The blessing and the curse are formed for a person according to the vessel he possesses. The Torah has two powers: to cause death and to give life, as the Sages taught concerning “You shall place them”: if he merits, it becomes an elixir of life for him, and so forth (Yoma 72b). Everything accords with his vessel—that is, with his apprehension and the apprehension of his mochin.

Thus it is written: “See, I set before you today a blessing and a curse” (Deuteronomy 11:26). Specifically “before you”: from before the Holy One, blessed be He, a simple light issues—that is, simple letters—and the combination is formed according to the person. If he is a good person, a combination of blessing is formed; if not, the reverse. This is specifically “before you, a blessing and a curse,” for before Hashem the combination has not yet assumed a form determining whether it is a blessing or otherwise. (Likutay Moharan I 36)

Within everything in the world, as a result of the sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge, the human ruach—which is the aspect of holy awareness—became intermingled with the animal ruach, the aspect of the imaginative faculty, from which all animalistic desires are drawn. This is the principal rectification of holy eating: to merit refining through it the human ruach from the animal ruach, and refining the good from the evil, which is the aspect of the imaginative faculty.

The refinement occurs principally through joy. One must therefore eat with joy, as it is written: “Go, eat your bread with joy” (Ecclesiastes 9:7). Eating is principally rectified and refined through joy, by which the imaginative faculty is refined. This is the aspect of offerings: the Levi’im conducted the song upon the platform while the offering was brought. The offering principally refines the human ruach, a good ruach, from the animal ruach; this is accomplished through song and melody.

This is the aspect of “You shall rejoice in all your undertakings” (Deuteronomy 12:7), which is stated concerning the offerings brought on the festival. It is likewise the aspect of what our Sages, of blessed memory, taught: there is no joy except through the meat of an animal from which offerings are brought (Pesachim 109a). There lies the principal aspect of joy, for animality—the imaginative faculty—is principally refined through joy and melody. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Treifoas 2:2)

This is the aspect of the prohibition against a limb from a living animal. Slaughter is performed only at the neck, for slaughter serves to subdue the power of animality and elevate the soul from the animate level to the speaking level. One must therefore slaughter specifically at the neck—the windpipe, esophagus, and veins, which are adjacent to the instruments of speech. Slaughter is rectified specifically through them, for souls depart through that place, in the aspect of “My soul departed when he spoke” (Song of Songs 5:6). All the blood gathers there at the time of slaughter, for that is its place of departure; “the soul is in the blood” (Leviticus 17:11), and the souls depart and ascend through there.

Because the soul is principally situated there and vitality depends upon that place, the klipoas take hold there most strongly. The windpipe, esophagus, and veins are the aspect of “Pharaoh’s three officers” (Likutay Torah, Parshas Vayeishev), who stand there to draw nourishment from speech and the soul, which continually emerge through that place, in the aspect of “My soul departed,” and so forth. This applies particularly to an animal, whose souls are the aspect of oppressed souls that descended and fell from their level, from the speaking level to the animate level, and were deprived of speech, for an animal lacks the power of speech. Pharaoh’s three officers—the three klipoas described above—are therefore present in an animal with greater force and intensity.

The aspect of speech—the aspect of the souls—is held captive by them. The animal ruach, which is the aspect of the klipoas described above, intensifies there and subjugates the soul, the aspect of speech, until the soul descends completely from its level, from the speaking level to the animate level. One must therefore slaughter at the neck—cutting the windpipe, esophagus, and veins—in order to subdue Pharaoh’s three officers. All the bloods, which are the souls, then gather and emerge through that place, departing and ascending from the animate level to the speaking level through the blessing and the slaughtering knife.

