קובץ לימוד ז״ך תשרי יום היארצייט של הרה"ת שניאור זלמן ע"ה בן יבלחט"א ר׳ גימפל אברהם שיחי׳

(1) This mishna sets out the essential halakhot pertaining to the invitation to recite Grace after Meals after a joint meal [zimmun]: Three people who ate as one are required to form a zimmun and recite Grace after Meals. If, among the diners, one ate doubtfully tithed produce [demai], and first tithe from which its teruma was already taken, or second tithe, and consecrated food that were redeemed and therefore permitted to be eaten; and even the waiter who served the meal to the diners and who ate at least an olive-bulk from the meal, and the Samaritan [Kuti] who ate with two others at a meal; each of these people is included among the three to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun. However, one who ate untithed produce [tevel], and first tithe from which its teruma was not separated, and second tithe, and consecrated food that were not redeemed, and the waiter who did not eat an olive-bulk, and the gentile who ate with two Jews, none of these people is included among the three to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun.

(2) Women, slaves, and minors do not obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun. How much must one eat to obligate those with whom he ate in a zimmun? An olive-bulk of food suffices to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun. Rabbi Yehuda says: An egg-bulk is the minimum measure to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun.

(3) The mishna delineates distinctions in the halakhot of the zimmun blessing, based on the number of people present. How does one recite the zimmun? In a group of three people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the One from Whose food we have eaten. In a group of three people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless the One from Whose food we have eaten, as even without him there are enough people to recite the zimmun. With the increase in the number of participants, the blessing is more complex. In a group of ten people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless our God. In a group of ten people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless our God. This formula is recited both in a group of ten and in a group of one hundred thousand. In a group of one hundred people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the Lord our God. In a group of one hundred people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless the Lord our God. In a group of one thousand people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of one thousand people and him, he says: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of ten thousand people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. In a group of ten thousand people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. The principle is that just as he recites the blessing, so too those present recite in response: Blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. On a similar note, Rabbi Yosei HaGelili says: According to the size of the crowd, they recite the blessing, as it is stated: “Bless you God in full assemblies, even the Lord, you who are from the fountain of Israel” (Psalms 68:27). Rabbi Akiva said that there are no distinctions based on the size of the crowd: What do we find in the synagogue? Both when there are many and when there are few, as long as there is a quorum of ten, the prayer leader says: Bless [barekhu] the Lord. Rabbi Yishmael said that in the synagogue, one recites: Bless the Lord the blessed One.

(4) Three people who ate as one are not permitted to divide and recite Grace after Meals individually; rather, they recite the zimmun together. And the same is true of four who ate together, and the same is true of five. However, a group of six, up to but not including ten people who ate as one, may divide into two groups, each reciting its own zimmun. And a group of ten may not divide into two groups until there are twenty people present. The general principle is that a group may not divide unless the smaller groups will be able to recite the same zimmun formula that the whole group would have recited.

(5) The mishna states a halakha with regard to two groups joining together: Two groups that were eating in one house, when some members of each group can see each other, they may combine to form a zimmun. And if not, these recite a zimmun for themselves and those recite a zimmun for themselves. The mishna also speaks of the blessing over wine: One does not recite a blessing over wine until he adds water to it, that is the statement of Rabbi Eliezer. Undiluted wine is too strong to drink and a blessing is inappropriate. And the Rabbis say: Since it is possible to drink undiluted wine, one recites a blessing over it.

(1) With regard to a betrothed young woman, her father and her husband together nullify her vows. If the father nullified her vow and the husband did not nullify it, or if the husband nullified it and the father did not nullify it, then the vow is not nullified. And needless to say, it is not nullified if one of them ratified the vow.

(2) If the father of a betrothed young woman dies, his authority does not revert to the husband, and the husband cannot nullify the young woman’s vows by himself. However, if the husband dies, his authority reverts to the father, who can now nullify her vows on his own. In this matter, the power of the father is enhanced relative to the power of the husband. In another matter, the power of the husband is enhanced relative to the power of the father, as the husband nullifies vows during the woman’s adulthood, once they are fully married, whereas the father does not nullify her vows during her adulthood.

(3) If she took a vow as a betrothed woman and then was divorced on the same day, and she was again betrothed on the same day to another man, or even to one hundred men, one after the other, on a single day, her father and her last husband nullify her vows. This is the principle: With regard to any young woman who has not left her father’s jurisdiction and entered into her own jurisdiction for at least one moment, through full marriage or reaching majority, her father and her final husband nullify her vows.

(4) The practice of Torah scholars is to ensure that a woman about to be married should not be encumbered by any vows. A father, before his daughter would leave him through marriage, would say to her: All vows that you vowed in my house are hereby nullified. And similarly, the husband, before she would enter his jurisdiction, i.e., while they were still betrothed, would say to her: All vows that you vowed before you entered my jurisdiction are hereby nullified. This was necessary because once she enters his jurisdiction he cannot nullify the vows she made before that.

(5) With regard to a grown woman who waited twelve months after her betrothal and the time arrived for her betrothed to marry her, or a widow who waited thirty days and the time arrived for her betrothed to marry her, Rabbi Eliezer says: Since her husband is already obligated to provide for her sustenance, as he is obligated to have married her by then, he can nullify her vows by himself, as if he were fully married to her. But the Rabbis say: The husband does not nullify her vows on his own until she enters his jurisdiction.

(6) With regard to a widow waiting for her yavam to perform levirate marriage, whether she is waiting for one yavam, if her late husband had only one brother, or whether she is waiting for two or more yevamin, if he had several brothers, Rabbi Eliezer says: A yavam can nullify her vows. Rabbi Yehoshua says: If she is waiting for one yavam, he can nullify her vows, but not if she is waiting for two. Rabbi Akiva says: A yavam cannot nullify her vows, regardless of whether she is waiting for one yavam or for two or more. The mishna then elaborates: Rabbi Eliezer said: Just as with regard to a woman he acquired for himself through betrothal, he nullifies her vows, so too with regard to a woman acquired for him from Heaven, i.e., the yevama, isn’t it logical that he should be able to nullify her vows? Rabbi Akiva said to him: No, if you say that a husband can nullify the vows of a woman he acquired for himself, over whom others have no authority, shall you also say that this is the case with regard to a woman acquired for him from Heaven, over whom others have authority? If there are two yevamin, each yavam has equal authority with regard to her vows. Rabbi Yehoshua said to him: Akiva, your statement applies in a situation with two yevamin, but how do you reply to Rabbi Eliezer in the case of one yavam? Rabbi Akiva said to him: A yevama is not the full-fledged wife of the yavam in the in the way that a betrothed woman is her husband’s full-fledged wife, and the yavam is not empowered to nullify vows at all.

(7) One who says to his wife: All vows that you will vow from now until I arrive from such and such a place are hereby ratified, has not said anything, i.e., the vows are not ratified. However, if he states that all vows that she will take until then are hereby nullified, Rabbi Eliezer said: They are nullified, while the Rabbis say: They are not nullified. Rabbi Eliezer said in explanation: If one can nullify vows that have reached the status of a prohibition, i.e., that have already taken effect, shall he not be able to nullify vows that have not reached the status of a prohibition? The Rabbis said to him in response: The verse states: “Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may ratify it, or her husband may nullify it” (Numbers 30:14). This teaches: That which has reached the status of eligibility for ratification, i.e., a vow that she has already taken, has reached the status of eligibility for nullification. However, a vow that has not reached the status of eligibility for ratification has not reached the status of eligibility for nullification either, and it cannot be nullified.

(8) The nullification of vows can be performed all day on the day on which the vow was heard. There is in this matter both a leniency, extending the nullification period, and a stricture, curtailing that period. How so? If a woman took a vow on Shabbat evening, her father or husband can nullify the vow on Shabbat evening, and on Shabbat day until dark. This is an example of extending the nullification period. However, if she took a vow with nightfall approaching, her father or husband can nullify the vow only until nightfall, since, if it became dark and he had not yet nullified her vow, he cannot nullify it anymore. This is an example of a curtailed nullification period.

(1) The acts of carrying out from a public domain into a private domain or vice versa, which are prohibited on Shabbat, are primarily two basic actions that comprise four cases from the perspective of a person inside a private domain, and two basic actions that comprise four cases from the perspective of a person outside, in a public domain. The mishna elaborates: How do these eight cases take place? In order to answer that question, the mishna cites cases involving a poor person and a homeowner. The poor person stands outside, in the public domain, and the homeowner stands inside, in the private domain. The poor person lifted an object in the public domain, extended his hand into the private domain, and placed the object into the hand of the homeowner. In that case, the poor person performed the prohibited labor of carrying from the public domain into the private domain in its entirety. Or, the poor person reached his hand into the private domain, took an item from the hand of the homeowner, and carried it out into the public domain. In that case, the poor person performed the prohibited labor of carrying out from the private domain into the public domain in its entirety. In both of these cases, because the poor person performed the prohibited labor in its entirety, he is liable and the homeowner is exempt. The mishna cites two additional cases. In these, the prohibited labor is performed by the homeowner, who is in the private domain: The homeowner lifted an item in the private domain, extended his hand into the public domain, and placed the object into the hand of the poor person. In that case, the homeowner performed the labor of carrying out from the private domain into the public domain in its entirety. Or, the homeowner reached his hand into the public domain, took an object from the hand of the poor person, and carried it into the private domain. In that case, the homeowner performed the labor of carrying from the public domain into the private domain in its entirety. In both of those cases, because the homeowner performed the prohibited labor in its entirety, he is liable and the poor person is exempt. There are four additional cases where neither the homeowner nor the poor person performed the labor in its entirety, and therefore neither is liable: The poor person extended his hand into the private domain and either the homeowner took an object from his hand and placed it in the private domain or the homeowner placed an object into the hand of the poor person, and the poor person carried the object out into the public domain. In those cases and the two that follow, the act of transferring the object from one domain to another was performed jointly by two people, the poor person and the homeowner. Because each performed only part of the prohibited labor, both of them are exempt. So too, in a case where the homeowner extended his hand into the public domain and, either the poor person took an object from the homeowner’s hand and placed it in the public domain or the poor person placed an object into the homeowner’s hand and the homeowner carried the object into the private domain. Because each performed only part of the prohibited labor, both of them are exempt.

(2) After having dealt with the limited and defined topic of the halakhot of carrying out on Shabbat, the mishna begins to deal with the halakhot of Shabbat chronologically, beginning with activities that one may not perform prior to the onset of Shabbat. With regard to one’s daily conduct, the mishna says: A person may not sit before the barber adjacent to the time of minḥa until he recites the afternoon prayer. And a person may not enter the bathhouse and may not enter to work in a tannery [burseki]. And he may neither begin to eat a meal nor to sit in judgment until he prays. And however, if they already began engaging in those activities, they need not stop and recite the Amida prayer. The tanna articulated a principle: One stops engaging in all of these activities to recite Shema and one does not stop to recite the Amida prayer.

(3) This mishna deals with various decrees, especially with regard to the halakhot of Shabbat, which were issued in order to distance a person from transgressions that he is liable to commit through habit and routine. The mishna said: The tailor may not go out with his needle adjacent to nightfall on Shabbat eve, lest he forget that he is carrying the needle and go out with it to the public domain even after Shabbat begins. And, similarly, the scribe [lavlar] may not go out with his quill[kulmos] for the same reason. And one may not shake his clothes on Shabbat to rid them of lice; and one may not read a book by candlelight, so that he will not come to adjust the wick of the lamp. However, in truth they said an established halakha: The attendant sees where in the book the children under his supervision are reading in the Torah, even by candlelight on Shabbat. However, he himself may not read. Similarly, the Sages issued a similar decree with regard to other halakhot, as they said: The zav may not eat even with his wife the zava, despite the fact that they are both ritually impure, because, by eating together, they will come to excessive intimacy and become accustomed to sin.

(4) And these are among the halakhot that the Sages, who went up to visit him, said in the upper story of Ḥananya ben Ḥizkiya ben Garon. The precise nature of these halakhot will be explained in the Gemara. These halakhot are considered one unit because they share a distinctive element. Since many Sages were there, among them most of the generation’s Torah scholars in Eretz Yisrael, they engaged in discussion of various halakhot of the Torah. It turned out that when the people expressing opinions were counted, the students of Beit Shammai outnumbered the students of Beit Hillel, and they issued decrees with regard to eighteen matters on that day in accordance with the opinion of Beit Shammai.

(5) In this mishna there is a fundamental dispute between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai: Must one begin refraining from actions prohibited on Shabbat on Shabbat eve? Or, may one initiate an action prior to Shabbat, even if he knows that it will continue on its own on Shabbat itself? These are the details of that dispute: Beit Shammai say: One may only soak dry ink in water and dry plants, which produce dyes, in water and vetch for animal food to soften them in water on Shabbat eve, adjacent to Shabbat,if there is clearly sufficient time for them to soak for their designated purpose while it is still day, before Shabbat begins, and their continued soaking on Shabbat will have no effect. And Beit Hillel permit doing so.

(6) Beit Shammai say: One may only place bundles of combed flax inside the oven on Shabbat eve if there is sufficient time so that they will be heated while it is still day. And one may only place wool into the dyer’s kettle if there is sufficient time for the wool to absorb the dye while it is still day. And Beit Hillel permit doing so. Beit Shammai say: One may spread traps for an animal and birds and fish only if there is sufficient time remaining in the day for them to be trapped in them while it is still day, and Beit Hillel permit doing so even if there is not sufficient time remaining in the day.

(7) Beit Shammai say: One may only sell an item to a gentile on Shabbat eve, and one may only load a burden on his donkey with him, and one may only lift a burden on him if there remains sufficient time for the gentile to arrive to a near place prior to Shabbat, and the Jew will play no role in the performance of a prohibited labor by the gentile on Shabbat. And Beit Hillel permit doing so.

(8) Beit Shammai say: One may not give skins to a gentile tanner, nor clothes to a gentile launderer, unless there is sufficient time for work on them to be completed while it is still day, before Shabbat begins. And in all of them Beit Hillel permit doing so with the sun, i.e., as long as the sun is shining on Friday.

(9) Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said: The ancestral house of my father, the dynasty of Nesi’im from the house of Hillel, was accustomed to give its white clothes to a gentile launderer no fewer than three days before Shabbat. And, however, these, Beit Shammai, and those, Beit Hillel, agree that, ab initio, one may load the beam of the olive press on the olives on Shabbat eve while it is still day, so that the oil will continue to be squeezed out of the olives on Shabbat. So too, one may load the circular wine press to accelerate the process of producing wine from the grapes.

(10) This mishna enumerates actions that may only be performed on Shabbat eve if the prohibited labor will be totally or mostly completed while it is still day. One may only roast meat, an onion, or an egg if there remains sufficient time so that they could be roasted while it is still day. One may only place dough to bake into bread in the oven on Shabbat eve at nightfall, and may only place a cake on the coals, if there is time enough that the surface of this cake or bread will form a crust while it is still day. Rabbi Eliezer says: Enough time so that its bottom crust should harden, which takes less time.

(11) However in a case that is an exception, one may, ab initio, lower the Paschal lamb into the oven on Shabbat eve at nightfall, so that its roasting is completed on Shabbat if Passover eve coincides with Shabbat eve. And one may, ab initio, kindle the fire in the bonfire of the Chamber of the Hearth in the Temple on Shabbat eve, adjacent to the start of Shabbat, and allow the fire to spread afterward throughout all the wood in the bonfire. And, however, in the outlying areas, meaning in all of Eretz Yisrael outside the Temple, it is prohibited to light a bonfire on Shabbat eve, unless there is sufficient time for the fire to take hold in most of the bonfire, while it is still day. Rabbi Yehuda says: With a bonfire of coals, even in the outlying areas one is permitted to light the fire on Shabbat eve at nightfall, even if the fire only spread to any amount of the bonfire. The coals, once they are kindled, will not be extinguished again, and there is no concern lest he come to tend to them on Shabbat.

(1) These are the matters of dispute between Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel with regard to the halakhot of a meal: One dispute concerns the order of blessings in kiddush. Beit Shammai say: When one recites kiddush over wine, one recites a blessing over the sanctification of the day and recites a blessing over the wine thereafter. And Beit Hillel say: One recites a blessing over the wine and recites a blessing over the day thereafter.

(2) Similarly, Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai disagree with regard to drinking wine before a meal. Beit Shammai say: One washes his hands and mixes water with the wine in the cup thereafter, and Beit Hillel say: One mixes water with the wine in the cup and only washes his hands thereafter. The basis of this particular dispute is with regard to the laws of ritual purity, as the Gemara will explain below.

(3) Also with regard to the laws of ritual purity, Beit Shammai say: After washing, one dries his hands with a cloth and places it on the table. And Beit Hillel say: One places it on the cushion upon which he is sitting.

(4) Similarly, Beit Shammai say: One sweeps the area of the house where the meal took place and he washes his hands with the final waters before Grace after Meals thereafter. And Beit Hillel say: One washes his hands and sweeps the house thereafter.

(5) Just as they dispute the order of the blessings in kiddush, they dispute the order of the blessings in havdala. If a meal continued until the conclusion of Shabbat, Beit Shammai say: One recites the blessing over the candle, then the Grace after Meals blessing, then the blessing over the spices, and finally the blessing of havdala. And Beit Hillel say: The order is candle, spices, Grace after Meals, and havdala. With regard to the blessing over the candle, Beit Shammai say: Who created [bara] the light of fire. And Beit Hillel say: Who creates [boreh] the lights of fire.

(6) One may neither recite a blessing over the candle nor over the spices of gentiles, nor over the candle nor the spices designated to pay respects to the dead, nor over the candle nor the spices of idolatry. The mishna cites another halakha with regard to the blessing over the candle: And one does not recite the blessing over the candle until he derives benefit from its light.

(7) The mishna cites an additional dispute: One who ate and forgot and did not recite a blessing; Beit Shammai say: He returns to the place where he ate and recites the blessing. Beit Hillel say: That is unnecessary. He recites the blessing at the place where he remembered. Both agree, however, that there is a limit with regard to how long after eating one may recite Grace after Meals. And until when does he recite the blessing? Until the food is digested in his intestines.

(8) Wine came before the diners after the meal; if only that cup of wine is there, Beit Shammai say: One recites a blessing over the wine and recites a blessing over the food, Grace after Meals, thereafter. And Beit Hillel say: One recites a blessing over the food and recites a blessing over the wine thereafter. And one answers amen after a Jew who recites a blessing even if he did not hear the entire blessing, and one does not answer amen after a Samaritan [Kuti] who recites a blessing until he hears the whole blessing in its entirety, as perhaps the Kuti introduced an element inconsistent with the Jewish faith in that section of the blessing that he did not hear.

(1) And these may shave and cut their hair on the intermediate days of a Festival: One who comes from a country overseas; and one who is released from a house of captivity; and one who comes out of prison on the intermediate days of a Festival; and one who had been ostracized and therefore prohibited from cutting his hair, and the Sages released him from his decree of ostracism on the intermediate days of the Festival; and similarly, one who had vowed not to cut his hair and then requested of a Sage to dissolve his vow and was released from it on the intermediate days of the Festival; and the nazirite whose term of naziriteship ended on the intermediate days of a Festival; and the leper who needs to purify himself on the intermediate days and must shave his entire body in order to leave his state of ritual impurity and regain his ritual purity. Since these people were not able to cut their hair on the eve of the Festival, they are permitted to do so on the intermediate days of the Festival.

(2) And these may launder their clothes on the intermediate days of a Festival: One who comes from a country overseas; and one who is released from a house of captivity; and one who comes out of prison on the intermediate days of a Festival; and one who had been ostracized and the Sages released him from his decree of ostracism; and similarly, one who had vowed not to launder his clothes and he requested from a Sage to dissolve his vow and was released from it on the intermediate days of a Festival. Hand towels; and barbers’ towels, which are used to cover a person having a haircut; and body-drying towels, all of which get quickly soiled, may be laundered on the intermediate days of a Festival. Zavim, men suffering from an impure venereal emission; zavot, women who experience a flow of menstrual-type blood on three consecutive days during a time of the month when they do not expect to experience menstrual bleeding; menstruating women; women who have just given birth; and all others who leave a state of ritual impurity for a state of ritual purity on the intermediate days of the Festival, these people are all permitted to launder their clothes in order to purify themselves. But all other people are prohibited from laundering during the intermediate days of the Festival.

(3) And these are the documents that may be written on the intermediate days of a Festival: Documents of betrothal of wives, through which bridegrooms betroth their brides; bills of divorce; receipts for the repayment of debts; wills [deyateiki]; deeds of gift; perozbolin, documents through which lenders authorize the courts to collect their loans on their behalf, thereby preventing the Sabbatical year from canceling their debts; letters of valuation, which were drawn up by the court when they valuated property and transferred it to the lender; and letters of sustenance, which were drawn up when one accepted upon himself to maintain another, e.g., his step-daughter. The list continues: Documents of the ritual through which the brother-in-law frees the yevama of her levirate bonds [ḥalitza], thereby freeing her from the obligation to marry one of her deceased husband’s brothers; documents in which the court records the refusal of a girl upon reaching majority to remain married to the man to whom her mother or brothers married her as a minor after the death of her father; documents of arbitration, in which the court summarizes a conflict that had been resolved through arbitration; court rulings; and the official correspondence of the ruling authorities.

