Bereshit -- On Being Seduced by the Spirit of Wisdom

[Rebbe]

BRI International Internet Yeshiva Parashah Notes, October 22, 2011

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"I teach nothing new but all things original" -- Rebbe

ON BEING SEDUCED BY THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM

Parasha Bereshith  (in beginning/in her head)
Gen 1.1-6.8
Haftorah Isa 42.5-43.11


WHY were YOU born? WHAT is the PURPOSE of human existence? WHERE did we originate, and WHAT is our destination?

Because we live on this earth, and are children of the UNIVERSE (and we are), we need to have a proper appreciation of the universe and our place in it -- and of God the Father. That appreciation can really only come from an understanding of creation. The question naturally arises: Where to begin in order for that understanding to eventuate? We shall start the year with a simple approach to the question. The best answer I can give is the Bible.

The Bible itself contains the sayings of the wisest of ancient kings, Solomon. And his advice was this:

"Wisdom is supreme; therefore acquire wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding" (Prov 4.7).

The Aramaic translation says much the same thing. "Wisdom is the summit; get wisdom, and with all your possessions purchase understanding" (Aramaic Bible in Plain English).

The Bible begins with the book of Genesis. Genesis in turn begins with a Hebrew letter Bet (or, Beth), in the word Bereshith. This is the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet (or alefbet).

Why does the inspired word not begin with Alef, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet? Why does it begin with the second letter?

"Why does the story of creation begin with bet?... In the same manner that the letter bet is closed on all sides and only open in front, similarly you are not permitted to inquire into what is before or what was behind, but only from the actual time of Creation" (Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Hagigah, 77c).

The traditional rabbis fire a warning shot when it comes to attempting to study the mysteries of SpaceTime. And rightly so. I have known folk who have gone nuts trying to grasp the concept of eternity as contained in the Kabbalah. So the rabbis tell us:

"Four entered the Orchard [Pardes = Paradise]. They were Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, the Other [Acher], and Rabbi Akiba [ben Yosef]. Rabbi Akiba warned, 'When you enter near the stones of pure marble, do not say 'water water,' since it is written, 'He who speaks falsehood will not be established before My eyes'' (Psalms 101:7). Ben Azzai gazed [at God] and died. Regarding it is written, 'Precious in God's eyes is the death of His saints' (Psalms 116:15). Ben Zoma gazed [at God] and was stricken [he became ill]. Regarding him it is written, 'You have found honey, eat moderately least you bloat yourself and vomit it' (Proverbs 25:16). The Other [Elisha ben Abuya] gazed [at God] and cut his plantings [he became an apostate and heretic]. Rabbi Akiba entered in peace and left in peace [he was unscathed from the encounter]."

These four Jewish sages (who may not have actually been rabbis, for their youth is testified to by the addition of their fathers names) entered Paradise (the Orchard = esoteric knowledge). Their entering was entirely a mystical ascent and it proved to be catastrophic for three of the group. Ben Azzai "gazed and perished." Ben Zoma "gazed and lost his senses" while ben Abuyah "cut the root." In contrast Akiva (also spelt Akiba) emerged unscathed and whole.

There is an ancient tradition which elaborates on their fate. Ben Azzai, it is said, became so enraptured by what he saw he could not surrender the vision and refused to return to his body. Ben Zoma was so immersed in the mysteries he ceased to function normally in life becoming demented. Of him it is said, "Whoever sees ben Zoma in his dream is assured of scholarship" (Berachot 57b). Ben Abuyah saw two Deities declaring "there are two powers in heaven" and discontinued his Torah observance. This probably means he became a Christian Jew.

There is little doubt that if we spend too much time concentrating on eternity -- attempting to understand and comprehend it with our finite minds -- we can literally lose our mind. Traditional rabbis caution us to not get too involved with four things and they do say for this same fundamental reason:

1. the ancient past (what was PRIOR to the creation) and

2. the distant future (what shall be AFTER the inevitable Big Crunch);

3. the things above and

4. the things below

Why not? Because we can only go around and around in circles with them. Thinking of what may have been PRIOR to the implosion of the Singularity -- before the creation of time and space -- is guaranteed to SEND YOU MAD.
 
