Bringing Kabbalah Into Daily Life These sets of
affirmations, based on the ten sefirot, or vessels, of kabbalah, can be used
as a daily practice.
By Tamar Frankiel
Excerpted from "The Gift of Kabbalah" by Tamar Frankiel with permission of
Jewish Lights Publishing.
Editor's note: These affirmations are based on the
ten sefirot, the divine energies that Kabbalists
believe are manifested in every aspect of creation. The sefirot are: keter
(crown), chochmah (wisdom), binah (understanding), chesed (expansiveness),
gevurah (restraint), tiferet (splendor), netzach (perseverance), hod
(surrender), yesod (foundation), and Malkuth (manifestations).
An affirmation is a way of
creating a positive mindset. Many of us have, over the years, created mental
habits that are like ruts in a driveway—we simply go down them without thinking
because they're the path of least resistance. Affirmations create new mental
habits, a new and more beautiful and expansive road for our minds to travel.
One kind of affirmation is
an "I am" meditation. These are specifically about yourself. They work best if
they are framed in a way that expresses your being, not your doing. In other
words, they should be "I am" statements, not "I can" statements. Remember that
Anochi, "I am," is the first word spoken by God in giving the revelation at
Sinai to the Jewish people. It is the essence of the sefirah of Chochmah. When
you say "I am," you should try to use words that express your eternal essence,
not your temporary frame of mind or feelings. (In daily life, this means it is
better to say "I feel tired" rather than "I am tired"; "I feel angry rather than
"I am angry," etc.) It's not always necessary to use "I am" for affirmations,
but the sense of being-ness should be prominent.
Affirmation 1
This first set of affirmations is designed to set up a positive frame of mind,
which will allow you to see yourself in the context of the Divine creative
energy that sustains the universe at all times, along with the framework created
by the Tree of Life of the sefirot. You may wish to use them individually or say
them as a series, after your morning devotions. After you become familiar with
the ideas expressed, you may wish to change some of the words so that they feel
comfortable.
Keter
I am a spark of God. My essence is Divine.
Chochmah
I emerged from the wild creativity of existence--I am a path worth risking
everything for.
Binah
My being--body, mind, and spirit--is aligned with the patterning of the
universe. I am a temple for my Divine soul.
Da'at
I am a seeker of higher Divine unity through my mind.
Chesed
I am in touch with the support of the universe, the unconditional love of God.
Gevurah
My limitations and challenges are Divine gifts.
Tiferet
I am a free being, choosing to align my will with God's will.
Netzach
I am a giver, wholeheartedly contributing my effort to creating the world by
tending my little part of the universe.
Hod
I am grateful, appreciating and honoring the work of others.
Yesod
I am a channel of transmission, gathering and passing on all that comes to and
through me for the good, to other living beings and to the next generation.
Malkhut
I am part of a greater whole, joining with all other beings to express gratitude
and praise to the Creator of the universe.
Affirmation 2
Another kind of affirmation expresses a positive view of the world around you,
resetting your world view as you might reset your watch. When we feel victimized
or want to blame someone, when we feel disappointed or don't understand why our
plans aren't working out, or when we feel overwhelmed, this kind of affirmation
can be very helpful. The following list is also correlated with the sefirot, to
help you at difficult times, when you are experiencing conflicts or when you are
having difficulties in seeing the good in what is happening.
Keter
Master of the universe, may Your Will be done.
Chochmah
This world is being infused with Divine intent at every moment.
Binah
Every pattern or design I see is an aspect of Divine reality, revealing itself
to me.
Da'at
The path of unification is open to me at any moment by settling my mind.
Chesed
I join the outpouring of Divine love by performing acts of chesed and thinking
kind thoughts.
Gevurah
What happens ois all from the Creator. Now I have an opportunity to re-examine
my connection to my spiritual path.
Tiferet
God connects to the world through me; my purpose on earth is being fulfilled
even though that may not be apparent to me.
Netzach
My creativity is valued and cherished in the ultimate scheme of Divine
unfolding.
Hod
I am willing to sacrifice my personal desires for the general good and for the
glory of the Divine.
