The Serpent and Rider in relation to The Whore of Babylon

[Yonah]

Greetings,

Recently in a discussion with a spiritual friend a mystery came up surrounding the parallel between the serpent and it’s rider in Genesis and the Whore of Babylon riding the Great Beast in Revelations.

My understanding from Zohar is that Samael (poison of God) is the rider of the serpent. This embodiment of the evil inclination is riding and controlling the serpent power, leading Adam and Eve into a lie and thus eating from the Tree prematurely and it becoming the Tree of Death. There are also two great beasts mentioned in Zohar and Torah – Behemoth (destruction) and Leviathan (impermanence). It seems that the Whore of Babylon is also a sort of serpent rider as she rides this great beast, taking in any unclean energy she can find.

I saw this quote in another part of the forum from, Tau Malachi:

In our unenlightened society and culture there is little understanding of the real power of thought and imagination, or of the speech and actions that flow from it – in fact, there is something of a perverse delight in negative thought and imagination, as the real power of the mind or soul-stream is not comprehended. This is an expression of the power of Amalek (or Yaldabaoth, the demiurge) – a downward and backward pull against the evolution to the Highest of Life; hence, the collective power of the bestial nature that has been called the “Great Beast,” consort of the “Whore of Babylon,” which is the personification of the misdirected desire-energy of collective humankind.

It seems that this serpent or desire energy that is not in line with the will of God has grown big and bloated with unenlightened desire. It almost seems like the whore who is associated with the unredeemed Lilith may be riding the beast, but it has quite a bit of control of its own since she is said to be “drunk on the blood” of the Saints.

This parallel of what starts humanity's movement into individuation with what is happening in the book of Revelation at the dawn of true humanity (the child of the Woman of Light), seems to be a great mystery that describes something of human desire going out of control and hindering our progress and yet somehow something that happens as part of the process.

I would love to hear more of this mystery. It seems that there is so much going on, but I have only scratched the surface. Tau Malachi, Elders, and companions, I am eager to see where this topic could go.

Shalom!
Yonah

[Tau Malachi]

Grace and peace to you in the Holy Name of the Infinite One!

The Great Beast, the Whore of Babylon, this is the personification of the ignorance, the darkness, that rules this world in the unenlightened condition. In the unenlightened condition nefesh behamit dominates, and unbridled desire surges and “rides upon it,” giving way to much evil, leading on a path of self-destruction, generating immeasurable sorrow and suffering. The Great Beast and Whore personify the collective manifestation of this, and it is a great force of resistance and opposition to the realization of souls and their enlightenment and liberation, so much so that the way of the holy and enlightened ones, and the Path of Return, is mocked and is despised by the mixed multitude, and there are many deceivers who arise leading many astray who would seek the Path of Return.

The Book of Revelation is a vision of the Second Coming, and as you know we are living in the early stages of the Second Coming; according to Revelation, along with a great influx of Supernal Light there is a growing force of darkness, or resistance and opposition to the Holy Light and kingdom of heaven - enlightenment. At this time there is an increasing force of darkness, evil, in the world, and it will continue to grow in intensity and power, and will acquire greater and greater dominion in the world.

If we look into what’s transpiring in the world, and we see the signs of the time, it can be rather daunting and we could easily become discouraged and feel powerless to bring about a change, but we need to be careful, and abide in our faith, and not fall into fear and hopelessness and negativity. Instead, we need to hold fast to the Holy One and cleave to the Messiah, and we need to live according to the Gospel, enacting what is good and true, actively co-laboring with the Spirit of God (Ruach Elohim) for the enlightenment and liberation of souls - their deliverance, healing and illumination.

There is, in truth, a great virtue to being incarnate in these times - this Kali Olam (Dark Age), and many souls of higher grades of the past were shown these times in dreams and visions, and hoped and prayed that they might be incarnate in these times, understanding the true nature of what’s happening. You see, there is a great need for true messengers of God and true tzaddikim, for there is a great transformation underway and the fate of all is not sealed, but many spirits and souls might be uplifted in the Great Resurrection and Ascension - the Great Exodus.

There is something more that attracts faithful souls to incarnate in these times, however, for because there is such a powerful force of resistance and opposition, whatever is enacted that’s good and true generates greater light-power of merit, and even the least action of righteousness and compassion generates much merit. Thus, living in these times souls have an opportunity for radical leaps in their evolution and realization, more so than in any other age of the past. In this we are greatly blessed if we are willing to the labor of the harvest of souls, willing to sojourn the Path of Return.

