“And the Elohim said, let there be light: and there was light.”
- The "Ohr" ("Light") stems from the "Ma'ohr" ("Luminary"), the source of the light.
- Traditionally, the Mashal (parable) given to explain this relationship, is the relationship between the sun and the light that it gives off.
- the light that comes from the sun is not the perfect example for the Ohr, since it has already passed through a "Nartik" ("Sheath/Shield"), a level that reduces the intensity of the revelation of the sun. In truth, the Ohr that exists in the parable of the sun is the light of the sun that exists in the sun itself. The light that we see from the sun has already been limited in its quality and therefore lacks the "Bittul" ("nullification") of the true Ohr to its origin.
Ohr (Hebrew: אור, romanized: ʾor, lit. 'Light', plural: אורות ʾoroṯ) is a central Kabbalistic term in Jewish mysticism. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical divine emanations. Shefa "flow" (שפע) and its derivative, hashpoah "influence" השפעה), are sometimes alternatively used in Kabbalah, a term also used in Medieval Jewish philosophy to mean divine influence, while the Kabbalists favour Ohr because its numerical value equals ר״ז, a homonym for רז rāz "mystery".1 It is one of the two main metaphors in Kabbalah for understanding God, along with the other metaphor of the human soul-body relationship for the sefirot.2
“Everything is light, and each of you is the light of Divinity”
- Kryon
Long wikipedia article on LIGHT in Kabbalah https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohr
The term Ohr is contrasted with ma'or "luminary" and kli, the spiritual "vessel" for the light.
Ohr (Hebrew: אור, romanized: ʾor, lit. 'Light', plural: אורות ʾoroṯ) is a central Kabbalistic term in Jewish mysticism. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical divine emanations. Shefa "flow" (שפע) and its derivative, hashpoah "influence" השפעה), are sometimes alternatively used in Kabbalah, a term also used in Medieval Jewish philosophy to mean divine influence, while the Kabbalists favour Ohr because its numerical value equals ר״ז, a homonym for רז rāz "mystery".1 It is one of the two main metaphors in Kabbalah for understanding God, along with the other metaphor of the human soul-body relationship for the sefirot.2
As the Ohr Ein Sof is itself infinite, it could not itself directly be the source for the creation of Worlds (Four Worlds and Seder hishtalshelus). Any direct creations of the Infinite Light would be of infinite number, and would not be actual creations at all, as they would remain totally nullified ("bittul") to the Infinite Light, and would have no independent self-awareness. Rather it is only through the restrictions of the Sephirot and the descending "Chain of Progression" (Seder hishtalshelus), that the Worlds could unfold. In the descending chain of Worlds from the Infinite to our finite realm, the creative flow of Divine light encapsulated in the Sephirot, undergoes countless restrictions, diminutions and veilings, to progressively hide Divinity. In Kabbalah these are called "Tzimtzum" ("Constrictions" – plural "tzimtzumim").
The "Ohr" ("Light") stems from the "Ma'ohr" ("Luminary"), the source of the light. Traditionally, the Mashal (parable) given to explain this relationship, is the relationship between the sun and the light that it gives off. However, technically speaking, the light that comes from the sun is not the perfect example for the Ohr, since it has already passed through a "Nartik" ("Sheath/Shield"), a level that reduces the intensity of the revelation of the sun. In truth, the Ohr that exists in the parable of the sun is the light of the sun that exists in the sun itself. The light that we see from the sun has already been limited in its quality and therefore lacks the "Bittul" ("nullification") of the true Ohr to its origin. Rather, this Ohr, being that it has been limited by the Nartik, is called Ohr HaNartik (the light of the sheath), for although it does not actually come from the Nartik, since the Nartik limited it in such a way that it no longer possesses a connection with its ultimate source, we associate it with the Nartik.