Egyptian-Hebrew stream·Zohar·Volume I — Bereshith (Genesis I)

Source context

Theme

Foundational Kabbalistic cosmology, theosophy, and soul-doctrine as preserved in the Zohar's opening volume

Steiner

• GA 8, chapter 11Steiner cites the Zohar on the conservation of spiritual soul-power, paraphrasing its teaching that nothing in the world is lost and nothing perishes, as evidence that Jewish esoteric doctrine anticipated the eternity of soul-substance.
• GA 41b/part_7The Zohar's teaching on the soul pleading her freedom before God and on reincarnating egos is cited in this volume as testimony to the Kabbalistic doctrine of post-mortem states and metempsychosis.
• GA 87, 1902-02-01Steiner states that without Jewish mysticism no correct understanding of Christianity is possible, situating the Zoharic tradition as an indispensable preparatory stream for the Mystery of Golgotha.
• GA 90a, 1904-04-29Steiner identifies the spiritual elements of blood, water, and spirit as present in the Jewish Kabbalah running back to the original books of Moses, affirming the Zoharic corpus as a vehicle of genuine esoteric transmission.

Cross-tradition

• Neoplatonism — Plotinus / ProclusCross-tradition congruence appears in the Zohar's doctrine of divine emanation (the Sefirot as progressive self-limitation of Ein Sof) and the Neoplatonic hypostatic procession from the One, both articulating graduated ontological descent without loss of source-unity.
• Vedanta — Sankhya cosmologyCross-tradition congruence exists between the Zohar's tripartite soul-structure (nefesh, ruach, neshamah) and the Vedantic sheaths (kosha doctrine), both mapping soul-constitution as nested vehicles of increasing subtlety.
• Islamic Sufism — Ismaili theosophyCross-tradition congruence is found in Ismaili esoteric cosmology's graded emanation of intellects and souls and the Zohar's Sefirot-structure, both presenting cosmic hierarchy as the self-articulation of a hidden divine ground.

Volume I

CCabbalistic writer, Moses de Leon, ef Granada in Spain, who 'certainly was the frst to make it known to the general public, Moses de Leon published the Zohar as the work of Simeon fen Yohai, profesting to have transcribed the copies which te issued fromm an ancient manuscript which had eoine inco Fis possesion. After is death, however, his widow ecnfessed. that her husband possessed no such manuscripr, and that he wrote the work himself, When asked why he did not pub- Tish the book in hit own name but chose that of Simeon ben Yohai, she replied that her husband always said that a book bby a miracle-working Rabbi like Simeon ben Yohai would prove more lucrative than a book braring his own name. "Though the wis story bristles with contradictions and absurdities, many Jewish writers and scholars have main= tained that de Leon veas the sole author of the Zohar. On the 'therhand, many tookshave been written, mainly in Hebrew, to show that the Zohar is a work of great antiquity and that it authorship can very properly ard suitably be attibuted to the ancient Sage, Simeon ben Yohai, But neither of these sews ean hold ware in the fight of all the fats a8 we know them. No student ofthe Zohar, indeed no competent assessor of literature yenerall, can believe that it ever could have

nermopeeTiON x

'emanated from the brain of one man, To call ita book is to risname it It isa literature—a lierature of immerse variety and compass, Itembraces so many diverse themes, 1 holds within its folds uch a number of views and doctrines which are often mutually ireconcilable, that it cannot possibly be the production of one individual, however gifted. And to credit a Rabbi ofthe second cenniry with the authorship of

1book which describes the sayings and doings of men who
lived long after hie sime, i t0-adopt a standpoint which mo fone in these times will seriously countenance. 'The Zohar is a congeries of weatises, tests, extracts oF fragments of texts, belonging te different periods, but all resembling one another in their method of mystical interpre= tation of the Torah a5 well asin the bafling anonymity in 'which they are shrouded, The waysin which these component partsare pieced together trikes anzasarbitrary inthe extreme, "They often appear to bess litle or no relation to that which precedes or follies. The arrangement is all so destitute of design that it might have been done by the printers and pub- lishers of the frst edition whenever they felt that it suited their convenience or whenever they happened to come across tome anonymous fragments which, in their unlearned 'pinion, could be suitably interpolated at a certain point in the main text. From asurvey ofthe whole subject, one is drawn irresistibly to the conclusion that the Zohar, so far from being « homo- geneous work, isa compilation of a mass of material drawn from many strata of Jewish and non-Jewish mystical thought and covering nemerous centuries. Many of both its funda- 'mental and subsidiary teachings are to be found in the oldest portions of the Babylonian and Palestinian 'Talmuds, as well as in that large mass of Jewish Apocalyptic literature which 'was produced fn the centuries immediately before and after the destruction of the second 'Temple. Diseussions on Jewish Jaw and Diblical interpretations (which are often alm hal repetitions of passages to he lound in the two recensions 'of the Talmud), speculations on theology, dheesophy, and 'cosmogony which have their counterpart in Hellenistic litera- ture and which sometimes show rsetnblances to certain ideas ermoDUCTION 'contained in the Zend &vesta—afact which has induced some scholars to find a good deal of the background ofthe Zohar inch religion of ancient Zorastranismthe allegorical type af exegesis of which Phil is the leading exponent, Gnostic Aheoriescamcetning th relation between the human and the Alivne, echoes of medical beliefs egardng astrology, physio~ ioomy, necromancy, magi and metempsychosia which are 'lento che Jewish spirit al these elements jostle one anather St random in the page ofthe Zohar. A veritable storehouse 'of anachronisens,ineongrites and surprises! And yet, with alli faults, the Zaher appeals to many Jes in a way that makes them regard ita the most sacred of sacred books !Foritmierors Judaism as an intensely vital 'elgion of the sprit. More overpoweringly than any' other Tonk or ende, more even than the Bible, does it give to the Jew the conviction of an inne, unseen, spiritual universe aneteral moral order. "The constituent pats af the Zohar ae ss fllows There is (@) the main portion which bears the general title af "Sefer HacZohar'. To this see atached (i) the 'Sifracdi-Toenuta' (The Book ofthe Veled Mystery', consisting of five chap ter inetd in the Book of Exodus and deiing with the 'mysteries of creation, the human soul and the relation be teen spirit and mater. (i) "Stré Torah' (Secrets of the 'Torah, trating largely of Cabbie angelology and the snysterics clustering mound the Divine Name and the Divine Unity. (iv) 'Ra's Mehenna' ("The Tee Shepherd Pastor Fedeli), which, besides dealing with topics similar to the foregoing, lays down defrite precepts and roles of conduc, the exegesis being usally introduved with the words "The true shepherd sath'—the trie shepherd being Moss. (¥) 'Midrash Ha-nelan' (Recondite Exposition'), which cone tains great deal of Scriptural exposition by the method of 'Gematt', i. the permotaions and combinations of the Jesers of the Hebrew alphabet and the Hebres purer abo contains some allegorical exegesis of Seripture reminding 'ne ofthe methods of Philo (vi) Torela (Additions) some say fragmentary supplements to the main exegesis of the Zohar in which are contained references to the Sefirath reTeouCTION sit 'Hehaloth' (balls or 'palaces'), wherein are pictured (i With a dating literality the abodes of paradise and hell, the welling-places of the varving grades of the angelic hosts and their dealings with the souls of men. 'There are also in this section several econdits allusions to astrology and magic. peal none ofthese sections can esi oder very great from 'any other or from the main body of the Zohar in ay cies There u cients creopring Theresa a frequent repetition of thesame theme, the same treatment, even the same words. 'The fst printed edition ofthe Zohar appearedalmostsimmul- taneously in two different places, viz, Mantua and Cremona, in 1588-90. Later editions are those of Lublin, 1633 : Amsterdam, 1714 and_ 185; Constantinople, 1736 and Venice. The Mantua edition, with along and chborate Intro- duction by Isaac de Lates, has always had the greatest vogue, nearly all subsequent editicns being based upon the Mantua text, Anintereating fact is that almost simultarenusly with the publication of the first Mantua edition—but to all appear- nce quite independently of ie—there was faved from the same press the Tiklamé Ha-Zohar ('Emendations to. the Zohar'), book written in Aramaic and with the same kind fof subject-matter as the Zohar. Another smilie work which 'has always enjoyed great popularity, and which fist saw the Tight at Salonika in 1597, is the Zafar Hadack ("The New Zohar', which is an independent mystical commentary on the same lines as the Zohar, but embracing, in addition to the Pentateuch, the "Five Megilloth' (Serols), v2. the Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther, 'The Zohar humbly professes to be no more than a Com- 'mentary on the Pentateuch ; and it might hence be interesting to hear its own expressed views on the correct method of Biblical exegesis. It says: Woe unto those who see in the Law nothing but simple narratives and ordinary words {Were this really the case, then could we, even to-day, compose a Law equally worthy of admiration. But itis all quite other- wwite,... Every word of the Law contains an elevated sense and a aublime mystery. .., 'The narratives of the Law are 'but the raiment in which its syathed. Woe unto him who sistakes the raiment for the Lav itself | Tt was to avert such ' calamity that David prayed, "Open mine eyes that I might ischold wondrous thinga out of chy Lave" Another pasage staes similarly, but even more strikingly: 'Ifthe Law merely consisted of ordinary words and narratives like the stories of Esau, Hagar, and Laban, or like the words which were spoken by Balzam's ass or by Balaam himself, why should it haye been called the Law of Truth, the perfect Lav, the faithful 'estimeny of God ? 'These statements may well be regarded as a sort of rationale of the sim and purpose of the Zoharic exegesis: and they summarise the basic characteristic ofall schools of CCabbalstic interpretation, both before and after the Zohar. Indeed, herein may be said tole the undying service which CCabbatsm has rendered ro Judaism, whether as creed or a Jife, A too literal interpretation of the words of Scriprure 'giving Judaism the appearance of being nothing more than an ordered legalism, an apotheoss ofthe 'etter which kileth',

4formal and petefed aystem of external commands bereft
'of all eri and denying al freedom to the individual these have been, and are still in some quarters, the blemishes and. 'shortcomings cast in the teeth of Rabbinic Judaism, The 'supreme sebutter of such taunts andl objections is Cabbulah, "The arid field of Rabbinism was always kept well watered nd fresh hy the living streams of Cabbalsti lore. Matic schools and mystic circles Hourished at nearly every im= portant epoch of Jewish history, and the object of their studies was to penetrate tothe trie meaning hidden beneath the leter of Seriptute, Some of the foremost Jewish legalists 'were alo pronounced Cabliss. And this esoteric study of the Law which is the quintessence of Cabhalah gave to its 'devotees not a shackled creed comprehended in formule, but a religion of intense spiritual possibilities, rendering the Jew 'capable ofa vivid sense ofthe nearness of God and filing him with a constant fonging for communion with Him. Illustrations of the way in which the Zohor peietrates the 'nter shell of Scriptice in order to extract the esoteric kernel. stmopuerion w within could be quoted, didnot space forbid in great abun- ance, I will only reer hereto some specimens of Zoharic 'exegesis on the Psalms which are frequently interspersed in the exegesis on the Penateuchal books Thus, Pula Xxx, G,oayn' By the word of the Lord were the heavens made | and all the hosts of them by the breath of his mouth 'This vers gies the impetus to a whole series of mytic axioms proving that the world rests on Divine spit. 'The 'upper "universe resembles the 'lower universe', and both find thelr tunity in God. Earth is a copy of Heaven, Heaven isa copy of earth. They ate no duality but an absolute unity. Any other view of the univers i religious because it makes 30 alma de pruda (a world of division), an idea which, by the 'way, i pallled by Blake's argument tht the universe at 'we Know ite the sheer material nspistua universe, i the fesult of the fall of the one life from unity into division. Again, Pralm ext, 18, declares : The Lord is near unto all them hac call upon him, 0 all that call ypon hen in teuth' What is the meaning of the phrase 'in truth, asks the Zohar? And the reply ia knowledge of how to declate the Divine Unity in prayer. For in this knowledge consists the service ofthe Holy King and whosoever knows bow to declare the Divine Unity i a helper in establishing that one unique nation of whom it & said, "And who is lke thy people Israel, one Unique nation in the earth 2" And when all those who know how to desire the Divine Unity doo in the right way, then are all the walls of darkness cleft in twain, The face of the Heavenly: King is revealed, 'There is light unc all. The "reals above as ell as the "realms belo" draw unto themselves blessings without end In these quan orginal remarks on the effects wrought by prayer. there are many points which are of fondamental importance in Jewish mystical teaching ofall ages. 'The declaration of the Divine Unity in prayer does not mean merely the clear and un- 'equivocal pronouncement of the word Eckad (One). Tt goes 'much deeper. It implies the convienon that al things should be regarded as so many' manifestations ofthe Divine whose 'ivifving poser is never for an insane withdraven from the 'world which i anentes. 'To pray ie tue in the Tat resort, xsi eraopuerion to become absorbed in God ; and only in the enjoyment of such an experience does man find light, truth, and bliss, beth for himeeif and for others, This type of theological doctrine comes to the front more particularly in the Tater Cabbalets, ie. the Hassidic literature starting with Israel ishem, The fundamental note in the Zohar's treatment of the Divine nature is the attempt to combine the transcendest and immanent aspecs of the Deity in asingle concept. Net that it does this with «strictly scientific ensistency. Far from it God, in the Zohar, isthe great Unknowable, the Supreme Trcomprchensible. God is exalted above human understand- jigs the depths of the Divine wisdom are beyond human penetration. To quote the words of the Idra Rabea, God is 'the most ancient of the ancient, the mystery of mysteries, the unknown of the unknown'. Here we have the doctrine of the Divine Transcendency par excellence. Nevertheless, Godin the Zohar is very knowable, very fathomable. The universe as yell as man's heart reveal His infinite power and infinite love. Nay, even the human organs and limbs reflect certain static and dynamic charcterstics of Deity "ue world is an image of the Divine. 'There ie a constant and conscious interaction between 'the above' (the eelestial kingdom) and 'the below' (the mundane kingdom). Here we hhave the doctrine of the Divine immanence par excellence It's the ceaseless interweaving of these two doctrines in the 'pages of the Zohar that supplies the book with its uncom promisingly spiritual atmosphere. Without this combination, the Zohar would be a false presentation of Judaism. Had it emphasized exclusively a 'mysterious! and 'unknowable' rity, it would but have supplied one more weapon to the armoury of the Pauline eritics of a 'egulistic" Judaism, On the other hand, an unbalanced insistence on the doctrine that the world is but a manifestation or mitror of a Divine life pleating everywhere would lead men sway to 6 Spinosiotic pntheism—a ereed which is at out-and-out variance with the postulates of Jewish theism, 'The transcendent God of the Cabbalah, called the En Sof (te limitese one), becomes immanent in, the cosmos by 4 INTRODUCTION vii species cf owing forth or emanatios, which in thei turn give rise to four universes', vie, (a) Atsluth ;(b) Beriah ; (e) euirah; (2) Axiant Emanstion, Geaon, Formation, ad Action, respectively. These Your universes" ae apportioned among "Ten Sofroth, which are named as follos: (a) Kether (Che Crown); (8) Hokmak (Wisdom); (e) Binak (Under- sanding); (4) eid (Mercy); (6), Geburh (Force or Severity); (J) Tifereth (Weauty); (g) Nezak (Victory); (d) Had Glory); Yeaod (Foundation): ) Malhath (King- dom); These names are, on the surface, lagely arbitrary and conventional and as for the way in which these "Ten 'Sefrtl are allocated to the worlds of Cablalism-—thie ie an extremely complicated theme into the comsieration af whieh itis not potable to enter inthe limited apace ofan Tatroducion such as this "Te feature in the Jewish Cabbie Wertuce which t calculated to recommend it forall ine to theadmiration of {scholars and thinkers i the high place which i accords to the hurnan sul. The Zohar is replete with references tothe dominating part played by man's soul inthe farherance of own good, 8 well asin the developmert of all these jer wth whose werkings man is a0 intensely and inevitably Bound up. Man is man only becaue of his soul. Gn this poine the Zohar i far more definite and uncorpro- rising than the Bible and the Talmud. A statement ike For 'dus thou art and no dust shalt thou return' (Genesis, 19) would be quite out of keeping with Zobare teolo [And so would the remark ofthe pessimist Bclesiastes 'And the pre-eminence of man over beast is nought, for alls sanity (Eel. it, 19). The whole atmosphere east by the Zohar arond these spciteal problems i far warmer and lighter, more cheeing and more encouraging. The Mishnah (Abou 1) declares, 'Krow whence thou eames: from 4 putreying drop; and whither thou art going 'toa place of Sie lorries suggote? Mun' eign ivenitagel by the Zohar ina far more refined and poetic outlook than this} and as for man's destin in the hereafter, ti no mere period of judgement before x Heavenly ritunal, but a eres of pro restive spiritual experiences in many forms until atthe ast silt stmopuerion there is «union ofthe soul with the Divine source whence it 'emanated. 'Man, says the Zohar, was 'created' on the 'sisth day 'because hei, in himself, noble epitome ofthe cosmos. And tie inthis by reason ofthe infinite association of his soul with the Sefroth. "The 'upper' and the lower' world both find their twecting point in him. He is a Shekista Ta-ta-aa, ie. 2 Divine Presence on earth. 'The Soul, as/aspiitual entity playing the highest of hig parts in man's celations with the Uaces, is well brought t the front in all branches of the medieval Cabbalah. The 'Zohar warns ws aginst thinking that man is made up solely of lsh and akin, veins and sinews. Man's skin typifies the firmament, which extends everywhere apd covers everything. His flesh typifies the evil side of the universe, je. the elements Which are purely exerior, of sense, 'The ainews and veins ssmbolise the 'Celestial chariot' (the Merhaboh), being the interior forces of man which are the senvitors of God. But all these are merely an outward covering. Inthe kingdom of man's soul there are processes going on which are dhe exact countet- prt of those going on in the 'upper world' 'The soul & threefold. There is() Neshamak, which is the highest phase existence. (jt) Rua, which isthe seat of good and evi, the abode of the moral attributes. (ii) Nefesh, which is the rosser side of spiritand is en rapport withthe body and the 'ause ofall the movernents and instincts of the physical life 'Bach of these three constituents of the soul has its source in seme one or other ofthe ten Sefiroth, The soul enjoyed a heavenly precexiaence, 'This idea is already found in the 'Talmud and is deduced from certain passages in the Hebrew Bible. Whether the old Rabbis dis- covered the idea independently, or whether they merely adapted i from the teaching of Plato isa moot point. Com= plementary to this doctrine of pre-exstence is that of the 'ransmigration of thesoul-—metempsychosis—which etaught jn the Zohar by way of solution of the eternally vexing problem of why the wicked prosper. 'The famous post- 'Zoharic Cabbalist,Isac Lusia (1534-73), was of opinion that all souls were born with Adam, and that every human being sTHODLETION sik received at bith, through Divine intervention the soul that fitted it, All souls born with Adar constituted originally one sand one only great soul, When Adam sinned through dis- 'obedierce, this one comprehensive soul born with hin and 'of which every future human being was, at birth, to receive 'a microscopic fragment, became involved in sin. Bur all these 'tainted souls posseas the potentiality and hence have the duty of cleansing themselves and working themselses up toa high level af destiny. This tenet was widely held by the Cabblists and suggested to them the many' strange thearies about the chequered wanderings of the soul. The souls dross cannot be east of in the course ofone lifetime. It must passthrough 'many bodies and experience many terrestrial esistencet, each 'one higher than the other, before it can reach the pinnacle 'of pertection—union with God-—which is its predestined end, "The Cabbalistic succestors of Luria went even further, and suid that souls wandered on earth and could sometimes enter the bodily framework of some living person, co as to help him to fulfil certain religious duties which he had neglected. 'The soul, eas the mystic ofall ages and creeds, seeks to 'enter consciously into the Presence of God. And this idea 'of the soul's unquenchabe yearning to be united with its Divine source is reiterated under many forms in all parts of the Zohar and lends to ita charm as well ag lightness of touch hich serve as a relief to the excessively sombre and solemn tone of most of the book, It is the poetry of the Zohar. Man's intimacy with God, the soul's union with Him, fre described in sewwal terminology. It is the union of the 'male with the female. 'The symbolism is sometimes Hable to sirike the reader as offensively crude in some of its details; and the Zohar has more than once had to sutier for this the cheap) ancers of detractors But this is only the result of hallow knowledge and flee perspective, On deeper study and reflection these sewual references will be found to be just as admissible as are the sevual similes and analogies which pervade the writings of the most refined and clegant of posts and romancers, For the Zohar speaks throughout of cosmic « swmopucrtos nion-aoming tagethe,a fusion of al the afd ui ters 'abo' and "elon, The worlds above se "maried {othe words foe, And man, wh, many by eso of i Sou denizen ofthese mukiple words, bene, wit "ig fter communion with the Diving, strc these Connie ace ofitereurse. OF course, wil be recoleted 'hatte amorous eiimers which auch bod expression Inthe O1 Testament book ofthe Song of Songs were made to bears atongy alleges interpreatin inthe od toms of he MidraieHreatre, And there ean be Hitle i ea eto peg eee tt fxpmss man's consummated longing forthe Divine must tan age prepared the way fr thou numerous and often teste lists which conmitte what a een elle the Sexes' of the Zen "Tae mh ofthe mpi speculation to be found inthe Zohar dates back tothe ely centres before and after the destuction of the second 'Temple isa pint upon which thers now unanimous agseement amongst hola. The cael Jevish Apocalyptic and magia! hterstur, the Pale fini and Babylonian "atmo, the buge and acest cop of Midrash trtare hich connie to sping op formany yeas afte the cpio ofthe Tad all these onsen fear Jeni nterpretative acy cle with pate also which found incorporation in many Seed esa pepe cet eer Mee ty Speciation ws never commited to writing. Ie eae ted erly from geneon to generation, Herc, bythe tay les the meaning of Coholah orl taiton, And the "Zoher was probably the St important book in which these Aoatng trations were preserved fn wring, Schools and ices wherein Ctl nas mediied pon Fad started ay Poe eee eee Sparing focsome centri owing tothe Batuating fortunes the Jes, were revived in the tvelh and thrtenthcen- Ture under the infueneef ich ret Talmud uminaes

2Noses Nabmanide Sloman ben Adrath and others Ti
the idle of the sce century, Ii Lic, who ad least Caalah in Egy, founded a ew mystica school at eraoDveTiON i Safed, in Galile, then the centre of Jewish learning. He gathered round hima host of disciples, many of them, I Elijah de Vidas and Joseph Hagis, being themselves dis- inguished writers of Cabbalistic works. Luria himself wrote nothing. His utterances were taken down in waiting by his 'most prominent disciple, Hayyim Vital Calabreze, whose book ts Hayy shows how Luria developed many of the leading ideas of the Zohar and inaugurated a new mystic system in Judaism,a system wherein Messianic theology and Messianic expectations held a central place. Luria's enlarged and claborated conceptions of Cabbalah found numerous enthusiastic disciples; and the Zohar, as the result of 2 199 extravagant emphasis on certain Messianic comments con- tained within it, emerged, by an unhappy fate, asthe source whence the pseudo-Messiah, Subbatai Zevi (1626-76), pre- sumed to have drawn the warrant for his dramatically pretentious career. It goes without saving that the mysticism of the Zohar, emphasising as it does the efficacy of prayer, must have in- fluenced considerably the Hebrew Prayer Book, as well asthe Divine Service ofthe Synagogue and certain aspects of Jewish 'ceremonial observance. Much of the extravagant Zoharic ngelology came to find a place in the liturgy, a8 also mich 'Zoharie doctrine concerning the secrets ofthe supea-mundane taniverse and the mysteries, both painful and pleasurable, of the life Rereafter. Many mystical formulas, mystical names and symbols intermixed with many arithmetical and astro- logical references, also became interpolated within the pages fof the Prayer Rook. Most of this high'y pictorial type of pprayer material has been eliminated from the modern wor- ship of the Synagogue because ofits incongruity with the prevailing conceptions ofthe Deity ; but in spite ofthis weed- Jng-0ut, it ay nll be said that our Jewish liturgy of ro-day scintillaves with many a Zeharic phrase and idea which a a decided gain to the spirituality of Jewish home or synagogue ritual, One is inclined to differ in this respect from Leopold june when he says: 'Although the more respectable myst ddid something for spiritual religion and for devotion as 'opposed to thoughtless formalism, yet the liturgy lost more xxi rHODECTION than it pained by their influence' (D. Ritus, p- 24). The ceremony of blowing the Shofar on Rodi Ha-Shanah gains father than loses in impressiveness by the agcompanying 'Zcbaric prayers which ask that 'the angels emanating from the 'may bring the prayers of Isracl to the Divine hearing'. 'Taken liteally, the idea jars, of course, of our ineigence, But the Zobarie mysticism, like the mysticism ofall other religions snd literatures, demands the higher in- Terpretation. And on this hast the blowing of the Shofar, far from being a mere stereotyped act of observance ofthe leter of the Law, rises to become the outwant expression of one more of the many mystical heiefs in the unseen spiritual agencies uniting the human with the Divine—an outstanding Zabasic doctrine. Sinilarly in the case of the prayer, Brick 'SH'neh Veathreh, redted before the Reading of the Law on Sabbaths and Festivals. 'The Zohar anteoduces it with these 'words: "When the soll is taken out in the assembly to read therein, the Gates of the heavens of merey open and the celestial love awakes. 'The prayer is a truly noble ane, tem- ing with a vivid sense of the nearness of God, combined with anever-felt and neve~satined longing for communion with im by mesne of the'Teah a though which ie ubiquitous inthe Zaher. modied and modernised adoption of a litle more Zoharic sentiment to the Jewish liturgy of to-day 'would be a weleame improvement ! By thus introducing 3 tinge of *Eestasy', of diet intuition of God, into Jewish priyec by making it lees of a merely external religious 'exercise and more of means for transcending earthly affairs fora time, there would be restored to prayer something of the position it must hive oceupied in the days of the Hebrew Praimist, as wells semething of the intensely individual and 'devotional parc whichit played in the neo-Hassidie mysticlem 'of the eighteenth. century. Besides influencing the liturgy, the Zohar, as be expected from a book which stinmulotes the i and the feelings, has left numerous traces in the medieval fous poetry outside the synagogue. Ts all bolism, its erotie terminology, proved excellent materia for portraying the ceaseless yearnings of che human heart for onl reraopvcTioN. xl 'union with the Infinite; andthe reader softer startled atthe ingenuity with which many a simple and innocent Biblical 'word or phrase is poetically worked up to indicate the physical a5 well the spiritual mysteries which surraind the Deity and the effort of man to become finally absorbed in Him by 'means of prayer, Torah study and contemplation. For some centuries afterits fist appearance the Zohar was generally regarded by the Jewsas-an integral pat ofthe litera- ture of Torah, like the 'Talmud and the Midrash, and, Hike them, itwas considered one ofthe subjects of religious study, of talmud torah. Tt was, in fact, generally known as the "Midrash of R, Simeon ben Yohai'. Unlike the Talmud, however, it was what might be called an optional subject in the curiculum of Torah study ja man could bea great Jewish scholar without knowing anything of the Zohor or the Cat balah, Stil, there wasa mest in studying themalso. A breach, however, arose between the Talmulsts and the Cabbs after the failure of the Messianic movement of Sabhatai Zevi 'in the middle of the seventeenth century. The extrvagances 'of Zeviand his followers were largely inspired by the Zohar, and this work in consequence fell into suspicion and dis: favour with a large number of almuots. This antipahy to the Zohar found its culmination in a treatise (in Mitpakat 'Sefarin) written in the middle of the eightceath century by the grt Talmudical scholar, Jacob Emden of Altona, in 'which itis denounced as being for the most part the work of an impostor. Emden vas led to investigite the Zohar 'through his deste to extipate the Shabbetaean heresy which still Kingered in his day. His examination of the Zohar shows considerable eitical acumen, and. his conelusnns have been adopted by a lage number of orthodox Jews. 'The place to be assigned to the Zoher in the scheme of Jewish study is also one ofthe fundamental points at issue hhetween the sect of Hassimt, founded by Israel Baalshem in the eighteenth cenuury, and their opponents in Poland and Lithuania, known as the 'Mithnagedim', 'The controversy betiveen the two sects is imteresting not only in itself but also forthe ight itaheds upon many aspects of the Jewish religious and social life of those times, Ie was a strugele for supremacy wiv intwopeerion 'beowcen Rabbinic orthadony, base upon the authority ofthe "Talmud, and the myatie-emotional-apritual Judai founded 'upon the Zobarc interpretation of the Tora, Iewasa contest between 'wo principle in Judaism, the formalism of dog- imate stal and the diet religious sentiment, Whilst Rab- Wiel onbodoay, without rejecting the Zohar, regarded the 'eal Jewah life as one of obedience o law founded upon the 'tod of the Talmud andthe Codes, Hasse Judaism based uel upen the Zohar, maintaining thatthe quinestence of the Tenish religion lay in the culation ofa sincere love of God, combined with « warn faith and deep belief in the 'cacy of prayer, Thisdoes not imply that the Hasiim des- pised Talmudic scholarship or louted the traditional Rabbinic brdinaness, What it dos imply is that Hassiioe airned at slicing tho esotre of gevity of the Jewish religious ie by Fnteodacing into it x new "pictus. 'This "pista derived from the Zaher consisted inthe conviction that there js an untroken intereairse between the world of the Deity and the world of humasity; that thes worlds have eciprocal Jnvluence upon one arother; and tat prayer should be an catatic exmimunion with God, so as tonite the human life with Him who is 'the life ofall world'. Tt is not given 0 all men t attain this exalted state. But the man who stains itis, in the Hasidic sense, the Tiaddik who, 28 4 result, possesses a degree of prophetic insight and a power to work rniraces The sudy of the Zahar, as well as of the Cabbalistc writings which succeeded i, attracted a great many noted Cheatin scholars ofthe past! William Postel, ho traneated the Sefer Vesna into Latin (Par, 1552), seems to have been the fst Christian to introduce the mysteries of the Cabbalah to the learned circles of Europe. But the frst Chistian into whose hands the Zolar came was Pico dell 'Mirando who wrotestort uses n Latin about He was, too, the first Christian to declare thatthe Zohar contains elements which are cpable ofa Chistian construction, He seems to have believed that the doctrines concerning the 'Tenity, Original Sin and the Ineamation could be deduced from its pages, John Reuchlin, another ardent student of stermonterion av Jewish occultians, woe De Arte Cabalsticn, which he dedi- 'ated to Leo X, and the object of which was to prove frm the post-Zokarie writers on Cabbalism that the Messiah bad already appeared. Petrus Gaatinus, a comtemporary of published, in 1516, De ArcanisCathliae Vert, 'the Zohare teachings are made to rellet eaany of the cardinal doctines of Christianity. The completlist ofall the other Christan students vould he too long to menton here: Outstanding namesare thise of Alabaster, Gasparelis, fand Athanasius Kircher, But the greatest of all these was Knorr von Rosenroth, whose Kaibulah Demudata, frst pub- ished at Sulzbach in 1697-8 and translated into English by S.-L. Macgregor Mathers (London, 1887), contains: much Yalisble material and has proved particularly useful to Christian scholar unable to read the Hebrew and Arsraie 'originals, A new French translation ofthe whole of the Zolur has recently been made by M. Jean de Pauly and publsked 'posthumously by M. Emil Lafuma-Giraud (1906), Grateful reference salso deco the many writings onall aspect of the Zohar by the celebrated Scholar, Mr. Arthur Edward Wate 'tis unnecessary to mention here that many of the lead Jewish theologian ofthe nineteenth century have done much in the way of giving an enlightened and objective presenta- tion of the mysterious and uncanny world inwhich the Zohar lives and moves and has its being. Adolph Franck's La 'Kaibale, frst published in Pais in 1843, contains long and representative eatracts from the Zohar in a beautifully phrased French translation, In German there are numerius 'monographs and partial transitions hy Zane, Jost, Jelirek Joel Graetz, and Stcinschacider. In Hebrew, Rapaport, Harkavy, and others have mide important contributions During the present century there has een a distinct revival of interest i the literature ofthe Hassidim from the time of Daaishem, and. much has been written by Kahana, Hero detsky, Dubnov, and others, mainly in Hebrew, to how that theie devotees ofthe mystic sde of Jewish life and religion 'vere not, a8 is popularly supposed, half-cray visionaries liv- ing in a universe peopled by the fiemerts of their ewn degenerate brains, but men of intellect, scholarship, and sound 'serge who aitned at bringing back to Jewish organised com- suinal life a breath of that mystic sentiment and emotion 'which are the aromatic Hfe-essence of religion, and which are indispensable to Judaism if tis to continue to play its pre- destined part of bringing mankind 'under the wings of the Shekinah'. thas been said that every man is bom either a Platonis 'or an Aristotelian, 'This means that there is an denate pre- clispostion in every axe of us to assimilate certain fved forms 'ofthought from which we cannot be diverted, no matter what fiqure training, educstio, or experience we may receive, The Jows during the Middle Ages, both before and after the appearance of the Zoher, were (largely through the influence of Maimonides) amongst the staunchest supporters of Aris- totle. While the Arisiotehan philosophy stands immortalised ia the writings of the leading Jewish theelogians of medieval times, the philosophy of Plato finds but a mere handful of 'exponents, eminent though these be. Henee there has arisen the commonly accepted heli thar Jews are by nature ration- alts rather than mystics, Is this belief correct? Does it square with the facts? I think not. Judaism is unquestionably and supremely a religion af reason, Hut, paradosically enough, itonly made its appeal to she Jew ant held him tightly in its grip because he as—and is—by natire and incl 'amystic. The Moreh Nebuchine of Maimonides was the great Jovish philosophical exposition in the Middle Ages, of the spremacy of Reason' in Judaisin, But she Jew in the mass knew it not. It was never a people's book. But the Zohar was a people's hook. Te struck & chord in whose music the Jew heard 'The bubblings of the springs Tht feed the world, 'And the impress went down tothe roots of his heing. How fever much in aceord vith reason Judaism may have appeared tothe Jew, thete were alkays crises and eitastrophes in which he fee that reauon filed to solve the tantalising problems involved—problems of pain and suffering, of reward and punishment, of the relation between the human and the Divine; of the life here and the life hereafter. The Jew, a6 a pure rationalist, would have quailed in the face of these gma; and Judaism might by slow have been but pale 'memory. But the Jew believed and lived not by logic but by love, nce by ratiocination but by intuition. Tt was by these standards that he was led on 'o see one changslese Life in all the Lives, And in the Separate, One Tnseparabie In his great book Beligf fn Ged, Canon Gore says: "Ie is by feeling or intuition that the supreme artist gains his profound vision of experience and of Gods! The Jew was thin supreme artist, For was he not of the spititual lineage of the Psalmist, who said: 'My heart and my flesh sing for jy unte the ising 'ny whole heart have J sought thee O let me not err from thy commandments! ? Though hie could not know God, he nevertheless felt tht it was given to him to transcend the crushing weight of earthly alfairs, to be rrised above the grosser hindrances of sense and to become an organ reflecting the Divine ife. Such isthe stand~ point af the trie mystic of all-che ages. (The Jew had it in 'overflowing measure. And the Jevsish book which fiest and more thin any other eryatallsed these feelings and gave them their overpowering momestum was the Zohar. Sipenbes s031 TRANSLATORS' PREFACE "The aim of this translation is, on the one hand to mabe the Zohar accesible to Engh readers, on the other hard, 0 afford asistance to those who stretl with its ntiaces in the orginal. For the sake ofthe latter 4 good deal as been included which, as far asthe former are concerned, might Pethaps have been spare, especially if they have never Sudied the Hebrew Bible 'The preter part, however wil probably be ineligible enough, evento those who hare no Knowledge of Hebrew. "As has been pointed ou above, the printed editions ofthe Zohar contin intercalation fom othr, allied, works, vbich ae paged along with the Zar iell. These ae no inched in the present translation, which confines itself to wha may be ealed the Zohar proper, Certain vidual pasages have also been omited for seasons given where they occu. There are alo minor omissions (inlicated by the sign . -.) of Passages containing plays upon Hebrew words and similar frater unsuitable for translation, With these qualfations, the translation may be regarded as complete forthe pat of the text covered by the fist Volume, vie. up to the end of Vayera (p. 1208). ert pare of the' Zohar—noraby the cornments on the opening sections of Genescare highly enigmatic, and in the atoence ofan authenic radon thei ve meaning Eo tnatter of conjecture, An atempt has been made to give a faithful tranlation of thee leo, accounting for pratally every word In the origina, The result has perhaps Deen 10 feproduce only too faithfully the tencbrosty ofthe original for which the seader may not be thankful the will, at any rte tat he is getting the authentic Zohar and nt the teandatoa' own idese; and he may find asitance in an fppendiy and a plossary in which the wansators indete their own view of the general trend and purpose of these Un printing the Biblia! quotations with which the Zohar abounds, 2 device has been aslopted which it i hoped the sxx TRANSLATORS! PREFACE reader wil find useful, The main text-headings, that ist say, the verses from the Pentateuch which the Zohar sets out 0 expound in segular order, are printed in small epitals: The Subsidiary text-headings, that is to say, other verses from the Bible which are made the subject of disquisitions illustra- tiveof the main text, are printed in talies, Repetitions ofthese tests, oF incidental quotations, are printed in ordinary type between quotation marks. Tis distinetion will enable the reaider to see at a glance where he is and with what subject the Zohar is dealing. at any poi. A farther effort has been made to bring order and aystem into the text by careful paragraphing and by a judicious use of parentheses. (It should be remembered that in the original text not only these aids, buteven punctuation marks, includ ing fll stops, are inserted very sparingly and then not infre~ quently at the wrong place The result, itis hoped, willbe to show that the Zohar is by no means such a jumble as is vwsually supposed, that with all its discursiveness it follows

4welldefined course, and that there ie a reason why most
ff its reflections are inserted just where they are and not somewhere cls. "The Biblical references are in all eases to the Hebrew text (or tothe American Jowish translation), 'The renderings have also heen taken where possible from this version orthe English Revised Version. In many cases, however, ithas been necessary to give the Hebrewy quite @ ditlerent rendering, in order to 'make it accord with the lesson which the Zohar seeks to derive from it—often in lordly disrogard of the comtext or 'even the rules of grammar, The translation hae heen -made in the! main from the Mantian text of the Zohar, but occasionally @ reading has theen sdlopted from the Amsterdam text. 'The paging of the Mant text a aloo been inserted PROLOGUE! Rabbi Hiskah opened hi discourse with the texts As aly 'among thorns, de. (S. 81,2. "What, he said oes the Lily symbvise? Te symbolises the Consnunity of Tol, Ay the ily arnong chons is inged with red and white, s the Come munity of Iscel is visited now with justice and now with metey asthe iy posenses thirteen leaves, #0 the Community of Iaral is youchaafed thirteen categories of merey which ucround it on every side. For this season, the term Eloi (God) mentored here (inthe fest verse of Genesis) is separe sted by thirteen words from the next mention of Elin, symbolising the ehircen categories of mercy which surround the Community of Taal to protect. The second mention of Flom ix separated from the thd hy fice words, eepre~ eating the five strong leaves that surround th lily, symbole ofthe five was of salvation which ae the "Five gates". This {salluded tithe verse "I will up the cup o salvation" (Ps. e301, 13). Theis the "cup of benediction which as to be raised by five fingers and no more, afice the model ofthe lily, which reas on five strong leaves in the shape of five fingers. Thus the lily isa aymbol ofthe cup of benediction. Immediately after the third mention of Elohim appears the Tighe which, soon as ereated, was treasured uy and enclosed in that Brith covenant) which enteed he lily and frveied it, and this in what icalled" wee bearing fruit wherein isthe ced thereof" and this seed is preserved in the very sign of the covenant. And as the idea covenant was fred through forty-two copaations, so the engraven inelable name is formed ofthe fory-two leters of the work of cation" In THe Beaix io. R Simeon opened his dicourse with the text: The Honoms appeared onthe earth, ee. (8. 8. th, 12) "The blossoms", he ssid, 'refer to the work of creation, Thi bwoter a pelninary expontion of Gen 1, ve 19 inter the reader ote sel of Simeon ap hs elapse toe nies of the see ard nature oftheir scum Ie same re 'Sacais ane fonl tan te st By ofthe Baer

4rue zoutsn t tes
"Appeared on the earth': when ? On the third day, a5 'writen, "And the earth brought forth: they thus then Bppeatedon the earth, "The ime of pruning i come" alludes {o the fourth day in which "the pring ofthe overbeatin Us. x0¥- 9) took place, "And the vice ofthe ture" alludes fo the Blk day anit fs writen, "Let the waters swarm, et, to produc fivng creatures. "Is heard" points tothe sx dy, as iis writen, "Let us make man" (namely him who fvar destined to say fit "we will do" and then "we vil heat fr the expression {18} in our text na'ash, Lets 'make man, Gd is echo inthe espression"na'aeh (we vil do) and hear" (Exod, xt, 7) "in our land" implies the day ofthe Sabbath, which sa copy ofthe "and ofthe Hving™ (Che word waa the world of nly ce world of chao tions). The following iz an alternative exposition? "The 'ostoms ae the patriarchs who pre-exsted inthe thought of the Almighty and later entered the world to come, where they werecaeflly preserved; from thence they ssuedncerely to Become incarnate in the tre proghets. Thus when Joseph tered the Holy Land he planted them there and thus they 'appeatel on the earth" and revealed themselves ther. When do they become visible ? When the rainbow betokess that "the time of pruning is come", to wit, the time when the sinners are du to be cutoff rom the world and they 'only escape because "the blossoms appear on the earth: fot for thei appearance the sinners would at be lft in the 'world and the world itself would ot exist. And pho ist that Upholds the world and causes the patnarchs to appear ? tis the voice of tender children studying the Torah and fr their sakes the world i saved. «-? Iy THe Bromnnise. R, Elearar opened his discourse with the text: Lift up your eyes on high and ste: who hath created these (Is XL, 26). "Lift up your eyes on high' to which place ? "To that place 10 which all eyes are turned, to wit, Peigh "Ensim ("eye-opener"). Uy doing #0, you will know that itis the mysterious Ancient One, whose essence ean be 'sought, but not found, that created these: to wit, Mi (Who 2), the same sho is called "from (Heb, mi) the extremity of 14) Provocte 5 hheaven on high', because everything fs in His power, and because He is ever to be sought, though mysterious and un revealabl, since further we cannot enquire: That extremity 'of heaven is called Mi, but there is another lower extremity Which is called Mah (What 2). "The diference between the to is this. The first isthe real subject of enquiry, but after 'a-man by means of enguiry and reflection has reached the lutmost mit of knowledge, he stops at Mal (What ?), a5 ifto say, what knowest thou ? what have thy searchings achieved ? Everything is as baling as at the beginning. In allusion to this, ieiswritten "l, Mah, testify against thee, ete. (Lam, 13). When the Temple was destrayed a voice went forth and said: "I, Mah, have testified against thee day by day from the days of old." as itis written, "I called heaven and earthto Witness against you." (Deut. x18, 19.) Further, 1, Meh, likened myself to thee: I crowned thee with holy owns, and made thee ruler over the earth, a¢ i is written, "Ts this the city that men call the perfection of beauty ? ete." (Lam.tt, 15), and again, "I called thee Jerusalem that is builded a a city compact together". Further, 1, Mak, am equal to thee; in the same plight in which thou, Jerusalem, art here, o Lam, anit wergabove; justas the holy people docs or ko upto thee any morein sacred array,so, Lswearto thee, [will not ascend fom high unl the day when thy throngs will again stream to thee here beloss. And this maybe thy consolation, inasmuch as to this extent I'am thy equal in all things. But now that thou arcin thy present state "thy breach is grea like the sen" (Ibid. 43). And lest thou sayest there is for thee no abiding and no healing, "ME will heal thee" (Ibid), Of a surety the veiled One, the most High, the sum of al existence will heal thee and uphold thee—Mi, the extremity of heaven abore, 'Mah, 2s far 38 the extremity of heaven below. And this is the inheritance of Jacob, he being the "bolt that passes from extremity to extremity" (Exod. axv1, 28), that i, from the higher, identical with Mi, to the lower, identical with Mak, as he occupies a postion in the middle, Hence "Mi (Who) created these' Said R. Simeon, 'hae there may be revealed the higher ny Eleazar, son of mine, cease thy discourse, rice whieh remain

6'Tue ZOHAR t [ub-20
scaled for the people ofthis world." R. Eleazar then fell into silesce, R, Sinieon wert a while and then sid: "Eleazar, what J meant by the term "these"? Surely not the stars and the other heavenly bodies, since they are always visible, and were crested through Mal, us-we read, "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made" (Ps, xxxtt, 6). Nor ean it imply the things inaceesible to oue gate, sinee the vocuble "these" obviously points to things that are revealed. This mystery emained sealed until one day whilst T'was on the sea-shore, Ehiph came and said tome, "Master, what means 'fi (Who?) created these?" "" I Said to hit, "That refers to the heavens and their hosts, the works of the Holy One, blessed be He, works through the contemplation of which 'man comes to bless Him, as i¢ is written, 'When T behold thy heavens, the work [24] of thy fingers etc. O Lord our 'God, how glorious is thy name an all the earth (Ps, vl, 44-19). Then he said to me, "Master, the Holy One, blessed be He, had » deep sectet which He at length revealed at the celestial Academy: It is this, When the most Mysterious 'wished to reveal Himuclf, He frst produced single point which was transmiited into a thooght, and in this He executed innumerable designs, and engraved innumerable gravinge He further graved within the sacred and mytic famp, a mystic and most holy design, which was a wondrous edifice issuing from the midst of thought. 'This is called MZ, and was the beginning of the edifice, existent and non-enistent, deep buned, unknowable by name, Teas only called AU (Who 2) It desired to become manifest and to be called by name. Te therefore clothed itself in a refulgent ond precious garment and created ELeHf (these), and ELeHl acquired a name. The lettere of the two words intermingled, forming the complete name ELa#/M (God). (When the Istatites sinned in making the golden calf, they alluded to this mystery ia saying "Ell (these are) thy Gods, © Israel' (Esod) xxx, 4)) And once MI becime combined with Blel%, th remined for alltime And upon this seceet the world is built" Elijah then flew away and vanished out of my sight, 'And itis fcom him thar I hecame possessed of this profound 24) rRoLoaut 7 AR Eleasar and all the companions came and prostated themselves before him, weeping for joy and saying, 'If we i the world ony to hear this we should have . Simeon std farther: "The heavens and their hosts were created theough the medium of Mak (What #), ait is wenten, "When T beield thy heavens, the work of thy Finges, ee... Lord our God (don), Mah, glorious thy name inal the earth, whose majesty is ehearsed above the heavens." (Ps. vit, 4,4). God te "alu the heaves! respect of His ame, for He create alight for His ight, and one formed a vestment to the other, an 40 He ascended Jno the higher name; hence "In the begioning Elim (God) created, thats, the supernal Elokim. Whereas Mah was not 4, nor was it built up util thes eters Eek (fom the name Elokin) were drawn from above below, andthe Mother len the Diughter her garetts and decked her out gracefully with her own adornments. When did she oo adom her ? When all the mils (of Isa!) appeared before her in accordance with the command "all thy males shall appear before the Lord (Aidan) God" (Exod. sats, 25). "This term Lord (don) is Similarly used in the passge "Behold the Ark of the covenant Sf the Lord (son) ofall the earth" (Joni, 44). Then the letter é (of Mak) deparcd and her place was taken by Yad (imaking Wi), and then she decked herself is male garments, Harmonizing with "every male in Israel". Other leer, t00, Tora drew from on high to that place. Ths it says: "These (Etch) cemenber (Ps. sat 5), Le L make mention with m month and T pour out my tears, and thos make them (the Jeter) fi from on igh "uoto the house of Bohm (Id) to be Elohim (Goa) after his fore, And wih what ? "With the voice of song and praise and amidst a festive throng" (Ibid Said R-Eleazar, My keeping slence was the means Of building the sanctuary above and the sanctuary below Verily "speech ia worth la, silence wo", Speech s worth

2elaynamely, ry exposition a remarks onthe subject: but
Silence ie worth toy since Dough my silence wo worlds were hilt togsther.* BR. Simeon sid: We vill go onto expound the contusion of the verse vit, Heth rigeth forth By number ther Host

8Tite ZOHAR TE eh
(Is x1, 26). There are two grades which have to be distin- guished, one of Mal and one of Mi—one of the higher ard the other of the lower sphere. The higher is singled out here inthe words, "He who bringeth feth by number thei host " expresses something definite and absolute, a bis universally recognized and without equal (Corresponding 0 this is the expression "He who bringeth forth bread from the here also "He who" implies the universally acknow= Jedged one, though here visualised asthe lower geade; the wo, however, are one.) "Bly number": six hundred thousand ace they, and they have in turn produced according to their kinds beyond all number. "All of them", whether the six hundred thousand or the rest of the hosts, "He ealls by name", This 'cannot snean by their names, for it were so, it should have been writen "by names". What it means is that as long as this grade did not assume a name, and was stl ealled Mr, it 'was unproductive, and did not bring into actuality the latent forces within it, each according to tx kind, But as soon asit created ELeH (these), and assumed its rightful name and \was called ELoHIM (Ged), then, by force of that name, it produced them in their complete form. 'This is the meaning, alley rai, as Bae prvcleened THs Gh rate a8 to bring about the emergence of each sort of being in its full frm. (Analogous to this we read, "See, I have called by name" (Evod. xix, 2), to wit, [have bestowed my name 'on Bezalt (in the shadow of God) so that his work should emerge in perfection. Further, the words "by the abundance of powers (ls, SL, 26) refer to the supreme grade whereto allthe voltionsascend [24] bya mysterious path. "And mighty of strengih": the word "strength (KoaH) symbolizes the supernal World which assumed the name Blohim (God), 38 already sid. "No one is missing" ofthe six hundred thousasd 'which emerged by the power of the Name, And hecause no 'one is missing, therefore whenever Israelites died on account 'of a national sin, the people were afterwards numbered, ard it was found that the number of six hundred thousand hed fot been diminished even by one, so thatthe likeness to the superna prototype was still complete; just_as no one vas missing above, 6) no one was ming here below. 2b PROLOGUE 9 In THE BeoiNNtsa, Rab Hamnuna the Venerable said "We find here a reversal of the order of the letters of the Alphabet, the first two words bereshith bara—"in-the-begin= ting. He-created"-—commencing with beth, whereas the wo .wonds following, Elakim eth—"God the"—cammence with aleph. The reason is as follows. When the Holy One, blewed bbe He, was about to make the world, all the letters of the Alphabet were sill embryonic, and for two thousand years the Holy One, blessed be He, had contemplated them and toyed with them, When He came to create the world, all he Tetters presented themselves before Him in reversed order. 'The leter Tau advanced in front and pleaded: May it please 'Thee, O Lan of the world, ta place me frst in the creation 'of the world, secing that Iam the concluding letter of EMeTh (Truth) which is engraved upon Thy seal, and seeing that "Thou art called by this very name of EMeTh, itis most ap- 'propriate for the King to hegin wth the final letter of EMeT and to create with me the world, The Holy One, blessed be He, said to her: Thou art worthy and deserving, but iis not 'proper that I begin with thee the creation of the world, sce thou art destined to serve as a mark on the foreheads of the faithful ones (ede Ezek. 1%, 4) Who have kepr the Law from Alle to Tau, and through the absence of this mark the rest 'ill be Killed; and, further, thou formest the conclusion of MaWeTh (death), Hence thou art not meet to initiate the creation of the World. The Shin then came to the fore and pleaded: O Lord of the world, may it please 'Thee to begin With me the world, seeing that I am the initial letter of 'Thy name ShaDDal (Almighty), and itis most fitting 10 <reate the world through that Holy Name. Said He in reply: "Thou art worthy, thou att good, thou art true, but I may not begin through thee the creation of the world, since thou formest part of the group of letters expressing forgery, 'ShekeR (falsehood), which is not able to exist unless the Koph and Resh drave thee into their company. (Hence itis that 2 lie, t0 obtain credence, must always commence wth something true.-For the shin isa letter of truth that letter by 'which the Patriarchs communed with God; but hoph and vésh are letters belonging wo the evil site, which in order to stand

10THE Z0HART [bse
firm attach to thensselves the shin, thus forming a conspiracy '(QeSheR).) Having heard all this, the she departed, Enters the Zadé and says: O Lord of the world, may i pleae Thee to create with me the world, inasmuch as Tam the sign of the righteous (Zadikim) and of Thyself who art called righteous, as it is written, "For the Lord is righteous, he loveth righteousness (Ps. x1,7),anidhence itis meet t create the world with me. The Lord made answer: O Zadé, thou tnt ude, and thou significa righteovonens, but thow must be femeealed, thou rayest not come out in the open se much Jose thow givest the world cause for offence. For thew eon sistestof the Teter nun surmounted by the letter vod (rep senting together the male and the female principles). And this is the mystery of the eration ofthe first man, who was created with two faces (male and female combined). In the same way the mum and the yod in the zadé are turned back to buick and not face to face, whether the sadé is upright or turned downvards. The Holy, One, blessed be He, said 10 ber further, 1 will n time divide thee in wo, £0 35 0 appear face to face, but thou wilt go up in another place. Ske then departed. The leter Pé presented herself and pleaded thus Didy i plense Thee, © Lond of the world, to create thro 'me the 'world, seeing that T signify redemption and deliver- ance (Purkana, Peduh), which Thou art to youchsafe to the world. 1, ence, meet that throughme the world be created. "The Lord answered: 'Thou art worthy, but thou representest transgression (Pesha), and moreaver thou art shapen lke the serpent, who had his head eurled up within his body, sym hole of the guilty man who bends fis head and extends his hand. The letter 'yin was ikewise refused a8 standing for iniquity ("Atom), despite her plea that she represents humility ('Anaeah). Then the Sameki appeared and said: O Lard (34) fof the world, may i please 'Thee to create through me the world inasmuch as Urepresent upholding (Semibah) of the fallen, asi is writen, "The Lord wpholdeth all that fall (Fa. exby, 14). The Lord answered her: 'This is just the reson why thou shouldst remain in thy plac, for shouldst thou leave it, what will be the fate ef the fallen, seeing that they are upheld by thee ? She immediately. departed, "The 3a) PROLOGUE n 'Nun entered and pleaded her merits as being the inital letter jn. Fearful (Nora) in praises" (Ex. x¥, 11), a5 well as in "Comely (Netea) is praise forthe righteous" (Ps, Xxxti, 1). "The Lord sud: O Nun, retura to thy place, fori is for thy sake (as representing the falling, Nofelim) that the Samekh returned to her place, Remain, therefore, under her support 'The Nun immediately returned to her place, The Mm came 'up and said: © Lord of the world, may it plase Thee to reate by me the world, inasmuch as T commence the word 'Melehh (King) which is Thy ttle, The Lord replied: Ie is

40assuredly, but I cannot employ thee in the creation of the
world for the reason that the world requires a King. Return, therefore, to thy place, thou along with the Lemed and the Kaph, since the world cannot exist without 2 MeLeKh (King). At chat moment, the Kaph descended. from it throne-of glory and quaking and teembling said: O Lord of the universe, may it please Thee to begin through me the creation of the world, seeing that T am Thine own Kabod (honour). Ard shen Kaph descended from its throne of glory, two hundred thousand worlds began to shake, the throne trembled, and all the worlds quaked and were about to fall in ruins. Said to her the Holy One, blessed be His Name: Koph, Kaph, what doest thou here? 1 will not sreate the world with thee. Go back to thy place, since thow standest for extermination (Kelayah), Return, then, to thy place and remain there. Immediately she departed and re- tured to her own place. 'The leer Yod then presented herself and aiid: May it plesse 'Thee, O Lord, to voucheafe 'me fist place in the creation of the world, since I stand frst in the Sacred Name: The Lord said 10 her: It ix sufficient for thee that thou art engraven and marked in Myself and that thou_art the channel of My will; thou must not be emoxed from My Name, 'The Teth then came up and said © Lord of the universe, may it please 'Thee to place me at the head in the creation of the world, since through me Thou art called Good (Tob) and upright, 'The Lord said to her: Twill not mate the world through thee, as the goodness whieh thou representet is hidden and concealed within shy-

0how abundant is thy goodness which

2THe zomAR t be
thou hast laid up for them that fear thee" (Ps. xxxt, 20). Since then itis treasured within thyself, thas no part in the world which I am going to ereate, but only in the world ro come, And further, it is because thy goodness is hidden 'within tee thatthe gates ofthe Temple aah ino the ground, itis written, "Sunk (Pobe's) i the ground are hee gates (Lam. 1,9). And furthermore, the lee Heth sat thy side, And when joined you make sin (ff). (It is for that reason that these two letters aze not toe found inthe names of any of the tribes.) She departed immediately. 'Then the Zaytn presented herself and put forth he claim, saying, O Lord uf the World, may i please Thee to put me atthe head of the creation, since I represent the observance of the Sabbath, as itis writen, "Remember Zolihor) the day of the Sabbath t0 keep it holy" (Ex. xx, 8). The Lond replied: 1 will not create the world through thee since thou representest war, being shape like a sharp-pointed swerd, oF a lance. The Zayin immediately departed from His presence. 'The Va entered and put forth her claim, saying: O Lord of the world, may je please Thee to use me first in the creation of the warl, unmuch as I am one of the lewers of Thy name, Sai the Lord to hers 'Thou, Vaan wells 212, mffice to you shat you are of the letters uf My name, part ofthe mystery of Ny fname, engraven and impreted in My name. Iwill therefore not give you frst place in the creation of the world. 'Then appeared the letter Dalth ax well a the letter Gimel and pat forth sinilar claims, 'The Lord gave them a sinitar reply, saying: It should suffice you to remain side by side together, since "the poor will not cease from the land (Deut. 3%, 13) who wil chus need benevolence, For the Dale signifi: poverty (Duluth) and the Gime! benefcence (Gel). There= Tore separate nn from cach other, and let it suffice you dae 'ane maintains the other. 'The Bath then entered and said: © Locd of the world, may it plese 'Thee to pat me fre in the creation of the world, since I represent the henedictions (Berakbth offered to Thee on high and below. The Haly (One, blessed be He, sid to her: Assurdly, ith thee Iwill create the world, and thou shale form the begnning ia the retin af the word The letter lop remained oho ple 30-36] PROLOGUE 5 Wwithour presenting herself. Said the Holy One, blessed be His name: Aleph, Aleph, wherefore comest thou not before [Me like the rest of the leters ? She answered: Because I saw all the other letters eaving Thy presence without any success. What, then, could T achieve there? And further, since (35) 'Thov hast already bestowed on the leer Beth thin great gi, it is not meet for the Supreme King to take away the gift 'which He has made 19 His servant and give it to another. 'ie Lor elo her, Ap. Alp, allough I wil boa the ereation of the world with the Beth, thou wilt remai per eto 11y eo seal ot be Cee ape through thee, on thee shall be based all calculations aad 'operations of the world, and usity shall not be expreieed "hve by the leer Aleph, Then the Holy One, bese he His 'name, made higher-world leters of a large pattern and loveer~ 'world leters of a small patter. It is therefore that we have hhere two words beginning with beth (Bereshith bara) and then 'wo words beginning with aleph (Elohim eh). They represent the higher-world letters and the lower-world letters, which two operate, above and helow, together and as one meaningof Bereshith 'on which the world is based, and through this it introduces us to deep and recondlite mysteries. Ini, too, isthe inscription 'of ix chief supernal directions, out of which there issues the totality of existence. From the samme there go forth six -sourees of rivers which flow into the Great Sea, 'This is im- plied in the word BeReSHiTH, which can be analysed into BoRa-SHiTH (He created six). And who eveated them? The Mysterious Unknown," R. Hiya and R, Jose were 'walking slang the road, When they reached the open country R. Hiya atid to R, Jose, "What you said about beresih signifying bara-shith (created six) is cersinly correc, since the Torsh speaks of ix primordial days and not more 'The others are hinted at but not disclosed; nevertheles, from what is told us we can perceive the following. Holy and Mysterious One graved in a hidden recess one frowit, Ik that He enclosed the whole of Creation as one

4'que zomAR Gb
'who locks up all his treasares in a palace, under one key, 'whichis therefore as valuable as all that is stored up in that palace; for ivis the key which shuts and opens. In that palace there are hidden treasures, one greater than the other. The palace is provided with fly mystic gates. They are inserted fn ts four sides to the number of forty-nine. The one re- 'maining gate is on none ofits sides and itis unknown whether iv ison high or helow: i is hence called the mysterious pate. Al these gates have onc lock, and there is one tiny spot for the insertion of the key, which is only marked by the impress 'of the key, ein this myatery which is anplicd in the words "In the beginning ereated God", "In the beginaing' (bere- shothy: this is the key which encloses the whole and whieh shuts and pens. Six gates are controlled by this key which 'pete and shuts, At first it hepe the gates closed and im= jpenetrable; this is indicated by the word bereshith, which is 'Composed of «revealing word (vith) with a concealing word (hare Hara is always a word of mastery, cloning and not 'opening,' Said R. Jose: 'Assireily it se $0, and T have heard the Sacred Lamp say the same, to wit, dhat bras aterm of mystery, a lock without a hey, and as long as the world was locked within the term bare it was not in-state of being or 'esatence, Over the whole shere hovered Tohu (chaos), and as long as Tohu dominated, the world was not in being ot existence, When did that hey open the gates and make the 'oridfrutful #Itwaswhen Abrahamappeared, asin written, *"Theie are the generations of the heavens and of the earth behibaream" (when they were created) (Gen, 1, 4), Nov, BelliBaRedm is an anagam of BeABeRattail (through Abraham), implying that what was hitherto sealed up and lunprtehictive in the word hana has by 2 transpostian of letters Deconte serviceable, there has emenged a pillaroffuitfulness: for Bula hao been tranaformed ino ArT (organ), which ie thesaered foundation on which the world rests. Burther in the same nay, as AiBraffaM contains AiBeR, a transformation, 'of Ba so iis with the splendour ofthe name of the Most High and most Concealed One. 'This is implied in the words AIL BuRA Aitetl. Add che other sacred name Malt Trans pose Balt into iBeR. We have AibeHf on one side and 36-40] PRoLogue 5 AiBeR on the other side. Add the Hé of Mall) to ABER and the Fod (of M1) to AiLefl. When we take now the Mim 'of both MfFand MaFf and join each to each we have complete thessered name eLo/fiMand also the rame(4a) ABRalfaM. According to ancther view, the Holy One, blessed be He, took MIU and joined it to AiLeH, so that there was shaped AbLoHtiM; seslarly He wok Mal ana joined it w ABER and there was shaped ABRalTaM. And thus He made the 'world unfold itself, and made the name complete, a8 it had rot been hitherto, This is meant by the verse "These are the fenerations (ie. unfoldings) of the heaven and of the earth BeHliBaReaM (when they were created)". That i, the whole creation was in suspense until the nase of ABRallaM was created, and as soon as the name of Abraham was completed the Sacred Name was completed along with it, as it says farther, "in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven." TR, Hiya then prostrated himelf on the' earth, hissed the dust, and said weeping: 'Dust, Dust, how stitinecked art thou, how shameless art thou that all the delights of the eve and grindest into nothingness, Fie on thy shamelessness! 'Tha Sacred Lamp that illuminated the world, the mighty spiritual force by whose merits the world exist, is consumed by chee. Oh, KR. Simeon, thous heacon of light, source of light 'world whilst alive?" After falling fora moment into reverie, hhe continued, O dust, dust! pride not thyself far the pillars Of the world will not be delivered into thy power, nor will R. Simeon perish within thee." Hiya then arose weeping and set out in company with R. Jose, He fasted from that day for forty days, in order thai he might see K, Simeon. "Vhhow canst fot see hin' as all the answer to his supplication, He then fasted another forty days, at the end of which he saw ina vision R. Simeon and bis son R. Eleazar discussing the very subject which AR. Jose bad just explained to him, while thousands were looking on and listening. Meanwhile there appeared a host of huge wingel celestial beings upon whose wings R. Simeon

16THE 2ONAR L [yarab
nd his son. Elearar were borne aloft into the heavenly 'Academy, whilst those beings remained at the threshold, waiting them. Their splendour was censtantly renewed, and they radiated a light exereding that of the sun. R, Simeon then opened his mouth and said, 'Let R. Hiya enter and behold what the Holy One, blessed be He, bas prepared for the rejoicing of the righteous in the world to come. Happy is the who enters here without misgiving, and happy is he who is established a5 a strong pillar in the world t0 come.' On entering hs (R. Higa) noiend that R. Eleazar and the other great scholars that were sitting near him stood up. He drew hack in some embarrassment, and sat down at the feet of R, Simeon, A voiee thereupon went forth, saying, 'Lower 'hine eyes, ise not thy head and do not Idok.' He lowered Iie eyer and discerned a Hight shining afar. The vulce went forth again, saying "O, ye unseen eelestials, ye upen-eved who sweep to and fro throughout the world, behold and see ! ©, ye trresrnl beings who are sunk deep in slumber, awake! Wiho among you laboured to tuen darkness into light and bitter into sweet before you entered here ? Who antong you awaited every day the light that shall break forth what time the King shall visit his beloved gazelle, when He will be lorified and called King by all the kings of the world ? He who did nor thus wait every day' in the world below will ave no share here.' Meanwhile he beheld a number of his col= leagues gather cound, even all the mighty pillars of wisdom, and he saw them ascend to the heavenly Academy, while thers in turn descended. At the head of them all he saw ips Ghtef of el Winget noua who op prone aes ee. solemnly deslared that hebad heard from behind the curtain! thatthe King visits each day and remembers his gavele which, is trodden in the dust, and that at the moment He does 80 He strikes the three hundred and ninety heavens so they all quake and temble [48] before Him: for her fate He sheds fears hot as burning fire, which fll imo the great sea, From these tears aries and is sustained the presiding genius of the sea, who sanctifies the name of the Hely King, and who has pledged hinself ro sallow up all the waters of the creation Sand to gather them all within himself on that day whem all shall assemble against the holy. people, 40 that they shall be abie fo pass on dry land, Anon he heard a voice proclaiming, "Nake room, mike room, for King Messiah is Coming to the Academy of R. Simeon,' For all the righteous there have been heads of Academies on earthy and have 'become disciples of the heavenly Academt, and the Messiah 'ists ll these Academies and puts his seal on all the expost tions. that issue from the mouths of the teachers. "The 'Messiah then entered wearing heavenly dsdems, with which hhe had been eravined by the heads of the Aesdemy. All the 'colleagues stood up, slong vith R. Simeon, from whom a light shot up to the empyrean. 'The Messiah said to him, "Happy art thou, for thy teaching mounts on high inthe form of three hundred and seventy illumination, and each ifum- ination subdivides itself into six hundred snd thirteen argu ments, which go up and bathe themselves in streams of pure balsam, And the Holy One, blessed be He, Hirnself places His sal on the teaching of thy Academy and of the Academy of Hezekiah, King of Juda, and of the Academy of Abijah fof Shiloh. H'come not to set my seal in thy Academy, since Js the chef of the winged angels who comes here; for [know thit he does not visit any but thy Academy." After that R, Simeon told him what the chief ofthe winged angels had so solemnly decared. Thereupon the Messiah fll a-quaking, snd he cried aloud, and the heavens quivered, and the great tex quaked and the Leviathan trembled, and the world was shaken 40 its foundations. His eye then fll upon R. Hiya, 'who was sitting atthe feet of R. Simeon. 'Who has brought hher this man,' he asked, "ho still woars the raiment of the other world? R. Simeon answered, "This is the great R, Hiya, the shining lamp of the 'Torah' 'Let him then,' said the Messiah, "be gathered in, together with hig sons, and let them become members of the Academy.' R. Simeon 'aid, "Leta ime of grace be granted to hits." A time of grace 'vas then granted to hi, and he went forth from thence trembling, with tears running from his eyes, saying a5 he 'wept, 'Happy it the portion of the righteous in thar world and hap i the portion of the son of Yohai who has merited Such glory. It gsoncerning such ashe that itis written, "That

8THE 2ORAR I tabse
T may cause those who love me to inert a lasting possession; sd thie teasires will TAN" (Pro. vist, 28.) Is THe Beeisxine. R. Simeon opened his discourse isth the text: And I put my eords am thy mouth (Is: 11, 16), He ssid How greatiy isi incumbenton a man to study' the 'Torah day and night! For the Holy: One, blessed be He, is ientive to the wee of those who occupy themaelven tid the Torah, and through each fresh discovery made by thera in the Torah a new heaven is created, Our teachers have told ls that at the moment when a man expounds something new in the rutteranee sicend before the Holy One, blessed be He, and He takes it up and kisses itand crowns it with seventy Crowns of graven and inscribed letters. When _riew idea is formulated in the field ofthe esoteric wadom, it ascends and rests on the head of the "Zaddik, the life of the 'universe, and then it flies off and traverses seventy thousand worlds until i ascends to the "Ancient of Days". And i much a¢ all the words of the "Ancient of Days" are words of wisdom comprising sublime and hidden mysteries, that hid den word of wisdom that was discovered here when itascends is joined to the words ofthe "Ancient af Days", and becomes sn integral pat of hem, and enterainco the eighteen mystical 'worlds, concerning which we read "No eye hath sean beside 'hie, © God" (id 1286, 3). From thence they to and fro, until finally ariving, perfected and co before the "Ancient of Days". At that moment the "Ancient of Days" savours that word of wisdom, and finds satisfaction, therein above all else, He takes tha word and erowrs i with ree hundred and seventy thousaad crowns, and it Hes up and down until is made into a sky. And so each word of 'visdom is made into a sky whieh presents itself Fully forme before the "Ancient of Days", who calls them "new heavens thar is, heavens erated out ofthe mystic ideas of hesublime 'wiadom. As for the other new expositions of the Torah, they present themselves hefore (5a) the Holy One, blessed be He, and ascend and become "earths ofthe ving', then they d= seend and hecome absorbed into une earth, sherely a new arth emerges through that new discovery in the Torah This sa] PNoLoauE 9 js imple in the vers, "Fora the new heavens and the new Cath, which Tam making, nse up before me," (Bu. 10, 22) Ie isnot writen "Thace made", but "I ant making", 'Sgnifying coninal creation out ofthe new ideas discovered in the Torah, Further, itis wetten, "And T have placed my words in thy mouth, and with the shadow of my hand have Teovered thee, to plant a heaven and to lay the foundations fan earth" (iid 1, 16). Te docs not a5" "aheaven" Sid R.Eleazar:"Whatsiniies"withtheshadow cf my band hive T covered thee" ?" He replied: When the 'Torah was delivered to Moss, there appeared myriads of Jrevenly angels ready to consure hin with thee ery breath, tht the Haly One, blessed be He, shekteed him. Sina nov when thenew word ascends and is erowned and presents ise before the Holy One, biewsed be He, He covers and protects that word, and also shelters the author ofthat word, fo that the angele should not became aware of him and so be filled with jealousy, until that word i transformed into a new heaven aod a new carth, That 9 the meaning ofthe passage "and with the shadow of my hand have 1 coveced the, 0 planta heaven and to lay the foundations ofan earth, From this we learn that each word of which the purpose is not 'obvious contains some leason of special valu, anti writen "And with the shadow of my hand have T covered thee Why si covered and hidden from our view ? Foran ulterior prurpose, ot," planta beaen and to Jy the foundation of an earth", as already exp "and to say to Zion thou ar 'sm, my people" Ubi), This means, to sa 10 these gates of study and those words of Zion (Gistnetion) "thou art 'dim. The word 'dim may people) ray be read To (with me), meaning "to be a collaborator 'vith Me; for just as T made heaven and earth by a word, Seep: ye onal Lard Demeter ae (Ps, xxx, 6:0 dost thov. Happy are those who devote thems tthe ay of the Torah! You ool nothin, feweve, that all hie applies even to one who ie no tre Scholae, Nota, When one whois a stranger to the mjteies of the Torah makes pudo-dicoveries based on an incom plete understanding, that "word" rises, and is met by the

20THE ZOHAR { bse
perverse One, the Deman of the false tongue, who emerges from the caver of the great ayes and makes + leap of five hundred parasings to receive that word. He takes it and returns with it to his cavern, and shapes it into a spurious hheaven which is called Tohu (chaos). 'That Demon then traverses in one swoop the whole of that heaven, a space of 'ix thousand yarasangs. As scon as that hewen is formed, the Harlot emerges, and lodges herself in it, and joins forces 'with it and issuing from thenee she slays thousands and tens of thousands, For as long as she is lodged in that heaven she has authority and power to swoop through the world in the 'twinkling of an eye, 'This i implied in the words, "Woe unto them that draw iniguity with cords of vanity" (Is , 28). The 'word for "iniquity, "Avon, being of the masouline gender, designates the Demon. In the next part of the verse, "and sin a8 it were, with a cart rope", the word for "sin", hattaah, 'being ofthe feminine gender, signifies the female, the Harlot "who rushes to exceute slaughter on the sons of men. Concern- {ng her we also read, "For she hath caused to fall many deadly 'wounded (Prov. vir, 20), namely, that hattagh (sia) who slays the sons of men. And the ultimate eause isthe unripe scholar who is not qualified to teach and yet does 30, May 'God save uf from him! Said R. Simeon to the colleagues "T beseech you not to let fall fromm your mouth any word o the Torah of which you are not certain and which you have not learnt correctly from a "great tree, so that you may not be the cause of that Harlot slaying multitudes of the sons of mien.' 'They arswered in unisen, 'God forbid, God forbid R, Simeon proceeded: 'See now, it was by' means af the 'Torah that the Holy One created the world, 'That has already been derived fom the verse, "Then 1 was neat isn as an artisan, and T was dally all his delight" (Prov. vit, 30). He looked at the Torah once, twice, thrice, and a fourth time. He uttered the words comparing her and then operated through her. That is a lesson for men, how to study the 'Torah properly. This lesson is indicated by the verse, "Then did he see, and declare i; he established it, yea, and searched it out." (Job, axv11, 27). Seeing, declaring, establishing and searching out correspond to these four operations which the ses] PROLOGUE a Holy One, blessed be He, went through before ertering on the work of creation, Hence the aunt ofthe ereaion com mences with the four words Berehith Bara Alelokin Aith (("In-the-beginning created God the"), before mentioning "the heavens, thos signifying the four times which the Holy 'One, blessed be He, looked into the 'Torah before He performed His work. -Eleazar was journeying io visithis father-in-law, R. Jose, 'on of R. Simeon son of Lakunya [5 He was acoxmpanied by R. Abba, and another man wasleading their bageage-ass behind them, Said R. Abba, 'Let us open a discourse on the "Torah, the time and place being propitious" R, Ekazar then Doegin thu Tein written: Ve shall heep my Sabbaths (Lev. 14,30), Consider ths: the Holy One, blessed be He, created the' world in six days and cach day revealed @ part of His wok, and functioned through the energy imparted tit. But 'none ofthe work was actually dislosed nor the energy fune- tioning until the fourth day, 'The frst theee days were undis- 'wed and imperceptible, but when the fourth day anne the product and energy of all of them was brought ut into the 'open, Fire, water, and air, as three primordial elements, were sillin suspense, thet activity not having become visible until thecarth disclosed them and s0 mace knowable the workman- 'ship of each one of them, You may object that in the account 'of the third day ¢ 1 written, "Let the earth put forth grass", as well as "And the earth put forh". 'The answer is that, though ascribed to the third day, this actualy took place on thefourth day, andit was included inthe acount ofthe third day merely to indicate the unbroken continuity of the creation, Fre the fourth day onwards He disclosed His work and pro- duced an artifice forthe funetion ofeach one (or the fourth day is the symbol ofthe fourth leg of the celestial Throne). 'urthermore, the activities ofall the days, whether of the fiat or the second triad, were male dependent on the day ofthe Sabbath, asitis written, "And on the seventh day God Finithed." This i te Sabbath, and thie i the fourth foot af the celestial 'Throne, What, then, you may ask, is implied in 'My Sabbathy ye shall observe", which seems te point to two Sabbaths ?The answer i thatthe phural form indicates

2que Z0HAR (6
the eve of Sabbath and the Sabbath itself, which merge into 'each other without a heeak-' 'Atthis point he driver who was following them interposed 'withthe question: What is meanc by And ye shall reverence my sanctuary" (Jbid.)?" R. Abba replied "This designates the sanctity of the Sabbath." What then,' he said, "is the sanctity of the Sabbath ? "It is the sanetity. which was onfertedl nan it (ebm abo IF that ib 68) Grguel the Sanger) 'thou makest the Sabbath to posses no sanctity of its oven bit only such as rests on it from above,' "Tt is indeed so! (said R. Abba), 'asi is written, "And call the Sabbath a delight, and the huly of the Lord honourable" 13), where the "Sabbath" and the "holy of the J" are mentioned excl separately.' "What, then, is the holy of the Lord"? "It is the holiness which descends from above to seston it' 'Mut' (argued the stranger "if the holiness eimanasing from on high is called. "honourable", evidently the Sabbath itself is not so called, and yet itis 'written, "And thou shalt honour it" (Ibi) Said R. Bleaear to R. Abba, 'Ceise arguing with that man, for he seems to know some mystery of which we are ignorant. 'They then said to him: 'Say what thow hast to say." He commenced thus: Ie fs einen: 'eth Shabilothai (My: sabbaths") (Lew. '9%, 30), The particle eth indicates that in the preeepe of the Sabbath is to be included the limit of the Sabbath walk, 'whieh i two thousand cubits i all diections""My Sabbaths 's.a reference tothe higher Sabbath and the lower Sabbath, which are two joined together as one. 'There was till one Sabbath left unmentioned. Fesing humiliated she pleaded before the Creator, saying, 'O Lord of the uaiverse, since the tiene whee 'Thou didat erate fou merely 'day nf Sabbath', but surely a day smust have for ompanion arnigh." Said the Lord to hee, "O my daughter, 'how art Sabbath, and Sabbach T will call thee, But 1 will tonfer on thee an even more glrious crown." He then made proclamation, "And ye shall fear my sanctuary" (Ibid. "This Sa reference tthe Sabbath of the eve of Sabbath, whic spires fear, and upon whieh fae rests, And it is the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself who identifiod Himself wit ave heen alle sha) Puovocur 2 her, saying "I/am the Lord" (Jbid). have furthee heaed" (Cortinuedl the stranger) "the following. esponition from my. He stressed the particle eth as signifying the limit of the Sabbath walk. "My Sabbaths," he said, denotesthe circle and the square within,* and corresponding to these two the sanctification recital consists of two parts, one the verses 'Gevesis 1, 3, commencing Vaikhul (and were completed) and the other the sanctification proper (Kiddush). Vaikule contains thirysfive words, and the Aidush contains thiety= five words, making together seventy, corresponding to the seventy names of the Holy One, blessed be He, by which the congregation of Israel is crowned. On account of this circle and squste, the Sabhuths here referred to come 'under the injunction of the ward "keep" used in the second version of the 'Ten Commandments (Devt. vy 42) as it is writen hece, "ye shall keep my Sabbaths". For the other, the highest Sabbath does not come under the injunction of 'Shanor (keep), bur is under that of Zaldor (remember), 'which steed nthe first version of the Ten Cosnmandmente (Exod. xx, §), since the Supreme King is hinted at in the 'word Zabdor (cemenber). For this reason He is elled "the King with whom Peace dwells", and. His peace is within the injunction of suhor (rememiie). And this is why: there {no contention in the supemal realm, because of the 80- fold peace here below, one for Jasob and one for Joseph, asitis writen, "Peace, Peace, to hie tha is far of and to bi 19)= "to him that is far ff" refers t0 Jacob (64), "and 10 him that is near" refers to Jowph. "To ium that is far" is parallel to "From afur the Lord appeared unto me" (Jee. ¥NN, 3), 8 well a8 10 "And his sister stood afar off" (Kod. 11,4; "and to Iv that ss eae" parallel 'wy "pew gods who came up since a nea time" (Devt, xXx From afar" signifies the superaal point which situated in His palace, and in regard co which it is said "ye shall Keep", on of amar (hee, refers to the point whieh is situsted ia the centre and which is most These sue and pint were sey the Cabal smo the hee hate Sera

44THE ZOHAR (6a
be feared, as the penalty of transgression is death, as itis iritten, "Everyone thet profansth ie shall surely be put £0 death" (Ex. xxt4, 14); ie, those who penetzate into the space of the cirele-aquare, treading on the spot where the 'central point is situated and damaging it—these shall surely he put to death, OF this itis writen, "Ye shall fear." 'That point is called dn (I) (Lev. xt, 30), and upon it rests the Unknown, the Most High, the unrevealed One which is YAIWH (the Lord), both being one." R, Eleazarand R. Abba. 'ame up to the stranger and Kissed him. 'They said: "N all this profound knowledge thou hast displayed, is it meet that thou shoulést journey behind us ? Who art thou ? they asked him. 'Do not ask," he sai, "but let us proceed on our 'vay and together lt us discourse on the Torah. Let each one say some word of wisdom to illamine our way! They asked him, 'Who charged thee to make this journey as an ass= driver?" He said to them, "The letter Yod waged war with lettess Kuph and Samebh, make them join me. The Kap refused to leave its place since it could not exist for 8 moment elsewhere. 'The Samehh refused 10 move from its place lest it should cease ta support those that fill, The Yod then came to me all alone and hissed and embraced me. He 'wept with me-and said, "My son, what shall Ido for thee?

