The Gra Version

of the

Sefer Yetzirah

CHAPTER: 1

With 32 mystical paths of Wisom engraved "Yah", the Lord of Hosts, the G~d of Israel, the living G~d, King of the universe, "El Shaddai", Merciful and Gracious, High and Exalted, Dwelling in eternity, Whose name is Holy! He is lofty and Holy, And He created His universe with three books, with text, with number and communication.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness. And 22 Foundation Letters;
3 Mothers
7 Doubles
12 Elementals

10 Sefirot of Nothingness in the number of 10 fingers, 5 opposite 5 with a singular covenanrt precisely in the middle in the circumcision of the tongue and in the circumcision of the membrum.

10 Sefirot of Nothingness, 10 not 9, 10 and not 11. Understand with Wisdom. Be wise with Understanding. Examiane with them and probe from them. Make each thing stand on its essence. And make the Creator sit on His base.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness:
Their measure is ten, which have no end. A depth of beginning. A depth of end. A depth of good. A depth of evil. A depth of above. A depth of below. A depth of east. A depth of west. A depth of north. A depth of south. The singular Master. G~d faithful King dominates over them all from His dwelling untill eternity of eternities.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness. Their vision is like the "appearance of Lightning". Their limit has no end. And His word in them is "running and returning". They rush to His saying like a whirlwind. And before His throne they prostrate themselves.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness. Their end is imbedded in their beginning, and their beginning in their end, like a flame in a burning coal. For the Master is singular. He has no second. And before One, what do you count?

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness. Bridle your mouth from speaking, and your heart from thinking. And if your heart runs, return to the place. It is therefore written,

Regarding this a covenant was made.

Ten Sefirot of Nothingness: One is the Breath of the Living G~d. Blessed and benedicted is the name of the Life of Worlds. The voice of the breath and speech. And this is the Holy Breath.

Two: Breath from Breath. With it He engraved and carved 22 Foundation Letters.
3 Mothers
7 Doubles
and 12 Elementals
And one Breath is from them.

Three: Water from Breath. With it He engraved and carved, chaos from void, mire from clay. He engraved them like a sort of garden. He covered them like a sort of ceiling.

Four: Fire from Water. With it He engraved and carved the Throne of Glory. Serafim, Ophanim, and Holy Chayot, and ministering Angels. From these tree He founded His dwelling as it is written

He chose 3 letters from among the Elementals, Alef, Mem, Shin, And He set them in His great Name. And with them, He sealed 6 extremities.
Five: He sealed "above" and faced upward, and sealed it with Yud Heh Vau
Six: He sealed "below" and faced downward, and sealed it with Heh Yud Vau
Seven: He sealed "east" and faced straight ahead, and sealed it with Vau Yud Heh
Eight: He sealed "west" and faced backward, and sealed it with Vau Heh Yud
Nine: He sealed "south" and faced to the right, and sealed it with Yud Vau Heh
Ten: He sealed "north" and faced to the left, and sealed it with Heh Vau Yud

These are the Ten Sefirot of Nothingness: The Breath of the living G~d. Breath from Breath. Water from Breath. Fire from Water. Up, down east, west, north, south.

22 Foundation Leters: 3 Mothers 7 Doubles and 12 Elementals.
The 3 Mothers are Alef Mem Shin. Their foundation is a pan of merit, a pan of liability, and the tongue of decree deciding between them.

22 Foundation Letters: He engraved them, He carved them, He permutated them, He weighed them, He transformed them, And with them, He depicted all that was formed and all that would be formed.

22 Foundation Letters:
He engraved them with voice. He carved them with breath.He set them in the mouth.
In Five places.
Alef Chet Heh Eyin in the throat.
Gimel Yud Kaf Kuf in the palate.
Dalet Tet Lamed Nun Tav in the tongue.
Zayin Samekh Shin Resh Tzadi in the teeth.
Bet Vau Mem Peh in the lips.

22 Foundation Letters:
He placed them in a circle, like a wall with 231 Gates. The Circle oscillates back and forth. A sign for this is:
There is nothing in good higher then Delight Oneg. There is nothing evil lower than Plague Nega.

How? He permutated them, weighed them, transformed them, Alef with them all, and all of them with Alef. Bet with them all, and all with Bet. They repeat in a cycle, and exist in 231 Gates. It comes out that all that is formed, and all that is spoken, emanates the Name.

He formed substance out of chaos, and made nonexistence into existence.
He carved great pillars from air, that cannot be grasped. This is a sign. He forsees, transforms and makes all that is formed and all that is spoken:
One Name. A sign for this thing: Twenty-two objects in a single body.

