On Netzach and Hod

[Izabael]

From the point of view of *practical magick*, i.e. magick intended to get some material real-world results (as opposed to magick just to balance ourselves more with the divine), Netzach and Hod and the tension they create are the keys to manifestation. How so?

First a little refresher on their traditional attributions:

Netzach ("Victory") is the Sphere of Venus. This is the sphere of "external splendor and internal corruption." If there was a city that belonged to Netzach it would most assuredly be Las Vegas, which is all about superficial glamour and glitter but internally is all about gambling and other addictions. Netzach is very much a sexual Sephiroth but also does contain the idea of vegetative growth due to the more nurturing aspects of Venus. Still, the sensual and sexual side of Venus dominates here as it's so low on the tree. (The path of Daleth near the top of the tree would be the more motherly and vegetative side than here.)

Hod (“Spendour”) is the Sphere of Mercury. This is the sphere of the rational mind, the cool intellect. If Netzach is the heat of the moment, then Hod is the calm and collected rationalizations that come the day after a one-night-stand. This is an airy sphere, but like Netzach, it is low on the tree, close to Malkuth (the physical plane, i.e. Earth). The mind of Hod is not like the balanced and harmonious sphere of Tiphareth, which is imagination AND our divine and higher-self. Instead, Hod is the facility of logic in all its strengths and innumerable weakness.

Even a quick glance at these two descriptions and one can see that someone who exists in only one sphere is doomed to perpetual imbalance. For the extremes, imagine a worn out and corrupt courtesan for Netzach, and a studious and unloved hermit for Hod.

So it's obvious we need a balance between these two, and most people spend their lives dealing with the confrontation of these two dueling sides of their personality. It is no accident that the path between them is that of the "Blasted Tower," also known as "War." To put it very simply it's the battle between "What I know I should do" vs. "What I feel I want to do." To put it another way, it's the Apollo-Dionysus paradigm used by Nietzsche in The Birth of Tragedy to characterize the two central principles in Greek culture.

But this is a blog on practical magick, not philosophy. So how the heck can knowledge and understanding of these two spheres improve our magickal abilities? The key is understanding where exactly the “magickal act” takes place. It takes place not in a Sephiroth, and not in any path, but at the conjunction of two paths:

Practical magick occurs at the conjunction of the Path of Peh and the Path of Samech. On the diagram they are marked by the numbers on the corresponding Tarot cards: XVI: The Blasted Tower (or War), and XIV: Temperance (or Art).

That act of magick is fleeting. It is the moment a pen hits the paper with the intention of writing a word (ie. a magickal formula.) The pen and paper are just artifacts of Malkuth, and the will and understanding to move that pen in a meaningful way belong to other spheres higher up. But the actual act of Magick is right there on that cross of “Art” and “War.”

The god of magick in Egypt was Thoth who was also the god of writing. This is no accident. Many people can see this in a very prosaic manner when they keep a list of “things to do.” Without that “magickal” list, they find they get nothing done at all!

We can spout all day about the “exalted” spheres of Kether, Binah and Chokmah, or rant and rave about the power and destruction of Geburah and the solidity of Chesed, but the fact is our day-to-day consciousness never gets higher than Tiphareth, and even then only if we have balance between Netzach and Hod, otherwise we are just bouncing back and forth between them—in the path of War—and yes it’s uncomfortable. If you’ve ever felt guilt over anything then most assuredly you have been trapped in that path. (i.e. You give in to the pleasure of Netzach only to wake up to the reality that Hod presents as consequences to your actions.)

The key to transcending the path of War is the path of Art. This path can give you lateral thinking and an ability harmonize Netzach and Hod. More importantly it gives you the inspiration from Tiphareth to create things from your “true center.”

Everyone has the potential to be an artist in their own way, and if you aren’t living up to your potential as an artist then you aren’t living “magickally” and you aren’t experiencing the ecstatic joy of being in control of these lower spheres. In other words:

The only way to make friends between Hod and Netzach is through your artwork, whatever that is. Whether you are a photographer, a painter, an author, a surgeon, or even a (ick!) lawyer you must find passion, creativity, and meaning in that moment you put your hand to the paper or your scalpel to the patient. This is the center of the “War” and “Art” cross. All those contradictory tensions finally find creative release as they are harmonized through a conscious and positive intent to make a change. This “crossroads” is where the artist lives and they couldn’t live anywhere else. It is truly “being in the moment.”

