Tree of Life
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"Making something... Nurturing something is really great. You can see and learn so many things from the process." |
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"Disposing of the Angel on the surface is so expensive!" |
The Tree of Life (Hebrew: עץ החיים, Etz HaChayim) is a term from the Hebraic system of exegesis, named Qabalah (Hebrew: קבלה, alternative spellings include Kabbalah and Cabala), to describe a diagram composed of 10 Numbers and 22 Letters. The ten Numbers are the ten sayings of God in the first chapter of Genesis (בראשית, Bereshit) in which He wrought the universe, with the 22 letters of the Hebrew alefbet interpolated between these Numbers.
The diagram was used to describe the path to God, and the manner in which He created the world out of nothing. The Kabbalists developed this concept into a full model of reality, using the tree to depict a "map" of creation. The Tree of Life has been called the "cosmology" of the Kabbalah.
The Hebrew word for Numbers is Sephiroth (plural, used to refer to the entirety of the Numbers) while the Hebrew word for Number is Sephirah (singular, used to refer to a specific Number). These two English words will be used throughout this article.
During Third Impact, after the Mass Production Evangelions crucify Eva-01, they form an inverted Tree of Life around Eva 01 by resonating their AT Fields. The figure of the Tree of Life also appears twice in the opening credits, these two glyphs from the opening credits are examined in more detail below.
Arber Sephirotheca
Tree of Numbers.
Robert Fludd M.D. (1574, Bearsted, Kent – September 8, 1637, London), was an English Christian mystic, Paracelsian physicist, and astrologer. He penned the diagram to the right, which originally appeared in his work Utriusque Cosmi, Maioris scilicet et Minoris, metaphysica, physica, atque technica Historia (The metaphysical, physical, and technical history of the two worlds, namely the greater and the lesser), published in Germany between 1617 and 1621.
10 Numbers
The ten Hebrew names of God allotted onto each of the Numbers by Fludd are fairly standard. The interesting parts of this diagram are Fludd's attributions of the Christian Trinity onto the Tree of Numbers.
| # | Romanised Hebrew | Hebrew | English translation | Latin | English translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I. † | Ehieh | אהיה | I Am | Pater | Father |
| II. | Iah | יהוה ‡ | Yah | Filius | Son |
| III. | Elohim | אלהים | God(s) | Spi. Sanc. | Holy Spirit |
| IV. | El | אל | (Of) God | Pater | Father |
| V. | Elohim Gibor | אלהים גבור | God of Power (alternatively Mighty God) | Filius | Son |
| VI | Eloah | אלוה | God (the singular form of Elohim) | Spi. Sanc. | Holy Spirit |
| VII. | Iehova Sabaoth | יהוה צבאות | YHWH of Hosts | ||
| VIII. | Elohim Sabaoth | אלהים צבאות | God of Hosts | ||
| IX. | Elchai vel:Sadai | אלחי שדי | The Living God or Almighty | Omnipotentie | Omnipotence |
| X. | Adonai | אדני | My Lord |
† Here, Crown is given a crown of nine points, showing its presidency over the nine lower Numbers. Each point may be attributed to each letter of אין סוף אור (Aur Ain Sof), see sub-heading 2.3
‡ Fludd has written יהוה when Iah is spelt יה
The Name of God, יהוה, is seen associated with particular Numbers along the trunk of the Tree.
י is touching Crown while associated with Wisdom as the Father, The tip of.
ה with Intelligence as the Mother.
ו with the Lesser Countenance of Mercy, Fear, Glory, Victory, Honour, and Foundation, but particularly with Glory as the Son.
ה with Kingdom as the Bride.
Formative Names
The ten palm leafs that share Kingdom as their base have written upon them the ten angelic orders that are allotted on the Tree in יצירה. Fludd ascribes the nine orders of Christian angels to each of the Numbers from Crown to Foundation, Kingdom is ascribed Soul.
| # | Latin | English | Qabalistic equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| I. | Cheter in Seraphim | Crown in Seraphim | כתר בחיות קדש |
| II. | Hochma in Cherubi | Wisdom in Cherubs | חכמה באופנים |
| III. | Binah in Thrones | Intelligence in Thrones | בינה באראלים |
| IV. | Chesed in Dominus | Mercy in Dominations | חסד בחשמלים |
| V. | Geburah in Potestus | Fear in Powers | גבורה בשרפים |
| VI. | Tepheret in Virtutes | Glory in Virtues | תפארת בםלכים |
| VII. | Netreth in Principus | Victory in Principaltities | נצח באלהים |
| VIII. | Hod in Archangeli | Honour in Archangels | הוד בבני אלהים |
| IX. | Iesod in Angelos | Foundation in Angels | יסוד בכרובים |
| X. | Malkuth in Animus | Kingdom in Soul | מלכות באשים |
Systema Sephiroticvm X Divinorvm Nominvm
System of Numbers of the 10 Divine Names.