1will go and lead myself with a plenitude of good things
and of presioun, sublime and myst symbols, and chen Till, 'ome to thee and help thee and put thee in possession of two 'clestal letters superior to those that have departed, to wit the word Yesh (plentifulnes), consisting of a celestial Yod snd a celestial Shin, so that thou wilt become possessed of stores of riches ofall Kinds, Go then, my son, and load thy 25." This is why Tam travelling in this mannes' R, Eleszar and R. Abba rejoiced; they also wept and said to him, Fide in front and we will follow thee on the ass' He said to them, 'Have I sot told you that itis the command of the King that I shoald continue this until he who will ride on an ass shall appear" 'They said to him, "Thou hast not told

5thy name, noe thy habitation' He answered, 'My hat
tion is a good one and an exalted one for mea mighty and imposing tower suspended in the air, In that tower there 60-66) PROLOGUE a5 reside the Holy One, blesed be He, and a certain poor man: 'and that is my' plaer of habitation. But Ihave eft and am, become an asi-driver.' R. Abba and R. Eleazar gazed at him, land he discoursed to them words as sweet as manna and honey. They sxid to him, "If thou wouldst tell us the name of thy father we would kiss the dust of thy feet." He said to them, 'Why so? It is not my habit to pride myself on a knowledge of the 'Torah, but my father inhabited the great sea, he was a huge fsh who embraced the great sea from one end to the other; he was mighty and noble and ancient of 'days s0 that he would swallow up all the other Fishes in the sea and then release them again alive and filled with all the 'pond things of the world, Like a mighty swimmer he enuld traverse the whole sea in one second. He shot mie out like fn arrow in the hard of a bowman and hid me inthe place T told you of, and he himself retumed to his place and is hhid in that sea' R. Eleazar pondered alittle and said, "Thou art the son ofthe sacred lamp, thowart the son of the vener= ble Rab Hamnuns, thou art the son of the light of the 'Torah, and yet thot drivest behind us! They both wept together and they kissed him and went forward on thie way 'They further said to him, 'May our master be pleased to let tus know his name He thereupon began to discourse on the verse: And Benaih the son of Fehdiada, etc. (1t Sam. xxi, 420). This verse' he sad, 'has been well explained—in addi- tion to is literal meaning—to signify high mysteries of the 'Tomb. "Benaiah the son of Jehoiaéa" (ie. son of God, son of knowing-God) contains an allusion to wisdom, and is 2 symbolic appellation which infliences its bearer. "The son 'of living man" indicates the "Zaddil, the lle of the universe". "Mighty of deeds" signifies the Master of all actions and ofall celestial hosts, since all proceed fiom him; He isthe "Lord of hosts", the insignia of all His hoses, yet dlstinguished and exalted above al. He is "mighty of deeds, from Kabzeel", a5 if to say: "that great and most mighty tee from what place comer it, from what grade doorit erie ? From Kabzeel" (li gathering of God), from the highest and hidden grade (58) where "no eye hath ever seen, ete." (ls. uxt, 3), # grade which contains the whole and which is

26THE Coma Y [06
the focus of the supernal light, and from which everything isaues. That ight ithe sacred and hidden temple (Hekal) 'wherein is concentrated that divine easence from which all the works draw sustenance, and al divine hosts are nourished and s0 subsist, "He smote the strong lion of Moab" is a teference to the two Temples that existed for Hs sake and 'drew their strength from Hirn, namely, the fist 'Temple and the second 'Temple. But as soon as He departed, the flow of Dilessing from above ceased; "He", as it were, smote" them, 'destroyed them, made an end of them and the sacred Throne 'was overturned, anit in written, "as I was among the captives" (Beck. 1,1), implying that that divine essence called "1" was in captivity. "On the:tiver Khebae™ Ibid.) (Khebar—long ago) means the steam that was ence lowing, but the waters and sources of which were cut off so that it lows no more as formeily. 'The same is implicd in the verse "and the river faileth and dricth up" (Job. xiv, 14): "faileth", referring to the fine 'Temple, and "drith up" to the second "Temple, And so "He smote the two strong tions of Meab'* (Moab: Meab, of the father), namely the Temples of the Father in heaven, by whom they were now destroyed, s0 that all Tights whieh iluminated Isriel were now darkened. Further, "He went dowo and smote the lion": formerly when that stream flowed down to here below, Iseael was fre from cate, 'offering peace-offerings and sin-oferings to atene for his Soul; and from on high descended the image ofa lion visible toll, crouching on bis prey, consuming the offerings lke a rights iant, All the dogs kept themselves out of sigh, fear= ing to venture abroad, But vhen sin prevailed He descended tw the regions here below and slew that hon, not desiring ny more to provide his portion as formerly. He, sit were, slew bim: "Hie smote the lon', most sisuredly, "into the pit", that is to say, In the sight Of the "evil monster", "The same evil monster, secing this, sent a dog to consume the offerings. The name of the hon is Ariel, as his face is that of

4Tion; and the name of the dog is Haladon (not-man), for
itis a dog and has the face of dog, "In a day of snow", chat a the day when on account of Hsrae's sins sentence was pronounced by the Court on high. (The same is implied in 6) pRotocce 27 the verte "She isnot afraid of the snow for her houschold' (Prov, xxx, 21), that sto say, ofthe judgement on high; why 40? "forall her household are clothel with scarlet", and hence ean endure the strongest fire.) Such is the mystical 'meaning of this verse. The next verse reads: "And he smote an Egyptian, a man of good appearance, ete." The mystical 'meaning of this verse is that every time Israel sins, God leaves them and withholds from them al the blesings and all the lights which llumined them, "He smate an Eeyptian"™ this signifies the light of Iaael's great luminary, to wit, Moses, 'who is called an Egyptian, a i is writen, "And they said, an Egyptian delivered us, ete" (Evod. 11, 19), for there he 'was born, there he was brought up and there he was vouch= safed the higher light. "A man of good appearance" (mar'eh) also signifies Moves, of whom itis written "ow-mar'eh (by clear appearance) and notin dark speeches" (Num. sit, 8):

50too "man" (i), as he is called "nan of God" (Deut
[XAxIN, 1), che husband, apie were, of the Divine klry, ead ing it whereso he would upon the earth, a privilege no other 'man had ever enjoyed. "And the Egyptian had a spear Dis hand," to wit, he divine rod that yas delivered hand, as we read: "With the rod of God in my hand" 2,9), which isthe same rod that was created in the twilight 'of the eve of Sablath, and on which there was engraven the Divine Name in sacred letters, With the same rod Moses sinned by smiting the rock, as we read: "And he smote the rock with his rod twice" (Num. x4, 11). The Holy One, blessed be He, ssid to him "I have pot given the rod for that purpose; hy thy life, from henceforwaed ie will not he inthy hand any more." Immediately "He went doyin to him with a rod", ic. He judged him rigidly, "and plucked the peat out of the Egyptian's hand," for from that moment he fost it and never more regained it, "And slew him with his spear," ie, through the sin of smiting the rock with that rod he died without entering the Holy Land, and thereby that illumination was withheld from Israel, "He was more honourable than the thirey" (11 Sam. xxitt, 33) alludes 0 the thirty celestial years from which he was taken to be sent down below, "But he attained not to the first three", that

28'THE xOHAR 1 (6b-70
di, they (the patagehs) came t itm and gave im whatever he craved, but he did not conte to them, and although he didnot enter into their number, yet "Davad put him into hie service", that is, David never detached him from his hear, [74] nor wil here ever be any' separation between the two, David tumed his heart towards him, but he did nat turn his towards Davi, in the same manner as the moon auldresies her peace and hymns towards the sun, drawing him to herself t set up, ast wee, his abode with her, This is implied in the words "And David put hen nto ie service"" R Eleazar and R, Abba prostated themcves before the steanger. Of a sudden they saw him not. They arose and look on every side, but they say him no. They sat down and wept and were unable to exchange a word. After a while RR. Abba said eis assuredly rue as we have been taught, that whenever the eighteous on thee journey busy themsl 'with expositions of the Torah, they are favoured by visits from the other world; fr it x dear that it was the venerable Rab Hamnuina who appeared tu from the ether World 1, reveal teal hee things and nov before we could recognize him, he has vanished." 'They arose and tried to drive the asec ut could not make them go, and again tred, but could tot. 'They became frightened and let the animals behind. "That spot is called until this day "Asses place. RR. Eleasar cownmenced to dcourse thus: how great the abundance of thy goodnes cic tho hat Laid up forthe that foar thee, ee. (Ps. xx, 32). "ow great isthe heavenly bhounty which the Holy On, blesied be He, ath reserved for those who excel in righteousness, who shun sin and devete themselves tothe study of the Torah, shen they ascend the world to come, Tt isnot writen simply "thy goodness" but "abundance of thy goodnes', the ame expression a it the verse "They utter the fare' of the abundance of thy goodness" (Ps. cstv, 7), 0 it, te delight which therighteous njy inthe world to come in the presence ofthe Everlasting seo "abundant in goodness towards the honse of Taree {Is Lai, 7). We may also Red enshrined in his pasage 3 mystery of wisdom, in which all other mysteries are enclosed We translate: "0 Mal, great is thy goodness, et." Mak

7PRovocur 9
("How or "What" ha already been explained. Rab ("abun= dant or "great" alles to the song and mighty tee theres another anda smaller tee, but this oe sll, reach into the highest heaven. "Thy goodness" alludes tothe light that was created on the fist day, "Which thou hast Jai up for those who fear thee, since He has treasured it Lp fr the righteous the world to come: "which thou hast 'wrought alludes tothe higher Gar-Eden(Garden-f-Eden, Paradise), asi is writen, The plas, O Lord, wich thou hast wrought for thy dwelling" (Exed, Xv, 17) t0 wi "Thow hast wrought for them that trust in the". "In che aight of the sons of men alludes to the lower Gun-Euden where all the righteous abide, se aprite clad i» rexplendent estore resembling their corporeal gure in this world; this is meant by "in the sight of man", Le. preening the likeness of th people ofthis word. They stay thee fora time, then rise in the tir and ascend tthe celestial Aademy, which isthe Gane Een above; then they rise again ad bathe in the dey rivers Sf pre lean and then descend and retain Bake oad fometimes they appear to men to perform for them miracles inthe manner of angels, as we have just seen the Bight of the "Sacred Lamp", without, however being vouchsaled an ine sight into the mysteries of Wisdom, so fara: we could have Wished." R. Abba sid: "Ie is writen, "And Manoah sid Lunt his Wie, We all surely die, because we have seen God" Judg. ki, 22). Atbough Munoah was ignorant of the abject ofthe apparition, he neverticless argue, "Since iis 'writen for man shall nt sce mean lve" (Exod. xxxt, 20), anda we certainly sw Him, we sll therefore die" And we were privileged tose that light which accompanied us, and Ine ar slave, because the Holy One, blesed be He, sent it 0 usin order to reveal to us the mysteries of Wisdom, Happy is our portion "They continued thei journey and reached a ceruin bill a sunset. The branches ofthe tees on the hill began o shake fd rule aid hole forth ite byrne. While walling they heard a reounding voice proclaim: Holy sons of God, who are mterspersed among the living of yonder world, ye who are the lamps of the Academy, remsemble into your places

2swe zouae 1 (arb
to regale yourselves, under the guidance of your Master, in the study of the 'Torah.' Ln feae and trembling they stopped and sit down, Meanwhile, a voice went forth again and peo claimed", ye mighty rocks, exalted hammers, behold the Lord, lo, Him whose appearal 'many' colours, mounted on His throne: enter then into your place of assembly." At that moment they heard a loud and, 'mighty sound issuing from between the branches ofthe tees, and they uttered the verse: "The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedar (Ps. aX, 5), R. Eleasar and R, Abba fell upon their faces and a great fear came over them. 'They then arwse fn haste and went on theie way, and heard nothing more. "They lefi the hill, and when they reached the house of IR Simeon the son of Lakunya they saw there R, Simeon the son of Vihai, and they rejoiced [78] exceedingly. R. Simeon said tb them, 'Ascuredly ye traversed a path of 'heavenly 'miracles and wonders, for as L wan sleeping just now T hid a vision of you and of Henaiah the son of Jehotada, who was sending tou two crowns by the hand of a certain elder crown yeas witha, Assuredly the Holy One, blessed be He, twas nn that path, Further [saw your faces asi teansigured. Ri Joe contahed: "Well have Je suid that "dhe sage io superior ( the prophet' K, Bhazar then approached aad this head between the knees of his father and told hit all Mechel upper] ii tens Guiken'ventiatondneae

0Lord, Lhave the report of thegand Lam afraid" (Habak.
11,2), hesaid, "This verse did Habakkuk exelsim atthe when he reflected on his own. death and. his. renurrection through Elisha, Why's he named HaftaKkuk ? Becauseit fsywitten, "Arthisseaton when the time cometh round, thou shalt be embracing (HoBeBeth) a-son" (1 Kings 1¥, 14), and he—-Habakkuk —was the son of the Shunammite. He received indeed evo embracings, one from his mother and tone fram Hlsha, ast is written, and he put his mouth upon, hhis mouth" ({bid. 34). Inthe Hook of King Solomon have found the following: Ie (Elisha) traced on him the mystic appellatun, consisting of seventy-2wo names, For the alphi- netic eters that his fae fad frst engraved on hiny had own off when the child died; but when Elisha embraced kins

7PROLOGUE 3
names, Now the number of those letters amounts to wo hundred and sixteen, and they were all engraved by the breath of Elisha on the child so ss to put again into hima the 'breath of life through the power ofthe levers of the seventy 'wo names. And Elisha named him Habakkuk, a name of 'double significance, alluding in its sound to the twofold em- bracing, as already explained, and jn. its numerical, value (HLB.I.V, K, =8,2,100,6, 100)totwohundredand sixteen, the number of the letters of the Sacred Name, By the words his spirit was restored to him and by the leters his bey parts were reconstituted, 'Therefore the child was named 'Habakkuk, and it was he who sid: "O Lord, Uhave hesed the report of thee, and I am afrud'" (Haak. tl, 2), that is to say, Lhave heard what happened to: me, that I tasted of the other world, and am afraid, He then commenced t0sup> plicate fer himself, saying, "O Loed, Thy work" which Tow 'hast accomplished for me, in the midst ofthe years", I pray, "et its life be". For he who is bound up with the eycles of past, 'years has life bound up with him, "In the midst ofthe yeurs 'make it known", to wit, that stage in which there ino lite" JR. Simeen then wept and said: Talo feom what Thave heard am seized with fear ofthe Holy One, blessed be He." He then tuised his hands above his head and said, "What privilege was foryou to see face to face the venerable Rab Hamnuna, the light of the Torah —a privilege I have not been geanted." He then fll on his face and saw him uprooting mountains, and kindling the lights in the temple ofthe Messigh. R.Han- nuns, addressing hie, said, "Master, inthis other world thr wilt be the neighbour of the teachers of the Lav in the presence of the Holy One, blessed be He." From that time fonward BR, Simeon narmed R, Eleazar his son and R. Abjna Penicl (fice of God), in allusion to the verse, "For 1 have sen God face 0 face" (Ge. 0, 31) Ty tHe Beeryxiye. R. Hiya opened his discourse thus: The begining of wisdom isthe far of the Lard; ol good under standing have all they that do hereafter. His praise endureth for 'reer (Pa. xh, 10). He aid: "Instead of "the beginning of x 'THe EONAR 'wdom" it would be more appropsi 'dom ithe fear of the Lord', since the fear of the Lord isthe final object of wisdom. The Pualmist, however, speaks 'of the highest order of wisdom, which can anly be reached through the gate of the fear of God. 'Ths is implied in the verse "Open to me the gates of righteousness... . This is the gate of the Lord..." (Ps, cxvit, t9-20). Assured, with= 'ou entering through that gate one will never gain access to the most high King. Imagine a king greatly exalted who sceens himself from the common view behind gate upon ate, and at the end, one special gate, locked and barred, Shith the king: He who wishes to enter into my presence 'iat fret ofall pave through thar gate. So here the First gate to super-Wisdom is the fear of God; and this is what is meant by reshith (beginning). The letter Heth (2) indi- cates two things joined together, namely (wo pons, one shrouded in mystery and one eapable of being revealed; and as they are inseparable they therefore are both joined in the Single term reshith (beginning), i, they are one and not to, and he who takes away the one takes away the other ax 'yell, For He and His name are one, as itis written "Ths they may know thit thou and thy name of Lord art alone (Ps. Lxxatty, 19), Why is this frst gate called "the fear ofthe Lord"? Because i i the tree of good and evil, Ifa man dleserves well its good, and if he deserves ill tis enil. (Sa Hence in that place abides fear, which is the gateway to all that is good. "Good" and "understanding" are two gates which are as one. R. Jose sad: "The term "A good under standing" alludes tothe tree of lfe which isthe knowledge of 'good without evil. "To all that do hereafter": these are "the Sure mercies of David" (Is, Lv, 3), vi, they awho suppore the stady of the Torah, For they who support the study of the 'Torah are, we may say, doing something, whereas thove who are merely ocupiel in its study are for the time being ni 'ding. Through thie activity "his prise endureth for ever tnd the T base securely." R, Simeon was sitting and studying the Torah during the right when the bride was ta be joined to her husband.! For one abides on 8a) PROLOGUE 2B swe have been aught that all the members of the bridal palace, during the night preceding her espousals, are in duty bound to keep her company and to rejoice with her in her final preparations forthe great day: to study all branches of the "Torah, proceeding from the Law to the Prophes, from the Prophets to the Holy Weitings,and then to the deeper inter= pretations of Scripture and to'the mesteries of Wisdom, a= all these represent her preparations and her adocrments, The bride, indeed, with her bridesmaids, comes up and remains with them, adorning herself at their hands and rejoicing with them all that night. And on the following day she dacs not center under the eanopy except in their company, they being, Called the eanopy attendants. And when she steps under the 'eanopy the Holy One, blessed be He, enguires after them and blesses them and crowns them with the bridal crown: Ihappy is thei portion | Hence R. Simeon and all the companions ywere chanting the Scripture with exultation, ach one of theen making new discoveries in the Torah. Said R. Simeon to them, 'O any sons, happy & your portion, for on the morrow the bride ill not enter the bridal eanopy except in your company; {for all those who help to prepare hee adornments to-night 'will be recorded in the book of rememibrance, and the Holy One, blessed he He, sill bless them with seventy blessings 'and crown them with crownsof the celestial world" R. Simeon 'opened his ditcourse thus: The heavens declare the glory of God, ec. (Ps. xix, 2). He said: "The inner meaning of this verse is as follnys, When the bride awakes an the morn af hher wedding day, she begins t» prepare her ornaments and decorations with the ad ofthe companions who have rejoiced 'with her al that night, ax she with them, On that day there assemble in her honour hosts upon hosts, ating each one of those who have helped in her adornment on the previous hight, As soon asthe bride betolds her spouse, "the heavens declare the glory of God". "The heavens" are the bride groom, who enters under the bridal canopy, "Declare" (meSaPeRim) signifies that they radiate a brilliance lke that of asapphite, sparkling and scintillating from one end of the 'world t the other, "The glory of AU" (God) signifies the

34THE ZOMAR 1 ($0.86
'glory of the bride which is called £/ (Ged), as ivi writen Sand El (God) hath itdignation every day" (Ps. vit, 12)yall the days of the year itis called £7 (God), but now When she centers under the bridal canopy it is called Glory. Tt is aso at the same time sil called Al (God), signifying glory on lor, splendour on splendour, and dominion on dominion, 'Thas, at that time when heaven enters ito the canopy and irradiates her, all those companions who joined in her ador tent have their names recorded there abavé, as ite written, "and the firmament showeth his handiwork" (Jbid. xix, 2), the words 'his handivork" being. an allsion to those who have entered intoa covenant with the bride. The confederates of the covenant are called " the works of his hands", a5 we real the work of our hands establish thou it" (Ps. X¢, 17) 'Thisis an allusion tothe covenant that isengraven on man's bay Rab Hammuns discoursed thus: Suffer not thy mouth t0 brig thy flesh into pul (Ecel. x, 5). This isa warning to man sotto utter with his mouth words that might suggest evil thoughts and so cause to sin the sacred body on which is stamped the holy covenant, For he whe does this is dragged inte Gebinnom. 'The angel pressing over Gehinnom is called Duma, and there ar tens of thousands of angel of destruction Under him. He stands a its door, bur these who have eare- fully guarded the sign of the holy covenant he has no power to touch. David, after his affair with Uriah, was in great fear. Duma entered into the presence of the Hely One, blessed be He, and said: [84] ""O Lord of the universe, itis writen in the Torah: 'And the man that commiveth adultery sith ancther man's wife, et.' (Lev. x, 10), and iti also written Aud with thy neighbour's wife ec. (bd. wim, 20), Now, 'David has misused the sign of the holy ccvenant: what shall bbe done to-him #" Said the Holy One, blessed be His name: "David is pure, and the holy covenant remains untouched uch an at the creation of che word ie wie revealed was assigned to hi "Hf before 'Thee it was revealed, yer it was not revealed

0him."
"And furth 'whit was done was done lawfully, since 8) Provocur 35 very ne wg ut omar it given illo divorement * yen so, he ought to have waited three months, which he did not." "That rule only applies where there isa risk that she may. be pregnant. In this ease, however, itis known to Me that Uriah never came in unto her, in witness whereof My name is ealed in his, as he is sometimes called URIYaHl and some- 'times URi¥al1U, to show that he never had intercourse with her. '0 Lord of the universe, 1 must repeat my plea. If to "hee it was manifest that Uriah never eame in unto her, was it manifest unto David ? He ought then to have waited three months. Further, if David was aware that he never came near her, why then did he send an order to him to go home and 'iit his wife, ast is writen, 'Go down to thy house and wash thy fee" (11 Sam. x1, 8) He certainly was not aware of it, and indeed he waited leven more than three months, namely, four months, a5 we hhave been taught: The ewenty-fth day of Nissn David called the people to arms, and the people assembled under Joab fn the seventh of Sivan, when they went and smote the Ammonites. They remaired there the months of Sivan, 'Tans, Ab, and Elul, and on the twenty-fourth of Elul happened the incident of Bath-Sheba. And on the day of Kippur (Atonement) the Holy One, blessed be He, forgave him that sin, According to another account, on the seventh day of Adar David called the people to aims, and they assembled on the fifteenth of Iyar, and on the fifteenth of Elul happened the incident of Rath-Sheba, 2nd the day of Kippur he was vouchsafed the message: "The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die! (Zid. xt, 13 'vit, thou shale not de atthe hand of Duma." "0 Lord of the univere, [have still one argument, that the himelf pronounced his doo, saying: "As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this deserveth s die" (Ted, 5) He thereby condemned himself, and may charge against him stands" Thou hast no power ever hi since he made confession ra THe 2onART [8b-o {to Me and said "I have sinned against the Lord', although he was not guilty. As for his sin in the matter of Uriah, Ipresceibeda penalty forhim which e suffered immeciatly." "Dina returned then crestlallen this place, Its in regard to this that David said: "Unless the Lord had been my help, hua litle would have been wanting that my sout hed dwelt 1, 47) That is, if the Lord varied but lite, ete." Only ly the hairbeendth which is hetween me and the 'Sinister Power" did my soul escape from the elutehes of Duma, A man should therefore be on his guard not to let lip an incautious word lite David, since he will not be able o plead vith Duna 'that it was an error" (Eee. v, 5) like David, 'who was vindicated by the Holy One, blessed be His Name: "wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thy hands?" (Ibid), ie, the flesh of the oly fowvenant which the man has defled and which, asa punish= 'ment, is stretched in Gehinnom at the and of Duma [R. Simeon resimed:] "The words "And the firmament showeth his handiwork' (Ps. 21%, 2) are an allusion to the Companions who kept the bride company and are the euston iste of hee Cortnant Evety de of therm Bie (ellatH wad: 'enibeth, "The 'frmament" here mentioned ie that one therein ate the in, the moon, the stars, and constellations, and which constitites the Recordiag Book. He telleth and inseribeth every one of them-as denizens of the heavenly Palace, whose desires shall uluays be accomplished, "Day Unto day utiereth speech" (Ihid. 3); each sacred day of the cave days utters the praises of the companions and re- peats each word of exposition whieh as exchanged between, them: day unto diy espresses that word and extol it, "And fight unto night eveaeth knowledge" (Ihid.): cha all the forces ruling in the night extol to one another the deep know= ledge of the companions, and become their devoted friends There is no pec, there are no werds, neither i their voice heard" (Ibid. 4): this efers to wordy conversation, which i not heard by the holy King, ior does Me desire to hear it. But a for those words of wisdom, "ther line ia gone out through all the earth" (/bid,s), they trace (ja) the measure and the 9] PRovocue " plan of ll celestial and all erestial habitations: itis indeed through those words that the heavens were made, and hOUEH the praises sung in those words thatthe earth Was 'made. Nor tink that they rest only in one spot: we are told "and their werd to the end ofthe earth (6d) Who, thea, inhabits the heavens made by them ?"In them hath he set 3 tent for the 'on in them and if his chamber" (id 6), gail coursing through those heavens, When he emerge fon thet and hastens another tower in another place, "his going forth is from the end of the heavens" (Ibid, 7), he issues from the supernal world, which is as the "extremity heaven" above. ""His circuit" (Ibid) is the extremity of heaven" below, viz the circuit ofthe year, which goes com pletely round nd extends from the heaven to our Armament. 'And there is nothing hid from his heat" (Ibid), i.e. from the heat of this circuit, and from the circuit of the sun, which cembraces every side; from this "aothing is hid', Le. no one ofall the upper grades is hid frown him, since all eome round to him, and not one is hidden "from his heat" when he equrma to them in fll strength, All this praise and Iaudation 4s on account of the Torah (Lav), as weread, "The Law of the Lord is perfect, ete." (Ibid. 8-20). We find inthis passage sistimes the mention ofthe Lord (tetragrammatan) as well ax fix-verses from "The heavens declare" up to "The Law of the Loris potfect". Likewise the frst word of the Torah, bereshith (in the beginning) consists of six letters, and the rest of the first verse, 'created God the heaven and-the arth", also consists of six words. The six verses of our text correspond w the six lewers, and the six. mentions of the Name correspond to the six words." 'Whilst they were sitting there entered his son, R, Eleazar, andi, Abba. He said to them: Of a certainty the face of the Shckinah has arrived, and i efor this reason that T named 'you Penicl, heeause you hase seen the Shekinah face ta face. 'And now that you have learnt the secret of the verse con= 'ering Henaish the son of Jehoiada, an exposition indeed 'emanating from the Ancient and Holy One, as well as of the 'rue zoman {oa Lam going to expound to you snather even more mysterious vere in anther passe." He then opened his dscourse thus: "Its written, nd he slew am Egyptian, st manof great stature, five ebis igh (Chex, 33). Tete there the same hidden meaning asin the verses just mentioned. By "the Egyptian" is mean that wellknown figure who Was "very great inthe land of Egypt inthe eyes ofthe servants, ce" (Exod. x1, 3). He vas great and honoured, as Rab lammiuna explained. Tn the heavenly Academy, however, the vords ish middah (ean of dimension) were explained Vine whote dimensions extended feom one end of the roel to the other", which were the dimensions of the fest man, Adam. Those "ve cubits", then, must have been such ato extend from one end of the world to the other. 'etuen, however: "And in the Eqyptian's hand was a spearike a weaver's beam' (Che. xt 23). Thsallues to the dls ed which wasn Moses! hand, and on which thee was engraved the divine ineffable Name radiating in various eam Thnations of letters. These same leters wer in possession of eral, who was called "weaver", and hia schol, a8 itt veriten: "Them hath he filed with wisdom of Beat «= of the craftsman and the skilled workman, and the weaver, te." (Exod. 2x, 35), So that rod ad engraved on ithe in fable Name on every side, in forty-two various combina- tions, which were illumined in diferent colours. The rst of the vers as he already explained, Happy this portion! Come, dea friends, come and let us renew the preparations ofthe bide in this night. For everyone who Keep vigil with hr in this night will be guaeded above and below and vill complete the year in peace. Iti of them that i is written: "The angel of the Lord escampeth round about them that fexc him and delivereth them: O consider and ase thatthe Lend in good" (Ps. amv, 8:9) TR, Simeon opened his discourse thas: "Te is written, J the biginning God created. "Phis verse must be well hid 10 heart for he who afirms that there is another god. will be destroyed from the world. It f weiten: Thus shall ye say tito them: The gods that bave not male the heacens dnd the ath, these shall perch from the earth and from ander the 9-98) rrovosve 5 Feavens. (Jee. x, 11). Why has this verse [98] been written in Aramaic, withthe exception ofthe st word? Teeannot be i 'because the holy angels do not pay atention to Aramai ddo not understand it, for then all the more was i approp for this verse to be written in Hebrew, so that the angels should acknowledge its doctrine. 'The true reason certainly is thatthe angels, since they do not understand Aramaic, shall 'not come to be ealous of man and do itn evil. For in this verse the holy angels are comprised, athey are called lake (gods, powers), and yer they have not made heaven or earth, Instead of wearta (and the earth) there should have been written the proper Aramaic word wear'a. Arka, however, is fone of the seven nether earths, the place inhabited by the descendants of Cain. Wher Cain as banished from the face fof the earth, he descended inta that land and there propa: gated his kind. That earth consists of two sections, one en- veloped in light, the other in darkness, and there are two ciel, one ruling aver the light, the other over the darkens 'These two chiefs were at perpetual wat with each other, until the time of Cain's arrival, when they joined together and male peace; and therefore they are now one body with two heads, 'These two chiefs were named "Afrira and Kastinon 'They, moreover, bear the likeness of holy angels, having six wings. One of them had the face of an ox and the other that 'of an eagle, But when they became united they assumed the image of a man. In time of darkness they change into the form of a two-headed serpent, and craw! like a serpent, and swoop into the abyss, and bathe in the great sea, When they reach the abode of "Uzea and 'Avacl they sti them up and rouse them. 'These then leap into the "dark mountains", thinking that their day of judgement has come before the Holy One, blessed be His Name. 'The to chiefs then swim about in the great sea, and when night comes they fly off to Na'amah, the mother of the demons (hedim), by whom the first saints were seduced ; but when they think to approach her she leaps avay six thousand parniangs, and assumes al shapes and form in the midst of the sons of men, s0 that the suns of men may be led astray after her. These to chiels then fly about theough the world, and return to their abode,

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where they arose sensual desires he descendant of Can {bear citden, The heaven above hat arth in ot His orm, 'ce ae the scans sed and harvest the same as ous, but {hey only een afer eyes of many years These Elin then, "eho have not made heaven and earth [may] perish from? the upper earth ofthe univer, to that they sould fave no dominion there, should not traverse it and should net auc men to pllte themselves "through anything that 'hanceth by ight and for tat "they wl perish from the arth and from underneath the heaven" wich were made inthe mare of Ele, as has been explained above. Its for that reason that tha vere has been writen in Arama, 0 that the angel should noc think that they are alluded to and tobringsccsation against un Thi, oo, inthe secret ofthe ins word, wt, Bad, which Being anaeted name, could not te altered foto Aramaie" TR. lear eid his iter: *Reatding what is written in the sane passe, Who tl not fear thee, King of the Coils? Foti ata ths (Sr. m9) i eau igh Cilogy ? His father said to him "least, my on, this ase his been variously explained bt for te all meaning tre must go ts continuation, which rade: For enong all the ete me of the Genin, andi all ther royalty, ser is ree like wrt the (Ibid) "Phe purpose of this ver is t0 'irs the few ofthe sinners, who Bay that God doce nat row ther thought, and to anwer tern according their fay, Once, be ensnued'& Genie philosopher eameto vit sme and argued with me thu You sy tht your Gol rules inal the heights of heaven, and that all che heaven Hoss ad legions cannot approach Him and do nt kno His place Ino, then this vem, saying "For song all the wee men ofthe Gentiles, andin all hi royalty there soe ie unto thre doe or extol His very highly, for what special gory iether for Him nis to find song perishable men His ike? a} And farther, you infer fom the pasage whith says 'ind there Hath nec arisen a prophet sine in ral ile nee Mowe" (Deut, ney, 19) that oly in Taracl bath there not aren, bubaraong the other eations of the word here did dae one hike him; and on this srslogy Iam justified in toa] rnowoaue " infecring that only among the wise ofthe Gentiles theres none like Him, but among the wie of Taral theres I tha 6 =, sch 4 God, the like unto whom isto be fourd among the 'wise men of Israel, cannot he all-powerful, Loc closely into the verse and you wil ind that i bears out my inference

1replied to him: Indeed, what you say is actually true. Who
rises the dead to life ? Only the Holy One alte, blessed be He; yet Elijah and Elisha care and rised the dead to life, 'Who causes san to fll? Only the Holy One alone, blessed bbe He; yet Bij came and kept back the rin and then made it descend again, through his prayer, Who made heaven and arth? The Holy One alone, blessed be He: yet Abraham came and they were Brnly sablched for hin sake. Who regulates the course ofthe sun? None but the Holy One, blessed be He; yet Joshua eane and ordered ito stand stil in ite place and it stood ati, a iti writen, "And the sun 'ood and the moon stayed (Jos. x, 13), The Holy, One, blesed be He, issues decrees, but similarly Moses sued decrees, and they were fulfiled. Further; the Holy One, brlested he He, pronounces judgements and the righteous of Isracl annul them, as it is rite, "The righteoosruleth the fear of God" (1 Sam. xxi, 3). And further, He com 'manaed them to follow iterally 9 His ways, ad to be lke Him in every way. 'That pllosopher then went to Kfar Sokal and beeame a prosoyt, and was given the name 'of Joxe Katina (humble), and he studied the 'Torah dili- 'gently until he became one f the most learned and pious men of that place" No continued R. Simeon, 'we must ok more closely Jno thin verse We remark at nce that another passe says "Allthe nations ate ax nothingiefore him" (Is. 3,17). What special glorfeation is then here expressed? Is He only the King ofthe Gentiles and not the King of laa ?theexplana- tion inthis We find in every place in the Seeinures that the oly One, blessed be He, has desired to be wosied only by Terael and hay attached Hie same wo Tesh only an i ie 'writen: "The God of lara, "the God of the Hebrews (Exod, vy, 1,3), and furthers "thus saith the Lard, the King Of Torael" (Ix xv, 6), 'The rations of the woe thesefore

2tite ZOuAR L [100
said: We have another Patron in heaven, since your King hhas dominion only over you alone and not over us. Hence the serse comes and says:"" Who Would notfear thee, O King of the Gentiles ? Forasrauch as among all the wise men ofthe nations", alluding thereby to the great chiefs in heaven a poinied over the Gentiles. The expression "and in all their royaky there is none like unto thee" alludes to the eeest government, inasmuch as there are four rulers on high who, by the will f God, rule over all the other nations all that, not one of these has the power to do the smallest thing except as He commands them, as iti written: "And he doth according to his will in the hos of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the eat 'onesof the Gentiles ate, then, the heavenly super from whom they draw their wisdom; and the phrase {nll their royalty" implies the heavenly over-lords of the nations, as has just been explained, This is the plain meaning of the passage. But in ancient books 1 have found it ex- ppourded as follows. Although these heavenly hosts and legions (who are "the wise of the nations and their royalty") Ihave the contro of the affairs of this world and have each their miasion alloted te them, iho of them ean. accomplish the least thing "like unto thee"? For Tho excellest in Thy 'work on high and below above all of them. "There is not like unto thee, © Lore", that is; What Holy Unknawn is there who acts and is lie 'Thee above and below, and is on an equality with Thee in all respects? The work of the Holy King is heaven and earth, but "they are vanity, and their costly idols cannot profit" (I, stv, 9). OF the Holy One, blessed he He, ite writen, "In the beginning God created ete", but of the lower royalty itis written "And the earth was chaos and confusion." Ssid R. Simicon to the companions: 'Come all you that 'participate in this bridal festivity, et each one of you prepare decoration for the bride.' To BR. Eleazar his son Ie said zar, off a present to the heavenly bre so that on the 'morow thou mayest be deemed worthy to behold her when she enters under the bridal canopy amidst the songs and hhymas of the heavenly retinue." R, Eleazar then opened bi 100-108] PROLOGUE 8 Aiscourse thus: Who is this that cometh up ('Olah) out of the weildertess?(S. 8. tt, 6). The words Mi (Who ?) and zoth (this) denote: the separate holineses of the two worlds Joined in firm bond and union; and this union is said so be "olah (a. burnt-offering), and so holy of holies. For Mi is huly of holes, and seth through its union with this becomes

1burrt-offering (lah), which is holy of holes. "Out of the
wildemess": because she had (0 come forth from there in trder to become the heavenly bride and to enter under the nuptialeanopy. Further, hetermmidbar(wilderness) signifies speech, as we read. "and thy speech (oumidbarehh) is y that midbar which isthe utterance [108] of the lips she poes up. Further, we have been taught as follows: It is written "these mighty gods; these are the ods that smote the Epyptians with all manserof plagues in the wilderness" (bamidber) (1 Sar. 1, 8). What does this verse mean ? Was it only in the wilderness that the Lord showed them all His great deeds, and not in inhabited country ? Not so, only the term bamidbar means "by means of the word", analogous to the expression "and thy speech (cumiabarckh) is comely" (S. S. 1¥, 3), oF tthe expression 'and fom the word (ounimidhor Ui he mountais arse' (Ps. 13%, 7). Similarly here, "she rises up out of the word" thats by means of uttered words she mounts up and nestles between the wings of the Mother, and then by the same means she descends and rests on the heads of the holy people Her ascent is effected thus, At the heginning of the fay. when a man rises inthe morning ti in duty to less his Master as so0n as he opens his eyes. 'The pious men of 'old used to have by them a cup of water, and when they awoke in the night they washed their hands and rose and 'occupied themselves in the study of the 'Ter, having first Pronounced the appropriate blessing. When the cock crows {is precisely midnight, and at that momene the Holy: Onc, bets be He, isto be found in company withthe righteous inthe Garden of Eden (Gan-Eiden),Icis therefore proper then to pronounce the benediction and study the Torah; but one may rot pronounce the Kenediction with unclean hands. S two, a any time that one rises up from his sleep. For whilst

4'THE ZOHAN [rob
a man is asleep his soul departs from him and an impure spirit comes forth and setles on bis hands and defiles them: hence one may not pronounce a Hlesing without first wash ing them. Why then, one may ast, is it forbidden, after oxe hhas been in a privy, to pronounce a blessing or wo ead even 'one word of the Torah, even in the daytime, without washing the hands, although one has not been asleep, so that one' soul did not depart, and one's hands have not been defiled thy an evl spirit ? Why is it forbidden even if one's hands are quite clean ? The answer is: woe to those who pay: 20 heed to the majesty of their Master, and do not realise on what this world js founded. These is in every privy a spiit Which feasts on filth and excrement, and setles forthwith the fingers of a man's hands.! R, Simeon further diseoursed at follows: "He who rejoices fn the festivals bur does not give to the Holy One, blessed be He, His due share, is selfish, the Satan tries co injure him and aceuses him hefore heaven, compasses his downfall, and causes him endless trouble. To give the portion of the Holy One, blessed be He, means to make glad. the pocr, according to one's abity. For on these days the Holy One, blewed fe Hey geen 10 lool at thoes broken vaeeala of Hitt He cames ro them, and, seeing that they have neching with 'which to rejoice on the festival, He weeps over them ard reascends on high with intent to destroy the world. 'The iiembers ofthe heavenly Academy then present themeelves before Him and plead: "O Lord of the universe, 'Thou art called gricious and merciful, let 'Thy compassion he moved 'upon Thy children." The Lord makes answer: "Verily T have rade the world only on the foundation of mercy, as itis 'written: I bave said, the worl is built on mercy" ( and the world is estblished on it." Then the ly angels proceed: "O Maser of the universe, beheld so-and-so, who eats and drinks and is in a position to gire charity but negleets to do so." 'Then the Accuser comes and, having chimed and obtained permission, sets out in pursuit of that man, Whom have we in the world greater than. Abraham, whose benevolence extended to all creatures? Once, we are told, he prepared a fast, ae itis written: "And: PHoLoGvE 6 the child grew, and vas weaned. And Abraham made great feast on the day that Issac was weaned" (Gen xxi, 8). To that feast Abraham invited all the geeat men of the age, Now 'we have been taught that whenever a banquet is given, the 'Accuser comes to spy out whether the owner has rst cis- 'pensed charity and invited poor people to his house. If he finds that isso, he departs without entering the house. But if not, he goes in and surveys the merry-making, and having taken note that no charity had been sent to the poor nor had any heen invited to the feast, he ascends above and brings accusations against the owner. Thus, when Abraham invited

10his feast the great men of the age, the Accuser came and
appeared atthe door inthe guise-af 2 poor man, hut no one 100k notice of him. Abraham was attending on the kings and 'magnates; Sarah was giving suck to all their babes: for people did not believe that she bad born a child, and said that it was only a foundiing from the street, and so all the guests brought theie infants with them, and Sarah suckled them in the presence ofall, asi is written, "Who would have [119] unto Abraham that Sarah should give children suck ?" (hid. 7) (note the plural "children"). The Accusing 'Angel wis still standing at the door when Sarah said: "God hath madelaughter forme" (bd. ¢). The Accusing Angel then presented himself before the Holy One, blessed be He, and Said to Him: "O Master ofthe world, Thou hast said "Abra- ham is my frien given anything to 'Thee or to the poor, nor hath he offered Lup to Thee so much a3 one pigeon ; and further, Sarah suid that Thou hast made mock of her" The Lord made ansiver: Who in this world ean be compared to Abraham theless the Accusing Angel did not stir from thence until he had spol all the festivity ;and the Lord after that commanded Abraham to offer up Isaae as an offering, and it was decreed that Sarah should die frum anguish on account of her son's danger—all this because Abraham did not give anything to the poor! IK, Simeon further discoursed thus: "It is written, Then Hezekiah turned his fac to the reall, and prayed unto the Lord. (is, sxavtis, 2) Observe bow powerful ix the might of the

6THE EONAR T [ua
"Torah, and how it surpasses any other force. For whose 'eeupies himself in the study of the'Torah has no fexr of the powers above or below, nor of any evil haps of the world For such a man claves to the tree of life, and derives knas= ledge from it day by day, since it the Torah that teaches 'man to walk in the true path, and gives him counsel how to repent and return to his Master so that He may asnul the 'evil decreed against him; nay, even if it has heen further decreed that it atall not be annulled, yet its annulled and ro longer threatens that man in this world. Hence itis in- 'umbent upon a man to occupy himself jn the study of the Torah day and nicht without cesstion, in acenedaace with the text, "and thou shalt meditate therein day and night" (jos. 1,8); and ifhe abandons such study, it is as though he abandoned the tree of life. Here, then, ia wise counsel for fran, When a man gocs to bed of a night, he should scknow- ledge wholeheartedly the kingship of heaven, and should entrust his soul to the keeping of heaven: he wil then ime mediately be guarded agains ll diseases and evil spirits, and they will have no poser over him. In the morning, when he from his bed, he should bless his Master, proceed to His house, bow down before His sanctuary with ave, and then olfer up his prayer. For this, he must take coansel of the holy patearchs, as i is writen: "But as for me, in the abundance of thy lovingkindness will I come into thy house will bow down towards thy holy temple in the fear of thee" (Ps, ¥, 8). This verse has been interpreted t» imaply that a'man should not enter the Synagogue without first taking counsel of Abraharn, Isaac, nd Jacob, forthe reason that itis they who instituted prayer tothe Holy One, blessed be He. 'Thus, in the verse just mentioned, the words "but

1for me, in the abundance of thy lovingkindness will
Tome into thy house" are an allusion ¢o Abraham; "I will bow down towards thy temple", w Isaac; "in the fear of thee", 9 Jacob. I€ is tung, then, to snvoke their names fit and then enter the synagogue fo offer up one's prayer. Of such 2 one it is written: "And he said unto me, 'Thou art my servant, Tseacl, in whom I will be glorified' (Is, suv, 3) tia-t] PaoLoGue " R.Phineaswasa frequent vistorat the house of R. Rehuma, 'who lived on the shore of the lke of Gennesareth, He was a man of note, well advanced in years, and had lost his sight. Said he one ay to R. Phineas: 'Verily I have heard that our colleague Yohai possessesa precious jewel" I did look at that jewel, and it flashed like the radiance of the sun when he 'emerges from his sheath, and flooded the world with alight 'whieh radiated from heaven ta earth and speead to the whole 'orld, until the Ancient of Days was duly enthroned, 'That light is wholly contained in thy household, and from that light there emanates a tiny and tensious ray which is shed abroad and ilumines the whole world. Happy'is thy portion ! Go forth, my son, go forth and try to find that gem which illumines the world, forthe hour ix propitious." R. Phineas took his leave and emnharked in a oat in the company' of two other men. He noticed two bieds which were ying to and fro over the sea, and cried t» them: 'Birds, birds, ye that fly about over the sea, have ye seen anywhere the resting- place of the son of Yohai 2" He paused a while and then said: "Birds, birds, go your way and bring me answer.' They flew away and disappeared in the distance, but before R, Phineas left the boat they returned, and one of them was holding in its mouth a writen note stating that the son of Yohat had left the eave together with his son Eleazar. R. Phineas then went to visit him, and found him sadly changed, with his body full of sores. He wept [118] and said' Woe unto me that I see thee thus!" He replied: "Happy is my portion that thou seest me thus, for othervise I would not be what Iam." R. Simeon then opened his dscourse on the precepts of the 'Torah, He sitd: "The precepts of the Torah watch the Holy Ope has given to Israel are all aid down in che frst chapter 'of Genesis in. summary. In the Reginsing God created "This contains the frst precept of all, to wit the fear of the Lord, as itis vriten: "The fear ofthe Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Ps. cxt, 10), as well as: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of + Fics, Son. The reader of. di hapten more i the spied he Bah Ahennoh anf the Zohar

6'ue zouan lib
knowledge" (Prov. 1, 7). Itis the beginning and the gateway tah, and oo this preeept the wile word established. "There are three types of feu: two have no proper rot, while the third isthe eal eae Theres the man who fears the Holy One, bleed be He, in over that his hides may' live and 'ot die, oF lest ke be punished in his body or his possessions; dnd 0 he is in constant fear. Evidently this is not the genuine feat of God. Another man feas the Holy Ore, bleed be He, because fe is afd of punishment in the other wortd an the torture of Gehinnom. This 4 second type which ie ot genuine ear. The genuine type is that wbich makes a tan fear his Master Beaune He's the mighty nier, the rock $a foundation ofall world, before who al existing things areas nought, as i¢ as been sails "and all he inhabitants ofthe earth areae nought" (Din. 1, 3), and place his goat in that spot which is elled yah (leat) R, Simeon here 'wept and said: 'Woe to me iT tell and woe to me if I do bot tell IF tl, then the wicked will know how to worship theie Maser: an 1 do not tel then the companions wall he lee in ignorance of this discovery. Corresponding to the "oly fear" there is an "evil fear" below which scourges ans accuses, and whichis lath for punishing the wicked, Now he whose fea is of punishment and accusation is not endowed with tat fae of God which leads to ie. "The fear shih rests upon him sth ev fear of the lash, Dut oe the fear of the Lord For this reason the spt which called "the (ar ofthe Lon iao called "the beginning of knowledge", Hence this precept is laid down hee, an ita the principle and root of all the other precepts of the 'Torah, He who Sherahes fear dhserves the whole 'Torah, and he who does fot cherish fear dows not eluerve the other precepts of the Torah ance it is the yate of all, Thesefore i is writen Bereshith, through a bepinning, that is, fear, God created heaven and earth, For he who transgresses this transgesses AM the precepts ofthe Tora and his punishment i tobe teourged by theeeil ash, "Thie ks smplied in she worde: "And the earth was choos and confuse (i too), and dark ems was upon the face of the sbyss." This i an allusion to the four Kinds of punishment which are meted out to the sib 12a} vRoLooue o 'wicked: tou (chios) alludes to strangulation, as it ix Jwreten: "a line of (tha) chaos" (0s ts 12, meaning & mesiring_ cord, Bok (confuson) alludes to stoning ("siones of confusion", iid) by the stones which are sunk inthe great abyss for the punishment ofthe wicked "Dark- snes is burning, avi is written: "And i came to pas, when ye heard the voice nt of the midst ofthe darknesn while the 'mountain did burs with fre" (Dest Yy 28), alo: "and the oantain burned with fe into the heart of heaven and Garkness ete" (Uh 1,12): this the fe that rests on the heads of the wickal to consume them, 'The "wind" alludes to beheading by the sword, which whiels ound the wicked Tikes temper, ai is aid: "and the Aaming eword which tured every way" (Gen 1, a4 "Those punishments are meted oot to those who transress the greceps ofthe Torah, and the words which allude to them follow immedatly after the word "beginning", which aymbalises the fear of Gos, which is the summary of ll the precepts. Then folow all the 'tier precepts af the Torah. "The second precept is the one which ia indssoibly bound 'up with the precept of fear, namely, ove; that a man should love his Master with a perfes ove, that which is called "eat love". This is implied in the eomamand: "ah before ine, and be thou wholehearted" (Gen. xt, 1), 0 wit in Tove. This is implied also in the verse: And Gad sai, Let 'there be light, wich alludes tothe perfect love, led rest love: Herein, then, i the precept for man to love his Master truly. Said R. Elearar, 'Father, [have heacd a defvition of pedect love.' His father said to him "Espound iy, my son, whist R Phineas i present, for he teulyprctses it Re, Elezar then eapained thus: ""Great love the love 'which is complete through the union of two phase, without 'which itis not [1a] genvine love; and this is sigaied by the dic thatthe lve ofthe Holy One, blesed be He, has two aspects. There is, for instance, the man who loves Hine because he fas riches, length of Wile, chikten, power 'over his enemies, esses in all his undertakings~all these form the mative of his love. Should the Holy Ore, blessed be He, turn the wheel of fortune against him and being

2THE ZONK 1 faa
suffering upon him, he will change and his lve will be no fore. "This kindof love has no rot. Perfect lve i the kind 'hich remains seadfxt in both phases whether ofafliction tr prospeiy. The right vay of loving one's Mater fs ox- treed inthe tadittonal teaching which says: "even if he Acpriv thee of thylife", Theisen, perfect love embracing fe phases Iva for tis reson that the Tight of craton 'hich fs emerged wn afters withdrawn. When 'ithdtawn slfeng emerged, inorder that there might be this perfect love' R, Simeon embraced his aon and Kissed Himes R, Phinear alo came and Kissed him and Blessed him, saying: "Of a surety, the Holy One, blessed be He, sent me ar, and thine he mewn sey gh" which as old was smerny hcnchold and wind larine thevwhole world' Sait, Elerar:'Amutely, fear must fot te forgotten in any ofthe precepts, fart all inthis precept. Tov, which requires the session of ear How i ths to Se achieved? In thi way, Lave ax has bee si, eay in one five be inspira by invour, seh 48 Fches eg of I, 'len, plenty and afluence. In such cases aman shoul Te ever fauneed Hy the fear lestsn may cause a revere Of such a one it i written: "Happy ie the man that feareth alvay" (Prov, xxi, 14), since he combines fear and love. "The "adverse ifience™ (ara aha) whieh bring sles anil chaisernent ix thereore pcesary in the Worl, ince itroues in man fetes for trough Chetierent san tecores fied with the true fear o ed and does notharden tis heart: for if he does, then "he that hardeneth is heart thal fall ino evil" (Ibi), to wi, into the funds of chat adverse influence" which ie called "cil, 'Thos we hae love whichis complete in both phates, and from this rents

2true and peri Jove
The third peep sto acknowledge tht thee is 3 God all-powerful and ruler of the vnivere, and to make due proclamation of his unity crery day, as extending in the six perma ditions, and to und teen all eos the she 'words contanedin the Shema Tau, and in tecking these to devote oneself wholly to God. The word Ehed therefore must te dvelton so the length of six words: This implied in the v20-126] PuoLogue St passage, Let the caters under the huaven be gathered together tuntoone place: thats, let the grades beneath the heaven be Unified in itsoasto form one whole, perfect inall thesis ditee= tions. With God's unity one must further associate fear, for 'which reason one must dwell on the daleth, the lat letter of Bhat, the daleth being for that reason written larger than the other leters. And this is implied in the words "and let the dry land bbe seen", that is, let the dalerk, which i a "dry Jand', be associated with that unity. After forming this union fom high it is necessary to repeat the process for the lower 'World through all ts multiplicity in the six lower directions 'This is expressed in the verse we reite after the Sheme, viz, "Bleed. bethe-narce-of the-glory-af Hia-Kingdons for-ever and-ever", which contains another six words expressive of the unity. In this vay, what was dry land becomes fertile soil to produce fruis and flowers and trees. This is implied in the passage' "Ane God called th dy land earth tis by the manifestation of God's unity here below the earth vas 'ly perfected. Ics for this reason that in the account of the third day the expression "thar it was good" appears twice, 'once for the manifestation of the unity above and once for 'the manifestation of the unity below. As soon as that unity was made manifest xt both ends, the text says "Let the earth put forth grasa, that is, the earch was then fitted to produce Tris and flowers according to its apacity. "The fourth precept i to acknowledge tha the Lort is God, sss we read: "Know this day, and lay itto thy heart that the Lord, he is God" (Deut. 1%, 39); namely, to combine the name Elohim (God) with the name Jehovah (Lord) in the consciousness that they form an iniiviible unity. And this, i the inner aveaning of the text Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven. The omission ofthe cau from the word 'emoroth (Ligh) points to complete unity, to the Back light and the white light being only two manifestations of one indivisible light. (r24] 'The same is symbolised by the "white lou by day" and the "cloud of fire by night (Exod. x11, 21); the two phases of day and night are complementary 10 ichother, both forming one whole, in order—as we read— o give light upon earth". Heecin consisted the vin of the

3'Tue 20HAR [ab
primeval serpent who united below but divided above, and Sb eavued the mischief we sil lament. 'The right way, on the contrary, is to mcognise diversity below ut unity above,

0that the black Bght hecomes stholly merged abewe and
aterwards unified in respect ofits diverse elements, and 0 is kept away from the evil power. It is therefore necessary for man to aeknowrledige that "God and "the Lard" are one and the same without any cleavage whatever: "The Lord he is God" (I Kings avits, 39); and when mankind will uni- 'erally acknowledge this abwolute unity, the evil power (stra 'ra) itself will be removed from the World, and exercise no tore influence on earth, This is hinved in the word meoradh, Which is made up of or (light), surrounded by mdeh (death), just as the brain, srmbotic of tight, is enveloped in 4 mem= lane symbolic of the baneful power (sitea ahra) which is: 'death, Should the light (oF) be removed, th leters on either 'side would coalesce and form death (mh). "The fifth precept. Ue is written: And Gad said, Let the swoters star eth the mocernent of lsing ereaturer, This verse cntains three precspts~to labour ie the study of the Torah, teheget children, andl to ciecumeise amale child on the eighth dy by removing the foreskin, It hehoves a man to labour in the study of the Torah, to strive to make progress init sa as thereby to forty his soul and his spit: for when a man 'ceupies himself in the study of the Torah, he becomes 'eedowed with an additional and holy soul, as i ie written: "the movement of living creatures, that is, a soul (nefesh) decived from the holy centre called "living" (haya). Not 30 fs it with the man who does not cccupy himself with the stidy of the Tarah- auch s min har nb holy soul, and the heavenly holinesa does not reat upon him, But when a ran cezmestly studies the Torah, then the motion of his lips wins for him that "living soul" an he becomes as one of the holy angels, a itis writen: "Bless the Lord, ye angels of hi (Ps. cit, 20), wo wit, those who occupy' themselves in the study of the Torah, and whe ate therefore called Is angels fon earth. 'The same are alluded to in the words: "and let birds fy on the earth, So rauch for is reward in this word, 'As regards the other world, we have been taught that the s2b-33@) proLanve 5 Holy One, blessed be He, will provide them with wings as 'of eagles, enabling them to By across the whole universe, a5, itis written: "Bue they that wait for the Lord shall rene their strenjth, thea shall moune up with wings 28 eagles (le: siy, 31). This, then, isthe interpretation of that which is written: "Let the waters swarm with the movement of living creatures": the 'Torah, which is symbolised hy water, possesses the virtue of implanting in her devotees a mobile soul derived from the place called "living" (haya), as has already been said. David alluded to this when he suid: "Create in me a clean hear, O God", so that I may be devoted to the Torah, and thus "renew a steadfast. spirit (Pn, 12), "The sixth precept is to be fruitful and multiply. For he who performs this precept causes the stream (of existence) to be perennially flowing so that its waters never fail, and the sea is fll on every side, and new souls are created and emerge from the "tree" (of life) and the celestial hosts are Increased in company with those souls. This is implied in the words: Let the staters scarm vith the movement of lcing sous. 'This is an allusion to the holy and imperishable covenant, 10 the perennially rushing stream, the waters of which continually swell and produce new swarms of souls for that "living" (hayah), Aloog with the souls as they arise there appear many winged beings who fly about all over the world, and whenever a soul descends into this world the winged being that isued together with jt from that tree accormpanies it 'Two accompany each soul, one on its right hand, and one Teft. Ifthe man is worthy they constitute themselves ipenrdant, ae jt fe wetten> "For he wll give hie angele charge over thee! (Ps, 3¢t, 11), but if not, they act as his accusers.' Said R. Phineas; "Three [132] is the angels who keep guard overa man who is worth writen: "If there be for him an angel, an ant among a thousand, to voueh for m Seth 23) Hf dete be for i intercessor" signifies another one: "one among. a thousand to vouch for man's uprightness" tea third one." R. Simeon said ¢ "Five angels, since itis written further: "And He is cee Uk a We ZOHAN fae racious unto his, and sath", "And he i gracious unto Kim' implies one, "and ssith"" implies anotiter one." R. Phineas replied: "Ie s aot so, as the expresion "And he 'racious unto Kim refers only to the Holy One, blewed be Tie, no one elae hing the power to dispense grace" Said Simeon: "You are fight. Now" (be continued) "be who refrains from propagating his kind derogates, if one might Sey 3, from the general form in which all individual forms Br comprehended aod causes that river to cease in ove and impairs the holy covenant on all sides. OF such a one itis witen, "And they shall go forth and look upon the corcanses of the men that have rebelled against me" (Is. Liv, 34)—"aguinst me" assuredly, This is the punihment for the body, and as for his soul, she will not enter at all "yithin the curtain", and will be banished from the next word "The seoenth precept sto citeumcse the male chit on the cighth day ater bith and thereby te remove the deflement the foreskin. The "living" (Aayah) of which we have spoken forms the eighth grade in the sale, and hence the sou which us flown away from it must appeat before ion the eighth this way iets made clear that this is eally & hy living" and not from Ad this salud toi the words: Let the waters scan, which in the Book of Enoch are explained ths: Let the wate of the holy aced be stamped with the p of the "soul ofthe living", which isthe form of the later yo imypresed on the holy fesh in preference to al her marks. The words, "and fet winged beings fly on the arth" aecateferece to Bab, who traverses the universe in four swoops in under to be present atthe initiation of the hil inno the holy covenant. I is proper to prepare for him 'seat and to proclsim, "This isthe thtone of Ela" other- Wise he wil not be peesent, "The words "And the Lord 'euted the two great fishes" refer to the two operations, crcumeision and uncovering, Whick represent the male and female principles; nd every living soul that' moves" ref to the stamping ofthe sign of the hay covenant, which is a oly living soul, as has heen explained. "Wherewith the 134) PRoLoouE 35 'waters swarmed": 10 wit, the supernal waters which were deawn towards that distinguishing mark. And ie for that reason that the Lsraclites were stamped with that sign of holiness and purity; for just asthe supernal holy beings are 'marked in such a way as to distinguish between the "holy region" and the impure "unboly region", so the Israelites are sarked in order to distinguish between the holy people and the idolatrous nations who are derived fom the impure "un- holy region', as has heen already explained. And in the same way as the Lsraclites themselves are marked, 0 are the clean animals and bieds peemitted to them for food matked off from the otheranimalsand bieds eaten by the Gentiles. Happy the portion of Israel! Phe eigich precep is to lve the proselyte who comes to bie circumised and to be brought under the wings of the "Divine Presence" (Shehinal), which takes under its wings those who separate themselves from the impure "unholy region' and come near unto her, a8 itis written: Let the earth ving forth a living soul accondng to its Rind. Think not that the sime "iving soul" whick i all mankind. The expression there are tany compartments and enclosures one within the other in that region which is called "living", beneath ite 'wings. The right wing has two compartinents, which branch 'out from it for two ether nations who approach Tsrael in 'monothelatic belie! and therefore have entrance into these compartments. Underneath the lef wing there are two other 'compartments which are divided between two other nations, 'namely Ammon and Moab. All these ae included in the term aout of the living'. There are besides under each wing other ccancealed enclosures and divisions from whence there emanate 'eouls which are assigned to all the proselytes who enter the fold—these are indeed termed "living soul", but "according to ite kind' they all enter under the wings ofthe Shekinah, and no father. 'The soul of Israel, on the other hand, emanates from the very body of that tree and from thence flies off into the very bowels of that earth. This is hinted in the words: "For ye shall be a delightsome land" (Mal. a, "Al "ae moat aly ate otra" <6 'THE LOWAR [130-136 12); Ig for that reason that Israel i called a "dating son", for whorn the bowels, a8 # were, of the Shekinal yearn, and thatthe children of era are called those whe are horn from the womb, and not merely from the outer wings. Furthermore, [138] the proselytes have no portion in the celestial tree, much less in the body of it; their portion is 'only in the swings and no more. 'The righteous proselytes, therefore, rest underneath the wings of the Shekinah and fre urited tot there, but penetrate no further, as has already been explained, Therefore we read: Let the earth bring forth

1living soul according tots kind, namely, cattle, and creeping
thing, and east of the earth after its kind, that is co say, all derive their soul from that source called "ving", but each, according t its hind, from the grade appropriate to itself "The ninth precept is to show kindness to the poor and 10 provive them with their nevdsy asi written: Ler us make nun 9 cur image, after owe likeness; that is, "let us make an" as a compound being, including the male and female, in our image", to-wit, the rch; "after our Tikeness, to it, the poor, For the rich are from the male side ard the poor from the female, For-as the male and the female act in eo 'operation, showing compassion to each other and mutually exchanging benefits and kindness, xo must man here below 'ct rh and poor in co-operation, bestowing gifts upon each ther and showing kindness tn following mystical observation in the Rook of King Solomon, He who of his ovin pul shows pty to the poor will retain for ever unchanged the original form of the firs man, and bby thit impress of the likeness of Adam he will exercise ddomision overall creatures of the world. 'Ths is implied in the words? "And the fear of you and the drsad of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, ete." (Gen. rx, 2) that i all and every one will bein fearand in dread of that image which, chanieterises man, For thisis a noble precept, by means of whieh man can rise in the image of Adam above all other freatures. This we know from Nebuchadnezzar who, in spite fof the dream that he had seen, as fong as he showed mercy to the poor suffered no evil effects; but as soon as he selfchly nneglested the poor, what do we read about him ?"While the 138) PRoLogue Pa 'word was in the King's mouth, ete." (Dan. 1¥, 28), hisimage ged and he was driven from men... "The tenth pricept isto put on tephilln (phylacteries), and thereby to attain in oneself the perfecto of the divine image, according to that which is written; Aud the Lard created man 'mn His ton image" R. Simeon discouceed in this connection fon the text "Thy head upon thee is ike Carmel" (8. $. vt, 6). "This verse; he said, "has already been explained in a 'way, but its true meaning is 4 follows: "Thy head upon thee is like Carmel" alludes to the phylactery worn on the hhead above, containing four sections of the 'Torah which represent eich yne of the four leter: of the Divine Name (Tetragrammatoa) of the most high King. Que teachers have tld us that the verse: "that the name of the Lard ix callat upon thee, and they shall be afraid of thee" (Deut. xxviu, 10) alludes tw the phylactery worn on the head which repees sents the Divine Nate in order ofits letters, Thus, the Rist fection, "Sanctify unto me all the fist-bors, ete" (Eid, "itt, 2) represents the Vad, which isthe ist ofall the supernal sanctities; "whatsoever opencth the womb" (Jbid.) ix an allusion 0 the slender stroke underneath the sod which 'opens the womb to bring forth ftung fruit. 'The secon section, "And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee, ete." (Ibid 5) represents the Hé, significant ofthe pace the 'comb of which wae opened fy the Yd. Ie i through Aiftr 'mysterious gates and forecourts and enclosures that the Yad makes an opening and enters that palice, causing the sound to issue from the great Shofar. For the' Shofar was closed fon all sides and the Yad came and opened it to cause the emission of its sound; and as soon as he opened it he mitted a blast as-a signal for the frecing of the slaves. It iyas at the blowing of that Shofar that the Israelites went forth from Egypt. And the same will be repeated at the end of days. Indeed, every deliverance is preceded by the blow ing of that Shafer, Hence the deliverance from Exypt is in- cluded in this seston, since it rested from that Shofar when 'under the pressure of the Vad it opened its womb and pro- duced its sound as a signal forthe deliverance of the slaves 'So much as regards the He, the second letter of the Divine

8THE 20a [a3b-ige
Name, 'The thitd section contains the mystery of the unity jo the proclamation: "Heat, O Israel, ete." (Deut. ¥1, 4), and is represented by the Ve, which isthe summary ofall, expressive of absolute unity, combining and absorbing all "The fourth section "And it shall come to pass if ye shall Ihearken, ste" [bid 88, 13-21) presente the two influences [4a] to which the Congregaion of Terae!—the muanifestatian 'of God's power below —issubjected. This, then, iepresented by the second Hé, whieh takes up the previous letters and 'contains them, The phylactries are thuslitrally thecounter- part of the leters of the Divine Name. Hence "Thy head 'upon thee is ike Carmel" an allusion to the phylacery worn on the head; and the "hair (dallath, lit. poverty) of the head" sigaifies the phylictery worn on the hand, which js poor in comparison to thit worn on the head abave, but Which nevertheless has its own perfection like that which it symbolises akove, "The King is held captive in the tresses thereof, thar is, the heavenly King is uly enshrined in these compariments of the 'Tephillin through the Disine Name therein contained in manner due, Thus he who egips himself with them is'a man made in the image of God, for just a8 the leners of Holy Name are united to express th divine essence, soina degree they are united by him (through, the phylucters). "Male and female he ereated them" i a reference to the phylactery of the head an the hand, which together make one whole

3elecenth prevept into give the tthe of the praduce of
the land, This ineludes two precepts, one the tithing ofthe land and the other the giving of the fist fruits of the tse for itis writen: Behold [have given you eoery herb yelling seed, which is upon the fac ofall the earh. The expression "T have given!" is applied to tthe in the parsge: "And unto the children of Levi, behold, [ haye given all the tithe in Israel" (Num, xvi, 21), and itis wetten besides: "And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree i the Lord's" (Lev. 8xV1, 30), "The twelfth prreep i ta ing a4 an afer, the Frat the tree, which is alluded 16 in the words: and every tree in whichis the raat of a tree yielding seed, that is, although he phylactery of 144] PRoLOoUE 9 'whatever & conseerated to: God may not be eaten by man, yet God permitted them (the Levites) 19 enjoy all Hist and the frst fruit of the tre. J hace gitem to you ; that is, 0 {you and not to the generations in the fusure. "The thirtenth precepts to redeem the first-born son 0 a8, to attach bin firmly ro life. Fer every man is attended by wo. angels, one of life and one of death, and by redeerning his first-born son the father ransoms him from the angel of death, 'who therefore has no power aver him. 'This is hinted in the words: And God sate everything that he had made, to wit, creation as a whole, am, Dhol i ras good ; this alludes t0 the angel of death, 'Through the act of redemption, then, the life-angel is strengthened, whilst the desth-angel is weskened. 'By means of this redemption the child obtains life ax has already been stated ; the evil power leaves him and has no rors held 06 him "The foxrteenth precepts to observe the Sabbath day, which 'was the day of rest fram all the works of Creation, 'This precept 'comprises two parts, one to rest on the Sabbath, and one to invest it with holiness. We have to observe that day as a day fof rest ar has already been sai, for the reason that it eae

4day of rest feom the beginning, the whole work of Creation
hhaving been completed before this day was sanctified. After the day was sanctified there was left a residue of spirits for 'which no bodies had been created. Why, it may be asked, could not God have waited to sanctify the day until He had Created bodies for those sprite ? The reason is that from the tree of the knowledge af good and evil there went forth the evil power" to seize control ofthe world, and so a number of diverse spirits set out to acquire for themselves bodies by force. As soon as the Holy One, blessed be He, sa this, He raised out of the tre of life a wind that blew and lashed against the other tree so that the "beneficent poser" arase and the ay was sanctified, For the creation of bodies and the stirring of spirits on that night eemes about under the xe of the "beneficent power" and not of the "evil Had the "evil power" forestalled on that night he world could not exist, on account for an instant, But the Holy One, blessed the "beneficent power" of the evil spirit

60THE 2OMAR T [auyh
bbe He, provided the cure in advance; He hastened the sane Feation of the day before the evil power prevailed, and so the world as established, and instead of the evil power becom~ ing-master of the world asit thought to be, on that night i svasthe "beneficent power" which obtained the victory, and therefore sacred hudies and spirits are being built up on that night under the influence ofthe "beneficent power". Itis for that ceason thet the marital intercourse of the wise and learned men who know this (248) sweetly, from Sabbath. to Sabbath. It is, moreover, the night on which the "evil power", being supplanied by the "beneficent power", roars boat the world, accompanied by his many hosts and legions, and pris into all places where people perform their conjugal intecourse immodest) and by the light ofa candle, with the 'sll that the children born of such intercourse are epilepsies, being potsescd by spit ofthat "evil power", which are the 'ude spirits ofthe wicked, called demons (hedim) ; these are pursued and killed by the demon Lilith. As soon as the 'ays sanctified the evil power becomes weakened and with- 'draws into hiding all the night and day ofthe Sabbath, with the exception of Assimon and hie band, who roam about to 'apy out indecent intercourses and then go and hide them= selves in the cave of the great abyss, Av soon ax Sabbath 'ends, innumerable hows and companies of them commence to By and roam to and fro through the world, and iti to ward them off thar the recitition of the Hymn against Calamities (Ps. xc) has been instituted, so as to destroy theie power over the holy people. Wher, after iauing peesipleately to obisin dominion over the holy people, they see them engaged in prayer and hymns, recting the "Separation" (Hbdalah) in of the prayer and afterwards aver the eup, they vier about until they reach the wilderness, May the Merciful One deliver us from them and from the evil over! Our teachers, of blessed memory, said: "There are three persons tho bring evil upon themselves. Ones the man whe utters curse against himself; a second, he who throws: 'on the floor pieces of bread of the sige ofan olives the third, fhe who lights his candle atthe close of the Sabbath before the 'congregation hag reached the recital of the "Sanctification" 140} PROLOGUE 6 a the close of the service, for thereby he eauses the fre Jn before its "There ga place in Gehinnom assigned for those who profane the Sabbath, and those who undergo there their punishment 'eurse the man who has lighted a candle before the time and [pronounce against him the verse: "Behold the Lord will hurl thee up and down witha man's throw, yen, Ke wil wind thee round and round' (Is. xt, 17), Fort isnot lawful to kindle a light at the close ofthe Sabbath before Israel has pro- nounced the "Separation Blessing" in the prayer and the "Separation Blessing" over the cup, a until that time it ie still Sabbath, and the sanctity of the Sabbath sil rests on us, Atthe moment, however, when we recite the "Separation Blessing" over the cup all the armies and camps which have charge over the weekdays return each (0 is place and to is appointed service, For with the entrance of the Sabbath and at the moment when itis sanctified, holiness awakens and spreids its dominion over the world, and worldliness is divested of its rule, and until the close ofthe Sabbath they do not retum to their place; and even when the Sabbath loses they do nit return to their places ntl the fxrtelites pronounce the words, "Blessed art Thos, O Lord, who separates the holy from the profane." Then holiness with= draws and the armies appointed over the weekdays ro themselves and return each 10 is place and office, But yet they donot assume control until they Yecome illumined 'through she light of the candle, for which reason they are tilled "ery lights", because they spring from the Rery clement, which gives them the power to mil over the terres: 'tial world. All his is only when a man lights aeandle before the congregation has finished the recital ofthe "Sanctification" at the close of prayer. But when he waits until the close of that recital, the wicked in Gehinnom acknowledge the justice 'of the Holy One, bletted be He, and confer fr that man the 'blesings which the congregation recite in the words "So God sive thee ofthe dew of heaven, etc." (Gen. xxvit, 28), ag well 4x: "Blessed shalt shou bein the field, ete."(Deut. xsvitt, 3). "Happy ie he that considereth the poor, the Lord ill Ueliver him in the day of evil" (Ps, sta, 2), We should have He zonaR [gs the esl day"; but the expression "the day of evil" alludes wo the day when the evil power" obtains per- mission to seize ran's soul, Hence, "Happy is he that con- -idereth the poor", to wit, the man sick of suul, so as to heal him of his sins before the presence of the Holy One, blessed be He, According 9 an alternative interpretation, "the day 'of evil" allides to the last day of judgement of the world from which such a one will be delivered, as it says: the day of evil the Lord will deliver him', to wit, the day when the world is placed in the power of that evil one to chastise it 'Tn text reas ff ese abrupt 15] BERESHITH! Gen. 1.1-¥ At the outser the decision of the King made a tracing in the supernal efulgence, a lamp of scimtillation # and there issued within the impenetrable recesses ofthe mysterious limitleee a shapeless nucleus? enclosed in a ring, neither white aor black nor red nor green nor of any colour at all, When he took measurements, he fishioned colours to show within, and within the lamp there ined a certain effuence from Which colours were imprinted below. 'The most mysterious Power enshrouded in the limitless clave, as it were, without cleaving its void, remaining wholly unknowable until from, the force of the strokes there shone forth supemal and mysterious point. Beyond that point there is no knowable, and therefore i is called Revlith (beginning), the creative tuterance which isthe starting-point of al I in written: And the intelligent shall shine Uke the bright reas of the firmament, ad they that twom many t righteousness like the stars for ever and ecer (Dan. xi, 3). There was indeed a"brightnes" (Zohar) The Most Mysterious struck its void, and caused this point to shine. 'This "beginning" then ex tended, and made for itelf a palace for is honour and glory. 'There it soved a sacred seed which was to generate for the benefit of the universe, and wo which may be applied the Seriptural words "the holy seed isthe stock thereof" (Is, Vi, 13). Again there was Zoher, in that it sowed a seed for its silory, just a the silkworm encloses itself, as it were, in a palace ofits own production whichis both usefuland beautiful "Thus by means ofthis "beginning" the Mysterious Unknown, 'made this palace, This palaceis called Elohim, and this doctrine i contained in the words, "By mcans of a beginning (i) created Elohim." 'The Zohar is that fom whick were created all the creative utterances through the extension of the point fof this mysterious brightness. Nor need we be surprised at the use of the word "ereated" in this connection, seeing that

3Ape I. Fa, uke: menremene' "a, xpmi!
4% THE 20HAR 1 [asa-tsb 'we read further on, "And God created man in his image"" (Gen. 1, 27). A further esoteric interpretation of the word dershith is a follows. 'The name of the starting-point of all is Phyeh (I shall be), The holy name when inscribed at its fide is Blokim, but when inscribed by circumseription! is Adder, the hidden and recondite temple, the source of that 'which is tically caled Reshith, The word Asher (i.e the in, Reok from. the word berehith) is ana- grammatically Rosh (head), the beginning which issues fram sid, So when [156] the point and the temple were firmly. fstablished together, then bereshith combined the supernal Beginning with Wisdom. Afterwards the character of that ged, and it vas called "house" (bayith)."The ton of this with the supernal pcint which i called rusk yives Dereith, which ia the name aned 20 long as the Howse was uninhabited, When, however, it was sown with seed to make it habitable, it was ealled Elohim, hidden and systerious. The Zohar was hidden and withdrawn so long as the building was within and yet to bring fon, and the house 'wat extended only so far as to find room for the holy seed Beiore it had conceived and had extended sufficiently to be habitable, i was not called Blohin, but al was sill included in the term Bereshith After it had acquited the name of Elohim, it brought fonh offspring from the seed that had been implanted in it 'What is this seed ? It consists of the graven letters, the seeret souree ofthe Terah, which issued from the fist point "That point sowed in ihe palace certain three vowel-points, frolem, shureg, and hitey, which combined with one another And formed one entity, to-wit, the Voice which issued through their union, When this Voice ised, thee sued with it its nate which comprises all the letters, hence itis written th hashummaim (the heavens), +o wit, the Voice and its mate 'This Voice, indicated by the word "heaven", isthe second Elyeh of the sacred name, the Zohar which includes all Teters and colours, in this manner. Up to this point the words "The Lord ourGod the Lord" (Yhwh Elohena Yoh) represent three grades corresponding w this deep miystery of 136) SrnesurTat 65 bereshith bara Elohim. Bereshth repeesen's the primordial 'mystery, Jura represents the inysterious surce from which the whole expanded. Blain represents the force whishaustains all below. The words ei hashammain indicate that the wo latter are on no account to be separated, and are male and female together. 'The word th consists of the letters aleph and tau, which include between them all the lerers, as being the fist and last of the alphabet. Afterwards Aé was added, so that all the letters should be attached to he, and this gave the same attah (Thou); hence we read "and Thou (ve-attah) 'Keepest all of them alive" (Neh. 1x, 6). Eth again alludes to Adovai (Lord), who isso called. Hashammaim is Vhoh in its higher signification, The next word, ve-eh, indicates the firm union of male and female; it also alludes Io the appellation 'ee- Yio (and the Lord), both explanations coming w the same thing. Haaretz (hearth) designatesan Elokim corresponding tothe higher form, to ring forth fruit and produce. This name ishere found in tree applications, and thence the same name bbranches out to various sides. 'Up to this point on'y extend the allusions to the Most Myjteriis whe carves out and hullde and vivifen-in mysterious ways, through the esoteric explanation of one verse. From this point onwards bara shih, "he created six", from the end of heaven to extend from the supersal mystic essence, through the ex- pansion of creative force from a primal point, Here has been inscribed the mystery of the name of fony-two letters, 'And the intelligent shall shine (Dan. Xt, 3). This "shining corresponds to the movement given by the sceents and notes to the leters and vowel-points whieh pay ebeisance to them tnd march after them like troops behind their kings. 'The letters being the body and the vowel-pointe the animating spit, together they keep step with the nojes andl come to 3 File with them, When the chanting of the forwaed, the letters with their vowel-points march behind thers, and when it stops they also stop. So here: the inteli- gent" correspond to the letters and the owel-points; brightness" to. the notes; "the firmament" to the flow of the chant through the auccession of notes; while "they that m7 8 z0unn Terie tur righeoine" rend the pilots, which the march of he pe and Wingo ceny thesia "eee she tea cy th heya foe togter in ter own yal manner trough secret fru From this itu the whole wax extend Agi, Fhe words "andthe eligert sal hes the brig te frames ny be feted to the pila al oct et seta palanin® optgon The wae and itl feta the sera lr an oct ine they ponder Trib understanding a hinge nec forthe upholing of the palace Ths une othe term ieliget™ (medi as is gale nthe pasage: "Blemed is that cosieceh (ms the por (Peat, 2) They willabine, fori they tho sine and ive High, they cant wel consider and digtllnahrapstrecep tt Ermaen [16] nany of tht Goarea hich enc upon thee "itligent" we have menoned and of whieh i Mere "And over the Redo the HYayoh tere the iene aa fame, ke the esour of the eee he bightee is hi hie amis the Fray sd hich i Regen $i ci hana he "firmament" sd the Het ech iis Veins telight fhe Torah ich ries percally witha cae, Now THe FARTH HAD BEEN YoID AND WITHOUT Foust. Tho word hoithah (was), being a pluperfest, implien thatthe earth had bee previously. There was snow in the midst of water, from the action af which was produced 3 slime. 'Then a mighty fire beat upon itand produced in it a refuse, So it was trandformed and became Tohu (chaos), the abode of slime, the nest of refuse, and al Boku (formless ness), the finer part which was sifted from the Toh and rested om it. The word "darkness" in the text alludes to this righty fire. This dasknese covered. the Toh, namely the refuse, and was buoyed up by it. The hoy spirit thar proceeded from Elohim Hayyim (living God), 16a SeRESsmITH 7 and this "was hovering over the face of the waters". When this wind blew, a certain film detached itself fom the refse, ike the film which remains on the top of boiling broth when the froth fas been skimmed off two oF three times. 'Whee Tofu had thus been sifted and puriied, the from it "a great and strong wind rending the mount (1 Kings xix, 11,12). Simtarly Boh was sifted and purified, and there issued from it earthquake, jah. 'Then 'what we call "darkness was sifted, in i fire, ust as to Elijah there appeared "after the earth quake fire", When what we call "spirit" was sifted, there 'was contained in i a stil, small voice, Taku isa place which has #0 colour and no form, and the esoteric principle of 'form does not apply 0 it. It seeme for a moment 0 have a form, but when looked at again it has no form. Everything hhas a "vestment" except this, Hoh, on the other hand, has shape and form, namely, stones immersed in the chasm of 'Toba, but sometimes emerging fram the chasm in which they are sunk, and drawing therefrom sustenunce for the world 'Throngh the for of thele vestrnent they dea istenance from above to below, and ascend from below above, and therelore they ate hollow and strong, These are suspended Jn the expanse; that is to say, sometimes they are suspended in the expanse when they rise out of the ehasm, and game times they are hidden, ta wit, on the "day of cloud', when they draw waters from the abyss to supply therewith Tohu, for then there is joy that Toh was spread in the universe, 'Darkness is a black fire, strong in colour. 'There isa red fire, strong in visibility: a yellow fre, strong in shapes and A white fire, the eolour which includes all. "Darkness" isthe strongest of al fires, and this it was which took hold of Toh Darkness" is fire, but Bre isnot darkness, save when i takes bold of Fokus, 'The syambil for thie iy "his eyes were di oo (Gen. xxv, too, "the countenance ofthe evil one was darkened? because it countenanced the evil one. Hence this fie is called "darkness" because it eested upon Tou and took hold of i; this is the inner meaning of the words and darkness on the « ur ronan t [160166 face af the ays "Sprit" the vote which rets on Hah, fd grasp it and guides ia required. Thin x symbolize in'ahe words "The voice of the Lord is on the waters" (snk 3)sand eo to, "thespirit ofthe Lord was hove ver the fae ofthe waters" Dy "ce of the water is meant Stone suki the abyss 0 called esause water ine fom them. Thus each was provided x beted. Tol inner the isis ofthe name Shedd; Bohy, under that of Zbooth = Darkness, under that of Elim: Spin, under that of Vk We wow understand what hoppened to Elsh: "tere was 3 {trong wind breaking the mountsing, bat the Lard as not inthe wind", Decne this name war not nit, siece Shaddat resides ver it though tbe mystie nature of Toke "Aer the wind there was a quaking, bu the Lord var nat i the "qaking since overt presdes the name of Zeoth, through the matic nateof Ba (hich icaled "quaking (a), been quakes contialy. "After the quaking there Wa ffs but the Lard was atin the fre) Becgne over i Fresca the iam. Sahin from the oe of dian "And seth fie there was» eal ill voices and here at fet fiat bund the name Vink here are in this vere fur clases cureaponing tothe faur soiled "secne of the Id" ard "imi which, being four, ate remvale in ti, Here, tn she raven name of ele ters which teak ebeeniied ar irecene. [a] Axp Gop sai, Let THERE Br Lig; ASO THERE WAS LIGHT. From this point we can. begin 10 discover hidden things relating to the ereation of the world ia detail, For up to this point the Creation hay. heen described in settenl, and lower down the general description is repeated, so that We have a combination of peneral-particuar-weneral Up tethispoinr the whole ys suspended inthe yd in direct dependence onthe finitless. When, however, energy had been feended through the supernal palace alluded (on the Eloi. the teeny "saying" ie used in connection with, 168] weResiTn © the words "And God said". For to that which is heyond no detailed saying' is ascribed; fr although the word bereshith fea creative utterance (maamar fare not used in connection i 'said (cayomer) opens the door to inquiry and understand ing. We define this "saying!" 2s an energy that was culled, 2s it were, in silence from the mystic limitless through the miystie power of thought. Hence "end God said" means that now the above-mentioned palaee generated from the holy seed with which it was pregnant, While it brought forth in silence, that which x bore was heard without. That whieh bore, bore in silence without making 2 sound, but when thet sued from it which did issue, it became a voice which wat heard without, to wit, "Let there be light." Whatever issued 'came forth unde this category. 'The word Veh (let there be) indicates that the union ofthe Father and Mother symbolised by the letters Vid /7é became now starting-point (symbal- ised by the acond You) for Further extension, Lian, axb THERE Was LtaHT. These words imply that there had already been light. This word, aer (light), contains in itself a hidden significance, The expansive force proceed- ing from the hidden recesses of the secret supernal ether 'opened a path and produced from itself a mysterious point (or, rather, the fv Sof (Limitless) chve its own ether and disclosed this pein), Yod. When this expanded, that which was left of the mysteriout AIVIR (ether) was found to be AWR (light). When the first point had developed feom it, showed itself upen it, touching and yet aot touching it. When it expanded, it emerged into being, ard thus wa light (ater) Teft from ether (awit); and this is what we mean by saving that it "had been" previngely; and so it remained. It went up tnd was stored away, and theee was left of icone dot, which continually approaches by invisible paths the other point, touching and yet not touching, illuminating i in the manner the frst point from which it issue Therefore the whole i linked together, and itillumines both oxe and the other. Whe itascends,allascend and are attached to it, and it reaches the place of En Sof, where ii stored away, and all becomes one He tomar [i6b-172 dot of the word Aver is Light. It extended, and there shone forth in it even eters ofthe alphabet, which did. not solidify and remsined flid. Afterwanis Darkness bsued, and 'there isued in it seven other letters of the alphabet, and they tao were not solidified andl remained fui. There then issued the Fiemament, which prevented discord becween the two 'ides, In i there issued eight other eters, making twenty two in all Seven letters jumped from one side and seven from the other, and all were graven inthis Firmament, where they reinahed fora inne uid. When the Rrinarient solidified, the letters were also solidified, and took material shape, Thus there was graven there the Tarah to shine abroad, "Let there hae light": to wit, Bl Guel (great God), that whieh emerged fom the primal ether, "And there was": thi sigoifies Darkness, which is called Blohim. "Light": signitying that the Left vas included in the Right, and 30 from shat which wwe call Bl was produced Elohim. Right was included in Left and Left in Right Axp Goo saw THe LioHT THAT IF WAS GOOD. This ig the Ceniral Column: Ki Tob (that it was good) theew light boveand below and onall ther sides, in virtue of Yheh, the fname which embraces all sides. As Goo pivipgp: He fut away strife, 20 thit the 'hole war in perfect orden, Axp Goo catten, The word "called here means 'called to" or "invited" God summoned to issue forth from this complete Light which was in the exntre a ceriais radiance Which is the foundation of the world, and on which worlds sre esulshed. Fron) lat complete Light, the Cesteal Pll, extended the foundatin, the Life of worlds, which is day. from the side of the Right, Axo THE DARKWRSS NE CALLED XtaMr. He summoned to iene from the side of Darkness 1 kind of fenale moon which rules over the night and is ealed night, and is associated with dona, the Lard of all the arth. The Right emtered into the complete Pillar of the cextre united with the Left, and the primal point thereupon aseended on high and there scind [x7a]the energy. 'of three dots, the lem, the shuneg, and the ine, the seed of holiness (for no seed has been sovin save from this source). 17a) DERESIITHL 'The whole was then united in the Centel Pillay anit pro 'duced the foundation of the world, which therefore is called Kol (al), beeause it embraces the whole in the radition of desire. Meanwhile the Left flamed forthwith its full power, producing at all points of refleation, and from thie ery flame came forth the female mocnlike essence. 'This fuming vas dark beeause it was from Darkness. These two sides produced these two grades, one aule and one female, Unity was retained in the Central Pillar from that surplus of light which was in it. For since that Central Fil was 'omplete in itself and made peace on all-ides, additions was Tent to it from above and from all sides through the 'universal jy in it. From that addtional joy eame forth the foundation of world, which wasalso called Musaf {additional From this issie all the lower powers and spirits and holy souls, alluded to jn the expressions, "Lord of hosts" (Yihkok Zebaoth) and "God the God of spirits (Num. xs, 23) "Night" is "the Lord ofall the earth' from the side of the [eft from Darkness, Tt wat because the deste of Darkness was to merge set inthe Right, and it Was not strong enough, that night spread from it. When night began two spread, and Iefore it was complete, Darkness went and merged iself in the right, and the night was left defective Just as its the desire of Darkness ts menge itelf in Light a iis the denice of night to merge itself in day. Darkness abated its light, and therefore it produces a grade which was defective and not radiant. Datkeess does not radiate save-when it s menged in Light. So night which isued from i isnot lighs save when it 'a menged in day, "The deficiency of nights only compensated hy the Musaf, What is added in one place is subtracted from, the athee. The Msaf contained a symbolism of the supeenal point and of the Central Pills, and therefore wo letters were fnlded in respect of i which were lacking in respect of the right, vie, the eae yo of rytkra (and he called), Hecein i an allusion to the name of seventy-two letters, the tracing of the superal crown. Anp Gop nts, Ler tHane ne 4 rraseantnset 08 nie MIDST OF THE WATENS. Here in the pacticular (day) there

2He z0HNR tye
{ban allio tothe keparation ef the upper frm the lower waters through that which ie called" the Left", Here, Ascord was crested theoogh that which i called "the Left For upto thie prin the text has alluded tothe right, but now tind therefore there seas a increase of fd the right isthe mature of the fight to harmonize the whole, and therfore the whole is 'rtten with the ight, since iti the source of harmony. When the Left awoke there awoke discord, and theough that discord the wrathful fre was reinforced and there emerged from it the Gebinnom, which thor orginited. fen the lft and fontinues there 'Mose in his wisdom pondered over this and dew a lesson from the work of creation. In the work of eeatian there was an antagonism of the let against the right, andthe division between them allowed the Gehinpom to emerge and 0 fasten set tothe lee 'Then the Central Column, which is the third da, intervened and allayed the discord between the two ses, so thit the Ghinnoms descended belo, and the Left became absorbed in the Right and there we peace over Al. Similarly the quareel of 'Korah with Aaron was an Sagonism ofthe lelt against the right, Moses, reflecting on 'shat had happened during the Creation, sag: "Ie acems Tropes to me te compose the difference between the right Ind the left" He therefore endeavoured effect am accord fetween the two. The let, honever, was not ling, and Koran proved abdurate. Moues thereupon said: "Assuredy the Gehinnom i embstering this quarrel, 'The lft ought to strive upwards and absarh isl! in the right, Korsh has no wish to attach himself othe Digher influences and to merge Nimself in the right. Let him, then, descend below in the Je reson why Rorah eefused allow the quareel to be composed hy the inervention of Moses was that he had not entered' upon it for a truly religious motive, and that he had scant regard forthe glory of Gd, and refused to acknowledge His creative power When Mores persived that he had she placed himself out fide the pale, he "was very vroh" (Num, xvi, 13), He was 'woth' because he was ot able to compose the quart a senesntrn 4 thewat very wrth" because they dened the creative power of God, Korah denied (178 this powee wholly, both inthe higher and the tower sphere spied in the phe "when they stove agains! the Lord (Sum. xxv, 9). Hence Korah clave to that which wa meet for him. A dispute that was 'compose on the ater ofthe superna dpte tat became tmoreand noless worthy at prcteded, and tht perpetuated ial ight, was tha Between Sharma and Hil. "The Hy One, blesed be He, approve of thei disput, forthe reason that is oie ws ly an tha therefore resem tine which ok pace ate Crean, Hence, Hike the hater, the dispate between Sharma and Hill has survived to this day, Kora, on the other hand, denied the Crestn, fought Ses heaven inl eal igs enti the weeds of Oe Terah, He certainly was of the fllowing ofthe Gehinnor, nd shorforetrsiod steed te All kin rouge im the Book of Adam, Ie saya there that when Darkness 'ered tli with fury, nd eested the Gehinnom, sich attached itself ot in that qarel we have mentioned Tot a soon ax the wrth and the fury ated there awe secrel or eosihe eas apr acearal otleee Thea Ghpute fell into wo sine parts. Te isthe way of the tishteovs to enter ona dispute wily and end i amicably Kerah continued the dispute as be began i, i wrath and pation; and therefore hing to Gehinnom, Shania on {sted his spe in that ait of elm hich sho ole 'inthe fis burst of passion: it therefore berame a quarrel a love and obisined the approval of Heaven, This ndieated tye text Ian Fett ""Lat there be a firmasent in the nis ofthe water, ad et ive, ce." This fers to the herinning of quar, the outburst OF passion and violence. 'There was a Ges for rconeaton, but meanwhile the Gon arse before the wrath and pasion ctl own "Then "God made the firmament, cte"s that is, there csnerged a quarrel of love and fetion which made forthe permanence ofthe word, And inthis eatery ithe dispute Feiween Shammatand Hille the esultaf which asthat the Oral Law approached in a loving mood the Written Lay, $9 that they mutually supported each other. o rue zomaK 4 fon As regard separati, italy proceeds from the left. Here rien, "apd lett separate, at ell a, "and he Seputsed and tn connection wth Kora ii writen, "Is itd sal ting unto yo tha the God of ral hath separated you fom the congreation of Israel, ete"; and itis alo Shien, "AE that time the Lird separated the tide of Levi" (Dest, &). Ina these tts we find separation tesoiated With the seco (day or trite), which isthe place ofthe ket Teimaybe objected tht Le was the third and notte second Spe toed sea ord eerie Se Tes but with Simeon, he ig the second. The answer s that in the eyes of Jacob (who, on the fst ight of hit ups, yas unaware that Leah was subttted for Rachel) evi ws the second fm Leth). Hence the separation ofthe tne of Levi as perfectly comet, There is "separation on evry ouigoing ofthe Sabbath, between the powers that (ee ese ete eter pained lsiiting Ra sein os the Sabbath ends) tore iaicendy orn te Gein, from the grade led Shea, a party oe pnts 'sho trve to mingle among the eed of Tare arto oben poorer over thet, But whe the chldbe of Tanel perform the ccemonis ofthe myrle and the eup of bisiing, and restethe separation prayer (Habdalh) that vit departs to bisplce in Shecy thereon where Kerf and hi acter PMicssb, its weten And they anal hat appertaned to them went down alive ints the Sheol" (i) (Num. a0, 33) "These, to, did not descend othe Sheol before the laelites hod performed sepsraton Heda) a it i aids "Spare ate yeurseles from amon this congrenation" (Ibid 21). "Separation" is thos atocted with the second, which is symbaic of the lea its fret impetus, when it fst enters fn quel in wrath and viene, pv Before the fury sides. I was on the second that, before she dacord was alyed, the Gehinnom was created Then sho were created all the angels who revolted againt their Mast, and whom the fire of the Gehiniom consumed and destroyed likewise al yhose other who vanish avay and do rot endure and are contumed by fre aqb-18a] senesHiTH % Ler THERE BE A FIRMAMENT: ie, Jet thete bea gradual 'extension, Thereapon £l(God), the "right luster" El Gadel (Great God), spread forth from the midst of the waters to complete this name £1 and to combise with this extension, and so El yas extended into Blokim (~B1+H1, Y, M) These Hi, ¥, M, extended and became reversed 10 as to form lover 'waters, YM, Hi This extension whieh took place on the second day i the upper waters. The hé, yod, mim, fore 'haya (the sea), which isthe upper waters. The reversal of these lettees, yuma (seawaed isthe lower waters. When they were firmly established, al became one whole, and this name was extended to a number of places. The upper waters are male and the lover waters female. At first they vere com- singled, but afterwards they were diferentated into upper and lowers waters, This is the meaning of Blokin_ up waters", and this isthe meaning of "Adonat lower wate fand thief the meming of upper Hé and lower Ha. It further writen: AND Gob ADE THE PrestanseT. 'Thit {a to sy, this ewension took this name. Blokim is the upper 'waters, and the lower waters [18a] are Adana nevertheless, since the upper waters were compleied by the lower, thi name spread to the whole Even after the separation between the waters, the discord 'did not cease til the third day, when peace was restored and evervthing was settled in its place. I is on account of this strife, necessary a it was fr the existence of the world, that the phrase "that it was good" is not applied to the work of the second day, because it was not completed, So ong 2s the upper and lower waters were commingled, there was no pro= duction in the world: this could ony be when they were teparated and made distinct, They then produced, and in this way, although on the second day thete wis separation and discord, the third day broughe complete harmony. This is the name which is graven with the Itering of Veh, 19 reconcile the upper with the lower waters, the upper with the lower Hé; the insertion of the Vaubetwen thems harmor- Jace the two sides. Symbolic of this isthe erasing by the Isracltes of the Jordan (Josh. tnt, 16): "the waters (of the a ed dno

6nie Z0uAN [180
Jordan)! corcespomds to the upper waters; "rose up in one heap" corresponds to the lower waters, which descended Jnto the sea, whilst the Israelites passed between the two. ive "irmunents" are mentioned in this section, and the Life of the World passes among them and leads them, and they are all interwoven. But for this discord, however, which 'vas composed by the mediator, they would not have been interwined or harmonised. They correspond to the five hundred years w which the 'Tree of Life lings in order to become a source of growth and fruitfulines to the world. All the waters of creation which issue from the original source branch out from its foot. King David similarly takes the 'whole and subsequently distributes it, as we read: "And he distributed among all the people, even among the whole multitude, ete." (tu Sam. vi, 29); likewive we read thou pivest them they gather" (Ps. ets, 28); also: "She rises also while it s yet night, and giveth meat tothe house bold" (Prov. xxxt, 13), 'At the time when discord was stirred by the violence of the left, the Avenging Spirit was reinforced. There issued from 0) ersams which immediatly erame solidied without 'any moisture, one male and one female. From them were propagated legions of demons, and to this ix due the in- veteracy of the unclean sprit in all those demons, It is they 'who are symbolised by the fore 1¢ one it called By'eh (adder) and the other is called Nohash (serpent), the 'bo, however, being but one. The Bf'eh bears offspring from the Nahash ster a period of seven year gestation, Herein is the mystery of the seven names borne by the Gehinnum as well as by the "evil cempret' (yetser-hara'); and from this 'source impurity has been propagated in many grades through the universe All this proceeds from the mystic power of the left, which dispenses good and evil, thereby rendering the 'World habitable. Here we have the engeaven Name of eighteen, letters, which presides over the gentle-aral beneficent rains for the well-being of the world Anp Gon sai. Lert rie wares raw: 'The word flow (ytharey) implies that they were to goin a line (ie) 18a-184] pERESHITH 7 s0 a5 to take a straight path. For from the first mystic point the Whole issues in secret, until it reaches and is gathered into the supernal Palace, and ftom there tissues in z straight to the other grades, until i comes to that place which ' Union of male and female; this i the is isthe lesser Faw (hence the word yikeveu is spelt with two eai's one for "the heaven" and one for "under the heaven"). In. consequence: Let Tae pRY LAND APPEAR. 'This isthe lower Hé. This i diclosed and. all the rest is undisclored; from this last we conclude by inference to that which is undisclosed. 'To ONR PLACE: '40 called because its here that the whole of the upper World is linked into one, cis written: The Lord (Yel) is one and his name is One (Zech, x1, 9). Two snifications are here indicated, one of the upper World in its grades, and one of the lower World in its prades. 'The unification of the upper World is consummated at this point. The Life of Worlds was there Fiemly based, and theagh ite unity the upper World wae 'bound together, and therefore itis called "one place", AML grades and all members were gathered there and became in it one without any separation; noristhereany grade in which they are embraced in one unification save this. In it, too, they all mysteriously conecal themselves in one desire: In this grade the disclosed World is linked with the undiselosed, "The disclosed World is similarly unified below, and the dis ct Hence such expressions id they saw the God of nd the glory of the Lord appeared' (Num. aay, 10: xvit, 7), "So was the appearance of the brightness round about! this was the appearance ofthe like- ress of the glory of the Lord" (Ezek, 1,28). This, too, the inner meaning' of the words here, "and let the dry land appear". The same is referred to in the words, "My bow Thave set in the cloud" (Gen, x, 13):t0 wit, from the day on 'ehich the world was created, On the day [184] of clo, whee the how, "the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the ra We z0uAR t 8 Lord" appeared, the Left arose in nught, 'Then 'Rachel went forth and had pain in childbirth", With her appeared "Michael on one side, Raphael on another, and Gabriel on 'a third, there being the clours which appeared in the "lke~ ness", Hence "the appearance of the brightness round about", to wit, the adiance whick is hidden in the pupil of the eye, becomes the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord", to wit, corresponding colours, so that the lower unity js formed ia correspondence with the wpper unity. This is signified by the formula, ""The Lord our God the Lord" (Deut. v1, 4). The mystertous and undisslosed colours which Ate linked "in one place" form one higher unity; the colours fof the bow below in which are united white, red, and yellow, corresponding to those other mysterious ealours, form another unity, signified by the formule "and his name is One" Further, the form "lessed be the name of the glory of his Kingdom for ever and eves" signifies the lower unity, while the upper unity is signified by the form "Hear, O Teal, the Lord our God the Lard is one" These forms correspond, 'each having six words? Lee THe SARTH pur conTR cease, enn, ere At this behest she "earth put forth a host through thase waters Which were gathered tagether in one place and flowed 'mysteriously through it, 20 that there issued in it hidden celestial beings and sacred existences which are upheld and sustained ard constantly renewed by the faithful among man Kind through the worship they offer to their Master. This mystery is indicated by the verse: "Who enusest the grass to spring up forthe Bema" (cattle, ete (Ps ctv, 14) This refers 10 Behemoth that crouches on a thousand mountains and for whom these mouniains produce each day' what is here aed "gras, by which is meant those angelic beings whose 'existence is ephemeral, and who were created on the second day ns destined food for that Bebemoth, which is "ire eon suming fire", The Psalmist continues, "and herb for the service of man", indicating hy "herb" the angelic orders named Ofenim '(vbeels), Hayyoth (animal-shaped), and 188) BERESIOTHE » Cherubi, all of whom are upheld, sustained, and confirmed 'whenever mortal beings come to worship their Master with sacrifices and prayers, in which consis the "sevice of man', and as they are reinforced by virtue of that service of man, there springs up food and sustenance for the worl, as itis 'written: "to bring forth bread out ofthe earth" (/éil.). The same is implied here by the words HERB YIELDING SEED. For gras" does not yield seed, but is only destined for food for the sacred fire, whereas "herb" helps to maintain the 'world. All this has far ts purpose "to bring forth bread from the earth ie. to provide, by virtue of the service offered to their Master by human beings, food and sustenance out of 'the earth for this world, so that the heavenly blessings should descend on mankind. PRUIT TREE BEARING FRUIT. One 'degree above another, these combining male and feral. Just as fruit tree" produced the host of "trees bearing fruit

0the Ketter in turn produced ""Cherubim and Pilla
"Pillars" are those that go up in the smoke of the sacrifices and derive their strength therefrom, and hence are called "pillars of smoke", and all of them exist permanently for the "service of man", whereas the "grass" has no permanence, bbeing drstined to be consumed ac food, ax it ie written. "Behold now Behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox" (Job x, 15). The words "fruit tee bearing fruit" indicate the form of male and female in combination, 'Theit faces are "lke the face ofa man" (Ezek. 1,10), but they are not ike the Cherubim, having lerye faces covered with beards, whereas the Crerubim have litle faces like those of tender children. {All forms are comprised in these, because they are "ange faces". On them are traced forms ike the tracings of the Divine Name on the four cardinal ports, East, West, North, 'nd South. Michael is imprinted on the South, an all faces are turned towards him, vie. "the fae of a man. . the face 'of alion, .. the face ofan ox... the face of an eagle" (Ii. "lan implies the union of male and female, without which the name "ian' (Adam) is not applied. By him are formed the figures of the charot of God), ast ts writen: (On) th chariot of God are myriads of thousands of Shin'an (angel) fo THE 2OHART [8b-192 (Puc 9) word SHAN expres by means ofits Fall ih es the Shi wtanng for Sr ox).the Nun fr ihr ean the Aleph fore loathe 'Neneeproentogbyiteshape man [ge whowsl ees 'ote ombiges mica feo Al enthused Ind mynd canes fom thon smboliond by tena ven on rom thee types they verge hit sever foun eth oft apogee side Tze fou ae ler eclosion oe ano, ow, Os enon pans The alive aected by tr pen pt Which they aveend to comet: "Ox aces seek pidanee tnd gue in the fice of" Man" "There asoends vith im a tern nave crofned ed raed i to myn fra, stich eps te mane (God) Th trou tac ae te tron: engarsael taces id ie printed beeen Te peuner tne pase of hemseicmame Eagle tosh uidant ad gucin the ceo". Terese with iC Snoher ones which crowned and engraved in 9 Date foens shine forth and bat te high thc ropesenia the abe "Gre Tack and the stem engrave ean ic Pncene pores eer eee Routh are snd wih tds eromel und ered inne matic formato endowed ith engin aod power Terese he bute of "Miiy Te tts Fae ad the thane ener andere thereon tbs under the pune of ti mye te, "Man contemplates al hey end al cen acon ie Th they all Seco engraedin his ors ate one ya ame ow te "Trenendoue" (Wor). Thus Ws weten cncenng thr, And the Heer of hi fst face at (lah), They ae al embraced n that iene a at There embrisr thera Invite of al hs the Ho} One, Mesed be Hse the Gren ght, on Temes {ody nn th mame sre ened shoe oo the penal Chait which scoped inthe four les of the Feta stn which Ne mate compres Teva te 'engaved on Ue Goes ab the ions 190-198) nemesurri ae decorated with them, one te the right, one w the left, one in front, ad one behind, corresponding to the four quarters ff the world. 'The throne when it ascends is stamped with these four tkenesses. 'These four supernal names bear along. the throne, and the throne és comprised in them, and collects a harvest of longing. desires. When it has collected these desires, it descends with its burden like a vee laden with branches on all sides and full of fruit. As soon as it descends, these four lkeneaves come forth in their several shapes emit ting bright flashes which seater seed over the world. Hence i is writen, "herb yielding wed", because these scatter seed Dover the world, But of the isuing forth ofthe keness of man Which comprises all the other likenesses itis written, "fruit te yielding fruit after its kind, the seed of which is i it on the earth". It produces no seed save for propagation. 'The term "in it" should be noticed. It teaches us that man may 'not emit his sed idly. 'This is hinted in the word 'verdure", which does not "yield seed", and hence has 10 permanency like the others, not having any likeness whieh ean be shaped 'or engraved in any manner at all. Such things show them- selves but » vanish: they have not acquired form and like- rhea ad ave no permanency; they exist ony for a moment and then are consumed in that fre which devoury ire, and fare continually renewed and devoured, 'Man here helow possesses an idea! form and likeness, but the i not a0 permanent as those supernal beings, 'These are med in their proper shape without any' outer cavering to 'modify it, Hence they are changeless: whereas man below assumes form through the medium of an cuter covering. Hence he endures for a while, and every night the spirit is divested of that garment and ascends and is consumed by that conswening fire, and then reverts to its former state and takes the same outer shape agtin, Hence they have not the ime permanency as those sypernal forms, and in allusion 10 his sf Is written, "new every morning" (Lam. thurman beings who are renewed every day. [198] The reason fs that "gretsch fihtulnesy (Did )gret and not ite, eat is thy faithfulness": assuredly geeal, since 7 can support all the ereatures of the world and comprise them all. & 'THe EONAR [195 in itself, upper and lower alike. It is of infinite expanse, it absorbs all and becomes no fuller. This is alluded to in the verse, "All the rivers nim into the sea, yet isthe sea not full, fete." (Eel, 7). 'They run into thesea, and the sea receives and awalloee them and i ao filled. and then it restores them to their former sate. Hence "grea! is thy faithfulness". In the account of this (thid) day iis written twice "that it was rood", the reason being that this day became intermediary bersecen two opposing sides, and removed discord. It said to this side ood", anid tthe other side "good", and reconciled the two, lence we fird twice writen in the account of it, "and he said", Connected with this day is the secret of the name of four letwers-engraved and inscribed, waich can be made into twelve (by permutations) corresponding to the four images on the four sides inscrited on the holy throne. Axb Gop saip, Let THexe ae Ligmts, ere, The word for "lights" (meoroh) is written defectively, a5 tme'erath (curses), for the reason that the children's disease, 'craup, Was throtigh them crested, Por afte the priniord light was withdrawn there was created a "membrane for the marrow" 2 Klifab, and this lifak expanded and produced another. As soon as this second one eame forth she went up snd down rill xhe ceached the "litt facen!.1 She desired to cleave to them andl to he shaped se one of them, and was Jah to depict from them, But the Holy One, blessed be He, removed her from them and made her go below. When He created Adam and gave him a pariner, 5 soon as she saw Eve slinging to hie side and was resiged by ils fori of the supernal beauty, she flew up from thence and tried as before toattach herself to the "little faces" The superna guardians of the gates, however, did not permit her: 'The Holy One, blessed be Hie, chid er and east her into the depths of the 3, where she abode until the time that Adam and is wife sinned. Then the Holy One, blessed fe He, brought her cut from the depth of the sea and gave her power ove all those children, the "litle faces" of the sons of men, who are liable sinc af their fees. 19] enesurrit % 'up and down the world. She approached the gates of the {errestialparaise, where she saw the Cherubim the guaed- inns of the gates of Paradise and sat down neat the Abshing sord, Which she wa alin in origin. When she ss the fishing sword revolving, she fled and wnderes about the world and, fading children Table © punishmest, she maltreated and killed ther. All this is on account af the action ofthe moon in diniishing her (vigil) ight. When Cain was born this Rifah cid for atime without success te atch hers to hit, Dat at length she had intercourse with him and bore spirits and demons. Adam fora hundred ety years had intercourse with female spirits until vis tora, She by her beauty led astray the "sons , Uzzt and Aracl, and she bare them children, and so from her went forth ev pirts and demons into the world. She wanders about at nighttime, vexing the sons of men an causing them to defile themselves. Wherever these spirits find people sleeping alone in a house, they hover over thems, ley hold of them and cleave to them, inspire desice in them, a beget From them. Th them 'sthout thei Being a his through the diminution ff the moon. When the moon was restored, the lets tnearath (lights) ware severed to form inrath (word), Srtten, "the word Gnrath of the Lod ie tried be eashield te chose that trust im him! (Ps, xvii, 31, i. He i a shield sagas all those evil sprts and demons that wander about the world atthe waning ofthe moon, unto those that hold fiat to their fith in the Holy One, blesed be He. King Solomon, when he "penetrated. into the depitis of the nut arden asin writen, "I descended ito the nt garden 5.8. v1, 12), took a nutshell (klifah) and deew an analogy from its layers to these spints which inspire sensual desires in human beings, abit written, "and the delights of the fos of men (ae from) male and female demons (Eccl. 1, 8). This verse aso indicates thatthe pleasures in which men indulge in the time of sleep give birth to multitudes of demons, The Holy One, blased be He, found it necssary te erate ll thee things inthe world tenure ie perma nce, so that there should be, 38 it were, a bran with many

