The Hebrew letters that make the second ascending Sephiroth of Yesod, known as the 9th, are Yod, Samech, Vav, and Dalet.
Let's examine the meanings of these four letters and see if they tell us a story about this fascinating Sephioroth. The Word Yesod itself means Foundation and it is the Foundation of the Tree of Life. The reason Yesod is the Foundation and not Malkuth is because Malkuth, the Kingdom, has been 'cut off' from the Tree of Life because of the Fall. Yod The Yod is the smallest and only Hebrew letter that is suspended in the air but one of the most powerful of the Sephiroth. This letter is often associated with wisdom. Abravenel explains that all Hebrew letters contain or start with the Yod. The Tetragrammaton, YHWH, said to be the ineffable and unpronounceable name of god (translated into English as Yahweh). Both Israel and Jersualem start with the letter Yod. Hoffman explains that the Yod is, "a cosmic messenger that brings movement and change into our lives...this tiny dot traverses entire universes in a mirco-instant." Yod begins the Hebrew word for Exodus (yetziyah); This word means marching forth, rising up or leading out. Yod also begins the Hebrew word for day (yom). This indicates even the smallest events in our day can have incalculable results on all of humanity. Yod also starts the word for impulse- Yetzer. The two main impulses are Yetzer Hatov which is the impulse for selflessness and Yetzer Hara which is the impulse towards egoism. Another important Hebrew word that Yod starts is the hand (yad). Finally, the Hebrew word Yofi which translates as beauty starts with Yod. Abravanel explains: "The enjoyment of beauty creates a state of spiritual elevation." Samech Samech is a closed round letter that Abravenel associates with the glow of a candles flame. This candle flame both supports and protects helping us to trust the Divine. Begins the word Hebrew word Sephiroth that are the levels of the Kabbalah Tree of Life. The Hebrew word for ladder also starts with Samech and it is a symbol for the mystical inward path first described by Jacob with his vision of Angels. The Hebrew word for stories also starts with Samech. Stroies, Hoffman explains, have the power to wake people from their spiritual slumber by nourishing the soul. Samech also starts the Hebrew word for Symbol (Siman) that can help us better understand the Divine. Samech is also connected with dreams. A prayer known as she'eilat chalom is used to request an illuminating dream from the Divine before going to sleep. The Hebrew word Schachar, Black, starts with the letter Samech and is a metaphor for darkness. The Hebrew word Shacar, Dawn, is a metaphor for light and redemption. Vav Yesod shares only one letter with Malkuth and it's Vav. According to Daniela Abravenel, Vav is the perception of the Divine in the natural world. Vav is referred to the Hook representing Spiritual Connection to the Divine. Both Edward Hoffman and Daniela Abravanel point out that Vav consists of a vertical line connecting heaven and Earth. Hoffman states, "The straight upright form suggests that only when a person expresses uniqueness can a meaningful joining with others occur." Abravanel explains, "According to the theory of TzimTzum contracted the Divine light passes through this channel, enlivening the lower, material world." Vav is tied to the Sabbath and the importance of rest. Daniela Abravanel explains, "By resting fully once a week we can enter the depth and stillness...moving through life requires the peacefulness of allowing rather then putting all our efforts into exerting our will on the world around us." Vav is also associated with the Hebrew month of Iyar..the name of that month is composed of the abbreviation for the verse, "I am God who heals you." (Exodus 15:26). The Hebrew word for confession also begins with the word Vav (Viday). Dalet Finally, we have Dalet that in both of my sources had the shortest chapters. Both of my sources related Dalet with the four 'worlds' of the Kabbalah. These four worlds are Aziluth (emanation), Beriah (creation), Yetzerah (Formation) and Assiyah (action). I won't go into these too much here because they deserve their own study and there are a number of books just on these...but essentially think of it as Idea, Blueprints, Create and Result. Each of the Sephiroth fall within these four "worlds". Most importantly and what the letter really resembles is the word Door (delet). Dalet also begins the Hebrew word for Poor. Abravenel explains, "Experiencing poverty teaches us gratitude....The only true and sustainable wealth worth pursuing is our spirituality." Finally, Dalet also begins the word for pulse (dofek). Abravanel explains that the Kabbalah masters can discern both physical and spiritual pathologies from the pulse. This is because the 10 types of pulse come from the Sephiroth Chockmah and by knowing these patterns associated with that Sephiroth they can determine the energy from which the pulse is coming from. Summary "Divine messenger (Yod) sent into the dream (Samech) to connect (Vav) with the sleeping soul (Dalet)." A Meditation On The Visual Letter Combination Fascinatingly, just by looking at the combination of the letters in a Hebrew Word we can see a visual story. Here, we see the Yod, which has been described by Paul Foster Case as a spark cast down by the Hermits lantern. Yod's show up a lot in the Tarot card keys an always appears as sparks that are falling from above. This could be interpreted as symbolic of the undeveloped soul that descends into matter. Then we see what looks like