Open closed open. Before we are born, everything is open
in the universe without us. For as long as we live, everything is closed
within us. And when we die, everything is open again.
Open closed open. That’s all we are.
I Wasn't One of the Six Million, Yehuda Amichai
When the Temple Stood, Shekhinah Nourished the Entire World
וכשנכנסו ישראל לארץ נסתם הפתוח, ונפתח הסתום. נסתם הפה שלא היה בו הדיבור,הפך מן האדם. נפת ח הטבור, בהמ"ק. ומשם אוכל מה שאמו אוכלת, ושותה ממה שאמו שותה, וכל העולם נזון מתמצית ארץ ישראל.
Zohar Chadash 61b (Song of Songs)
When Israel entered the Land, the open was sealed, and the sealed, opened. The mouth was sealed, for speech had ceased--opposite of a human being. Opening of navel--the Temple. From there the fetus eats what his mother eats, drinks what his mother drinks--and the entire world is nourished from the drippings of the lands of Israel.
Rabbinic Sources
GEMARA: The mishna teaches that the Sanhedrin would sit in a semicircle. The Gemara asks: From where are these matters derived? Rabbi Aḥa bar Ḥanina says: As the verse states: “Your navel is like a round goblet, let no mingled wine be wanting; your belly is like a heap of wheat set about with lilies” (Song of Songs 7:3). “Your navel”; this is an allusion to the Sanhedrin. And why is it called by way of allusion “your navel”? It is because it sits in the navel of the world, in the Temple. “Goblet [aggan]”; this teaches that the Sanhedrin protects [meginna] the entire world with its merit. “Round [hassahar]”; this teaches that the Sanhedrin is similar to the moon [sahar]. The court sits in a semicircle, like the shape of the moon.
§ Rabbi Samlai taught: To what is a fetus in its mother’s womb comparable? To a folded notebook [lefinkas]. And it rests with its hands on its two sides of its head, at the temples, its two arms [atzilav] on its two knees, and its two heels on its two buttocks, and its head rests between its knees, and its mouth is closed, and its umbilicus is open. And it eats from what its mother eats, and it drinks from what its mother drinks, and it does not emit excrement lest it kill its mother. But once it emerges into the airspace of the world, the closed, i.e., its mouth, opens, and the open, its umbilicus, closes, as otherwise it cannot live for even one hour.
Modern Commentary
Sacrificial worship which, one might have thought, belonged to the realm of history and was of no vital religious importance, was in actual fact a subject of bitter controversy in the Middle Ages. The dispute was created by Maimonides’ view that since the Israelites were steeped in idolatry when the Torah was revealed to them at Mt. Sinai, it would have been extremely difficult to wean them away from the type of sacrificial worship to which they were accustomed by their idolatrous rites….In other words, sacrificial worship, and even the Tabernacle and the Temple, were remnants of the idolatrous spirit of Israel. And it was only for pedagogic reasons that they were included among the commandments and the religious values of the Torah….Very different indeed was the reaction of the kabbalists to the quarrel about sacrifices….[T]he mystery of the sacrifices occupied a very important place in early kabbalah,…present[ing] sacrificial worship as a basic value in religious life, and this for two reasons: first, because it is a means of individual contact between the soul and God, and, second, because through it man can have an influence on the cosmos and on the structure of the divine powers. The Wisdom of the Zohar, Vol. III, at 878-90
Israel's Sin Brought Shekhinah Under the Influence of the Demonic Realm
תא חזי בזמנא דישראל שריין על ארעא קדישא כלא הוה מתתקן כדקא יאות וכרסיא שלים עלייהו, ועבדי פולחנא ובקע אוירין דעלמא וסליק ההוא פולחנא לעילא לאתריה, בגין דארעא. לא אתתקנת לפולחנא אלא לישראל בלחודייהו. ובגין כך שאר עמין הוו
מתרחקי, דלא הוו שלטין כהשתא בגין דלא אתזנו אלא מתמצית. ואי תימא הא חמינן כמה מלכין הוו דשליטין בזמנא דבית המקדש קיים על עלמא.
ת"ח בבית ראשון עד לא סאיבו ישראל ארעא לא הוו שלטין שאר עמין, אלא אתזנו מתמצית ובה הוו שלטין ולאו כל כך. כיון דחבו ישראל וסאיבו ארעא כביכול דחו לה לשכינתא מאתרה
ואתקרבת לדוכתא אחרא, וכדין שלטו שאר עמין ואתייהיב לון רשו לשלטאה .
ת"ח ארעא דישראל לא שליט עלה ממנא ולא אחרא בר קב"ה בלחודוי. ובשעתא דחאבו ישראל והוו מקטרין לטעוון אחרן בגו ארעא, כביכול אתדחייא שכינתא מאתרה, ומשכי ומקטרי לאתקשרא טעוון אחרן גו שכינתא, וכדין אתייהיב לון שלטנותא, בגין דקטרת
קטור א הוא לאתקטרא. ומכדין שלטו שאר עמין ובטלו נביאים וכל אינון דרגין עלאין לא שלטו בארעא, ולא אעדיו שולטנותא משא ר עמין בגין דאינון משכו לשכינתא לגבייהו. ועל דא בבית
שני הא שולטנותא דשאר עמין לא אעדיו, וכ"ש בגלותא דשכינתא בשאר עמין, אתר דשאר ממנן שלטין.
