Teil 8 · Innere Betrachtung

Know that the worlds and everything in them are examined by two generalities: The first is the essence of existence, which is the substance of the world, of the Partzuf, and of the soul, as they were renewed and corrected from Ein Sof, and cascaded from above downward, each to its proper place. The second generality is the sustenance of existence, meaning their provision and development degree by degree until the completion of their intended ultimate growth, and so forth. The difference between them is that the first generality, being from the side of the Emanator, from Ein Sof, is entirely good, and your sign is that it always comes from above downward. But the second generality is mixed with evil, and contains an element of toil and exertion, and your sign is that it always comes from below upward, for its beginning comes from the lower one, who must first raise MAN, meaning commandments, good deeds, and prayer. Now in this part before us, the Ten Sefirot and the Partzufim of the world of Atzilut, and the soul of Adam HaRishon, which is the sum of all the souls of those who come into the world, have been explained only from the aspect of the first generality mentioned above, meaning from what was renewed and corrected from above downward from Ein Sof — that is, all the Partzufim of Atzilut and the Mochin fixed within them without change, whose coupling never ceases. And likewise the soul of Adam HaRishon, from the aspect of the essence of existence within it, meaning as it was created from above downward from Ein Sof. We have not explained here the second generality, so as to first clarify well the aspect of the essence of existence, and God willing in the coming parts we will explain the second generality.

You already know that the root of the entire correction is the new MA that emerged from the forehead. And you must indeed know and remember what the Rav wrote in Etz Chaim, Gate 40, Chapter 7, "that there is no MA at all in Katnut, only in Gadlut," see there. For in Katnut even the male is only in the aspect of BON. For when the coupling is in the place of Keter, which is the forehead, the level of the Ten Sefirot is found to be like the level of Malchut, which is called BON, and not MA. Only in Gadlut, when the bottom Hey emerges from the forehead and comes to its place, to the mouth, the nose, or the ear, is the name of Gadlut revealed, which is the secret of HaVaYaH of Alafin, numerically MA. Hence it is called the new MA. But while the bottom Hey is in the forehead, even the male from there is in the aspect of BON, meaning the level of Malchut called BON, as known. Thus, from the aspect of Katnut of the five Partzufim of Atzilut, all are called BON and not MA, as explained.

From this you will understand that all the Partzufim of the four worlds ABYA are only BON of AK, for you know that the essence of Atzilut is what emerges in Katnut, and since even the five Partzufim of Atzilut emerged in Katnut in the aspect of BON, as above, all the more so BYA, which are the aspect of VAK of ZON of Atzilut — certainly they too are considered BON. Thus, from the aspect of the refinement of the screen drawn by the force of the clash of reflected light against direct light, only five levels emerged in the whole of existence after the Tzimtzum: the first three levels — Galgalta, AB, SAG — belong to AK, meaning to the relation of the first Tzimtzum, where the line extends down to the point of this world. And the last two levels, MA and BON: MA emerged in Nekudim, meaning the light of Yeshsut that emerged from the pupils of the eyes, called MA, for the coupling made in the place of the eyes, which are the vessel of Hochma, contains only the level of ZA of coarseness, called MA, as explained well in Part Five. And the level of BON emerged in the five Partzufim of Atzilut, which includes BYA as well, because the coupling was made in the place of the forehead, which is Galgalta, since the screen had already been refined to the aspect of Keter, at which point only the level of Malchut emerges upon it, as known. And the level of Malchut is called BON.

Now it has been explained that all the worlds of AK and ABYA are nothing but the refinement of the screen through its five aspects, from the level of Keter to the level of Malchut. But in the last two levels, MA and BON, there is added the matter of the second Tzimtzum, from the secret of the bottom Hey that rose to the eyes or to the forehead, and therefore they contain the matter of Katnut and Gadlut, for through the upper coupling of AB and SAG a new light emerges that brings the bottom Hey down from the eyes or from the forehead, and then Gadlut emerges, as known, since it returns AHP to the degree, and the return of AHP to the degree through the upper coupling is called by the name HaVaYaH of Alafin, as explained well above, page 463, answer 1, see there.

And you already know that every single Partzuf of the five general levels mentioned above must also expand by itself into five levels, for the reason that a new coupling cannot occur on the screen except after it rises to the Malchut of the head, meaning it must be completely refined until it becomes as clear as the Malchut of the head, and therefore it produces four levels in stages of its refinement until it equals the Malchut of the head, because the upper light never ceases, as known. However, in the world of Nekudim, which is the level of MA, there is something additional: besides the five levels emerging in the manner of its refinement, there are also three complete Partzufim, meaning that were born and emerged through the renewal of coarseness in the Malchut of the head — these are AB, SAG, MA — in each of which five levels emerged in the manner of its refinement, except for MA, which emerged in the head without a body, as explained above, page 543, under "And when," see there. Therefore the rising of the screen does not apply to it.

