Hod (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

''Hōḏ,'' lit. 'majesty, splendour, glory') Apparently by aphaeresis from ''nehod'' from the root ''n-h-d'' "to lift oneself up, to become lofty". Gesenius, ''Hebrew Lexicon'' ( Strong'sbr>H1935
. is the eighth sephira of the

Kabbalistic Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...

Tree of Life The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythological, religious, and philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The Assyrian Sacred Tree: A Hist ...

. Hod sits below

Gevurah Gevurah or Geburah ( he, גְּבוּרָה, Gəvūrā}, Tiberian: ''Găḇūrā,'' lit. 'strength'), is the fifth '' sephirah'' in the kabbalistic tree of life, and it is the second of the emotive attributes of the ''sephirot''. It sits below ...

and across from Netzach in the tree of life;

Yesod Yesod (Hebrew: יְסוֹד ''Yəsōḏ'', Tiberian: ''Yăsōḏ'', "foundation") is a sephirah or node in the kabbalistic Tree of Life, a system of Jewish philosophy. Yesod, located near the base of the Tree, is the sephirah below Hod and ...

is to the south-east of Hod. It has four paths, which lead to

Tiphereth Tiferet ( he, תִּפְאֶרֶת ''Tip̄ʾereṯ,'' in pausa: תִּפְאָרֶת ''Tip̄ʾāreṯ'', lit. 'beauty, glory, adornment') alternatively Tifaret, Tiphareth, Tifereth or Tiphereth, is the sixth sefira in the kabbalistic Tree of Li ...

, Netzach, and

. All the sephirot are likened to different parts of the body and the tree itself to an homunculus. Netzach and Hod are likened to the two feet of a person, the left and right. The feet not only bring a person to their place of intention; integrity here at the base of the pillar is foundational to all that stands above.

Hasidic Judaism Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism ( Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of cont ...

's view of ''Hod'' is that it is connected with

Jewish prayer Jewish prayer ( he, תְּפִלָּה, ; plural ; yi, תּפֿלה, tfile , plural ; Yinglish: davening from Yiddish 'pray') is the prayer recitation that forms part of the observance of Rabbinic Judaism. These prayers, often with ...

. Prayer is seen as form of "submission"; ''Hod'' is explained as an

analogy Analogy (from Greek ''analogia'', "proportion", from ''ana-'' "upon, according to" lso "against", "anew"+ ''logos'' "ratio" lso "word, speech, reckoning" is a cognitive process of transferring information or meaning from a particular subject ...

- that instead of "conquering" an obstacle in one's way, (which is the idea of '' Netzach''), subduing oneself to that "obstacle" is related to the quality of ''Hod''. ''Hod'' is where

form Form is the shape, visual appearance, or configuration of an object. In a wider sense, the form is the way something happens. Form also refers to: *Form (document), a document (printed or electronic) with spaces in which to write or enter data * ...

is given by

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...

in its widest sense, being the key to the "mystery of form" (this may be an adoption of a point of view of

Jacques Lacan Jacques Marie Émile Lacan (, , ; 13 April 1901 – 9 September 1981) was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist. Described as "the most controversial psycho-analyst since Freud", Lacan gave yearly seminars in Paris from 1953 to 1981, and ...

). Our unconscious desires come from ''Netzach'', and are given form in the symbolic realm by ''Hod'', manifesting unconsciously through ''

'' to

Malkuth Modern: ''Malḵūt'' , Tiberian: ''Malḵūṯ'' , Ashkenazi: ''Malḵūs'' , 'kingdom'), Malkhut Malkhuth or Malchus is the tenth of the sephirot in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. It sits at the bottom of the Tree, below Yesod. This sephira ...

