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Likkutei Torah · Parshas Pinchas · Maamar 4

קדש ישראל לה׳ ראשית תבואתה

Israel Is Holy to Havayah, the First of His Produce

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The big idea

Israel are “the first of the produce of the hei”: in G‑d’s daily renewal of creation, the souls of Israel, rooted in His innermost will, rise first through prayer, Torah, mitzvos and charity, and raise the angels and the worlds with them. One who “devours” the Israel within him restores it through teshuvah from the depth of the heart, a fifth level beyond the four.

The maamar in brief

The maamar explains “Israel is holy to Havayah, the first of His produce.” The hei of tevu’asah points to Malchus, the final hei, which brings forth new angels every day; these angels of Asiyah, the “mute” bnei eilim, can rise into the Name Havayah only through Israel, on Shabbos and every day through prayer. The second section explains why one may not eat before praying: on waking the soul is only “in the nostrils,” and prayer, by surrendering one’s will, lets the G‑dly soul, a portion of Havayah, spread through the body, so that Havayah becomes truly “our G‑d.” The third section adds that calling upon G‑d “in truth” requires Torah: G‑d lowered His innermost will into the Oral Torah’s rulings, as a father bends down to lift his child; yet Torah needs the “arms” of love and awe, mitzvos and charity. The fourth section returns to the verse: Israel, like terumah, are lifted up and lift all creation with them. One who “devours” his inner Israel through anger, lust or arrogance must bring an inner guilt-offering and add a “fifth”: teshuvah from the depth of the heart, which reaches the Will above all wills, as on Yom Kippur.

Outline

  1. The produce of the heiThe hei of tevu’asah is Malchus, which brings forth new angels each day. These angels of Asiyah, the “mute” bnei eilim, rise into the Name Havayah only through Israel, on Shabbos through Kabbalas Shabbos and every day through prayer, Torah and mitzvos.¶1–5
  2. The soul before and after prayerBefore prayer the soul is only “in the nostrils,” so one may not eat. The morning blessings and the Shema reveal that Havayah is “our G‑d,” Israel’s strength without intermediary, unlike the nations, who receive through the seventy princes; setting aside one’s will, one can truly pray.¶6–9
  3. G‑d’s will lowered into the Oral TorahCalling “in truth” means Torah. Anochi, G‑d’s innermost will, lowered itself to the “feet,” the Oral Torah’s rulings about physical things, as a father bends down to his child, raising the soul above its own root; but the father must also lower his arms, and Torah without love and awe does not rise.¶10–16
  4. G‑d’s right and leftHuman love and awe rise from below and only prepare for G‑d’s love and awe drawn down from above. G‑d’s attributes come into the soul through the practical mitzvos, above all charity; His right and left are Torah and charity.¶17–20
  5. Holy to Havayah: Israel as terumahEven a businessman must set times for Torah and do business with his “back,” and through Torah and charity he and the Congregation of Israel rise into G‑d’s innermost will. Israel are terumah, the portion lifted up, and are “first” in G‑d’s daily renewal of creation, raising the angels with them.¶21–22
  6. All who devour him: guilt and the added fifthAnger, lust and arrogance “devour” the Israel within, and the remedy is an inner guilt-offering and a broken heart. The added fifth is teshuvah from the depth of the heart, above the four levels of the righteous, reaching the Will of all wills, as on Yom Kippur with its five prayers.¶23–28

Key concepts

The produce of the heiתבואת ה׳
Tevu’asah is written with a final hei, read as Malchus, the lower Chochmah, through which G‑d renews creation every day. Israel are “first” in this renewal: their ascent raises the angels and the worlds.
Bnei eilimבני אלים
The angels created each day, angels of Asiyah who channel life to the physical world. Eilim is Elokim lacking its hei, and is read as ilmim, “mute,” for Elokim without its yud-hei leaves ilem: G‑d’s wisdom is not openly revealed in them, so they rise only through Israel.
A soul “in the nostrils”נשמה באפו
The state of a person on waking, before prayer: the soul is acknowledged by the mind but has not yet spread into the heart and body. Prayer, by surrendering one’s will, lets it fill the whole person.
Anochi, “who I am”אנכי מי שאנכי
G‑d’s very self, the inner dimension of His will, above even the Name Havayah. In “I taught Ephraim to walk” it is lowered to the “feet,” the Oral Torah, so that the souls can bind themselves to it.
Taking them upon his armsקחם על זרועותיו
G‑d’s right and left, the love and awe drawn down from above and His attributes clothed in the mitzvos and in charity, which lift the person up as a father lifts a child in his arms.
Terumahתרומה
The portion of the harvest set apart and lifted up. “The first of His produce” is terumah: Israel are the portion of creation that is raised, and that raises everything with it.
The depth of the heartעומקא דליבא
The teshuvah that comes from beyond what the soul can bear. It is a fifth level, above the four levels of the righteous, and reveals “the Will of all wills,” as on Yom Kippur.

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The produce of the hei ¶1–5

1קדש ישראל לה׳ ראשית תבואתה. כל אוכליו יאשמו. ראשית תבואתה בה״א [באות ה״א] כתיב משמע דישראל הם ראשית תבואת ה׳.

“Israel is holy to Havayah, the first of His produce; all who devour him shall incur guilt.” “His produce” (תבואתה) is written with a hei, which implies that Israel are the first of the produce of the hei.

Explanation

The maamar opens with Jeremiah 2:3, where the prophet calls Israel “holy to Havayah, the first of His produce” and warns that whoever devours Israel will be held guilty. The word for “His produce” ends in the letter hei, though it is vowelled as if it ended in a vav (“His”); the Alter Rebbe reads the hei as a word in itself: Israel are the first of “the produce of the hei.”

וצריך להבין מה זה התבואה הנצמח אשר ישראל מכונים בשם ראשית לה. וזהו שכתוב בורא קדושים יוצר משרתים ואשר משרתיו.

Now, we need to understand what this growing produce is, of which Israel are called by the name “first.” And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “Creator of holy beings, Former of ministers, and whose ministers.”

Explanation

The question is what kind of “produce” grows above, such that Israel can be called its “first.” The answer begins from the morning blessing before the Shema, which praises G‑d as “Creator of holy beings, Former of ministers” and then speaks of “His ministers” who stand in the heights of the world.

פי׳ ואשר משרתיו משמע מאז מעולם הם משרתים אותו ויוצר משרתים הם המלאכי׳ [המלאכים] שמתהווים בכל יום לומר שירה לפניו כמ״ש במדרש איכה ע״פ חדשים לבקרים.

That is: “and whose ministers” implies that they have been ministering to Him since long ago, from of old; while “Former of ministers” are the angels that come into being every day to say song before Him, as is written in Midrash Eichah on the verse “They are new every morning.”

Explanation

The two phrases describe two kinds of angels. “Whose ministers” are permanent angels who have served G‑d from of old, while “Former of ministers,” in the present tense, are angels formed anew each day to sing before Him. The Midrash on Eichah, on “They are new every morning,” says that every day G‑d creates a new band of angels who sing a new song and pass away.

ובאמירתם מתבטלים לגמרי דהיינו שחוזר כח גילוי התהוותן למקורו להיות בכח ולא בפועל. וזהו שאמר הכתוב תדשא הארץ דשא פי׳ הארץ בה׳ היא הארץ העליונה (עמ״ש ע״פ לא תהיה משכלה ועקרה בארצך)

And in their saying [it] they are utterly nullified; that is, the power that revealed their coming into being returns to its source, to be in potential and not in actuality. And this is what the verse says, “Let the earth sprout grass (deshe).” That is, ha’aretz (“the earth”), with a hei, is the supernal earth. (See what is written on the verse “None shall miscarry or be barren in your land.”)

Explanation

These daily angels exist for their song: in singing they are wholly absorbed back into their source, so that the force that brought them into open existence returns to a hidden, potential state. The verse “Let the earth sprout grass” is then read on a higher plane: “the earth,” with the definite article hei, is a supernal “earth” from which created beings sprout.

כמו שהארץ הגשמיות מגלה כח הצומח אשר בקרבה בכל יום להוציא מיני צמחים כן הארץ העליונה מגלה כח ההתהוות אשר בה לבריאה ולהתהוות יש מאין.

Just as the physical earth reveals every day the power of growth within it, to bring forth kinds of plants, so the supernal earth reveals the power of bringing into being that is within it, to create and to bring into being something from nothing.

Explanation

Physical soil brings forth plants every day from a power of growth hidden within it. In the same way the supernal earth holds the power to create something from nothing and constantly brings forth new creations.

ובזה נתהוה מלאכים בכל יום שיאמרו שירה ויתבטלו למקורם והם הנקראים דשא (וכמ״ש בזהר בפ׳ בראשית ד׳ י״ט ע״א ובמק״מ [ובמקדש מלך] שם ובפ׳ תרומה דקע״א ע״א.

And through this, angels come into being every day, to say song and be nullified into their source; and they are what is called “grass” (deshe). (As is written in the Zohar, Parshas Bereishis, 19a, and in the Mikdash Melech there; and in Parshas Terumah, 171a.

Explanation

The angels born each day from that supernal earth, who sing and then dissolve into their source, are the “grass” of the verse: they sprout and are gone. The Zohar says that this “grass” has no lasting form: such beings stand for a moment, are consumed by fire and are renewed, every day; the Mikdash Melech is a commentary on the Zohar, and the Zohar on Terumah speaks of “grass” that sprouts from supernal sources.

ועיין פ׳ פינחס דרי״ז ע״א ע״פ מצמיח חציר כו׳ ועמ״ש במ״א ע״פ כשעירים עלי דשא).

And see Parshas Pinchas, 217a, on the verse “He causes grass to sprout,” etc.; and see what is written elsewhere on the verse “Like showers upon the grass.”)

Explanation

The Zohar on Pinchas reads “He causes grass (chatzir) to sprout” in Psalm 104 as angels: vast numbers of angelic messengers, all of flaming fire. The second pointer is to the discussion of “like showers upon the grass,” where grass grows from the finest rain.

לכן אנו אומרים בכל ערב שבת הבו לה׳ בני אלים בני אלהים המה המלאכים שנבראו מששת ימי בראשית

Therefore we say every Shabbos eve, “Render to Havayah, you sons of the mighty (bnei eilim).” The bnei Elokim (“sons of Elokim”) are the angels that were created in the six days of creation;

Explanation

This is why at the welcoming of Shabbos on Friday night we recite Psalm 29, “Render to Havayah, you sons of the mighty.” The maamar distinguishes two groups: the bnei Elokim, the “sons of G‑d” of the Book of Job, are the permanent angels created during the six days of creation.

אבל בני אלים הם המלאכים שנתהוו בכל יום מבחי׳ ה׳ אחרונה חכמה תתאה מלכות דאצילות.

but the bnei eilim are the angels that come into being every day from the level of the final hei, the lower Chochmah (Chochmah tata’ah), the Malchus (sovereignty) of the World of Atzilus (Emanation).

Explanation

The bnei eilim of the psalm are the angels that come into being each day. Their source is the final hei of the Name Havayah, which is Malchus of Atzilus, also called the “lower Chochmah”; this is the “hei” whose “produce” the opening verse spoke of.

Paragraph 1 in brief

The maamar asks what the supernal “produce” is of which Israel are the “first,” and begins its answer with the angels created anew each day. They are the “grass” that the supernal earth, the final hei or Malchus of Atzilus, brings forth, and they are the bnei eilim whom we address on Friday night.

Deeper

The Tzemach Tzedek, in glosses on this passage quoted in the Kehot notes, connects eretz (earth) with ratzon (will) and with ratzo, the soul’s running toward its source; that is why the supernal earth brings forth “grass”: beings whose whole existence is a running to be nullified in their source.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    קדש ישראל לה׳ · ראה לעיל יט, ב בהערות וציונים — הערת כ״ק אדמו״ר. הערה באוה״ת פנחס כרך-ו ע׳ א׳תתקלט. ראה אוה״ת פרשתנו ע׳ א׳רג ואילך ובאוה״ת בראשית לה, א — הגהות מהצ״צ. לד״ה זה ראה ד״ה זה משנת תשל״א. תשמ״ה. תשמ״ז.
  2. 2
    קדש ישראל לה׳ · Jeremiah 2:3
  3. 3
    תבואתה בה״א · ”תי׳ תבואה שבפסוק קדש כו׳ תבואתה, כתיב תבואה בה״א לבסוף, והניקוד הוא בחולם שזהו כמו שהי׳ נכתב בוא״ו לבסוף תבואתו, והגם כי אינו קרי וכתיב רק מהניקוד” — סה״מ תר״ל ע׳ רה. ראה ד״ה איתא במדרש תהלים — תשכ״ח.
  4. 4
    מה זה התבואה הנצמח אשר ישראל מכונים בשם ראשית לה · ראה תו״א נג, ג מקשה ”מהו השייכות לישראל להיות ראשית תבואתה, וגם מה הוא ענין התבואה למעלה” ע״ש.
  5. 5
    בורא קדושים יוצר משרתים · ברכת יוצר. ראה לעיל פ׳ אמור לו, א.
  6. 6
    חדשים לבקרים · Eikhah Rabbah 3:8
  7. 7
    חדשים לבקרים · Lamentations 3:23
  8. 8
    תדשא הארץ דשא · Genesis 1:11
  9. 9
    תדשא הארץ דשא · Zohar, Bereshit 8:83–95
  10. 10
    תדשא הארץ דשא · Zohar, Terumah 85:821–86:832
  11. 11
    ע״פ לא תהי׳ משכלה · ראה תו״א עח, ד.
  12. 12
    לא תהיה משכלה ועקרה בארצך · Exodus 23:26
  13. 13
    כח ההתהוות אשר בה · באוה״ת בראשית-א דף לה, א מציין כ״ק אדמו״ר הצ״צ: ”(ע׳ של״ה בהקדמה כי ארץ ל׳ רצון שנעוץ תחלתן בסופן, ועמ״ש מזה ע״פ המגיד מראשית אחרית ומקדם כו׳ ומ״ש בד״ה ויגש אליו יהודה)”.
  14. 14
    הנקראים דשא · באוה״ת שם: ”(והיינו כי ארץ לשון רצוא כמבואר בת״א פ׳ בראשית בד״ה כי כאשר השמים החדשים, וע״כ מוציא דשא הנ״ל שהם בבחי׳ רצוא להתבטל במקורם)”.
  15. 15
    והם הנקראים דשא · נתבאר בארוכה בביאה״ז להצ״צ כרך-ב ע׳ תז ואילך. וראה גם אוה״ת נ״ך-א ע׳ שכה.
  16. 16
    ובפ׳ תרומה דקע״א ע״א · הלשון נעתק באוה״ת בראשית-א דף לה, ב עם הגהות.
  17. 17
    Psalms 104:14
  18. 18
    מצמיח חציר · Zohar, Pinchas 12:70–80
  19. 19
    ע״פ כשעירים עלי דשא · לקו״ת פ׳ האזינו עו, ד. וראה שם במ״מ.
  20. 20
    כשעירים עלי דשא · Deuteronomy 32:2
  21. 21
    הבו לה׳ בני אלים · Psalms 29:1
  22. 22
    בני אלהים · Job 1:6
  23. 23
    בני אלקים · איוב, א, ו (האלקים).
  24. 24
    Zohar, Bereshit 8:75

2ופי׳ אלים לשון כח כמו ואת אילי הארץ כי בני אלים הם מלאכים דעשייה כמ״ש בפע״ח [בפרי עץ חיים].

And eilim is a term for strength, as in “and the mighty (eilei) of the land”; for the bnei eilim are angels of the World of Asiyah (Action), as is written in Pri Etz Chaim.

Explanation

The word eilim comes from a root meaning strength, as in Ezekiel’s “the mighty of the land.” The angels called bnei eilim belong to Asiyah, the lowest of the four worlds; the Arizal’s Pri Etz Chaim, explaining this psalm at the welcoming of Shabbos, treats its verses as raising the levels of Asiyah.

וע״י המלאכים דעשיה נמשך כל השפעות לעוה״ז הגשמי אין לך עשב שאין לו מזל כו׳

And through the angels of Asiyah all the flows of influence are drawn down to this physical world: “There is no blade of grass that has no mazal (constellation),” etc.

Explanation

All the life and influence that reach the physical world pass through these angels of Asiyah. The Midrash says that every blade of grass has a mazal, a heavenly force that strikes it and tells it, “Grow.”

נמצא הם הכח וחיות העוה״ז וכשהמאכל מתעלה ע״י שהאדם אוכלו בטהרה ומתפלל בכח ההוא בנקודת לבבו עי״ז מתעלה גם המלאך השופע הכח והחיות להמאכל ההוא להיות מתעלה ונכלל במקור חוצבו.

It follows that they are the power and the life-force of this world. And when the food is elevated, through a person eating it in purity and praying with that strength, with the innermost point of his heart, through this the angel that imparts the power and the life-force to that food is also elevated, to rise and be included in the source from which it was hewn.

Explanation

These angels are the strength within the world’s food. When a person eats in purity and then prays with the strength the food gave him, from the core of his heart, the food is elevated, and with it the angel that gives the food its life-force rises and is absorbed into its source.

וגם הטעם שנק׳ בני אלים חסר ה׳ שהוא ע״ד מארז״ל [מאמר רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] בגיטין (דנ״ו ב׳) ע״פ מי כמוך באלים מי כמוך באלמים.

And also, the reason they are called bnei eilim, lacking the hei, is along the lines of the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, in Gittin (56b), on the verse “Who is like You among the mighty (eilim)”: “Who is like You among the mute (ilmim)!”

Explanation

A second reason for the name: eilim is the word Elokim without its hei. The Talmud reads “Who is like You among the mighty (eilim)” as “among the mute (ilmim),” praising G‑d who heard the enemy’s blasphemy in the Temple and kept silent.

ופי׳ אלמים היינו כמ״ש כרחל לפני גוזזיה נאלמה שאין דבר ה׳ מאיר בבחי׳ גילוי בבי״ע לפי שאין ערוך עשיה לגבי אצילות.

And “mute” means as it is written, “as a ewe before her shearers is mute”: that the word of G‑d does not shine in a revealed way in Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, since Asiyah bears no comparison to Atzilus.

Explanation

Here “muteness” means that G‑d’s word does not shine openly in the three lower worlds, Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, because Asiyah is beyond comparison with Atzilus. The image is Isaiah’s ewe, silent before her shearers.

וזהו בחי׳ אלם משם אלקים שאין הדבור בגילוי רק בחי׳ הבל בלבד שבההבל אין התלבשות החכמה בגילוי כלל משא״כ בדבור שבו נמשך ומלובש החכמה והשכל

And this is the level of ilem (“mute”) from the Name Elokim: the speech is not revealed, only the level of breath (hevel) alone; for in the breath there is no revealed enclothing of the wisdom at all, whereas in speech the wisdom and the intellect are drawn and enclothed.

Explanation

Take the yud and hei out of Elokim and the letters left spell ilem, “mute.” Speech carries the speaker’s wisdom outward; mere breath, the voice before it is shaped into words, carries no articulated wisdom.

וזהו ההפרש בין המלאכים הנק׳ בני אלהים שהם נמשכים מדבורו של הקב״ה שהדיבור מלובש בו גילוי החו״ב [החכמה ובינה]

And this is the difference between the angels called bnei Elokim, who are drawn from the speech of the Holy One, blessed be He, the speech in which the revelation of Chochmah (wisdom) and Binah (understanding) is enclothed,

Explanation

The bnei Elokim, the permanent angels, come from G‑d’s speech, which carries Chochmah and Binah openly within it, as a person’s words carry his thought.