In just the same way that the interaction with the serpent (Nechash, Samael) and the fall was integral to the coming of the Messiah, so is the arising of the Great Beast and Whore of Babylon integral to the fruition of the Second Coming - the greater realization of Supernal or Messianic Consciousness in the human collective. Thus, though without intention, this great force of darkness plays an essential role in the fulfillment of Ratzon Elyon, the Will of the Supreme.

In this regard we may consider the great force of ignorance, darkness, that brought about the crucifixion of the Messiah, but in so doing served to bring about the greater revelation of the Risen Messiah and opened the way of the Great Ascension. Those who killed Adonai Yeshua, and the spiritual forces that inspired them, never intended the glorification of God and the invocation of a greater Supernal Influx, but that is exactly what happened through their actions, the Will of the Supreme was served through them unwittingly. The same will be true of those under the influence of the Great Beast and Whore of Babylon, and the various actions they engage in the world.

These are a few thoughts that arose from an initial contemplation of this topic.

Shalom Aleichem!

[Yonah]

Greetings Tau Malachi!

Thank you for your reply and the great insights into this mystery.

It feels like it is a really good time to be alive.. I know there is upheaval in the world, but the quickening of the Spirit is so strong and comforting.

From your reply, I can’t help but look at another image that comes up in the Book of Revelation. The Woman of Light is in the pangs of child birth and she is ready to deliver. My understanding is that she is Imma Israel and is birthing the new humanity, new conscious evolution of true humans as the Second Coming manifests.

The scripture continues to describe a great, red dragon with 10 horns, 7 heads, and 7 crowns that blasphemes from each head. The dragon being red reminds me of desire energy, 10 as Sefirot, but the 7 heads and 7 crowns with blaspheming makes me see the Klappot or Tree of Death. This creature seems to be yet another embodiment of the serpent and its rider Samael & the beast and the Whore of Babylon.

This dragon wants to devour the child that the Mother is birthing. The child is described as a male child (giver as well as receiver?) who is immediately taken to Heaven before the dragon can consume Him.

I wonder if the dragon is karmic continuum/vision, klappot, and egoistic ignorance trying to take the child back to the old patterns to stop the Second Coming from manifesting? The child being taken up to Heaven and protected seems to point to the power of the Lamb that was Slain and everything that has come to pass metaphysically in the book to this point… stopping the child from being taken?

I’m seeing a repeating pattern between the serpent and it’s rider, the beast and the Whore of Babylon, and now the Red Dragon. What ultimately breaks this succession of ignorance and misdirected desire is the power of the Christ as the presence is taken up by more and more beings?

I know these discussions could go many, many places, but this is where I felt led to carry this.

Shalom, Yonah

[Tau Malachi]

Grace and peace to you from Yahweh Elohim, Shaddai!

“Then the dragon took his stand on the sand of the seashore. And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads; and on the horns were crowns, and on its heads were blasphemous names. And the beast I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a bears, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and great authority” (Revelation 13:1-2).

This is the invocation of the great beast, and there is the dragon (Satan, Samael) and the great beast (Anti-Christ), and although we may say that the great beast is the emanation of the power of the dragon, Satan, they are also distinct from one another like father and son. If there is an assumption among mystics of the dragon having ten horns and seven heads, and so on, it’s following the logic that the son resembles the father, but in the passage, in fact, this is the description of the attributes of the great beast, the Anti-Christ.

Ten horns does, indeed, indicate the klippot of the ten Sefirot - husk of the Sefirot, or impure emanations of the Sefirot, and specifically, horns indicate power, the power of the entirety of the klippot - Tree of Death. Ten crowns corresponds with the authority to use the spiritual power of the klippot freely; hence, a karmic shift in the world towards Strict Judgment and the End-Of-Days. Seven heads, each with blasphemous names upon them, these are the klippot of the seven Sefirot of Construction and the adverse manifestation of the Names of God taken up by the Adversary and Anti-Christ. Thus, according to this passage in Revelation, after Satan, the dragon, is thrown down from heaven and set loose on the face of the earth, the full force of the Other Side - the klippot, becomes manifest on earth; hence, a great and terrible darkness manifests.