Non-Jewish occult associations

Hod is described as being a force that breaks down energy into different, distinguishable forms, and it is associated with intellectuality, learning and ritual, as opposed to Netzach, Victory, which is the power of energy to overcome all barriers and limitations, and is associated with emotion and passion, music and dancing. Both these forces find balance in

, foundation, the world of the unconscious, where the different energies created await expression in the lowest world of

, the Kingdom. The archangel of this sphere is

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

, and the Bene Elohim is the Angelic order. The opposing

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in Media (communication), media such as comics, video ...

ic order in the

Qliphoth In the Zohar, Lurianic Kabbalah and Hermetic Qabalah, the ''qliphoth/qlippoth/qlifot'' or ''kelipot'' ( ''qəlīpōṯ'', originally Aramaic: ''qəlīpīn'', plural of ''qəlīpā''; literally "peels", "shells", or "husks"), are the represe ...

is Samael, headed by the

Archdemon In some occult and similar writings, an archdemon (also spelled archdaemon) is a spiritual entity, prominent in the infernal hierarchy as a leader of demons. Essentially, the archdemons are the evil opponents of the archangels. Christian tradit ...

Adrammelech. Hod is associated with the god-name of ''Elohim Tzabaoth.'' Hod is said to be the sphere in which the magician mostly works. An example is given by occultist and author Dion Fortune in ''The Mystical Qabalah'':

Imagine primitive man is meditating in the wilderness, and comes in contact with, and begins to understand, some energy that surrounds him. So that he can grasp it better, he creates some form, perhaps the form of a god or a symbol, so he has something he can relate to. He then uses that statue or that symbol in future ceremonies to contact that intangible energy once again. This is the role that Hod plays in magic, while the music and dance that may be present in such a ceremony is the role that Netzach might play, providing the raw energy to reach the higher levels of consciousness.

In comparison with Eastern systems, both Hod and Netzach are sometimes associated with the Manipura chakra (solar plexus chakra), which is associated with the breaking down and releasing of energy,

anabolism Anabolism () is the set of metabolic pathways that construct molecules from smaller units. These reactions require energy, known also as an endergonic process. Anabolism is the building-up aspect of metabolism, whereas catabolism is the breaking-do ...

and

catabolism Catabolism () is the set of metabolic pathways that breaks down molecules into smaller units that are either oxidized to release energy or used in other anabolic reactions. Catabolism breaks down large molecules (such as polysaccharides, li ...

. In ''

777 777 may refer to: * 777 (number), a number * AD 777, a year of the Julian calendar * 777 BC, a year in the 8th century BC * Boeing 777, a commercial jet airliner :* Boeing 777X, the newer generation of the Boeing 777. Art and entertainment Albu ...

'',

Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley (; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, painter, novelist, and mountaineer. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pr ...

associates Hod to the Four Eights of occult

tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots ...

among these being

Anubis Anubis (; grc, Ἄνουβις), also known as Inpu, Inpw, Jnpw, or Anpu in Ancient Egyptian () is the god of death, mummification, embalming, the afterlife, cemeteries, tombs, and the Underworld, in ancient Egyptian religion, usually depict ...

Thoth Thoth (; from grc-koi, Θώθ ''Thṓth'', borrowed from cop, Ⲑⲱⲟⲩⲧ ''Thōout'', Egyptian: ', the reflex of " eis like the Ibis") is an ancient Egyptian deity. In art, he was often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or ...

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

Loki Loki is a god in Norse mythology. According to some sources, Loki is the son of Fárbauti (a jötunn) and Laufey (mentioned as a goddess), and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. Loki is married to Sigyn and they have two sons, Narfi ...

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orat ...

, Mercury,

Jackal Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...

Hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have ...

Opal Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica (SiO2·''n''H2O); its water content may range from 3 to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6 and 10%. Due to its amorphous property, it is classified as a mineraloid, unlike crystalline form ...

, Storax, and quicksilver (Not a complete list).

References

;Jewish *''Bahir'', translated by

Aryeh Kaplan Aryeh Moshe Eliyahu Kaplan ( he, אריה משה אליהו קפלן; October 23, 1934 – January 28, 1983) was an American Orthodox rabbi, author, and translator, best known for his Living Torah edition of the Torah. He became well known as ...

(1995). Aronson. ()
Lessons in Tanya

Kabbalah 101: Netzach and Hod
;Non-Jewish * ''777'',

(1955). Red Wheel/Weiser. ({{ISBN, 0-87728-670-1) Sephirot Kabbalistic words and phrases

Non-Jewish occult associations

See also

References