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154) “And Abraham was old, advanced in days” in that world, which is days, meaning light, and not in this world, which is night. “Advanced in days” means the upper Sefirot in the upper world, which are lights, and they are called “days.” “Advanced in days” means that he came into those worlds that are considered days due to those pleasures and yearnings that he inherits.
“And the Lord blessed Abraham” in everything—in that position, in the authority that the Creator gave him of His name, which is the letter Hey, in which the world was created.
155) Matat is the minister of the face. He is a boy, a servant to his master, the master that governs him. He is appointed over the soul, to bestow upon her every day of that light that he was commanded to bestow upon her. And he is destined to receive a written account of each and every body from the graveyard, from the hand of Dumah, and to show it to his Master. And he is destined to turn that bone, Luz, into leaven from the construction of the body under the earth, and to correct the body and revive it in the appropriate perfection for a body without a soul. And then the Creator will send the soul to her place in the body, after it has come to the land of Israel.
And we should thoroughly understand the matter of the bone that remains in the grave and does not rot. He says here that the angel Matat turns it into leaven for the construction of the body. That bone is called Luz, and it does not enjoy food or drink that man eats and drinks. Hence, it does not decay in the grave as do the rest of the bones. And from it, man’s body is rebuilt when it stands for the revival of the dead.
We should understand why it is called Luz and why it does not eat or drink, and does not rot in the grave, and why it is favored as the only one from which the body is built at the time of the revival of the dead. It has already been explained that these Mochin that the Guf [body] receives in its life, in the middle line, cause it to decay in the grave. To thoroughly understand that, I will refer you to Jacob and Esau. Jacob is the middle line and Esau is the left line, which is not included in the right. It is written, “Jacob had cooked stew,” meaning the Mochin that extend from the middle line, called “Jacob.” “And Esau came in from the field and he was weary,” and he said, “Please let me have a swallow of that red, red stuff.” This means that he wished for the middle line to impart its Mochin to him, where the left line is included in the right, where life comes from.
But Jacob told him, “Sell me your birth right today,” since it is known that the Mochin de Hochma extend on the left line, which is seniority and Gadlut [adulthood, majority]; hence, he did not wish to be included in the right, which is light of Hassadim and much smaller than him. But the lower ones cannot receive the illumination of the left before it is clothed in Hassadim from the right line.
This is why Esau was weary. It is written, “Behold, I am at the point to die; and what profit shall the birthright do to me?” Hence, he sold him the birthright. And also, “And Esau despised his birthright,” since he was forced to receive from Jacob the Mochin from the integration with the right. Thus, you find that with Esau’s reception of the Mochin of the middle line, he revoked his birthright, which is illumination of Hochma from the left without right. Moreover, he degraded it, since he revealed his view that only death comes from the illumination of the left, as it is written, “Behold, I am at the point to die,” and that life comes from the illumination of the middle line.
And you can conclude similarly from man’s body. Every Guf [body] fell under the authority of Sam, Esau’s minister, during the sin of the tree of knowledge, from which the Guf was sentenced to death. This dominion is the filth of the serpent, which is not removed from the Guf before it decays in the grave. Hence, the righteous purify their bodies, which come from the force of the left, until they are worthy of receiving the Mochin from the middle line. And upon the reception of the Mochin, the Guf that despises its authority is like Esau. And an impression of that degradation remains in the body after its passing, too, until it causes it to decay, meaning to completely annul its power of reception until no remnant is left of it.
However, this is perplexing. How then is it possible that it will be revived, since it has already rotted? The thing is that as there are GAR and VAK in the left line, it is the same with the Guf that receives from it, which contains GAR and VAK, as well. In Esau, too, there were GAR and VAK, a Kli for reception of GAR and a Kli for reception of VAK. And it has been explained that the Mochin of the middle line that Esau received caused him to despise the seniority and cause every body to rot in the dust, as well.
However, the Mochin that come from the middle line are only VAK de GAR. There is nothing in them of GAR de GAR. It turns out that only the VAK of Esau despised the seniority, since it was revealed through them that death comes from the left line, and life from the middle line. But Esau’s GAR, which received nothing of Jacob’s Mochin, since they are only VAK de GAR, remained under the domination of the left and did not despise the seniority at all. This is so because they had died anyway, since the middle line had nothing to give to them.
It is likewise with the bodies of every person. By the Mochin that they receive in life, they rot in the grave. This concerns the Kelim de VAK of the Guf, which enjoy the middle line. But the Kelim de GAR of the Guf, which never enjoyed those Mochin of the middle line, do not rot in the grave, as was written of the GAR of Esau. And since they did not enjoy, they did not despise.
It was said that there is a bone that does not rot in the grave, a part of the body related to reception of GAR de GAR, which does not enjoy food or drink, which are the Mochin that come from the middle line, and hence does not rot. For this reason, the body will be built of it at the revival of the dead.
