The Mystical Qabalah - Dion Fortune 2000
Netzach
TITLE: Netzach, Victory. (Hebrew—Nun, Tzaddi, Cheth)
VIRTUE: Unselfishness.
MAGICAL IMAGE: A beautiful naked woman. VICE: Unchastity. Lust.
SITUATION ON THE TREE: At the foot of the Pillar of Mercy.
YETZIRATIC Text: The Seventh Path is called the Occult Intelligence because it is the refulgent splendour of the intellectual virtues which are perceived by the eyes of the intellect and the contemplations of faith.
TITLE GIVEN TO NETZACH: Firmness.
CORRESPONDENCE IN MICROCOSM: Loins, hips, and legs.
SYMBOLS: Lamp and girdle. The rose.
TAROT CARDS: The four Sevens.
SEVEN Of WANDS: Valour.
SEVEN Of CUPS: Illusory success.
GOD-NAME: Jehovah Tzabaoth, The Lord of SEVEN OF SWORDS: Unstable effort. Hosts.
ARCHANGEL: Haniel.
ORDER OF ANGELS: Elohim, Gods.
MUNDANE CHAKRA: Nogah, Venus.
Spiritual Experience: Vision of beauty triumphant.
SEVEN Of PENTACLES: Success unfulfilled. COLOUR IN ATZILUTH: Amber.
BRIAH: Emerald.
YETZIRAH: Bright yellowish green.
ASSIAH: Olive, flecked with gold.
1. Netzach, the Sphere of Venus, is best understood by contrasting it with Hod, the Sphere of Mercury, these two representing force and form on a lower arc, as has already been seen. Netzach represents the instincts and the emotions they give rise to, and Hod represents the concrete mind. In the macrocosm they represent two levels of the process of the concretion of force into form. In Netzach force is still relatively free-moving, being bound only into exceedingly fluidic and ever-shifting shapes, and in Hod taking on for the first time definite and permanent form, though of an exceedingly tenuous nature. In Netzach a particular form of force represents itself as a type of beings, flowing backwards and forwards over the boundaries of manifestation in an exceedingly elusive manner. Such beings have no individualised personalities, but are like the armies with banners that can be seen in the sunset clouds. In Hod, however, individualisation into units has taken place, and there is continuity of existence. All mind is group-mind in Netzach, but in Hod the human mind has its beginnings.
2. Let us now consider Netzach itself, both in its microcosmic and macrocosmic aspects, bearing constantly in mind that we are now in the sphere of illusion, and that what is about to be
described in terms of form are appearances as represented by the intellect to itself and projected back into the astral light as thought-forms. This is a very important point, and should be thoroughly understood in order to avoid falling into superstition. Everything that is perceived by the “eyes of the intellect and the contemplations of faith,” as the Yetziratic Text so graphically puts it, has its metaphysical basis in Chokmah, the Supernal Sephirah at the head of the Pillar of Mercy. But with Netzach a great change comes over our mode of apprehending the different types of existence assigned to each sphere. Hitherto we have perceived by means of intuition; our apprehensions have been formless, or at least represented by highly abstract symbols; there are no more of these after Tiphareth, but we come to such concrete symbols as the rose, assigned to Venus, for Netzach, and the caduceus, assigned to Mercury, for Hod.
3. As has been seen, we conceive of the higher Sephiroth under the aspect of factors of manifestation and functions. We saw in our study of Tiphareth how the Mediating Intelligence, as the Sepher Yetzirah calls it, broke up the White Light of the One Life as in a prism so that it becomes the Refulgent Splendour of many-rayed hues in Netzach. Here we have not force, but forces; not life, but lives. Appropriately, therefore, the Order of Angels assigned to Netzach are the Elohim, or gods. The One has been reduced to the Many for the purposes of manifestation in form.
