A Short Introduction to the Qabalistic Tree of Life, By Frater Pyramidatus

8/13/2019 A Short Introduction to the Qabalistic Tree of Life, By Frater Pyramidatus

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A Short Introduction to the Qabalistic Tree of Life

by Frater Pyramidatus

PREAMBLEIt is convenient for initiates to conceive of Qabalah in two distinct modes: the oralQabalah, and thewritten Qabalah. I have been lucky enough not only to have read several brilliant books on thesubject, but also blessed with two mentors. We find books either rudimentary or overly intellectualand verbose. I hope in this volume to essentially combine the written and oral Qabalah bycomposing entirely from memory, without using reference manuals and Hermetic tomes as a crutch.he fact I have not indulged in a book on the ree of !ife for some years only helps achieve thisobjective. We hope that the branches and trunk of this ree will be beautiful to behold even if manyof its leaves and fruit have withered with the ravages of time and academic complacency. However,many technical points may be resolved by referring toA Glossary of Thelemathat I electronically

published nearly seven years ago. It is my ambition to give this te"t reconciling the secretivelineages of the oral tradition with the skeletonic blueprints of its written cousin.

We inform the beginner the ree of !ife is but one of many aspects of the Holy Qabalah. It isindeed a magnificent condensationof wisdom but far from the entiretyof Qabalistic knowledge.#ne could even argue that it is not the best place to start, due to its multifaceted and often elusivenature.

WAT IS TE TREE !F LIFE"

$. he ree of !ife is the %&ook of the 'ead%. It contains a logical, and mathematicallycoherent, myriad of symbols and ideas that spirits may hopefully understand and use tocommunicate. It is a mnemonic, or memory aid, that enables recently liberated souls tocome to terms with the life just left.

(. he ree of !ife is a map of the universe. o create a scaled map of the universe in literalterms would be an e"ercise in futility. However, the universe has immutable laws, based onraw mathematics and appreciation of numbers as living, sentient beings. he mathematics

behind the universe as conscious entities, with the ree of !ife, is the modus operandi oftheir interaction and ta"onomy.

). he ree of !ife is a symbol containing many other symbols. Indeed, the Qabalistic dogmais that each part of the ree contains another ree, ad infinitum. *ymbols are associated

with different parts of the ree via the science of correspondences. here e"ist many tablesof data that are superimposed conceptually onto the *pheres and +aths. hese includeHebrew and reek letters, arot archetypes, astrological symbols, colours, magicalweapons, perfumes, precious stones, musical scales, geometrical concepts, magical formulaeand much more.

-. he ree of !ife is a mnemonic device, or memory aid. leister /rowley called it the%spiritual filing cabinet%. 0ost profane memory aids use relatively arbitrary keys, whilstQabalah is modelled on the science of connectivity. he logically sound structure, andimplied hierarchies of the ree, provide an elastic yet inevitable skeleton to improve theability to memorise lists of various kinds. he ree is also holographicin nature, as are thesynaptic pathways of the brain%s neurons.

1. he ree of !ife is a meditative focus. 2ach *phere has a divine name in Hebrew, acorresponding archangel and angelic choir. hese can be chanted, used as a silent mantra, orvisualised by the mystic. 0editation may be on isolated aspects of the ree, or by gradually


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climbing the *pheres and +aths.3. he ree of !ife is a common ground for differing, even mutually e"clusive, spiritual

groups. 0agical and mystical #rders that have contrasted viewpoints rely on the ree as alanguage of the initiates.

4. he ree of !ife represents the mystical hierarchy within certain groups. he *pheresrepresent different states of consciousness, and attainment, of members within an occult

society. he higher up the ree supposedly the higher the degree of knowledge of anindividual.

5. he ree of !ife is a creative tool. When we understand that creativity, rather than vacantlywaiting for inspiration to strike, is the outcome of following a process6 then we find greathope in the mathematically austere precision of the ree. +arado"ically enough, the wayvarious symbols are so closely packed together enables us to use the ree as a lateralthinking tool also.

7. he ree of !ife is a divination tool. +articularly with arot archetypes we find it ane"pedient for answering unfathomable 8uestions, and giving hints about the near or distantfuture. his is the most difficult aspect to grasp. We should remember /rowley thoughtdivination the most dangerous magick of all, involving as it does the presumption of the

operator to be like od, or omniscient.

TE TR#$% !F TE TREE

We now look at the blank diagram adumbrating our entire study6 the veritable trunk of the ree of!ife.

his is the kernel of truth. 9In the history of Qabalah this is the %restored ree% of ircher.; or %*ephiroth% 9this being closer to the original Hebrew;. he planes

between the circles and parallel lines do no represent anything6 I have never read a Qabalistic te"t

which mentions them. We therefore have )( aspects to our mystical ree.


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he number )( is relevant for several reasons.

$. here are )( joints in a pair of human hands.(. here are )( teeth in the human skull.). here are )( vertebrae in a human spine.-. here are )( he"agram pairs in theI Ching.

1. dodecahedron, the twelve sided pentagonal prism ? the last of the five +latonic *olids ? iscomposed by drawing lines across the interstices of the economical grouping of )( spheres.

3. )( implies the upright pentagram, as ) @ ( A 1, with the three points uppermost. hepentagram is a symbol of man, with our five senses, five fingers, five toes, and fiveanatomical projections from the torso.

