The Kabbalah “Reception/Tradition”

Passed down from the very beginning of humanity?

“Kabbalah” means “reception, tradition’” According to Kabbalistic belief, early kabbalistic knowledge was transmitted orally by the Patriarchs, prophets, and sages, eventually to be "interwoven" into Jewish religious writings and culture

The legend is that the angel Raziel, the Angel of Secrets, gave the Kabbalah to Adam after he was ejected from the Garden of Eden, and it was first written down by Abraham.

“The Kabbalah was first thought by God and given to a select group of Angels that formed a Theosophic school in Paradise. After the fall the Angel Raziel passed the knowledge to the rebellious sons of man, so they could return back to Paradise. This teachings were passed to Adam, Noah, and Abraham who took it to Egypt and the other sons of Abraham took these doctrines to the East where they mixed with their philosophies.”

According to the traditional Kabbalistic understanding, Kabbalah dates from Eden. It came down from a remote past as a revelation to elect tzadikim (righteous people), and, for the most part, was preserved only by a privileged few Originally, Kabbalistic knowledge was believed to be an integral part of the Oral Torah, given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai around the 13th century BCE according to its followers; although some believe that Kabbalah began with Adam.

According to the Zohar Torah study can proceed along four levels of interpretation (exegesis). These four levels are called pardes from their initial letters (PRDS פַּרדֵס‎, 'orchard'):

Peshat (Hebrew: פשט lit. 'simple'): the direct interpretations of meaning. Remez (רֶמֶז‎ lit. 'hints'): the allegoric meanings (through allusion). Derash (דְרָשׁ‎ from the Hebrew darash: 'inquire' or 'seek'): midrashic (rabbinic) meanings, often with imaginative comparisons with similar words or verses. Sod (סוֹד, lit. 'secret' or 'mystery'): the inner, esoteric (metaphysical) meanings, expressed in kabbalah.

“received” it is the ancient tradition, received from how far back? from what beings? Is it received directly from God ? How old is this knowledge/wisdom?

“KA - BA - LA”

• Ka body
• Ba body
• La???

Mahaseh Merkavah- the Work of the Chariot.

Mahaseh Berashith: the Work of Creation

The study of traditional Hebraic Qabalah can be loosely divided between two particular schools. The principal of these is called Mahaseh Berashith- the Work of Creation. This is what we might call the "Qabalah proper"- based upon philosophical interpretation of Biblical literature, especially those books dealing with God's creation of the Universe. (Such as Genesis I.) This is the school that gives us the Tree of Life and the Four Worlds, the practice of Gematria, etc. The second school of Qabalah is termed Mahaseh Merkavah- the Work of the Chariot. This is actually a direct reference to the ancient Jewish shamans known today the "Merkavah Mystics." These mystics focused heavily upon prophetical and apocalyptic literature- especially the first chapter of Ezekiel, wherein the prophet is granted a vision of the Divine Throne of God. This Throne is actually described in the text as a kind of Chariot (Merkavah), drawn by four mighty Kherubic Angels. Other Jewish legends depict the Chariot as drawn by terrible Seraphim (angelic Serpents of Fire), upon which Yahweh rushes into celestial battle. The Merkavah Mystics believed that man- as the manifest Image of God- had the authority and birth-right to act after the manner of God. This meant that they believed in mankind's right to create, to perform magick, and to journey into the heavens (like the prophets Enoch and Elijah) in their own personal Chariots of Fire. Mahaseh Merkavah could not be practiced without first engaging in deep studies of the Mahaseh Berashith. Yet, this did not always work the other way around. During the Middle Ages, those Rabbis who adhered fundamentally to Jewish law, and studied the Work of Creation themselves, were outspoken against the Work of the Chariot. The Merkavah Mystics were a sub-culture of mages who did not intermingle with "official" Jewish religious authority. - Aaron Leitch, Introduction to the Holy Tree of Life

Kabbalah

Definition and Purpose of Kabbalah

Described as the "received wisdom of the Jews" and an "owner’s manual for the human soul"

Purpose is to "upgrade your operating system" to reflect universal consciousness

Likened to the "Zen of the West"

Comparison to Eastern Mysticism

Eastern mysticism, such as Zen, seeks enlightenment by stripping away illusions, ego, and sensory distractions to reach a state of pure self, described as "emptiness" or "wall-to-wallness"

Kabbalah pursues the same goal through connection, linking everything in the universe via correspondences, such as “this thing is connected to that thing”

Results in a sense of “divine fullness” or interconnectedness, akin to Eastern enlightenment but achieved through integration rather than subtraction

