Kesser

Keter is the Divine Will to create the world. The Sefirah of Keter is the first Sefirah among the ten Sefirot. According to Chabad methodology in counting the Sefirot, the Sefirah of Keter is generally not counted among the Sefirot, and instead the Sefirah of Da'at is counted.

Its Essence

The Sefirah of Keter is the intermediary between the Emanator and the emanated. In order for an intermediary to connect between two different matters, it must include elements of both, therefore Keter is composed of and includes two levels – the externality of Keter and the internality of Keter.

Keter is called the Supernal Will, since within will itself there are two aspects: the desired object of the will, and the reason for wanting and desiring it.

The reason for the will is the internality, while the desired object itself is the externality.

Internality of Keter and Externality of Keter

To understand the concept of 'Keter', Chassidus presents the analogy from the human soul, which generally contains two aspects: the essence of the soul and its powers, the intellect and emotions. However, in greater detail, even within the essence of the soul which is expressed and revealed in the will of the soul, there are two aspects:

• Externality of Will - the thing that is desired.
• Internality of Will - the reason why it is desired.

Similarly in Divinity above the worlds, there are powers that clothe themselves in the order of hishtalshelut (chain of descent) in the four worlds, while the essence of Divinity is revealed in the Sefirah of Keter, which is the general will that encompasses the worlds and is above them, wherein itself there exist two general aspects: the internality of Keter called Atik Yomin, and the externality of Keter called Arich Anpin. The internality of Keter is the reason for the will and is called the World of Pleasure, and the externality of Keter is the will itself.

The reason the internality of the Supernal Will is called pleasure is that the Supernal Will is similar to the will of the soul itself – it does not stem from intellect but rather – it is the source and cause of intellect (for example, a person should always study in a place where his heart desires. Since he wants this, he will understand better). The cause of this will is not intellect but pleasure: he wants this because in this he has pleasure. These are the two levels in Keter: pleasure is the internality of Keter, and the Supernal Will is its externality.

Since the externality of Keter is the general will in the creation of the worlds, it includes within it three matters: the root of Torah, the root of mitzvot, and the root of worlds. The root of Torah includes three matters: Mocha Stima'ah, Avir, and Se'arot. The root of mitzvot includes two matters: Gulgalta and Taryag Archin D'Gulgalta, and the root of the worlds is Arich Anpin.

Pnimiyut HaKeter (Inner Dimension of Keter)

Pnimiyut HaKeter is the lowest level within the Emanator, and is called Atik because it is detached from the entire order of Hishtalshelut (chain of worlds). It represents the Creator's delight in creating the worlds. Within Pnimiyut HaKeter itself, there are two levels: the delight itself, and the revelation of the delight. These two levels are called Gimmel Rishonim (three first [sefirot]) and Zayin Tachtonim (seven lower [sefirot]) of Atik.

Gimmel Rishonim D'Atik

Gimmel Rishonim D'Atik are Chochmah-Binah-Daat of Atik, and they are the innermost dimension of Atik, the lowest level within the Emanator, which does not relate at all to becoming clothed [in creation] since in this "place" there is no existence of light and vessel at all, but rather only the Essence of Hashem Yitbarech Himself.

Gevurah D'Atik

1. Botzina D'Kardonita

Zayin Tachtonim D'Atik

Zayin Tachtonim D'Atik are the external aspects of delight, and they are the level that can descend and become the cause for the supernal will.

Daat D'Atik

Daat D'Atik is the level of Shin Ayin Nehorin (370 lights) (or Shin Ayin Hei [375]) that is written in many places: on one hand, Daat includes within it the three intellects of Chabad, and on the other hand, it constitutes the source for the seven emotions of Zeir Anpin. Since the intellects are in the hundreds and the emotions are in the tens, we find that the three heads of Chabad number 300, while the seven emotions number 70, and together they form Shin Ayin supernal lights. This is also brought in the name of the Ramaz [Rabbi Moshe Zacuto].

