The month of shevat according to the book of formation. Now in its 7th printing since republication in 1997, the sefer yetzirah has established itself as a primary source for all serious students of kabbalah. The exposition here is by no means exhaustive, but represents an approach to the sefer yetzirahan approach that i believe is productive the sefer yetzirah meaning book of formation or book of creation is a text written down almost 2000 years ago that is generally. Its last two letters vav and hei, which represent the lower, revealed level of unification, equal. A short and enigmatic judaeognostic text no more than 2000 words in even the longest version, known from the tenth century, and quite probably dating back much earlier, the sefer yetzirah is concerned with the symbolism of numbers and the. Like the tao teh ching, it is a brief work whose terse verses can easily mask its depth and complexity.
The bok of formation, and the thirty two paths of wisdom. Sefer yetzirah hebrew, book of creation, is the title of the earliest book on jewish esoterecism. It describes a total of 32 intelligences or emanations that make up the body and mind of god. Additionally, the starting point of the sefer yetzirah appears to be the need to reconcile two rabbinical theories of creation. The sefer yetzirah, or the book of creation, was written approximately 3,000 bce, and was the first kabbalistic book to be written. It must meet extremely strict standards of production. The central star contains the three hebrew mother letters, which represent the three primal sounds, and correlate to the elements air, water, and fire, making up the three horizontal bars of the tree of life. The sepher yetzirah is one of the most famous of the ancient qabalistic texts. Sefer yetzirah, the cube of space, and the emergence of. Additionally, both the time of its composition and its author are not completely.
The torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of torah reading during jewish prayers. Yetzirah as in formation is as opposed to beriah as in creation. Sepher yirah, book of formation, or book of creation is the title of the earliest extant book on jewish mysticism, although some early commentators treated it as a treatise on mathematical and linguistic theory as opposed to kabbalah. The sepher yetzirah bill heidrick hermetic library. The sepher yetzirah translated from the hebrew by william wynn westcott note.
Sep 14, 2006 sefer yetzirah spanish edition kaplan, rabbi a on. Jun 28, 2017 19 videos play all sefer yetzirah kabbalah mashiah the epic of gilgamesh, lecture by andrew george duration. Now in its 7th printing since republication in 1997, the sefer yetz. The first commentaries on this book were written in the 10th century, and the text itself is quoted as early as the sixth century. As such, anyone who longs to actualize it must know in depth how the perfect human being is created, for such a creature does not arise by chance or mechanical means. Sefer hayetzirah the book of formation gra version translated by aryeh kaplan chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 5 chapter 6 chapter 1 1.
Over eighty commentaries to it have come down to us across the centuries, many of them composed by prominent rabbinic figures. God of the armies of israel, everliving god, merciful and gracious, sublime, dwelling on high, who inhabiteth eternity. Sefer ha yetzirah the book of formation gra version translated by aryeh kaplan chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 5 chapter 6 chapter 1 1. The sefer yetzirah is without question the oldest and most mysterious of all kabbalistic texts. Sifrei torah, is a handwritten copy of the torah, meaning. It is the oldest known kabbalistic writing from which the zohar is derived. The sepher yetzirah is one of the most important founding works of qabalah. The goal of the gnostic tradition is the perfection of the human being. The sepher yetzirah although this name means the book of formation,is not in any sense a narrative of creation, or a substitute genesis, but it is a very. Rabbi kaplans translation of this oldest and most mysterious of all kabbalistic texts provides a unique perspective on the meditative and magical aspects of kabbalah. Yetzirah also known as olam yetsirah, in hebrew is the third of four worlds in the kabbalistic tree of life, following atziluth and beriah and preceding assiah.
Sefer yetzirah, the cube of space, and the emergence of the. The sepher yetzirah is also known as the book of formation and the book of creation. Sepher yetzirah translated from the original hebrew by william wynn westcott the sepher yetzirah is one of the most famous of the ancient qabalistic texts. Westcotts translation of the sepher yetzirah was a primary source for the rituals and knowledge lectures of the golden dawn. Sefer yetzirah hebrew, book of creation, noo eoeoa is the title of two books on. Pdf sefer yetzira the book of creation download full. This is the book of the great rezial part 1 blessed are the wise by the mysteries coming from the wisdom. In this essay i discuss the sefer yetzirah in light of some fourth way ideas. He was the head of the great jewish academy at sura, babylonia, which under his leadership became the highest seat of jewish learning, and a vigorous opponent of the. The word shevat itself transforms to shabbat since the two letters tet and tav, both letters of the tongue, are phonetically interchangeable. Axis mundi the creation series book 1 the concise book of mitzvoth. This is the third edition of westcottis translation, first published in 1887. The sefer yetzirah is devoted to speculations concerning gods creation of the world. Rabbi aryeh kaplan has translated sefer yetzirah, the oldest and most mysterious of all kabbalistic texts, and now brings its theoretical, meditative, and magical implications to light.
