Aquarius: Egyptian Tarot Nuit XVII

The Egyptian Tarot trump for the fifteenth path of Aquarius is Nuit XVII. The esoteric title is Daughter of the Firmament: Dweller between the Waters.

Aquarius: Egyptian Tarot of Thelema Nuit XVIINuit is depicted here as bending over the Star Pentactys, a pyramid of fifteen stars.[1] In the lower section of the image is the ma’a Lion of Truth, Nuit’s power in the underworld typified by Leo, the opposite sign of the Zodiac to Aquarius.

The hieroglyphs of Nuit’s name are shown at the top of the card. The ‘pot’ determinative (nu) shows the nature of Nuit as the principle of containment in the cosmic sense, a body of stars. The hieroglyph for ‘sky’ or ‘space’ is symbolised by the heavens above. Space is analogous with the infinite, but is not in itself infinite; that is to say it is not measureless or eternal but is indefinite on the human scale. It is also important to understand that space is not, as some schools of thought have imagined, ‘nothingness’, void, emptiness or mere absence.[2]

Depicted on the lower left border of the card are the symbols of Saturn, the astrological ruler of Aquarius, and Uranus, infernal ruler of the Kerubic signs. Saturn is the principle of limitation and form while Uranus symbolises the breaking apart or overturning of order and tradition in the name of false ideals. To the right is Hé, ‘a window’, the letter of the path. The shape of the letter is that of a nomad’s tent, as with beth. The tent is shown from the side, with the aperture drawn open at the top for viewing. The letter Hé of Aquarius has the value of five. The window of ‘five’ is the star of man, the root of the five senses through which we perceive an appearance of Nuit as visible nature.

Nuit is esoterically associated with Sirius or Sothis, her star of manifestation. To be clear, Sirius is here a symbol and analogy for the supreme principle, the ‘unmoved mover’, by which things appear to come into existence by Its presence—and not by any action on the part of the principle, which does not act. Nothing in nature is separate, having its own cause as though self-contained. Our planet system and Zodiac is part of a vastly greater star system. Sopdet, the Egyptian name for Sirius, the ‘sun-behind-the-sun’, is also the name of the goddess that gives birth to the star of Venus. It has the literal meaning, ‘triangle’.[3] During the time of the solar conjunction or occultation of Sirius, the legend of Isis has it that she hides herself in the swamps of the northern Delta (‘triangle’) region to give birth to Horus. Originally, Set (as ‘seven’) was the only begotten son of Nuit. The pairing of Isis with Osiris was a relatively modern version of the legends of Isis that was better suited to the disposition of ancient Greek and Roman men than the original stellar myth—by ‘myth’ we refer to oral tradition, not something imagined.

Sirius TriangulationSirius forms a group of stars with Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis) and Procyon, called the ‘winter triangle’. This embraces much of the constellation of Monoceros, ‘Unicorn’. Four other stars, Pollux, Capella, Aldebaron and Rigel (left foot of Orion) form the ‘winter hexagon’. This establishes a geometric relationship between Sirius and Orion, which symbolises the heavenly Sah or Holy Spirit. Thus the Nephilim, sons of the Ancient Ones, are sometimes called the Children of Orion, identifying them with the primordial.[4] The geometry of the triangulation of Sirius with the hexagon, or hexagram by extension, automatically declares the Cube of Space, as can be seen by the diagram above.[5] This configuration involves seven stars in all, thus proportionately mirroring the seven bright stars of Ursa Major, the ‘axle of the universe’, rotating while always pointing to the Pole. That is in fact the esoteric meaning of aleph, which corresponds to the eleventh path and Tarot trump The Seer 0. Aleph is not, as has long been supposed, the ox that ploughs the field but is the ox that turns about the wheel or swastika of the stars.

Nuit: Daughter of the Firmament

The fifteenth path of Hé connects Chokmah, the sphere of the Zodiac, with Tiphereth, the sphere of the Sun. The path is called the Constituting Intelligence. It is called thus ‘because it constitutes the substance of creations in pure darkness’ (Westcott). Waite added that it is the same darkness mentioned in the book of Job 38: 9, ‘the cloud and the envelope thereof’. This cloud of ‘thick darkness’ mentioned in the book of Job is the covering of the sea, or the firmament, and is that which contains or holds it. It is therefore fitting that the Egyptian goddess of the night sky, Nuit, should be referred to the fifteenth path. There is also a certain correspondence with the Sanskrit prakriti or ‘substance’, from which the five envelopes or sheaths of being are produced. Each envelope is a covering or hiding of Atma, the Real. The five also relate to the ‘star’ of Nuit, which has five rays and forms the jivatma or creature soul, Tiphereth as the centre of the ego.