4. These rays are not represented as the pure white light by which we see everything in its true colours, but as many-hued, each one of which brings out and intensifies some specialised aspect of manifestation, just as a ray of blue light will only show up those colours that are sympathetic to it, and will make its complementary colours look black. Every life or form of force manifesting in Netzach is a partial but specialized manifestation; therefore no being that has for its sphere of evolution the sphere of Netzach can ever have an all-round development, but must always be a creature of one idea, one single, simple, stereotyped function.
5. It is the Netzach factor in ourselves that is the basis of our instincts, each of which, in their unintellectualised essence, gives rises to appropriate reflexes, just as an infant’s lips will suck anything that is inserted between them.
6. The beings of Netzach, the Elohim, are not so much intelligences as the embodiments of ideas.
7. These Elohim, to give them their Hebrew name, are the formative influences whereby the creative force expresses itself in Nature. Their true character is to be discerned in Chesed, where they are described by the Sepher Yetzirah as the “Holy Powers.” In Netzach, however, which represents the upper stratum of the reflecting ether, they undergo a change, the image-making mind of man has begun to work upon them, moulding the astral light into forms that shall represent them to his consciousness.
8. It is very important that we should realise that these lower Sephiroth of the Plane of Illusion are densely populated by thought-forms; that everything which the human imagination has been able to conceive, however dimly, has a form built about it out of the astral light, and that the more the human imagination has dwelt upon it to idealise it, the more definite that form becomes. Consequently, subsequent generations of seers, when they seek to discern the spiritual nature and innermost essence of any form of life, are met by these images, the “creations of the created,” and will be deceived thereby, mistaking them for the abstract essence itself, which is not to be found upon any plane that yields images to psychic vision, but only upon those that are discerned by pure intuition.
9. When his mentality was still primitive man worshipped these images, by means of which he represented to himself the great natural forces so all-important to his material well-being, thus establishing a link with them, by means of which a channel was developed whereby the forces they represented were poured into his soul, thus stimulating the corresponding factor in his own nature and thereby developing it. The operations of this worship, especially when it became highly organised and intellectualised, as in Greece and Egypt, built up exceedingly definite and potent images, and it is these that are generally understood as the gods. Generations of worship and adoration build a very strong image in the astral light, and when sacrifice is added to worship, the image is brought a step farther down the planes into manifestation and acquires a form in the dense ethers of Yesod, and is a very potent magical object, capable of independent action when ensouled by the concrete ideas generated in Hod.
10. We see, then, that every celestial being conceived by the mind of man has as its basis a natural force, but that upon the basis of this natural force is built up a symbolic image representative thereof, which is ensouled and rendered active by the force it represents. The image, then, is but a mode of representation indulged in by the human mind for its own convenience, but the force that the image represents, and which ensouls it, is a very real thing indeed, and under certain circumstances can be exceedingly powerful. In other words, although the form under which the god is represented is pure imagination, the force associated with it is both real and active.
11. This fact is the key, not only to talismanic magic in its broadest sense, which includes all consecrated objects used in ceremonial and for meditation, but to many things in life that we cannot fail to observe but for which we have no explanation. It explains a great many things in organised religion that are very real to the believer but very baffling to the unbeliever, who can neither explain them nor explain them away.
12. In Netzach, however, we have the most tenuous form of these things, and they are perceived far more by the “contemplations of faith” than by the “eyes of the intellect.” In the Sphere of Hod are performed all manner of magical operations in which the intellect itself is brought to bear upon these tenuous and fleeting images to give them form and permanency; but in the Sphere of Netzach such operations do not take place to any great degree; all god-forms in Netzach are worshipped by means of the arts, not conceived by means of philosophies. Nevertheless, for all practical purposes it is impossible to separate the activities of Hod and Netzach, which are a functional pair, just as Geburah and Chesed make up the two aspects of metabolism, the catabolic and the anabolic. The functions of Netzach are implicit in Hod because Netzach emanates Hod, and the powers developed by evolution in the Sphere of Netzach are the basis of the capacities of Hod. Consequently all magical operations of the Sphere of Hod work upon a basis of the tenuous life-forms of Netzach; and because the human intellect works up from Sphere to Sphere, a good deal of the powers of Hod have been carried over into Netzach by initiated souls going on ahead of evolution. The two Spheres, therefore, are not clear-cut in their division and classification, but in each one a certain type of function very definitely predominates.
