Updated 2.4.24
גַּל־עֵינַ֥י וְאַבִּ֑יטָה נִ֜פְלָא֗וֹת מִתּֽוֹרָתֶֽךָ
Uncover my eyes and I shall look at hidden things from Your Torah.
This type of material may be new to some, and parts of it a little tricky to understand. If you have comments or questions, please send email to behanu137@gmail.com.
Prior to examining the text, we’re going to look at some key themes and concepts and where they originated from. This is the first of several background articles. Be sure to check the footnotes at the bottom of each for explanations, links, and resources.
The text of Song of Songs centers around ‘relationship,’ including aspects of:
- Differentiation: The masculine-feminine dynamic
- Imbalance: Why the feminine is in a diminished role
- Separation: The cause of this and its multiple effects
- Return: The promise, desire, healing, actions required, and barriers faced
The first two points are the main focus of this article. The last two, separation and healing/return, are ultimately the point and purpose of the book, as well as this project we’ve undertaken.
There are several concepts, from ancient and primordial times, found in Torah literature that relate to the masculine-feminine character’s dynamic in Shir Hashirim.
There are three embedded in the Creation account:
- The original concept of separation, the light and darkness (Genesis 1:4)
- The two luminaries, one greater and one lesser (Genesis 1:16)
- The creation of Adam and Chava (Genesis 1:27)
We’re looking at three examples of the above:
- The G-dly emanations within existence called sefirot (1)
- The spiritual allegory surrounding the formation and function of the moon & sun
- The singularity and separation of Adam and Chava
1. Sefirot
The scope of this study does not include detailed exploration of all the “primordial elements.” We will refer to them briefly here. See the footnote section for resources.
The book of Genesis starts with a mysterious concept called “tohu and bohu” in the second verse – a type of emptiness or desolation. It is taught that several things occurred beforehand to bring us to that point, beginning with a ‘constriction’ (tsimtsum) whereby the ‘infinite’ singularity of ‘G-d’ (that which is transcendent to us) “made space” for a separated ‘finite’ existence/consciousness to come into being.
This is not ‘space’ in any physical sense as no such thing existed yet. A term for this is ‘makom’ which is a “space with no name” in the sense of nothing coming before it. The space or ‘place’ is the desire of the Creator.
This act of constriction continued through this new ‘existence’ in multiple phases – a lessening of the ‘light’ of G-d each time. This resulted in a set of ten emanations called ‘sefirot.’ Simply stated, these can be viewed as attributes of G-d, the “building blocks” of creation, as well as the “channels of spiritual energies” between the pre-existent aspect of G-d and the various levels of existence that would come into being (2).
From Nothingness to Wisdom and Understanding
The sefirot extend from “above to below” in order. The first one is called Keter/Crown. It represents the pure, undifferentiated singularity, “before existence.” (The transcendent/unknowable aspect of Hashem,) It is thus unique and separate from the rest of the Sefirot. (Just as a ‘crown’ represents something and is above the body and not part of it.)
Chokhmah/Wisdom proceeds from Keter. This is the “highest level” of G-d/reality we directly deal with. As Keter relates to the transcendent aspect of the Creator, it is called ‘nothing,’ thus:
Wisdom comes into being from ayin, nothing. (Job 28:12)
Chokhmah represents the immanent aspect of the Creator. (G-d that we pray to, read about, discuss, etc.) As ‘nothing’ came before Chokhmah, and nothing has yet proceeded from it, there is ‘nothing’ to compare Chokhmah to at this stage.
From Chokhmah emanates the sefirah of Binah/Understanding. Binah is in a ‘lesser’ capacity as it came into existence from the continued ‘diminishment’ of the Light, through Chokhmah. One way that this is expressed, is Binah being passively created in the ‘shadow’ of Chokhmah.
The term Chokhmah is made of two Hebrew root words, Koach and Mah. Koach means “potential.” Mah means “what is.” Whereas the energy of Chokhmah is very singular and non-specific, Binah is the opposite. It reacts to what it receives and brings definition to all that is contained within Chokhmah. Binah releases the ‘potential’ hidden in Chokhmah, opening the door for analysis, details, etc.
