I dreamed that I was whole
I dreamed that the word was at peace
I dreamed that all of life understood love
I dreamed that mind knew its own power
I dreamed that wisdom was plentiful
I dreamed that injustice loosened its hold
I dreamed that humanity knew its worth
I dreamed that the work of this world
Called me into the seas of the next
I dreamed that I was whole and complete
As the running waters that ebb and flow within
A loving Tree ran through me
As we enter the Temple of the Sun, Qabalistically we are entering into connection with the central sphere on the Tree of Life, Tiphareth. The name given this sphere is Beauty and the energy is one of synthesis through sacrifice and integration through refinement of the sum of all of its parts. This is much the same energy that we experience in the course of a Solar year. The energy of each of the Zodiacal signs, their element and modality are modified and expressed through the brilliance of the Sun. And, in keeping with the evolutionary process of movement from one sign to the next, each is informed by the previous sign’s energy and contributes a part of its dynamic into the sign that follows. Please see the end of this post for recommendations about learning more about the Tree of Life.
Pisces and Neptune (Jupiter) on the Tree
Astrologically, we have learned that Pisces is ruled by Neptune, the planet of depth, emotion and quickening within birthing waters that are charged with life force. We have experienced the focus of an astrological energy that is loving in its nature and seeking always the place of harmonious interaction. This is the energy of the final sign of the Zodiacal Wheel and it is the vision of the Twin Fish that hints at the mystery and synchronicity to be achieved when heart is attuned to another.
Pisces is the quintessential water sign. Neptune as its ruler is aptly paired with a sign that reaches so deep into the seas and seeks the treasure of a golden heart that beats gently in every creature it encounters. Pisces is the dreamer and through the veiling of murky waters those dreams can take on a vastly different vision, which when brought to the surface does not glitter quite so brightly. The imperfections that are found are forgiven within a Piscean approach, but the level of discernment that is often needed is not as keen in some instances as it should be, leaving Pisces to pick up the pieces of those broken dreams.
The secondary (or original) ruler of Pisces is Jupiter. This is easily envisioned as the ebb and flow of waters that spread themselves too thin at times and go too far out into the ocean’s depths at others. Jupiter puts some of the illusory nature of those deep waters into perspective, allowing Pisces to see into those depths from the vantage point of seeing clear the way through as it parts the waters to reveal a seabed that is alive and rich in life and the nutrients that sustain it. But, that has to be the desired outcome, otherwise Jupiter remains contracted and tightly guarding what needs revealing.
Within the Qabalistic Tree, Pisces and Neptune hold their power in the Sphere of Kether and the Paths of the Tree – 29th and 23rd and Jupiter flows expansively in the 21st. Although, traditionally Kether is given no planetary attribution – the swirlings of creation being one of its assignations- I have also seen Neptune placed here and with it the endings and beginnings that lay within the creative potential of Pisces. When we speak of the energy of Pisces as an experience of compassion, non-judgment and great intuitive sensitivity we are calling forth those waters that run deep and forever cause lasting change wherever their path may lead.
This is the way of the Tree itself; to provide the necessary compassion to understand something more than itself and catalyze its ability to emanate and to do so as a purposeful and intended act of love for what it aspires to know. This is the loving creator/creatrix who willingly splits itself into the necessary components to ensure that new life will begin.
This is the desire for Creation that flows through Kether as the Godhead and is reflected down and through itself in the depths of refined emotions and the sensuous tides of seas that hold the experiences that are the source of the desire to BECOME.
Kether (Neptune) and Tiphareth (Sun)
Tiphareth and the Sun
Each of the Sephiroth and connecting Paths of the Tree of Life holds correspondence with a planetary and/or zodiacal energy. The physical Sun stands centrally within our solar system, providing light and heat. Tiphareth provides the space of transformation and the full force generator that distributes what is processed so it may be utilized and transmuted by whatever it emanates its energy into. This is the sacrificial aspect of this sphere. This is the action of enlivening within its own source to ensure the continuation of the creative process begun within the other components of the Tree. So we begin in this central hub of universal energy and move up the Mystic’s Path towards the Godhead or Crown of Source and the Limitless All of Kether.
Kether: The Sphere of the Limitless All
Nothing and everything
The endless void fills all time
Until…
One moves in the silence
Stretching and reaching
Towards the other as two
Swiftly take flight.
They mingle and join
Each claiming their own side
So three may point the way.
Each base stretched far and wide.
Foundations are laid
By another close at hand
Who opens the four sealed gates.
Disruption and creative force
Issues forth as the skillfully crafted
Shield of focus reflects the five.
The light is fixed
The seeker is found
As outpour of healing grace
Gives way to the
Harmonious six.
Each walks a path of experience
Pulling and gathering from
Vista’s extremes.
Wisdom and lessons hard won
Fill what moves within.
As six expands to become seven
The meandering web that
Connects becomes entwined.
