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131-402: Lurianic Kabbalah describes new doctrines of the origins of Creation , and the concepts of Olam HaTohu (Hebrew: עולם התהו "The World of Tohu-Chaos") and Olam HaTikun (Hebrew: עולם התיקון "The World of Tikun-Rectification"), which represent two archetypal spiritual states of being and consciousness. These concepts derive from Isaac Luria's interpretation of and mythical speculations on references in

262-458: A burning torch, he got rid of thorns and pits, but he still feared wild beasts and bandits ... not knowing where he was on. At dawn, he was saved from the wild beasts and bandits, but he still did not know where he was on. When he came to a crossroads, he was saved from all of them. ... What is this crossroads? Rav Chisda says: "It is the Talmid chacham and the day of death" ( Talmud , Sotah 21a) On

393-568: A comprehensive, deeper picture. Kabbalistic systemisers before Luria, culminating with Cordovero, were influenced by Maimonides ' philosophical Guide , in their quest to decipher the Zohar intellectually, and unify esoteric wisdom with Jewish philosophy. In Kabbalah this embodies the Neshama ( Understanding ) mental level of the soul. The teachings of Luria challenge the soul to go beyond mental limitations. Though presented in intellectual terms, it remains

524-511: A conceptual space in which the Four Worlds , or finite realms, could exist. This primordial initial contraction, forming a "vacant space" ( חלל הפנוי , ḥalal hapanuy ) into which new creative light could beam, is denoted by general reference to the tzimtzum . In Kabbalistic interpretation, tzimtzum gives rise to the paradox of simultaneous divine presence and absence within the vacuum and resultant Creation. Various approaches exist as to how

655-469: A crushed spirit, who can not be saved in a natural way, as Solomon says: "The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a broken spirit who can bear?" The meaning is, if a man is sick and the animal spirit is strong, he can sustain the infirmity, but if the spirit is sick and broken, who can bear it? That is, who can sustain it? For by nature it can not get well In the modern era, the Holocaust has been

786-498: A few lines later to a tzimtzum in the divine light (an emanated, hence created and not part of God's self, energy). Moshe Chaim Luzzatto explains about all levels of Tzimtzum with his text “ KLaCh Pischey Chokhmah ”. "Who healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." This indicates God's power. If the heart is broken, that is, if its parts are severed, there is no natural cure for it, as we are told by medical writers. Any other members if broken can be cured. Therefore

917-560: A moral obligation to "repair the world" ( tikkun olam ). This idea draws upon Luria's teaching that shards of divinity remain contained in flawed material creation and that ritual and ethical deeds by the righteous help to release this energy. The mystical theology of the Ari does not exercise the same level of influence everywhere, however. Communities where Luria's thought holds less sway include many German and Modern Orthodox communities, groups carrying forward Spanish and Portuguese traditions,

1048-460: A mystery of the most secret of the Infinite, this "fluid" was transformed into a "gas" devoid of any aeriform configuration, neither white, nor black, neither red, nor green, nor of any color. It is only when God made matter take some contours that He gave birth to that variety of "colors" which, in reality, do not exist in matter... being due only to the modification that the light undergoes according to

1179-542: A mysticism for the common folk. As Norman Lamm summarises, to Schneur Zalman and Hasidism, God relates to the world as a reality, through His Immanence. Divine immanence - the Human perspective, is pluralistic, allowing mystical popularisation in the material world, while safeguarding Halacha. Divine Transcendence - the Divine perspective, is Monistic, nullifying Creation into illusion. To Chaim Volozhin and Mitnagdism, God relates to

1310-449: A part of his infinite presence into himself. With this divine gesture, God restricts himself in zimzum, clearing the empty space that is necessary for creation. The emanation and the creation of the world are then able to occur in the center of God following this act of zimzum. In this process, God limits his omnipotence, so that a finite world can exist within finite contours. Without zimzum, there would be no creation. For this reason, zimzum

1441-456: A person. Once one has understood this, one can begin to see how all of these levels exist in the world. Then, one will be able to take any event or aspect of creation and trace it up the chain to God Himself, then back down to the original view and see how God is literally here with us, relating to us directly through his creations. The purpose of learning about Seder Hishtalshelus in Hasidic thought

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1572-411: A popular goal of Jewish students, to some extent competing for attention with Talmudic study, while also capturing the hold of the public imagination. Shabbeteanism emerged in this atmosphere, coupled with the oppressions of Exile, alongside genuine traditional mystic circles . Where Isaac Luria's scheme emphasised the democratic role of every person in redeeming the fallen sparks of holiness, allocating

1703-713: A revealed, supra-rational doctrine, giving a sense of being beyond intellectual grasp. This corresponds to the soul level of Haya ( Wisdom insight), described as "touching/not-touching" apprehension. In the academic study of Kabbalah, Gershom Scholem saw Lurianism as a historically located response to the trauma of Spanish exile, a fully expressed mythologising of Judaism, and a uniquely paradoxically messianic mysticism, as mysticism phenomenologically usually involves withdrawal from community. In more recent academia, Moshe Idel has challenged Scholem's historical influence in Lurianism, seeing it instead as an evolving development within

1834-595: A sizable segment of Baladi Yemenite Jews (see Dor Daim ), and other groups that follow a form of Torah Judaism based more on classical authorities like Maimonides and the Geonim . With its Rationalist project, the 19th century Haskalah movement and the critical study of Judaism dismissed Kabbalah. In the 20th century, Gershom Scholem initiated the academic study of Jewish mysticism, utilising historical methodology, but reacting against what he saw as its exclusively Rationalist dogma. Rather, he identified Jewish mysticism as

1965-777: A text may use different analogies to demonstrate the same point - the analysis required is to understand and examine the deficiency in each analogy, and how they can be reconciled with each other) Study and contemplation of Seder Hishtalshelus is central to the Intellectual-Hasidism school of Chabad . Some speculate that the recent Hasidic explanations of Seder Hishtalshelus may have been influenced by certain principles in Western philosophy . Various dichotomies mentioned in philosophy are strikingly similar to those mentioned in late Hasidic texts: Form/Matter, Sense/Feeling, Initial Cognition/Semiotic Cognition/Semiotic Transition. Furthermore,

2096-489: A world, and we perceive ourselves with our senses, and we perceive the world with our senses. It turns out [according to this opinion] that all of existence of humanity and the world is only a perception and not in true reality, for it is impossible for anything to exist in true reality, since He fills all the worlds. ... How strange and bitter is it to say such a thing. Woe to us from such an opinion. They don’t think and they don't see that with such opinions they are destroying

