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The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) · 304 of 530

The Tree of the Sephirothf

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 Sephirothic Tree was not made without full realization of the significance of such action. If Chochmah be considered the active, intelligent energy of Kether, and Binah the receptive capacity of Kether, then Daath becomes the thought which, created by Chochmah, flows into Binah. The postulation of Daath clarifies the problem of the Creative Trinity, for here it is diagrammatically represented as consisting of Chochmah (the Father), Binah (the Mother, or Holy Ghost), and Daath , the Word by which the worlds were established. Isaac Myer discounts the importance of Daath , declaring it a subterfuge to conceal the fact that Kether, and not Chochmah; is the true Father of the Creative Triad. He makes no attempt to give a satisfactory explanation for the symbolism of this hypothetical Sephira. According to the original conception, from the union of the Divine Father and the Divine Mother is produced Microprosophus --the Short Face or the Lesser Countenance , which is established in the Yetziratic World of formation and corresponds to the letter ו, or V , in the Great Name. The six powers of Microprosophus flow from and are contained in their own source, which is Binah, the Mother of the Lesser Adam . These constitute the spheres of the sacred planets; their name is Elohim, and they move upon the face of the deep. The tenth Sephira--Malchuth, the Kingdom--is described as the Bride of the Lesser Adam , created back to back with her lord, and to it is assigned the final, ה, or H , the last letter of the Sacred Name. The dwelling place of Malchuth is in the fourth world--Assiah--and it is composed of all the superior powers reflected into the elements of the terrestrial sphere. Thus it will be seen that the Qabbalistic Tree extends through four worlds, with its branches in matter and its roots in the Ancient of Ancients-- Macroprosophus . Three vertical columns support the universal system as typified by the Sephirothic Tree. The central pillar has its foundation in Kether, the Eternal One. It passes downward through the hypothetical Sephira, Daath , and then through Tiphereth and Jesod, with its lower end resting upon the firm foundation of Malchuth, the last of the globes. The true import of the central pillar is equilibrium. It demonstrates how the Deity always manifests by emanating poles of expression from the midst of Itself but remaining free from the illusion of polarity. If the numbers of the four Sephiroth connected by this column be added together (1 +6 +9 + 10), the sum is 26, the number of Jehovah. (See chapter on Pythagorean Mathematics .) The column on the right, which is called Jachin , has its foundation on Chochmah, the outpouring Wisdom of God; the three globes suspended from it are all masculine potencies. The column at the left is called Boaz . The three globes upon it are feminine and receptive potencies, for it is founded in Understanding , a receptive and maternal potency. Wisdom , it will be noted, is considered as radiant or outpouring, and Understanding as receptive, or something which is filled by the flowing of Wisdom . The three pillars are ultimately united in Malchuth, in which all the powers of the superior worlds are manifested. THE SEPHIROTH IN THE FORM OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM. From Maurice's Indian Antiquities.
Themes
◆Anthropomorphismtheology

Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery.

Divine principles are described using human terms such as Father, Mother, Bride, and Face (Microprosophus).

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◆Correspondencecosmology

The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.

The text links divine spheres to planetary spheres and describes the Tree extending through four worlds with branches in matter.

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◆Divine Marriagesoteriology

The reunification of complementary divine principles (male-female, spirit-matter) as a symbol of wholeness and salvation.

The passage references the union of Divine Father and Mother, and Malchuth as the 'Bride of the Lesser Adam.'

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◆Emanation Hierarchycosmology

A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above.

The text describes the flow of energy from Kether through Chochmah and Binah down to Malchuth as a structured cascade.

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◆Logoscosmology

The divine reason, word, or ordering principle through which the universe was created; mediates between the transcendent God and the material world.

Daath is identified as 'the Word by which the worlds were established,' functioning as a mediating creative principle.

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◆Magical Equilibriumcosmology

The balance of two contrary forces as the structural law of cosmos and operation — Lévi's equilibrium, expressed in Kabbalah by the senary: the will of God in its first cause, liberty in man, mathematical equilibrium in matter; the twofold vibration required to direct the Astral Light safely.

The central pillar is defined as 'equilibrium,' demonstrating how the Deity manifests poles of expression while remaining free from polarity.

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◆Numerical Mysticismtheology

Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.

The passage explicitly calculates the sum of Sephirot numbers (1+6+9+10=26) to derive the number of Jehovah, referencing Pythagorean Mathematics.

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◆Opposites Transcendedanthropology

The dissolution of binary oppositions (male/female, inner/outer, above/below) as a mark of spiritual completion.

The central pillar demonstrates how the Deity remains 'free from the illusion of polarity' despite emanating poles.

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◆Sacred Namestheology

Divine names or formulas that carry ontological power, used in prayer, liturgy, or magical practice.

The text frequently references the 'Great Name,' 'Sacred Name,' and 'Jehovah' as ontological anchors.

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◆Sefirot Treecosmology

The diagrammatic arrangement of the ten Sephirot as a structured 'Tree of Life' mapping divine and cosmic forces.

The text explicitly describes the 'Sephirothic Tree' as a diagrammatic arrangement connecting divine attributes through four worlds.

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◆Sephirotcosmology

The ten attributes or emanations through which the Ein Sof (Infinite) reveals itself and creates the universe in Kabbalistic theology.

The passage is entirely dedicated to explaining the Sephirot, their names, positions, and relationships within the Kabbalistic system.

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◆World Tree Axiscosmology

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.

The Tree is described as having 'branches in matter and its roots in the Ancient of Ancients,' functioning as a vertical structure supporting the universal system.

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Related passages · 1 parallel
◆jewish_mysticism|The Book of Concealed Mystery (Siphra Dtzenioutha)|1b
“If the reader turn to the introduction, to the Table showing the Sephiroth arranged in three pillars, he will see that Malkuth is, as it were, the antithesis of Kether; and hence it is said that "Malkuth is Kether after another manner." And…”
Both passages discuss the structure and symbolism of the Sephirothic Tree in Kabbalah, including the roles of Kether, Microprosopus, and Malchuth, as well as the three pillars and their significance. They share a conceptual framework and structural elements, indicating a genuine parallel.