And the reason why it is called Luz is as was written, “And he called the name of that place Beth El.” But Luz was the first name of the city, since everything should be discerned in three discernments, which are Olam [world], Shanah [year], Nefesh [Soul, though “soul” is also used for Neshama]. And the illumination of the left without right in the form of Olam was the city of Luz. This is why it was called Luz, from the words, “an abomination [in Hebrew: Naloz] to the Lord,” as well as, “Who are perverse in their ways.” And Jacob, who is the middle line, corrected the city and instilled Godliness in it. This is why he called its name Beth-El [House of God], where before that, its name was Luz.
However, the middle line can correct only the VAK de GAR, and not the GAR de GAR. It turns out that not all of the city of Luz received its correction into being called Beth El, but only the discernment of VAK of that city received its correction and became Beth El. But the GAR de GAR of the city maintained the first name, Luz, since Jacob could not correct it. This is from the discernment of Olam.
Also, from the discernment of Nefesh, each Guf is considered like the city of Luz. The righteous are rewarded with receiving the Mochin of the middle line and their bodies are rewarded with the presence of Divinity. This is when their bodies are called Beth El instead of the previous name, Luz. Yet, the GAR of their bodies, which have nothing to receive from the middle line, were not corrected at all and are not called Beth El. Instead, they remained with the previous name, Luz. Thus, this bone, ascribed to GAR de GAR, is called Luz, and remained in its filth and is unfit for any correction during the 6,000 years because the Mochin of the middle line do not provide for it.
It is written that the Creator is destined to revive the dead with their flaws, so it will not be said, “It is another.” The Luz bone is the flaw in the Guf, and it cannot be healed during the 6,000 years. And from it, the Guf will rise for the revival of the dead so it will be not be said, “It is another” from its form in Ein Sof.
156) It is written of that time, “And Abraham said unto his servant.” If we consider this Hochma, meaning concerning the revival of the dead, what is the meaning of “Unto his servant”? Abraham is the soul. Hence, “And Abraham said unto his servant” is the servant of the soul. But where do we find that the soul has a servant? We should consider that he said, “His servant,” and not relate him to Abraham, as implied from the text, but the meaning is the servant of the Creator, who is close to His work. And this is Matat, who is destined to beautify the body in the grave.
157) “And Abraham said unto his servant” is Matat, the servant of the Creator. He is the elder of his house since he is the beginning of the creatures of the Creator, who governs all that He has, whom the Creator has given dominion over all His armies, over all the angels above.
158) All the armies of that servant take light and enjoy the radiance of the soul, as we learned that the light of the soul is greater than the light of the throne. And the angels take their lights from the throne. Thus, the light of the soul is greater than the light of the throne. But the soul was taken from the throne and the receiver is necessarily smaller than the giver.
The root of Adam (who sits on the throne) and of the throne is AVI and YESHSUT. YESHSUT is the throne, left, and AVI are Adam who sits on the throne, as well as the right. And ZON extend from them, where ZA is Adam who sits on the throne and the Nukva is the chair. And the souls extend from them, as well as Matat and his company. Thus, the souls come from Adam, who sits on the chair, and Matat and his company come from the chair.
It is known that the lower ones need illumination of Hochma. As long as they do not have illumination of Hochma they are still considered VAK without a Rosh [head], even though they receive the light of Hassadim from ZA and from upper AVI, until they receive illumination of Hochma, too, which extends from the chair, from the Nukva, and from YESHSUT. At that time they acquire GAR.
It turns out that before the soul receives the light of the chair, it is considered merely VAK without a Rosh, VAK de VAK. And it is smaller than the light of the chair, which is GAR de VAK. But once it receives illumination of Hochma from the light of the chair, it becomes much greater than the light of the chair because the light of the chair extends from the Nukva and from YESHSUT, and it is considered GAR de VAK, while the light of the soul extends from ZA and AVI, which is actual GAR.
And how is the light of the soul greater than the chair if the soul was taken from the chair, meaning that it is smaller than the chair? Before the soul receives from the chair, it is VAK de VAK, and the chair is GAR de VAK. Hence, does it receive from the chair?
He explains that this, according to what it deserves, and that, according to what it deserves. They are two lights that differ from one another, since the soul is actually light of Hassadim and the chair is actually light of Hochma. Hence, when the soul needs illumination of Hochma, it must receive from the chair, although at its root, the soul is greater than the chair, as he said, “actually greater than light of Hochma,” as it is written, “A likeness as the appearance of a man upon it above.” In spirituality, “Upon it” means that it takes neither space nor time, and it is necessarily only a virtue. Thus, the light of the soul is greater than the light of the chair, since at its root it is from Adam who sits on the chair.
