Grade Placement & the Minutum Mundum
There is a continuing lack of understanding regarding the placement of the grades upon the Tree of Life, particularly in terms of their elemental associations. I addressed some of the Golden Dawn reasoning behind the seemingly inconsistent placement of the Air grade of Theoricus in the watery Sephirah of Yesod (Luna) and the Water grade of Practicus in the airy grade of Hod (Mercury) in my article Reconciling An Elemental Inconsistency in Issue 6 of Hemetic Virtues. Here, however, I will highlight another aspect, which sheds light on the placement of the elements with the Sephiroth, or, conversely, sheds light on the choice of colours employed. Let us skip Zelator for now, which is Earth and Malkuth, and focus on the three primary elements of Air, Water, and Fire (Yesod/ Theoricus, Hod/Practicus, and Netzach/Philosophus respectively). The Sephirah of Yesod is coloured violet (or purple) in the Queen Scale (the most commonly employed of the four Colour Scales). The colour of Air is yel...