3 Mothers: Alef Mem Shin
Their foundation is a pan of merit, a pan of liability, and the tongue of decree deciding between them.

3 Mothers: Alef Mem Shin
A great, mystical secret covered and sealed with 6 rings
And from them emanated air, water and fire
And from them are born Fathers,
and from the Fathers, descendents

3 Mothers: Alef Mem Shin
He engraved them, He carved them,
He permuted them, He weighed them,
He transformed them,
And with them He depicted
3 Mothers AMSh in the Universe,
3 Mothers AMSh in the Year,
3 Mothers AMSh in the Soul, male and female

3 Mothers, AMSh, in the Universe are air, water, fire.
Heaven was created from fire
Earth was created from water
And air from Breath decides between them.

3 Mothers AMSh in the Year are
the hot
the cold
and the temperate.
The hot is created from fire
The cold is created from water
And the temperate, from Breath, decides between them.

3 Mothers in the Soul, male and female,
are the head, belly, and chest.
The head is created from fire
The belly is created from water
and the chest, from breath, decides between them.

He made the letter Alef king over Breath
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Air in the Universe
The temperate in the Year
And the chest in the Soul:
The male with AMSh
And the female with AShM

He made the letter Mem king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Earth in the Universe
Cold in the Year
And the belly in the Soul:
The male with MASh
And the female with MShA

He made the letter Shin king over fire
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Heaven in the Universe
Hot in the Year
And the head in the Soul:
The male with ShAM
And the female with ShMA

7 Doubles:
Bet, Gimel, Dalet, Kaf, Peh, Resh, Tav.
They direct themselves with two tounges.
Bet - Beth,
Gimel - Ghimel,
Dalet - Dhalet,
Kaf - Khaf,
Peh - Pheh,
Resh - Rhesh,
Tav - Thav.
A structure of soft and hard, strong and weak.

7 Doubles: BGD KPRT
Their foundation is
Wisdom, Wealth, Seed, Life, Dominance, Peace and Grace.

7 Doubles: BGD KPRT
in speech and in transposition.
The transpose of Wisdom is Folly
The transpose of Wealth is Poverty
The transpose of Seed is Desolation
The transpose of Life is Death
The transpose of Dominance is Subjugation
The transpose of Peace is War
The transpose of Grace is Ugliness.

7 Doubles: BGD KPRT
Up and down
East and west
North and south
And the Holy Palace precisely in the center
and it supports them all.

7 Doubles: BGD KPRT
7 and not 6
7 and not 8
Examine with them, and probe with them
Make each thing stand on its essence
And make the Creator sit on His base.

7 Doubles BGD KPRT of Foundation
He engraved them, He carved them,
He permuted them, He weighed them, He transformed them,
And with them He formed,
7 planets in the Universe,
7 days in the Year,
7 gates in the Soul, male and femal.

7 planets in the Universe:
Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon.
7 days in the Year:
The 7 days of the week,
7 gates in the Soul, male and female:
2 eyes, 2 ears, 2 nostrils, and the mouth.

He made the letter Bet king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
The Moon in the Universe
Sunday in the Year
The right eye in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Gimel king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Mars in the Universe
Monday in the Year
The right ear in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Dalet king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
The Sun in the Universe
Tuesday in the Year
The right nostril in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Kaf king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Venus in the Universe
Wednesday in the Year
The left eye in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Peh king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Mercury in the Universe
Thursday in the Year
The left ear in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Resh king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Saturn in the Universe
Friday in the Year
The left nostril in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Tav king over water
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Jupiter in the Universe
The Sabbath in the Year
The mouth in the Soul, male and female.

7 Doubles: BGD KPRT
With them were engraved
7 Universes, 7 firmaments,
7 lands, 7 seas,
7 rivers, 7 deserts,
7 days, 7 weeks,
Seven years, 7 sabbaticals,
7 jubilees,
and the Holy Palace.
Therefore, He made sevens beloved under all the heavens.

2 stones build 2 houses
3 stones build 6 houses
4 stones build 24 houses
5 stones build 120 houses
6 stones build 720 houses
Seven stones build 5040 houses
From here on go out and calculate
that which the mouth cannot speak
and the ear cannot hear.

12 Elementals:
Heh, Vav, Zayin, Chet, Tet, Yud, Lamed, Nun, Samekh, Eyin, Tzadi, Kuf.
Their foundation is,
speech, thought, motion,
sight, hearing, action,
coition, smell, sleep,
anger, taste, laughter.

