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  #21  
Old 30-11-2019, 04:36 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
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
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  #22  
Old 07-12-2019, 05:04 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 18: Path between Netzah and Chesed in Assiah

Letter:
Kaph

X – Fortune: “This card is attributed to the planet Jupiter, "the Greater Fortune" in astrology. It corresponds to the letter Kaph, which means the palm of the hand, in whose lines, according to another tradition, the fortune of the owner may be read. [Kaph 20 Peh 80 =100, Qoph, Pisces. The initials K Ph are those of κτεις and φαλλος] It would be narrow to think of Jupiter as good fortune; he represents the element of luck. The incalculable factor.

This card thus represents the Universe in its aspect as a continual change of state. Above, the firmament of stars. These appear distorted in shape, although they are balanced, some being brilliant and some dark. From them, through the firmament, issue lightnings; they churn it into a mass of blue and violet plumes. In the midst of all this is suspended a wheel of ten spokes, according to the number of the Sephiroth, and of the sphere of Malkuth, indicating governance of physical affairs.

On this wheel are three figures, the Sworded Sphinx, Hermanubis, and Typhon; they symbolize the three forms of energy which govern the movement of phenomena.

The nature of these qualities requires careful description. In the Hindu system are three Gunas-Sattvas, Rajas and Tamas. The word "Guna" is untranslatable. It is not quite an element, a quality, a form of energy, a phase, or a potential; all of these ideas enter into it. All the qualities that can be predicated of anything may be ascribed to one or more of these Gunas: Tamas is darkness, inertia, sloth, ignorance, death and the like; Rajas is energy, excitement, fire, brilliance, restlessness; Sattvas is calm, intelligence, lucidity and balance. They correspond to the three principal Hindu castes.

One of the most important aphorisms of Hindu philosophy is: "the Gunas revolve". This means that, according to the doctrine of continual change, nothing can remain in any phase where one of these Gunas is predominant; however dense and dull that thing may be, a time will come when it begins to stir. The end and reward of the effort is a state of lucid quietude, which, however, tends ultimately to sink into the original inertia.

The Gunas are represented in European philosophy by the three qualities, sulphur, mercury and salt, already pictured in Atu I, III and IV. But in this card the attribution is somewhat different. The Sphinx is composed of the four Kerubs, shown in Atu V, the bull, the lion, the eagle and the man. These correspond, furthermore, to the four magical virtues, to Know, to Will, to Dare, and to Keep Silence. [These are the four elements, summed in a fifth, Spirit, to form the Pentagram; and the Magical Virtue corresponding is Ire, to go. "To go" is the token of Godhead, as explained in reference to the sandal-strap or Ankh, the Crux Ansata, which in its turn is identical with the astrological symbol of Venus, comprising the 10 Sephiroth.(See diagram)]. This Sphinx represents the element of sulphur, and is exalted, temporarily, upon the summit of the wheel. She is armed with a sword of the short Roman pattern, held upright between the paws of the lion.

Climbing up the left-hand side of the wheel is Hermanubis, who represents the alchemical Mercury. He is a composite god; but in him the simian element predominates.

On the right hand side, precipitating himself downward, is Typhon, who represents the element of salt. Yet in these figures there is also a certain degree of complexity, for Typhon was a monster of the primitive world, personifying the destructive power and fury of volcanos and typhoons. In the legend, he attempted to obtain supreme authority over both gods and men; but Zeus blasted him with a thunderbolt. He is said to be the father of stormy, hot and poisonous winds; also of the Harpies. But this card, like Atu XVI, may also be interpreted as a Unity of supreme attainment and delight. The lightnings which destroy, also beget; and the wheel may be regarded as the Eye of Shiva, whose opening annihilates the Universe, or as a wheel upon the Car of Jaganath, whose devotees attain perfection at the moment that it crushes them."
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
http://www.esotericmeanings.com/wp-c...wley-thoth.jpg
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  #23  
Old 14-12-2019, 02:33 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 19: Path between Tiphareth and Chesed in Assiah

Letter:
Yod

IX – Hermit: “This card is attributed to the letter Yod, which means the Hand. Hence, the hand, which is the tool or instrument par excellence, is in the centre of the picture. The letter Yod is the foundation of all the other letters of the Hebrew alphabet, which are merely combinations of it in various ways.

