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The Kabbalah Unveiled

By S.L. Macgregor Mathers

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Concerning the Father and Mother

218. COME and behold. When the Most Holy Ancient One, the Concealed with all Concealments, desired to be formed forth, He conformed all things under the form of Male and Female; and in such place wherein Male and Female are comprehended.

219. For they could not permanently exist save in another aspect of the Male and the Female (their countenances being joined together).

220. And this Wisdom embracing all things, when it goeth forth and shineth forth from the Most Holy Ancient One, shineth not save under the form of Male and Female.

221. Therefore is this Wisdom extended, and it is found that it equally becometh Male and Female.

222. ChKMH AB BINH AM, Chokmah Ab Binah Am: Chokmah 1 is the Father, and Binah is the Mother, and therein are Chokmah, Wisdom, and Binah, Understanding, counterbalanced together in most perfect equality of Male and Female.

223. And therefore are all things established in the equality of Male and Female; for were it not so, how could they subsist!

224. This beginning is the Father of all things; the Father of all Fathers; and both are mutually bound together, and the one path shineth into the other--Chokmah, Wisdom, as the Father; Binah, Understanding, as the Mother.

225. It is written, Prov. ii. 3: "If thou callest Binah the Mother."

226. When They are associated together They generate, and are expanded in truth.

2227. In the teaching of the school of Rav Yeyeva the Elder it is thus taught: "What is Binah the Mother of Understanding?" Truly when They are mutually associated together.

228. Assuredly Yod, I, impregnateth the letter He, H, and produceth a Son, and She herself bringeth Him forth. 1

229. And therefore is it called BINH, as if (it were a transposition of) BINH, Ben Yah, Son of IH (or I, Yod, H, He, and BN, the Son).

230. But They both are found to he the perfection of all things when They are associated together, and when the Son is in Them the Syntagma of all things findeth place.

231. For in Their conformations are They found to be the perfection of all things--Father and Mother, Son, and Daughter.

232. These things have not been revealed save unto the Holy Superiors who have entered therein and departed therefrom, and have known the paths of the Most Holy. God (may He be blessed!), so that they have not erred in them either on the right hand or on the left.

233. For thus it is written, Hos. xiv. 9: "The paths of Tetragrammaton are true, and the just shall walk in them," &c.

235. For these things are concealed, and the Holy Highest Ones shine in them, like as light proceedeth from the shining of a lantern.

236. These things are not revealed save unto those who have entered therein and departed therefrom; for as for him who hath not entered therein and departed therefrom, better were it for him that he had never been born.

237. For it hath been manifested before the Most Holy Ancient One, the Concealed with all Concealments, because these things have shone into mine heart in the perfection of the love and fear of the Most Holy God, may He be blessed!

238. And these, my sons, who are here present, know these things; for into these matters have they entered and therefrom have they departed; but neither yet into all (the secrets of them). 1

239. But now are these things illustrated in (their) perfection, even as it was necessary. Blessed be my portion with them in this world!

240. Rabbi Schimeon said: All which I have said concerning the Most Holy Ancient One, and all which I have said concerning Microprosopus, all are one, all are HVA, Hoa, Himself, all are Unity, neither herein hath separation place.

241. Blessed be HVA, Hoa, He, and blessed be His Name unto the Ages of the Ages.

242. Come, behold! This beginning which is called Father, 2 is comprehended in I, Yod, 3, which dependeth from the Holy Influence.

243. And therefore is I, Yod, the Most Concealed of all the other letters. 1

244. For I, Yod, is the beginning and the end of all things.

245. And that river which floweth on and goeth forth is called the World, which is ever to come and ceaseth never.

246. And this is the delight of the just, that they may be made worthy of that world which is to come, which ever watereth the garden of Eden, nor faileth.

247. Concerning this it is written, Isa. lviii. 11: "And like a fountain of water, whose waters fail not."

248. And that world to come is created through I, Yod.

249. As it is written, Gen. ii. 9: "And a river went forth out of Eden to water the garden."

250. For I, Yod, includeth two letters.

251. In the teaching of the school of Rav Yeyeva the Elder thus is the tradition. Wherefore are VD, Vau Daleth, 2 comprehended in IVD, Yod? Assuredly the planting of the garden is properly called V, Vau; and there is another garden which is D, Daleth, and by that Vau is Daleth watered, which is the symbol of the quaternary. 3

252. And an Arcanum is extended from this passage, where it is written: "And a river went forth out of Eden."

253. What is Eden? It is the supernal ChKMH, Chokmah, Wisdom, and that is I, Yod (in I, V, D).

254. "To water the garden." That is V, Vau.

255. "And thence it is divided and goeth forth into four heads." That is D, Daleth.