(4) One may not write bills of debt on the intermediate days of a Festival. But if the lender does not trust the borrower, and he is concerned that the borrower will later deny the loan, or if the scribe has nothing to eat, then he may write a bill of debt during the Festival week. One may not write Torah scrolls, phylacteries, or mezuzot on the intermediate days of a Festival, nor may one correct a single letter, even in the Torah scroll of Ezra, which was kept in the Temple and upon which all the Jewish communities relied. Rabbi Yehuda says: One may write phylacteries and mezuzot for himself on the intermediate days of a Festival if he needs them. And one may spin sky-blue wool for his ritual fringes on his thigh, but not in the ordinary manner with a spindle, as this procedure must be performed in an altered manner on the intermediate days of a Festival.

(5) One who buries his deceased relative three days before a pilgrimage Festival has the decree of the seven-day period of mourning, i.e., the halakhot and prohibitions associated with that period, nullified for him by the Festival. He is not required to complete this seven-day mourning period after the Festival. If one buries his deceased relative eight days before a pilgrimage Festival, then the decree of thirty days is nullified for him. The restrictions that ordinarily apply during this thirty-day mourning period no longer apply after the Festival. This is because the Sages said a principle with regard to this issue: Shabbat counts as one of the days of mourning, although one may not mourn on it and it does not interrupt the mourning period, which continues after Shabbat. The pilgrimage Festivals, on the other hand, interrupt the mourning period, so that if one began mourning before such a Festival, then the mourning period is canceled by the Festival. They do not, however, count. If one did not begin mourning before the Festival, or if his relative died during the Festival, then he is required to complete his mourning period afterward, as the days of the Festival do not count toward the requisite days of mourning.

(6) Rabbi Eliezer says: From the time that the Temple was destroyed, Shavuot is like Shabbat, because nowadays the days following Shavuot are not treated like Festival days. When the Temple stood, many of the Festival’s offerings that could not be sacrificed on Shavuot itself would be sacrificed during the six days following the Festival. Nowadays, however, when offerings are no longer sacrificed, Shavuot lasts for only one day in Eretz Yisrael, and therefore it is treated like Shabbat with regard to mourning: It counts as one of the days of mourning, but does not interrupt the period of mourning. Rabban Gamliel says: Even Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur are considered like the pilgrimage Festivals, in that they interrupt the mourning period but are not counted toward the days of mourning. And the Rabbis say: The halakha is neither in accordance with the statement of Rabbi Eliezer nor in accordance with the statement of Rabban Gamliel. Rather, with regard to mourning, Shavuot is treated like the other pilgrimage Festivals, whereas Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur are treated like Shabbat.

(7) Mourners do not rend their garments during the intermediate days of a Festival and do not remove their garments from their shoulders. And others do not provide them with a meal [mavrin] after the burial, except for close relatives of the deceased. And the consolers provide the first meal after the burial only while the mourner is sitting on an upright bed, and not on one that is overturned. One does not bring the first meal after the burial to the house of mourning on a small tray [tavla], in a bowl [iskutla], or in a narrow-mouthed basket [kanon], but rather in ordinary baskets. And the mourners’ blessing is not recited on the intermediate days of a Festival, but the consolers may stand in a row when the mourners leave the cemetery and console them. And the mourners dismiss the many consolers, by telling them that they may return home after they have fulfilled the mitzva of consoling the mourners.

(8) The bier of the deceased is not set down in the street during the intermediate days of a Festival so as not to encourage eulogies. On an ordinary weekday, people would gather in the street around the bier to eulogize the deceased, but this should be avoided during the intermediate days of the Festival. And the biers of women are never set down, even if it is not the intermediate days of a Festival, due to their honor. Blood might drip from their bodies, and it would cause them dishonor if their blood stained the street. On the intermediate days of a Festival women may wail in grief over the deceased, but they may not clap [metapeḥot] their hands in mourning. Rabbi Yishmael says: Those who are close to the bier may clap.

(9) On New Moons, Hanukkah and Purim, which are not Festivals by Torah law, the women may both wail and clap their hands in mourning. On both the intermediate days of a Festival and on New Moons, Hanukkah and Purim they may not lament. After the deceased has been buried they may neither wail nor clap. The mishna explains: What is considered wailing? This is when they all wail together simultaneously. And what is considered a lament? This is when one speaks and they all answer after her with a repeated refrain, as it is stated: “And teach your daughters wailing and everyone her neighbor lamentation” (Jeremiah 9:19). In order to conclude on a positive note, the mishna says: But with regard to the future, the verse states: “He will destroy death forever; and the Lord, God, will wipe away tears from off all faces and the reproach of His people He will take away from off all the earth” (Isaiah 25:8).

(1) As a continuation to the discussion at the end of the previous chapter, which mentioned circumcision in the context of a discussion of the halakhot of childbirth on Shabbat, the mishna continues to address the halakhot of circumcision. Rabbi Eliezer says: If he did not bring an implement for circumcising the child on Shabbat eve, he brings it on Shabbat itself uncovered so that it will be clear to all that he is bringing a circumcision scalpel. And in times of danger, when decrees of persecution prohibit Jews from circumcising their children, one covers it in the presence of witnesses who can testify that he transported the scalpel to perform a mitzva. And furthermore, Rabbi Eliezer said with regard to this issue: One may even cut down trees to prepare charcoal in order to fashion iron tools for the purpose of circumcision. Rabbi Eliezer’s approach was not universally accepted, and a principle was stated by Rabbi Akiva: Any prohibited labor that can be performed on Shabbat eve does not override Shabbat, including transporting the circumcision scalpel. However, any prohibited labor involved in the mitzva of circumcision itself that cannot be performed on Shabbat eve overrides Shabbat.

(2) When the eighth day of a baby’s life occurs on Shabbat, he must be circumcised on that day. Therefore, one performs all the necessities of the circumcision, even on Shabbat: One circumcises the foreskin, and uncovers the skin by removing the thin membrane beneath the foreskin, and sucks the blood from the wound, and places on it both a bandage [ispelanit] and cumin as a salve. If one did not grind the cumin from Shabbat eve, he chews it with his teeth and places it on the place of circumcision as a salve. If he did not mix wine and oil on Shabbat eve, a mixture designed to heal and strengthen the child, this, the wine, is placed on the wound by itself and that, the oil, is placed by itself. And on Shabbat one may not make a pouch to place over the circumcision as a bandage ab initio, but he may wrap a rag over it as a dressing. If he did not prepare the bandage on Shabbat eve by bringing it to the place where the circumcision was performed, he wraps the bandage on his finger and brings it on Shabbat, even from a different courtyard. While the Sages permitted it to be brought, they required that it be performed in an unusual fashion, by wearing it in the manner of a garment.

(3) One may wash the baby on Shabbat, both before the circumcision and after the circumcision. And one may sprinkle hot water on him by hand but not with a vessel, in order to depart from the usual manner in which this is done. Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya says: One may wash the baby on the third day following his circumcision, even if that third day occurs on Shabbat. On the third day following circumcision, the baby is considered to be in danger, as it is stated with regard to the men of Shekhem, who were circumcised: “And it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain” (Genesis 34:25). This teaches us that on the third day the pain of circumcision poses a danger. If there is uncertainty whether or not to circumcise a baby, and likewise in the case of a hermaphrodite [androginos] baby, who possesses both male and female genitals, one does not desecrate Shabbat to perform the circumcision, since it is not certain that the circumcision is required. And Rabbi Yehuda permits doing so for a hermaphrodite baby.

(4) One who had two babies to circumcise, one of whom he needed to circumcise on the day after Shabbat, and one of whom he needed to circumcise on Shabbat, and he forgot and circumcised the one that should have been circumcised after Shabbat on Shabbat, he is liable to bring a sin-offering, because he performed the prohibited labor of causing a wound not in the framework of performing a mitzva, as no obligation yet exists to circumcise the child. If there were two babies, one to circumcise on Shabbat eve, and one to circumcise on Shabbat, and he forgot and circumcised the one that he should have circumcised on Shabbat eve on Shabbat, Rabbi Eliezer deems him liable to bring a sin-offering, as circumcision after its appointed time does not override Shabbat. And Rabbi Yehoshua exempts him; since he intended to perform a mitzva, and despite his error in fact performed a mitzva, he is exempt from bringing a sin-offering.

(5) Although a child is generally circumcised at eight days, as the verse states: “And on the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised” (Leviticus 12:3), nevertheless, at times he is circumcised at nine days, at times at ten days, at eleven days, and at twelve days, no earlier and no later. How so? In his usual manner, a child is circumcised at eight days. If he was born at twilight and it is therefore uncertain on which day he was born, he is circumcised at nine days, as his circumcision is postponed due to that uncertainty, as perhaps the eighth day from his birth has not yet arrived. If he was born at twilight on Shabbat eve, he is not circumcised on the following Shabbat, due to the uncertainty whether it is the eighth or ninth day since his birth, and only a circumcision definitely performed at the appointed time overrides Shabbat. Rather, he is circumcised on Sunday, and the result is that he is circumcised at ten days. If there was a Festival after that Shabbat, he is not circumcised on the Festival either, and he is circumcised at eleven days. And if that Shabbat was followed by two days of Rosh HaShana, the result is that he is circumcised at twelve days. The mishna states another halakha: With regard to a sick child, one does not circumcise him until he becomes healthy.

(6) These are the shreds of flesh that invalidate the circumcision if they are not cut. The essential element of circumcision is the removal of the flesh that covers most of the corona, and a child that was not circumcised in this manner is considered uncircumcised, and he does not eat teruma. And if he was properly circumcised but he was fleshy, and it appears as though he has not been properly circumcised, the circumcisor should correct it by circumcising more than necessary, to avoid the appearance of transgression, so he will not appear uncircumcised. If one circumcised but did not uncover the flesh at the area of the circumcision by folding back the thin membrane beneath the foreskin, it is as if he had not circumcised.

(1) The sweat of houses, of cisterns, of ditches and caverns does not cause susceptibility to uncleanness. A man's perspiration does not cause susceptibility to uncleanness. If a man drank unclean water and perspired, his perspiration does not cause susceptibility to uncleanness. If he entered into drawn water and perspired, his perspiration causes susceptibility to uncleanness. If he dried himself and then perspired, his perspiration does not cause susceptibility to uncleanness.

(2) The sweat of an unclean bath is unclean, But that of a clean bath comes under the law of ‘if water be put’. If there was a pool in a house, the house sweats because of it if the pool was unclean, the sweat of all the house which was caused by the pool is unclean.

(3) Two pools, the one clean and the other unclean: The sweat near the unclean pool is unclean, And the sweat near the clean pool is clean, And what is at equal distance [from both pools] is unclean. Unclean iron was smelted with clean iron: If the greater part [came] from the unclean iron, it is unclean; If the greater part [came] from the clean iron, it is clean; But if there was half of each, it is unclean. Pots owned by Israelites and non-Jews used for passing water: If the greater part is from the unclean [urine], it is unclean; If the greater part is from the clean [urine], it is clean; But if there was half of each, it is unclean. Waste-water, in which rain had fallen: If the greater part consisted of the unclean water, it is unclean; If the greater part consisted of clean water, it is clean; But if there was half of each, it is unclean. When [is this the case]? When the waste-water came first; but if the rain water came before [the waste-water], it is unclean whatever the quantity [of the rain water].

(4) If one flattened out his roof or washed his garment and rain came down upon it: If the greater part consisted of the unclean water, it is unclean; If the greater part consisted of the clean water, it is clean; But if there was half of each, it is unclean. Rabbi Judah says: if the dripping increased, [it is clean].

(5) A city in which Israelites and non-Jews dwell together and there was a bathhouse working on Shabbat: If the majority [of the inhabitants] were non-Jews, one may bathe in it immediately [after the conclusion of the Shabbat]; If the majority were Israelites, one must wait until the water can be heated; If they were half and half, one must [also] wait until the water can be heated. Rabbi Judah says: if the bathhouse was small and there was there a [non-Jewish] authority, one may bathe in it immediately [after the conclusion of Shabbat].

(6) If one found in that city vegetables sold [on Shabbat]: If the majority [of the inhabitants] were non-Jews, one may buy them immediately [after the conclusion of Shabbat]; If the majority were Israelites, one must wait until [vegetables] can arrive from the nearest place; If they were half and half, one must [also] wait until [vegetables] can arrive from the nearest place; If there was there a [non-Jewish] authority, one may buy them immediately [after the conclusion of Shabbat].

(7) If one found [an abandoned] child there: If the majority [of the inhabitants] were non-Jews, it is considered a non-Jew; If the majority were Israelites, it is considered an Israelite; If they were half and half, it is also considered an Israelite. Rabbi Judah says: we must consider the majority of those who abandon their children.

(8) If one found there lost property, If the majority [of the inhabitants] were non-Jews, he need not proclaim it; If the majority were Israelites, he must proclaim it; If they were half and half, he must [also] proclaim it. If one found bread there we must consider who form the majority of the bakers. If it was bread of clean flour, we must consider who form the majority of those who eat bread of pure flour. Rabbi Judah says: if it was coarse bread, we must consider who form the majority of those who eat coarse bread.

(9) If one found meat there, we follow the majority of the butchers. If it was cooked meat, we follow the majority of those who eat cooked meat.

(10) If one found produce on the road: If the majority [of the inhabitants] gathered produce into their homes, he is exempt [from tithes]; If [the majority gathered it] for selling in the market, he is liable [for tithes]; If they were half and half, the produce is demai. A granary into which both Israelites and non-Jews put their produce, If the majority were non-Jews, [the produce must be considered] certainly untithed; If the majority were Israelites, [it must be considered] demai; If they were half and half, [it must be considered] certainly untithed, the words of Rabbi Meir. But the sages say: even if they were all non-Jews, and only one Israelite put his produce into the granary, [it must be considered] demai.

(11) If the produce of the second year exceeded in quantity the produce of the third year, or the produce of the third year exceeded the produce of the fourth year, or the produce of the fourth year exceeded the produce of the fifth year, or the produce of the fifth year exceeded the produce of the sixth year, or the produce of the sixth year exceeded the produce of the seventh year, or the produce of the seventh year exceeded the produce of the year after the conclusion of the seventh year, we follow the majority. If half and half, the rule is stringent.

(1) A lulav that was stolen or that is completely dry is unfit for use in fulfilling the mitzva of the four species. The lulav of a tree worshipped as idolatry [asheira] and a lulav from a city whose residents were incited to idolatry, which must be burned along with all the city’s property, are unfit. If the top of the lulav was severed or if the palm leaves were severed from the spine of the lulav, it is unfit. If its leaves, although still attached, were spread and are no longer completely joined to the spine, it is fit. Rabbi Yehuda says: In that case, one should bind the lulav from the top, to join the leaves that spread to the spine. A lulav from the palms of the Iron Mountain are fit for use, although it differs from one taken from a standard palm tree, in that its leaves are shorter and do not cover the entire spine. A lulav that has three handbreadths in length, sufficient to enable one to wave with it, is fit for use in fulfilling the mitzva.

(2) A myrtle branch that was stolen or that is completely dry is unfit. A myrtle branch of a tree worshipped as idolatry [asheira] or a myrtle branch from a city whose residents were incited to idolatry is unfit. If the top of the myrtle branch was severed, if the leaves were severed completely, or if its berries were more numerous than its leaves, it is unfit. If one diminished their number by plucking berries so that they no longer outnumbered the leaves, the myrtle branch is fit. But one may not diminish the number on the Festival itself.

(3) A willow branch that was stolen or is completely dry is unfit. One from a tree worshipped as idolatry [asheira] or from a city whose residents were incited to idolatry is unfit. If the top was severed, or its leaves were severed, or if it is the tzaftzafa, a species similar to, but not actually a willow, it is unfit. However, a willow branch that is slightly dried, and one that a minority of its leaves fell, and a branch from a willow that does not grow by the river, but instead is from a non-irrigated field, is fit.

(4) Rabbi Yishmael says: The mitzva of the four species is to take three myrtle branches, and two willow branches, one lulav, and one etrog. With regard to the myrtle branches, even if the tops of two are severed and the top of one is not severed, it is fit. Rabbi Tarfon says: Even if the tops of all three are severed, it is fit. Rabbi Akiva says with regard to the number of each of the species: Just as there is one lulav and one etrog, so too there is one myrtle branch and one willow branch.

(5) An etrog that was stolen or is completely dry is unfit. One from a tree worshipped as idolatry [asheira] or from a city whose residents were incited to idolatry is unfit. An etrog that is fruit that grew on a tree during the three years after it was planted [orla] is unfit, because it is prohibited to eat and derive benefit from it. An etrog of impure teruma is unfit. With regard to an etrog of pure teruma, one may not take it ab initio, and if one took it, it is fit, and he fulfilled his obligation after the fact. With regard to an etrog of demai, which is produce acquired from an am ha’aretz, who does not reliably tithe his produce, Beit Shammai deem it unfit, and Beit Hillel deem it fit. With regard to an etrog of second tithe in Jerusalem, one may not take it ab initio; and if he took it, it is fit.

(6) If boil-like blemishes arose on the majority of the etrog; if its pestle-like protuberance on the upper, blossom end was removed; if the etrog was peeled, split, or pierced and is missing any amount, it is unfit. However, if boil-like blemishes arose only on its minority; if its stem, which connects it to the tree, was removed; or it was pierced but is not missing any amount, it is fit. A Cushite etrog, which is black like a Cushite, is unfit. And with regard to an etrog that is leek green, Rabbi Meir deems it fit and Rabbi Yehuda deems it unfit.

(7) What is the minimum measure of a small etrog? Rabbi Meir says: It may be no smaller than a walnut-bulk. Rabbi Yehuda says: It may be no smaller than an egg-bulk. And in a large etrog, the maximum measure is so that one could hold two in his one hand; this is the statement of Rabbi Yehuda. Rabbi Yosei says: It is fit even if it is so large that he can hold only one in his two hands.

(8) One may bind the lulav only with its own species; i.e., one of the four species taken with the lulav. This is the statement of Rabbi Yehuda. Rabbi Meir says: One may do so even with a string or with a cord. Rabbi Meir said: There was an incident involving the men of Jerusalem who would bind their lulavim with gold rings. The Sages said to him: They would bind it with its own species beneath the rings, which serve a merely decorative purpose and not a halakhic one.

(9) And where in the recitation of hallel would they wave the lulav? They would do so at the verse: “Thank the Lord, for He is good” (Psalms 118:1, 29) that appears at both the beginning and the end of the psalm, and at the verse: “Lord, please save us” (Psalms 118:25); this is the statement of Beit Hillel. And Beit Shammai say: They would wave the lulav even at the verse: “Lord, please grant us success” (Psalms 118:25). Rabbi Akiva said: I was observing Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Yehoshua and saw that all the people were waving their lulavim, and the two of them waved their lulav only at: “Lord, please save us,” indicating that this is the halakha. With regard to one who was coming along the way and did not have a lulav in his hand to take and fulfill the mitzva while traveling, when he enters his house to eat,he should take the lulav at his table. He interrupts his meal to fulfill the mitzva of lulav. If he did not take the lulav in the morning, he should take it in the afternoon, as the entire day is suited for fulfilling the mitzva of lulav.

(10) With regard to one for whom a Canaanite slave, a woman, or a minor was reciting hallel, he repeats after them what they are saying word for word. The mishna notes: And may a curse come to him for being so ignorant that he needs them to recite it for him. If an adult male was reciting hallel on his behalf, he need not repeat each word, as the adult male can fulfill the obligation to recite hallel on his behalf. Rather, he simply answers: Halleluya, to each phrase that is recited.

(11) In a place where they were accustomed to repeat certain verses, he, too, should repeat them. If the custom is to recite them plainly, without repetition, he should recite them plainly. In a place where the custom is to recite a blessing after hallel, he should recite a blessing. Everything is in accordance with the local custom in these matters. In the case of one who purchases a lulav from another who is an am ha’aretz during the Sabbatical Year, the seller gives him an etrog along with it as a gift, as he is not permitted to purchase the etrog during the Sabbatical Year because it is prohibited to engage in commerce with Sabbatical-Year produce.

(12) Originally, during the Temple era, the lulav was taken in the Temple for seven days, and in the rest of the country outside the Temple it was taken for one day. Once the Temple was destroyed, Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakkai instituted an ordinance that the lulav should be taken even in the rest of the country for seven days, in commemoration of the Temple. And for similar reasons, he instituted an ordinance that for the entire day of waving the omer offering, it should be prohibited to eat the grain of the new crop. It is prohibited to eat the grain of the new crop until the omer offering is brought and waved in the Temple on the sixteenth of Nisan. The offering was sacrificed in the morning; however, after taking potential delays into consideration, the new crop remained prohibited until it was clear that the offering had been sacrificed. Practically speaking, it was prohibited to eat the new grain until the sixteenth of Nisan was over; it was permitted only on the seventeenth. Once the Temple was destroyed and there was no longer an omer offering sacrificed, it was permitted to eat the new crop on the sixteenth. However, Rabban Yoḥanan instituted an ordinance that eating the new grain would remain prohibited until the seventeenth to commemorate the Temple.

(13) If the first day of the festival of Sukkot occurs on Shabbat, all of the people bring their lulavim to the synagogue on Shabbat eve, as it is prohibited to carry in a public domain on Shabbat. The next day, on Shabbat, everyone rises early and comes to the synagogue. Each and every one recognizes his lulav and takes it. This emphasis that each and every one recognizes his own lulav and takes it is because the Sages said: A person does not fulfill his obligation to take the lulav on the first day of the Festival with the lulav of another, and on the rest of the days of the Festival a person fulfills his obligation even with the lulav of another.