The Tetragrammaton (Yod-He-Vav-He)

Four-letter name of God (Yod-He-Vav-He), central to Kabbalah

Considered ineffable, not pronounced by pious Jews, who substitute “Adonai” (Lord) when reading it in scripture

Represents a formula dividing all existence—energy, matter, forces, and consciousness—into four hierarchical levels or “worlds”

Reflects the structure of the universe and the human soul, seen as a microcosm of the divine

The Four Kabbalistic Worlds

Reality divided into four worlds, each corresponding to a letter of the Tetragrammaton and a level of consciousness or manifestation

Atziluth (Archetypal World)

Highest, “real” world, where male and female aspects of deity are united in blissful oneness

Represented by an abstract concept like “rest”

Briah (Creative World)

Realm of archangels, where broad, creative ideas, such as “butt resters” for chairs, originate

Likened to a visionary figure like Thomas Edison conceiving grand concepts

Yetzirah (Formative World)

Realm of angels, where blueprints or patterns for physical objects are designed

Compared to engineers drafting chair designs based on the archangel’s vision

Assiah (Material World)

Physical world inhabited, where objects like chairs manifest

Lowest reflection of the higher worlds

Four-story building analogy illustrates this hierarchy, with each floor representing a world, such as chairs in Assiah originating from blueprints in Yetzirah, inspired by ideas in Briah, stemming from the abstract concept of “rest” in Atziluth

The Four Parts of the Human Soul

Human soul mirrors the four worlds, divided into four corresponding parts

Nefesh (Animal Soul)

Lowest level, shared with all sentient beings

Governs instincts like fight, flight, eating, and reproduction, a blind force requiring control

Ruach (Intellect)

Mind or intelligence, responsible for planning and rational thought, such as Grandma planning Thanksgiving dinner

Most people over-identify with Ruach, ignoring higher aspects

Neshamah (Soul Intuition)

Non-spatial, intuitive level of consciousness, exemplified by a mother sensing her child’s distress regardless of distance

Transcends physical boundaries, connecting all beings

Chayah (Life Force)

Highest part, the true identity, reflecting Atziluth’s divine oneness

Goal of mystical ascent, where one identifies with the life force itself

Soul is a microcosm of the universe, with each part corresponding to a world and a letter of Yod-He-Vav-He

The Tree of Life

Developed around the 1500s, a schematic diagram of God’s mind and the human soul, consisting of 10 sephirot, or emanations, connected by paths

Sephirot represent stages of creation and consciousness

Kether (Crown)

First sephira, the absolute singularity, God beyond which there is nothing

Emerges from a “three-part nothing” (Ain, Ain Sof, Ain Sof Aur)

Chokmah (Wisdom)

Second sephira, born when Kether reflects inward to become self-aware

Binah (Understanding)

Third sephira, created simultaneously with Chokmah, representing the knowledge of self versus not-self

Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malkuth

Form two additional triads and the material plane, reflecting further emanations of creation

Tree of Life maps how the “one” (Kether) becomes the “many” (Malkuth, the material world) and guides mystics back to oneness

Sephirot associated with planetary spheres, such as Saturn for Binah and Jupiter for Chesed, symbolizing qualities rather than physical planets

The Hebrew Alphabet and Creation

Universe created through the Hebrew alphabet, specifically 22 letters divided into three groups

Three Mother Letters represent up/down, right/left, front/back, creating the potential for space

Seven Double Letters correspond to the six faces of a cube, plus the center, symbolizing the structure of space-time

Twelve Simple Letters represent the 12 edges of the cube, completing the framework of creation

God created space by extending infinitely in six directions—height, depth, right, left, front, back—forming an “infinitely expanded cube” that underpins the universe

Numbers 3, 7, and 12 are significant, reflecting the structure of creation and the alphabet’s role in it

The Number Four and Ten

Number four is central to Kabbalah, seen in the four worlds, four soul parts, and four letters of Yod-He-Vav-He

Four analyzed as 1+2+3+4=10, making 10 a key number

10th Hebrew letter, Yod, symbolizes the fundamental spark of creation, from which all other letters derive

Ten corresponds to the 10 sephirot and human hands, distinguishing humans from animals and symbolizing creative power

Tree of Life’s 10 sephirot reflect this, mapping creation from the singular (Kether) to the material (Malkuth)

The 72-Fold Name of God

Tetragrammaton (Yod-He-Vav-He) sums to 26 in gematria, Hebrew numerology, but Kabbalists sought deeper insights by expanding it

Yod-He-Vav-He arranged in a triangular form—Y, YH, YHV, YHVH—sums to 72, a number linked to the 72 five-degree segments of the zodiac, suggesting divine influence over time

