Since the ancient classic Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Creation) inspires much of the art that is shown on this site, I feel that is appropriate to present here my translation of this important work.  According to tradition, the ideas presented in Sefer Yetzirah are attributed to the patriarch Abraham.  He is indeed the only person mentioned in the text, at its conclusion.  There are many opinions concerning who actually wrote it down.  According to its style and the use of the Hebrew word אויר (avir) for Air, a word that does not appear even once in the Torah, or the Books of the Prophets and Writings, but does appear in the Mishnah, it is likely that it was composed in the time of the Mishnah, possibly by Rabbi Akiva, or it was composed by an unknown author later.

There are many versions, commentaries and translations of Sefer Yetzirah, and this translation is not totally complete, I have intentionally left out some repetitious material.  The parentheses are added by me and are not part of the original text.

The picture above, which I used to call the Unified Field Chart, but now call Sefer Yetzirah Motherboard, depicts virtually everything discussed in Sefer Yetzirah.  It is a map of Holy Names, metaphysical symbols, arrows pointing out relationships, and hidden clues that spiritual travelers can use in their journeys through this text which teaches about the Thirty-Two Paths of Mystical Wisdom.

Chapter 1: Ten Sefirot of Nothingness

With Thirty-two Mystical Paths of Wisdom
Yah engraved and created His Universe with three ספרים Sefarim:
with ספר Sefer (letters), with ספר Sefar (numbers) and with סיפור Sippur (a story).

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness and Twenty-two Foundation Letters -
Three Mother Letters, Seven Double Letters and Twelve Simple Letters.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness are in the number of ten fingers, five opposite five.
A singular brit (covenant) is precisely in the middle,
in the milah (word) of the tongue and the milah (circumcision) of the foreskin.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness, ten and not nine, ten and not eleven.
Understand with Wisdom and be wise with Understanding.
Examine with them and learn from them.
Raise each thing to its essence and seat the Creator on His base.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness, their measure is ten which have no end -
a depth of good and a depth of evil (Keter and Malchut);
a depth of past and a depth of future (Chochmah and Binah);
a depth of south and a depth of north (Chesed and Gevurah);
a depth of east and a depth of west (Tiferet and Yesod);
a depth of above and a depth of below (Netzah and Hod).
The Singular Master - God Faithful King - rules in all of them
from His holy abode for ever and ever.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness, their vision is like the "appearance of lightning".
And their limit has no end.
His word in them is "running and returning".
They rush to his saying like a whirlwind and before His throne they bow.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness, their end is embedded in their beginning
and their beginning is embedded in their end.
Like a flame in a burning coal.
For the Master is Singular, He has no second.
And before One what do you count?

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness -
Bridle your mouth from speaking and your heart from thinking.
And if your mouth runs to speak and your heart to think,
return to the place, as it says, "the Chayot (living angels) running and returning".
Regarding this a covenant was made.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness -
One is the Breath of the Living God,
the voice of breath and speech…
And this is רוח הקודש Ruach Hakodesh (Divine Inspiration).

Two is Breath from Breath.
With it He engraved and carved 22 Foundation Letters....

Three is Water from Breath.
Chaos and void, mire and clay.
He engraved them like a garden,
carved them like a wall,
and covered them like a ceiling...

Four is Fire from Water.
With it He engraved and carved the Throne of Glory -
Serafim, Ophanim and holy Chayot...

He chose three of the Simple Letters and set them in His great Name יהוה (YHVH).
With them He sealed six directions:

Five, facing right, He sealed South with יהו;
Six, facing left, He sealed North with הוי;

Seven, facing front, He sealed East with ויה;
Eight, facing back, He sealed West with והי;

Nine, facing up, He sealed Above with יוה;
Ten, facing down, He sealed Below with היו.

These are the Ten Sefirot of Nothingness:
The Breath of the Living God (Keter),
Breath from Breath (Malchut),

Water from Breath (Chochmah),
Fire from Water (Binah);

Up and Down (Netzah and Hod),
East and West (Tiferet and Yesod),
South and North (Chesed and Gevurah).

Chapter 2: Twenty-two Letters in General

Twenty-two Foundation Letters – Three Mothers, Seven Doubles and Twelve Simples.  The Three Mothers are א Aleph, מ Mem and ש Shin.  Their foundation is the hand of merit, the hand of obligation, and the tongue that decides and decrees between them.

Twenty-two Foundation Letters – He engraved them, carved them, weighed them, permuted them, and transformed them, and He formed with them all that has been formed and all that will be formed in the future.

Twenty-two Foundation Letters – He engraved then with voice, carved them with breath, and placed them in the mouth in five places.  א Aleph ח Chet ה Heh ע Ayin in the throat; ג Gimel י Yod כ Kaf ק Kof  in the palate; ד Dalet ט Tet ל Lamed נ Nun ת Tav in the tongue; ז Zayin ס Samach ש Shin ר Resh צ Tzadi in the teeth; and ב Bet ו Wow מ Mem פ Peh in the lips.