159) And when he goes to perform the mission of the Creator, all his armies and his chariot are fed by that radiance of the soul, from the light of Hassadim, from the man who is sitting on the chair that extends from ZA and receives from upper AVI. This is what the soul tells him: “Put your hand,” meaning the armies of Matat, “Under my thigh.” This is light that pours out from the soul, since “My thigh” means NHY, which is the advantage of the soul over them, for she has NHY de Kelim and GAR of lights. Hence, she tells him, “Put your hand under my thigh,” so he will receive the light of GAR that is included in her NHY, which is the light that is the oath that she adjured him.
160) When this one goes on behalf of the Creator, the Creator moves all His armies above in one letter from His name, the Yod of HaVaYaH, which is AVI, the root of the light of Neshama [soul]. “My thigh,” in Gematria, is “high” [in Hebrew]. This means that the soul says, “Put your hand,” your company, under the merit of the High and Exalted who rules over all. This implies to Atik, which shines in AVI, which are the letter Yod. And after the soul commanded the party of upper ones, meaning the light of upper AVI, under his hand, she told him, “I adjure you a great oath in it.”
161) It is written, “The God of the heaven and the God of the earth.” Since he already said, “By the Lord,” “And I will make you swear by the Lord,” why does it also say, “The God of the heaven”? It is because when he walks, He moves all His armies in one letter of His name, the letter Yod, the light of Hassadim of upper AVI. Why did he say in the oath, “The God of heaven and the God of earth,” since the heaven is ZA, which extends from upper AVI, and the earth is Nukva, which extends from YESHSUT? Was it not enough to adjure him only by the letter Hey?
It is said, “The God of the heaven and the God of the earth,” indicating that He is the Lord of everything, and all at once. In one moment He moves everything, and everyone are nothing compared to Him. He mentions heaven and earth in the oath, which are the light of the letter Yod, indicating that this light governs all the degrees and they are all nothing compared to Him. He moves all His armies with two letters of His name, when Matat goes on his mission. This shows that He is everything and there is none other besides Him.
Only by the light of the right from AVI, which is Yod de HaVaYaH. He asked about it from the words of the oath, saying that “The God of the heaven,” whose light is AVI, and “The God of the earth,” whose light is YESHSUT, which are left, these words prove that when Matat goes on behalf of the Creator, He moves all His armies by two letters of His name, the Yod–Hey of HaVaYaH. The Yod is the light of upper AVI, and the Hey is YESHSUT, meaning in illumination of Hochma that extends from YESHSUT, as well. And the illumination of Hochma uproots the Klipot. Thus, everyone sees that He is everything and there is none other besides Him.
162) “And I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of the heaven.” The soul adjures the oath of this covenant, as it is written, “That you will not take a wife for my son,” since Abraham implies to the soul.
163) We learn from this that the soul told Matat, “Since you are going on this mission to revive the dead, do not take a wife for my son, meaning do not take a body for my son, since the body is called a woman, with respect to the soul, and enter another body, foreign, which is unworthy of it. Rather, in that very body that is mine, in that actual one from which I came out.”
This is why it is written, “But you shall go into my country and to my homeland,” as it is written that the dead will be revived with their flaws, so it will not be said, “It is another.” At that time, it will be in the same form as in the incorporation in Ein Sof, and this is why the soul adjures Matat, “But you shall go into my country and to my homeland,” meaning to my body, which is left with the Luz bone. This is the body from which I came out, and this is the one that is worthy of the revival of the dead. And after it is healed from its flaw, it will be worthy of clothing the soul for eternity.
164) What is, “And take a wife for my son, for Isaac”? If this refers to the clothing of the soul, it should have said, “To Abraham,” that body that suffered with me in that world and had no pleasure and longing in it, due to the fear of his Maker. It, refers to the Luz bone, which does not enjoy food or drink in this world, this very body shall you take to play with, in this joy of the righteous, to laugh with it in the joy of the Creator. To laugh with it, since now at the time of the revival of the dead is the time of laughter in the world, as it is written, “Then our mouths shall be filled with laughter.”
165) An angel performs only one mission, and not two missions at the same time. But there are two missions here: 1) To revive the body in its grave; 2) to raise it to the land of Israel, where the soul clothes it. This is why he asks about one angel performing two missions.
One angel, which is Gabriel, whose writing case is at his loins, will mark each and every one on his forehead, to correct the body. Subsequently, the great minister, Matat, will go and correct each one and raise him up to receive his soul. It is written, “He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife.” “Before you” means before your mission. The Creator will send an angel first, to correct the body, and then Matat will bring it for the clothing of the soul, since one angel does not perform two missions.
