ביאור הדברים הנ״ל ע״פ ולא תשבית מלח וגו׳

1An explanation of the matters mentioned above, on the verse “And you shall not omit the salt,” etc.

2Now, in Sefer shel Beinonim [Tanya], chapter 3, it is explained concerning the soul that it is composed of ten levels corresponding to the supernal Ten Sefiros, etc.; and likewise in chapter 12 there is an explanation of the essence and very being of the G‑dly soul, which are its ten levels, etc.

But in truth something is missing there, and it was not explained how even Chochmah (wisdom), which is the first of the ten levels mentioned above, is only the level of a vessel, nothing more, for the very being and essence of the soul.

Just as the physical brain is only a vessel for the power of intellect and wisdom that extends from the soul, so too, in the same way, the power of intellect in the soul is only a vessel for the essence and very being of the soul. (And see what is written in the discourse beginning “Pasach Eliyahu” [“Eliyahu opened”].)

But [it is] not that the intellect is of the essence and very being of the soul. For a person’s intellect is not the same at all times: at times his mind is clear and at times it is not, to the point that at times he will speak nonsense; if so, there are many changes in the intellect.

Therefore it is impossible to say that the intellect is the actual very being of the soul, and that the very being of the soul is only its ten levels, which are intellect and emotive attributes (middos), or even to say that it is a single entity and that [entity] is intellect; rather, the intellect is only a vessel, nothing more.

And even the level of will that is in the soul, above intellect, like the matter of “Be silent; so it arose [in thought],” etc., is also called the karkafta, or the gulgalta (skull) that covers the brain, which is also the level of a vessel.

(Therefore we see that the intellect keeps on growing: an infant’s intellect is very small, and as he grows little by little, so the growth of his intellect and his emotive attributes increases; and as for elderly Torah scholars, the more they age, the more settled their mind becomes, etc.

Yet the soul was in him from his infancy as well; if so, why was his intellect small then? Rather, the point is that the soul itself is above intellect, and intellect is a power that extends from it. And for this drawing-forth and extension to be drawn into revelation, [this happens] when there is a vessel to contain [it],

namely, the vessel of the brain, which is a vessel for the light of intellect. Then the vessel draws into itself the revelation of the light and power of intellect; and in a small child, because of the smallness of his brain, the intellect shines in a very small measure, etc. But the soul itself is enclothed in him from his infancy and from the very beginning of his coming into being.)

Now, the essence and very being of the soul is “a part of G‑d,” which is not within the bounds of ten levels, which have a specific definition; rather, [it is] a simple light, etc.

And so wrote the Gaon, the Maharal of Prague, may the memory of the righteous be a blessing, in his introduction to the book Gevuros Hashem, folio 3, column c; and these are his words: “Perhaps they will say: if His essence is not intellect — and body, G‑d forbid to say [it] of Him — then what is He, may He be blessed?

We shall answer them: can [one] come to know the true nature of the soul that is in a person’s body? All the more so, all the more so the Creator of all, about whom one may not ask this question, ‘for man shall not see Me and live.’” End of his words.

Thus he has explained that the soul itself is above the essence of intellect. Now, likewise, from this one will understand the analogue above (as the Gaon mentioned above wrote), concerning the supernal Ten Sefiros in relation to the Emanator, the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He.

Or [put otherwise]: as it is above, so it is below in the soul (as it is written, “Let us make man in Our image,” etc., which refers to the soul; and see the Shelah, folio 9 and folio 10). [That is,] even the level of supernal Chochmah of Atzilus is only the level of a vessel, nothing more, for the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He,

but it is not the very being of the Emanator, blessed be He; for He is simple with the utmost simplicity, whereas the level of Chochmah is some specific essence and definition.

3And “You are wise”: this is a lowering and humility, that He lowers Himself, as it were, to be enclothed in Chochmah; and then “He and His life-forces and His vessels are one,” and [it is] not like the enclothing of the soul in intellect.

Nevertheless, it is only a vessel, etc. And as is written in Sefer shel Beinonim, that what the Rambam wrote, “He is the Knowledge and He is the Knower,” etc., and the sages of the Kabbalah agreed with him,

this applies specifically to the enclothing of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, through many contractions (tzimtzumim), in the vessels of Chochmah, Binah and Daas of Atzilus, but not above Atzilus, etc.

For in the introduction to the book Gevuros Hashem, there, [the Maharal] completely disputed what the Rambam wrote, that He is the Knowledge, etc.; and these are his words:

“But He, may He be blessed, whom our Sages, of blessed memory, called by the name ‘the Holy One, blessed be He,’ and who is not called ‘the Intellect, blessed be He’: [this is] because the truth of His essence is not known, only that He is separate from all matter and body and from all existing things.

And of this it is said, ‘the Holy One, blessed be He,’ for ‘holy’ is said of one who is separate; for He, may He be blessed, is simple with the utmost simplicity,” etc. See there, where he elaborates in completely disputing the words of the Rambam mentioned above.

However, according to the Kabbalah of the Arizal, of blessed memory, it emerges that the words of both are true. For of the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, Himself, it does not apply at all to describe [Him by] the level of Chochmah, since before Him Chochmah is considered like actual action (asiyah); and [this accords with] the words of the Gaon, the Maharal, that this is why He is called “the Holy One, blessed be He,” as mentioned above.

4Nevertheless, in the enclothing of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) through many contractions (tzimtzumim) in the vessels of Chochmah, Binah and Daas of Atzilus, since “He and His life-forces and His vessels are one” in them, this is what the Rambam wrote, that “He is the Knowledge and He is the Knower,” etc.; and as the saying of the Tikkunim, “You are wise, but not with a known wisdom,” etc.

If so, from all this one understands what was said, that Chochmah is only a vessel for the Infinite Light, blessed be He.

(Now, although in the Tanya it is explained that the soul is drawn from the level of Chochmah, which is “the Knowledge,” etc., as a son is drawn from his father’s brain, and Chochmah is the level of a vessel, as mentioned above, it can be said that although Chochmah is the level of a vessel, nevertheless, at any rate, the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, Himself, who is above Chochmah, rests in it, as is written in Sefer shel Beinonim, chapter 35, in the gloss.

Therefore in the soul too, which is drawn from the vessel of supernal Chochmah, there is also enclothed a radiance from the level of the light that is enclothed in the vessel of supernal Chochmah, for “He and His life-forces are one.” And as is written in Iggeres HaKodesh, a physical analogy for this: “As in the drop [of seed], there is drawn into it also [something] of the essence and very being of the soul that is enclothed in the brain (mochin), and therefore it begets [offspring] truly resembling it.” End of quote.

And this is what was mentioned above, that the very being and essence of the soul is above intellect, etc., and the intellect is only the level of a vessel, nothing more, for the soul itself.

However, in truth, the level of Yechidah is drawn from actually above Chochmah. And see the Zohar, Part III, Naso, folio 141b, on the verse “And He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life”; and see Sha’arei Kedushah by Rabbi Chaim Vital, Part III, Gate 2, that the root of the Yechidah is from Adam Kadmon,

which is far, far above Chochmah. And see what is written on the verse “These are the journeys,” concerning “their goings-forth according to their journeys”; and see what is written elsewhere on the verse “But Havayah your G‑d would not listen to Bilam,” concerning the hidden love, which is from the level of the tip (kotz) of the yud, which is above Chochmah, etc.)

52. Now, therefore, the level and rank of self-sacrifice (mesirus nefesh), which is the matter of the nullification (bittul) of one’s very existence to the Infinite One, blessed be He, comes specifically from the very being of the soul, which is above intellect, and which is nullified to the very being of the Infinite One, blessed be He, who is also far, far above Chochmah, like the nullification of a candle in a torch.

