The Divine bi-polar energy pours forth from Kether, spilling into Chokmah
and Binah, through these two primordial energy becomes form. If you have a
diagram of the Tree, you'll see it is composed of three sets of triangles
superimposed on three pillars. The supernal triangle being made up of Kether
(at the top), with Chokmah and Binah forming the base. This is the only
trangular formation on the Tree of Life that points upwards. It forms the
macrocosm, before manifestation. There are also three other supernal segments
before Kether, Ain, Ain Soph, and Ain Soph Ar which I will cover later.
The rest of the Sephirah are the microscosm, the stages of manifestation,
ending in the physical world as we know and live it in Malkuth.
The next triangle is inverted with Chesed (Gedulah) and Geburah flowing
downward into Tipherath which is followed by Netzach and Hod (the base of
another inverted triangle) flowing downward into Yesod. Yesod leads straight
downward into Malkuth.
Energy flows in a zig zag (or curvered) path, never straight. As it
flows, it always flows from one pole to the oposite pole. Chokmah is
positive, flowing into Binah,negative -, which flows into (Chesed)Gedulah,
+, theninto Geburah, - . The energy always flows through the middle pillar
when tratraversing the "triangles". As it flows from Binah into Chesed it
passes through an "invisible Sephirah" called Daath, or the abyss. This is the
threshold of transmutation of primordial force-to-form into actual
manifestation.
Chesed must be looked at along side Geburah because, like the relationship of
Chokmah and Binah, one can not exist without the other. They are the equal
opposits, the reverse of each other. These two are both represented by
"Kings".
Chesed, or a.k.a. Gedulah, are the fours; love, mercy, rest from strife. This
King is all that is good, peaceful, life through rosey glasses type of guy. He
is emanated from Binah in the flow of energy, but an extention of Chokmah
because these two are on the pillar of mercy.
Life exists because of the act of metabolism, which is composed of the
processes of katabolism (building up)and anabolism (taking down). Anology:
The marathon runner, before a big race, eats lots of carbohydrates (big bowls
of pasta) in the morning, thus building
up his reseviour of energy, a katabolic process. While he is running he is
burning up all this stored energy, an anabolic process. This is a rythym, and
all of life is possible because of this rhythym of building up and taking
down. If we watch life, we will see it is this type of rhythm and not
stability that is it's vitality.
Chesed is the nice guy. All unconditional loving, all caring, galavanting
through the daiseys, all is right with the world.
Geburah, on the other hand, sharing the pillar of severity with Binah, is
the War King. He is the one who cracks the whip when the rosey folks get too
lacsadaisical. Fortune writes that Geburah is very misunderstood and often
taken to being evil, but he is not. He is disciplin, for without disciplin
nothing will coagulate; nothing will get done. He is the one who has to
control the reins, giving slack when the horse is moving well, and pulling up
the reins when the horse is getting ahead of itself. It is this sort of
balancing that will keep Chesed moving forward, and Chesed provides the mercy
to keep Geburah from being to overtly severe. There is much more action
traveling through Geburah, and Geburah is represented by the fives, strife,
defeat, earth trouble.
Fortune goes onto write the least things understood in the Christian
philosophy is the concept of evil, and one of the things least adequately dealt with in the Christian ethic is the problem of force, or severity, as contrasted with mercy and mildness. Gebruah is one, if not the, most important of all the Sephiroth because it does repressent this disciplin or "severity". Chesed represents
righteousness and justice, but Geburah is the double edged sword of protection
through defense and likewise comands a higher respect. Fortune writes that
Christian society is
heavily biassed against Geburah and that this absence of understanding of
the Geburah-factor is the cause of many of our difficulties in modern life,
that we must recognize that good and evil are not things in themselves (and
likewise not ruled by a God or Devil) but merely conditions.
Evil is simply a misplaced force. That the great weakness in Christianity is
that it ignores rhythym. It's concept is static, not dynamic, and does not
see that because a thing is good, it's opposite is not necessarily evil.
Dynamic energy is as a neccessity to our society as meekness, charity, and
patience, and if there were no strong hand at the service of good in the
world, evil would multiply.
