The number of camps is four, corresponding to the four realms and the four letters of gds holy name yhwh. Who makes winds his messengers, the flaming fire his ministers. Click download or read online button to get sefer yetzirah book now. Thus, the name sefer yetzirah could refer to the act of creating or forming the cosmos, or to the cosmos itself, or both. The sepher yetzirah translated from the hebrew by william wynn westcott note. The shekhina, the divine presence of gd revealed in the lower worlds, is served by the camps of the angels. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. He was the head of the great jewish academy at sura, babylonia, which under his leadership became the highest seat of jewish learning, and a. Sefer yetzirah describes how the universe was created by the god of een a espoal of all of gods hebrew names appears in the first sentence of the book through 32 wondrous ways of wisdom. The sepher yetzirah, according to adolph franck, differs from other sacred books in that it does not explain the world and the phenomena of which it is the stage by leaning on the idea of god or by setting itself up as the interpreter of the supreme will.
The sefer yetzirah the holy kabbalah book of creation riders of the chariot this is a hebrewenglish translation of the kabbalists book the sefer yetzirah book of creation. Sefer yetzirah book of formation, hereafter sy is the oldest known speculative treatise. The sepher yetzirah is one of the most famous of the ancient qabalistic texts. Rabbi kaplans translation and commentary on this book includes the complete hebrew text of all versions of this book, a clear commentary with generous commentary and explanation, and in depth discussions of many areas of kabbalah with clear and lucid explanations and diagrams. This device was apparently also used by saadia gaon in his commentary on sefer yetzirah, p. Translated from the original hebrew by william wynn westcott the sepher yetzirah is one of the most famous of the ancient qabalistic texts. The sefer yetzirah is devoted to speculations concerning gods creation of the world. For the sefer yetzirah, language is the very stuff of creation, and grammar the way in which it is formed.
You should get a full page in view the full screen option may not work on some. He expounds on the dynamics of the spiritual domain, the worlds of the sefirot, souls, and angels. The book wasnt available in my country argentina and i found it kind of hard to rely on a website. Westcotts translation of the sepher yetzirah was a primary source for the rituals and knowledge lectures of the golden dawn. The one who receives should try to receive the sefirot first in order to receive the divine overflow. The sepher yetzirah although this name means the book of formation,is not in any sense a narrative of creation, or a substitute genesis, but it is a very.
He sealed above, and he turned upward and sealed it with vhy. The datestamp of this edition is shown at the topright of the page. One of the best examples of these is the book raziel. This is the third edition of westcotts translation, first. Astrological language in the sepher yetsirah sefer. It features an elaborate angelologymagical uses of the zodiacgematrianames of godprotective spells, and a method of writing magical healing amulets.
An intimate relation exists between the sefer yetzirah and the later mystics. This ancient work rather reveals god by estimating his manifold handiwork. Benton the sefer yetzirah, or book of formation, is one of the oldest extant works on jewish kabbalah. The latter are those organs which perform functions in the body independent of the outside world, being the hands, feet, kidneys, gall, intestines, stomach, liver, pancreas, and spleen.
See all formats and editions hide other formats and editions. Like the tao teh ching, it is a brief work whose terse verses can easily mask its depth and complexity. Sefer yetzirah book of formation rabbi aryeh kaplan. Sefer yetzirah download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. Best viewed at around 160% zoom the english language version starts on page 38. Astrological correspondences in the sefer yetzirah book of formation astrological language and conceptual structures are so deeply imbedded in western thought that they are not recognized at all, though almost every scheme of classic or modern personality. The book teaches that man is a free moral agent, and therefore a person is rewarded or punished for his or her actions. He sealed below, and he turned downward and sealed it with hvy. The basic grounds on which european jewish mysticism would stand had been prepared by the ashkenazim under the leadership of eleazar ben judah of worms who wrote a key commentary on sefer yetzirah, and two spanish groups. Sefer yetzirah wikisource, the free online library. Commentaries which treat the sefer yetzirah as a strictly theoretical and meditative text translate the hebrew in the third person, i. There is strong disagreement on the part of scholars and translators, however, as to the grammar of the hebrew in which the sefer is written. The saadia commentary on the sefer yetzirah by saadia ben joseph alfayumi 882942 ad jewish scholar, b. The ascription of its authorship to the biblical patriarch abraham shows the high esteem which it enjoyed for centuries.
The sefer yetzirah is both a theosophic text and a theurgic text. Rabbi aryeh kaplan has translated sefer yetzirah, the oldest and most mysterious of all kabbalistic texts, and now brings its theoretical, meditative, and magical implications to light. Descargue como pdf, txt o lea en linea desde scribd. When a person strives to acquire wisdom before understanding and acting, they can experience great delight. Englishhebrew translation of the sefer yetzirah the. Astrological language in the sepher yetsira sefer yetzirah. Three letters from the simple ones he sealed air14 through three, and set them into his great name vhy27, and sealed through them the six extremities.
Yetzirah is more literally translated as formation. The sefer yetzirah, the ancient book of formation which provides the foundationtext for prophetic kabbalah, takes this idea to an ontological extreme. Sepher yetzirah in an english translation is almost a necessary companion to these even more abstruse disquisitions. However, once i decided to take pot luck, i did it and im really satisfied with the results of. Sefer yetzirah wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. Additionally, both the time of its composition and its author. Sefer yetzirah hebrew, book of creation, is the title of the earliest book on jewish esoterecism.