Therefore, as long as the animal has not been slaughtered at the neck, even if a limb is cut from it with a knife, the power of animality is not subdued and the soul does not depart through that place. The soul departs only through those three organs, in the aspect of “My soul departed,” and so forth; the klipoas are subdued there, for they take hold at the location of the soul’s principal vitality. Consequently, one who eats a limb from a living animal, God forbid, eats the soul together with the flesh, since the limb’s soul and vitality still remain within it. Every limb draws vitality to itself, and vitality and souls depart from the limbs only through the place of slaughter. The soul desires to depart through there because there it is rectified and ascends from the animate level to the speaking level. But when a limb is cut elsewhere, the reverse occurs: the limb draws vitality to itself, and the vitality—which is the soul—remains within it and does not depart.

The Torah therefore prohibited: “You shall not eat the soul with the flesh” (Deuteronomy 12:23). Flesh becomes fit and permitted for consumption only after the soul departs from it; but the soul itself may not be consumed and destroyed. It follows that one who eats a limb from a living animal, God forbid, is literally a murderer, for he kills the soul. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of a Limb from a Living Animal 1:1)

It is taught in the chapter “Those Who Are Strangled”: Rabbi Yose HaGelili says that the Torah fathomed the ultimate mentality of idolatry; the Torah therefore granted it power, so that even if a prophet causes the sun to stand in the middle of the heavens, you must not heed him (Sanhedrin 90a). Rashi explains: “The Torah granted it power”—that is, even if you see that prophet exercise dominion and act according to his will, as it is written: “He gives you a sign or a wonder” (Deuteronomy 13:2). These are his words. All this pertains to the extraordinary extent of the power of free choice; understand this well.

The power of free choice principally exists because Hashem, blessed be He, concealed and hid His will behind great concealments and obscurities, and made everything depend upon human ratzoan, in the aspect of “He gave the earth to mankind” (Psalms 115:16). That is, Hashem entrusted free choice to the person, and a person is led along the path he desires to follow (Makkos 10b). Just as a person possesses the power to break his desires, flee from evil, and do good, he likewise possesses the opposite power: to follow the stubbornness of his heart and intensify such evil desires that, as it were, he compels His will, blessed be He, to fulfill his craving and evil desire.

Thus we see a person yearning intensely, with powerful ratzoan, for a holy matter—to travel to Eretz Yisrael, to the tzaddik, or the like—while encountering numerous and immense obstacles, so that the matter is almost impossible and beyond the natural course. Nevertheless, he can prevail with such powerful desire and such strong ratzoan and longing that Hashem, blessed be He, fulfills his will and arranges matters for him through wondrous paths and extraordinary providence beyond the natural course, until he merits bringing his good intention from potential into actuality.

But “God made this corresponding to that” (Ecclesiastes 7:14). One who pursues a sin, God forbid, or travels great distances deliberately to destroy his soul by studying external disciplines of wisdom or the like, may likewise face numerous and immense obstacles, so that the matter is almost impossible and contrary to the natural course. Yet he intensifies his wickedness with such powerful ratzoan that Hashem, blessed be He, arranges matters until he reaches that place. All this results from the greatness of free choice, for a person is led along the path he desires to follow.

Everyone can understand the distinction. The entire foundation of an upright person’s intention and ratzoan is the true, eternal purpose: to separate from the desires of this transient and perishable world and fulfill His will, blessed be He, which is the principal purpose. Hashem performs wonders for him to fulfill his ratzoan, and he is then certainly fortunate in this world and the World to Come. The opposite person, however, directs his entire intention and ratzoan toward the desires of this world and the stubbornness of his evil heart; through this he descends into the pit of destruction, and his end is utter ruin.

