This entry groups two distinct aromatic plants—sandalwood (from the genus Santalum) and myrtle (Myrtus communis)—under the conceptual banner of “all Soft Voluptuous Odours.” The phrase describes a class of perfumes that are smooth, sweet, and bodily; voluptuous here carries its older sense of “conducive to sensual pleasure” rather than mere opulence. In the Western hermetic tradition, such odours are held to resonate with the receptive, lunar, and feminine currents of the Tree of Life.

Position on the Tree of Life

This correspondence occupies Path 14, the twenty-second letter Nun (נ), whose name means “fish.” Path 14 connects Tiphereth (Beauty) to Yesod (Foundation) and is attributed to the zodiac sign Scorpio. Nun is the “card” of death and regeneration, a swift, watery current. The soft, voluptuous odours assigned here temper Scorpio’s sting with a fragrant, seductive undertow; they are perfumes of the tomb that blossom, of the underworld that perfumes the living.

Astrological and planetary correspondence

Scorpio (the astrological sign, co-ruler Mars and the outer planet Pluto) governs Path 14. In the Liber 777 schema, Scorpio is a watery, fixed sign—intense, secretive, and transformative. The perfumes chosen for this step are not the harsh, burnt smells of Mars-ruled Geburah but the smooth, lingering saps and oils that suggest the hidden processes of decay and rebirth. Myrtle, sacred to Aphrodite and used in classical marriage rites, brings an erotic sweetness; sandalwood, long used in Indian temple incense and funerary pyres, binds pleasure to dissolution.

Historical context

Both sandalwood and myrtle have ancient ritual pedigrees that inform their inclusion here. Myrtle was a central aromatic in Greek and Roman cults of Venus/Aphrodite; its leaves were woven into bridal wreaths and its smoke used in purification ceremonies for the dead. Sandalwood, imported to Europe from India via the spice trade, became a base note in medieval and Renaissance incense blends, valued for its tenacity and creamy sweetness. In the Hebrew esoteric tradition, the phrase “soft voluptuous odours” likely derives from the Sepher Yetzirah’s description of the senses of the twenty-two paths, where Nun is associated with smell that “clings” and delights. By the time Crowley and Mathers compiled Liber 777, they synthesized these threads into a single cell: the perfumes of Path 14 must be those that do not assault the nostrils but envelop them, recalling both the marriage bed and the myrtle groves of Persephone’s return.

In the table of 777

At Path 14, column “Perfumes,” the text lists “Sandalwood, Myrtle, all Soft Voluptuous Odours.” This is a triplet from the bottom of the column, placed under Scorpio’s sign. It contrasts sharply with the sharp, burning gums of Path 27 (Pepper, Dragon’s Blood, all Hot Pungent Odours) and the foul asafœtida of Path 32. Here, the perfumes are chosen for their lush, lingering, and slightly narcotic character—appropriate for a path that leads through the depths of Yesod toward the watery grave and rebirth of the Scorpion.