The letter Yod is the first letter of the name Tetragrammaton, and this symbolizes the Father, who is Wisdom; he is the highest form of Mercury, and the Logos, the Creator of all worlds. Accordingly, his representative in physical life is the spermatozoon; this is why the card is called The Hermit.

The figure of the Hermit himself recalls the shape of the letter Yod, and the colour of his cloak is the colour of Binah, in whom he gestates. In his hand he holds a Lamp whose centre is the Sun, portrayed in the likeness of the Sigil of the great King of Fire (Yod is the secret Fire). It seems that he is contemplating---in a certain sense, adoring---the Orphic egg (greenish in colour) because it is conterminous with the Universe, while the snake which surrounds it is many-coloured to signify the iridescence of Mercury. For he is not only creative, but is the fluidic essence of Light, which is the life of the Universe.

The highest symbolism of this card is, therefore, Fertility in its most exalted sense, and this is reflected in the attribution of the card to the sign of Virgo, which is another aspect of the same quality. Virgo is an earthy sign, and is referred especially to Corn, so that the background of the card is a field of wheat.

Virgo represents the lowest, most receptive, most feminine form of earth, and forms the crust over Hades. Yet not only is Virgo ruled by Mercury, but Mercury is exalted therein. Compare the Ten of Disks, and the general doctrine that the climax of the Descent into Matter is the signal for the reintegration by Spirit. It is the Formula of the Princess, the mode of fulfilment of the Great Work.

This card recalls the Legend of Persephone, and herein is a dogma. Concealed within Mercury is a light which pervades all parts of the Universe equally; one of his titles is Psychopompos, the guide of the soul through the lower regions. These symbols are indicated by his Serpent Wand, which is actually growing out of the Abyss, and is the spermatozoon developed as a poison, and manifesting the foetus. Following him is Cerberus, the three-headed Hound of Hell whom he has tamed. In this Trump is shewn the entire mystery of Life in its most secret workings. Yod Phallus Spermatozoon Hand Logos Virgin. There is perfect Identity, not merely Equivalence, of the Extremes, the Manifestation, and the Method.”
(Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
http://www.esotericmeanings.com/wp-c...rowley_yod.jpg
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  #24  
Old 21-12-2019, 02:54 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 20: Path between Geburah and Chesed in Assiah

This is the second horizontal path out of three on the Tree. Going up it comes after passing the second veil. We meet this point of resistance, after passing through Hod and Netzach, we progress towards Tiphareth, the heart of the tree. In the outside world, a powerful test is coming. It is up to each one to decide whether or not he accepts to identify with the divine parcel that is within him and to allow his self to be the vehicle for it.

Letter: Teth

XI – Lust: "This Trump was formerly called Strength. But it implies far more than strength in the ordinary sense of the word. Technical analysis shows that the Path corresponding to the card is not the Strength of Geburah, but the influence from Chesed upon Geburah, the Path balanced both vertically and horizontally on the Tree of Life. For this reason it has been thought better to change the traditional title. Lust implies not only strength, but the joy of strength exercised. It is vigour, and the rapture of vigour.

The main subject of the card refers to the most ancient collection of legends or fables. It is necessary here to go a little into the magical doctrine of the succession of the Aeons, which is connected with the procession of the Zodiac. Thus, the last Aeon, that of Osiris, is referred to Aries and Libra, as the previous Aeon, that of Isis, was especially connected with the signs of Pisces and Virgo, while the present, that of Horus, is linked with Aquarius and Leo. The central mystery in that past Aeon was that of Incarnation; all the legends of god-men were founded upon some symbolic story of that kind. The essential of all such stories was to deny human fatherhood to the hero or god-man. In most cases, the father is stated to be a god in some animal form, the animal being chosen in accordance with the qualities that the authors of the cult wished to see reproduced in the child.

Thus, Romulus and Remus were twins begotten upon a virgin by the god Mars, and they were suckled by a wolf. On this the whole magical formula of the city Rome was founded.

Reference has already been made in this essay to the legends of Hermes and Dionysus.

The father of Gautama Buddha was said to be an elephant with six tusks, appearing to his mother in a dream.

There is also the legend of the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove, impregnating the Virgin Mary. There is here a reference to the dove of Noah's Ark, bringing glad tidings of the salvation of the world from the waters. (The dwellers in the Ark are the foetus, the waters the amniotic fluid.)

