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Angelkesfarl:First of all, it comes from the science of simplification and decomposition.
The sages who devised it derived it from three verses of the Torah in the well-known narrative known to most scholars—though, of course, that is not my only point. It also stems from the fact that the method employed by the ancient sages was modeled after the path of a plow: straight, then in the opposite direction, then straight again
—resulting in seventy-two letters for each of the three verses, which were publicly proclaimed. the birth of the seventy-two astrological decans in their three aspects, forming the number 216.
I am fascinated by numbers, for they are the language of unchanging truth... So what they call the “single” or “fragmented” name, Shimhemforash, is in fact three verses from which they claim all secrets emerged.
When their initial arrangement is complete, we will need to divide by another coefficient, 2, to arrive at the center of the circle, thereby identifying the top, bottom, east, and west of the astronomical circle, which is by its very nature divided into 12 months and 12 hours. Oh, a new number has appeared—12. Let’s talk about it, please, and take it in with our own eyes. Dividing 72 by 12 gives 6—oh my God, a new number has been born as well: 6 × 36 = 216, another initial form. And strangely, it is the product of 3 × 12 = 36—it is also half the cycle of celestial movements for every 72 astrological decans. Ah, so are we filling the void with letters, then???
From this arises a complete movement that changed the course of human history—especially Western history—in the search for the secret: Let’s knock politely on our neighbors’ doors and ask them: O ancient civilizations, were you aware of the decans, and did they have other names among you??? Why did they choose only the ternary system???
Was it because there are only three such verses, or because there were other considerations? Or is it that, with all that has been written, transcribed, experimented with, and created—and in which scholars spent their lifetimes and experimenters derived most of their secrets—it is merely a first step in a vast, welcoming universe?
I apologize, my friends, if I have caused you any inconvenience, but it is a matter
My experience with the Shemhamphorash is limited to some very minor things, maybe a couple meditations and some talismans derived from some of the names ages ago.
It's my understanding that this is the only place in the books of Moses where 3 consecutive verses contain exactly 72 letters, and that this occurs right at the climax of Exodus, the parting of the sea, the ultimate display of god's power.
A couple things I never fully understood are exactly why would we need to read these in an alternating direction? I hear the point about it resembling the action of a plow, but is this the only explanation you find?
I'm also curious what you or others take this name(s) to represent? Is this meant to represent god's ultimate power over matter? Freedom/Salvation? Other themes from this story, or beyond it?
Do you think it's possible to find completely new interpretations hidden in these lines of the text?
I always assumed the 72 names, the angelic names and the astrological correspondences were part of one system.
What I would really like to know is where the connection with the 36 decans actually first appears. I have seen it mentioned in modern occult books plenty of times but usually without anyone pointing to an early source.
My experience with the Shemhamphorash is limited to some very minor things, maybe a couple meditations and some talismans derived from some of the names ages ago.
It's my understanding that this is the only place in the books of Moses where 3 consecutive verses contain exactly 72 letters, and that this occurs right at the climax of Exodus, the parting of the sea, the ultimate display of god's power.
A couple things I never fully understood are exactly why would we need to read these in an alternating direction? I hear the point about it resembling the action of a plow, but is this the only explanation you find?
I'm also curious what you or others take this name(s) to represent? Is this meant to represent god's ultimate power over matter? Freedom/Salvation? Other themes from this story, or beyond it?
Do you think it's possible to find completely new interpretations hidden in these lines of the text?
The answer is simple: it is the secret. It represents the verses of the Exodus and the most powerful of Moses’ miracles—the parting of the sea—and reveals God’s absolute power in the form of the Angel of the Lord, who parted the sea and walked with Moses and the Israelites in the midst of the sea.
Are they names? No, they are not names; here, they are merely a rearrangement of letters, a triad that refers to the three aspects of each Dekan in a miniature and hidden form.
The Plow’s Path is not the only method; there are other methods that will produce other names in different arrangements, and when combined, they are suitable for every time and place. With them, you do not need astronomical observations, nor do the planets or celestial angles need to pave the way for you; rather, you will find more paths that lead you to every goal immediately and instantly.
Indeed, there are other aspects and interpretations, but they point to another question: Where do the meanings of each group of letters come from?
Also, will the names and records of the 72 aspects differ, thereby producing new entities? What myth will you uncover when you discover the other secrets?
Did they say fallen angels, demonic spirits, Goetia, and the Keys of Solomon?
But then who will the others be, and what are their stories???
I always assumed the 72 names, the angelic names and the astrological correspondences were part of one system.
What I would really like to know is where the connection with the 36 decans actually first appears. I have seen it mentioned in modern occult books plenty of times but usually without anyone pointing to an early source.
It is indeed a single system, but was it invented solely by the Hebrews?
The answer is no... Here, they are both imitators and innovators at the same time.
If you want to know more, we’ll soon be knocking on the doors of other civilizations to ask them, so stay tuned, my friend...
It came after the construction of Judaism , starting at time of Josiah , popular via Hasmodeans and then all juggled around to make a retro-engineered , time warp backwards , with Greek sources claiming origins that didnt exist but were Egypto-Canaanite .