166) A well of those who see, which is filled with drawn water and springs from its source even more than they. A well that springs from itself, since the essence of his souls was from the light of Hassadim of upper AVI, whose Zivug is never ending. And because he extends the illumination of Hochma from YESHSUT, he is called “A well of those who see,” after the Hochma that he receives from YESHSUT. This is considered being filled with what is drawn from another place, since his own root does not extend from YESHSUT, but only from upper AVI. For this reason his Hassadim are from his own root, extending from AVI as a never-ending spring, and they are far more important than the illumination of Hochma that fill him from YESHSUT. This is so because the value of AVI compared to YESHSUT is as the value of GAR compared to VAK. “A well Lehai Roi” [Roi implies seeing]. Seeing means illumination of Hochma.
167) A man must welcome his Master at the beginning of the month.
168) That first light that operated in the days of creation and was then concealed for the righteous in the future, its moves are ten. It moves by ten and leads everything by ten, and does its deeds by ten signs. Ten writings, ten keys of the house of the sick are in its hands, and it takes ten writings in the Garden of Eden, to correct the earth for the bodies of the righteous.
The number ten implies the light of Hassadim. The first light that was concealed for the righteous is the light of Hochma, for Adam ha Rishon gazed in it from the end of the world to its end, since the light of the eyes and vision are the light of Hochma. The first light moves ten moves, meaning that the light of Hochma appears in clothing of ten, which is light of Hassadim. And it comes into this clothing because it comes in three lines where each line is clothed in ten. It is written that it travels and imparts in ten. And this is the right line whose bestowal is essentially the light of Hassadim.
It leads everything by ten. This is the left line, where even though its bestowal is essentially Hochma, which is the point of Shuruk. Still, it leads and bestows only by clothing in Hassadim.
It does its deeds by ten signs. This is the middle line, which decides between those two lines. All the signs and omens from the side of holiness extend from it, and ten notes means Masachim [screens] and levels of lights of Hassadim that emerge over the notes. And in those levels of light, he heals the sick, since all illnesses extend from the left line when it is without integration with the right. But when the middle line comes with the Masach de Hirik, on which the level of the light of Hassadim emerges, it decides between the lines until they are included in one another, and then all the sick are healed.
This is why its levels of light are called keys for the healing of the sick. And they are ten because they are light of Hassadim. The ten notes are the Masach of the middle line by which he enters the count of the righteous through the angel Dumah. And by that, they are guaranteed to stand at the revival of the dead, as it is written, “And will atone for His land and His people,” to correct the grave so they are worthy of the words, “And I shall open your graves.”
169) You will see more than a holy angel, since the light of the soul is greater than the light of the angels. And since he explained the ten only in the three upper lines, Hochma, Bina, and Daat, he clarifies the ten in the seven bottom Sefirot, as well, and says that the world, which is Malchut, was created in ten and is led in ten, that it is Yesod that leads the Malchut, which is called “world.”
The holy chair, Netzah and Hod, called “the bottom chair,” is in ten. The Torah, Tifferet, is in ten. Its journeys, Gevura are in ten. The upper worlds, Hesed, which is the highest among the seven bottom Sefirot, is in ten. And the one that is higher than all, blessed be He, is Keter, from whom everything extends—the light of Hassadim, implied in ten, as well as the light of Hochma.
170) “And the servant took ten camels.” What is, “With all the goodly things of his master in his hand”? Can it be that he would carry all of Abraham’s possessions? It is the name of his master, Divinity, which is called, “Name,” who went with him to bring him to the desired place and to protect him so no obstacle would occur to him. This must be as it is written, “For My name is in him.”
171) Anyone who knows his true name knows that He is one and His name one. He is the Creator, and “His name one” refers to Divinity, as it is written, “In that day shall the Lord be One, and His name one,” meaning the name, Divinity, and He, ZA, are one.
172) “And he made the camels kneel outside the city by the well of water.” “Outside the city” means in the graveyard. “By the well of water,” which precedes the revival of the dead in the graveyard. Those are the ones that negotiated in the Torah, since what is the first thing that one is asked when he goes into the grave? If he set times for the Torah, it is written, “And the stability of your times.” It is even more so when he comes out, there is no question about reviving them first.
173) “At evening time,” on the sixth day, which is the eve of the Sabbath, this is the time to revive the dead. For six thousand years the world stands. And the eve of the Sabbath is the sixth millennium, the conclusion of everything. “At evening time” means the time of the conclusion of everything. “The time when women go out to draw water.” These are the disciples of the wise, who draw from the waters of the Torah, which is the time to go out and shake off the dust, meaning to be revived.
174) Those who exert to know their Master in this world and their soul is complete for the next world are rewarded with coming out of the grave, from the oath that the soul adjured Matat. This is because Matat will know who is her actual body, just as the soul had adjured him. And he is as it is written, “Behold, I stand by the fountain of water.” Even though the body is a disciple of the wise, Matat goes to examine the perfection, as it is written, “And may it be that the maiden who comes out to draw, and to whom I say, ‘Please let me drink a little water from your jar,’” meaning give me a hint of the knowledge of the Creator that you have attained.
