Tanya
תניא

Part I; Likkutei Amarim 1/2

Title Page

SEFER LIKKUTEI AMARIM * For an introduction to the Tanya, see Addendum, p. a8.
PART ONE
ENTITLED
SEFER SHEL BENONIM
Compiled from (sacred) books and from sages, exalted saints, whose souls are in Eden; based on the verse “For it is exceedingly near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to do”; 1 Deuteronomy 30:14. to explain clearly how it is exceedingly near, in a lengthy and short way, with the aid of the Holy One, blessed be He.

Approbation



Chapter 1

APPROBATION 1 Note that the name of the author was withheld both from the front cover as well as from the Approbations in the first seven editions. Only beginning with the eighth edition (Shklov ‘574 [1814]), the author’s name was included in the title cover posthumously, when also the Approbation by the author’s sons first appeared.
by the famous rabbi and chasid, G–dly man, of saintly renown, our teacher Rabbi Meshulam Zusil of Anipoli: 2 The author’s colleague and a disciple of Rabbi Dov Ber of Miezricz.
I have seen the writings of this rabbi and gaon, G–dly man, saintly and pure, lucid speculum, and well he did, G–d in His wonderful kindness having put into his pure heart to accomplish all this in order to show the G–dly people His holy ways.
It was [the author’s] intention not to publish these writings in print, since it is not his custom. However, because these kuntresim 3 See below, p. 907. have spread in the midst of all Israel in numerous copies by sundry copyists, and, as a result of the many transcriptions, the copyists’ errors have multiplied exceedingly, he was impelled to bring these kuntresim to the printing press.
And G–d has aroused the spirit of the [two] partners, the outstanding and distinguished scholar R. Sholom Shachne, 4 The author’s son-in-law and father of Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch, third leader of Chabad. the son of R. Noah, and the outstanding and distinguished scholar R. Mordechai, the son of R. Shmuel haLevi, to bring these kuntresim to the printing house in Slavita. So I said of this good deed, more power to you.
However, they were apprehensive of the growing number of printing establishments which are wont to cause damage and ruin to the accredited ones. In view of this, we have resolved to give this approbation so that no man should dare lift his hand and foot to cause any damage, Heaven forfend, to the said printers by encroaching upon their exclusive right in any manner.
It is to restrain any person from reprinting this book without the knowledge of the said printers for a period of five full years from the date below. He who will heed these, my words, will be blessed with good.
These are the words of one who demands this for the glory of the Torah, this day, the third, twice blessed with “it is good,” 5 Genesis 1:10, 12. of the weekly portion Tavo, in the year פדותינו (556). 6 I.e., 5556; it is customary to omit the millennial.
The insignificant MESHULAM ZUSIL of Anipoli

Chapter 2

APPROBATION
by the famous rabbi and chasid, G–dly man, of saintly renown, our teacher Rabbi Yehudah Leib haCohen : 7 A disciple of Rabbi Dov Ber of Miezricz and a colleague of the author.
The wisdom of the man illumines the face of the earth 8 Ecclesiastes 8:1. —on seeing the work of the saintly hands of the author, rabbi and gaon, G–dly man, saintly and pure, pious and humble, whose hidden [powers] had been revealed long ago, when he dwelled in the council of the wise with our lord, master and teacher, the world gaon, 9 The reference is to Rabbi Dov Ber of Miezricz, hinted also by the word “מבאר” in מבאר מים חיים—“from the well of living waters.” and drew water from the well of living waters. Now, Israel 10 Alluding to Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov. shall rejoice as his saintly words are revealed in this compiled work, which is about to go to press, to teach the people of G–d the ways of holiness, as anyone can see in the inwardness of [the author’s] words.
That which is common knowledge requires no proof. Only because of the apprehension of a wrong, lest a loss be caused to the printers, I come to confer sanction and prohibition that no man lift up his hand or foot to reprint this work for a period of five years from the below date. Whoever will heed these, my words, will be blessed with good.
These are the words of one who speaks for the glory of the Torah, this third day of the weekly portion Tavo, 556. 11 See above, note 6.
YEHUDA LEIB HACOHEN

Chapter 3

APPROBATION 1 First published in the Shklov, 5574 (1814) edition. See above, p. xxi, note 1.
by the rabbis (long may they live), the sons of the gaon the author (of blessed memory, whose soul is in Eden).
Whereas it has been agreed by us to give authorization and prerogative to bring to the printing press, for a remembrance unto the children of Israel, the written words of uprightness and truth, the words of the Living G–d, authored by our lord father, teacher, and master, of blessed memory, recorded personally in his saintly expression, whose words are all burning coals to set the hearts aflame to bring them closer to their Father in heaven; they are entitled Iggeret Hakodesh (“Holy Epistle”), being mostly epistles sent by his holy eminence, to teach the people of G–d the way by which to walk and the deed which they should do;
And inasmuch as he has made references, in many places, to the Sefer Likkutei Amarim, since the words of the Torah are scanty in one place and ample in another, 2 Jerusalem Talmud, Rosh Hashanah 3:5. especially also as he introduced new material in the Kuntres Acharon on certain chapters which he wrote when he composed the Sefer Likkutei Amarim, profound discussions on passages in the Zohar, Etz Chaim, and Pri Etz Chaim, which [passages] appear contradictory to one another, but he, with his inspired perception, has reconciled them, each statement in its own manner, as he has written in the Likkutei Amarim, we have seen fit and proper to join them with the Sefer Likkutei Amarim and Iggeret Hateshuvah 3 Note that Shaar Hayichud VehaEmunah (part II of the Tanya ) is not mentioned here; neither is it mentioned in the title cover. of his saintly eminence, our lord father, teacher, and master, of blessed memory;
[Therefore], we come to place a great fence and the rabbinic injunction of נח"ש 4 נדוי, חרם, שמתא—three forms of excommunication. (excommunication), for which there is no remedy, that no man lift his hand to reprint them in their present form, or in part, for a period of five years from the date below.
However, this should be made known: To our misfortune the manuscripts written by his personal saintly hand, which were composed with great punctiliousness, without a superfluous or deficient letter, have become extinct; only this little has remained from the abundance, and it has been carefully collected one by one from the copies spread among the disciples. Should, therefore, an error be discovered (“who can understand [and prevent] errors?”) 5 Psalms 19:13., the evident error will be identified as a scribe’s error, but the meaning will be clear.
Today is the 5th day [Thursday], 22 Iyar, [5]574
Declared by DOV BER, the son of my lord father, teacher and master, gaon and chasid, saint of Israel, our teacher and master SCHNEUR ZALMAN of blessed memory, his soul rests in the hidden treasures of heaven.
Also declared by CHAYIM ABRAHAM, the son of my lord father, teacher and master, gaon and chasid, our teacher and master SCHNEUR ZALMAN, the memory of the tzaddik be blessed, his soul rests in the hidden treasures of heaven.
Also declared by MOSHE, the son of my lord father, teacher and master, gaon and chasid, SCHNEUR ZALMAN, of blessed memory, his soul rests in the hidden treasures of heaven.

Compiler's Foreword

COMPILER’S FOREWORD 1 Hakdamat Hamelaket —for the author considers himself merely a “compiler.” Being an Epistle sent to the Communities of our Faithful. May the Almighty guard them.
To you, O men, do I call. Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, who seek the L–rd; and may G–d hearken to you, both great and small, all the faithful in our land and those adjacent to it. May each in his place achieve peace and eternal life for ever and ever. Amen. May this be His will.
Behold, it is known as a saying current among people—all our faithful—that listening to words of moral advice is not the same as seeing and reading them in books. For the reader reads after his own manner and mind and according to his mental grasp and comprehension at that particular time. Hence, if his intelligence and mind are confused and wander about in darkness in G–d’s service, he finds difficulty in seeing the beneficial light that is concealed in books, even though the light is pleasant to the eyes and [brings] a healing to the soul.
Apart from this, the books on piety, which stem from human intelligence, 2 As contrasted with books which the author considers divinely inspired, of which he speaks in the following part. certainly have not the same appeal for all people, for not all intellects and minds are alike, and the intellect of one man is not affected and excited by what affects [and excites] 3 In the Hebrew text the word ומתעורר (“and excites”) is added according to Luach HaTikkun ( List of Text Emendations in the Tanya ), by the Lubavitcher Rebbe (below, p. 781). the intellect of another. Compare with what our Rabbis, of blessed memory, have said 4 Berachot 58a. with reference to the blessing of the “Wise One in secrets” (חכם הרזים) upon beholding 600,000 Jews, because their minds are dissimilar from one another, and so on. 5 The blessing praises G–d, Who knows the secrets in the hearts of all men. As also Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, of blessed memory, [explains the reason for this blessing] in Milchamot, elaborating on the commentary of the Sifrei concerning Joshua, who is described as “a man in whom there is spirit,” 6 Numbers 27:18. “who can meet the spirit of each and every one,” 7 Cf. Rashi’s commentary on said verse. and so on.
But even the books on piety, whose basis are in the peaks of holiness, the Midrashim of our Sages, of blessed memory, through whom the spirit of G–d speaks and His word is on their tongue; and [although] the Torah and the Holy One, blessed is He, are one and the same, and all the 600,000 general [souls] 8 In the Hebrew text the word נשמות (“souls”) is added according to Luach HaTikkun. of Israel with their individual [offshoots] down to the “spark” in the most worthless and least estimable members of our people, the children of Israel, are thus bound up with the Torah, and the Torah binds them to the Holy One, blessed is He, as is known from the holy Zohar 9 III:73a, see Some Aspects of Chabad Chassidism, pp. 18 ff. Revised edition: On the Study of Chasidus—A Trilogy of Chasidic Essays (Kehot, 1997), pp. 7 ff. —this [bond] pertains [only] in a general way to the community of Israel as a whole.
[As for the individual,] although the Torah was given to be interpreted, in general and in particular down to the minutest detail, to [apply to] each individual soul of Israel, which is rooted in it [so that these books pertain to every person], nevertheless not every person is privileged to recognize his individual place in the Torah.
[A further difficulty is the complexity of Torah interpretation.] Even in the case of the laws governing things prohibited and permitted, which have been revealed to us and to our children, 10 The expression “revealed to us and to our children” is taken from Deuteronomy 29:28. The first part of this verse is quoted by the author later. See also below, beg. ch. 44. we find and witness differences of opinion among Tanaim and Amoraim from one extreme to the other. Yet “these as well as these are the words of the living G–d.” 11 Eruvin 13b. The plural 12 Elokim chayim, rather than eloka chay. is used as a reference to the source of life for the souls of Israel, which are generally divided into three categories—right, left, and center, namely, kindness ( chesed ), might ( gevurah ), and so on, 13 The third category is tiferet (“beauty”). See Iggeret Hakodesh, sect. 15. so that the souls, whose roots originate in the category of kindness, are likewise inclined toward kindness in the leniency of their decisions, and so forth, 14 See ibid., sect. 13 for more light on the subject. as is known.
All the more, a minori ad mains, in the case of those things which are hidden [yet revealed only] to the L–rd our G–d, 15 See above, note 11. these being the awe and love that are in the mind and heart of each and every one according to his capacity, i.e., according to his heart’s estimation, 16 A reinterpretation of the word shi’ur (“an estimated measure”) and shaar (“gate”) in the Biblical quotation following. as explained in the holy Zohar 17 I:103a-b. on the verse, “Her husband is known in the gates ( she’arim )….” 18 Proverbs 31:23.
I speak, however, of those who know me well, each and every one of our faithful who lives in our country and in lands adjacent to it, with whom words of affection have been frequently exchanged and who have revealed to me all the secrets of their heart and mind in the service of G–d, which is dependent on the heart. 19 Taanit 2a. Cf. Bachya’s Introduction to his Duties of the Heart. May my word percolate to them, and my tongue be as the pen of the scribe in these kuntresim that are entitled Likkutei Amarim (Selected Discourses), which have been selected from books and teachers, 20 On the sources of the Tanya see Introduction (Addendum, p. a ). heavenly saints, whose souls are in Eden, and who are renowned among us.
[The subjects of] some of [these discourses] are hinted to the wise, in the sacred epistles of our teachers 21 Rabbi Schneur Zalman regarded some of his senior colleagues, the disciples of R. Dov Ber of Miezricz (among whom he himself was the youngest) as his “teachers,” esp. R. Mendel Horodoker. in the Holy Land, may it be built and established speedily in our days, Amen; some of them I have heard from their saintly mouth when they were here with us; and all of them are responsa to many questions which all our faithful in our country have constantly asked, seeking advice, each according to his station, so as to receive moral guidance in the service of G–d, since time no longer permits of replying to everyone individually and in detail on his particular problem. Furthermore, forgetfulness is common.
I have, therefore, recorded all the replies to all the questions, to be preserved as a signpost and to serve as a visual reminder for each and every person, so that he will no longer press for admission to private conference with me. For in these [responsa] he will find peace for his soul and true counsel on every matter that he finds difficult in the service of G–d. His heart will thus be firmly secured in the L–rd, Who completes everything for us.
As for him whose mind falls short in the understanding of the counsel given in these kuntresim, let him discuss his problem with the foremost scholars of his town, and they will elucidate it for him. And I beg of them not to lay their hand on their mouth to conduct themselves with false meekness and humility, G–d forbid. It is known what bitter punishment is his who withholds food [i.e., knowledge], and the greatness of the reward [in the opposite case], from the Rabbinic teaching 22 Temurah 16a. relating to the Scriptural text, “The L–rd lightens the eyes of them both,” 23 Proverbs 29:13. for G–d will cause His face to shine upon them, with the light of the Countenance of the King, [the Source of] life. May the Giver of life to the living make us worthy to live to see the days when “no longer shall one man instruct the other…for all shall know Me…,” 24 Jeremiah 31:33. “for the world shall be full of the knowledge of G–d…,” 25 Isaiah 11:9. Amen. May this be His will.
Since the said kuntresim have been disseminated among all our faithful, as mentioned above, by means of numerous transcriptions by the hands of various and sundry scribes, the multitude of transcriptions brought about an exceedingly great number of copyists’ errors. Therefore the spirits of the noble men, named on another page, have generously moved them to a personal and financial effort to have the said kuntresim published, cleared of chaff and errors, and thoroughly checked. I congratulate them on this worthy deed.
And inasmuch as there is an explicit verse, “Cursed be he who removes his neighbor’s landmark” 26 Deuteronomy 27:17. —and “cursed” includes both damnation and shunning, 27 Shevuot 36a. G–d forbid—therefore, “like Judah and Scripture in addition” 28 Kiddushin 6a. I come to invoke a strict prohibition on all publishers against printing the said kuntresim, either themselves or through their agency without the authority of the above-named, for a period of five years from the day that this printing is completed. And it will be well with those who conform, and they will be blessed with good.
These are the words of the compiler of the said Likkutei Amarim.





Chapter 1

It has been taught [ Niddah, end ch. 3]: An oath is administered to him [before birth, warning him]: “Be righteous and be not wicked; and even if the whole world tells you that you are righteous, in your own eyes regard yourself as if you were wicked.” 1   Niddah 30b. The “oath” is also explained in terms of a delegation of power to the soul so that it be able to fulfill its destiny in life on earth. Cf. Kitzurim V’Hearot L’Sefer Likkutei Amarim, ed. Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch (Kehot, 1948; 1989), pp. 66f.
This requires to be understood, for it contradicts the Mishnaic dictum [ Avot, ch. 2], “And be not wicked in your own estimation.” 2   Avot 2:13.
Furthermore, if a man considers himself to be wicked he will be grieved at heart and depressed, and he will not be able to serve G–d joyfully and with a contented heart; while if he is not perturbed by this [self-appraisal], it may lead him to irreverence, G–d forbid. 3  The apparent contradiction between the two sources is explained in ch. 13. The meaning of both the Baraita and Mishnah is expounded in chs. 13, 14, 29, and 34.
However, the matter [will be understood after a preliminary discussion]. We find in the Gemara 4   Berachot 7a; cf. Rosh Hashanah 16b. five distinct types—a righteous man who prospers, a righteous man who suffers, a wicked man who prospers, a wicked man who suffers, and a benoni (an intermediate person). 5  The author borrows this term for the alternative name of his work, Sefer shel Benonim, but he uses the term in a different sense.
It is there explained that the “righteous man who prospers” is the perfect tzaddik ; the “righteous man who suffers” is the imperfect tzaddik. In Raaya Mehemna, Parashat Mishpatim 6   Zohar II:117b. it is explained that the “righteous man who suffers” is one whose evil nature is subservient to his good nature, 7  This is a play on the words rendered literally “the evil (belongs) to him,” i.e., he is master of the evil nature in him. and so on. In the Gemara, end of ch. 9 of Berachot, 8   Berachot 61b. it is stated that the righteous are judged by their good nature…and the wicked by their evil nature, while the intermediate are judged by both, and so on. 9  Cf. beg. ch. 9. Rabbah declared, “I, for example, am a benoni.” Said Abbaye to him, “Master, you do not make it possible for anyone to live,” and so on. 10  Since there was none greater than Rabbah, it would mean that there was not even one tzaddik in the world, and all who are of lesser stature than Rabbah would be placed in the Book of the Wicked to be condemned to immediate death ( Rosh Hashanah 16b).
To understand all the aforesaid clearly an explanation is needed, as also to understand what Job said [ Bava Batra, ch. 1], “Master of the universe, You have created righteous men and You have created wicked men…,” 11   Bava Batra 16a. for it is not preordained whether a man will be righteous or wicked. 12   Niddah 16b. The answer to this question will be found in ch. 14.
It is also necessary to understand the essential nature of the rank of the benoni. Surely that cannot mean one whose deeds are half virtuous and half sinful, for if this were so, how could Rabbah err in classifying himself as a benoni? For it is known that he never ceased studying [the Torah], so much so that the Angel of Death could not overpower him; 13  Cf. Bava Metzia 86a. how, then, could he err to have half of his deeds sinful, G–d forbid?
Furthermore, [at what stage can a person be considered a benoni if] when a man commits sins he is deemed completely wicked [but when he repents afterward he is deemed completely righteous]? Even he who violates a minor prohibition of the Rabbis is called wicked, as it is stated in Yevamot, ch. 2, and in Niddah, ch. 1.
Moreover, even he who has the opportunity to forewarn another against sinning and does not do so is called wicked [ch. 6, Shevuot ]. 14   Shevuot 39b.
All the more so he who neglects any positive law which he is able to fulfill, for instance, whoever is able to study Torah and does not, regarding whom our Sages have quoted, 15   Sanhedrin 99a. “Because he has despised the word of the L–rd…[that soul] shall be utterly cut off….” 16  Numbers 15:31. It is thus plain that such a person is called wicked, more than he who violates a prohibition of the Rabbis.
If this is so, we must conclude that the benoni is not guilty even of the sin of neglecting to study the Torah. 17  The reiteration of the sin of neglect of Torah study is due to its prevalent nature and the difficulty of avoiding it completely (cf. end ch. 25). The author is emphasizing that the benoni is innocent even of this and certainly of transgressions more easily avoidable. Hence Rabbah could have mistaken himself for a benoni.
NOTE: As far what is written in the Zohar III, p. 231: He whose sins are few is classed as a “righteous man who suffers”; 18  The contradiction is in the implication that “few sins” are not inconsistent with the rank of tzaddik. this is the query of Rav Hamnuna to Elijah. But according to Elijah’s answer, ibid., the explanation of a “righteous man who suffers” is as stated in Raaya Mehemna on Parashat Mishpatim, which is given above. And the Torah has seventy facets [modes of interpretation]. 19  Hence the reason for Rav Hamnuna’s query. Otiot d’Rabbi Akiva : comp. Bamidbar Rabbah 14:12.
And as for the general saying 20  Cf. Maimonides, Hilchot Teshuvah 3:1; Rashi, Rosh Hashanah 16b. that one whose deeds and misdeeds are equally balanced is called benoni, while he whose virtues outweigh his sins is called a tzaddik, this is only the figurative use of the term in regard to reward and punishment, because he is judged according to the majority [of his acts] and he is deemed “righteous” in his verdict, since he is acquitted in law. But concerning the true definition and quality of the distinct levels and ranks, “righteous” and “intermediate,” our Sages have remarked 21   Berachot 61b. that the righteous are motivated [solely] by their good nature, as it is written, “And my heart is a void within me,” 22  Psalms 109:22. that is, void of an evil nature, because he [David] had slain it through fasting. 23  Cf. beg. ch. 9. But whoever has not attained this degree, even though his virtues exceed his sins, cannot at all be reckoned to have ascended to the rank of the tzaddik.
This is why our Sages have declared in the Midrash, “The Holy One, blessed is He, saw that the righteous were few, so He planted them in every generation…,” 24  Cf. Yoma 38b. [for,] as it is written, “The tzaddik is the foundation of the world.” 25  Proverbs 10:25.
The explanation [of the questions raised above] is to be found in the light of what Rabbi Chaim Vital wrote in Shaar HaKedushah [and in Etz Chaim, Portal 50, ch. 2] that in every Jew, whether righteous or wicked, are two souls, as it is written, 26  Hebrew text should read וכדכתיב instead of דכתיב as amended (see Luach HaTikkun ), because the Biblical text is here only loosely interpreted, for the word “souls” refers to the collective noun, not to two souls. “The neshamot (souls) which I have made,” 27  Isaiah 57:16. [alluding to] two souls. There is one soul which originates in the kelipah and sitra achara, [and] which is clothed in the blood of a human being, giving life to the body, as is written, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood.” 28  Leviticus 17:11. From it stem all the evil characteristics deriving from the four evil elements which are contained in it. These are: anger and pride, which emanate from the element of Fire, the nature of which is to rise upward; the appetite for pleasures—from the element of Water, for water makes to grow all kinds of enjoyment; frivolity and scoffing, boasting and idle talk from the element of Air; and sloth and melancholy—from the element of Earth.
From this soul stems also the good characteristics which are to be found in the innate nature of all Israel, such as mercy and benevolence.
For in the case of Israel, this soul of the kelipah is derived from kelipat nogah, which also contains good, as it originates in the esoteric “tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.” 29  Cf. Zohar I:12b.
The souls of the nations of the world, however, emanate from the other, unclean kelipot which contain no good whatsoever, as is written in Etz Chaim, Portal 49, ch. 3, that all the good that the nations do is done from selfish motives. So the Gemara 30   Bava Batra 10b. comments on the verse, “The kindness of the nations is sin” 31  Proverbs 14:34. —that all the charity and kindness done by the nations of the world is only for their own self-glorification, and so on.

