(înapoi la pagina ZOHAR CUPRINS / VAYIŞLACH – click)
1) “For He will give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee.” When a person arrives in the world, the evil inclination immediately comes along with him and always complains about him, as it is written, “sin coucheth at the door.” Sin coucheth—this is the evil inclination. “At the door”—the door of the womb, meaning as soon as one is born.
2) David called the evil inclination by the name, “sin,” as it is written, “and my sin is ever before me,” because it makes man sin before his Master every day. And this evil inclination does not leave man from the day he is born and for all time. And the good inclination comes to a person from the time he comes to be purified.
3) And when does one come to be purified? When he is thirteen years of age. At that time, a man connects in both the good inclination on the right, and the evil inclination on the left. And these are really two appointed angels, and they are always with man.
4) If a man comes to be purified, the evil inclination surrenders before him and the right governs the left. And both the good inclination and the evil inclination join to keep man in all the roads he travels, as it is written, “For He will give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.”
5) The Creator summoned angels with Jacob, camps of appointees, since he comes complete with the upper tribes, who were all properly whole, as it is written, “And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.” Afterwards, when he was saved from Laban and parted him, Divinity joined him and camps of Holy Angels came to surround him. And he sent of these angels to Esau, as it is written, “And Jacob sent messengers.” Certainly, they were real angels.
6) “The angel of the Lord encamps round about them that fear Him, and delivers them.” It is written, “For He will give His angels charge over thee”—many angels. “His angels charge over thee”—angels as usual. The angel of the Lord encamps round about—Divinity, as it is written, “And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush.” Hence, “the angel of the Lord encamps round about them that fear Him,” to surround them from all sides so as to save them. And when Divinity dwells within man, all the Holy hosts come there.
7) When King David was saved from Achish, king of Gath, the writing says, “The angel of the Lord encamps,” because Divinity has surrounded him and he was saved from Achish, from his people, and from all who attacked him. It is written, “and feigned himself wanton in their hands.” It should have said, “and feigned himself mad in their hands.”
8) However, this concerns the verse, “For I was envious at the wanton.” The Creator told him, “Please, you will still need it.” Because he arrived in the house of Achish and was attacked, it is written, “and feigned himself wanton in their hands,” and then came Divinity and stayed around David.
9) Thus, Divinity dwells only in her domain, which is the Holy Land. Thus, why was Divinity over him at Gath, which is abroad? He replies that certainly, she is not abroad, so no abundance will be sucked out of her. However, to save, she dwells abroad, as well. And here, when Jacob came from the house of Laban, all the Holy camps surrounded him and he did not remain alone.
10) Hence, why is it written, “And Jacob was left alone”? Where were all the camps of messengers that surrounded him and came with him, since he brought danger upon himself when he remained alone at night, and saw the danger with his eye? And since they came to guard him only from an invisible danger, they parted him. And then, before he put himself in danger, he said, “I am not worthy of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which Thou hast shown unto Thy servant.” These are the camps of holy messengers that surrounded him, and now parted him for he had put himself in visible danger.
11) The messengers parted him in order to leave him alone with Esau’s appointee, which came to him by permission from the Upper One. And these messengers went to chant in song, since at that time it was their time to chant in song before the Creator.
The messengers parted him for two reasons:
- To leave him alone with the angel so he would fight him.
- It was their time to chant in song; afterwards, they returned to him.
This is why it is written, “I am not worthy of all the mercies… and now I am become two camps.” The camp of Divinity and all his house were one camp, as it is written, “This is God’s camp.” Hence, why does it say, “two camps”? It indicates that he was complete with both discernments, both parts: white and red, Hassadim and Hochma, right and left.
12) That night was the dominion of the side of Esau—left without right. At that time, it is written, “Let there be light,” without the [Hebrew letter] Vav. This is the fourth night, which cannot shine because it is without Hassadim. For this reason, Jacob was left alone. Jacob, which is the sun, ZA, remained alone—without the Nukva—because the moon, Nukva, was covered from the sun. Also, the Creator’s guard was not entirely removed from Jacob because he could not prevail over him, as it is written, “And he saw that he prevailed not against him.”
13) Why did he not prevail against him? The angel looked to the right of Jacob and saw Abraham, which is the wholeness of the right line. He looked to Jacob’s left and saw Isaac, which is the wholeness from the left line. He looked to Jacob’s body and saw that he was included of right and left, that he was the wholeness of the middle line, and there is no clinging to the Sitra Achra in a place of wholeness, but in a place of dearth. This is why he could not prevail against him. Then, “he touched the hollow of his thigh, which is one pillar that is near the body, which is outside the body. There is a deficiency there, and hence the angel clung to it, “and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was strained.”
14) “The angel of the Lord encamps round about them that fear Him, and delivers them.” Surrounded him from all sides so as to save him from Esau’s minister. And when Divinity dwelt within him, several armies and camps of messengers came with him, and from among these messengers, he sent to Esau.
15) Why did Jacob awaken to send messengers to Esau? Would it not be better to keep silent from him? However, Jacob said, I know that Esau is anxious for the father’s respect, and never vexed him. And I know that since my father is alive, I do not fear him. Therefore, now, as long as my father is alive, I want to appease him. He immediately hurried and sent messengers before him.
16) “Better is he that is ignoble and has a servant, than he that plays the man of rank and lacks bread.” This verse is said about the evil inclination because it always complains against people. And the evil inclination raises man’s heart and desire with pride, and man follows it, curling his hair and his head, until the evil inclination takes pride over him and pulls him to Hell.
17) One who does not follow the evil inclination and is not proud at all, who lowers his spirit, his heart, and his will toward the Creator, the evil inclination overturns and becomes his slave, since it cannot control him. On the contrary, that man controls it, as it is written, “and thou may rule over it.”
18) “…that plays the man of rank”: one who respects himself, curls his hair and prides in his spirit. He lacks bread—lacks faith, as it is written, “the bread of his God does he offer…the bread of their God do they offer.” Bread means Divinity. Here, too, bread is lacking, meaning lack of faith, which is Divinity.
19) “Better is he that is ignoble…” this is Jacob, who lowered his spirit before Esau so that afterwards, Esau will be his slave and he will rule over him and exist in him. “Let peoples serve thee, and nations bow down to thee.” Now it was not at all his time—for Jacob to rule over him. And he was ignoble because Jacob left him to the end of days. And in the end of days, the one who was of rank will then be his slave. The one who will then lack bread, Esau, will be a slave to the one who was given plenty of grain and wine, to Jacob.
20) Because Jacob knew that he was now needy of him, he became ignoble before him. By that, he was wiser and shrewder than on any deed he had ever done against Esau. And had Esau sensed this wisdom, he would have killed himself, so he would not come to it. But Jacob did everything wisely.
(înapoi la pagina ZOHAR CUPRINS / VAYIŞLACH – click)