But the level of the intellect in the soul alone does not suffice, since it is only a vessel; and even the source of Chochmah is only a vessel for G‑dliness. And this is “with all your soul” in the literal sense, and not only the level of [its] garments: thought, speech and action.

(This resolves why no reason is found in the Torah for self-sacrifice, only for love, as it is written, “To love Havayah your G‑d,” etc., “for He is your life.” Rather, it is because self-sacrifice comes from the level that is above intellect; if so, how could one speak of a reason and rationale for it?)

According to this, one will also understand the matter of “and the study of Torah is equal to them all,” and also what is written, “And you shall speak of them,” immediately after “with all your might.”

For “your might” is a great love (ahavah rabbah) without limit, to be included and nullified in the Infinite One, blessed be He; so how will the thirst of this great love be quenched through “And you shall speak of them,” etc.? [The same question applies] also to the interpretation of “with all your soul” as actual self-sacrifice.

And it is known that there is also another interpretation: that “with all your soul” means the three garments of the soul, thought, speech and action, to bind them with the thought, speech and action of the Holy One, blessed be He, through occupying oneself with Torah and mitzvos.

If so, how are these two interpretations of the words “with all your soul” related to each other? The explanation is that the Torah is His wisdom, may He be blessed, in Atzilus, in which the very Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, is enclothed.

(Therefore the Torah is called “the parable of the Ancient One”: it is the level of supernal Chochmah, which is a vessel for the Infinite Light, blessed be He, who is “the Ancient One of the world,” as is written about this in the discourse for Purim.)

And Chochmah of Atzilus was enclothed in Chochmah of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, in order to be enclothed in the laws set out before us, which speak of physical matters of Asiyah: the corner of the field, the heave-offerings and the tithes, etc., the carrying out [from domain to domain] on Shabbos, etc.

And when a person studies Torah and understands and grasps some law properly, his wisdom is bound up with His wisdom, may He be blessed, that is in this law, “and they become one, from every side and angle,” as is written in Sefer shel Beinonim, Part I, chapter 5.

6Now, it was explained above that although the soul itself is above intellect, nevertheless, at any rate, the intellect is a vessel for the very being of the soul.

So too above: although the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, is above the definition and level of Chochmah, even the level of supernal Chochmah of Atzilus, nevertheless it is enclothed in supernal Chochmah,

for Chochmah is specifically a vessel for the Infinite Light, blessed be He, as the reason is given in Sefer shel Beinonim, chapter 35, in the gloss.

Since this is so, through the binding and union of the wisdom and intellect of the soul with the wisdom that is in the Torah, which is His wisdom, may He be blessed, through this there comes about of itself the inclusion and union, too, of the very being of the soul, which is above intellect, in the very Infinite Light, blessed be He, which is far, far above the level of supernal Chochmah; since the Infinite Light, blessed be He, is enclothed in supernal Chochmah, which is this law.

7The human soul too, which is above his intellect, is enclothed in the power of intellect, for the soul is called “the intellectual soul.”

If so, in the binding and union of a person’s intellect with the wisdom of the Torah, there also comes about a union higher than this, namely the inclusion of the very being of the soul in the very being of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He.

8And all this comes about specifically through the binding of the intellect with the wisdom of the Torah. This is what is stated, that the Torah is the supernal chamber of the Holy One, blessed be He.

And although a person does not feel this inclusion at all while he is occupied with Torah, and his main occupation and preoccupation is with the wisdom, to grasp it;

and not only that, but it is possible that some measure of self-importance (yeshus) will mix in along the way, if he has understood well, etc.;

nevertheless, since his main intention is for its own sake, and “his desire is” specifically “in the Torah of Havayah,” therefore the very being of his soul is included in the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He; and even though he does not see, his mazal sees. (And see what is written about all this in the discourse beginning “And G‑d spoke,” for the festival of Shavuos; see there.)

With this one will understand how the two interpretations of “with all your soul” are bound up with each other, and also that “And you shall speak of them” belongs immediately after “and with all your might.”

For self-sacrifice (mesirus nefesh) is to be nullified and included in the Infinite One, blessed be He; and in his occupation with Torah, too, his soul is included in the Infinite One, blessed be He, etc.

Therefore “And you shall speak of them” is what quenches the thirst of the great love (ahavah rabbah) of “with all your might,” to be nullified and included in the Infinite One, blessed be He. (And see what is written on the matter of occupation with Torah in the discourse beginning “For on this day He shall atone,” in the explanation of “And these words shall be,” etc., “and you shall speak of them”; see there.)

93. And this is the reason for the immense diligence in Torah study of the sages of the Mishnah and the Gemara, for whom this was their service all their days: “his mouth did not cease from study,” and “he would review his learning every thirty days”; and also Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, as is mentioned in [tractate] Shabbos, the chapter Bameh Madlikin.

10And in the Zohar too the “masters of the Mishnah” are mentioned, and the masters of the Kabbalah were few. And what is [their] study? The Order of Zeraim, on what grows from the earth, and the Order of Taharos, the primary sources of impurity, etc.

All of these speak of physical matters; but [they were studied] because His wisdom, may He be blessed, was enclothed in them, through being enclothed in the Chochmah of Beriah, etc., as mentioned above;

and within it rests the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He. And this is the main purpose: to draw down the revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, that is above Atzilus.

11The angels, too, asked for the Torah for this reason, yet it was not given to them, but specifically to Israel, to draw down the revelation of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin) specifically into this world.

Therefore the Torah was enclothed specifically in physical matters, so that afterwards, at the Resurrection of the Dead, which is the purpose of creation, this revelation will come to souls in bodies specifically.

12And this is through the nullification (bittul) of the soul and its inclusion in the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, now, through occupation with Torah, as mentioned above:

not to be in the state of a “something” (yesh) by itself, but to be nullified to the Infinite Light and to His will and wisdom, which is occupation with Torah. And as it is written, “And you shall not profane (techalelu)”: not to make a void (chalal) and a concealment of the Infinite Light, blessed be He.

For He, may He be blessed, does not rest upon one who is a “something” and an entity, for “I and he cannot dwell in the world [together]”; if so, he causes [a state of] void, in that the Infinite Light, blessed be He, withdraws from him, etc.

13Now, it is known that for the worlds to come into being, a void (chalal) and an empty space were made, and afterwards a kav (line of light) was drawn into the place of the void. The void is the concealment of the light, and the kav is the level of revelation.

But since the revelation is small, only, by way of analogy, in the form of a line and a thread alone, therefore, through the many stages of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus), concealment and hiding come about below; and also because the radiance of the kav ends at Malchus of Atzilus, except that afterwards it is drawn on and breaks through the partition (parsa).

In the Time to Come, however, there will be a revelation of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) that is above the tzimtzum and the void. The revelation will no longer be in the form of a kav; rather, the very essence of the Infinite Light will be revealed, and there will no longer be any void or interruption at all.

14And the revelation will be specifically below; whereas now the kav ends in Atzilus, etc. The one depends on the other: when the revelation is only in the form of a kav, therefore it keeps diminishing, like the analogy of a rope that is thick at its top and keeps tapering, etc., until it ends in Atzilus;

whereas when the revelation is of the very essence of the light, not in the form of a kav, above and below are equal.

(As is written in the discourse beginning “Remember the Shabbos day,” regarding the explanation of “We have hoped (kivinu),” etc., and “in the Time to Come,” etc.; see there.) And this revelation in the Time to Come comes through occupation with Torah now in a state of self-nullification (bittul); for in the wisdom of the Torah the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) rests and is enclothed, except that it is in the form of a kav.

