Yesod and the Path of “Universe”

Dear Brother,

I am glad the last lecture brought you benefits. So far, you were able to get yourself acquainted with the Qabalistic way of thinking and the basics of its model of reality. Maybe you already started to apply in practice the Qabalistic method and analysis of your Universe. Sooner or later, such an undertaking is awaiting you, and maybe you already noticed that you arrived at a point when you cannot go any further. You managed to combine all the information so far into a specific network of associations; you managed to uplift your own thinking to a level of pragmatic combinations that make your life drastically easier.

Now we will expand your model of the Universe. We will shed light on a new level of the Tree of Life. The whole of this lecture is dedicated to Yesod, a ninth emanation of the absolute. As you noticed, we are moving upwards, but that ascent is conditioned by the full understanding of the previous lecture. You can assume how much I will ask from you later in more complex problems, but you will agree that the most stupid thing is doing the same thing twice and return to the beginning because the attention was weak. Once when you have adopted the Qabalistic way of thinking entirely, there will be nothing impossible for you; there will be no obvious problem that you cannot resolve. For here, you learn to expand and deepen your own awareness and not your knowledge. Now you can remember why I put an accent on practical experience from your everyday life, not on the books you read. Truly, you have to be a Qabalist not only in front of a book but even amongst the densest traffic jam or in the moments of the worst mundane derangement. You have to be a Qabalist not by knowledge but by the peculiarity of your thinking. Qabalah is not a chapter in a book, nor a separate topic in our science, but a specific approach which ensures a certain transfer of information in a so-far unknown way. It is a method, not an achievement, at least for now.

Now we will devote ourselves to the ninth Sephira, Yesod. It is above Malkuth and precedes it. This is a good point to differentiate between two things that I already notice are hovering in your mind. A “preceding Sephira” is an awkward term that I want to clarify. You see, if I sit on your head, do I precede to you? Or, does the fifth floor in a building precedes to fourth? You must carefully determine which direction you are observing reality. If you watch from above, Yesod precedes Malkuth, but if you are looking from below, then Malkuth precedes Yesod. When we observe reality, it is best to agree that all of its components exist independently and in parallel planes.

Let us have a look at the Tree of Life. Look at its branches high above yourself. Can you see them pierce the sky and embrace infinity? But ask yourself, if you look upon yourself from that same sky, can you see it rushing toward the Earth, disappearing far away in the lower realms? We have a path upwards and an equal path downwards. What the path will be like depends primarily on your destination.

You can use the Tree of Life to ascend to the house of God, but you can also use it to show to God his glory here, down on earth, depending on what method is momentarily in accord with your Will. You can climb into the house of God, but you can also make your house divine if you settle the Lord inside. This is one of the roughest divisions of our art – on the path of mysticism and the path of magick. One should take note that the word “absolute” does not imply a direction as a purely vector value. This simply depends on your nature, or the nature of your operation.

If you want to socialize with me today afternoon, you can come to my house, but you can also invite me to yours. Each direction has two ends. Each force got two ways in which you can deal with it. This a supremely important theory for the beginning and is worth every minute of your thinking, so do not hesitate to study it. To be expedient with time, I will present to you the same thing that I showed you last time, and it is a list of correspondences that can be brought into connection with this plane. There is plenty of new things to be discovered, and I will not waste time on things you already know. Use some time to absorb new correspondences, as you did for Malkuth, in order to use them flexibly.

As you can see, the items were classified as in the previous lecture. However, pay attention to the following: each one could provisionally be classified as an element or concept of your inner nature, which is manifested in a certain way. Also, it could be classified as a planet or a concept that has its own outer “reason” and influence that affects that concept. We perceive elements, which are activated on the micro plane, and planets, which act on the macro level. Both actions are processes that draw their essence from the most abstract. Therefore, do not limit your mind by the understanding which finds shelter in the acquired knowledge. Only two things affect your life: your nature from inside and your fate from outside. In time, you will equalize both of these concepts.

Look at an example of a dog: is its nature fiery? Or maybe watery? Is it more similar to air or earth? When you represent its nature by a planet, think of the force that presides over it. Separate the character and nature of a dog and move it into a more abstract concept. Does it bark at the Sun or Moon?