Zohar 1:84b-85a
Come and see: When Israel dwelled in the Holy Land, all ordered appropriately, the throne perfect above them. They performed the sacrifices, piercing the atmospheres of the world, and that rite ascended above to its site, for Israel alone was prepared for worship. So other nations kept their distance, not ruling as now, being nourished only by drippings.
Now you might say 'Look, we see there were numerous kings ruling over the world while the Temple stood!' Come and see: In the era of the First Temple, before Israel defiled the land, other nations did not rule but were nourished by the dregs, through which they ruled, yet limitedly. Once Israel sinned--defiling the land--they thrust Shekhinah from Her site, as it were, and She was drawn toward another place, then other nations prevailed, and were empowered to rule.
Come and see: The land of Israel is not ruled by any official or by anyone other than the Blessed Holy One. When Israel sinned by offering incense to alien gods within the land, Shekhinah was driven from Her site, as it were. By offering incense, they attracted alien gods to Shekhinah, interlinking them, so dominion was yielded to them, for incense links linkages. Ever since, other nations have ruled, prophets have ceased, and all those supernal rungs no longer prevail on earth. Other nations were not divested of dominion, for they drew Shekhinah to themselves. So in the era of the Second Temple, their dominion was not withdrawn; all the more so during the exile of Shekhinah among other nations, where other officials rule.
Biblical and Rabbinic Sources
(1) Thus said Adonai: Where is the bill of divorce of your mother whom I sent away? Which of My creditors did I sell you to? You were only sold off for your sins, and your mother divorced for your crimes.
תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל נִבְרֵאת תְּחִילָּה וְכׇל הָעוֹלָם כּוּלּוֹ נִבְרָא לְבַסּוֹף שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר עַד לֹא עָשָׂה אֶרֶץ וְחוּצוֹת אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל מַשְׁקֶה אוֹתָהּ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּעַצְמוֹ וְכׇל הָעוֹלָם כּוּלּוֹ עַל יְדֵי שָׁלִיחַ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר הַנֹּתֵן מָטָר עַל פְּנֵי אָרֶץ וְשֹׁלֵחַ מַיִם עַל פְּנֵי חוּצוֹת אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל שׁוֹתָה מֵי גְשָׁמִים וְכׇל הָעוֹלָם כּוּלּוֹ מִתַּמְצִית שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר הַנֹּתֵן מָטָר עַל פְּנֵי אָרֶץ וְגוֹ׳ אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל שׁוֹתָה תְּחִילָּה וְכׇל הָעוֹלָם כּוּלּוֹ לְבַסּוֹף שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר הַנֹּתֵן מָטָר עַל פְּנֵי אָרֶץ.
The Sages taught in a baraita: Eretz Yisrael was created first and the rest of the entire world was created afterward, as it is stated: “God had not yet made the Land, nor the fields” (Proverbs 8:26). Furthermore, Eretz Yisrael is watered by the Blessed Holy One, and the rest of the entire world is watered through an intermediary, as it is stated: “Who gives rain upon the Land, and sends water upon the fields” (Job 5:10). Additionally, Eretz Yisrael drinks rainwater and the rest of the entire world drinks from the remaining residue, as it is stated that God is the One “who gives rain upon the Land.” Eretz Yisrael drinks first, and the rest of the entire world afterward, as it is stated: “Who gives rain upon the Land and sends water upon the fields.”
Rav Yosef said: This is one who commits a transgression in private, in accordance with Rabbi Yitzḥak, as Rabbi Yitzḥak said: Whoever commits a transgression in private, it is as though he pushed away the feet of the Shekhinah, as it is stated: “Thus said the Lord: The heavens are My seat, and the earth My footstool” (Isaiah 66:1).
The Blessed Holy One Punished Shekhinah for Israel's Sin By Destroying the Temple and Replacing Her with Lilith
וביומא דבעא קב"ה לחרבא ביתיה דלתתא וארעא קדישא אעבר להאי ארעא קדישא דלעילא בקדמיתא ונחית לה מהוא דרגא דהוה ינקא משמים קדישא ולבתר חריב להאי דלתתא הה"ד השליך משמים ארץ בקדמיתא, ולבתר ולא זכר הדום רגליו ביום אפו. דתניא כך ארחוי דקב"ה כד בעי למידן עלמא בקדמיתא עביד דינא לעילא ולבתר אתקיים לתתא דכתיב )ישעיה כד( ופקדתי על צבא המרום במרום ועל מלכי האדמה באדמה.
Zohar 2: 175a
On the day when the Holy Blessed One sought to destroy the House below and the Holy Land, the Holy Blessed One first removed the Holy Land above and brought Her down from the rung from which she was drinking, from Holy Heaven; and afterwards He destroyed this one below, as is written: He has cast down from heaven earth--first, and afterward, "Adonai did not remember the footstool on the day of wrath (Lam. 2:1)." For it has been taught that such are the ways of the Blessed Holy One: When the world is judged, judgment is first rendered above, and afterward it is established below, as is written: I will punish the host of the heights on high and the kings of the earth upon the land (Isaiah 24:21)."
