The Zohar and the 32 Paths of Wisdom

Everything written in the Zohar is inspired by the mystical experience of the author into one of the 32 Mystical Paths of Wisdom. Any idea contained in the Zohar can be spectrally analyzed by its influence from one of the 32 Mystical Paths of Wisdom.

If you want to really understand a statement in the Zohar, you can find out which of the Paths are illuminating the thoughts of the Companions, ascend to these Paths through theurgic methods, gaze upon the concealed light of emanation, and, once you have arrived at this level, bask in the radiance of divine illumination, holding on not to what is your own but open to be filled with mystical insight, becoming energized thereby, and once this intellectual sanctification has been had, ascending yet higher to become unified and united with that spark of truth which has been kindled by those who shared in this unity before, and upon coming to this inscrutable height, comprehending the fathomless depth of insight revealed by the Companions in their discussions and conversations.

The following chart can be used to open up the Paths as a preparatory exercise before Zohar study.
 

Torah, Topology, and Midrashic Literature

Topology is the mathematical study of the structure of spaces, topological spaces.  A topological structure is defined by the system of neighborhoods of the points in the space.  The theory of topological spaces captures the intuitive notion of closeness: two points are close in the topology of the space if each of the points are in a neighborhood of the other.  In general, there may be many neighborhoods in which both points are found ─ it is the global structure of the system of neighborhoods therefore that represents the topological structure of the space.  Topologists develop tools for studying the structure of topological spaces.

How can we use ideas from topology to understand the higher-dimensional Torah?  This Torah is pure mathematical code, that is, linguistically coded vibrational patterns in the Metatronic thought-space.  There are no worldly concepts that apply to what is written in Torah.  Every event, every person, every name and every thing is not like anything in our sensory experience.

Every word of Torah is a topological subspace of the Metatronic thought-space.  The linear format of the written Torah is not an accurate reflection of the topology of the Metatronic thought-space.  The topology of these spaces is seen through the vibrational resonances between words and verses of Torah and the system of the 10 Sefirot.  Just because two words or verses happen to be adjacent in the text of Torah does not mean that they are close in the topology of the Metatronic thought-space.  Two words are close in the this topology when there is a vibrational resonance betwen them, even though they may appear in distant locations in the written Torah.

The aim of Midrashic literature, such as Midrash Rabbah and Sefer haZohar, is to explore the system of neighborhoods of words and verses of Torah and how these are connected to the Sefirot.  Students of Midrash are then able to perceive the actual structure of the topology of the Metatronic thought-space by understanding the patterns of vibrational resonance amongst the words of Torah.

I believe there is an aggadah that describes Rabbi Ishmael sitting and studying Torah and a great fire was blazing all around him.  His students approached and asked him what he was doing.  He said he was 'stringing together' words of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim, and that the words of Torah were as wondrous as they were when they were given to Moshe on Sinai.  He really meant that he was mapping out the vibrational resonances between words and verses in disparate locations, and was amazed how they were topologically close, yet physically distant.

-- S.A.O.