Week 17: Geburah in Assiah and the 5 of Disks

General Symbolic of Geburah:

Geburah (force) occupies the central position on the Pillar of Severity. A destructive aspect of strength, it counterbalances the protective and conservative aspect of Chesed.

Wherever there is a form that survives its own usefulness, Geburah must intervene. "Geburah the Destroyer" is as necessary to the balance of the Tree as Chesed, who watches and protects. Inaction should not be confused with balance. In our changing world, the real stability is that of the rider on his bicycle, which results from a conglomerate of forces. Here, any immobility is synonymous with a fall.

With a swift gesture, Geburah tears the object of desire out of our hands. It is this courage and spirit of resolution that destroys any false indulgence.

Some people swear by the strength of Geburah. Others never intervene other than by being passive in the face of conflict. Everyone here is unbalanced.


Geburah in Assiah: Mars

If Mars is considered as an evil planet in astrology, it is due to these violent and often painful effects.

In astrology, Saturn (Binah) and Mars (Geburah) are considered the great and small evil respectively. On the Tree, Binah and Geburah are directly linked to each other. Binah is said to be the cause of death because it encloses life in a structure, a body, a perishable vehicle. Geburah is destructive because its igneous force breaks and mercilessly destroys forms. Binah perpetually locks the force in the form, while Geburah unceasingly releases it, breaking the form.

The 5 of Disks - Worry:

“The Number Five, Geburah, in the suit of Earth, shows the disruption of the Elements, just as in the other suits. This is emphasized by the rule of Mercury in Taurus, types of energy which are opposed. It needs a very powerful Mercury to upset Taurus; so the natural meaning is Intelligence applied to Labour.

The symbol represents five disks in the form of the inverted Pentagram, instability in the very foundations of Matter. The effect is that of an earthquake. They are, however, representative of the five Tatvas; these hold together, on a very low plane, an organism which would otherwise disrupt completely. The background is an angry, ugly red with yellow markings. The general effect is one of intense strain; yet the symbol implies long-continued inaction.”
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
http://www.esotericmeanings.com/wp-c...hoth_tarot.jpg