and sidekick, occult Illustrator Augustus Knapp in certain versions of the book which contained illustrations.
Hall says in the work that The Hand of the Mysteries goes by many other names, including the Hand of the Philosopher, Hand of the Master Mason, and the Emblematic Hand of Mysteries. On each finger you will find a unique symbol. The thumb has a crown, the index with a star, the middle finger with a sun, the ring finger with a lantern, and the pinky with a key.
Although many feel it to represent the Hand of God, a further and deeper importance of this symbol pretaints to individuals taking it within their own hands to become initiates of the Secret Mysteries. The hand of the philosopher which is extended to those who enter into the mysteries. When the disciple of the Great Art first beholds this hand, it is closed, and he must discover a method of opening it before the mysteries contained therein may be revealed. In alchemy the hand signifies the formula for the preparation of the tincture physicorum. The fish is mercury and the flame-bounded sea in which it swims is sulfur, while each of the fingers bears the emblem of a Divine Agent through combined operations of which the great work is accomplished. The unknown artist says of the diagram: “The wise take their oath by this hand that they will not teach the Art without parables.” To the Kabbalist the figure signifies the operation of the One Power, the crowded thumb, and in the four worlds which are the fingers with their emblems.
Besides its alchemical and Qabbalistic meanings, the figure is said to symbolize the hand of a Master Mason with which he “raises” the martyred builder of the divine house. Philosophically, the key represents the Mysteries themselves, without whose aid man cannot unlock the numerous chambers of his own being. The lantern is human knowledge, for it is a spark of the universal fire captured in a man-made vessel; it is the light of those who dwell in the inferior universe and with the aid of which they seek to follow in the footsteps of truth. The sun, which may be termed the ” light of the world,” represents the luminescence of creation through which man may learn the mystery of all creatures which express through form and number. The star is the universal light which reveals cosmic and celestial verities. The crown is absolute light– unknown and unrevealed–whose power shines through all the lesser lights that are but sparks of this Eternal Effulgence. Thus is set forth the right hand, or active principle, of deity, whose works are all contained within the” hollow of His hand.
The alchemical symbol of apotheosis, the transformation of man into god, is traditionally represented by an image of a hand with other symbols, including skulls, crowns, stars, fish, keys, lanterns, astrological symbols and the all-seeing eye. A hand covered with numerous symbols was extended to the neophytes when they entered into the Temple of Wisdom. An understanding of the embossed upon the surface of the hand brought with it Divine power and regeneration Therefore, by means of these symbolic hands the candidate was said to be raised from the dead.
To key out some personal perspective here, the hand in the logo is a left hand. If one really reads deeply into it, this could be said to be an advocation of the left hand path in magic, but that wasn’t the ultimate intention and ultimately the goal was to keep that more neutral to argue that there are benefits of both paths. In ancient mythology, the symbol of the right hand had always signified power and Jupiter. To sit at the right hand of God, had meant to wield the divine power of God on earth. Apollo was the god of light, truth and prophecy, healing, plague, music, poetry, and more. He was the favorite son of Jupiter, father of gods and men, and he sat at the right hand of his father.
The personal perspective on choosing the hand is that of taking things into your own hands and engaging your own will to make things happen for yourself. To be thought of as a source of empowerment and that everything in your life happens for a reason and you likely chose to make it that way. Hence your destiny is in your own hands. You have the will to change that destiny through your own actions. Not only is your life literally in your hands your hands are a map of your microcosm.
The Eye
The main stereotype of what the proletariat thinks of conspiracy theories or secret clubs is the single centered eye in the triangle. For Americans that is especially pertinent because of the Eye of Providence appearing on the one dollar bill. So here’s this weird symbol on the most common bill of our money, thus every single American who is of buying a pack bubble gum age has seen it. The version of this symbol elaborates onto a capstone of a triangular pyramid forms part of the Seal of the United States, accompanied by the slogan, Annuit Coeptis, or “It has favored our undertakings.”
The eye, usually depicted in the sky looking out upon the earth, is an ancient symbol of the sun, and historically has been used as a symbol of omniscience. The idea of the solar eye comes to us from the Egyptians, who equated the eye with the deity Osiris; the human eye in its ability to perceive light was viewed as a miniature sun. The use of the eye emblem to represent God was quite common in the Renaissance; often, the eye would be enclosed within a triangle representing the triune godhead. Such an emblem can be found in numerous examples of Christian art. This emblem was eventually adopted by Freemasons as a symbol for the Great Architect. A widely accepted view is that it represents the eye of God watching over humanity. With more conspiratorial leanings stating it’s the eye of a malevolent force watching over you. Entities such as secret societies, aristocratic bloodlines, fraternal groups, the deep state, empirical controllers, dark historical manipulators, and various other puppet string holders are said to be watching over us. It is the symbolic version of its written equivalent “the illuminati”, everyone’s default go to secret society popularized by again, the lightweight but very fun to read author Dan Brown. One could more accurately say the symbol of an eye looking at us is a single element used to describe an ethos of not only being seen but being watched. So a glass-half full mindset on that would be being looked over by a divine presence of love and compassion and a symbol of protection, while the glass-half empty sinister vision would be being spied on in order to have data gathered upon the masses in order to control. It is a bit revealing to note that the triangle is the capstone of a pyramid. For there is absolute truth to those being at the top of a pyramid of power not having those below themselves in the social or financial hierarchy best interests at heart. For the more power one attains the more corrupt they almost always become.