Chapter 2

The second soul of a Jew is truly a part of G–d above, 1  Job 31:2; cf. also Psalms 16:5; 73:26; Jeremiah 10:16. as it is written, “He breathed into his nostrils a soul of life,” 2  Genesis 2:7; comp. Nachmanides’ Commentary, ad loc. and “You have breathed it [the soul] into me.” 3  Liturgy, Morning Prayer. Berachot 60b. And it is written in the Zohar, “He who blows, blows from within him,” that is to say, from his inwardness and his innermost, for it is something of his internal and innermost vitality that man emits through exhaling with force.
So, allegorically speaking, have the souls of Jews risen in the [Divine] thought, 4  Cf. Bereishit Rabbah 1:4. as it is written, “My firstborn son is Israel,” 5  Exodus 4:22. and “You are the children of the L–rd your G–d.” 6  Deuteronomy 14:1. That is to say, just as a child is derived from his father’s brain, so—to use an anthropomorphism—the soul of each Israelite is derived from His thought and wisdom, blessed be He. For He is wise—but not through a knowable wisdom, 7   Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 12b. because He and His wisdom are one; and as Maimonides says
NOTE: And the Sages of the Kabbalah have agreed with him as is stated in Pardes 8   Shaar Mehut VeHanhagah, ch. 13. of Rabbi Moshe Cordovero. Also according to the Kabbalah of the Arizal 9  Rabbi Yitzchak Luria Ashkenazi, of blessed memory (1534-1572). this is substantiated in the mystic principle of the “clothing of the light” of the En Sof, 10   En Sof : The Endless, or Infinite. A term frequently used in the Zohar and later Kabbalistic works to indicate the Unknowable G–d. blessed is He, through numerous contractions within the vessels of chabad 11   ChaBaD is an acronym formed of the initial letters of the Hebrew words chochmah (“wisdom”), binah (“understanding”), and daat (“knowledge”), the first three of the ten sefirot. The corresponding faculties of the soul are defined in ch. 3. of [the world of] Atzilut (Emanation), but no higher than that. 12  Above the World of Atzilut, the Unknowable G–d cannot be defined. For, as is explained elsewhere, the En Sof, blessed is He, is infinitely exalted over, and transcends, the essence and level of chabad, which in relation to Him are regarded as a material action, 13  Accordingly, in terms of the Kabbalistic scale, Maimonides had nothing to say about G–d except from the World of Atzilut and “down.” It is in the world of Atzilut where Kabbalah and Maimonides first meet, so to speak. as is written, “You have made them all with wisdom.” 14  Psalms 104:24.
that “He is the Knowledge and Knower…and this is not within the power of any man to comprehend clearly…,” 15   Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah 2:10. as it is written, “Can you find G–d by searching?” 16  Job 11:7. And it is also written, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts….” 17  Isaiah 55:8.
And though there are myriads of different gradations of souls ( neshamot ), rank upon rank, ad infinitum, as with the superiority of the souls of the Patriarchs and of Moses our Teacher above the souls of our own generations who live in the period preceding the coming of the Messiah, which are as the very soles 18  A play on the word עקבתא, “soles.” of the feet compared with the brain and head, so in every generation there are the leaders of the Jews, whose souls are in the category of “head” and “brain” in comparison with those of the masses and the ignorant. Likewise [are there distinctions between] nefashot and nefashot, for every soul consists of nefesh, ruach, and neshamah. 19  Cf. Zohar I:206a; II:141b, etc.; also Shnei Luchot HaBrit I, 9b.
Nevertheless, the root of every nefesh, ruach, and neshamah, from the highest of all ranks to the lowest that is embodied within the illiterate and the most worthless, all derive, as it were, from the supreme mind which is chochmah ilaah (supernal wisdom). 20  The doctrine that all souls are related in that they all come from the same source was given much emphasis by the founder of Chasidut, the Baal Shem Tov, and was a major issue of contention between the protagonists and antagonists of Chasidut. The author elaborates on it in ch. 32 (לב).
[The manner of this descent is] analogous to that of a son who is derived from his father’s brain, in that [even] the nails of his feet come into existence from the very same drop of semen, by being in the mother’s womb for nine months, descending degree by degree, changing continually, until even the nails are formed from it.
Yet [after all this process] it is still bound and united with a wonderful and essential unity with its original essence and being, which was the drop [as it came] from the father’s brain. And even now, in the son, the nails receive their nourishment and life from the brain that is in the head. As is written in the Gemara [ Niddah, ibid.], 21   Niddah 31a. “from the white of the father’s drop of semen are formed the veins, the bones, and the nails.” [And in Etz Chaim, Shaar HaChashmal, it is likewise stated, in connection with the esoteric principle of Adam’s garments in the Garden of Eden, that they [the garments] were the “nails” [derived] from the cognitive faculty of the brain].
So, as it were, is it actually true of the root of every nefesh, ruach and neshamah in the community of Israel on high: in descending degree by degree, through the descent of the worlds of Atzilut (Emanation), Beriah (Creation), Yetzirah (Formation) and Asiyah (Action) from His wisdom, blessed be He, as it is written, “You have made them all with wisdom,” 22  Psalms 104:24. the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah of the ignorant and unworthy come into being.
Nevertheless they remain bound and united with a wonderful and essential unity with their original essence and entity; namely, the extension of chochmah ilaah (supernal wisdom), inasmuch as the nurture and life of the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah of the ignorant are drawn from the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah of the saints and sages, the heads of Israel in their generation.
This explains the comment of our Sages on the verse, “And to cleave to Him” 23  Deuteronomy 30:20. —“He who cleaves to a scholar [of the Torah] is deemed by the Torah as if he had become attached to the very Shechinah (Divine Presence).” 24   Ketuvot 111b. For, through attachment to the scholars, the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah of the ignorant are bound up and united with their original essence and their root in the supernal wisdom, He and His wisdom being one, and “He is the Knowledge….” 25  See above, note 15.
[As for those who willfully sin and rebel against the Sages, the nurture of their nefesh, ruach, and neshamah comes from behind the back, 26  I.e., ungraciously, or unwittingly. The concept is more fully explained in ch. 22. as it were, of the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah of the scholars].
As for what is written in the Zohar 27  Cf. Zohar II:204b ff.; III:80-82. and in Zohar Chadash, 28   Bereishit, p. 11. to the effect that the essential factor is to conduct oneself in a holy manner during sexual union, which is not the case with the children of the ignorant, and so on, it is to be understood as meaning that since there is not a nefesh, ruach, and neshamah which has not a garment of the nefesh of its father’s and mother’s essence, and all the commandments that it fulfills are all influenced by that garment…, and even the benevolence that flows to one from heaven is all given through that garment—hence, through self-sanctification, one will cause to descend for the neshamah of one’s child a holy garment; and however great a soul it may be, it still needs the father’s sanctification….
But as for the soul itself, it sometimes happens that the soul of an infinitely lofty person comes to be the son of a despised and lowly man…. All this has been explained by the Arizal 9 in Likkutei Torah on Parashat Vayera and in Taamei Hamitzvot on Parashat Bereishit.

Chapter 3

Now, each distinction and grade of the three— nefesh, ruach, and neshamah —consists of 1  Elsewhere (e.g., Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 1a; 51b; Shir Hashirim 16d) the author makes it clear that the soul does not “consist” of the ten faculties, but rather manifests itself through them, since the soul itself is essentially unknowable. ten faculties, corresponding to the supernal ten sefirot (Divine manifestations), 2  The ten sefirot are more fully discussed by the author in the fourth part of the book, Iggeret Hakodesh, sect. 15 and elsewhere. from which they have descended, which are subdivided into two, namely, the three “mothers” and the seven “multiples,” namely, chochmah (wisdom), binah (understanding), and daat (knowledge); and the “seven days of Creation”: chesed (kindness), gevurah (power), tiferet (beauty), and so on. 3  Ibid.
Similarly is it with the human soul, which is divided in two— sechel (intellect) and middot (emotional attributes).
The intellect includes chochmah, binah, and daat ( chabad ), while the middot are love of G–d, dread and awe of Him, glorification of Him, and so forth.
Chabad [the intellectual faculties] are called “mothers” and source of the middot, for the latter are “offspring” of the former.
The explanation of the matter is as follows: The intellect of the rational soul, which is the faculty that conceives any thing, is given the appellation of chochmah —כ“ח מ“ה—the “potentiality” of “what is.” 4   Zohar III:28a; 34a. A play on the Hebrew word חכמה—כ“ח מ“ה. It is also to be understood as “pure” or creative reason in potentia.
When one brings forth this power from the potential into the actual, that is, when [a person] cogitates with his intellect in order to understand a thing truly and profoundly as it evolves from the concept which he has conceived in his intellect, this is called binah.
These [ chochmah and binah ] are the very “father” and “mother” which give birth to love of G–d, and awe and dread of Him.
For when the intellect in the rational soul deeply contemplates and immerses itself exceedingly in the greatness of G–d, how He fills all worlds and encompasses all worlds, 5  I.e., both immanently and transcendency. Zohar III:225a. and in the presence of Whom everything is considered as nothing 6   Zohar I:11b. —there will be born and aroused in his mind and thought the emotion of awe for the Divine majesty, to fear and be humble before His greatness, blessed be He, which is without end or limit, and to have the dread of G–d in his heart.
Next, his heart will glow with an intense love, like burning coals, with a passion, desire and longing, and a yearning soul, toward the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He.
This constitutes the culminating passion of the soul, of which Scripture speaks, as “My soul yearns, indeed it pines…,” 7  Psalms 84:3. and “My soul thirsts for G–d…,” 8  Psalms 42:3. and “My soul thirsts for You….” 9  Psalms 63:2.
This thirst is derived from the element of Fire, which is found in the divine soul. As students of natural science affirm, and so it is in Etz Chaim, the element of Fire is in the heart, while the source of [the element of] Water and moisture is in the brain, which is explained in Etz Chaim, Portal 50, to refer to the faculty of chochmah, 10  Water descends from high places. It is symbolically identified with chochmah, the highest of the ten sefirot, and also with chesed, the first of the middot. called “the water of the divine soul.”
The rest of the middot are all offshoots of fear and love and their derivations, as is explained elsewhere.
Daat, the etymology of which is to be found in the verse, “And Adam knew ( yada ) Eve,” 11  Genesis 4:1. implies attachment and union. That is, one binds his mind with a very firm and strong bond to, and firmly fixes his thought on, the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, without diverting his mind [from Him].
For even one who is wise and understanding of the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, will not—unless he binds his knowledge and fixes his thought with firmness and perseverance—produce in his soul true love and fear, but only vain fancies.
Therefore daat is the basis of the middot and the source of their vitality; it contains chesed and gevurah, that is to say, love with its offshoots and fear with its offshoots. 12  Love and fear (awe) are two basic emotions latent in the soul, which are produced by contemplation. The faculty of daat stimulates these higher emotions to seek an outlet through the three “garments” of the soul, discussed in the following chapter.

Chapter 4

In addition, 1  Having outlined in ch. 3 the intrinsic faculties of the soul, the author goes on to explain how they express themselves through the three outer “garments,” or instruments. every divine soul ( nefesh elokit ) possesses three garments, viz., thought, speech, and action, [expressing themselves] in the 613 commandments of the Torah. For, when a person actively 2  All italics are the translator’s. fulfills all the precepts which require physical action, 3  Note that “action” is put first. and with his power of speech he occupies himself in expounding all the 613 commandments and their practical application, and with his power of thought he comprehends all that is comprehensible to him in the Pardes 4  Literally meaning “orchard,” it is taken as an acronym of the four Hebrew words פשט, רמז, דרוש, סוד, meaning: plain sense, intimation, homiletical exposition, and esoteric meaning, respectively, the four levels of Scriptural interpretation. of the Torah—then the totality of the 613 “organs” of his soul 5  The physical organism of the human body consists of 248 members and 365 blood vessels, corresponding to the 248 positive and 365 prohibitive commands ( Tanchuma Hakadum, Teitzei; Makkot 24a). The soul contains the spiritual counterparts of these 613 “organs.” (See below, ch. 51.) are clothed in the 613 commandments of the Torah.
Specifically: the faculties of chabad in his soul are clothed in the comprehension of the Torah, which he comprehends in Pardes, to the extent of his mental capacity and the supernal root of his soul. And the middot, namely fear and love, together with their offshoots and ramifications, are clothed in the fulfillment of the commandments in deed and in word, namely, in the study of Torah which is “equivalent to them all.” 6  Mishnah, Peah 1:1.
For love is the root of all the 248 positive commands, all originating in it and having no true foundation without it, inasmuch as he who fulfills them in truth truly loves the name of G–d and desires to cleave to Him in truth; for one cannot truly cleave to Him except through the fulfillment of the 248 commandments which are the 248 “organs of the King,” 7   Tikkunei Zohar 30. as it were, as is explained elsewhere; 8  Below, ch. 23. while fear is the root of the 365 prohibitive commands, fearing to rebel against the Supreme King of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He;
or a still deeper fear than this—when he feels ashamed in the presence of the Divine greatness to rebel against His glory and do what is evil in His eyes, namely, any of the abominable things hated by G–d, which are the kelipot and sitra achara, which draw their nurture from man below and have their hold in him through the 365 prohibitive commands [that he violates].
Now these three “garments,” deriving from the Torah and its commandments, although they are called “garments” of the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah, their quality, nevertheless, is infinitely higher and greater than that of the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah themselves, 9  The soul itself, as the subject loving and fearing G–d, must remain apart from G–d; it is only through its “garments” that it attains true identity with G–d, as further explained in ch. 35. as explained in the Zohar, 10  I:24a; II:60a. See below, beg. ch. 23. because the Torah and the Holy One, blessed is He, are one. The meaning of this is that the Torah, which is the wisdom and will of the Holy One, blessed is He, and His glorious Essence are one, since He is both the Knower and the Knowledge, and so on, as explained above in the name of Maimonides.
And although the Holy One, blessed is He, is called En Sof (“Infinite”), and “His greatness can never be fathomed,” 11  Psalms 145:3. and “no thought can apprehend Him at all,” 12   Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 17a. and so are also His will and His wisdom, as it is written, “There is no searching of His understanding” 13  Isaiah 40:28. and “Can you find G–d by searching?” 14  Job 11:7. and again, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts” 15  Isaiah 55:8.
—nevertheless, it is in this connection that it has been said: “Where you find the greatness of the Holy One, blessed is He, there you also find His humility.” 16  Megillah 31a. This is interpreted to mean that G–d combines the powers of expansion (“greatness”) and contraction (“humility”), which come into play in the process of tzimtzum. Cf. Zohar I:140a; II:99a; III:58a, 159a. For the Holy One, blessed is He, has compressed His will and wisdom within the 613 commandments of the Torah and in their laws, as well as within the combination of the letters of the Torah, the books of the Prophets and the Writings, and in the exposition thereof which are to be found in the Aggadot and Midrashim of our Rabbis of blessed memory.
All this in order that each neshamah, or ruach, and nefesh in the human body should be able to comprehend them through its faculty of understanding, and to fulfill them, as far as they can be fulfilled, in act, speech, and thought, thereby clothing itself with all its ten faculties in these three garments.
Therefore has the Torah been compared to water, 17  Bava Kama 17a. for just as water descends from a higher to a lower level, so has the Torah descended from its place of glory, which is His will and wisdom, blessed be He; [for] the Torah and the Holy One, blessed is He, are one and the same and no thought can apprehend Him at all.
From there [the Torah] has progressively descended through hidden stages, stage after stage, with the descent of the worlds, until it clothed itself in corporeal substances and in things of this world, comprising almost all of the commandments of the Torah, their laws, and in the combinations of material letters, written with ink in a book, namely, the 24 volumes of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings; all this in order that every thought should be able to apprehend them, and even the faculties of speech and action, which are on a lower level than thought, should be able to apprehend them and be clothed in them.
Thus, since the Torah and its commandments “clothe” all ten faculties of the soul with all its 613 organs from head to foot, it [the soul] is altogether truly bound up in the Bundle of Life with G–d, 18  I Samuel 25:29. and the very light of G–d envelops and clothes it from head to foot, as it is written, “G–d is my Rock, I will take refuge in Him,” 19  Psalms 18:3. and it is also written, “You will envelop him with favor ( ratzon —will) as with a shield,” 20  Psalms 5:13. that is to say, with His will and wisdom, blessed be He, which are clothed in His Torah and its commandments.
Hence it has been said: “Better is one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world than the whole life of the World to Come.” 21   Avot 4:17. For, the World to Come is that state where one enjoys the effulgence of the Divine Presence, 22   Berachot 16b. which is the pleasure of comprehension, yet no created being—even celestial—can comprehend more than some reflection of the Divine light; that is why the reference is to “effulgence of the Divine Presence” ( Ziv haShechinah ). 23  I.e., the “glow” of the Shechinah, not the Shechinah itself. Note the author’s interpretation of זיו in this context as a remote gleam, a mere reflection. But as for the essence of the Holy One, blessed is He, no thought can apprehend Him at all, except when it apprehends, and is clothed in, the Torah and its mitzvot ; only then does it truly apprehend, and is clothed in, the Holy One, blessed is He, inasmuch as the Torah and the Holy One, blessed is He, are one and the same.
For although the Torah has been clothed in lower material things, it is by way of illustration, like embracing the king. There is no difference, in regard to the degree of closeness and attachment to the king, whether while embracing the king, the latter is then wearing one robe or several robes, so long as the royal person is in them.
Likewise, when the king, for his part, embraces one with his arm, even though it is dressed in his robes; as it is written, “And His right hand embraces me,” 24  Song of Songs 8:3. which refers to the Torah which was given by G–d’s right hand, 25  Deuteronomy 35:2. which is the quality of chesed and water. 26  In Kabbalah, the “right” hand or side is the side of benevolence. Chesed and water are synonymous of Divine benevolence. See note 10, ch. 3.

Chapter 5

Let us explain further and fully elucidate the expression tefisa (apprehension) in the words of Elijah, “No thought can apprehend You.” 1   Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 17a.
Now, when an intellect conceives and comprehends a concept with its intellectual faculties, this intellect grasps the concept and encompasses it. This concept is [in turn] grasped, enveloped, and enclothed within that intellect which conceived and comprehended it.
The mind, for its part, is also clothed in the concept at the time it comprehends and grasps it with the intellect. 2  This point is demonstrated by the fact that when the mind is preoccupied with one thing, it cannot at the same time engage in another. For example, when a person understands and comprehends, fully and clearly, any halachah in the Mishnah or Gemara, his intellect grasps and encompasses it and, at the same time, is clothed in it.
Consequently, as the particular halachah is the wisdom and will of G–d, for it was His will that when, for example, Reuben pleads in one way and Simeon in another, the verdict as between them shall be thus and thus;
and even should such a litigation never have occurred, nor would it ever present itself for judgment in connection with such disputes and claims, nevertheless, since it has been the will and wisdom of the Holy One, blessed is He, that in the event of a person pleading this way and the other [litigant] pleading that way, the verdict shall be such and such—now therefore, when a person knows and comprehends with his intellect such a verdict in accordance with the law as it is set out in the Mishnah, Gemara, or Poskim (Codes), he has thus comprehended, grasped, and encompassed with his intellect the will and wisdom of the Holy One, blessed is He, Whom no thought can grasp, nor His will and wisdom, except when they are clothed in the laws that have been set out for us. [Simultaneously] the intellect is also clothed in them [the Divine will and wisdom].
This is a wonderful union, like which there is none other and which has no parallel anywhere in the material world, whereby complete oneness and unity, from every side and angle, could be attained.
Hence the special superiority, infinitely great and wonderful, that is in the commandment of knowing the Torah and comprehending it, over all the commandments involving action, and even those relating to speech, and even the commandment to study the Torah, 3  As distinct from knowledge of the Torah. which is fulfilled through speech.
For, through all the commandments involving speech or action, the Holy One, blessed is He, clothes the soul and envelops it from head to foot with the Divine light. However, with regard to knowledge of the Torah, apart from the fact that the intellect is clothed in Divine wisdom, this Divine wisdom is also contained in it, to the extent that his intellect comprehends, grasps, and encompasses, as much as it is able so to do, of the knowledge of the Torah, every man according to his intellect, his knowledgeable capacity, and his comprehension in Pardes. 4  Set ch. 4, note 4.
Since, in the case of knowledge of the Torah, the Torah is clothed in the soul and intellect of a person and is absorbed in them, it is called “bread” and “food” of the soul.
For just as physical bread nourishes the body as it is absorbed internally, in his very inner self, where it is transformed into blood and flesh of his flesh, whereby he lives and exists—so, too, it is with the knowledge of the Torah and its comprehension by the soul of the person who studies it well, with a concentration of his intellect, until the Torah is absorbed by his intellect and is united with it, and they become one. This becomes nourishment for the soul and its inner life from the Giver of life, the En Sof, blessed is He, Who is clothed in His wisdom and in His Torah that are [absorbed] in it [the soul].
This is the meaning of the verse, “And Your Torah is in my innards.” 5  Psalms 40:9. It is also stated in Etz Chaim, Portal 44, ch. 3, that the “garments” of the soul in Gan Eden are the commandments while the Torah is the “food” for the souls which, during life on earth, had occupied themselves in the study of the Torah for its own sake. It is [similarly] written in the Zohar. 6  II:210a ff.
As for the meaning of “for its own sake,” 7  See below, chs. 39, 40, and 41, for a further elaboration. We have here a departure from the conventional concepts of lishemah and shelo lishemah. it is [study with the intent] to attach one’s soul to G–d through the comprehension of the Torah, each one according to his intellect, as explained in Pri Etz Chaim.
[The “food” [of the soul] is in the nature of “inner light,” while the “garments” are in the nature of “encompassing light.” Therefore our Rabbis, of blessed memory, have said, “The study of the Torah is equivalent to them all.” 8  Mishnah, Peah 1:1. For the commandments are but “garments” whereas the Torah is both “food” as well as “garment” 9  The “food” would correspond to the knowledge absorbed and “digested”; the “garment”—to that knowledge which is not thoroughly assimilated and remains external as it were, yet retaining the quality of the Divine precept, like all other religious acts which are conceived as “garments” of the soul. for the rational soul, in which a person is clothed during learning and concentration. All the more so when a person also articulates, by word of mouth; for the breath emitted in speaking [the words of the Torah] becomes something in the nature of an “encompassing light,” as is explained in Pri Etz Chaim.]

