Hi Jim
Jim Eshelman wrote:and the Hermetic tradition, as far back as it can be traced, has employed the same attributions given in the original Short Version, not the later ones of the Ari or Gra.
If I am following this right this would mean that the Hermetic tradition employed the attribution of double letters to planets with reference to the planets Chaldean order?* I am not sure who you mean by those of the Hermetic tradition, but certainly the attributions of the GD et al seem unique?
SteveM
note: As I understand it there are three extent recensions, known as the Short, the Long and the saadia, that have been recognised since the 10th century. There is an extent 10th century manuscript of the long version [Vatican Library (Cat. Assemani)299(8), fols.66a-71 b), the 1263 Baghdad copy of the Saadia Gaons text and commentary originally written in 931 [Oxford, Bodleian Library Pococke 256 (Cat. Neubauer 1533)] was the oldest extent copy of the Saadia known until the discovery in the 20th century of the 10/11th century copy of the same [The Geniza Scroll, Cambridge University Library, Taylor-Schechter K21/56 + Glass 32/5 + Glass 12/813]. These are the oldest extent manuscript copies of the Long and Saadia recensions and include the attributions of the double letters to the planets in chaldean order. While the letter to planet attribution is not present in most extent short versions the order as infered from para 62 [Hayman] is also extent in at least two short version manuscripts, including the oldest extent [Param 2784.14 (Bibliotheca Palatina 2784/14). De Rossi 1390, fols.36b-38b. 1286]. Manuscripts 'A', 'C', 'Z' and 'K' in Hayman.
Sefer Yesira : 41 [Gruenwald]Saadia [Manuscripts C and Z Hayman]:1 He made Bet King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Saturn in the universe, the Sabbath in the year, and the mouth in the soul.
2 He made Gimel King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Jupiter in the universe, Sunday in the year, and the right eye of the soul.
3. He made Dalet King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Mars in the universe, Monday in the year, and the left eye of the soul.
4. He made Kaf King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Sun in the universe, Tuesday in the year, and the right nostril of the soul.
5. He made Peh King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Venus in the universe, Wednesday in the year, and the left nostril of the soul.
6. He made Resh King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Mercury in the universe, Thursday in the year, and the right ear of the soul.
7. He made Tav King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Moon in the universe, Friday in the year, and the left ear of the soul.
Long [Manuscript A Hayman]1 He made Bet King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Saturn in the universe, the Sabbath in the year, and the mouth in the soul.
2 He made Gimel King and bound to it a crown and combined one with another, and formed of it: Jupiter in the universe, Sunday in the year, and the right eye of the soul.
3. He made Dalet King and bound to it a crown, and formed of it: Mars in the universe, Monday in the year, and the left eye of the soul.
4. He made Kaf King and bound to it a crown, and formed of it: Sun in the universe, Tuesday in the year, and the right nostril of the soul.
5. He made Peh King and bound to it a crown, and formed of it: Venus in the universe, Wednesday in the year, and the left nostril of the soul.
6. He made Resh King and bound to it a crown, and formed of it: Mercury in the universe, Thursday in the year, and the right ear of the soul.
7. He made Tav King and bound to it a crown, and formed of it: Moon in the universe, Friday in the year, and the left ear of the soul.
Sefer Yesirah : 62 [Gruenwald]Manuscript K [Hayman] Short recension {attributions do not appear in majority of short version manuscripts, but do so in this the earliest extent manuscript of the short recension}:
2: Saturn, Sabbath, the mouth. --- Jupiter, Sunday, right eye. --- Mars, Monday, left eye. --- The Sun, Tuesday, right nostril. --- Venus, Wednesday, left nostril. --- Mercury, Thursday, right ear. ---Moon, Friday, left ear: these are Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh and Tav.
Manuscript A [Hayman] Long recension:Saturn, Sabbath, the mouth. --- Jupiter, Sunday, right eye. --- Mars, Monday, left eye. --- The Sun, Tuesday, right nostril. --- Venus, Wednesday, left nostril. --- Mercury, Thursday, right ear. ---Moon, Friday, left ear: these are Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh and Tav.
Manuscript C [Hayman] Saadia recensionSaturn, Sabbath, the mouth. --- Jupiter, Sunday, right eye. --- Mars, Monday, left eye. --- The Sun, Tuesday, right nostril. --- Venus, Wednesday, left nostril. --- Mercury, Thursday, right ear. ---Moon, Friday, left ear: these are Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh and Tav.
So the earliest extent manuscripts of the SY in all three recensions include planet to letter attributions, and they are in the Chaldean order.
