בהעלתך את הנרות וגו׳

1“When you raise up the lamps,” etc. Rashi explains: When Aharon saw the dedication of the princes, he was disheartened that he had not been with them in the dedication.

The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: By your life, yours is greater than theirs, for you kindle and prepare the lamps. And see the Midrash.

To understand this, as well as what is written further on, “Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them,” etc.: what is the wonder? Are there not seventy nations in the world, and they are myriads of myriads, more than six hundred thousand, and they eat meat, and [enough] is found for them?

2And also what is written, “If all the fish of the sea,” etc.: did they not ask for meat, and not ask for fish at all?

The matter will be understood by first introducing the matter of the act of the offerings of the princes: that each prince elevated his tribe through his offering.

3The explanation: we must understand what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: An unlearned person (am ha’aretz) is forbidden to eat meat. That is, because he cannot elevate the meat, etc. If so, it is understood from this that man elevates and raises up the food.

This is because man is higher, for he is a speaking being (medaber), and he is the head of all the levels of inanimate, vegetative and animal, as was explained above in Parshas Nasso on [the verse] “Thus shall you bless,” etc.

4Elsewhere, though, the opposite is implied. For our Sages, of blessed memory, said at the beginning of the sixth chapter of Berachos: The tree from which Adam, the first man, ate was wheat; for a child does not know how to call his father and his mother until he tastes the taste of grain.

Thus man receives knowledge (daas) from the wheat. And so too Rav Nachman said, “As long as I have not eaten the meat of an ox,” etc. But the explanation is that both are true: that they are below the soul of man and [also] above it.

5That is: the flavors of every kind of plant and fruit, and likewise the flesh of wild and domestic animals, all have their root in the World of Tohu (Chaos), which is the level of the World of Nekudim (Points), which is above Atzilus (Emanation), which is Berudim (Dappled);

for the root of every living creature is from the Chayos (living creatures) of the Chariot: the face of the lion is the source of the souls of the wild animals, the face of the ox is the source of the souls of the domestic animals, and the face of the eagle is the source of the souls of the birds.

6Now, the Chayos carry the Throne, and “upon the Throne,” etc., is “as the appearance of a man”: this is the level of the Ten Sefiros of Atzilus, of the World of Tikkun (Rectification), which were rectified in the form of the configuration (partzuf) of a man (adam).

That is, by way of analogy: the order and gradation of the progression of the limbs of man, which are two hundred and forty-eight limbs and three hundred and sixty-five sinews; and as the form of the body is, so too is the soul enclothed.

For the enclothing of the radiance of the soul in the body is divided according to the form of the body: in the brain dwells thought, in the mouth speech, and in the hands the power of action.

This is why [man] is called Adam: the alef is the level of thought, the dalet speech, the mem action.

And so too it is above, in the Ten Sefiros of Atzilus: they descend in this order of the level of Adam, and the resting of the light within them is exactly like the resting of the soul in the body of man. (And see what is written about this in Parshas Emor, in the discourse beginning “And I shall be sanctified among the children of Israel.”)

And there is the level of the intellect of smallness (mochin dekatnus) and the intellect of greatness (mochin degadlus). This is not so with the other creatures, such as domestic and wild animals: the form of their body is not like that of man at all, and their head is bent down and level with the body.

And so too the order of their being drawn down from their source and root: there too the progression (hishtalshelus) and the blending are in an altogether different manner. (And see the Zohar, Bereishis, folio 19a and folio 20b.)

Now, the Chayos of the Chariot carry the Throne. That is: just as animals raise up the man who rides upon them, so they elevate and carry the level of Adam that is upon the Throne above itself, that is, to their root, which is from the World of Tohu, which is above Atzilus.

Yet they are also borne with the Throne; that is, they are raised and elevated together with the man upon the Throne.

For he is the one who raises and elevates them, just as a man in this world elevates the meat of an animal: the meat is elevated through a man’s eating [it], for it is transformed into the blood of the soul and is included in the level and rank of the speaking being. (And see what is written in the discourse beginning “I am asleep, but my heart is awake,” on the meaning of “my love” (ra’yasi).)

