HOCHMA: MAIN READING OF THE WEEK – THE ZOHAR BOOK

Main Reading for PRAYER OF MANY, today with ENGLISH ZOHAR READING, page 130.

ARVUT OF : Robin Anderson

Otiot—letters—represent Reshimot of the Light’s exit from the body of the
Partzuf (Nekudot). Letters originate from Zat de Bina.
The ten Sefirot are divided into three primary parts—Taamim, Nekudot,
and Otiot:

Taanim – Keter

Nekudot – Hochma

Otiot – ZAT de Bina and ZON

According to the Light in them, Sefirot are divided into:

Taanim – Hochma

Nekudot – Binah

Otiot – ZON

The letters were created in the following order: the letter Aleph, which was
initially on the right side, begot the letter Shin, which emerged from it and
moved to the left side. The letter Shin consists of three sides: the left, the middle,
and the right. The letter Vav is thereby formed by three letters, and upon joining
with Aleph, it formed the word Aleph-Shin = ESH (fire) in the left side.
Out of the interaction of the right and the left sides these two letters came
forth in contradiction between them, as the right line includes water, while the
left line includes fire. Their collisions begot the letters Reish, Vav, and Chet,
which formed the word Ruach (wind). This wind entered between the two sides
(fire and water) and joined them together, thereby establishing the order of the
first letters and their perfection.
At first, The Zohar offers a general description of the three lines in ZA,
designated by the three names of the Creator: El, Elokim and Elokeinu, and then
proceeds to clarify the descent of the degrees of filling ZA and Malchut with
the Light of Hochma in the form of letter combinations, in the order of the
degrees’ descent from Above downwards. Mayim – water, Esh – fire, Ruach –
wind constitute the three lines in ZA from AVI. This is why the first letters in
ZA come from AVI.
Then the following combinations emerged: Aleph revealed Mem from its
right side, so Mem stands to the left line of Aleph. Mem revealed Shin as the
middle line, as Mem initially consists of the left line, for it exists in the form of a
concealed letter Mem in the word Elokim, which pertains to the left line, and so
forth. This is how all the letters of the Hebrew alphabet were born.