8THE OMAR L [19-200
membranes encircling it, 'The whole world is constructed on this principle, upper and lower, fm te fst inystic point up to the furthest removed of all the stages. 'They are all [20a] coverings one to another, brain within brain and spirit 'within sprit, o that one ia sbel to another. The primal point is the innermost light ofa trnslucency, tenuity, and purity passing comprehension. The extension of that point becomes

2"palace" (Heal), which forms a vestment for that point
'with a radiance whieh is sill unknowable on account ofits translucency. 'The "palace" which i the yestment for that 'unknowable point is also a radiance which eanot be eompr herded, yet withal less subtle and translucent than the primal migstic point. This "palace" extends into the primal Light, which Gea vestment fori, Fram this paint there is extension after extension, each one forming a vestment to the other, Icing in the relation of membrane and brain to one another, Although at frst a yestment, each stage becomes a brain 10 the nest stage. 'The samc process takes place below, eo that ete see) eaunlan Gilg worl carbide ued eh spirit and body, all for the beter ordering ofthe world. When the moon was in connection with the sun, she was luminous, but as soon ak she separated from the sun and was assigned the charge of her own hosts, she reduced her status and her light, and shells upon shells were created for covering the brain, and all for the benefit ofthe Drain. Hence meoroth ts written defectvely- All this was forthe beneit of the world, and hence its written, "to give ight upon the earth", 0p MADE THE TWO GREAT LiGwTS, The word signifies the due expansion and establishment of the whole. 'The vords "the to great lights" show that at fest they were asiociated as equals, symbolising the full name Jehoouh Elohim (although the lawer past is not revealed, but is known inferentially), The word "great" shows that at theit creation they were: dignified with the s thraugh them the name af the slled Muzpas,! the two highest names uf the thirteen eat rmerey.? 'Uhew were invested with greater dignity, and they the Hebrew bet is inetad ME, 2h PV. 6 6 name, s0 that 204] BERESHITH 85 tare placed at the head because they derive from on high and ascend for the heneft of the world and for the preservation 'of worlds. Similarly the two lights ascended together with the same dignity. The moon, honever, was not a exse with the sun, and in fact each felt mortified by the other. 'The 'moon said "Where dost thou pasture (Pid.) Vow can alist candle shine ac snidasy > upon said to her, "Go and diminish thyself" She felt humiliated and said "Why should 1 be as one that veileth herself?" (Ibid.). God then said "Go thy way forth in the footsteps ofthe flock." 'Thereupon she diminished herself so sto be head of the lower ranks. Erom that time she has had fo light of her own, but derives her light from the sun. At first they were onan equality, bu afterwards she diminished herself among all those grades of hers, although she is sil head of them; for a woman enjoys no honour save in con junction with hee husband. "The "great light" corresponds tw Vko and the "lesser ight" to Blom, which isthe last of the degrees and the close of the 'Thought. At first it was iescribed above among the leters of the sacred Name, in the fourth letter thereof, but afterwards it took « lower rank with the name Blohim; nevertheless, ic still ascends in all Airetions above in the leter Hin the union of the letters 'lithe sacred Name. Afterwards degrees extended on thin side and on that. The degrees that extended upwards were felled "the dominion of the day", and the degrees shat extended downwards were called "the domision of the fright". "The star" are the remsinder of the forces and the ests which, countless in riimber, are all suspended in th rmament ofthe heaven" whichis the "life of the universe' as itis writen, "and God placed them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth. ..."'Thisisthe lower earthy which derives light from thera as they feom above. n this (the fourth) day the kingdom of David was estab- lished, the fourth leg and suppor of the divine) theone, and the leiters (of the divine Name) were firmly fixed in their places. Vet withal until the sith day, when the likeness of 'mn was fully formed, the throne was not firmly fixed in its

6rite ZOMAR [200-208
place; fut then at lant both the upper ard the lower thrones there established, and all the worlds were settled in their places, and all the leters were fixed [aod] in their spheres by the extension of the seimordial vapour. 'The fourth day was "rejected of the builders", because on it this luninary Acgraded itelf and abated its radiance, and the outer shell 'vere reinforced. All those radiating lights are suspended in that firmament of the heaven, that by them the throne of David may be established, "Those Hehts are formative agents in the lower work 10 perfect the shape of all howe who are inchuded in the tern rman" 'This the name given to every interior shape; and. thus every shape which is comprised in this extension is called "man, which propey indicates ran'sspiritemsnating fram the realm of holiness, to which his body is a vestment, as we read, "Thou clothes me in skin ad flesh (Job x, 11 Hence we often meet the expression "Mesh of man" imply ing that the real man is within and the flesh which isis body is only a vestment. 'The lace beings which have heen eorn= pounded wth this spirit assume shaper which are clothed. in another vestment, such as the forms of clean animals, ox, cheep, goat, deer, ete. They would fein partake of the vost" ment of man, corresponding to their inaer nature, but thei Forms are wvered by the name applied to their bodies; #0 Wwe find "flesh of ox", "ox" being the inner element of that body, while the "fesh' is the vestments and so with all Similarly with the "other side": the sprit which is fond in the idolstrous nations sues from the realm of uncleanli« ness and is not, properly speaking, "man; thereforé it i not covered by this name and has no portion (in the future world) Itsbody, which isthe vestment of that unclean thing, is unelean flesh, and the spirit is unclean within the Resh that lothes it. Therefore as long as thar spirit is within that body itis called "unclean". When the spirit emerges from, that covering it is not called "unclean", and the vestment ddoes not tear the name of man. 'The lower beings com- pounded with this spirit assume shapes which clothe them Selves in another vestment, such as the forms of unelean animals, of which the Lavy says "this shall be unclean to aoh-a1a] DERESHITE 87 you, sich-as the pig and unclean birds, and beats of that ie. "The spirt is covered By the name ofthe bod in which itis lashed, and the body is called "Mesh of pig""—pig within the flesh which clothes it. Consequently these two groups are shaply separated, one side being embraced ander the 'ategory man' and the other underthe category "unclean land the individuals flock each 1 its kind and returs to their kind, Thus the supernal lights radiate in that "firmament of the hesven"" to fashion in the lower world the requisite shapes, a8 itis written, "and Gor st them in the rmament of the heaven... . and to-rule by day and by night". Ie is itand proper that we lights should rule, the greater Hight by day and the leser light by night. The lesson we derives that the male rules by day wo regulate his household and to bring food and sustenance ino it. When night arrives. the female takes command, and she ules the house, a8 itis witten, she rics while oti nig and giveth food to her house" (Prov. xxx, 13)—she and nat he, Thus the dominion of the day belongs to the male and the dominion ofthe night to the female, Further it is written, AND THE stants. As soon as the wife his given her orders and retired with her Inushand, the direction of the hots i left to the maidens who remain in the hause to look aker all its requitements "Then when day' comes the man again duly takes command "And God made the two lights" There are sso kinds cof luminaries. Those which ascend sbove ar called "amine aries of light" and those which descend below are called 'Tuminaries of re". These latter belong tothe lower sphere and ule over the weekdays. Iti for this reason that a the expiry of Sabbath a blessing is said over the lamp, hecase rule is then restored o these luminaries, Man's fingers symbolae the mystic grades of the upper world, which are divided into front and back. 'The liter are outside, and are symbolsed by the fnger-nails, and therefore i is (21a) perinisabletolookat the finger-nailsat the expey of Sabbath by the light of the cal. Tut itis not permissible to look atthe fingers from the inside by the light ofthe candle, 'This is hintedin the verse, "Thou shalt see me fom the back, thou shalt not see my face" (Ex, xsxitt, 23), Therefore a

38THF ZOUAR (1a
rman should not bok at his fingers from the inside when he recites the blessing "Creator ofthe light of the fre", On. the Sabbath day' God rules alone by means of those inner sgrides upon His thone of glory, and all of them are comprised sn Him and He assumes dominion. 'Therefore on this day He accorded rest to all worlds. As part of the legacy of this day the holy and unigue people has inherited the "huninaties 'of light" from the side of the Right, which is the primal Fight that was on the first day. For on the Sabbath day those luminaries of light shine alone and have dominion, and from them everything i ilumined below. When Sabbath expires the luminaries oflght are withdrawn and the lurnoaries of fire assume ssvay eich in its place, They rule from the expiry 'of one Sabbath till the commencement of the next. For this Feason i i proper to use the Fight ofthe lamp atthe exp of Sabbath, Wiessid ofthe Hayyorh that "they run to and fro" (ek 14); and so no eye ean follow them, 'The Hayyoth which disclose themselves are those in the midst af which there in an Ofan (wheel), which i Metatron, who ix more exalted 'than all the other hosts. 'The Hayyoth which ace never dae closed are those which are under the two undisclosed letters Vaal, Hé, which rule over Vau, Hé, these being the pedestal zmer. 'The ost mysterious and incomprehensible 'essence rules overall and is mounted upon all. The Hayyoth which: disclose theinselves.are below those whieh remain 'undisclosed and derive light from them and follow: them. The eelestial Hayyoth are all comprised in the firmament ff the heaven", and are referred to in the words "le there be lights in the firmament of the heaven", "and they shall be for lights in the firmament of the heaven". 'They are all suspended in that firmament. Rut there is also a firmament above the heavens of whieh itis written, "and a likeness upon 'the heads of the Haya, a firmament like the ice, eve," (Ezek. 1, 23). This i the frat /1é beyond whieh itis impossible for the human mind to penetrate, because what is further is enveloped in the thought of Goch, which is elevated above the comprehension of man. If that which is within the Thought cannot he comprehended, how much lee the a1a-216) DeRESHITH 8 'Thought itself! What is within the 'Thought no one ean conceive, much less can one know the Bw Sof, of which 10 trace can be found and to whieh thought cannot reach by any means. But from the midst of the impenetrable mystery, from the first descent of the En Sof there glimmers 4 faint lundiseernible fight like the point of» needle, the hidden recess of thought, which even yet is not knowable until there extends from it ight in a plabe where there is some imprint 'of letters, and from which they all issue, Fie of alls Aleph, the beginning and end of all grades, that on vhich all the grades are imprinted and which yet is always called "one", to show that although the Godhead contains many forms, it i all only one, 'This is the leer on which depend both the lower and the upper entities, 'The top paint of the Aleph symbolises the hidden supernal though, in which is con- tained potentially the extension of the superna firmament When Alepssues fom that Frmamentin a form symboliang the commencement of Thought, there issue in its middie bar sis grades, corresponding to the hidden supernal Hayyouk 'which are-suspended from the 'Thought. One is the light whieh shone and was withdrawn, the "heat of the day" which Abraham felt when he was sitting at "the door fof hie tert", the door which opens the way from below to above, and on which shone "the heat of the day". second Tight is that which fades away at eventide, 19 restore which was the object of Isac's prayer, as itis writen, "Isaac went forth into the field to meditate at eventide'" (Cen. nxtv, 3). A thied light ia that which combines these other «wo, (218) and shines for healing, and is hinted at in the verse which Says of Jacob that "the sum rose upon him, ete." (Gen, xxx, 32), Of a surety it was after he had attained the degree of "eventide". From this point fhe was "halting on his thigh" i. heattsined imperfectly to the conception of th (Wezal) of Israel" 1c is written "on his thigh" and not thighs"; this is the fourth degree, by. which no prophet 'as inspired sill Santuel eame, of wham it is written, 1A alsa the strength (Negah) of Tsrael. ee" (1 Samm. xv 39). Thus he restored to its pristine strength that which was 'weak from the time that Jacob was injured hy the guardian ~ sue conan t [ethasa angel uf Bsau, "He youched the hollow of his thigh." When ihe came to Jacob, he derived strength frem that "eventide" Which is assecated with the attribite of stern justice. Jacob, however, being embraced in that grade, was proof against hima, "He saw that he could not prevail against him and he touched the hollow of his thigh." He founds weak spot in the thigh, because that is outside of the runk, which i the symbolical name of Jacob, whose body was therefore under the protection oftwo degrees symbolise by the name "man" So when the ange! found a point of attack outside the trunk, 'straightsay "the hollow of Jacob's thigh sink', and no man received prophetic inspication from that source till Samuel 'came Joshus derived prophetic inspieaten from the majesty Df Moses, ait ie writen, "thou shal confer af thy majesty 'upon him" (Sum, xxtit, 20); this, then, isthe fifth grade. , the geade of Jscob, and therefore David came and united jt with the right, as it ia written, "bliss in thy right hand is Nezah". The reason why Jacob's 'high was weak was because the side of impurity touched it And deprived it of its strength; and it remained weak til the time of Samuel. Hence Samuel spoke of the Negah of larael; tnd hence, too, he spoke always with severity. Later, how= ever, God brought him under the axis of Had, after he had Anointed kings, On this account he is ranked with Moses and Aaron, since he combined two lower grades, as they com- Irined two upper grades, thmogh all the grades ae linked with one another! fata) All those supernal lights exist in their mage below—some of them in their image below upon the earth; but in them selves they ate all suspended in the "firmament of the Incaven". Here is the secret of tv0 names combined which are completed hy a thisd and hecome one again, Axo Gob sain, Ler Us MAKE MAN fis written, "The "ere inthe txt follows 9 ean (up obra al, a) ei vit he prasneade wines an Toc apie tape Re tae Senta ten te teen be ous ra te tan ne par Te 22a] benesnirn 9 secret of the Lord ito then that Sear him' (Px xv 4). 'That most reverend Eider opened an exposition of this verse by saying 'Simeon Simeon, who is itthat sid: "et ws make rman ?" Who is this Blohin?" With these words the most reverend Elder vanished before anyone saw him, R. Simeon, hearing that he, had called him phin "Simeon", and not "Rabbi Simeon", said to his colleagues: 'OF a surety this ia the Holy One, blessed be He, of whom itis written: "And the Ancient of days was seit" (Dan. Vn, 9) 'Truly now 'the time to expound this mystery, because certainly there here a mystery which hitherto i was not permited to divulge, but now we perceive that permission i given.! He then proceeded: 'We must picture aking who wanted several buildings to be ereced, and who had an archict in his service who did nothing save with his consent, The king ix the supernal Wisdom above, the Central Column being the king below: Blotim ithe architect shove, being ae such the supernal Mother, and Blohim also te architec belo, being as such the Divine Presence (Shektah) of the lover word, Now a woman may oot do anything without the consent of her hushand. When he desired anything built in the way of 'emanation (asilh), the Father sd to the Motherby means fof the Word (amirah), "let it be so snd so", and seaightway ic was m9, a8 itis writien, "And he id, Blin let there be light, and there yas light": .e, one sid to Elin, let there be light: the master of the building gave the order, and the hit cased i out imately and 9 with all that wae onstrated in the way' of emanation. When he came to the Srworld of separation', which isthe sphere of individual tongs, the architect sid to the master of the building: "Let tus make man in our image, according to Ur likeness." Said the mater f the buiking: "Prof, is well that he should ine made, bu he will one day sin before th foolish: ao iti writen, 'A wise son rejoiceth his father, a foolish aon isa heaviness to his mothee' (Prov. x 1)" She replied: "Since his git is refered to the mother and not the father, Tdesize wo create him in my likeness." Hence it Zohar, Ie sce, howene, 0 fil a gap the Zoharicexpation and 'eter most se hn Ben arte * on ye Z0HAR T 'writen, "And Blom created man in his image' 'not being willing to share in his ereatin. 'Thus in reference to is-sin itis written, (228) "and through your transgression your Motter is dismisied" (Is. t, 1). Said the king to th 'mother, "Did I not tell thee that he was destined to sin? that time he drove him out and drove out his mother with him; and so it is writen, "A wise son rejiceth his fathee and 2 foolish son isthe heaviness of his mother." The wise son is Man formed by emanation, and the fooish on is man erred create (Beri)? The clleagues here interrupted and said, "Rabbi, Rabbi, ix there such a division between Father ane! Mother that from, the side of the Father Man has been forined in the way of 'emanation, and from the side of the Mother in the way: of creator os itn not a0, sine the Man 'emanation was both male and femal, from the side of both Father and Mother, and that és why it says, "And God said, Let there fe light, and there was fight" "let there be fight'* from the side of the Father, "and there was light" from the side of the Mother; and this s the man "of two faces", This 'man has no "image and Tikeness". Only the supernal Mother fad a name exmbining light and darkness—light, 'which oa the supernal vestient and which God ereated on the fint day and then stored away for the righteous, and 'arkness, which was created on the first day forthe wicked 'On aceouat of the darkness, which was destined tosin against the fight, the Father was not willing to share in man's id therefore the Mother suid: "ets make man day afar tt Manes" iret diene ceeteopere to fight, "after our likeness", to. darkness, which is a vest 'ment to fight in the same way that the body isa yestment to the saul, as itis written, "Thou didst clothe me with skin and Resh,"* He then paused, and all the colleagies rejoiced and said: "Happy is our lot that we have heen privileged to hhear things which were never disclosed sll now. R, Simeon then proceeded, takingas his text Ser note that 1, Lam he, and Eloi ie not with me, ete, (Deut. 2xxth, 39)- He said: 'Friends, here are some profound mysteries which

1desire to reveal to you now that permission has been given
224) rneswera. 93 {a.utter them. Who is it that says, See now that I, Tam he"? "This is the Cause which in above all those on high, that which i called the Cause of causes. It is above those other causes, sine none of those causes does anything tll it obtains per rnission from that which is above it, as we pointed out above in reapect 40 the expremion, "Let us make rman". "Us" 'certainty refers to wo, of which one said to the other above it, "let us make", nor did it do anything save with the permission and direction of the one above it, while the one above did nothing without sonsulting its colleague, But that 'which is called "the Cause above all causes", which has no 'superior or even equal, as iis written, "To whom shall ye Tiken me, that T should be equal ? (Is. x1, 25), sd, "See sow that 1, Lam he, and Elohim is not with me", from whom be should take counsel, like that of which i ie eriten, "and God said, Let us make man''"The colleagues heee interrupted im and said, "Rabbi, allow ws to make a remark. Did you fot state above that the Cause of causes said to the Sefirah 2" He ansnered, "You do not ere something t all causes" which I-mentioned, which has no colleague of 'which it should take coursel, for itis unique, prior to all, and has no partner. Therefore it says: "See now that I, 'am be, and Blot is not with me", of which it should take counsel, since it has no colleague and no partner, nor even number, for there ie a "one" which connotes combination, sich ax male and female, of whorn iis writen, "for I have called hirm-one" (Is. ut, 2); but this is one without cumber and without combination, and therefore it is said: "and 'Flohi isnot with me". They all rose and prostrated them felves before him, saying, 'happy the man whose Master agrees with him in the exposition of hidden mysteries which fave not been revealed 10 the haly angele." 'He proceeded: 'Friends, we must expound the rest of the verse, since it contains many hidden mysteries. The next 'words are: Jill and make alive, ete. That isto say, throu the Sefroth on the right side I make alive, and through the 'Sefirath on the eft side 1 kil: but ithe Central Colunn does A vite zouaR 1 [abaya sot concur, sentents cannot be passed, since they form a 'nut of three, Sometimes, [23a}even when they all threeagree te-condennn, sere eae the right hard which i outaeetched tusrecvive those that repent; this isthe Tetragrammatom, ad it is also the Shekinah, which is ealled "right hand", from the side of Hezed (hiedness). When a man repents, this hand saves him from pusshment, Bur when the Cause whi above all eauses condemns, then "here ix none that delivers fiyin my hand" Withal the colleagues explained the word Elohim i. this verse referring 10 other gods, and the words "Lill and make alive' as meaning "I kill with my Shekinah him who is guilty, and preserve by it han who is innocent 'What, however, his been said above concerning the Supreme Cause is a secret which has been transmitted only 0 wise men and prophets, See now how many hidden causes there ae enveloped in the Seiroch and, a5 it were, mounted on the 'SGfirth, bididen from the comprehension of human beings: of them it is sid, "Yor one higher than another watcheth"" (Eccl, \, 7). There ae lights upon lights one more clear than nother, each ane dark by compacison with the one above it from which it receives its light, As for the Supreme Cause, all lights are dark in ite presence [Another explanation of the verse" Let ws make man in out mage after our likeness" was given hy the colleagues, who put these words into the mouth of the ministering anges, Said R. Simeon to them, 'Since they know what has been and what will be, they must have known that he was destined tosin. Why, then, did they make this proposal ? Nay more, Unza and Atael actully opposed it. For when the Shekinah suid to God "Let us make man', they said, "What is man st know him ? Why desirest thou to create ss thou knowest, will sin before thee through his Wife, who is the darkness to his light, light being male and arkness female?" 'The Shekinah answered them: sourselves shall commit the very rime of which yout Tim"; and 40 it is written, "and the sons of God saw the uoghters of man chat they were comely", and they went astray after them and were degraded by the Shekinah from their holy estate." Sad the culleaywes: "Rabbi, after all, Uzea 230-234] BERESHITH 95 and Azael were not wrong, because man was really destined tosin through woman.' He replied, 'What the Shekinah said 'yas this: "Vou have spoken worse of man than all the re of the heavenly host. If you were mre virtuous than man, you would have a right to accuse him, ut whereas he will 'in-with one woman, you will sin veith many women, as itis syntfen, 'and the sons of God saw the énughters of man!— 'not a daughter, but daughters; and further, man sinned, repent and to return to his Master and repair id the colleagues, "If so, why was he after allereated ?" He replied: If God had notreated maa in thie 'way, with good and esil inclination, which correspond ro ight and darkness, ereated man would have been capable neither of virtue, nor of sin; but now that he has been created with both, i i written, "ae, I have set before thee this day life and death" (Deut. 3x6; 19). They said to him: 'Sil, why all this? Would it-not have been better that he should not hhave been ereated and so not have sinned, thereby. causing somuich mischief above, and that he should have had neither punishment nor reward 2" He replied: "Kt as just and right that he should be created in this way, because for his sake the Torah was created in whieh are imseribed punishments for the wicked and rewards forthe righteous, and these are only for the sake of created man.' They said 'Of a truth wwe have heard now what ae never knew before. Certainly Ged created nothing which was not required." What is more, the created Torah [2yé) is a vestment to the Shekinah, and if man had not been created, the Shekinah would have bees 'without a vestment like a beggar. Hence when a man sins i isas though he strips the Shekinah of her vestments, and that is why he is punished; and when he carries out the precepts of the Lavy, itis as though he dothes the Shekinah inher vestments, Hence we say that the fringes (ttt) worn by the Israelites are to the Shekinah in captivity tke the [poor man'e garments, of which ite ai, "foe that x his only iv is his garment for his skin, wherein shall he Prayer which isnot whole-hearted is pursued by numbers of destructive angels, according to the Scriptural expression

6THE zouART eo
'all her pursuers have overtaken her, et. (Lam. t,3)There- {ore a well to preface ones prayer vith the vere, "but he is merciful and forgveth iniquity, et." (Ps, xxv, 38). 'The word "iiquity"" signifies Samael, who isthe serpents "he will not destroy" signifies the destroyer: "he turneth cefers to the demon (anger) and doth fre te desnon Homah (et), "Tothese powers are attached many destructive angels, which are under seven chiefs with seventy under-chiels, dispersed in every firmament, and under them are myriads of others. When an Tsracte wearing fringes and phylacteries prays with <evotion, then the words of the Serpture ar fulled the peoples ofthe earth shall sce thatthe name ofthe Lord is called upon thee and they shall fear thee" (Deut. axvut, to). We have agreed that "the tame of the Lord refers to the phylactery of the head; ard when the destructive angels sce the name of Jehovah on the head of irs who sab thes at once ake co fight, ast writen, thousand shall fall at thy side" (Ps. 31, 7) Jacob foresiw the oppretsion of the last captivity in the nd. of days, and therefore "he prayed in that place and tarred there because the sun had set" (Gen. xx, 19), the night of capvity had come. David, refersing tothe captivity, said "hungry and weary and thirsty in the wildr= nes. He save the Shekinah purched and withered and dried, and was in deep sorrow on its behalf, Wher he saw Ieach 'eturning in joy he compsed ten kinds of chants, and atthe fend of al he exelamed: "A. prayer forthe poor man when he Fanteth (Ps. ett 1), 'Ti fs the prayer which comes before God before all the others. Which tthe "prayer of the oor man"? This i the evening prayer, which i single, Without a husband: and because she is without a husband 'hets poor andy, Like her she jase wan, poor and parched this the seed of Jacob, which isin subjection to all nations and resembles zhe evening prayer, which typifies the night Of captivity. The Sabbath priver isa kindness to 'man. Therefore aman when reiting the Ami Sling the werbye shoul! stand KE a pet {ing'sxate on account ofthe Shekinab, and he should clothe a3b-246] weMesuern a itwith the vestment ofthe fringes, and he should standin h phylacteres ike a beggar at the gate when he begins sith the word. Aldanai (Lord). When he opens his mouth to utter the evening prayer an eagle comes down un the weekdays (0 take up on its wings the evening praver. 'This ix the angel 'alle Nutiel when coming from the side of Hesed(Kindess, and Uriel when coming from the side of Geburah (Farce), because i ja burning fire. For the morning prayer alo 2 lion comes down to reveive it in his winged arms this ia Michael. For theafternoon prayer an ox comes down to take it with his arms and horns: this is Gabriel. On Sabbath God Himself conics dh n wsith the thees patriarchs to welcome Tis only daughter, At that moment the celestial beings who are called by the pame of the Lord exclaim "Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be exalted, ye everlasting doors", and raightway the doors of seven palaces Ay open. The frst palace isthe palace of love; the second, of fear; the third, '6f mercy; the fourth, of prophecy through the clear mirror [e4a]s the fifth, of prophecy through the hazy sath, of righteousness; the seventh, of justi Tuvee ARE THe GUNPRATIONS OF THE HEAVENS AND 'THE Eau. We have laid down that the expression these are" denotes that those mentiveed before are henceforth of

1account. In this case what is referred to is the products
(of talu (emptiness) hinted atin the second verse of the first chapter, "and the earth as tor and bof". 'These itis of 'which we have learnt that "God created worldsand destroyed them". On account of this the earth was dazed" (Iota) and "bewildered" (lohal), ax if 10 say, "How could God valde to destroy them ? It were better not to ereate iar iti aid of the heavens, "the heavens have vanished ike smoke" (Is, 6) But i fact we have here an indication of what is. meant by the expression "destroyed them', showing that God does aot really destroy the wor of His hands, The explanation inthis, God created the work maine mach maple a Hebrew heeft tr onelatn ] THE ZOUAK 1 [basa 'by means of the Tort, that isto say, in so far as iis called Reshith, By this Reseth He created the beavens and the earth, fand He supposte them by it, because the word Bereshidh 'contains the word bith (covenant); this covenant is refered to inthe verse: "Were it not for my covenant with the day and night, I had not appointed the ordinances of heaven and 'earth (Jor, xxi, 25), This heaven is that of which itis 'sid "the heavens are the heavens of the Lord" (Ps. Cx¥, 16) and this earth is the "land of the living" comprising seven lands of which David said: "I will walk before the Lord in the lands ofthe living" (bid, xv, 9). ARerwards He created aaheaven and an earth {254} resting on Toh (emptiness), and having no foundation, i, "covenant", to support them, 'his reason God sought to give to the nations of the world the Law containing the covenant of the circumcision, but they were not willing to accept it, and consequently the earth remained parched aad desolate, Hence we read: "Let the 'waters be gathered to one place, nd let the dry land appear" he waters" we understand in this connection the "Torah; by "one place" we understand Israel, whose souls ae attached to that place of which it ix written, "blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place". The glory of the Lord is the lower Shekinshs "his place" ie the upper Shekinahj and since their souls are from that quarter, the name of the Lord rests upon ther, and it is said of them, "forthe portion 'of the Lord i his people". In this way "the waters were sathered to one plate", 'The 'Torah is the salvation of the world, and the Gentiles who did not accept it were let dry and parched. Tt isi (hs say that God created worlds and destroyed them, vie. those who do not keep the precepts of the Law; not that He destroys His own works, a8 some Fang. For why indeed should He destroy Mie sons, of whom iti \written:behibas'am (when they were created) inthis passage, which may be analysed into Belt keraan, "He created them by means of H2" (oyinbolising the atebute of mercy) ? This refers to the of the Gentiles who embrace Judaisin, Moses, before leaving Egypt, sought to enrol proselytes, thinking that they were of thase who had been thus created through the letter £46, hut they were not sincere, and therefore they 250-258] BERESIITH » caused him to be degraded, as itis written, "Go, ger thes 'down, forthe people (e. thy proselytes) ave dealt corruptly" (Ex. xn, 7), There are five sections among the "mised multitude", Neflin, Gibburam, sinakim, Kefaim, and male bites. The Amalekite are those who are left from the time 'af the Flood, from those of whom it written, "and he blotted out all living substance"; those who have heen lef from this class in this fourth captivity make themselves leaders by main force, and are scourges to Israel; of them i ig written, "for the earth was full of violence heense af them'. These are the Amalektes. OF the Nef (lit, fallen ones) i is said: "and the sons of God saw the daughters 'of man that they were fair" (Ibid). These form a second category of the Neil, already mentioned abave, in this way 'When God thought of making man, He said: "Let us make 'man in our image, et" ie. He intended to make him head fer the celestial beings, who were t0 be his deputies, like Joseph over the governors of Egypt (Gen. xtt, 43). The thereupon began to malign hima and say, "Whats man Thou shouldst remember him, seeing thac he will assurvdly sin before Thee." Said God to them, "If ye were on earth like him, ye would sin worse." And so it was, for hen the sone of God saw the daughters of man, they fllin lone with them, and God caat them down from heaven, 'were [236] Uszn and Avael; from them the "mixed multiude" derive their souls, and therefore they also are called neji, Ihecause they fll into fornication with faie women. For this, Ged casts them out from the futuee world, in which they have no portion, and gives them their reward in this word, ait is written, "He repays his enemies to their faces" (Deut 'il, 19), The Gibborie (mighty ones) ace those of wh sveitten: they are the mighty ones... men of name 'i, 4): They come fram the side of those who said "Come, Jetus build a city and make to usa name" (Gen. xt, 4). These smgn erect synagogues and colleges, and place in them scrolls of the fay with rich ornaments, but they do it ot for the sake of God, but only to make themselves a name, and in consequence the pavers of evil prevail over Israel (who 'should be humble like the dust of the ear), according to

100rhe zouAR (sb
prevailed very much upon the sn, 19). The Refaim (it weak ones), the fourth section of the mixed multitude", are those who, if they see Israd in trouble, abandon thern, even though they are in a postion to help them, and they also neglect the "Torah and thote who stody itm order to ingratiate them- selves with the non-Jews, OF therm it ig said, "They are Refaim (shakes), they shall nt arise" (To. >t 14); when redemption shall comme to. Feacl, "all theie memory shall perish" (Jbid), 'The last section, the Anakin (lit. giants) fare those who treat with contumely those of whom it is writen, "ther shall be as necklaces (anakin) to thy neck' Of them it i said, "the Refain are likewise counted as Anakin", ie. they ate on a ga with ane another. All the rid to bring the wold ack wo the state of "hv and bok' and they caused the destruction ofthe Temple. But as "rok and bof" yave place to light, so when God reveals Himself they willbe wiped off the earth. Buc withal redemption willnot he complete until Amsalek will be exterminated, for against Amalek the oath was taken that "the Lord will have war against Amalck from generation to generation" (Ex. xV1,10} The following is another explanation of the words: "These are the generations of heaven and earth, pression 'hese are" here corresponds to the same expression in the ests "these are thy ols, O Tarael" (Ex, wes, 4), When these shall be exterminated, ie will be as if God hd made heaven and earth on that dar; hence itis written, day that God makes heaven and ear will reveal Himself with the Shekinah and the world wil he renewed, as is writen, fora the new earth and the ne Teves clef At that the "the cause to spring from the ground every pleasant tree, ete Iput before these are exterminated the rai of the Torah will not descend, and Fsrael, who are compared to herbs and trees, nor show up, ass hinted in the words: "nw shrub of the field was ver in the earth, and ao her 1, 3), eeause "there was no) may in the 'Temple, "to tll the grown WF the field, ete." 'he Israel were with stcrifices According ta another explanation, the words "no shrub of asbh-26a] DrRESHITHL tor the field was yetin the earth" refer to the first Messiah, and the words "ino herb of the field had yet sprung up" eefer to the second Messiah. Why had they siot shot forth ? Because 'Moses was not there to serve the Shekinah —Moses, of whom iis writen, "and there was no man to ill she ground", This is also hinted at in the verse 'the seeptre shall not depart fram Judah nor the rulers staff from between hs fet", "the 'ceptre referring to the Messiah of the house of Judah, and "the staff" co the Messiah of the house of Joseph, "Until Shiloh cometh': this je Moses; the numerical value of the 'svonamesShiloband Mosesbeingthesame, Ttivalso possible ty refer the "herhs of the field" to the righteous or to the students of the Torah... . (264) Ap Tite Lorn Gop ronsten MAN. "Man? here refers to Israel, whom God shaped at that time both for this world and for the future world, Further, the word eavizer (and he formed) implies that God braught them under the ais of is own name by shaping the two eyes like the letter Yod and the nose between lke the letter Vaw, ... Forthwith at 'that time He planted Israel inthe holy Garden of Eden, a it is said: "and the Lord God planted" (Gen, 1, 8). "The two ames here referto the Father and the Mother; the "Garden" inthe Shekinah on earth, and "Eden's the supernal Mother: rhe man is the Central Calimans the Shekinah wns to he is plantation, his spouse who was never to depuet from him and was to be his perpetual debht. 'Thus God at that time planted Israel as a holy shoot, as itis written, the branch 'of my planting, the work of my hands, in which I glory". Axb THE Loxp Goo cavern to now. The wo 'nares may he referred to the Father and the Mather; "every pleasune tree" refers to the Zaddik; "good to cat" refers 10 the Centeal Coluron, through which He provided food for all, and from which alone the Zaddik is nourshed, a5 the Shekinah from him. These have no need of the lower world, thu, on the contrary, all below are nourished from him. Nor in this period of captivity the Stekinah and "the Life of the fate waly nourished by the eighteen blessings of toa 'THE ZoMART [260-266 Israc's prayer, but atthe time he willbe food forall. A x 'ue TREE OF LiFe, This means that at that time the Tree Uf Life will be planted in the Garden, s0 that "he shall take also ofthe Tree of Life and eat andiive for ever" (Gen. 11h 22). 'The Shekinah will no longer be in the power of the "evil influence", ie. the mixed multitude who are "the tree of the kknossledge of good and evil", and shall no longer reseive into itself anyone unelean, to fulfil what is written, "the Lord alone shall lead him and there shll be no strange god ith Fhim" (Deut, xxii, 12). For this reason proselytes will no longer be admited i the days ofthe Messiah. The Shekinah will be like a vine on whieh there eannot be grafted any shoot from another species, and Israel shall be "every tree pleasant and their former beauty shall be restored to them, h we are told: "He cast from heaven to earth the beauty of Istael" (Lam. 1, 1). "The tee of the knowledge 'of good and evil shall be thrust from them and shall not cleave to them e mingle sith them, for of seaél tis said: 'and of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil ye shall riyt eat", 'This tree is the "mised multitude", and G pointed out to them that through misioy with them they ulfered to lone, of the first and OF the secind 'Tample, fs itis said: "an ue the day that thou eatest of it thou shalt sirely die", 'They ciused the Zaddik to be left parched and desolate by the las of the first Temple, which istheShekinah in heaven, and by the fos of the second 'Temple, which is the Shekinal on earth. Hence i is written, "andl the river shall be drained dry"; ie. the tiver caw shall dey inthe Foster hi, so a8 t9 deprive tof the How of yod issuing from Bx-Sof. But a8 soon 35 Iseacl shall go forth from eaptiity, that i, the holy people alone, then that civer which war dried 'up shall become "the river that goes forth from Eden to water the garden", 'This river is the Central Column; "goes forth fromm Balen" is the superal Mother; "to water the garden" is the Shekinah on earth. Inv reference to that time it ia said 'of Mase and Israel, "Then thou shalt delight inthe Lord', 'and the words shall be fulfilled, "then Moses shall sing" (Ex. 3¥, 1), [269] -—. Further, the river "shall par from, thence and become four heads' (Gen, 11, 10). The first of 266-270) SERESHITHE 103 these is Hesed (Kindness), which is the right arm. From this shall drink the camp of Michael, and with it the tribe of Judah and his two accompanying 'ibes. 'The second is 'Geburak (Force), and from shall drink the eamp of Gabriel, and witht the tribe of Dan and his two accompanying tribes, 'The third is Neeal (Vietny), the right leg, and from it shall drink the camp of Nuriel, and with it the tribe of Reuben and his two accompanying tribes. The fourth is Hod (Majesty), the "left leg" referred to in what was said of Jacob, that "he halted on his left thigh"), and from it shall, rink the camp of Raphael, whose mission is to eal the ills of the captivity, and with ithe tribe of Ephraim and his wo accompanying tribes. [274] Axp THe Loxn Gon 100K THE MAN AND POT MEME I THe GARDER oF Evex, ere. From whence did he take him ? He took him from the four elements which are hinted at in the verse 'and from there it parted and became four heads", God detached him from these and placed him in the Garden of Eden, So does God da now to any man created from the four elements when he repents of his sins land cceupies himself sith the 'Torah: Gad takes him from hrs original elements, as iis said, "and from there he parts", ice: he separates himself fram the desires which they inspire, ind God places hive in his garden, which is the Shekinah, "to dress it", by means of positive precepis, "and (o keep bby meant of negative precepts. If he keeps the la, he makes himself master of the four clements, and becomes a "ver from which they are watered, and they obey him and he is their ruler. But if he ranigresses the law, they are watered. from the bitterness of the tree of evil, which is the evil fncfination, and al his limbs are full of bitterness; but when the members of the body are kept holy from the side of good, i may be said of them that riot able ty drink waters from Marah, for they were bitter" (Ex. ¥¥, 33), Similarly, the study of the 'Talmud is hiter "Here fons a derension (py oath p27) 08 8 sasiog of ie ANS Set she sesh om techie fe anton

104Tue Z0NARE [ae-a7b
compared with that of the esoteric wisdom, of which it ia 'aid, "And God showed him a tre" (Ubid.); this s a tree of Iife, and through it "the waters were sweetened. Similarly 'of Moser it is writen, "And the staff of God was in his hand." 'This cod is Matron, from one side of whom comes life and fom the onher death. When the rod remains a rods 'it i help from the side of good, and when itis turned into

4serpent it s hostile, so that "Moses fled from it", and God
livered it into his hand. 'This red typifies the Oral Law 'which prescribes whar is permitted and what is forbidden. When Moses struck the rock God 1eok it back from him, and "he went down to him with a rod!" (1 Sam, xxi, 21), to nite itn with i, the "tod being the evi inclination, which js a serpent, the cause of the captivity. A further lesson can be derived from the words "and from there it parted": happy is the mati who devotes himself tothe Torah, for when God takes him from this body, from the four elements, he is Adetached from them and ascends to become the head (275) 'of the faar Hayyoth, xe i is written, "and they shall bear thee on their hands" (Ps. xt, 42) Anp tie Loan Gon comManneD Tite Max, SAYING. Te is agreed that the term "command" in the Seripture always hist reference to the prohibition of idolatry. This sin fat ts root in the liver, whieh isthe sea of anger, and ft has 'been laid dosen that "1 fll into a passion is ike worshipping idols, The expression "the man designates bloodshed, on the analogy of the verve: "by man shall his blood be shed" (Gen, 1x, 6), This sin has its root the gall, the sword of the angel of death, after the verse: "her latter end is bitter ike all picrcing like a to-edged svord" (Prov. v, 4). 'The 'expression "saying" refers to incest, which ha its root in the spleen, as it s writen, "Such isthe way of the adulterous, woman, she wats and seipes hee mouth" (Ibid. xxx, 20). Although the spleen his no mouth or suckers, yet it absorbs the black turbid blood of the liver s0 the adulterous woman swipes her mouth and Iaves no trace. 'The murderer is incited by the bile and sucks from the blood of the heart. All who Ss bile recoil from it, but unichasiy i covered in darkness, 2) enesunn 105 in the black blood of the apleen. Whoever sins by muses, idolatry, ad incest bans his soul through the iver, th gall, and the splen, and is punished in Gehinnom in these three Iernbers, through three chief demons, Mauhith (destroyer), Af anger), and Hench (wrath)... Before Israel vent into faptivity, and while the Shelisah was oll with them, God Gommanded Israel: "thou shalt nor uncover thy mother's fakedness (Lev. xv, 7) and this captivity isthe uncover- ing of the akedness ofthe Shekinah a is writen, "On sccount of you sins your mother has ben put aw 1); us. for the sin of unchastityTaral har been sent into captivity and the Shekinab alo, and this i the uncovering 'ofthe Shekinah This unchasty i Lith, the motber ofthe "mised mukitude", Tee they who separate the two H's of the sacred name, and prevent the Va fom entering berwexn them; so iis write, "the nakedns uf a woman and her daughter thou shalt not uncover refering tothe upper and lower Shekinah. When the "mixed multitude" ae between the one Hé and the ater, the Holy One, blewed be He, ira lnk ther toner cd cooseaily, the Giver be comes dry and parched"-dry in the upper 1@ and parched in the lower 11, in order that the "raed multitude" m fot he nourished by the Wau, which isthe 'Tree of Life. 'Therefore the Vaw docs not link wogeter the wo Hs when fhe mined emlivude f betncen them, aid the leer Va 5 fot able t0 draw near tothe second /é; thus the precept "thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy daughters Jaw" is trangressed. Further, they separate the Yod froma the upper He, and so break the command "thou shalt not luncover the sakedness of thy' father's wie, the Yod Being the father, the frst Hé the mather, Vw the son and the second 1 the daughter. Therefore it isordained with regard to the upper #7, "thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's wife; "the nakedness of ey sister the daughter fof hy father" refers to the lower He; "her son's daughter dnd her daughter's daughiee" refers tothe Hand He which are the chillren of Hé; "the nakedness of the father's brother" refers to the Vod, whichis the product ofthe let Yad) a bret Faw. Inaword, when the nised molitude

106He roman t [ayaa
are mingled with Israel, the leners ofthe name VHVH cannot be joined and linked together; buts soon as they are removed from the sori, then ivi suid of the letters of God's name that "On that day the Lord shall be one and his name one" (Zech. xiv, 9). Thie is why Adam, who is Iszae, is closely linked with the 'Torah, of which itis said, "Iti a tre of life to those who take hold on it"; this tree is the Matron, the Scfiah Malshuth (Kingship),theough their connection with Which Israel ae ealled "sons of kings". On this account God said, "tis not good that the man should be alone' T will rake him an help mect for him' (Gen, 11, 18). 'This help is the Mishnah (the oral Law), the bandmaid ofthe Shekinah, IF Israel deserve well it is'@ help to them in the captivity from the side of the permitted, the clean, and the proper if they do not deserve well, its. hindrance to them from the side of the urclean, the unfit, and the forbidden, the clean, the permitted, and the ft signifying the geod inclination, tl the unfit, the unclean, and the forbidden signifying the 'il inclinatin. 'This the Mishnah cesembles the woman, 'sho fas both pure and impure blood of menstruation. But the Mishnal isnot the spouse of his real union, for real union is denied to him until the "mixed multitude" shall he remived from the earth, On account of this Moses was bhuried outside of the Holy Land, (28a) Axi THE Loe» Gov PoRsteD FROM THE GROUND ALL HEAVEN, Sadl R. Simeon, "Mas for the stupidity and the Iindnesr of men who do not perceive the mysteries of the 'Vorah, and do not kno that "the beasts of the field and ithe Foal a the besser ated the untearned. ven those of them whe are "a living soul" are of no service 18 the Captivity o the Shekinah or 4o Moves who is with her, forall the time that she is in esile he does not quit hen" Said I, Eleavar, 'Are we justified in applying what said of Adam to Moses and Israel?" R, Simeon answered: 'My son, is it ou who speak thus? Have you forgouten the text, "He nnouneeth the end from the beginning" (I. x1¥1, 30) He replied: "You are certainly right; and that is why we are told Ba) BeResiTHL in reference to bimn in the last eaptiity i i8 for Adam he found no help", but all was "against too, of the Central Column itis written, "and for the man be found no help", vie. to bring the Shekinah out of captivity; therefore itis written, "And he turned this way and that dnd saw that theze was no man" (Ex. 1,13), Moses being after the pattern of the Central "the Lord God eaused a deep sleep to fall upon the ran (Gen. 11, 21), "Lord God" desig Mother; the "deep sleep" is the "andl a deep sleep fell upon Abraham" (bi te took one of his sides." Whose sides ? What is referred to it the maidens of the Matron. The Father and the Mother twok one of these, a white side, far as the moon, and elated typ the place with Resh'; this is the flesh of which it is written, "seeing that he also is flesh" (Gen, vi, 3), which refers to Moses, AND THE Loxv Gon auitr THE siDe, Here ts an allusion to the bw of the deceased husband's brother, in regard to whom the Sages sid, "If he refuses to build once, he shall not build any more", sit is written, "thus shall be done to the man who shall ot build his beother's house" (Deut. ans, 0) Bt of God it writen, "And the Lond God "ie. the Father and the Mother built the son, a5 itis sete "God buleth Jerusalem, ue, Von which the san, is built by Vod Hé, which are the Father and Mother. ad the Lord God buile the side which he the man", viz. the Central Column, "and ought it ta the man' je. he bndght to the side which he had taken from Hé its maiden, and of her itis said, "And. I shall be to her, saith the Lord, a wall of fre round about" (Zech. 11,9) Its because the future Te inile on this rock by the bands of the Holy One, He, that it will endure forall generations, OF this Temple cts walteen, "greater aball be the plocy of this latter tse than of the former, far the former was buile by the hands 'of man, but this one shall be built by the hands ofthe Holy

108THE ZONARE
One, blessed be He... The words built the side" can also be applied to Moves, in so far as he i from the side of place of it with flesh flesh eing red, (Force), and so in Moses both were combined. THIS TIME BONK OF MY DONE AND FLESH OF MY FLESH, Thi said of the Shekinab, the betrothed maiden, by the Central Coluinn, as though to say, "I know that this is bone of my hone and flesh of my flesh' so this of surety shall be called 'woman, from the supernal realm, which is Mother, for she 'yas taken from the realm of the Father, which is Yad." And se with the Central Column, s0 with Moses below. At that fime every Israelite wil find his tin-soul, as it i written, shall give to you a new hear, and a new spit shal place within you" (Ezek. xxv1, 26), and again, "And your sons tnd your daughter sball prophesy" (Jost); theseare 283) the new souls with which the laracites are to be endowed, according to the dictum, "the son of David will aot come until all the souls to. be enclosed in bodies have been eshausted", and then the new ones shall come, At that time the mixed multitade shall pass away from the world, and it will be possible t say of Moses ard of Israel, each in refer- ferice to his twin-soul, "and the man and his wife were both naked and were rot ashamed", because unchastity shall pass away from the world, namely those who caused the eaptivity, the mixed multitude, OF them itis further said, AND THE FeLp waren tH LonD Gob HAD MADE: i, they are smoce subtle for evil than all the Gentiles, and they are the offspring ofthe original spent tha: heguled Eve, Fhe mined multitude are the impurity which the serpent injected into 'eame forth Cain, who killed Abel, From Cain-was descended Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, 4s itis writen, "And the sons of the Kenite the fither-in- Jaw of Moses" (Jud. 1, 16), and according to tradition he was called Kenive because he originated from Cai order to screen the reproach of his father-in- convert the "ined multitude" (the although God warned him, saying, They are of an evil 280) beresuin 109, 'stock; beware of them." Through them Moses was banished from his proper place and was not privileged to enter the land of Tsrac, for throug them he sinned in stiking the rock when he was told to speak to it (Num. xx, 8) 'they who brought him fo this, And withal God takes account of a good motive, and since Moses' motive in converting them was good, as has been said, therefore God said to him, "T shall make thee a natin greater and mightier than he" (bid, xiv, 12). In regard to them itis written, "Whos hath sinned against me, him will blot out of my book' (Ex, 3% 33); for they are of the seed of Amalek, of whom itis sid, thou shalt blot out the memory of Amaick" (Deut xxv, 19)? ix was they who caused the two tablets of the Law to be broken, whereupon, AND THE EYES OF 20TH OF THEM SARED, Le. Tstacl became aware that they vere sunk in the mire of Exypt, being without Torah, so that it could be said of them "and thou wast naked and bare"... . Next it says, AND THEY SEWED #16 LEAVES, that is tosay, they sought to cover themselves with various husks from the "mixed multitude; but their real covering is the fringes of the Tajtzith and the straps ofthe phylacteries, of which iis sid Axp Tus Lox» Gob MADE FOR THE MAN AND Wis WIFE COATS OF SKIN AND COVERED THEM; this refers more properly. to the phylacteries, while the fringes are designed in the words AND THEY MADE FOR THEM- SELVES CIRDLES. AND THEY HEARD THE VOICE oF THE LoRD Gop, ere. 'This alludes to the time when Israel came to Mount Sinai asitiawrtten, "Hath people heard the voice of God speak- ing from the midst of the ie, ete." The mixed multitude then perished, those who ssid to Moses, "Let not God speak with us let we die" (Ex. xx, 16). 'These ate the prototypes (of the whlesrned (tm arts), af wham it said, Yeursed is he that lieth with any manner of beast" (Deut, xxv, 21), because they are from the side of the serpent, of which it i said, "cured art thou from among all the beasts" (Gen. 11, 14): Various impurities are mingled in the composition of

110vue OMAR 1 [280-290
Janel, like animals among men. One kind is from the side of tie serpent; another from the side of the Gentiles, who are Compared to the beasts ofthe field; another from the ide of 'mazihin (goblin), for the souls [294] of the wicked are erly the masikin (goblins) of the world; and there isan impurity from the side of the demons and evil spirits; and there is none so cursed among them ax Amalek, who is the evil serpent, the "strange god". He is the cause ofall unchastity, and murder, and his twin-soul is the poison of idolatry, the two together being called Samael (lit. poison-god). 'There bout this Ano THE Logo Gon cALtxD To THE MAN AND SAID, Wuene aut THow? The word aickah (where art thou) has the same letters as the word aikah (how), which commences thebook of Lamentations and thus foreshadows the destrue- tion of the Temple and the lamentation overit. But in the days to come God will veep away all evil growths from the | an it is writen, "He hath swallowed up death for (Is, x8v, 8), and everything shall be restored t0 its rightful place, asi ix writen, "On that day the Lord shall the one and his name une" (Zech, x2¥, 9). Ix THe BEaINNING.! We have been taught that wherever te Solomon uccurs in the Song of Songs, Ke refers to 'the King to whom peace belongs", while the term "hing", simply, refers to the Female. The lower ts contained in the 'upper, and the mnemyonicis thatthe lowerisheirto the upper, '80 that both are as one, together constituting beth (—bayith, house), as ie is written, "With wisdom a howse (bayith) is touided" (Prov. xxty, 3). Now tse written: The hing Solomon 'nade hi palonguin of the tree of Lebanon (8.11, 9). "The "palanguin" is the maintenance of the lower world through 'he ageney of the upper world, Before God crested the world, His name was enclosed within Him, and therefore He and His name enclosed within Him were not one. Nor could this 'unity be effected until He created the world, Having, therefore, *.Appeny 385 290) Benesurrie oo decided to do so, He traced and built, but the aim was 'hot attained until He enfolded Himself in a covering of a superna radiance of thought and created therefrom a world. He produced from the light uf thar supernal radiance mighty 'cedars of the upper world, and placed Hie chariot on twenty 'two graven lerters which were carved into ten utterances and. infixed there. Henceit is written, "from the trees of Lebanon', and itis also writen, "the cedars of Lebanon which he hath planted" (Ps. civ, 16), It says in.our text, "King Solomon 'made for hinself." The words "for himvelP" indicate that He made it for His own behoof, for His own advantage, to display His glory, to show that Fleis one and His name one, as i 8 written, "and they shall know that iti thou alone whose name isthe Lord" (Ps. tyit, 19). Through the blows Of His light various realms were made ineligible. He glarced at this side akove, He glanced to the right, He turned to the left and descended below, and so t al four cardinal points. 'Thus His kingdom spread above and below and in all four Uirections, sirce a certain supernal stream flowed downwards anid formed a great sea, aa it says, "all the rivers low into the sea and the sa is not full" (Eccl. 1, 7), for it gathers the Whole and draws it into its mids, as itis written, "Iam, the rose of Staron" (S, §, 11,1), Sharon being the basin of the great aea which drascsto itself al the waters of the World and absorbs them. 'Thus the one discharges and the other collects, and one shines through the other in a speciied 'manner. OF this selationship tis written, "By wisdom isthe house built": hence the beth (2) of Bereshith, implying that the upper hovse is built in wiedom and the lower one slo. 'The upper house, which is the greater, makes the world habitable, andi called Blahim; the lower one is ealled simply jing'. Te is written, "The king shall rejoice in Eloi" (Pe taint, 12): to wit when the superna Gebinul (Force) bests itself to embrace him and draw him to himself 50 that all should he one. Again, the words may be taken 10 refer tothe gldness of the stream which issues in one iden ind seeret path and enters as two which are one, thus render~ ing the woeld complete and whole, Or again, "The king shall rejoice in Elohim', Ke, the lower world rejoices in the upper m2 THR goHARE [2ya-agb recondite world which sent ferth life to all, which was called life ofthe king. This isthe Foundation (98) ofthe house This house built the house of the world, and built a world. 'This is what is meant by "in the beginning God created' "in the beginaing", ro wit, in Wisdom. When i collected the whole into itself it became the great 4a, 4 sea of which the waters were congealed, those waters which had flowed in from the upper source, a0 wu indicate by the verse, "From the womb af Whom (Mi) came forth the ice" Job, xxevit, 29), ts waters congealing in it in order to draw in others. This ice was a frozen sea the waters of 'which did noc Row ntl the force of the South reached it and drew it to itself. Then the waters which were congealed inthe aide of the North were relaxed and commenced to fo for it was on the side ofthe North thatthe waters were Foren, and on the sie of the South that they thawed and began 10 flow, in order to water all the "beasts of the Bld", asi is 'writien, "they give water to all the beasts of the fick (Ps, cv, 11), These are called haré bather (mountaies of separation), and all are watered when the side of the South begins to approach and to make the water flow. 'Through the streaming of this supernal energy all were in glasness, When it so pleased the thought of the Most Mysterious, a river flowed forth therefrom, and when one joined the other hiya path which cannot he traced ether above or below, heen \was the beginsing of all, and Beth (~ second), which is plain king', was completed from this beginning, nd one was ike the other. With this energy Gad created the heavens, hidden. point the waters of which flow for without, and produced therefrom a voice which is called the voice of the Shofar Hence it says, "God created the heavens", «9 wit, the voiee 'of the Shofar. 'The heavens control the life of the supernal ing upon the eatth (as indicated by the eatchword, "the son 'of Jesse i alive upon the earth", since life depends upon the son of Jesse). It is through Taw that life flows to it, and it 'controls all and the earth is fed therefrom; hence itis written, "and (&-) the earth", the om being added to control the sustenance of the eneth. The word eth refers to something in the upper world, to wit, the power of the totality of the ph) neKesurrws ng twenty-two letters, which Blohim produged and gave to the heavens (as it soy, "with the crown with which his mother owned him on the day uf bis espousals"); henve, "the (eth) heavens", to associate and combine one with the other, so as tw be established together by the "life of the king", thatthe heavens should be fed therefrom. The words "and (ce-eth) the earth" indicate the union of male and female, which were traced with individual letters, and the "life of the king" which flowed from the heavens, the heavens pouring them for to maintain the earth and all its denivens. Tn this way the so-called supemal Elohim made a heaven and earth for permanency, and produced them together by the supernal energy, the starting-point of all, The supernal cocie then descended wm lower grade, and chs later ade heaven and earth beluw. 'Che whole process is symbolised by the letter beth, 'There are two Worlds and they created worlds, one an upper world and one a lower world, one corresponding to the other; on ereated heaven and earth 'and the other created heaven and earth, In this vay the letter teth sigaifies Wo further Worlds, one produces two worlds and the other produced two worlds; and all through the 'energy of the supernal resith, When the upper descended into the lower, was filled from the channel of a certain sade which rested on it corresponding to that hidden, secret and recondite path above, the difference being that one is a 'arrow path and the other a way. 'The one hel isa was like "the way of the righteous which is a a shining light (Prov. tv, 18), whereas the one above is-a narrow path like "the track which the wultuee knoweth nat" (Job evi, 'The mnemonic far the whole isthe verse, "who maketh aw in tho goa and a path in the mighty waters" (Ie xt, £6): and similacly it & writen, "Thy way is in the sea and thy pth is in great waters" 'When the upper world was filed and beeame pregnant, trecught forth two children together, a male and a female, these being heaven and earth after the supernal pattern. The 'earth is fed fromn the waters of the heaven Which age poured into it. Thete upper waters, however, are male, whereas the Tower are female, and the lower ace fed from» the male and

14Tite zoNaR 1 [298-300
the lower waters call tothe upper, like a female that receives the male, and pour out vater to meet the water of the male to produce seed. Thus the female is fed from the male, as it is writen, "and the earth", with the addition of naw, as we have explained. Letters were imprinted [304] on the fabric of the Whole, fon the upper and on the lower fabric. Afterwards the letters 'were distinguished and inscribed in the Seripuure-—beth bereshith bara, and.alephin Elohim eth. Beth is female, aleph male, As beth created, so aleph produced letters, "The heavens" are the totality of twenty-two letter. The letter he produced the heavens to give them life and to water them 'and the earth, The leter nau produced the earth to give it food and to provide for itts requirements. 'The word ee-cth (and) signifies that ewe teak eth, which embraces the twenty 'wwoletters, and the earth absorbed them, as itis written, "all the rivers go tothe se", and vets thus fed, 'Thus the heavens and the earth are united and the earth is fed, When the fam ing fte goes forth and the Lefts awakened, stoke also goes tapas it says, "Now mount Sinai was altogether on smoke, betause the Lord descended upon it in fre' because when fire descends, smoke and fire are intermingled, and so the whole ison the side of the left. This isthe i 'meaning of the verse, "Yes, my hand hath lid the fou tions of the earth, and my right hand hath spread out the heavens" (Us. xi, 23) be, by the poser of the Ripht above: for the heavens are mate and the male comes from the side uf the right, and he female from the sie of the let, Tesave: Lift up your eves om high and zee, Wha hath created thes (Is, Xi 26). "Thi is the hit of inquiry. For Wisdom was completed from aye (nothing), which is no subject of inquiry, since it is to deeply hidden and recandite to be 'comprehended, From the point at which is fight bexiins to ested i ja the subject of inquiry, although iis stil inore recondite than anything beneath, and it is called the inter- rogative pronoun, "Whe?" Hence, "Who (Mi) ereated these", and also, "From the womb of Whom (Mi) came forth the ice"; as much a to say, that about which we ean inguire but find no answer, oa-g0b] Bemesnore 15 We have analysed the word Beret into the letter beth and the word reshitl, Is resith a creative utterance, or ere we 10 say that heresith is the creative utterance ? The truth js that s0 long es its energy had not emerged and spread and everything wasstil atent init, it as bershith, and that vas a creative utterance, But when being emerged and spresd from it, it-was called reshith, and that became a creative 'utterance. Similarly, the interrogative Mi create ele (hese) 'put subsequently when it extended and completed itself, Ihecame Yan (sa), and created alower world after the pattern of the upper, the two being represented by the letter bh ) Its writen: Rie the Ring stu is able my spikenard sent forth its fragrance (S. 8. 1, 12), This describes how the 'Ring delighes himself in the company of the lower king, in their affectionate companionship in the celestial Eden, in that hidden and concealed path which is filled from him and issves jn certain specified streams. "My spikenatd gave its fri igrance"" this isthe lower king, who created a lower world falter the pattern of the upper, So therw goes up 4 goodly. fragrance to divect and to perform, and it acquires power and shines with supernal ight 'The world was created in two fashions, with the right and vith the left in six supernal days. Six days were efeated (0 ithimine, as it says, "for into six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth", and they trad out paths and made Snty openings into the geeat abyss, 1o conduct the waters of ams into the abyss. Hence the Rabbinic dictum that openings (ander the altar) were from the six days of ght peace to the world, AND THE FARTH Was Voip A¥D WirHoUT FoRM. This deseribesthe original state—asit were, the dees of ih ststence, until the world was graven with forty-two lewers, all of which are the ornamentation of the Holy Name. When they are joined, letters ascend (308] and descend, and wns for themselves in all four quarters of the world 29 thae the world i established through them and they through it. A mould wat formed for ther Tike the seal of a ring; when

16HE ZOHAK gob
they wentin and issued, and the world yas ereated, and when they sere joined towether in the sel, the world was estab- fished 'They struck against the great serpent, and penetrated tinder the chaste of the dust fifteen hundeed eubite. Mie ward the ereat deep arose in darkness, and darkness covered al, nal ight emerged and ¢let the darkness and came forth 'and shome, ati # written, "He uncovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow of dexth'" (Job xi, 23). The waters were weighed in a balance, Fifteen Ihunured times thee fingers flowed into the balance, half for preservation and half to go below, At first one side of the bsalance rose and the other fell. When, however, the lower side was raised by the hand, the halance was even and did fot ineine to Jef or rights hence it ie written, "Who hath rmieasuted the waters i the hallo of hi hand?" (Is, xt, 42) At frs all the powers of the earth were latent and not pro- ductive, and the waters were frozen in it and did not flow, 'They only spread abroad when a light from above was shed 'upon the earth, for when this struck swith is rays its powers were released, So it says, "And God asid, Let there be light, and there was light." This is the supemal primordial light 'which was already existing; feam this came forth all powers and forces, and theough this the earth was fiemly established: and subsequently brought forth its products, When this ight shone on what was below, its mdianee spread fram one end. of the world to the other; but when ic observed the sianers of the world, it hid itself away, and issued only by scree paths which cannot be discovered AND Gob Saw the LigHT THAT rr Was Goon. We Ihave Fearne that every dream which comtaina the verm fob (good) presages peace above and below, paovided the letters Are seen it their proper order... These three letters were afterwards combined to signify "the Righteous one (Zaddik) of the world" as it is written, "Say of the righteous oné that hheisgood", because the supernal ridianceis contained therein, Hee Elo sre aes om Selmer sees of he eters te sw lie is opens nth rae re eye Wid) hes thehcaven ont ety teu ws gobs) onwesniTa 47 Ix tHe Becissixe Goo eueaten. The word resith [ea cea elec ollie attain .e. bayith, house) designates the world, which is vatered Pea een eet ecse te to ents alton in the verse, "A stream went forth from Eden to water the sgarden." 'This steam gathers all the waters froma supernal hidden source, and flows peresially to water the Garden, (This hidden source is the First Temple.) In reshith all the letters were enclosed by a secret path hidden within it, From this source went forth two entities, a8 itis written, "the heavens And the earth". The earth wasat frst included i the heavens, 'and they emerged together, clinging to one another. When the fist illumination came, the heavens took the earth and tit inte place, Thereupon the earth, being separated [31] from the side of the heavens, was amazed and dumbfounded, desiring to cleave to the heavens a5 hefare, because abe save the heavens bathed in light while she was enveloped in darkness, At length, however, the celestial light descended 'upon her, and from her place she looked at the heavens face to face: and so the earth was firmly established. Light came forth on the right side and darkness on the left, nd God afterwards separated them in order again to unite them, ag it ie written, "And God divided the light from the darkness, "This does not mean that there was an absolute separation, hut that day came from the ede of light, which isthe righ, and aight from the side of darkness, which isthe left, and that having emerged together, they were separated in such a way. as tobe no longer side by side but face to face, in which guise they elung «0 one another and formed one, the light being called day and the darkness night, st says, "And Godcalled the light day and the darkness he ealled night." Thies the darkness that is attached 10 night, which has no light of its 'own, although it comes from the side of the primordial fire 'which is also called "darkness". It remains dark unl i is illumined from the side of day. Day illumines night, and night will not be light of itself until the time of which itis writen, "the night shineth as the day, the darkness is even, ae the light" (Ps. cxxxty, 12)

8THE BONAR T (we

2R, Eleazar came foryacd first and expounded the vere:
The eoice of the Lard is upon the raters: the God of glory anudereth cen the Lord poe many waters (Pa. sr, 3) He said, "The voice of the Lord" is the aipernal voice presd= ing over the waters, which flow from grade 19 grade until they ae all collected in one place and form one gathering. Its this voie which sends them forth each in its eourse, lke 3 gardener who conduets water through various channels tothe 'requisite spots. "he God of glory thandereth'": this ithe side that issues fom Geburah (Force), as itis written, "Who an understand the shunder of his mighty deeds (gehuratoe|?" ob. xxs1, 14). "The Lord upon many waters" this isthe supernal Wisdom, whieh is called Yad, and whieh ie "upon the many waters", the secret source that issues therefrom." R, Simeon explained the difference, and said "Iris written, "Close by the border shall the Hing be, Cor plasts for the staves" (Ex. xxv, 27), 'The "border" is a secret pce ae tessible only by one narrow path known toa fev. Easy there- fore, filled with gates and kit with lamps, This isthe future world, which, being hidden and stored away, is ealed aiigereth (border, It. closed). The "rings" are the supernal chain of water, air, and fire, whigh are liked with one another and emenge from one another like so many rings of a chain, 'They all turn to the "border", with which is connected that supernal stream whieh waters them, and with which they are thus connected. Further, these supernl rings are "places for the staves", to wit, the lower chariots, of which some are from the side offre, some of water, ard some of air, s0 that they should be a chariot to the ark Hence anyone who approaches should proceed only as far as the staves, but should not penetra further, save those who are qualified minister within, ani to whom permission has been given to center for that purpose. R. Jose propounded the question; 'What ace the "si days: of hereahith of which the Rabie speak so often 2! R. Simeon answered: "These ee, in truth, "the celars of Lebanon which he has planted", As the cedars spring from Lebanon, 30 these six days spring from Bereshith. "These are the six io ri tobe te & as i the te. 310-318) BEKESIUTH 19 supemal days which are specified inthe verse: Thine,

0Lord, are the Greatness( Gedulah), the Might (Gebural),
the Beauty (Tifereth), the Victory (Nevah), and the Majesty Hed)" (Chron. sa1x, 14). The words "For all" refer to the Zaddit (righteous. one), who is. Yerod (foundation of the world)... [318]'The word bereskith we interpret to mean "the second, i. Holah (Wisdom) isthe starting-point" because the supemal Kether (Crown), which is really first, is 0 recondite and therefore is not eounted; hence the second ix the starting-point. Again, the word bees sndvcates thie there are two reshich's, because as the upper Wisdom is a reshith (starting-point), 40 the lower Wisdom is a reshith Further, we reckon bereshith as w maamiar (creative utter- sce), and six days ised from it and are comprised in it, snd bear the names of those others. The nest words, Created Hohim, ae analogous 40 the verse "and a river cent forth fromm Eden co water the gaeden', ie. t water it and keep snd attend toall ts needs, Thus this Elohim is Elohim Haysine the living God), and we render "Bereshith created Elohin'™ by means ofthat stream, asthe agent for producing the world snd vivifving it. Further, the eo words eth hashamaim (the heavens) signify the fting union of male and female, Aer this a lower world was ereated through the agency of the heavens, and through it Elohim gave being to all. More precisely, the heavens produced eth, which is the Whole When the Whole was settled in ite place, this last fink in the shain became in turn a starting-point (reshith),. theough which Elohim relewed the stream, and the waters began to flo to the lowvcr World, mo hate ext pow tender "hy means of reshith God created", vi. the lower world, by ite ican He prodhiced radiances and gavebeing to all! R. Jucal said: 'In allusion 16 this itis written, "should the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith?" (x, 13). Surely itis the craftsman who is entitled to boast. So here, seeing that hy means of this rehith the supernal Elohim created the heavens, i is God to whom the glory belongs... Axo Gop sain, Ler ruree ae Ligit, ax raeee 'This isthe original light which God created.

130THE ZOmAR | [gi aaa
'his i the ight ofthe eye, Tt che light which God showed. to Adam, and through which he was able to see from one 'end of the world to the other. It sas the light which God showed to David, who on seeing ir burst forth Sato praise saying, "Oh, how abundant is thy guodness whieh thou hast Jaid up for them that fear thee" (Ps, xt, 26). It isthe Hight through which God showed co Muses the Land of Israel from Gilead to Dan, When God firesaw that three sinful generations would arise, namely the generation of Enoah, the 'generation ofthe Flood, and the generation of the 'Tower of Babel, He jut it aeay 90 that they should not enjoy it, and gave it to Moses for the frst three months after he was born when his mother hid him. When he was brought before Pharaoh God withdrew it from him, and only restored it to him when he stood upon the mountain of Sinai to receive the Torah. From that time he had the use of it forthe rest of his life, so that the Israclites could not approach him tll he put

1veil over his face (Bs. xxXI¥, 30)
Ler THERE BE LicuT, AND THERE Was LIGHT. Any thing to which the term eayeli (and there was) is applied is found in this World and the next world. R. Isaac said: "The radiance which God! produced at the time of the Creation illumined the world from one end tothe other, but was with- "drawn, in order that the sianers of the world might net enjoy and itis treasured up forthe righteous, ie. for the Zaddih, itis written, "light ie sown forthe Zaddik (Ps. sev, 11); then worlds will be firmly established and all will fort

2single whole, but until the time when the future world shall
this light ie hidden and stored up, his light issued Frum the carkness which was carved out hy the stokes ofthe Most Recindite; and similarly from that light which was stored away there was carved out thmugh some hidden pro- tess the lower-workd diskness jm which light resides, 'This lower darkness is what is called "night" in the verse, "and the darkness he called night" (Gen, 1,3): Hence the Rabbinical 'exposition of the text: "He uncovereth deep things out of (Job: x11, 23), 0n which R.Jose said "This cannot He Ihe 'inal Since: all the aupernal erowne 34) deResurrit Contained therein are sil undisclosed, and we call them" things". 'The term "uncovereth" cin be applied to. those supernal mysteries only in so far as ther are contained in that darkness which isin the extegory of night. Forall those deep and hidden things which issue from (God's) thought and are taken up by the Voise are not disclosed wil the Word reveals them. This Word is Speech, and this Speech is called Sabbath, because this Speech seeks to dominate and not to let any other do 40. Tt is this Speech which comes from the side of darkness that diseloses hidden things from that datknes," Said K. taane: 'Ifo, what isthe meaning of the text, "And God divided the Tight feom the darkness" ?* He replied "Light produced day and darkness produced night, After- wards He joined them tagether and they were ome, as it i= written, "Ard there was evening and there was moraing one fe night and day were called one, As for the words, God divided the light fram the darkness", this means, that He prevented dissension berseen them.' Said R. Isaac 'Up to this point the male principle was represented hy light land the female by darkness; subsequent thoy were joined together ané made one. The difference by means of which light is distinguished from darkness is one of degree only; both are one in kind, as there is no light without darkness and no darkness without light; but though one, they are Ultfeen in colour." K, Simeon said: 'The world is exeated and established on the basis of a covenant, as it is written, "If not for my covenant with the day and night, Uhad not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth" (Jer. xxxit, 235).Thia covenant is the Zaddik (righteous one), the founda tion of the world, and therefore the world is extablahed on the covenant of day and right together, as sated in our text the "ordinances of heaven" being those which flow and issue forth from the celestial Een." R. Simeon discourted hete on the texts Fra the (place of) te voice of thase ees maiate Ietween the weiter dracers there they shall rehearse the kind nesses of the Lard, ete, (Judges ¥, 41), "This voice', he said, "is the voice of Jacob, which rests between those who draw 'waters from on high, and takes hold of both sides and unites them in tellPhece they hall rehearse the kindnesses ofthe ms 'rie zoman t aes Lori. there the pice fo tht leave fx there the nests ofthe Land dra ustenance,'The verse proses: The kindness of him wh f enero to aac" This x the "Pigincats Ons of te rer whe i everaatig sn hol, and ho draws in te Hilf the steam ofthe Whole and disperses the ruperral waters into the great sea "In Tara" Because Isach inherited ths covenatt, and. God ove it to them for an exerting inheritance Severed through pesfoing the ceremony of 'tho drawing back the fe, there was ap the verse "then the people of the Lord went down t the tte (id): these are the gates of righteous in which they sat yithout emering fuer, OF that time [32] i writen, "and the ehildrenof sae forsook che Lord" Jen th 2), url Deborah ene and restored the proper per= {orntance oft eeemony, Hence Deborah apeiks of emf as 3 'mesber in lara o indicate tht he brought down the muperol waters frm above to etablich both werd throng eral, ths sowing that the word teats only 08 thiscovenant, We sce fom all hi how thee ae fern one ai one ie eaablahed on thee one enters between (wo, twogve suck fo one, and ne feeds nay sides and pall re 'ne: Hence itis wien, "and there wap evening and there seas morning one day", i. day that embraces both cten= tng and morning, thus indicating the covenare of ay and tigi and rendering the shale awit Axo Gop ship, Ler -ntere noo WATERS, R. Judah said: "There are seven firmaments above, all in the tealm of superial holiness, and the Holy 'Name is completed through them. 'The firmament mentioned heres in the midst ofthe waterssit rests upon other Hath, separating the upper fromthe lower waters, The lower waters calla the upper and deivk them in through the medium of this firmament, because all the upper waters ate collected in it, anit then transmits them to these Hayyoth, and so they draw from there, It is written: "A garden shut up is miy ister, miy beide, a spring shut up, a fountain sealed" (S. S, LEv IT DIVIDE WATERS phase penesuiTa 133

412). This femament i caled garden shut up", eae
thewhole s enclosed and embraced nit, Its ealled a "spring 'shut up", Because the supeenal stream ast courses enter it 'but eannot ise, the waters bing congealed. For the ner 'vind bows on them, and so they become congealed and cannot issue, beigg made ino ice: ror would they ever fae 'were it not fora wind from the South which breaks up the ice. 'The appearance ofthis highest firmament is ike that of the ice which eolleets all the waters, Similarly callete waters and searates the upper from the lower waters. When aye sid above that it wat in the mid, this refers to that firmament whch was produced from thie one, but this oe 'saboveand rests onthe heads ofthe Hayyoth Sid R. Inc: "There isa membrane in the inside ofthe human body which separates the upper from the lower part of the teunk, end 'which imibes from the uppee part and dstibutes to the lover pat so is this firmament between the waters...

1Abbs illustrated from the test: "Who lays the beams of
Is upper chambers im the waters, ee." (Fs. iN 3) he "waters" mentioned here being the superal waters through which the "house" vas built up, a i writen, "ehroogh visdom a howe is builded and through understanding ic tablished" (row. xx, 3) In the following clause, "Who 'makes the clouds his chariot, R. Yesn divided the word abi (clouds) ito ab (cloud), and yam (sea), interpreting it tormean "he cloud, ie: darkness fom the Left, "resting cm this sa", "Who watketh upon the wings of the wind": {hiss the aint of the supernal sanctuary. R, Jose sid "Tei writen, "and he meteth out waters by measure" (aid), plying that God literally measuted them out 0 that they were for the well-being of the world when they ami from theide of Geburah (Force) R. Abba si: 'When the scholars of ld eame to this place, they used tos lips ofthe wite move but they say nothing lest th lawn punishnent on themselves"? R. Eleazar said: "The first of the eters was Aiting over the face of the ethereal expanse, and was erxened above and below, and went up {32 and dow, andthe waters were raven into their shapes and were acted in their places, and enfolded in one another;

1He Z0nAR (ex
and so all the laters were combined with one another and crovined with one another until a firm building was erected fon them. When they were all but and erowned, the upper Waters and the lower waters, which were stil mingled t0- ether, produced the habitation of the world. And the waters continued going up and down unt this firmament came into boeing and separated them, 'The division took place on the second (day), on whieh was created Gehinnom, which is 2 ing ire, and whieh ie destined wo fest upon the heads of sinners' Said R. Judah: "From this we learn that every: division (of opinion) ia which both sides act for the glory of heaven endures, since here we have a division which was for the sake of heaven. Through the firmament the heavens were established, a itis written, "and God called the frmament heaven', since this divides the more from the less holy, like the curtain in the 'Tabernacle Ler THE WATERS UNDER THE HEAVEN Be GAT MEME: ice, those "under the heaven" only, To ONE PLAGE: be. to the place which is called "one", namely, the lower sea, 'which completes the formation of One, and without which Ged would not be ealled One, R, Yess said: 'One place" is the place of which tis written, "my covenant of peace shall it be removed" (Is. Lt, 10), for this takes the Whole ar 'casts it into the sea, wherchy the earth is established, as iis written, abit Ler THE DAY Lant-erean, which i the earth, as itis wraten, Ab Gob CALLED TRE BRY LAND FAWTHL 'The cath is called "dry" because itis "bread of the poor one" (Yesod), and it remains dry until this place fils it, and then the waters commence ta flow from thei sources. ASv THE UATHKMISG FOCRTHER OF THE WaTENS CALLED 116 sts. This is the upper reservoir of the waters 'where they are all collected and from which they al flaw and issue forth. R, Hiya std: "The gathering place ofthe waters is the Zuddik (ighteons one), lease itis wri nection with it, AND Gov SAW THAT t Was G0O0, and it is written elsovhere, say ye of the righteous that he is sod" (5.114, 10)" R, Jose said: "This Zaddih is also referred 34-3381 penesitiTit nas to in the words, "he called seas", because he takes all the streams ard sources and rivers and he isthe source of all: hhence he it called "waters", Hence it saya: AS Gan saw. THAT IT WAS GOOD. Ané since the Zaddih is designated with the words "that itis good", there isa gap between the first and the thind days, asd on the day between itis not syriten, that it was good", since on the third day the earth brought forth produce from the impulse of that Zaddih, a8 iia written AND Gob sai, Len the fantin rut FORTH GHASS, HERB YIELDING SEEO) AND FRUIT TREE BEARING FRUIT AFTER ITs Kixp, By "fruit tree" is meant the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which put forth blossoms and fruit. "Bearing fruit" isthe Zaddik, the basis ofthe world. "After its kind" means that all human, beings who have in ther the spitit of holiness which #8 the blossom of that tee ate stamped as being of its kind. 'This stamp isthe covenant of holiness, the covenant of peace, and the faithful enter into that kind and do not part from it. The Zaddik generates, and that tree conceives and brings forth feuit after his kind, ie. after the kind of the producer, so a8 to be like him, Blessed he that resembles these his mother and his father. 'The holy seal is therefore set upon him on the eighth day that he may resemble his "smother" (who. the eighth grade), and the Besh is turned back to show the holy seal in order that he may resemble the "father" "fruit tree" we understand the mother, by " father, by "fruit" the holy cover the resemblance to the father WHOSE seRD 15 1N 17 hoN THE EANTH, Instead of read era'eau (the seed of Vu), people areal righteous" (Is. Lx, 21), truly righteous, for from Sch they isue and such they resemble, Happy they in this 'world and in the world to come. [336] R. Hiva said: 'Tt "God maketh the earth by his strength" (Jer. x, 12), He who "maketh the earth is the Holy One, blesied be He, above; "by his strength" means by the Zaddik; "he estab lishes 'the universe", this is the earth beneath; "by his

136THe FOHARL ire
wisdom", refers to Zedek (justice). Also itis written, "makes fad not "made teenies God canetantly mgulates rid its activities through the agency of His "ax just explained, .. "RL Teaae said: "It i 'Hythe word of the Lord the heavens were made and by the breath of his mouth all theie hosts" 'The "heavens mentioned here are the lower heavens, which were made by the word of the upper heavens, through the spirit which sert forth a voice until it reached that stream which issues and flows. perennially. By "all their hosts" is meant the lower World, which exists through that "breath", which is male A similar leson is derived fromm the verse, "Who seatereth the mountains from his upper chasnhers, che earth is full the fruit of thy works" (Ps, ctv, 13). The "spper chamber! we have aleesdy explained, and the term ean be further illus trated by the verse, "Whe lays the beams of his upper 'chambers i the waters." The expression "the fruit of thy 'works alludes to that stream which ever Hows and issues forth; hence itis written, "Yielding fruit whose seed is in it." ax exphined." Ler rHane BE LIGHTS IN THE FURMAMENT OF THE MEAVEN To GIVE LIGHT UFON THE HARTA, 'The. wont meorath (lights) is written defectively. R, Hiskiah says thit this indicates that this firmament is the home of the rigour Of jistice, K, Jose says tha the defective spelling indicates the lowest, namely the moon, which is the cause of croup in children, [tio alas the cause of other misforvunes, because it in the smallest of all the luminaries, and sometimes tis obscured and receives no light at all. 1X THEE FLRMAMIT OF HEAVEN. This is the firmament which includes all the others, since it receives all lights and it ilumines the one Which' hac ao light of ate own. Ry Teaae aid: "Even that firmament which has no light ofits own is called by us "the kingdom of heaven' and "the land of Israel and 'the land of the living". It is the heaven which illumines this firma- rent. Hence the word meurath is wetten defetively, 1 show that without Fi there would he death tothe world. Every- thing is neladed in it, and through ie Lalish lo finds a place aaa] pewssiterit By in the world, (We derive this from the recurrence af the sword "there" ia the sentences' "the small aa the great are there" (Job. 1,19). "The Lord shall be with us there ia majesty" (Is. axxitt, a), and "Lilith repose there" (Is. sxaty, 14).) R Elemzar said: "The word mevroth (lights), being written defective, indicates a shining body' which has no light ofits own, but only reflects the light of other more ominous bodies. It is writen: "Behold, the ark of the covenant, the Lord of all the earth"" Gosh. nt, 11). 'The ark here is the "unclear mirror; the covenant is the "clear mirsor", 'The ark is the receptacle for the Written Torah, Whereas the covenant is the sun that illumines it. 'The covenant is the "lord of all the earth"; and en its account the ark is also called (344) don (lord), which is the same as Adonai (the Lord). Observe that stars and planets exist through a covenant which is the firmame in which they are inscribed and e used to explain thus: "The words "let there be lights" refer tw the moon, which is suspended in the firmament of the heaven. 'The words "and let them be for light sun, They shall be for seasons", because seasons, holy das, 'new-moons and Sabbaths are determined by them. 'There sre seven planets corresponding te seven firmament, and by all the world is regulated, The supernal world i: above them, "There are two worlds, an upper world and a lower world, the lower beingon the pattern of the upper. 'There ie a ighee king and a lower king. Itis writen: "he Lord reigneth, the the Lord hath reigned" fa the "the Lord will reign" below.' R. Abe said "The Lord" refers to the supernal Wisdom; "reigneth", to the szupernal world which isthe world to come, "The reigned" refers to. dhe "beauty of Terael feign" signifies the ark of the covenant, At another time David reversed the order and said, "The Lord is king for ever and ever" (Ps. x, 16), be. "the Lond is king", below, "for ever", in the middle, "and ever", above, for there is the reunion and the perfection of all. God "is king" above and "will reign" below ns 'THE ZOMAR (ae R. Abba said: 'AM those lights are eallected in the firma sent of the heaven to give light on the exeth, What is this fiemament that gives light upon the earth F It is, of course, that stream which flows and issues forth from Eden, as itis 'writen, "And a riser went forth from Eden to ater the ranten." For when the moon is dominant and is illumined by that steeam which flows and issues forth, all the lower heavens and their hoste receive inereased light, and the stars 'which have charge ofthe earth all funetion and eause plants sand tecea to geome, and enrich the earth, and even the waters fad the fies of the seaare more productive. Many emissaies of divine justice also traverse the world, because all are in 'gvod spirits and full of energy when there i gladness in the King's palace, and even the beings which hover on the out- shirts are glad and Aly about the world; and therefore itis necessary to take special care of young children." AND Gob Set THEM IN THE FLIMAMENT OF THE HEAVEN. BR, Aha aid: "When all of them were there they rejeiced in one another. 'Then the moon diminished its light in presence of the san; all the light which it receives from the sun ie to shine upon the earth, asi ie written, "to give light upon the earth." R. Ieaac said: "It is writen, "The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the Tight of the sun asthe light ofthe seven days" (Is. XXX, 26). 'These seven days are the seven days of the Creation." R. Judah said: "They are the seven days of the consecration of the Tabernacle, when the world was restored to its original completeness, and the moon was not impaired hy the evil serpeot, 'This will again be at the time when "God shall sveallow up death forever" (Is. xxv, 8), and then "the Lord will be one and his name one" Lor Tite WarTRRS eWaRM WITH SWARMS OF LIV CuRATUNES. R, Elexsar said: "These are the lower waters, Which brought forth species corresponding to those abave, si that there wasa lower order and a higher order." R. Hiya suid: Te was the upper waters which brought forth a "ving soul", 10 wit, the soul of the first man, as itis writen, "and Ha] benesticra 19 the man became living soul" (Gen. 11,7)" AD FOL 10 FLY ABOVE THE RaRTHL These are the emisaries from the upper world which appear to men invisible shape, For there ie others of whoueextatence man knows ony by sonectoe "These latter are referred to in the next verse in the woes winged fowl after it hind". 'The words "after kena!" are used. in connection with the later and aot wth the former, hecaue the later never take the forms of another species, whereas the former da. Nevertheless, they do differ c frm another. Aw Gow CREATED THE OREAT 984 owarans. 'These ae the Leviathan and its female. AND HUH LIVING CHEATORE THAT CREEPETW. This ib the foul of the creature whieh creeps to the four quarters of Me globe, to wit, Lith. Witenewirie rie warees SWANOIED, APTEC LTS KIND. TC ig the waters whith nourish them. For when the win blows from the South tie Stes ae released and flow to al sides, and ships past and fo, as its written, "there go the ships, there is Leviathan sshom thou hast formed to sport herein" (Ps. ety, 2). EVEWY WINGED FOWL APTEN ITS RIND: thi flea, a6 already said, tothe angel, as in the ver, "for a bird of the fir sal earythe vice, and that which hac wings sal el Abe mater" (Heth 3,30)" Rs Jose sais "They all have sin 'ings, and never chunge their shape; hence itis written of them, "to thee kind. sc that they' are always angel Tes these who sweep though the world with sx beats of thie Wings, who observe the actions of men and record them above! hence the Scripture says, "even in thy thought cune rt the King et." (i) R. Hien aid: 'Just a8 i item ere, "living erestuce that exespth, 20 elsewhere (Qs civ, 20) i is written, "wherein creep all the beats (Qaytho) of the fick." Just as here we interpret the word Jaya of Lilith, so there we interpret the word hayio ofthe FHeayyoth. Kor they al have sway when she has vay they 'omnmence to chart 3 each of the thee watches of the night nd goon sthout cessation, and oF them its writen," that ace the Lords remembrancees, take ye no res (sist, 6)! Simeon arose and spoke this: My-meditation disclosed

130THE 29HAK 1 Las
to me that when God came to exeate man, all creatures trembled above and below, The sixth day was proceeding fom its course when at length the divine decision Was forte. Then the source ofall ights shone forth and opened the gate of the Est, for thence light sues, 'The South displayed in full power the light which 3 had inherited from the: com- sencement, and joined hands with the East,"The East took hold of the North, and the North awoke and spread forth and called aloud to the West to come and join him. 'Then the West went up into the North and united with it, and aftervards the South took hold of the West, and the South and the Norh, which are the fences of the Garden, sur- rounded it. Then the East approached the West, and the 'West was rejticed and said to the others, "Let us make man jn our image, after our likeness", embracing ike us the foor quarters and the higher and the lower. Then the East united with the West and produced him. Hence our Sages have aid that man emerged from the ste of the 'Temple. Further, the 'words "let us make man'" my he taken to sanify that God Hepartelliline lous Using he caspe tne se atdclot the upper world the seret of forming the divine name "Adam" Which embraces the upper ani the lower in virtue ofits three letters, aleph,daleth, and min final. When these three letters descended below, together in their complete form, the name Adam sae found to comprise male and feral, 'The female 'vas attached to the side of the male until Ged east him inte a deep slumber, during which he lay on the site of the "Temple. God then sa\sed her off from him and adorned her Tike a bride and brought hee to him, as itis written, "And he took one of his sides and closed up the plce with flesh." (Gen: 1, 23). Thave found iv stated in an old book that the word "one" here means "one woman', 19 wit, the original Lilith, who was with him and. who conceived from him, Up to that time, however, she was-not a help to him, 38 fis writen, "but for Adams there vss not found an help ricet for hin." Observe that Adam came last of all, it being fiting that he should find the world complete on his appearance ayb-ssa) penesarr a AND NO PLANT OF THE FIELD Wap YETI THE EARTH ire, R. Simeon said further, "These are [35a] the reat trees which were planted out later, but as yet were 1 We have stated that Adam and five were ereatéd side by side, 'Why sere they not created face t0 face ? Hecause "the Lord God had not ye caused it to rain upon the earth" (Gen, 1, 3), and the union of heaven and earth was not yet firmly estab Fished. When the lower union was perfected Eve were tuened face t face, then the upper suimmated, We know this from the ease ofthe Tabernacle, of 'which we have learnt that another tabernacle was erected with xt, and that the upper one was not raised til the loner one wat raised; and similarly here. Further, since all was not yet in Grder above, Adam snd Eve were not create face to fice. The 'order of verses in the Scripture proves this: far first we read, "For the Lord God had not caused it to ain upon the earth", and then "there was not a man to fll the ground", the mean 'ng being that man was sill defective, and only when Exe 'was perfected was he also perfected. 'This is further indicated fhy the fact thatim the word caytaer (and he closed) the letter tamekt, which means "support", occurs for the fret time in this section, as if to say that they now supported one another, ts male and female, Similarly the lower and the upper world ally support one another. For until the lower world was Completed, that other world of which we have spoken sas hot completed, When this lower world was tired Face to face to the upper, it hecame a support to the upper, for previously the work had been defective, because "the Le God had not caused rain to fall upon the earth A MIST WENT UP FKOM ThE GROUND, to repair the 'deficiency below by "watering the whole face ofthe ground" The rising ofthe mist signifies the yea the female for cording to, another expla supply the 'word from the previous clause after "mist", the meaning being that God did not send rain because a mist had ot gone up, et, it being necessary for the impulse from helow to set in tnotion the power above, So vapour fist ascends from the earth to form the cloud, Similarly, the Amoke of the ssrifice rises an creates harmuny above, so

1THe 20uaR I [smash
that 'all nite, and in this way there is completion in the superna 'ean. "The Hope eomosnees fom Below and from this all perfected. TF che Community of Tael dd not giveth frat impulse, the One above would not move to test her, for bythe searing from helow competion is 'Mfeted shove. 'THE TREE OF LIFE ALSO IN TIE MuDST OF THE GARDEN, AND THE TREE OF TRE KNOWLEDGE OF CoOv sxD EVIL, The Tree of Life, according to: tradition extends over five hundred years jourey, and all the waters 'of Creation issue from its foot, This tree was in the middle fof the Garden, and itcollected all the waters of Creation, which afterwards flowed from it in differest directions. For the perennially lowing stream rests upon this Garden and enters it, and the waters issuing from it divide into nunbers of streams below which water the "beasts of the field", just as the water: originally tsued from the supernal world and watered the celestial "mountains of pure balsam". Tot & THEE OF GOOD AND EVIL. This tree was notin the middle Ins calla by this name because iv draws sustenance from, two oppasite sides, which it distingusbes ax clearly as one intinguishes sweet and hitter, and thesefore Hi callel "good and evil". All those other plants rest upon it. Other spernal plants are also attached to it, which are called "evdars of TLehanon" these-are the six supernal days, the six days of the Creation which we have mentioned, which were indeed saplings which God me planted and 'then trancorred another place, [356] where they were firmly established RB, Abba here remarked: "How do wwe know that Adam and Eve were alo planted out ? From the verse, "the branch of sy planting the work of my hands, wherein I glory" (Is 1%, 21). They are called "the work of Gnd': hand!" hecase no ther creatures were concerned in ther formation, We have been taught that the plants at first were like the antenna of grasshoppers, and theit light was feeble, until they: wer planted aad firmly esteblished, when their fight was aug- 'mented and they were alled "cedars of Lebanon". Adam and Eve aso when they were first planted were not svathed 3s] Bemesuirn 133 in fight nor did they emit a sweet odour; of a surety they were uprooted and replanted ani duly established." Axp THE LoRD Gop comsmanveD. Acconting to our teachers, the word "eommanded" here contains prohibition 'of dolatry; "the Lord", of blasphemy; God", of the perver- Sion of justice of adultery and incest; "from all the tees of the garden, of eobbery' thou mayest freely eat", of eating flesh from a living animal; and 30 we agree, OF ALL THE TREES OF THE GARDEN THOU SKALT SURELY EAT, This means that he all together, for, a8 we see, Hsaae and Jacob ats, and all the prophets are land remained alive. This tree, however, was a tee of death, in 40 far that he who ate it by its was hound to die, since he took poison, Hence it says, IN THE DAY THAT THOU EATEST THEREOF THOU SHIALT SURELY DIE, because thereby he would he sept i R, Simeon: 'What is the meaning of the dictum of the teachers, that Adam drew his forekin 2" He said: "Te means that he removed the holy covenant from its place; he abandoned the holy covenant and clung to the orlah andl od himeelf to be miduced by-the serpent! 'The words F THE yMUIT OF THY TREE (Gen, 1, 3) signify the woman, of whom itis writen, "Her feet go down to death, her steps take hold of the nether world" (Prov. v, s)- On this tree there was frit, hut not ons certain other. R, Jose said: "That which oe mentioned was nurtured and fostered fom above, and rejoiced thereat, as it says: "A river went forth from Eden to water the garden. garden" designates 'woman; this river entered jt and watered i, and up to this point there was complete unity. for it is from this point fonward that there is separation, as itis wiitten, "and from there it parted" AND THE sHnpENT, Ry aaesid:"Thisistheeviltemprer." R, Judah said that i¢ means fiterally a serpent. 'They eon- sulted BR. Siineon, and he suid to them: 'Both ae correct. It 'was Samael, and he appeared on s serpent, for the ideal form Bt tHe z0mant state othe serpents te Satan, Wehave art that at that moment Ssimsel cane doyn from heaven siding on this pent, and ea en creat ahie a: neta eter inno cravenation wih the! wom and ihe fo trough death ino the worl, Ot rey Samed brought urson tbe world through Wisdom and destroyed the fre fre at Gol had erated nthe word, This eoponiblity tested on Saal il anes hoy tec ney Jay to Wesel te Shs trom Rims ina ha Sel Fright oot be base above andl Esau below, For cob the mpreiacion of Alain, sdb ad the seme beat 2. Iai' Therfors 9s Samuel withteld beings fom the Bat tte a0 Jaca who was such anther ee a Aa iibeld Besings both upper and wer, om Samael Jacob bt took back hi own. Jt is writen: ALD HE Senruare was rusvue. Thistepentethc orl enper and the bapl oF Geuh TCs Uoeas Be serpent i te teloF dent that it bought death to the world" AND WE SAID TO THE Woman, YEA (af). R Jose said: "He commenced Shae ss he ecg (orth) opens he ee He i {3h othe won: Wit this tie God erated he orld 'ot therloreof and yestall ee Ged noviog od aid Si for through this kaviledge be i aled Gate' Said Hy, Judatis "The es the yay be spe, Yr fal be eld that God ected the word brought te, be wold ave Srey ee eae CIR te A of rs thal Nes with it, Wht he el hopevee was that God ate of thee and vo bu the world, Therefore" Kcrwen oneal goof and yu al reat wera Ih Dcaues Cd tun thi tat He as coca you pot te cat for every ata hats bsfcow ofthe ware? AC foes In" The Goel erp wes ene ae a false: His fest tema, Suey Gud hah sad fal pot eat ofl he tees fhe Gr had nd "f al the ce of he gare tou hak uly read a espernined wb' Re lowe ead: Wah ele Seto tie icin werd sire thse Oat eed 'Adam Moly, peace wort inert, and So eh, wey dtu all tis have Been poses, aating tht Adam sas 362] Beensurri 135 sill alone in the world ? The answer is that all these pro= hibitions had reference to the tree alone, and were applicable twit, For whoover take oft causes separation and associates imself with the lower hordes which are attached to it. He tenders himself guilty of wolatey, murder, and adultery. OF idolatry, because he acknowledges the superior chiefaine; of bloodshed, because that isinapired by this tee, which is of the side af Geburah (Force), under the charge of Samael; and of adultery, because the tee is of the female principle and is called "woman", and its forbidden to make an appoint- ment with woman without her husband, fo fear of suspicion 'of adultery, Hence all the prohibitions had reference to this tree, and when he ate of it he transgressed them all.' R. Judah ssid: "The way in which the serpent seduced Eve was as follows. He suid to her: 'See, T have touched the tree and 'yet am not dead; you also put your hand on it and you will rot die" (for it was he who added on his own account the words "neither shall ye touch it")." AND THE Womtay SAW THAT IT WAS GOOD, R. Isaac std that "say" here means "perceived, to wit, through the pleasant edinur that the tree emitted, which inspired in her a desire to eat of i. RR. Jone said that she realy "sue. Said K. Judah to bi, "How can this be, seeing that it says later that "their eyes were opened" ?" He answered: "This "sing" means really that she made a mental picture of the tree, secing it and yet dot secing. Tat It was Goov, She sw chat i was Rood, but this yas not enough for her, so SHE TOOK OF Irs FRUIT, but not of the tree itself; sbe thus atached herself to the place of death, and. brought death upon the 'world, and separated life from death. hie sin, too, is the cause of the menstruation whieh keeps a woman apart from hher hushsnd." (he Voice should never be separated froma the Utterance, and he who separates them hecimes dumb, al, being bereft of speech, returns to dust, R, Simeon said: It 'sseriten: I-was dumb with silence, held my peace, having 'no good things to say, and my sorrows wae tired" (Ps, SSMS, 43), This s the exelamation of the Community of Israel in Exile; for then Voice is separated from Uiterance, and no word is heard, and therefore Israelis "dumb with silence,