2227-621: Is a key concept in Jewish thought. Because the tzimtzum results in the space in which the spiritual and physical worlds and, ultimately, free will , can exist, God is often referred to as " Ha-Makom " ( המקום ‎ lit. "the Place", "the Omnipresent") in rabbinic literature ( ʿOlam , the Hebrew term for a world, is derived from the triliteral עלם "concealment". This etymology is complementary with

2358-418: Is a spiritual world, but with a lower physical aspect (our Universe). Our physical Universe. Enclothes the last two sephirot Yesod and Malkuth of Spiritual Asiyah. The basic stations of this process from above to below are: Although these are the basic stations, each level contains innumerable details. To understand Seder Hishtalshelus properly, one must first understand how all of the analogies exist in

2489-399: Is comprised of ten. And in every bad thought, one Has-VeShalom (“God-forbid!”) gives life to the dark forces. This is the explanation of the hidden Midrash , “The world was falling apart…” said God, “Here is Avraham who will produce in the world positive love; here is Yishmoel who will produce in the world negative loves.”  So when you think in lust, you give life to Yishmoel, and

2620-633: Is created for me", so God has created the World with "pillars" of Heavens and Earth, i.e. Chokhma and Binah… Torah is the light of God and "Torah Study" can be the life of the universe and of "myriads of worlds" to not destroy the Creation. An Israeli professor, Mordechai Rotenberg , believes the Kabbalistic- Hasidic tzimtzum paradigm has significant implications for clinical therapy. According to this paradigm, God's "self-contraction" to vacate space for

2751-520: Is eternal and the infinity in time and space is his nature: we cannot think the infinity of causes about the infinity of Universe or Creation because in the first case the infinity of numbers is only possible in theory but God is the Creator and no one can be like God, “the First Cause”: it is impossible thinking about two God because one of them could have hypothetical superiority and we would admit one God, so

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2882-437: Is eternal and unknowable only from the point of view of his immense omnipresence , which he knows but which we cannot embrace with our mind for the eternal immensity of him. Isaac Luria introduced four central themes into kabbalistic thought, tzimtzum , Shevirat HaKelim (the shattering of the vessels), Tikkun (repair), and Partzufim . These four are a group of interrelated, and continuing, processes. Tzimtzum describes

3013-417: Is necessitated as well for the separate intellect, for intellection is an essential attribute and not an essence. Many philosophers have stumbled in this matter, having failed to distinguish between an essence and an essential attribute. What is surprising about these philosophers is that this matter cannot escape the following disjunction. Either intellection of various different intelligibles is one thing or it

3144-438: Is no space empty of Him, as is known (see Nefesh Ha-Chaim Shaar 3). Therefore they said that in truth there is no reality to existence at all, and all the worlds are only an illusion and appearance, just as it says in the verse "in the hands of the prophets I will appear" (Hoshea 12: 11). They said that the world and humanity have no real existence, and their entire reality is only an appearance. We perceive ourselves as if we are in

3275-413: Is not evolutionary, but rather interactional. Higher strata of reality are constantly enclothing themselves within lower strata, like the soul within a body, thereby infusing every element of Creation with an inner force that transcends its own position within the universal hierarchy. Hitlabshut is very much a "biological" dynamic, accounting for the life-force which resides within Creation; hishtalshelut, on

3406-479: Is not knowing;” – that two types of people seek to know the unknowable king….  the first gives up, as he is unknowable… the second researches as much as possible, but realizing that the king is infinite, understands his limitation… – such must be our quest. One Must research God, and then realize what one should and shouldn’t research In the Chabad view, the function of the tzimtzum was "to conceal from created beings

3537-528: Is not merely to know about many distinct levels, rather, the purpose is to see how all the levels in between us and God are transparent and irrelevant, and in truth God is relating to us directly, and there is "none besides for Him". (Deuteronomy 4:35) Because of this, the Tanya states that learning about the Seder Hishtalshelus will bring a person to a "complete heart". This is much like two friends talking on

3668-400: Is not. If it is one thing, it would be necessary for the intelligibles to be one thing, since intellection and the intellected are one thing. Yet the intelligibles were assumed to be different from one another. It would be necessitated as well that when a man knew one intelligible he would know them all, since they are one thing. But if their intellection is not one thing, it is necessitated that

3799-591: Is one of transcendence, implied by the notion of tzimtzum . Rather, to Hasidic thought , especially in its Chabad systemisation, the Atzmus ultimate Divine essence is expressed only in finitude, emphasising Hasidic Immanence. Norman Lamm sees both thinkers as subtle and sophisticated. The Mitnagdim disagreed with Panentheism, in the early opposition of the Mitnagdic leader, the Vilna Gaon seeing it as heretical. Chaim Volzhin,

3930-503: Is preceded by something infinite, will not be realized and cannot come to exist.” If the precedence were temporal, there might be grounds for this argument—but even so, it is open to dispute. For we see that it does in fact happen that a thing that is not realized unless being preceded by something infinite is realized. One might say, by way of analogy, that this day that we are in is realized, even though it could not have been realized unless it were preceded, according to those who subscribe to

4061-526: Is pure light, with no vessels, bounded by its future potential to create vessels. It is sometimes counted as the first of the Five Worlds, but its supreme transcendence is before the emergence of the sephiroth and the shattering of their vessels: Three Worlds of "lights" and "vessels" resulted from the interacting lights that emanated from Adam Kadmon in Lurianic Kabbalah. Each embodies different stages in

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4192-675: Is seen from the view of Ayin, "Nothingness", realising its non-existence in the Bitul ha-Atzmit "Nullification of Essence"—the world of the Anthropos (sephiroth and personas). The ten sephiroth shine in the Four Worlds; the last sephira of a World, Malkuth, becomes the first sephira, the Crown, of the next Realm. The Malkuth of Atzilut, called "God's speech," the source of prophecy , is the general source of independent creation. The beginning of self-aware ego,

4323-460: Is that it moves rectilinearly, but if so, it requires necessarily two places, each of them infinite. One would be for natural motion and it would be a that-to-which, and the second would be for forcible motion and it would be a that-from-which. But if the places are two, they will necessarily be finite, since what is infinite cannot be two in number. Yet they were assumed to be infinite. Thus it [viz. an infinite body] cannot move rectilinearly. Moreover,

