Genesis 1:28

The root "ברך" (Barach) and its gematric value of 222 associate the term with the idea of a flow of blessing from above for all, so humanity is endowed with that potential to carry out its mission on earth. The command "פְּ רוּ וּרְּ בוּ" (Pru urvu): "Be fruitful and multiply" proposes the proliferation of good deeds, thoughts, and words.

Fertility should be understood as the expansion of divine light in the world, making it necessary for us to embrace His will. As children, "וְּכִׁבְּ שֻׁ הָּ " (Vechivshúa): we must exercise control and dominion over the earth, but not despotically, rather in harmony with the laws of nature, reflecting the responsibility to be custodians and not tyrants.

The gematric value of 28 (כ"ח, Koaj) means "strength" and highlights the strength and power given to humans to fulfill that divine mandate, but it also implies the responsibility to use that power with wisdom and justice. Therefore, our blessings are tied to that power and the responsibility to shape and direct creation, as we have the divine potential to create, multiply, and govern justly and compassionately.

Unfortunately, we are not multiplying goodness, justice, and peace in the world; instead, we are using our strength destructively, even blaming spiritual forces for it. Evil arises from not examining the effects of our intentions, emotions, thoughts, relationships, and interactions, which impact not only us but the world, making it our task to fill the earth with divine light.

We do not have the license to exploit creation; the call is to act as responsible stewards, caring for the earth and all its creatures with love and respect. We are called to use our strength (Koaj) for good, acting as channels of blessing in the world, thus fulfilling our divine mission of reflecting the image of the Creator, who challenges us to consider how we can contribute more meaningfully and consciously to the creation of a better and more harmonious world.

Perhaps that is why, in response to our prolonged estrangement and the magnification of our chaos, He became human, making Himself in our image and likeness, with the purpose that we might understand His simple language of love.

The Divine Blessing (ברכה - "Beracha") as it appears in Beresheet (Genesis) is not simply a "blessing" as a gift or wish for good. In Kabbalah, a blessing is a channeling of Shefa (שֶ פַע), a spiritual flow that descends from the upper worlds to the lower.

The blessing comes primarily from Chochmah (divine wisdom) and filters through Chesed (mercy), Tiferet (beauty-balance), to Malchut (kingdom, receptacle). It is in Malchut that the blessing manifests—it is the place where humans can receive, manifest, and expand that energy.

Therefore, the five verbs: Be fruitful (פְּ רוּ – Peru), Multiply (וּרְּ בוּ - urvú), Fill (וּמִׁ לְּ אוּ - umilú), Subdue (וְּכִׁבְּ שֻׁ הָּ – vejibshuhá) and Rule (וּרְּ דוּ – ur'dú) represent those aspects of the spiritual work that every human being must perform as an image of Elohim. It is about loving (Chesed – Peru- פרו ), creating life, spreading His goodness, multiplying the good (Netzaj - Urvú - ורבו), overcoming the ego, being humble (hod - Umilú - ומלאו ), filling the world with light from within, having discipline (Gevurá - Vejibshuhá - וכבשוה), dominating impulses, refining matter, exercising spiritual sovereignty (Maljut - Ur'dú - ורדו), co-governing life from the soul. ברכה (Berakha) = 227, פרו (Peru) = 286, רבו (Ravú) = 208, ומלאו (Umilú) = 123, וכבשוה (Vejibshuhá) = 341, ורדו (Ur'dú) = 210, If we add all of them: 286 + 208 + 123 + 341 + 210 = 1168, it gives us the value of phrases such as: "Light from above" – (אוֹר מֵ רוֹם) in its extended form and is also associated with the total manifestation of blessing in the lower worlds.

And if we subtract the gematria of ברכה (227) from the total: 1168 - 227 = 941, a number that is linked to concepts such as "Tikkun Olam" (repair of the world), especially if seen as the sum of multiple correction processes.

Therefore, "ruling" in Kabbalah is not dominion in the imperialist sense. It is spiritual reign, the dominance of elevated consciousness over the instinctive. This is what King David does by elevating his desires to the service of Hashem. Radah (רדה) implies descending to the lowest in order to elevate it, not to destructively subdue it.

This is why, from a Kabbalistic perspective, these blessings are not only for the physical world. Each of us must: Be Fruitful: Create something beautiful in this world (art, relationships, ideas), Multiply: Expand good, inspire others, Fill: Inhabit spaces with divine consciousness, Subdue:

Master passions, elevate the material, and Lord: Be sovereign of your soul, lead from the soul.