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1) I have found a great need to break down from before me the
iron wall which separates us from the wisdom of Kabbalah. This
concealment that started from the time of the destruction of the
Second Temple continuing until now weighs very heavily on us ;
it is the source of the pain and grief of all mankind, and has
aroused within us a fear least this wisdom will be completely
forgotten. For this reason the author of the "Sulam" wrote his
work, "Study of the Ten Emanations", which is the primary book
for a fundamental understanding in Kabbalah.
Whenever I begin
to speak to the heart of a person concerning this study, the
first question which immediately arises is : "Why do I need to
know about heavenly angels and their names? Can I not fulfill
the entire Torah with all its laws and details without this
knowledge? ". Underlying this question is the impression and
premise that Kabbalah has no relevance to our daily lives, and
that it is remote and an abstract form of mysticism and magic.
A second basic question also arises: "Haven't our sages
already established that one needs to learn the entire revealed
Torah before one learns Kabbalah. Furthermore, who can deceive
himself to say that he has already completed the entire revealed
Torah and he is only lacking the hidden Torah?"
And afterwards, the third question: "Already many people have
strayed away from the path of Torah because of their involvement
in Kabbalah. Why should I bring problems upon myself? Why should
I enter into such danger without any clear purpose?". (It is
conventional to think that those who begin studying the wisdom
of Kabbalah automatically become weakened in Torah because they
become overly concerned with intention of the command and
disregard the performance of the command.)
Then they ask a fourth and fundamental question: "All those
who are devoted solely to Torah in our days have nothing to do
with this concealed wisdom, and if one asks about Kabbalah he is
always told to leave it alone and just study revealed Torah".
2) All these reasons for people not to learn
Kabbalah stem
from their lack of understanding in what was the purpose of
creation. Thus they come with such questions as: "What is the
meaning of life? What is the reason for my pains and anguish?
What is the purpose of my life?". Despite the fact that
throughout history great philosophers have tried to answer these
question, still these very questions bother our minds to this
day, and yet leave us humiliated, pained, and without answers.
The general solution given to such questions is that they should
be forgotten, and that one should just lose himself in the
natural flow of life. However, the study of Kabbalah is for
those who relentlessly ask and seek to find answers to such
questions.
3)But the solution to all these questions is stated clearly
in our Torah as it says "Come taste and see that the Creator is
good". Only through an understanding of the Creator, with a
closeness, a bonding, and a clinging to Him can a person come to
all that is good, absolutely perfect, and eternal.
Reaching a level when one has a feeling of the Creator it is
only possible through emulating Him, that all a person's
impulses and thoughts should be like those of the Creator. This
is called, "The fulfillment of Torah and Mitzvot as commanded".
And only then can a person feel that the Creator created
everything for his good and for his merit, him in a life filled
with happiness.
4)The Creator himself brings a person to good by giving him
pleasure and serenity in this life, which is normally filled
with pain, and emptiness, forcing a person to constantly seek
refuge from a life that is harder than death itself.
Where is the freedom of choice for a person? Does it not say in
our Torah: "You should choose life". The choice of a person is
exclusively in his ability to control to fix his desires and
thoughts, making them similar to the desires and thoughts of the
Creator.
This fixing of a person's thoughts and desires is called
purification of the body, because the body is called "will and
thought", so that a person should be entirely involved "to
fulfill the Torah and its mitzvot as commanded."This excludes a
devotion that is only for pleasure, it means a devotion that is
in order to give pleasure to the Creator, the same way that
Creator wants to give pleasure to a person. This is also what is
referred to as "the fulfillment of Torah for its own sake" or
"complete service".
Only through this way that a person doesn't think of himself,
but rather only of the Creator does he merit to a life of
fulfillment. Before a person reaches this stage of purity he
still thinks primarily of himself ; this is the time when there
is a place for freedom of choice. At this stage, a person has
the option to choose from many available paths and methods to
strengthen the purification of his "wills and thoughts" and to
protect himself from falling on the way. The Creator
intentionally brings distractions to a person in order that he
should overcome them, strengthen himself, and reach a feeling of
completeness and calm.
5)The purification of the body means "the ability (to intend)
to receive in order to give", that he thinks not of himself, but
of the good of his Creator, this is called "for the purpose of
heaven". This alone is called "the fulfillment of Torah and
mitzvot". This process of purification of the body (desires) is
referred to as "we shall do" and the receiving of the perfection
as "we shall understand".
In all of Creation there is only the Creator and his
creature, man. "Man" means, the inner man, his "desires and
thoughts", not his physical body. The spiritual world is pure
will and desires without physical bodies. In the spiritual
world, the will itself is called the "body" or "the vessel of
the soul". The pleasure that fulfills the will is called the
"Creator", or "the light" or "the soul".Other than these two
components, there is nothing else existant, in the entire
Creation.
The Creator made an egoistic will that wants only to receive
pleasure and nothing else.But this egoistic will is very
limited, not able to receive eternal perfection, because at the
same time that the will is filled with the light of the
pleasure, it becomes extinguished by the pleasure, and without
the desire for pleasure the pleasure is not felt. But without
the feeling of pleasure it is impossible to live, and life
becomes like death itself. Therefore a created being always
needs to make new desires in order to fulfill them.
Thus a person is constantly running after pleasure, as it is
the light of life. Yet he will never actually grasp pleasure if
he cannot awaken a new desire in order to enliven himself, he
will die. Therefore, the desire to receive pleasure in a direct,
egocentric form, such is as known to us, will never render a
person real pleasure.
Because the purpose of the Creator was to give pleasure to
his creatures, he created within us a will to receive. But in
order to receive the infinite divine pleasure this will to
receive needs to be fixed in the following way:
1)That the will shouldn't diminish at the time the pleasure
is received.
2)The lacking of pleasure should remain also when the person is
filled with pleasure, and that a person should constantly be
able to increase his will and to fulfill it without losing his
desire for yet more pleasure.
3)The will should grow so much that a person should be able to
receive the greatest pleasures in existence, in a complete and
eternal form, without having to be filled with just momentary
pleasures.
However, in order to achieve these levels of pleasure there
has to be in the person a lack other than the lack of pleasure.
Therefore the Creator endowed in a person a much greater
capability than to just receive pleasure, rather we have the
ability to feel the Creator, the source of all pleasure. From
this state of feeling the Creator, the giver of all pleasure, a
person begins to feel shame for only wanting to receive
pleasure, until he starts to hate his very own nature and
desires a "a will to give", like that of his Creator.
However since the Creator has no lack and the person has
nothing to give the Creator, the person redirects the will for
pleasure that he naturally has in a different form. He will only
receive pleasure on the condition that his receiving of the
pleasure also gives pleasure to the Creator. Thereby a person is
constantly receiving pleasure and also constantly giving
pleasure.
This form of receiving elevates a person to the level of the
Creator, because he becomes a giver, like the Creator. The will
to give that the person acquires is not limited to his ability
to receive, because his will to give entirely depends on how
great the Creator is in his eyes. Since the greatness of the
Creator has no bounds, a person is always able to increase in
giving to his Creator and also the resultant receiving of
pleasures increases, thus :
The receiving of pleasure through his will to receive
constantly grows, because without receiving pleasure he cannot
give to his Creator.
He receives pleasure by giving pleasure to his Creator, and
this pleasure depends on the greatness of the Creator in his
eyes.
It follows that through fixing his desire to receive for the
purpose of giving pleasure to the Creator, he elevates himself
from the level of a person to that of the Creator, and becomes
like the Creator Himself. Through this process the complete
purpose of the Creator in creating the world becomes revealed
for the whole purpose of the Creation is to bring man to this
state.
The process of transferring from wanting pleasure only for
oneself to wanting only to give pleasure to the Creator, is
called' "purification of the body", because in spiritual terms
the will means the body. The physical body has no relevance,
because it is only animalistic material, but the will inside the
body is called the actual "body". How is a person able to
transform his will to receive if this is his natural state? How
is it possible without any outside force other than his desire
for pleasure, that he change his will to receive, the only will
found in man?
These questions require for us to understand how the entire
world goes through two stages in order to reach its purpose
which is "complete pleasure and eternal knowledge, similar the
Creator":
Stage 1-Repairing the will of man.
Stage 2-receiving pleasure, which was the original intention of
the Creator.
The stage of repairing the will includes a chain of small
reparations. The action of fixing is called "mitzvah". After
being repaired, when the will has become conditioned to receive
in order to give pleasure to the creator, a person receives
pleasure called "light" or "Torah". Therefore the stage in which
a person fixes his will is called "the way of Torah", and the
stage in which a person receives the pleasure of the purpose of
creation is called "a life of pleasure and tranquility" or
"Torah".