Chokhmah is the ‘father’ aspect of G-d within existence, and Binah is the ‘mother.’ They are the “male and female” foundation of the “Image of G-d” (Genesis 1:27), also called the “Upper Male/masculine and Female/feminine.”
So, from the earliest moment of ‘existence,’ we have the idea of proactive (‘masculine’) force followed by a reactive (‘feminine’) form, which was ‘lessened’ to provide a dynamic – one that is fundamental to everything that would follow in existence and the creation of our own world.
Why This Is Important
The difference between the qualities of Chokhmah and Binah offers the possibility of ‘relationship.’ If they were the same, all we would have is a state of undifferentiated perfection.
This pair of ‘opposites’ establishes the ‘binary’ or ‘dualistic’ nature of existence. We need this to be able to function, as the original constant flow of Chokhmah, prevents any other state to take form. This first example of “diminishment of the feminine” is central to understanding Shir Hashirim, our world and our own lives.
The idea of ‘diminishment’ in no way makes the feminine energy of Binah ‘inferior.’ Rather, Binah, deriving ‘from’ Chokhmah, contains own properties as well as those of the ‘singular’ masculine sefirah. One can even argue a ‘superiority’ of the feminine over the masculine — which as we will see has basis.
This section of the Zohar refers to Chokmah being ‘light,’ whereas Binah (having both elements) is called by a compound term, “darkness-light”:
Is there such a division between Father and Mother, that from the side of the Father, Man has been formed in the way of emanation, and from the side of the Mother in the way of creation?”… It is not so, since the Man of emanation was both male and female, from the side of both Father and Mother, and that is why it says, ‘And God said, Let there be light, and there was light’: let there be light from the side of the Father, and there was light from the side of the Mother; and this is the man of two faces. This ‘man’ has no ‘image and likeness’. Only the supernal Mother had a name combining light and darkness-light.
Zohar 1:22b
Importantly, the deliberate creation of ‘imperfection’ serves an even greater purpose. If there’s a flaw, the Creator has reason to intervene. This creates/is the ‘interface’ between He and us.
Let The Young Ones Fix It
This part is the most directly connected to the text of Shir Hashirim. As Binah provides the possibility of relationship through the creation of unique elements, it also offers that of unifying those elements. It is only through relationship that we can understand something or ourselves:
The Rebbe Rashab explains that true unity is not a homogeneous mass of virtually identical elements, like a pile of sand. On the contrary, true unity occurs when there is a collection of potentially disharmonious elements, and these disharmonious elements are synthesized so that their real underlying compatibility is revealed. The task of revealing potential underlying unity may be applied directly to the development of an intellectual concept. Initially, the concept is in a state of chokhmah (wisdom), undeveloped, just a simple point of a concept.
Dr. Tsvi Victor Saks
The story doesn’t end there. The diminishment from one sefirah to the next, extends all the way down to the last, Malkhut, which relates to our world. Malkhut is also associated with the Shekinah (divine presence), which is the concept of the “lower feminine” or “divine bride.” These are all connected to the feminine figure in the text of Shir Hashirim. (3)
As there is a lower feminine and bride, there is also a lower masculine and groom. The latter is represented by the six emanations between Binah and Malkhut. It is called “Ze’ir Anpin” which relates to the idea of “lower countenance.” This is the masculine figure in Shir Hashirim. (See chart at bottom of this article.)
The Shekinah relates to both, shachen, which is a ‘neighbor,’ and to shochen, meaning “to dwell within.” Thus, we have the feminine Shekinah “among and within us” with Malkhut, as well as in ‘proximity’ to the lower masculine world of Ze’ir Anpin.
The idea of “among and within” is reflected by the female in the text of Shir Hashirim. In some cases, she accepts blame directly and in others mentions the error of the people she is with.
There is a dynamic between this bride and groom, as there is between the upper mother and father. As we are associated with the bride, and as G-d has us playing a role in things, it is by effecting repair between the lower feminine (us, in this case) and lower masculine (representing G-d) that things are restored.