13. The contacts of Netzach are not made by means of conceiving its life philosophically, nor by means of ordinary image-making psychism, but by “feeling with,” as Algernon Blackwood has so graphically expressed it in his novels, into which so much of the Sphere of Netzach enters. It is by means of dance and sound and colour that the Netzach angels are contacted and evoked. The worshipper of a god in the Sphere of Netzach enters into communion with the object of his adoration by means of the arts; and in proportion as he is an artist in some medium or other, and can therein represent his deity symbolically, will he be able to make the contact and draw the life into himself. All rites which have rhythm and movement and colour in them are a working in the Sphere of Netzach. And as Hod, the Sphere of magical workings, draws its force from Netzach, it follows that any magical operation of the Sphere of Hod must have a Netzach element in it if it is to be ensouled effectually; and in order to provide a basis of manifestation, etheric substance has to be provided by some form of sacrifice, even if it he only the burning of incense. This question will be dealt with fully in studying the Sphere of Yesod, to which it belongs. It is necessary to refer to it here, because the significance of the rites of Netzach cannot be understood without a realisation of the means whereby manifestation is effected, and the god brought near to his worshippers.
14. Let us now consider Netzach from the point of view of the microcosmic Tree of Life that is to say, the subjective Tree within the soul, wherein the Sephiroth are factors in consciousness.
15. The Three Supernals, and the first pair of manifesting Sephiroth, Chesed and Geburah, represent the Higher Self, with Tiphareth as the point of contact with the Lower Self. The four lower Sephiroth, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malkuth, represent the Lower Self, or personality, the unit of incarnation, with Tiphareth as the point of contact with the Higher Self, which is sometimes called the Holy Guardian Angel.
16. From the point of view of the personality, Tiphareth represents the higher consciousness, aware of spiritual things; Netzach represents the instincts, and Hod the intellect. Yesod represents the fifth element, Kether, and Malkuth the four elements which are the subtle aspect of matter. All that the average human intellect can realise is the nature of dense matter, Malkuth, and of the intellect, Hod, both concrete aspects of existence. It has no appreciation of the forces which build the forms, as represented by Netzach, the Sphere of the instincts, and Yesod, the etheric double or subtle body. Consequently we must make a careful study of Netzach because its nature and importance are so little understood.
17. We shall comprehend the nature of Netzach in the microcosm best if we remember that it is the Sphere of Venus, with all that that implies. Translated from the symbolic language of the Qabalah into plain English, it means that we are concerned here with the function of polarity, which is a very great deal more than mere sex as popularly conceived.
18. It is important to note in this respect that Venus, or in her Greek form, Aphrodite, is not a fertility goddess at all, such as are Ceres and Persephone; she is the goddess of love. Now in the Greek concept of life, Love embraced much more than the relationship between the sexes, it included the comradeship of fighting men and the relationship of teacher and pupil. The Greek hetaira, or woman whose profession is love, was something very different to our modern prostitute. The Greek kept the simple physical relation of the sexes for his lawful wife, who was secluded in the gynieceum, or harem, and was kept simply for breeding purposes in order that he might have lawful heirs; and she was a woman without education though of good blood, and was not encouraged to render herself attractive or ply the arts of love. Still less was she encouraged to worship the goddess Aphrodite, who presides over the higher aspects of love; the deities of her adoration were expected to be the gods of hearth and home; Ceres the earth-mother was the ruler of the Mysteries of the Greek women.
19. The Aphrodite cult was something very much more than the simple performance of an animal function. It was concerned with the subtle interaction of the life-force between two factors; the curious flow and return, the stimulus and the reaction, which plays so important a part in the relations of the sexes, but extends far beyond the sphere of sex.