175) “And she shall say to me: ‘You drink, as well,’” meaning she lets him know three things: 1) You, too, are a servant, like me, meaning lacking GAR. 2) I do not replace knowing you with knowing the Creator. This means that she is not mistaken into thinking that there is the final perfection in his Mochin, which he gives to the souls, like the perfection of the Creator. 3) You need to perceive that you are a creature, like me. Even though you are an angel, you are still like a creature, meaning deficient, like me.
176) “And I will also draw for your camels,” meaning that she will also let his hosts know of what she has attained and drew. “Your camels” means your hosts. This means that knowing his attainment is, 1) That your company did not attain, that they have no attainment; 2) that I have an advantage over you—the integration with the point of this world, which is lacking in angels above. And 3) How you are created by the brightness of what is given to you, meaning she attained the meaning of his creation, too. If he says, meaning if the body says all its attainments, it is a sign given to me for all those words. This is because this sign that you have made for me will be given to me for all those words, meaning the body will tell him all those words above, none of them missing. Then I will know that she is the woman, this is the body from that soul, as the oath adjured me.
187) What is, “And Abraham took another wife, and her name was Keturah”? This contradicts the explanation about the soul and the body at the time of revival.
188) When the sages of truth clarify the secrets of the writings, the very degrees that the writings speak of come to those sages at that time and present themselves so as to be made revealed. Had it not been for their assistance, they would not have had the power to reveal any secret.
189) Happy is the man who puts on Tefillin and knows their reason.
190) For the love of the Creator for Israel, He told them to make Him a tabernacle such as the high structure above, and He would come to dwell with them. This is the meaning of the words, “And let them make Me a tabernacle, that I may dwell among them.” With these words, the reason for the Tefillin is hidden.
191) The tabernacle was made similar to the upper one, in the shapes of its holy structures. Afterwards, the Creator instilled His Divinity with them. Similarly, concerning the Tefillin, when a person puts them on, it should be an example of the upper structures: the lower structure and the upper structure. This is in order for His kingdom to come and instill His Divinity over him.
There are two structures and both are needed. There is an advantage to the upper structure, above the Chazeh, which is not found in the bottom structure below the Chazeh, since a Zivug occurs only from the Chazeh upwards, where there is the face of a man, and not below the Chazeh, where the face of man is absent. And there is also an advantage to the lower structure, from the Chazeh down, which does not exist in the upper structure from the Chazeh up. The place for disclosure of Hochma is in the structure from the Chazeh down and not in the structure from the Chazeh up. Hence, there is disclosure of perfection only in the two structures together, since the bottom structure rises and integrates in the Zivug that there is from the Chazeh up, in the upper structure. And then the Hochma appears in the bottom structure.
The tabernacle was made by the example of the upper one, in the form of the holy structures. The tabernacle and its Kelim were arranged following the example of the two structures. This is so because then the bottom structure rose to the place of the upper structure and was included in the Zivug that is there. Then Hochma appeared in the bottom structure, which is the inspiration of Divinity in the lower ones.
Similarly, a man who puts on Tefillin should aim in these two structures and the orders in them because then the kingdom of the Creator will come and the Creator will instill His Divinity over him. This is because there is disclosure of Hochma only in Malchut, from the Chazeh down, and it is called “Divinity.” But there is no Zivug for extension of Hochma if not from the Chazeh up. Hence, the perfection appears through both structures together.
192) We learned that there is high knowledge and examples of it in the Tefillin. And there are three structures in it from the Chazeh down, where Malchut is, according to the holy upper ones. These are the three letters of His holy name, Yod–Hey–Vav, since the three structures are the three letters Yod–Hey–Vav. Four portions govern the four letters of His holy name. This is the reason for the Shin [] of the three Keters and the Shin of the four Keters, which mean three kings that rule the body. From the Chazeh down it corresponds to the Shin of the three Roshim [heads], and the Tefillin on the Creator above, which are the Tefillin of the Rosh [head]. And the Tefillin of the hand are the four portions that correspond to the Shin of the four Roshim.
He clarifies the difference between the upper structure above the Chazeh and the lower structure below the Chazeh. In the bottom structure, the face of a man is missing. This is the bottom Hey of the name HaVaYaH. It turns out that there are only three letters, Yod–Hey–Vav in the lower structure, and the bottom Hey is missing, and only in the structure above the Chazeh are there all four letters.
Also, there are only three structures, which are the three letters of His holy name, HaVaYaH, Yod–Hey–Vav. These are Hochma, Bina, and Tifferet, and the Malchut—which is the bottom Hey—is absent. They are included in one another and are considered three times Yod–Hey–Vav, which are three structures after they rise for the Zivug in the upper structure.
