Heh

1. 1

   IN whatsoever object thou perceivest,Know me as the Essence,As the Idea,And as the Interior Nature.Because of this the wise come easily to meBy many paths,Yet in truth these different roadsAre but a single Way.

   If thou canst penetrate into the natureOf the simplest thing,There thou shalt find me.This is the key to the mystery of the sacred letters.Fix thy mind on the object set before thee by any letter,And hold thy thought to meditate thereon.Then shall the inner nature of that objectBe made known to thee,And by this means shalt thou draw nighTo some aspect of my being.

2. 2

   Consider then the secret meaning of the letter HEH.For even as I am the Essence,And Idea, and Interior NatureOf every Ox, of every House,Of every Camel, and of every Door,So am I also the Essence,And Idea, and Interior NatureOf every Window.

   If thou set thy mind to meditateUpon the interior nature of a window,Thou shalt readily perceive that every windowHath somewhat the nature of a door,Inasmuch as it is an opening in the wall of a house.

3. 3

   The House is KETHER,The Crown of Primal Will,And the DOOR is BINAH,The Gate of Understanding,And as the thought of the door is from the buildingof the house,So is the thought of the window from the fashioningof the door.Hence those instructed in the Secret Wisdom declareThat CHESED, the Path of Beneficence,Proceedeth from BINAH, the Gate of Understanding,Even as the idea of the windowProceedeth from the idea of the door.

   For I am mercifulBecause mine understanding compassethThe secret nature of all things,And my loving-kindness is the fruitOf my discrimination.

4. 4

   Again, a window is set in the wall of a house,Even as the eye is set in the head,That they who dwell within may look abroadTo see what passeth without.Hence it is written in the Book of FormationThat the letter HEH correspondeth unto the facultyof Sight.This referreth to my power of vision,Which is not as thine, since nothing escapeth it,And all things appear unto it in their true aspect.

   It is written:

   'The eyes of the Lord are in every place,Beholding the evil and the good';And because I,The Dweller in the House of the Supernal Will,See all things as they really are,My vision hath no taint of false judgment.Seeing, I understand,And because nothing is hid from me,Therefore am I merciful.

5. 5

   But the path of my MercyIs a way concealed from the profane,Because they have not attained unto my perfectvision.Easier to follow is the flight of an eagle,For my way soareth high above the comprehensionof the mind of man.

   As it is written:

   'Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not;He passeth on also, and I perceive him not.Yet is the secret of that wayHidden in thy bosom, O Israel.

6. 6

   For my Way is the Way of the Word,And the Word is hidden in thy heart.For this is the Word creative,Which calleth all things into being.Here is a mystery,For the letter HEH concealeth the Word,And the Word is as truly a vision as it is a voice.With me there is no difference between speechand sight.In very truth, I utter myself by seeing.

   Unto the uninstructedThe coming forth of the Creative WordIs as a mist and a vapor.For existence is as a veil of concealmentWhich hideth my true nature from their eyes.Hidden and imperceptibleIs the Essence of my beingWhich sages call 'Concealed with all concealments.'

7. 7

   By day,When thy senses busy themselvesWith their appropriate objects,If thou seest me at all,Shall I be unto thee even as to thy forefathers,Naught but a pillar of cloud,Vague and uncertain,Going before thee.

   But at night,When thou hast withdrawn thy sensesInto themselves,And thy mind is no longer swept awayBy the multiplicity of objects,Thou shalt perceive me more clearly,As a pillar of living fire.

   Behold, it shall be well with theeIf thou canst understand this saying,And if thou knowestWhat is Day,And what is Night.

8. 8

   None hath seen me face to face,For I am the forerunner of all.Thus, O Israel, am I ever before theeOn the Way of Life,And to all mankind it is said,Even as to Moses:'Thou shalt see my back parts,But my face shall not be seen.'

   No matter how far thou goest,I have already passed that way.Thou shalt never see me as I am,But thou mayest know me in what I have done.The wise discover me in my works.

9. 9

   No man perceiveth me as father,Until as mother I have brought forth creatures.The following of HEH after DALETH in the alphabetIs a sign and symbol of this truth.Even as AIMA, the Mother,Concealeth the YOD of AB, the Father,So doth HEH, though the wise call it'The Mother, wherewith creation took place,'Conceal that same paternal YOD,Since HEH in its plentitude is the number Ten.Therefore the letter HEH belongeth to my paternalMercy,Since in the number Four,Which appertaineth unto CHESED, Mercy,Is the number Ten concealed,Even as it is hidden in the word 'window'.And in that exhaustless MercyLie hid the riches of the Kingdom,For the Decad is the Kingdom,And the Decad is hidden in CHESED.

10. 10

    Regard me, therefore, as the paternal YODWhich imparteth life to the whole creation.Not made with hands, but begotten.Is this universe of which thou artAt once a part and the whole.

    Of mine own substance are all things made.And I give myself freely to every one.They know me truly who seeThat it is my nature to bring forthAnd to originate.

    This whole universeIs an expression of my Primal Will to yield fruit.

11. 11

    Even as in Genesis thou mayest readThat Light was the first creation,So hath it been known since the beginningBy the wise.They worship me with wisdomWho turn their faces toward the East,For the shining of the dawnIs a type of all my works.

12. 12

    This whole creationIs the irradiation of that Limitless LightWhich I am;But never shall mere manAttain to the source of that divine illumination.None may grasp me;And to those who seek to capture meIn the net of thoughtI am the Eternal Fugitive.Yet though I elude pursuit,I am the source and support, even of the pursuers.I am, in truth, the food of all beings.The bread thou eatest is my body,The wine thou drinkest is my blood;For because creation took place with the letter HEH,That letter is the ground of all created existence,The stuff from which every form is built,The supply for every need.

13. 13

    All this am I.Therefore, though none may capture meIn the net of thought,He shall speak truly who shall say,Laying his hand on anything soever,(Whether men prize it, or scorn it as of no worth),'Dost ask me to show thee the Lord?Verily, in this shalt thou find Him,If thou hast eyes to see.'