The Derech Hashem Series
Shiur / Class #70
The Components of Creation in Detail, Part 1
Given
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Given by
Rabbi Mendel Kessin
Synopsis is not necesarrily in Rabbi Kessin's own words
Rabbi Kessin elaborates on the different parts of creation as set forth by the Ramchal.
Hashem
- Hashem Himself is unknowable
The Sefiros
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- These are unknowable to us
- They create reality and all that is contained within
- These can be thought of as Hashem’s fingers, so to speak, meaning the tools by which He creates and maintains the realities
- 2 sets of 10:
- Sefiros D’Igulim / The Cyclical Sefiros: These create and maintain realities and all beings. They do not change
- Sefiros D’Yosher / The Straight Sefiros: These are responsible for the quality of existence. Their illumination can be revealed or hidden to varying degrees by Jews resulting in different effects in creation.
Malachim / Angels
- Beings that serve as agents who carry out the will of Hashem
- There are 10 classes of malachim, each with subdivisions
Physical Organisms
- These have a lifeforce called the nefesh habehami / animalistic spirit or the nefesh tachtonis / the lower spirit.
- This force is completely physical, though it is the most ethereal of anything physical. It is detectable (as opposed to spiritual entities). This force resides in the blood.
- Variations on the magnitude of this force provide varying degrees of faculties.
- When the organism dies, it’s nefesh habehami evaporates.
Man
- A composite of spiritual and physical elements
- Man cannot access his spiritual elements directly until zikuch / purification of the body by the soul takes place
- Man has a nefesh tachtonis in addition to the neshamah / soul.
- The neshamah is the greatest being after the sefiros
- There are 5 levels to the soul – each corresponding to a different level of reality and are connected or relate to the body in some way:
- Nefesh elyonah / the higher spirit
- Connected to the liver
- Corresponds to the reality of Asiyah (the physical realm)
- Ruach
- Connected to the heart
- Corresponds to Yetzirah
- Neshamah
- Connected to the brain
- Corresponds to Briyah
- Chayah
- A spiritual aura around the person
- Corresponds to Atzilus
- Yechidah
- Hovers over the person
- Corresponds to Adam Kadmon
- Nefesh elyonah / the higher spirit
- A Jew has all 5 parts of the neshama and, through them, can influence the illumination of the Sefiros. This allows him to take part in creating Olam Haba and thereby take part in it.
- A Non-Jew only possesses a nefesh elyonah. He can influence the physical and his own mazal
- Non-Jews can experience a certain degree of Olam Haba by virtue of a connection to a Jew
Sheidim / Demons
- Sheidim are also physical / spiritual composites, having both physical and spiritual attributes, for example:
- We cannot detect them directly like a spiritual entitiy
- They have spiritual abilities
- They have physical limitations
- They can die and propegate
- There are many types of sheidim