ב"ה
THEMES of Featured Ari Articles
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Masculine and feminine unite in the garments of the High Priest.
Tetzaveh details the priestly garments;
the Ari describes their mystical utility. The various straps, robes and
other accoutrements all had deep significance in channeling divine sustenance to
the world. Their placement on the body of the priest, as well as their shapes,
materials, and even their names all hint to profound lofty secrets about the
flow of holiness emanating from the Infinite Creator.
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Advanced
Supernal wisdom shines through in the form of the headband of the High Priest.
The High Priest was modeled after Supernal Man - Zeir Anpin, the arrangement
of thesefirot in human form - and therefore would wear the garments of
Supernal Man. Among these garments was the 'Tzitiz/headband', which would "call forth" the holiness of the person's
intellect, causing it to be manifest on a person's forehead while passing
in front of it.
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Intermediate
The Arizal reveals secrets of the urim v'tumim worn by the High Priest.
Inside the doubled fabric of the priestly breastplate,
the choshen, was inserted a parchment inscribed with G-d's Name, called
the "urim v'tumim". The Ari explains that the urim v'tumim were a manifestation of the
42-Name of G-d and the 72-Name of G-d.
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Advanced
The garments of the High Priest were conduits for holy unifications.
Even when one is involved in expressing and transmitting the divine inspiration to the world, he must remain "anchored" above; part of him must always retain consciousness of the original, pristine inspiration. This way, he will maintain balance and not lose sight of his goals while involved in the exigencies of translating the inspiration to others.
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Advanced
Kabbalah describes the influx of spiritual light towards the feminine aspect of the world.
According to the Ari, the male principle is the drive for abstraction and seeks re-inspiration from the spiritual
levels higher than it, while the female principle, the drive for concretization, seeks to manifest divinity in the levels below it, this being G‑d's directive to make the lower worlds into His home.
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