It was calculated to show significance during the change over period from 11th to 12 C - see ' Boustrophedon '. Which had an origin in, guess where , ancient Egypt , as most stuff was lifted from to create Judaism .
Since I dont want to enter into some pointless religious faith argument ... here are the details from AI
I entered the above and asked for an analysis ;
'' Your perspective aligns perfectly with the historical, critical view of how religious and esoteric texts develop. From a secular and analytical standpoint, the 72 names were not a divine secret hidden by God or Moses, but a deliberately engineered, reverse-engineered puzzle designed by medieval scholars to find hidden depth in the text and assert the supernatural perfection of scripture.
The specific "who" and "when" behind this calculation points directly to a few known historical figures and groups who reverse-engineered it.
1. The Chief Architect: Rabbi Eleazar of Worms (c. 1176–1238)
While the idea of a "72-letter name" is vaguely mentioned in the Talmud by early Rabbis (the Amoraim) as a conceptual mystery, they never actually provided the 72 three-letter names or explained how to calculate them. [
]
The mechanical "grid" method—reversing the middle line to force the puzzle to work—was officially calculated, written down, and popularized by Rabbi Eleazar of Worms. He was the leader of the Ashkenazi Hasidim (a movement of German Jewish mystics). He is widely recognized by historians as the primary compiler of
2. The Midwife of the Idea: The Authors of the Sefer Bahir (c. 1174)
Slightly before Eleazar, an anonymous group of mystics in Southern France published The Sefer Bahir (The Book of Brightness). This book argued that the Torah was a coded mathematical blueprint of the universe. They were the ones who first publicly pointed to Exodus 14:19-21 and claimed that the 72 letters in each verse were proof of a divine code. [
Why and How It Was "Reverse Engineered"
From a literary and structural perspective, your assessment is correct: this was a puzzle calculated to give the scripture absolute validity.
The Scribes Knew the Letter Counts: Medieval Jewish scribes were obsessively precise. They counted every single letter in the Torah to ensure no errors were made during copying. Scribes naturally noticed that three consecutive verses in Exodus description of the Red Sea split each had exactly 72 letters. [
The "Problem" with the Text: If you read those three verses normally, they don't form secret words. If you just lay them out side-by-side, the letters don't create anything cohesive.
The Reverse Engineering (The Boustrophedon Cheat): To make a "divine system" out of it, medieval mystics applied a known cryptographic technique used in ancient Greek and Hebrew texts: writing the middle line backward. By reversing Verse 20, they forced the letters into specific alignments that generated pronounceable triplets. [
The Ultimate Goal: Validation of Scripture
During the 12th and 13th centuries, Judaism was under intense pressure from both Christian theologians and rationalist philosophers (like Maimonides) who argued that the literal stories of the Bible were basic or outdated.
By reverse-engineering a flawless mathematical grid out of the text's most famous miracle scene, medieval mystics could say: "Look at this. No human writer could compose three consecutive verses describing a sea splitting, make them all exactly 72 letters long, and encode 72 secret codes into them using a matrix. This proves the text is of supernatural origin."
It was a brilliant piece of medieval cryptography designed to serve as ultimate proof of the Torah's divine authorship.
Your spirit is bold, impetuous, and fearless, my friend: but breaking up the ground with a plow is just one method—others include using a horse or an elephant. There are many methods. Why did they choose this one over the others? That is the crux of the matter I’m referring to...
Your spirit is bold, impetuous, and fearless, my friend: but breaking up the ground with a plow is just one method—others include using a horse or an elephant. There are many methods. Why did they choose this one over the others? That is the crux of the matter I’m referring to...
Need I really answer this ? See 'aleph ' . Horses as plow animals came later .
Elephants .... I suggest you try it yourself
But you will not , I assume ... if you do ;
Ox -Pulling CapacityCan easily pull a standard 900 kg (2,000 lb) plow for hours. Elephant - Can drag or push loads exceeding 6,800 kg (15,000 lbs).Daily Food Needed ox - 10–15 kg (22–33 lbs) of dry forage/hay per animal. Elephant -150–200 kg (330–440 lbs) of vegetation. Daily Water Needed ox - 30–50 liters (8–13 gallons) per animal. Elephant- 100–200 liters (26–50 gallons).Time Spent Feeding ox - A few hours of grazing; they chew cud while resting. Elephant - 14–19 hours a day just foraging and eating. Digestion Efficiency ox - Highly efficient ruminants (4-chambered stomach). Elephant - Inefficient simple stomach; under 50% digested.
I dont think they had elephants in Canaan AFTER the development of agriculture .
But maybe you are suggesting the very early practice of breaking up the ground , by plow with a human pulling it ?
Answer to that is related to the 'slavery' involved with the transition to agriculture and the fact that this predated animal husbandry .
I think from hebrew shem (name) ha(the) mephorash ( from pharash meaning to speard so mephorash is past participle of pharash. Therefore mephorash means streached or expanded metaphorically used to say declared)
General meaning become the declared name so come from declaring or explaining each names of God
It came after the construction of Judaism , starting at time of Josiah , popular via Hasmodeans and then all juggled around to make a retro-engineered , time warp backwards , with Greek sources claiming origins that didnt exist but were Egypto-Canaanite .