Twenty-two Foundation Letters – He placed them in a cycle like a wall with 231 gates.  The cycle revolves forwards and backwards.  An example of   this is (what the sages said) ‘there is nothing better than bliss (ענג) and nothing worse than plague (נגע)’.

How? He permuted them, weighed them and transformed them Aleph with them all and all of them with Aleph, Bet with them all and all of them with Bet,…  The cycle revolves and brings out 231 gates (231 two-letter words forwards and 231 two-letter words backwards).  It is found that all that is formed and all that is spoken comes out from One Name שם א.

He formed reality out of chaos and made nonexistence exist.  And He carved great pillars from air that cannot be grasped.  He sees and transforms and makes all that is formed and all that is spoken One Name שם א. An example of this is Twenty-two things making one body. 

Chapter 3: Three Mother Letters

Three Mothers are Mem מ, Shin ש and Aleph א. Their foundation is the tray of merit, the tray of obligation, and the tongue (of the scale) that decides and decrees between them.

Three Mothers Aleph Mem Shin are a great mystical secret,
covered and concealed with six rings.
Out of them came Air, Water and Fire.
From them are born Fathers.
And from the Fathers, descendants.

Three Mothers Aleph Mem Shin -
He engraved them, He carved them,
He permuted them, He weighed them, and He transformed them.

With them He depicted Three Mothers in Olam עולם (Space);
Three Mothers in Shana שנה (Time);
and Three Mothers in Nefesh נפש (Soul) male and female.

Three Mothers Aleph Mem Shin in Space are
Air, Water and Fire. Heaven is created with Fire, Earth is created with Water,
and Air (the atmosphere) is from Breath that balances between them.

Three Mothers Aleph Mem Shin in Time are
hot (summer), cold (winter), and the temperate (spring/fall).
Summer is created from Fire, winter is created from Water
and the temperate seasons are from Breath that decides between them.

Three Mothers Aleph Mem Shin in Soul male and female are
the head, the belly and the chest.
The head is created from Fire, the belly is created from Water,
and the chest is from Breath that is between them.

He made the letter Aleph king over Breath.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed the atmosphere in Space, the temperate in Time, and the chest in Soul -
males with Aleph Mem Shin אמש and females with Aleph Shin Mem אשמ.

He made the letter Mem king over Water.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed earth in Space, summer in Time, and the belly in Soul -
males with Mem Aleph Shin מאש and females with Mem Shin Aleph משא.

He made the letter Shin king over Fire.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed heaven in Space, winter in Time and the head in Soul -
males with Shin Aleph Mem שאמ and females with Shin Mem Aleph שמא.

Chapter 4: Seven Double Letters

The Seven Doubles are Bet ב, Gimel ג, Dalet ד, Kaf כ, Peh פ, Resh ר, and Tav ת.
They direct themselves with two pronunciations.
Their structure is thus both soft and hard, both strong and weak.

The Seven Doubles Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh, Tav -
their foundation is Wisdom, Wealth, Seed, Life, Dominance, Peace and Grace.

The Seven Doubles are in speech and its opposite.
The opposite of Wisdom is Folly,
the opposite of Wealth is Poverty,
the opposite of Seed is Desolation,
the opposite of Life is Death,
the opposite of Dominance is Subjugation,
the opposite of Peace is War,
and the opposite of Grace is Ugliness.

The Seven Doubles Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh, Tav also represent
Up and Down, East and West, North and South,
and the Holy Palace precisely in the center, supporting them all.

The Seven Doubles Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh, Tav -
seven and not six, seven and not eight.
Examine with them and search with them.
Raise every thing to its essence and seat the Creator on His base.

The Seven Doubles Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh, Tav -
He engraved them, He carved them, He permuted them, He weighed them, He transformed them. 
And with them He formed seven planets in Space, seven days in Time,
and seven gates in Soul, male and female.

The Seven planets in Space are
the Moon, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, Saturn, and Jupiter.
The seven days in Time are the seven days of the week.
The seven gates in Soul, male and female, are
the two eyes, the two ears, the two nostrils and the mouth.

He made the letter Bet king over Wisdom.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed the Moon in Space, Sunday in Time,
and the right eye in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Gimel king over Wealth.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed Mars in Space, Monday in Time,
and the right ear in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Dalet king over Seed.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed the Sun in Space, Tuesday in Time,
and the right nostril in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Kaf king over Life.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed Venus in Space, Wednesday in Time,
and the left eye in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Peh king over Dominance.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed Mercury in Space, Thursday in Time,
and the left ear in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Resh king over Peace.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed Saturn in Space, Friday in Time,
and the left nostril in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Tav king over Grace.
He tied a crown to it and combined it with the other letters.
With them He formed Jupiter in Space, Saturday in Time,
and the mouth in Soul, male and female.

The Seven Double Letters Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh, and Tav.
With them were engraved seven worlds, seven firmaments,
seven lands, seven seas, seven rivers, seven deserts,
seven days, seven weeks, seven years, seven sabbaticals, seven jubilees,
and the Holy Palace.
Therefore, He made sevens beloved under all the heavens.

