Abrac
http://s11.postimg.org/p55cpqiib/image.jpg
Waite says the square and triangle on Temperance's breast represent the septenary. Above them are the Hebrew letters YHVH. As usual he doesn't give much in the way of an explanation, but I've always felt there must be more there. While Waite gives no direct explanation, there's an important clue in the card itself—he has followed Levi rather than the Golden Dawn. Levi's description in Transcendental Magic is virtually word-for-word with Waite's, "And on the breast the square and triangle of the septenary." The GD's Temperance only has a square.
So what does Levi say then about the septenary? Elsewhere in Transcendental Magic he describes it in connection with the Kabbalistic word ARARITA, another name of God related to YHVH; while YHVH is written only, never spoken, ARARITA may be spoken. That's the simple answer. Levi gives more which it's not really necessary to know or understand, but since he puts it out there it's interesting to break it down and try to figure out what he means. I don't pretend to understand it completely, but here's the quote and afterward my interpretation:
ARARITA contains seven letters letters:
Aleph - 3
Resh - 2
Yod - 1
Tau -1
As I interpret Levi, the "triplicity of secondary principle" means Aleph which is repeated 3 times; the "dualism of means" is Resh which is repeated twice; and the "equal unity of the first and final principle" is Yod and Tau, each used only once.
The next part is where Levi establishes a numerical connection between the septenary and the tetrad. ARARITA actually has only four letters, ARIA, but through the repetition of two of them it has seven. The "triple repetition" is Aleph; the "double repetition" is Resh; adding in Yod and Tau yields 7.
In the final analysis, the square and triangle appears to be a graphic representation of ARARITA. Any additional insights?
Waite says the square and triangle on Temperance's breast represent the septenary. Above them are the Hebrew letters YHVH. As usual he doesn't give much in the way of an explanation, but I've always felt there must be more there. While Waite gives no direct explanation, there's an important clue in the card itself—he has followed Levi rather than the Golden Dawn. Levi's description in Transcendental Magic is virtually word-for-word with Waite's, "And on the breast the square and triangle of the septenary." The GD's Temperance only has a square.
So what does Levi say then about the septenary? Elsewhere in Transcendental Magic he describes it in connection with the Kabbalistic word ARARITA, another name of God related to YHVH; while YHVH is written only, never spoken, ARARITA may be spoken. That's the simple answer. Levi gives more which it's not really necessary to know or understand, but since he puts it out there it's interesting to break it down and try to figure out what he means. I don't pretend to understand it completely, but here's the quote and afterward my interpretation:
"The cherub, or symbolic bull, which Moses placed at the gate of the Edenic world, bearing a fiery sword, is a sphinx, having a bull's body and a human head; it is the antique Assyrian sphinx, and the combat and victory of Mithras were its hieroglyphic analysis. Now, this armed sphinx represents the Law of Mystery which watches at the door of initiation to warn away the profane . . . . The Mosaic cherub represents also the Great Magical Mystery, of which the elements are expressed by the septenary, without, however, giving the final word. This verbum inenarrabile [unspeakable word] of the sages of the Alexandrian school, this word which Hebrew Kabalists write YHVH and interpret by ARARITA thus expressing the triplicity of the secondary principle, the dualism of means, the equal unity of the first and final principle, the alliance between the triad and the tetrad in a word composed of four letters, which form seven by means of a triple and double repetition – this word is pronounced Ararita."
ARARITA contains seven letters letters:
Aleph - 3
Resh - 2
Yod - 1
Tau -1
As I interpret Levi, the "triplicity of secondary principle" means Aleph which is repeated 3 times; the "dualism of means" is Resh which is repeated twice; and the "equal unity of the first and final principle" is Yod and Tau, each used only once.
The next part is where Levi establishes a numerical connection between the septenary and the tetrad. ARARITA actually has only four letters, ARIA, but through the repetition of two of them it has seven. The "triple repetition" is Aleph; the "double repetition" is Resh; adding in Yod and Tau yields 7.
In the final analysis, the square and triangle appears to be a graphic representation of ARARITA. Any additional insights?