Mditation Kabbalistique

Table of content :
1. Introduction
2. The letters as symbols
3. Kabbalah teaching
4. Kabbalistic Meditation (Hitbodedouth and Hazkarah)
5. Some concentration exercises on the alphabet letters (following Noa Blass)
6. Meditation on the letters of your Given Name: Introduction: the name according to Kabbalah
7. In our work
8. The Shekhinah : Introduction The Sphirot
9. Concentrating on Shekhinah (Noa Blass)
10. The Four Pillars of Light
11. The five levels of the soul
12. The rouach level
13. The neshamah level
14. Shefa (prana)
15. Neshimah and oriented vocalisations (tserouf)
16. The Tsimtsum, the autocontruction of Devine light (Noas testament to me)

Meditation on Jewish and Kabbalistic Contents

Introduction
Many think that their only path to bliss and enlightenment goes through Eastern traditions. They take leave
of their roots implanted in the great monotheistic religions, and seek their salvation in yoga, Zen, Buddhist
meditations and other such exotic traditions.
Nevertheless, the West, deeply rooted in biblical teaching, has its own offering of mystical traditions. They
were, however, held secret, well hidden from the inquisitive eye, jealously guarded by a select few and
nearly forgotten by the main stream.
Kabbalah is such a teaching, passed along in confidence from master to disciple. In the past several
decades, this secrecy slowly began to change and Kabbalah teaching has started to be accepted among many
small and diverse groups. This is thanks to Baal Hasulam, who wrote a very lucid Hebrew-language
interpretation of the mostly Aramaic Kabbalah writings, and academic research published by people as

Gershom Scholem, Moshe Idel, George Vajda, Charles Mopsik and others. Many will be surprised to learn
that in Kabbalah teachings one can find meditation and vocal techniques, corporal and respiration exercises,
that resemble various kinds of yoga.
The central figure in this field is Rabbi Abraham Aboulafia (1240-1292), who has regained his honoured
place in the Kabbalistic pantheon just 40 years ago. Aboulafias teachings were singularized by a methodical
and prophetic Kabbalah based on the combination of Hebrew alphabetical letters called Tseroufim
(combinations of letters), sustained by particular vocalisations, respirations and physical movements.
Following impugnment by the prominent rabbi of Barcelona, Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Adret, Aboulafia was forced
to exile, ending his life on the small Comatino Island some time after 1291. Nevertheless, Aboulafia remains
one of the most important figures of the Kabbalah world who had influenced many successive generations.

The alphabetic letters as mediating tools between the conscious and

the subconscious
The letters as symbols
The Hebrew alphabet (as well as other ancient alphabets such as Sanskrit, Chinese, and Greek) is much
more than a mere set of letters; it is the primary expression of language and mathematics of spirituality,
which opens direct access to the universal knowledge through the use of symbols. Indeed, the Hebrew word
for letter (oth) also means a sign, a mark or a symbol. Associated with symbolic forms, it is a direct
vector of knowledge beyond words and analysis.
The symbol is a crepuscular language, which precedes human consciousness; it is a universal language in
the origin of all dialects. It is a genuine communication language between the conscious and the
subconscious; between creature and the Creator; between the immanence and the transcendence.
A symbol always endures, whether it is concrete or if it resides in the subconscious; it exists in each one of
us and guides us towards a deep reflection. Its interpretations may vary by historic, philosophic and religious
contexts. A symbol usually has both a positive and a negative meaning. For example, a watering can may
symbolize rain, or by antithesis, clear weather. Water, in its positive sense, symbolizes life, purity, the
subconscious, the sources, but it will hold a very different meaning for a person who experienced drowning.
The symbol conveys both the positive and the negative nature of the sign. Its message goes beyond its
concrete appearance. It is an encounter between the visible and the invisible, the concrete and the
abstract, the conscious and the subconscious, and, for Kabbalists, between cause and effect.
In summary, through studying the alphabetical letters as symbols we can:
Communicate with the symbols of our own consciousness.

Interpret even the most subtle messages sent by Nature.

Organize our knowledge in compartments in order to retrieve it at the right moment.

Discover eternal messages; decrypt teachings sealed in images going back to the deepest recesses of
humanity.

In day-to-day life, the symbol helps you to better understand your environment and, consequently, to better
control it. Concerning each individual, it helps you to analyse actions, as well as interpret dreams and the
various abstractions surrounding us.

A symbol isnt necessarily a depiction of an animal or a geometric form; it can be a name, a sound, a colour,
a gesture, etc; no one form is superior to the other. The symbols form a homogeneous ensemble, which
replaces, cancels or strengthens each other.

Kabbalah teaching
According to Sefer Yetzirah (The Book of Creation, one of the earliest Kabbalistic works written between
the third and sixth centuries in an esoteric style), the Creator used the numbers 1-10 and the 22 letters of the
Hebrew alphabet to create the universe and all living things in it. The Hebrew letters are moulded like bits of
clay, placed opposite each other and otherwise manipulated to create, in some mysterious way, all that exists.
Sefer Yetzirah interprets the speech of God in a very clear way. God did not talk to Himself, like an
absolute monarch who expresses his will and has them carried out. Rather, He generated a substance, from
which He formed letters, out of which he combined words, which became objects. Gods speech was not
sound but a modelling of units of clay. (UJM p. 46: Understanding Jewish Mysticism by Davis R.
Blumenthal)
The author of Sefer Yetzirah maintains that, using his interpretation, you can become a creator yourself,
even if on a much smaller scale. In other words, the Sefer Yetzirah proposes not only an interpretation of In
the beginning, but also a secret teaching of the creative process itself. It teaches, if properly understood, the
secret of Creation and creation, of the Maker and the maker. (UJM p. 9)
Twenty-Two letters are the foundation: He engraved them, He hewed them out, He combined them, He
weighed them, and He set them at opposites, and He formed through them everything that is formed and
everything that is destined to be formed. (UJM p. 21)
In other words, the letters of the Hebrew alphabet are the building blocks of creation. Each letter has its own
significance, spiritual energy, and reason for existing.
In his book, The Alef-Beit, Jewish Thought revealed through the HebrewLetters, RabbiGinsburg explains
how the name, the form, and the numerical value of each letter play a role in the creative process of the
cosmos. He draws on the understandings of the well-known mystic, the Baal Shem Tov, in order to depict
how each letter has nine dimensions, with impact in three worldsthe physical, the spiritual, and the Divine.
In every letter there is the true completion of the soul, a chance to unite consciousness with the code of
creation.