Regarding the connection of Shin Ayin Hei Nehorin to the service of Teshuvah, see the entry on Me'il (cloak).

Chitzoniyut HaKeter (The Outer Aspect of Keter)

Chitzoniyut HaKeter (which is often called Ratzon HaElyon [the Supernal Will]) is the root of Torah and mitzvot. This will is called "supernal" because it has no revealed reason (like will that stems from intellect) but only a concealed reason. The analogy in Chassidut for understanding the concept of concealed reason is the reason for a father's love for his son: we see in practice that a person loves his son more than others even when there is no rational reason for this, and even when the son is less successful than others. This doesn't mean that this love is mere stubbornness without any reason at all. The father's love certainly has a deep reason rooted in the very nature of the father's soul, but this reason is so lofty beyond intellect that it cannot be clothed in it - even the father himself has no intellectual explanation for it.

But since Hashem's will is that there should be a world where Jews learn Torah and fulfill mitzvot, it is understood that the Supernal Will includes within it the root of all the above-mentioned matters: the human soul, worlds, Torah, and mitzvot. The root of Torah is Mocha Stima'ah, the root of mitzvot is Gulgalta, and the root of worlds is Arich Anpin.

Arich Anpin

This is the outer aspect of Keter, and it is the root of worlds. The definition of a world is time and space:

Space is a reality that has six sides: the four directions of the world, up and down - and its root is the six spiritual dimensions: Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malchut.

Time is a reality of past, present, and future - and its root in spirituality is the attribute of Malchut: melech (king - past), melech (king - present), and yimloch (will reign - future).

The actual existence of midot (emotional attributes) begins in the world of Atzilut, but its root is higher, and it is the level of Arich Anpin. Chassidut compares the difference between the midot in Atzilut and their root in Atik to the difference between a visible flame and the fire within a coal: in a coal, it is not at all apparent that there is fire within it, but when one brings a straw near it or blows on it, a flame emerges, and this is called "concealment that is close to revelation."

The meaning of the name of this level, Arich Anpin, is "large face." Face is the place where a person's inner state is revealed (a person's emotional state, whether he is happy or sad and so forth, is recognizable in his face). The face of the "Man of Atzilut" is called a "small face," and in relation to it, the "face" of the level of Keter is called "large." That is, "Ze'ir Anpin" is the midot of Atzilut in which the mochin (intellect) of Atzilut are revealed, and "Arich Anpin" is the externality of will in which its inner aspect (Atik, the level of pleasure) is revealed.

Mocha Stima'ah

Above Arich Anpin is Mocha Stima'ah (also called Kav HaMidah), which gives measure and limit to the will of Archin of Gulgalta. The will itself is only that there should be mitzvot in a general way, without details. Chochmah Stima'ah acts so that the drawing down of the will should be specifically in such and such a manner as it comes in the Oral Torah in particular, for only there is the will revealed in detail to instruct the order and quality of the drawing down in particulars and generalities. The analogy brought in Chassidut for Chochmah Stima'ah is a homeowner who determines where to place each vessel in the house. The vessels were in the house initially before he decreed about them, but they were in a state of ownerlessness and disarray, and through Chochmah they receive measure and limit - how, how much, and in what manner will be the revelation of Divinity in this mitzvah, and how, how much, and in what manner it will be in another mitzvah.

Avir

Above Mocha Stima'ah but below Gulgalta is the Avir, which is sometimes also called "the very concealed brain." Its purpose - the Divine light as it is at the level of Mocha Stima'ah cannot be revealed as it is in the worlds, and there is a need to constrict it. The constriction is accomplished through the aspect of hairs. The hairs draw from the brain through the hollow within them, but the magnitude of the constriction between the light of intellect in the brain and the light that has been constricted to give life to a hair is understood, to the extent that even if one cuts it, the brain feels no pain. To constrict the light at the level of Mocha Stima'ah requires a power greater than it. This power comes from the Gevurah of Atik Yomin, but since the Gevurah of Atik is too lofty to be clothed in Mocha Stima'ah itself, there is between the membrane of the brain and the skull the aspect of Avir (and sometimes called "the very concealed brain") which, due to its fineness, can have the light of Atik clothed in it, and through it to constrict the light of Mocha Stima'ah to the aspect of hairs.

