Zayin/7: Zayin (or zain, or zayn, or zay) is the seventh letter the Hebrew Alphabet. It signifies the number seven, or 7,000 in years. Shaped like a sword, Zayin is a paradoxical word. It means “sword,” or “weapon,” yet is derived from a root word meaning “nourishment,” or “substance.” This seemingly contradictory riddle is solved, however, as we are nourished by the sword of truth found within the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17). This allows Zayin to be the symbol of spirit, sustenance, and struggle.

Representing the seventh day, the Sabbath, Zayin brings us rest and spirituality, the completion of teshuvah, the 7 days of our spiritual creation. Signifying both the six days and six directions of physical reality, it also adds a unique seventh principle; the spirit within that activates everything physical. Thus Zayin represents the source of all movement; the impregnating principle, bringing to life all creation. Yet it is also the source of rest.

Zayin is drawn with a crown, representing the direct light of the Creator coming down to the physical world. Zayin represents the struggle between opposites, the struggle for sustenance, the struggle for existence. It reminds us of the very struggle between our worldly nature, and the God created spirits within as we reject worldliness (Egoism) for Godliness (altruism). It helps us find the balance needed to harmonize between the natural and the spiritual. It helps us understand the need for a day of rest after six days of working on teshuvah, and the creation within.