136THE 2OHAR (360-308
ete." And Isinel further say: '"T'o thee prise is silent (Ps. 18¥, 2), ie, the psalm of David is lent in exile and without Voice) According toa tradition, Eve pressed grapes and gave to Adam, and in this way brought death into the 'world, For dexth is attached to this tree. Is sway is by night, (368) and durin ime all creatures taste of death save those faithful ones who frat entrust their souls to God, so that they are in dic course restored to their ple; hence i 38 writen, "And thy faithfulness is at night" (Ps. xct, 3). AND THE EVES OF ROTH OF THEM WenE OPENED R. Hiya says, their eyer were opened tothe evil of the world, 'which they had not known hitherto, 'Then they knew that they were naked, since they had lost the eclestial lustre which had formerly enveloped therm, and of which they were now divested, ASD THEY SEWED FIG LEAVES. They strove to cover themselves with the (delusive) images from the tree Of which they had exten, the so-called "leaves of the tece AND THEY MADE THEMSELVES GIRDLES, R. Jose said? "When they obtained knowledge of this world and attached themselves toit, they observed that it was gorerned by those "leaves of the tree". They therefore sought inihem a strong holdin this orld, and a0 made themselves acquainted with all kinds of magical arts, in order to gied themselves with 'weapons of those leaves of the tree, for the purpose of slf- Protection." R. Judah sxid: 'In thie way theee came up for Judgement and were found ity, and the terrestrial world war curved and dislodged fram ite eetate on account of the defilement of the serpent, until Israel stood before Mount Sinai.' Aftervards God clothed Adam and Eve-in garments soothing to the skin, as it is written, He MADE THEM GOATS OF SEIN (or). At first they had had coats of light ). which procured them the service of the highest of the high, for the eclestal angels wed to come to enjoy that Hight so ts writen, "For thos hast made im but litle lower than the angels, and erownest hin with glory and hone v1.6), Nov after theie sins they had only coats of szond for the body but not for the soul 'When they beyat children, she fret-horn ws the som of the 36-370) aeansuren '37 (aerpent's) slime. For two beings ad intercourse with Eve, and she conceived from both and boce two children, Each followed one ofthe male paren and their spirt parted, one to ths side and one to the other, and sinlaly their char acters. On the side of Cain are all the haus of the evil species, fom which come evil spirits and demens and necro~ mancers, From these of Abel comes a more mereiful clas, Jet no wholly beneRal—gool wine ised with bad. The Fight kind was oot produced until Seth cae, whois the frst ancestor ofall the generations of the righteats, and fom whom the woild was propagated From Cain exme the shamelss and wicked sinners of the worl. R. Elessar said: 'When Cain sine, he was fn eat terror becase be sus efore him figures like stmed warriors coming to kill him, When he repented, be said: Bator FACE OF THU GROUND, AnD FROM THY FACR SHALL Wipe it Ty hse words be meant "Usha Rep from my proper building" R. Abba said: "The word "face here has the une meaning ain the verse, "ande hid not hi {face from tim" (Ps. xxi, 25), ie, provident care, Con fequently he sid, Witososven FINDETH Ste SHALL Cate. This sign was one of the teenty-two letters of the 'Torah, and Ged set it upon him to protect him R, Judah said: "Cain rome up against At aad hile him because he inherited his mature fom the aide of Samael, who Ieee eath into the orld. He wat jets oF AR on acount of his female, indicate by the words, "and iteame to pase when they were in the field", the word "eld" Signifying woman,' On R. Hiya objecting tae, according to the text, Cain was wroth because his offering was not ae- ed, Judah ansvered that thin was further reason, tah further espounded the words, If thou doest wel, shall there not be an uplifting?" "The word "opin he said, "nears the dignity which ik due to a firt-bora, provided his aions warrant i Th the nest elause, "I thw Hest not well sin coucheth a the door", this dor (374 i the door on high from which ite che chastisements for evi

138Tie zomAW 1 (re-37b
deeds in this world, 'The "sin" which couches at that door is the angel of death, whois ready to punish thee. 'The word "or (petah, lit. opening) further contains an allusion to the New Year, the day of judgement, on shiek Adann san born' "Uinto thee is his desire", ic. he will not be content until thou art destroyed, "And thou shalt rule over him": the word "thou" contains 4 mystic allusion tothe Almighty, 'who is also called "Thou". There is a dictum that God is supeeme only when the wicked are destroyed, but our text cates that when the angel of death destroys them, God ules over him" to prevent him from ruining the world. R. JOdah, however, explained the words "thou shalt rule 'over him" to mean "through repentance". R. Jowe ssid: 'When the descendants of Cain spread through the world, they used to cut up the soil, and they had traits in common both with the upper and thelower beings." RK. Tsate said: 'When Usea and Azael fll from the abode of ther sanctity above, they siw the daughters of mankind and sinned with them and begat childsen, 'hese wore the Nefiin (pints), of whom itis sad, THE NEEILIM Wem (X "Tite ant (Gen vt, 4) R. Hiya said "The descendants of Cain 'were "the sons of God!" (Ihid. 2). For Cain was born from Samael and his aspect was not ike that of other hurian beings, and all who came from his stock were called "sons of God"

1Juda said tha the Neflim were aso called. THE SAME
Weng Tie stiaury sis. 'There were eixty on the earth, corresponding to the nuimber above, a5 itis witten, "Three- score mighty' men are about i" (SS. am, 7). Waren WERE OF OLD, THE MEN OF NAME, R. Jose saw in the word "name" an indication that they were from the upper world, while R, Hiya saw io the word me'olan ("oF old oF "from the world") an indication that they were from the termstrial world, and that from there God moved them. R. Yesa asked the meaning of the words Tis 18 Tae noox OF THK GEXPKATIONS oF ADast (Gen. ¥, 1), R. Abba to him: "There is here a very recondite Acuwieding to the Rabbinical dietum, "three books are opened 'on New Year, one of the wholly righteous, [37H] et is the supernal book from which isued the Whole, and from 374) RERESHITA 139 "which igsuesalso writing, The middle book unites the higher and the lower; it embraces all sides and is called the Written "Torah of the frst man. 'The third book is called that of the ixenerations of mat, and this is the book of the completely righteous.' IN THE DAY THAT GoD CREATED MAN IN THE LIkENtes OF GoD; for thereby indeed the whole as 'completed above and below, and both were established after fone pattern, MALE AND PEMALE HE CREATED THEM: the 'oneincludedin the other. R, Abbasid: 'God did indeed send down a book to Adam, from which he hecame acquainted 'with the supernal wisdoen. It came later into the hands ofthe "sons of God", the wise of their generation, and. whoever god to peruse it could learn fom it supernal

1This book was brought down to Adam by the
master of mysteries", preceded by three messengers, When 'Adam vas expelled from the Garden of Eden, he tried to keep hold ofthis hook, but it lew out of his hands, He there upon supplicated God with tears for its return, and it was ziven back to him, at wisdom might not be for- gotten of men, and that they might strive to obtain knowledge of their Maser, radition further tells us that Enoch alo had a book, whieh eame from the same place as the book of the frenerations of Adam, . . 1 This is the source of the book Known a8 "the book of Enoch" showed him all supernal mysteries, and the 'ree of Life in the midst of the Garden es ll of which ean be found in his hook. Happy are those of exalted piety to whom the supernal wisdom has been revealed, and from whom it wll not be forgoten for ever, ast says, "The aceret of the Lond is with themn that fear hitn, and his secret to make them know it Ayn Te Lon sain, My seiner sanALi wor stnve WITH MAN FOR EVER, FOR THAT HE ALSO 1S FLESH. R, Aha said: 'At that time the stream which perennially flows used to draw forth the celestial spirit from the tcee of Jife and pour it into the-tree which harbours death, and so | Here follies aight atasive pute ening Enoch wt "the bade Prov, ene Metron yo sie zoHAR 1 La7b-ste the spirit was continued in the body of men for great length Of day, uni they turned out bad and ncined to sia, Then the celestial sprit departed from that tee atthe moment of the cauls entry intothe sons of men." R.Eleasar ed that the ord beshagam (os hat he) signi Moses, who caused the Inoon to shine, and this enabled men t abide in the wodd for great length of days) AND HIS BAYS SHALL BEA iWexmED AND TWHNTY YEARS. 'Ths i an allison to Noses, through whose agency the Lav was given and who thu bestowed Ie on men from the tee OC He, And i truth had Tertel na sinned, they wosld have been prot 'alma death, since the tree of fife had een rough down tne, All this wae through Moses, who i called Deshago, 'vd hence we have leant: "Mone didnot di, the Wt fathered in [38a] fom the world, and exused the moon 10 ain ih his restock Wk the a: whieh alo afer sting doesnot expire, but gives igh 0 the moon, Aecoede ing to another explanation we tants, "For that i,t Wi the sprit, js tho Aes, ic. it ix long converted ints fled, in the seree of following the hody and seeking the pleasures of this work A. Isac si: "The generations which followed inthe steps of Sean were al plows ana righteous, Subeequenty, a4 mane Kind spread and mubiplied, they learnt the arts of war whih they practised until Noah came and wught them the fs Of pesce and agtielture; for at Best they used ot to 4 Gr Teap, but affernards they found this necessary, as itis Atriten, "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, we (Gun, st, 23)

1Elearar sud Got will one day re-establish the word
and strengthen the spirit of the sons of men 0 that thy may prolong tir days for ever, te writen, For asthe days ofa tree stall be the days of my people, ef." (Ia tay, 23), and-aho, "He hath svallowed up death for ever, and the Land God wil wipe ayay teary fro all faces and the Feproach of his people shall he take aay from of all the arth for the Lord bath spoken i€" (bad xv, 8)" [3] | lee clot the sce cio of he wction reith, A shed ce vathe filth Kn ot pds posta hc ean of. ay syb-4sa} eesti ay Is tie mnoiwsinc.t R. Judah ssid: "There were' wo Huse, the fet hoe and the second nus, one higher and 'one lower, 'There are toh one higher and one lower: al. weve, form only ope. The higher de open the ete ety side, and when combined with resi forms the "be inning in the ist ofthe component pars of the building" RE Taste said the ame of Elenar-"This eres ithe comprehensive form in which al forms are embraced. This isthe inner meaning ofthe word, "thie ws the appearance the appearance in which the six others are 'we analyse the word bereshith into bara shith (created six). When the six colours enter into this appearance, i€ makes uelF ready to reflec ther, and through them to keep the eld going. Yet the credit for this mut be ascribed not 10 ie grade alone, but to all the sis" R. Jose quoted here the verse, The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing is came, end the woiee of the turtle i heard in our lan (S, 8.3, 12). "The flowers!' he sai, allude t the six grades. The words "they appear on the earth" mean that they are forms 'which are reflected by the grade socalled, Its then that "the time of singing i cnme", to wit, of praise and laudaton." R. Abba said: "The uppermost world is shrouded in mystery, and all ts attributes likewise, because it forms a day separace from all other days. When it ereated aad produced, it pro- 'duced those other six. On aceount of its incomprehensibility, the Seripture opens with the word hereshith, "it created sin", without saying tehat created. But when it came to the lower creation, it gave a name to the creator, who was now dis- coverable, and said: "Elohine created the heavens and the earth" 'Thus the frst, which is the higher, remains shrouded in mystery, while the lower is disclosed, o that the work af snd sh trun a rnd tn [Blscrtions, othe dey of he rath of he Sec ahaa Md am el pny Hat "Thewe eee comocrate» separ work ted Hekaath, sad not Beem clade the tani "Gent thirtore us rine zouan Lase-sie the Holy One, besed be He, shou be ever both hidden 'nd disclsed. Simey, the holy name's alo, in the enteric dherrne, both hen nd icone" "Tue (eth) eavens: the particle eth indicates that the lower avens were alsa created for the lower world, Similarly, the word ve-eth in AND THE EARTH points to the lower ear and all its products sfter the supernal pater, Now THE EA have explained, WAS FORMLESS AND VOID, a6 we he eaeth" here is the upper earth, which huss no light of its own. It was" at fit in its proper state, but now "void and without form", having diminished itelf and its light. Toh (formlessness), doh (void), "darkness", and "spirit" were:the four elements of the world which were comprised in it. Hence, the earth wat formless and vad and darkness and sprit" [454] Axp Gon sam, Ler tiexe pe tiowr. R. Isaac said: 'We learn from these words that God uprooted those shoots 'of which we have spoken? and replanted them; hence the 'expression "and there was Tight", implying that tight hd already existed," R, Judah confirmed this idea from the verse "ight isscwn forthe Zaddik" (Ps. XcvU, 11), this being the one mentioned in the verse "Who aroused Righteousness (ged) from the Bas, ete." (Ie. X11, 2). Axp Gop saw Tit LiatiT AND piVioED, Said R. Isaac "This imple, ewe have explained, that ke forceaw the works ofthe wicked sd stored the light away." R. Abba said: "Mle saw its radiance flashing feom one end of the warld to the other, and concluded that it was better [46a] to store it away in order that sinners might not hive the benefit off" R Simeon said; "The expression "God saw the light thit 'twas good" means really "God decided thatthe light should bbe anly good", that i, that it should never be an instrument 'of wrath (ef. "that it eas good in the eyes of the Lard to bles Israel", Nur xxiv, 1); and thie is proved by the end of the Soopiagte ro) BeKESHITH 43 verse, "And God divided the light from: the darkness." For although He afterwards united light and darkness, yet this light continued to emanate from the supernal radiaice, and through that radiance to bring gladness vo all, This alo is the Right Hand through which the most deeply graven letters are crowned, as has been explained. 'The treasuring up of 'this primal light is referred to in the verve, "How great is thy goodness which thou hast Iaid up for them that fear thes, 'hich thou hast wrought for them tha: trust in thee"" (Ps xxl, 20)" AND THERE WAS FYENING AND THERE WAS MORNING, 'OWE DAY: evening from the side of darkness and morning from the side of light; and because they are joined together, 'the Scripture speaks of "one day", R. Judah said "The reason 'why its written "and there was evening and there was morn- ing" for each day isto show that there is no day without night and no night without day, and the two cannot be separated" RR. Joxe suid: "The day in sshich the primal light emerged cetended into all the other days; hence the word "day" is repeated with all of them,' R. Eleazar said: 'We learn this from the fact thatthe term "morsing" i used in connection 'wth all of them, and "morning" proceeds only from the side of the primal Fght.' R. Simeon. said: "The first day accompanies all the others, and all are embraced in it, 0 show that there is no break between them and they all merge into one another." Another explanation ofthe words "let there be light' is: let there he an extending of this Hight dow 'cards, ro form the srgels, who were crested on the est day and who have permanent existence on therightside." Further, the word eth in the fourth verse may be taken to indicate that the "unclear mirror" was ereated along with the "elear 'mirror. R. Eleazar says that it points 10 the creation of all the angels, who proceed from the side of light and who all 'continue to shine as brightly as at rst. Let THEME DE A FIRMAMENT 1X THE MIDST OF THE warens, B, Judah ssid: 'By this the "upper waters" were "The ener Yad, He Haw ofthe sacred nar

44'THE ZOMAR I
separsted from the "lower waves", the waters, as bas been iowit, the "upper waters! Axe Gon sane tHe Frmamenr: the word "made! indicates that God exereised upon it partieular care, and in- vested it with great power. R. Isaac said: 'On the second day was created Gehinnom for sinners; on the second day, too, was created conflict. On the second day the work begun wa not finished, and therefore the words "and it was good" ace not used in connection with it. Nor tillthe thd day was the work ofthe second finished; hence inthe accours of that day Ne find Grice the exprestion "that st was Kod", one in reference to its own proper work, and ance in reference to that ofthe second day. On the thied day the deficiency of the second day was made good: discord was removed va it, and mercy was estended ta the sinners tn Gehinnom, the Famer of which were moderated, — Iencethe second day ia tembriced in and completed by the thied.' While studying fone diy with R. Sincon, K, Hiya said to him; "You say that light was on the fet day and dackness on the second, and the waters separated and disgoed arose on it—wby was not the whole work finished on the frst day, when the Right still comprised the Left " He ansivered: "That is the very reason why there was discord, and hence it war necessary forthe third day x0 intervene and to restore their amity. Linn Tim EARTH PUT FORT GRASS: this indicates the union of the upper with the lower waters sas to bear fruit "The upper waters generate, and the lower ell to ther as the female to the male, because the upper waters are male and the lower female. R. Simson said: 'All this takes place both sbove and below." Said I. Jose, IF 9, seeing thit we have pasited Blokim havyim (vine God) above, are we to posit plkin Blohin below? Not so, but she truth ie that generiton is only below [468] (according to ovr explaration ff the words "these are the generations ofthe heavens and the earth when they were created (behibaream)" 46h) nuggsuirn us 'explsny "which were created with Ae, while the oncabove is the father ofall; the other isa ereation, and therefore it is the earth which beought forth products (tledoth), being 'made pregnant lke female by a male,' I. Eleazar sad: 'All forces were latent in the earth From the fest but it cid. not bring forth its products il the sixth day, as it is written, "et the earth bring forth living soul". 'True, itis written that fm the third day "the earth brought forth grass", but this only means that it brought its forces into a state of prepared ness, and all its products remained latent in it til the due time, First it yeas 'void and without form, then it was duly prepared and furnished with seeds and with grass, plans, tnd tees, and fially it put them forth. Similarly the lunsin- fries did' ot emit theit light al dhe due time Ler THERe we LicuTs IN THE PLAMAMENT oF THRE ieAVEN. The emission of the vau from the word meuroth (a that it can be coad merrth (curse)) indicates tho in clusion of the evil serpent which befouled the moon and eparated i from the sun, thus causing the earth to be cursed (Ger. 1th, 17). The word yeh, being in the singular, shows that the word 'lights! refers o the moon, while 'the fema- tment of the heaven' refers to the sun' Thus the whole expression indieates that boch were meant to be coupled together so as to illumine worlds both above and below, as shown by the expression 'above' ('a) the earth. All ealeuta- tion (of time) is by the moon. R. Simeon said: "Measure 'ments and the determination of seasons and intercalary das are all made hy the moon, and not bythe higher spheres." Said R. Eleazar to him: *Ts that x0 ? Do not our colleagues hake oll Kinds of calculations and messiremente (by the higher spheres) " He answered, "No, Calculation is made bby the moon, and this ix 4 basis for proceeding further Ri, Bleaear further objected that itis writen 'and they shall hae for sign. R, Simeon answered that the word for signs (Gihuth) i writen defectivedy (showing that only one ix 'meant), while the expression 'thy' shall be alludes 0 the mang phates of the moon, which make itas it were a store house full of vicious objects, though itis always the one

146THE ZONAR T [ybd-are
'moon which is the basis of reckoning. Consider this. 'There is a certain point which is the beginning of number, and 'which cannet be further analysed. There is one point above, Unrevedled and unknowable, which isthe starting-point for numbering all entities hidden and recondite. Corresponding to it there ia point below which is knowable and which is the starting-point forall calculation and numbering: here, consequently, is the place forall measurements ard deter- rinations of seasons and interealary days and festivals and holy-days and Sabbaths. Israel who eleave ro God reckon by the moon, and so they ascend above, as itis written, 'and ye whe slave ' to the Lord your God ete," (Deut 1, 4) Let THE WATERS TEEM WITH SWARM OF LIVING cnearonss, R, Eleavar ssid; 'We have already explained that these (ower) waters teemed and produced, like those above; and ta it is agreed ANO BINDE TO PLY ABOvE THE ¥AMTH. The form yeofef (10 By) i peculia, R, Simeen said: "There is here a mystic allusion. "Birds" refers to the angel Micheel, of whom itis written, "And one of the Sert- phim flew to me" (Is, v1, 6) "Lo By" refers to Gabriel, of 'hom it is written, "The man Gabriel whem 1 had seen at first in a Vision being caused to fly quickly." (Dan. 3, 21)" Urox Titi EARTH: R. Abba says, This is Raphael (Kt healer of Ged), who ix charged to heal the eath, and through 'whom the earth is healed so as to furnish an abode for man, whom also he healt of his maladies." Ow THe FACE OF THE FIRMAMENT OF THE HEAVEN: this is Uriel. (AML these names can be found in the test.) Hence the text proceeds AND GOD CREATED THEGREAT SEA-MONSTERE, Said R. Eleazar: "These are the sventy great chieftains appointed for the seventy nations, and for this they were created, to be in control ef the earth." AND EVERY LIVING CMFATORE THAT MOVETH: these desgnate Israel, whose [47a] souls actually are derived from the 'living' (hayah) of which we have spoker, and who are called "one nation on the earth'. Which THE WATERS BROUGHT FORTH AUNDANTLY AUTEN THEIR KINDS, This designates those who study the Torah, AND EVERY WINGED FOWL AFTER J75 KIND: a) SrREsurrH 147 these are the righteous among them, in vitwe of whom they are 'living soul'. According to another explanation, these are the angels sent as God's messengers into the world, of whom we have already spoken. R. Abba said that 'iving soul" designates Israel because they are children to the Almighty, and their souls, which are holy, comme feom Him, From whence, then, come the souls of other peoples? Ry Hlemear 'tid: "They obsain souls from those sides ofthe Teft which 'onvey impurity, and therefore they are all impure and defile those who have eontaet with them. Axo THe Lown satp, Lertite eanrie are LIVING Sout, #7¢, This includes all the other animals (except man), eich after its kind, R. Elexear said: "The repe- tition of the words "after its kind" confirms what we have said before, that "living soul" refers to Israel, who have holy living souls from above, and' catle and creeping thing and 'enst of the earth' to the other peoples who are not "living soul", but who ate as we have said! Ler Us MAKE MAN IN OUR IMAGE, AFTER OUR LIRR Ess, be. partaking of six dicections, compounded io all, after the supemal pattern, with limbs arranged. 20 23 (0 suggest the etoerie Wisdom, altogether an exceptional crea- ture. 'Let us make man: the word adaye (man) implies male and female, created wholly through the supernal and holy Wisdom. 'In our image, after our likeness': the two being 'combined, 30 that man should be unique in the world and ruler over all. Axb Gop saw Aut (th hol) THAT we UAD sIADE, AND BEHOLD, 1 WAS YEHY GoD, Here the word 'very" makes fod the omnislon uf the words 'cit ic was good! in the account ofthesecond day. On thesecond day deach was created, andl according to our colleagues, the expression 'very good" refers to death, 'And God saw, etc.' Asuredly He had seen all before, but the Scripture here indicates by the accusative particle eth thai God now saw aloo all the generations which 'Were to be, and everything which wasto happen inthe world

8cite 201ak 1 (a7
in cach generation before it came into existence. 'Which he fd mae': these words indicat al the works ofthe creative Deriod (recounted im the section Beret, 1m Wich Was {reat the foundation and bass ofall hat was toe and Come 10 passin the world subsequently, God foresaw al, She placed all potentially in the work of the eration, The Word hcshich (he aint) here comtaina the definite atl, trhich was not se in rmbering the oer day. "This to Indicate that we the world was fh the mate apd female tere united so a 10 form a singe whle-hé with ath which the fiaindation, "Were finished thie indestes that they were completed in every dtl they were come pleted from every sie, and full quipped with eveything Ole a eed eis tet erties sich thow hast laid np for thm thet oor the, sho ut rough for thm tat uth tra in te, bfore the os of mnen (Ps 848,20) He said 'God eeated man in the world dna gave hit the faculty to perfect himself in Hs sersice and (0 direct his ways so as to merc the enjoyment of tat eles lgpe yey Ged es bidder wl cemeve fo the Tightens, ait awrite, "Eye has not sen, O Lar, besides the wha tho alt do foc hi tot waite for thee (1x 3) eis through the Torah tha man can make himeelf worthy

2that gh, Foc whoever stu the Torah every day
ering a share the future wo, and is even accounted

4builder of welds, boca thvugh the Torah the woHld
has een built and completed; 50 the Seriture saya, "The ord founded hecarth witb Wisdom i. the Torah) estate faked the beaven vith Understanding" (Prov. 19) and agin, "And. (the Torah) ens» erafiman with him, ant Twas his delight every day" (/hid. vitt, 30). Thus whoever ctilien the Torah completes the workd and presrves Further, Goa mde the world though a bresth, and theo breath its preervedthe breath of those who asiuosly sudy th Tora and til more the breath of schoo hiliren ven rei thir leon, By "reat goodnes inthis verse pent Ue eieoy Nenana yea aot "They host chat fear sins Th ast rg for them that tt 'Thee: the plied objec of serongh the 470-47) PeRESHITH 149 'work of creation." R. Abba says, it i the Garden of Eien, which God has cunningly wrought upon the earth after the superna pattern for the righteous to seize and hold [47Hl: hence iti written "before the sons of men", since thi on isin the presence of men, while the other it in the presence of the holy angels. R. Simeon said: "The Garden of Eden above is said tobe "before the sons of mica" hecause init ate gathered the righteous who perform the will of their Mast AN wena FrsisiieD: implying that all the work which 'was to be dane, both above and below, was Finished. Tir EAVES AD THE EARTH: above and below, R, Simicon said "These words desigaate the general fibric ofthe Written Lass, and the general fabric of the Oral Law. The wards sx ALL THEIR HOSTS designate the detail uf the Torah, the seventy alternative explanations athe Torah; while the words AND TREY WERE COMPLET EDimply thatthe wo Torabsare 'complementary to one arather. Or again, "heaven and earth" may beinterpreted as the general and the particular, and "all their hosts" a the Inner meanings oF the "Foray its rules 'concerting clean and unclean, ete. ASv Gon risisiteD MY MEANS OF THISE¥ENTH DAY: this isthe Oral Lavy, which is the "seventh day", and through which the world was com pleted and the whole is preserved. His wows winter Me HAD SADE, but not the whole of His work, bceause it ws the Writen Torah which produced the Whole through the power ofthe Writing which issued from Wisdom. 'The words "an the seventh day" ate used h fon the seventh day", "and he rested on the and "and God blessed the seventh day". "The "seventh diy" in the fist of these quotations is the Oril "Torah, because with this seventh day the world was con pleted, as we have said. "And he rested on the seventh day' refers t9 the 'Foundation of the world", In the book of I, Yeba the Elder i sive hat this isthe Jubilee, and henge ig written here "from the whole of his work" because the Whole sacs front it. We, however, interpret it of the Four dation, because this isthe chief soutce of rest and content= iment. And "God blessed the seventh day" refers to the

150'run 2OHAR I lah
High Priest, who blesses all, ard who always takes the first share, 5 we have learnt: "The High Priest takes the first share, nd blessings open with bim, and he's ealled seveoth." R, Yeu the Elder says: These vo mentions ofthe "seventh day" refer one to the Foundation of the world and one vo the Columa of the centre, AND He saNCTIFIED IT: the word tho (it) means also "his sign" (ck, it Sam. xv, 25), and. so refers othe place in which thesign of the covenant is fixed, 'This is the abode of all the celestial sancifieations, and from it they deseend upon the community of Israel to bestow upon ieall kinds of luwuries and dairties. This may be illasteated from the verse "From Asher his bread is fat, and he shall ive the dainties of a king" (Gen. xttx, 20). "Asher" we Interpret as the perfect covenant. "Tis bread Is far" means that what was bread of affliction has been converted into bread of luxury. The "king" is the community of Israd, 10 whom it gives all the lusuries in the world, FoR oT HE 'ESTED: initall find rest and contentment, upper and lower, and in it is the Sabbath for rest. Wack Goo creareD. 'TO MAKE: As remembering" finds its fuldlment in "heep= fing", 10 here "creating" is implemented by "making", 10 establish firmly the work of the world: "to make" indicates the words artficer, through whorn the whole is extried on," R. Simeon further explained the verse as follows. He said: Ie is written, Who Aecpeth the covenant and the Rindness (Deu, v, 10). "Who keepeth" indicates the community of Israel; "the covenant" indicates. the Foundation of the 'world; "kindness" indicates. Abraham, 'The community of Israel i that sshich heeps the covenant and the hindness, and itis called "keeper of lane", and guards the gate of fhe Whole, and on it depend all the works of the. word This its which "God created to make", ie, to perfect and finish off the whole, and to bring forth spirits and soule and 'even spirits and demons. Do not think that these also are not forthe good of the world, fr they serve for the pusish= nent of the wicked, whom they find out and admonish; for hhe who proceeds towards the lft becomes entangled in the left side, and is set upon by them, Hence they are of use "We read that God said with reyard to Solomon, "ill 47-48) pegesnitH, ist chaste him with the rod of men and with the plagues of the chile of men" (1 Sam. vit, 14) "These "plagues of the children of men" are the demons. 'They were crested just at 'the moment when the Sabbath was sanctified! and they were left spirit without body, 'These are the creatures which were not [48a) finished; they are from the left, dross of gold, and. hheciuse they were not finished and remained defective, the holy name is not mentioned in connestion with them, and. they do not cleave to it, and are in great terror oft. The holy name does not rest upon anything defective. Hence a 'man acho departs from life defective through not having let '4 sn behind him cannot attach himself to the holy name, aniis not admitted within the curtain, because hei defective, and a tree which his been uprooted must be planted over gain; for the holy name is perfect on every side, and no defect ean attach to it, Those creatures we have mentioned are rejected both above and below, and therefore they have no sre place either above or below. It is these which are meant by the words" which God ereated to make", ie. hey 'Were not made'into finished beings cther above or below. You may ask, seeing that they are spirits, why were not these beings finished off above ? 'The answer is chat they were not finished below on the earth, and therefore they" were not finished above. 'They all have their origin in the side of the left; they are invisible to men and hover round them to do. then mischief 'They have three features in comnon with, theangels and three in common vith human beings, a has 'been lid down elsewhere, After they had been ereated, they. 'ere left behind the millstones of the chasm of the geeat abyss during the night and the day of Sabbath, When the sanetiy of the day expired, they came out into ths Worl thet Unfinished state and commenced flying about in all directions, They became great danger to the world, beause with them the whole of the left side roused itself and the fire of Gehinnom began to ash, and all the denizens of the left side commenced to roam about the world. 'They sought to othe themselves in bodies, but were not able, He jon against the

12He ZoHAR Lite
the "hymn of accidents" (Ps set) has been prescribed for 'every oceasion when danger is threatened from them. For 'shen the Sabbath is sanctified on Friday evening, atabernacle 'of peace descends from heaven and is spread over the world. 'This tabernacle of peace is the Sabbath, and whea it comes down, all evil spirits and demons and all che creatures which defile hide themselves within the orifice of the milstones of the chasm of the great abyss. For when sanctity spreads over the world, the spirit of unclean! the two shun one another, Hence the world is under special protection (on the Sabbath evs), and we do ot require to say the prayer "who Reepeth bis people Iarael for ever, amen'. 'This prayer has been prescribed for weekdays, when protection is needed, But on Sabbath a tabernacle of peace 'spread over the world, which i thus sheltered on all sides. Even the sinners in Gehinnom are protected, and all being are at peace, both in the upper an lower spheres, and there= fore we conclude our prayer this day with the wieds "who spreads a taberracle of peace over us and over all his people Israel and over Jerusalem". ('The reason why Jerusalem is 'mentioned is besause it the abode of the tabernacle.) Thus it eherves un ta invite tht tabgricle to speed ise over lus and to rest upon us and to shield us as a mother shields hher children, so that we should feel secure on every side See nov, when Tsrae) hy. reciting this blessing invite this tabernacle of peace to their homes as-4 holy guest a divine sanctity conves Jown and spreads ts wings over Israel like '8 mother encorspassing hee children. "Then all evil spicts disappear from the world, and Israel are at rest under the sheltering sanctity of their Master. Further, this tabertacle ff peace imparts nets souls to her children, For souls have their abode in her and issue fom her, and s0 when she comes down and spreads her wings over her children, it sheda new soulon each one of then.' R, Simeon sad further: "Te i om this account that a8 we bave Fearne, Sabbath i tnirtor of the future world. Tor this same reasot, t00, the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee mirror one another, 'This additional soul descends from the mystic force implied in the ward sachor (remember) upan the tabernacle of peace, 480-488) benestcrriy 153 being ae (fom she ture ord nd the tera five 0 the Waly peopl, who te ldeed By ad Sloe So ceed aes co, id srr tun cg the wore tte prop en thd tac the Leal shal gre eo fre aro, fo thy oie ond fom the fad sen" v3) etl ot Fedo sag eran eh ave ours m1 show that this aera of peace hs been formed bs 4 uson fal pricpen proved oly thet Be Ices Nec nh (or ee eal he net yo, secede ig hers (nd this more sonst) oo mel the more wo, of coun, ihe has mote tan enough lh fr thenex dy Force ve des see enough andso the Collesgucesgreed. The uncon of ihn he Sabha ight fas bene tothe women of the Ral pope! athe ccleapics pa wun pu ot igh af word and Drought dates, tan vo we pee Thereby however tore screw, TWtsbcracls of pete Maton ff the wo the ols which ae te elt lamp abe in her Hence i behoves the mation vo le che igh, Veni herby heck evel to er fl place Bp tig bee arc pce ate ee the Sata ight wt et and glade beter Nooo a ead, further se Gulls asl testo Seam he retro al ofoeng who vill rot be 'Sic so arng ad ay ad al pend pence in the wold aah ali procite ong efor her bend enc abe shouldbe ce ertlt Shere ths cress Opec tt the wonle "rumembor" aod ep in The onmandnent of the Sablath (Ex, 8 and De 12) aly othe ay and vo the night; neve fast ore spesal eps tote ran ac het od th oman hts Chic octane tg! Axp THe Loun Gow nurer (eyiern) THe sine wien ME MAD TAKEN FROM THE MAW, EC. Said B.S "It is writen, God undentandeth the way thereof and he Imoeceth the place thereof (Job xxvitt, 23) "This verse may be

4Two die bod be the minim

154'His 2OuAR t L8h-40
taken in many ways. One is that the word "understood" (heviny has the same sense as eayiven in the second chapter 'of Genesis, Herce the "side" here is the Oral Law, which i it ix written, "who maketh a vay in the sea! (Is, xii 16). Similarly, "place" here ean be inter- preted as the Written Lav, whichis a source of knowledge 'The double name "Lord God" is used to shove that it was completed in all details, Hence it ie called both Hohmal (wisdom) and Binal (understanding). "he side" (seta) is the unclear miero, abit is written, "they rejoiced at my halting (Ge-sali) and gathered together" (Ps. xxi, 1). "Which he took from the man": hecause the Oral Law issued from the Writen 'Torals [x79 a woatast-to be linked with the fame 'of the left side, because the 'Torah was given from the side 'of Ceburah, Further ithah (woman) may beanalysedintoeshhé (fire of), signifying the union of hetwo. Ao HE BROUGHT HER TO THE NAN:as much as tox that the Oral Torah must not be studied by itself, but in conjunction with the Written 'Torah, which then nourishes ani supports 1 ané provides all ts needs, (We have sitoilarly explained the words "and the earth.) We learn from this passage that when a. nian ives his daughter in marriage, upto the time of the wedding the father and mother are responsible for her upkeep, but fonee she is murried the husbard has to suppor hee and provide all her necessaries. Por it first says here that the Lord God built up the side, ie, thatthe Father sad Mother provided for her, but afterwards "he brought her to the ran", that they might be closely united ta one another, and the man might thenceforth provide all her requirements. [49a} Accutding to another explanation thie verue ae 3 deep esoteric meaning, vi. that the primal point i unknowable save 10 God who "understands its way", ie. the future 'world, while "He", i. the great inscrutable called hi (he) "knows its ple" Anv tie Lon Gop rouey THE MAN. At this point he sas completely formed so as to partake both of the Right and of the Left, We laid down before that he was wholly under the aegis of the good inclination: now God 450) eRESHITHE 1 formed him with both good and evil inclination —with the good inclination for himself, and the evil mnchination fo tur towards the female. Fsoterically speaking, ve lear from here iat the North is aways attracted to the female and a itself to her, and therefore she i called isha(i.e.eik hé, hie). Observe this, The good inclination and the tion are in harmony only because they share the female, who js attached to both, in this way: first che evil inclination sues

3er and they unite with one another, and when they are
united the good inclination, which is joy, rouses itself and draws her to itself, and so she is shared by both and reconciles them. Hence itis written, "and the Lord God formed ms the double name being made responsible hoth for the gond and the wil inclination. Ta MAN aswe have explained, male and female, together and not separated faceto face ten DST FROM THLE GnoUND. The use of the snd" (adamah) here must be explained, When the Wie i juined with the husband she is ealed by the name of the husbusid; thus the correlaives ih (an) ad ah, cali ighteous one), and sedeh, fer (buck) and 'far, ebi (hart), and sibie. So, too, with the words aster (hich) and asherah, Te says, 'Thou shalt not plant thee an Asherak (grove) of any kind of tree beside the altar of the Lord thy God which (ajher) thow shalt make thee,' Are we to suppose that any- Where ebe i is permitted ? The truth is tnt the Hts called Aaherdhafter the namve ofits spouse, Asher, and the meaning ofthe verse is therefore: thou shalt nor plant another asherah boy the side of the altar which is establshed upon this, Observe that throughout the Scriptures the worshippers of the sun ae called servants of Baal and the worshippers of the moon servants of Asherai; hence the combination 'to Baal nd Asherab." IF this i s9 (that Asherah is the name of the is it not used as a sacred name? The ceazon is that this name brings t mind the words of Leah, "happy am I, forthe daughters wil eall me happy (shruni', but this fone is not "called happy' by other nations, and another i Set up in te place; nay more, iis weiten, all that honoured her despa her' (Lam, t,8). But the real altar is one that made of arth, as itis written, 'An altar of earth thoushalt

136THE ZOHARE Laoag
for me." Hence 'dust from the earth', AND IMF RAEATHED Iso mis NosTaits THE uNKATH OF LEFF. 'The brewh fof life ws enclosed in the earth, sshich was made pregoant With i like a female impregnated by the male. So the dust 'nd the breath wore joined, and the dust became Ful of spit and souls, AND THE MAN BECAME A LIVING SOUL. At this point he stained his proper form, ond became a man to support and nourish the fiving soul Axb rie Lomo Gon susi7. Here aio the full name of the Deity is used, indicating that the father and mother provided for her until she came to her husband, 'Tie S108 'Hack hut comely"; she was the 'unclear mirror', but the father and mother ticked her out so asco make her ageeps able to her hushand. AND MROVOMT HER TO THE MAX FFrom this we fearn that if fneurnbent on the father aed roother of the bride to transfer her to the charge of the Ibaidegroom; so we read 'my daughter Ihave given to this tran' (Deut, x4, 16). From that point the hushand i 10 ceame to het, since the house is hers: so it is writen "and he eame to hee' (Gea, X81x, 23), 'and he eame in 10 Rachel" (bi). OF the Father and mather itis ritten that they "brought, bur of the husband that he 'eame', to show that fhe must obtain her permission, We mate asimilar reflection 'on the verse "And be prayed in the place and tarried ther (Gen. sxvnt, 11), sis. that Jacob sought permission fir From this we learn that a mah who desres his wife's sociery [492] must frst enueeat and coax her: and if he cannot pe 'sade er, he ehust noe stay wth her, for their companionship rust he loving and unconstrained. It says further of Jaco! that "he taried there because the sun had et, which shows 'hat sewual intercourse is forbidden during the day. Further 'tsays that "he took uf the stones of the place and put it under tis head', From this we learn that even aking who has a bed of gold with precious coverings if hie wife propanis for him hed of stones, must feave his awn bed and sleep on the one 'which she prepares, a8 iis writen, "and he lay down in that place' Observe that it says here AND THEE MAN SAID, THES Tiatt, ETC., to show that he spoke to her lovingly 80 as to Pe) ERESHITIC 7 draw her to hien and to sin her affosions: See how tender snd coaxing is his linguage—'bone of my bone and flesh of ny flesh'—to proyedo her that they were one dnd inseparable, 'Then he began to sing her praises:"THIS SHALL BE EALLED WOMAN, thi it the peerless and incomparable one; this ie the pride of the house, who surpasses all other women 2 a human being surpasses an ape. 'This one is perfect in all points, and alone merits the title of woman. Every word is inspired by' love, lke the verse "Many daughters have done 'aliantly, buethou excellestthem all' (Prov. xxx1,29);T MERE TOREA MAN SHALL LEAVE HI5 FATHER AND HISMOTHER AND CLEAVE TO HIS WIFE, AND THEY SHALL E ONE LESH: all this, too, was to win her affection and to draw ter closer. AND THLE SENPENT WAS SUBTLE, After the man had x Aressed all these words to the woman, the evil inclination woke, prompting him to seek to unite with her in carat desire, and to entice her to things in whieh the evil incina- tion takes delight, until at lat "THE WOMAN SAW THAT JHE TREE WAS GOOD YOR FOOD, AND THAT IT WAT A TWEREOF AND ATE—giving ready admission wo the ev |—AND GAVE ALSO UNTO HEN ILUSBAND. WITH ssaken desire in hin, 0 o win his love and affection. This acount shows the proceedings of Runsan beings after the modelo hone aba: Said R. Eleasar, "Iso, what are we to make of the evil in- ination seizing the Female above ?" He sid: Tt has already lheen observed that one set (Left and Right) is above and 'ne set below, viz, the good inclination and the evi inclina- 'non; the good inclination on the right and the evil inclination an the left, The Left above seizes the female to join with her in the body, weit ie written, "his left hand under my head, 'ee: (8. 5,1, 6). Ta this way the pasooge ean be interpreted 'as applying both above and below. 'The est of the points are not at all recondit, and a child almost could elucidate them; and the elles have ned the R. Simeon was once going to Tiberias aevompanied

158'THE OMAR E Lish-soe
A, Jose and R. Judah and R, Hiya, On the way they saw AR Phineas come wowatds them. Wen they met hey dio= 'iounted and sat down under 2 large tree. Said R. Phiness, 'Now that Tam siting here, 1 skould like to hear come of those wonderful ideas to which you daily ve utterance." Simeon thereupon opened a discourse with the test, And 'he ent on sours from the South even unto Bethel, unto the place there hs dent eas at jit beeen ete and At (Gen. xt, 3). He said: "The word "journeys" i used here where we might have expected "journey", to indicate that the Shekinah was journeying wih him. It's incumbent on

28man to be ever "male and female", in order that his faith
'may be finn, and that the Shekinah may never depart from iim. What, then, you wily, ofaman who goesona journey and, being absent fom his wie is 0 longer "male and female"? lis ranedy is pray 10 Gd before he stars his journey, while he is sul "male and female" in order to raw to himself the presence of his Master. When he has 'fared bi prajer an tanker ase tp Shehaash Fae tin hin, them he can depare, for hough his union with the Shekinah he has become "male and female" in the county 2s he yas "male snd female" in the town, asi is wetten 'ightousness (sede, the female of saddit) shall go hefore Ii andl shall place his footstep: om the way" (Ps, Lax, 14). Observe ths All {Soa the sme that man fom ik travels he should be very careful of his ations, in order that the elestal parmer mayo desert him and eave him defec- tive, through lacking the union with the female, IF this was necessary when his wife Was with him, bow much myare 50 ist mocessry when a heavenly partner i attached to him ? All the more sa since this heavenly partner guards him on the say all the tie until e returns home, When be docs reach hom again, itiehis duty to pve his wife some pleasure, Incase itis she who procured for him this heavenly partner Tes his duty to do thin for two reasons. One i that this pleanice is a religions pleasure, and one which gives joy {o the Shekinah alo, and what i more, by' 4 meane he spreads peace inthe world, a jt written, "thou salt know that hy' ent isin peace, and thou salt visit thy fold and sea) RERESHITH 139 not sin" (Job. ¥, 24) (Is ita sin, it may be stked, ithe does fot visit bia wife? The anawer is that fs na becmine he thereby derogates fom the honoue ofthe celestial partner 'who was ined wih him on account of his wife) The ther is, that if his wife becomes pregnant, the celestial partner imparts tothe child a holy soul, for this covenant i called the covenant of the Holy One, blesed be He. Therefore he Should bee diligent to procure this gladness aa to procure the gladness of the Sabbsth, which is the partner of the Sages. Hence "thou shale know that thy tent isin peace", since the Shekinah comes with thee and abies in thy bouse land therefore "thou shalt vsie thy house and not sin", by performing with gladness the religious duty of eoniual in tercouae in the presence ofthe § dents af the Torah who separate fom the six diys of the week is order to devote themselves to study are accompanied by a heavenly parte in order that they may contin tobe "male and female" When Sabbath i incumbent an them 0 giadden thee i the stke of the honour of the heavenly partner, a to seek to perform the wil of their Master, s has ben said Similarly agai, ifaman's wife is observing the days of her separation, during all those dapa that he waits for her the heavenly partner is asiociated with him, so that he isi Fenae When hls wife iid, si his duty wo eden her through the glad performance of religious precept. All the resus we have mentcned abave apply to this case also. "The esoteric doctrine is that men of tue hth should con= centeite their whole thought and purpose on this one (the Shekinah, You may objet that, aceording to what has been 'sid, a man enjoys greater dignity' when he is on a journey than when he iat home, on ascount ofthe heavely partner 'who is then associated sith him, 'The is not so. For when a tan iat home, the foundation of hi house isthe wife, for itis on account of ber tha the Shekinah ey the howe he brought her to he ent of his mother Sarah" (Gen, xxv, G7), to dodicate that with Rebecea the Shekinah came 10 Itaae's hose. Esotrially speaking, the supernal Mother is

160rhe Zouan 1
found in company with the male only at thet house és prepared, and the male and female are joined. Then 'the supernal Mother pours forth blessings for them. Similarly the lower Mother is not found in company with the male save when the house is prepared and the male visits the female and they join together; then the lower Mother pours forth blessings for them. Hence the man in his house is bie encompassed by two females, like the Male above, 'There isan allusion to this in the verse "Unto (ad) the desire of the everlasting bills" (Gen. suzy, 26). This 'ad i the object of the desire of the "everlasting hills", vi, the supreme female, who isto prepare for him and beatify and bless hin, and the secondary female, who is 10 be conjoined with hin: and to be supported by him, Sinilarly below, when the rat is married the desire of the "everlasting hills" iz towards hhim, and he is beatified by te females, one of the upper and one of the lower workd—the upper ane to pour blessings 'upon him, and the lower one to be supported by him and to bbe conjoined with him, So much for the man in his house. 'When, however, he goes forth ona journey, while the celestial Mother still accompanies him, the lower wife is left behind sa when be comes back he has to take measures to encompass himself with to females, as wehave said," Said R, Phineas: Even the angels above would aot dare to open [so] their 'mouths before thee." R. Simeon proceeded: 'In the same way the 'Torah ie situated between two houses, ane recondite and on high, and the other mote accesible. "The une om high isthe "Great Voice referred to in the verse, "s ureat voice which did nat cease" (Deut. ¥, 19). This Voice is in the recesses and is not heard or revealed, and when i issues from the throat it utters the aspirate without sound and it flows on. without ceasing, though itis tenuous as to be inaudible. From this issues the Torah, which is the voice of Tacob. 'The audible voice issues from the inaudible. In due course specch is attached 0 it, and through the force of that speech it emerges into the open, The vsice of Jacob, which tp the 'Torah, 4s thus atached to two females, to this inner voice whieh is inaubible, and to this outer voice which is heard. sot] SeMesHiTH tbr Strictly speaking, there are wo which are inaudible and two Which are heard, 'The wo which are not heard are, first, the ssupernal Wisdom which is lated in the 'Thought and 18 not disclosed or heard; and secondly the same Wissdom when it issues and discloses itself alittle in a whisper which cannot bbe heard, being then ead the "Great Voice", which is very 'enuous and issues in a whisper, 'The two which are heard are those which issue from this souree—the voice of Jacob andtheartsulation whichaccompanieait, Thie"Great Vics" whieh cannot be heard is a "house" to the supernal Wisdom (the female is always called "house", and the articulation we hae mentioned isa "house" to the Voice of Jacob, which is the 'Torah, and therefore the 'Torah commences with the lear beth, which is, as it were, a "house" te i,' R, Simeon there drew a parallel between the creation of heaven and earth And of woman. *"In the beginning God created". he said, 'eorresponis to "And the Lord God built the side" " heavens corresponds to and he brought her to the man' 'and the earth" corresponds to "bone from tay bone". since this one assuredly is "the land of the Hiving".* A. Simeon further gaveanexposition ofthe verse: The Lond said unto my fr, Sitsat my right and wnt foe thine enemies ey foustot (Ps. ex, 1). "The Lord saith unto my lord": Wit, the upper grade said to the lower, "sitar my right hand! inorder tha the West should be linked withthe South and the Left with the Right so as to break the power of the Gentiles. in, "The Lord' is (he celestial) Jacob, and "to my the ark of the cotenant, the lord ofall (Josh 105,11), According to another explanation, "the L refers to the Jubilee and "my lord" to the Sabbatical Year XX, §) "Tove my Tord"), The words sit at my right 'are appropriate, because the Right is located Jubilee, ard the Sabbatical Year eraves to be linked with the Right. When it frst came ino being, the Sabbatical Yea not linked securely (to the supreme power) through eithe Right or the Left. So when it sought to secure itelf, the supreme power stretched forth ite right arm to meet it and created thi world. Iris hecause itis from theside of the Left that it hax sure base ill etme ofthe seventh millennium,

163mule OHA T [306-50
sehen at Tength it will he linked through the Right. 'Then the atieal Year, between the Right and the Left, wil be securely bastd, there will be a new heaven and a new earth, and it will not depart from there for ever. According t0 this explanation, we must take the words "sit ar my right hand! to refer only to a specified period, via. "sll 1 make thive enemies thy footstool", bur not in perpetuity; for when that event has come to pass, it wl not depart feem there Forever, as it i writen, "for ¢hou shale spread abroad on the right hand and on the left" (Is. uv; 3), all being united. Similac 'we ean interpret the text "the heavens ard the earth" wo mean thatthe higher Shekiaah and the lover Shekinah wil Gn the union of male and female) this hax already explaiied, ad the colleagues have noted' 'They now rose to depart, but R. Simeon said: "T have still fone thing more to tell you. Tt says in one place "For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire" (Deut. 1¥, 24), and in another plave "Ye that clave to the Lord your God ae all Of you alive this day" (Dew, 19, 4). 'The apparent contra: diction betwen these texts has already heen discussed among the colleagues, but here is another explanation. Ie has already been established among the colleagues that there is a fre which eansumes fre and destroys it, because vhere is ane sort of Fire stronger than another. Pursuing thisidea, we may say that he sho desires to penetrate to the mystery of the holy tunity should contemplate the Aarne which ries from a urn= ing coal of candle. 'The flame cannot rise save (4a) from some concrete hoy, Furtber, in the flame itself there are roo lights: one white and luminous, and the other black, oF 'nue, 'The white fight i8 the higher of the two and rises steadily. 'The black oF blue light is undemeath the other, 'which rests on it a on a pedestal "The two are inseparably connected, the white resting and being enthroned upon the black. (Herein is the inner significance ofthe fringe of blue) This blue or black base is in turn attached to something beneath i which keeps it in flame and inspels i to cling 10 the white light above. 'This blue or black light sometimes turns red, but the white light above never changes its colour 'The lower light, which is sometimes black, somtimes blue, sta nenesntr 103 and sometimes red, 18 a connecting link between the white to the corse by :o which itis avached below, and which keeps alight, light aleays consumes anything which i unde toe which is rough in contact with itor sch iterate, toe a tours nf destruction and death Hut the white ight which is ahove it never consumes or destroys and reve changes. Thesefore Mone ald, "Fete Let thy God nx conta ing re", literal consuming hat beneath hin that chy fe said "thy Cod" and ne "our God", because Moves Wen that white Tight hove which does not consume or destroy. Now observe, 'he impulse trough which this blue Light net afl ard atic lf othe white ight comes snly from lated, who cleave tet from lowe Furth, ae though the nature ofthe Heol ght to consume everything thats in contac tht beneath, yt each ate ble to wit that b ame which consmesund destroyall that cleaves ti from nies yet you cleave and are still alive. Above the white light an ssrouncdiny i ix stllanother Fight scarcely per- ceptible, symbolical ofthe supreme essence, Thus the ascend ing, flame symbolises. the highest roysteries of wisdom. Ri, Phin apprvwcher andl Kec hen, tang, 'Dlesed be God who fed my steps here.! They then accmpanied R. Phineas on his way for three wiles. When they eame back, A. Simeon said: 'What I told you before furnishes a symbol of the sacred unification. The second Aé of the holy name is the hue of black light which is attached to. Yod, Hé, Vau, 'which are the wine shiny light. Sometimes this blue light is ut Ad but dleth that isto sty, when Tseael do not cleave to it from below s0 6 to make it hurt and cling tothe white light, 'is daleth, but when they give tthe impulse to cling to the white Fight ti e, Bor where male and female are not found together, fé is eliminated and only daleh is left (hence in Deut, est, 15, the word maar ieused for "maiden" instead of taarah, because she ix not united with the mal), But when the chain is complete, the Aé claves to the white light and

164'THE ZONARL [s10-se0
Israel cave to stand feed its fight without being destroyed. "This is the secret of the sacrifice. 'The ascending smoke bundles the blue light, which then attaches itself [514] to the 'White ligt, 60 that the whole candle is completely alight 'Since itis the nature ef this blue light to destroy and consume 'everything hich isin contact with it underneath, when the sacrifice is pleasing and the eandle x completely alight, then, as in the case of Eljuh, "the fre of the Lord descends and oflering"(t Kings xvith 38), this being fs comple, the bye Hight bath leaving to the white light and consursing the fat and flesh 'of the hurnt-offering beneath it for it does nat eonsume what is beneath it save when it ascends and attaches itself 19 the 'white light. "Then there is peace in all worlds, and the whole forms a unity. When the blue light has consumed all that is Ibencath it, the press, the Levites, and the hity assemble tits foot with chaming, with meditation, and with prayer, the lamp burns above them, the lights are welded inta ane, 'worlds 2c illumined, and hoth these above and those below are blesed, Hence its that "ye, even while ckaving to the Lord youe God, are all alive this day" 'The word atkem (you) here is preceded by the letter eau (and), to shove that whereas the fat and the flesh which cleave ta the flame are destroyed by it, you cleave to it and are stil alive 'All colours seen in a dream ace of good presage, except blue; this is ever consuming and destroying, being the tree in which death is located. Te spreids over the lower work and because all things are situated beneath it, therefore they bre perihakle. 1G fea (hat aloeipeernden te nears srl there are many objects there which ate imperishable. These, however, are constituted of this blue light, whereas the lower ones are of enarser material, and constitute a ower world on whieh the upper one rests. Henes the blue light consumes and destroys them," [52a] AND Tuy HEARD THE vorce oF THE LoeD Gon WALKING IN THE GARDEN. (Note the form mithalech * Evo s20-s2b] aeResuirH 165 (walking) instead of the usual mehalech.) Until he sinned, foan was gifted sith the wisdom of celestial illumination, and he did not foran instant quit the Tree of Life. But when hhe was seduced by his desire to know what was below he weakly followed it until he became separated fom the Tree of Life, and knew evil ad forsook good: hence the Scripture 'says for thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wicked ness, [526] evil shall not sojourn with thee' (Ps, v. 5): He who is drawn after evil may not abide with the Tree of Life, Before they sinned, the human pair used to hear a voice from above, and were endowed with the higher wisdom; they stood erect With heavenly radiance, and knew no fear. When they sinned, they were not able to stind up even before an earthly voice A similarthing happened later withthe lracites. When Israel Stood before Mount Sinai, the impurity of the serpent was removed from them, so that carnal passion was suppressed among them, and in consequence they were able to attach themnselveszo the Treeof Life, and their thoughts were tuned tobigher things and not wo lower. Hence they were vouchsafed heavenly ifluminations and knowledge which filed them 'with joy and gladness, Further, God grt them with enctures of the leters af the Holy Name, which prevented the serpent from gaining power over ther or defiling them a befor When they sinned by worshipping the eal, they were di Decided Irom heel Bint ceive snc nt here Stkanteetn, they were deprived of the protective girdle of the Holy Name and became exposed to the attacks of the evil expent as before, and so brought death into the world. After thei sin, iti related that 'Aaron and the children of Israel saw Moses, 1d told the akin oF his face shone, and dey weve aftaid to come nigh him' (Ex, axxtv, 30). Before that, however, we are told that "Iseael saw the great hand! (Jbid, xt, 32) on the Red Sea, and that at Mount Sinai they all saw celestial Tights and wvere illumined with the vision of clear prophecy vit is written, "And all the people saw the voices' (Jd. §8, 18}, and by the Red Sea they saw God and did not fear, as in is written, "This is my Gad and T will praise him' (Cbd Xv, 2), Butafterthey sinned, they were not able to nok even fon the face ofthe deputy (Moses), Hon' wae this! ear w THE ZOHAR {seb "the children of leracl were deprived oftheir ornament from Mount Sina', to wit, of the armour with whieh they were sirton Mount Sinai in onder thatthe evil serpent should not Ihave power over them. After dhs had beer atipped fre them We read that 'Moaes took the tent and pitched it with 'out the camp, afar off from the camp' (Ihid. rxxtsh, 7) R. Fleasar explained the connection thus: 'When Moses perceived that Israel had been deprived of their heavenly armour, he said, "OF a surety the evil serpent will now come to dwell among them, and if the sanctuary remains here among them it will be defiled", and he therefore took the teat and pitched it ouside, far from the camp.' 'And he called it the tent of meeting. It had been such before, bu had been called the 'tent', simply. The epithet 'of meeting" 'sss now given to it, according to R. Eleaza, in compliment, according 16 R. Abba, in disparagement. R. Elazar defended is view on the ground that moed (meeting, appointed time) isthe word used of the day when the moon i in full earcer, 'when its holiness is increased and itis free fom defect; £0 Ihre, Moses ave the tent this name to show that it had been removed from the contagion of the people. R. Abba argued 'hit the simple name ent' bas the same implieation a in the verse 'a tent that shall not be removed, the stakes oF 'which shall never be picked up (Is. sant, 30), ie that it designates something which confers etemity on the world idad saves in from death Whietess the epitiet 'meeting' fe 'bed in the same sense as nthe phrase a heuse of meeting, forall eh' (ie, the rave, Job %88, 23), and indicates that 'the life which it confered was ony fora imived peo Aft it was unimpaired, bat nov i was impaired; at fat the sun and the moon were in continuous union, but now their union was only fom season to season (moe) hence the name "tent of season" (mond Simeon was one right studying the Torah in company wih, Judah, M.Asaae, and B, Joo. Said Re Judah to him 'We read that "the Inteites took aff thei ornament from Mount Horeh", and we go on to assert that they thereby Ihrought death upon themselves, and once more placed them= in the power of the evil serpent from whose clutches 526-530] emesniric 167 they had previously escaped. This may be rueof the Iaralites; 'but what of Joshua, who had not sinned ? Are we tosay that he was deprived ofthe armour which he received with them, 'or not ?(53¢] If not, why did he die like other people ? 16 you say he vas deprived, what was the reason, seeing that he had not sinned, as he was with Moses when the people sinned ? And if you say that he did not receive the same crown on Mount Sinai asthe rest ofthe people, again, what 'was the reason?" R. Simeon in reply quoted the text: For the Lord is righteous, he loveth righteousness, he is upright, 'men shal bel his face (Ps, xt, 7). He said: "This vers has 'been variously expltined by our colleagues, but it may be 'taken in this way, "For the Lord is righteous": to wit, He is righteous and His name is Righteous (Zaddih) and there- fore He loves righteous deeds, He is also upeight, as itis writen, "righteous and upright is he" (Deut, xxxtt, 4); and therefore all the inhubitanes of the world behold His face, that they may amend their ways and walk in the straight path, For when God judges the world, He passes sentence 'only according to the conduct of the majority. Now when 'Adam xinned by eating of the forbidden tree, he caused that tree to become a source of death to all the world, He also caused imperfection by separating the Wife from her Hus band. This imperfection was exhibited in the moon, until the time when Israel stood before Mount Sinai, when the moon was freed from ite defect, and was in. porition to shine continually. When larael sinned by making the calf the moon reverted to its former imperfection, and the evil serpent was able to seize her and draw her to him. When Moses saw that Israel had sinned and that they had been 'deprived of their holy-armour, he knew full well that the Serpent had seized the moon 19 draw her to him, and that she had beceme defective, and he therefore took her ouside. 'Thus she has reverted to the defective state into which she was brought by the sin of Adam, and therefore no man can live permanently save Motes, who controls her, and whose death was due toa different cause. Hence she had not poser to beatead permanently even Joshua, although he retained his holy armour: and it was therefore that Moses eallel her

168THE EONAR T {ss
"tent of appointed time" (moe), to wit, the tent in which is an appointed time for all ving. To speak more esotercaly there isa Right above and there is 2 Right below: there isa Left above and there i a Left below. There is a Right above in the realm of supernal holiness, and there is a Right below located in the "other side", 'There is a Left above in the reali of supernal holinest to. procure indulgence for the 'moon, $0 aso link ber to the holy place and enable her to shine, 'Thereis a Left below whieh estranges the upper teal from her and prevents her from reflecting the wun's light and drawing near to him, 'This is the side of the evil serpent, 'oho, when this Left of the lower resin bestirs itself, draw the toon to himself and separates her from the upper worl, 'so that her lights darkened, She then causesdeath to descend Tike-a stream on all that is below; she cleaves to the serpent and departs from the Tree of Life, and so brings death on all the Workd, At such tine the sanctuary he deed «at ap pointed time when the moon is repaired and shines again, Herice the name "tent of appointed time" (noe), and hence itis that Joshua died only through the instigation of the serpent, which came up tothe tent and rendered it imperfect This ie the inner meaning of the verse, "And Joshua the son of Nun, lal (naar), departed not from out the tent" (Bx. xaxut, 1) Although he was a "lad (ie attendant) beneath qualified to receive the (celestial) fight, he did not depart from out the tent: he shared in its im perfcetion: slthouigh he still had the holy armour, yet when the moon became imperfect, he also was not delivered from the same poser which caused that imperfection. Similarly 'when Adam sinned, God took from him the armour of the bright and holy letters with which he had been encompassed and then he and his wife were afraid, perceiving that they hhad been stripped s0 it say AND THEY KEW SHAT THEY WERE NAKED. AC first they had been invested with those glorious crowns which gave them protection and exemption from death. When they sinned, they were ripped of ther, an then they knew that death was calling them, that they had ich Ibcen deprived of their exemption, and that they had br death on themselves and on all the world.' [338] BeReSitiTH 0g SEWED FIG LEAVES TOGETIEFR. This means, awexplained elsewhere, that they learnt all kinds of enchant= rents and magic, and clung worldly knowledge, as bas been sad. At thit moment the stature of man was diminished boy a hundred cubits. 'Thus a separation took place (of man from God), man was brought to judgement, and the earth ves cursed, all ay we have explained. AND ME DROVE OUT THE MAN. R. Eleszir said: "We 'naturally suppose that "he" is the subject and "man" the objec. 'The truth is, however, that "man" is the subject and the object is the accusative particle eh, s0 thae we render "and the man drove out eth". Hence its writen, "And God sent him forth from the Garden of Elen". for the reason that he had divorced eth, as we haveexplained. Axo me PLacoi: the subject is till "man'; jt was he who fixed the Cherubimn inthis place, who closed the path ts Paradise, who eubjected the world ta chastisement, and deew upon it cures from that day onward. THE FLAME OF A sWORD WHLEH THRSED EFERY WAYS this refersto those heings who areever in readi- ness to chastise the world, and who take all manner of shapes, being sometimes male, sometimes Female, sometimes Haenins fire and sometimes ireesiible winds, AI the 10 Kir THE WAY OF THE TREF OF LIFE, so that man should rot do any more mischief there, 'The "aming sword" denotes 'hose punit who heap freon the headeof the wicked and sinners (in hell. 'They take various forms according to the offences of those who are penished. The werd "aming (lahat) here hasits analogy inthe verse, "the day that cometh Shall burn hem up" (cetihat, Mal. 11, 19). The "sword!" ix that mentioned in the verse, "The sword of the Lord is filled with blood, ete" (Is. xxx, 6)" R, Judah said: "AI those punitive spirits shat we have mentioned, that assume so many arious forms, ae charged to maltreat and harry i this world the sinners who deliberately teansgress the precepts of their Master, For when a man sins, he draws towards himself umbers of evil spirits and emisaries of punishment, before 'xhom he quail i Tear. Solomon was conversant with the mysteries of Wisdom, and God set upon his head the erown = Tur Z0HNR 1 (sabsee 'of royalty and the whole world feared him. When, however, he sited, he drew towards himself numbers of evil and punitive spirits, of whom he vas much frightened, so that they were able to raltreat him and to take away his (precious) postesons, In truth, a man by his actions always drawing to himself some emissary fram the other world, good or exil according to the path which he treads, So Adam drew to Himself an emissary of defilement who defiled him apd all 'mankind after hin. "This wae the evil serpent who is himself Unclean and defiled the world, Our Sages have taught that when he dravs the soul out of aman, theres left an unclean body which renders the whole house unelean, and all those that touch it, as itis written, "He that touches # dead body, ete." (Num sta, 11), The feason is that when he takes the soul and renders the body upelean, permission is given to all the unclean apirite, which are akin to the evil serpent, te rest upon if, and so the whole place where the evil serpent fs pretent hecemes defiled. Further, when men sleep on their beds at night-time and night spreads her wings over the world, they are having a foretaste of death, and in conse 'quenge the unelean spirit is Tet loose inthe Word, cxtrying pollution. In particular 1 reste upon, Uefiles them, so that when be wakes up restored to him, everything which he touches with his hands is rendered unclean. Hence a man should be eareful when dressing not to take his garments from a person who has not 'washed his bands, heeause in this way he draws upon him self the unclean spirit and becomes defied, 'This pict is authorised to settle in every place where there is the merest trace of the side om which tissues, Hence a man should fot Ket water be poured ever his hands by one who fas not yet washed his own hands, because in this way he draws on himeelf the vinelean spieit, from contact with the one who pours water aver him, [54a] Therefore a man should be on Fis geard on very ale benioe the leet tien serpent, 'which otherwise will gain the better of hit God has premised 'one day to remove it from this world, as itis written, "Till couse the unclean spirit to pass out of the land" (Zeck, x0 3) sod ls "He-vill elle up death for cee" (i, a, 8)? saa) neRESHITH Axo xine many weeny Evnvies wire, R, Abba disursed in conection with this verse on the text: Who howe the spink of ma echich goeth upreards, and the spirit of the beast 'ehich goeth downard fo the earth' (Eccl 11, 21). He said "This verse can hear many construtions, and so its with all the words of the 'Torah: they can all hear several mean 'ngs, and all good, and the whole 'Torah can be expounded in seventy ways, corresponding to seventy sides and seventy wings. We will, however, exoound thus, When a man walks in the path of truth, he joes toneards the right and attracts to bimself « holy spirit from above, which in turn ascends 'with holy intent wo attach ibelf uo the upper world and to cleave to the supernal holiness. When, hossever, a man walks fn the pat he draws to himself an unclean spirit hhelunging to the let side, which renders hitn impure so it ia written, "ye shall not make yourselves unclean with them that ye should he defiled therehy" (Lav. al, 43), ie-he that Fiet dale hin Flersent, Bucher, when man walks in the right path and attracts to himself

2spirit of holiness fram ahuve and cleaves to i, he also
draws a spirit of holiness oa tothe son whom he bears into the world, se that he is like to be endoved with the sanctity fof his Mater (ae it is written, "Hf ye sinetify yourselves, ye shall he holy" (Lev. xt, 44)). Contrarivise, when the man oes to the side of the lft and drasss to himself the impure spirit and clings roi, he aley deaws a spirit fon the son that fous frum him, s0 Hat he is tke to be defied by purity of the Tefe se, 'This is what is -meant by the words, "Who knows the spirit of the sons of mee, namely that one which avcerds on high, ete." When a sus clateet lo the gts ea tee aay bik hen he cleaves to the left, the side of the left, which is the spirit of uncteanliness, descends from above and fixes its abode in a man's body, and the son shor he begets in state of impurity is is son from that unclean spine Adan clave to that unclean spirit, and his wife clung to it at First wnd received deflement from it, Hence when Adam begat a son, tha son was the son of the impure spit. 'Thus thete were two sons-—one from the undean spirit, and one IF 5 bed forthe in Ca site z04aK 1 [sea after Adam had repented. "Thus one we fom the pure sie and. one from the impure near aid: "When the 'eepent injected is imu ete absorbed and {when Adama had intercourse with her dhe bore two sone — fone from the impute side and one from the side of Adan tnd Abel bore resemblance to the Higher form and Cain tthe lower. Hence it was that thet ways in life were fiferen. Twas natal, to, that Cain, coming fom the side ofthe wegel af death should il hs brther sla ard tobi own ie, and from hin originate all the ei habitations Ed demone and gobline and evil spirits inthe work" R. Jou 'aid: Chin was the nest (Cina) ofthe evil habitations which {Sine ino the world from the impure aid. Afterwards both Gain ad Abel brought sacrifices, each from his appropriate Side hence tis writen, Aw TY CAME TO PASS AT THE inp or pave Tua CAt® AxoCent oF Thin FRUIT OF Tur Gnows, ere.' R Simeon sad; "This "end of day isthe same asthe end of al flesh" (Gen, 13) wha is a80 the angel of death, Cain brought his ering fom this. "end tf days thins indkeated by the epresion nthe text "rm the end" (mi-kers).(540] Cats akovcHTT OF KE FRUCT n't onovnt thie in parallel wo of the fut of hs tree" in God? words to Adem R, letzar uid "We can apply to Cain the verte "Wee v the wicked, i shal be il with him, forthe reward of hishands shall be done to hin' (st, 1) "ye reward of his hands refers tothe angel of death whois eae towazds them and clingy t them 30 a8 10 say oF cbf thee, 'Ths Cin offered from the sie appropriaita tim. Axo Annu sso anocowror Tueriestutsasito ani th higher side whichvcomes roa thud of liom Hence Te LORD aD niserey USTO ABEL AND TO tis OFFEntNa, BUT TO Cain AND TO Mts OFFERING tteuiab wor nEsPrer, ie. God didnot cept it and there fire Catt Was ViKy WROTH AND Ilts COUSTENANTE repre) avec esecetbesreerne tes erate ne fhm the side of the let. On the ober hand, God received Abel, and therefore it fawriten, AND 1T CAME To PASs vm rey went ty rie Pre, e1C. "Field ie hee designation for woman; Cain was jealous ofthe tin ise ab) seeesinT 175 that was bom with Abel (according to the interpretation placed by us on the words "and ae bore ination' v2" 162? This has alrady been explained, viz. the word seth (uplifting) means, according to R. Abba, 'thou shalt mount shove and shalt not descend below'. R, Jose said: 'We aceept this explanation, which isa good one, but I have also heard nother, vis, "thisartachment ofthe inpure spirit shall depact (lit. be lifted) from thee and leave thee", If not, then six CoueHETH AT THE DOOR, By "door" in meant the heavenly teibunal which is the door through svkich all enter, as iin written, "open to me the doors of righteousness" (Ps. exvth 19). By sin eoucheth' is meant thatthe side which clung ta thee and was drawn towards thee is lying in watch for thee to 'exact punishment from thee.' Said R, Issac: "When Cain 'vated t kill Abel, he didnot non how fo make irs give up the ghost, and he bie hi lke a snake, as our colleagues have explained, God then cursed him, and he wandered about the world without being able to find any restingeplace uni lapping his hands on his head, he repented before his Master. Then the earth found a place for him in one of its lower levels' R, Jose said: "The earth allowed him to stay 'on its surface, ay i written, "And the Lord set upon Cin a sign'™! R, Issac suds 'That js not so 'The earth found « ace forhim ina eentain lower level asitis written, "Behold, thou hast driven meout this day from the face ofthe ground", plying that he was banished from the surface but not from 'udergeound, 'The evel on which he found a resting-place Mas Arka, of the denizens of which iis writen, "these shall perish from the earth and from beneath the heavens" (Jer. X11). There veas fied his habitation, and this is what is meant by the words, ASD ME DWELT IN THE LAND oF Novow rte Easror Even.' Said R. Isaac further: From the time that Cain kiled Abel Adam seyarated from his wit. "Two female spirits hen wed to come and have intercourse With hin, and he bore from them spits and demons that fit ahout the world, This need cause no surprise, because now ako when a man dress in his sleep, female spints often fome and disport wth him, and so conceive from him aed 1% ui 2OHAR T (ib-sse subsequently give birth,"Thecreataresthus producelarecalled "plagues of mackind"; they appear always under the form of human beings, but they havero buon theie heads. (they iwhoare referred inthe vere, "nd {hall chasti him with the rod of men and with the phgues ofthe sons of men' (Sam. vit, 14) I the same way mae spirits visit women- folk and make them pregnant, sothat they bring forth spirits Which are aso called "plagues ofthe sons of men". 'After hundred and thir year, Adam again fle drawn {ssa} with desire towards his wife, and he begat from her a son whom he ealed Seth, This name symbolises anend, being 'composed of the two lat leters ofthe alphabet in regular order.' R. Judah "This name symbolised the reincarna~ tion ofthe sprit which had been st, being ofthe sume letters a8 the word shat (st) inthe sentence "God hath replaced Ghath for meavother seed instead of Abel" "R. Jah farther aid: OWN LIKENESS een te tar other sons were not fully after bis tikenes, but that this one reproduced his qualities both of body and sou 'This accords with what R. Simeon said in the name of R. Yeba, the Eke, tht his ose sons weterigendered in deficient through ie ata tment ofthe serpent and of ita rider, Samael, and therefore they were nots complete reproduction of Adam. We aaid Before, i is tru, that Abel wax not for the same sie a8 Cain; nevertheless, oth were alk in this, that they were not eradowed with the fll human figure" R. Jose said: "This view {borne out by the language of the text, which in regard to the birth of Cain says, "And Adam knew his wife-and she conceived and dke hare Cain, and so of Abel, "an she again bore his brother Abel", but of Seth it says, "and he hore in is likeness after his image"." R. Simeon said hundred and thirty years Adam separated from hie wife, and <lring that time he begat many aprita and demors, through the force of the mpunty which fe had absorbed. When that impurity was eshausted, he turned once more to his wife and 'begat from her a son, of whom itis written, "he begat in his 'oven likencas afer his image". For when 3! man goes to the side of the left and walks in impurity, he dnuws to himself all 5a] reesurrn 195 kinds of impure spirits, and an unclean spiet clings to him nd refuses to leave him, since these spirits ling only ta those tat cling to them frst. Happy the righteous who walk in the straight path, they being the truly rightenas; theie children fee ao lee nd of the it writen, "for the upright shall dwell ip the earth" (Prov. Axp rae steven oF Tumat Caix was Naamast R, Hiya said: Why does the Scripture panicslarly mention Naamah ? The reason is that she was the great seducer not only of men, but also of spirits and demons.' R, Tsaae said: "The "sons of God" mentioned in the Scripture (Gen, vt, ), who were Uxea and Azael, were seduced by her.' R jmeon said: 'She was the mother of the demons, being of the side of Cain, and itis she who in company with Lilith brings epilepsy on children.' Said K, Abbato him: 'Did you 'not cay before that her function is to seduce men 2" He re- fied: "That is so; she disports herself with men, and some- times bears spirits from them. And she still exists to seduce men.' Ssid R. Abba to him: 'But do these demons not die like human beings ? How then comes she to exist to the present day ?? He replied: 'It ix 90, Lilith and Naamab and Tggereth, the daughter of Mahlath, who originated from the side, will ll continue to exist until the Holy One, blessed be He, sweeps away the unclean spirit as it 8 written, "T will cause the unelean spirit to pass out of the land" (Zech. x1, 2)' Said R. Simeon: 'Abs for the blindness of the sons of 'men, all unaware a they are how full the earth is of strange and inyiible beings und hidden dangers, which eould they bbut see, they would marvel how they themselves can exist fon the exrth. This Naamah was the mother of the demons, and from her originate all thoae evil spirits which mix with 'men and arouse in them concupiscence, which leads them to defilement. It is because such a hap comes from the side DF the Unelean apirit that it entails the need of purification by abluion, as our colleagues have explained."

111515 THE BOOK OF THE GENERATIONS OF ADAM,
ice, those who inherited his likeness. Said R. Isaac: 'God

176THE 20HAR 1 Issa-ss6
showed Adam the visage of all ature generations, ofall the wise men and all the kings that were destined to nile over Israel, When he saw David, who was destined o die arsoon as he was born, he sand, will lend him aeventy years from my Tife", and eo it came to pass. It was to this that David referred when he said: "For Thou, O Lord, hast made me 'lad (358) through thy work, L will triumph in the works of thy hands" (Ps. Xen, 5), the expression "work" and "works of thy hands" in chis passage referring to Adam, sho was rade by God and not by flesh and blood. Hence Adam's days fell short by seventy years of the thonsand which he ought by right to have lived, Gnd also shoved him the wise men 'of each generation. When he came to R. Akiba and saw his 'peat learning, he rejoiced, but when he aa his martyrdom hhe was aveely grieved. Nevertheless, he exclaimed: "How precious in mine eyes are thy companions, © Ged, how 'ghty are the chiefs of them' (Ps. CXANEN, 17) "This isthe 'hook' literally 30, as wehave explained, vis. that when Adam was in the Garden of Eden, God sent dosen to him a book by the hand of Raziel, the angel is charge of the holy mysteries. In this book were aupernal inscriptions containing the stcred tiadom, and seventy-two branches of wom expounded £0 ar to show the formation of six hundred and seventy inscriptions of higher mysteries. In the middle of the hook was a secret writing explaining the thousand and five hundred keys which were not revealed even to the holy angele, and all of which were Jocked up sm thie boole une

3came into the hands of Adam. When Adam obtained it
all the holy angele gathered round him to hear him read it. and when he began they exsliimed: "We thou exalted, © Lord, ahove the heavens let thy glory be above all the earth" (Pe Ln, 12). Thereupon the holy angel Hadarniel sae secretly sent to aay to him: "Adam, Adam, reveal not the lory of the Master, for to thee alone and not to the angel is the privilege given to know the plory of thy Master. "Therefore he kept it by hin secretly ustil he let the Garden fof Eden. While he was there he studied it diligently, and uilsed constantly the git of his Master until he discovered sublime mysteries which were not known even to the celestial ssh] DeRESHEITH 17 'ministers. When, however, he teanigressed the command of 'his Master, the book flew atsay from hi, Adam then beat his breast and wept, and entered the river Gikon up ta his neck, 30 that his bady became all wrinkled and his face haggard. God thereupon made a sgn to Raphael to rewen

10him the ook, which he then sudied for the rest of his
life, Adam lef itto his son Seth, who transmitted it in turn

1his posterity, and so on until i came to Abraharn, who
leatnt from it how to discern the gory of his Maner, ax has been sid, Similarly Enoch possessed a hook through which The learnt to discern the divine glory." MALE AND FEMALE ME CREATED THEM. RL Simeon said 'Profound myxeries are revealed in these two verses! 'The words "male and female le ereated thea" make known the high dignity of man, the mystic doctrine of his creation Asmuradly in the way in which heayen and earth were created rman vas also created; for of heaven and earth "these are the generations ofthe heaven and the ear 'of man i is weiten, "these are the generations of man") oF hheaver and earth itis written, when they were created" andofmanitie written, sywhen they were created" "Male and female he created them" From this we learn that 'every igure which dees not comprise maleand femaleclements jg nat true and proper figure, and so we have lid down in the eseteric teaching of our Mishnah. Observe this. God does not place His abode in any place where male and female are hot found together, nor are blessings found save in such a place, ait is written, AND HE ALESSED-THEM AXDEALLED eneAteD: note that it says them and their naree, and not him and hie name, 'The male is not even called ran till he is limited with the Female," . Judah ssid: "Since the destruction of the Temple, Messings have not reached the world, but they go astray every day, as itis writen, °"The righteous loses, to wit, the Hessings sshich used t0 rest upon him as it is eritten, "blessings on the head of the righteous' AND CALLED His SAME Seti, Iti to Seth that all the i thi one om Gen #7

18'Tie zomaR 1 [356-560
generations whieh have survived in the world and al the truly righteous of the world trace their descent." R. Jose said "The two last letters of the alphabet were lef in their order after the others had been reversed [56a] through Adam's transgression, and therefore when he repented he grasped at these two and called the son who was born in his likeness Seth, a name formed of the last two letters of the alphabet in proper order, Nevertheless, the other letters of the alphabet remained inthe iayerse order, and not tll Israel stood before Mount Sitai did they recover their proper aeder as on the day when the heaven apd earth were created, and the earth was once more securely established.' R. Abba said: "On the day that Adam transgressed the command of his Master, Iheaven and earth were lie to have been uprooted from theit piace, being based as they are only on the covenant, as itis \wnitten, "Hut for my covenant day and night, E had not set the statutes of heaven and earth" (Jer, xAX0H1, 25), and Adam broke the covenant, as it ix written, "And they like Adam transgressed the covenant' (Hos, Vi foreseen that Israel would one day stand before Mount Sinai

0ennfirm this covenant, the world would not have been,
preserved.' R, Hiskiah aud: "Whoever confesses his sin there by procures forgiveness from God. See now, when God. created the sold, He made this covenant and established the world upon it asit is written bereshith, whieh we imerptet as hara sith, "be crested. the foundation", wo wit, the covenant on which the vorld tests, and which is also called shith, because itis a tough From which blessings Now forth tothe world. Adstn broke this covenant and removed it from fas place, This covenant is symbolised by: the small letter Yd the rot and foundation ofthe worl. When Adam begat yon, he confessed hi guile nd called the chi Ah nor venture to inserts Yod and all him hie had broken the coverant s0 symbolised, In recompense 'God propagated mankind fom Ser, an wade hin the fore= father ofall the righteous who have lived since, Note alo this. When Istacl stood before Mount Sinai, there entered between these two letter: (shin and tau) a symbol of the covenant, to wit, the leter beth, and God gave to Israel the she) aenesurra 79 sword formed of al three eter, whch it Sas TH, as itis sid: "And the children of lal sal hep the Sabbath, to make the Sabbath throughout their generations a perpetual covenant." In this way these two eters finally obtained thee 'igial potency, which had temaned in suspense unl the sword wae brought io its complete sate andthe Boly covenant entered between them.' R. Jose said: "These two lester were indeed fly reinsated through the Iter fh, hull the leters commenced to rum to ther proper ordet 'sth the bith of Seth, an on cvery generation ut nae! stood before Mount Sinai, when they were finally restore" RR Judah anid: "They had alfeady been restoted below and ineveryeneenia the world war eld tether by the leers though they sete oo yet ropes seed tr eit place Bune the Vora ves ts fseh the exerting was put right! By, Hlesrse pid Tete seo Enosh, sen ers sil in magic and divination, and in the art of conteling the Tesvenly foro. Adan iad tvought vith bits fore the Garden of Eden the Knowledge ofthe eaves of the tee" but he and fi wile and thie chikren did not practise it Wee Loosh come homever, be onthe advantage of thet Bett erie reel concen crit esherel byte, Pad eal ne Ertecosarien ied the and prac 'agie and divination, From them thee arts descended t0 the generation ofthe Flood and were practised for evil pur pose by all the raen ofthat ime, Reng upon these rs, they feted Nosh, saying that divine justice ould never be enecuted upon them, ince they knew a yay vo avert 'The practice bf these arts commenced with Enoch, and hence itis aid of "Tuten Was Te ARLE OF tir Tox CALLED "All the tghteoon men thet were sree them squshtt resin them, aveh ae Jered, 'Muthincahs and Enoch, bot whhout wicso, and the wold theca fall af tence wi rebeledagrne ther Mister rye hat is the Almighty that we should serve him?" ) This cor 0 fos as ie dound, Got they Krew allthe are we have mentioned and al the raling chief Ihins in charge ofthe world, andon thi knowledge they ied, the THK RONAR {36-566 until at length God disabused them by restoring the earth to ite pulmicve state [560] and covering ie with waver. Later, He again restored it and made it productive, since He looked 'upon it with mercy, a8 it ie weiten, "The Lord sat at the Flood'"—"the Lord" signifying the attribute of mercy. In the days of Enoch even childten were acquainted vith these 'mysterious arts' Said R. Yesa: IF a0, how could they be so 'Mind ae otto know that Gel intended to bring the Flood 'upon them and destroy them ?"R. Tsiac replied: "Thay did know, but they thoughe they. were safe because they were acquainted withthe angel in charge of fire and the angel in charge of water, and had means of preventing them from executing judgement on them. What they did not know was that God rules the world and that punishment proceeds from Hies. They only saw that the world was entrusted to those chieftains and that everything was done through them, and therefore they tok no heed of God and His works until the time came forthe earth 10 be destroyed and the Holy Spirit reste ed ret OI MIZE ese Decrees ee ak fearth and let the wicked be Ps, cv, 35) God gave them a respite all the time that the righteous mien Jered, Methuselat, and Enoch were alive; but when they departed From the world, God let punishment descend upon them and they perished, as it says, "and they were lowed ox from the earth" (Gen, ih, 23). And ENOCH WALKED Wirs GoD, AND HE WAE Nor, FOR Gop MAD TAKEN ata, R, Jose illustrated this verse from the passage: While she hing teas till with his vompany at table, my spikenord sent forth it jragrance (S, 8, 12), "Chis verse', he said, 'can be expounded as referring to the ways of God, When God sees that a azan who cleaves ty Him and swith whom He abides will ane diy degenerate, He takes him. from the world prematurely, culling, as it were, the odour while itis sill sweet; hence iti written, "while the King was with his company, my spikenel gave up its sent" "The King is God; the company isthe good man who cleaves to Hin and walks in His ways; the spikenard indicates the good 'deeds on account of which he is removed from the world 304] aeneen 'before his time: OF such acase did King Solonvon sa je a vanay which ix done upon the earth, that there be eight- 'cous mien tnto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked, ete." (Heel, nit, 14). Hove there are "righteous ren to whom it happeneth according te the work of the wicked" we have just explained, vie, that because their deeds are gov, God removes them from the world before their ime und before they become Viable w punishment, "The re of the verse "there be wicked men to whom it happeneth according 10 the work cf the righteous", means that God gives them a respite and is long-suffering with them. 'Thus the good die early in order that they may not degenerate, and the wicked live on in order that they may have a chance te repent, or in order thai a virtuous progeny may issue from them. See now, Enoch was virtuous, but God saw that be would degenerate, and therefore gathered him in in time, 2= fone gathers lilies" (S.S. vi, 3) beeause of their good scent. "And he was not, for God had taken him." 'This means that hie did nor live to' great age like his cuntemporaries, hecause God took him before his time." R. Bleaear said: Get removed Enoch from the earth, and took him up to the highest heavens, and there presented w him wonderful treasures, including forty-five mystical hey-combinations of graven lewers which are used by the highest ranks oF angel, as fas heen explained elaewhere." AND THE LORD SAW THAT THE WICkEDNESS OF MAN WAS VERY GREAT IN THE FARTH, AND THAT AVERY ONLY FETE CONTINCALLY. R, Judah quoted in this con= nection the verse: Far those art not @ God zho hath plearire in eichedness, ex shall vot sojourn with thee (Ps, ¥, 5). He said "One lesson that may be derived from this vere = thit if-a man cleaves to the evil imagination and follows afer i not only does he defile himself thereby, but he is Ted furthe nto deflement, as his already been stated. 'The men of the tline af the Flood committed all kind of sn but the measure 'of their guilt was not full until they wasted their blood (i seed) upon the ground. We know this from the fact that the

182THE 200081 {s66-s7a
'word ra (evil) is used here, (574) and also inthe vers, "and fer the son of Judah seas evil a') in the sight of the Loe" 7) Said R, Jose: Is not evil (ra the same as (esha')?" He said: 'No. A. man is called icked" (rasa) if he merely lifts his hand against his hour without doing him any harm, asitis written, "And. he aid to the wicked one (rasa'), why' wilt thow smite th neighbour 2", the future tense (vit smite) implying that he had not yet done anything to him. But ony he tell "evil (ra'} who coreupts his way and dfles himself andthe earth, and s0 fends force to the unelean sprit which is called ra* (Gsherice it ssid that "all chee thoughts were for evil" ra Such a one will never enter the heavenly palace nor gaze upon the Shekinah, for by this in the Shekinah is repelled from the world, We know this fom Jacob, who, when the 'Shekinah departed from him, conchided that there was some stain attaching to his offspring, on account of which the unclean spirit had acquired strength and the fight of the toon had been impaired: for this in defile the sanctuary If on this account the Shekinah departed from Jacob, how much more certain is it that it will depart from one who ups his way and defies hirwelf 0 giving power tothe clean spet Hence when a man defies himself be i alled ra Further, when 4 man defies himself, he isnot favoured 'wth visitation (im dreams) from the Holy' One, blessed be He, but onthe contrary he is subject tall times tothe visita 'of the spirit called ra', as it is written, "he who sleeps sated (ie. without evil passion) will ot be visited by evi" (Prov. ix, 23) (as much as to say that when he walks in the ight path he will ot be visited by Ra) Hence its said of the men of the Flood that their thoughts were only evil, and the Psalmist Said, "evil shall not sojourn with thee. 'Those who commit this bin are called ra" and not rash'. Hence, ton, ite write Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shad death Iwill noc fear evil (ra, for thou art with me"." of AND (F KERENTED THE LoRD THAT HE MAD MADE WiaRT. R. Jose illustrated from the verse: Woe unto them s7a) eRe 'that drat iniquity sith cords of vanity, and sin as it were with sw eurt rope (Is. 18), Hesaid: "Those wh "draw iniquity" fare the men who sin belore their Master every day, and in whose eyes the sins they commit are like gossamer threads, Which sre of no account and are not noticed hy God, And

40they go on until they make their guilt as strong as a eat
ope svhich cannot he broken, See now, wien the time eames for God. to. pase sentence on sinners, although they have provoked Him every day, Hes yet unwilling to destroy them, and though He sees theie deeds, He is yet indulgent towacle them because they are the work of His hands, and therefore He gives them: respite. When at last He does come t0 execute judgement upon them, He is, asit were, grieved. since they are the work of His hands, although it is writen, "Honour and majesty are before hirm, strength and joy ace in his place" (Ps. xev1, 6)" R. Jose said: 'Ohserve that tsa, "He was grieved to his hear'. 'The seat of the prief was the heart and no other plac, "heart" having here the same sense fs in the verse, "according to that which is in ming heart and jn my mind" (1 Sam, 11, 35). R. lease said: "The word "repented" here has the same sense as inthe sentence, "And the Lord repented of the evil which he had stid he would do unto his people" (Ex. avait, 14). R, Yesu says that the word niham, used of God, means "repent", as has been emarked, implying. thit God bethinks Himself that the sinnersare the work of His bands, and therefore pities them and is grieved because they sin hefore Him. R. Hikiah saps that it means "is consoled, implying that when God resolves to destroy the wicked, He comforts Himself for their loss Tike one who resigns himself w the loss of sume article, and 'once He has done so, justice takes its course and repentance no longer avails; for up to that point the decision may stil bbe reversed. No only 99, but judgement is executed wilh additional rigour, until the sinners are uterly destroyed. The text tells tas much; forthe words "the Laed was comforted" indicate that God resigned Himself, and the words fgrieved to his heart" that He allowed justice to take its course without merey," R. Hiya ssid: "The words "God as com- forted because he had made man" refer to the time when oH ay ity se ronan Isze-sxb rman was fist created on the exrth in the supernal image, and Gad rejoiced because the angels praised Hira saying, (578) 'Thou hast made him (man) litle fower than God, and cerownest him with gloryand honour" (Ps, vit, 6), But after= 'wards when man sinned, then God "was grieved", becase fs the angels could say that they had heen right in pro= Testing against his creation, saying: "What is man that thow art mindful of him and the son of man that thou. isitest him 2" (Ibid, )° R. Judah said: "God was grieved Fhsause the exscution of judgement is always diepleasing to Han, Thus we read that Jebostaphat when going out to war 'appointed those that should sing... . Give thanks unto the Lond, for his merey endureth for ever" (11 Chon. 3%, 31), and R. Tsaae has explained that the reason why the turds "for he is good" donot appear in this chant, as in other passages where its given, i because He was about to destroy the works of Hs hands before Iarael, Similarly, at the time when Taracl ened the Red Sea, when the angela came as usual 1 chant thelr praises before God on that night, God said ta them: "The works of my hands are drawning In the sea. and will you ehant praies 2"; hence sss "and this (angel) deew not nea to that one all the night (Bc wv, 20). 'Thus whenever destruction of the wicked takes piice, there is yref for them above," R. Abba sand: 'Gael had already been grieved when Adam sinned before Him and transgeeseed Tis coramandment. He said to him "Woe to thee that thow hast weakened the heavenly pene, for at this moment thou hast quenched a light"; and forthwith He hhaished him from the Garden of Elen, saying: "I pu thee in the garden to bring offerings, hut thou hast impaired the altar s0 that offerings cannot henceforth be brought 'on it; henceforth therefore it is thy doom te labour at the rund God lio decreed that he should die. "Taking pity' on im, sever, God allowed im when he died to he buried near the Garden of Eden. For Adan had made a eave near the 'Garden an had hidden himself there with his wife, He knew the Garden, because he siw a faint ray of light nd therefore he desired to he buried in enter it from there, +) wenesuers 185 Ind there he was buried, close to the gate of the Garden of Eden. So itis that when a man icabout to depart from life, Adam. the fest mun, appears to him and asks him why and in what state he leaves the world. He says: "Woe to thee that through thee I have to die." 'To which Adaw replies: 'My son, I transgressed one commandment and Wak pun- 'shed for so doing: see how many commandments of your Master, negative and positive, yin have transgressed" R. Hiya said: "Adam exists to this day, and rive a day he soe the patriarchs and confesses his sins, and shows them the place where once he abode in heavenly glory. He also goes and looks at all the pious and righteous among his descend= ants who have attained to eelestal glory in the Garden of Eden. All the patriarchs then praise God, saying: "How precious is thy lovingkindness, O God, and the children of 'men take refoge under the shadow of thy wings" (Ps. 4 8) R. Vesa aid: "Adam appears w every man at the moment ff his deparvare fens fet testify shat the man is dyine on aecoune uf hi own sine and not the sin of Adam, avcorling to the dictum, "there is si death without sin". 'Phere are 'only: theee exceptions, namely, Armeam, Levi, and Benjamin, who were deprived of life through the prompting of the primeval serpent; some add a, Jesse. 'These did not si and no ground could he asigned for their death save th prompting of the serpent, as we have sai, "AIL the generations comtemporary with Noab conymited their sins openly, in the sight of all. R. Simeon was one day walking through the gate of Tiberias when he saw some men drawing the bow tight over earthenvwate pots. He cred "What !do these miscreants dare to provoke their Masterthy 'openly ?" He seowled at them, and they were then into sin which 38 com: Tepes tbe Shekinah aud ca het abode from this world, 'The castemporarics of Noah committed their sins openly and defiantly, and so they drove the Shekinah away from the world, in punishment for whieh God removed them fram the worl, in acenrdance with the maxim, "Take away the dross fron the silcer, and there cometh forth a vessel far the finer; take away the wicked

186we: zona {syste
from before the king, and his thrne shall be exablinbed in ieauaness" (Prev. Ris 4 al 5)" Axp tHe Loup sa1p, My sviniT SMALL No? STRIVE R. Eleazar said: When God ereated the universe, Heordained. that thie world should be served [584] from the world above. Hence when mankind are viewousand wall in the sight pal, God puts in motion the spirit of life from above until it comes to the place where Jacob abides, From there the life descends further until the spirit reaches the world in which David is located; anil from there blessings descend on all here below, 'who through the streaming ofthe sprit from above are able to maintain their existence. Now, however, that men sinned, the streaming ceased, so that the spirit of life no longer descended on this world for the benefit ofits denizens. "For that he also is sh": je, in-arder that, through Feing shed tusee this World the spieit might not benefit the sespent, the lowext of the zrsdes, which might also have grasped hold of ity and the boly spirit ought not wy mix with the unclean spirit, The reference in "he alo" ix tothe primeval serpent, af in the verse, "the end ofall flesh comes before me" (Gen, Vi, 13), which R, Simeon explainsto mean the angel of death, Hie DAYS SUALL BEA NENDIED AND TWENTY TEARS!

