What is the meaning of gematria?

The Meaning of gematria

Gematria is a form of Jewish numerology particularly associated with the Kabbalah and the understanding of Torah. In this approach, Torah words and passages are believed to have hidden meanings encoded in their numerical values. The earliest known usage of gematria can be found in the Early Midrashic works, dating as far back as 200 CE.

At its simplest level, gematria assigns a numerical value to each Hebrew letter based on its traditional alphabetization system. For example, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet is Aleph (א) and it has a numeric value of 1. As one progresses through to the end of the alphabet, this numerical range ends at 400 for Tav (ת). Once these numbers are assigned to each letter, it is possible to calculate the sum or value when individual letters are combined into meaningful words or codes. This total number can provide insight into a hidden message or meaning from Torah passages.

Gematria was also used in ancient Greece as well as by other religious groups. While its usage is mostly associated with Judaism, interest in it has spread widely beyond religion and many books have been written about its significance within modern-day philosophy and numerology enthusiasts.

Some commonly used gematriot include names of people and places mentioned in scripture, theological concepts, legal documents and even secret code words created by rabbis of old. The practice has been used to support both traditionalist interpretations of scripture as well as unorthodox ones; some well known illustrations include calculating Jesus' name (Yeshua) as equal to that of David's father Jesse (Yishai), thus implying some messianic connection between them. Similarly another popular gematriot describes Yahweh ("The Lord") as equaling Jehovah Sabaoth ("The Lord Of Hosts").