The four portions in the Tefillin are HB TM. They govern the four letters, HaVaYaH, since the four letters HaVaYaH are HB TM. This is the meaning of the Shin of the three Keters and the Shin of the four Keters. The Shin from the three Keters implies the bottom structure, which has only three letters Yod–Hey–Vav, lacking the bottom Hey. Also, they are the three kings that rule in the body from the Chazeh down, which are NHY. They are called “kings” [Melachim] because from the Chazeh downwards, everything belongs to Malchut.
And the Shin of the four Keters implies to the upper structure, which contains the complete four letters of HaVaYaH. These are the four portions of the Tefillin.
193) The heart is assembled, similar to the bottom structure. And the lower one, Nukva, is assembled. The structure of the arm below is in the Nukva, the Tefillin of the hand, called “arm.” And the heart, considered from the Chazeh up, is assembled as though being below the Chazeh. And they are given to its hand so as to bring in all the hosts of heaven. Thus the heart is assembled below and all the organs of the body are given to it.
The appearance of illumination of Hochma is called “riding on the structure.” Hence, only the Malchut is the rider, for the disclosure occurs in her. We learn that the upper structure from the Chazeh up is considered covered Hassadim, but there is the place of the Zivug, and not in the bottom structure. It turns out that the primary disclosure of Hochma is necessarily in the upper structure, though not for itself, but to bestow upon the bottom structure. And the Malchut of the upper structure above the Chazeh is therefore called heart, after the thirty-two paths of wisdom that appear in her.
For this reason, there are two discernments of disclosure of Hochma in the heart: 1) When it is above the Chazeh, in its place. At that time, the Hochma does not appear for itself but to bestow upon the lower structure. 2) When the lower structure rises, integrates with it, and receives Hochma from it. It is considered that this Malchut, the heart, descends with them below the Chazeh where it discloses the illumination of Hochma below.
The first discernment of the disclosure of Hochma is not for itself. Hence, it is considered that it shines similar to the lower structure, meaning only in order to bestow, and not actual illumination for itself. This is so because only in the lower structure below the Chazeh is there actual assembly. And it is written that this assembly of the hand, which is the Tefillin of the hand, Malchut, applies only from the Chazeh down.
The heart is assembled in Hochma, above the Chazeh, as below, since it needs to bestow Hochma downwards to the lower structure. And because it does not shine for itself, it is not considered actual illumination in it.
When the Hochma appears in it, all the hosts of heaven are given to it, since the illumination of Hochma includes and brings all the degrees under it. This is the disclosure of Hochma of the second discernment, when the heart is included in the bottom structure and extends with them, and comes and shines below the Chazeh. And all the degrees of the body are given into his hands, from the Chazeh down. And from the Chazeh de ZA upwards, it is considered ZA, which is called “heaven.” Hence, all the degrees there are called “the hosts of heaven.” And from Chazeh de ZA downwards it is considered Nukva, called “body,” and the degrees there are called “the organs of the body.”
194) Above the heart are four portions on the brain of the head. But the Creator governs them all, the king of all.
The hand Tefillin is considered heart, Malchut, where disclosure of Hochma applies. But the head Tefillin is regarded as brain, ZA, which is a king that governs in covered Hassadim, which it receives from upper AVI in the form of “For He delights in mercy,” and no illumination of Hochma can appear in its place. This is why it is written that the Creator is the high ruler over them, since the Creator, ZA, governs in the four portions of the head and there is no disclosure of illumination of Hochma there.
And the meaning of this Hochma is that it is as in the Temple, as it is written, “And make one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end.” And atop them, the Divinity of the King in the four letters HaVaYaH—Yod–Hey on the right hand side cherub, and Vav–Hey on the left hand side cherub. And in two structures—the upper structure over the right hand side cherub and the lower structure over the left hand side cherub.
195) It is similar with the heart and the brain, which are the hand Tefillin and the head Tefillin. The heart is from here and the brain is from here. And over them is the Divinity of the king in four portions. From here on they are secrets of the Keters of the letters—the portions in their bodies, which are the boxes, and their straps, which are rules for Moses from Sinai. And their meaning had already been revealed in the thirteen qualities of Rachamim.
196) We have come to know the meaning of the verse, “And Abraham took another wife, and her name was Keturah.”
197) The meaning of this verse is, as the friends—the authors of the Mishnah—revealed. When the soul comes in her holy body, those words, “And Abraham took another…” will be said about the wicked who will be revived and will correct their deeds, and the soul will give them a share of its great brightness so they will know and repent and will be rewarded with complete purity.
198) And when Solomon saw that, he was bewildered and said, “Well, I have seen the wicked buried and they came, and they walk away from a holy place.” This means that they will come and live off a holy place when they rise at the revival of the dead.