4period of grace forthe continued union (of body and soul),
The Nevitim weer oy tue cari. R, Jose says, fle lowing a tradition, that these were Uzea and Avac, whom a already mentioned, God deprived of their superna sanctity How, it may be asked, ean they exist in this world? R, Hiya aniwers, that they were of the clas of spirits referred ta in the words "And birds which fly on the earth" (Gen, 1, 20), and these, as we have said, appear to men in the form of Jaman beings. If tis asked, how ean they transfiem them- selves ?"The answer is, a¢ hat heen sti that they do in fact transform themielves into all kinds of shapes, because when they come dover from heaven they become a¥ concrete as air and take human shape, 'These are Una and Azacl, who, rehelled in heaven, and were cast down by God, and became corporeal on the earth and remisined on it, not eng able to 80-586] areesuerit 187 divest themselves of their earthly form. Subsequently they 'went astry after women, and up to this day they exist and teach men the arts of magis. They begat children whom they called Anakin (giants), while the Nefilim themselves were called "sons of God, as has been elsewhere explained, AND THE Loxb aro, I WiLt pestROY yay Watowt MAVE CREATED FROM THE VacE OF ThE OnaLND. R, 'Jose quoted in this connection the verse, Fer my thoughts are hot your thoughts (Is. tv, 8). He said: 'When a man wants to 'take vengeance on another, he keeps his counsel and says 'nothing, for fear that, if he discloses his intention, the ather 'will be on his guard and escape him. Not #0 God, Before punishing the world, God proclaims His intention once, 'owice, and three times, because there i none who ean stay His hand and say to Him, "what doest Thus ?", and in vain 'would one attempt to guard against Him. So now God sid, will bt out man whom T have ereated from the face of the earth": He proclaimed His intention to them by the hand 'of Noah, and warned them several times, but they would not listen, Then at last He executed judgement on them and exterminated them. Anp HE cal comrouris, ete, Haw dis this way. When God cursed the earth, Adim said vo Him [384] "Sovereign of the Universe, how long shall the earth bye subject to this curse "" God replied: "Until a descendant Of yours shall be born circumcised, like yourself," So they waited until at last a child was boen eireumeised and marked 'with the holy sign. When his father aw this, and observed the Shekinah hovering over him, he called him Noah,! in anticipation of his future career. For up to his time men did 'hot know the proper way 1 sow or reap or plough, and they 'used to work the geound with their hands. Bur when Noah feame, he taught them the arts of husbandry, and devised for them the necessary implements, Hence at 8 written: "This, fone shall comfort us for our work and for the toil of our

188'ri z0nAR [385
hands." It was indeed Noah who liberated the earth from its arses for mp ty his Gee they wed to aan wheat and cea thorns and thistle; hence Nosh is called "a man of the ground' (Gen. 1, 20). R. Judah said: 1 is applied to him bee sacrifice which Febrought hefibented the earth We sce then, how he received his name in anticipation of the future.' K. fudih once expounded the text: Come, bel the teorks of the Lond! zeho hath made desolations tn the earth (Ps LS 9), "fhe sad, it had been the works of VHIHL, then ey Would have brought more life into the world, but being

1works of Elohim, they: made desolation in the work."
id R. Hiya to him: "As you have raised this point, I take leave to differ from you. In my opinion, whichever name is used the results beneficial; and tn this verse we should, a6 'our colleagues have pointed out, read not shammeth (desol tions), but shemoth (names)-" R. Isaac said: "You are both right. As R. Hivassays, ifthe world had been ereated through the name which connotes merey (SHUT), it would ave been indestructible; hut since i has been created through the mame which connotes justice (Elohim), "desoations have been placed in the earth' and rightly s0, since otherwise the world would nor be able to endure the sins of mankind Consider also this, When Noah as born, they gave him is coma cohatiny i the hope that i in 'work out its own fultilment for them. His relation to God, however, irexpressed by the sae letersi the reverse order, vir, HeN (fay), as itis written, "and Noab found favo in the eves of the Lord'? Said R, Jose: "The names of the righteous influence their destiny for good, and those of the Wicked for evil 'Thus the anagram of Noah's name is hem (favour), and we find i writen of him, "and Noah found favour in the eyes of the Lord"; whereas the anagram of the ame of Er the (wicked) son of Judah is ra" (el) and of ite writen, "and Er yas evil in the sight of the Lond (Gen, wxvnt, 7), When Noa gree up, and saw how kind were sinring before God, he withdrew himself from 58-500) wewesintray 189 their society and sought to serve his Master, s0 a8 not to be Jed astray by them. He wae eapecially diligent in the study of the book of Adam and the book of Enoch which we have mentioned, and from thesn he learnt the proper forms in which 10 worship God. Ths explains how its that he knew 'twas incumbent upon him to bring an offering it was these books which revealed to him the basis on which the existence 'of the world depends, to wit, the sacrifices, without whied neither the higher nor the lower wold ean endure." R. Simeon was once travelling in company sith his so0 R. Bleacar and R. Jove and R, Hiya, As they were going slong steadily, R. Hlearar said, "This i a favourable oppor- tunity for hearing some explanation of the Torah." R. Simeon thereupon commenced 3 diacourie on the text: li when the fool wealketh by the ty, hie understanding faileth him, ete. (sel. s, 3), He said: "If a man desires that his journey should be agreeable in the 5 he star, take counsel of God and offer the appropriate Iirayer, asenedingy to the Rabbinical dictum baced on. the Yerse, "When righteousness goeth before him, then he sal set hie fet on the way" (Ps 189%, 14) forthen the Shekinah i not parted from him. But of him who does nat believe in his Master icis written, {5uq] "Also wh 'vay, hisunderstanding (lt. heart) fa ly is here designated the Holy One, ilsscd be Ie, wh will 'not accompany: him on the way nor lend him His support, Because he is a man who does not believe in his Master and «did not seek His support before starting onthe journey. Lik wise on the journey itself he does not busy his thoughts with the Torah, and for this reason alo it ix suid that hi hear faiteth hint", because he does not walk with his Master and ix not found in His path. Further, "he sath to all, ii flly that is, when he does hear a word of true doctrine, he says it fly to pay attention to it; like the man who was asked about the sigh of the covenant imprinted on the flesh, and that it was no article of faith, whereupon R. Yeba the ee frowned on him and he became a heap of bones. We therefore, being-on this journey with the support of the AI 'mighty, are beholden to discuss somne point of Torah," He

10swe xomate4 oe
thereupon took the text: Teach me thy way, O Lord, Till wall in thy truth, unite my heart ta fear thy name (Bs, (Xxx 11), Hesaid?"Thisserse seems to confict with the Rabbinical ctu that a man's whole career isin the hands of heave save his choice of virte or vice. If this is so, how evuld David make such a request as this of God ? What David really asked, however, was only that God should teach him His ways, that i, open his eyes to know the right and preper way; then he woul himself be able to walk in the way of turning aside right ar left, As forthe expresion this has the same significance as in the verse the rock of my heart and my portion" (Ps. uxxttt, 26) All this Tentreat, be sid, in order to fear Thy name, to elewe to Thy fear and to keep tothe straight path. The words "to fear thy name" refer to David's allowed place in which the fear of God ix located. Consider this Every man who fears God is secure in bis faith, since he is whole-hearted ia the service of hit Master. But he who does not constantly fear his Master is not truly possessed of faith, nor is he accounted hy of a share in the furure world," R, Simeon further ied om the ext: ut the path ofthe righteous is as the 'ining light, hat shinesh more and more unto the perfect day (Prov, 18, 18). He said: "Happy are the righteous ia this world and the world to come, since God desires to glorify thesn, For theie path is as "the shining light", that isto 54, that radiant fight which God created at the beginning of things, and which He set aside for the righteous in the future 'workl, "This "shineth mone: and mare", for its brightness continually augments, Hut of the wicked itis written, "The way of the wicked is as darkness, they know not at what they stumble" (Ibid. 16). In truth they: do know; ut they walk in crooked path, and will not stop wo reflec that one day God will judge ther in the future world, and chastise thems with the punishments of Gebinnom, Then they will bewail nselves every day, saying, "Woe to us that we did not incline our ears and listen" But as for the righteous, God. will illumine them in the future aor and will give them their due reward ina place which eye has never beheld, a it i written, "Eye hath not seen beside thee, O God, what thou. so] ones a 'wilt do for him that waits for thee" (Is. uxty, 3). Also, "And they shall go forth and look upon the carcasies of the men 'hat have ceanapressed against me" (Is. xv, 24); and again, "And ye shall tread down the wicked, for they sll be ashes under the soles of your feet" (Mal, 1,21). Happy are the righteous in this world and in the world to come: of them is written, "the righteous shall for ever inherit the earth (Us, 1x, 21), and also, "verily the righteous shall praise thy fame, the upright fal levied is the Lord forever, Amen and Amen. sob Gen. M1, 9x1, 32 'Vues ARE THE GENERATIONS OF Noan. R. Hiya 'opened with the text: And thy peuple are all righteous, they sell inherit the land for ecer; the branch of my planting, the work my hands herein I ploy (Is. Ux, 21). He said; Happy tare the people of Tsrael, who occupy themselves with the Torah and are familiar with its paths, through folowing 'which they will merit the world to come, For all Isiaeites havea portion in the world to come, for the reason that they 'bwerve the covenant on which the world is established, and fof which itis said: "If my eovenant be not (observed) day and sight, it were as if { had not appointed the ordinances 'of heaven and earth (Je. oun, 25). Hence Israel, who have aceepted the covenant and olserve it, have a portion in the 'world co come. Furthermore, they are therefore called right- cous, We lear thi from Joseph, who, by reason of his having observed the covenant, is know as "Joseph the righteous"? 1K, Hleazar said: "The tem "hese are", as we have lear, alsiys implies that something spoken of beforein the text if now of no account, Now it 4 seitten above in the account of the Creation! that "A river went out from Eden to water the garden and frum thence jt was parted, ete" (Gen. 11, 10), 'That stream which floes perennially entered the Garden to witer it from the supernal waters, and brought ihueess to it, making it produce fruit and seed for the Uuniversl content; and so the stream gladdenedl the Garden, fas iis written, "And he reed on the seventh day" (hit 3). Thus the Words "these are the generation 'his brought forth products and no uther. 'Noah in the lower world, Noah was the stered covenant below corresponding to that above, and hence is called tof the earth", The inner meaning which we lear fear this in that Noah hal need of an ark with which ta beedme united ha the bento' (Cen 59) oan 198 in erder thereby to preserve the seed ofall species, ait ix Wwniten, "To preserve seed". 'This atk i the Arh of the Covenant, and Noah with the ark below corresponded to a similar union above. The word "covenant" is used in conacesion with Nol Aid 1 wil establish 'my covenant with thee", and befre the envenant ws esta lished with him he did oot enter the ark, as itis writen, "And Lill establish my covenant with thee and tho 'shat come into che ark." 'Thus his ark represented the Ark fof the Covenant, and Noah and the ak together were asyim= bbol of the supernal pattern. And since this covenarx above brought forth products, so Noah below also hore generations. Hence it says. These are the generations of Noah. oat Wasa mowTeoUs MAX. Assured, ater the 'upecnal pater. Ie writen, The Righteous ones the foundation of the world" (Prov. x, 23), and the earth estah- lished thereon, for this the pillar that uphos the world. So Noah was ealed Zaddit (righteous) below. All hissed in the words Noan wateen wrrit Gow, meaning that he never separated himself from Him, and acted 0 a5 rie copy of the supetnal eal, «Zak the fo of the world", an embodiment of the world's covenant of peace, And itis thus that oan FOUND FAVOURIN THE Eves oF Gob, PERFECT sie WAS 18 11S GESEKATIONS: thin efers to his descendants; he perfected then all and he 'vas more virwous than all of them. Aun, the words "He 'ax perfet™ indicate that he was born circumcised (cf, of Abriham, "Walk before meand be perfect, i circumcised" Gen. xv, 1), IN 1 GENERATIONS: abd not in those F his contemporaries, fo all vue generations issued from hima 'only. Consider this. From the day that the world was eet oad aa the frst man fe to be joined in union with the ask and to enter it, and until shey were joined the world had not yet reached a stable condition, But ance this hud ha pened we read "From these all the ant as ovenpre (Gen. x, 32) These words ae analogous to the expresion "And ffom thence the river parted" (Ibid. tt, to), of the an of Faden, which Undeate tha fom hia pin the

194PE 20HAR [39-600
was a parting: and diffusion of progeny into all quarters of the world, The two eases are analogous in every way. Hence it says: "These are the generations: assuredly "these", as

4nas he who was the foundation of the Work that brought
forth {604] generations to abide on the earth.' R. Abba then approached and kiseed him, saying: "The Hon in his might hha pierced through the rock and broken it asunder. Your 'exposition i certainly the right one, frum the n "Taase ane rie ansimarions ov Nott, R. Judah dia- 'enatsed on the tent: The good man i gracious and lendeth, he ndereth hiss accurdng to justice (Ps, exit 3) ° "The good run" refers to the Holy One, Blessed be He, since He is called "good" (as well ag "Man"), as it is writen, "The Lard is good to all" (Uhid, exuv, 9}, as well as "The Lord man of war" (Eye x, 3). Thus God gracious and sds to that quarter which has no possession ofits own, but drives ts sustenance ftom Him, "Fhis idea i further de= red in the sentence "He ordereth his afuirs according to justice", indicating tha that quarter is granted sustenance 'only aceording to justice asi is written, "Righteousness and juice are the foundation of thy throne' (Bs, Laxxtx, 15). Aegording 1» another explanation, the "good man" refers to the Righteous ane (Zauiik), as itis written, "Say ye of the rfbieous one that he is ood" (Is. tt, 10). R. Jose suid that it refers to Noah, ae iis writen, "Noah yas a righteous rman" R. Isaac said that it refers to the Sabbath, since the unin. praise of the Sabbath commences with the words "Inisa good thing to give thanks unto the Lord" (Ps. xe1},3)? R. Hiya said: Irs the Zaddik who produces offspring in the wield. Who constitute this offspring ? 'The souls of the Fiplteous, these being the fruit of the handiyork ofthe Holy Ge, blessed be He." R. Simeon said: When the Holy One, bested he He, puts on his crowns, be receives them from abuve and from below: above, from the region of absolute remoteness; below, he is erowned by the souls of the right- cous, The result is an increment of life-enemgy from above and below, embracing the place of the sanctuary on all sides, (0-60) oan 195 and enusing the cisterns to hecome full and the sea to be 'replenished, and providing suficieey for al. Its writen: "Drink water out of thine own citer, and running water 'out of thine on well" (Prov. x, 13). Why speak fst af 3 cistern (bor), which is naturally waterless, andl then of x ll (Geer), whichis fountain bubbling with water ? In trith both are one: this first refers toa certain region which i rset by poverty, and is thus called "ebtern, ab nat posening anything af is own save what i given toi that region is led. dale (poverty, also the fourth letter of the alphie bet), Intime, however, it Becomes ell, file om all ede ih bubbling water; it then spies the leer hi, being fled from on high [60] and bubbling op from below. Ie efile frum above i the way already explained, while ts bubliing fromm below is from the souls of the ightenus. (According to another interpectation, "drink water on of thine own cistern" refers to King Davi, who sid, "Ch that one would give me seater to dene of the cater of Bthlter'" (1 Samy eet 15): aod "runing waters" refers Abraham: Your of the midst" refers to Jacab, he representing the centre; "thine 'ovn well" signifies Ia, hoi called "ell of ving waters 'Thus in-this vera ia reference tothe sacred and honoured team ofthe thre patriarchs with King David associated with them) As the desire of the female towards the male oly awakes wher a certain spirit enters into her andthe ow scends to mect that of the male, the congregation of lrael 'only conceives a fosing forthe Hly One, blessed be He, when itp permeated with the spit of the nghteous. It then that is energy rises from below ta meet the energy fom ove x0 38 form a perfect union, There flows from this 4 tiversal content, and i is then tha the Holy One, blessed he Ie, walks famibarlyarnong the souls of the rightens See now, all the olspting of the Garden of Eadca didnot issue from the Righteous one unt he entered into that ack fof which we have spoken and became one with it~ that ark which contaited al in eabryo.Sinilely Noah the righteous rman did not beget offspring to ponulate the world unt he ered the akin which all (fe) was gathered and safely 'Stored and fom which wt aftenwaels emerged to multiply in

196THEZONART [6ob
the world and to have an abiding existence on earth. Had not these creatures heen through the ark they sould ot have endured in the world. And all ehis was planned after the supernal pattern. As they emerged feam the Ark there on high, so they emerged from the ark here below. And thas the world then obtained the character of permanency which ft had not possessed before. Hence the expression "And 'uring Waters out of the midst of thy well", Which is echoed by the verse "And Noah begat three sons." " Ann THe sANTHE Was commUPTED BEFORE Gop. Said R, Judah: 'What does the plirave "before God" signify ?" Ie Sigaifies tha they perpetrated ther crimes openly in the eyes fall' Said R. Jose: interpret iti a reverse sense, namely that at first "the earth was corrupted befoce God", that i, that they committed their sins secretly, so as to be known fonly to God but not to min, 'They finished, however, bi coming out into the open, a itis ritten, AND THE EARTH WAS FILLED WITH VIOLENCE, indicating that there ws not a place in the whole earth which did not witness ther sina,' R. Abba said: 'From the time that Adam transgressed the command of his Master, all the succeaing generations were called "sons of Adam" in a derogatory sense, as much as to say, "the sons of the man who transgressed his Masters 'Dut when Nosh appeared, mankind were called

10wit, "the generations of Noah', in an hoe=
'ourable sens, since he secured for them permanent existence in the world, and not "the genetations of Adam", since he had caused them to be driven from the werld and brought death to all! Said R. Jose to him; "But in a later passage (Gen, x1, 5) i838 written, "snd the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the children of Adam had built — 'Adam and not Noah." R. Abba replied "1 was because be 'was the first sinner. Better had it been for him that he should not have been created, s0 as not 0 be mentioned in this tis written: "A wie Son causeth his father Prov. X, 4), When a aon i good, people mention his father's name with praise, but if he is had, they mention bis father with reproach. So it was with Adam, He transgressed b0b-614] oan 197 the command of his Master, and therefore when later men arnse who rebelled against their Master, they nated by the Scripture "the sons of Adam', sons of the fist man who rebelled against his Master and transgresued His commands, Hence "these sre the generations of Noah'"—these and not the farmer ones; these who entered into and emerged from the arkand brought forth generations to people the world; but they are not the generations of 'Adam, who emerged from the Garden of Eden without bringing any progeny forth from thence. For indeed, if Adam had brought offspring with him out of the Garden of Eden, these would never have een destroyed, the light of the moon would never have deen darkened, and all would have lived for ever; and not eyen the anges would have 'equalled them in illumination and wisdom, as we read, "In age of God he created him! (Gen, 1 27). But since, [610] through his sn, he left the Garden by himself and bore offspring outside it, these did not endure in the woeld, and this ideal was, therefore, not reise.' Said R, Higkiah: "How could they have begotten chilkren there, sing that, had the

1not enticed him to sin, Adam would have
'dwelt for ever in the world by himself and would not have begotten children ?In the same way, if Ierael had not sinned by making the golden calf, they would not have borne children and no new generations would have come into the world.' BR. Abba replied: 'If Adam fad not sinned, he would tat have begotten children from the side of the eil inclination, but he would lave borne offspring from the side ofthe holy spirit, But now, since all the children of men are born from the side of the evil inclination, they have no permanence and are but short-lived, because there i in them an element of the "other side". But if Adam had not sinned and had riot been driven from the Garden af Eden, he would have begotten progeny from the side ofthe holy spcit—a progeny holy as the celestial angels, who would have endured to eternity, after the superna patter, Since, however, he sinned and begat children outside the Garden of Eden, these did not take root, even in this world, until Noah arose, who was a righteous man and entered theark, so that from the ark there

198THE couARt [oe
'went forth all the future generations of mankind, who spread thence into the four quarters of the earth" Axp Goo saw tHE FART AND BEHOLD IT WAS connuPr, It was corupt because "all flesh had corrupted inthe sense we have explained. R, Hiya adduced the following text: And Gad sow their teorks that they tarred 'from their ect way (Jooah ty 10). 'See nw! he saidy "when the sons of men are righteous and obserye the commands of the Torsb, the earth hecomes invigorated, and a fullness of joy pervades it, because then the Shekinsh rests upon the 'arth, and there is thus gladness above aswell as below. But 'when! mankind cosrupt their way and de not observe the 'commands of the Torah, and sin before their Master, they, as it were, thrust the Shekinah out of the world, and the 'arth is thus left in a corrupt state. For the Shekinah being thrust out, another spirit eames and hovers aver the world, Ihren with 7 corruption, Tei im this sense that we say that Israel "ives strength unto Elohim", that i, 00 the Shekinah, and thereby makes the world more secure. Should, however, rael—God forbid-—prove sinful, then, in the words of the Seripture, "God withdraws himaelf above the heavens" (Ps, Lvs, 6), Why ? Because "they have prepared net for my footsteps, my soul is bent dovin", through theit violence and causeless hatreds, "they have digged a pit before sme (Ibid, 7). The same thing happened ith the generation of the Flood, whose violent acts fed to mutual hatred and 'contention among them, Wenight think that the sme applies to the Land of Israel, Our teachers, however, have laid down that no other spirit rests upon the Land of farael, nor has it any guasdian angel save God alone, 'There was, however, fone occasion when another spirit did rest upon it i order to destroy the people. Thar was in the time of David, when, as itis writen, "David saw the angel of the Lord... having

1drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem"
(Chop, x, 16), and thus destruction came upon the lan." Ri. Eleazar sad: 'Even then it was the Holy One, blessed be He, Hiselfthe tern "angel" here having the same meaning, as inthe pastages "ihe angel who redecined me" (Gen, 6re-638) Natt 99 xivitt 16), and "the angel of God removed" (Ex. xv, 19). Re it for good or for ill, the Holy One, blessed be He, always huis sway over it personally. For good, so that it should not be delivered into the hands ofthe "higher chiefains", and, so that all the inhabitants ofthe world should be ashamed of their wicked deeds; for ill, s9 that the nations should not have the gratification of rulingover it. tis true, the Scripture says in one plce, "For she hath seen that the heathen are entered into her sanctuary" (Lam. 1,10), and have destroyed the House, from which it may be inferred tha if those alien chiefs had not had sway, the 'Temple would not have been Aestroyed. "This, however, must not he steessed; for the Beriplira eles ciys; 'Car thou fest donit) (Ubu tt); and "The Lord hath done what he hath devised" (Ibid. 11 17). R, Hiya continued: 'It is written here, in connection with Noah, "And God saw the earth and behold it was corrupt." Contrast with this the verse "And Cod saw their deeds. and they had repented of their evil ways" (Janah ut, 10). There the earth called to God, reaching out towaeds heaven, and heautifvig her face, as it wee, ike a woman trying pleave her husband; so the earth tried t0 please God by raising up for Him righteous children. But here, shen the generation of the Flood did not repent of their sins, itis writen, "And God saw the earth, and behold it wae corrupt, Fike a faithless wife who hides her face from before her hushand. Dut when mankind committed sin upon sin openly and flagrantly, then the earth hecame brazen-faced Fike an abandoned femaie without any sense of shame, as it ign onanother occasion, "Ard the earth was defied under its inhabitants" (Is, sx1v, 5), Hence this s the connection here: "God saw that the earth was corrupted", why [fd] flesh fad corrupted their way upon the earth TR, Elesvar went to see R. Jose, the son of R. Simeon, the som of Lakunin, hv father-in-taw, 'The latter, a soon as he 'ai him, spread out for him a carpet under a eanopy, on Which they sat down, He asked his son-indaw, 'Did you happen to heir from your Gither the interpeetation of the verses The Lard hath done that which he dretied. he hath performed his scord that he commanded in the dass nf wd (Lam. 1 preted it thus. They take the words bitzaimratho (" performed bis word") to mean fle cent hin purple cloak"— that cloak which "be commanded from days of old", that is, which He had appointed from the beginning of things. On the day the Temple was destroyed He rent that purple cloak which wat His glory and omamen.' Said R. Jose: 'What of the words "the Lord hath done that which he (hed already) devised"? Docs a king devise evil against his sons before they sin?" R. Eleavar replied: "Imagine a king who possessed a precious vase, and who, being constantly appre- Ihensive lest it should be broken, had it ever under his eyes, and never lit sight of it for a moment. One day his sen came and provoked him to anger, so that in his rage he took Up the vase and broke it in pieces. In this way the Lord "hath done that vhich he had already devised". From the day 'when the Temple was built, the Holy One, blessed he He, vused to contemplate it fondly, and every time He came 10 the sanctuary, He used to put on the purple cloak swe have Hrenttoned Bat tele Teel cpa one paved these A, the 'Temple was destroyed, and the mantle was rent. Only 'on that dccision did God moun the destruction of the \sicked, hut at any other time the Holy One, blessed be He, takes joy in nothing so much as i the destruction of the World's sinners, and of those who have provoked Him wer, as itis weitten, Wicked perish there isjoy" (Prov. x, 10) yout the generations, wher= ever justice is executed on sinners, there is jay and thanks Biving before the Holy One, blessed be He, But, you may say, is there nota dietum of the Rabbis that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not rejcice when he executes judgement fon sinners ?the truth fs that He does take joy in the de- struction of the wicked, but only when He has been Tong- suffering with them and they have sill remained unrepentare But if He exacts punishment from them before that ti hrefore the measure oftheir sins has been completed (ef the iniquity af the Amorite is not yet full", Gen. 9¥. 16), then there ino joy before Him, but, on the contrary, He is grieved at their destruction. Another dificulty here arises: 61b-62u) oan sor if their time has not come, why should punishinent be at all inflicted on them ? But, indeed, they themselves are to blame for this, For the Huly One, blessed be He, never inflicts ppanishment on the wicked before the full rime, except when they interfere with Israel in order to do them haem, It is 'then that He inflicts punishment upon them before the full time, and i is shen tha their destruction grieves Him. It was for this reaton that He drowned the Egyptians in the Red Sea, and destroyed the enemies of Taracl in the days of Jehoshaphat, and inflicted punishment on others: they were all destroyed before the full time on account of Iaael. But if the time of respite expires without their showing any sign of 'repentance, then their destrucion is a cause of jov and glory ertheless, it was not so with the destruction ple; for on that occasion, although Isae! had filled tp the cup of provocation, there was no joy before Him, and since that timethere has been no joy, neither aboxenor below." Fon ver spven paYs, asp I WILL CAUSE IF To HAIN RR. Judah said: 'What is the point of mentioning the exact period ? The answer is that forty is the appropriate number for the pjinishment of sinners, in accordance with the 'ordinance, "Forty stripes he may give him, he shall not exceed" (Deut xxv, 3)- Further, this number corresponds to the four quarters ut the worl, a0 that there were ten for each quarter. For since man was created fram the four quarters of the world, and the decree went fonh, "And F will blot out every living substance that I have made from the face of the earth", forty were required for this purpose R. Isaac studied regularly with R. Simeon. One day he asked him: 'With relerence to the passage "And the earth was corrupt", [baa] if men sinned, why should the earth be called corrupt" R. Simeon replied: "We find a parallel in the passage, "And the land was defiled, therefore I did visit. the iniquity thereof upon it (Lev. avin, 25), where the same problem arises. The explanation is that mankind con- stitute the essence of the earth, s0 that they infect the earth With their own corruption, This is made clea by the language 30: HE nOHAR 1 {ooa of the Scripture in the passage, "And God saw the earth, and behold it was corrupt, forall flesh had corrupted their 'say upon the earth." Far indeed all the other sins of man, Jnvolving but his own corruption, admit of repentance. But 'thesin of onanism is one by Which man corrupts both himself and the earth; and of such a one itis written, "The stain of thine iniquity remains before me" (Jer, 11,22), also "For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, evil shall not sojourn with thee" (Ps: v, 5), and it is further 'writen, "And Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight 'of the Lord, and the Lord slew him" (Gen. xxxvmt, 7), as explained elsewhere" K. Judah further asked, "Why did the Holy One, blessed he He, punish the world with water, and rot with fre or any other element ? R. Simeon replied here js a mystical reson, based on the fact that they "corrupted thie ways", As their sin consisted in not allow ing the upper and lower waters to meet in conjunction, as they ought, so were ther punished with water. Further, the wvatera af the Deluge were buening hot, and eaused their shine to peel off, this beings meet punishment for the sin they committed in wasting the warm fluid. Tt yasall measure for micanute, The words in the test, "AU the fountains of the sgreat deep were heoken open'" refer to the lower waters, and the words "And the windows of Heaven were opened" refer tothe upper waters, 'Thus were the two waters combined a

4fe punishment for their sins,
AR Higa and R. Judah, while once going on their travels came to some huge mountains, in the ravines of which they found human bones let over from the gereration of the Flood. They measured a bone and found to their amazement that t was three hundred paces long. They said: "This bears 'out what our colleagues have said, that the men of the time 'of the Flood did nut fear the vengeance of the Holy One, Inesed be He, as itis written, "They said uno God, Depart frm us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways" (Jeb x31, 14), and that one of the things they did as to stop, Lup with their feet the fountains of the deep, until the waters which bubbled up became too hot for them to endure, so 'that they finally succumbed and fel to the ground and died," 20-62) sonn 203 Ayp Nonit near THnes sons? Said R. Hiya wR, Judah: 'Let me tell you what T have heard regaring this 'ext. A man once entered the recesses of a cavern, and there icsued two or three children together, who differed fom one 'nother in their character and conduct: one was virtuous, 3 second vicious, and a third average, Similarly we find theee strands of sprit which ft about and are taken up ino three different worlds, 'The neshamah (aprital soul) emerges and enters between the gorges ofthe mountains, where itiseined bby the rua (intellectual sprit) It descends then below where 'the nefesk (vital sprit joins the ma, and all three form a tnicy- Jdah said: "Phe mefesk and the rush are inter tosined together, whereas the neshumah resides in a aan's 'haracter—at abode which cannot be discovered or fated. 'Should a man strive towards purity of lif, he is aed thereto by a holy neskamah, whereby he is purified and sanctified and attains the tide of "saint", Mut should he not strive for righteousness and purity of life, he is animated only by the {seo grader, mfevh and ruoh, and i devoid ofa holy neshomahs What i mare, he who commencss to defile himaclf i led further into defilement, and heavenly help is withdrawn from him, 'Phus each is led along the path which he chooses. (624) AND Gob sa1D To Noati, Tur exp oF ALL FLESH 1s Cone BEFORE stx. R, Judah illustrated this passage from the verse: Lord, make me know mine end, and the measere of imy days whet it is; let. me koyes hore short lced 1 am (Ps; SANIK, 5). He se: "David said before the Holy One, blesed be He, "There are wo 'ends', one on the right and ore an the left, these being the two paths by which men proceed towards the other world." The end on the right is referred to in the words "at the end of the right™ (Daniel x14, 13); and the end on the left in the words "He setteth an ead 10 darkness, and the ending of all things does he search out" (Job xxviny, 3). "End" here isthe angel of destruction, w i also the sexpent, and sho ix called "Bad of all flesh 'When the doom of destruction ix hanging over the world, "Phe paragraph in uta pie Ie should propery follow "begs three sone one

204'THe 20HAR 1 [62b-632
this searches aut" and explores evstzavenive though whi it ean bring accusations against the world $0 as 10 reduce 'men to despair. [632] The term "end ofthe right". as already said, is based on the phease"at the end of the right" in the ook of Daniel."The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Daniel 'Thou shalt go towards the end, and wikt res" (Dan. x11 13)- Daniel asked: "Rest inthis world of inthe next world 2" Rest in the next world", was the answer (ef. ""They will rest in their bel", Ip Lvl, 2), "and show shalt stand up to thy lot atthe end of days", Daniel asked, "Shall The among, the resurrected or not ?" God answered, "And thou wilt stard up." Dariel then said, "I know Full well eit the dead will rise up ie various closes, some righteous and som 'wicked, bat Ido not know among whom I shall be found, God answered, "Yo thy Int." Daniel then said, "As there is aright end and a left end, do not know whether I shall to the right end (Pets buyin) of the end of ays (Paetshayamin)." 'The axswer vas, "Ta the end of the right (gets hayamin)." Similarly, David said to the Holy 'One, blessed be He, 'make me to know my end", that i, hhe wished t0 know to which ond he vas allotted, and is mind was not at res till the good tdings reached him, "Sit at my right hand" (Ps, cx, 1). Sato Nosh also the Holy One, blesses id, "The end of all flesh is come before sme," The term "end, aa we have oven, alludes tthe angel Gf death, who reduces men to despair, and whe is indeed the end of al flesh. "Is come before me": from this we learn that though the ssicked ge half-way to meet him and draw hie to themselves, yet only after he receives authorisation does he take a man's soul: he cannot take it before, Hence 'we read "is come before me", to wit, to obtain permission to darken the faces of mankind, and so "I will destray them With the eagth" Hence the command given ty Noah, tance THEE AN Ai OF GOPHER WOOD, (0 save thyself therein and so that he should not have power over thee. There was also another reazon. We havea dictum that when death rages inavown orn the world at large, no man should stow bismeelf in the street, because the destroying angel ia then authorised to kill indiscriminately. Hence the Holy One, blened be Ie, 634) oan 205 to Noah, ile behoves thee to take heed to thyslf and. rot shov thyself before the destroyer, 30 that he may have 'no power over thee." You may perhaps say that there was 'not here any destreying angel, but only the onrush of the overwhelming waters. 'Thio i» mot ao; a0 doom ie ever executed on the world, whether of annihilation or any other chastisement, but the destroying angel isin the midst of the Visitation, So here there was indeed flaod, but this was 'only an embediment of the destroyer who sesumed ite name, Hence the command given to Noah to hide himeelf and not to-show himself abroad, But, you may objec further, the ark 'was exposed to full view inthe midst of the world though sohtsh hel Seateoyet ore rosmiag Tee sneer fe tae (hs 'ade no difference, since, as long as the face of a man is not seen by the destroyer, he has no power over him. We learn this from the precept given atthe time of the Exodus, "and pone of you shall go out of the door of hia house until the na" (Es. Xit, 22), the reason being that the destroyer was then abroad with power to destroy anyone who showed himself. For the same reason Noah withdrew himself and I under his charge into the ark, oo that the destroyer had rho power over him." R. Hiya and R. Jose in the course of their travels came to the mountains of Kurdistan, and observed there some sdecp. ravines which had been left from the Flood. Said R. Hiya: "These ravines are vestiges of the days of the Flood, and the Holy One, blessed be He, has left therm throughout the generations so that the sins of the wicked should not be blotted out from before Him. For just m8 God faluses the memory of those who do His will to endare on high and here below from generation to generation, so He frdains thatthe evil memory of the sins of the wicked who Fave not obeyed Hl shall not pass evray but rena for all generations, as it it written, "The stain of thine iriquity femains before me" (Jer. 1, 22). R. Jose discoursed on the text: Cry thow with a shrill cice, Oh daughter of Gallin ! Hearken, oh Lei! Oh thon por Amathoth 1 (1, », 30), He suid: 'Our comparions have already Interpreted this Ver in their own way, bu in teuth it refers

306THe 20a [630-636
to th Communi offal clle (Galli), ence to those steams that converge and flow into the Garden, fs itis writen, "Uy shoots area garden (pardes) of pome- fgranates" (Ibid. 13). The term laisha ix akin to the term Taish in "che Tin (lash) perisheth for lack of prey" (Job ty, 14). Why is the Community of Israel called "Tion ""? It might be im allasion 10 "the Tan which ix mighty among heats" (Prov. x88, 30), oF again to "the lion pesisheth for lack of prey". Bur indeed, the two aspects are combined in it, At one time itis laidh (he tion), filled with the lower- world energy emanating from the higher-world exergy'; and then agut itis reduced to the state of "a lion perishing for lack of prey", when the rivers dey up and do net come to replenish her, at which time she is rather called laisha ioness). [638] 'The name Jaisla is Further explained by the words which immediately fllow, aniah anathuch, which properly' mean "poorest of the poor", The word amathoth fs found with a similar meaning in the passage "of the priests thar were in Anathath" (Jes, 1,1), Another example ff the word used in this sense is in the verse "Anathoth, get thee unto thine own fclds" (1 Kings 1, 26). 'The meaning of this verse ie as follows. So long as King David was alive, Abiathar was wealthy and prosperous; but alter David <d. Solomon ordered him to get t0 feannot be hecause this was the name of the town he came from, since it is written, "and one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitab, named Abiathar, escaped" (1 Sam. sX1l, 20). which proves that he belonged to Nob, the ity of the ume, indeed, are of pinion that A q Wo names ofthe same place, the name Anathoth having been given to it un account of the poverty and dest= jon to which it had been reduced by Saul thro sughter of all its priestly inhabitants. 'This, by incorrect, as Avathoth was distinct from reason why Solomon called Abi The real ia to be foundinthewords"andl because thou wast afte (hithanitha) 63) Noa 207 {in all wherein my father was afflicted" (1 Kings 1, 26); thus the name "Anathoth" alludes to the poverty and afflict Which he underwent in the time of David" We iva said: "he world was in a state of poverty and misery from the time Adam fransuressed the command of the Almighty until Noah came and offered up a stcrifice, when its prosperity retumed.' R. Jose said: "The world as rot properly settled, nor waa the earth purged from the defilement of the serpent, until Israel stood before Mount Sinai, where they laid fat hold of the Tree of Life, and s> 'established the world firmly. Had not Israel hackslided and sinned before the Hloly One, blessed be He, they would never have did, since the scum ofthe serpent had been purged out tf them, But as soon as they sinned, the frst tablets of the Lavy were broken thoue tablets which spelt complete Free: ddom, freedom from the serpent who is the "end ofall flesh When the Levites rose up to slay the gully, the evil serpent went in front of them, but he had no power over Istach, because they were girt with a certain armour which protected them aginst his atacks. When, however, God said to Moses, "Therelore now put off thy ornaments from thee" (Ex xxxtth, 5); this was the signal that they were placed in the power ofthe serpent (thissindicated by theform vayithnasel, Which shows that they were stripped by the hand of another). 'The ornaments eeferred to ate those which they received at 'Mount Horeb at the time when the Torah was given to Teruel' R. Hiva said: 'Why did not Noah, being a righteous nan, cause death to vanish from the world ? 'Fhe reason i that the scum of the sezpent had not yet boen removed from the word, and further, that his generation did. not beliese in the Holy One, blesced be He, and all ofthem clung to the Mover aves oF the tre, and wre clothed with an spelean spirit, Furthermore, they persisted in theiesins and followed their evil inclination as before, and the holy "Torah, which is the Tree of Life, had not yet been brought down tothe earth Moreover, Noah himselfdrew death into the world, eheough his own sin, of which it is writen, "And he drank ofthe wine and was drunken, and be wis uncovered within his tent" (Gen. 13, 2), as elsewhere explained,

208we zomaR 1
As they were going along they them. Said R. Jose: "This man is a Jew." When he came up to them they asked him who he was. He said: "I am on a religious errand from the village of Ramin, where T live. As iis near the Feast of Tabernacles, we require a palm branch 'vith fs accessories. Lam therefore on my way w pluck them, 'They allshen walked on together. The Judean suid to them: io regard to these four plants which we take in order to propitiate the Almighty, have you heard why we require them, precisely on the Feast of Tabernacles? Said R. Jose to him: 'Qureollagues hayealready discussed this question. Butifyou have any explanation of your own, tll us." He replied: "The place where we live is indeed only a Bittle hamlet, but al ts inhabitants diligently study' the 'Torsh under the guidance of a learned teacher, R. Isaac the soa of Jose by name, of Mehozah, who every day gives us some fresh explanation of points in the Torah. Regarding chia festival, he explained that this i the fitting period for larsel to obtain dominion 'over the chiefs who have charge ofthe nations of the Gentile, and who are called by them "the proud waters" (Pa. Cxxiv, 6), In order to obtain dominion over them, we come with a symbolic representation of the Divine name by mieans of the four plants, which we also take for the purpose of placating the Almighty [64a] so as to procure for ourselves a plenitude of sacred waters with which to pour a libation on the altar. "He further told us that an the New Year there is in the world "a first airing". What is meant by "x ist 2 This the lower-world tribunal which bestirs itself to bring the world to judgement, as God then sits in judgement aver the world. This teibunsal contines in session until the Day of Atonement, when the face of the moon is bright, and the slanderous serpent leaves the world alone, being occupied with the he-goat which has ben offered to hire—an apppro= priate offering, as the goat is from the "impure region" Being occupied with that goat, he does not come near the sanctuary, This goat performs the same funetion a the goat offered tp on the New Moon, with which also the serpent 'occupies himself, allowing the moon te grow bright, In con= 'sequence, all Israel find favour in the eyes of the Almighty, 64a] Noam 309 and their gult is removed. He further discoursed to us on another mystery which itis not permitted to disclose save to those of excelling wisdom, saintliness, and piety." "What is it? asked R, Jose I cannot say unless I ict test you,' replied the Jew. 'They then proceeded) on their way, and after a time he said: 'When the moon approaches the sun, the Holy One, blesed be He, stir up the northern side, and grasps the moon lovingly and draws her towards itself, "Then the South avekens from the other side, andthe moon rises and joins the East. She thus draws sustenance from two sides, and noisclessly receives blessings: and thus itis that 'the moon is blessed and attains her fullness. Now as there is a symbolical anvibution of members to the (supernal) 'Adam, so there is tothe (supernal) Female, and s, too, there the symbolism of another Adam under the monn, and also of a Female, As the Left Arm above grasps the Female and lovingly draves her o im, so helow the serpent, which is the left arm of the unclean spirit, and joined with i Ke that rides fn it, draw near to the moon and draw he tghily a them,

0that she becomes defiled. Israc, therefore, herebelow offer
'up a goat, to which the serpent is drawn away. 'The moon then purges herself, ascends on high, and unites herself to the higher ephere tn receive blesing, and her lower face, 'which was darkened, becomes bright. So here on the Day fof Atonement, since the evil serpent is occupied with the he-goat, the moon breaks loose from him, and earnestly pleads the cause of Isach, and watches over them lke @ 'mother over her children, so that the Holy One, blessed be Le, blesses them from above and forgives ther sins. After~ 'wards, when Iseael celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles, the "eight side" is awakened on high, 30 that the moon may attach hersei (0 it and her face may become completely 'bright. She then shares out blessings to all thowe presiding chiefs ofthe lower work, so that they may be fully occupied With their own portions, and nor attempt to draw sustenance From the side from which Israel obtained their portion. The same thing happens here below. When al the other nations receive ther blessings, they are fully occupied with thie own portions, and so do not come and meddle with Isal or covet

210He zomaK | [40-646
the portion oftheir heritage, Israel fr this reason cause bless- ings to flow to all those presiding chiefs, in order that they may be absorbed with their own portions and not meddle with that of Iaael, And when the moon obtains her due fil of blessings, Israel come and draw sustenance from her all thy themselves: and of this itis written, Yon the eighth day there shall: be to you a solemn gathering" (atererh, Num. {NwIs, 43). This "gathering" indicates the gatheriag ofall the blessings from above, from which no other nation draws sustenance sive Taraels hence "there shall be to ow a gather- ing", 10 you, and not to the other nations and presiding shhiefs. And for this reason Toraelentreats Heaven to grant a plenitude of rain, 0 as to accord the nations theie share 'of essing, that they may' be fully occupied therewith, and 'not meddle i the festivity of Israel, who imbibe the superior 'tessings. Concerning this ay itis written, My beloxed is mine and Lam his" (S. S. 1, 16), and there is no third fone with ts. 'The following parable will make this clearer. [A king once invited his favourite to-a special feast on an 'appointed day, thus makin known to hi [648] that he stood high in the favour of the king. The king, however, 64s ap= prehensive lest in the midst of the feast all the governors of his provinces might putin an appearance, sit down to table, and partake of the repast intended for his beloved friend, 'What did he do? He first treated his governors and ministers to.a epastof meat and veyetabls, Afterwards he sat down his favourite to that special hangoet where all the fines. Aelicasies of the world were opread hefore then, and whit Sone with the king the favourite laid efore tim all his petitions and requests, which the hing granted. 'Thus the king 'enjoyed the company of his friend alone and undisturbed. So iv swith Israel in thet relation to the Holy One: blessed he He, and hence it is written, "the eighth day shall be to you a fathering" Said R. Hiyaand R. Jose: "The Holy One, blessed has led ou footsteps in the right path Happy those With these words ip himand embraced him. K Jose applied vo him And al thy children shall be taught of the Lord, (sus, 13) the verse and great shall be the peace of thy children 64} soa an 'When they came to 2 certain field, the stranger discoursed thus. 'Tn the account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorech itis writen, "And the Lord (¥HVH) caused to sain, ete" (Gen. xt, 24), whereas throughout the narrative 'of the Flood the term Elohim (God) isused exclusively. What is the reason for this diferenee ? We have been taught that the term V-YHVH (and the Lard), wherever writen indie 'ates the Deity presiding over his Court of Justice, whereas the term Elohim (God) is used when the Deity judges alone, 'Now the destruction of Sodom was limited to one loesity and didnot involve the whole world, hence it was decreed 'open court, as indicated hy the term W'-YHV'H (and the Lord) whereas the Flood averwhelmed the whole word, and therefore had to be decreed hy the Deity alone, in conceal- 'ment, ait were; hence the term Elohim. (As for Noah and his companions, they were only saved through being care- fully concealed from sight.) ln this light we explain the verse the Lord sat atthe Flood" (Ps, aainy to), that fs, He sat as it were all by Himself, on the analogy of the expression "He shall sit alone" (Lev. xt, 46). Now itis because Noah 'vas completely hidden fro sight that, after the world had sutlred its doom and the wrath of the Deity had been appeased, we read AD Gob (ELouty) REMEMBERED Noait, for Noah having been s0 long out of sight had to be specially brought to mind. From this passage we derive the mystical doctrine thatthe Holy One, Messed he He, is 'sometimes discoverable and sometimes undseoverable. He is discoverable when presiding over the lawer Court He eemains tundiscoverable in the spot whence all biesings flow. Hence those posiessions of a man which are hidden from sight are receptive ofthe heavenly bessng; whereas things which are egposed to view attract the notice of the accuser, and are sb- ject tothe influence of him whois named "Evil of eye". There is a deep mystery which connects al this withthe supernal patter." R. Jose, with tears in his eyes, sad: Happy isthe Reneration in which R. Simeon flourishes, for itis through his merit that we have been privileged to hear 30 sublime a alscourse a thi R, Jose said further, "Gal must have sent 'that maton this eoad vo impart tos these teas,' When they cy an PME JOHAR | 6gh-bs 'eame to R. Simeon and repeated tw him all they had heard, hhe said, "Of a truth be spoke well." A, Elescar, studying one day with his father, R. Simeon, asked him, 'Did the "End of all Res" derive nourishment from the sacrifices which Israel used to offer on the altar?" is father replied: 'All alike derived sustenance from them, bth above and below. Consider this. The priests the Levies, and the Israelites se called Adar (Man), through the unison Of the holy liturgies which proceed ftom them. Whenever sheep or # lamb, or any anitual, wae brought ae an affenng, ie was required of those who brought t, before it was offered ton the altar, wo recite over ital sins and evil intentions and thoughts, and to wake eonfesion of them, and it i thus that the ereature is designated a B'hemak (animal) throvghout, in that it carries these sins and evil thoughts, As in the eaie of the Azazel (scapegoat) offering itis written, "And he shall tconfess over him sll the iniquities of the childsen of Tera, etc." (Lev. xv, 21), 90 it i here: the one offering brought fon the altar bears 2 twofold burden, Consequently each part snes to ite fitting place, the one gua "man" and the other 'qua "east, as we read, "Man and beast thou dost sive, © Lord" (Ps. 000, 7). Baked meal-offering or other meal offerings are the means of invoking the Holy Spirit on the service of the pres, the song of the Levite, and the prayer 'of the Israelites: and from the smoke that rises up from the til and the Rour all the accusers replenish themselves, 65a] so that they are powerless to pursue the indictment sshich has heen delivered into their hands. Thus we see that things have heen so arranged in the mystery of faith that the versary should have his share in the holy things, and that the requisite portion should ascend even to the Limitless, R. Simeon said: 'When praying, 1 raise my hand on high, that when my mind is concentrated on the highest, there fs higher stll that which ean never be known oF grasped, the starting-point that is absolutely concealed, that produced what it produced while remaining unknowable, and tradiated what i irradiated wile remaining undisclosed, [eis the desire of the upward-striving thought 10 pursue ater this and to be illumined by i, In dhe process a certain fragment is detached, 65a) sont 213 and from that fragment, through the pursuit of the upward- striving thought, which reaches and yet does not reach it, there is a certain ilumination. The upward-strving thought 'is thus illumined by alight undisclosed and unknowable even tothar thought. That unknowable light of Thought impinges fn the light of the detached fragment which radiates fromthe unknowable and undisclosed, so that they are fused into one light, from which are formed nine Palaces (Health). 'These Palaces are neither lights nor spirits nor souls, neithec is there anyone who ean grasp them. The longing of the sine illuminations which are all centred in the Thought the later being indeed counted as one of them-—is to pursue these Palaces at the time when they are sttioned in the thought, thouigh they are not (even then) grasped or known, nor are they attained by the highest effort of the mind or the thought. All the mysteries of faith are contained in those Palaces, ind all chose lights which proceed from the mystic supreme 'Thought are called EN-SOF (Limitles). Up to this point the lights reach and yet do not reach: this is beyond the attsin- ment of mind and thought. When 'Thought illumines, though from what source %s not known, itis clothed and enveloped in Binah (understanding), and then further lights appear and '066 ts embraced with the other until ll ave inrriined. The Symbolism of the sacrifices consists, then, in this. When the Whole ascends one partis kne with the other and ts elements shine through one another, so that all ascend and the thought ' embraced in the limitless. 'The fight from which the 'upward-atriving thought is illumined is called En-Sof, and from i all radiation proceeds and on itis based the whote of sxistence. Happy the portion of the righteous in this world and in the world to come. In regard, then, to the "end of all Aesh', just as there is unison above with joy (atthe time of the sarifice), so al below there is joy and appeasement There is thus satisfaction both above and below, and the Mother of Israel watches lovingly overher children. Consider this, AC every New Moon the "End ofall fcsh" is given a portion over and above thar of the duly offering, 40 as 0 divert his attention from Fseael, who aze thus left entirely to themselves and in fll freedom to commune with their aig THE ZOMAR t (050-036 this extra portion comes from the he- boeing the rion of Esau, who tx abo called 49, as it is written, Behold Esau toy Ieother is a haiey (1a'i) man" (Gen, xxv, 12) Esau thus has his portion and Israel their portion "Hence itis written, "For the Lord hath chosen Jacob unio himself, and Israel for his own treasure" (Ps, exxXY, 4). Con= sider this point. The whuledeaire of this "End of all sh" is for flesh only, and the tendency of flesh is ever towards hin it is for this reason that he is called "End of all flesh", uch power, however, as he dacs obtain is oaly over the body and not aver the soul. 'The soul ascends to her place, and the body ie piven over to ite plbee, in the same say a Tn an fering the devotion of hin who offers ascends to one place, 'and the flesh to another. Hence the righteous man is, of a h, himself an offering of atonement, Bat he who is not righteous is disqualified as an offering, for the reason that be siulfers from a blemish, apd is therefore ike the defeetive snimmals of which it is writen, "they shall not be aecepted for you" (Lev. xxtt, 25). Hence itis that the righteous are an atonement and a sacrifice for the world. (658) Awp Noan was six expeen years ob, Why it oa' age specified here? The reason is that if he had not reached this age, he would not yet have been qualified to center the ark and become united with it, Hence, after the rieasure ofthe world's sins bad been completed, God respited them unt Noah, baving lived tothe age of six hundred year, reached his full development and attained the condition "g-man righteous and perfec "Then it was that he entered the ark, and reproduced the supernal pattern Axp I, weuotp T po wiiNe THe FLOOD OF WaTERS. Note the repetition of the term "behold 1 after "L", The 'explanation is as follows; Wherever the team un (1) is used 'of the Deity, it signifies, asit were, the relation of a body 10 a soul whieh inspices it, Foethis reason iis figuratively called the sign of the envenant™ (ain) my covenant with thee" (Ge am manifest and in course of becoming know 654) oan a throne to the Essence on high: "I who ewer vengeance from generation to generation. 'The word ta'ani (and 1) embodies male and female in conjunction; afterwards the male is noted separately, as being held in readiness to execute judgement, in the word behold 1" (kineni) 1 00 nats' THLE FLOOD OF WATERS. IF Rood", why also "waters" 2 "The truth is thatthe term "ood" here indicates the angel 'of death, oho was the chief agent of destruction, although he 'used the waters as his instrument. With reference to the ward 'ani, our teachers have explained that the expeession "I am {ani) the Lord" is equivalent ta "Tam faithful to recompense the righteous and to punish the wicked"; hence Senptuce always uses the term ani (1) in recording God's promise to the righteous to reward them and His threa to the wicked to punish them in the world to came. 'To pestRoY AL FLESH: to wit, through the world's destroying. angel, cad) explained; the same that is referred io inthe verse And he will not suffer the destroyer to come jnto yor houses to amite you" (Es. Sil 23). Hence "to desteoy all flesh" means, from the side of "the end ofall flesh". For ax soon as the tine of grace expired which God granted them Ail Noah should reach the age uf six hundred year, then the moment arrived (o "desteoy all flesh" 8, Simeon discoursed on the Lard, even the Lord in the land ofthe living; I stall behold man no more scith the inhabitants of the seorld (Is. xxxvitt, 11). "How obtuse,'he said, are the eons af men who do aot nose not pay heed to the words of the Torah, but think only of 'worldly matters, so thatthe sprit of wisdom is forgotten of them: For when a man departs from this word, and goes so ve an account to is Master of all his ations in this world 'hile body and soul were siljoined together, he sees many strange things on his way, ard at length meets Adam, the first man, sitting atthe gate of the Garden of Eco, ready o welcome with jay all those who have observed the com: 'mands of their Master, Rouni him are many righteous men, those who in this life have kept clear ofthe path to Gebinnom. And followed the path to the Garden of Fen. Ie is these who are hete called "inhabitants of the world'. The word used THE ZONAR I [636-664 here is not the usual foled, but Aadel, The reason is that holed akin to huldah (mole), acreature whose characteristic itis laboriously to heap up provision and leave 'knows not whom. The term fade on the other hand, js derived from 3 root sg a description of the righteous who avoid and keep far from the ways of Gehinnom and cling to those leading to the Garden of Eden, According to another interpretation, the expression "inhabitants of hodel" designates penitents who have resolutely kept clear of their former sins, and since 'Adam was the first penitent, he was given charge of all positents, those wha are called "sons of hodel" (avoidance), and he therefore sits at the gate of the Garden of Eden, 'welcoming with joy and yladness the righteous who take the path to the Garden of Eden. It says further in the same pasage: "I will not see God", Naturally one cannot see 'God, but the expressions explained by the coreluding words, fn the land of the living". When souls aseend to the pice of the "bundle of fe" (e. 1 Sam. xX¥, 29), they feast their eyes on the beams of the "refulgent mircor" which radiates [66a] from the most sublime region, And were the 'soul not clothed in the resplendeney of ancther (ie. non fiesly) garment, it would not be able to approach that ciulgence. 'The esoteric doctrine is that in the same way a8 the soul has to be clothed in a bodily garment in order to 'atin this world, wo Fe she given an ethereal mipstnal gor iment wherewith to exit in the other world, and 10. be cmbled to pave at the effulgence of life radiating from that "and of the living". Hence it that Moses was not able to draw near to the pce of God and to fx his gaze on what was to be seen there until he wus first enveloped in. another garment, as we read: "And Moses entered into the mist of the cloud, and went up into the mount" (Ex. xxv, 1), that is, he enveloped hirnelf in the cloud, asin a garment, and then he "drew near into the thick darkness where God wav" (Ex. x8. 18), and "was in the mount forty days and fony nights" (Uhid. xxy, 18), and was able to-see what he did see. In simile fashion the souls of the righteous in the other word clothe themselves in garments belonging to that 6.) Noa 27 'world, 40 that they ean endure to gaze on the light which ix diffused in that "land of the living". 'This is what Hezskiah 'meant wher he said "God, God in the land of the living (Is, cxxvin, 11), He was afraid that he would be found un worthy to gaze on that light because he had allowed the life- nf stream 19 cease with him, through not beget ren. In his further words, "I shall behold Adam no more" (Ibid), there is a reference to Adams the first man, as has already been explained, He spoke in this train because the prophet had told him, "for thou shale die and not. live" (loud. 1}, "sie, ea iyi eis work an "hat live" He the other world, Far he who does not heget children in this 'world is denied all the blissfulness we have mentioned, and hie is not privileged to contemplate the glorious eifulgence, If this was the case with Hezekiah, who came of pious ancestors, and was himself worthy, righteous and pious, how much more must it be the case with one who bias no suel, ancestal merit to support him, and has himealf singed before his Master ? That garment of which we have spoken is the 'same which the companions call "the cohe of the sages", with which they ace lathed in the other world. Happy the portion of the righteous, for whom the Holy One, blested be He, has treatured up blessings and delighs in the other world! OF them it is written, "Bye hath not seen besides thee, O God, what thou shal do for him that watethfor thee" (Is, Ut, 3)" Asp I, penoun L, po BRiNe THe rLOOD OF WaTeRS Urow THe EARTH, R, Judah discoursed on the text: These fare the water: of strife, wherein the children of Israel strove with the Lard and he was sanctified in then (Sum. X%, 13). He said "As this was not the only occasion when the children of Israel atrove with the Lord, why is the epithet of "strife" attached to these waters in particular? 'The reason is that these warers 'gave added sirength and confidence to the aceusers. For there fre sweet yatere and hitter waters, clear waters and turbid Waters, waters of peace and waters af tif. These were waters 'of strife, because through then Isael drew upon themselves the unstelcome visitor through whom they became deed; this is indiested in the word eayigadesh.! Said R. Mskish a8 'THE ZOHAN ota: 008 'fthis isso, we should have the plural eayigadeshu (and they were defiled), he truth i that the singula refers not to the Tsrilites but to the moon, and the word tayigadesh is not used here in & good sense." R- Jose said: 'Woe to the wicked 'who will not repent of their ss before the Almighty while they are still in this world. For when a-man repents of his sins and feels remorse for them, the Holy: One, blesied be He, forgives them But those who cling to theie sins and refre to repent of them will inthe end deseend to Gebinnom and never come up again. Thus because the generation of oak were stubborn of heart and flaunted their sins openly and defiantly, the Holy One, blessed be He, punished them as here desribed.' Said R. Issue: 'When a man sins in secret, if he repents, the Holy One, blessed be He, being mereiful, releres and forgives him; bur if not, He then publishes his sins before the world, We learn this from the treatment of the faithless wife (Sotah).! Similarly here, the wicked were exterminated in sight of all.'The manner of their death was as follows: sealding ater spurted up from the abyss, and as {t reached them it fist burnt the skin from the flesh, and then the flesh from the bones; the bones then eame asunder, fo two remain er, and thus they were blotted out Re | The words "they we 'ut from the earth" js analogous to the expression * be Bltted out of the book ofthe living" (Ps. Lxtx, 29), thus wicating that they will not participate in the resurrection and will not rise in the Day of Judgement.' [668] NOT WILL EeTAMLISH MY COVENANT WITH THEE,

1Elearar said': "From this we leatn that there is an estab-
lishment of the covenant on high co-ordinate with the cestalishment of the covenant here below. 'This we deduce from the expression "with thee",' R. Eleazar further said: 'We alo learn from here that when there are righteots fn this world the universe is more firmly: estal lished both, ahove and below." R, Simeoo said: "A reeondite pyineiple is heze enshrined, Ax the deste of the male towarls the female i intensified by jealousy, so is the desie of the Most 66h) 8 no Ligh towards the Shekinah."Thus, when there ica righteous 'man in the World, the Shekinah attaches herself to hirn and never leaves him. 'This creates, as It were, jealousy on high, 'which provokes love towards her in the same way asthe male incited to love the female through jealousy; thi i in the expression "And I ill establish my covenant it thee", as much as to say: "Desire hath awakened through you" The same idea is contained in the words "but my otenant will I establish with Isaac" (Gen, xvi, 21), AND. Titi estantisn wy CoveNaNT WITH THEEZIn other svords: "Thou shale be the embodiment of my covenant in the world." and then: AND THOU sHALT COME ISTO crite amie. For hed not Nosh been vightssin, be hhave entered the ark, as only the Righteous one (Zaddi) sean become united with the ark, ax has been eaplained.' Ri. Bleavar said: 'As long asmen remain atached to that ark and do not Toosen their held of it, there és no nation ot language in the world that ean harm them, Noah 100 kept fast hold of the covenant and observed it, and therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, preserved hirn; but all his cont pores who did not keep the covenant were destroyed." As has already heen stated, the manner of their destruction cconissponded exactly to the character of their crimes. R, Judah studied regularly with R. Simeon, On ane 'occasion they discussed the verse: And he repaired (lit healed) the altar of the Lard that was thrown doten ( Kings "xvi, 30). 'What', they asked, is meant by the term tuyrappe (and he healed) ? "The answer is this. In the days of Elijah, all lac forsook the Holy One, blessed be He, and neglected the holy covenant. When Elijsh the children of Israel had entirely neglected the eoverant, he set himself to rectify the evil and to restore the covenant t0 its former vogue. Hence the expression, "And he healed the alta of the Lord that was thrown down", to wit, the estab- Fished covenant that was utterly neglected. It is further 'writen: "And Ehjah took twelve stones according to the umber of the tribes of the sone of Jacob" (this being the appropriate means of repairing the alae of the Lord), "unto 'sham the word of the Lord came saying, Tsract shall be ie aware th an THE ZouAR 1 [oti-b7a thy name" (Chit, 31), implying that Israel was to be the name by which he could ascend on high and restore the tcayenant in ite place. Ic i for this reason that Eljah said expressly, "for the chikdren of Jivael have forsaken thy 'covenant (Ibid. X08, 10), and, a9 4 consequence, "brown down thine altars" (Zhi), 'Take note that as long as lsrael 'observe the holy covenint, they thereby effect the stabilisa- in of the world above and below, asi ia written: "If my eovenant he not (observed) day and night, the ordinances 'of heaven and earth were as if I had not appointed them." (er. xt, 25). 'The repairing, then, of che shattered altar 'wan truly a healing, ast had for its purpose the eintegration 'of the spot to which faith attaches itself. Similarly with Phineas at the time when he was filled sith zeal to punish the crime of Zim: he also re-established the covenant in its place, and ence God said t0 him, "Sicha, I give unto him my" covenant of peace" (Nurm, xxv, 12). 'This does rot mean that the covenant was on account of Phineas, or that he was in conflict with the covenant, but that now it was firmly attached to is place, "This is shown by the com= bination of the words "covenant" and "peace", a8 if to sy iehold T give to him the peaceful confirmation of the 'covenant in its place", from which it had been torn by the transgressors. Hence, ton, "and it shall be uno him and to his ced aftr him the eoverant of an everlasting priesthood, be= 'eause he vas jealous for his God" (Ibid. 13). R, Simeon said: "There is no sin inthe workd which #0 much provokes theangerof the Almighty as the sin of neglecting the covenant, as we read, a sword thit shall execute the vengeance of the covenant" (Lev. 24, 25). The proof is that in the gen- tration of the Flood the measure of sin was not filled up until mankind. became (sexually) perverted and destroyed their seed. And although they defrauded each other, a i = Wntten, [O74] "And the earth was filled with violence" an 'again "for the earth ie filled with violence through them' yet it was because "the earth was corrupt before God that the doom was finally. pronounced, "behold 1 will desteoy (it, corrupt) them. 'Phus they suffered measure for measure ba oan 21 they were doomed to corruption for having corrupted and perverted ther ways, According to another view, i ws the sin of violence which finally completed the measure of their guilt, as they used t0 overreach one another and were thus Wieked both towards Heaven and towards thet fellow men. For many are the guardians on high charged to lend ear to those who ery out for justice against their oppressors. Hence the words FOW THE EARTH 16 FILLED WITH YLOLPNCE 'THROUGH THEM: are immediately followed by the words Axp tie Loan satp uxto Noan, Come THOU AND ALL THY HOUSE, Said R. Simeon: "How is it that theoygh- 'ou this passage God is always designated Elohim save inthis place, where we find the name Jehovah, significant of the autribute of mercy? There is heve an inner meaning which is at the same time a lesson, 'The lesson is that 2 woman should not admica guest into her Fouse without the consent Of her husband. So here, when Noah wished to eater the ark, and to become united with her, it wae nor becorsing for her to-admit him before her Master gave his permision to enter and said: "Come thou and all thy house into the ark." Heoce the name Jehovah is used here, to designate 'what we call the husband of the ark. Similarly we learn that neither may the guest enter the house save with the consent of the busband, who is themaster of the house, and hence it was ony later that Noan wirnT 1x. Note again the Words: Foe THEE T HAVE SHEN AIGHTEOUS BEFOME ME

18THES GENERATION, We learn from this the lesson that
'a man should not admit into his house any guest whore he 'suspects of wrong-doing, but only such a one as is above al 'suspicion in his eyes. It was in accordance with this prin- ciple that Ged said unto Noah, "Come thou and all thy house into the ark, for thee have T seen righteous before 'me in this generation." We further learn that special per- 'mission must be abtsined for the guest's household, as itis written: "Come thou and thy house" R, Judah discoursed on the verse: Of Dacid « pralm, The 'arth ts the Lavd's and the fulness thereof (Ps. x81¥, 1). He a THE ZOHAN [ora-t6 sid? "We hate been taught that the heading "OF David a Psalm' fn the Book of Ps compose of himself and thereby induced he Holy Spirit to rest on him, whereas the heading "A pralmof Dayid" implies the opposite, vi, thar the Holy Spirit rested on him fis, and under its inspiration he wax moved to song. "he earth" here refersto che holy and of Iara, and by the winds "aa the fulness rbereat" ismeant the Shekinah, which is associated with fulness in the verses "for the glory of the Lord filed the house of the Lord" (1 Kings Vet, 2, and again, "and the iclory of the Lord filled the tabernacle" (Ex. x, 35). This last paseage means literally "the glory uf the Lord was fall" (malé), i. full co overflowing, full From all sides both from the sun and the moon like a storehouse filed with all kinds ff yood things. Similar is the sense of the words "and the fulness thereof" here. 'The words "the warld and they that dwell therein' refer to the rest of the world, Aceardting to Another view the words "the earth and the fulness thereof" refer to the supernal Ioly Land in which isthe delight of the Holy One, blessed he He, and the words "the fulness thereof" refer to the souls of the righteous who fll this earth, What is meant by "the rghtcous filling the earth" is thia, When the righteous multiply in the world, then the 'earth is truly productive and filed with goodness. But when the wicked multiply in the world, then it may be said that "the waters cease from the sa, and the river is deained dy" (Job xiv, 11), the "sea being the Holy Land, which ix watered by the supernal steam, R, Judah further said: 'When the sinners were destroyed the time of Noah, God was very ansious for the preserra- tion of the world, but could see no one who might save it from His wrath; for the whole efforts of Noah were required to save himself and to repeople the worl, So it ¥s written FOR THRE HAVE T SERN RIGHTIOUS REORE MH 1X THis GENERATION, Le, he was righteous only. by comparison 'sith his contemporaries,' K. Jase said: [638] "The words "in this generation" ape a tribute to Noah, as much as to aay, surrounded as fe was by thie wicked Reneration, he pet emained righteous and perfect # man as if he had lived 678) sown 235 in the generation of Moses: But he could not sve the world, for the reason that there were not to be found ten righteous men in it (similarly we read of Sodom, "peradventure ten shall be found there", Gen. xvith, 32), but oaly Nowh and his three sons with their womenfolk." R. Eleazae asked R Simeon, hie father: 'We have heen taught that when the 'world becomes full of sin and is doomed to destruction, woe Ss then to the righteous man whois found init, for he is first sade answerable for its sins. How, then, was Noab able to feseape the general doom 2 Hisfathee replied: Te has already 'been said that the Holy One, blssed be He, desired to people the world anew through him when he should issue from the ark, And further, the general doom could not reach him because he wassecurely stored away in the ark and concealed from sight, thus fulfilling the verse, "Seek righteousness, seek thumiy, it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger" (Zeph it 3) lecause Noah soughe tigheoueneas, he 'was permitted to'enter the ark, and thus "as hid in the day of the Lord's anger", and was placed beyond the reach of the Adversary." The word cayimahi (and they were blotted 'out contains a hint to the "saints of the Most High" of the secret powur of the sacred letters of the alphabet, and their destructive potency when used in the reverse order. R. Isascexpounded herethe verse: He who cansedhisglorious 'arin to go at the right hand of Moses, that divided the rater: Before him to make himself an ecerasting name (Is, Lxtt, 12), In these words', he said, 'isa reference to the merit of Abraham, which was the "right hand" and the "glory" of Moses and dived the water before him, in order that he 'might "make himself an everlasting name", Obs difference between Moses and other men, When ( to Moses, "now therefore let me alone . and 1 will make ff thee a wreat n (Ex: 88x, 10), Moses said im= mediately, "Shall | abandon Israel for my own advantage ? "The world will say that I killd Israel and did 10 them as Neah did to his generation. Fae when God bade Noah sav himself and his honsehold in the ark from the universal destruction at the time ofthe Flood, he did net intereede on es Donel 1 a4 Tue zonan (oa behalf of is generation, fut lt thea perish Te f for this renwon tht the yaters of the Flood are named after him, ax ie te written for ie ise the watery of Nh nto me (is, 9). Moves this ssid "Everyone will think that Tiled them beeavse the Lord promised to make me a great nation Is therfore beter that I should die and that Irae should notbe destyed"Invmediatly, therefore, be besought mercy for his peep, and merey wis indeed vourheafed to them,' . Teac sad further: How came Moses to egia hit Jmtercession withthe words, "Why, O Lord, dath thy wrath tras hot again thy people 2" (EX. xext, 3) How could 'Moses ask such «question, knowing x he did that they had 'worshiped a strange god, as we read "they have made them

2molten calf and have worshipped it, ee." (bid 8)? In
teuth we are taught here that when endeavouring to appeate 'imate angry with Be elpivour for an offence titted agunst him, one should not magnify the offence, but, fn the contrary, sould seek to minnie its wheres mbe- {ently when speaking tothe offending peron himeel, one Should emphasise the enormity of the offence, ax Moses did svben he atid to Tere, "Ye have sinned great sin (Tid 30). Moves went so fain his intercon ae to offer his own Iie, as is ite, "and if not, blo me, T pray thee, out of thy book which vow hast written" (06d. 32), with the fesul thatthe Holy One, blessed be He, fongave them, a5 it js writen, Yand the Lord repented of the evil" (id 14) But Noah did-not do so, but was intent on saving hinself nly, leaving the world to its fate, This, whenever the world te caled to sit acon 'Alas that ehere i no one tbe found ike Moves, ait is veriten 'and his people remember -. the days of tnere fx he tha Bright us up out of the sa, et. 2ait, 11). Moses felled "he that rought them up out Of the sea" because their deliverance at that ime was due te Nie prayer, af wel ead "ahd the Lard Wherefore erest thou unto me ?" (Ex. at, swords which follow, "where fs he that put is hly pi in the midat of them cefer to Moses who planted [68] the Shea in the midst of ler. So, to, the words, "Who led 684) oa 235 them through the deeps", when the waters were cleft, and they went through the deeps on dry land, The whole achieve- -ment is aseribed to Moses because he risked his ie for Israel" Said R, Judah; 'Although Noah was a righteous. man, he 'was not so pious that God should think fit to saye the world for his sake. Observe that Mosea pleaded not his own merit, Dut that of the ancient patriarchs. Noah, however, aid not possess this resource, Nevertheless, after God had ssid to him "and Twill establish my covenant with thee, he should have entceated mercy for his fellow met, and should then have offered up the sacrifice which he brought later, in 'onder to appease God's anger against the world" Said B. Judah; "What could he do ? He was'in fear for his own life, Test he should perish along with the wicked, «whose iniquities 'and provocations he had observed for so long' R, Isaac sa "When the wicked spread, itis the righteous man in their 'midst eho fist sulfers for their sins, as iva written, "and ry ye should commence" (Ez. 1%, 6), shere the word mimigdasht (my sanctuary) may be read—so tra- ition tells us—as mingudashai (any saintly ones). Hows is it then, that God saved Noah from the midst of the sinners? Ic was in order to people the wold anew through him, as hhe was a righteous man, mect for this purpose; and fart he daily warned the people, who, however, disegarded his warning, so that to him may be applied the words, "yet if thou warn the wicked ... but thou hast delivered thy so (Ezek, 1, 19), From this we learn that he who warns the wicked, even if his warning is disregarded. saves himself and isnot involved in the punishment which befalls them, If it is asked, how long ehwuld one go.on warning, the answer i, till he is peremptorily forbidden. 'This is the point fixed by the colleagues." 'When R, Jose was studying regularly with R. Si 'ane day said to him: What was the motive of the Almighty iextirpating all the animate of the Held and the birds ofthe air along with the wicked among men ? If men sinned, wha 'wrong had the aninials and birds and other creatures com mitted?" R, Simeon answered: "The reason ie giver nthe swords, "For all flesh had corrupted their way upon the eon, he a6 THE ZONA 1 [680-488 earth." 'This indicates that the whole of the animal world had ecome corrupted and had confounded their species. (Observe thi it was the wicked among markind who brought about the annatural intercourse in the animal world, and 'who songh thereby to undo the work of eration: they made the rest of ereation perver: their ways in imitation of them selves, Said God to them: "You seek to undo the work of ny hand; your wich ehall be Fully granted, f thing that { have made will I blot out from the f 'arth, 1 ill zeduce the world to water, ts prim and then Iwill form other ereatures mote worthy to en Asp Nout Went 1s asp iy sone AND MIS Wie Aso iiss x085" Wiens worn asta, By Hye quoned ln this connection the verse: Cau any: hide himself secret plares that F shall mo see hin ? sith the Lord (Jes. sxith, 24). "Howe Hind and obtuse are the vone of men who regard not and know not the honour oftheir Master, of whosn ti written, "Do. not 1 fill heaven and earth ?" (bid). And. yet: men imagine thit they can hide their sins, saying, "Who secth tus? And sho knoweth ts2" (Is, wXI8, 13). Where, indeed, 'can they hide themselves There was once a king who built '4 palace ard constructed underneath ie secret subterranean chambers, One day the courtiers rose in revolt against the king. who thereupon laid siege to the palace with his-arny 'The rebels sought safety by hiding in the subterranean passages and chambers, Said the kings "It is T who cone structed these secret places and do you think to escape from me by hiding there ?" So God says to the wicked, "Can anyone hide himself in seeret places that I shall not see him 2" much acto eas, "I have created all chasms and caverna, Thave made darkness and ight; how, ther, can you think to hide yourselves from Me ?" Observe this. When a man sins before his Master and usesall devices to conceal himself, the Holy One, blessed be He, chasties im openly, Should, how- ever, the man purify himself of his sits, Ged wil then shield hhim so that he shall not be visible in the day of the Berce wrath of the Lord. For assuredly wan should take care [O88] not 1 make himself visible 10 the destroving angel 8a) oan a7 'when he swoops down upon the world, and aot to attract ic notice, since he ix authorised to destroy wheisevee comes 'sithin his view. 'This accords with a remark of R. Simeon, that 9 man possessed of an evil eye carries with him the eye of the destroying angel; hence he i ealled "destroyer ofthe world", and perple should be on their guard against him and ot come near him, so that they should not be injured yy him; it te actually forbidden to come near bios iy the open. If, therefore, itis necesstry 10 beware of a man with an evil eve, how much mare should one beware of the angel of death ? An example af aman with an evil eye was Halaar, of whom it is wfitten, "thus saith the man whose eve is elosed"t (Num. xxty, 3); this means that he was possessed of an evil eye, and on whatsoever he fined his gaze he drew thereon the destroying spirit. Knowing this, he sought to fis his gaze on Feral in order that he might destroy everything lapon which his look should fall. Thus itis writen, "And Balaam lifted up his eye" (bid. 2), indicating that he raised tne eye and lovered the other, so that his evil eve should fall upon Israel, Israel, however, were immune; for it is vsrtten, "and he saw Israel dwelling tribe by tribe" (Jbid.), that i, he saw the Shekinah hovering aver them and kepe in position by the twelve tribes Heneath, and his eye had no more power over them, "How," he said, "ean 1 prevail Asmat them, sceing that the holy spirit from on high cesta tn them and shields them with ber wings ?" Ths is indicated in the words, "He couched, he lay down asa linn, who shall rouse him wp?" (Ibi 9) that i, who shall rae Hien from 'over them so that they shall be exposed to the influence of the evil eye ? In the same maneer the Holy One, blessed be He, sought to shield Nosh, and to hide him from the evil 'je, s0 that the impure spirit should have no power over im, and do. him no harm." Ant Noaw Went 13, a6 has already been said, to hide himself from all eyes, BECAUSE OF THE WATERS OF THE FLOOD, which were already pressing him hard, Said R. Jose: He si the angel of death coming, and s0 he went into ah THE ZoUAKT [688 hiding fora twelvemonth,* Why for atwelvemonih ? On this point R, Isaacand R; Judah differed, One said it was becat { twelvemonth is the fixed term of punishment in Gehinnorm for the guilty. The other said that it was in order that the righteous Noah might complete his twelve degrees and the other degrees which it was fitting that he should briny with him out of the ark. R. Judah asked: 'Seeing that for six months the wicked (ja Gebiniom) are punished by water and another sic months by' fire, why did the waters prevail for twelve months?" R. Jose ansvered: "The punishenents 'of Gehinoom, water and fre, were here let loose toxether, Rain deseended upon. them from above, and at the same time scalding waters, hot as fie, gushed up from below. 'Their punishment was thus the same as that in Gehinnom, 'which consists of fire and water, and it continued until they svere utterly destroyed. Meanvbile Noah was hidden in the ark, concealed fron sight, so that the destroyer could not 'come near him, while the atk floated on the face of the waters, a5 we read: AND THEY ROME LETHE AK, AND UT WAS LIFTED AMOVE THE EniTH, For forty days they suffered punishment, st is writen, AND THE FLOOD Was FORTY DAYS UPON THE RARTHL and for the rest of the tiine they were gradually being exterminated, ag itis written, Woe to those sinners, since they will not rise from the dead 'on the day of the last judgement. This is indicated by the expression "and they were blored out", whieh contains the 'same idea as the verse "Thou hast blotted out their name for 'ever and ever" (Ps. 18,6), AND THEY 80RE UP TIE ARK, AND LT Was LuPTED UP ABOVE THE EARTH. R. Abba connected this test with, the verse: Be thou raised abwee the heavens, O Elokim, thy atlary be aber all the earth (Ps. sa, 6), "Woe, he sid, '80 the sinners who. daily provoke their Master, nd. theough their sins repel the Shekinah and enuse it to disappear from. the world, wherefore the Seripture says: "Be thow raised above the heavens, O Elohim" (the Shekinah being called lohien), So here, the words, "and they bore up the ark" 684-654) oan ay indieate that they thrust her forth, and the words, lifted up above the earth', that she found no more rest in the world, and so departed alrogether from it. And in the absence of the Shckinah there is no one to take thought for the word, with the result th upon it with rigour, But when the wicked are blotted out and removed from the world, the Shekimah again takes up hher abode therein.' R. Jove put to R. Abba the question: 'Why, after the sinnere in the land of Tare were wiped ou did the Shekinah not return to her former habitation Abba replied: 'Te is because the remnant of the righteous did not remain there, for wherever these went the Shekinah descended and made [6ga] her habitation with them. We thos see that in a strange land she docs aot separate from them; how much more vould she cling to them had they remained in the Holy Land {All sins of mankind repel the Shekinat, particularly the sin of him who corrupts hi way 'upon the earth, 'Therefore such a one will not see the face of the Shekinah, and will not gain entrance tthe eelest Palace: For when the day comes on which the Holy Onc, blessed be He, will raise the dead to life, He will physically re-create all hone dead who have been buried in strange lands For if but one bone of them is left in the earth, this will be Tike the lump of leaven which causes the dough to ise, and con it the Holy One, blesied be He, will build up the whole body. Bue God will not restore theie soul 10 them saye in the land of Israel, as itis written, "Beholé I will open your faves, and ease you to come up out of your graves, O my 'people, and F wil briny you into the lanl of Israel" (to which 'they Will roll through subterranean passages), and then "I will put my spirit in you and you shall ive" (Ezek. xxxvu, 13, 14), We see thus that only in the land of Israel will souls bbe provided for the resurrected Hut those will be excluded who defle themselves and defile the earth, and of them itis Written, "and they were blotted out of the earl "eaeth" we take to mein here (although some of the ancient sages quest 'whole expression is analogous to the ver 'ne tihomth 9 3 this), and the "let 'them be

230nue ZOnAKT {69a
blot out of the book of the living" (Pa. xx, 26)! R 'Simeon sad to im: 'Undoubtedly they will have no portion in the world to come, since the expression "and they were blotted ut of the earth is the exact opposite ofthe expression "hey shall inherit the land for ever" (Is 1x, 21); but they 'wll be clled up for judgement siti with reference to them that the Seripeure says, "and many of them th 'dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting hfe, and some to reproaches and everlasting absorrence™ (Dan. x12)" ANp ip mLorteD ocr eveny (tickol) Livixe sun Said R, Abba: "The purtile eh sioifes the inclusion ofall those higher chieftains who control and superintend the 'earth: these are "the substance which was upon the face of the earth". For whenever the Holy One, blessed be He, 'esrcutes judgement on the earth, those Tbrought to justice frst, and only in the nest place abide beneath the shelter of their wings. This i ily in the passage, "the Lord will puaih the host of the high heavens on high", and then 'and the kings of the earth 'upon the earth" (Is. xxty, 21). 'The punishment of these chieftains is, 10 be driven through burning, fire. as it is 'writen, "for the Lord thy God is a devouring fire, a jealous God' (Deut, 1%, 24); thats ie consuming fire, The "living substance" of the upper regions were thus passed through fire, and those under their control through water ; and #0, first, He BLOTTED OUT EVERY LIVING SUBSTANCE WHICH WAS UPON THE FACE OF THR GROUND, and then, BOTH MAN AND CATTLE AND FOWL OF THE FARTit—to Wit, all those heneath. AxD NOAM ONLY WAS LHF; the particle ach (only) shows that absolutely nothing. wwas left sive what was in the ark, R. Jose said: "Itindicates that even Noah was not Teft intact, a8 he was injured by a blow from a lion, as elsewhere exphined." AND Gop REMEMBENED Noan AND EVERY LIVING 690-96] Noant a3r AN THE ARK. R. Higa quoted in thie connection the verve A pradent man seeth evil and Iideth himself (Prov, XX, 3). "This verse,' he said, 'refers to Neah, who went into the ark and bid himself there, ot, however, before the waters forced fim in. Tt has already been said that before he entered the ark he caught sight of the angel of death goinp arson the people and encircling them, Ax soon as he expied htm, he 'went into the ark ard hid hinvelf there. 'Thus, "the prudent 'man aaw evil and bid himsel, ie, Noah saw the angel of death and hid himself from hin, going into the ark as the 'Scripture says, "because ofthe waters ofthe floed". R, Jose said thatthe reference of the verse is to what hus been said hove, vie. that when death is raging inthe world the prudent 'man goes into hidieg and does not venture abroud, so as not tohbeseen by the destroying angel, who, ance he has obtained leave, will destroy whomsoever he meets at large, and who- 'ever passes before him in the open, as the latter part of the verse expresses it, "but the thoughtless pass on and are punished". Accordiig to another interpretation, the word 'arco (pass on) means here "transpress", Le. they transgeess the precept of selpreservation and are therefore punished. 'According to yet another interpretation, while the frst half 'of the verse refers to Noah, the second half refers to his Contemporaries. When he had remained a sufficient time tunder caver, [694] the Scripture says that Gob nastest- ngnED Noau. Sad R, Simeon: 'Obserce that all the time that judgement was icing exceuted there wan no ranembering, but only after the chastisement had been completed and the wicked had been exterminated do we find mention of 1 'membering. For aslong as judgement hangs over the world, thereis no communion of man with God, and the destroying Angelis rampant, But ae con an juigement has ran its cou And wrath has been allayed, everything returns tits peevious state, Hence we read" [brance being centred in him since he was entitled "righteous Tiswritten:! Thou rules the prd selling ofthe sa, shen theses ther rie, Hs tlle them (Pa. exer, 13). When ind God remembered Nosh", remem

2Hee merry Hare seed be nsetobenlngs As anh

32'THe 2OHART [td
the stormy waves of the sea mount on igh, and beneath thers yawn the: chasm of the deep, the Haly One, bless bbe He, sends down a thread from the "right side" which some mysterious way restrains the mounting waves and calms the rage of the sea. How init that when Jonah was cast into the sea, and had been swallowed by a fish, his soul did rot at once leave his body ? The reason ist essed be He, has de which is a certain thread from the "left" that causes the sea to heave, and rises with i. And if not for the thread of the right side" it would never be removed, for as soon as this thread descends into the set, and is fry grasped by i, then the waves of the sea are sired up, and begin to roar for prey, until the Holy One, blessed be He, thrusts them back to their ows place, as it says "when the waves thereof are, thou stlles them". (According, to another interpretatin, the term fechabhem (thew stillet them), is related to. the 'word shaboh (pruise), and signifies here, "thou praisest them", because dhey mount tthe top in their eagerness to see the outer world. The lesson 19 be lesrst from this i that he who munifests an eagerness to examine things and to acquire new knowledge, although he lacks talent, merits praise and receives praize from all around him.) R. Juddh Said: 'While Noah was in the Ark, he was apprehensive lest God should never more remember him. He was, however 'wrong, forafter judgement had been executed, and the wicked had perished from the world, the Scripture tells ue that Go peatemnsien Noait' Seid R. Eleavar; 'When the word i being called to account, i is not advisable that aman should have his name mestioned on high, for the mention 'OF his manne wil hea reminder of his is, sl wll cause hin to be brought under scrutiny. 'This we lear from the words 'of the Shurammitess. Ie was on New Years day, when Gost igement on the world, that Elishaasked her, "Would spoken for to the king #* (1 Kings tv. 13), ke the Holy One, blessed be He, for on that day" He is, in at special sense, King, Holy King, King of Judgement, She answered, 'Tdi amon my own people" (hid), as much ae 10 say, "I do not swish to he remembered and to have 98-700) on 333 attention drawn ty me, save among miy own penple" He who keeps hiisef inthe midst of his own people does not day tention upon himself, and 0 exeapes eres. I the same stay, as long asthe heavenly wrath was raging i the world, Noah was not remembered; but as soon as judgement ha been executed, then, a2 we read, "God remembered Noah" 1K. Hiskiah was going from' Cappadocia to Laud, when Ri. Yesa met him. Stid the liter to him "am surprised your walking all alone, seeing that we have been aught that 'no man should proceed on a journey unaccimpanied." R, Hiskiah replied, "Phere ie a youth accompanying me, and he s following on." Said R. You, "Tam still nore surprised to find that yo have fora companion one wth whom va could not discuss points of the 'Forab, since we hive heen {aught that he who makes journey unaccompanied by dis- lssions on the Torah exposes himself to danger" R, Hiskish replied, "Ie i certainly so Meanwhile the youth came up 'wth them. Sait R. Yeaa to him, "My son, where do you Conse from ? 'The lad anewered,*Frofm the wown of Ly Sand when I heard that this learned man was proceeding thither, 1 offered him my service and company." "My 300° ssid R. Yesa, "do you know any 'Torah-expontion? "I doy! tsa the reply, "is my father wed to teach te the section of the saerifices and T also used to listen attentively 0 the expositions he gave t0 my elder brother Atthe invitation OF R. Yess, he then commenced to discourse as follows Ann Noan aviunep aN ALTAR UNTO TH Lono; AND TOOK OF EVERY CLEAS BEAST, AND OF EVERT CLEAN FOWL, AND OFFERED AURNT OFFERINGS ON ern Auton The lar that Noah wate waste very sane fm which Adar, the first man, fered yp sare. Why did Noah ring bur offerings, (70d sein that a ora oi isbrought only to counteract wrongful thoughts? Was, then, ea guilty of such ? In truth, Nosh did barbus rong thovgtte ince be aid to hime, "Rol, the aly One bleed be He has decreed the destruction of the work, and who knows but that through my being saved Thave ie wp A the ment vbich Thad ascumulated 2" He therefore a rite ZOuAK roa hastened to build an sar unto the Lond The altar was the sery name om which Adan the fist tw rebuild it. ASU OFFERED NURNT OFFEMINGS. This wateen olath (burnt offering) defectively, which would indi- Lord" (Lev. 1, 17). A burnt offering has 9 be male, not fernale, a it suv "he shall offer iva male, without blemish'" 43h The word "ire offering" (ich) xeems 10. be as we know there wie fre on the altar, We therefore read ihah (lt. woman), and we learn from, this thar the female element rmust not be parted from the inal, whieh is offered through it, 0 that the wo are unites, Tt was right for Nosh to bring burnt offering, since God thd set him in the place of a male in relation to the ark "The burnt offering is iheh', to-wit, ah é (Fire of he), indicating that the Left is joined with the Female (since the female is from the left snd the male from the right) through the clinging of one ta the other. Hence the female is called 'eh, indicating the bosd of love iy which the Left is joined twher, 0 a8 to mount with her on high and be united with her there, Hence the werd "a buent offering, fire offering", indicate the bond of the male and femule. 'AND Tite Lon SELUnD tin sAVOUK OF APPEASE MEN. Iti also written "a fire offering, a savour of appease ment" (Lev. 13). With reference tothe term "fire offering" wwe have heard 'the following. Fire and smoke are joined together, there being no smoke without fre, ap ie is written "Now Mount Sinai was altogether on smote, heeause the Lord descended upon itn fire" (Ex. xix, 18), is im this wry. Fite; being very: tenon jesus from an inmost part, ard then takes hold of some substance outside which is Tess tenuous, nd by the junction of the nwo smoke ix eng the reason being that fire as taken hold uf something catch ing An example és the warm breath that issues from the nostrils. Hence it is wntten, "They shall put incense in thy nese" (Deut. AXsith 1), i they' shall at su as to cause the 700-708] oan 335 fire to recede to itt place, since shrough the smell of the incense the nose contracts inwardly, till the whole odour is drawn in and brought near to the thought, producing a pleasing sensation. Hence there results "a savour of appease- sent', when the anger is appeased and calm is restored, since the smoke has been gathered in and condensed in the fire, and the ire has seized the smoke and both. have been drawn further and further back until the anger is assuaged and a reunion is formed, called "appeasement": an appease= of the spirit, a universal rejoicing, a radiance of lamps, a brightening of faces, and thus, AND THE LORD SMELT THE SAVOUR OF APPEASEMENT as one who. smells and draws in the savour to the innermost spot. R, Yeea then approached the lad and kissed him, saving, 'Yo think thet all these presious goods were in thy possession and 1 as unaware of it' He further said, 'Twill go oat of 'my way to remain in thy compary." Whilst they proceeded 1K. Hirkioh ssid, 'On this road ise are accompanied by the Shekinah, Let us, then, go forwardeonfidently, since no haem 'ean befall us on the way.' He then took hold of the lad' hand and they went along. They then said to him, "Repeat to us one of those. Seriptural expositions you have heard from your father.' 'The lad then began discourse on the text: Let ho hiss me with the kisses of his mouth (S. S. i, 2) "This he said, fis a more burning desite, in which affection sues from the mouth with a fre unlike that which iss from the nostrils. For when mouth is joined sith mouth bis, fire isves from the strength of allection, accompanied by radiance of the countenance, by rejoicing on hoth sides and by gladsome union. "For thy love is better than wine" (bid, ) to wit, than that wine which eshilarates and brightens the countenance, which makes the eyes sparkle and induces good feeling; not the wine that intosicates, induces rap Ieclouds the countenance, and infamies the eyes, the wine 'of cage, It is because this wine is exhilarating and cheering and induces love and affection that a lation of it is offered 'esery day on the altar, of just such a quantity [706] as would induce in im who drinks ita cheerful mood and a spirit of 'contentonent, anit a writen, "And the drink offering thereof

