Öz Kapısı: On Sefira ve Yaratılış Kitabı'nın Sırrı

It is well-known and widely recognized that regarding the matter of the number of the Sefirot, all the ancient sages of this wisdom of the Essence have unanimously agreed. This is an established foundation, and there is no dispute regarding it at all. Indeed, this is a secret among the matters for which a covenant was made by the sages of the Sefirot. Our source for this is the book called Sefer Yetzirah, which some attribute to Rabbi Akiva; this is the accepted tradition. The words of that book are profound and concise, and they have been hidden from the eyes of many researchers. Although various commentaries have been written for it, we still require further knowledge regarding all its parts. Nevertheless, we will explain its words throughout this book to help the reader understand. The text states: "Ten Sefirot of Nothingness, according to the number of the ten fingers—five against five—with a singular covenant positioned in the middle, by the word of the tongue and the circumcision of the member." He calls them "Nothingness" because they are not physical entities. They are called Sefirot to denote "counting." Just as the ten fingers are divided into five on the right and five on the left—representing the handiwork of God—the Sefirot are similarly organized. The "right" represents the aspect of the heavens (merit), and the "left" represents the aspect of the earth (liability). This organization shows that the Ten Sefirot are divided into two sets of five.