Sefer Yetzirah Class 13

Mishna 2.1; 2.2; 2.3

(א) עשרים ושתים אותיות יסוד, שלש אמות ושבע כפולות וי"ב פשוטות:

Transliteration

Esrim Veshetim Oteyot Yesod Shalosh Emot, VeShevah Kefulot, VeYood Bet Pashutit.

Translation

22 Foundation Letters (Signs), 3 Mothers, and 7 Doubles, and 12 Elementals.

(ב) שלש אמות אמ"ש, תולדות השמים אש, תולדות הארץ מים, תולדות אויר רוח. אש למעלה ומים למטה ורוח חק מכריע בנתיים:

Transliteration

Shalosh Emot Emesh, Toldot Hashamayim Esh, Toldot HaAretz Mayim, Toldot Avir Ruach. Esh, Lamalah veMayim Lamatah VeRuach Chak Macriya Benataim.

Translation

3 Mothers Aleph, Men, Shin , (Emesh); derivative of heaven is fire; derivative of land is water; dervative of air is spirit; Fire above and water below and spirit to balance between them.

(ג) שלש אמות אמ"ש, מ' דוממת, ש' שורקת, א' חק מכריע בנתיים:

Transliteration

Shalosh Emot Emesh, Mem Dummet, Shin Shurkat, Aleph Chok Macriya Benataim.

Translation

3 Mothers are Aleph Mem Shin (Emesh); He engraved them with voice; He carved them with breath; and set them in the mouth.

Another Translation with additional information

No 1 - 22 foundation letters, 3 mothers, 7 doubles, 12 Elementals;The 3 mothers are Aleph Mem Shin; Their foundation is a pan of merit; a pan of liability; and a tongue of decree deciding between them.

No 2 - 22 foundation Letters; He engraved them; He carved them; He permuted them; He weighed them; He transformed them; and with them he depicted all that was formed; and all that would be formed.

No 3 - 22 foundation letters; He engraved them with voice; He carved them with breath; He set them in the mouth; In five places, Alef Chet Hey Ayin in the throat; Gimmel Yood Caf Kuf in the Palate; Dalet Tet Lamed Nun Tav in the Tongue; Zion Samek Shin Reish Tzaddi in the Teeth; Bet Vav Mem Pey in the lips.

All letters are created within the level of Chochmah. Every Sefira listed on this page is within the Sefira of Chochma. If i say the Mothers come from Chochmah actually this is chochma of chochma. I just have left off the latter chochmah

22 Foundation Letters

Multiple Layered Realities - Below are how various Kabbalists have categorized the letters.

Why are they called foundation?

To quote my teacher - "They are the foundation of everything without a doubt."

1. Letters have a Nefesh, Ruach, and Neshamah letters.

First Step is to visualize the letters ALWAYS. Pretend you can speak to them, and that they anwer you back. Pretend you can touch them. What do they feel like? What are they saying to you? Pretend that they are REAL.

Nefesh is physical - write the letter down.

Ruach is physical going towards spiritual - say the letter.

Neshamah is spiritual - Know what the letter means, reverberate the sound while you shake the letter shapes and eventually merge into unity.

2. The letters have 4 levels also.

Chochmah is the Tagim. Tag is the crown. The crowns are Reshimot (impressions left from the descent of each letter from Chochmah to Malchut. Some letters have no Tagim; some letters have 1 tagim; and some letters have three tagim.

Binah is the Trope. Each letter has a Trope rather than each word has a trope. Most of the letters in a word have a non trope trope since there is only one trope per word usually. Tropes are the cantillation marks that tell the Torah Reader two things. One is how to pronounce the word - which is where to put the emphasis on which sylable.

Zeir Anpin is the Vowels. There are 9 vowels since the vowels is what gives power to the letters. We will develop knowledge of the vowels in other Sefer Yetzirah classes.

Malchut is the sound of the letter.

The Shape of the physical letters is considered the garment for the other . There are only 10 basic letters because the other letters are made up as combinations of these basic letter shapes. Here is a link that explains this. We will discuss this in another class when we develop greater personal experience with the letters. You can also begin to learn by experience which letters are the basic shapes of the 10 letters.

600,000 Hebrew Letters in the Torah

3. The letters are categorized as Mothers; Double; and Elementals in the Sefer Yetzirah.

Mothers

Olam Atzilut - Emenations

Aleph

Pillar of Compassion

Mem

Pillar of Love

Shin

Pillar of Power

Mothers are Horizontal Lines of the Tree

Shin between Chochmah and Binah

Mem between Netzach and Hod

Aleph between Chesed and Gevurah

Why are they called Mother?

Why is the Shin above? Why is the Mem below? Why is the Aleph balance?

Shin is Binah

Mem is Chochmah

Aleph is Daat

What is the sound of the Aleph?

The sound of the Aleph is on the inhale

Doubles

Olam Brea - Creation

Verticals

Bet between Chochmah and Chesed

Gimmel between Binah and Gevurah

Dalet between Keter and Tiferet (underneath Daat)

Caf between Chesed and Netzach

Pey between Gevurah and Hod

Reish between Tiferet and Yesod

Tav between Yesod and Malchut

Elementals

Olam Yetzirah - Formation

Diagonals

Location varies between different Sages

Final Letters

Olam Assiya - Action

Astrological Information

Here is a link to a web page with information about the Rising Sign and Character Traits.