236ane Z0uART
shall be «fourth part of bit ; love is hetr than win" alludes thus to the wine that induces lave and desire. And as here below, sis love awakened on high: For there ae ewo lamps, and when the light ofthe one 'om high i extinguished, ty the smoke that rises from the fone below tis relit Said R, Hikiah: 'Assy it i 2, {he lower and the upper World are interdependent; and since the desticton ofthe Temple there are no blessings, ether 'om high oF below, which proves their interdependence" R. Jose said: 'Not anly are there no blessings, but there are everywhere cures, a the supply of sustenance is note drawn from the "sinister side". Why 0? Because Teach da. not dwell now in the land, and thos do not perform the holy fcreice which i requied for Tighting the (celestial) lamps and. so cbusning Blessings, Hence they are to be found neither on high aor here below, and the world is out of eae! TWILt NOT AGAIN CURSE THE GROUND ANY MORE Fon Max's SARE. R. Hiakiah asked, What docs mean? K, Yesa replied: "Ihave heard from R. Simeon the following So long as the superna fire gathering force, the smoke, which s the execution of judgement here below, rages wre and more fesely and ia mote and more denevetive; foe once the fire stats, there s no keeping it back until the judgement has been fully exceuted. But when punishment below is tot intensified by punishment fom above, it burns itself out without bringing the world to ruin. Hence itis 'written, nif (will not add) as: tach as to sy, "Twill not lend any additional force and volume tothe punishment id the young lad, I have heatd thatthe expression "or 'man's sake" alludes to the utterance, "cursed is the ground for thy sake" (Gen. tt, 17). For at the time when the earth wwas cursed for the sin of Adam, fll dominion over her was granted to tat evil serpent, the destroyer and exterminator of the world and its inhabitants. From the day, however, that vah offered up sacrifices, nd the Hloly One, blessed be He, smelt their sweet savour, the earth was liberated from the dominion of the serpent and threw off his defllement. It is for thin same reason that Iorael being offeringy, 20 89 to keep 78) Noaut 237 bright the countenance of the earth.' Said R. Hizkiah, "This iscorrect, butneverthelessthisliberation remained in suspense until Israel stood at Mount Sinai." R. Yesa said: "The Holy One, blessed be He, hd already diminished the moon and allowed the serpent 10 obtain say, but on account of the sin of Adam she was actually cursed in order that the whole 'world might be cured. But on that day the earth was freed of that curse, whikt the moon remained in het diminished state, save during the time shen offerings are brought and Israel dwell in their own land." R. Yesa asked the child, 'What is your name?" He replied, 'Abba'. He said to him, 'Abba (father, chief) you shall bein everything, in wisdom sid tm yearn Fle Turther applied t» him the veree, "Thy ill be glad, and she thit bore thee will rejoice" (Prov. xxtn, 25). R. Hlikiah said: "The Holy One, blessed he He, will one day sweep avay the unclean spirit as itis written, "And che unclean spirit I will cause 'to pass out of the land" (Zech, xit, 2), and further, "He 'wll swallow up death for ever, and the Lord God wil wipe vay tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people "will he take away from offal the earth, for the Lord hath spoken it" (Is, xty, 8). The Holy One, blessed be He, will also one day restore the moon to its full light, and dissipate the darkness brought on her by the evil serpent,asitiswritten, "And the light of the moon shall be asthe light of the sun, and the light ofthe sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of the seven days" (Jbid. xxx, 26), the reference here being to the primordial light which the Holy One, blessed be He, stored: away during the period of the creation." Asn Gov (Elkin) atessen Noaw ann its sons, AND SAID UNTO THE: Be FRUETFUL AND MULTIFLY, 'ere. R. Abba began his discourse with the tect: The blesing of the Lord, it mabe rich, and na pain shall be added thereto (Prov. 5, 23). 'The blessing of the Lord" is bound up with the Shekinah, ag she sin charge ofthe blessings of the world, and from her flow blessings forall, Observe that at fist (Gen. Vit, 4) it yas writen, AND vHVH satD To Noan, Come THOU AND ALL THY HOUSE INTO THE ARK,

28rate ZOMAR | Dobra
conforms with what was said before, that the master of the house gave him permission to enter; whereas afterwards 'vas the wife who speeded him out ofthe ark, as itis writen, Ax Exomim (=Shekinah) spoxe UNTO NOAM, saY- Iyc: Go ForTH Font THE ARK. From bere we learn that itis the master [71] of the house that takes in the guest and itis the wife that speeds him forh, but that she may not heraelf bid him enter. We learn further from here that proper for the guest on departing to leave presents for tf mistress of the house, as she is alwaysin the house and super- vise it.I is iting to give her those presents, notin her own hhand directly, but theough the agency of her husband, so a5 to enhance their mutual affection. 'This we deduce from the text: AND HE TOOK OF EVERY CLEAN DEAST AND HE. 'OFFLUED BURNT OFFERINGS ON THE ALTAR, These were the presents for her which he gave, ast were, into the hands fof the husband in order to enfiance his love for his consort, 'Noah then received a blessing, as iis written, "And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful an multiply, ete" All tht is illustrated by the test, "The blessing ofthe Teed, ie maketh Ihe worda "and fo pain shall be added thereto", these allude to 0 mertioned in the passage "in pain shilt thou eat of i" (Gen, nt, 27), thats in pain and perturbation, wih sal and gloomy looks, since the moon was darkened, and s0 blessings were rho more. Again "in pain" refers to the side of the im spirit who kept back blessings from the world. But now "No. fin will he added thereto; the word "ad (yorif) here Shows the inner meaning of the words, "TL will not again (ouif lit. od) curse the earth any mare." Asp THE FEAR OF YoU AND THK: DREAD OF fot SHALL ME UPON EVERY MEAST OF THE FAMTH: at much a to say, "Hencelorward you will asumme the facial impress 'of man" for up te that time their fal impress was. not that fof human beings. For at first "in the image of God created the him" (Gen, 1, 27), also "in the like he him" (Zbid. ¥, 4); but when they Jmpress was changed frum the supernal prototype, and 71a) oan a9 through this transformation they became afraid ofthe beasts of the field. Whereas formerly all the ereaturor of the world, 'when looking up towards man, encountered the supernal sacred impress and thus were filled with fear and trembling, now after they sinned their appearances were transformed, and it was men who Feared and dreaded the rest ofthe animal world. "Thus it is that all vho are mindful oftheir Master, who keep themselves from sin and do not transpress the precepts of the 'Torah, retain their visage unaltered from the supernal proto- type, and hence all the creatures ofthe world fear them and tremble before them. But when men transpress the precepts of the Torah, their visages change, and they fear the other creatures and tremble befare them; the beasts of the feld obtain dominion over men because they do not see any more jn them the true supersal image. Hence, now that the world was reinstated in its former position, He bestowed on them Hisblessingand granted them dominion overall the ereatues, ts we read: AND UPON ALL THE HSHES OF THE SEA! INTO YOUR MAND ARE THEY DELIVERED; that is, all, even to the fishes of the sea.' R, Hiya said: 'Te is writen to your hand sere they delivered" (eithanu), ie. oFigin« ally, for when the Holy One, blessed be He, created the 'world, He delivered all in man's hand, asi is written, "and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fou! of the air, ete" (Gen, 1, 38)" In reference to the words "And God blessed Noub", R. Hiskiah discoursed on the text Of David, Mashil. Happy is he chose tranresson is forgiven, whose sin ts covered (Ps. xxxi1, 1), Hesaid: "This verse eon tains deep mysteries of wisdom, For we have been taught that David, in offering praise to the Holy One, blessed be He, made use of ten varieties of praise, one of which was Maski, 'which is one ofthe ten grades (of illumination), and the word here implies that David qualified himselfto attain thac prae. The verse proceeds! "Happy is he whose transgreasion ix forgiven, whoae sin is envered." The words mesui pesha mean literally "whose transgression i uplited". 'That is to say, when the Holy One, blessed be He, weighs the sins and the 'merits of men in the balaice, happy then is he whose sins fise and mount in the one scale whilst his merits sink down

240que zOHAR [pe-qib
in the other. "Whose sin is covered": i.e, when the wortd is Dyeing chacticed, that man will be concealed so that the lestrayer will have no povwer over bie, inthe same way that 'Noah was concealed by the Holy One, blesced be He, so that hie escaped the consequences that Adam's sin drew upon the 'world. For thit sin transfers dominion from man to the ther creatures, making him fear them, and this reversing the true onder of things. 'Therefore when Noah went fo from the ark, the Holy One, blessed be He, blesed him, ax it is writen, "And God blessed Noah and his sons, ete." Axo vou, a YE FRUITEEL AND MULTIPLY. The 'women do not seem to have been included in this blessing, as it was only addressed to Noth and his soins. R, Simeon, however, suid thatthe term ve-athem (and you) includes hoth 'male (718) and female, And further, the particle eth preced- ing "bis sons" signifies the inclusion of their spouses, It is because the women were included that God said: "Do you be fruitful and multiply", 10 propagate your kind. On this occasion the Holy One, blessed be He, gave them seven precepts of the Torab—to them and to all their successors, I Tsrael stcod at Mount Sinai shen they received all the precepts of the Torah in ane cod," Ano Noan 619 THe TOKEN oF TWAVE SET MY RAINBOW IN THE CLOWD. The pps tense "I have set" shows thatthe how had already been there, In connection with this pussage R. Simeon diseoursed 'onthe verse: nd aboce the firmament thal zou over their heads 'oat the iene of @ throne, us the appearance of a sapphire 'tone (Eiek. 1,26), "Before thie verse," he said, 'we find the 'words, "And when they went I heard the noise oftheir wings Tike the nee of great waters, ike the yoice of the Almighty" (ltid. 24). These are the four sacred and mighty beings called Haysoth (animals), by whom the firmament is wpheld, and 'whose wings ae usually joined together to eaver their bodies, When, however, they spread out their wings, » volume of sound ewells forth, and they break out into songs of praise, 718) Noatt 4 "as the voice of the Almighty", which never becomes silent, as itis written, "so that my glory may sing praise to thee, tnd not be silent" (Ps, x8, 13). The tenour of ther praises is, "The Lord hath made known his salvation, his right- eousness hath he revealed in the sight of the nations" (Ps. 2), Itsays further: "A noise of tumult like the noise Et (Ese 2a ie te wid Fl ar 'when all the supernal armies asserale en h they dechim? "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts, the whole earth i full of his glory" (Is. Vig 3). They turn to the south and say "holy, they tra to the narth and say "hol they turn to the east and say "holy, they turn to the west sd my "blessed". And. that Remament rom spon thelr heads, and in whatever direction it turns, their faces turn also. 'They turn their faces to the four earinal points, and all revolve in a circle. 'The firmament is imprinted, at the four corners of aaquare, with four figures, ofa lion, an eagle, vJaman; and the fice of man is traced in all of ther the face of Lion is of Man, the face of Eagle i of Man, and the fice of Ox is of Man, all being comprehended in itm. Hence itis written: "As for the likeness oftheir faces, they hha the fce of s man" (Lek, 1, to). Purther, the femament 'ith its enelosed square contains the gammut ofall the colours, Outstanding are four colours, each engraved with Four trans- Iycent signs, both higher and lower. These when decomposed hhecome twelve, They are green, red, white, and sapphire, which ismade up ofall these colours. Hence iis written, "As the appearance of the bow that is in the cbud in the day of rain, 40 was the appearance of the brightsess round about, 'This wat the appearance of the Hkeness of the glory of the Lord" (Ibid, 1,38): contining, that js t0 say, all shades of text L WAVE Ser My now EN THE cLovD. The "bow" here has a parallel in the text, "But his how abode firm" (Gen. xt1x, 24) i, the ccvenant of Joseph, because he was a righteous man, bad for {ts symbol the bow, since the bow is linked with the 'covenant, and the covenant and the righteous are integral jn one another. And because Nosh was righteous, the sign 'of hiscovenant was the bow. (The word vayephosu, mentioned He THE ZONA (bp Jn connection with Joseph, i akin to the term pas (fine gold) in the passage, "More w be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gol" (Ps. xh, 11), and it means that his arms shone with the lose of the most desirable substance, they 'hone with the light superal, since he had observed the 'covenant; hence he is named "Joseph the righteous.) And the rainbow is therefore called " cosenant" because they 'embrace one another. Like the firmament itis & supernal resplendent glory sight of al sights, resemoling the hidden tne (the Shekinah), containing colours undisclosed and un- fevellable. Hence fels not pensited ty gare at the rainbow when it sppeaes in the heavens, a that would be disrespectful tw the Shekinah, the ines of the rainbow here below being Areplica ofthe vision of the superna splendour, which is not for man's gaze, Hence when the earth saw the rainbow as 3 fly covenant, it was once more firmly established, and therefore God said, aD IT SHALL BE FOR A TOKEN OF Acovenasy wnrwnes Gon, rte. 'The three primary Colors and the one compounded of them, which we men 'toned befor, areall one symbol, and they all show themselves in the cloud. "And above the firmament thit was over their Ineads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a 'sapphire stone" (Ezek 1,26) 'This aides tothe "foundation stone" (cen shethiah, which isthe central point of the uni 'verse and on whichstandsthe Holy of Holies, The likeness of 'athrone', 5, the supernal holy throne, possessing four sup- parts, and which is symbolic of the Oral Law, "And upon the likeness ofthe throne was the ikeness asthe appearance tof man upon it above" (Ubi); this symbolises the Written Law. From here we learn that copies of the Writen Law should rest [724] on capies of the Oral Lav (and not eice 'eri, becabe the Hater is the throne to the formes. "As {he appsarance of a man tefers ty the image of Jaca, who sits on it" R. Judah one night, whilst staying at an inn jn Mathae 'Mehasi, rose av midnight to study the 'Porah, Ae the time there happened to be there a vertain Judean (raveller who had with hin two sachs of elothes.R. Judah began to expound the verse, "And this stone whieh I have se up fora pillar za) oa shall be Gods house' (Gen, xxv, 32). "That stone 'id, 'was the foundation stone out of which the world 'volved, and on which the 'Temple was built" "The Judean 'aise his head and sid, Hows this posible? This founda tion stone was ereated before the world, co be the pont from 'which the world evolved, and yet you say that tis refered {ointheverse,"and thisstone whic have et up forapill", 'which indicates that Jacob put i there, this being the same sone of which iti sai, "and he took the tone that he ad 'put under his head" (Zhi. 18), further dificuly is that Jacob was in Bethel, whereas the foundation sone i In Jerunater' R. Judah, without cursing his head, rected the verve, "Prepare w meet thy God, O Irae" (Anas ts, 12), fd so "Be attentive and hearken, O Taael" (Deut. x3048 6), 'We learn from here, hesaid, tat the sty ofthe Torah must be approached with proper preparation, not only ofthe 'ind but also ofthe body." 'The Judean then arose and put ri arson, od eating en bee Such, el "Thappy are ye righteous who give yourselves up tothe sudy rah day and night." Said R. Judah to him, 'Now ve properly aired yourself, say what you have to '85, so that we may join together, asthe study ofthe Torah requires a seemly garb ax well as an atenive wise [could ast aswell He in my bed and meal have been aught shateven single person whositsand studies the Torah his for his companion the Shekinah; and how cul the Shetinah be here whilst am in bed ? Furthermore, the words of the 'Torah must be clearly articulated. More- over, whee min gets up to study at midnight, at te ime when the Haly One, blesed he He, comes to disport Himself Wvth the rightous in the Garden of Eden, He and al the Tightcous inthe Garden are istening wo the words that sue {rom his mouth. Since that 69, that the Holy One, bless hye He, and all he righteous feel delight in ntening to the swords ofthe Torah a this time, should T remain Iying in tyed He then sd to im "Now say what you have t 8 "The Judean then sid, "Regarding your remark that Jacob's stone was the foundation stone, have asked you, ist, how an that be, seeing that the foundation stone precede the on THE Z0HAK 1 [yse-7ah creation ofthe werd, and was the one from which the world evolved, whereas Jacob's stone was put by hi in its place, fasitie written, "and the stone which L fave put", als, "And the took the stone that he had put under his head." And secondly, has ean the two be bent was in Bethel and thatthe stone wasn J 1, Judah answered, "Phe whole hind of Israel was folded up beneath him, s0 that that stone was underneath him." The Judean repeated his question, quoting again the e pressions 'that he put'—the stone whieh T had put'. Said R. Judah to him, "If you know a better answer, say it! The Judean then diseaursed as follows, "Hvis written, defor me, [hall belo thy fae in righteous. ness; I shall be satisfied when 1 ascake sith thy likeners (Ps. Av, 15). King David felt great afection and attachinent for this stone: it was oF it that he sai, "The stone which the lovers rejected is become the corser stone" (Ibid. ew, ind whenever he desired to gaze atthe reflection of the tlory of his Master, he first took that stone in his hand and then he entered, at whoever wishes to appear before his Master can only do so through that stone, ax itis writen, Herewith shall Aaron conve into the holy place" (Lew v4, 43): Iewas David's boast that "As for me, I'shall bebold thy Tice in righteousress", and he exerted himself in every way to appear before Him oa high in proper guise by means of that stone, Now, Abraham instituted morning prayer and taught the world the character of his Master, and made that hour 2 propitious one for praver. Isc instituted afternoon prayer (minfal) and taught the worl that there isa supreme Judge who can either pardon or condemn the world, Jacob natituted evening prayer. And it was in reference to this prayer, which he instituted for the frst time a a proper nethod of propitiation, that he sai iy his own pase, (728) And this stone which I had put fora pillae, a8 up to that tire no one had erveted gmc tke i. Tis fx inpled inthe expression, "and he put it asa mateelah" (erection, upstand= Jing), implying thac he set up again something which had been prestrate, He also "poured oil on its head", thus doing more than anyone else to restore 2) oan 345 RR, Judah thereupon embraced the Judean, saying, "You Ihave allthis knowledge, and yet_you occupy, yourself with commerce and neglect that which gives life eternal !" He answered, "Times are pressing, and I have two sons a school, and I have to work to provide their food and payment for thei tuition, so that they may continue diligently to sty the Torah" He then resumed! his discourse, taking the test: 'And Solomon sat upon the theune of David his father, and his kingdom was established firmly" (1Gings 1,12). He sad: 'What great achievement, it may be asked, is here ascribed tw Solomon? he truth is that he prepared the foundation stone and set aver it the Holy of Holies, and for this his Kingdom was established firmly." The stranger further aaid: "Tt is writen: "And I will Wok lapon it (the rainbiw) that I may remember the everlasting ovenant." 'This means that God's desire is constantly for the bos, and that he who is not visible therein will not tnter into the presence of his Master, 'The inner meaning of the words, "And I wil look upon i", is tobe found in the 'words, "and seta mark upon the foreheads; etc." (Ezek. 18,4),

40a8 to be clearly visible." (According to others, the matk
'vat symbolic of the holy mark in the flesh.) R. Judah said, "This is assuredly so, but the rainbow that appears in the 'sky has a profound mystic significance, and when Israel vill '0 forth from exile that rainbow is destined to be decked 'out ia all the finery of its colours, like a bride who adorns herself for her husband.' The Judean said to him, "This is what my father said tome wives he waa on dhe" point of departing this world: "Do not expect the coming of the 'Messiah until the rxinbow will appear decked out in resplen= dent colours which will llumine the world. Only then expect the Messiah," We learn this from the words, "And I will look 'ponit, that I may remember the everlasting covenant" 1X, 46). That is, at present the bow app sine it is only designed asa reminder tha there shall be no return of the Flood; hut a that time it will appear in ite fll 'panoply of colours asa bride does for her husband, and that will be "to remember the everlasting covenant", 'The Hely 'One, blessed be He, will remember the covenant which isin

46THE ZOHAR (ab-30
cxile and He will raise her from the dust, a8 it is written, "and they wil seek the Lord their God and David their king" (los. 111, 4): also, "But they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their kiog, whom I will raise unto them" (Jer 200%, 9), i. raise from the dust, in accordance with the text: "Twill raise up the tabernacle of David thats fallen" (Amos 1, 11). The "everlasting covenant" will thus be remembered turbe raised from the dust. My father also suid tha it is for that reason that in Scripture the redemption of Tsrael and the remembrance of the rainbow are mentioned together, as nis whiten: "For as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so have T sworn that Twsould not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee (Is, 11¥, 9)" AND THE Sons OF NOAH THAT WENT FoRTH From THE ARK WERE Stem, AND HaM, AND JarueTiL R Bleszar asked why the Scripture inserts the words "who 'vent forth from the ark". Did, thea, Noal have other sona 'who did nor go forth from the ark? R. Abbe said: "Yes: the iildren whom his sons hore afterwards; and the Seripture points out thar these did not go forth from the ark." R. Simeon said: Had I been alive when the Holy One, blessed be He, gave mankind the book of Enoch and the book of 'Adam, I would have endeavoured to prevent their dissemina- tion, because not all wise men read them with proper tention, and thus extract from them perverted ideas, such a lead men astray from the Most High to the worship of strange powers. Now, however, the wise who understand these things keep them secret, and thereby fortify themselves in the service of theit Master.' [734] OF the three tons of 'Noah that went forth fom the ark, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, Shem is symbolic of the right side, Ham of the left side, whist Japheth represents the purple", which isa mixture ofthe to. Aso Hay was tHe FATHER OF CANAAN. Ham repre- sents the refuse and dross of the gold, the stering and rousing. of the unclean spirit of the ancient serpent, Te is for that reason that he is designated the "father of Canaan', namely, 'of Canaan who brought curses on the worl, of Catan who vas cursed, of Canaan who darkened the frees of mankind. 70) soa 247 For this reson, t00, Ham is given a special mention in the 'words, "Ham, the father of Canaan", that is, the notorious sworkd-daskener, whereas we are not sod that Shean was the father of such-s-one, or that Japheth was the father of ich-a- 'one; No sooner is Ham mentioned, than he is pointed to as the father of Canaan. Hence when Abraham came on the scene; itis writen, "And Abraham passed through the land" (Gen, xit, 6), for this was before the establishment of the patriarchs and before the seed of Israel existed in the world,

0thatthe land could not yet be designated by this honoured
'and holy mme, Observe that when Teruel were virtuous the Jand vas called by their name, the Land of Israel; but whe they were not worthy it was ealled by another name, to wit, the Land of Canaan, Hence itis written: AND HE SAtD, Cexsep or CANAAN, & SERVANT OF SERVANTS 3HALL ME ME UNTO HIS KETHKEN, for the reason that he brought curses on the world, nthe same way as the serpent, against whom was pronounced the doom, "Cursed art thot among all cattle" (Gen. 1, 14) 'Taese Tansy wane THE SONS oF Nau. By these was 'established the whole world, and also the higher symbolism, AND OF THESE Was THE WHOLE EARTH OVERSIKEA Herein is 1 mystical allusion to the three superal colours, Por when tha river that Hoses perennially watered the Garden hy the power of those three supernal influences, therespread forth thoseterrestrial colours here below; each combined with the others, which show thatthe gory ofthe Holy One, blessed the He, extends through all the heights and the depths, and that He is ene ahove and below. R:Eleazarsaid: "hes three colours are themselves displayed. in all those wha jase from the side of holiness, and their reflection falls upon all those who issue from the side of the other spirit. And if You ponder the mystery of grades, you will find how the Colours radiate to all sides until they enter the lower sphere through those twenty-seven mystic channels which are the sides of the doors that stop up the abyss. Al this i known to the adept in mystic lore. Happy the portion of the righteous whom the Holy One delights ts honour and to whem He as rar zonsn 1 tr-73b revels the sublime mysteries of witdom. OF them itis Seritns "he counsel of the Lord is wth them that fear Tim' (Ps si, 14)" R. Elewar here quoted the vene: °O Lord, thow ar my God, Ll exalt thee, Iwill prase thy rane, for thos hast done wonderful things, even counsel 'fon fatness and ert" (0 330, 1). How realy te sid it bchoves men to reflect on the glory of the Holy ne; bested be He, an to flr up songs of praise to His eh, for when one knoe ha to ofer pase to His Master tite manner appropriate te Holy One, blewed ke He, accomplishes his-will Such» man, furthermare, caizes an frerene of bleningson High and belo, He, therefore, who Sieh reso ee tal Alisereeita lands tis held in afection an high and beloved below the Tay One, blemed be He, proud of hin, and of Nini tert: "And he sid unto me, thou ar my servant, Ural, jin whom 1 will be glorified" (Is. xLIN, 3). Anu NoAW THE MUSHANDMAY BEGAN AND PLATED. 's yisevanp. R, Judah and R. Jose differed as tothe orig 'of ths sine, One said that i came from the Garden of len find Noah now pluntes € here. 'The other said that st had been on the earth before the Flood and Noah had plucked it and now replanted st, On the sime day i blosame ripened, and brought forth grapes. Noah then pressed out from them wine, drank of and became drunken, K, Simeon said; "There is # mystical allusion in this verse. When Nosh bien 0 prohe into the sin of Adam, not for purpose of practising it hut in order to understand it, and 30 warn the hhe pressed geapes in order to make researches into that vineyard But when he reached that point he was drunken snd uncovered"—be lost hie (mental) balance and 'uncwered the breach of the world which hitherto had been sosed up Wert 104s Test. Its written obotoh (it, her tent) an allusion to the idea omtained in the passage, "And 'come not [736] nigh the door of her house" (Prov. 8), tent" implying the tent of that vineyard. 1 tion applies to the ease of the sons of Aaron, who, we have 'een talight, were drunk from wine (when they sinned). Who

730HORN 49.
then, gave them wine at that place to drink ? And ist come cecivable that they would dare to get drunk at such atime ? ur in reality the wine which made them drunk was this same wine of Nosh, a8 i " . sitrange fire before the Lord" (Lev. x, 1), an analogous term to which is found in the passage, "That they may' keep thee from the stnge woman! (Prov, vi, 3)=all these terms allude to one and the same thing, 'The same sense, then, underlies the verse, "And he drank ofthe wine and was drunken, and he was uncovered within his tent." This, as explained, was observed by Ham, the father of Canaan, and Canaan seized the opportunity to work fis will by removing from that rightcou man the mystical symbol of the covenant; for this, according to tradition, is what he did, Therefore Nosh said, (Cuaskp E CANAAS, since through him the curse returned to the word, A SLAVE OF SLAVES 1 SHALL of; these words correspond to those adresced to the serpent: "cursed thou from all eatle, ee." (Gen. 1, 14). Hence, while all 'others will be saved in the world to come, he will not be 'saved; all others will obtain their freedom, but not be, 'This 'is amystery known tothe adepts in the ways and paths of the Toh." 'R, Simeon further discoursed, beginning with the verse: For [hone my transgressions, and my sin i ever before me (Psu, 5), He said: "Howe rmuch must a man be on his guard against sinning before the Holy One, blessed be He, foreach sin committed by man is recorded on high, and is nor blotted 'outsave hy much repentance, as itis said, "For though thow wash thee with nitre, and tke thee much soap, yet thine iniquity ia marked before me" (Jer. 1, 23). For when a man 'commits a sin once before God, i leaves a mark, and when he repeats the same sin that mark is deepened, and after 2 third time it becomes a stain spreading from one side to the other, as expressed in the words, 'stain before me" (J6id.). When Davie committed his great 'in in taking Bath-Sheba, he thought that it would leave its mark forever, but the message came to him, "The Lord also th put away thy sn, thou shalt not de" (at Sen the stain has been removed." K. Abba put this question

250The ZOMAR 1
to R. Simeon: 'Since we have heen taught thay Bath- was destined for King David from the day of the crea how comes it tat the Haly One, blessed be He, fis ave her to Uriah the Hittite? R peat de Tsk! One aed be Tlacal og ate oe destined for a eertain man, He frst allows her to be the wife 'of another man until his time arrives. As soon a9 that time arrives, he departs from the world to make way for the other, although the Holy One, blessed he He, is oth to remove hit from the world to make way for the other man before his time arrives, This isthe inner eeason why Hath -Sheba was sziven to Uriah frst. Now reflect and you will find the reason, for the Holy Land having been given to Cangan before Israel 'eame there, You will find tha the inner reason underlying the tywa ie the same. Observe, further, that David, although he confessed his sin and repented, could not obliterate from his Jheartand mind the memory of thesins hat he had comnitted, 'specially of that concerning Bath-Sheha, and was always apprehensive let one of them would provea stumbling- block {o him in the hour of danger, Hence he never remaved them from his thoughts, According to another interpretation, the 'words "For I know my transgressions" indicate his khow= ledge of the diveree grades to which the various sins of men are to be referred, while the words "and my sin (hatathi — 'my failing) refer to the defect of the moon, which did not 'emerge from her impurity until the time of Solomon, when her light once more became whole, so thatthe world became firmly established and Israel dwelt secure, as itis write "And Judah and Tsracl dwelt safely, every man unde h vine afd under his fig tree" (1 Kings ¥, 5). Nevertheless, as David said, "My deficieney is ever before me", and that will not be obliterated from the world untilthe Messiah will come, agit is said; "And the unelean spirit 1 will cause to pass out from the earth" (Zech. xn, 2)" He was a sucury WuNTER BEFORE THR LORD; WiEKEPORE IT 18 sap: Like Nitro. a suGnty UNTER BEFORE THE Lown. 'Truly he Was a man of might, because he was clad in the garments of Adam, and ahaa) Nou ast CNS gran eter ep egal bem Ic Eltar anid nso bse ete pop Te Mole alin by meas of thos perme wt able han te coilee Ge weed tad propa el Sale lat een ot he wert Ue eee cated ity forte rn Ut he rele (nerds) coos Wes ios ar cee Senet Dolan the lover eel oy Rs Sisco 9 Ove ican ete eerci es eur rete ineny coer ee Alp THE WHOLE EARTH was OF ONE LANGUAGE AND. 'OF ONE SPERCH. R Simeon began his discourse with the verse: And the house in its Being built eas buil of stone made ready at the quarry ; and tere reas neither hammer nor axe 'nor any tool of ion heard in the howse in it Being alt (t Kings vip). Hesaid: The phrase "in its being built" (behibbonotho) 'npiesself-building, as though without the hands of artisans Were not, then, Solomon with all his workpeople engaged in the work of building? Ie was here as with the candlestick, in regard to which we read. "And thou shalt make... of hheaten. work will the candlestick be made" (Ex. xxv, 31). IF the candlestick was tbe made of itself, why say "thou shalt rake it" ? In reality it-was made of itself, by a miracle. So soon as the artisans set their hands to the work, it showed them how to proceed jn 2 manner quite novel to them, the reason being that the blessing of the Almighty rested on their hands; and similarly here, in the building of the 'Sanctuary. It was built of tx own accord, though seemingly bby the hands of the labourers; it showed the workers a design. 'which guided their hands and from which they did not turn their eves until the ahole building of the house was com= 'Of sjone made ready atthe quarry"" (e Kings 'word slemah (made ready, complete) is written defecively, as though slomoh (Solomon), for truly it was of Solomon: while masa (it, transporting) implies that the hands of the workers were moved involuntarily, x0 that they did they knew not what. "And there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool af iron heard in the house in

252HE LONAK E fre
its being. built" (Ibid), because the shamir(stone-cutting insect) performed all the spliting without any sound being heard. No cutting-tools were thus required, the whole work being accomplished hy a mirace' Said K. Simeon, 'How precious are the words of the 'Torah ! Happy is the portion 'Of him who occupies himself with them and knows how to follow the path of ruth 1"The Scripture says, "And the house inits being built" When the Haly One, blessed be He, wills that His glory should be gloried, there issues from Ts thought a determination that should epesad forth; where upon spreads rom theundiscoverable region ofthought unt it restsin garon (throat) asjot through which perennially lows the mystic force of the "spirit of life". Whea the thought, afer its expansion, comes to rest in that place, i i called Blohon hase (living, God). Te then seeks wo spread and disclowe itself still Further, and there issue from that spat fire, air, and water, all compounded together, 'There also emerges "Jacob, the perfest man", symbolic of a certain voiee that issues and ecomes audible. Thus the thought 'hat was hitherto undisclosed and withdrawn i itself is ow revealed through sotind. In the further extension and dise closure of the thought, the voice strikes againet the lips, and thus comes forth spcech which i& the culmination of the ishole and th which the thought ix completely diselosed. It is thus clear that alls composed of that tndiscloaed thought 'which was withdrawn into itself, and that the whole js one essence. When the expansion has reached that stage, and speech has heen generated by the force of that voice, then 'he house in its being built", Le, dhrovghoue the whole procest of its construction, is of complete xones", a8 hae heen explained. 'The word "transported" means that the thought issues from within and commences to transport itself fuiside; it issues from above and commences to transport itself helow, "And there was neither hammer nor axe'nor any too! of iron": thin alludes to the lower grades, which all degend upon the 'Thought, and which are not heard or 1dmitted inside when the 'Thought ascends on high to draw Tech sustenance, When ahs doce 40, all of them rej and draw sustenance and are filed with blewings. At d 740-748) oan 253 time all worlds are sustained a one unity without any division whatever. After they have tken their several por- tions they all disperse, each to its side and to its assigned function. [548] Hence i says: "And the whole earth was of 'one language", and afterwards, "and it came to pass as they journeyed migueden (lt. from before), ie. from that which i starting-point of the world, "that they found a valley for from there they spread out in all directions, and that spot is the starting-paint of differen) tiation. Te may be objected that differentiation stated later, as we read, "a river went forth from Eden ro water the garden, and from there it parted". The truth is that when they move from the frst spot there ie separation, and when they gather together to drive sustenance there is no separa tian, and when they journey again ehere i separation, Hence it is written, "And it came to pass when they journeyed fron the East that they found a valley", as has heen explained. AND THE WHOLK EAWTH WAS OF ONE LANGUAGE AND. 'ONE SPEECH, ie. the world was sll unity sith ene single faith in the Holy One, hessed be He. Bur Ar TeawARDs THEY JOULNEYED AWAY migueder: (lt, from belo), that is, from the One who is before all, from the foot of the 'world, who was the objet of universil faith. ASD THEY OUND A rLatN, that is, they maden discovery, by mean 'of which they shook off their faith in the Most High, So it is written of Nimrod: AXD THE BEGINNING OF MIs Kixonost was Rantt, this heing the starting-point fom which he eormenced t attach himself to other Similarly here, they found a plain in the land of Sh '4 place in which they conceived the idea of forskin Supemnal Power for another power- Avo Tey satp: Come, ver Usmuryy usa erry, AND A TOWEN, WITH ITS TOP LX HEAVEN, AND LET Us MARE ts A waste, R. Hiya began hie discourse withthe testi And the wicked ary lke the driven sea (Is. Wt 20) "When can the sea he said ta be "driven ? When it becomes violently diturbed and svays this way and that andis driven

354THE Z0NAK 1 babrs0
from its edit in then like drunken staggering and heaving up and. do and its waters east up mire and di 'pall the ditt and foul matter of the sea on tothe shore. So, is with the wicked who leave the straight path and reel and staggerin thecrooked roads they have taken, likea man drunk Wwith wine. And what is more, with every word which they utter in theit rage there issues from thelr mouth filth and abomination so that they are utterly defiled. [752] See now, they said: "Come let us build a city, and a tover, with its top in heaven." Underlying these words there was a plan of rebellion against the Holy One, blessed be He. It was 2 foolih acheme, born out of the stupidity oftheir heart" R. Abba said, "Foolish they certainly were, but atthe same time they had a eufiy design to rid themuelves of the Supreme Power and to transfer His glory to another. Throughout there is an allusion to the mysteries of religion. 'Thus, the words "Come, let us build a ety and a tower" mean that when they reached that plain, which signifies the "strange poser", and there was revealed to them the place of its on, which extends particularly over "the fishes of the sei", they ssid, "Here is a place where the beings of the Jower world ean abide in comfort." Atonce they said: "Come, let us build acity, and a tower, and let us make usa name." "This place, they said, shall be to usa centee of worship, and ne other; so "let us build a ciy and a tower"; what need i there for ust ko up to the regions on high where we cannot jcany enjoyment ? Delo, here ina place all mad ready for us. Further they said: AND LET US MAKE A AME, that is, an object of worthip, LEST WERE SCATTENED ABROAD, ie to other grades and different quarters of the world AND THE LoRD CAME DOWN 70 SEE THE ELTY AND 'Tule ToWeH, This is one OF the ten occasions on which the Shekinah descended to earth, "To see" here means "ta tonsider methods of punishment as in the vers, May the Lord see and judge" (Gen. x¥, 5). [is not written, to 3 the people' 10 6 the eaty and the toner", Why a0? 730-756) oan 255 Beeause when the Holy One, blessed be He, sets out execute judgement, He first surveys the upper ranks and then the lower ranks, and since this action of mankind affected also the regions on high, the frst consideration vas directed to those on high. 'This is implied in the words, "to sce the ity and the tower which the sons of man (Adam) built "Mankind sre here called "sons of Adam", because it was 'Adam, the frst man, why rebelled against his Master and brought death inen the word. B Simeon bagan hie discourse with the veroe: Thus 758] saith the Lord God : The gate of 'the inmes court that looketh towards the east shall be shut the six working days ; but on the Sabbath day it shall be opened, 'and in the day ofthe news moon it shall be opened (Ezek, Xt, t). He said: "If this verse is attentively considered, it is found to contin an allusion with which we are familiar. 'The reason why the gate is to be shut on the six working. days is ip onder that the profane should not make use of the sacred; "but on the Sabbath day it shall be opened and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened", since in this case the sacred makes use of the sacred, and #0 the moon 'comes then to form a junction with the sun. The reason why that gate iy ot to Ge opened on the bis working days is because from them this lower world draws sustenance, and they have control of the whole world with the esseption af the Land of Israel: that land cannot be touched by them Devauce the gate is shut, But on the Sabbsth day and on the day of the new moon they are temoved from control beeause the wate is open, and the world is in festivity and derives ite sustenance from there, and isnot under any other power. But think net tha the six days have the sole dominion, even when they are in control, for we are told that shat gate "looketh towardsthe exit", ie, the Eternal for the Eternal, even before had the world under His observation, isnot to be opened, so thatthe world shoul fot receive sustenance froin the sacred. source save ow Sabbath aid new moons, Indeed, all the days are attiched to the Sibbath day, from which they' drav their sustenance, and on whieh all the gates are opened, and rest ix vouchsafed tall on high and below. Similarly here, THe Lon CAME {ys

9aeered 49 the
profane, jn order tosurvey what they had built and what steps they had taken to establish an idolatrous worship." A, Isaac was once studying with R. Simeon and put co him the question: "How could these people have been sa foolish te to raisea rebellion against the Holy One, blessed be He, and what is more, with such unanimity 7". Simeon repli "Thar has already been explained, and the answer is indi 'ete inthe words, "And itcame to pass when they journeyed 'migedem' (rom the Eternal), which meangthat they procecded downwards, from ahave to below, from the Land of Terael to Babel. They said tha that was just the right place to whieh to attach themselves, since there the divine chastisement could be successfully resisted. 'There, too, the whole world ould obtain nourishment in abundance, fr from the higher real sustenance could only be procured jeulty. And furthermore, they sid, we will ascend inte heaven and make war against it so. to prevent it bringing a flood on the world a before." ASp THELoxD sh10: BeMOLD, THRY ARE ON PEOPLE, AND THEY UAVE ALL OE LANGUAGE, i, being united 'they may indeed succeed is their undertaking, Let, therefore, all the grades be dispersed, each in its own direction, and in this way mankind below will alsa be dispersed. Hence it it writen: AND THY LonD ScaTTENED THEM ABROAD FROM THENCE. Why was their language confounded ? Be- cause they all spoke the holy tongue, and this way of help to them, For in the utterance of prayer, its Hebrew words which fully express the purpose of the heat, and thus help 'w the attainment ofthe desired goal; hence their tongue vak confounded in order that they might not be able to express their desires inthe holy tongue. Since the angels on high do not understand any language save the sacred language, there= fore as soon as the language of the rebels was confounded they lost the source of their power. For whatever men utter belie in the holy tongue all the Ivete of heaven waderstand and take heed of, but any ather language they do not under= Stand. Herce as soon a8 the language of the builders was 75b-70a) oan 357 confounded THEY LeeT OF TO nUILD THE eITY, since their strength was broken and they were unable to achieve their purpose. We read, "Bleed be the name of God from everlasting even unto everlasting; for wisdom and might are (Dan. 11, 20), Truly His: for whenever the Holy One, lesed be He, allowed the deep mysteries of wisdom to he Drought down into the world, mankind were corrupted by them and attempted to declare war on God. He gave supernal wisdom to Adam, but Adamn utilised the wisdam disclosed to_him (76a] to familiarise hinself with the lover grades also, until in the end he attached himself to the yetzer-hura (evil tempter), and the fountains of wisdom were closed to hit, After he repented hefore his Mascer, parts of that wisdom 'were again revealed to him, in that same book, but through that same knowledge people eame later on to pravoke God. He gave wisdom to Noah, who, indeed, worshipped by means of the Holy. One; blend be Hs, but afterward "hs deank of the 'wine and was drunken and uncovered, av already expla He gave wisdom to Abraham, who by meane of it served the Holy One, blessed be He, but then be gave bith to Ishmael, 'who provoked the Holy One, blessed be He, The same with Traac, from sehom Fast was haen. As for Jacob, he married two sisters. Hegave wisdom fe Moses, of whom itis written: 'He i trusted in all my house" (Num. xit 7). There was none like Moses, a faithful servant, who was eognisant of all the grades, but whose heart yas not seduced by any one of ther from: fiemfaith inthe highest. He gave profound wisdom eho called hitnsefUiehil,Pitee 'ulthal (Prov. a much a8 to say: "God is with me,and since wis 'vakhal, Lam able to do my own will." But after wards "the Lord raised up an adversary for Solomon' (¢ Rings x1, 14), Thus we see that in virtue ofthe fragments 'which those people retained from that wisdom ofthe ancients, they provoked the Holy One, blessed be He, built a tower, and did various ki seattered 'over the face of the earth, and there was no wisdom left with them for any purpose at all But in the future the Holy One, blessed be He, will cause wisdom to be disseminated in the World, andl the peoples will vorship Hin, a ic is written.

238'ne Z0mAR 760
"And Fill set my. spirit within you" (Back. xxxvn, 27), but in enotrast vith the generations of old, who used it for the ruin of the world—"l will cause you", the verse cone inues, "to walk in my statutes and ye shall keep mine fordinances, and. do. them" (Ibid) As, Jose and R. Hiya were once walling together, R-Jose said: 'Let us begin some discourse on the Torah, and evolve 'some new idea." R. Jose thereupon began with the verse: For 'he Led thy God isalheth in the mile of ty camp to dlicer thee, and togve up thine enemies before the; therefore shall thy camp be holy, that he see mo unseemly thing in thee, and tara say: from thee (Deut. xxt He said: "The term for 'walketh'" is here mithhalekh, as in the passage, "walkit (nithhatekh) in the garden towards the cool of the day" (Gen, 11, 8) (in connection ith Adams eating of the for hidden tree). Mibhalebh is the term for the female, and 'erresponding to it forthe male isthe term mehalech, "This ts the same poster that went infront of Israel whist they were zing through the wilderness, a iti written: "And the Lord 'went before them by day (Fx. xi, 1), eis thissame power that goes in front of a man when hei on a journey, as itis 'writen: "Righteousness shall go before hin and shall make Ins footsteps a way" (Ps, LAKNY, 14), Tt-walk in front of a 'man when he is sirwiows in order "to deliver thee and ta itive up thine enemies before thee", «wit, to rescue & man when journeying from the power of "the other one". Hence iis incumbent on a man to guard himself aguinst sin and to purify himself, Hove purify himself? In the manner indicated. In the words, "therefore shall thy cap be holy". 'The word 'qilch (holy) bere is singular, which shows that by the word camp" we may understand the members of which the hody is composed; these are "thy camp" which is t0 he "holy" By the term "unseemly thing' is indeated indeceney, which is thing most hateful to the Holy One, blessed be He, Further, the tern daber (digg, Hit word) alludes to the obscene word by which sinners besmirch and befoul them= selves. Why all this? Hecause "He walketh before thee". If thou be remiss ip regard to this, He will immediately "torn away from thee". Now, since we are walking. along before a 768) soa 339 Him in the roxd, lo: vs occupy ourselves with words of the "Torah, For when the Torah forms & crown over a man's hread, the Shekinah does not depart fom him RR. Hiya then discoursed as follows Tt is written: "And the Lord said: Behold they are one people, and they have all one language." Aer this we read: "And it came to pase as they journeyed migedem."" "The team. migedem: signifies away from the Ancient One (gadmon) of the world". "That they found." We shoutd have expected "saw; ur the word "found" is used to indicate that they found cemnants of the set wisdom that had been left there hy the generation of the Flood, and with that they made ther attempt to provoke the Holy One, blessed be He. As they sid, [768] so they did 'Note what is writter, "Behold, they are one people and they vd oF one wil, and speaking ane language, "nothing will be withholden from them which they purpose to do". Tut, said God, F know what to do; Twill confound for them the grades on high and their Language below, and thus their work will stop. ow, seeing that, because they were allof one mind and one will and spoke the holy tongue, itis writen of them "nothing {oll be withholden from them which they purpose to do anal the superna judgement was powerless against them, hes 'mich more must ths apply to us oF aay other ofthe com= Tiniona who are aceapied in the study ofthe Torah "'R Jou 'uid: "From here we learn that quarreiome folk soon come tw grief, For we see here that ss long as the peoples of the trorld lived in harmony, being af one mind and one wil, though they bell! against the Hol) One, blessed be He, the superal judgement could not touch them; but x8 soon as they were divided, "the Lord «catered them abroad". GF the world to come, however, is writen: "For then will Tura to the peoples a pure language, that they may all ca lpon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent (Zeph 1, ); also: "And the Lord shall be King overall the 'arth; in that day shall the Lord be one, and his name one (Cesh, x, 9. Blesed be the Lord forever: Amenand Amen Gen. st, e-xvit, 27 R. Abbe introduced this partion sith a discourse on the text: Harken to me. ye obstinate of heart soho are far from righteousness (Is. XuSh, 12), He said: 'How obstinate is the heart of sioners who see the paths and ways of the Torah and pay no heed to them, but harden their hearts and do not return in repentance t theit Master, wherefore they are called "obstinate of heart". Also "far from righteousnem", bbecause they keep themselves far from the'Torah, R. Hizkiah says, that tis because they keep themselves far from Gea they refuse to draw near ta God and therefore they are far from righteousness. And because they are far from righteous ness, therefore they are far from peace, and they have no peace, as it ie written, "There is no peace, saith the Lord, Unto the wicked" (Is. sunt, 22) The mason i that they are far fr draw neat (9 God, and he succeeded. So itis writen, "how didst fove righteouness ard hate wickedvess" (Ps. XL, 8), ad itis fusther written, "Abraham who loves me" (Is. 1, 8), ie. Abram is sid to have "loved God" because he loved righteousness: this wae Abram's love of God, in which he ighteousnes. xeelled (77a) all his contemporaries, who were obstinate of Tiears and far front rightrniness, an fas been said B, Jose opened with thetext: Howeamiableare thy tabernacle, © Land of Hosts (Ps. uxxxiv, 3). Hesaid "It behoves men 10 consider well the importance of the service of the Holy One, 'Messed he He. For the mass of mankind do not know or reflec ht bein ope the worl ar termachocs tn ex 'ence, For when God created the world, He made the heavens fof fire and water mingled together but not compact, and afterwards they were mage compact-and firm by' 2 divine 'int, From there God planted forth the world to est upon rupert, wbih tenets are het us ly by thie ef When that rit departs they all quiver and shake and the 'Who shaketh the earth out World trembles, a i is wtten, 077) LECH LeoHA 26 'of her place and the pillars vere tremble" (Job 4s, 6). "The whole is based upon the 'Torah, 'Thus when Israel devotes itself to the Torah the world is firmly established and they are secure ard the supports are firmly fixed in their places See now, at the moment when midnight arrives and the Holy (One, blessed be He, enters the Garden of Eden to dispor imself with the righteous, all the trea inthe Garden sing Praises before Him, as its writen, "Then sing the trees of 'the wood for joy before the Lord" (1 Chron. xv1, 33). A herald proclsimeth Tustily: "To you we speak, exalted holy 'ones; who is there among you whose ears are quick to hear nid whote eyes are open ta oor nnd whose heart iy alert te perceive, what time the spirit of all spirits culls the sweet cffluence of the inner soul, and a voice goes forth from ther saying, Disperse, ye hosts, tothe four comers of the world 2" Then

1One mounts to one sid,

3One descends on that side.

3One enters between the two,

4Two crown themselves with a third
'5. Three enter into one.

6One produces various colours
Six of them descend on one side and six of them on the other. 8, Six emer into twelve.

9Twelve hesti themselves o form twenty-two.
Bir Sie art eorsprteed eo

11'Ten ave fixed in one.
Woe to those that sleep with eyes fast closed and do not Know or consider how they wil arisen the Day of Judgement for reckoning is exacted [778] when the body is defied, and the soul fits over the face of the transparent ether, now up and now down, and if the gates are not opened itis tossed bout like a stone from the sling. Woe to them ! Who shall plead for them ? For they shall nos be admitted to this joy- 'tance, among the delightful kabitations ofthe righteous theit places shall br missing, they'shall be delivered inca the hand 'of Duma, they shall descend and not ascend. Of them itis

203THE ZOMAR U Tr.
syritien, "As the eloud is consumed and vanisheth away, so hhe that'goeth down to Sheo! sball come up no more" Job 'ny 9). At that momenta certain ach springs forth feom the side of the North and strikes the four quarters of the world and comes down and alights between the wings of the cock, 'which is thereby awakened and begins to crow. Rut none are stirred save chose ruly pious ones who rise and remain awake find study the Torah, and then the Holy One, blewed be He, and all the righteous in the Garden of Eden listen to their voices, asi is written, "Thou that dwellestin the gardens, the 'companions hearken for thy voice, cause me to hear it" (SS. vu, 43). Anp Tu Lorn saty To Annas, Just before this it is \written, ""And Haran died in the presence of Terah hisfather™ (Gen, x1, 8). The connection is as follows, Up to that ime rio one had ever died in the lifetime of his Father. Haran, how 'ever, was killed at the time when Abram was east into the furnace, 'het (says, "And "Terab took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, ete. and they went forth sith them, from Ur of the Chaldlees," We should expect "ard they went forth with hin, referring to Terah; why, then, does it say with them'"? The reason is tht eral and Let went forth with Abram and Sara, who led the way in departing from that sinful district: for when 'Terah saw that Abram was rescued from the fire, he beyan to be guided by Abram, and therefore wwe read, "and they went forth with them', ie Te Lot with Abram and Sara, Abo it was "to go inta the land fof Canaan", where they wanted to go, We learn further Frm this text that whoever makes an eft to purify. himself receives assistance from aboye. For no sooner is it eitten, "10 go to the land of Canaan" than sve read "and God said to Abram, Ger thee forth'; this message was not gen him until he made the frst move himself, Fur the upper 'World is not stirred to act ntl an impulse ix given from the Tester world, The prototype af his process is tha he blackish Fight is ot caught ap by the white bight url thas irs itself begun to mant hut when i does so, forthwith the whi aba Lec LECHA 265 light rests upon it, and therefore its writen, "O Lord, keep 'pat thou silence, hold not thy peace and be not still, God" (Ps, txaxit, 2), in order that the white light may never be \withheld from the world. So, too, it says, "Ye that are the Lord's remembrancers, keep not silencs" (Is. txt, 6), in order to give the impulte from below fer the influence > descend from the upper world. Similarly the prophetic spr tests upon ian only when he bis first bestirred himself receiveit. So here, too, when once Abram and his family had left Ur of the Chaldees, then God said to him, "Get thee forth"; the word "thee" here, says R. Elezar, means "for thineownadvantage topreparethyself,toperfectthy degree" "Get thee forth": that is, itis not fiting for thee to remain hhete among these sinners. 'The real truth of the matter is this. [78a] God inspired Abram with a sprit of wisdom #9 that he seas able 10 discover by means of certain tests the characters of all the inhabited countries of the worlds He surveyed them and weighed them in the balance, and dis- covered the (heavenly) powers to which each is entrusted. 'When he came to the cetral point ofthe inhabited world he tied to weigh it, hut obtained no response, He teed to Find the power to which it wes entrusted, hut could not grasp it, though he weighed again and again. He noted that from that point the whole world vas planted out, and he ance mors {ested and weighed and found that the upper power in charge of it was one which could not be gauged, that ie wae reeondite and hidden, and not like the (powers in charge of) the outlying parts of the inhabited world. He once more reflected, and came tothe conclusion that as the whole world had been planted out in all directions from that point in the centre, 30 the power in charge of it was the one Fran Which issued all the powers in charge of the other quarters of the 'world and to which they were all attached hence "they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees to go to the lant fof Cansan", He then once more reflected and weighed in the balance and tested to find out the res truth shout that place, bit he could not get to the root of it. He felt himself baffled by the obscurity which surrounded it, and therefore "they came (o Hasan and abode there", The reason, as we

364'Tie OMAR [8a
have ace, fs that Abrahem was able to tet all the upper powers that rule the world in all the quarters ofthe inhabited section, and did actually rst them and find out which of the 'guiding powers among the stars and constellations had sway and he weighed successfully all the inhabited parts of the globe. But when he eame to this place he was fet with 4 baling obscurity which he could not penetrate. When God, however, perceived his efforts and his desire, He straightway revealed Himself to him and ssid: Gar 'THRE FORTH, 40 a6 to know thyself and prepare thyself, mom THY LAND: from that side ofthe inhabited world to which thou wast hitherto attached, AND FROM THEY KIN= wep, frem that wisdom wherewith thou didat cast thy horoscope, noting the hour and second of thy birth and the star that was then in the ascendant, aX FROM THCY varien's Howse, that thou shouldet net heed thy father even if thou eouldst hope in virue of thy father's far sees prosperity thie workd therefore get thee fone from this wisdom and from thir consideration, 'That this explanation is right may be proved thus. They had left Ur of the Chaldees and were in Haran. Why, then, should God say to Abram, "Get thee forth from thy land and from thy kindred? Te must therefore be as we haveexplained. To THE EAND Wien T SHALL snow THEE: i, I shall show dhee that which thou wast not able to diseoves, the power ofthat land so resondite and obscure "in. compensstion for "THER, in compensation for "from my land" Aso 1 WILE MANE GHEAT THY NAAtE, in compensation for "and from thy kindred"; AND BE A MLESSING, in com- pensation for "and from thy father's house". R, Simeon sii "shall snake thee a great sation'; from the side ofthe Right; and Latall bless thee", frm the cide of the Left "aod shall make great thy name", from the realm of the Cente "an be thou a blessing", from the side of the Land of Here we have an allusion to the throne resting on four supports all of whick were comprised in Abram, From, 7ho-784] Leow Leena bs 'his poin blessings are transnited to then asp, who are bustin from here, asi vitten, 1 SHALL mutes THES! MAT BLESS THRE, [788] AND CURSE THESE THAT GUISE THEE, AND ALL THE FAMILIES OF THE FARTH SHALL. BE ALESSED IX THEE. R. Eleazar was sitting one dav before AND PROM Tity KINDRED, since they all went forth, why was not Abram told that they should go ? For though Terah was an iolater, ver since he had the good impulse to go forth With Abram, and since, as we know, God delights in the Fepentance of sinners and 'Terah actually began the journey, why sit not written "get ye forth"? Why was «said to Abram alone "get the forth" ? Simeon replied Hf you think that [erah left Urof the Chalice in order to repent of his past life you are tistaken, "he truth is that he ws running avay for his life, as his fellow-countryrmen wanted o ill him. For when they sav that Abram was delivered (from the Bery furnace) they said to 'Terah, "It is you who misled os with those idols of yours", and it yas through fear of them that ah left. When he reached Taran he did not go any further, as itis writen, "And Abram went as the Lord had said 40, ies, and Lot went with in", bur rah ie noe 'mentioned. 8. Simcon expounded inthis connection the ext, 'And from the wicked thir light is withholden, and the high arm is broken" (Job xxxvit, 15). The words "and from the 'wicked their ight is withholden", he said, can be referred Nisarod and his conternporares, from whom Abram, who ih, departed. Or we may refer then go Terah and hishouschold, hose light wasAbram. It doesnot sa "li tout "heir light", vig, the light that as wih them, high arm is broken' refers to Nirarod, who led astray the whole of mnankind. 'Therefore itis written led fecha (bt go for thyself), to give light to thyself and to all cat shall follow thee from now onwards. R. Simeon further discoursed on the text, *Now they see not the light; itis bright in the skies, sand send paseth and cleanseth them" (Job axxvit, Now they see not the light", ie. Abram's family «aye not

2065THE ZOMAK 1 (78-700
the fight when God said to Abram, "Get thee forth fro Iand and from thy kindred and from thy father's house' ts bright in the skies" means that God willed to make Abram cleave to that supernal light and to shine there. "A wind ppasseth and cleanseth ther': because subsequently 'Terah nd all his hausshold repented, af i eid, and the eoule 'which they had saved (it made) in Haran", referring to Terah's household, and further, "and thou shalt come to thy fathers in peace" (Gen. 8¥, 1), which shoves that 'Terah joined Abram. So Asam WENT As THE LonD "aD SFORIS Yo ts, re, Said R. Eleazar: 'Tt is pot veritten "and Abram sent orth', ut senply "Abram stew"; the firs step was "going forth, as it is written, "and they went forth (cayes'x) From Ur of the Chaldees" (Gen, xt 31), but the second step was 'going', corresponding to God's command "Ge (le) thou" (ibid. sit, 1). AS THe LOxD HAD SPOKEN TO NIM ie, because he had received all uhose promises. Axo Lor West WITH aria: Le, he attached himself to him to Tearn this ways, and im spite of chs he did not learn therm too well" Said R, Eleaar: "Happy ate the righteous who learn the 'ways of the Healy One, blewed he He, ta walkin them and tw go io fear of that Day of Judgement when man will be called to aconunt hefore God.""To illustrate thi, R, Eleszar expounded the text: "By his hand every man sealeth, that all men may acknowledge their works" (Job. xxnvtt, 7), He 'sid: (79a) 'On the day when man's time arrives to depart from the ork, when the boy ie broken and the soul seeks to leave it, on that day man is privileged t see things that hhe was not permitted to sce before, when the body' was in full vigour. 'Phree messengers stand over him and take an account of his life and ofall that he has done in this world, and he admits all with his mouth and signe the uecount with, his hand as iis written, "every man sealeth with his hand! the whole account is signed with his hand so that he should bbe judged in the nest world for all his actions, former and later, old and new, not one of them is forgotten (as itis 'written, "thar every man should acknowledge his works"); 700) Leen Leena 25 and for all the deeds which he commited. with his body and his spirit in this world be gives an account with be body and spirit before he leaves the world. For just a sinners are stiff-necked in this world, so they are stfl necked even at the moment when they are on the point of departing from the world, Happy, therefee, is the man who learns in this world the ways of God to walk in them, But sinners, even though they observe the righteous, ae too stiff necked wo leasn from them, Thereforeit heboves the righteous to importune them and, even though the sioner he sti necked, not to relax his Bold of him, for if he lec him go, he may depart and destroy the world. We see this from the ease 'of Gehasi when driven aut by Elisha, So, too, with Lot: a long as Abram. ys with him, he did not associate with the 'wicked, but as soon as be left him, what do we find ? Lot chese him all the plain of Jordan'; and further, "and hhe moved his tent as far as Sodom', the inhabitants of which 'were wicked and sinners against the Lard exceedingly" Said R, Abba to R. Eleasar, 'With reference to your observe tion that the text says "Abraham went", and not "went forth", what do you make of the end of the verse which says "hem he went forth from Haran?" Said R, Eleazar: "T 'words "from Haran" are important; the journey was in the First insance a "going forth" from the land of his kindred, Ab ARKAM Fook Sakat us wire, The word "took" Signfies that he pleaded with her and persuaded her, For a mats is not permitted to take his wife with him to another country without her consent. 'The word "take" is used in a iniilar sense in the texts "Take Aaron" (Num. x8, 25), and ake the Levites" (Ud. i, 45), So Abram spoke per- suasively to Sarai, pointing out t9 her how wicked were the 'ways of their contemporaries. Further, Abram took LOT mts unorhen's sos, Abrams reason for taking Lot with him svas that he foresaw through the Holy Sprit that David was Uesined to isue from iw. ASD Tite sovLs silat TET at) GoTTEN 48 IAmAN: these were the male and female proselytes whose souls they had saved. Abrann converted the fen and Sarai the women, and therefore they are spoken of as if they had made them,' Said R, Abha: If so, they must

268HF ZOHAN [ro0-70b
hhave been a great crowd, if you aay that they all went with him.' Said R Eleazar; "That is eo; and therefere the whole 'company tha: went with him were called (798) "the people fof the God of Abraham, and he travelled through the land Without fear, as it ix writen, "And Abram passed through the land" Ssid R, Aba to him 'T interpret diferently, viz, that the particle eth here rignfes the augmentation af his 'merit by tha ofthe souls that went with him, since one who pputh another in the path of righteousness ever reaps benefit from his ment also, So it was the merit of those souls which were "made" in Haran that accompanied Abram," Ger riun roRTH. R, Simeon said: 'What 6 the reason that the first communion which God held with Abraham commenced with the words "Get thee forth" (lech leha) ? Ie is thatthe numerical value of the letters of the words lech Jecha is-a hundred, and hence they cantained & hint to him thar he would beget a sn a the age ofa hundred, See nO Whatever God daes upon the earth has some inner and recon dite parpose, Abram was not cleaving to God as closely as he should have done, and therefore God said to him, "Get thee forth', alluding thereby to the place where he would be able to draw near God, which was the frst grade for entering hefore God; hence "get thee forth", Abram could not attain tw this grade until he had entered the promised land) but there he was destined to attain it, Sieilarly wieh David, of 'whom iti enteen, "And David inguired of the Lord saying, Shall I go up into any of the @ties of Judah ? And the Lord ssid sata ii, Coup. And Davie aay Whither aball T gs up # And he sid, Unto Hebron." (1 Sam. 1, ¢). Seeing that Saul was dead and the kingship belonged of right w David, why was he not at once declared king over all Israel ? Here again there vas an inner purpose: David was not qualified tobecome king until he had atthe hirnelf to the patriarchs 'who sere buried in Hebran, and therefore he stayed there seven years in order to qualify himself completely for the Kingship, "Thus all was done with an inner purpose, and in torder that there should be no faw in his kingslap, Similarly lun he entered 'Abram did not enter nto the eovenant af 79b-Bos] Leen LECH 269, the land, Observe that the text eaye "And Abram paceed through the land", where we should have expected " through". We have here an allusion to the holy name of sevent)-tto letters with which the world is sealed, all of 'which ae in this name. We read here "and he pasted", and in another place we find "And the Lord parsed by before him and proclaimed" (Es. xqsv, ), Inthe book of the venerahle R. Yem we find: It is written here "And Abram passed through the land', and in another place i says I will make all my goodness pass before thee" (Ex. xxi 19), this being an allusion to the holines of the land which emanates from a heavenly source. Unto THE PLACE OF SHECHRM, UNTO THE OAK OF Monetn, ic, from one sphere to the other, as befitted. AND 'THE CANAANITE WAS THEN IN THE LAND, This confirms 'what has previously been sid, that up to that time the wicked serpent that was cursed and brought curses on the world held sway over the land, as iis written, "Cursed i Canaan, a servant of servants shal he be unto his brethren" (Cen, 18, 435), and of the serpent, "Cursed art thou above all eat (Gen, us, 14). Teas in that land that Abram drew near 90 God. Tor itis written here AX THE Lon areraRen Uso Apnants here was revealed to Sim what [Soa] he could sat previously find out, the hidden force that ruled 'over the (holy) land, and so He muti TWLERE AN ALTAR To THE LORD WHO APPEARED TO WIM. The words "eho appeared to him', which seem to be superfluous indi- ceate thit here was revealed to him that grade which rules 'over the land, and that be entered into it and was confirmed 158: 'The word ha-harah (to the mountain) can be rendered to the mountain of IW", implying that he now became acquainted with this and with all the grades planted there AND PiTcHED His TRYT: here, again, the leter Ad in the 'word abuloh (his tent) indicates that he parifed himself and acknowiedged the kingship of heaven inallshe gradesattached

270THE ZONARL [foa8:6
to it. He acquired the certainty thay God rues over all, and so he built an altar. There were, in fact, two altars, because here it was revealed to him that God is ruler overall, and Ihe became acquainted with the higher wisdom, which he had rot known previously. He therefore built two altars, one for the grade (of the Godhead) which was already known to him, and one forthe grade which was still concealed, This can be cen from the text: it ist says "And he built thece an altar to the Lord who appeared to him", and afterwards i says 'and he built an altar to the Lord", simply —with an allusion tothe highcr wisdom, Thus Abram praceeded from grade to grade until he reached his own rightful grade, as tie written, 'And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the South". the South (typifying wisdom) being the alloted portion of 'Abram, and there he finally fixed himself AND THERE WAS A FAMINE IN THE LAND® because up to now the power in charge of the land had not endowed the Jand with strength to produce Food, since as yet i (the land) had not attained its complete development, So, seeing that the power in charge ofthe land wasnt endowing it with its Fightful force and energy, AWKAM WENT DOWN TO Eeyer to sojourn Titvnr, Hoy did Abram know that the land was still defective ? Because it was said co him, 'O THY SEED WILL T GIVE THIS LAND. From this neve that the land would not be invested with its Spproprate holiness save, through the grades of holiness which would be exhibited by his ofspring. [815] AND Annas went vows 10 Eever ro sojours 'were, Why to Egype? Because it is compared to. the Garden ofthe Lord, a tis written, "Like the garden of the Lord, lke the land' of Egypt". For there a certain stream (Geom the Garden) which ison the right descends and flows, a5 itis ritten, "The name of the ene was Pishon, that itis whi comps the whe land of Hava whee there is

16814, 12). When Abram knew God and. scams
PetTectin fi, be sought to acquaint himself ith all those 'grades (of wisdom) which are attached to the lover world, Brb-faa) bri Lecita ape and since Egypt derived from the Right, he went down t :gypt. (We remark here-that famine comes only when mercy 'easts to temper justice.) Now 17 CAME TO PASS THAT WitES we Was COME SNEAK TO ENTER INTO Ecyet. The word bikrib (came 'near erally means "brought near"; ab much 3 0 say th hhe brought himself ftingly near to God. To ENTER INTO EGver: ie. to examine those other (worldly) grades so as te know how to avoid them and to shun the ways of the Egyptians. R. Judah said: 'Consider this. Because Abram went dows to Exype without frst obaining God's consent (For nowhere is it writen that God sold Abram to go down to Egypt), therefore his descendants were enslaved othe E tians four hundred years." All that night he was filled anxiety concerning Sarai, AND HE SAID TO SAKAI HIS Wirt, Benoun sow L xxow THAT THOW ART A PATE WOMAN TO Look UPON, Did he then nat knaw it before? "This confirms whit we have learnt, that up to that time [Abram had never looked closely at the features of Sarai on fccount of the excessive modesty which ruled their inter- ipa Butea he aperemchied ay they ete Sree and he saw how fair she was. Acording to another explana tion, he knew it through the fact that, contrary to the usual 'experience, she looked as beautiful as ever after the fatigues. of the journey. Another explanation is that Abram said s0 bbecase he sa with her the Shekinah, It was on this account that Abram made bald to say subsequently, "sheismy sister", 'with a double mesning: one the hteral, the other Figurative, as inthe words "say to Windom, thou art my sister" (Prov Wt, g) SAY Now THOU ART MY stsTER, R, Yesa said: "Abram knew that all the Egypiians were full of lewdness, Temay therefore (4s0] seem surprising that he was not appre hensive for his wife and that he did noc turn back without 'entering the country. flut the truth is that he saw with her the Shekinah and was therefore confident, Thar Ur MAY DE WELL WITH ate FOR THY saKE: these words were ad- dresied to the Shekinah, as if to say: "that Goll may entreat 'me well for thy: sake". AND THAT MY SOUL MAY LIVE ap yur 20HAK 1 [Bea BECAUS® OF THEE! because through this (the Shekinah) socends and becomes privileged to enter oft the pa of Now tr CAME TO PASS THAT WiHES ABRAM WAS comr ro Eover we Eoyertaxs peHeLD THE WOMAN THAT si WAS VERY PAIK. R, Judah said: "He brought her in bos, and they opened it to levy duty. When it was opened a light like thae of the sun shone forth, as it says "that she was very far". 'The word "very" indicates 'that they saw in the box another figure; for when they took hher out, they sav a. figure in the box as before. Hence the Scripture repeats, AND THE PRINCES OF PHARAOSI SANE MER, and on this account THEY FRATSED Mex TO Puranaci.' R. Isaac sad: 'Woe to the sinners of the vorld 'ho do aot know and do not observe the work of the Holy 'One, blesed be He, nor do they reflect that all which takes pice in the world is from God, who krows from the outset that wil be atthe end, an i i written, 'declaring the end rom the beginning" (Is X11, 10). He looks ahead and lays a train nn for developments in the distant future. Thus had not Sarai been taken to Pharaoh, he would not have been plagued, and it was his castigation which caused the sub quent ecstigation of the Egyptians. 'The word "grea" is applied bere to the plagues inflicted on Pharaoh and alo to the "signs and wonders which God showed upon Eeypt" (Deut. 1, 22), toindicatethat here, s there, were ten plagues, and that just as God performed wonders for Isael by night, so He performed wonders for Sarai by night." RK, Jom expounded the text: Thou, 0 Lord, art a shield about me, my glory and the lifter up of mine head (Ps. 1,4). He said: "What David meant was; "though the whole world should eame to make wer on me, thou, O Lord, arta shield lout me". David further said to God: "Sovereign of the Universe, wherefore do not the Israelites conclude one of their Blesraya with iy Auine ta they Wo wit (ie pore oh Abraham,' of whom ics written 'Tam shy shield" (Gen. xv, 1) 2" God replied: "Abraham I have already tied and tested "The Bt Mesing the Ani 82] Leen Leena 73 and found to he wholly stedfast" Said David: "If 90, "examine me, O Loed, and prove me, try my reine and my heart' (Ps. xxv, 2)." When he sinned in the matter of Hath sheba, David remembered shat he had said, ad he exclaimed. "Thou hast proved mine hesr, thou hast visited me in the night, thou hast ted me and hast not found, my thoughts should not hive passed my mouth' (Ps. xvii, 3). L sid, Examine me, O Lord, and prove me, and thou hast proved sy heart; I sad, Try my reins, and thou hast tried me; but 'thou hast not found meas I sheuld be; would that what wasin 'my mind had not passed my lips." (And wit all this the Israelites do conclude a blessing with bis name) 'Therefore David said: "Thou, O. Lord, art a shield about me, my slory and the lifter up of my head': this grade assuredly is ray glory with which T arm erewned."" Aso PuaKAct GAvT Mite CHARGE CONCERNING HIM, AND THEY SENT itis ON its WAY. ahisld 6 the righteous to eave th falling into the power of men, and s0 God shielded Abram tha the Egyptians should not hare paver to haem him and his wife, For the Shekinah did not leave Sarai all that night, When Pharaoh, 'ried to approach her, the angel came and smote him. Whe ever Sarai said "smite", he smote, and meanwhile Abram. Iiemly crusted jn God that He would allow no harm to come is written, "the righteous are bold as lion" xvith, 2), "Chis ie one of the trials which Abram 'endured without complaining against God, Iskac said that God purposely refrained from telling Abram to go down to 'gypt, and allowed him to go of his own accord, in order thar people might not he able to say that after making him go there He brought trouble on him through his. wife R. Isaac here expounded the text The righteoes shall flourish like the palm tree, he shall grow like the cedar in Lebanon (Ps, sen, 13). 'Why isthe righteous man compared to a palm. (roe ? scans just a, ifs palm tres iv eut doen, i takes long. time for one to grow again, so iF the world loses a righteous man, i isa Tong time before another arises in his 27% "THE Z0NAR T [82-836 place. Further, just a¢a palm tree docs not grow unless the 'male be accompanied hy the female, so the rightenus cannot flourish sive wher they are mile and female together, Ike Abram and Sarai Again, "he shall grov like a. cedar in Lebanon": just ar a cedar is pre-eminent and all can sit Under it, 30 the rightcous man is pre-eminent and all sit under him, The world is supported upon one righteous one, ast is written, "the righteous ithe foundation of the world (Prox, x, 25)' Said R. Judah, 'Isitnot a dictum of the Rabbis that the World ret on seven supports, a it is writen, Wisdom hath hewn out her seven silts (Prov. R, Jewe replied: "That isto, but those oth [828] whois the real support ofthe world. This ia the Zaddie who saters and refreshes the world and feedeth all, andl of whom itis writen, "Say of the Zaddik that he is ood, for (throsgh hira) thes ear of the fruit of their works" (I. m1, 10), and again, "The Lord is good toalland histender merces are overall his works" (Ps, ext, 0)"

1Isaac said) "The Seriprure tells Us thac "a river went
forth from Eden to water the garden" (Gen, th, 10). Tt this ser which i= the support upon which the World ress,

11waters the Garden and eases to heat fruits which spring
snd blossom in the world, snd which uphold the world and make posible the study of the 'Torah. What are these fruits? 'They are the souls of the righteous which are the fruit of God's handiwork. 'Therefore every night the sovle fof the righteous mount on high, and at the hour of mid Sint the Holy Oe, leased fe He, comes te the Eden to disport Himself with them, With which of them ? R. Joxe said, with al = both with those whose abode isin the other world and with those who ate stilin theie divell- ings in this world with all of them God daports Himself at midnight. For the world om high requires to he stirred by the impulse ofthe lower world, and so wen the souls of the righteous leave this world and ssount on high, they all clothe thernselves with a supersal light, sith a resplendent 1d God disports Himself with them and delights in Jnce they are the frit of His handiwork, and for this reason Israel who are possessed of holy souls are called sons Saesan of 824) LECH LECHA 275 to the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is writen, "Ye are 'sons tothe Lord your God" (Deut. ty 1), that iy, the frit of His handiwork" Said R, Yesa, 'You say that God disports Himself alo with the souls in this world: how is this?" He answered, 'At midnight all the truly righteous arise to read the Torah and to sing psslms, and we have Fearne that the Holy One, hlessed be Ile, and all the righteous in the Garden of Een Tisten to their voices, and in consequence a certain is imparted to thera by day; soit is writen, "The Lord 'wll command his grace in the day-time, and inthe night hia song shall be with me" (Ps. xuit,g). Hence it is that the praises which are sung st night constitute the mest perfect praise. So when God wat slaying the fist-born in Egypt, the Israelites in their houses were singing praises and psalms Him. See tow, King David too used to get up in the middle of the night, a itis writen, "AC midnight I Will Fse to give thanks to thee" (Ps. exis, Ga). He did not remain siting oF Iying in hisbed, but he Iterlly rose and stood up to compose tale and praises, Therefore ic is that King David Hives f ever, and even in the days of the King Messiah he will be king, according to the dictum: "If the King Messiah will bye from the living, David will be his name, and if he will be from the dead, David willbe his name." He, a8it were, awoke the dasin, a0 iin written, "Awake, my glory aah, paaltery and harps I myself will awake right carl" (Ps. 11, 9) In the night when Sarai was with Pharaoh, the angels came to sing praises before God, but God said to them, "Go all of you, and deal heavy blows on Egypt, in artieipation ff what L'intend to do subsequently"; henge i written, "And the Lord smote Pharaol with great plagues." 'Then, Puanaou caniep Agnast, ere. What gave him this fdea, seing that God dif not say anything to himas He did fater to Afumelech, as when He said, "And now restore the man's wile, for he ts a prophet", ets. (Gen. xx, 7)? Said R, Isaac, "The answer is contained in the words BEC AUS Sawat Awnaa's Wire: the angels as they smote him said "thi blow is because of Sarai Sbram's wife" and no Fore, and teen Ns Knew thet ahe van Abrain's wile, snd straightway "Pharaoh called Abram and said, et ab THe ZOMAR [825-830 PHAKAOU GAYE MEN CHANGE CONCHRNTSEG win: why 1s? In order that no man should come near to hurt them. Ast) THEY DROUGHT HIM ON THK WAY! ie, they con" 'lucted him through the kind of Egypt. Said Gea to him: Se art thou destined to do to his descendants: thow shalt con- "luce them fom thy land, 28 & is written, "And it came to jase when Phiraoh lt go (bshellach, ht. escorted) the people" Siti, 17)", Abba said: "AIL this happened to Abram i fe hat gor chrough all his onky in order hat be and might acquire a gee in the world. [83a] For even in Ego, a country of magicians from whom no man 'could escape, Abram distinguished himself, and he raised himself there wo a higher eminence, as it is writen, AND Aunuas Wixt UP OUT oF Eoxer. 'Te where did be ascend ? Lvfo THE SoUTH.'Said R, Simeon: Observe that these words have an ine Abram went down to the "wer degrees" in Egypt, and probed them to the bottom, ut clave not to them and re= turned unto his Master, He was not like Adam, who, when hhe descended to a certain grate, was entieed by the and brought death upon the world; nar was he like ho, when he descenled toa certain geal, was enticed 3nd drank of the wine and hecame drunk and was uncovered fn the midst of his tent" (Gen, 18, 21). Unlike therm, Abram feame ip again and returned th his place, tothe upper grade to which he had been attached previously. This whole inci= lent ie related in arder to show that he was tedfast in his Aisehipent 19 Whom seduced, and returned th his former condition, "Into the South' this is the higher rade to which he was atached at first, a itis written, "going 'nail tothe South". The inver significance ofthis narrative is thar if Alrato had not gone down to Egypt and heen tested there, his poction would not have heen in the Lord. Similarly with his descendants, whom God desired to make a unique and perfect people and to bring near to Himself: if they had not first yore down to Egypt and been tested there, they 'would not have been God's chosen people, Similarly, too, if the Holy Land had not been fst given to Canaan to rule over, it would not have become the lot and portion of the Holy id a 83a) Lew Lien, 27 One, blested be He, In all these facts the same-mystical 'murpese is to be observed. RR Simcon was once on journey fs company sith is son R, Bleazar and R, Abba and R. Judah. As they were 'going along, R. Simeor said: marvel how indifferent men are tothe words of the Torah and the problem of their own, existence !" He proceeded to discourse on the text: With ny: sol have I desired the in the night, yea, with my sprit scitkin ime teil I seek ther eary (Is, X81, 0). He ssid> "The inser meaning of this verse sas follows. When a man lies down, in ed, his vital spire (nes leaves him and begins to mount 'on high, leaving with the body: only the impression of a receptacle which contains the heart-beat, The reat of i tres to soar from grade to grade, and in doing so it encounters certain bright but unclean essences. If its pure and has rot Aefied itself by day, st res above them, HC nots becomes defiled among them and cleaves to them and does not rise any further. There they show her certain things which are going to happen in the near future: and sometimes they 'elude her and show her false things. Thus she goes about 'the whole night until the man wakes up, when she returns

10her place. Happy are the righteous to whom God reveale
'is secrets in dreams, so that they may be on their guard agains sin ! Woe to the sinners who defle theie bodies and their souls! As for these who have not defiled themselves luring the day, when they fall asleep 3t night their souls begin to ascend, and fist enter those grades which we have mentioned, but they do not cleave to them and continue to fiount further, 'The seul which is privileged hus to rise finally appears before the gate of the exestial palace, and 'yearns with all its might to behold the beauty of the King and to visit His sanctuary, 'This is the man who ever hath a portion in the world 10 come, and this isthe soul whose year- ng shen she ascends is for the Holy One, blessed be He, 'isd who docs not cleave 0 thone other bright eaences, but Seeks out the holy essence in the place trom which she (originally) issued. "Therefore jis written, "With my soul have I desired thee in the night 19 pursue after thee and not ta be enticed away after false porvers. Again, the words a8 He 2ouAR T [ie-835 "With my soul have I desired thee {836] inthe night" refer to the soul (neck) which fas away' by night, while the words "with my' spit weithin ane sil I-scek thee early" refer to the spit (rua) which has sway by day. "Soul" (nefesh) and "spirit" (rial) are not two separate grades, hut one grade with two aspects, There is still a third aspect which should dominate these to an cleave to them as they to it, and which i called "higher spirit" (neshamal). (AI these sgrides are arranged in wssom, and contemplation of them throws light on the higher Wisdom.) 'This spirit enters into them and they cleave wo it, ad when it domiates, such a 'man is called holy, perfect, wholly devoted to God. "Soul" {nefesh) is the lowest stircing, it supports and feeds the body and i elosely connected with i, When st suficently qualities itself, it hecomes the theane oa which rests the lower spirit (ruaf), as itis written, "unl the spisit be poured on us from on high" (Is. xxkt, 15]. When both have prepared themselves suficiently, they are qualified o receive the higher spirit (neshamah), to which the lower spirit (rual) becomes throne, andwhich isundiscoverable, supreme overall, Thus there is throne resting on throne, and a throne forthe highest. From observing these grades of the soul, one obtains an insight into the higher Wisdom, and it i whally through 'Wisdom that in this vay certain mysteries ate connected together, For neferh isthe lows stirring t9 which the body leaves, like the dark light at the bottom of the candle-lame Which clings to the wiek and exists only through it. When fully kindled it becomes a throne forthe white light above it, When both are fully kindled, the white ight becsmnes 2 throne for a light whieh cannot be fully discerned, an unknoven something reting om that white light, and so there is formed

4complete light. So with the man who attains perfection and.
is called "holy, as in the verse "Yor the holy ones that are in the earth". And so also in the upper world, Hence at the time when Abram entered the lind God appeared to him and he received there a nefesh, and built an altar to the eorre- sponding. grade (of divinity). 'Then, She journeyed to the South", receiving a ruah. Firaly he rose to she height of cleaving to God through the medium of the neshamah, Byh-8ya) teen teen 9 \whereupon he "built an altarto the Lord,indicating the most recondite rade corresponding to theneshamah. Hethen found that it was requisite for hin to test himself and endow himself with grades, so he went down to Exypt. There he preserved himself from being sediced by those bright essences, and after testing himself he serurned to his pace: he " from Egypt literally, strengthened and confirmed i faith, and resched the highest grade of ith. 'Theneeforth Abram 'was acquainted with the higher Wisdom and clung to God and became the right hand of the world. Hence it says AND ADRAM WAS VERY RICH IN CATTLE, IN SULVER, AND ts eouD: "ery rich", from the side of the East; "in cattle", from the side ofthe West; "in ser, from the sie of the South; "in gold", from the side of the North' B. Eleazar and R_ Abba and all the companions thereupon cane and kised his hands. Ko Abba wept and said, 'Alas, alas, when thou departest from the world, who shall cause the ight 'of the Torah to shine forth ? Happy the lot of the companions Who hear these words of the Torah from thy mouth," Said Simeon, Let us proceed, AND Me WeNT ON sts JOURNEYS, Le:t0 revisit his place and his grades, until he reached the fire grade where the first recelation had taken place, "On his journeys": all those grades, grade after grade, as has been said. (Rya] Even ro Betws. to prepare his place and to combine "the South" and "Bethel" in a complete unity, since from the South 10 Bethel comprised the whole gamut of Wisdom, Ura THe NING, 10 wit, Bethel, the perfect stone". The spot fs further das THE FLACK OF THE ALTAM WHICH MH HAD MADE THERE AT THE s1RST, as it was said, "Yo the Lond 'who appeared unto him", and therefore now ARRAN CALLED ON THE NAME OF THE Lon, in proof that he hhad attained to perfect fith. Note this, At frst Abram pro- ceeded from the lower to the higher, a5 ics written, "And the Lord appeared to: Abram", and again, "to the Lord who appeared to hin", and then "going an his journeys to the South"—grade after grade until he was endowed with the

380Tite ZONK E [4a
'South sshich was his rightful portion. From thence he began to reverse the process and descended from the higher 10 the lover, s0 25 to fx all in its proper place. On the return journey, 100, the meation of his stages coat to the higher Wisdom, It is writen, "Ant journeys from the Seuth", ie, from the side of the Right, from the very beginning of the upper world, the mysterious tnd recondite, reaching to the Limitless (Eu Saf), and then descended stage by stage "from the South to Bethel", where "Abram called on the name of the Lord ie. he affixed the tunity to Hs propen plac, sin, the place of the alter which the had made there at the frst": .e. he had taken it from the lower to the upper grade, and now he brought it down by stages from the upper to the lower in order that it should not depart from those upper grades nor they from it and the whole shoul constitute an indissoluble unity. 'Then was Abram fully endowed, and he became the lt and the portion fof Godin eeat truth. Happy are the righteous. who are Crowned in God as God in them ! Happy in this world and happy in the world to come ! Of them itis written, "Thy, people shall be all righteous, they shall inert the earth for ver" (In. tx, 21); and again, "The path of the righteous is a the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day" (Prov. 1, 18) 'The travellers wvenc on until they came to a field, where they sat down, R, Simeon then discoursed on the text: Turn unto me and hace meres uponme (Ps. xx, 16) Hesaid: "This verse deserves careful sudy, for although we have already explained it more than once, yet it has stil an inner rean= ing. How could David say to urn to me"? The truth is that he was referring to the grade with which he was indoved: Similarly he said Gice thy: strength to thy sereant (bs). "Phe word. "sirengeh refers to the supernal Fore {(Geburah), asin the verse "And he gave strength to his ki (1, 19). Phe ward "king", used thus without qualification, refers to the Messiah as also does the word "servant" in this passage. And save the son of thy handmaid. Why does he eall himself the son of his mother and not of his father Jesse? TPhis bears out what we have laid down, that when @ man LrCH LFCHA 281 ag of heaven, he should only say that ence he mentioned his mother and 'not his father, And further, tradition refers this verse othe 'Messiah, as we have said." K, Sineon proceeded! AS THERE WAS 9 STHIFE BETWEEN THE HERDMES OF Angaat's carte. 'The omission of the letter Yod from the word rif (strife) indicates that Lot desired to revert to the idolatry of the inhabitants of the countrys this is con= firmed by the end of the verse AND THE CANAANITE AND ile Puntazire oweer then ii THe Lan. 'That | actually did revert to idolatry we know from the words A Lor Jounxnven from THE East: the word mi-gelem (from the Ea valent to mi-padmono (fron the Ancient One) of the world (similarly it ays ofthe men who built the Tower of Babel that they journeyed "from the Fast", Gen, As soon as Abram saw that this was in Lot's rind, straightway IF SatD TO Lor... SEPARATE TILYS: T PRAY THEE, FROM Me; as if w aay, thou art not worthy to associate with me. So Abram separated from him and refused to accompany or join him, since whoever associates with a sinner eventually follows inhis footsteps and so brings punishment [S44] upon himself, We know this from Jehos- haphat, who through joining with Abab would have bruughe punishment on himasif had he nct been saved by the merit DE his ancestors. 'Therefore Abram refused to accompany Lat; and forall that Lot did not turn from his evil course, but CHOSE HIM ALL THE PLAIN OF THE JORDAN and journeyed mi-gedem, ic, departed from the Ancient One of the world, and did not seek to perfect himself in faith like Abram. 80 ABRAM DWELLED 15 THE LAND OY CANAAN, to cleave tothe place where faith could be strengthened and

10learn wisdors in order wy cleave t his Master, whotese
Lor bWELLED IN TRE Cities OF THE PLATS and MOVED His TENT AS PAM AS Sonos, with those godless 'ners who had abandoned faith, agit ie written, NOW rate Tuy Logp excrepr sty. Thus each weng his own way Happy are the companions who devote themselves t0 the ah THe ZouAR (Bab "Torah day and night and seck converse with God: of them. it God are AND THE LonD sar To ARAM artEA THAT Lot WAS SEFANATED FROM HIM, In connection with this verse R. Abba discoursed on the following text: Jonah rose up to lee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord (Jonah, 1, 3) He said; 'Woe to the nian who seeks to hide himself from God, of whom itis writen, "Do T not fill heaven and earth, saith the Lord 2" (Jer. xt 4). Why, then, did Jonah, seek to flee from Him ?"The reason is to be found in the verse "My dave that of the steep place" (S. S. 11 14). community of lerael; "the cles of the rock" refers to Jerusalem, vhich is firm and eminent like a rock; "the 'overts of the steep place" refer to the place which is called "holy of holies", the heart ofthe world, It is called "coverts" because there the Shekinah is concealed like a woman who 'converses anly with her husband and never goes out. 'The 'community of Israel does not dwell outside its own place save in the time of exile, and because it i in eile, therefore 'other nations enjoy greater prosperity, When Jsrael sere in their own land everything wat as it should be, the heavenly throne was filly spread over them, and the iturgy which they performed pierced through the ether and ascended on high to its place. For Isael alone was qualified to serve God in tha land, and therefore the Gentiles kept alo, since they did not rule over it a8 now, but were nourished only by the 'residue'. You may say, How do you reconeife this with the fact that a numberof (foreign) kings ruled overit a the time when the Temple still exsted, The answer that in the time 'ofthe fist Temple, before Israel defiled the lane, the Gentiles nat nile aver ft hit were nowrished feoon the "reside But when Israel sinned and defiled the land, they, as ¢ were, rove the Shekinah from its place, and it west to another place, and therefore other nations were allowed to rule over the land. For no angel has control ofthe land of Israel, but nly God. When Israel sinned and burned incense to other 84-850) Lec LECH 2B sodsinthe Holy Land, the Shekinah was driven fromits place, and other gods were associated with it, and so other nations 'obtained dominion and the prophets died out, and all the higher grades ceased to rule, and dominion was not with- drawn from other nations, because they drew the Shekinah to themselves. Hence in the time of the second 'Temple the rule 'of the other nations did not cease, and even i petiod of the Exile, when the Shei Sihernations where oi 'ig thei austenance from the Shekinah, hich has consorted with them. 'Thus we see that (8sa] when Israel dwelt in their 'own land and maintained the Temple service, the Shekinah remained among. thera in privacy, and didnot issue from her house openly. Therefore all the prophets who fived in those times drew their inspiration only from her place, as we have sid, "Thatwas the reason why Jonah fed from the Holy Land, namely, that the prophetic inspiration should not come 10 hum, and he should not have to take the Lord's message But, you may say, did not the Shekinah reveal itself (to Ezekiel in Babylon, which is outside the Holy Land ? The answers that, according to an authentic tradition, the words came expressly" used a the heginning of Ezekiel's prophecy indicate that this was without precedent from the day when the 'Temple was built, and this prophecy was for a special emergency. Further, the incident took place on the river Khebar (Mhebar=of old), so called becanse it was qualified for this from the begining of the world, and the Shekinsh bad bert constandly revealed on it, an iti written, "And a river went out fom Eden to water the arden and from there it parted, ete" (Gen. i, 10), This vas one of the four rivers and there the Shekinah was revealed exceptionally to celiere Israel in their emergency; hut at other times it did not appear there, Therefore Jonah left the Holy Land in order that the 'Shekinab nsight not rest upon him or appear to hiro, and hence it says "from the presence uf the Lard", and again, Wr the amen knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord" Jon. 1, 10), Wha isthe point of allthis? Te i that just asin the case of Jonah, the Shekinah did not reveal itself 'ave in the fiting place, 0 in the ease of Abram it die moe ay FHKE 200A (isa reveal itself save when he was in fiting company. For from the day when Loe made up his mind to hecome a renegade, the Holy Spirit departed from Abrany; but when Lotlefthim, eNTo Amasa srraR THAT LOT Was SEPARATED FROM 1113, Funhermore, when Abram saw that Lot had reverted to his sinful ways, he was afraid and said to himself, "Perhaps through associating with this mon I have Jost the holy heritage with which God has endowed me; henee, When Lot lef him, God said to him, Livy vr SOW TINE LYES AND LOOK FROM THE PLACE WHERE THOU 487. "The place where thou art" means "the place to which thou didat cleave before, and in which thou wast endowed with perfect faith". NonTuwann AND SOUTHWARD AND EASTWARD AND WEsTWARD: These are the sime as the "Journeys" refereed t0 Jn verse 3, Tecate, Hie ten the chee dees) Abram 'received tings that that perfect faith which he had acquired 'on his frst passage through the land would not depart from him and his descendants for ever; hence itis written, FoR THE LAND WitieH THOU SFEST, TO THEE WILL I 6tVE Ty ASU TO TILY SbED HOW EVER: the words "which thou sceat" indicate the First grade which he had acquired origin ally, and which now included and exhibited all the other rade" R, Eleazar was-once at an inn at Lud, where R. Hiskiah also happened to be. In the course of the night he got up t0 the Torah, a6 did alan R. Hlikiah. On seeing bik, he said, "An inn. like this is always a meeting-place for the 'companions.' He then began to discourse on the text: Ar the 'apple tree among the trees of the za, cote my beloved among the sans (S. 8. tl,3). "The apple te" he said, "indicates the Holy One, blessed be He, being more delightful than al the other trees, and distinguished among them by ite colours 'So none an compare with Him; therefore "I delighted in his shadow'"—in bis shadow and not in that of the ather suardian-angels, even from the time when Abram was in the 'world, Abram, who sas attached w God in love, as i is written, "Abraham my friend" (Ie xu, 8), His fruit eas Kash] LECH LreMy Bs seeet tv my tate refers 0 Isaac, who was a holy fruit. 'The voeda ~ In his shadow 1 delighted and sat down" may alo tre referred ta Jacob, aid the words "and his frult was sweet 'a my taste" tw Joseph, who produced holy fruit in the world. (854) Italo posible to understand the words "Like 4an apple tree among the tees ofthe wuod' of Abrabaro, wha senelt sweetly like an apple tree, who was distinguished in, faith above all his contemporaries, and who was marked out

28unique honk aheve and below, ait written, "Abraham
'eae one!" (Exe. nxt 24). He was wr called because na one dae of his contemporaries attained to the virtue of faith in Gord? Said R. Hinkiah to him: 'What of the words "And the souls which they made in Haran? He replied: "These i not reach the higher grades which Abraham acquired." Later om he said to him "Another thing I have been told is vhit Abrahaun was aut called "ne" unt he had associated with himself Isaac and Jacob. When he had done this and hen all theee were patriarchs, then Abraham was called cn", and then he hecame the apple tree distinguished shove all the rest of the world," He said: 'Your explanation, 1s good. According to smother explanation, the w apple ree, "ay Beloved sd "in bis sha indicate the Holy One, blested be He. "I delighted and sat to wit, on the day when God revealed Himself on Mount Sinai and Tarael received the 'Torah and said, "We will do 'ad we will heatken'" (Lg. xxty, 7). "Hi fruit 6 sweet 0 fay taste refers to che words ofthe 'Torah which are called Sweeter than honey and the honeveomh'" (Ps, XX, 11) Another explanation refers the "fruit" to the souls of the rightcous, who ace the fruit ofthe handovork of the Almighty and abide sith Him above, Listen to this, All the souls in the world, which ate the fruit of the handiwork of the Al- mighty, are all mystcally one, but when they descend to this 'orld they are separated into male and female, though these are still conjoined, When they first issue forth, they issue as tale and female together. Subsequently, when they descend (to this voeld) they separate, one to one side and the other to the other, and God afterwards mates them —God and no 'ther, He alone knawing the mate proper to each, Happy