(( multiplied by ten is ((B, the catalogue number of The Book of Law, the central te"t of helema.he (( +aths and ten *pheres of the ree form the pivotal symbol of the Western 0ystery radition.

he ree of !ife may be conceived a development of the %Clower of !ife%, again a development ofthe %*eed of !ife%.

nother important configuration, in this conne"ion, is %0etatron%s /ube%.


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TE $#MBERS !F TE SPERES

his is the decimal scale of our diagram. t this stage we follow /rowley%s advice not to en8uiretoo much about why it is structured the way it is. Dather we try and memorise the basics on trust.his may sound counter=intuitive but Qabalism is so comple" that trying to dissect its logic onevery level, as a beginner, is counterproductive. /rowley advocated learning the layers ofcorrespondences off by heartbefore trying to strip down everything to some %supreme secret%. I

know this temptation, and I succumbed to it years ago. However, we will delve into a few of thelogical precursors. his is an academic parado" difficult to e"plain.

he number ten was revered by the +ythagorean school in the configuration known as the%etractys%, a simple triangle of ten circles.


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TE SPERES A$& TE PLA$ETS

he *pheres have several, perhaps infinite, symbols attributed to them. he correspondences withthe *olar *ystem is perhaps the oldest.

he left diagram contains glyphs of the %planets%, although !una is a moon, and *ol a star. hediligent reader may notice Eranus is left out. However it is not discarded in the Qabalah per se.

Here we have the first truly mysterious facet of the ree: the Invisible *phere of 'aath 9see below;.

&efore Feptune and +luto were discovered the second *phere corresponded to the %*phere of theCi"ed *tars%, the first *phere to the %+rimum 0obile%, !atin for %Cirst 0over%.

ote Bene lthough psychological and mythological archetypes of the planets describe all the*pheres, do not be misled. he physical dimension of reality is represented by the tenth *phere,and all the planets 9indeed the entire 0ilky Way; are within this lowest of *pheres. he moon, sun,2arth and planets all share the same dimension and are all within the same strata of the ree. Core"ample the ninth *phere is illustrated by the conceptof !una, not the physical mass.

AR'ET(PAL )L(PS !F TE SE*E$ PLA$ETS

0ost planetary glyphs are permutations of three primal concepts: the cross representing matter, thecircle representing spirit, and the crescent representing soul. If one ponders this threefold mi"turethe archetypes become evident.

7 *aturn%s sigil is a cross over a crescent. he domination of the soul by matter. *aturn is thechronometer, the time keeper knowing the day of one%s death. he rim Deaper whose scythe doesnot respect individuality, merit or virtue and lays waste to all. ime destroys all things.


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6 Gupiter%s sigil is a crescent over a cross. he domination of matter by the soul. /onsiderGupiter%s kingship and rule over lesser gods. He is characterised by joviality 9from %Gove%, asynonymous term;, generosity, humour and good cheer. he only person fit to rule is one with agood heart.

5 he sigil of 0ars is a cross over a circle 9the cross became an %arrow%;. he oppression of thespirit by matter. 0ars is the god of war, violence and bloodshed. We are reminded of hardship

brought about by national conflict, privation and suffering. +eople say events are %testing theirspirits% when under stress.

1 *ol is symbolised as a point in the centre of a circle. *pirit, and the centre of spirit. s thesun generates life and light in the macrocosm, the spirit of 0an keeps us going through e"istence.

he %centre of spirit% is the soul 9*ol;.

4 enus is shown as a circle above a cross. he subjugation of matter by the spirit. hink oftroubles in our day to day lives soothed by the power of poetry, music and art. *he is the goddess of

passion, romance and pride not swerved by mundane concerns.

3 0ercury%s sigil is a crescent surmounting a circle, in turn over a cross. his means thedomination of matter by the soul, via the medium of spirit. 0agick and spell craft are one%s

innermost core utilising principles 9spirits ? elementals ? demons ? angels; to achieve change in thematerial realm. his threefold division is the nature of the messenger of the gods, the trickster god.he only glyph, of the seven, to have more than two components.

2 !una is a simple crescent. his means the soul. However, in Qabalah, it is more the %animalsoul%, or anima mundi9!atin for %the *oul of the World%;. he true soul is *ol, reflected by !una.


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SE*E$ &A(S !F 'REATI!$

We place the seven classical planets, in the order of the ree, around a heptagram. We follow thelines, from planet to planet at the edges, and get the seven days of the week. 0onday is ruled by themoon, uesday by 0ars, Wednesday by 0ercury, hursday 9hor; by Gupiter, Criday 9Creya; byenus, *aturday by *aturn, and *unday by the sun. It helps prove that our science and art are

anything but arbitrary.

A$ I$*ISIBLE SPERE

It is an ancient Qabalistic dogma that there are %ten spheres and not nine, ten spheres and noteleven%. &ut for several reasons, some practical and some technical, there is an eleventh %pseudo*ephirah% halfway between the first and si"th *pheres. his is more often used in Hermetic Qabalahthan its /hristian cousin 9%/abalah% with a %/%; or Gudaic predecessor 9%aballah% with a %%;. ItsHebrew name is %'aath%, which translates as %knowledge%. lthough occasionally referred to as the%eleventh *phere% or %))rd+ath% it has no number. 'aath is a bridge between two=dimensional and

three=dimensional reality, with no relevant integer. n entire tradition surrounds this unusual*phere as an entrance to the %unnels of *et%, aka the %Dealm of the Qliphoth%6 for which readenneth rant%sightside of !den.


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If you follow the *pheres from one to ten you will connect all with the parallel lines e"ceptthe thirdand fourth *pheres. his disconnection is the %byss%, the chasm between (' and )'. here is agreat deal of cosmological dogma pertaining to 'aath adumbrated later.

