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THE TREE OF LIFE THE KINGDOM (1) Lesson Thirty-eight Malkuth, the tenth Sephirah, is to Kether as is the fruit of a tree to its root. It is the point at which all the influences which descend from Kether finally converge, and the point from which, on the Way of Return, man’s consciousness begins its ascent. Its number, 10, combines 0 with 1, so that by reduction, 10 corresponds to 1. Hence it is written in the Qabalah that Malkuth is in Kether, and Kether is in Malkuth, but after another manner. Again, THE BOOK OF FORMATION (1:6, Stenring's translation) says: "Ten ineffable Sephiroth: their appearance is like that of a flash of lightning, their goal is infinite. His word is in them when they emanate and when they return; at His bidding do they haste like a whirlwind." What is pictured here is whirling motion, going out from a center and returning to it. The "appearance" described is what presents itself to eyes opened to the higher vi- sion. It is no mere figure of speech. Yet even those who cannot actually see the whirl- ing outflow and inflow of the Holy Influence will be able to gather from the words we have quoted the essential idea of a complete circuit of energy. Consider carefully the idea behind the phrase, "Their goal is infinite." Ordinarily, we think of goals or ends as being ultimate. A book comes to an end; a play ends at the final curtain; a human life seems to end at death. Yet, in the manifestation of a limit- less power there can be no such thing as finality, and Ageless Wisdom in all its forms emphasizes this. Master Masons are told that they will "never, never, never die.” The threefold negative is intended to impress on them the idea of eternal continuity. Tarot begins with a picture of a traveler who has to all seeming reached the limit of his journey, but shows him with rapt gaze fixed on a height far above the peak whereon he stands. On the re- verse of the Great Seal of the United States is an unfinished pyramid, symbol of the spiritual building, eternal in the heavens, which, because it is eternal, will never be completed. In like manner, many of the great cathedrals erected by Operative Masons who preceded our Speculative Masons were left unfinished to indicate the truth that the attainment of every goal is always the arrival at a point from which a new enterprise must be begun. Thus Malkuth, as the fruit of the Tree, is also that which holds the seeds of fresh manifestations. In this course of lessons, we have followed the descent, or involution, of the powers of the Limitless Light. Yet it would be possible to trace the paths of the Tree in reverse order, from Malkuth back to Kether; and in so doing we should be fol- lowing the Way of Return which leads to man's liberation and illumination. It is this way of return which is shadowed forth in the rituals and ceremonials used by Working Builders in B .O .T.A ., and in other societies which follow the pattern of the Tree of Life. Knowledge is power, but the pitiful spectacle of the abuse of power af- forded by the state of the world today is evidence that power in the hands of persons de- void of ethical training and social conscience may become a curse rather than a blessing.

The Tree of Life - Lesson 38

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Page 1: The Tree of Life - Lesson 38

T H E T R E E OF L I F E

THE KINGDOM (1)

Lesson T h irty -e igh t

Malkuth, the tenth Sephirah, is to K ether as is the fru it of a tre e to its ro o t. It is the point at which all the influences which descend from K ether finally converge, and the point from which, on the Way of R eturn, man’s consciousness begins its ascen t.

Its num ber, 10, com bines 0 with 1, so that by reduction, 10 corresponds to 1. Hence it is w ritten in the Qabalah that Malkuth is in K ether, and K ether is in Malkuth, but a fte r another m anner. Again, THE BOOK OF FORMATION (1:6, S tenring 's transla tion ) says: "Ten ineffable Sephiroth: th e ir appearance is like that of a flash of lightning, th e ir goal is infinite. His w ord is in them when they em anate and when they re tu rn ; at His bidding do they haste like a w hirlw ind."

What is p ic tu red h ere is w hirling motion, going out from a cen te r and re tu rn ing to i t . The "appearance" described is what p re sen ts itse lf to eyes opened to the h igher v i­sion . It is no m ere figu re of speech. Yet even those who cannot actually see the w h irl­ing outflow and inflow of the Holy Influence w ill be able to ga ther from the words we have quoted the e ssen tia l idea of a com plete c ircu it of energy .

