The idea of Torah as the blueprint of creation, the sefirot as a Divine model manifesting itself throughout the physical and spiritual worlds and the Hebrew letters as the building blocks of all existence are mirrored in various explanations of the laws of nature. Just as a scientist would describe atoms, molecules and elements as the building blocks of creation and the “stuff” underlying all physical reality, the Torah uses the concept of the letters as performing the same function. Each letter is a channel of Divine influx and creative energy. To say an entity is created, maintained and identified by its letter combinations is to say something is what it is due to its atomic and molecular makeup.
Similar to how we see the entire DNA code appearing in virtually every cell of the body, the Kabbalah describes the sefirot as existing in all manifestations of time and space. The concept of Torah as the blueprint of creation resembles the varied laws of nature that give order and a sense of form and recognizable pattern to the universe.
Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, a great contemporary proponent of unifying all secular sciences and arts with the wisdom of Torah, explains that the secret codes of nature, like DNA and other models that manifest in the natural world, are similar to musical notes through which every component of creation sings and plays its part in the cosmic symphony (The Hebrew Letters: Channels of Creative Consciousness; page 331, by Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh.)
The concept of music being at the very core of creation and of God speaking, or singing, the world into being can be seen from how music actually manifests itself. Music at its most fundamental level consists of sound waves formed by various vibrations and frequencies emanating from a musical instrument or our vocal chords. One can feel these vibrations by putting ones hand on the throat when speaking, or see it in the vibrating strings of a guitar.
The concept of waves, vibrations and frequencies goes even deeper when understanding the nature of material reality. Electromagnetic energy, one of the four basic forces of the universe, as we now know, consists of waves. The intensity of the frequency determines its band and color and whether it will manifest as x-rays, gamma rays, microwaves, infrared, ultraviolet etc. Light acts as both wave and particle, still one of the greatest paradoxes and mysteries of modern science.
It has now been shown that all matter in fact consists of waves, albeit on the microscopic quantum level. The famous E=MC equation by Einstein, which forever changed our perception of the physical universe, revealed the intrinsic connection between energy and matter. The fact that all energy and matter consist of waves in their atomic makeup leads us to understand much better the concept of God singing the world into existence and the “music of the spheres” as an extremely appropriate description.
Yet, it is no longer mystics and poets alone who speak of the intrinsic connection between music and creation, but scientists themselves, including many of the greatest living physicists. Paul Davies in his book “Other Worlds” describes how atoms and their subatomic particles can be compared to organ pipes which allow only those certain, well defined notes, that fit the geometry of the shape of the pipes. So too, each atom is characterized according to its energy vibration or frequency, which he calls “subatomic music.”
He goes on to further explain that though the wave nature of quantum matter may seem different at first than how musical notes are produced these phenomenon are in fact one and the same. The spectrum of light emanating from an atom is similar to the pattern of sound produced by a musical instrument. Just as each instrument has its own sound, so too the light emanating from atoms are different according to their internal vibration. This insight helps us understand how at Mt. Sinai we saw the sounds and heard the sights – for in essence they are both waves!