Kabbalistic Meditation (Hitbodedouth and Hazkarah)

The Hitbodeduth is in its essence a fundamental stage in the Kabbalistic practice. It is a spiritual retreat in
order to apply meditative techniques. Literally, it means to isolate oneself; in one context, it will mean
performing a spiritual retreat to an isolated location, and in another, a concentration technique with the
objective of isolating yourself from your daily environment in order to practice meditation.
In its essence, the Hitbodedouth is a complete method based on meditation concentrating on divine names
and on Hebrew letters. Abraham Aboulafia calls the work on divine names Sod ha-hazkarah, which
means the secret of evocation. This work reminds one of the Sufi Zikr.
The Hazkarah may be called the yoga of Aboulafia. Its practice includes technical gestures with
respiration control, and pronunciation of sacred letters accompanied by head movements.
The great Kabbalist Joseph Gikatillas words on Aboulafias teaching wrote, in Shaarei Tsedek:
The beginning of this method consists in the first place of a purification of ones physical body, because
that which is corporal is a symbol of the spiritual. Then, in the order of the climbing up, comes the

purification of ones corporal dispositions and ones spiritual tendencies therefore, the Hitbodedouth in a
separate house is prescribed; it must be a house where one cant hear any noise. In the beginning, it is
recommended to decorate the house with fresh herbs in order to delight the vegetative soul, which each
person possesses besides its animal one. Then, in order to delight the animal soul, which each person
possesses besides the rational one, one turns to music instruments or liturgical psalm chanting. In the next
step, one has recourse to visualisation of ineligibles and to contemplation. And in the last step, one practices
the pronunciations of the letters and their combinations without any order, in order to detach the soul from,
and purify it of, all its familiar forms.
The Safed School had further developed the Hitbodedouth practice. One of the Aris disciples, Rabbi Eliezer
Azikri, describes this practice in his book Sefer haharedim:
Hell back out of his studies once a week and will isolate himself from the company of men. There, in the
intimacy of his Creator, hell focus his meditation towards Him as though he was in His Presence on the
judgment day, and hell implore Him in soft terms, as a servant towards his master or as a son towards his
father.
The ancient Hassidim used to stop their studies for nine hours in order to devote themselves to the Master of
the Universe with trepidation and with love. They would visualize the lights of the Shekhinah (divine
feminine presence) above their head as if it had diffused itself around them, while sitting in the middle of
this luminous presence.
The Kabbalistic meditation (Hitbodedouth) isnt a moment of passiveness or of profound relaxation; it is
first and foremost a moment of spiritual devotion which uses combination of letters and Yichoudim on
divine Names.
A Yichoud is a complex system of meditation, which has its source in the Zohar and particularly in the
Idra Zouta. This quite intricate process consists of performing unifications at the level of the different
attributes of the Supreme Being. It means an ecstatic rise of human intention, which soothes the spirit and
makes peace with interior agitation. This latter notion knows two tendencies: Yishouv haDaat (mental
stability) or union of the intellectual, intuitive, sensible and meditative aspects of consciousness which
compose our spirit; as well as Bilboul haDaat (mental confusion), a dispersed spirit where its essential
components cant communicate anymore with each other; for example, a stressed person, totally immersed
in his professional activity, is usually in the Bilboul haDaat state of mind.
Without penetrating now into the complex practices of Hitbodedouth, each person is capable of converting
the Bilboul (confusion of the spirit) state into the Yishouv (mental stability) one.
This is a very simple and efficient exercise that may serve as an introduction to the Hitbodedouth method:

Sit down in a quiet and calm place; the simple fact of sitting down is called Yishouv.

Close your eyes and be conscious of your seated body.

Think about the Shefa, abundance, the universal power that animates and surrounds us; contemplate
it mentally as a bright white light.

Be conscious of your two hands; move them, rub them, as if trying to make the blood circulate, while
imagining that the Shefa starts to circulate more and more easily in them.

Move your hands again to stimulate the Shefa once more.

Massage your legs, while thinking of the circulation of the flux.

Continue up through your body, in the same manner. Massage your shoulders, your neck, your jaws,
your temples, etc., recharging your hands before each part.

Now be conscious of the respiratory cycle, inhaling deeply and exhaling very slowly and completely.

Keep in mind that inhaling enables the luminous flux to penetrate the body, bringing it stability, calm
and purification.

Imagine then that the spirit itself circulates in the same manner as the breath in our body; that it also
has the aspect of white light and that the calmness of the body pacifies and stabilises the spirit too.

Some concentration exercises on the alphabet letters (following Noa

Blass)
Exercise 1
Visualize the letters in different sizes, on different backgrounds, in different volumes.
1. In the alphabetic order from the first to the last letter (Aleph to Tav)
2. Do the same from the end to the beginning (Tav to Aleph)
3. Do the same for letters inverted in mirror form.
The objective is to manage visualizing each letter from forward, from backward and through mirror writing.
This process achieves crystallisation and purification.

Exercise 2
Visualize the letters descending from the top of the head along the spinal column. Notice which letters have
more difficulties in descending, and concentrate on them. Try to repeat the descending processes until all the
letters descend easily from the top to the bottom of the spinal column.
This repeated process fills the backbone with positive energy.

Exercise 3
1. Concentration on the alphabet letters together with conscious respiration
This exercise is a sequence of 22 cycles of inhalations and exhalations. Visualize each letter (sight), hear its
sound (hearing), and feel it while moving your hand on your body (touch).
A cycle of inhaling and exhaling accompanies each letter. For example, you inhale the Aleph while
visualizing, hearing and touching it. Then you exhale the letter Bet in the same manner, etc. After 2-3
breathing cycles, the breathing rhythm becomes progressively slower and deeper.
Explanation: when you inhale and exhale with deep intention, you need a frame which will enable you to
persevere your attention on the breathing cycle and avoid interrupting the process. The alphabet letters serve
as a convenient, familiar and useful framework for doing so. Since you transfer your thought and

concentration in this exercise to the letters, the normal thinking process is interrupted. This interruption
brings a sensation of calm, relaxation and freedom.
2. Visualize the letter as energetic cleaning tools
While inhaling, each letter enters the body and performs its cleaning task without the consciousness
interference.
Examples:
- While meditating, the letter Dalet (the fourth letter of the Hebrew alphabet) was walking between the
shoulders, touching each one delicately and redressing it.
Explanation: the shoulders accumulate tension. Redressing the shoulders acts to relieve that tension.
- While mediating on the Heh letter (fifth letter of the Alphabet) it got in front of the third eye and worked
on raising (evoking) the inner light.
The letter Heh represents intuition, which is localised in the centre of the two hemispheres. The rise of the
letter Heh to the meeting point of the two hemispheres shows that the letter Heh creates a new connection
between them.