By the time something comes down to Malkuth it is only a shell of the magick of the moment. A painting is NOT the magickal act—it is just what is left over from those magickal moments where the artist was putting the brush to the canvas. This explains why genuine artists usually care so little for a piece once it is finished. For them the joy is all in the process.

They can’t wait to get started on the next one.



*iza

[Oblio]

By the time something comes down to Malkuth it is only a shell of the magick of the moment. A painting is NOT the magickal act—it is just what is left over from those magickal moments where the artist was putting the brush to the canvas. This explains why genuine artists usually care so little for a piece once it is finished. For them the joy is all in the process.


Interesting, but I don't find it so easy to cut away the magickal act from the greater process of magick. Not much can be confined to a single point, the whole process is magick. The manifestation in Malkuth can hold just as much magick as the physical process of creating it, or the mental process of conceiving it. The art that I have done gives me inspiration whenever I look at it. I still see things that are not perfect, but that's another matter, but it's not an empty husk. Furthermore, the impact that that work has on others is a continuation of the magickal current that I initiated (which in turn was initiated by the currents that I'm in contact with). Malkuth is so often underrated, but it is where we live a lot of our lives!

On another note, I like how you seem to know what genuine artists are or are not as well. Did you do a poll of some sort, or just happened to have contact with the greater majority of them. Mind if I ask how you knew they were genuine :p

[Ci Celli Ddu]

Oblio is right that "the manifestation in Malkuth" can be as potent as the act of creation, because both engage the imagination, and it is the act of imagining that gives potency to both creation and manifestation. Indeed, imagination requires no artistic manifestation other than the sought-after practical result itself.

[Izabael]

Interesting, but I don't find it so easy to cut away the magickal act from the greater process of magick. Not much can be confined to a single point, the whole process is magick. The manifestation in Malkuth can hold just as much magick as the physical process of creating it, or the mental process of conceiving it. The art that I have done gives me inspiration whenever I look at it. I still see things that are not perfect, but that's another matter, but it's not an empty husk. Furthermore, the impact that that work has on others is a continuation of the magickal current that I initiated (which in turn was initiated by the currents that I'm in contact with). Malkuth is so often underrated, but it is where we live a lot of our lives!

On another note, I like how you seem to know what genuine artists are or are not as well. Did you do a poll of some sort, or just happened to have contact with the greater majority of them. Mind if I ask how you knew they were genuine :p

Talk about missing the forest for the trees. Did I personally challenge your status as "artist"? I've studied a great deal of classic artists, and known a great deal many in real life, and I stand by my statement that most are far more concerned with the artistic process and their NEXT piece than their old artwork.

I never said Malkuth wasn't important. Nor did I call it an "empty husk." I'm a huge proponent of practical magick which is to say I like positive changes constantly reflected in Malkuth.

Of course the entire process is related. Did I really need to make first grader-comments such as, "the entire tree is part of a whole"? I think that's a pretty obvious fact since everything is part of *one tree.* I'm discussing a specific (and key) aspect of magick, and for the sake of simplicity I didn't drag the entire tree into the conversation any more than I had to.

I would say that a more glaring omission in my post is that I didn't really discuss how Yesod fits in. I also left that out deliberately for simplicities sake.

But now that I've brought it up, for me in practical magick it's sort of an astrally/libido-ish place where both Netzach and Hod begin to make themselves felt upon Malkuth. Yesod ties into dreams, surrealism, and anything like the Twilight Zone. The rules are not always clearly defined, but eventually coagulate into Malkuth (which houses my closet full of shoes--how can you say I don't value Malkuth!!) I don't feel that the magickal act takes place here, but rather the energies stirred up in Yesod are very much active and swirling around the entire lower spheres during a magickal working.

If Crowley's Atu XIV were to be my diagram (and it can symbolize any other sort of synthesis as well so don't hedge me in just because I'm going to use it as a handy example), the eagle and lion would be Netzach and Hod. The gold pot (and its liquidy goo) would be Yesod. Malkuth would be the ground he stands on. The "Siamese twin" would be the Magician performing from Tiphareth. The crowns and the moons are their links to the higher spheres. The fire wand and cup meeting in the moment is the conjunction of paths 25 & 27. The path of the arrow represents path 25 itself (self-reflexive). I could refine this probably, but it's a good rough draft.

