The Sefirot – Part I

One of the hallmarks of Kabbalah is the premise that God’s creative force – and His continued influence on the universe – is exerted through a series of ten levels, called sefirot, through which His will descends and unfolds. Just as in our world there are forces such as gravity, magnetism, and nuclear forces, the spiritual realm also has forces – the sefirot – by means of which God projects His will throughout creation. The sefirot, then, are a type of force, but – unlike gravity or magnetism – they do not belong to the physical world. And yet, although the sefirot themselves are in the spiritual realm, they exert their influence also in the physical world of our experience, for the created universe – spiritual and physical – is a complete whole, and the spiritual realm interacts with the physical realm.

The first mention of the Kabbalistic term sefirot is found in Sefer Yetzirah (Sefer Yetzirah: The Book of Creation), a book dating from the seventh century or earlier. According to Sefer Yetzirah, the word sefirot (sefira in singular) is derived from the Hebrew lesaper (to tell) – relating to God’s creation of the world through speech – or to the word lispor (to count). Yet another derivation of the word sefirot (although not mentioned in Sefer Yetzirah) is from the Biblical term livnat hasappir, referring to the appearance of sapphire that Moses (Exodus 24:9-10) and Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:26) saw under the throne of God.

The names of the sefirot are derived from Biblical verses. The names of the lowest seven – Gedula (Greatness, also known as Chesed – Mercy), Gevura (Power, also known as Din – Law), Tif’eret (Grandeur, Beauty), Netzach (Victory, or alternatively, Eternity), Hod (Glory, Majesty), Yesod (Foundation, also known as Kol – All), and Malkhut (Kingdom) – are derived from 1 Chronicles 29:11. References to the two sefirot above those – Chokhma (Wisdom) and Bina (Understanding) – are found in various places, including Job 28:12 and 28:20, and Proverbs 8:1. The highest sefira is called Keter (Crown), to signify its elevation above the others.

Depending on context, the sefirot may be represented linearly (descending from Keter to Malkhut), as concentric circles (with Keter either as the outermost ring or at the center), as a human body, or as a tree. Each of these representations is correct within its own context, but it is important to state that none of these representations accurately expresses the true nature of the sefirot. These representations are for illustrative purposes only, to clarify to the human mind something that is beyond our day-to-day experience. The sefirot are not of our world, and only by analogy to the world of our experience can we hope to have any inkling of their nature. (See my post of 17 July 2009 – “The Iceberg.”)

It must be stressed that the sefirot are not part of God’s essence, nor can any divinity be ascribed to them. God is one, a single unity, indivisible. We cannot speak of parts of God, nor can we have any knowledge of His essence. We can know Him only through His actions in our world, and those actions are executed by means of the sefirot, which are the means that God uses to project His will into the universe.

© Copyright 2009 by Ben Roshgolin. All rights reserved.