For most people, the words “Ascending the Tree of Qliphoth” immediately conjure up images of extreme gravity. Black temples, demons, astral abysses, and a practitioner who, after each ritual, stares at the wall as if he’s personally witnessed the end of the universe. In reality, though, people experience most qliphothic states constantly. They just don’t understand it.
Because the Tree of Sitra Ahra in the macrocosm is not only a mystical map. It is also a map of a person’s inner states. And very vital ones at that.
Nachemoth, for example, is experienced every time life suddenly begins to move forward. New acquaintances, money, a desire for freedom, a sudden sense of inner expansion, the urge to change something, to go somewhere, to grow, to act. This is a very nachemotic state. It’s as if a person awakens from a long sleep and, for the first time, begins to feel that life is flowing again.
Then comes Gamaliel. And here the Moon begins. Dreams become more vivid, emotions deeper, the person retreats more inward. A craving for the night, memories, fantasies, and hidden aspects of one’s personality emerges. Many are frightened by this state, although in reality it is simply a immersion into the unconscious. The inner world begins to speak louder than the outer.
Next comes Samael. And here the person’s old worldview begins to crumble. What yesterday seemed absolute truth suddenly begins to seem artificial. Multilayered thinking, new ideas, a curiosity for knowledge, the ability to see several sides simultaneously emerge. The person becomes more flexible, cunning, and intelligent. But at the same time, inner chaos can arise, because old constructs have already been destroyed, and new ones have not yet been assembled.
Then comes Oreb Zarak. And here begins one of the most important stages. Because Oreb Zarak is the state when life forces you to stop for the first time. A person begins to reevaluate themselves, look at their own fears, notice old emotional traumas, and grow tired of the inner noise. Many call this depression, although often it’s simply the beginning of inner silence. Oreb Zarak doesn’t so much destroy a person as it removes excess. That’s why many feel calmer afterward.
Then comes Tagarion. And here the person feels strength again. But a different one. More focused. Charisma appears, a desire to express oneself, an inner solarity, a sense of center. The person begins to feel consciously alive.
Next comes Golohab. And here the real inner fire begins. Transformation, rigor, willpower, the desire to go all the way, an increase in vitality. But if a person hasn’t learned to control themselves earlier, Golohab easily devolves into aggression and internal overheating.
Then comes Hashekla. A very difficult state for many. Because it is here that a person first realizes that the old personality is no longer there. The search for new meanings begins. Fear, a feeling of emptiness, nostalgia, an attempt to understand who you really are now may arise. But it is here that a new inner architecture begins to emerge.
And then come higher states—Satariel, Ohiel, Thaumiel. And here, a person gradually ceases to perceive the world as before. There is less fear, less vanity, less dependence on the opinions of others. A sense of inner heights emerges, along with the understanding that most limitations have always existed primarily within consciousness itself.
And perhaps the most important thing to understand about the Tree of Qliphoth: it is not a path “to evil.” It is a path through states of transformation. Through the dissolution of old limitations. Through an encounter with one’s Shadow. Through internal crises. Through the assembling of a new personality.
And this is precisely why most people experience parts of this Ascension throughout their lives, without even realizing it. Some simply run away from these states. And others begin to recognize them.