Welcome to Our Matrix Kabbalah Crash Course
If you missed the intro page, CLICK HERE to read it first, as it has some good information.
Yes, this is a course of learning – a fun one – unlike anything you’ve ever encountered. We’re taking a lot of information, spanning centuries, and filtering it through the Matrix films. This will not only radically change your view of the Matrix, it will also, “free your mind,” regarding much more about life.
In this Knowledge Base, we will show how the concepts taught in kabbalistic writings provide the framework for everything in the Matrix story. Before getting into the character profiles and ideas from the Matrix movies, we’re presenting some key ideas in the form of ‘templates.’ Kabbalah is very structured and logical, and diagrams are an effective way to convey ideas.
Take your time and please feel free to reach out to us at info@matrix4humans.com with any comments, questions or suggestions.
We recommend following all of the articles in the Knowledge Base in the sequence presented as new concepts connect back to the previous ones we discuss.
The Two Main Templates in Kabbalah
How’s this for starters?
There are two templates that provide the framework for everything there is to know about existence.
They apply to The Matrix as follows:
- The Structure: There are five levels or ‘worlds’ related to existence. These correspond to the five ‘levels’ in the Matrix story, that Neo experiences, as we will explain.
- What’s inside the structure: There are ten ’emanations’ that exist within and ‘animate’ these worlds. These relate to the Matrix characters and what they say and do.
In this section, we deal with the structure and five worlds/levels. Metaphorically, these can be viewed from the “top-down” or “bottom-up.” As we will show, these relate in a specific way to the Matrix, especially the “Path of the One.”
In the Matrix movies, these are (from the “top-down”):
- The world of the Source
- The world of the Architect
- The world of the Oracle
- The Program world
- The Matrix world
In our Matrix Resurrections articles in the Knowledge Base, we will introduce how the films also follow a kabbalistic timeline that relates to our own world.
The Structure of Creation and the Matrix
“God could have created anything any way He wanted. But He wanted the people in this world to have a relationship with Him. To understand according to the logic and reasoning that God Himself created. He did it with a structure … so we could understand it … so we could retrace the steps and connect. … The structure of existence is defined by very clear, delineated and defined parameters.”
Rabbi Simon Jacobson, “Tanya Applied: What Is Atzilus?”
Kabbalistic concepts are found in every religion, philosophy, science, the arts, etc. The Bible is the primary text of their expression. We will first look at a few important ideas expressed there.
Relating to the structure of the Matrix, our first template is found in the first words of its opening sentence:
“In the beginning, God created …” (from Genesis 1:1)
Seems pretty straightforward, does it not? You have a Creator and a ‘creation.’ Kabbalah takes this further, showing that there are other aspects to both.
The Matrix is Our ‘Physical’ World
To facilitate understanding, we’re starting from the “bottom-up” as the upper worlds are increasingly complex. The key thing to know from the onset is that we are not talking about “physical space or measurement” when terms such as “above and below” or “top and bottom” are used.
The differentiation is only one of concealment and revelation of “divine light.” This is important regarding the “path of the One” through the movies, as we will discuss later.
We will address the three lowest worlds together, as collectively they make up what is known as ‘creation.’
They are called (with their kabbalistic Hebrew terms, and Matrix connection, next to them):
- Creation – Beriah (the world of the Oracle)
- Formation – Yetzirah (the program world)
- Making – Asiyah (the Matrix world)
Beginning “at the bottom” (Asiyah) we have the ‘physical’ world we live in. This includes all we experience with our senses, as well as everything revealed at the end of a telescope or a microscope. It also includes the dimensions of time and space.
The other two worlds within creation (and beyond) are initially hidden from us. Thus, our world is called the “World of Concealment.”
This is what the Matrix world corresponds to throughout the three movies. Humanity is unaware that there are programs, the Oracle, etc.
In each case, when we “look around us,” we are fooled into thinking, this is all there is to ‘reality,’ This is the first correlation to understand.
As Morpheus says to Neo,
“It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes.”
There’s More Than Meets the Eye
The next world (Yetzirah) is an “in-between” one that functions to connect our physical existence to the upper realms. This middle world is also called the ‘angelic’ world.
The word for angel in the Biblical Hebrew text, malach, means ‘messenger.’ They are the go-between entities that convey information between below and above, and also initiate action, down to the smallest degree.
In the Matrix story, this ‘middle’ world relates to the programs which keep the Matrix functioning properly. The Oracle explains this to Neo in the park bench scene in The Matrix Reloaded. (More on all of this in another article.)
