After all the Jewish holidays, I now resume the musings about the different energies of the Eternal according to the Kabbalah. Today, I will explore the energy of Tiferet.
Tiferet can be translated as Glory, harmony, beauty, or compassion. It is the balance achieved as we fine tune the influence of the opposing energies of Hessed and Gevurah. The energy of Gevurah (meaning judgment or strength) without the balance of the energy of Hessed (meaning love or mercy) is cruelty. The energy of Hessed without Gevurah is weakness. When these two energies are balanced, we enter the realm of the energy of Tiferet. We achieve harmony, beauty, and compassion, and we connect with God’s Glory.
Tiferet is associated with our heart center. We know we are connecting with the sefirah of Tiferet when we are able to be present with our full heart, feeling balanced and harmonious. When we are connecting with the energy of Tiferet we have initiative, we feel healthy, we are able to see the beauty that exists around us, we are focused, we act according to our higher principles, and we face challenges with patience and vitality.
We are not able to inhabit the realm of Tiferet all the time. We have moments of Tiferet, since we are constantly balancing the energies of Gevurah and Hessed. There are many times in which I find myself criticizing my actions with such stern judgment that, unless I am able to balance this aspect of Gevurah, I will not be productive and I will be depressed. Equally, there are plenty of times when I explain away bad actions of other people, acting lovingly towards them, accessing the energy of Hessed and hurting myself in the process. When I am able to be less judgmental (with myself and with others), and when I am able to call out bad actions (done by me or by others), I connect with the energy of Tiferet.
Balancing energies is a lifelong pursuit, and none of us will manage to be in equilibrium throughout our lives. The more we are balanced, the more we access the energy of Tiferet, the more we liberate sparks of goodness and connection that affect all realms of existence.
Sometimes the challenges of our world feel oppressive, and we are paralyzed by feelings based on imagining that nothing we can do will fix this broken world. We feel defeated, hopeless, and we try to convince ourselves that we have a clear understanding of our limitations. This is not a clear-headed assessment of our situation. True, individuals alone will not be able to change the climate crisis or war-torn countries, for example. Yet, there are a few things we can do. The energy of Tiferet, on an individual basis, allows us to react to these challenges with a level head, calming our hearts and centering our thoughts so we can act with compassion, diminishing the feelings of helplessness and helping others to be less defensive. When there is less conflict between human beings on earth, God’s energies are more aligned and balanced. We hope that this balance, in return, helps us achieve equilibrium in our lives, creating a cycle of harmony and beauty. May we be able to experience a world where Tiferet is achieved, within every human being, offering our best to the Eternal, and receiving back the blessings of God.
If you want to explore the teachings of Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism, please join us for our Everyday Jewish Mysticism class, on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month. More information can be found on our website.