Chapter 6

“G–d has made one thing opposite the other.” 1  Ecclesiastes 7:14. In general, things in the realm of holiness have their opposite in the realm of the profane, or “the other side” ( sitra achara ). Similarly, everything in the physical world has its spiritual counterpart from which it derives its existence and vitality—a popular concept in Chabad, as in Kabbalah generally. Cf. Zohar III:47b.
Just as the divine soul consists of ten holy sefirot and is clothed in three holy garments, 2  Thought, speech, and deed. so does the soul which is derived from the sitra achara of the kelipat nogah, which is clothed in man’s blood, consist of ten “crowns of impurity.” 3  Cf. Zohar III:41a; 70a. These are the seven evil middot which stem from the four evil elements mentioned above, 4  End of ch. 1. and the intellect begetting them which is subdivided into three, viz., wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, the source of the middot. 5  Here, unlike ch. 3, the middot precede sechel to indicate the secondary role of the intellect in the animal soul, where passion predominates. For the middot are according to the quality of the intellect. Hence a child desires and loves petty things of inferior worth, for his intellect is too immature and deficient to appreciate things that are much more precious. Likewise is he provoked to anger and vexation over trivial things; so, too, with boasting and other middot.
Now these ten unclean categories, when a person meditates in them or speaks them or acts by them, his thought—which is in his brain; and his speech—which is in his mouth; and the power of action—which is in his hands, together with his other limbs—all these are called the “impure garments” of these ten unclean categories wherein the latter are clothed at the time of the action, speech, or thought.
It is these that constitute all the deeds that are done under the sun, which are all “vanity and striving after the wind,” 6  Ecclesiastes 1:14. as interpreted in the Zohar, Beshalach, 7  II:59a. in the sense of a “ruination of the spirit….” 8  A reinterpretation of רעות רוח. So, too, are all utterances and thoughts which are not directed toward G–d and His will and service. For this is the meaning of sitra achara —“the other side,” i.e., not the side of holiness.
For the holy side is nothing but the indwelling and extension of the holiness of the Holy One, blessed is He, and He dwells only on such a thing that abnegates itself completely to Him, either actually, as in the case of the angels above, or potentially, as in the case of every Jew down below, having the capacity to abnegate himself completely to the Holy One, blessed is He, through martyrdom for the sanctification of G–d.
That is why our Sages have said that “Even when a single individual sits and engages in the Torah the Shechinah rests on him” 9   Avot 3:6. and “On every gathering of ten [Jews] the Shechinah rests” 10   Sanhedrin 39a. always.
However, that which does not surrender itself to G–d, but is a separate thing by itself, does not receive its vitality from the holiness of the Holy One, blessed is He, that is, from the very inner essence and substance of the holiness itself, but from “behind its back,” as it were, 11  Cf. note 25, ch. 2. descending degree by degree, through myriads of degrees with the lowering of the worlds, by way of cause and effect and innumerable contractions, 12  Cf. ch. 48; Iggeret Hakodesh, ch. 20. until the light and life is so diminished through repeated diminutions that it can be compressed and incorporated, in a state of exile as it were, within that separated thing, giving it vitality and existence ex nihilo, so that it does not revert to nothingness and nonexistence as it was before it was created. 13  Evil is thus conceived as a creation ex nihilo, like everything else, except that it was not created for its own sake; hence it is merely tolerated. The monistic aspect of creation, despite the apparent dualism in the world, is thus emphasized, particularly in ch. 24, below.
Consequently, this world, with all its contents, is called the world of kelipot and sitra achara. Therefore all mundane affairs are severe and evil, 14  Cf. ch. 24. and wicked men prevail, as explained in Etz Chaim, Portal 42, end of ch. 4.
NOTE: To be sure, there are contained in it [this world] the ten sefirot [of the world] of Asiyah (Action) of the side of holiness, as is written in Etz Chaim, Portal 43, and within these ten sefirot of Asiyah are the ten sefirot of Yetzirah (Formation), and in them the ten sefirot of Beriah (Creation), and in them the ten sefirot of Atzilut (Emanation), in which abides the light of the En Sof, blessed is He. Thus the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, pervades this lower world through being clothed in the ten sefirot of the Four Worlds, namely those of Atzilut, Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah, as explained in Etz Chaim, Portal 47, ch. 2, and in Sefer Hagilgulim, ch. 20.
However, the kelipot are subdivided into two grades, one lower than the other.
The lower grade consists of the three kelipot which are altogether unclean and evil, containing no good whatsoever. In the chariot of [the prophet] Ezekiel they are called “whirlwind,” “great cloud”…. 15  “…and a flaring fire.” Ezekiel 1:4.
From them flow and derive the souls of all the nations of the world, and the existence of their bodies, and also the souls of all living creatures that are unclean and unfit for consumption, 16  Leviticus 11; Deuteronomy 14. and the existence of their bodies, as well as the existence and vitality of all forbidden food in the vegetable kingdom, such as orlah 17  First three years’ harvest of fruit of a tree. Cf. Leviticus 19:23. and mixed seeds in the vineyard, 18  Cf. Deuteronomy 22:9. and so on, as explained in Etz Chaim, Portal 49, ch. 6, as also the existence and vitality of all actions, utterances, and thoughts pertaining to the 365 prohibitions and their offshoots, as is explained, ibid., at the end of ch. 5.

Chapter 7

On the other hand, 1  The author continues to expound the doctrine of the kelipot, and his definitions of good and evil, distinguishing an intermediate category. the vitalizing animal soul in the Jew, that which is derived from the aspect of the kelipah, which is clothed in the human blood, as stated above, 2  Ch. 1. and the “souls” 3  The quotes are the translator’s. According to Lurianic doctrine all things, including inanimate objects, possess a “soul,” which is the creative and preserving force of the Creator, the thing’s reality. This doctrine was adopted and expounded by the Baal Shem Tov and Rabbi Schneur Zalman. See Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 1 ff. of the animals, beasts, birds, and fish that are clean and fit for [Jewish] consumption, as also the existence and vitality of the entire inanimate and entire vegetable world which are permissible for consumption, as well as the existence and vitality of every act, utterance, and thought in mundane matters that contain no forbidden aspect—being neither root nor branch of the 365 prohibitive precepts and their offshoots, either on the explicit authority of the Torah or by Rabbinic enactment—yet are not performed for the sake of Heaven but only by the will, desire, and lust of the body; and even where it is a need of the body, or its very preservation and life, but his intention is not for the sake of Heaven, that is, to serve G–d thereby —all these acts, utterances, and thoughts are no better than the vitalizing animal soul itself; and everything in this totality of things flows and is drawn from the second gradation [to be found] in the kelipot and sitra achara, namely, a fourth kelipah, called kelipat nogah. In this world, called the “World of Asiyah (Action),” 4  See Addendum, Glossary. most, indeed almost all, of it [the kelipat nogah ] is bad, and only a little good has been intermingled within it [from which come the good qualities contained in the animal soul of the Jew, as is explained above. 5  Ch. 1. ]
This [ kelipat nogah ] is an intermediate category between the three completely unclean kelipot and the category and order of holiness.
Hence it is sometimes absorbed within the three unclean kelipot [as is explained in Etz Chaim, Portal 49, beginning of ch. 4, on the authority of the Zohar ], and sometimes it is absorbed and elevated to the category and level of holiness, as when the good that is intermingled in it is extracted from the bad, and prevails and ascends until it is absorbed in holiness.
Such is the case, for example, of he who eats fat beef and drinks spiced wine in order to broaden his mind for the service of G–d and His Torah; as Rava said, “Wine and fragrance [make a man’s mind more receptive],” 6   Yoma 76b. or in order to fulfill the command concerning enjoyment of Shabbat and the Festivals. 7  Maimonides, Hilchot Shabbat 30:7; Hilchot Yom Tov 6:16. Rabbi Schneur Zalman, Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 242:1; 529:1, 3. In such a case the vitality of the meat and wine, originating in the kelipat nogah, is distilled and ascends to G–d like a burnt offering and sacrifice.
So, too, when a man utters a pleasantry in order to sharpen his wit and rejoice his heart in G–d, in His Torah and service, which should be practiced joyfully, as Rava was wont to do with his pupils, prefacing his discourse with some witty remark, to enliven the students thereby. 8   Pesachim 117a.
On the other hand, he who belongs to those who gluttonously guzzle meat and quaff wine in order to satisfy their bodily appetites and animal nature, derived from the so-called element of water of the four evil elements contained therein, from which comes the vice of lust—in such case the energy of the meat and wine consumed by him is degraded and absorbed temporarily in the utter evil of the three unclean kelipot, and his body temporarily becomes a garment and vehicle for them, until the person repents and returns to the service of G–d and His Torah. For, inasmuch as the meat and wine were kosher, they have the power to revert and ascend with him when he returns to the service of G–d. This is implied in the terms “permissibility” and “permitted” ( muttar ), 9  The Hebrew term מותר literally means “released.” that is to say, that which is not tied and bound by the power of the “extraneous forces” 10  Another term for kelipot and sitra achara. preventing it from returning and ascending to G–d.
Nevertheless, a trace [of the evil] remains in the body. Therefore the body must undergo the Purgatory of the grave, as will be explained later. 11  Ch. 8.
So, too, with regard to the vitality of the drops of semen emitted from the body with animal lust, by him who has not conducted himself in a saintly manner during intimacy with his wife in her state of purity. 12  This paragraph is added according to Luach HaTikkun (below, p. 781).
Such is not the case, however, with forbidden foods and coition, which derive from the three kelipot that are entirely unclean. These are tied and bound by the extraneous forces forever and are not released until the day comes when death will be swallowed up forever, as is written, “And I will cause the unclean spirit to pass from the land,” 13  Zechariah 13:2. or until the sinner repents to such an extent that his premeditated sins become transmuted into veritable merits, which is achieved through “repentance out of love,” coming from the depths of the heart, with great love and fervor, and from a soul passionately desiring to cleave to G–d, blessed be He, and thirsting for G–d like a parched desert soil. For inasmuch as his soul had been in a barren wilderness, and in the shadow of death, which is the sitra achara, and infinitely removed from the light of the Divine Countenance, his soul now thirsts [for G–d] even more than the souls of the righteous, as our Sages say, “In the place where penitents stand, not even the perfectly righteous can stand.” 14   Berachot 34b.
It is concerning the repentance out of such great love that they have said, “The penitent’s premeditated sins become, in his case, like virtues,” 15   Rosh Hashanah 29a. since thereby he has attained to this great love. 16  This religious experience is unknown to the perfect tzaddik, who never sinned and consequently has never experienced the remorse and yearning of a repentant soul. This does not mean, however, that the tzaddik cannot experience my kind of teshuvah, for in a broader and truer sense (and as the Hebrew term indicates) it means “return” to the Source, which is of infinite scope. (Cf. Likkutei Torah, beg. Haazinu.)
However, repentance that does not come from such love, even though it be true repentance and G–d will pardon him, nevertheless his sins are not transformed into merits and they are not completely released from the kelipah until the end of time, when death will be swallowed up forever.
Yet the vitality which is in the drops of semen that issue wastefully, even though it has been degraded and incorporated in the three unclean kelipot, nevertheless it can ascend from there by means of true repentance and intense kavanah 17  “Intention,” i.e., concentration and devotion in prayer, study, or the performance of a ritual precept. Cf. below, chs. 38, 40, and 41, for an elaboration of the term. during the recital of the Shema at bedtime, as is known from the Arizal 18  See above, ch. 2, note 9. and is implied in the Talmudic saying, “He who recites the Shema at bedtime is as if he held a double-edged sword…,” 19   Berachot 5a. wherewith to slay the bodies of the extraneous forces that have become garments for the vitality which is in the drops [of semen], so that this vitality may ascend, as is known to the students of Kabbalah.
Therefore the sin of wasteful emission of semen is not mentioned in the Torah among the list of forbidden coitions, although it is even more heinous than they, and this sin is greater because of the enormity and abundance of the uncleanness and of the kelipot which he begets and multiplies to an exceedingly great extent through wasteful emission of semen, even more than through forbidden coitions. Except that in the case of forbidden coitions he contributes strength and vitality to a most unclean kelipah, from which he is powerless to bring up the vitality by means of repentance,
NOTE: The reason being that this vitality has been absorbed by the “female” element of the kelipah, which receives and absorbs the vitality from the holiness. Not so with wasteful emission of semen, where there is obviously no female element of kelipah, and only its powers and forces provide the garments for the vitality of the [wasteful] semen, as is known to the students of Kabbalah.
unless he repents with such great love that his willful wrongs are transformed into merits.
From the above, one may understand the comment of our Sages, “Which is ‘a fault that cannot be rectified?’ 20  Ecclesiastes 1:15. —Having incestuous intercourse and giving birth to a bastard.” 21   Chagigah 9a. For in such a case, even though the sinner undertakes such great repentance, he cannot cause the [newly created] vitality to ascend to holiness, since it has already descended into this world and has been clothed in a body of flesh and blood.

Chapter 8

There is an additional aspect in the matter of forbidden foods. The reason they are called issur [“chained”] is that even in the case of one who has unwittingly eaten a forbidden food intending it to give him strength to serve G–d by the energy of it, and he has, moreover, actually carried out his intention, having both studied and prayed with the energy of that food, nevertheless the vitality contained therein does not ascend and become clothed in the words of the Torah or prayer, as is the case with permitted foods, by reason of its being held captive in the power of the sitra achara of the three unclean kelipot. This is so even when the prohibition is a Rabbinic enactment, for the words of the Scribes are even more stringent than the words of the Torah, and so forth. 1  Mishnah, Sanhedrin 11:3; Bamidbar Rabbah 14:12, etc.
Therefore, also the evil impulse ( yetzer hara ) and the force that strains after forbidden things is a demon of non-Jewish demons, which is the evil impulse of the nations whose souls are derived from the three unclean kelipot.
On the other hand, the evil impulse and the craving force after permissible things to satisfy an appetite is a demon of the Jewish demons, 2  Cf. Zohar III:253a; 277a f. for it can be reverted to holiness, as is explained above. 3  Ch. 7. Nevertheless, before it has reverted to holiness it is sitra achara and kelipah, and even afterward a trace of it remains attached to the body, since from each item of food and drink are immediately formed blood and flesh of his flesh.
That is why the body must undergo the Purgatory of the grave, 4   Chibut hakever. Cf. Zohar II:151a, and especially R. Chaim Vital, end of Sefer Hagilgulim, and Sefer Hakavanot, p. 55b f. in order to cleanse it and purify it of its uncleanness which it had received from the enjoyment of mundane things and pleasures, which are derived from the uncleanness of the kelipat nogah and of the Jewish demons; only one who had derived no enjoyment from this world all his life, as was the case with our Saintly Master [Rabbi Judah the Prince], is spared this.
As for innocent idle chatter, such as in the case of an ignoramus who cannot study, he must undergo a cleansing of his soul, to rid it of the uncleanness of this kelipah, through its being rolled in “the hollow of a sling,” 5  Cf. I Samuel 25:29: “And the soul of your enemies, He will sling it with the hollow of the sling,” eschatologically interpreted in Shabbat 152b. as is stated in the Zohar, Parashat Beshalach, p. 59. 6   Zohar II:59a.
But with regard to forbidden speech, such as scoffing and slander and the like, which stem from the three completely unclean kelipot, the hollow of a sling [alone] does not suffice to cleanse and remove the uncleanness of the soul, but it must descend into Gehinom (Purgatory).
So, too, he who is able to engage in the Torah but occupies himself instead with frivolous things, the hollow of a sling cannot itself effectively scour and cleanse his soul, but severe penalties are meted out for neglect of the Torah in particular, apart from the general retribution for the neglect of a positive commandment through indolence, namely, in the Purgatory of Snow, 7  The Purgatory, where the soul is cleansed of the “stains” acquired during its lifetime so that it could then enter Gan Eden in the presence of the Divine Glory, operates on the principle of “measure for measure,” or in kind. Thus offences of commission caused by passion and lust are cleansed in a “stream of fire,” while those of omission, due to indolence and coolness, are cleansed in a Purgatory of Snow, etc. as is explained elsewhere. 8  Arizal, Likkutei Torah, Shemot. Cf. also Zohar I:62b; 237b; II:150a-b.
Likewise, he who occupies himself with the sciences of the nations of the world is included among those who waste their time in profane matters, insofar as the sin of neglecting the Torah is concerned, as is explained in the Laws Concerning Study of the Torah. 9  The first work of Rabbi Schneur Zalman was a treatise on the Laws Concerning the Study of the Torah ( Hilchot Talmud Torah ), first published in Shklov, 1794, and subsequently incorporated in his Shulchan Aruch.
Moreover, the uncleanness of the science of the nations is greater than that of profane speech, for the latter informs and defiles only the middot which emanate from the element of the holy ruach within his divine soul with contamination of the kelipat nogah that is contained in profane speech which is derived from the element of the evil ruach of this kelipah in his animal soul, as mentioned above; 10  Ch. 1. yet he does not defile the [intellectual] (faculties of chabad in his soul, for they are but words of foolishness and ignorance, since even fools and ignoramuses can speak that way.
Not so in the case of the nations’ sciences whereby he clothes and defiles the intellectual faculties of chabad in his divine soul with the contamination of the kelipat nogah contained in those sciences, whither they have fallen through the “shattering of the vessels” out of the so-called “hinder-part” of chochmah of kedushah, as is known to the students of Kabbalah.
Unless he employs [these sciences] as a useful instrument, viz., as a means of a more affluent livelihood to be able to serve G–d or knows how to apply them in the service of G–d and His Torah. This is the reason why Maimonides and Nachmanides, of blessed memory, and their adherents engaged in them.

Chapter 9

The abode 1  In the sense of its principal area of manifestation. of the animal soul ( nefesh habahamit ), derived from the kelipat nogah in every Jew, is in the heart, in the left ventricle that is filled with blood. It is written, “For the blood is the nefesh.” 2  Deuteronomy 12:23. Cf. above, end of ch. 1, nefesh means “life” and also “desire” (Genesis 23:8).
Hence all lusts and boasting and anger and similar passions are in the heart, and from the heart they spread throughout the whole body, rising also to the brain in the head, so as to think and meditate about them and become cunning in them, 3  The animal soul is mainly moved by passion, while the intelligence reacts to it. just as the blood has its source in the heart, and from the heart it circulates into every limb, rising also to the brain in the head.
But the abode of the divine soul is in the brains 4  The divine soul is essentially intellective. that are in the head, and from there it extends to all the limbs; and also in the heart, in the right ventricle wherein there is no blood, as is written, “The heart of the wise man is on his right.” 5  Ecclesiastes 10:2.
It is [the source of] man’s fervent love toward G–d which, like flaming coals, flares up in the heart of discerning men who understand and reflect, with the [faculty of] knowledge 6  For the term daat (“knowledge”), see above, end ch. 3. of their brain, on matters that arouse this love; 7  In the divine soul, the relation between mind and heart is reversed from that of the animal soul. (See above, note 3.) also [of] the gladness of the heart in the beauty of G–d and the majesty of His glory [which is aroused] when the eyes of the wise man, that are in his head, 8  Comp. Ecclesiastes 2:14. i.e., in the brain harboring his wisdom and understanding, gaze at the glory of the King and beauty of His greatness that are unfathomable and without end or limit, as explained elsewhere; as also the other holy affections ( middot ) in the heart originate from chabad [wisdom, understanding, knowledge] in the brains.
It is written, however, “One nation shall prevail over the other nation.” 9  Genesis 25:23. The body is called a “small city.” 10  Ecclesiastes 9:14; Nedarim 32b. Just as two kings wage war over a town, which each wishes to capture and rule, that is to say, to dominate its inhabitants according to his will so that they obey him in all that he decrees for them, so do the two souls—the Divine and the vitalizing animal soul that comes from the kelipah —wage war against each other over the body and all its limbs. It is the desire and will of the Divine soul that she alone rule over the person and direct him, and that all his limbs should obey her and surrender themselves completely to her and become a vehicle 11  An instrument without independent will. for her, as well as a robe [instrument] for her ten faculties and three garments mentioned above, 12  Chs. 3 and 4. all of which should pervade the organs of the body, and the entire body should be permeated with them alone, to the exclusion of any alien influence, G–d forbid. That is to say that the three brains 13  The three intellectual faculties chochmah, binah, and daat — chabad —have their corresponding physical brains. that are in the head shall be permeated with chabad of the Divine soul, namely, the wisdom of G–d and the understanding of Him, by pondering on His unfathomable and infinite greatness, and from them shall be born, through the daat (knowledge), 14  See above, note 6. awe in his mind, and dread of G–d in his heart, 15  Awe is regarded as a preliminary to love. There is, however, a higher category of reverence which can be attained only after having attained love. See below, chs. 23, 40-43. as well as love of G–d that shall flare up like a glowing fire in his heart, like flaming coals, so that his soul shall yearn and long, with passion and desire, to cleave to the En Sof, blessed is He, with his whole heart, soul and might, from the very depths of the right ventricle of the heart. The latter would be so thoroughly permeated with love to overflowing, as to inundate the left side as well, to the extent of subduing the sitra achara with its element of the “evil waters,” namely, the lust stemming from kelipat nogah, changing it and transforming it from seeking the pleasures of this world to the love of G–d. Thus it is written, “‘With all your heart’ 16  Deuteronomy 6:5. —with both your natures.” 17   Berachot 54a.
That is to say that the person shall steadily rise to attain to the degree of “abundant love,” a supreme affection surpassing that of “ardent love” that is comparable to burning coals. 18  The author distinguishes various degrees of love: ahavah azah (ardent love)—a passionate love, and ahavah rabbah (abundant or great love) or ahavah betaanugim (delightful love)—a serene love of fulfilment. The first is likened to a burning flame; the second—to calm waters. These and other distinctions of love are later discussed at greater length. Cf. chs. 15, 16, 18, 40, 41, 46, 49. This is what is called in Scripture “love of delights,” 19  Song of Songs 7:7. which is the experience of delight in G–dliness, of the nature of the World to Come. This delight is in the brain of wisdom, in the intellectual pleasure of comprehending and knowing G–d, to the extent that one’s intellect and wisdom can grasp [Him]. This is the element of “water” and “seed,” i.e., light that is sown in the holiness of the divine soul that converts to good the element of “water” in the animal soul, from which the lust for mundane pleasures had been previously derived. 20  Thus the divine soul is conceived as being potentially capable of not only suppressing the evil impulse, but also completely “sublimating” it. Thus it is written in Etz Chaim, Portal 50, ch. 3, on the authority of the Zohar, that the evil is converted into, and becomes, completely good, like the good nature itself, through the shedding of the soiled garments, the pleasures of this world, in which it had been clothed.
So, too, shall the other middot in the heart, the offshoots of awe and love, be dedicated to G–d alone; and the faculty of speech that is in his mouth, and the thought that is in his mind, shall be entirely and solely the instruments of the “garments” of thought and speech of the divine soul alone, namely, meditation on G–d and His Torah, which shall be the theme of his speech throughout the day, his mouth ceaselessly studying [it]; and the faculty of action centered in his hands, as also in the rest of the 248 organs, shall function exclusively in the performance of the commandments, which is the third garment of the divine soul.
However, the desire of the animal soul which is derived from the kelipah is the very opposite—and it is for the good of man that he may prevail over her and vanquish her, as in the parable of the harlot in the holy Zohar. 21  See also end of ch. 29. The parable: A king desired to test the moral strength of his only son. He had a most charming and clever woman brought before him. Explaining to her the purpose of the test, he ordered her to try her best to seduce the crown-prince. For the test to be valid, the harlot had to use all her charms and guile, without betraying her mission in the slightest way. Any imperfection on her part would mean disobedience and failure of her mission. While the harlot uses all her seductive powers, she inwardly desires that the crown-prince should not succumb to them. Cf. Zohar II:163a. This parable is intended to explain the ultimate function of the animal soul, with its inherent evil and complete license and independence. Yet although the forces of evil must be real enough for the purpose of which they have been created, their origin and purpose is rooted in good, and they can, in fact, be so converted. Herein lies the underlying principle of the problem of evil.

