Qlippoth
Qlippoth are the representation of evil or impure spiritual forces in Jewish mystical Kabbalah. They are the opposites of the sefirot.
The schema commonly utilized to visualize the qlippoth is known as the Tree of Death (sometimes, "Tree of Knowledge") instead of the Tree of Life, where the sefirot reside.
Name
The word qlippoth originates in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic as: קְלִיפִּין, romanized as: qəlīppīn. The literal meaning of this word is "peels," "shells," or "husks."
In Hebrew, the word is rendered as: קְלִיפּוֹת, romanized as: qəlīppōṯ.
Although several translations are valid, the English word which most closely captures the esoteric meaning is "husk."
Definition
Many occultists have interpreted the qlippoth in different ways, depending on their personal cosmological beliefs as well as their personal experiences working with qlippothic energies. In broad terms, the qlippoth are the left-over remains of a previous incarnation of the universe in which we live. They represent shadows of a distant cosmic past which sometimes influence our present world.
The inherent danger of the qlippoth is that they do not represent the future or any type of universal "good," yet, they are freely accessible to people as they pursue higher spirituality. In this sense, qlippoth do their damage by seducing spiritual seekers with easy results that appear to emanate from a divine source. However, the qlippoth are not actually self-aware, sentient beings, but their powers may be utilized by entities commonly considered demonc.
List of the Qlippoth
- The correspondences in this table are not universally agreed upon by all scholars of Kabbalah.
| Category | Sphere | Qlippoth | Meaning | Tarot Card | Sefirah |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super-conscious | 1 | Thaumiel | "Twins of God" | Justice | Keter |
| Conscious intellect | 2 | Ghogiel | "The Hinderers" | The Hanged Man | Chokmah |
| 3 | Satariel | "Concealers" | Death | Binah | |
| Conscious emotions | 4 | Gha’agsheklah | "Smiters" | Temperance | Chesed |
| 5 | Golachab | "Burners" | The Devil | Gevurah | |
| 6 | Thagiriron | "The Disputers" | The Tower | Tiferet | |
| 7 | A’arab Zaraq | "Corrosive Ones" | The Star | Netzach | |
| 8 | Samael | "Poison of God" | The Moon | Hod | |
| 9 | Gamaliel | "Obscene Ones" | The Sun | Yesod | |
| 10 | Lilith | "Queen of Night | Judgement | Malkuth | |
| Unification | 11 | Belial | "Worthless" | The Fool | Da'at |
Interpretations
Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism (1941) by Jewish philosopher Gershom Scholem highlighted the fluid nature of Kabbalistic mystical beliefs and the difficulty of arriving on consensus definitions within the Kabbalistic community of believers. This also applies to the qlippoth, with disparate views presented by Rabbis from different traditions.
Christian Knorr von Rosenroth's Kabbala denudata (1684) (translated The Kabbalah Unveiled by Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers) equates these forces with the Kings of Edom and suggests they are the result of an imbalance towards Gedulah ("the Pillar of Mercy") and have since been destroyed. In subsequent Hermetic teachings, the qlippoth have tended, much like the sefirot, to be interpreted as mystical worlds or entities, and merged with ideas derived from demonology.
Left-hand path views
Kenneth Grant, founder of the Typhonian Order, a left-hand path fraternity of ritual magic, provided extensive teachings on the qlippoth. He idealized them as the shadow side of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, representing the chaotic, negative counterparts to the ten sefirot. Grant emphasized the importance of understanding and integrating these darker aspects for a holistic spiritual perspective.
Grant advocated for balancing light and dark forces, believing that engaging with qlippothic energies can lead to significant spiritual growth. He often linked the qlippoth to sex magicand Tantric practices, suggesting these could harness primal energies for transformation. Additionally, Grant suggested that H. P. Lovecraft's description of Yog-Sothoth as a conglomeration of "malignant globes" may have been inspired by the Qlippoth. This connection underscores the view that Qlippothic forces are integral to both ancient and contemporary esoteric thought.
In the Zohar
The qlippoth are first mentioned in the Zohar, where they are described as being created by God to function as a nutshell for holiness. The Zohar gives specific names to some of the qlippoth, relaying them as counterparts to certain sephirot. Though the Zohar clarifies that each sefira and qlippa is 1:1, it does not give all their names.
- Mashchith (מַשְׁחִית, romanized: mašḥīṯ, "destroyer") to Chesed
- Aph (אַף, romanized: ʾap̄, "anger") to Gevurah
- Hema (חֵמָה, romanized: ḥēmā, "wrath") to Tiferet
- Avon (עָוֹן, romanized: ʿāvōn, "iniquity")
- Tohu (תֹהוּ, romanized: tohū, "formless")
- Bohu (בֹהוּ, romanized: bohū, "void")
- Esh (אֵשׁ, romanized: ʿēš, "fire")
- Tehom (תְּהוֹם, romanized: təhōm, "deep")
Creation narrative
The text subsequently relays an esoteric interpretation of the text of Genesis creation narrative in Genesis 1:14, which describes God creating the moon and sun to act as "luminaries" in the sky. The verse "Let there be luminaries (מְאֹרֹת məʾoroṯ)," uses a defective spelling of the Hebrew word for "luminaries," resulting in a written form identical to the Hebrew word for "curses."
In the context of the Zohar, interpreting the verse as calling the moon and sun "curses" is given mystic significance, personified by a description of the moon descending into the realm of Beri'ah, where it began to belittle itself and dim its light, both physically and spiritually. The resulting darkness gave birth to the qlippoth. Reflecting this, they are thenceforth generally synonymous with "darkness" itself.