The Name Shadai in Hebrew Amulets - Part 5

I made reference to the name (B'dafti'el) earlier, and thought I should mention that we are informed that if you recall the name B’dafti’el when travelling around at night, you will have no fear since no harm will befall you, and you will not be beset by any injurious spirits. It is worth noting that the gematria of (B’dafti’el)

is equal to that of the word (Kol—“voice,” “sound” and “thunder” ). In this regard we are reminded that the gematria of the full spelling of the letters comprising the word , i.e. , and

is equal to that of the word (Ga’ar—“to scold” ). In this regard, it is understood that the “voice” of B’dafti’el “rebukes” all evil, including the Klipot (demonic shards).

Now, I have been addressing the employment of Divine Names and biblical verses to avert miscarriage and protect infants. In this regard, there is a simple practice in which the Name Shadai is utilised to aid a woman who lost her sons. In this instance seven coins are collected from seven pregnant ladies. These coins are conjoined into a single disc on which the Name (Shadai) is engraved, which is afterwards placed in the hand of the sorely afflicted woman. In contrast to other similar practices listed elsewhere in "The Book of Seals and Amulets," this specific working does not appear to require any prior purification or, for that matter, any special prior preparation.

The Name (Shadai) is also said to alleviate the plight of a woman who has suffered miscarriage. In this instance one starts the procedure by writing Psalm 55:9 [8] and Genesis 21:1 on deerskin parchment, or a sheet of clean good quality paper. It is good to verbalise the words as one writes them. The said verses read:

Transliteration:

(Psalm 55:9 [8]) Achishah miflat li meiruach so’ah misa’ar

(Genesis 22:1) v’YHVH pakad et Sarah ka’asher amar

Translation:

Psalm 55:9 [8]) I would haste me to a shelter from the stormy wind and tempest.

(Genesis 22:1) And YHVH remembered Sarah as He had said.

Next continue, by writing the following incantation:

Transliteration:

B’shem Shadai tehe kamea zu l’[.....Plonit bat Plonit.....] shelo tapil yeladeiah v’lo mitipat dam ha-mapelet lo yiyeh miskal v’miskalah b’shem Ehyeh asher Ehyeh YH YHVH ub’shem Micha’el Gavri’el Rafa’el Dani’el Katuti’el Pani’el Sanoi Sansanoi Semangelof Omein Netzach Selah Va-ed

Translation:

In the Name Shadai this Kamea will be for [.....fill in the name of the sufferer.....] that she will not abort her children, and not emit any blood of a miscarriage, and will not loose boys or girls. In the Name Ehyeh asher Ehyeh YH YHVH and in the name Micha’el Gavri’el Rafa’el Dani’el Katuti’el Pani’el Sanoi Sansanoi Semangelof Amen Victory Selah Forever.

Afterwards the Kamea is carried on the arm of the woman in question.

The Name Shadai in Hebrew Amulets - Part 4

Following the previous parts in this set of essays on the Divine Name (Shadai), I received a response directed to me personally by an individual who maintained that since the letter (Shin) is so important in Judaism, i.e. featuring on Mezuzot, Tefillin, etc., that must surely give credence to its importance in the name of the "saviour" Yeheshuah, with special reference to the Renaissance invention called the "pentagrammaton." In this regard, I have noticed that whilst certain individuals readily admit the "YHShVH" to be an invention and equally concede that it is not a genuine Hebrew term, they dismissively and quite glibly repeat a statement made some time ago that "this is a brilliant invention."

So the "false name" is truth? What poppycock! In fact, regarding this fanciful construct, see my earlier essay titled "Christian/Hermetic Kabbalah, the Christian Saviour and Truth" dated 20th January 2012. For the sake of clarity, I am happy to reiterate the stated details which I published in "The Book of Sacred Names" regarding the deliberations, mystical or otherwise, on the letter (Shin) in Jewish thought. In this regard I wrote:

Due to some very fanciful notions regarding the letter Shin by Christian and Hermetic Kabbalists, this glyph has become rather controversial, especially as this letter was allotted a unique status of holiness, when Christian Kabbalists incorporated it into the Ineffable Name () to create the construct Yeheshuah (). This, we have been told, “is the esoteric name of the Messiah of the Jews and the Christ of the Christians,” the meaning of which is said to be “Jah liberates.” As it is, this construct does not have this purported meaning, and since it does not exist in Hebrew, it does not mean anything at all. The correct spelling of a personal name known to have the mentioned meaning is , which is correctly pronounced Yehoshuah, a fairly common Jewish Name.