Try not to confuse two things – Earth as an element and the Earth as a planet. The Earth as a planet possesses Earthy element as much as Watery, and still, its center is pure Fire. Moreover, life would be impossible without Air. Therefore, for you, the Earth as a planet must have a quality that is different from the elemental aspect. Dear Brother, maybe it carries more life in itself and on itself than all the elements altogether.

As an element, Yesod is Air. But its planetary aspect is the Moon, the first celestial body in your travel toward the infinite. Going that way, we will pass in turn all the celestial bodies important for us, and that in a specific direction and in a specific order which should not be neglected. You will ponder it yourself when you get to know the Tree of Life better. It is still early for such judgments, so we stick to Yesod – “only” the second sphere on our way.

The Moon represented Yesod, and as such, it complies with all the ideas and concepts implied by that body. Primarily note that it is very close to the Earth. In fact, it does not have freedom in movement, but it is bound to the Earth’s orbit. The Moon is a body that mediates in the knowledge of the Universe. It is close enough to reach it with ease, but far enough for the Earth to influence it. Too close, far enough.

The Moon, as Yesod, is a little “above” Malkuth on the Tree of Life. As Malkuth is a plane of physical action and manifestation, so Yesod is of a subtler, slowed nature. Their relationship is similar to the relationship between a metal bar and radio waves. It occupies the region of sleepwalking, and therefore of all daydreaming, suppressed or manifested thoughts and fantasies – a place of trash of our “true” nature, which makes us live beings. There are the remnants of our awareness, the imprints of our mental, emotional activities, and all the activities empowered by consciousness. As the imprint is stronger, so it remains longer. Therefore, an artist’s idea that lived in his mind through many years is far stronger and enduring than an idea related to the choice of dinner.

You will compare this to the concept of collective unconsciousness. But there is a problem, and that is the issue of endurance. During practice, you will find for sure that time is just one of the characteristics of your being, which is always here and now, at the plane of Malkuth, and therefore, that characteristic is lost by the ascent of being to higher planes. But why can’t our mind get information from such a marvelous place? Why are possibilities to make a breakthrough into that sphere so rare, reserved only for talented people or liars? The answer is very simple, but the solution isn’t. The name itself clearly suggests that it is the collective unconsciousness. Indeed, the term “unconscious” is an answer. In order to get such information, you have to break into such strata. Maybe it is not that difficult, but the real problem is maintaining the information in the awakened state. In other words, you have to be conscious of the unconscious, to be aware of unaware.

Between the Earth and the Moon, there is “empty” space. More precisely, that space is being emptied gradually, subtly losing its vitality. The atmosphere is the last place of life on Earth, the last place of everyday awareness. In order to get to the Moon, you must gradually adapt yourself, as scuba divers do, but in the opposite direction. You must be aware of every change in your awareness, and more importantly, you must always keep your goal in mind. Every change of consciousness brings new awareness, and each new awareness has new laws and tendencies. Those are the categories that are variables in our task, but you have to stick to the only unchangeable constant in work, and that is the goal of your path. Derangement is the deadliest foe here, and you have to go upwards, always and only upwards.

Therefore, mastering the change of consciousness and separation from physical existence is one of the most important achievements here. However, there is only one important achievement in the life and work of a magician, only one success. Everything else is a modification of that one. But, we will have the opportunity to talk about it after we have mastered this model of the Universe with more confidence. In any case, I encourage you in advance in your attempts to transfer your awareness into your Body of Light. Remember to always be open to anything, for the experience of success in this is different from everything you may imagine or expect. The final analysis comes later, and you can only make things harder by doing it now. It cannot be worse at your point, you simply have no results, and only conclusive success can help you understand the processes and laws of your own being. And your failed or successful attempt is just an attempt. Success is the only thing you need, so do not try to strive for anything except that. It will arrive when you realize that it is hidden in the awareness that you are succeeding, independently of a method. Success is not the category of time, but awareness.

The key to this lesson is in the word “change.” You must discover the nature of the subtle sphere that is upward and above, you must discover on your own all the specifics of this new area of action, and finally, you must learn to act in that sphere and not merely to observe.

