The "Name of Seventy-two Names": A Biblical Spin-off - Part 3

As can be expected, besides the many vocalisations of the “Name of Seventy-Two Names,” there are equally many variant uses of these “Names.” In this regard, let us commence by looking at the earlier mentioned use of the Shem Vayisa Vayet as a meditation device. As indicated, Abraham Abulafia, the “father” of Ecstatic Kabbalah, vocalised the individual letters with the standard vowels associated with their respective appellatives, as shown below:

The fundamental intention behind this meditation is to cause an influx of Shefa, Divine Power, into your own being. To accomplish this you are instructed to prepare yourself most carefully prior to working this meditation. In this regard Abulafia wrote: “Prepare yourself, unify your heart, and purify your body. Choose a special place for yourself, where your voice will not be heard by anyone else. Meditate alone, with no one else present. Sit in one place in a room or attic. Do not reveal your secret to anyone.” As in the case of formal worship, you are to sit facing towards the East during this meditation.

Abulafia further advised that you should wear clean clothing, preferably white. He also mentioned that this meditation should be practiced preferably at night, when many candles should be lit “so that your eyes are well illuminated.” However, he also maintained that this meditation could be worked during the day, but that you should then meditate in a darkened room. You are also instructed, “when you prepare yourself to speak to your Creator and you desire to witness His might,” that you should be careful to clear your mind of all extraneous thoughts, and then to “wrap yourself in your Talit (prayer-shawl)” so as to “increase your awe and trembling before the Divine Presence which will visit you at this time.”

In the current instance the meditation incorporates the visualisation of each triplet of the “Name of Seventy-two Names,” the component letters of which are carefully mentally engraved, as it were, whilst each letter is slowly vocalised “with complete concentration and with a proper, pleasant, sweet melody.” As is the case with Abulafian meditations, there are “heart” and “head” movements, as well as a number of breaths accompanying the utterance of the letters of each triplet. Abulafia instructs that “since your heart is internal, move it mentally. But your head is external, and therefore, you must move it physically. Move your head following the actual form of the vowel point associated with the letter that you are pronouncing.” These special movements are indicated by five nikudot, Hebrew vowel points, these being:

Abulafia offers the following detailed instructions on the head motions:

“The vowel point written above the letter is called Cholem (o [oh]). This is the only vowel point above the letter, since all the others are written beneath the letter. When you pronounce [the Cholem] together with the letters Yod and Kof, begin facing directly straight ahead. Do not incline your head to the right or left, upward or downward. Keep your head straight and even, like the balance of a scale, just as it would be if you were speaking face to face to a person of the same height as yourself.

Then, as you draw out the sound of the letter while you pronounce it, begin to move your head so as to face upward, toward the sky. Close your eyes, open your mouth, and let the words shine. Clear your throat of all phlegm, so that it should not disturb your pronunciation. As you exhale, continue to raise your head motion simultaneously. If you complete the head motion before the exhalation, do not lower your head until you have exhaled completely. Between each letter, you may rest and prepare yourself. At this time, you can take as many as three breaths, like those associated with the pronunciation. [One breath for each of the three letters, three breaths = twelve breaths].....

The vowel point which is called Kametz (a [ah]), looks like a line with a dot below it. When you pronounce it with one of the ten associated letters, chant the letter, and move your head from left to right in a straight line, as if to trace the top of this vowel point. Then bring your head back so that you are facing directly forward toward the east..... Conclude by bowing down slightly [so as to parallel the dot beneath the line of the Kametz]. Complete [the exhalation and head movement] simultaneously, as I instructed you by the first vowel.

The next vowel is the Tzeire (eh [ei]), which looks like two dots next to each other, one to the right, and one to the left. As you pronounce it with one of its seven associated letters, begin the pronunciation and the motion simultaneously. Move your head from right to left, the reverse of what you did with the Kametz.....

When you pronounce the Shin, you will make use of the Chirek (i [ee]), which has the form of a single dot below the letter. As you pronounce it, move your head downward, as if you were bowing down to God, who is standing before you, and to whom you are speaking. This is the precise opposite of the head motion associated with the Cholem.