256. And all things are included in IVD, Yod, and therefore is the Father called All, the Father of Fathers.

257. The beginning of all is called the Home of All. Whence IVD, Yod, is the beginning and the end of all; like as it is written, Ps. civ. 24: "All things in Chokmah hast Thou made."

258. In His place He is not manifested, neither is He known; when He is associated with the Mother, BAMA, Be-Ama, then is He made known (otherwise, symbolized) in the Mother, BAIMA, Be-Aima. 1

259. And therefore is Aima known to be the consummation of all things, and She is signified to be the beginning and the end.

260. For all things are called Chokmah, and therein are all things concealed; and the Syntagma of all things is the Holy Name.

261. Thus far have we mystically described that which we have not said on all the other days. But now are the aspects shown forth.

262. (As to the Sacred Name IHVH,) I, Yod, is included in this Chokmah, Wisdom; H, He, is Aima, and is called Binah, Understanding; VH, Vau He, are those two Children who are produced from Aima, the Mother.

263. Also we have learned that the name BINH, Binah, comprehendeth all things. For in Her is I, Yod, which is associated with Aima, or the letter H, He, and together they produce BN, Ben, the Son, and this is the word Binah. Father and Mother, who are I, Yod, and H, He, with whom are interwoven the letters B, Beth, and N, Nun, which are BN, Ben; and thus far regarding Binah.

264. Also is She called ThBVNH, Thebunah, the Special Intelligence. Wherefore is She sometimes called Thebunah, and not Binah?

265. Assuredly Thebunah is She called at that time in which Her two Children appear, the Son and the Daughter, BN VBTh, Ben Va-Bath, who are VH, Vau He; and at that time is She called ThBVNH, Thebunah.

266. For all things are comprehended in those letters, VH, Vau He, which are BN VBTh, Ben Va-Bath, Son and Daughter; and all things are one system, and these are the letters ThBVNH.

267. In the Book of Rav Hamenuna the Elder it is said that Solomon revealeth the primal conformation (that is, the Mother) when he saith, Cant. i. 15: "Behold, thou art fair, my love;" wherefore he followeth it out himself.

268. And he calleth the second conformation the Bride, which is called the Inferior Woman.

269. And there are some who apply both these names (those, namely, of Love and Bride) to this Inferior Woman, but these are not so.

270. For the first H, He (of IHVH), is not called the Bride; but the last H, He, is called the Bride at certain times on account of many symbolic reasons.

271. For many are the times when the Male is not associated with Her, but is separated from Her.

272. Concerning this period it is said, Lev. xviii. 19: "Also thou shalt not approach unto a woman in the separation of her uncleanness."

273. But when the Female hath been purified, and the Male desireth to be united unto Her, then is she called the Bride--the Bride, properly so called.

274. But as to that which pertaineth unto the Mother, then the benevolence of Them both is not taken away for all eternity.

275. Together They (Chokmah and Binah, IH) go forth, together they are at rest; the one ceaseth not from the other, and the one is never taken away from the other.

276. And therefore is it written, Gen. ii. 10: "And a river went forth out of Eden"--i.e., properly speaking, it continually goeth forth and never faileth.

277. As it is written, Isa. lviii. 11: "And like a fountain of waters, whose waters fail not."

278. And therefore is She called "My love," since from the grace of kindred association They rest in perfect unity.

279. But the other is called the Bride, for when the Male cometh that He may consort with Her, then is She the Bride, for She, properly speaking, cometh forth as the Bride.

280. And therefore doth Solomon expound those two forms of the Woman; and concerning the first form indeed he worketh hiddenly, seeing it is hidden.

281. But the second form is more fully explained, seeing that it is not so hidden as the other.

282. But at the end all his praise pertaineth unto Her who is supernal, as it is written, Cant. vi. 9: "She is the only one of Her Mother, She is the choice one of Her that bare Her."

283. And since this Mother, Aima, is crowned with the crown of the Bride, and the grace of the letter I, Yod, ceaseth not from Her for ever, hence unto Her arbitration is committed all the liberty of those inferior, and all the liberty of all things, and all the liberty of sinners, so that all things may be purified.

284. As it is written, Lev. xvi. 30: "Since in that day he shall atone for you."

285. Also it is written, Lev. xxv. 10: "And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year." 1 This year is IVBL, Yobel, jubilee.

286. What is Yobel? As, it is written, Jer. xvii. 8: "VOL IVBL, Va-El Yobel, And spreadeth out her roots by the river;" therefore that river which ever goeth forth and floweth, and goeth forth and faileth not.