וזהו בחי׳ י״ה דאלקים. משא״כ בחי׳ אלם דאלקים היינו שאין בחי׳ י״ה נמשך ומתלבש בההבל.

and this is the level of the yud-hei of Elokim; whereas the level of ilem of Elokim is that the level of yud-hei is not drawn and enclothed in the breath.

Explanation

Chochmah and Binah correspond to the letters yud and hei, so the bnei Elokim come from the whole Name, with its yud-hei. When the yud-hei is not drawn into the breath, what remains of Elokim is ilem, “mute”; this is the source of the bnei eilim.

וזהו נאלמתי דומיה דום י״ה כו׳ (ועמ״ש בד״ה ולא יקרא עוד שמך אברם גבי מילה שהוא בחי׳ מ״ל י״ה מ״ל לשון גילוי כו׳

And this is “I was mute with silence (dumiyah)”: dum Yah (“Yah is silent”), etc. (And see what is written in the discourse beginning “Your name shall no longer be called Avram,” regarding circumcision (milah), that it is the level of mal Yah, mal being a term of revelation, etc.;

Explanation

The Zohar reads Psalm 39’s “I was mute with silence (dumiyah)” as dum Yah: the yud-hei has gone silent, and so the person is left mute. The parenthesis adds the converse from another discourse: milah, circumcision, holds the letters mal Yah, and mal means speech, revelation.

והיינו ע״י הדבור לרוח ממללא שעי״ז נמשך חו״ב [חכמה ובינה] בבחי׳ גילוי כי פי ה׳ דבר וההפך מזה הוא כשכנס״י [כשכנסת ישראל] היא בחי׳ נאלמתי דומיה החשיתי חש דחשמל והיינו מחמת הסתר דק״נ [דקליפת נוגה] דעשייה.

that is, through the speech of “a speaking spirit” (ruach memalela), through which Chochmah and Binah are drawn in a revealed way, for “the mouth of Havayah has spoken.” And the opposite of this is when the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael) is at the level of “I was mute with silence, I was still (hecheshesi),” the chash (silence) of chashmal; and this is because of the concealment of the kelipas nogah of Asiyah.

Explanation

Speech, which Onkelos makes man’s defining trait (“a speaking spirit”), reveals Chochmah and Binah, as in “the mouth of Havayah has spoken.” The opposite is when the Congregation of Israel, the source of the souls, is “mute” and “still,” the chash (silence) of chashmal, because kelipas nogah, the shell that mixes good and evil in the lower worlds, conceals the light.

ועמ״ש בד״ה והיה אור הלבנה כו׳ ועמ״ש בד״ה בחדש השלישי לצאת בנ״י [בני ישראל] בענין פי׳ מעשה ידיך כו׳ כח המעשה שהוא כח החיצוני כו׳ ע״ש. והיינו ענין בחי׳ ההבל שלמטה מבחי׳ הדבור ועמ״ש מזה בביאור ע״פ וספרתם לכם)

And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And the light of the moon shall be,” etc.; and see what is written in the discourse beginning “In the third month after the children of Israel went out,” on the meaning of “the work of Your hands,” etc.: the power of action, which is the external power, etc.; see there. And this is the matter of the level of breath, which is below the level of speech. And see what is written about this in the explanation on the verse “And you shall count for yourselves.”)

Explanation

The parenthesis points to further discourses. One of them explains “the work of Your hands” as the power of action, an external power; it corresponds to breath, which stands below speech.

והנה לכן א״א להמלאכים הנ״ל לעלות ולהתכלל בחכמה עילאה כ״א ע״י ישראל שהם נמשכים מפנימית חכמה עילאה וכמ״ש בפ׳ משפטים (דקכ״א) ועמ״ש בביאור ע״פ יונתי בענין קומי לך רעיתי

Now, therefore, it is impossible for the angels mentioned above to ascend and be included in the supernal Chochmah (Chochmah ila’ah) except through Israel, who are drawn from the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the supernal Chochmah, as is written in Parshas Mishpatim (121); and see what is written in the explanation on the verse “My dove,” regarding “Arise, my love.”

Explanation

Because the angels of Asiyah come from this “mute” level, they cannot rise on their own to the supernal Chochmah. They rise only through Israel, whose souls come from the inner dimension of the supernal Chochmah.

לכן אנו מבקשים הבו לה׳ בני אלים. פי׳ הבו לשון הזמנה הזמינו עצמיכם לעלות וליכלל במקור שם הוי׳ ב״ה.

Therefore we ask, “Render (havu) to Havayah, you sons of the mighty.” Havu is a term of preparation: prepare yourselves to ascend and be included in the source of the Name Havayah, blessed be He.

Explanation

So on Friday night we call to them, “Havu.” As Rashi explains havah as “prepare yourselves,” havu here means: prepare yourselves to rise and be absorbed into the Name Havayah.

וז״ש [וזהו שכתוב] ששת ימים תעבוד בחי׳ עבודה הוא ההתהוות יש מאין וביום השביעי תשבות זהו חזרת העולמות למקורם בתוספת אור עליהם ונכללים הכל בעצמות שם הוי׳ ב״ה.

And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “Six days you shall work”: the level of work is the bringing into being of something from nothing; “and on the seventh day you shall rest”: this is the return of the worlds to their source, with added light upon them, and all are included in the essence of the Name Havayah, blessed be He.

Explanation

The six weekdays are “work”: G‑d’s ongoing creation of something from nothing. Shabbos is “rest”: the worlds return to their source, with added light, and are absorbed into the essence of the Name Havayah.

Paragraph 2 in brief

The bnei eilim are angels of Asiyah, the channels of life for physical things; their name lacks the hei of Elokim because they come from G‑d’s “breath,” not His articulated speech, and so they are “mute.” They can rise only through Israel, and on Shabbos we call them to prepare to rise into the Name Havayah.

Deeper

Pri Etz Chaim, on this psalm, explains that eilim lacks the hei of Elohim because that hei is judgment, which is not wanted on Shabbos; the Alter Rebbe adds the Talmud’s ilmim, “mute.” The Zohar (Raaya Mehemna, 3:222a) says that when a person sins the yud-hei departs from him and he remains ilem, mute, without sight, hearing, smell or speech.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    ואת אילי הארץ · Ezekiel 17:13
  2. 2
    בני אלים הם מלאכים דעשייה · Pri Etz Chaim, Gate of the Sabbath 8:2–3
  3. 3
    כמ״ש בפע״ח · שי״ח פ״ח. וראה המשך בששה״ק תער״ב ח״ג ע׳ א׳תכה ואילך.
  4. 4
    אין לך עשב שאין לו מזל · Bereshit Rabbah 10:6
  5. 5
    Gittin 56b:10
  6. 6
    כרחל לפני גוזזי׳ נאלמה · Isaiah 53:7
  7. 7
    נאלמתי דומי׳ · Psalms 39:3
  8. 8
    דום י״ה · זהו ל׳ רע״מ בזח״ג (רכב, סע״א). [כ].
  9. 9
    נאלמתי דומיה דום י״ה · Zohar, Pinchas 29:167–30:169
  10. 10
    בד״ה ולא יקרא עוד · תו״א פ׳ לך יב, ב.
  11. 11
    ולא יקרא עוד שמך אברם · Genesis 17:5
  12. 12
    לרוח ממללא · Genesis 2:7
  13. 13
    לרוח ממללא · Onkelos Genesis 2:7
  14. 14
    כי פי ה׳ דבר · Isaiah 40:5
  15. 15
    חש דחשמל · Sefer Etz Chaim 49:2
  16. 16
    חש דחשמל והיינו מחמת הסתר · ראה ע״ח שמ״ט, פ״ב.
  17. 17
    בחדש השלישי לצאת בנ״י · Exodus 19:1
  18. 18
    וספרתם לכם · Leviticus 23:15
  19. 19
    קומי לך רעיתי · Song of Songs 2:10
  20. 20
    הבו לה׳ בני אלים · Psalms 29:1
  21. 21
    הבו לשון הזמנה · ראה רש״י בראשית יא, ג.
  22. 22
    הבו לשון הזמנה · Rashi on Genesis 11:3
  23. 23
    ששת ימים תעבוד · Exodus 34:21
  24. 24
    Exodus 15:11
  25. 25
    Isaiah 30:26

3וכמ״ש ויכל אלקים ביום השביעי ומבואר הפי׳ במ״א בד״ה באתי לגני דהיינו שכלתה בחינת ומדרגת אלקים שנעשה קץ ותכלית למדרגה זו ונמשך גילוי שם הוי׳.

As it is written, “And Elokim finished (vayechal) on the seventh day”; and the meaning is explained elsewhere, in the discourse beginning “I have come into My garden”: that the level and rank of Elokim was finished (kalsah), so that an end and conclusion was made to this rank, and the revelation of the Name Havayah was drawn down.

Explanation

The Torah says that on the seventh day Elokim “finished” (vayechal). The maamar reads it as kalsah, “came to an end”: on Shabbos the level of Elokim, the Name of concealment and limitation, reaches its end, and the revelation of the Name Havayah is drawn down in its place.

ולכן אנו אומרים להמלאכים שנמשכים משם אלקים הבו להוי׳ בני אלים שיזמינו עצמם לעלות וליכלל בשם הוי׳ ב״ה המתגלה בשבת וזהו השתחוו לה׳ בהדרת קודש והוא בחי׳ אצילות בכלל שבי״ע מתעלים באצי׳

And therefore we say to the angels that are drawn from the Name Elokim, “Render to Havayah, you sons of the mighty”: that they should prepare themselves to ascend and be included in the Name Havayah, blessed be He, which is revealed on Shabbos. And this is “Bow down to Havayah in the splendor of holiness”: this is the level of the World of Atzilus (Emanation) in general, for Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah ascend into Atzilus.

Explanation

So on Friday night we call the angels that come from Elokim to prepare to rise into the Name Havayah, revealed on Shabbos. The psalm’s next verse, “Bow down to Havayah in the splendor of holiness,” alludes to Atzilus as a whole, for on Shabbos the three lower worlds ascend into Atzilus.

וזהו ג״כ ענין ז׳ קולות שנזכרו במזמור זה קול ה׳ על המים כו׳ הכל המשכת והתגלות שם הוי׳ ועמ״ש סד״ה זאת חנכת המזבח.

And this is also the matter of the seven “voices” mentioned in this psalm, “The voice of Havayah is upon the waters,” etc.: all is the drawing down and revelation of the Name Havayah. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “This is the dedication of the altar.”

Explanation

Psalm 29 says “the voice of Havayah” seven times. Each is a drawing-down and revelation of the Name Havayah, matching the Shabbos ascent just described.

Paragraph 3 in brief

On Shabbos the reign of Elokim ends and Havayah is revealed: Psalm 29 calls the angels that come from Elokim to rise into Havayah, the lower worlds rise into Atzilus, and the psalm’s seven “voices of Havayah” are that revelation.

Deeper

Pri Etz Chaim (Gate of the Sabbath 8) assigns the verses of this psalm to stages in the ascent of Asiyah into Yetzirah, and says that the fourth mention of Havayah, in “Bow down to Havayah in the splendor of holiness,” is in Atzilus. This matches the maamar’s reading of that verse as Atzilus in general.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    ויכל אלקים ביום השביעי · Genesis 2:2
  2. 2
    באתי לגני · Song of Songs 5:1
  3. 3
    הבו להוי׳ בני אלים · Psalms 29:1
  4. 4
    השתחוו לה׳ בהדרת קודש · Psalms 29:2
  5. 5
    קול ה׳ על המים · Psalms 29:3
  6. 6
    I Chronicles 16:29

4והנה עד״ז הוא כל ענין לכו נרננה להוי׳ כו׳ שירו להוי׳ כו׳ שאומרים בקבלת שבת.

Now, along these lines is the whole matter of “Come, let us sing to Havayah,” etc., “Sing to Havayah,” etc., which are said at Kabbalas Shabbos (the welcoming of Shabbos).

Explanation

The other psalms of Kabbalas Shabbos, which begin with “Come, let us sing to Havayah” (Psalm 95) and “Sing to Havayah,” carry the same meaning: the worlds and their angels rise into the Name Havayah on Shabbos.

וזהו כי גדול הוי׳ כו׳ נורא הוא כל כל אלהים דהיינו על כל ק״ך צירופי אלקים כמ״ש במ״א והנה עלייה זו הוא ע״י ישראל שהם פנימית העולמות.

And this is “For great is Havayah,” etc., “He is awesome above all elohim (gods)”: that is, above all the 120 combinations of Elokim, as is explained elsewhere. Now, this ascent is through Israel, who are the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the worlds.

Explanation

“He is awesome above all elohim” is read as Havayah standing above the 120 combinations of Elokim: the five letters of Elokim can be arranged in 120 orders, through which the world is created and limited. And this whole ascent happens through Israel, the inner dimension of all the worlds.

פי׳ כי כל הנבראים לא נתהוו כ״א דרך מעבר בכדי שיתהווה ויתגלה בחי׳ ישראל בזה העולם הגשמי.

That is, all the created beings came into being only as a passageway, in order that the level of Israel come into being and be revealed in this physical world.

Explanation

Everything else that was created exists as a passageway: it was brought into being only so that Israel would come into being and be revealed in this physical world. This begins to explain why Israel are called “first.”

Paragraph 4 in brief

The psalms of Kabbalas Shabbos express the same ascent of the worlds above all the forms of Elokim, and the maamar adds that this ascent comes through Israel, the inner purpose for which everything else was created.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    לכו נרננה · תהלים צה ואילך.
  2. 2
    לכו נרננה להוי׳ · Psalms 95:1
  3. 3
    כי גדול הוי׳ כו׳ נורא הוא כל כל אלהים · Psalms 96:4

5וזהו ג״כ בכל יום תכלית העבודה זו תפלה כדי להבטל וליכלל עצמו וכל העולמות בשם הוי׳ ב״ה המהווה אותם מאין ליש ולימשך אותו

And this is also [so] every day: the purpose of the service, “this is prayer,” is to nullify and include oneself and all the worlds in the Name Havayah, blessed be He, who brings them into being from nothing to something; and to draw Him

Explanation

What happens each week on Shabbos happens every day through prayer, which the Sages call “the service of the heart.” Its purpose is to dissolve oneself, and all the worlds with oneself, into the Name Havayah, which constantly brings them into being from nothing.

ג״כ בזה העולם הגשמי ע״י תורה ומצות יחודא עילאה יחודא תתאה למעלה עד אין קץ ולמטה עד אין תכלית הוא רק כח שם ה׳ ב״ה

also into this physical world, through Torah and mitzvos: the higher unity (yichuda ila’ah), the lower unity (yichuda tata’ah); above without end and below without limit, it is only the power of the Name Havayah, blessed be He.

Explanation

Prayer raises the worlds up; Torah and mitzvos then draw G‑d’s Name down into this physical world. These are the “higher unity,” in which all is nullified before G‑d, and the “lower unity,” in which G‑d is present within the world; in both directions, without end above or below, there is nothing but the power of Havayah, in a phrase taken from the Zohar Chadash.

(ועמ״ש בד״ה באתי לגני הנ״ל. וזהו יונתי בחגוי הסלע כו׳ השמיעני את קולך כי כשהיא בחגוי הסלע בסתר המדרגה היא בחי׳ נאלמתי דומיה ונק׳ יונת אלם.

(And see what is written in the discourse beginning “I have come into My garden,” mentioned above. And this is “My dove, in the clefts of the rock,” etc., “let me hear your voice”: for when she is “in the clefts of the rock, in the covert of the cliff,” she is at the level of “I was mute with silence,” and is called “the mute dove” (yonas elem).

Explanation

The Song of Songs calls the Congregation of Israel a dove hiding “in the clefts of the rock.” Hidden away, she cannot speak: she is at the level of “I was mute with silence,” and the heading of Psalm 56 calls her “the mute dove.”

אכן ע״י עסק התורה והמצות השמיעני את קולך כו׳ ממשיכים בחי׳ י״ה דהוי׳ ודאלקים שלא להיות בחי׳ אלם כ״כ [כל כך] בספר ע״ה) (דק״ג א׳) וע״ז נאמר קול דודי דופק.

But through occupation with Torah and mitzvos, “let me hear your voice,” etc., we draw down the level of the yud-hei of Havayah and of Elokim, so as not to be at the level of “mute”; so it is written in the book ע״ה) (103a). And of this it is said, “The voice of my beloved knocks.”

Explanation

Through Torah and mitzvos the plea “let me hear your voice” is answered: the yud-hei is drawn into the Names Havayah and Elokim, and the Congregation of Israel is no longer mute. Of this the verse says, “The voice of my beloved knocks.”

ועיין בפי׳ הרמ״ז [הרב משה זכות] בזהר פ׳ וארא (דכ״ו א׳) גבי נאלמתי דומיה כו׳ ואי אתער כו׳ ובפע״ח [ובפרי עץ חיים] שער הקדישים פ״ב [פרק ב׳] ורפ״ג [וריש פרק ג׳]:

And see the commentary of the Ramaz (Rabbi Moshe Zacuto) on the Zohar, Parshas Va’eira (26a), regarding “I was mute with silence,” etc., and “And if he arouses,” etc.; and Pri Etz Chaim, Sha’ar HaKaddishim (the Gate of Kaddish), chapter 2 and the beginning of chapter 3.

Explanation

The Zohar on Va’eira says that in exile the voice departs from the Congregation of Israel and her speech is silenced, “I was mute with silence,” and it goes on to what happens when the word is aroused. Pri Etz Chaim, explaining the Kaddish, says that when the yud-hei of Elokim is hidden what remains is ilem, “mute,” and that is why we pray that these levels “be magnified and sanctified.”

Paragraph 5 in brief

Prayer does every day what Shabbos does each week: it raises oneself and the worlds into the Name Havayah, while Torah and mitzvos draw that Name down into the physical world. Through them the yud-hei returns, and the Congregation of Israel, otherwise a “mute dove,” recovers its voice.

Deeper

Pri Etz Chaim (Gate of the Holies, chapter 2) reads the Kaddish in this light: the mochin of Elokim are at times seized by the kelipos, the yud-hei is covered, and ilem is left; this is especially so in exile, when Z’eir Anpin returns to its “smallness,” and so we pray that these mochin grow and be sanctified.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    למעלה עד אין קץ · ל׳ הז״ח פ׳ יתרו. [כ].
  2. 2
    באתי לגני · Song of Songs 5:1
  3. 3
    יונתי בחגוי הסלע · Song of Songs 2:14
  4. 4
    נאלמתי דומיה · Psalms 39:3
  5. 5
    נאלמתי דומיה · Pri Etz Chaim, Gate of the Holies 2:5
  6. 6
    ונק׳ יונת אלם · Psalms 56:1
  7. 7
    קול דודי דופק · Song of Songs 5:2
  8. 8
    נאלמתי דומיה כו׳ ואי אתער · Zohar, Vaera 7:72–9:82

The soul before and after prayer ¶6–9

6ב ולבאר היטיב ענין עלייה זו וגילוי זה ע״י תורה ותפלה. צריך לבאר מאמר רז״ל [רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם אפילו כנגד עיון תפלה.

2. Now, to explain well the matter of this ascent and this revelation through Torah and prayer, we must explain the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, “The study of Torah is equal to them all,” even to concentration in prayer (iyun tefillah).