Meditation on the letters of your Given Name

Introduction: the name according to Kabbalah
According to Kabbalists, each letter of the alphabet is the extension of a revitalizing light. A special and
unique force lies in each letter that is not found in others. This power is studied both through the shape of the
letter, and through Kabbalistic numerology which reveals valuable information by combining the numbers
assigned to each letter in the name.
Each person lives thanks to the joint effect of these forces as expressed by the letters forming his name. An
ideal name would create a combination of forces in balance with the persons other influences arising from
his birth date, the name of his mother, his last name and so forth. Any change in the combination of the
letters in the name will result in a change in balance of powers. The order of the letters matters as well the
first letter has the most significant influence.
The letters reveal three aspects of a person: thought, speech, and action. Action lies in the written name,
speech lies in the oral pronunciation of the name, and thought lies in the thought about a person carrying this
name. These three aspects create a richly meaningful pattern that can be detected and analyzed by expert
Kabbalists.
Kabbalah uses a numerological system called Gematria. Each letter in Hebrew is associated with a number.
When you add up the numbers of all letters of a name, you get a single number that represents the person.
For example, Jacob is spelled in Hebrew yud-ayin-kuf-bet, which add up to 182. There is special meaning to
the fact that this number is 7 times the value of the unspeakable name of God (yud-heh-vav-heh). The
number 7 represents harmony and completeness seven days a week, seven notes in a musical scale. Jacob
therefore represents the complete and harmonious expression of Gods name.

In our work
According to Kabbalah teaching, the given name of a person represents his essence of being, the energetic
makeup of his personality, his strong and weak points. On a higher level, it represents the possibility to
connect with the root of his name on the Creation level and to find out, among others things, his role on

Earth (why is he here and where does he come from?). Therefore, a person may make some surprising
discoveries while trying to understand what the letters of his or her first name tell him or her about him- or
herself.
When you use visualisation of the letters of your first name during breathing exercises, several things
happen simultaneously: on the one hand, you bolster your self-confidence and you slow down and stabilize
your breath rate and pulse. This combination provides you with a feeling of serenity and balance. On the
other hand, through this same process of breahting and visualising your name, you can learn and receive
information concerning your specific problems.
Say, for example, that one letter is darkened, or is unproportional in size, or has difficulties in movement or
in fluidity, etc. This could provide indirect information on the state of your energy. The subconscious, in
turn, could then suggest how to repair the situation. It might make it easier to confront, to understand and to
accept a weakness; you could then rectify the situation in order to attain a better inner balance. This repair of
energy may express itself in day-to-day life by behaviour modification.
Another example comes from a workshop: Nirah, one of the participants, saw the R (Resh) of her first name
balancing with difficulty and unstable. This information indicated that there was an unstable part in herself
that needed balancing. As for the other letters, the N (Nun) had no special image, it was rather neutral; the I
(Yod) and the H (Heh) filled her with fresh air. This means that these two letters (Yod and Heh) represent an
optimistic part in Niras personality which can offer strength to the unstable part.
As to the question why of all letters, did the letter R represent for Nirah a certain weakness? The answer
resides in her subconscious. If she repeats the same processes, she will probably manage to find the solution,
and to balance and stabilize her R.

Meditation exercise
1. Visualize the letters of your given name in front of you and try to illuminate each letter.
2. Is every letter lit equally? Is there one letter or more that do not manage to light up? If so, repeat the
process several times until the letters become equally lit.
3. Repeat the process and compare the sizes of the letters: is one or more letter bigger or smaller than
the others? Repeat the process until all letters are of equal size.
4. Do all the letters appear in lower case or do some appear in upper case?
5. Repeating this exercise several times while illuminating the letters raises the energy level and creates
a sensation of vitality.
6. The flying carpet of the alphabet letters visualize the alphabet letters as a round mandala, with a
luminous skylight in the middle.
One can visualize the round letter formation as a flying carpet. Take a look at Earth through it and see what
kind of landscape appears. You can meditate on the letters and send a blessing through it to yourself as well
as to the entire world.

The Shekhinah

Introduction The Sphirot

According to the Idra Zutah (the lesser assembly): The Ancient of Ancients is at the same time the
Unknown of the Unknown; He separates Himself from all, and He is not separated; for all unites with Him,
as He again unites with all; there is nothing that is not in Him. He has a form, and it may be said He has no
form. By taking a form He gave existence to all that is; first, He caused His form to send out ten lights which
shine by virtue of the form they borrowed of Him, diffusing dazzling effulgence to all sides, just as a beam
sends out its luminous rays to all sides. The Ancient of Ancients, the Unknown of the Unknown is a high
beacon, which is recognized only by the rays that glare our eyes with such brilliancy and abundance. This
light is called His holy name. or Kingdom, ( Malkuth). All Kabbalists agree that it does not
express any new attribute; but simply the harmony which exists between all the other attributes and
their absolute rule over the world.
Thus the ten Sefiroth which, in their entirety, form the Heavenly or Ideal Man, called by the modern
Kabbalists the world of emanation, ( Olam Atzilus), is divided into three classes, each
one of which shows us the deity in a different aspect, but always in the form of an indivisible trinity.
The first three Sefiroth are purely intellectual or metaphysical. They express the absolute identity of
existence and thought, and form, what modern Kabbalists have called, the intelligible world,
( Olam Muskal).
The three Sefiroth following have a moral character; on the one hand they make us conceive God as the
identity of kindness and wisdom, on the other hand they show us that the source of beauty and magnificence
is in kindness or rather in the supreme good. They have therefore been named the virtues,
(Midoth), or the world of feeling, ( Olam Murgosh), in the loftiest meaning of the word.
Finally, we learn by the last of these attributes that the universal providence, the supreme architect, is also
the absolute force, the all-powerful cause, and that this cause is at the same time the generating element of
all that is. These last Sefiroth constitute the natural world, or nature in its essence and in its principle,
natura naturans, ( Olam Hamutbah).
How and in what terms these different aspects are brought back to unity, and consequently to a supreme
trinity?
The following passage will show: In order to acquire the knowledge of a holy unity, we must examine the
flame which rises from a fire-place or from a lighted lamp; we see then, at first, two kinds of light, a
glistening white one and a black or blue one; the white light is above and rises in a straight line, the black
or blue light is beneath, and appears to be the seat of the first; yet the two lights are so closely united that
they form one single flame only. But the seat formed by the blue or black light is, in its turn, attached to the
wick, which is still under it. The white light never changes, it always remains white; but several shades are
distinguished in the lower light. The lower light takes, moreover, two opposite directions; above it is
attached to the white light, and below it is attached to the burning matter, but this matter continually
consumes itself, and constantly rises towards the upper light. It is thus that all that is joins again to the
one unity, ..
To dispel all doubt as to the meaning of this allegory, we may add that is it found, almost literally
reproduced, in another part of the Zohar, to explain the nature of the human soul which also forms a trinity, a
feeble image of the supreme trinity.
This last species of trinity which explicitly comprises all the others, and which sums up the entire theory of
the Sefiroth, plays also the most important part in the Zohar. Like the preceding trinities, it is represented by
three terms only, each one of which has already been represented as the highest manifestation of one of the
lower trinities.