Attempting to realise in your head the concept of eternity will do the same thing.

So will attempts at visualising what lies beyond the fringe of light (beyond the edge of the universe).

Stop for a minute and attempt to contemplate the existence of God BEYOND or OUTSIDE OF time and space. God could not think in terms of words because words comprise elements that are comprised of differentiated individual letters -- thus occupying "space." Thoughts take time to pass through the mind. But before the Big Bang there was no space and there was no time. Rather than thinking mere words God IS Word. Rather than acting in movement, God ACTS EVER AND ALWAYS in a non-stop fashion within His-Self, His-Existence. "My Father WORKS hitherto [unceasingly - Weymouth] and I work!" said Yeshua (Jn 5.1).

Get your head around that one!

Moreover, the rabbis reliably inform us that bet is the beginning letter of the word b'racha (blessing) while alef (or, aleph) is the initial of aror (curse). Therefore, "The Holy One, blessed be He, said, I will only create My Universe with bet, that they who come into the world shall not say, 'How can the world endure since it was created with a letter of ill-omen?' Behold, I will create it with a letter of good omen, peradventure it will endure" (p. Chagigah 77c). The universe had to be above all criticism (Cohen, Everyman's Talmud, 39). The universe was created "very good" by the Alpha and the Omega (really, the Alef and the Tav) -- the womb and tomb of the universe -- through the utilisation of 22 Hebrew letters.

ALL creative numbers dwell within God. Although I do not agree with some other sentiments of Balzac, the wise philosopher once mused, "God is a Number endowed with motion." He was right in this regard in my estimation. Suffice to say, where we read "et" in the Hebrew of Genesis 1.1 (Bereshith bara elohim et ha-shamayim v'et ha-aretz) "et " [alef-tav] -- signifies the entire alef-bet of 22 creative letters (angels). Angelic powers as creative WORD forces are located IN the Ad'am Kad'mon (the Archetypal Heavenly Man or, The Tree of Life) who became Yeshua the Messiah. We can, with this background in Jewish thoughtform, realise now what Rav Shaul was describing when he spoke of the entire universe, and especially "principalities, and powers" as existent in Him "from the beginning" (see especially Colossians 1.15-17).

Is the creation drama beginning to make sense? Is it all falling into place at last?

Elohim initiated the Creation. In that Moment when the holy Sparks blasted from the burning Face of Elohim (the Light of the Eyn Sof, God the Father of Yeshua the Messiah, and OUR Father), Elohim emanated Himself/Herself into the newly created universal order as Yehoveh (who became Yeshua). Yehoveh was God's emanation -- not a separate Deity, a distinguished second God at all, but the ONE emanation of the ONE God -- God the Father -- in an anthropomorphic visage so that humankind (and all creation spread through the heavens) might readily identify with that Infinite Love and Intelligence that birthed them into an existence! God was then not only OTHER (transcendent) but IMMANENT (close at hand).

The Jews had a word for this miracle: "Metatron" -- the High Priest of the heavenly temple. Metatron means "the little God" (Rabbi Alan Unterman, Dictionary of Jewish Lore & Legend). That is, the transcendent God could be "reduced" into anthropomorphic terms [God is "Word"] of "reality" [the universe is actually illusion]. It originates from the Greek root meta which has the intention of denoting "change."

So, God became the God who could be seen and heard and understood by humankind with its necessary limitations of "space" and "time." This is why Yeshua could say so boldly on one occasion that none have "seen God's shape [at any time] or heard his voice [at any time]" (Jn 5.37; Jn 1.18).

This is also why Yeshua could say, again with boldness on another occasion, "He who seen me has seen the Father"(Jn 14.9).

"But when She, the Spirit of truth, comes, She will guide you into all truth. She will not speak on her own; She will speak only what She hears, and She will tell you what is yet to come" (Jn 16.13).

The Spirit of Truth is the Spirit of Wisdom. As we progress through the current cycle of Torah readings let us be aware of Wisdom's sensual, spiritual caress into understanding.

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