With these four vowels, you have crowned God as King [over the four directions]. When you pronounce a Nun, also make Him King. Begin by looking straight ahead, stretching your neck forward as much as you can. Do not raise or lower your head, but keep it facing straight forward. This is the form of the Shurek (u [oo]). It consists of three dots, one under the other.....It can also be a single dot in the centre of a Vav.....Both cases imply the same thing.

Through these five vowels, you have crowned God as King in all six directions of the universe. These are up and down with o and i, right and left with a and e, and backward and forward with u.”

Chaim Vital, who maintained this meditational procedure could be used to achieve “Ru’ach ha-Kodesh,” i.e. enlightenment, states that implementing this technique does not only require you to work in a room set aside especially for the purpose in question, but that, prior to implementing the meditation in question, you should separate yourself from all worldly care and avoid every possible contact with living creatures. It would seem the technique is worked whilst in a standing position, and you are required to interact with an imaginary human standing in front of you.

When ready to commence the actual meditation, you have to raise your hands, shaping the fingers into the format originally used by the “High Priest” when bestowing blessings, as indicated in the following image:

Then you address the imaginary being in front of you, saying slowly and softly: (rosh ha-rosh—“beginning of the beginning”). Using a different tone of voice, reply with the first letter of the “Shem Vayisa Vayet,” saying “Va” whilst imagining the being to be the one who is responding. Repeat the procedure saying (sof ha-toch—“end of the middle”), and in turn respond with the second letter of the “Name of Seventy-two Names,” saying “Ha” . Then conclude by saying (rosh ha-sof—“beginning of the end”), and respond with the third letter of the “Shem Vayisa Vayet,” saying “Va” .

Afterwards, the hands are lowered and fingers returned to normal. Focussing on your lowered hands, consider your fingers to be representing the ten sefirot, five opposite five—the ones of lovingkindness to the right and those of justice to the left. Then raise your left hand and place it over your heart, afterwards raising your right hand and placing it over the left hand, thus indicating “mercy over might.” The entire procedure is repeated with all the tri-letter portions of the “Name of Seventy-two Names.”

(More to follow)

Blessing & the Sea of Divine Abundance - Part 1

Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech ha-Olam Asher Kid’shanu b’Mitzvotav.

Blessed are You Adonai, our God, King of the Universe, Who consecrated us to do good deeds.

It is our responsibility to become receptacles for Shefa , the sacred influx of Divine Abundance, which means to literally channel this “Divine Flow” into mundane existence. This is done through service, which is the assistance towards well-being we give to our world and everything within it. It is said that in assisting another individual, the “Divine Channels,” allowing the flow of Divine Abundance and goodness into this world, are restored.

In Jewish mysticism this is considered to be the duty of every Jew, but as far as I am concerned, this is the duty of every person in existence. We are told that it is Malchut, the Kingdom of our mundane existence, which receives the Shefa as it pours from Ain Sof (the Eternal No-Thing) into, and through, all the Sefirot (Spheres upon the Tree of Life). The “Universal Abundance” is directed via the Divine Name (Adonai), into the realm of physical manifestation, thus, every time you attempt to make the world a better place for anyone or anything, you need to bow mentally and express, either aloud or silently in your mind, the blessing “Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu, Melech ha-Olam, Asher Kid’shanu b’Mitzvotav.” This statement is a formal recognition of and a conscious link to the “Divine Abundance,” understanding the injunction “Close is Adonai to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth” (Psalm 145:18). Of course the blessing can be simplified to (Baruch Atah Adonai—"Blessed are You Adonai").

The blessing in itself is in fact a magical invocation. Firstly, the language is Divine and links those who utter it to the powerful forces, the Divine Hosts, residing in the subtle “Realms of Being” behind the words. Secondly, during the invocation you surrender to the these Divine Forces, and let your entire being, that is body, mind, soul and spirit, act in unity as a conduit allowing these Spirit Forces to flow into manifestation. In other words, you once again “make the words flesh.”

Looking at and understanding what this blessing is all about is immensely rewarding in terms of expanding ones consciousness. The noun of the verb (Baruch—"Blessed") is (Brachah—"Blessing"), which is synonymous with (Breichah—a "Pool," "Pond" or "Lake") the source of Shefa, the Divine Influx. Every time you say the Brachah you are linked to the Breichah, and then you can be the channel directing the flow to all of creation, if you so will. The Biblical Abraham was said to be the first person to receive this Brachah, which tied him to the Divine Source, the Breichah. He passed this on to his son Isaac, whose children Jacob and Esau battled over it. Eventually Jacob successfully claimed it, and the knowledge of the power of this Brachah was passed on to his twelve sons.