And through the nullification of a person’s soul, in that the very being of the soul is included, in a state of nullification, in the kav of the Infinite Light that is in the Torah, he causes and draws down the revelation of the very essence of the light that is above the kav and the void, etc.

(For the nullification of the “something” (yesh) brings about a great arousal above. Therefore this nullification of the soul, and of its Chochmah, Binah and Daas and its garments of thought and speech, in occupation with Torah in the manner of “And you shall not profane,” causes additional light to be drawn into the Torah.

And this is the meaning of “one who occupies himself with Torah for its own sake (lishmah)”: that is, for the sake of the Torah itself. For now only a kav of the Infinite Light is enclothed in it, and through a person’s occupation with Torah for its own sake he causes the revelation of the Infinite Light that is above the kav, etc. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “And Korach took.”)

Nevertheless, our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Whoever says, ‘I have nothing but Torah,’ does not have even Torah.” For in order for the inclusion of the soul in the Infinite Light, blessed be He, to come about through occupation with Torah, “the matter depends on the desire of the heart”: that he truly desire this nullification.

15And this is through preceding [Torah study] with the Shema and prayer, and as the Arizal, of blessed memory, wrote: to give over one’s soul (mesirus nefesh) in [the word] “One.”

For seemingly, self-sacrifice is when one says “and with all your soul.” But the matter of self-sacrifice in “One” is the nullification of the very being of the G‑dly soul, which is above intellect, etc.; and the matter of self-sacrifice of “and with all your soul” is that the animal soul, too, should agree to this, in the manner of subjugation and transformation (iskafya and is’hapcha),

and this is through contemplation, etc. Therefore, afterwards, when he occupies himself with Torah and his intellect is bound with His wisdom, may He be blessed, that is in the Torah, there also comes about a union and inclusion of the very being of the soul in the very Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, that is enclothed in supernal Chochmah.

16And as it is written, “If he sets his heart toward Him,” etc.

And although in the words of our Sages, of blessed memory, the wording mentioned is, “Whoever says, ‘I have nothing but Torah,’ does not have even Torah; rather, Torah and acts of kindness,” certainly acts of kindness are [meant] in their actual, literal sense, for “the purpose of wisdom is teshuvah and good deeds,” and “one who learns and does not do, it would be better for him had his afterbirth been turned over on his face.”

However, in truth, concentration in prayer (iyun tefillah) is also included in acts of kindness, as is stated in the Gemara and as Rashi explains, in [tractate] Shabbos, folio 127. (And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And all your children shall be taught of Havayah,” concerning “your children” [and] “your builders.”)

174. Now, from all this it will be understood that this virtue and rank in occupation with Torah, that the intellect of a person who occupies himself with Torah is bound and united with His wisdom, may He be blessed,

and through this the very being of the soul is included in the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, that is enclothed in His wisdom, may He be blessed, is specifically in occupation with [the parts of] the Torah that are revealed to us, which are the six orders of the Mishnah, which speak of what is fit and unfit, impure and pure, liable and exempt, etc.

For they have been enclothed in Asiyah; that is to say, His wisdom, may He be blessed, of Atzilus, within which is the Infinite Light, blessed be He, journeyed and descended until it was enclothed in physical things, in the matters of this world,

so that the intellect of a person who learns the law will grasp and take hold of the essence and very being of the wisdom in the law, since it speaks of physical matters, whose essence is grasped.

18Therefore there comes about a true binding and union of a person’s intellect with the wisdom in the law.

And since it is actually His wisdom, may He be blessed, which is united with its Emanator, the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, only that it has been enclothed in garments, etc., therefore through this there also comes about the higher union: the very being of his soul is included in the very essence of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), which is enclothed in supernal Chochmah, which is enclothed in this law.

But in the study of the wisdom of the Kabbalah, since His wisdom, may He be blessed, in these matters is enclothed in spiritual matters, such as the arrangement (tikkun) of the partzufim of Atzilus, or, in Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, the creation of seraphim and chayos, etc., souls and angels, the upper Gan Eden and the lower Gan Eden, etc.,

a person who learns this, that is, the knowledge of the order of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus) in Etz Chaim, his intellect cannot reach the essence of this wisdom; for the human intellect grasps the essence only in Asiyah, and not the essence of the spiritual, how and what it is, but only its existence.

Therefore, when His wisdom, may He be blessed, is enclothed in Asiyah, he grasps their actual essence: as with the four domains for Shabbos, he grasps well the essence of the private domain and the essence of the public domain.

Whereas when the wisdom speaks of spiritual matters, whose essence is not grasped at all, that is, in the study of the Kabbalah, his intellect does not take hold of, grasp and bind itself so much with the essence of His wisdom, may He be blessed, but only with its existence and not with its essence.

And this is not a union and binding like [that] in the revealed [Torah], where a person’s intellect takes hold of and grasps the essence of His wisdom, may He be blessed, and not its existence alone.

19Therefore, specifically through this there also comes about the inclusion of the very being of his soul in the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) that is enclothed in His wisdom, may He be blessed, whose actual essence he has grasped, within which is the Infinite One, blessed be He.

This is not so in learning the knowledge of the order of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus), where he has grasped only the existence of His wisdom, may He be blessed, and not the actual essence.

20And this is what is written in Pri Etz Chaim, that Kabbalah is in Atzilus, Talmud is in Beriah, Mishnah in Yetzirah, and Scripture is in Asiyah. Seemingly this is puzzling: for Mishnah and Talmud are the Oral Torah, [and] certainly they were all drawn from the Chochmah of Atzilus; all the more so Scripture, the Written Torah.

Rather, it means [that it speaks of] the level of the enclothing: in Scripture supernal Chochmah has been enclothed even in Asiyah, for the main strictness is about the form of the letters, and that the parchment be according to law, etc., and about the crowns (tagin), in which the secrets of the Torah are alluded to, which could not be enclothed in speech but only through action (asiyah), as [in] “for the wise, a hint,” etc.

And Mishnah and Talmud were enclothed in Yetzirah and Beriah, which are the level of the letters of speech and the wisdom in them.

Whereas Kabbalah is in Atzilus, that is, the essence of this wisdom is not grasped below, since it has not been enclothed in Beriah and Yetzirah as Mishnah and Talmud have.

Therefore only its existence is grasped, and not its essence; whereas in Mishnah and Talmud the essence of His wisdom, may He be blessed, that is in them is grasped.

21And this is the matter of “Mishnah in Yetzirah,” etc.: that through this their essence is grasped. But according to this, one must understand the substance of the study of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the Torah,

for in the Zohar, the Tikkunim and Etz Chaim they elaborated on the obligation of this study, as is also written in the book Reishis Chochmah, in the introduction; and the Shelah, in his Tractate Shavuos, in the chapter Ner Mitzvah, greatly extolled the virtue of this study.

22This matter will be understood by first prefacing the matter of “a third in Scripture.”

For the study of Scripture is not in the manner of the study of Mishnah and Talmud, where the main thing is to grasp the wisdom in them, so that through this a person’s intellect will be bound with this wisdom in the Torah, etc., except that one must also bring out the words in actual speech of the mouth;

but nevertheless, if he says the law and does not understand [it], it is not considered learning for him at all, as is written in the Magen Avraham, section 50.

Whereas in occupation with Scripture and the Written Torah, if he utters [it] with his lips, even though he does not understand even the meaning of the words because he is unlearned, he thereby fulfills the mitzvah of “and you shall learn them.” That is why every unlearned person recites the blessing over the Torah in the morning before the verses, and likewise when he is called up to the Torah scroll.

And so it is written in the Pardes, Gate 27, chapter 1, concerning the study of Scripture: that even one who does not understand how to join the words, he too, if he occupies himself with it day and night, “his reward is with him and his recompense before him,” etc.;

and on the contrary, he wrote: “And one who learns the Torah [only] to know [it], as one who learns from a book of chronicles, etc., if only he would not lose,” etc.; see there.

