Yichudim

Yichudim (Hebrew: "Unifications") is a specific form of Jewish meditation in Kabbalistic Jewish mysticism, especially denoting the complete meditative method developed by Isaac Luria (1534–1572). The term Yichud is found in Halakha (Jewish law), denoting male-female "seclusion". In the esoteric anthropomorphism in Kabbalah, Yichudim denote unifications between male and female Divine aspects in the supernal sephirot.

The Zohar speaks of two types of Yichudim in general, a Yichud Mah u Ban and a Yichud Ava. These divine names derive from esoteric expansions of the Tetragrammaton, representing different supernal forces. Kabbalistic theosophy explores the esoteric function of Yichudim in the unfolding creation of the spiritual realms, while meditative Kabbalah experiences and influences these supernal forces through the human psyche, as mystical Kavanot intentions during prayer, Jewish observance, or isolated practice. Kabbalistic doctrine sees unifications in the divine realm among the sephirot, and between God and lower creation, as the theurgic restorative task of man. Among the sephirot this is symbolised by the unification of the revealed male principle Tiferet ("The Holy One Blessed be He") and the female Malkuth (which descends immanently into creation as the exiled Shekhina divine Presence).

Yichud Mah u Ban in the human psyche is the unification of one's emotions with action.

Yichud Ava is the process whereby a Kabbalist traces an object or concept in this physical world, up through the various levels of God's creative process of that object or concept. The goal of a unification is twofold. One, to uncover the inherent Godliness in the subject that is being meditated on, and second, to bring the Godliness "back home", so to speak. Once the Godliness of the thing is uncovered, the Kabbalist will endeavour to conceptually understand how all the levels that once separated him and God are actually all one. Hasidic thought describes two levels of this Divine Yichud (Unity) with Creation: Yichuda Ila'ah (Higher Unity) in which Creation is nullified within the Divine totality, Yichudah Tata'ah (Lower Unity) in which Creation perceives its own existence dependent on God.

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