Similar fables are to be found in every religion of the Aeon of Osiris: it is the typical formula of the Dying God.

In this card, therefore, appears the legend of the woman and the lion, or rather lion-serpent. (This card is attributed to the letter Teth, which means a serpent.)

The seers in the early days of the Aeon of Osiris foresaw the Manifestation of this coming Aeon in which we now live, and they regarded it with intense horror and fear, not understanding the precession of the Aeons, and regarding every change as catastrophe. This is the real interpretation of, and the reason for, the diatribes against the Beast and the Scarlet Woman in the XIII, XVII and XVIII-th chapters of the Apocalypse; but on the Tree of Life, the path of Gimel, the Moon, descending from the highest, cuts the path of Teth, Leo, the house of the Sun, so that the Woman in the card may be regarded as a form of the Moon, very fully illuminated by the Sun, and intimately united with him in such wise as to produce, incarnate in human form, the representative or representatives of the Lord of the Aeon.

She rides astride the Beast; in her left hand she holds the reins, representing the passion which unites them. In her right she holds aloft the cup, the Holy Grail aflame with love and death. In this cup are mingled the elements of the sacrament of the Aeon"
(Book of Thoth)

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

It is easy to make an analogy between the woman and her lion in the card as represented in the Force or in the card Lust with some representations of Inanna-Ishtar as we can see in the following picture:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...adian_seal.jpg
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  #25  
Old 28-12-2019, 02:23 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 21: Chesed in Assiah and the 4 of Disks

General Symbolic of Chesed:


With Chesed (grace), also called Gebulah (mercy) by the Zohar, we reach a stage of Life accessible to the human consciousness. Although Chesed is the fourth sephirah, it is the first one that is on the side of the abyss, and we can look upon it as the fountain from which the blessings of Creation flow. It symbolizes the highest level of perceptible manifestation.

As the fourth sephirah, Chesed is seen as the summary of the supernals that preceded it, whose qualities it retains. Going up the Tree, she is the seventh count of Malkuth. It contains all that has been acquired during the ascent. When this point is reached, man must have accumulated enough to spill the surplus to less advanced beings. This is similar to the acquisition of a fortune built up during existence, which one redistributes before crossing the abyss of death where the acquired currency is not current.

In descending the Tree, Chesed's position reminds us that the manifestation of the divine in the form of mercy must precede severity.

By going up the Tree, we learn that we can benefit from the clemency of Providence before we are confronted with divine justice. But no matter how severe our trials and experiences may be, mercy and benevolence await us in the last place.

Geburah is the stick and Chesed the carrot, the oldest tricks that can make us do something.

From Chesed's position on the Clemency pillar, we can see that this sephirah is Chokmah repeated at a lower level. Chesed is the father in his benevolent aspect, the one who protects, generates, preserves. He continues the work of Binah, organizing and preserving what the Universal Father engendered. Chesed is therefore goodness, unlimited benevolence. He compensates by his clemency for the severity of Geburah. He is a cohesive force, if we compare it to the destructive power of Geburah.

Metabolism, a vital process of assimilation, is a perpetual alternation of construction and destruction, and a good image of the Chesed-Geburah alternation necessary for the life of the organism.

The images attributed to Chesed and Geburah are respectively a benevolent king sitting on his throne and a warrior-king standing on his chariot.

Chesed is the compassion of age resulting from experience. The smile of a baby, the sunset over the ocean, the pressure of a beloved hand, are all words in Chesed's language that we must learn to listen to.

The virtue assigned to this sphere is obedience. We must sacrifice much of our independence and selfishness if we are to enjoy the benefits of a complex social life.

The human qualities of Chesed are all linked to the phenomena of relationship with others: kindness, love, the impulse to give, to share, to offer.

Chesed in Assiah: Jupiter

In astrology, Jupiter is called the great benevolent. The Semitic name for Jupiter and Tzedeg means righteousness, prosperity and happiness as a result of good conduct and integrity.

