Here is the quote from A Key to the Ages:
Paul Foster Case said:
Always it faces unknown possibilities of self-expression, transcending any height it might have reached at a given time. On this account the sun behind the traveller is at an angle of forty-five degrees in the eastern heaven, as Swedenborg says the celestial sun remains forever in the spiritual world. The spiritual sun never reaches its zenith, for from the zenith it would have to descend, and the idea here intended is that infinite energy can never reach a point in manifestation whence it must begin to decrease in power. On this account, too, the Fool faces North-West, toward a direction which, for Masonic and other occult reasons, has for millenniums been symbolic of the unknown, and of the state just prior to the initiation of a creative process
Thanks to LRichard who recommended the book.
In previous portions of the chapter, Case speaks more of manifestation, and how it is limited in living organisms, so, in my opinion, it is implied that the only purity of the Life Breath is in the
un-manifest.
From the Masonic Dictionary
The Masonic symbolism of the entrance of an initiate from the north, or more practically from the northwest, and advancing toward the position occupied by the Corner-stone in the north-east, forcibly calls to mind the triplet of Homer:
Two marble doors unfold on either side Sacred the South by which the gods descend; But mortals enter on the Northern end.
So in the Mysteries of Dionysos, the gate of entrance for the aspirant was from the north; but when purged from his corruptions, he was termed indifferently new-born or immortal, and the sacred south door was thence accessible to his steps.
http://www.masonicdictionary.com/north.html
Which brings us to Eheye. I can't, of course, offer a single interpretation to one of the most contested verses in history. In addition, the following is probably not what you had in mind, but it is difficult to explain translation without going into interpretation. However, we can look at it in several fashions. Firstly, we basically have in Eheye the phonetic definition of Aleph, the Breath, and beginning. Whatever the word
means is probably no less important than the way it
sounds. Now, semi-esoterically and simplistically, I see that as a kind of definition of Keter, something eternal and unchangeable, that only
is and always will only
be. I can't find English sources to support this, only Hebrew, but it appears I'm not the only one who thinks this, although no interpretation, of course, is absolute. One interpretation I found I will try to translate, however, a daunting task if ever there was one. Sorry if the translation is unpolished:
וכך כתוב במשה: אהיה אשר אהיה, ויאמר כה תאמר לבני ישראל, אהיה, שְׁלָחַני אֲליכם. אהיה תחילה, הוא סתום מכל, כתר, שפירושו, אני הוא מי שאני. אח"כ, אשר אהיה, חכמה, שפירושו, אני עתיד להתגלות. אח"כ אהיה האחרון, אהיה שְׁלָחַני אֲליכם, בינה. וזהו כשאמא מתעברת עם זו"ן, ועוד השם סתום. .
"And so it is written in [The Book of] Moses: Eheye asher Eheye (in this context it is "I will be"), and say this to the Children of Israel, Eheye has sent me to you. The first Eheye, is all hidden, Keter, which means I am who I am. Then, asher Eheye ("who I will be"), Chochma, meaning, I am to be revealed. The last Eheye ("Eyehe has sent me") is Binah. (Not sure why, it is very archaic language, but I
think it has something to do with a woman giving birth, which makes sense.)
Now, we see certain parallels between the Tetragrammaton and Eheye, as they both tell a similar story. Since Tarot is a good way to illustrate these matters, the Tetragrammaton is Yod/Hermit, the point, the first germ, the first hand of creation etc.; Heh/Emperor, recognition of power and measure, window to knowledge; Vau/Hierophant, the hook connecting above and below and Heh final summing up totality. Eheye tells a similar story, only it perhaps deals in creation rather than existence: Aleph/Fool, the breath of life, neutral and androgynous consciousness, Heh/Emperor fulfilling a similar role to the one in the Tetragrammaton, Yod here brings the whole caboodle to inseminate creation, with another Heh at the end to once again sum it all up.
Another interpretation refers to the name not as we humans see it, simply as something others call us, but as a representation of what someone
is (most names in the Bible are allegorical, so this makes sense). When Moses asks God his name, the answer he receives could mystify petty mortals, which is why Moses persists and asks more or less the same question again. However, if you're Everything, you probably won't have a name like Harry or Johnny; your name will describe who and what you are. What God is telling Moses is, in essence, that he is whatever he needs to be, or "I am about to be what I am about to be." In other words, God is Change, the momentum of the universe, the certainty that each second comes after the last. Should that driving force stop, there would be nothing. Quite abstract, yet makes perfect sense. Thanks for inspiring me to (slightly) research this, it's fascinating.
This is part of the reason why Orthodox Jews, when speaking of God, refer to him as "the name," because the name denotes just exactly what it is.
I hope I haven't muddled things too much, and perhaps the thread should be moved to the Kabbalah forum, since it doesn't seem very historical. Also, it's all my own opinion, obviously.