Delusions at the False Summit

«…the gap in thought between the Real, which is ideal, and the Unreal, which is actual. In the Abyss all things exist, indeed, at least in posse, but they are without any possible meaning; for they lack the substratum of spiritual Reality. They are appearances without Law. They are thus Insane Delusions.«

—Aleister Crowley, Little Essays on Truth

The sanctuary, situated high above—a hallowed space established at the pinnacle of the world—rests majestically atop the highest peak of the mountain, a colossal formation that rises from a dramatic peristalsis of the bowels of the Earth, a testament to the violent geological upheavals that have shaped this planet. This mountain, with its rugged and formidable structure, seems to emerge from the very depths of Tellus Mater, as though it had materialized from the primal, heterogeneous forces of nature herself. The mountain’s towering presence penetrates the celestial dome, reaching upwards with a sense of raw and tumultuous energy, embodying the drama of existence itself within the vast, cyclopean expanse, a concavity in the fabric of the universe—a domain forged from the infinite contractions of the Void.

This tempestuous shrine exerts an unavoidable allure upon the Adept, serving as a beacon for those yearning not only to escape the confines of the material world but also to transcend the very notion of self. The sanctuary calls upon those who wander —the Wandervögel—to liberate themselves from every form of mundane imprisonment, every delusional intoxication, and every deceptive mirage that persistently clouds their perception of the essential truths within this dimension of existence. The journey toward this summit, while enticing, is fraught with obstacles; these obstacles manifest as alluring illusions that stand in the way of both the physical ascent and the spiritual quest for self-realization, which follows the necessary destruction of former identities. Through arduous endeavors, trials, and ordeals—per ardua—the initiate is guided into a hostile territory that is not merely geographical but also profoundly and dangerously existential. It is a sacred space where the divine and the transcendent dwell—sacred because the numinous inhabits there.

In the depths of the hearts and souls of those who decide to embark on the alchemical journey of initiatic mountaineering, a sensation of true freedom emerges—an unprecedented liberty almost impossible to experience in the comfortable banality of daily life. This awe-inspiring sensation envelops the mountaineer, a solitary wanderer daring to traverse the desolate and unforgiving heights, subjecting himself to the bitter chill of altitude. When this individual gazes upon the unmasked realities that unveil themselves, accessing the unfolding of the manifestations revealed—born from the tortuous interplay of hypoxia, exhaustion, and prolonged suffering, further intensified through acts of renunciation, even if momentary—he perceives a rupture in the linearity of mundane, profane time, a time that is stopped while the act of re-creation takes place.

After a long and rigorous process of erosion of the self and its civilizational hopes, the Adept is able to recognize the fleeting Ahrimanic radiations¹—those corrosive forces that saturate the modern landscape, amplified by the base instincts and earthly aspirations of fractured human beings. However, this sense of liberation can become ephemeral, shattering abruptly upon the harsh impact of the reality of the Adept’s limitations. Confronted with the stark truth of a shattered existence, the initiate, striving to cross the threshold of his limits, encounters a disillusionment that reveals modern life as a labyrinth riddled with deceptions, continually diverting the individual from accessing his true essence: the false summit.

At the false summit, that deceptive elevation on the mountain’s terrain—viewed from afar—fills the wayfarer’s mind and soul with the illusion of having reached the ultimate peak, the highest point of the mountain—a mirage that dissolves the very boundaries of reality. This mirage invites a delirium characterized by denial and blindness to the truths of existence itself, and fosters a state akin to intoxication, an intoxicating experience that stalls the shattering of entrenched cognitive constructs, thereby obstructing the acknowledgment of the inherent terrors and ultimate sacrifices intertwined with the experience of life. The false summit epitomizes a materialistic distraction—a representation of superficiality that ultimately severs the individual’s connection to both his inner self and the natural world.

For Jünger, in his Der totale Mobilmachung, the false summit takes on the guise of a technological illusion, where the fabric of reality is dissolved into a hollow simulation of life. This distorted perception of reality manifests as a veneer, masking authentic human interactions with the pallid substitutes of digital connections. Authenticity itself becomes obscured in the relentless pursuit of efficiency and productivity. The encroachment of the artificial threatens to fracture the bonds of that which is natural and wild, annihilating the raw and unadulterated truths of naked reality.

