personal system

Hi to all !

I have been working on a personal view of the paths since months. It is based on a tree like this:

Kether

Binah Chokmah
Daath
Geburah Chesed
Tiphareth
Hod Netzach
Yesod

Malkuth

The paths are not based on the Hebrew Alphabet, but are mere attributions to the Majors. Here they are:

Kether - Chokmah Magician
Chokmah - Binah Judgement
Binah - Chesed Emperor
Binah - Daath Wheel
Daath - Chesed Fool
Chesed - Geburah Death
Geburah - Tiphareth Justice
Tiphareth - Netzach Lovers
Netzach - Hod Tower
Hod - Yesod Hermit
Yesod - Malkuth Earth
Kether - Binah Empress
Kether - Tiphareth HPS
Binah - Geburah Hierophant
Geburah - Hod Chariot
Chesed - Netzach Strength
Tiphareth - Yesod The Hanged Man
Netzach - Yesod Star
Malkuth - Netzach Moon
Malkuth - Hod Sun
Hod - Tiphareth Horned One
Tiphareth - Chesed Temperance

It is just a preliminary version and I would like to share and discuss it with you. Please tell me your opinion. Thank you.

Bright blessings

L.

No specific comments, but (having NOW done your own) you might also enjoy Alan Bain's site: http://www.btinternet.com/~ambain/kabbalah.htm He also worked with some sigificantly different assigments, which were quite impressive, ISTR.

Macavity

Lupo138, though I can reflect and see why, for example, you may have decided to place XX Judgement above the abyss on the horizontal linking Hockmah and Binah, I would be interested to read how you proceeded to place the cards in this fashion.

I suppose the very first question is why you decided to place the cards as connecting various Sefirot (yes, I realise that the GD and others do this, by calling them paths, placing letters thereon, and placing the Major Arcana previously determined to be connected to the letters). My genuine question is what lead you to do this, and how did you proceed.

This will give, at least to me, a better understanding as to why, for example, from Tifaret to Hod you place the Devil (I presume this is the card you refer to as the Horned One).

Also, I presume that the card named 'Earth' linking Yesod to Malkut is the World card.

Thank you for your reply, jmd and Macavity.

To jmd´s questions:
1) Judgement is one of the three cards that deal with change: Tower, Death and Judgement. I think one has to undergo changes to advance - that is why I put these cards on the "crossing" sephiroth. They are a development within themselves: Tower is change of circumstances, Death is loss of form and Judgement is being reborn in a new, "higher" form.
2) I know that you put the cards on the first ten or eleven sephiroth. Anyway I think that the paths symbolise the way and the first ten sephiroth fixed energies. The cards are about developments and combining the forces of the first 10/11 sepfiroth. It makes more sense to me to put 22 cards on 22 paths but on 11 stations, as not all cards find their counterpart within an other.
3) The Devil is a christian concept. As I am (maybe heavily) influenced by a Wiccan background I prefer to see that card as the Horned One, as depicted for instance in Ellen Cannon-Reed´s Tarot. He combines Sun (Hod) with Beauty and Balance (Tiphareth).
4) Right, I call "The Universe" "The World" as I feel this card being named wrong - the circle with the four "directions", often represented by the animals of the Evangelists is obviously realted to our world to me. The universe would rather be the whole tree including all Sephiroth (including the paths).

Bright blessings

L.

In my personal opinion, what lupo138 is doing here is very important: to enter both the cards and the Tree of Life and see how each may best link with the other.

Each correlation one comes up with may be either vaguely or importantly different to another's - but the reflections and the insights they give add to the overall understanding. Hence my questions earlier posted.

Once a decision has been made to utilise twenty-two connecting paths between the Sefirot (and there are various versions, so I presume the Kircher pattern, as also adopted by the Golden Dawn and its derivatives, has been used), important considerations will include which cards join 'opposing' Sefirot upon the Tree - ie, which cards will be placed on the three horizontal 'paths'.

