The Hebrew Alphabet and it's Occult Meanings and Symbolism

[Spiritwind]

I wanted to start a thread on the spiritual and occult symbolism and meanings of each of the 22 Hebrew letters, but realized I needed to back up a bit and lay some ground work first.

This study is quite broad, including but not limited to kabbalistic concepts, astrology, tarot, and numerology. It is helpful to have at least a rudimentary understanding of these various systems.

We'll start with the occult meanings of numbers. I will precede each numerical description with it's co-related Pattern on the Trestleboard. The following are not my words, and some of the language used I probably would have chosen differently, but it's a good beginning.

From The Tarot - A Key to the Wisdom of the Ages, by Paul Foster Case:

0 - All the power that ever was or will be is here now.

0 - Zero: An ellipse, representing the Cosmic Egg, whence come all things. Zero is a symbol of the absence of quality, quantity, or mass. Thus it denotes absolute freedom from every limitation whatsoever. It is a sign of the infinite and eternal Consciousness Energy, itself a No-Thing, though manifested in everything. That which was, is, and shall be forever; but it is nothing we can name. Boundless, infinitely potential, living light, it is the rootless root of all things, of all activities, of all modes of consciousness. In it are included all imaginable and unimaginable possibilities, but it transcends them all. The Qabalists call it: (a) No-Thing (b) The Boundless; (c) Limitless Light. Pure Consciousness Energy, above and beyond thought, to us it is Superconsciousness.

The descending arc of the ellipse, on the readers left, represents Involution, the "winding-up" process whereby Limitless Light manifests itself in name and form. at B the lowest point of Involution is reached in the mineral kingdom.

From B back to A on the right side of the ellipse, the ascending arc represents Evolution, the "unwinding" process. From B to F is the arc of evolution in the inorganic world. F to H is the arc of organic development up through plants to animals. H to D is the arc of organic development from the lowest animal to the highest type of human consciousness at point D. Only a few humans have reached this point, but the race is nearer to it now than ever before. The arc from D to A is that of conscious expression beyond human levels, the evolution of conscious one-ness with the Divine.

Thus the two sides of the ellipse suggest the esoteric doctrine of Involution or descent, and a corresponding Evolution, or ascent.



1 - I AM a center of expression for the primal will to good, which eternally creates and sustains the universe.

1 - one: the vertical line from A to B, connecting the extreme height with the extreme depth. Beginning, initiative, originality, unity, singleness, isolation...in Qabalah called...the Supreme Crown. Represents the determining, ruling, and volition all aspect of consciousness. This primary mode of consciousness is concealed behind all veils of name and form...the I AM - the Onlooker, seeing creation through countless eyes, manifesting itself through innumerable personalities. All things are manifestations or projections in time and space of the I AM...expressed in all forms.

2 - Through me, it's unfailing wisdom takes form in thought and word.

2 - two: Duplication, reflection, receptivity, dependence, alternation, antagonism...Wisdom, the reflection of the perfect self consciousness of the I AM...mirror wherein....sees itself. Named Illuminating Intelligence...aspect of universal consciousness which manifests through human personality. In Hebrew occultism 2 is the number of the Life-force in all creatures.

3 - Filled with understanding of its perfect law, I am guided, moment by moment, along the path of liberation.

3 - three: Multiplication, development, growth, unfoldment...outworking of principles reflected from 1 by 2. In Qabalah, 3 is Understanding, looking forward into the field of manifestation, in contrast to Wisdom (2), which looks back to the self-knowledge of the I AM (1). Through growth or expression comes the perfected manifestation of the potencies latent in the Limitless Light.

4 - From the exhaustless riches of its limitless substance, I draw all things needful, both spiritual and material.

4 - four: Four shows a triangle (3) and a T-square, a geometrical symbol of 4 itself. Suggests planning, surveying, topography...order, classification, recording, tabulation. Qabalists make 4 the number of memory. Because the life-power's perfect memory of it's own potencies and of the needs of even the least of it's centers of expression cannot be supposed to fail, the idea of Beneficence is...assigned to 4. All the gifts of the life-force are measured out. Every center of expression receives exactly what is coming to it, always.

5 - I recognize the manifestation of the undeviating Justice in all the circumstances of my life.