Chapter 10

Behold, when a person fortifies his divine soul and wages war against his animal soul to such an extent that he expels and eradicates its evil from the left part—as is written, “And you shall root out the evil from within you” 1  Deuteronomy 21:21. —yet the evil is not actually converted to goodness, he is called “incompletely righteous” or “a righteous man who suffers.” 2  צדיק ורע לו—see ch. 1, n. 7. That is to say, there still lingers in him a fragment of wickedness in the left part, except that it is subjugated and nullified by the good, because of the former’s minuteness. Hence he imagines that he has driven it out and it has quite disappeared. In truth, however, had all the evil in him entirely departed and disappeared, it would have been converted into actual goodness.
The explanation of the matter is that “a completely righteous man,” in whom the evil has been converted to goodness and who is consequently called “a righteous man who prospers,” 3  צדיק וטוב לו—i.e., “possessing (only) good.” has completely divested himself of the filthy garments of evil. That is to say, he utterly despises the pleasures of this world, finding no enjoyment in human pleasures of merely gratifying the physical appetites instead of [seeking] the service of G–d, inasmuch as they are derived from and originate in the kelipah and sitra achara, for whatever is of the sitra achara is hated by the perfectly righteous man with an absolute hatred, by reason of his great love of G–d and of His holiness with profuse affection and delight and superlative devotion, as is stated above. 4  Ch. 9. For they are antithetical one to the other. Thus it is written, “I hate them with the utmost hatred; I regard them as my own enemies. Search me, [L–rd,] and know my heart….” 5  Psalms 139:22, 23. Hence, according to the abundance of the love toward G–d, so is the extent of the hatred toward the sitra achara and the utter contempt of evil, for contempt is as much the opposite of real love as is hatred.
The “incompletely righteous” is he who does not hate the sitra achara with an absolute hatred; therefore he does not also absolutely abhor evil.
And as long as the hatred and scorn of evil are not absolute, there must remain some vestige of love and pleasure in it, and the fouled garments have not entirely and absolutely been shed; therefore the evil has not actually been converted to goodness, since it still has some hold in the filthy garments, except that it is nullified because of its minute quantity and is accounted as nothing. Therefore such a person is called a righteous man, in whom the evil is subjugated and surrendered to him. Accordingly, his love of G–d is also not perfect, with the result that he is called “incompletely righteous.”
Now, this grade is subdivided into myriads of degrees in respect of the quality of the minute evil remaining [in him] from any of the four evil elements, as well as in relation to its proportionate abnegation by reason of its minuteness, such as, by way of example, one in sixty, or in a thousand, or in ten thousand, and the like. 6  In halachah, in cases of a mixture of a nonkosher element into kosher articles of human consumption (solids or liquids), the nonkosher element is deemed nonexistent if its proportion is less than 1/60th, 1/100th, etc., as the case may be. Cf., e.g., Chullin 97b ff. Such are the gradations of the numerous righteous men who are to be found in every generation, as mentioned in the Gemara, viz., “Eighteen thousand righteous men stand before the Holy One, blessed is He.” 7   Sukkah 45b; Sanhedrin 97b.
However, it is with regard to the superior quality of the “completely righteous” that Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said, “I have seen superior men ( benei aliyah ), and their numbers are few….” 8  Ibid. The reason for their title of “superior men” 9  Literally, “men of ascent”—בני עליה. is that they convert evil and make it ascend to holiness, as is written in the Zohar in the Introduction, 10   Zohar I:4a. that when Rabbi Chiya wished to ascend to the hechal (heavenly shrine) of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, he heard a voice come out and say, “Which of you, before coming here, has converted darkness into light and bitter taste into sweetness? [Otherwise] do not approach here,” and so forth.
A further explanation of the title “superior men” is that their service in the category of “do good,” in the fulfillment of the Torah and its commandments, is for the sake of the Above, the ultimate of the highest degrees, and not merely in order to attach themselves to G–d so as to quench the thirst of their [own] soul, which thirsts for G–d, as is written, “Ho! All who thirst, go to water,” 11  Isaiah 55:1. as is explained elsewhere. Rather [their service is,] as explained in Tikkunei Zohar, “Who is kind?—He who conducts himself with benevolence toward his Creator—toward His nest, 12  This homily is based on a play on the words חסיד־חסד, קונו־קנו. The text reads: איזהו חסיד המתחסד עם קונו — עם קן דיליה, לייחדא קודשא בריך הוא ושכינתיה בתחתונים. uniting the Holy One, blessed is He, and His Shechinah within those who dwell in the nethermost worlds.” 13   Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 1b. Cf. Zohar II:114b; III:222b; 281a. As also explained in Raaya Mehemna on Parashat Teitzei, “In the manner of a son who ingratiates himself with his father and mother, whom he loves more than his own body and soul…and is prepared to sacrifice his own life for them, to redeem them…,” 14   Zohar III:281a. and as is explained elsewhere. 15  The absolute altruistic worshipper is not motivated by a desire to save his soul, or to gratify its longing for unity with the Deity, but by pure love and a desire to please G–d and make His presence felt everywhere.
[And both interpretations are complementary, for through acts of refinement of the good out of the nogah, one elevates the “feminine waters,” 16  “Male” and “female” are terms used in Kabbalah to denote “giver” and “recipient,” respectively. “Feminine waters” therefore denotes benevolent acts, self-inspired, rising from man to G–d, while “masculine waters” denotes the flow of Divine influence and grace from G–d to man. causing “supernal unions” to bring down the “masculine waters” 17  See previous note. which are the flow of [Divine] kindness contained in each of the 248 positive precepts, all of which are in the nature of kindness and “masculine waters,” that is to say, the flow of holiness of His G–dliness, blessed be He, from above downward, to be clothed in those who live in the lower worlds, as explained elsewhere.]

Chapter 11

“One is the opposite the other” 1  Ecclesiastes 7:14. —the “wicked man who prospers” is antithetical to the “righteous man who suffers.” 2  Defined in the previous chapter.
That is to say, the goodness that is in his divine soul which is in his brain and in the right part of his heart is subservient to, and nullified by, the evil of the kelipah that is in the left part.
This type, too, is subdivided into myriads of degrees which differ in respect of the extent and manner of the nullification and subservience of the good to the bad, G–d forbid.
There is the person in whom the said subservience and nullification are in a very minor way, and even these are not permanent or recurring at frequent intervals; but on rare occasions the evil prevails over the good and conquers the “small city,” that is, the body—yet not all of it, but only a part of it, subjecting it to its (evil’s) discipline, to become a vehicle and a garment wherein one of the soul’s three garments mentioned above 3  Ch. 4. is clothed, namely, either in deed alone, in the commission of minor transgressions and not major ones, G–d forbid; or in speech alone, in the utterance of something that borders on slander and scoffing and the like; or in thought alone, in contemplations of sin, which are more serious than actual sin, 4   Yoma 29a. Cf. Chiddushei Aggadot Maharsha, loc. cit.; Netivot Olam, Netiv Haprishut, ch. 2. The reason why “contemplation of sin is more serious than actual sin” is that of the three “garments” of the soul (thought, speech, and act), thought is the innermost and closest to the soul; hence the contamination strikes closer to the core. or even when he does not contemplate committing a sin but indulges in contemplation on the carnal union between male and female in general, whereby he is guilty of violating the admonition of the Torah, “You shall guard yourself from every wicked thing,” 5  Deuteronomy 23:10. meaning that “one must not harbor impure fancies by day….” 6  “…so as not to defile himself by night” ( Ketuvot 46a). or, when it is a fitting time to study the Torah, but he turns his heart to vain things, as we have learned in the Mishnah in Avot, “One who is awake at night [or travels alone on the road], and turns his heart to [idleness, indeed, he endangers his life].” 7   Avot 3:4. For by reason of any one of all these things, and their like, he is called wicked at such time that the evil in his nefesh prevails over him, clothing itself in his body, inducing it to sin and defiling it.
Presently, however, the good that is in his divine soul asserts itself, and he is filled with remorse, and he seeks pardon and forgiveness of G–d. Indeed, G–d will forgive him if he has repented with the appropriate penitence according to the counsel of our Sages, of blessed memory, namely, the threefold division of atonement which is expounded by Rabbi Ishmael, 8  End of Tractate Yoma. as is explained elsewhere. 9   Iggeret Hateshuvah, ch. 1.
There is also the person in whom the wickedness prevails more strongly, and all three garments of evil clothe themselves in him, causing him to commit more heinous and more frequent sins. But intermittently he suffers remorse, and thoughts of repentance enter his mind, from the quality of good that is in his soul that gathers strength now and then. However, he has not enough strength to vanquish the evil so as to rid himself entirely of his sins and be as one who confesses and abandons [his evil ways, once and for all]. Concerning such a person, the Rabbis, of blessed memory, have said, “The wicked are full of remorse.” 10   Nedarim 9b. These represent the majority of the wicked, in whose soul still lingers some good.
But he who never feels contrition, and in whose mind no thoughts of repentance at all ever enter, is called the “wicked who suffers,” 11  רשע ורע לו i.e., “possessing (only) evil.” for the evil that is in his soul has alone remained in him, having so prevailed over the good that the latter has already departed from within him, standing aloof, so to speak, over him. 12  Thus the good that is in the soul is in a state of “suspended animation”—paralyzed, yet not destroyed. Hence, even the “completely wicked” individual can, through a paramount effort, reactivate the good, and repent, for “the gates of repentance are not closed to anyone.”
Therefore the Sages have said, “On every gathering of ten [Jews] the Shechinah rests.” 13   Sanhedrin 39a. That is to say, even if they are wicked, the Shechinah rests upon them.

Chapter 12

The benoni (intermediate) is he in whom evil never attains enough power to capture the “small city,” so as to clothe itself in the body and make it sin. That is to say, the three “garments” of the animal soul, namely, thought, speech, and act, originating in the kelipah, do not prevail within him over the divine soul to the extent of clothing themselves in the body—in the brain, in the mouth, and in the other 248 parts 1  “Brain”—thought; “mouth”—word; “the other limbs”—act. —thereby causing them to sin and defiling them, G–d forbid.
Only the three garments of the divine soul, they alone are implemented in the body, being the thought, speech, and act engaged in the 613 commandments of the Torah. He has never committed, nor ever will commit, any transgression; neither can the name “wicked” be applied to him even temporarily, or even for a moment, throughout his life. 2  Though the benoni has never committed a sin in his life, he is still not deemed a tzaddik as long as his natural impulses have not been completely sublimated, as explained further in this chapter. On the other hand, past offences need not preclude one from attaining the rank of benoni, if there was proper repentance. At any rate, the rank of benoni, as defined in the Tanya, is far superior to the rank of tzaddik as defined generally when it is applied to one whose good deeds exceed the bad. Cf. above, ch. 1.
However, the essence and being of the divine soul, which are its ten faculties, 3  Above, ch. 3. do not constantly hold undisputed sovereignty and sway over the “small city,” except at appropriate times, such as during the recital of the Shema or the Amidah, which is a time when the Supernal Intellect is in a sublime state; 4  מוחין דגדלות i.e., the supernal sefirot of chochmah, binah, daat ( chabad ), are in a state of greatness. and likewise below, this is a propitious time for every man, when he binds his chabad (intellectual faculties) to G–d, to meditate deeply on the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, and to arouse the burning love in the right part of his heart, to cleave to Him by virtue of the fulfillment of the Torah and its commandments out of love. This is the essential aspect of the Shema, the recital of which is enjoined by the Torah 5  Maimonides, Hilchot Keriat Shema 1:1. and of the blessings which precede and follow it, which are a Rabbinical enactment, 6  Ibid., 1:7. the latter being the preparation for the fulfillment of the recital of the Shema, as is explained elsewhere. 7  Reference is made here to the text of the blessing in the daily liturgy, which are designed to inspire surrender and ecstasy. Cf. below, ch. 49. At such time the evil that is in the left part is subjected to, and nullified in, the goodness that is diffused in the right part, from the wisdom, understanding, and knowledge ( chabad ) in the brain, which are bound to the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He. 8  The evil nature is then temporarily repressed, but not sublimated.
However, after prayer, when the state of sublimity of the Intellect of the En Sof, blessed is He, departs, the evil in the left part reawakens, and he begins to feel a desire for the lusts of the world and its delights.
Yet, because the evil has not the sole authority and dominion over the “city,” it is unable to carry out this desire from the potential into the actual by clothing itself in the bodily limbs, in deed, speech, and persistent thought to the extent of concentrating his attention on the enjoyment of the mundane pleasures as to how to satisfy the lust of his heart, because the brain rules over the heart [as explained in Raaya Mehemna, Parashat Pinchas ] 9  Cf. Zohar III:224a. by virtue of its innately created nature. For this is how man is created from birth, that each person may, with the willpower in his brain, restrain himself and control the drive of lust that is in his heart, preventing his heart’s desires from expressing themselves in action, word, or thought, and divert his attention altogether from the craving of his heart toward the completely opposite direction, particularly in the direction of holiness. 10  The doctrine of the inherent supremacy of intellect over emotion is one of the basic, though not original, tenets of Chabad. Comp. Maimonides, Guide 3:8.
Thus it is written, “Then I saw that wisdom surpasses folly as light surpasses darkness.” 11  Ecclesiastes 2:13. This means that just as light has a superiority, power, and dominion over darkness, so that a little physical light banishes a great deal of darkness which is therewith inevitably superseded as a matter of course and necessity, so is much foolishness of the kelipah and sitra achara [as, indeed, our Sages say, “A man does not sin unless a spirit of folly enters into him” 12   Sotah 3a. ] inevitably driven away by the wisdom that is in the divine soul in the brain, whose desire is to rule alone in the “city” and to pervade the whole body, in the manner already mentioned, 13  Above, ch. 9. by means of her three garments, namely, thought, speech, and act of the 613 commandments of the Torah, as explained earlier.
Nevertheless, such a person is not deemed a tzaddik at all, because the superiority which the light of the divine soul possesses over the darkness and foolishness of the kelipah, wherewith the latter is expelled forthwith, exists only in the aforementioned three garments, but does not extend to its very essence and being in relation to those of the kelipah. For in the benoni, the essence and being of the animal soul from the kelipah in the left part remains entirely undislodged after prayer. For then the burning love of G–d is not in a revealed state in his heart, in the right part, but is only inwardly paved with hidden love that is the natural adoration in the divine soul, as will be explained later.
Therefore it is possible for the folly of the wicked fool to rise openly in the left part of his heart, creating a lust for all material things of this world, whether permitted or, G–d forbid, prohibited, as if he had not prayed at all.
Nevertheless, in regard to a forbidden matter, it does not occur to him to actually violate the prohibition, G–d forbid, and it remains in the realm of sinful thoughts, which are more serious than actual sin, 14  See ch. 11, n. 4. and which can be forceful enough to rise to his mind, to distract him from the Torah and Divine service, as our Sages said, “There are three sins against which a man is daily not safeguarded: sinful thoughts, distraction in prayer….” 15  “…and slanderous gossip.” Bava Batra 164b.
However, the impression [of prayer] on the intellect and the hidden [i.e., innate] fear and love of G–d in the right part [of the heart] enable one to prevail and triumph over this evil of passionate craving, depriving it from gaining supremacy and dominion over the “city,” and from carrying out this desire from the potential into the actual by clothing itself in the bodily organs.
Moreover, even in the mind alone, insofar as sinful thoughts are concerned, evil has no power to compel the mind’s volition to entertain willingly, G–d forbid, any wicked thought rising of its own accord from the heart to the brain, as discussed above. 16  Beg. ch. 9. But no sooner does it reach there than he thrusts it out with both hands and averts his mind from it the instant he reminds himself that it is an evil thought, refusing to accept it willingly, even to let his thoughts play on it willingly; how much more so to entertain any idea of putting it into effect, G–d forbid, or even to put it into words. For he who willfully indulges in such thoughts is deemed wicked at such time, whereas the benoni is never wicked for a single moment.
So, too, in matters affecting a person’s relations with his neighbor, as soon as there rises from his heart to his mind some animosity or hatred, G–d forbid, or jealousy or anger, or a grudge and suchlike, he gives them no entrance into his mind and will.
On the contrary, his mind exercises its authority and power over the spirit in his heart to do the very opposite and to conduct himself toward his neighbor with the quality of kindness and a display of abundant love, to the extent of suffering from him to the extreme limits without becoming provoked into anger, G–d forbid, or to revenge in kind, G–d forbid; but rather to repay the offenders with favors, as taught in the Zohar, 17  I:201a. ff. that one should learn from the example of Joseph toward his brothers.

