cosmology
World Tree Axis
A vertical structure connecting cosmic levels — a tree, pillar, mountain, or ladder linking heaven, earth, and underworld around which the cosmos is organised. Yggdrasil binding the Nine Worlds in Norse cosmology, the Kalevala's Sampo as world-pillar, the Mayan ceiba, the Vedic Aśvattha, the shamanic central tree of Eliade's analyses. Cosmic-structural in character: distinct from sefirot_tree (a kabbalistic emanation diagram) and emanation_hierarchy (an ontological cascade); world_tree_axis is the cosmos's spine rather than the divine's outflow.
100 passages · 9 traditions
finnic35
The Kalevala | Rune I-b
“Surely would the winds destroy it, Far away the waves would wash it." Then the daughter of the Ether, Now the hapless water-mother, Raised her shoulders out of water, Raised her knees above the ocean, That the duck might build her dwelling,…”
The Kalevala | Rune II-a
“'S SOWING.
Then arose old Wainamoinen, With his feet upon the island, On the island washed by ocean, Broad expanse devoid of verdure; There remained be many summers, There he lived as many winters, On the island vast and vacant, well consi…”
The Kalevala | Rune II-c
“Straightway to the oak-tree turning, Thither stalks the mighty giant, In his raiment long and roomy, Flapping in the winds of heaven; With his second step he totters On the land of darker color; With his third stop firmly planted, Reaches h…”
The Kalevala | Rune VII-d
“This the reason for my weeping; I have lived in toil and torture, Since I left my home and country, Left my native land and kindred, Came to this the land of strangers, To these unfamiliar portals.
All thy trees have thorns to wound me, Al…”
The Kalevala | Rune VII-e
“Forged the air a hollow cover; Nowhere see we hammer-traces, Nowhere find a single tongs-mark." Thus replied the hostess, Louhi: "Him alone I'll give my daughter, Promise him my child in marriage, Who for me will forge the Sampo, Hammer me…”
The Kalevala | Rune VIII-a
“OF THE RAINBOW.
Pohyola's fair and winsome daughter, Glory of the land and water, Sat upon the bow of heaven, On its highest arch resplendent, In a gown of richest fabric, In a gold and silver air-gown, Weaving webs of golden texture, Inte…”
The Kalevala | Rune X-a
“FORGES THE SAMPO.
Wainamoinen, the magician, Takes his steed of copper color, Hitches quick his fleet-foot courser, Puts his racer to the snow-sledge, Straightway springs upon the cross-seat, Snaps his whip adorned with jewels.
Like the w…”
The Kalevala | Rune X-b
“From her temples beams the moonlight, From her breast, the gleam of sunshine, From her forehead shines the rainbow, On her neck, the seven starlets, And the Great Bear from her shoulder.
"Ilmarinen, worthy brother, Thou the only skilful bl…”
Show all 35 →theosophy30
The Secret Doctrine | Page 4 (part 2)
“T HE ROOT REMAINS, THE LIGHT REMAINS, THE CURDS REMAIN, AND STILL O EAOHOO IS ONE.
6.
T HE ROOT OF LIFE WAS IN EVERY DROP OF THE OCEAN OF IMMORTALITY, AND THE OCEAN WAS RADIANT LIGHT, WHICH WAS FIRE, AND HEAT, AND MOTION.
D ARKNESS VANIS…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 4 (part 3)
“T HEY MAKE OF HIM THE MESSENGER OF THEIR WILL.
T HE D ZYU BECOMES F OHAT, THE SWIFT SON OF THE D IVINE SONS WHOSE SONS ARE THE L IPIKA, RUNS CIRCULAR ERRANDS.
F OHAT IS THE STEED AND THE THOUGHT IS THE RIDER.