280THE ZoHAR E (850-860
the man who is upright in ha works ancl walks jn the way fof eruth, zo that his soul may find its original mate, for then the hecomes indeed perfect, and through his perfection the 'whole world is blesed." 'have heard the following explanation, im ane is thy fruit found" (Hos. x1y, 9). The Hely One, blessed be He, said 0 the Community of Israel, "From me assuredly is thy fruit founa™—nov sy fruit, Dut thy fruit: the desire ofthe female [produces a vital sprit and is embraced in the yehemence of the mle, so that soul is joined with soul and they are made 'one, each embraced in the ether. Afterwards they become two in this world, and thus through the force of the male is produced the fruit ofthe female. According to another © planation, the frit of the maleis produced through the desire 'ofthe female, since if not forthe desice of the female For the 'male no frit would ever be produced, Now tr cams. 10 PASS IN THE DAYS OF AstaareL KiNG OF Surxan, R, Jow expounded in ths connection the test: Wo hath raved up ane from the East, whom Right- usness calleth to follow him? (Is. xu, 2). He said "This 'Yerse has been explained in various ways, bu italso contains an esoteric allusion, God, we have learnt, has rade seven fiemaments on high, all of which acknowledge the glory of the Almighty and are capable of pointing the lesson of true faith, Now there is above these seven a hidden fiemament which guides and illumines them. OF this ase we exnnot discover the true nature, however much we inquire, and therefore itis designated by the interrogative particle Mé (Who), as has been pointed out: hence the Seripaure says: "From the womb of Whom Mi) came forth the ice" (Job xAVII, 29), which hasbeen explained to refer tothe highest firmament [iba] over the other seven. At the hottom again there is a fmament, the lowest ofall, which has no light; and on that account the highest firmament joins with i stich a way atta insert ii the two letters of ft own name,

0that itis called Yam (sea), being, ait were, the sa ofthat
highest firmament, because al the other firmarnents serve as streams (to canvey its light), and flow into thislowest one as Ma} brew exeua 281 to a sea; and it thereuun produces fruits and Fishes after their kind, and in reference to this David said; "Lo, the sea great and wide, wherein ase things creeping innumerable, 'both siall and great beasts" (Ps, civ, 25). We now see what is meant by the words "Who raised up frem the Fast" 'The fone raited up was Abraham. The words "Righteousness calleth him to follow hinn refer to the lowest firmament, 'which fae become "sea" Te ix thie which "giveth mations before him", which executes vengeance and overthruvts the 'enemy, "He giveth nations hefore him: thse are the peoples fof the earth. "And maketh hie to rule over kings": these are the guardian-angels of the nations above, for when God 'executes judgement on a people, He does so both below and above, "He pirsueth them and passeth on safely" (Is. xt, ): this is Abram who pursued them while God passed before hhim and slew them, as it says, "Peace passeth on" (Ibid), Peace" referring to God. "Even by a way that he had not one by his feet"> if not with his feet, how then did Abrams goon the clouds or with horses and chariots? No: what 'means is that i¢ was not an angel or a messenger, but Gol Himself, thar went before Abram, the word "feet here refet- fing to the angels, who are subject to God, ax in the verse "And his feet shall stand in that day" (Zech, xtv,4). Another explanation of the verse is as follows, When God "awoke" the world ta bring Abram and to draw him nese to Hise this war because Jacob vas destined to isue from him ani to establish twelve tribes who should all be righteous in the sight of God. "Whom he calleth in righteousness": because 'God yess calling him constantly from the day that the woe 'was crested, ait i written, "calling the generations from the ning' (Is. 824, 4); "To hi Foot te. to attach bien > His service and to bring bim near to Himself, R, Judah says "Who aroused from the East" this refers to Abraham. who receive his first impulse to seck God from the East. Fer 'shen he saw the sur issuing in the moraing from the Es, 'ne was fst moved to think that that was God, and said "this is the King that ereated me", and worshipped it the whole day. Inthe evening shen the sun wene down and the moon commenced to shine, he aid, "Verily this ules over the ory

288THE ZOHAR E [860-865
'which [worshipped the whole day, sine the later is darkened before & and does not shine any more." So he served the 'moon all that night, In the morning, when he saw the darkness depart and the East grow light, he said, "Of a surety there is aa king who rules over all these orbs and orders them." So 'when God saw Abram's longing ta find Him, He revealed Himself unto him and spoke with bim, as it is watten, "Righteousness called to him to follow him." [Issac explained in connection with Abraham the verse: Lam the Lord speaking rightequoness, dtclaring that is right (sx. 19) [868] He sid: 'All God's words are truth and His acts are righteousness. For when Gad first created the 'world it was unstable and rocked to and fro. Said God tothe world, Whereforerockest thou? Itanswered: Soveecign 'of the Universe, I eannct be firm, because I have no founda- tion on which to rest. God thereupon suid: Behold, Tintend to raise up in thee a righteous man, Abraham, who will love 'Me, Hearing this, the word straightway became firmly estab lished: therefore it is written, "these are the generations of the heavensand the earth bhibareane (when they were erated), 'whieh by a transposition of lettrs becomes beabrahar (for the sake of Abraham)," R. Hiya enlarged upon the words 'declaring what is right", He said: "The world continued to remonstrate with God, saying, "From this Abraham will iasve descendants! who will destroy the Temple and burn the Law," God replied: "He will also hive one descendant, raely Jaco, who willbe the father of bvelve tribes who wil all be righteous." Forthwith the work! was established for his sake, and therefore God ix said to be "declaring (the advent ef) things that are right." R, Eleazar said= "Ie has been noted that there is difference between "speaking" (ober) an "eclaving" (agg). "Speaking in fora a re~ vealed saurce, an outer grade, not of the highest; therefore itis applied here to "righteousness" (sede) Hut "declaring" indicates the inner grade which controls that belonging to 'speaking; hence i says here 'declaring things that are ght neat tess eeherieg 26 the) Bighce rade 'which is that of Jacob," Said BR. Isaac te him, "ls there not a 860) tren uci 8) text "the declares to you his envenant" (Deut 1, 13)? He replied: "The "covenant" als is a grade superior to that referred to in the expression "speaking rightesusness". One 'must be careful too to note tha although speaking" is lower than "declaring", ic still actually designates high grade and is very pregnant in. signification." A Hleszar vas once on the way to visit his father-in-law along with R. Hiya and R. Jose and R, Hiskiah, Said R, Eleazar, 'It is bore in upon me that stirring above is pro- 'duced only in response to an impulse from below, and depends 'upon the longing ofthat below' He illustrated this from the £0 Go, hep thow not silence, hold not thy peace, and be not still, O. God (Ps. txxxunt, 2), which he expounded thus "David said: "O God, keep thou not silence." These words represent an impulse to Elohin to exert His vay, David said in effect: "Elohim, vease not w rouse the Highest and 10 associate thyadf with the Right." Wherefore 90 ? Heeause "thine enemies make a tumult, ete.", they' have consulted together with one consent, ayainst 'Thee do they make a covenant. "Therefore, © God, he not silent," as explained. For when Elohim is joined withthe Right, then the enemies are crushed, abit is written, "Thy right hand, O Lond, is glorious in power, thy right hand, O Lord, dasheth in pieces the enemy." Note that, when all those ings joined together to make war on Abram, they designed to muke away with bm, Bu so soon as they got possesion of Lot, his brother's son, they went off (as itis writen, AND THEY TOOK Lov ABRAM'S BROTHER'S SON. AND His GOODS AND DE- PARTED), the reason being that Lot closely. resembled Abram, 40 thet thinking they had Abram, they went off 'The reason of their enmity to Abram wa: that Abram weaned men from idolatey and taught them to worship God. 'Also God incited them to make their inyasicn in order to agerandise Abram and to attract him to his service. Esoteri~ cally speaking, when Abram started to pursue them, then God "did not keep silent" until the whole was linked lup with Abram; then when the whole was linked ip with Abram, then all those kings were crushed before him, as we have sai" THE 2OHAR (8tb-85@ READ AND WINE, Ro Simeon adduced here the text "In Salem also is his tabernacle" (Ps. uxxvt, 3). He said: When God decided wo create the world, He fist produced a flame 'of a scintillating lamp. He blew spark against spark, causing darkness and fit, and produced from the recesses [87a] of the abyss a certain drop which He joined ssith the flame, and from the two He created the world. The flame ascended and encircled itself with the Left, and the drop ascended and 'encircled itself with the Right. They then crossed and changed paces, going up and down alternately uncil they were dasely Interlocked, and there ised from between them a full wind, Ihetwcen them ad they were entwined with one another, Be there ie ery steve cnt Gem py neta eed 'was finly established, the letter was crowned sith au and tau with hi, and so hé ascended and was joined ina perfect bond. 'This is alluded co sn the words "Melchiaedek (lit king of righteousness) king of Sater" (lit. completeness), jie, the king who rules with complete sovereignty. When i he completely king ? On the Day of Atonement, when all faces are illumined. According to another explaratio 'Melehizedek" alludes to the lover world, and "king of lem" to the upper world; and the verse indicates that both are imertwined inseparahly, evo worlds ike one, so that the lower world also is the whole, and the whole is one, "Brought forth kread and wine': signifying that oth of these are in i. AND Ne Was Fixtest or Gov Most Hicn: fe. one world ministers to the ether, "Priest" refers to the Right, and "Most High God" to the upper world; and hence a priest is required to bless the world, For this Tower world receives blessings when itis associated with a High Priest; hence there is a special force in the words "and hae blessed hiem and said, Blessed is Abram to the Most High God, After this model it behoves the priest on earth intertwine hie fngers when blessing in the synagogue in order that he may be linked sith the Right and that the two Worlds may be linked together. Burssep 1s Annan, The words of the text are a prototype of the formula of blessing 870-879] Len LicMn 291 (ose by the Isactite) "Blesed is Abram (in the sense wwe have given ti) coreespondsto "blessed art Thos". "Te the Most High God" correeponds 10 "O Lord oar God! "'Possesiorof heaven and earth corresponds to "kg of the vniverse" Further, AND HH BLESSED Mist indizates the course of blessing from below-to above; BLESSED 1s THE Most Hig Goo indicates from above to belaw. AND NE GAVE HIM A TENTH OF ALL: so that he should cleave to the place where the link was formed with the lower world." [As they were going along they came across R. Yea and a zrain Judeen with hie who was explaining the text "To David Unto thee, O Lord, do ft up my soul" (Ps He said: "Why is the inscription of this psalm simp fo David" and not "A Psalm of David ? Tis because the real meaning ix "forthe sake of David, ue. of hi grade, "Unto thes, 0 Lord", fe upwards David hime his original grade; "Tift up to ascend, since David wae evr striving to nse toa higher grade and to lik hirslf to i nly. Siriaely it was forthe Sake of his grade that David utered the words "To Davi Bles the Lord, O my' soul" (where the word eh indicates his desire to helnkel above) "and al hat siti me bless is holy name (Ps. it, 1, eelering to the "beats ofthe fla" whicharecalled "inwards" Said REleazarts B. Yess, "Vee that you have come in campany with the Shekinah.* He said, "Assuediy i isso. I have been waking with him three parasangs, and he has told me ever a0 many excellent things. I hired him as a porter, ot knowing that he asthe shining light which Ihave discovered him tobe, K. Eleazar then said tothe man, "What is your name?" He sai Whereupon be said: 'Let Joczer and Eleaar sit together So they sat down on a rook [7] in that field, "The Judean then commenced to discourse the text Z, even J, a he 'hat Bloteth at thy transpresion for mine oan sake, and thy tne Teil nat romenter (Ie. Sul, x5). He eid: "The word 'occur here twice: once in reference to Sinai (cf. "Tam the Lord thy God", Ex. xx, 2), and the other in reference to the creation af the word (ef. "have made the exth and created man upom it", 1s. XL¥, 12), t0 how that there is no

292THE 2ONAK (876
division herween the upper and lower worlds. "That bltteth 'out thy teanagressions!" not merely remewing them, so that they shall aever be seen more. "For mine own sake": ie, for the sake of the merey which I dispense, as it is written, "For the Lord thy God ix merciful God" (Deut. 1¥, 31). Another explanation ofthe words "that blotteth out thy trins- 'essions for mine own sake" is as follows, Sinners in this 'world impair the influence ofthe upper world, for when they sin, merey and the supernal light depart, and the stream of Dressing does not descend to this world, and this grade (of mercy) does not take up the blessings from above in order to convey them to the lowe world. Hence God aets "for His cn sake", in order that the stream of blessing should not be suithheld. Similarly itis written, "See now that 1, Lam the? (Deut. xxxtt,39) toshow that therein division beween the upper and the lower. See now, in this way, when there are righteous men i the world, blessings ate sent to all 'worlds, When Abram came, blesings were sent to the world, anit is written, "And T shall bless thee, and be thow a bless: ing, ie. thatblessing should be found both above and belo {for his sake. When Isaac came he taught the world that there is a judge eveeuting judgement above to punish the wicked, and he invoked justice upon the world inorder that its inhab 'tants might fear God. When Jacob eame he obtained mercy for the 'world and perfested men's faith in God. Hence in the days of Abram MELewizepek KING OF SALES (salem completeness), ic. God whose throne was then 'established in its place and whose sovereignty therefore be- fame complete, BROWGIT OCT BREAD AND WINE, Le, produced the appropriate food for the whole world, and did fot withhold blessing from all the worlds: from the upper grades He broughs forth food and blessings forall the worlds, ANo we was a retest tothe Most Hiow Goo, the 'whole thus being in the most perfest order; to show that as the wicked upset the world and cause blesing to be withheld, sothe righteous bring blessingto the world and for their sakes allits inhabitants are blessed. AND HE GAVE MIM A TENTH OF ALL, t0 wit, of those blewsings which isave fom "all", all the blessings which descend upon the world 87h 88a) LncH LRCHA 293 'Accouding to another explanation, God gave Abram a tenth, namely, the grade! in which all the sourees of faith and bless- 'ng are established, ane which isthe tenth, one out af ten and ten out of a hundred; and from this point onwards Abram was fully confirmed from above,' Said R. Eleazar to him: What you say is right" R. Eleazar further asked him what bis business seas, He sid: I yas 2 teacher of children in my town till R, Jose came, when they left me and went to hi Nevertheless the:ownsialk used to pay me my salary asbefere. Not wishing, however, o take money for nothing, I entered into the service of this Sage.' Said R, Eleszar: "This is cine US GAS ae eat Ma ai R. Simeon, and the Judean used to study all day before him. One day he wae studying the mubject of wathing the hands, and said: "Whoever does not wash his hands as required, although he is punished in the next world is also punished in this world, because he endangers his Fealth, And similarly, he who washes his hands a8 required procures for hinwelf blessings above which eat upon his hands, andi alo blewed with wealth." [8Sa} Afterwards R, Simeon caught sight of kim washing his hands and using a great quantity of water, and be exclaimed: "Fill his hands with thy blessings,' And so it came to pass, since he found a treasure and grew rich, and hhe used to study the Torah and give sustenance to the poor 'every day and smile upon them benignantly, so. that R. Simeon applied to hire the verse "And thou shale rejoice the Lord and glory in the Holy One of Tsrue." Avren ress THINos. R. Judah diseoursed on the text Tam my belowed's ana his desire is toroards me (S, 8. Vt, 21) He said: "The inner meaning ofthis verse is thatthe xen, helow is accompanied by a stirring above, for there is no sticring above till thereis a stirring below, Further, blessings from above descend only where there is some substance and 'not mere emptiness, We learn this from the wife of Obadial to.whom Elisha said, "Tell me, what hast thou in the house Gi Kings, 1%, 2), meaning that blessings from above wosld rot descend on an emp table or an empty place. When she * aalath THe ZONAR [80-88 hhh nothing in the house save weruse 'only enough to smear he litle finger—he said to ou have relieved me, for T did not see how Bestnge 'were to descend from above on to an empey place, but since ou have some ol this will provide a place suficien fo the purpose." (The connection of "ot" with"*blessing" isfoundin alm cxxait, where it says "like th good of," ete. and then 'Yor thee the Lord commanded the blesing, life for ever= 'nore". tis true, the immediate comparison in the passage 'swith dew, not ol ut the two mean the same thing a ths 'dew was dialled by God from the supernal ol, Wine and til belong respectively to the Left and the Right sides, and From the Right side blessings descend on the world, and fom there the holy kingdom is anointed. 'Thus because it was fixed upon below, oil was frst prepared above a the source af blessings, From the atctng (88) of this nupernal cil the lower oil was poured on David and Solomon to bring blss- ings on their desorndants, 'This is derived from a vollation of the text and the oi fond", in at Kings 1, 6, withthe text "the rot of Jesse which standech for an. ensign of the nations", Is st, 1) We derive the same lesson from the fact that the table of shew-beead, from which issued blsings. seas not tobe le empty a single moment; and an thatarcount 'ne do not say grace over an empty table since Blessings from shove donot rest on an empty table, To resume, then, the serie "Tam my: beloved's and towards me i is desire™ indicates that "it ofall Lam my beloved's, and then, in consequence, his desires towards me fist I preparefor him

4place, and then his desire is towards me" 'The verse mav
alo be explained by reference to the dictum that the Shekinah ¥r not found in the company af wines, but when a man cxerts himself to purify hitnself and to draw neat to God then the Shekinak rests on him, So "I am my beloved's® tw begin with, and then "his desire towards me" Aprin vitesse THINGS, {, after Abram pursued the kings and God slew them, Abram felt some qualms lest he had perchance forfeited same of his reward for converting men 1M the service of God, seeing that now some of his fellow 88b-Soa) LECH LECHA 295 creatures had been killed through him: Therefore God said to him: Fxan xor, ApRaM, 1 AM THY SHIELD, THY RRWAND 18 EXCEEDING GHEAT: you have weeived a rex ward for them, for none of them shall ever be accounted innocent. Tk WoRD OF THE LORD came UNTO Aamast 1-4 VISION SAYING. "Vision!" is the grade in 'which all figures are beheld. R. Simeon said: "Up to the time 'when Abramwas circumcised, only one grade spoke with 'namely Vision, whieh is also mentioned in the verse "who Seeth the vision of Shadda'" (Num, xX¥v, 4). After his circumcision, all grades combined with this grade, and in this way God spoke with him. [89a] It may be objected that according to our interpretation the verses "and the Lord sppeared to Abram', "and Abram journeyed to the South", 'and he built there an altar", indicate that he had arained to these higher grades; how, thon, can you aay that before he was circumcised these grades did not combine with this one to speak with him ? 'The answer is that previously God gave wisdom to Abraham to cleave to Him and to know the teue 'meaning of faith, bot only this lower grade sewally spoke 'with him; but when he was circumcised, all the higher grades joined this lower grade to speak with hen, and thus Abrabarn reached the summit of perfection, See now, before a man is circumcised he i not attached to the name of God, but when hie is circumcised he enters into the narne and is attached to it, Abram, itis true, was attached to the name befare he was <ircumeised, but notin the proper manner, butonly through God's extreme love for him; subsequently He commanded him to circumcise Iiassclf, apd then he was voucbsafed the covenant which Kinks all the supernal grades, 1 covenant of union which links the whole together so that every part is intertwined, Hence, till Abram Was circumcised, Go's word svi him yeas only ia vision, a8 as ees sai Consider this, When God created the world, it was created 'only threntha covesant is itis written, "Bereshih (bith ek, feovenant of fire), God ereated"; and itis Further written, Sf my covenant of day and night stand not, if T have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth" (Jer. xxxit, 23), since there ia covenant of union that day and night

296THE ZOMAR L [850-908
stall not be separated. R. Ekavar said: "When God created the world, twa on cnodition shat i Teael when they came into the world should aecept the 'Torah, it would be well, but if not, then the world should revert to chaos. Nor was the world finly established until Israel stood before Mount Sinai and accepted the Torah, From that day God has been 'creating fresh worlds, to wit, the marriages of human beings, for from that time God has been making matches and pro chiming 'the daughter of s0-and.eo for so-and-so! these are the worlds which He creates." Tas a singin ro Tusk: this "I ie the first grade to Which he vas attached at the start. [gob] AND ApRast SAID, O LonD Gobs the two names indicate the union of the upper and the lower world. Was Wit THOU Give TO ME, SUING THar I GO CHILDLESS? ie, not having aso, and we have Teamt that he who has no son is called childless. The words "What wilt thou give to me"" would seem to indicate some want of fith on the part of Abraham, but this sot 0, God said to him "Tam thy shield," to wit, in this worl, "thy reward is very great", to wit, in the next world Abram, however, knew from che wisdom which he had aequired that a-man who has not begotten son is not rewarded with the future world, and he therefore ssid, "How canst thou give me (ouch 9 reward), cosing that T have not 'merited it?" (Hence we learn that a man whe is not vouch= safed sons inthis world és not granted in the future world the privilege of entering within the curtain.) Abram saw from his horoscope that he was fated not to have children; there- fore He mnovent sim FoRTH ANROAD; tht is, God said to him: ""Take no notice of that, for through my name thou shalt have a son'; hence it ays So (Kok) sau. THY SEED RE. The word Koh indicates the Holy Name, shich 'was now linked to him from that side, Fee the gateway of prayer thrvgh which a-man obtains his request; it is the de which comes from the se of Geburah (might), from. whieh Issac aso came. 'The side of Geburah i called Kol, because from it come fruit and produce to the world, and rot from the side of the stars-and constellaions, ANU HE 908) been Leen) 27 BELIEVED 18 THE LonD: he clave to the higher and not the loner he believed in the Lord and tot in stars and exn- 'stllatons: in the Lord who had promised to give him great recompense in the future world, "He believed in the Lord" 'namely in the grade which was vouchsafed him, that from there seed would come to him to bear children in the word ASD ile COUNTED 11 70 HIMSELF FoR KINDNESS: i, although this hak was pure justice, Abram counted it as tecey. Another explanation is that he linked the upper ith ie lower to join them together, in this way. According to tradition, God told Abram that he would not beget till his rhame had been changed to Abraham. The question has been asked, did he not beget Ishmael while be was still Abram ? "The answer ie that he di not beget the en who eae promised hhim while he was still Abram, 'Then he only hore for the lower world, but when he obtained the name Abraham and entered into the covenant he bore for the upper world, Hence 'Abram did not bear forthe upper union, but Abraham dd, 'as we have said, and he was linked above eheough Isaac." Now WHEN ABMas WAS NINETY-KINE YEARS OLD, ere, In connection with this verse R, Abba discoursed on the test: Fur who is God zave the Lord, an echo ea rock sve 'our Gal (1 Sam. xt, $2), He cad: "These words of King David may be paraphrased: What (heavenly) ruler or chil tain is there who ean do anything without the Lord, angthing save what he has been commanded by the Holy One, blessed be He, since all are eubect to Him and cannot do anything, of themselves ? And whst mighty power i there that has any force in himeelf save wht he derives from our God ? Another 'explanation i that a vision shown by the star is not like a 'sion shown by God, for they showa thing and God changes it, And again, "Who i a rock (Cour) save our God?" i, there is no fashioner(teeyar) who fashions form within form, and finishes iti all ite detail and inserts in it the heavenly soul which bears likeness to the Deity, See now, when desire Ubringe man and woman together, there issues from their unin son in whom both thee forms are combined, because Ged, has fashioned him i mould partaking of both. 'Therefore a8 rae oman t Iyeh-oe

2man should sant hmelf t sch dine, oer that th
fers rey os porn poste! Eel yas ioe pre sre Works ofthe Huy One, lwed baile fr nant Fationed axa mieoccam of the worl, and evry day Goc 'tera world by bringing the proper couples topeter, at Hie fbions the fers ofthe flying before they ate bor bot 8 Sis laa Ln Sena erst "This ts the hook of the gneraions of Adam', tha Gad showed Adam every generon and is students, te This does no simply mean tha he saw through the spi af prophecy that they were destined to come into the world oc lee e wetes ese Cera anrcioes hae ltcrally aw with his eyes the form in which they wen Alstinedt0 exes inthe word. Hew able to do his bec from the day on which the word was crested ail the soul Yehich were destined ta cored to life tmoog maunkind en fecine eee Godin eeloney nt ees seas wd Slatin to arume [one] on eh inthe sae wey that th Serax ater Gah ane othe nn for-sale 10 thn Sich toy wore ts eld) anda An ea pe wel Te eyes. Nov can't Be those ht tet afer here eet Hiespoeitels fa Gi eration goat tales Hee ee ay antl thy descsad bole Gestary wes Mons Goal ih hw thas seapeth birth Gay i ete! (Deut kts, 14), we andrstand him 9 hae indies tha Allwho were jes tobe born were there, (Ths penydetand Alle more consideration, The words of he te ae dit sandeth ere «and him tat sot here ith os thi day". The word standeth is omited from the second bal Gf the cates vo show that the future generations ware i fac standing there bu they were net vite. I may be asked why Were they on vn bere the tive ay tbe te ete vnbe to Ln, setng that here thete was re Fas The reason tha when the Tors was given to Lah the teed ond gated upon other sights and other grades, an they yearned to comemplate the plory oftheir Master, an thetloe they hal pe es tr at) The eee txprened inthe words ofthe Pals, lane je di mie unperfec substance" (Pe cxkats, 16) ve the othe 914-978] been LEeHA 299 celestial form resembling the one on earth. 'Thus we under- stand the words "Who isa tur ike our God, ic. wha bs

0exellent a fashioner (sayar) ax God who fashioned all
It ig also possible to explain the words "For who is God besides the Lord, ete." in a more exterie way. The ward for "God" here ie El, which signifies the-union ofall grades, Now there isa teat "EL hath indigaation avery day" (Ps vt, 13), which might Jead us to suppose that it designates a separate grade, Hence it says here "Who is El without Tehovth", indicating that El is never alone disjoined from JJehosth; and similarly there is no "Rock" (signifying the tribute of justice) "without our God?" Untill Abram was ercumeised, God spoke to him only in

4Vision, as it says above, "The word of the Lord cane unto
Abram in a vision" (Gen. xv, 1) By "vision" we understand the grade in which all figures are apparent, and which symbolises the covenant. This seems to contradict what was 'ssid before, that il Abram was circumcised he was addressed 'only by that grade to which the other grades are not avached 'The truth is that this yrade is indeed the reflection of ll the higher grades, and was rendered possible through that reflec- tion; it reflects all she colours (embolic of the divine attributes)—white at the right, ed atthe left, and a further 'colourcompounded ofall colours, In this reflection God stood 'over Abram and spoke with him, although he was not ercum- ised, Of Balaam itis sud that he sa "the vision of Shaddai" (Num. xan, 4), and of Abraham that God spoke to im "in

4vision", simply. 'The difference 1s that Balaam say only
those (angels) below the Almighty, whereas Abram saw the Hé in which all the celestial igures ace reflected. Till Abram was circumcised, he was addressed only by that degree which we have mentioned: after he was circumcised, then THE LOMD APPEARED UNTO ABKAS, Le, all the other (9:8) iradesappeared over this grade, and this grade addressed him without reserve. Thus when Abram vas circumcised he emerged from the unripe state and entered into the holy covenant, and was crowned with the sacred crown, and centered into the coverant on which the world is based; and thus the world was firmly established for his sake, For itis

300'THE 2OMAR L fos
'written, "But for my covenant, I ad not set the ordinances ff heaven and earth", and aleo "There are the generations 'of heaven and earth when they were created" —the word Iehibaream (when they were created) can be read anagram= matically hoth Beabraham (or the sake of Abraharn) and B'h Biraam (he created them with Hé), and both come to the 'same thing. 'When God showed Adin all furure-generations, he saw therm all in the Garden of Eden inthe form which they were destined to assume in this world. When he saw Dayid—s0 Wehave been rold—with no span of life at all apportioned to him, he was grieved, and gave him seventy years of his own; 'that is why Adam lived seventy years short of the thousand, the rest being given wo David. The fact of David's only having seventy years from Adam, the frst man, symbolises something in the higher sorld, as does everything here below. 'Note that all the figures of souls that are to be barn stand before God in pairs, and afterwards when they eome to this world God mates them. R. Isa says: 'God announees, The daughter of so-and-so for -and-2o," R. Jose said; 'Hove ean that he, seeing that, asthe Scripture tells, "there ie nothin 'new under the sun"? R. Judah said: "It fe true that God creates nothing new under the sun, but this is done above." Ri, Jose further asked: 'Why is there a proclamation, seeing, that, ag we have been told by R. Hiskiah in the name of R. Hiya, a man's wife is assigned to im at the very moment when he is born ? Said R. Abba: 'Happy are the righteous 'whose souls are beatified before the Holy King before they come into this world, For we have learnt that when God sends 'ule ito the world they are formed into pre of male snd female, and thus united are placed in the hands of an emissary who has charge of conception, and whose name is 'Night, After that they are separated, and subsequent taken down among mankind (nor always both at the same tie). When their time of marriage arives, God, who knows each spirit and soul, joins them as at first, and. proclaims heir union. 'Thus when they are joined they: become one body snd one sou, right and eft in unison, and in this wy there orb-o2a] EReH LEeHA 397 is nothing new under the sun". You may object thar there {salspa dictum that "aman only obtains the wife he deserves! 'This iss, the meaning being that if he leads a virwous life hhe is privileged to marry his own true mate, whose sou) emerged at the same time as his.' R. His should a map of good character look for replied: "There is a dictum that a man should sell all bis property in order to obstin in marriage a daughter of a scholar, forthe special treasure of God is deposited with the earned in the Torah, We have also learnt in the esoteric \Mishnah that one whose soul is a sccond time on earth can through prayer anticipate another in marrying a woman who they were right, The work "another is used sigifcanty; and it ib for this reason tht marriages constitute» dificult task for the Almighty, forin all cases "the ways of the Lord are right" (Hos. x1v, 10) R. Judah sent a question R. Eleazar. "I know', he ssi, 'about marriages in heaven, but T would like to ask, from where do those whose souls are a second time on earth obtain their mates ? 'The reply R Hleazar sent him was this: 'Itis written: "How shall we do for wives for them that remain 2" (Jud. Xs, 2) and agin, "and you shal catch every man his wife, et." (Ibid, 2). This story of the Berjaminites shows us how it ean be done, and hence the dictum "lest another anticipate him through his prayers" [92a] Said R, Judah: 'No wonder we sy that marriages consteute a difficult problem for the 'Almighty ! Happy the lot of eae! who learn from the Torah the sys of God and all hidden things, and'even the secret of His mysteries! "The Law of the Lord is perfect", vs the Scripture, Happy the lot of him who oovupies imself sith the Torah without cessation, for (fa man atandons the Torah for one moment, itis as if he aban- ddoned eternal life, as it says, "For it is thy life and the Tength of thy days" (Deut, xx, 20), and again, "For length 'af days and years of life and peace shall they add to thee' (Pros. 1m, 2)? gor THE 2OHAR 1 {ose Now Angas was sINETY YEARS OLD, BTC. B. Jose Aiscouried on the text> Thy people ae all righteous, they shall inher the land forever (ls. UX, 21), He said Happy are Torac above all peoples, i hat the Holy One, blesed be He, has called them righteous. For so. we have leat from teaiton tha there area hundred and twenty-eight thousand winged creatures who Rit about over the world ready to catch Up any wove that they hea; for as tradition tells us, there is nothing done ia the world which docs not produce a certain Sound, apd this soars tothe firmament and is eaght up by those winged crests, who cary it aloft to he judged whether for good or il ast is weten, "For abied of the heaven shal eary th Voie and that which hath wings shal tell the matter" (Becl. x, 20} At what time do they judge the voice ? R, Hiya said: "At the time when a man is asleep in hished, when his sou eves him and testifies aginst it jsthen that the Voice isjudged, for so it says "from her that lth in thy bosom keep the doors of thy mouth (Mich. 5), because it is she who testifies against aaa. R. Judah said? 'Whatever a aman dees in the day his anal testifies against him at night" We have learn as follows R, Eleazar Sapa: "At the beginning of the frst houe of the sight, een the davis expiring and the win going down, the keeper of the key ofthe stn finishes his process through the weve gates thar vere open in the day, and they areal closed. A herald then proclaims to the gosrlans of the gate, "Each one te his pce to look the gates" When the herald has fished, all of them come together and gu aloft without wtering a Sound, 'Then the accusing angel below begin to air and 10 fly about the world, and the moon begins to shine and the trumpeter sound blast. At the second Blas, the angel of song start up and chant before their Lond. Emiasaies of havent aloo srt py snd punihinent Sorters the worl. 'Then the souls of men who ae sleeping give thie {estimany and are declared guy, but the Holy One, blessed be He, deals kindly with men and alles the seal to return to its place. At midnight, When the coek erows, a wind blows from the North, but at the sanie time a current from the Southarises and strikes against, causing i to subside. Then g20-g2h} tee LecHA 393 the Holy One, Hlessed be He, rises as is His wont to dispore himself with the righteous in the Garden of Eden. Happy the portion of the man who rises at that hour wo study with ext the Torth, for the Holy One, blessed be He, and all the righteous listen to his voice; for so itis writen, "Thou that idwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken for thy voice, cause me to hear it" (S. $. vill 43). Ni draws round hima certain thread of grace whi the protection both of the higher and the lower angels, as is written, "By day the Lord will command his grace, ani ft night 1 shall chant his wong" (Ps stit, 9) R. Hiskiah 'said: 'Whoever studies the 'Torah at that hour has constantly

4portion in the furure world," Said R. Jose to him: 'What
do you mean by "constantly" ® He replied: 'T have tearrt when the Holy One, blessed be He, enters the plants of the Garden are tered more plenteously by: the stream which is ealled (gab) "the Ancient stream"? and "the stream of delight", the waters of Which never cea to ow. When a min rises and studies the "Torah at this hour, the water of that stream is, as it were, poured on his head and he is watered hy it along with the 'ther plants of the Garden of Fden. Moreover, because all the righteous in the Garden listen to him, he i given aright 'tw be watered by that stream, and i this Way he has a portion 'constantly in the future world" TR, Abba was journesing from 'Tiberias to meet other learned scholars at the house of his father-in-law. He yas accompanied by his son, R. Jacob. Coming to Kfar Tarsha, they decide to spend the night there. Said. R_ Abba to his hhost, "Have you a cock here He ssid, "Why ? "Because, he said T want wget up precisely at midnight.' Heanswered, *You have no need of a cock for that. I have n water-clock bby my bed from which the water isues drop by drop til cexactls midnight, when all the water isemptied and the wheel "owings back witha reat noise which wakens the whole house made it for the sake of a certain old man who used to get lp every night at midnight to study the Torah," Said R, Abba, "Blesued be God for sending me here." At midnight the wheel of the water-clock ssung hack, and R, Abba and

304THE z0HANt [ox
R. Jaco got up They heard the sie of their ost, wh was singin the lover part ofthe hoose with his two sens and Saving: kf writen: Midnight wil rie to give than to ther beans of thy righteous Judgent (Ps. ext, 2). Since the word "at" ir omitted we my take "Midnight™ a5 an appelton ofthe Holy One esac be He, who addressed. this hy David beeaie He iso be found with His cen at might, that being the hour when Hl enters the Garden Sf Bde to converse ith the righteous" Said R. Abba to Jacobs "Tely we have now an opportunity to amocate 'sith the Shelah, Bo they went and sat by fit, and sid to him, "Repeat what you jus mud for i excellent. Where ti you get fiom? He replied learn fom ny grande father He tol ne that during the fist three hours of she right the secuung segs bela ae actly guing slut the Wierd fae st thighs procnlyGe cates he Onn oh High ed the wechentona belo coal Tee ipl coe monies above ke place only at miinight preiey; we knoe thie from wha anya of Abrabam, that "the night was Gidea for then (Gen. 219 8);also ftom the wores "and it came to pane at the middle ofthe might" inthe count ff the Exodus (Ex. xh, 29), and rom many oter laces in the Scripture, David knew this, Seautes0 the of man told. mehis kingship depended om this: and therefore he tned trite at ths hour and chant praises, and fo this reason be addressed God ae "Midnight". Heals si, "I tat to give thaka 1 Thee for Thy nettcous judgements Iecaine this is the fount of justice, andthe judgements of earthy. hinge derive from 'ere. threfre" avid ever reese to rior anid sing pase thie hour" R. Aba exe ani Kime him, saying, Of a sre is oo, Bleed be God 'sho has ent me here ! For nights the time of judgement in tery place, ax we have fully estblaed, aod as iw been Gincinscd i che preence of Rc Sincon. Tha. young san of tid hnupar teroron este Tt ey ly Gees any "midnight" He repli tld down thatthe heavenly Majesty rises at midnight Said the hay; 'ean ive another Sid R. Abba 'Speak, my child; for the we o2b-opa] knew uecHa 365 'of the Lamp! il speak through thy mouth.' He thereupon sid: 'What Ihave heard is this, Night the royal judgement, and that judgement extends to alike. Midnight, however s fed from two sides, from jue and from clemeney; only the fist halfof the night is she time of judgement, but the second half ilumined from the side of clemency (besed), Therefore David. said "Midnighe".' BAe ome and placed is hands on hs ead and bleed him, He said; "thought indeed that wisdeen was o be found only i a few favoured pious ones. Now I see that even children in the generation of R Simeon are endowed with heavenly wisdom. Happy ar thou, R: Simeon ! Woe tothe generation when thou departest from So they sat til g3¢} morning swdying the Torah. . Abba then discouraed on the text: Phy people are all righteous, they tall forever inherit the earth, 0 branch of my Dlanting. ot. (Us, Gx, 21) He saa "Our colleagues have painted ut that these words cannothe taken literally, seeing how many sinners there are in Tsrael who transgress the precepts of the Law. 'The meaning it we have learnt inthe esoteric teaching of four Mishnah: "Happy are Iseacl who bring an acceptable offering to the Almighty by circumcising their sons on the eighth day. They tieeby become the portion ofthe "Zaditk (Righteous One) who is the foundation of the world', nd fe called righteous; and therefore 'they shall forever inherit the earth'. They are 'the branch of my planting': that is,

4branch af those shoots which God planted in the Garden
of Eden, and of which the 'earth' mentioned here is one; hence armel have a goodly portion in the Future world, at is writen "the righteous shall inherit che earth' (Ps, xxxvt, 49)" We have further learnt: "The reason why the naue Abraham oecurs for the first time in connection with the tireumcsion is thit when he was circumcised he became aévociated with the letier Hé, and the Shekinah rested on him.!"* Said R. Abba: 'Happy are acl in that God has 'chosen them from all peoples and has given therm this sign of the covenant; for whoever has this sign of the enverant 'nll not descend to Gehinnom if he guards it properly, not

1R, Simeon

306THE HOMAR [930-936
'subjecting it to another power or playing false with the name 'of the King; for to betray this sign is to betray the name of God, as tin written, Mehey have dealt treacher the Lord in that they have bom strange children" Said R. Abba further: 'When a man takes up his son to initiate him in this covenant, God calls to the ministering angels an siys, "See what a creature I have made in the world." At that moment Eliah traverses the world in four sweeps and presents himself there; and for this reason we have been taught that it beboves the father to prepare an extra chair for his honour, and to say "this isthe chair of Elijh'": and if he neglects todo so, Elijah does rot visit him nor go up and testify before the Almighty thatthe circum= cision has taken place. Why has Elijah to testify? For this reason, When God ssid to him What dost thou here, Elijah 2" (1 Kings a1x, 9), he anawered, OE have been very jealous for the Lord, the Gol of Hosts, forthe children of Tstael have forsaken thy covenant." Said God to him: "As thou livest, wherever my soes imprinr this sign upon their flesh, thou shalt be there, and the mouth which charged Israel with forsaking the covenant shall testify that they are observing st." Our teachers hive also tanght that the reason 'why Elijah as punished was because he brought false charges against Gad's children." By this time it was fall daylight and they rose wo go, but the host eame to them and said: "Will you not finish the subject on which you were engaged to-night " They said to him: "What do you mean ? He sid: "To-morrow you have chance of seeing the sponsor f the covenant, for to-morrow is the celehration of the circunecision of my son, and my wife begs you t stay.' Said R. Abba: 'We are invited to-4 pious act, and if we stay, it wll be to behold the divine presence," They accordingly stayed the whole of that day. (935) When night came the host brought together all his friends and they studied the Torah all that night and nét one of thems slepr Said the est to them, 'May itplease you that each one should five an exposition of the Tersh." Then one began on the text: Fer that there wasn uncovering * Bi 936) LRcH LRCHA 7 of flesh in Israel, jor that the people offered themselves sill ingly, less ye the Lord (Jud. v, 2). He said: "The reason why Deborah and Barak commences theie song with these words was a6 follows, 'The world, ar we have Been taught, rests only upon this covenant of cireumeision, according (0 the verse in Jeremiah (xxx, 25), "IF not for my covenant day and night, I lad not set the ardinances of heaven and earth." Hence as lang as Israel observe this covenant, the hheaven and earth go on in their appointed course. But if Terael neglect this covenant, then heaven and earth are die- turbed, and blessing is not vouchsafed to the world. Now in the time of the Judges the Gentles gained power over Tsrael only because they neglected this covenant, to this extent, that they did not uncover the flesh after circum cision: this is indicated by the words "And the children of Trae! forsook the Lord." Hence God delivered them into the and of Sisera, until Deborah came and made all Irxel 'Yow 14 circumcise properly; then their enemies fell before thein, Similarly, as we have learnt, God said to Joshua, "Do {you not know that he Israelites are na circumcised properly, asthe flesh has not been uncovered; how then can you expect to lead them into the land and subdue their enemies Hence Gen sid him, "Cireumcie again the children of Igrsela-second time' (Josh, v, 2); and until the uncovering 'sas performed, they did not enter the land and their enemies were not subdued. So here, when Iscael vowed to observe this sig, thei enemies were overcome and blessing returned to the land." Another one then discoursed on the test: And if cume to pss on the say atthe lodging place thatthe Lord met him and sup bill him. We said: "By "him" is here meant Moses, Said God to him: "How ean you think to bring Tsraet out of Egypt and to humble a great king, when you have for- gotten my covenant, since your son is not circumcised ?* Fortbwith "he sought to slay him": that is, a5 we have learnt, Galbricl came down in a time of fire to destroy hi, faving the appearance of a burning serpent which sought to swallow him. The form of a serpent was chosen as tmmblematical of the king of Egypt, who is compared to a

208awe 201A (ost-oue
Serpent (Eick. x1, 3). Zippora, however, sw in time and Giceumeised her som, so that Moses ws released; 50 i 3 Tween, "And Zipporah took a Hint and cut off the foreskin a her son being guided by a sudden inspiration Another then discourse onthe text: And fap sid to his dretiven, Come near tome, 1 ray yon, and they came near (Gen xy) He said: Secing that they were already stand- ing by hit, why die tell them to come neat? The reason twas that when he said fo them "Lam Joseph your brothe they Were dumbfounded, seeing his royal tate so he showed them the sgn of the coverant and said to them: "It is through the that I have ansined to this estate, through epg this intact." From this we learn that whoever eps fact this sign of the covenant fe destined for kingship. Another example is Boaz, who aud to Ruth, "As the Lord liveth, ie down until the marning® (Ruth mi, 13). By this aujuration le exorcised his passion, and becuse he guarded the covenant he beeame the progenitor of the greatest lineage Of kings, and of the Messiah, whose name sink with that of Go Another then discourse onthe text: Though an hos should fncamp aginst me, «in this (oth) wil be confident (Ps. 'cet 3). He ssid: "We have learnt thatthe word oth (this) alludes to the sign of the eivenant, which i always on @ tman's persen and also has te counterpart above, If so, i 'nay be sid, why should David alone be content in it and not everyone eae? The answer is that this soth was attached to him in a peculiae degre, being the erown ofthe kingdom Te-was because David didnot guard it proper thatthe king ship {o4a] wan taken fom hin for 20 long aime. For this nth symbolises also the supernal Kingdom and Jerusalem the holy city, and when Davi sinned 4 voice went forth and said: "David, thou shalt now be dsjnined For that with svhich thou wast united; thoy art banished fom Jerusalem tnd the kingship i taken from thee"; thus he was punished jn that wherein he had sinned, And if David could be 20 Punished, how much more x other men 2° 04a] tecw LECH 9 Another then dscoursed on the text: Unless the Lord had 'een my help, my sal had soon deli silence (Bua) (Ps. XY, 17) He said: "We have learnt that that which saves Tscel from descending to Gehinnom and being delivered into the hands of Duma like other nations is thissame covenant, For so wie have learn, that when aman leaves this word, numbers of angels swoop down #0 sdze him, but when they Feholdthissgn of the holy covenant they leave him and hae snot delivered into the hands of Duma, 8028 to be seat yn to Gehinnom, Both upper and lover (angel) are afd Of this sign, and no torture i infcted oo the man who has been able to guard this sign, because thereby he is attached to thename of the Holy One, blessed be He. So with David, 'whem he wa dethroned and driven from Jervesem, he au Airaid that he would be delivered into the hands of Duma ind dein the future work, un the message came to him, he Lard also hath put avay thy' sin, thou shalt not die (11 Sam. xt, 1). Then it was that he exclaimed "Unless the Lord had Been'my hel, et Another oe then dacoured a follows: 'What did Das mean by saying (when Reeing from before Aslam): and he 'hall dows me Bots hil (otbo) and hit habitation (11 Sao. 40,29)? He sid "Wh i there that ca see God ? In rath the word otha here means not "hin" but "his sia", ond itis as we have lear, chat when Davis's punishment was Aleeeed, and he knew that it was for not having quaréed properly thie sign (which is the sum and substance ofall, Sand 'without the de observance of which no one can be falled righteous), he prayed that God should show bim this Sign, fearing that it had pared from him, because on it depended both his throne and Jerusalem: hence he joited the sgn and the habitation, meaning thatthe kingdom con- ferred by thi sign should be restored to its place: "Another then discoursed on the text: From my fleck shall 1L1te God (Job xt, 26) He said: "The words "my flesh' ae to belitrally taken as the place where the covenant is Printed, ae we have lea! "Whenever a mun in stamped sith this boy imprint, through it he ser God", beeaae the soul (reshamah) is atached to this spot. So if he does not

310THE ROHARA (oeoy
_zuardit, then of himitiswritten, they lose the soul (neshamah) ipiven by Gad" (Jab ts, ). If however, he guards it, then the Skekinah does not depart from him. He cannot be sure of ital he is marred, when at last the sign enters into its place. When the man and wife are joined together and are called by one name, then the celestial favour rests upon them, the favour (Hered) which isues from the supereal Wisdom and isembraced in the male, 49 thatthe female also is firmly established, Further, it has been pointed out tht the word for "God" in this passage, vie, Ebah, may be divided into El, signifying the ratiance of Wisdom, the Teter Faw, signify Ing the tale, and de lier £48, signifying the Female; when they are joined, the mame Eloah is wed, and the holy neshamah is tned to this spot. And since all depends on this sign, therefore itis written, "and from my flesh T shall see Eloah": Happy ate Isracl, the holy ones, who are inked r0 the Holy One, blessed be He, happy in this world and happy tn the next: of them itis written, "Ye that cleave unto the Lord your God, are alive every one of yu this day" (Deut. 1, 4)" 'Said RU Abba: I'marvel ehat with so much lehing you are stil living inthis village' 'hey said to him: "If birds fare driven from their homes, (agB] they do not Lnow where to fly a i is written, "As a bied that vandereth from her nest, 4 isa man that wandereth from his place" (Prov. xvi, 8) Ir isin this place that we have learnt the Torah, because itis our habit to slp half the night and to study the other half. And when we nse in the morning the smell of the fields and the sound of the rivers seem to inatil the Torah into ua, and so it becomes fixed inoue minds, Once this place was visited with punishment for negiet of the 'Torah, and a number of daughty scholars were carried off. Therefore we study it day and night, and the place itself helps us, and whoever quits this pce is like one who quits eternal lie." R. Abba thereupon lifted up his hands and blessed them, So they sat through che night, unt at last they sid to some boys who were with them: 'Go outside and see i i is day, andl when you come hack let each one of you say some piece of Torah ro our distinguished guest." So they went out and saw that it was day, One of ther said: 'On this day there on) keen urew 3H will bea fire from above." 'Andon this house ssid another, Said a third: "There is an elder here who this day will be fire: God forbid," said R, Abba, who was greatly perturbed, and did not know what t0 say. 'A cord of the (divine) wil has been grasped on earth, he exclaimed. And it was indeed 30; for on that day the cotapanions beheld the face of the Shekinah, and were surrounded with fire, As for R. Abba, his countenance as aflame with the intoxica of the Torah. It is recorded that all that day they didnot leave the house, which was enveloped in smoke, and they propounded new ideas as if they had on that day received the Torah on Mount Sinai. When they rose they dic not know whether it was day or night. Said R. Abba: "While we are here, let each one of us say some new word of wisdom in order to make a fitting returs to the master of the house 'who is making the celebration." 'Thereupon one apencd with the ext: Mlene fe the man thom thow choowst and causes. to approach unto thee, that hemay deel in thy courts; ce shal be saifed with the goodnes: of thy houce, the holy place of thy temple (Ps. uxv, 5). "This verse', he std, 'speaks first of carts, then of house, then of tevsple. These arc three grades, one within the other and one abive the other, At Brst a man "dvvells in thy courts", and 'of im it may be said "he that is left in Zion and he that remaineth in Jerusalem shall be called holy" (Is. 1¥, 3). As a next step "We are aatafied with the goodness ofthy hots 'which iceeplained by the text those shall he built theough Wisdom", (Note tha it does not say "Wisdom shall be built 35a house", which would imply that Wisdom ite is called house", but "by Wisdom', with allusion to the verte river went forth from Eden to water the Garden") Lastly "the holy place of thy temple' (hekal) isthe culmination of all, as we have been caught: the word Akal (temple) may be divided into Aé and hol (all), implying thac oth are in i incomplete union. The opening words of the verse, "Blessed isthe man whom thou choosst and causest to approach thee", indicate that whoever brings his son as an offering before God pleases God therevith, 0 that God draws hime near and places hie abode in two courts, which Hl joins 30 a 'Tir 20HAKE lob-osa a6 to form one (hence the plural "courts"). Hence when the pious men who lived in this place in former times mae this fering of thei cilren, they wae w begin by easlaining, 'essed he whom thow chootest and bringest near, he shal ivell in thy courts", while the company present replied, fe shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, the oly place of thy temple." Afterwards the celebrant suid the blessing, "who sanctified us with his commandments and connnanded us to initiate the child jn the covenant of our father Abraham", while those present responded, "As thou 'ast initiated him into the covenant, ete." 'This Finual isin accordance with the dictum: "A man should fist pray for himself and then for his neighbour," as it 6 written, "and (the High Priest) shall make atonement for himself and for all the congregation of Tsril"—for himself fest aad then for the congresation. 'To this custom we adhere, for so We think proper" Said R. Abba "Assured i sso, and he who Hoes not recite these words excludes himself from the ten Canopies which God intends to raise for the righteous in the future world, and which all depead upan this, Hence i that there are ten words inthis verse, out of each of which, it recited with propor faith, fe male's canopy, Happy your Joe in this world and in the world to come, for the Torah is fixed in your bearts a8 if you had yourselves stood (gga) at Mount Sinai when the Law was given to Israel." Another then dsciurse 0 the text: An altar of earth thow shalt make unto me, and shalt sucrifce theron thy burnt offerings and thy peace offerings, ee. (BX. 3X, 34), He: sai 'We have lear' that whoever makes this ofering of his son is esteemed no less worthy than ifhe had offered to God all the stcifces inthe wrt, and had built an aktar before Him, 'Therefore itis Reting that he should make a kind of sharin the shape ofa vessel full of earth over which the circumcision 'may be performed, that so God may reckon i to him aif he Td aterfced on t burn offeringsand pence offerings, bicep and oxen, and be even beter pleased therewith; for so itis Written in the biter half of the text "in every place where T record my name I will come to thee and bless thee", where 'the words "Iwill cord my name" refer tothe circurscision, 9a) LECH LECH A. 30 of which itis writen, "The steret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and he wil show them his covenant" (Ps, sx¥y 14). So much for the altar of earth. Inthe nest verse we read: id f thou make me an altar of tae." This alludes tothe proselyte who comes from "The text proceeds: This means that the proselyte must enter into the and that he must not be cireumeised until he puts out of his mind the alien worship which he practised hitherto, and removes the stoniness of his heart. For if circumcised before he does this, then be slike a statue which, though hewn into shape, sil remains stone. Hence "thou shake nt build it of hewn stones", since if he is til obduate, "thou hast lifted up thy tool upon it and hast polted it"; i.e, the act of circumcision is of no ase to him. Wherefore Jhappy is the lt of him who brings this offering with gladaess and pleases God thereby; and itis fitting that he should rejoice in this hoon the whole of the dy, as tis written, "Por all those that put theie teust in thee shall rejoice, they shall 'ever shout with jop, and they that love thy name shall esult in thee" (Ps, ¥, Another then dcoursed on the tent: Now: shew Adam sous ninety year (lit, yeas) and nine years ol, the Lond 'appeared... and suid unto him, 1 an God Almighty, cath before me, etc, (Gen, xt, 1). "This verse presence a number of difficulties, In the ist place, it seems to imply that God only now appeared to Abram when he had antined this age, whereas God had already spoken 1 Abram on various ome (e. Gen, sit, 14 81h, 1488, 43). Aaain, the word 'is mentioned twice, fret in the singular (sana) and the plural (kami), The answer is, a5 our teachers have stated, that as long as Abram was closed in body, and therefore in heart, God did not fully eveal Himself to him, and hence it is not stated hitherto chat God appeared 10 Abram, Now, however, God appearad to him because He 'was now about to expose in him this sign and holy crown, and further becawe God desired to bring forth from him holy seed, and this could not be so long as his flesh was closed: now, however, that he wi ninety-nine years old and a4 TIE ZONAR [ose-936 the time was drawing near for holy sea to isaue from him, in'was fing that he himself should he holy first. Hence his age is stated un this occasion, and not on all the athers when God spoke to him. Further, the expression "ninety year", instead of "ni indicates that all is previous 'years counted for no more than one year, and that hs Kife had been no life; but row that he hid come to this point, bis yours were really yeara, Furthice we may ask, why ie the term "God Almighty" (El Shaddai) used here for the frst time ? The reason is, as we have learnt, that God has made lower erawns which are not holy, and vhich, in fact, pollute, and with these are marked all who are not eircumcised. The mark consists of the leters Shin and Dale and therefore they are polluted with the demons and cling to them. After Circumesion, however, they escape from them and enter lunder the wings of the Shekinah, as they display the letter Ved, the holy mark and the sigh of the perfect covenant, [36] ard there js stamped upon them the name Shaddai (Almighty), complete in all ts letters. Hence we find written in this connection, "Tame Bl Shadda" Wesays further: "Walk Defore me and be perfect", as much as to say: "Hitherto thous hait been defective, being stamped only with Shin Daleth: therefore circumcise thyself and become cormplete through the sign of Yad." And whoeverie so marked is ready tu be blessed through thie name, a0 written, "And God Altnighy (BE Shauddai shall bless thee" (Gen, X8V11, 3), t0 wit, the source of blssings, that dominates the "lower rows" and inspires fear andl trembling in them all. Hence all that are-not holy keep afar from one who is circumcised, anil have no power over him, Moreorer, he is never sent ddoyin to Gehinnwom, at i is written, "Thy people ar all righteocs, they shall for ever inherit the earth" (Is.t3, 21)" Said R. Abba: 'Happy are ye in this world and in the world to come! Happy am I that Lam come ta hear these words from your mouths | Yea all holy, all che sons of the Holy God; of you ivis writen, "One shall say, Tam the Lord's, and ancther shall eal himself by the name of Jacob, and Another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord and (rn " Forming the word 8 95) Leen LECHA 3 surname himself by the name of Israel" (Ibid. xiv, 5) Every 'ane of you i closely attached ta the holy fare the mighty chieftains of © land of the living", the princes of which feed on the manna of holy dew." Another then discoursed on the text: Happy art thos, (O tana, sches thy hing isa on of freedom aed thy princes eat indue season(Bccl. x, 17) "Just before ths itis written: "Woe to thee, O nd, when thy king is @ child, and thy princes eat in the morning." There fs an apparent but not a real contnidiction between these verses, The reference in the Yerse "happy art thou, O land," is to the supernal realm Which has control over all the life above, and is therefore tan which the Lord thy God careth for continsally" (Deut, 1, 13), and agi scarceness, thou shalt not lack anything in it" (Ibid, Vth, 9) Why so? Because "thy king is son of fieedom". By this is meant the Holy One, blesed be He, who is called a "son of freedom" hecause of the Jubilee, which is the source of i that, according to this explanation, we ld expect to have in our text the word heruth(freedors) and not, as we actually find written, horin (free ones). 'The reason i, as we have learnt in our secret Mishaabs, that when the Yad is united wth the He they proucethe iver whieh 10). Iti, pappy art thou, O land, vhen thy king isa ber kevin and thy princes eatin due season", with joy, with sanctity, and With God's blessing, On the other hand, "Woe to thee, O land, when thy: prince is. child." This is the land of the wer world; for so we have learnt: "All the lands of the Gentiles have been committed to great chieftains who are appointed over them, and above all ihe of whom itis written, Was alad and am now ol" (Ps. xxxviz, 25), words which, according 0 tradition, were pronounced by the "Prince of the Globe". Henee, "Woe 10 thee, O land, when thy king i. t808 to the Work which derives sustenance from.

316THE 2OHAR
this side; for when Israel are in captiviey, thes 'denve their sustenance from an alten power. Further, "when thy princes eat in the morning'; ie. in the morning only and not the whole day, or any other time of the day. Fer so 'We have learnt, that at sunrise when men go forth and bow down to the stn, wrath & suspended over the world, and at time of the afternoon prayer also wrath is suspended lover the world. Why is this? Because "thy king is a lad", viz, he whois called "lad". But you, truly pious ones, sainted to those shove, do not derive sustenance from that side, but from that holy: place above, OF you it is written: "Ye who cleave to the Lord are alive all of you thieday" (Deut. 18,4). TR. Abba then discoursed on the text: Let me sing for my, reellbelneed a tong of my beloved touching is vineyard, et. (Is. ¥, 1). He said: "This passage presents many difficulties, In the fit place it should rather be called a "reproof" than, sang' 'Then again why fire "wellicloved" and then "beloved" ? Also, we find nowhere else mention of a place {96a} ealed Keren Ben Shemen'" (hora of the son of oil), 'Gur colleagues have expounded thee verses in many says, and all ofthem are good, but I explain them in this way, The word "ellheloved" consting an allosion to Tsanc, eho sexe called so before he was born, For so we have learnt, that God showed great love for him in not allowing hinn to be born until Abraham: his father had been cireamcised and called perfect and had been completed by the addition to his mame ff the leuer A. To Sarah, too, a Aé hal been given. Here arises a question. We understand he for Sarah, but for Abeam the added letter should have been not é but yod, he being a male. The reason isin trath a somewhat deep and recondite tone. Abraham rose to the highest stage, and took as hisad- ditional ter the higher hi, which symbolises the sphere ofthe male. For there are to symbolic fs, one higher and one Tower, one associated with the male and the other with the female, Hence Abraham ascended sith the hé of the higher sphere, and Sarai descended with the of the lower sphere, Further itis writen, "thus (th) shall be thy seed", and tthe word "seed" here, a5 we have learnt, i to be teken exactly (of Isaac), For it was he who entered into this ob Leen urea 30 covenant from his birth, and whoever enter from his birth really enters [is for this reason that 4 proselyee who isc curocsed is called "a proselyte of righteousrse", because he 'does not com from the holy xock who have been circumcsed andl therefore one who entersin this way is called by the name of the first pioneer "Abrabam". Thus the later Aé, too, was igen to him: and ifit had noc ala been given to Sarah, Abra hham would of necessity have begotten on alower level, in the same way as Kol, which begets on a lower level. But when hid was given to Sarah, the twe Ad's were joined together, and Drought forth on ahigher level, that which isued from ther: being yd hence you is the Sst lotr of the name of Lesa, symbolising the male. From this point the male principle began to extend, and therefore itis writter, "For in Tease shall thy seed be called", and notin thee, liaac bore on the higher level, as it is written, "Thou givest truth to Jacob" (Micah vir, 29), showing that Jacob completed the edifice Ie may be asked: "Was Abraham attached only to this grade and no more 2" If 30, why does it say, "kindness (iesed) t0 Abraham"? ([hid) The answer is that heed was his portion because he dealt kindly with mankind, but for bearing chil- 'dren, it was here that he was attached and here that he bean, Hence it was that Abraham was not cireurcised till he was ninety-nine years olds the inner reason for this is well known and has been explained in our Mishnah. Forthis reason, too, Isaac typifies stern justice, which was his portion, but for begetting he was called "kindness" (herd). Hence Jacob crowned the edifice on this side and on that. In respect of the sttivings of Abraham and Issue for portions above he was the mination; and in respect of the privilege which was ranted to them to bear sons better than themselves he was 'also the culmination. Hence the Scripture says of him, Israel in whom T glory" (ls. xttk, 3). In him were united attributes both from the higher and the Inver. Hence the 'word "song" is used in this pasage, According to some, the word "weellbeloved" here refers to Abrahim, who trans- mitted this inheritance: but it is more correct to refer i to Tac, ax I do, "To proceed: "the song of my beloved to hit vineyard" refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, who is

318THe 2OKAR 1 [6-968
commonly called "beloved" (dad), as in the verse, "My beloved is white and ruddy" (S. S. v, 10). Thus, my well beloved unites with my beloved, who is mate, and from hima springs forh a vineyard, as it is writen, "My wellbeloved had a vineyard." The Scripture further says thae this vine- yard sprang forth in "Keren-Hen-Shemen". 'This Keren' is the same as the '"horn" (Aeren) of the Jubilee, and itis united with the male that is called em shemen (son of oil), which i the same as be hein (con of feeedeen). "Semen is mentioned because itis the source of the oil for lighting the lamps (of understanding). This oil makes faces shine and Kindles lamps until it ie gathered in a horn, which is then 'alled "the horn of the Jubilee". For this reason Royalty is. always anointed from a horn and the reason why the Kingdom of David endured was because he was anointed from a horn and was true tot. The next words are, "he pura fence round it and stoned it": [966] ic. he removed from himself and from his portion all the celestial chieftains and champions, and all the "lower crowns", and chose this vineyard for his portion, ase is written, "Forthe Lord's portion is his people, Jacob is the lt of his inheritance" (Deut, xxat, 9). Further, 'Nile planted it with the choicest vine ax it "1 planted thee a noble vine, wholly a 21), (The word Alok (wholly in this ent 'hé, 10 point the same lesson ae the text" thy sced",) Our text closes with the words: "He built a toiver in the midst of ie"—the "tower" is that mentioned in the verse, The name of the Lord is a stong tower, the righteous ranneth ino it and is safe" (Prov, wit, 10) "and also hewed out a wine pres therein": this is the "gate of righteousness" mentioned in the verse, "Open tome the gates of righteousness" (Ps, ex¥i1, 19). We learn from this that every Israelite who is circumcised has the entry into both the tower and the gate. He who makes this offering of his son brings him under the aga of the Holy Name, On this iin, 100, are based the hemien and earth, as itis written, "But for my covenant day and night, Thad not set the ordinances of heaven and earth' (Jee. X88tt, 23), Our host 'of to-day bas been privileged to sce the Holy One, blessed Col Lew LEcHs 39 be He, face to face this day. Happy we that We have lived to see this day, and happy thy portion with us, 'To this son "and all thy children shall be taught of the Lord, ete" (Ibid. ur, 43)" 'They then rose and escorted R. Abba en his way for three miles, They said to him "Your hast who made the ceremony eserves al the honour he has receive, because his act Was doubly pious one.' He suid: 'What do you mean?" They answered: "This man's wife was formerly the wife of ls brother, who died without ehildren, and so he martied her, and this being the fist son, he calls him ater the name of his Said R. Abba: 'From now onwards his name fact he yrew up to be the wellsknosn, Idi tar Jacob. R, Absa then gave them his blessing and continued his journey. When he reached home, he informed R. Elezzae of all that had happened, bur was afraid to tll R. Simeon. One day as he was studying with R. Simeon, the latter said: 'It is written: "And Abraham fell on his fave 'and God spoke with him saying. As for me, behold my 'covenant is with thee." This shows that until he was circum- ised, he used to fall on his face when God spoke with h bout after he was circunised he stood upright without fear, Further, the words "behold, my covenant is with thee" show that he found himself circumeised Said R. Abba to him: 'Perhaps your honour will permit me to relate some excellent ideas which I have heard on th subject." "peat. he said. "But T am afraid,' continued R. Abba, 'that the people who told me may suffer through my telling" "God forbid ! ssid R, Simeon, "Remember the verse: "He sfull 'not be afraid of evil tidings, his heart is fixed trusting in the Lord". He then told him what had happened, and related to him all that he had beard, Seid RL Simeon' "You mean to-say that you knew allthis and did notsay a word t9 me? T order you during the nest thirty days to do your very utmost to forget it, Does not the Seripture say: "Withhold

° THE 2OMAR [968

rot good from them to whom it is due, when itis in the power of thine hand to do it" ? And an it came to pase, RR: Simeon further said: "order that with these explanations they shill be banished o Babylon, I mean to sa colleagues in Babylon. R. Abba vas sorely One day R. Simeon, seeing him, said: "Your looks betray some inward sorrow. He replied: 'Tam not grieving for self but for them.' He aniwered. 'God forbid they should be punished for anything except for speaking too openly For this let them go into exile among the colleagues and learn from them how to keep things to themselves; for these matters are not to be divulged save among ourselves, since the Holy One, blessed be He, has confirmed our ideas, and made us the instruments for disclosing them." R. Jose said "Ins written, Then stall thy light break forth as the morn ing, ete" (Is. uvit, 8). This means that the Holy One, blessed be He, will one day proclaim with regard to "Then shall thy light break forth a5 the morning, healing shall spring forth speedily, and thy righteousness shall go before thee and the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward!"" [97a]

70-075)

Gen, xvii, aN, 24

AND THE Lomb APPEARED UNTO HIM, R. Hiya com- 'menced to discourse on the verse: The flees appear on the arth, the time song is come, and th coice ofthe turtles heard 'mn our fand (8, S. ti, 12), He said: "When God created the World, He endowed the earth with all the energy requisite for it, bu it did not put forth produce until man appeared. When, however, man was crested, all the products that were {atent in the earth appeared above ground, Similarly, the Iheaven did net impart strength to the earth until man came. So itis written, "All the plarts of the earth Were not yet on the earth, and the herbs ofthe ied had not yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, And there was not a man to till the ground" (Gen, 1,3), that isto say, all the produete ofthe earth were sill hidden in its boson and had not yet shown themeelver, and the heavene refrained fom pouring rain upon the earth because man had not yet been created. When, however, man appeared, forth with "the flowers appeared on the earth", alls latent powers being reveal; "the time of tng was come", the earth being now ripe o offer up praises to the Almighty, which it could fot do before ran was creat. "And the yore ofthe turtle is heard in our land": this ie the word of God. which was not [o7A] in the world Gil man was created, Thus when man was there, everything was there, When man sinned, the earth was 'cursed, andallthese good things lftit, as itis written, "cursed isthe earth forthy sake" (Gen 1, £7), and agsn, "when thou tillest the ground it shall not give its strength to thee" ({bi. 1¥, 12), and again, 'thorns and thistls it shall bring forth to thee' (Ibid. 11, 18). When Noah came, he invented spades and hoes, but afterwards he sinned through drunkenness, and the res of the world also sinned before God, and the strength fof the earth deserted it. So matters continued until Abrah

tame, Then oace more "the blossoms appeared in the earth", and all the povets of the earth were restored and displaved

ae say zoWAR 1 [orb-o8a themselves, "The time of pruning (samir) eam", ie God told Airaham to cireumcixe himself. When at length the covenant existed in Abraham through the eircumeision, then all this verse was fulfilled in him, the world was firmly estab- Tished, and the word of the Lard came to him openly: hence itis written, AND THE LORD APPEARED UNTO HIM" Said R. Elewar: Until Abraham was circumeised, God dd not peak with him sive from a lower grade, hereon, tao, the higher grades were not resting, But when he was cireunsised, straightway "the blossoms appeared in the earth to wit, the lower grades which the earth put forth, thereby establishing that lover grade we have mentioned; further, "the time of

pruning came", to wit, the pruning of the boughs of olah;-

fn to eroien all, "the voice of the turtle was heard in the land", 40 wit, the voice which sues from the innermost [o8q) revess, This voice was now heard, and shaped the spoken 'words and gave thesn their perfect form. 'This is implied in the words here used, "and the Lord appeared co him" Already, before Abraham as circumised, we ate told that the Lord appeated urta Abram" (Cn. XV, 1), and if the word "kim" in this sentence refers to Abraham, we may well ask, what advance had he made (in prophecy) by being cit- 'cuniced ? The answer is thar the word him" here bas an inner meaning: it refers to the grade which now spoke with

im. Now for the firs time 'the Lord appeared" to that sade; that i to say, the Voice was revealed, and associated itself with the Speech (dibbur) in conversing with him, Simi= larly in the words, 45 HE SAT 1N THE TENT DOOR IN THE HIAT OF THE DAY, the word "he hasan inner meaning, indicating that all the grades rested on this lower

ade alter Abraham wes circumcised, Thus the words "And the Lord appeared unto him" contain a mystic allusion to that audible Voice whieh is united to Speech, and manifests itself therein. "As he sat in the tent doot" refers wo. the supernal world whieh was st hand to dhumine him. "In the hheat of the day." 'That is, it-was the right side, to which [Abrabam clave, that illumined, According to another expo- sition, "in the heat of the day" indicates the time when the igrades approach each other, impelled by mutual desire. [988]

984-994) vavERA AMD THERE AMrEARED ENTO Wiat, R. Abba sa fore Abrabam was circumcised he was, as it were, covered 'over, butasscon as he was circumcised he became completely exposed to the influence of the Shekinah, which thereupon rested on him in full and perfect measure. The words "as he sat in the tent door" pieture the supernal world hovering P In the beat of the day", thats, ata period when a certain Zaaik (righteous one) feels a desire to repose therein. Sraightway "it lite up ite eyes nd looks, and [o, three men stand over agaist ie". Who are these three men ¢ They are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who stand over this lower grade, and from whom it [99a] draws sustenance ard nourishment. 'Thereupon "it sees and runs to mect them, singe it ia the desire of this ower grade 10 ch itself to them, and its joy is to be drawn after them, 'And it bows dovn fo the ground', to prepare a theone near them. Observe that the Almighty made King David one of 'the under-pillars of the superral throne, the patriarchs being the other three. For he was « pedestal to them, yet when he 4s joined with them he becortes one of the pillars upholding the supernal throne; and on that account he reigned in Hebron for seven years, namely, in order that he might be closely associated with them, as exphiined elsewhere'

TR, Abba opened a discourse with the verse: Iho shuld 'ascend into the mowntain of thy Lord ? cb who shall tard in Iie holy place? (Ds. x81, 3). "Mankind! he said, "itile realise 'om what itis that they are sending whilst in chia world, Por the days as they pass ascend and range themaclves before the Almighty-—namely, all the days of men's esiatence in this world, For all these have been ereated, and they all present themialves 6p Righ. That they have been treated wr know from the words of Scripture, "The days. were fashioned" (Bs, cxexts, 15), And when the time comes for the days to part from this world, they all approach the Most High King, as it is written, "And the days of David drew nigh that he should die" (t Kings m, 1), and again, "And the days of Tsriel drew nigh thathe should die" (Gen. x.v11,29). Ma, however, whibt in this world, considers not and reflects not what it is he is standing on, and each day a6 it passes he

4THE ZOHAN [oge-1008
regards as though it has vanished into nothingness. When the sal departs thi World she hows not by What path she 'sill he made to travel; fori 8 rot granted to all souls to aacend by the way that leads tothe realm of radance where the choicest souls shine forth, [998] For it isthe path taken Ingman i thi world that determines the path ofthe saul on her departure, 'Thus fama is drawn foveards the Holy One, and ified with longing towards Him in this word the soul jn departing from him ix carted woward towards the higher realms by the impetus given her ech day inthis word K "Tonce found myself ina town inhabited y and they imparted to mesome ofthe Witdoe of antiquity with which they were acquainted. They alo possesie some books of thee Wisdom, Sand they showed meone in which t was writen that, accord ing tothe goal which man sts himself in this world, so does he draw 40 hioaalfaapiris from onbigh, Ihe atitesto atx some holy an lofey object, he draws that object fom on high to himself helow, Hutt hie desire eto cleave tothe other side, and be makes this hs whole intent, then he draw to hill from above the other influence, 'They said further, that al depends on the kindof apeech, action. and intention ta ehich 'Aman habituteshimsel, for he das to hitulf here below {comm on high that sie to which hehabitally cleaves. {found ho in the same book the rites and ceremonies pertaining to the worship of the mars, with the requisite formulas and the directions for concerteating the theught upon them, 30 {1004} fs to draw them netr the worshipper. 'The same principle applies to him who seks to he atached co the sacred spirit On high Forit sb his ats, by his words, and bys fervency nnd devotion that he can dra to himeelf chat pit from on high, 'They further sid that if a maa follows a certain direc- tion inthis Worl, be wll be le frthee in the sume direction 'when he departs this word that to which he atacheshim- sellin this world, xo is that to which be will id himself aacted in the other world: if fay, holy, and if defiled, defiled, Ihe cleaves to holiness he wil on high be drawn to that sde and be mae a servant to minister before the Holy 'One among the angels, and will stand among those holy 1020-1608] vavena 35 beings who are referred to in the words, "then I will give ther free access among thove that stand by" (Zech. 11, 7). Similarly if he clings here to urcleanness, he will be drawn, there towards dat side and be made one of the unclean 'company' and be attached to them, These are called "pests 'of mankind', and when @ man leaves this world they take hire up and eet him sna Gebinnnm, in that region where Judgement ix meced out to those who have sulled themselves and soiled their spirits. After that he is made a companion of the unclean spirits and becomes a "pest of mankind" like fone of them. I then said to them; My children, all this is similar to what we learn in our 'Torah, nevertheless you should keep away from these books so that your hearts shoutd not [toc] be led astray after those idolatrots services and afer those "sides" mentioned here. Ie on your guard lest, God forbid, you be led astray from the worship of the Holy One, since ail these books mislead mankind, For the ancient children of the East were possessed of a wisdom which they inherited from Abraham, who transmitted it w the sons of the concubines, a i is writen, "flut unto the sons of the cconsubines that Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and he 'ent them away from Isaac his son, while he yt lived, east- 'ward, unto the country of the children of the East" (Gen 4%; 6). In course of time they followed the track of that wisdom into many (rong) directions. Not so with the seed. of Isat, with the portion of Jacob, For itis written, "And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac" (Ibid. §), this being the holy heritage of faith co which Abrahams clave, and from the sphere of which issued Jacob, of whom itis writen, "And, behold, the Lord stood beside hie" (Gen, KXVIt, 13), and also, "And thou, Israel, my servant, ete." (Is. xt1, 8). Hence it behoves 2 man to fllow the Holy Oneand ro cleave to Mi wally, aa iis writen, "and ta him shale thou cleave" (Deut, X20). It is writen, "Who chal ascend into the mountain of the Lord 2" and the answer is given, "He that hath clean hands andl a pure hear" (Ps. atv, 5-4) that is, he that has nit' made vith his hands vain shapes nor raped with them wrongful abject, nor has he dafiled him Self through them lke those who defile their bedies wilfully THE ZOUART [100-1016 "And pure of heart": that is, he that averts his heart and rind from the "other side" and directs them tovards the service of the Holy One. It says further: "Who hath not lifted up his soul unto falsehood . . . he shall receive a blessing from the Lord" (lod. 4-5); [tora] that is to 'when he leaves this world bis soul ascends furnished with god works which will enable him to obtain entry among the holy celestial beings, in accordance with the verse, "I shall 'walk before the Lord in the lands ofthe living" (Pe cxvt, 9), fog since "he hath not lifted his soul unto falsehood, he shall receive a blessing from the Lord, e 'When Abraham was still uffering from the effects of the ciecumcision, the Holy Oxe sent him three angels, in visible shape, to enguireafhiawel-being. Youmay, pechaps, wonder how angels can ever be visible, since it is writen, "Who rmakes his angels spirits" (Ps. c1y, 4), Abraham, however, ausuredly did see them, 26 they descended to earth in the form of men. And, indecd,, whenever the celesial spirits 'descend to earth, they clothe themselves in corporeal elements and appear to men in human shape. Now Abraham. although he was in great pain from his wound, ran forward to meet them so 8% not to be remiss in his wonted. hospitality I. Simeon said:"Assuredly he saw them in theirangeh forms, since it is written, AND are sap, ADoNAT (may Lord), which shows that the Shekinah (one appellative of which is 'Adonai had come with them, and that the angels accompanied her as her throne and pillars, because they are the three sulourabelow her,and Abraham, now thathe was circumcised, saw what he could not see before." [10%] At fit he took them for men, but afteraards he became aware that they 'kere holy angule Wo hed heen eet a aaiesien to. him. "This was when they asked him, Wattar 15 Sanan THY wire? and announced to him the coming birth of Issac, AND THEY SA1D To maM in the word elaw (to him) there-are ots over the letters aleph yod, and vau, which spell out the word aye (where is he 2) This isa reference to the Holy One who is above. Again, the word thus formed ayo is followed ly the word ayel (where?) which isa feminine form of the sme, to emphasise the band of union between the male and so1b-1024) vavera 27 the female, whichis the secret of true faith. Whereis that tond of union complete ?"The answer i, BeHoLa 1x THe 'ext: there iis found, and thete is the allinall union. WiteRe 1s Saran THY Wire ? Did not the celestial angels know tha she was in the tent ?'The facts that angels do not ow of happenings in this world save what is necesary for {ei mission, This s bore out by the text, "For Iwill pass through the land of Egypt... 1am the Lord" (Es. xu, 12), which indicates that although the Holy One tad many rmessengers and anges to perform His work, yot they would fot have been able to disinguish hetween the germ ofthe first-born and ofthe later born—only the Almighty Hime could do this, Another exumpe isthe Yer, "and seta mark 'on the forcheads of the en et." (Each. 1x, 4), whieh rots thatthe angel require a mark, a8 otherwise they only Kaow what is specially communicated to them, a, forinstance, 'he sufferings which the Holy One is about to bring upon the world asa whole and which He proclaims throughout the seven heavens. Thus when the destroying angel at large {resa] inthe world, x man should take shelter n his house, remain undercover and ot show himelfin the open, so that th hort may befall him, as the Tsralites were biden in Fypt, "and none of you shall go out of the door ofhis house until the morning" (Ex. 3,22) From the angels one can tie oneself, but not from God, of whom itis wriven, ny hide himset in secret places that ¥ shall not sith the Lord" Jer. xxi, 24). The angel asked: "Where js Sarah thy wife?" forthe reason that he did not want to diver the message inher pretence; but a soon as Abraham 'sid, "Behold, she is in the ten, he said Twinn con Comer ROUSD, AND, LO, SARAH THY WIFE SHALL ave 4-808, Note the delicacy ofthe angelsin notannoune- ing anything to Abraham before he invited them teat, so 35 rot to make i appear that the invitation was a repayment for Uisir good tidings, We thos read first, "and they did eat, fand then, "and they sad unto him". AND THEY p10 BAY? how so? Do celestial angels eat ?'The trth is that they only sinlated eating in honour of Abraham. R. Elezar suid? ps THE Z0ONAR t [ena-toxb 'They certainly did eat, i the sense of fire consuming fr visibly: ofa teuth what Sbrabar offered them they ate as itis {rom the sdeof Abrazam that they obtain sustenance on high 'Note that Abraftann hep al his food in a stato of ital cleanliness, and therefore he personally waited on them whilst they were eating. He observed so strictly the lnws regarding clean and unclean that no tan ina state of ritual impurity was allowed to serve in his house until he had duly cleansed himself by bathing before night or by abstention for [toab} seven dave, according 0 the degre of hin defile- ment. And as Abralam prepared the mans of purification in such a atite, x0 did Sarah for women. The reacon

17Abraham did this was because he was himself pure and
is designated "pure" (ait is writen, "Who can beng forth a pute one from aneimpure ?" (Job xiv, 4), which i a refer= énice to Abraham, who was bor of Tera. R. Simeon sd that it was in order to eonfem Abraham ia his special grade, which symbolised by water, that heat oxt to keep the word Pure by means of ater The sme symboie meaning under Tics the words uttered by' him when he invited the ang partake of food, to wit, "Leta litle watir he fetched", he wishing thereby' to confirm hist inthe degree symbolised by water. He therefore endeavoured to purty people in all women, The result of ritual purity. Wherever Abraham tok up his residence he 'used to plant a certin tre, but in no place did it Rourish 'properly save in the land of Canaan, By means of this tree he twas able to distinguish between the man who adhered to the Almighty and the man who worshipped idols: For the man, 'who worshipped the:rue God the tree spread outits branches, and formed an agreeable shade over his head: whereas in the presence of one who clung to the side of idolatry the tree shrank within itself and is branches stood upright, Abraharn thus recognised the erring man, admonished him, and did not desist until he had succeeded! in making him embrace the true faith, Similarly the tree received under its shade those Who were clean, and not those who were unelean; and when 102!) VAYERA 339 Abraham recognised the later, he purified them by means fof water, Moreover, there was a spring of water under that very tree, and when a man came who required immediate Jmmersion, the waters rove and also the branches ofthe tre: tnd that vas a sign for Abraham that that man reeded ersion forthith. On other occasions the water died up: this wasa sign to Abraham that that man eould not be purified Ihfore the lapse of seven days. Note that Abraham, in ofering hho invitation to the angels, said, "and recline' yourselves under the tree": this was for the purpose of tesing them, in the same way as he tested by the same tree any wayfaret who came. By the word "tree", he alo refered ta the Holy 'One, blessed he He, who isthe tee of life for all, as though to say, "recline yourselves under His shade, and not under the shelter of strange gods". Note that Adam transgressed through eating of the tee of knowledge of good and el, and this brought death into the world. God then sid, "and nov, Jest he put forth his hand, and take also the tree of life ete" (Gen, 123) Buewhen Abraham ame,heremedied theevil by scans ofthat other tre, which isthe tree of life and by means of whieh he made known the true faith to the whole werld, AND nie surp: Twit CERTAINLY RETURN UNTO THEE "instead of "twill return", "the il resin" since the Sisitaion of barsen women jin the hand ofthe Almighty Himself and notin the hand of any mestenger, according tothe dieu: "Three keys there are 'which have not been entrusted to any messenger, namely, of eild-bi, of the resurrection, and of an." But the truth is thatthe words °T will return? were spoken by the Holy One, blessed be He, who was present thee. This is corrobor- -ed by the use here of the teem eavamer (and he sid). For itis tobe observed that wherever the verb eajomer and he said), oF exyiga (and he called), occurs without a subject, then the implied subject i the Angel of the Covenant and no other. Examples are: "And he sid, If thou wilt diligently Inarken et." (Ex. x, 26); also: "And he called unto Moses" (Lew. 4,1) alio: "And unto Moses he said (Ex: v1). x0 rite zoHAK 1 ose {nose} Taal these passages as wel our presen passage, the unopedfed subject ofthe sentence i te Ange ofthe Coreen 'AND, Lo, Sanaa tHe wire suAus. ave 4 30x, Why not "and tow shalt have son"? In ofder that Abrabam Should not think that ponsiy he should be om Hager ike the previa one. R. Simenn here discoured on the text 'Aton hoeareth hs fater anda veroat hs ester (Mal. 6) He mid: A conspicuous ramp of a 20m honouring is father is presented by leant the time when Abrakam bound him on the altar with the intent of offering him Up as a sacrifice. He was then thirty-seven yeas ol, whit is father 'vas an old man and though he could easily, basing hick, fave liberated hinelf, he et himself be bound fie a lami in onder t do the wal of hs father, A sere' honouring fe pera ieee ty Reece ranean cre when he was sent by Abratam to Haran he there followed tout al the wishes of his master and pad him great respect, fs itis writen, "And he an, Lam Abra the Lord bleed my master: Abram' (Gen, x1, 34-33) Hess vas a man oho bad -with him silver and gold and precious nonce and camels and wa hire oly pre= cer yet he dil noc presen mel aa frit of Abrahary tr one of is Ki, but openly declared "an the servant 'beans in order 1 excl his aster and tae kin an bjt oftonourintheejes ibishearen. Hence the prophet roe: "Asn nur is fli ul caer is Imaner = much a to ay, "but ye Tooel my chide, ye foal share deslae that we Your ther or a J my servants". Hence the verse proceeds: "If then { be 2 father, were is my honour?" (Mal x, 6). So when i aye of Tssac, "And lo, 4 fon t means, "tray a's, 2 son pope, ot an Ishmael, a son who wil pay ue respect nd honosr to hie father". Further its sad, "And Sarah Aigo ill hayes ea) babe assent td to Sarah since it was on fis account that she died on fis stcount she slfered angi of coul until her lite depared, Sand, further, on his account she i exalted a he time when the Holy One stn judgement on the world, foron that day 1054] waver 3a 'And the Lord remembered (Gen. xxi, 1), mentioning Sarah for the sike of Isaac. Truly he was "4 son to Sarah". AND SARAH HEARD IN THE TENT DOOM, AND LT Was BE HIND IM. We should have expected "and she was bebind him", But the inner meaning of the whale verse is that Sarah hheard the "Door of the Tent", which is identical with the Holy One in the lower grade, making the declaration, and that "He", to wit, the Holy One in the supernal grade, "was 'behind him" (the door), confirming the declaration. During the whole of her lifetime Sarah never heard any utterance from the Holy One save on that occasion. According to another interpretation, the expression "and he was behind him' refers to Abraham, who vas behind the Shekinah.' Now Apmanant Ap Saman wens ou, rey ap ARRIVED IN HEGARD TO DAYS. Theexpression "they had arrived (ba'u) in regard 10 days" is equivalent to "theit days had approached ther allotted term', Abraham being hundred years old and Sarah ninety. We may corapare the 'expression "for the day arrived" (by), i. the day had declined towards evening. It MAD Crasey TO mE WiTHt SARAH APTER THE MANNER OF WOMEN: but at that 'moment she experienced a rejuvenation. Hence her remark ASD MY LORD 15 OLD, as much a5 to say that he was un fitted to beget children on account of age. I. Judah here hogan a discourse with the verse: Her husband is hnown i the gates, shen he siteth among the elders ofthe land (Prov. xxst, 33). He said "The Hey One, blewed be He, in transcendent in His glory, He is hidden and removed far beyond all ken there is no one in the world, nor has there ever been ane, Whom His wisdom and essence do net elude, since He is recordite and hidden and beyond all ken, so that neither the supemal nor the lower beings are able to commune with Him until they utter the words "Blessed be the glory ofthe Lord. from his place" (Bzel. it, 12). The creatures of the earth think of Him as being om high, declaring, "His glory is akove the heavens' (Ps, ext, 4), while the heavenly beings think 'of Him as being below, declaring, "His glory is overall the

38'THE zomAKT [1032-1036
arth" (Ps. Lyi, 12), until they both, in heaven and on earth, concur in declaring, "Blessed be the glory of the Lord from his place", because He is unknowable and no one ean truly lunderstand Him. 'This being 40, how cin you say, "Her Ihvsband is known in the gates"? [1036] But of a truth the Holy One makes Himself known to every one according to the measure of his understanding and his capacity to attach himself to the spicitof Divine wisdom; andthus "Herhusband is knowin", not "in the gates" (bishe'arin), but, a5. we may also translate, "by messure", though a full knowledge is beyond the reach ofany being.' Simeon said: "The "gates! sn this pascage are the same as the gates in the passage, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates' (Ps. xxiv, 2),and refer to the superna grades by and through whieh alone a Knowledge of the Almighty ix possible to man, and but for 'which man could not commune with Gad. Similarly, man's seo cannot be known directly, save through the members of the body, which are the grades forming the instruments of the soul, The souls thus knovn and unknown, So itis with the Holy One, bleed be Fle, since He is the Soul of souls, the Spirit of spirits, covered and veiled from anyone; never. theless, through those gates, which are dans for the soul, the Holy One makes Himself known. For there is door within door, grade behind grade, through which the glory of the Holy One is made known. Hence here "the tent door" isthe door of sighteousness, referred win the words, "Open to me the gates of righterusness" (Ps. cxVit, 9), and this is the first entrance door: through this door a view is opened to all the other supersal doors. He who succeeds in entering this door is privileged to know both it andall the ather doors, 'since they all reposeon this one, At the present time this door remains unknown because lsael is in exile; and therefore all the other dours are removed from themn,t0 tht they einnot kno or commune; but when Israel return from esile, all the grades are destined to rest harmoniously upon this fone. 'Then men will obtain a knowledge of the precious supemal wisdom of which hitherto they wist no, as itis \wrtten, "And the wirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the epinit of counsel snd 1036-1044] vavens 333 'might, the spirit of knowledge and ofthe fear ofthe Lord" (ls: x, 2) All these are destined to rest on this lower door 'which isthe tent door; all ton will rest upon the Messiah in order that he may juge the world, a iia wetter, "Mut vith righteousness shall he judge the poor, ete." (ltd. 4)- "Thus when the good tidings were brought to Abraham, it was that grade which brought them, as we have deduced from the fact that the word eayomer (and without a specific subject in the passage will ceruinly return unto thee when the season cometh round' "Observe how the great love of the Almighty towards "Abraham was manifested in the fact chat Isaac was nwt born to him until he was cigcumcised.. In this way it was made certain thet his sced should be bly, according to the words of the Serprut, "wherein is the seed thercof after its kind" (Gen, 1, 12). For had Abraham begotten before he was circumcised, his seed would not have beea holy, as it would have toued from the state of ola, and thus would have clung to thar stte here below; but after Abraham's circumcision the seed issued from the stat of holiness and became attached to superna holiness, and he begat children in the higher plane and thus beeame atached to his grade in the manner Sting." R. Eleszar asked one day of his father R. Simeon In regard to the name Isaac, why did the Holy One give him that name before he cre into the world, by commanding "ANd tho shalt call his mame Isaac" (Gen. x61, 19)?" R. Simeon answered: 'We have elsewhere stated that through Isaac fice supplanted water, For water comes from the side of Geburah (Force), and itis further required of the Levites that they should entertain tha side with hymns and ang 'on divers instruments, Hence Insc was joyousness, because the ised from that aide and hecame attached to it, Observe that the word Yitshick (Issac) means. "auhter", 10 Wit, rejoicing because water was changed to fre and fre to water hence he was called Isaac, and henee the Holy: One called him [1044] s0 before he came into the ward, and He an- nounced that name to Abraham, You will see that in other cas the Holy One permitted the parents, even the mothers, aH rue conan t Loe igive names to ther children, Here, however the Holy One {id not give permission tothe mother to mame the cil but 'only to Abyaham, as it is written: "And thou shalt call his name Isaac'—thou and no ether, s0 a8 to intermingle water With fire and fire with water and to range it on his side Having related how Abrahim was informed of the coming birth of aac, the Scripture proceeds: AND THE MEN KOSH UP FROM THENCE, AND LOOKED OUT TOWARD Sovowt. Ssid R. Eleazar: 'Observe how merifil the Holy 'One, blessed be He, shows Himself towards all beings, and 'specially wwards those whe walk in His paths. For when He is boutto execute judgement on the worl, before doing

0He putsin the way of His beloved the occasion of perform=
ing a good act. We have thusbeen taught that when the Holy (One loves a man, He sends him a present in the shape of a 'poor man, so that he should perform some good deed to him, through the merit of which he shall draw to himeelf a cord 'of grace from the right side which shall wind round his head andl imprint a mark on him, so that, when punishment falls 'on the world, the destroyer, raising his eyes and noticing 'the mark, will be careful to avoid him and leave him alone, Se when the Holy One wasabsut to etsoute judgereaton Sodom, He frst led. Abraham to do a meritorious action by the presont which He sent him, so as thereby to save Lot his brother's son from destruction, It is therefore written, "And God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst 'of the overthrow" (Gen, 11%, 29). It does not say that God remembered Lot, since he was saved through the merit of 'Abraham. What God remembered was the bindness which Abraham bad shown to these three angels. Similarly, the charitable deeds which a man performs are remermbered by the Holy One at the time when punishment impends upon the world, for every meritorious action is receded on nd when chastisement impends over that man the Holy One Kindness he had performed with other men, 'but charity devereth from death" (Prov. xi, 4) "The Holy One thusafforded Abrahaen in advance the occasion of a good action, so that by his merit he should deliver Lot from destruction," 1042) VAYERA 35 AND tHky LooxeD Orr TowaRD SoDow. 'This was im- 'mediately after "the men rose up from thence", thats, fom, the fest that Abraham bad prepared for them, so performing 'a meritorious act. For although they were angels, his hospi= tality w them was. good action, sinee of the whole ofthe food offered them they left nothing over, purposely that Abraham should acquire merit thereby, a8 tie written, "and they did feat", the food having been consumed by their fire. Ie may [be ubjected that the thre- angels were ona of re, one of water, And the third of ar. The answer to this, however, is that they all partook of each otker's essences, ard hence "they id eat". Analogous to this is the passage "and they beheld God, and did eat and drink" (Ex. xxiv, 11). There it was truly eating, for they feasted themselves on the Shekinah, 'So here, "and they did eat" implies that they feasted them= selves on that side to which Abraham was attached, and for that reason nothing remained of what Abraham put before them, For just as it hehoves a man to partake of the cup of blessing (after a meal), that he merit the blessing from on high, 'so theangele also ate from what Abraham prepared for them that they might be privileged to feast on that which proceeds from the sie of Abrsham, for it is from that aide that 'sustenance issues for all the celestial angels, AND THEY LOOKED OUT: with an impulse of mercy for the delivery of Lot. The word vayeshgifi (and they looked out) here is analogous with its kindred word in "Look forth (hashgifah) from thy holy habitation" (Deut, xxv, 15), and as there the implication is an exercise of merey, ao here. Any ABRA~ MAM WENT WITH THEM TO BRING THEM ON THEE WAY; that is, to.escortthein, R Yess said; "This shows that Abra- ham was not aware that they sere angel; for if he was, what need bad he wo sce them off ? 'No,' answered R, Eleaza 'although he ines, he kept to his usual custom with them, and saw them off. For it is highly incumbent on a man to 'escort & departing guest, far this erowas the good act. So Whilst he was walking with them, the Holy One appeared to-Abraham, as itis writen, "And the Lord said, Shall Vide from Abraham that which Lam doing "The term V=Yhok (and the Lord) implies God with the attendance of the

336THE ZOHAR [roga-tose
hheavenly Court. [2045] Thus we sce that, when & man escorts his departing friend, he drays the Shekinah to join him and

