Sefirot

"10 Sefirot of Nothingness:
Their end is embedded in their beginning
and their beginning is embedded in their end
like a flame tied to a burning coal
For the Master is Singular, He has no second
and before One what do you count?" (Sefer Yetzirah)

 
A common meditative technique in the Kabbalah is to contemplate the flame of a burning lamp.  Our soul is likened to the energy of the flame whereas our body is like the material candle or the oil being consumed by the flame.  In this picture a blue lamp contains fuel that is being drawn up its wick. … more

Rabbi Isaac Luria (known as the Ari) described the Ten Sefirot in great detail in a way known as Partzufim (Faces of God).  This how Prophets and Kabbalists see God in their own likeness and form.  And since humans come in many forms - Masculine and Feminine, Young and Old - the Partzufim are seen in all of these forms.  In this picture, the blue square symbolizes the Masculine, the red triangle symbolizes the Feminine, and the yellow circle symbolizes the joining of the two together.  There are 5 major Partuzfim that comprise this Family Tree of Life.
 
The head of the largest… more

Life is a dynamic process of balancing between hot and cold; activity and rest;  nature and nurture.  Balancing between what we keep private and what we share with others; and between many other complementary pairs of opposites. 

The lower half of this picture shows the circular Root System of this Tree of Life.  The 10 concentric Roots and the Seed relate to the tenth Sefirah, Kingship. It represents how our Nature is given to us from the past - our… more