H E PASSES LIKE LIGHTNING TH…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 6 (part 2)
“No Orientalist, so far, seems to have thoroughly comprehended the real sense of the verses in the Purana, that treat of "creation." Therein Brahma is the cause of the potencies that are to be generated subsequently for the work of "creation…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 6 (part 3)
“The Lotus thus typifies the life of man and also that of the Kosmos; for the Secret Doctrine teaches that the elements of both are the same, and that both are developing in the same direction.
The root of the Lotus sunk in the mud represen…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 7 (part 9)
“He is Purusha (spirit), but he is also Prakriti (matter).
Therefore it is only after separating himself into two halves -- Brahma-vach (the female) and Brahma-Viraj (the male), that the Prajapati becomes the male Brahma.
------- STANZA II…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 13 (part 3)
“It is already the outline of the two "Supremes" -- God and Satan.
But in the Stanzas no such idea exists.
Most of the Western Christian Kabalists -- pre-eminently Eliphas Levi -- in their desire to reconcile the Occult Sciences with Churc…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 13 (part 6)
“Others moving in parabolic curves generally escape destruction, owing to their velocity.
Some very critical readers will perhaps imagine that this teaching, as to the cometary stage passed through by all heavenly bodies, is in contradictio…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 13 (part 7)
“Three further higher grades have to be conquered by the Arhan who would reach the apex of the ladder of Arhatship.
There are those who have reached it even in this fifth race of ours, but the faculties necessary for the attainment of these…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 13 (part 9)
“." It was called into being, a ready and perfect vehicle for the incarnating denizens of higher spheres, who took forthwith their abodes in these forms born of Spiritual WILL and the natural divine power in man.
It was a child of pure Spir…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 24 (part 1)
“The Secret Doctrine by H.
P.
Blavatsky -- Vol.
1 [[Vol.
1, Page]] 379 LOTUS AND LILY.
§ VIII.
THE LOTUS, AS A UNIVERSAL SYMBOL.
T HERE are no ancient symbols, without a deep and philosophical meaning attached to them; their importanc…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 26 (part 2)
“Moreover, the modern symbologists and Orientalists -- from first to last -- [[Footnote(s)]] ------------------------------------------------- * The Natural Genesis , by Gerald Massey, Vol.
1, p.
340.
[[Vol.
1, Page]] 406 THE SECRET DOCT…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 28 (part 2)
“Thus, in the Rig Veda, wherein Brahma is not even named, Cosmogony is preluded with the Hiranyagharha , "the Golden Egg," and Prajapati (Brahma later on), from whom emanate all the hierarchies of "Creators." The Monad, or point, is the orig…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 39 (part 4)
“Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Space (or Akasa , AEther), Mind, Understanding and Egoism (or the perception of all the former on the illusive plane).
.
.
This is a lower form of my nature.
Know (that there is) another (form of my) nature, and…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 40 (part 5)
“The precipitation has evidently not been effected at random , those molecules of the base being decomposed which happened to come in contact with a corresponding molecule of ammonia, for we have taken care that the liquids should be uniform…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 55 (part 6)
“"the causes had to produce effects on earth."** Again, in the ancient Quiche Manuscript, the Popol Vuh -- published by the late Abbe Brasseur de Bourbourg -- the first men are described as a race "whose sight was unlimited, and who knew all…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 55 (part 9)
“5, the Sloka simply says: "Bhutas -- fiends, frightful from being monkey-coloured and carnivorous"; and the word in India now means ghosts, ethereal or astral phantoms, while in esoteric teaching it means elementary substances, something ma…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 61 (part 8)
“"From the possession of the double principle in one, that is the Androgyne condition, the separation of the dual principle was made, presenting two opposites, whose destiny it was, for ever after, to seek reunion into the original one condi…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 66 (part 3)
“But they are as rare as their language is unintelligible.
So far, one or two European archaeologists only have been able to procure such priceless works.
[[Vol.
2, Page]] 281 THE SEVEN VIRGIN-YOUTHS.
" according to our ancient documents…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 71 (part 3)
“This "Dragon" having a septenary meaning, the highest and the lowest may be given.