Explanation

The second section explains how Torah and prayer bring about this ascent and revelation. It starts from the Mishnah’s teaching that Torah study equals all the other mitzvos together, and the Talmud adds: even concentrated prayer.

ומ״מ קודם התפלה אסור לאכול וקודם הלימוד מותר לאכול. וזהו מחמת כי האדם הוא עולם קטן.

And nevertheless, before prayer it is forbidden to eat, while before study it is permitted to eat. And this is because man is a small world.

Explanation

Yet halachah forbids eating before the morning prayer and permits eating before study, as if prayer came first. The answer begins from the idea that a person is a world in miniature.

וכמו שיש בעולם יום ולילה ביום מאיר האור ובהעדר האור הוא בחי׳ לילה בגשמיות כן הוא באדם ג״כ ברוחניות כמ״ש גם

And just as in the world there are day and night, by day the light shines and in the absence of the light it is the level of night, physically, so it is in man too, spiritually, as it is written, “Even

Explanation

As the physical world has day and night, light and its absence, so a person has a spiritual day and night.

כי אשב בחושך ה׳ אור לי אפילו בעוה״ז הגשמי ה׳ מאיר בישראל וכאשר מתפשט ומאיר בו כח נשמתו

though I sit in darkness, Havayah is a light to me”: even in this physical world, Havayah shines in Israel. And when the power of his soul spreads out and shines in him,

Explanation

Micah’s “though I sit in darkness, Havayah is a light to me” shows that even in this dark physical world G‑d shines in a Jew. When the power of the soul spreads through him and lights him up, that is his “day.”

אזי נק׳ יום ובהסתלקות אור נשמתו מכונה בשם לילה (ועמ״ש מענין זה בד״ה ותוסף אסתר וע״פ וידעת היום והשבות כו׳ ובד״ה תחת אשר לא עבדת)

then it is called “day”; and when the light of his soul withdraws, it is called by the name “night.” (And see what is written on this matter in the discourse beginning “And Esther spoke again,” and on the verse “Know this day and take it to your heart,” etc., and in the discourse beginning “Because you did not serve.”)

Explanation

When the soul’s light withdraws, that is his “night.” The parenthesis points to three other discourses on this theme.

לכן בלילה הוא בבחינת שינה לגמרי מחמת הסתלקות אור נפשו. ובבקר בעמדו משינתו אזי כח נשמתו היא רק באפיו

Therefore at night he is entirely in a state of sleep, because of the withdrawal of the light of his soul. And in the morning, when he rises from his sleep, the power of his soul is only in his nostrils,

Explanation

So in sleep the soul’s light is withdrawn. On waking, its power is only “in his nostrils,” in the breath, the outermost sign of life, and not yet in the heart and limbs.

כי אין לה גילוי מחמת חומר ישות הגוף להאיר ולהתפשט בקרבו ובכדי שלא יחזור להיות אין ואפס השי״ת [השם יתברך] מהוה ומחזיר לו נשמתו בכל בקר כמ״ש חדשים לבקרים רבה אמונתך ועיין פ׳ ויקהל (דרי״ג סע״ב [סוף עמוד ב])

for it has no revelation, to shine and spread out within him, because of the material yeshus (independent existence) of the body. And so that he not return to being nothing and naught, G‑d, may He be blessed, brings into being and restores his soul to him every morning, as it is written, “They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” And see Parshas Vayakhel (213, end of side b).

Explanation

The body’s coarse, self-assertive existence keeps the soul from shining through it. So that the person does not lapse into nothing, G‑d gives the soul back each morning: “They are new every morning,” and the Zohar on Vayakhel says the souls are given back renewed each morning.

פי׳ כמ״ש המחדש בכל יום תמיד מעשה בראשית כי מלת בראשית הוא ברא״ת י״ש. ר״ל [רוצה לומר] מזה שמחדש בכל יום הוא המהווה יש מאין.

That is, as it is written, “who renews every day, continually, the work of creation (Bereishis)”: for the word Bereishis (בראשית) is ברא״ת י״ש, bara es yesh (“He created something”). That is to say: by renewing it every day, He is the One who brings into being something from nothing.

Explanation

The blessing before the Shema praises G‑d “who renews every day, continually, the work of creation.” The letters of Bereishis are read as bara es yesh, “He created something”: to renew creation every day is to bring something from nothing anew each day.

אך מחמת שנתגשם חיות הגוף מאד מאד אינו יכול לקבל הארת נשמתו בקרבו כ״א מעט מזעיר בבחי׳ אפיו.

But because the life-force of the body has become exceedingly physical, he cannot receive the radiance of his soul within him except a very little, at the level of his nostrils.

Explanation

Yet the body is so coarse that it receives only a faint glimmer of the soul, the glimmer “in the nostrils.”

דהיינו שהנשמה האלקית אין לה גילוי בלבו וגופו מחמת חומר ישות הגוף כיון שעדיין לא התפלל.

That is, the G‑dly soul has no revelation in his heart and his body, because of the material yeshus of the body, since he has not yet prayed.

Explanation

Before prayer, the G‑dly soul is not revealed in the heart and the body.

שע״י התפלה שמבטל רצונו לרצון העליון ב״ה והנה הרצון הוא מקור כל המדות והוא חיותן וקיומן

For through prayer he nullifies his will to the supernal will, blessed be He; and the will is the source of all the emotive attributes (middos), and it is their life-force and their existence;

Explanation

Prayer changes this. In prayer a person sets aside his own will for G‑d’s will, and will is the root of all the emotions, their life and their very existence.

וזהו ענין מסירת נפש שמוסר רצונו כו׳ והדם הוא הנפש שהוא הרצון לכן עי״ז נמשכת הנשמה שהיא מבחינת שם הוי׳ ומתפשטת בכל הגוף.

and this is the matter of self-sacrifice (mesirus nefesh), that he gives over his will, etc.; and “the blood is the soul,” which is the will. Therefore, through this the soul, which is from the level of the Name Havayah, is drawn down and spreads through the whole body.

Explanation

That is the meaning of mesirus nefesh, “giving over the nefesh”: the Torah says “the blood is the nefesh,” and nefesh here means will, as in Jeremiah’s “My nefesh is not toward this people.” When the will is given over, the soul, rooted in the Name Havayah, flows into the whole body.

משא״כ קודם התפלה היא עדיין רק באפיו דהיינו שרק במוחו ושכלו מודה לה׳ אבל לא נתפשטה עדיין בלב כו׳ וכן פי׳ הרמ״ז [הרב משה זכות] פ׳ תצוה (ד׳ קפ״ב) ע״פ כהאריז״ל [כתבי האריז״ל] ענין אשר נשמה באפו.

Whereas before prayer it is still only in his nostrils; that is, only in his mind and intellect does he acknowledge G‑d, but it has not yet spread into the heart, etc. And so the Ramaz explained, on Parshas Tetzaveh (182), according to the writings of the Arizal, the matter of “whose breath (neshamah) is in his nostrils.”

Explanation

Before prayer the soul is still only “in his nostrils”: he acknowledges G‑d with his mind, as in the morning’s Modeh Ani and Hodu, but the acknowledgment has not yet reached his heart. The Ramaz, the Kabbalist Rabbi Moshe Zacuto, explained Isaiah’s “whose breath is in his nostrils” in this way, following the Arizal.

ועיין בזהר שם על פסוק זה בענין אחר. ועמ״ש ע״פ ונקדשתי בתוך בנ״י [בני ישראל] בתוך היינו שיותפס ענין קדושתו ית׳ בלב האדם דייקא.

And see in the Zohar there on this verse, in another sense. And see what is written on the verse “And I shall be sanctified in the midst of the children of Israel”: “in the midst” means that the matter of His holiness, may He be blessed, be grasped specifically in the heart of man.

Explanation

The Zohar there reads the verse in other ways: of one who greets his fellow before praying, and of one whose anger tears his holy soul from him. Another discourse explains that “I shall be sanctified in the midst of the children of Israel” means within each person: G‑d’s holiness must be grasped in the heart.

ועמ״ש סד״ה להבין ענין משארז״ל [מה שאמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] יפה שעה א׳ בתשובה כו׳ בענין הכורע צריך שיראה איסר כנגד לבו.

And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “To understand the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, ‘Better is one hour in teshuvah,’ etc.,” regarding “one who bows must see an issar (a coin) opposite his heart.”

Explanation

A further discourse discusses the Talmud’s rule that one who bows in prayer must bow until he “sees an issar (a small coin) opposite his heart.”

Paragraph 6 in brief

A person, like the world, has a day and a night: his soul’s light either shines through him or withdraws. On waking, the soul is only “in his nostrils,” acknowledged by the mind but not felt in the heart; prayer, by surrendering one’s will, the root of all the emotions, lets the soul, rooted in Havayah, spread through the whole body.

Deeper

The Zohar on Vayakhel (213b) describes how each night the souls are absorbed into the supernal “point” of Malchus, which delights in the deeds and Torah of the day, and how it gives them back new each morning: “They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness,” great enough to take them in and bring them out renewed.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    ות״ת כנגד כולם · Shabbat 127a:15
  2. 2
    תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם · Mishnah Peah 1:1
  3. 3
    קודם התפלה אסור לאכול · Berakhot 10b:29–30
  4. 4
    קודם התפלה אסור לאכול · Shulchan Arukh, Orach Chayim 89:3
  5. 5
    האדם הוא עולם קטן · ראה אבות דר״נ לא, ג.
  6. 6
    האדם הוא עולם קטן · Avot DeRabbi Natan 31:3
  7. 7
    גם כי אשב בחושך ה׳ אור לי · Micah 7:8
  8. 8
    בד״ה ותוסף אסתר · תו״א צד, ד.
  9. 9
    ותוסף אסתר · Esther 8:3
  10. 10
    וע״פ וידעת היום · ראה לקמן פ׳ ואתחנן ז, ד ואילך.
  11. 11
    וידעת היום והשבות · Deuteronomy 4:39
  12. 12
    ובד״ה תחת אשר לא עבדת · לקמן פ׳ תבוא מב, ד. בבוך והיו הדברים — ריבקין עט, נמצא במקום זה: בפ׳ בראשית ד״ה להבין ענין הברכות.
  13. 13
    תחת אשר לא עבדת · Deuteronomy 28:47
  14. 14
    ובבוקר בעמדו משינתו · Berakhot 14a
  15. 15
    חדשים לבקרים רבה אמונתך · Lamentations 3:23
  16. 16
    חדשים לבקרים רבה אמונתך · Zohar, Vayakhel 25:363–373
  17. 17
    מסירת נפש · Jeremiah 15:1
  18. 18
    והדם הוא הנפש · Deuteronomy 12:23
  19. 19
    מודה לה׳ · באמירת מודה אני והודו לה׳.
  20. 20
    אבל לא נתפשטה עדיין בלב · ראה יהל אור ע׳ שנח.
  21. 21
    אשר נשמה באפו · Isaiah 2:22
  22. 22
    אשר נשמה באפו · Zohar, Tetzaveh 5:48–6:55
  23. 23
    ונקדשתי בתוך בנ״י · Leviticus 22:32
  24. 24
    סד״ה . . יפה שעה · תו״א ח״ש טז, ב.
  25. 25
    יפה שעה א׳ בתשובה · Pirkei Avot 4:17
  26. 26
    הכורע צריך שיראה · ברכות (כח, סע״ב). [כ].
  27. 27
    הכורע צריך שיראה איסר כנגד לבו · Berakhot 28b:19–20
  28. 28
    וזהו״ע מס״נ שמוסר רצונו · להעיר מירמי׳ טו, א. ועוד.

7וז״ש [וזהו שכתוב] חדלו לכם מן האדם אשר נשמה באפו כי במה נחשב הוא א״ת [אל תקרי] במה אלא במה פי׳ חדלו לכם לשון הבדלו עצמיכם מן בחי׳ אדם כזה שנשמתו רק באפיו שלא יכלה להתפשט בכללות גופו

And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “Cease from man, whose breath (neshamah) is in his nostrils, for as what (bameh) is he accounted?” Do not read bameh (“as what”) but bamah (“a raised altar”). That is: “cease from” is a term of separation: separate yourselves from the level of such a man, whose soul is only in his nostrils, which could not spread through his body as a whole.

Explanation

Isaiah’s “Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils” is read through the Talmud’s play on bameh, “as what,” and bamah, a raised altar, which the Talmud applies to greeting one’s fellow before prayer. “Cease” means: keep apart from the state of a person whose soul is only in his nostrils and has not spread through his body.

כי במה נחשב כמו הבמה נראה ונגלה הישות שלו ליש ודבר בפ״ע [בפני עצמו] כן בו ג״כ גברה חומר

“For as a bamah he is accounted”: just as with a bamah, its yeshus is seen and revealed as a something, a thing by itself, so in him too the material quality

Explanation

A bamah is a raised mound that stands out for all to see. In such a person, too, the coarse sense of his own separate existence stands out and dominates.

הישות שלו עד שאינו מתבטל כלל מפני אור ה׳ הוא אור נשמתו אשר באפיו (ועיין מ״ש ע״פ בעלי במות ארנון). לכן אסור לאכול קודם התפלה.

of his yeshus has prevailed, until he is not nullified at all before the light of G‑d, which is the light of his soul that is in his nostrils. (And see what is written on the verse “The lords of the high places (bamos) of Arnon.”) Therefore it is forbidden to eat before prayer.

Explanation

His yeshus is so strong that he is not nullified at all before G‑d’s light, which in him is the light of his own soul, still only in his nostrils. That is why it is forbidden to eat before prayer.

כמאמר רז״ל [רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] לא תאכלו על הדם לא תאכלו קודם שתתפללו על דמכם בכדי שלא ליתן סטרא דדמא בישא לשלוט בו ושוב לא יכול להאיר בו כח נשמתו לגמרי.

As our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “You shall not eat over the blood”: do not eat before you have prayed for your blood; so as not to give the side of the evil blood (sitra dedama bisha) dominion over him, after which the power of his soul could no longer shine in him fully.

Explanation

The Talmud reads “You shall not eat over the blood” as “do not eat before you have prayed for your blood.” Eating first would give dominion to the side of the “evil blood,” and then the soul could no longer shine fully in him.

לכן תקנו לנו ברכת השחר כמו מלביש ערומים מתיר אסורים המכין מצעדי גבר מחמת שאצל אדם בחינת אדמה לעליון

Therefore they instituted for us the morning blessings, such as “who clothes the naked,” “who releases the bound,” “who prepares the steps of man”: because for adam (man), the level of “I will be like (adameh) the Most High,”

Explanation

For this reason the Sages instituted the morning blessings, thanking G‑d for clothing us, freeing our limbs and guiding our steps. The person meant here is adam in the sense of adameh la’elyon, “I will be like the Most High”: man made in the likeness of the One above.

כל כחותיו אפילו להלביש בגד ומנעל הכל הוא כח שם הוי׳ ב״ה ואין דבר חוץ ממנו (וע׳ לעיל ע״פ מה יפו פעמיך בנעלים).

all his powers, even to put on a garment and a shoe, all of it is the power of the Name Havayah, blessed be He, and there is nothing outside Him. (And see above on the verse “How beautiful are your steps in sandals.”)

Explanation

For such a person every power, even to dress and to put on shoes, is the power of the Name Havayah, and nothing exists apart from Him; the blessings bring this awareness. The parenthesis points to a discourse on “How beautiful are your steps in sandals.”

הגם כי הברכות הם מדרבנן מ״מ הם קודם מחמת שהם הכנה לק״ש [לקריאת שמע] דאורייתא שהוא גילוי אמיתית שם ה׳ אשר הוא באמת אין עוד זולתו למעלה עד אין קץ ולמטה עד אין תכלית.

Although the blessings are rabbinic, nevertheless they come first, because they are a preparation for the Shema, which is from the Torah, which is the revelation of the truth of the Name Havayah: that in truth there is nothing else besides Him, above without end and below without limit.

Explanation

The morning blessings are only rabbinic, yet they come before the Shema, a Torah commandment, because they prepare for it. The Shema reveals the truth of the Name Havayah: there is nothing besides Him, above or below.

Paragraph 7 in brief

Before prayer a person is like a bamah, his own existence standing out, so he must not eat, lest the “evil blood” gain dominion before the soul has spread through him. The morning blessings, by teaching that every bodily power is G‑d’s, prepare him for the Shema’s revelation that nothing exists besides G‑d.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    חדלו לכם מן האדם · Isaiah 2:22
  2. 2
    א״ת במה אלא במה · Berakhot 14a:11–12
  3. 3
    בעלי במות ארנון · Numbers 21:28
  4. 4
    לא תאכלו על הדם קודם שתתפללו · Leviticus 19:26
  5. 5
    תקנו לנו ברכת השחר · Berakhot 60b:5
  6. 6
    אדמה לעליון · Isaiah 14:14
  7. 7
    הכל הוא כח שם הוי׳ ב״ה · מובא בביאה״ז לצ״צ כרך-ב ע׳ תרסח.
  8. 8
    וע׳ לעיל ע״פ מה יפו פעמיך · נדפס לקמן בשה״ש מג, ב (וראה להלן האזינו עג, ג שו״ה קדושים ובהנסמן בהמ״מ שם).
  9. 9
    מה יפו פעמיך בנעלים · Song of Songs 7:2

8וע״י התבוננות מקודם בברכות יכול לבוא לזה בק״ש [בקריאת שמע] באמרו בתחלה ברוך אתה ה׳ אלהינו. ברוך הוא

And through contemplating beforehand, in the blessings, he can come to this in the Shema, when he first says, “Blessed are You, Havayah, our G‑d.” Baruch (“blessed”) is

Explanation

The morning blessings, contemplated with understanding, prepare a person to reach in the Shema the awareness that nothing exists besides G‑d. That awareness is already contained in the words that open the blessings of the Shema, “Blessed are You, Havayah, our G‑d,” and the maamar now explains them one by one, beginning with baruch.

כמו בריכת המים לשון המשכה שאנו ממשיכים אור א״ס ב״ה אשר הוא בהעלם והסתר להיות בבחי׳ גילוי בישראל ובמקור כנס״י [כנסת ישראל].

like a pool (berechah) of water, a term of drawing down: we draw down the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, which is hidden and concealed, to be revealed in Israel and in the source of the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael).

Explanation

Baruch is read not as praise but as related to berechah, a pool into which water is drawn: to “bless” is to draw down. We draw the Infinite Light, which is hidden, into revelation in the souls of Israel and in their source, the Congregation of Israel.

לכן אנו מבקשים ברוך אתה שיהיה הוי׳ ב״ה נמשך בבחי׳ אתה שהוא נוכח פי׳ בגילוי כמו שבאמת הכל בטל לפניו לגמרי.

Therefore we ask, “Blessed are You”: that Havayah, blessed be He, be drawn down at the level of “You,” which addresses one who is present (nochach), that is, in revelation; just as in truth everything is utterly nullified before Him.

Explanation

“You” is the second person, the way one speaks to someone who is present. Saying “Blessed are You” asks that Havayah be revealed as openly as one who stands before us, matching the truth that everything is entirely nullified before Him.

כמ״ש אני ה׳ לא שניתי רק אצלינו נדמה לנו הגשמיות ליש אבל אצלו ית׳ כל הגשמיות אפס ותהו נחשבו לו פי׳ ה׳ הוא אלהינו

As it is written, “I, Havayah, have not changed.” Only to us does physicality seem to be something (yesh); but before Him, may He be blessed, all physicality “is accounted by Him as naught and nothingness.” That is, Havayah is Elokeinu (“our G‑d”),

Explanation

Malachi’s “I, Havayah, have not changed” means that creation made no change in G‑d: from His side the physical world is, in Isaiah’s words, “accounted as naught and nothingness,” and only to us does it seem to be something. The next word of the blessing, Elokeinu, “our G‑d,” is now explained.

