lit., nothingness. In Chassidic terminology, the term is used to refer to a state of non-being that serves as a contrast to true existence.

nothingness; in addition, the first emanation of the Sefirtot, Keter, is sometimes described as ayin.

(lit., "nothing"): the void that precedes any act of creation; in the mortal realm, ayin describes a person who transcends his innate egocentricity and commits himself to the service of G-d; cf. *yesh

the 16th letter of the Hebrew alphabet

16th letter of the Hebrew alef-beit (alphabet)

Ayin is the sixteenth letter in many Semitic abjads, including Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic (in abjadi order). It originally represented a voiced pharyngeal fricative (IPA ).