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What are Tattwas? The word Tattwa, alternately spelled
tattva, tatwa, tatva, is Sanskrit basically meaning “essence,”
“principle,” or “element.” The concept of the
Tattwas date back at least as early as 2000 BC and they are said to predate
even the Greeks’ own knowledge of the elements of nature, and in
fact that the Greeks may have learned of the elements from the Indian
gurus. In a better context, the Tattwas are the essence of nature through
which we not only experience the world around us, but give rise to the
very concept of awareness. This comes into play later when we learn the
relationship of the five primary Tattwas to the five senses, but they
basically are the elements that lead us to believe that we exist.
The grades of the Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn are all attributed
to one of these five elements of the pentagram: Zelator to Earth, Theoricus
to Air, Practicus to Water, Philosophus to Fire, and Spirit in the Portal
grade, which is not of the Outer Order of the Golden Dawn. We are given
various invocations and symbols to work with each element per grade, so
you might ask why are the Tattwas, drawn from the Eastern Tradition, called
on and employed in the Golden Dawn system, which is predominantly Western?
Several members of the Golden Dawn back in the early days of the Order
were also members of the Theosophical Society, which was and is H.P. Blavatsky’s
Western school that teaches mostly Eastern philosophy. The base knowledge
of the Tattwas was primarily derived from the Theosophists who derived
their knowledge of the Tattwas primarily from Rama Prasad. This Indian
guru is the author of the acclaimed work titled “Nature’s
Finder Forces,” a book on the subject of the Tattwas which was written
as a result of much interest of his previous essays published in The
Theosophist. Also, in the original curriculum of the order, lessons
on the Tarot were not given until one was in the Second Order. Initiates
were given lessons on one trump at a time, appropriate to the pathworking
of the degree of which they were initiated. Tattwas both filled a need
for pathworking excerises and also there is hardly any better set of symols
to tap into the powers of the elements.
There
are five primary Tattwas, each relating to one of the five elements
of nature. The first of these Tattwas is called Akasha, and is traditionally
symbolized in the Golden Dawn system by a black or dark indigo ovoid
or egg, though it is not uncommon to see this Tattwa as a black
circle when studying the Eastern system of Tattwas in their relation
to the chakras. Akasha relates to the element of spirit and the
void of space, or |
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aether. It is black to reflect the very color of void,
and is reflected not only in the space between heavenly bodies, but also
that very element that permeates all things and is between all atoms.
In addition, this Tattwa is influenced in part by the planetary energies
of Saturn, which can quickly be identified by the egg/ovoid shape and
the color of black or deep indigo which both are correspondences of Saturn.
Saturn also relates to silence and the invisible, which are very indicative
of the nature of Akasha. This Tattwa is potential for existence, and stands
on the threshold between the infinite macrocosm and the finite microcosm.
This Tattwa is a fitting representative of the nature of spirit and is
thusly attributed to the crown or sephirah of Kether on the Tree of Life.
The
next Tattwa in course is Vayu. Vayu is traditionally symbolized
by a blue circle and in some cases in study of Eastern philosophy
by six gaseous dots in motion forming a hexagram. The term Vayu
comes from the same root as the Sanskrit word for motion which
is very indicative of the active element of Air to which this
Tattwa relates to. The color blue of Vayu is not a |
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prismatic blue, but of a light, smoky blue relating to the color of the
sky on a clear day. While this Tattwa is invisible like Akasha, it is
the first of the Tattwas to be able to be felt, and relates to the sense
of touch. This Tattwa also shares the quality of vibration and sound that
relates to Akasha. This principle relates to aspects of the element of
air, the mind and to breathing, and thus on the body corresponds to the
Da’at center where air enters and leaves the body.
The
Tejas or Agni Tattwa, the fire Tattwa, is next. Tejas means “sharp”,
and is symbolized by a red triangle. The color red of this Tattwa
is derived from the color associated with heat and fire. As you
may have noticed, the colors of the Tattwas are associated with
their reflection in the world of Assiah, in the natural world.
Fire is the source of heat and light, and thus this |
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principle is the first to be visible. While Tejas is associated with the
sense of sight, it also shares in the respective senses of Akasha and
Vayu. As Tattwa relates to incandescence and is the first visible Tattwa
being associated with light itself, in the course of the reflection of
the Tattwas in the personality and soul, it relates to the ego, the face
we outwardly shine and share with the world, or the Ruach in the personality,
which is seated in the heart and Tiphiret center.
We
are next brought to the Apas Tattwa. The common man with only
a basic education in physical sciences understands the relation
of the Moon upon the tides and can therefore easily understand
a direct relationship between the Moon and the Element of Water.
The learned Qabalist will quickly associate the image of a crescent
with the sephirah of Yesod, |
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and thus to the associated genital area on the human form and the sexual
organs. The color of the Apas Tattwa should reflect the color of the Moon
itself. Some say this is white, some say it is silver. The color should
in the very least be a pale color, and it would be good here to note the
word used for the Moon in some languages, as it is with the Hebrew Levanah,
has a common root with the word “pale”, and is often translated
as “pale one.” A color very similar to the moon is most appropriate.
This Tattwa is sometimes depicted as a semicircle in contrast to its common
form of a crescent. We know the Moon goes through phases, and this alternate
form no doubt arose from this natural cyclic change in shape.
The
final Tattwa is Prithivi. This Tattwas refer to what we call in
the Western Mysteries the Element of Earth. Analysis of the imagery
associated with Prithivi may cause a bit of confusion. The element
of Earth here is apparently being presented with the color we
normally associate with the Element of Air. Some would associate
the color with the Sun in its role of being the source of |
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all matter- as quite literally the entirety of every planet in our solar
system, with the exception of cosmic debris, is comprised entirely of
condensed solar atoms. I am not entirely at odds with this perspective,
and actually I rather enjoy it. This does not however fit in with the
color derivations of the other four Tattwas being so derived from their
manifestation within the material plane. In actuality, this color has
most likely been miscalculated in its travels or translation into the
Western world, just as the blue for the Vayu Tattwa. This color more appropriately
would be a brownish yellow, to reflect an actual type of earth, of the
arid dry earth of the desert, and not the prismatic yellow. Additionally,
Prithivi is attributed to the sephirah of Malkuth and to the feet because
of its association with the Earth Element and the cohesive nature of the
Tattwa.
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