5 - five: Mediation, adaptation, means, agency, activity, process...the dynamic law proceeding from the abstract order (4). To primitive minds, the working of Law seems to be the operation of many forces, mostly hostile to man. Ignorant persons endeavor to propitiate the power they fear. Their sacrifices are the beginning of religious ritual...5 is the number of religion. Hebrew sages ...say that 5 is the number of Strength and Severity, as well as of Fear...man, whose numerical symbol is also 5, may so adapt natural conditions that he may realize progressive liberation from every kind of bondage...number of versatility...shows the changing aspects of the One Law, inspiring fear in the ignorant, perceived by the materialist as relentless strength, and understood by the wise as undeviating Justice. This One Law is the root of all operations of the life-power, and is therefore called Radical Intelligence. Man can change conditions. This is the secret of his power to realize freedom.

6 - In all things great and small, I see the beauty of the divine expression.

6 - six: A free Life-power (0), knowing itself perfectly(1), grasping all possibilities within itself (2), understanding just how these possibilities may be worked out into expression (3), never forgetting itself, or any detail of the perfect order of its self-manifestation (4), and developing that order through the agency of a perfectly just law or method (5), must inevitably be working toward a perfectly symmetrical, balanced, and therefore beautiful result. Meanings of 6...balance, equilibrium, symmetry, beauty, harmony of opposites, reciprocity; complimentary activities, polarity, love.

7 - Living from that will, supported by its unfailing wisdom and understanding, mine is the victorious life.

7 - seven: The more important occult meanings of 7 are rest, safety, security, victory. To the ancients 7 represented temporary cessation, not final perfection...In Hebrew, the word for "seven" and that for "oath" are closely related...stands for logical consequence of the ideas symbolized by the numbers preceding it. The Great Work is as yet unfinished. The Cosmic Experiment has not yet come to completion, but when we consider the Source of that experiment, the nature of the Worker in that work, reason assures us that it must succeed...The aspect of consciousness to which 7 corresponds is called the Occult or Hidden Intelligence.

8 - I look forward with confidence to the perfect realization of the eternal splendor of the limitless light.

8 - eight: It is the only figure except 0 which may be written over and over again without lifting pen from paper. Among it's occult meanings are: rhythm, alternate cycles of involution and evolution, vibration, flux and reflux...It also represents the fact that opposite forms of expression (that is, all pairs of opposites) are effects of a single cause...number 8 is the digit value of the name IHVH, 888 is the numeration of the name Jesus in Greek...also the particular name of the God called Thoth...number of magic and of the Hermetic Science. It's Hebrew name is Splendor, and is the aspect of consciousness to which it corresponds is called Perfect Intelligence...perfect realization of the success represented by the number 7.

9 - In thought and word and deed, I rest my life, from day to day, upon the sure foundation of eternal being.

9 - nine: Completion, attainment, fulfillment...end of a cycle of activity. Yet, because 8 indicates Rhythm as part of the creative process, completion is not absolute cessation. The end of one cycle is the beginning of another...Nobody ever reaches a point where nothing more remains to be hoped for...to be accomplished...In Qabalah, therefore, 9 is called the Basis or Foundation, and corresponds to the mode of consciousness named Pure or Clear Intelligence.

10 - The Kingdom of spirit is embodied in my flesh.

10 - ten: Ten combines the ellipse of super consciousness (0) with the vertical line of self-consciousness (1). It is the number of perfection and dominion...suggests the outpouring of the limitless Life-power through the initiative, specialization and concentration of the I AM. Qabalists call the number 10 the Kingdom...Resplendent Intelligence - brilliant, glowing, full of life and power...it's seat in Understanding (3). Our citizenship in the Kingdom-of-Heaven-on-Earth is determined by the degree of our understanding.

[Spiritwind]

[Spiritwind]

Here are several more images that I need to introduce.

First one is a table of letters and digits of the English Alphabet



For me, since I memorized this little table (pictured above) I factor in the obvious when looking at things numerologically. So, when 3's are prominent , I see that as a clu(e). With 5, it's something new. Interesting that the names Adam, Jesus, and Satan, all begin with a 1 letter.

The next several have to do with the four worlds of creation

[Spiritwind]

[Spiritwind]

A Little More on Numbers -

4. Blockage or obstruction in astrology
5. Bearer of the unexpected
6. Which, could be sly and fox(y)

The information that follows is from my own reflections and notes while working with the 22 paths, the lines that connect the spheres, over a two year period, in which I colored each of the blank Tarot cards that you can get as a deck from Builders of the Adytum. Some is also directly from the little booklet that accompanied the cards, called Highlights of the Tarot.