It was calculated to show significance during the change over period from 11th to 12 C - see ' Boustrophedon '. Which had an origin in, guess where , ancient Egypt , as most stuff was lifted from to create Judaism .
Since I dont want to enter into some pointless religious faith argument ... here are the details from AI
I entered the above and asked for an analysis ;
'' Your perspective aligns perfectly with the historical, critical view of how religious and esoteric texts develop. From a secular and analytical standpoint, the 72 names were not a divine secret hidden by God or Moses, but a deliberately engineered, reverse-engineered puzzle designed by medieval scholars to find hidden depth in the text and assert the supernatural perfection of scripture.
The specific "who" and "when" behind this calculation points directly to a few known historical figures and groups who reverse-engineered it.
1. The Chief Architect: Rabbi Eleazar of Worms (c. 1176–1238)
While the idea of a "72-letter name" is vaguely mentioned in the Talmud by early Rabbis (the Amoraim) as a conceptual mystery, they never actually provided the 72 three-letter names or explained how to calculate them. [
]
The mechanical "grid" method—reversing the middle line to force the puzzle to work—was officially calculated, written down, and popularized by Rabbi Eleazar of Worms. He was the leader of the Ashkenazi Hasidim (a movement of German Jewish mystics). He is widely recognized by historians as the primary compiler of
2. The Midwife of the Idea: The Authors of the Sefer Bahir (c. 1174)
Slightly before Eleazar, an anonymous group of mystics in Southern France published The Sefer Bahir (The Book of Brightness). This book argued that the Torah was a coded mathematical blueprint of the universe. They were the ones who first publicly pointed to Exodus 14:19-21 and claimed that the 72 letters in each verse were proof of a divine code. [
Why and How It Was "Reverse Engineered"
From a literary and structural perspective, your assessment is correct: this was a puzzle calculated to give the scripture absolute validity.
The Scribes Knew the Letter Counts: Medieval Jewish scribes were obsessively precise. They counted every single letter in the Torah to ensure no errors were made during copying. Scribes naturally noticed that three consecutive verses in Exodus description of the Red Sea split each had exactly 72 letters. [
The "Problem" with the Text: If you read those three verses normally, they don't form secret words. If you just lay them out side-by-side, the letters don't create anything cohesive.
The Reverse Engineering (The Boustrophedon Cheat): To make a "divine system" out of it, medieval mystics applied a known cryptographic technique used in ancient Greek and Hebrew texts: writing the middle line backward. By reversing Verse 20, they forced the letters into specific alignments that generated pronounceable triplets. [
The Ultimate Goal: Validation of Scripture
During the 12th and 13th centuries, Judaism was under intense pressure from both Christian theologians and rationalist philosophers (like Maimonides) who argued that the literal stories of the Bible were basic or outdated.
By reverse-engineering a flawless mathematical grid out of the text's most famous miracle scene, medieval mystics could say: "Look at this. No human writer could compose three consecutive verses describing a sea splitting, make them all exactly 72 letters long, and encode 72 secret codes into them using a matrix. This proves the text is of supernatural origin."
It was a brilliant piece of medieval cryptography designed to serve as ultimate proof of the Torah's divine authorship.
While I pretty much agree that the interpretation we most often see was devised to strengthen the claims of divine authorship, I do think that what's come from this interpretation has produced a lot which is practically useful. Like I said in my post, this isn't something I've really worked with, but I've known many people who connect with the angel names derived from this method as a primary part of their practice, so it must contain some value.
Beyond looking at how and why this text was interpreted in this way, I'm curious what else we might learn from the text itself. I almost never see anyone discuss the actual text this all comes from, and how that applies to it. People fixate on the boustrophedon reading and the separation into angel names, and don't question why or if that makes any sense at all.
This interpretation is clearly a later invention of the 12th century, but the 3 consecutive lines of 72 letters exist since the earliest examples of Exodus 14:19–21. The oldest example I've found is from the dead sea scrolls, 4Q11 (4QpaleoGen-Exod), which is 2000-2100 years old. I think it's likely that the human authors did this for a reason, and that the reason was not to argue for divine authorship or to produce names of angels.
Do you think it was it simply meant to reinforce the depiction of god's ultimate power in this scene? Perhaps any further meanings derived from this are all inventions that were not intended by the author? Does that give them any less value?
Angelkesfarl:First of all, it comes from the science of simplification and decomposition.
The sages who devised it derived it from three verses of the Torah in the well-known narrative known to most scholars—though, of course, that is not my only point. It also stems from the fact that the method employed by the ancient sages was modeled after the path of a plow: straight, then in the opposite direction, then straight again
—resulting in seventy-two letters for each of the three verses, which were publicly proclaimed. the birth of the seventy-two astrological decans in their three aspects, forming the number 216.
I am fascinated by numbers, for they are the language of unchanging truth... So what they call the “single” or “fragmented” name, Shimhemforash, is in fact three verses from which they claim all secrets emerged.