On how to fix the body it is written: “Thus is the way of
Torah: Bread and salt you should eat, water in measure you
should drink, on the ground you should sleep., a life of
affliction you shall live, and in Torah you should labor. If you
do this happy are you and you shall have good. Happy are you in
'this world' and happy are you in the 'world to come' ". From
here it is clear that this world is the stage of "the fixing of
the will to receive" and the "world to come" is the receiving of
pleasure with a complete and fixed will.
But from here arise the questions: "What is the difference
between Torah and all the other wisdoms like physics, chemistry,
mathematics, and others wisdoms which don't require any
afflictions, just some effort, in order to understand them? Why
does Torah require both effort and also afflictions?". The next
question is: "Maybe in the world to come" I'll have good but in
this world that I deny myself, how could the Sages say "happy
are you in this world""?
6) The purpose of purifying the body is in order that a
person should be conditioned not to receive for his own
pleasure. Even in things permissible and necessary to maintain
the body like: eating, drinking, and sleeping he should remove
himself from any pleasure until he lives literally a life of
pain.
Then, after he has become accustomed to this, there is no
longer a desire to receive pleasure left in his body, he is able
to toil in Torah and mitzvot in order to give pleasure to his
Creator, and this is called "for it's own sake". And when he
reaches this level he merits to taste a life filled with wealth,
filled with good without any blemish of pain, a life that is
embedded with the labor of Torah and mitzvot "for their own
sake".
On this it is written "Come taste and see because the Creator
is good", this taste is referring to the taste of labor in Torah
and mitzvot "for their own sake", and the seeing refers to see
the purpose of creation which is only "to give good to His
creatures ; it is the nature of the God to do good". Then one is
happy in the life the Creator gave him, and for him the creation
is worthwhile.
7)From here we see two levels of involvement in Torah and
mitzvot:
Level A- "Path of Torah": The period of preparation where a
person needs to fix his will to receive, his labor in Torah and
mitzvot is "not for its own sake", rather he still has a mixture
of his own pleasures and motives. This stems from the person
still not being able to purify his will and rid himself of the
vanities of this world. At this stage he has to "live a
difficult life and labor in Torah".
Level B-"A life of pleasure and tranquility": The stage
occurs after he has finished and completed the "way of Torah"
and purified his will to receive, enabling him to fulfill the
Torah and mitzvot "for their own sake", in order to give
pleasure to the Creator. Now he has come to the" life of
pleasure and tranquility" which is the reason behind creation as
His will is to "bestow good to his creatures". This life of good
means the most bountiful life in "this world" and the "world to
come".
8) This is the difference between Torah and other wisdoms: In
other wisdoms a person doesn't have to fix his will to receive,
effort alone suffices to achieve mastery and success, as with
everything in the physical world. The purpose of other wisdoms
is for the knowledge and concepts of that wisdom to be known and
understood, as this is the pleasure that is to be derived from
the wisdom. However, to improve and bring good to the life of a
person and to bring him to the completion for which he was
created, is to receive perfection and eternal pleasure, this is
only possible through fixing his will to receive.
The purpose of labor in Torah and mitzvot is to prepare a
person to be ready to receive all the good which is the intended
by the Creator ; He wants " to give good to His creatures". This
good is reserved not only for "the world to come" but also in
this world as well. Therefore a person has to purify his will in
order to be able to receive from his Creator in his lifetime. As
long as a person doesn't fix his will to receive in his life in
this world, he needs to keep returning to this world, until in
one of his incarnations he fixes his will and accomplishes the
purpose of creation.
9)Therefore a bountiful life in this world only comes to one
who completed the "path of Torah", who has gone through all the
pains, struggles, and difficulties of this world, which are
specific to the "path of Torah". After he has completed this
period of "not for its own sake”, a life of pain and difficulty,
he merits to a life of good and bounty in "this world" and the
"world to come".
10) Life in complete perfection was created instantly and
included life in this world in it's state of complete Goodness.
The Creator created man in his final eternal state filled with
pleasure and perfection from the very beginning. In order
however, that a person should have free will, struggling on his
own to reach perfection, the Maker set aside this state of
perfection to be revealed only after a person purifies his will
in this world.
11)However the Sages of the Talmud were lenient concerning
the level of "the path of Torah" saying that the learning of the
Torah even with no alterior motive alone brings a man to "for
its own sake", because the light that is in the Torah fixes a
person. From here we see that they changed the means to reach
the purpose of creation to a much easier method.
The sages of the Talmud made it easier to reach the truth,
instead of afflictions they gave us another way to purify the
body (will):the light within the Torah", that it has the
strength to fix a person and to bring him to learn "for its own
sake". This means that it's enough to study Torah "not for its
own sake", and the light that's in the Torah will fix a person,
until he will have a pure will with which he will be able to
labor in Torah in order to give pleasure to his Master, to
"learn for its own sake".
12) To learn Torah with ulterior motives means that a person:
1)Believes in the Creator 2)Believes in the Torah 3)Believes in
reward and punishment 4)Labors in the Torah because the Creator
commanded to labor in it 5)But he wants in the same action of
studying to bring pleasure to himself as well as to the Creator,
that also he will have a reward. Yet if after his labor it is
known to him that he won't receive his reward, he regrets all
his toil.
Even after this leniency this the sages permitted to labor in
Torah "not for its own sake" in the place of afflictions, only
because by "from learning not for its own sake one comes to
learning for its own sake", and excluded any labor for any other
purpose. Because originally before the leniency of the sages of
the Talmud it was forbidden to learn "not for its own sake",
rather it was permissible to learn only after one reached the
level of "for its own sake".
The sages of the Talmud permitted to labor in the Torah "not
for its own sake" only for the purpose of transforming the will
as only for this purpose they made the decree that the Torah
itself should be a medium that fixes a person instead of self
denial. Therefore at the time of learning a person is not
obligated that his intent should be to understand what is
written in the works of Kabbalah, but rather it should be to
merit transforming his will and thoughts. Only when that a
person's intents and thoughts are proper will the light of Torah
transform his will. The sages decreed the Torah as a medium only
on the condition that a person has the intent to repair himself
at the time of learning, only in this form did they permit to
learn Torah "not for its own sake"!
But if a person still doesn't believe in the Creator and in
the Torah and lives with doubts, he will not be able to reach
"for its own sake" through "not for its own sake", because the
light of the Torah is only for those who believe. The greatness
of the light of the Torah comes according to one's faith in the
Torah. Therefore without faith a person will receive "darkness"
instead of "light". Without faith the only purpose in the Torah
is to seek understanding and wisdom. The intellectual
understanding is his pleasure and he has no intention to
transform himself or to reach a revelation of the Creator, his
real purpose from birth. In essence he is repulsed from learning
the inner Torah. This type of learning brings him only
intelectualities and a desire to display his knowledge in the
eyes of others. All these results are called "darkness".
13) Someone who merits perfect faith, is guaranteed that even
if he learns Torah "not for its own sake" he will be enlightened
by the light of the Torah. Without first practicing self denial
or living a life of abstention, he will merit to come to Torah
"for its own sake”. This results a life of bounty in this world
and the next.
Therefore if a person that learns with alterior motives sees
that according to the amount he already should have long since
reached the level of "for its own sake", he should to know that
it stems from his lack of faith. For him who learns Torah "not
for his own sake", the transformation to "for its own sake"
depends on the light that he takes from the Torah, which is
solely dependent on the amount of his faith.
14) A Person’s level of faith is recognizable from his labor
in Torah. If he believes with complete faith that the Torah
brings him "life", he wil dedicate all his available time for
it.
15) Therefore only a person, who knows that he has merited
the proper measure of faith in the Creator and his Torah, can
expect that his labor in Torah "not for its own sake" will
become "for its own sake". Only together with this faith the
light of Torah tranfigure him and bring him to the light of the
Creator which will change him toward the good.
The lack of faith while one labors in Torah reverses the light
to darkness ; the Torah which is the giver of life becomes the
giver of death. Such a scholar masters only the simple
understanding of Torah lacking all desire to grasp the inner
Torah, the real light of the Torah. Therefore first and foremost
a person must consummate his faith.
16) Therefore if a person labors in Torah because he believes
in the reward, while yet combining his own interests along with
his intent to give pleasure to his Maker, the light in the Torah
will transfigure him and bring him "to its own sake". Even
though he still isn't able to aim solely for the purpose of the
Creator, it still considered that the time he spends learning
fixes him. This is called "learning for the sake of fulfilling
the mitzvah of learning Torah".
