Urth of the New Sun (kabalistic references)

Tim Maroney · 03 Dec 1987, 12:02 · from sf-lovers.1987.mbox

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From: ames!lll-crg!hoptoad!tim at ucbvax.berkeley.edu (Tim Maroney)
Subject: Re: Urth of the New Sun (kabalistic references)
Date: 3 Dec 87 12:02:58 GMT
Message-ID: <sflovers-v12-523-18 at digest.sf-lovers>
X-Digest-Issue: SF-LOVERS Digest V12 #523
X-Urthmirror-Source: https://archive.org/details/sf-lovers-digest-vol-12b

I enjoyed "The Urth of the New Sun", though I don't think it reaches
quite the heights of the previous series.  It definitely has my vote
for the best overtly Christian science fiction novel.

One thing (actually many things, but let's pretend) confused me: Why
the garbled kabala?  He repeatedly referred to Urth's universe as
Briah, which is the world of creation in the four worlds model -
just one short of Atziluth, the abode of God.  In orthodox kabala,
our universe is Assiah, two steps below Briah.

Then he confused me further by going from Briah to Yesod, with Yesod
utterly enveloping and transcending Briah.  This would make sense if
he said "Malkuth" for "Briah", or even "Assiah", since in the four
planes model of the Tree Assiah and Malkuth are analogous; but Yesod
is generally considered a lower sphere than the Briatic spheres.

Was Gene just confused, or was he trying to say something in his
obscure way?  Any ideas from other students of kabala who have read
"The Urth of the New Sun"?  Is this just yet more (sigh) goyim
kabala?

Tim Maroney

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