Rebbe Nachman - This *Sparks* Joy

(3) Thus we see that all the worlds were created only for Israel, in order to provide them with great good. But when their sins render them incapable of receiving, He suffers <greatly, as it were>, as the verse states (Isaiah 63:9): “In all their suffering, He suffers.”

(4) Even so, because the light of lovingkindness is so pure, it is impossible to receive it as it is. He must <contract the light in His holy speech>. That is, when He wants to provide great good, He must speak [the words], “Let it be so.” This is as is written (Psalms 33:6), “By the word of God the heavens were made.” For the letters are contractions: [the light that is] the letter aleph extends to here; [the light that is] the letter tav extends to there.

(5) However, because of our many sins, speech, too, is in exile. This is as it is written (Chronicles 15:24), “Relate His glory among the nations”—i.e., speech and Israel are together in exile. The verse thus states (Isaiah 40:5): “Then the glory of God will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together that the mouth of God has spoken.” That is, when Israel will be redeemed, then, speech too will <be redeemed> with the Blessed One, as it were.

(1) 2. Now, our Rabbis, of blessed memory, taught: Every person must say: “The world was created for my sake” (Sanhedrin 37a), and he is obliged to improve it. What is its rectification? The matter is as follows: One must see to raise up all the sparks in all things. <As brought elsewhere,> these sparks are letters. Thus we see that one raises up letters, and the letters become words, so that through speech great good is provided to Israel.

(2) Yet how can a person raise up the sparks to God? The advised course of action is as follows: When a person observes some object, he must immediately believe with complete faith that this object contains letters and sparks. From this faith the zayin is made, as the verse states (Psalms 33:4), “All His acts are done with faith.” The “doing” is the six days of the week, and faith is the seventh, <as is known to those proficient in the mystical tradition>.

(3) Afterwards, he should combine the faith <with> the wisdom, as it is written (1 Chronicles 28:9), “Know the God of your father.”

(4) “The God of your father” corresponds to faith, as in: They retain their fathers’ practices (Chullin 13b). We have faith in God, that He is the God of our fathers; this being the main thing. And “know” refers to wisdom and intellect. Wisdom is [the letter] yod, as Rashi explains: “Then Moshe will sing” (Exodus 15:1)—it does not say “ShaR (sang)” but “YaShiR (will sing)”—it is to thought that the Yod refers.

(5) And from the aforementioned yod and zayin, an ayin is made. This is because in Hebrew letter numerology, zayin times yod is ayin. In addition, the AYiN indicates wisdom, for the wise of the community are called “AYNei (the eyes of) the community” (Numbers 15:24).

(6) {“You shall make a tzitz (head-plate) of pure gold, u-petachta (and you shall engrave) on it the seal inscription: ‘Holy to God’” (Exodus 28:36).} Automatically, when a person with such an eye looks at something of the world, the sparks certainly ascend. This is as it is written, “You shall make a tzitz of pure gold.” Tzitz connotes looking. When, as mentioned above, it is pure—with faith and wisdom—then “u-PeTaChta on it the seal inscription.” In other words, by means of such an eye, tiPhTaCh (you will open) the sparks sealed in all things and raise them up: “Holy to God.”

(7) These sparks are letters. The letters become words. And through words, [God] provides great good to Israel. Also, when one raises up sparks from an object, that object then becomes worthless, because they are its life-force.