Aleph - ox - breath
0. The Fool
Sphere 1 to 2 (from Kether to Chokmah)



Seeming movement out from place of origin, departure from the known. Link between the no thing (0) and something (1 - I - individuated self awareness)

When you look at the symbolism of Oxen, and why it would be connected to breath, it suggests the spark of light and aliveness, as it comes on line within a human being. At some point in the human experience here on earth, there was the introduction of agriculture. This, in many mythologies, was directly given to man by the gods, or more advanced beings of some sort. Man was shown how to work the land with oxen. This, to me, indicates a change in the path humanity was on. According to the booklet "Oxen symbolize the motive power in agriculture, because they were used to pull plows...agriculture is the basic form of civilization. Thus the letter Aleph symbolizes Cultural Power, Creative Energy, Life Power, the vital principle of plants, animals, and Men which comes to us in physical form as the energy of the Sun...Secondarily, they refer to the Spirit, or all pervading Life-energy."

Also, the word "Fool is derived from the Latin follis, meaning a bag of wind." When one looks at the association with 0 - zero, as was mentioned before, the "0 is shaped like an egg" and "contains all the potencies of growth and development. Occultists will understand that we refer to the Cosmic Egg, and to the Ring-Pass-Not." And, lastly, the "Fool is Eternal Youth. He shows that the One Force never ages".

When I actually look at the two cards from each deck, they each produce a slightly different reaction. In Tarot of the Old Path the card evokes feelings and thoughts about our life journey, the stages of growth, and the influence of parental and authority figures in our lives. As a parent I often get this card in a reading when I have concerns for one of my children, whatever their age, or when I have apprehensions about starting something new. And how each of us eventually has to leave home, our place of security and comfort, to really discover the world seemingly outside of us, at the same time discovering who we are on the inside. This comes about through challenges we meet, experiences we have, and the path each subsequent choice takes us on. We must risk playing the fool at times, to play the game of life at all.

In the next post I will show a picture of both the Rider-Waite deck and the Tarot of the Old Path deck image for the Fool. I have worked with both, and both reveal different aspects of this energy as I have come to understand it.

[Spiritwind]

The Fool in the Tarot of the Old Path




The Fool in the Rider Waite Deck

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The energy from Kether to Chokmah was laser like and singular (Aleph). Whereas the energy as it reaches Binah has split into two streams (Beit).

The double slit experiment. http://highexistence.com/this-will-mind ... xperiment/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Bet (Beit, Beth) - house - duality
1. The Magician
Sphere 1 to 3 (from Kether to Binah)



This letter is making me do my homework, as there is much here to be fleshed out. I should point out here that the energies being expressed are still beyond the world of physical manifestation. These are primal energies that exist beyond the abyss. Look at it like a wave that is building energy, but has yet to crest and release. Once the wave has reached its peak, it must begin its decent into matter. This represents the idea that the will must be harnessed and tempered with reason, or energy as it moves into action will not be effective to create what is desired. It will fall short, or over reach its mark, each leading to a failure to succeed in ones goals. It is also learning about flow. (The above are totally my thoughts on the matter)

From The Hebrew Alphabet; A Mystical Journey by Edward Hoffman we learn that "the cosmos, and our own existence within it, is designed to be a dwelling-place for the divine", and that "Beit represents the primal, receptive energy: the universal home, the infinite womb of fertility, from which everything is born and nourished."

The Wisdom in the Hebrew Alphabet by Rabbi Michael Monk talks about the separation of the sexes as part of this struggle with duality, and how this is also represented in having two drives, and two hearts, and the importance of learning to "distinguish good from evil, and identify evil masquerading as good" and that "Creation is replete with pairs...".

To further this idea, this path from Kether to Binah represents how energies follow one another, such as the idea that energy follows thought, and that whatever you focus attention on you tend to get more of. Even though Beit is the second letter, it is also represented in Kabbalistic thought as the Magician, numbered a one, and thereby illustrates that everything exists in relationship to something else. Before will can be harnessed there must be a focus of attention, which requires concentration. Ones mind cannot be conflicted to apply this energy properly.

From The Tarot; A Key to the Wisdom of the Ages it talks about how the art of building was considered a sacred science of sorts, with many applications both spiritual and physical. "Time was when the whole art of building was called a mystery, and was under the direction of the priests of Thoth-Nebo-Hermes-Mercury." Beit is "one of the seven double letters" in Hebrew, having "both a hard and a soft pronunciation. To every double letter is assigned a pair of opposites", with this pair being assigned the opposites of "Life and Death...The Magic of Light presides over life and death because it has to do with laws and principles whereby self conscious states of mind initiate and determine subconscious reactions" which can determine how this energy is used, either life affirming or life negating.

