Lag B'Omer Sameakh!

(Stein Atle Vere ©2012. Lag Ba'Omer Sameakh! brakha.blogspot.com)



See also:
• The Stones of Heavens - Shimon Ben Yokhai



Lag B'Omer Sameakh!
לַ״ג בָּעוֹמֶר שָׂמֵחַ

Joyous 33 in Omer!

Light

(Israel National News ©2012. Artist: Hillel Meir. Image: Lag B'Omer Bonfire. Article: A Call for Ecological and Spiritual Lag B'Omer. israelnationalnews.com.
Online Page: www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/155609.
Online Image: www.israelnationalnews.com/static/Resizer.ashx/news/250/168/342509.jpg).

The counting of the Omer is on each day between the Festival of Pesakh (“Passover”), the Return from Mitsrayim and the Festival of Shavuot (“Weeks”), the Giving of the Tora on the Mountain of Sinai.

Shavuot is the fiftieth day, comprising the forty-nine days in between - a sevensome of sevensomes.

Today, on the thirty-third Omer, is the Khilula חִלּוּלּה (memorial) of Rashbi - Rabi Shimon Ben Yokhai - a great teacher of Kabala (Tora spirituality).

It is a custom to light bonfires during the eve. Zal זַ״ל ! The memory of him be for a blessing!

Kabala: Pardes Rimonim: Sfirot As Acronym

(Stein Atle Vere ©2012. Kabala: Pardes Rimonim: Sfirot As Acronym. brakha.blogspot.com)



The author of Sefer Pardes Rimonim סֵפֶר פַּרְדֵּס רִמּוֹנִים , “The Book of the Paradise of Pomegranates”, is Rabi Moshe Kordovero רַבִּי מֹשֶׁה קוֹרְדוֹבֵירוֹ (Rabbi Moses Cordovero), also known by his acronym, Ramak רמ״ק . An early publication, dating to 1592, illustrates the ten Sfirot (Sephirot), the ten “numberings” of spiritual states, as ten concentric letters. The illustration uses the initial Hebrew letter of each name to represent the Sfira (Sephirah) as a concentric circle. Thus each letter of the acronym fits inside the previous one. The center letter is מ , the Sfira of Malkhut מלכות , the “Kingship” of God.

Sfirot As Acronym

Acronym of the Sfirot

The form of each letter gestures the distinctive behavior of each circle, as it reveals more and more light into the lowest world, the physical universe, Malkhut מ .

(The revealing of light happens thru the process of humans learning to sharing - in an optimal, wise, balanced, and sustainable way. The technical term for this process of sharing is: Or Khasdim אוֹר חַסְדִּים , “the light of compassionate actions”.)

Each Sfira is a distinctive spiritual state. The names of the Ten Sfirot, according to the Ramak, are:

• כ Keter כתר , “Crown”
• ח Khakhma חכמה , “Sageness” (Chochmah “Wisdom”)
• ב Bina בינה , “Understanding” (Binah)
• ח Khesed חסד , “Compassion” (Chesed “Kindness”, “Mercy”, “Love”)
• ג Gvura גבורה , “Overpowering” (Gevurah “Strength”)
• ת Tiferet תפארת , “Adornment” (Tiphereth “Beauty”)
• נ Netsakh נצח , “Triumph” (Netzach “Victory”)
• ה Hod הוד , “Glory”
• צ Tsadik צדיק , “Altruist” (Tzaddik “Righteous”) - usually the name is Ysod יסוד “Foundation” (Yesod)
• מ Malkhut מלכות , “Kingship” (Malchut “Kingdom”)



Paradise

The word Pardes, “Paradise”, literally means a “Tree Garden”, an elegant orchard. Pardes is another name of Malkhut, albeit specifically when the Sfirot fully reveal all of their light to Malkhut.

In other words, Pardes is the same name as Gan Eden גַּן עֵדֶן , “the Garden of Eden”. Even more specifically, the “Garden” is the infinite desire of Malkhut, while “Eden” is the infinite light.

Kabala: Ets Khayim: Ten Sfirot

(Stein Atle Vere ©2012. Ets Khayim: Ten Sfirot. Translation: Vere Hyperliteral from Hebrew to English. brakha.blogspot.com).

