The ten commandments have for a long time felt like an outdated set of rules of which many seem obvious and therefore largely uninspiring. No matter what our background, most of us know we’re not supposed to steal or kill or commit adultery. However what if there were deeper meanings to these age old set of rules? Kevin Niv Farrow has deciphered what he believes are the real hidden meanings of the ten commandments, which have inspiring and useful applications to our daily lives. Kabbalah teaches that the energy centre of kether was represented by the first commandment in the first set of ten commandments or guidances, received by Moses. This set was carved by light in sapphire. Moses supposedly destroyed this set when he saw the Jews worshipping the statue of a Golden Calf. The first commandment (of the second set) is ‘I am the Lord your God’ or literally, ‘God of you, the Lord I am’. The esoteric meaning of this in Kabbalah was simply, ‘I am.’ This is a reference to the state of beingness or sacred oneness. In Judaism, this was experienced in the Judaic mystic contemplative practices such as kawannah. The practice of kawannah is described as ‘the practical application of the doctrine concerning the spheres and immortal spheres of reality’(Origins of the Tarot. Dai Leon p117). By the twelfth century, this practice had been deemed as heresy as it acknowledged that as God can be directly realised, then one can not be separate from God. Christianity and Islam also deemed this type of practice heretical.
The second commandment associated with the energy centre chochma is ‘Thou shalt have no graven images.’ The esoteric meaning of this is very similar to the famous Zen Buddhist anecdote of ‘If you meet the Buddha on the path – kill him.’ The deeper meaning of this means killing our idea of worshipping someone or something outside of ourselves, rather than being a prohibition against statues and paintings. It is also an instruction against having false imaginings of ourselves. Apart from the obvious point in worshipping false ideas, there is also the psychological problem that exists when we look up to someone. Invariably we balance this by looking down on someone else. This is linked with chochma, because as the highest centre of the (energetic) male pole, the energy of chochma is associated with going out, rather than going in. The famous Kabbalist Rebbe Nachman (1772 –1810), taught that each of us should search for the righteous person within himself. When we project our search for ourselves outward onto others, even supposedly saintly ones, then we leave the state of blessing, the state of oneness. In the Tao te Ching, this concept is stated simply as; ‘Not to honour men of worth will keep the people from contention.’
Kabbalah teaches that the energy centre binah was represented by the third commandment, ‘Thou shalt not take the name of thy Lord in vain.’ The esoteric meaning of this is that with understanding, we hold a sacred space in the mouth. If we don’t speak with understanding in everything we do, we are breaking that sacred space. This doesn’t just relate to profanity or literally using the word God as a adjunct to an oath. In the Sufi mystic Hafiz’s poetry we read, ‘When you talk about shame, you have left our circle.’ When we really speak from love rather than from our emotions or our logic, then we hold the sacred space – if we speak from anger, shame, guilt or other negative emotions, then we are not in that sacred space and that is its own punishment. The fourth commandment associated with the energy centre chesed is ‘Thou shalt not break the sabbath.’ The real meaning of this is that we need to honour the principle of love and kindness through giving time to ourselves, for our own spirit, instead of spending our time purely on material gain and material matters. By taking one day off a week to restore the spirit, we honour ourselves. The fifth commandment associated with the energy centre gevurah is ‘Thou shalt not dishonour thy father and thy mother.’ The inner meaning of this is to release being resentful. Our mothers and fathers have literally given us life. What we do with it is up to us. If we are ungrateful for the gift of life, this will colour all of our experiences.
