Tree of Souls
Page 16
The twenty-two letters of the alphabet are the foundation of everything. God forms, weighs, and composes every soul with these letters, and the soul of everything that will ever exist.
God caused the letter aleph to reign in the air and crowned it, and combined it with the other letters, and sealed it. And he caused the letter mem to reign in water, crowned it, and combined it with the other letters and formed the earth with it. And He caused the letter shin to reign in fire, and crowned it, and combined it with the others, and sealed the heavens with it. Thus God created something out of nothing, and brought all of existence into being.
This account of the primordial letters is one of the primary kabbalistic creation myths, found in Sefer Yetzirah, one of the earliest kabbalistic texts. It describes how God created the world through the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The endless combinations of the alphabet bring every kind of existence into being, what the Sefer Yetzirah calls “the soul of everything.”
Just as aleph is crowned in this kabbalistic myth, so alpha, the first letter of the Greek alphabet, leads the other letters because alphe means honor. See The Greek Myths by Robert Graves, 52c.
Sources:
Sefer Yetzirah 2:1-2, 3:1-5.
Studies:
“Was God a Magician? Sefer Yetsirah and Jewish Magic” by Peter Hayman.
10. THE INFINITE BEING
The Infinite Being is boundless and without beginning. Except for this Infinite Being, everything else that exists has a beginning. At first there arose in Him the potential to emanate from His own essence all the worlds that existed potentially within Him. When the will of the Infinite Being decided to create, He brought existence from potential to actuality. First the Infinite Being emanated its sefirot, through which its actions are performed. In this way all worlds were brought into being; indeed, all that exists came into being from Him, from the depths of the earth to the loftiest heavens.
This Infinite Being, known as Ein Sof, fills all the worlds of time and space. Both the heavens above and the earth below are equally filled with His light. There is no place empty of Him in the upper or the lower worlds.
Ein Sof, literally meaning “endless,” is the Godhead, the oldest aspect of God, from which all of the ten sefirot, the ten numerals or emanations of God, proceed. This part of God is considered to be unknowable and above time; indeed, no speculation about Ein Sof is permitted. Here Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev (1740-1810) makes the important point that in the universe it is God alone who does not have a beginning. See “The Ten Sefirot,” p. 7.
Sources:
Zohar 3:225a; Tikkunei ha-Zohar 57 (91b); Or Ne’erav 42a-45a, 47a-53b, 55a-b; Perush ha-Aggadot in Derekh Emunah 2b-c, 3a-d; Kedushat Levi, Mishpatim, p. 139, Likutim, p. 284; No’am Elimelekh, va-Yehi 27a; Tanya (Likutei Amarim), Sha’ar ha-Yihud ve-ha-Emunah 7 (82b).
11. THE SEVEN FORMS OF GOD
God has seven holy forms, and they all have their counterparts in man: God created man in His image, in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them (Gen. 1:27). And they are the following: the right and left leg, the right and left hands, the trunk with the place of procreation, and the head. These are six of the forms, and the seventh is God’s Bride, about whom it is written, so that they become one flesh (Gen. 2:24).
This is an example of a sefirotic myth, in which God’s body is said to correspond to that of man’s. The ten sefirot, in descending order, are: 1. Keter (Crown); 2. Hokhmah (Wisdom); 3. Binah (Understanding); 4. Hesed (Lovingkindness); 5. Gevurah (Power); 6. Tiferet (Beauty); 7. Netzah (Victory); 8. Hod (Splendor); 9. Yesod (Foundation); 10. Malkhut (Sovereignty). The seven forms referred to are the seven lower sefirot. The last of these is Malkhut, which represents the Shekhinah, the feminine aspect of God. Just as God is male and female and is not complete without his feminine aspect, so man is incomplete without a woman. This diagram can be found on p. 529. See “The Ten Sefirot,” p. 7, and “Adam Kadmon,” p. 15.
Sources:
Sefer ha-Bahir 172.
