Bereishis 1

Bereishis 1:1

את השמים ואת הארץ....the Heavens and the Earth

The story of Creation begins with the creation of the Heaven and the Earth. Why do these two concepts take center stage?

The Heavens represent the power to give, the Earth, the ability to receive. Giving and receiving are the fundamental qualities of a relationship and the Torah is informing us from the outset that the key element to existence is the fostering of relationships.

Bereishis 1:4

ויבדל אלוהים, בין האור ובין החושך... And God separated between the Light and the Darkness

Throughout the story of Creation the name אלוהים (Elohim) is used to denote God. This is a name which is used to indicate din, constriction and limitation. This is to indicate that the process of Creation was one by which God constricted His infinite Self in order to create a place for all of the Creations.

An additional reason is because the first step of creation is to have an idea, this is referred to in Kabbalistic terminology as חכמה, chochma, literally wisdom. But an idea, powerful as it may be, is useless without someone who knows how to break it down into its parts and to figure out how to implement it. This process of delineation is an element of din and is referred to as בינה, binah, literally understanding. The chochma provides the ideas which are received by the binah which then breaks down, kneads and shapes the original idea so that it can be actualized and implemented. Chochma without binah is useless. The name Elohim is therefore used to indicate that the world was being created in such a manner as to take the loftiest and most esoteric parts of God's being and make them accessible to his Creations.

Bereishis 1:6

יהי רקיע בתוך המים...There should be a separation within the waters

Water is often used as a metaphor for חסד, Chesed, God's infinite capacity to give in an undifferentiated manner. The רקיע which created separation is an act of din which we discussed in the previous paragraph. Interestingly in this verse we are now seeing the blending of the two forces, within the water, within the Chesed, there now appear the lines of delineation which characterize din. 

The waters are now separated, an act which is symbolized by the letter א. The א has three parts. There is a י on top, another י on bottom, and a ו, in the middle. Each י symbolizes the water, which is then separated (and joined) by the ו. We will elaborate more on the symbolism of these letters later. This symbolizes another fundamental concept of existence, which is why the letter א, takes its place as the first and foremost letter. There is an upper, spiritual, existence, and the lower physical existence. They may be separated, but they are also joined. It is the mandate of existence to keep them joined and to have a permanent connection running through the entire gamut of existence. 

The word רקיע has them same letters as עיקר, which means fundamental.

Bereishis 1:14
יְהִי מְאֹרֹת בִּרְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמַיִם... Let there be lights in the firmament of the Heaven
Time came into existence as a result of the צמצום, constriction, of the Infinite, and only exists within the Void which the Infinite left behind after it constricted. In the "place" of the Infinite there is no time, only eternity which is a concept not understood by those Creations within the Void. Therefore they are enslaved to the revolutions of time which are measured by the pathways of the lights.