Origin of Igul-Circle and Yashar-Line Moses ben Jacob Cordovero, in his comprehensive systemization of Medieval Kabbalah, had reconciled previous Kabbalists' opinions of the sephirot by describing each as Divine
ohr ("light") invested in ten spiritual
keilim "vessels." This overcame the philosophical difficulty of Divine attributes, as in the Infinite
Ein Sof before Creation, the sephirot were entirely nullified into non-existence in the simple unity of endless Divinity. They emerge as Divine attributes only from the perspective of creation by combining two aspects of lights and vessels. The spiritual vitality, denoted as "light", similarly manifests in two levels of Ohr Sovev (transcendent) and Ohr Mimalei (immanent). First the light creates the vessels, then animates (fills) them. Only the vessels differ in their natures, while the light remains unified.
Isaac Luria accepted this but adapted it to his new scheme. As the
Kav "ray" of illumination shines into the
ḥalal or primordial "vacuum"), beginning Creation, it first forms the pristine realm of
Adam Kadmon ("Primordial Man"), described in previous Kabbalah, the first of the comprehensive Four or Five Worlds. Adam Kadmon is the realm of
Keter ("crown"), supra-conscious Divine Will. Due to its supreme transcendence, it is often excluded from listing with the other Four Worlds. Medieval Kabbalists listed Keter as the first
Sephirah, but debated its relationship with the
Ein Sof or Limitless Divine. Luria described Keter as an intermediary to the sephirot, not identified with the Ein Sof, but transcending the sephirot. He excludes it from their usual listing, substituting
Da'at "Knowledge" instead. If the sephirot are listed with their vessels,
Chokmah ("wisdom") becomes the first principle. Adam Kadmon is all light with no vessels before the emergence of the sephirot; its expanse within the
ḥalal is limited by the power of the
Reshima ("impression" left in the empty vacuum) and by its future potential to create vessels. Adam Kadmon is the divine will of Keter and the "plan" of the latent Chokmah within Keter for all subsequent detailed creation in potential. Its
anthropomorphic name figuratively denotes that man is both the purpose of creation below and the embodiment on high of the sephirot Divine attributes, not yet manifest. The sephirot manifest in two general metaphorical-figurative schemes, as
igulim (concentric "circles" within the "circular"
ḥalal) and
Yosher/Yashar (the three-column "upright" diagram, related to the "line" beamed into the
ḥalal).
Igul denotes potential creation encompassed within the female principle.
Yashar denotes manifest creation, the male principle, where creation proceeds as a hierarchical progression. As
Igulim, ten concentric "circles," the sephirot act sequentially and independently from each other, from Keter in closest proximity to the Ein Sof, to Malkhut at the centre. As
Yosher, an "upright" 3-column linear scheme, the sephirot act as a harmonized configuration of related powers in the scheme of man. As in the soul of man and represented in his bodily form, each sephirah fulfils its particular function while correlating and sharing with the other powers as a whole arrangement. As Adam Kadmon is before the emergence of the sephirot, it relates to both schemes only in latent ("transcendent") potential. As the
Kav shines into the vacuum, it first emanates the ten sequential
Igulim, then is "enclothed" by the
Yosher scheme as Adam Kadmon. •
Akudim (world of "Binding/Ringed") 10 lights in one vessel - stable tohu Chaos •
Nekudim (world of "Points/Spotted") 10 isolated lights in 10 vessels - unstable tohu Chaos (
Olam HaTohu-the "World of Chaos") •
Berudim (world of "Connection/Flecked") 10 inter-relating lights in 10 vessels - beginning of tiqqun ("Rectification") The terms are learned from the esoteric meaning of the story of
Jacob's breeding of
Laban's flocks in
Genesis 30:27-43, where the terms
Akudim,
Nekudim and
Teluim (Patched") are used.