C onsider carefu lly the idea behind the ph rase , "T h e ir goal is in fin ite ." O rdinarily , we think of goals o r ends as being u ltim ate . A book com es to an end; a play ends at the final curtain ; a hum an life seem s to end at death. Yet, in the m anifestation of a lim it­le ss power th e re can be no such thing as finality , and A geless Wisdom in all its fo rm s em phasizes th i s .

M aste r M asons a re told that they will "never, never, never d ie .” The threefo ld negative is intended to im p ress on them the idea of e te rn a l continuity. T aro t begins with a p ic tu re of a tra v e le r who has to a ll seem ing reached the lim it of his journey, but shows him with rap t gaze fixed on a height fa r above the peak whereon he s tan d s . On the r e ­v e rse of the G reat Seal of the United States is an unfinished pyram id , symbol of the sp iritu a l building, e tern al in the heavens, which, because it is e te rn a l, will never be com pleted. In like m anner, many of the g rea t ca thedra ls e rec ted by Operative Masons who preceded our Speculative Masons w ere left unfinished to indicate the tru th that the attainm ent of every goal is always the a rr iv a l at a point from which a new en te rp rise m ust be begun.

Thus Malkuth, as the fru it of the T ree , is also that which holds the seeds of fre sh m anifestations. In th is cou rse of lesso n s, we have followed the descent, o r involution, of the pow ers of the L im itless Light. Yet it would be possib le to tra c e the paths of the T ree in re v e rse o rd e r, from Malkuth back to Kether; and in so doing we should be fo l­lowing the Way of R eturn which leads to m an 's libera tion and illum ination .

It is th is way of re tu rn which is shadowed fo rth in the ritu a ls and cerem onials used by Working Builders in B .O .T .A ., and in o ther socie ties which follow the p a tte rn of the T re e of L ife. Knowledge is power, but the pitiful spectacle of the abuse of power af­forded by the s ta te of the w orld today is evidence that pow er in the hands of persons de­void of e th ical tra in ing and social conscience may becom e a cu rse ra th e r than a b lessing .

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T rue as it is that m isuse of pow er re a c ts inevitably on p erso n s responsib le fo r it, it is equally tru e that m oral idiots, blind to everything but personal advantage, may be p e rsons fully able to understand and apply techniques fo r using subtle occult fo rces to destructive e n d s . M oral idiocy and a high degree of in te llectual power a re often found tog e th er. The tra g ic fa tes of Napoleon, of H itle r, and of M ussolini, and the d isa s te rs which have overtaken the follow ers of these blind le ad e rs , bring us an object lesson not to be ignored.

He who puts sw ords in the hands of ch ildren sh ares the responsib ility fo r w hatever in ju ries they may su ffe r. Thus the w ise men of the Inner School have always demanded from p e titioners fo r the h igher instruction convincing evidence of e th ical f itn e s s . F o r beginners, the te s ts a re not so rigo rous, and a re such as may be given by persons who have not yet reached the h igher levels of adeptship th em se lv es .

Such te s ts a re em bodied in the language of the obligations taken by p ersons adm itted to organizations such as the Working Builders of the B .O .T .A . Taking such a pledge has a profound effect on the subconsciousness of the pe rso n to whom it is adm in istered . If th e re be any m ental re serv a tio n , even one which is wholly subconscious, th e re w ill be strong re a c tio n s .

F o r exam ple, one provision of a ll such pledges is that the p e rso n who takes it w ill ex ert h is best e ffo rts to prom ote harm ony within the organization and the w elfare of mankind in g en era l. Now, it som etim es occurs that one who takes such an obligation is in h is conscious mind desirous of being helpful, and full of plans fo r human b e tte r­m ent. Yet h is re a l m otivation is a d e s ire to see h is p lans accepted and c a r r ie d out; and he fee ls slighted if they a re p assed over and the ideas of som e o ther person find fav o r.

Nobody who has had any considerable experience of what goes on behind the scenes in churches w ill have any difficulty in understanding th is . Ask any p re a ch e r about h is d ifficulties with church cho irs , o r L adies' Aid socie ties , and he can give you many am us­ing, and som e rea lly tra g ic , exam ples.

