[OB] Syl and Shallan's Spiritual Connection

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On 3/8/2018 at 10:17 AM, Scion of the Mists said:

Are these Cosmere terms, or real science terms, or something else?  I've never heard of these before.  

I took a course on Jewish History and Thought as an undergrad, and some of those terms are from Kaballah.

Kabbalah was a medieval religious mystical tradition originally primarily Jewish, but quickly spread and had widespread influence on Christianity too.  Mysticism was highly popular for several centuries with monks and scholars before the Reformation triggered a suspicion of unorthodox beliefs on both sides of the Catholic/Protestant divide.  It's enjoyed a recent resurgence of popularity in newer syncretic mystical views.

A lot of the worldview of Kabbalah actually parallels pretty well with the worldbuilding of the Cosmere.  God was conceived of as having 10 Eminations/Essences from which creation flowed called Sephirot, which had names and were linked with certain aspects of God (clear connection to Adonalasium's 16 Shards).  There were also ascending levels of existence as one moved closer to God (which loosely ties into the Cosmere's Physical/Cognitive/Spiritual Realms, although this is common in many Neo-Platonic schools of thought).  Names, words and letters were also regarded as building blocks of creation and potentially keys to ascending one's soul closer to the heavenly realm (Words/Oaths unlocking power on Roshar).