The Three Goddesses, and the Tree Sophia.

The dream was deep, and brooding, I had met with he I had come to know as ‘Rumi’ in a gated garden of Kensington, a nod indeed perhaps to Peter Pan, but it wasn’t deliberate or thought out. It just happened.
It was an atmosphere of melancholy.
A man, am I, in life of two halves, or maybe even four quarters, my peers and friends enjoy “football boxing and rock n roll.” As I do.
I also seem to have followed another path devoid of others pursuant or influence, things happened, things appeared, i’m sure the tale is familiar to all who walk such a path though mostly they appear to be in the company of like minded souls unlike Billy No-SoulMates me.
I wonder why? I sometimes think though usually am neither bothered or concerned, but tracing ancestry yielded some clues. Past life regression yielded less, except a traumatic vison that I was unable/ am unable to delve deep into.

“Rumi,” I said, ” If someone lives their life following their football team, and everything revolves around it, and they are happy despite their team being far from the best, is that a life in vain? Is such a man any less than the studious hermit devoted to a life of ‘God’ ? “
Of course thereafter followed a diatribe on the virtue of patience, on modesty, on being humble and more, that such a man, in his heart, had love, even devoid of questions of spritituality his life shadowed the glorious quest of, Love. Is anything higher when that Love is not fraught with demands or unbecoming, but exsistant, inherent in his soul.
Many cannot comprehend such a notion, and the lofty , those of acclaim and renown, full rehearsed in the calling of barbarous names would have little to do with such a man, let alone see him as equal. Nonsense, they would condemn, folly, a meaningless pursuit.

And thus the…strange dream, it concerned three women, it was symbolic. I called them the three mothers. Three Goddesses,
Now, Rumi never stuttered or hesitated to discuss matters that ran contrary to his, I presume, belief.
( At the risk of digression let me add, I don’t for one moment believe this is the actual Islamic poet Rumi, though he shares my birthday and converses on all things spiritual and poetical, the three mothers, were prior to ‘the prophets’ conversion to Allah, the Goddesses of his tribe, Quraysh, they being;- al-Lat, al-Uzza, and Manat, I wonder why they come in threes? viz: The muses and the Macbeth hags, the Morai. )
The discourse then went on with me explaining the Three great ‘mothers’ that had and have always apppeared relevant to my path, and indeed throughout have in many ways been central to my praxis. They are Maat, Hecate and LAkshmi. Even as I deliberated on these, I felt myself writhing with embarrassment. Ridiculous to pick one here, another there, like confectionary. But Rumi never judged, even going so far as to say all things become symbolic, regardless of whether some believe such notions are fundamental or not.
I have always found Qabbalah inherent in my system, albeit perhaps seeing it askew to the Mekkubal ( scholar deeply versed in Jewish mysticism ) or those who tear through every numerological and cryptic wonder that can be fathomed in ever tangled knots.
To break down the three ‘triangles’ of the Qabbalist tree ;-
The Celestial Triangle (Higher Triangle): Comprised of Kether, Chokmah, and Binah. This represents the realm of pure spirit, divine consciousness, and archetypal ideas. It is here that Maat, for me, is known/figured, although Maat manifestes her she encompasses the whole tree.
The Moral Triangle (Ethical Triangle): Comprised of Chesed, Geburah, and Tiphareth. This represents the realm of the soul, emotion, and the balance between mercy and severity. It is here, at the mouth of the Abyss that, for me, Hecate is known. She is known from the Abyss and stands astride the manifest, as the ‘horse’ to carry and shew the way of the path for the wayfarer, the gallant and the fool.
The Mundane Triangle (Lower Triangle): Comprised of Netzach, Hod, and Yesod. This represents the realm of the mind, desire, and the astral/vital forces that bridge into physical manifestation (Malkuth). It is here, even between the physical and the spiritual realms that Lakshmi is, for me, known. Her Crown is radiant from beauty (Tifaret) and her face upon the foundation (Yesod )of all things. She holds aloft the two blossoming lotus flowers of the mind, that of contemplation, between logic (Hod )and the creative (Netzach).

fig 1. Original sketch of image;- Maat, Hecate, Lakshmi drawn hastily after dream

I never really explained this to ‘Rumi’.
In dream, it isnt necessary to undergo a full analysis as if you are on a platform for ‘Ted Talks’ , just the thought of your Princeps and Praxis, just the inkling and the notion is enough. The mind is an open book in dream.