But if a person toils in Torah "not for the sake of
fulfilling the mitzvah of studying Torah", that is to say, not
to fix himself, but rather just to give pleasure to himself so
he can be called a "scholar" or a "Rabbi", in order to brag or
satisfy his ego, his Torah becomes a "drug of death". The light
in the Torah has been turned to darkness, which is not able to
stand the light of the Torah, its inwardness - the wisdom of
Kabbalah.
17) Therefore a person needs to first acquire faith in his
Creator and His supervision of reward and punishment, that is,
that the Creator will pay reward, and that his reward will be
that he will receive more faith in his maker This should be a
person’s intent, prior to studying ; to merit the light of the
Torah and to come to study for "its own sake". There is no
better advice for reaching faith, than to direct his heart and
mind during learning toward faith in the Creator.
So if a person sees that he has an evil inclination, which is
his desire only to receive, the only solution is learning Torah.
"Learning Torah" means learning for the purpose for which the
Torah was given : to make him good. If he's only acquiring
intellectual concepts for his own pleasure, he's not learning
Torah, only plain wisdom. The word "Torah" is refers to the "the
inner light in the Torah that brings him to good", which brings
him to his Creator, e.g. a revealment of his Creator. It follows
from this that the proper type of study brings a person two
things:1) faith and 2) the level of "for its own sake".
18) Every person has the ability to repair himself because
the same Creator that made the evil inclination also created the
Torah to fix it. Therefore the Torah has the power to fix the
desire that's in a person, the evil inclination. He who labors
in Torah and doesn't succeed in correcting his evil inclination,
has been slack and did not put out either the sufficient "amount
of effort" or the "quality of effort".
"The Amount of effort" is determined by the amount of his
available time that he spends studying Torah.
"The Quality of effort" is determined by how much of his mind
and heart he devotes at the time of his study in order to merit
the light of the Torah, that brings faith to a person ; That he
not labor in Torah without any intention to fix himself, and not
that he begins to learn in order to fix himself but at the time
of learning removes his mind from this and wants just to
understand the text. The main factor is his quality of effort,
because the evil inclination is not opposed to acquiring wisdom,
but when a person has the intent to kill his evil inclination,
then his entire nature rises and interferes with him to prevent
him from thinking of fixing himself. Therefore a person has to
strengthen mainly his quality of effort.
But only according to the degree that a person feels that his
inclination is evil in not allowing him to reach good and
perfection to the degree that he hates his nature which doesn't
allow him to reach his Creator, to this degree only will he be
able to repair himself at the time of studying.
19) It is written in the Talmud that he who labors in the
revealed Torah five years and doesn't reach the level of "for
its own sake" will never reach it. Therefore if in the beginning
it is difficult for a person to labor in the revealed Torah, it
is better that he involves himself in the wisdom of Kabbalah
while in the revealed Torah he should only learn the relevant
day to day laws. This is not because its easier to learn the
wisdom of Kabbalah than the wisdom of the revealed Torah, but
that through the learning of Kabbalah it's easier to bring out
the light of Torah which fixes a person.
20)Why is a person obligated to abandon the learning of the
revealed Torah, to learn only relevant day to day laws, and the
rest of the time to be involved only in Kabbalah?
21)The Torah is only attained through "fear of the Creator
and "fulfillment of the mitzvot".
22)The purpose of life is to fight the evil inclination. The
intermediary to accomplish this is the intent to repair oneself
during learning Torah. Kabbalah books as well as in the revealed
Torah, indeed all books of Torah, speak exclusively of the
revelation of the Maker to his creatures. For this reason the
Torah is referred to as "the names of the Creator". According to
the level that a person grasps Torah, that is, how the Creator
is revealed to him, how the person feels the Creator before him,
on this level he designates Him with a name.
All of scripture was written down by those who understood the
Creator. They conveyed their knowledge in different linguistic
styles : the language of Kabbalah, the language of the Torah and
the prophets, the language of aggadah (legends), and language of
halachah. But in whatever idiom, they only wrote according to
what they grasped in the upper worlds, that is how they felt the
Creator. In this respect there is no difference between any of
the styles. This is also the way that Moses received the Torah.
He merited an understanding from the Creator of all the upper
worlds, meaning a complete knowledge of how the Creator is
revealed to man and he wrote the Torah from the Creator, and
afterwards, all the different ways of understanding of the
Creator put forth our holy books. They were all written by
people that grasped the Creator and wrote what they felt in
Torah, in Prophets, in Writings, in aggadah, in Talmud. Together
they are called Torah because they were all written through
divine revelation to man.
The revealed Torah on a simple level discusses mundane things
like theft, damages, and other monetary laws. It is difficult to
see divine revelation in these things.
Therefore it is difficult to direct one's mind to the Creator
and, therefore, to the purpose of his learning, namely, to merit
faith while delving into these laws. Therefore, if after five
years of learning the revealed Torah a person hasn't fixed
himself, the Torah itself obligates him to abandon the revealed
Torah and instead to toil in the wisdom of Kabbalah. In Kabbalah
it is much easier to extract the light of Torah and to direct
his thoughts and heart to the Creator and to the purpose of his
learning. The wisdom of Kabbalah openly and clearly speaks of
the actions of the Creator.
23) It is written in the Talmud itself that if a person
doesn't reach "for its own sake "within five years of learning
Torah the reason only stems from the lack of intention in his
heart, and not from his lack of skill or ability. The Torah
doesn't require skill only proper intentions of the heart. Only
according to one's desire to repair himself (not according to
his intellect) will the Torah enlighten him. The sages
determined that five years is sufficient time to reach the level
of "for its own sake", therefore a person is obligated to move
promptly to the study of Kabbalah in order to succeed in
reaching the level of "for its own sake".
24) Every person is obligated to learn the revealed Torah, in
order to know practical laws. This is possible from studying the
short abridged works. Rav Yosef Karo wrote halachah in a shorter
fashion in the "Shulchan Aruch" because he studied
Kabbalah with
the Kabbalist Ari Za"l, and saw that the process of
clarification of halacha doesn't allow us time for the study of
Kabbalah.
25)It follows that a person doesn't need to learn
Kabbalah in
two instances:
First, if he fulfills the Torah "according to halacha" meaning
"for its own sake" in order to give pleasure to the Creator than
he will automatically receive the light of Torah without any
need from outside books. Second, if he still hasn't devoted five
years to the study of revealed Torah he still has time to
develop the level of for "its own sake".
If however, he learns Torah "not for its own sake" for more
than five years, the Talmud itself warns him that he will not
reach the level of "for its own sake". At this point, he must
learn Kabbalah, because during the time he's learning Kabbalah
it is easier to bring his heart to the Creator, it will help him
to reach spirituality.
26)Therefore the meaning of what is written in the Talmud
(that a person must fill himself with revealed Torah), is that
either he's learning for its own sake or he has not completed
five years of study. But the holy Ari Za"l writes that in our
times only through the study of Kabbalah is it possible for a
person to fix himself and to reach the purpose for which he was
born, and there is no need for studying first five years, rather
immediately he should begin studying Kabbalah.
the Creator created the person with a will to receive
pleasures. If he uses his will to receive for himself, for his
own pleasure, the Creator hides himself from the person.But if
he uses his will to receive in order to give to his Creator, the
Creator reveals Himself to the person.
The will to receive is referred to as a "black spot" because
this willl isn't able to receive light or to feel the Creator.
Therefore if a person wants only to receive pleasure in his
learning he will not merit to feel the Creator, because the
Creator as far as he is concerned is not existent.According to
his level of repairing his will to receive on the condition to
give, this black spot expands and starts receiving into the
light, meaning it fills up with a feeling for the Creator. The
light that fills this dark spot is called the "neshama(soul) of
man."
The will to receive that enables him to receive the light is
called "partzuf" (aspect), meaning "partzuf (aspect)" is the
will to receive, when it's completed with the intention "of
receiving in order to give" than it is called "for its own
sake"The entire aspect includes the "head" and the "body". The
"head" reveals all the light. In the "body" their is only the
receiving of a portion of that light that the told “aspect”
decides it is able to receive in order to give pleasure to the
Creator.
All that a person feels in this world and in the world to
come is the feeling of the Creator. The difference is that in
the "world to come" he just feels the Maker, who is revealed to
man, and in "this world" a person feels the Creator in physical
garments hidden from man. "This world" is called what one feels
with his unfixed "will to receive". The "world to come" refers
to after a person has fixed "his will to receive". The wisdom of
Kabbalah teaches a person how to achieve revelation of the
Creator to man, and how to pass from a feeling "of this world:"
called "faith" to the “world to come" "world to come" called
understanding.