Gulgalta

The skull surrounds the inner aspect of the outer Keter (Arich Anpin and Mocha Stima'ah). The skull has several aspects:

Levnunit - its whiteness. 613 Archin d'Gulgalta - the spaces between the hairs. Tikunei Gulgalta - the seven tikunim (rectifications) within it. 13 Tikunin Dikna - the beard hairs. The hairs of the head that grow from it, as well as the cheeks and more.

Levnunit

The whiteness is the root of mitzvot, and it will be understood through the same analogy of "from my flesh I perceive G-d": from the skull itself grow the hairs, and its white color is seen between each hair, separating them from one another. The skull is the "substrate" from which the hairs grow, and without it, the existence of hairs would not be possible, but the source of the hairs is not the skull itself; rather, they are drawn from the brain. And the analogue above: the whiteness is the essence of the Supernal Will in the fulfillment of mitzvot, and it is divided in detail into 613 Archin d'Gulgalta - spaces between the hairs. The essence of the will has no reason (revealed, but only a concealed reason - see Ratzon HaElyon).

Se'arot (Hairs)

The hairs of the Gulgalta are the root of Torah, and they are drawn from Mocha Stima'ah through tremendous constriction, by having a minuscule amount of vitality drawn through the hollow in each hair. And just as in the analogy one can cut the hair without feeling pain, so too in the analogue, the vitality drawn from Mocha Stima'ah is so constricted that its source is not felt at all.

Tikunim d'Gulgalta

The language of Kabbalah is that the Chesed of Atik Yomin clothes itself in the Gulgalta of Arich Anpin, and through this are made there seven Tikunei d'Gulgalta. Since the Gulgalta is will without reason, meaning the source of will before it is clothed in Chochmah, it is still unlimited, an aspect of Ein Sof (Infinite), and therefore it unites with the lower aspect of Essence (which is the aspect of Chesed of Atik, meaning, the revelation of the aspect of Atik not through Gevurah and constriction) and through this unification, seven tikunim are formed in the Gulgalta. The reason they are specifically seven and not ten is because the main intention in creation is "let us make man," and the main aspect of man is seven midot. Only after the seven tikunim are made in the Gulgalta are they drawn from there to Mocha Stima'ah, which is the root of the ten sefirot.

Almin (Worlds)

It is brought in Tanya that in the Gulgalta there are eighteen thousand worlds. This does not refer to actual worlds but to letters that are still included in their supernal root, which if they were to descend and become materialized, would create from each of them a complete order of Hishtalshelut (chain of descent) in a manner completely different from the order of Hishtalshelut that we know.

Hishtalshlut HaKetarim (Evolution of the Crowns)

• In the evolution of cause and effect (ila v'alul), each level differs in its essence from the one above it.
• But in the evolution of the crowns, all levels share the same essence. Keter is will/desire, and the evolution of Ketarim is the evolution of wills/desires. The example given is of a person who wants a four-story house: in the general will, there are no details (only that there should be 4 floors), from this evolves the will for what each floor will be used for (Atzilut, Beriah, Yetzirah, Asiyah), in a more detailed way he wants to furnish each floor with appropriate furniture, and then comes the will for how each item should be, and so on. It is understood and obvious that the will is not the building itself - but only the will for a building, meaning, both the general and detailed will are will and not something else.
• And its meaning in "avodah" (spiritual service) is going beyond limitation. For example, the twenty percent given to charity by a person who earns five thousand a month is much less than twenty percent given by someone who earns one hundred thousand. But from the perspective of going beyond limitation, both are equal (both gave more than what is required by halacha), and on the contrary, the one who gave less went beyond his limitations more than the one who gave more.

External Links

• The Secret of the Keter, in the Pnimiyut publication for Erev 11 Nissan 5780 (2020)