Genesis 1:16

When we are told of "Shenei HaMe'orot" (Two Great Luminaries), the greater and the lesser light, it does not only refer to the sun and the moon as celestial bodies, but also to the different ways in which divine light manifests in our lives. The "greater light" (the sun) symbolizes the light of revelation, clarity, and full awareness, while the "lesser light" (the moon) represents reflected light, introspection, and the more hidden aspects of our consciousness.

The assignment of the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night therefore symbolizes the necessary balance between clarity and darkness, revelation and mystery, action and reflection—an essential harmony for our overall healthy growth.

"HaMe'orot" (הַ מְּ אֹרוֹת ), the luminaries, has a gematric value of 613 (ה = 5, מ = 40, א = 1, ו = 6, ר = 200, ת = 400), a particularly significant concept in Judaism, as 613 is the total number of commandments (mitzvot) in the Torah. This suggests that the luminaries, or divine light, are intrinsically connected with the entirety of divine law, illuminating the path we must follow to live in accordance with the Creator's precepts.

Our Lord Jesus Christ reminded us that love is the perfect bond that allows us to maintain a balance between light and darkness in our lives. Just as the sun and moon govern the day and night, we must also learn to govern our moments of clarity and introspection, using both to grow spiritually.

The stars, although small from our perspective, help us understand that the true purpose of the firmament is to remind us that there is only one luminous source, our Creator, and that all lights, no matter how small they may seem, represent us as small fragments of His essence.

Thus, our small moments require great understanding so that our daily actions reflect His goodness, flashes that have a significant impact on the entire firmament that is fully interconnected, as nothing is outside of Him. This implies that His commandments are our guide to living in alignment with His will.

Let us not lose sight of the fact that first comes the light, and then the vessels. This is supported by the fact that the light was created on the first day, but the vessels to contain that light (sun, moon, stars) only appear on the fourth day. This has to do with the teaching that energy precedes form, a Kabbalistic idea supported by gematria that reiterates that the word מְּ אֹרֹת (Me'orot) = "luminaries" has a numerical value of 647, which leads us to an interesting Midrash that says that originally the two luminaries were equal, but the moon was "dwarfed."

This is reflected in the text: "The greater luminary for the day, the lesser for the night," noting that the sun (Zeir Anpin) contains the masculine, proactive, expansive aspect of God, while the moon (Malchut) contains the feminine, receptive aspect, the Shekhinah. This further explains to us that there is a dance between these two forces, and the universe is the result of that interaction.

Being clear that the Torah is not only speaking of the physical heavens. It speaks of spiritual structures that are then reflected in the physical is of utmost importance, since just as we see galaxies, suns, and systems, spiritually there are levels, worlds, and sefirot, and the "luminaries" represent divine emanations that shine on every plane of the universe, from the highest to the physical world.

In Kabbalah, this universe is part of an infinite network, where each star, each sun, is a channel of light that reflects a spiritual intelligence. Instead of asking ourselves "where is the sun in the text?", we must understand what light is transmitted through the sun, and what it teaches about our soul, because according to Kabbalah, each person is also a me'orah, a luminary, and our mission is to reflect that divine light, as the moon reflects the light of the sun.

And although everything contains the divine essence and influences us, it is clear that our destiny is toward Him, toward eternity, and even the stars reveal this to us. This cannot be confused with the fact that they co-govern our quests, since, as the Talmud says (Shabbat 156a), it says: "Ein mazal l'Yisrael." There is no constellation (astral determinism) for Israel. This does not mean that the stars have no influence, but rather that the soul connected to its divine root can rise above the astral influence.

The Zohar itself (the main text of Kabbalah) explains: The planets and zodiacal signs channel spiritual energies from higher worlds into our physical world. They are like cosmic “conduits” or “gears.” But human beings, made in the image of the Creator, have the ability to influence even these channels.

The Hebrew word for fate or destiny is מַ זָּל – Mazal, which translates more accurately as celestial flow, or the way spiritual energy “trickles” toward us. Mazal has a gematric value: מ )40 + (ז )7 + (ל (30) = 7, which is also the value of עוז (oz = strength) and is related to Yesod, the sefirah that channels energy toward the earthly. This means that mazal is not a rigid destiny, but rather a potential flow we can connect to if we shift our consciousness, achieving a better mazal, or alignment with the Creator.

It is clear that there are celestial maps that reflect inclinations, tendencies, and probable paths, but this is not a fixed destiny. Human beings, through awareness, intention, prayer, action, and spiritual study, can change the course they are taking along these paths, the same ones the Tree of Life and the sefiras speak of.

In the Sefer Yetzirah (the "Book of Formation"), it is said that the universe was created with: Sefirot (divine emanations), Hebrew letters, the twelve constellations, the seven classical planets, and the elements of the soul, where everything is connected, but our soul is co-creator with the Creator.

כוכב – Kokhav (star) = כ )20 + (ו )6 + (כ )20 + (ב )2 = (48,מזל – Mazal (astral flow) = 77, reiterates that 48 is also the value of מילוי – Milui (fullness), which suggests that the stars are full of messages. Now גזרה – Gezerah (decree, destiny) = ג )3 + (ז )7 + (ר )200 + (ה (5) = 215, and תשובה – Teshuva (return, repentance) = 713, as well as תפילה – Tefillah (prayer) = 515, are actions Spirituals that change the gezerah.

Therefore, those who seek a destination, even in astrology, overlook the fact that there is only a partial reading or map to navigate. Therefore, each person chooses the path to take and can change paths, detours for which we have the guidance of the Creator thanks to the Holy Spirit.