The first sphere of the Tree of Death is called Nehemoth, or sometimes Lilith, and represents Earth on the Nightside of the Tree. In Nehemoth the practitioner is reborn by reconnecting with their roots and then demolishing anything that does not belong to the new person they are becoming. Death, destruction, and rebirth are all themes in the nightside of the tree, but especially so in Nehemoth.
It is also here that the practitioner is confronted with lessons regarding the antithesis of whatever and whomever they believe they are or want to be. This is sometimes called the shadow, though it is more complex. It is the void that is created by their forced movements in life. This is due to the universe’s nature to even itself out.
Nehemoth is ruled by the demoness Naamah, who is the daughter of Lilith, and mother of Asmodeus.
10. Nehemoth: The Black Earth
Lessons of Nehemoth
Connection to roots: In Nehemoth we connect with the Earth, by first connecting with our roots. Where we come from, where we have been, what we have done, and the sum of what we have become. Connecting to Nehemoth through our own roots in this way, connects us to authenticity.
Death: All things die. All cycles come to a close. In the sphere of Nehemoth, we come face to face with death itself, as death is what gives birth to new life. We need death to live. Energy can not be created or destroyed. It is a bittersweet balance that keeps us moving.
Self-Sustainability: If we can not stand on our own, we can not sustain anything we build. One of the many lessons of Nehemoth is that all is that all dies, and what this means is that all cycles will come to a close, and in the end if you can not support yourself, you are at the whims of whatever you rely on.
Rebirth: From the ashes rises new life. Built on the bones of once was, Nehemoth teaches the lessons of rebirth. The power of accepting death and change gracefully.
Illusions: In life, we all cast illusions both on others and ourselves to control the narrative, better manipulate situations, or see things from a different perspective. In Nehemoth, the initiate will be asked to remove some of the illusions and be confronted with a “new” reality and perspective. This can feel alarming to some, though it is a step towards overall enlightenment and clearer insight and intuition.
Queen Naamah
When I first met Queen Naamah, she did as so many other spirits do with me, and she came to me in a dream. I had been struggling with the expression of my sexuality as well as sexual energy as a whole. I had been called some pretty awful names. Things like slut, whore, dirty, nasty, etc. The things I loved, the things that brought me joy, had become the things people used against me to make me feel bad, small, or beneath them. Naamah found me when I felt like hiding, took me by the hand, and told me to stand proud in all I was. Especially the dirtiest bits.
Queen Naamah is the Queen of the whores, and is one of the matrons of sacred whores and of the path of sacred sexuality as a whole. Sacred sexuality is the path of connecting the soul to the expression of physical sex and sexual activities. It’s a path of not only reclaiming your sexual energy but fully embracing your sexual expression.
With Queen Naamah, the initiate will be stripped to their authentic core and asked to embrace both the obviously desirable and the not-so-desirable. It is here we learn that all are worthy, and that the “filth” too has it’s sacredness.
Bibliography & Other Resources:
Nightside of Eden by Kenneth Grant (Frederick Muller, 1977)
The Shadow Tarot by Linda Falorio (Linda Falorio, 2014)
Tree of the Qliphoth by Asenath Mason (Temple of the Ascending Flame, 2016)
Visions of the Nightside by Asenath Mason (Black Tower Publishing, 2013)
Liftoach Ish a Gamaliel by Edgar Kerval (Draco Press, 2020)
Garden of Pomegranates by Israel Regardie (Llewellyn Publications, 1987)
Qabalah, Qliphoth, & Goetic Magic by Thomas Karlsson (Ajna Bound, 2017)
The Rites of Acharayim: A Guide to Qliphothic Self-Initiation by VK Jehannum
Acidalia Kipos 