Part 11 · Chapter 129

The Ari's Text

And the matter is that after phase one, the first four Mochin, which had clothed in the first six Sefirot of the third Tvuna, return, and they descend a second descent and a second expansion, and clothe in the NHY of the third Tvuna, each one included of ten — these are the Lamed of Tzelem.

Inner Light

This commentary hasn't been matched to individual seifim yet — items are shown in reading order, and the number beside each one counts the notes themselves, not the seifim of the Ari's text.

Not matched to a seif

1A second descent and a second expansion, and they clothe in the NHY of the third Tevuna, each one included of ten — these are the Lamed of Tzelem: It is known that ZA is not related to AVI, but to YESHSUT, for AVI are the discernment of GAR of Bina, where the Hassadim are covered; but YESHSUT, who are the roots of ZON, that is, the ZAT of Bina, are in revealed Hassadim, which are the whole essence of the existence of ZA, as is known. And therefore the Mem of Tzelem is not reckoned as Zeir Anpin, but only as the discernment of surrounding, and it expands in him only to the discernment of the Lamed of Tzelem alone, which is the discernment below the Chazeh of the Mem of Tzelem, called YESHSUT, that is, in the manner of the division of the general AVI and YESHSUT, whose ten Sefirot divide in the secret of Samech and Mem: the first six Sefirot among them are called AVI, which are up to their Chazeh, and are called Samech. And from the Chazeh and below, which are TNHY, it is called YESHSUT, and called the closed Mem. As above in Part 10, and accordingly the ten Sefirot of the third Tevuna also divide, so that the first six Sefirot among them, which are HBD HGT, which are the discernment of Samech, are the discernment of the upper AVI, in the discernment of covered Hassadim, that is, the opposite of the discernment of ZA, which is the discernment of revealed Hassadim. And from the Chazeh and below is the discernment of the closed Mem, called YESHSUT, that is, the NHY of the third Tevuna, in which the Hassadim are revealed, as above. And therefore the Mochin must descend a second descent and a second expansion to the place of the NHY of the third Tevuna, that is, to the discernment of YESHSUT within it, and then the Mochin are fit to expand to ZA with the illumination of Hochma as is needed. And this expansion of the Mochin to the discernment of YESHSUT is called the Lamed of Tzelem.