(14) Rabbi Yosei says: If the first day of the Festival occurs on Shabbat, and he forgot and carried the lulav out into the public domain, he is exempt from liability to bring a sin-offering for this unwitting transgression because he carried it out with permission, i.e., he was preoccupied with the performance of the mitzva and carried it out.

(15) A woman may receive a lulav from her son or from her husband and return it on Shabbat to the water in which it had been placed. Rabbi Yehuda says: On Shabbat one may return the lulav to the water; and on the Festival one may even add fresh water to the vessel so the lulav will not wilt; and during the intermediate days of the Festival, one may even change the water. A minor who knows how to wave the lulav is obligated in the mitzva of lulav due to the requirement to train him in the performance of mitzvot.

(1) The beginning of tractate Berakhot, the first tractate in the first of the six orders of Mishna, opens with a discussion of the recitation of Shema, as the recitation of Shema encompasses an acceptance of the yoke of Heaven and of the mitzvot, and as such, forms the basis for all subsequent teachings. The Mishna opens with the laws regarding the appropriate time to recite Shema:

From when, that is, from what time, does one recite Shema in the evening? From the time when the priests enter to partake of their teruma. Until when does the time for the recitation of the evening Shema extend? Until the end of the first watch. The term used in the Torah (Deuteronomy 6:7) to indicate the time for the recitation of the evening Shema is beshokhbekha, when you lie down, which refers to the time in which individuals go to sleep. Therefore, the time for the recitation of Shema is the first portion of the night, when individuals typically prepare for sleep. That is the statement of Rabbi Eliezer. The Rabbis say: The time for the recitation of the evening Shema is until midnight. Rabban Gamliel says: One may recite Shema until dawn, indicating that beshokhbekha is to be understood as a reference to the entire time people sleep in their beds, the whole night. The mishna relates that Rabban Gamliel practiced in accordance with his ruling. There was an incident where Rabban Gamliel’s sons returned very late from a wedding hall. They said to him, as they had been preoccupied with celebrating with the groom and bride: We did not recite Shema. He said to them: If the dawn has not yet arrived, you are obligated to recite Shema. Since Rabban Gamliel’s opinion disagreed with that of the Rabbis, he explained to his sons that the Rabbis actually agree with him, and that it is not only with regard to the halakha of the recitation of Shema, but rather, wherever the Sages say until midnight, the mitzva may be performed until dawn. Rabban Gamliel cites several cases in support of his claim, such as the burning of fats and limbs on the altar. Due to the quantity of offerings each day, the priests were often unable to complete the burning of all of the fats and limbs, so they continued to be burned into the night, as it is written: “This is the law of the burnt offering: The burnt offering shall remain upon the pyre on the altar all night until morning, while the fire on the altar burns it” (Leviticus 6:2). And, with regard to all sacrifices, such as the sin-offerings and the guilt-offerings that are eaten for one day and night; although the Sages state that they may be eaten only until midnight, by Torah law they may be eaten until dawn. This is in accordance with the verse: “On the day on which it is offered must you eat. Do not leave it until the morning” (Leviticus 7:15). If so, why did the Sages say that they may be eaten only until midnight? This is in order to distance a person from transgression, as if one believes that he has until dawn to perform the mitzva, he might be negligent and postpone it until the opportunity to perform the mitzva has passed.

(2) From when does one recite Shema in the morning? From when a person can distinguish between sky-blue [tekhelet] and white.
Rabbi Eliezer says: From when one can distinguish between sky-blue and leek-green.
And one must finish reciting Shema until the end of the period when you rise, i.e., sunrise, when the sun begins to shine.
Rabbi Yehoshua says: One may recite the morning Shema until three hours of the day, which this is still considered when you rise, as that is the habit of kings to rise from their sleep at three hours of the day. While there is a set time frame for the recitation of Shema, one who recites Shema from that time onward loses nothing. Although he does not fulfill the mitzva of reciting of Shema at its appointed time, he is nevertheless considered like one who reads the Torah, and is rewarded accordingly.

(3) Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disputed the proper way to recite Shema. Beit Shammai say: One should recite Shema in the manner indicated in the text of Shema itself. Therefore, in the evening every person must recline on his side and recite Shema, in fulfillment of the verse: “When you lie down,” and in the morning he must stand and recite Shema, in fulfillment of the verse: When you rise, as it is stated: “When you lie down, and when you rise.” And Beit Hillel say: Every person recites Shema as he is, and he may do so in whatever position is most comfortable for him, both day and night, as it is stated: “And when you walk along the way,” when one is neither standing nor reclining (Me’iri). If so, according to Beit Hillel, why was it stated: “When you lie down, and when you rise”? This is merely to denote time; at the time when people lie down and the time when people rise. With regard to this halakha, Rabbi Tarfon said: Once, I was coming on the road when I stopped and reclined to recite Shema in accordance with the statement of Beit Shammai. Although Rabbi Tarfon was a disciple of Beit Hillel, he thought that fulfilling the mitzva in accordance with the opinion of Beit Shammai would be a more meticulous fulfillment of the mitzva, acceptable to all opinions. Yet in so doing, I endangered myself due to the highwaymen [listim] who accost travelers. The Sages said to him: You deserved to be in a position where you were liable to pay with your life, as you transgressed the statement of Beit Hillel. This statement will be explained in the Gemara.

(4) From the laws of the recitation of Shema itself, the mishna proceeds to discuss the blessings recited in conjunction with Shema. Here, the order is established: In the morning when reciting Shema, one recites two blessings beforehand, the first on the radiant lights and the second the blessing on the love of Torah, and one thereafter, which begins with: True and Firm [emet veyatziv]. And in the evening one recites two blessings beforehand, on the radiant lights and on the love of God, and two thereafter, the blessing of redemption: True and Faithful [emet ve’emuna], and the blessing: Help us lie down. With regard to the blessing: True and Faithful, whether one recites it in its long formula and whether one recites it in its short formula, he fulfills his obligation (Tosafot). However, the general principle is: Where the Sages said to recite a long blessing, one may not shorten it, and so too, wherever they said to recite a short blessing, one may not lengthen it. Where the Sages said that a blessing must conclude with a second blessing at the end, he may not fail to conclude with that blessing. Similarly, if the Sages said that a blessing must not conclude with a second blessing, one may not conclude with a blessing.

(5) It is a mitzva by Torah law to mention the exodus from Egypt at night, but some held that this mitzva was, like phylacteries or ritual fringes, fulfilled only during the day and not at night. For this reason it was decided: The exodus from Egypt is mentioned at night, adjacent to the recitation of Shema. Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya said: I am approximately seventy years old, and although I have long held this opinion, I was never privileged to prevail (Me’iri) and prove that there is a biblical obligation to fulfill the accepted custom (Ra’avad) and have the exodus from Egypt mentioned at night, until Ben Zoma interpreted it homiletically and proved it obligatory. Ben Zoma derived it as it is stated: “That you may remember the day you went out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life” (Deuteronomy 16:3). The days of your life, refers to daytime alone; however, the addition of the word all, as it is stated: All the days of your life, comes to add nights as well. And the Rabbis, who posit that there is no biblical obligation to mention the exodus from Egypt at night, explain the word, all, differently and say: The days of your life, refers to the days in this world, all is added to include the days of the Messiah.

(1) With regard to a betrothed young woman, her father and her husband together nullify her vows. If the father nullified her vow and the husband did not nullify it, or if the husband nullified it and the father did not nullify it, then the vow is not nullified. And needless to say, it is not nullified if one of them ratified the vow.

(2) If the father of a betrothed young woman dies, his authority does not revert to the husband, and the husband cannot nullify the young woman’s vows by himself. However, if the husband dies, his authority reverts to the father, who can now nullify her vows on his own. In this matter, the power of the father is enhanced relative to the power of the husband. In another matter, the power of the husband is enhanced relative to the power of the father, as the husband nullifies vows during the woman’s adulthood, once they are fully married, whereas the father does not nullify her vows during her adulthood.

(3) If she took a vow as a betrothed woman and then was divorced on the same day, and she was again betrothed on the same day to another man, or even to one hundred men, one after the other, on a single day, her father and her last husband nullify her vows. This is the principle: With regard to any young woman who has not left her father’s jurisdiction and entered into her own jurisdiction for at least one moment, through full marriage or reaching majority, her father and her final husband nullify her vows.

(4) The practice of Torah scholars is to ensure that a woman about to be married should not be encumbered by any vows. A father, before his daughter would leave him through marriage, would say to her: All vows that you vowed in my house are hereby nullified. And similarly, the husband, before she would enter his jurisdiction, i.e., while they were still betrothed, would say to her: All vows that you vowed before you entered my jurisdiction are hereby nullified. This was necessary because once she enters his jurisdiction he cannot nullify the vows she made before that.

(5) With regard to a grown woman who waited twelve months after her betrothal and the time arrived for her betrothed to marry her, or a widow who waited thirty days and the time arrived for her betrothed to marry her, Rabbi Eliezer says: Since her husband is already obligated to provide for her sustenance, as he is obligated to have married her by then, he can nullify her vows by himself, as if he were fully married to her. But the Rabbis say: The husband does not nullify her vows on his own until she enters his jurisdiction.

(6) With regard to a widow waiting for her yavam to perform levirate marriage, whether she is waiting for one yavam, if her late husband had only one brother, or whether she is waiting for two or more yevamin, if he had several brothers, Rabbi Eliezer says: A yavam can nullify her vows. Rabbi Yehoshua says: If she is waiting for one yavam, he can nullify her vows, but not if she is waiting for two. Rabbi Akiva says: A yavam cannot nullify her vows, regardless of whether she is waiting for one yavam or for two or more. The mishna then elaborates: Rabbi Eliezer said: Just as with regard to a woman he acquired for himself through betrothal, he nullifies her vows, so too with regard to a woman acquired for him from Heaven, i.e., the yevama, isn’t it logical that he should be able to nullify her vows? Rabbi Akiva said to him: No, if you say that a husband can nullify the vows of a woman he acquired for himself, over whom others have no authority, shall you also say that this is the case with regard to a woman acquired for him from Heaven, over whom others have authority? If there are two yevamin, each yavam has equal authority with regard to her vows. Rabbi Yehoshua said to him: Akiva, your statement applies in a situation with two yevamin, but how do you reply to Rabbi Eliezer in the case of one yavam? Rabbi Akiva said to him: A yevama is not the full-fledged wife of the yavam in the in the way that a betrothed woman is her husband’s full-fledged wife, and the yavam is not empowered to nullify vows at all.

(7) One who says to his wife: All vows that you will vow from now until I arrive from such and such a place are hereby ratified, has not said anything, i.e., the vows are not ratified. However, if he states that all vows that she will take until then are hereby nullified, Rabbi Eliezer said: They are nullified, while the Rabbis say: They are not nullified. Rabbi Eliezer said in explanation: If one can nullify vows that have reached the status of a prohibition, i.e., that have already taken effect, shall he not be able to nullify vows that have not reached the status of a prohibition? The Rabbis said to him in response: The verse states: “Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may ratify it, or her husband may nullify it” (Numbers 30:14). This teaches: That which has reached the status of eligibility for ratification, i.e., a vow that she has already taken, has reached the status of eligibility for nullification. However, a vow that has not reached the status of eligibility for ratification has not reached the status of eligibility for nullification either, and it cannot be nullified.

(8) The nullification of vows can be performed all day on the day on which the vow was heard. There is in this matter both a leniency, extending the nullification period, and a stricture, curtailing that period. How so? If a woman took a vow on Shabbat evening, her father or husband can nullify the vow on Shabbat evening, and on Shabbat day until dark. This is an example of extending the nullification period. However, if she took a vow with nightfall approaching, her father or husband can nullify the vow only until nightfall, since, if it became dark and he had not yet nullified her vow, he cannot nullify it anymore. This is an example of a curtailed nullification period.

(1) With regard to a betrothed young woman, her father and her husband together nullify her vows. If the father nullified her vow and the husband did not nullify it, or if the husband nullified it and the father did not nullify it, then the vow is not nullified. And needless to say, it is not nullified if one of them ratified the vow.

(2) If the father of a betrothed young woman dies, his authority does not revert to the husband, and the husband cannot nullify the young woman’s vows by himself. However, if the husband dies, his authority reverts to the father, who can now nullify her vows on his own. In this matter, the power of the father is enhanced relative to the power of the husband. In another matter, the power of the husband is enhanced relative to the power of the father, as the husband nullifies vows during the woman’s adulthood, once they are fully married, whereas the father does not nullify her vows during her adulthood.

(3) If she took a vow as a betrothed woman and then was divorced on the same day, and she was again betrothed on the same day to another man, or even to one hundred men, one after the other, on a single day, her father and her last husband nullify her vows. This is the principle: With regard to any young woman who has not left her father’s jurisdiction and entered into her own jurisdiction for at least one moment, through full marriage or reaching majority, her father and her final husband nullify her vows.

(4) The practice of Torah scholars is to ensure that a woman about to be married should not be encumbered by any vows. A father, before his daughter would leave him through marriage, would say to her: All vows that you vowed in my house are hereby nullified. And similarly, the husband, before she would enter his jurisdiction, i.e., while they were still betrothed, would say to her: All vows that you vowed before you entered my jurisdiction are hereby nullified. This was necessary because once she enters his jurisdiction he cannot nullify the vows she made before that.

(5) With regard to a grown woman who waited twelve months after her betrothal and the time arrived for her betrothed to marry her, or a widow who waited thirty days and the time arrived for her betrothed to marry her, Rabbi Eliezer says: Since her husband is already obligated to provide for her sustenance, as he is obligated to have married her by then, he can nullify her vows by himself, as if he were fully married to her. But the Rabbis say: The husband does not nullify her vows on his own until she enters his jurisdiction.

(6) With regard to a widow waiting for her yavam to perform levirate marriage, whether she is waiting for one yavam, if her late husband had only one brother, or whether she is waiting for two or more yevamin, if he had several brothers, Rabbi Eliezer says: A yavam can nullify her vows. Rabbi Yehoshua says: If she is waiting for one yavam, he can nullify her vows, but not if she is waiting for two. Rabbi Akiva says: A yavam cannot nullify her vows, regardless of whether she is waiting for one yavam or for two or more. The mishna then elaborates: Rabbi Eliezer said: Just as with regard to a woman he acquired for himself through betrothal, he nullifies her vows, so too with regard to a woman acquired for him from Heaven, i.e., the yevama, isn’t it logical that he should be able to nullify her vows? Rabbi Akiva said to him: No, if you say that a husband can nullify the vows of a woman he acquired for himself, over whom others have no authority, shall you also say that this is the case with regard to a woman acquired for him from Heaven, over whom others have authority? If there are two yevamin, each yavam has equal authority with regard to her vows. Rabbi Yehoshua said to him: Akiva, your statement applies in a situation with two yevamin, but how do you reply to Rabbi Eliezer in the case of one yavam? Rabbi Akiva said to him: A yevama is not the full-fledged wife of the yavam in the in the way that a betrothed woman is her husband’s full-fledged wife, and the yavam is not empowered to nullify vows at all.

(7) One who says to his wife: All vows that you will vow from now until I arrive from such and such a place are hereby ratified, has not said anything, i.e., the vows are not ratified. However, if he states that all vows that she will take until then are hereby nullified, Rabbi Eliezer said: They are nullified, while the Rabbis say: They are not nullified. Rabbi Eliezer said in explanation: If one can nullify vows that have reached the status of a prohibition, i.e., that have already taken effect, shall he not be able to nullify vows that have not reached the status of a prohibition? The Rabbis said to him in response: The verse states: “Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may ratify it, or her husband may nullify it” (Numbers 30:14). This teaches: That which has reached the status of eligibility for ratification, i.e., a vow that she has already taken, has reached the status of eligibility for nullification. However, a vow that has not reached the status of eligibility for ratification has not reached the status of eligibility for nullification either, and it cannot be nullified.

(8) The nullification of vows can be performed all day on the day on which the vow was heard. There is in this matter both a leniency, extending the nullification period, and a stricture, curtailing that period. How so? If a woman took a vow on Shabbat evening, her father or husband can nullify the vow on Shabbat evening, and on Shabbat day until dark. This is an example of extending the nullification period. However, if she took a vow with nightfall approaching, her father or husband can nullify the vow only until nightfall, since, if it became dark and he had not yet nullified her vow, he cannot nullify it anymore. This is an example of a curtailed nullification period.

(1) This mishna sets out the essential halakhot pertaining to the invitation to recite Grace after Meals after a joint meal [zimmun]: Three people who ate as one are required to form a zimmun and recite Grace after Meals. If, among the diners, one ate doubtfully tithed produce [demai], and first tithe from which its teruma was already taken, or second tithe, and consecrated food that were redeemed and therefore permitted to be eaten; and even the waiter who served the meal to the diners and who ate at least an olive-bulk from the meal, and the Samaritan [Kuti] who ate with two others at a meal; each of these people is included among the three to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun. However, one who ate untithed produce [tevel], and first tithe from which its teruma was not separated, and second tithe, and consecrated food that were not redeemed, and the waiter who did not eat an olive-bulk, and the gentile who ate with two Jews, none of these people is included among the three to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun.

(2) Women, slaves, and minors do not obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun. How much must one eat to obligate those with whom he ate in a zimmun? An olive-bulk of food suffices to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun. Rabbi Yehuda says: An egg-bulk is the minimum measure to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun.

(3) The mishna delineates distinctions in the halakhot of the zimmun blessing, based on the number of people present. How does one recite the zimmun? In a group of three people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the One from Whose food we have eaten. In a group of three people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless the One from Whose food we have eaten, as even without him there are enough people to recite the zimmun. With the increase in the number of participants, the blessing is more complex. In a group of ten people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless our God. In a group of ten people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless our God. This formula is recited both in a group of ten and in a group of one hundred thousand. In a group of one hundred people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the Lord our God. In a group of one hundred people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless the Lord our God. In a group of one thousand people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of one thousand people and him, he says: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of ten thousand people, the one reciting the zimmun says: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. In a group of ten thousand people and him, the one reciting the zimmun says: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. The principle is that just as he recites the blessing, so too those present recite in response: Blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. On a similar note, Rabbi Yosei HaGelili says: According to the size of the crowd, they recite the blessing, as it is stated: “Bless you God in full assemblies, even the Lord, you who are from the fountain of Israel” (Psalms 68:27). Rabbi Akiva said that there are no distinctions based on the size of the crowd: What do we find in the synagogue? Both when there are many and when there are few, as long as there is a quorum of ten, the prayer leader says: Bless [barekhu] the Lord. Rabbi Yishmael said that in the synagogue, one recites: Bless the Lord the blessed One.

(4) Three people who ate as one are not permitted to divide and recite Grace after Meals individually; rather, they recite the zimmun together. And the same is true of four who ate together, and the same is true of five. However, a group of six, up to but not including ten people who ate as one, may divide into two groups, each reciting its own zimmun. And a group of ten may not divide into two groups until there are twenty people present. The general principle is that a group may not divide unless the smaller groups will be able to recite the same zimmun formula that the whole group would have recited.

(5) The mishna states a halakha with regard to two groups joining together: Two groups that were eating in one house, when some members of each group can see each other, they may combine to form a zimmun. And if not, these recite a zimmun for themselves and those recite a zimmun for themselves. The mishna also speaks of the blessing over wine: One does not recite a blessing over wine until he adds water to it, that is the statement of Rabbi Eliezer. Undiluted wine is too strong to drink and a blessing is inappropriate. And the Rabbis say: Since it is possible to drink undiluted wine, one recites a blessing over it.

(1) The beginning of tractate Berakhot, the first tractate in the first of the six orders of Mishna, opens with a discussion of the recitation of Shema, as the recitation of Shema encompasses an acceptance of the yoke of Heaven and of the mitzvot, and as such, forms the basis for all subsequent teachings. The Mishna opens with the laws regarding the appropriate time to recite Shema:

From when, that is, from what time, does one recite Shema in the evening? From the time when the priests enter to partake of their teruma. Until when does the time for the recitation of the evening Shema extend? Until the end of the first watch. The term used in the Torah (Deuteronomy 6:7) to indicate the time for the recitation of the evening Shema is beshokhbekha, when you lie down, which refers to the time in which individuals go to sleep. Therefore, the time for the recitation of Shema is the first portion of the night, when individuals typically prepare for sleep. That is the statement of Rabbi Eliezer. The Rabbis say: The time for the recitation of the evening Shema is until midnight. Rabban Gamliel says: One may recite Shema until dawn, indicating that beshokhbekha is to be understood as a reference to the entire time people sleep in their beds, the whole night. The mishna relates that Rabban Gamliel practiced in accordance with his ruling. There was an incident where Rabban Gamliel’s sons returned very late from a wedding hall. They said to him, as they had been preoccupied with celebrating with the groom and bride: We did not recite Shema. He said to them: If the dawn has not yet arrived, you are obligated to recite Shema. Since Rabban Gamliel’s opinion disagreed with that of the Rabbis, he explained to his sons that the Rabbis actually agree with him, and that it is not only with regard to the halakha of the recitation of Shema, but rather, wherever the Sages say until midnight, the mitzva may be performed until dawn. Rabban Gamliel cites several cases in support of his claim, such as the burning of fats and limbs on the altar. Due to the quantity of offerings each day, the priests were often unable to complete the burning of all of the fats and limbs, so they continued to be burned into the night, as it is written: “This is the law of the burnt offering: The burnt offering shall remain upon the pyre on the altar all night until morning, while the fire on the altar burns it” (Leviticus 6:2). And, with regard to all sacrifices, such as the sin-offerings and the guilt-offerings that are eaten for one day and night; although the Sages state that they may be eaten only until midnight, by Torah law they may be eaten until dawn. This is in accordance with the verse: “On the day on which it is offered must you eat. Do not leave it until the morning” (Leviticus 7:15). If so, why did the Sages say that they may be eaten only until midnight? This is in order to distance a person from transgression, as if one believes that he has until dawn to perform the mitzva, he might be negligent and postpone it until the opportunity to perform the mitzva has passed.