You noticed that in this lesson, I am covering many ideas that apparently are not connected to Yesod. My dear Brother, from now on, you will have to understand the nature of spheres on your own. The basic idea is in the change of consciousness, your consciousness. I will point it out to you and help you develop a particular way of thinking that will release your spirit toward higher and subtler planes. It is an art of pragmatic Qabalah – to define the relationships and their change, which are conditioned by the change of your consciousness.

It is very important to realize the difference between Malkuth and Yesod because that difference is the key to the change of consciousness. The sole difference of Yesod in relation to Malkuth, if you are aware of it at least to some degree, makes your intention turn toward Yesod. From the Earth, you will easier get to the Moon if you focus on the atmosphere itself, and from there, you will easily move upward. Marathon runners understand this very well. Keep up to the momentary difference between two distant objects. That difference is a special element, the third element between those two objects, which is a mediator between the two. Now you can already perceive that one of the central concepts that I am expounding is consciousness. It is a key not only to understand the difference between Malkuth and Yesod, but it will be of use later on too. Ponder that difference. Ponder the existence of hundreds of invisible waves that are flowing through your head right now. Think of what is happening in my head while you are reading these words. My thoughts, now, while you are reading, are as true as yours, but you definitely will never have proof of their existence. To gain experience in the higher energy states of spirit, you have to act in a certain way. When somebody from your classroom is whispering to you an answer to a test question, there is only one danger. A danger that you will not hear it.

You need receptors, in fact, to temper them good, as you already have them by the very fact that you are a conscious being.

Let us compare now the essential ideas of Malkuth and Yesod and find differences. Malkuth is Kingdom, while Yesod is Foundation. Both of them clearly point to the idea of solidity, but if you think more about it, you can notice that Kingdom is based on form, while the idea of Foundation is in subtle strength and energy. Foundations are strong, and the Kingdom is firm. There is an immense difference. Therefore, the Kingdom is more of an Earthy element, while the Foundation is Airy. You can ask me why it is not fiery? Foundation is not an essence but active support. It does not carry an idea but matter. Pay attention to how the wind carries the leaves in autumn, and you will understand how subtle energy we speak here.

One of the essential differences between these two ideas is in the illnesses which are traditionally ascribed to them. With Malkuth, it is sterility, while Yesod, it is impotence. If you dedicate yourself to this issue and find a key difference there, you will understand both the natures of Yesod and Malkuth, as well as their relationship. If you remember the previous lesson, you will know that we devoted our attention greatly to the firmness and physical manifestation as one of the basic ideas of Malkuth. Sterility is a curse that may befall Malkuth, as sterility makes the manifestation of man impossible, and more broadly, it points to a standoff in the Universe. Sterility carries the idea of disabling the manifestation, which is tangible, alive, and firm. That illness is one of the links to the idea of firmness. Impotence points to a similar outcome. It can also influence the decline in the development of the Universe, but not that much as sterility. Impotence is connected to the idea of energy itself, subtle urge, and it is of airy nature. It is a blockage that prevents action; sterility, on the other hand, prevents the form – form against subtle energy, firmness against fluidity. Think of this, and I am almost sure that from this moment, you have a pretty clear picture of what I want to confer to you.

Yesod and Malkuth are very similar, but you must know the difference for sure. You must classify ideas without hesitation. I am asking you to develop two kinds of consciousness – one for Malkuth and one for Yesod. When you classify the idea, simply recognize the kind of awareness that is initiated.

Only now can we move on to the real problem, which is the next step toward your new way of thinking. By learning about Malkuth and Yesod, you gained knowledge about them, but it remains for you to find out one more crow idea used by the Qabalistic method. Although I had been talking to you about it all the time, it is almost certain that you did not pay attention to it.

Make a short observation of the characteristics of the Universe. Everything that happens, and everything that exists inside of it, interferes mutually and participates in the activity. But do not misunderstand activity as action, but the sole living spirit. Therefore, it is possible to have an activity without anything happening. An activity includes subject, object, and a process by which they are defined as such, fulfilling a particular aspect of Nature. Sometimes, during an activity, you may get the impression that there is no object or subject. You can even be sure there is no process, either. Analyze such cases; a good Qabalist always faces miracle, and do not wonder, but praise the manifestation of God’s work.