Among the metaphysical attributes it is the Crown; among the moral attributes it is Beauty; among
the inferior attributes it is Kingdom.
But what is meant by the Crown in the allegorical language of the Kabbalists?
It is the substance, the one and absolute being.
What is Beauty?
It is, according to the Idra Zuta, the highest expression of moral life and of moral perfection. As an
emanation from intelligence and mercy, it is often compared to the orient, to the sun whose light is
reflected equally by all earthly objects, and without which all would return to darkness; in a word it is
the ideal.
Finally, what is Kingdom?
It is the permanent and imminent action of all the Sefiroth combined. It is the actual presence of God in
the creation. This idea is fully expressed by the word Shekinah (), one of the surnames of the
Kingdom.
The true terms of this new trinity are, accordingly, the absolute, the ideal and the immanent face; or also,
the substance, the thought and the life; that is, the uniting of the thought with the object. They
constitute what is called the middle column ( Amudah Damtzissoh), because in all
the figures customarily used to represent the Sefiroth they are placed in the centre, one above another, in the
form of a vertical line or column.
As may be expected of what we already know, these three terms also become so many faces or
symbolical manifestations.
The Crown does not change its name, it is always the long face, the Ancient of days, the Ancient
Whose name be sanctified; ( Ateekah Kdeeshah).
Beauty is the holy king, or simply the King ( Malko), , (Malko Kdeeshah),
The Shekinah, the divine presence in things, is the Matrona, or Queen
(Matrooneitha) .
When the one is compared to the sun, the other is compared to the moon; because the moon borrows all the
light by which it shines from a higher place, from a degree immediately above her. In other words, real
existence is only a reflection or image of ideal beauty. The Matrona is also called Eve, for, says the
text, Eve is the mother of all things, and everything that exists here below, nurses from her breast and is
blessed through her. The King and the Queen, commonly called also the two faces ( Doo
Partsufin), form together a pair whose task is to pour forth constantly upon the world new grace, and
through their union to continue the work of the creation, or, what is more, to perpetuate the work of
the creation.

Concentrating on Shekhinah (Noa Blass)

While meditating on Shekhinah I realized that this transcendent being provides the best aid and support to
all those who concentrate on her.
Shekhinah appears in countless guises. She appears as light, as an escort, a girl possessing infinite delight,
as the source of abundance, as a guide, a pathfinder, as the remover of obstacles [comparable to the Hindu
deity Ganesha], and more. Each of these experiences bestows the person with endless blessings. Meeting

with Shekhinah never gives you the feeling of difficulty or of a missed opportunity to the contrary. Please
see my book for exercises with Shekhinah and their results with several people.
The following contains quotes from the Zohar as were translated indirectly from Aramaic to Hebrew to
English.
The last Sephira is special in the Sephirot structure; it is the passive feminine figure that receives the Shefa
(Ever-flowing Abundance) emanating from the active masculine forces, and forwards it on. The description
of her nature and its myriads of relationships occupy a significant part of the Zohar. Shekhinah presents
thousands of images through the countless veils of Kabbalistic symbolism. Her unique feature is that she has
no light of her own and possesses no particular tint which allows her to reflect all other lights and colors.
The finest hues and fragments of splendor and their shadows continuously flicker and pass through her. In
the flow of frequent changes, she appears as a divine portrait of multiple images She is referred to as a
rose of varying shades that changes with her colors (the lily and the rose), since before the Zivug (Coupling)
she is green as a lily with its leaves green, and after the Zivug she is red with white shades
While in the upward direction Shekhina is the last link in the chain of emanation, serving as the vessel of
supreme Shefa, and appears as the tip of the Divine Being downwards Shekhinah is foremost the Great
Mother of the universe and its leader
The name Shekhinah was originally attributed to the Sephirah Malkuth (Kingdom) but was later assigned to
Binah (Wisdom). In the parables of the Elders Shekhinah represents the Divine Presence as it acts and is
present in Israel and in the universe. The Zohar identifies her with the last Sephirah, serving as the world
leader and Supreme Assembly of Israel, which is a special, ever-lasting epithet for Kingdom.
Shekhinah is connected and bound with the three structures that, according to Kabbalah, comprise the
totality of being: Sephirot, Olamot (Worlds), and Kelipot (Husks). There are several symbols that connote
her evolving image and stature when connected with the different structures. For example, take the sea as a
symbol: in connection with the Sephirot, Shekhina is the Great Sea that collects the abundance of water
transported to it by the rivers. In her leadership, the Great Sea waters the worlds. The water evolves from
sweet to bitter and from bitter to sweet, depending on the stronger of the present virtues, Chessed (Grace) or
Din (Judgment).
A person may get close to Shekhina for Avodat Elohim (Worship of God) only with the intent of Yichud
(Unity); and then she becomes an aperture through which divine light shines, a vessel that transfers the
supreme Shefa to the lower worlds, and a portal for the spirit entering divine space.
One can connect with Shekhina by concentrating on her as a spiritual being, and requesting her aid or help
on an emotional need or a need connected with internal harmony.
The deity name Shekhina arouses the deepest optimistic and constructive parts of the human spirit. Even
people who have no connection with religion or tradition, and who object to using the noun Shekhina, find
themselves amid a captivating experience once they submit to meditating on this being.
Eight years ago I identified Shekhina as my most significant source of light and compassion and I had most
meaningful meditation experiences with it. At first, I saw Shekhina as a tall feminine image dressed in white,
who led me on a walk in the street. She held my arm and asked me in a very soft and sweet manner to slow
down my walk, slow my talk and slow down all my actions. I took very short and slow paces, with my feet
aware of each pavement stone a new experience for me, unfamiliar but very pleasant. I am by nature very
quick and energetic in daily life, and allow myself to sink into the dimension beyond time only while
meditating. Here came Shekhina, who wished to teach me how to enjoy daily life, experiencing each
pavement stone, to slow down and internalize the wonderful beauty contained in each leaf and each flower.
At times, when taken ill, I concentrated on Shekhina. I saw her together with Chessed (Grace) as a divine
pair arriving to share my sick bed in order to heal me. I felt Chessed as a soft and wonderfully pleasant