One could technically say that the eye in the infinite path symbol is inside a triangle. As spoken of before. However, the personal motivation with this eye is not so much from a standpoint of a all knowledgeable one’s eye or the eye of a controller, but our own third eye. The third eye (also called the mind's eye, or inner eye) is a mystical and esoteric concept of a speculative invisible eye which provides perception beyond ordinary sight. In certain dharmic spiritual traditions the third eye refers to the ajna or brow chakra. Which essentially refers to the gate that leads to inner realms and spaces of higher consciousness. Not only do humans instantly identify with an eye, as it’s the very first place we look when we see another person's face either on screen, or on canvas, or in the flesh, it acts as an external visual representation of the pineal gland. When one introduces a third eye into anything as a concept, it is to show that they acknowledge realms of vibratory levels or aspects of consciousness outside the 5 senses. In that regard the third eye is an excellent symbol which acts as a counter weight to materialism. One could say it's a bit trendy in the twenty teens to include it in a logo, as many spiritual, psychedelic, or metaphysical podcasts feature this element in their branding. Yet it is a movement in the right direction, for anyone on the path, even if it’s so little that they just like the symbology of it without being able to articulate quite why, still gets the majority of this author's vote.
The Lemniscate
In the most dead center bullseye of the symbol is the infinity symbol. It can be drawn in one continuous movement and has neither a beginning or an end. The two circles sit side by side, symbolising equality between opposing forces, with the connecting point in the centre. The main significance of it in this context is the obvious correlation with the name of the podcast An Infinite Path. To others its ancient understanding as the symbol of perfection, duality and empowerment holds more meaning. The only two numbers that can be written over and over without ending are the 8 and 0 and the number eight on its side is the mathematical symbol for infinity known as the lemniscate. Devised in 1655 by mathematician John Wallis, and named lemniscus, ribbon, by Bernoulli about forty years later. The symbol is patterned after the device known as a mobius, named after a nineteenth century mathematician’s strip. A mobius strip is a strip of paper which is twisted and attached at the ends, forming a two dimensional surface. The deeper aspects of the infinity symbol predate its mathematical origins. As it has been found in Tibetan rock carvings; and the ouroboros as spoken of before, is often depicted in this shape.
The lemniscate can be seen in numerous cards of the tarot including the two of pentacles, strength, and the magician. In the context of the tarot, the lemniscate represents the balance of forces and is often most associated with the magician card. It can be said to show that the divine or the spiritual is always present and able to be accessed beyond the act being represented, without necessarily conscious awareness by the character in question. For the two of pentacles, being the two of coins, it shows that the spiritual operates deep within the material bounds of manifestation via the open-ribbon. The Magician and Strength both have powers beyond those which can easily be explained away; the Magician's intellect and will, and Strength's almost holy calmness as she tames a fierce beast with a pat of her hand are examples. Both cards also signify traits of power that have the ability to impact the rest of our lives.
Summary
A final note on the combination of these separate elements to make us this symbol is that for the most part, it is symmetrical. Symmetry has a connotation of balance, and is a very important element in my personal life. It has much deeper inclinations because of my personal experience with a mysterious practice called mirrored bilateral symmetry. It is something I have had recurring experiences with as an altered state of consciousness and somewhat moving meditation consisting of my body making lemniscate figure eights through movement. It’s a state I have been able to access for the last couple years which provides deep insight via ties to kundalini activation and ancient yogic energetics. That will be more explored in a future essay but it’s worth noting that it’s one of the personal practices that has lead me to say the things I do.
So this encapsulates some subjective and objective opinions which we could also say are still surface level. As there are always deeper meanings to extract. For it can be very self educational to turn on our inner Robert Langdon and get to know lesser understood symbols. In an effort to create a magical sigil out of this logo, with a benevolent and deeper meaning and undercurrent behind it, we are also happy to share a more direct explanation why via this essay’s insights. This is similar to the ways occult, alchemical, or esoteric symbols from the past we may have been so personally drawn towards in our lives are intended to function. If you are intrigued by symbolism, allow yourself to feel into what they do for you and how they make you feel. For if they help light an inner spark of interest within yourself, then they are doing their job. For they are machines and keys capable of unlocking what is inside us. They are gateways to know thyself and machines for accomplishing an effect. And each individual must experience things on their own to have their own internal unique logos. Take notice of the etymology of that word and how the word logo is contained within it, which is not a coincidence.