The third word of the Blessing, the Divine Name Adonai , is an extremely powerful God Force, since it contains and directs the powerful forces flowing from the Breichah, the divine reservoir of abundance within the Being of the Most High. In fact, uttering the Name Adonai, instantly links you to this Infinite Source. Kabbalah explains that the Source and its outpouring of Divine Abundance is referred to in Genesis 2:10 — “A river issues from Eden to water the garden, and then it divides and becomes four branches.” It also states that the four divisions refer to the Shechinah, the “Countenance of God,” or Female aspect of the Divine here in manifestation. We know that this verse also refers to Malchut, the Kingdom of this World, with its fourfold cycles (elements, seasons, lunar rhythms, etc.). In fact, anthropomorphic, or physical, representations of the sphere of Malchut on the Tree of Life, often show the Shechinah as Malkah (the “Divine Queen” of the Earthly Kingdom) seated on a cubic throne.

This stone is extremely significant since a cognomen for the Name Adonai is the word (Even—"Stone"). Adonai is the foundation of everything in this realm of three-dimensional existence, and since all existence is fully dependent on Adonai, this Divine Name is also called (Kol—"All"), the Whole in which there is no lack. It is thus written in Isaiah 44:24 “I am the Lord, who made Kol who alone stretched out the heavens.” Here we are brought once again to the earlier mentioned Breichah, the pool of Infinite Abundance, also called (Yam—"Sea"). This is referred to Biblically in Psalm 104:25 “There is a sea, vast and wide, with its creatures beyond number, living small and great.”

Of course this vast “Sea of Abundance” not only refers to physical manifestation, but also to mind, soul and spirit. Therefore it is also called (Yam ha-Chochmah—the "Sea of Wisdom"), because all knowledge, on all levels of manifestation, is within it. Once again it was said that this was given to Abraham, as it is written “And YHVH, blessed Abraham with Kol” (Genesis 24:1). As indicated, he in turn passed it on as a birthright to Isaac, who in turn bequeathed it to Jacob, who said “For God has favoured me and I have Kol” (Genesis 33:11).

(More to follow)

Maggidim: Spirit Messengers - Part 2

It should be noted that from the sixteenth century, the invocation of Maggidim became quite commonplace amongst Kabbalists, whereas prior to that it was a specialised and rare occurrence. Through Maggidism the Kabbalist draws on the vast spiritual realm of sages, saints and celestial guides, the realm of Elijah, as well as the embodied essences of scriptures. In the eighteenth century Moses Chayim Luzzatto wrote to a friend concerning his own Maggid, saying: “I admit that since 1727 God has been gracious to me by dispatching to me a Holy One from heaven who reveals to me.....nightly secrets....He promised me that I would be privileged to hear [the utterances] from the very mouth of the prophet Elijah and even the living words of the lord. And as he promised, so it came. When the appointed time arrived, the prophet Elijah revealed himself to me, followed by the Holy Souls who abide on this earth ready to fulfil the tasks of the Lord.....and with their assistance I composed many and important works.”

This occurred when Rabbi Luzzatto fell asleep while chanting Yichudim, which are Kabbalistic mantras and formulas comprising Divine Names. He woke up suddenly when a voice called to him in Aramaic, saying: “I have come down to reveal hidden secrets of the Holy King.” At first Rabbi Luzzatto was afraid and trembling, he listened to the voice enumerating Kabbalistic teachings, and what must have been a surprise to him, was that the Maggid did not appear physically, but spoke with his own mouth and voice.

It was only after several occurrences that the voice admitted to being a Maggid, promising the young Kabbalist “formulas to keep in mind every day,” and Rabbi Luzzatto’s relationship with the Maggid eventually grew so deep that he received immediate and pertinent answers to his questions. Later the Maggid stopped the Rabbi from using Kabbalistic formulas, replacing them with a Holy Name, at which time came the promise of visual contact with Elijah. The prophet in turn appeared and promised the Kabbalist contact with the archangel Metatron, the Angel of the Presence and “Great Guardian of Heaven,” and, as Luzzatto later reported in his diary: “I can recognise each one of them. Also there are Holy Souls who come, their names I know not, and they tell me new things which I write down.....All these things I am doing while falling on my face and while seeing the Holy Souls as if through a dream in human forms.” The Rabbi lived for three years in almost continuous ecstasy, while keeping very quiet about his revelations. Afterwards, with the aid of a close friend, he started imparting his messages to others.