And you find three general Partzufim that emerged in the world of Nekudim, even though it is but one detail of AK, like the three Partzufim of AK itself — that is, three couplings were made through the rise of the screen and its thickening in the Malchut of the head, which is the mouth of Abba and Ima of Nekudim. This matter requires explanation: why did the level of MA of AK change so as to divide itself into three Partzufim, which did not happen with Galgalta, AB, SAG of AK? The matter is that here something new occurred, namely, the new light that emerged from the coupling of AB and SAG, which returned and annulled itself before the Parsa of the second Tzimtzum, and equalized its measure to the measure of AK, extending down to the point of this world, and through the addition of this detail upon the Partzufim of AK, it gained the power to expand by itself into three complete Partzufim like AK, until its power disappeared and it returned to the second Tzimtzum: for after the screen of the body of AB, which is Abba and Ima and Daat-Hesed-Gevurah-Tifferet, was refined and equaled the measure of the Malchut of the head, which is the mouth of Abba and Ima, the coarseness of SAG was renewed within it once again, which produced Yeshsut and Netzah-Hod-Yesod-Malchut. And after the screen of this body was refined and again reached the aspect of head, the coarseness of Phase One was renewed within it, which produced the aspect of the expansion of Daat from below upward and bound the VAK in the correction of the lines, as explained above, page 543, letter 70. And still the second Tzimtzum had not returned entirely to its place, for there still remained a little of the new light that had broken through the Parsa, which had brought down and purified the first Hey from the restriction of the bottom Hey, except that it now contained only the level of ZA, according to the measure of the coarseness of Phase One that remained in it. Only afterward, when it was refined completely and every aspect of coupling ceased there, then the new light that had broken through the Parsa disappeared entirely, and since this light disappeared, it necessarily followed that the power of the second Tzimtzum returned to its place, as in the Katnut of Nekudim, before the new light of the coupling of AB and SAG existed. And so you see that the new light which broke through the Parsa caused the emergence of three complete Partzufim in the world of Nekudim, similar to what happened in AK. Therefore Nekudim is called a "world," because it contains the expansion of complete, general Partzufim, as in AK, so that from the aspect of Katnut within them, they are considered only one detail of AK, which is the level of MA. But from the aspect of Gadlut within them, through the aforementioned new light, they are considered a full world, with three complete Partzufim, as explained.

By this you will understand the reason for the nullification of the entire expansion of the three lines of KHB into HGT and Netzah-Hod of Nekudim, which are the new vessels that were made there from the posteriors of Abba-Ima and Yeshsut that fell into ZAT, in which the seven lights that remained from the seven kings that broke had already been clothed, as explained in Part Seven. Now the Rav wrote above, page 599, letter 1, "that this entire expansion was nullified and returned to being as at first, so that only GAR remained in their place above, and it raised with them all seven lower lights above, to the place of Bina," see there. And we must understand the reason for this, since they had already expanded into the aspect of vessels of the body, even in the correction of the lines, and the seven lights of the kings had already been clothed in them — so why were they nullified, and what happened to them? And by what has been explained you will understand this well, for it has been explained that after the screen of Nekudim was refined even from the level of MA, and reached the aspect of root, then all the illumination of the coupling of AB and SAG, which had annulled the second Tzimtzum, ceased, and therefore the second Tzimtzum returned to its former state, see there. It follows of itself that all these corrections that were drawn from the new light of AB and SAG were nullified, since there was no longer anything to sustain them. And since these new vessels are the aspect of the posteriors of Abba-Ima and Yeshsut that fell from the head to the aspect of body, coming from this new light, they were therefore nullified.

And by this you will also understand what the Rav wrote there, letter 3: "And this coupling requires that all Ten Sefirot from Keter to Malchut be corrected in it, for even GAR are not corrected, and therefore the raising of MAN for these had to be above, in AB-SAG." And one might ask, what is different about this ascent from the ascent of the screen of the body of Abba-Ima after it was refined, for which it sufficed to rise to Abba-Ima, even though they were back to back, and it produced the head of Yeshsut of Nekudim, as explained above in Part Seven — and likewise the ascent of the screen of the body of MA after it was refined? Yet here the Rav says that the ascent of the screen to the head of Abba-Ima is not sufficient, because the GAR of Nekudim are not corrected. From what has been explained you will understand this well: for before the second Tzimtzum returned to its place, the GAR of Nekudim were considered corrected, even though they were in Katnut, since this Katnut was only due to the lack of coarseness in the screen, and not due to a flaw. But now that the second Tzimtzum has returned to its place, and Abba-Ima of Nekudim are found below the Tzimtzum, they now contain a flaw, and are therefore considered uncorrected. Whereas as long as the illumination of the coupling of AB-SAG had not been nullified, and the Katnut of Abba-Ima being back to back was only due to lack of coarseness in the screen, then when the screen of the body and the records within it rose, retaining the coarseness of Phase Two, the place of the coupling would immediately descend from the eyes to the ear, and the level of Yeshsut would emerge there. But now that the second Tzimtzum has returned to its place, the matter no longer depends at all on the coarseness of the screen, but on the power of restriction that the first Hey has absorbed into itself, on account of which they are no longer fit for the illumination of Hochma. Therefore they are not corrected for coupling at all, and the matter of raising MAN must necessarily be for the upper Partzuf of Nekudim, which is the head of SAG of AK, as the Rav says. Thus the screen rose to the forehead of the head of SAG.

Now after the screen and the records within it — from the lights of the posteriors of Abba-Ima, Yeshsut, and ZAT — rose to the forehead of the head of SAG, as above, an upper coupling was made there on this screen only in the level of Malchut, for the last aspect that had been in it in Nekudim disappeared in the course of its refinement, and nothing remained in the screen except the coarseness of the aspect of Keter, which produces only the level of Malchut, as known. This coupling is called the coupling of Katnut, or the coupling of gestation. And after the inclusion of the level in the coupling of the head, and after the coarseness of the body within it was determined, the screen descended to its proper place in the body, which is the aspect of the mouth of Abba-Ima of Nekudim, which, from the aspect of the Katnut of Nekudim, is considered the aspect of the navel, since AHP had descended to the aspect of HGT, as known. And so a coupling was made there again, producing the aspect of head from the mouth of Abba-Ima upward to the navel of AK, and body from the mouth of Abba-Ima downward. And the descent of the screen from its inclusion in the head of SAG and its arrival at its place is called the birth of the Partzuf. And this first Partzuf is called Atik.

