Path of Sephirot
If you've played Final Fantasy VII, then you should have recognized the phrase 'Path of Sephirot' as being a very similar name to the main villain, Sephiroth. There is another meaning to the word 'sephiroth' though, and it has nothing to do with evil villains trying to take over the world. In Xenogears, the path of Sephirot is the name given to the route which the Wave Existence descended into Zohar from when it became trapped by the Deus system.
In the Kabala (the same mystic text as Zohar), it says how humans have been separated from the presence of God by what happened with Adam and Eve and the apple. But, if a person meditates and leads a good life etc, they can cross the gulf to the pure divine essence of God. But before they reach the pure source of God, they encounter ten slightly less pure manifestations of the divine presence, these are the Sephirot.
The Sephirot aren't separate beings (In the Jewish tradition anyway), just sort of less concentrated regions of divinity that a mystic must pass through to reach the pure presence of God.
So what has all this to do with Xenogears?
Well, the Wave Existence is separate from reality, not only because it is being held captive by Deus, but also because it is transcendent and exists apart from time. It would seem therefore, that for it to get from where ever it is to our reality, it has to travel through some regions between wherever it exists and reality ---- down the path of Sephirot!
There is a Christian use of the term Sephirot, to apply to the seven Guardian Angels second only to God, but I think the Jewish one is more true to the Xg plot, and anyway, other terms like Zohar are exclusively Jewish, so it makes more sense for Sephirot to have it's Jewish rather than it's Christian meaning.
The Sepirot are first mentioned in Sepher Yetzirah. The text states that God created the world by means of 22 foundation letters and ten Sephirot (singular: sephira) of nothingness. The Sephirot (or "major paths of wisdom") are the Divine Emanations which God created in order to direct the Universe and represent established forms of existence. The lines are called the Minor paths of wisdom and represent established forms of consciousness (force concepts).
For better clarification of the exact composition of the Path of Sephirot, images can be viewed here with a more simplified version available here
The sephirot are numbered in the order of the "lightning flash", starting with the creative spark at Kether and culminating in Malkuth at the bottom of the central pillar. (Note that the names of the sephirot are Hebrew words, and their transliteration to English varies according to which book you read - for instance, Malkuth is sometimes spelt Malcut, Geburah spelt Gevurah and so on.)
Kether
This means "crown" and represents the initial creative spark, the edge of the knowable Universe. Beyond Kether lies the great unknown - the veils of negative existence, the No-Thingness of the absolute void. It corresponds to the crown chakra in Eastern philosophy, and the highest level of enlightenment that a human can attain while still alive. The other sephirot also correspond to planets - Kether corresponds to the whole Universe (although some Qabalists correspond it to Pluto).
Chockmah
"Wisdom". The creative spark of Kether is unstructured, and Chockmah begins to give it direction; it corresponds to "The Word" of God. It corresponds to the third eye chakra, and the zodiac (some Qabalists correspond it to Neptune).
Binah
"Understanding". The Word has been uttered, now it starts to be understood. Like Chockmah, it too corresponds to the third eye chakra, and to Saturn.
These three sephirot should really be considered together - they are called the "Supernal Triad" and represent the human soul. Traditionally, Chockmah represents the male force, Binah the female force and Kether the genderless Godhead. The Supernal Triad is separated from the rest of the Tree of Life by The Abyss - a horizontal line across the tree. Below the Abyss lies the sephirot of our everyday world, where everything is duality. Above the Abyss, everything works in harmony. There is a "hidden" sephira that lies on the Abyss itself, called "Daath", or "Knowledge".
Chesed
"Mercy". Represents personal love and awareness, and the way that these emotions and attributes affect our relationship with our community at large. It corresponds to the heart chakra, and Jupiter.
Geburah
"Strength" or "Severity". Represents personal will and power, and the way that this affects our relationship with our community at large. It corresponds to the heart chakra (like Chesed), and Mars.
Chesed and Geburah need to be considered together - they represent opposite sides of the same coin. Everything in life is a balance between severity and mercy - whether we are "too soft" or "too hard" on ourselves and on others. They are Archetypes, or principles, and as the Supernal Triad represents our soul, Chesed and Geburah represent the way that our soul manifests in the real world. Chesed is the first sephira below the Abyss on the right-hand pillar (which corresponds to the left-hand side of the body - imagine the Tree is a "person" facing you), which is called the "Pillar of Mercy". Geburah is at the top of the "Pillar of Severity".
Tiphareth
"Beauty". This represents the "real you". You have a body, you have feelings, you have thoughts. Tiphareth is the "you" that has all these things. Too often, we find ourselves bogged down in the lower sephirot (emotions, thoughts, and so on). When we try to live within Tiphareth instead, we feel truly "centred" and balanced. It corresponds to the heart chakra, and to the Sun. Tiphareth is really a connecting point between the "upper" and "lower" parts of our personality; the heart chakra is effectively a trinity of Chesed, Geburah and Tiphareth.
Netzach
"Victory". This represents your feelings and emotions, both positive and negative. When you are moved by the beauty of the scenery, or enjoying a work of art, or feeling depressed and crying - you are experiencing the attributes of Netzach. It corresponds to the solar plexus chakra, and to Venus.
Hod
"Splendour". This represents your thoughts and intellect. When you are doing a crossword puzzle, arguing a point with someone or worrying about whether someone hates you because of something you said - you are experiencing the attributes of Hod. It corresponds to the solar plexus chakra (like Netzach), and to Mercury.
Like Chesed and Geburah, Netzach and Hod can be seen as opposites. True, they work very well together, but they can also represent different tendencies - some people are cold, calculating and logical (Hod-based), and others are hot-headed and emotional (Netzach-based). Tiphareth lies not on the left or the right pillar, but in the middle - so getting a sense of balance between these extremes is useful.
Yesod
"Foundation". We've just considered thoughts (Hod) and feelings (Netzach). Any action that takes place in the real world starts off as an idea - a combination of feeling (wanting to do something) and thought (deciding to do it). Yesod is the sephira that puts this all together, and initiates its manifestation. It can be thought of as the "subconscious" and although it is often associated with sexuality, it is far more than this. It's the place where all those brilliant ideas that you never quite got round to doing spend their time! It corresponds to the sexual chakra, and the Moon.
Malkuth
"Kingdom". The physical realm, and your physical body and sensations. Running, eating and drinking, physical pain and exhaustion - these are all part of Malkuth. It's also where actions do manifest, if you let them. The lightning flash that created the Universe replays again and again within us every time we do something. You have a yearning in your soul to do something (Kether, Chockmah, Binah). This filters through to your awareness, and you have the will to do it (Geburah, and hopefully tempered by Chesed - weighing up the pros and cons, and considering what effects your actions would have). Then, you decide that you really do want to do it (Netzach) and work out how to (Hod). Then comes the final surge (Yesod) and you get on and do it, manifesting what you want in the real world (Malkuth). Malkuth corresponds to the base chakra, and to Earth.
In addition to the sephirot, there are also 22 paths. Each path also has its own correspondence - in particular, each path corresponds to a Hebrew letter, and to a major arcana card of the Tarot, as well as to colours, plants and so on.
The diagram of the Sephirot Tree is the same symbol used by Gebler.
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