Ilan Sefirot amulet. [North Africa or Asia, ca. early 20th century].
Handwritten on a long parchment strip. With detailed illustrations and diagrams of the Sefirot, Partzufim and Hishtalshelut HaOlamot according to the kabbalistic teachings of the Arizal.
Designated as an amulet in its last line, which declares it to be a Segulah for everything: for gaining favor, success, the evil eye, a birthing woman, demons and plague; it is to be placed in a silver case.
Ilanot of this type were effectively used as amulets, placed in leather or silver cases and carried on one's person. On the use of the Ilan Sefirot as an amulet, see Prof. Chajes (referenced below), chapter 6, pp. 291 ff.
Ilan Sefirot amulets identical to the present one, apparently produced by the same scribe, include NLI Ms. 9817=4, formerly Gross Collection – Tel Aviv, no. 028.012.017; and NLI Ms. 9810=4, formerly Gross Collection – Tel Aviv, no. 028.012.013; and the amulet appearing in Kedem catalog 85, lot 336.
Parchment strip. Length: approx. 91 cm. Width: approx. 4 cm. Overall good condition. Stains and creases.
Ilan Sefirot
Visual diagrams of Hishtalshelut HaOlamot, known as the Ilan Sefirot, have been known since the early period of kabbalah. Many kabbalists composed and drew detailed Ilanot Sefirot for themselves. These were generally inscribed on long scrolls made of parchment or paper. As Lurianic kabbalah spread and gained popularity, these Ilanot came to reflect the complexity of this stream of kabbalistic thought, embodying ideas of the specific schools from which they originated.
Eminent Italian kabbalist R. Menachem Azariah (the Rama) of Fano describes the kabbalists who drew Ilanot on scrolls as follows: "A custom of the ancestors transmitted to their descendants is that they marked the names and bynames of the Sefirot on large scrolls which they called Ilanot" (Paamon VeRimon, Amsterdam 1608, p. 17a).
The Ilanot are highly complex graphic compositions, usually masterfully integrating text and illustrations. The Ilanot visually represent Hishtalshelut HaOlamot (Atzilut, Beriah, Yetzirah, Asiyah), the structure of the Sefirot in each of the Olamot and the mutual influences between the Sefirot, the Partzufim of the Olam HaAtzilut, Sarim, Heichalot and more. These are all integrated with paragraphs of text. Thus, the Ilanot became standalone works, representing the great complexity of the process of emanation according to the various views.
The Ilanot Sefirot prepared by kabbalists were not made purely for rote study, but were also a ritual tool by which the kabbalists would mentally depict the structure of the Olamot during their prayer and spiritual service. Later on, Ilan scrolls served as amulets and as a Segulah for the owner's protection and success.
Over many years of research into Kabbalah, the Ilanot were almost entirely ignored, and they were hardly studied and documented at all. Only in the last decade did research develop, gaining momentum with the Ilanot Project under the leadership of Prof. J.H. Chajes, whose comprehensive book on the subject was recently published. See at length: J.H. Chajes, The Kabbalistic Tree, Pennsylvania University Press, 2022.