4454-424: Is the only true understanding). He writes: I have also seen some very strange things in the words of some contemporary kabbalists who explain things deeply. They say that all of existence is only an illusion and appearance, and does not truly exist. This is to say that the ein sof didn't change at all in itself and its necessary true existence and it is now still exactly the same as it was before creation, and there

4585-589: The Divine transcendence and remoteness of God above Beriah. The world of the Throne of God , metaphorically where the Divine Anthropos of Atzilut descends ("sitting") to rule independent Creation from above. Archetypal Creation. Zeir Anpin (Divine Emotions) predominate. The world of the angels who serve God with emotional self-nullification. Particular pluralist Creation. Malkuth (Divine Rulership) predominates. Asiyah

4716-582: The Hasidic-Mitnagdic schism from the 18th century, upheld the theological world view of Lurianic Kabbalah. It is a misconception to see the Rabbinic opposition to Hasidic Judaism, at least in its formative origin, as deriving from adherence to Rationalist Medieval Jewish philosophical method. The leader of the Rabbinic Mitnagdic opposition to the mystical Hasidic revival, the Vilna Gaon (1720–1797),

4847-551: The Pardes transcends all literal significance of Torah: And all the heavens are one on top of the other, like onion skins one on top of the other, some below and some above Before Creation and before Tzimtzum "God filled all space", that is, God alone existed because Creation had not yet been created. The Torah reflects divine wisdom, so God was with the Torah even before Creation: "I (the Torah)

4978-459: The Torah , also denying the "literal exegesis" which then allows in accessing other hermeneutic levels of " Pardes ". For the intellecter is something other than intellection, though intellection is necessitated for the intellecter by an essential necessity. It is therefore evident that this premise is false with respect to human intellect, even if we posit it with respect to intellect in actuality. This

5109-730: The tzimtzum only affected apparent concealment of the Ohr Ein Sof . The Ein Sof , and the Ohr Ein Sof, actually remain omnipresent, this world nullified into its source. Only, from the Lower, Worldly Divine Unity perspective, the tzimtzum gives the illusion of apparent withdrawal. In truth, "I, the Eternal, I have not changed" ( Malachi 3:6), as interpreting the tzimtzum with any literal tendency would be ascribing false corporeality to God. Norman Lamm describes

5240-464: The "Lower Unity". Below are the relevant analogies for all the basic stations of the hishtalshelus in the analogy of a man who wants a house starting from the top (primordial desires) and going down (until the desire is actualized). While the Hasidic texts offer many analogies of how Seder Hishtalshelus exists within a person, such as the one given above, they also emphasize that these are only analogies and

5371-627: The Diaspora, without exception. Tzimtzum The tzimtzum or tsimtsum ( Hebrew : צמצום , romanized :  ṣimṣum , lit.   'contraction/constriction/condensation') is a term used in Lurianic Kabbalah to explain Isaac Luria 's doctrine that God began the process of creation by limiting the Ohr Ein Sof (infinite light) of the Godhead in order to allow for

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5502-448: The Divine element within Creation, they are only stepping stones on the path to a fully liberated consciousness capable of seeing God within all reality and thus attesting to His absolute exclusivity of Being. First of all, the King (God) allowed the transformation of the "void" into a transparent ether, an imponderable "fluid", similar to the "light coming from phosphorescent bodies". Later, for

5633-740: The Ein Sof, Luria probed the supra-rational origin of these Five Worlds within the Infinite. This revealed new doctrines of Primordial Tzimtzum (contraction) and the Shevira (shattering) and reconfiguration of the sephirot. In Kabbalah, what preceded more deeply in origins, is also reflected within the inner dimensions of subsequent Creation, so that Luria was able to explain messianism , Divine aspects , and reincarnation , Kabbalistic beliefs that remained unsystemised beforehand. Cordovero and Medieval attempts at Kabbalistic systemisation, influenced by Medieval Jewish philosophy , approach Kabbalistic theory through

5764-528: The First Cause is God; in the second case, that is the infinity of Creation, it is impossible because, a part the “fantasy of this think without Logical-reason and without research of real study”, we cannot think about infinity of time because eternity is a nature of God and not a quality of material substance: Indeed one commentator strove to prove this proposition by putting the point in the following words: “Anything that will not be realized essentially unless it

5895-577: The Habad Hasidic exploration described Keter (will) levels of Divine intention that preceded Creation. Preparatory stages in Or Ein Sof "God's Infinite Light" before the beginning of the creative process. The Or Ein Sof is a paradoxical form of divine self-revelation. These are above any world/limitation. Kabbalah considered whether Ein Sof represents God's divine essence or God as First Cause . Chabad philosophy explores atzmut or divine essence in

6026-520: The Hasidic-Mitnagdic schism as a battle between two conceptions of Lurianic Kabbalah. Mitnagdic elite Kabbalah was essentially loyal to Lurianic teaching and practice, while Hasidism introduced new popularised ideas, such as the centrality of Divine immanence and Deveikut to all Jewish activity, and the social mystical role of the Tzadik Hasidic leadership . In the decades after Luria and in

6157-514: The Holy Torah day and night such that they do not totally return to a state of null and void, God forbid. However, if the world were, God forbid, completely void, even literally for one moment, of involvement and analysis of the Chosen People with the Holy Torah then all the worlds would immediately be destroyed and totally cease to be, God forbid. Notwithstanding, even a single talented Jew alone has

6288-639: The Kitvei Ha'Ari (writings of Isaac Luria's disciples) continues mostly today among traditional-form Kabbalistic circles and in sections of the Hasidic movement. Mekubalim mizra'chim (oriental Sephardi Kabbalists), following the tradition of Haim Vital and the mystical legacy of the Rashash (1720–1777, considered by Kabbalists to be the reincarnation of the Ari), see themselves as direct heirs to and in continuity with Luria's teachings and meditative scheme. Both sides of

6419-524: The Lurianic system. The later Hasidic and Mitnagdic movements diverged over implications of Lurianic Kabbalah, and its social role in popular mysticism. The Sabbatean mystical tradition would also derive its source from Lurianic messianism, but had a different understanding of the Kabbalistic interdependence of mysticism with Halakha Jewish observance. Where the messianic aim remained only peripheral in

