Sefer Yetzirah (The Book of Formation) · 5 of 7 · tr. Wynn Westcott
Section 1e
He produced Oin, predominant in Anger, crowned, combined, and formed Capricornus in the world, Tebet in the year, and the liver in man.
11.
He produced Tzaddi, predominant in Taste, crowned, combined, and formed Aquarius in the world, Sebat in the year, and the gullet in man.
12.
He produced Quoph, predominant in Mirth, crowned, combined, and formed Pisces in the world, Adar in the year, and the spleen in man.
CHATER VI 1.
In proof of these things, and witnessing faithfully are the Universe, the Year of time, and Man himself, the Microcosm.
He fixed these as testimonies of the Triad, the Heptad, and the Dodecad; the twelve constellations rulers of the world, the Dragon (THELE) Tali which environs the universe, and the microcosm, man.
The triad, fire, water, and air; the fire above, the water below, and the air in the midst.
The proof of which is that air is a participator with both.
2.
Tali, the Dragon, is above the Universe, as a king on his throne; the sphere in the year as a king in his State, the Heart of man as a king in warfare.
And our God made the states of opposition, good and evil, good from the good, and evil from the evil.
Happiness is reserved for the just, and misery for the wicked ones.
3.
And out of the triad one stands apart; and in the heptad there are two triads, and one standing apart.
The dodecad symbolizes war, the triad of amity, the triad of enmity, three which are life-giving, three which are death-dealing, and God, the faithful king, rules over all from the throne of his sanctity.
One above three, three above seven, and seven above twelve, and all are linked together, and one with another.
4.
After that our father Abraham had seen, and pondered over, investigated, and understood these things, he designed, engraved, and composed them, and received them into his power (hands).
Then the Lord of all appeared unto him, made a covenant with him, and kissed his head, and naming him after his own name, called him his friend; and as it is written, completed a covenant with him and with his seed forever, who then believed on God, the Tetragrammaton, and it was imputed to him for righteousness.
God ordained a covenant between the toes of his feet, that of circumcision; and a covenant between the fingers of his hands, that of the Tongue.
He bound the essences of the twenty-two letters on his tongue, and God disclosed to him the secrets of them.
God has carried these through waters, He has borne them aloft through fire, and He has stamped them in the storms of the air; He has distributed them among the seven stars, and has assigned them to twelve celestial constellations.
Amen.
THE THIRTY-TWO PATHS OF WISDOM APPENDIX TO THE SEPHER YETZIRAH The First Path is called the Admirable or the Concealed Intelligence (The Highest Crown) - for it is the Light giving the power of comprehension of that First Principle which has no beginning, and it is the Primal Glory, for no created being can attain to its essence.
The Second Path is that of the Illuminating Intelligence it is the Crown of Creation, the Splendor of the Unity, equaling it, and it is exalted above every bead, and named by the Kabbalists the Second Glory.
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.
[auto] The passage establishes a direct structural link between the Universe, the Year, and Man, stating they witness faithfully to one another.
The Stoic and Plotinian doctrine that all parts of the cosmos are bound by hidden affinities, so that a movement in one part resonates through the whole; the metaphysical basis for astrology, magic, and divination.
The linking of the Universe, Year, and Man implies hidden affinities binding the cosmos together.
Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity.
God is described as ruling over all from the throne of his sanctity, ordering the cosmos and human affairs.
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] Creation flows downward from God through letters to form the world, year, and man in a structured sequence.
Final, collective cosmic judgment as an event in which the wicked are sentenced and the cosmos restored; distinct from psychopomp_journey (individual passage at death) and emphasising verdict where Zoroastrian frashokereti emphasises restoration.
The text asserts that happiness is reserved for the just and misery for the wicked ones.
Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting.
Abraham is described as having pondered over and investigated the divine secrets.
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.
[auto] Man is explicitly identified as the Microcosm reflecting the Universe and Year, with body parts corresponding to celestial signs.
Iamblichean ritual practice that engages the gods directly through consecrated material symbols and actions, on the premise that divine power descends into properly prepared matter — distinct from philosophical contemplation alone.
The letters are used to create and sustain existence, implying a theurgical function.