It was after this musing then that We observed over the matter of a few seconds the image as shown fig 1,2 and 3..

Maat, her hands entwined, for each is as the other, ambidextrous, balanced, that it is One, she ascends the primordial before duality. She is not the pan of each side of the scales, but the central column and her hands firmly clasped at her heart, sealed, and also depicting the feather for they are one. Balanced.
Hecate, shows Two arms, duality, between, liminal. It is neither doubled, nor halved. Ethical, the path of true Initiation as opposed to the enjoyer and fullfiller. The Self here will be discarded.
And Laksmi, shows Four, Neither doubled nor halved, two for above and two for below, two for the spirit and two for the physical. Three show the ways of the Astral triangle and also that of Malkuth, where Maat upon tiptoes aslso completes the Descent from Ain Soph.
Each then reflecting the other. And though I call them by those names, and though I see them as three. And though the arms I count are Seven. They are still one.
I will elaborate on the imagery presently, but after this vison which at first I assumed to be a Totem pole of sorts before I could see clearly the ‘Three Mothers’.
And as they dissolved before us, I came back to my nonchalant gross self.
And I am back to the notion.
“Who do you follow”, asked one man to another with regards to afootball team.
And does it matter what his reply is? that he follows them through thick and thin, through rain and sun is enough, in that, they are equal.
And, the Thelemite, the Pagan, the Witch, the Religious, the Elsewise asks me, “Who Do you follow?”
How can I then say, ” I Stand before MAat even upon tiptoe and can still never look her in the eye, I crouch before Hecate, the pain is unbearable, am I the Knight and she the steed, or are we both in darkness freed? and I sit before Lakshmi, the witness and the enjoyer, the seeker and the pilgrim, and these three have all descended from the tree.”

What would I actually really say?
I am not of this path, nor that.
” Do you follow football, or Rugby ? “
“Are you Pagan or Abrahamic? What Creed?”
Are each statements the same vanity, is what football team I follow as valid as what religion?
Patience obediance loyalty devotion love.
Either Folly or wise.
In truth, there is no path nor doctrine that marries Maat, Hecate and Lakshmi except the broad church of paganism and the even notwistanding church of Chaos, so how do I answer,”What path are you on? Who do you follow?”
All things considered, my answer is “Nothing really. Philosophy I guess.”
Therein is how I almagamate the Tree, And MAat, and Hecate and LAkshmi. Each to their own station, but for the love of Sophia, I cannot say I’m Sophic. And as I have no religion, that which is set in stone, and, further I can’t say im Agnostic or Gnostic, dependent, I juggle between them in equal measure.

“Who do you support? Who do you follow? “
Are these not ridiulous questions, the more I think about it, some support more than one football team, perhaps the national side as well, and also the ‘non-league or most local side to where they live. Thus supporting three football teams.
“You can’t follow more than one God/Goddess or amalgamate diffrent doctrines?” Say the ne’er do wells, knockers and the arrogant pompadeurs.

But I haven’t, because my doctrine is not versed in books or stone, but it’s ok for me to support three different footbal teams? and have a soft spot for other teams as well? Who is actually wise in all this, the religious zealot or the Atheist Football fanatic?

