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בס"ד |
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THE 72 NAMES OF THE CREATOR |
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/// Impressions /// Diary /// Purchase /// |
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1 The wisdom of Kabbalah Kabbalah is no religion, no belief, no commandment from God, no tradition, but a collection of abundant knowledge and wisdom of almost 3800 years. Because of this outstanding age it is considered as the eldest mystic philosophy known to mankind. Millions of people worldwide, without any connection to their religion, their background or faith, learn today Kabbalah und apply it in their everyday life. The number of them is growing day by day. The spiritual roots of the Kabbalah go far to the patriarch Abraham, who is the father of all monotheistic religions. Abraham was the first, who knew that deity has nothing to do with the earthly qualities and abilities, which are represented through statues and tin gods. He saw divinity as a the realization of the highest spiritual power and understood it as an intelligent entity, without any limitation of space and time. In the book Yetzira (meaning creation), of which Abraham is the author of, he explains the universe and the creation both from a materialistic and a spiritual point of view. The book is a collection of complicated insights, opening its readers deep and unknown insights of the reality activating our world. 2 Perceiving and understanding divinity It is told that the intensive occupation with the kabbalistic knowledge connects a person gradually with the overwhelming divine light. This engrafts in him positive energies, which help and lead him to walk on the path to absolute happiness.
Total internalization of the huge wisdom of the Kabbalah, equips the student with tools, which help him to handle his life in total accordance with the light. With the aid of this specific knowledge activation, the kabbalist acquires the ability to resist evil forces, to neutralize them, to break up with his egoism, not to surrender any longer to impulses of wickedness which harm him and all his relationships in this world. The appliance of these forces of consciousness improves and affects reality both on the level of the daily events and also of historical occurrences.
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Science
and Kabbalah
During thousands of years the teachings of Kabbalah were hidden before the majority of mankind and only for a few chosen they were accessible and comprehendible. In the last hundred years the expansion of the kabbalistic wisdom started also due to the great social upheavals and the industrial and communicative revolution. So Kabbalah became open to the interested public. Among their students have been e.g. Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Siegmund Freud, Mohammed, Jesus, Pythagoras, Plato... The osculation point between Kabbalah and science is located, where the investigation of the matter cannot be proved anymore and theories are set up, depending only on mathematical calculations and hypothetical guidelines. At this point, where the investigation of the existence degenerates to concepts and matters without any substantial proofs by the academic establishment, the gap between the modern view of life and the historic philosophy with its ancient hidden truths diminishes. According to Kabbalah, the world is activated by a series of spiritual laws, which resemble the gravitational forces, which influence us at any point in time, regardless if we aware of them or not. The power of these laws exceeds all physical, chemical and biological forces known up to now. Only of late, science starts to acknowledge the wisdom of Kabbalah and takes it as a logical possibility into account. The numerical value of the Hebrew term Kabbalah is 137. This value is "coincidentally" also one of the most important constructs in modern physics, and the basis of the fine-structure constant (also known as Sommerfeld fine-structure constant). This fundamental physical constant, which is a dimensionless quantity, characterizes the strength of the electromagnetic interactions on our world. Science explains that we human beings are only using a very small part of our brain abilities, in other words, the human capability to think and to learn is used to a very low percentage and this leaves vast areas of the huge consciousness empty. The wisdom of Kabbalah teaches us ways how to activate this hidden idle part for getting an energetic bilateral connection with God. If it would be possible, saving the whole knowledge that the human brain is able to conserve on a digital media, it is assumed that a data storage capacity of approximately 1000 disks, each one of 100 Terabyte, would be needed (one Terabyte is equivalent to 1024 Gigabyte). 