Englishhebrew translation of the sefer yetzirah the. A short and enigmatic judaeognostic text no more than 2000 words in even the longest version, known from the tenth century, and quite probably dating back much earlier, the sefer yetzirah is concerned with the symbolism of numbers and the letters of the hebrew alphabet. An incredibly influential book of the maasei bereshit workings of creation in the jewish mystical tradition. And so, sefer yetzirah means the book of creation but it refers to a type of creation that is involved with the urge. Woc trees of life from the sefer hashmoth and the sefer yetzirah trees of life from the book of sefer yetzirah book of formation leo baecks commentary azamra. The older and more wellknown work of this title is also called the hilkot yetzirah hebrew, rules of creation, and is a thaumaturgical work that was popular in the. The month of shevat according to the book of formation sefer yetzirah.
The value of the first two letters of havayah, the yud and hei, which represent the higher, concealed level of unification is 15. Sefer yetzirah wikisource, the free online library. The sefer yetzirah meaning book of formation or book of creation is a text written down almost 2000 years ago that is generally considered the first of those texts that came from the pervasive influence known as kaballah. The commandments which can be observed today sefer hamitzvot hakatzar.
The sefer yetzirah the holy kabbalah book of creation riders of the chariot this is a hebrewenglish translation of the kabbalists book the sefer yetzirah book of creation. He was the head of the great jewish academy at sura, babylonia, which under his leadership became the highest seat of jewish learning, and a. Yetzirah is more literally translated as formation. In two and thirty most occult and wonderful paths of wisdom did jah the lord of hosts engrave his name. But this ebook, sefer yetzirah magic, aims to reforge that original key, and its hoped that with it youll be able to rebuild the holy temple within your psyche and thereby establish a more. Sefer hazohar the book of radiance emerged mysteriously in thcentury spain. Feb 12, 2014 tu beeshvat, the 15th day of the 11th month alludes to the secret of gods essential name, havayah. Best viewed at around 160% zoom the english language version starts on page 38. It was written prior to rabbi shimons zohar, or the book of splendor.
Of reverence, the torah is given to teach the truth to human beings. In thirtytwo mysterious paths of wisdom, yah, eternal of hosts yodvavyod, god of israel, living elohim, almighty god, high and extolled, dwelling in eternity, holy be his name, engraved and created his world in three sefarim. It was composed probably between the 3rd and 6th centuries of the christian era and was later attributed to r. The book of creation sefer yesira is a unique, isolated work that belongs to no school of thought daphne hadas freedman2 sefer yetzirah book of formation, hereafter sy is the oldest known speculative treatise in hebrew. He expounds on the dynamics of the spiritual domain, the worlds of sefirot. Kaballah itself cannot be defined, as it surfaced in jewish, islamic, christian, alchemical, astrological, and other. Jan 16, 2014 sefer yetzirah hebrew, book of creation, is the title of the earliest book on jewish esoterecism. The complete sepher yetzirah, an important book of kabbalah. Benton the sefer yetzirah, or book of formation, is one of the oldest extant works on jewish kabbalah. When the title is considered in this light, it is hardly surprising that the meditations found in the sefer yetzirah have theurgic repercussions.
The text of the sefer yetzirah is much shorter than that of the better known zohar, and in many respects it is like a slim math book, i. For more information on the history of this work, see gershom scholems kabbalah, quadranglethe new york times book co. References to the work appear in the first century, while traditions regarding its use attest to its existance even in. Torah reading from a sefer torah or torah scroll is traditionally reserved for monday and thursday mornings, as well as for shabbat and jewish holidays. The ascription of its authorship to the biblical patriarch abraham shows the high esteem which it enjoyed for centuries. This symbol illustrates the order of creation outlined in the jewish kabbalistic work sefer yetzirah hebrew, book of formation. Additionally, the starting point of the sefer yetzirah appears to be the need to. He expounds on the dynamics of the spiritual domain, the worlds of the sefirot, souls, and angels. Sepher yetzirah in an english translation is almost a necessary companion to these even more abstruse disquisitions. Kabbalah libro sepher yetzirah traduccion espanol cabala. And the living creatures ran and returned, 19 and upon this word a covenant is cut. There are ten intangible sefiroth, shut your mouth from speaking and your heart from thinking. Sefer, book of formation, or book of creation is the title of the earliest extant book on jewish esotericism, although some early commentators treated it as a treatise on mathematical and linguistic theory as opposed to kabbalah. Additionally, both the time of its composition and its author.
And the living creatures ran and returned, 19 and upon this word a. The saadia commentary on the sefer yetzirah by saadia ben joseph alfayumi 882942 ad jewish scholar, b. The presence of a quorum of ten jewish adults is required for the reading of the torah to be held in public during the course of the worship services. The sepher yetzirah is one of the most famous of the ancient qabbalistic texts.
1004 355 914 307 983 1481 315 1157 314 702 682 900 1180 439 558 1515 585 35 823 787 64 1615 1535 1322 1436 748 570 509 108 785 158 1126 1452 142 348 330 349 1244 535 937