תאנא יומא חד הוו אזלי חברייא עמיה דר' שמעון. אמר ר' שמעון חמינא אלין עמין כלהו עלאי וישראל תתאה מכלהו מ"ט, בגין דמלכא אשדי למטרוניתא מניה ואעיל אמהו באתרה הה"ד )משלי ל:23-21 )תחת שלש רגזה ארץ ותחת ארבע לא תוכל שאת, תחת עבד כי ימלוך ונבל כי ישבע לחם, תחת שנואה כי תבעל ושפחה כי תירש גבירתה. מאן שפחה, היא כתרא נוכראה דקטל קב"ה בוכרא דלהון במצרים דכתיב )שמות יא:5 )בכור השפחה אשר אחר הריחים, אחר הריחים הות יתבא בקדמיתא והשתא האי שפחה תירש גבירתה.
Zohar 3:69a
It has been taught: One day the companions were walking with Rabbi Shim'on. Rabbi Shim'on said: "We see all these nations elevated and Israel lowest of them all. Why? Because the King has cast away Matronita and replaced Her with a slave-girl, as is written: "At three things the earth trembles, and four it cannot bear: a slave becoming a king and a scoundrel sated with food, a loathsome woman getting married, and a slave-girl dispossessing her mistress (Prov. 30:21-23). Who is a slave-girl? She is the foreign crown, whose firstborn the Holy Blessed One slew in Egypt, as is written: "the firstborn of the slave-girl who is behind the millstones (Ex. 11:5)." At first, she sat behind the millstones, and now this slave-girl dispossesses her mistress.
Biblical and Rabbinic Sources
(21) In that day, Adonai will call the host of heaven to account on high and the kings of the earth to account below.
(14) Wildcats shall meet hyenas, Goat-demons shall greet each other; There too lilit shall repose And find herself a resting place.
(1) Alas! Adonai in wrath has darkened Fair Zion, has cast down from heaven to earth, Tiferet Israel did not remember the footstool on the day of wrath.
(כב) דָּבָר אַחֵר, רְאֵה הַחִתִי, זֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב (תהלים קמט, ח): לֶאְסֹר מַלְכֵיהֶם בְּזִקִּים. וּמַהוּ מַלְכֵיהֶם, אָמַר רַבִּי תַּנְחוּמָא אֵלּוּ הֵם מַלְכֵי עוֹבְדֵי כּוֹכָבִים, (תהלים קמט, ח): וְנִכְבְּדֵיהֶם בְּכַבְלֵי בַרְזֶל, אֵלּוּ שָׂרֵיהֶם שֶׁל מַעְלָה, שֶׁאֵין הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא פּוֹרֵעַ מְאֻמָּה עַד שֶׁפּוֹרֵעַ מִשָֹּׂרָהּ תְּחִלָּה, כֵּיצַד, פַּרְעֹה וְכָל הַמִּצְרִיִּים לֹא שִׁקְּעָם הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בַּיָּם עַד שֶׁשִּׁקַּע לְשָׂרָן תְּחִלָּה, מְנָא לָן, אָמְרֵי רַבָּנָן סוּסִים וְרוֹכְבֵיהֶם אֵין כְּתִיב כָּאן, אֶלָּא (שמות טו, א): סוּס וְרֹכְבוֹ, זֶה הַשַֹּׂר שֶׁלָּהֶן, וּכְשֶׁיָּצְאוּ הַמִּצְרִיִּים לִרְדֹּף אַחֲרֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל תָּלוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת עֵינֵיהֶם וְהָיוּ רוֹאִין שָׂרָן שֶׁל מִצְרַיִּם פּוֹרֵחַ בָּאֲוִיר, מִנַּיִן, אָמַר רַבִּי יִצְחָק דִּכְתִיב (שמות יד, י): וְהִנֵּה מִצְרַיִם נֹסֵעַ אַחֲרֵיהֶם, זֶה הַשַֹּׂר שֶׁלָּהֶן, הֱוֵי לֶאְסֹר מַלְכֵיהֶם בְּזִקִּים וגו'. וְאַף סִיחוֹן וְעוֹג כְּשֶׁבִּקְּשׁוּ לְהִזְדַּוֵּג עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְמשֶׁה, רְאֵה שֶׁהִפַּלְתִּי שַׂר שֶׁלָּהֶן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: רְאֵה הַחִתִי תֵּת לְפָנֶיךָ.
Another interpretation: Observe as I start my discourse: This is what Scripture says: Binding their kings with shackles, their nobles with chains of iron, (Ps. 149:8). Who are their kings? Rabbi Tanchuma says, these are their kings who worship idols. Who are "their noble ones with chains of iron"? These are their guardian angels above. The Holy Blessed One does not punish anyone below until their guardian angel above is punished first. What's an example? The Blessed Holy One did not sink Pharaoh and all the Egyptians into the sea until he had sunk their guardian angel first. What is the prooftext? The rabbis point out: It is not written "horses and their riders (in the Song of the Sea)" but rather "horse and rider...." This reference in the singular refers to their guardian angel. When the Egyptians went out to pursue the Israelites, the Israelites lifted up their eyes and they saw the guardian angel of Egypt flying in the air. What is the prooftext? Rabbi Yitchak said: It is written, "Behold! Egypt was marching after them (Exodus 14:10)." This refers in the singular to their guardian angel. This is the meaning of "to bind their kings with fetters...." So, too, when Sichon and Og sought to attack Israel, the Holy Blessed One said to Moses: "See, I have caused their guardian angel to fall," As it is said, "See, I have begun to place Sihon and his land at your disposal (Deut. 2:31) [by destroying its guardian angel]."