Chapter 13

Therewith will be understood the commentary of our Sages 1   Berachot 61b. that “intermediate people are judged by both [the good and evil natures], for it is written, ‘When He stands at the right of the destitute to deliver him from the judges of his soul.’” 2  “Judges”—in the plural, allegorically interpreted to refer to the two impulses which motivate man’s actions. Note that they did not say “ruled” by both, G–d forbid, because where the evil nature gains any control and dominion over the “small city,” even though but temporarily, one is at such times deemed “wicked.”
The evil nature [in the benoni ], however, is no more than, for example, a magistrate or judge who gives his opinion on a point of law, yet it is not necessarily a final decision to be implemented in deed, for there is another magistrate or judge who is contesting this opinion. It is, therefore, necessary to arbitrate between the two, and the final verdict rests with the arbitrator.
Similarly, the evil nature states its opinion in the left part of the heart, 3  The “seat” of the passions. Cf. above, ch. 9. which thence ascends to the brain for contemplation. Immediately it is challenged by the second judge, the divine soul in the brain 4  The intellect is the forte of the divine soul. Ibid. extending into the right part of the heart, the abode of the good nature. The final verdict comes from the arbitrator—the Holy One, blessed is He, who comes to the aid of the good nature, as our Sages said, “If the Holy One, blessed is He, did not help him, he could not overcome his evil inclination.” 5   Kiddushin 30b.
The help comes by means of the glow radiated by the Divine light, which illuminates the divine soul, that it may gain the upper hand and mastery over the folly of the fool and evil nature, in the manner of the excellence of light over darkness, as stated above. 6  Ch. 12.
Yet, inasmuch as the evil in the [heart’s] left part of the benoni is in its innate strength, craving after all the pleasures of this world, not having been nullified in its minuteness in relation to the good, nor having been relegated from its position to any degree—except insofar as it has no authority and power to diffuse itself throughout the limbs of the body, because the Holy One, blessed is He, “stands at the right hand of the poor man,” helping him and irradiating his divine soul—such a person is likened to a “wicked man.” In the words of our Sages, “Even if the whole world tells you that you are righteous, in your own eyes regard yourself as if you were wicked” 7   Niddah 30b. —not as actually wicked. 8  Here is the answer to the question raised in the beginning of ch. 1. The clue is in the word כרשע (not רשע). But one should consider oneself to be a benoni and not accept the world’s opinion which would have him believe that the evil in him has been dissolved by the good, which is the category of a tzaddik. Rather should he consider himself in his own estimation as if the very essence of the evil is in its full strength and might, in the left part, as from birth, and that nothing of it has ceased or departed; on the contrary, with the passing of time it has gained strength, because the man has indulged it considerably, in eating and drinking and other mundane pursuits.
Even one whose whole aspiration is in G–d’s Torah, which he studies day and night for its own sake, this is still no proof whatsoever that the evil has been dislodged from its place, but it may still be that its essence and substance are in their full strength and might in its abode in the left part, except that its garments—the thought, speech, and act of the animal soul—are not invested in the brain, mouth, and hands and the other parts of the body, because G–d has given the mind supremacy and dominion over the heart. Therefore the divine soul in the intellect rules over the [entire] “small city,” i.e., all the parts of the body, making them a garment and vehicle for her three garments, wherein to be clothed, to wit, the thought, speech, and act of the 613 commandments of the Torah.
However, in its essence and substance, the divine soul in the benoni has no preponderance over the animal soul, except at the time when his love for G–d manifests itself in his heart on propitious occasions, such as during prayer and the like. Even then it is limited to preponderance and dominion alone, as is written, “And one nation shall prevail over the other,” 9  Genesis 25:23. that is, when one rises the other falls, and vice versa. Thus, when the divine soul gains strength and ascendancy over the animal soul, in the source of gevurot which is binah, 10   Chochmah corresponds to chesed ; binah —to gevurah. through pondering on the greatness of G–d, the En Sof, blessed is He, thereby generating intense and flaming love of G–d in the right part of his heart—then the sitra achara in the left part is subdued.
But it is not entirely abolished, in the case of the benoni ; it is so only in a tzaddik, concerning whom it is said, “My heart is void within me.” 11  Psalms 109:22. The latter despises and hates evil with a consummate hatred and contempt, or without quite such complete hatred, as is explained above. 12  Ch. 10, with reference to the two types of tzaddik.
But in a benoni it is, by way of example, similar to a sleeping man, who can awaken from his sleep. So is the evil in the benoni dormant, as it were, in the left part, during the recital of the Shema and the Prayer [ Amidah ], when his heart is aglow with the love of G–d, but later it can wake up again.
For this reason Rabbah considered himself as though he were a benoni, 13  See ch. 1. though his mouth never ceased from study, and his desire was in G–d’s Torah, day and night, with the passionate craving and longing of a soul yearning for G–d with overwhelming love, such as experienced during the reciting of the Shema and Amidah. Hence he appeared in his own eyes like a benoni who prays all day, as, indeed, our Sages have said, “Would that a man prayed the whole day long!” 14   Berachot 21a.
Now, this quality of love of which we speak in the case of the benonim (intermediates) which is attained at the time of prayer by virtue of the preponderance of the divine soul, etc., is, in comparison with the degree attained by the tzaddikim who serve G–d in perfect truth, not called “true service” at all, since it passes and disappears after prayer, and it is written, “The lip of truth shall be established forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment.” 15  Proverbs 12:19.
Nevertheless, in relation to the rank of the benonim, it is regarded as a truly perfect service in terms of their [level of] truth, in each man relative to his standing in the ranks of the benonim. For in their case, too, their love, during their prayers, may be termed “the lip of truth shall be established forever,” since their divine soul has the power to reawaken this kind of love constantly, during its preponderance in time of prayer day after day, by means of an appropriate [mental] preparation, each soul according to its intrinsic quality and rank.
For truth is the attribute of Jacob, who is called 16   Zohar I:1b; 224a. the “middle bolt which secures [everything] from end to end,” 17  Comp. Exodus 26:28. from the highest gradations and degrees to the end of all grades. And in each gradation and plane it fixes its bolt through the most central point, which is the point and quality of its attribute of truth.
The attribute of truth is an unbounded inheritance which has no limit upward to the highest degrees, while all lower gradations and degrees are as nothing compared with those that are superior to them. [As is known to the students of Kabbalah, that the quality which is, as it were, the “head” and “intellect” of lower grades is inferior to the so-called “soles” and “feet” of the grades above them. Compare the statement of our Sages, “The feet of the Chayot measure up to them all.”] 18   Chagigah 13a.

Chapter 14

The rank of benoni is one that is attainable by every man, and each person should strive after it. Every person can at any time or hour be a benoni, because the benoni does not revile evil 1  See above, chs. 11 and 12. —for that is a feeling entrusted to the heart, and not all times are alike. 2  Prayer time, for instance, is more propitious, as mentioned in ch. 12. See note 5, ibid. [His task is] only to “Turn away from evil and do good,” 3  Psalms 34:15. in actual practice—in deed, speech, or thought, wherein the choice, ability, and freedom are given to every man that he may act, speak, and think even what is contrary to the desire of his heart and diametrically opposed to it. 4  Note that “thought” is also included in the ability of self-control. Even when the heart craves and desires a material pleasure, whether permitted or, G–d forbid, prohibited, he can steel himself and divert his attention from it altogether, declaring to himself, “I will not be wicked even for a moment, because I will not be parted and separated, Heaven forefend! from the One G–d under any circumstances, being mindful of the admonition, ‘Your iniquities interpose between you and G–d.’ 5  Isaiah 59:2. Instead, my real desire is to unite my nefesh, ruach, and neshamah with Him, through investing them in His three garments, blessed be He, namely, in action, speech, and thought dedicated to G–d, His Torah, and His commandments, by virtue of the love of G–d that is hidden in my heart, as in the heart of all Jews, who are called ‘those who love Your Name.’ 6  Psalms 5:12. Even the most unworthy among the worthless is capable of sacrificing himself for the sanctity of G–d; surely, I am not inferior to him. It is only that a spirit of folly has overcome him, and he imagines that committing a sin will not affect his Jewishness and his soul will not be severed thereby from the G–d of Israel, forgetting also about his love of G–d which is hidden in his heart. But as for me, I have no desire to be such a fool as he to deny the truth!”
It is different, however, with something that is entrusted to the heart, namely, that the evil should actually be despised in the heart and abhorred with absolute hatred, or even not quite so absolutely. 7  Referring to the two categories of tzaddik (above, ch. 10). This cannot be attained, truly and sincerely, except through great and intense love of G–d, the kind of ecstatic love and Divine bliss which is akin to the World to Come. Of this experience the Rabbis said, 8   Berachot 17a. “You shall see your world in your lifetime…,” and not every man can attain this state, for this is in the nature of a gracious reward, as is written, “I will make your priestly office a rewarding service…,” 9  Numbers 18:7. as is explained elsewhere. 10  Cf. below, ch. 43.
Therefore Job said, “You have created righteous men….” 11  The category of tzaddik is therefore “created,” i.e., given to a very few by Divine grace, and not easily attainable by one’s own efforts. Hence it is possible for Job to say, “You have created righteous men.” See beg. ch. 1. It is also found in Tikkunei Zohar 12  Introduction 1b. that in the souls of [the people of] Israel there are many kinds of gradations and distinctions—pious men, strong men who gain mastery over their nature, scholars of the Torah, prophets, and so on, tzaddikim, and so forth. Note there.
Now we can understand the redundancy of the oath, “Be righteous ( tzaddik ) and be not wicked,” 13  See above, beg. ch. 1. which is unintelligible at first glance: Since he is warned, “Be righteous!” where is the need to put him on oath again that he shall not be wicked?
The answer is that inasmuch as not everyone is privileged to become a tzaddik, nor has a person the full advantage of choice in this matter to experience true delight in G–d and to actually and truly abhor evil; he is consequently adjured a second time, “You shall,” at any rate, “not be wicked!” Here the right of choice and freedom is extended to every person, to check the drive of his heart’s desire and to conquer his nature, so that he shall not be wicked even for a moment throughout his life, whether in the realm of “turn away from evil” or in that of “do good,” there being no “good” other than Torah, 14   Berachot 5a. that is, the “study of the Torah which balances them all.”
Nevertheless, a person must set aside specific periods in which to commune with his soul in order to cultivate the abhorrence of evil, as, for example, reminding himself of the admonition of our Sages 15   Shabbat 152a. that “a woman is a vessel full of filth…,” 16  In her menstrual period. and in like manner. So, too, all dainties and delicacies turn into a “vessel full of filth.”
Likewise in regard to all pleasures of this world, the wise man foresees what becomes of them, for in the end they rot and become worms and dung. Conversely, [let him] delight and rejoice in G–d by reflection on the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, to the best of his capacity. He may well realize that he cannot attain to this degree with a full measure of truth except in illusion; nevertheless he should do his part in an effort to uphold the oath administered to him, “Be righteous,” and G–d will do as He sees fit.
Furthermore, habitude reigns supreme in any sphere and becomes second nature. Therefore if he accustoms himself to despise evil, it will to some extent become despicable in truth; similarly, when he accustoms himself to gladden his heart in G–d, through reflection on His greatness—for self-impulsion induces heavenly inspiration. 17   Zohar II:135b. With all that, perhaps a spirit from above will descend upon him, and he will merit something of the spirit ( ruach ) that is rooted in some tzaddik that will attach itself to him, so that he may serve G–d with true joy, as is written, “Rejoice, in the L–rd, you righteous.” 18  Psalms 97:12. Then will in truth be fulfilled in him the avowed oath: “Be righteous.”

Chapter 15

With the above in mind, we may now understand the text, “And you shall return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves G–d and one who does not serve Him.” 1  Malachi 3:18.
The difference between “one who serves G–d” and a righteous man ( tzaddik ) is that “one who serves ( oved ) G–d”—in the active present—is one who is engaged in “active service,” namely, the struggle against his evil nature in an effort to gain mastery over it and to banish it from the “small city,” that it should not vest itself in the organs of the body. Verily it entails much effort and toil to wage constant war with it. This is the benoni.
The tzaddik, however, is designated “servant ( eved ) of G–d,” which is a title already earned, as the title “sage” or “king” is bestowed on one who has already become a sage or king. So is this person who has already effected and completely accomplished his task of waging war against the evil in him, with the result that he has expelled it and it has disappeared, and his heart has become “void within him.” 2  Cf. above, ch. 1.
In the category of benoni there are also to be found two gradations, namely, “one who serves G–d” and “one who does not serve Him.” 3  In the sense that he requires little or no effort, by virtue of his natural disposition, as subsequently explained. Yet the latter is not wicked, for never in his life did he commit even a minor transgression and, moreover, he fulfilled all the commandments which were possible for him to fulfill, including the study of the Torah which balances everything else, his mouth never ceasing from study.
The reason he is referred to as “one who does not serve Him” is that he does not wage any battle against his [evil] disposition in order to vanquish it by means of the Divine light that irradiates the divine soul, whose abode is in the brain which predominates over the heart, as explained above; 4  Ch. 12. for his disposition does not confront him at all in an attempt to distract him from study and prayer, and he is consequently never obliged to wage war against it. Thus, for example, is the case of one who is by nature an assiduous student because he is organically so disposed, and is likewise free from conflict with regard to sexual desire by reason of his frigid nature, and similarly with the other mundane pleasures wherein he naturally lacks any feeling of enjoyment.
Hence he does not need to concentrate so much on the greatness of G–d to consciously create a spirit of knowledge and fear of G–d in his mind in order to guard himself against violation of the prohibitive commandments or to arouse the love of G–d in his heart to induce his attachment to Him through the fulfillment of the [positive] commandments and the study of the Torah, which balances everything else. For him suffices the hidden love that is in the heart of all Jews, who are called “those who love His name.” 5  Psalms 69:37.
Therefore he is not at all called “one who is serving,” inasmuch as this latent love is not of his making or accomplishment by any means, but it is our inheritance that has come down from the Patriarchs to the whole community of Israel, as will be discussed further. 6  Chs. 18, 19, and 44.
So, too, is one who, although by nature not an assiduous student, has yet accustomed himself to study with great diligence, so that the habit has become second nature with him; for him, too, suffices the innate love, unless he wishes to study more than his wont.
This will explain the statement in the Gemara that “one who serves G–d” refers to one who reviews his lesson 101 times, while “one who does not serve him” refers to one who repeats his lesson no more than one hundred times. 7   Chagigah 9b.
This is because in those days it was customary to review each lesson one hundred times, as, indeed, illustrated in the Gemara, ibid., by the example taken from the market, where donkey drivers used to hire themselves out at a rate of ten parasangs 8  Persian miles. for a zuz, but for eleven parasangs charged two zuzim, because that exceeded their customary practice. For the same reason, the 101st revision, which is beyond the normal practice to which the student had been accustomed since childhood, is considered equivalent to all the previous one hundred times put together, and even surpassing them in endurance and effort, hence entitling him to be called “one who serves G–d.” For in order to change his habitual nature, he must arouse the love of G–d by means of meditation in his mind on the greatness of G–d in order to gain mastery over the nature that is in the left part [of the heart], which is full of blood of the animal soul originating in the kelipah, from where his nature comes. This is a perfect service for a benoni.
Or, he must awaken the hidden love in his heart to control, 9  In this case—without changing his nature, only keeping it in check. through it, the nature that is in the left part, for this, too, is called service—the waging of war against his nature and inclination, by means of exciting the love that is hidden in his heart.
However, if he wages no war at all, the said love in itself can in no way be credited to his service.

Chapter 16

This, then, is the important principle regarding the Divine service for the benoni : The essential thing is to govern and rule the nature that is in the left ventricle [of the heart] by means of the Divine light that irradiates the divine soul in the mind. 1  Cf. above, ch. 13.
That is to say, to rule the heart by means of meditation in the mind on the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, whereby his understanding will create a spirit of knowledge and fear of the L–rd in his mind to make him turn away from the evil condemned by the Torah, or by the Rabbis, even from a minor Rabbinic prohibition, Heaven forbid; and [at the same time arousing] the love of G–d in his heart, in the right part, with a fervor and desire to cleave to Him through the fulfillment of the precepts of the Torah and of the Rabbis and through the study of the Torah, which is equivalent to them all.
Furthermore, one must know an additional important principle in the service of the benonim (intermediates). This is that even if the capacity of one’s intellect and the spirit of one’s understanding do not attain to the level of producing a revealed love of G–d in one’s heart, to make it glow like burning coals with a great desire and yearning and heartfelt passion to cleave to Him, but the love is hidden in one’s brain and in the recesses of one’s heart,
NOTE: The reason for this is that the vitality of this person’s intellect and nefesh, ruach, and neshamah is derived from the so-called ibbur (“gestation”) and concealment within the [supernal] understanding, and not from the quality of birth and revelation—as it is known to the students of Kabbalah.
that is to say, the heart comprehends, with the spirit of wisdom and understanding in the brain, the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, in relation to Whom all else has absolutely no reality, for which reason it is due unto Him, blessed be He, that the soul of every living creature should yearn for Him, to cleave and be absorbed in His light; likewise is it fitting for the nefesh and ruach 2   Neshamah is omitted here, for it is already alluded to in the “hidden love in the brain and the recesses of the heart,” just mentioned. within him to languish for Him, with a fervent desire to emerge from their sheath, which is the body, in order to cleave to Him; except that they dwell perforce in the body and are bound up in it, like deserted wives; 3  Cf. below, end of ch. 50. and no thought of theirs can grasp Him at all, except when it grasps, and is vested in, the Torah and its commandments, as in the example of embracing the king, mentioned above; 4  Ch. 4. therefore, it is proper for them to embrace Him with their whole heart, soul, and might, which means the fulfillment of the 613 commandments in act, speech, and thought, the last being the comprehension and knowledge of the Torah, as explained above. 5  Ibid., and ch. 5.
Consequently, when [the benoni ] ponders this subject in the recesses of his heart’s and mind’s understanding, with a unanimity of mouth and heart, in that he upholds by word of mouth, that which has been resolved in the understanding of his heart and mind, namely to direct his desire toward the Divine Torah, meditating on it day and night in oral study, while his hands and other bodily organs carry out the commandments in accordance with the resolution of his heart’s and mind’s understanding, then this understanding is clothed in the act, speech, and thought of the Torah and its commandments, providing for them, as it were, intelligence, vitality, and “wings” wherewith to soar on high. It is the same as if he practiced them with real fear and love as revealed in his heart [with a desire, fervor and passion that are felt in the heart and soul thirsting for G–d, by reason of the glowing embers of love in his heart, as mentioned above], inasmuch as it is this understanding in his brain and heart’s recesses that is instrumental in leading him to engage in them, and had he not so delved in it, he would not have occupied himself with them at all, but with his physical needs alone. [And even if he is naturally disposed to be an assiduous student, nevertheless he would naturally love his body more.]
Our Sages, of blessed memory, hinted at this when they said, “The Holy One, blessed is He, unites a good thought to the deed.” 6  Cf. Kiddushin 40a. One would have expected them to say that the Torah regards the good thought as if it had been put into practice. 7  As the Talmud continues, “Even if a man intended to fulfill a commandment, but was forcibly prevented, Scripture ascribes it to him as if he had performed it.” The question is, why the difference in expression? The answer is that each statement conveys a different meaning. The explanation, however, is that it is the revealed fear and love in the heart that are clothed in the act of the commandments, giving them vitality to soar on high, inasmuch as the heart is also corporeal, as the other parts of the body which are the instruments of the action, except that it is internal and their source of vitality; therefore it can clothe itself in their act, to be their “wings,” elevating them.
However, the abovementioned fear and love that are in the intelligence of the brain and the recesses of the heart are of an infinitely higher order than that of “action” and they cannot clothe themselves in the performance of the commandments to become their intelligence and vitality, as it were, to uplift them to soar upward, were it not for the fact that the Holy One, blessed is He, fuses and unites them together with the action; hence they are called “good thought,” for they are not actual awe and love in a revealed state in the heart, but only in the intelligence of the brain and in the recesses of the heart, as mentioned above.
NOTE: Thus it is also written in the Zohar and Etz Chaim that תבונה (intelligence) contains the letters בן ובת (“son and daughter”), referring to awe and love; 8  The affections (fear and love) are “born” of the intellect ( chochmah and binah ). Cf. above, ch. 3. and sometimes it descends to become the intelligence in the feminine principle of z’eyr anpin, 9  “Small image”—a Kabbalistic term, corresponding to the seven Divine middot ( chesed, gevurah, etc.). The “feminine” principle is to be understood (as in all Kabbalistic terminology) in the sense of recipient of the flow of Divine influence. represented in the letters of the Torah and the commandments, as the initiated will understand.
But the Holy One, blessed is He, produces this coalescence in order to elevate the performance of the commandments and study of the Torah—which are carried out under the influence of the said good thought—into the world of Beriah, the abode to which ascend the Torah and commandments that are performed through intelligent awe and love which are truly revealed in the heart.
But even without this they still rise to the World of Yetzirah, by means of the natural fear and love which are latent in the heart of all Jews from birth, as will be later explained at length. 10  Chs. 38, 39, 44.

Chapter 17

With the above in mind, one can understand the Scriptural text, “For this thing is very near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, so you can fulfill it.” 1  Deuteronomy 30:14.
At first glance, [the statement, “For this thing is very near to you…] in your heart” seems to be contrary to our experience [yet the Torah is eternal 2  Maimonides, Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah, ch. 9; Hilchot Teshuvah 3:8; Commentary on the Mishnah, Sanhedrin, ch. 10. ]. 3  Hence it could not refer to the time of Moses only, but must hold good for our time as well. For it is not a “very near thing” to change one’s heart from mundane desires to a sincere love of G–d. Indeed, it is stated in the Gemara, “Is fear [of Heaven] a small thing?” 4   Berachot 33b; Megillah 25a. How much more so—love. Moreover, the Rabbis also said, that only tzaddikim have control over their hearts. 5   Bereishit Rabbah 34:11; 67:7.
But the words “so you can fulfill it ” refer to a love which merely leads to the performance of the commandments, this being the hidden desire of the heart (רעותא דלבא), even if it does not glow openly like flaming coals. This thing is very near, and it is easy for any person who has brains in his head, for his brain is under his control, and he is able to concentrate it on anything he wishes. If, then, he will contemplate with it on the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, he will inevitably generate in his mind, at least, the love of G–d to cleave to Him through the performance of His commandments and Torah.
And this constitutes the whole [purpose of] man, for it is written, “This day to do them” 6  Deuteronomy 7:11. —“this day” referring specifically to the world of [physical] action, 7   Eruvin 22a. while “tomorrow” [i.e., in afterlife] is the time of reward, as is explained elsewhere.
The mind, in turn, by virtue of its inherent nature, is master over the left part of the heart and over the mouth and all the limbs which are the instruments of action, except in him who is completely wicked, as the Rabbis said, that the wicked are under the control of their heart, but their heart is not at all controlled by them. 8  See above, note 5. This is a punishment for the enormity and potency of their sin. But the Torah does not speak of these “dead” who in their life are called “dead.” 9   Berachot 18b.
Indeed, it is impossible for the wicked to begin to serve G–d without their first repenting for their past—in order to shatter the kelipot, which form a sundering curtain and an iron partition that interpose between them and their Father in Heaven—by means of contriteness of heart and bitterness of soul over their sins, as is explained in the Zohar on the verse, “The sacrifices of G–d are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart….” 10  Psalms 51:18. For through breaking one’s heart the spirit of uncleanliness of the sitra achara is broken [see ibid. on Parashat Pinchas, p. 240, and on Parashat Vayikra, p. 8 and p. 5, and the commentary of the Ramaz 11  Rabbi Moses Zacuto (1625-1697). thereon].
This is the category of “lower repentance,” whereby the lower [letter] hey 12  Referring to the second letter hey of the Name of Havaya. Teshuvah (spelled תשוב-ה) implies the return of the hey. Cf. Iggeret Hateshuvah, chs. 4, 7, 8. is raised up from its fall into the forces of evil, which is the mystery of the Shechinah in exile, as our Rabbis, of blessed memory, state, “When they [the Israelites] were exiled into Edom, the Shechinah went with them.” 13   Megillah 29a. That is to say, when a person practices the acts of “Edom,” 14  Edom is here understood allegorically as the embodiment of evil. he degrades and brings down there the Divine spark which vitalizes his nefesh, ruach, and neshamah that are clothed within him in the animal soul of the kelipah, which is in the left part of his heart, which reigns over him as long as he remains wicked, dominating his “small city,” while the nefesh, ruach, and neshamah are forced into exile under it.
But when his heart breaks within him, and the spirit of uncleanliness and of the sitra achara is broken, and [the forces of evil are] dispersed, then [the Shechinah ] rises from its fall and remains upright, as is explained elsewhere.