A continuum of dual
Portal opening and eight
The final climax of force contained.
Like amoebas they move and
Wiggle and stretch and pull
And strain until the
Tension and release
Catapult them over
The initiatory threshold of
Death’s nine gates.
All scatter and disperse
Once again seamlessly
Part of the void of the all
Until…
Once again the singular one rises
Reaching out towards its
Newly quickened mate.
Upon entering Kether on the Tree you have reached the Source or the singular prime point of creation in its descent towards manifest form. Using the analogy of the flood-lights in a theater this is the process of Kether in emanation and creation. The lights themselves are pure white, but with the addition of colored gels that cover the lights something new is created. Specific moods and nuances are evoked. Each light appears to be different, yet if you strip it back to its core state, they are all singular white lights.
Kether is at once the most complex of the spheres and the most simple. This is reflected in its many names and attributions. To some degree these are influenced by the essence of its energy as much as the cultural and occult clues to the nature of the sphere that are contained within. Below is a listing of some of the more widely used names:
• Existence of Existence
• The Concealed of the Concealed
• The Ancient of the Ancient Ones
As you see from the semantics of the three above, the duality or doubling causes a unique polarity to arise. It is also a greater emphasis that is given to the attribute described, which alludes to the timelessness of the energetic construct of Kether. This is the construct of both the Primordial Point and the Point within the Circle.
Kether is the First Sphere on the Tree of Life. This is the place of both beginnings and endings; for in order that something may be born, something must be released to allow for its growth. Kether is assigned the Root of Air as element. And it is Pure Mind that is free to experience all loving compassion for it sees the imperfection of perfection and holds no judgment of what should be. One is the singular place of being that carries with it the hidden space that is more than just itself alone.
The space above and beyond the sphere of Kether is considered The Three Veils of Negative Existence.
What Lives in the Great Above
The Three Veils of Negative Existence
The veils reside above the tree and represent the levels of non-existence just prior to creative force. This is the space of the Great Unmanifest Universe.
Ayin is translated as “nothing” and is the highest and furthest away from Kether. It is the complete absence of existence.
Ayin Soph is the middle veil that emanates in turn from Ayin and is the space of no limit. It is force that is formless and without container or restraint of limitation.
Ayin Soph Aur is the closest veil to the Tree itself and emanates from the limitless nature of Ayin Soph. It means “limitless or eternal light”.
In consideration of the sphere of Kether, it is these Three Veils that create the stimulation, urge and subsequent action towards the Great emanation that is the downpour of Kether, the Crown itself reaching towards matter. We could think of this as the primordial waters that hold the mystery of life, much like the deep waters of the seas of Neptune and Pisces that hold the potential for creation of a new Zodiacal Wheel as Pisces flows into the birthing of a newly (in)formed Aries.
The 29th Path: Pisces and the Moon (A Celestial Reflection of Neptune’s Seas)
My Soul seeks the beauty of
Your refined and elegant grace.
My body yearns for the wisdom
Of love and creative fires.
My Spirit hungers for the lessons
Found in the bliss of exquisite form.
The 29th Path is considered the Physical Intelligence. This energy is one of actualizing what the heart desires most. It is the form of intelligence that only finds completion of its nature through physical expression and the will to create and craft. Organization and refinement of what that creation will become are important guides for this energy.
The Planetary/Zodiacal Energy
Moon/Pisces
The Moon is placed upon the 29th Path. Pisces is the astrological sign placed upon this path and represents the completion of the zodiacal wheel. Both of these energies are the fullness of emotional expression and intuitive sight. We are all familiar with the energy of the Moon, the waxing and waning of her phases and the power of her tides. Pisces adds the intensity of intentioned compassion and a grace of flow that signals the endings of one phase and the birthing waters that will signal the next.
This energy is what will stir the passions towards greater and deeper expression of what is refined and beautiful. This is the energy that fuels the soul’s need and inspires the outpouring of this emotional state of pure joy into a state of victorious expression.
Tarot Key XVIII – The Moon
Image: The Gilded Tarot by Ciro Marchetti
Note: Each of the Paths of the Qabalistic Tree has the assignation of a Tarot key placed upon it as further correspondence to its energy. The Paths 11-32 are represented using the Major Arcana cards.
Tarot Key XVIII – The Moon is placed upon the 29th Path. The beasts howl at Lady Moon the queen of ebb and flow and emotional expression. All are attentive to her form and all are held under the sway of her impact. Earth bows to her grace and dreams flow freely as we dip into the oceans that reveal the pearls of great price. Placement of this tarot Key on this path offers encouragement to the power of dreams, visioning, intuitive sight and what is created from our forays into these realms. Music soothes the savage soul, so to the outpouring of creation in phase and cycle of the moon restores man’s connection to the creative effort anchored in the physical and germinated in the spiritual.