But the fact that through this the soul of man becomes bound to his body, and [there is] an increase of intellect: this is the level of “carry,” etc. (And see what is written on this subject in the discourse beginning “Six days you shall eat matzos,” etc.)

72. Now, meat is from the level of Gevuros (restraints); that is why it is red. And therefore, even after the refinement and elevation, it is included in the Gevuros of holiness; that is, through it fervor and flashes of fire are drawn down.

This is because the root of all domestic and wild animals is from the lion and the ox of the Chariot, and these are themselves the level of Gevuros, as it is written of Yechezkel’s Chariot, “burning like the appearance of torches.”

And so too the Seraphim, a term [meaning] flashes of fire. Therefore the domestic and wild animals, which descended from them, are also the level of Gevuros; and therefore “meat is red,” etc.

8And see [Rabbeinu] Bachya, Parshas Beshalach, on [the verse] “And Moshe said: When Havayah gives you in the evening meat to eat, and bread in the morning”: [these] correspond to the attribute of judgment and the attribute of mercy, etc.

This is [the meaning of] what our Sages, of blessed memory, said, that an unlearned person is forbidden to eat meat: because he cannot elevate the meat, for from the Gevuros there is more drawing of nourishment by the external forces, as is explained further on, on [the verse] “This is the statute of the Torah… and they shall take to you a heifer,” etc.;

and as it is written in the Zohar, Parshas Noach (folio 65a): “Its whole desire is nothing but meat, constantly.” And see there in the Mikdash Melech, in the name of Rabbi Chaim Vital. And since he cannot elevate it, the meat brings him down and lowers him, as is explained elsewhere on [the verse] “And she shall shave her head.”

But the Torah scholar, who receives from the level of Chochmah (wisdom), and “through Chochmah they are refined” — therefore he refines the meat, and then the meat adds fervor in him.

But Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him, said, “From where shall I have meat?” That is, he was very far above the level of the Gevuros of meat, even as they are after the refinement.

For the fervor and the flashes of fire of love are still the level of ‘there is one who loves,’ whereas of Moshe it is written, “And what are we?”: the level of ayin (nothing), the utmost self-nullification (bittul).

9And although in him too there is the level of fervor, in the manner of Gevuros (restraints), yet the fervor is included in the level of self-nullification (bittul) and ayin (nothing), and this is called the level of the Gevuros of Abba (Chochmah).

Whereas the Gevuros born of the refinement of meat are the level of the Gevuros of Imma (Binah), or the Gevuros of Z’eir Anpin (the emotive attributes), which is the level of yesh (something) and of a thing in which the fervor is felt, etc.

And this is a minor matter, and below the level of Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him, who is the level of Mah (“what”), the utmost bittul, the level of ayin, as mentioned above. (And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “And it shall be, from New Moon to New Moon,” regarding “all flesh shall come to bow down.”)

10This is [the meaning of]: “And Moshe said: Six hundred thousand on foot is the people in whose midst I am.”

That is: the six hundred thousand on foot of the generation of the wilderness were his disciples, who were also from the level of the Yesod (foundation) of Abba (Chochmah), which is the level of bittul. And this is “in whose midst I am”: for Moshe is the level of Mah (“what”) and ayin (nothing), as mentioned above.

“And You have said: I will give them meat.” That is: Moshe is speaking with the level of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) enclothed in Chochmah (wisdom), which is the level of Moshe.

And this is “And You”: for Chochmah is called “You,” etc. (And see the Zohar, Parshas Balak, folio 193b.) This implies that You, the Infinite Light enclothed in Chochmah, will give meat.

And this is impossible: that it be lowered so far from a level so high and exalted, which is the level of Chochmah and ayin, the level of Moshe. If so, how can the food drawn down through him be meat? For meat is a very low level relative to Moshe, being the level of yesh and the level of Gevuros, etc.