23The explanation is this. What comes from the Written Torah into revelation in the Oral Torah, namely, the knowledge of how and what to do [in] the tzitzis and the tefillin, etc., for example,

this is the enclothing of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) in the level of Chochmah: supernal Chochmah was enclothed in the lower Chochmah, until it was enclothed in the Chochmah of Beriah [and] Yetzirah, and from there it was enclothed in the laws of the Oral Torah, until the wisdom was enclothed so as to be grasped and held by human intellect.

However, there are things in the Torah that were not given to be enclothed below in wisdom and intellect at all, such as “And Yosef was brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar bought him.”

(And see the Rambam’s Commentary on the Mishnah, the chapter Chelek; these are his words: “And there is no difference between ‘And the sons of Cham: Cush and Mitzrayim,’ ‘And the name of his wife was Mehetavel,’ ‘And Timna was a concubine,’ and ‘I am Havayah your G‑d’ and ‘Hear, O Israel’; for all is from the mouth of the Almighty.”)

For the level of the drawing-down from the Infinite Light that is alluded to in these letters and this narrative cannot be enclothed in wisdom and intellect at all.

Therefore the drawing-down is only through the letters and the verses alone, for “their end is wedged in their beginning,” etc. Therefore even what was not enclothed in Chochmah, that is, what is from the level of Keser (the Crown), which is above Chochmah

(for “the Torah comes forth from Chochmah”: “comes forth,” specifically, that its revelation is from the level of Chochmah, but its root in essence is above Chochmah, as is written above in the discourse beginning “And He called to Moshe”;

and therefore what of it was enclothed in the level of Chochmah is only a radiance, through “hairs” and contractions, for “Abba draws from the mazal,” etc.; but the essence of the light in Keser cannot be enclothed in Chochmah),

nevertheless, it too is drawn down through the letters of the Written Torah. Therefore it is called Mikra (Scripture), for one calls (korei) and draws down the revelation of the Infinite Light through the letters, even though he does not grasp [it] at all. And see what is written on the matter of the letters of the Torah, how their root is above Chochmah, in the discourse beginning “The Chanukah lamp,” etc., “so that the mezuzah be on the right,” etc.; see there;

and at the end of the discourse beginning “Go out and see,” regarding “with the crown with which [his mother] crowned [him],” that the crown, which is made of precious stones, is the level of the letters of the Torah.

(As our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “The whole Torah is names of the Holy One, blessed be He.” And in this way one will understand the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, “The conversation of the servants of the Patriarchs is more beautiful than the Torah of the children,” etc.; for they are drawings-down from the source of the Torah as it is still above the level of Chochmah.

Therefore the Torah elaborated greatly in the account of the episode of Eliezer, the servant of Avraham, etc., more than on many essential laws of the Torah, [which are] “the Torah of the children,” etc.

In the same way is the matter of the narrative “And Yosef was brought down to Egypt,” etc., as mentioned above. And this drawing-down is specifically through the letters; therefore even an unlearned person who does not understand the meaning of the words draws [it] down. Whereas in the Oral Torah, which has been enclothed in Chochmah, therefore when he does not understand he does not draw down.

But in the Written Torah he draws down even though he does not understand, and it does not depend so much on understanding the meaning, because the source of this drawing-down is from above Chochmah, etc., and this is through the letters. Therefore the Written Torah is called Mikra, for one calls and draws down through the letters. And see what is written on the matter of Mikra at the end of the discourse beginning “The matter of the recital of the Shema.”)

Now, included in the study of Scripture is also the study of the Aggados, for most of the Aggados are on the verses, with a little ethical instruction; and they too are not grasped, and they are counted as included in Scripture.

And included in Scripture is also the study of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the Torah, for the Midrash of the Zohar is on the verses of the Torah.

24Moreover, even in the study of the secrets of the Torah one grasps only the existence of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus), and not the essence.

If so, it is not like Mishnah and Talmud, where one grasps the essence of His wisdom, may He be blessed; whereas in the study of the chain of descent one does not grasp at all the essence of this wisdom, what the level of the ofanim, chayos and seraphim is, and all the more so [what is] higher, etc., but only the knowledge of [their] existence.

25Nevertheless, it is a very great thing, since in this a grasp of the essence is impossible.

This is like Scripture: although comprehension [of it] on the level of Chochmah is impossible, since its root is above Chochmah, therefore even his saying the letters is a great and mighty thing, although letters are only the last level and are called the level of the inanimate relative to intellect, etc. So too the knowledge of the existence of the inner dimension, even though he does not grasp the essence at all, is a great thing, wondrously so.

26And see the Zohar, Part III, Parshas Acharei, folio 73a: “Three levels are bound to one another.” And see what is written about this in the discourse beginning “For the thing is very near to you.”

Now, since the Torah is the intermediary that binds and joins the souls of Israel to the Holy One, blessed be He, and the intermediary has two aspects, hidden and revealed (stim and galya), then the inner aspect, which is called hidden, is what binds and joins the inner aspect of the soul to the inner aspect of His G‑dliness, may He be blessed.

27And see the Zohar, Part III, Beha’alosecha, [folio] 152a. And see what is written on the verse “The kindnesses of Havayah, for we have not ceased,” concerning there being two levels of Chesed (kindness).

In this way one will understand somewhat the matter of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin) and the light that fills all worlds (memalei kol almin), hidden and revealed, etc. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “Return, O Israel,” on the matter of what is written, “If Elokim will be with me,” etc., “then Havayah will be Elokim to me.”

And see what is written on the matter of hidden and revealed at the end of the discourse beginning “To understand the matter of the double bread (lechem mishneh)”; and see what is written about this in the explanation on the verse “For the fragrance of your oils.”

(One may further say, concerning the virtue of occupation with the inner dimension (pnimiyus), according to what is written in Iggeres HaKodesh, in the discourse beginning “To understand what is written in Pri Etz Chaim,” that the study of the inner dimension, the intentions of the mitzvos, “is no less than the study of their laws, and on the contrary, etc., even though one does not grasp the essence.” End of quote.

That is to say: since the essence of the mitzvah is grasped, therefore the knowledge of the secrets of the mitzvah, even though one does not grasp the essence, is no less, etc. And although he wrote there that it is not so with the order of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus): even if one has grasped [its] existence, it is not in itself superior, like the study of the mitzvos, in which one grasps and takes hold of the essence, etc.,

he concludes afterwards: “but the knowledge of the existence of the chain of descent is also a lofty and exalted mitzvah; on the contrary, it surpasses them all, as it is written, ‘And you shall know this day,’ [and] ‘Know the G‑d of your father,’ etc., and it brings to ‘a whole heart,’ etc., which is the main thing.”

That is to say, as it is written, “And Havayah commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear Havayah our G‑d”: thus the purpose of Torah and mitzvos is to come to a whole heart, which is “to fear Havayah.”

Therefore our Sages, of blessed memory, said that the Torah is called “a gate to the courtyard” in relation to awe, etc., that is, in relation to the higher awe, as is written in Sefer shel Beinonim, at the end of chapter 23. And the grasp of [its] existence serves to strip away physicality; except that this is one mitzvah of the 613, and a person must fulfill all 613, etc.

Therefore one must devote much study to all 613 and to fulfilling them in actual deed, in thought, speech and action, etc. If so, in knowing the chain of descent, even though one does not grasp the essence at all, one fulfills the mitzvah of “And you shall know,” etc., and it is no less than the study of the laws.)