Chapter 18

To explain more adequately and more precisely the word “very” in the verse, “For this thing is very near to you….” 1  Deuteronomy 30:14.
It should be recognized with certainty that even the person whose understanding in the knowledge of G–d is limited, and who has no heart to comprehend the greatness of the En Sof, blessed is He, to produce therefrom awe and love [of G–d] even in his mind and understanding alone 2  I.e., without emotional sway. —however, it is a “very near thing” for him to observe and practice all the commandments of the Torah and the “study of the Torah which counterbalances them all,” in his very mouth and heart, from the depths of his heart, in true sincerity, with fear and love; namely, the hidden love in the heart of all Jews which is an inheritance to us from our Patriarchs.
However, we must, first of all, preface a clear and precise explanation of the origin and essence of this love, how it became our inheritance, and how awe is also incorporated in it.
The explanation is as follows: The Patriarchs were truly the “chariot” of G–d, 3   Bereishit Rabbah 47:6; Zohar III:252a; Torah Or 23d ff. This expression signifies absolute self-abnegation and submission to G–d and the Divine will (just as the chariot is totally submitted to the will of the charioteer), thereby becoming a vehicle for Divinity on earth. Cf. below, chs. 23, 29, 34, 37. and therefore they merited [the blessing of] transmitting to their descendants, coming after them forever, a nefesh, ruach, and neshamah from the ten holy sefirot of the four worlds of Atzilut, Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah, to each according to his station and according to his works.
Even the most worthless of worthless men and the sinners of Israel are thus endowed, at the time of marital union, with, at any rate, a nefesh d’nefesh of malchut d’Asiyah (royalty in world of Action), which is the lowest grade of holiness [in the world] of Asiyah. 4   Malchut is the lowest of the ten sefirot in each of the Four Worlds; nefesh is the lowest aspect of the soul. Thus a nefesh of the nefesh of malchut is the lowest order of a soul.
Nevertheless, since the latter is of the ten holy sefirot it is compounded of them all, including chochmah d’Asiyah (wisdom of the world of Action), wherein is clothed chochmah d’malchut d’Atzilut (wisdom of royalty in the world of Emanation), incorporating chochmah d’Atzilut (wisdom of the world of Emanation) which is illuminated by the actual light of the En Sof, blessed is He, as is written, “The L–rd has founded the earth with wisdom” 5  Proverbs 3:19. and “You have made them all with wisdom.” 6  Psalms 104:24.
Thus it comes to pass that the En Sof, blessed is He, is garbed, as it were, in the wisdom of the human soul, of whatever sort of a Jew he may be. [In turn,] the soul’s faculty of wisdom, together with the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, that is vested in it, spreads throughout the entire soul, animating it “from head to foot,” so to speak, as is written, “Wisdom gives life to those that have it.” 7  Ecclesiastes 7:12.
[At times sinners of Israel may even bring down very lofty souls which had been in the depths of the kelipot, as is explained in the Sefer Gilgulim.] 8  Book on Transmigration, by R. Chaim Vital.
Now, chochmah (wisdom) is the source of intelligence and comprehension, and it is above binah (understanding) which is intellectual understanding and comprehension, whereas chochmah is above them and their source.
Note the etymological composition of the word חכמה כ“ח מ“ה—(“the potentiality of what is”), that which is not yet comprehended and understood or grasped intellectually; 9  Above, ch. 3. consequently there is vested in it the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, Who can in no way be comprehended by any thought.
Hence all Jews, even the women and the illiterate, believe in G–d, since faith is beyond understanding and comprehension, 10  Where knowledge ends, faith begins. for “The simple believe every thing, but the prudent man understands….” 11  Proverbs 14:15. But with regard to the Holy One, blessed is He, Who is beyond intelligence and knowledge and Who can in no way be comprehended by any thought—all men are like fools in His presence, blessed be He, as is written, “I was a boor and did not understand, like an animal was I with You. Yet I was always with you…,” 12  Psalms 73:22. meaning that “ because I was a boor and as an animal, I was always with You.” 13  Communion with G–d could never be fully attained through intellectual comprehension because G–d is incomprehensible. It is through faith which transcends comprehension that man can feel true closeness with G–d.
Therefore even the most worthless of worthless and the transgressors of the Israelites, in the majority of cases, sacrifice their lives for the sanctity of G–d’s Name and suffer harsh torture rather than deny the one G–d, although they be boors and illiterate and ignorant of G–d’s greatness.
[For] whatever little knowledge they do possess, they do not delve therein at all, [and so] they do not give up their lives by reason of any knowledge and contemplation of G–d. Rather [do they suffer martyrdom] without any knowledge and reflection, but as if it were absolutely impossible to renounce the one G–d and without any reason or hesitation whatsoever.
This is because the one G–d illuminates and animates the entire nefesh, through being clothed in its faculty of chochmah, which is beyond any graspable and understood knowledge or intelligence.

Chapter 19

To elucidate still further, it is necessary to clarify the meaning of the verse, “The candle of G–d is the soul ( neshamah ) of man.” 1  Proverbs 20:27.
What it means is that the souls of Jews, who are called “man,” 2   Yevamot 61a. are, by way of illustration, like the flame of the candle, whose nature it is always to flicker upward, for the flame of the fire intrinsically seeks to be parted from the wick in order to unite with its source above in the universal element of fire which is in the sublunar sphere, as is explained in Etz Chaim.
And although it would thereby be extinguished and emit no light at all below, and even above, in its source, its light would be nullified, nevertheless this is what it seeks in accordance with its nature.
In like manner does the neshamah of man, including the quality of ruach and nefesh, naturally desire and yearn to separate itself and depart from the body in order to unite with its origin and source in G–d, the Fountainhead of life, blessed is He, though thereby it would become null and void, completely losing its entity therein, with nothing remaining of its former essence and being. 3  This passage does not mean extinction of the soul, only its cessation as a distinct entity. Nevertheless, this is its will and desire by its nature.
“Nature” is an applied term for anything that is not in the realm of reason and comprehension.
In our case, too, the inference is that this will and desire of the soul are not within the realm of reason, knowledge, and intelligence that can be grasped and understood but beyond graspable and comprehensible knowledge and intelligence, for this nature stems from the faculty of chochmah found in the soul, wherein abides the light of the En Sof, blessed is He.
Now this is a general principle in the whole realm of holiness—it [holiness] is only that which is derived from chochmah called קודש העליון (“supreme holiness”), whose existence is nullified in the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, which is clothed in it, so that it is not a thing apart, as is explained above; therefore it is called koach mah [power of humility and abnegation].
This stands in direct contrast to the so-called kelipah and sitra achara, wherefrom are derived the souls of the gentiles who work for themselves alone, demanding, “Give, give!” 4  Proverbs 30:15. and “Feed me!” 5  Genesis 25:30. in order to become independent beings and entities, as mentioned above, in direct contrast to the category of chochmah. Therefore they are called “dead,” 6   Berachot 18b. for “Wisdom ( chochmah ) gives life,” 7  Ecclesiastes 7:12. and it is also written, “They die, without wisdom.” 8  Job 4:21. So are the wicked and transgressors of Israel before they face the test to sanctify G–d’s name. For the faculty of chochmah which is in the divine soul, with the spark of G–dliness from the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, that is clothed in it, is, as it were, in exile in their body, within the animal soul coming from the kelipah, in the left part of the heart, which reigns and holds sway over their body, in accordance with the esoteric doctrine of the exile of the Shechinah, as mentioned earlier. 9  Ch. 17.
For this reason, this love of the divine soul, whose desire and wish is to unite with G–d, the Fountainhead of life, blessed is He, is called “hidden love,” for it is hidden and veiled, in the case of the transgressors of Israel, in the sackcloth of the kelipah, whence there enters into them a spirit of folly to sin, as the Rabbis have said, “A person does not sin unless the spirit of folly has entered into him.” 10   Sotah 3a.
However, this exile of the faculty of chochmah refers only to that aspect of it which is diffused throughout the nefesh and animates it. Yet the root and core of this faculty of the divine soul remains in the brain and does not clothe itself in the sackcloth of the kelipah in the left part of the heart, in veritable exile, but it is, as it were, dormant in the case of the wicked, not exercising its influence in them so long as their knowledge and understanding are preoccupied with mundane pleasures.
Nevertheless, when they are confronted with a test in a matter of faith, which transcends knowledge, touching the very soul and the faculty of chochmah within it, at such time it is aroused from its sleep and it exerts its influence by virtue of the Divine force that is clothed in it, as is written, “And the L–rd awoke like one who had been asleep.” 11  Psalms 78:65. [On such occasion the sinner is inspired] to withstand the test of faith in G–d, without any reasoning, knowledge, or intelligence that may be comprehended by him, and to prevail over the kelipah and temptations of this world, whether permitted or prohibited, to which he had been accustomed—even to despise them, and to choose G–d as his portion and lot, yielding to Him his soul [to suffer martyrdom] in order to sanctify His Name.
For, even though the kelipot had prevailed over him all his life and he was impotent against them, as the Rabbis have said that “the wicked are under the control of their heart,” 12   Bereishit Rabbah 34:11. yet when he faces a test challenging his faith in the One G–d, [a faith] which has its roots in the uppermost heights of holiness, namely, the faculty of chochmah of the divine soul, in which is clothed the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, then all the kelipot are made null and void, and they vanish, as though they had never been in the presence of the L–rd. So it is written, “All the nations are as nothing before Him…,” 13  Isaiah 40:17. and “Indeed your enemies, O L–rd, indeed your enemies shall perish; [all evildoers] shall be scattered,” 14  Psalms 92:10. and, again, “As wax melts before fire, [let the wicked] perish,” 15  Psalms 68:3. and “The mountains will melt like wax.” 16  Psalms 97:5.
The force of the Divine light of the En Sof, blessed is He, that is clothed in the soul’s chochmah is great and powerful enough to banish and repel the sitra achara and the kelipot so that they could not even touch its garments, namely, the thought, speech, and act of faith in the One G–d. In other words, [it enables one] to withstand a test of self-sacrifice to the extent of even refusing to do some single act that is contrary to the faith in the One G–d, such as, for example, to bow to an idol, even without acknowledging it in his heart at all or to utter any false notion, Heaven forbid, regarding the unity of G–d, be it merely by way of rendering lip service only, while his heart remains perfect in the belief in G–d.
This is called “fear that is contained in love,” the natural love of the divine soul that is found in all Jews, the intrinsic desire and will of which is to be attached to its origin and source in the light of the En Sof, blessed is He. For by virtue of this love and this desire, it instinctively recoils in fear and dread from touching even the fringe of the impurity of idolatry, Heaven forbid, which denies the faith in one G–d, even where such contact involves only its outer garments, namely, speech and act, without any faith whatsoever in the heart.

Chapter 20

It is well known that the commandment and admonition 1  The positive and prohibitive aspects of the injunction, respectively. concerning idolatry, which are contained in the first two commandments of the Decalogue—“I am” 2  Exodus 20:2. and “You shall not have any other gods” 3  Ibid., v. 3. —comprise the entire Torah. 4  The first (“I am”) is the positive, and the second (“You shall not”) is the prohibitive aspect, both ruling out idolatry; the first implicitly, the second—explicitly. For the commandment “I am” contains all the 248 positive precepts, while the commandment “You shall not have” contains all the 365 prohibitions. 5  Cf. Shnei Luchot HaBrit, beg. Parashat Yitro. Zohar II:276a. That is why we heard only “I am” and “You shall not have” directly from the Almighty, as our Sages say, 6   Makkot 24a. The other eight Commandments were relayed by Moses. “because these two are the sum total of the whole Torah.”
In order to elucidate this matter clearly, we must first briefly refer to the subject and essence of the Unity 7  The discussion of this subject is carried over into the following chapter; cf. also ch. 33. of the Holy One, blessed is He, Who is called One and Unique, and “all believe that He is All Alone,” 8  Liturgy of New Year’s Day and Day of Atonement. exactly as He was before the world was created, when there was naught besides Him, as is written, “You were [the same] before the world was created; You are [the same] since the world has been created….” 9  Liturgy, daily Morning Service. This means exactly the same without any change, as it is written, “For I, the L–rd, have not changed,” 10  Malachi 3:6. inasmuch as this world and likewise all supernal worlds do not effect any change in His Unity, blessed be He, 11  Not to mention His essence. by their having been created ex nihilo.
For just as He was All Alone, Single and Unique, before they were created, so is He One and Alone, Single and Unique after they were created, since, beside Him, everything is as nothing, verily as null and void.
For the coming into being of all the upper and nether worlds out of nonbeing, and their life and existence sustaining them from reverting to nonexistence and nought, as was before, is nothing else but the word of G–d and the breath of His mouth, blessed be He, 12  See Psalms 33:6. that is clothed in them.
To illustrate from the soul of a human being: When a man utters a word, 13  Hebrew text should read דבור instead of דבר. this utterance in itself is as absolutely nothing even when compared only with his general “articulate soul,” which is the so-called middle “garment,” 14  Of the three garments: thought, speech, and act. namely, its faculty of speech, which can produce speech without limit or end; 15  Physical incapacity (or death) does not limit the soul’s potential capacity for speech, which is intrinsic to it. all the more when it is compared with its so-called innermost “garment,” namely, its faculty of thought, which is the source of speech and its life-force, not to mention when it is compared with the essence and entity of the soul, these being its ten attributes mentioned above, 16  Ch. 3. viz., chochmah, binah, daat ( chabad ), and so on, from which are derived the “letters” of thought that are clothed in the speech when it is uttered. For thought can as much be defined in terms of “letters” as speech, except that in the former they are more spiritual and refined.
But the ten attributes— chochmah, binah, daat ( chabad ), and so forth—are the root and source of thought, and, prior to their being clothed in the garment of thought, still lack the element of “letters.”
For example, when a man suddenly becomes conscious of a certain love or desire in his heart, before it has risen from the heart to the brain to think and meditate about it, it has not yet acquired the element of “letters”; it is only a simple desire and longing in the heart for the object of his affection.
All the more so before he began to feel in his heart a craving and desire for that thing, and it is as yet confined within the realm of his wisdom, intellect, and knowledge, that is, the thing is known to him to be desirable and gratifying, something good and pleasant to attain and to cling to, as, for instance, to learn some wisdom or to eat some 17  Hebrew text should read איזה instead איזו. delicious food. Only after the desire and craving have already found their way into the heart, through the stimulus of his wisdom, intellect, and knowledge, and then ascended once more back to the brain, to think and meditate on how to translate his craving from the potential into the practical, with a view to actually obtaining that food or acquiring that wisdom—it is here that the so-called “letters” are born in his mind, such “letters” corresponding to the language of each nation, employing them in speech and thought about all things in the world. 18  Continued in next chapter.

Chapter 21

However, “The nature of the Divine order is not like that of a creature of flesh and blood.” 1   Berachot 40a. When a man utters a word, the breath emitted in speaking is something that can be sensed and perceived as a thing apart, separated from its source, namely, the ten faculties of the soul itself.
But with the Holy One, blessed is He, His speech is not, Heaven forfend, separated from Him, blessed be He, for there is nothing outside of Him, and there is no place devoid of Him. 2   Tikkunei Zohar 57. Therefore, His speech, blessed be He, is not like our speech, G–d forbid [just as His thought is not like our thought, as is written, “For My thoughts are not like your thoughts,” 3  Isaiah 55:8. and “So My ways are higher than your ways…” 4  Ibid., v. 9. ].
His speech, blessed be He, is called “speech” only by way of an anthropomorphic illustration, in the sense that, as in the case of man below, whose speech reveals to his audience what was hidden and concealed in his thoughts, so, too, is it on high with the En Sof, blessed is He, Whose emitted light and life-force—as it emerges from Him, from concealment into revelation, to create worlds and to sustain them—is called “speech.”
These [emanations] are indeed the ten fiats by which the world was created; 5   Avot 5:1. likewise also the remainder of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings, which the Prophets conceived in their prophetic vision.
Yet His so-called speech and thought are united with Him in absolute union as, for example, a person’s speech and thought while they are still in potentia in his wisdom and intellect, or in a desire and craving that are still in the heart prior to rising from the heart to the brain, where by cogitation they are formulated into the so-called “letters,” 6  See previous chapter. for at that time the “letters” of thought and speech which evolve from that longing or desire were still in potentia in the heart, where they were absolutely fused with their root, namely, the wisdom and intellect in the brain, and the longing and desire in the heart.
Verily so, by way of example, are the “speech” and “thought” of the Holy One, blessed is He, absolutely united with His essence and being, blessed be He, even after His “speech,” blessed be He, has already become materialized in the creation of the worlds, just as it was united with Him before the worlds were created. There is thus no manner of change before Him, blessed be He, but only for the created beings which receive their life-force from His “word,” blessed be He, as it were, in its revealed state at the creation of the worlds, in which it is clothed, giving them life through a process of gradual descent from cause to effect and a downward gradation, by means of numerous and various contractions, 7  The process of tzimtzum. until the created beings can receive their life and existence from it without losing their entity.
These “contractions” are all in the nature of “veiling of the Countenance,” to obscure and conceal the light and life-force that are derived from His “word,” blessed be He, so that it shall not reveal itself in a greater radiance than the lower worlds are capable of receiving. Hence it seems to them as if the light and life-force of the word of the Omnipresent, blessed is He, which is clothed in them, were something apart from His essence and being, blessed be He, and it only issues from Him, just as the speech of a human being [issues] from his soul.
Yet, in regard to the Holy One, blessed is He, no concealment or veil hides or obscures anything from Him, to Whom darkness is like light, as is written, “Even the darkness obscures nothing from You….” 8  Psalms 139:12. For all the “contractions” and “garments” are not things distinct from Him, Heaven forfend, but “like the snail, whose garment is part of his body” 9   Bereishit Rabbah 21:5. and as is written, “The L–rd, He is G–d,” 10  Deuteronomy 4:35. as is explained elsewhere. 11  The Ineffable Name—the Name of four letters, Y-H-V-H—is pronounced in conversation Havaya. The prescribed traditional reading in Scripture and prayer is Ad-nay. However, the name Havaya refers to G–d the Infinite, the transcendent creative Divine force, beyond creation and nature, omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient. The name Elokim, the immanent Divine force concealed in nature, emphasizes G–d’s justice and rulership (see Rashi’s commentary, Genesis 2:5, 6:2). See below, Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 6. The equation emphasizes the absolute Unity of the Creator.
Therefore, in His Presence, all else is of no account whatsoever.

Chapter 22

Yet, since “the Torah employs human language,” 1   Berachot 22a. the “word” of the Omnipresent, blessed is He, is actually called “speech,” like the speech of a human being, for in truth it is so, by virtue of the descent and flow of the life-force to the lower planes, by means of many and powerful contractions of various kinds, in order that many diverse creatures be created from them.
Indeed, so great and powerful are the contractions and concealment of the Countenance that even unclean things, kelipot and sitra achara, can come into being and be created, receiving their life and existence from the Divine word and the breath of His mouth, blessed be He, in concealment of His Countenance and by virtue of the downward gradations.
Therefore are [the kelipot ] called 2  Hebrew text should read נקראים instead of נקרא. “other gods” (אלהים אחרים), for their nurture and life are not of the so-called “Countenance” but of the so-called “hinder-part” (אחוריים) 3  A gloss based on the words אחוריים – אחרים. of holiness; “hinder” exemplifying the act of a person giving something unwillingly to an enemy, when he throws it to him over his shoulder, as it were, having turned away his face from him since he hates him.
So, on high, the term “Countenance” exemplifies the inner 4  A gloss based on the words פנימיות – פנים. quality of the Supernal Will and true desire, in which G–d delights to dispense life from the realm of holiness to everyone who is near to Him.
But the sitra achara, and unholiness, is “an abomination unto G–d which He hates,” 5  Deuteronomy 12:31. and He does not give it life from His inner will and true desire as if He delighted in it, Heaven forbid, but in the manner of one who reluctantly throws something over his shoulder to his enemy; [He does so] only to punish the wicked and to give a goodly reward to the righteous who subjugate the sitra achara. This is [why it is] called the “hinder-part” of the Supernal Will.
Now, the Supernal Will, of the quality of “Countenance,” is the source of life which animates all worlds. But since it is in no way bestowed on the sitra achara, and even the so-called “hinder-part” of the Supernal Will is not actually clothed in it, but merely hovers over it from above, therefore it is the abode of death and defilement—may G–d preserve us! For the tiny amount of light and life that it derives and absorbs into itself from the so-called “hinder-part” of the supernal holiness is, as it were, in a state of actual exile in it, as an aspect of the esoteric doctrine of the exile of the Shechinah, referred to above. 6  Ch. 19.
Therefore, also, it is termed “other gods,” since it constitutes actual idolatry and denial of the unity of the Supreme King of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He. For inasmuch as the light and life of holiness are, as it were, in a state of exile, within it, it does not surrender itself in any degree to the holiness of the Holy One, blessed is He. On the contrary, it surges upward like an eagle, saying, “I am, and there is nothing besides me,” 7  Isaiah 47:8; Zephaniah 2:15. or as the utterance, “My river is mine, and I have made myself.” 8  The quotation is a combination of Ezekiel 29:9 and 29:3.
That is why the rabbis, of blessed memory, said that arrogance truly compares with idolatry, 9   Sotah 4b. for the essence and root of idolatry is that it is regarded as a thing in itself, sundered from the holiness of the Omnipresent; it does not imply an outright denial of G–d, as is stated in the Gemara that they [the heathens] call Him “the G–d of gods,” 10   Menachot 110a. thus only presuming themselves also to be entities and independent beings. But thereby they separate themselves from the Omnipresent, blessed is He, since they do not surrender themselves to Him, blessed be He. For the supernal holiness rests only on what is surrendered to Him, blessed be He, as is explained above. 11  Ch. 6. Therefore they are called in the holy Zohar 12  I:158a. “peaks of separation.” But this constitutes a denial of His true unity, where everything is as nothing compared with Him and truly nullified before Him, blessed be He, and before His will, which animates them all and constantly gives them existence out of nothing.

