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R. Hizkiah said: '...See now when God created the world, He made this covenant and established the world upon it, as it is written bereshith, which we interpret as bara shith, "he created the foundation", to wit, the covenant on which the world rests, and which is also called shith, because it is a trough from which blessings flow forth to the world. [1]
Adam broke this covenant and removed it from its place. This covenant is symbolised by the small letter Yod, the root and foundation of the world. [2]
When Adam begat a son, he confessed his guilt and called the child Seth; he did not venture to insert a Yod and call him "Shith", because he had broken the covenant so symbolised. In recompense, God propagated mankind from Seth, and made him the forefather of all the righteous who have lived since.
Note also this. When Israel stood before Mount Sinai, there entered between these two letters (shin and tau) a symbol of the covenant, to wit, the letter Beth, and God gave to Israel the word formed of all three letters, which is SaBbaTH, as it is said: "And the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to make the Sabbath throughout their generations a perpetual covenant." [3]
In this way these two letters finally obtained their original potency, which had remained in suspense until the world was brought into its complete state and the holy covenant entered between them.' [4]
[Soncino Zohar, Bereshith, 56a, v1, pg. 178-9.]
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My notes...
[1] The world is established on the 'higher' covenant as represented by the sefirah Da'at. "Blessings" (i.e. 'Mercy', Maym, 'Water') flow from Da'at to the lower sefirot. The flow of these "blessings" was continuous until the divine covenant was broken by Adam and the 'fall' from the 'garden of Eden' occurred. The flow is now only sporadic as evolving individuals raise their consciousness to Tifaret (Jacob/Israel) and thereby invoke the descent of "blessings" from Da'at.
[2] The covenant was "broken" and "removed from its place". This is symbolised for us by the obscuration (or 'veiling') of the sefirah Da'at effected by the removal of the pathways from Da'at to Hesed and Geburah. The 'yod' fell from Da'at to the sefirah Yesod thereby establishing a new covenant. (Note that Yesod is spelled Yod, but with a Sameck inserted.) The 'lower' covenant of Yesod (i.e. the covenant of 'circumcision') was established to draw the consciousness of Adam back up from the depths of matter (as represented by Malkut). The circumcision is symbolic of the control and sublimation of the lower 'material' desires. The sefirah Yesod was female when Adam was in his hermaphroditic state--that is, prior to the formation of Eve (during which Malkut was attached to Yesod). After Malkut became attached to Yesod, it (i.e. Yesod) assumed a male role in relation to the feminine Malkut. Thus, it now symbolises the male member of Adam and is turned toward Malkut.
[3] "Israel" represents a level of consciousness symbolised by Tifaret on the Tree of Life. The Hebrew letter Bayt (or "Beth") is the first of the seven Double letters and is ascribed to the sefirah Da'at (representing the 'higher' covenant of the 'tongue'). (Note that the planetary attribution of Bayt is Saturn which in Hebrew is Shabtai (ShBThAY).)
[4] The achievement by an individual to the grade of 'Israel' means that the individual has established conscious contact with the sefirah Da'at and thus re-established the missing pathways from Geburah to Da'at (i.e. Shin), and from Hesed to Da'at (i.e. Maym). When these two pathways are opened the divine Name (ShM, Shem) becomes activated (or is once again able to be 'pronounced').
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An elaboration...
In Adam's 'pre-fall' state his attention was turned towards Binah (the 'higher' Shekinah) and there was a continuous flow of Shin and Maym (SheM) from the supernal sefirot through Da'at to Geburah and Hesed (i.e. and all the six lower sefirot). But when the 'fall' occurred, Adam's attention was turned toward Malkut (the 'lower' female principle) and the flow of Shin and Maym from Da'at was interupted. The pathways from Da'at to Hesed and Geburah were removed and only a limited fixed quantity of Shin and Maym was retained by Adam after leaving the 'garden of Eden'. This is contained and stored in the paths of Shin and Maym that occupy the central column of the Tree of Life: from Da'at to Tifaret (i.e. the path of Maym), and from Tifaret to Yesod (i.e. the path of Shin). This is all the Shin and Maym energy that Adam has available to him to work with as he struggles to free himself from his prison of matter. The 'lower' covenant of 'circumcision' has been provided to assist Adam in overcoming the 'evil serpent' of materialism. Complementing the 'lower' covenant is the 'higher' covenant of the 'tongue'. It exists to enable Adam to restore the missing pathways from Geburah to Da'at, and from Hesed to Da'at, and thus, to learn how to once again to pronounce the Name (ShM)--that is, to restore the flow of Shin and Maym from the supernal sefirot to the lower sefirot.
Adam's attraction to Eve effectively replaced his awareness of, and devotion to, the Shekinah. In other words, Adam's strong attraction to the material expression of the female principle (i.e. Malkut) distracted him from the spiritual expression of the female principle (i.e. Binah). It is possible for Adam to regain his awareness of the Shekinah (i.e. Binah) while still clothed in the flesh, but it requires 'reconnecting' Malkut to Binah. This is achieved through the agency of the twelve 'adornments' of the Shekinah as represented by the twelve Simple letters of the Hebrew alefbet. Malkut becomes linked to Binah through a resonance that is 'tuned in' via the twelve Simple letter pathways that extend between the six sefirot of the Son. Another way of putting this is that the final Heh of YHVH becomes connected to the initial Heh of YHVH through the Vav that is placed between them.
Blessings,
Patrick.
Virgo-Sagittarius [1/5]
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