The 4 of Disks - Power:

“The Four, Chesed, shows the establishment of the Universe in three dimensions, that is, below the Abyss. The generating idea is exhibited in its full material sense. The card is ruled by the Sun in Capricornus, the Sign in which he is reborn. The disks are very large and solid; the suggestion of the card is that of a fortress. This represents Law and Order, maintained by constant authority and vigilance. The disks themselves are square; revolution is very opposite to the card; and they contain the signs of the Four Elements. For all that, they revolve; defence is valid only when violently active. So far as it appears stationary, it is the "dead centre" of the engineer; and Capricornus is the point at which the Sun "turns again Northward''. The background is of deep azure, flecked yellow, suggesting a moat; but beyond this is a pattern of green and indigo to represent the guarded fields whose security is assured by the fortress.

In the Yi King, Sol in Capricornus is represented by the Second Hexagram, Khwan, which is the Female Principle. Compare the English word Queen, Anglo-Saxon Cwen, old Mercian Kwoen. Cognate are Icelandic Kvan, Gothic Kwens, woman. The Indo-Germanic type is g (w)eni and the Sanskrit root GwEN. Note also Cwm, coombe, and agnate words, meaning an enclosed valley, usually with water running from it. Womb---possibly a softened form?

Compare also the innumerable words, derived from the root Gas, Which imply an enclosed and fortified space. Case, castle, chest, cyst, chaste, incest and so on.

The primary radicle in all this class of words is the guttural. Observe the Hebrew attributions: Gimel, the moon; Cheth, Cancer, the house of the moon; Kaph, the Wheel; Qoph, the Moon, XVIII, Guttur, the throat. Sounds so made suggest the other throat; one is the channel of respiration and nutrition, the other of reproduction and elimination.”
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/34/93...a5e02acf40.jpg
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  #26  
Old 04-01-2020, 04:48 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 22: Path between Geburah and Binah in Assiah

Letter:
Cheth

XI – The Chariot: “Atu VII refers to the zodiacal sign of Cancer, the sign into which the Sun moves at the Summer Solstice.

Cancer is the cardinal sign of the element of Water, [Hence St. John Baptist's Day, and the various ceremonials connected with water.] and represents the first keen onrush of that element. Cancer also represents the path which leads from the great Mother Binah to Geburah, and is thus the influence of the Supernals descending through the Veil of Water (which is blood) upon the energy of man, and so inspires it. It corresponds, in this way, to The Hierophant, which, on the other side of the Tree of Life, brings down the fire of Chokmah.

The design of this present card has been much influenced by the Trump portrayed by Eliphaz Levi.

The canopy of the Chariot is the night-sky-blue of Binah. The pillars are the four pillars of the Universe, the regimen of Tetragrammaton. The scarlet wheels represent the original energy of Geburah which causes the revolving motion.

This chariot is drawn by four sphinxes composed of the four Kerubs, the Bull, the Lion, the Eagle and the Man. In each sphinx these elements are counter-changed; thus the whole represents the sixteen sub-elements.

The Charioteer is clothed in the amber-coloured armour appropriate to the sign. He is throned in the chariot rather than con ducting it, because the whole system of progression is perfectly balanced. His only function is to bear the Holy Grail.

Upon his armour are ten Stars of Assiah, the inheritance of celestial dew from his mother.

He bears as a crest the Crab appropriate to the sign. The vizor of his helmet is lowered, for no man may look upon his face and live. For the same reason, no part of his body is exposed.

Cancer is the house of the Moon; there are thus certain analogies between this card and that of the High Priestess. But, also, Jupiter is exalted in Cancer, and here one recalls the card called Fortune (Atu X) attributed to Jupiter.

The central and most important feature of the card is its centre - the Holy Grail. It is of pure amethyst, of the colour of Jupiter, but its shape suggests the full moon and the Great Sea of Binah.

In the centre is radiant blood; the spiritual life is inferred; light in the darkness. These rays, moreover, revolve, emphasizing the Jupiterian element in the symbol.”
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
http://www.esotericmeanings.com/wp-c...htarotcard.jpg
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  #27  
Old 11-01-2020, 02:55 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 23: Path between Tiphareth and Binah in Assiah

Letter:
Zain

VI – The Lovers: “This card and its twin, XIV, Art, are the most obscure and difficult of the Atu. Each of these symbols is in itself double, so that the meanings form a divergent series, and the integration of the Card can only be regained by repeated marriages, identifications, and some form of Hermaphroditism.

Yet the attribution is the essence of simplicity. Atu VI refers to Gemini, ruled by Mercury. It means The Twins. The Hebrew letter corresponding is Zain, which means a Sword, and the framework of the card is therefore the Arch of Swords, beneath which the Royal Marriage takes place.