And one should not ask: since the screen rose to the place of the forehead, which is Bina of Keter, should it not have produced the level of Phase Two, for all Bina is Phase Two — just as it is said regarding the descent of the bottom Hey from the forehead to the place of the mouth, which is the Malchut of Keter, that the level of Keter emerges upon it? The matter is that here the discussion is not about the measure of coarseness, but rather, just as in the Partzufim of AK the place of the coupling was in Malchut, so too in the Partzufim after the second Tzimtzum, where the bottom Hey joined with the first Hey, the place of the coupling is considered to be in Bina, because it received the place of the Tzimtzum in the place of Malchut, for there is no coupling by striking except in the place of Tzimtzum, as known. Thus, just as in the Partzufim of AK, when the screen was refined to the aspect of Keter, the place of the coupling was considered to be in the Malchut of Keter, so too in the Partzufim after the second Tzimtzum, when the screen is refined to the aspect of Keter, the place of the coupling is considered to be in the Bina of Keter. And likewise in Phase One, the place of the coupling is considered to be in the aspect of Bina of Hochma, and even in its descent to the mouth, which is Malchut, the place of the coupling is also considered to be in the Bina of Malchut. And this is the rule: as long as the Parsa has not been entirely nullified, Bina is considered the place of the Tzimtzum and the place of the coupling, and even when the bottom Hey descends to its place through the upper coupling, it does not actually descend to its own place, but only to the aspect of Bina within it, for the Parsa always remains.

Thus, in the coupling of gestation, the coupling occurs in the Bina of Keter, meaning that the screen in the Bina of Keter is refined to the aspect of root, which is Keter. And in the coupling of Gadlut, when the bottom Hey descends from there to Malchut, which is Phase Four, the meaning is not the Malchut of Galgalta, but the Malchut of the head as a whole, which is the mouth, and this too is the aspect of the Bina of the mouth, as above. And although the entire head is Keter, and in general only Nefesh-Ruach-Neshama-Haya-Yechida of the Ketarim emerged in the Partzufim of Atzilut, as explained above (page 684, under "And with this"), nevertheless the Ten Sefirot of Keter also each include all Ten Sefirot within themselves — there are Ten Sefirot in the Keter of Keter, which is Galgalta; Ten Sefirot in the Hochma of Keter, which is the eyes; and likewise in the ear, which is the Bina of Keter; and likewise in the nose, which is the ZA of Keter; and likewise in the mouth, which is the Malchut of Keter. It follows that the forehead, which is the Bina of the Keter of Keter, is as refined as the aspect of root, and even the Malchut of Galgalta is considered as refined as the aspect of root. And likewise the Bina of Hochma of Keter is considered only Phase One, and even the Malchut of Hochma of Keter is Phase One. And so too the Bina of Malchut of the mouth, which is the Malchut of Keter, is considered Phase Four, like the Malchut of Malchut of Keter. Understand this.

You should also know that although we say that the screen of Nekudim rose to the forehead of the head of SAG, this does not mean that the screen itself rose to the forehead, for a screen of the body cannot rise above the Malchut of the head, which is the root of the aspect of "from above downward" called the body. Rather, the meaning is that the screen rises to the Malchut of the head of SAG, which is the mouth of SAG, and the Malchut of the head of SAG is included in the screen and the records that rose to it, and then the Malchut of the head rises to the forehead of SAG, and receives there the coupling with the upper light, according to the aspect of coarseness that the screen raised to it. And although this coupling occurs in the head of SAG, it is named after the screen that rose, because the coupling is made upon its coarseness, and therefore it is said that the screen rose to the forehead, even though it did not actually rise there at all, but rather the Malchut of the head of SAG itself, as above. The Rav has already explained this order, of the rising of the screen of the body to the head, at length, above, page 291, from letter 1 to letter 5, see there, and understand it.

You should also know that two couplings are included in every coupling: the coupling of kisses, meaning the coupling made in the mouth of the head of the upper one, and the coupling of the Yesodot, meaning the coupling made in the NHY of the body of the upper one. For in the same manner explained above regarding the ascent of the screen and its records to the Malchut of the head of the upper one, and the Malchut of the head being included in the coarseness found in the screen, and its ascent to the forehead of the head, which is Keter — in exactly the same way applies the ascent of the screen to the body of the upper one, to the NHY within the body, where the Yesod of the body is included in the coarseness found in the screen, and raises it to the aspect of Keter of the NHY of the body, and it couples with its upper one, and produces Ten Sefirot in the level of Malchut. Thus the coupling of gestation mentioned always comes as two couplings, first in the head and then in the body, as explained at length in its place. (Note: this requires further study.)

Now although the entire expansion of the three lines KHB, which are the posteriors of Abba-Ima and Yeshsut, along with all the records of the seven kings, all rose together at once for MAN, as the Rav says (page 599, letter 2), nevertheless the upper coupling was not made all at once, but rather one after another in stages, meaning that whatever was most select was corrected first (as above, page 611, letter 19). This matter of selection has already been explained in the direct light (page 622, under "HaKeter"; page 626, under "VeArich"; and page 658, under "UTzrichim"), and there it was explained according to the distinction of the vessels of Nekudim that were nullified and broke, according to the three divisions within them. However, these selections must also be understood according to the root of the Ten Sefirot of direct light, for this is a great principle: that everything follows the relation of the Ten Sefirot of direct light. And by this the matter of the division of the five Partzufim of Atzilut into twelve Partzufim will also be explained.

