Kochos hanefesh
Encyclopedia
Nephesh
The Bible portrays the concept of Soul most commonly using the Hebrew word nephesh and the Greek word psyche.The Greek Septuagint mostly uses psyche to translate nephesh...
-"soul"), meaning "Powers of the Soul", are the innate constituent character-aspects within the soul, in Hasidic thought's psychological internalisation of Kabbalah
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
. They derive from the 10 Sephirot Heavenly emanations of Kabbalah, by relating each quality to its parallel internal motivation in man. The Hasidic discussion of the sephirot, particularly in the Kabbalistically oriented system of Habad thought, focuses principally on the Soul Powers, the experience of the sephirot in Jewish worship.
Among the soul powers, Bittul (Human "self-nullification" of ego), the first revealed power, turns the Ani-"Self" into Ayin
Ayin and Yesh
Ayin is an important concept in Kabbalah and Hasidic philosophy. It is contrasted with the term Yesh...
-"Nothingness" in the contemplative preparation for experiencing the Divine "Ayin
Ayin and Yesh
Ayin is an important concept in Kabbalah and Hasidic philosophy. It is contrasted with the term Yesh...
" nullification of Existence. In the elite ideal of Deveikut-"cleaving" to God, the central Hasidic principle in its reinterpretation of Judaism, this inspires the subsequent powers of expression. In Mainstream "Practical Tzadik
Tzadik
Tzadik/Zadik/Sadiq is a title given to personalities in Jewish tradition considered righteous, such as Biblical figures and later spiritual masters. The root of the word ṣadiq, is ṣ-d-q , which means "justice" or "righteousness", also the root of Tzedakah...
ism", this elite dimension is reserved for the Hasidic leader
Rebbe
Rebbe , which means master, teacher, or mentor, is a Yiddish word derived from the Hebrew word Rabbi. It often refers to the leader of a Hasidic Jewish movement...
, with popularised deveikut devotion found instead in the emotional sanctification of life. The Essential Soul Powers are revealed in spiritual Mesirat Nefesh-"Self Sacrifice" in devotional fulfilment through action. Hasidic emphasis on Divine Omnipresence
Panentheism
Panentheism is a belief system which posits that God exists, interpenetrates every part of nature and timelessly extends beyond it...
sees the essential
Atzmus
Atzmus/Atzmut meaning "essence", is the descriptive term referred to in Kabbalah, and explored in Hasidic thought, for the Divine essence....
Divine purpose embodied only in action, its ultimate mystical stress on action.
Description
Each of the 10 Sephirot Divine emanations of KabbalahKabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
comprises both an external "functional" characteristic, and an inner motivational principle. Kabbalah studies the role of the sephirot in the emanated
Ohr
Ohr is a central Kabbalistic term in the Jewish mystical tradition. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical Divine emanations...
spiritual Worlds
Seder hishtalshelus
Seder hishtalshelus means the "order of development" or "order of evolution", where the word Hishtalshelus is derived from the reduplicated quadriliteral root ŠLŠL "to chain", and so literally means "the chain-like process"...
of Creation. As the soul of man is "created in the image of God" (Genesis 1:27), understood in Kabbalah to connote the partzuf-"configuration" of the sephirot in the Man-metaphor Yosher-"upright" inter-relationship, so the sephirot also describe the soul of man. Jewish spirituality experiences both the external and internal characteristics of the sephirot in serving God, their internal characteristics becoming the innate "soul powers" in man, defined and focused on in Hasidic thought's psychologisation of Kabbalah.