The Sword is primarily an engine of division. In the intellectual world-which is the world of the Sword suit-it represents analysis. This card and Atu XIV together compose the comprehensive alchemical maxim: Solve et coagula.

This card is consequently one of the most fundamental cards in the Tarot. It is the first card in which more than one figure appears. [The Ape of Thoth in Atu I is only a shadow.] In its original form, it was the story of Creation.

Reaction is always equal and opposite to action. This equation is, or should be, simultaneous in the intellectual world, where there is no great time lag; the formulation of any idea creates its contradictory at almost the same moment. The contradictory of any proposition is implicit in itself. This is necessary to preserve the equilibrium of the Universe. The theory has been explained in the essay on Atu I, the Juggler, but must now be again emphasized in order to interpret this card.

The key is that the Card represents the Creation of the World. The Hierarchs held this secret as of transcendant importance. Consequently, the Initiates who issued the Tarot, for use during the Aeon of Osiris, superseded the original card above described in "The Vision and the Voice". They were concerned to create a new Universe of their own; they were the fathers of Science. Their methods of working, grouped under the generic term Alchemy, have never been made public. The interesting point is that all developments of modern science in the last fifty years have given intelligent and instructed people the opportunity of reflecting that the whole trend of science has been to return to alchemical aims and (mutatis mutandis) methods. The secrecy observed by the alchemists was made necessary by the power of persecuting Churches. Bitterly as bigots fought among themselves, they were all equally concerned to destroy the infant Science, which, as they instinctively recognized, would put an end to the ignorance and faith on which their power and wealth depended.

The subject of this card is Analysis, followed by Synthesis. The first question asked by science is: "Of what are things composed? "This having been answered, the next question is: "How shall we recombine them to our greater advantage?" This resumes the whole policy of the Tarot.

The hooded figure which occupies the centre of the Card is another form of The Hermit, who is further explained in Atu IX. He is himself a form of the god Mercury, described in Atu I; he is closely shrouded, as if to signify that the ultimate reason of things lies in a realm beyond manifestation and intellect. (As elsewhere explained, only two operations are ultimately possible---analysis and synthesis). He is standing in the Sign of the Enterer, as if projecting the mysterious forces of creation. About his arms is a scroll, indicative of the Word which is alike his essence and his message. But the Sign of the Enterer is also the Sign of Benediction and of Consecration; thus his action in this card is the Celebration of the Hermetic Marriage. Behind him are the figures of Eve, Lilith and Cupid. This symbolism has been incorporated in order to preserve in some measure the original form of the card, and to show its derivation, its heirship, its continuity with the past. On the quiver of Cupid is inscribed the word Thelema, which is the Word of the Law. (See Liber AL, chap. I, verse 39.) His shafts are quanta of Will. It is thus shown that this fundamental formula of magical working, analysis and synthesis, persists through the Aeons.

One may now consider the Hermetic Marriage itself.

This part of the Card has been simplified from "the Chymical Marriage of Christian Rosenkreutz", a masterpiece too lengthy and diffuse to quote usefully in this place. But the essence of the analysis is the continuous see-saw of contradictory ideas. It is a glyph of duality. The Royal persons concerned are the Black or Moorish King with a golden crown, and the White Queen with a silver crown. He is accompanied by the Red Lion, and she by the White Eagle. These are symbols of the male and female principles in Nature; they are therefore equally, in various stages of manifestation, Sun and Moon, Fire and Water, Air and Earth. In chemistry they appear as acid and alkali, or (more deeply) metals and non-metals, taking those words in their widest philosophical sense to include hydrogen on the one hand and oxygen on the other. In this aspect, the hooded figure represents the Protean element of carbon, the seed of all organic life.

