Gevurah

Wisdom's thirty-two marvelous paths

Yah engraved—

the Becoming One who holds many—

within three books:

tome, tally, and tale.

(trans. R'Jill Hammer)

Ten inscriptions of the void;

ten and not nine, ten and not eleven

understand in Wisdom

be wise in Understanding

examine them, delve into them

stand each thing on its clarity

on its absence

and return the Creator

to Their Dwelling Place.

(trans. R'Jill Hammer)

Everything on heaven and earth is Yours: Greatness, Power, Glory, Victory and Splendor. Everything is under Your control, for You rule supreme.

And Rav Yehuda said that Rav said, with regard to the same matter: When the Holy One of Blessing, created the world, it continued to expand like two balls of a warp, whose cord lengthens as they unravel, until the Holy One of Blessing rebuked it and made it stand still, ... And this is the same as that which Reish Lakish said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “I am the Almighty God [El Shaddai]” (Genesis 17:1)? It means: I am She Who said to the world “enough [dai],” instructing it to stop expanding.

And just as it is impossible for any creature’s mind to apprehend Her attribute of Gedulah, which is the ability to create a being out of nothing and give it life, as it written, “The world is built by Chesed,” (Ps. 89:3) so is it likewise impossible for her to apprehend the Divine attribute of Gevurah, which is the quality of Tzimtzum (condensation, contraction, concentration) and restraint of the spreading forth of the life-force from Her Gedulah. [Gevurah] prevents [the spreading forth] from descending upon and manifesting itself to the creatures, to give them life and existence in a revealed manner, but rather with Her Face concealed.

For the life-force conceals itself in the body of the created being and [it appears] as though the body of the created being has independent existence and is not [merely] a spreading-forth of the life-force and spirituality—as the diffusion of the radiation and light from the sun—but as an independently existing entity. Although, in reality, it has no such independent existence, and is only like the diffusion of light from the sun, nevertheless, this [concealment] is the very Gevurah/ Restraining Power of the Holy One of Blessing, to condense the life-force and spirituality which issues from the “Breath of Her Mouth” and to conceal it, so that the body of the created being shall not become nullified.

Just as the creation of the world was intentionally by means of Chesed [lovingkindess/ expansiveness] and Gevurah [strength/constriction/boundaries], so too are the Creator’s actions in the world. Before any hesed comes to the world, whether in general or in particular — even to one person — there first needs to be a contraction, which comes from the side of gevurah, in order to limit the emanation of the hesed so people can receive it....

This is the mystery of the binding of Isaac by Avraham. Avraham brought the quality of Chesed from above to the people of his generation. As scripture says, “Avraham my beloved,” (Isaiah 41:18) for through him the quality of hesed and love were drawn into the world. But because of the greatness of the manifestation of the light of Chesed, it would have been an essentially self- defeating action [because it would have overwhelmed people]. There was therefore a drawing down of Gevurah, which is “The fear of Isaac,” the fear/awe that manifested in the world through Isaac.

(trans R'Matt Ponak)

(4) On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place from afar. (5) Then Abraham said to his servants, “You stay here with the ass. The boy and I will go up there; we will worship and we will return to you.” (6) Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and put it on his son Isaac. He himself took the firestone and the knife; and the two walked off together. (7) Then Isaac said to his father Abraham, “Father!” And he answered, “Yes, my son.” And he said, “Here are the firestone and the wood; but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?” (8) And Abraham said, “God will see to the sheep for His burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them walked on together. (9) They arrived at the place of which God had told him. Abraham built an altar there; he laid out the wood; he bound his son Isaac; he laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. (10) And Abraham picked up the knife to slay his son.

“I am El Shaddai. Walk in My ways and be blameless."

I am prepared and ready to perform the affirmative command to count the Omer, as is written in the Torah: “And you shall count for yourselves, from the day after the day of rest, from the day you bring the omer as the wave-offering, seven complete weeks shall there be; until the day following the seventh week shall you count fifty days; and you shall bring a new meal-offering unto Adonoy.”

May the pleasantness of my Master our God be upon us, and the work of our hands established for us, and the work of our hands—establish it.

Blessed are You, YHVH, our God, Sovereign of the universe, Who sanctified us with Her commandments and commanded us to count the Omer.

Today is the twelfth day of the Omer

Hod Sh'biG'vurah