285. According to this, [the difficulty] will be resolved with which the great commentators struggled in explaining this saying: “A person should always divide his years into three: a third in Scripture, a third in Mishnah, a third in Talmud.” For the Ran, at the end of the first chapter of Avodah Zarah, wrote: “And it does not mean precisely that he should divide his days equally,” etc.

And the Rambam, in chapter 1 of the Laws of Torah Study, holds that “divide into three” means into actually equal thirds; but he intended to resolve the Ran’s difficulty in what he wrote, that this is at the beginning of a person’s learning, “but when he grows great in wisdom,” etc., “he should read the Written Torah at set times,” etc.

29According to this, the wording “always divide into three,” etc., is somewhat strained, and so is what was asked in the Gemara, “Does one know how long he will live?”, from which it is implied that all the years of his life he should divide into three, etc.

And Rabbeinu Yerucham wrote in the name of the Ramah that this was said only for the early generations, etc., as is written in the Beis Yosef. However, according to what has been written [here], it is well resolved: at the beginning of a person’s learning he should devote the third to Scripture itself, alone;

for although Talmud requires more time, nevertheless he should hasten to learn Scripture first. And after he has grown in wisdom, he should fulfill the third in Scripture with the Written Torah together with what he will learn afterwards of the inner dimension of the Torah and the Aggados, for all of this is included in the third in Scripture, as mentioned above.

(And it is possible that the study of Midrash Rabbah and the other Midrashim is also included in the third in Scripture; for in the first chapter of Berachos, folio 11b, it is explicitly implied in the Gemara and in Rashi’s commentary that Midrash is close to Scripture, etc., since they are interpretations of verses.

And so it is implied in Nedarim, folio 36, at the end of side b. And although in the Laws of Torah Study it is explained that Midrash of the Torah, which is the Sifra and the Sifrei and the like, is included in the third in Mishnah, that is because they are laws and fundamentals of the Torah, like the Mishnah; whereas the study of the Rabbos, which are Aggados on Scripture and moral instruction of G‑d, it is possible that this is included in the third in Scripture.

Therefore “a person should always divide into three,” etc., is well understood. Now, as for the matter of “a person should always divide into three,” why they divided this into thirds, it may be explained according to what is written, “For My glory I created him, I formed him, also I made him,” and “there is no glory but Torah.”

Now, Talmud is in Beriah and Mishnah in Yetzirah; and it is written, “Who forms light and creates darkness.” Therefore our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “‘He has set me in dark places’: this is the Babylonian Talmud.” And Scripture is in Asiyah.

Now, [in] “also I made him,” [the word] “also” (af) is a term of inclusion, which includes a fourth level, as is written in the discourse beginning “Who has counted the dust of Yaakov,” etc.; see there. Therefore within the third in Scripture is included the fourth level, which is the study of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the Torah.

And this is what our Sages, of blessed memory, said, and the Rambam brought it in his Commentary on the Mishnah, at the end of chapter 5 of Avos, on the verse “Also (af) my wisdom stood by me”: “The wisdom that I learned in af [anger] stood by me,” etc.)

Now, from all this one will understand, with additional explanation, the matter of “And you shall not omit the salt,” etc.: that the study of the inner dimension is called by the name “salt,” for salt sweetens the meat, even though it has no taste in itself as the meat does.

And so the revealed [part] of the Torah is likened to bread, as it is written, “Come, eat of my bread,”

30and also to meat, as is written elsewhere on the verse “This time, bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh,” which refers to the Oral Torah. And so too in the Gemara, Bava Basra, folio 22, they said, “Eat fat meat at Rava’s house.”

That is: just as bread and meat have taste and substance, so in the study of the revealed [part] of the Torah there is an actual grasp of the essence;

whereas in the study of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) there is in this only knowledge of the existence, and not a grasp of the essence. The essence is hidden and concealed and is not grasped at all, so as to be in the manner of actual taste like the revealed [part], until the Time to Come, when the inner dimension of the Torah will be revealed.

31Therefore it is likened to salt, to say that although it has no taste, nevertheless it is precisely what gives taste to the meat.

And this is what our Sages, of blessed memory, said in Avos deRabbi Nasan, at the end of chapter 29 (and so it is also in the Rabbos): “Whoever has Midrash in hand but does not have laws in hand has not tasted the taste of wisdom; whoever has laws in hand but does not have Midrash in hand has not tasted the taste of fear of sin.”

The meaning is that the laws are called “the taste of wisdom” because in them and through them the essence of His wisdom, may He be blessed, that has been enclothed in this law is grasped;

whereas in the study of the inner dimension (pnimiyus), which is called Midrash, the actual essence is not grasped. Therefore [of such a one] it is said that he “has not tasted the taste of wisdom,” meaning the actual essence.

32And nevertheless, one who has laws but does not have Midrash “has not tasted the taste of fear of sin.”

For although in the study of Midrash only a radiance is grasped, nevertheless this radiance brings one to fear of sin. And see what is written on the meaning of fear of sin at the end of the discourse beginning “And Moshe spoke to the heads of the tribes.”

33Moreover, although this is only a radiance, it is a radiance from the level of the inner dimension (pnimiyus), for the Torah is hidden and revealed.

Now our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “A sage is greater than a prophet,” although the prophet grasps the actual essence, in the manner of sight, whereas the sage does not grasp the essence, but only knowledge of the existence,

34as is written in Iggeres HaKodesh, in the discourse beginning “Wrapped in light as a garment.” Nevertheless, a sage is greater than a prophet, because he grasps “the hidden things of wisdom,” which were not given to be revealed in prophecy.

If so, even a radiance from a higher level has a greater virtue than the essence that is in a lower level. Something similar is explained concerning the prohibitions and the positive commandments, at the end of the discourse beginning “A person is obligated to become intoxicated on Purim”:

35“And great is the power of revelation,” etc.; see there.

And [it is] like the matter of blessing and acknowledgment (hoda’ah): although in acknowledgment there is no grasp of the essence, nevertheless [it is higher]; that is, because it is on the level of which [it is said], “no thought can grasp Him,” as is written elsewhere, in the explanation on the verse “You have set all the borders of the earth,” and in the discourse beginning “These are the accounts of the Mishkan.”

Also along the lines of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “[If] his father’s lost object and his teacher’s lost object [are before him], his teacher’s takes precedence”; although from the father the actual essence is drawn into him, since the drop is from the brain, from the actual very being, while from the teacher there is not drawn into him the actual essence and very being, but only a radiance of the intellect enclothed in speech, etc.

Nevertheless, this radiance, which is the Torah, is higher than the very being of the wisdom in the soul, as is written in Tanya, Part I, chapter 5.

36And in Tractate Soferim, chapter 15, halachah 8, cited in the book Erchei HaKinuyim, it is explained that Scripture is likened to salt. This too is well understood according to what was explained above.

Therefore the salt is also called “the covenant of your G‑d.” The meaning is along the lines of what is written, “that you may enter into the covenant of Havayah your G‑d,” which is the level of a bond and of a great and wondrous love above intellect, like the making of a covenant.

And see what is written about this in the discourse beginning “You are standing” and in the discourse beginning “Gathering wood.” And the drawing of this great love into the soul comes through occupation with Torah, as is written above, that through occupation with Torah [the soul] is bound with the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin).

According to this one may interpret the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, in chapter 2 of Chagigah, folio 12b, on the verse “Who pluck saltwort (maluach) by the bushes (alei siach)” (in Job, chapter 30): “those who interrupt words of Torah and engage in words of idle talk (sichah).”

Thus words of Torah are called “salty” (maluach). And see what Rashi wrote on this in the first chapter of Avodah Zarah, folio 3b; and according to what has been written [here], it can be explained according to its plain sense.