9I believe mainstream physics, and mathematics, subscribe to an eleven dimensional model. I amunsure if this connects with our mystical ree and recommend the student investigates thisindependently.;

EBREW $AMES !F TE SPERES

he second most important categorisation of the *pheres, after the *olar *ystem, is the Hebrewnames. #n the left is number of the *phere, then the 2nglish transliteration, then the 2nglishtranslation, and then the original Hebrew.

$ ether /rown JK( /hockmah Wisdom LML) &inah Enderstanding NOP

'aath nowledge RST- /hesed 0ercy TUL1 eburah Gudgement NJV3 iphereth &eauty RJXYR4 FetZach ictory L[O5 Hod lory TVN7


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nouns. he astute reader will see a parallel with the archetypes of the *olar *ystem.

$. /rown ? +luto crown is something worn above and on the head. +lutomarks the beginning of the trans=+lutonic void and the 0ilky Way.

(. Wisdom ? Feptune Feptune, the god of the oceans, has great wisdom and is one of

the three #lympians governing the Hellenic pantheon.

). Enderstanding ? *aturn *aturn is /hronos, the chronometer or timekeeper. He is therim Deaper, also known as #ld Cather ime. His symbol, the scythe, understands when itis time to reap, and time to sow.

-. 0ercy ? Gupiter Gupiter is ]eus. He governs the Hellenic pantheon from 0ount#lympus, and is not a tyrant like his father *aturn. Gupiter bestows mercy upon subjects,leading by e"ample not fear.

1. Gudgement ? 0ars he god of war has always been 0ars. he supreme judge of

life and death, often violent death.

3. &eauty ? *ol &eauty is the central pivot of 0an, reconciling the e"tremes of the fourth and fifth *pheres. &eauty is a different concept to sensuality. he sun is thecentre of the *olar *ystem, just as iphereth is the centre of the ree.

4. ictory ? enus enus is phrodite, the goddess of love, passion and romance.he %victory% in 8uestion is the dissolution of ego in the bonds of love.

5. lory ? 0ercury 0ercury is Hermes, the t rickster god, the god of symbols,signs and wonders. /ontrasted with %4% above, the %glory% is that of enlarging ego bycomplicating oneself with lu"ury, ambition and adoration from others.

7. Coundation ? !una he moon is the chronometer of 2arth, and is connected withgestation and female periodic cycles. Without the moon there would by no life on 2arth, sheis indeed a %foundation%.

$B. ingdom ? 2arth 0ainstream science states intelligent life only e"ists on 2arthwithin the *olar *ystem. 2arth is indeed the %kingdom%.


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TE TREE PILLARS

Having introduced some astrology and Hebrew, we use these to illustrate the concept of the three+illars. hese are the +illar of *everity, the +illar of 0ercy and the +illar of 0ildness.

90ost Qabalistic books illustrate the three +illars by backing the ree onto pictures of pillarssupporting the scheme6 all three of e8ual height. lthough often the case I have not used this

depiction as I think it little more than artistic liberty.;

he red section is the +illar of *everity, blue is the +illar of 0ercy, and yellow the +illar of0ildness. 9he primary colours are merely illustrative with no specific Qabalistic import.; Inoccultism the world over initiates talk of the !eft Hand +ath versus the Dight Hand +ath, with thereconciling 0iddle Way. %!eft% is considered sinister, %right% as god fearing, and %middle% astemperate. he nature of these +illars is fleshed out perfectly by the associated planets.

he +illar of *everity is composed of *aturn, 0ars and 0ercury. *aturn is the god of time,conformity, discipline and death. 0ars presides over warfare, bloodshed, violence and discord.0ercury rules over communication, magick, travel and money. He is also the god of tricks,

deception and cunning. hese three planets could be considered %negative%.

he +illar of 0ercy is composed of Feptune, Gupiter and enus. Feptune rules over the live givingoceans fecundating the 2arth. Gupiter is the god of joviality, laughter, royalty and lu"ury. enus isthe goddess of love, passion, music and romance. hese three planets are therefore %positive%.

he +illar of 0ildness is made up of +luto, *ol, !una and 2arth. he sun is the fulcrum of theentire astrological theme. !una regulates the oceans and stimulates life on 2arth. 2arth itself is

balanced between e"tremes represented by the other +illars.

he +illar of *everity is considered feminine, and the +illar of 0ercy masculine. It figures that the

+illar of 0ildness is androgynous.

*ometimes the +illar of 0ercy is called the %+illar of Corce%, and the +illar of *everity the %+illar of


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Corm%.

hese +illars balance the ree of !ife. However, the centre of the system is *ol, the si"th *phere.

TIPERET+ S!L , TE B#&&IST WEEL !F LIFE

*ol is the centre of the *olar *ystem, and iphereth the fulcrum of the ree. he diagram belowshows the si"th *phere connecting with all other *pheres, e"cept the tenth. he eight +aths thate"tend from iphereth are tenuously linked with the eight spokes of the &uddhist Wheel of !ife.hese spokes are associated with the Foble 2ightfold #ath. he centre of the &uddhist Wheel is%Firvana%, a state of enlightened timelessness. he outer rim of the Wheel is %*amsara%, the world ofthe senses and the ravages of time.


