Gematria - Sepher Sapphires Volume 1.pdf

Introduction to Qabalah
The Qabalah is a traditional body of wisdom dealing with God's creation of the universe and the
laws of nature. It concerns the evolution of man and man's relationship to God. Qabalah
includes the understanding of the spiritual spheres of creation, and the ways by which God
administers the existence of the universe.
The Word Qabalah is from the Hebrew root word ('$3~) to receive. it was traditionally taught as
an oral tradition, imparted from teacher to student. In the Medieval and Renaissance times, more
and more of the tradition was written down.
In the sixth century C.E. the Sepher Yetzirah (Book of Formation) was written. It is one of tlne
cornerstone books in Qabalistic writings. It is the first work that describes the creation of tlne
universe in terms of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Additionally, this is the first written work
to speak of the ten Sephiroth, however, they were not named.
Another important work in the Zohar, written in the thirteenth century. The Zohar states the soul
of man has three elements, the Nephesh, Ruach and Neshamah. The Nephesh is the lower or
animal part of man's soul and deals with instincts and bodily needs and desires. The Ruach is the
middle part and the word means "spirit" or "wind." It is here the facility of discrimination
between good and evil is found. The Neshamah is the Divine Soul. This is the part of the soul that
allows us to have the awareness of the existence and indwelling presence of God. It is the
immortal part of the soul.
Another thirteenth century word is the Gates of Light, by Rabbi Joseph Gikatilla. This book
includes one of the first descriptions of the Sephiroth and their attributions. However, the
geometric arrangement of the Sephiroth and how they formed the Tree of Life were not
discussed. Several arrangements were developed through the centuries. The one most c:urrenl.ly
used was developed in the 1650's.
There are two forms of the Qabalah, traditional Jewish and "Hermetic Qabalah." Hermetic
Qabalah began in the Renaissance. A central point for its development is the Medici Aca.demy in
Florence. Almost all modern occultism can be traced back to the developments of the sch.olars in
that time and place.
The Medici were a family of immense wealth, ruling Florence from the fifteenth century until
1737. Cosimo de Medici was the founder of the Platonic Academy, dedicated to the study of
Greek and neo-Platonic philosophy. It was here that many Qabalistic text were translated in Latin.
In this school there was a development of "Christian Qabalah" which incorporated elemental of
Christianity (Jesus) into the Qabalah. One of the first practical works of their school was
produced by Henry Cornelius Agrippa, Three Books of Occult Philosophy.
Hermetic Qabalah became well known in esoteric circles with the development of Hermetic
Order of the Golden dawn in the late 1 goo's, a ceremonial magic order. Within the Golden Dawn,
Kabalistic principles such as the ten Sephiroth were fused with Greek and Egyptian deities.
Attributes of Divine, archangelic and angelic names were assigned of each Sephiroth in each of
the four worlds.