Isn’t it obvious that a p e rso n who has such an inner conflict between conscious objec­tiv es and subconscious m otivation would be strongly tem pted to m isuse occult pow ers, if he learned how to w ield them? And such a person , when he takes a solem n obligation, always finds the conflict in tensified at f i r s t . You know what happens to m ost New Y e a r 's resolutions! Well, it is the sam e thing, only m ore so, with occult p ledges.

Our experience with C hapters of Working Builders, and with the m em bers of T em ­ples of the O rder which, h is to rica lly , w as the im m ediate p re d e ce sso r of the B .O .T .A ., has shown that any conflict between conscious purpose and subconscious m otivation is su re to be brought to light when an occult student joins such an o rganization . Even the slight link estab lished with the Inner School when one becom es an A ssociate Builder brings som e intensification of the subtle fo rces behind the su rface of personality ; and the s tro n g e r tie of an obligation which invokes the aid of the studen t's H igher Soul, and brings him into c lose in te rio r contact with the Inner School, has a m arked e ffe c t.

The H igher Soul is what T aro t p ic tu re s as the angel in T em perance . F rom o ther lessons you have learned that th is is the tru e EGO in T iphareth , and that it is the rea l O perato r in the G reat Work which leads to libera tion from the delusion of se p a ra te n e ss .

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To invoke th is G uardian Angel form ally is to speed up the p ro cess of personal evolu­tion, and often the consequences include bodily d iscom fort, psychological pertu rba tions, and apparent "bad luck" in a ffa irs .

All these a re t e s t s . . . te s ts of the devotion and steadfastness of the student who takes the o b lig a tio n .. . te s ts of h is insight and understanding, a lso . Thus if th e re be any tra c e in him of am bition, o r p la c e -se e k in g ,a n y hunger fo r p e rsonal pow er, any w ish fo r personal p ro fit o r advantage over o ther p e rso n s, these te s ts w ill bring his r e a l m otives to the su rfa c e .

P articu la rly if he be hungry fo r pow er, o r desirous of experiences beyond the o r ­dinary range of sensation , w ill another te s t which is found in a ll obligations such as we a re considering intensify h is co n flic ts . T h is is the te s t of p e rsev eran ce in co u rses of study p re sc rib ed in the cu rricu lu m . Many of the subjects p re sc rib ed a re not, in them ­selves, of much in te re s t . Often th e ir re la tion to what the student supposes to be s p ir i t ­ual development w ill not be obvious. Some of them will seem dry and unprofitab le . O thers, such as those subjects which req u ire the student to be fam ilia r with the c h a rac ­te r s of the Hebrew alphabet, o r with the p ro cesses of G em atria and the like , w ill bring to the su rface any tra c e of an ti-S em itism which may be lurking in subconsciousness.

Experience shows, th e re fo re , that even p ersons who have wide acquaintance with the li te ra tu re of occultism , and glib facility in the use of its technical te rm s , a re not always qualified fo r the technical w ork. Many a re called to the G reat W ork, but few a re chosen. Hence we feel it to be our plain duty to m aintain the re s e rv e s im posed on us when we received the inner instruction; and th is m eans that technical knowledge con­cern ing the Way of Return, o r g radual ascent of the T ree of L ife .cannot be given in open publication .

T his does not mean that we set o u rse lves up as judges of the fitn ess of persons who d es ire in struc tion . It does m ean that we a re ou rse lves bound by what is quaintly ex­p re sse d in the ROSICRUCIAN CONFESSIO when it says:

"If th e re be anybody now which on the o ther side w ill com plain of our d iscretion , that we offer our tre a su re s so free ly and ind iscrim inately , and do not ra th e r re g a rd m ore the godly, w ise, o r p rincely p e rso n s than the common people, with him we a re in no w ise angry (fo r the accusation is not without moment), but w ithal we affirm that we have by no m eans made common p roperty of our a rcan a , a lbeit they resound in five languages within the e a rs of the vulgar, both because, as we w ell know, they w ill not move g ro ss w its , and because the worth of those who shall be accepted into ou r F ra te rn ity w ill not be m easu red by th e ir cu rio sity , but by the ru le and p a tte rn of ou r rev e la tio n s ."