And this is “Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them?” That is: since they are from the level of Gevuros, they therefore require slaughtering (see the Likkutei Torah of the Arizal, Parshas Re’eh and Parshas Shemini); if so, how can they be food for those who are from the Yesod of Abba, the utmost bittul, as mentioned above?

“If all the fish of the sea,” etc.: that is, fish are a level higher than flocks and herds, for they need no slaughtering; and even so they are low relative to their [the people’s] level, and it is impossible that [enough] be found for them, etc. And see about this further on.

113. “And Havayah said to Moshe: Is the hand of Havayah too short?” That is: although it is true that you are far above the level of the yesh of meat, since you are the level of Mah and bittul, nevertheless, “Is the hand of Havayah too short?” [This is said] in wonder.

That is: it can draw down and descend even from the ayin of Chochmah, which is very exalted, to enclothe itself and be revealed far, far below, in the Gevuros and the yesh of meat, so that even in the level of the yesh of meat the bittul of Chochmah will be revealed.

For the hand of Havayah can descend very far, far below. (As is explained elsewhere on the matter of “Who is enthroned on high,” that therefore He “looks down low upon heaven and earth” in one equal manner; and like the matter of “the great hand that Havayah performed in Egypt,” etc.

And the like was explained on the meaning of “My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living G‑d”: that bittul is drawn into “my heart and my flesh,” which are physical, precisely when they “sing for joy to the living G‑d,” His very Being and Essence, may He be blessed, as is explained in the discourse beginning “And I will betroth you to Me,” etc. And at the Giving of the Torah “the mountains skipped”: that is, even the humped mountains, [as stated] in the last chapter of Pesachim.) (folio 118b) And see what is written above in the discourse beginning “The matter that the Torah was given on Mount Sinai.”

All the more so, then, is it easier for bittul to be drawn into the level of flesh, etc. And this is what is written of the Time to Come: “And it shall be, from New Moon to New Moon,” etc., “all flesh shall come to bow down before Me.”

For the novelty is that even into the level of “all flesh,” which is the level of Gevuros and yesh, there will be drawn the level of bowing down and of supreme bittul, as is explained elsewhere.

12And this was the matter of the quail (selav), which were very fat birds, as is found in the Gemara, [tractate] Yoma, folio 75b: we set it upon thirteen loaves, and the last cannot be eaten except mixed [with other food], because of the abundance of fat absorbed in it; and all the more so the upper ones.

13The explanation is that oil is the level of Chochmah (wisdom), which “is wise, but not with a known wisdom,” etc. And in the physical world as well, oil is the level of Chochmah, which descended from the level of Chochmah above. And the Torah, which is the level of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah), is called oil, etc.

14And this is the matter of the quail: that oil (shemen), which is the level of Chochmah, was drawn and spread through the meat. For the meat of the quail is the level of Gevuros (restraints), and the shemen (fat, oil) in it is the level of Chochmah, the level of Mah and ayin (nothing). That is: self-nullification (bittul) is drawn even into the level of the yesh (something) of meat.

And this is “Is the hand of Havayah too short?”: that it can draw from the level of the ayin of the higher Chochmah even into the meat, although in its essence it is the level of yesh and Gevuros; and as is written in Etz Chaim on the matter that the Yesod of Abba is long: that is, the influence of the power of bittul.

15That is: the quail too is drawn from the level of the face of the eagle in the Chariot, which is the root of the soul of all birds;

but from the level of the eagle come into being all the birds that are not so mixed with fat, which are only the level of meat and Gevuros (restraints) and yesh (something) alone.

This quail, however, is so mixed with fat; that is, there is drawn into it from the level of the oil of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah), the level of ayin (nothing),

which is the level of the combination and inter-inclusion of Chesed (kindness) and Gevurah (restraint) together: into the Gevuros of the yesh of the quail’s meat there is drawn the level of the Chesed of Chochmah, to sweeten the Gevuros; and this is the oil, etc.

16And it is like the raising up of the lamps of the Menorah: the oil is absorbed and drawn into the wick, and through this the wick burns with light.

