Queer Qabala Playlist: Chokmah

Each week between now and the publication of Queer Qabala: Nonbinary, Genderfluid, Omnisexual Mysticism & Magick (pre-order now!), I’ll be sharing a playlist I made about one of the spheres on the Tree of Life, and will be giving you a tiny sneak preview of that sphere’s chapter in the book.

This week’s playlist is for Chokmah, a truly bombastic sphere of endless, overflowing energy without limit. The song from my high school years that embodied that kind of endless, rushing, get-super-hyped energy is “Ready To Go” by Republica, so that’s the first song of the playlist this week. You can listen to the Chokmah playlist on YouTube and Spotify.

Here’s a snippet from the Chokmah chapter of Queer Qabala: Nonbinary, Genderfluid, Omnisexual Mysticism & Magick:

As I mentioned in the previous chapter, the experiences of Binah and Chokmah are the community manifestations of the Geburah and Chesed Coming Out Triangle experiences. In the case of Chokmah, we can sum up the bombastic expansion and celebration of the wild energy of queerdom in the word Pride.

In Chesed, which sits directly below Chokmah on the tree, we explored the joys of considering our personal potential after coming out. At Pride, we celebrate that which we are, what we have survived, and where we could go as a community. We celebrate the strides made for civil rights. We join together to show the world we are unashamed of who we are, and that we are everywhere. As we just discussed, Chokmah is the exuberant revelation that there can be things, along with the realization that those things are a fleeting illusion. So, to that end, we’re here—manifested; we’re queer—expressed individuality that was mere potential in Kether; we’re community—we’re gathered, acknowledging the strides we have made together. We are individuals who recognize our ineffable connections to each other: connections that not only create community but create movements for social change. We celebrate because community joy gives us fuel to keep fighting for our civil rights.

At its best, the energy of Pride is effusive and exuberant, bursting with activity, rainbows, creativity, new connections, and joyful reunions. It’s colorful, wild, and uplifting. I feel the energy of Chokmah when I am on the dance floor at Pride, twirling around in a wild outfit, wearing face paint and glitter, reveling in the joys of feeling myself and everyone around me feeling themselves, dancing and sweating and singing along to loud disco music. I am in the moment, connected to my life force, and energetically connecting to those around me. It’s effervescent, it’s primal, it’s bliss.

Boisterous Pride celebrations aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, of course. The more introverted or just plain exhausted members of our community can certainly celebrate the spirit of Pride in ways that are more authentic to them. The important part of Pride is the recognition that you are part of something bigger than yourself, and that together we can build upon the work done by those who came before to keep making this world a better place for future generations.

Queer Qabala: Nonbinary, Genderfluid, Omnisexual Mysticism & Magick