To tell it simply: there is subject, object, and predicate. As a Qabalist, apply that to your knowledge. It is clear to you that your starting point is Malkuth. Yesod is somewhere “up” and should be reached. Yes, dear Brother, we came to verbs themselves, to the method. You certainly have two points, so now just draw a line between them. You can notice that the length of that line and its nature depend on the nature of the points. Therefore, the method and path that lead to Yesod will have characteristics of both Malkuth and Yesod. In the beginning, that path will look more like Malkuth, but as the travel reaches its end, it will lose its properties and assume the nature of Yesod. 

We are returning to the topic from the beginning, and that is the adjustment. The adaptation of consciousness happens gradually until the goal has been reached to maintain control and continuity of awareness. You can hear a bunch of nonsense about certain unfortunate souls that suddenly lost their mundane life and now are hovering around as confused ghosts because, in their suffering, they do not realize they ceased their worldly existence. These stories concealed a very good way of thinking, but certainly, you have also to learn to reject sheer rubbish. Therefore, here you can find the answer on how to master the technique of the Body of Light in the fastest possible way. The answer is in the change of consciousness. In order to observe with your astral eyes, you have to start looking with altered consciousness. You have to acquire a conditioned reflex to change the state of consciousness at the moment when you step into the new body and look upon things from a new perspective. In the beginning, it is a trick, and you can learn it very fast unless you waste precious time looking for perfection in your visualization. The trick is in determination to make a reach and not to endure. You have to make it happen quickly, not to do it indefinitely. When you look at your body from your astral counterpart, at that moment, you have to acquire all the aspects that the new body has. Dear Brother, it is a Qabalistic method. Remember how I insisted last time we spoke that you learn all the correspondences. Now, apply it here. In the moment of transference of awareness, you have not only to see with your new eyes but also to breathe the air from there, to smell and stand at that place. You have to infuse your mind with the truth that you are really there. You have to switch off your personal censor of reality that tells you it is all nothing but a figment of the imagination, by the simple truth that you are there. Therefore, that truth must not have a single aspect of falsehood. Create success through the creation of magical links. You cannot expect to be there if you breathe and think from here. And even if you are failing, try to fail from there. The whole point is not in visualization at all but in a state of clear resolve. On many occasions, I have achieved success without visualization at all. You will see that you will quickly achieve success in this if you act properly by doing properly.

Let us do a concrete job: pay your full attention to the following. I want you to close your eyes and look into the dark, black space in front of you. Try to understand that black space as a mental polygon where we are to test situations and models of Qabalistic thinking. You can understand it as black modeling clay for your spirit to play with if you want. Look at that emptiness, into that black clay. It is pretty alive, as you can notice, and in fact, it is not so black at all. In fact, there is the least black color. There is a reason for it because this clay is alive. Insert, through your imagination, a picture of the house into that clay, as you use your Will to impress upon it a three-dimensional stamp. Now, you have to know that it is Malkuth. Now, look inside the house. Walk around and finally enter it. In front of you is a big room, and to your left is the staircase that takes down. Have a good look at those stairs; I want you to watch them for a while. They are a very important segment of this story, do not spare your time. After some time spent studying it, walk them downwards. We enter into a basement, spacey basement. Feel moisture, inspect the corners filled with cobweb. You will see a lot of things there. Old coats, old furniture, jars with pickled vegetables, barrels with cabbage. Do you see it now? Can you feel the change of atmosphere down there? Can you see that you are not in Malkuth anymore? Here you can notice the foundations of the house; here, you can see things that were dumped away and left to slow forgetfulness. Here is the foundation of the house, but there is no life in that scenery. You can find a lot of information and things, but the one who uses them lives upstairs, in a warm and dry place. Think of the essence that I want to transmit to you. Also, this can be a valuable example to you that subtler things are not always literally to be found “up there.” In this case, they are to be found in exactly the opposite direction.