6550-532: The Merciful One should save us. The Rambam and Beit Yosef in the above references [also determine the Halacha] of one who did study and review but then stopped doing so and instead engaged in the emptiness of this world, neglecting his studies, as having the same judgment as one who was able to study Torah and did not. Similarly, in [his] judgment, that his actions which were not good distance him, 'and his sin withholds

6681-501: The Messiah only a conclusive arrival in the process, Shabbetai's prophet Nathan of Gaza interpreted his messianic role as pivotal in reclaiming those sparks lost in impurity. Now faith in his messianic role, after he apostasised to Islam, became necessary, as well as faith in his antinomian actions. Jacob Frank claimed to be a reincarnation of Shabbetai Tzvi, sent to reclaim sparks through the most anarchist actions of his followers, claiming

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6812-555: The Psalmist attributes to the Lord the cure of a broken heart, in which the parts are severed, though it can not be cured in the ord nary way. This shows His great power in delivering the oppressed from his oppressor, as David says, "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart, and saveth such as are of a contrite spirit." The meaning is that just as God cures the broken hearted, who could not recover if left to nature, so He saves those of

6943-466: The Seder Hishtalshelut theosophical scheme of Lurianic Kabbalah into dialogue with Modern and Postmodern Philosophy and Psychology. In our age when Western philosophy deconstructs the possibility of metaphysics, he sees the Lurianic scheme as an essence-myth that transcends and incorporates secular disciplines, allowing it to re-open the possibilities of philosophy. This process both enriches

7074-532: The Shabbetians did use the Lurianic concepts of sparks trapped in impurity and pure souls being mixed with the impure to justify some of their antinomian actions. Luria introduced his mystic system into religious observance. Every commandment had a particular mystic meaning. The Shabbat with all its ceremonies was looked upon as the embodiment of the Divinity in temporal life, and every ceremony performed on that day

7205-535: The Torah, as said in Bereshit : "..in our image and likeness", since the human being reflects in all its parts and in its totality the entire divine wisdom, as the Sefirot state, and he is conscious and knowing of this; then, seen and considered that the human being is a microcosm, Creation is also a projection of his wisdom: the cosmos and microcosm are equivalent in correspondence and in relation to God and his wisdom. Thus God

7336-556: The Upper rectification, which began in Berudim, through the sephirot transforming into personas, "countenances" or "personas" of the divine. The personas harmonise the sephiroth in fully-interacting configurations in the form of Man. The rectification of Atzilut begins with the rectification of its Keter "Crown". Eight rectification stages in the Crown: The ten personas after Keter rectified

7467-515: The Zohar had culminated in the rationally influenced scheme of Moses ben Jacob Cordovero in Safed , immediately before Luria's arrival. Both Cordovero's and Luria's systems gave Kabbalah a theological systemisation to rival the earlier eminence of Medieval Jewish philosophy . Under the influence of the mystical renaissance in 16th-century Safed, Lurianism became the near-universal mainstream Jewish theology in

7598-490: The Zohar. The main popularizer of Luria's ideas was Rabbi Hayyim ben Joseph Vital of Calabria , who claimed to be the official interpreter of the Lurianic system, though some disputed this claim. Together, the compiled teachings written by Luria's school after his death are metaphorically called "Kitvei HaARI" (Writings of the ARI), though they differed on some core interpretations in the early generations. Previous interpretations of

7729-444: The ability to cause the establishment and continuation of all the worlds and the Creation in its entirety by his involvement with and analysis of the Holy Torah for its sake, as per Chazal: Whoever is involved with Torah for its sake. ... R. Yochanan says he even protects the entire world There are only seven thought, no-more. These are the seven days of creation.  In each day there is evening and morning: “Erev” (evening) comes from

7860-403: The activating force within them, enabling them to exist as tangible entities, instead of being utterly nullified within their source". The tzimtzum produced the required "vacated space" ( חלל פנוי ‎ ḥəlāl pānuy "empty space", חלל ‎ ḥālāl "space"), devoid of direct awareness of God's presence. The Vilna Gaon held that tzimtzum was not literal, however, the "upper unity",

7991-486: The alternative Hasidic - Mitnagdic interpretations of this. To Chaim Volozhin , the main theoretician of the Mitnagdim Rabbinic opposition to Hasidism, the illusionism of Creation, arising from a metaphorical tzimtzum is true, but does not lead to Panentheism, as Mitnagdic theology emphasised Divine transcendence , where Hasidism emphasised immanence . As it is, the initial general impression of Lurianic Kabbalah

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8122-441: The analogue is nothing like the analogies. These analogies are meant only to give a glimpse into Seder Hishtalshelus in a way that we are familiar with, but the true analogue deals with how God interrelates with our world. Much like a house, God desires a "dwelling place" in this world. This means He desired that his Essence be revealed through the medium of this world much like a person might wish his own essence to be revealed through

8253-418: The anterior eternity of the universe, by something infinite. Although in this case the realization was accidental, nevertheless, our conceding the possibility in the case of the accidental while maintaining its impossibility in the case of the essential requires justification. But even if we concede this distinction in the matter of priority in time, there are no grounds for it in the matter of causal priority, in

8384-460: The body it illuminates: there is a wave in the light which is the cause of the variety of colors in this World below The Sefirot and Worlds which they comprise are, according to Luria and his disciple, Vital, emanated from the various orifices in Adam Kadmon's head: from the ears, nose, eyes, and mouth.....Adam Kadmon, from his abode in the highest world, is instrumental not only in the emanation of

8515-454: The bond of life with YHVH his God,'438 'going from bad to worse',439 God forbid. Woe for that shame! Similarly, Chazal determined his fate, 'that his hope is decreed as lost'440 forever, God forbid, that he also 'will everlastingly not see light'441 that he will not 'live again forever'442 at the end of days when 'those sleeping in the dust of the ground will awaken for everlasting life'… The Chazal taught that all Jews must say: "All universe

8646-580: The breaking of the Torah in his emerged messianic era was now its fulfilment, the opposite of the messianic necessity of Halakhic devotion by Luria and the Kabbalists. Instead, for the elite 16th century Kabbalists of Safed after the Expulsion from Spain , they sensed a personal national responsibility, expressed through their mystical renaissance, ascetic strictures, devoted brotherhood, and close adherence to normative Jewish practice. Lurianic Kabbalah remained

8777-413: The case in which they are contemporaneous. For since this [viz. the possibility of realization] holds for things that are contemporaneous, by what necessity is it impossible for each one to be the cause of another, while it is possible for them all to be effects [of a single cause], once we recognize the possibility that they can be infinite simultaneously? Hasdai Crescas in "Or Hashem" explains that over