They who c ritic iz e the ru le and re fu se to assum e the obligations fa il in the f ir s t te s t req u ired of all to whom genuine a rcan a a re im p arted . In th ese days, th e re a re many who argue plausibly that nothing should be kept sec re t; but he who takes th is stand shows a lack of d iscrim ination which is , in itse lf, sufficient to b a r him from p a rtic ip a ­tion in the work of the Inner School. We do not argue th is po in t. R eaders of these pages w ill e ith e r see it fo r them selves, in which case no argum ent is needed, o r e lse they w ill d isag ree , and then no amount of argum ent w ill se rv e to persuade th e m .

To many, perhaps, th is may seem to be a long d ig ression from the m ain topic of

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these le sso n s . But we have what seem to be good reasons fo r bringing it in ju s t at th is point. Think it over, and you w ill, no doubt, d iscover many of these reasons fo r y o u r­self without our having to say anything m ore .

Let us re tu rn , then, to our study of the tenth S ephirah . We have said that Mal- kuth is the fru it of the T ree of L ife. Thus it re p re sen ts the fulfilm ent of the purpose f i r s t form ulated in K ether. Rem em bering that in the cosm ic o rd e r Malkuth re p re se n ts the physical plane, and in the human constitution, the physical body, it should be ev i­dent that the whole c rea tiv e p ro cess outlined in the diagram of the T ree is one which has fo r its object the perfec ted m anifestation of cosm ic fo rces on the physical plane, and the production of a perfected physical vehicle fo r human perso n a lity .

This at once rem oves us from the idea that occult study and p rac tice have fo r th e ir objectives any such thing as escape from the physical p lane. Many w ritings now in c i r ­culation ex p ress the idea that a fte r we die we en te r into a p lace o r condition w here all that is lacking here w ill be made up to u s . Such is the gen era l position of the various fo rm s of exoteric re lig ion , except that m ost of them hold that the g re a te r num ber of us will pass from e a rth -life into conditions f a r w orse than any we experience h e re .

O thers, p a rticu la rly among the S p iritua lists , te ll us we shall en te r into a s ta te of e te rn a l p ro g ress in spheres above and beyond the physical p lane. Popular conceptions of Hinduism and Buddhism offer v a rian ts of what is essen tia lly the sam e idea of re le a se from earth conditions.

In the W estern T rad ition , however, the doctrine is that while re le a se from the lim itations which seem to be p a rt of our life on ea rth does re su lt from success in the G reat Work, that re le a se is actually the dem onstration that these lim itations a re illu ­s iv e . When we tru ly understand physical ex istence, we a re f re e from its lim ita tions, and then we enjoy a life which includes a ll the advantages of the physical plane as well as those of h igher levels of ex istence.

C areful reading of Stewart Edward W hite's book, THE UNOBSTRUCTED UNIVERSE, based on com m unications received from his wife, w ill show that the teaching of that volume is com patible with the W estern T rad ition . One point to be noticed in th is book is that the com m unicating en tities decla re explicitly that they live in a un iverse which includes the tim e, space and o ther conditions of the physical p lane. Another is that th e ir w ork is aided by the work of incarnate human p e rso n a litie s . Again, they speak of h igher and m ore advanced perso n a lities than them selves, and say that these advanced beings have pow ers g re a te r than th e ir own.

Superficial re a d e rs may conclude from th is that such m ore highly evolved p ersons have passed into h igher sp iritu a l sp h e re s . But is th e re any re a l objection to the idea that th e ir su p erio r attainm ent is rea lly th e ir ability to u tilize physical as well as su p e r­physical pow ers? . . .to live, fully incarnate , on th is earth , o r possib ly on o ther p lanets, because they a re able to fashion, from within, physical bodies suitable fo r the condi­tions of w hatever physical environm ent they may choose fo r th e ir p a rtic u la r purposes?

Surely, to live in a condition which is cut off from full partic ipation in the ac tiv i­tie s of the physical plane is not to live in a tru ly unobstructed un iv erse . Nor is the p a r tia l partic ipa tion in the physical w orld which is achieved through utiliz ing the body of a m edium , o r the mind of a psychic, to be com pared with ou r own free use of physical p o w ers .