blanket that warmed me gently and covered every pore of my body. At the same time it was a spiritual being
that spoke to me voicelessly. Its words were blessings that flowed like Mayim Elyonim (Upper Waters).
Grace like the engulfing blue sky, blessings that flow like the pink color of dawn.
Shekhina, its partner, is always more active in reality. She massaged me; she bettered the position of my
pillow and suggested that I change my posture in bed. She whispered to me that she is always by my side,
that I am never alone. She told me that after death she accompanies the soul to the afterworld. She told me
that all I needed to do was to think of her and she would appear with Chessed at her side. This eternal pair is
to me the epitome of bliss on Earth. They embody the ultimate support for a person whether she is alone or
in company, when healthy or ill, in life as in death.
Every person has his own way of viewing Shekhina. Some see her as an effusion of light, others as the
image of a woman, and yet others as a ray of light. At times Shekhina appears as a person of a certain age,
at other times she is ageless.
Why dont we all seek her aid at every moment of our lives on Earth?
The reason is that it is difficult to contain her infinite light; we lack the adequate vessels to contain it. We
may be able to construct such vessels that would contain some of that marvelous light. Each meditation on
Shekhina creates such a vessel. Each concentration on the mirror of light improves the vessel. Every time we
cleanse the gap between ego and self gets us closer to better containment of the light.

The Four Pillars of Light

While meditating in 2001, I saw four pillars of light surrounding me in four directions: north, south, east
and west. I decided to make a drawing depicting myself with the four pillars. While drawing, I discovered
that my sub-conscious mind expressed an internal force that drew me more and more towards a central
point; I found that I was focused on a symbol of deep, unmediated faith.
When I started the drawing, I did not know where it would take me, and did not fully understand the
significance of the process. I felt that I was being led somewhere, and I submitted to that. I kept making
drawings that day, until the final drawing revealed to me the source of this faith and its intensity.
In 2002 I suggested to my students to go through the same process with the four pillars of light. I asked
them to make one drawing at each meeting. Some of them continued the process at home and showed up
with several such drawings. Each person had his own insights into his internal powers.
The pillars of light represent the four directions, as mentioned above; they also represent the four guardian
angels, Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael. You may meditate on the four pillars of light as they stand in
the four directions. You may see yourself or your written name in their midst. As evident in the successive
drawings, a distillation occurs that brings you to concentrate your mental strengths; this may reveal to you
what your current calling could be.
When making a symbolic drawing of yourself and the pillars, it is best to repeat the process many times.
There is absolutely no need to be adept at drawing.
Some people found the unmediated connection with their internal powers through Jewish themes; others
used parts of the Hindu chakra symbols the tones, the mantras, the symbolic animals, or other elements. It
is important to realize that there is a wide range of complementary symbols available to use on the path for
spiritual and mental development.

The five levels of the soul

Kabbalah teaches that the soul exists on five levels, the five dimensions of which only the first three are
usually considered nefesh, rouach, neshamah (and then hayah and yechida). These dimensions of the soul
are directly linked to the five vowels and five music tones; for this reason, ancient Kabbalists saw in
chanting a way to awaken the soul.
The nefesh level
Nefesh is an envelope of all physical and mental faculties possessed by a human being during his terrestrial
journey. It enlaces the interior world of thinking, of sentiments, of emotions, of desires and of instincts;
nefesh can be identified as the ego. The Hebrew word nefesh etymologically has a sense of soul, life
and respiration. It is interesting to state that in permutation of this world, we get the word nashaf which
means exhale.
We can conclude that nefesh is the expiration of the souls respiration, its outer manifestation towards the
exterior world; and with the intermediate of the channel of rouach. Nefesh is constantly submissive to
bubbling thoughts, sentiments and emotions; and in this case, our soul constantly aspires to a calm and
serene state of mind; in other words, to the original nature of nefesh as nafash (Hebrew for repose), to rest
and repose.
Nefesh is the psychological domain, the affectivity, the relationship between a human and his environment.
It is the interface between two opposing sides in our nature; a double me, which liberates passionate forces
and interior conflicts. Mastering reunification of these opposite aspects by meditation can grant us calm and
serenity.
Nefesh depends primarily on the world assiya (the world of action); apart from our physical body, it is the
lowest vehicle possessed by our soul. Traditionally, blood is considered the vessel of nefesh: For the blood
is the life (nefesh) of all flesh: and so I have said to the children of Israel, You may not take any sort of blood
as food, and any man who does so will be cut off. (Leviticus 17; 14).
The world of assiya represents the accomplishment of the creation on the seventh day; as is written:
because in six days the Lord made heaven and earth and on the seventh day He took his rest and had
pleasure (repose) in it. (Exodus, 31; 17).
Meditation exercises
Nefesh
Concentrate on the word nefesh. Listen to its sound. Which images does it evoke in you?
The hexagram image
Visualize a hexagram with a central point and meditate on it.
Place yourself inside this hexagram.
The six points of the hexagram represents the toil of the six days of the week and the emotional forces; the
seventh day is represented by the central point of the hexagram; it is the day of repose, calm, meditation and
cohesion (unification) of the forces of the six days.
Meditation on the letter heh (the second heh) of the Divine Name

The rouach level

Etymologically, the meaning of rouach is wind (the blowing wind) and it describes something spacious and
airy. More than just a garment of the soul, rouach is a space of exchange of vitality between the first level,
nefesh, and the third, neshamah, between the vital forces that might be equated to the superego and the
inferior id. This level of soul has the role of safety valve, permitting one to ease the pressure of the forces
in action; an idea we can find in another sense of the word ravach, Hebrew for relief.