It is written, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots?” So are the wicked who were not rewarded with returning to this world and sacrificing good deeds. They will never burn incense for the next world. This means that even if they rise for the revival of the dead, they will still not be able to do good deeds because they were not rewarded in their lives.
201) “And the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to the God who gave it.” When the Creator created Adam, He took his dust from the place of the Temple and built his body from the four directions of the world. And each of them gave him strength. Afterwards, He poured over him the spirit of life, as it is written, “And breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.” Then he rose and knew that he consisted of above and below, and then he adhered to the Creator and knew the upper wisdom [Hochma].
202) Similarly, all the people in the world consist of above and below. When all those who know how to sanctify themselves properly in this world have a son, they extend upon him a holy spirit from the place from which all sanctities emerge. And these are called “The Sons of the Creator,” since their bodies have been made in holiness, as it should be. Also, they give it spirit from a high, sublime place, as it should be.
203) When a person is destined to account for his deeds, before he leaves the world, this day is a day of reckoning, when the body and the soul report. Afterwards, the soul departs the body and parts with it, and the body, which was created from dust, returns to dust and everything returns to the place from which it was taken. And until the time when the Creator revives the dead, everything will be concealed from it.
204) And the Creator will bring that very body and that very soul back to the world as before, and renew the face of the world, as it is written, “Thy dead shall live, my corpses will rise.” And that very soul is hidden before the Creator and returns to her place after man’s passing, according to her deeds, as it is written, “And the spirit returns unto God who gave it.” And when He is destined to revive the dead, He will pour down dew from His head upon them, and with that dew, all the bodies will rise from the dust.
205) What is “The dew of lights”? It is actual lights, of those lights above, in whom He is destined to pour life unto the world, when the tree of life, ZA, pours down life that never ceases. This is because now life ceases because when the evil serpent governs, the moon is covered. This means that the Zivug of the upper sun and moon, which are ZON, stops. And for this reason, the waters of ZA seemingly stop, and he is the tree of life. For this reason, life does not properly rule the world.
206) And at that time, that evil inclination, which is the evil serpent, will depart from the world and the Creator will remove him, as it is written, “And I will also remove… and the unclean spirit from the land.” And after he passes from the world, the moon will no longer be covered and the river that stretches out of Eden, which is ZA, will no longer cease its springing. Then it is written, “And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun,” and the light of the sun will be sevenfold.
207) If you say that all the bodies in the world will be revived and will rise from the dust, we should ask, “What of those bodies that were implanted with one soul, or a soul that incarnated in several bodies one by one? What shall become of them? Will they all rise at the revival of the dead or only the last?”
Those bodies that were not rewarded with good deeds and did not successfully complete the soul are as though they never were. They are as a dry tree in that world. And so they will be at the time of the revival of the dead. Only the last body, which was planted and succeeded and properly received its spiritual roots will rise at the revival of the dead.
208) It is written about it, “For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters,” since he bore fruits, meaning good deeds, and planted proper roots above in the upper world, where for each Mitzva [good deed], its corresponding spiritual root appears above. And the previous body, which did not bear fruits and did not strike roots, it is written about it, “For he shall be like a tamarisk in the desert, and shall not see when good comes,” since “When good comes” means the revival of the dead.
209) And that light that is destined to shine for the righteous—which was hidden before him since the day the world was created—will shine, as it is written, “And God saw the light that it was good.” And then the Creator will revive the dead. And it is written, “But unto you that fear My name shall the sun of righteousness arise,” since then the good will prevail in the world. And the one who is called “evil” will be removed from the world. At that time, those bodies that precede the last one will be as though they never existed.
210) The Creator is destined to pour other spirits upon those bodies that precede the last. And if they are rewarded with them and can walk on the straight path, they will rise in the world as it should be. If not, they will be ashes under the feet of the righteous, as it is written, “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake.” And everything is established and destined before the Creator, and all are counted for the time of revival, as it is written, “He that brings out their host by number.”
211) All the dead in the land of Israel will be revived as in the beginning, since the Creator will awaken spirit upon them and will raise them, meaning those in the land of Israel. As for those in other lands, it does not say revival in regards to them, but rising, since the spirit of life is present only in the holy land of Israel. This is why it only says about them, “Your dead shall live.” And those outside the land—their bodies will be created and they will rise in a body without a spirit, and then roll under the dust of the earth until they arrive at the land of Israel where they will receive the soul. And not by another authority, for they will exist in the world properly.
212) When the Creator revives the dead, all those souls that will awaken before Him will all stand before Him, shapes upon shapes, in the very same shape they had had in this world. And the Creator will call them by names, as it is written, “He calls them all by name,” and each soul will come in to its place in the body and they will be revived in the world as they should be. Then the world will be complete.
