Artworks

"These are the 22 Letters with which God engraved and made Three Sefarim, and with them He created His Universe.  And with them He formed all that was ever formed, and all that will ever be formed.  Three on Seven; Seven on Twelve; and all are bound together." (Sefer Yetzirah) In this picture can be seen all 22 Hebrew letters.  The 3 Mother Letters are in the triangle/pyramid in the top part;… more

According to the Kabbalah, before the Universe was created only the Ein Sof  existed.  The white surrounding the Seed in this picture represents the Ein Sof - the Infinite and Unlimited Light of God.  To create the limited realm of Souls in Time an Space, Ein Sof withdrew most of its Light from Creation.  The Kabbalists of Tzfat called this process צימצום (tzimtzum) a word that means contraction… more

The red Shin ש represents Fire אש (aiSh) in Hebrew, thus, it rises up like fire;  the blue Mem מ represents Water מים (MahyiM) in Hebrew, thus, it flows downward like water.  The sounds of these 2 Letters are also opposites -  the outward hissing of Shhh.... and the inward humming of Mmmm... The yellow  between them also surrounds them both.  It represents the first Hebrew letter Aleph א - which… more

Most of the concepts that are presented in Sefer Yetzirah appear in this image.  The 22 Hebrew Letters and 10 Numbers (Sefirot) are said to be the building blocks of Creation, It is not so different from the letters and numbers that represent the building blocks of matter in the Periodic Table of the Elements, and the subatomic particle Zoo.  Because this picture looks like the motherboard of a… more

In this picture is the entire first chapter of the Book of Psalms. It begins in the center and continues counterclockwise outwards.  It is quite hard to read even for fluent Hebrew speakers because the letters flow into each other.  It is inspired by the lettering found on 60's album covers and concert posters. "Fortunate is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in… more

In the Passover song ‘Who Knows One?’, when we answer “God is One in Heaven and Earth” we mean that God is both transcendent (unknowable and so far beyond us) and  immanent (right here within us) at the same time.  Really, these are not two different things.  Transcendent God (in Heaven) and Immanent God (in Earth) is One.  A good word for this is non-dual.  The red ש Shin (symbolizing Fire) in… more

"3 Mothers א Aleph, מ Mem and ש Shin are Air אויר (avir), Water מים (mahyim) and Fire אש (aish). Fire is above, Water is below, and the Breath of Air balances between them.  Mem hums, Shin hisses, and Aleph is the Breath of Air between them. (Sefer Yetzirah) This picture can be used as a focus for meditation.  Sit comfortably and become aware of your chest rising and falling with the Air of… more

“3 Mothers ש מ א Shin, Mem, and Aleph in the Soul dimension are the head, the belly, and the chest.  The head is created from Fire, the belly is created from Water and in the chest is the Breath of Air that is between them." (Sefer Yetzirah 3:6) The 3 Mothers can also hint at the 3 primary shapes in Geometry - the triangle, the circle, and the rectangle.  ש Shin is Gematria 300, or in Simple… more

Although our bodies are made up of many parts - represented by the Sefirot - all of our parts interact with each other in a dynamic way, and together comprise one person.  Kabbalists see the entire Universe in this same way.  In fact, the word Universe means 'one verse'.  In this Tree of Life Diagram, the network of lines that connect the circles represent how the Sefirot are ‘One Together’ -… more

When the Sefirot are presented in the Tanya (the classic text from the first Lubavitcher Rebbe) they are called 3 Mothers and 7 Doubles.  The 3 Mothers refer to the three higher Sefirot.  The Seven Doubles refer to the seven lower Sefirot. However, the original source of the terms Three Mothers and Seven Doubles is the Sefer Yetzirah, where the 22 Hebrew Letters are presented as three groups -… more

The Letter Aleph א (which is hidden in this picture) - the figure 8 - the symbol for Infinity - and the 4 Letters of the Holy Name YHVH are all related to each other.  Traditionally, א Aleph is said to be comprised of 3 smaller Hebrew Letters - 2 Yods and a Vav.  The large yellow section that divides this picture diagonally is the Vav (Gematria 6).  Emerging from the middle of this Vav are the 2… more

This picture contains the first words of Sefer Yetzirah:  “With 32 Wondrous Paths of Wisdom, Yah -  YHVH and Hosts, the God of Israel, El Shadai, Merciful and Gracious, High and Exalted, Dwelling Forever and Holy is His Name, Heavenly and Holy is He - engraved and created His Universe with three Sefarim: with Sefer, with Sefar and with Sippur.” In Hebrew, Sefer ספר is a book - comprised of… more