The mirage that the false summit casts upon the individual closely resembles the delusions that society projects onto its members. It inundates the mind with a plethora of distortions of freedom—fostering the illusion of liberty that is, in actuality, confined within the restrictive parameters of societal norms. This represents a sanctioned freedom—both constrained and filtered—designed to uphold a societal construct that, in its relentless efforts to avert a descent into barbarism, continuously gazes into the abyss of its own inherent entropy. This domesticated version of freedom² functions to tame the chaotic forces eager to disrupt a static equilibrium, which is perpetually threatened by heterogeneity. Much like a fragile blossom that grows beneath the protective presence of Kwan Yin, the bodhisattva of compassion, this form of freedom is nurtured yet ultimately faces obliteration beneath the oppressive and expansive shadow of the false summit. The freedom presented in this context is characterized by the relinquishment of the violent excesses associated with both the sacred and profane elements of existence. It entails a profound sacrifice that leads to the dissipation of the tumultuous and heterological waves that often mislead and seduce the uninitiated, who will end up lost among the hundreds of millions of interactions between the organic and the inorganic. At the heart of this phenomenon lies an intricate tapestry of self-pity and the innate fear of death—a reaction that is both natural and deeply understandable. Death represents not merely an event but the total annihilation of the individual’s existence, signifying the irrevocable cessation of all potential experiences and future possibilities. This existential finality, referred to as Atyantikapralaya, embodies the ultimate dissolution and pulverization of the microcosm, wherein everything returns to its primordial and unmanifested state, submerged within the crucible of the Ultimate Reality.

In this ascent to seemingly unreachable heights, the radiation emitted by the Ahrimanic powers becomes increasingly pronounced and concentrated, particularly within the stratigraphic layers that lie closest to the sphere of influence exerted by the false summit. It is in this critical proximity that the true summit increasingly eludes the mountaineer’s view. These parasitic radiations, which incessantly feed upon both the corporeal and spiritual essence, infiltrate the mortal vessel of the wanderer, overwhelming the human receptacle with a deceptive sense of satisfaction derived from the illusion of having significantly shortened the distance to the ultimate goal. Up to the very moment when reality is finally unveiled, the wayfarer, intoxicated and misled by the seductive embellishments of the sensory world and the fleeting satisfaction of modernity’s myriad needs, remains ensnared in the delusion that his efforts are yielding tangible results.

However, there inevitably arrives a moment of acute pain, characterized by the dissolution of what once appeared solid and substantial. This shattering disappointment pierces through the layers of weariness that have numbed the body, violently awakening it as it inhales the cold air laden with dust at high altitudes. This mortifying coldness, which assaults the body’s inherent warmth, functions as an ascetic mechanism³—a feverish blow that serves to mortify the senses and strip away comforting illusions. Before the mountaineer lies the true summit—the embodiment of Truth—looming just beyond the deceptive façade of the false summit. This reality rends violently through the veil of false security, shattering the comforting homogeneity and familiarity that had previously masked the harshness of the journey, thereby unraveling the false hope that had been firmly entrenched in layers of illusion.

Monumental and yet obscured by the constraints of space and time, the true summit erupts from within the cold womb of the firmament, standing resolutely as the foundational pillar upon which the equilibrium of the Cosmos is predicated. The true summit, unveiled in its raw essence as a hierophany, beckons the mountaineer-alchemist to shed the illusions imposed by societal constructs and to undertake an ascent toward an inner peak that is far more authentic in its nature. Here, at this ultimate elevation, removed from worldly distractions, from all entities and individuals, the weary, gasping Adept, battered by the relentless heterological waves that have assailed his will, is compelled to sever ties with the intoxicating radiations of modernity. In this crucible of realization, he seeks attunement with both nature and his own unique individuality.⁴

The confrontation with the false summit, alongside the ensuing frustration and the bittersweet victory that paradoxically feels akin to defeat, serves to propel the initiate on a profound inner journey. The mirages that once clouded his vision are now rendered obsolete, buried beneath the vivid insights that arise from the experiences of transgression and the sacred. These waves return to obliterate the confining circles that have long imprisoned the will within the confines of delirium.⁵ The mountaineer navigates the jagged face of these topographical oceans, a task that parallels the navigation through the complexities inherent in life itself. This journey involves confronting self-imposed limitations and traversing the pathways that lead toward authenticity, all while intricately weaving through the multifaceted ecosystems and mesocosmic structures that shape existence.

With each deliberate step taken toward the authentic summit, the Initiate edges closer to a profound realization of his true self. This ascent is revealed not only as a quest for the summit as a physical destination but as a transformative state of being that transcends the superficial challenges of the journey. The true summit stands as a beacon of enlightenment, guiding the seeker toward a deeper understanding of the interconnectedness of all things within the cosmos, the connection with the ultimate reality that underlies the vastness of existence:

oṁ asato mā sad gamaya
tamaso mā jyotir gamaya
mṛtyor mā amṛtaṁ gamaya

— Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 1.3.28