27) When the point of will to receive receives a fixing to
receive not for itself but rather in order to give to the
Creator, it expands, that is it attains ten different wills to
give in different paths. These ten wills are called "ten sefirot
(emanations)". Therefore in every spiritual partzuf( a will to
receive in order to give) there are ten sefirot (emanations):
Keter, Chochmah, Binah, Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod,
Yesod, and Malchut.. The first three sefirot: Keter, chochmah,
and binah are called the "head of the partzuf". The seven lower
sefirot: chesed, gevurah. tiferet, netzach, hod, yesod, and
malchut are called the "body of the partzuf".
All the feelings that a person feels he receives with the
same will to receive. But with the will to receive for its own
sake, a person is able to understand only a tiny portion of the
existence which he calls "my world".
When a person through his study of
Kabbalah decides no longer
to use his will to receive, rather to attain and to use only the
will to receive in the condition to give, similar to the
Creator, in this measure of fixing his will, he begins to feel
the real existence that surrounds him. This existence is called
"revealment of the Creator."
All of Kabbalah teaches a man to reach a feeling of true
existence, It discusses the revelation of the Creator to man.
Both in the revealment of the Creator to man, and in Kabbalah
there are two parts:
"Hidden Torah"- What is revealed in the first three sefirot:
Keter, chochmah, and binah, or in the head of the partzuf. This
portion includes "the maaseh mercavah" (the divine chariot) and
"maaseh beraishit" (act of creation) and is permitted only to be
revealed through hints from the master to the student.
Ta'amim of the Torah"- What is revealed in the lower seven
sefirot of the face or the body of the face, this is permissible
to learn and is a great mitzvah to reveal it to everyone.
When a person reaches through the study of
Kabbalah, his
first revelaltion of the Creator, his black spot expands and
fills with an upper light. In his feeling of the Creator, this
widening already includes ten sections from the ten sefirot,
which are called sefirot because they give light.
This partzuf that is born through a person's feeling of the
Creator is called "neshamah". The lights which are revealed in
the body are called "Ta'amim" or "Ta'amei Torah", of which the
reward for a person who receives them has no limit.
The will to receive of the "black spot", is called "the point
of this world", in which it a person feels no existence of the
Creator of the world. There are 125 levels of revelation of the
Creator, in each of which the will to receive is fixed gradually
until it reaches the proper will which is completely directed
towards giving, then the Creator is entirely revealed. The
levels of revealment are called "worlds" . There are five worlds
from above to below. Adam Kadmon, Atzilut, Briah, Yetzirah,
Asiyah. In each of them there are five partzufim (pl. of
Partzuf), in each partzuf there are five sefirot. So in total
there are 125 levels of reperation on the way to receiving a
complete fixed will.
The higher head level at the end of the "world of asiah" is
already included in "hidden Torah", that is forbidden to reveal,
and the" body" of the world of "atzilut" is included in "ta'amei
ha Torah" that is permissible and fitting to reveal
28) Kabbalists reveal only that which is permissible to
reveal and hides that which is forbidden to reveal.
A Kabbalist receives a reward for hiding "hidden Torah" from
others, and revealing "taamei ha Torah" to others.
30) Therefore in all works of
Kabbalah there is no mentioned
of "hidden Torah" and all the printed books include only "taamei
ha Torah" which is a great mitzvah to reveal. To the extent that
upper lights are revealed to the public, revelation of the
Creator increases in the world. This is called the "coming of
Messiah". The "hidden torah" is given over only to individuals
under very strict conditions.
31) Why is the coming of the messiah dependent on the
spreading of the wisdom of Kabbalah to the masses?
32)When a person is involved in Torah in order to receive a
reward, that is, he anticipates a return for his effort, the
fear and love in his labor of Torah and mitzvot becomes a medium
in order to receive that reward. His fear is that he will not
receive a reward ; his love depends on receiving a reward. If he
does not receive the reward the love will cease.
If a person conducts himself this way, he's not using the
Torah for its purpose, because the Creator gave the Torah as a
medium to fix the evil inclination and to achieve the ultimate
purpose of creation.
33)According to what is stated in point 11, it is forbidden
to begin studying Torah "not for its own sake" with the
intention of only to receive a reward. It is permissible only to
engage in Torah when it's used as a intermediary to reach "for
its own sake" then the light of the Torah can fix him "and
return him to good", to be similar to his Creator. Only on this
condition is his activity of "not for its own sake" considered a
intermediary and is called an aspect of "the world of asiah of
kedushah (holiness)".
However if his faith is not complete and his involvement in
Torah is not for the reason that the Creator has commanded him,
the light of the Torah is not revealed to him, and in place of
"light", revelation of the Creator, he receives "darkness",
concealment of the Creator, and he enters the domain of the
"klipot (evil husks)".
That is, when a person wants only for his own good, the
holiness of the Torah goes over to the side of evil, to the
klipot.
34)There are two orot(lights) in the partzuf (face)
Ohr Chassadim (Light of bestowal)- the intention to give to the
Creator.
Ohr Chochmah-revelation of the Creator to man.
The condition to merit to spirituality is that a person
should bring upon himself the "Ohr Chassadim", which come
through learning Torah “not on the condition to receive a
reward”. Through the "Ohr Chassadim" a person brings upon
himself the "Ohr Chochmah, then the power of "moshiach" is
revealed to him, that is "moshech" (brings him) from
corporeality to spirituality. Therefore everything depends on
his involvement in Torah "for its own sake" which can bring him
to the "ohr chassadim" within which the "ohr chochmah" is
enclothed.
35) At the time when one is spiritually exiled that he is
still learning Torah "not for its own sake", if he learns with
the intent that his "not for its own sake" he will come "for its
own sake", the Creator will help him. Then through the darkness
he can come to a revelation of the Creator through his power of
"moshiach", the ability to arouse him to the level of "for its
own sake".
If however the involvement in Torah is "not for its own
sake", lacking faith and unable to bring to the level of "for
its own sake", then there won't awaken in a person the desire to
know his Creator. Because the purpose of his Torah is only for
himself, he'll be satisfied merely with physicality. Since he
isn't interested in learning "for its own sake" the power of
"moshiach" will not be able to effect him, and his learning will
remain purely physical. Though the power of "moshiach" brings a
person from corporeality to spirituality, it is only if their
learning "not for its own sake" is with intention to reach "for
its own sake".
There are many who learn revealed Torah, and despite that
don't succeed in reaching "for its own sake", they still don't
begin learning Kabbalah which can bring them to "for its own
sake" which has been stated. The reason they can't come to Torah
"for its own sake" is not because the Torah lacks light which
can arouse them to this level, but rather they don't have the
ability to bring this light out of the Torah.
36) The condition that the Ohr Chassadim (light of kindness)
will come to the person is only if he studies Torah not in order
to receive a reward, rather only to give pleasure to his
Creator. All the time of exile and pain that a person suffers
are only in order to awaken him that he should work to merit to
Torah "for its own sake". As soon as he merits this, right away
he will merit "Ohr chesed and ahavah" (light of kindness and
hapiness), which will bring him to a complete individual
redemption.
General mankind can reach the level "of for its own sake" only
through the study of Kabbalah, because only it is sufficient to
help those of smaller intellect, since all of the layers of the
wisdom of Kabbalah, directly describe the Creator. On the other
hand it's much harder to reach this level through revealed
Torah, which one can only reach "for it's own sake" through
great toil.
Therefore he who thinks that he's learning
Kabbalah to know
worlds, sefirot, angels, partzufim,like someone in Torah that is
just learning in order to increase his intellect, is making a
very serious mistake. Through the Kabbalah a person reaches the
light that turns a person towards the good, the "Ohr mashiach
(the light of messiah)" which brings a person to spirituality
and an inner spiritual redemption.
37)They say that from the study of
Kabbalah a person can go
crazy and abandon the fulfillment of mitzvot. These things
happened in the past when people took the study of Kabbalah in a
physical form, and consequently harbored all types of strange
images in their minds.
Since the works of Kabbalah are filled with spiritual
concepts, the one who studies without the right intention
imagines in these spiritual ideas all types of physicality.
Consequently many attempted to learn Kabbalah and afterwards
abandon it without success.
Therefore only the proper type of learning of
Kabbalah, that
is from the writings of the Ari Za"l and from the writings of
the Ashlag, and only through the proper teacher can assure the
learner that he will gather the spiritual concepts in the
proper, simple and clear form..
38) Why is the involvement in Torah and complete and proper
devotion called Torah "for its own sake" and devotion that isn't
appropriate called "Torah not for its own sake"?If the reason is
that a person who learns Torah is obligated to intend to give
pleasure to the Creator, then the proper form of learning should
be called "for His sake", instead of "for it's (the Torah) own
sake"?