The former is identical with the "Self-born," the Logos (the Hindu Aja ) .
He was the second person of the Trinity, the S ON, with the Christian Gnostics c…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 72 (part 11)
“Oriental tradition is ever referring to an unknown glacial, gloomy sea, and to a dark region, within which, nevertheless, are situated the Fortunate Islands, wherein bubbles, from the beginning of life on earth, the fountain of life ( Herbe…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 72 (part 12)
“Every beneficent (astral and cosmic) action comes from the North; every lethal influence from the South Pole.
They are much connected with and influence " right " and " left " hand magic.
** The more one approaches the poles the less rota…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 73 (part 1)
“he Secret Doctrine by H.
P.
Blavatsky -- Vol.
2 [[Vol.
2, Page]] 402 THE SECRET DOCTRINE.
[[This page continued from previous section ]] W ESTERN S PECULATIONS, FOUNDED ON THE G REEK AND P URANIC T RADITIONS.
Thus it becomes natural t…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 80 (part 1)
“The Secret Doctrine by H.
P.
Blavatsky -- Vol.
2 [[Vol.
2, Page]] 492 THE SECRET DOCTRINE.
[[This page continued from previous section ]] C.
T HE M ANY M EANINGS OF THE " W AR IN H EAVEN." The Secret Doctrine points out, as a self-evi…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 80 (part 3)
“principles), which move about in the body, and swallow up one another,* blazes the Vaishvana fire** sevenfold, of which 'I' am the goal," says the Brahmana.*** But the chief "Soul" is Manas or mind; hence, Soma, the moon, is shown as making…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 82 (part 1)
“The Secret Doctrine by H.
P.
Blavatsky -- Vol.
2 [[Vol.
2, Page]] 519 THE "FATHER OF MORTALS." § XX.
PROMETHEUS, THE TITAN.
H IS O RIGIN IN A NCIENT I NDIA.
I N our modern day there does not exist the slightest doubt in the minds of…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 86 (part 8)
“It is the emblem of the activity of Fohat, of the continual revolution of the "wheels," and of the Four Elements, the "Sacred Four," in their mystical, and not alone in their cosmical meaning; further, its four arms, bent at right angles, a…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 88 (part 7)
“Furthermore, it is not only in the Hindu Scriptures and philosophy that one finds references to the Seven Earths, but in the Persian, Phoenician, Chaldean, and Egyptian Cosmogonies, and even in Rabbinical literature.
The Phoenix* -- called…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 88 (part 13)
“Shall we still doubt the fact of Arjuna going over to Patala (the Antipodes, America) and there marrying Ulupi, the daughter of the Naga (or rather Nargal ) King?
But to the Zuni priests.
These receive an annual tribute, to this day, of c…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 89 (part 5)
“It has worshipped "great sages" and given hospitality to terrestrial wisdom: but once that "another forest shone forth" upon it, it is Intelligence (Buddhi, the 7th sense, but 6th principle) which is transformed into the tree -- that tree w…”
The Secret Doctrine | Page 97 (part 2)
“[[Vol.
2, Page]]763 THE HEIRLOOM OF ATLANTIS.
Inscriptions, p.
176).
For Atlas is Atlantis which supports the new continents and their horizons on its "shoulders." Decharme, in his Mythologie de la Grece Antique, expresses a doubt as to…”
← Collapsenorse15
The Poetic Edda: Hovamol | Section 1i
“50 Foul scorn was my meed | from the crafty maid, And nought from the woman I won.
* * * 103.
Though glad at home, | and merry with guests, A man shall be wary and wise; The sage and shrewd, | wide wisdom seeking, Must see that his speech…”
The Poetic Edda: Hovamol | Section 1j
“On his ring swore Othin | the oath, methinks; Who now his troth shall trust?
Suttung's betrayal | he sought with drink, And Gunnloth to grief he left.