4 The appliance of the hidden consciousness I always thought, that after God has created the women from the rib of Adam, the first man should have lacked at least one bone in his chest. The Kabbalah clarified me of the fact about this paragraph, from a point of view, which I could not figure out myself. It is spoken here of the side, like the one of a geometric triangle and not a biological, anatomic rib. I would haue never come across this in my secular life. Without the Kabbalah the terms of Ashkenazim and Sephardim would have been for me only names for the inhabitants of certain geographic regions, and not adjustments for very special developments. I never would have learnt, that the word Sephard is nothing else than a code for four levels of understanding, namely sod for secret, pschat for revelation, remes for hint and drasch for exegesis and that the expression Sephard has only the name in common with the sovereign country of Spain. To the Sephardic communities are counted jews from Irak, Yemen, Morocco, Greece and even India, as to say communities, in which Kabbalah was taught and spread further during all the years in exile. That is the reason, why there are among them also regions which should geographically belong to the Ashkenazic communities. 5 The 72 names 2004 for the first time all 72 names of the creator were documented together with their central meaning and their secret. In this year the book The 72 names of God was published by Yehuda Berg in the USA. The book supplies its readers with practical means, showing him how to get rid of depressing and corporal problems. THE 72 NAMES OF THE CREATOR described in this book, are not at all regular names, but combinations which establish connections between the spiritual and the physical materialistic worlds. Each of these combinations consists of three Hebrew letters, which mostly do not make any literal sense. These three letters are concealed in the biblical story about the division of the Red Sea in Exodus chapter 14, the verses 19, 20 and 21. These successive verses include 72 letters. When those three verses are arranged in three tabulations and one takes from each one the adequate letter one gets the 72 names: • And the angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud removed from before them, and stood behind them • Exodus 14, 19
• And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided • Exodus 14, 21 And this is how the verses look like in Hebrew: • ויסע מלאך האלהים ההלך לפני מחנה ישראל וילך מאחריהם ויסע עמוד הענן מפניהם ויעמד מאחריהם • • ויבא בין מחנה מצרים ובין מחנה ישראל ויהי הענן והחשך ויאר את הלילה ולא קרב זה אל זה כל הלילה • • ויט משה את ידו על הים ויולך יהוה את הים ברוח קדים עזה כל הלילה וישם את הים לחרבה ויבקעו המים • In the book The 72 Names of God the spiritual attributes are investigated, which are encoded in each name, and their character and their concealed forces are explained in detail. Furthermore there is also an instruction for a personal meditation. The reader is invited to learn the “technology for the soul” and convert it into everyday life, causing there big changes. Yehuda Berg is a worldwide known rabbi in the realm of Kabbalah. He is the brother of Michael Berg, who is also an established spiritual teacher. Both are the sons of Rabbi Philipp Schraga Berg and his wife Karen, who are the leaders of the International Kabbalah Centre. The centre has branches all over the world, the biggest are located in New York, Los Angeles, London and Tel Aviv. The German centres are found in Hannover and in Berlin. For all of those interested in getting to know more about the wisdom of Kabbalah, there is a possibility to do so on the homepage of the Kabbalah Centre. Another option to study Kabbalah is the multilingual web presence of Bnei Baruch, the centre founded by Rabbi Dr. Michael Laitman. 6 The encounter
Similar feelings I had already had with books dealing with the essence of the Hebrew letters, e.g. The Bible Code by Michael Drosnin or The Fundamentals of the Kabbalah by Will Parfitt, which are originally written in English. This pushed me to get as quick as possible an exemplar of the Hebrew edition. Reading this book in Hebrew made me feel like someone who found the path, guiding him home. This surprising and not expected encounter with this well of insights on its pages, gave me new strength in a difficult period of my life and taught me ways, leading finally to the creation of this art project - THE 72 NAMES OF THE CREATOR. 7 The Hebrew letters