כמו אילי הארץ פי׳ הוא כחנו ממש כי גם כל כחות הגוף הנדמה לנו שהם טבעיים אבל אצל ישראל הם הכל כח הוי׳ ב״ה, כי

as in “the mighty (eilei) of the land”: that is, He is truly our strength. For all the powers of the body too, which seem to us to be natural, for Israel are all the power of Havayah, blessed be He. For

Explanation

Elokeinu is read from el in the sense of strength, as in Ezekiel’s “the mighty (eilei) of the land”: Havayah is literally our strength. Even the body’s powers, which seem to us natural, are for Israel nothing but the power of Havayah.

הנה פרעה אמר לא ידעתי את הוי׳ שלא ידע רק שם אלקים ואמר עזב ה׳ את הארץ

Pharaoh said, “I do not know Havayah,” for he knew only the Name Elokim; and said, “Havayah has forsaken the land.”

Explanation

Pharaoh’s “I do not know Havayah” shows the contrast: he knew G‑d only as Elokim, the Name of G‑d hidden within nature. The words “Havayah has forsaken the land” are from Ezekiel, where they express the belief that G‑d has abandoned the world; the maamar uses them to describe this same view.

כי הכל יודעים ומודים שיש אלהים אלא שמחשיבים כח עצמותם וכל חיות העולם ליש ודבר נפרד בפ״ע [בפני עצמו]

For all know and acknowledge that there is a G‑d (Elokim), but they consider the power of their own selves, and all the life-force of the world, to be something (yesh), a thing separate in itself,

Explanation

The nations all acknowledge that there is a G‑d. Their error is to regard their own strength, and all the life-force of the world, as a separate existence standing on its own.

כמו שהם חוץ לאלהות דקרו ליה אלהא דאלהיא כאשר באמת כל השפעותם הוא רק על ידי ע׳ [שבעים] שרים הגם דכתיב מי לא ייראך כו׳

as though they were outside G‑dliness; for they call Him “the G‑d of the gods (Elaha de’Elahaya),” since in truth all their flow of influence comes only through the seventy princes. And although it is written, “Who would not fear You,” etc.,

Explanation

Seeing the world as outside G‑dliness, they call Him “the G‑d of the gods,” as the Talmud quotes them at the end of Menachos: the highest among many powers. In truth all the influence that reaches them does come through the seventy princes, the angelic ministers over the seventy nations. An objection is then raised from Jeremiah’s “Who would not fear You, King of the nations.”

ובכל מלכותם מאין כמוך משמע שגם עובדי כוכבים אומרים שאין כמוך מ״מ כתיב רם על כל כו׳

“and in all their kingdoms there is none like You,” which implies that the idolaters (lit. worshipers of stars) too say that there is none like You; nevertheless it is written, “High above all,” etc.:

Explanation

Jeremiah continues, “among all their kingdoms there is none like You,” which implies that even the idolaters admit there is none like G‑d; the Zohar on Mishpatim says that this phrase spread among the nations through their own wisdom. Even so, the psalm says “High above all nations is Havayah.”

פי׳ שהוא מרומם מעכו״ם [מעובדי כוכבים ומזלות] ואינו משפיע להם כ״א ע״י ע׳ [שבעים] שרים המקבלים יניקה וחיות מבני אלים שהם המלאכים דעשיה שמהם נמשך כח וחיות השפעת עוה״ז כנ״ל.

that is, He is exalted above the idolaters and does not bestow influence on them except through the seventy princes, who receive nurture and life-force from the bnei eilim, which are the angels of the World of Asiyah (Action), from whom the power and life-force of the influence of this world are drawn, as mentioned above.

Explanation

“High above” means that G‑d stands exalted beyond the nations and gives to them only through the seventy princes. These princes draw their nurture from the bnei eilim, the angels of Asiyah described in the first section, who channel all the life and influence of this world.

לכן אין להם כח וחיות כ״א להיות יש ודבר נפרד בפ״ע [בפני עצמו] אבל לא כן עם בנ״י [בני ישראל]

Therefore they have power and life-force only to be something (yesh), a thing separate in itself. But not so with the children of Israel,

Explanation

Since their life comes through intermediaries, its power serves only to make them a “something” standing apart. With Israel it is otherwise.

כי חלק הוי׳ עמו נשמות ישראל מעצמות הוי׳ ב״ה לכן אצלנו הוא הוי׳ אלהינו פי׳ הוא כחנו וחיינו בלי שום אמצעי כלל.

for “Havayah’s portion is His people”: the souls of Israel are from the very essence of Havayah, blessed be He. Therefore for us He is “Havayah, our G‑d”: that is, He is our strength and our life, without any intermediary at all.

Explanation

“Havayah’s portion is His people”: the souls of Israel come from the very essence of the Name Havayah. So for Israel Havayah is “our G‑d,” our strength and life directly, with no intermediary at all.

(ועיין מזה בפי׳ הרמ״ז [הרב משה זכות] ר״פ האזינו בענין כי חלק הוי׳ עמו) וע׳ בפ׳ משפטים (צ״ו א׳).

(And see about this in the commentary of the Ramaz (Rabbi Moshe Zacuto) at the beginning of Parshas Ha’azinu, regarding “For Havayah’s portion is His people.”) And see Parshas Mishpatim (96a).

Explanation

The parenthesis points to the Ramaz’s commentary on the Zohar at the beginning of Ha’azinu, on “Havayah’s portion is His people.” The Zohar on Mishpatim (96a) teaches that Havayah is the one Name given as an inheritance to the one people, while the Name Elokim is shared out among the ministers who govern the other nations.

לכן בודאי מהראוי לבטל רצוננו לגמרי מפני רצונו ית׳ כמארז״ל [כמאמר רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] בטל רצונך כו׳. כמ״ש מי לי בשמים ועמך לא חפצתי בארץ פי׳ כשאני עמך שה׳ הוא אלהינו

Therefore it is certainly fitting to nullify our will entirely before His will, may He be blessed, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Nullify your will,” etc. As it is written, “Whom have I in heaven? And with You, I desire nothing on earth”: that is, when I am with You, in that Havayah is our G‑d,

Explanation

Since our life is G‑d’s own power, it is only fitting to set aside our will entirely before His, as the Mishnah in Avos says, “Nullify your will before His will.” The psalmist’s “Whom have I in heaven? And with You, I desire nothing on earth” is read as speaking of one who is “with” G‑d, aware that Havayah is his G‑d.

אזי לא חפצתי בארץ בארציות כי אין בה לא חפץ ולא רצון ותשוקה כלל. וזהו פי׳ שמע ישראל שמע הוא לשון הבנה ה׳ אלקינו ה׳ אחד.

then “I desire nothing on earth,” in earthliness, for there is in it neither desire nor will nor longing at all. And this is the meaning of “Hear (shema), O Israel”: shema is a term of understanding; “Havayah is our G‑d, Havayah is One.”

Explanation

Such a person desires nothing “on earth”: earthly things hold no desire or longing for him at all. This is also the meaning of the Shema, for shema means “understand,” as the Zohar says, “Shema: that is, understand.”

ר״ל [רוצה לומר] כאשר הוא מבין באמת שהוי׳ הוא אלהינו כל חיות וכ חות שלנו הם כח הוי׳ ב״ה אז הוא אחד.

That is to say: when he truly understands that Havayah is our G‑d, that all our life-force and powers are the power of Havayah, blessed be He, then He is One.

Explanation

When a person truly understands that Havayah is “our G‑d,” that all our life and strength are His power, he grasps that “Havayah is One.”

פי׳ אין עוד מלבדו כי כל הכחות בטלים למקור לגמרי (ועמ״ש ע״פ ולא אבה הוי׳ אלקיך שבכל נפש יש בחי׳ והארה משם הוי׳ ממש. ובסש״ב [ובספר של בינונים] באגרת התשובה פרק ד׳ וזהו הפי׳ דשם הוי׳ הוא כחנו וחיינו כו׳.

That is, “there is nothing else besides Him,” for all the powers are utterly nullified to the source. (And see what is written on the verse “But Havayah your G‑d was not willing,” that in every soul there is a level and a radiance of the very Name Havayah. And in Sefer Shel Beinonim (Tanya), in Iggeres HaTeshuvah, chapter 4: and this is the meaning of [the statement] that the Name Havayah is our strength and our life, etc.

Explanation

“One” means that nothing else exists, as Moshe says, “there is nothing else besides Him,” for all the powers are wholly nullified in their source. The parenthesis cites the discourse on “But Havayah your G‑d was not willing [to listen to Bilam],” which teaches that every soul holds a radiance of the very Name Havayah, and the Tanya’s Iggeres HaTeshuvah, chapter 4, which explains why Havayah is called our strength and our life.

משא״כ העולמות ואפילו המלאכים חיותן הוא משם אלהים ולכן נקראים בני אלהים או בני אלים ע״ש באגרת התשובה שם ועמ״ש בד״ה מה טובו ובד״ה בפ׳ נסכים. וזהו אשריך ישראל מי כמוך עם נושע בהוי׳ פ׳ אמור)

Whereas the worlds, and even the angels, have their life-force from the Name Elokim, and therefore they are called bnei Elokim or bnei eilim; see there in Iggeres HaTeshuvah. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “How goodly,” and in the discourse beginning “In the section on the libations.” And this is “Fortunate are you, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by Havayah”; Parshas Emor)

Explanation

The Tanya there explains that the worlds and even the angels draw their life from the Name Elokim, the external level relative to Havayah, which is why angels are called bnei Elokim or bnei eilim. The parenthesis adds two more discourses, and Moshe’s blessing, “Fortunate are you, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by Havayah,” with the Zohar on Emor.

(דף צ״ד סע״א [סוף עמוד א]) פי׳ מי כמוך באלים הוי׳ דהיינו מה ששם הויה הוא למעלה משאר השמות אל ואלקים כו׳ שהם בחי׳ חיצוניות לגבי שם הוי׳.

(94, end of side a): that is, “Who is like You among the mighty (eilim), Havayah”: that the Name Havayah is above the other Names, El and Elokim, etc., which are the level of the outer dimension (chitzoniyus) relative to the Name Havayah.

Explanation

The text reads “Who is like You among the mighty (eilim), Havayah” to mean that the Name Havayah stands above the other Names, El and Elokim, which are external relative to it. Israel are a people saved “by Havayah,” bound to that higher Name.

ועמ״ש מענין זה בד״ה אם בהרת קדמה כו׳ וזהו שארז״ל [שאמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] כל המאריך באחד פי׳ שמאריך ומתבונן איך הוי׳ הוא אלהינו בכדי שיראה שהוא אחד אמיתי אז מאריכין לו כו׳.

And see what is written on this matter in the discourse beginning “If the bright spot came first,” etc. And this is what our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Whoever prolongs [the word] echad (‘One’)”: that is, one who dwells on it and contemplates how Havayah is our G‑d, so that he see that He is truly One, then “they prolong for him,” etc.

Explanation

Another discourse treats the same theme. The Talmud promises that whoever prolongs the word echad, “One,” in the Shema will have his days and years prolonged; here prolonging it means dwelling on how Havayah is our G‑d until one sees that He is truly One.

Paragraph 8 in brief

The words “Blessed are You, Havayah, our G‑d” and the Shema express Israel’s unique bond with the Name Havayah: the nations receive life through intermediaries and so experience themselves as separate, but for Israel Havayah is “our G‑d,” our strength and life without any intermediary. Understanding this, one sets aside one’s own will and sees that G‑d is truly One.

Deeper

The Zohar on Mishpatim (96a) explains that all of G‑d’s Names branch out in many paths except the one unique Name, Havayah, the inheritance of the one unique people; Elokim is the Name shared out to the ministers over the nations. The Tanya (Iggeres HaTeshuvah 4) draws the same contrast through the image of speaking and blowing: the angels live from the external vitality, the “breath of His mouth,” while the soul was breathed from within and is “a portion of the Name Havayah.”

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    אני הוי׳ לא שניתי · Malachi 3:6
  2. 2
    אפס ותוהו נחשבו לו · Isaiah 40:17
  3. 3
    כמו אילי הארץ · Ezekiel 17:13
  4. 4
    הוא כחנו ממש · ועל״ק דרושים לר״ה (סב, ד). וש״נ. [כ].
  5. 5
    טבעיים — כי · ראה לעיל בהוספות יח, א השמטה.
  6. 6
    לא ידעתי את ה׳ · Exodus 5:2
  7. 7
    עזב ה׳ את הארץ · Ezekiel 8:12
  8. 8
    עזב ה׳ את הארץ · Ezekiel 9:9
  9. 9
    דקרו לי׳ אלקא דאלקיא · סוף מנחות.
  10. 10
    דקרו ליה אלהא דאלהיא · Menachot 110a:5–6
  11. 11
    מי לא ייראך . . מאין כמוך · Jeremiah 10:7
  12. 12
    ובכל מלכותם מאין כמוך · Zohar, Mishpatim 3:34–43
  13. 13
    שמע · Zohar, Idra Rabba 31:238–32:248
  14. 14
    שגם עובדי כוכבים אומרים · וע׳ זח״ב (צו, א). [כ].
  15. 15
    רם על כל גוים · Psalms 113:4
  16. 16
    כי חלק ה׳ עמו · Deuteronomy 32:9
  17. 17
    בטל רצונך · אבות ב, ד.
  18. 18
    בטל רצונך · Pirkei Avot 2:4
  19. 19
    מי לי בשמים · Psalms 73:25
  20. 20
    שמע ישראל · Deuteronomy 6:4
  21. 21
    אין עוד מלבדו · Deuteronomy 4:35
  22. 22
    ע״פ ולא אבה ה׳ אלקיך · לקו״ת תצא לח, ג.
  23. 23
    המלאכים חיותן הוא משם אלהים ולכן נקראים בני אלהים · Tanya, Part III; Iggeret HaTeshuvah 4:6–7
  24. 24
    בד״ה מה טובו · לעיל פ׳ בלק עג, ב.
  25. 25
    ובד״ה בפ׳ נסכים · ראה לעיל פ׳ שלח מ, ב.
  26. 26
    אשריך ישראל מי כמוך · Deuteronomy 33:29
  27. 27
    עם — פ׳ · ראה לעיל בהוספות יח, ב השמטה.
  28. 28
    מי כמוך באלים הוי׳ · Exodus 15:11
  29. 29
    מי כמוך באלים הוי׳ · Zohar, Emor 24:104–111
  30. 30
    כל המאריך באחד · Berakhot 13b:14–15
  31. 31
    מי — כו׳ · ראה לעיל בהוספות יח, ב בהשמטה.
  32. 32
    שמע ל׳ הבנה · I Samuel 3:10

9וזהו פי׳ קרוב ה׳ לכל קוראיו שאנו קוראים אותו ית׳ שלא יהיה בבחי׳ רם ח״ו [חס ושלום] אלא שיתגלה ויהיה בבחי׳ אלהינו

And this is the meaning of “Havayah is near to all who call upon Him”: we call upon Him, may He be blessed, that He not be at the level of “high,” G‑d forbid, but that He be revealed and be at the level of “our G‑d,”

Explanation

The psalm’s “Havayah is near to all who call upon Him” is read as a call: we ask G‑d not to remain “high,” remote beyond the world as He is to the nations, but to be revealed as “our G‑d.”

כמו שבאמת הוא כן אז הוא קרוב מאד ויכול לבוא לואהבת את ה׳ אלהיך בכל לבבך מאחר שכבר נתבטלו כל רצונותיו

as in truth He is. Then He is very near, and one can come to “And you shall love Havayah your G‑d with all your heart,” since all his desires have already been nullified

Explanation

Since that is the truth, He is then very near, and a person can come to love Havayah “with all your heart,” for his own desires have already been set aside.

ולא נשאר כ״א רצון השם ואז יוכל להתפלל כמ״ש רצון יראיו יעשה אז ואת שועתם ישמע ויושיעם:

and nothing remains but the will of G‑d. And then he can pray, as it is written, “He fulfills the will of those who fear Him”; then “He hears their cry and saves them.”

Explanation

Nothing remains in him but G‑d’s will, and then he can truly pray. The psalm continues, “He fulfills the will of those who fear Him,” and then “He hears their cry and saves them.”

Paragraph 9 in brief

Calling upon G‑d means asking that He be revealed as “our G‑d” rather than remain “high”; then He is near, the love of G‑d becomes possible, and the prayer of one in whom only G‑d’s will remains is answered.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    קרוב ה׳ לכל קוראיו · Psalms 145:18
  2. 2
    ואהבת את ה״א · Deuteronomy 6:5
  3. 3
    רצון יראיו יעשה · Psalms 145:19

G‑d’s will lowered into the Oral Torah ¶10–16

10ג אבל כתיב לכל אשר יקראוהו באמת ואין אמת אלא תורה כי באמת הוא הודו על ארץ ושמים. שמים וארץ הם רק בחי׳ הוד וזיו. אבל הנשמות הם פנימית העולמות פנימית חכמה.

3. But it is written, “to all who call upon Him in truth,” and “there is no truth but Torah.” For in truth, “His splendor (hodo) is upon earth and heaven”: heaven and earth are only the level of splendor (hod) and radiance; but the souls are the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the worlds, the inner dimension of Chochmah (wisdom).

Explanation

The third section turns to the end of the verse: G‑d is near to those who call Him “in truth,” and the Sages say “there is no truth but Torah,” so prayer needs Torah. The psalm’s “His splendor is upon earth and heaven” shows that heaven and earth hold only G‑d’s outer radiance, while the souls of Israel come from the inner dimension of the worlds, the inner dimension of Chochmah.

Paragraph 10 in brief

The third section begins: calling upon G‑d must be “in truth,” and truth is Torah. Heaven and earth receive only G‑d’s outer radiance, but the souls of Israel come from the inner dimension of Chochmah, which sets up the explanation of Torah that follows.

Deeper

The Kehot note observes that the Talmud in Berakhot (5b) does not read the phrase as it is read here, and points to Tikkunei Zohar (Tikkun 21, 50a), which says “there is no truth but Torah” on the verse “The Torah of truth was in his mouth.”

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    לכל אשר יקראוהו באמת · Psalms 145:18
  2. 2
    ואין אמת אלא תורה · ירוש׳ ר״ה ג, ח. תדא״ז פכ״א. ועוד. וראה להלן דרושים לסוכות פא, ג. ע׳ ברכות (ה, רע״ב) לא כמ״ש כאן. אך ע׳ ת״ז (תכ״א) ד״נ ע״א עה״פ תורת אמת, ע״ש. [כ].
  3. 3
    ואין אמת אלא תורה · Jerusalem Talmud Rosh Hashanah 3:9
  4. 4
    ואין אמת אלא תורה · Tikkunei Zohar 50a:20–22
  5. 5
    הודו על ארץ ושמים · Psalms 148:13

11והנה מלכות פה תורה שבעל פה קרינן לה פי׳ כי מלכות לית לה מגרמה כלום. כי היא רק גילוי פנימית רצונו תורה ומצות הם פנימית רצונו.

Now, “Malchus (sovereignty) is the mouth; the Oral Torah we call it.” That is: Malchus “has nothing of its own,” for it is only the revelation of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of His will; Torah and mitzvos are the inner dimension of His will.