* * * 111.
It is time to chant | from the chanter's stool; By the wells of Urth I was,…”
The Poetic Edda: Hovamol | Section 1m
“I ween that I hung | on the windy tree, Hung there for nights full nine; With the spear I was wounded, | and offered I was To Othin, myself to myself, On the tree that none | may ever know What root beneath it runs.
[138.
In the manuscrip…”
The Poetic Edda: Hovamol | Section 1n
“Knowest how one shall write, | knowest how one shall rede?
Knowest how one shall tint, | knowest how one makes trial?
Knowest how one shall ask, | knowest how one shall offer?
Knowest how one shall send, | knowest how one shall sacrifice…”
The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1b
“The roving Norsemen of the tenth century, very few of whom had as yet accepted Christianity, were nevertheless in close contact with Celtic races which had already been converted, and in many ways the Celtic influence was strongly felt.
It…”
The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1c
“stanza 47 and note), of the dark elves (Svartalfaheim), of the dead (Niflheim), and presumably of the dwarfs (perhaps Nithavellir, cf.
stanza 37 and note, but the ninth world is uncertain).
The tree: the world-ash Yggdrasil, [fp.
4] symb…”
The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1d
“Ithavoll ("Field of Deeds"?): mentioned only here and in stanza 60 as the meeting-place of the gods; it appears in no other connection.
8.
Tables : the exact nature of this game, and whether it more closely resembled chess or checkers, ha…”
The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1f
“Lothur : apparently an older name for Loki, the treacherous but ingenious son of Laufey, whose divinity Snorri regards as somewhat doubtful.
He was adopted by Othin, who subsequently had good reason to regret it.
Loki probably represents…”
Show all 15 →western_esoteric9
The Book of Ceremonial Magic (A.E. Waite) | Page 5 (part 5)
“The technicalities of the occult sciences may seem hard to the beginner, and they are actually hard like the wilderness, because they are barren wastes, but they are in words of one syllable if compared with the little catechisms of eternal…”
The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | Atlantis and the Gods of Antiquity-k
“The Argonautic expedition, listening to the advice of Orpheus, stopped at the island of Samothrace for the purpose of having its members initiated into the Cabiric rites.
Herodotus relates that when Cambyses entered the temple of the Cabir…”
The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Hiramic Legend-f
“The arrant enemies of universal democracy have ever been the crown, the tiara, and the torch.
Thus CHiram symbolizes that ideal state of spiritual, intellectual, and physical emancipation which has ever been sacrificed upon the altar of hu…”
The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Tree of the Sephiroth-f
“This is located where the horizontal line connecting Chochmah and Binah crosses the vertical line joining Kether and Tiphereth.
While Daath is not mentioned by the first Qabbalists, it is a highly important element and its addition to the…”
The Tarot of the Bohemians (Papus) | Page 14 (part 1)
“THE JUGGLER THE JUGGLER .
1.
א 1st Hebrew letter (Aleph).
ORIGIN OF THE SYMBOLISM OF THE FIRST CARD OF THE TAROT.
The Aleph hieroglyphically expresses Man himself as a collective unity, the master principle, ruler of the earth.
From th…”
The Tarot of the Bohemians (Papus) | Page 46 (part 2)
“(Love, the fertile Power, the Being, ו); and in order that this Trinity may be repeated in the whole septenary of our distribution we will make it the root of 3 great divisions, representing the 3 terms of the Trinity, which will divide the…”
Transcendental Magic I: The Doctrine (Éliphas Lévi) | Introduction-e
“They have gathered again and have shared the fruits of the tree of knowledge, so that they might become masters of the world.
The judgement pronounced against them is higher and far older than the tribunal of pope or king: “On the day that…”
Transcendental Magic I: The Doctrine (Éliphas Lévi) | 3. The Triangle Of Solomon-c
“These shells, envelopes petrified or carnified, were such an expression possible, are the source of errors or of evil, which connects with the heaviness and hardness of animal envelopes.