The symbolism of male and female is carried on still further by the weapons of the King and Queen; he bears the Sacred Lance, and she the Holy Grail; their other hands are joined, as consenting to the Marriage. Their weapons are supported by twin children, whose positions are counterchanged; for the white child not only holds the Cup, but carries roses, while the black child, holding his father's Lance, carries also the club, an equivalent symbol. At the bottom of the whole is the result of the Marriage in primitive and pantomorphic form; it is the winged Orphic egg. This egg represents the essence of all that life which comes under this formula of male and female. It carries on the symbolism of the Serpents with which the King's robe is embroidered, and of the Bees which adorn the mantle of the Queen. The egg is grey, mingling white and black; thus it signifies the co-operation of the three Supernals of the Tree of Life. The colour of the Serpent is purple, Mercury in the scale of the Queen. It is the influence of that God manifested in Nature, whereas the wings are tinged with crimson, the colour (in the King scale) of Binah the great Mother. In this symbol is therefore a complete glyph of the equilibrium necessary to begin the Great Work. But, as to the final mystery, that is left unsolved. Perfect is the plan to produce life, but the nature of this life is concealed. It is capable of taking any possible form; but what form? That is dependent upon the influences attendant on gestation.

The figure in the air presents some difficulty. The traditional interpretation of the figure is that he is Cupid; and it is not at first clear what Cupid has to do with Gemini. No light is thrown upon this point by consideration of the position of the path upon the Tree of Life, for Gemini leads from Binah to Tiphareth. There accordingly arises the whole question of Cupid. Roman gods usually represent a more material aspect of the Greek gods from whom they are derived; in this case, Eros. Eros is the son of Aphrodite, and tradition varies as to whether his father was Ares, Zeus or Hermes---that is, Mars, Jupiter or Mercury. His appearance in this card suggests that Hermes is the true sire; and this view is confirmed by the fact that it is not altogether easy to distinguish him from the child Mercury, for they have in common wantonness) irresponsibility, and the love of playing tricks. But in this image are peculiar characteristics. He carries a bow and arrows in a golden quiver. (He is sometimes represented with a torch.) He has golden wings, and is blindfolded. From this, it may appear that he represents the intelligent (and, at the same time, unconscious) will of the soul to unite itself with all and sundry, as has been explained in the general formula with regard to the agony of separateness.

No very special importance is attached to Cupid in alchemical figures. Yet, in one sense, he is the source of all action; the libido to express Zero as Two. From another point of view, he may be regarded as the intellectual aspect of the influence of Binah upon Tiphareth, for (in one tradition) the title of the card is "The Children of the Voice, the Oracle of the Mighty Gods". From this point of view, he is a symbol of inspiration, descending upon the hooded figure, who is, in this instance, a prophet operating the conjunction of the King and Queen. His arrow represents the spiritual intelligence necessary in alchemical operations, rather than the mere hunger to perform them. On the other hand, the arrow is peculiarly a symbol of direction, and it is, therefore, proper to put the word "Thelema" in Greek letters on the quiver. It is also to be observed that the opposite card, Sagittarius, means the Bearer of the Arrow, or Archer, a figure who does not appear in any form in Atu XIV. These two cards are so complementary that they cannot be studied separately, for full interpretation.”
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
http://www.esotericmeanings.com/wp-c...htarotcard.jpg
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  #28  
Old 18-01-2020, 04:02 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 24: Binah in Assiah and the 3 of Disks

General Symbolic of Binah:


Binah (understanding, comprehension) radiates from the top of the left column of the Tree of Life and assumes a feminine function. Chokmah being the masculine aspect of what is proper to the seed, Binah is the femininity that unfolds the seed and gives birth. The very notion of "understanding" confirms the receptive nature of the sephirath.

Anything that gives form to serve as a vehicle for life is her work. She is the matrix through which life can manifest itself. At the same time, it should be held in mind that life enclosed in a form is less free than when it has no limit. The form encloses life, while at the same time allowing it to organise itself. Form disciplines force with merciless rigour. The presence of a form is at the same time what allows life to manifest itself, and its condemnation to death. The divine spark is immortal, nothing in it can age or die. But the incarnated spirit sees the death of its vehicle programmed from the dawn of its existence.

Motherhood is more than the conception and beginning of a new human life. It is the principle of existence that unfolds through independent entities, fathers inseminate, while mothers disseminate. Fatherhood transmits power, motherhood distributes it. Thus it continues the circuit of creation. Although motherhood is related to other sephiroth, Binah allows us to understand one of its connotations: separation. We can cite numerous images: the mourning of Isis, the suffering of the Virgin at the foot of the cross... If motherhood leads to birth, it goes hand in hand with separation.

Binah testifies that it is impossible to reach Kether if we do not go through the feminine and maternal concept of divinity.