And this is also the matter of the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, in chapter 2 of Shabbos, folio 31, at the end of side a: “Did you set times for Torah?” etc. “Did you engage in the dialectics of wisdom?” etc. “And even so, if ‘the fear of Havayah is his treasure,’ yes; if not, no.

It is like a man who said to his agent, ‘Bring up for me a kor of wheat to the upper storey.’ He went and brought it up for him. He said to him, ‘Did you mix in for me a kav of chumtin?’ He said to him, ‘No.’ He said to him, ‘It would have been better had you not brought it up.’”

37The explanation is that “wheat” (chitah) is the twenty-two letters of the Torah. Therefore the Giving of the Torah was on Shavuos, “the first fruits of the wheat harvest,” as is written elsewhere at length in the discourse beginning “And you shall count for yourselves,” etc.; see there.

And “a kav of chumtin” Rashi explains as salty earth; this is the matter of “And you shall not omit the salt,” etc. And this is why it mentions “Did you mix in for me a kav of chumtin”: for the word “for me” is superfluous.

Rather, it means that through “the fear of Havayah [being] his treasure,” the Torah and the wheat are then “for Me,” and it is called “the Torah of Havayah,” as it is written, “And you shall be Mine,” etc., “For the children of Israel are Mine,” etc.; whereas Torah without awe, etc.

386. Now, “And every offering of your meal-offering you shall season with salt” refers to the meal-offering; and afterwards, “On all your offerings you shall offer salt,” that is, with all the offerings altogether.

For the meal-offering, which is fine flour and oil, is the matter of occupation with Torah, “wheat,” the twenty-two letters of the Torah, and it needs salt, as mentioned above.

And this is “Bread with salt you shall eat”: “bread” is the study of the revealed [parts], Mishnah and Talmud; “with salt you shall eat” is Scripture and Aggados, etc., as mentioned above.

And afterwards it says, “and water by measure you shall drink”; for salt causes thirst, that is, to be [in the state of] “My soul thirsts for You,” which is the intensity of love in the manner of “my soul pines.”

39And the remedy for this is the level of water, which quenches the thirst; this is the matter of “If your heart runs, return backward” [in his holy handwriting: “to the One”].

And the offerings, which are the meat of the burnt-offering, are the matter of the refinement and elevation of the animal soul, as is written in the discourse beginning “Command the children of Israel and say to them: My offering, My bread,” on the matter of the bones, sinews and flesh of the burnt-offering: that the flesh has its root in the blood that is in the heart, and this is the matter of the emotive attributes (middos) of the animal soul,

and one must transform them from one extreme to the other, etc. Therefore for this salt is needed specifically, for it is from the Gevuros (severities) of Abba, and “through Chochmah they are refined.”

40Therefore an unlearned person is forbidden to eat meat, as is written about this in the discourse beginning “When you raise up the lamps,” and [on] Rashi’s explanation, “When Aharon saw,” etc.; see there.

And the meaning of “the Gevuros of Abba” is along the lines of “A person should always incite his good inclination against his evil inclination.” And see what is written on the verse “And you too shall judge My house,” etc.

And this is what our Sages, of blessed memory, said in chapter 3 of Menachos, folio 21a, on the verse “With salt you shall season [it]”: “One might think, tevunehu,” and Rashi explains, “One might think that he should give it taste like understanding (binah), which perfects a person,” etc.

41Seemingly this is not understood. Rather, the point is that “understanding, which perfects a person,” refers to the G‑dly soul; for Binah is ben Yah (son of Yah), as is written on the verse “And all your children shall be taught of Havayah”; and of this it is said, “He encompassed him, He gave him understanding (yevonenehu).”

And of this they said, “One might think”: [one might think] that the offering of the animal soul does not rise with favor unless it is transformed into the actual virtue and rank of the nullification (bittul) of the G‑dly soul.

And in truth this is a difficult thing, for the G‑dly soul is “a part of G‑d above,” which was taken from the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the worlds, and therefore it has the level of true nullification in its nature, to pour itself out into the bosom of its Father, the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He;

which is not so with the animal soul, which was taken from kelipas nogah, etc., as was explained in the discourse beginning “A man, when he brings near of you [an offering] from the animals,” etc.

And this is [why] “the verse teaches: you shall season”: that at any rate it too can come to the level of the nullification of the “something” (yesh), etc. And this is the matter of the difference between giving over one’s soul in “One” and the level of “with all your soul,” etc., as is written there.

42Now, the Ramban, in his commentary on the Chumash here, wrote that salt is water, and by the power of the sun that comes into it, it becomes salt, etc.; and the water and the fire come into it, etc.,

and therefore it preserves a thing and also destroys [it], as it is written, “Sulfur and salt, a burning, all its land; it shall not be sown and shall not sprout,” etc.

43And see Rabbeinu Bachya, who explained his words: that is, that [salt] is composed of the two attributes, Chesed and Gevurah, by which the world is conducted and sustained, for “a king, through justice, establishes the land.”

This is along the lines of what is mentioned in the Zohar, Part I, folio 51a, concerning the blue (techeles) that consumes and destroys: “Come and see: although the way of this blue-black light is to destroy, etc., ‘But you who cleave to Havayah your G‑d are alive,’” etc.; see there.

For Malchus is called “the blue light,” “a land that consumes its inhabitants”: that is, it consumes the thorns and the wicked; those who are a “something” and a separate entity, it consumes them.

But “you who cleave,” since each one has the level of nullification, to give over his soul in “One,” through this, on the contrary, [are] “alive,” etc. And it is like the matter of “The Holy One, blessed be He, takes the sun out of its sheath: the righteous are healed by it, and the wicked are burned by it.”

44Now, “the blue light,” techeles, has its root in the Gevuros of Abba, and likewise salt has its root there, as mentioned above. Therefore salt too has the two powers;

that is, as is written elsewhere, that the Torah is called “strength and tushiyah,” meaning that it gives strength, power and might to the G‑dly soul, and weakens (mateshes) the power of the animal soul.

And this is because “through Chochmah they are refined”: it refines the animal soul and separates the evil from it, etc. And this is what is written, “For the heavens shall dissolve (nimlachu) like smoke” (in Isaiah, chapter 51, [verse] 6).

That is: shamayim (heaven) is esh and mayim (fire and water), that is, the attributes of Chesed and Gevurah; and in them there is one opposite the other: the heavens of holiness, as it is written, “The heavens are My throne,” which are the attributes: fit, unfit, etc.; and opposite them the evil attributes are called the heavens of kelipah.

45And of this it is said, “And your heavens that are over your head shall be copper,” as is written in the Tikkunei Zohar, Tikkun 8, and in the Shelah, folio 88b, in the Gate of the Letters, the letter kuf, concerning “Possessor (koneh) of heaven and earth,” etc.

And of this it is said, “For the heavens shall dissolve (nimlachu) like smoke,” and Rashi explains [it as] a term of rotting; see Rashi on Jeremiah 38:12.

And this is through the salt of holiness, which consumes and destroys the “something” (yesh) and separate entity, etc. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “This is the statute of the Torah,” on the matter of lehakriv (to offer) [having the letters of] leharkiv (to rot), etc.; see there.

46Now, just as salt has in it the power to destroy the evil, so that “the heavens shall dissolve like smoke,” etc., and along the lines of what is explained in the Shach, at the end of [Parshas] Teitzei, in the name of the Midrash, on “You shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens”: “You, from under the heavens, and I, from above the heavens,” etc., so too it has in it the power to sustain the good,

as it is written regarding Aharon, “an everlasting covenant of salt,” and likewise regarding David (II Chronicles 13:5); and see about this in the Rabbos, at the beginning of [Parshas] Kedoshim.

