11. The 3 Worlds of Thought

Let’s go back to the dream metaphor—this time, to your own mind.

You’ve imagined a scene. Maybe that beach from earlier. Maybe something else. A vivid image, a moving picture playing out in your head. But have you ever stopped to ask:

How did you actually create that mental scene?And more importantly:If we can understand how you create imagined realities—can we gain insight into how G‑d creates this reality?

The answer is yes. And the first step is understanding the three levels of thought.

Thought Comes in Layers

We tend to think of imagination as mostly visual—a movie in the mind. But Chassidus teaches that thought actually happens in three levels, from deepest to most concrete:

1. Deep Thought (Machshavah Amukah)

This is when you’re totally lost in thought. You’re not picturing anything. You’re not hearing yourself talk. You’re just submerged in pure, abstract ideas.It’s the world of essence.You don’t always realize you’re thinking—until you snap out of it.

2. Audible Thought (Dibur Sheb’machshavah)

This is when you hear yourself talking in your mind. Like when you're reading right now—you can “hear” the words in your head, right?You can speak to yourself, shout silently, even sing… all within.It’s the inner world of mental speech.

3. Visual Thought (Dimyon)

This is when your mind paints a picture. You imagine a face, a scene, a memory. You see it in your head like a movie playing out.It’s the most tangible form of thought—the one we often associate with “imagination.”

How the Layers Flow

Try this:

Think of a memory.What actually happens?

1. First, you lose yourself in your mind—you descend into abstract, quiet thought.

2. Then, you begin to speak the memory to yourself inside your head.

3. Finally, you see it—like a mental slideshow.

These three steps usually happen in milliseconds. But if you slow down, you’ll notice them.

And just like you create inner images in this layered way—so too, G‑d creates the universe through layers of Divine thought.

The 3 Worlds in Creation

Kabbalah describes three spiritual “worlds” through which existence flows before reaching physical reality:

• Beriah – The world of deep thought, abstract and undefined.

• Yetzirah – The world of spiritual speech, where ideas begin to take form.

• Asiyah – The world of action and visual expression—our physical universe.

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These are not planets or places. They are states of Divine consciousness, like the layers of your own thinking—but infinitely deeper.

Just as you begin with pure ideas, shape them with inner speech, and express them visually—so too, G‑d begins with essence, then spiritualizes it into expression, and finally makes it visible.

From Code to Screen

Here’s another metaphor: a computer.

• The user sees the visual display—buttons, menus, images. That’s Asiyah.

• Behind that is code—programming language that gives structure. That’s Yetzirah.

• And deeper still, there’s the binary and logic layers—raw power, closer to the source. That’s Beriah.

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The deeper the layer, the more abstract—but also, the more powerful. Without the code, there is no screen.

But here's the paradox:The whole purpose of the code is to create the screen.All the hidden logic and language exist only to bring about a clear, visual experience.

Why This Matters

Chassidus teaches that although the deepest levels of Divine thought are more abstract and more “spiritually impressive,” it is this physical world—this image on the screen—that is the ultimate goal.

G‑d didn’t create layers of worlds just to enjoy complex spiritual coding.He created it all to arrive at you—your life, your relationships, your struggles, your mitzvos.

The spiritual worlds are real. But they are within G‑d.And this physical world?It’s for G‑d.

Coming Next…

In the next post, we’ll begin peeling back the structure of these “worlds” in more detail:What defines Beriah?What flows through Yetzirah?And how do these inner thoughts translate into the physical screen we call reality?