The Kabbalah, Part 6

June 24, 2015
[Note: Part 1-5 of this Kabbalah series are available at this blog.]

In this, the final Part of my Kabbalah series, I will complete my consideration of the Sephirot in relation to astrology and Tarot. Four Sephirot remain for me to consider: Tiferet, Yesod, Hod, and Malkuth.

The most common keyword associated with Tiferet is “beauty.” Other keywords for this Sephirot include “spirituality” and “integration.” I think “integration” is the best keyword, because this Sephirot is essentially about self-integration/self-actualization, on the highest level – meaning spiritual Self-realization.

It couldn’t be clearer that the Sun is the planet that correlates with Tiferet. The Sun is the integrating planet in astrology, the central body that all the other planets revolve around. The Sun Tarot Card is the obvious card for Tiferet. The common image in this card – two young, naked (meaning Virgin, or unborn) lovers holding hands under the shining Sun – implicitly refers to the union of Keter (Pluto/the Magician/Siva) and Da’at (Neptune/the High Priestess/Shakti) in the spiritual Heart-center (or Sun), the abode of the awakened Self, or Soul, or Son.… Read the full article

The Kabbalah, Part 5

June 24, 2015
[This is the 5th part of a 6-part series. Parts 1-4 have been posted at this blog.]

In Part 4 of this article, I began to consider the Sephirot in relation to astrology and Tarot, and in this Part I will continue my consideration. A key point I want to make is that I reject the 22 (or 32) paths as having any significance (or any reality, for that matter). What I do in my Kabbalah is to correlate each of the Sephirah (except Malkhut) with a planet and a Major Arcana Tarot card. In the case of the remaining Major Arcana, I associate each of cards with one of the twelve Zodiac signs. In short, my Kabbalah is not the Golden Dawn’s or anyone else’s.

In Part 4, I considered Keter (which I correlated with Pluto and the Magician, and Da’at, which I correlated with Neptune and the High Priestess). In this Part, I will first consider Chokmah.

Chokmah, to my mind, is a perfect match for the planet Uranus. Uranus, like Chokmah, represents the “higher mind,” or “Wisdom,” which is the common keyword associated with Chokmah. Uranus, which can be viewed as a higher octave of Mercury, also correlates with the buddhi (the higher discriminating intelligence in Yoga philosophy), and as such is about detaching from the binding mind forms of discursive thinking.… Read the full article

The Kabbalah, Part 4

June 8, 2015
[Note: Parts 1, 2, and 3 of this Kabbalah series, along with other spiritual articles, are available at this blog. In Part 3 of this informal Kabbalah series, I began to consider the Sephirot, and underscored the point that while the Four Worlds are universal, pertaining to the cosmos as a whole, the Sephirot are unique to our solar system. This is the case because each Sephirah is a correlate of a planet (and of course in Hermeticism and astrology, the Sun and Moon are deemed “planets.”]

I have no allegiance to any current or historical Kabbalistic Tree of Life – and because I find none of them satisfactory, I have taken it upon myself to “grow” (and advance) my own vision of the Tree. With this in mind, I will now continue to consider the ten (or eleven) Sephirot, employing both astrology and Tarot in my brief consideration.

The highest, or most holy, Sephirah on the Tree of Life is Keter, which is commonly described as “Crown.” Keter is often considered to be “above consciousness.” To my mind, Keter is not above consciousness; rather, it represents Consciousness Itself, the “atomic” human Soul, the Atman.… Read the full article

The Essence of Christian Hermeticism

June 1, 2015
The essence of Christian Hermeticism is the same as the essence of conventional Christianity, except that one actually practices and realizes this essence instead of merely believing it. This essence is summarized in the two primary sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion (or the Eucharist), and the realization of the Trinity.

Initiation into Christian Hermeticism begins when a disciple (one who practices the discipline of Holy Communion) is literally (not figuratively or ceremonially) Baptized by the Holy Spirit Itself. Palpable Divine Power begins to pour into and through his bodymind, and the sacred ordeal of receiving and uniting with this down-poured Light-Energy becomes the focus of his life.
The Christian Hermeticist practices the Eucharist, but does so mystically (or Spirit-ually) rather than merely ceremonially. He actually communes with and channels (or receives) the Holy Spirit. And at times he experiences union with this Light-Energy continuum, which enables him to apperceive (or radically intuit) his Christ Self as consubstantial with the Father, the Divine Being.… Read the full article

Eckhart Tolle and Zen, Part 2

May 18, 2015
[This is an excerpt from my book "Beyond the Power of Now: A Guide to and Beyond Eckhart Tolle's Teachings.]

Q: The mind is a wonderful faculty. Why would I want to stop its activity? Without it, man would be just another animal.

A: The mind, as Tolle points out, is not consciousness itself. Consciousness, the essence of Being, is a universal constant that exists prior to and beyond thought. The mind is a function or application of consciousness that enables you to mentally understand the universe you live in. When you think, you are using the uniquely human faculty of mind, which, via the process of concept formation, is able to create mental “concretes” that accurately measure and reflect the world you perceive through your senses. Thinking enables you to measure (or ratio-nally compare, contrast, and comprehend) the sensible universe—that which has been “measured out” as a manifestion of the Unmanifested—and, via concepts, form intelligent and creative conclusions about the things you perceive. Thinking, in other words, is a nonpareil tool for measuring conditional reality, the manifested.… Read the full article

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