If we consider the Woman of Light, who is given the wings of the great eagle to go to a sanctuary prepared for her in the wilderness, escaping the power of the dragon, and we consider her Holy Child, who is taken up in divine rapture, and who is transcendent of the fray in heaven and on earth, this speaks to the power of the Risen Messiah and Shekinah of Messiah through which the faithful and elect are able to overcome the dragon and great beast. This is the force of the Supernal Light and the influxes of the Sefirot of Atzilut; hence, the greater anointing of the Second Coming, the Supernal Consciousness, Supernal Force.

There is an ongoing influx of the Holy Light and the growing manifestation of Great Darkness, and throughout the cycles of the Second Coming this increases in intensity and frequency, generating the conditions necessary for the realization of many souls, the Great Ascension or Great Transformation. This, of course, is not a single event, but is ongoing throughout time, and with each occurrence the intensity will become greater; hence, these are personifications in vision of a play of spiritual forces happening through generations and ages, though indeed there is a peak swiftly approaching in this great conflict of forces.

We need to understand that all of these spiritual forces, divine, archonic and demonic acquire influence and power in the world through human beings and human societies, all according to the thoughts (mentalities), words and deeds of individuals and collectives, and thus spiritual forces, in effect, become embodied and made manifest here. In the midst of the Kali Olam, although there is a greater influx of the Holy Light among the true faithful and the spiritual elect, there is an increasing tendency in the collective or mass consciousness towards the Other Side - the darkness, and the darkness, the ignorance, tends to dominate. As the Gospel of St. Philip teaches us, in this world the “good” is not necessarily good and the “evil” is not necessarily evil - good and evil are confused; in the midst of the Kali Olam preceding the Age of the Messiah this confusion is increased and amplified.

If we wish to put the growing darkness of the Kali Olam, or early stages of the Second Coming into proper context, while for the most part the darkness dominating the world throughout the ages has been archonic, in a Kali Olam more and more the demonic takes over and dominates the archonic; hence Satan acting through the great beast and the second beast, as cited in Revelation.

Study world events where great evil has taken over governments and nations during certain periods and you will understand; such events corresponds with demons coming into dominion over archons.

In the midst of all of this the task of the faithful and elect is to cleave to the Risen Messiah, and abide in the Shekinah of the Messiah, preserving the Continuum of Light Transmission in the world, and invoking influxes, divine powers, to hold a balance in the matrix of spiritual forces. Likewise, in this we may understand the importance of remembering our transcendence, joined with uplifting our mind and remembering that God is always with us in the Three Roots, for if we do not remember of transcendence, how can we withstand such great darkness and deception, and how can we engage in the the labor of the harvest of souls (Light Transmission) in the midst of such darkness? The awareness of our transcendence is an essential key; hence, the Holy Child who is taken up in divine rapture and who is transcendent.

These are some thoughts I’d share today.

Shalom Aleichem!

[Marion]

Shabbat Shalom!

There was a contemplation of something that was said in the previous post: "There is an ongoing influx of the Holy Light and the growing manifestation of Great Darkness, and throughout the cycles of the Second Coming this increases in intensity and frequency, generating the conditions necessary for the realization of many souls, the Great Ascension or Great Transformation."

We have said that in a Kali Olam, there is a greater manifestation of darkness in the world and a greater manifestation of light. I'm wondering if the purpose of the greater manifestation of darkness is so that souls of light can overcome the darkness, thus manifesting more light and higher gradations of light transmission? I'm wondering if this is actually how the Second Coming manifests? I was contemplating this like lifting heavier and heavier weights. If I just stick to light weights forever, I won't build as much muscle as if I challenge myself with heavier and heavier weights for a longer duration. The forces of demons and archons are the weights, and we are put on this earth to uplift them.

"The world is sacred as it is." In the midst of joy or sorrow, if I cleave to the Holy One and uplift mind, heart and life to the One, how can I ever say that sorrow is bad and joy is good? and why would I want to cut off sorrow and cleave to joy? What is amazing, the weights are sacred, even the really heavy ones, the weight lifter is sacred, and the space they are lifted is sacred, i.e all has a purpose and all serves the Divine intention.