Another Path of Expression: Neptune on the 23rd Path
The Sustaining Consciousness
The 23rd Path is considered the Sustaining Consciousness. Thought is sustained by the continual effort of sifting through what is abstract and what can become concrete in clarity and conception. This is the space of brainstorming, so to speak and flexibility and adaptability of mindset in thinking outside of the box is required as the process of selectively weeding through begins. This space of consciousness is one that begins with the precursor of bliss. The pure joy of interface with the Divine and the mental image of that interface that emerges. This is the experience of the Divine as blueprint of what it desires to create in manifest form. The specifications of the blueprint may change in accord with the modifications made, but the basic shape form and energy that created it remains a constant and sustained underlying schematic.
The Element of Water
The element of the 23rd Path is that of Water. These are the waters whose currents run strongly to reshape the shorelines. These are the waters that flow continually carrying within life and potential of the spawning of new form. These are the evolutionary waters that set the process of human form into action. The element of water runs strongly through the 23rd Path. Hod is considered the water temple although its attribution is one of mind and intellect (normally attributed to air). In this respect the flow and intuitive response of water is the deciding factor in what passes through the gates of mind. These waters run deeply into the caverns and recesses of lingering thoughts and flush out what is useless in its creation.
The Planetary Energy
Neptune
The planet Neptune is placed on the 23rd Path. Neptune’s energy is one of deep insight. The image of the trident suggests the trifold nature of mind, will and the fires that catalyze and create the electrical discharge of brilliant pure thought. Neptune offers the promise of visionary dreams and floods of idea and creative image to inspire and further inventiveness. Geburah’s will sets forth the mandate of viability and Hod’s brilliance fills the watery depths with the fires of deep gnosis.
Read more about Neptune in the Temple of the Cosmic Spheres:
Neptune Retrograde- Lifting the Veil
Secondary Ruler Jupiter on the Tree
The 21st Path
The 21st Path is one of opportunity for achieving Grace. The state of Grace has many meaning but within this path it is the reflection of the beginning of refinement of self and surroundings to become in greater alignment with the spiritual aspiration of selflessness and greater perspective. The lens of the camera opens and the world in which we claim our victories is seen for its narrow view. As the lens opens wider the expanse and truth of what we have claimed falls away and the real worth and value of those experiences is revealed as part of a larger whole that encompasses the victories of much more than ourselves. What happens in the stages between as each of the extremes coalesce on central ground determines the outcome of ascent to claim the Higher Self or descent for further refinement and accumulated experience. This Path is also one of Water.
The Planetary Energy
Jupiter
The planet Jupiter is placed upon the 21st Path. Jupiter is the planet of expansiveness and inclusiveness. It is one of abundance and the magnetic attraction of prosperity of what is needed collectively. This quality of energy in connection to Chesed and Netzach maintains a constant supply of balanced and fertile inspiration. Chesed has the depth of experience that are the materials used in the process of creative outpour. The application of Jupiter’s energy works to bring these attributes to their fullest expression so that the maximum potential is held within the union of these two.
Read More about Jupiter:
Jupiter Retrograde- Expanding Consciousness
Union of Mind and Heart
We see within the nature of Pisces the union of Mind and Heart reflected within the Tree. The 23rd Path is place of Pure Mind (Hod) tempered by Action (Geburah) and the 21st Path, directly opposite is that of Heart (Netzach) balanced by Mercy (Chesed). The space held between these two that flow both upwards and downwards is the Middle Pillar of those spheres that are the direct route of communication between the Divine and the Manifest. It is both the place of endings and beginnings and just as the current of flow moves within the heart and mind of Pisces, its union is the return to wholeness informed by compassion and grace.
In Conclusion:
We have come full circle around the Zodiacal Wheel and the Solar Year and have looked at the Tree of Life as more than essence and form. We have come to know the astrology of the Tree as one of many currents flowing through its branches and reaching up into the Cosmos as it anchors itself in the body of the Earth’s bounty. This however, is just the beginning of a journey that sees many lifetimes of expression and in acceptance of this truth we also realize the inter-connectedness that all of life shares.
As the light of Tiphareth (Sun) shines brightly and radiates its vision of magnetic attraction throughout the multilayered branches of a tree that reaches far and wide in its expanse and impact we are reminded that in this vision of light extending towards light and darkness forming the paths of the space between, we realize the gift of humanity that continually connects us the higher aspiration of Divinity.
Resources:
If you are not familiar with the Qabalistic Tree of Life, I would recommend reading through the article posted in my other blog, The Magickal Pen entitled “Geburah’s Might” to give you the necessary overview for an introductory base of working knowledge about the Tree. It can be found here:
The Magickal Pen: Geburah’s Might
13 Keys to the Qabalistic Tree of Life
Reading:
The Inner Chamber Series. R. Fennelly
Volume One: It’s Written in the Stars (2013)
Volume Two: Poetry of the Spheres (2013)
Volume Three: Awakening the Paths (2014)
Order at author’s website: Robin Fennelly
Temple of the Cosmic Spheres 