Quoted By:
Gevurah is understood as God's mode of punishing the wicked and judging humanity in general. It is the foundation of stringency, absolute adherence to the letter of the law, and strict meting out of justice. This stands in contrast to Chesed.
We thus speak of God's primary modes of action as being the kindness and unaccountability of Chesed, versus the stringency and strict accountability of Gevurah. It is called "might" because of the power of God's absolute judgment.
Gevurah is associated in the soul with the power to restrain one's innate urge to bestow goodness upon others, when the recipient of that good is judged to be unworthy and liable to misuse it. As the force which measures and assesses the worthiness of Creation, Gevurah is also referred to in Kabbalah as "Midat Hadin" ("the attribute of judgment"). It is the restraining might of Gevurah which allows one to overcome his enemies, be they from without or from within (his evil inclination).
The angelic order of this sphere is the Seraphim, ruled by the Archangel Kamael. The opposing Qliphah is represented by the demonic order Golachab, ruled by the Archdemon Asmodeus.
Chesed and Gevurah act together to create an inner balance in the soul's approach to the outside world. While the "right arm" of Chesed operates to draw others near, the "left arm" of Gevurah reserves the option of repelling those deemed undeserving. (Even towards those to whom one's initial relation is that of "the left arm repels", one must subsequently apply the complementary principle of "the right arm draws near".)