First let us explain the division of Keter into two

Partzufim: Atik and AA. Now the source of the matter is in the Idra Zuta, page 288a, which states: Three heads are engraved, one within the other, and one above the other. One head is hidden Hochma, which is concealed and does not open; and this hidden Hochma is the head of all heads, of the other Hochmot. The upper head is the Holy Ancient One, the most concealed of all concealed things, the head of all heads, the head that is no head; and it is not known, nor can it be known, what is in this head, for it cannot be grasped by wisdom or by understanding. So far the quote. The Rav explained these words of the Zohar to mean that these three heads mentioned are only the two Partzufim Atik and AA: the head that is the head of all heads is the head of Atik, called RADLA; the upper head is the Keter of AA; and the head of hidden Hochma is the Hochma of the head of AA (see Etz Chaim, Gate 13, Chapter 2; Mevo Shearim, Gate 3, Part 1, Chapter 1; and the Discourses of Rashbi in the Idra Zuta). Now one must understand: since these are only two heads of the two Partzufim Atik and AA, why does the Zohar divide them into three heads? Also, the head that "is not known nor can it be known" requires explanation, for the Rav explained that Atik itself cannot know or attain Ein Sof within this head (see the Mevo Shearim above); these words of his require explanation. And likewise the phrase, "one within the other, and one above the other," requires explanation.

First we must understand well what the meaning of "head" is. See the Rav's words above (Part 4, Chapter 1, letters 6-7), where he calls the Ten Sefirot of the head "the power of the ten Sefirot," and also says there, "the vessels did not have the capacity to bear it, and there the light was not clothed in a vessel," see there, and in the direct light (section 30, under "VehaInyan"). And it was explained there that regarding the Ten Sefirot of the head, which the reflected light rising from the coupling by striking clothes from below upward, it is not only that this is not considered clothing, but there is also within it a matter of opposition to clothing, for everything that is "from below upward" means that it is not clothed, which is the opposite of the aspect of "from above downward." Nevertheless, the Ten Sefirot of the head are considered to be in the aspect of clothing "in potential." And this is because the ultimate purpose of the screen and Malchut is to expand of itself into Ten Sefirot from above downward, and to come to the actual clothing of those Ten Sefirot that are in the head; therefore the Ten Sefirot of the head are also considered to be in the aspect of clothing in potential, see there.

And here you find two aspects in the Ten Sefirot of the head, which oppose one another. For on the one hand there is the aspect of opposition to clothing, which is the simple meaning of the striking of the screen against the upper light, meaning "the vessels do not have the capacity to bear it," as the Rav says. And on the other hand there must necessarily be the aspect of clothing "in potential," for there is nothing in the body, which is the Ten Sefirot from above downward, that it did not receive from the head. (For an explanation of this see Inner Observation, Part 2, Chapter 10.) Therefore the Rav calls it by the name "ten Sefirot in potential." And you should know that these two aspects found in the head were divided between the two Partzufim, Atik and AA. Therefore the Rav calls them by the names "spark of the Creator" and "spark of the created being" (above, Part 3, Chapter 5, letter 5, see there, and Chapter 6, letter 7). For in the world of correction, where the corrections were corrected through selections, meaning that whatever was most select was corrected first, then the two aspects found in the head were divided: the aspect of "spark of the Creator," which is the aspect opposed to clothing, meaning the power of "from below upward" in the reflected light (for "spark" means reflected light), was corrected and became the Partzuf Atik, for being far from clothing, the vessels and sparks of BON associated with this aspect of it were found not to have suffered anything from the nullification and the breaking that occurred in the world of Nekudim, and therefore its MAN was selected first, and from its coupling the head and body of the Partzuf Atik were corrected. And from the second aspect existing in the head, which is the aspect of the clothing of the Ten Sefirot in potential, which from this aspect is the root of the Ten Sefirot of the body that are clothed in actuality, for which reason the Rav calls this reflected light by the name "spark of the created being," or "Ten Sefirot in potential" — the sparks and vessels of BON associated with that aspect are found, which suffered a little more than the first aspect from the nullification and the breaking, being at least their root; therefore their MAN was selected after the Partzuf Atik, and from their coupling the Partzuf AA, head and body, was corrected. Understand this well, for it is a matter fine beyond fine, and it is impossible to elaborate further. See well the Rav's words above (Part 3, Chapter 6, letters 6-7), where he calls the upper aspect of the head, which is Atik, by the name of the last aspect of Ein Sof, which is not yet considered a root for the emanated being, but only receives from the totality of all that is above it; and only the second aspect of the head, which is AA, is considered the root for the emanated being, see there, and also in the direct light.

By this we find the key to the words of the Zohar above: "that three heads are engraved, one within the other, and one above the other." And you already know that everything follows the Ten Sefirot of direct light. For although the level of Keter contains three iterations of Ten Sefirot — head, middle, and end — it must be understood entirely according to the relation of the Sefira of Keter of direct light, since its upper aspect is the Sefira of Keter. And likewise the level of Hochma must be understood according to the relation of the Sefira of Hochma of direct light, since its upper aspect is Hochma. And likewise the level of Bina. And one cannot arrive at a complete understanding unless we build the understanding of each upon the other, for you will find in the Rav's words above that he calls the two Partzufim Atik and AA together by the name Sefira of Keter (Part 3, Chapter 6, letters 7-8), meaning the Keter of direct light, for both are related to the Keter of direct light. And you already know the meaning of the Ten Sefirot of direct light explained above (page 5, under "VeTaam," see there): that the root of everything is the secret of the Sefira of Keter, and the expansion of the light to the totality of the emanated recipient is the secret of the Sefira of Hochma. And you find that these are opposed to one another, for the root is in the aspect of bestowal, and nothing at all of the aspect of reception, see there, whereas the expanding light, called Hochma, is specifically in the aspect of reception, for the aspect of bestowal contained within the upper light is revealed only in the Sefira of Bina, in the secret of the light of Hassadim, see there; but in the Sefira of Hochma only the aspect of reception is revealed.