Already from my early childhood I developed a great affection to these special and exceptional forms, the letters of the Hebrew language. I admired their ability, to connect themselves to words and sentences. I was impressed by their aesthetics and I marveled their great beauty. First I learned to read and to write with them, later to draw and to design them. Through them I reached abilities and finally they became the basis of my profession. Over the years in the course of my work, I issued texts with them, I edited and formulated, mostly with the help of their creative aspects. In parallel, I continued to examine them, and I was longing to find out more about their marvelousness, to learn from them and to detect their hidden secrets. And this was accompanied always by a visible delight and an enormous joy. So I came around the book The 72 Names of God. During my endless search after the meaning of these letters, I discovered a profound essence and existence, which was unknown to me till then. 8 The 22 frequencies
The Hebrew alphabet emerged from higher spheres, rising above limitations of religion, race, gender, geography and even what might surprise the language barrier. The meaning of the Hebrew word ot is not only letter, but also pulse, vibration, a transmitter of energy or knowledge. The term sign is a synonym as well. The language of the letters, the Hebrew language and its existence, which is as old as the creation of the world, is mentioned in scriptures long before the birth of the Jewish people. In the Midrash we are told, that Hebrew was the language of the construction workers during the building of the tower of Babel. The Zohar refers to the fact, that the inhabitants of the immersed island Atlantis, who also used the codes of the Hebrew language for their needs, enjoyed a high technical progress and reached impressive achievements, thanks to the decoding of the letters. Over the whole history and through all generations, since Abraham before 3600 years ago unto today, the religious leaders used those letters to solve needs of themselves and to eliminate material problems in their environment. They were convinced that these substantial forms are connected to unseen spiritual frequencies. The alliance to these frequencies is established by the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. 9 The Decision Already before finishing reading the book The 72 Names of God, it was clear in my mind that I wanted to demonstrate by creative means the beauty of the immanent light of each single name that is reaching beyond the beholder's bare contemplation, appearing sometimes quite monotonous to him. I gave my fancy full scope and so I worked out the details of every individual combination of letters with colors and design. With words I could not explain to myself the creative drive, which I felt suddenly, but deep in my heart I believed and hoped by the intensive preoccupation with THE 72 NAMES OF THE CREATOR for a personal spiritual experience, a hidden enlightenment or an unknown higher emotion.
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The characterisation of the task
Very quick it was clear to me, that this challenge would go beyond the normal scope of my work. I would create many innumerable blueprints and pictures over a long term period, probably more than ever in my life, until the final satisfying completion of the project. Many experiments and at the least 72 different pictures... 11 Character and beauty The dimension and the character of the final outcome were the only things, which I could define to some degree in this development phase. I wanted to create 72 totally different pictures. Pictures, which would be primarily totally differing, but by the time link themselves to a clear and perfect unity, after being placed side-to-side within a common frame. 12 Calculations and plans The simple calculation, would I draw every name on a piece of paper (DIN A-4) the result from this would be at least a frame dimension of 1,70x3,00m. This picture seize would be fitting for a gallery or an exhibition hall, but not for an average living room wall. So I decided to define the seize of the picture to the standard of about 40"x28" (approximately 100x70cm) . Then I took a deep breath... 13 Temptations The first instinctive temptation, to choose an easy and a safe way, was to reconstruct the letters in their original form, like they appear in the scriptures, black ink on white paper. This minimalistic standard has from the “mystic” point of view the advantage, that this form can considerably ease meditation, namely during the exercise with closed eyes, where one concentrates to imagine the letters in front of the inner eye once in cold print and the other time white on black. But from an artistic point of view this is naturally a foreseeable, standard and even a kind of a boring form... However I felt this inner drive to develop with the help of colors the relevance of these combinations of letters in this very personal and manifold manner.