Chokmah is the chakra of the Zodiac, as separate and distinct from the fixed stars, which are the domain of Kether and the North Pole of the universe. The Zodiac is the belt or girdle of Venus, the planetary symbol of Nuit in her manifestation as visible nature. Tiphereth, at the further end of this path, is the recipient for the spiritual influence or starry mezla that is transmitted from Chokmah.

The magical power of the fifteenth path is that of Astrology, as Aquarius is the sign of the heavens. This should not be confused with popular notions of astrology. Astrological ‘influence’ of the stars or planets does not mean that the stars as such actually cause events or behaviour. Nothing exists in complete isolation from all else. Every phenomenon is part of a continuum involving all possibilities. The starry heavens are a mirror of the perceptions and for all of life, as above so below. The psyche is reflective, and so are the planets—both literally (they reflect the light of the sun) and metaphorically, as symbols, celestial writing or hieroglyphs.


Notes

From the forthcoming book and Tarot deck.

1. The Pentactys extends the baseline four of the Pythagorean Tetractys by one, to five. It is the geometric symbol of Nuit and her company of heaven. By extension the letter and path of Nuit is ∑ (1–5) = 15. There are altogether 75 Nuit radiations of the Star (5 x 15). The pyramid and star together form the hieroglyph for Sirius, star of Set and the Isis (Aset) Foundation of Egypt.

2. Space is filled by the fifth element akasha, which permeates it. The refutation of heterodox schools of thought is given in Siddhāntabindu of Srimat Madhusūdana Sarasvati [University of Mysore 1981].

3. The heliacal rising of the binary star Sirius is constantly relative to the solar year, thus establishing the strong relation between terrestrial earth and Sirius. The rising of Sirius presently occurs on the 19th July, as measured from Cairo. In antiquity, the rising took place immediately prior to the summer solstice and heralded the onset of the Nile inundation. As viewed from England at the present time, the conjunction of Sirius with the Sun is for 70 days from July 3rd to August 11th.

4. The Nephilim are first mentioned in the book of Genesis, 6: 4. In the book of Numbers, 13, their descendants are called the ‘sons of Anak’. See Nu Hermetica, ‘The Nephalim and Sons of Anak’.

5. The triangle, hexagram and square spell ‘Occult Light’, Aur Muphala, 364, which is a name of Kether as ‘moonflower’. The days in a lunar year are 364, which is also a number of Set, the ‘breaker of the circle (of the year)’.

© Oliver St. John 2020 (revised 2024)

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Capricorn: Egyptian Tarot Set XV

The Capricorn Solstice is here depicted by the god Set-Typhon. The Devil XV is the traditional title of the trump, while the esoteric title is Lord of the Gates of Matter: Child of the Forces of Time. The Egyptian god Set is no devil as such but is the Opener of the Year and Lord of Initiation.

Capricorn Solstice: Egyptian Tarot of Thelema Set XVSet is shown here as God of the South, wielding the was sceptre of sacerdotal authority in his left hand and the Ankh of Life in his right hand. His colour is black, his nemyss and apron of blue-black and indigo. His ornaments, sceptre and ankh are black, gold and grey as according to the key-scale colours of the  path of Capricorn and the ancient Egyptian title that was afforded Set, ‘the black and gold one’ (Set-Nubti). His peculiar ass-head with truncated ears has caused much bafflement. Some have thought he was modelled on a creature that has long been extinct. Whether this is true or not, Set is certainly among the most ancient of gods. Like Sokar, Lord of the Necropolis, Set is older even than the Pyramids. Perhaps he is older than the vast wilderness of the desert itself.

Most descriptions of Set focus on the later dynastic periods of Egypt, where he was demonised and known only as the slayer of Osiris. However, Set is the first and only begotten son of Nuit, the goddess of the night sky. His birth is by divine parthenogenesis. No paternal intervention is required for a star to manifest the mother, for this comes about through the mysterious power of Neïth, or Maya in Hinduism, and which is without beginning or end. To discuss Set-Typhon in terms of Osiris is a diversion from understanding Set’s true nature and function.

Set is the most difficult of gods to ‘pin down’; his very nature forbids it. He is on the other side of wherever we happen to be in terms of point of view. Thus, the Egyptians tended to think of Set as Mercury, called the shapeshifter in Western or Druidic traditions. In northerly locations, typical Setian totems are corvids—the raven, crow, jackdaw and magpie. The function of Set is dual. Firstly, Set veils the invisible in an almost infinite variety of forms. Secondly, he destroys the illusion of the appearance of things. Small wonder then, that Set is not only the ‘First before the Gods’, but is also the most misunderstood of all gods.