Akudim is
yuli ("potential" creation),
Nekudim is the sephirot acting as independent
Iggulim (concentric "circles") absolute principles,
Berudim is the sephirot acting as a harmonised
Yosher ("upright" three-column configuration) where all principles work together: each sephirah is able to inter-relate with the other 9, by each latently incorporating each of the other principles. For example,
Chesed (Kindness) and
Gevurah (Severity) no longer oppose as absolute principles, but there is Kindness within Severity and Severity within Kindness. In the same way, all 10 sephirot subdivide into 10 x 10 = 100 latent principles, allowing the sephirot to harmonise as one system (as
Yosher-Man). The potency of
Lurianic scheme, with its new doctrines and paradigm, arises from its power to systemise and unify previously unexplained and unrelated Kabbalistic notions. In this case, previously
Iggulim and
Yosher were alternative and complementary descriptions of the sephirot in Medieval Kabbalah. In Lurianic Kabbalah their difference becomes the root cause of the new process of dynamic crisis-catharsis in the Divine unfolding of Creation.
Akudim is the initial stable stage of
Olam HaTohu (the "World of Chaos"), the first emergence of the sephirot in undifferentiated unity, 10 lights encompassed in one vessel. In this supreme abundance of Divinity, there is no distinction between each sephirah, all Creation being included in potential. Luria read this as
Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth", the initial vital source from which all would unfold.
Nekudim is the secondary unstable form of chaos, referred to in general by
"Olam HaTohu" (the "World of Chaos"), which precipitates the catastrophe of
Shevirat HaKeilim ("shattering" of the sephirot "vessels").
Berudim is the initial incomplete stage of
Olam Hatiqqun (the "World of Rectification"), beginning rectification of the sephirot, as it is reconstituted enough to exist stabily. However, supernal rectification is only completed subsequently in
Atzilut (the world of "Emanation"), first of the comprehensive
Four spiritual Worlds after the
Shevirah, through the secondary transformation of the sephirot into personas. Atzilut, therefore, is generally referred to by
"Olam Hatiqqun" (the "World of Rectification"). All three stages
Akudim,
Nekudim,
Berudim are also described sometimes as three initial stages in the emergence of the World of Atzilut. However, in general, unqualified reference to "Atzilut" denotes its complete recified form after Berudim, the first of the comprehensive
Four Worlds.
The world of tohu and the shattering In Kabbalah, the sephirot comprise the inner "life of God;" their unification is humanity's task. When the sephiroth unite above in Atziluth, the
Shekhinah unites with God below and blessings are channelled into physical creation. The "
Patach Eliyahu" section of the
Zohar relates that the sephirot only exist from the perspective of Creation. From the Divine perspective, only unity exists. The sephiroth are the channels through which creation is enacted. They become the revealed personas manifested from concealment and nullification in the
Ein Sof. As the Lurianic scheme continues, in
Nekudim, the world of "Points", the sephiroth exist in separation and differentiation from each other: ten distinct point principles through ten vessels without harmony. This state,
Olam haTohu was read by Luria in
Genesis 1:2 "And the earth was
tohu wa-bohu (Chaos and Void), with darkness over the surface of the deep.", like discreet, sequential concentric circles. They become a domain of pluralism rather than of unity. The world of chaos has very high level of light but weak vessels. Vessels paradoxically allow the revelation of Divinity to Creation by restricting and containing the Divine abundance in stable limitations. In tohu, the lack of sharing between the vessels makes them immature, undeveloped and weak, while the divine illumination overflows their capacity to contain. This causes the cosmic catastrophe of
Shevirat HaKeilim "Shattering of the Vessels," introducing disharmony and exile throughout divinity. The light created each sephirah sequentially, first vessel, then the illumination within. Each sephira's light also contained the subsequent diminishing lights to form the following lower sephirot. As the light of the Ein Sof radiated to form Keter, the vessel of Keter could absorb the life force. In turn, the vessels of Hokhma and Bina could absorb most of their flow, as their proximity to Keter made them strong enough. Keter extended enough relationship to them as their motivating Will. Their excesses of light encompassed each as an
or makif "surrounding light." However, as the light proceeded to Da'at, the root of the emotional sephiroth, its vessel could not absorb the abundant radiance for the totality of the emotions and shattered. This caused the total light to proceed downwards, shattering each vessel. The succession was altered in Yesod, the channel of connection to Malkhuth. Initially, it received only the light for Malkhuth, which it projected on. It then also shattered under its light. However, this enabled Malchut to partially absorb its light before collapsing; the lower external aspects of Malkhuth were strengthened, so the collapse in Malchut was only partial.
Nitzutzot-Sparks of Holiness and the purpose of Shevirah This doctrine is the Lurianic
esoteric meaning of
Genesis 36:31 and I
Chronicles 1:43: "These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before there reigned any king over the children of Israel."