287. It is written, Prov. ii. 3: "If thou wilt call Binah the Mother, and wilt give thy voice unto Thebunah."

288. Seeing it is here said, "If thou wilt call Binah the Mother," wherefore is Thebunah added?

289. Assuredly, according as I have said, all things are supernal truth: Binah is higher than Thebunah. For in the word BINH, Binah, are shown Father, Mother, and Son; since by the letters IH, Father and Mother are denoted, and the letters BN, denoting the Son, are amalgamated with them.

290. ThBVNH, Thebunah, is the whole completion of the children, since it containeth the letters BN, Ben, BTh, Bath, and VH, Vau He, by which are denoted the Son and Daughter.

291. Yet AB VAM, Ab Ve-Am, the Father and the Mother, are not found, save BAIMA, Be-Aima, in the Mother, for the venerable Aima broodeth over Them, neither is She uncovered.

292. Whence it cometh that that which embraceth the two Children is called ThBVNH, Thebunah, and that which embraceth the Father, the Mother, and the Son is called BINH, Binah.

293. And when all things are comprehended, they are comprehended therein, and are called by that name of Father, Mother, and Son.

294. And these are ChKMH, Wisdom, Father; BINH, Understanding, Mother; and DOTh, Däath, Knowledge.

295. Since that Son 1 assumeth the symbols of His Father and of His Mother, and is called DOTh, Däath, Knowledge, since He is the testimony of Them both.

296. And that Son is called the first-born, as it is written, Exod. iv. 22: "Israel is my first-born son."

297. And since He is called first-born, therefore it implieth dual offspring.

298. And when He increaseth, in His Crown appear three divisions. 2

299. But whether it be taken in this way or in that, there are as well two as three divisions herein, for all things are one; and so is it in this (light) or in that. 3

300. Nevertheless, He (the Son) receiveth the inheritance of His Father and of His Mother.

301. What is that inheritance? These two crowns, which are hidden within Them, which They pass on in succession to this Son. 4

302. From the side of the Father (Chokmah) there is one Crown concealed therein, which is called Chesed.

303. And from the side of the Mother (Binah) there is one Crown, which is called Geburah.

304. And all those crown His head (i.e., the Head of Microprosopus), and He taketh them.

305. And when that Father and Mother shine above Him, all (these crowns) are called the phylacteries of the. Head, and that Son taketh all things, and becometh the heir of all.

306. And He passeth on His inheritance unto the Daughter, and the Daughter is nourished by Him. But, properly speaking, henceforth (from the parents) doth the Son become the heir, and not the Daughter.

307. The Son becometh the heir of His Father and of His Mother, and not the Daughter, but by Him is the Daughter cherished.

308. As it is written, Dan. iv. 12: "And in that tree food for all."

309. And if thou sayest all, assuredly He as well as She are called TzDIQ, Tzediq, Just, and TzDQ, Tzedeq, Justice, which are in one and are one.

310. All things are thus. Father and Mother are mutually contained in and associated with themselves.

311. And the Father is the more concealed (of the two), and the whole adhereth unto the Most Holy Ancient One.

312. And dependeth from the Holy Influence, which is the Ornament of all Ornaments.

313. And they, the Father and the Mother, constitute the abode, as I have said.

314. As it is written, Prov. xxiv. 3, 4: "Through Chokmah is the abode constructed, and by Thebunah is it established, and in Däath shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.

315. Also it is written, Prov. xxii. 18: "For it is a pleasant thing if thou keep (Däath) within thee."

316. This is the system of all things, even as I have said, and (all things) depend from the Glorious Holy Influence.

317. Rabbi Schimeon said: In the (former) Assembly I revealed not all things, and all those things have been concealed even until now.

318. And I have wished to conceal them, even unto the world to come, because there also a certain question will be propounded unto me.

319. As it is written, Isa. xxxiii. 6: "And Chokmah and Däath shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation; the fear of Tetragrammaton is His treasure," &c., and they shall seek out Wisdom, Chokmah.

320. Now truly thus is the will of the Most Holy and Blessed God, and without shame will I enter in before His palace.

321. It is written, 1 Sam. ii. 3: "Since AL DOVTh, El Daoth, 1 is Tetragrammaton." Daoth, or of Knowledges (plural), properly speaking, for He acquireth Daoth by Inheritance.

322. Through Daoth are all His palaces filled, as it is written, Prov. xxix.: "And in Däath shall the chambers be filled."

323. And therefore Däath is not furthermore revealed, for It occulty pervadeth Him inwardly.

324. And is comprehended in that brain and in the whole body, since "El Daoth is Tetragrammaton."

325. In the "Book of the Treatise" it is said concerning these words, "Since El Daoth is Tetragrammaton," read not DOVTh, Daoth, of knowledges, but ODVTh, 2 Edoth, of testimony.