Explanation

In the words of the Tikkunei Zohar, Malchus is “the mouth” and is called the Oral Torah. Malchus “has nothing of its own”: it only reveals what it receives, the inner dimension of G‑d’s will, and that inner will is expressed in Torah and mitzvos.

לכן אחר שביטל כל רצונות המגושמים עוד זאת היא תכלית הבריאה ליכלל בפנימית רצונו ית׳ בכדי לעשות לו דירה בתחתונים

Therefore, after he has nullified all the coarse, material desires, there is yet this further [step], which is the purpose of creation: to be included in the inner dimension of His will, may He be blessed, in order to make for Him a dwelling place among the lower realms;

Explanation

Setting aside one’s coarse desires, the theme of the previous section, is not yet the end. The purpose of creation is to be absorbed into G‑d’s innermost will so as to make Him “a dwelling place among the lower realms,” as the Midrash says that G‑d desired from the moment He created the world.

דהיינו בעשיה הגשמיות יתגלה פנימית רצונו מקור החיים של כל העולמות. וז״ש [וזהו שכתוב] ראה חיים עם אשה אשר אהבת (בקהלת סי׳ ט׳).

that is, that in the physical [World of] Asiyah (Action) the inner dimension of His will, the source of life of all the worlds, be revealed. And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “See life with the wife whom you have loved” (in Koheles, chapter 9).

Explanation

That dwelling means that G‑d’s innermost will, the source of life of all the worlds, is revealed in the physical world of Asiyah. The verse brought for this is Koheles’s “See life with the wife whom you have loved.”

פי׳ שכבר אהבת (דהיינו כמ״ש במ״א ע״פ הגידה לי שאהבה נפשי. מכבר היינו כשהיתה הנשמה בבחי׳ עיבור למעלה. ואשה פי׳ אש ה׳ וכמ״ש במ״א. ועיין ברבות בשה״ש [בשיר השירים] ס״פ שימני כחותם.

That is: whom you have already loved. (That is, as is explained elsewhere on the verse “Tell me, you whom my soul has loved”: from long before, that is, when the soul was in the state of ibbur (gestation) above. And ishah (“wife”) is read esh Hei, “the fire of G‑d,” as is explained elsewhere. And see in the Midrash Rabbah on the Song of Songs, at the end of [the passage on] “Set me as a seal.”

Explanation

“Whom you have loved” is in the past tense: the soul loved G‑d before it came into a body, while it was “in gestation” above, as a discourse on “Tell me, you whom my soul has loved” explains. Ishah, “wife,” is read as esh Hei, “the fire of G‑d,” in the spirit of the Talmud’s teaching that ish and ishah share the letters of esh, fire.

ולכן גם כשנמשך מבחי׳ אהבה עליונה זו ג״כ בנשמה כשמלובשת בגוף שזהו פי׳ הגידה לשון המשכה שנמשך מבחי׳ אהבה עליונה כו׳. ועמ״ש בד״ה וידבר אלקים כו׳ וארא אל אברהם כו׳) מ״מ אחר כל האהבות ראה חיים עמה.

And therefore, also when [something] of this level of supernal love is drawn into the soul as well, when it is enclothed in the body: this is the meaning of haggidah (“tell”), a term of drawing down, that it is drawn from the level of the supernal love, etc. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And Elokim spoke,” etc., “and I appeared to Avraham,” etc.) Nevertheless, after all the loves, “see life with her.”

Explanation

The parenthesis adds that haggidah, “tell,” means drawing down: something of that supernal love is drawn into the soul even when it is clothed in a body; it also points to the discourse on “And Elokim spoke ... and I appeared to Avraham.” Yet after all these loves the verse says, “see life with her”: love is not yet the goal.

ועיין מזה בפ׳ מקץ (דף קצ״ו ע״ב) ובפ׳ קרח (קע״ז ע״ב) ובר״ח [ובראשית חכמה] שער האהבה ספ״ט.

And see about this in Parshas Mikeitz (folio 196b) and in Parshas Korach (177b), and in Reishis Chochmah, Sha’ar HaAhavah (the Gate of Love), at the end of chapter 9.

Explanation

The Zohar on Mikeitz reads “the wife whom you love” as the Congregation of Israel and “life” as the life of the World to Come, and the Zohar on Korach says that a person must bring “life” into this place, for one does not go without the other. Reishis Chochmah is also cited, from its Gate of Love.

ואין חיים אלא תורה כמ״ש כי הוא חלקך בחיים וכתיב כי הוא חייך ואורך ימיך דקאי על התורה וזהו שכתוב כי הוא חלקך בחיים כתיב הוא והמשמעות היא

And “there is no life but Torah,” as it is written, “For that is your portion in life,” and it is written, “For it is your life and the length of your days,” which refers to the Torah. And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “For that (hu) is your portion in life”: hu (“he”) is written, while the sense is hi (“she”),

Explanation

“Life” means Torah, as the verse “For it is your life and the length of your days,” said of the Torah, shows. In Koheles’s “For that is your portion in life” the word is written hu, “he,” but the sense is hi, “she,” pointing to the Torah.

והיינו כמ״ש עץ חיים היא כדאיתא בזהר (ז״ג בראשית דל״ט ע״ב) ופי׳ היא המה ששה סדרי משנה וברייתא הגם שכל עניני התורה והמצות מדברים בדברים גשמיים מ״מ הן המה פנימית רצונו ית׳.

that is, as it is written, “She (hi) is a tree of life,” as is brought in the Zohar (ז״ג, Bereishis, 39b); and the meaning of hi is the six orders of the Mishnah and the Baraisa. Although all the matters of the Torah and the mitzvos speak of physical things, nevertheless they are the inner dimension of His will, may He be blessed.

Explanation

Proverbs says of the Torah, “She (hi) is a tree of life,” and the text explains hi as the six orders of the Mishnah with the Baraisa: the Oral Torah. Its subject matter is physical things, yet it is G‑d’s innermost will.

כמ״ש ואנכי תרגלתי לאפרים קחם על זרועותיו (בהושע סי׳ י״א) פי׳ תרגלתי מלשון רגלים (וכן איתא ברבות באיכה ע״פ איכה יעיב והובא בילקוט בהושע שם ארכבותיו כו׳)

As it is written, “And I (Anochi) taught Ephraim to walk (tirgalti), taking them upon his arms” (in Hoshea, chapter 11). That is, tirgalti is from the term raglayim (“feet”). (And so it is brought in the Midrash Rabbah on Eichah, on the verse “How (eichah) He has clouded,” and cited in the Yalkut on Hoshea there: “his knees,” etc.)

Explanation

Hoshea’s “And I taught Ephraim to walk (tirgalti)” is read from regel, “foot.” The Midrash on Eichah applies the verse to a parable of a king who set his son on his knees, then on his arms, then on his shoulder.

כי נשתלשל פנימית רצונו עד בחי׳ רגלים במדרגה תחתונה מאד בעשי׳ [בעשיה] גשמיות בבחי׳ קחם על זרועותיו. פי׳ להגביהם על זרועות למעלה ראש.

For the inner dimension of His will descended, step by step (nishtalshel), to the level of “feet,” at a very low rank, in physical Asiyah, in the manner of “taking them upon his arms”: that is, to lift them upon [his] arms, up high.

Explanation

G‑d’s innermost will descended, step by step, to the level of “feet,” the lowest rank: physical Asiyah. The purpose of the descent is “taking them upon his arms,” lifting Israel up high.

כמו למשל אדם גדול שמרכין עצמו אצל תינוק קטן בכדי ליקח אותו על זרועותיו ולהגביה למעלה ראש מחמת גודל רצונו ותשוקתו בו.

As, by way of analogy, a great man who bends himself down to a little child in order to take him upon his arms and lift him up high, because of the greatness of his desire and longing for him.

Explanation

The parable: a grown man bends down to a small child in order to pick him up in his arms and raise him high, because of how much he loves and longs for him.

כן השתלשל הש״י [השם יתברך] פנימית רצונו בדברים גשמיים בכדי שיוכלו ישראל ליכלל בפנימית רצונו שהוא למעלה מעלה אפי׳ [אפילו] מבחי׳ חכמה עילאה (וע׳ בביאור ע״פ לכן אמור לבנ״י [לבני ישראל] בפי׳ אשר נשאתי את ידי כו׳).

So G‑d, blessed be He, drew the inner dimension of His will down, step by step, into physical things, so that Israel could be included in the inner dimension of His will, which is far, far above even the level of the supernal Chochmah (Chochmah ila’ah). (And see the explanation on the verse “Therefore say to the children of Israel,” on the meaning of “[with which] I lifted up My hand,” etc.)

Explanation

So G‑d lowered His innermost will into physical things, so that Israel might be absorbed into a will higher even than the supernal Chochmah. Torah Ohr explains “I lifted up My hand” the same way: though the Oral Torah is clothed in physical matters, G‑d lifts it high above the supernal Chochmah.

לכן ג״כ לא יכול להתחיל בתפלה כ״א בעשיית מצות בתחלה דהיינו להתעטף בטלית ותפילין שהם קישורא ופריסא דמלכא כמ״ש עוטה אור כשלמה.

Therefore, too, one cannot begin with prayer, but only by first doing mitzvos, that is, wrapping oneself in the tallis and tefillin, which are “the binding and the covering of the King,” as it is written, “He wraps Himself in light as in a garment.”

Explanation

For this reason a person cannot begin with prayer: he first does mitzvos, wrapping himself in tallis and tefillin, “the binding and the covering of the King.” The psalm describes G‑d as wrapping Himself “in light as in a garment.”

וביאור הענין היינו כי תשבע״פ [תורה שבעל פה] שהיא בחי׳ מל׳ נק׳ ג״כ רגלי. וכמ״ש והארץ הדום רגלי כו׳ וארץ היינו תשבע״פ [תורה שבעל פה] וכמ״ש במ״א.

And the explanation of the matter is this: the Oral Torah, which is the level of Malchus, is also called “My feet,” as it is written, “and the earth is My footstool,” etc.; and “earth” is the Oral Torah, as is explained elsewhere.

Explanation

The Oral Torah, which is Malchus, is called G‑d’s “feet,” as in Isaiah’s “and the earth is My footstool,” where “earth” is the Oral Torah. This is why tirgalti, from “feet,” describes G‑d’s will descending into the Oral Torah.

Paragraph 11 in brief

The purpose of creation goes beyond setting aside one’s own desires: it is to be absorbed into G‑d’s innermost will, which is revealed in Torah and mitzvos even though they deal with physical things. Like a father bending down to lift his child, G‑d lowered His will to the level of “feet,” the Oral Torah and the physical mitzvos, in order to raise Israel above even the supernal Chochmah.

Deeper

The Zohar on Korach (177b) reads “See life with the wife whom you love” as joining the measure of day with night and night with day, “for she is your portion in life.” The Pardes Rimonim (Gate 23, chapter 1) derives ishah from esh, fire drawing from the side of Gevurah, together with the hei, Malchus.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    דירה בתחתונים · ראה תנחומא נשא טז.
  2. 2
    לעשות לו דירה בתחתונים · Midrash Tanchuma, Nasso 16:1
  3. 3
    ראה חיים עם אשה אשר אהבת · Zohar, Miketz 5:68–80
  4. 4
    ראה חיים עם אשה אשר אהבת · Zohar, Korach 5:22–7:29
  5. 5
    הגידה לי שאהבה נפשי · Song of Songs 1:7
  6. 6
    אשה פי׳ אש ה׳ · Sotah 17a:2–3
  7. 7
    ואשה פי׳ אש ה׳ · Pardes Rimmonim 23:1
  8. 8
    שימני כחותם · Song of Songs 8:6
  9. 9
    וידבר אלקים כו׳ וארא אל אברהם · Exodus 6:3
  10. 10
    כי הוא חלקך בחיים · Ecclesiastes 9:9
  11. 11
    כי הוא חייך ואורך ימיך · Deuteronomy 30:20
  12. 12
    עץ חיים היא · Proverbs 3:18
  13. 13
    ואנכי תרגלתי לאפרים קחם על זרועותיו · Hosea 11:3
  14. 14
    ואנכי תרגלתי לאפרים קחם על זרועותיו · Eikhah Rabbah 2:2
  15. 15
    בביאור ע״פ לכן אמור · תו״א נט, ד ”שעם היות שנתלבשה בגשמיות אבל נשאתי את ידי להגבי׳ אותה למעלה ראש מבחי׳ ח״ע”.
  16. 16
    לכן אמור לבנ״י · Exodus 6:6
  17. 17
    אשר נשאתי את ידי · Exodus 6:8
  18. 18
    עוטה אור כשלמה · Psalms 104:2
  19. 19
    והארץ הדום רגלי · Isaiah 66:1

12והנה עיקר התגלות הרצון העליון לידע ההלכה והמצוה על בוריה היא בתשבע״פ [בתורה שבעל פה] משא״כ בתשב״כ [בתורה שבכתב] אין בה גילוי הרצון. ועמ״ש בזה בד״ה לכן אמור לבנ״י [לבני ישראל] הנ״ל בענין והבאתי אתכם אל הארץ כו׳.

Now, the main revelation of the supernal will, to know the halachah and the mitzvah with clarity and precision, is in the Oral Torah; whereas in the Written Torah there is no revelation of the will. And see what is written about this in the discourse beginning “Therefore say to the children of Israel,” mentioned above, regarding “And I will bring you to the land,” etc.

Explanation

G‑d’s will is revealed mainly in knowing the halachah and the mitzvah precisely, and that comes in the Oral Torah; the Written Torah alone does not spell out the will in practice. The discourse on “Therefore say to the children of Israel” explains this through “And I will bring you to the land,” the “land” being the Oral Torah.

Paragraph 12 in brief

G‑d’s will is revealed mainly in the Oral Torah, which defines each halachah and mitzvah precisely, rather than in the Written Torah.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    לכן אמור לבנ״י · Exodus 6:6
  2. 2
    והבאתי אתכם אל הארץ · Exodus 6:8

13ובפ׳ פנחס בד״ה צו את בנ״י [בני ישראל] בענין תשמרו. וזהו ואנכי תרגלתי אנכי מי שאנכי הוא בחינת פנימית רצון העליון.

And in Parshas Pinchas, in the discourse beginning “Command the children of Israel,” regarding “you shall take care” (tishmeru). And this is “And I (Anochi) taught to walk”: Anochi, “who I am,” is the level of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the supernal will.

Explanation

A further discourse in this parsha, on “Command the children of Israel ... you shall take care,” treats the same theme. Anochi, “I,” means “who I am,” G‑d’s very self, the inner dimension of the supernal will, as the Zohar reads Yaakov’s Anochi in “Anochi Esav your firstborn” as a statement on its own: “I am who I am.”

וכביכול ואנכי תרגלתי השפלתי את בחי׳ אנכי לבחי׳ רגלי הוא תשבע״פ [תורה שבעל פה] כי נעוץ תחלתן בסופן וכ״ז [וכל זה] לאפרים.

And, as it were, “And I taught to walk” [means]: I lowered the level of Anochi to the level of “My feet,” which is the Oral Torah, for “their beginning is wedged in their end”; and all this “for Ephraim.”

Explanation

G‑d says, as it were, “I lowered Anochi to the level of My ‘feet,’” the Oral Torah. This is possible because, as Sefer Yetzirah says, “their beginning is wedged in their end”: the highest is bound up with the lowest; and it was done “for Ephraim,” for Israel.

דהיינו שכ״ז [שכל זה] הירידה וההשפלה הוא בשביל הנשמות שיהיה בנשמתם גילוי בחי׳ אנכי. שלכך נמשך וירד רצון העליון ונתלבש בפשטי ההלכה המדברים בעניני עולם העשיה המחליף פרה בחמור כו׳

That is, all this descent and lowering is for the sake of the souls, so that in their souls there be a revelation of the level of Anochi. For this is why the supernal will was drawn down, descended and enclothed itself in the plain rulings of the halachah, which speak of the matters of the World of Asiyah (Action): “one who exchanges a cow for a donkey,” etc.;

Explanation

The descent is for the sake of the souls, so that Anochi be revealed in them. That is why G‑d’s will is clothed in the plain rulings of halachah about this physical world, such as the Mishnah’s case of “one who exchanges a cow for a donkey.”

שע״י התקשרות השכל של נש״י [נשמות ישראל] בחכמה ושכל זה דתשבע״פ [דתורה שבעל פה] הם מתקשרים ממש במוח האב היינו בחכמתו ורצונו ית׳ שנשפלו ממש בהלכה זו.

for through the binding of the intellect of the souls of Israel to this wisdom and intellect of the Oral Torah, they are bound to the very mind of the Father, that is, to His wisdom and will, may He be blessed, which were truly lowered into this halachah.

Explanation

When the mind of a Jew grasps the reasoning of the Oral Torah, he binds himself to the very “mind of the Father,” G‑d’s own wisdom and will, which were lowered into that halachah.

Paragraph 13 in brief

Anochi, G‑d’s very self, lowered itself to the “feet,” the Oral Torah’s rulings about physical things, so that by grasping them the souls of Israel bind themselves to G‑d’s own wisdom and will.

Deeper

The Likkutei Torah on Re’eh (31d), to which the Kehot note points, reads “Am I (Anochi) not better to you than ten sons” as the drawing down from Anochi mi she’Anochi, the very Infinite Light far above Atzilus and the souls, to make a dwelling place among the lower realms.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    צו את בנ״י בענין תשמרו · Numbers 28:2
  2. 2
    ואנכי תרגלתי · Hosea 11:3
  3. 3
    אנכי מי שאנכי · Zohar I, 167b
  4. 4
    נעוץ תחלתן בסופן · ס״י פ״א, מ״ז.
  5. 5
    נעוץ תחלתן בסופן · Sefer Yetzirah 1:7
  6. 6
    המחליף פרה בחמור · ב״מ פ״ח, מ״ד.
  7. 7
    המחליף פרה בחמור · Mishnah Bava Metzia 8:4

14וזהו ענין המשל שהאב מרכין ראשו אצל רגליו כדי להגביה בנו הקטן כו׳. כך על דרך זה ואנכי תרגלתי לאפרים ועיין מ״ש ע״פ קול דודי מדלג כו׳

And this is the matter of the analogy of the father who bends his head down to his feet in order to lift up his little son, etc. So, in the same way, “And I taught Ephraim to walk.” And see what is written on the verse “The voice of my beloved ... leaping,” etc.,

Explanation

This is the parable of a father bending his head down to his feet to lift his little son: in the same way G‑d “taught Ephraim to walk.” The text points to the discourse on “The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes, leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills.”

מקפץ כו׳ דשם נתבאר ג״כ שהתגלות והמשכות אור א״ס הנמשך ע״י התורה הוא עד״מ כמו המדלג ברגליו כו׳ ע״ש.

“skipping,” etc., where it is also explained that the revelation and drawing down of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), which is drawn down through the Torah, is, by way of analogy, like one who leaps with his feet, etc.; see there.

Explanation

That discourse also uses the image of feet: the Infinite Light drawn down through the Torah comes, by analogy, like one who leaps with his feet.

Paragraph 14 in brief

The father bending down is the meaning of “I taught Ephraim to walk,” and a parallel discourse likewise compares the Infinite Light drawn down through the Torah to leaping feet.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    ואנכי תרגלתי לאפרים · Hosea 11:3
  2. 2
    קול דודי מדלג כו׳ מקפץ · Song of Songs 2:8

15והנה בחי׳ זו היא עליה גדולה יותר משרש הנשמה מצד עצמה עם היות כי חלק הוי׳

Now, this level is a greater ascent than the root of the soul in itself, even though “Havayah’s portion

Explanation

This bond through the Oral Torah raises the soul higher than its own root, even though that root is very high, as the verse says, “Havayah’s portion is His people.”

