Makhon is a Hebrew term meaning "foundation" or "established place," referring to the fourth celestial heaven in Jewish mystical cosmology and the Heavens of Assiah in the Hermetic Qabalah.

Position on the Tree of Life

Makhon corresponds to the fourth Sephirah, Chesed (Mercy), on the Tree of Life. As the fourth heaven from the top, it follows the pattern of Chesed's expansive, structural quality within the manifest world of Assiah.

Historical context

Makhon appears in the Jewish apocalyptic and Hekhalot tradition as one of the seven heavens. The Babylonian Talmud (Chagigah 12b) states that in the fourth heaven, Makhon, are the treasuries of snow and hail, the chamber of harmful dews, and the receptacles of waters. It is described as a storehouse of divine judgment—fitting for a heaven positioned just above Maon (Geburah). The Zohar and later Qabalistic works preserve this function: Makhon is where the "upper waters" are held in reserve, awaiting the activation of severity. In the Renaissance Hermetic Qabalah, as adapted by Kircher and later by Mathers and Crowley in Liber 777, Makhon is assigned to Chesed because it is the first truly stable foundation in the lower worlds—a "root" of mercy that tempers the judgments stored above.

In Christian Kabbalistic interpretations, Makhon is associated with the heavenly storehouse of blessings and the mineral essence of the world, reflecting the Chesedic impulse to give structure to raw force. Its character is distinct from the fluid Triad of the highest heavens (Araboth); here, the emphasis is on a settled, ordered container for elemental powers.

Makhon appears in table 777 of Liber 777 at row XCIII (The Heavens of Assiah), step 4 (Chesed), where it is listed as the specific divine name and angelic order heaven of the fourth sphere of the material world.