The whole process of meeting and mingling with Maggidim is due to the practice of Devekut, Divine Union or Cleaving to God. Again the practice of Devekut results in prophecy, communication with Maggidim, and even in power over the laws of nature. This happens because Kabbalists, through their attempts towards spiritual perfection, return to their source, or “soul root” as it is sometimes called. The mental power and compassion of Kabbalists would then vastly expand as they become gradually more Godlike. The more this happens, the greater becomes the ability to communicate with “Celestial Intelligences.” As Kabbalists continue to utter Sacred Names of God, also employing different breathing patterns, procedures understood to be tying them to the Spirit World, they obtain a high level of prophetic ability and raise themselves into vastly expanded states of consciousness.

We should note that the practice of Devekut leads to a sacred Zivug, or coupling, a sacred sexual act between God and the soul, which is often followed by the appearance of a Maggid. In a relationship of this nature with God, incredible, spontaneous states of ecstasy occur, in which Kabbalists are flooded with a Divine influx or bliss called Shefa. This would literally turn the practitioner into a physically incarnated Divine Messenger or Maggid, and then it is believed this Kabbalist could fulfil the function of instructing others.

I should stress again that everything discussed here, and all manifestation, whether materialised outside or inside ones own being, are part of the universal “I Am.” Each one of us creates our own realities, and if the Maggidim, the “spirits” of external and internal manifestation are conversing with us, it is due to the fact that we are ready and “open” to “meaningfulness.” It all depends on the alertness, the awakeness, of the Kabbalist as to whether he/she gets the messages or not. It depends equally on whether that individual is open, receptive and expanded enough to actually get the meaning, i.e. trained enough in the practice of approaching life in terms of meanings, and finding for oneself through this the symbols of consciousness, the relevant “Inner Language” without which one would not get very far.

Life will have no meaning if you do not attempt to discover the meaning, or give it meaning if it does not have any for you. One should at least try to interpret the relevance while still on the ground, so to speak, so that when you eventually get off the surface of this mundane existence into loftier realms, all the meanings will “speak” to you. You must first build communication, a process of great importance, in which acknowledging “god-forces,” your emotions, is imperative, since those are the responses from the spirit world.

We know these “subtle intelligences” can appear beautiful or hideous, protective or menacing, depending on the thought or emotion which has given them life. We know to some extent that creation and manifested life originate in the physical and mental attributes of man himself, and if you do not know this, then it is time you start thinking about it. All life existing everywhere is created by your Self. All life, the whole universe in fact, is created by your Self. By this I do not mean the small part incarnated in the body, but the “I AM.” It is like the illustration based on the famous “Through the Looking Glass,” showing Alice standing on a checkerboard floor and staring into the “looking glass” in which she observes her own reflection as a shadow. Within this shadow she observes universes, galaxies, suns, moons and planets, but what she does not realise is that she is looking at herself. She thinks she is looking at things out there, while in reality it is all a reflection of Self.

Regarding “spirit intelligences,” I have to admit that my own relationship with them has been rather shaky. My particular “Inners,” as I like to call them, have not been a very forthcoming group, however admirable they may be in other ways. They do their job, but they do not give any prizes so to speak. They are extremely cryptic, and I do not believe they treat anyone else better than they treat me. I have certainly never had a personal hot line to God or lesser celestial authorities. About all I am told is to shut up and get on with the job. Personally I find these “Higher Orders of Life” very hard to deal with, not always particularly cooperative so far as human affairs are concerned, and not very exciting to work with. They seem to choose whether they want to work with you or not, and when these “forces” elect to work with you, they can disrupt your life quite considerably.

