Trinities in the Occult

“The earliest accounts relate the distribution of the three elements as Dis (Pluto) to Fire, Zeus (Jupiter) to Air and Poseidon (Neptune) to Water".*

The Wheel of Fortune, along with symbols like the snake, Hermanubis, and the Sphinx, often carries multiple meanings in various contexts, particularly in Tarot and esoteric traditions. Here are three interpretations:

1.    Wheel of Fortune:

o   Change and Cycles: Represents the cyclical nature of life, indicating that fortunes can rise and fall. It emphasizes the inevitability of change and the interconnectedness of fate.

o   Karma: Reflects the concept of karma, suggesting that past actions influence present circumstances. It serves as a reminder of the consequences of one's choices.

o   Destiny and Fortune: Symbolizes the randomness of luck and destiny, indicating that outcomes can often be beyond one's control.

2.    Snake:

o   Transformation and Healing: Often symbolizes transformation, renewal, and healing, as seen in its ability to shed its skin. It can also represent the duality of life (life and death).

o   Wisdom and Knowledge: In many cultures, the snake is associated with wisdom and the quest for knowledge, often linked to spiritual enlightenment.

o   Temptation and Duality: Represents temptation and the dual nature of existence, often appearing in myths as a figure that challenges or tests individuals.

3.    Hermanubis:

o   Guidance in the Afterlife: A syncretic deity combining aspects of Hermes and Anubis, Hermanubis symbolizes guidance and protection in the journey after death, embodying the transition between life and the afterlife.

o   Balance of Dualities: Represents the balance between intellect (Hermes) and the soul's journey (Anubis), indicating the harmony needed between reason and intuition.

o   Transformation and Initiation: Symbolizes the transformative process of initiation, where one must navigate through trials to achieve spiritual enlightenment.

4.    Sphinx:

o   Mystery and Knowledge: Represents the quest for knowledge and the mysteries of life. The Sphinx is often seen as a guardian of wisdom, challenging seekers to solve riddles.

o   Dual Nature: Symbolizes the duality of human existence (human and animal, intellect and instinct), reflecting the balance needed in one’s life.

o   Challenge and Transformation: Often represents the challenges one must face and overcome to achieve personal growth and transformation.

These symbols, when combined, create a rich tapestry of meanings related to fate, knowledge, transformation, and the mysteries of existence.

In alchemical and occult traditions, salt, sulfur, and mercury are considered fundamental principles or elements that represent various aspects of existence and transformation. Look closely at the centre glyphs inside the Wheel of Fortune. Here are their meanings:

1.    Salt:

o   Stability and Preservation: Represents the material world and the body. It signifies stability, grounding, and the essential nature of physical existence.

o   Purification: Often associated with purification processes, salt is used in rituals to cleanse and ward off negative energies.

o   Consciousness: In alchemical terms, salt symbolizes the fixed and crystallized aspects of matter, representing the solidified consciousness or the physical form of the soul.

2.    Sulfur:

o   Transformation and Energy: Symbolizes the soul, spirit, and the transformative fire of life. It represents passion, creativity, and the dynamic forces of nature.

o   Volatility: Sulfur is often seen as the volatile, active principle that drives change and transformation, akin to the spirit or inner fire within a person.

o   Duality: Represents the dual nature of existence, encompassing both destructive and constructive forces, reflecting the balance between creation and dissolution.

3.    Mercury:

o   Fluidity and Change: Represents the mind, intellect, and the principle of fluidity. It symbolizes adaptability, communication, and the transition between different states of being.

o   Unity of Opposites: Mercury embodies the synthesis of opposites, often depicted as the mediator between the spiritual and material realms, facilitating transformation and alchemical processes.

o   Hermetic Wisdom: Associated with the god Hermes, it signifies knowledge, wisdom, and the quest for enlightenment, often representing the philosopher's stone in alchemy, which is the ultimate goal of transformation.

In alchemical traditions, these three elements are seen as essential to understanding the processes of transformation, both physical and spiritual, and they work together to create a holistic view of existence and personal evolution.

It is possible to dissolve this duality back again into the unity by a mystic process, but the natural course taken by its own combination is to form a third entity, partaking of the qualities of both, yet possessing an independent existence. Thus is formed the descending triangle of father, mother, son, the Yod, He, Vau of the Qabalistic Trigrammaton and the pre-Christian trinity of such Gods as Isis, Horus, Osiris, or many others whose names will readily occur to the reader. In the ancient Greek philosophy, of Parmenides, Empedocles, Heracleitus, the Eleatic Zeno and even in the philosophy of Pythagoras and the Stagirite, these three principles are recognised under the names of fire, air and water. They are connected with the three possible states in which one can conceive the Universe – Being, Not-Being, and Becoming. The more carefully Plato and Aristotle are studied, the clearer these points become. It must, however, be understood that these principles are all active and causative – they still pertain to the divine hierarchy. In a word, to the Yetziratic World of Rabbi Ben Simeon. However, from this trinity of actives [i.e. fire, air, water] is consolidated a passive which, to continue the termination of the physicist school of philosophy, is called earth. The whole of this doctrine is admirably resumed, although ‘amplified in the Sephirotic system. This division forms an extremely satisfactory base for any scheme of classification.**

The three gunas are fundamental qualities or characteristics in Hindu philosophy, particularly in Samkhya and yoga traditions. They are:

1.    Sattva: Represents purity, harmony, knowledge, and balance. It is associated with qualities like clarity, wisdom, and virtue.

2.    Rajas: Represents activity, passion, and dynamism. It is linked to desire, ambition, and restlessness. Rajas can drive action but can also lead to distraction and agitation.

3.    Tamas: Represents darkness, inertia, and ignorance. It is associated with lethargy, confusion, and chaos. Tamas can lead to stagnation and an absence of motivation. 

Together, these three gunas influence human behaviour, thoughts, and the overall state of consciousness. The goal in many spiritual practices is to cultivate Sattva while managing Rajas and Tamas.

*The Book of Thoth 1944 - Aleister Crowley page 64.

**General Principles on Astrology - Aleister Crowley page 32-33.