(2) From when does one recite Shema in the morning? From when a person can distinguish between sky-blue [tekhelet] and white.
Rabbi Eliezer says: From when one can distinguish between sky-blue and leek-green.
And one must finish reciting Shema until the end of the period when you rise, i.e., sunrise, when the sun begins to shine.
Rabbi Yehoshua says: One may recite the morning Shema until three hours of the day, which this is still considered when you rise, as that is the habit of kings to rise from their sleep at three hours of the day. While there is a set time frame for the recitation of Shema, one who recites Shema from that time onward loses nothing. Although he does not fulfill the mitzva of reciting of Shema at its appointed time, he is nevertheless considered like one who reads the Torah, and is rewarded accordingly.

(3) Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disputed the proper way to recite Shema. Beit Shammai say: One should recite Shema in the manner indicated in the text of Shema itself. Therefore, in the evening every person must recline on his side and recite Shema, in fulfillment of the verse: “When you lie down,” and in the morning he must stand and recite Shema, in fulfillment of the verse: When you rise, as it is stated: “When you lie down, and when you rise.” And Beit Hillel say: Every person recites Shema as he is, and he may do so in whatever position is most comfortable for him, both day and night, as it is stated: “And when you walk along the way,” when one is neither standing nor reclining (Me’iri). If so, according to Beit Hillel, why was it stated: “When you lie down, and when you rise”? This is merely to denote time; at the time when people lie down and the time when people rise. With regard to this halakha, Rabbi Tarfon said: Once, I was coming on the road when I stopped and reclined to recite Shema in accordance with the statement of Beit Shammai. Although Rabbi Tarfon was a disciple of Beit Hillel, he thought that fulfilling the mitzva in accordance with the opinion of Beit Shammai would be a more meticulous fulfillment of the mitzva, acceptable to all opinions. Yet in so doing, I endangered myself due to the highwaymen [listim] who accost travelers. The Sages said to him: You deserved to be in a position where you were liable to pay with your life, as you transgressed the statement of Beit Hillel. This statement will be explained in the Gemara.

(4) From the laws of the recitation of Shema itself, the mishna proceeds to discuss the blessings recited in conjunction with Shema. Here, the order is established: In the morning when reciting Shema, one recites two blessings beforehand, the first on the radiant lights and the second the blessing on the love of Torah, and one thereafter, which begins with: True and Firm [emet veyatziv]. And in the evening one recites two blessings beforehand, on the radiant lights and on the love of God, and two thereafter, the blessing of redemption: True and Faithful [emet ve’emuna], and the blessing: Help us lie down. With regard to the blessing: True and Faithful, whether one recites it in its long formula and whether one recites it in its short formula, he fulfills his obligation (Tosafot). However, the general principle is: Where the Sages said to recite a long blessing, one may not shorten it, and so too, wherever they said to recite a short blessing, one may not lengthen it. Where the Sages said that a blessing must conclude with a second blessing at the end, he may not fail to conclude with that blessing. Similarly, if the Sages said that a blessing must not conclude with a second blessing, one may not conclude with a blessing.

(5) It is a mitzva by Torah law to mention the exodus from Egypt at night, but some held that this mitzva was, like phylacteries or ritual fringes, fulfilled only during the day and not at night. For this reason it was decided: The exodus from Egypt is mentioned at night, adjacent to the recitation of Shema. Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya said: I am approximately seventy years old, and although I have long held this opinion, I was never privileged to prevail (Me’iri) and prove that there is a biblical obligation to fulfill the accepted custom (Ra’avad) and have the exodus from Egypt mentioned at night, until Ben Zoma interpreted it homiletically and proved it obligatory. Ben Zoma derived it as it is stated: “That you may remember the day you went out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life” (Deuteronomy 16:3). The days of your life, refers to daytime alone; however, the addition of the word all, as it is stated: All the days of your life, comes to add nights as well. And the Rabbis, who posit that there is no biblical obligation to mention the exodus from Egypt at night, explain the word, all, differently and say: The days of your life, refers to the days in this world, all is added to include the days of the Messiah.

(1) The first question discussed in the mishna is the question of intent. One who was reading the sections of the Torah which comprise Shema, and the time for the recitation of the morning or evening Shema arrived, if he focused his heart, he fulfilled his obligation and need not repeat Shema in order to fulfill his obligation. This is true even if he failed to recite the requisite blessings (Rabbeinu Ḥananel). Ab initio, one may not interrupt the recitation of Shema. The tanna’im, however, disagree over how strict one must be in this regard. They distinguish between interruptions between paragraphs and interruptions within each paragraph. At the breaks between paragraphs, one may greet an individual due to the respect that he is obligated to show him, and one may respond to another’s greeting due to respect. And in the middle of each paragraph one may greet an individual due to the fear that the individual may harm him if he fails do so (Me’iri) and one may respond to another’s greeting due to fear. This is the statement of Rabbi Meir. Rabbi Yehuda says: There is a distinction between greeting someone and responding to his greeting. In the middle of each paragraph, one may greet another due to fear and respond due to respect. In the breaks between paragraphs, one may greet another due to respect and respond with a greeting to any person who greets him, whether or not he is obligated to show him respect.

(2) As for what constitutes a paragraph, these are the breaks between the paragraphs: Between the first blessing and the second, between the second and Shema, between Shema and the second paragraph: If you indeed heed My commandments [VeHaya im Shamoa], between VeHaya im Shamoa and the third paragraph: And the Lord spoke [VaYomer] and between VaYomer and True and Firm [emet veyatziv], the blessing that follows Shema. The Rabbis held that each blessing and each paragraph of Shema constitutes its own entity, and treat interruptions between them as between the paragraphs. Rabbi Yehuda, however, says: Between VaYomer and emet veyatziv, which begins the blessing that follows Shema, one may not interrupt at all. According to Rabbi Yehuda, these must be recited consecutively. Since the paragraphs of Shema are not adjacent to one another in the Torah, and they are not recited in the order in which they appear, the mishna explains their placement. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa said: Why, in the mitzva of the recitation of Shema, did the portion of Shema precede that of VeHaya im Shamoa? This is so that one will first accept upon himself the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven, the awareness of God and God’s unity, and only then accept upon himself the yoke of the mitzvot, which appears in the paragraph of VeHaya im Shamoa. Why did VeHaya im Shamoa precede VaYomer? Because the paragraph of VeHaya im Shamoa is practiced both by day and by night, while VaYomer, which discusses the mitzva of ritual fringes, is only practiced during the day.

(3) One who recites Shema and did not recite in a manner audible to his own ear, either because he read inaudibly or because he is deaf, fulfilled his obligation. Rabbi Yosei says: He did not fulfill his obligation. One who recited Shema and was not sufficiently precise in his enunciation of its letters, Rabbi Yosei says: He fulfilled his obligation. Rabbi Yehuda says: He did not fulfill his obligation. One who recited Shema out of order, meaning he did not read the verses sequentially, he did not fulfill his obligation. One who recited and erred, should return to the place in Shema that he erred.

(4) The primary issue in this mishna is the requisite degree of concentration when reciting Shema. Laborers engaged in their work may recite Shema while standing atop the tree or atop the course of stones in a wall under construction, which they are not permitted to do for the Amida prayer, which requires intent of the heart.

(5) The mishna continues: A groom is exempt from the recitation of Shema on the first night of his marriage, which was generally Wednesday night, until Saturday night, if he has not taken action and consummated the marriage, as he is preoccupied by concerns related to consummation of the marriage. The mishna relates that there was an incident where Rabban Gamliel married a woman and recited Shema even the first night. His students said to him: Didn’t our teacher teach us that a groom is exempt from the recitation of Shema? He answered them: Nevertheless, I am not listening to you to refrain from reciting Shema, and in so doing preclude myself from the acceptance of the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven, for even one moment.

(6) The mishna relates another episode portraying unusual conduct by Rabban Gamliel. He bathed on the first night after his wife died. His students said to him: Have you not taught us, our teacher, that a mourner is prohibited to bathe? He answered them: I am not like other people, I am delicate [istenis]. For me, not bathing causes actual physical distress, and even a mourner need not suffer physical distress as part of his mourning.

(7) Another exceptional incident is related: And when his slave, Tavi, died, Rabban Gamliel accepted condolences for his death as one would for a close family member. His students said to him: Have you not taught us, our teacher, that one does not accept condolences for the death of slaves? Rabban Gamliel said to his students: My slave, Tavi, is not like all the rest of the slaves, he was virtuous and it is appropriate to accord him the same respect accorded to a family member.

(8) With regard to the recitation of Shema on one’s wedding night, the Sages said that if, despite his exemption, a groom wishes to recite Shema on the first night, he may do so. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: Not everyone who wishes to assume the reputation of a God-fearing person may assume it, and consequently, not everyone who wishes to recite Shema on his wedding night may do so.

(1) Now, the name Elokim is the name which indicates the attribute of gevurah and tzimtzum, hence it is also numerically equal to hateva1The numerical value of each word is 86. Pardes, Shaar 12, ch. 2. See also Shaloh, Shaar HaOtiot, 89a. (nature), for it [Elokim] conceals the supernal light which brings the world into existence and gives it life, and it appears as though the world exists and conducts itself in a natural way.2I.e., according to fixed, immutable laws, in no way dependent upon or influenced by anything supernatural. Divinity is not readily evident in nature. And this name Elokim is a shield and a covering for the name Havaya, to conceal the light and life-force which flows from the name Havaya and brings creation into existence from naught, so that it [the light and life-force] should not be revealed to the creatures, who thereby would become absolutely nullified.3Since the light and life-force is too abundant and powerful for finite creatures to exist without its concealment and contraction.

(2) This quality of gevurah and tzimtzum is also a quality of chesed for through it [tzimtzum and gevurah] the world is built. And this is the quality of gevurah which is included in chesed.

(3) From the inclusion of the attributes one in the other, it is evident that “He and His attributes are One,” for since they are in a complete unity with Him, they therefore unite with each other and are comprised of each other.4The attributes, or sefirot, are interconnected with each other and function harmoniously together. They are also mutually inclusive—each attribute contains all the others—and are differentiated only by the predominance of the particular quality which gives each its name. Cf. Pardes, Shaar 8, ch. 2. As Elijah said, “You are He who binds [the attributes] together and unites them…; and aside from You there is no unity among those above….”5Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction.

(4) This, then, is the meaning of that which is written “And take to your heart that Havaya is Elokim”6Deuteronomy 4:39. Here follows the answer to the question raised above, beginning of ch. 1.—that is, these two names are actually one, for even the name Elokim, which contracts and conceals the light, is a quality of chesed, just as the name Havaya. For the attributes of the Holy One, blessed is He, unite with Him in a complete unity, and “He and His Name are One,”7Cf. Zohar II:19b. for His attributes are His Names.8The attributes correspond to the specific Names of G–d, namely—Havaya corresponds to kindness and mercy, Elokim to might, Ad-nay to sovereignty, etc. Cf. Zohar III:10b, 11a.

(5) Since this is so, you will consequently know that “In the heavens above and on the earth below, en od—there is nothing else [besides G–d].”9Deuteronomy, ibid. Thus, the unity of G–d does not mean only that there are no other gods, but that there is nothing apart from Him, i.e., there is no existence whatsoever apart from His existence; the whole Creation is nullified within Him as the rays of the sun within the orb of the sun. This is the meaning of yichudah ilaah (higher level Unity), which will be further explained in ch. 7, below. This means that even the material earth, which appears to the eyes of all to be actually existing, is naught and complete nothingness in relation to the Holy One, blessed is He. For the name Elokim conceals and contracts [the light and life-force] only for the lower [creatures], but not for the Holy One, blessed is He, since He and His Name Elokim are One. Therefore, even the earth and that which is below it are naught and complete nothingness in relation to the Holy One, blessed is He, and are not called by any name at all, not even the name od (else) which is an expression indicating a secondary, subordinate status, as the statement of our Sages of blessed memory, “Yehudah v’od likrah,”10Kiddushin 6a. In English: “Does a verse in the Torah require additional or secondary substantiation from the customs of the Land of Judah?” [unlike] the body which is subordinate to the soul and life-force within it [and is referred to as od]. [And this is the meaning of the verse: “I will praise Havaya with my life (soul) and will sing to Elokim be’odi”11Psalms 146:3. (with my body). For the soul is derived from the name Havaya and the od, which is the body, the subordinate (of the soul), from the name Elokim.]12Brackets are the author’s. For the soul does not bring the body into existence ex nihilo, [hence it can be called od in relation to the soul], but the Holy One, blessed is He, Who brings everything into existence ex nihilo—everything is absolutely nullified in relation to Him, just as the light of the sun [is nullified] in the sun.

(6) Therefore, it was necessary for Scripture to warn, “And know this day and take to your heart…,” 13Deuteronomy, ibid. so that it should not enter your mind that the heavens and all their host and the earth and all therein are separate entities in themselves, and that the Holy One, blessed is He, fills the whole world—in the same way as the soul is invested in the body, causing the flow of the vegetative force into the earth, and the force of motion into the celestial spheres, moving them and directing them according to His Will—just as the soul moves the body and directs it according to its will.

(7) In truth, however, the analogy bears no similarity whatsoever to the object of comparison since the soul and the body are actually separate from each other in their very sources. The source of the body and its essence comes into being not from the soul, but from the seed of his father and mother, and even afterward, his growth is not from the soul alone, but through his mother’s eating and drinking all the nine months [of gestation], and subsequently through his own eating and drinking. This is not so, however, in the case of heaven and earth, for their very being and essence was brought into existence from naught and absolute nothingness, solely through the “word of G–d” and the “breath of His mouth,” blessed be He. And the word of G–d still stands forever [in all created things], and flows into them continuously at every instant and continuously brings them into existence from nothing, just as, for example, the coming into existence of the light from the sun within the very globe of the sun. Hence, in reality, they [heaven and earth] are completely nullified in relation to the “word of G–d” and the “breath of His mouth,” blessed be He, which are unified with His Essence and Being, blessed be He, as will be explained later,14Below, ch. 7. just as the light of the sun is nullified in the sun.

(8) Yet these are His restraining powers, to hide and conceal, through the attribute of gevurah and tzimtzum, the life-force which flows into them, so that heaven and earth and all their hosts should appear as if they were independently existing entities. However, the tzimtzum and concealment is only for the lower [worlds], but in relation to the Holy One, blessed is He, “everything before Him is considered as actually naught,”15Zohar I:11b. just as the light of the sun in the sun. And the attribute of gevurah does not, Heaven forfend, conceal for Him, blessed be He, for it is not an independent entity—since Havaya is Elokim.

(1) SEVENTEEN.1See see Igrot Kodesh Admur Hazaken (Kehot, 2012), pp. 374-375, for the opening paragraph of this section. It is known that an arousal from below, when man arouses in his heart the trait of kindness and compassion for all those in need of compassion, this elicits an arousal from above, i.e., an arousal of great compassion upon him from the source of compassion,2See above, Epistle 4, note 44. to effuse to him the “Fruits in this world, while the principal remains for the World to Come.”3The principal and the fruits of the good deeds.—Mishnah, Peah 1:1.

(2) This means: “the fruits” refers to the effluence effusing from the Source of compassion and Fountainhead of life,4Lit., The Life of life (cf. Yoma 71a; Tikkunei Zohar 19 (41b); ibid., 69 (115a); and see below, end of Epistle 22a). blessed is He. It issues netherward, in the mode of the evolution of the worlds from above downward…, until it vests itself in this world in children, life, and sustenance….5See above, Epistle 11, note 5.

(3) The “principal” is, as it is written: “Mitzvatecha (Your commandment) is very wide.”6Psalms 119:96. Now it should say mitzvotecha—in plural form!7Cf. Rashi, ad loc. (8Brackets appear in the text.The phraseology of “is wide” is also not comprehensible.)

(4) However, the express form of mitzvatecha refers to the precept of charity, which is truly the mitzvah of the L–rd, which the Holy One, blessed is He, Himself, in all His majesty, performs at all times by animating the worlds, and will do so in the future with exceeding uplifting and force.9Par. Genesis 49:3. And thus it is written:10Genesis 18:19. “And they shall observe the way of the L–rd, to do tzedakah….”11See Zohar III:113b. Metaphorically speaking, like a road on which one goes from one city to another,12Tzedakah is called the “way of the L–rd” because it is like a roadway that enables man to travel from one place to another. so, too, charity is a capacity for a manifestation and radiation of the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, which encompasses all worlds,13The or sovev, or or makif; see above, Epistle 3, note 12. so that in the future, at the Resurrection of the Dead, it will radiate, and become manifest, even to this world, through the arousal from below as an expression of charity and gratuitous kindness, [with an uplifting and force infinitely exceeding the state of manifestation of the radiation in the upper and lower Gardens of Eden]. For in the future all the souls of the tzaddikim, and of the Tannaim and the prophets that are now in the Higher Garden of Eden, at the peak of levels, will become vested in their bodies, and they will arise at the time of the resurrection to derive pleasure from the splendor of the Shechinah.

(5) That is, the manifestation and the radiation as it is in the Garden of Eden is of the level of memalei kol almin.14Permeating all worlds (thus the or pnimi); see above, Epistle 3, note 12. This is a level of the evolution from one rung to another by means of immense contractions,15This radiation of the Divine immence, the or pnimi, is an immensely screened derivative of the or makif, the radiation of the Divine transcendence. As the worlds develop from higher to lower, the or pnimi is contracted ever more. and as the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory: “The World to Come was created by the yud”16Menachot 29b.—See above, Epistle 5.—the sphere of the supreme chochmah,17Above, Epistle 5, note 16.—The yud, by its very form as a simple point, indicates the immense contraction of the Divine light contained in it. The or pnimi thus is related to the sefirah of chochmah (cf. above, Epistle 3, note 12). referred to as the upper Eden,18Ibid., note 17. and evolving and vesting itself in all the worlds, as it is written: “You have made them all with chochmah…”19Psalms 104:24. and “chochmah animates….”20Ecclesiastes 7:12.—See Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism, s.v. Chochmah (cf. above, beg. of Epistle 5; Epistle 11, note 10; Epistle 14, note 14). In the Garden of Eden (the sphere of chochmah) is in a state of manifest apprehension to each according to his measure.21See Zohar I:129b; ibid., 135b (Midrash Hane’elam). For as known, the delight of the souls in the Garden of Eden derives from the apprehension of the secrets of the Torah with which one busied oneself in this world with the revealed (parts of Torah) [as mentioned in the sacred Zohar, section Shelach,22See Zohar III:169b; cf. ibid., 159b ff. and in the Gemara23See Bava Metzia 86a. with reference to the occurrence with Rabbah bar Nachmeni].

(6) The manifestation of the radiation at the time of the resurrection, however, will be from the level of sovev kol almin,24“Encompassing all worlds,” thus the or makif; see above, Epistle 3, note 12. which is not in a state of contraction (tzimtzum), measure, and limit, but without limit and end [as the concept of sovev kol almin has been explained in Likkutei Amarim, ch. 48, not to be in its literal sense—like a circle, Heaven forfend, but only that it is not in a state of investment…, note there carefully].

(7) And this is the meaning of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “And their crowns on their heads, and they take delight….”25Berachot 17a; Maimonides, Hilchot Teshuvah 5:2. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar 36 (78a). A crown (atarah) is something that encompasses and encircles and is called keter 26Crown; garland. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar 70 (135a) on the subtle distinction between keter and atarah. [an idiom of koteret27Capitol.—See Etz Chaim 23:2 and cf. Pardes Rimonim 23:11, s.v. Keter. Cf. below, Epistle 29 (note 34, ad loc.).]. It is the aspect of the intermediary which joins the radiation of the Emanator, the En Sof, blessed is He, to the emanated,28See Etz Chaim 42:1; cf. Pardes Rimonim 3:1 ff.—See Addendum, ibid., s.v. Keter. and in the future it will radiate and become revealed in this world29The or makif thus is related to the sefirah of keter, transcending chochmah and its apprehension in Eden (cf. above, Epistle 3, note 12). to all the righteous who will rise with the resurrection (30Brackets appear in the text. “And Your people, they are all righteous…”31Isaiah 60:21.).