This is also what our Sages, of blessed memory, taught: “Light” refers to the deeds of the tzaddikim; “darkness” refers to the deeds of the wicked. I would still not know which of them He desires; therefore Scripture states: “God saw that the light was good” (Genesis 1:4; Bereishis Rabbah 3). The wicked transform darkness into light and light into darkness, falsehood into truth and truth into falsehood, until it becomes impossible to know which Hashem, blessed be He, desires. Scripture therefore states: “God saw that the light was good.” Our Sages taught there that He saw the world was unworthy of using this light, so He arose and concealed it for the tzaddikim in the future. One who wishes to know which path and deeds Hashem desires must draw near to the true tzaddikim, for the good light is concealed with them. He should follow their paths and consider his eternal purpose from his beginning to his end, from youth to old age; he will then know the truth concerning which Hashem, blessed be He, desires.

See also Sanhedrin, in the chapter “The Four Death Penalties”: “One who inquires of the dead” (Deuteronomy 18:11) is one who starves himself, and so forth. When Rabbi Akiva reached this verse, he would weep: if one who starves himself so that a spirit of impurity should rest upon him has a spirit of impurity rest upon him, then all the more so should this be true of one who starves himself so that a spirit of purity should rest upon him. But what can I do? Our sins have caused this for us, as it is stated: “Your iniquities separated between you and your God” (Isaiah 59:2; Sanhedrin 65b). (Likutay Halachos, Laws of the Morning Blessings 5:78–79; following Otzar HaYirah, “Awe and Divine Service,” 9)

Specifically adjacent to this mitzvah, Scripture calls them “children,” for the two depend upon one another, and this is the reason for the mitzvah. Hashem, blessed be He, says to Israel: “You are children of Hashem your God”; therefore, “You shall not cut yourselves or make a bald spot between your eyes for the dead” (Deuteronomy 14:1). One must believe that death is truly an exceedingly great good, specifically through which one can merit attaining the aspect of a child.

The decree of death principally serves to nullify and wear away in the dust the contamination of the aspect of a servant, so that in the future we merit rising in the resurrection with a purified body. We will then merit the aspect of a child, like a child who searches through his father’s treasuries, for we will then merit recognizing Him, blessed be He, in the aspect of the Essential Name. The verse cited above is therefore joined in a wondrous and precise connection. Specifically because Israel is truly called children, the aspect of “You are children of Hashem your God,” therefore “You shall not cut yourselves,” and so forth; for death is a great good through which one can merit attaining the aspect of a child in perfection. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of the Morning Blessings 3:45)

Because we are a holy people, we must continually subdue and break the side of death, which is the sitra achara. One must therefore carefully guard memory—that is, attach one’s thought to the World to Come—which is the aspect of memory, as brought in the teaching “And It Was at the End” (Likutay Moharan I 54). The World to Come is the place of life, as is known, the opposite of forgetfulness, which is the side of death, as explained there, in the aspect of “I was forgotten from the heart like the dead” (Psalms 31:13).

Memory is principally perfected through forgetfulness: forgetting from the heart all affairs of this world that lie outside the World to Come. All evil desires and evil traits must be made forgotten from the heart and not remembered at all, in the aspect of “Forget your people and your father’s house” (Psalms 45:11). Memory then attains perfection, and one can attach one’s thought to the World to Come. As long as a person remembers this world and does not forget it, he is certainly distant from the aspect of memory and cannot attach his thought to the World to Come; for this world and the World to Come are two things, each the opposite of the other, as is known.

The general principle is that we must distance the sitra achara, the side of death, so that it does not draw nourishment from holiness. All affairs of this world that lie outside holiness and the World to Come—which belong to the sitra achara, the side of death and the aspect of forgetfulness—must be forgotten completely from the heart and not remembered at all. As long as a person remembers them, holy memory—attaching one’s thought to the World to Come—is impaired. Remembering forgetfulness, meaning remembering what should be forgotten, that which lies outside the World to Come, is the blemish and fall of holy memory. Through this one gives power and vitality to the sitra achara, God forbid: he draws memory, the source of life, toward its opposite, the place of forgetfulness and the side of death.

One must therefore forget forgetfulness—all affairs of this world that lie outside holiness, which are entirely aspects of the side of death and forgetfulness—in order to return them to their place: to the place from which they came they must go. They all came from forgetfulness and must therefore be returned there by forgetting and not remembering them. True memory, holy memory, is then properly rectified.

