THE SEFIROT OF EMANATION BECOME DIVINITY ONLY AFTER THE LIGHT OF THE EN SOF BECOMES CLOTHED

    In order to avoid error we must emphasize that the reality of the ten sefirot of emanation is not Divine in itself, since they emanated for the purpose of creating the world and can only be described as Divine through the concept of the light of En Sof in them. That is to say, only after the light of the En Sof united with them were they made one and actually Divine. Elijah stated, “Were You to leave them, they would remain desolate, like a body without a soul.” This means that if the Source of Emanation were to remove His essence, the sefirot would remain like a body without a soul Indeed, the act of creation brought unity between the light of En Sof and the sefirot of emanation in order to create the world. From then on, that unity remained in its perfection and the name HVYH is proclaimed in the spheres of emanation: the letter yud in the sefira of chochma (wisdom), the letter hey in the sefira of bina (understanding), the letter vav in the six spheres whose initials are ChaGaT NeHiY and the letter hey in the sefira of malchut (kingdom).₃₀

THE WORLDS OF CREATION, FORMATION AND MAKING

    Since the Creator, Blessed be He, wished to continue the process of hishtalshalut and wanted the light of His ratzon to be revealed to all, he produced illuminations, each inferior to the former so that they would be appropriate for “disparate creations,” i.e., inferior creatures. The totality of these illuminations form the worlds of creation, formation and making.
    After the world of emanation was emanated, ten sparks descended from the world of emanation from which emerged ten whole sefirot which comprise the world of creation. This world was called “the world of the throne,” which is, as it were, the throne of emanation.
    Earlier, we stated that in the light of the En Sof, there are no distinctions because it is an absolute unity. The differences between the lights emerging from the world of emanation and those emerging from the worlds of creation, formation and making can be explained by the idea that the light of En Sof lights up the world of emanation through the sefira of chochma (wisdom). Since this is a very pure sphere, the light emerging from it is the actual light which enters it, so that the light in the sefirot of emanation is actual Divinity. In contrast, the light reaching the world of creation passes through the sefira of bina (understanding), and since it is not as pure as chochma, it becomes a kind of screen and the light emerging from it is inferior to the light which entered it. The light reaching the world of formation passes through yet another screen, the sefira of tiferet (beauty), which is not even as pure as bina. Therefore, we find that the light reaching the world of formation passes through two screens, and its light is still more inferior. So it is with making, since its light reaches it through the sefira of malchut, which is least pure of all, and the light in the universe is most inferior of all.
    Thus, the world of emanation is considered in the context of the sefira of chochma, that is, recipient of the light of the En Sof through the sefira of chochma. The world of creation is thought of in the context of the sefira of bina, a world which receives the illumination of the En Sof through the screen of the sefira of bina. The Ari wrote: “Indeed, in Creation the light of chochma does not spread out at all, only the light of bina.” In summary, the light of the En Sof spreads out and takes control of all worlds, but the light in the world of creation is like shade compared to the light of the En Sof shining in the world of emanation.
    Our rabbis drew an analogy for us: This may be compared to a rabbi and his student. The talented student analyzes the rabbi’s words on their own terms. The less talented student requires analogies and examples. An analogy given by the rabbi is like a screen, for it is not the actual material learned, and it separates, as it were, the source of the rabbi’s education from the student. The weaker student grasps a different essence from that which the rabbi gives, whereas the more talented student grasps the essence of the rabbi’s words. The analog is that the light of the En Sof reaches the world of emanation without a screen, and the Divine essence itself as compared to the light which reaches the worlds of creation, formation and making as a light which is not essence, i.e., it is not true Divinity.₃₁

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