The Hebrew letter Resh, means-Head. Thus the Head is seen as the Sun of the Body. It is the Head-Sun that rises above the Earth and the lower animal thoughts of the survival thinking. It also implies the "Son of the Divine Creative", as all dying gods were symbolized by the Sun, in ancient myths. The true dying god, is DNA, the molecule made by Sun's-Masculine "will to force", in union with Planets who are "will to form". Hence, Son and Maid.
The Druid Craft Tarot-Key 19-The Sun, keeps to the traditional tarot image of one golden child. The harp not only signifies a bard, but also "vibration" and "frequency", which are produced by the Sun's electromagnetic spectrum; Microwaves, which are known as "serpent forces", in ancient metaphysics. This card shows us the Golden Child, Buddha, or Christ, that is our true Psyche and inheritance from the Divine Creative. The Promethean child of the Sun god and Moon goddess. The decorative horse tack, displays a Sun center piece and also shows a salamander, of whom the ancients believed was the creature born of fire, and even started the unexplained fires of spontaneous fame. Hence, the salamander was often the sigil for the Sun.
Before the "flesh-o-Phobia" of Christianity, human beings used to believe that the "Human form" was the Golden Child of Spirit. Hence, the word Hu-Man, which uses the combination of the Mandarin word Hu-God- and the Sanskrit word, Manas-Mind as our physical forms. Once, we were known as a Child of God, who has forgotten their inheritance, (Prodigal Son parable) and only has to remember who they are to claim their unlimited wealth from the "Father". The Flesh is a Sacrament of the Spirit.
The Thoth-ATU 19-The Sun, is cited as the Thirtieth Path and/or the Collective Intelligence, in Dr.Paul Foster Case's Tarot instruction called [The Thirty Two Paths of Wisdom]. The Collective Intelligence of the Sun (Son) exercises control over the 12 signs of the zodiac (12 guideposts of Personality), as shown on this card by the 12 rays radiating outward from the central orb, as well as, a link between the personalities that have been experienced in different incarnations.
The Path of Resh, is the first of the Personality triad of paths, rising on the Tree of Life, from Yesod (foundation) to Hod (splendor). Upon encountering the inner Path of Resh, one will experience the intellectual-formative side of this conscious energy as an activating force of the Personality. Just as the Higher Self and the Spiritual Self are composites of the masculine-intuitive dynamic, Yod and a feminine-Intellectual-formative , Heh, that together combine opposing forces , producing a set of equalized forces called Vau, so does The Path of Resh.
All of this is explained in greater detail in my apprentice- class reference book by Robert Wang: THE QABALISTIC TAROT (a text book of Mystical philosophies). For now, suffice it to say that The Sun-collective, assembles all the component parts of the Personality, on these lower paths, by infusing them with "light and Warmth" which are considered intellectual qualities. Thus the Path of the Sun (Resh) is considered the highest level of human intellect, as The Star-ATU 17, is considered the highest path of human emotions.
What may be curious to the discerning student of Tarot, is that when you combine The Sun 's high intellect with the high emotion of The Star card, the balanced effected is represented by The Tower-key 16, which at first glance seems the opposite of balance, if not outright chaos. However, what we are witnessing here, is the destruction of the unworthy elements of the "man-made personality", the "Babel self", so that the Sun (son) Solar Personality is free to arise to its Source.
The Lower Paths on the Tree of Life, Tau, Shin and Resh, (The Universe, The Aeon, The Sun-), are the symbols of the component parts of the Personality which function through the body-vehicle, as Spirit's experience-collecting apparatus. The Higher Self, a collective of All, must function through the Personality , "a point in time", if it is to influence the physical plane, as Pure Spirit must function through the Higher Self to establish an measurement of Self and/or "Self-Awareness". The fact that we perceive separation between these aspects of One, is to necessitate understanding of each of the components that are in a state of infinite connectivity. The Tree of Life does describe, by its pattern, a degree of separation, as Sephiroth, but the Paths show us they are all connected and that the perception of separation is to expedite understanding of a dimension of conscious energy-intelligence.
Perception, is noted for its wide varieties from one organism to another, so it is up to each individual student to literally create their own Qabalah (receiving). The Path of Resh is crucial in developing the individual Qabalah. Upon journeying this Path of The Collective Intelligence, one will receive the imprint and acceptance of "Spirit guides: or those beings of the Collective, who direct the inner learning experience of the student. On the Path of Resh (head) the candidacy for Tiphareth (Beauty), The Conscious of the Son (Sun), and /or Higher Self, is begun. The Path leading into Hod, is where inner discoveries are made as the Inner Teachers exert their influence on the material world, clarifying the relationship between mind and body.
The Path of Resh, will help the student understand the control and limitations of intellect. The Path of the Sun, is also the path of ”awakening", that helps the student understand the use of the tremendous "Sexual Force" of Yesod (Foundation) that is known as the "secret" or Arcane force manipulated by the initiate of the Mysteries. This force has many names, such as "Serpent Force", Kundalini, or "Life Force", all of which fall short in proper perception, as most definitions do. This force must be experienced to be understood, and proper preparation for its "rising" must be made by experiencing of the Perceptual Intelligence on the Path of Shin (The Aeon). The double helix of DNA, and/or the "dying god", may also be shown as dancing twins on the Thoth Sun Card, for it is a spinning molecule.
