Adam Kadmon

In Kabbalah, Adam Kadmon (אָדָם קַדְמוֹן, ʾāḏām qaḏmōn, “Primordial Man”) also called Adam Elyon (אָדָם עֶלִיוֹן, ʾāḏām ʿelyōn, “Most High Man”), or Adam Ila’ah (אָדָם עִילָּאָה, ʾāḏām ʿīllāʾā, “Most High Adam” in Aramaic), sometimes abbreviated as A’K (א”ק, ʾA.Q.), is the first of Four Worlds that came into being after the contraction of God's infinite light. Adam Kadmon is not the same as the physical Adam Ha-Rishon (אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן). In Lurianic Kabbalah, the description of Adam Kadmon is anthropomorphic. Nonetheless, Adam Kadmon is divine light without vessels, i.e., pure potential. In the human psyche, Adam Kadmon corresponds to the yechidah, the collective essence of the soul.