8908-442: The chain-like descent of the Four Worlds between God and Creation. Each spiritual world denotes a complete realm of existence, resulting from its general proximity or distance to divine revelation. Each realm is also a form of consciousness reflected in this world through the psychology of the soul. Kabbalah is concerned with defining the esoteric nature, particularly the partzufim or divine manifestations or personas, as well as

9039-601: The concept of God's immanence within the created realm was always a central one within Kabbalah, the implications of this concept as expounded by the Baal Shem Tov amounted to an entirely new revelation. According to the Baal Shem Tov, Divine immanencer implies a direct equivalence between God and all other levels of reality, as expressed by the Hasidic aphorism: "All is God and God is all". The proper understanding of this idea, especially as it differs from that of pantheism, represents

9170-414: The concept of tsimtsum in that the subsequent spiritual realms and the ultimate physical universe conceal to different degrees the lifeforce of creation. Their progressive diminutions of the divine ohr (Light) from realm to realm in creation are also referred to in the plural as secondary tzimtzumim . However, these subsequent concealments are found in medieval Kabbalah. The new doctrine of Luria advanced

9301-405: The contrary, someone who would study Torah but loose himself in the vanity of the world is like a person without a soul, i.e. without true faith: Similarly, R. Chaim Vital also describes431 this sin as excluding one from the World to Come, 'weaving it in the same weave'432 there, equating it with the cases that Chazal state for whom " Gehinom will end but for them it will not come to an end!,"433

9432-437: The cosmology of Kabbalah with the practice of Jewish ethics, and makes ethics and traditional Jewish religious observance the means by which God allows humans to complete and perfect the material world through living the precepts of a traditional Jewish life. Thus, in contrast to earlier, Medieval Kabbalah, this made the first creative act a concealment/divine exile rather than unfolding revelation. This dynamic crisis-catharsis in

9563-645: The custom of engaging in all-night Torah study on the festival of Shavuot , Isaac Luria arranged a special service for the night vigil of Shavuot, the Tikkun Leil Shavuot ("Rectification for Shavuot Night"). It is commonly recited in synagogue, with Kaddish if the Tikkun is studied in a group of ten. Afterwards, Hasidim immerse in a mikveh before dawn. Rabbi Luria's ideas enjoy wide recognition among Jews today. Orthodox as well as Reform , Reconstructionist and members of other Jewish groups frequently acknowledge

9694-604: The deeper comprehensiveness of Lurianic theory being due to its description and exploration of aspects of Divinity, rooted in the Ein Sof , that transcend the revealed, rationally apprehended mysticism described by Cordovero. The system of Medieval Kabbalah becomes incorporated as part of its wider dynamic. Where Cordovero described the Sefirot (Divine attributes) and the Four spiritual Realms , preceded by Adam Kadmon , unfolding sequentially out of

9825-534: The divine " Maaseh Breishit " concerns only mercy: affirming that rigor is the only initial measure is certainly error; the presence of the kings who ruled could not have been present before the world of Creation as described in the Hebrew Bible and its commentaries. It is therefore a methodological contradiction unconsciously "ignoring" the presence of the Hyle and with an obvious tendency to "mythologize" numerous figures of

9956-434: The divine flow is repeated throughout the Lurianic scheme. In Chabad , the concept of tzimtzum is not meant to be interpreted literally but rather to refer to how God impresses his presence upon the consciousness of finite reality. Tzimtzum is not only seen as being a natural process but is also seen as a doctrine that every person is able, and indeed required, to understand and meditate upon. “The greatest knowledge

10087-400: The early 18th century, different opinions formed among Kabbalists over the meaning of tzimtzum, the Divine self-withdrawal: should it be taken literally or symbolically? Immanuel Hai Ricci (Yosher Levav, 1736–7) took tzimtzum literally, while Joseph Ergas (Shomer Emunim, 1736) and Abraham Herrera held that tzimtzum was to be understood metaphorically. The issue of the tzimtzum underpinned

10218-464: The early-modern era, both in scholarly circles and in the popular imagination. The Lurianic scheme, read by its followers as harmonious with, and successively more advanced than the Cordoverian, mostly displaced it, becoming the foundation of subsequent developments in Jewish mysticism. After the Ari, the Zohar was interpreted in Lurianic terms, and later esoteric Kabbalists expanded mystical theory within

10349-425: The emergence of the ten sephiroth. Their progression corresponds to the archetypal realms of Tohu and Tikun (Chaos and Rectification) described in the new doctrines of Luria. Tohu caused the shattering of the sephirot vessels, the catastrophic exile in creation: The world of Atziluth is the first of the comprehensive Four Worlds, collectively the realm of rectifying the vessels shattered by Chaos. Atzilut completes

10480-496: The fact that the universe is only illusory, and that tzimtzum was only figurative, was not perceptible, or even really understandable, to those not fully initiated in the mysteries of Kabbalah. Others say that Vilna Gaon held the literal view of the tzimtzum. Shlomo Elyashiv articulates this view clearly (and claims that not only is it the opinion of the Vilna Gaon, but also is the straightforward and simple reading of Luria and

10611-403: The first step in the process by which God began the process of creation by withdrawing his own essence from an area, creating an area in which creation could begin and where he could exist as reshimu (residue) in all empty spaces in the world. Shevirat HaKelim describes how, after the tzimtzum , God created the vessels (HaKelim) in the empty space, and how when God began to pour his Light into

10742-580: The first world, Atziluth. Each of the six primary and twelve secondary personas corresponds to the ten sephiroth arranged around one of their numbers. The interaction of the personas rectifies Atziluth eternally, completing the upper rectification. Redemption of the fallen sparks by the Anthropos rectifies the time-connected three lower Worlds Below. Atziluth is separated from the three independent lower worlds by its exclusive consciousness of divine unity without self-awareness. The infinite insight of Hokmah predominates beyond intellectual grasp. Creation from Nothing

10873-506: The fore: theodicy (primordial origin of evil) and exile of the Shekhinah (Divine Presence), eschatological redemption, the cosmic role of each individual and the historical affairs of Israel, symbolism of sexuality in the supernal Divine manifestations, and the unconscious dynamics in the soul. Luria gave esoteric theosophical articulations to the most fundamental and theologically daring questions of existence. Religious Kabbalists see

