Mystical systems
Sephiroth
Direct answer
Sephiroth are the ten emanations or divine attributes in Kabbalistic Tree of Life symbolism, describing modes through which divine life is understood.
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At a glance
- Found in
- Mystical Systems
- Related
- Birth Chart, Zodiac, Transit
Sephiroth are the ten Kabbalistic emanations or attributes on the Tree of Life.
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What sets Sephiroth apart
Ten named attributes or emanations through which, in Kabbalah, the hidden God (Ein Sof, the Infinite) is spoken of in relation to creation. They are usually drawn as three columns of three, joined by a tenth at the base, and the word is the Hebrew plural, with sefirah as the singular. The first use of the term is in the Sefer Yetzirah, where it means the ten numbers of creation; the later Kabbalists made them divine powers.
- The ten: Keter, Chokhmah, Binah, Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, Malkhut
- Three pillars: right (Chokhmah, Chesed, Netzach), left (Binah, Gevurah, Hod), centre (Keter, Tiferet, Yesod, Malkhut)
- Daat: 'knowledge', a hidden point between Chokhmah and Binah, counted in place of Keter in some schemes to keep ten
- Source: Sefer Yetzirah, 'ten sefirot of nothingness'; elaborated in the Zohar and by Moses Cordovero and Isaac Luria
- Spelling: Sephiroth is the older Latin-style form; sefirot is the modern Hebrew transliteration
Often mistaken for something else: The sefirot are not the planetary attributions of the Golden Dawn; there the same ten places carry planets and elements that Jewish Kabbalah does not assign.
The story behind Sephiroth
The sefirot became central in medieval Kabbalah and later were reinterpreted in Christian and Hermetic systems.
The spiritual meaning of Sephiroth
Spiritually, Sephiroth ask how divine qualities are contemplated without being possessed.
Sephiroth in the Bible
Christian readers should not turn the sefirot into a replacement theology, spell system, or private revelation ladder.
Why Sephiroth matters
Sephiroth matters because the term is central to Kabbalah and often reused in Hermetic, occult, psychological, and pop-cultural systems.
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Sources and editorial method
This entry summarizes the tradition in the Almanac's own words; where no source is listed, it is an editorial summary rather than a primary text, and symbolic readings are named as the tradition's, not as fact.
- Source
- The Great Almanac Dictionary
- Category
- Mystical Systems
- Last updated
- 2026-09-26
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Related terms
More in Mystical Systems
- The Chariot
- The Moon Tarot
- Yantra
- Apophatic Theology
- Four Worlds
- Jewish Mysticism
- Merkabah Mysticism
- Nous
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Common questions
What is Sephiroth?
Sephiroth are the ten emanations or divine attributes in Kabbalistic Tree of Life symbolism, describing modes through which divine life is understood.
Where does Sephiroth come from?
The sefirot became central in medieval Kabbalah and later were reinterpreted in Christian and Hermetic systems.
What does Sephiroth mean spiritually?
Spiritually, Sephiroth ask how divine qualities are contemplated without being possessed.
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