20. The Greek hetaira was expected to be a woman of culture; there were, of course, all grades among them, from the lower, who approximated to the Japanese geisha, to the higher, who held salons after the manner of the famous French blue-stockings, and were women of clean physical virtue to whom no man would dare to make sensual advances; but because of the reverence in which the function of sex was held among the Greeks, it is probable that at no grade of society did the hetaira approximate to the degradation of the modern professional prostitute.
21. The function of the hetaira was to minister to the intellect of her clients as well as their appetites; she was a hostess as well as a mistress, and to her resorted the philosophers and poets to receive inspiration and sharpen their wits; for it was well realised that there is no greater inspiration to an intellectual man than the society of a vital and cultured woman.
22. In the temples of Aphrodite the art of love was sedulously cultivated, and the priestesses were trained from childhood in its skill. But this art was not simply that of provoking passion, but of adequately satisfying it on all levels of consciousness; not simply by the gratification of the physical sensations of the body, but by the subtle etheric exchange of magnetism and intellectual and spiritual polarisation. This lifted the cult of Aphrodite out of the sphere of simple sensuality, and explains why the priestesses of the cult commanded respect and were by no means looked upon as common prostitutes, although they received all comers. They were engaged in ministering to certain of the subtler needs of the human soul by means of their skilled arts. We have brought to a higher pitch of development than was ever known to the Greeks the art of stimulating desire with film and revue and syncopation, but we have no knowledge of the far more important art of meeting the needs of the human soul for etheric and mental interchange of magnetism, and it is for this reason that our sex life, both physiologically and socially, is so unstable and unsatisfactory.
23. We cannot understand sex aright unless we realise that it is one aspect of what the esotericist calls polarity, and that this is a principle that runs through the whole of creation, and is, in fact, the basis of manifestation. It is represented on the Tree by the two Pillars of Severity and Mercy. The whole of the activity of force is comprised in the principle of polarity, just as the whole of the function of form is comprised in the principle of metabolism.
24. Polarity really means the flowing of force from a sphere of high pressure to a sphere of low pressure; high and low being always relative terms. Every sphere of energy needs to receive the stimulus of an influx of energy at higher pressure, and to have an output into a sphere of lower pressure. The source of all energy is in the Great Unmanifest, and it makes its way down the levels, changing its form from one to the other, till it is finally “earthed” in Malkuth. In every individual life, in every form of activity, in every organised social group for whatever purpose, whether army, church, or limited company, we see the exemplification of this flowing of energy in circuit. The great point we need to realise is that in the microcosmic Tree there is a flow down and up the positive and negative aspects of our own subjective levels of consciousness, whereby the spirit inspires mind, and mind directs the emotions, and the emotions form the etheric double, and the etheric double moulds the physical vehicle, which is the “earth” of the circuit. This is a fact that is generally realised, and its implications are easily seen as soon as attention is drawn to them.
25. But a point we do not so readily realise is that there is a flow and return between each “body” or level of consciousness and its corresponding aspect in the macrocosm. Just as there is an intake and output on the level of Malkuth whereby food and water are received into the body as nutriment and rejected as excreta, which is the food of the vegetable kingdom under the polite name of manure—so is there an intake and output between the etheric double and the astral light, and between the astral body and the mind side of nature, and so on up the planes, with the subtler factors represented by the six higher Sephiroth. The essence of the Magical Qabalah, which is the practical application of the Tree of Life, is to develop these magnetic circuits of the different levels and so strengthen and reinforce the soul. Just as the physical body is nourished by eating and drinking, and kept healthy by adequate excretion, which might be called the operations of the Sphere of Malkuth, so is the soul of man energised by the operations of the Sphere of Tiphareth, which is also called the Sphere of the Redeemer, who brings health to the soul. We know how initiation develops the powers of the higher psychism and enables the human understanding to apprehend spiritual truths; what we do not realise is that for the full gamut of human development we need also to develop our power to contact natural energy in its essential form as represented by the Sphere of Netzach. We are accustomed to take the line that the spiritual and the natural are mutually antagonistic and that we must rob Peter to pay Paul, and to conclude that if the spiritual is the highest good, the natural must necessarily be the lowest evil; we do not realise that matter is crystallised spirit, and spirit is volatilized matter, and that there is no difference of substance between them, any more than there is between water and ice, but both are different states of the One Thing, as the alchemists call it; this is the great secret of alchemy which forms the philosophic basis of the secret doctrine of transmutation.
