THE MYSTIC PATH - PATH 9: YESOD
5:00 PM
Me, my beloved, and a collection of crazy souls are currently engaged in an initiatory Pathworking with
the Qabalah Tree of Life. You can read what that is all about here. In the meantime, I have been documenting our work as we explore the Paths.
It is important to know these are brief notes. A true understanding of each Path begs a vital understanding of the Sephiroth connecting them. Further research on your own is highly recommended.
It is important to know these are brief notes. A true understanding of each Path begs a vital understanding of the Sephiroth connecting them. Further research on your own is highly recommended.
The last ten paths are actually not Paths per se, but represent the Sephiroth on the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life consists primarily of ten spheres (with an invisible 11th sphere) called Sephiroth. Gareth Knight defines the Sephiroth as the "stages in the emanations of the Spirit of God or man in its progress from noumenal existence to its building of a physical vehicle in the phenomenal world." (A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism, Vol. 1, p. 24) Imagine the Tree of Life as a process chart, each Sephirah a phase which establishes itself as its own sphere of intelligence, but then precedes the force of movement to the next phase. It starts from the top with from the Unmanifest and ends at the bottom, where Matter has manifested fully to the end result of evolution. We are starting at the bottom and following the path of Creation back to its Source.
Yesod is the "Foundation," and by this it is meant the "astral foundation or matrix on which all manifested forms in the physical universe are based and built on." (Chic & Sandra Cicero, A Garden of Pomegranates, p. 241) As all matter, all form is manifest fully into Malkuth, it must first come via the Sephirah Yesod. Any idea, force, or element which has spilled down from all preceding Sephiroth, and must pass through Yesod in order to become manifest. This is why the Yeztiratic text calls Yesod the Purifying the Intelligence, because it "purifies the emanations":
" . . . it acts as a filter, diffusing the supernal light so that Malkut can receive it without being overwhelmed. The force of the influx of the supernal light and spiritual energies of the Sefirot flowing into Yesod is too intense to be received directly by Malkut; thus, Yesod absorbs the force of the influx and serves to measure the flow [of these energies] into Malkut." (Tau Malachi, Gnosis of the Cosmic Christ: A Gnostic Christian Kabbalah, p. 283)
Yesod is the point of the Astral Triad on the Tree of Life, of which Hod and Netzach are a part. It is the seat of the astral/etheric plane of existence. This is most important to those who are interested in magic and in causing change within Malkuth, because it is the astral/etheric plane where every form in Malkuth originates. Thus, in order to cause change one has to go to the source, to Yesod, the Machinery of the Universe.
Astral/etheric energy is "an energy of integration which co-ordinates the physical molecules, cells and so on into a definite organism, and so without it our physical bodies would be nothing but collections of independent cells," says Gareth Knight. "All [forms] have their structure built and held by the etheric web or network, thus it is the foundation of physical existence [...] In this way Yesod can be said to hold the image of everything that exists in the physical world, and thus it is the Storehouse of Images." (A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism, Vol. I, p. 175-176) This is the infrastructure of the healing arts, to change the image from the Storehouse rather than treat the symptom in Malkuth.
The Moon is the primary planetary body of Yesod, and the dream-time is its attribute. The Moon is a primary factor in all magical workings, its light waxing and waning, its pull on the oceans ebbing and flowing. Dreams are equally fluidic and in flux, which is a significant quality of Yesod, and it is in the dream-time that we have some of our greatest connection with the astral planes. Although, one would be wise to be highly discerning of any connection with dreams as a definite connection with Yesod/the astral plane: "Schools of thought are mistaken that propose that all dreams inherently convey deeper wisdom or that all dreams represent the communication of the inner light or higher self. Rather, dreams reflect the state of the soul or the state of consciousness." (Tau Malachi, p. 290)
As Malkuth is a reflection of Yesod, we can see the relationship with the other Sephiroth on the Middle Pillar of the Tree of Life: "In etheric matters the Moon is the positive pole, and the Earth the negative one. Yesod [...] reflects the Sun of Tiphareth, which in its turn is Kether on a lower arc." (Dion Fortune, The Mystical Qabalah, p. 242) As Kether is the apex of the Supernal Triad, so Tiphareth is the reflected apex of the Ethical Triad, and Yesod the re-reflected one of the Astral. This shows how manifest reality is driven by the forces above it. It's as if we can "liken the kingdom of earth to a great ship, then Yesod would be the engine room." (Fortune, p. 236)
Below are the various attributions of Yesod:
GOD NAME: Shaddai El Chai
ARCHANGEL: Gabriel
ORDER OF ANGELS: Kerubim
COLOR: Indigo, violet
SYMBOL: The Perfumes and sandals
VIRTUE: Independence
TAROT ATTRIBUTION: The four Nines
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