Therefore two aspects must be distinguished within this Keter: one, that it withdraws from reception, meaning from the clothing of the essence in vessels, which is the aspect of the Sefira of Hochma; and two, that it is the root of clothing, which is the Sefira of Hochma, for the light of Hochma is drawn from the Keter. Understand this well. And this is what is meant by "three heads are engraved, one within the other, and one above the other." The meaning is that the two aspects mentioned, which are distinguished within the Keter — the upper aspect, which is the aspect of withdrawal from clothing, is the secret of "one above the other," being above the second aspect of Keter, which is the aspect of the root of clothing. And by this they hinted that this upper aspect does not join to the Partzuf, and from it a separate Partzuf is corrected, which is Atik, called RADLA, and it rises above the second aspect of Keter, that is, "one above the other." But the second aspect of Keter belongs to the Partzuf AA, which was corrected as a separate Partzuf after the Partzuf Atik was corrected, as explained above. And this is what is meant by "one within the other": the meaning is that the second aspect of Keter was therefore corrected as a separate and distinct head from the Partzuf Atik, because the Hochma of AA is found within the innermost part of the second aspect of Keter, being the root for clothing, which is the aspect of Hochma. And for this reason it is corrected later than the Partzuf Atik, which has no root for clothing, as above. Therefore the second aspect of Keter is considered a separate head unto itself. And yet the second aspect of Keter is still not considered the complete root of clothing, for the root of clothing that is in Keter is regarded as the Hochma of Keter, for the Hochma of Keter means the Keter of Hochma, as known. Therefore the hidden Hochma of AA is considered a separate head in itself, for it is the true head and the root of all aspects of clothing, and therefore Hochma is called by the name "beginning," being the root of clothing, which is the beginning of everything.

And this is what is meant by "the head of all heads, the head that is no head, and it is not known, nor can it be known, what is in this head." The meaning is that the first head of the upper aspect of Keter, which is Atik, is considered only the root of the root, meaning the head of all heads, but it is not considered a root for clothing at all, and does not join to the Partzuf at all. On the contrary, it contains, as above, an aspect of opposition to clothing. This is the meaning of "the head that is no head" — that is, although it is necessarily the root of everything, nevertheless it is not a root, as explained. And this is the meaning of "it is not known, nor can it be known, what is in this head," for the clothing of the essence in vessels is called knowledge and attainment, and since it is elevated above all clothing, it is therefore in the aspect of "not knowing," meaning it is not clothed within itself; nor does it stand to be clothed in the future, which is the meaning of "nor can it be known," which refers to the future. Understand this.

And this is the meaning of "the upper head, the Holy Ancient One, the most concealed of all concealed things." The meaning is that the second aspect of Keter, which is considered the root of clothing, is called "the upper head," meaning it is considered the head and the emanator to Hochma, in the aspect of upper relative to Hochma at least, for it already contains the aspect of the Ten Sefirot in potential, as above. Nevertheless, it is considered a head and superior only to its own aspect of Hochma, meaning the Hochma of Keter, but not to the other Hochmot, for the true root for the clothing of the essence in vessels, in the aspect of from above downward, is the Hochma of Keter, and not the Keter of Keter, as above, for the Keter of Keter is considered only a head to its own aspect of Hochma. Therefore it is also called by the name "the Holy Ancient One," for although it is the aspect of the Keter of AA, nevertheless, since it is considered a root only for AA itself and not for those below, it still resembles the Partzuf Atik, which is entirely concealed from the emanated beings. And it is likewise called "the most concealed of all concealed things" for the same reason.

And this is what is meant by "one head is hidden Hochma... the head of all heads, of the other Hochmot." That is, as above, that the Hochma of AA, called hidden Hochma, is considered the complete root and head for the aspect of clothing in vessels, which is the aspect of the Sefira of Hochma of direct light, for it is the aspect of the Hochma of Keter, which is considered the Keter and root for all levels whose upper aspect is Hochma. Understand this.

Now the two Partzufim, Atik and Arich Anpin, have been well explained from their source: that the entire Partzuf Atik does not shine in the aspect of clothing, which is the secret of "it is not known, nor can it be known"; while the Partzuf AA, from the aspect of its Hochma, is considered the root that shines in the aspect of clothing. And here you must remember that all these distinctions stated regarding the aspect of clothing apply only to the light of Hochma, and not at all to the light of Hassadim, for the reason that upon the light of Hassadim there was no Tzimtzum at all, and therefore it clothes everywhere without any hindrance from the side of the vessels, and the screens do not thicken it at all. Therefore all the above distinction, between Atik and AA, applies only to the expansion of the light of Hochma, which expands only from AA, because it shines in the aspect of clothing, and does not expand from Atik, because it does not shine in the aspect of clothing. But the light of Hassadim, on the contrary, is essentially drawn from Atik.

And you will understand this from the relation of the Ten Sefirot of direct light. For you know that the matter of Hochma and Bina being back to back is likewise drawn from the Ten Sefirot of direct light. For after the upper light expanded into the Sefira of Hochma of direct light, at its end the will to bestow contained within the upper light was aroused, and it drew the light of Hassadim from the root, which is the Keter, and this drawing is called the Sefira of Bina, as explained at length above (page 5, under "VeTaam," see there). And it is understood here that Bina turned its face away and does not wish to receive from the aspect of the light of Hochma that is in the Sefira of Hochma, which is above it, and turned its face to suckle and receive the light of Hassadim from the Keter, and so Hochma and Bina come to be back to back.

And it has been explained above that there are two aspects in Keter, the upper aspect not being a root for clothing, and only the second aspect being the root for clothing, which is the Sefira of Hochma. By this you will understand that after Bina turned its face away from Hochma, and turned to suckle the light of Hassadim from the Keter, this does not refer to the second aspect of Keter, but to the upper aspect of Keter, which is not considered a root for the aspect of Hochma, and therefore becomes for Bina the root for the light of Hassadim. But from the second aspect of Keter, which became a root for the Sefira of Hochma, Bina cannot receive the light of Hassadim, once it has become dedicated to the bestowal of Hochma. For this is the rule: everything follows its beginning, and since the second aspect of Keter began to bestow Hochma, so is its way always. And you know that the upper aspect of Keter is Atik, and the second aspect of Keter is AA; we thus learn from this that Bina is related only to the bestowal of Atik, and not to the bestowal of AA, for the light of Hassadim is drawn from the upper aspect within Keter, which is Atik.