This startling myth (about Lilith becoming God's Bride) describes the ascent of the demoness Lilith, in which she becomes God's consort after His separation from his Bride. It is based on an interpretation of the verse A slave girl who supplants her mistress (Prov. 30:23). The identification of Lilith as once living behind a mill is based on the verse about the slave girl who is behind the millstones (Ex. 11:5). In folk tradition. Lilith was especially likely to be found in places such as a ruin or behind a mill. Here is strong contrast is made between her low beginnings and her ascent to become God's consort. The myth represents the apex of Lilith's ambitions, but it is also understood that her position is only temporary--until God's true Bride, the Shekhinah, returns at the time of the coming of the Messiah. The ruling presence of the demonic Lilith over Holy Land, as she takes the place of her predecessor, is offered to explain the long exile of the Jews that followed the destruction of the Temple and the subsequent exile. Tree of Souls, Howard Schwartz, at 59-60.
The Destruction of the Temple Resulted in the Exile of Shekhinah from Israel and the Withdrawal of Tiferet from the Earth
תָּא חֲזֵי, הַאי קְרָא רָזָא עִלָּאָה אִיהוּ, הִנֵּה יַשְׂכִּיל עַבְדִּי וְאוּקְמוּהָ. אֲבָל תָּא חֲזֵי, כַּד בָּרָא קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא עַלְמָא, עֲבַד לָהּ לְסִיהֲרָא וְאַזְעַר לָהּ נְהוֹרָהָא דְּהָא לֵית לָהּ מִגַרְמָהּ כְּלוּם. וּבְגִין דְּאַזְעִירַת גַּרְמָהּ, אִתְנַהֲרָא בְּגִין שִׁמְשָׁא, וּבְתוּקְפָא דִּנְהוֹרִין עִלָּאִין.
(י) וּבְזִמְנָא דְּהֲוָה בֵּי מַקְדְּשָׁא קַיָּים, יִשְׂרָאֵל הֲווּ מִשְׁתַּדְּלִין בְּקוּרְבָּנִין וְעִלָּוָון וּפוּלְחָנִין, דְּהֲווּ עָבְדִין כַּהֲנִי וְלֵיוָאֵי וְיִשְׂרְאֵלֵי בְּגִין לְקָשְׁרָא קִשְׁרִין וּלְאַנְהָרָא נְהוֹרִין. וּלְבָתַר דְּאִתְחָרַב בֵּי מַקְדְּשָׁא אִתְחַשַּׁךְ נְהוֹרָא, וְסִיהֲרָא לָא אִתְנְהִירַת מִן שִׁמְשָׁא, וְשִׁמְשָׁא אִסְתַּלַּק מִנָּהּ וְלָא אִתְנְהָרָא, וְלֵית לָךְ יוֹמָא דְּלָא שָׁלְטָא בֵּיהּ לְוָוטִין וְצַעֲרִין וּכְאֵבִין כְּמָה דְאִתְּמָר....
(ח) וּבְגִין כָּךְ (ישעיהו נ״ב:י״ג) הִנֵּה יַשְׂכִּיל עַבְדִּי, לְאַהֲדָרָא נִשְׁמָתִין כָּל חַד וְחַד לְאַתְרֵיהּ. יָרוּם וְנִשָּׂא וְגָבַהּ מְאֹד, מִסִּטְרָא דְּכָל אִינוּן דַּרְגִּין עִלָּאִין כִּדְקָאֲמָרָן. (ישעיהו נ״ב:י״ד) כַּאֲשֶׁר שָׁמְמוּ עָלֶיךָ רַבִּים כֵּן מִשְׁחַת מֵאִישׁ מַרְאֵהוּ וְתֹאֲרוֹ מִבְּנֵי אָדָם. תָּא חֲזֵי, דְּהָא אִתְּמָר דְּכַד אִתְחָרַב בֵּי מַקְדְּשָׁא, וּשְׁכִינְתָּא (אתגלי) בְּגוֹ אַרְעָן נוּכְרָאִין בֵּינַיְיהוּ. מַה כְּתִיב, (ישעיהו ל״ג:ז׳) הֵן אֶרְאֱלָם צָעֲקוּ חֻצָה מַלְאֲכֵי שָׁלוֹם מַר יִבְכָּיוּן. כֻּלְּהוּ בָּכוּ עַל דָּא, וּקְשִׁירוּ בְּכִיָה וְאֶבְלָא. וְכָל דָּא עֲלָה דִּשְׁכִינְתָּא דְּאִתְגַּלְּיָיא מֵאַתְרָהּ, וְכַמָּה דְאִיהִי מִשְׁתַּנֵּית מִכְּמָה דְּהֲוַת. אוּף הָכִי בַּעֲלָהּ לָא נָהִיר נְהוֹרֵיהּ וְאִשְׁתַּנֵּי מִכְּמָה דְּהֲוָה, דִּכְתִיב, (ישעיהו י״ג:י׳) חָשַׁךְ הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ בְּצֵאתוֹ.