39) The Torah brings a person to spiritual life called
"chayim" (life). If a person doesn't intend to learn Torah "for
it's own sake" for life, and studies "not for it's own sake",
this is called death. Therefore Torah which brings a person to
spirituality is called "giver of life", but Torah which doesn't
bring a person to spirituality is called the "giver of death".
40) It's written " I have toiled and I have found' believe, I
have not toiled and found- don't believe." At first glance it's
difficult to understand this. Toiling means working in order to
"acquire" something, where as "finding" implies receiving
without any effort. Than how can it say "I have toiled and I
have found"? Because if toil was involved it should have said "I
have toiled and I've acquired" or "I have toiled and have
merited" but not "I have toiled and I've found"?
41) It is written that we find the Creator in the Torah ; the
Creator hides himself in the Torah.Shouldn’t it be however that
He hides himself in physical things, and reveals himself in the
Torah. How is it written that Hashem hides himself specifically
only in Torah? It's also written that the Creator hides himself,
such that one must pray for Him to reveal himself. Why does He
hide himself? And why must we ask of Him to reveal himself?
It's only possible to find the Creator in the places where He
hides himself. If we say that the Creator only hides Himself in
the Torah, than this is a sign that his place of concealment is
only in the Torah.
42) We don't understand the Creator's providence over us.
This is the main cause of distance from Him, and causes us to
transgress His Will ; and the cause of all our anguish and our
stumbling into intentional or unintentional transgressions. If
we were to remove this cause we would relieve ourselves of these
troubles and be able to truly cling to Him with all our hearts.
43) If the Creator would reveal Himself to us in such a way that
who ate something forbidden would immediately choke, and all who
perform a mitzvah would have immediate pleasure, who would even
consider transgressing knowing that his life is at stake? It
would be like running into a blazing fire! Who would than
abandon the Will of the Creator, that is mitzvot, rather we
would fulfill the Torah quickly and zealously, like a person
who's unable to separate himself from a physical pleasure that
has been given to him. . If it were revealed before us the way
that the Creator supervises the world we would all be completely
righteous people!
44) It is clear if the providence were to be revealed, we
would all be completely righteous people clinging to the Creator
with the greatest of love.
Many try to cling to God and only a few individuals actually
succeed. Because the reward of a Mitzvah is not revealed, and
neither is the punishment of one who transgresses. Rather things
appear quite the opposite. Therefore understanding the
providence of God is the reason for all the good, and the lack
of understanding is what causes all the bad and evil. 45)The feeling of providence comes to a person in two ways: "concealment" panim (hidden faces)" which is divided into two: single concealment or
double concealments - that is, concealment within concealment
"gilui panim (revealed faces)" divided into two:
(Revelation of) Supervision of reward and punishment
(Revelation of) Eternal providence. 46) When the Creator hides His face a person feels this in the
form of pain and difficulty as he has either a single or a
double concealment. "Panim" of the Creator: When the Creator behaves with "revealed
providence". He does good for a person. This is when His Face is
revealed to him. He then knows and understands his Creator, in
that He's good and giving good, and recognizes Him like one who
sees a close friend and can immediately identify Him. 48) "Back” of the Creator: When He behaves toward a person with
"hidden providence" a person receives pain because that face of
the Creator, which is trustworthy to pay, is hidden from him.
This is a person who sees his friend from behind and he is in
doubt if this is actually his friend. There are two types of
concealments or hidings
"one concealment”: When a person receives pain and suffering,
this means that the Creator is hiding Himself, namely His
goodness, and only his behind is revealed. Than a person has to
strengthen himself in faith, to be careful from sin, because
it's hard to know the Creator from behind. 49) "Concealment inside of concealment" or "double concealment":
The abundance of pains cause that even the behind of the Creator
doesn't become recognizable to the person, that he doesn't
believe that this is the Creator that is angry at him and is
punishing him, rather he attest it to an event or nature. This
person comes towards rejection of the providence of the Creator
as the One who rewards and punishes, and this is already called
"avodah zorah" idol worship. 50) In "One concealment" a person still believes in the
providence over reward and punishment and that all his suffering
comes from that he's not clinging to the Creator.He still sees
the Creator, but only from the way of behind, that has brought
him suffering. Therefore it's called "one concealment" meaning
concealment of the face of the Creator but not His behind. 51) From here the two aspects of understanding hidden providence
are felt in a person "once concealment" or "concealment in the
midst of concealment". One concealment or concealment means concealment of "panim"
(faces) but revealed "achorayim" (behinds). A person believes
that the Creator causes him his difficulty as a punishment for a
sin, even though it's hard for him to always recognize his
Creator from behind, and he comes to as a result to doubts and
sins, he is still called a "rasha sheynoh gamor (not a complete
wicked man)". We don't consider him completely wicked since
these sins come about as a result of great suffering, and they
are considered unintentional sins, and he still believes in
reward and punishment, but since his pains are so great it
causes him to have doubt. The concealment is in this that he
doesn't see that the Creator is "good and gives good", but he
believes that the Creator behaves with him with hidden
providence. 52) Double concealment: Even the behind of the Creator is hidden
from the person, because he doesn't believe in reward and
punishment. Then the sins are written as intentionally and he is
considered a complete wicked man, because he thinks that the
Creator doesn't supervise at all which constitutes idol worship.
The concealment is so great that he doesn't even realize that
the Creator has providence over the "concealment". 53) All the service in fulfilling the Torah and mitzvot in the
path of free will occurs essentially at a time of concealment. A
person at this time must do everything in his power to behave as
if there is revealed supervision, to overcome, to choose to
believe, and to choose that the Creator is watching him Since
the providence isn't revealed and he sees his Creator as His
face is hidden, like a person who sees his friend from behind
that could easily have a doubt if it really is his friend, so
too he may think that what has occurred in his life is from some
random circumstance or event, and not from the Creator. Therefore the choice is always in the hand of a person: to do
the will of the Creator or to transgress. Because the suffering
that he receives brings him to doubt the providence of the
Creator on him. So a person is found in a state of great
difficulty and struggle to believe in the providence of the
Creator. On this period of time it's written: "All that's in
your power to do you should do", meaning specifically in this
time when things are hidden a person must overcome his nature to
strengthen his faith to accept that the Creator supervises the
entire creation only in the way of "being good and giving good".
Because a person merits to "Face revealment" to see completely
clear how the Creator handles the world in the way "of being
good and doing good", only after he has toiled and has done all
that's in his power to believe from the position of free will,
that that was the truth even during the period of "behinds".
According to the greatness of anguish for a person that he needs
to overcome in order to believe at the time of concealment, that
the providence of the Creator is always good. greater is his
reward as the Creator reveals to him His face and all that is
good. "Doubts",-that a person is in doubt if the Creator really
handles the world in a good way? This who person has hardships
needs to say to himself that the intention of the Creator in
handling the entire world is only in the way of "being good and
giving good" and all of his hardships are only for the good..
54) After the Creator has seen that a person has completed all
his labor and all that was in his power to act with his freewill
to strengthen himself in the belief that the Creator controls
the creation constantly in a completely good way, than the
Creator helps him and he merits to open attention from the
Creator,"Face revealment" This person sees that everything is
run with absolute good, from this he's aroused to great love for
the Creator, and than he merits complete repentance, that he can
cling to the Creator with all his heart, and soul, all as a
result from his realization of the open guidance of God. 55) The revealed providence and complete repentance come to a
person on two levels: 56) The first level of revealed providence is the complete
understanding of reward and punishment.
Not only includes the understanding that all the reward for
mitzvot is in the world to come, but also a realization of the
great pleasure one has in doing the mitzvot in this world. Not
only does one realize the bitter punishment that comes from
every sin after his death, but also feels the bitter taste of a
sin that's done here in this world.
Therefore, the one who merits to open providence certainly
cannot sin anymore, similar to one who certainly wouldn't cut
off his limbs and cause himself great suffering. Likewise he
will take any opportunity to perform a mitzvah, as would any
normal person partake in a great pleasure that is offered to
him. 57) Complete repentance is when the Creator Himself testifies
that the person will no longer sin. Because a person cannot be
certain that he won't sin until he merits to an understanding of
reward and punishment, meaning the revealed hand of the Creator.
This revealment of the Creator 's ways is, "redemptions of the
Creator" or "Testimonies". "Creator's redemption" refers to the
revealing of the Creator to man. And when a person reaches an
understanding of reward and punishment, he is guaranteed that he
won't sin further. 58) This repentance is called "repentance from fear". For also
the one who returns to his Creator with all his heart and soul,
the guarantee that he won't sin further comes from his feeling
of the pain and suffering, that come from his sins.He is sure he
won't sin because he doesn't want to cause to himself great
hardship. Therefore his repentance comes only from fear of sin,
and so it is called "repentance from fear". 59) The one who does repentance from fear merits that all his
intentional sins become unintentional, since the intentional
sins resulted from the double concealment when the Creator had
become completely hidden from the sinner.