Another contemplation that came from this is, what if God intended everything that is happening right now? That is, what if the darkness that we see is supposed to be there? What if there's nothing wrong with it? What if our task in noticing is to do something different? To cleave to God, to love friend, stranger and enemy as ourselves? Elder Sarah once taught that what is happening right now is the most merciful manifestation of what could happen. Knowing this allows us to receive all from the Holy One in gratitude.

Praise God!

Blessings and Shalom,
Marion

[sheryl]

Shabbat Eve Shalom!

Elder Sarah once taught that what is happening right now is the most merciful manifestation of what could happen.

What you have shared, Sister Marion, has touched the heart bringing to mind the three roots (remember our transcendence, keep our mind on things that our above, and remember that God is with us, that God is everywhere within all things).

We are taught that Mercy is God's foremost attribute, and so if God is everywhere, then so is Mercy.

Also, as I read though this thread, what Yeshua taught in Matthew 24 is being heard anew. When his disciples asked: what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? His reply included this:

And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

It comes to mind that these birth pangs are a consequence in this world of the increasing presence of Light - as there is more Light pouring into our world, there is an arising of greater darkness. As Light increases, the shadows within the collective consciousness of humanity are revealed by being brought into physical manifestation as wars, as famines, as earthquakes, as well as all the horrific things we hear about each day. This revealing of our collective shadows is an opportunity, for us to see and to turn from evil, and so such is indeed Mercy.

Praise to El, for El's abundant Mercy!

Sheryl

[Tau Malachi]

Grace and peace to you in Messiah Yeshua, our Adonai!

It is not that the Holy One desires there to be sorrow and suffering, and evil, but rather, the Holy One gives life to spirits and souls, and endows them with free will, and therefore spirits and souls are able to choose how they live and what they do, whether for good or for evil, or an admixture. Likewise, in the process of creation the presence of the Holy One withdraws, making space, as it were, for creation, and in the process of creation the Holy One emanates into that space, engaging measured emanations, and the Light of the Infinite is progressively restricted, and in so doing darkness - shades and shadows, arise and come into play.

As we know, the initial force of Supernal Influx fractures and shatters the vessels of creation, creating shards, klippot - impure emanations, and sparks of the Infinite Light become bound up in these. This is the generation of the archonic and demonic realms, the spiritual forces of the klippot, the Other Side.

The prophet Isaiah writes:

“I form the light and create darkness, I make weal and create woe; I, Yahweh, do all these things” (45:7).

The formation, restriction, of light brings the creation of darkness, and the play of weal and woe, or joy and sorrow. The Holy One does not desire sorrow and suffering, and evil, but rather darkness is a byproduct of the act of creation, and the shattering of the holy vessels is an integral part of their ultimate realization, and their eventual tikkune, rectification or mending, brings about their evolution and the fulfillment of Ratzon Elyon, the will of the Supreme.

In this process of creation, in the process of the individuation of spirits and souls from unconscious primordial unity, there is an illusion of separation generated, which is integral to the endowment of free will, and in this there comes self-grasping, attachment and aversion with spirits and souls, and the ignorance, the darkness, comes into dominion. This apparent separation, however, is necessary for free will and the ability to choose good or evil, and it creates the conditions in which an eventual conscious union with the Holy One becomes possible - the choice of reintegration, or a return to the Holy One. Thus, all of the admixture and evil generated is part and parcel of the awakening and evolution of spirits and souls, and their eventual realization in the eternal realm and the Infinite (Ain Sof).

Now, if we consider the Second Coming and the End-Of-Days as told in Revelation, the old creation - the present heavens and earth, pass away, and there is the creation of a new heaven and earth, and the emanation of New Jerusalem. Thus, the very same process of creation is under way, and in this process there is a great Supernal Influx - radical influxes of the Sefirot of Atzilut, and this feeds and increases good and evil, and admixture; everything is “lit up” and amplified, and there is a process of shattering and tikkunim of vessels, and of spirits and souls. Some will experience a radical evolution and transformation, and be drawn into the new creation, and some will not, but will pass into destruction; all that align with the new creation, all that reintegrate with the Light Continuum, are uplifted into it, standing among the living ones, the immortals, in the End-Of-Days.

Listen and hear, and understand! The Second Coming corresponds with an increase in the intensity and frequency of influxes of the Sefirot of Atzilut into Perud - Beriyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, and this empowers all spiritual forces, good and evil, and admixed; likewise, spirits and souls have greater power for good or evil, and therefore there is a more radical manifestation of light and darkness, good and evil. In this way the awakening and evolution of spirits and souls is accelerated as the End-Of-Days approaches, and each is creating the reality that will follow, whether Mercy or Judgment.