We are therefore commanded not to grieve excessively for the dead, so as not to draw the side of death, God forbid. One must remove the deceased from one’s mind and forget him, for the aspect of forgetfulness must be forgotten. Instead, one must do precisely the opposite: attach one’s thought to the World to Come, the aspect of memory and the place of life. When one attaches one’s thought there, one will consequently not grieve for the deceased. Why should one grieve? On the contrary, he has now departed from temporal life and attained eternal life in the World to Come.

The nations are distant from holiness and the World to Come, for they belong to the sitra achara and the side of death. They therefore seek to intensify the sitra achara, God forbid, making bald spots and cutting themselves for their dead so that the deceased will remain remembered by them and not be forgotten. Through this they seek to draw and intensify the side of death, drawing memory into the place of forgetfulness. We are commanded and warned against this, for we must guard holy memory: attaching thought to the World to Come, the place of life, and forgetting the aspect of forgetfulness.

The principal prohibition is against making a bald spot for the dead or cutting oneself, namely tattooing. They would cut themselves and make a bald spot upon their heads for their dead in order to blemish the memory located in the head, for memory is in the brain, and to intensify the side of death there, God forbid. They made a mark there to remember the deceased, which is the blemish of memory—drawing memory into the place of forgetfulness. The bald spot is made by tearing out the hair of the head, for hair is the surplus of the mochin and an aspect of sovereignty, as brought in the teaching “The Plain of the Knife” (Likutay Moharan I 30). There the sitra achara and the side of death principally intensify, in the aspect of “Her feet descend to death” (Proverbs 5:5). This is why it is stated: “You are children of Hashem your God”—specifically “of Hashem your God,” the aspect of the World to Come, to which one must attach one’s thought; therefore, “You shall not cut yourselves or make a bald spot” (Deuteronomy 14:1), for this blemishes memory. Our Sages, of blessed memory, likewise derived from “You shall not cut yourselves” that you must not form separate factions (Yevamos 13b), for one must attach one’s thought to the World to Come, where both these and those are the words of the living God. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of a Bald Spot and Tattooing 1)

At a time of mourning, God forbid, the mochin depart, while the hair is the surplus of the mochin. When the mochin depart from their vessels, they are drawn more intensely into the hair. Therefore, if a person were to shave his hair then, God forbid, he could damage his mind, God forbid.

He must therefore wait until the days of mourning depart and pass. The mochin will then return, become purified, and settle peacefully in their place, leaving only the surplus of the mochin within the hair. He may then shave it; at that time it should be shaved so that the surplus within the mind does not multiply. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of a Bald Spot and Tattooing 3:7)

The lower field alludes to the holy supernal field in which all holy souls grow. For everything is one: even all the produce of the lower field consists of holy souls, since all grasses, plants, grain, and fruit are incarnations of souls, as is known. Just as we see in the lower field that all its rectifications occur each year—new fruit grows every year, and people plow, sow, and harvest, and so forth—so too the holy souls growing in the supernal field are rectified each year.

Their principal rectification is to merit being incorporated completely into the ultimate purpose, where everything is one and entirely good. This is the aspect of the twelve months of the year corresponding to the twelve constellations, which correspond to the twelve tribes of Yah, the aspect encompassing all holy souls. The twelve tribes correspond to the twelve diagonal boundaries and the twelve permutations of the Divine Name. The world is principally rectified when all twelve boundaries are incorporated into the One—their root, the aspect of the simple Divine Name—which is entirely good and entirely one, where judgment has no hold whatsoever.