Kircher, a primary source for those following the Christian Cabalistic and Hermetic Qabalistic traditions gives:
Beit - Sun
Gimel - Venus
Daleth - Mercury
Kaph - Luna
Peh - Saturn
Resh - Jupiter
Tau - Mars
[source: notes to the Sefer Yetzira by William Wynn Westcott]
(note: Kircher's planetary attributions appear in this order in para 42 and 43a [Gruenwald] of both the short and long versions of manuscripts K and A (as classified in Hayman):
para 42 and 43a:(Gruenwald)
Short version [K] And with them were carved out seven firmaments, seven earths, seven hours and seven times. Therefore he loved the seventh under heaven.
These are the seven planets in the universe: Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars. And the days in the years: the seven days of creation. And the seven apertures in mankind: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, and the mouth.
Long version [A] And with them were carved out seven firmaments, seven earths, seven hours and seven days. Therefore he loved the seventh above everything under heaven.
These are the seven planets in the universe: Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars. And the seven days: the seven days of creation. And the seven apertures in mankind: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, and the mouth.)So Kircher too follows the Chaldean order, but starts with the first 7 planetary hours [counting from sunrise] of the first day of creation [the first seven hours from sunrise of Sunday].
Hayman writes [p.143]:
"Despite the fact that he was working with a defective printed text of SY...Soloman Ganz has correctly observed that the author of SY in pp 41 and 44 has "connected the seven planets in the natural order Saturn Jupiter Mars Sun Venus Mercury Moon with the first seven days instead of the first hours of creation." Consequently, 42 and 43a with their reference to the "seven hours" and the order Sun Venus Mercury Moon Saturn Jupiter Mars must be "the gloss of an editor who wished to reconsile the theory of the Book of Creation with the accepted theory of the planetary week". So the later editor "mentions the seven hours and changes the sequence Saturn Jupiter Mars Sun Venus Mercury Moon into the sequence Sun Venus Mercury
Moon Saturn Jupiter Mars to correspond with the first seven hours of the first day of the week".
(As pointed out by Kaplan, in biblical reckoning evening precedes day; a day thus runs from evening to evening in Jewish tradition, not morning to morning. The first 7 hours of the first day in biblical reckoning and Jewish tradition would thus be Mercury Moon Saturn Jupiter Mars Sun Venus. However, Kircher is following the Christian tradition.)
Judah Ha-Levi retains the Chaldean order commencing with Saturn but gives days to correspond with accepted planetary week: 'In the year: Sabbath, Thursday, Tuesday, Sunday, Friday, Wednesday, Monday" (Kuzari 4:25, row F in table 33 on p.179 of Kaplan). Sheirat Yosef 10a gives planetary order according to the planetary week (saturday, saturn; sunday, sun; monday, moon; tuesday, mars; wednesday, mercury; thursday, jupiter; friday, venus - row G, table 33 on p.179 Kaplan).
Variations appear early on (Shabbetai Donnolo in one of the earliest of the commentaries on the SY is aware of the discrepancies and "expressed the necessity of correcting the aberrant contents of SY at this point" [Hayman]). But while it is true there is confusion in these manuscripts of the SY, it is also clear that the basis is the chaldean order with confusion specifically related to the relationship between the planetary hours and days of the week (so I find it hard to give much credence to 'historical authority' for making variations based on these apparent examples of confusion, especially with variations unrelated to the Chaldean order, which is clearly at the of all these old variations).
Then we have the Gra (18th century) redaction, the attributions of which have become the standard in Jewish Kabbalah since the late 19th century:
Beit - Moon
Gimel - Mars
Daleth - Sun
Kaph - Venus
Peh - Mercury
Resh - Saturn
Tau - Jupiter
(These attributions are used in some 20th century Spanish decks, making them as far as I am aware the only ones to correspond to any Jewish Kabbalistic redaction of the SY, albeit a late one. Decker/Dummet suggest the source for the attributions of these Spanish decks is Westcott's essay on the 'Isiac Tablet of Bembo' in which he uses the Gra attributions. They do not give their reasons for this suggestion.)
While the variations in the early version may be due to error and misunderstanding, that of the Gra redaction is as you say somewhat different, in that they were changed purposely to make them more consistent with the Zohar and teachings of the Ari (and to remove elements important in Shabbatean kabbalistic tradition, such as the attribution of Saturn to Binah) - so I think there is credible historical 'precedent' in the example of the Gra redaction. All such variations applied only to the double letters however (which may be appropriate in reference to planets as 'wandering star', in contrast to the 'fixed stars' of the zodiac), so Crowley's variation among the single letters remains without historical precent. Regardless of any historical authority however, such is secondary to the primary authority of the revelation on which the Thelemic redaction is based.
ref:Aryeh Kaplan
Sefer Yetzira (Weiser Books 1997)
Peter Hayman
Sefer Yesira (2004 Mohr Siebeck, Tubingen, Germany).
William Wynn Westcott
Sefer YetziraRonald Decker/Michael Dummet
History of the Occult Tarot