Finally, we have the ‘uppermost’ world (Beriah) within creation which is purely spiritual existence. This is what people call ‘heaven’ or “the heavenly realm” in different traditions. (Remember, ‘heaven’ is not the universe, planets, etc. All of that was part of the lowest ‘physical’ realm discussed above.)
This is also called the world of what is called ‘forces’ or ‘powers’ in kabbalah. What emanates from here serves the purpose of directing everything in the two worlds below – the program world and the Matrix.
This higher world “within creation,” corresponds to that of the Oracle, with whom the ‘freed’ humans make contact. As we will see, she is ultimately the connection between the Matrix and the Source.
Up and Down We Go
The above framework is found in the account of a dream that the Biblical character Jacob had. (This is found in Genesis chapter 28) In it, he saw himself in the lower, earthly world, with angels going up and down a ladder that connected to the spiritual heavens. He also saw some “image of God” above those three levels. (We get to that shortly.)
This idea of a “connection” between “below and above,” (between the Matrix world and the Source), is fundamental to the entire “Path of the One” and is discussed throughout the Knowledge Base.
To recap, the entirety of what is referred to as, ‘creation,’ is considered to be made up of three ‘worlds’ as follows:
- The upper ‘heavenly’ world (the Oracle)
- The in-between world of messengers/angels (the programs)
- The ‘physical’ world we see around us (the Matrix)
Before continuing, have a peek at the diagram below. Here we show the five levels, as they relate to the Matrix, including the critical entity Neo meets (which we also explain more of later). For now, Trinity was his first ‘connection’ while still “lost in the Matrix,” while Morpheus was his first true exposure to learning about reality beyond the Matrix.
These worlds, in order, are actually depicted in the very beginning of Matrix Revolutions, as we show in our Knowledge Base. We have a few steps before we get to that!
Returning to the Genesis verse.
“In the beginning, God (‘Elohim’) created …” (from Genesis 1:1)
The Biblical narrative begins with the worlds of creation we just mentioned. Prior to that point, all that ‘existed’ was what we can conceive of as ‘God’ in terms of the ‘Creator.’
There is a world of ‘existence’ that is ‘beyond’ or ‘before’ this creation account. It is called ‘Atzilut’ meaning ‘nearness’ — as in close to the ‘true’ Source. It is called the world of ’emanation.’
This world relates to the “Image of God” that Jacob saw “above heaven” in his dream and is briefly alluded to in Genesis 1:27.
Note that the term and idea of ‘image’ is not ‘God’ in essence. It is the level at which people relate to ‘God.’ It is the idea of God as immanent or “within Existence.” Something we can comprehend with our intellect, which is also ‘restricted’ to that within Existence.
This world of emanation is where the infinite and finite ‘meet’:
The world of Atzilut is the interface, the intermediary between the Infinite divine light of the Source, of the Emanator to the creatures. For there to be the revelation of the divine light in the world … Atzilut is that interface, it has part of both. It speaks the language of the divine and speaks the language of the creation. It has structure, but it’s a divine structure.
Ayin Beis, Existence Unplugged, Chapter 6: The Purpose of Atzilus, Rabbi Simon Jacobson
As mentioned, this world is very different than the three within Creation. It is a composite unity (‘echad’) of all the things that will next manifest as “separate” within the next world of ‘Creation’. (This is where we draw similarity to the “Big Bang” theory in science!)
The essential distinction between (the world of) emanation, and (the three worlds of) creation, formation & making, is that the reality of disparateness and multiplicity is in the worlds of creation, formation & making, as opposed to perfect unity in the world of emanation.
Song of the Soul, Yechiel Bar-Lev
The spiritual emanations (attributes of the Creator) called ‘sefirot’ first emanate in the world of Atzilut:
Atzilut is a spiritual world that has a structure of ten spheres, ten manifestations. Which is a parallel to and a mirror image of how it is in our bodies. We’re also made up of ten faculties. Atzilut is higher than finite expressions. In our human structure everything is finite. … In Atzilut however, even though there are defined faculties, they don’t have the same parameters. They have an element of unlimited parameters. In Atzilut, the spheres extend infinitely.
Ayin Beis, Existence Unplugged, Chapter 5: Atzilus, Rabbi Simon Jacobson
In the Matrix story, Atzilut is the world of the Architect. We see this in his fixation on ‘perfection,’ as he mentioned to Neo, and the purpose of “balancing the equation” as the Oracle mentioned.