Even in applying all the rules pertaining to Hebrew letters being interchangeable when they belong to the same phonetic family (i.e. being pronounced in the same spot in the mouth), we notice that although the letters Heh and Ayin are interchangeable (both being gutterals), the Vav and Shin are definitely not. The altering of letters in a Hebrew word, and then expecting it to retain its original meaning, is simply not feasible. Yet, that is exactly what was done with the Yeheshuah construct from the 15th to 17th centuries, by Christian Kabbalists who acted from their own religious bias.

Now, regarding the special holiness assigned to the letter Shin, it should be noted that in Kabbalah all the Hebrew glyphs are “Holy.” The letter Shin is no more holy than any other Hebrew glyph. In fact, it is worth considering that the Hebrew letters comprise both “positive” and “negative” qualities, and this should be kept in mind when studying each letter-sign. In this regard, the letter Shin is termed “the symbol of Divine Power” as well as of “Corruption.” True, it is the initial of two very important Divine Names, i.e. Shadai (“All-sufficient Unlimited One”) and Shalom (“Peace”). To these we might add other significant concepts like Shechinah, Shabbat, etc., and we might also consider that the letter Shin, in representing Shadai, is the single letter shown on every Mezuzah placed on the doors of Jewish homes.

It is true that is known to be the symbol of “Divine Power,” mastery and peace, but it is equally clear that this letter also denotes corruption and Sheker (falsehood), thus being the initial of the name “Shatan” (Satan). In other words, Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism in general, recognise a dual principle in this glyph. For greater comprehension of this fact, we might look again at the.....saga of the Hebrew letters passing before the Holy One, Who finally chose to create the universe by means of the letter Bet. About the letter Shin the Divine One said “True, you stand for (Shadai), Almighty, Who is the essence of Perfection, but for man, Divinity is interspersed with evil and deception. Inevitably, your neighbour (Kof) and (Resh) will draw you into a (Kesher), an alliance with them to establish (Sheker—“falsehood”) on earth.”

We are told that the three letters comprising “falsehood” appear at the end of the Hebrew alphabet, so that they are far removed from the central axis of the array of glyphs, i.e. the letter Mem representing stability. Furthermore, none of the milui, the full spellings, of each of the other letters (e.g. etc.) comprise any of these three letters. We are further informed that “to counteract the dangerous shin with its potential power to ruin mankind, the Alef-Beis ends with the letter tav, which alludes to Emet, Truth.” [Munk, M.L.: The Wisdom in the Hebrew Alphabet: The Sacred Letters as a Guide to Jewish Deed and Thought, Mesorah Publications, Brooklyn 1983] In this regard, we should note that (Alef) is the beginning, (Mem) the centre, and (Tav) the end of the Hebrew Alphabet, and that the combination of these letters in that exact order reads (Emet—“Truth”).

It is certainly clear that the "prediction" made regarding the letter Shin being drawn into a "conspiracy" (Sheker), an alliance which will lead to the propagation of "falsehood" (Kesher), is quite true. Like sheep, many bought the YHShVH invention! The literal meaning of the letter Shin is "teeth"; Kof is a "monkey"; and Resh refers to a "head." Monkeys can chew away quite mindlessly!

(More to follow)

The Name Shadai in Hebrew Amulets - Part 3

In the previous essay I referred to Exodus 23:26 being utilised in an abbreviated format in Hebrew amulets to forfend miscarriage. Elsewhere the mentioned abbreviation is arranged into the following letter square, which is employed conjointly with the Names of eleven Spirit Intelligences for the very purpose of aiding a woman who has suffered a miscarriage or who has lost infant sons:

Inscribe the chotam (magical seal) at the top of a deerskin parchment or kosher scroll. Next write the following incantation below the letter square:

Transliteration:

Y’hi ratzon milfanecha shomer nefashot chasidav shetishmor pri bitnah shel noset kamea zeh aleah mikol nezek umikre ra v’mehefsed ha-yesodot ki ein shomer v’rofe mibil’adecha k’dektiv (Psalm 127:1) im YHVH lifneh vayit shav am’lu vonav bo, ana male rachamim chus v’chamol v’rachem aleah v’lo teshakel pri bitnah od omein netzach selah va’ed omein ken y’hi ratzon

Translation:

May it be your will, He who protects the souls of His devotees, to safeguard the fruit of her bowel with this amulet she is carrying on her, from all harm and bad incidents, from the loss of the foundations, since there is nobody else who protects and heals besides You, as it is written (Psalm 127:1) "Except YHVH build the house, they labour in vain that build it." Please grant compassion, protect and have pity and mercy on her that she will no more loose the fruit of her belly. Amen enduring (victory) selah forever. Amen thus be it so willed.