When their initial arrangement is complete, we will need to divide by another coefficient, 2, to arrive at the center of the circle, thereby identifying the top, bottom, east, and west of the astronomical circle, which is by its very nature divided into 12 months and 12 hours. Oh, a new number has appeared—12. Let’s talk about it, please, and take it in with our own eyes. Dividing 72 by 12 gives 6—oh my God, a new number has been born as well: 6 × 36 = 216, another initial form. And strangely, it is the product of 3 × 12 = 36—it is also half the cycle of celestial movements for every 72 astrological decans. Ah, so are we filling the void with letters, then???
From this arises a complete movement that changed the course of human history—especially Western history—in the search for the secret: Let’s knock politely on our neighbors’ doors and ask them: O ancient civilizations, were you aware of the decans, and did they have other names among you??? Why did they choose only the ternary system???
Was it because there are only three such verses, or because there were other considerations? Or is it that, with all that has been written, transcribed, experimented with, and created—and in which scholars spent their lifetimes and experimenters derived most of their secrets—it is merely a first step in a vast, welcoming universe?
I apologize, my friends, if I have caused you any inconvenience, but it is a matter
I think there are two different things being mixed together here.
The name Shem ha-Meforash itself is Hebrew, שם המפורש, and basically means something like “the explicit name” or “the clearly expressed name.” In older Jewish sources, this usually refers to the Divine Name, especially the Tetragrammaton, YHWH. So originally, “Shem ha-Meforash” was not simply the name of the 72 angels or the 72 triplets.
The connection with the number 72 comes from Exodus 14:19–21. In Hebrew, each of those three verses has 72 letters. The traditional method arranges the first verse in one direction, the second in reverse, and the third normally again. When you put them together, you get 72 groups of three letters.
So:
72 × 3 = 216 letters.
That is the basis of the 72-fold Name.
The astrological connection is interesting, but I think it comes later. There are actually 36 traditional decans, not 72. If you divide the zodiac into 72 parts, you get divisions of 5 degrees, so there are two of these divisions inside each 10-degree decan.
So I would not say the 72 Names came from the decans. It is probably more accurate to say that later occult and Hermetic systems saw a very convenient correspondence between the 72 Names and the 72 divisions of 5 degrees in the zodiac.
The ternary aspect is also interesting, of course, because everything is built from three verses and three-letter groups. But before looking for a hidden astronomical reason for the number 3, the simplest explanation is that the method is based on three specific verses.
For me, the really interesting question is not “did the zodiac create the system?”, but rather: at what point did Jewish mystical ideas about the 72-fold Name become connected with astrology, decans and later Western ceremonial magic?
That is where the history gets really interesting.
While I pretty much agree that the interpretation we most often see was devised to strengthen the claims of divine authorship, I do think that what's come from this interpretation has produced a lot which is practically useful. Like I said in my post, this isn't something I've really worked with, but I've known many people who connect with the angel names derived from this method as a primary part of their practice, so it must contain some value.
Perhaps ... if more than 'some connect ' has some value .
if someone posts or says ' I connect with it ' . without further explanation or showing what positive results ensued , I would ; 'Good for you then . ''
Beyond looking at how and why this text was interpreted in this way, I'm curious what else we might learn from the text itself. I almost never see anyone discuss the actual text this all comes from, and how that applies to it. People fixate on the boustrophedon reading and the separation into angel names, and don't question why or if that makes any sense at all.
This interpretation is clearly a later invention of the 12th century, but the 3 consecutive lines of 72 letters exist since the earliest examples of Exodus 14:19–21. The oldest example I've found is from the dead sea scrolls, 4Q11 (4QpaleoGen-Exod), which is 2000-2100 years old. I think it's likely that the human authors did this for a reason, and that the reason was not to argue for divine authorship or to produce names of angels.
Do you think it was it simply meant to reinforce the depiction of god's ultimate power in this scene?
No , not 'simply' at all , it was 'veiled' in levels of complexity .
For a fuller examination go back to the development of Hebrew letters , through the Aramaic shift , the Paleo-Hebrew script ( which your 4Q11 is written in ) , the Proto- Sinaitic Origins, the ( rather innovative transition from ) Egyptian Hieroglyphics .
Also the first relationship of the name was related to 'YHWH' and when you quoted notes that ancient scribes "did this for a reason" that was not "to produce names of angels," you are historically accurate. The 72-angel interpretation did not develop until centuries later in Kabbalistic circles. The original, ancient reason for manipulating these letters was entirely tied to scribal reverence and textual preservation , which I already pointed out
, it is clear that these authors were highly trained professionals managing column widths, line breaks, and formatting. Manipulating letter spacing or alphabet styles was a human tool used to structure a uniform reading experience.
See the link I made to the list of Israel Finkelstein's lectures above , specifically 'scribal traditions ' and the history and development of writing in ancient Canaan . ( Episode 14 , I think ? .... 'The Shmunis Family Conversations in the Archaeology and History of Ancient Israel series' ...top stuff . Dont take my word for it, check out his cred first ;
, it is clear that these authors were highly trained professionals managing column widths, line breaks, and formatting. Manipulating letter spacing or alphabet styles was a human tool used to structure a uniform reading experience.