12 Elementals:
HVZ ChTY LNS OTzQ
Their foundation is the 12 diagonal boundaries:
The east upper boundary
The east northern boundary
The east lower boundary
The south upper boundary
The south eastern boundary
The south boundary
The west upper boundary
The west southern boundary
The west lower boundary
The north upper boundary
The north western boundary
The north lower boundary
They extend continually untill eternity of eternities
And it is they that are the boundaries of the Universe

12 Elementals:
HVZ ChTY LNS OTzQ
Their foundation is that.
He engraved them,carved them, permuted them, weighed them, and transformed them,
And with them He formed
12 constellations in the Universe
12 months in the Year
and 12 directions in the Soul, male and female.

12 constellations in the Universe:

12 months in the Year

12 directions in the Soul, male and female,
The 2 hands, the 2 feet, the 2 kidneys,
the gall bladder, the intestines, the liver,
the korkeban, the kivah, the spleen.

He made the letter He king over speech
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Aries in the Universe
Nissan in the Year
And the right foot in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Vav king over thought
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Taurus in the Universe
Iyar in the Year
And the right kidney in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Zayin king over motion
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Gemini in the Universe
Sivan in the Year
And the left foot in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Chet king over sight
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Cancer in the Universe
Tamuz in the Year
And the right hand in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Tet king over hearing
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Leo in the Universe
Av in the Year
And the left kidney in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Yud king over action
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Virgo in the Universe
Elul in the Year
And the left hand in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Lamed king over coition
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Libra in the Universe
Tishrei in the Year
And the gall bladder in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Nun king over smell
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Scorpio in the Universe
Chesvan in the Year
And the intestine in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Samekh king over sleep
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Sagittarius in the Universe
Kislev in the Year
And the Kivah in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Eyin king over anger
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Capricorn in the Universe
Tevet in the Year
And the liver in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Tzdi king over taste
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Aquarius in the Universe
Shevat in the Year
And the Korkeban in the Soul, male and female.

He made the letter Kuf king over laughter
And He bound a crown to it
And He combined them one with another
And with them He formed
Pisces in the Universe
Adar in the Year
And the spleen in the Soul, male and female.
He made them like a trough
He arranged them like a wall
He set them up like a battle

These are the 3 Mothers: AMSh
And from them emanated 3 Fathers,
and they are air, water, and fire.
And from the Fathers, descendents.
3 Fathers and their descendents.
And 7 planets and their hosts,
And 12 diagonal boundaries
A proof of this
true witness in the Universe, Year, Soul
and a rule of 12
and 7 and 3:
He set them in the Teli, the Cycle, and the Heart.

3 Mothers: AMSh
Air, water, and fire.
Fire is above, water is below,
and air of Breath is the rule that decides between them.
And a sign of this thing
is that fire supports water.
Mem hums, Shin hisses,
and Alef is the breath of air that decides between them.

The Teli in the Universe is like a king on his throne.
The Cycle in the Year is like a king in the province.
The Heart in the Soul is like a king in war.

Good opposite evil,
Evil opposite good.
Good from evil,
Evil from good.
Good defines evil,
And evil defines good.
Good is kept for the good ones,
And evil is kept for the evil ones.

3:
Each one stands alone
one acts as advocate
one acts as accusor
and one decides between them
7:
3 opposite 3 and one is the rule deciding between them.
12 stand in war:
3 love,
3 hate,
3 give life
and 3 kill
3 love: the heart and the ears.
3 hate: the liver, the gall, and the tounge.
3 give life: the nostrils and the spleen.
3 kill: the 2 orfices and the mouth.
And Gd faithful King rules over them all from His Holy habitation
until eternity of eternities.
1 on 3
3 on 7
7 on 12,
And all are bound, one to another.

These are the 22 letters with which engraved

And with them He made 3 Books,
and with them He created His Universe,
and He formed with them all that was ever formed,
and all that ever will be formed.

And when Abraham our father, may he rest in peace, looked, saw, understood, probed, engraved, and carved,
He was successful in creation,
as it is written,

Immediatly there was revealed to him the Master of all,
may His name be blessed forever,
He placed him in His bosom, and kissed him on his head,
and He called him

He made a covenant with him
and with his children after him forever,
as it is written,

He made with him a covenant between the 10 fingers of his hands-
this is the covenant of the tongue
and between the 10 toes of his feet-
this is the covenant of circumcision,
And He bound the 22 letters of the Torah to his tongue,
and He revealed to him His mystery
He drew them in water,
He flamed them with fire,
He agitated them with Breath,
He burned them with the 7 [planets]
He directed them with the 12 constellations.