Now, in the same way that the division of Keter into two degrees has been explained — that its upper half, meaning its aspect of GAR, which is Atik, is considered the root of Hassadim, and its lower half, meaning its VAK, is considered the root of the light of Hochma, since AA is the aspect of VAK of Atik, as known — in exactly this way KHB, which are Abba and Ima, were also divided into two Partzufim: Abba-Ima and Yeshsut, whose aspects of GAR, which are Abba-Ima, are considered the root for the light of Hassadim, and whose aspects of VAK, which are Yeshsut, are considered the root for the illumination of Hochma. The meaning of this is that you know that KHB of Nekudim were not permanently corrected from the new MA, but rather in the level of Bina (as above, page 625, letter 30), and it was explained just above that Bina is related only to the bestowal of Atik, and not to the bestowal of AA; therefore Abba-Ima Ilain are found in the aspect of the light of Hassadim, which they suckle and receive from Atik, in the manner of Bina of direct light, as above.

However, it is known that the drawing of Hassadim in the aspect of posteriors upon the light of Hochma continues only until Bina began to emanate to ZA of direct light; but when it began to emanate to ZA, then its aspect of posteriors toward Hochma ceased, and it returned face to face with it, in order to draw the illumination of Hochma for the sake of ZA, as explained (above, page 5, under "VeTaam"). Thus there are two states in Bina of direct light: the upper aspect within it is in the state of being back to back with Hochma, and the second aspect within it is in the state of face to face with Hochma. And according to these two states existing in Bina of direct light, the level of Bina within Abba-Ima was likewise divided: its GAR, meaning the upper aspect, called Abba-Ima Ilain, are related to the upper aspect within Bina, which is Hassadim and not Hochma; and its VAK, called Yeshsut, are related to the second aspect of Bina, which draws the illumination of Hochma for the sake of ZA, and is therefore considered to be in the state of face to face with Hochma, as above. Thus Abba-Ima Ilain are in the aspect of Hassadim, and are related to Atik, which is the root for the light of Hassadim, as above. And Yeshsut are in the aspect of the illumination of Hochma, and are therefore necessarily related to AA, which is the root for the light of Hochma, as above.

By this you will understand the reason for what the Rav wrote in Etz Chaim, Gate 14, Chapter 1, that Abba-Ima clothe AA down to the place where the Yesod of Atik still extends within AA, while Yeshsut begin only from the place where the Yesod of Atik ends, which is the place of the chest of AA, see there. And this matter is well understood in light of what has been explained above: that Abba-Ima, who are in the level of Bina, and are related to the upper aspect within it, which is the light of Hassadim — for this reason they are related only to Atik, for it is the root for the light of Hassadim, and therefore they clothe AA only down to the chest, to the place where the Yesod of Atik extends, for all their reception is from the Yesod of Atik, as explained. But Yeshsut, who are related to the second aspect of Bina, which draws the illumination of Hochma, are therefore related to AA, which is the root for the illumination of Hochma; and therefore they are the opposite of Abba-Ima, for as long as the Yesod of Atik extends, they cannot receive the illumination of Hochma from AA, but only after the Yesod of Atik ceases, meaning from the chest of AA downward, they are then able to receive the illumination of Hochma from AA, and therefore they begin from there. Understand this well.

And in exactly the same way, ZON were also divided into two degrees: the greater ZON and the lesser ZON. For ZA of direct light too is found to contain GAR and VAK, since HGT of ZA are its GAR, being KHB of Hassadim drawn from the GAR of Bina, which is entirely Hassadim, while the essence of ZA begins from Netzah, as explained above (page 331, under "UveChol"); therefore HGT of ZA are Hassadim, and are related to the GAR of Bina. And NHY of ZA are in the aspect of the illumination of Hochma, and are related to the ZAT of Bina, which draw the illumination of Hochma, as above.

Therefore the Partzufim of ZON of Atzilut were also divided into two degrees: their GAR, which are the greater ZON, are the aspect of the light of Hassadim, and they suckle from Abba-Ima Ilain, who suckle from Atik. And their VAK, which are the lesser ZON, are the illumination of Hochma, and they suckle from Yeshsut, who suckle from AA.

Therefore the lesser ZON begin to clothe the greater ZON only from their chest downward, after the screen of the Yesod of Ima has already ceased, for the screen of the Yesod of Ima bestows Hassadim, and is therefore clothed only in its GAR, down to the chest, and until there is no place for the lesser ZON, who specifically require the illumination of Hochma, since the screen of the Yesod of Ima covers over the illumination of Hochma. Only after the screen of the Yesod of Ima ceases, which is at the place of the chest, from there downward do the lesser ZON begin, and are able to receive the illumination of Hochma from Yeshsut, who receive it from AA.

And you see how the division of the five Partzufim of Atzilut into twelve Partzufim is drawn from the Ten Sefirot of direct light, meaning from the three Sefirot: Keter, Bina, ZA. For from the power of the two aspects in Keter of direct light emerged the four Partzufim of Atzilut: Atik and its Nukva, Arich and its Nukva. And from the power of the two aspects in Bina of direct light emerged the four Partzufim: Abba-Ima Ilain and Yeshsut. And from the power of the two aspects in ZA of direct light emerged the four Partzufim: the greater ZON and the lesser ZON.