These Two Get Around
The male and female figures in Shir Hashirim, are longing to ‘connect’ and bring everything back together. This idea is found through Torah literature. (Thus, everything ‘connects’ to this central theme of Shir Hashirim.)
In siddurim (prayer books) it is common to find reference to our actions being associated with this unification of the bride and groom, with words such as this:
I hereby do this mitzvah for the sake of the unification of The Holy One, Blessed is He, and His Divine Presence, in fear and in love, to unify the Name of yud-h’eh with vav-h’eh in completion, in the name of the entire Jewish people.
Here, “The Holy One Blessed is He” (Hakadosh Baruch Hu) relates to Ze’ir Anpin, the groom. The first two letters of the 4-letter name (the Yud and the first Hey) relate to the father and mother aspects mentioned earlier. The Vav and second Hey in the name are the groom and bride.
- Yud = Father
- Hey = Mother
- Vav = Son or Groom, Zeir Anpin
- Hey = Daughter or Bride, Shekinah, Nukveh
NOTE: It is critical to understand that these are ONLY spiritual personae related to concepts, energies, etc., within the existence made by the Creator. There is but one G-d who in essence is a perfect singularity beyond description.
The concept of worship (‘avodah’) in Torah means the ‘work’ we do here to bring the groom and bride (also called ‘nukvah’) together, within ourselves and in the world. (Partzuf(im) = “spiritual personae” below):
The Purpose of Worshipping G-d is to Bring About the Coupling of Ze’ir Anpin and Nukvah. … All events in this world specifically rooted in Ze’ir Anpin and Nukvah. Therefore, in the patzufim Ze’ir Anpin and Nukvah lies the root of all the world’s creatures, and in them is the essence of the Guiding Power of the world in which we live. Everything that happens to the individual human is rooted in Ze’ir Anpin and therefore we must try to understand the different aspects of the partzuf, so that we can understand the ways of the Creator … The Ze’ir Anpin and the Nukvah are the root of the world we live in. Therefore, the behavior of mankind will find the same conditions as the Ze’ir Anpin and the Nukva.
Yedid Nefesh (Song of the Soul), Rabbi Yecheil Bar-Lev
Our world is ‘governed,’ and the third temple arrives, through the relationship of the groom and bride (another theme to Shir Hashirim, which has several veiled temple references):
The central focus in much of the Kabbalah is on the Patzufim of Zeir Anpin and Nukvah, and their interrelationship. This is because it is primarily between these two Partzufim that the world in which we live in is governed.
Secrets of the Future Temple, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato
These are not just “lofty ideas.” They are deeply personal and relate to our ability to connect to G-d:
The flow of divine power stimulated by the uniting of Ze’ir Anpin and Nukvah (groom and bride) in the course of contemplation constitutes the source of the inspiration that the successful adept attains … Uniting the partzufim of Ze’ir and Nukvah contemplatively infuses an individual with divine inspiration and enables him to speak with words of prophecy.
Physician of the Soul, Healer of the Cosmos, Isaac Luria and His Kabbalistic Fellowship, Lawrence Fine
Other examples show how important this idea is, which hints to the relevance of Shir Hashirim in every part of life. (4)
What is also interesting (and will be discussed in another article) is that even the Creator’s “timing of things” is based around these concepts:
All reality during the six thousand years of the world’s existence is rooted in the partzuf Ze’ir Anpin.
Yedid Nefesh (Song of the Soul), Rabbi Yecheil Bar-Lev
2. The Two Luminaries: Moon and Sun
The second example is another one “behind the scenes” of the Genesis account.
And God made the two great luminaries: the great luminary to rule the day and the lesser luminary to rule the night, and the stars.
Genesis 1:16
In this allegory, the moon brings up the fact that it and the sun were both “great luminaries” as the Torah itself states in the first part of this verse. The moon correctly realized you can’t have “two bosses,” so it raised the issue with G-d, who tells the moon to go make itself ‘lesser’ than the sun, to which the moon starts to raise questions of fairness. G-d discusses these with the moon, and at the end, acknowledges the validity of her arguments and considers making atonement for His own actions of diminishing its light!