Chapter 23

In the light of all that has been said above, we can better understand and more fully and clearly elucidate the statement in the Zohar 1  Cf. I:24a; II:60a. that “the Torah and the Holy One, blessed is He, are altogether one” and the commentary in the Tikkunim that “the 248 commandments are the 248 ‘organs’ of the King.” 2   Tikkunei Zohar 30.
The commandments constitute the innermost will of the Supreme One and His true desire which are clothed in all the upper and nether worlds, thereby giving them life, inasmuch as their very life and sustenance is dependent upon the performance of the commandments by the [creatures], in the lower world, as is known.
It follows that the performance of the commandments and their fulfillment is the innermost garment of the innermost will of the Supreme One, since it is due to this performance that the light and life of the Supernal Will issue forth to be clothed in the worlds.
Hence they are called “organs” of the King as a figure of speech, for just as the organs of the human body are a garment for its soul and are completely and utterly surrendered to it, as evidenced from the fact that as soon as a person desires to stretch out his hand or foot, they obey his will immediately and forthwith, without any command or instruction to them and with no hesitation whatsoever, but in the very instant that he wills it; so, by way of example, is the life-force animating the performance of the commandments and their fulfillment completely surrendered to the Supernal Will which is clothed therein, becoming in relation to it like a body to a soul.
Likewise the external garment of the divine soul in the person fulfilling and practicing the commandment—this being its faculty of action—clothes itself in the vitality of the performance of the commandment, thus also becoming like a body in relation to the soul, the “soul” being the Supernal Will to which it is completely surrendered.
In this way, the organs of the human body which perform the commandment—in which the divine soul’s faculty of action is clothed at the time of the act and fulfillment of the commandment—truly become a vehicle for the Supernal Will; as, for example, the hand which distributes charity to the poor or performs another commandment or the feet which carry a person toward the performance of a commandment; similarly with the mouth and tongue engaged in uttering the words of the Torah or the brain engaged in reflecting on the words of the Torah or on the fear of Heaven or the greatness of G–d, blessed is He.
This is what the Sages meant when they said that the Patriarchs were truly the “chariot” of G–d, 3  Cf. above, ch. 18, note 3. for all their organs were completely holy and detached from mundane matters, serving as a vehicle solely for the Supernal Will alone throughout their lives.
As for the thought and meditation—in the words of the Torah—that are in the brain, and the power of speech—engaged in the words of the Torah—that is in the mouth, 4  I.e., the faculties of thought and speech as distinct from action. these being the innermost garments of the divine soul, not to mention the divine soul itself which is clothed in them—all of them are completely merged in perfect unity with the Supernal Will and are not merely a vehicle. For the Supernal Will is identical with the very subject of the halachah wherein one thinks and speaks, inasmuch as all the laws are particular streams flowing from the innermost will of the Supreme One itself, for so it arose in His will, blessed be He, it that a particular act be permissible, or a food ritually fit for consumption, or this [person] inculpable and that entirely innocent, or the reverse. So also are the letter combinations of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings a promulgation of His will and wisdom which are united with the En Sof, blessed is He, in perfect unity, since He is the Knower and the Knowledge, and so forth.
This, then, is the meaning of the abovementioned quotation that “the Torah and the Holy One, blessed is He, are altogether One,” and not merely “organs” of the King as are the commandments.
Now, since at such time as a person occupies himself with the words of the Torah, the Supernal Will, united as it is in perfect unity with the En Sof, blessed is He, is completely manifest and in no way obscured in the divine soul and its innermost garments, i.e., its thought and speech—it follows that the soul and its garments are also at such time veritably united with the En Sof, blessed is He, in perfect unity, like the union of the “speech” and “thought” of the Holy One, blessed is He, with His essence and being, as mentioned above. 5  Ch. 21. For there is no separate thing except through “concealment of the Countenance” as explained there.
Moreover, their union is even of a higher and profounder order than the union of the Light of the En Sof, blessed is He, with the upper worlds, since the Supernal Will is actually manifest in the soul and its garments when they are engaged in the Torah, because it is identical with the Torah, while all the supernal worlds receive their vitality from the light and life that are derived from the Torah, which is His will and wisdom, blessed be He, as it is written, “You have made them all with wisdom.” 6  Psalms 104:24. Thus, His wisdom, i.e., the Torah, is above them all, and it is identical with His will, blessed be He, which is described as “encompassing” all worlds, i.e., that aspect which cannot clothe itself within the worlds, but animates and illuminates in a transcending and encompassing manner. 7  Further discussion on the immanent and transcending aspects of the Divine emanation will be found in chs. 41, 46, 48, and 51. Yet, it [this very light] does clothe itself in the human soul and its garments in a truly manifest form, when the person occupies himself with the words of the Torah, even though he does not perceive it… 8  Cf. Megillah 3a. [—this is what enables him to endure it, because he does not perceive it; it is otherwise, however, in the case of the upper spheres 9  …where there is no such obscurity as in the physical world. ].
With the above in mind, it becomes clear why the study of the Torah excels so much over all other commandments, including even prayer, which is the unifying force of the upper spheres. [As for the ruling that one, whose study of the Torah is not his entire occupation, must interrupt his study for prayer, 10  Seemingly indicating that prayer has priority over study. this is only because he pauses and interrupts his studies anyway 11   Shabbat 11a; Maimonides, Hilchot Tefillah 6:8; Rabbi Schneur Zalman, Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 106:4..]
From this the intelligent man will be able to draw a sense of great awe as he occupies himself with the Torah, considering how his soul, and its “garments” in the brain and mouth, are truly merged in perfect unity with the Supernal Will and light of the En Sof, blessed is He, which are manifest in them, compared with which all the worlds, supernal and nether, are truly as nought and as a nonentity and nullity, so much so that the Divine light is not actually clothed in them, but merely surrounds all the worlds in a form of “encirclement,” as it were, in order to provide their essential source of life; only some glow which they can bear is clothed in them, in order that they should not revert to nought altogether.
This is the meaning of the verse, “And G–d commanded us [to do] all these statutes, in order to fear G–d….” 12  Deuteronomy 6:24. In the quotation the word לעשות (“to do”) is missing. [Regarding this “great fear” it was said, “If there is no wisdom, there is no fear,” 13   Avot 3:17. and in relation to it the Torah is called “a gateway to the courtyard,” 14   Shabbat 31b; Yoma 72b—see Rashi there. as is explained elsewhere.] However, not every mind can sustain such fear; yet even he whose mind cannot bear such fear at all, whether in whole or in part, because of the inferiority of his soul’s level in its root and source in the lower 15  Hebrew text should read תחתונות instead of תחתונים. gradations of the ten sefirot of the World of Asiyah, nevertheless the lack of such fear is no obstacle to performance, as will be explained later. 16  Ch. 41.

Chapter 24

Antithetically, 1  I.e., in contrast to the 248 positive precepts whereby the worshipper achieves unity with G–d, as explained in the previous chapter. the 365 prohibitive commandments of the Torah, as well as the Rabbinic injunctions, since they are contrary to His will and wisdom, blessed be He, and, indeed, the very opposite thereof, represent total and complete separation from His Unity and Oneness, blessed be He, the same as the sitra achara and kelipah which are called avodah zarah (idolatry) and “other gods” because of the “hiding of the Countenance” of the Supernal Will, as explained above. 2  Ch. 22.
Likewise the three “garments” of the nefesh stemming from the kelipat nogah in Jews, namely, thought, speech, and action, when clothed in the 365 prohibitive commands of the Torah, or in the Rabbinic injunctions, as also the essence of the nefesh itself which pervades these garments—all become actually united with the said sitra achara and kelipah, called avodah zarah.
Furthermore, they become subordinate and secondary to it [the kelipah ], and considerably inferior and more debased than it. For the kelipah is not clothed in a corporeal body, 3  Hence not so “screened” from the Divine light. and it knows its Master and is not rebellious against Him by any independent act of sending its evil messengers, G–d forbid, when not commissioned by the Omnipresent, blessed is He. Witness Balaam’s statement, “I cannot go beyond the word of G–d….” 4  Numbers 22:18.
And even though it is called avodah zarah, He is, at least, acknowledged as “the G–d of gods,” and the latter are utterly powerless to contravene His will, blessed be He, for they know and apprehend that He is their life and sustenance, since they derive their nurture from the so-called “hindermost part” of the the will of the Supreme One, blessed is He, which encompasses them. It is only because their sustenance and inner life-source are, as it were, in “exile” within them that they presume to regard themselves as gods, which is a denial of His unity.
Nevertheless they are not so completely heretical as to deny G–d and to assert that He does not exist; only they regard Him as the “G–d of gods,” recognizing that their life and existence are [ultimately] derived and bestowed upon them from His will, blessed be He. Therefore they are never rebellious against His will, blessed be He.
If this be so, then the person who opposes His will, blessed be He, is exceedingly inferior to and more debased than the sitra achara and the kelipah, called avodah zarah and “strange gods,” and he is completely sundered from His Unity and Oneness, even more than they, as though denying His unity more radically than they, G–d forbid. 5  Note the distinction between evil and evil-doer.
Compare what is written in Etz Chaim, Portal 42, end of ch. 4, that the evil which is in this material world “is the dregs of the coarse kelipot …hence the ultimate in the purifying process 6  See Addendum, Glossary on Birur. …therefore are all worldly things severe and evil, and the wicked prevail in it….” 7  Our material world being the “lowest” or grossest, evil is here at its strongest.
This explains the commentary of our Sages, of blessed memory, on the verse, “If any man’s wife turn aside,” 8  Numbers 5:12. that “No person commits any transgression [unless a spirit of folly has entered into him].” 9   Sotah 3a. For even an adulterous woman, with her frivolous nature, could have controlled her passionate drive, were it not for the spirit of folly in her which covers, obscures, and conceals the hidden love of her divine soul yearning to cleave to her faith in G–d, in His Unity and Oneness, and not to be parted, G–d forbid, even at the cost of her life, from His Unity, by idolatrous worship, G–d forbid, be it only by an outward acknowledgment, without any belief at all in her heart. Surely she could subdue the temptation and lust of adultery, which is lighter suffering than death, may G–d protect us!
But the distinction she makes between the interdict against adultery and that against bowing to an idol is also but a spirit of folly stemming from the kelipah which envelops the divine soul up to, but not including, its faculty of chochmah, because of the Divine light that is clothed in that faculty, as mentioned above. 10  Ch. 19.
The real truth, however, is that even in the case of a minor sin, the offender transgresses against the will of the Supreme One, blessed is He, and is completely sundered from His Unity and Oneness, blessed be He, even more than the sitra achara and the kelipah, called “strange gods” and “idolatry,” and than all things that are derived therefrom in this world, namely, the unclean cattle and beasts, and unclean birds, and the abominable insects and reptiles. To quote: “the gnat was [created] ahead of You [man],” 11   Sanhedrin 38a; Vayikra Rabbah 14. which means that even the gnat—which consumes but does not excrete 12  The symbol of extreme selfishness. and is the lowest kelipah and the most distant from holiness, which bestows benevolence even at the greatest distance—precedes the sinful man in the descending gradation and flow of life from the will of the Supreme One, blessed is He. All the more so the other unclean living creatures, and even the fierce beasts, all of which do not deflect from their purpose but obey His command, blessed be He, even though they cannot perceive it…. 13  Cf. Megillah 3a. To quote further, “And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth,” 14  Genesis 9:2. eliciting the commentary of our Sages, of blessed memory, that “no evil beast defies a human being unless he appears to it like an animal.” 15   Sanhedrin 38b; i.e., debased by sin. While confronting the righteous, from whose face the Divine image never departs, the evil beasts are humbled before them, as is stated in the Zohar of Daniel in the lions’ den.
It is, therefore, clear that he who sins and transgresses against His will, blessed be He, even in a minor offense, is, at the time he commits it, more completely removed from the Supreme Holiness, namely His Unity and Oneness, blessed be He, than all the unclean living creatures and abominable insects and reptiles which derive their sustenance from the sitra achara and the kelipah of “idolatry.”
As for the principle that saving a life overrides certain prohibitions, 16   Yoma 82a. and the circumstances when the law calls for the commission of a transgression so as to escape death 17   Sanhedrin 74a. —this is in accordance with the explanation of our Sages, of blessed memory, that “the Torah declares, ‘violate one Shabbat for him, that he may observe many Shabbats,’” 18   Shabbat 151b; Yoma 85b. and not because of the relative lenity or gravity of the sins.
[This is supported by the fact that the violation of Shabbat is extremely grave and comparable with idolatry in relation to the law of animal slaughtering by one who is a habitual transgressor of any particular Jewish precept, as codified in Yoreh Deah, Sect. II, unlike the case of one whose particular willful sin is that of incest. 19  Jewish law disqualifies one who openly desecrates Shabbat, or commits idolatry, from slaughtering animals for “kosher” consumption, but not in the case of a person guilty of any other particular transgression, including incest. Nevertheless, when it is a question of saving a life, the prohibitions of Shabbat are suspended, but never those of incest. Rather, it is a Scriptural decree.] 20  Hence it is not a matter of lenity or gravity of the sins in question.
After the sinful act, however, if it belongs to the category of sins the penalty for which is neither karet (spiritual extinction) nor death by Divine visitation, in which case the divine soul does not entirely perish and is not completely cut off from its root in the living G–d, except that through this sin its attachment to, and connection with, its root has been weakened somewhat—
NOTE: According to the extent and specific nature of the blemish [thus caused] in the soul and in its roots in the upper spheres are the various so-called purifying processes and retributions in Purgatory, or in this world—an appropriate retribution for each transgression and sin, in order to cleanse and remove the stain and blemish. Nor is the blemish always identical in the case of transgressions punishable by death or spiritual extinction ( karet ).
in that case his vitalizing animal soul which is clothed in the body, and also his body, return and rise from the sitra achara and kelipah and draw closer to the holiness of the divine soul that pervades them, which believes in One G–d, and remains faithful to Him even at the time when the sin is committed, except that it is then in a state of veritable “exile,” as it were, within the animal soul of the sitra achara which has caused the body to sin and has dragged it down with itself into the depths of Sheol, far down beneath the defilement of the sitra achara and kelipah of “idolatry”—may G–d preserve us!
What greater exile can there be than this, “[a plunge] from a high roof [to a deep pit]!” For, as has been previously explained, 21  Above, ch. 2. that the root and source of all Jewish souls is in the supreme wisdom, and He and His wisdom are one and the same….
It is comparable, by way of example, to one who seizes the king’s head, drags it down, and dips his face in a privy full of filth, from which there is no greater outrage, even if he does it only for a moment. For the kelipot and sitra achara are called 22  Hebrew text should read נקראות instead of נקראים. “vomit and filth,” 23  Isaiah 28:8. Comp. Guide 3:8. as is known.

Chapter 25

This, then, is the meaning 1  The author returns to the theme begun in ch. 18. of the Scriptural text, “For it is exceedingly near to you do….” 2  Deuteronomy 30:14. For at any time and moment a person is capable and free to rid himself of the spirit of folly and forgetfulness 3  The “spirit of folly”—driving him to sins of commission; “forgetfulness” of the innate love of G–d—causing sins of omission. and to recollect and awaken his love of the One G–d which is certainly latent in his heart, without any doubt.
This is the meaning of the words “in your heart.” 4  Deuteronomy 30:14. Included therein is also fear, that is, the dread of separation in any way from His Unity and Oneness, blessed be He, even at the price of life itself and without reason and logic, but purely by virtue of one’s divine nature.
All the more so where it involves merely the suppression of one’s appetites, which is easier than the pangs of death. This thing, i.e., repressing his evil inclination, is easier by far, both in the category of “turning away from evil” [and that of “doing good”], 5  The apodotic clause is expanded later; cf. n. 9. even when it concerns a minor prohibition laid down by the Scribes, so as not to transgress against His will, blessed be He, since at the time of its commission he is thereby sundered from His Unity and Oneness just as much as committing actual idolatry. As for repenting afterward, he can do this regarding idolatry, too.
To be sure, “He who says, ‘I will sin and repent afterward’ is not given an opportunity to do so.” 6  Mishnah, Yoma 8:9. But this means that such a sinner is not granted the auspicious occasion to repent. If, however, he has seized the opportunity himself and has repented, “Nothing can stand in the way of repentance.” 7  Jerusalem Talmud, Peah 1:1 (“in the way of repenters”); Comp. Kiddushin 40a.
Nonetheless every Jew is prepared and ready to suffer martyrdom for the sanctification of G–d’s Name and will not commit an idolatrous act, even temporarily, with the intention of repenting afterward. This is because of the divine light which is clothed in his soul, as explained above, 8  Ch. 19. which does not come within the realm of time at all, but transcends it, having rule and dominion over it, as is known.
Likewise in the category of “doing good” 9  See above, note 5. —to bestir oneself like a lion with might and stoutheartedness against the [evil] nature which weighs down his body and casts sloth over him from the so-called element of “earth” in the animal soul, restraining him from zealously exerting his body with all kinds of effort and perseverance in the service of G–d entailing effort and toil, such as laboring in the Torah with deep concentration, as well as orally, so that his mouth shall not cease from study. To quote the Rabbis, of blessed memory, “One should always submit to the words of the Torah like the ox to the yoke and the ass to the load.” 10   Avodah Zarah 5b. So, too, in relation to devout prayer with the utmost intensity. Likewise with regard to serving G–d in money matters, such as the duty of charity and the like,
duties which involve coming to grips with the evil nature seeking means of deception to dissuade the person from dissipating his money and physical health. It is very easy for a person to restrain and subjugate his nature when he considers deeply that to conquer his nature in all the above, and more, and even to do the very opposite, is by far less painful than the pangs of death—may G–d preserve us! Yet he would have accepted the pangs of death—preserve us G–d!—lovingly and willingly, only not to be parted from His Unity and Oneness, blessed be He, even for a moment by an act of idolatry, G–d forbid.
All the more lovingly and willingly must he accept upon himself to cleave to Him forever. For by fulfilling His Will, blessed be He—by means of such service there will be revealed in it the innermost will of the Supreme One in a manner of “Countenance” and great revelation, without obscurity whatsoever, and when there is no “hiding of the Countenance” of the Supernal Will, there is no separation whatsoever and nothing can have a separate and independent existence of its own.
Thus his soul, both the divine and vivifying, together with their garments, will be united in a perfect unity with the Supernal Will and the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, as has been explained above.
This union is eternal in the upper spheres, for He, blessed be He, and His will are above time, and so is His revealed will, manifest in His word which is the Torah, eternal, as is written, “But the word of G–d shall stand forever,” 11  Isaiah 40: 8. and “His words are living and enduring…,” 12  Liturgy, Morning Prayer. and “He will not alter or change His Law forever….” 13  From the famous hymn Yigdal on the Thirteen Principles of Faith, originally formulated by Maimonides, incorporated into the liturgy of the Ashkenazic and Sephardic rites.
However, here below, [the union] is within the limits of time, persisting only during such time when one is occupied in the study of Torah or in the performance of a commandment. For afterward, if he engages in anything else, he is here below separated from the Higher Unity. This is so when he occupies himself with altogether vain things which are utterly useless for the Divine service.
Nevertheless, should he later repent and return to the service of G–d, to Torah and prayer, and ask forgiveness of G–d for not having engaged in the Torah when he could have done so, G–d will pardon him. To quote the rabbis: “If one has transgressed against a positive precept but has repented, he is pardoned on the spot.” 14   Yoma 86a.
Therefore they instituted the blessing of “Forgive us” to be recited three times daily 15  In the weekday Amidah. for the sin of neglecting the Torah, a sin which no one can escape each day. Similarly the daily burnt-offering 16  In the Sanctuary of old. used to bring atonement for neglect of the positive precepts.
This is not the same as saying, “I will sin and repent afterward,” unless at the time he is committing the sin he relies on subsequent repentance and sins because of it, as explained elsewhere.
In the light of the above, it will be understood why our teacher Moses, peace be upon him, in Deuteronomy commanded the generation that was to enter the Land of Israel to recite the Shema twice daily to acknowledge the Kingdom of Heaven with self-sacrifice, although he had promised them, “The L–rd your G–d will cast your dread and fear upon all the land.” 17  Deuteronomy 11:25. The reason is that the fulfillment of the Torah and its commandments is dependent on being constantly aware of one’s readiness to surrender one’s life to G–d for His Unity’s sake, so that this awareness be permanently fixed in one’s heart and not depart from one’s memory night and day. For in this way is one able to face one’s evil nature and vanquish it always, at any time or moment, as has been explained. 18  The recital of the Shema —which teaches the acceptance of martyrdom for the sanctification of G–d’s Name—was instituted on the eve of the conquest of the Promised Land. Since a miraculous conquest was promised, this precept could not have been related to the imminent battle for the conquest of the Land, but was meant for all times, for the conquest of one’s own nature.

