Astrology & Kabbalah
by Patrick Mulcahy
An Introduction To Jacob's Wheel
THERE exists somewhere in this wide world an old Book—so very old that our modern antiquarians might ponder over its pages an indefinite time, and still not quite agree as to the nature of the fabric upon which it is written. It is the only original copy now in existence. The most ancient Hebrew document on occult learning—the Siphra Dzeniouta—was compiled from it, and that at a time when the former was already considered in the light of a literary relic. One of its illustrations represents [ADAM]* emanating from [the Divine Essence]* like a luminous arc proceeding to form a circle; and then, having attained the highest point of its circumference, the ineffable Glory bends back again, and returns to earth, bringing a higher type of humanity in its vortex. As it approaches nearer and nearer to our planet, the Emanation becomes more and more shadowy, until upon touching the ground it is as black as night.
[The Veil Of Isis, by H.P. Blavatsky. Part One.—Science. Chapter I. Page 1.]
(*Corrected as per the footnote in most editions.)
It appears that one of the main purposes of the knowledge system encoded into the text of the Sepher Yetzirah is to produce a complex mandala called Jacob's Wheel (Abbrev. JW). (To read about the origin of the geometry of JW please go here.)
The reason I use the name Jacob's Wheel to describe this system is because the Jewish patriarch Jacob, the 'perfected man' of the Zohar, symbolises the Human prototype evolving towards perfection as he journeys upon the wheel of re-incarnation. His twelve sons symbolise the twelve basic zodiacal types of human-being.
The Jacob's Wheel mandala maps out an eternally spiralling and repeating path of human evolution. This evolutionary path consists of 441 distinct stepping stones that are woven into a complex system of inter-related archetypes. Here are some numerical relationships upon which the Jacob's Wheel system is based...
147 = 3 x 49 |
Jacob lived to be 147 years old (according to the Torah) and whether historically true or not, this number certainly does have great esoteric significance in the Jacob's Wheel system. The 147 year 'master cycle' of Jacob's Wheel is the base cycle from which most other greater and lesser cycles are derived. It consists of twenty-one 7-year minor cycles that are broken down into a total of 441 phases of 4 months each. The 147 year master cycle is the smallest possible Jacob's Wheel master cycle that can be broken down into cycles and phases of whole years and whole months.
One theory is that the Jacob's Wheel master mandala is an archetypal map of the Earth's own auric field. If this is the case, then the astrological archetypes employed in the Jacob's Wheel system can be said to represent forces circulating within our home planet's energy field and chakra system. The seven spokes of JW would then perhaps represent the seven chakras within the metaphysical body of the Earth.
Of course, no system is completely self-contained, and influences do enter the Earth's auric field from distant stars, etc, and (as expected) there does indeed appear to be a definite vital and active link that exists between the JW archetypes and forces emanating from their physical counterparts in our local universe—i.e. the astrological planets and zodiacal signs of Tropical astrology.
Because we (human-beings) are born of the Earth we too have these twenty-two Jacob's Wheel archetypes built into our own personal matrix, and all these microcosmic and macrocosmic energy matrices are component parts of one Universal Matrix, and all are interdependent.
Thus, symbolically speaking, and in a certain sense, the JW mandala represents an energy matrix that binds us to the Earth, and as such, the Jacob's Wheel system can also be used as a basis to formulate a universal esoteric system of initiation, magick, and divination.
The Jacob's Wheel mandala maps a series of archetypal cycles within cycles (wheels within wheels) that appear to describe and coincide with powerful energies that flow through the various levels of our inner and outer worlds. In other words, the Jacob's Wheel 'master mandala' is an esoteric cycle and phase calculator, or a kind of metaphysical clock. Your personal JW clock begins ticking over at the moment of your birth.
The various cycles that are derived using the Jacob's Wheel mandala are of different time-scales. Some of these time-scales are vast and therefore difficult to relate to the personal lives of individual human-beings (whose average life-span is only about 72 years). Other cycles however, are of shorter duration and therefore easier to identify as a personal influence.
