Isis and the Tree of Life

Reflections on the Galactic Alignment, the Sacred Science of Ancient Egypt and the Kabbalistic Path of Return

By Sharron Rose, Visionary Film Producer, President, Sacredmysteries.com With hieroglyphs by John Nichols, Director, The Institute for Spiritual Archeology

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Looking at the Tree of Life one finds at its base the Sefirah Malkhut or Kingdom, the home of the Shekhina, the ultimate receptacle and full material reflection of the light and energy of the primordial source. Above her one encounters Yesod, the Moon or the realm of emotion, sexuality, the lunar force and ebb and flow of the tides. Rising above Yesod is Tiferet, the Sun, the realm of beauty, the harmonizing principle and basis of the good, the compassionate and the true. Above Tiferet is Da’at, the veiled Sefirah, the abyss, the Center of the Galaxy and seat of gnosis. High above Da’at like a crown of creation is Keter, absolute transcendence, and the supreme unity beyond duality. When the Galactic Alignment occurs on December 21, 2012 the Earth (Malkhut), the Sun (Tiferet), and the Center of the Galaxy (Da’at), indeed, the whole central pillar of the Tree of Life, will be in alignment. This portends a time of great opportunity for humanity.

According to the Kabbalistic teachings of Isaac Luria, as the luminous radiance of the Shekhina poured forth from the divine source, the Sefirot or symbolic vessels of the Tree of Life were unable to completely contain the fullness of this luminosity. Overflowing with this divine radiance, the first three Sefirot, Keter, Hokhmah and Binah remained intact but still overflowed with light. The remaining seven Sefirot were not strong enough to hold this pure light, the Sefirotic vessels were shattered and the light was broken up into sparks. These sparks fell through the metaphysical void into the “Sitra Achra”, the “Other Side”, interpenetrating the world of action and material reality into Malkhut the world of the Shekhina, of Earthly manifestation, of time and space. As moths are attracted to a flame, the sparks attracted layer upon layer of shells/ husks known as the kelipot. The kelipot obscured the light and knowledge of our primordial source. ⁸

This metaphor has a distinct parallel in the Indo/Tibetan concepts of the kleshas or origins of human suffering. The kleshas, emotional defilements or ‘poisons’ bind us to the endless cycles of death and rebirth. Like storm clouds swirling across the sky obscuring the radiant light of the Sun, the kleshas of ignorance/delusion, anger/aggression, attachment/desire, pride/arrogance jealousy/envy veil the innate clarity of the mind. To achieve true enlightenment one must totally cleanse the mind of these defilements, transmuting them into the enlightened qualities of spaciousness, clarity, discernment, equanimity and all accomplishing wisdom. Through this powerful transformative process the veil is lifted and one is brought face to face with ones true eternal nature.

For in actuality we are eternal beings. We are the reflection of divinity, a fractal representation and mirror of the Divine source. As seeds of the pure light and energy of the Shakti/Shekhina we are the way in which Divinity comes to know itself. We are God/Goddess in the flesh, a materialized, crystallized emanation and embodiment of our Divine progenitor, the outer projection of the divine plenty (Shekhina) into physical reality (Malkhut). We are all unique facets of the complete image of an ever-evolving interconnected universe. Shrouded by the veils of karma, the husks of the kellipot we have forgotten our divine inheritance. Yet once the door is opened to this ancient knowledge, there is the potential for a great transformation to occur.

As maintained in the teachings and practices of all the great wisdom traditions throughout the planet there comes a moment of awakening when the seeker turns her or his heart and mind away from the distractions and noise of the outer world of matter towards the inner world of spirit. Once this occurs, once one begins to recognize the beauty and grace of the larger divine reality, a longing for inner freedom, clarity, integration and re-union arises. Through the process of purification, through devotion, commitment and right action, the soul looks inward and begins to long for its home in the light.

According to the Kabbalists the most important task of every Jew is to participate in the Tikkun or ‘Restoration of the World’. In the Shevirah, the ‘shattering of the vessels’ or fall from grace, each spark of the Shekhina, each soul spark experienced the pain and suffering of separation from the magical bliss of divine union. From one perspective we could say that we fell to bring light to the darkness, enlighten the muck and mire of the prima materia. Transmute the darkness into light. We fell so that we could experience the nature of duality and material existence. We fell so that when the time came, when the final moment of reintegration and enlightenment was upon us, the reunion with the supreme source would be so sweet.

On a symbolic level, the Galactic Alignment represents an opportunity for us to reverse this process. By quieting the mind and listening to the voice of the heart, by discovering the place of silence within and entraining ones heartbeat with the galactic pulse of the Great Mother, the journey begins. In this space of quietude we can begin to seek out, perceive and burn away the layers of darkness that surround us physically, mentally and emotionally. Through the clear light of right action, truth and integrity, through the power of love and compassion, the essential spark or seed of the Shakti/Shekhina is nourished and begins to germinate and grow within us. The hardened husks of the kelipot and kleshas, the negative thoughts and emotions, the habitual patterns and karmic propensities are melted away.

From a Kabbalistic perspective, as this happens the holy waters begin to flow downward from Keter the crown Chakra through the central channel of the body into Malkhut the base Chakra and Earthly realm of the Shekhina to make contact with and ignite the Kundalini Shakti, the Goddess energy that lies within us. Through this contact with the divine radiance the Kundalini Shakti is awakened. In a wavelike serpentine rhythmic flow she rises upwards through the swirling vortexes of the chakras and Sefirot. ⁹

Upward through Yesod she streams, clearing away the last vestiges of our mental and emotional turmoil, the clouds of confusion that envelope us. Into the heart center Tiferet she surges, the place of grace, beauty and compassion. It is here that the KA, which is on one level the animating force and astral matrix of the physical body and on another level the self or ego with its various personalities is reunited with the BA or cosmic soul. ¹⁰ The heart takes wings as the now fully integrated being encounters Da’at, the pineal center, Center of the Galaxy and seat of the Great Mother Goddess. ¹¹ Like the son returning to his mother’s arms, like the bride coming to the marriage bed, the long years of exile have ended and the time of union is at hand. Shakti is reunited with Shiva, the Shekhina is reunited with the Lord God as Isis takes you in her loving arms and brings you home. As your eternal spirit soars from the Earth, to the Sun to the Center of the Galaxy to the divine source your luminous energy body begins to glow with divine radiance. ¹² At the culmination, the omega point of this experience, you are transmuted into a shining being of light, filled with the shimmering resplendent power of Divinity. You have now become a fully realized being able to assist all sentient beings on the path of enlightenment.

Traditional teachings throughout the world maintain that in every moment one has the opportunity to encounter and walk this eternal path of return. Yet, as the alchemists stated, there are certain times, which are the most conducive to performing the great alchemical experiment. The Galactic Alignment in 2012 and the years leading up to it hold the promise and potential of the dawn of a new Galactic/Lunar Age that supplants the toxic, dying throes of the Solar Age. This collective moment of opportunity is upon us. It is now up to us to perceive, understand and fully experience its extraordinary transformative power.