Infinite You, Transcendentally & Practically
We breathe in deeply, the fresh clarity of spring water awakening something ancient within us. The familar scent drifts in — a cool mist kisses our skin, renewing the quiet grace of life. Droplets shimmer in the light on the surface of the spring, shining just enough to remind me: there is a divine dimension always so near, part of our essence, and waiting to be remembered.
I walk into the water – it’s the perfect temperature. This is a space where we see who we are at our deepest essence — a world beyond imagination; of energy that reflects an attribute and emanation of Gd, present everywhere and anywhere. This is a place inside of us, before the physical world, before: we make choices; we have emotions; we have thoughts. We are in the waters of our celestial womb.
This “place” is simply in our mind, it’s acknowledging our source of motivation and called, Keter. It is always calm water. From this still place, a mist with pleasant ideas surrounds us – the next emanations of Gd. Keter — literally “crown” – is like water droplets falling upon our head, unseen yet applying ratzon (Gd’s will) to all there is. Keter is the most powerful aspect of Creation, where nothingness begins. It’s represented by the tip at the top of the letter yud (י). Yud is shaped like a single water drop. It is also the first letter of Gd’s 4-letter name. Keter’s simplest identity is as the bridge to the Or Ein Sof (the Infinite Light of Gd prior to any Creation).
Keter is our connection to Gd’s infinity, and through it, we can connect to the part of us that is infinite as well. This is a place beyond the laws of nature and its balance. In fact, Keter doesn’t need balance, nor is it born from balance. Keter is the place in which we recognize heartfelt desires as if long-forgotten memories, and therefore we come to understand what we have most will for now. Isn’t will key to identity? And shouldn’t remembering who you are be effortless? If you think about it, the only thing you cannot force and so is most spiritual, is your honest felt identity.
From the perspective of psychology, it has been shown that our will — our freely chosen actions (the ones we feel intrinsic motivation for) are deeply rooted in the cognitive aspects of identity*. I was also inspired by research on the science of motivation, to realize that in kabbalistic terms, Keter is the source of all identities.
Your truest identity is your highest self, that doesn’t need anything. If all your basic needs were met, what gives you most pleasure, ratzon, satisfaction of your identity right now? This is asking your present “What”.
While from one perspective, we may have complex identities, from another, our identities at its source are simple, innocent and pure. They are simply shaped by the decisions from our own will. This aspect of us is a reflection of Gd, whose only identity is His will over the world. Gd is to be understood by “His dominion over some specific attribute over creation” (Zohar, Parshat Bo, 42b).
Keter has different nuances, depending on the particular kabbalistic school of thought. According to Lurianic Kabbalah, it includes ancient divine pleasure (Atik Yomin) and Arikh Anpin, an Aramaic phrase related to the Hebrew expression Erekh Apayim, “slow to anger”. This is divine mercy, and where all pleasure comes from. I believe this is because the source of all of our wills is interconnected and pure. Essentially, there is only one Divine Will. We can see this in the harmony all around us. I believe that as the Infinite Source shows us consistent harmony in nature, so He shows us truth in beauty. One thing that helps me a lot is giving the identity that everything is harmonious, and so I can always experience perfect beautiful pleasant results.
Keter is also dew, providing moisture to enrich all the other stages of Creation. It is the primal force that transforms and transmutes emotions, and transcends the physical, affecting all of Creation, beyond time and space. In a non-physical sense, there is only the present time, as all time is bundled in the Almighty’s arms; in the “now”. You always have a reason to be satisfied and peaceful because the divine emanation Keter, always manifests into reality exactly what you truly seek in the present moment.
One example of how Keter is also the source identity is the manna in the wilderness, which the Torah says came down like dew, and which the Midrash says tasted like whatever the person eating it wanted it to taste like. In fact, the Zohar teaches that the manna was filtered from Keter in the form of supernal dew (Zohar, Balak 420). You just need to identify and focus on your ratzon in order to find your greatest force, your identity, which is an inseparable part of the Almighty, and therefore all good and protection. You uncover the identities in your life and the Infinite Intelligence, HaShem alone, decides the process. There are many things that give you pleasure and your higher self knows in which order to give itself pleasure. Or you can tell yourself that you can have all your pleasures at once? Do you want that?
Through this contemplation, we can slow our thoughts and let our feelings and actions be transformed into a stream of water (or less metaphorically, energy) that can flow freely and show its clear nature, protected and enriched from porous smooth rocks, and break through illusionary rocks. Water as well as energy, is so versatile and nurtures Creation. As the Omnipresent is everywhere, Keter is always accessible when the mind is calm enough to reveal your ratzon. We are aware of the world, but our focus is on Keter – in some way, both the Omnipresence supreme identity and our own as well – because reality is constantly changing, and the Infinite Intelligence decides how Creation unfolds. We just need to slow our thoughts in order to let the celestial water combine with the fire from our hearts to be carried by new winds. May your delight with the Omnipresent stay refreshed with the awareness of your ratzon now.
To receive updates on the author’s writing (including similar articles), email her at oragadarah [at] gmail.com.
You can check out the author’s book here: Better Than You Wished For
*Di Domenico, S. I., & Ryan, R. M. (2017). The emerging neuroscience of intrinsic motivation: A new frontier in self-determination research. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 11, 145. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2017.00145
