Parte 12 · Observação Interior

One must understand well the matter of the difference in the birth of ZA from the birth of all the Partzufim. For in the Partzufim of AK, the Rav explained that all the Partzufim emerged through the mouth of the upper Partzuf adjacent to it, and every lower one therefore clothes the HGT NHY of the upper one. And likewise, too, in the GAR of Atzilut, which are Atik, AA, and Aba and Ima, every lower one emerged from the mouth of the upper one and clothes the HGT NHY of the upper one, namely from the place of its emergence and downward. And here, with regard to ZA, the Rav explains that he is born and emerges from the Yesod of Ima. And furthermore, that accordingly he should have clothed Ima from the Yesod and downward, namely from the place of his emergence and downward, as in all the upper Partzufim. But it is not so with ZA, for he clothes from the chest (Hazeh) of Ima and downward, even though the place of his emergence is through the Yesod. And likewise one must understand well the difference between the two rendings of the Yesods that the Rav brings, namely: at the time of the coupling of Aba and Ima for the sake of ZON, he says that the Yesod of Atik was rent (above, page 920, item 89); and here, at the time of birth, he says (page 1, item 128, item 6): 'There are found there very many lights, and the vessel cannot bear them, and the womb was rent through its mouth; since there is there an actual rending, it is rent and widened, and then the lights of Tevuna, who are the owner of the house, thrust ZA outside — he being the guest — and he is born.' And behold, it was explained in the Ohr Pnimi there, that the matter of the rending of the Yesod of Ima mentioned here means the matter of the return of the door and hinge of Katnut to its place, see there. Only that one must understand why this is called a rending — for there is no rending except for the purpose of nullifying the vessel and the screen from what it was. And furthermore, that here it says a simple rending, while there it says a rending along its length, and one must understand the difference between them.

The source of these matters is in the difference between the Yesod of Aba and the Yesod of Ima, which the Rav explains — that the Yesod of Aba is narrow (tzar) and long (aroch), while the Yesod of Ima is short (katzar) and wide (rachav). And you must remember well their explanation, which is explained at length (above, page 428, Answer 28), where it is explained that 'long' (aroch) means Hochma, and its opposite is 'short' (katzar), which indicates a lack of Hochma; and 'wide' (rachav) means abundant in Hassadim, and its opposite is 'narrow' (tzar), which means lacking and empty of Hassadim. And behold, the Yesod of Aba is entirely lacking Hassadim, and from this power it is called by the name 'narrow' — for so it is drawn from its upper root in the AV of AK, where the screen of the fourth phase was refined in its Sefira of Hod, which is the expansion of the stature of Hassadim from the Ima of the AV of AK, in the secret that 'Ima extends until Hod'; and it did not shine in the Yesod of the AV except the aspect of the light of Malchut, which means a restricted illumination drawn further from the Aba of the AV of AK. This is the aspect of Hochma alone, but entirely without Hassadim, for the stature of the Hassadim, which is the aspect of the fourth phase drawn from Ima, had already been refined and cut off. And from there this vessel of the Yesod of Aba was formed with a great closure of Hassadim, and only with the continuation of a restricted illumination of Hochma. As stated in Part 5 (page 336, entry beginning 'He returned', see there). And this is the secret that it is narrow of Hassadim but long in Hochma. And it was explained in Answer 28 mentioned above, that this aspect of the Yesod of Aba was not blemished either in the second restriction, at the time of the ascent of the lower Hei to the eyes, or at the time of the breaking of the vessels, because it was there in the secret of a hidden remnant (Shau), concealed from the vessels, see there, for there is no need to elaborate here. But the Yesod of Ima is exactly the opposite, for in her the matter of the ascent of the lower Hei to the eyes ruled, and therefore her Yesod was made short of the light of Hochma, for the power of the restriction upon the Hochma, on account of the lower Hei that was joined with it, rules in her Yesod, and it is short of shining Hochma. But it is wide in the light of Hassadim, for the aspect of the light of Hassadim is never cut off from Ima, see there. And for the above reason, there is no birth of souls except through the coupling of Aba and Ima together. For at the time that the Yesod of Aba couples and becomes one with the Yesod of Ima, their illumination is in the ultimate perfection, for the Yesod of Aba attains the aspect of the widening, in an abundance of Hassadim, from within the Yesod of Ima, and it is complete both in Hochma and in Hassadim; and likewise the Yesod of Ima attains the aspect of the illumination of Hochma from the Yesod of Aba, and it is complete both in Hochma and in Hassadim. Therefore the offspring that emerges from them is in the desired perfection, for the child attains the aspect of the longness of Aba and the aspect of the widening of Ima. And with this you will understand the matter of the division of the Tifferet of AA into two halves: its upper half for Aba and Ima, and its lower half for ZON. For you know that there are two kinds of Hesed in the body of AA, from the throat and downward: the first is the upper Hesed, which expands from Bina into the body, before the two arms are divided into right and left; from there the supernal Aba and Ima emerged, and they clothe AA until the chest. The second is the Hesed that expands after the arms have already been divided into right and left; from there Yeshsut emerged, clothing from the chest of AA and downward. As above in the words of the Rav, page 490, items 41, 42, 43, see there, and in the Ohr Pnimi, the entire continuation.