26. But the transmutation of metals is of little save academic importance compared to the transmutation of energy within the soul. It is this that the initiates deal with by means of the technique of the Tree of Life; and as consciousness transmutes up and down the Central Pillar of Mildness, or Equilibrium, so does energy transmute up and down the Pillar of Mercy, of which Netzach is the base, and form transmute up and down the Pillar of Severity, of which Hod, the intellect, is the base.
27. In Chokmah, then, we get the tremendous drive of life, which is the great male potency of the universe; in Chesed we get the organisation of forces into interacting wholes; and in Netzach we get a sphere wherein evolution, ascending from Malkuth as organised force ensouling vivified form, is able to contact essential force once more. Netzach, the Sphere of Nogah, which is the Hebrew name for Venus-Aphrodite, is therefore an exceedingly important Sphere from the point of view of the practical work of occultism. It is because most people who go in for occultism work up the Central Pillar only, which is the Pillar of Consciousness, and pay no attention to the side pillars, which are the Pillars of Function, that such negligible results are obtained from initiation. The blind are leading the blind, and the average would-be initiator in modern occult fraternities, who is usually more of a mystic than an occultist, does not realise that he has got to initiate subconsciousness as well as consciousness, and illuminate the instincts as well as the reason.
28. We have considered Netzach from the objective and the subjective points of view; it now remains to study the symbolism assigned to this Sephirah in the light of the knowledge we have already obtained.
29. We shall observe at once that the symbolism contains two distinct ideas—the idea of power and the idea of beauty; and we are reminded of the love that existed between Venus and Mars according to the old myth. Now these myths are not fabulous, save in the historical sense, but represent truths of the spirit; and when we find the same idea recurring in different pantheons, when we find Hebrew Qabalist and Greek poet, whose mentalities were as far removed from each other as the poles, presenting the same concept in different forms, we must conclude that it is not accidental, but will repay careful scrutiny.
30. Let us depart from our usual method of analysing the symbols in the given order, and classify them according to the two types into which they fall.
31. The Hebrew title of the Seventh Sephirah is Netzach, meaning Victory. Its additional title is Firmness, which carries out the same idea of masterful and victorious energy. The God-name is Jehovah Tzabaoth, meaning the Lord of Hosts, or God of Armies. The Order of Angels assigned to Netzach are the Elohim, or gods, the rulers of Nature.
32. The four Tarot cards assigned to this Sephirah all contain the idea of battle, even if in a negative form. It is curious to note, however, that it is only the Seven of Wands which has a good, or positive, significance, the other three Sevens are all cards of ill fortune. The reason for this becomes clear, however, when we understand the symbolism as a whole, so we will put it aside for the moment, and reconsider it later.
33. Let us now turn to the consideration of the other set of symbolic images. The Mundane Chakra of Netzach is the planet Venus, and the magical image is, appropriately enough, “a beautiful naked woman.” The spiritual experience assigned to this sphere is the Vision of Beauty Triumphant. The virtue is Unselfishness—that is to say, the capacity to polarise from the negative pole. The vices are the obvious ones of love abused unchastity and lust.
34. The correspondence in the microcosm is with the loins, hips, and legs. These, it will be noted, form the setting of the generative organs, but not the generative organs themselves, and bear out the idea previously shadowed forth, that the goddess of Love and the fertility goddess are not one and the same thing.
35. The symbols assigned to Netzach are the Lamp, the Girdle, and the Rose. The Girdle and Rose are self-explanatory, for they are traditionally associated with Venus. The Lamp, however, requires more explanation, for the classical associations afford us no clue on this point. We must turn to alchemy.