Yesod
God is Master of time, Creator of coincidences, and Lord of history--whether I
can see it or not, there is an evolving design.
Malkhut
God's will is manifest right here and now; everything is exactly as it is
supposed to be.
Tree of Life
THE WORDS BELOW COME FROM MANY
SOURCES & DIFFERENT WEBSITES:
See how there are different spellings
of Kabbalah as well as different ideas and sources:
I have not edited these.
Many people are studying the Kabbalah now as they
search for their roots - the origins and greater understanding of creation - and
the messages of God. Kabbalah can be spelled several different ways - each
seemingly correct. The energies of the letters in the Hebrew alphabet move
beyond the physical. The information in the Kabbalah follows the patterns of the
sacred geometry that forms our reality. Sacred geometry - the star tetrahedron -
which is the Star of David - counter rotating fields linked to the spirals of
movement of consciousness from one level of reality to another. This is part of
Merkaba - rotation and movement of consciousness. Our consciousness is shifting
into or returning to - a higher harmonic.
We see this symbolically - metaphorically - as the creation of a new Torah -
Scroll - Book of Life - etc.
Humanity will shed the physical body as it evolves into a state of higher
faster moving consciousness - that of higher light. The physical experience is
about duality played out through the alchemy of thought to experience two
things: Linear Time and Emotion - neither of which exist beyond the physical
realms. Your soul should be gearing you for these changes. Your 'inner voice'
should be telling you to go on a quest to get answers that will help you
understand this transition of consciousness - alchemy of mind. We are close.
Kabala is one of many tools that are helping people understand the current
transition.
The word 'Qabbalah' finds its root in the
Hebrew word 'Qibel' meaning 'to receive by oral tradition'.
Qabbalah refers to an oral tradition of esoteric or secret knowledge
concerning 'essentially' the mysteries of Nature, and more overtly, the hidden
teachings concerning the Hebrew Torah. The Torah is, of course, the first five
books of what Christians call the Old Testament, and the oldest surviving of the
Judaic liturgical texts.
The Kabala is an ancient Hebrew mystical system of thought. It is a
symbolic representation of the path the Divine followed in the creation of the
universe, including man. It is, by definition, humanity's process of returning
to divinity along the same path.
Kabbala, also spelled KABALA, KABBALAH, CABALA,
CABBALA, OR CABBALAH, is an esoteric Jewish mysticism as it appeared in the 12th
and following centuries. Kabbala has always been essentially an oral tradition
in that initiation into its doctrines and practices is conducted by a personal
guide to avoid the dangers inherent in mystical experiences.
Esoteric Kabbala is also "tradition" inasmuch as it lays claim to secret
knowledge of the unwritten Torah (divine revelation) that was communicated by
God to Moses and Adam. Though observance of the Law of Moses remained the basic
tenet of Judaism, Kabbala provided a means of approaching God directly.
It thus gave Judaism a religious dimension whose mystical approaches to
God were viewed by some as dangerously pantheistic and heretical.
The earliest roots of Kabbala are traced to Merkava mysticism. It began to
flourish in Palestine in the 1st century AD and had as its main concern ecstatic
and mystical contemplation of the divine throne, or "chariot" (merkava), seen in
a vision by Ezekiel, the prophet (Ezekiel 1).
The earliest known Jewish text on magic and cosmology, Sefer Yetzira
("Book of Creation"), appeared sometime between the 3rd and the 6th century. It
explained creation as a process involving the 10 divine numbers (sefirot; see
sefira) of God the Creator and the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
Taken together, they were said to constitute the "32 paths of secret
wisdom."
A major text of early Kabbala was the 12th-century Sefer ha-bahir ("Book
of Brightness"), whose influence on the development of Jewish esoteric mysticism
and on Judaism in general was profound and lasting.
The Bahir not only interpreted the sefirot as
instrumental in creating and sustaining the universe but also introduced into
Judaism such notions as the transmigration of souls (gilgul) and strengthened
the foundations of Kabbala by providing it with an extensive mystical symbolism.