Athanasius Kircher S.J., born in 1601 or 1602 in Thuringia, Germany, was a Christian mystic and scientist who published around 40 works, most notably in the fields of oriental studies, geology, and medicine. He penned the diagram to the right, which originally appeared in his work Oedipus Aegyptiacus published between 1652 to 1654.
10 Numbers
You will notice that each of the Numbers has written about it the names of the Numbers again, for each Number is said to have 10 Lesser Numbers within it. Essentially there is a further Tree within each Number. When this is repeated through the 4 Worlds we count 400 Numbers in total, which shares the same numeric value of the final letter of the Hebrew alefbet, ת.
| # | Romanised Hebrew | Hebrew Name | English | Planetary assoc. | 3 Triads |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I. | Ehyeh | אהיה | I Am | 1. World of Ideas | |
| II. | Yah | יה | Yah | 2. World of Ideas | |
| III. | YHWH Elohim | יהוה אלהים | YHWH (LORD) God | 3. World of Ideas | |
| IV. | El | אל | Of God | Jupiter | 1. World of Stars |
| V. | Elohim | אלהים | God(s) | Saturn | 2. World of Stars |
| VI. | YHWH | יהוה | YHWH (also rendered as LORD, Jehovah or Yahweh) | Sol | 3. World of Stars |
| VII. | YHWH Tzevaot | יהוה צבאות | YHWH of Hosts | Mars | 1. World of Elements |
| VIII. | Elohim Tzevaot | אלהים צבאות | God(s) of Hosts | Venus | 2. World of Elements |
| IX. | Elohi | אלהי | God | Mercury | 3. World of Elements |
| X. | Adonai | אדני | My Lord | Luna | 0. The Fall |
22 Letters
These are usually counted from 11 to 32, Kircher however writes them from 1 to 22.
א
ב
ג Seventy-two Central Powers. Totius TRINITATIS influxus deferem, burning away the influx of the entire TRINITY.
ד Reciprocus 50 Portarum et 32 Semitarum, between 50 Gates and 32 Paths.
ה Aquarum divinae misericordiae, Waters of divine mercy.
ו
ז Ignium divinae iustitiae et iudicii, Fires of divine justice and judgement.
ח
ט Misericordiae et Iustitiae, [the channel between] Mercy and Justice.
י Seventy-two Right Powers.
כ
ל Seventy-two Left Powers.
מ
נ
ס Canalis reciprocus Victoriae et Honoris, Channel between Victory and Honour.
ע
פ
צ
ק
ר
ש
ת
אין סוף
English: Ain Suph (alternative renderings include Ein Sof, Ayn Sof, or Ein Soph)
The Ain Suph is a Kabbalistic term that usually refers to an abstract state of existence preceding God's Creation of the limited universe. This Ain Suph, typically referred to figuratively as the "light of Ain Suph" ("Aur Ain Suph"), is the most fundamental emanation manifested by God. It is the material basis of Creation that, when focused, restricted, and filtered through the Sephiroth, results in the created, dynamic universe. There are said to be three stages preceding the process of emanation in the Qabalah that parallel Genesis 1:1-5.
אין(Ain), meaning Not, foreshadows the first three supernal Numbers.
אין סוף (Ain Suph) meaning Limitless Not (or Without End), this is the highest aspect of the Tree we can conceptualise as אין preceding it is nothingness. אין סוף foreshadows the first six Numbers.
אין סוף אור (Aur Ain Suph) meaning Light of Ain Suph (i.e. the Light of Limitless Not), this in its concentration is called Crown. It contains within it the nine following Numbers.
Horizon Æternitatis
Horizon of Eternity.
The Horizon of Eternity is simply the horizon between Crown (Kether) and Limitless Not (Ain Suph).