And you must know that all the rendings that exist in the body are aspects of rendings along the width (across), in the manner explained above regarding the Yesod of Ima. Their meaning is that the sealed screen of the skin of the body was rent, in order to reveal through there the widening of the Hassadim. And their beginning is the mouth of the head, where there is a rending along the width, called lips. And we shall explain the aspect of the mouth of AA, which is the principal of the world of Atzilut, for Aba and Ima and ZON are only garments for it. And behold, you know that in the head of AA there is nothing but Keter and Hochma alone. It thus follows that the mouth of the head is the aspect of the Malchut of Hochma, and the coupling is in the aspect of the Yesod of Hochma, called the palate (chech), with the throat, which is the Bina that emerged outward, as is known. And behold, this coupling is exactly like the coupling of the supernal Aba and Ima, for the palate is the Yesod of Aba, which is Hochma, which is the secret of narrow and long, and the throat is the secret of Bina, but the aspect of the GAR of Bina, which means that the aspect of the flow of the Hassadim of its Yesod is the aspect of the Hesed of the first kind, which contains nothing of the aspect of the division of the two arms into Hesed and Gevura, for the lower Hei that is in the eyes does not diminish it at all, because without this it is always found in the secret of 'for He delights in mercy'. As stated there in the Ohr Pnimi. And this coupling rends a rending along its width in the mouth of the head of AA, for the closure of the Hassadim that is in his palate was opened through the coupling with the throat, as above. And this is the aspect of AA until the chest, where the supernal Aba and Ima clothe, from the place of their emergence, which is the mouth of AA, until the chest, where this Hesed of the first kind mentioned ends.

And there is here great depth, for it was explained above that the offspring that emerges from the coupling of the Yesod of Aba with the Yesod of Ima is in complete perfection: both of Hochma, from the power of the longness of the Yesod of Aba, and of Hassadim, from the power of the widening of the Yesod of Ima. And if so, this rending of the mouth should have been in the aspect of a rending along its length, meaning that the perfection of Hochma would be revealed. And likewise, Aba and Ima, who emerge and are born through this mouth, should have been in the aspect of revealed Hassadim with the illumination of Hochma, since they emerge from the aspect of the palate, which is the Yesod of AV, from which the Hochma is drawn, and from the secret of the throat, which is in the aspect of Hassadim. But it is known that the entire aspect of Aba and Ima is only in covered Hassadim. However, the matter is that there is no Gadlut without the precedence of Katnut, and since the entire matter of the restriction and the might of the lower Hei that ascended to the eyes was not revealed in this screen of the throat of AA, because He delights in mercy — which is the secret of what the Rav says, that it is the Hesed of the first kind, which is before the expansion of the arms, as above — therefore the Yesod of Aba, which is the palate, cannot reveal its power there, neither from its aspect of narrow nor from its aspect of long, but is entirely included in the control of Bina, namely in its widening. Therefore the aspect of the mouth always remains in the aspect of the rending along the width, and the light of Hochma of the Yesod of Aba is covered and hidden within it. But only when the drop of the coupling of that palate and throat is drawn down to the mouth of Yeshsut, which are the aspect of the ZAT of Bina that are in the throat of AA, standing from the chest of AA and downward — since they are the aspect of the roots of ZON, they need the illumination of Hochma, as is known, and therefore they are considered as the Hesed of the second kind, in which Katnut and Gadlut already operate; for in their Katnut, the Hesed was clothed in Gevura and was restricted by the lower Hei above — therefore now, at the time of Gadlut, when the coupling of the palate and throat of AA is made and the drop of the coupling descends to them, now the Yesod of Aba, which is the palate, reveals its aspects of narrow and long, and with the help of the coupling of the widening of Bina, it reveals there, in the palate and throat of Yeshsut, a complete stature of Hassadim with the illumination of Hochma.