Zohar 1: 181a-182a: Come and see: This verse constitutes a supernal mystery. See, My servant shall be enlightened--they established this, but come and see. When the Blessed Holy One created the world, God fashioned the moon and diminished her light, for she has nothing at all of her own. Because she diminished herself, she has to be illumined by virtue of the sun, by potency of supernal lights. When the Temple was still standing, Israel engaged in sacrifices, ascent offerings, and rituals, performed by priests, Levites, and Israel to join links and kindle lights. Once the Temple was destroyed, light darkened: the moon is not illumined by the sun; the sun withdraws from her, so she is not illumined. As has been said, not a single day passes undominated by curses, sorrow, and pain....Accordingly, behold, my servant shall ascertain (Isa 52:13), restoring souls, each one to its place. Exalted and raised to great heights (ibid), from the aspect of those higher rungs, as we have said. Just as the many were appalled at him -- So marred was his appearance, unlike that of the children of Adam, (Isa. 52:14). Come and see, what has been said: When the Temple was destroyed and Shekhinah was in exile in foreign lands along with them, what is written?: Hark! The Erellam cry aloud; angels of peace weep bitterly. (Isa. 33:7). They all wept over this, linking weeping with mourning--all for Shekhinah, exiled from her domain. Just as she changes from what she was, so, too, her husband no longer puts forth his radiance and is changed from what he was, as is written: Darkness upon the sun in its going out (Isa. 13:10). So it is written: So marred was his appearance, unlike that of the children of Adam.
ות"ח מן יומא דאתחריב בי מקדשא לא הוה יומא דלא אשתכח ביה לווטין, בגין דכד בי מקדשא הוה קיים הוו ישראל פלחין פולחנין וקרבין עלוון וקרבנין ושכינתא שריא בבי מקדשא עלייהו כאמא דרביעא על בנין, והוו כל אנפין נהירין עד דאשתכחו ברכאן לעילא ותתא, ולא הוה יומא דלא אשתכחו ביה ברכאן וחדוון והוו ישראל שריין לרחצן בארעא וכל עלמא הוה אתזן בגינייהו. השתא דאתחריב בי מקדשא ושכינתא עמהון בגלותא לית לך יומא דלא אשתכח ביה לווטין ועלמא אתלטיא וחדוון לא אשתכחו לעילא ותתא. וזמין קב"ה לאקמא לה לכנסת ישראל מעפרא כמה דאתמר ולמחדי עלמא בכלא כד"א (ישעיה נ"ו:7) והביאותים אל הר קדשי ושמחתים בבית תפלתי וגו', וכתיב (ירמיה ל"א:9) בבכי יבואו ובתחנונים אובילם. כמה דבקדמיתא כתיב (איכה א':2) בכה תבכה בלילה, הכי לבתר בבכי יתהדרון דכתיב בבכי יבאו.
Zohar I, 202b-203a
Come and see: Ever since the Temple was destroyed, there has never been a day without curses. For when the Temple existed, Israel would perform rituals, bringing offerings and sacrifices, and Shekhinah hovered over them in the Temple like a mother over her children. All faces were radiant, so that blessings appeared above and below; there was never a day without blessings and joy. Israel dwelled securely in the land, and the whole world was nourished because of them. Now that the Temple is destroyed and Shekhinah is with them in exile, no day passes without curses; the world is cursed, and joy cannot be found above or below. But one day the Holy Blessed One intends to raise Assembly of Israel from the dust, as is said, and to delight the world utterly, as is said: I will bring them to My holy mountain and give them joy in My house of prayer (Isa. 56:7)." As is written: With weeping they will come, and with consolations I will guide them (Jer. 31:16)." As another verse says: She weeps bitterly into the night (Lam. 1:2)," so later they will return in weeping, as is written: "With weeping they will come."
ר' אלעזר פתח (שיר ג:1 )על משכבי בלילות בקשתי את שאהבה נפשי בקשתיו ולא מצאתיו. על משכבי, במשכבי מבעי ליה, מהו על משכבי. אלא כנסת ישראל אמרה קמי קב"ה ובעאת מניה על גלותא בגין דהיא יתבא בין שאר עמין עם בנהא ושכיבת לעפרא ועל דהיא שכיבת בארעא אחרא מסאבא אמרה על משכבי בלילות, על משכבי בעינא דכאיבנא בגלותא, ועל דא בקשתי את שאהבה נפשי, לאפקא לי מניה. בקשתיו ולא מצאתיו, דלאו אורחיה לאזדווגא ]מב ע"ב[ בי אלא בהיכליה. קראתיו ולא ענני, דהא ביני עמין אחרנין יתיבנא וקליה לא שמעין אלא בנוי דכתיב (דברים ד:33 )השמע עם קול אלהים וגו'.
Zohar 3, 42a-b
Rabbi El'ezar opened: "On my bed at night, I sought him whom my soul loves--I sought him, but did not find him (Song of Songs 3:1). "On my bed,"--the verse should read "In my bed." Why "on my bed"? Because Assembly of Israel speaks before the Holy Blessed One, pleading about the exile, because She dwells among other nations with Her children and lying in the dust. Since she lies in a foreign, impure land, she says על משכבי בלילות --read it as "concerning my lying [in my bed], I plead, for I suffer pain in exile. Accordingly, I sought him whom my soul loves--to deliver me [from exile]. I sought him, but did not find him--for it is not His way to unite with Me except in the Palace. "I called him, but he did not answer me (Song of Songs 5:6)--for I am dwelling among other nations and only His children hear His voice, as is written: Has a people heard God's voice [speaking from the midst of the fire, as you yourself have heard and still lived [Deuteronomy 4:33]?"