In the meditation practice, rouach is extremely important because it is the most available space of relief
from the anxieties of the world. Respiration techniques work directly with rouach, because for Kabbalists,
breath and spirit (in Hebrew, both are implied by the word rouach), are inextricably connected; harmonized
breathing benefits the spirit.
In respiratory practice, the ambient and omnipresent air symbolizes nefesh; rouach corresponds to the
conduits of the respiratory system; and neshamah to the respiratory system itself.
Rouach assumes the roles of intermediary and exchanger, linking it to the world of yetsirah (creation). This
role of intermediary is demonstrated by the first appearance of this word in the book of Genesis: And the
earth was waste and without form; and it was dark on the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God was
moving on the face of the waters. (Genesis 1; 2).
Meditation exercises
Rouach
Concentrate on the word Rouach. Which images does the sound evoke in you?
The channel above agitation
Meditation on the letter wav of the Devine Name

The neshamah level

The word neshamah comes from nasham, the verb to breathe, breathing. The Hebrew word for breathing is
neshimah. The first act of life is the breathing, in which one receives the breath of life, which he needs to
inhale.
We can summarize the correspondence of the first three levels of the soul with letters of the Divine Name.
Neshamah corresponds to the first heh as in inhale, rouach to the letter wav as intermediary, and nefesh to
the second heh.
The idea is that neshamah is an inspiration of vitals forces has its source in the verse And the Lord God
made man from the dust of the earth, breathing into him the breath of life: and man became a living soul.
(Genesis 2:7).
When we practice the vocalisation of vowels and of tserufim (combinations of letters), we touch the
neshamah level. Then these sounds pass into the intellectual and vocal domains with the help of rouach (the
channel of air/light/shefa), and their vibrations spread into the nefesh level. Through tserufim, the
neshamah attracts shefa (the universal power), from the world of atsiluth (emanation), leading it to the
heart of vital forces of nefesh.
This level of soul corresponds to the world of briah (creation). The relation between neshamah and briah is
found in the following verse: God the Lord, even he who made the heavens, measuring them out on high;
stretching out the earth, and giving its produce; he who gives breath (neshamah) to the people on it, and life
(rouach) to those who go about on it, (Isaiah 42; 5)

Meditation exercises
Neshamah
Concentrate on the word on the word Neshamah. Which images does it evoke in you?
Meditation on the first heh of the Devine Name
Vocalisation of the vowels
Associated with the 5 punctuations: cholam, kamats, tserei, chirik, koubouts, shourouk (corresponding to o,
ah, ei; i; ou u)

Shefa (prana)
We already noticed the importance of conscious breathing in the practice of vocalisation and tserufim and
how the names of the levels of the soul are directly linked with the process of breathing (neshima/neshama,
rouah/wind & inhale, nefesh/exhale).
Together with the air that we breathe we inhale a spiritual substance named shefa. In the language of
Kabbalah, shefa signifies emanation, but its first sense is abundance or profusion. Shefa is a spiritual flux
circulating in ourselves and around each one of us, filling and unifying the whole creation. The 32 paths of
wisdom are the vehicles of this universal flux; realizing a path opens and liberates the flux. When Creation is
unified, shefa circulates liberally in every place and in each object. In our post-Creation world, there are
vacant spaces where shefa is scarce or absent altogether. These are spaces of illness, in the same manner as
a sick human suffers when a vacant place is created in him.
Shefa has an essential role of intermediary between the physical and subtle bodies. It is identified with the
letter wav of the Devine Name uniting the physical and spiritual respirations (the two letters heh), the upper
and lower worlds and the all human beings. The sephiroth are ten vital energies, which conduct, at different
levels, the flux of shefa, the total manifested energy in the Universe, which respiration is its exterior
manifestation. In human terms, shefa represents the total latent forces concealed in the human being. Its
location according to Kabbalah is the sephirah tiferet(beauty), located in the heart of the human being.
Respiration, is an example of its exterior manifestation.
Shefa undergoes a similar transformation, being very light and subtle at inspiration, with pure white or
light blue colour, and on exhaling it becomes devitalized, heavy, slow, coloured ochre.
The word shefa appears only once in the Bible: they will feast on the abundance (shefa) of the seas, on
the treasures hidden in the sand. Deuteronomy (33; 19)
The sea symbolizes the union of waters and is the reflection of the heavens; shefa nurtures the soul
like the maternal breast nurtures the baby. This universal nurturing enables each one to discover the
sacred sparks hidden in the sands of the subconscious.
Meditation exercises
The white respiration, neshimah/shefa (following Noa Blass)

Sit comfortably, your back and head upright, facing East if possible.

Close your eyes and concentrate upon the respiration cycle and its three phases: inhalation, retention,
and exhalation. Be conscious on your breath for a while.

Empty your lungs completely.

Continue while dilating the median part of the thorax, then separate and draw aside the ribs with no force.
Open your shoulders slightly in order to fill the upper part of the lungs. Count to 4, mentally, during this
process.
Inhale completely: while the air enters your body, visualize a pure light that is white with a blue tinge:
shefa. The source of the air and the shefa is at about 30 cm in front of your nose. The light of shefas
descends until about 8 cm under the navel region.
Retention: keep your abdomen and the lungs open and retain the air. Try to count to 16 (less, if you dont
have the training yet).
Visualize the white light of shefa spreading to every cell of your body, extending beyond the boundaries of
your physical body, until it illuminates your aura.
Exhale completely: lower your shoulders slightly, then slowly let go of your ribs. Contract the inner side of
the abdomen and slightly hollow the stomach. The exhale should last to the count of 8, for a complete
exhale. While exhaling, visualize an ochre light, symbolizing the consumed light, which carries away the
negative energies.

Very short retention of at the count of 1.

Repeat the entire cycle at least 5 times.

In order to treat and to heal a problem of sickness, you can direct and channel the pure white light towards
the sick organ or the sick region.

Neshimah and oriented vocalisations (tserouf)

Breathing has an important role in vocalisations of letters and of the tserouf. As a rule, you inhale through
the nose with your mouth closed; then vocalize a letter or a combination of letters while exhaling with an
open mouth.
With proper work and practice, dormant parts of the subconscious will progressively open up and favour the
awakening of the 32 paths of Wisdom.
It is possible to charge a vocalised letter with the heart intention of a specific wish and learn to open the
right door for shefa to circulate freely and to bring recovery with it.