The matter of the selections, that whatever is most select is corrected first, has also been explained well. For every Sefira that is farther from Malchut, which is Phase Four, is more select; and besides this, first the aspects of the vessels intended for the clothing of Hassadim were selected for their own sake, and therefore, when the vessels of Keter were selected, the upper aspect within them was selected first, from which Atik and its Nukva were corrected, and afterward the vessels belonging to the second aspect within them were selected, from which AA and its Nukva were corrected. For the vessels of Hassadim were not damaged at the time of the breaking, except insofar as they became joined to the illumination of Hochma in order to bestow to their lower one; but with regard to what pertains to themselves, which is the reception of Hassadim, they were not damaged at all, since the flaw of reception does not apply to the light of Hassadim, since the Tzimtzum was only upon the light of Hochma, as above. And since, at least with regard to what concerns them, they were free of any flaw, their correction was found to be easy, and therefore they were corrected first. And once they were corrected, they already had the capacity to correct their lower aspect as well. And therefore, after Atik was selected, it could, by its own power and quality, also select AA. And likewise, after Abba-Ima Ilain were corrected, whose correction was easy, since they are in the aspect of Hassadim, they had the capacity to correct their lower aspect as well, which is Yeshsut. And likewise the greater ZON toward the lesser ZON. Thus all the lower aspects, which are in the aspect of the illumination of Hochma, whose correction is difficult, were corrected through their upper aspects, which are in the aspect of Hassadim, whose correction is easy.

And one should not ask: since every GAR is of far greater significance, beyond all comparison, than its VAK, how is it possible that every GAR is entirely light of Hassadim while every ZAT is entirely in the aspect of the illumination of Hochma? Indeed it is true that this is a matter fine beyond fine, and we do not have sufficient words to explain it; nevertheless, if you examine carefully what we explained above, letter 7, regarding the two aspects in Keter, and the Rav's words above, page 125, letters 6-7, you will be able to sense and understand this. For it is true that every lower aspect, compared to the aspect above it, is considered like a grain of sand compared to a whole world, and it is not conceivable that there should be anything in a lower aspect that it did not receive from the aspect above it, and the rule is known: none can give what he does not have. However, this difference stems mainly from the aspect of the opposition that exists between head and body, meaning between the reflected light that is from below upward, which is the aspect of "spark of the Creator," and the reflected light that is from above downward, which is the aspect of "spark of the created being" — the one being entirely in opposition to clothing, and the other being entirely in complete clothing. And this is the reason that the head itself, which is the aspect of the Ten Sefirot from below upward, became two Partzufim, Atik and AA, as above. And Atik, being the upper one, being far from clothing, meaning from the light of Hochma, as above, therefore becomes, on account of this, a root only for the light of Hassadim, in which the matter of clothing does not apply, meaning that the light does not thicken at all due to its clothing in vessels from above downward, for the reason mentioned, that upon the light of Hassadim there was never a Tzimtzum. And therefore it follows that only AA, which is the aspect of ZA of Atik, became the root for clothing, meaning for the light of Hochma. And for this reason this division occurs throughout all the Partzufim of Atzilut, as above.

Furthermore, you should know that although all of Nefesh-Ruach-Neshama-Haya-Yechida exist here in the five Partzufim of Atzilut, since Atik emerged in the level of Keter, and AA in the level of Hochma, and Abba-Ima in the level of Bina, and ZA in the level of Ruach, and the Nukva in the level of Nefesh, nevertheless, when considered in relation to the Partzufim of AK, all these Nefesh-Ruach-Neshama-Haya-Yechida are considered only Neshama, Ruach, Nefesh, and they lack Keter-Hochma, which are Yechida-Haya (as the Rav wrote, page 666, letter 69), so that Atik and AA are only in the aspect of Neshama, and Abba-Ima and Yeshsut are Ruach, and ZON, Yaakov, and Leah are Nefesh. Thus even the aspect of Haya is not found here in the five Partzufim of Atzilut, but only from the aspect of Bina onward, which is Neshama. Indeed, this must be understood.

The matter is that it has already been explained above, in Part Seven, the great difference between the Partzufim of AK that emerged upon the screens of the first Tzimtzum and the Partzufim that emerged upon the screens of the second Tzimtzum: that only in the Partzufim of AK are there five aspects, whose GAR are actual Hochma, whereas the five aspects emerging from the second Tzimtzum onward, even their GAR are considered only the light of Hassadim and Gevurot, though containing an illumination of Hochma. As it is written in the Zohar (Mishpatim, item 520), "The head of the King was corrected in Hesed and Gevura." And the reason for this is that all the Mochin that emerge through the raising of MAN and the lowering of the bottom Hey to its place — since this action comes about only by means of Bina turning its face toward Hochma, as known — it is no longer possible for them to contain actual light of Hochma, for Bina, from its source, draws only an illumination of Hochma, that is, in the same measure that Bina of direct light draws the illumination of Hochma to ZON of direct light, as above (page 501, under "HaMadrega"). And you already know that even the root of the light of Gadlut of Nekudim emerged only through the raising of MAN of NHY of AK to the head of SAG, whereby SAG of AK turned its face to AB of AK, and the bottom Hey descended from the eyes of the head of SAG, through which coupling the new light that broke through the Parsa descended within the interior of AK, and illuminated the light of Gadlut through the navel and through the Yesod to the GAR of Nekudim, as above. Thus even the Gadlut of the GAR of Nekudim emerged only through the raising of MAN to the level of Bina, meaning to the SAG of AK, and therefore there is no longer any actual light of Hochma there, but only an illumination of Hochma, according to the measure that the SAG of AK drew to the aspect of ZON that rose to it for MAN, which are the NHY of AK, as explained in Part Seven. And likewise all the five Partzufim of Atzilut, which emerged only through the coupling of AB and SAG, in the manner of the GAR of Nekudim, certainly contain nothing but Hassadim and Gevurot with an illumination of Hochma, and not actual Hochma.