Yesod, is attributed to the Moon which governs the ebbing and flowing of the Astral Light (Akashic Fluid) and is the sexuality beneath our material existence, i.e. DNA. Hod assigned the planet Mercury, the first similarity of the specific Personality. The Personality is hermaphroditic, as male and female qualities have yet to be separated out as specifics. Hence,the Path of the Sun, when considered developmentally, is the point of childhood,and/or of the emerging Personality as it builds toward an earthly incarnation. By traveling upward, towards Hod, we are once again experiencing this initial innocence: a kind of re-experiencing youth and/or a rebirth. The initiate reaches a stage where there is some recollection of the Source from which we emerged.
The dancing Twins, on the Thoth Deck Sun card, symbolize the purest-innocent repression of the electric-male (Earth) and the magnetic female (Water) principles in physical manifestation. These Twins are also a reference to the astrological sign of Gemini, the sign that links Taurus (Earth) and Cancer (Water). The ancient Greeks and Romans also referred the sign Gemini, to Apollo and the Sun.
In the Thoth Deck Sun card, the green mound beneath the Twins, symbolizes fertility, as its shape shows aspiration to the Higher Self. The Children dance, free from enclosure, symbolizing freedom from the "prejudices of the people that date morally from the about 25 hundred B.C." [Crowley] Here, the Sun, is the Rose-Cross expanded from four arms to 12 rays and embracing the whole of creation in its rays, it is the “adorable Fire” that is the vital life force of all creation. This expanded "Inner Sun" is felt by the initiate, as a very warm rising, fertile power, and adorable fire, that does change the physiology of the physical form into the "Master’s Body" and/or the Philosopher's stone.
The Hexagram is the symbol of the composite Thirtieth Path which is compressed of the Four Elements, the Signs of the Zodiac, and the Planets, all under the Ruler ship of the Sum. Thus, the Hexagram is the symbol of the perfect integration of Personality and Higher Self (Tiphareth -meaning Beauty). The Sun is also called the "Splendor of the Material World”,
Representative of the intellect acting upon the dual human condition of, consciousness and the physical-sensual- body. Thus, the Sun is a point of connection with the Greater Life that is comprised by balancing the human intellect of measurement with the Higher Intellect of infinite wisdom, that is the "Sun (Son) of God". One might remember that there is no measurement in Infinity, the Mind in this state of "no boundaries" is just "The Dream" of existence, while, with Personality, the Dream, is now witnessed by the "lucid dreamer" who armed with measurement, can discern.
For the initiate, experiencing the Path of Resh, is very profound as it is the introduction to the inner sun, which is the light of the personality, as the outer sun is the light of the physical world. What one tends to forget, while experiencing the warmth and light of this inner sun, one's personality cannot look directly into this solar intelligence, any more than they can at the physical sun, without suffering damage to their lower-persona. As shown by The Tower Card, equilibrium will be reached by "burning away" what is unworthy of the Higher Personality.
As I have said before, working on the Paths brings about definite physiochemical changes in the human body and as one of the most noted teachers of the Hermetic Qabalah, Paul Foster Case has stated in his study course, The Thirty-Two Paths of Wisdom,"...marked inner differences from the average person, are due to psychological contrasts in the mental state of the ordinary human beings, but they are also the outer signs of organic changes inside the skin of the new creature. He [She] is chemically and structurally unlike genus homo. There are different constituents in his [her] blood stream. Through his [her] nervous system pass currents of force not present in most human bodies because in his [her] organism channels are open which are closed in the physical vehicle of most persons. Centers in the nervous system and in the brain, and glands related to them, function differently in the body of an adept from the way they do in the bodies of the greater number of his [her] contemporaries." (The brackets are my own addition, as it was written when the proper He was used to describe both sexes.) This is the same physiochemical change that happens to adepts in the Tantric Arts, where balanced Divine Male and Divine Female energy opens up the Divya Sidhis or magic abilities.
The Qabalist always bears in mind that the Personality, the component parts of which are represented on these lower Paths of the Tree of Life, functions through the body as an experience-collecting vehicle for the Soul/Spirit. To divorce the body from the Spirit is a most serious mistake of divisionism, for then we are mentally and thus physically divorcing ourselves from the very Mental Powers that created the body! The body is the golden crucible of the Alchemist, and the Sun is the important symbol, as well as, the furnace heat that is the alchemical process of turning the lead of unworthy thought into the gold of Higher Mind.
When the ATU/Key 19-the Sun Card is thrown during a reading:
· The querent shall experience gain, riches, glory and sometimes
· Maybe called arrogant which is often a misunderstanding of their glowing self-confidence.
· The querent might make great displays of vanity but this is only seen when accompanied by very negative cards.
· The dance of the divine twins, can also be considered a meeting of the soul (solar) mates. However, this most esoteric and requires a Lover’s or Love card to clarify as an exoteric event.
- A creative and joyful phase.
When ill dignified, accompanied by very negative cards:
Sometimes this card will then mean, vane display, and arrogance.