Sunday, December 1, 2013

Ayn Sof.

In Kabbala there is the concept of "Ayn Sof"





'Ein Sof (or Ayn Sof) (Hebrew אין סוף), in the Kabbalah, is understood as Infinite Divinity. Ein Sof may be translated as "no end", "unending" or Infinite. Ein Sof is the Divine Origin of all created existence: this is in contrast to the Ein (or Ayn), which is infinite no-thingness [1]. According to Gershom Scholem, Ein Sof is the Emanator of the sefirot. Sefirot are energy emanations found on the Kabbalist Tree of Life. Ayn Sof, the Ancient of All Ancients emanates the sefirot into the cosmic womb of the Ein in a manner that results in the created universe.'
From this we see that all emanates from HaShem.
Nothing that we do or say can add one minuscule to the reality of HaShem. He was and is and will be. He is within and without Himself.
And yet.....
ד  כִּי-אֶרְאֶה שָׁמֶיךָ,    מַעֲשֵׂה אֶצְבְּעֹתֶיךָ--
יָרֵחַ וְכוֹכָבִים,    אֲשֶׁר כּוֹנָנְתָּה.
4 When I behold Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, {N}
the moon and the stars, which Thou hast established;
 ה  מָה-אֱנוֹשׁ כִּי-תִזְכְּרֶנּוּ;    וּבֶן-אָדָם, כִּי תִפְקְדֶנּוּ.5 What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou thinkest of him?
 ו  וַתְּחַסְּרֵהוּ מְּעַט, מֵאֱלֹהִים;    וְכָבוֹד וְהָדָר תְּעַטְּרֵהוּ.6 Yet Thou hast made him but little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
 ז  תַּמְשִׁילֵהוּ, בְּמַעֲשֵׂי יָדֶיךָ;    כֹּל, שַׁתָּה תַחַת-רַגְלָיו.7 Thou hast made him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under his feet:
 ח  צֹנֶה וַאֲלָפִים כֻּלָּם;    וְגַם, בַּהֲמוֹת שָׂדָי.8 Sheep and oxen, all of them, yea, and the beasts of the field;
 ט  צִפּוֹר שָׁמַיִם, וּדְגֵי הַיָּם;    עֹבֵר, אָרְחוֹת יַמִּים.9 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea; whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
 י  יְהוָה אֲדֹנֵינוּ:    מָה-אַדִּיר שִׁמְךָ, בְּכָל-הָאָרֶץ.10 O LORD, our Lord, how glorious is Thy name in all the earth! Psalm 8 :4-10.
This is a cornerstone scripture.
Now comes the paradigm shift.
As humans we tend to project inwards rather than projecting outwards. When we do this, even for the noblest of reasons, we are still tainted with ego. I , for one am guilty of this. My shoes are always ...... from stepping in it.
When we say that we endure hardships in order to be refined and become better persons for it, whilst it does contain an element of truth in it, it is still bordering on the self. How do I feel, what did I get out of it,will I be saved, etc.
When we endure for the sake of self, we have missed the plot.
When we endure for the sake of others, then bull's eye.
Creation was based on one element alone. HASHEM PROJECTED OUT FROM AYN SOF AND GAVE FORM TO HIS INDIVISIBILTY THROUGH MULTIPLICITY AND THEN  BRING THAT MULTIPLICITY INTO UNITY THROUGH MAN - ADAM, BOTH MALE AND FEMALE. 
That was the purpose of creation albeit in a very abstract explanation. This reflected on man being dependent on HaShem as the source of Ayn Sof. This is reflected in the quoted Psalm above.
There is a rabbinic dictum that a man must first engage in a profession, then build a house and then find a wife, similarly HaShem engaged in the profession of Creator, built the Earth to sustain mankind and then created them.
Just think how we in the modern world have everything in the wrong order.
Man had other ideas of creating his own reality based on independence and ego.
Hence the fall and the need for redemption.
So redemption is not just from - Egypt, Babylon, the nations. These serve as prototypes.
The true redemption is from SELF.
So, you may call it ego, yetzer hara, the satan, or whatever you may like.
The antidote?
Project yourself out..... away from self.
Suffering comes to our aid as it teaches us empathy as a matter of due diligence and correction if need be.
Some may view it purely as correction, but I prefer to see and understand the ramifications of empathy.
This teaches me to be long suffering for the sake of others and to reach out beyond myself.
HaShem is long suffering . Just imagine how He sees the world at this very moment and yet he projects out.
This is the law of giving rather than taking. He sustains regardless.
Now, back to suffering. Why ?
What I can say is that death is the ultimate suffering.
We aspired to independence in Gan Eden.
At the moment of death we ultimately surrender our ego to HaShem and pronounce with our last breath our dependence on Him as sole sustainer of life.
The purpose of life is to understand and experience this in the here and now.
What better way to enact this than to give at the expense of self. This creates ECHAD or oneness.
Those that are obedient will be worthy of redemption from death , both from a living death of walking in darkness and the sleeping death of eternity.
His indivisibility must become our indivisibility. Why ? Because we were created in His image.
Torah Judaism is dedicated to universal redemption.
The role of Mashiach is to be the catalst that unifies the Ayn Sof of HaShem , through his rejection of ego, suffering , death to self and resurrection to empathy. This is manifested not only in him but as the Yechida or the collective neshamot (souls) of his people Yisrael. As their representative, all is bound in him. This then gives credence to the calling of Yisrael being a Ohr l'Goyim - A Light unto the Nations. Something to ponder this Chag Urim - Festival of Lights.




Shavua Tov v'Chanukah Sameach
Joe.






2 comments :

Blood AvenGER said...

excerpt of a recent requested bio:

"In lieu of greater natural phenomena, he wonders if his Easterly gaze is too harsh, on occasion, too severe. Time to invest in an amulet"

there is an expression that relatives say (sounds like a musical phrase) to teach a baby to focus with a smile: ||Beautiful Eyes||

reminiscent of Leah and, well, the yet to be resolved Eastern Gate controversy:

Strongmen are inclined to dance, i find, Risking physical injury, whose tunnel vision is limited to the hunt, ego, coveting. Generals have a similar warlike fixation [a desire compounded by Fear]. those afflicted, for whatever reason, dance with a heavenly perspective. either way, the body is tested, but the focus of the latter is wider in scope, i think. Hadassah bath Binyomen aka Esther (connotes borders extending beyond that region of that shevet), in her exilic, yet chosen timely predicament, isn't the only one expected to dance fast for the King (but she was the primary coveted prize of the major earthly players, for worse or for better):

i am a little concerned that it has become too easy for a [Jezebel] generation to abuse its gifted, but perceptive heroes exuding potential. it's just as easy to witness the existential struggle unfold, but no less nerve-wracking for observant cheerleaders, so to speak. once the oppressive whiff wears off, the tendency to act out suddenly as rabid avengers is the dilemma. just something to consider in lieu of indebted youth, who are increasingly desperate for justice, in the absence of timely justice, thereby coming up with interesting tactics of sobering opposition (i wonder if that's what partly caused the destruction of the rebuilt Temple, courtesy of Cyrus, prior to the 3rd structure atop the Mount, if memory serves):

||May my adversaries don disgrace and enwrap themselves with their shame like a hood|| (da VID).

Anonymous said...

I loved this piece!! B'H!
Gera

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