*izabael

[Oblio]

Well, you didn't really give much of a hint to the rest of the forest did you - and your words quite strongly suggested that this particular dynamic is of some import to you. It was easy to confuse your sensational style for single pointedness. Moreover, you don't have very many posts in this forum, so it's a bit difficult to know what grade comments should be made.

Anyway, no, you didn't say empty husk. It was my interpretation on your term shell. And no, I didn't perceive any direct challenge to my artistic status, I was commenting because of this:

This explains why genuine artists usually care so little for a piece once it is finished.

It's true, a certain kind of artist would have such a view, but that doesn't make one who doesn't any less genuine, perhaps just more grounded?

Other than these (I'll happily admit) reasonably pedantic points, it was an interesting read.

[m1thr0s]

This explains why genuine artists usually care so little for a piece once it is finished.this actually is a bit of an oversimplification...although I think a lot of conversation usually is. I've had this same discussion before in the form of talismans and their creation/applications. There's roughly two camps regarding the proper use of talismans...on the one side you have those who feel that a talisman should always be *released* once its work is done. Occasionally the term *sealed* will be employed but the idea is the same. You build the thing and set it in motion and then dispense with it in some manner, often by burning it which moves its inertia to the astral plane, thus *sealing* it there.

But another approach is creating a talisman which will have a more longterm sort of function such as in the case of wands or staffs or magickal mirrors and so on. These kinds of creations are viewed more for their day-to-day values than their usefulness in facilitating the act of creation itself...or rather...the act of creation is intended to be spread out over a longer period of time so there is nothing to be gained from simply turning them loose once they have been crafted. They still have a lot of work ahead of them.

Some might want to draw a distinction here between art & craft but this distinction is actually superficial in this context since either art or craft are as equally involved in either operations. We are really just dealing with two very different kinds of focus here, not two different kinds of art. Terms like "most artists", like "most magicians" or "most satanists" don't really mean anything, even though these phrases are commonly employed throughout the internet. I think in this forum we are all learning to tighten up our logic a bit more than usual and that benefits everybody in the endgame.

In general, I am having a difficult time making the connections being offered up here. There is absolutely no connection between Netzach & Las Vegas in any Tree I am personally involved with. While I think it is true that everything within the Tree of Life has its dignified and ill-dignified aspects, we are discussing two-thirds of the classical Triad of Earth here, of which Luna would typically be the anchor point...somewhat blatantly omitted from this particular discussion, which is curious. The rule of thumb with dyadic deadlocks of any kind is to find some especially productive way to triangulate them...to include more in the dialogue itself than would otherwise be admitted so long as we are only discussing two opposing ends of anything.

m1thr0s

[Izabael]

this actually is a bit of an oversimplification...although I think a lot of conversation usually is. I've had this same discussion before in the form of talismans and their creation/applications. There's roughly two camps regarding the proper use of talismans...on the one side you have those who feel that a talisman should always be *released* once its work is done. Occasionally the term *sealed* will be employed but the idea is the same. You build the thing and set it in motion and then dispense with it in some manner, often by burning it which moves its inertia to the astral plane, thus *sealing* it there.

But another approach is creating a talisman which will have a more longterm sort of function such as in the case of wands or staffs or magickal mirrors and so on. These kinds of creations are viewed more for their day-to-day values than their usefulness in facilitating the act of creation itself...or rather...the act of creation is intended to be spread out over a longer period of time so there is nothing to be gained from simply turning them loose once they have been crafted. They still have a lot of work ahead of them.

Some might want to draw a distinction here between art & craft but this distinction is actually superficial in this context since either art or craft are as equally involved in either operations. We are really just dealing with two very different kinds of focus here, not two different kinds of art. Terms like "most artists", like "most magicians" or "most satanists" don't really mean anything, even though these phrases are commonly employed throughout the internet. I think in this forum we are all learning to tighten up our logic a bit more than usual and that benefits everybody in the endgame.