36. The four Elements are associated with the four lower Sephiroth, and of these the Element of Fire is associated with Netzach. The Lamp is the magical weapon used in operations of the
Element of Fire. Hence the association with Netzach. The Element of Fire is associated with the fiery energy at the heart of Nature, and connects up with the Mars aspect of the Venus Sephirah.
37. We see, then, from a study of the foregoing symbolism, that the Mars, or Victory, symbolism is associated with the Macrocosm, and the Venus, or Love, symbolism with the Microcosmic or subjective aspect. This gives us the key to a very important psychological truth, well understood by the ancients, but which had to await the work of Freud for its interpretation in modern language. This may best be expressed by saying that elemental energy, or the fundamental dynamism of an individual, is very closely connected with the sex life of that individual.
38. This is a very important fact in our psychic life, well understood by psychologists though but little appreciated by mystics and psychics, who generally incline to an idealism which seeks to escape from matter and its problems. But to escape like this is to leave unconquered fortresses in our rear; and the wiser way, the only way that can produce wholeness of life and a balanced temperament, is to give due place to Netzach, which balances the intellectuality of Hod and the materiality of Malkuth, remembering always that the Tree consists of the two Pillars of Polarity and the Path of Equilibrium between them.
39. The true secret of natural goodness lies in the recognition of the contending rights of the Pairs of Opposites; there is no such antinomy as between Good and Evil, but only the balance between two extremes, each of which is evil when carried to excess, both of which give rise to evil if insufficient for equipoise. Unbridled licence leads to degradation; but unbalanced idealism leads to psychopathology.
40. There are three types of persons who pass within the Veil—the mystic, the psychic, and the occultist. The mystic aspires to union with God, and achieves his end by putting aside all that is not of God in his life. The psychic is a receiver of subtle vibrations, but not a transmitter. The occultist must needs be to some extent at least a receiver, but his primary aim is to be able to control and direct in the invisible kingdoms in the same way that the man of science has learnt to control and direct in the kingdom of Nature.
41. To order to achieve this end he must work in harmony with the invisible forces in the same way that the scientist masters Nature by understanding her. Of these invisible forces some are spiritual, descending from Kether, and some are elemental, working up from Malkuth. The Kether forces of the Macrocosm are picked up by the Tiphareth-centre in the Microcosm, to use the Qabalistic terminology; the elemental forces are picked up by the Yesod-centre, but—and this is the important point—they are directed and controlled by the manner in which the equilibrium is maintained between Netzach and Hod.
42. Netzach, in the Microcosm, represents the instinctive, emotional side of our nature, and Hod represents the intellect; Netzach is the artist in us, and Hod is the scientist. According as our moods shift between restraint and dynamism will he the polarity of Hod and Netzach in the Microcosm which is the soul. If there is no Netzach influence to introduce a dynamic element, the over-preponderance of Hod will lead to all theory and no practice in occult matters. No one can handle magic in whom the Sphere of Netzach is not in function, for the scepticism of Hod will kill all magical images before their birth. Like all things in nature, Hod, unfertilised by its opposing polarity, is sterile. There must be something of the artist in every occultist who wants to do practical work. The intellect alone, however powerful, does not confer powers. It is through the Netzach in our own nature that the elemental forces obtain access to consciousness; without Netzach, they remain in the subconscious Sphere of Yesod, working blindly. It is taught in the Mysteries that each level of manifestation has its own ethic, or standard of right and wrong, and that we must not confuse the planes by expecting from one the standard of another, which is not applicable thereon. In the realm of mind, the ethic is Truth; on the astral plane, which is the sphere of the emotions and instincts, the ethic is Beauty. We must learn to understand the righteousness of Beauty, as well as the beauty of righteousness, if we want to bring all the provinces of the inner kingdom into obedience to the central power of unified consciousness.