(8) And this is the meaning of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “In the future the righteous will be addressed as holy.”32Bava Batra 75b. Holy is a rank of being separated;33See above, Epistle 7, note 7. it is not subject to apprehension and knowledge, because it transcends the rank of the wisdom and knowledge which there is in the Garden of Eden.34Kadosh, holy, thus refers to keter, the sefirah which is separate and distinct from the sefirot transcending them all. (See Addendum, ibid.) Chochmah, in itself also distinct and inapprehensible (ibid.), is also referred to as “holy” (see above, Epistle 10, note 41). In that context keter is then called kodesh hakedoshim, the “holy of holies,” i.e., the essential, absolute holiness. See Zohar II:121a. Thus Scripture states: “Chochmah shall be found from ayin”35Job 28:12.—i.e., (from) the rank of the supreme keter36See Zohar II:42b; 121a; III:290a; and note following. which, in the sacred Zohar,37Zohar III:end of 256b; cf. also references cited above, note 36, and above, Epistle 11, note 11. is called ayin;38Naught; cf. above, Epistle 13, note 40. its effluence and radiation are in a state of manifestation only when [after the resurrection] the soul is vested in a pure and clear body. For “Their beginning is wedged—expressly—in their end,”39Sefer Yetzirah 1:7. and “The result of the act is first in thought…,”40Liturgy, Hymn of Lecha Dodi. as known.

(9) But it is impossible to reach this level until one has been first in the Garden of Eden, to apprehend the aspect of the supreme chochmah41In the text appears here (in brackets): etc. A parenthesis suggests instead: each one. according to his measure, and “the dew of Torah revives him”42Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 12a; ibid., 19 (38b) (see Ketuvot 111b; cf. Shabbat 88b; Chagigah 12b; et passim).—“And when you will awaken43At the Resurrection of the Dead. it44The Torah, which is called keter (cf. Avot 4:13, and below, Epistle 29). will speak for you…,”45Proverbs 6:22. Enabling man to reach a level he could not attain previously; Zohar I:185a; and Nitzutzei Orot, ad loc. Set also Zohar I:175b; and cf. Avot 6:9; Sotah 21a; Tikkunei Zohar 31 (75b-76a). and suffice it for the initiated.

(10) And this is the meaning of “mitzvatecha is very wide,” i.e., the precept of charity, which is a vessel and a very wide area in which the radiation from the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, is invested (46Brackets appear in the text.and as it is written: His garment is tzedakah47Piyut Atah Hu Elokenu (Machzor, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur).) which in the future will radiate without limit and end, because of the gratuitous kindness in the arousal from below, called “the way of the L–rd.” And that is the meaning of the phraseology “very (wide),” because it is without limit and end.48See Targum on Psalms 119:96; Eruvin 21a and Rashi, ad loc.

(11) But “To every tichlah I have seen an end”:49Beginning of the verse (Psalms 119:96). tichlah is an idiom of kalot hanefesh, the yearning of the soul in the Garden of Eden, for there it is in a mode of end, limit, and contraction, as mentioned above. And (the reason it says) “to every tichlah” is because there are numerous levels and rungs of Gan Eden, one higher than the other, to the topmost of levels,50See Zohar Chadash, Bereishit 18a. as mentioned in Likkutei Hashass by the Arizal,51See above, Epistle 5, note 103. in explanation of the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory: “Scholars (of Torah) have no rest…,”52Berachot 64a. because they rise constantly—from level to level—in the apprehension of the Torah, which had no end…, until after the resurrection, when they will have rest….

(1) There is yet another good way for a man, which is suitable for all and “very near” indeed, to arouse and kindle the light of the love that is implanted and concealed in his heart, that it may shine forth with its intense light, like a burning fire, in the consciousness of the heart and mind, to surrender his soul to G–d, together with his body and [material] possessions, with all his heart, and all his soul, and all his might, from the depth of the heart, in absolute truth, especially at the time of the recital of the Shema and its blessings, as will be explained.

(2) This [way] is to take to heart the meaning of the verse, “As water mirrors the reflection of a face, so is the heart of man to man.”1 Proverbs 27:19. This means that as [in the case of] the likeness and features of the face which a man presents to the water, the same identical face is reflected back to him from the water, so indeed is also the heart of a man who is loyal in his affection for another person, for this love awakens a loving response for him in the heart of his friend also, cementing their mutual love and loyalty for each other, especially as each sees his friend’s love for him.

(3) Such is the common nature in the character of every man, even when they are equal in status. How much more so when a great and mighty king shows his great and intense love for a commoner who is despised and lowly among men, a disgraceful creature cast on the dunghill, yet he [the king] comes down to him from the place of his glory, together with all his retinue, and raises him and exalts him from his dunghill and brings him into his palace, the royal palace, in the innermost chamber, a place such as no servant nor lord ever enters, and there shares with him the closest companionship with embraces and kisses and spiritual attachment2 “Embraces”—performance of the precepts; “kisses”—precepts performed orally (esp. prayer); “spiritual attachment” (lit., “attachment of spirit to spirit”)—meditation and comprehension. In other words, complete communion by thought, word, and deed. with all heart and soul—how much more will, of itself, be aroused a doubled and redoubled love in the heart of this most common and humble individual for the person of the king, with a true attachment of spirit, heart, and soul, and with infinite heartfelt sincerity. Even if his heart be like a heart of stone, it will surely melt and become water, and his soul will pour itself out like water, with soulful longing for the love of the king.

(4) In a manner corresponding in every detail to the said figure and image but to an infinitely greater degree, has the L–rd our G–d dealt with us. For His greatness is beyond comprehension, and He pervades all worlds and transcends all worlds; and from the holy Zohar, as also from the Arizal,3 See above, ch. 2, note 9. it is known of the infinite multitude of hechalot and worlds, and of the countless myriads of angels in each world and hechal. So does the Gemara note, “It is written, ‘Is there any numbering of His hosts?’4 Job 25:3. Yet, it is also written, ‘A thousand thousands serve Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before Him….’”5 Daniel 7:10. The discrepancy is explained by the answer, “A thousand thousands…is the quota of one ‘troop,’ but His troops are innumerable.”6 Chagigah 13b. Yet, before Him, all of them are accounted as nothing at all and are nullified in their very existence, just as one word is truly nullified in relation to the essence and being of the articulate soul while the utterance was still held in its [faculty of] thought, or in the will and desire of the heart, as has been explained above at length.7 Ch. 20.

(5) All these [angels] ask, “Where is the place of His glory?” And they answer, “The whole earth is full of His glory,”8 Isaiah 6:3. that is, His people, Israel. For the Holy One, blessed is He, forsakes the higher and lower creatures, choosing none of them but Israel His people, whom He brought out of Egypt—“the obscenity of the earth,”9 Genesis 42:9. the place of filth and impurity—“not through the agency of an angel, nor of a saraf…but the Holy One, blessed is He, Himself in His glory”10 Passover Haggadah. descended there, as is written, “I have come down to deliver them…,”11 Exodus 3:8. in order to bring them near to Him in true closeness and unity, with a truly soulful attachment on the level of “kisses” of mouth to mouth, by means of uttering the word of G–d, namely, the halachah, and the fusion of spirit to spirit, namely, the comprehension of the Torah and the knowledge of His will and wisdom, all of which is truly one [with G–d]; also with a form of “embrace,” namely, the fulfillment of the positive precepts with the 248 organs, for the 248 ordinances are the 248 “organs” of the King, as has been explained.12 Ch. 23. These, in a general way, are divided into three categories—right, left, and center—namely, chesed (kindness), din (stern justice) and rachamim (mercy)—the two arms and the body, and so forth.13 Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction.

(6) This is the meaning of [the text of the benedictions] “Who has sanctified us with His commandments”: like one who betrothes14 The word קדשנו (“who sanctified us”) may be tendered “who has betrothed us” (קדושין—betrothal). a wife that she may be united with him with a perfect bond, as is written, “And he shall cleave to his wife, and they shall be one flesh.”15 Genesis 2:24. Exactly so, and even infinitely surpassing, is the union of the divine soul that is occupied in Torah and commandments, and of the vivifying soul, and their garments referred to above, with the light of the En Sof, blessed is He.

(7) Therefore did Solomon, peace unto him, in the Song of Songs compare this union with the union of bridegroom and bride in attachment, desire, and pleasure, with embrace and kissing.

(8) This is also the meaning of “Who has sanctified us with His commandments,” by means of which He has raised us to the heights of the Holiness of the Supreme One, blessed is He, which is the holiness of the Holy One, blessed is He, Himself. Kedushah (“holiness”) is a term indicating separateness, in that the Holy One, blessed is He, is apart from the worlds, namely, His quality of “encompassing all worlds,” which cannot be clothed within them.

(9) For through the union of the soul with, and its absorption into, the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, it attains the quality and degree of the actual holiness of the En Sof, blessed is He, since it unites itself with, and is integrated into, Him, blessed be He, and they become One in reality. This is the meaning of the verse, “And you shall be holy to Me, for I the L–rd am holy, and I have separated you from other peoples that you should be Mine,”16 Leviticus 20:26. and “You shall do all My commandments and be holy to your G–d; I am the L–rd your G–d….”17 Numbers 15:40-41. The meaning is that through fulfillment of the commandments I become your G–d, [in the same sense] as “the G–d of Abraham,” “the G–d of Isaac,” and so on, called thus because the Patriarchs were a “chariot” for Him,18 See above, ch. 18, note 3. blessed be He, and they were nullified and absorbed into His light.

(10) So it is with the soul of every Israelite at the time he occupies himself with Torah and commandments. Therefore the Rabbis, of blessed memory, made it obligatory for us to rise and remain standing in the presence of every one who is engaged in a commandment, even if the latter is uncultured and illiterate.19 Kiddushin 33a. This is because the L–rd dwells and clothes Himself in this man’s soul at such time, though his soul is unconscious of it because of the barrier of the bodily grossness which has not been purified and which dims the eyes of the soul [preventing it] from seeing Divine visions, as experienced by the Patriarchs and others of their stature, who “saw their world during their lifetime.”20 See above, ch. 14.

(11) This is also the meaning of what Asaf said, under Divine inspiration, on behalf of the whole community of Israel in exile: “I was a boor and did not understand, like an animal was I with You. Yet I was always with You.”21 Psalms 73:22-23. This means that even though I am like an “animal” when I am with You, being unaware of, and insensitive to, this union in my soul, which should bring down on it fear and awe first, followed by a great love of delights, or a burning [love] like fiery coals, similar to the quality of the tzaddikim, whose corporeality has been purified, for, as is known, daat22 Implicit in the words ולא אדע. connotes a sensitivity of the soul, comprising chesed (kindness) and gevurah (sternness)23 I.e., love and fear.—yet “I was always with You,” for the corporeality of the body does not prevent the union of the soul with the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, Who fills all worlds, and as is written, “ Even the darkness obscures not from You.”24 Psalms 139:12, here interpreted “obscures (me) not from You.”

(12) Thereby will be understood the severity of the punishment for transgressing the prohibition of work on Shabbat or that of unleavened bread on Passover, which [prohibition] equally applies to all. For even in the soul of an uncultured and completely illiterate person shines the light of the sanctity of Shabbat or the Festival; hence he faces capital punishment by karet25 “Cutting off” of the soul; Divine punishment through premature or sudden death. or stoning for the profanation of this sanctity.

(13) Similarly, [transgression involving] the slightest amount of leaven, or the handling of muktzeh,26 Anything forbidden to be used or handled on Shabbat and Festivals. tarnishes the sanctity which rests on his soul, just as it would the sanctity of the soul of a tzaddik, for we have all one Torah.

(14) [And as for the use of the plural form behemot,27 In Psalms 73:22, quoted earlier. this is an intimation that before Him, blessed be He, even the so-called daat elyon (“supernal knowledge”)—which comprises chesed and gevurah—is like “beasts” i.e., a physical creation, when compared with the light of the En Sof, as is written, “You have made them all with wisdom,”28 Psalms 104:24. and this is called behemah rabbah (“a great beast”), as is explained elsewhere. And this is the Name of ב“ן,29 The Name of Havaya spelled out fully (each of the four letters—phonetically) in Hebrew letters produces four variations, or Names, numerically equivalent to the numbers 45 (שם מ"ה), 52 (שם ב"ן), 63 (שם ס"ג), and 72 (שם ע"ב). with the numerical equivalent of בהמה (beast), preceding Atzilut.]

(1) On the other hand,1 The author continues to expound the doctrine of the kelipot, and his definitions of good and evil, distinguishing an intermediate category. the vitalizing animal soul in the Jew, that which is derived from the aspect of the kelipah, which is clothed in the human blood, as stated above,2 Ch. 1. and the “souls”3 The quotes are the translator’s. According to Lurianic doctrine all things, including inanimate objects, possess a “soul,” which is the creative and preserving force of the Creator, the thing’s reality. This doctrine was adopted and expounded by the Baal Shem Tov and Rabbi Schneur Zalman. See Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 1 ff. of the animals, beasts, birds, and fish that are clean and fit for [Jewish] consumption, as also the existence and vitality of the entire inanimate and entire vegetable world which are permissible for consumption, as well as the existence and vitality of every act, utterance, and thought in mundane matters that contain no forbidden aspect—being neither root nor branch of the 365 prohibitive precepts and their offshoots, either on the explicit authority of the Torah or by Rabbinic enactment—yet are not performed for the sake of Heaven but only by the will, desire, and lust of the body; and even where it is a need of the body, or its very preservation and life, but his intention is not for the sake of Heaven, that is, to serve G–d thereby —all these acts, utterances, and thoughts are no better than the vitalizing animal soul itself; and everything in this totality of things flows and is drawn from the second gradation [to be found] in the kelipot and sitra achara, namely, a fourth kelipah, called kelipat nogah. In this world, called the “World of Asiyah (Action),”4 See Addendum, Glossary. most, indeed almost all, of it [the kelipat nogah] is bad, and only a little good has been intermingled within it [from which come the good qualities contained in the animal soul of the Jew, as is explained above.5 Ch. 1.]

(2) This [kelipat nogah] is an intermediate category between the three completely unclean kelipot and the category and order of holiness.

(3) Hence it is sometimes absorbed within the three unclean kelipot [as is explained in Etz Chaim, Portal 49, beginning of ch. 4, on the authority of the Zohar], and sometimes it is absorbed and elevated to the category and level of holiness, as when the good that is intermingled in it is extracted from the bad, and prevails and ascends until it is absorbed in holiness.

(4) Such is the case, for example, of he who eats fat beef and drinks spiced wine in order to broaden his mind for the service of G–d and His Torah; as Rava said, “Wine and fragrance [make a man’s mind more receptive],”6 Yoma 76b. or in order to fulfill the command concerning enjoyment of Shabbat and the Festivals.7 Maimonides, Hilchot Shabbat 30:7; Hilchot Yom Tov 6:16. Rabbi Schneur Zalman, Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 242:1; 529:1, 3. In such a case the vitality of the meat and wine, originating in the kelipat nogah, is distilled and ascends to G–d like a burnt offering and sacrifice.

(5) So, too, when a man utters a pleasantry in order to sharpen his wit and rejoice his heart in G–d, in His Torah and service, which should be practiced joyfully, as Rava was wont to do with his pupils, prefacing his discourse with some witty remark, to enliven the students thereby.8 Pesachim 117a.

(6) On the other hand, he who belongs to those who gluttonously guzzle meat and quaff wine in order to satisfy their bodily appetites and animal nature, derived from the so-called element of water of the four evil elements contained therein, from which comes the vice of lust—in such case the energy of the meat and wine consumed by him is degraded and absorbed temporarily in the utter evil of the three unclean kelipot, and his body temporarily becomes a garment and vehicle for them, until the person repents and returns to the service of G–d and His Torah. For, inasmuch as the meat and wine were kosher, they have the power to revert and ascend with him when he returns to the service of G–d. This is implied in the terms “permissibility” and “permitted” (muttar),9 The Hebrew term מותר literally means “released.” that is to say, that which is not tied and bound by the power of the “extraneous forces”10 Another term for kelipot and sitra achara. preventing it from returning and ascending to G–d.

(7) Nevertheless, a trace [of the evil] remains in the body. Therefore the body must undergo the Purgatory of the grave, as will be explained later.11 Ch. 8.

(8) So, too, with regard to the vitality of the drops of semen emitted from the body with animal lust, by him who has not conducted himself in a saintly manner during intimacy with his wife in her state of purity.12 This paragraph is added according to Luach HaTikkun (below, p. 781).

(9) Such is not the case, however, with forbidden foods and coition, which derive from the three kelipot that are entirely unclean. These are tied and bound by the extraneous forces forever and are not released until the day comes when death will be swallowed up forever, as is written, “And I will cause the unclean spirit to pass from the land,”13 Zechariah 13:2. or until the sinner repents to such an extent that his premeditated sins become transmuted into veritable merits, which is achieved through “repentance out of love,” coming from the depths of the heart, with great love and fervor, and from a soul passionately desiring to cleave to G–d, blessed be He, and thirsting for G–d like a parched desert soil. For inasmuch as his soul had been in a barren wilderness, and in the shadow of death, which is the sitra achara, and infinitely removed from the light of the Divine Countenance, his soul now thirsts [for G–d] even more than the souls of the righteous, as our Sages say, “In the place where penitents stand, not even the perfectly righteous can stand.”14 Berachot 34b.

(10) It is concerning the repentance out of such great love that they have said, “The penitent’s premeditated sins become, in his case, like virtues,”15 Rosh Hashanah 29a. since thereby he has attained to this great love.16 This religious experience is unknown to the perfect tzaddik, who never sinned and consequently has never experienced the remorse and yearning of a repentant soul. This does not mean, however, that the tzaddik cannot experience my kind of teshuvah, for in a broader and truer sense (and as the Hebrew term indicates) it means “return” to the Source, which is of infinite scope. (Cf. Likkutei Torah, beg. Haazinu.)

(11) However, repentance that does not come from such love, even though it be true repentance and G–d will pardon him, nevertheless his sins are not transformed into merits and they are not completely released from the kelipah until the end of time, when death will be swallowed up forever.

(12) Yet the vitality which is in the drops of semen that issue wastefully, even though it has been degraded and incorporated in the three unclean kelipot, nevertheless it can ascend from there by means of true repentance and intense kavanah17 “Intention,” i.e., concentration and devotion in prayer, study, or the performance of a ritual precept. Cf. below, chs. 38, 40, and 41, for an elaboration of the term. during the recital of the Shema at bedtime, as is known from the Arizal18 See above, ch. 2, note 9. and is implied in the Talmudic saying, “He who recites the Shema at bedtime is as if he held a double-edged sword…,”19 Berachot 5a. wherewith to slay the bodies of the extraneous forces that have become garments for the vitality which is in the drops [of semen], so that this vitality may ascend, as is known to the students of Kabbalah.

(13) Therefore the sin of wasteful emission of semen is not mentioned in the Torah among the list of forbidden coitions, although it is even more heinous than they, and this sin is greater because of the enormity and abundance of the uncleanness and of the kelipot which he begets and multiplies to an exceedingly great extent through wasteful emission of semen, even more than through forbidden coitions. Except that in the case of forbidden coitions he contributes strength and vitality to a most unclean kelipah, from which he is powerless to bring up the vitality by means of repentance,

(14) NOTE: The reason being that this vitality has been absorbed by the “female” element of the kelipah, which receives and absorbs the vitality from the holiness. Not so with wasteful emission of semen, where there is obviously no female element of kelipah, and only its powers and forces provide the garments for the vitality of the [wasteful] semen, as is known to the students of Kabbalah.

(15) unless he repents with such great love that his willful wrongs are transformed into merits.

(16) From the above, one may understand the comment of our Sages, “Which is ‘a fault that cannot be rectified?’20 Ecclesiastes 1:15.—Having incestuous intercourse and giving birth to a bastard.”21 Chagigah 9a. For in such a case, even though the sinner undertakes such great repentance, he cannot cause the [newly created] vitality to ascend to holiness, since it has already descended into this world and has been clothed in a body of flesh and blood.

(1) There is an additional aspect in the matter of forbidden foods. The reason they are called issur [“chained”] is that even in the case of one who has unwittingly eaten a forbidden food intending it to give him strength to serve G–d by the energy of it, and he has, moreover, actually carried out his intention, having both studied and prayed with the energy of that food, nevertheless the vitality contained therein does not ascend and become clothed in the words of the Torah or prayer, as is the case with permitted foods, by reason of its being held captive in the power of the sitra achara of the three unclean kelipot. This is so even when the prohibition is a Rabbinic enactment, for the words of the Scribes are even more stringent than the words of the Torah, and so forth.1 Mishnah, Sanhedrin 11:3; Bamidbar Rabbah 14:12, etc.

(2) Therefore, also the evil impulse (yetzer hara) and the force that strains after forbidden things is a demon of non-Jewish demons, which is the evil impulse of the nations whose souls are derived from the three unclean kelipot.

(3) On the other hand, the evil impulse and the craving force after permissible things to satisfy an appetite is a demon of the Jewish demons,2 Cf. Zohar III:253a; 277a f. for it can be reverted to holiness, as is explained above.3 Ch. 7. Nevertheless, before it has reverted to holiness it is sitra achara and kelipah, and even afterward a trace of it remains attached to the body, since from each item of food and drink are immediately formed blood and flesh of his flesh.

(4) That is why the body must undergo the Purgatory of the grave,4 Chibut hakever. Cf. Zohar II:151a, and especially R. Chaim Vital, end of Sefer Hagilgulim, and Sefer Hakavanot, p. 55b f. in order to cleanse it and purify it of its uncleanness which it had received from the enjoyment of mundane things and pleasures, which are derived from the uncleanness of the kelipat nogah and of the Jewish demons; only one who had derived no enjoyment from this world all his life, as was the case with our Saintly Master [Rabbi Judah the Prince], is spared this.