This too is the inter-inclusion of Chesed (kindness) and Gevurah (restraint): the Chesed of Chochmah (wisdom) is the oil, and the light of the wick is the level of the Gevuros and fervor. For the wick is the level of yesh (something), and it is included in the light; and this is the matter of the elevation of the soul of man in the manner of ratzo (running forth) and fervor.

But this elevation comes through the oil, which is the level of the higher Chochmah; that is, into the fervor there is drawn also the level of the self-nullification (bittul) of the higher Chochmah, etc.

(And see what is written on the subject of the oil and the wick on [the verse] “For You are my lamp, Havayah,” and in the discourse beginning “Our Rabbis taught: The mitzvah of the Chanukah lamp.”) And this is like the matter of the quail, in which the oil spread through the Gevuros of the meat, as mentioned above.

174. And this is the meaning of “yours is greater than theirs,” that is, than the offerings of the princes. For the offering is called “the eating of the altar”: just as through eating the meat is refined, and fervor and flashes of fire are born from this, so in the same way is the eating of the altar as well, except that it is on a far higher level, as is explained elsewhere.

And therefore our Sages, of blessed memory, said: Since the Holy Temple was destroyed, a person’s table atones for him.

18And this was the matter of the offerings of the princes: that each prince elevated his tribe through his offering; that is, through this there was drawn into his tribe the level of ratzo (running forth) and fervor, through the offering he brought, which is called “the eating of the altar,” etc.

But the level of Aharon, who kindles and prepares the lamps of the Menorah, is greater than the offerings mentioned above. For the Menorah is the level of the Malchus (sovereignty) of Atzilus (Emanation), and the twelve tribes are a chariot for the level of Malchus,

which are what is called the twelve oxen, “three facing north,” etc., “and the Sea was upon them above.” “The Sea” is the Malchus of Atzilus, which is upon them above.

(And therefore the princes offered twelve oxen for a burnt offering; that is, as it is written, “For there the tribes went up,” etc.; and this ascent is in the manner of “and the Chayos carry the Throne.”)

And Aharon, who raised up the lamps of the Menorah: this too was for the twelve tribes as a whole (klalus), who are included in the level of Malchus; for he too bestowed upon them the elevation, so that each and every one of Israel would have this level of elevation. And this elevation, too, is the level of Gevuros (restraints) and flashes of fire.

19Aharon himself is Chesed (kindness), but to the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael) he bestowed the level of Gevuros (restraints). This is because he is “the Queen’s groomsman” (shushvina dematronisa), who raises and elevates the Congregation of Israel toward the Holy King; and this is through the Gevuros, which are the level of elevation.

And this is the matter of the raising of the lamps. But these Gevuros are not in the manner of yesh (something), like the elevation that comes from the refinement of meat, which is the level of yesh; rather, they are in the manner of ayin (nothing) and self-nullification (bittul).

For they are mixed with oil, wick and light.

Although the refinement and elevation of the wick is the level of the Gevuros of yesh, nevertheless, through the oil absorbed in it, which is the level of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah), bittul and ayin, through this the elevation and the Gevuros come to be in the manner of ayin and bittul, etc.

20Therefore it is greater than the offerings of the princes, which are called “the eating of the altar,” in which the elevation is drawn from the refinement of meat, where the Gevuros (restraints) are still the level of ‘there is one who loves.’

That is: the twelve oxen are in the World of Beriah (Creation), and “Imma nests in the Throne”; and the Gevuros drawn from the level of Binah (understanding) as it nests in Beriah are the level of yesh (something), etc.

But Aharon, in the kindling of the Menorah, drew into Malchus (sovereignty), which is the Menorah, also from the level of Abba (Chochmah), as “Abba founded the daughter”; for Chochmah is the level of ayin (nothing) and self-nullification (bittul).

21Therefore, although he also bestowed upon her the level of the Gevuros (restraints) of Imma (Binah), so that through this there would be elevation — and this is the matter of “the Queen’s groomsman” — nevertheless the Gevuros are not in the manner of yesh (something), like the elevation through Binah alone, which “nests in the Throne,” in the offerings of the princes; rather, they are in the manner of ayin (nothing) and self-nullification (bittul), through the revelation of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah), “Abba, who nests in Atzilus,” etc.