Wherever there is a network of intertwined forces in balance, Binah's action is present. If we consider the atom as a stable unit of the physical plane, we see it as a manifestation of Binah. The same is true for the balance of forces that keep the planetary revolutions functioning.

Before the forces of the universe began to stabilize, it was all up to Chokmah; there were no limits to the impulse. As soon as Chokmah and Binah had found their equilibrium, everything belonged to Binah, stability was immutable. But Kether, from whom everything emanated, continued to generate the unmanifested powers. Force flowed into the universe, the sum of the forces increased. This new influx destroyed the previous balance, due to the successive action and reaction of Chokmah and Binah combined. Then the action and reaction began again, the phase of Chokmah where dynamism prevails over the static state of Binah. And so on... Each time, the balance between the two sephiroth settles in a different form to be upset once again when Kether, still emanating, breaks the balance in favor of the dynamic principle opposed to the static principle.

It follows that Binah, the permanent brake and regulator of Chokmah impulses, can be misunderstood. She can be seen as the malignant force, the enemy, the adversary, the woman. Without a bad pun, from Saturn to Satan, the transition is easy.

The fall came from knowledge (Daath), by a projection of Binah through the abyss towards matter. When this happened, the original equilibrium was destroyed. In fact the first fall was not that of man but that of the deity. In a word God fell to appear as humanity. The ocean of Binah overturned, the cup turned over. By this breaking of the circuit at Binah, an extension of existence crossed the abyss and formed the rest of the Tree of Life. We must follow the path of return, reintegration, to regain our place in the primordial scheme.

Binah in Assiah: Saturn

In Hebrew, Saturn is called "Shabbathai", which means "the seventh". It is the seventh planet known to the ancients, and the planets visible to the naked eye. It governs Saturday (Saturn's day), a period of rest granted to the creature and its creator after a period of work and effort. "Seven" is frequently considered a perfect number, the most used in symbolism. It corresponds to the seven periods of creation, to the six direction radiating from a central point (top, bottom, left, right, front, back). In fact seven and its multiples were considered evil by the Babylonians. Hence the inaction decreed for those days.

It may seem curious that Saturn is associated with the maternal principle on the Tree of Life. In fact Saturn is connected to time (Chronos). The paternal creation is instantaneous, while the mother has to go through a prolonged gestation period before the seed germinates

The 3 of Disks - Work:

“The influence of Binah in the sphere of Earth shows the material establishment of the idea of the Universe, the determination of its basic form. It is ruled by Mars in Capricornus; he is exalted in that Sign, and therefore at his best. His energy is constructive, like that of the builder or engineer. The card represents a pyramid viewed from above the apex. The base is formed by three wheels-Mercury, Sulphur, and Salt; Sattvas, Rajas, and Tamas in the Hindu system; Aleph, Shin, and Mem-Air, Fire, and Water-the three Mother letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
This pyramid is situated in the great Sea of Binah in the Night of Time, but the sea is solidified; hence the colours of the back- ground are mottled, a cold thin dark grey with a pattern of indigo and green. The sides of the pyramid have a strong reddish tint, showing the influence of Mars.”
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
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  #29  
Old 25-01-2020, 04:01 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 25: Path between Chesed and Chokmah in Assiah

Letter:
Vau

V – The Hierophant: “This card is referred to the letter Vau, which means a Nail; of this instrument nine appear at the top of the card; they serve to fix the oriel behind the main figure of the picture.

The card is referred to Taurus; therefore the Throne of the Hierophant is surrounded by elephants, which are of the nature of Taurus; and he is actually seated upon a bull. Around him are the four beasts or Kerubs, one in each corner of the card; for these are the guardians of every shrine. But the main reference is to the particular arcanum which is the principal business, the essential, of all magical work; the uniting of the microcosm with the macrocosm.

Accordingly, the oriel is diaphanous; before the Manifestor of the Mystery is a hexagram representing the macrocosm. In its centre is a pentagram, representing a dancing male child. This symbolizes the law of the new Aeon of the Child Horns, which has supplanted that Aeon of the "Dying God" which governed the world for two thousand years. Before him is the woman girt with a sword; she represents the Scarlet Woman in the hierarchy of the new Aeon. This symbolism is further carried out in the oriel where, behind the phallic headdress, the rose of five petals is in blossom.

The symbolism of the snake and dove refers to this verse of the Book of the Law---chap. I, verse 57: "there are love and love. There is the dove, and there is the serpent".