The Holy One desire the enlightenment and liberation of all living spirits and souls - the Holy One loves the world and all creatures, and in that love sends the Messiah for the uplifting of spirits and souls in the Great Resurrection and Ascension; but having free will, spirits and souls must choose to enter into the Holy Light and reintegrate with the Holy Light - they must learn love and compassion, and seek conscious union with the Holy One, a unification in the passion of love.

Shalom Aleichem!

[malochim]

Shalom,

I've been contemplating the fall of Adam and Eve in relation to the serpent and desire energy. In Genesis, Eve is drawn in curiousity near the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It is interesting to note as the Holy One vanishes, the serpent appears.

Perhaps this is a subtle indication that Eve is separating herself from the Holy One, directing her gaze, consciousness and desire-energy outward. In fact there is one even more subtle division even before this stage, Adam and Eve are divided as two and they both interact with God as distinct and separate from them and Creation. Originally the Human One was in one body of Light (in Atzilut).

The serpent waits for Eve to be alone, away from her male counterpart. This echoes the creation myth of Pistis Sophia in which Sophia creates the demiurge without the consent of her male partner the Logos.

The serpent tempts Eve to taste the fruit of the tree of good and evil by stirring her desire energy. According to jewish midrash the serpent pushes Eve against the tree and Eve notices that she doesn't die by touching the fruit. God had told Eve that she would die if she ate of the fruit. I imagine that this instilled doubt in Eve, furthering the separation between her and God.

The serpent tells Eve that she will be like God if she eats the fruit. The tree represent Klippah Nogah, admixture of good and evil. I wonder what this passage means on an esoteric level? Why did the serpent tell Eve that she can become like Elohim if she eats of the tree of good and evil? Is that Eve’s own desire? In the Kabbalah we are told that creation started with a similar desire, that God wanted to express and experience himself, and as such the process of emanation began with Man being created in the image of God. Man’s.desire is first directed toward the garden of eden and God and then after the fall it is directed away from the holy light, into spiritual light, astral light, material light.

In Pistis Sophia, Sophia adores the true light. Archons and demiurge creates a false light which mimics the true light. Sophia falls for the trap and is lured into lower dimensions and is trapped. And her light power is stolen hence misdirection of desire energy/serpent power.

Adam and Eve are cast out of the garden of Eden. Or perhaps they are not banished but that is how they experience the separation and loss of connection to Spirit due to the loss of spiritual faculties. They take on a physical form and start the cycle of Gilgulim. The serpent is thrown down and looses its wings/legs. The serpent power is coiled around the base interiour star.

It is said about the serpent: “he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel”.

The letter Resh in the hebrew alphabet means head and is used in the first word of Genesis “Bereshit” in the beginning. As such it signifies the beginning. But Resh can also mean last. The opposite of the head is the foot, and the heel. So the head and the heel signifies a line or a circle, a beginning and an end in a loop. The symbol of the ouroboros a serpent biting its own tail is often used as a symbol for the Gilgulim and transmigration of souls in the realms of becoming. There is also another passage that comes to mind “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

The hebrew word for “scorpion” is derived from the word meaning “heel”. The word for the Messiah is numerically related to the word for serpent through gematria (358). Scorpions and serpents is sometimes used to describe demonic forces. In jewish midrash regarding the 40 years in the desert we are told that The scorpion’s venom is cold, and the serpent’s venom is hot. I’m wondering if this has something to do with the three channel ways of the serpent power and the white father seed and the red mother seed?

It is interesting in a way that the only thing that brings about this whole process is a shift or restriction of consciousness. This is called the process of tzimtzum. In a sense we never left the garden of Eden, and the kingdom of God is spread out all around us. The forces that oppose us are in a sense the effects of our fitful nightmares as spirit descends into its own glory and radiance.If we would wake up from the dream we would realize that in a sense it did not happen at all but was only experienced, it didn’t affect anything but the consciousness experiencing it. A good analogy would be that of a film screen on which a film is projected. Even if water is projected on the screen it wouldn’t become wet.

Well these are some of the thoughts I had on the subject.

Blessings in the Light of the Messiah,
Jonas