As the story goes:
Simeon b. Pazzi pointed out a contradiction [between verses]. One verse says: And God made the two great lights, and immediately the verse continues: The greater light . . . and the lesser light. The moon said unto the Holy One, blessed be He, “Sovereign of the Universe! Is it possible for two kings to wear one crown”? He answered: “Go then and make thyself smaller”. “Sovereign of the Universe”! cried the moon, “Because I have suggested that which is proper must I then make myself smaller”? He replied: “Go and thou wilt rule by day and by night”. “But what is the value of this”? cried the moon; “Of what use is a lamp in broad daylight”? He replied: “Go. Israel shall reckon by thee the days and the years”. “But it is impossible”, said the moon, “to do without the sun for the reckoning of the seasons, as it is written: And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years”. “Go. The righteous shall be named after thee as we find, Jacob the Small, Samuel the Small, David the Small”, On seeing that it would not be consoled the Holy One, blessed be He, said: “Bring an atonement for Me for making the moon smaller”. This is what was meant by R. Simeon b. Lakish when he declared: Why is it that the he-goat offered on the new moon is distinguished in that there is written concerning it unto the Lord? Because the Holy One, blessed be He, said: Let this he-goat be an atonement for Me for making the moon smaller.
Talmud Chulin 60b
After calling the lights ‘great’ God goes back and makes them flawed? “The greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night.” Why is that?! … God acted thus because one trespassed upon the realm of her fellow luminary. Rabbi Pinchas said: in respect of all other sacrifices it is said, ‘”one male goat for a sin offering,” whereas in respect of the New Moon it is said, “one male goat for a sin offering unto the Lord.” Said the Blessed Holy One, “May I attain atonement because I made the moon smaller.” I am the one Who has caused the moon to trespass into the realm of her counterpart. (This comment is in relation to the moon being seen during the day at times.)
Genesis Rabbah 6.3
Of course, the Creator isn’t actually ‘atoning’ for anything He did. This is simply the language of Jewish spiritual texts. (Plus, this was “all part of the plan.”) What this is really about is that each month, when the new moon arrives, Israel was to bring a sacrifice to G-d that reminded them that things in this world “are not as they are supposed to be.”
It also reflects that He participates in the sorrow of His people. The good news in this is that there will come a day when things will be restored to what they were before, and that promise is in writing. (5)
The moon’s light remains as powerful as that of the sun, however it is ‘veiled’ for the time being:
And the light of the moon shall be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold as the light of the seven days, on the day the Lord shall bind the fracture of His people, and the stroke of their wound He shall heal.
Isaiah 30:26
The diminishment goes back to the previous idea of Binah being ‘lesser’ than Chokmah in order for there to be relationship and the presence of G-d to manifest. The dynamic between the male and female characters in Shir Hashirim centers around this.
The following mystical text compares the face of the moon to our own faces — establishing the connection between the Shekinah (divine presence) and the people of G-d:
According to the way of secret the rabbis, blessed be their memory, said, “If Israel merited to receive the face of the Shekhinah only one time every month, it would have been enough for them.”… You already know that the physical moon and sun, which are visible, are in the pattern of the spiritual sun and moon. Just as the physical moon receives from the light of the sun, and sometimes it is revealed and sometimes hidden, sometimes it is full and sometimes wanting, and it is small in size in relation to the sun… so are the moon and sun in actuality above in the supernal world. Therefore, the ritual of sanctification of the month was given to Israel, [for it is] like the betrothal of the bridegroom and the bride…. Know that by means of sanctifying the moon and the intercalation of the year below the bride who is comprised of [of all] above is sanctified and she is joined to her husband, and from this union the new, pure souls of the righteous and pious burst forth into this world as well as the groups of angels of lovingkindness and mercy…. That the physical moon is in the pattern of the spiritual moon is attested by the fact that if you contemplate the face of the moon when it is full you will see in it something like the form of a human. I asked the sages who gaze upon the stars [concerning this phenomenon] and not one of them knows the reason or explanation. In my opinion it is an allusion to what the rabbis, blessed be their memory, said, “the form of Jacob, our father, is engraved on the throne of glory.” The throne is the name of the last attribute, the Matrona, and the form of Jacob is Jacob the elder, the secret of the king who sits on the throne. He dwells in her midst and is united with her, betroths her and illuminates her face. As an allusion to this the form of a human face is inscribed on the physical moon.
