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The Greater Holy Assembly (Idra Rabba Qadisha) · 2 of 3 · tr. S.L. MacGregor Mathers

Idra Rabba, Chapter 1 (part 2)

1 12. "For it is written, Deut. xxxiii. 29: 'Blessed art thou, O Israel: who is like unto thee?' Also it is written, Exod. xv. 11: 'Who is like unto thee among the gods, O Tetragrammaton?'" 2 13. He called Rabbi Eleazer, his son, and commanded him to sit down before him, and Rabbi Abba on the other side, and said: "We are the type of all things" (that is, "we represent the three columns of the Sephiroth;") "thus far are the columns established." 14. They kept silence, and they heard a voice; and their knees knocked one against the other with fear. What was that voice? The voice of the Higher Assembly, which had assembled above. ( For out of Paradise came the souls of Me just thither, that they might hearken, together with the Schechinah of the Presence Divine .) 15. Rabbi Schimeon rejoiced, and said. "O Tetragrammaton! I have heard Thy speech, and was afraid! (Hab. iii. 1). He hath said: 'It is therefore rightly done, seeing that fear hath followed; but for us the matter rather dependeth upon love.' Like as it is written, p. 112 [paragraph continues] Deut. vi. 5: 'And thou shalt delight in Tetragrammaton thy God.' Also it is written, Mal. i. 2: "I have loved you.'" 16. Rabbi Schimeon said further: "'He who walketh, going up and down ( from one house unto another ) revealeth the secret; but the faithful in spirit concealeth the word' (Prov. xi. 13). 17. "'He who walketh going up and down.' This saying meriteth question, because it is said, 'going up and down.' Wherefore then I walketh?' The man is already said to be going up and down: what is this word 'walketh?' 18. "For truly it is true concerning that man who is not stable in his spirit nor truthful, that the word which he hath heard is moved hither and thither, like a straw in the water, until it cometh forth from him. 19. "For what reason?" Because his spirit is not a firm Spirit. 20. "But concerning him who is firm in spirit it is written: 'But the faithful in spirit concealeth the word.' (But this phrase) 'faithful in spirit' denoteth firmness of spirit; like as it is said, Isa. xxii. 23: 'And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place.' Matter dependeth upon Spirit. 21. "And it is written, Eccles. v. 6: 'Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin.' 22. "For neither doth the world remain firm, except through secresy. And if in worldly affairs there be so great need of secresy, how much more in the things of the most secret of secrets, and in the meditation of the Ancient of Days, 1 which matters are not even revealed unto the highest of the angels." 23. Rabbi Schimeon said, moreover: "I will not say it unto the heavens, that they may hear; I will not declare it unto the earth, that it may hear; for certainly we are (the symbols of) the pillars of the Universe." p. 113 24. It is said in the Arcanum of Arcana, that when Rabbi Schimeon opened his mouth, the whole place was shaken, and his companions also were shaken. Footnotes 111:1 I.e.
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Themes
Correspondencecosmology

The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.

The idea that humans represent the 'pillars of the Universe' reflects the cosmic structure within the human.

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Divine Hiddennesstheology

The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.

It states that certain matters 'are not even revealed unto the highest of the angels' and must be concealed.

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Ein Softheology

The infinite, unknowable aspect of the divine prior to and beyond all emanation; the hidden root from which the Sephirot unfold.

The 'Ancient of Days' is referenced as the supreme source associated with the highest divine mysteries.

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Emanation Hierarchycosmology

A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above.

[auto] References to the 'Ancient of Days' and 'columns' imply a structured hierarchy of divine attributes flowing downward.

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Forbidden Knowledgesoteriology

Transgressive knowing acquired against divine prohibition — the Watchers' teaching of metallurgy, sorcery, and cosmetics in 1 Enoch, the Gnostic Eve narratives, the Promethean mytheme; explicitly contrasted with gnosis_direct_knowledge, which is salvific.

Secrecy is mandated for 'the most secret of secrets', implying restricted access to knowledge.

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Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology

Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.

[auto] The passage emphasizes receiving revelation through hearing the divine voice rather than through ritual alone.

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Hidden Sayingssoteriology

Esoteric teachings reserved for those ready to receive them; outer meaning conceals an inner liberating truth.

[auto] The passage emphasizes secrecy, stating 'the faithful in spirit concealeth the word' and refers to 'the most secret of secrets'.

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Inner Silencepraxis

The practice of stilling the mind and speech to open receptivity to divine knowledge or presence.

[auto] The Rabbis 'kept silence' specifically to open themselves to hearing the voice of the Higher Assembly.

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Kingdom Withinanthropology

The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.

The statement 'We are the type of all things' suggests the divine structure exists within the mystics.

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Living Godtheology

The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.

[auto] God is portrayed as actively speaking ('Thy speech') and being addressed personally by the mystics.

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Meditationpraxis

Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting.

The passage explicitly mentions 'the meditation of the Ancient of Days' as a secret matter.

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Microcosm Macrocosmcosmology

The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.

Rabbi Schimeon states 'We are the type of all things' and 'we are (the symbols of) the pillars of the Universe'.

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Numerical Mysticismtheology

Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.

The specific reference to 'three columns' implies a numerical structure in the divine.

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Sacred Namestheology

Divine names or formulas that carry ontological power, used in prayer, liturgy, or magical practice.

[auto] The Tetragrammaton is invoked repeatedly in prayer and scriptural citations as the powerful name of God.

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Sefirot Treecosmology

The diagrammatic arrangement of the ten Sephirot as a structured 'Tree of Life' mapping divine and cosmic forces.

[auto] The mention of 'three columns' describes the specific diagrammatic arrangement of the Sephirot.

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Sephirotcosmology

The ten attributes or emanations through which the Ein Sof (Infinite) reveals itself and creates the universe in Kabbalistic theology.

[auto] The text explicitly identifies the participants as representing 'the three columns of the Sephiroth,' making this a central theme.

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