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TE TREE TRIA&S

he ree of !ife is composed of a %rinity of riads%. *pheres one, two and three compose the*upernal riad6 *pheres four, five and si" the 2thical riad6 *pheres seven, eight and nine the0undane riad. he tenth *phere of 0alkuth is referred to as a %pendant% to the riads.

he *upernal riad are sometimes called %the *upernals%. hey are the most spiritual, abstract and

lofty of the *pheres and are the Qabalistic %Holy rinity%. hey e"ist %above the byss% 9of 'aath;and considered incomprehensible, save for the 0agister empli.

he 2thical riad is the intellectual plane of %right and wrong%, although these ethics are not constantbut relativist. here is a tradition of Qabalah called the %reat &inaries%, or the logical syntheses ofthe moral e"tremes of /hesed and eburah.

he 0undane riad, with the pendant of 0alkuth is the world of the four 2lements of 2arth, ir,Water and Cire. +ure materiality is the domain of 0alkuth. he psychological substrata ofhumanity is represented as an interplay of 2lements.

hese riads are e"tremes reconciled in their respective *pheres on the 0iddle +illar. husWisdom and Enderstanding are reconciled by the /rown6 0ercy and Gudgement by &eauty6 ictoryand lory by Coundation.

ll these riads are metaphysically repeated in 0alkuth, the e"pression of them all.


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TE SE*E$ PLA$ES

he placement of the *pheres make seven horiZontal +lanes. I have numbered them from thebottom of the ree upwards, but this is only a preference. If one was working magically thennumbering the +lane of the first *phere as %one% would be acceptable. his idea of the +lanes doesnot occur often in the Qabalistic literature. 'o not confuse this with the %Dising on the +lanes% that

/rowley mentions inLiber $. #ccasionally these are referred to as the %*even *ouls%.


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TE *EILS !F TE TREE

here are three horiZontally placed %eils% on the ree. hese are in place because without them wewould go mad. It is the task of the initiate to prepare him or herself to rend these partitions, thusleading to more light and refinement of spiritual substance. eeping these eils in place preservesthe harmony of /reation.

o complicate matters there are three eils within the ree, and two without. We will deal with theinternal eils first.

Cor the average person the eil of Qesheth is most pertinent. his is, in some respects, the gulfbetween the conscious and unconscious. he world of the senses is represented by 0alkuth, thetenth *phere. he stral +lane, imagination, and the dreaming world are represented by


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concepts have no physical counterpart.

s far as magical rades are concerned the *upernals are the /ollege of Invisible 0asters thatinstruct the depts purely through light ? known as the %!imitless !^% or %!imitless !ight in2"tension%. *o this eil protects us lesser mortals from this ineffable light. he depts preparethemselves to withstand such e"treme voltage for many years, if not lifetimes.

Hopefully the reader will agree that the eils of the ree preserve the harmony of /reation.

*EILS BE(!$& TE TREE

here are three eils above the first *phere, the %hree eils of Fegative 2"istence%. here is also apseudo eil below 0alkuth. his is not a eil strictly speaking, as this partition is not there to haltthe spiritual light, or !^. his is a world below 0alkuth, referred to as the %Dealm of Qliphoth%9sometimes transliterated %ellipot%;6 this is, for want of a better term, the residence of demons,where divine light is reluctant to shine.

he eils above ether are in 9_PX;, in *oph 9`VU _PX;, and in *oph ur 9JVX `VU _PX;.

hese are respectively translated as %Fothing%, %Fo !imit% and %!imitless !^%. %!imitless !^% is amagical term also rendered %!imitless !ight in 2"tension%. he Hebrew %ur% is probably connectedwith the 2nglish %aura% through the !atin %aurum%, which means %gold%. 9%u% is gold on the +eriodicable of the 2lements.;hey can also be translated, less literally, as %Fothing%, %Fothing &ecomes% and %Fothing Is%.

&ecause I have encountered different illustrations of how these eils are positioned above ether in

different books, I thought it best not to do a diagram. I am unsure which depiction is correct andthink it best not to take sides.


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TE FI*E ELEME$TS

s this volume is intended for beginners we will delve into the five 2lements of the Western0ystery radition before adumbrating their relevance to the ree.

he five 2lements are Cire, Water, *pirit, ir and 2arth. lthough these can be interpreted literally

most often they represent emotional, metaphysical and spiritual states. he diagram below shows apentagram with the traditional positions of the 2lements.

here are different ways to trace the pentagram and thus invoke or banish different 2lements. Cireand ir are %ctive 2lements%6 Water and 2arth are %+assive 2lements%. hus Cire and ir are bothupward pointing e8uilateral triangles, Water and 2arth downwardly directed. *pirit is represented

by the wheel of eight spokes.

Cire corresponds to the colour red, Water to blue, ir to yellow and 2arth to green or black. *pirit ismost often given as black. hese colours have little to do with the 2lements manifesting in thenatural world, but it is the most convenient use of the primary colours.

In terms of geometry Cire corresponds to the tetrahedron, Water to the icosahedron, *pirit to thedodecahedron, ir to the octahedron, and 2arth, 8uite naturally, to the cube 9or %he"ahedron%;.

hese so called %+latonic *olids% are intimately linked in the classical mind with the five 2lements.he +latonic #rder of the 2lements is different to that of the Qabalah6 and is based on theeconomical grouping of spheres with lines drawn across the interstices. he best source describingthis is eith /ritchlow%s $rder in %pace. his se8uence is tetrahedron, octahedron, icosahedron,cube and dodecahedron6 Cire, ir, Water, 2arth *pirit. his is the se8uence used in geomancy9although without *pirit;.

It is worth detailing these five *olids as they do occur in Qabalah and /rowley%s Thoth Tarot.


