Difference between revisions of "Sephiroth"

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(New page: The word Sephiroth (or Sefirot) originates from the Hebrew language. It is the plural form of Sephira (or Sefira) which translates literally to "number". In Jewish mysticism, it represents...)
 
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* [[Xenogears]] as Path to [[Sephiroth]]
 
* [[Xenogears]] as Path to [[Sephiroth]]
  
References:
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== References ==
 
* Encyclopaedia Britannica 2002 Standard Edition CD-ROM: Sefira
 
* Encyclopaedia Britannica 2002 Standard Edition CD-ROM: Sefira
* [Final Fantasy VII Script]
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* [http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/game/20052.html Final Fantasy VII Script]
* [Kheper.net - Sefirot]
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* [http://www.kheper.net/topics/Kabbalah/sefirot.htm Kheper.net - Sefirot]
* [Kheper.net - Emanationism]
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* [http://www.kheper.net/topics/worldviews/emanationism.htm Kheper.net - Emanationism]
* [Xenogears Script]
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* [http://www.escaflowneonline.com/xenogears Xenogears Script]
  
 
[[Category:Articles]]
 
[[Category:Articles]]
 
[[Category:Judaism]]
 
[[Category:Judaism]]

Revision as of 14:43, 20 February 2007

The word Sephiroth (or Sefirot) originates from the Hebrew language. It is the plural form of Sephira (or Sefira) which translates literally to "number". In Jewish mysticism, it represents the ten stages of emanation in which En Sof, "The Infinite" manifests in the physical world. The ten emanations, or the Ten Sefirot, are connected by pathways, and are arranged to form a central pillar that is flanked by two side columns. The Ten Sefirot are the aspects of God, and it is through the Sefirot that God is perceived, though the true essence of God is unknowable.

Terra's Personal Opinions[1]

Final Fantasy VII

"You see, even if Jenova's body is dismembered, it will eventually become one again. That's what is meant by Jenova's Reunion to start. Five years have passed, and now the Clones have began to return. I thought the Clones would begin to gather at Midgar where Jenova is stored. But my predictions were not entirely correct. Jenova itself began to move away from the Shinra Building. But being a genius that I am, I soon figured it out. You see it was all Sephiroth's doing. Sephiroth is not just content to diffuse his will into the Lifestream; he wants to manipulate the Clones itself." Hojo, Final Fantasy VII

In Final Fantasy VII, the character Sephiroth was the nexus of Jenova's reunification. There is no way for us to read the minds of the game story designers but we can at least speculate on why the name Sephiroth was chosen.

One reason could be that (aside from it being a cool sounding name ^-^) the real-world reference of Sephiroth happened to fit the character's role in the game. The second could be that the designers researched into Jewish mysticism (perhaps even Aleister Crowley interpretations) during the story-building process. This is highly plausible since the recurring "lifestream" theme that appears in Final Fantasy VII really an exercise in the pseudo-metaphysical. The character Sephiroth could be taken to be a personification of The Ten Sefirot and their pathways to Jenova, which incidentally is linked to biblical/Jewish references. Interpret how you will.

Xenogears

"During the connection tests of Zohar with the newly completed Deus, the engine started to examine infinite potential phenomena. Requiring energy, the engine connected this dimension to the higher dimensional space. As a result, that reactor 'merged' or 'synchronized' with the wave existence in that higher dimension... Me. I descended from the point of contact created by the machines through the 'Path of Sephirot', or the domain you are in right now, and incarnated in the four-dimensional world." The Wave Existence, Xenogears

The 'Path of Sephirot' reference in Xenogears is a bit more obvious as opposed to that of Final Fantasy VII's. The Wave Existence in Xenogears has parallels to The Infinite. The multi-dimensional space reference is analogous to the emanationist view of the universe.

Appears in

References

  1. The following is only a summary of the information I researched on and interpreted. I realise that some of the content may border on the sensitive, but I am no scholar of the Kabbalah. Please forgive and correct me if you feel that I am wrong in any areas.