עמו וכנ״ל וכנודע דבחי׳ אנכי מי שאנכי הוא למעלה מעלה משם הוי׳ כי הוא בחי׳ דלא אתפס בשם ולא אתרמיז בשום אות וקוצא כלל כו׳.

is His people,” as mentioned above. And as is known, the level of Anochi, “who I am,” is far, far above the Name Havayah, for it is the level that “is not grasped by any name and not alluded to by any letter or tittle at all,” etc.

Explanation

The soul’s root is in the Name Havayah, but Anochi, “who I am,” is far above that Name: it is G‑d’s essence, which no name, no letter and not even the tip of a letter can capture.

אמנם אף על גב דואנכי תרגלתי בעסק התשבע״פ [התורה שבעל פה] עוד זאת צ״ל ג״כ קחם על זרועותיו.

However, even though there is “And I taught to walk” in the occupation with the Oral Torah, there must still also be “taking them upon his arms.”

Explanation

Yet the bending down of “I taught to walk,” through the study of the Oral Torah, is not enough by itself; the verse adds “taking them upon his arms.”

כי הנה עד״מ אע״ג [אף על גב] שהאב כופף ראשו וקומתו אצל הילד עכ״ז [עם כל זה] לא סגי בהכי להגביה ולנשאות את הילד מעל הארץ למעלה ראש אצל ראשו של אביו

For, by way of analogy, even though the father bends his head and his stature down to the child, this alone is still not enough to lift and raise the child from the ground up high, beside his father’s head,

Explanation

The parable explains why: a father who bends his head and body toward his child still cannot, by that alone, lift the child off the ground up to his own head.

כמו שהיא כשמגביה קומתו אלא לזה צריך עוד שישפיל האב זרועותיו עד תחתית רגליו ממש ויקחם על זרועותיו ועי״ז יגביהנו וינשאנו למעלה אצלו ממש.

where it is when he raises his stature; rather, for this the father must also lower his arms down to the very bottom of his feet and take them upon his arms, and through this he will lift him and raise him up high, right beside himself.

Explanation

That is where the father’s head is when he stands upright. To lift the child up to himself he must also lower his arms to the ground at his feet, take the child in them, and so raise him.

Paragraph 15 in brief

Binding oneself to G‑d’s will through the Oral Torah reaches Anochi, higher than the soul’s own root in Havayah; yet, as the parable shows, the father’s bending down is not enough, and his “arms” must also reach down and lift the child.

Deeper

The Kehot note refers the phrase “not grasped by any name and not alluded to by any letter or tittle” to the Zohar, Part III, 257b.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    כי חלק הוי׳ עמו · Deuteronomy 32:9
  2. 2
    דלא אתפס בשם ולא אתרמיז בשום אות וקוצא כלל · Zohar III, 257b
  3. 3
    קחם על זרועותיו · Hosea 11:3

16וכך אע״ג [אף על גב] דבתשבע״פ [דבתורה שבעל פה] נמשך ומתלבש ממש רצון העליון שלמעלה מהחכמה. אך אורייתא בלא דחילו ורחימו לא פרחת לעילא.

And so too: even though in the Oral Torah the supernal will, which is above Chochmah (wisdom), is truly drawn down and enclothed, nevertheless, “Torah without awe and love does not fly upward.”

Explanation

Although G‑d’s will, which is higher than wisdom, is truly clothed in the Oral Torah, the Tikkunei Zohar teaches that “Torah without awe and love does not fly upward.” Study alone does not rise; it needs love and awe as its wings.

וגם כי תשבע״פ [תורה שבעל פה] מדבר הכל בענינים גשמיים והוא לברר בירורים דק״נ [דקליפת נוגה] ע״י כשר ופסול כו׳.

And also, the Oral Torah speaks entirely of physical matters, and it serves to refine the refinements (birurim) of kelipas nogah, through “fit” and “unfit,” etc.

Explanation

Moreover, the Oral Torah deals with physical matters: its task is to refine the mixture of good and evil in kelipas nogah by ruling what is fit and what is unfit.

Paragraph 16 in brief

Torah study, though it holds G‑d’s will, needs love and awe in order to rise, and its work of refining the physical world through rulings of fit and unfit points to the role of prayer, which the next paragraphs explain.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    אורייתא בלא דו״ר לא פרחת לעילא · ת״ז ת״י.
  2. 2
    אורייתא בלא דחילו ורחימו לא פרחת לעילא · Tikkunei Zohar 25b:12–14

G‑d’s right and left ¶17–20

17וכדי להיות העלאת הבירורים הוא דייקא ע״י התפלה בדחילו ורחימו. ועמ״ש בפ׳ בהר ע״פ כי תבואו אל הארץ בפי׳ בא לכאן ותלמודו בידו ובפ׳ בחקותי ע״פ ואפו עשר נשים כו׳.

And for there to be an elevation of the refinements, it is specifically through prayer with awe and love. And see what is written in Parshas Behar on the verse “When you come into the land,” on the meaning of “[he who] comes here with his learning in his hand,” and in Parshas Bechukosai on the verse “And ten women shall bake,” etc.

Explanation

What the Oral Torah refines is raised up specifically through prayer with awe and love. The text points to a discourse on “When you come into the land,” explaining the Talmud’s praise of one who “comes here with his learning in his hand,” and to one on “And ten women shall bake your bread in one oven.”

ולכן אהוי״ר [אהבה ויראה] נקרא גדפין. אך יש ב׳ בחינת באהוי״ר [באהבה ויראה] היינו אהוי״ר [אהבה ויראה] שהאדם מעורר בנפשו.

And therefore love and awe are called “wings” (gadfin). But there are two levels of love and awe: that is, the love and awe that a person arouses in his soul,

Explanation

That is why love and awe are called “wings”: they carry Torah and mitzvos upward. Two kinds of love and awe are now distinguished, the first being the love and awe a person arouses in his own soul.

Paragraph 17 in brief

Torah study refines the physical world, but what it refines rises only through the love and awe of prayer, the “wings” of a person’s service; and that love and awe come in two kinds.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    כי תבואו אל הארץ · Leviticus 25:2
  2. 2
    ואפו עשר נשים · Leviticus 26:26

18והם רק הכנה לאהוי״ר [לאהבה ויראה] הנמשכים מלמעלה ועל זה נאמר קחם על זרועותיו. אך הנה ידוע שימין ושמאל של הקב״ה הם הפכיים משל האדם. כי מדות האהוי״ר [האהבה ויראה] של האדם הן בבחי׳ העלאה מלמטה למעלה.

and these are only a preparation for the love and awe that are drawn down from above; and of this it is said, “taking them upon his arms.” But it is known that the right and the left of the Holy One, blessed be He, are the opposite of those of man. For man’s attributes (middos) of love and awe are in the manner of ascent, from below upward;

Explanation

The love and awe a person arouses in himself are only a preparation for the love and awe drawn down from above, and of these the verse says “taking them upon his arms”: G‑d’s own right and left lift the person. G‑d’s right and left work in the opposite direction from man’s, for human love and awe rise from below upward.

אבל מדותיו של הקב״ה הן המשכה וגילוי מלמעלה למטה שיהיה הגילו י למטה כמו למעלה ועמ״ש מזה ע״פ בהעלותך את הנרות בענין שיורד ע״פ מדותיו כו׳.

but the attributes of the Holy One, blessed be He, are a drawing down and revelation from above downward, so that the revelation be below as it is above. And see what is written about this on the verse “When you light the lamps,” regarding the descent by way of His attributes, etc.

Explanation

G‑d’s attributes flow from above downward, drawing revelation down so that it is below as it is above. The text points to its discourse on “When you light the lamps” for how this descent comes by way of His attributes.

Paragraph 18 in brief

Human love and awe rise from below and only prepare for the love and awe drawn down from above, G‑d’s own right and left, which descend to reveal Him below; this is “taking them upon his arms.”

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    קחם על זרועותיו · Hosea 11:3
  2. 2
    בהעלותך את הנרות · Numbers 8:2

19ולכן כדי שיומשכו ימינו ושמאלו של הקב״ה להיות גילוי מדותיו בנפש האדם הוא דייקא ג״כ ע״י השפלת מדותיו של הקב״ה במצות מעשיות שתוכל הנשמה להתקשר במדותיו ממש ע״י קיום המצות שהן מדותיו של הקב״ה.

And therefore, in order that the right and the left of the Holy One, blessed be He, be drawn down, so that there be a revelation of His attributes (middos) in the soul of man, this too is specifically through the lowering of the attributes of the Holy One, blessed be He, into the practical mitzvos, so that the soul can bind itself to His very attributes through fulfilling the mitzvos, which are the attributes of the Holy One, blessed be He.

Explanation

To draw G‑d’s right and left into a person’s soul, G‑d’s attributes had to be lowered into practical mitzvos. By doing the mitzvos, which are G‑d’s attributes in action, the soul binds itself to those very attributes.

Paragraph 19 in brief

G‑d’s attributes are revealed in the soul through the practical mitzvos, which are those attributes clothed in action.

20וכמארז״ל [וכמאמר רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] הדבק במדותיו מה הוא רחום כו׳. ועי״ז יוכלו המדות עליונות להתגלות בנשמה. וזהו ענין מעשה הצדקה שהיא בחי׳ מדותיו של הקב״ה.

As our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Cleave to His attributes: just as He is compassionate,” etc. And through this the supernal attributes (middos) can be revealed in the soul. And this is the matter of the deed of charity (tzedakah), which is the level of the attributes of the Holy One, blessed be He.

Explanation

The Sages teach that a person should cleave to G‑d’s attributes: “just as He is compassionate, so be compassionate.” Acting as G‑d acts lets the supernal attributes be revealed in the soul, and charity is such a deed, for it is G‑d’s own attributes carried out.

ולכן נאמר צדקה תרומם גוי שעי״ז הוא בחי׳ קחם על זרועותיו כו׳. ועמ״ש בד״ה מי כה׳ אלקינו המגביהי לשבת כו׳ ע״ש מענין זה.

And therefore it is said, “Charity exalts a nation”: for through it there is the level of “taking them upon his arms,” etc. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “Who is like Havayah our G‑d, who is enthroned on high,” etc.; see there on this matter.

Explanation

So Proverbs says, “Charity exalts a nation”: through charity G‑d “takes them upon his arms” and lifts them up. The text points to the discourse on “Who is like Havayah our G‑d, who is enthroned on high” on this theme.

ודרך פרט ימינו ושמאלו של הקב״ה הם תורה וצדקה כי התורה היא מימין כמ״ש מימינו אש דת למו.

And in particular, the right and the left of the Holy One, blessed be He, are Torah and charity: for the Torah is from the right, as it is written, “From His right hand, a fiery law for them.”

Explanation

More precisely, G‑d’s right and left are Torah and charity. The Torah is from the right, as Moshe says, “From His right hand, a fiery law for them.”

ושלחן שהוא השפעת המזון שהקב״ה משפיע לעולם הוא בצפון וכן גשמים שהם פרנסה יורדים בגבורה

And the Table, which is the flow of the food that the Holy One, blessed be He, bestows on the world, is in the north; and likewise rains, which are sustenance, come down through Gevurah (restraint),

Explanation

Sustenance, and with it charity, belongs to the left. The Table in the Sanctuary, standing for the food G‑d gives the world, was placed on the north side, and the Talmud says that rains, the source of livelihood, come down with might (gevurah).

כי כדי שיומשך השפעה בפנימית הוא ע״י בחי׳ גבורות (וכמ״ש בביאור ע״פ קול דודי בפי׳ שמאלו תחת לראשי וימינו תחבקני ע״ש).

for in order that the flow of influence be drawn into the inner dimension, it is through the level of gevuros. (As is written in the explanation on the verse “The voice of my beloved,” on the meaning of “His left hand is under my head, and his right hand embraces me”; see there.)

Explanation

For a flow of blessing to be drawn inward, it must come through the gevuros, G‑d’s attributes of restraint and measure. The text cites its explanation of “His left hand is under my head, and his right hand embraces me.”

ואע״ג [ואף על גב] דלעיל נת׳ [נתבאר] דתשבע״פ [דתורה שבעל פה] נק׳ רגלי וכאן אנו אומרים דהיא בחי׳ יד ימין י״ל [יש לומר] דהיינו תשב״כ [תורה שבכתב] וזהו השמים כסאי דקאי על תשב״כ [תורה שבכתב] שהידים הם על הכסא.

And although it was explained above that the Oral Torah is called “My feet,” and here we say that it is the level of the right hand, it can be said that this is the Written Torah. And this is “The heavens are My throne,” which refers to the Written Torah, for the hands are on the throne.

Explanation

Above, the Oral Torah was called G‑d’s “feet,” yet here Torah is His right hand. The answer is that the right hand is the Written Torah, of which Isaiah says “The heavens are My throne,” and the hands rest on the throne.

משא״כ תשבע״פ [תורה שבעל פה] היא בחי׳ והארץ הדום רגלי שנשתלשלו למטה מבחי׳ כסא אלא דנעוץ סופן כו׳ כנ״ל וגם שמים היינו אש ומים וזהו בחי׳ ימינא ושמאלא כו׳:

Whereas the Oral Torah is the level of “and the earth is My footstool,” which descended, step by step, below the level of the throne; except that “their end is wedged,” etc., as mentioned above. And also, shamayim (“heaven”) is esh and mayim (“fire and water”), and this is the level of “right and left,” etc.

Explanation

The Oral Torah is “the earth, My footstool,” below the throne, though “their end is wedged in their beginning,” as explained above. And the Midrash says shamayim, “heaven,” is made of esh and mayim, fire and water: the Written Torah holds both left and right.

Paragraph 20 in brief

Imitating G‑d’s attributes in deeds, above all charity, reveals them in the soul and lifts it up, as “Charity exalts a nation.” G‑d’s right and left are Torah and charity: Torah from the right, sustenance from the left, the side of Gevurah through which blessing is drawn inward; and the paragraph reconciles Torah as G‑d’s “right hand” with the Oral Torah as His “feet.”

Deeper

The Kehot note observes that the Talmud in Shabbos 133b (“be like Him: as He is gracious and compassionate, so be gracious and compassionate”) is not worded with “cleave,” as it is here; it points also to the end of Kesubos (111b), which asks how one can cleave to the Shechinah, and to the end of the first chapter of Sotah, which teaches walking after G‑d’s attributes.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    הדבק במדותיו · Shabbat 133b
  2. 2
    הדבק במדותיו · Sotah 14a
  3. 3
    מה הוא רחום · Jerusalem Talmud Peah 1:1
  4. 4
    צדקה תרומם גוי · Proverbs 14:34
  5. 5
    בד״ה מי כה׳ אלקינו · תו״א לח, ג.
  6. 6
    מי כה׳ אלקינו המגביהי לשבת · Psalms 113:5
  7. 7
    מימינו אש דת למו · Deuteronomy 33:2
  8. 8
    ושלחן . . הוא בצפון · Exodus 26:35
  9. 9
    גשמים . . יורדים בגבורה · Taanit 2a:8
  10. 10
    שמאלו תחת לראשי וימינו תחבקני · Song of Songs 2:6
  11. 11
    השמים כסאי · Isaiah 66:1
  12. 12
    דנעוץ סופן · Sefer Yetzirah 1:7
  13. 13
    שמים אש ומים · Bereshit Rabbah 4:7

Holy to Havayah: Israel as terumah ¶21–22

21ד ונחזור לעניננו דלכך כתיב לכל אשר יקראוהו באמת ואין אמת אלא תורה לכן ארז״ל [אמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם גם מי

4. Now let us return to our subject: that this is why it is written, “to all who call upon Him in truth,” and “there is no truth but Torah.” Therefore our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “The study of Torah is equal to them all.” Even one who

Explanation

The fourth section returns to the main thread: G‑d is near to those who call Him “in truth,” and truth is Torah. That is why the Mishnah teaches that Torah study outweighs all the other mitzvos, and even a man of business must make room for it.

שהוא בעל עסק מ״מ צריך לקבוע עתים לתורה וגם יעסוק במשא ומתן באמונה בלי חמימות הלב אלא בבחינת אחוריים.

is a man of business must nevertheless set times for Torah; and also, he should engage in business dealings faithfully, without warmth of heart, but rather at the level of “the back” (achorayim).

Explanation

A businessman must still set fixed times for Torah. His business he should conduct honestly and without the warmth of his heart, giving it only his “back,” his outer self, and not his inner self.

Paragraph 21 in brief

The fourth section returns to calling upon G‑d “in truth”: because Torah outweighs everything, even a businessman must set fixed times for study and conduct his business honestly, without giving it his heart.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    לכל אשר יקראוהו באמת · Psalms 145:18
  2. 2
    ואין אמת אלא תורה · Jerusalem Talmud Rosh Hashanah 3:9
  3. 3
    לכן ארז״ל · רפ״א דפאה.
  4. 4
    תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם · Mishnah Peah 1:1
  5. 5
    בעל עסק מ״מ צריך לקבוע עתים · הל׳ ת״ת לאה״ז פ״ג, ה״ד.

22וכמ״ש במ״א ע״פ ידך בעורף אויביך אז יכול ג״כ ליכלל מחודו״מ [מחשבה דבור ומעשה] שלו בפנימית רצונו ית׳ ומי שאינו יכול ללמוד אזי בנתינת צדקה עולה ונכלל כל עשייתו כמ״ש צדקה תרומם גוי.

As is explained elsewhere on the verse “Your hand shall be on the nape of your enemies.” Then his thought, speech and action can also be included in the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of His will, may He be blessed. And one who cannot study: through giving charity, all his doing ascends and is included, as it is written, “Charity exalts a nation.”

Explanation

A discourse on “Your hand shall be on the nape of your enemies” explains this way of doing business, with one’s “back.” Then even a businessman’s thought, speech and action are absorbed into G‑d’s innermost will, and one who cannot study raises all his doings through charity, for “charity exalts a nation.”

וכמ״ש סד״ה וארשתיך לי. וזהו בכל נפשך בכל רצונך בתורה ובצדקה. וזהו ימינא ושמאלא ובינייהו כלה.

And as is written at the end of the discourse beginning “And I will betroth you to Me.” And this is “with all your soul”: with all your will, in Torah and in charity. And this is “right and left, and between them the bride.”

Explanation

The end of the discourse on “And I will betroth you to Me” is cited for the same theme. Torah and charity together are the meaning of “with all your soul,” read as “with all your will”: they are G‑d’s right and left, and, in the familiar phrase, “between them the bride.”

פי׳ על ידי תורה וצדקה עולה ונכלל ג״כ מקור כנס״י [כנסת ישראל] בפנימיות רצונו ית׳ וע׳ בזהר תרומה (דקס״ו ע״ב).

That is: through Torah and charity, the source of the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael) also ascends and is included in the inner dimension of His will, may He be blessed. And see in the Zohar, Terumah (166b).

Explanation

Through Torah and charity, the right and the left, the source of the Congregation of Israel, the “bride” between them, is also raised into G‑d’s innermost will. The Zohar on Terumah speaks of the “lamp” of the mitzvah, which receives from between the two arms, right and left.