These “Inners” have also communicated with me in the form of “Voices,” and I have regularly woken up in the middle of the night to the sound of my own voice. Believe it or not, this is not an uncommon phenomenon, but can be rather perplexing when you suddenly find yourself speaking without having any control over it. All the same, it does not always do to be too meekly acceptant of whatever “Inner Voices” tell you. My own experience of life has led me to treat all “Voices” with extreme caution. I would not rely on them a single inch past the edge of my own judgment. Remarkable as they are, I have found they are purely concerned with the pursuit of their specific spiritual work, regardless of the humans they use as instruments to work with. So far as they are concerned, humans are expendable and disposable if need be.

Provided you listen, and then make up your mind what action you will take and do so on your own responsibility entirely, that will be fine. Never do anything purely because some “Voice” says so. Think it out for yourself, and then do what you will because you agree or disagree with what you heard. If you act blindly, without reasoning, they will ultimately let you ruin yourself. They did not save countless individuals from agonizing deaths. To them, deaths and disasters are but mere incidentals of an overall individual experience of identity through a “Line of Light” covering a lot of Cosmos. They do not see why we should mind being the subjects of their experiments with Existence, any more than we ask why animals or plants should object to our eating or experimenting with them.

If you meet their consciousness with your own on terms of mutual respect, based on acknowledgement of each other’s functions in a common Cosmic cause, you will make a good enough relationship, but the moment you accept everything the “Voices” say without question, you make trouble for yourself. Your only real protection is to become a living “Question Mark” yourself. Query everything all the time, and in the end, let the ultimate decision be yours.

You will naturally wonder why I bother at all with “Spirit Intelligences.” The reason is simply because it was in me before I was born, just as others have it in themselves for the same purpose. Call it “Fate” if you like. We came here to do specific jobs, and until we do them we shall be bound to human bodies.

Maggidim: Spirit Messengers - Part 1

I recently received a query regarding Maggidim (Spirit Messengers), and I thought the topic might be of interest to readers of this blog. As it is, I devoted an extensive chapter on this specific topic in "The Book of Self Creation," in which I also shared a technique on contacting a Maggid. This subject, so often referred to in Kabbalah, reminds me of the tenth century Rabbi Hai Gaon, the famous religious leader and mystic, who wrote: “God arranged the order of creation so that all things are bound to each other. The direction of events in the lower world depends on entities above them, as our sages teach, ‘there is no blade of grass in the world below that does not have an angel over it, striking it and telling it to grow!’

Human souls are also bound to higher levels, and therefore, when a perfect individual becomes involved in Meditation (Hitbodedut) upon Wisdom, it is possible for him to predict the future events. As a result of his deep meditation, his consciousness and mind fall into a trance, and through his deep probing of the mysteries of existence, he reaches the First Cause. The faculties of his heart then become like the Urim and Thumim, mystically bound to the angels in heaven, and he becomes attached to the Ultimate Good.” A Kabbalist can communicate with entitised awareness, whether incarnated in a physical body or not, and included here is the Maggid, which can be a departed Saint, beloved Teacher or Master, an Angel, etc.

It saddens me when modern scholarship, starting already in the nineteenth century, refers to the phenomena of Maggidim as something totally illusory, devoid of all truth, and belonging to the realm of psycho-pathology. Some even apologetically refer to it as a “regrettable weakness” on the part of the person claiming such a contact, while others, including the very religious, see the whole subject of the Maggid as a fabrication, believing it to be heresy and a disgrace.

Despite all this, it is worth noting that many famous Rabbis, Masters and scholars had a Maggid. In fact, Maggidism comprising mentor angels, spirit guides, voices, and so forth, certainly played a massive role in all mysticism, and, as one author puts it, existed in certain periods and amongst certain groups almost like an “epidemic.” So despite modern scholarship referring only to the worshipful “religious-spiritual” side of mysticism, there is no doubt that manifestations like Maggidim are a widespread and valued phenomenon.

The meaning of the word Maggid is “one who relates,” and it ordinarily refers to itinerant preachers. However, on another level, as already indicated, a Maggid is a mentor or ministering angel, spirit guide, or voice, which could in some cases appear in dream as a departed friend, teacher or master, an angel or spirit guide instructing the dreamer, who can question the Maggid. At other times it may appear while the receiver is completely conscious and awake, alone or in the company of other people. Often all present would hear the voice of the Maggid, though at times a contactee would be taken over by the Maggid as in possession, and then the “spirit messenger” would speak through his/her mouth, which is not unlike what sometimes occurs in modern Spiritualism when the medium becomes “controlled.”