David ben Solomon ibn Abi Zimra, Mesudat David, 24b-d
All of which is directly connected to the physical entities of existence:
When Hashem diminished the moon, the feminine in all its forms and all its inhabitants plunged into exile. Woman was most drastically affected, for all of her pertains to the moon.
Kabbalistic Writings on the Nature of Masculine & Feminine, Sarah Yehudit Schneider
Having said all of this, there is also the view that the moon has a type of superiority over the sun:
Jacob ben Jacob ha-Kohen in Castille … reports that it was said that the Moon “understands the knowledge of our Creator” more than the Sun does, and the light of the Moon is more beneficial to our eyes than that of the sun. The Moon is the luminary that is connected to the Jewish nations and to redemption.
The Privileged Divine Feminine in Kabbalah, Moshe Idel
3. Chavah/Eve and Adam
Our third example, is the most relatable, though it maintains a very mystical aspect to it:
The creation story of Adam and Eve serves as their primary point of interface. Both the human and archetypal find their story told in this enigmatic take about the origin of humanity and the roots of gender … Kabbalah explains however, that although the first chapters of Genesis did literally happen, and as real events, they transpired on an entirely different plane of reality than what we experience as the physical world today.
Kabbalistic Writings on the Nature of Masculine & Feminine, Sarah Yehudit Schneider
The midrash on Genesis uses highly metaphorical language regarding the original adam in Genesis 1 (called ‘ha-adam’, meaning “the adam”). This adam ism depicted as a singular entity that had a male and female side, which would result in separate male and female entities.
When the Holy One, blessed be He, created Adam, He created him a hermaphrodite, for it is said, Male and female created He them and called their name Adam (Gen. 5:2). R. Samuel b. Nahman said: When the Lord created Adam, He created him double-faced, then He split him and made him of two backs, one back on this side and one back on the other side. To this it is objected: But it is written, And He took one of his ribs, etc. (Gen. 2:21)? [Mi-zalothaw means] one of his sides, replied he, as you read, And for the second side (zela’) of the tabernacle (Ex. 26:20).
Midrash Rabbah Bereshith 8:1
Adam and Chavah first co-existed within ‘ha-adam’ (‘the adam’) reflecting the proactive and reactive aspects of Chokhmah and Binah mentioned earlier.
When Eve is formed separately, she is called “ezer kenegdo” (often translated ‘helpmate’) which is best interpreted as something “in opposition to, but for the benefit of,” her male counterpart. They existed as co-equal opposites. (Refer back to Chokhmah and Binah at the beginning of this article.)
Their picking of the ‘fruit’ of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Bad, is the first mention of the separation of the Shekinah (the female in Shir Hashirim):
Then came primordial man and sinned, ruining the system, plundering the channels, causing the water from the pools, (the BReiCHot) to cease, and the Shekinah fled. Thus the package became unraveled.
Sha’are Orah (gate 1) Rabbi Yosef Gikatilla
As the Gan Edan story goes, the woman pays the price for listening to the serpent by having her status diminished (Gen. 3:16). This is the first account in the Bible that reflects the previous ideas surrounding the sefirot and the two luminaries. The “lowered status” of the feminine is a temporary construct that will begin to change back to its original one as we approach the messianic age – The “elevation of the feminine.” This will bring us to a point when all is restored.
The promised goal and messianic ideal is for woman to integrate the perfection of both scales — to achieve a non-dependent front-to-front relationship of absolute equality with man. Her step-wise journey from abject diminishment to self-realization…
Kabbalistic Writings on the Nature of Masculine & Feminine, Sarah Yehudit Schneider
It is taught that from the time of the expulsion to the messianic age is 6,000 years. (6) These six millennia refer to the six sefirot of the masculine/groom. These are the primary sefirot that we “work on,” reflecting Adam’s own ‘toil’ he is relegated to (Gen 3:17).