a closed off individual. This is someone who is 'asleep' with no spiritual impulses. The letter Samech is not open to receiving the Yod. Next, we see Vav which looks like Yod with a line streaming down that "connects heaven and earth". This 'hook' stretches down from Divinity to the individual. Finally, we have Dalet which looks a little like a Vav with a stretched out Yod...where as Samech was closed off here we find an open 'door' or 'doorway.' We can interpret this two ways...the first two letters representing the 'descent' or 'involution' into PMR (physical matter reality) that all beings that pass through to Malkuth go through. When we first pass through this Sephiroth we emerge into matter and remain asleep. The second two letters represent the 'ascent' or 'evolution' out of PMR. Once we receive the 'enlightenment' of the Awakening of our inner spark (soul) that is encased in these physical vessels our soul evolves. Then we can pass through the 'open door' of Dalet. Conclusion The Hebrew letters of Yesod have many implications. Yesod is considered the doorway through which souls come and go into Physical Matter Reality. This is the Sephiroth that we go to when we die and if are hearts are found heavy we are turned back into Samsara where we must learn our lessons in our physical vessels. However, as the the Hebrew letter Samech suggests we are always protected even in physical matter reality. The story of Adam and Eve suggests as much. In the Kabbalah the story is that when Adam and Eve became ashamed the One Creator constricted himself to allow them the space to grow and become individuals so that they could...once again...return as fully matured companions. Interestingly, we can see a connection with both sleep, rest and dreams in the Hebrew letters for Yesod. This is reflective of the idea that Physical Matter Reality is just a dream, or as Krisnha explained in the Bhagavad Gita, just a reflection of the Tree of Life...and not the universe in which the tree itself resides. In fact, it is stated in many sources, not just the Kabbalah, that time moves far more quickly in the realm in which the One Creator resides...and to the One Creator the souls who are in PMR have only been a sleep for a brief moment. Just think about that, we already know that humanity has been on this planet for a short period of time when compared to the extinct dinosaurs or other species. Just as we are just a brief moment of history on this planet...all of that history is just a moment in time where we appeared to be asleep in the presence of the One Creator. References Hoffman, Andrew. (1998) The Hebrew Alphabet: A Mystical Journey. Abravenel, Daniela. (2015)Secrets of The Hebrew Alphabet.
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I had a lot of fun creating this video, although, for some reason it proved a bit difficult. Minor technical difficulties and set backs were the rule with this video. First, Windows did an update and I couldn't open my audio software program. Then the audio I originally recorded for this video literally disappeared...audio for all of the others I had recorded were intact. When I opened the file for this video...however...the audio was missing. Then all of the words for the end credits disappeared after I had saved the file and I was watching the video for the final time before uploading.
For me personally, I have had some fascinating dreams since I started work on this video this week. There have been a lot of very odd abstract dreams regarding Aleph. As I mentioned in the video on the Fool card this symbol evolved out of the symbol for the Bull or Ox. If you haven't noticed that was sort of one of my obsessions last year because there were a lot of movies that involved the "beast" also known as the "Bull" or "Ox" (at least five).... a lot of those images were everywhere! This year, it's not so prevalent, and I still stick by the idea that people were choosing to either give into their lower natures and act like beasts of the field...or heed the call of Awakening. This year, when it comes to this subject I had a bit of a break through. You can look forward to a couple of blogs on that subject (the working titles right now are The Bull/Beast Revisited 2018 and another is called The Return of the Goddess). Like most esoteric ideas...the bull is one that has been very much maligned...and it does have a dual meaning...you can be like the Bull or you can become like the Ox. Jesus even refers to a yoke in my favorite quote from the New Testament, and no, I don't think that's a coincidence. I think he was very much a student of the Kabbalah which either existed as an oral tradition during his time or like so many other things those books were destroyed when the Catholic Church took over humanity leaving no trace prior to the Middle Ages when they could be written down again. This letter is a powerful one and I really hope you do the meditation because it is a lot of fun. |
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Brave Soul! May Your Journey On The Path Of The Seeker Bring You Joy and Peace! I'm currently posting every Saturday. With a new addition the family I have pre-scheduled most posts through December 2022. Full Moon Posts will contain up-to-date content when I can get to them. Thank you so much for your support and understanding! This is a place where you can encounter new spiritual ideas that have helped me develop as an Individual On The Path of the Seeker. Take or Leave this information as you see fit. Archives
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