WATER; whilst ‏ש‎, as a sibilant, and as the last letter of ‏אש‎ fire, typifies THE FIRE (Chapter iii, Mishna iii)—God created In the World—The Fire, Water, Air. In Man—The Head, Body, Breast. In the Year—Heat, Cold, Wet. 2. Seven double consonants—Beth, Gimel, Daleth, Caph, Pe, Resh, Tav ‏שבע כפולות בגדכפרת‎ The three dominions proceeding from the triad of the primordial elements which emanated from the unity continued to develope themselves still further. In the macrocosm were developed the seven planets, in time the seven days, and in the microcosm the seven sensuous faculties. These are represented by the seven double consonants of the alphabet. Hence it is said that by means of these seven letters, which are called double because they have a double pronunciation, being sometimes aspirated and sometimes not, according to their being with or without the Dagesh, God created— In the World—Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon. In Man—Wisdom, Riches, Dominion, Life, Favour, Progeny, Peace. In the Year—Sabbath, Thursday, Tuesday, Sunday, Friday, Wednesday, Monday. Owing to the opposite = double pronunciation of these seven letters, being hard and soft, they are also the symbols of the seven opposites (‏תמורות‎) in which human life moves, viz., wisdom and ignorance, riches and poverty, fruitfulness and barrenness, life and death, liberty and bondage, peace and war, beauty and deformity. Moreover, they correspond to the seven ends (‏שבע קצוות‎), above and below, east and west, north and south, and the Holy Place in the centre, which supports them; and with them God formed the seven heavens, the seven earths or countries, the seven weeks from the feast of Passover to Pentecost. (Chapter iii, Mishna, i–v; cap. iv, Mishna, i–iii.) 3. Twelve simple consonants ‏שתיﬦ עשר פשוטות.‎ The three dominions then respectively developed themselves into twelve parts, the macrocosm into the twelve signs of the Zodiac, time into twelve months, and the microcosm into twelve active organs. This is shown by the twelve simple consonants of the alphabet. Thus it is declared, that by means of the twelve letters, which are ‏הוז חטי לן סעצק‎, God created the twelve signs of the Zodiac, viz.:— In the World—Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricornus, Aquarius, Pisces. In Man—The organs of Sight, Hearing, Smelling, Talking, Taste, Copulating, Dealing, Walking, Thinking, Anger, Laughter, Sleeping. In the Year—The twelve months, viz., Nisan, Jiar, Sivan, Tamus, Ab, Elul, Tishri, Cheshvan, Kislev, Tebet, Shebat, Adar. (Comp. chapter v, Mishna i.)