This is the aspect of the twelve constellations revolving in the heavens, all revolving around the central point that has no form, whose root is the aspect of everything being one and entirely good. Their entire revolution and orbit each year, throughout the world’s duration, serves to incorporate them into the aspect of everything being one and entirely good, the ultimate purpose of the entire world and all it contains. The field is therefore rectified every year. During the twelve months, the aspect of the annual cycle, all twelve diagonal boundaries—the twelve constellations and twelve months—return, ascend, and become incorporated into their root, the inward point, the aspect of everything being one and entirely good. This is the principal rectification of the field.

This is the aspect of “You shall surely tithe all the produce of your seed that comes forth from the field year by year” (Deuteronomy 14:22). The produce emerging each year—specifically every year, as described above—must be rectified so that it becomes incorporated into the aspect of everything being one, which is the rectification of the field. Terumah, tithes, and gifts to the poor must therefore be given from the produce. When produce is given to the kohanim, Levi’im, and poor as the Torah commanded, all the produce is elevated and incorporated into its root in the aspect of everything being one.

The portion given to the kohanim, and so forth, and to the poor is Hashem’s portion, blessed be He, as though it were given to Him. The kohanim receive from the supernal table, as it is written: “I am your portion and your inheritance among the Children of Israel” (Numbers 18:20). Likewise, everything given to the poor is given, as it were, to Hashem, blessed be He, as it is written: “One who is gracious to the poor lends to Hashem,” and so forth (Proverbs 19:17). Thus, by fulfilling the mitzvoas of gifts from the produce, all the produce is raised and elevated to Hashem, blessed be He, Who is entirely one and entirely good, by giving Him the portion He commanded to be given to the kohen, and so forth, and to the poor.

This is the aspect of the tithe from the tithe, which contains the mystery of the hundred blessings recited each day, as brought elsewhere. It is the aspect of prayer, which encompasses all hundred blessings, and the aspect of “Yitzchak sowed in that land and found in that year a hundredfold, and Hashem blessed him” (Genesis 26:12), as is known. All this serves to return and become incorporated into the One: ten are incorporated into the tithe, reaching one hundred, until they are incorporated into one, which is the mystery of the tithe from the tithe—one of one hundred given to the kohen. Therefore, all the rectifications of terumah, tithes, and gifts to the poor, which rectify the holy field, occur every year, as it is written: “You shall surely tithe all the produce of your seed that comes forth from the field year by year.” The principal rectification of the field—its incorporation into the One—must occur each year, which encompasses twelve months. During them, the spheres, the aspect of the twelve diagonal boundaries, revolve and return, become incorporated, and ascend into their root, which is entirely one and entirely good. Through this, all constraints and judgments that take hold through boundaries and constrictions are nullified. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Neighboring Boundaries 3:2–4, 7, and elsewhere; following Otzar HaYirah, “Light and Darkness,” 48)

This is why the Torah warned: “Your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, for because of this matter Hashem your God will bless you in all your work and in all your undertakings” (Deuteronomy 15:10). The essence of tzedakah is good ratzoan: transforming anger and cruelty into ratzoan, as explained in Likutay Moharan II 4; see there. One must therefore give tzedakah with good ratzoan, without any grief of heart, in order to nullify anger and draw forth ratzoan; this is the essence of tzedakah.

Through this one merits nullifying all thirty-nine weekday labors, within which the serpent’s contamination takes hold, the aspect of the thirty-nine curses. This is: “For because of this matter Hashem will bless you”—specifically “Hashem will bless you,” the opposite of the curses resulting from Adam HaRishon’s sin, “Through sorrow shall you eat from it” (Genesis 3:17), the aspect of the thirty-nine labors. Through tzedakah given with good ratzoan, one merits drawing the illumination of ratzoan upon the world of action, so that action becomes incorporated into ratzoan. All actions and all thirty-nine labors are thereby nullified, for the world is sustained solely through His kindness, in the aspect of “The world is built through kindness” (Psalms 89:3), which is the aspect of blessing and kindness.

