Ps (also transliterated as Djeser or Teser) is the ancient Egyptian hieroglyph meaning "sacred" or "holy." Its phonetic value is /dʒ s r/, often read as djeser. The glyph depicts a fetish in the form of a vertebral column or a stylized column with a broad base and a top that flares outward, and is a primary symbol for sanctity, consecration, and the sacred precinct.

Position on the Tree of Life

Ps occupies the 28th step on the scale of the 32 Paths, corresponding to Path 28. This path is the 22nd letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Tav (ת), and the 28th Path of the Tree of Life is associated with the link between Netzach (Victory) and Malkuth (Kingdom). The role of Ps here is to consecrate the bridge between the lower sensory world and the sphere of emotion and endurance.

Astrological and planetary correspondence

In the system of Liber 777, Ps is the English equivalent of the column entry for Path 28, which corresponds astrologically to Saturn (Shabbathai). The planetary association is not directly to the planet’s malefic aspects but to its solemn, structuring, and sanctifying power—Saturn as the tester and the giver of boundaries, the planet that makes holy by separation.

Historical context

The djeser hieroglyph is among the oldest Egyptian symbols of the sacred, appearing in the Pyramid Texts as a designation for the sacred spaces of the necropolis and for the deceased king’s consecrated state. The word is the root of Djoser (Netjerikhet), the Third Dynasty pharaoh whose step pyramid at Saqqara is the earliest colossal stone building in history—its name means "Sacred Body" or "Holy of Holies." In Egyptian ritual, the djeser sign marked offerings, temple furnishings, and royal regalia as set apart from the profane. The symbol also appears in the phrase djeser djeseru, "Holy of Holies," a term for the innermost sanctuary of a temple, comparable to the Hebrew Qodesh ha-Qodashim.

The word entered Western esotericism via the Hermetic and Rosicrucian revivals, where it was adopted as a glyph for the philosophic gold (the sanctified material). In the Masonic tradition, the djeser pillar is sometimes linked to the symbol of the Holy Royal Arch. In Crowley’s 777, the English column gives "Ps" (also seen as "Ds" or "Dz" in other transliterations) as the phonetic rendering for the 28th path, aligning with the Hebrew Tav, whose meaning is "mark" or "sign"—a perfect symbolic match for the Egyptian concept of a sanctifying mark.

Ps in Liber 777

In table row LI.3 of Liber 777, the column for English equivalents lists "Ps" as the sound of the sacred hieroglyph at Path 28. It serves as the phonetic key for the word djeser, linking Egyptian, Hebrew, and astrological systems into a single consecrating formula.