וזהו פי׳ קדש כו׳ לה׳ מי שהוא בחי׳ ישראל על שם כי שרית עם אלקים שמנצח המלחמה עם נפש הבהמית שנמשכה ע״פ השתלשלות מק״ך צירופי אלקים הוא קדש לה׳ שהוא עולה ונכלל בפנימי׳ [בפנימיות / בפנימית] רצון א״ס ב״ה

And this is the meaning of “Holy,” etc., “to Havayah”: one who is at the level of Israel, so named for “for you have striven (sarisa) with Elokim,” who wins the battle with the animal soul, which was drawn by way of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus) from the 120 combinations of Elokim, he is “holy to Havayah,” for he ascends and is included in the inner dimension of the will of the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He.

Explanation

Now the opening verse is explained: “holy to Havayah” is one who is truly “Israel,” a name given for “you have striven with Elokim and prevailed.” Whoever wins the battle against his animal soul, which descends from the 120 combinations of Elokim, rises into the innermost will of Ein Sof and is “holy to Havayah.”

(ועיין מענין קדש כו׳ בפ״ב [בפרק ב׳] דקדושין דנ״ג סע״א [סוף עמוד א] דפי׳ ראשית תבואתה הוא ענין תרומה וכן תרגם יונתן שם וכ״ה ברבות בא פט״ו [פרק ט״ו / פרשה ט״ו] קרוב לר״פ משפטים פל״א ויקהל פמ״ט. ועיין עוד ברבות וישלח ר״פ פ״א.

(And see on the matter of “Holy,” etc., in the second chapter of Kiddushin (53a, end of side a), that the meaning of “the first of His produce” is the matter of terumah, and so Yonasan translated there; and so it is in the Midrash Rabbah, Bo, section 15; near the beginning of Mishpatim, section 31; Vayakhel, section 49. And see further in the Midrash Rabbah, Vayishlach, beginning of section 81;

Explanation

The long parenthesis gathers sources for “the first of His produce” as terumah, the portion of the harvest set aside and lifted up for the Kohen. The Talmud in Kiddushin cites the verse in discussing betrothal with terumah, Targum Yonasan renders it in terms of terumah, and the Midrash calls the forefathers in Egypt G‑d’s terumah.

בשלח ס״פ כ״ד. בחקותי פל״ו. במדבר פ׳ ב׳. ר״פ ד׳. פ״י [פרק י׳ / פרשה י׳]. ובשה״ש [ובשיר השירים] רבה בפ׳ אל גנת אגוז ועיין בספר הגלגולים פט״ו [פרק ט״ו / פרשה ט״ו] בענין מארז״ל [מאמר רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] שאדה״ר [שאדם הראשון] היה חלתו ותרומתו של עולם כמ״ש ברבות בראשית ר״פ י״ד.

Beshalach, end of section 24; Bechukosai, section 36; Bamidbar, section 2, the beginning of section 4, and section 10; and in Shir HaShirim Rabbah on the passage “To the nut garden.” And see in Sefer HaGilgulim, chapter 15, on the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, that Adam, the first man, was the challah and the terumah of the world, as is written in the Midrash Rabbah, Bereishis, beginning of section 14;

Explanation

Further Midrashim are listed, among them one that reads “In the beginning” as referring to Israel, who are called “first.” Sefer HaGilgulim and the Midrash teach that Adam was “the challah and terumah of the world,” the portion set apart and lifted up from all creation.

משפטים פ״ל. והוא בסגנון אחד עם מה שפירשו ברבות ר״פ במדבר ענין וירם קרן לעמו שהוא מ״ש שאו כו׳ לגולגלתם.

Mishpatim, section 30. And it is in the same vein as what they explained in the Midrash Rabbah at the beginning of Bamidbar on the matter of “And He has raised up a horn for His people”: that it is what is written, “Lift up,” etc., “by their heads.”

Explanation

The Midrash at the beginning of Bamidbar is in the same vein: it links “And He has raised up a horn for His people” with the command to count Israel, “Lift up the head ... by their polls.” Lifting up is the theme of terumah.

ועמ״ש בד״ה כי אתה נרי בענין פי׳ ארוממך ומ״ש במ״א בענין סלסלה ותרוממך ובענין וצדקה תרומם גוי. ומ״ש ע״פ ואתה הרם את מטך כו׳)

And see what is written in the discourse beginning “For You are my lamp,” on the meaning of “I will exalt You”; and what is written elsewhere on “Extol her, and she will exalt you,” and on “And charity exalts a nation”; and what is written on the verse “And you, lift up your staff,” etc.)

Explanation

The parenthesis ends with further passages built on the root of terumah, “raising”: “I will exalt You,” “Extol her and she will exalt you,” “charity exalts a nation” and “lift up your staff.”

(ועיין עוד מענין הפסוק קדש ישראל בפ׳ אמור צ״א א׳ צ״ד א׳ ק׳ סע״ב [סוף עמוד ב] משפטים קכ״ב א׳ ק״א ב׳ ק״ח ב׳ ק״כ ב׳ קכ״א. בא מ״ב א׳ שמיני מ״ב א׳. בשלח נ״ט א׳ גבי נאדר בקדש)

(And see further on the matter of the verse “Israel is holy” in Parshas Emor, 91a, 94a, 100, end of side b; Mishpatim, 122a, 101b, 108b, 120b, 121; Bo, 42a; Shemini, 42a; Beshalach, 59a, regarding “glorious in holiness.”)

Explanation

A second parenthesis lists passages of the Zohar on the verse “Israel is holy.” Among them the Zohar on Mishpatim says that G‑d calls Israel not “like holy” but “holy” itself, and therefore “all who devour him shall incur guilt.”

ראשית תבואת ה׳ הוא ההתחדשות כי ע״י חכמה תתאה מחדש בכל יום תמיד מעשה בראשית מהוה ומחיה מאין ליש מתחלת בריאה עד סוף עשייה

“The first of the produce of the hei” is the renewal: for through the lower Chochmah (Chochmah tata’ah) He renews every day, continually, the work of creation, bringing into being and giving life from nothing to something, from the beginning of Beriah (Creation) to the end of Asiyah (Action).

Explanation

“The first of the produce of the hei” is G‑d’s constant renewal of creation. Through the lower Chochmah, which is Malchus, the final hei, He brings all the worlds into being anew from nothing every day, from the top of Beriah to the end of Asiyah.

אזי להתחדשות זאת ישראל המה בבחי׳ ראשית לו כי כאשר יש להם עליה על ידי התחדשות מוחין בפנימית רצונו ית׳

Then, for this renewal, Israel are at the level of “first” to Him; for when they have an ascent through the renewal of the intellect (mochin) in the inner dimension of His will, may He be blessed,

Explanation

In this daily renewal Israel are “first.” Their minds are renewed each day, and through this they rise into G‑d’s innermost will.

אזי גם מקור כנסת ישראל וכל המלאכים עולים ונכללים בפנימית רצון א״ס ב״ה (ועיין מענין תבואת ה׳ בפ׳ ויחי) (דרכ״ו ב׳) פ׳ האזינו (דף רצ״ז ע״א).

then also the source of the Congregation of Israel, and all the angels, ascend and are included in the inner dimension of the will of Ein Sof, blessed be He. (And see on the matter of “the produce of the hei” in Parshas Vayechi) (226b); Parshas Ha’azinu (folio 297a).

Explanation

When Israel rise, the source of the Congregation of Israel and all the angels rise with them into the innermost will of Ein Sof. The Zohar on Vayechi reads the hei of tevu’asah as an allusion to the Holy Name, and the Zohar on Ha’azinu says that Israel are called Kodesh.

וכד נהיר דא חכמה עילאה חכמה דשלמה נהיר כו׳. ועיין מה שכתוב במ״א ע״פ המאמר פרשה קרח (דף קע״ו ב׳)

“And when this, the supernal Chochmah, shines, the wisdom of Shlomo shines,” etc. And see what is written elsewhere on the statement in Parshas Korach (folio 176b),

Explanation

The Zohar on Ha’azinu continues that the supernal Chochmah is called Kodesh, and when it shines, “the wisdom of Shlomo,” the lower Chochmah, shines too. A further discourse explains a parallel statement in the Zohar on Korach.

ה״נ [הכי נמי] קדש תתאה כו׳ ועיין פרשה פקודי (דף רכ״ה ב׳) מה ההוא קדש כו׳. ובפירוש הרמ״ז [הרב משה זכות] שם.

“So too, the lower Kodesh,” etc.; and see Parshas Pekudei (folio 225b), “What is that Kodesh?” etc.; and in the commentary of the Ramaz (Rabbi Moshe Zacuto) there.

Explanation

The Zohar on Korach calls the lower Kodesh “the wisdom of Shlomo.” The Zohar on Pekudei says that the supernal Kodesh has another Kodesh below it, just as Israel, who are Kodesh, give “another Kodesh,” their ransom, which is counted; the Ramaz’s commentary there is also cited.

ויובן כ״ז [כל זה] על דרך משנ״ת [מה שנתבאר] בפ׳ ויחי בד״ה אסרי לג פן בפי׳ מה שאנו אומרים בשבת וינוחו בו ישראל מקדשי שמך דהיינו שממשיכים מבחי׳ אתה קדוש לבחי׳ שמך קדוש כו׳ ע״ש.

And all this will be understood in the manner of what was explained in Parshas Vayechi, in the discourse beginning “Binding to the vine,” on the meaning of what we say on Shabbos, “and may Israel, who sanctify Your Name, rest on it”: that is, that they draw down from the level of “You are holy” to the level of “Your Name is holy,” etc.; see there.

Explanation

All this matches the Shabbos prayer, “may Israel, who sanctify Your Name, rest on it”: Israel draw holiness down from “You are holy,” G‑d Himself, to “Your Name is holy,” His revealed Name, as the discourse on “Binding to the vine” explains.

Paragraph 22 in brief

Through Torah and charity, G‑d’s right and left, a person, and with him the source of the Congregation of Israel, rises into G‑d’s innermost will. This is “Israel is holy to Havayah”: the one who overcomes his animal soul is raised up like terumah; and “the first of His produce” means that in G‑d’s daily renewal of creation Israel’s ascent comes first and raises the angels and the worlds with it.

Deeper

The Zohar on Ha’azinu (297a) says that the supernal Chochmah is called Kodesh, and that when it shines, “the wisdom of Shlomo,” the moon in its fullness, shines too; the Zohar on Korach (176b) calls this lower Kodesh “the wisdom of Shlomo.” This matches the maamar’s linking of Israel, “Kodesh,” with the lower Chochmah, the source of the daily renewal.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    ידך בעורף אויביך · Genesis 49:8
  2. 2
    צדקה תרומם גוי · Proverbs 14:34
  3. 3
    סד״ה וארשתיך לי · לעיל פ׳ במדבר ט, א.
  4. 4
    וארשתיך לי · Hosea 2:21
  5. 5
    בכל נפשך · Deuteronomy 6:5
  6. 6
    ישראל . . כי שרית עם אלקים · Genesis 32:29
  7. 7
    ראשית תבואתה · Vayikra Rabbah 36:4
  8. 8
    תבואת ה׳ · Zohar, Vayechi 33:347–34:356
  9. 9
    משפטים פל״א ויקהל פמ״ט . . וישלח ר״פ פ״א . . בשלח ס״פ כ״ד · הלשונות נעתקו באוה״ת פ׳ פנחס ע׳ א׳כא. ובנ״ך-א עה״פ ע׳ שכב ואילך.
  10. 10
    ועיין בספר הגלגולים פט״ו · נתבאר באוה״ת בראשית כרך-ז דף תתשעד, א.
  11. 11
    שאדה״ר היה חלתו ותרומתו של עולם · Bereshit Rabbah 14:1
  12. 12
    וירם קרן לעמו · Psalms 148:14
  13. 13
    שאו כו׳ לגולגלתם · Numbers 1:2
  14. 14
    כי אתה נרי · II Samuel 22:29
  15. 15
    סלסלה ותרוממך · Proverbs 4:8
  16. 16
    ואתה הרם את מטך · Exodus 14:16
  17. 17
    Kiddushin 53a:15
  18. 18
    קדש ישראל · Shemot Rabbah 15:5
  19. 19
    קדש ישראל · Bereshit Rabbah 81:1
  20. 20
    קדש ישראל · Zohar, Emor 24:104–111
  21. 21
    קדש ישראל · Zohar, Emor 38:202–40:226
  22. 22
    קדש ישראל · Zohar, Mishpatim 20:511–21:519
  23. 23
    קדש ישראל · Zohar, Mishpatim 3:264–275
  24. 24
    קדש ישראל · Zohar, Mishpatim 18:485–19:494
  25. 25
    קדש ישראל · Zohar, Mishpatim 20:500–502
  26. 26
    נאדר בקדש · Exodus 15:11
  27. 27
    נאדר בקדש · Zohar, Beshalach 23:316–326
  28. 28
    וכד נהיר דא חכמה עילאה חכמה דשלמה נהיר · Zohar, Ha'Azinu 6:202–9:211
  29. 29
    קדש תתאה · Zohar, Korach 1:5–4:15
  30. 30
    מה ההוא קדש · Zohar, Pekudei 14:88–96
  31. 31
    Zohar, Terumah 74:734–76:742
  32. 32
    Numbers 2

All who devour him: guilt and the added fifth ¶23–28

23ועמ״ש מזה הענין דישראל מקדשי שמך בביאור ע״פ צאינה וראינה. וזהו המכוון גם כאן בפי׳ ראשית תבואתה.

And see what is written on this matter, that Israel “sanctify Your Name,” in the explanation on the verse “Go forth and see.” And this is what is intended here too, in the meaning of “the first of His produce.”

Explanation

The discourse on “Go forth and see, daughters of Zion” explains how Israel “sanctify Your Name,” and that is the meaning intended here in “the first of His produce”: Israel draw G‑d’s holiness down into the world.

ועמ״ש עוד מענין זה דהנשמות שרשן מבחי׳ קדש וענין הירידה בגוף שהיא צורך עלייה בביאור ע״פ

And see what is written further on this matter, that the souls are rooted in the level of Kodesh (“holy”), and on the matter of the descent into the body, which is for the sake of ascent, in the explanation on the verse

Explanation

Other discourses explain that the souls are rooted in Kodesh, “holiness,” and that their descent into the body is for the sake of a greater ascent.

כי כארץ תוציא צמחה וע״פ בשלח פרעה דלשם נת׳ [נתבאר] מענין הזריעה והצמיחה מבחי׳ ראשית תבואתה יעו״ש [יעויין שם] אבל להפך ח״ו [חס ושלום] כל אוכליו יאשמו.

“For as the earth brings forth its growth,” and on the verse “And it came to pass, when Pharaoh sent out”; for there it is explained, regarding the sowing and the growth, from the level of “the first of His produce”; see there. But the opposite, G‑d forbid: “all who devour him shall incur guilt.”

Explanation

They are the discourses on “For as the earth brings forth its growth” and on “When Pharaoh sent out,” which speak of sowing and growth from the level of “the first of His produce.” But the verse also warns of the opposite: “all who devour him shall incur guilt.”

פי׳ שאוכל בחי׳ ישראל שלו דהיינו כח הארת נשמתו המחודש בו בכל יום הוא דוחה אותה ח״ו [חס ושלום] עד שאינה יכולה להאיר בקרבו דהיינו מחמת כעס.

That is: one who devours his own level of Israel, that is, the power of the radiance of his soul that is renewed in him every day, pushes it away, G‑d forbid, until it cannot shine within him; that is, because of anger.

Explanation

The second half of the verse is now read within a person: whoever “devours” the Israel within himself, the light of his soul renewed each day, pushes it away until it cannot shine in him. The first cause named is anger.

כמאמר רז״ל [רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] כל הכועס נשמתו מסתלקת ממנו (וע׳ בפ׳ תצוה) (דף קפ״ב א׳) שזהו ענין טורף נפשו באפו ובפ׳ משפטים (קכ״א ב׳)

As our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Whoever becomes angry, his soul departs from him.” (And see in Parshas Tetzaveh) (folio 182a), that this is the matter of “he tears his soul in his anger”; and in Parshas Mishpatim (121b),

Explanation

The saying “whoever becomes angry, his soul departs from him” is joined to the Zohar on Tetzaveh, which applies Job’s “he tears his soul in his anger” to one who in anger uproots his holy soul and lets a “strange god” dwell in its place.

גבי ואנשי קדש תהיון לי ובשר בשדה טרפה לא תאכלו או מחמת תאוות כמ״ש לא יגורך רע או מחמת גסות.

regarding “And you shall be holy men to Me, and flesh torn in the field you shall not eat.” Or because of lusts, as it is written, “Evil shall not dwell with You”; or because of arrogance.

Explanation

The Zohar on Mishpatim reads “You shall be holy men to Me, and flesh torn in the field you shall not eat” together with “Israel is holy to Havayah.” Other causes are lust, of which the psalm says “Evil shall not dwell with You,” and arrogance.

בהכל יכול לאכול בחינת ישראל שלו כמ״ש נבלע ישראל פי׳ שנבלע בחי׳ ישראל שלו בשבע מדות רעות שהם מכחות מצרים וכנען.

Through all of these he can devour his own level of Israel, as it is written, “Israel is swallowed up”: that is, his level of Israel is swallowed up in the seven evil attributes (middos), which are from the powers of Egypt and Canaan.

Explanation

Through any of these a person can “devour” his inner Israel. Hosea’s “Israel is swallowed up” is read as the Israel within him being swallowed by the seven bad traits, which come from the powers of Egypt and Canaan.

לזאת כתיב כל אוכליו יאשמו יביא אשם כמועל בקדשים שהיה מביא איל ומקריב השמנונית הוא החלב וגם הדם הוא החמימות ע״ג [על גבי] המזבח

Therefore it is written, “all who devour him shall incur guilt (ye’shamu)”: he shall bring a guilt-offering (asham), like one who has misappropriated sacred property, who would bring a ram and offer the fat, which is the cheilev, and also the blood, which is the warmth, upon the altar;

Explanation

So ye’shamu, “shall incur guilt,” is read as “he shall bring an asham,” a guilt-offering, like one who misused sacred property and brought a ram. Its fat, the cheilev, and its blood, which stands for warmth, were offered on the altar.

אזי גם הוא מחוייב לעשות כן ולא סיגופים בלבד אלא מרירות להתמרמר לבו בקרבו כדי שיהיה לב נשבר ונדכה אלהים לא תבזה.

then he too is obligated to do likewise; and not mortifications alone, but bitterness, that his heart be embittered within him, so that there be “a broken and crushed heart,” [which] “O G‑d, You will not despise.”

Explanation

The person must do the same with himself: not only fasts and self-affliction, but a bitter heart, so as to have “a broken and crushed heart,” which G‑d does not despise.

כמ״ש שמנת עבית כשית פי׳ בשמנונית ובגשמיות שלך כסית אור נשמתך עד שאינה יכולה להאיר ולשלוט בך אך מלת כשית כתיב בשי״ן ג׳ קוין שיש עוד זכות ג׳ אבות.

As it is written, “You grew fat, you grew thick, you became covered (kasisa)”: that is, with your fatness and your physicality you have covered the light of your soul, until it cannot shine and rule in you. But the word kasisa is written with a shin of three strokes: there is still the merit of the three Patriarchs.

Explanation

Moshe’s “You grew fat, you grew thick, you became covered (kasisa)” is read: with your fat and physicality you have covered the light of your soul. Yet kasisa is written with a shin, whose three strokes recall the merit of the three Patriarchs, which still remains.