However the state of one concealment, when he believed in reward
and punishment, but nevertheless from the great hardships he had
at times sinful thoughts, can be compared to one who sees his
friend from behind, and is likely to think that maybe it's not
his friend. These sins are also considered unintentional since
he didn't believe in reward and punishment.
60) Therefore after he has merited to repentance from fear to a
clear understanding of the system of reward and punishment,
until he is certain that he won't sin, he becomes removed
completely from the double concealment. Now he sees that there
is a system of reward and punishment, and it's clear to him that
all the hardship and darkness that he experienced was a
punishment for all of his sins. He sees that in the past he made a bitter mistake that he
thought the Maker was not controlling the world and now he sees
that the Creator was always managing the world in the way of
"being good and doing good".
Thusly he has uprooted his intentional sins, but not completely
as they are considered now unintentional. Similar to the sins
that he did at one concealment which are considered only
unintentional, because he fell as a result of confusion and
great hardship which remove a man from he semblance of mind. 61) But from the first concealment he underwent immediately
proceeding his repentance, he doesn't repair with his new
repentance. Left over is all the concealment and the
unintentional sins that he committed, without any change or
fixing, because than he also believed that all of his suffering
came from his sins. So he only merits to fix from the time of
his repentance and onward but not from before. 62) Therefore he's still not called a complete righteous person
. Though since he has merited to the revealed face of the
Creator and sees that He is "good and does good" from this time
and on he can be referred to as a righteous person, being he has
realized the righteousness of Providence as it is in truth.,
that the Creator behaves with people in the epitome of good and
completeness, as He is good to both good and bad people.
63) Since he merited to understand revealed providence, that he
realizes that the Creator overlooks and takes care of both good
and bad, from this point and on he can be called tzadik. But
until he reached this point he was not able to be called tzadik
(Righteous) because he had thoughts against the Creator. But
since he had sinned in the past he is called a "tzadik sheyno
gamor" (incomplete righteous person). 64) He is also referred to as a "benoni" one who's in between.
Because after he has merited to repentance from fear he becomes
enable through his devotion to merit to repentance from love,
that he'll merit to be called "tzadik gamor (a completely
righteous person). 65) It's been explained that the first level of understanding
revealed providence-is the realization of reward and punishment
to the extent that the Creator will testify that this person
will no longer sin further.This is referred to as repentance
from fear, when the intentional sins become unintentional, and
he is then called "tzadik sheyno gamor (incomplete righteous
person)" or "benoni"(person in between). 66) The second level of understanding open providence is the
understanding of complete, true, and eternal nature of
providence. The realization that the Creator intimately watches
over all his creatures in the aspect of "good and giving good"
than a person is called "tzadik gamor (complete), and this
repentance is called "repentance from love", when he merits that
his intentional sin become mitzvot. There are the four aspects of understanding providence, that a
person must path through: The first three aspects :double
concealment, one concealment, the understanding of reward and
punishment they are preparations that through them a person
merits to the fourth aspect, an eternal and true understanding. 67) Why is it not enough for a person the third aspect, the
knowing of reward and punishment, that a person merits that the
Creator testifies on him that he will no longer sin? Why is he
called a "benoni" or "a tzadik sheyno gamor" that these names
indicate that his devotion is not fitting in the eyes of the
Creator, and is still found to be lacking in Torah and mitzvot? 68) How does the Torah command us to love, something which isn't
in our control, since love is something that doesn't help force?
But from the fact that a person performs the other 612 mitzvot
properly he'll automatically begin to love the Creator.
Therefore it's considered this mitzvah as it is in the hand of
man to perform it. Because if he's able to force himself to
perform the other 612 mitzvot, he will than be able to also
perform the mitzvah of love. 69) But if there is no medium for which a person to perform the
mitzvah of love except through the other 612 mitzvot, than why
should it be numbered as a mitzvah, and not just be considered a
byproduct of the other mitzvot?
70) All the tendencies and characteristics in a person that he
has to serve someone else are necessary to serve the Creator.
Originally they were implanted in a person soley for the purpose
of serving the Creator, which is the meaning and end of all
man.. Rather in the meantime a person has an entire world in
order that all these tendencies and natural characteristics will
be opened and completed, as through a person's involvement with
society these characteristics become refined so one can serve
the Creator with them. Therefore the existence of mankind is
neccesary for the individual as they are the ones who open and
prepare his tendencies and characteristics in order they should
be fitting for his spiritual devotion. 71)Therefore we need to understand the essence of love of the
Creator in the context of love between human beings, which
necessarily also the love of the Creator is influenced by these
characteristics. There are two types of love between people
which divide into four: 72) Love that depends on something, love stemming from immense
good, pleasure, and purpose that he receives from his friend .
In this there are two levels: Before they knew and loved one another, they had done harm to
each other, but they don't want to remember, "because on all
sinners love will cover". Therefore if they want to deprive
pleasure from the love each one has to be careful not to remind
the other of his wrong doings. Or they never did harm to one another and they have nothing to
remind each other. 73) Love that is not dependent on anything, that they see each
others good points in a way that goes beyond normal measure
which from it cling their souls together with great love that
has no end. It also has two levels:
a) Love that's dependent on something-before that he knew all
his ways and action of his friend amongst people. For it is than
tested if the love is absolute, because he sees that the actions
of his friend with others causes his friend damage and problems.
which would blemish his entire image of his friend, and ruin
their love. Rather he still has not seen his friends involvement
therefore there love is still complete.
b)Love that is not dependent on anything-this love comes from
knowing all the ways and actions of his friend, having checked
and found that they are good beyond measure, and far surpass
beyond measure from any of his peers, thusly it's referred to as
"an absolute and eternal love". 74) These four characteristics of love that are found between
man and his fellow man, exist also between man and his Creator.
Rather that the love between man and his Creator works in a
cause and effect manner: That a person merits first to "a love
that depends on something". And after that he merits one type of
love in completeness, he will automatically move to the next
level, until he reaches to "eternal love". 75) But how can a person reach the first level of love which
comes from the great reward he has received from his beloved, at
a time where there is no reward in this world? Every person has to go through the two levels of "face
concealment" that the face of the Creator, his good side, from
which the "way of good is to bestow good", is hidden from him,
therefore he than receives the difficulty and suffering. All his
involvement in Torah and devotion is in the way of freedom of
choice takes mainly during the time of the concealment of the
Creator, because then he feels no love to his creator. If this is the case how does a person reach the second level of
love that depends on something? Because in order to reach this
type of love a person needs to see that the beloved does for him
great and wonderful things since the past until this day, and
caused him no wrong. All the more so how can he reach the third
level or the fourth level? 76) On this it says "your world you'll see in your life and your
end in the world to come". Why doesn't it say "your world you
will accept in you life" instead of "you will see"? And why is a
person supposed to see his life in the world to come in this
world.? 77) What does this mean that a man sees the world to come in his
life? For sure with the physical eyes you see nothing spiritual!
Also the Creator doesn't change the laws of nature, because he
already set them and they are very successful to reach the
proper end, in order that a person through them should merit to
cling to the Creator. If so how can it be for a person to see
his world in his life?
78) This seeing comes to a person through "you shall open your
eyes to Torah". Therefore it is written: "Even if the entire
world will say to you that you are a tzadik, you should be in
your eyes like a wicked person.", regard yourself as wicked
person and don't trick yourself by all those in the world who
call you a tzadik. Because according to this a person will not
merit even to the level of "Tzadik sheyno gamor (incomplete)". 79) But if a person knows himself in truth that he already
fulfilled the entire Torah and all the world realizes this, why
is this not enough, why must he consider himself wicked? This is
because he's lacking the level of "open your eyes to the Torah",
to see his world in this life. 80) The four levels of apprehension of the Creator's providence
upon man are: Two from the aspects of concealment panim. And two
from the level of revealed panim. Intentionally the first levels
was made in hiding that a person shouldn't see that the Creator
bestows good and pleasure, rather he see as if it works in s a
different way. This is in order that a person should have a
place for toil and freedom of choice, that from this comes to
the Creator great pleasure from the service of man.