Do you have a theory as to why the earlier scribes would have been ensuring that these 3 consecutive verses contained 72 letters?
Because I don't find anyone speculating on this for over 1000 years after the oldest copies were produced. I don't see any reason to believe that the original intent and the later interpretations are the same. And I don't think these interpretations would make much sense from the pov of a 1st century BC scribe. I think the purpose of these interpretations lines up with your first post. To say originally Shem HaMephorash = YHVH, of course, no argument. I just think we might have a more interesting mystery with Exodus 14:19–21 that hasn't been exposed yet.
As for working with the angel names derived in this tradition, I find that interesting as well, and see it as another separate part of all this. Newer mysteries built on reimagining older ones. There are certainly varying levels of seriousness here in practice, as with everything. Ranging all the way from people who might just think they "connect with" something and feel warm and fuzzy, to what I was talking about with people who work with them opposite the demons of Goetia a-la Rudd, as a core component of their magic.
Need I really answer this ? See 'aleph ' . Horses as plow animals came later .
Elephants .... I suggest you try it yourself
But you will not , I assume ... if you do ;
Ox -Pulling CapacityCan easily pull a standard 900 kg (2,000 lb) plow for hours. Elephant - Can drag or push loads exceeding 6,800 kg (15,000 lbs).Daily Food Needed ox - 10–15 kg (22–33 lbs) of dry forage/hay per animal. Elephant -150–200 kg (330–440 lbs) of vegetation. Daily Water Needed ox - 30–50 liters (8–13 gallons) per animal. Elephant- 100–200 liters (26–50 gallons).Time Spent Feeding ox - A few hours of grazing; they chew cud while resting. Elephant - 14–19 hours a day just foraging and eating. Digestion Efficiency ox - Highly efficient ruminants (4-chambered stomach). Elephant - Inefficient simple stomach; under 50% digested.
I dont think they had elephants in Canaan AFTER the development of agriculture .
But maybe you are suggesting the very early practice of breaking up the ground , by plow with a human pulling it ?
Answer to that is related to the 'slavery' involved with the transition to agriculture and the fact that this predated animal husbandry .
You’re joking, right???
Is the truth really that a horse and an elephant move on a chessboard??
And a bull and a plow, too?
There’s a type of walk called “al-farz” and “al-farzan”—look up the linguistic origins, as these are extremely precise Eastern terms that were learned in Babylon during the period of captivity…?
I’ll bring the distances closer to you and point my finger at the stars. Look around you at night—you’ll see stars adorning the sky… There are hidden connections between them called “threads” or “angles,” and they form the constellations, lunar houses, and astrological decans???
Look and look closely—do you see anything written in the sky???
Now, would you turn your gaze back to the earth, look at the shapes of the constellations, and then look up at the sky again???
If you link them to laws, you’ll see them as drawn, but in the end, they’re imaginary threads representing a language like Enochian or the so-called angelic language...
Let’s go back to square one: You need to define the thing and be able to subject it to measurement in order for it to become a science—or even an art???
Would you please look at the sky instead of my finger??
I think from hebrew shem (name) ha(the) mephorash ( from pharash meaning to speard so mephorash is past participle of pharash. Therefore mephorash means streached or expanded metaphorically used to say declared)
General meaning become the declared name so come from declaring or explaining each names of God
And is God’s name hidden so that they can reveal it?
God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-wise—so does He need to be hidden?? Or is it they who need to hide Him in order to create a myth?
While I pretty much agree that the interpretation we most often see was devised to strengthen the claims of divine authorship, I do think that what's come from this interpretation has produced a lot which is practically useful. Like I said in my post, this isn't something I've really worked with, but I've known many people who connect with the angel names derived from this method as a primary part of their practice, so it must contain some value.
Beyond looking at how and why this text was interpreted in this way, I'm curious what else we might learn from the text itself. I almost never see anyone discuss the actual text this all comes from, and how that applies to it. People fixate on the boustrophedon reading and the separation into angel names, and don't question why or if that makes any sense at all.
This interpretation is clearly a later invention of the 12th century, but the 3 consecutive lines of 72 letters exist since the earliest examples of Exodus 14:19–21. The oldest example I've found is from the dead sea scrolls, 4Q11 (4QpaleoGen-Exod), which is 2000-2100 years old. I think it's likely that the human authors did this for a reason, and that the reason was not to argue for divine authorship or to produce names of angels.
Do you think it was it simply meant to reinforce the depiction of god's ultimate power in this scene? Perhaps any further meanings derived from this are all inventions that were not intended by the author? Does that give them any less value?
Actually, it’s even older than that—it dates back specifically to the time of the Babylonian captivity…
Does it have any value? I’ll answer you with a question: Does gold have any value? Where does that value come from? And what benefit does the metal offer that allows us to use it as a standard of measurement?
People have differed greatly, but they’ve all agreed on one thing: the pursuit of self-interest… What does that have to do with this matter…???