12. THE TEN CROWNS OF GOD
God created ten crowns that He wears on His Throne of Glory, and they are He, and He is they, like a flame that rises from a burning coal, for there is no division between them. With these holy diadems He crowns and clothes Himself.
In this sefirotic myth, the ten crowns represent the ten sefirot, ten divine emanations that brought this world into being. Here God is described as wearing these emanations as ten crowns, meaning that God holds the creative process of the sefirot in the greatest esteem, and they are, in fact, the crown of his creation.
For another example of a sefirotic myth, see “The Order of Creation,” p. 81.
Sources:
Zohar 3:70a.
13. THE FIRST BEING
There is one God who created everything and who guides the celestial spheres. This one God is absolutely eternal, and sufficient to Himself. Nothing existed before Him. All existing things—whether angels or other celestial beings—exist only through this First Being. That God does not have a physical body is known from the verse He is God in Heaven above, and upon the earth beneath (Deut. 4:39), for a physical body cannot be in two places at the same time.
One cannot conceive of God as one does of an idolatrous image, for God has no body at all. It is not right to serve any but this God of the universe. It is only proper to bow down, offer up sacrifices, and make libations to this God, for there is no other God besides Him. Whoever permits the thought to enter his mind that there is another deity besides God violates the prohibition, You shall have no other gods before Me (Exod. 20:3; Deut. 5:7).
It is inconceivable that God does not exist. If God did not exist, all of creation would be extinguished.
Maimonides’ view of God is rock-solid monotheism: there is only one God, who is also the Creator of everything that exists, including the angels and other heavenly beings. However, Maimonides denies the corporeality of God, which is assumed in many myths. Maimonides’s statement that “God has no body at all” is quite definitive. Indeed, one way of reading this is not as a myth, but as an antimyth, intended to limit further mythic development. Maimonides specifically does not want to describe God in mythic terms, but as a Deity whose laws have to be interpreted and obeyed.
Studies:
Mishneh Torah 1:1-12; Perush ha-Mishnayot 10:1-4.
14. THE CAUSE OF ALL CAUSES
The Cause of all Causes is above everything. There is no god above Him or below Him. He fills all the worlds and He surrounds them from every side.
Here the “Cause of all Causes” is another name for the Beginning. At the same time, the “Cause of all Causes” is also a name of God. This is the unknowable part of God, also known in the kabbalah as Ein Sof, the Endless One. The “Cause of all Causes” is the name given to the force in which the will arose to create the world. In the Zohar’s reading of Genesis 1:1, God allows himself to be known through the sefirot, emanations of the Godhead in the world. Here God is identified as the source of differentiated being.
Sources:
Tikkunim, Preface, 4; Etz Hayim 2.
Studies:
Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism by Gershom Scholem, p. 221.
15. GOD’S OMNIPRESENCE
God is in every place, as it is said, His presence fills all the earth (Isa. 6:3). He fills the heavenly and the earthly spheres. When the glory of the Lord filled the Tent of Meeting, Moses could not enter there.
God’s omnipresence is acknowledged in numerous of biblical verses, such as “For I fill both heaven and earth” (Jer. 23:24). The most vivid account of God’s presence taking a physical form is that in Exod. 40:34-35, where Moses is unable to enter the Tent of Meeting because the Cloud of Glory rests upon it, and God’s presence fills the tent: The cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the Presence of Yahweh filled the Tabernacle. See “The Tent of Meeting,” p. 42.
Sources:
Midrash Tanhuma, Naso 6.
16. GOD ALONE
God is alone, a single being. Neither before the Creation nor after was there anything but God, for there is nothing like God. Each of us, on the other hand, consists of body and soul, that is why it is not good for man to be alone (Gen. 2:18). But God is not a compound being; but a singular one, with a single nature, existing by Himself.
Here Philo of Alexandria, the first century philosopher, defines the Jewish singular nature of God, contrasting Him with humans, who have a dual nature, consisting of body and soul. See “God’s Existence,” following, for an elaboration of this distinction between God’s oneness and human duality.
