Since there is no notion of time in the spiritual, we already exist in our ultimate, perfect state in the World of Infinity (Ein Sof). Because desire in the spiritual designates action, desire itself acts, without a body. Therefore, when the desire to create souls (the will to enjoy) appeared in the Creator, when He wished to fill them with the most perfect delight – to sense Him and to delight in His perfection – to make creatures just as He is, His desire was immediately realized. Thus appeared the World of Ein Sof, in which we already exist in our final state.

However, we still need to attain this state in our sensations. This is reminiscent of a sleeping person: even though he is sleeping somewhere, he does not understand where he is until he wakes up. However, in order to achieve this perfect state, we must go through a gradual process of transformation of our inner properties (desires), which corresponds to the spiritual ascension from our world through all the worlds, to the World of Ein Sof.

To lead us to the final state, the Creator governs us from Above through all the worlds. Thus, there is nothing in our world that does not originate in the World of Ein Sof, where the final state of every soul determines the path that it is destined to travel and the changes that it has to undergo at every moment (state) of its spiritual advancement towards the World of Infinity.

There is no way back: everything that happens is dictated by the necessity to bring every soul to its final state. Only this goal determines the state of our world at every second, what happens to it in general and to each of us in particular. The Creator created nothing for naught. Rather, everything serves His purpose.

However, the will that stems from Above does not exclude our active participation in our own advancement. Instead of being slaves that move under the compulsion of a beating stick called suffering, we can turn our path of suffering into the path of Torah – to actively and quickly travel this path from below upwards on our own by realizing that the Creator’s purpose is indeed desirable.

This is possible via a request for spiritual elevation – raising MAN, a prayer. In response, we will receive spiritual strength from Above that will help us improve our qualities, i.e., to ascend. The entire Torah speaks only of this, and Kabbalah goes further still and provides a detailed explanation of the path itself. As if on a map, it depicts what we go through and where (in what state and at which degree) we are now.

Kabbalah studies the structure of the spiritual worlds. The purpose of these worlds is to weaken the Creator’s signals (desires) so that we could understand them with our egoism and realize them with our mind. In Hebrew, the word for “world” is Olam (from the word Haalamah – meaning concealment), for these worlds conceal and weaken the Creator’s Light to such an extent that we can feel it.

Depending on everyone’s spiritual qualities, on the degree of one’s attainment (complete egoism = our world, partial altruism = spiritual worlds), we perceive the Creator or His Light differently at each of the 125 degrees. These 125 degrees amount to just ten, called “the ten Sefirot between the Creator and us”, where every lower Sefira transmits less of the Creator’s Light, as perceived by those at that degree. The lower the Sefira, the less of the Creator’s Light it lets through to those that are below it.

In all, there are ten degrees, called “ten Sefirot”: Keter, Hochma, Bina, Hesed, Gevura, Tifferet, Netzah, Hod, Yesod, and Malchut. Like ten screens or curtains, these ten Sefirot conceal the Creator’s Light from us or the Creator Himself (which is the same thing). These ten screens constitute the ten degrees of our remoteness from the Creator.

Therefore, in order to draw near the Creator by one degree, the lowest one above our own properties, we must acquire the properties of that (lowest) degree. This means that our properties become similar to the properties of that degree, rather than remaining inferior to it. To acquire similar properties means to have the same desires. As soon as our desires coincide with the desires of that degree, its concealment fades, and we seemingly exist on it, and only nine degrees separate us from the Creator.

However, the last, lowest degree differs from all the others: as soon as one ascends out of our world and onto the first degree, he already begins to see (sense) the Creator. And all the subsequent degrees are degrees of drawing closer to the Creator. Only the very last degree, at which we presently exist, conceals the Creator completely, whereas all of the Higher Degrees only distance Him.

Although we count ten degrees, there are in fact only five of them. This is because six degrees: Hesed, Gevura, Netzah, Hod, and Yesod combine into one Sefira, called Zeir Anpin itself is sometimes referred to as Tifferet, for this Sefira reflects the common attributes of all of its six Sefirot.

So, there are five degrees of concealment from the Creator down to our world: Keter, Hochma, Bina, ZA. Every degree is alternatively called Olam (world), from the word Haalamah (concealment). Every degree has its sub-degrees, called Partzufim (plural for Partzuf), and every sub-degree has its own sub-degrees, calledSefirot (plural for Sefira). Thus, in all, 5 x 5 x 5 = 125 degrees- Sefirot exist between us and the Creator.

Warning

The study of the Zohar, Sepher Jetzirah , the book of Henoch, the kabbalah and books on alchemy without guidance is full of risks and should not be undertaken without the proper keys.

Those who “think” they know the difference between right and left take great risks, and there are many who consider themselves teachers, while some with good intentions, mislead the seeker and could cause great harm. Some look very respectable and are well established, even use or are set up by relatives, descendants of old masters.

The mystical symbols, alphabets, numbers of the Kabbalah are perhaps the most dangerous of them all, as they can without knowing the true structure be molded into the outcome to fit ego and will lead to harm. As they calculate to confirm personalised beliefs.

When it is said that god ordered everything in number, who created planned and measured all, one should take “absolute unity in number and multitude” as an even higher truth. As this is both reason and goal of all. This understanding can only be reached by seeing the relationship of the names mentioned in the Bible and the soul, as its measures and relationship with stars and planets are closer to psychology than to theology and religion.

While it’s true that god uses measure and that all cosmology are interwoven and related to number and geometric figures, it is this unification that is its ultimate goal. True mathematics such as Plato’s metaphysical way of looking at it, is the true math that rises high above the scientists who’s math are only rudiments of it. God in nature and nature in god.

One cannot sense the Creator with just his heart, but only with a small point in it. And to feel this point, man must develop it himself. When one develops and expands this point, the sensation of the Creator, His Light, can enter it.

Our heart is the sum of our egoistic desires, and the small point within it is part of the spiritual, altruistic desire implanted from Above by the Creator Himself. It is our task to nurture this embryo of a spiritual desire to such an extent that it (and not our egoistic nature) will determine all of our aspirations. At the same time, the egoistic desire of the heart will surrender, contract, wither, and diminish.

After being born in our world, one is obliged to change his heart from egoistic to altruistic, while living in this world. This is the purpose of his life, the reason behind his appearance in this world, and it is the goal of all creation. A complete replacement of egoistic desires with altruistic ones is called “the End of Correction”. Every individual and all of humanity must attain it in this world together. Until one achieves this, he will continue to be born into this world. The Torah and all the prophets speak exclusively of this. The method of correction is called “Kabbalah”.

One can change his desires only if one wishes to change them. Man is created an absolute egoist; he can neither adopt different desires from other people or from the surrounding world – as his surroundings are just like him – nor does he have any link to the spiritual worlds, since such a link is possible only through mutual properties. The spiritual can only be perceived in altruistic desires.

Attachment makes ego your teacher, detachment makes god your teacher. The first is on the path of suffering,  the last, of Love.

 

27-04-2014

Moshiya van den Broek