The Kabbalistically significant six million figure | Winston Smith Ministry of Truth Archive

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Monday, 2 April 2012

The Kabbalistically significant six million figure

The Wisdom of the Zohar: An Anthology of Texts by Hungarian/Israeli Jew, winner of the Israel and Rothschild prize; Isaiah Tishby nee Sándor Schwartz (1908 - 1992), was originally published in Hebrew between 1949 - 1961 and later translated to English by David Goldstein and published in 1989. The English version is a three volume, 1654 page work, and "offers a thorough historical analysis of many topics covered by the Zohar, followed by selected passages."1

The extract which mentions the "six million" figure is from the Hadash Zohar or New Zohar, which was first published in Greece in c.1597. It is a collection of Zoharic texts which had not been included in the Zohar, which was first published as a book in Italy in 1558.2

By definition, esoteric texts make no sense to the the uninitiated, so a brief key to the following text follows (I of course don't pretend I completely understand it, and I'm not a religious person, so believe not a word of it):

Hashmal

- Are the fourth level of angels in Maimonides' ranking

Gallitsur

- Alternatively Galizur and Raziel, is an angel assigned various roles including "Keeper of Secrets", the "Angel of Mysteries."

Anael

- Alternatively Haniel, is the angel of the planet Venus and governor of the 2nd heaven, where he is in charge of prayers ascending from the 1st heaven.

Gates

- The Zohar 2:201b, 202a, 202b states the commander of each heaven and the number of gates into each of the seven heavens as follows:

1st heaven

Zebuliel, 9 gates.

2nd heaven

Anael, 12 gates.

3rd heaven

Gedariah, number of gates not mentioned, but when prayers enter the third heaven, Gedariah strikes with "the ray of light" a large rock which contains 375 legions, imprisoned within it by God, for they attempted to prevent the Torah from descending to Earth, they bow to the prayer and crown it with supernal crowns

4th heaven

Shamshiel (sun of God), number of gates not mentioned, but Shamsheil and 365 legions called days of the solar year, perfume the Jew's prayer and accompany it into the 5th heaven.

5th heaven

Gadriel, number of gates not mentioned, nor the number of "all" Gadriels "hosts," but they bow down to the Jewish prayer, crown it, then accompany it into the 6th heaven.

6th heaven

Anpiel, 70 gates. Anpiel crowns the prayer, numerous hosts and legions join with the legions and hosts from the lowers heavens, and they all accompany the prayer into 7th heaven.

7th heaven

Sandalphon "the keeper of all his mater's keys" combines all the crowns from the lower heavens into one, and introduces the prayer into the seven palaces of God in the 7th heaven

7. HASHMAL—II

(Zohar Hadash, Yitro, 38d)

Hashmal moves round continually, its rays descending to the place called "small earth," and in that earth move all kinds of crystals, glistening pearls, and emeralds. And when the light of hashmal shines and flashes, ascending and descending, and the four corners [of the world] embrace one another, the small earth shines and the precious stones move and the pearls ascend until they reach the southern gate, where there are treasuries closed and open, four hundred and seventy of them equivalent to the numerical value of karka (earth), and Gallitsur is their guardian.

When hashmal radiates its beams of light to the four corners, a voice proceeds from above and is aroused from between the wings when they flap against one another — the wings that produce a voice — as it is said, "I heard the noise of their wings like the noise of great waters" (Ezekiel 1:24). This voice is then comprised of four voices. As it proceeds it meets the rays, and it is then devided into four voices. One voice goes to Gallitsur, and by this voice the light of hashmal is aroused, and speech is formed from it. Through this speech another speech, sealed and silent, is aroused. And when this reaches Gallitsur two hundred and fourteen supernal mysteries that were revealed [above] are revealed to him. The second voice goes to Anael, the chief guardian of eighteen thousand myraids of camps that minister in a different earth, bathed in the light of all the colors. This is called "the purple earth." It shines with every kind of light that proceeds from hashmal. In this earth are sunk twelve thousand myriads of pearls, sunk in this earth and reaching as far as the eastern gate. There there are six million open gates, and Anael is the chief guardian of them. When the voice is aroused from above, the light of hashmal strikes it and through this speech another sealed speech is aroused, and when it reaches the guardian Anael, three hundred and sixty-five supernal mysteries are revealed, which are stamped with the signet ring of the seal of truth. Then with awe, trembling, fear, and terror, songs and praises ascend to the Lord of all.

here for enlarged version

Tishby, Isaiah, Lachower, Fishel. Translated by Goldstein, David. The Wisdom of

the Zohar: An Anthology of Texts. Oxford University Press. 1989. pp. 619-620.

Sources:

1. Green, Arthur. A Guide to the Zohar. Stanford University Press. 2004. p.xiii.

2. Matt, Daniel Chanan. The Zohar, Volume 4. Stanford University Press. 2004. p.9 & 462.

Posted by The Black Rabbit of Inlé at 10:14

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