ונתתי משכני בתוככם ולא תגעל נפשי אתכם. ונתתי משכני, דא שכינתא. משכני, משכונא דילי היא דאתמשכן בחובייהו דישראל. ונתתי משכני בתוככם, משכונא ודאי. לב"נ דהוה רחים לאחרא, א"ל ברחימותא עלאה דאית לי גבך בעינא לדיירא עמך. אמר היך אנדע דתידור גבאי. נטל כל כסופא דביתיה ואייתי לגביה, אמר הא משכונא דא לגבך דלא אתפרש מנך לעלמין. כך קב"ה בעא לדיירא בהו בישראל. מה עבד, נטל כסופא דיליה ונחית להו לישראל, אמר לון ישראל הא משכונא דילי גבייכו בגין דלא אתפרש מנייכו לעלמין. ואע"ג דקב"ה
אתרחק מנן משכונא שבק בידן ואנן נטלין ההוא משכונא כסופא דיליה. מאן דיבעי משכוניה ייתי לדיירא גבן. כך ונתתי משכני בתוככם, משכוני אתן בידייכו בגין דאדור עמכון. ואע"ג
דישראל השתא בגלותא משכונא דקב"ה לגבייהו ולא שבקו ליה לעלמין.
Zohar 3, 114a
"I will set my sanctuary (mishkani) amongst you and I will not spurn you (Lev. 26:11)." "My sanctuary," this refers to Shekhinah, my surety (a play on Hebrew between mishkani-"my sanctuary" and mashkoni--"my surety") since She was taken as a surety because of the sins of Israel, and so mishkani means "my surety" beyond all doubt. It is like the story of a man who was fond of someone. He said to him: "My love for you is so great that I should like to live with you." The other said back: "How do I know that you will continue to live with me?" So he took the most precious thing in his house and brought it to him. He said: "Look, you now have this surety that I will never leave you." In the same way, the Blessed Holy One wanted to dwell with Israel. What did God do? Blessed Holy One took the most precious thing and brought it down to Israel. God said: "Israel, you now have my surety that I shall never leave you." Even though Blessed Holy One has gone far away from us, a surety was left with us and we take care of this greatest treasure. Whoever wants this surety, let them come and dwell with us. Therefore, "I will set my sanctuary amongst you--I shall put my surety in your hands so that I might dwell with you. Even though Israel is now in exile, they have the surety of the Blessed Holy One, and they will never forsake Her.
Rabbinic Sources
רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר מִשּׁוּם רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ, מִיּוֹם שֶׁחָרַב בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ, אֵין יוֹם שֶׁאֵין בּוֹ קְלָלָה, וְלֹא יָרַד הַטַּל לִבְרָכָה, וְנִטַּל טַעַם הַפֵּרוֹת. רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר, אַף נִטַּל שֹׁמֶן הַפֵּרוֹת:
Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says that Rabbi Yehoshua testified: From the day the Temple was destroyed there is no day that does not include some form of curse. For the dew has not descended for blessing, and the taste has been removed from fruit. Rabbi Yosei says: Since then, the fat of fruit has also been removed.
דְּתַנְיָא, רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר: שָׁלֹשׁ מִשְׁמָרוֹת הָוֵי הַלַּיְלָה, וְעַל כָּל מִשְׁמָר וּמִשְׁמָר יוֹשֵׁב הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְשׁוֹאֵג כָּאֲרִי, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״ה׳ מִמָּרוֹם יִשְׁאָג, וּמִמְּעוֹן קָדְשׁוֹ יִתֵּן קוֹלוֹ שָׁאֹג יִשְׁאַג עַל נָוֵהוּ״. אָמַר רַב יִצְחָק בַּר שְׁמוּאֵל מִשְּׁמֵיהּ דְּרַב: שָׁלֹשׁ מִשְׁמָרוֹת הָוֵי הַלַּיְלָה, וְעַל כָּל מִשְׁמָר וּמִשְׁמָר יוֹשֵׁב הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְשׁוֹאֵג כַּאֲרִי, וְאוֹמֵר: ״אוֹי לִי שֶׁבַּעֲוֹנוֹתֵיהֶם הֶחֱרַבְתִּי אֶת בֵּיתִי וְשָׂרַפְתִּי אֶת הֵיכָלִי וְהִגְלִיתִים לְבֵין אוּמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם״.
Rabbi Eliezer says: The night consists of three watches, and over each and every watch, the Holy One, Blessed be He, sits and roars like a lion, as it is stated: “Adonai roars [yishag] from on high, from His holy dwelling He makes His voice heard. He roars mightily [shaog yishag] over His dwelling place.... Rav Yitzḥak bar Shmuel said in the name of Rav: The night consists of three watches, and over each and every watch the Holy One, Blessed be He sits and roars like a lion, and says: “Woe to Me, that due to their sins I destroyed My house, burned My Temple and exiled them among the nations of the world.”
אָמַר רַב חִסְדָּא: מִיּוֹם שֶׁחָרַב בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ לֹא נִרְאֵית רָקִיעַ בְּטׇהֳרָתָהּ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״אַלְבִּישׁ שָׁמַיִם קַדְרוּת וְשַׂק אָשִׂים כְּסוּתָם״.