All of these spiritual repairs directly relate to the people and G-d.
By following some earlier traditions, however, many Kabbalists developed a theory that assumes the existence of a linkage between the national redemption and the redemption of the divine power that participates in the vicissitudes of the Jewish people, the Shekhinah. This approach is found in the theosophical-theurgical Kabbalah, where the unification of the feminine divine presence with the male divine powers was considered to be part of the process of redemption of both the divine realm and the world. In this category I propose to include also the views, found in Safedian Kabbalah, both in its Cordoverian form dealing with the rescue of the sparks of the Shekhinah, or in Lurianic sources dealing with the sparks of Adam Kadmon, by means of performing the commandments, an activity known as tikun, or repair.
Multiple Forms of Redemption in Kabbalah and Hasidim, Moshe Idel, Jewish Quarterly Review, Volume 101, Number 1
What is fascinating with the above, is that the ‘7th’ is/was separated from the six — the Shekinah (7th) separated from the make (the six). The Zohar turns things “inside out” (as it often does) and says it was Adam who “kicked out” the Shekinah:
We all know the famous story near the beginning of Genesis about the expulsion from the Garden of Eden. It’s clear that God expels Adam and Eve from the garden. But the Zohar asks a startling question: Who threw whom out of the Garden? Through a very artistic and radical reading of the text, the Zohar suggests that Adam expelled God from the Garden! This seems impossible or heretical. But one way to understand this is that in some sense we’re still in the Garden — we just don’t realize it because we’ve lost touch with the spiritual dimension of life. The challenge is to reconnect with the divine reality that we have banished from our lives, to welcome God back in. (7)
Daniel Matt, An Evening With the Zohar
The ability to reunite these separated opposites lies within each person:
But our unity, and all the blessings that flows from it, can only begin when we recognize that we are not just opposites, but complimentary opposites. As you are also me, I need your perception to know the full depth of my own. That other perspective we wrestle with, that other voice, that seemingly diametrically-opposed sensitivity, must also be witnessed, embraced, and integrated, so we can once again expand and return into our full self, and step into our destiny. To experience the depth of all we have carried and have collectively experienced through this long dark exile, I must see you to see myself. I must feel you to feel myself. To feel the fullness of all there is, and of who we are, together.
Rabbi Doniel Katz
It all starts with us:
The redemption of the individual sparks is another example of the individual redemption that precedes both the redemption of the Shekhinah and the general redemption.
Multiple Forms of Redemption in Kabbalah and Hasidim, Moshe Idel, Jewish Quarterly Review, Volume 101, Number 1
DYNAMICS
The concept of geula b’rachamim (a merciful redemption) … Rachamim (compassion, mercy) actually is a revelation of the higher reality – the source of all the things, that ends up uniting opposites. Usually, we talk about rachamim in relation to the Sefirah of Tiferet – a perfect blend of Chesed and Gevurah … Tiferet finds the common ground between Chesed and Gevurah and harmonizes it and blends it. Tiferet as rachamim manifests through it .. It’s actually the revelation of the Source that’s beyond both of them that’s bringing all of the things into existence. When we’re asking for rachamim we’re asking for the revelation of the higher Source of where everything is coming from – we see through all the coverings and the stringencies, and you understand the soul processes that are playing out and what’s going, and you can turn face to face with what’s really happening from the perspective of the soul and the needs of the soul.