It is very important to state that during this action we are actually mediators. We are not directing our own
energy to help and look after somebody; rather, our actions are directed to attracting and to amplifying the
omnipresent universal shefa. Repeating the sounds will promote the free circulation of shefa in the sick
person, restoring his health. In particular, the shefa will fill the absent sanctity, represented by the sickness.
According to Kabbalah, being sick means being empty of nature (Elohim) and open to disharmonious
substances.
Vocalisation is used to fill vacancies, compensating for the state of lacking. To this end, one of the strongest
tserouf, letters combinations, for recovery is reish peh (taken from rapha to heal, which key is the angel
Raphael).
How does one use this specific combination (tserouf) in our work?

If the person is present, place yourself at his right side. If the person is absent, sit in a calm place and
visualize him.

Surround the person with a moving flux of light. Think that this light is the shefa, the flux of
universal force, whose free circulation is capable to harmonize.

Make the following affirmation out loud: Force of light, I ask to accord the recovery and healing of
[the persons name], son of [name of his mother].

Then start vocalizing the tserouf, making all possible combinations of the two letters with all vowels.
For example, using the cholam (O)

Rofo, rofa, rofe, rofi, rofou

Foro, fora, fore, fori, forou
Rafo, rafa, rafe, rafi, rafou
Faro, fara, fare, fari, farou, etc.
These vocalisations need to be repeated as long as possible. If the sickness is severe, you can vocalise in a
group, achieving better results.

The Tsimtsum, the autocontruction of Devine light (Noas testament

to me)
Tsimtsum is one of the most important concepts in Kabblah. This doctrine explains the auto-contraction of
the Divine Light through an action of free will, in order to free up space for Creation. This was necessary to
enable the world to come into being.
Literally, the word tsimtsum means withdrawing, a contracting into Himself, a restriction or reduction. The
Hebrew language offers an interesting deconstruction of the word into two parts: tsama, a thirst, and tsum,
to fast two words that denote a state of void and vacancy. The numerological value of the word is 266, the
same as the word sod (secret) which implies the secret of the essence of all things.
The notion of tsimtsum is found in Ets HaHaim, a book of teachings by Rabbi Isaac Luria. Luria, (15341572), called the Holy Ari, headed the Kabbalistic school of Safed. This is how it describes tsimtsum:
In the beginning, a simple divine light (or) filled the entirety of existence When there arose in His
simple will the desire to create the worlds, He contracted His light, withdrawing it to the sides and leaving a
void and an empty space in its center (sof), to allow for the existence of the worlds. He then drew a single
line of His infinite light (or einsof) into the void to illuminate the worlds.
(Translation taken from chabad.org)
Kabbalists agree on the following interpretation concerning tsimtsum: God filled the entire universe with His
perfection; thus, there was no reason or space for the existence of human beings. Of free will, God restrained
His infinite perfection (Or) in order to make space for His creatures and to accord them the free will of
accomplishment.

The sefirot, organisation principles of the world

According to Kabbalah, the Universe had been created by vibrations that became the foundation of
everything which exists.

In the empty space that existed before creation, these vibrations took place in the form of ten emanations, or
sefirot. The sefirot are symbols relating the Infinite (God) to our Universe. One way to think of them is as
ten fundamental organizing principles of the world; each sefirah corresponds to a unique aspect of Gods
creative forces, and is descending in its level of concealment and revelation, towards its manifestation here
on earth. Since creation is not a one-time event, but rather an ongoing process, the forces of the sefirot act
continuously, both within the world and within each one of us. In this way, every human being is a cocreator of reality with God. The Tree of Life is both an organisation system of the sefirot and serves as
roadmap leading to an intimate connection with the Holy One.

Meditation on tsimtsum and the creation of an inner makkom

- The first step is to do the meditation on shefa, as described in the previous chapter. Follow all the steps
accompanied by the respiration cycle. The goal is to fill every organ and every pore of your body with
energy of shefa or to leave no vacant space without light.
- Now visualize that your body is full of positive energy and good feeling coming from the flux of shefa,
like a shower of light. Remain with this fullness and feeling of beatitude for several minutes.
Concentrate and visualize your heart plexus (the location at the bottom of the heart, from where our
deep sighs emanate). In your imagination, try to restrict the abundance of the shefa light; create a tiny dot
of void, in the middle of your heart plexus a small point devoid of light. Kabbalists call this space makkom
(place) or ha nekuda shebalev (the spot in the heart).
- Concentrate on this makkom and feel the palpitations of its absent light vibrations. This is a palpitating
void, longing for the missing light of the shefa. This palpitating void will be your personal makkom, the
location in which you can commence your own Creation, in the image of the Creator. A makkom (space)
from which you will be able to communicate with the or einsof and the shefa.
- Visualize a source of infinite white light, the Unity that is the source of Oneness.
- Create in your imagination a very fine thread of light linking the source of the upper Infinite light and your
makkom in the heart plexus.
- Concentrate again on the palpitating makkom while breathing. Feel that with each inhalation and exhalation
the palpitation of the makkom becomes more tangible, stronger and greater. Kabbalists would call this
energy ratson lekabel (a will to receive, referring to the infinite light).
- With this new powerful energy, you may be able to attract some of the shefa or from Unity, and direct it
by vocalisation through the thread of light towards the makkom, using it for creation of a new energy.

Meditation on the Qabalistic Cross

STAND facing East:

1. Touch forehead and say ATEH (Thou art)

2. Touch breast and say MALKUTH (the Kingdom)
3. Touch right shoulder and say VE-GEBURAH (the Power)
4. Touch left shoulder and say VE-GEDULAH (and the Glory)
5. Clasp hands together in middle of chest, say LE-OLAM (for ever and ever)
6. Turn hands upwards in a traditional prayer gesture, say AMEN (Amen.)
How many times have magickians done this, perhaps when doing either of the pentagram rituals, without
thinking? And more is the pity, because by bringing even a small amount of meditative awareness into this
simple ritual one can transform its potency greatly. It is within the personal experience of the author that by
combining the Qabalistic Cross with some simple visualisation, and with some thought as to the implication
of what the actual words mean, this little detail of a ritual can become enormously potent.
All of the following presumes that the reader has some basic Qabalistic knowledge; or if not, that they have
access to a good book on the subject, like Dion Fortunes The Mystical Qabalah.