(5) As for innocent idle chatter, such as in the case of an ignoramus who cannot study, he must undergo a cleansing of his soul, to rid it of the uncleanness of this kelipah, through its being rolled in “the hollow of a sling,”5 Cf. I Samuel 25:29: “And the soul of your enemies, He will sling it with the hollow of the sling,” eschatologically interpreted in Shabbat 152b. as is stated in the Zohar, Parashat Beshalach, p. 59.6 Zohar II:59a.

(6) But with regard to forbidden speech, such as scoffing and slander and the like, which stem from the three completely unclean kelipot, the hollow of a sling [alone] does not suffice to cleanse and remove the uncleanness of the soul, but it must descend into Gehinom (Purgatory).

(7) So, too, he who is able to engage in the Torah but occupies himself instead with frivolous things, the hollow of a sling cannot itself effectively scour and cleanse his soul, but severe penalties are meted out for neglect of the Torah in particular, apart from the general retribution for the neglect of a positive commandment through indolence, namely, in the Purgatory of Snow,7 The Purgatory, where the soul is cleansed of the “stains” acquired during its lifetime so that it could then enter Gan Eden in the presence of the Divine Glory, operates on the principle of “measure for measure,” or in kind. Thus offences of commission caused by passion and lust are cleansed in a “stream of fire,” while those of omission, due to indolence and coolness, are cleansed in a Purgatory of Snow, etc. as is explained elsewhere.8 Arizal, Likkutei Torah, Shemot. Cf. also Zohar I:62b; 237b; II:150a-b.

(8) Likewise, he who occupies himself with the sciences of the nations of the world is included among those who waste their time in profane matters, insofar as the sin of neglecting the Torah is concerned, as is explained in the Laws Concerning Study of the Torah.9 The first work of Rabbi Schneur Zalman was a treatise on the Laws Concerning the Study of the Torah (Hilchot Talmud Torah), first published in Shklov, 1794, and subsequently incorporated in his Shulchan Aruch.

(9) Moreover, the uncleanness of the science of the nations is greater than that of profane speech, for the latter informs and defiles only the middot which emanate from the element of the holy ruach within his divine soul with contamination of the kelipat nogah that is contained in profane speech which is derived from the element of the evil ruach of this kelipah in his animal soul, as mentioned above;10 Ch. 1. yet he does not defile the [intellectual] (faculties of chabad in his soul, for they are but words of foolishness and ignorance, since even fools and ignoramuses can speak that way.

(10) Not so in the case of the nations’ sciences whereby he clothes and defiles the intellectual faculties of chabad in his divine soul with the contamination of the kelipat nogah contained in those sciences, whither they have fallen through the “shattering of the vessels” out of the so-called “hinder-part” of chochmah of kedushah, as is known to the students of Kabbalah.

(11) Unless he employs [these sciences] as a useful instrument, viz., as a means of a more affluent livelihood to be able to serve G–d or knows how to apply them in the service of G–d and His Torah. This is the reason why Maimonides and Nachmanides, of blessed memory, and their adherents engaged in them.

(1) Yet, since “the Torah employs human language,”1 Berachot 22a. the “word” of the Omnipresent, blessed is He, is actually called “speech,” like the speech of a human being, for in truth it is so, by virtue of the descent and flow of the life-force to the lower planes, by means of many and powerful contractions of various kinds, in order that many diverse creatures be created from them.

(2) Indeed, so great and powerful are the contractions and concealment of the Countenance that even unclean things, kelipot and sitra achara, can come into being and be created, receiving their life and existence from the Divine word and the breath of His mouth, blessed be He, in concealment of His Countenance and by virtue of the downward gradations.

(3) Therefore are [the kelipot] called2 Hebrew text should read נקראים instead of נקרא. “other gods” (אלהים אחרים), for their nurture and life are not of the so-called “Countenance” but of the so-called “hinder-part” (אחוריים)3 A gloss based on the words אחוריים – אחרים. of holiness; “hinder” exemplifying the act of a person giving something unwillingly to an enemy, when he throws it to him over his shoulder, as it were, having turned away his face from him since he hates him.

(4) So, on high, the term “Countenance” exemplifies the inner4 A gloss based on the words פנימיות – פנים. quality of the Supernal Will and true desire, in which G–d delights to dispense life from the realm of holiness to everyone who is near to Him.

(5) But the sitra achara, and unholiness, is “an abomination unto G–d which He hates,”5 Deuteronomy 12:31. and He does not give it life from His inner will and true desire as if He delighted in it, Heaven forbid, but in the manner of one who reluctantly throws something over his shoulder to his enemy; [He does so] only to punish the wicked and to give a goodly reward to the righteous who subjugate the sitra achara. This is [why it is] called the “hinder-part” of the Supernal Will.

(6) Now, the Supernal Will, of the quality of “Countenance,” is the source of life which animates all worlds. But since it is in no way bestowed on the sitra achara, and even the so-called “hinder-part” of the Supernal Will is not actually clothed in it, but merely hovers over it from above, therefore it is the abode of death and defilement—may G–d preserve us! For the tiny amount of light and life that it derives and absorbs into itself from the so-called “hinder-part” of the supernal holiness is, as it were, in a state of actual exile in it, as an aspect of the esoteric doctrine of the exile of the Shechinah, referred to above.6 Ch. 19.

(7) Therefore, also, it is termed “other gods,” since it constitutes actual idolatry and denial of the unity of the Supreme King of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He. For inasmuch as the light and life of holiness are, as it were, in a state of exile, within it, it does not surrender itself in any degree to the holiness of the Holy One, blessed is He. On the contrary, it surges upward like an eagle, saying, “I am, and there is nothing besides me,”7 Isaiah 47:8; Zephaniah 2:15. or as the utterance, “My river is mine, and I have made myself.”8 The quotation is a combination of Ezekiel 29:9 and 29:3.

(8) That is why the rabbis, of blessed memory, said that arrogance truly compares with idolatry,9 Sotah 4b. for the essence and root of idolatry is that it is regarded as a thing in itself, sundered from the holiness of the Omnipresent; it does not imply an outright denial of G–d, as is stated in the Gemara that they [the heathens] call Him “the G–d of gods,”10 Menachot 110a. thus only presuming themselves also to be entities and independent beings. But thereby they separate themselves from the Omnipresent, blessed is He, since they do not surrender themselves to Him, blessed be He. For the supernal holiness rests only on what is surrendered to Him, blessed be He, as is explained above.11 Ch. 6. Therefore they are called in the holy Zohar12 I:158a. “peaks of separation.” But this constitutes a denial of His true unity, where everything is as nothing compared with Him and truly nullified before Him, blessed be He, and before His will, which animates them all and constantly gives them existence out of nothing.

(1) SIX. “But he who sows tzedakah has a reward of truth.” (Proverbs 11)1Verse 18.—Brackets appear in the text. This means that the attribute of truth is the reward for the sowing of tzedakah.2See commentaries by R. Abraham Ibn Ezra and R. Levi Gersonides, ad loc.

(2) It is also written:3Micah 7:20. “You give truth to Jacob”—and the prophet engages in extolling the Holy One, blessed is He, as mentioned in the sacred Zohar.4Zohar III:131b. This means that it is the Holy One, blessed is He, who gives the attribute of truth to Jacob.5See above, Epistle 2, note 26.

(3) Now this needs to be understood. Is there then no truth in Jacob, Heaven forfend, until the Holy One, blessed is He, gives it to him from above?

(4) However, it is well known that the attribute of Jacob is the attribute of rachamim (compassion).6Jacob is the “middle bar that bolts from end to end” (Exodus 26:28) that is the bolt mediating between chesed and gevurah, thus rachamim or tiferet; Zohar II:175b-176a; also Zohar II:51b; et passim. See Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism, and below, Epistle 15. And the service of G–d in a mode of compassion derives from arousing in the heart of man a great compassion for the Divine spark in his soul, which is removed from the light of G–d’s Countenance when (man) goes about in the darkness of the vanities of the world. And this arousal of compassion itself derives from the contemplation on, and cognition of, the greatness of G–d: how even the most infinitely sublime worlds are esteemed as truly naught before Him. For all their bounty and vitality is but from a gleam and reflection of a single letter of His Name, blessed be He, as it is stated:7Menachot 29b. See above, Epistle 5. “The World to Come was created by the yud….”

(5) Now, it is in this radiation and reflection [which is an extension of vivification from His Name, blessed be He, to animate the upper and lower beings]—that there is a distinction and difference with respect to upper and lower beings. For “This world was created by the hey….”8Ibid.—The radiation from the hey is different than that of the yud (more contracted, concealed, etc.). Thus there is a difference between the “upper” world (the World to Come) and the “nether” world (this world). Likewise with the effects of all the other emanations. Also, all the differences in the details in every world are according to the differences in the combinations of the letters.9The letters of G–d’s fiats (by which everything was created), each of which designates a specific emanation.—See above, Epistle 5 (and note 54, ad loc.). The differences in the temporal dimensions of past, present, and future, and the differences in all the events throughout the differing times, all of these, too, came about from the variations in the combinations of the letters. For (the letters) are the conduits of the vivification from His attributes, blessed be His Name (10Brackets appear in the text.as explained in Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 11).

(6) But as for His Being and Essence, blessed be He, it is written:11Malachi 3:6. “I, the L–rd, I have not changed,” neither in terms of changes of the development from the uppermost of levels to the nethermost [for just as He, blessed be He, is found in the upper worlds, so He is in precisely that measure in the nether worlds 12Brackets appear in the text. (and as explained in Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 51)], nor in terms of temporal changes [for just as He was alone, one and unique, before the six days of creation, so He is now after the creation]. This is so because everything is absolutely as nothing and naught in relation to His being and essence,13Cf. Zohar I:11b. just as, metaphorically speaking [to appease the ear,14I.e., “to make it intelligible to man” (cf. Mechilta, Yitro, s.v. Bachodesh, ch. 4). while in fact “There is no comparison to You,” it is written15Psalms 40:6.], a single letter of the speech, or even of the thought of man, is in relation to the general being and essence of the rational soul; and as explained elsewhere 16Brackets appear in the text. (in Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 9), see there.17Cf. also Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 20.

(7) That is why we say18Liturgy, Morning Prayer. “The King Who is exalted, alone from aforetime.” This means, just as aforetime, before the creation, He was alone, so now, too, “He is exalted…and elevated beyond the days of the world”;19Ibid. (in the same passage). that is, He is exalted and elevated, transcending the dimension of time—which is referred to as “the days of the world.” This is so because the life-force of all the days derives solely from the aspect of “the King…,” as explained elsewhere.20See Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 7.

(8) It follows then that the compassion for the spark that dwells in the dark and gloomy body—the “hide of the snake,”21See Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 10b; 58 (92b); Etz Chaim 49:4. Cf. Pirkei d’R. Eliezer, ch. 20, and Midrash Tehillim, 92:6. is overwhelming. For it is liable to contract impurity and to become defiled by all the lusts, the Merciful save us, were it not for G–d being a shield to it, and giving it strength and might to wage war with, and triumph over the body and its passions.22Cf. Sukkah 52b. And this is the meaning of “L–rd of our strength…shield of our salvation….”23See above, note 18.

(9) Now it is well known that there are two types of awe and love (respectively).24I.e., two general types of awe: yirah tataah, and yirah ilaah (or: yirat haromemut), and two general types of love: ahavah zutta, and ahavah rabbah (or: ahavah betaanugim). See Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 40 ff., esp. ch. 43; below, Epistle 15 (and notes 88 ff., ad loc.); and Epistle 18. See also Author’s Introduction to Likkutei Amarim, Part I, Part II; and Hilchot Talmud Torah 4:6. The first ones are born from the contemplation on, and cognition of, the greatness of G–d and those matters that lead to a love of G–d and the fear of Him. The latter25The second sorts of awe and love. ones are those that come afterward, from above, as a gift, [as explained elsewhere26Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 14; see below, Epistle 18. in comment on the verse27Numbers 18:7. “I will make your priesthood a rewarding service”—that it refers to the attribute of (the supreme) love; and it is likewise in regard to awe].

(10) Now there is surely no comparison between the first ones—which are the products of the created intellect, and the latter ones—which are from the Creator, blessed be His Name.28I.e., the lower levels of awe and love are the sort of service that is earned through man’s efforts. The higher levels are the type of service that is granted as a gift from above. That is why these (the latter) are referred to as “truth,” for the seal of the Holy One, blessed is He, is truth,29Shabbat 55a; see also Zohar I:2b. for He is the true Truth,30Cf. Jeremiah 10:10 and Jerusalem Talmud, Sanhedrin 1:1. and all the truth among the creatures is esteemed as nothing before Him.31See Maimonides, Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah 1:3, 4.—G–d is emet le’amito, absolute truth. All other truth is but relative.

(11) But which is the way whereby man merits the “truth of G–d”? It is by arousing, before G–d, great compassion for the spark in his soul. And this is the attribute of Jacob—who32See above, note 6. “bolts from one end to the other end,”33Exodus 26:28. that is, from the uppermost of all levels to the nethermost,34Cf. Zohar I:1b; cf. also above, note 6. to cause the “truth of G–d” to issue to this lowly dark world, and as it is written: “When I sit in darkness, the L–rd is a light for me.”35Micah 7:8. And this is the meaning of “For His chesed has prevailed over us….”36Psalms 117:2: “For His chesed has prevailed over us, and the truth of G–d (issues) to the world.”—By means of the attribute of rachamim (tiferet), chesed prevails over gevurah and issues to us, drawing forth the truth of G–d into this world. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar, Additions, 139a.

(12) However, the arousal of great compassion before G–d also needs to be in truth. But even when it is true in mortal terms,37Lit., When one is in his own truth. how can one arouse [through (relative) truth] the supernal compassion from the truth of G–d?

(13) The advice for this is the trait of charity—which is the attribute of compassion for one who has nothing of his own, to “Revive the spirit of the humble….”38Par. Isaiah 57:15. And the arousal from below elicits an arousal from above:39See above, Epistle 4, note 45. the L–rd arouses the sleeping and awakens the unconscious,40Par. Liturgy, Shabbat Morning (Nishmat Kol Chay). that is, the concealed, great compassion and Supernal graces,41The Supreme chesed. to emerge from concealment into manifestation and a great illumination, to radiate with the light of life42Par. Job. 33:30 and cf. Psalms 56:14.—“the truth of G–d into the world.”43Par. Psalms 117:2; see above, note 36.

(14) And this is the meaning of the idiom of “sowing” related to charity: to make sprout the Supreme truth of G–d, especially through the charity and the true kindness performed with the Holy Land [may it be built and established speedily in our days, amen] to realize the verse: “Truth shall sprout forth from the land”44Psalms 85:12. “Land” refers to the Holy Land, the subject of this Psalm.—from the sowing of charity in it.45Cf. the comment of Rashi, ad loc.; cf. also below, Epistle 7, note 36. And the kindness and great compassion that are gathered and gleaned into it, they arouse—correspondingly—the Supreme graces41 that are hidden and concealed,46V. L: concealed in it. as it is written: “Which You have hidden…,”47Psalms 31:20; see below, Epistle 13. to establish it and to set it up firmly. Of this it is written: “Through tzedakah shall you be established.”48Isaiah 54:14.

(1) ELEVEN. To make you skillful of understanding1Par. Daniel 9:22. that this is not the way in which the light of the L–rd dwells,2Job 38:19. i.e., in there being a desire for the “life of flesh,”3Proverbs 14:30. and children, and sustenance, for on this our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Make naught your will….”4Avot 2:4. That is, one’s will should be nullified so that one has absolutely no will in any worldly matters that are implied by “children, life, and sustenance,”5See Moed Kattan 28b [Zohar I:43b; ibid., 181a; et passim. See also Biurei Hazohar, Vayera 11b (in comment on Zohar I:115a)]. and as our Sages, of blessed memory, said that “Despite yourself, do you live.”6Avot 4:22.

(2) This means: There is to be only an absolute belief in the Yotzer Bereishit7Lit., the Former of the Beginning. The latter word, which has a cosmological connotation, is often used and translated as “creation,” or “universe.” It was left untranslated in the text because there is a play on words (bereishit here, reishit further on). (See also Pardes Rimonim 23:10, s.v. Yotzer Bereishit, on this term.); that is, that the creation of being ex nihilo (yesh meayin) [which is called reishit chochmah,8Par. Psalms 112:10 or Proverbs 4:7. Reishit (the beginning) is another term for chochmah (see above, Epistle 5, notes 80-82). Chochmah is the ayin (naught) out of which the creation came into being (see further on, and cf. Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism). i.e., His wisdom which is not apprehensible to any creature]—this creation occurs constantly and every moment,9Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 1 ff. below, Epistle 25; see Kuzari 3:11 and cf. also Chagigah 12b and Zohar I:207a. by all creatures coming into being [as a substance ex nihilo (yesh meayin)] from His wisdom, blessed be He, which animates everything.10See Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 18 ff. and Zohar I:207a. See also Addendum, ibid. And when man will contemplate in the profundity of his understanding, and will imagine in his mind his coming to be ex nihilo—truly every moment, how can he possibly think he has ever suffered, or had any afflictions related to “children, life, and sustenance,” or whatever other worldly sufferings. For the naught (ayin) which is His wisdom, blessed be He,11See Tikkunei Zohar 42 (81b); 70 (127a) and 133b. See also Zohar I:246b; II:43b and 64b; et passim. Cf. Pardes Rimonim 23:1, s.v. Ayin. (See Kitzurim V’Hearot, p. 100, par. 7.) is the source of life, welfare, and delight. It12Ayin, chochmah. is the Eden which transcends the World to Come,13See above, Epistle 5, and notes 17 ff., ad loc. (Eden is chochmah, and the World to Come is binah.) except that, because it is not apprehensible, one imagines to have sufferings, or afflictions. In fact, however, no evil descends from above14Bereishit Rabbah 51:3. and everything is good, though it is not apprehended because of its immense and abundant goodness.

(3) And this is the essence of the faith for which man was created: to believe that “there is no place void of Him”15Tikkunei Zohar 57 (91b); ibid., 70 (122b). See Shemot Rabbah 2:9. and “in the light of the King’s Countenance there is life,”16Proverbs 16:15. and, conclusively, “strength and gladness are in His place,”17I Chronicles 16:27. because He is but good all the time.

(4) Therefore, first of all, man ought to be happy and joyous at all times and truly live by his faith in the L–rd who animates him and is benignant with him every moment. But he who is grieved and laments makes himself appear as if he has it somewhat bad and (is) suffering and lacking some goodness; he is like a heretic, Heaven forfend. That is why the Kabbalists strongly rejected the trait of sadness.18See Iggeret Hateshuvah, ch. 12 (cf. Tanchuma, Yitro 16; Arizal, Likkutei Torah, beg. Ekev); also, ibid., ch. 11, and Likkutei Amarim, Part I, chs. 26 ff., 31, and 33.—With respect to the Kabbalists’ emphasis on joy and rejection of sadness, see Zohar II:184b and Hagahot R. Chaim Vital, ad loc.; Zohar II:218a, and the commentaries Derech Emet, and Nitzutzei Orot, ad loc.; Pardes Rimonim 23:16, s.v. Etzev VeEtzavon. See also Reishit Chochmah, Shaar HaAhavah, ch. 10 (also quoting Arizal’s celebrated comment on Deuteronomy 28:47); Shaarei Kedushah 2:4. See further: Likkutei Torah, Tazria 20c; Maamarei Admur Hazaken—5562, p. 77 ff. and p. 305.

(5) The faithful, however, is not indisposed by any afflictions whatsoever, and with respect to all mundane matters “yes” and “no” are all the same to him, in a true equation.19Cf. Tzavaat Harivash, beg., in comment on Psalms 16:8.

(6) But he to whom they are not the same shows of himself that he is of the erev rav20“Mixed multitude”—(Exodus 12:38), thus not of the truly faithful, the “believers, descendants of believers” (cf. also Zohar I:25a; 28b; et passim. who act but for themselves and loves himself to the extent of removing himself from under the hand of the L–rd and to live the life of heathens because of his self-love; that is why he desires the “life of the flesh” and “children and sustenance”—for that is his good.

(7) It would have been better for him had he not been created. For the purpose of man’s creation in this world is to test him by these trials, to ascertain what is in his heart:21Cf. Deuteronomy 8:2; II Chronicles 32:31. whether he will turn his heart toward the other gods, namely the passions of the body which evolve from the sitra achara, and desire these, or whether his desire and wish is to live the true life which evolves from the living G–d.22In the text here follows “though he is unable.” A gloss inserted in the text notes the ambiguity of this phrase and states that it does not appear in some manuscripts. There is another version, which reads “or whether his desire and wish—though he is unable—is to live the true life”—according to which that phrase is but parenthetical.

(8) One must believe that he really lives in it,23I.e., the “true life.” and all his needs, and everything related to himself, truly evolve in all their details [not from the sitra achara, but] “From the L–rd by whom the steps of man are established,”24Psalms 37:23. “and there is not a word…”25Psalms 139:4; see Midrash Tehillim, ad loc., and Bereishit Rabbah 9:3.; conclusively, everything is absolutely good, except that it is not apprehended.26Cf. Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 26.

(9) By believing this truly, everything becomes good even in appearance. For by such a faith, that one believes that the very substance of what manifestly seems to be evil is (in fact) of the Supreme Good [i.e., His wisdom, blessed be He, which is non-apprehensible and is the Eden which transcends the World to Come]; through this faith the imagined evil is truly absorbed and sublimated in the concealed Supreme Good.

(1) THIRTEEN. “How abundant is Your goodness which You have hidden for those who fear You….”1Psalms 1:20. The full verse reads: How abundant is Your good that You have hidden for those who fear You; in the presence of man, You have acted for those who take refuge in You.