The terminology of the Kochos hanefesh is defined in Habad systemisation of Hasidic thought as the following experience-powers of the soul:
| Sephirah: Outer function in Divinity and soul |
Inner experience: Inner motivation in Divinity, expressed in human Soul Powers |
|---|---|
| Keter Keter *Keter in Kabbalah, is one of the ten Sephirot *Keter or kether כתר is the Hebrew word for "Crown ", as worn by a king or queen* Keter Publishing House is a book publisher based in Israel... -Crown above consciousness "Three Heads (levels) in Keter": |
Essence of Keter: Unconscious unity of Emunah-Faith (Etzem Atzmus Atzmus/Atzmut meaning "essence", is the descriptive term referred to in Kabbalah, and explored in Hasidic thought, for the Divine essence.... essence of soul in Atzmus Atzmus Atzmus/Atzmut meaning "essence", is the descriptive term referred to in Kabbalah, and explored in Hasidic thought, for the Divine essence.... God's essence) Inner Keter: Unconscious source of Taanug-Delight (transcendent soul rooted in delight) Outer Keter: Unconscious transcendent Ratzon-Will (transcendent soul expresses through will) |
| Chochma-Wisdom insight | Bittul-Selflessness (Conscious illumination inspires self nullification) |
| Binah Binah (Kabbalah) Binah, , in the Kabbalah of Judaism, is the second intellectual Sephirah on the tree of life. It sits on the level below Keter , across from Chokmah and directly above Gevurah... -Understanding concept |
Simchah-Joy (Understanding awakens joy) |
| Daat-Knowledge of idea | Yichud-Union (Union with idea awakens emotions) |
| Chesed Chesed The Hebrew noun khesed or chesed is the Hebrew word for "kindness." It is also commonly translated as "loving-kindness," or "love." Love is a central Jewish value, and leads to many particular commandments. Chesed is central to Jewish ethics and Jewish theology... -Kindness expansion |
Ahavah-Love of God and Divine in all things (Response of Divine giving) |
| Gevurah-Restriction/Might | Yirah-Fear (Awe) of God (Mystical awe of Divinity) |
| Tiferet-Beautiful harmony | Rachamim-Mercy/Compassion (Balances kindness with restriction) |
| Netzach-Victory/Eternity | Bitachon-Confidence (Confidence inspires determination) |
| Hod Hod (Kabbalah) Hod in the Kabbalah of Judaism is the eighth sephira of the Kabbalistic tree of life. It is derived from hod הוד in the Hebrew language meaning "majesty" or "splendor" and denoting "praise" as well as "submission".... -Splendour/Thanksgiving |
Temimut-Sincerity/Earnestness (Sincere response to Divine Glory) |
| Yesod-Foundation connection | Emet-Truth (Desire for expressing higher powers truth in action) |
| Malchut-Kingship action | Shiflut-Lowliness (Action through receiving higher Sephirot lights) |
Soul levels, Powers-Kochos and Garments-Levushim
The soul's sephirot expressions and their inner Soul Powers, while psychologically felt from the revealed conscious level of Chochmah downward, are only revealed outwardly through their enclothement in the three Levushim-"garments" of the soul: Machshavah-Thought, Dibbur-Speech and Maaseh-Action. As the sephirot are all inter-included as sub-categories within each other, Chochmah, Binah and Daat (the Mochin-Intellects), are enclothed in Thought as a soul to a body. Similarly, the emotional sephirot of Chesed to Malchut (the Middot-Emotions), are revealed through Malchut in Speech and Action.In Kabbalah and Hasidism, the soul has five levels, whose names derive from five Midrashic terms for the soul. Consequently, the generic Hasidic adjective "Kochos HaNefesh"-Powers of the Soul accurately relate more specifically to different levels amongst the five soul levels. The five levels in Kabbalah correspond to the Sephirot:
- Yechidah-Singular EtzemAtzmusAtzmus/Atzmut meaning "essence", is the descriptive term referred to in Kabbalah, and explored in Hasidic thought, for the Divine essence....
-essence of soul is expressed through transcendent Keter-Crown - Chayah-Living transcendent soul is expressed through encompassing Chochmah-Wisdom that mediates between unconscious Keter and the first conscious, unlimited revelation of insight
- Neshamah-Soul first invested soul level expresses Binah-Understanding, the developed intellectual faculties
- Ruach-Spirit emotional level of invested soul expresses Chesed-Kindness to Yesod-Foundation, the emotional faculties (in Lurianic Parzufim of Kabbalah these form one unit, as do each of the five corresponding levels in the Sephirot)
- Nefesh-Lifeforce enlivening invested soul in the body expresses Malchut-Kingship, the resulting revelation into action of all higher levels, faculties and powers of the soul
Kochot HaEtzem-Essential Powers of the soul
The two powers in the soul's Keter-Crown: Ratzon-Will and Taanug-Delight are termed Kochot HaEtzem-Essential Powers of the soul, as they transcend the invested soul in the body, as Makif-EncompassingOhr
Ohr is a central Kabbalistic term in the Jewish mystical tradition. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical Divine emanations...
lights, still above consciousness. They affect the subsequent Revealed Pnimi-Internalised
Ohr
Ohr is a central Kabbalistic term in the Jewish mystical tradition. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical Divine emanations...
Soul Powers as the soul's supernal root. Here Etzem-essential power is used relative to the Revealed Powers, as the singular essence of the soul is beyond expression as Delight, united with the Divine Atzmus
Atzmus
Atzmus/Atzmut meaning "essence", is the descriptive term referred to in Kabbalah, and explored in Hasidic thought, for the Divine essence....
essence. In Kabbalah the supernal soul is also termed its Mazal, related to the "downward" channeling of illumination
Ohr
Ohr is a central Kabbalistic term in the Jewish mystical tradition. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical Divine emanations...
into consciousness. The quality of Faith reflects the Etzem-essential singular point of the soul, beyond the essential powers of Will and Delight.
