Using the Names of The Most High

[alon]

Dec 5, 2017 15:01:30 GMT -8 jimmie said:

The ability to correctly pronounce YHVH, is infinitely small in comparison to knowing His Name/Character.

That's probably the most significant statement in this whole discussion!

Dan C

[alon]

I got this from a Jewish friend. It's a good insight to how Jews regard this question:

i've heard everyone mispronounce the "Name of GD" with their "yahovah" YHWH" jehovah" attempts.. Kabbalah teaches that Adonai (אדנ-י) is the Name associated with the Sephira of Malchut and it is the gateway from Shem Havayah (י-הוה) to this world, to you and to me and to all our bodies and souls. That cuts through all the university gobbledygook as far as I am concerned. If you want blessings instead of curses, peace instead of turmoil, you will draw this very high shefa that you are receiving through the proper gate. Or else chaos.

This is the way Rabbi Chaim Clorfene explained it and also There are people who apparently think it is spiritually liberating and courageous to pronounce or write Hashem's Explicit Name as spelled in English (Ye - Ho - Vah) rather than the way prescribed by Jewish Law, i.e., "Adonai". The truth is that such conduct is an admission of ignorance.

The Shem Havayah as written is too high for this world. Thus, the tikun, rectification, of Adonai is essential. Using the Name without the tikun brings chaos into the world for the doer and those around him or her. The rabbis teach that one can lose Olam HaBa through using the Name without the tikun of Adonai, which means my Lord or my Master. Using the Name correctly demonstrates submission to G-d and unifies all things above and below.

Do you know why it is actually damaging to say the Name? Words are vessels for Light.
The Light they contain is a reflection of the Light in the inner consciousness
If there is more Light than the vessel can contain, it is called ribuy ohr--too much Light
The extra Light nourishes the forces of the Other Side

The Names of G-d have an inner consciousness far greater than what can be contained by a word in this physical world.
The ministering angel of the Other Side is named Sahtan. And that is not the angel's actual name, either We dont even say that name because it's inner consciousness is from the most sublime Light We use the initials, samech mem We also do not generally say the names of the angels, malachim. Except for Michael, Gavriel, Uriel and Refael
Those names are able to contain the Light properly, so it is permissible to say them. In the liturgy are prayers with the names of certain malachim that are never pronounced, but rather put into thought during the prayer.

Loving Hashem's Name is one of the mitzvot

The describes incest between brother and sister (may Hashem protect us) as "chesed" Why? Because the love between a brother and sister is so great that, if it becomes misdirected, then too much chesed energy is released which nourishes the Other Side The forces of the Other Side especially try to trip up those who are sincere. For when sincere ones err, they release much more Light than others whose heart are not "into it" That is why Moshe Rabbenu is punished so severely for getting annoyed and striking the rock instead of speaking to it... The higher you are, the more spiritually perceptive, the more responsibility you have regarding the ethereal interactions the result from your actions and words...

Love is wonderful. But improper love that goes against the Will of the Creator is Evil. And the Evil Forces ALWAYS try to get us, from one level to the next...
Loving Hashem's Name is wonderful. The Yetzer HaRa will try to push that Love into too much Love that will result in ribuy ohr which feeds them. Saying and writing Hashem's Names feeds and strengthens them

A verse from the Tanach is enough of a vessel to pronounce "Ado-nay" but not enough of a vessel to pronounce Y-H-V-H or Y-H. The exception is when Y-H is part of another word, eg. Halleluy-ah Nevertheless, the word halleluy-ah by itself is considered by many to be included in the category of ineffable People who try to hold to a higher standard of yirat Shamayim will usually pronounce "halleluKah" I am far from an expert, but from what I've seen/heard, it would seem that the word "Halleluy-ah" does not emit nearly as great a ribuy ohr as pronouncing Y-H-V-H. And I have heard some people whom I consider highly educated, great lovers of Hashem go ahead and pronounce "Halleluy-ah". As of yet, I do not have clarity if this is truly proper Yirat Shamayim or not. Needs more prayer...

I learned about ribuy ohr the hard way, oy vey!

