or the unburnt bush
The theophany where Moses encounters God. A symbol of divine fire that transforms without consuming
initiation and calling.
Moses appointed by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into Canaan.
Moses asks "When I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Ex 3:13) The voice of God from the bush reveals that he is Yahweh.[13] The text derives Yahweh (יהוה) from the Hebrew word היה ([haˈja]) in the phrase אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה "I Am Who I Am".
“The figure of Moses represents the transition of humanity from an instinctive, clairvoyant perception to a clear, ego-centered consciousness. The 'burning bush' was not a physical fire, but the ignition of the I AM consciousness within the astral body of Moses.” ― Steiner, R. (1910). The Gospel of St. Luke. (Trans. from German). London: Rudolf Steiner Publishing Co., p. 156 (Lecture given in 1909).
Mount Sinai
The cosmic mountain where divine law descends.
Sacred archetype of revelation, threshold between heaven and earth.
Colin Humphreys replies that "the book of Exodus suggests a long-lasting fire that Moses went to investigate, not a fire that flares up and then rapidly goes out.” Another theory is that it is sunlight on Har Karkom reflected in a surprising way to appear like fire.
Passages from Exodus reference an aromatic cane used by the priesthod's "holy anointing oil" a topic that is controversial, as the Hebrew phrase קנה בשם (qaneh bosem, often spelled Qaneh bosem), is translated as “aromatic cane” in the biblical verse, is a Biblical Hebrew phrase for cannabis, also called marijuana or hemp.
The Hebrew word in the narrative that is translated into English as bush is seneh (Hebrew: סְנֶה, romanized: səne), which refers in particular to brambles, seneh is a dis legomenon, only appearing in two places, both of which describe the burning bush. The use of seneh may be a deliberate pun on Sinai (סיני), a feature common in Hebrew texts.