Chapter 26

Truly this should be made known as a cardinal principle, that as with a victory over a physical obstacle, such as in the case of two individuals who are wrestling with each other, each striving to throw the other—if one is lazy and sluggish he will easily be defeated and thrown, even though he be stronger than the other, exactly so is it in the conquest of one’s evil nature; it is impossible to conquer it with laziness and heaviness, which originate in sadness and in a heart that is dulled like a stone, but rather with alacrity which derives from joy and from a heart that is free and cleansed from any trace of worry and sadness in the world.
As for what is written, “In every sadness there is profit,” 1  Proverbs 14:23. which means that some profit and advantage would be derived from it, the phrase, on the contrary, indicates that sadness in itself has no virtue, except that some profit is derived and experienced from it, namely, the true joy in the L–rd G–d which follows from genuine anguish over one’s sins at propitious moments with bitterness of soul and a broken heart. For thereby the spirit of impurity and of the sitra achara is broken, as also the iron wall that separates him from his Father in Heaven, as is commented in the Zohar on the verse, “A broken and a contrite heart, G–d, You will not disdain”; 2  Psalms 51:19. then will be fulfilled in him the preceding verses: “Let me hear joy and gladness…. Restore to me the joy of Your deliverance, and uphold me with a spirit of magnanimity.” 3  Ibid., vs. 10, 14.
This is the simple reason why the Arizal 4  See above, ch. 2, note 9. instituted the recital of this Psalm after the Midnight Prayer, 5   Tikkun Chatzot. before commencing study, in order to study with the true joy in G–d which succeeds remorse. For such joy has an excellence similar to that of a light emerging from the very darkness, as is written in the Zohar on the verse, “And I saw that wisdom surpasses folly, as the light surpasses darkness.” 6  Ecclesiastes 2:13. The emphasis is on the words מן החשך—literally “from the darkness.” Note there, and it will suffice for him who understands.
Furthermore, Scripture states it explicitly: “Because you did not serve the L–rd your G–d with joyfulness…” 7  Quoted in Shaloh, Asarah Maamarot, Maamar 3:4. See Igrot Kodesh by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, vol. 19, p. 351. —and everyone is familiar with the commentary of the Arizal on this verse. 8  Deuteronomy 28:47.
The following is sound counsel as to how to cleanse one’s heart of all sadness and of every trace of worry about mundane matters, even about children, health, and sustenance. Everyone is familiar with the statement of the Rabbis that “Just as one must recite a blessing for the good, [one must also recite a blessing for misfortune].” 9  Mishnah, Berachot 9:5. In the Gemara it is explained that one should accept [misfortune] with joy, like the joy of a visible and obvious benefit, for “this is also for the good,” except that it is not apparent and visible to mortal eyes because it stems from the “hidden world” which is higher than the “revealed world,” the latter emanating from the letters vav and hey of the Name of Havaya, whereas the “hidden world” represents the letters yud and hey. Hence the meaning of the verse, “Fortunate is the man whom You chastise, O L–rd 10  The Name of the L–rd is spelled here יה— yud-hey. Thus the “misfortunes” are blessings in disguise, originating in the “hidden” worlds..” 11  Psalms 94:12.
Therefore, the rabbis, of blessed memory, commented 12   Yoma 23a. that it is to those who rejoice in their afflictions that the verse refers: “But they that love Him shall be as the sun going forth in its might.” 13  Judges 5:31. For this is the joy of desiring the nearness of G–d more than anything in the life of this world, as is written, “For Your kindness is better than life…,” 14  Psalms 63:4. and the nearness of G–d is infinitely stronger and more sublime in the “hidden world,” for “The concealment of His strength is there,” 15  Habakkuk 3:4. and “The Most High abides in secrecy.” 16  Psalms 91:1. Therefore, [the man who accepts affliction with joy] merits [to see] the “sun going forth in its might”—in the World to Come, i.e., the sun emerging from its sheath in which it is enclosed in this world. 17  Cf. Nedarim 8b. But in the World to Come it will appear out of its covering, meaning that then the “hidden world” will be revealed and will shine and send forth light in a great and intense revelation to those who had taken refuge in Him in this world and had taken shelter under His “shadow”—the shadow of wisdom ( chochmah ), i.e., in the sense of “shade” as differing from light and revealed goodness. Suffice it for him who understands.
As for the sadness which is connected with heavenly 18  I.e., failure in matters of the spirit. matters, one must seek ways and means of freeing oneself from it, to say nothing of the time of Divine service, when one must serve G–d with gladness and a joyful heart. But even if he is a man of commerce and worldly affairs, should there enter into him any melancholy or anxiety about heavenly matters during the time of his business affairs, it is clearly a machination of evil impulse in order to lure him afterward into lusts, G–d forbid, as is known. For were it not so, whence would a genuine sadness, which is one that is derived from love or fear of G–d, come to him in the midst of his business affairs?
Thus, whether the melancholy enc­roaches on him during Divine service, in study or prayer, or not during Divine service, he should tell himself that now is not the time for genuine anxiety, not even for worry over serious transgressions, G–d forbid. For, for this, one needs appointed times and a propitious occasion, with calmness of mind to reflect on the greatness of G–d, against Whom one has sinned, so that thereby one’s heart may truly be rent with sincere contrition.
It is explained elsewhere when this time should be, and it is there explained also that as soon as his heart has been broken during these specific occasions, he should forthwith completely remove the sorrow from his heart and believe with a perfect faith that G–d has removed his sin in His abundant forgiveness. This is the true joy in G–d which comes after the remorse, as mentioned above.

Chapter 27

Should the sadness, however, not come from worry over sins, but from evil thoughts and desires that enter his mind—if they enter not during Divine service but while he is occupied with his own affairs and with mundane matters and the like, he should, on the contrary, be happy in his portion in that, though they enter his mind, he averts his mind from them in order to fulfill the injunction, “And you will not follow after your heart and after your eyes by which you go astray.” 1  Numbers 15:39.
The verse does not speak of the righteous, to refer to them as “going astray,” G–d forbid, but of benonim (intermediates) like him, in whose mind do enter erotic thoughts whether of an innocent nature…; 2  “…or otherwise.” when he averts his mind from them, he is fulfilling this injunction. Indeed, the Rabbis, of blessed memory, have said, “He who has passively abstained from committing a sin receives a reward as though he had performed a precept.” 3   Kiddushin 39b. Consequently, he should rejoice at his compliance with the injunction as when performing an actual positive precept.
On the contrary, such sadness is due to conceit in that he does not recognize his position. 4  As a benoni, not a tzaddik. Hence he is sad at heart because he has not attained the rank of a tzaddik, inasmuch as the righteous are certainly not troubled by such foolish thoughts. For had he recognized his station, that he is very far from the rank of a tzaddik and would that he be a benoni and not a wicked person even for a single moment throughout his life—then, surely, this is the quality of the benonim and their service: To subdue the evil impulse and thought rising from the heart to the brain and completely to avert the mind therefrom, thrusting the temptation away with both hands, as has been explained earlier. 5  Ch. 12.
And with every thrust wherewith he expels it from his mind, the sitra achara down below is suppressed, and, since the “stimulus from below causes a stimulus from above,” 6   Zohar II:135b. the sitra achara above which soars like an eagle is also suppressed, in accordance with Scripture, “Though you exalt yourself as the eagle…from there I will bring you down, says the L–rd.” 7  Obadiah 1:4.
Thus the Zohar, Parashat Terumah [p. 128] extolls the great satisfaction before Him, blessed be He, when the sitra achara is subdued here below, for then the glory of the Holy One, blessed is He, rises above all, more than by any praise, and this ascent is greater than all else, and so forth. 8  Cf. at length Zohar II:128b.
Therefore, no person should feel depressed, nor should his heart become exceedingly troubled, even though he be engaged all his days in this conflict, for perhaps because of this was he created and this is his service—constantly to subjugate the sitra achara.
It is concerning this that Job said, 9   Bava Batra 16a. See above, beg. ch. 1. “You have created wicked men”—not that they shall actually be wicked, G–d forbid, but that they shall share the temptations of the wicked in their thoughts and meditations alone and that they shall eternally wage war to avert their minds from them in order to subdue the sitra achara ; yet they would not be able to annihilate it completely, for that is accomplished by the tzaddikim.
For there are two kinds of gratification before Him, blessed be He: one, from the complete annihilation of the sitra achara and the conversion of bitter to sweet and of darkness to light by the tzaddikim ; the second, when the sitra achara is subdued while it is still at its strongest and most powerful and soars like an eagle, whence the L–rd brings her down through the effort of the benonim below.
This is indicated in the verse, “And make me delicacies such as I love.” 10  The words (Genesis 27:4) spoken by Isaac to Esau are allegorically interpreted here according to Tikkunei Zohar. The word mataamim (delicacies) is in the plural to indicate two kinds of gratification, and the words are those of the Shechinah to her children, the community of Israel, as explained in the Tikkunim. The analogy is to material food, where there are two kinds of relishes: one of sweet and luscious foods, and the other of tart or sour articles of food which have been well spiced and garnished so that they are made into delicacies which revive the soul.
This is what is alluded to in the verse, “The L–rd made everything for His sake; also the wicked for the day of evil,” 11  Proverbs 16:4. meaning that the wicked man shall repent of his evil and turn his evil into “day” and light above, when the sitra achara is subdued and the glory of the Holy One, blessed is He, is brought forth on high.
Moreover, even in the case of things that are fully permissible, the more of his impulse that a man sacrifices, even if only for a while, with the intention of subduing the sitra achara in the left part—as, for example, when he wants to eat but postpones his meal for an hour or less, and during that time he occupies himself in the Torah, as is stated in the Gemara 12   Shabbat 10a. that the fourth hour is the time when all men eat, but the sixth hour is the time when scholars eat, because they used to starve themselves for two hours with this intention, although after the meal, also, they studied all day;
so, too, if he restrains his mouth from uttering words that his heart longs to express concerning mundane matters; likewise with the thoughts of his mind, even in the least way, whereby the sitra achara is subdued below—the glory and holiness of the Holy One, blessed is He, goes forth above to a great extent, and from this holiness issues a sublime holiness on man below to assist him with a great and powerful aid in serving Him, Who is blessed.
This is also what the Rabbis meant, “If a man consecrates himself in a small measure down below, he is sanctified much more from above,” 13   Yoma 39a. apart from his having fulfilled the positive commandment of the Torah, “Sanctify yourselves, and you shall be holy” 14  Leviticus 20:7. by dedicating himself [through abstemiousness] in permissible things.
The meaning of “sanctify yourselves” is “you shall make yourselves holy,” 15  The Hebrew word for “holy” ( kadosh ) means “setting apart,” i.e., separating from the unholy. that is to say, although in truth one is not holy and separated from the sitra achara, for it is at its strength and might, as at its birth, in the left part, yet one subdues his evil impulse and sanctifies himself—then “you shall be holy,” 16  The imperative form used in the Pentateuch to express the commandments can be interpreted also in the simple future tense. Hence the commandments may be understood from the linguistic aspect as both a command and a promise of its fulfillment. that is to say, in the end one will be truly holy and separated from the sitra achara, by virtue of being sanctified in a great measure from above, and being helped to expel it from his heart little by little.

Chapter 28

Even if there occur to him lustful imaginations or other extraneous thoughts during Divine service, in Torah or in devout prayer, he must not let his heart dwell on them but must immediately avert his mind from them.
Nor should he be foolish by attempting to sublimate the middot of the extraneous thought, as is known. For such things were meant only for tzaddikim, in whom extraneous thoughts do not occur of their own making, but those of others. But as for him whose extraneous thought is his own, from the aspect of evil that is in the left part of his heart, how can he raise it up when he himself is bound below?
Nevertheless he must not be downcast at heart and feel dejected and despicable during Divine service, which should be with great joy. On the contrary, he should draw fresh strength and intensify [his] effort with all his power to concentrate on the prayer with increased joy and gladness in the realization that the foreign thought that had invaded his heart comes from the kelipah in the left part, which, in the case of the benoni, wages war with the divine soul within him.
For it is known that the way of combatants, as of wrestlers, is that when one is gaining the upper hand, the other likewise strives to prevail with all the resources of his strength. Therefore, when the divine soul exerts itself and summons its strength for prayer, the kelipah also gathers strength at such time to confuse her and topple her by means of a foreign thought of its own.
This refutes the error commonly held by people, who mistakenly deduce from the occurrence of the foreign thought that this proves their prayer to be worthless, for if one prayed as is fitting and proper, no foreign thoughts would have occurred to him. What they say would be true if there were only one single soul, the same that prays as well as thinks and fancies the foreign thoughts.
The real truth, however, is that there are two souls, waging war one against the other in the person’s mind, each one wishing and desiring to rule over him and pervade his mind exclusively. Thus all thoughts of Torah and the fear of Heaven come from the divine soul, while all mundane matters come from the animal soul, except that the divine soul is clothed in it.
This is like the example of a person praying with devotion, while facing him there stands a wicked heathen who chats and speaks to him in order to confuse him. Surely the thing to do in such a case would be not to answer him good or evil, but rather to pretend to be deaf without hearing and to comply with the verse, “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest even you become like him.” 1  Proverbs 26:4.
Similarly, he must answer nothing, nor engage in any argument and counterargument with the foreign thought, for he who wrestles with a filthy person is bound to become soiled himself. Rather should he adopt an attitude as if he neither knows nor hears the thoughts that have befallen him; he must remove them from his mind and strengthen still more the power of his concentration.
However, if he finds it hard to dismiss them from his mind, because they distract his mind with great intensity, then he should humble his spirit before G–d and supplicate Him in his thought to have compassion upon him in His abundant mercies, as a father who takes pity on his children who stem from his brain; 2  Cf. above, ch. 2. so may G–d have pity on his soul which is derived from Him Who is blessed and deliver it from the “turbulent waters”; 3  Allusion to Psalms 124:5. for His sake He will do it, for verily “His people is a part of the L–rd.” 4  Deuteronomy 32:9. Thus, by helping the divine soul, G–d helps Himself, as it were.

Chapter 29

There is yet an additional aspect that the benonim must contend with, namely, that occasionally and even frequently they experience a dullness of the heart, which becomes like a stone, and the person is unable, try as he might, to open his heart to the “service of the heart,” namely, prayer. 1   Taanit 2a.
Also, at times, he is unable to wage war against the evil impulse, so as to sanctify himself in the things that are permissible, 2  See above, ch. 27, where a limited form of abstemiousness is highly commended. because of the heaviness that is in his heart.
In this case, the advice given in the holy Zohar is, as the president of the Heavenly Academy said in Gan Eden : “A wooden beam that will not catch fire should be splintered…a body into which the light of the soul does not penetrate should be crushed….” 3   Zohar III:168a.
The reference to the “light of the soul” is that the light of the soul and of the intellect does not illuminate to such an extent as to prevail over the coarseness of the body.
For although he understands and contemplates in his mind on the greatness of G–d, this is not apprehended and implanted in his mind to a degree that would enable him to prevail over the coarseness of the heart because of [the nature of] this coarseness and crassness, the cause being the arrogance of the kelipah, which exalts itself above the light of the holiness of the divine soul, obscuring and darkening the light thereof.
Therefore one must crush it and cast it down to the ground, that is to say, by setting aside appointed times for humbling oneself and considering oneself despicable and contemptible, 4  A play on Psalms 15:4. Note the reinterpretation. as is written, “A broken heart, a broken spirit” 5  Comp. Psalms 51:19. —this is the sitra achara, which is the very man himself in benonim (intermediates), in whose heart the vital soul which animates the body is in its native strength; hence it is the very man himself.
Whereas with regard to the divine soul within him it is said, “The soul which You have given within me is pure.” 6  Morning Liturgy; Berachot 60b. Note the words “which You have given within me,” implying that man himself is not [identified with] the pure soul—except in the case of tzaddikim, in whom the contrary is true, namely, that the “pure soul,” i.e., the divine soul, is the man, while their body is called “The flesh of man.” 7  Exodus 30:32.
Compare the statement of Hillel the Elder to his disciples, who, when going to eat, used to say that he was going to perform an act of kindness to the “lowly and poor creature,” 8   Vayikra Rabbah 34:3. by which he meant his body, which he regarded as if it were foreign to him. Therefore he used the expression that he was “performing an act of kindness” toward it in giving it food, because he himself was nothing else but the divine soul, since it alone animated his body and flesh inasmuch as in the tzaddikim the evil that was in the vital soul pervading his blood and flesh, had been transformed into good and absorbed into the very holiness of the divine soul.
With a benoni, however, since the substance and essence of the vitalizing animal soul, which is derived from the sitra achara and pervades his blood and flesh, has not been transformed into good, it surely constitutes the man himself.
If so, he is removed from G–d with utmost remoteness, for the lusting drive in his animal soul is capable of lusting also after forbidden things which are contrary to His will, blessed be He, even though he does not crave their actual fulfillment, G–d forbid; yet they are not truly scorned by him as by the tzaddikim, as explained above [ch. 12]. In this he is inferior and more loathsome and abominable than unclean animals and insects and reptiles, as is mentioned above 9  Ch. 24. and as is written, “But I am a worm, and not a man….” 10  Psalms 22:7.
[Even when his divine soul gathers strength within him to arouse his love of G–d during prayer, this is not altogether genuine, since it is transient and vanishes after prayer, as has been discussed earlier, end of ch. 13.]
Especially so, if he calls to mind the contamination of his soul with the sin of youth, and the blemish he has wrought in the supernal worlds—where everything is timeless, and it is as if he had caused his blemish and defilement this very day, G–d forbid.
And although he had sincerely repented already, yet the essence of repentance is in the heart, and in the heart are found many distinctions and gradations, and everything is according to what kind of a man he is and according to the time and place, as is known to the knowing.
Consequently now, at this time, when he regards himself and sees that “the light of the soul does not penetrate into him,” it is evident that today his repentance has not been accepted, and his sins [still] separate him, or that it is desired to raise him to a more sublime level of repentance, coming more deeply from the heart. Therefore King David said, “And my sin is always before me.” 11  Psalms 51:5.
And even he who is innocent of the grievous sins of youth should set his heart to fulfill the counsel of the holy Zohar to be of the “masters of accounts,” 12  Cf. Zohar III:178a. that is to say, he should keep a reckoning with his soul regarding all the thoughts, utterances, and actions that have come and gone since he came into being and until the present day, as to whether they all came from the direction of holiness or from the direction of impurity—the L–rd deliver us!—these being all the thoughts, utterances, and actions that are not [dedicated] to G–d and His will and service, for this is the meaning of sitra achara, as has been explained above [ch. 6].
And it is known that every time a person thinks holy thoughts, he becomes at that time a “vehicle” for the hechalot (chambers) of holiness, whence these thoughts originate, and vice versa, becoming at that time an unclean “vehicle” for the hechalot of impurity, whence all impure thoughts originate. So, too, with speech and action.
In addition, he must earnestly remember that most of his dreams are vanity and affliction of the spirit, 13  See above, ch. 6. because his soul does not rise upward, as it is written, “Who may ascend the mountain of the L–rd? He who has clean hands and a pure heart.” 14  Psalms 24:3, 4. But “those originating from the evil side, come and attach themselves to him and report to him in his dreams of mundane affairs…and often mock him and show him false things and torment him in his dreams,” and so on, as stated in the Zohar on Vayikra [p. 25a, b]. See it there discussed at length.
The longer he will reflect on these matters in his thoughts, delving deeply also into books, in order to break down his heart within him and render himself shamed and despised in his own eyes, as is written in the Scriptures, 15  Psalms 15:4; see above, note 4. so utterly despised that he despises his very life—the more he despises and degrades thereby the sitra achara, casting it down to the ground and humbling it from its haughtiness and pride and self-exaltation, wherewith it exalts itself over the light of the holiness of the divine soul, obscuring its effulgence.
He must also thunder against it with a strong and raging voice in order to humble it, as the Rabbis state, 16   Berachot 5a. “A person should always rouse the good impulse against the evil impulse, as it is written, ‘Rage, and do not sin.’” 17  Psalms 4:5. That is to say, one must rage against the animal soul, which is his evil impulse, 18  Elsewhere (e.g., Torah Or 38b) the author does not identify the evil impulse with the animal soul, defining the former as the attributes of the latter. with stormy indignation in his mind, saying to it: “You are truly evil and wicked, abominable, loathsome, and disgraceful,” and likewise with all the epithets by which our Sages, of blessed memory, have called it, 19  Cf. Sukkah 52a. “How long will you conceal the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, which pervades all the worlds; which was, is, and will be the same, including also this place where I stand, just as the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, was alone before the world was created, without any change, as is written, ‘For I, the L–rd, have not changed,’ 20  Malachi 3:6. for He transcends time, and so forth? But you, who are repulsive, and so forth, deny the truth, which is plain to see, by physical sight, that everything in His presence is truly like nothing at all.”
In this way he will help his divine soul to enlighten her eyes with the truth of the unity of the light of the En Sof with a perceptive vision and not merely by cognition alone, as it were, as is explained elsewhere that this is the core of the whole [Divine] service.
And the explanation is that in truth there is no substance whatsoever in the sitra achara, wherefore it is compared to darkness which has no substance whatsoever and consequently is banished in the presence of light. Similarly the sitra achara which, although it possesses abundant vitality wherewith to animate all impure animals and the souls of the nations of the world, and also the animal soul of the Jew, as has been explained, 21  Above, ch. 6. nevertheless has no vitality of its own, G–d forbid, but [derives it] from the realm of holiness, as has been explained above. 22  Ibid. Therefore it is completely nullified in the presence of holiness, as darkness is nullified before physical light, except that in regard to the holiness of the divine soul in man, the Holy One, blessed is He, has given [the animal soul] permission and ability to raise itself against [the divine soul] in order that man should be challenged to overcome it and to humble it by means of the humility and submission of his spirit and his abhorring in himself that which is despicable.
And “through the impulse from below comes an impulse from Above,” to fulfill what is written, “From there I will bring you down, says the L–rd,” 23  Obadiah 1:4. namely, depriving it of its dominion and power and withdrawing from it the strength and authority which had been given it to rise up against the light of the holiness of the divine soul, whereupon it inevitably becomes nullified and is banished, just as darkness is nullified before physical light.
Indeed, we find this explicitly stated in the Torah in connection with the Spies who, at the outset declared, “For it is stronger than we” 24  Numbers 13:31. —“Read not ‘than we,’ but ‘than He,’” etc., 25   Arachin 15a; Sotah 35a. The Hebrew word ממנו permits both interpretations. for they had no faith in G–d’s ability. But afterward they reversed themselves and announced, “We will readily go up….” 26  Numbers 14:40. From where did their faith in G–d’s ability return to them? Our teacher Moses, peace unto him, had not meanwhile shown them any sign or wonder concerning this. He had only told them that the L–rd was angry with them and had sworn not to allow them to enter the Land. Why should this have influenced them, and of what avail was this to them, if they did not believe, Heaven forfend, in the L–rd’s ability to subdue the thirty-one kings, 27  Cf. Joshua 12. for which reason they had no desire whatsoever to enter the Land?
But undoubtedly, since the Israelites themselves are “believers, the descendants of believers,” except that the sitra achara —which is clothed in their bodies—had risen against the light of the holiness of their divine soul, in her impudent haughtiness and arrogance, without sense or reason—now, therefore, as soon as the L–rd had become angered against them and thundered angrily, “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation…. Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness…. I the L–rd have spoken, I will surely do this to the entire evil congregation,” 28  Numbers 14:27, 29, 35. their heart was humbled and broken within them when they heard these stern words, as is written, “And the people mourned greatly.” 29  Ibid., v. 39. Consequently, the sitra achara toppled from its dominion, from its haughtiness and arrogance, leaving the Israelites to their inborn faith.
From the above, every person in whose mind enter doubts as to [his] faith can deduce that they are nothing more than empty words of the sitra achara, which raises itself against his soul. But the Israelites themselves are believers…. 30  …the descendants of believers.
Furthermore, the sitra achara itself entertains no doubts about faith, except that she has been given permission to confuse man with words of falsehood and deceit in order that he may acquire greater rewards, as the harlot seeks to seduce the king’s son with falsehood and deceit, with the king’s approval, as [in the parable] mentioned in the holy Zohar. 31  See above, ch. 9, n. 21.