The Architect is beyond the Matrix and program worlds, and that of the Oracle. He calls himself ‘father’ and the creator,’ yet he himself was created. (We address this in his Character Profile.)
When compared to the text from Genesis 1, shown above, the Architect is the concept of “God/Creator,” in the Bible’s text, which is within existence — that which we can “relate to.” But there is much more to ‘God’ than what we can comprehend.
The four worlds of Atzilut, Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiya are collective called the Four Worlds of Existence.
This brings us to our final destination – the ‘Source.’
The Hidden World That is Not a World
That which is ‘beyond’ Atzilut/Existence is so much more sublime, that it is not called a ‘world’ within kabbalah. This is considered “pre-existence.”
Think of it as, “reality before Genesis 1:1”. This relates to what is considered the transcendent aspect of God — that which we cannot directly comprehend in any way.
One way to reference this is perfect ‘singularity’ with nothing to ‘define.’ We cannot truly ‘describe’ this in any way as our own thoughts can only relate to things “within existence” that can be defined.
When referring to this, we do our best to carefully use terms that can give us some basic ideas, which are derived ‘indirectly’ from that which emanated from it into Existence.
This distinction between the immanent and transcendent aspects of God helps in understanding the Matrix properly. Whereas the Architect is the ‘creator’ relating to all programs and the Matrix, this higher reality relates to “the Source.”
This is the ‘true Creative force’ outside the existence of the Architect, other programs and the Matrix, whom none of the characters can relate to from within their existence. Not even the Architect properly understands the Source. They all just know there is something beyond, called “the Source.”
Click here for an excellent short video on these two aspects of “the Creator.” If some of the language is confusing, don’t worry – just go through this Knowledge Base then come back to it.
Something Called ‘Tsimtsum’
The path from pure singularity, through the worlds of existence/creation, down to our physical reality, is one of a series of ‘restrictions’ (or ‘constrictions’) of the original ‘light’ of the Creator.
The term for such restriction is tsimtsum (also spelled ‘tzimtzum’). It is one of the most critical concepts in kabbalah.
Putting it another way, tsimtsum is the mechanism that connects the ‘infinite God’ with finite existence, extending through all of its ‘descending’ worlds of existence.
As we will discuss later, the tsimtsum and ‘change’ from the level of singularity/pre-existence to the first level existence (before ‘creation’) is the first and greatest tsimtsum. It is unlike any subsequent restrictions, as we are going from “no-thing-ness to some-thing.”
All subsequent changes “within existence,” are like ripples in a pond, after the rock was thrown into the water. Hold that thought for now as this impacts how we view reality – as well as the essence of the Matrix story.
The Construct of the Matrix Reality
So here is a summary of our first template as related to the chart above. It shows how the five worlds correlate to the Matrix and what Neo’s main ‘connection’ is at each level.
We’re going from the top-down this time:
- At the ‘top’ is the Source, which is outside any direct connection to the humans or programs. In the storyline, the Source relates to the ultimate and unseen original creative force. This is the idea of, “What was before Genesis 1:1?” It produced the Architect.
- Next is the “composite unity” world of the Architect, who functions as the ‘creator’ of the Matrix and program worlds, and who himself was created from the Source. He explains more about the Oracle.
- From there comes the World of the Oracle, who ‘followed’ the Architect, and who has a direct connection to those in the Matrix who have been ‘freed.’ She explains more about the programs and Morpheus.
- We then have the world of the programs. This is associated with Morpheus, as he explains the “rules of the Matrix” to Neo.
- Finally, we have The Matrix, the World of Concealment. Trinity is Neo’s first contact here, “from beyond.”
Another Template of Five in Kabbalah
So far so good. We are one-third the way through our “crash course!”
This first template gave us a view of the basic construct of the Matrix movies as they relate to kabbalistic teachings. It sets the stage for what follows. Once you understand this, the rest falls into place.
Before moving to the second template, we’re going to take a look at another application of the current one. This template is called the five dimensions or levels of the soul. It relates directly to the five worlds of existence we just discussed, as these levels are also the path back to the Source.
The path back is one of an increase in consciousness/spiritual advancement. These steps are also preceded by some type of tsimtsum. False views of reality must be ‘restricted’ in order to allow room for the truth.
Tsimtsum is important in understanding Neo’s advancement through the movies on the “Path of the One” and where all of this is going in The Matrix Resurrections.
NOTE: There are arrow buttons on the sides of the page (appearing in MOST browsers) to move through the Knowledge Base. Articles are in an order designed to be helpful, beginning with a few Introductory ones on critical main concepts.
