The Pillar of Stasis

In the Pillar of Stasis just as in all things, Kether is king. The Principle of Hierarchy, which belongs to him, outlines a world in which man is not equal to man. Some are better than others. More worthy, more wealthy, more blessed. The prison instills in us the understanding that this is the natural way of things, that it is what it is and to claim power above your station is foolish. Kether imbues every aspect of human life with his Principle. Whether it is the supremacy of the monarchs, the rich, the intelligent, the virtuous or the empathetic, a Hierarchy is formed which bestows respect, power, and means to those at its top. Kether more than any other Archon is inescapable, the original Crown of Elysium. Hierarchy rules our minds on such a fundamental level that it is hard to even conceive what its absence would mean. This is, of course, exactly as Kether would like it. If we cannot see what existence might be without Hierarchy, without our prison, we have no way of imagining ourselves free.

Past the Abyss and straight below Kether we find Tiphareth, who may at first glance appear to contradict Kether’s stubborn ideal with her Principle of Allure. However, she is insidious, and her Allure gives no promise outside the hierarchies already established. Tiphareth eggs humanity on, assigns value to the systems of power and reveals the path to success within them. In this, she also reveals to humans what they lack and why they are lesser. Most will fail to climb the corporate ladder, many will aspire to play soccer professionally and fall short, and the starving artist knows how challenging it is to be recognized as the genius they are. Yet they persist, they try, because of the Allure of reaching the top of the food chain. Humanity is ever looking upward at the roof created by Kether, stuck within hierarchies which lead nowhere but to themselves. The Allure of success within Elysium takes away the more primal, desperate want to escape our prison which might otherwise nag our unconscious mind.

Finally, the Pillar of Stasis has its foundation in the material world through Yesod, the Principle of Avarice and the basic human desire to cling to wealth. Avarice understands the physical realm created for humanity only in terms of what value it holds within Kether’s Hierarchy. Avarice makes concrete the abstract Allure of success. Seize what you can and hold it tight, for that is how you claim your spot in the Hierarchy. It is Yesod who stagnates the world’s systems of power, deepens class divides as wealth begets wealth, allows tenured professors and autocratic politicians to remain where they are. There is again no victory to be found here. Through Avarice and Allure humanity invests body and soul into strengthening the Hierarchies they inhabit, but none look past them. None see the alternative waiting beyond the veil.

The corrupt, incestuous relationship between Tiphareth and Yesod is particularly evident in how it affects how the Pillar of Stasis manifests in the modern world. With Allure and Avarice forged into a twisted whole, humanity’s previously diverse hierarchies of communal respect, religious significance, political power, and material wealth are all collapsing inward into a singularity. Wealth is power, power is fame, fame is wealth. Little by little, global capitalism creates a stranglehold on the world’s systems of power until only the dollar sign remains. With all humanity ensnared by the same dominant Hierarchy, Kether’s power surges through reality and embeds in humanity a degenerate respect, and demand, for riches.

Yesod imbues a desire in mankind to uphold their own position within the Hierarchy, which can certainly chafe against the plans of both Tiphareth and Kether given the right circumstances. Tiphareth’s influence on viral content shows us that success is possible, that we too can reach the stars and join an influencer house on the west coast or earn millions by playing Dota 2. Yesod forms barriers to entry here. The successful only engage with each other and leave no room for newcomers, important tournaments are run on invitation only, top models must already be rich to be beautiful, and are beautiful because they are rich. While much of this is part of the duo’s alliance, taken to the extreme it diminishes Tiphareth’s Principle as interacting with the Hierarchy becomes too daunting, making it lose its Allure. It is a dance for the two Archons, a balance to be found between competition and reward. Should those two fail to reach agreement, Kether himself may falter. Should humanity lift their eyes and see the absurdity in the world’s wealth distribution, born from Tiphareth and Yesod’s foul intimacy, the Hierarchy it supports may well crash and burn.

It is important to make special note that the Stasis referred to in the name of this Pillar is not merely a statement on inflexibility and permanent castes of Hierarchy. Tiphareth’s Allure promises change, and Kether is indifferent to which humans are deemed most worthy. They can fight amongst themselves for eternity. While all three of these Archons create a stratification of power and indirectly uphold it, none of them except perhaps Yesod actively oppose upward mobility or even reshaping the means by which Hierarchy is determined. The key to the Pillar is to understand that the comparison of man against man is a flawed one, and the Stasis refers only to our acceptance of that ideal. We are all divine and limitless. Anything less than that is a lie to shackle us.

I must make special mention of Malkuth here. I do not consider her a participant in this central column of the Archonic tree of life. The reason for this will be explained near the end of this article.

## Keystones

The AwokenThreadsElysiumThe PrinciplesOriginsMetropolisThe OthersRealmsInferno