And you see that at the time of the arrival of the drop of the coupling of the palate in the throat of AA to the mouths of Aba and Ima, the illumination of Hochma cannot yet be revealed, because they are before the division of the arms, which is the GAR of Bina, as above. But when it is drawn to the mouths of Yeshsut, which are the aspect of Hesed in the division of the arms, then the illumination of Hochma of the Yesod of Aba is revealed. And you should know that the aspect of the coupling of the mouths of Yeshsut is called by the name 'coupling of the Yesods'. And the aspect of the coupling of the mouths of Aba and Ima is called the 'coupling of kisses' (ziwug de neshikin), and likewise the coupling of the mouth of AA, as above. And the reason that the mouths of Yeshsut are called by the name 'Yesods' is that the coupling of Gadlut, namely with the illumination of Hochma, is only made at the time that Aba and Ima and Yeshsut return to being one Partzuf, namely at the time that the supernal Aba and Ima attain the stature of AV and clothe the aspect of the GAR of AA, as is known. And then the mouth of Yeshsut is found to have been made into the aspect of the Yesod of the totality of the two Partzufim that were united, as above in the words of the Rav (page 945, item 148, and page 56, item 101, see there). Therefore it is always considered the aspect of a Yesod, for it is not considered the mouth of Yeshsut except when they are separated into two Partzufim and are not fit for the Mochin of Gadlut. And behold, it has been well explained that from the coupling of kisses, at their place of emergence, in the mouth of AA and in the mouth of Aba and Ima, there is no revelation whatsoever of the Mochin of Gadlut, namely of the illumination of Hochma. Rather, after the expansion of the drop of the coupling to the place of the Yesods of Aba and Ima, which are in the totality of Yeshsut, then by the power of the drop drawn to them from the palate and throat, the Yesods of Aba and Ima of the totality also return and unite, and then they give birth to the Mochin of Gadlut for the sake of ZA.

And with this is understood what the Rav says, that from the coupling of kisses only Aba and Ima emerge, and likewise the angels and the externality of the worlds. But the Mochin of ZA, and likewise the souls of human beings, which come from the internality of the worlds, do not emerge except through the coupling of the Yesods, as stated (in Etz Chaim, Gate 39, Discourse 4, see there). And it is as above, that from the coupling of kisses only covered Hassadim are drawn; therefore it is not sufficient except for Aba and Ima themselves, since they are in the secret of 'He delights in mercy'. And likewise for the angels, who are also drawn from the aspect of covered Hassadim without the illumination of Hochma. But ZA, and likewise the souls of human beings, who need the illumination of Hochma, the coupling of kisses is not sufficient for them; rather, they need the coupling of the Yesods, from which the Hassadim are revealed with the illumination of Hochma. And what they are divided under the name of externality and internality is that the illumination of Hochma does not expand in the Partzuf except through being clothed within Hassadim. Therefore the illumination of Hochma is called by the name 'internality', and the Hassadim by the name 'externality'.

And one should not object: how do we consider the expansion of the Hesed of the first kind until the chest of AA, which is considered Hesed before the division of the arms, when the arms are above the chest of AA? And the matter is that the aspect of the screen of the Yesod of Atik, which is clothed in AA from the throat until the chest, is what draws the illumination of the GAR of Bina until the chest of AA, like the screen of the Yesod of Ima, which is clothed in ZA until the chest. As stated in its place. And this is the reason that in the coupling of Aba and Ima for the sake of the pregnancy of ZA, when they need to bestow to him from the coupling of the Yesods, as above — namely, that Aba and Ima and Yeshsut return to being one Partzuf, and the mouths of Yeshsut return to being the Yesod of the totality, as above, so that then the drop of the coupling of kisses is drawn to the mouths of Yeshsut — then 'the screen of the Yesod of Atik must be rent along its length', meaning that that rending along the width, which it draws from the mouth of AA to the place of the chest, must be nullified from it, and it must be turned into an aspect of a rending along the length. Then Aba and Ima will be able to return to Panim be-Panim and receive the illumination of Hochma in concealment, in the place of their palate and throat, in such a manner that the Hochma within it can be revealed when it descends to the mouths of Yeshsut, namely to the Yesods of the totality. And behold, the difference has been well explained: a rending along its width means the rending of the closure of the Hassadim, in order that the Hassadim be revealed; and a rending along its length means the rending of the closure of the Hochma, in order to reveal Hochma. And remember this.