That is: he bestows upon her from the level of Abba and Imma together; and this is the matter of the oil and the light.

(See the Likkutei Torah of the Arizal, Parshas Beha’aloscha, at the end of the passage beginning “The mitzvah of kindling the lamps”; and see further in the Likkutei Torah of the Arizal, Parshas Vayera, on the matter of “For Arnon is the border of Moav,” etc., in the manner of “With Chochmah He founded the earth.”)

It follows that Aharon is intermediate between the princes and Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him. For Moshe is the level of Mah (“what”) and ayin, the utmost bittul, and is called “the King’s groomsman” (shushvina demalka): that is, he is higher than the level of Z’eir Anpin (the emotive attributes), which is called “the King,” since he is His groomsman; and he is the one who draws down from above to below.

22And the princes are the level of elevation from below to above, from the World of Beriah (Creation), with Gevuros (restraints) and flashes of fire that come from the level of Binah (understanding) as it nests in Beriah, which is the level of yesh (something).

And Aharon is called “the Queen’s groomsman” (shushvina dematronisa), for he is the one who elevates the souls of Israel as a whole; and since he is the one who elevates them, he must necessarily be above them, etc.;

that is, he bestows upon them from the level of Abba and Imma (Chochmah and Binah), so that through this the elevation is in the manner of ayin (nothing) and self-nullification (bittul), etc. And this is why he is the level of an intermediary between the princes and Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him:

for in one respect he is like the level of the princes, in that he elevates the Congregation of Israel from below to above; which is not so of the level of Moshe, which is to draw down the revelation of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) from above to below.

Yet even so, in one respect he is like the level of Moshe, since this elevation comes through the drawing down of Chochmah (wisdom), which is the level of bittul and ayin, etc.; and it is precisely through this drawing down that the elevation comes about.

And this is the meaning of “yours is greater than theirs.”

(And see what is written along these lines on [the verse] “to offer to Me in its appointed time”: that the prayer of all the weekdays is drawn from Shabbos through the mediation of the festivals, which are the level of an intermediary, etc., the level of the intellect (mochin) of Imma, which joins and draws the radiance of the mochin of Abba into the emotive attributes (middos). And see the Biurei HaZohar, at the beginning of Parshas Vayetzei, on [the verse] “And Yaakov went out from Be’er Sheva,” etc.

Now, this matter is also close to what was explained above in the first discourse on “When you raise up,” etc., regarding the difference between ahavah rabbah (great love), which Aharon bestows, and the level of ahavas olam (“love of the world”): the level of ahavah rabbah is what is drawn from the level of sight, for sight is the level of Chochmah.

And from this is drawn the ahavah rabbah in which the Gevuros and flashes of fire are not for the sake of quenching one’s own thirsting soul alone, which is the level of ‘there is one who loves’; rather, the love is that the glory of G‑d be revealed, that the revelation be below as it is above.

And the sweetening of these Gevuros, and that the revelation be below as above, is the level of Moshe, “the King’s groomsman,” as is explained elsewhere on [the verse] “Moshe would speak,” etc.; see there.)

235. Now, to understand the matter of the quail with a little further explanation: it is explained further on that the birds are drawn from the level of the Keruvim (cherubim). And see what is written on [the verse] “Your name is oil poured forth; therefore alamos (maidens) love you,” which is also like what has been explained in this discourse,

namely, that because the level of the Torah, which is the level of oil, is very high, it can therefore be drawn down far, far below, even into the level of alamos, which is the level of one whose heart is sealed;

that is, through this “my heart and my flesh sing for joy,” etc., as mentioned above. And also, selav (quail) is related to the word shalvah (tranquility), as is said in the Gemara, [tractate] Yoma (folio 75b): The righteous eat it in tranquility.