In the book Zohar , and in that of the Revolution of…”
Show all 9 →celtic6
The Mabinogion | Tale THE LADY OF THE FOUNTAIN-c
“The man looked upon me, and he smiled and said, ‘If I did not fear to distress thee too much, I would show thee that which thou seekest.’ Upon this I became anxious and sorrowful, and when the man perceived it, he said, ‘If thou wouldest ra…”
The Mabinogion | Tale PWYLL PRINCE OF DYVED-d
““Lord,” said they, “thy wisdom was never so great, and thou wast never so kind or so free in bestowing thy gifts, and thy justice was never more worthily seen than in this year.” “By Heaven,” said he, “for all the good you have enjoyed, you…”
The Mabinogion | Tale MATH THE SON OF MATHONWY-l
“Said the man of the house to the swineherd, “Well, youth, hath thy sow come in to-night?” “She hath,” said he, “and is this instant returned to the pigs.” “Where doth this sow go to?” said Gwydion.
“Every day, when the sty is opened, she g…”
The Mabinogion | Tale THE DREAM OF MAXEN WLEDIG-a
“Maxen Wledig was emperor of Rome, and he was a comelier man, and a better and a wiser than any emperor that had been before him.
And one day he held a council of kings, and he said to his friends, “I desire to go to-morrow to hunt.” And th…”
The Mabinogion | Tale THE DREAM OF MAXEN WLEDIG-c
“And in the dream I beheld a maiden, and because of the maiden is there neither life, nor spirit, nor existence within me.” “Lord,” they answered, “since thou judgest us worthy to counsel thee, we will give thee counsel.
And this is our cou…”
The Mabinogion | Tale THE STORY OF LLUDD AND LLEVELYS-b
“And by the common counsel of the nobles, Lludd the son of Beli went to Llevelys his brother, king of France, for he was a man great of counsel and wisdom, to seek his advice.
And they made ready a fleet, and that in secret and in silence,…”
mesopotamian2
Epic of Gilgamesh: Tablet V — The Fight with Humbaba | Tablet V, Section 1a
“THE FIFTH TABLET.
OF THE FIGHT WITH HUMBABA.
.
Stood they and stared at the Forest, they gazed at the height of the Cedars, Scanning the avenue into the Forest: (and there) where Humbaba 5.
Stalk’d, was a path, (and) straight were his t…”
Epic of Gilgamesh: Tablet IX — Gilgamish in Terror of Death Seeks Eternal Life | Tablet IX, Section 1
“THE NINTH TABLET. GILGAMISH IN TERROR OF DEATH SEEKS ETERNAL LIFE. . Gilgamish bitterly wept for his comrade, (for) Enkidu, ranging Over the desert: "I, too—shall I not die like Enkidu also? 5. Sorrow hath enter’d my heart; I fear death as…”
hinduism1
The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter XV, Section 1
“CHAPTER XV. The Deity said: They say the inexhaustible A s vattha has (its) roots above, (its) branches below; the Kh andas are its leaves. He who knows it knows the Vedas. Upwards and downwards extend its branches, which are enlarged by th…”
native_american1
Myths of the Cherokee | Myth 111a
“THE MOUNDS AND THE CONSTANT FIRE: THE OLD SACRED THINGS Some say that the mounds were built by another people.
Others say they were built by the ancestors of the old Ani′-Kĭtu′hwagĭ for townhouse foundations, so that the townhouses would b…”
shinto1
The Kojiki: The Beginning of Heaven and Earth | Section 1
“p. 15 RECORDS OF ANCIENT MATTERS [SECT. I.—THE BEGINNING OF HEAVEN AND EARTH.] The names of the Deities 1 that were born 2 in the Plain of High Heaven 3 when the Heaven and Earth began were the Deity Master-of-the-August-Centre-of-Heaven, 4…”