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he tetrahedron has four faces, four points and si" lines.

he octahedron has eight faces, si" points and $( lines.

he icosahedron has (B faces, $( points and )B edges.

he cube, or he"ahedron, has si" faces, eight points and $( lines.

he dodecahedron has twelve faces, (B points and )B edges.

here is a correspondences with the five senses. Cire is sight 9visual;, Water is taste 9gustatory;,*pirit is hearing 9auditory;, ir is smell 9olfactory; and 2arth is touch 9kinaesthetic;.

Quite often the 2lements are represented by the attwa symbols. hese are used more as an astralprojection tool than a system of Qabalistic notation. Cire is called %ejas% and is an upward pointingand red e8uilateral triangle6 Water is called %pas%, a silvery crescent moon with the two pointsuppermost6 ir is called %ayu% and is a blue circle6 2arth is %+rithivi%, a yellow s8uare6 *pirit is%kasha%, an indigo egg.

When referring to the four 2lements in the macrocosmwe use four different he"agrams. hesehave different permutations of the seven planets, so that each planet can be invoked or banished inthe conte"t of the four 2lements. *ol, however, is only invoked or banished in the he"agram of2arth.


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ELEME$TAR( REFLE'TI!$S

In general the four lesser 2lements are attributed to various *pheres, whilst *pirit corresponds to the+aths as a whole. However, from the perspective of the 0undane riad 9*pheres $B, 7, 5 4; the*phere of iphereth is allocated to *pirit. he three 2lements of Cire, Water and ir are allocated tothe *pheres $ to 7, whilst *phere $B alone is 2arth.

We see the 0iddle +illar is composed of ir, with 2arth at 0alkuth. he Doot of Cire is in

/hockmah, its +rimary Deflection in eburah, and its *econdary Deflection in FetZach. he Dootof Water is in &inah, its +rimary Deflection in /hesed, and its *econdary Deflection in Hod. heDoot of ir is in ether, its +rimary Deflection in iphereth and its *econdary Deflection in


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ote Bene he lowest *phere is incomplete because I forget the allocation of citrine, russet andolive, nor their H0! colour codes. *orry, but this book is a blend of the oral and written Qabalah.

TETRA)RAMMAT!$

%etragrammaton% is !atin for %Cour !ettered Fame%. he 2nglish transliteration is %Gehovah%, or,more commonly in the esoteric schools, %


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vertically we create a wonderful glyph of the human body.

here are $( rearrangements of these four !etters. hese are the %welve &anners of the Fame% andcorrespond to the $( ]odiac *igns. Cor these refer toLiber &&&by leister /rowley.

+erhaps the most famous permutation of etragrammaton is the triangular one.

&y the numerical value of the Hebrew letters this arrangement totals to 4(. his is an e"tremelyimportant number in Qabalah and elsewhere in the Western 0ystery radition.

In the nostic schools, both ancient and modern,


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his treatment of Hebrew Fames of od may seem a deviation from the ree of !ife, but we willsee later that it is anything but. he three other Fames are HIH, ! and 'FI.

TE F!#R W!RL&S

he etragrammaton leads us ine"orably to the concept of the four Worlds.

P


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World of &riah is the primal emotive incentive to flesh something out. his could be the desire toplease a loved one with a poem. +erhaps the yearning to visit a foreign country. 0aybe an intensenostalgia makes one wish to compose a painting.

s the magical seed nears completion we start to plan and intellectualise what it is we wish tocreate. n architect may produce blueprints. musician may write score. n artist could produce

sketches before applying the brush itself.

Cinally the archetypal seed is manifested in reality. he building is built, the poem is written, thepainting fleshed out. his is the realm of %trial and error%. We fre8uently find snags in any creativeprocess but the impetus from the three higher Worlds of Ztiluth, &riah and


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We can take four rees and assign each to a World by making iphereth of tZiluth correspond toether of &riah etc.

he scheme known as %Gacob%s !adder% has four rees vertically superimposed on each other. helower ether is connected to the higher iphereth and so on.

dogma e"ists that each *phere contains another ree of !ife, and so on, ad infinitum. his ismore a philosophical than practical concern.

MI$!R AR'A$A !F TE TAR!T

Ep to now we have studied relatively simple symbols and their allocations. We are ready to takeour ne"t step, the arot. 2ach card contains a wealth of data, and more often than not the pictureshelp us understand the ree.

ote Bene I will be using the correspondences of Harris and /rowley%s Thoth Tarot. his is aradical departure from the Dider Waite deck of $7$B6 indeed consider it a big jump from any


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predecessor in the world of arot decks. Fot only does it employ a virtually uni8ue genre ofpictorial e"pression, it also has differences in its correspondences and titles.

he arot comprises 45 designs and is divided into three categories: -B 0inor rcana, $3 /ourt/ards and (( 0ajor rcana. %0inor rcana% is !atin for %!esser 0ysteries%.

he -B !esser 0ysteries 9sometimes called %spot cards% or %pip cards%;, along with the /ourt /ards,are divided into four %*uits%: Wands, /ups, *words and 'isks. arot is the predecessor of playing

cards and its four *uits correspond thus: Wands become /lubs , /ups became Hearts , *wordsbecame *pades and 'isks became 'iamonds .

he four *uits correspond to the four lesser 2lements in a very natural and logical way. hey inturn correspond to the letters of etragrammaton.

Wands are connected with the 2lement of Cire.

/ups are connected with the 2lement of Water.

*words are connected with the 2lement of ir.