Yet not always is the Maggid a spirit classifiable as Elijah, or some known friend, master or angel. The Maggid can be the personified spirit of sacred texts, that is the spirit of the Torah, Mishnah, Talmud, Zohar, Tosefta, or other holy text, seen as conscious living entities, such as in the case of the sixteenth century Rabbi Shlomo Molcho where, at night time, the Mishnah descended as a personified feminine spirit, to whisper revelations into the ear of “Her” servant.

The same holds true for the sixteenth century Rabbi Joseph Karo who had a Maggid appear to him every time he recited the Mishnah by heart, who then spoke, saying: “Peace upon thee, Rabbi Joseph Karo. I am the Mishnah which thou hast studied. I came forth to teach thee understanding.” Then the Maggid would instruct the contactee regarding remarkable mysteries of life and its manifestations, and the teachings related to these mysteries, such as Kabbalistic explanations. Yet, the Maggid never appeared in visual form to Rabbi Karo, but spoke through the Rabbi’s mouth, and, as one author puts it, this is “a genuine case of well-ordered, lucid, automatic-speech,” of course still under the guidance of a Maggid, a heavenly messenger.

A Maggid could bring great visual revelations, even though it may not necessarily itself be visual. Thus the Maggid of Rabbi Karo said: “I shall grant thee to behold Elijah, for the ancient of days will be clothed in white garments and will sit facing thee and will speak unto thee as a man speaketh unto his friend and thine eye shall behold thy teacher and.....He will speak with thee and thou shalt behold him.”

The subject of Maggidism is not only related to automatic speech, but to both clairvoyance and clairaudience. More and more I think you may realise how closely this relates to normal mediumistic states and trances. A Maggidic manifestation is not only related to a spirit messenger, angel, dream figure or automatic speech, occurring during sleep, while in a trance or fully conscious, but is also related to automatic writing. Connected to the latter is the Kabbalistic Chochmat ha-Tzeruf, “Science of Permutation,” but this topic is much too large to address in any great detail in this brief post. Briefly Tzeruf is a method of mentally permuting the letters in Hebrew words as a form of profound meditation, leading to expanded sensory perceptions and ecstatic states.

"And a river went out of Eden" - Part 4

I have chanced upon a number of very interesting reflections on the "Four Rivers" of Gan Eden. Amongst these, consider for example a unique Kabbalistic tikkun, a magical "mending rite," intended to "heal" the "breaches" within the Divine One, as depicted by Abraham Miguel Cardozo, the 17th century Shabbatean prophet and "magus." Of course, the "broken deity" is understood to be referring to the "lower aspects" of the divine in manifestation, and not to the primordial oneness of the Eternal Living Spirit beyond time, space and events.

The rectification ritual requires one to select sets of five stones respectively representing five holy sefirot and five "demonic" counterparts, or perhaps the "demonic counterparts" of the five aspects of the human "Self," the latter being the Nefesh, Ru'ach, Neshamah, Chiah and Yechidah. The ritual procedure requires practitioners to alternatively position the stones inside streams of water, remove them, replace, remove and to scatter them, and so forth, whilst simultaneously reciting prayers and selected biblical verses. Cardozo informed us "the demonic powers are called 'stumbling stone' and 'obstacle stone' [Isaiah 8:14].....[while] the holy sefirot are called 'smooth stones.'....."

Regarding Cardozo's mentioned magical "divine mending rite," he told us that "when you take up these stones, your purpose is not to separate or to distance them from the brook, to distance, that is, the Persons from the Primordial Adam. God forbid! These are our portion and our heritage; it is our task fully to mend the flaw inflicted upon them by our ancestor's sins and by our own, and it is for this purpose that you are taking them up. For it is he who has true knowledge of God who is able to do the 'Mending'." In delineating the rite in question, Cordozo instructed those indending to work this "mending" of the "disfigured deity," to recite Genesis 2:10-14 whilst standing on the banks of a brook, stream or river. He explains "the 'river' is Primordial Adam.....He perpetually 'goes forth from Eden,' this being 'Adam of the World of Emanation.' The 'garden' is that vacant space, which, according to Rabbi Isaac Luria, was left when the Infinite initially contracted Itself into Itself.....This is, in the truest sense, that 'garden,' and it is for the purpose of watering it that the river — Primordial Adam — goes forth from the primordial Eden, which is 'Adam of the World of Emanation'....."