Paragraph 23 in brief

Israel’s souls are rooted in Kodesh and descend into the body for a greater ascent; but one who lets anger, lust or arrogance “devour” the Israel within him must bring a “guilt-offering” of himself, a broken and bitter heart, while the merit of the Patriarchs remains.

Deeper

The Zohar on Tetzaveh (182a–b) teaches that a person’s character is known by his anger: if he guards his holy soul then, he is a complete servant of his Master; if he uproots it in anger, a “strange god” dwells in its place, and one should keep away from him.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    צאינה וראינה · Song of Songs 3:11
  2. 2
    כי כארץ תוציא צמחה · Isaiah 61:11
  3. 3
    בשלח פרעה · Exodus 13:17
  4. 4
    כל אוכליו יאשמו · Jeremiah 2:3
  5. 5
    טורף נפשו באפו · Zohar, Tetzaveh 5:48–6:55
  6. 6
    טורף נפשו באפו · Job 18:4
  7. 7
    ואנשי קדש תהיון לי ובשר בשדה טרפה לא תאכלו · Exodus 22:30
  8. 8
    ואנשי קדש תהיון לי ובשר בשדה טרפה לא תאכלו · Zohar, Mishpatim 20:502–511
  9. 9
    לא יגורך רע · Psalms 5:5
  10. 10
    נבלע ישראל · Hosea 8:8
  11. 11
    לב נשבר ונדכה אלהים לא תבזה · Psalms 51:19
  12. 12
    שמנת עבית כשית · Deuteronomy 32:15

24וע׳ ברבות בחקתי ס״פ ל״ו א״ר [אמר רבי] אחא ועמ״ש ע״פ שניך כעדר הרחלים. ועפ״ז [ועל פי זה] י״ל [יש לומר] עוד בענין יאשמו

And see the Midrash Rabbah, Bechukosai, end of section 36: “Rabbi Acha said.” And see what is written on the verse “Your teeth are like a flock of ewes.” And according to this, it can be said further regarding ye’shamu (“shall incur guilt”),

Explanation

The Midrash at the end of section 36 on Bechukosai, where Rabbi Acha says that the merit of the Patriarchs endures forever, is cited, with the discourse on “Your teeth are like a flock of ewes.” A further meaning of ye’shamu, “shall incur guilt,” now follows.

כי הנה במועל בקדשים כתיב ואת אשר חטא מן הקדש ישלם ואת חמישיתו יוסף עליו.

for regarding one who misappropriates sacred property it is written, “And for that which he sinned against the sacred he shall pay, and he shall add its fifth to it.”

Explanation

The Torah requires one who misused sacred property to repay what he took “and add its fifth to it.” The maamar will find a meaning in this added fifth.

Paragraph 24 in brief

The merit of the Patriarchs never ends, and the law of one who misuses sacred property, who must repay and add a fifth, opens a further meaning of “shall incur guilt.”

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    א״ר אחא · Vayikra Rabbah 36:6
  2. 2
    שניך כעדר הרחלים · Song of Songs 6:6
  3. 3
    ואת אשר חטא מן הקדש ישלם ואת חמישיתו יוסף עליו · Leviticus 5:16

25והחומש הוא אחד מארבעה מן הקרן עד שיהיה הוא וחומשו חמשה כמ״ש בגמ׳ [בגמרא] בב״מ [בבבא מציעא] פרק הזהב ובהרמב״ם [ובהרבי משה בן מימון] הלכות מעילה.

And the fifth is a quarter of the principal, so that it and its fifth make five, as is said in the Gemara in Bava Metzia, chapter HaZahav, and in the Rambam, Hilchos Me’ilah.

Explanation

The Talmud in Bava Metzia, chapter HaZahav, explains that the added “fifth” is a quarter of the principal, so that the principal and the fifth together make five parts; the text adds the Rambam’s laws of me’ilah, misuse of sacred property.

והענין כמבואר במ״א ע״פ ומספר את רובע ישראל שבבחינת ישראל יש ד׳ בחי׳ היינו כמ״ש ולכבודי בראתיו יצרתיו אף עשיתיו שהן ג׳ בחי׳ מחשבה דבור ומעשה

And the matter is as is explained elsewhere on the verse “Or number the fourth part (rova) of Israel”: that in the level of Israel there are four levels, as it is written, “For My glory I created him, I formed him, also I made him,” which are three levels: thought, speech and action;

Explanation

A discourse on “Or number the fourth part of Israel” explains that Israel have four levels. Isaiah’s “For My glory I created him, I formed him, also I made him” names three of them: thought, speech and action.

ואף דעשיתיו מרבה בחי׳ רביעית והוא בחי׳ רצון עליון שלמעלה מעלה מבחי׳ מחודומ״ע [מחשבה דבור ומעשה] והוא הנמשך ומתגלה בנפש ע״י מעשה המצות.

and the af (“also”) of “also I made him” includes a fourth level, which is the level of the supernal will, which is far, far above the level of thought, speech and action; and it is what is drawn down and revealed in the soul through the performance of the mitzvos.

Explanation

The word af, “also,” adds a fourth: the supernal will, far above thought, speech and action. It is drawn into the soul and revealed there through doing the mitzvos.

Paragraph 25 in brief

The added fifth makes five parts out of four. The four are the levels of Israel: thought, speech and action, and the supernal will revealed through the mitzvos; this sets up the fifth level, which the next paragraph explains.

Deeper

The Kehot note corrects the reference to the Rambam: it should read Hilchos Arachin, chapter 8, halachah 5, rather than Hilchos Me’ilah.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    Bava Metzia 54a:3
  2. 2
    ומספר את רובע ישראל · Numbers 23:10
  3. 3
    ולכבודי בראתיו יצרתיו אף עשיתיו · Isaiah 43:7

26וד׳ בחי׳ אלו הם ממש בחי׳ ד׳ אותיות שם הוי׳ וזהו קדש ישראל להוי׳. וכשמעל בקדשים ואכל בחי׳ ישראל שלו צ״ל תשובה תשוב ה׳

And these four levels are truly the level of the four letters of the Name Havayah; and this is “Israel is holy to Havayah.” And when he has misappropriated sacred property and devoured his level of Israel, there must be teshuvah (return): tashuv Hei, “the hei shall return,”

Explanation

The four levels of a Jew correspond to the four letters of the Name Havayah: this is “Israel is holy to Havayah.” One who has misused the sacred and “devoured” his inner Israel needs teshuvah, which the Zohar reads as tashuv hei, “the hei shall return”: the letter that sin drove away from the rest of the Name is restored to it.

והוא בחי׳ עומקא דליבא ממעמקים קראתיך שהיא בחי׳ חמישית שלמעלה מד׳ מדרגות הנ״ל שהן בחי׳ מעלת ומדרגת הצדיקים.

and it is the level of “the depth of the heart” (umka deliba), “From the depths I have called You,” which is a fifth level, above the four ranks mentioned above, which are the level of the stature and rank of the tzaddikim.

Explanation

This teshuvah comes from “the depth of the heart,” as in “From the depths I have called You, Havayah.” That depth is a fifth level, higher than the four levels that make up the stature of the righteous, and it is the added “fifth” of the guilt-offering.

Paragraph 26 in brief

The four levels of Israel are the four letters of Havayah, the level of the righteous; teshuvah from the depth of the heart reaches a fifth level above them, which is the meaning of the added fifth.

Deeper

The Zohar (Raaya Mehemna, Nasso, 122a) says that a sinner distances the hei from the vav of the Name, and whoever returns in teshuvah restores the hei to the vav and completes the Name: this is teshuvah, tashuv hei.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    קדש ישראל להוי׳ · Jeremiah 2:3
  2. 2
    תשובה תשוב ה׳ · Zohar, Nasso 3:17–4:24
  3. 3
    ממעמקים קראתיך · Psalms 130:1

27והיינו כמ״ש במ״א שהרצון עליון יש לו ב׳ בחינות הא׳ המלובש בחכמה שבחי׳ רצון זה נמשך ע״י תורה ומצות שהן הן רצה״ע [רצון העליון] ב״ה המלובש בחכמה דאורייתא מחכמה נפקת

That is, as is explained elsewhere, the supernal will has two levels. The first is [the will] enclothed in Chochmah (wisdom): this level of will is drawn down through Torah and mitzvos, which are the very supernal will, blessed be He, enclothed in Chochmah, for “the Torah comes forth from Chochmah.”

Explanation

Another discourse explains that G‑d’s will has two levels. The first is clothed in Chochmah and is drawn down through Torah and mitzvos, which are G‑d’s will clothed in wisdom, for “the Torah comes forth from Chochmah.”

וזהו ענין היו״ד דשם הוי׳ שהוא בחי׳ חכמה שבו מלובש הרצון עליון שהוא קוצו של יו״ד.

And this is the matter of the yud of the Name Havayah, which is the level of Chochmah, in which the supernal will is enclothed, which is the tip (kotz) of the yud.

Explanation

This first level is the yud of the Name Havayah, which stands for Chochmah; the will clothed in it is the kotz, the tip on top of the yud.

אך הבחי׳ הב׳ הוא בחי׳ רצון העליון שלמעלה מעלה מסדר ההשתלשלות ואינו מלובש כלל בבחי׳ חכמה ונק׳ רעוא דכל רעוין

But the second level is the level of the supernal will that is far, far above the order of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus), and is not enclothed in the level of Chochmah at all; and it is called “the Will of all wills” (ra’ava dechol ra’avin),

Explanation

The second level is the supernal will far above the whole chain of worlds, not clothed in Chochmah at all, which the Zohar calls “the Will of all wills.”

והוא המתגלה בבעלי תשובה ע״י עומקא דליבא למעלה מכדי שתוכל נפשו שאת כו׳ וע״ז נאמר לפני הוי׳ תטהרו.

and it is what is revealed in those who return in teshuvah (baalei teshuvah), through the depth of the heart, beyond what his soul is able to bear, etc.; and of this it is said, “Before Havayah you shall be purified.”

Explanation

This higher will is revealed in those who return in teshuvah, through a depth of the heart greater than the soul can bear. The verse said of Yom Kippur, “Before Havayah you shall be purified,” is read as pointing to this level, beyond the Name Havayah and its letters.

Paragraph 27 in brief

G‑d’s will clothed in Chochmah, the yud of Havayah, is reached through Torah and mitzvos; the higher “Will of all wills,” above all the worlds, is revealed through teshuvah from the depth of the heart.

Deeper

The Zohar on Mishpatim (121a) says that the Torah comes forth from Chochmah, from the place called Kodesh, while Chochmah itself comes from the place called “Holy of Holies.” The Idra Rabba (129a) speaks of the “Will of wills” revealed in the forehead of the supernal Head at the time of favor, the Minchah prayer of Shabbos.

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    ונק׳ רעוא דכל רעוין · Zohar III, 129a
  2. 2
    בשי״ן — וע׳ · ראה לעיל בהוספות יח, ב השמטה.
  3. 3
    ואת אשר חטא מן הקדש · Leviticus 5:16
  4. 4
    בב״מ פרק הזהב · נד, א.
  5. 5
    ובהרמב״ם הל׳ מעילה · צ״ל פ״ח מהל׳ ערכין ה״ה.
  6. 6
    כמבואר במ״א ע״פ ומספר את רובע · לעיל פ׳ בלק סט, ג ואילך. וראה לקו״ש-ד ע׳ 1075.
  7. 7
    ולכבודי בראתיו · Isaiah 43:7
  8. 8
    ואכל בחי׳ ישראל שלו · ראה אוה״ת פנחס ע׳ א׳ריב. ד״ה קדש ישראל תשמ״ז.
  9. 9
    תשובה תשוב ה׳ · Zohar III, 122a
  10. 10
    ממעמקים קראתיך · Psalms 130:1
  11. 11
    דאורייתא מחכ׳ נפקת · Zohar II, 121a
  12. 12
    לפני הוי׳ תטהרו · Leviticus 16:30

28והוא ענין יוהכ״פ [יום הכפורים] שנאמר בו וכפר על הקדש והיינו ע״י שנכנס הכה״ג [הכהן גדול] לפני ולפנים לבית קדש הקדשים שהוא מה שלמעלה מבחי׳ קדש שמשם נמשך להיות וכפר על הקדש כו׳ וכמ״ש במ״א.

And this is the matter of Yom Kippur, of which it is said, “And he shall atone for the Holy (Kodesh)”; that is, through the Kohen Gadol entering the innermost sanctum, into the Holy of Holies, which is what is above the level of Kodesh, from where it is drawn so that “he shall atone for the Holy,” etc., as is explained elsewhere.

Explanation

This is Yom Kippur, of which the Torah says, “And he shall atone for the Holy (Kodesh).” The Kohen Gadol enters the Holy of Holies, the level above Kodesh, and from there atonement is drawn even for Kodesh, Israel’s own holiness.

ולכן יוהכ״פ [יום הכפורים] הוא יום שנתחייב בה׳ תפלות. (וע׳ בע״ח [בעץ חיים] של״א פ״ז [פרק ז׳] ע״פ וארבע הידות יהיה לכם והחמישית לפרעה ועמ״ש מזה בביאור ע״פ צאינה וראינה בסופו וע׳ זח״א [זהר חלק א] ויגש דר״י ע״א ע״פ והקול נשמע בית פרעה):

And therefore Yom Kippur is a day on which one is obligated in five prayers. (And see Etz Chaim, Sha’ar 31, chapter 7, on the verse “And four parts shall be yours,” and “the fifth to Pharaoh”; and see what is written about this in the explanation on the verse “Go forth and see,” at its end; and see the Zohar, Part I, Vayigash, 210a, on the verse “And the voice was heard in Pharaoh’s house.”)

Explanation

That is why Yom Kippur has five prayers: the fifth matches the fifth level, beyond the four. The parenthesis points to the Arizal’s Etz Chaim on “four parts shall be yours, and the fifth to Pharaoh,” and to the Zohar on “And the voice was heard in Pharaoh’s house,” where Pharaoh’s house is read as the house from which all lights are uncovered.

Paragraph 28 in brief

Yom Kippur, when the Kohen Gadol enters the Holy of Holies, draws atonement from above Kodesh, and its five prayers express the fifth level, above the four, that teshuvah reaches.

Deeper

The Zohar on Vayigash (210a) reads beis Par’oh, “Pharaoh’s house,” as the house from which all the lights are uncovered (isparu) and revealed; the text cites it beside “the fifth to Pharaoh.”

Marei mekomos

  1. 1
    וכפר על הקדש · שם טז, טז.
  2. 2
    וכפר על הקדש · Leviticus 16:16
  3. 3
    יום שנתחייב בה׳ תפלות · ראה לקו״ש-ד ע׳ 1154.
  4. 4
    וארבע הידות יהיה לכם · Genesis 47:24
  5. 5
    והחמישית לפרעה · וע׳ לקמן בשה״ש ד״ה שחורה אני פ״ב ונתתם חמישית ושם מד״ה להבין ענין הטעם למה שהאתעדל״ע. וש״נ. [כ].
  6. 6
    צאינה וראינה · Song of Songs 3:11
  7. 7
    והקול נשמע בית פרעה · Genesis 45:16
  8. 8
    והקול נשמע בית פרעה · Zohar, Vayigash 10:99–11:108

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In one’s avodah

Do not eat before praying; begin the day with tallis, tefillin and the morning blessings, contemplating that every power of the body is the power of Havayah, and in prayer set aside your own will until Havayah is truly “our G‑d.” Even when busy with business, set fixed times for Torah, conduct business honestly and without giving it your heart, and give charity. Guard against anger, lust and arrogance, which “devour” the Israel within; and if you have fallen, bring the inner offering of a broken heart and return from the depth of the heart.

Questions for discussion

  1. Why does the maamar read the hei of tevu’asah as a word in its own right, and how does that make Israel “first”?
  2. According to the image of the soul “in the nostrils,” why may one eat before Torah study but not before prayer?
  3. In the parable of the father and the child, what is the difference between bending the head and lowering the arms, and what does each stand for in a person’s service?
  4. How does reading “the first of His produce” as terumah connect being “holy to Havayah” with raising the rest of creation?
  5. Why is teshuvah from the depth of the heart a “fifth” level above the four levels of the righteous, and how does Yom Kippur express it?

Key terms in this maamar

Chochmah (wisdom)חכמה
The first flash of insight. ×17
Malchus (sovereignty)מלכות
Kingship: the level through which G‑d's word creates and rules the worlds. ×3
The World of Atzilus (Emanation)אצילות
The highest world, still one with G‑d. ×3
The World of Asiyah (Action)עשיה
The lowest world, including our physical one. ×5
Life-forceחיות
The divine vitality that sustains every creation. ×8
The Name Elokimאלקים
G‑d as concealed within nature, measuring and limiting. ×13
The World of Beriah (Creation)בריאה
The first world of separate existence. ×3
The World of Yetzirah (Formation)יצירה
The world of the angels and emotions.
Binah (understanding)בינה
Developing and grasping an insight in detail.
The Holy One, blessed be Heקב״ה
The Name Havayahהוי׳
The Tetragrammaton: G‑d as transcending time and bringing all into being.
The inner dimension (pnimiyus)פנימיות
The innermost core of a level. ×1
The higher unity (yichuda ila'ah)יחודא עילאה
The world is nothing next to G‑d. ×1
The lower unity (yichuda tata'ah)יחודא תתאה
G‑d is present within the world's existence. ×1
Teshuvah (return)תשובה
Returning to G‑d; not only repentance. ×5
The G‑dly soulנפש האלקית
The soul that is 'a part of G‑d above'.
Willרצון
Desire; in G‑d, the level above intellect. ×18
The emotive attributes (middos)מדות
Love, awe, compassion and the rest. ×4
Self-sacrifice (mesirus nefesh)מסירות נפש
Giving oneself over entirely to G‑d.
The Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof)אור אין סוף
G‑d's light as it is, beyond all limits, before any contraction.
The outer dimension (chitzoniyus)חיצוניות
The external, expressive aspect. ×1
A dwelling place among the lower realmsדירה בתחתונים
The purpose of creation: that G‑d be at home in this world. ×1
Love and aweאהבה ויראה
The two 'wings' of divine service.
Gevurah (restraint)גבורה
Measure, limitation and judgment. ×1
The animal soulנפש הבהמית
The soul that animates the body and its drives. ×1
The chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus)השתלשלות
The step-by-step descent of divine light from the highest level down to this world. ×2
The Infinite One (Ein Sof)אין סוף
G‑d's own boundless essence.
The intellect (mochin)מוחין
Chochmah, Binah and Daas as a whole. ×1
Netzach (victory)נצח
Perseverance, the drive to overcome. ×1
Hod (splendor)הוד
Acknowledgment and yielding. ×1

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Contents

Likkutei Torahלקוטי תורה

Parshas Pinchasפנחס

  1. 1צו את בני ישראל ואמרת אליהם…“Command the children of Israel and say to them: My offering, My bread for My fires”
  2. 2ביאור ע״פ את קרבני לחמיAn explanation on the verse “My offering, My bread”
  3. 3צו את בני ישראל ואמרת אליהם…“Command the children of Israel and say to them”
  4. 4קדש ישראל לה׳ ראשית תבואתהIsrael Is Holy to Havayah, the First of His Produce
    1. The produce of the hei ¶1–5
    2. The soul before and after prayer ¶6–9
    3. G‑d’s will lowered into the Oral Torah ¶10–16
    4. G‑d’s right and left ¶17–20
    5. Holy to Havayah: Israel as terumah ¶21–22
    6. All who devour him: guilt and the added fifth ¶23–28
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    28. 28