1accompany hin on the way: as & protection.
Axp Tur Loo arp, Suact I upg erom ApRanan THAT WutcH I ast DOING? R. Hiya quoted here the verse; For the Lord God ell do nothing, but he revealeth his counsel unto hie servants the prophets (Amos 1,7). "Happy," hae sd, are those pious ones ofthe world in whom the Eloly One finds delight, and whem He uses as Hix agents for all that He does in heaven or intends to doin this world, not hiding anything from thers, For the Holy One desires to associate vith Himself the righteous so that they may ad- 'monish and eall the people to repentance in order that they say escape the punishment decreed by the judgement-sat '9 high, and, in eny case, so that they should not be left with punishment withoat jus 'guilty whe are steeped in igaorance and refrain not from sin, Now, seeing that the Holy One, whose acts are truth and Whose ways are justice, nevertheless does rot execute His Baki inthe world before Ha reveals File atine tthe reid 'ous, so. not to give occasion to mankind for censuring His acts, how much more must the sons of men be on their guard s to act 2 not to leave any room for others to spread evil 'tumours against them. So tis written: "And ye shall be clean before the Lord and toefore Israel" (Num. Sxxtt, 23). Ie 8 thus incumbent on thete righteous to act so that men shall be able to complain azainat God, and to warn them betimes,ifthey are sinfil, not to pive an opening to the stern justice of God to descend upon them. And how are they to 'guard themselves? By repertance and good deeds" R. Judah commented as follows: "The Holy One, bleed be He, gave the whole land to Abraham [1054] as an everlasting heritage, fi iin written: "For all the and which thou seest, to thee Tgive it ete." (Gen, sith, 15). That he say the whole land is indicated ia the words which precede: "ft up now thine eyes from the place where thow art, northward, te." (hid. 14) And now the Holy One found it necessary 19 uproot those 1052-1050) VAYERA 337 places. He therefore saié to Himself: "I have already given 'over the land to Abraham, he thus being the father of alts inhabitants [Jo iia yeriten® for the father of am a nations have E made thee' (Gen. xvii, 5)), and ao it is not fitting for me to inflict punishment on the children without first giving warning to thei father, to "Abraham my friend' (ls, xu, 8)2" Hence, Axo tHe Loup sap, Suatt 1 MIDE FRoot AmRAMAM, ETC." R. Abla said: 'Notice the 'unselfidhness of Abraham. For although the Almighty notified Ihim of the coming calamity, announcing VEKILY, THE CRY OF Sopom a¥p Gomonnan 1s oRéar, and So on, and thus gave him a breathing-space before the final catastrophe, bral, nevertheless, did not plead for Lotto be deivered from the punishment. Why so ? In orde: that it should not appear that he was asking a reward for his good deeds. Bat jus for this reason did the Holy One send Lox forth acd deliver im: it was forthe sake of Abraham, as itis written, snd God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the werthrow" (Gen. xtx, 29). In the they were all guilty, without any redeeming features, save Lot. 'We learn alsa from this that any place ishabited hy wicked peopleis doomed to destruction, Lot dweltonly in one ofthese cities, nat in all of them, but it was due only to his presence that they were not all destroyed hefore..And this, to0, was not due to Lot's own merits, but to the meritsof Abraham' Asto pint, R. Simeon said: "Note that any service rendered

102 righteous man procures protestion for the doer. Nay
'more, even if he himself is sinful, yet by rendering service to-2 righteous man he is bound to learn some of his ways and practise them. So you see that Lot, hy reason of having kept company with Abraharn, although he had not adopted all his ways, had learnt to show Kindness to people in imita- tion of Abraham, and this it as that enabled those cities to 'exit 40 many yeare after Lot settlad among chem? [05H] I WILL Go DOWN AND SEE! IF 17 15 ACCORDING 70 THE CRY OF IT, THEN MAKE YE AN exTEnatiNATION 'vhom as this command addressed ?Te cannot be to the

338que dona [tosb
angels, since that would mean that God was speaking to one party (Abraham) and giving command to another (he angels), Sich fs not sual he explanation Jo thet fe was realy 'Addressed o Abraham, in whose jarisdicton the cities were. But then why the plural, "make ye" (asd) instead of the singular "make thou ('axe ? 'The answer is that it was addressed both to Abraham and the Shekinah, which was all the time with him. According to another interpretation the command was given to the angels, who were standing there ready at hand to do execution. According to another inter~ pretation, again, the proper reading is "aru (they havemade), And this accords with the transition of Ongeloa. It says "Twill go down and see." Are no all things revealed before the Almighty that there was need for Him tb go down and see? The expression, however, *T will go down', implies dlewent from the geade of mercy to that uf rigour, and by "and see" is meant the consideration of the kind of punish rent to be meted out to them. "Seeing" in the Senptures 'can be both for good and for ill An example of the formee tie is: "And God saw the children of Israel, and God took 'cognizance of them" (Ex. 1,23); an esample of the later is "Lill go dovn and. see", ie. determine the mode of punishment. In regard to all this God said, "Shall T hide from Abraham, ete SEEING THAT ADRAAM WILL sUmELY BECOME 4 GREAT AND ALGHTY NATION. How comes this Messing te be inserted here? Its to teach us that the Holy One, even 'when He sts in judgement on the world, does not change His nature, since whilst sitting in judgement on one Hes display ing metey to «thers, and all at one and the sare smament R. Judah objected that itis written: "But as for me, let my prayer he to thee, O Lord, in an acceptable time" (Pa. LXt%, 14). which would seem to shovt that there are with God acceptable moments and unaccepuble, that at one time He grants audience, at another time He does not, that the Almighty is now accessible, now inaccessible; and this is corroborated by the verse: "Seek ve the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is neae" (Is, 1, 6). In 1056] vavERA. 339 reply to this, R, Bleazar atid that the verses cited apply to the prayers of an individual, whilst the lesson of our text applies to communal prayer: the Former to.a sinele locality. the later to the world as a whole. Hence God here blessed aham because he was on a par with the whole world, as itis writen: "These are the generations of the heaven and the earth when they were ereated" (Gen. 1, 4), where the term behidaream (when they were crewed), by 4 transposition of letters, appears 2 beabrahem (in Abraham) The numerical Value of the letters of yuhyah (ill become) is thirty, which points to the traditional dictum that the Holy One provides for the world thirty righteous men in each generation in the same manner as He did for the generation of Abrahum, RR, Eleazar supported this from the verse: "He was mare honourable than the thirty, but he atuined not tothe thre" (it Sam. wxttt, 23) "The thirty', he aid, 'refers to the thirty feous whom the Holy One has provided for the world ithout intermission; and Benaish the son of Jehoiada of whom it is write, "He was the most honourable of the thirty" was one of them. "But he attained not to the tres" i.e: he was not equal to those other three on whom the world subsists, neither being counted among them nor being deemed worthy: to be associated with them and to have an 'equal share with them. Now since these were cirty righteous in the time of Abraham, asthe term yuhywh indicates, there- fore God blessed him in their company. God said to Abraham, 'Verily, the ery of Sodom and Gomorrah is grea", a5 much as to say: T have taken note 'af their behaviour towards their fllow-men, which causes al men to avoid setting foot in Sodom and Gomorrah. So is 'written: "The stream made a chasm for strangers, 0 they are forgotten of the foot that passeth bys they are the poorest 'of men, they moveaway" (ob. xxvitt, 4), 'Phe stream divided to swallow up any stranger who ventured to enter Sodom; forif anyone was detected offering food or drink toa stranger, the people of the town would east him into the deepest part of the river, as wll asthe recipient. Hence, "they are for- gotten of the foot, ic. men avoided it and never put foot

340'THE OMAR 1 [rosé-106a
{nto i; and as for those who happened to enter it—"they are the poorestof men, they mote away", i.e. as no food or drink was given to them, their bodies became so emaciated they searcey looked any more like human beings, and henee "they moved avay", ie. people passed it by on one side. 'Even the birds of heaven [1o6a) avoided it, as it is written, "that path no bird of prey Enoweth" (Ibid. 7). A universal outery therefore went up against Sodom and Gomorrah and all the other towns that behaved like them [tis writen here: "According to the ery of i" Why not of them, since two cities are mentioned here ? Thisis explained a follows. From the side underneath the Hsil-Stone vapours ascend t0 the shoulder (af the Divine Throne), where they gather them- selves into one drop, and then descend into the chast of the great abyss. 'There' five become merged into one, When the voices of all of them are clear they unite into one. Then a voice ascends from below and mingles with them, and the cofnhined ary keeps on ascending and clamouring for justice, 'until at last the Holy One appears to investigate the accusa- tion. Hence R. Simeon says thatthe "there refers to the sentence of judgement, which demands execution day by day. 'This conforms with the tradition that for-muny' years the 'sentence of judgement continued to demand reparation forthe sale of Joseph by his brethren. Hence here also her ery went lap for justice, and therefore itis writen, "according to the cry of her". The word which follows, Rabbah (which is come), really mears "which is coming", i.e. coming continually. AND ApRAHAM DREW NEAR, AND SAID: Witt THOU wien? R, Judah said: 'Was there ever seen such a merciful father ax Abeahamn ? Observe that in regard to Noah itis wrtter, "And God said to Noah, The end ofall flesh is come beiore me. ... Make thee an ark of gopher wood" (Gen, v1, 15-14), but Noah remained silent: he aid nothing, ror did he beseech for mercy (fr hit flloy-men). Abraham, 'on the contrary, a8 soam asthe Holy One made nnoncement to him, "Verily, the ery of Sodom and Gomorrah is grea,

1will go down and see, ete
1060-1066] vavEna, 3H and 'aid: Wik 'Thou indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked ?"" Said R, Blewar: "Even Abraham's action is rot beyond cavil. He was, indeed, beter than Noah, who did nothing, whereas he pleaded eamestly for the righteous that they should not pensh with the guilty, beginning his plea with the number of fifty righteous and descending to ten; then, however, he stopped, without completing his prayer for merey forall, saying, a8 it were, "Edo not wish to draw upon the recompense due to me for my good dees." "The perfect example is given by Moses, who as soon as the Holy One said to him, "they have turred aside quickly out 'of the way... they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped ie" (Ex. xxsit, 8), straightway "besoughe the Lori his God, ete." (Ibid. 11), concluding with the words "and if not, blow me, T pray thee, out of thy honk which thou hast written!" (Ubif. 32). And although the whale people had sinned, he did not stir from his place until God suid: "I have pardoned according to thy word." Abrakam 'was inferior in that respect, since he ony asked for mere in the event that there should be found righteous men, but not otherwise, 'Thus there never was a man who was so sur bulwark to his generation as Moses, the "faithful shepherd" ANDANRAHAM DREW NEAR, thats, hemade ready t plead AND $A1D: PERADVENTURE THERE ARE FIFTY RIGHT- ous WITHIN THE city. Abraham began with the number fifty, which is the entrance to understanding, and ended with ten, which number isthe last ofall the grades. R, Isaac sid: *Abrabam stopped atten as the number aymbolie of the ten days of Penitence between New-Yeat and the Day of Atone= iment, Reaching that number, Abraham said, a it were, "After this there is no mare roam for penitence", and thet fore he did not descend further. AND THE TWO ANGELS came TO SopOM AT EVEN, ere. R. Jose pointed out that the preceding verse, "And the Lard went his way as soon as [106] he had left off speak ing to Abraham', indicates that only when the Shekinah departed from Abrahaes, and Abraham returned to his place,

32THE OMAR I f1e6b-167a
{id "the two angels come to Sodom at eve" (It says "0", because one ofthe angels departed with the Shekinah leaving 'nly two.) As soon as Lotsa them he ran afer them, Why

0? Did Loy, then, take into his house all wayfarers and offer
them food and drink? Woald not the cownspeuple have killed him, and meted out to im the same treatment as they did to his daughter? (For Let's daughter once offered piece 'of bread to poor man, and when it was found out, the people of the town covered her body with honey, and left ber thus exposed on the top of a roof until she was consumed by 'wasps.) The angels, however, came in the night, #o that Let thought that the townspeople would not notice it. Neverthe- Jess, as soon as the visitors entered his house all the people smscribled end mirrounded the hoves:/R. Tiaae put the ques tion, "Why did Lot nan afterthem ?" R. Hizkiah and R. Yest each gavean answer. One said that it was because he observed Jn them a likeness to Abratam; and the other, because he noticed the Shekinah hovering over them, 'This view is sup ported by the fact that of Abraham also i i written, "And he ran to meet thetn from the tent door", and the words there are taken to mean thit Abraham sais the Shekinah, Asp Lor saw AND RAN TO MEET THEM, AND NE SAID, BEHOLD NOW, MY LORDS, TURN ASIDE, T PRAY YOU, The expression "turn aside", instead of "draw rear", implies that he took them by a roundabout way, $0 that the pevple ofthe town should not see them. R. Hizkiah here discoursed on the verse: For he looketh tthe ends ofthe 'arth, and eth wnder the thal heaven (Job xxitt, 24) Howe 'incumbent it is, he said, 'upon the sons of men ta contem- plate the works of the Almighty and to busy themeelves in the study of the Tlorah day and night, for through him who thus busies himself the Almighty is glorified on high and helow. 'The Torah indeed isa tree of life fr all those who 'occupy themselves with it, affording them life in this world and [1074] in the world to come, "For he loaketh to the end 'of the lind, to give them food and co siisy all their eds; for He coniinually holds it under His eve, as itis written, "The eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the se] vaveRa 3 ening of the year even unto the end of the yese (Deut, 3112). This is agai, the lind of which ti writen, "she Tring hee fd from afc (Pov. x, #4), and then she roves ood and sustenance forall those "ass of the Fel, for o i ie writen, "she rth alo while fein yet righ and giveth reat to her hovrchold and portion oer maidens" (Ibid. 13) Wis further ween: Thou opeset thy fand, and satis every living thing with favour" (Ps. exis, 10). Acconing to anther interpretation, "He Jeo to the ends ofthe earth" wo ato survey the works of each man and to examine the doings ef mankind throug 'out the worlds "and seth under the whole heave 1. He scans and scratines each indvidsal. Thus when the Holy One my shu wort of Sodom and Comarmh, He ant tpon them those angel to estoy then.' Thereupon, at si writen, "Lo aie," t0 it, the Shebinah, Not that a= fone cin sce the Shekinah realy, but be saw a reaplendent halo sbout their bea, and therefore weread: "And He ehold now, my. lords (ldonay), a hasbeen lead exe Plaine, andi as on account of the lo, the eesion oF the Shekinah, that hes, "turn aside, pray yo toy an' house, and tarry all night, and wash your fe as not the way that Abraham ate. For he fst id "ash your fet" and then: "and T wil fetch morel of bread te" Lot, however, Hirt said, "turn aide, Tray you, imo your servaies house and tarry all night, and then he Sid, No Wash Youn rrET AND YESHALL aLSE CP TAWLY, ax G0 ON TOUR Wat, His object was thatthe People should not become aware oftheir presence, Axo Shey san, Nav, ovr we went snipers Tne sRoaD wives a14 sgn, shat being the emer for visor 0 'hone ete, a5 no one would tae them into his house. 'The vere proces: AND itr UROFD THEM GREATLY. When the Holy Gre abo elect jlgenent io the word the Sends one messenger for this purpose, Why, then, have we here ow messengers, where one would have sufficed ? The truths that ofthe tn angels ene ere go rexcue Lot, to only one was left to overthrow the cy and destroy the ssi aH THE ZONAR [1070-1075 'Ties WHE Lonp causep ro wats UPOS Sopom AND upox Gomonsast, xe, R. Hiya opened his discourse on this with the verse: Behold, the day ofthe Lord cometh, erue, ete (Ie. x01, 9). He aids "Phe words Mehold, the day of the Lord cometh refer to the lower Court. The term. cometh' has thus the sime force asin the passage, "accord= ing to her ery which is come upon me", both implying that the lower power eannat execute judgement until it comes and appears on high and receives authorisation, So, too, in the verse, "the end of all flesh is come before me", According to another interpritation, "behold the day of the Lerd cometh" refers to the destroying angel here below when he 'comes to take the soul of man. Hence "cruel, and full of wrath and fierce anger, to make the earth a desolatios referring to Sodom and Gomorrah: 'and to destroy the sinners thereof [ro7b] out of it" (Ibid), referring to the inhabitants of those cities. Immediately after we read; "For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof, et", for He caused w rain upon theny fire from heaven and exter minated them. Further on it is written: "1 will make man miote rare than fine gold, et. (id. 12), referring 10, Abri- ham, whom the Holy One exalted overall the peoples of the world." R. Judah inerpreted these verses as ceferring to the dday on whigh the Temple was destroyed, 8 on that day both men and angels were phunged into gloom and the supernal and the lower realms and the heaven and the start were darkened. R. Blewar, again, interpreted these verscs as referring to the day when the Holy One will raise the eom= munity of Israel from the dust, That day will be a day of note both above and below, as iis written, "and there shal. be one day, which shall he known as the Lord's" (Zech, xtv, 7); that day will be the day of vengeanee, the day which the' Haly One, blessed be He, has appointed for taking vengeance on the idolatrous nations, For whilst the Holy 'One is taking vengeance on the idelatrout nations, He "will make a man more precious than gold, to wt, the Messiah, who Will be raised and glorified above all mankind, and to 'vhom all rsnnkind will pay homage and bows down, as it ie efore hirw those that dwell in the wilderness will 1078) vavena Ms bow down... the Kings of 'Tarshish and of the isles shall render tribute" (Ps. Lanit, ¢-1c). Observe that although this, prophecy (in the book of Isiah) was primarily intended for Babylonia yet it hasa general application, since thie section ceommences with the ords, "When the Lord shall have mercy on Jacob", and it is ako written, "And peoples shall take them and bring them to their place." AND THE Lono cause ro RAIN vPox Sovow. The {erm P-Yheh (and the Lord) signifies the rade of the lower Court eich requires authorisation frm on high. R Tease said that God showed inercy i the must of punishment, 36 writen, "from Vioh (the Lord) out of heaven exercise of merey is recorded in the words: AND 17 CAME To Fass, WHEN GoD DESTROYED THE cITLES oF *HE PLAIN, TuaT Gop RENEAIDERED ABMAHAMI, AND SEN Lor our, erc., fram whom i course of time isued two entire nations, and who was destined to have amcng. his 'escendants King David an King Solomon. ANDI TEA NE

770PASS, WHEN THEY HAD BROUGHT THEM. FORTH ASROXD,
TWAT MESAID, ETC. This is another proof that When pur ishment overtakes the world aman should not—as has already been said let himself be fund abroad, since the excetioncr doesnot distinguish between the innooeat and the guy For this reason, a has been explained, Noah shut himself in jn the ark saa not to lank ut onthe judgement was executed, So alo ic is writen, "A {ou aba gout of the door af kis house until the morning" (Ex. at, 2), Hence the ange sad to Lot, Escare ron ty Lire, Look Nor miiniNb THEE, exc. R mac and R, Twdah were once walking on the road together. 'The later remarked "Both the punishmentaf the Flood andthe punish« tment of Sodom were of the kins meted ut in Gehinom, inberesineer are punibed Dy water and by fre" Re Tae sid: "That Sodom suifered the puesshment of Gehinnom is shoxin by the wordy of the Scripture, "And the Lord 'used to rin upon Sodom and upan Gomorrah brimstone and fre fm the Lord out ofhesven" the former proceding from the side of water and the later from the side of fie,

46THE 20NART [teyb-te8a
both being punishments of Gehinnom inflicted upon sinners there?" R, Judah then said to him: "The punishment of inners in Gehinnom lasts twelve months, after which the Healy One raiser them out of Gehinnom, where they have 'undergone purification. They remain then sitting at the gate 'of Gehinnom, and when they see sinners enter there to be punished, they beech mercy for them. In time the Holy 'One takes pity on them and causes them to be brought t0 2 certain place reserved for them. From that day onward the bbody rests in the dust and the soul is accorded [1084] her proper place, Observe that, as has been stated, even the {generation ofthe Flood were punished with nothing eae but 'with fire and water: cold water descended from above, whilst seething water bubbled up from below mingled with fre. "They thus underwent the two punishments regularly meted 'out from on high; and so was Sodom also punished, namely, bby brimatone and fe." R,Tsaac aked him "Will the genera-

1of the Flood arse on the Day of Judgement ? R- Judah
sald: "Thae question has already been deused elsewhere; as regards the people of Sodom and Gemorrah, we can say that they wil not aie, 'This is proved from the words ofthe Scripture, "and the whofe land thereof isbrimstone, and salt, and a burning that is not soser, nor beareth, nor any grass 'groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah which the Lord overthrew in his anger, and in his 'wrath! (Deut. wxrt, a3), where the words Wh overthrew" refer to this world, and the words "in his anger" to the world to come, while the words, "and in bis wrath" refer to the time when the Holy One will bring the dead to life R Tsaac then said to him: "Observe that just as the soil of their land was destroyed to all eternity, so were the in- habitants themselves destroyed to all ewrnity, And observe further how the justice of the Holy One metes out measure for measure: as they did not quicken the soul of the poor food of drink, just s0 will the Holy One not restore them their souls in the world to eam, And further, just as they neglected the exeecite of charity which is elled life, so thas the Holy One withholden from themlifein this world and in the world to come. And as they cksed their roads and 1084-1085] vavERa aT pathsto thee fellow-men, 0 has the Holy One closed to them the roads and paths of merey inthis world and in the world to come." R. Abba said: 'All men will rise up from the dead nd will appear for judgement. OF these it ig written. "and some to reproaches and everlasting abhorrence" (Dat. St, 2). God, however, isthe fountain of merey, and since He pun- ished them in this world and they suffered for their sins, they have no longer tosuferall the panishmentsofthe next world." RR, Hiya said: 'Tt is written: "And he sent Lot out of the 'midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt." 'The expression "the cities in wetich Lot dwelt" indicates that he tried to settle in each of the eities jn turn, but none would keep him save Sodom, the king of which alowed him residence [1088] for the sake of Abraham, "This i borne out by the passage, 'and Lot dwvel in the cities 'of the plain, and moved his tent ns far as Sodom" (Gen. xt, 1), BUT its WIFE LOOKED BACK FROM BEIIND MIA 'We should have expected "from behind her" It meas, bow- ver, "From behind te Shekinah. R, Joue ead that means from behind Lot", as the destroying angel followed him. How, it may be asked, could he follow him, sing that he had sent him away ? The fact is that the angel kept behind Lot, destroying on the way, but he did not touch any spot till Lot had passed it. Hence he aid, "Took not behind the jmplying "Yor behind chee I am doing my work of destruc: tion'. But his wife looked back from behind him, thus turn- her face to the destroying angel, and she Became a pillar of salt; for as long as the destroying angel does not see the face of a man he does not harm him; but as soon as Lot's 'wife turned her face 1 look at him she became a pilla of sal." R, Eleszar and R, Jose were one day studying the vers "A land which in it thou shalt eat bread without searceness, 'hich init thou sbalt nos lack anything" (Deut. vitt,9). Said R. Eleaar: "The repetition of the term dah (in it) is to be noted. The reason is, as has been stated, that the Holy One hax assigned all nations and counties to (celestial) chieftains 'and envoys, with the exception of the Land of Israsl, which i under the governance of no angel or chieftain, but only 'under that of God Himself, For this reason He brought the

38THE RORARL [18-1090
people who have no ruler save Him into the land which has no tuler save Him. For the Holy One grovides sustenance there-first, and only then to the rest of the world, All the idolatrour nations rafferscarcenens, but not 10 the Land of Israel: the Land of Israel receives the first supply, the residue tacit left for the ret of the world. Hence "A land which in je thou shalt eat bread without scarceness", and in a rich abndance: "init" but in no other place; in itis the home Of true faith and on t rests the heavenly blessing. Hence itis said that Sodom and Gomorrah were "like the garden of the Lord, lke the land of Egypt" (Gen. xi), 2), [1090] that is, possessing luxurious abundance. So was Egypt also: as the 'arden of the Lord does not need to be watered by man, neither did Egypt, being amply supplied by the river Nile, 'which periodieally ises and irrigates the whole land. 'The Scripture says in one place that "it shall be, that whaso ofthe families of the earth goes not unto Jerusalem, . upon them there shall be no rain" (Zech, xiv, 27), ie as a punishment tut the passage continues: "And if the famuly of Egypt go not typ, and come not... there shall be the plague wherewith the Lard will smite the nations" (hid. 18). Observe that it i not \written "upon them these shall be no rain", for the reason, that it never rains in Egypt, nor is there any ncedoof rain there: hence, their punishment will be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the nations", Similarly of Sodom it is ssritten that "it was well watered everywhere" (Gen. tty x6) it possessed all the suries of the world, and its inhabitants 'were unwilling that other people should share them.' R, Hiya, said: "They deserved punishment both for their immorality snd their uncharitableness. For whoever grudges assistance tothe poor docs not deserve to exist sn this world, and he also forfeits the life ofthe world to come, Contrariwise, whoever is yenerous towards the poor deserves to exist in the world, and itis for bis sake that the world exists, and the fulness off reserved for him in the world to come,' Awp Lox went uP ovr oF ZoaM, AND DWELT IN THE MOUNTAIN, AND IIE TWO DAUGHTERS WaTH MIA, eve, For what reason ? Because Zoar as too near Sodom: further. R. Isaac diseoursed on the verse: dnd hey are turned round about by his devices, accnding {other cor, ete (Job sxx, 42)."Thi means', he said, 'that 'constantly ture the wheel of events, bringing hidden things to the top, and then again {giving another tuen and shaping things differently; ard thus "by his devices" He i ever scheming and plansinig how to 'effect the change, and make a new patter, (2098] Allis "ac cording to their work', ic the variation takes place in ccord: ance t0 the works and deeds of man. 'The verse continues: 1ccordingas he commandeth them upon the face ofthe habit able world", thats, itis in accordance with man's works that God shapes the course of events, in all that He ordainson the face of the world." R. Eleazar interpreted the words "and they are tumed round about by His devices" inthe folowing 'manner. "The Holy One guides the course of events 9 a5 0 bring to passa seemingly stable tate of things; but when the sons of men imagine that al before them is fixed and firm! 'established, then the Holy One turna Tis works into sor thing altogether different from theie former state. Further he said, 'we may translate not "devices", but "devies", i. "instrument", and compare God to a potter who, in turning is wheel, constantly fashions rew vessels according to his faney, So x the Holy One constantly reshaping His works, the instrament which constitutes His potter's wheel, <9 10 speak, being the lower world Judgement Court, Andallisdone 'accordance with man's works If they are good, the whee! revolves to the right, making the course of events high! favourable to them; and however long the wheel revolves, punishment never settles on that side, Should men, however, turn to evil ways [1100] the Holy One imparts to His device

4spin to the left, and all things now take a direetion to the
left, and the wheel gives t0 events 2 course unfavounble 10 the'sons of men. So it goes on until they become penitent and retraes theit evil ways, But the motive power of the wheel is centred in the works of manj hence the phrase, His device, according to their work", there manency, In thie cate too God manipulated events 9 a8 10 attzin a certain end, and all tht happened had its roots in

352'THE ronAR [t10a-1208
the supernal sphere. God had brought Abraham near to Him, and there ksved from him Ishmael, Ishmael vas born before 'Abraham-vas circumcised, that i, before he wax made perfect 'through the sign of the holy covenant. Then the Holy One, bested be He, so devised that Abraham circumcised himeelf and entered the covenant and acquired his complete name of Abraham, and. was crowned by the supemal hé with the _ymbolical issuing of water from wind. Assooa asthe symbol- 'sm was completed and Abraham was circumcised, there fssued from him Isaac, who was the holy seed and who was attached to the supetnal spheres as symbolsing fire from 'water, and who was not in any way linked to the "other ran Lot, again, and from his daughters there eame forth two disparate nations who became attached to the side Appropriate to them. We see here, again, how the Almighty Contrives [sia] the course of things, turning them about £0 that everthing should fit into the general scheme and fall nto its proper place. For observe that it would have been more fitting for Lot that the Holy One should have produced these to nations from his union with his wife. Ie was, how= ever, necessary that these nations should be attached to their 'predestined place, and for this wine had to play its part; and Wine, indeed, was found ready at hand in that cavern. The 'mystical part played by wine here i similar to that regarding 'which we read, "and he drank ofthe wine, and was drunken" (Gen. 1%, 31), 38 has already been explained cleewhere. Tm regard to the names Moab and Ammoa, R. Jose made the following comment, "The first-born daughter was bold- faced enough to call hee son "Moab", therehy:proclaining that he was meab, ie, the Hisue of her own father; whereas THE YOUNGER SHE ALSO BORE 4 SON, AND CALLED ts NAME BeN-AMM: the mother out of delicacy ga hhim that name which being interpreted simply means " son of my people", without hetrayinig who his father was, Further, the words AND ME RNEW NOT WHEN SH LAY DOWN, NOW WHEN SHE AROSE, occur twice in sage, fist in reference to the younger daughter, and then in reference to the elder. In the former case the word B'gumah (when she arose) occurring in itis written line, ie. with the 10-1114} AYERS, ca letter cau, which, moreover, is provided with a dot; this i {o signify that heaven, as it were, was an accomplice to the act Which ultimately ys to bring about the birth of the 'Messith, Contrariwise, the similar word in reference to the "younger one is written defectively, without the letter eau, for the reason that none of her issue had any part in the Holy 'One, Messed be He,' R.Simeon said: "The underlying mean- ing of the words "and he knew not" is that he was unaware that the Holy One intended to raise from hee King David and 'Solomon and all the other kings and, Sally, the Messiah." R. Simeon said further: "The expression "when she aro" 'has it counterpact in the words used by Ruth, "and she rose 'up before one could discern another" (Ruth it, 14). For it wvas on that day that Lot's daughter could be said to have risen tothe height of her destiny in that [r11q] Boaz became attached to one of her lineage in arder "raise up the name 'of the dead upon his inheritance", by means of which there Were mised from her all those Kings and the ele of Israel Again, "And he knew not when abe lay down" has its counterpart in the vere, "and she lay at his feet until the morning" (Ibid) "Observe the restraint of Abraham in rot beseeching grace 'on behalf of Lot, even when the Holy One at first announced

10him His determination to exeeute punishment on Sodom;
nor ater he BEHELD, AND, £0, THE SMOKE OF THE LAND WENT UP AS THESMORE OF A FURNACE did he "Abraham, in order that che | 'had sed up some of his merit in order to save Lat. It eanaot bye said that Lot was of no account in the eyes of Abraham, seeing that Abraham risked his life on his behalf in waging war against five powerful kings. But because of his love for the Almighty' and, in addition, because he saw that Lot's 'conduct fell far short of the proper stardard, Abraham di not pad that any indulgence should te shown to Lot for his sake: 'This is the reason why Abroham did not inter- cede on hehalf of Lot either at the beginning or at the end.

38THE 2oHAR
AND AMRAHAM JOURNEYED FROM THENCE TOWARD. 'We Laxp oF THe Sovri. All his j toward the side of the South, (114 to the other sides, in that it fe the side of Wisdom. A: Anuauast sato oF SARAH, His WIFE, SHE (S MY sistas. Tt is a dictum of our teachers that aman should not rely on miracles, and even if the Holy One, blessed he He, has once perlormed 4 miracle for him he should not 'count on it another time, for miracles do not happen every day, And whoever runs into obvious danger may thereby 'echaust all his merit previously accumulated. This bas been 'made clear in explanation of the verse, "I am not worthy of all the mercies, and of all the truth, ete." (Gen. xxxn, 13). 'Now, seing that Abraham had already had once a miraculls deliverance when he journeyed into Egypt, why did he put Dhimself now again into a similar diffeuty by saying she is iy sister" ?The answer is that Abraham did in no way rely fn himself, but he saw the Shekinab constantly in the abode Of Sarah, and that einbuidened him wo deelae "she is my slater", in the sense of the verse "Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister" (Prav. vt, 4), Axv Gop cane 10 Aviaeteen, ere. Can that be? Docs, then, the Holy One, blessed be Hf, come tothe wicked ? "The same question is raised by the words, "and God eame tunto Balan" (Num. xx, 9), and again, "and God eame to Laban' (Gen. xxxt, 24). In all these cases, however, it was, in fact, only a heavenly messenger wha was dispatched 10 them, and who. in executing their message assumed thet divine name (Elohim), since they were emissaris of justice. Hence: AND Gon CAME To ABLMELECH IS A DREAM OF THE NIGHT, AND SAID TO 11M, BEHOLD, THOU Hast TAKES, tC. R. Simeon here discoursed on the verse The lip of truth shall be established for evr; but a ying tongue i but for a momest (Prow. x11, 19). "The first past of the verse" he sad, "alludes 10 Abraham, whose words on every: 'occasion were truth; and the other part of the verse és an lusinn to Abimelech, 'ivice Abraham said of Sarah, "she niib-ar2a VAvERA 353 is my sister". On the fist occasion he referred wo the Shekinah, who was constantly with Sarah, and as Abraham [2129] was of the right side he could indeed say of the Shekinah "she i my sister", using the term fn the same 'mystic uense as in the Verse, "imy sister, my love, my dove, my undefled" (S. 8. v, 2). Abraham always called her "sister" because he was attached to her inseparably. Later hae said "And moreover she is my sister, the daughter of 'my father, but not the daughter of my mother." Was it really so? In truth he as alluding all the time to the Shekinah. At first he said, "she is my sister" in conform With the admonition, "Say 10 wisdom, Thou art my sister 'Then he amplified this by saying "moreover she is my sister, the daughier of my father", ie. the daughter of Supemal Wisdom, for which reason 'she is called "my sistee" and also Wisdem—"but not the daughter of my mother"—ie, from the place where is the origin of all, most hidden and recondite: "And so she became my wife", ie. by way of Tondiness wd affection, fa the sense Of the verse "aid his right hand embrace me" (5. $. it, 6). Thus all his words contained mystic allusions. Observe that onthe first ocrasion, 'when they went down to Egyp, he called her "my sister" in order t cleave all the more firmly to the true faith, and not fo be led astray after outer grades; similarly now he 'continued to declare "she is my sister" hecause he bad not deviated from the tnie faith. Por Abimelech and all the inhabitants ofthe land followed strange worship, and there fore Abratam, entering there, made bold to say "my sister", claiming thereby the same indisoluble Kinship as between brother and sister. For the marital bond can be disolved, 'but not that hetween brother and sister. So whereas all the people ofthat land were addicted tothe worship of the stars and constellations, Abraham, the teve believer, avowed "she is my since", as much a6 to say, "We two will never separate," We ean apply here the Words, "and for his sister

4virgin" (Lev. x31, 3), which were spoken ofthe priest, but
cesoterically signify the abode where Abraham reposes, Tix written: The Lord thy Ged thew shalt fear; him shalt thou sere} and to hom salt thou cleace, and by his nae shot thou

3541M ZHAR [raaae2b
'ncrar (Deut. 20) The accusative particle eth (1136) points beng the Cour of Justice. The words "him shalt thow serve" point to.a higher grade which rests upon the lower the two being inseparaile. Thiaia the place of the holy ovenant, the object of service. "And to him shalt thou cleave" refers w the region of complete union, to wit, the 'body which rests i the cents; "and by his name shale thou. year" refers tothe seventh ofthe grades Abraham, there fore, clave to the true faith when he went down into Egypt and also when he went to the land of the Philistines. He was like a man who wanted to go down into a deep pit but was afraid he would not be able to come up again. He therefore fastened a rope above the pi, and having thus assured his ascent, he went down, In the mame way Abraham, when he 'was about to go dawn to Egypt, frst secured his faith firmly, and thus having something to hold by he went down there; and he did the same when he went into the land of the Philistines. The lip of uth", then, ia eaablished Forever: 'hur alving tongue Is but fora' moment", the "lying tongue"™ referring to Abimelech, who said, IW THE StaiPLictTY oF Toone titts, But what was the reply he received ? YEA, TmNOW THAT 18 THB SIMPLICITY OF THY HEART THOU MAST DONE THIS, but no mention was made of innocency of hands, Now THEREFORE RESTORE THE MAN'S WIFE, FOR IE 18.4 PHOPHET.! R, Judah discoursed on the verse: He suardeth the fet of 'is pious ones, ete. (0 Sara, 1, 9)." "His pons ane" be said "is Abraham, whom God constantly kept under 'watchful cate, whilst the word "feet" ie an allusion to his wife, with whom God sent the Shekirah to guard her. According to another interpretation, the Holy One continually accom- pinied Abraham so that no one should do him any harm. Buc the wicked shall be put to silence by the darkness (Bid). These are the kings whom the Holy One had slain be that sight when Abrakam pursued them the night, as it were, ute With darkness to slay them, 0 that While Was 11a] vavena the and his servants, and he smote them" (Gen. xiv, 15). dividing" is here meant that the Holy One separated His attribute of merey from that of justice in order to avenge 'Abraham. Inetead of "and he smote them' we should have expected "and they smote them" But this is again a refer- 'ence to the Holy One, "for man prevaileth not by strength", seeing that only Abraham and Elicer were there." R, Isaac put the question: 'Have we not boen taught that a man hould not court danger, in reliance an a miracle * And eas 'not Abraham putting himself into extreme danger im pur- 'suing the five kings and engaging in hatte against them 1, Judah replied: 'Abraham did notset out with the intention fof joining battle, nor did he count upon a miracle. What impelled him to leave his house wasthe distress of Lot, whom be resolved to ransom, taking money with him for this purpose, and being prepared, in case he should ant succeed, to die with him in captivity. But assoon as he se out he saw the! Shetinah illuriing the way before him, and howts of angels encompassing him, 'hes it was that he began to pursue them, whilst the Holy One slew thers. Hence the verse 'and the wicked are put to silence in darkness" (1 Sam. 9) Re Simeon said: "The mystical interpretation of the 'rae ian Follow: He guardetl (he fet a pious ones" this refers to Abraham. But when Abraham set out Isaac joined him and so the enemies fll before him. But had not Tsaae been associated with Abraham, they would aot have been exterminated. So it is written: "But the wicked shall bbe put to silence in darkness, for man prevaileth not by strength", indicating that alchough strength resides always in the sight side, if not for the help ofthe left side (darkness), the opponents could not be overcome.' According to another interpretation, "He guardeth the feet of Snifies that when a man truly laves God, then God recipro cates histoveinall his doings and guards him inall his ways, asit is written, "The Lord shal guard thy goingout and thy coming in, from this time forth and for ever" (Ps: cXxt, $). (Observe haw ansidvous Abrahain wan in his love towards the

356THE ZOHAR | [abuse
Holy One; for wherever he went he had no regard whatever 3}. and sought only to cleave to the Almighty. i pious ones", the tere "feet" referring to Abraham's wife, regard to whom itis written, "Now Abimelech had aot come near hee", also Therefore sutfered I thee not to toueh her." We find also \written in the ease of Pharaoh, "And the Lard plagued Pharaoh and hie house with grest plagues at the word of Sarai" (Gen. 14,17), implying that she, as it were, gave out the order and the Holy One administered the blows, 'Thus Hie guardeth the feet of his pious ones." "Bur the wicked shall he put to silence in darkness": these are Pharaoh and Abitvelech, to whom the Holy One administered punishment hy nigh or not by strength shall man hose behalf God ssid, "Now therefore restore the man's wife, ete." * AND THE LonD REMESIBERED SANAM ASHE HAD S410, tere, R Hiya discoursed on the verse: And he showed me Foshus the high priest standing before the angel of the Lard, land Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him (Zech. 1, 2). "This verse," he suid, 'must be carefully pondered. "Joshua the high priest" is Joshua the son of Jehoxedek: "the angel of the Led" before wwhorn he wat standing i the region of the "bundle of the souls of the righteous, which is known ax "the angel ofthe Lord'; "Satan standing at his ight hand to accuse him' is the evil tempter who roams to and fro through the word 1» snatch up sits and 19 lure beings 0 perdition, angels as well as human beings: Joshua had been 'ast ly Nebuchadnezzar into the fre, along with the false prophets: and that was the moment seized by Satan to bring. accusations against him on high in order t 'burtalong with them, Forthisistheway ofthe Satan, his indictment for the hour of danger, or fora ume when the 'world is in distress, At such a time he has authority Both to accuse and to punish even without justice, a8 it saya: "But is sept away without a just cause" (Prox, Wa standing tw accuse him's to wit, to plead that either they should all be delivered or all burnt in n3a113h) waves 357 the fire. For when the angel of destruction obtains authoriss- tion to destroy. he does not discriminate between innocent and guilty. Its for this eason that when punishment falls 'upon a town aman should flee from thence before he is 'overtaken. Hereit was all the easier for the Sattn, asthe three were already joined as one in the fiery furnace, and he could 'thus demand a sinple treatment for them all, either to be burnt or to be sived, For a miracle is not preformed (1134) in halves, delivering half and leaving half t be destroyed, Red Sea forthe Israelites that they could pass on dry land, hile the same waters swept round on the Ewyptians and owned them, so that here you have mineulous deliver- ance and a divine punishment at one and the same point 2 TR. Hiya replied: "This was precisely why the miracle of the 'Red Sea presented such difficulties to the Almighty. For when God doce punish and miraculously deliver at the same time, iis usually notin the same place or the same house. If that does happen i canstirutes a heavy task for Him. On the samme principle the Holy One does not punish the guilty until the imcasure oftheir guilt is full, asi is written, "Tor the iniquity of the Amorites not yet full" (Gen, xv, 16) and again, "in full measure, when thou sendest her away, thou dost con tend with her (Is. xxvi, 8). Satan, therefore demanded that Joshua should be burnt along. with the others, until he said tobi, "The Lard rebuke thee, O Satan" (Zech. 1, 2). Who ssid this? It was the angel of the Lord, 'The text ts te uns: "The Lord said to Satan, 'The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan." But observe that regarding Moses a the bush itis also written: "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him aflame of fire" (Ex, 1, 2), whilst aft liter itis written, And when the Lord stu that he turned aside to see" (ibid, 4). The truth is that sometimes the Scripture says ", sometimes simply "the angel andl sometimes again "the Lord". Hence here also it is writen, "The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan," and not "elild, 1 rebuke thee."" So whenever the Holy Or con the Throne of Judgement to judge the world, Sata the ast THE ROWAR 1 (aghiga 'seducer of men and angels, is at hand to do mischief and to snatch up souls." Simeon was one day in che course of his studies examin- ing the verse "And the elders of tha city shall take a heifer 'of the herd , and shall break the heifers neck there in the valley" (Deut, xt, 3-4). "According to the law,' he sid, 'the raeck must he broker with hatchet.' Said to him R. Eleazar: "What isthe need ofall this 2" R, Simeon then wept and said: "Woe to the world which has been lured after this one. For from the day that the evil (1143) serpent, having enticed 'Adam, obtained dominion over man and over the world, he hhas ever been at work seducing people from the right path, 'or will the world ceae to suffer from hismachinations until the Messiah shall come, when the Holy One will raise to ife those who sleep inthe dustin accordance wth the verse, "He well sallow up death for ever, ete" (Is: xxv, 8), and the verse, "And I will use the unclean spick to pass out of the ch, 11, Meanwhile Satan dominates this world of men. Observe now the passage: "If one be found slain inthe land, ete." (Deut.

3811-0), Oxdinarily iis through the angel of death that the
souls of men pass out oftheir bodes, but with that man it was not so, but he that slew hisn made his soul depart from hiro before the time cime forthe angel of death to gather him in, 'Hence itis writen: "And no expiation ean he made for the fand for the blood that ished thesein, hut by the blood of hhim that shed it" (Num. xxx, 33). Is itnot enough for the 'world that Satan should be continually on the watch to lead men astray and to formulate accusations against them, that fone must needs increase his fury by depriving him of what ishisdue ?But the Holy Oneismerciful towards Hischildren, and so provided the offering of a calf as reparation for the soul of which Satan was deprived and asa means of pacifying the world's aceuser. Herein is involved a deep mystery, The "offerings ofthe ox, the cow, the calf the heifer have alla deep. tmyotical significance, and therefore we make reparation 10 him in the way mentioned in the text. Hence the declaration, "Our hands have net shed this blood, et." (Deut. xx1, 7} they have not shed this blood, and we have not caused his 1140-1148] VAYERA 359 death; and by this means the accuser is thereby kept at a distance. All this constitutes good counsel given by the Holy 'One tothe world. Observe thatthe same applies to New Year Day and to the Day of Atonement, 'That isthe time when the 'world ion teial and Satan brings his accusations. Hence it is needful for Israel to givea blat on the trumpet and to emit a sound which is a compound of fire, water, and air; that sound ascendsto the place of the Throne of Judgement, where 'the Court of Justice is sitting, and impinges on it and sends further. Av soon asthe sound arives from beneath, the voice 'of Jacob is reinforced on high, and the Holy One, blessed be He, [2148)is stirred to mercy. Fer corresponding tothe sound. uniting fire, water, and air, which Israel emits here below, there goes forth a blast from on high. Through the twobblasts, the one on high and the other below, the world is fortified and mercy prevail. 'The accuserthen, who thought to prevail in judgement and to obtain semtence on the world, becomes confounded; his strength fails and he is unable to achieve Anything, The Holy One then, sitting im judgement, joins rmerey to justice, and so the world is judged by mercy, and ot rigorously. Observe the verse: "Blow the horn at the new moon, at the time of its covering for our feast day"" (Ps. uxt, 4). The word bakes (atthe covering) mesns the time when the moon i invisible, For at that time the evil "serpent isin power and is able o do hurt to the world. But when mecey is aroused, the moon ascends and is removed from that place, and so the evil serpent is confounded, loses his power and i unable wo approach there. Henee on New Year Day itis necessary to confound him, so that he should be like one awakening from sleep and still halfconicious. "Again, on the Day of Atonement itis requisite to pacify and propitiate bim by means of the seapegoat which is brought to him, whereby be is induced to undertake the defence of Israel, But on New Year Day be becomes confused, and is tunable to-do anything, He sees the stirring of merey axcend= ing from helow, the avakening of mercy on high, and the moon between them, and he it thereby confounded, and ldered ind powerless, and so the Holy One dispenses His judgement fo Isrel in a spirit of merey, and she que zonaK [rights acconis them a atime of grace those ten days between New 'Year Day and the Day of Atonement, for the aceeptance of 'those who repent oftheir sins and for forgiveness of their ities, by giving them a respite till the Day of Atonement. The Holy' One had thus given Israel all these commandments tose them fom fling 'the merey of a father towards his children. All depends on actions and words, as we have explained." AND tite Logp vistrep Samau as aE HAD satD: 'thus fulfilling the words, "I will eerainly return unto thee when the season cometh round; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall havea son! (Gen. xvitt, 10). A tradition teaches us thatthe term pagad (visited) is written in connection with women, and the term sathar (remembered) in ennnection with mien Hence here itis written "And the Lord vinted Sarah a5 he had sad,""'The expression "as he had said" proves that the words "and he said" in the pasiage in Gen, sVIN, 10, refer to the Lord Himself, and no messenger AND THe Lonny. DID UNTO SARAH AS HE MAD SFOKEN. Since the text has slready said, "and the Lord visted Sarah", what need is there to add, "and he did unto Sarah" ?'The reason i this It is one of our doctrines that the "fruit of the handiwork" of the Almighty springs from that river which flaws forth from Eden, 'This "fruit of God's handiwork" isthe souls of the righteous, and tisalsa the alloment (masz! From hich flow all good fortune and rains of blessing, as i i written, "to water the garden" (Gen. 1, 10), that ig, to cause the stream to flow from on high ant irrigate and fertilise the 'world below, For mankind depends on that allotment and 'not an any other souree. Hence, besides "visiting" Sarah, God.lso did" something in the region on high, since every- thing depends on that, Hence the so stages of "visi and "doing", with the mame of "the Lord" mentioned. tach, the whole forming one process." IK, Eleazar discoursed on the verse: Lu, children are a et abo' Brain 1g0-11 56] vavena 3b heritage of the Lord, the fruit of the womb isa reward (Ps. exam, 3). "The meaning', he suid, "is that children confer 'ona man the heriage ofthe Lord, by which he attaches hime self to the Lord to alltime, For the man who is privileged to have children in this world il through them be worthy to enter "behind the partitionin the world to come; and by leaving a son in this world a man's merits are enhanced inthe Thin he enters nto the "her "heritage ofthe Lord" "a name by which the Land of Isracl called, as is proved from the words of King. David, "for they have driven me out this day that I should noc clave unto the heritage of the Lord, saying, Go sere other ode" (1 Sam, xv, 19)- Hence: "Lo, children are a heritage ofthe Lora", [1156] thas i, is children who make a man worthy of the heritage of the Lord. "The fruit of the womb is a reward" refers to reward in the next world, fr by the fruit the womb & man merits the work 40 come, Agdin, "a heritage ofthe Lord are children", that the heritage ofthe fruit of theworksafthe Holy One is from above, from the ree oflif,foritisfrom thence that aman blessed with children, aswefead,"Frommeisthy fruit found" (Hos. xn,9). "Happy 4s the man that hath his quiver full of them; they shall not he put to shame, ete." (Ps. exxvit, 5): happy in this world and happy in the world to come. "They wil pote put to 'shame when they speak with their enemies in the gate": who are the "enemies in the gate" ? They are the accusing angels, For when a man depars from thie world, there are numbers. ff such accusing angels who try to hlock his way and prevent him from reaching his place. But he passes through "the wate" because he has left hostages in this world by virtue 'of whom he is found worthy of x place in the next world "Ths, "they shall not be put to shame when they speak sith their enemies in the gate"." R. Judah and R, Jose were walking on the road. Said AR. Judah to R, Jose: "Open thy hips and say something in exposition of the Torah, since the Sheknah is accompanying thee. For whenever the 'Torah is stdied eaenestly. the 'Shekinah comes and joins, and all the more so on the road,

362THE ZOHAKT [1isb-1160
Where the Shekinah comes in anticipation, preceding those 'who cleave to their faith in the Holy One, blessed be He." R. Jose then began to discourse on the verse: Thy teife shall be asa fruitful ine in the innermost parts of thy esse: thy: children like oice plants, round about thy able (Ps. CRYIN, 3) "So lang' he said, 'asa woman abides in the innermost parts of the house, she remains chaste and is fit to bear worthy children, She i ikea vine, for just asa vine is never grafted with another hind but only with its own, so the worthy woman does not bear offspring from a strange man but only from her husband. Her reward is [1166] to hase "children like olive plants, round about thy table". Just as the leaves 'of olive trcex clo nat fall of but remain fimly attached to the 'evga the year round, so shall 'thy children be like ove plants, sound about thy table." 'The text proceeds: "Behold, surely' thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord" (hid. 4). 'The term "surely" seems to be superfluous. It indicates, however, a further leson, viz that so long as the 'Shekinal stayed modestly 19 her own place, f one may. be permitted the expression, then it could be said of her, "thy 'children like olive plants, round about thy table", refercing to Isesel during the time that they dvelt in the Land of Israel; "round about thy table" they were, eating and drink= ing and bringing eferings and feasting before the Holy One, Ilessed be He: beth all those on high and all those below 'ere blessed through thems. Huesshen th Shskinah deparred, Tarael were driven rom the table of theiefather, and dispersed Among the nations, and they continually eried out without anyone taking heed, excepting the Holy One, as itis write "And yet forall chat, when they are in the land of their 'enemies, ef." (Lev xv, 44), We hive seen how many saintly and holy men hive perished through tyrannical dlestees, all as part of Israel's punishment for not keeping the Law sshen they were in the Holy Land. It is written, "'Hecause thou didet not serve the Lard thy God with joy- fulness, and ith gladness of heart, by reason of the abuind= ance of all things" (Deut. xxvit, 47). The words "because thow didst not serve with joyfulness" cefer to the priests, who offered saerifies and holocausts "ith joyfulness"; "and 1160-1168) VAYERA 3h 'with gladness of heart" alludesto the Levites; "by eason of 'the abundance of all things" isan allusian tothe lay Iraclives 'whose postion Wasi the middie, and who received blessings from all sides. Again itis written, "Thou hast ultilied the nation, thou hast made great their joy" (Is 18,2), in allusion to the priests; "they joy before thee according to the Joy in harvest (Ioid.) indicaes the hay Isrueites whorn the Holy 'One blesses with a good harvest ofthe field, fom all of which they givea tenth; "as men rejoice when they divide the spoil" (Ibid,) refers to the Levites, who take a tenth from the thresh ing floor, According to another explanation: "Thou hast 'nltiplied the nation" indicates Israel, who have fuith sn the Holy One; Thou hast made great his joy" alludes to the first and superna grade, to which Abraham attached himself, this being great and filled with joy; "they joy before thee" [1168] at the time when they go up to attach themselves to Thee, "according to the joy in harves, an allusion tothe 'community of Israel, to which properly helongs the joy ia hharveat; Mas. men rejaioe when they divide the spa reference tothe joy evinced by the rest of the lower powers and charit-riders when they divide the spoil and fall upon their prey in the forefront o all. TR, Judh discoursed on the verse: It ira time to work for the Lord; they have made void thy law (Ps. cXIX, 126) Ve has been laid down that the term 'eth (time) isa designation of the community of Israel. Why is the community of Israel esignated "time" ('eth)? Because all things with her are regulated by times and periods when to come near the Deity, 'when to receive light (from above), and sehen tn commune, as we read, "But as for me, et my prayer be unto thee, © Lord, in an acceptable time" (Ps. uxtx, 14). Ths, the 'community must be made unte the Lord", that i, it must he xd and fitted 10 commune with God (<0 the word ig used jn the verse "and David made himself a name" (ti Sam. Viti, 13)), and this by means of those who, Tabourin the study of the Torsh, And why all this ? Because hey have made void thy law", for if "they fad ant made 'void thy law" there would never have heen any estrangement between the Holy One and Israel" R. Jose said: "In this way

364ve T0HAR (1106-117
ia explained the verse: "the Lord wll in ite time hasten it (Is, Ls, 22) The word fit (in ts time) may be resolved tnt beth fe (in te time ofthe leter 17), 1.¢. "when the ime arsives forthe H1é to rise up fom the dust Iwill hasten it." Said Re Jose further: "Yet the community of Israel is 0 fertin only one day in the dust and no more,' Said R, Judah: "Tradition agrees with what you have said, But observe what we have learnt regarding this, namely, that when the com munity of Isael was exiled from its home, the letters of the Divine Name became, if one may say so, separated, the Hé fiying apar from the Yau. We can thus understand the sentence, "I was dumb, with silence" (Ps. xxxt4, 3), a8 through the separation ofthe ux from the Hé there was no Vetterand thie: Utteranee wak Bletoed. Sha therstors Nek in the dustall the day of the Hé, that is, the whole of the fifth thousand (although they the beginning of the fifth thou the 12); ard when the sixth thousand, which is symbolised [1172] by the Faw, begins, dhe Vaw will resuscitae the He at ap tierce fan losis coi say 4000s) which recs te Fu repeated ten times, The Vaw will ascend to the Vod and redescend to the Hé. The Vau will be multiplied into the Hé ten times, making sity, when it will ase the exiles from the dust, At every sixty years ofthe sisth thousand the Hé will mount a stage higher, acquicing after six hundred Years of the sixth thousand there will be 'opened the gates of wisdom above and the fountains of wisdom below, and the woeld will make preparations to center on the seventh thousand as man maker preparations tm the sith day of the woek, when the sun is about t0 set, As a mnemonic to this we take the verse. "In the aie hundredth year of Nodh's life... all the fountains of the sareat deep were broken up" (Gen. Vit, 11)' Said R, Jose to him: "Your calculations lay doven a much longer period than 'hac arrivedat by the companions, according to whom the exile fof the community of fsrael was only to last ane day (ie. a saand years) ax T¢ anys, THe bath mede mie desolate anid faint all tieday" (Lam. t, 13)' R. Judah said in reply: "This fe shat LU have learnt from my father concerning the mysteries 7h) VAYERA 305 of the leters of the Divine Name, and of the duration of the World as Well as of the days of creation, all of which belongs to the same mystical Goerine, At that Gime the rainbow will appear in the cloud in radiant colours, like a woman that decks herself out for her husband, in fulfilment of the verse, and Iwill look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant" (Gen. vx, 16), a passage already explained ese 'where, "Twill see it" with all its bright colours, and I will thus "remember the everlasting covenant". Who is the everlesting covenant ? Its the community of Israel. The Van 'will join the 17, and will resuscitate her from the dust. When the Va shall move tojoin the Hé, heavenly signs will appear in the world, and the Reubenites will make war against all the world; and so the community of Tara will be rived from the dus, for the Holy One will remember her, In this way the Holy One will have divelt with her in exile years tothe number of Faw times Yod, that is, six tines ten, after which she will be raised, and vengeance will be executed on the world, and the lowly will be exalted" Said R. Jose thi "All you say is right, being [+478] mystical indicated by the letrer, and we need sot enter upon anyother calculations regarding the end (ges). For in the bok of the venerable . Yeba we ind the sume calculation. 'The verse, "Then shall the land satisfy her Sabbath" (Ley. x0, 34) in an allusion to the mystical implication of the Fax, as indicated in a subsequent verse, "Ard I wll remember my covenant sith Jaco" (id. 42),and then it says, and [will remember the iand' (bid, indicating the community of Israel. "The wird il satisfy" (tirseh) signifies that the Holy. One will be favourable to her. As for the "one day" of which the com- anions have spoken, itis assuredly all bdden with the Holy 'One, and itis all found in the mystery ofthe letters of the Divine Name; for R. Jose here has revealed the end of the exile by means ofthese letters.' Said R. Judah: Observe thar also when Sarah was visited, it was the grade of the divine 'essence symbolised by the Vaw that visited her, a8 itis writin, "And (Va) the Lord. visited Sarah", for all is "The mane Jab sin his verse exceptional pet Hee, wih a au. ifr 3,

36rue zomAN 1 faybrika
'contained in the mystery ofthe Vau, and through itall things are to be revealed," Sabl R. Tose: 'We have still along time to be in exile until the day arrives, but all depends on her the people will repent of their sins, as appears from the pascage, "I the Lord will hasten itinits tine" (Is. Ls, 22), ice. if they will be worthy, "I will hasten i", and if not, then i its time"." The swo then proceeded on their way. Suddenly R. Jove eaids'Ie comes to my memory that in thie place I as once sitting with my father and he said to me: "When you will reach the age of sixty years you are destined to find in this place a treasure of sublime wisdom,"" Ihave lived to reach that age, and I have net found the treasure, Tout L yonder if the words spoken by us just now ate not 'the wisom that he meant. He further said to me: "When the celestial ame reaches the spaces between your fingers, it will exeape from you" I asked him: "How do you know Ie replied: "I know it by the two birds that passed At this poine R. Jose left him and entered j) atthe farther end of which he found a book den in the cleft of a rock. He brought i out and aught sight of seventy-t0 tracings of letters which had been given te Adar the first man, and by means of whieh he knew all the wisdom of the supemal holy beings, and all those beings that abide behind the mill with turns behind the veil among the supernal ethereal essences, a6 walle ll that j destined tw happen in the world until the day when a cloud will arse fon the ide of the West and darken the world, R. Jose then called H, Judah and the wwo began to examine the hook. No sooner had they studied twa or three of the letters than they found themselves contemplating that supernal wisdom, But as soon an they began to go into the book more deeply and to discuss it, a fiery lame driven by a tempestuous wind struck their hands, and the book vanished from them. R. Jose 'wept, stving, 'Can it he, Heaven forefend, that we are tinted with Some sin ? Or are we unvsorthy to possess the knowledge contained therein 2 When they came to R, Simeon they told him what had oceurred, He said to therm: Were you, perhaps, sorutinsing those letters which dealt with the coming of the Messiah ? They answered: 'We eannot tell as we have 1180-1183) VAYERA 367 forgotten everything.' R. Simeon continued: "The Holy One, blessed be He, does not desire that so much should be revealed to the world, but when the days of the Messiah will be near at hand, even children will discover the seeres of wisdom and thereby'be able to caleulte the millennium: at that time it wil be revealed to all, as itis written, "For then will T tara to the peoples pure language, ec." (Zeph, mt, 9), the term: i (then) referring to the time when the community of Israel 'will he raised from the dust and the Holy One will make her stand upright; then "will T turn to the peoples a pure language, that they may all «all upon the Lord, to serve hi with one consent (id 'Observe that although it i said of Abraham that he wureyed all coward the South' (Gen. xt 9), he did not attain to his rightful grade until Isaac was born. But a8 soon as Isaac was born, he attained this grade, through the close association and union [1180] of the two. For thet reason he, and no other, called him Isac, in order that water and fire should be merged together. Hence: AxD ABRAHAN CALLED THE NAMUOF 110% THAT WAS BORN UNTO Hist, WHOM SARAH BORE TO HIM, TSAAC: to-wit, the som that was born to him as fre born from water Asp Sapau saw Tae so¥ OF HaGan tite EovrriAn, WHOM SHE HAD DORN UNTO AMRANAM, MAKING sront, R. Hiya suid: 'After recording the birth of Tease, the Scripture never mentions Ishmael by name so long as he was still inthe house of Abraham: dross cannot be men- tioned in the presence of gold. Hence Ishmsel is referred 'here as "the son of Hagar the Eayptian", ast was not fitting that hix name should he mentioned in the presence of Tene Said R, Ista: "The words "and Sarah sa" imply that she looked at him disdainfully, as being the son not of Abraham but of Hagar the Egyptian, and, furthermore, only: Sarak regarded him so, but not Abraham, as we read that THE 'THING WAS VERY GRIEVOUS 18 Amanin''s stcHT Ox ACCOUNT OF MIs s08—ot the son of Hajar, but his son. R, Simeon said: "The Seripture really speaks in praise of Sarah. For what she saw was that he was indulging in

308THE Z0HAR I (ust
'dolatrous practices, Hence she said: Surely this is mot the son of Abraham, wiv follows in the footsteps of Abraham, Dut the son of Hagar the Egyptian, who is reverting to the type of his mother. Hence: AND SHESAINUNTO ABA HAM: CAST OUT THIS HONDWOMAN AND HEH SON; FOR Wirt my ox, evEN wrest Tnaac." Fe cannot be sup- posed that Sarah was moved hy' jealousy of her oF her son. For if s0, the Holy One would not have supported her by saying, IN ALL THAT SANAW SAITH UNTO THEE, HARKEN UNTO AER VOICE, The truth, therefore, is that she observed him worshipping idols, and performing the practices which his mother had taught him. Hence the words (of Sarah, "For the son ofthis bondwoman shall not be heir", fas much a8 to says "I know that he will never enter the fold fof the true faith and that he will have no portion with my son either in this world or inthe world to come." "Therefore God supported her, since He wished to keep the holy xced carefully separated, for that was the endfor which He created the world, as Israel was already in His thought before the creation of the world, It was therefore that Abrabam ap peared in the world, so that the world could be sustained for his sake, Abraham and Isaae together upheld the world, {get they were not firmly established until Jacob came into the world, When Jacob appeared, both Abraham and Isaac became firmly established and the whole world with them, From Jacob the holy people gradually emenged into the 'world, ad so the whole of existence became duly established according to the holy pattern. Hence God said, "In all that Sarah saith unto thee, heatken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall sced be called 0 thee", ie. in Isaac and notin Ishmael "The test proceeds: AND SHE DEPARTED AND STRAYED, IN THE WILDERNESS OF BEERSHEDA. 'The term catetha' (and she strayed) sndicates idolatry, like the kindred term in the verse, "They are vanity, work of delusion (tha athuing, li. goings astray") (Jer. x, 15). Thus it wasonly forthe sake of Abraham that the Holy One did not abandon her or her fon, Observe that on the previous oceasion when she fled from Sarth, it was said to her: "The Led hath heaed thy s186-119¢) VAYERA 369 affliction" (Gen. xvi, 11); but now since she went astray after idols, although she lifted up her voice and wept, yet it says, Fox Gob HATH HEARD THE VoIcE OF THE LAD WHERE 4 15. 'The expression "where he is" we interpret to imply that he was alla minor in the eyes of the heavenly court, For whereas in the human couet, here below, the age of liability is reached at thirteen years, in the heavenly court itis reached only at twenty yearo; before that age, even ifone is quily, he is not punishable. Hence the phrase "where he is". Said R. Eleazar: 'If that be so, why should anyone be purished by dying before twenty ? Before thirteen, it ie true, he may die for the sins of his father, but why after thirteen" R, Hiya replied: "The Holy One has mercy on such one so that he should die whilst still innocent, and obtain a reward in the other world, instesd of dying in guilt and receiving punishment in that world." R. Eleazar rejoined: hut ihe is already guilty before he reaches the age of (1194) twenty years, What are we to say # Since he has died (before reaching the age of punishment), how will he be punished ? R. Simeon replied: "It is of such that itten, "But there is that is swept away without judgement" (Prov. x1, 233). Fur when chastisement descends on the world, then such a one is struck down by the destecying angel without 'express sentence pronounced either by the heavenly or the 'earthly tribunal, while Providence is not keeping watch over him. It is also writen of such a one: "His own iniquities shall ensnare (eth) the wicked, and he shall be holden ith the cords of io sin (Zhid. v. 32). The ascwsative particle 'th amplifies the term "the wicked" so as to make it include 'one who has not yet come of legal age; of him, then, it i said, "His own iniquities shall ensnare the wicked", but not the heavenly tribunal, "and he shall be halen sith the corde 'of his sin", but not by the earthly tribunal, Hence it says here: "For God hath heard the voice ofthe lad where hes. 'R. Simeon dicoursed on the verse: And J will remember 'my caremant with Jacob, ee, (Lev. xxvt, 42). "The mime Jacobs, he said, 'is ere written in full, with the leter eau or chat reason ? In the fret place ae at sllucion tothe grade fof Wisdom, the realm where Jacob dvells. Bue the chief 37° THE ZOHAR I [1192 'reason is because the passage speaks of the exile of Israel, intimating that the redemption of Israel will come about through the mystic force of the leter eau, namely, in the sixth millennium, and, more precisely, after six seconds and half atime. When the sixtieth year shall have passed over the threshold of the sixth millennium, the God of heaven will vist the daughter of Jacob with a preliminary remem- bance (p'gidal), Ancther six and a half years will then clapec, and there will be a full remembrance of her; then another six years, making together seventy-two years and a half. In che year sinty-si the Messiah will appeat inthe land of Galle, star in the east will swallow seven stars in the north, and a fame of black fire will hang in the heaven for ity days, and there shall be wars towards the north in which two kings shall perish, 'Then all the nations shall combine together against the daughter of Jacob in order to drive her from the world, Tes of that time that i is written "And it ia time of trouble unto Jacob, but out oft he shall be saved" (Jer. xxs, 7). At that time all the souls in Guph will have been used up, and will need 10 be resreated, AS a mnemonic ofthis we may use the verse: All the souls ofthe house of Jacob that cime into Egypt. . ll the souls were threescore and sin" (Gen. xLv, 26) Inthe year seventy-three all the kings of the woeld will assemble in the great city of Rome, and the Holy One will shower on them fire and hail and meteoric stones until they are all destroyed, with the 'exception of those who will ot yet have arrived there. These will commence anev to make other wars. From that time the Messiah will hegin to declare himself, and round him there will be gathered many nations and many hosts from. the Uiierset ends of the earth. And all the children of Israel 'will asemble in their various places until the completion of the cestury. The Vay will then join the Hé, and then "they shall bring all your brethren out of all the nations for an offering unto the Lord" (Is. 4xv4, 20). 'The children of Ishmael will at the same time rouse all the peoples of the 'world Wo come up to war against Jerusalem, as iis written, For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle, 1" (Zech. X1¥, 3), a, "The kings of the eacth stand up, 1190-1196] vavERA and the rulers take counse! together, against the Lord, and 'against his anointed (Ps, n,2);and further, "He that sttah in heaven laugheth, the Lard hath them in derision' (Ibid ). Then the lesser Tau will rouse itself yo unite (with the 'Hé) and renew the souls that had hecome old, 90. as t0 rejuvenate the world, a iis written, "May the glory f the Lord endure for ever, let the Lord rejoice in his works" (Ps. c1¥. 3. The first part of this verse signifies that God's sory will atach itself to the world, and the latter half that He wil eause souls to descend into the word and rake them into new beings, s» a8 t0 join the world into ane. Happy are those who vill be left alive at the end ofthe sixth millenniuin, to enter on the Sabbath, For that is the day xex apart by the Holy One en shich to fic the Union of souls and so esl 'new souls to join those that are still on earth, as it is writen, "And it shll come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and hae that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even 'every ane that is writen unto life in Jerusalem (Is. 3) AND IT CAME TO: PASS AU DSIE THESE THINGS, THAT Gov ip pRove AnRatam, AND SAID UNTO TM AnRaHAs, 480 HE sain: Hewe ast. Ro Jasah dice 'coursed on the verse: Phow art my: King, O Gi (Ps. Uv, 3). "This alloeution', he said, 'signfics the complete union of all grades, "Command the salvation of Jacob" (Ibid) 0 wt, the emissaries who perform God's chests (1198) in the 'world, that they may be all from the side of merey and aot from the side of stern justice: since thers are messengers from the side of mercy and others from the side of justice "Those helanging tothe side of merey never execute a mission 'of punishment in the world. It may' be asked, haw can we Teconcile with this the case of the angel who appeared to Falaam, and of whom ye have heen taught that he ys fist '8 messenger of mercy and then sas changed into ane of severity. In reality the character of his mission was not changed, as he was throughout a messenger of mercy on Fehalf of Israel, co protect thet and ples for them, but this meant punishment to Ralaam. For thieis the way ofthe Holy One, that whens He confers kindness on one, the same a THE 2OWAR I [nb Kindness may result in punishment for another. Similarly her, the same messenger who was ove of mercy for Teal tied into one of penishment for Balsam, Hence David prayed, "Command the salvation of Jacob", as much as to 'command the salvation of Jacob" allude to those in exile, for whose redemption David prayed, Further, Jacob wae the ceroen of the patriarchs, but if not fer Isaac he would not hhave appeared in the world: hence the request "command the salvation of Jacob" refers primarily to Isaac, since the saving of is life was the salvation of Jacob" AND IT CAME TO. PASS. Sail R, Simeon: "We have been taught thar the expression "and it eame to pass in the days" indicates that some trouble is about to be narrated, while the expression "and it came to pass", even without the ad- dition of "in the days", presages a certain tinge of dstress, AvTER TiKESP Wouns: this means, ater the Jomest grade (fall the superna grades, which is elled "words" (d'karim), as in the passage, "I am not a man of words" (Ex. 1, 10). Ar ELOWIM PROVED ABMAHAS, i the evl tempter came w aceuse him before the Holy One, blessed be He, "The text here is rather surprising, for instead of Abraham wwe should have expected here to read, "Gad proved lesac™, seeing that he was alrady thirty-seven years of age, and no, longer under his fathee's jurisdiction, He could thus easily have refused without rendering his father Tisble to punish= iment. The truth, hovsever, i that it was requisite, in order that Abraham might sttain to perfection, that he should be invested with the attibute of rigour, which he had not exhibited up to that time. Now, however, water was united with fie and fire with water, and it was possible for him t0 dispense rigorous justice and make it part of his character. The evil tempter thus came to accuse Abraham on the ground that he could not be said to have perfected himself until he should have exercised rigour against Isaac, But observe that although only Abraham is explicitly mentioned ax being proved, lesa, nevertheless, was also included in the til, as 119-1204] wave a {s implied by the amplifying particle eth before "Abraham 'which indicites Isaac. For Isaac was at that time i the grade of the lower Geburth (Force, Rigour); but after he had been bound and made ready to undergo the rigorous tral atthe hand of Abraham, he was equipped in his own place together With Abraham, and so fireand water were joined and rose to a higher gade, and the discord was appeased. For who ever 'saw a father's heart turn from compassion to cruelty? But the object here was to assuage the discord between fire and Water so that they should be settled in their places until Jasob appeared, when all was put in order, and the triad of the patriarchs was completed, and higher and lower erations were firmly established. Asp ux sa1p, Take Now tH¥ SON. The word "tale" does not mean "take forcibly", since Abraham vas too old for that, but it has the sume sense as in "take Aaron and Eleazar hie son"" (Num. 28, 23), signifying that he should use persuasion and gently lead him on to do the will of God Tuy sos, THINK ONLY 50x, WHOM THOU Loy 'This (1200) has been exphiined elsewhere. AND GET THEE INFO THE LAND OF Montan: the meaning is similar 'that of the passage, "I will get me tothe mountain of mvrsh (6. $. 1, 5), be. to become invigorated in the appropriate 'place Os tux s82KD DAY Annawan LaFTED EP 1s e838, AND SAO TIKE PLACE AFAR OFF, Aye have already been told that Abraham went tothe plac, all this seems uperta fu. But the truth fs that "the thicd day" means the ted "e.Jacob, and the words "he sy the pce fr Ae" are parallel 0 the expresion "from afar the Lerd Appeared unto me" (Jer. x84, 5). OF ui, "the pce" alles to Jacob, of whom itis writin, and he took one 'ofthe ates of the place" (Gen, xvi, 12). For Abrahim, Scrutnsed the "third day", which isthe thin grade and Te bebe Jace, who we destined vr ceecerd fron li 'Mar off", to it, a¢ seme distant time, and net xn A, Blerar sad co, Judah 'What eet herein ascribed eo rar conan {i200 do Abraham, if whilst about to ind tse he maw that fcob seduce es desea se Healt i epiete On {eed Absaham did se Joc, since even before hat Abraham 'tasendoved with the higher Wisdom; now hescratiied the thir day, which the thied grade, inorder to make ure And indeed he did sce him, bot tos' only from afr or the reason that he as ing to bind Tae, and he did nt wit ts question the wat ot tre Sly Ones Ar afte ih he sow im through a "din glee" ony, and therfore tly parially; fori the "lear glass" ha been resting upon the im lacs Abrahum would have seen him propery The "lear lau" dine function on this acanion, beau this the grade of Jaco, who, not ye being bor, had not 'eached hat rade andaleo i ree tht Abraham's evard ght be all the greater. XO HRY CAME TO THE HLACE Witten Gob wav to. His OF, wre. Here it i ine ed that although Abra bad some vision of Jaco, yet sid 0 hime, "Arsiredly the Holy One know another vray witch sill serve? Forthwith, therfore, ABRAKAM Bolu te screw THERE. Before thefts writen: AS Take sroxr cso ANKAMAM 1s FATHER, AND SAID, Mr rataien, Ae explained chewhere, the reson. why Abmahem did not respond to him inmediately was boast the normal compassion of father tovards a sn lf hi Tet oes ba a nlecet Giese Leen oy een sea pee that the quality of mere in hin had been tanamuted figour, ASD Ammann sat, Tf net writen: "and his father ail whieh sons gsi thi be wee regarding sets hs nbs Wok mig eeernry, Cou wie Patios om. Heald tave id: "provide fr wy But what he rant, "God wll provide for Hinelf when necesary, it fr te preset tis rng to be my son and nothing ele * Forthvith, AND THEY NENT BOTH OF THEM TOGETHER. AC Simin discourse tere on the were: Behold anes ey tra, angt of pare wer tery i xn, 9) These nyc, he sad 'are superior angels who "ried abroad ieeavsetheyno longer Inew what to make of God's promise tw Abratam a the ime when "He brought him forth abroad" 1300-1208 vavens a8 (Gen. xy, 5). The "angels of peace" are those other angels Who were destined t9 go beth to mest Jacab, for whose ala the Holy One promised them peace, as ic is written, "And Jacob wert on his way, and the angels of God met him" (bid. xt, 2), and these are called. "angels of peace". AlL these wepr when they saw Abraham binding Tsaac, the upper and the lover beings trembled and shook, and all on account of Ise, Ax THEANGEL OF THE LORD CALLED UNTO HIM Avgauast, AnmAitast. There isin the text a disjunctive 'mark between the two Abrahams, to show that the later was not like the former; the later [1206] was the perfected Abra- hham, sil the former was all incomplet. Similaely, in the passage where the name Simul is epeated with a disjunctive Tine berween (1/Sam. 11, 10), the second is the perfeced Samuel, whilt the first was not yet so, The second Samuel het, but not thefist, Bue when we come to "Moses, x. i, 4), we do not Find any paul sign between, for the reason that from the day Moses was born the SShekinah never departed from hima, R. Hiya said that the angel repeated Abraham's name in order to animate him with anew spint, and spur him toa new activity with a new heart. IR. Judah said 'Isaac purifed himself and in intention offered hhmself up co God, was at that momenc etherealied and, as it were, heascended to thethrone of God Ike the odour ofthe incense of spices which the priests offered before Him tice A day'; and s0 the sacrifice was complete. For Abraham fet distressed when the ange! said 10 him, "Lay not thy hand 'upon the lad", thinking that his offering was not complete and that bis labour, his preparations and the building of the altar had all hen in vain. Straghtway, however, Amiattast HIND WHE A RAM, Ere. We have been taught that that ram was created at twilight (on the sixth day of Creation), and he wor of the first year, as i ie write ff the fire yeae" (Num. vtl, 63), thus being according to requirement. But if so, hine could he have been ereated at twilight The truth is that from that time it was pre-ordaired, owe helen

374rite ZOHAN 208
that that ram should be at hand at the moment when Abra ham should require it, The same applies to all those things said to have come inco being "at «wilight", which in reality means that they were then predestined fo appear at the requisite moment. R. Judah further discouned on the verse: In all their fiction he wa afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them (Is. 211, 9). He said: "This i the tearslaion of the iyi but according wo the K'thib we should tranlate, "He was fot afflicted." 'The lesson to be derived from thia variation is that Israels affliction reaches the Holy Ore even in the place above which is beyond affction or perturbation: "And 'the angel af his presence saved them." If He je together with, them in their afiction, how ean it he said that He saves them ? Observe, however, tha it is not written, "He saves thein", but he saved them', that is, He deteriined in advance fo partake in their «uferings. For whenever Israel js in exile the Shekinah accompanies them, as it is writen, "Phen the Lord thy God will return (enehob) with thy csptivity" (Deut, xx, 3). According to another explanation, "The angel of his presence" signifies the Shekinah, whieh 'accompanies them in exile. Hence in the Seripture the words "and 1 have remembered my covenant" (Ex. Vl, 3) are immediately followed by "and naw, behold, the ery of the thildsen of Isaet is come urtu me; moreover, I have seen" (Ex. m, 9). Te is alo writen, "And God remembered his covenant" bid. 1, 24), relerring to the Shekinah, "with Abraham" (bid), symbolic of South-west, "with Isaae" (Ibid), syesbolie of North-west, "and with Jacob (Ibid), symbalising the complete and perfect union. 'The Moly One, blessed be He, will one day send forth a voive to proclaim to the world the words, "For he said, Surely, they are my people, children that will not deal falsely; so he was their saviour" (Ii: uxt, 8)- Blesied be the Lord for evermore, Amen and Amen." University of Tul McFarlin Library 'ules. O} ° 'HE ZOMARIC EXPOSITION OF TH From page 154 onwardsthe Zollar consist mainly of a verse= by-verse exposition of the Pentateuch of the type known in Hebrew Interature-as Midrash. 'The discursive style of the 'work, and the asnount of extraneous matter which has been intercalated in the original text, render this fact lable to be 'vetlooked and i his therefore been one of the objects ofthe translation to keep it clearly before the reader's eye 'The Zoharic expositions of the Scripture are frequently, if not usually, dificult to follow, on accoune partly of their farcfetshed character, partly of their technica partly of the abrupt and even uncouth manner in which th fare expressed, The point which the Zohar desites to rab 'often highly elusive, and not to be graspel without lose and attentive scrutiny, Particularly can we apply: this remark 0 the expositions of the frst chapter of Genesis contained in pages g¢-230 and aga-y1a of the original text. On these assages there restaa epecil and exceptional obscurity which, itis ta he feared, the translation has done little wo dispel. I. seems therefore, advisable to add somie cbscrvations setting forth the views by which the translators have sought to guide themacves through the intricacies of these pages, and which have determined their version of many' olscure passages. An chidenvour t underaand see panes as we may surmise priv that they contain some of the must important teaching of the Zohar; and we do indeed find on fesimination that they are capable of yielding ight on two of the most fundamental tenets ofthe Zoker-—the distinction of the divine yrades and the potency of the sscred Name And soof providing he Key to the whole ofits esoteric doctrine

1One ofthe most characteristic ideas the Zohar
Goad, while essentially oe, is yet found ia vari the more nee

38APPENDIX
degrees, 'These "grids' tum out on examination to be egies of creative poner, atrafige in descending or arcond= ing order according to the sphere in which each one functions and the stage of development which Tt postulates in the created universe, and which thus constutes, x0 to speak, its "opposite number', Thus the highest grade corresponds to sheer nothingness, and the lowest grade to the conscious soul ff man (the meshamab) "The creative power in itself is cone ceived as 'thought', which in the proceis of ereation becomes "Yght' or 'llunination. 'The primal light is utterly beyond human (or even angele) comprehension, But as the grades Ascend, the 'lights! (which form, as it were, a vestment (0 fone another) swim inte human Ken, until between the lowest grade and the conscioss soul of man 2 close communion is establihed. 'The main purpose of the Zoharie exposition of the Fist chapter of Genesis, in 0 far as it is contained in the pages mentioned, seems to be to derive this actrine from (or read it into] the text of the Seriptire. 'The way in which the scripture is made to yield the desired meaning ie mare ot less

18follows,
"The first grade—the 'Most Mysterious and Recondite'— indistinguishable from the Bn-Suf (limitless, uncharacter- fsable), and corresponding to absoluie nothingness in the 'work of ereaion-—is not ditectly mentioned in the Senpture, 'nfess itis alluded to hy the letter bth (=n) of the word bereshith isplying that it went, so to speak, into itself, and so made a start, This tart consists ina lash' (zohar), which thus releases the creative powers of the 'limitless From this 'inwardness" resulted a point of focus capable of infisite development and expansion; this is called in the cripture Reshith (beginning), and it is identinied bythe Zohar Nich Hokmah (Wisdom), the architect of the eration 'This is the second yride 'The nest word, 'ereated', according to the Zohar, denotes Jn thie place the expansion of Reshith, which produced a "palace or house" containing in itself the gerra of eration, 'This place is called in the Scripture Hlahim, and it consti- tutes the thind grade the artificer of the creation. By the avrespix t a Zohar it called ore specify Elkin Hasyin (living Gt) ee Sete targa worries rea pre Tes creative powers or facies are pictured ax "lees" of "sed anid are divided intoan ative and passive principle 'The active principe i eal in the Serpure "ever, and it Hemtiteh by the Zohar with the "Voie, The pasaive Principle scl in the Seripnuce 'ear, and inv. 2 fis eee ifeeyet eral Geeta rine Celestial, andthe spiral worlds (e page 398) Up to this point there has been no ckar differentiation Ietyeen reno and created the creation hi ot yer emerged from the alm of potnraty. From this point, However, he two are diingsised, the creator using andthe retedoboy= Ingthe Von, Thirisndicnted in the Senjeural words "Aad God ssid" The Voice benesforh issues in a sri of imaamarth (creative utterances) Which shape the muateral tinivere in the lmguage ofthe Zoho, imprint and n= tere levers', With the new developments of the eratin there lsue new grades ofthe Godhead, which are called by the Scripture 'ays (1 page $08) "The ft maamar accoring tothe Zohar, product ight in three grads, one called light, the second firmament, and thethied darkness, The fat aces to be regarded athe ght of mind, the second as tht of light proper, and the third as Macatiey a tesa ete poe ilar it teers entre, and the thd ff. The frst vanished a4 soon asi Sppeared, so that the seem became the right. Thi i ap- patently derived from the verses*And God aw the light (ie, the centre) that it was good, and God divided between the Tight (he. the right) and the darkness' The entre vas there= 'ipo ven continvedeximence ina category of sme called day, and the darkness in aextegory of ine called nigh. To produce these isthe funtion ofthe nest grade called in he Becipture 'me day, and by the Zohar Reh, or sometines Hered (Kindacs) Th sone way nox specified in the Zor, the ight" and he 'darkness of the fat day became "upper waters conaing, in solution asi wer, 'Woner waters. The second manner treated at instrument for separating or liberating the lower ah APPENDIX 'waters from the upper. This instrument iscalled "lemament™ tor 'expansion' (a diferent firmament from that mentioned sn connection with the first day), 'The upper waters are char~ acterived after separition as male' and the lower a femal "To effect this separation is the function of the next grade, called in Scripture third day', and by the Zahar Left oF Geburah (Fores). 'Phe nest maamar gave a certain flow er direction to the 'upper and lower wsvers, a9 that they should meet in ' one place' in-a kind of sexual union, the result of which is to tenable the 'earth' or 'dey land' t9 appear. "This means that, as.a result of the meeting of the upper and lower water the existence of the carth is rendered possible, To confirm this possibility a new meamar produced the "Throne of Glory' with its attendant angels, figuratively referred ta in the Seripture as 'the earth putting forth verdure and fruit tes! (pages 184, 298). "To effect the union between the waters and to guide the "Throne of Glors" is the function of the trade called in the Scripture 'third day", and by the Zohar He "Olmin (Life of Worlds), 'The nest maamar produced a "membrone for the bean! fn the shape ofa lower firmament containing heavenly humin= aries which reflected the upper light, and served as i kind of screen tothe "Throne af Glory'. These luminaries ae, pe erly speaking, not those which are visible fo the hurnan eye, but sentient lings which stand to dese fo the same relation as the human soul to the body, 'The chief of them are the 'unand the maon, which were originally equal status. 'They tare charged 'to give light upon the earth', ie. wn determine the forms and characters of all beings on the earth. 'To pro- cure for these luminaries their light and energy i the funtion 'of the grade called in Seripture fourth day' Having pursued the development of the grades upto thie point, the Zaher, on page 22a, poet of on w quite a different tach, nor does it anywhere complete the espanition of the First chapter of Genesis on these lines. I lace passiges how= 'ever, we find frequent references to a grade ealled Zaddit Yesad 'Olam (the Highteous One, the Foundation of the World), whieh upholds God's covenant with the earth and APPENDIX 1 a procures sustenarice forthe living beings upon it. Asit is also called "ninth, we may without hesitation identify it with the "sixth day' of the Seripture, 'On page 291 the Zohar reverts to the beginning ofthe iret chapter in order to define the position of what it calls the 'Female'. If this part of the Zohar is to be brought into hharmony with the preceding part, then this "Ferale' ea oly be the tenth grade, corresponding to the "seventh day" jn the Wiblical account, 'The function of the 'Female', ac- cording t» the Zohar, i to reproduce in a new medium the 'work ofthe original ereative force, This medium is called "the lower heaven and earth', and the work itself 'the lower world 'What exactly is meant by these tems isnot specified, but we 'may surmise that in reality the medium ofthe 'Female' fs the Inuman consciousness, and the 'lower world' stands to the "upper world" in this connection in the relation of phenom= 'enon to noumenon: of, in Kamvian language, that the 'upper work inthe Dine an sich andthe Tower wor the human idea of it JI, 'The development ofthe grades, according to the Zohar, 'corresponds not only to the development of the created Universe, Bur also to the emergence of a certain name, which is their unifying element. It isa postulate of the Zohar that the Biblical name YH H—the so-called tetragrammaton has an intimate, if unspecified, connection with the pemordial 'Thought. It is the chosen 'instrument for rendering the 'Thought intelligible or realisable to the human mind. Te is regarded as having been "in' the 'Thought from the fist, and its emergence into external or objective existence is stated to have been one of the purposes ofthe creation (page 292), Ac- 'cording the Zohar, it emerged in various stages, each of 'which is symbolised by' one or more ofits constituent letters And is awocisted with the emergence of one oF other of the srades. Thus with the grade Reshith emerged the teter Yod; with the next grade, Elohim Hayyim, the lester Héclled the first or upper Hés with the heavens, the lewer Man; with the tarth, the second, or lower He; with the frst day the com~ bination of the letters. Yod, Hé; with the second day. the combination of the letters Vw, Hé; while with the third day 3% APPENDIX all the fone letters were combined, The resultant Name s the absolute One or unit of being, representing on the one side the first integration of the Thought, and on the other the tuhimate discoverable cause of existence (. page 18). 'The above explanation, while leaving much obscure, will perhaps suice to give 2 general idea of what the Zofar has in mind in this exposition ofthe frst chapter af Genesis, to bring the whole, asit wer, into focus, and exhibit ehe purpose which runs through it. I'remains to complete the piewre of the grades by bringing tern into connection with the Sefiroth 'of the Cabbalah and withthe narnes of the Deity used inthe Scripture Tis worthy of note that the Zohar rarely uses either the term Sefirak or the names of the Sefrath current in the Cabhalitic Iterature. Where these mimes do occur, it is usually ia passages which on other grounds may be suspected fof belonging properly not to the Zohar but t6 one or other of the alied works (e.. page 218), Nevertheless, there is an exact correspondence between the Zobaric grades and the Cabhalistic Sefirath, and they could be interchanged with one another (as indeed they are by most of the Zoharic com- 'nenfators) without causing any confusion. Similarly there is, according tothe Zohar, a correspondence between the desig- rations of the grades found in the first chapter of Genesis and the names of the Deity scattered throughout the Seripture "This fourfold correspondence may be conveniently exhibited in th form ofa table giving (a) the designation of each grade in the fit chapter of Genesis; (6) the epecial Zobarie names 'of each grade; (¢) the corresponding same of the Deity in the Scriptures (d) the corresponding Sefirah 'Tanre snowine tr CongesPonvenck oF THE Grapes wirn Tn SeFrRoTH, ETC. Pasation Zohar Naas 'dene Appilitivy Dry Sea (In) Most Mysterious Ehyeh ——-Kether: and Recondite; (Crown) King Kerhith First Point; Wise Asher (or HHohah (Beginning) dom; Father vel) (Wisdom) Elohim (Gos) Palace; Flokin Binah (Un (Heaven and Hayyin; Mether derstanding) Eseth) One Day Right; Kindness EY Gadol — Hlesed (Kindness) Second Day Left; Force Elohim = Gebural (Force) 'Third Day Life of Worlds; Jehovah Tifereth Central Column (Beauty) Fourth Day Zebacth t) Nezak (Victory) Fifth Day Shaddai (#) Hod (Majesty) Sisth Day Righteous One, £1 (9) ¥esod Foundation of (Foundation) the World Seventh Day Female Adonty — Malhath (Kingship) oLossiny hacen HEBREW AND TECHNICAL TERMS HEBREW ALPHABET IN)VOL, 5 Meal eerie Sie Trantionses Abas (its man. The tn Sefirathepreented a 3 men, 2. ' : : Kether athe entre of the brain, Homa the ih sie, a Hesed as the right arm, etc. = Q 2 BEASTS oF THE FIELD. 'The higher angels. ? G 3 Centuat Couvaix. 'The connectiny-link between the

4D Right andthe Left, the wore of day
n Fi : CCutnerains. The elena chinfe and guardians attached to ; x the Gain none f the arth A Cououns. 'he diving atebutes, mere igor et

2@ 7 (Cxowsss, Proper names ofthe Deity formed by combinations
n 4 8 oF lees » 1 6 Centar, 'The partion between the divine and other : 8 ipuligenee Danath (lt. poor. 'The fourth eer ofthe Hebrew alpha: F) 2 tet, symiaing the earth without the Sbekinah,

5L 5 aaa. The pave principle othe hid grade, che criginal
a M te hater of Craton, M Exoooi (it, Power) 'The geri name forall the grade sk} N 30 Applied specially 0 Gebwrah,

28 6 or (i. without iit). Tht of which nothing cn be
> : a predicted and which ye mun be postulated

5® Ss etn (a of accusative cae), n indication that someting
. Ha bi Unertoed on when so hae copied © % ad name of the Shekinah, ? ki a 100 Farwen. 'The Zoharc name for the second grade: the

5kesh R aS "befete of the Crete

5ce e S Vesta, The at ofthe grades (Append 9 38)
zi ae a = Finataaresn. A reservoir of fight or ilumination GLossany The type oF ideal form of a thing. es, 6, Numbers x¥.37 497. FN (lit, Garden of Delight). The abode of souls before union with and afer departure from the body. Grownan (lit force', 'might'. The grate associated with darkness, the source of rigour and chastisement. Geninxost, Hell, the fire ofthe primordial darkness when seperated from light Gane, 'The creative power of the Deity functioning in a particular sphere (v. Appendis), Garsx, The symbol of the divine attribute of mercy (rahamin) Guru (lt body). The totality souls, of bodies qualified to receive Hynoanast, The benediction recited on the departure of the Sabbath Hoayan (pla, Hayoruy, ti 'anima higher ranks of angels Hi (Funse or Urenn). The second leter of the suered Name, symbolising the grade called 'Mother' (g-0) Hi (Secon or Lowen). The fourth lester of the sacred 'Name, symbolising the grade called 'earth' (q.:). living'), One of the Heavens, The totality of the letters (g.0.), sonstituting the active faculty of the third grade («. Appendix), Hrsk (lit kindness), The grade associated with fi source of blessing Hey Ouaits (lit. Life of Worlds). The grade emanating from the Central Coluims, the source of being. Hoxorau (lit, Wisdorn), 'The second grade, the architect of Creation, the Lap. A synonym for Metaton (ge). G. The Future World. Lunanow (Taxes or Cevars oF). 'The Six Days of the Creation oLossany 89 Lv, (a) The third degree of light, called "darkness, the source ofevitand suffering (6) Asynonsm for Geburah( Lerrers. The primordial forms ofall beings, contained in the original heaven and earth (e, Append). Lic, The source of illumination, meatal and physical. Liurrn. Female nightslemon, Listes. The consituent letters of the scred Name. Maaoran, A ere Voice (@..). 'Merarnow. The chie/ ofthe Chieftsins (ge. changed with the sustenance of mankind, Mipgox, The prophetic faculy Wwe utterance, the embodiment of the Moriten, The Zoharic name forthe third eral, containing. the Creation sm poste. NESHAMAIL. The highest orspiritu from the Tree of Life ORAL Law. 'The Midinah, the Rabbinic ende 'Onan (lit foreskin). The condition of being unreceprive of for inaccessible to the Shekinah (g.) Privce oF tHe Woxkn. A synonym for Metatron (y.) Rev. The symbol of the divine atribute of severity (in) Resrour (lit, 'squeeziags, drippings'), What ic left of the divine blessings after Israel have had their portion, Riau. (a) The frst or sesond degece of light, the source 'of é4y. (0) Another name forthe ara of [ese (y.) Sacnep Lamp. R, Simeon b, Yohui Serixam, The Cabhalistic name for the divine grades (e. Introduction, p. xi), Seapent. 'The principle of evil inherent in the primordial dariness: Suegiwas (lit. 'neighbourhood', "abiding'). 'The Divine Presence, Urven av atsociated with the higher graces, and Lower as associated with the Feral, Suro. The under world soul of man, emanating

30otossany
SnoFan (lit. trumpet) The instrument of the Voice (g.:) Srneans, The low of esstence produced hy the union of the 'upper and the lower waters Terracrammatox. 'The sacred Name, composed of the four letters Yod, Hé, Vau, He (e. Appendix. 9. 383 Toran. The Mouic teaching (wed expecially ofthe esoteric doctrine of the grades); the archetype of the Creation, ieee OF Lire, The point from which the stream af exist- 'ence commences ta diverge into separate souls UNCOVERING. 'The drawing-back of the flesh after the 'operation of 'ircumeision, Vaw. The third letee of the sacred Name, symbolising the ginal heavens Vorcr. 'The instrument of Creation, identified with the 'original heavens the totality ofthe letters Warens, 'The primordial form of the ereted universe Witire, The symbol of the divine atribute of kindness (heed) po. (a) v HoRMAN, (2) Like"Torah, the esoteric doctrine of the grades, w Wort, Lowen, The ereated univene. Worun, Urren, The grades of the Deity, regarded as separate creative forces, Yoo. The frst leer of the sacred Name, symbolising the grade called Resith (heginning), or Hokmal (isdom), Zanvre (lt. eighteous the Covenant i). The ninth grade, associated with ADono127bassy

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