Kabbalah as Writing Process?
Inspired by The Kabbalah of Writing by Sherri Mandell
Introduction
Ever since I purchased The Kabbalah of Writing, which goes through each of the Sefirot and provides writing exercises, I have been pondering a question in the back of my mind. Can someone make a writing process based on the Sefirot?
For those less familiar, the 10 sefirot are a part of Kabbalaistic theology which identifies 10 lens through which we can understand the divine. This can get complicated given the focus of the divine in Judaism as monotheistic. Rather than discuss the complications, I will acknowledge that this is a much longer topic - one that I am just hand-waving over. For now - we will focus on the fact that these are 10 attributes that people associate with G-d and that identify as part of the way that humans are made in G-d’s image.
The 10 sefirot or attributes are:
Keter - “Crown” - often understood as will or desire
Chochmah - “Inspiration“
Binah - “Comprehension“
Chesed - “Kindness“
Gevurah - “Boundaries“
Tiferet - “Harmony“
Netzach - “Endurance“
Hod - “Surrender“
Yesod - “Foundation“ - often understood as related to creativity
Malchut - “Sovereignty”
This post is only loosely inspired by the book- given that the book itself is more focused on the genre of Memoir specifically - which I do not write nor read.
Today - I am trying to review the book in question, pull what I can from it, and see if such a framework might be possible for anyone’s writing process (i.e. - one that is not memoir specific). After all, as the author, Sherri Mandell says in her introduction “writing is a process of thinking,” and well - Kabbalah has plenty to say on how to think. The first three sefirot - Keter, Chochmah and Binah - are specificially about three mental processes.
Keter
As previously stated, Keter, translated as Crown, is ofter understood to refer to will, or desire. It is the first sefirot and an appropriate place to start. Here we ask, what is the point of this project in the first place? what is my goal here? Every writing project as a reason, the element that sparked and gave you the intent in the first place. Why do you want to write? What do you want to write? There is no judgement re your answers, but this is simply asking you to acknowledge those first. Knowing why you want to write can help shape decisions moving forward and make sure that the project continues to be fulfilling as it evolves and changes (because most writing projects do).
Chochmah
Chochmah is about inspiration - that first spark of an idea that blooms in your mind from nothing. Here we are asking questions, exploring curiousity. In the diagram of Sefirot, Chochmah is the first one on the right side, considered the Active Sefirot (also gendered as Male). I once heard someone describe the active sefirot as related to the process of Initiating. It is about starting, turning outwards, and actively expanding. Inspiration as a process requires initiating. It requires going out and asking questions and exploring. Ideas don’t just come to us. We have to work for them.
Binah
Binah is about comprehension, understanding. Binah is the first sefirot on the left side of the diagram (often gendered as Female), which is considered the Passive Sefirot. I once heard someone describe these as doing to work of manifesting and refining. Work is still required, but rather the focus turns inwards. Binah is about taking the inspiration gathered and working to understand the piece as a whole. It is about refining it into an outline. It is in this section of the book that Mandell proposes her own framework of an outline based on PaRDeS. I have discussed PaRDeS myself before (which I will link below). Mandell’s version has the following:
Pshat - Details - the who, what, when, and where of the story to be written
Remez - Hint - Textual connections and associations
Drash - Explanation - Themes
Sod - Secret - What is uniquely yours? What question is the heard of the story?
After Binah - we proceed onto the lower 7 Sefirot - and leave the mental sefirot for the emotional ones.
Chesed
Chesed, translated as loving-kindness, is the first of the emotionally focused sefirot (and also on the right side). While the previous three sefirot focused on the mental processes required to get started, here we turn to a more emotional lens. Specifically, the kindness one has to have for oneself when they start and are looking on the blank page. You have your purpose, your ideas, and your outline, but you still are looking at that blank blinking cursor. It is easy to feel lost. Be kind. Try freewriting if that helps. Everyone is different. Start from a place of letting go and seeing what happens. There is a place for the editor - but not yet. We start with Kindness.
Gevurah
Gevurah is where we start to get strict with ourselves. Gevurah is where we start imposing structure. Freewriting and writing from the seat of our pants has its place - but eventually we need to reign it in- and tame the mess we have made. Gevurah sits opposite from Chesed. Chesed on the right, and Gevurah on the left - which means that Gevurah is about refining what we have and turning inwards. In constrast to Chesed’s chasing of every interesting idea, Gevurah is where we start to “kill our darlings”.
Tiferet
Tiferet is often discussed as referring to harmony, balance, and truth. It is lies in the middle and is associated with the balancing of both Chesed and Gevurah. I write this out as a process, but it often will not be linear. You might have to go back and forth with each draft. Tiferet is also where we start to consider the balance between what you want to write as the author and what the audience will need to see. Writing is about balance and compromise. Beyond just authorial intent, there is also the expectations of the audience and demand of the market to consider - especially if you want to sell it or make money. Tiferet is where we discuss these compromises.
Netzach
With Netzach, we proceed to the next set of three sefirot - which some continue to describe as emotions, but I generally understand more as attitudes towards the outer world. Netzach is about endurance, and pushing through. Netzach is about taking on the perspective of eternity. As it relates to the writing process, Netzach is about pushing through the rejections and doubt. It is about doing the hard thing of believing in the project in the long run despite what the immediate situation in front of you might say.
Hod
My understanding is that Hod literally means Splendor - but I have often seen it translated and discussed as Surrender. It is the opposited of Netzach. While Netzach is about pushing through, Hod is about letting go. Hod is accepting what the project is and what it is not, and recognizing that you cannot control other people. You cannot control agents. You cannot control the market. You cannot control your readers. At some point, no matter how much you believe in the project, other people have to be on board, and it is larger than you. You have to accept that and surrender to whatever happens.
Yesod
Yesod, meaning Foundation, is often discussed as related to creativity. It is the actual act of creating a thing and putting it into the world. This entire act of writing is a creating process, but at some point it has to be done. At some point, it is over and complete. At some point, you have created the thing. And that does sometimes mean more than just writing. A book is not a book just cause you have every word. A book needs a cover. A book needs an ISBN. A book needs to be marketed. The act of creation can be messy and it is not only the fun bits.
Malchut
Last, but not least, Malchut - which I understand as Sovereignty - but which Mandell describes as Rulership. Malchut is about owning your voice in the real world. Malchut is the opposite of Keter. Where Keter is about the ideal abstract seed of the idea in your head, and what you desire it to be, Malchut is about what actually is. You are now the author of a work. It is now in the world. Own it. Share it. Be proud of it. Don’t rely on others and assume that your ideal readers will just show up “Field of Dreams”-style.
Conclusion
So there we go - my attempt at the writing process- from spark to finished work - through the lens of the Sefirot (based heavily on The Kabbalah of Writing by Sherri Mandell). For more on this, especially if you are interested in Memoir, you might want to read the book. Here is a link to my Bookshop Affiliate page - which includes links to all books I discuss on this Substack (and any purchases made support me).
Let's Keep the Conversation Going
As always, I welcome disagreement, pushback, commentary, correction, etc. I am not a scholar. I do not write this from on-high to declare and prescribe the answers. But rather I want to talk about what I have found interesting, make a proposal, and hopefully enable others to make it their own. I do not write alone, but in conversation and as part of a community and I look forward to hearing from you.