Mishpatim [Ordinances]
11-13) When one is born, he is given Nefesh on the part of the beast, on the part of purity, on the part of those called “holy Ofanim,” from the world of Assiya. If he is rewarded further, he is given Ruach on the part of holy animals from the world of Yetzira. If he is rewarded further, he is given Neshama on the part of the throne from the world of Beria. Those three are maid, man-servant, and maid-servant of the king’s daughter, meaning NRN from the expansion of Malchut in BYA. Maid is Neshama in Beria, man-servant is Ruach in Yetzira, and maid-servant is Nefesh in Assiya.
If he is rewarded further, he is given Nefesh, as in Atzilut, on the part of the only daughter, who is called “the king’s daughter,” Malchut de Atzilut. If he is rewarded further, he is given Ruach de Atzilut on the part of the middle pillar, ZA, and he is called “a son of the Creator,” as it is written, “You are the children of the Lord your God.” If he is rewarded further, he is given Neshama on the part of AVI, Bina, as it is written, “And He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.” “Life” is Yod-Hey, AVI, of whom it is written, “The whole soul praises Koh [the Lord, Yod-Hey],” and the name HaVaYaH is completed in them because Ruach and Nefesh de Atzilut are Vav-Hey, and Neshama de Atzilut is Yod-Hey, and together, they are HaVaYaH.
If he is rewarded further, he is given HaVaYaH with a filling of letters such as this: Yod-He-Vav-He, who is Adam [man], 45 in Gematria, as in Atzilut above, meaning ZA, when clothing upper AVI, who are Hochma, the letters Chaf-Het Mem-Hey [forming the word Hochma in Hebrew]. He is named after the form of his master, and it is written about him, “And reign over the fish of the sea and the bird of the sky, and any animal that swarms over the earth.” This is the one whose dominion is over all the firmaments, all the Ofanim and the Serafim, and the animals in all the hosts and powers above and below.
22) How many are the words of wisdom that are hidden within each word in the Torah, and which are known to sages who know the ways of Torah?
59-60) How much should one be careful of deviating in his ways in this world? If a person is rewarded in this world and properly watches over the soul, the Creator desires him and is praised with him each day in His company. He says, “See the holy son that I have in that world. He did so and so, and so and so are his deeds corrected.”
When that soul comes out of this world pure, clean, and clear, the Creator illuminates for her with several lights. Each day, He declares about her, “This is the soul of My son, so and so. There will be keeping to that body that she left.”
61-64) “If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.” What is the custom of daughters? Within the strong rock, the world of Beria, in that high firmament which is there, is a palace of love that stands under the holy of holies of Beria. There are hidden treasures there, and all the kisses of the King’s love are there, and souls that are loved by the King enter there.
When the King enters the palace, it is written, “And Jacob kissed Rachel,” for there is Zivug de Neshikin [a coupling of kissing] there, and there the Creator finds that holy soul. He promptly greets her and kisses her, embracing her and elevating her with Him, and plays with her.
“He shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.” As the father does to his daughter, whom he loves, kissing her, embracing her, and giving her gifts, the Creator does to the pure soul each day.
It is written, “Will do for the one who waits for Him.” As the daughter, the soul, complements the Assiya in this world, the Creator complements another Assiya for her in the next world.
81) Wherever words of Torah are said, the Creator and the Assembly of Israel, Malchut, are there, and they are listened to. Then the good side prevails in the tree of good and evil, Malchut, and rises up, and the Creator and the Assembly of Israel are crowned in good.
93) The Creator puts all the hidden things He does into the holy Torah and everything is in the Torah. The Torah reveals a hidden thing and promptly dresses in another garment, hides there and does not appear. The sages are filled with eyes, and even though that thing hid in its garment, they see it from within the garment. When that thing is revealed, they cast an opening of eyes in it before it reenters its garment, and although it promptly disappears, it no longer disappears from their eyes.