Ani Lipitz, Helping Each Other Through the Home Stretch (Stream of 1.16.24)
Here is a table with comparisons between spiritual elements related to Shir Hashirim:
| BESTOWAL | RECEPTION |
| Man | Woman |
| Hashem | Shekinah/Israel |
| Hashem | The Soul |
| Masculine | Feminine |
| Groom | Bride |
| Ze’ir Anpin | Nukveh |
| Son | Daughter |
| World of Yetzirah | World of Asiyah |
| Soul Level of Ruach | Soul Level of Nefesh |
| Sun | Moon |
| Hashem | Elohim |
| Written Torah | Oral Torah |
| Proactive | Reactive |
| Light | Vessel |
| The 6 Weekdays | Shabbat |
| Jacob | Rachel |
| Spiritual Realms | World of Human Action |
Notes and Links
(1) Regarding the original vessels and emanations of the sefirot, see the free course at https://aish.com/kabbala_1_what_is_kabbala/ and also https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380568/jewish/Shattered-Vessels.htm
(2) There are two main ‘templates’ relating to the process of the Creation.
A.) There are four “Worlds of Existence” One emanating from the next, each with its own particular properties. The first, called Atzilut (nearness) is that of the sefirot. The next, Beriah (creation) is that of the heavenly temple and divine forces/powers governing the rest of creation. After this is Yetzirah (formation) which is the angelic realm and the ladder in Jacob’s dream. The last is Asiyah (making) which is that of our present ‘physical’ existence.
B.) Within each of these four worlds are a set of ten emanations of G-d called sefirot. They function in different capacities within each of these worlds, but hold a common root, which began in the higher world of Atzilut.
(3) Shekinah relates to both, shachen, which is a ‘neighbor,’ and to shochen, meaning “to dwell within.” The word and concept are ‘feminine.’ Shekinah can present itself as bride, mother, daughter or sister, depending on context. Further, the term is synonymous with another feminine one, “Ruach HaKodesh” (Holy or Separated Spirit)
(4) For more on the four worlds of Existence see: https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/361902/jewish/The-Four-Worlds.htm
(4) The idea of connection between the “divine bride and groom” and multiple elements in Torah (and in our world), is foundational to the aspect healing:
- THE SHEMA: http://www.yeshshem.com/kabbalah-prayer-shemah.htm
- PASSOVER: https://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/02/a-melody-before-the-seders-cups-of-wine.html
-
TZINIUS/MODESTY: https://www.hidush.co.il/hidush.asp?id=5815
-
ACTIVE & PASSIVE COMMANDMENTS: https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380100/jewish/Mystical-Mitzvahs-Active-and-Passive.htm
- SHABBAT & HONORING PARENTS: https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380245/jewish/Honoring-the-Masculine-and-Feminine.htm
(5) For a more in-depth look at the Moon ‘arguing’ with G-d, see Kiddush Levana: ‘Of What Use is a Candle in Broad Daylight?’
(6) According to the sage Shlomo Elyashiv (the Leshem), based on the Zohar the messianic age will begin 210 years prior to the 6.000 year mark. (Approximately 2030.) See Ingathering of the Exiles by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.
(7) For Daniel Matt’s spoken comments, see his presentation in An Evening With the Zohar. For a view of the text from that, see Project: Genesis 3 – who dumped whom?
How you can take part in the Shir Hashirim Project!
At the moment (before dealing with the text) we have four “background articles.” As people contribute more information and ideas, there may be more articles, including breaking up these four into separate pieces. This is the first phase of the project.
- Read the four background articles, then read the text of Shir Hashirim (or the other way around) to see what thoughts come to mind.
- Use the search terms (below) and your imagination to find relevant ideas.
- If something connects to anything you have read, or videos you’ve seen, send us the link with what to look for. Please state where the specific reference is in the article/video as time does not permit long reads/views.
- If what you are thinking of is an original concept or theme, write to us here or visit our Facebook group to post, and explain what you are pondering and we will go from there!
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KEY SEARCH TERMS FOR THIS ARTICLE: Sun, Moon, Malkhut, Malchut, Shekinah, Tiferet, Luminaries, Garden of Eden, Gan Edan, serpent, nachash, tree of knowledge, Sefirot, Adam, Eve, Chava, Keter, Crown, Light, Darkness, sefirot, binary, existence, bride, groom, Ze’ir Anpin, feminine, masculine, Zohar, mother, father, divine, nukveh, Rachel, Jacob, Binah, Chokhmah