Above-conscious Delight, still beyond awareness, shapes subsequent emotional inclinations, as it is rooted in the essential soul. Regarding it, Sefer Yetzirah
Sefer Yetzirah
Sefer Yetzirah is the title of the earliest extant book on Jewish esotericism, although some early commentators treated it as a treatise on mathematical and linguistic theory as opposed to Kabbalah...
2:2 says, "There is none higher than delight". Hasidic thought elaborates that "regarding a (true) desire, no questions can be asked", as if there were reasons for the desire, then it would not be a true Taanug above intellect. Delight shapes Will, the outer manifestation of Delight, as Will can intend for external objectives to be fulfilled in the process of realising the true Delight. Keter-Will in Kabbalistic description of Heavenly emanations corresponds to the highest World
Four Worlds
The Four Worlds , sometimes counted with a prior stage to make Five Worlds, are the comprehensive categories of spiritual realms in Kabbalah in the descending chain of Existence....
of Adam Kadmon
Adam Kadmon
In the religious writings of Kabbalah, Adam Kadmon is a phrase meaning "Primal Man". The oldest rabbinical source for the term "Adam ha-Ḳadmoni" is Num. R. x., where Adam is styled, not as usually, "Ha-Rishon" , "Ha-Kadmoni" ....
-"Primordial Man", the first Partzuf-configuration in Lurianic Kabbalah. The term Adam Kadmon denotes ordered system ("Adam"-the "Yosher" Upright arrangement of the Sephirot in Kabbalah) and primary cause in Creation ("Kadmon"-"First" emanation in enacting Creation). Similarly in the soul, Ratzon-Will denotes the primary power of Will on all subsequent revealed soul powers, "Nothing can obstruct will".
Mesirat Nefesh-self sacrifice and Mitzvot-Jewish observances in Hasidism
The nature of the Essential Soul Powers becomes revealed in Mesirat Nefesh-Self Sacrifice. In Jewish law self sacrifice connotes particular circumstances that require giving up one's life rather than transgress rare prohibitions. In Hasidism, "Mesirat Nefesh" here connotes a different definition of daily spiritual devotion beyond the call of ordinary Jewish observance, rather than Halachic martydom of life. Such devoted, transcendent exertion in fulfilling a mitzvahMitzvah
The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
beyond ordinary requirements, is centrally stressed in Hasidic thought. In the classic Rabbinic
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
(Ethics of the Fathers) the traditional Jewish honorific "Hasid
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
" (pious), which was later adopted by the modern Hasidic movement, is characterised as a person who goes beyond the letter of the law. In Hasidic mysticism, the inspiration of deveikut cleaving to God seeks expression in such added devotional conduct. This reveals the essential soul, above intellect, because logical rationalisations to limit oneself to regular requirements are transcended.
One classic, traditional division in Judaism of the 613 Mitzvot
613 mitzvot
The 613 commandments is a numbering of the statements and principles of law, ethics, and spiritual practice contained in the Torah or Five Books of Moses...
observances is into three groups:
- Hukim-Statutes that transcend human logical reason, but observed as decrees of the King. These include the ritual commandments of Kosher food, and the paradigmatic Red HeiferRed heiferThe red heifer or red cow was a sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible the ashes of which are used for the ritual purification of an ancient Israelite who had come into contact with a corpse.- Hebrew Bible :...
, considered the ultimate example of Hok. In Kabbalah, metaphysical explanations for the Hukim are given, such as the redemption of sparks of holiness in food, however, the categorisation of kosher and non-kosher species for this purpose, while often symbolic, still remains ultimately decreed - Eidos-Witnesses that would have no prior human requirement, but are given by God as remembrances of historical events in Israelite spiritual history. This commemoration enables ethical self transformation through re-ennacting the formative Jewish events. These include the rituals of PassoverPassoverPassover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
to commemorate the spiritual journey out of Egypt, and TefillinTefillinTefillin also called phylacteries are a set of small black leather boxes containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah, which are worn by observant Jews during weekday morning prayers. Although "tefillin" is technically the plural form , it is loosely used as a singular as...
to inculcate awareness of God's unity into the mind and heart. In Kabbalah, too, metaphysical reasons are given - Mishpatim-Judgements ethical codes that any human society could enact. These include prohibitions in the Ten CommandmentsTen CommandmentsThe Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
. In esoteric Kabbalah, they have deeper meanings also, but these deepen the simple meaning. Mishpatim raise the classic question of why they need to be codified if they are logical, to which the TalmudTalmudThe Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
includes the reason that Mitzvot fulfilled under obligation are higher than Mitzvot chosen voluntarily. This answer is developed in Jewish mysticism, that only a command of the King could connect finite Man with the Infinite Ein SofEin SofEin Sof , in Kabbalah, is understood as God prior to His self-manifestation in the production of any spiritual Realm, probably derived from Ibn Gabirol's term, "the Endless One"...