97-99) Many are the people in the world whose minds are confused and they do not see truthfully in the Torah. Each day, the Torah calls upon them with love for them, yet they do not wish to turn their heads back and listen to her.
In the Torah, a thing comes out of its sheath, appears briefly, and promptly hides. When it appears out of the sheath and promptly hides, the Torah does it only for those who know her and are known in her.
It is similar to a loved one, beautiful in appearance and shapely, who hides in her palace. She has a lover of whom people do not know. Rather, he hides. Out of the love that he loves her, that lover always passes by the gate to her house and looks in every direction. She knows that her lover always circles the gate to her house. She opens a small door in her palace and shows her face to her loved one, and promptly covers herself again.
All those who were with the lover neither saw nor looked, only the lover alone, whose guts and heart, and soul follow her. He knows that because of her love for him, she appears to him for only a moment, to evoke the love for him.
So is a word of Torah: it appears only to the one who loves her. The Torah knows that that wise of heart circles the gate to her house each day. What does she do? She shows her face from within the palace, gives him a hint, and promptly returns to her place and hides. All those from there neither know nor look, but he alone, whose guts and heart, and soul follow her. This is why the Torah appears and covers, and goes to her loved one with love, to awaken the love with him.
100-102) When the path of Torah begins to appear to a person, it hints at him. If he knows, fine. If he does not know, she sends to him and calls him a fool. The Torah said to the one whom she sent to him, “Tell that fool to come near here and I will speak with him.” It is written about it, “Whoever is a fool, let him turn in here, and one who is heartless.” The man approaches her and she begins to speak with him from behind a curtain, spreading matters his way according to his ways until he gradually observes. This is the interpretation.
Then she speaks with him in riddles from behind a thin sheet. And once he grows accustomed to her, she appears before him face-to-face and speaks with him of all the hidden secrets and all the hidden ways that have been hidden in her heart since the first days. Then he is a ruling man, possessing Torah, master of the house, since she revealed to him all of her secrets and did not keep away or hide anything from him.
The Torah says to him, “You have seen the hint that I hinted to you initially. So and so secrets were in it, so and so it is.” Then he sees that those words in the Torah need not be added to or subtracted from, and then the literal meaning of the text is as it is—neither adding nor subtracting even a single letter. Hence, people should be careful and chase after the Torah, be among her lovers.
165) It is written, “And God saw all that He has done, and behold, it was very good.” “Good” is the good angel. “Very” is the angel of death. The Creator provides His corrections to all until even the angel of death returns to being very good.
230) For this reason, even when there is transgression in a person and he flaws what he should not, but he repents, He accepts him and has mercy on him, since the Creator is full of mercy and is filled with mercy for all His works, as it is written, “His mercies are over all His works.” His mercies reaches even beasts and fowls. And if His mercy reaches them, it is all the more so with people, who know and are known for praising their Master. His mercies reach them and remain over them.
231) If His mercies reach the wicked, it is even more so with righteous. After all, who needs healing? Those who are in pain. And who are those in pain? They are the wicked. They are the ones who need healing and mercy, and the Creator is merciful toward them, so they will not be left away from Him. He does not depart from them and they shall return before Him in repentance.
When the Creator brings closer, He brings closer with the right. And when He repels, He repels with the left. When He repels, the right brings closer. He repels from one side and brings closer from the other. Thus, the Creator does not leave out His mercy from them.
232-234) “And he went in mischief in the way of his heart.”Afterwards, it is written, “I have seen his ways and I will heal him, and I will lead him and restore comfort to him and to his mourners.” Even though the wicked work maliciously, follow their hearts, and others warn them but they do not wish to listen to them, still, when they repent and take the good path of repentance, healing is provided for them.
Is the text speaking of the living or of the dead, since the beginning of the text is not its end and its end is not as its beginning? In the beginning of the text, it points to the living, “And he went in mischief.” Its end indicates the dead when it says, “I will lead him and restore comfort to him and to his mourners.” Rather, it speaks of while a person is alive, and so it is. “And he went in mischief in the way of his heart,” since the evil inclination in him is strong and prevails in him, hence he goes in mischief and does not wish to repent.