11004-426: The functional aim of Kabbalah, this contemplates seder hishtalshelut as a vehicle for relating to the divine unity with creation. "Seder Hishtalshelut" is sometimes used restrictively to refer to the emergent Created Order, the Four Worlds. More broadly, all preceding levels are included, as their function underlies existence. This page lists and links to all the main spiritual levels described in Lurianic Kabbalah ,

11135-580: The functional role of each level between the infinite and the finite. Each spiritual realm embodies a creative stage God uses to go from his self to the creation of the physical world, the material Universe being the end of the chain and the only physical realm. Hasidic thought applies the Kabbalistic scheme to its concern of perceiving divine omnipresence in this material world. In this, Hasidism varies in its use of Kabbalah, Mainstream-Hasidism avoiding Kabbalistic focus, while Chabad thought explains seder hishtalshelut concerning man's psychology. In contrast to

11266-596: The future will it be possible to understand the Tzimtzum that brought the "Empty Space" into being, for we have to say of it two contradictory things ... [1] the Empty Space came about through the Tzimtzum , where, as it were, He 'limited' His Godliness and contracted it from there, and it is as though in that place there is no Godliness ... [2] the absolute truth is that Godliness must nevertheless be present there, for certainly nothing can exist without His giving it life. So God

11397-428: The good from him'434 as he was able to involve himself with and engage in Torah study, and 'out of intentional sin'435 and 'contempt of the soul'436 chose 'and took a bad purchase for himself,'437 others, and all the worlds despising the everlasting life of the Holy Torah – the life and light of all the worlds – through which he was attached, so to speak, with God, Who gives life to all but stretched out his hand to destroy

11528-525: The immanence of God. This theoretical difference led Hasidism to popular mystical focus beyond elitist restrictions, while it underpinned the Mitnagdic focus on Talmudic , non-mystical Judaism for all but the elite, with a new theoretical emphasis on Talmudic Torah study in the Lithuanian Yeshiva movement. The largest scale Jewish development based on Lurianic teaching was Hasidism, though it adapted Kabbalah to its own thought. Joseph Dan describes

11659-879: The inherent factors of Jewish mysticism by itself. In his monograph Physician of the Soul, Healer of the Cosmos: Isaac Luria and His Kabbalistic Fellowship, Stanford University Press, 2003, Lawrence Fine explores the world of Isaac Luria from the point of view of the lived experience of Luria and his disciples. Lurianic Kabbalah has been accused by some of being the cause of the spread of the Sabbatean Messiahs Shabbetai Tzvi (1626–1676) and Jacob Frank (1726–1791), and their Kabbalistically based heresies. The 16th century mystical renaissance in Safed, led by Moshe Cordovero, Joseph Karo and Isaac Luria, made Kabbalistic study

11790-422: The intellect be composed of various intelligibles. If they are substances, it would be composed of many substances. All of this, however, is absurd in the extreme Then, those who out of their poor choice are totally uninvolved with Torah 'descend to the abyss while alive'450 'and have driven themselves away from attaching to the heritage of the servants of God'451 who cleave to God and His Torah and 'are cut off from

11921-557: The kingdom on earth. Indeed, the changes of the Tzimtzum are not directly linked only to the kings described as different Kelipot but to the entire Creation: they therefore represent the partial or total possibility of the Tikkun . Thus the Kelipot are metaphorically valid as the corrupt origin of good, that is to say with "the mixture of good and evil", but originally the only "substrate" useful for

12052-399: The land of Israel.(Genesis 36:31-39; 1 Chronicles 1:43-51) Of the first seven of these kings, the Torah states that they ruled and they died, while of the eighth, "Hadar", it only records that he ruled, not mentioning his death. Since Edom symbolizes the unrectified existence of evil, the first seven kings are understood to refer to the primordial, unrectified version of Creation described here,

12183-405: The land of life,'452 God forbid [this is] at the very least in this world, if not also in all of the worlds, whose holiness and light have also been diminished and lowered as a result of these sins for which they are culpable with their lives and 'almost turn their feet'453 to destruction, God forbid, as per Chazal: All the while that people disassociate themselves with the Torah, God seeks to destroy

12314-407: The language of Jewish-Hassidic philosophy, as a platform for using language as a tool for bringing internal peace and peace between ourselves and others. The psychodrama practitioners who attended the training report that their ability to work with people in grief was significantly enhanced It is written in the Torah that there were eight kings who ruled the land of Edom before there was a king in

12445-429: The leading pupil of the Vilna Gaon, was at the same time both more moderate, seeking to end the conflict, and most theologically principled in his opposition to the Hasidic interpretation. He opposed panentheism as both theology and practice, as its mystical spiritualisation of Judaism displaced traditional Talmudic learning, as was liable to inspire antinomian blurring of Halachah Jewish observance strictures, in quest of

12576-504: The leading school of mysticism in Judaism, and is an important influence on Hasidism and Sefardic kabbalists. In fact, only a minority of today's Jewish mystics belong to other branches of thought in Zoharic mysticism. Some Jewish kabbalists have said that the followers of Shabbetai Tzvi strongly avoided teachings of Lurianic Kabbalah because his system disproved their notions. On the other hand,

12707-409: The level in which they are enclothed. The spiritual paradigm of Creation is transformed into a dynamical interactional process in Divinity. Divine manifestations enclothe within each other, and are subject to exile and redemption: The concept of hitlabshut ("enclothement") implies a radical shift of focus in considering the nature of Creation. According to this perspective, the chief dynamic of Creation

12838-498: The limits of world of finitude of shape it can be said that God is living forever with eternal attribute of Infinite, i.e. His essence over time and space: If an infinite body existed, it would move either circularly or rectilinearly. If circularly, it would have to have a center, because what is circular is that which circles around a center. But if it has a center, it also has extremities. But an infinite thing has no extremities. Hence it cannot move circularly. The remaining possibility

12969-471: The linear scheme of Cordovero, the more comprehensive theoretical scheme and meditative practices of Luria explained messianism as its central dynamic, incorporating the full diversity of previous Kabbalistic concepts as outcomes of its processes. Luria conceptualises the Spiritual Worlds through their inner dimension of Divine exile and redemption. The Lurianic mythos brought deeper Kabbalistic notions to

13100-523: The medium of his house. While analogies are a necessary step, the true goal of studying Seder Hishlshelus must be to pick out the point that unites all of the analogies and apply it to the analogue i.e. how God is being revealed in our world directly. On the other hand, the analogies are not vague, These analogies are precise and exact, much scholarly work has been dedicated to understanding and analyzing why particular analogies have been used, some that are not, and some that are inconsistent in application (i.e.