Also worth mentioning is the connection to the axiom, "that which is above is as that which is below" and "that desire is the motivation of evolution." (Highlights of Tarot - Builders of the Adytum) I would say that rather than just desire, it could also be said to be the longing that is set up the minute the Fool begins the journey from the place of origin, and begins the process of individuation. Although largely unconscious, this longing to reconnect energetically to this place where all needs were met and a feeling of bliss, much as a baby in the womb, is subconsciously sought after. But, just as a chick that has hatched from the egg, there is no going back to exactly the place you left.

[Spiritwind]

The Magician from Tarot of the Old Path





The Magician from the Rider Waite Deck

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Gimel - camel - reflection
2. High Priestess
Sphere 0 to 6 (from Kether to Tipharet)



Gimel has many levels of meaning, so to start let's visually look at where this path is on the tree. It goes from Kether, which resides above the abyss, through the hidden sphere of Daath, right down the middle of the tree to Tipharet (the visible Sun - which has an invisible counterpart beyond the abyss). In fact, if you include Daath, you have 11 spheres in total, rather than ten, and this matches up with the Pattern on the Trestleboard shown above. Much understanding can be derived from matching this pattern with the spheres, using Kether as the zero going down, and Malkuth as the zero going up. It also helps to subconsciously tune into these flows that go actually both ways, from spirit to matter, and from matter to spirit.

There are several reasons to ponder on why the symbol of a camel was chosen to represent this letter. There is a connection to the moon, as it indicates reflected light. The camel was used to cross great distances of very harsh terrain, because of its ability to hold water in it's hump(s). This letter also has to do with the womb of creation, nourishing it's offspring, until it has grown enough to makes its way independently.

Gimel is another one of the 7 doubles letters of the Hebrew alphabet. According to Paul Foster Case in The Tarot; The Key to the Wisdom of the Ages, the pair of opposite energies associated with Gimel are "Peace and Strife. For, as in the world peace and war are mainly dictated by the conditions of commerce, communication and transportation, so, in human personality, adjustment or maladjustment are largely determined by the response of subconsciousness to the things and people with whom we are brought into communication." I found this very interesting, as we do indeed know that wars are brought on by those who control the conditions of commerce, and their ability to manipulate the mass consciousness, which is largely subconscious.

Interestingly, Case goes on to point out that the camel was a way of connecting "distant places nearer together, and establishes communication between them", creating a bridge of sorts between different worlds and realities. "Below is the direction attributed to Gimel" and "all these ideas are clearly related to the idea of camel as an obedient beast of burden....at all times amenable to control by suggestions which originate in the mental activities symbolized in Tarot by the Magician, who represents self-consciousness."

The High Priestess, as "chief feminine elder" is likened to Prakriti, which in Hindu philosophy is "the precosmic root-substance which is the substratum beneath all the objective planes of existence", identical "with the First Mother, or First Matter, of alchemists, who often call this Prima Material, their Virgin Dianna....Dr. Waite says she is the spiritual Bride and Mother, the daughter of the stars...the Queen of the borrowed light, but this is the light of all. Thus she also represents Eve, before her union with Adam." (I found this very interesting.) Case cautions, when dealing with this energy, the danger of "deception, untruth...because subconsciousness repeats and elaborates the mistaken results of faulty, superficial, self conscious observation. Being at all times uncritically amenable to suggestion..."

There is also a connection to water, as life is often nurtured in a watery womb, and to memory. We now know that water holds memory. We could go even further, and state that we know that love is the organizing principle in the expression of life energy, through the work of Masaru Emoto.



And lastly, I have to comment on how these letters, words, spheres of influence, are very real and how they can actually play out in our lives. I have been working with these energies now for almost 12 years, and I find it immensely interesting that as I have worked up and down the tree, certain themes seem to recur. For instance when I decided to write this up today, I had no idea that when I went to feed and care for our horse and goats this morning I would discover that the well went dry. What a strange coincidence, as this has indeed been a recurring theme over the years, whenever dealing with energies having to do with water.

[Spiritwind]

High Priestess Tarot of the Old Path





High Priestess Rider Waite Deck