The commandment associated with the energy centre tipereth is the sixth, ‘Thou shalt not kill.’ The esoteric meaning of this is to keep our hearts open. There is an old story about an English knight in the crusades, who met a Saracen knight in battle. The Saracen tipped him off his horse and was about to kill him when the English knight spat on him. At this gesture, the Saracen turned and walked away. The English knight, puzzled at the behaviour, got to his feet and ran after him. He asked why the Saracen had not killed him, particularly after he was spat upon. The Saracen, who was a Sufi, replied, ‘It is against my faith to kill when I am angry.’ The Englishman became the first English Sufi. A friend of mine who was a Buddhist Abbot, once explained the Chinese Buddhist understanding of killing. He said, ‘When you are going to kill cockroaches and other things, don’t do it with aversion and distaste. Keep your heart open and wish them a higher birth next time.’ The karma in this situation is what we do to ourselves and this is from how we do these things. Aversion contracts our hearts and minds. This is the real inner meaning of ‘Thou shalt not kill.’The seventh commandment associated with the energy centre of netzach is ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery.’ The inner meaning of this, is that we should not spoil the purity of being, through our actions. That is, we should not adulterate the experience of oneness in ourselves. Jesus had some sort of understanding of this when he said, ‘You have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.’ (Matthew 5:27-28)
The eighth commandment associated with the energy centre hod is ‘Thou shalt not steal.’ In an exoteric sense, this is a prohibition about moving things from place to place. However, its inner meaning is about our deceit of ourselves. When we act from a lack of honour, we lose something essential.
The ninth commandment associated with the energy centre yesod is ‘Thou shalt not commit perjury.’ Really, thou shalt not lie. The inner meaning of this is that we should not be deluded or create illusions in how we see the world. As Sosan, the third Patriarch of Chan Buddhism (Zen) said, ‘Don’t try to get enlightened, just stop having opinions.’ Our opinions are the delusions of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, that we bring to the sephira of yesod. Because they are delusional, their energy is not passed on, to open up the Tree of Life.
The tenth commandment associated with malkhuth is ‘Thou shalt not covet.’ This commandment relates to the inner meaning of seeking anything outside of ourselves. In seeking objects, we just begin the spiral of desire that will lead to unhappiness. Lao Tzu says in the Tao te Ching, ‘Not to honour men of worth will keep the people from contention. Not to value goods which are hard to come by will keep them from theft, not to display what is desirable will keep them from being unsettled of mind.’
By Kevin Niv FarrowHow the 10 commandments relate to our mind, body & lifeBy Rochelle Taylor In short, our body is an amazing organism and our energy system is at its core, keeping us alive and well. The energy system is made up of energy centre’s, fields and channels of energy, which move around the body and make everything work properly. The energy gives strength and flexibility to our muscles, tendons and bones, as well as making our organs function, our heart pump and blood move. It also affects how we feel emotionally – the energy is everywhere.
The energy in our body is extremely sensitive. It responds instantaneously to our attitudes and thoughts. When we are angry, worried or sad, the energy moves in a ‘contracting’ cycle. This is where the energy literally starts to contract and in doing so, specific organs and parts of our body are affected. The energy cannot flow freely in these areas the way it should, so these parts of the body become compromised. Organs can’t perform their jobs properly, we don’t feel happy and well, wounds won’t heal and pain and symptoms can start to appear.
So how do we optimise energy flow and health in our body? We learn not to let our body, mind and energy go into a ‘contracting’ cycle by becoming more aware of ourselves. Interestingly enough, there are specific ways of thinking, attitudes and emotions that effect each energy centre and cause it to contract. The beautiful part about this is the connection to the ten commandments. If you understand the deeper meaning of the ten commandments as written here by Kevin Niv Farrow, you will see that these commandments are very helpful and practical tools for us to stay more open, conscious and happy.Living the 10 commandments every day (Try this!)1. Be still.2. Trust yourself3. Speak with love & understanding in your voice.4. Honour yourself every day by doing something you really love.5. Let go of resentment and appreciate your life.6. Keep your heart open.7. Be happy with what you have right now.8. Act honourably – don’t deceive yourself or others.9. Don’t take your opinions seriously.10. Remember that everything you need already lies within you.
Kevin is the Founder and Director of AcuEnergetics® as well as a Master AcuEnergetics® Practitioner and Teacher of AcuEnergetics®. Kevin has practised and studied meditation and the energetic system since 1974. He has taught since 2000 and his published writings, meditation CD’s and teachings have brought him worldwide recognition as a unique and practical meditation teacher and an expert in the field of energy medicine. He currently teaches in Australia, USA, India, Asia and Europe. For more information about Kevin, visit Kevin’s full biography.