This change, the introduction of a completely new element into our story, brings us one of the most important aspects of the Tree of Life: the concept of the “paths.” They are the methods, mediators that equally contain both the starting and ending Sephira. They are there to make our travel comfortable and, more importantly, they offer us the integration of new experiences and new states of consciousness into our everyday life. The function of the path is like the function of Metatron, the transmitter of live God’s word to humans because nobody else could hear God and stay alive. Metatron, as well as paths, harmonize the experience and insight with our individual limitations and old perspective, which are too fragile to understand something as terrible as the new and unexpected knowledge, as the truth, as change.

As before, I give you the list of basic ideas and correspondences by which you will recognize the essence of the path that connects Malkuth with Yesod. I give you a description of the new kind of awareness that will uplift you There and bring you Back.

Let us take some examples from everyday life. You know that I consider this section most important; therefore, I ask you to pay attention. Of course, I will assume that you thoroughly studied the tables and that you naturally adopted all the specific characteristics, as well as that you intuitively found differences and similarities among them. Now I want you to find the framework and connection between Malkuth and Yesod, through 32^nd path, in each example that I give you. We will move from easier to harder examples, but keep in mind that the model of thinking is the same. If you got the basic model, even the highest modification would not be an issue for you, and it will be only a matter of time when you will have resolved any problem.

I assume that you are reading this letter on your computer. Let us put aside the agony and horror catching on me when I think how much time and energy I invested in creating these tables; what we are observing now is the process of reading this letter. You must clearly define Malkuth, which is not an incredibly difficult problem for you, I hope. Let us assume that Malkuth is, simply, “you.” Now, look ahead, and define the final destination, define a subtle goal that you are striving to. It may be knowledge that you are obtaining here and right now. That knowledge you are obtaining through a computer, and all that uses electricity and telephone cable. Now you got both remaining elements: Yesod as information, represented by this lesson, and 32^nd path of Universe. Ponder how you obtain new information by computer observing the monitor. Between me, who knows, and you, who wants to know, is a single thread that connects us. Observe the cables. Inside them is electric current that carries the information and knowledge. Yesod as information, inside of a cable – which is 32^nd path.

Let us examine the other ideas from everyday life in order to determine where Yesod is and in what way the path of the Universe manifests.

Maybe it is good to describe to me what you had for breakfast this morning. Let us not annoy ourselves with lies about a healthy life. I suspect that your breakfast was so silly that you cannot even remember what it was. But I am sure you treated yourself with a cup of good coffee, as yesterday was Friday, and you probably came home pretty late. Coffee keeps you awake, which is related more to Malkuth. But why not? Why wouldn’t you observe a reversed process? Assuming that you were sleeping, then it was the plane of Yesod. Now you are awake, and it is Malkuth. Coffee is the mediator between the two; it takes you back to the plane of Malkuth, into your defined reality. It is the path of the “Universe.”

What animal would you allocate to Yesod? Could it be a cat? Or a horse? Maybe it is better to think of birds as they correspond with the element of air. You see, you are watching birds from below; they are above us – attributes of Moon, astral plane as subtle, “higher” plane. But what particular bird we could focus on? Moon, astral plane, fantasies, dreams, shells. Raven, or better, vulture. It does not matter how precisely you classified things; you still cannot make definite estimates because you do not have knowledge about the other aspects of the Tree of Life. But, the model upon which you develop your thinking is important.

Now, from the following list, extract the terms that point to Yesod:

sea, attic, rose, bend roof, summer clothing, ice cream, musk ox, shallow pocket, deep pocket, empty pocket, wedding ring, zebra, wine, saber, hunting gun, sorrow, star, purple.

The next assignment is somewhat more difficult: I want you to determine an aspect of Yesod contained in each of the given concepts. You must assume that Yesod is present in each of these ideas, somewhere more obviously presented, and somewhere hidden. You must train your mind to penetrate into the meaning of apparently insignificant terms:

cave, prison, lottery, Italy, Austria, baroque, jam, static electricity, flat bicycle tire, ruler, yellow raincoat, molehill without moles, molehill with moles, New Year, Popeye, Michelangelo’s David, god, God.

At the very end, I point to the most challenging problem. Could you find Yesod in the following term:

Malkuth

When you answer this last question with absolute certainty, we can advance further.

Frater Aureus 273