Sources:
Philo, Legum Allegoriarum 2:1-2.
17. GOD’S EXISTENCE
God exists, has always existed, and will always exist. This is the meaning of “I shall be what I shall be” (Exod. 3:14).
Whatever God created, He created as a pair. The heaven and earth are a pair. The sun and moon are a pair. This world and the World to Come are a pair. God, however, is alone in the world, as it is said, Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one (Deut. 6:4). It was He in Egypt, at the Sea, He in the desert, He in this world, He in the World to Come.
Likewise, God created the heavenly beings with His right hand and the earthly beings with His left.
There are times when the entire world and all that is in it cannot contain God’s glory, while at other times God speaks to man from inside the Ark of the Tabernacle.
God’s existence is reaffirmed in this midrash, along with God’s role as Creator. The duality of existence is in contrast to the singular nature of God, as stated in the Shema, The Lord is our God, the Lord is one (Deut. 6:4).
Sources:
Exodus Rabbah 3:5; Deuteronomy Rabbah 2:41; Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael, Shirata 4:27-31; Genesis Rabbah 4:4; Exodus Rabbah 3; B. Menahot 36b; Sifre on Deuteronomy 35.
Studies:
“The Unity of God in Rabbinic Literature” by A. Marmorstein.
18. GOD’S GAZE
If God’s gaze were withdrawn for even a moment, all of existence would cease.
According to this sixteenth century kabbalistic text, God’s gaze is the paramount requirement for the continued existence of the world. The notion of God’s gaze implies that the existence of this world also depends on God’s continued interest in His world and all its creatures.
Sources:
Or Yakar.
19. GOD’S DAY
Some say that from morning till evening God ponders upon the Throne of Glory, considering new thoughts and plans. He ponders how to create the deep, how to create the heights, how to create the pillars of the clouds, how to create the foundation of the world.
And from evening until morning God descends from the Throne of Glory and rides upon sparks of fire and arranges the orders of the new worlds with his fingers. He positions the upper worlds opposite the lower ones, and the lower worlds opposite the upper.
Others say that for the first three hours of the day God is engaged in the study of Torah. During the next three hours God sits in judgment of the world. During the next three hours He feeds the whole world, from horned buffalo to vermin. During the next three hours some say He plays with Leviathan, while others insist that He sits and teaches school children. Still others say that He blesses bridegrooms, adorns brides, visits the sick, buries the dead, and recites the blessing for mourners.
And what does God do at night? He rides a cherub of light and floats in 18,000 worlds, listening to heavenly songs.
Here are two accounts about how God spends His day. The first, from Midrash Aleph Bet, shows that God has two primary modes, one of contemplation, which takes place during the day, and one of action, which takes place at night. Note that this is the reverse of human behavior, which uses the day for action and the night for contemplation. This myth echoes many biblical passages about God’s work of Creation, such as Psalms 33:6: By the word of Yahweh the heavens were made, and all their host by the breath of His mouth.
The second account of God’s day, from the Talmud, divides the first 12 hours of the day into four three-hour units. During these 12 hours, God puts in a very active day, devoting Himself to study, judgment, sustenance of the world, and, for relaxation, either playing with Leviathan or teaching children. But here God’s second 12 hours are spent in floating on a cherub through thousands of worlds or in listening to the song of the living creatures, both quite passive roles. Since the whole myth creates parallels between God’s day and that of a person, this passive role resembles something like God’s dreamtime.
In both mythic accounts, God moves from active to passive roles, and He is required to divide His time much as do His children, who must find time to sustain themselves and their families while also properly devoting themselves to the study of Torah. Thus both views of God’s day are quite reassuring, for they demonstrate the kabbalistic principle of “as above, so below,” in which the upper worlds and lower worlds are mirrors of each other, and even God has a schedule that He must follow.
Sources:
Midrash Aleph Bet 5:8-9; B. Avodah Zarah 3b; Genesis Rabbah 8:13.