Two stones build two houses;
three stones build six houses;
four stones build twenty-four houses;
five stones build one hundred and twenty houses;
six stones build seven hundred and twenty houses;
seven stones build five thousand and forty houses.

From here on, go out and calculate
that which the mouth cannot speak and the ear cannot hear.

Chapter 5: Twelve Simple Letters

The Twelve Simples are
Heh ה, Vav ו, Zayin ז, Chet ח, Tet ט, Yod י,
Lamed ל, Nun נ, Samach ס, Ayin ע, Tzadi צ, Kof ק.

Their foundation is
speech, thought, motion, sight, hearing, action,
sex, smell, sleep, anger, taste, and laughter.

The foundation of the Twelve Simples
Heh, Vav, Zayin, Chet, Tet, Yod,
Lamed, Nun, Samach, Ayin, Tzadi, Kof -
is also the twelve diagonal boundaries (or the 12 edges of a cube).
They extend continually forever and ever.
They are called the Boundaries of the Universe.

The Twelve Simples
Heh, Vav, Zayin, Chet, Tet, Yod, Lamed, Nun, Samach, Ayin, Tzadi, Kof.
He engraved them, He carved them, He permuted them, He weighed them, He transformed them. 
And with them He formed twelve constellations in Space, twelve months in Time,
and twelve directors in Soul, male and female.

The twelve constellations in Space are
Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo,
Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces.

The twelve months in Time are
Nissan, Iyar, Sivan, Tamuz, Av, Elul,
Tishrei, Cheshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat and Adar.

The twelve directors in Soul, male and female,
are the two hands, the two feet, the two kidneys,
the gall bladder, the intestines, the liver, the stomach, pancreas and the spleen.

He made the letter Heh king over speech.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Aries in Space, Nissan in Time,
and the right foot in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Vav king over thought.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Taurus in Space, Iyar in Time,
and the right kidney in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Zayin king over motion.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Gemini in Space, Sivan in Time,
and the left foot in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Chet king over sight.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Cancer in Space, Tamuz in Time,
and the right foot in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Tet king over hearing.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Leo in Space, Av in Time,
and the left kidney in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Yod king over action.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Virgo in Space, Elul in Time,
and the left hand in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Lamed king over sex.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Libra in Space, Tishrei in Time,
and the gall bladder in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Nun king over smell.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Scorpio in Space, Cheshvan in Time,
and the intestine in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Samach king over sleep.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Sagittarius in Space, Kislev in Time,
and the stomach in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Ayin king over anger.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Capricorn in Space, Tevet in Time,
and the liver in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Tzadi king over taste.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Aquarius in Space, Shevat in Time,
and the pancreas in Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Kof king over laughter.
He tied a crown to it, combined it with the other letters,
and formed Pisces in Space, Adar in Time,
and the spleen in Soul, male and female.

Chapter 6: Conclusion of Sefer Yetzirah

These are the Three Mothers Aleph, Mem and Shin.

From them emanated Three Fathers, and they are Air, Water and Fire.
And from them came descendants.

And seven planets and their hosts, and twelve diagonal boundaries...
True witnesses in Space, Time, and Soul (עולם Olam, שנה Shana and נפש Nefesh)....
He set them in the Axis (Teli תלי), the Cycle (Galgal גלגל), and the Heart (Lev לב).

Three Mothers Aleph, Mem and Shin are Air, Water and Fire.
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.

The Axis in Space is like a king on his throne.
The Cycle in Time is like a king in the province.
The Heart in Soul is like a king in war.

"Also God made one opposite the other" -
Good from good, evil from evil.
Good defines evil and evil defines good.
Good is kept for the good ones
And evil is kept for the evil ones.

Three, each one stands alone,
one acts as advocate, one acts as accuser,
and one decides between them.

Seven, is three opposite three,
and one deciding between them.

Twelve stand in war,
three love, three hate;
three give life, and three kill.

The three that love are the heart and the ears.
The three that hate are the liver, the gall, and the tongue.
The three that give life are the nostrils and the spleen.
The three that kill are the two intestines and the mouth.

And God Faithful King rules over them all from His holy abode forever and ever.

One on Three,
Three on Seven,
Seven on Twelve,
And all are bound together.

These are the Twenty-two Letters
with which Yah engraved and made Three Sepharim,
and with them He created His Universe.
And with them He formed all that was ever formed,
and all that will ever be formed.

And when Abraham our father looked, saw, understood, probed,
engraved and carved,
he was successful in creation.

Immediately the Master of all was revealed to him.
He placed him in His bosom, and kissed him on his head.
And He called him "Abraham my beloved".
He made a brit (covenant) with him and with his children after him forever...

He made a covenant with him that is between the ten fingers of his hands -
this is the word of the tongue;
and between the ten toes of his feet - this is the mark of circumcision.

He bound the Twenty-two Letters of the Torah to his tongue
and revealed to him His Mystery.

He drew them in Water,
He flamed them with Fire,
He gave them sound with Breath.

He ignited them with the seven planets
and directed them with the twelve constellations.