50 Portæ Lucis
50 Gates of Light.
This is the Count of Omer as written of in Leviticus (Hebrew: ויקרא, Vayikra) 23:16. These 50 Gates are the 7 Lesser Numbers within each of the 7 lower Numbers (see sub-heading 2.1), 7 x 7 = 49, with Intelligence itself as the 50th Gate by which Moses received the Torah from God.
- See this link for more information.
72 Potestates, medius, sinisto et dextra
72 Powers, central, left and right.
This is the Name of 216 Letters Divided (known in Hebrew as the Shem ha-Mephorash, "The Explicit Name") found in Exodus (Hebrew: שמות, Shmot) 13:19-21. The Shem ha-Mephorash was an epithet for a 72-letter name of God derived by medieval Qabalists from the book of Exodus, by reading the letters of three verses in a specific order.
Each of the three verses is composed of 72 letters in the original Hebrew; when each verse is written out in boustrophedon form (that is, rather than merely going from left to right as in modern English, or right to left as in Hebrew and Arabic, alternate lines must be read in opposite directions), so that the second line is reversed, and grouping the letters in columns of threes, the 72 Names of God, or alternatively by appending to the letters the suffixes יה (-iah) or אל (-el), the names of 72 Angels, are formed. 216 letters in total made up of three verses of 72 letters, (216 x 3 = 666, the Master Number of Glory).
Outside of strictly Jewish Qabalah these 72 Names or angels are attributed to each 5 degree semi-decan of the zodiac (5 x 72 = 360), to the cards of the tarot, and so on. When these names are written in reverse some believe they parallel the 72 demons that king Solomon is said to have bound in the Western tradition of magic, this is relevant as one of the glyphs from a book attributed to Solomon appears in the Dummy Plug Plant.
Furnishings of the Temple & The Three Worlds
The two Altars, the Menorah, the Table of Shewbread, and the Tablets of Moses on Kircher's diagram are all furnishings of the Tabernacle (Hebrew: משכן "Mishkan", literally "Residence" or "Place of Dwelling"; see Exodus chapters 25-27), which later became the furnishings of Solomon's Temple.
The Place of Dwelling was split into three parts: the Outer Court, the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies (Hebrew: קֹדֶשׁ הַקָּדָשִׁים, "Kodesh Ha-Kodashim").
Each of these three parts are ascribed by Kircher on to each of the triads on the Tree of Emanations.
- The Outer Court lay behind a veil of cloth, removing it from Earthly influences, and contained both an Altar of fire as well as a Altar of water (the associated triad is named Mundus Elementorum, World of Elements by Kircher in his diagram).
- The Holy Place lay behind another veil and contained the Menorah and the Table of Shewbread of 12 loaves amongst other objects, these are patent representations of the 7 Luminaries and the 12-fold Zodiac (the associated triad is named Mundus Orbium, World of Stars).
- Behind the last veil lay the Ark of the Covenant which contained the Tablets of Moses (the associated triad is named Mundus Archetypus, World of Ideas).
35 Principes amisericordia originem ducentes et 35 Principes aseueritate originem ducentes
35 Princes who have their origin in Mercy and 35 Princes who have their origin in Severity.
248 præcepta Legis affirmatiua et 365 præcepta Legis negatiua
248 positive precepts of the Law & 365 negative precepts of the Law.
As well as the 10 Commandments (Hebrew: עשרת הדברים, Aseret ha-Dvarîm) received by Moses on Mt. Sinai there are a further 613 instances in the Torah where God either permits or forbids certain actions, these further commandments are called מצווה (Hebrew: Mitzvah, literally "Commandment"). God permits 248 actions which are called positive laws, while forbidding 365 actions which are called negative laws throughout the entirety of the Torah.
The number 248 is ascribed to the microcosm as it is the number of major bones in the human body. While the number 365 is ascribed to the macrocosm as it is the length of one solar year. Here, Kircher has associated the 248 positive laws with the Number named Magnificence and the side of Mercy, while the 365 negative laws has been associated with the Number named Fear and the side of Severity.
Notes
- The English words for Sephiroth (ספירת) and Sephirah (ספירה) are Numbers and Number in this article. The most accurate translation of Sephirot/Sephirah in English is number in order of, it is most accurate to write them in numeric form then as 1st, 2nd, 3rd, &ca. The English name of each Number follows Kircher's diagram rather than the modern translations to avoid confusion.