The Creator sees his ways, that he is marching futilely in evil. The Creator says, “I must hold him by his hand.” “I have seen his ways,” that he is walking in the dark, I wish to give him a cure, “And I will heal him.” The Creator brings into his heart the path of repentance and the healing for his soul. “I will lead him,” as it is written, “Go now, lead the people.” The Creator leads him in the upright path, as one who holds the hand of another and leads him out of the darkness.
367-369) “Place me as a seal over your heart, as a seal on your arm, for love is as strong as death, jealousy is as harsh as Sheol.” “Place me as a seal.” When the Assembly of Israel, Malchut, clung to her husband, ZA, she said, “Place me as a seal.” Since I have clung unto you, my whole form will be engraved in you. And though I may roam to or fro, you will find my form engraved in you and you will remember me.
“As a seal on your arm,” as it is written, “His left under my head and his right shall embrace me,” so my form will be engraved there. By that I will forever be clung to you and will never be forgotten by you. “For love is as strong as death,” with a strong Gevura such as that place in which there is death. Love is the place called “Eternal love.”
“Jealousy is as harsh as Sheol,” as it is with love, since the names, “Love” and “jealousy” come from the left side. “Its flashes are flashes of fire.” “Flashes” are precious stones and gems that were born out of that fire, which are high degrees, from the flame that comes out from the upper world, from the left line of Bina, clinging to the Assembly of Israel, so all will be one unification. But the love and the flashes of the fire of the heart follow you, may our form be engraved in your heart as your form is engraved in ours.
460) Those who engage in Torah and Mitzvot for the Creator and His Divinity not in order to be rewarded, but as a son who must keep the glory of his father and mother, connect and register in the middle pillar—the Creator and His Divinity—as though they were one.
466) So it is, but in each Mitzva there was your effort to unite the Creator and His Divinity in all the camps above and below, the Creator in His Divinity, and all His camps above and below unite in your spirit in each Mitzva like a prince whose father and mother love him and kiss him. And for their love, they do not believe their camps but guard him themselves.
500) Happy are Israel, whom the Creator wishes to honor more than all the people in the world. In the beginning, He said to them, “And you will be unto Me, a kingdom of priests.” The great love was not removed from them until He called them “A holy nation,” which is more important. The love was not removed from them until He called them “For you are a holy nation.” The love was not removed from them until He called them, “You shall be holy men unto Me,” which is more important than anything.
510-511) “And you shall be holy men unto Me.” It would be enough to say, “You shall be holy unto Me.” It is holy men since Israel came out to freedom only from the Yovel, Bina. And after they went out to freedom, Yovel welcomed them with His wings and they are called “His men,” “His sons.” It is written about the Yovel, “ Yovel shall be holy unto you.” This is why it is written, “And you shall be holy men unto Me,” actually His men.
The Creator said, “And you shall be holy men unto Me.” This is why Israel were rewarded with being named “brothers of the Creator,” as it is written, “For the sake of My brothers and friends,” since Israel are sons of the Yovel, Bina, and ZA is also the son of Bina. It follows that they are brothers of ZA. Afterwards, they are actually called “holiness,” as it is written, “ Israel are holiness to the Lord, the first of His harvest.
543) The whole of the Torah is the name of the Creator. One who engages in it, it is as though he engages in the holy name, since the whole of the Torah is one holy name, a superior name, a name that includes all other names. And one who withdraws a single letter from it, it is as though he put a blemish in the holy name. “And do not mention the name of other gods.” Do not add to the Torah and do not withdraw from it, for he makes a flaw in the holy name and strengthens the other gods. The name “other gods” is one who engages in other books, which are not on the side of Torah. “Nor let them be heard from your mouth,” meaning it is forbidden to even mention them and learn any reasoning from them, especially reasoning that regard the Torah.