'isks are connected with the 2lement of 2arth.

he four ces are considered the %Doots of the 2lements% rather than the 2lements themselves.What really matters are the )3 0inor rcana left. hese are conveniently allocated to the *pheresthat correspond with their numbers. hus the wo of 'isks is found in the second *phere, the*even of /ups in the seventh *phere etc.

2ach 0inor rcanum 9e"cept the four ces; is allocated to a %decan% of the ]odiac, that is a tendegree arc of the ]odiacal Wheel. 2very ]odiac *ign, from ries to +isces, has )B degrees of arcwithin the astrological scheme. hus each House of the ]odiac has three 0inor rcana dividingand defining its sphere of influence.

2ach of these )3 designs have a ]odiacal *ign and a planet associated. he cycle begins with thewo of Wands 90ars in ries; and the planet of the rcanum changes once with each card,according to the formula of the seven planets in the se8uence mentioned earlier. he ]odiac *ignchanges every three cards until we reach the en of /ups 90ars in +isces;.

2ach ]odiac *ign is either one of four 2lements, and one of three Quadriplicities. 9he 2lementassociated with the *ign is called the %riplicity%;. he Quadriplicities arise from the division into/ardinal, Ci"ed or 0utable. he /ardinal *igns are found in the second, third and fourth *pheresof the ree6 the Ci"ed *igns in the fifth, si"th and seventh6 the 0utable *igns in the eighth, ninthand tenth.


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2ach design has a title that helps comprehend the *phere to which it belongs. In technical manualsthese titles are prefi"ed with %!ord of...%. *o the Cour of *words, %ruce%, is called the %!ord ofruce%. hat convention is ignored in this volume.

&elow we find the )3 0inor rcana in their astrologicalorder.

$. wo of Wands 'ominion 0ars in ries(. hree of Wands irtue *ol in ries). Cour of Wands /ompletion enus in ries-. Cive of 'isks Worry 0ercury in aurus1. *i" of 'isks *uccess !una in aurus3. *even of 'isks Cailure *aturn in aurus4. 2ight of *words Interference Gupiter in emini5. Fine of *words /ruelty 0ars in emini7. en of *words Duin *ol in emini$B. wo of /ups !ove enus in /ancer $$. hree of /ups bundance 0ercury in /ancer $(. Cour of /ups !u"ury !una in /ancer

$). Cive of Wands *trife *aturn in !eo$-. *i" of Wands ictory Gupiter in !eo$1. *even of Wands alour 0ars in !eo$3. 2ight of 'isks +rudence *ol in irgo$4. Fine of 'isks ain enus in irgo$5. en of 'isks Wealth 0ercury in irgo$7. wo of *words +eace !una in !ibra(B. hree of *words *orrow *aturn in !ibra($. Cour of *words ruce Gupiter in !ibra((. Cive of /ups 'isappointment 0ars in *corpio(). *i" of /ups +leasure *ol in *corpio

(-. *even of /ups 'ebauch enus in *corpio(1. 2ight of Wands *wiftness 0ercury in *agittarius(3. Fine of Wands *trength !una in *agittarius


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(4. en of Wands #ppression *aturn in *agittarius(5. wo of 'isks /hange Gupiter in /apricorn(7. hree of 'isks Works 0ars in /apricorn)B. Cour of 'isks +ower *ol in /apricorn)$. Cive of *words 'efeat enus in 8uarius)(. *i" of *words *cience 0ercury in 8uarius

)). *even of *words Cutility !una in 8uarius)-. 2ight of /ups Indolence *aturn in +isces)1. Fine of /ups Happiness Gupiter in +isces)3. en of /ups *atiety 0ars in +isces

he four *uits also represent divisions of time. Wands are days, /ups are weeks, *words aremonths and 'isks are years.

TE '!#RT 'AR&S

In arot divination the $3 /ourt /ards represent real people in the life of the Querent.Qabalistically they represent permutations of etragrammaton, and the formula of the four lettered

Fame, with a twofold permutation of the four 2lements. he se8uence is night, Queen, +rinceand +rincess. 9In the Dider Waite arot we have instead +age, night, Queen and ing.;

nights correspond to tZiluth and Cire, Queens to &riah and Water, +rinces to


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M(STI' $#MBERS A$& MA)I'% SQ#ARES

%0ystic Fumber% is a mathematical progression of an integer. he 0ystic Fumber of any *phereis a sum of all the numbers preceding an integer plus the integer itself. herefore the 0ystic

Fumber of si", or *ol, is $ @ ( @ ) @ - @ 1 @ 3, the total being )3. !ikewise the 0ystic Fumber of

enus is $ @ ( @ ) @ - @ 1 @ 3 @ 4, or (5. he formula is: "9">(; @ 9">(;. In classical mathematicsthese are called %triangular% numbers. hese can be shown with +ascal%s riangle, in its thirddiagonal.

0agick *8uare is an arrangement of numbers in a s8uare so that every row, column and diagonaltotals the same.


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Planet S-here S-here s.rd/ 'ol/+ Ro0 , &ia1/ Total of S.aure

*aturn ) 7 $1 -1Gupiter - $3 )- $)30ars 1 (1 31 )(1*ol 3 )3 $$$ 333

enus 4 -7 $41 $((10ercury 5 3- (3B (B5B!una 7 5$ )37 ))($

he science of %Qemea% 9sometimes %amea%; is the Hebrew word e8uivalents of the above numbers.arious names of +lanetary *pirits and +lanetary Intelligences are used, for which see leister/rowley%sLiber &&&. hese *8uares are often used in sigil magick.


