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The Qabalah is pre-eminent in the mystical and occult traditions of the West because of one simple fact: Qabalah is the only complete esoteric system to have survived in the Europe. It is taught by most of the esoteric schools of the West because its purity and common sense form the best foundation for all subsequent work. Its philosophy and techniques underpin the entire structure of the Western esoteric tradition. Moreover, in its practical aspect – Alchemy - the Qabalah also offers the means to reach the highest attainments of spiritual illumination.
A real spiritual tradition is able to give its practitioners the means to achieve mental and emotional poise, psychological maturation, spiritual awareness, and self-transcendence. In short, it must be able to guide the individual, stage by stage, to enlightenment. An authentic tradition is a complete system of valid metaphysics. It has a complete cosmology that is both observable and experiential. It needs to teach emanation and numeration in order to give the sequence and frequency that constitutes interdependent existence. It requires a profound understanding of the nature of awareness and the interior constitution. It must possess a storehouse of images that are embedded within the collective unconscious and provide an array of meditative techniques in both creative and formless modes. It must be adept in true education (literally, "to bring forth") of both the conscious and subconscious aspects of the mind. And with all this, it must also be able to transmit the art of integration and skillful application to produce gradual and sustainable transformation. Of the great Mystery schools of the Mediterranean basin - the temples of Egypt, the Greek cults of Eleusis and Orpheus, the school pf Pythagoras, or the Hermetic wisdom of Alexandria - none have survived in their entirety. There are some bare bones remaining, but the living organism - the "Body of Light" - is lost to us. We do not possess the complete system necessary to journey all the way to the mountaintop. This is the quintessential reason why the mystics and adepts of the West practice Qabalah. It has preserved the philosophy, the words-of-power and the techniques of the ancient Mysteries. The Qabalah imparts the Primordial Wisdom Tradition in imagery and language native to Western culture and experience. And most important, it is complete. In the European esoteric movement, Qabalah forms the basis of Rosicrucianism; the founders of Freemasonry employed its symbolism in their higher degrees, and the Alchemists used it as the key to unlock the mystical techniques that comprised their praxes. In the last 120 years, the most influential Western esoteric teachers - Eliphas Levi, Paul Foster Case, Dion Fortune, W. E. Butler, Z’ev ben Shimon Halevi, and Gareth Knight - have all been practicing Qabalists. Many people assume that the Qabalah is totally Judaic in origin; this is not correct. Qabalah no more belongs to the Jews than Buddhism does to the Tibetans, or Christianity to the Vatican. No one people or any single individual can own a spiritual teaching. Of course, the Jewish mystics did culturally imprint the Qabalah; it wouldn’t have worked for them if they had not. The same thing happened to Buddhism after it was brought to Tibet from India. This has always been the way of true esoteric work: adaptation to the culture and times. In legend, it is said that the Qabalah was brought to earth by the Archangel Ratziel, just after the death of Adam (thus long predating the birth of Abraham) to show us the way back to the Garden of Eden. Naturally, we pay respect to the sages of Israel because they preserved the Qabalah despite unimaginable odds. Similarly, the monasteries of Tibet preserved scriptures and teachings that would otherwise have been lost to the world. Nevertheless, the holy Qabalah is a message from Divinity to all humanity. Rising Phoenix Foundation offers a wide range of seminars for you to learn and experience the Qabalah – from introductory workshops, to regular classes, and advanced retreats, including the annual “Temple of Solomon the Wise”. |
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