And the meaning of shalvah may be explained along the lines of what is written in Iggeres HaKodesh on the matter of “and the work of tzedakah, quietness and security” (see there well); and this is the level of “a tent that shall not be moved, whose stakes shall never be pulled up,” as is written about this at the end of the discourse beginning “Return, O Israel, unto…”

This is because the oil and the self-nullification (bittul) are drawn from a supernal place, from the level of the higher Chochmah of all (Chochmah Ila’ah), which is quiet and still, etc. And see the Zohar, Parshas Nasso, folio 128b.

And this is what is written: “And it was in the evening, and the quail came up,” etc., “and in the morning there was a layer of dew,” etc. Thus there is some relation and connection between the one and the other.

And likewise in Psalms, chapter 105: “They asked, and He brought quail, and with the bread of heaven He satisfied them.” And see the Zohar, Parshas Lech Lecha (folio 88a), on “Like the good oil,” etc., “like the dew of Chermon,” etc.: “It is oil and it is dew,” etc.

And in Me’orei Or, the letter shin, section 50, it explains that meat has its root in the Name Elokim, while the quail has its root in the two Names Havayah [and] Elokim; see there. And this can be explained according to what has been explained [here].

And with this the story of Rabbah bar bar Chanah in Bava Basra (folio 73b) will be understood, about those geese whose wings were slipping off from their fat, with streams of oil flowing from beneath them: “I said: Do we have a share in you in the World to Come?” etc.

That is: in the Time to Come the higher Chochmah will be drawn down and revealed even far, far below, in the level of yesh (something); and this is the matter of “all flesh shall come to bow down,” as mentioned above.

24And in the Targum Sheni on Megillas Esther, on the verse “There is a certain people,” among Haman’s slanders, [it says] that on the eve of Yom Kippur they slaughter animals and geese and eat and drink, etc.

And the reason he said “geese” specifically is that in [the goose] there is the allusion to the spreading forth and revelation of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah) even below; as our Sages, of blessed memory, said in Berachos, folio 57a: One who sees a goose in a dream may hope for wisdom, as it is said, “Wisdoms (chochmos) cry aloud outside.”

25That is: “wisdoms” specifically, two; that is, through the revelation of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah) in the lower Chochmah (Chochmah Tata’ah), it is drawn “outside” as well. And see what is written on the matter of “Wisdoms … outside” in Parshas Yisro, on [the verse] “Remember the Shabbos day to keep it holy.”

And this is also what is said in Perek Shirah: The wild goose that roams in the wilderness, when it sees Israel engaged in Torah, says the song, “A voice calls in the wilderness: Clear the way of Havayah.”

The meaning of “voice” is the drawing down, “the voice is the voice of Yaakov,” which is drawn into the level of wilderness and desolation, which is this world. “Clear the way of Havayah”: that there be in it the drawing down of the way of Havayah. And as is written about this in the discourse beginning “And you shall know this day,” and in the discourse beginning “But He was not willing.”

26And this itself is the matter of “Wisdoms … outside”: that it be drawn even into the level of wilderness and desolation. And this is through the drawing down coming and being drawn from above the order of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus); and it is from the level of “the oil of holy anointing.”

And to this the allusion comes in the story of Rabbah bar bar Chanah, that the geese were exceedingly fat, for there was in them the mixing and inter-inclusion of the oil.

But the main revelation of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah) comes through the mixing and inter-inclusion of the oil in them to the greatest degree, as mentioned above. And this is as is written in the Zohar, Parshas Tzav (folio 34a), that oil rests within the higher Chochmah of all;

and therefore it is drawn and spreads forth even further below, so that even the physical yesh (something) will be nullified; for in proportion to the abundance of the revelation from the higher Chochmah, so is the self-nullification (bittul) drawn down further, etc.

And as is written in the Zohar, in the Idra of Nasso (folio 131b), on the meaning of the verse “Wisdoms cry aloud outside”: “When it flows from the hidden brain (Mocha Stima’ah) of Arich Anpin,” etc.

And see more about this there (folio 140a), and in Parshas Va’eschanan (folio 262a), and in Parshas Toldos (folio 141b), and in Parshas Acharei (folio 78a).