I find lupo138's rationale for choosing XVI the Tower, XIII Death and XX Judgement for, respectively, the lowest horizontal (Netzah to Hod), the middle horizontal (Hesed to Geburah) and the supernal horizontal (Hockmah to Binah) quite feasible. Here we have a major transformation through utter 'destruction' of the current situation (XVI), followed by the metamorphosis of Death (XIII), only to be resurrected from the chrysalis in its transformed state (XX)...

When lupo138 says, on the other hand, that each 'is one of the three cards that deal with change', my mind meanders to considerations of others I would also consider cards of change: X the Wheel as an example - yet I also see that the three mentioned have a poignancy seemingly more intense than, again using the same example, the Wheel.

With regards to the XV Devil being a Christian concept, it is true that Christianity also includes a peculiar view of the kind of forces depicted by the 'Devil'. These are not, however, solely the prerogative of Christianity. Spiritual beings, which seek to bind one's actions, feelings or thoughts occurs in myriad guises. Just as one example, Ahriman is a Persian non-Christian concept which also befits the type of spiritual being and its effects as depicted on the card - I say this, though I understand that the Church has also demonised what are more properly spiritual forces of joy and knowledge - Pan as one amongst numerous examples.

Again - I personally value the various ways in which the Tarot may be more deeply understood through our individual sensing into how it may be correlated with, amongst others, the Kabbalah - without assuming thereby that there is an intrinsic correlation.

I would be interested to also hear how you choose the cards linking Da'at to various Sefirot

thank you for your compliment !

I do not use the Kircher pattern (if so, there would not be Daath nor paths to it).
I agree that the Wheel can be read as a card about change as well. I think that the difference between The Wheel and the other three "Change" cards is, that the change is within the wheel and one stays stuck in it. Every change leads to the same situation as was before the change. Anyway I would rather read the card as "Wheel of Life", say,`"Wheel of Rebirth".
Concerning Daath there was the first decision if I should include it into my personal tree or not. I decided to do so, because I am not able to understand a concept like "it is there but not shown". In case it is there, there must also be paths to get there. Dion Fortune e.g. proclaims that there is one path leading from Chesed to Daath. I simply trusted her and took it as part of my system. Anyway If there is one path from below, I think it would fit that there is a path from above as well, as the tree can be journeyed both directions. So I guess that there is a path from Binah to Daath as well. (I am far from being sure on that )
These are "special" paths. So I decided to put the Fool in one of them, ´cause the Fool is the traveller and there he has to cease being a singular being. This is done with overcoming the "Wheel of Rebirth" and in that moment as one enters the First Triangle there is no personality on its own any more.

Just to point it out: I am far from being sure with these observations, as my journey has just begun one and a half year ago. So I lack the personal insight in the upper Sephiroth. This is one of the reasons why I present my scheme to you: To proove whether my system can be seen as valid - or complete rubbish

about the daath

in the tarot of the sephiroth it is named 11 sphere . which to me means.
1-1=0.
1 plus 1=2.

in the qabbalah most of us study in the tarot world the high priestress is the only card that goes through the daath.
2 which has 11. which implies a link to 0.

it is my sincere belief at this time that the daath is the 0. sphere.
the unmanifested which made the 1. sphere.

it went from 0 to 1. by virtue of the 11. but then again if one puts the fool there it too can be that path .
0. or 22
22 still 2-2- makes 0.

still i like the high priestress as it already goes the daath from 1 to 6 spheres and so i consider that to be a hidden part.

of course i refer to english numbers and the qabbalah is based on hebrew alphebet and their numerology involved yet.

the qabbalah can be redefined in the way of the culture studying it otherwise does it not become obsolete ?

to back this up..

when the sephiroth is made into a series of circles there is left a blank space in the middle.
blank to me means unmanfisted, potential whcih would be the abyss of sorts right ?.

i too am not an expert however and just sharing how i see it at this time. and i am sure that will grow.

i decided to study what it is at this time in order to learn the basis then perhaps i will strive to chang eit. eheh