So what does it mean, to me, that the vision emerged in dream. Folly, Curiosity, wonder or a moemntary glance of temptation.
In as much as I will be bothered, does it matter how the image was conveyed, must I ramble on about lucid dreams and the characters I discourse with thereof and almost apologise with ever repeating stories every time some image or story or potted wisdom comes my way via these methods. For my part, philistine and fool, I dismiss much of what I receive as distraction, elaborate mental panderings, little sweeteners on an ever journeying rite which leads, as far as Im concerned to more promises and trinkets of fancy to tempt the onlooker in mysterious curiosity shops.

fig 2. The Postures

The following, as a simple observation in dream shown to me, The Glyph of the tree of life materialises, Maat appears in the ‘Tree’ posture of yoga – Vriksassana, then in the Horse posture~Vatayanasana appears holding aloft two flaming torches- Hecate, and finally in front of them in the crossed legged posture~ Sukhasana Lakshmi.
The image and process took but a few seconds to emerge, and no more thought given, Until on waking I began on to contemplate on the three Goddesses as they appeared.
There I entered into that awful traipse across brambleweed and mind twaddle, the symbology of what it means, the why’s and the wherefore, and yet at the end of the mind tempting wonders ..the ultimate conclusion, so? of what purpose, use or benefit is this to me;- The answer is always a shrug of the shoulders, the journey across the Fey Fields, riddles and song.
The three Goddesses, at the risk of appropriation and stirring the chaos pot are the three who have always as explained featured rich in my wanderings. Maat as she stands for myself as a double Libran, Hecate as she, horse headed, here in the horse stance and flaming the torches for the fire horse that I am, and Lakshmi, beautiful Lakshmi with the four arms of balance between the material world of Artharva and Kama, and the spiritual of Dharma and Moksha, she was always more than “A Goddess of wealth”.

fig 3. A.I. adapted of image of sketch (fig 1.);- Maat, Hecate, Lakshmi

Maat Stands upright upon one leg, the other bent at ‘Hod’ , for here in poise does the the bent knee symbolise ‘submission’ and here, all logic and science, the known and stated is found. Her foot arches downwards into the sphere of Yesod, that even she, her feet and journey renowned stands foremost with the changing, the tides, the seasons, regardless of the temple fixed and stable at Hod.
Maat, though keeps order has no such footing, or knealing, upon the sphere of Netzach where the maverick reigns, where the concept of creativity and adaptation rule, as such Maat who strictly orders and defines allows the current of Netzach to run free.
The wings of the Ibis denote her as having cast off the flesh and all its ideals, and each spreads outwards carrying both Wisdom and Understanding upon its path as they embrace the spheres of Chokmah and Binah.
Her eyes look above and her hands are positioned in the posture of prayer but also forms a stylised feather to adorn the Goddess ‘beneath’.
Her lips (Speech) are upon the first of the horizontal branches, the Mother letters, Shin ~ whose element of fire which alike her focus is always directed upwards.
She wears the solitary Ostrich Feather that permeates Kether, and indeed beyond to to Ain Soph from whence the manifest came into being, yet only known by the concept of balance and harmony, all things being exact and reflective, alike the symmetry of the ostrich feather.
Her clasped hands and heart rest in Va-Daath, Knowledge and also Death.
From here, the void and abyss emerges Hecate brandishing two torches of illumination that light the qualities of strength and mercy, the pillars of judgement, the balance of the wise, all things in duality considered. She looks straight ahead. Her lips upon the central horizontal column, Aleph, of the air that stradles betwixt Geburah and Chesed.
Her heart rests upon Tiphareth, behind her MAats Generative organs and in front, the crown of golden feather, the manifested covenant of the final incarnation, Lakshmi , she sits upon the ground, her spine and her generative organs firmly at base to the EArth.
Lakshmi’s Heart is in Yesod, behind her heart the generative organs of Hecate.Her lips rest upon the last of the Three Mother letters, Mem. As her heart is upon Yesod, so too alike the Moon she ebbs and wanes, as the Lotus flower emerges from the water, it’s all reflection.
These three then, the three mothers, Shem, Aleph, Mem. Shema or as stylised She Ma. The NAme ( Aramaic) Wisdom was never known in the barbous recital of the name, but the essence of what a name is. She is Sophia, but Sophia is not upon the tree descending as a serpent, she is the Tree.