In Exodus, three consecutive verses with 72 letters each, describing the parting of the Red Sea, were combined—written right-to-left, left-to-right, right-to-left—to form 72 three-letter names of God

Adding “-iah” or “-el” to these names created 72 angels, such as angels of the Shemhamforash, each governing a segment of the year

These align with the Tarot’s 36 small cards, 2–9 of four suits, and Solomonic magic’s day/night spirits

This process exemplifies Kabbalistic “games” with numbers and letters, overloading the intellect, Ruach, to transcend it and realize universal interconnectedness

The Goal of Kabbalistic Practice

Goal is to climb the Tree of Life, moving from the material world, Malkuth, to union with the divine, Kether, and ultimately identifying with the “nothing” from which the one emerged

The Fairy Tale of Return

Fairy tale illustrates the mystical path

King, Yod, Chokmah, and Queen, He, Binah, in the supernal triad produce twins: the Prince, Vav, Tiferet, and Princess, He final, Malkuth

Princess, humanity, suffers amnesia in the material world, trapped in “karmic soap operas,” unaware of her divine heritage

Prince, the Holy Guardian Angel, a perfected self, must “kiss” the Princess to awaken her, symbolizing spiritual realization

Their union makes the Princess a Queen and the Prince a King, returning them to divine oneness, a “divinely incestuous” process of reuniting with the divine self

Narrative reflects the Kabbalistic journey of ascending the Tree of Life to achieve union with God

Kabbalistic Glossary

(from https://kheph777.tripod.com/art_tol1.html)

Ain: Nothingness- the highest manifestation of the Divine Source.

Ain Soph: Limitlessness- another common term for the highest Divine Source.

Ain Soph Aur: Limitless Light- that aspect of the highest Divine Source that can be "viewed" from the physical as Pure White Brilliance. This rests just above Kether, and is nearly synonymous with it.

Etz haChaim: The Tree of Life. This is the central philosophical glyph of the Western Qabalah, depicting the fundamental energies and natural cycles that govern creation.

LVX: Latin for "Light" and indicating the Light of God. This is generally associated with Solar Light, and is considered the cyclic energy of the Tree of Life and Nature.

Macrocosm: The "Greater Universe" – indicating the manifest physical realm of planets, stars, Earth, etc. (See also Microcosm.)

Mahaseh Berashith: The "Work of Creation." A branch of the Qabalah that focuses upon the creation of the Universe by God. This is the primary focus of the Qabalah proper. (See also Mahaseh Merkavah.)

Mahaseh Merkavah: The "Work of the Chariot." A branch of the Qabalah that focuses upon a personal journey from the Earth-plane back toward the Creator, and the concept that humans have the divine right to create as does God. Qabalistic Magick all falls under this practice. (See also Merkavah, and Mahaseh Berashith.)

Merkavah: Hebrew for "Chariot." This is the name given to the Throne of God- which often doubled as a chariot when the Deity would ride into battle on behalf of Israel. (See Ezekiel 1, Revelation 4, and 1Enoch.) A vision of the Merkavah was the primary goal of the Merkavah Mystic- ancient Jewish Mages who astral traveled through the Seven Heavenly Palaces. (See also Mahaseh Merkavah.)

Microcosm: The "Lesser Universe" – indicating the inner workings of the human aura (or psyche), which theoretically mirror the patterns and conditions of one's larger environment. As above, so below. (see Macrocosm.)

Qabalah: "Tradition." This is the term given to Jewish mysticism of the thirteenth century that focused on contemplation of Biblical scripture. It adopted much from both Merkavah Mysticism and ancient Gnosticism. It was eventually adopted by Christian mystic sects- such as the Hermeticists and Rosicrucians- who have passed it on to us as modern Western Hermetic Qabalah. (See also Mahaseh Berashith.)

Qliphoth: "Shells." The Kingdom of Shells is the demonic realm that exists just below Malkuth on the Tree of Life. Most often, this Kingdom is illustrated as an inverted Tree of Life (or Tree of Death).

Sephirah (pl- Sephiroth): "Saying." A Sephirah represents one of the ten instances of "God said..." in Genesis 1. The ten Sephiroth make up the Spheres of manifestation upon the Tree of Life glyph.

Shekhinah: "Divine Presence." The Shekhinah represents the physical aspect of God- the Divine Presence on Earth. Traditionally, the Shekhinah is viewed as a feminine entity, related closely to the Gnostic Mother Goddess named Sophia. She is the Bride of God described in Hermetic texts.