Cause and Effect

Every Cause has its Effect; every Effect has its Cause; everything happens according to Law.

Chance is but a name for Law not recognized; there are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law.

Kybalion

The Sixth Hermetic Principle is the Principle of Cause and Effect. It says:

• nothing happens by Chance
• Chance is merely a term indicating cause existing but not recognized or perceived
• phenomena is continuous, without break or exception.

It underlies all scientific thought, ancient and modern. It was enunciated by the Hermetic Teachers in the earliest days.

Many and varied disputes between the many schools of thought have since arisen. These disputes have been:

• principally on the details of the Principle’s operations, and
• more often on the meaning of words.

The underlying Principle of Cause and Effect has been accepted as correct by practically all the notable thinkers.

To think otherwise would be to relegate phenomena out of the domain of Law and Order, and into the imaginary something called “Chance.”

There is no such thing as pure chance.

Webster defines “chance” as:

• “a supposed agent or mode of activity other than a force, law or purpose”
• “the operation or activity of such agent”
• “the supposed effect of such an agent”
• “a happening”
• “fortuity”
• “casualty”
• etc.

There is no such thing as Chance because there is nothing outside of Cause and Effect.

How could there be a something acting in the phenomenal universe, independent of the laws, order, and continuity of the latter?

Such a something would be entirely independent of the orderly trend of the universe, and therefore superior to it.

We can imagine nothing outside of THE ALL being outside of the Law, and that only because THE ALL is the LAW in itself.

There is no room in the universe for a something outside of and independent of Law. The existence of such a Something would render all Natural Laws ineffective, and would plunge the universe into chaotic disorder and lawlessness.

“Chance” is merely an expression relating to obscure causes that we cannot perceive nor understand.

“Chance” is derived from a word meaning “to fall” (as the falling of dice).

The idea is that the fall of the dice (and many other happenings) are merely a “happening” unrelated to any cause.

This is the sense in which the term is generally employed.

But when the matter is closely examined, it is seen that there is no chance whatsoever about the fall of the dice.

Each time a die falls and displays a certain number, it obeys gravitation.

Behind the fall of the die are causes, or chains of causes, running back further than the mind can follow:

• the position of the die in the box
• the amount of muscular energy expended in the throw
• the condition of the table, etc.

These are all are causes, the effect of which may be seen.

But behind these seen causes, there are chains of unseen preceding causes. All of these had a bearing on the resulting number of the die.

If a die is cast many times, the numbers shown will be about equal.

Toss a penny in the air, and it may come down either “heads” or “tails”. But make a sufficient number of tosses, and the heads and tails will about even up.*

This is the operation of the law of average.

But both the average and the single toss come under the Law of Cause and Effect, and if we were able to examine into the preceding causes, it would be clearly seen that it was simply impossible for the die to fall other than it did, under the same circumstances and at the same time.

Given the same causes, the same results will follow.

There is always a “cause” and a “because” to every event. Nothing ever “happens” without a cause, or rather a chain of causes.

Some people are confused has arisen in the minds of persons considering this Principle, from the fact that they were unable to explain how one thing could cause another thing—that is, be the “creator” of the second thing.

But no “thing” ever causes or “creates” another “thing”.