In their totality and unity these ten Sephiroth are not only denominated the world of Sephiroth (עולﬦ הספירות) and the world of Emanations (עולﬦ אצילות), but represent and are called the Primordial or Archetypal Man (אדﬦ קדמון = πρωτόγονος), and the Heavenly Man (אדם עילאה). In the figure, the Crown (כתר) is the head; Wisdom (חכמה), the brains; and Intelligence (בינה), which unites the two and [[98]]produces the first triad, is the heart or the understanding—thus forming the head. The fourth and fifth Sephiroth, i.e., Mercy (חסד) and Justice (פחד), are the two arms of the Lord, the former the right arm and the latter the left, one distributing life and the other death. And the sixth Sephira, Beauty (תפארת), which unites these two opposites and produces the second triad, is the chest; whilst the seventh and eighth Sephiroth,—i.e., Firmness (נצח) and Splendour (הוד), of the third triad,—are the two legs; and Foundation (יסוד), the ninth Sephira, represents the genital organs, since it denotes the basis and source of all things. Thus it is said “Every thing will return to its origin just as it proceeded from it. All marrow, all sap, and all power are congregated in this spot. Hence all powers which exist originate through the genital organs.” (Sohar, iii, 296 a.) Kingdom (מלכות), the tenth Sephira, represents the harmony of the whole Archetypal Man. The following is the archetypal figure of the ten Sephiroth.
It is this form which the prophet Ezekiel saw in the mysterious chariot, and of which the earthly man is a faint copy. Moreover, these Sephiroth, as we have already remarked, created the world and all things therein according to their own archetype or in the likeness and similitude of the Heavenly Man or the World of Emanations. But, before we propound the Kabbalistic doctrine of the creation of the world, it is necessary to describe a second mode in which the trinity of triads in the Sephiroth is represented, and to mention the appellations and offices of the respective triads.
אין סוף
THE ENDLESS
| כתר CROWN | ||||
| חכמה WISDOM | ||||
| בינה INTELLIGENCE | ||||
| תפארת BEAUTY | ||||
| חסד LOVE | פחד JUSTICE | |||
| יסוד FOUNDATION | ||||
| הוד SPLENDOUR | נצח FIRMNESS | |||
| מלכות KINGDOM |
Now in looking at the Sephiroth which constitute the first triad, it will be seen that they represent the intellect; hence this triad is called the Intellectual World (עולם מושכל). The second triad, again, represents moral qualities; hence it is designated the moral or Sensuous World (עולﬦ מורגש): whilst the third triad represents power and stability, and [[99]]hence is designated the Material World (עולﬦ המוטבע). These three aspects in which the En Soph manifested himself are called the Faces (אנפין and פרצופין = πρόσωπον, the two words are identical, the former being pure Aramaic, and the latter from the Greek). In the arrangement of this trinity of triads, so as to produce what is called the Kabbalistic tree, denominated the Tree of Life (עץ חיים), or simply the Tree (אילן), the first triad is placed above, the second and third are placed below, in such a manner that the three masculine Sephiroth are on the right, the three feminine on the left, whilst the four uniting Sephiroth occupy the centre, as shown in the following diagrams:—
I.
| כתר 1 Crown | ||
| 3 בינה Intelligence | חכמה 2 Wisdom | |
| 5 פחד Justice | חסד 4 Love | |
| תפארת 6 Beauty | ||
| 8 הוד Splendour | נצח 7 Firmness | |
| יסוד 9 Foundation | ||
| מלכות 10 Kingdom |
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