In general, I am having a difficult time making the connections being offered up here. There is absolutely no connection between Netzach & Las Vegas in any Tree I am personally involved with. While I think it is true that everything within the Tree of Life has its dignified and ill-dignified aspects, we are discussing two-thirds of the classical Triad of Earth here, of which Luna would typically be the anchor point...somewhat blatantly omitted from this particular discussion, which is curious. The rule of thumb with dyadic deadlocks of any kind is to find some especially productive way to triangulate them...to include more in the dialogue itself than would otherwise be admitted so long as we are only discussing two opposing ends of anything.

m1thr0s

I agree with most of what you said, and I should definitely have not said something about most artists as it's completely taken away the focus from where I meant it to be =/ Instead I should have used the example of the Buddhist monks who sweep up their painstakingly created mandalas when they are done--that is the spirit of art and magick that I was trying to express--not to denigrate anyone's views on what an artist is.

Back to the Tree of Life...it doesn't matter so much if you view Las Vegas as having Netzach qualities or not (for me it always has though--I've spent a lot of time in Vegas as well as the sphere--since it's my "home sphere"--as Pamphage's is Hod--hence why we are complimentary.)



Atu XIV is the key to everything I've said here. That and its conjunction with Peh. I think I've already belabored this point, but let me say that the arrow shooting upward is the Will containing the magicking goal. If the practical magick is done correctly, the arrow of intent will fly across (or "into" depending on how you view it) the Abyss to be implanted deep into our psyche where it must manifest. Also a lot of astral energies are stirred up during an actual magickal working and those are all flying around all over me--and I don't even pretend to know exactly what is going on with them--I just see them...it's quite a lot like Crowley's version really--he really understood this path IMHO.

http://izabael.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/08/09/art.jpg

I'm really sorry I can't be more literal or specific, but the thing is when I'm too specific it will alienate someone's own view who is tapping into the same energy but just visualizes it differently (that's already happening here). I try to be as specific as I can in Qabalistic/Magickal terms to describe what is happening in a practical magickal ritual. For me if I had to pick one formula from one Atu, then Vitriol would be it, as I can literally make just about anything happen with it.

The point of all this yappity-yap? My practical magick improved dramatically when I finally understood at which point the the magick took place. I used to view Tiphareth as the center but actually that's not where I should be focusing my attention during a working. I *AM* Tiphareth when I'm doing a magickal working. So like the Siamese-twin magician in Atu XIV, I'm concerned with my hands and the connection they are about to make--and *that* is the conjunction of Peh and Samech (there is a ton of magickal tension at that point--probably because it needs to be so strong to shoot the arrow all the way into (or through) the Abyss.) That's what the card represents to me, and that's why it's the "Art" card. It's the key to all practical magick, IMHO.

There is more I could add--especially about the connection between Yesod and Da'ath (one reason I didn't delve deeply into Yesod in this post--because then I totally have to bring up Da'ath, because I feel they are symmetrical twins and have everything to do with magick manifesting upon earth, BUT I don't think this needs to be completely explained or understood for practical magick to work so I left it out.

xoxo,
*iza

[m1thr0s]

Not to side-track this even further but in reading through this topic I can't help reflecting on the proximity principle, which places the Art Card...not between Luna & Sol as we find in Thoth but rather between Mercury and Sol, so that the angle of it's path is the same as the angle of its symbol. The proximity principle isn't just some personalized variation on the Tree of Life paths but is rooted in a specific principle, aligning the chronologies of their Hebrew Letter assignments to the geometrical chronology of paths as outlined in the proximity principle itself.

So Samekh falls out 15th in the letters and path #15 positions (geometrically) between Hod & Tiphareth, Mercury & Sol. It is actually Ayin = Devil that positions between Luna & Sol. This arrangement has some very specific kinds of applications and I don't necessarily try to push it as the *corrected* Tree of Life arrangement so much but let people make up their own minds about that. The fact remains of course that there has never been established any logical way to organize paths based soley on their positions before this principle was identified, so it's kind of a big deal in that respect. For myself, I have become perfectly accustomed to thinking of the Art Card as rooted in Mercury and not Luna at all. As an occult artist the connection here is pretty well a slam-dunk once there turns out to be other qualifying criterion making the assertion possible.

m1thr0s