STAND facing East:

The Temple, as indeed are Christian churches, is aligned on an East-West axis. East is the direction of the
rising Sun, the source of LIGHT. In Christianity it is popularly believed that Jesus was crucified facing
West: hence the church is arranged so that the congregation is facing the crucified Christ.
The Temple on the other hand is arranged as the Tree of Life would be if it were laid flat, with Malkuth in
the West Tiphereth, the Sephira of Christ, the sun and the source of light inevitably will be East of the
Temple, and beyond that so will Kether. Hence by starting off facing east, the Magickian is appealing to the
power of Tiphereth and of Kether, the power of both his Ruach and Neshamah, the power of LIGHT itself.

Touch forehead and say ATEH (Thou art)

Here visualise Kether, as a luminous white sphere above your head. Pause a while and consider some of
Kethers attributions: that it is the first Sephira, that is in the place where one expects the Sahasrara Chakra
to be, that it is the First Cause, the Great Manifest, the ultimate Source of Power, etc.

Touch breast and say MALKUTH (the Kingdom)

Now imagine that a shaft of pure white light shines straight down, to a point just below your feet, i.e. the
Sephira Malkuth itself. You can imagine that the course of the Light is caused by the downward motion of
your hand from head to breast. Imagine Malkuth as a sphere in four parts: Citrine; Russet; Olive and Black.
The Kether-Malkuth motion of the Light establishes the Pillar of Mildness. The descent of the Ketherinfluence sanctifies Malkuth, which is equivalent to you and your own physical body. Moreover, looked at
from the point of view of Malkuth, it affirms your own right to be a Magickian of the Works of Light, to
receive this influence and use it as you see fit.

Touch right shoulder and say VE-GEBURAH (the Power)

Visualise Geburah as a Red Sphere. However, this particular gesture does not merely establish Geburah
itself: for Geburah is here to be understood as the representative of the whole Pillar of Severity. Therefore
give some thought at this point to the whole of that Pillar: Binah a black Sphere, the right side of the head;
and Hod an orange sphere, the right hip. Contemplate the meanings of these Sephiroth, and the concept of
Severity generally.

Touch left shoulder and say VE-GEDULAH (and the Glory)

Gedulah is another name for Chesed. Visualise this as a Blue sphere. At this point one should do the
same for the Pillar of Mercy as one did for the Pillar of Severity in the previous point. Gedulah here
represents both Chesed itself and Chokmah a grey sphere, the left side of the head and Netzach a
green sphere, the left hip as well as Mercy itself.

Clasp hands together in middle of chest, say LE-OLAM (for ever and ever)
Bring your attention back to the Middle Pillar: Kether, Malkuth, and Yesod also.
At this point I would like to relate two separate anecdotes, which I hope will give you some food for thought
as to the significance of this phrase, Le-olam / for ever and ever.
As a practitioner of yoga I came across the following remark in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali:
By samyama on moment and the continuous flow of moments, the yogi gains exalted knowledge, free from
the limitations of time and space. (III, 53)
That is to say, the Yogi attains samadhi when transforming his perception from the time-based to the
timeless or eternal, through the discipline of samyama (perfectly integrated meditation.
Moreover, Goswami Kriyananda in his book The Spiritual Science of Kriya Yoga, says:
Karma is a time-conditioned factor. Samadhi is a state of being which is timeless. Since time does not exist
in the state of samadhi, karma no longer reaches fruition.
He goes on to say that in the basic forms of Samadhi, one experiences the object of meditation as it was, is
and will be. Indeed, is not the Yogi in any event told to meditate on the Pranava, AUM, of which one set
of meanings is A the past, U the present, M the future?
To turn away from Yoga to something more Qabalistic: I was once concerned with trying to discover the
significance of the Spiritual Experience of Yesod, The Vision of the Machinery of the Universe. In my
mental wanderings it occurred to me that it might have something to do with the name of God associated
with Yesod, Shaddai El Chai. As I concentrated on this thought, the word Chai everliving seemed
to have some special significance. I was drifting off into a Theta-wave state of consciousness, where
hypnagogic imagery is common, and where Out-of-Body-Experiences occur, yet still I concentrated on
Chai. I became aware of my astral body, distinct from the physical: I not only concentrated on Chai and
the notion of everliving, but also tried feeling it with my astral form as well.

Linking my body of light to an everliving or eternal principle had the marked effect of improving the
quality of my astral work. The Astral Body is in fact a projection of the Nephesh which is the part of the
person which does not survive death. By contemplating the everliving I was in fact linking myself to
something which did the Ruach, for instance. Note that I am not saying the Ruach is connected with
Yesod, mainly that if the Vision of the Machinery of the Universe could be expressed in words, it would be
along the lines of one should contemplate the eternal everliving qualities which transcend the normal
experience of the Nephesh, in order to properly operate on the Higher planes.
As if in confirmation, that night, I was rewarded with a vision of my Holy Guardian Angel. I presumed
therefore that through my work with the Vision of the Machinery of the Universe, I had succeeded in Doing
my True Will i.e. it was a sign I had achieved the Correct Answer.
Back, then, to Le olam. We say, for ever and ever: at this point we should contemplate the Tree of Life,
as it has been established in the microcosm up to now, as existing for ever and ever in all points of time,
past, present and future. For by so doing we are both contemplating the Vision of the Machinery of the
Universe, and Yesod thereby; and entering a mode of consciousness which at least one spiritual tradition
says is the way to Samadhi, or the Perfected Meditative State.

Turn hands upwards in a traditional prayer gesture, say AMEN (Amen.)

Amen, in some quarters thought to refer to Amun the Egyptian Sun-God, is an appropriate Word to
contemplate in regard to Tiphereth. It is the centre of the cross, as in the Crucifix where the central figure is
Christ himself (also referred to Tiphereth).
Moreover, Amen is the Completion and Perfection of the Qabalistic Cross ceremony. It is the final
achievement of Samadhi, the destruction of the ego in an explosion of LIGHT.
It is the Seal on the Forces invoked by the ceremony. Henceforth, the visualised Tree of Life no longer relies
on the imagination of the Magician: it is a thing in its own right, remaining in existence without the
magicians conscious intervention or interference.
Amen seals the Tree of Life in the magicians aura, and forcefully impregnates his unconscious with its
subtle influences.
When the whole Qabalistic Cross is performed in this way, even acting purely on the physical plane, the
magician is left with a palpable sense of having raised his power, and deepened the level of his
consciousness towards a state of mind which is preferable to magickal working. Were the magician a master
of working purely in his Body of Light or Astral Body, and performed the Qabalistic Cross with full
awareness of these meditations, he will surely experience all the effects described above.