Edom is described in Genesis as the descendants of
Esau. In the Kabbalistic scheme, the Patriarchs
Abraham,
Isaac and
Jacob embody respectively Chesed, Gevurah and Tiferet. Chesed and Gevurah are imbalanced, while Tiferet is harmony between the two. Consequently, while Jacob fathered the
12 tribes of Israel, Abraham gave birth to
Ishmael, and Isaac gave birth to
Esau. Esau and Ishmael are the two spiritual roots for the Nations of the world. They are identified with unrectified Chesed and unrectified Gevurah respectively, Kindness and Severity of the world of tohu. In the Kabbalistic scheme, they are rectified in the universal
Messianic era when all peoples will "go up to the mountain of the Lord" to follow the
7 Laws of Noah. The eight kings listed who reigned in Edom before any king of Israel embodied the eight sephirot of Da'at to Malkhuth in the world of Chaos: the shattered vessels. Of each, it says they lived and died, death connoting the soul-light of the sephirot ascending back to its source while the body-vessel descends-shatters. Attached to the broken vessels are residues of the light,
Nitzutzot-"Sparks" of holiness, as all Creation only continues to exist
from non-existence by the Divine flow of Will. The sparks are the creative force of the Sephirot down the
Four Worlds, giving life to the broken vessels, that become the descending beings of each realm. As they descend, they subdivide innumerable times. The fragments contain only sparks of holiness, allowing them to become self-aware creations rather than being nullified in Divine light. The unabsorbed residue of the broken vessels in our physical, lowest World
Assiah becomes the realm of impurity and evil. To Kabbalah, as Creation is enacted through Divine "speech" as in Genesis 1, so
gematria (numerical value of Hebrew letters) has spiritual meaning. In the supernal World of
Atziluth-Emanation, the origin of our spiritual Order of Worlds, the sparks of holiness are said to subdivide into 288 general-root sparks, read out from the rest of Genesis 1:2, "And the Spirit of God hovered over the waters."
Merachepet-"hovered" splits into the number "288 died", the divided Divine sparks within the broken fragments.
The World of tiqqun and Partzufim-Personas in the scheme of
Yosher-Upright, from which the
partzufim develop The comprehensive
Four Worlds of our created existence are together collectively the realms of tiqqun ("Fixing").
Atzilut, the highest, is called specifically
Olam Hatiqqun (the "World of Rectification"). In Atzilut, the Sephirot evolve into new persona arrangements, where they can unite. The different realms of tiqqun are characterised in comparison to Tohu as lower lights and stronger vessels. After the inter-inclusion of the ten sephirot within each other, in
Lurianic Kabbalah, they then develop into personas. Wide discussion of the personas is found in the Medieval Kabbalah of the
Zohar, before Isaac Luria. In the Zohar,
Shimon bar Yochai expounds upon the spiritual roles of the personas by talking about them as independent spiritual manifestations. "The Holy
Ancient of Days" or "The Long Visage," two of the different personas, are not just alternative adjectives for God but are particular spiritual manifestations, levels and natures. Lurianic Kabbalah focused on the role of the personas as the fully evolved stage of the primordial evolution of the sephirot at the beginning of Creation. Instead of each of the ten Sephirot merely including a full subset of ten sephirot as latent potential forces, the first stage of their evolution, in the personas the sephirot become fully autonomous and interrelated. The name of each persona denotes that the sephira from which it derived has now become an independent scheme of 10 fully functioning Sephirot in the "Upright" (Yosher) form of "Man". This reconfiguration is essential in Lurianic Kabbalah to enable the opposing spiritual forces of the Sephirot to work together in harmony. Each persona now operates independently, and unites with the other ones. So, for example, "The Long Visage" is said to descend and become enclothed within the lower personas. The sephirot now harmonise to enable the Lurianic scheme of tiqqun to begin. Supernal tiqqun is completed in Atzilut through the sephirot evolving into the further stage of personas. In the personas, rather than each sephira partially inter-relating by latently incorporating the other powers, as in Berudim, instead, all harmonize fully around one of their numbers as complete autonomous
Yosher schemes. The persona then interact and enclothe within each other through
anthropomorphic relationships in Atzilut, channeling Divine vitality to lower worlds. included all souls.
His sin materialised creation and shed soul sparks ==Photo gallery==