This symbol recurs in the trump numbered XVI.

The background of the whole card is the dark blue of the starry night of Nuit, from whose womb all phenomena are born.

Taurus, the sign of the Zodiac represented by this card, is itself the Bull Kerub; that is, Earth in its strongest and most balanced form.

The ruler of this sign is Venus; she is represented by the woman standing before the hierophant.
Chapter III of the Book of the Law, verse xi, reads:

"Let the woman be girt with a sword before me." This woman represents Venus as she now is in this new aeon; no longer the mere vehicle of her male counterpart, but armed and militant.
In this sign the Moon is "exalted"; her influence is represented not only by the woman, but by the nine nails.

It is impossible at the present time to explain this card thoroughly, for only the course of events can show how the new current of initiation will work out.

It is the aeon of Horus, of the Child. Though the face of the Hierophant appears benignant and smiling, and the child himself seems glad with wanton innocence, it is hard to deny that in the expression of the initiator is something mysterious, even sinister. He seems to be enjoying a very secret joke at somebody's expense. There is a distinctly sadistic aspect to this card; not unnaturally, since it derives from the Legend of Pasiphae, the prototype of all the legends of Bull-gods. These still persist in such religions as Shaivism, and (after multiple degradations) in Christianity itself.

The symbolism of the Wand is peculiar; the three interlaced rings which crown it may be taken as representative of the three Aeons of Isis, Osiris and Horus with their interlocking magical formulae. The upper ring is marked with scarlet for Horus; the two lower rings with green for Isis, and pale yellow for Osiris, respectively.

All these are based upon deep indigo, the colour of Saturn, the Lord of Time. For the rhythm of the Hierophant is such that he moves only at intervals of 2,000 years.”
(The Book of Thoth)

Picture of the card:
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  #30  
Old 01-02-2020, 01:03 PM
Legrand
Posts: n/a
 
Week 26: Path between Thipareth and Chokmah in Assiah

Letter:
Tzaddi

IV – The Emperor: “This card is attributed to the letter Tzaddi, and it refers to the sign of Aries in the Zodiac. This sign is ruled by Mars, and therein the Sun is exalted. The sign is thus a combination of energy in its most material form with the idea of authority. The sign TZ or TS implies this in the original, onomatopoetic form of language. It is derived from Sanskrit roots meaning Head and Age, and is found to-day in words like Cæsar, Tsar, Sirdar, Senate, Senior, Signor, Sefior, Seigneur.

The card represents a crowned male figure, with imperial vestments and regalia. He is seated upon the throne whose capitals are the heads of the Himalayan wild ram, since Aries means a Ram. At his feet, couchant, is the Lamb and Flag, to confirm this attribution on the lower plane; for the ram, by nature, is a wild and courageous animal, lonely in lonely places, whereas when tamed and made to lie down in green pastures, nothing is left but the docile, cowardly, gregarious and succulent beast. This is the theory of government.

The Emperor is also one of the more important alchemical cards; with Atu II and III, he makes up the triad: Sulphur, Mercury, Salt. His arms and head form an upright triangle; below, crossed legs represent the Cross. This figure is the alchemical symbol of Sulphur (see Atu X). Sulphur is the male fiery energy of the Universe, the Rajas of Hindu philosophy. This is the swift creative energy, the initiative of all Being. The power of the Emperor is a generalization of the paternal power; hence such symbols as the Bee and the Fleur-de-lys, which are shown on this card. With regard to the quality of this power, it must be noted that it represents sudden, violent, but impermanent activity. If it persists too long, it burns and destroys. Distinguish from the Creative Energy of Aleph and Beth: this card is below the Abyss.

The Emperor bears a sceptre (surmounted by a ram's head for the reasons given above) and an orb surmounted by a Maltese cross, which signifies that his energy has reached a successful issue, that his government has been established.

There is one further symbol of importance. His shield represents the two-headed eagle crowned with a crimson disk. This represents the red tincture of the alchemist, of the nature of gold, as the white eagle shown in Atu III pertains to his consort, the Empress, and is lunar, of silver.

It is finally to be observed that the white light which descends upon him indicates the position of this card in the Tree of Life. His authority is derived from Chokmah, the creative Wisdom, the Word, and is exerted upon Tiphareth, the organized man.”
(The Book of Thoth)

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