And with what has been said, the matter of the division of the Tifferet of AA into two parts, brought above in letter B, is well understood. For every Tifferet includes all the VAK, as is known. And it was explained that two kinds of Hesed expand from Bina into the VAK of AA, until the chest of AA. Namely, in its HGT the Hesed of the first kind expands, whose Hassadim are always covered. And from the chest of AA and downward, the Hesed of the second kind expands, for only these Hassadim are fit to be revealed with the illumination of Hochma, as above in letters G and D. And according to this discernment, the garments of the VAK of AA are also divided: from its half and upward, in its HGT, Aba and Ima clothe it, who are also of the aspect of covered Hassadim; and from its half and downward, namely in its NHY, ZON clothe it, who are of the Hesed of the second kind, whose way is in revealed Hassadim, as above. And just as the Tifferet of AA is divided into two halves, so in the same manner the Tifferet of Aba and Ima is also divided into two halves, namely according to the two kinds of Hesed mentioned: from the chest and upward, in their HGT, they are in covered Hassadim, like their own aspect; and from the chest and downward, in their NHY, they are clothed in Yeshsut, and there they are in revealed Hassadim. And likewise, in this manner, Yeshsut is also divided, for only from the chest and downward is the aspect of their revealed Hassadim revealed, but from the chest and upward they are in covered Hassadim, like AA and Aba and Ima. And in this manner ZA himself is also divided at the time of his Gadlut, for only from the chest and downward are the revealed Hassadim revealed in him, but from the chest and upward he is like AA, Aba and Ima, and Yeshsut.

Now what we objected to above, in letter A — that since ZA emerges and is born from the Yesod of Ima, he should have clothed her from the place of his emergence and downward, and why does he clothe her from the chest and downward — is now well understood. For it was explained that this Yesod, from which ZA is formed and born, is the Yesod of the totality of Aba and Ima and Yeshsut as one Partzuf, which is the aspect of the mouth of Yeshsut at the time when they are divided into two Partzufim, as above in letter E. And it is known that at the time of the birth of ZA, they are again divided into two Partzufim, and it follows that ZA is born and emerges from the mouth of Yeshsut. And accordingly, he should indeed have clothed from the mouth of Yeshsut and downward, namely their HGT NHY. But since the entire essence of the aspect of ZA is in revealed Hassadim, therefore he cannot clothe the place of the HGT of Yeshsut, for there is the place of their covered Hassadim, as above, and he is compelled to clothe the lower half of the Tifferet of Yeshsut, from the chest and downward, just as Yeshsut clothe AA and Aba and Ima, as above. And behold, it has been well explained that there is no difference whatsoever in the birth of ZA from the other Partzufim, for he, too, is born and emerges from the mouth of the upper one, and he, too, clothes from the place of his emergence and downward, like them. And all the difference is only in this: that Aba and Ima and Yeshsut were made one Partzuf at the time of his pregnancy, and the mouth of Yeshsut, which is his upper one, was made an actual Yesod of the totality of both of them, as above in letter E, and in this respect it is considered that he emerges and is born from the Yesod of Ima. And the second difference is that ZA cannot clothe the HGT of Yeshsut, because his entire root is the aspect of revealed Hassadim, and therefore he only takes hold in the NHY of Yeshsut, and he cannot clothe the entire place from the place of his emergence and downward, namely from their mouth and downward, but only from the chest and downward, as explained.

Also the difference between the matter of the rending of the Yesod of Atik, mentioned in connection with the uniting of Aba and Ima and Yeshsut into one Partzuf, and the matter of the rending of the Yesod of Ima, mentioned here in connection with the birth of ZON, is well understood. For with regard to Atik, it says that it was rent along its length, meaning that that rending along the width, which the Yesod of Atik draws from the mouth of AA to the place of the chest, which covers over the Hochma, was nullified from it, and it was turned into an aspect of a rending along the length, which means that it draws the illumination of Hochma. And here it says that the womb was rent through its mouth, etc., meaning that it draws Hassadim, as above in letter Z. And what is called here by the name 'rending' is that, after the door and the two hinges of Gadlut were joined to the womb, there was made there the aspect of a closed Mem, which holds back and guards the fetus, so that there will not be in it suckling for the external ones, and it will not fall outward. And at the time of birth, when the power of the door and hinge of Katnut was again awakened there, through the ascent of the lower Hei to the eyes, in the secret of 'for her hinges were turned upon her', then the doors were separated one from the other, which is considered like a rending, as stated at length (above, page 457, Answer 150). And since a coupling of Aba and Ima was made there in the thickness of the fourth phase, which brings out the stature of HGT, behold, a rending along the width was made there. And this is what he said: 'and the womb was rent through its mouth', meaning that since this Yesod of the totality is the aspect of the mouth of Yeshsut, which is an aspect of a rending along the width, therefore the womb was rent from this aspect. And this that he continues: 'since there is there an actual rending, it is rent and widened' — meaning that since it is in truth the aspect of the mouth of Yeshsut, where there is an actual rending, which is the rending of the mouth, except that it was made into the aspect of a closed Mem, by force of having been made into the aspect of the Yesod of the totality, as above, and now the aspect of the rending of the mouth returned to its place. In such a manner, ZA was born and emerged from the aspect of the mouth of Yeshsut, like every lower one that emerges through the mouth of the upper one, as above. And understand well, for I have abbreviated here, and it will be explained at length in its place.