(2) In the class of the “servants of the L–rd” there are two degrees and levels which, depending on the root of their souls above, are distinct in relation to the categories of the right2Chesed. and the left.3Gevurah.

(3) That is, the characteristic of the left is the trait of contraction (tzimtzum) and concealment in the service of the L–rd, as it is written: “and to walk secretly…”4Micah 6:8.; “in secret places cries…”5Jeremiah 13:17.; “whoever busies himself with Torah in secret….”6Cf. Jerusalem Talmud, Berachot 5:1 (Maimonides, Hilchot Talmud Torah 3:12); cf. also Moed Kattan 16b.

(4) From this attribute derives also the aspect of contraction (tzimtzum) and limitation in the service of G–d; for example, with charity—to judge according to the means, “and he who expends, should not expend more than one-fifth”;7Ketuvot 50a (cf. above, Epistle 10, note 36). and, likewise, regarding the study of Torah and the other commandments—he suffices in discharging his duty, the definite duty to which the Torah obliges him, “to appoint times….”8See the author’s Hilchot Talmud Torah 3:4 ff. and 4:6; cf. Tzemach Tzedek—Chidushim al Hashass on Peah 1:1. From it derives also what our Sages, of blessed memory, said9Ketuvot 103b.: “Cast a scare upon the pupils….”10This last sentence appears in the text after the following one, which would render the passage rather difficult. A parenthesis inserted in the text already notes this difficulty and suggests that it might belong here (as in our translation).

(5) On the other hand, the characteristic of the right is the attribute of grace (chesed) and extension in the service of G–d by way of expansion, without any contraction and concealment whatsoever, as it is written: “And I will walk in an expanse…,”11Psalms 119:45. without any contraction and limitation whatsoever. There is no restraint to the spirit12Par. Proverbs 25:28. of his generosity—whether it be with respect to charity, the study of Torah, or other commandments. He does not suffice in discharging his obligation only, but to the extent of “never sufficient….”

(6) Now, every one of Israel needs to comprise both these traits, for “there is no thing which does not have its place.”13Avot 4:3—Both chesed and gevurah are essential.

(7) Thus we find various matters that are of the leniencies of Bet Shammai and of the stringencies of Bet Hillel.14Eduyot ch. 4; 5:1-5; Oholot 11:3-6. This comes to teach us that Bet Shammai, the root of whose soul is of the category of the supernal left15Gevurah.—Zohar III:245a. See Shaar Hagilgulim, ch. 36.—[that is why they always decided stringently regarding all the prohibitions of the Torah; but Bet Hillel, who were of the supernal right,16Chesed.—See references in note 15 above. would find favorable arguments to be lenient and to permit the injunctions of Bet Shammai so that these should become muttarim17Permitted. from their issur18Prohibition.—That which is assur (bound) to the sitra achara. To be muttar (permitted) means to be muttar (released, free) from the sitra achara. See Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 7 and below, Epistle 26. and able to ascend upward. Nevertheless]—in several matters, even Bet Shammai are lenient. This is so because of the inclusiveness of their soul’s root, which compounds the right as well.

(8) And, likewise, the root of Bet Hillel’s soul compounds the left also. For, as known of the mode and attributes of the kodesh ha’elyon,19See above, Epistle 10, note 41. there is no cleavage and division there,20Zohar III:70a; also ibid., 83a and 109a. Heaven forfend, and all the traits compound each other. Thus, they are united one with the other,21See Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 6. as known to the students of Kabbalah.22The sefirot are not truly separate and distinct from each other; they proceed from, and succeed, each other. Thus we speak of chesed of chesed, gevurah of chesed, etc.; chesed of gevurah, gevurah of gevurah, etc. Cf. Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism. Thus it is written of Abraham, who is the attribute of chesed and love:23See above, Epistle 2, note 9, and see below, note 27. “Now I know that you are fearful of G–d”24Genesis 22:14.—for he had donned the attribute of gevurah25See Arizal, Likkutei Torah, Vayera (on this and the preceding passage), and cf. the commentary of Nachmanides on this verse, and Zohar I:119b. “and bound Isaac his son…and took the knife….”26Genesis 22:10, 11.

(9) As for Scripture stating “Abraham who loved Me,”27Isaiah 41:8—distinctly relating chesed to Abraham; see Pardes Rimonim 23:11, s.v. Ahavah. and “the Fright of Isaac,”28Genesis 31:42, distinctly relating gevurah to Isaac; see Pardes Rimonim 23:17, s.v. Pachad (cf. Zohar III:12b, 18a, and 302b). this difference and distinction is with respect to manifestation and concealment. In the attribute of Isaac, fright is in a state of manifestation, while love is hidden in a state of concealment and hiding. The opposite is with the trait of our father Abraham, peace be to him.

(10) And this is the meaning of what King David, peace be to him, said: “How abundant is Your goodness….” That is to say that the attribute of goodness and chesed, which is in a state of concealment and hiding with everyone the root of whose soul is of the category of the left, referred to as “those that fear You”29Cf. Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 16b; Mayim Rabbim 5636, ch. 49: “The gematria (numerical value) of yirah (awe; fear) is equivalent to that of gevurah.” [as is the trait of Bet Shammai], now, though this is a concealed and hidden goodness, it is nevertheless truly as abundant and immense as the attribute of gedulah30The term gedulah (greatness) denotes the Divine chesed; see Tikkunei Zohar 22 (67b); Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 4; Likkutei Torah, Ekev 17c ff.; Mayim Rabbim 5636, ch. 46 ff. and chesed, which is of the right, and both are of the category of a manifestation that is without limit, measure, and size.

(11) And this is the meaning of Scripture: “How abundant is Your goodness,”1 i.e., without limit and measure, whether it be the goodness “which You have hidden for those who fear You,” or that which “You have wrought for those who trust in You”—i.e., the hopeful who are of the category of the right,31Cf. Zohar II:120b. and whose kindness and goodness are also in a state of manifestation and expansion “before the children of man,” and by no means in a state of contraction and concealment.

(12) (32Brackets appear in the text.The reason it says “For those who fear You” rather than “In those who fear You” is because with every soul, whatever is in a state of concealment is not vested within the body in his mind and heart. It is, rather, in a state of “encompassing from above,” and from there it radiates to his mind and heart at those times when an arousal of this aspect becomes necessary, i.e., to be aroused and to illumine his mind and heart in order to result in a real act.)

(13) (The verse), therefore, says that whereas the “abundance of goodness of the House of Israel”33Isaiah 63:7. [that which is hidden and that which is manifest] is in a state of “without limit and measure” [according to the category of their soul vested in the body], therefore “You, too, O L–rd, treat them with the attribute of Your unlimited and infinitely great chesed which is called rav chesed.”

(14) For there are different types of chesed:34See above, Epistle 10, notes 6-9. there is chesed olam, the corresponding opposite of which is the attribute of din,35Judgment (identical with gevurah; see Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism). Heaven forfend, which36I.e., din. serves to diminish and contract His chesed and goodness. But the chesed elyon,37Supreme chesed. which is called rav chesed, does not have an attribute of din opposed to it [to diminish and contract the abundance of His grace from extending unlimited and infinitely]. It derives from the rank of sovev kol almin38Encompassing, i.e., transcending all worlds. and temira dechol temirin,39The most hidden of all hidden. called keter elyon.40Supreme keter.—See Zohar I:147a (Toss.); also Zohar II:42b and III:288b; Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 12a; cf. Pardes Rimonim 5:4. This, then, is the meaning of “You hide them in the covert of Your Countenance…You conceal them in a pavilion….”41Psalms 31:21.

(1) SEVENTEEN.1See see Igrot Kodesh Admur Hazaken (Kehot, 2012), pp. 374-375, for the opening paragraph of this section. It is known that an arousal from below, when man arouses in his heart the trait of kindness and compassion for all those in need of compassion, this elicits an arousal from above, i.e., an arousal of great compassion upon him from the source of compassion,2See above, Epistle 4, note 44. to effuse to him the “Fruits in this world, while the principal remains for the World to Come.”3The principal and the fruits of the good deeds.—Mishnah, Peah 1:1.

(2) This means: “the fruits” refers to the effluence effusing from the Source of compassion and Fountainhead of life,4Lit., The Life of life (cf. Yoma 71a; Tikkunei Zohar 19 (41b); ibid., 69 (115a); and see below, end of Epistle 22a). blessed is He. It issues netherward, in the mode of the evolution of the worlds from above downward…, until it vests itself in this world in children, life, and sustenance….5See above, Epistle 11, note 5.

(3) The “principal” is, as it is written: “Mitzvatecha (Your commandment) is very wide.”6Psalms 119:96. Now it should say mitzvotecha—in plural form!7Cf. Rashi, ad loc. (8Brackets appear in the text.The phraseology of “is wide” is also not comprehensible.)

(4) However, the express form of mitzvatecha refers to the precept of charity, which is truly the mitzvah of the L–rd, which the Holy One, blessed is He, Himself, in all His majesty, performs at all times by animating the worlds, and will do so in the future with exceeding uplifting and force.9Par. Genesis 49:3. And thus it is written:10Genesis 18:19. “And they shall observe the way of the L–rd, to do tzedakah….”11See Zohar III:113b. Metaphorically speaking, like a road on which one goes from one city to another,12Tzedakah is called the “way of the L–rd” because it is like a roadway that enables man to travel from one place to another. so, too, charity is a capacity for a manifestation and radiation of the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, which encompasses all worlds,13The or sovev, or or makif; see above, Epistle 3, note 12. so that in the future, at the Resurrection of the Dead, it will radiate, and become manifest, even to this world, through the arousal from below as an expression of charity and gratuitous kindness, [with an uplifting and force infinitely exceeding the state of manifestation of the radiation in the upper and lower Gardens of Eden]. For in the future all the souls of the tzaddikim, and of the Tannaim and the prophets that are now in the Higher Garden of Eden, at the peak of levels, will become vested in their bodies, and they will arise at the time of the resurrection to derive pleasure from the splendor of the Shechinah.

(5) That is, the manifestation and the radiation as it is in the Garden of Eden is of the level of memalei kol almin.14Permeating all worlds (thus the or pnimi); see above, Epistle 3, note 12. This is a level of the evolution from one rung to another by means of immense contractions,15This radiation of the Divine immence, the or pnimi, is an immensely screened derivative of the or makif, the radiation of the Divine transcendence. As the worlds develop from higher to lower, the or pnimi is contracted ever more. and as the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory: “The World to Come was created by the yud”16Menachot 29b.—See above, Epistle 5.—the sphere of the supreme chochmah,17Above, Epistle 5, note 16.—The yud, by its very form as a simple point, indicates the immense contraction of the Divine light contained in it. The or pnimi thus is related to the sefirah of chochmah (cf. above, Epistle 3, note 12). referred to as the upper Eden,18Ibid., note 17. and evolving and vesting itself in all the worlds, as it is written: “You have made them all with chochmah…”19Psalms 104:24. and “chochmah animates….”20Ecclesiastes 7:12.—See Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism, s.v. Chochmah (cf. above, beg. of Epistle 5; Epistle 11, note 10; Epistle 14, note 14). In the Garden of Eden (the sphere of chochmah) is in a state of manifest apprehension to each according to his measure.21See Zohar I:129b; ibid., 135b (Midrash Hane’elam). For as known, the delight of the souls in the Garden of Eden derives from the apprehension of the secrets of the Torah with which one busied oneself in this world with the revealed (parts of Torah) [as mentioned in the sacred Zohar, section Shelach,22See Zohar III:169b; cf. ibid., 159b ff. and in the Gemara23See Bava Metzia 86a. with reference to the occurrence with Rabbah bar Nachmeni].

(6) The manifestation of the radiation at the time of the resurrection, however, will be from the level of sovev kol almin,24“Encompassing all worlds,” thus the or makif; see above, Epistle 3, note 12. which is not in a state of contraction (tzimtzum), measure, and limit, but without limit and end [as the concept of sovev kol almin has been explained in Likkutei Amarim, ch. 48, not to be in its literal sense—like a circle, Heaven forfend, but only that it is not in a state of investment…, note there carefully].

(7) And this is the meaning of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “And their crowns on their heads, and they take delight….”25Berachot 17a; Maimonides, Hilchot Teshuvah 5:2. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar 36 (78a). A crown (atarah) is something that encompasses and encircles and is called keter 26Crown; garland. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar 70 (135a) on the subtle distinction between keter and atarah. [an idiom of koteret27Capitol.—See Etz Chaim 23:2 and cf. Pardes Rimonim 23:11, s.v. Keter. Cf. below, Epistle 29 (note 34, ad loc.).]. It is the aspect of the intermediary which joins the radiation of the Emanator, the En Sof, blessed is He, to the emanated,28See Etz Chaim 42:1; cf. Pardes Rimonim 3:1 ff.—See Addendum, ibid., s.v. Keter. and in the future it will radiate and become revealed in this world29The or makif thus is related to the sefirah of keter, transcending chochmah and its apprehension in Eden (cf. above, Epistle 3, note 12). to all the righteous who will rise with the resurrection (30Brackets appear in the text. “And Your people, they are all righteous…”31Isaiah 60:21.).

(8) And this is the meaning of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “In the future the righteous will be addressed as holy.”32Bava Batra 75b. Holy is a rank of being separated;33See above, Epistle 7, note 7. it is not subject to apprehension and knowledge, because it transcends the rank of the wisdom and knowledge which there is in the Garden of Eden.34Kadosh, holy, thus refers to keter, the sefirah which is separate and distinct from the sefirot transcending them all. (See Addendum, ibid.) Chochmah, in itself also distinct and inapprehensible (ibid.), is also referred to as “holy” (see above, Epistle 10, note 41). In that context keter is then called kodesh hakedoshim, the “holy of holies,” i.e., the essential, absolute holiness. See Zohar II:121a. Thus Scripture states: “Chochmah shall be found from ayin”35Job 28:12.—i.e., (from) the rank of the supreme keter36See Zohar II:42b; 121a; III:290a; and note following. which, in the sacred Zohar,37Zohar III:end of 256b; cf. also references cited above, note 36, and above, Epistle 11, note 11. is called ayin;38Naught; cf. above, Epistle 13, note 40. its effluence and radiation are in a state of manifestation only when [after the resurrection] the soul is vested in a pure and clear body. For “Their beginning is wedged—expressly—in their end,”39Sefer Yetzirah 1:7. and “The result of the act is first in thought…,”40Liturgy, Hymn of Lecha Dodi. as known.

(9) But it is impossible to reach this level until one has been first in the Garden of Eden, to apprehend the aspect of the supreme chochmah41In the text appears here (in brackets): etc. A parenthesis suggests instead: each one. according to his measure, and “the dew of Torah revives him”42Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 12a; ibid., 19 (38b) (see Ketuvot 111b; cf. Shabbat 88b; Chagigah 12b; et passim).—“And when you will awaken43At the Resurrection of the Dead. it44The Torah, which is called keter (cf. Avot 4:13, and below, Epistle 29). will speak for you…,”45Proverbs 6:22. Enabling man to reach a level he could not attain previously; Zohar I:185a; and Nitzutzei Orot, ad loc. Set also Zohar I:175b; and cf. Avot 6:9; Sotah 21a; Tikkunei Zohar 31 (75b-76a). and suffice it for the initiated.

(10) And this is the meaning of “mitzvatecha is very wide,” i.e., the precept of charity, which is a vessel and a very wide area in which the radiation from the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, is invested (46Brackets appear in the text.and as it is written: His garment is tzedakah47Piyut Atah Hu Elokenu (Machzor, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur).) which in the future will radiate without limit and end, because of the gratuitous kindness in the arousal from below, called “the way of the L–rd.” And that is the meaning of the phraseology “very (wide),” because it is without limit and end.48See Targum on Psalms 119:96; Eruvin 21a and Rashi, ad loc.

(11) But “To every tichlah I have seen an end”:49Beginning of the verse (Psalms 119:96). tichlah is an idiom of kalot hanefesh, the yearning of the soul in the Garden of Eden, for there it is in a mode of end, limit, and contraction, as mentioned above. And (the reason it says) “to every tichlah” is because there are numerous levels and rungs of Gan Eden, one higher than the other, to the topmost of levels,50See Zohar Chadash, Bereishit 18a. as mentioned in Likkutei Hashass by the Arizal,51See above, Epistle 5, note 103. in explanation of the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory: “Scholars (of Torah) have no rest…,”52Berachot 64a. because they rise constantly—from level to level—in the apprehension of the Torah, which had no end…, until after the resurrection, when they will have rest….

(1) SEVENTEEN.1See see Igrot Kodesh Admur Hazaken (Kehot, 2012), pp. 374-375, for the opening paragraph of this section. It is known that an arousal from below, when man arouses in his heart the trait of kindness and compassion for all those in need of compassion, this elicits an arousal from above, i.e., an arousal of great compassion upon him from the source of compassion,2See above, Epistle 4, note 44. to effuse to him the “Fruits in this world, while the principal remains for the World to Come.”3The principal and the fruits of the good deeds.—Mishnah, Peah 1:1.

(2) This means: “the fruits” refers to the effluence effusing from the Source of compassion and Fountainhead of life,4Lit., The Life of life (cf. Yoma 71a; Tikkunei Zohar 19 (41b); ibid., 69 (115a); and see below, end of Epistle 22a). blessed is He. It issues netherward, in the mode of the evolution of the worlds from above downward…, until it vests itself in this world in children, life, and sustenance….5See above, Epistle 11, note 5.

(3) The “principal” is, as it is written: “Mitzvatecha (Your commandment) is very wide.”6Psalms 119:96. Now it should say mitzvotecha—in plural form!7Cf. Rashi, ad loc. (8Brackets appear in the text.The phraseology of “is wide” is also not comprehensible.)

(4) However, the express form of mitzvatecha refers to the precept of charity, which is truly the mitzvah of the L–rd, which the Holy One, blessed is He, Himself, in all His majesty, performs at all times by animating the worlds, and will do so in the future with exceeding uplifting and force.9Par. Genesis 49:3. And thus it is written:10Genesis 18:19. “And they shall observe the way of the L–rd, to do tzedakah….”11See Zohar III:113b. Metaphorically speaking, like a road on which one goes from one city to another,12Tzedakah is called the “way of the L–rd” because it is like a roadway that enables man to travel from one place to another. so, too, charity is a capacity for a manifestation and radiation of the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, which encompasses all worlds,13The or sovev, or or makif; see above, Epistle 3, note 12. so that in the future, at the Resurrection of the Dead, it will radiate, and become manifest, even to this world, through the arousal from below as an expression of charity and gratuitous kindness, [with an uplifting and force infinitely exceeding the state of manifestation of the radiation in the upper and lower Gardens of Eden]. For in the future all the souls of the tzaddikim, and of the Tannaim and the prophets that are now in the Higher Garden of Eden, at the peak of levels, will become vested in their bodies, and they will arise at the time of the resurrection to derive pleasure from the splendor of the Shechinah.

(5) That is, the manifestation and the radiation as it is in the Garden of Eden is of the level of memalei kol almin.14Permeating all worlds (thus the or pnimi); see above, Epistle 3, note 12. This is a level of the evolution from one rung to another by means of immense contractions,15This radiation of the Divine immence, the or pnimi, is an immensely screened derivative of the or makif, the radiation of the Divine transcendence. As the worlds develop from higher to lower, the or pnimi is contracted ever more. and as the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory: “The World to Come was created by the yud”16Menachot 29b.—See above, Epistle 5.—the sphere of the supreme chochmah,17Above, Epistle 5, note 16.—The yud, by its very form as a simple point, indicates the immense contraction of the Divine light contained in it. The or pnimi thus is related to the sefirah of chochmah (cf. above, Epistle 3, note 12). referred to as the upper Eden,18Ibid., note 17. and evolving and vesting itself in all the worlds, as it is written: “You have made them all with chochmah…”19Psalms 104:24. and “chochmah animates….”20Ecclesiastes 7:12.—See Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism, s.v. Chochmah (cf. above, beg. of Epistle 5; Epistle 11, note 10; Epistle 14, note 14). In the Garden of Eden (the sphere of chochmah) is in a state of manifest apprehension to each according to his measure.21See Zohar I:129b; ibid., 135b (Midrash Hane’elam). For as known, the delight of the souls in the Garden of Eden derives from the apprehension of the secrets of the Torah with which one busied oneself in this world with the revealed (parts of Torah) [as mentioned in the sacred Zohar, section Shelach,22See Zohar III:169b; cf. ibid., 159b ff. and in the Gemara23See Bava Metzia 86a. with reference to the occurrence with Rabbah bar Nachmeni].

(6) The manifestation of the radiation at the time of the resurrection, however, will be from the level of sovev kol almin,24“Encompassing all worlds,” thus the or makif; see above, Epistle 3, note 12. which is not in a state of contraction (tzimtzum), measure, and limit, but without limit and end [as the concept of sovev kol almin has been explained in Likkutei Amarim, ch. 48, not to be in its literal sense—like a circle, Heaven forfend, but only that it is not in a state of investment…, note there carefully].