Rav Ḥisda said: Since the day the Temple was destroyed, the firmament has not been seen in its purity, as it is said: “I clothe the heavens with blackness and I make sackcloth their covering” (Isaiah 50:3).
§ It is taught in a baraita: Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: Come and see how beloved the Jewish people are before the Holy Blessed One. In every place they were exiled, Shekhinah went with them. They were exiled to Egypt, and Shekhinah went with them, as it is stated: “Did I reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt?” (I Samuel 2:27). They were exiled to Babylonia, and Shekhinah went with them, as it is stated: “For your sake I have sent to Babylonia” (Isaiah 43:14). So too, when, in the future, they will be redeemed, Shekhinah will be with them, as it is stated: “Then Adonai your God will return [with] your restoration” (Deuteronomy 30:3). Not "cause to return" but rather “Adonai your God will return,” which teaches that the Holy Blessed One, will return with them from among the exiles.
The Gemara asks: And doesn’t God cry in the outer chambers? Isn’t it written: “And on that day Adonai of the Hosts, called to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth” (Isaiah 22:12)? The Gemara responds: The destruction of the Temple is different, as even the angels of peace cried, as it is stated: “Behold, the Erellam cry without; the angels of peace weep bitterly” (Isaiah 33:7). The verse continues: “And my eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because Adonai's flock is carried away captive” (Jeremiah 13:17). Rabbi Elazar said: Why these three references to tears in the verse? One is for the First Temple; one is for the Second Temple; and one is for the Jewish people who were exiled from their place. And there are those who say: one is for dereliction of the study of Torah in the wake of the exile.
Modern Commentary
Both Rabbi Eli'ezer and Rav present us with a highly mythical image intertwined with a realistic description of the different watches of the night. Night is the blessed Holy One's time of mourning, having lost His Kingdom on earth. The blessed Holy One's mourning, however, is not confined to the immediate aftermath of the destruction of the Temple. The destruction, rather, has radically changed the history of the Jewish people, and even the figure of God Himself. The exiled deity--who in His wrath destroyed his house, killed his children, and exiled the survivors--is unable to be consoled, experiencing anew every night the pain of His and His people's fate. A River Flows from Eden, Melila Hellner-Eshed at 122-3
After the destruction of the Temple, the blessed Holy one (the male aspect of the divine) departed to the uppermost heavens, and only Shekhinah (feminine divinity) remains in the world. The destruction of the Temple is understood by the Zohar as signifying the dissolution of the family--the divorce of the royal, holy couple--the consequence of which is that the blessed Holy One has withdrawn his direct involvement from the world, leaving only Shekhinah as the sole worldly presence of holiness, compassion, and providence for the Jewish people.
In this myth, the Children of Israel are identified as children coming from a house in which anger, sin, jealousy, and volatile relationships have brought about its destruction. Furthermore, the face of female divinity has also now changed, and she no longer resides in the shade of her lover, the blessed Holy One, the sefirah Tiferet. She wanders and roams without a fixed abode, lonely, longing for her partner. She is dependent on her children, the people of Israel, for her very being in the world. Shekhinah no longer has a physical home in the world; she is no longer Matronita residing in a glorious palace, or even for that matter in the beit midrash or the beit knesset (synagogue) that were also her abodes, seemingly because the word of God is no longer present in them. From now on, Shekhinah's abode is to be human beings themselves, who through their worship and service transform themselves in sanctuaries in which Shekhinah can dwell. Shekhinah roams the paths and roads of the world, and it is there among the people who wander like her that she finds a place to reside. Now Shekhinah's sanctuary and chariot consist of "the way" and of people's hearts. A River Flows from Eden, Melila Hellner-Eshed at 116.
The Destruction of the Temple Further Separated Male and Female Potencies Within Divinity
בספרא דרב המנונא אמר כל זמני דכנסת ישראל אשתכחת ביה בקב"ה כביכול קב"ה בשלימו ורעי ברעותא ליה ולאחראי, זן ליה לגרמיה מההוא יניקו דחלבא דאמא עלאה ומההוא יניקו דאיהו יניק אשקי לכל שאר ויניק לון. ואוליפנא דאמר ר' שמעון הכי דכל זמנא דכנסת ישראל אשתכחת ביה בקב"ה קב"ה בחידו בשלימו, ברכאן ביה שריין ונפקין מניה לכל שאר אחרנין, וכל זמן דכנסת ישראל לא אשתכחת ביה בקב"ה כביכול ברכאן אתמנעו מניה ומכל שאר אחרנין. ורזא דמלה בכל אתר דלא אשתכחו דכר ונוקבא ברכאן לא שריין עלוי, ועל דא קב"ה געי ובכי דכתיב ירמיה כה: שאג ישאג על נוהו. ומאי אומר, אוי שחרבתי את ביתי וכו'.
Zohar 3, 17a-b
In the book of Rav Hamnuna it says: As long as Assembly of Israel is with the Blessed Holy One, the Blessed Holy One is complete and nourished and nourishes others, feeding by sucking milk of the supernal Mother, and from that sucking, providing for all the rest, suckling them. We have learned that Rabbi Shim'on said: When Assembly of Israel is with the Blessed Holy One, the Blessed Holy One is joyous and complete; blessing abide and issue from there to all others. Whenever Assembly of Israel is not with the Blessed Holy One, then blessing are withheld from everyone. The mystery of the matter? Whenever male and female are not found, blessings do not settle. Because of this, the Blessed Holy One roars and weeps, as is written: God roars mightily over God's abode (Jer. 25:30). And what does the Creator say? "Woe! That I have destroyed my house...!"