Spanish Kabbala
In the following century, the Sefer ha-temuna ("Book of the Image")
appeared in Spain and advanced the notion of cosmic cycles, each of which
provides an interpretation of the Torah according to a divine attribute.
Judaism, consequently, was presented not as a religion of immutable truths
but as one for which each cycle, or eon, was said to have a different Torah.
Spain also produced the famous Sefer ha-zohar ("Book of Splendour"), a
book that in some circles was invested with a sanctity rivaling that of the
Torah itself. It dealt with the mystery of creation and the functions of the
sefirot, and it offered mystical speculations about evil, salvation, and the
soul.
Following their expulsion from Spain in 1492, the Jews were more than ever
taken up with messianic hopes and eschatology, and Kabbala found wide favor.
Lurianic Kabbala. By the mid-16th century the unchallenged
centre of Kabbala was Safed, Galilee, where one of the greatest of all
Kabbalists, Isaac ben Solomon Luria, spent the last years of his life. According
to Gershom Gerhard Scholem, a modern Jewish scholar of Kabbala, Luria's
influence was surpassed only by that of the Sefer ha-zohar.
Lurianic Kabbala developed several basic doctrines:
the "withdrawal" (tzimtzum) of the divine light, thereby creating primordial
space; the sinking of luminous particles into matter (qellipot: "shells"); and a
"cosmic restoration" (tikkun) that is achieved by the Jew through an intense
mystical life and unceasing struggle against evil. Lurianic Kabbalism was used
to justify Shabbetaianism, a Jewish messianic movement of the 17th century.
Lurianic Kabbala also profoundly influenced the doctrines of modern
Hasidism, a social and religious movement that began in the 18th century and
still flourishes today in small but significant Jewish communities.
The Sefer Zohar or "Book of Splendour" is supposed to be the most
authoritative Kabbalistic work, but this massive series of books is so obscure
and symbolic as to be practically incomprehensible.
Although traditionally said to date back to the
first century C.E., in its present form the Zohar is most likely of 13th Century
Spanish vintage, compiled by the Kabbalistic writer Moses de Leon (c.1240-1305)
from a combination of his own ideas and contemporary Kabbalistic elements
[Gershom Scholem, Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism, chapter 5].
Moses de Leon was a brilliant homilectical rather than a systematic
thinker. He was concerned not with formulating a coherent metaphysical system,
but with the elaboration and interpretation of verses of scripture from the
Torah, often in the form of obscure mystical allegorations.
It was this rich mass of imagery and allegory that the Zohar contains that
served as the inspiration for all subsequent generations of Kabbalists.
The Kabala is presented, symbolically
in the form of The Tree of Life.
The Tree contains ten centers called sephiroth,
individually sephira, which are connected by 22 paths.
The centers are arranged in three columns. The left column is called the
Pillar of Severity.
This represents the female side of man and contains
three sephira: Binah (Understanding), Geburah (Severity) and Hod (Splendor).
The right column is called the Pillar of Mercy.
This represents the male side of man and also contains
three sephira: Chokmah (Wisdom), Chesed (Mercy) and Netzach (Victory).
The middle pillar is called the Pillar of Equilibrium.
It represents the balance between the male and female pillars.
It contains four sephira:
Kether (Crown), Tiphareth (Beauty), Yesod (Foundation) and Malkuth (Kingdom).
The Kabbala requires four of these Trees, one for each world of the
cosmos.
The Four Worlds:
Atziluth:
Representing the archetypal world, pure Divinity, and Yod of the Hebrew Name of
God.
It corresponds to the Suit of Wands in the Tarot.
Briah:
Representing the creative world, the Archangelic, and thee in the Hebrew Name of
God.
It corresponds to the Suit of Cups.
Yetzirah:
Represents the formative world, the Angelic, and Vau is the Hebrew name of God.
It corresponds to the Suit of Swords.
Assiah:
Representing the material world, man, and the final He in the Hebrew Name of
God.
It corresponds to the Suit of Spheres.
Greater understanding of the Tree Of Life -
Can be had if you view the image as multi-dimensional -
Spinnning or rotating in whatever direction you see it.
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