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M(STI'AL )RA&ES

he helemic mystical #rders start their gradual initiation from the bottom of the ree of !ifeupwards. he rades are the *pheres. 2ach one attained represents genuine advancement6 and oneonly proceeds to the ne"t rade after e"act specifications have been met. *pheres ten to sevencomprise the rades of the #rder of the olden 'awn6 *pheres si" to four the #rder of the Duby

Dose and old /ross6 and *pheres three to one the #rder of the *ilver *tar.

)rade $otation S-here

Ipsissimus $B A $ ether 0agus 7 A ( /hockmah0agister empli 5 A ) &inah

&abe of the byss 'aath

deptus 2"emptus 4 A - /hesed

deptus 0ajor 3 A 1 eburahdeptus 0inor 1 A 3 iphereth

'ominis !iminis ? the link

+hilosophus - A 4 FetZach+racticus ) A 5 +racticus]elator ( A 7


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&efore Feophyte, the aspirant undergoes a year of probation during which he or she is allowed toundergo any type of program as long as a scientific journal of the e"periments is diligently kept.&efore that one has three months as a *tudent, which no more than reading prescribed books togarner a broad intellectual grasp of the system. hese elementary stages may deal with the realm ofdemons below 0alkuth that the aspirant better come to terms with before embarking upon the pathof initiation.

he four rades of the olden 'awn #rder are to master the four lesser 2lements. he main aim isto attain the %nowledge and /onversation of the Holy uardian ngel% which is constitutes andeptus 0inor. Crom this perspective iphereth is *pirit, and in ceremonial magick is the !ampwhich hangs above the altar. Epon this altar lay the Wand, /up, 'agger and 'isk that are literallycrafted by the aspirant as physical representatives of the ordeals and powers.

%'ominis !iminis% is !atin for %!ord of the hreshold%. deptus 0inor has two levels within andwithout. 9*ee the e"planation of the eil of +aroketh above;. Here the aspirant chooses a newmagical motto, or name. 9Cor men this is prefi"ed with %Crater%, with women %*oror%, these meaning%brother% and %sister%.; However, one%s magical name for this rade is normally kept secret.

deptus 0ajor represents %a master of magick, in all its forms, although without comprehension%.deptus 2"emptus is as far as one can go before entering the byss. he *eventh 'egree aspirantis e"pected to collate his or her knowledge into a written %thesis of the Eniverse%.

he /ollege of the depts is separated from the #rder of the *ilver *tar by the eil of the byss. Itis here the dept renounces all his knowledge and power. #ne faces the 'weller of the byss,/horonZon, and either defeats this demon through silence, becoming a 0agister empli, orsuccumbs to the temptations of ego, and clinging to a false identity becomes a &lack &rother.

nyone can become a 0agister empli by swearing the #ath of the byss in the presence of a0agister. his is not recommended for us mere mortals, who should con8uer the lower strata of our

psyche first with the curriculum of the lower rades.

Gust as the rade of 0agister teaches the 0ystery of *orrow, the ne"t rade, 0agus, teaches the0ystery of /hange. I believe that the Finth 'egree cannot be awarded to someone younger than-B, and I think this because /rowley attained 0agus on his -B th birthday. Ipsissimus teaches the0ystery of *elflessness, also called the 0ystery of +an. It is here that one can %e"ist without form%.

#MA$ A$AT!M( , TE TREE

When the ree of !ife design is projected onto a human frame we find manny coincidences. hefirst *phere of ether, he /rown, is just above the head. iphereth, or *ol, is located at the solar

ple"us.


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&inah, Enderstanding, is associated with the right hemisphere of the brain6 /hockmah, Wisdom, tothe left hemisphere. Feuroscience has long established that the normally dominant left hemisphereis concerned with logic, mathematics, language, prioritising, habit reinforcement and the like. hetwofold nature of /hockmah allocates most situations into a %right or wrong% paradigm. he righthemisphere deals with raw emotion, colour, rhythm, intuition and appreciation of art forms. his is

akin to the feminine, all encompassing, and intuitive &inah.

he four central *pheres, and the three points where +aths of the 0iddle +illar intersect withDeciprocal +aths 9see below;, give the general locations of the seven /hakkras, or Wheels, of


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hese allocations can be used as a rudimentary sign language. We simply combine the planets onthe fingers to orifices on the head, and this gives a card of the 0inor rcana.

hus if we touch the nose 9ir *mell ? *words; with the forefinger 9Gupiter, the number four; wemean the Cour of *words, which is %ruce%. If we touch the eye, or near the eye, with the forefinger,we get the Cour of Wands or %/ompletion% etc.

&i1it S-here !rifice Element 'ard Meanin1

humb *eventh 2ye Cire *even of Wands !#ED humb *eventh 0outh Water *even of /ups '2&E/Hhumb *eventh Fose ir *even of *words CEI!Ia he Cool $=($ I he 0agus $=)( II he High +riestess $=3) III he 2mpress (=)

- I he 2mperor 4=71 he Hierophant (=-3 I he !overs )=34 II he /hariot )=15 III djustment 1=37 I^ he Hermit -=3$B ^ Cortune -=4$$ Î !ust -=1$( ÎI he Hanged 0an 1=5$) ÎII 'eath 3=4$- Î rt 3=7

$1 ^ he 'evil 3=5$3 Î he ower 4=5$4 ÎI he *tar (=3$5 ÎII he 0oon 4=$B$7 Î^ he *un 5=7(B ^^ he eon 5=$B($ ^Î he Eniverse 7=$B

here are discrepancies with the older decks.

