Beginning this Journey of Awakening
The teachings of Kabbalah explain that there are seven “Divine Attributes” — Sefirot — that G-d assumes through which to relate to our existence: Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod and Malchut (“Love”, “Strength”, “Beauty”, “Victory”, “Splendour”, “Foundation” and “Sovereignty”). In the human being, created in the “image of G-d,” the seven sefirot are mirrored in the seven “emotional attributes” of the human soul: Kindness, Restraint, Harmony, Ambition, Humility, Connection and Receptiveness. Each of the seven attributes contain elements of all seven — i.e., “Kindness in Kindness”, “Restraint in Kindness”, “Harmony in Kindness”, etc. — making for a total of forty-nine traits. The 49-day Omer Count is thus a 49-step process of self-refinement, with each 7 day cycle devoted to the “rectification” and perfection of these seven Sefirot.
The Realisation of Unity
The universal hallmark of mystical experience — the Realisation of Connection, Wholeness, and Oneness — while itself beyond words, is contained in every spiritual tradition, with extensive writings attempting to convey the significance of this realisation.
Spirituality refers to the realisation of unity. The more spiritual the awareness, the more conscious one is of the interconnectedness of all being. The less spiritual the awareness, the more an individual focuses on separation and fragmentation. The degree of spiritual perception is directly related to the extent to which one feels a sense of belonging, of being in the right place, at the right time doing the right thing. The lack of spiritual consciousness is measured in the degree of alienation and confusion that is experienced.
On an emotional level, spirituality reflects itself in the enhanced capacity to experience and express love and compassion. On a physical level, spirituality manifests in a sense of harmony and balance, a sense of rightness. Spirituality expressing on levels of emotion and of sensation does not require perfect relationships or perfect health. It requires greater acceptance and the release of resistance so that the radical fullness of each moment might be fully experienced, even welcomed.
Spiritualised consciousness helps us appreciate the nature of awareness itself. With an expanded awareness, there is a greater ability to know the unique beings we are and to perceive the special gifts we each bring. With a greater ability to perceive oneness, we understand more fully the spiritual teachings not only of our own tradition, but of others’ too.
Spirituality
Spirituality is a word often used to refer to meaningful experiences, or to that which is considered especially good or valuable. Many use the word to direct our attention to that which is deeper within ourselves — to a greater Self, to a greater Wisdom, to a greater Love.However, any spiritual journey must necessarily be based on the Realisation of Absolute Unity. This is an operational kind of awareness in which spirituality relates to the degree to which we are conscious of the Oneness of all being — from which will come the realisation of the interconnectedness of all things.
The less spiritual our awareness, the more we perceive separation and fragmentation. Our degree of spiritual perception is directly related to the extent to which we feel a sense of belonging — of being in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing. Our lack of spiritual consciousness is measured by the degree of alienation and confusion we experience. The more spiritual the identity, the more inclusive it is; the less spiritual the identity, the more exclusive. Spirituality, in this sense, relates to perception, understanding, and experience — it is more a way of being than a way of thinking.
On the mental level, spirituality reflects itself as a greater clarity, connecting to deep inner resources of Wisdom and this Knowing. We are able to know ourselves as participants in a Universal experience. On an emotional level, spirituality expresses in the enhanced capacity to experience and share love and compassion, resulting in a sense of harmony, balance, and rightness. On a physical level, spirituality manifests in a healthy lifestyle and overcoming those habits and indulgences that are detrimental to your well-being. Spirituality expressing on emotional and physical levels does not require perfectly smooth relationships or perfect physical health. It requires greater acceptance and the release of resistance, so that the radical fullness of each moment might be met.
Spiritualised consciousness opens us to a deeper experience of Awareness itself. With an expanding awareness, there is a greater ability to appreciate the unique beings we are and to perceive the special gifts we each carry. With a greater ability to know Oneness, we understand more fully the truths of spiritual teachings from all traditions.
May your encounter with the avenues in this journey influence you to move toward greater spiritual awakening. These paths are constructed of meditative practices and kabbalistic insights designed to encourage the expansion of your own inner wisdom. Spiritual consciousness is the fullest freedom, as we become more able to participate in the great work called tikkun olam — the healing of our world.
There is an expression of the world that separates it into two “worlds”. One is our world, the world in which we exist, experience and create. This world is a part, or subset, of G-d’s world, which is the one we experience as “divinely ordained”, a world which exists prior to our existence and will continue to exist thereafter. It is the world in which we are born and die, and have little power to change, although we often ask for it to change. It is what is referred to as your “destiny”, the things that happen in your life that you have little or no control over.
Kabbalah
Many aspects of Jewish mysticism and spiritual teaching are referred to as the “Kabbalah,” the literal meaning of which is “that which is received.” The Kabbalah contains evolving expressions and understandings of revelation within Judaism. Kabbalistic writings, like most rabbinic teachings, are based on Torah—on the stories, characters, ethics, and rituals that form the foundation of Jewish tradition.
But where rabbinic interpretations tend toward rational discourse and learned debate, Kabbalistic insights stem from a more dynamic, and often challenging, meeting between person and text, heart and mind.
One image from Kabbalistic literature encourages us to learn to read not only the letters of Torah but also the white spaces around the letters. Biblical characters often represent various cosmic processes and levels of awareness; rituals reflect universal principles underlying Creation itself; and mitzvot (traditional commandments) provide not only a language through which human and Divine communicate, but literally the means to ensure the continuity of Reality. Torah becomes a source book of endless levels of meaning and of meeting.
On a theological level as well, the Jewish mystics differ radically from normative rational rabbinic thought. For the rabbis, God is a Being untouched and unchanged by the created world. For the Kabbalists, God participates in creation. God needs humankind as much as humankind needs God—there is a mutuality of relationship in which God participates in all life.
God has no Need for anything. He is Complete, Whole and Perfect. However, there is a relationship between the part and the whole that is an existential mystery. We, being enfolded in God, are in constant relationship with Him. We need Him, that is correct—but we are a part of, and effect of – some say emanated from – His Will.
Panentheism is the term that refers to the mystic’s view that there is nowhere that God is not. God is Everywhere and Everything, yet God is also greater than everywhere and everything. God contains the world and is the world, yet God is Infinitely More. God is Without Limit. God is the Infinitely Inclusive “I.” We are all participants in the Life of God. Jewish mystical tradition supports the greater awakening to this Inclusivity through study, meditation and right acts in the world.
The central symbol of the Kabbalah is called the Tree of Life—a map of cosmic, psychological, and spiritual Reality. Two other concepts often related to the Tree are the four worlds of Creation and the three levels of the soul. Each of these will be touched upon in this text.