Domination in times of slavery stems from two things: instilling fear and awe...
Are those angels and demons real beings, and do they serve a purpose???
Of course they’re real—truly real and earthly as well. At the same time, it’s a dilemma, and the solution lies with you, not with me.
I think there are two different things being mixed together here.
The name Shem ha-Meforash itself is Hebrew, שם המפורש, and basically means something like “the explicit name” or “the clearly expressed name.” In older Jewish sources, this usually refers to the Divine Name, especially the Tetragrammaton, YHWH. So originally, “Shem ha-Meforash” was not simply the name of the 72 angels or the 72 triplets.
The connection with the number 72 comes from Exodus 14:19–21. In Hebrew, each of those three verses has 72 letters. The traditional method arranges the first verse in one direction, the second in reverse, and the third normally again. When you put them together, you get 72 groups of three letters.
So:
72 × 3 = 216 letters.
That is the basis of the 72-fold Name.
The astrological connection is interesting, but I think it comes later. There are actually 36 traditional decans, not 72. If you divide the zodiac into 72 parts, you get divisions of 5 degrees, so there are two of these divisions inside each 10-degree decan.
So I would not say the 72 Names came from the decans. It is probably more accurate to say that later occult and Hermetic systems saw a very convenient correspondence between the 72 Names and the 72 divisions of 5 degrees in the zodiac.
The ternary aspect is also interesting, of course, because everything is built from three verses and three-letter groups. But before looking for a hidden astronomical reason for the number 3, the simplest explanation is that the method is based on three specific verses.
For me, the really interesting question is not “did the zodiac create the system?”, but rather: at what point did Jewish mystical ideas about the 72-fold Name become connected with astrology, decans and later Western ceremonial magic?
That is where the history gets really interesting.
For history to become interesting, imagine the following:
You are in Babylon, the birthplace of magic... and you have just returned from a long journey that began with the ancient Egyptians, the birthplace of astronomy...
Alone in the midst of an unbearable hell of captivity, you see the Chosen People... without a magician?????
Since you are the one who guides the people and gives them patience, you have engaged with the religious elite and made a truce with them, promising that you would not convert anyone to Judaism… to the Lord who stands among the pantheon of gods.
Satan knows you well, for he used to visit your city when the Prophet Solomon ruled.
As I told my friends, the heavens lie vast before you, your knowledge is boundless, and all the books of magic and the jinn were recorded in the ages of our forefathers...
And you will journey and move through the rise and fall of nations from east to west; you will live among the Hermeticists on a journey that took you from Egypt to Jerusalem to Rome.
The explicit name is “Adonai Ehad” (אָנֹכִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ).
The hidden meaning is the number five—night and day… the 20 minutes out of 1,440 minutes each day?
And what is even more astonishing is that 1,440 is also the product of 4 × 360 = 1,440
And even stranger is that 72 × 20 minutes = 1,440, which is the same number as
1,440 ÷ 42 = 60. Look at that binary pattern for the 30-degree constellation: 2 × 60 = 60, and also 30 ÷ 3 = 10, and 10 × 36 = 360 × 4 = 1,440.
You asked for the practical aspect, didn’t you?
What is the product derived from 360? Oh, it’s a reference to the complete circle and to every angle in astronomy. Hmmmm… Their lives must have been difficult to come up with such complexity… I think it took longer than our lifetimes for them to compose and piece together the threads of the matter—finding the divine words = 19, 20, 21 from Chapter 14... and the chapter—all these things weren’t chosen in vain, but to separate the people of the day from those of the night so that matters may be set right. For this isn’t merely a numbers game you rely on to achieve magic. “Leave this false interpretation alone; it is the interpretation of the ignorant regarding the inner workings of things.” Every angel rules a quintet that points immediatelyAs for the five-pointed star: It is a complete science and art that gives rise to a new image which will define the names, angels, and demons, and connect them through your apparent and hidden scientific links. It will then evolve over time, but—to be precise—you will evolve under your celestial, stellar canopy, not outside of it, if you value scientific accuracy and integrity.
Do you have a theory as to why the earlier scribes would have been ensuring that these 3 consecutive verses contained 72 letters?
Because I don't find anyone speculating on this for over 1000 years after the oldest copies were produced. I don't see any reason to believe that the original intent and the later interpretations are the same. And I don't think these interpretations would make much sense from the pov of a 1st century BC scribe. I think the purpose of these interpretations lines up with your first post. To say originally Shem HaMephorash = YHVH, of course, no argument. I just think we might have a more interesting mystery with Exodus 14:19–21 that hasn't been exposed yet.
As for working with the angel names derived in this tradition, I find that interesting as well, and see it as another separate part of all this. Newer mysteries built on reimagining older ones. There are certainly varying levels of seriousness here in practice, as with everything. Ranging all the way from people who might just think they "connect with" something and feel warm and fuzzy, to what I was talking about with people who work with them opposite the demons of Goetia a-la Rudd, as a core component of their magic.