This is: “For because of this matter Hashem your God will bless you in all your work and in all your undertakings.” Blessing and kindness are drawn upon all actions through the illumination of ratzoan, until one merits nullifying all actions completely, for action becomes incorporated into ratzoan. Everything occurs through tzedakah, which transforms anger—the aspect of action—into ratzoan. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of a Guarantor 3:11)

Tzedakah principally operates through judgment. This is the aspect of the Torah’s warning: “Your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him” (Deuteronomy 15:10). Grief of heart is an aspect of blemished judgment, which depends upon the heart, while tzedakah is principally rectified through judgment, the opposite of grief of heart. A wealthy person must judge himself and understand that Hashem, blessed be He, certainly performs an immense kindness for him that he does not deserve at all, giving him abundant money and wealth, while many people thousands of times more righteous and worthy than he have their lives hanging in suspense, possess no livelihood, and suffer severe privation, may the Merciful One save us.

Justice therefore certainly does not permit me to be ungrateful toward Hashem, blessed be He, and I am surely obligated to give Hashem the portion He commanded us to give to the poor. In truth, everything belongs to Him, blessed be He. Hashem merely had compassion and did not burden a person by commanding him to give four portions to the poor and retain only a fifth for himself. Such a measure would certainly have been just: a person who performs backbreaking labor for another and produces a large profit for him nevertheless does not receive even one-fifth of the profit as his wages, but only some fixed payment.

All the more so is this true of a person in relation to Hashem, blessed be He: everything comes from Hashem, we belong to Him, and everything we possess is His. At every moment we require His kindness, goodness, and salvation; without Him we have no King, Redeemer, or Savior, no One Who ransoms, rescues, and sustains, and so forth. We should certainly return the deposit to its Owner and distribute as tzedakah everything we earn, retaining only our minimal livelihood. All the more so since Hashem, blessed be He, treats us exceedingly leniently and commands us to give at least a tithe or a fifth; He also promises us a doubled blessing in the merit of tzedakah and will not withhold our reward in the World to Come.

A person should certainly give Hashem’s portion to the poor with great joy, if he considers his ways and judges himself truthfully. He will then merit subduing grief of heart through judgment and fulfilling “Your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him.” Tzedakah is then complete, for the aspect of judgment shines within it. Through this, he can save the poor person entirely from poverty by means of the aspect of judgment that shines within him through the tzedakah he gives him. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Collecting a Loan 3:4; following Otzar HaYirah, “Tzedakah and Acts of Kindness,” 63; see also “Money,” 92)

Great is the stature of tzedakah, concerning which the holy Torah warned repeatedly, for the poor must be given the portion they possess within another person’s bounty. Certainly, the poor and needy person also has a channel of bounty. If the world were conducted properly, no needy person would exist, for every person’s bounty would descend from the encompassing intellect—where all bounty is rooted—through his own channel and vessel. This will indeed be so in the future, as it is stated: “However, there shall be no needy person among you” (Deuteronomy 15:4), and as our Sages, of blessed memory, taught.

When Israel fulfills the Torah, they become incorporated into the encompassing intellect, and bounty is drawn only to them—each person according to his own channel. Every Jew certainly possesses a vessel and channel capable of receiving abundant bounty, for every Jew has a portion in the holy Torah, which issues from the encompassing intellect, in the aspect of the Torah issuing from supernal wisdom. Poverty, however, principally results when the Torah is blemished, especially through blemished emunah in the Sages. The channels thereby become mixed and confused, until most of the bounty descends to idolaters and the wicked.

Even the small amount of bounty reaching Israel does not descend in proper order, so that one person’s bounty is sometimes found with another. Consequently, one person possesses great wealth while another is poor and needy. In truth, at its root, most of the former’s wealth comes from the portion of the poor; but because of the blemish described above, the order became confused and the bounty descended to him. The same applies to bounty collectively, which principally belongs entirely to Israel, whereas now, because of our many sins, most bounty is found among idolaters. They therefore consume Israel’s bounty, in the aspect of “Whenever Israel had sown,” and so forth (Judges 6:3), and as it is stated: “The fruit of your land and all your labor will be consumed by a nation you did not know” (Deuteronomy 28:33). May Hashem, blessed be He, have compassion upon us from now on. Likewise, among Israel itself, the wealthy consume the portion of the poor.

