frank zappa
05-08-2006, 03:54 PM
This is an excerpt from an email my brother sent me basically discussing the symbolism found in the liner notes/stereoscopic images, among other things. I just thought that this was pretty damn enlightening, thoughts?
"As far as I can gather 11 and 23 are both prime numbers and they both symbolize incompleteness and imperfection. To the Pythagoreans, 10 was the perfect number and the number of the One All-Father (not Jehovah/Jove/Zeus/Demiurge who was simply the god of our world) from whom all creation/reality emanates. This concept is best illustrated by the triangle which represents both the "big bang"-style emanation from the One and also the balance of the Trinity. But, for Pythagoras the 11 was reviled because it was the symbol of duality, and with duality comes negativity (light/dark, good/evil, virtue/sin, etc.). There's a lot more Kabbalistic/mystical junk I could throw in here, too, but suffice to say this world is imperfect and we all start out as 11 (divide this love?). We're all ignorant and helpless because we're fooled by the illusory material world in which we're immersed (the ocean of materialism) into believing we're cut off from the Divine. But, the truth is we're all divine beings of spiritual fire crucified in these crude bodies molded from the basic elements. But, via the pursuit of knowledge we can unfold that divine nature within ourselves, remove the "nails" holding us down, and retain that Paradise lost. In other words, let the Mercurial waters kiss and turn these leaded grudges into gold. This "spiritual alchemy" was the whole point of Hermeticism, Rosicrucianism, Freemasonry, Kabbalah, etc.
Other points of interest I've gathered thus far come from the stereoscopic
images on the liner notes. To wit:
1. The pins piercing the human body on the spiral number (if I'm correct)
12 in the back and another 12 in front. This has got to represent the
Zodiac (12 signs, but each has positive/negative attributes, so 24
"attributes" total.)
2. The "fire serpent/spiral" comes from Kundalini yoga. There are seven
tantric centers along the spinal column, each linked with a different
aspect of one's spiritual makeup. Only by mastering each of these centers
in turn does one achieve Enlightenment. The serpent of creative fire runs
from the first center at the base of the spine (the lowest level
representing generative properties and the material world) up to the final
spot at the crown of the skull/third eye. This also gives us the lotus
blossom blooming out of the head, an image representing Enlightenment.
This idea also appears in Kabbalism.
3. The shot of Maynard has the huge phallic symbol in the background. The
phallus is symbolic of the generative/creative powers of the sun to bring
life into this world. The broad could be his muse? The 'hawk is sweet in
that it mirrors those Hindu images of the flame emanating from the third
eye. The mirror was used by the Persian Magi to symbolize the material
universe being but a (fuzzy) reflection of the truth/One, etc. The wine is
cool because on the one hand Maynard apparently makes his own wine now.
But, it also represents the spiritual nourishment which results from
undergoing one's spiritual trails to achieve wisdom. It is the goal of the
alchemical Magnum Opus. Obviously, this is best represented by Jesus'
sufferings (mystics refer to the garden of Gethsamane as the wine press).
4. Danny Carey's pic features the Sephirothic Tree of Kabbalism on the
wall behind him and a tarot deck in front of him bearing the symbol of (I
believe) The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. I haven't checked out the
books on the table yet, but I'm sure they're just as interesting. And, I
don't know why the skull is missing the two front teeth, but it's got to
mean something. (The skull, of course, is also a HUGE symbol. Ancient
philosophers taught that "philosophical death" was necessary to achieve
Enlightenment. Also, one of the most important tenants of Freemasonry is
that true life begins at the grave. And, of course, as represented in the
old "memento mori" art, the skull reminds us of our mortality, so get off
your ass and take full advantage of the life you've been given.)
One more thing - the stereoscope itself represents a lot of Tool's
themes/imagery. After all, it functions by taking two separate things and
reuniting them into one."
"As far as I can gather 11 and 23 are both prime numbers and they both symbolize incompleteness and imperfection. To the Pythagoreans, 10 was the perfect number and the number of the One All-Father (not Jehovah/Jove/Zeus/Demiurge who was simply the god of our world) from whom all creation/reality emanates. This concept is best illustrated by the triangle which represents both the "big bang"-style emanation from the One and also the balance of the Trinity. But, for Pythagoras the 11 was reviled because it was the symbol of duality, and with duality comes negativity (light/dark, good/evil, virtue/sin, etc.). There's a lot more Kabbalistic/mystical junk I could throw in here, too, but suffice to say this world is imperfect and we all start out as 11 (divide this love?). We're all ignorant and helpless because we're fooled by the illusory material world in which we're immersed (the ocean of materialism) into believing we're cut off from the Divine. But, the truth is we're all divine beings of spiritual fire crucified in these crude bodies molded from the basic elements. But, via the pursuit of knowledge we can unfold that divine nature within ourselves, remove the "nails" holding us down, and retain that Paradise lost. In other words, let the Mercurial waters kiss and turn these leaded grudges into gold. This "spiritual alchemy" was the whole point of Hermeticism, Rosicrucianism, Freemasonry, Kabbalah, etc.
Other points of interest I've gathered thus far come from the stereoscopic
images on the liner notes. To wit:
1. The pins piercing the human body on the spiral number (if I'm correct)
12 in the back and another 12 in front. This has got to represent the
Zodiac (12 signs, but each has positive/negative attributes, so 24
"attributes" total.)
2. The "fire serpent/spiral" comes from Kundalini yoga. There are seven
tantric centers along the spinal column, each linked with a different
aspect of one's spiritual makeup. Only by mastering each of these centers
in turn does one achieve Enlightenment. The serpent of creative fire runs
from the first center at the base of the spine (the lowest level
representing generative properties and the material world) up to the final
spot at the crown of the skull/third eye. This also gives us the lotus
blossom blooming out of the head, an image representing Enlightenment.
This idea also appears in Kabbalism.
3. The shot of Maynard has the huge phallic symbol in the background. The
phallus is symbolic of the generative/creative powers of the sun to bring
life into this world. The broad could be his muse? The 'hawk is sweet in
that it mirrors those Hindu images of the flame emanating from the third
eye. The mirror was used by the Persian Magi to symbolize the material
universe being but a (fuzzy) reflection of the truth/One, etc. The wine is
cool because on the one hand Maynard apparently makes his own wine now.
But, it also represents the spiritual nourishment which results from
undergoing one's spiritual trails to achieve wisdom. It is the goal of the
alchemical Magnum Opus. Obviously, this is best represented by Jesus'
sufferings (mystics refer to the garden of Gethsamane as the wine press).
4. Danny Carey's pic features the Sephirothic Tree of Kabbalism on the
wall behind him and a tarot deck in front of him bearing the symbol of (I
believe) The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. I haven't checked out the
books on the table yet, but I'm sure they're just as interesting. And, I
don't know why the skull is missing the two front teeth, but it's got to
mean something. (The skull, of course, is also a HUGE symbol. Ancient
philosophers taught that "philosophical death" was necessary to achieve
Enlightenment. Also, one of the most important tenants of Freemasonry is
that true life begins at the grave. And, of course, as represented in the
old "memento mori" art, the skull reminds us of our mortality, so get off
your ass and take full advantage of the life you've been given.)
One more thing - the stereoscope itself represents a lot of Tool's
themes/imagery. After all, it functions by taking two separate things and
reuniting them into one."