That is, it gives taste, so that there be “Taste and see that Havayah is good,” and it gives strength to the G‑dly soul, as mentioned above;

and it also transforms the good of the animal soul, to be elevated in holiness, which is the matter of “On all your offerings you shall offer salt,” as mentioned above. And as is written below, that melach (salt) is a term of mixing and reversal; that is, it transforms the animal soul from bitterness to sweetness.

477. And this is what is written concerning Elisha, who healed the waters of Jericho by means of salt (in II Kings, chapter 2, [verse] 21), and as is written in the Zohar, Part I, folio 241b, that it “cleanses and sweetens the bitterness, to give taste.”

One may further say about this that the bad waters have their root drawn from the separation by which He separated between the upper waters and the lower waters.

From this is drawn the dross of the waters, which are the bad waters, along the lines of “the bitter waters that bring the curse,” etc. (See the Zohar, Part II, Shemos, folio 6a, and in Parshas Naso, folio 125a; and in the Pardes, in Erchei HaKinuyim, the entry “water,” at its end; and in Me’orei Or, the letter mem, at the end of section 16.)

Now, Rashi explains here, on the verse “And you shall not omit the salt,” that the lower waters were promised to be offered upon the altar, in the salt and in the water libation.

48That is: through the salt of the offering the lower waters are elevated until they become living waters.

And this is the secret of the healing of the bad waters of Jericho through salt, which is the root of the rectification of the lower waters, etc., until through this they become “a well of living waters,” etc.

49Likewise this matter will be understood in the soul: in order to heal the bitter waters of the animal soul, which is drawn after the pleasures of this world, which are called by the name “bitterness” (meriru), as it is written, “For [her lips] drip honey,” etc., “but her end is bitter as wormwood” (and see the Zohar, Part II, Vayakhel, folio 203b),

this is through the Torah, which is called by the name “salt,” and as it is written, “It shall be healing to your navel,”

that is, even “from your middle downward,” which is below the firmament that separates between water and water, etc. Therefore the salt is called “the covenant of your G‑d.”

For the root of the judgments and the bitterness is drawn from the Name Elokim, which has 120 combinations that descend below to the end of Asiyah; and from them the 120 combinations of nogah draw their nourishment, so that between the two of them they make 240 (mar, “bitter”), twice 120, which is the numerical value of Amalek.

50And salt sweetens the judgments mentioned above, by drawing from the root and essence of the Gevuros of holiness, etc.; and it sustains and destroys, etc., as mentioned above.

And in the writings of the Arizal, of blessed memory, he said that melach (salt) is the numerical value of three Names Havayah. Therefore it is said regarding Aharon, “an everlasting covenant of salt,” for the kohanim bless the people with three blessings, which are the three Names Havayah of “May He bless you,” “May He shine” and “May He lift up,” whose root is very high, exalted above the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus),

and through this is the sustaining of the world. And this is why it is called salt, which is what sustains a thing, etc. And although salt is Gevurah, the Priestly Blessing too is called “sixty mighty men (gibborim),” in the Rabbos, Naso, chapter 11.

51And this is the meaning of “the covenant of your G‑d (Elokecha)”: it is the matter of the drawing down from the Name Havayah into the Name Elokim, etc., so that it be in the state of “your G‑d” in actuality, in a state of revelation in the inner dimension (pnimiyus). And as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Just as with the covenant mentioned regarding salt, salt sweetens”; that is, the sweetening of the judgments of the Name Elokim.

52And in the Tikkunei Zohar, Tikkun 21, folio 54a: melach (salt) has the letters of cholem and the letters of mochel (forgives). For the cholem is the point above the letters, which indicates the ascent of Malchus to be the crown of Tiferes, as is written in Torah Ohr, Parshas Noach, at the end of the discourse beginning “To understand the matter that the prayer of a man of business,” etc.: that one upper point includes the lower level, etc.; see there.

And from there comes the forgiveness (mechilah) on Yom Kippur, and likewise the offerings come to atone; and this ascent is through the covenant of salt, etc.

Also, chalam means strengthening, as in “Their young grow strong (yachlemu)” (Job, chapter 39, [verse] 4), which Rashi explains as “grow strong”; and likewise “And You will make me healthy (vesachalimeni) and keep me alive” (in Isaiah 38:16), [which] Rashi explains, “You will heal me and strengthen me.”

In the same way Rabbeinu Bachya explains, in Parshas Tetzaveh, concerning the achlamah stone, that the special property of this stone is that it strengthens the heart, etc.

And this strengthening is along the lines of what is written, “And He will give strength to His king,” and as is written on the verse “And now, let the power of Ado-nai be great,” etc.

And this too is drawn from the level of salt, which is the power that maintains and sustains a thing. This is the meaning of “an everlasting covenant of salt,” said regarding Aharon at the end of Parshas Korach, and regarding David (in II Chronicles, chapter 13, [verse] 5).

And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “Return, O Israel, unto”: that the lower unity (yichuda tata’ah) be like the higher unity (yichuda ila’ah), in the manner of “two companions,” the level of “a tent that shall not be moved”; and as it is written, “And I will betroth you to Me forever.”

538. Now, according to this we must understand [why], regarding matzah, the halachic authorities wrote not to put salt in the bread on Pesach, as is written in the Tur and Shulchan Aruch, section 455.

Seemingly this is not understood, according to what was explained above about the root of the matter of salt: why should there be no salt in matzah? And as is written in the Gemara, chapter 8 of Shabbos, folio 79a: “matzah, as its meaning implies: that is not salted,” etc.

And in the טו״ב, section 455, he wrote [that it is] because salt is the root of judgment, etc. But this does not suffice, for on the contrary, it is the sweetening of the judgments, as mentioned above.

But the matter is explained in the Tikkunei Zohar, Tikkun 69, folio 108a: “The bread of poverty, without salt,” etc., “because it is a broken matzah,” etc., “until it is whole, one should not offer upon it salt, which is cholem; and what is cholem? The middle one of them all.” End of quote.

And the Kisei Melech explains that when it is broken it is the letter dalet, a term of poverty (dalus), that is, “bread of poverty.”

54And it must be completed with the letter vav within it, so that it becomes a hei, etc., and only then shall you offer salt upon it, which is the three Names Havayah that are in Chesed, Gevurah and Tiferes. End of his words.

The explanation is that “bread of poverty” is along the lines of “the moon has nothing of its own”; and then it is in the state of poverty.

55(As is written in the Zohar, Part I, Bereishis, folio 33a, [and] Vayechi, folio 249b.) And “there is no poor person except in knowledge.” And through its receiving from the sun, it goes out of its poverty: that is, through Daas being drawn into it from the level of “a sun, Havayah.”

And as is written in the Raaya Mehemna, at the beginning of Parshas Ki Sisa: “‘The rich man’: this is the middle pillar,” that is, the middle line, Daas [and] Tiferes. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And you shall know this day and take [it] to [your heart],” etc. And at first, when it is only in the state of faith alone, it is called “bread of poverty.”

Now, the beginning of divine service must be specifically in the manner of faith alone. And as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Chavakuk came and based them on one, as it is said, ‘And the righteous man shall live by his faith.’”

And it is written, “Open the gates, that a righteous nation that keeps faith may enter” (in Isaiah, chapter 26, [verse] 2), as Rashi explained there. And it is written, “And the faith of your times shall be a strength of salvations” (there, 33:6).

And from it he will afterwards come to the level of Daas, which is the comprehension of the inner dimension of the Torah. And as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Whoever fulfills the Torah in poverty will in the end fulfill it in wealth” (in chapter 4 of Avos).

And it is explained in the Midrash Shmuel that it means “in poverty” of knowledge, [and] “will in the end fulfill it in wealth” of knowledge: that He will bestow upon him of His wisdom, etc.