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First sketches
First I composed a work sketch with the letters סאל and a smaller picture with the name עלם, both black on a white background. The latter I enclosed oval cut on a purple passepartout and placed it into a golden frame. By comparing both pictures, I perceived the melancholy and the heaviness that the picture סאל conveyed to me. Elsewise the picture with the letter combination of עלם, which already showed the creative potential, lying in the arrangement of colors. 15 Stages In my art work, like in many other creative areas, the visual composition of a project is divided into four main stages: Collecting and retaining of information, sorting and evaluation of the accumulated facts, experimental stage and crystallization of the plans and finally realization and execution. Since the dimensions of the work were clear, I just had to convert artistically the existent character of the picture which was already in my head. I chose for it my in the last years developed working technique Flying Art, which I applied already at different visual objects. As a matter of principle I was determined in the experimental stage, to utilize at no means toxic substances and to use only eco-friendly colors.
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Electric
pencils
To my most favored implements count my electric pencils, known better in technical terminology as annealing and engraving appliances. I use them since the early eighties, when I burnt in and engraved with them letters and motives on materials like leather, wood, metal or glass. I used them to achieve a nostalgic “antique” effect or a likewise vibrancy. This technique with this electric pencils can be possibly compared with the usage of the magnifying glass under sun exposure in our childhood, when we hereby engraved our and our friends names into wooden sticks. The laser technology which is applied nowadays for technical and medical purposes obtains very clean and extraordinary results. But on the artistic field, things work out different. Laser pencils do not achieve these special effects that can be reached with the engraving appliances by temperatures up to 1.680°C. 17 Methods and favorites From the beginning I knew that I wanted to use my annealing and engraving appliances for the project THE 72 NAMES OF THE CREATOR, but to a later stage of this work, that is to say the working out of the edges and the backgrounds of the different names. To achieve a certain color depth, I utilized a mixture of several special oils. These were broadly applied to the ground, dried with hot air and immediately afterwards the “burnt“ letter combinations were placed hereon. These oils are often used in the perfume industry. Their combination with absorbent paper provides a lot of other possibilities of utilization. 18 Completion The completion phase of the this work started in summer 2005. These are the first four detailed pictures:
Shortly before the Jewish New Year in autumn 2006 the creation was finally completed and I decided to publish it as different versions: As a high quality art print, as reproduction on canvas and as an ultimate hand signed, numbered gallery edition with worldwide only 72 exemplars. More details for purchase are available here. 19 My father and his heritage There happened quite far-reaching events in my life in the course of this project. The death of my father, who died two weeks before his 79th birthday, was the most dramatic of them.
His outstanding modesty and his obedience to his creator were known among the inhabitants of his hometown Beer-Sheva. My father was instantly ready to assist everyone asking him for help. All his life he always was very concerned to donate, to give the tithe and to support the poor. He attached great importance on the education of his sons and his daughter in this spirit, setting always his personal example. During his last years, my father decided to spend his time mainly with the study of the Torah. He visited regularly the college of Rabbi Elazar Abuchatzeira, son of the great and famous Rabbi Israel Abuchatzeira, better known as the Baba Sali. For my father it was an urgent need to observe the commandments. It was when I started to get engaged with the wisdom of Kabbalah, that a very special sympathy and a mutual appreciation grew between both of us. This project is dedicated in deep gratefulness to the Creator of the worlds for all his good, he is bestowing his creatures and me, to all the wise teachers of Kabbalah in all generations for the strength of their thoughts and knowledge, and finally to the blessed memory of my beloved father Itzchak Argaman. 20 Films and lectures During my work with the art project, I engaged myself in the wisdom of Kabbalah and I collected a lot of material. Among others I would like to recommend the following films: Discover Kabbalah - An American documentary movie with personally impressions The Will to Recieve - A short lesson Perceiving Reality - A short film Nights of Kabbalah - The story of the actor Israel Sascha Demidov Of course you are invited to find and watch them all also at my favorites list. Have a lot of fun.
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/// Impressions /// Diary /// Purchase /// |
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Although
I came across the book The 72 Names of God “by chance”, I liked
it instantly. The book impressed me deeply, but the fact that it wasn't
written in my mother-tongue hampered my personal identification.