This is the crux of the matter as a whole. There is a specific system with its own secrets and mysteries called the science of letter formation—“al-basat wa al-takseer”—and the methods of interpretation place the dots on the letters; they call each letter to its natural place. No three-letter name came out of thin air or was fabricated without scientific basis. No, my friend; rather, it is the very essence of the entire poem, and the meaning lies within the poet’s heart. Likewise, the meaning lies within the heart of the original author, who simply did not reveal it because it was considered a magical secret. But where did it come from, and how did it achieve those results? It is not a grimoire born of human imagination; rather, it is a complete manifestation of entities. Pay close attention to my words and scrutinize them carefully: these are real, existing entities—nations, tribes, provinces, and legions of demons and jinn. Call them whatever you like—be it Druidic, Roman, or “Hebrew”—and with you are true divine words; think about how you will name them.”
In the beginning, I used to see strange talismans with bizarre shapes and exquisite images, as well as magic squares containing numbers that make you want to bang your head against the nearest wall—how were they arranged in such a geometric manner? And what is this immense influence that controls a person, makes them love or hate, lose or recover???
How could this man, sitting on a mountain, draw on clay mixed with herbs and strike another man right in the heart—in the very heart of the capitals of thought, beauty, and civilization—knocking him down dead for the love of a girl who is neither worthy of that status nor of this form of love…
Despite their knowledge and culture, aren’t these supernatural abilities—which even the most rigorous academic institutions, with their meticulous scientific scrutiny, cannot explain—causing their theories to crumble before him???
The only explanation I have at this early stage, lest I go mad, is that “There is a mathematical pattern and a secret that man is hiding from me. There must be a connection between the magic square he wrote and the living science of other numbers—it is the sum of the letters in the sentence, for example: ‘So-and-so wants the love of So-and-so,’ along with the name of an angel, the name of the day, the name of the ruler, the name of the servant, and the remarkable number 1440.”Then mathematical calculations emerge, and finally it fills with numbers; he writes down what he has entered into them, then mutters to himself—and I find that this is how it happens, without the fanfare of romantic celebrations, without ceremonial magic, and without the pretense of swords, daggers, and so on.
1 . For the visual eloquence and sheer cleverness ; this was also a part of oral traditions which evolved from 'song ' and 'song was not just 'songs' as we know them . The incredible near superhuman ( to us nowadays ) skill, memory and info contained can be explored in such sources as 'Aboriginal song lines ' , The Avestas , The old parts of the Rig Veda (in Sanskrit ) and held supreme importance in many crucial areas . the leaders and prophets of the past , are said not to have 'constructed them ; but they flowed forth from their lips and contained complex inner relationships, hidden messages and cross references . Or they constructed them unconsciously . Later people emulated that ... it even exists in Thelemic Liber , eg ; Liber 963I am not going to type all that out so
AI Overview
Liber DCCCCLXIII (963): The Treasure House of Images is a foundational text in Aleister Crowley's A∴A∴ system, composed by his early disciple J.F.C. Fuller. Structured entirely around the 12 signs of the Zodiac and the Sun, its primary purpose is to act as a devotional framework for attaining the "Unity of God" through the "Twelvefold Adoration". [
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The internal patterns and astrological permutations governing the text dictate how its symbolic matrices operate:
1. The Internal Structure: The 13 Chapters
The book contains 12 distinct primary chapters (one for each sign of the Zodiac) framed around a central unifying theme. [
The Prefatory Instruction (Class A): The short opening note dictates the exact methodology for the practitioner. A Probationer must learn by heart the chapter corresponding to their Ascendant (rising sign) at birth. If their birth time is unknown, they default to the unifying text. [
The "Twelvefold Snare" and "Unity": The chapters reflect permutations of the macrocosmic formula. For example, the text transitions through concepts like "The Twelvefold Snare,""The Twelvefold Disconnection,""The Twelvefold Renunciation," and "The Twelvefold Unification". [
2. The Permutation of the 169 Adorations
The engine driving the magical mechanics of Liber 963 is the number 169. Each chapter consists of exactly 13 verses, and there are 13 chapters total (12 signs + 1 unifying chapter).
\(\text{13\ Chapters}\times \text{13\ Verses}=\text{169\ Total\ Adorations}\)
In Qabalistic and astrological permutations, this mathematical blueprint carries deep significance:
The Number 13: Represents Achad (Unity, \(\aleph\pi\delta = 13\)) and Ahabah (Love, \(\aleph\eta\beta\eta = 13\)).
The Matrix of Unity: \(13 \times 13 = 169\) is the geometric square of Unity. The permutation shifts the practitioner from the fractured, diverse impressions of the physical world (the "Images" of the astral foundation, Yesod) into a singular, laser-focused adoration of the Divine Crown (Kether). [
3. Astrological Permutations & Ritual Application
The internal structure matches the natural progression of the Sun through the ecliptic, but its practical implementation relies on dynamic astrological conditions:
The Rising Star: Practitioners are instructed to recite the book—specifically focusing on the 169 Adorations—directly to their "Star as it ariseth" in the night sky. [
Astral Kinesics: The text mandates physical movements that mirror cosmic permutations: rocking back and forth, spinning on one’s own axis (simulating planetary rotation), and leaping up and down to build intense magical energy ("inflaming oneself in the adoration"). [
Pathworking & The Tree of Life: Astrologically, the 12 signs map to the 12 Diagonal Paths on the Qabalistic Tree of Life. By reciting the verse matching a specific celestial alignment, the magus uses the text as an astral map for pathworking, traversing the "Treasure House" (Yesod, the realm of images and reflections) to perceive the machinery of the universe firsthand. [
Would you like to analyze the specific text and symbolic imagery of a particular zodiac sign's chapter, or explore the Qabalistic gematria behind its key phrases?