And see what is written elsewhere on the matter of “And a spring shall come forth from the House of Havayah and water the valley of Shittim.” And see what is written on [the words of] the Raaya Mehemna, Parshas Nasso, “A stone to weigh with: this is yud,” etc.

And geese also bear some resemblance to the quail: for of the quail it is written, “And it swept quail from the sea.”

And of geese, too, our Sages, of blessed memory, said (chapter Eilu Tereifos, folio 57): “These geese of ours resemble a water bird,” etc. And this too is an allusion to what is written: “And the earth shall be full of the knowledge of Havayah, as the waters cover the sea.”

And also, geese are white, which indicates the root of Chochmah. And therefore Rava called Rav Pappa and Rav Huna the son of Rav Yehoshua “white geese” (Kesubos folio 85a; Gittin folio 73, end of side a).

But the reason he said this of them disparagingly, [meaning] that they had not arrived at the truth, is that, although geese are an allusion to “Wisdoms … outside,” nevertheless the physical geese have not yet been rectified, for they are from what fell in the breaking of the vessels (sheviras hakelim), like all other birds and animals, etc.

Now, on the meaning and matter of “until their wings were slipping off,” Rashi explains: their feathers fall out from their great fat. And see Rashi (Chullin, chapter Eilu Tereifos, folio 56b) on the matter of feathers, and the Terumas HaDeshen, section 161.

And it may be explained that now the drawing down from the higher Chochmah comes through contractions (tzimtzumim), in the manner of hairs; but in the Time to Come there will be a revelation of the very essence of the higher Chochmah, without contractions; and this is “their wings were slipping off.”

And see the book Or Torah, by the Maggid, whose soul is in Eden, on [the verse] “And he shall crush the corners of Moav,” etc.

27And one may further say, according to what is explained elsewhere on [the verse] “And there was a voice from above the firmament,” etc., “when they stood, they let down their wings”: the meaning is that because the voice, which is the drawing down, is drawn from a very high place, namely from above the level of the parsa (partition), which is called “firmament,” as it is written, “Let there be a firmament,” etc., “and let it divide,” etc.,

through this drawing down from above the firmament the level of self-nullification (bittul) is drawn into them. And this is “when they stood”: the level of the prayer said in a whisper.

And then “they let down their wings”: that is, awe and love, which are the level of “wings” (gadfin), etc. For love and awe, and ratzo and shov (running forth and returning), are still the level of ‘there is one who loves,’ etc.;

but bittul is above this, as mentioned above regarding Moshe’s “And what are we,” which is above the level of flashes of fire. And when bittul is drawn into them through the voice and drawing down mentioned above, then “they let down their wings,” and the love and awe are included in this bittul, etc.

And see what is written on this subject in Parshas Yisro, in the discourse beginning “And all the people saw the voices.” And in the same way it will be understood here, since the matter of the geese mentioned above alludes to the level of “Wisdoms cry aloud outside,” etc., “she gives forth her voice.”

This voice and drawing down is from the level of the hidden brain (Mocha Stima’ah), “from above the firmament,” as is written in the Zohar, Toldos, there; and through this even “all flesh shall come” to the level of bowing down and bittul.

And from this there follows also “their wings were slipping off”: the level of love and awe, which are called “wings.” And this is “from their fat”: for the oil (shemen) is the drawing down of the higher Chochmah of all (Chochmah Ila’ah), the revelation of the supernal bittul, etc.

28And on the subject of this aggadah, see the book Avodas HaKodesh, Part II, chapter 43. He, of blessed memory, explains that those two geese, that is, “one raised its leg to me and one,” etc., are the higher Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah) and the lower Chochmah (Chochmah Tata’ah), which is called “the wisdom of Shlomo.”

And this is the matter of “Wisdoms … outside”: “wisdoms” implies two, as mentioned above. And see the Maharsha, cited in the Ein Yaakov there, who also noted, regarding the geese mentioned above, the matter of the quail.