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The Universal One

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A “must” for the serious student of Russell science and philosophy, The Universal One is Walter Russell’s first expression of his new Cosmogony explaining the Mind-centered electromagnetic universe.

Russell later revised some of the content of The Universal One in The Secret of Light and A New Concept of the Universe. Students of the Russell science should be aware of the historic sequence of Walter Russell’s books of science, and note the various changes in details which Walter Russell himself made.

Nikola Tesla told Walter Russell to hide his cosmogony from the world for a thousand years. Though a century or more ahead of its time, The Universal One, uniting spiritual Cause and scientifically observable Effect in a seamless whole, is now appealing to the many people—scientists and laymen alike—who are examining the nature of science and consciousness.

In this 1926 historic volume, Walter Russell first reveals the possibility of transmutation of the elements. This is a universe of Mind, a finite universe, limited as to cause, and to the effect of cause. A finite universe, in which the effects of cause are limited, must also be limited as to cause; so when that measurable cause is known, then can man comprehend and measure all effects. The effects of cause are complex and mystify man, but cause itself is simple.

The universe is a multiplicity of changing effects of but One unchanging cause. All things are universal. Nothing is which is not universal. Nothing is of itself alone. Man and Mind and all creating things are universal. No man can say: ‘I alone am I.’ There is but One universe, One Mind, One force, One substance. When man knows this in measurable exactness then will he have no limitations within those which are universal.” — Walter Russell, from The Prelude to The Universal One.

Part I: Creation; The Life Principle; Mind, The One Universal Substance; Thinking Mind; The Process of Thinking; Thinking Registered in Matter; Concerning Appearances; The Sex Principle; Sex Opposites of Light; The Reproductive Principle; Energy Transmission; A Finite Universe; A Dimensionless Universe; Concerning Dimension; The Formula of Locked Potentials; Universal Oneness; Omnipresence; Omnipotence; Omniscience.

Part II: Dynamics of Mind & Light Units of Matter; Electricity and Magnetism; New Concepts of Electricity and Magnetism; Electricity; The Elements of Matter; The Octave Cycle of the Elements of Matter; The Instability and the Illusion of Stability of Matter; The Universal Pulse; Concerning Energy; Electro-Magnetic Pressure; Attraction and Repulsion; Gravitation and Radiation; Expressions of Gravitation and Radiation – Universal Direction; Universal Mathematics & Ratios; Charging & Discharging Poles; The Wave; Time; Temperature; Color; Universal Mechanics; Rotation; Revolution; Crystallization; Plane and Ecliptic; Ionization; Valence; Tone; Conclusion; New Laws and Principles.

The Universal One Contains numerous charts and diagrams.The Universal One is both an historic and present/future treasure illuminating questions about universal cosmogony and philosophical considerations of the nature of the universe.

268 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1926

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About the author

Walter Russell

80 books248 followers
Walter Russell was a accomplished sculptor, painter and philosopher who believed that every man has consummate genius within him.
He became known as a natural philosopher and for his unified theory in physics and cosmogony.

He posited that the universe was founded on a unifying principle of rhythmic balanced interchange. This theory is laid out primarily in his books The Secret of Light and The Message of the Divine Iliad.

Russell was a polymath and also proficient in architecture, music, business and ice skating.
He became a professor at the institution he founded with his wife, the University of Science and Philosophy.

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5 stars
117 (55%)
4 stars
37 (17%)
3 stars
39 (18%)
2 stars
10 (4%)
1 star
6 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
Profile Image for Richard.
24 reviews9 followers
September 3, 2022
The days were all twos and it was a Tuesday. I sat up in my living-space with a book in my hands entitled The Universal One. A man called Walter wrote this worldview.

Tesla, who I admire to endless degrees, gave this book remarkable praise, saying it needed hidden, locked away. One thousand years have not passed yet one-hundred are only five short. This ninety-five year-old scientific work I cannot judge through an accomplished scientist’s lens.

I am none the more worthy or less to hold this fantastic book, I simply am. The arrangement of the world, and a little use of amazon.co.uk have put it there.

Exhilarating, The Universal One teaches physics, almost. It’s all about unplugging the tangled ridiculous messy mass of cables that science men trust, and places them one-by-one along elegant, beautiful contours.

Amazing, I rely on our superiors’ views to inform my own, on the accuracy of the science. As a book, a work of creation and explanation, even poetic prose, it is as gallantly elegant as a very well strung harp.

This is a very sound, healthy book to read. I enter the pages of this majestic manuscript with insatiable curiosity. The greatest sense of entertainment and love combine to give company to my joy upon the arrangements of the wording here.

