Following on the heels of God’s creation of the world through "contraction" (tzimzum) is the Lurianic doctrine of "the breaking of the vessels" (shevirah). The two are connected. The first form which the emanation of "contraction" assumes is that of Adam Kadmon ("primordial man"). In Isaac Luria’s system, the ten Sefirot ("emanations") first took shape in the Adam Kadmon in the form of concentric circles. The outermost circle, Keter ("crown"), remains in contact with the Ein-Sof ("the Infinite"). This comprises the nefesh ("the soul") of the "primordial man." In the next stage, the ten Sefirot rearrange themselves in the form of a man and his limbs. This "spiritual" body serves as a link between the Infinite and the hierarchy of the worlds still to come.

Lights shine forth from the forehead and eyes of this primordial figure and configure themselves in rich and complex patterns. Some take on the form of letters; others assume other aspects of the Torah, such as cantillations, vowel points, or scribal affixes. Here two different symbolisms -- light and written language -- are united. These lights combine to form names that have the power to be activated in the drama of creation. These lights are neatly contained in the vessels assigned to the upper three Sefirot, but the lights that strike the six lower "emanations" -- from "loving-kindness" (chesed) to "foundation" (yesod) -- are too strong to be held by individual vessels. One by one they break, scattering and falling into pieces. Some of the light returns to its source, but the remainder is hurled downward, forming the kelippot ("dark forces") of the "other side."

These shards of light are the source of gross matter. Thus the orderly process of creation seems to be negated as neither the lights nor the vessels remain in their proper place. However, Luria understands the breaking of the vessels to be not a chaotic process, but, rather, one that was consonant with internal laws. Indeed, the presence of the roots of the "dark forces" is perceived as the true inner reason for the breaking of the vessels. The vessels are broken in order to pave the way for reward and punishment in the lower worlds that are to emerge in the last phase of the creation.

The breaking of the vessels and the creation of the "primordial man" are complex and difficult concepts. The rest of Lurianic Kabbalah is devoted to restoring and reintegrating the cosmic structure -- a process called tikkun.