The Torah therefore warned emphatically that the poor person’s portion must be returned and given to him with a good heart, joy, and a pleasant countenance, as it is stated: “Your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him… for because of this matter Hashem your God will bless you” (Deuteronomy 15:10). In truth, when the wealthy person gives abundant tzedakah and returns the poor person’s portion, this is a great benefit to the wealthy person himself. In proportion to his fulfillment of the mitzvah of tzedakah, he reopens the channels of bounty so that the bounty flows through them in proper order. This applies particularly when he merits giving abundant tzedakah to Torah scholars who truly engage in Torah. This is the essence of emunah in the Sages: believing in them so strongly that he distributes his money to support them and draw near to them.

Through emunah in the Sages, the channels resume flowing in their proper order, and abundant bounty then descends to every individual. Even a wealthy person who presently receives great bounty cannot retain it for long when it is out of order because the channels are confused. Generally, it also encounters many delays because the bounty does not descend in proper order. But when he gives tzedakah in the aspect of “You shall surely open your hand to him” (Deuteronomy 15:8), the channels open and the bounty descends in proper order, with great blessing and without obstruction. This is: “For because of this matter He will bless you,” and so forth. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Deposits and the Four Types of Custodians 5:35; following Otzar HaYirah, “Tzedakah and Acts of Kindness,” 88)

As long as a person has not yet fallen into the desire for money and is not yet so occupied with the burden of livelihood, craving money, and desiring prominence and wealth, then even if he is immersed in other desires, it remains possible to speak with him about awe of Heaven, draw and bring him near to Hashem, blessed be He, and extract him from his evil desires. But once he falls and sinks into the desire for money, it becomes exceedingly difficult even to speak with him properly about the true purpose, for he is occupied throughout his life and his thought remains confused by his many worries and the numerous needs he has imposed upon himself.

This is especially prevalent now, because of our many sins: every person specifically desires to multiply his needs and conduct himself like the wealthy. Even the poor, needy, and people of low standing continually seek to live grandly, with fine clothing, residences, and furnishings. This applies particularly to one who possesses some wealth; he is now poorer than ever. As soon as he acquires a sum of money and some wealth, he increases the prestige of his household until, in his own estimation, he suffers greater financial pressure than before.

When asked for tzedakah, he immediately responds: Do you not know that times are now difficult, unlike earlier days? Business has declined and diminished, and one earns only a meager livelihood! His needs are exceedingly numerous, and he forgets Hashem’s kindnesses—that only a short time earlier he earned this entire sum. Most wealthy people began as poor people, servants, and employees, and Hashem, blessed be He, “raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the refuse heap” (Psalms 113:7), giving them wealth, each according to what He gave him. Yet his eye is not satisfied by all this, and his worries multiply because of the many needs he imposed upon himself, as though he had been born with all these things and his life depended upon them.

It appears to him that he cannot economize in anything; he economizes in only one matter—tzedakah. When asked for tzedakah, he answers: My needs are exceedingly numerous, and livelihood is presently constrained! He does not direct his heart with awareness and understanding to say: On the contrary, since my needs are so numerous, I must certainly increase my tzedakah! Everyone knows and believes that everything comes from Hashem, blessed be He, and that no one can earn even a single small coin except through Hashem’s salvation and wondrous kindnesses. Hashem repeatedly warned us to have compassion upon the poor and needy and give generously, and He promised: “For because of this matter He will bless you,” and so forth (Deuteronomy 15:10). See the full teaching, which speaks extensively of the arrogance of the wealthy who lack compassion for the poor and instead gnash their teeth against them, as though all wealth and prominence rightly belonged only to them.

