Surrounding Light (Kabbalah)

Although the supernal light wishes to permeate every level of reality, reality cannot fully contain it on account of its limited vessels, or receptacles. Therefore the supernal light that cannot be contained, called surrounding light, is always situated in the background and so has an indirect influence on reality. This contrasts with the inner light, which is the supernal light that is currently enclothed in reality and permeates it in accordance with the reality’s capacity to contain it. When reality is fully rectified in the future, the surrounding light too will be able to permeate it.