Sefer Ets Khayim

סֵפֶר עֵץ חַיִּים
[“The Book of the Wood of Lives”] [The Book of the Tree of Life]

The Tora of the Ari - Adonenu Rabi Yitskhak Lurya Ben Shlomo Ashkenazi [Rabbi Isaac Luria]
תורת האר״י ־ אדוננו רבי יצחק לוריא בן שלמה אשכנזי
On the mouth of Rabi Khayim Vital [Rabbi Chaim Vital]
חיים ויטאל
Gate 1, Branch 2



In the interest of En Sof אֵין סוֹף [“No End” the infinite oneness of God]:
- By the help of God [to even talk about En Sof]:
How was the beginning of the emanation of the worlds, the ones being emanated from it?

En Sof

(Stein Atle Vere ©2012. Image: Sefer Ets Khayim: En Sof. brakha.blogspot.com)
En Sof, Ein Soph, “No End”, Infinite Oneness

And also a great investigation: A tremendous division [among viewpoints]: All of the Mkublim [the teachers of Kabala “being received”], all of them were divided.

Because theres someone that wrote as [follows]:

The Ten Sfirot סְפִירוֹת [“numberings”] are as the order of ten steps, this one after this one, and this one down from this one.

And theres someone [else] that wrote as [follows]:

The order of their position is [by] way of lines, right and left, and middle.

The Three Lines of the Sfirot

And those ones are three Sfirot -
• Khakhma חָכְמָה [“sageness”] [Chochmah, wisdom],
• Khesed חֶסֶד [“compassion”] [Chesed, kindness, mercy],
• Netsakh נֶצַח [“triumph”] [Netzach, victory, eternity]
- this one on the back of this one, in the right line.

And three Sfirot -
• Bina בִּינָה [“understanding”] [Binah],
• Gvura גְּבוּרָה [“overpowering”] [Gevurah, strength],
• Hod הוֹד [“glory”]
- this one on the back of this one, in the left line.

And four Sfirot -
• Keter כֶּתֶר [“crown”],
• Tiferet תִּפְאֵרֶת [“adornment”] [Tipheret, beauty, grandeur],
• Ysod יְסוֹד [“foundation”] [Yesod],
• Malkhut מַלְכוּת [“kingship”] [Malchut, kingdom]
- this one on the back of this one, in the middle line.

The Ten Sfirot

(Stein Atle Vere ©2012. Image: Sefer Ets Khayim: The Ten Sfirot. brakha.blogspot.com)
“The Book of the Wood of Lives: The Ten Numberings”
Sefer Ets Khayim, Sepher Etz Chaim, Tree of Life: Eser Ha'Sfirot, The Ten Sfirot, Ten Sefirot, Ten Sephiroth

And masses will become sage. And they will say as [follows]:

They are in the form of circular wheels, this one inside this one, and this one orbiting and going around to this one.

The Ten Wheels

(Stein Atle Vere ©2012. Image: Sefer Ets Khayim: Ten Sfirot As Ten Wheels. brakha.blogspot.com)

In the lowest world, Malkhut is the farthest from the En Sof,
being at the extemity of the “line” קַו of light,
the only light available after the Tsimtsum צִמְצוּם , “Constriction”.

But eventually, as in the upper worlds now,
Malkhut will be the center of all of the light.
Each Sfira, being each “step” up in the line of light,
is actually a holistic “circle” עִגּוּל of light.
But the rest of its circle is hidden creating the appearance of linear causality,
within the limitations of time and space and time.

Transcending all,
even the infinity of the light of En Sof exists for one purpose:
To fulfill the infinite desire of Malkhut.
Malkhut is the center of En Sof.

Developing Emuna אְֶמוּנָה “trust” in God is a way to benefit
from these hidden holistic ways to fulfill desire
via the opportunities that are unobvious.

In the lowest world,
only the process of sharing reveals more light,
more of the circle of each Sfira of light,
that the Constriction hides from Malkhut.

ספר עץ חיים

תורתו של האר״י
על פי רבי חיים ויטאל
שער א ענף ב



בענין א"ס
ב"ה ׃
איך היה התחלת אצילות העולמות הנאצלים ממנו

וגם חקירה גדולה ומחלוקת עצום נחלקו בו כל המקובלים כולם

כי יש מי שכתב כי ׃

הי"ס הם כסדר י' מדריגות זו אח"ז וזו למטה מזו

ויש מי שכתב כי ׃
סדר עמידתן דרך קוים ימין ושמאל ואמצע

והם ג"ס
חח"ן
זו ע"ג זו בקו ימין

וג"ס
בג"ה
זו ע"ג זו בקו שמאל

וד"ס
כתי"ם
זו ע"ג זו בקו האמצעי

ורבים יחכמו ויאמרו כי ׃

הם בצורת גלגלים עגולים זה תוך זה וזה מקיף וסובב לזה