And lastly rashi comments on Shemos Gimel (exodus 3)
And Moses said to God, "Behold I come to the children of Israel, and I say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they say to me, 'What is His name?' what shall I say to them?" יגוַיֹּ֨אמֶר משֶׁ֜ה אֶל־הָֽאֱלֹהִ֗ים הִנֵּ֨ה אָֽנֹכִ֣י בָא֘ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵל֒ וְאָֽמַרְתִּ֣י לָהֶ֔ם אֱלֹהֵ֥י אֲבֽוֹתֵיכֶ֖ם שְׁלָחַ֣נִי אֲלֵיכֶ֑ם וְאָֽמְרוּ־לִ֣י מַה־שְּׁמ֔וֹ מָ֥ה אֹמַ֖ר אֲלֵהֶֽם:
14God said to Moses, "Ehyeh asher ehyeh (I will be what I will be)," and He said, "So shall you say to the children of Israel, 'Ehyeh (I will be) has sent me to you.'" ידוַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֱלֹהִים֙ אֶל־משֶׁ֔ה אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֶֽהְיֶ֑ה וַיֹּ֗אמֶר כֹּ֤ה תֹאמַר֙ לִבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה שְׁלָחַ֥נִי אֲלֵיכֶֽם:

“Ehyeh asher ehyeh (I will be what I will be)”: “I will be” with them in this predicament “what I will be” with them in their subjugation by other kingdoms. He [Moses] said before Him, “O Lord of the universe! Why should I mention to them another trouble? They have enough [problems] with this one.” He said to him, “You have spoken well. So shall you say, etc.” -[from Ber. 9b] (Not that Moses, God forbid, outsmarted God, but he did not understand what God meant, because originally, when God said, “I will be what I will be,” He told this to Moses alone, and He did not mean that he should tell it to Israel. That is the meaning of “You have spoken well,” for that was My original intention, that you should not tell such things to the children of Israel, only “So shall you say to the children of Israel,” ‘Ehyeh has sent me.’” From tractate Berachoth this appears to be the correct interpretation. Give this matter your deliberation.)
אהיה אשר אהיה: אהיה עמם בצרה זו אשר אהיה עמם בשעבוד שאר מלכיות. אמר לפניו רבונו של עולם, מה אני מזכיר להם צרה אחרת דיים בצרה זו. אמר לו יפה אמרת, כה תאמר וגו':

15And God said further to Moses, "So shall you say to the children of Israel, 'The Lord God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is My name forever, and this is how I should be mentioned in every generation. טווַיֹּ֩אמֶר֩ ע֨וֹד אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֶל־משֶׁ֗ה כֹּ֣ה תֹאמַר֘ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵל֒ יְהֹוָ֞ה אֱלֹהֵ֣י אֲבֹֽתֵיכֶ֗ם אֱלֹהֵ֨י אַבְרָהָ֜ם אֱלֹהֵ֥י יִצְחָ֛ק וֵֽאלֹהֵ֥י יַֽעֲקֹ֖ב שְׁלָחַ֣נִי אֲלֵיכֶ֑ם זֶה־שְּׁמִ֣י לְעֹלָ֔ם וְזֶ֥ה זִכְרִ֖י לְדֹ֥ר דֹּֽר:
This is My name forever: Heb. לְעֹלָם [It is spelled] without a vav, meaning: conceal it [God’s name] תהַעִלִימֵהוּ [so] that it should not be read as it is written. — [from Pes. 50a] Since the “vav” of (לְעֹלָ ם) is missing, we are to understand it as לְעַלֵּם, to conceal, meaning that the pronunciation of the way God’s name is written (י-ה-ו-ה) is to be concealed. — [from Pes. 50a.]

and this is how I should be mentioned -: He [God] taught him [Moses] how it was to be read, and so does David say, “O Lord, Your name is forever; O Lord, the mention of Your name is for every generation” (Ps. 135:14). — [from Pes. 50a]
וזה זכרי: למדו היאך נקרא, וכן דוד הוא אומר (תהלים קלה יג) ה' שמך לעולם ה' זכרך לדור ודור:

[Elizabeth]

That's a scary read for someone who just found herself over her head with evil. The adversary wants us to feel like everything is out of our control and that's easy because it is. But we have G-d, this seems to kind of feed into that fear for me.

Good to know the perspective though. 

[alon]

Jan 12, 2018 8:22:08 GMT -8 Elizabeth said:

That's a scary read for someone who just found herself over her head with evil. The adversary wants us to feel like everything is out of our control and that's easy because it is. But we have G-d, this seems to kind of feed into that fear for me.

Good to know the perspective though. 

The person who sent that is Orthodox, so he can be a bit "scary" at times. But take most of what he quotes as midrash, stories meant to teach a lesson. Whatever we do feeds either our love for HaShem or it feeds our love for the world. It glorifies HaShem or ha'satan. Like the story about the two dogs, one good and one evil inside us that are fighting and the one that wins depends on which we feed. The Orthodox sect is very concerned about preparing their souls, but they get a bit obsessive about it ritually to the detriment of everything else. And they take everything in the Talmud as fact, not midrash, giving it precedence over the Bible.

I'll give my reply to him in a separate post. That may help. Or it may be even more scary, i don't know. It kind of miffed him because I don't give Talmud, and certainly not the more esoteric Jewish writings the preeminence he does. But I'll post it so you can see what I said. Just don't read too much into any of it, since he is heavily influenced by Kaballah. And notice that his last quote trips him up, bringing it all back to our simpler understanding.