I know this is like Jung’s Red book, it will never leave my functioning mind.
Profile Image for Filip.
21 reviews
January 3, 2018
Most comprehensive book about the universe, life and existence, I have read. Mind blowing, only for the open minded people who are ready to have their paradigms and belief systems blown away.
Profile Image for Edward.
7 reviews15 followers
January 13, 2014
I am a Walter Russell fan. The book is an awesome study of the light within any man, woman, or child. I hope to come back to this book a thousand times over.
Profile Image for Christy ofthewoods.
127 reviews4 followers
August 15, 2019
Amazing book. Not for beginners that’s for sure, there were definitely moments that I felt too stupid to be reading it. But even if you don’t understand all the science, you will still absorb A LOT of important stuff.
448 reviews2 followers
January 28, 2025
One of those books that is either brilliant or crazy, so I split the difference and gave it 3 stars. Russell lays out his theory on physics/theology that has hard differences from conventional science. Myself being but a simple man, I don’t know enough the be able to prove or disprove his assertions. He also covers topics fairly quickly without explaining from a ground zero level, he typically was just stating what he thought rather than explaining how or why he thought what he did. It strikingly resembles Gurdjieff’s ray of creation and eastern thought on metaphysics.

God is mind. Mind is the universe. All parts of the universe are part of the whole. Man is part of the universe, therefore man is god.

Russell believed in a version of pantheism, where god and the universe are one. Everything is light. Matter is light slowed and cooled down. Light therefore cannot have a fixed speed. Gravity isn’t real. The fundamental forces are two: male/generating/contracting/inhalation/electricity/attractive/positive/northward force and female/radiating/expanding/exhalation/magnetic/repelling/negative/southward force (reminded me of yin and yang). The pulsation of these two factors are the cause of everything in the universe. All matter can be thought of as octaves or tones, which can go up and down these scales. Planets are born from the sun, moons are born from the planets (like Gurdjieff’s ray of creation). Space is not a vacuum but has intense pressure the closer you go to the sun. Therefore, Jupiter and Saturn have less mass than we imagine since they are under less pressure and therefore less dense. Everything travels in spirals or cones.

It was fairly dryly written and it was very dense. Most discussion online about his theories are either similarly opaque or are essentially ad hominem attacks. I’d be curious to learn more from someone who can explain why Russell believed what he did in a way I can understand.
Profile Image for Greg.
Author 3 books42 followers
May 19, 2023
In essence, everything is everything, and everything is one. Walter is an artist so he has attempted to unify concepts like the colour spectrum, periodic table, and other dualistic or physics concepts into one theory. This is a flowing scientific yet spiritual poem.
Profile Image for Abraham Kemper.
5 reviews1 follower
May 24, 2021
If ya want some quality, pithy Spirit-Science, my go-to is The Kybalion. Sorry Russell. :(
51 reviews5 followers
November 30, 2024
Nonsense

Waste of money. This "cosmology" makes no sense whatsoever. It's just thousands of words strung together in subject-verb-object sentences that all sound alike. Walter Russell is referred to as Dr. Russell on the book, but I have no idea of what kind of doctorate he held. As far as I can tell, Russell was an accomplished painter and sculptor, but he had no formal scientific education. His premise seems to be that everything is made of light, but he has no idea what electromagnetism is. The positive Amazon reviews were apparently submitted by people who were carried away by the artistic beauty of the bound hard copy. I guess I failed to see the beauty because my copy was the inexpensive Kindle version, but I'm just thankful I only wasted ten bucks instead of throwing away even more money on the hard copy. Amazon will probably purge this review after sending me a nasty message because it violated its rules, but so be it.
Profile Image for Vaida Macerenkaitė.
19 reviews1 follower
May 29, 2024
Honestly, I have never read anything so easy to understand. Everything Walter Russell spoke about is what new-age physicists are trying to prove. It's like we are stuck in a never-ending loop of understanding that we originated from the source, are connected with the source (this realization is called awakening of the soul or spirit), and are all returning to the source. "Energy cannot be destroyed, it just changes shapes and forms" - is a fundamental principle of physics known as the law of conservation of energy. Love this book!
60 reviews
December 25, 2024
Aged Knowledge

I did not know what to expect when I started reading. I can only recommend this book to readers who are also successful spiritual seekers. With some thoughtful seeking I found deeper understanding of the octives can be found in other places on the internet. I liked how the author revealed his ideas in plain speech and Clear explanations which only go as far as your present knowledge allows. Don't give up read to the end.
16 reviews
July 27, 2024
Book reads like a conceptual bootcamp, motivating the reader to imagine the dichotomies of motion and force the author presents. The reader should however only pick up what they feel resonates with their being and discard all that which doesn't intuitively make sense.
Profile Image for Will.
8 reviews2 followers
September 3, 2020
I loved this book, it goes well with the Eastern Christian metaphysics of the essence/energy distinction (Gregory Palamas).
5 reviews
November 6, 2024
difficult to understand

Difficult to comprehend.
You would or should understand science more to understand.
Understanding electrical theory not sure I agree with this theory.
416 reviews2 followers
July 11, 2025
DNF. Just a rehash of what I have read in dozens of other treatises.
Profile Image for AttackGirl.
1,535 reviews27 followers
June 25, 2025
Physicist? Science major, dreamer of esoteric energy then this book is for you

Surely we must call it God! He God but why not Dog?
Profile Image for Arnold Sunneräng.
1 review
June 16, 2022
Seems to be written more in the language of the heart than in the language of numbers,
but may very well be coherent nonetheless!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews

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