43. In entering upon the region of the four lower Sephiroth we are coming into the sphere of the human mind. Subjectively considered, they constitute the personality and its powers. It is the aim of occult initiation to develop these powers and, if taken from the higher standpoint, as it always should be if it is not to degenerate into black magic, to unite them with Tiphareth, which is the focussing-point of the higher self, or Individuality. In discussing Netzach, therefore, we have definitely passed within the portal of the Mysteries, and are treading upon the sacred ground reserved for initiates.
44. I am no advocate of a secrecy which is simply priest-craft, but there are certain practical secrets of the Mysteries which it is inadvisable to cry aloud lest they be abused. There is also the inveterate tendency of human nature to apply its own definitions to familiar terms, and to refuse to recognise them apart from their familiar associations. If I lift a corner of the Veil of the Temple and reveal the fact that sex is simply a special instance of the universal principle of polarity, the immediate assumption is that polarity and sex are synonymous terms. If I say that although sex is a part of polarity, there is a great deal of polarity that has nothing to do with sex, my explanation is ignored. Perhaps I shall be understood better if I substitute the terminology of physics for that of the more appropriate psychology, and say that life will only flow in circuit; insulate it, and it becomes inert. Let us take the human personality as an electrical machine; it must be connected up with the power-house, which is God, the Source of all Life, or there will be no motive power; but equally it must be “earthed,” or the power will not flow. Every human being must be “earthed” to the earth, both literally and metaphorically. The idealist tries to induce a complete insulation of all earth-contacts in order that the inflowing power may not be wasted; he fails to realise that the earth is one great magnet.
45. Tradition declares from of old that the key to the Mysteries was written upon the Emerald Tablet of Hermes, whereon were inscribed the words, “As above, so below.” Apply the principles of physics to psychology, and the riddle will be read. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
46. Finally we come to the consideration of the significance of the Tarot cards associated with Netzach. These are the four Sevens of the Tarot pack.
47. As we are now coming within the sphere of influence of the earth-plane, it may be as well to explain what these lesser cards of the Tarot pack represent in divination. They symbolise the different modes of function of the different Sephirothic forces in the four worlds of the Qabalists. The suit of Wands corresponds to the spiritual level; Cups to the mental level; Swords to the astral plane; and Pentacles to the physical plane. Consequently, if the Seven of Pentacles turns up in a divination, it means that the influence of Netzach is playing a part on the physical level. There is an old proverb, “Lucky in love, unlucky at cards,” which is but another way of saying that the person who is attractive to the opposite sex is usually in perpetual hot water. Venus is a disturbing influence in worldly affairs. She distracts from the serious business of life. As soon as her influence comes through to Malkuth, she must hand over the sceptre to Ceres and leave well alone. It is children, not love, that keep the home together. The Qabalistic name of the Seven of Pentacles is “Success Unfulfilled,” and we have only to look at the lives of Cleopatra, Guinevere, Iseult, Heloise to realise that Venus upon the physical plane has for her motto, “All for love, and the world well lost.”
48. The suit of Swords is assigned to the astral plane. The secret title of the Seven of Swords is “Unstable Effort.” How well does this express the action of Venus in the sphere of the emotions, with its short-lived intensity.
49. The secret title of the Seven of Cups is “Illusory Success.” This card represents the working of Venus in the sphere of mind, where her influence is by no means conducive to clear sightedness. We believe what we want to believe when we are under the influence of Venus. Upon this plane her motto might well be “Love is blind.”
50. Only in the sphere of the spirit does Venus come into her own. Here her card, the Seven of Wands, is called “Valour,” which well describes the dynamic and vitalizing influence she exerts when her spiritual significance is understood and employed.
51. Very interestingly do the four Tarot cards assigned to Netzach reveal the nature of the Venusian influence as it comes down the planes. They teach us a very important lesson, for they show how essentially unstable this force is unless it is rooted in spiritual principle. The lower forms of love are of the emotions and essentially unreliable; but the higher love is dynamic and energising.