. Through the commandment, holiness can descend and physicality can rise, the ethical choice becoming a holy act.
Talmudic, Midrashic, Philosophical
Jewish philosophy
Jewish philosophy , includes all philosophy carried out by Jews, or, in relation to the religion of Judaism. Jewish philosophy, until modern Enlightenment and Emancipation, was pre-occupied with attempts to reconcile coherent new ideas into the tradition of Rabbinic Judaism; thus organizing...
and Kabbalistic thought give their own, particular reasons for Mitzvot, according to their level of explanation in the four-fold Pardes
Pardes (Jewish exegesis)
Pardes refers to approaches to biblical exegesis in rabbinic Judaism . The term, sometimes also spelled PaRDeS, is an acronym formed from the name initials of the following four approaches:...
system of explanation. Hasidic thought can involve extensive treatment of Kabbalah, while drawing in the other levels of explanation. In its treatment of Kabbalistic reasons for the Mitzvot, Hasidism deepens and elucidates the Kabbalistic texts through human analogies and psychological correspondences in man's experience. However, within its thought, Hasidism extols an ultimate advantage of Hukim as an aspect in all three categories of Mitzvot. The Baal Shem Tov related the Hebrew word Mitzvah
Mitzvah
The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
-commandment to the Aramaic Tzavsah-connection. The advantage of Hukim is the transcendent bond above intellect they engender. Similarly, Eidos and Mishpatim are permeated with Divinity through being followed ultimately because they are decrees of the King. Their difference lies in God's desire that they should also descend into human intellect, the advantage they possess that the Divine decree within them can also, and becomes deepened, by uniting more fully with the mind.
Iskafia-subjugation and Es'hapcha-transformation in Deveikut-cleaving to God
In Jewish observance, Hasidism develops the Kabbalistic scheme of redeeming the "sparks of holiness" in material existence, to its central religious value of deveikut cleaving to God. This turned deveikut into the starting point of worship in daily life, rather than the culmination of meditativeJewish meditation
Jewish meditation can refer to several traditional practices of contemplation, ranging from visualization and intuitive methods, or forms of emotional insight in communitive prayer, to intellectual analysis of philosophical, ethical or mystical concepts...
seclusion. Through deveikut involvement in materiality, Hasidism advocated each person elevating the particular share of sparks allocated to them by Divine providence
Divine providence (Judaism)
In Judaism, Divine Providence is discussed throughout Rabbinic literature, by the classical Jewish philosophers, and by the tradition of Jewish mysticism.The discussion brings into consideration the Jewish understanding of Nature, and its reciprocal, the Miraculous...
. In Hasidic teaching there are two forms of this redemption of holiness from Kelipot impurity, whose terms derive from Kabbalah. In Iskafia-subjugation, the level for the ordinary person, holiness is freed from its exile by supression of human inclinations in the service of mitzvot. Es'hapcha-transformation, the task of the elite Tzadik
Tzadik
Tzadik/Zadik/Sadiq is a title given to personalities in Jewish tradition considered righteous, such as Biblical figures and later spiritual masters. The root of the word ṣadiq, is ṣ-d-q , which means "justice" or "righteousness", also the root of Tzedakah...
, is able to turn impurity into holiness, dark into light. In both cases, teaches the Kabbalistic Zohar
Zohar
The Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
, "The Light that Encompasses Worlds
Ohr
Ohr is a central Kabbalistic term in the Jewish mystical tradition. The analogy of physical light is used as a way of describing metaphysical Divine emanations...
shines into all Realms
Four Worlds
The Four Worlds , sometimes counted with a prior stage to make Five Worlds, are the comprehensive categories of spiritual realms in Kabbalah in the descending chain of Existence....
" in reciprocal Divine response. These Kabbalistic notions become related to popular deveikut and mesirat-nefesh devotion for each person in Hasidism, particularly amidst material life. In Hasidism, this mystical task of sanctification amidst materialism is termed Hislabshus-Involvement/Enclothement (from levush-garment parallel to the garments of the soul), engaging with the world with mindful awareness of its Divine element. Refraining from the "completely impure" Kelipot is termed Dechiya-pushing aside, where the holy spark within is exiled beyond the mundane, and becomes redeemed externally through disengagement.
External links
- Basics in Kabbalah: the Powers of the Soul to experience God from www.inner.org