Sorry if this is all scary though. I posted it more to show how the Orthodox Jews think than to teach, though there are lessons there if not taken literally.

Dan C 

 

[alon]

my reply: I need some clarification. I won’t go into pronunciation (a la the Sacred Names idiocy); but focus on the use.

“The Shem Havayah as written is too high for this world.”

We teach that The Name of Abishter is not to be made common, meaning it is not to be used lightly or too much. However HaShem gave us His name in scripture, and He did so to enlighten us. So whenever The Name is used in scripture, it can be used to instruct others about scripture. For example, if I were teaching on healing and where our trust should ultimately lie in this, I might use the biblical term YHVH’Rapha, God Who Heals (Exodus 15:26). And I would read it so in the teaching. You are saying I should read that Adonai Rapha, correct? But then I am changing what El-him gave me. I see the idea of respect in what you say, however it is also a sign of respect to not change the Word.

“Thus, the tikun, rectification, of Adonai is essential. Using the Name without the tikun brings chaos into the world for the doer and those around him or her. … Using the Name correctly demonstrates submission to G-d and unifies all things above and below.”

If one is to unify all things, then respectfully and sparingly using the names or titles given us with understanding of what they represent would seem to be what is required.

“The ministering angel of the Other Side is named Sahtan.”

I call him “ha’satan,” all lower case to just say “the adversary.” I never capitalize it because, as you say it is not a name. I refuse to give back what HaShem took form him at the fall. The closest we ever see to a name for him is Lucifer, which is more a title meaning Light Bearer and that was before his fall. So one might see the use of The Name as feeding ha’satan’s pre-fall office now in a fallen world; much the same as capitalizing his description is giving him back a name. That’s food for thought.

“The describes incest between brother and sister (may Hashem protect us) as "chesed" Why? Because the love between a brother and sister is so great that, if it becomes misdirected, then too much chesed energy is released which nourishes the Other Side The forces of the Other Side especially try to trip up those who are sincere. For when sincere ones err, they release much more Light than others whose heart are not "into it”"

Interesting as an illustration. And you continue:

“Love is wonderful. But improper love that goes against the Will of the Creator is Evil. And the Evil Forces ALWAYS try to get us, from one level to the next ... Loving Hashem's Name is wonderful. The Yetzer HaRa will try to push that Love into too much Love that will result in ribuy ohr which feeds them. Saying and writing Hashem's Names feeds and strengthens them”

Now that’ll preach! This is one of the things I always try to drive home to the love-mongers that seem to plague Messianism. They are a curse that followed us out of Christianity, where they are even more a plague.

“and lastly rashi comments on Shemos Gimel (exodus 3) …
“Ehyeh asher ehyeh (I will be what I will be)”: “I will be” with them in this predicament “what I will be” with them in their subjugation by other kingdoms. He [Moses] said before Him, “O Lord of the universe! Why should I mention to them another trouble? They have enough [problems] with this one.” He said to him, “You have spoken well. So shall you say, etc.” -[from Ber. 9b] … (From tractate Berachoth this appears to be the correct interpretation. Give this matter your deliberation.)

Isn’t this a midrash aggadah? If so, it isn’t to be taken literally, but the lesson being taught is to be gleaned from it. We’d place this in the category of commentary; still a religious writing from which we might learn, but not holy writ. And as such it may be wrong also. Or our interpretation may be wrong. Now I am not arguing that Rashi was wrong here, just saying we shouldn’t take him as infallible or too literally.

This is probably a large point of difference between our faiths. We don’t disregard the teachings of men like Rashi, however we don’t elevate them in status either.

“15And God said further to Moses, "So shall you say to the children of Israel, 'The Lord God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is My name forever, and this is how I should be mentioned in every generation. … This is My name forever: Heb. לְעֹלָם [It is spelled] without a vav, meaning: conceal it [God’s name] תהַעִלִימֵהוּ [so] that it should not be read as it is written. — [from Pes. 50a] Since the “vav” of (לְעֹלָ ם) is missing, we are to understand it as לְעַלֵּם, to conceal, meaning that the pronunciation of the way God’s name is written (י-ה-ו-ה) is to be concealed. — [from Pes. 50a.]”

OK, that actually makes sense. Not that I fully understand it, but I do know that there are anomalies in Hebrew writing of scripture, and they have meaning. This would seem to be a good understanding of the meaning of omitting the vav, until you say:

“and so does David say, “O Lord, Your name is forever; O Lord, the mention of Your name is for every generation” (Ps. 135:14). — [from Pes. 50a]

Which brings us back to my original understanding that The Name is given to us for edification, but should be used sparingly and respectfully. His Name is forever and is there for all generations to know Him by.

Dan