2. as a code to ensure correct hand copying . Instead of examining each word and letter , just add the values and see if they total 72 .
3. Scribes were also into sacred geometry and cosmic order , they tried to construct and emulate . Maybe they knew 72 relates to 1 degree of Earth's equinoctial precession .It also fits into base 60 and 12 ( I talked about that ,,, here or elsewhere ? cant remember) or some other 72 that was significant I haven't thought of , or was mistaken or is valid but unknown.
4, The choice available when selecting vowels going from 'abjad' to 'vocalized' or 'pointed' script ie. older to more contemporary ( for the time of translation ) , under the influence of ^ 3
5. retrofit - originally it nearly had a 72 match , someone saw it and fiddled with it ( Maybe they added a definite article he or a conjunction vav) to make them match precisely , then the checking (in above 2 set it ) and later came the kabbalistic interpretation?
6 Verbotten ! ( by me ) I aint going near the tri dimensions grid set up ... I done enough , how about you play with that one <passes the hot potato over > ....
Because I don't find anyone speculating on this for over 1000 years after the oldest copies were produced. I don't see any reason to believe that the original intent and the later interpretations are the same. And I don't think these interpretations would make much sense from the pov of a 1st century BC scribe. I think the purpose of these interpretations lines up with your first post. To say originally Shem HaMephorash = YHVH, of course, no argument. I just think we might have a more interesting mystery with Exodus 14:19–21 that hasn't been exposed yet.#
As for working with the angel names derived in this tradition, I find that interesting as well, and see it as another separate part of all this. Newer mysteries built on reimagining older ones. There are certainly varying levels of seriousness here in practice,
as with everything. Ranging all the way from people who might just think they "connect with" something and feel warm and fuzzy, to what I was talking about with people who work with them opposite the demons of Goetia a-la Rudd, as a core component of their magic.
If they will . I would rather use my own expansions on the work of Dr Dee rather than someone else's expansions that I expanded on ... But that's just me . (The best part of the fun was spending 90+ hrs painting the tablets , then visiting the pyramids 'on the astral' . )
But I dont do such techno stuff no more - somewhere there are probably dusty magical diaries detailing it ... or maybe they went to the dump ?
My practice has 'matured' now and has become very specific to ' genius loci' .... and indigenous connections x tutelary deity .
Is the truth really that a horse and an elephant move on a chessboard??
And a bull and a plow, too?
There’s a type of walk called “al-farz” and “al-farzan”—look up the linguistic origins, as these are extremely precise Eastern terms that were learned in Babylon during the period of captivity…?
I’ll bring the distances closer to you and point my finger at the stars. Look around you at night—you’ll see stars adorning the sky… There are hidden connections between them called “threads” or “angles,” and they form the constellations, lunar houses, and astrological decans???
Now strange punctuation as well as syntax , whats with all the ???? but no question. and dont act the guru nor do your 'Buddha pointing' , to me ...Mr Angel .
As far as your instruction re 'decans ' go .... pffffft ..... ' kindergarten !
I see more stars at night than you can imagine , and ones you might never see . unless up are near the South celestial Pole, like I am . Are you ? ( that IS a question )
Of course I do, and I see it written in the rocks as well, from some of the most ancient people on Earth ! Long before Arab 'law' and Persian mental gymnastics and texts .... go ' look up you Avesta ' if you want the real source of Persian linguistics
Things written in the sky may be meaningless ... or they can be practical ;
What ?! The 'shapes of the constellations' ? these strange 'square shapes' ;
Maybe you meant 'asterisms ' ?
As an angel, you should know they are purely arbitrary and have changed over time and cultural viewpoint . - they even chopped off Scorpio's claws and gave them to Libra ! ( and what is a scopion without claws ! ).
Anyway . its 'actually . two circle guardians chasing a boy and girl lawbreaker, throwing their stick and boomerang after them ... and that is the most 'scorpionic' story ever told ! If you know it . So , 'can' your attempts at 'looking down' and 'educating' me to the 'right truth' .
If you link them to laws, you’ll see them as drawn, but in the end, they’re imaginary threads representing a language like Enochian or the so-called angelic language...
You can 'can' your headmaster tone with me thanks .
Angelic script eh ? Nah ! Agrippa just fiddled with Hebrew and Greek letters and added dots and stuff . Kircher was the one that adapted them to IDEAS about star connections and the idea that they were angel's language came from 16th C Christian occultists . Dee fiddled de Dee later with them .
Let’s go back to square one: You need to define the thing and be able to subject it to measurement in order for it to become a science—or even an art???