13231-499: The nearness of God, while Mitnagdic spirituality focuses on the remoteness of God. They then configure their religious practice around this theological difference, Hasidism placing Deveikut fervour as its central practice, Mitnagdism further emphasising intellectual Talmudic Torah study as its supreme religious activity. The Lurianic Kabbalah was the last religious movement in Judaism the influence of which became preponderant among all sections of Jewish people and in every country of

13362-512: The new, public popularisation of mysticism embodied in 18th century Hasidism . Its central doctrine of almost- Panentheistic Divine Immanence, shaping daily fervour , emphasised the most non-literal stress of the tzimtzum . The systematic articulation of this Hasidic approach by Shneur Zalman of Liadi in the second section of Tanya , outlines a Monistic Illusionism of Creation from the Upper Divine Unity perspective. To Schneur Zalman,

13493-574: The notion of the primordial withdrawal or dilug (radical "leap") to reconcile the causal creative chain from the Godhead with finite existence. A commonly held understanding in Kabbalah is that the concept of tzimtzum contains a built-in paradox , requiring that God be simultaneously transcendent and immanent . Viz.: On the one hand, if the "Infinite" did not restrict itself, then nothing could exist—everything would be overwhelmed by God's totality. Existence thus requires God's transcendence, as above. On

13624-409: The opposite of Creative revelation. Tzimtzum is a paradox as Creation depends on God also being present in the vacuum and resulting existence: Adam Kadmon ("Primordial Man" or "Anthropos"), an anthropomorphic term , is the revelation of the divine will for creation after the tzimtzum. Its paradoxical nature is expressed as both Adam (creation) and Kadmon ("primary" divinity). As the will of Keter, it

13755-739: The other 9 with him.  “Here is Yitzchak who produces reverence for God; here is Eisav who produces murder.” And when one thinks in negative fear, God-forbid one gives life to Eisav and the 9 with him. If one thinks in negative-love, one should think, “What have I done to take a part of the universe of thought, and place it into the garbage!?!” And in this way a person humbles oneself – and he brings this thought to nothingness Seder Hishtalshelus In Kabbalistic and Hasidic philosophy , seder hishtalshelut ( Hebrew : סדר השתלשלות , romanized :  sēḏer hištalšeluṯ , lit.   'Order of Creation', Yiddish : סדר השתלשלות , romanized :  seyder hishtalshéyles ) refers to

13886-612: The other hand, God continuously maintains the existence of, and is thus not absent from, the created universe. The Divine life-force which brings all creatures into existence must constantly be present within them ... were this life-force to forsake any created being for even one brief moment, it would revert to a state of utter nothingness, as before the creation. God gives their force to all creatures and this force gives them their limits, so that material substance could be finite and with nature for Original providence. Nachman of Breslav discusses this inherent paradox as follows: Only in

14017-410: The other hand, is a "physical" one, concerned with the condensed-energy of "matter" (spiritual vessels) rather than the life-force of the soul. Due to this deeper, more internal paradigm, the new doctrines Luria introduced explain Kabbalistic teachings and passages in the Zohar that remained superficially understood and externally described before. Seemingly unrelated concepts become unified as part of

14148-523: The palace of the King – diminishing, darkening, and extinguishing the bestowal of light in the worlds and also of his own soul. Why should he have true life? as he prevented himself from seeing the light of everlasting life and he cannot tolerate the greatness of the intensity of the Supernal Light as he has not experienced it while being in this world and he is exiled and automatically cut off from Eden , God's Garden preventing himself from 'being bound with

14279-451: The paradox may be resolved, and as to the nature of tzimtzum itself. The Hebrew word zimzum can mean “contraction,” “retraction,” “demarcation,” “restraint,” and “concentration.” The term zimzum originates in the Kabbalah and refers to God’s contraction of himself before the creation of the world, and for the purpose of creating the world. To put it another way, the omnipresent God, who exists beyond time and space before creation, withdraws

14410-411: The phone. There are many stages one's voice must undergo before it reaches the other. Yet, the two people are talking to each other, not to their phones. The stages in between become irrelevant and transparent in such a situation. One can understand these levels through the analogy of a man who wants a house. The hishtalshelus is generally broken down into two general stages, called the "Upper Unity" and

14541-446: The place cannot be infinite since it is bounded, for it was shown with respect to it that it is an encompassing limit This "material-World" is "inside God", with earth and universe: God is infinite but the World and Universe are finites, so the centre of God is not possible, because of His Infinite-essence; God is infinite with the World with nature, humankind, animals, etc. "Inside-Him".Chokhmah, Binah and Daat are like onion skins because

14672-771: The prose of the Rebbe Rashab is almost identical to that of G. W. F. Hegel . Others counter that the dichotomies meantioned in Hasidic texts originate in sources predating Western philosophy. Proponents of Hasidic philosophy , counter that since Intellectual-Hasidut is an essential wisdom that is higher than, and includes all other wisdoms it would necessarily make reference to all other forms of wisdom, whether Western or otherwise. They would argue that such similarities are not proof of influence of Western philosophy, but rather are evidence that Hasidic philosophy touches upon, unites, and enlightens every other wisdom, whether it be Torah or secular. The website and books of Sanford Drob bring

14803-468: The purpose of Creation. Ten stages of God’s Infinite Light in Kabbalistic terminology before the beginning of Creation: There were three stages of the Sod HaTzimtzum "Secret of Contraction" taught in the new doctrines of Lurianic Kabbalah. These received differing interpretations after Luria, from the literal to the metaphorical. In this dynamic myth, the first act in Creation was Divine Self-Withdrawal,

14934-494: The rationally conceived paradigm of " Hishtalshelut " (sequential "Evolution" of spiritual levels between the Infinite and the Finite - the vessels/external frames of each spiritual World). Luria systemises Kabbalah as a dynamic process of " Hitlabshut " ("Enclothement" of higher souls within lower vessels - the inner/soul dimensions of each spiritual World). This sees inner dimensions within any level of Creation, whose origin transcends

