"Everything is Dual; everything has poles; everything has its
pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are
identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet;
all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be
reconciled."--The Kybalion.

This Principle embodies the truth that "everything is dual"; "everything
has two poles"; "everything has its pair of opposites," all of which
were old Hermetic axioms. It explains the old paradoxes, that have
perplexed so many, which have been stated as follows: "Thesis and
antithesis are identical in nature, but different in degree"; "opposites
are the same, differing only in degree"; "the pairs of opposites may be
reconciled"; "extremes meet"; "everything is and isn't, at the same
time"; "all truths are but half-truths"; "every truth is half-false";
"there are two sides to everything," etc., etc., etc. It explains that
in everything there are two poles, or opposite aspects, and that
"opposites" are really only the two extremes of the same thing, with
many varying degrees between them. To illustrate: Heat and Cold,
although "opposites," are really the same thing, the differences
consisting merely of degrees of the same thing. Look at your thermometer
and see if you can discover where "heat" terminates and "cold" begins!
There is no such thing as "absolute heat" or "absolute cold"--the two
terms "heat" and "cold" simply indicate varying degrees of the same
thing, and that "same thing" which manifests as "heat" and "cold"
is merely a form, variety, and rate of Vibration. So "heat" and "cold"
are simply the "two poles" of that which we call "Heat"--and the
phenomena attendant thereupon are manifestations of the Principle of
Polarity. The same Principle manifests in the case of "Light and
Darkness," which are the same thing, the difference consisting of
varying degrees between the two poles of the phenomena. Where does
"darkness" leave off, and "light" begin? What is the difference between
"Large and Small"? Between "Hard and Soft"? Between "Black and White"?
Between "Sharp and Dull"? Between "Noise and Quiet"? Between "High and
Low"? Between "Positive and Negative"? The Principle of Polarity
explains these paradoxes, and no other Principle can supersede it. The
same Principle operates on the Mental Plane. Let us take a radical and
extreme example--that of "Love and Hate," two mental states apparently
totally different. And yet there are degrees of Hate and degrees of
Love, and a middle point in which we use the terms "Like or Dislike,"
which shade into each other so gradually that sometimes we are at a loss
to know whether we "like" or "dislike" or "neither." And all are simply
degrees of the same thing, as you will see if you will but think a
moment. And, more than this (and considered of more importance
by the Hermetists), it is possible to change the vibrations of Hate to
the vibrations of Love, in one's own mind, and in the minds of others.
Many of you, who read these lines, have had personal experiences of the
involuntary rapid transition from Love to Hate, and the reverse, in your
own case and that of others. And you will therefore realize the
possibility of this being accomplished by the use of the Will, by means
of the Hermetic formulas. "Good and Evil" are but the poles of the same
thing, and the Hermetist understands the art of transmuting Evil into
Good, by means of an application of the Principle of Polarity. In short,
the "Art of Polarization" becomes a phase of "Mental Alchemy" known and
practiced by the ancient and modern Hermetic Masters. An understanding
of the Principle will enable one to change his own Polarity, as well as
that of others, if he will devote the time and study necessary to master
the art.