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Finally , one avowed object of the book we a re considering is to put into the hands of incarnate human beings clues to a way of life which shall enable them to en ter into the h igher levels of consciousness and existence from which these com m unications com e. He who succeeds in such work, while yet incarnate , will then live tru ly in an unobstructed u n iv e rse .

Thus it would appear that the w ork of those now on the "o ther side” w ill lead them , eventually, to the ability to incarnate on the physical plane without the necessity fo r o r ­dinary physical b irth . C onversely, the work of those who a re now in the flesh w ill have fo r its object conscious partic ipa tion in the s ta tes of existence above and beyond the physical level. P rec isely th is is what has been received by us from the Inner School as being the essence of Q abalistic and H erm etic doctrine . We do not offer it as being som e­thing our students m ust accep t. We do p resen t it as being som ething they may verify fo r them selves, if they do the w ork.

What m ust be accom plished is the transm utation and purification of the physical body, so that it may serve as an instrum ent fo r the expression of sp iritu a l pow ers, and as a receiv ing station fo r im pressions from levels of existence above and beyond the lim its of the physical p lane.

This work is what is hinted at in the legend of F reem asonry , which says that H iram refused to give the M aste r’s Word to the Fellow C rafts who demanded it, because the sanctum sanctorum , o r Holy of Holies, had not been fin ished. The tem ple is a symbol of the human body. The sanctum sanctorum is the pineal gland in the b ra in . In ord inary men and women, th is organ is in a rud im entary , o r unfinished, condition. The p rac tices of tru e occultism bring it to perfection .

Som etim es th is organ is called the T h ird Eye, because it is actually like an eye in many re sp e c ts . Some biologists, in fac t, a re of the opinion that the pineal gland is a vestig ia l organ, left over from an e a r l ie r stage of evolution, in which they suppose it to have been a re a l eye set in the top of the head of som e now extinct type of anim al. O ccultism , however, holds that th is T h ird Eye is a rudim entary organ which may be brought to the point of p e rfec t function by p rac tice s which, in the O rient, a re called Yoga, and in the W estern T rad ition a re known as Alchemy.

The T h ird Eye is known also as the Philosophers’ Stone. It is the organ of tru e sp iritu a l v ision which enables one in whom it is open to see beyond the lim its of the phy­s ica l plane, and to perceive m an 's perfec t union with his Divine Source. T his STONE, consequently, is designated in Hebrew by the w ord J2R, rep resen ting the union of 3H, the F a th e r (Chokmah) with 23, the Son (T iphareth).

Malkuth, rem em b er, is the sea t of r q j guph, the physical body. The th ree le tte rs of th is w ord afford a clue to its occult significance. The f i r s t is G im el, r e p re ­sented in T a ro t by the High P rie s te ss , and on the T ree of Life by the path which unites K ether to T iphare th . The second is Vav, p ic tu red by the H ierophant, and re la ted on the T ree to the path linking Chokmah to Chesed, and also to T iphareth itse lf . The th ird le t­te r is Peh, p ic tu red by the Tow er, and shown on the T re e as the link between Netzach and Hod; but re la ted also , as you have learned , to Yesod, because the num ber of Peh is 80.

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Thus G im el in El J , guph, stands fo r the Uniting Intelligence joining Yekhidah to the EGO seated in the h ea rts of m en. It is the link between the Cosm ic SELF in Keth- e r and the human EGO. It is , m oreover, because the le tte r-n am e Gimel adds to 73, the num ber of nOHH, Chokmah, d irec tly re la ted to the life -fo rce sea ted in the second Sephirah.

Vav in 9 1 J stands fo r the EGO as the Inner T eacher p ic tu red as the H iero ­phant. The burden of a ll h is teaching is that tru e Wisdom m ust ev er find expression in loving - k in d n ess . T h is T eacher, m oreover, is also the Divine Son (the EGO inT iphareth ), in perfec t union with the F a th e r (Chokmah). Thus T aro t shows him as a g rea t High P ries t, a fte r the o rd e r of M elchizedek, without fa th e r, without m other, without begin­ning o r end of d a y s .

Peh in B1J stands fo r the destruction of e r r o r p ic tu red in T a ro t by Key 16. As the num ber 80, the le tte r B rep re se n ts also the w ord H D ', and thus re fe rs to the pow ers of the autom atic consciousness.