15065-535: The scheme of Isaac Luria (1534–1572), the basis of modern Jewish mysticism. Its listing incorporated, expanded and explained earlier Medieval/Classical Kabbalah. After Luria, esoteric Kabbalists broadened their explanation within the Lurianic listing. The supra-rational doctrines of Luria described the Chokmah levels of divinity ( tzimtzum and the shattering) that preceded the "rationally" perceived Bina levels of Medieval Kabbalah and Moses ben Jacob Cordovero . In turn,

15196-553: The secular disciplines, while giving intellectual insights into the Lurianic myth through revealing its facets in human life. This dialogue includes Hegelian dialectics and its application in Marxism , Freud , Jung and Deconstructionism , as well as ancient systems of thought. The dimension of Kabbalistic thought introduced by the Baal Shem Tov is what allowed for a fuller appreciation of God's omnipresence within Creation. Although

15327-462: The spiritual worlds perceiving themselves to exist, as created realms independent from God, despite the ultimate illusion of this. The worlds can only reach Bitul Ha- Yesh (Nullification of Being), not the Bitul Ha-Atzmis (Nullification of Essence) characterised by Atzilut. The roots of Creation in the Divine mind. Binah (Divine Understanding) predominates, the intellect taking measured grasp of

15458-461: The subject of discussion about theological thinking: the Hester Panim or "concealed face (of God)" is a part of modern exegesis. Tzimtzum is a process before Creation, but during history, the same structure is present. This is comparable to someone walking down in the deep darkness of night. He was afraid of thorns and wells, of wild beasts and bandits; not knowing where he was walking on. Finding

15589-468: The supreme insight to be attained prior to the Messianic age. The presumption of a stratified reality, be it one which is statically hierarchic (as described by Moshe Cordovero) or dynamically interactive (as described by Isaac Luria), is one intuited by finite minds unable to grasp the true nature of existence. Although both the systems of Cordovero and Luria play an important role in advancing our awareness of

15720-535: The third meal's hymn: You princes of the palace, who yearn to behold the splendour of Zeir Anpin Be present at this meal at which the King leaves His imprint Exult, rejoice in this gathering together with the angels and all supernal beings Rejoice now, at this most propitious time, when there is no sadness... I herewith invite the Ancient of Days at this auspicious time, and impurity will be utterly removed... In keeping with

15851-596: The truth of the entire Torah. However, the Gaon and Elyashiv held that tzimtzum only took place in God's will ( Ratzon ), but that it is impossible to say anything at all about God himself ( Atzmus ). Thus, they did not actually believe in a literal tzimtzum in God's essence. Luria's Etz Chaim itself, however, in the First Shaar, is ambivalent: in one place it speaks of a literal tzimtzum in God's essence and self, then it changes

15982-429: The vessels they were not strong enough to hold the power of God's Light and shattered (Shevirat). The third step, Tikkun, is the process of gathering together, and raising, the sparks of God's Light that were carried down with the shards of the shattered vessels. Since tzimtzum is connected to the concept of exile , and Tikkun is connected to the need to repair the problems of the world of human existence, Luria unites

16113-495: The vital undercurrent of Jewish thought, periodically renewing Judaism with new mystical or messianic impetus. The 20th century academic respect of Kabbalah, as well as wider interest in spirituality, bolster a renewed Kabbalistic interest from non-Orthodox Jewish denominations in the 20th century. This is often expressed through the form of Hasidic incorporation of Kabbalah, embodied in Neo-Hasidism and Jewish Renewal . Study of

16244-417: The word Taruvois / mixing – that one mixes in foreign concepts – and “Boker” (morning) comes from the word “to visit…” that one visits God. And these are the seven – the love for God, the love for sins. The fear of God, and negative fear, such as hate. “Boasting,” namely that one praises God, and negative boasting, that one praises oneself. The same follows to winning, acknowledging, and bonding and each one

16375-414: The world as it is through His transcendence. Divine immanence - the way God looks at physical Creation, is Monistic, nullifying it into illusion. Divine Transcendence - the way Man perceives and relates to Divinity is pluralistic, allowing Creation to exist on its own terms. In this way, both thinkers and spiritual paths affirm a non-literal interpretation of the tzimtzum , but Hasidic spirituality focuses on

16506-636: The world of " Tohu " Attributing to the Arizal the theory of the kings who ruled the Land of Israel at the primordial origin of Creation is a common error in both Israelite and non-Israelite university, for example in Italy as well; the Arizal refers to the kings, among whom it seems that only one of them remains, although on the side of rigor, precisely to define the consequences of the "other side" on Creation and therefore also on

16637-664: The world serves as a model for human behavior and interaction. The tzimtzum model promotes a unique community-centric approach which contrasts starkly with the language of Western psychology. HaKolKoreh is the first organization established exclusively according to the Rotenberg Institute ethos. Using psychodrama as a platform for change, HaKolKoreh offers a year- long study course to educators and therapists, with an emphasis on Jewish texts and Jewish approaches that enhance established psychotherapeutic theories. HakolKoreh uses psychodrama and theatrical psychotherapy intertwined with

16768-515: The world.454 "for the pillars of the world are God's and upon them He set the world" – pillars refers to Torah Sages. ... Every day Angels of Destruction are sent by God to totally destroy the world and if it weren't for the prayer and study halls where Torah Sages sit and involve themselves with words of Torah, they would immediately destroy the entire world.455 Refer there. With all this, [the worlds] are still able to exist through [the efforts of] 'the survivors who God calls'456 who involve themselves in

16899-438: Was considered to have an influence upon the superior world. Every word and syllable of the prescribed prayers contain hidden names of God upon which one should meditate devoutly while reciting. New mystic ceremonies were ordained and codified under the name of Shulkhan Arukh HaARI (The "Code of Law of the Ari"). In addition, one of the few writings of Luria himself comprises three Sabbath table hymns with mystical allusions. From

17030-426: Was intimately involved in Kabbalah, following Lurianic theory, and produced Kabbalistically focused writing himself, while criticising Medieval Jewish Rationalism. His disciple, Chaim Volozhin , the main theoretician of Mitnagdic Judaism, differed from Hasidism over practical interpretation of the Lurianic tzimtzum . For all intents, Mitnagdic Judaism followed a transcendent stress in tzimtzum , while Hasidism stressed

17161-470: Was there"; in other words the Midrash explains that before the Creation "God played with the Torah", his wisdom was therefore his only delight. Maimonide also explains that God is the same entity together with his wisdom, he also states that "the knower, knowledge and the known" refer to the "same thing". This means that God knows about himself, that is, His knowledge of himself is precisely His wisdom, that is,

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