81) However "face concealment" is incompleteness and is only
considered a passing stage that from it a person reaches to the
desired completion, but all the reward that a person merits from
his toil in Torah and his free will come from the time of "face
concealment " as than a person has difficulty in trying to
strengthen himself in faith and fulfillment of the will of the
Creator. All the reward of a person is measured according to the
hardship that he suffers from the performance of mitzvot and
Torah at the time of free will. 82) Therefore it is necessary for each person to pass this stage
of "face concealment". When he completes it, he merits to open
providence, to a revealment of the face of the Creator, that he
feels Him, like He is "good and that he gives good". Before he
reaches this stage of openness of His face, he sees only the
behind, and he doesn't see the good that comes from the Creator.
Despite that he believes that the Creator handles that worlds in
the way of "good and bestowing good" it's impossible that he
won't come to sin, because a person can't always be in a state
of darkness and arise himself to a level of faith to declare
that the Creator is always good and doing good. It's not in the hand of a person to fulfill all the 613 mitzvot,
because the mitzvah of love doesn't come in force or against his
will. Even if a person will force himself to perform the will of
the Creator in the other 612 mitzvot this is not the best
situation, because such fear is not lasting as one can always
complain to the Creator, that perhaps the time has come to merit
to pleasure kindness.
83) The first level of "revealed faces" which is the
understanding of fear and punishment, comes to the person
through "redemption of God", that he merits "to open his eyes in
Torah" with complete understanding. And all the mitzvot he
performed through great labor, he now sees the reward for them,
that has been placed aside for him in the world to come, and
also the great damage caused by his sins.
84) Even though he still hasn't reached the reward, because in
this world there is no reward. Nevertheless it is enough for him
the understanding that from this point on he can feel the great
pleasure in performing each mitzvah, because anyone who is ready
to receive a reward 'it is as if he has already received it". 85)Naturally it's understood that open providence will testify
from then onwards a clinging to the Torah and mitzvot with all
his heart and soul, and because he feels the pain of the sins,
he will run from the sins, like from a fire. Though the fire
still has not reached him, he is quick to run from it, so to
does he run from hardship that is on its way. And even if he hasn't reached the level of "complete tzadik",
because he hasn't reached the level of repentance from love,
nevertheless the clinging to Torah bring him slowly to
repentance from love where he can perform all the 613 mitzvot
with love and be a "complete tzadik".
86) And why is it written: "Even if the whole world says to you
that you are a tzadik, you should be in your own eyes like a
wicked man"? Behold a person know who he is! Why must he search
and know "if he is a tzadik gamor (completely righteous)" Why
must he at all be a tzadik gamor? And if he is obligated you be
a tzadik gamor, why does it say "he must always be in his eyes
like a wicked person"? 87)Until a person doesn't merit to "opening his eyes to the
Torah", with a complete understanding of reward and punishment,
that he doesn't need to believe that he will receive a reward in
the world to come, rather he sees and feels this with his
senses, he is not able to trick himself and to consider himself
as a tzadik. Because he feels that are lacking him to two of the
must inclusive mitzvot of the Torah: "fear" and "love". 'Fear"-that the Creator testifies that he will no longer sin
because of his fear of punishment, when he will merit to a clear
understanding of reward and punishment, which is the first level
of gluey ponim (revealed faces) that is reached after "opening
of the eyes in Torah". "Love"- it is out of the realm of man, because it's dependent on
the "understanding of the heart", that is to say in
understanding the Creator, that labor and force don't help in
its attainment. 88) Therefore it's written :"even if the whole world says to you
that you are a Tzadik". Because the mitzvah of "love " and
:"fear" are given only to the person himself, and there is no
one in the world, that is able to determine them and to know
them other than himself. But when other people see him,
performing the other 611 mitzvot they assume he has also
fulfilled these two other mizvot of "fear"and "love". But no
person can enter into the heart of his fellow man. It's possible
to see charity, kindness, study of Torah, but if the reason
behind the mitzvot is love of the Creator, this no person can
know. Because it's possible a man can do few mitzvot and learn
little but he does it from love,and the opposite also hold true. Since the nature of man is to believe what people say of him, he
is likely to be mistaken and think that he's already a tzadik,
therefore a person must always consider himself wicked. However
he himself is obligated to seek himself to know in himself, if
he is a tzadik gamor, meaning he has already merited to love and
fear, if he already feels that there is reward and punishment
for his actions in this world? Only to the extent that he feels
this he's not called a wicked person! 89) Now it's understood how a person can reach the first level
of love, even though he will not in his life receive a reward
for a mitzvah, rather only in the world to come. To see, to know, and to feel clearly the reward for a mitzvah,
that will come in the future in the world to come, a person must
realize in his lifetime through his understanding in Torah.
Because than at least he has "a love that depends on something",
that he loves the Creator because he feels in this world the
future reward that he's going to receive in the world to come.
This is the first level of leaving the concealment panim to come
to giluey panim when he feels the reward of the miztvot and the
loss caused by sins, in a way that the Creator testifies on him
that he will no longer sin. At this level He gives him to feel
the great pleasure that he will have in reward for his mitzvot
and the pain that will come if he sins. Though a person feeling what will be his portion in the world to
come, than he is certain, that as according to how far he breaks
away from this world from its pain and he chases after pleasure,
so he shall run after Torah and mitzvot, and run away from sin. 90) Now he labors in the keeping of Torah and mitzvot amidst a
love that depends on something that come to him from knowledge
of the reward to be received in the world to come, "because all
those that are standing to receive it is as if they have
received". Afterwards a person moves and merits to the second
level of "Face revealment" that one realizes the control of the
Creator over the world in an eternal and true way that He" is
good and does good" to both good and bad as he merits to a "love
that isn't dependent on anything", that he loves the Creator
even though he receives nothing, then his intentional sins
become merits to him. From this point and onwards he is referred
to a a "tzadik gamor"(a complete tzadik) because he's able to
fulfill the entire Torah out of fear and love. and he is called
"gamor"(complete) because he has the 613 mitzvot in
completeness. 91) Also the one who merits to the third aspect of providence,
in the providence of reward and punishment, and the Creator has
already testified on him that he won't sin anymore, despite all
this he is still called a "tzadik sheyno gamor", because he is
still lacking one mitzvah, the mitzvah of love, and one isn't
complete until he has all the 613 mitzvot. 92)From here it's understood why the Torah obligates us to the
mitzvah of love, despite that love is something that is felt in
the heart, if a person toils he can reach the mitzvah of love.
That is why it says from "not for it's own sake" .lacking love,
you can reach "for its own sake", meaning love. 93) It's written that if a person says to you "I have toiled and
I've not found"-not to believe. "I have not toiled and I've
found"-not to believe. "I have toiled and I have found" -to
believe. Why does it say "I have toiled and I have found"? Does
not toiling imply acquiring something and finding implies
receiving something without toil and understanding? It should
have said, "I have toiled and I have acquired". "I have toiled and I have found", implies that a person finds
the revealment of the Creator only through toil in Torah. The
"toiling" is in Torah, and the "finding" is in the revealment of
the Creator's providence, that this is something else entirely
different? Therefore it's not written "'I have toiled and I have
merited" or "I have toiled and I have aquired'-believe", the
intention is on something extra, the revealment of the face of
the Creator and his providence. From the lackings of a person he
thinks that the world should be managed in a different way.
Therefore after he merits to the revealment of the Creator he
sees that the Creator always managed the world in a good way,
until he can't imagine how it could be any better. Than he has
no doubt that the Creator is "good and gives good". 94) Therefore it is written: "I have not toiled and I have found
don't believe", that from this it's possible to think, that
anyone who seeks the Creator right away finds him, that in order
to find the Creator one must not toil. Therefore they warn that
toil is essential, so it is written: "I have not toiled and I
have not labored" -don't believe. 95) The Torah is called life like that is written: "See I have
placed before you today life and good-choose life", "they are
life to those who go out".Because the Creator is the source of
life and good therefore the life comes to those who cling to
Him; those who toil and find the light of the face of the
Creator in the Torah, that they merit to "open your eyes to
Torah" to understand the true way that the Creator guides the
world which is only to give good. At the time that a person realizes there can be no better way of
running the world, than it's called that he merited to the
"light of the living king". 96) A person who has merited to this is not able to separate
from the fulfillment's of mitzvot, like a person who cannot
separate from a great pleasure that has come to his hands. And
likewise he runes from sin, like from a fire. And upon him it
says, "You are a clinging to the Creator your God while living
on this very day", because the love of the Creator comes upon
him like a natural love. He is like a branch connected to its
root, that the life comes to him without interruption from its
source, and for this the Torah is called "life". Without toil a person is not able to find the Creator, to reveal
His face? Why someone who seeks the Creator finds him without
toil? Someone who clings to the Creator merits to life, clinging
means that man becomes similar to the Creator in the form of a
bestowal, that just as the Creator gives to man, so to a man
gives to the Creator. At the time that a person has intention for the good of the
Creator, he feels the taste of Torah and mitzvot, from the power
of this that he wants to do good for the Creator. Than he merits
to a revealment of the Creator called reward and punishment.