- A complete Jacob's Wheel cycle is called a 'master cycle'.
- Every master cycle consists of 21 minor cycles (mandalas).
- Every minor cycle consists of 21 phases (Hebrew letters).
- Thus there are 441 (i.e. 21 x 21) phases in every master cycle.
The sequence of progression of the twenty-one Jacob's Wheel cycles and phases is as indicated in the following diagram...
Because of the geometrical structure of Jacob's Wheel a phase is basically composed of four archetypal indicators:
cycle-phase [N/n]
Jacob's Wheel (and its component mandalas) consists of three concentric rings [N] and seven radial arms [n] that look like the spokes of a wheel.
The [N] component (of the cycle-phase [N/n] equation) refers to the ring on which the phase occurs:
Inner ring = 1
Middle ring = 2
Outer ring = 3
The [n] component is a number from one to seven corresponding to the spoke number on which the phase occurs.
- The three rings are associated with the elements: Earth, Water, and Air.
- The seven spokes have numerological significance.
- The 'cycle' and 'phase' components are both astrological in nature.
Phase Example:
 Hebrew Version |
 Astrological Version |
Libra-Scorpio [1/2]
The original Hebrew description of this phase is Lamed-Nun [1/2] (see image above-left), but the Hebrew letters are translated into their astrological correspondences to give us Libra-Scorpio [1/2] (see image above-right).
The minor cycle is Libra. The phase is Scorpio. The phase occurs on the inner ring [1], second spoke [2] - that is, [1/2].
In a Libra-Scorpio [1/2] phase we can expect relationships to be a major theme because Libra is concerned with relationships. The key issues or significant events that arise during this phase are likely to involve 'shared values and resources' because Scorpio rules such issues. For example, finance or business-related discussions with a partner are a possibility during this phase.
For a more personalised interpretation of the phases, their various astrological components need to be related back to the same archetypes as they are positioned in your own personal birth-chart.
The shorter the phase the less time the archetypes have to manifest their energies and therefore their influences are often quite easy to identify. If you are astrologically minded and follow your eight-hour phases you will see that circumstances arise during those phases that reflect the archetypal energies indicated in the associated phase equations. The longer phase archetypes (eg. one-month, two-month, & four-month phases) tend to correspond with the most significant developments that occur in our lives, while the shorter phases (eg. eight-hour phases) reflect more mundane expressions of the archetypes.
Each spoke of each of the 21 minor mandalas that compose Jacob's Wheel contains three astrological archetypes. During each phase one of those archetypes is activated, but the other two archetypes on the same spoke also have an influence during the phase. The 147 spokes of Jacob's Wheel are also called bridges because of this phenomenon. The energy of all three archetypes on a spoke move along that spoke and influence each other.
Thus the full description of a phases is...
cycle-phase [N/n] s1 + s2 + s3
...where s1, s2 and s3 are the three bridging archetypes that
occupy the spoke on which the phase occurs.
Phase Example:
Libra-Scorpio
[1/2] Scorpio + Jupiter +
Cancer
The active bridge archetype for this phase is Scorpio, but Jupiter and Cancer are lesser influences that should also be taken into consideration during the interpretation process.
Click on the following link to learn about the Microsoft Windows-based Jacob's Wheel Calculator v3.
As you can see, Jacob's Wheel produces quite a complex esoteric system, and it is even more complex than I have suggested above, but it becomes second nature after a relatively short period of personal use.
It is thought that the Jacob's Wheel master mandala can also be used as a communication device for contacting the Ophanim angels (or 'devas') who are on a path of evolution paralleling that of Humanity. Ultimately, humans and devas are destined to work consciously together to fulfill the divine Plan and it is hoped that Jacob's Wheel will help towards achieving that blessed union.
If you have any further questions regarding Jacob's Wheel please post them in the Jacob's Wheel Research Group.