Having completed the recitation of the mentioned verse, the practitioner was required to place "the five stones of the realms of holiness into the river's waters," which was followed by prayers and a variety of further actions. The ritual and the meanings of the "five stones" can be traced in "Abraham Miguel Cardozo: Selected Writings" by Abraham Miguel Cardozo & David Joel Halperin.

Now, regarding the division of the one Edenic river into four, Cardozo believed this to be a division of the "divine flow" commencing within the sefirah Keter (Crown), or in the partzuf (Countenance) of Arich Anpin, i.e. the "Long-suffering" or "Patient One." The "Four Rivers" are then understood to be referring to the four divisions or "faces" as explicated in the Lurianic doctrine of the "partzufim," i.e. "Father," "Mother," "Son" and "Daughter" respectively indicating the four sefirot of Chochmah (Wisdom), Binah (Understanding), Tiferet (Beauty) and Malchut (Kingdom). The "four" are also considered to be representing four "messianic figures": Messiah ben David, Messiah ben Ephraim, Moses, and the fourth, according to David Halperin, "is something of a mystery."

Being a Shabbatean, Cardozo naturally included the failed Messiah Shabbetai Tzvi in his deliberations on the four "rivers" of Eden. Hence he informed us that "the name of the first [river] is Pishon [Genesis 2:11]. This is the Sefirah Chochmah [= Father].....The name of the second river is Gichon: This is Binah [= Mother].....[whose] role is to cover and to protect.....The roots of the two Messiah's souls derive from Father and Mother. This is why the numerical value of the words 'the name of the first is Pishon,' when the number of its letters are counted in, is equivalent to the value of 'Shabbetai Tzvi'." As it is, the gematria does not quite add up so nicely, but with some additional reasoning and a bit of manipulation here and there, anything is achievable.

Notwithstanding this, it would seem Abraham Miguel Cardozo assigned himself a special "messianic" mission, one perhaps a little greater than that of Shabbetai Tzvi. Continuing the theme of the "Four Rivers" and their "messianic" affiliations, he informed us that "at Messiah ben David's coming.....the sefirah Chochmah witdrew itself.....Messiah ben David was then left 'a waterless river, all dried up' [Job 14:11].....He was unable to reveal the Divinity in any explicit fashion, and he withdrew himself to the heights. Messiah ben Ephraim, by contrast, is the Sefirah Yesod (Foundation)." In Lurianic doctrine the phrase "broad places of the river" is identified with Yesod as the sex organ of the "Son" partzuf in Tiferet (Beauty), the messianic figure of which Cardoza maintained to be deriving "from the Mother's genital, which is called 'the broad places of the river.' He is thus able to spread doctrine throughout the world, and the divine effluence along with it, to make known the faith of the Cause Above All Causes, through the Blessed Holy One and His Shechinah. This is why the numerical value of 'the broad places of the river'," with again a little push and shove here and there to forcefit the issue nicely, is equivalent to that of the name of....."Abraham Miguel Cardozo" himself!

Regarding the remaining two Edenic rivers, Cardoza informed us that the third named "Chedekel" (Tigris) refers to the partzuf of Ze'ir Anpin, the "Impatient One" whose unique locale is Tiferet (Beauty) on the sefirotic tree. This Cardozo said is corresponding to Moses whom he maintained is incorporating "the roots of both Messiahs." In conclusion, he told us that the fourth river Frat (Euphrates) "is the sefirah Malchut, which is the source of all that is produced." Regarding the latter "river," Cardoza noted that there is no special reference in the bible, which he understood to mean that Malchut (Kingdom), the associated sefirah, "takes on various names, in accord with whatever effluence this sefirah receives" from the higher sefirot, and hence there is also some ambivalence regarding the affiliated messianic personage. On the one hand it is understood to be indicating the prophet Elijah, said to be "the Man Who Brings Good News" [ha-Mevaser], but that "it remains unclear whether Elijah is really the one who will announce the Redemption." In this regard Cardozo conjectured that "it is possible also that this will be done by a woman," i.e. Mavaseret Tziyon, 'She Who Brings Good News to Zion'."

