July 20, 2016: Malkuth and the Tree of Life

July 20, 2016:

The only discipline I have not dealt with is the Tree of Life.  The sephira that deals with the material world is Malkuth.  Here are my thoughts regarding this sephira:

Malkuth  (Kingdom) is the tenth sephira on the Tree, the fourth on the Pillar of Balance, and corresponds with Earth, the planet Earth (and the solar systems and galaxies of our Universe), and the element of Earth.  Malkuth received emanations from all the other spheres in the Tree; all of the ideas and potentials from each sphere come together in the “reality” that is Malkuth.  For many, the physical world is the only reality. 

Although Malkuth is physical in nature, it is as sacred as Kether (the top sephira of the Tree).  “As Above, So Below” applies here, and many say that the Tree is actually upside down, which would make Kether the roots and Malkuth the crown.  Kether is considered projective and Malkuth receptive.  Before entrance into Malkuth we are not incarnate or bound to a physical vehicle; we pass through Malkuth both when we are born and when we die.  The danger found in this sephira is inertia; inertia is conquered by discrimination and discipline. 

We must never forget that Malkuth is not the ending; this sephira connects directly to Kether, and a new beginning of the cycle that is the Tree of Life.

My correspondence list for Malkuth is:

Magickal Image:  Young Queen, Crowned and Throned

Planetary: Earth

Vice: Inertia

Virtue: Discrimination

Deity: Earth, Grain

Spiritual Experience: Vision of the Holy Guardian Angel

Briatic Correspondence: Stability

Illusion: Materialism

Obligation: Discipline

Path: Path 10, the number of completion of one cycle and the beginning of another.

Of course, I threw a Wild Unknown Tarot card, and got Judgement.  Interesting, as yesterday’s card was Justice.  Here are my thoughts about Judgement: The image on this card shows a white dove, its wings spread, soaring above darkness.  Out of the darkness rises many dark birds, striving to raise up to the shining brilliance of that pure, unblemished dove.  Are they being startled from within the darkness or awakened from sleep, flying upward to escape some danger?  Or are they attracted to the light and purity of the bird above them?  No matter what is urging these dark birds upward, they will find rebirth if they can maintain their focus.  Perhaps they, too, will lose their darkness and become unblemished, embracing the light and abandoning the darkness.

Justice and Judgement are similar card, yet there are differences.  The Judgement card represents three experiences that are common to all times and all cultures: Evaluation, Reward, and Completion.  Thus the Judgement card can be seen to represent rites of passage that occur when we are held accountable for our past choices, decisions, and actions.  It is only through being evaluated, and then receiving the fitting reward (whether pleasant or uncomfortable) that the events can finally be completed, the accounting books can be closed and put away, and a new cycle can begin.  The Justice card represents the Judge.  The Judge is the authoritative figure who performs the Evaluation, distributes the Reward, and deems the cycle as Complete.

Now, the question is: “Have I completed the cycle?”