Set’s hieroglyphic name is shown at the top of the Tarot picture. The first two letters are phonetics (‘s’ and ‘t’) while the rectangle provides a further clue to Set’s mysterious origins. The rectangle means ‘stone’. This has agricultural and building connotations, as well as that of the graven image. Some of the earliest Dynastic kings of Egypt were Setians, and were noted for their great feats of architectural magnificence as well as introducing irrigation canals.[1] Esoterically, Set is the layer of the foundation of the universe from ‘before the beginning of things’. Likewise, Capricorn or winter solstice is the natural opening of the year. Capricorn is also the ‘height’ or summit of the Zodiac, figured as the tenth house of the midheaven. As height, the mountain upon which Capricorn leaps has its basis buried deeply in the earth—or in fact, as according to the ancient glyphs of the sign, the goat has a fishy tail, indicative of a more cosmic intepretation.

Capricorn: Iset Throne FoundationThe Iset throne of Isis typifies the foundation stone. Set and Isis, though portrayed as enemies in more recent times, are inseparable. Set is the elemental nature of Isis and is, through her identification with Nuit, her only begotten child. Turning to stone, as recounted in folk legends, can be an analogy for the petrification of the psyche, which amounts to being impervious to learning or knowledge. That, however, is only the most outward interpretation, for the ‘men of stone’ or Stone Age as it is termed, bore no relation to what historians have made of it. The great stone monuments and earthworks around the world testify to an ancient civilisation whose ways were utterly incomprehensible to people of modern times. In terms of knowledge, modernity is vastly degraded and is not in the slightest way superior to what is supposed to be ‘primitive’; if we use that word at all we should use it to denote what is primal or principial.

Tales of people being turned to stone are common in myth and legend. It is notable that in Cornish folklore, the origin of prehistoric megaliths and stone circles that abundantly populate the land is illustrated by stories of the petrification of men, women and giants. For example, the Merry Maidens and the Nine Maidens of Boskednan, the Tregeseal Dancing Stones and the Hurlers. A further version of the petrification is given among the legends of King Arthur. The wizard Merlin, in one account, is seduced by the witch, sorceress or nun—she is all these things—Morgan Le Fay. To impress her with a feat of magick he enters a group of standing stones, or a stone enclosure but is unable to leave. Thus, the knowledge of the ‘men of stone’ or old times was withdrawn at a certain point in time.

Capricorn, Set and the Eye of God

The twenty-sixth path of A’ain and Capricorn connects Tiphereth, the sphere of the Sun, with Hod, the sphere of Mercury and mind. It is called the Renewing Intelligence. It is called thus because ‘thereby God renews all the changing things that are renewed by the creation of the world’ (Westcott). This indicates the cosmic renewal through perpetuity of all manifested forms.

Most depictions of the ‘Devil’ are a monstrous representation of the pre-religious Goddess of life and love, variously named Qutesh, Asherah, Lilith or Ashtaroth. For example the scarlet or golden girdle worn loosely about the waist of the Devil XV in early Tarot decks such as the Marseilles Tarot was the signature of Asherah and other primal dancing goddesses. Note that ‘Scarlet Woman’ (AShH ShNI) counts to 666, a number often associated with the Devil or Antichrist, though it is also a symbol of the Sun and of Spirit, and therefore of Christ. It must be said though that the Renewing Intelligence links the Sun with Mercury, and that Mercury is also the abode of Set.[2] The very confusion of symbolism over time might owe something to the Setian power to obfuscate through shapeshifting.

The magical powers of the twenty-sixth path of Capricorn are said to be the Witches Sabbath (so-called) and the Evil Eye. The former symbolises the degraded remnants of long forgotten rites, while the latter is the protection against the hostile forces thus unwittingly evoked. The Witches Sabbath is fictional, owing to the paranoid imaginings of fifteenth century clerics, but the symbolism is peculiarly apt.[3] The backwards dance of the revellers, for example, is a recollection of exceedingly antique rites as well as the whole underlying theology of ancient Egypt. Egypt recognised no ‘progress’ or ‘evolution’; the ideal was always to go back to the source, before the beginning of things. This return is not literally a going back to the past, or the ways of the past. It is a return to the principial origin, which is metaphysical. This spiritual truth is known by every yogin; it is certainly not in any way a symptom of a reactionary disposition among the Egyptians, as profane commentators have supposed.[4]


Notes

From the forthcoming book and Egyptian Tarot deck.

1. Even Seti I, the grandfather of Rameses II in the relatively late Middle to New Kingdom, was named after the great god and ensured the continuance of his cult—in spite of the fact Set was demonised by that time.

2. When a ‘star’ determinative (seba) is added to the name of Set then the hieroglyphs spell ‘Mercury’. Thus Set and Mercury, and the qualities of Mercury, are identical. See Budge, An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary Vol I, p. 707 A.

3. Malleus Maleficarum, or ‘Hammer of the Witches’, which pretended to be the product of fact-finding research, was a bestseller in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Propaganda was one of the first uses of the invention of the printing press.

4. One such profane commentator writes books on esotericism!

© Oliver St. John 2020, 2024.

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