In terms of the Lurianic doctrine of the "partzufim" (divine countenances) on the sefirotic tree, the sefirah Malchut is associated with Nukva, the divine feminine or "Daughter," manifested by and through all women on earth. This is the Shechinah, the female counterpart of the Divine One, regarding whom Cardozo implored the Infinite One: "O Master of all the worlds, You who necessarily exist! O God, above whom there is no God! O Lord over all the lords, King over all the Kings! Like the soul in the body and in its clothing, You shine within the ten sefirot of the World of Emanation, the ten sefirot of the World of Creation, the ten sefirot of the World of Fashioning, the ten sefirot of the World of Making. You join together all the worlds: the Yod to the Heh, the Heh to the Vav, and the Vav to the Heh. You give life to them all, and the host of heaven prostrates itself to You before Your honoured throne. You it is who unites the Blessed Holy One and His Shechinah. In the light of the manifest faces [is] Your face. May it be Your will to bring the Shechinah near, from You, to the Blessed Holy One. For, as seen from Your perspective, there is no separation or dissociation, no banishment or distancing."

This is certainly a most beautiful and very moving prayer, which, as well as the "sacred mending" saga, you can investigate in great detail in "Abraham Miguel Cardozo: Selected Writings" by Abraham Miguel Cardozo & David Joel Halperin.

(More to follow)

What Exactly Comprises Practical Kabbalah?

I have been queried regarding what exactly comprises "Practical Kabbalah." My personal stance is that the expression "Practical Kabbalah" incorporates a lot more than simply "magical applications," such as those addressed in my "Book of Sacred Names." Besides these, I personally include:

1. meditational techniques like those of Abraham Abulafia, as well as the Kavvanot and Yichudim of Lurianic Kabbalah, the Tzerufim of Albotini, and the many kabbalistic practices which Aryeh Kaplan, amongst others, listed in "Meditation and Kabbalah," etc.;

2. worshipful invocations and prayers such as those found in Kabbalistic Siddurim (prayer books), etc.;

3. practical applications of the ten sefirot, the latter having been termed "the spiritual energies of Mind and Emotion" by Rabbi Laibl Wolf in his book "Practical Kabbalah," and of which there are a number of wonderful and well-known "practical" studies such as those by my late mentor, William G. Gray, or the more recent very innovative and equally well written "The Miracle Tree: Demystifying the Qabalah" by R.J. Stewart, etc.

There is probably a lot more to add to this list. Whatever the case may be, I personally believe that ALL practical applications of Kabbalistic doctrines, pertain to what is collectively termed "Practical Kabbalah."

The Image on the Cover: "Universal Shiviti Amulet" - Part 9

G. Positioned External to and Within the Centre of the Magen David Complex:

1. - Yohach Kalach

Final letters of the words of Psalm 91:11

Transliteration:

ki mal'achav y'tzaveh lach lishmorcha b'chol d'rachecha

Translation:

"For He will give his Angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways."

2. Six Archangels within the Magen David Complex aligned with the three repetitions of Yohach Kalach

H. Central Magen David

1. - Taftafyah

Letters positioned in the corner triangles of the hexagram.

This Divine Name is composed of the first two letters of verses 69, 70 and 76 of Psalm 119 which read:

Transliteration:

(verse 69) Taf'lu alai sheker zeidim ani b'chol lev etzor pikudecha.

(verse 70) Tafash kachelev libam ani torat’cha shi'asha'e'ti.

(verse 76) Y'hi na chasd'cha l'nachameini k'imratecha l'avdecha.

Translation:

(verse 69) "The proud have forged a lie against me; but I with my whole heart will keep Thy precepts."

(verse 70) "Their heart is gross like fat; but I delight in Thy law."

(verse 76) "Let, I pray Thee, Thy lovingkindness be ready to comfort me, according to Thy promise unto Thy servant."

2. - Shadai

The Universal Shiviti Kame'a concludes with the powerful Divine Name Shadai in its very centre.

(The End)

The Image on the Cover: "Universal Shiviti Amulet" - Part 8

F. Central Magen David Complex cont.:

2. The Name of Seventy-Two Names cont.

(More to follow)

The Image on the Cover: "Universal Shiviti Amulet" - Part 7

F. Central Magen David Complex cont.:

2. The Name of Seventy-Two Names cont.

(More to follow)