(7) And this is the meaning of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “And their crowns on their heads, and they take delight….”25Berachot 17a; Maimonides, Hilchot Teshuvah 5:2. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar 36 (78a). A crown (atarah) is something that encompasses and encircles and is called keter 26Crown; garland. Cf. Tikkunei Zohar 70 (135a) on the subtle distinction between keter and atarah. [an idiom of koteret27Capitol.—See Etz Chaim 23:2 and cf. Pardes Rimonim 23:11, s.v. Keter. Cf. below, Epistle 29 (note 34, ad loc.).]. It is the aspect of the intermediary which joins the radiation of the Emanator, the En Sof, blessed is He, to the emanated,28See Etz Chaim 42:1; cf. Pardes Rimonim 3:1 ff.—See Addendum, ibid., s.v. Keter. and in the future it will radiate and become revealed in this world29The or makif thus is related to the sefirah of keter, transcending chochmah and its apprehension in Eden (cf. above, Epistle 3, note 12). to all the righteous who will rise with the resurrection (30Brackets appear in the text. “And Your people, they are all righteous…”31Isaiah 60:21.).

(8) And this is the meaning of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “In the future the righteous will be addressed as holy.”32Bava Batra 75b. Holy is a rank of being separated;33See above, Epistle 7, note 7. it is not subject to apprehension and knowledge, because it transcends the rank of the wisdom and knowledge which there is in the Garden of Eden.34Kadosh, holy, thus refers to keter, the sefirah which is separate and distinct from the sefirot transcending them all. (See Addendum, ibid.) Chochmah, in itself also distinct and inapprehensible (ibid.), is also referred to as “holy” (see above, Epistle 10, note 41). In that context keter is then called kodesh hakedoshim, the “holy of holies,” i.e., the essential, absolute holiness. See Zohar II:121a. Thus Scripture states: “Chochmah shall be found from ayin”35Job 28:12.—i.e., (from) the rank of the supreme keter36See Zohar II:42b; 121a; III:290a; and note following. which, in the sacred Zohar,37Zohar III:end of 256b; cf. also references cited above, note 36, and above, Epistle 11, note 11. is called ayin;38Naught; cf. above, Epistle 13, note 40. its effluence and radiation are in a state of manifestation only when [after the resurrection] the soul is vested in a pure and clear body. For “Their beginning is wedged—expressly—in their end,”39Sefer Yetzirah 1:7. and “The result of the act is first in thought…,”40Liturgy, Hymn of Lecha Dodi. as known.

(9) But it is impossible to reach this level until one has been first in the Garden of Eden, to apprehend the aspect of the supreme chochmah41In the text appears here (in brackets): etc. A parenthesis suggests instead: each one. according to his measure, and “the dew of Torah revives him”42Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 12a; ibid., 19 (38b) (see Ketuvot 111b; cf. Shabbat 88b; Chagigah 12b; et passim).—“And when you will awaken43At the Resurrection of the Dead. it44The Torah, which is called keter (cf. Avot 4:13, and below, Epistle 29). will speak for you…,”45Proverbs 6:22. Enabling man to reach a level he could not attain previously; Zohar I:185a; and Nitzutzei Orot, ad loc. Set also Zohar I:175b; and cf. Avot 6:9; Sotah 21a; Tikkunei Zohar 31 (75b-76a). and suffice it for the initiated.

(10) And this is the meaning of “mitzvatecha is very wide,” i.e., the precept of charity, which is a vessel and a very wide area in which the radiation from the light of the En Sof, blessed is He, is invested (46Brackets appear in the text.and as it is written: His garment is tzedakah47Piyut Atah Hu Elokenu (Machzor, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur).) which in the future will radiate without limit and end, because of the gratuitous kindness in the arousal from below, called “the way of the L–rd.” And that is the meaning of the phraseology “very (wide),” because it is without limit and end.48See Targum on Psalms 119:96; Eruvin 21a and Rashi, ad loc.

(11) But “To every tichlah I have seen an end”:49Beginning of the verse (Psalms 119:96). tichlah is an idiom of kalot hanefesh, the yearning of the soul in the Garden of Eden, for there it is in a mode of end, limit, and contraction, as mentioned above. And (the reason it says) “to every tichlah” is because there are numerous levels and rungs of Gan Eden, one higher than the other, to the topmost of levels,50See Zohar Chadash, Bereishit 18a. as mentioned in Likkutei Hashass by the Arizal,51See above, Epistle 5, note 103. in explanation of the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory: “Scholars (of Torah) have no rest…,”52Berachot 64a. because they rise constantly—from level to level—in the apprehension of the Torah, which had no end…, until after the resurrection, when they will have rest….

(1) Now, the name Elokim is the name which indicates the attribute of gevurah and tzimtzum, hence it is also numerically equal to hateva1The numerical value of each word is 86. Pardes, Shaar 12, ch. 2. See also Shaloh, Shaar HaOtiot, 89a. (nature), for it [Elokim] conceals the supernal light which brings the world into existence and gives it life, and it appears as though the world exists and conducts itself in a natural way.2I.e., according to fixed, immutable laws, in no way dependent upon or influenced by anything supernatural. Divinity is not readily evident in nature. And this name Elokim is a shield and a covering for the name Havaya, to conceal the light and life-force which flows from the name Havaya and brings creation into existence from naught, so that it [the light and life-force] should not be revealed to the creatures, who thereby would become absolutely nullified.3Since the light and life-force is too abundant and powerful for finite creatures to exist without its concealment and contraction.

(2) This quality of gevurah and tzimtzum is also a quality of chesed for through it [tzimtzum and gevurah] the world is built. And this is the quality of gevurah which is included in chesed.

(3) From the inclusion of the attributes one in the other, it is evident that “He and His attributes are One,” for since they are in a complete unity with Him, they therefore unite with each other and are comprised of each other.4The attributes, or sefirot, are interconnected with each other and function harmoniously together. They are also mutually inclusive—each attribute contains all the others—and are differentiated only by the predominance of the particular quality which gives each its name. Cf. Pardes, Shaar 8, ch. 2. As Elijah said, “You are He who binds [the attributes] together and unites them…; and aside from You there is no unity among those above….”5Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction.

(4) This, then, is the meaning of that which is written “And take to your heart that Havaya is Elokim”6Deuteronomy 4:39. Here follows the answer to the question raised above, beginning of ch. 1.—that is, these two names are actually one, for even the name Elokim, which contracts and conceals the light, is a quality of chesed, just as the name Havaya. For the attributes of the Holy One, blessed is He, unite with Him in a complete unity, and “He and His Name are One,”7Cf. Zohar II:19b. for His attributes are His Names.8The attributes correspond to the specific Names of G–d, namely—Havaya corresponds to kindness and mercy, Elokim to might, Ad-nay to sovereignty, etc. Cf. Zohar III:10b, 11a.

(5) Since this is so, you will consequently know that “In the heavens above and on the earth below, en od—there is nothing else [besides G–d].”9Deuteronomy, ibid. Thus, the unity of G–d does not mean only that there are no other gods, but that there is nothing apart from Him, i.e., there is no existence whatsoever apart from His existence; the whole Creation is nullified within Him as the rays of the sun within the orb of the sun. This is the meaning of yichudah ilaah (higher level Unity), which will be further explained in ch. 7, below. This means that even the material earth, which appears to the eyes of all to be actually existing, is naught and complete nothingness in relation to the Holy One, blessed is He. For the name Elokim conceals and contracts [the light and life-force] only for the lower [creatures], but not for the Holy One, blessed is He, since He and His Name Elokim are One. Therefore, even the earth and that which is below it are naught and complete nothingness in relation to the Holy One, blessed is He, and are not called by any name at all, not even the name od (else) which is an expression indicating a secondary, subordinate status, as the statement of our Sages of blessed memory, “Yehudah v’od likrah,”10Kiddushin 6a. In English: “Does a verse in the Torah require additional or secondary substantiation from the customs of the Land of Judah?” [unlike] the body which is subordinate to the soul and life-force within it [and is referred to as od]. [And this is the meaning of the verse: “I will praise Havaya with my life (soul) and will sing to Elokim be’odi”11Psalms 146:3. (with my body). For the soul is derived from the name Havaya and the od, which is the body, the subordinate (of the soul), from the name Elokim.]12Brackets are the author’s. For the soul does not bring the body into existence ex nihilo, [hence it can be called od in relation to the soul], but the Holy One, blessed is He, Who brings everything into existence ex nihilo—everything is absolutely nullified in relation to Him, just as the light of the sun [is nullified] in the sun.

(6) Therefore, it was necessary for Scripture to warn, “And know this day and take to your heart…,” 13Deuteronomy, ibid. so that it should not enter your mind that the heavens and all their host and the earth and all therein are separate entities in themselves, and that the Holy One, blessed is He, fills the whole world—in the same way as the soul is invested in the body, causing the flow of the vegetative force into the earth, and the force of motion into the celestial spheres, moving them and directing them according to His Will—just as the soul moves the body and directs it according to its will.

(7) In truth, however, the analogy bears no similarity whatsoever to the object of comparison since the soul and the body are actually separate from each other in their very sources. The source of the body and its essence comes into being not from the soul, but from the seed of his father and mother, and even afterward, his growth is not from the soul alone, but through his mother’s eating and drinking all the nine months [of gestation], and subsequently through his own eating and drinking. This is not so, however, in the case of heaven and earth, for their very being and essence was brought into existence from naught and absolute nothingness, solely through the “word of G–d” and the “breath of His mouth,” blessed be He. And the word of G–d still stands forever [in all created things], and flows into them continuously at every instant and continuously brings them into existence from nothing, just as, for example, the coming into existence of the light from the sun within the very globe of the sun. Hence, in reality, they [heaven and earth] are completely nullified in relation to the “word of G–d” and the “breath of His mouth,” blessed be He, which are unified with His Essence and Being, blessed be He, as will be explained later,14Below, ch. 7. just as the light of the sun is nullified in the sun.

(8) Yet these are His restraining powers, to hide and conceal, through the attribute of gevurah and tzimtzum, the life-force which flows into them, so that heaven and earth and all their hosts should appear as if they were independently existing entities. However, the tzimtzum and concealment is only for the lower [worlds], but in relation to the Holy One, blessed is He, “everything before Him is considered as actually naught,”15Zohar I:11b. just as the light of the sun in the sun. And the attribute of gevurah does not, Heaven forfend, conceal for Him, blessed be He, for it is not an independent entity—since Havaya is Elokim.

(1) THIRTEEN. “How abundant is Your goodness which You have hidden for those who fear You….”1Psalms 1:20. The full verse reads: How abundant is Your good that You have hidden for those who fear You; in the presence of man, You have acted for those who take refuge in You.

(2) In the class of the “servants of the L–rd” there are two degrees and levels which, depending on the root of their souls above, are distinct in relation to the categories of the right2Chesed. and the left.3Gevurah.

(3) That is, the characteristic of the left is the trait of contraction (tzimtzum) and concealment in the service of the L–rd, as it is written: “and to walk secretly…”4Micah 6:8.; “in secret places cries…”5Jeremiah 13:17.; “whoever busies himself with Torah in secret….”6Cf. Jerusalem Talmud, Berachot 5:1 (Maimonides, Hilchot Talmud Torah 3:12); cf. also Moed Kattan 16b.

(4) From this attribute derives also the aspect of contraction (tzimtzum) and limitation in the service of G–d; for example, with charity—to judge according to the means, “and he who expends, should not expend more than one-fifth”;7Ketuvot 50a (cf. above, Epistle 10, note 36). and, likewise, regarding the study of Torah and the other commandments—he suffices in discharging his duty, the definite duty to which the Torah obliges him, “to appoint times….”8See the author’s Hilchot Talmud Torah 3:4 ff. and 4:6; cf. Tzemach Tzedek—Chidushim al Hashass on Peah 1:1. From it derives also what our Sages, of blessed memory, said9Ketuvot 103b.: “Cast a scare upon the pupils….”10This last sentence appears in the text after the following one, which would render the passage rather difficult. A parenthesis inserted in the text already notes this difficulty and suggests that it might belong here (as in our translation).

(5) On the other hand, the characteristic of the right is the attribute of grace (chesed) and extension in the service of G–d by way of expansion, without any contraction and concealment whatsoever, as it is written: “And I will walk in an expanse…,”11Psalms 119:45. without any contraction and limitation whatsoever. There is no restraint to the spirit12Par. Proverbs 25:28. of his generosity—whether it be with respect to charity, the study of Torah, or other commandments. He does not suffice in discharging his obligation only, but to the extent of “never sufficient….”

(6) Now, every one of Israel needs to comprise both these traits, for “there is no thing which does not have its place.”13Avot 4:3—Both chesed and gevurah are essential.

(7) Thus we find various matters that are of the leniencies of Bet Shammai and of the stringencies of Bet Hillel.14Eduyot ch. 4; 5:1-5; Oholot 11:3-6. This comes to teach us that Bet Shammai, the root of whose soul is of the category of the supernal left15Gevurah.—Zohar III:245a. See Shaar Hagilgulim, ch. 36.—[that is why they always decided stringently regarding all the prohibitions of the Torah; but Bet Hillel, who were of the supernal right,16Chesed.—See references in note 15 above. would find favorable arguments to be lenient and to permit the injunctions of Bet Shammai so that these should become muttarim17Permitted. from their issur18Prohibition.—That which is assur (bound) to the sitra achara. To be muttar (permitted) means to be muttar (released, free) from the sitra achara. See Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 7 and below, Epistle 26. and able to ascend upward. Nevertheless]—in several matters, even Bet Shammai are lenient. This is so because of the inclusiveness of their soul’s root, which compounds the right as well.

(8) And, likewise, the root of Bet Hillel’s soul compounds the left also. For, as known of the mode and attributes of the kodesh ha’elyon,19See above, Epistle 10, note 41. there is no cleavage and division there,20Zohar III:70a; also ibid., 83a and 109a. Heaven forfend, and all the traits compound each other. Thus, they are united one with the other,21See Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 6. as known to the students of Kabbalah.22The sefirot are not truly separate and distinct from each other; they proceed from, and succeed, each other. Thus we speak of chesed of chesed, gevurah of chesed, etc.; chesed of gevurah, gevurah of gevurah, etc. Cf. Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism. Thus it is written of Abraham, who is the attribute of chesed and love:23See above, Epistle 2, note 9, and see below, note 27. “Now I know that you are fearful of G–d”24Genesis 22:14.—for he had donned the attribute of gevurah25See Arizal, Likkutei Torah, Vayera (on this and the preceding passage), and cf. the commentary of Nachmanides on this verse, and Zohar I:119b. “and bound Isaac his son…and took the knife….”26Genesis 22:10, 11.

(9) As for Scripture stating “Abraham who loved Me,”27Isaiah 41:8—distinctly relating chesed to Abraham; see Pardes Rimonim 23:11, s.v. Ahavah. and “the Fright of Isaac,”28Genesis 31:42, distinctly relating gevurah to Isaac; see Pardes Rimonim 23:17, s.v. Pachad (cf. Zohar III:12b, 18a, and 302b). this difference and distinction is with respect to manifestation and concealment. In the attribute of Isaac, fright is in a state of manifestation, while love is hidden in a state of concealment and hiding. The opposite is with the trait of our father Abraham, peace be to him.

(10) And this is the meaning of what King David, peace be to him, said: “How abundant is Your goodness….” That is to say that the attribute of goodness and chesed, which is in a state of concealment and hiding with everyone the root of whose soul is of the category of the left, referred to as “those that fear You”29Cf. Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 16b; Mayim Rabbim 5636, ch. 49: “The gematria (numerical value) of yirah (awe; fear) is equivalent to that of gevurah.” [as is the trait of Bet Shammai], now, though this is a concealed and hidden goodness, it is nevertheless truly as abundant and immense as the attribute of gedulah30The term gedulah (greatness) denotes the Divine chesed; see Tikkunei Zohar 22 (67b); Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 4; Likkutei Torah, Ekev 17c ff.; Mayim Rabbim 5636, ch. 46 ff. and chesed, which is of the right, and both are of the category of a manifestation that is without limit, measure, and size.

(11) And this is the meaning of Scripture: “How abundant is Your goodness,”1 i.e., without limit and measure, whether it be the goodness “which You have hidden for those who fear You,” or that which “You have wrought for those who trust in You”—i.e., the hopeful who are of the category of the right,31Cf. Zohar II:120b. and whose kindness and goodness are also in a state of manifestation and expansion “before the children of man,” and by no means in a state of contraction and concealment.

(12) (32Brackets appear in the text.The reason it says “For those who fear You” rather than “In those who fear You” is because with every soul, whatever is in a state of concealment is not vested within the body in his mind and heart. It is, rather, in a state of “encompassing from above,” and from there it radiates to his mind and heart at those times when an arousal of this aspect becomes necessary, i.e., to be aroused and to illumine his mind and heart in order to result in a real act.)

(13) (The verse), therefore, says that whereas the “abundance of goodness of the House of Israel”33Isaiah 63:7. [that which is hidden and that which is manifest] is in a state of “without limit and measure” [according to the category of their soul vested in the body], therefore “You, too, O L–rd, treat them with the attribute of Your unlimited and infinitely great chesed which is called rav chesed.”

(14) For there are different types of chesed:34See above, Epistle 10, notes 6-9. there is chesed olam, the corresponding opposite of which is the attribute of din,35Judgment (identical with gevurah; see Addendum, Mystical Concepts in Chassidism). Heaven forfend, which36I.e., din. serves to diminish and contract His chesed and goodness. But the chesed elyon,37Supreme chesed. which is called rav chesed, does not have an attribute of din opposed to it [to diminish and contract the abundance of His grace from extending unlimited and infinitely]. It derives from the rank of sovev kol almin38Encompassing, i.e., transcending all worlds. and temira dechol temirin,39The most hidden of all hidden. called keter elyon.40Supreme keter.—See Zohar I:147a (Toss.); also Zohar II:42b and III:288b; Tikkunei Zohar, Introduction 12a; cf. Pardes Rimonim 5:4. This, then, is the meaning of “You hide them in the covert of Your Countenance…You conceal them in a pavilion….”41Psalms 31:21.

(1) “You shall reprove your comrade”1Leviticus 19:17.—even one hundred times.2Bava Metzia 31a.

(2) Therefore I cannot contain myself and refrain from crying out again, in a voice betraying weakness.3Exodus 32:18. I plead with you, out of deep compassion, have mercy on your souls. Take care, be painstaking to an extreme concerning Torah and the service of the heart, which is prayer4Taanit 2a. with kavanah, proper intention. All should begin in unison, as one, word by word, not one here and another elsewhere, one mute and the other idly chatting—may G–d protect us.

(3) The main cause and instigator of damage comes from those leading the services. That office is abandoned to whoever wishes to stride forth and seize the honor, or because not even one desires it….

(4) For this reason, this is the counsel offered, and an amendment established as law not to be violated further, G–d forbid. That is, select specified people fit for this office, by lot or by consent of the majority of the worshippers. These shall be men who pray word by word, moderately, out loud, neither overly prolonging the prayers nor racing intemperately, G–d forbid.

(5) Theirs is the duty to lead the services, each on his day as determined. He shall assemble close around him all those who pray at least with some voice, not whispering nor rushing, G–d forbid. This is amplified in ancient amendments in many cities.

(6) I come now to renew them, to strengthen and invigorate them, never again to be weakened, G–d forbid. (Gevald! Gevald!)5An exclamation of anguish. These two words appeared in the original manuscript written by Rabbi Schneur Zalman. How long will this be an obstacle for us!6Exodus 10:7. Have we not sufficient reproofs and troubles that have overtaken us!—may G–d protect and console us with twofold salvation,7Cf. Job 11:6. and purify our hearts to serve Him in truth.8Liturgy, Shabbat Amidah. Strengthen and fortify your hearts, all who hope in G–d.9Psalms 31:25.

(7) Also: complete the entire Talmud every single year and in every community by apportioning the tractates by lot or by consent. In a city with numerous synagogues, each congregation shall complete (the Talmud). If a congregation is too small to implement (this program), they shall join to themselves men of some large congregation. This statute shall not be varied or violated. Each of the participants shall individually conclude Psalm 119 weekly.

(8) Since, due to the frailty of the generation, not everyone is capable of fasting as he ought,10See Iggeret Hateshuvah, ch. 2 and 3. the counsel offered is the declaration of our Sages, of blessed memory, “Whoever observes Shabbat according to its halachah (law) is forgiven all his sins.”11Shabbat 118b. Note, according to its law. Therefore it is incumbent upon every individual to master the major law of Shabbat.12Shabbat 12a. The term is used there in reference to the admonition to examine one’s clothing regularly on Shabbat to ensure against unwittingly carrying.

(9) Also, be most careful not to indulge in idle chatter, G–d forbid.

(10) For it is known to the students of Kabbalah that in all mitzvot there are the internal and the external aspects. The externality of Shabbat is the cessation of physical labor, just as G–d ceased making physical heaven and earth.

(11) The internal aspect of Shabbat is the kavanah (intention) in the Shabbat prayers and Torah study, to cleave to the One G–d, as it is said, “It is Shabbat to the L–rd your G–d.”13Exodus 20:10; Deuteronomy 5:14. This is the state of “Remember.”14“Remember” appears in the Exodus text of the Ten Commandments, and “Observe” in the Deuteronomy text, in the Shabbat commandment.

(12) The state of “Observe” in the inwardness (of Shabbat) is refraining from speech about material affairs, as G–d ceased from the Ten Utterances15Avot 5:1; see Likkutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 11 and Iggeret Hateshuvah, ch. 4 ff. through which physical heaven and earth were created. For one is opposite the other….16Ecclesiastes 7:14; see Likkutei Amarim, Part I, ch. 6, note 1.