It might surprise you.
According to this text, the beauty of the female—and remember, in Kabbalah, "female" and "male" often represent different aspects of divinity—is entirely derived from the beauty of the male. Now, before you jump to conclusions, let’s unpack this a bit. We're not talking about physical appearance in the everyday sense. We're diving deep into the symbolic realm of the sefirot, the emanations of God.
These ideas, the text says, are “known among the companions.” That is, the people already immersed in the wisdom of Kabbalah. So, let's catch up, shall we?
The Idra Zuta describes how the lower realms – Briah (Creation), Yetzirah (Formation), and Asiyah (Action) – are all connected to the feminine aspect, Malchut, which means "Kingdom." Think of Malchut as the vessel that receives and manifests all the divine energy flowing from above.
All these realms are united by Malchut; they are fed by her and return to her, because Malchut is the root of all three realms under Atzilut (Emanation), as we find in the Idra Rabbah, the "Greater Holy Assembly." (section 324). She’s called the mother of all.
This concept of "mother" is key. Just as Binah (Understanding), another of the sefirot, is considered the mother of Zeir Anpin (the “Small Face”), which represents the body of God and receives everything from Binah, so too is Malchut a mother for everything below – in Briah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah.
So, Binah is the mother of the body, Zeir Anpin and Malchut is the mother of the lower worlds. Got it?
Think of it like this: Binah, the higher "mother," provides the blueprint, the initial form. Malchut, the lower "mother," then brings that form into manifestation in the world. She's the one who gives birth to reality as we know it.
What does this mean for us? Perhaps it suggests that true beauty isn't just a superficial attribute, but a reflection of a deeper, more fundamental source. A source rooted in the divine, in the interplay between the masculine and feminine aspects of God. Maybe when we see beauty, we're catching a glimpse of that underlying unity, that flow of energy from the higher realms into our own.
It gives you something to think about, doesn’t it? The next time you’re struck by something beautiful, consider its source. Where is that beauty really coming from? Maybe, just maybe, it’s a little piece of the divine shining through.