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The World, Path 32 on the Tree of Life

  • beverleyhawkins
  • May 22
  • 4 min read

Walking Path 32 on the Kabbalah Tree of Life

The World, Path 32 on the Tree of Life is called the Path of Tau and travels between Yesod (Foundation) and Malkhut (Kingdom) on the Pillar of Balance. The World’s journey through the Tree of Life represents the completion of the journey and the attainment of enlightenment. It reminds us that we are all connected and that everything in the universe is a reflection of the divine.   It teaches us to embrace the unity of all things and to recognize the infinite potential of the universe within ourselves.  It can also represent the familiar journey we take every day from being awake to being asleep.  The Kabbala teaches that we have everything we need in order to make the return journey, all we need to do is live our lives, fully and completely.  However, here in Malkhut there are many distractions, and we can lose ourselves here.  We need Malkhut’s virtue of discrimination to be aware of the influences around us so that we don’t end up finding that everything is just too much effort and allow Malkhut’s vice of inertia to set in.  I find it interesting that in our reading the 4 of Cups, was the card that popped up for Malkhut. 


Moving up the path is the beginning of our evolution toward spirit and illumination.  It is also where we move toward our higher self and learn to face all of our hidden fears.  The gifts of this path teach us that we can create and manifest and that this creation and manifestation can be easily accomplished when we align ourselves with more universal rhythms, keeping in mind that we must learn to work with those rhythms and their ebb and flow.


The Hebrew Letter representing this path is Tau, meaning Cross, Mark or Seal.  The concept here is it is complete, or the work is done.  Sort of like an X marks the spot connotation as well, the finishing point for the grand finale.  This finished creation is of course, the physical universe as the process of creation has brought everything together and into its final form however that manifests physically.  Even you in your wholeness are an entire ecosystem unto yourself but still a part of something much greater much like with Sefirot which compounds all the previous pathways together bringing everything to a close, or the halfway point and the state from which life it born and strives to return back to its Divine origin point.  This pathway teaches us that from the very beginning of a journey the end was already set out before us.  In this way we not only create the world we live in, but the heaven we are moving towards as well.  The end and the beginning are one and Tau is the pathway of completion.  The moment Tau is achieved we begin again at Aleph and the end becomes the beginning, and the beginning the end.


In her book Kabbala Pathworking, Sandy Anastasi suggests some of the areas Path 32 can helps us work on include: “Lightness” – letting go of material things; Gaining a proper perspective on the worth of ‘stuff’; Seeing your material roadblocks more clearly; Understanding the limitations you impose upon yourself; Using assertiveness with balance; Getting through your own resistance; Overcoming your fear of losing control; The ability to deal with things of the physical plane; Manifesting your creativity and productivity; Manifesting work and payment for work; Overcoming depression.


Andy Matzner, in his book Tarot for Transformation, Using the Major Arcana to Discover Your Best Self and Create a Life Worth Living says of The World:

One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.  Friedrich Nietzsche.


He says: The World dancer…The circle is finally closed.  Inner and outer have become one.  There is balance and harmonization between the four elements.  Connection between masculine and feminine principles.  Fusion.   Interdependence.  Opposites Integrated.

Yet there is suspension between Heaven and Earth.  Either Or.  Both And.  The World dancer is the center of the Cosmos.  And yet only one singular node in an endless latticework of energy.


Celebrate endings, for they precede new beginnings.  Jonathan Lockwood Huie


In his book The Soul's Journey, Finding Spiritual Messages in the Tarot, James Ricklef says of The World:

“The kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the Earth, and men do not see it.” – The Gospel of Thomas Saying 113  


The World card symbolizes our soul operating within the limitations of our physical being, which calls to mind the saying that we are spiritual beings having a worldly experience.  And so it suggests the phrase “to be in the world, but not of the world.”  This card also recommends finding our place in the world and discovering our oneness with everyone and everything in it.


One of the ways he suggests one might wish to use his book is to do a daily draw and review the basic messages and then consider one of the messages for the card as a lesson or insight to keep in mind throughout the day. In the case of the World the messages to choose from are: Freedom born of limitations; Universal Love; As above, so below; In the world, not of it; No man is an island; The indwelling Divine Spirit; Why are we here in the world?

While both Andy Matzner and Sandy Anastasi focus only on the Major Arcana, James Ricklef also has information on the Minor Arcana. Since I chose a card for each of the Sephirot I thought I'd share some of his information on these too.


King of Wands: The King of Wands is a leader who exemplifies the qualities of charisma, courage, and strength of character.  Also, he has achieved maturity and mastery with regards to his desires, passions, and ambitions.

Four of Cups: The typical image on this car speaks of boredom and ennui, as well as of not seeing the advice, gifts, and opportunities that the Divine offers us.  It also comments on the stability of our emotions and the security of our relationships.

 

Where will your journey take you?

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