"Now if you say that the word of any ignorant person has the same effect, come and see: One who is unaccustomed to the mysteries of Torah and innovates words he does not fully understand - when that word ascends, a man of perversity, tongue of falsehood (Proverbs 16:28; 6:17) bursts forth from the chasm of the immense abyss, leaping 500 parasangs to obtain that word. Grabbing her, he takes that word back to his chasm and transmogrifies her into a distorted heaven called 'chaos.' The man of perversity flies through that heaven - 6000 parasangs in one glide. As soon as the distorted heaven is established, a woman of whoredom (Hosea 1:2) emerges, clinging to it, joining with it. From there she sets out, killing thousands, myriads."

In honor of the third volume of Daniel C. Matt's Zohar being released soon (Mwahahahaha, Amazon says the 21st, it shall arrive!), I thought I'd do a nice little commentary on this paragraph. First of all, this is vitally important stuff for anyone who has a mystic world view. Why? Because it describes the mechanisms by which ideas spread from our words and change the experiences of others in the world. To start, we have the idea of "innovating words" which is actually pretty vital to the whole process too. Innovating words, it would seem, is describing a type of prophecy. In the Tanakh there are instances in which we see individuals using prophecy as a weapon, ala Balaam. So in this case, we're talking about someone who is prophesying without an understanding of the processes that are magnifying his words into new realities. So when this person begins to prophesy, "a man of perversity" (Samael, the Accuser, according to Matt), takes hold of the word and uses it to create a heaven. Heaven is an important technical term here also. Matt explains that these are new heavens being created, not the established heavens. But what does heaven mean? Heaven is the sum of the vectors created by the invisible principles that are governing your reality. These principles are defined by your beliefs about reality. These can be (and frequently are) summarized by mythologies, which determine the vectors in the "story" of your life. So heaven is the sum of those mythologies that you are living out. So, when our clueless prophet is creating chaotic heavens, these are translated into life stories for others to act out. It's also important to note the strange numbers. These are coordinates of sorts, that tell you where an influence is coming from in the hierarchy of Etz Chaim, the Tree of Life. Samael leaping 500 parasangs means that his influence extends from Gevurah of Yetsirah (Yetsirah being the world of imagination, meaning, & dreams - Gevurah being the essence of Severity, which Samael embodies) to create this new heaven. Then it says he glides 6000 parasangs - This means that his influence is extended to Tiferet of Beriya (Beriya being the world of identity [Mi], and Tiferet being the heart, the seat of compassion). What does this mean? This means that the accuser is allowed to usurp the powers of compassion that G-d normally extends into everyone's "heaven" and twists them, to create a life of severity. This creates, as the text continues, a complex, a subliminal principle that is viral in nature. As it says, "a woman of whoredom" that can slay myriads. The reason I favor this interpretation is that Lilith was associated with the teeming creatures of the seas, which to me represents a principle living beneath the 'surface' of consciousness in multiple entities. She was said to bear thousands of children (thoughts) which she would turn around and slay (internal conflict). Matt also says that the term "woman of whoredom" is a reference to Lilith. This subliminal complex becomes viral, and spreads to anyone who allows themselves to 'be accused' by the thoughts generated by contact with the behavior that those infected propagate. So when you see someone who is acting in a way that you see as evil, and you wonder if others percieve you in that way, that thought is the trail left behind by that viral complex entering you. This is why Samael is called accuser; he as the male, or active principle, is the part you see - the accusation, while Lilith, the female, or passive principle, is not seen but does all the slaying. So how could our clueless prophet choose his words more carefully? The Zohar suggests more study of Torah, which purifies the soul, leaving it free of klippothic influence. The clueless prophet spreads the complexes inherent in his own words to others and their lives. Ultimately, none of us are free of complexes, but it is vital that we cleanse ourselves of negative behaviors to the greatest degree possible, so that our words will not spread darkness into the lives of others.

Choose your words carefully.

The fog is here. It's as familiar as an old friend by now. The fog is a strange herald in my own personal mythology. I'm used to walking into it one person, and leaving it another person. A long time ago, a friend and I drove out to an acquaintance's house for a bit of partying. It wasn't a significant meeting, but on the way home, as is to be expected when driving while sleepy, I got lost. We drove around for awhile, not saying anything, because neither of us wanted to appear nervous to the other. Then he asked me if I knew where we were. I assured him I did, but really I had no idea. Every time I found a marker, I'd see things just past it that contradicted my previous understandings as to our whereabouts. Eventually I found the highway and we booked it back to the humble garage I was living in at the time. Not too long after that, I ended up staying out there for a long time. Once again, I got lost out there. So, the fog usually preceeds a new period of life for me. Right now, I'm talking to the student-rabbi and she's mentioned the final stages of conversion: the beit din (possibly a brit dam also), the mikveh (in January), and a public acknowledgement in the way of an aliyah to the Torah. I'm very excited about all this. I've studied for a year, and longer before this, and I guess I'm just really jazzed that it will finally be official soon. But what then? Will I then get caught up in this new identity and become lost in the twists and turns therein? No. You see, the thing that happened to me long ago happened before I knew who I was. I am still learning, but I have my foundation, and I am aware of my own nature. These are my guideposts, the lights that help me search for wisdom. They are the very basis of my faith: by knowing that Eheyeh Asher Eheyeh (I am that I am) created me in his image, I know that I can be aware of my own true nature, and that because of that, I will never lose myself again.