And this is “If there is no awe there is no wisdom; if there is no wisdom there is no awe.” If so, how is one to begin? Rather, there are two levels of awe. The first is the lower awe, and it is “the gate for entering”; therefore, “if there is no awe there is no wisdom.”

56And afterwards, through wisdom, he will merit the higher awe, etc., where leavening (chimutz) does not apply, etc. And this is what they said, “Poverty befits Israel”: meaning that in his own eyes, before the Holy One, blessed be He, he should be in the state of one poor in knowledge, and be in the state of faith.

As is written in Sefer shel Beinonim, Part I, chapter 18, that it is written, “The simple one believes every word,” and before the Holy One, blessed be He, all are like simpletons; and as it is written, “I was [as] a beast with You”; and it is written, “Man and beast You save, Havayah,” and our Sages, of blessed memory, said in the first chapter of Chullin, folio 5b: “These are people who are clever in knowledge like Adam, the first man, and make themselves like a beast”: lowly of spirit; see there in Rashi’s commentary, etc.

And so it is written in the Rabbos, Parshas Beshalach, chapter 21, on the verse “My dove”: “The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Before Me they are like a simple dove; whatever I decree upon them they do,” etc.

57Therefore, in the matter of the obligation to eat matzah, which is the beginning of divine service, it must be specifically “bread of poverty,” which is the level of faith and subjugation (iskafya), without any reason or knowledge.

Therefore one should not put salt in it; for salt gives taste, so that there be the level of taste and knowledge, which is the revelation of the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the Torah, etc.

And the beginning of divine service must be specifically in the manner of “bread of poverty.” Therefore Israel count by the moon. But afterwards there must be drawn into it Daas, from the level of the sun,

and this is the matter of “rich matzah.” And see what is written in the explanation of “You greatly enrich it; the stream of G‑d” in the discourse beginning “And the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea,” etc.; and then from the level of dalet it becomes a hei. And see what is written about this at the end of the discourse beginning “Who is raised up to sit,” etc.

589. To explain the matter, we must first preface what is written in Or Torah, Parshas Korach, in the name of the Maggid, whose soul is in Eden; and these are his words: “Now, it is said of Aharon, ‘It (hu) is an everlasting covenant of salt’: it is written hu, and the reading is hi.

Now it is known that Aharon is the groomsman of the Queen (Matronisa), and he is the one who binds the worlds through the service of the offerings and the incense (ketores), which is a term of binding; for the Targum of “and she tied on his hand,” in Parshas Vayeshev, is “uketeras al yedeih.”

59And this is the meaning of “covenant of salt (melach)”: a term of mixing, as in hamalachim (the sailors). That is, as Rashi explained in the Chumash, Parshas Ki Sisa, on the verse “salted (memulach), pure, holy”: ‘mixed, that he should mix it very well; and I say that similar to it is “And the sailors (hamalachim) were afraid,” etc., for they turn [the water],’ etc.; see there.

60And the meaning of “covenant of salt” is that He made a covenant with him that through the service of the offerings he would bind and mix the world, which is all the worlds as a whole (klalus), with the Infinite One (Ein Sof), so that he would be the intermediary that joins and binds the worlds to one another, etc.

And this is “He went up the ramp,” etc., up to the western [corner] (ma’aravis), which is the attribute of Aharon, the covenant of salt, which mixes (me’arev) the worlds, etc.

Now, the written form is “an everlasting covenant of salt, hu,” and the reading is hi, for above it is in great concealment, therefore it is written hu, a term of the hidden (nistar); but below, when it comes into the reading, which is speech, there it is revelation; therefore it is called hi.” End of quote.

And this is why of the incense it is said “salted,” for the incense is the matter of binding and mixing, etc.

61The explanation of how he mixes the worlds: our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “‘On the day of his wedding’: this is the Giving of the Torah.” We must understand what “his wedding” means. But chitun (marriage) means mixing, as is written in the Targum Yerushalmi, Parshas Ekev, 7:3.

If so, the meaning of “on the day of his wedding” is the matter of the mixing and binding of the world with the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, through the Torah. And this is according to what is written in the Rabbos, Parshas Va’era, chapter 12, on the verse “Whatever Havayah desired He did”:

“David said: Although the Holy One, blessed be He, decreed, ‘The heavens are heavens to Havayah,’ etc., when He wished to give the Torah He annulled the first decree and said, ‘The lower ones shall go up to the upper ones, and the upper ones shall go down to the lower ones, and I will be the one who begins,’ as it is said, ‘And Havayah descended upon Mount Sinai.’

62And it is written, ‘And to Moshe He said: Go up to Havayah.’ Thus, ‘Whatever Havayah desired He did, in the heavens and on the earth.’” End of quote.

And the meaning of the descent and ascent will be understood from what is written elsewhere, in the discourse beginning “And I will make your windows of kadkod,” “kedein ukedein,” etc. At any rate, it is the descent (hishtalshelus) and drawing down of the light from the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin) into the light that fills all worlds (memalei kol almin). And this is “For all that is in the heavens and on the earth”: “which holds fast to heaven and earth,” etc. And this is the matter of “an everlasting covenant of salt.”

63Now, the meaning of “a night of watching (leil shimurim)” is along the lines of “shamor (guard) is for Nukva (the feminine)”: that is, the recipient waits, anticipates and hopes for the giver, like a poor person who watches and looks [to see] when the householder will put something into his hand, as is written at the end of the discourse beginning “Remember the Shabbos day,” etc., on the meaning of shamor, etc.; see there.

And so is the matter of “a night of watching”: for the level of “night” is the attribute of darkness and concealment, and it is drawn from the level of the light that fills all worlds (memalei kol almin).

64And this level is the level of “watching,” and it anticipates the drawing down of the light from the level of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), which is without limit. Therefore shimurim is said in the plural, on account of the joining of giver and recipient, as is written in the Zohar, Part II, Parshas Bo, folio 38b.

Therefore the matzah is specifically “bread of poverty,” like a poor person who watches and looks, etc., as mentioned above. And so it is explained in [the Zohar,] Parshas Vayetzei, folio 157a, concerning “bread of poverty”: “Who is the poor one? This is King David, of whom it is written, ‘For I am poor and needy.’

65And this ‘bread of poverty’ is called matzah: the feminine without the masculine is poverty. They were brought near to matzah at first; once He brought them nearer, the Holy One, blessed be He, brought them into other levels, and the masculine was joined with the feminine; and then matzah, when it is joined with the masculine, is called mitzvah, with the addition of a vav.” End of quote.

66(And see what is written on the matter of the vav in the discourse beginning “The voice is the voice of Yaakov,” and what is written below in the discourse beginning “Six days you shall eat matzos.”)

And since this is so, that the level of matzah is specifically “bread of poverty,” which waits to receive the union and the supernal light from the level of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), before the light has been drawn down, and it is only in the state of “shamor for Nukva,” therefore the custom is not to put salt in matzah. For the level of “an everlasting covenant of salt” is when the light has already been drawn down and a state of mixing has come about, and this is through Aharon, the groomsman of the Queen, etc.

And what is said regarding David, “an everlasting covenant of salt,” is after the Holy One, blessed be He, exalted his kingship and the light was drawn from the level of the light that encompasses all worlds into the light that fills all worlds (memalei kol almin), as David said, “I will exalt You, my G‑d the King,” etc. But at the level of matzah, “bread of poverty,” there is no need to put salt, etc.

From this one will understand how “the custom of Israel is Torah.” And afterwards, with the offerings, which are the matter of the drawing near and the union of the levels of the light that fills all worlds and the light that encompasses all worlds, comes the mitzvah “And you shall not omit the salt,” etc., so that there be a binding and joining, etc.