$. %he 0agus% was normally %he 0agician%.(. %he Hierophant% was sometimes called %he High +riest%.). %djustment% was normally %Gustice% and numbered Î rather than III-. %Cortune% was normally %he Wheel of Cortune%.1. %!ust% was normally %*trength% and numbered III rather than Î.3. %rt% was normally %emperance%.4. %he *tar%, in much older decks, was called %Hope%.5. %he eon% was normally %he !ast Gudgement%.7. %he Eniverse% was normally %he World%.

In a general, and arguably la*y, sense the rumps are the *pirit that binds and separatesthe four

2lements represented by the *pheres. Indeed 2h, the first and last Hebrew letters RX, means%spirit%.

rumps can be conceived either magically or mysticallydepending on which direction they aretraversed. rump encountered whilst travelling from a lower numbered to a higher numbered*phere is magick. higher numbered *phere crossing to a lower is mysticism. I mean %higher% ascloser to ten. ravelling from one to ten is magick, and from ten to one mysticism. he perfectmagician counts from *pheres one to ten consecutively. his is the %!ightning Clash% or %Claming*word%. he wise mystic travels up the +aths in reverse order towards ether6 and this is the%*erpent of Wisdom%.

he 0other, 'ouble and *ingle !etters are applied to the 0ajor rcana in an intensely profoundconfiguration called %he /ube of *pace%. he three 0others 9he Cool, he Hanged 0an and heeon; correspond to the length, width and breadth of the /ube 9I am unsure in which order;. he


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seven 'oubles 9he 0agus, he High +riestess, he 2mpress, Cortune, he ower, he *un andhe Eniverse; correspond to the si" faces and the centre. he $( edges of the /ube correspond tothe $( *ingle letters 9he 2mperor, he Hierophant, he !overs, he /hariot, !ust, he Hermit,djustment, 'eath, rt, he 'evil, he *tar and he 0oon;. his utterly precise arrangement iscovered comprehensively in 'avid llen Hulse%s The Cube of %pace.

he numbering of the arot, if tweaked a little, can add up to 333. We take the /ourt /ards asbeing eleven, $(, $) and $-. he 0ystic Fumber of $- is $B1, we mulitply this by four 9for thefour *uits; and get -(B. he 0ystic Fumber of ($ 9the rumps; is ()$. ()$ @ -(B A 31$. hee"tra $1, to make 333, comes by adding another 'evil rump. he 'evil is twofold in nature6 alsoeach hand has $1 joints, with the two 'evils representing the two hands that shuffle the cards. o

balance this we add another Cool rump. Quite often arot decks come with two e"tra cards, acover card and perhaps a card with publishing details, or an occult symbol of some kind.

here is a conceptual polarisation of $3 of the rumps when placed on the ree. We take the0iddle +illar as an a"is of symmetry and analyse eight pairs. he digram below shows the reewithout the +aths of the 0iddle +illar, or three Deciprocal +aths.

he Cool and he 0agus are obvious opposites. We have the spontaneity, rashness, whimsicalness,and lack of forethought with rump B, contrasted with the calculating, precise, formulaic characterof rump I.

he Hierophant sits in his temple meditating upon ancient wisdom6 he /hariot hurtles offirreverently into uncharted lands.

Cortune relies on auspicious circumstances and %good luck%6 he Hanged 0an is condemned andbeyond redemption.

he 0oon governs the female se" cycle, the whims of lovers, and gradual evolution of types6 he

eon cares not for any individual and is set in motion despite any creed, race or even planet. Whilehe 0oon is the precise chronometer of our daily calender, he eon can reach inception on a

spiritualtime cycle of which there is no mortal timepiece.


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he *tar is alone, immutable and amongst an unchanging community of galactic proportions, and isa unit of the macrocosm6 he !overs are together and the product of their union provides fleshlysustenance for the ever changing evolution of the species, and createa unit of the microcosm.

he Hermit is single. djustment is twofold, as the balances in the illustration. he Hermit is

perfection, the central immutable


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?)!&? A$& TE TIR& E(E

he +aths imel and 'aleth form an upright cross. When this cross is projected onto a plan of thehuman body we find the intersection of +aths meeting in the middle of the forehead. his is thelocation of the %hird 2ye%, that long fabled, perhaps vestigial, organ of ancient occultism. When weremember that the Hebrew for %2ye% is yin, and that yin transliterates as %#%, we get the word

%#'% spelled out clearly. his adds up to 44, one less than the 0ystic Fumber of $(. imelconnects *pheres one and si", 'aleth two and three, and these four *pheres add to $(.

BIBLI!)RAP(

A Garden of #omegranates, Israel DegardieA Glossary of Thelema, Crater +yramidatusLiber &&& and $ther -abalistic ritings, leister /rowley$rder in %pace, eith /ritchlow-abalah, /harles +onceThe Anatomy of the Body of God, Crater chadThe Book of Thoth, leister /rowley

The Canon, William *tirlingThe Cube of %pace, 'avid llen HulseThe (ey of it All, 'avid llen HulseThe Ladder of Lights, William rayThe /iddle #illar, Israel DegardieThe ew Living -abalah, Will +arfittThe Thoth Tarot, leister /rowley Crieda HarrisThe Tree of Life, Israel Degardie


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A Short Introduction to the Qabalistic Tree of Life, By Frater Pyramidatus

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Transcript of A Short Introduction to the Qabalistic Tree of Life, By Frater Pyramidatus