רבי חייא פתח (שם ס"ו:10) שמחו את ירושלם וגילו בה כל אוהביה שישו אתה משוש כל המתאבלים עליה. ת"ח כד אתחרב בי מקדשא וגרמו חובין ואתגלו ישראל מארעא אסתלק קב"ה לעילא לעילא ולא אשגח על חרוב בי מקדשיה ועל עמיה דאתגלי, וכדין שכינתא אתגלייא עמהון. כדין נחת, אשגח על ביתיה ואתוקד, אסתכל על עמיה והא אתגלי, שאל על מטרוניתא והא אתתרכת, כדין ויקרא יי' אלהים צבאות ביום ההוא לבכי ולמספד ולקרח ולחגור שק. והיא אוף היא מה כתיב בה, (יואל א':8 )חגורת שק על בעל נעוריה, כד"א כי איננו, בגין דאסתלק מינה ואשתכח פרודא.
Zohar 1:120a
Rabbi Chiyya opened, "Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her! Rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her (Isaiah 66:10). Come and see: When the Temple was destroyed and sins proved decisive and Israel was exiled from the land, the Blessed Holy One withdrew above, above--not looking upon the destruction of the Temple or upon the people who had been exiled. Then, Shekhinah went into exile with them. Then He descended. He looked upon his House, it was burnt. He gazed at his people--they were in exile. He asked after Matronita--She was driven away. Then, Adonai, God of Hosts, summoned on that day to weeping and mourning, to tonsuring and girding with sackcloth (Isaiah 22:12)." Of her, too, what is written? "Girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth (Joel 1:8), as is said: "For He is no more (Jer. 31:15), because He had withdrawn from Her and there was a separation.
Biblical and Rabbinic Sources
(15) Thus said Adonai: A cry is heard in Ramah— Wailing, bitter weeping— Rachel weeping for her children. She refuses to be comforted For her children, who are gone. (16) Thus said Adonai: Restrain your voice from weeping, Your eyes from shedding tears; For there is a reward for your labor —declares Adonai: They shall return from the enemy’s land. (17) And there is hope for your future —declares Adonai: Your children shall return to their country.
§ Rabbi Tanḥum said that Rabbi Ḥanilai said: Any man who does not have a wife is without joy, without blessing, without goodness. He is without joy, as it is written: “And you shall rejoice, you and your household” He is without blessing, as it is written: “To cause a blessing to rest in your house” (Ezekiel 44:30), He is without goodness, as it is written: “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18).
Modern Commentary
It was the Rabbis who had created the myth of the Shekhinah as the divine Presence that forever accompanies the people of Israel in all their exiles and in all their troubles. This attests to a profound religious creativity, through the creation of a divine figure with whom it would be possible to identify even in times of great crisis--the destruction of the Temple, the loss of national sovereignty, and the hardships of exile. In a most extraordinary way, the Zohar develops that mythic idea further, so that the destruction of the Temple now signifies the tragic moment when the cosmic harmony between masculine and feminine was lost. The Temple's destruction then signifies the destruction of the mythic partnership between God the Father and God the Mother in their home, the Temple, and in their bedroom (the Holy of Holies), with this separation causing the departure of the active presence of the divine male--the husband and father--in the world. A River Flows from Eden, Melila Hellner-Eshed at 74
The erotic desire spoken by the female persona in the Song is applied by the zoharic authorship to the divine feminine, Shekhinah, which is identified further as the Community of Israel, the symbolic collective constituted paradigmatically by the fraternity of male mystics. Shekhinah utters words of longing before the masculine potency, for in the state of exile she is separated from him. The hieros gamos ["sacred wedding"] occurs within the spatial confines of the holy of holies, the innermost sanctum of the Temple, but since in the time of exile the latter is not standing, there is no space wherein the union can be fully realized. Hence the feminine expresses her yearning to cohabit with the masculine, to inhabit the same space, nay to be the secret space wherein the phallic foundation is laid. Wolfson, Elliot. Language, Eros, Being: Kabbalistic Hermeneutics and Poetic Imagination
Glossary:
Assembly of Israel: כנסת ישראל (Knesset Yisrael); in rabbinic literature, this phrase is another name for the people of Israel. In the Zohar, the phrase can sometimes refer to the people of Israel but also to Shekhinah, the divine feminine counterpart to the people of Israel.
Matronita: Aramaized form of the Latin word meaning "matron," "married woman," "noble lady," often applied in the Zohar to Shekhinah, the wife of Tiferet.
Shekhinah: "Presence," divine immanence; the tenth and last sefirah, female partner of of Tiferet; also called Malkhut.
Lilith: A female demon married to Samael, the prince of the demons. In folklore and rabbinic literature, imagined as a demonic force that attacked babies and seduces men.
SOURCES
The Zohar Vols. I-XII (Pritzker Edition) Daniel Matt (translation and commentary)
The Wisdom of the Zohar Vols. I-III, Isaiah Tishby, David Goldstein (trans.)
A River Flows From Eden, Melila Hellner-Eshed.