And by this you will understand the matter of the difference between the general Mochin of Atzilut, which are Hochma-Bina, and the Mochin of ZON — that this distinction is not found in the Partzufim of AK. The matter is that everything pertaining to the second Tzimtzum that occurred in AK came about only for the sake of ZON below the navel of AK, for the GAR of AK, which are Galgalta, AB, SAG, had already emerged in their fullness and need no correction, since the departure that occurred in the body of the Partzuf Galgalta was filled by AB, and the departure that occurred in the body of AB was filled by SAG down to the navel of AK, that is, in the flavors of SAG, which expanded down to the navel. Only from the navel downward, where the bottom Hey became mixed with the flavors of SAG, is it found lacking correction, being the aspect of ZON, as known. Thus the first three Partzufim emerged in their fullness entirely, and only ZON remained lacking correction, so that all the corrections coming from the second Tzimtzum onward are only for the sake of ZON. Remember this well.

And one should not ask: if so, then nothing should have emerged except ZON, so why did GAR emerge? For this is entirely impossible, since every degree must necessarily begin from Keter, which is the root, which bestows to Hochma-Bina, and Hochma-Bina are the emanators of ZON. Rather, the distinction is that the essence of the degree is ZON, and GAR did not come except for their sake. Therefore we regard ZON, who are the recipients of the Mochin, and from whom comes all the governance, and not GAR at all, which are not essential to the degree, as above, since they did not come and were not emanated for their own sake; therefore there is no more in their illumination than according to the measure of the reception of ZON, which is Hesed and Gevura with an illumination of Hochma. Thus, in truth, it is necessary that the light of Hochma also exist in the five Partzufim of Atzilut, for such is the order of the clothing of the degree, as above; only they do not shine from the aspect of the light of Hochma within them, but only from the aspect of the illumination of Hochma, since Bina is their root, whose nature is to cover the light of Hochma, and it shines only an illumination, in the manner of a window and not the essence itself, as known. Therefore we regard even the GAR as an illumination of Hochma, meaning according to the measure of what is revealed from them.

Now the distinction has been explained between the general Mochin of Atzilut, which are Hochma-Bina, and the Mochin of ZON: that the general Mochin of Atzilut are essentially, of necessity, light of Hochma, except that they are not revealed as such, being revealed only in the illumination of Hassadim, since Bina is their root, as above. But the Mochin of ZON are essentially the aspect of Hesed and Gevura with an illumination of Hochma. Therefore three aspects must be distinguished in the five Partzufim of Atzilut: the first is the root, which is Keter; the second are the Mochin, which are Hochma-Bina, called Abba-Ima; the third are the recipients of the Mochin, which are ZON, for they are the essential Partzufim of Atzilut, since the first three Partzufim did not come for their own sake, and are not essential in Atzilut, as above.

Therefore, when considered in relation to the Partzufim of AK, we find that even the Partzuf of Keter of Atzilut, which is Atik, is considered only in the aspect of Bina and Neshama, since the essential light of Hochma is not revealed from this level of Keter, but only an illumination of Hochma, as above, which is the aspect of Bina and Neshama. And the aspect of Hochma-Bina revealed from the Keter of Atzilut is, in relation to AK, like ZA, meaning Ruach, which means Hesed and Gevura with an illumination of Hochma, and although there is within them themselves the aspect of the light of Hochma, as above — nevertheless, the essential thing is what is revealed from them, and since only Hesed and Gevura are revealed from them, they are therefore considered to be in the aspect of Ruach. And from this, ZON, who receive from Abba-Ima, who are only in the aspect of Ruach, are considered to be only in the aspect of Nefesh. Thus the relation of the Neshama of AK, which is Bina, to ZON of AK, which are Ruach, is entirely similar to the relation of the Keter of Atzilut to Abba-Ima of Atzilut; and likewise, as ZA of AK relates to Malchut, so does Abba-Ima of Atzilut relate to ZON of Atzilut, meaning like Ruach in relation to Nefesh. Understand this, for it is among the roots of wisdom. And remember well the reason given above: that all that is emanated through MAN cannot reveal anything but Hesed and Gevura with an illumination of Hochma, and not actual Hochma, since Bina is its root, for there is no raising of MAN except to Bina, and all its arousal is only through the bond of Bina of direct light to ZON of direct light, which is only an illumination of Hochma.

And thus the Rav's words are well explained: that Atik of Atzilut is only the aspect of Neshama, and Abba-Ima the aspect of Ruach, and ZON the aspect of Nefesh. And this distinction should also be made within each of the three mentioned above. For the Neshama, which is Atik and its Nukva, and AA and its Nukva, is itself also distinguished into Nefesh-Ruach-Neshama: for the male of Atik is considered the aspect of Neshama, and the Nukva of Atik is considered Ruach, since the Nukva receives from the male, which is only in the aspect of Neshama, so its reception is considered only Ruach, as above, that whatever receives from Bina is only Hesed and Gevura with an illumination of Hochma, which is Ruach. And therefore the Partzufim of AA and its Nukva, which receive from the Nukva of Atik, are called Nefesh. And likewise Abba-Ima of Atzilut are divided among themselves into the aspect of the general Ruach: Abba of Atzilut is considered the aspect of Neshama of Ruach, and since it is the one bestowing to Ima, Ima is considered, for this reason, the aspect of Ruach of Ruach. And Yeshsut, who receive from Ima, are considered only the aspect of Nefesh of Ruach. And likewise ZON: ZA is considered the aspect of Neshama of Nefesh, and the Nukva who receives from him is considered the aspect of Ruach of Nefesh, and the lesser ZON who receive from the Nukva of ZA are considered Nefesh of Nefesh.