91J , guph, consequently, indicates tha t the physical body is a point at which the pow ers of the Cosm ic SELF (Yekhidah) a re linked with those of the cen tra l EGO. At, o r in, th is sam e fie ld of physical expression the life -fo rce of Chokmah is ac tiv e . And it is during m an 's life in his physical body that he m ust accom plish the w ork which overcom es the delusions which seem to lim it h im .

In sh o rt, physical ex istence, rep resen ted on the T re e by M alkuth, is the s tartin g - point fo r the work which leads to libera tion . Not th is only, fo r it is also the plane in which the G reat Work finds com pletion.

Thus The E m erald Tablet says of the One F o rce that its pow er is in tegrating , if it be turned into e a r th . T his One F o rce is Chaiah, the life -fo rce in Chokmah. Another name fo r it is n o ro , Kachm ah, and th is te rm has been explained in Lesson 14.

Again, The E m erald Tablet says that in the Operation of the Sun th is fo rce ascends from ea rth to heaven, and descends to ea rth again . E arth , o r the physical p lane, is the s ta rtin g -p o in t. When the c ircu it is com pleted, ea r th is also the scene of the final p e rfe c ­tio n . Hence that g rea t Q abalistic book, the Apocalypse, d escribes the consum ation of the G reat Work as a cubical c ity , the New Jerusa lem , which descends from heaven to e a r th . T h is tran sp a ren t, golden cube is a symbol of T iphareth , because a cube is the geom etrical correspondence to 6 because of its six equal fa c e s . The New Jerusa lem and the alchem ical Cubic Stone a re two sym bols fo r the sam e thing, which is the p e rfec t physical embodiment of the pow ers of the Ego seated in T iphare th .

In the Apocalypse the E go ,o r C h ris to s, is sym bolized a s the Lamb enthroned at the cen te r of the cubical c ity . And because the Ego is the source of illum ination, the Apo­calypse says of the city: "And the city had no need of the sun, n e ith e r of the moon, to shine in it: fo r the g lory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light th e re o f .”

The Lamb is what the ancient Egyptians person ified as K hoor. In India the sam e cen tra l Ego was nam ed K rish n a . In C hristian ity , th is illum inating p resen ce in the h ea rt

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of m an is the C hris to s, a G reek w ord meaning "The A nointed," that is to say, "the K ing," which in Hebrew is 37 C, Melek, a nam e fo r the sixth Sephirah. In F reem aso n ry thesam e EGO is Khurum , o r H iram . In R osicrucian trad ition it is person ified by "O ur Brother and F a th e r ( i . e . , Ben, the Son, o r T iphareth , and Ab, the F a th er, o r Chokmah) C .R . ," whose in itia ls a re equivalent to the Hebrew w ord 13, C a r , meaning "L am b ."

The Lamb opens the book with the seven sea ls , and these sea ls a re the sam e as the seven alchem ical m etals; the sam e as the seven chakras of the Yogis; the sam e as the seven in te rio r s ta r s . The book is the book of life . It is also the human body, w rit­ten within and w ithout. And when its sea ls a re opened, the G reat Work is com pleted, and the cubical city descends to e a r th .

That city is called also the Bride and th is is one of the special nam es fo r M alkuth. We shall consider it in Lesson 39.

M a n ife s ta tio n r e q u i r e thT he a p p e a ra n c e of s e p a r a te p a r t .W hen I show fo r th m y p o w er,W hat I b r in g in to e x is te n c e M u st s e e m o th e r th an m y se lf ;A nd b e c a u s e I a m w holly f r e e ,I p r e s e n t m y s e lf to m y s e lf In an e n d le s s v a r ie ty of f o r m s .Y et is th e s e e m in g is o la t io n o f c la s s an d k ind ,The s e p a r a te n e s s o f c r e a tu r e s ,N augh t b u t i l lu s io n w h ich d e lu d e th m e n o t.N o r a r e th ey by i t d e c e iv e d In w hom m y w isd o m h a s r ip e n e d .

(F ro m TH E BOOK O F TO K EN S, by D r . P a u l F o s te r C ase )

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