Atziluth

אצילות - The World of Emanation

The highest of the Four Worlds, where divine reality is most revealed and least concealed. In Atziluth, there is no separation between the divine and creation - all is unity.

Essential Nature

Atziluth derives from the Hebrew root א-צ-ל (aleph-tzadi-lamed), meaning "to emanate" or "to be near." It represents the archetypal realm where divine attributes exist in their purest form, completely unified with their source in Ein Sof. In Atziluth, the Sefirot are not separate vessels containing light, but rather the divine light itself taking form.

This world is also called Olam HaAtzilut (עולם האצילות) - the World of Nobility or Nearness. Here, divine consciousness is so pure that there is no sense of separate existence - everything is experienced as divine unity.

Zohar II:42b, Etz Chaim (Shaar 42, Chapter 1), Pardes Rimonim 23:10

Attributes & Correspondences

Hebrew Name:
אצילות

Level:
1st World (Highest)

Element:
Fire (אש)

Letter (YHVH):
Yod (י) - The point of fire

Divine Name:
YHVH (יהוה) - The Tetragrammaton

Soul Level:
Chaya (חיה - Living Essence)

Reality Type:
Pure Divinity / Archetypes

Consciousness:
Divine Unity / No Separation

Etz Chaim (Shaar 42), Shaar HaGilgulim (Introduction 11), Tanya (Chapter 51)

The Sefirot in Atziluth

In Atziluth, each Sefirah exists in its most pure and undifferentiated form. They are called Partzufim (פרצופים, "faces" or "configurations") - divine personas that interact with one another in dynamic patterns:

Sefirah	Partzuf	Meaning
Keter	Arich Anpin	The Long/Patient Face
Chokmah	Abba	Father - Primordial Wisdom
Binah	Imma	Mother - Divine Understanding
Chesed-Tiferet-Netzach-Yesod	Zeir Anpin	Small Face - The Son
Malkhut	Nukva	Female - The Bride/Daughter

These Partzufim are not separate beings but different configurations of the same divine light, interacting in patterns that generate all lower realities.

Etz Chaim (Shaar Arich Anpin, Shaar Abba v'Imma), Zohar III:135a-145a (Idra Rabba)

The 72 Sparks of Atziluth

Each of the 72 Names of God manifests in Atziluth as a pure archetypal force. These 72 Sparks represent the divine powers in their most essential form, before they descend into creation.

Characteristics of Atziluthic Sparks:

Pure Unity - No sense of separation from the divine
Archetypal Power - The essence of each attribute before manifestation
Infinite Potential - Unlimited by form or limitation
Divine Consciousness - Awareness of unity with Ein Sof
Fiery Nature - Intense, transformative, all-consuming
Source Point - The origin from which lower manifestations flow

Example: The Name Vehu (והו - God Exalted) in Atziluth represents the pure archetypal power of miraculous healing in its divine essence. At this level, there is no distinction between healer, healing, and healed - all is unity. This archetype then descends through the lower worlds, taking on more defined forms in Beriah, Yetzirah, and finally physical manifestation in Assiah.

Note: Individual pages for each of the 72 Atziluthic Sparks are under development. Each will detail the specific powers, relationships, and manifestations of that Name in the World of Emanation.

Relationship to Other Worlds

Emanates Into:

The Malkhut (lowest point) of Atziluth becomes the Keter (highest point) of Beriah. This is the fundamental principle of interworld connection: the end of a higher world is the beginning of the lower world.

The Descent Process:

As divine light descends from Atziluth into Beriah, it undergoes tzimtzum (contraction). The unity consciousness of Atziluth becomes the separated consciousness of Beriah, where divine and created begin to differentiate.

Etz Chaim (Shaar 43 - "Shaar Seder Hishtalshelut"), Zohar I:15a