Reward this is the pleasure that he feels at the time he intends
to do the mitzvah, for the sake of heaven. This that he can give
pleasure to the Creator for him is greater than all the
pleasures of this world. And he feels pain at the time he cannot
perform mitzvot. To reach this level is only possible through a revealment from
above called the "light of the face of the living king" this
light that comes from above is called, "for its own sake", like
that's written, "The one who comes to purify they help him with
a new soul", in a new soul called, "the light of the living
king", automatically all his intention is for the sake of
heaven, for the good of the Creator, that his pleasure is from
this that he gives pleasure to the Creator, and his pains are
from the times that he cannot give pleasure to the Creator. Therefore he can no loner sin, because if he doesn't have
intention for the good of his Creator, he loses his soul that he
has received, and he returns to being a simple man. But when he
thinks for the good of his Creator, he feels all this pleasure.
It comes out from this that toiling in Torah means that through
the Torah a person reaches to cling to the Creator that he
directs all his action to the Creator, than he merits to "the
light of the living King". And than he has a natural love, like
the love a person has for food and sleep. Natural love comes to
a person because he is connected to the Creator and he receives
from it "the light of the living King". 97)Therefore the person who labors in Torah has to be "for its
own sake", in order that he shall merit from it "life". For this
matter the Torah was given as it says, "And you shall choose
life". Therefore a person perforce at the time he is learning
Torah must put his mind and heart to it and toil in it to find
it the "light of the living king", meaning a clear comprehension
of revealed providence, that is called "the inner light"". And
every person has this ability! It is thus written "from darkness
he will find me"," I have toiled and have not found"- don't
believe, that there is nothing lacking to a person except for
effort. Therefore all who engage in Torah "for its own sake" it
becomes for him a "giver of life"- only that he should place his
heart and mind to finding life. So when one studies Kabbalah the
effort that he needs to give is to reach a clinging with the
Creator, to merit to life 98) Therefore it is in our hands to reach the mitzvah of love.
For it is in the hands of any person to toil in Torah, and till
he reaches a revealment of providence, that he sees that the
Creator only desires to help and do good for him, like that it
says "I have toiled and I have found-believe". When a person
reaches this realization of providence automatically he receives
love for his Maker,, and he no longer needs to toil and to force
himself, because this love is naturally aroused within him. 99) It says, "all who study Torah not for its own sake, his
Torah becomes a giver of death", that the Creator specifically
hides himself in the Torah. Generally, one thinks that the
Creator hides himself in the trappings of this mundane physical
world, that they are outside of Torah, and not Torah itself, and
only in Torah is his place of revealment. The question is asked
"Why does the Creator hide himself and want that we should seek
and find him? Why doesn't the Creator reveal himself to man? Why
was it necessary for him to hide in the beginning?". 100) the Creator hid himself in order that a person should seek
His revealment. There are two types of concealment panim, one
concealment or a double concealment. the Creator doesn't want to
remain in a state of concealment from a person rather he hid
himself intentionally with the purpose that a person should try
to reveal His face and find Him, because the person can only
merit to the "light of the living King" from a state of
darkness, the entire concealment serves as a preparation for the
revealment. If a person needs something he is embarrassed by "free
bread".Likewise if the Creator would give to a person only good
and pleasure, a person would fell embarrassment.In order that a
person should receive all the pleasure without embarrassment,
the Creator hides himself., that a person shouldn't see that the
Creator behaves with him in a good way. This is also in order
that he'll fix his ways so that he can act completely for the
good of Creator and not for his own purposes. Than all the
pleasures that he will receive from the Creator will be with the
understanding that the Creator wants that he should receive this
pleasure and that the Creator Himself take pleasure when a
person receives from Him good.. When a person reaches this level
the good and the pleasure in this world become revealed to him. Concealment was made in order that a person should search out
why he doesn't feel the good and the pleasure. After searching
it will be made known to him the reason for the concealment,
that his intentions were not for the Creator, than he will do
good deeds, subsequently the Creator will be revealed to
him.After this revealment he doesn't have to suffer any
embarrassment, since he now serves the Creator without ulterior
motives. 101)Therefore the Creator hides himself in the Torah so that
even someone who is involved in Torah and good deeds has a hard
time judging the Creator favorably, since according to his
estimation he's not fitting for the hardships that he suffers,
even worse he see that those who are much less devoted than him
don't suffer like to his extent. Therefore the entire time that a person is involved in Torah and
good deeds and doesn't merit to revealed providence, the Torah
itself hides the Creator from him. Thusly it is written that the
Creator hides himself in the Torah. It comes out from this that
someone who doesn't learn doesn't suffer so much, but a person
who learns a great deal does suffer. Not only does he suffer but
he blames the Creator for the pain that comes on him since he is
found in a greater concealment.
But all the suffering that a person has from the Torah they are
all announcements that the Creator himself is calling him,
through that it wakens him to get ready, to hurry, and to give
the amount of effort that is asked of him, in order to merit him
to a revealment of the Creator, as this is what the Creator
desires.
From here it follows he who learns more feels more the
concealment, and sees to a lesser extent that the Creator
manages the world. Because if the Creator manages the world in
the way of "good and giving good" why does he do good for others
and not for him? Why doesn't he feel the revealed face of the
Creator? Why does it seem to him the one who learns less has an
easier situation?
The one who learns properly realizes all these pains are in
order that he should learn more and to teach him that he really
isn't intending to do good for the Creator. After he understands
this he will be able to open his eyes to Torah and to open
providence, as he will see then that the Creator manges the
world in a way that is good for everyone. 102) "All who learn Torah not for its own sake the Torah becomes
a giver of death". Because not only will he not go out from the
concealment to revealment, since he has no intentions of
reaching this level, but also the Torah he learns just adds to
the concealment. This is the aspect of death since he is
uprooted from his root completely, meaning that he isn't able to
believe that the Creator controls the world. All this Torah that
he has learned, which is the aspect of death, came as result of
his not learning for the Creator, but at the time that he'll
have the proper intention, he too will merit to revealed faces
that will bring him true good and pleasure.
103) Therefore there is "hidden Torah" and "revealed Torah".
"Hidden Torah" has its name because the Creator hides himself in
the Torah. The "revealed Torah" is called that the Creator
reveals himself in the Torah. The first level is hidden Torah,
that in the beginning a person learns Torah while the Creator is
still hidden within it. Afterwards one learns the revealed
Torah, meaning the Creator already becomes revealed. Therefore
the kabbalists say as it is also written in the prayer book of
the Gaon of Vilna; "The Torah begins in secret and ends with
simplicity", that a person toils in the beginning in the hidden
Torah, that is secret, and he merits through it to revealed
Torah, which is the simple meaning. 104) How is it possible to merit to the first level of love,
love that's dependent on something, which is based upon a
realization of the Creator's benevolence, if there is no reward
for mitzvot in this world. However through the opening of one's
eyes to Torah a person can feel this reward immediately in this
world, he can also feel the general encompassing good which was
part of the first thought of Creation to "to give pleasure to
his creatures". This person can grasp in the present the reward
that is to be received in the future, and from this great good
that he now grasps, there is revealed between him and the
Creator a new wonderful love, that comes to him constantly
without any physical barrier.
105)All those pains that a person suffered at the time of
concealment when he didn't feel the Creator properly, rather he
just had faith in him, even though he doesn't want to remember
those pains as it states on "on all sins love covers"
nevertheless they prevent him from reaching the level of love
because as soon as he recalls them they ruin his love. How is it
possible to reach the next level of love where he will always
feel that the Creator has done for him constantly wonders and
never anything bad? 106) It is written, "the one who repents from love his
deliberate sins become like mitzvot", that the Creator forgives
him for his sins and turns them into merit for him. 107) After one has merited to such a level of divine light, that
all his sins that he transgressed in the past, even deliberate,
become like mitzvot, he is happy over all the pains that he has
gone through at the time of concealment, because according to
the difficulty and pain that he suffered at the time of
concealment, to that extent he merits divine revealment. And all the suffering and confusion that brought him to go
against his religion, as he had fallen into unintentional sins
of the first concealment (concealment)or intentional of the
second concealment- are switched and have become now the cause
and the preparation to the fulfillment of mitzvot, to receive
from them eternal reward, as all the pain becomes happiness, and
all the evil good. 108)This is similar to a trustworthy slave, that his master
loved. Once his master traveled aw | 