326. For HVA, Hoa, He Himself, is the testimony of all things, the testimony of the two portions.

327. And it is said, Ps. lxxviii. 5: "And He established a testimony, ODVTh, in Jacob."

328. Moreover, also, although we have placed that matter in the "Book of Concealed Mystery," still also there what is mentioned of it is correct, and so all things are beautiful and all things, are true.

329. When the matter is hidden, that Father and Mother contain all things, and all things are concealed in them.

330. And they themselves are hidden beneath the Holy Influence of the Most Ancient of all Antiquity; in Him are they concealed, in Him are all things included.

331. HVA, Hoa, He Himself, is all things; blessed be Hoa, and blessed be His Name in eternity, and unto the ages of the ages.

332. All the words of the conclave of the Assembly are beautiful, and all are holy words--words which decline not either unto the right hand or unto the left.

333. All are words of hidden meaning for those who have entered in and departed thence, and so are they all.

334. And those words have hereunto been concealed; therefore have I feared to reveal the same, but now they are revealed.

335. And I reveal them in the presence of the Most Holy Ancient King, for not for mine own glory, nor for the glory of my Father's house, do I this; but I do this that I may not enter in ashamed before His palaces.

336. Henceforth I only see that He, God the Most Holy--may He be blessed!--and all these truly just men who are here found, can all consent (hereunto) with me.

337. For I see that all can rejoice in these my nuptials, and that they all can be admitted unto my nuptials in that world. Blessed be my portion!

338. Rabbi Abba saith that when (Rabbi Schimeon) had finished this discourse, the Holy Light (i.e., Rabbi Schimeon) lifted up his hands and wept, and shortly after smiled.

339. For he wished to reveal another matter, and said: I have been anxious concerning this matter all my days, and now they give me not leave,

340. But having recovered himself he sat down, and murmured with his lips and bowed himself thrice; neither could any other man behold the place where he was, much less him.

Footnotes
381:1 Chokmah is the second and Binah is the third of the Sephiroth. This section is a sufficient condemnation of all those who wish to make out that woman is inferior to man.

282:1 For Chokmah and Binah in the Sephiroth answer unto I and H in the name IHVH, as has been already shown in the Introduction; and these bring forth Microprosopus the Son, the letter Vau, V, answering in numerical value to the number 6, and to the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth Sephiroth.

283:1 This clause refers to the "Unwritten Qabalah."

283:2 Chokmah, the second Sephira. which, however, is as it were the repetition of Kether.

283:3 That is, the letter I, Yod, in IHVH, which is said in the "Book of Concealed Mystery" to symbolize Macroprosopus only in its highest point.

284:1 See "Book of Concealed Mystery," ch. ii. § 37; ch. iv. § 11.

284:2 See "Book of Concealed Mystery," ch. ii. § 37.

284:3 The amount of occult symbolism in this section is enormous, and the key of it is the name of the letter I, which is IVD, Yod. This is a trinity of letters, and their numerical value is I = 10, V = 6, D = 4, total 20, equivalent to double I; but for reasons given in the "Book of Concealed Mystery," the second I is reproduced by a Hexad and a Tetrad--namely, V and D. I = 10, the decimal scale of Sephirotic notation, the key of processional creation; V = 6 = Tiphereth, and Microprosopus the Son united to D = 4, the Cross. Here is the mystery of the crucifixion of the Son on the tree of life; and again the Qabalah agrees with Christian symbolism.

285:1 Be Ama, with the Mother. Here Ama, AMA, Mother = 42. Be Aima, in the Mother. Here Aima, AIMA = 52 = BN, Ben, Son. This Gematria is most important, because, be it noted, Aima. AIMA, is the letter I, Yod, which we have just been told represents Chokmah, joined to AMA, Mother, which is Binah, BINH, which again is BN IH, by Metathesis. Ben Yod He--i.e., son of IH, eternally conjoined in Briah.

288:1 The number answering to the "fifty gates of Binah." (See "Book of Concealed Mystery," ch. i. § 46.)

289:1 Compare this with the Egyptian Horus. the son of Isis and Osiris. Also notice the interchange of symbols between Amen, Kneph, and Khem. The name of the great Egyptian God Amen is noticeable when we compare it with the qabalistic name AMN.

289:2 Compare with this the alchemical symbolism of Duenech, the King of Earth, after being overwhelmed by the waters. rising again, glorified and crowned with the triple crown of silver. iron, and gold--Chesed, Geburah, and Tiphereth. in the alchemic Sephiroth of the metals.

289:3 The meaning is, that Father and Mother are contained in the Son; for these are the second. third, and sixth Sephiroth--i.e., 2, 3, and 6; and both 2 and 3 are contained in 6, for 2 x 3 = 6.

289:4 The reflexive essence of Kether, the Crown. which operates in Chokmah and Binah.

291:1 Plural of Däath.

291:2 By Metathesis.