Keter

Keter or Kether (Hebrew: כֶּתֶר‎, lit. "crown") is the first of the ten sefirot in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. Transcending human understanding, it symbolizes the divine will and the initial impulse towards creation from the Ein Sof, or infinite source.

Keter as depicted in a Mizrach printing by Samuel Habib (1828).

Quotes

• The word for Crown is Keter (כֶּתֶר‎), and Abulafia notes that when these letters reversed, they spell karet (כָּרֵת‎), which means "cut off." Thus, when an individual attempts to reach the highest level of the Crown, if he is not worthy, he can end up being "cut off" spiritually. Abulafia therefore warns in the strongest terms that one who attempts to enter these mysteries must be adequately prepared, and that one not enter unless he is thoroughly familiar with all the necessary introductions.
  • Aryeh Kaplan: Meditation and Kabbalah, ch. 3, "Rabbi Abraham Abulafia", p. 80. Weiser Books (1982). ISBN 0-87728-616-7.

See also

• Kabbalah
• Tree of life (Kabbalah)