Distortion of Matrices

Traditional magical cosmology holds that the primary distortion of the matrices of consciousness, the emergence of demons, known as the “fall” of the First Tree of the sephiroth and the arising of the husks — the Qliphoth — occurred outside of time: this moment cannot be traced historically in any historical perspective: there was never a time when the sephiroth existed while the Qliphoth did not. In other words, the opposition of Light and Darkness, altruism and predation, the “direct” and the “distorted” currents of mind are inherent in manifestation itself.

However, although this process cannot be traced ontologically, from the standpoint of Being, it can be mapped gnoseologically, from the standpoint of knowledge, and in that sense one may say that Light is prior to Darkness, and the “ideal,” constitutive manifestation of any matrix is prior to its destructive form.

In a similar way, although the principal cause of the emergence of destructive forces in an individual’s stream of consciousness is that stream’s own selfish nature, the imbalance of the forces of attraction and repulsion — known as “striving toward evil,” “Yetzer hara” (from “yēẓer ha-ra”, יֵצֶר הַרַע) — and Ontologically, most matrices manifest in distorted forms in the mind in a more or less distorted, destructive form. Epistemologically, one can trace those stages, the process and stages of that distortion.

Such study — tracking the “fall” of matrices on the microcosmic level — will not only make it possible to better understand the footholds upon which the system of destructive forces in the mind rests, but also to chart a path to restore the “original” state of those matrices, transforming demonic manifestations into manifestations of Light.

It is clear that on the macrocosmic level this process is practically impossible to carry out — there is no real possibility of transforming a demon as such into an angel or a genius — yet within their own psychocosm a person is empowered and should carry out this work.

Let us reiterate that just as the ordinary, “everyday” influence of demonic matrices on the mind is not the same as possession or obsession, the correction of these matrices is not an exorcism and does not affect the very “nature of the demon,” its being or mind.

Nevertheless, the process of “cleaning” the mind, its healing and correction, is one of the most important tasks of evolution both for the Magus and for the ordinary person.

Let us consider by way of example how a matrix becomes distorted and how, on the basis of that understanding, it can be restored.

The Genius Sitael (סיטאל), No. 3, which ensures the development of the mind by “anchoring” it in the more perfect layers of the cosmos and drawing it toward them, operates by the following steps:

1) ס – awareness of one’s own limitations;

2) י – the manifestation of seeking activity directed “outward,”

3) ט – bringing one’s inner activity into alignment with that outer activity.

These stages are summed up in the formula «סגלת ידידך טהר», “Purify yourself by the virtue of a friend,” which arises from regarding סיט as a notarikon.

The addition of the definitive – אל, signifying action in immanence, clarifies that the matrix סיטאל pertains to the domain of “externally-directed” activity of the mind. Nevertheless, consideration of the Genius’s square allows one to see its high level of activity, saturated with the operations of א and י. Overall, the reading of this square indicates the predominance of expansiveness, and therefore the “hope” formed by the Genius is not an attempt to attract missing energy into the mind, but an active shifting of attention into attractive regions, an attempt to move there, active work on self-improvement.

It is precisely this “binding” effect of the matrix of hope that underlies the possibility of its distortion. When the link ceases to be a means of transition from an imperfect state to a more developed one, and instead turns into an autonomous activity that leads nowhere — ס changes into ו. In other words, if the mind, having seen a “more progressive possibility,” instead of beginning to strive to reach it becomes fixated on that very vision, hope turns into a destructive tendency, becoming an autonomous activity that leads nowhere and only dissipates energy. This “clinging” of the mind to the fruitless “anticipation” of perfection, toward the attainment of which it does nothing, is accompanied by the “extinguishing” of the activity י and its transformation into a “hook” צ. Finally, the inner activity, as a result of such clinging, loops back on itself, detaches from external activity, and becomes a barrier, trapping the mind in impotence — ט changes into ח. The process of matrix distortion is completed by the transformation of the energy אל into a filling ו, i.e., illusory longing replaces manifestation of energies. Thus there arises the demonic matrix Vassago – וצחו. Consideration of Vassago’s square already reveals a completely different character of energies — self-contained, devoid of activity and prospects.

Based on such an analysis, it is not difficult to trace the path of reconstruction of this matrix, which, of course, offers broad possibilities for development.

The application of such methods lies at the heart of the shemhamphorash approach to the analysis and transformation of the mind, which has proven effective in a centuries-old practical tradition.