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Article OST THE SYMBOLISM OF THE EQUILATERAL TRI... ← Page 6 of 7 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Ost The Symbolism Of The Equilateral Tri...
as exhibited in the bctoks " Jetzira ¦ ¦ " arid " Zoha * , " where the 10 5 ^^ r ^ ' ^ epte ^ ent all the manifes t ation s x ) f the Deity , as revealed in tM tmiter ^ e .
"We toe " not" aware that the Elabbalists employed the equilateral triangle : && ' k symbol , but we Bee in their writings that the first ten numbers were coinsidered somewhat in the same manner as by the ^ thagoreatos . These toimerMs , together faith the twenty -two letters of the alphabet , are said to be the "thirty-two wondrous ways of wisddm " universe .
Of the nuinberS , Meph r or 1 , denoted the first manifestation , spirit , bir logos ; B ^ % 2 ^ ffi 4 , the elernerital fire ; while the remaining six numbers of the decade indicate the BeVer ^ ^ the mateiial world . In neither of these systems do % e retcoginze n trinitarista , though here , as elsewhfe ^ e , m & y b ^ found wh & t inay be termed , by way of distinction a
, triadistn . The idea of % i ^^ is undcmbtedlj p ^ speculations . But the distinction between a triad of divine powers or manifestations in these system persons , in tb e Oiristiaii & ense of the term , is an essential one , and the two ideas iniist not be confounded . The nature of the triad is
expressed in the diagram by which , according to Plutarch , it was represented in the philosophical system of the ancient Egyptians . This was a right-angled triangle , of wMch the perpendicular was supposed to be e ^ ual t 6 3 , the base to 4 , and the hypothenuse to 5 . The perpendicular represented the masculine nature , the base the feminine , and the hypothenuse the product or offspring of both . In
this representation , intelligence , or Divine wisdom , acting on matter , produces the kosmos , or order and beauty in the universe . But these three are neither co-equal , co-existent , or co-eternal ; the third person of the triad is inferior to the second , the second to the first . This triangle , itself of unequal sides , was not a symbol of equality
of powers and unity of persons , but of the distinct natures of cause and effect in the production of the universe . And this meaning is borne out by the pictorial representations of the Egyptian theology , in whicn the third person of the triad is generally subordinate in rank to the others , and represented as their offspring , while the second person of the triad is as generally represented as a female .
The equilateral triangle , on the contrary , viewed in the light of the doctrines of those who gave it currency as a divine symbol , represents the Great First Cause , the creator and container of all things , as one and indivisible , manifesting himself in an infinity ot forms and attributes in this visible universe . This idea , in which all
the manifestations of the Deity proceed from unity in a chain or line from the highest to the lowest , excludes the ntftion of a trinity , in the Christian sense of the word . It is , of course , open to any inquirers to show that , as an emblem , the equilateral triangle may be fitly employed to represent the idea of three divine persons in
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Ost The Symbolism Of The Equilateral Tri...
as exhibited in the bctoks " Jetzira ¦ ¦ " arid " Zoha * , " where the 10 5 ^^ r ^ ' ^ epte ^ ent all the manifes t ation s x ) f the Deity , as revealed in tM tmiter ^ e .
"We toe " not" aware that the Elabbalists employed the equilateral triangle : && ' k symbol , but we Bee in their writings that the first ten numbers were coinsidered somewhat in the same manner as by the ^ thagoreatos . These toimerMs , together faith the twenty -two letters of the alphabet , are said to be the "thirty-two wondrous ways of wisddm " universe .
Of the nuinberS , Meph r or 1 , denoted the first manifestation , spirit , bir logos ; B ^ % 2 ^ ffi 4 , the elernerital fire ; while the remaining six numbers of the decade indicate the BeVer ^ ^ the mateiial world . In neither of these systems do % e retcoginze n trinitarista , though here , as elsewhfe ^ e , m & y b ^ found wh & t inay be termed , by way of distinction a
, triadistn . The idea of % i ^^ is undcmbtedlj p ^ speculations . But the distinction between a triad of divine powers or manifestations in these system persons , in tb e Oiristiaii & ense of the term , is an essential one , and the two ideas iniist not be confounded . The nature of the triad is
expressed in the diagram by which , according to Plutarch , it was represented in the philosophical system of the ancient Egyptians . This was a right-angled triangle , of wMch the perpendicular was supposed to be e ^ ual t 6 3 , the base to 4 , and the hypothenuse to 5 . The perpendicular represented the masculine nature , the base the feminine , and the hypothenuse the product or offspring of both . In
this representation , intelligence , or Divine wisdom , acting on matter , produces the kosmos , or order and beauty in the universe . But these three are neither co-equal , co-existent , or co-eternal ; the third person of the triad is inferior to the second , the second to the first . This triangle , itself of unequal sides , was not a symbol of equality
of powers and unity of persons , but of the distinct natures of cause and effect in the production of the universe . And this meaning is borne out by the pictorial representations of the Egyptian theology , in whicn the third person of the triad is generally subordinate in rank to the others , and represented as their offspring , while the second person of the triad is as generally represented as a female .
The equilateral triangle , on the contrary , viewed in the light of the doctrines of those who gave it currency as a divine symbol , represents the Great First Cause , the creator and container of all things , as one and indivisible , manifesting himself in an infinity ot forms and attributes in this visible universe . This idea , in which all
the manifestations of the Deity proceed from unity in a chain or line from the highest to the lowest , excludes the ntftion of a trinity , in the Christian sense of the word . It is , of course , open to any inquirers to show that , as an emblem , the equilateral triangle may be fitly employed to represent the idea of three divine persons in