20. THE HIDDEN GOD
No one knows where God is hidden. Not even the ministering angels who tend God’s Throne of Glory know where God can be found, nor do the heavenly creatures who carry the Throne, for God has encircled Himself with darkness and cloud all around, as it is said, He made darkness His screen (Ps. 18:12). Indeed, some say that the true meaning of the verse You hid Your face (Ps. 30:8) is that God is hidden from Himself.
This myth of a hidden God is based on the verse He that dwells in the secret place, the most high, in the shade of God He will linger (Ps. 91:1). Other verses that confirm this view of a hidden God are Psalm 30:8: You hid Your face, and Isaiah 64:6: For You have hidden Your face from us.
This might be regarded as a dark myth about the absence of God, or it might be seen as a metaphor for the hidden nature of God: just as no person knows where his soul is located within himself, so too does no one know the place of God.
The most profound development of a hidden God is found in kabbalah, where God’s hiddenness is directly related to God as Ein Sof, which literally meaning “endless.” This is the infinite God, the unknowable God, the God above the realm of the sefirot. The Zohar states, for example, that “Ein Sof does not abide being known” (Zohar 3:26b).
Masekhet Hekhalot 3 offers a strange reason for God having hidden Himself: “So that the ministering angels cannot be nourished by the splendor of the Shekhinah, nor by the splendor of His throne, nor by the splendor of His glory, nor by the splendor of His kingship.” In this view God is inaccessible to the angels and is determined to withhold his glory from them. This conclusion follows the kabbalistic concept of Ein Sof, where the ultimate nature of God must always remain unknown.
In Likutei Moharan Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav (1772-1811) interprets You hid Your face (Ps. 30:8) as meaning that God has turned his back on the Jewish people during the Exile: “In our Exile the face of God is hidden. All our prayers and requests are a result of God’s having turned His back to us. We want Him to turn back His face, as it is said, Turn to m e” (Ps. 86:16).
Sources:
B. Sanhedrin 39a; Exodus Rabbah 23; Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer 4.; Masekhet Hekhalot 3.
Studies:
Mysticism in Rabbinic Judaism by Ira Chernus, pp. 74-87.
21. THE CONTRACTION OF GOD
Before God created the world, God’s light filled all of existence. There was no vacant place, no empty space or void. Everything was filled with the light of the Infinite. Nor did that light have any beginning or end, and that is why it is called the infinite light.
When God decided to create worlds, He contracted Himself, and left an empty space in which to emanate and bring the worlds into being. He contracted His essence into no more than a handbreadth, and at that instant darkness spread everywhere, for God’s infinite light had been withdrawn.
How did God create this world?
Like a person who draws in his breath, so that the smaller might contain the larger, so did God contract His light into a handsbreadth, and the world was left in darkness. And in that darkness God carved large boulders and hewed rocks to clear wondrous paths of wisdom.
The primary source for this myth of God’s contraction comes from Rabbi Hayim Vital’s (1542-1640) Etz Hayim (The Tree of Life). Vital was the primary disciple of Rabbi Isaac Luria, known as the Ari (1534-1572). The purpose of this myth is to explain how, since God’s presence (or infinite light) pervaded the universe, there could be room for Creation. The answer is this contraction of God, known as tzimtzum. Tzimtzum is the preliminary stage of the famous creation myth of the Ari. See “The Shattering of the Vessels and the Gathering of the Sparks,” p. 122.
The infinite light (o r Ein Sof) is said to have pervaded all of existence until God contracted Himself. Hayim Vital gives the precise location of the contraction, saying that the light, which formed a circle, contracted itself at its midpoint, in the exact center of the light, withdrawing to the circumference, leaving an empty space in between. The World of Emanation and all other worlds exist inside that circle, with the light of the infinite surrounding it.
Vital’s explanation is as follows:
Know that before the emanations were manifested and the creatures were formed, there was a simple ethereal light that filled all of existence. There was no empty space at all, such as an empty atmosphere or a vacuum, for everything was filled with that infinite light. This light had nothing in the sense of a beginning or an end, for everything was one simple light equally distributed. This is called the infinite light.