Continue by appending to the incantation the following abbreviation with vowels of Psalm 33:

Transliteration:

Ratzaba lanat’ b’aza losilo sichahei nabiki yad’y’ v’mabe otz’u che’y’ma habiy’ sana’u pichatz’ kokamei hanob’ t’yimei kahami yakayo teikihu avahu tzivay’ hei’ago heima’a ay’l’ tamali l’va’a ha’ay’ ehaba l’lomi hiy’ra ebab’ hamishi hi’eba yohaha yaliha ekama eihano b’chagi loyib’ koseha li’uchei loy’hi eiy’e y’lal’ l’mina ubana chila’e uhuki boyili kiv’ka vay’cha y’aka yichala

As an aside, this abbreviation of Psalm 33 is equally employed on its own in an amulet to aid women who suffers miscarriage or cannot fall pregnant. In this instance the abbreviation is written on the inside of a bowl, or on a piece of parchment to be placed inside the bowl. The writing is dissolved in water, which is afterwards consumed by the woman seeking spiritual protection or to fall pregnant. This is done on the night of her Mikveh (ritual bath).

Be that as it may, the earlier Kamea, i.e. the one comprised of the letter square as well as the names of eleven Spirit Intelligences, is concluded with a set of special Divine and Angelic Names, specifically:

Transliteration:

Sanoi Sansanoi Semangelof YAHKVTH B’dafti’el Pad’padas Shamriron Azriron Enar’nal Tzamarchad Ashtzei

Whilst this essay is not meant to include an explication of all the Divine and Angelic Names included in the listed amulets. However, it is worth noting the importance of one of those listed here, i.e. (B’dafti’el [some say Badpati’el]) which is termed the "Holy Light." We are informed that the name of the angel B’dafti’el prevents miscarriages, and appears "only on amulets that are made to assist women in childbed." However, it is worth noting that it is one of the angelic names employed to banish demonic imps and evil spirits from a residence. We are told B’dafti’el is aligned with the term (B’mochsaz), the latter referring to, as it were, the "severe" (Gevurah) aspect of the word (Eloheinu).

(More to follow)

The Name Shadai in Hebrew Amulets - Part 2

Continuing where we left off, the six permutations equally feature in the following protection Kamea, in which they are aligned with the six letters of the Name (Taftafyah), as well as with the six points of the hexagram:

The inscription in the centre of the amulet reads:

Transliteration:

Al tz’va yiyeh lo l’tzva al magen yiyeh lo l’magen tzaveh pachad b’shem Pachdi’el

Translation:

The host [forces] will be the host, the shield will be the shield commanding fear in the name of Pachdi’el

As indicated in several instances in "The Book of Seals and Amulets," the Name Shadai is often utilised in Hebrew amulets in conjunction with other Divine Names and magical symbols. In the following instance it is employed conjointly with the Ineffable Name, for the purposes of reversing the ill fortune of a woman whose sons die in infancy:

The curious Divine Name construct in the centre comprises the initials of the words of Exodus 23:26 reading:

Transliteration:

Lo tih’yeh m’shakelah va’akarah b’artzecha et mispar yamecha amalei

Translation:

None shall miscarry, nor be barren, in thy land; the number of thy days I will fulfil.

The vowels employed in the said Divine Name construct, are exactly those aligned with the initial letters of the words in the biblical phrase. These vowels are also aligned with the four appearances of the Ineffable Name, the order being top right, top left, bottom right and bottom left. As you have probably noticed, the additional concluding two vowels employed in the Ineffable Name bottom left, do not appear in the central Divine Name construct. They were derived from the two vowels of the word (Omein—"Amen").

We are informed the angel associated with this Kamea is (Shma’el), however I personally think this angelic reference pertains to (Shmai’el), an angel from the angelic caste of the (Ofanim). Be that as it may, I would personally include the angelic Name in the Kamea, perhaps on the rear of the amulet. As it is, there are several references to this Spirit Intelligence in Jewish magic.

However, to achieve the intended aim of this current Kamea, one is instructed to create four copies of this amulet, to be hung on the four corners of the house in which the mentioned unfortunate woman resides. Curiously enough, the Divine Name , when conjoined with the four letters of the Ineffable Name, affords us set of three Divine Names, which are equally employed to forfend miscarriage. These are:

In order to achieve the stated aim, these Divine Names should be engraved on a silver disk, which is afterwards placed inside a little container, i.e. a locket, to be worn on the person of the individual needing this support.

(More to follow)