It is written about that time, “and He will take away the reproach of His people.” This is the evil inclination, which He will remove from the world, which darkens the faces of people and governs them.
213) Thus we see that as long as a person is in that spirit, he is not defiled. When his soul departs him, he is defiled because when that evil inclination takes one’s spirit he defiles it, since he is the evil inclination and he is the angel of death. Hence, after him the body is left impure, since he takes man’s soul with the force of filth of the tree of knowledge, and this filth is the root of all the impurity.
The other nations, the idolaters, are to the contrary. When they are alive they are impure because their souls extend from the side of impurity. And when their bodies are emptied from the impurity, when they die and their souls depart them, the body remains without any impurity. Hence, they do not defile, as it is written, “The graves of idolaters do not defile in the tent.”
214) For this reason, one who clings to a woman from other—idol worshipping nations—is defiled. And the son that he has from her assumes the spirit of impurity. And if you say, “But his father came from Israel; why should he assume the spirit of impurity?” It is because his father was first made impure when he clung to that impure woman. Moreover, he broke the law that was written, “For thou shall bow down to no other god; for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” This means that He is jealous for that covenant, to not desecrate Him with a woman from other nations.
215) We learned that since Abraham knew wisdom, he wished to part from all the others nations and to not cling to them. This is why it is written, “And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that thou shall not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites.” Of course, as it is written, “And has married the daughter of a strange god.” “Among whom I dwell.” Precisely, “I,” for I am Divinity, for she was in exile and he adjured him to not be defiled in them.
216) Anyone who enters this holy covenant in a woman from other nations causes another place to be defiled, for he blemishes the high covenant and causes bestowal upon the maidservant. This is why it is written, “For three things the earth angered.” And even though he adjured him in the covenant, Abraham still did not trust him, but prayed his prayer before the Creator and said, “The Lord, the God of heaven… He will send His angel.” His angel certainly means the angel of the covenant. He would send him so as to keep this covenant and to not be defiled among the nations.
217) “Only do not take my son back there,” since Abraham knew that in all his family there was none who knew the Creator and he did not want Isaac’s abode to be among them, but that his abode would be with him. And Isaac would always learn from him the ways of the Creator, so he will not stray to the right or to the left, but to the middle line. This is why Abraham did not wish for Isaac’s abode to be among them.
218) Abraham’s merit was with the servant, who arrived at the fountain on the same day he departed, as it is written, “And I came this day unto the fountain.”
219) “Open my eyes, that I may see wonders from Your law.” How foolish are people, for they do not know and do not consider engaging in the Torah. But the Torah is the whole of life, and every freedom and every goodness in this world and in the next world. Life in this world is to be rewarded with all their days in this world, as it is written, “The number of thy days I will fulfill.” And he will be rewarded with long days in the next world, for it is the perfect life, a life of joy, life without sadness, life that is life—freedom in this world and liberation from everything—for anyone who engages in Torah, all the nations of the world cannot rule over him.
220) And should you say, “What of those who were destroyed,” meaning the Ten Martyrs, since they engaged in Torah when the law was to not engage in Torah? This is a verdict from above, like Rabbi Akiva and his friends who were killed because they engaged in Torah. This is what He thought above when the world was created. But as a rule, the Torah is freedom from the angel of death, so he cannot control him.
Certainly, if Adam were to cling to the tree of life, which is the Torah, he would not cause death to himself or to the whole world. But because he left the tree of life, which is the Torah, and ate from the tree of knowledge, he caused death to himself and to the world. For this reason, the Creator gave the Torah to Israel.
It is written, “Harut [carved] on the tables; do not pronounce it Harut, but rather Herut [freedom],” for then they were liberated from the angel of death. Had Israel not sinned with the calf and not departed the tree of life, which is the Torah, they would not cause death to return to the world to begin with.
And the Creator said, “I said, ‘You are gods, and all of you are sons of the Most High,’” meaning upon the reception of the Torah. And since you damaged yourselves, meaning sinned, you will indeed die as humans. Hence, that evil serpent that darkened the world cannot govern anyone who engages in the Torah.
221) If one who does not sin does not die, why did Moses die? He died, certainly, but the angel of death did not control him. He did not die by him and was not defiled by him. This is why it is considered that Moses did not die but clung to Divinity and departed to eternal life.
222) As such, he is considered alive, as it is written, “And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a living man.” And one who approaches the Creator is called “alive.” This is why anyone who engages in the Torah has freedom from everything, freedom in this world, from enslavement of the nations of the world, idolaters, and freedom in the next world, since he will not be required to give an account in that world at all.
223) There are several higher and hidden meanings to the Torah, several hidden secrets that are in it. Hence, when David regarded the Torah in the spirit of wisdom, and knew how many wonders emerged from the Torah, he started and said, “Open my eyes, that I may see wonders from Your law.”
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