In truth, all the burdens and confusions of the entire world—of the wealthy and those of moderate means, and of all other people who pursue money and livelihood with immense effort, burdens, suffering, and numerous worries—result solely from withholding tzedakah, because tzedakah is not given expansively and in great abundance. Through this, the desire for money and the curse of “By the sweat of your brow shall you eat bread” (Genesis 3:19), and “Through sorrow shall you eat from it” (Genesis 3:17), intensify against them. This is the burden of pursuing money, until they possess no life at all, for money literally consumes the days of their lives and uproots them from both worlds. The desire for money cannot be broken completely, nor can one be saved from all the burden of money and livelihood, except through tzedakah, as explained in the full teaching. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Kiddushin 3:4; following Otzar HaYirah, “Money and Livelihood,” 254; see also “Covenant,” 110)

Ratzoan is principally revealed through tzedakah, when a person breaks the cruelty of his heart and transforms it into generosity and ratzoan. Anger is thereby transformed into ratzoan, and he merits drawing the illumination of ratzoan into this world of action, where anger and judgment principally take hold. This itself is the aspect of tzedakah, for poverty principally comes from the aspect of action and anger; consequently, the poor person is generally in a continual state of anger and agitation.

The generous person nullifies the anger and cruelty in his heart and transforms them into compassion, ratzoan, and generosity of heart, bestowing upon the poor from his generous heart. He thereby draws the illumination of ratzoan into the aspect of action and transforms action and anger into ratzoan. This is also perceptible to the senses. The poor person who was initially distressed and angry, as though protesting his circumstances, God forbid, becomes reconciled and appeased through the tzedakah. The anger that initially took hold of him is nullified, and the illumination of ratzoan is drawn upon him.

It follows that through tzedakah one transforms anger, the aspect of action, into ratzoan. This is the principal purpose of a person’s descent into this world and the principal aspect encompassing all the Torah’s mitzvoas, as explained in the full teaching. The mitzvah of tzedakah is therefore equivalent to the entire Torah, as our Sages, of blessed memory, taught (Bava Basra 9a). This is why the Torah warned: “Your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him,” and so forth (Deuteronomy 15:10), for the essence of tzedakah is the good ratzoan that transforms anger and cruelty into ratzoan. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of a Guarantor 3:8, 10–11; following Otzar HaYirah, “Tzedakah and Acts of Kindness,” 71)

Sadness and worry concerning livelihood principally result from lacking bitachoan in Hashem, blessed be He; the blemish and deficiency of bitachoan principally derive from the aspects of time and place. In truth, Hashem, blessed be He, continually bestows His good bounty without a moment’s interruption. But when the bounty enters this physical world, which exists within place and time, it must be clothed in place and time. The bounty of livelihood and wealth is therefore drawn only at a particular place and time, as is perceptible: at one time a person profits and at another the reverse; similarly, people profit in one place and experience the reverse elsewhere.

From this arises the principal worry over livelihood. At times the bounty of a person’s livelihood is delayed, so worry about livelihood enters his heart and he worries what he will eat tomorrow. Consequently, he pursues his livelihood with tremendous effort, yet ultimately does not obtain it until its proper time arrives. If he possessed true understanding and believed that everything comes from Hashem, blessed be He, and that he must only wait and hope for Hashem until his time arrives, he would not run and labor so intensely for his livelihood; Hashem would give him his livelihood at its proper time through an easy means.

Although a person must perform some light work for his livelihood, as our Sages, of blessed memory, taught concerning the verse: “Hashem your God will bless you in all that you do” (Deuteronomy 15:18), for bounty cannot be drawn into this world except through vessels. One must therefore conduct some enterprise and business, thereby forming vessels and channels to receive the bounty. In truth, however, the enterprise is not primary at all. Livelihood principally comes from Hashem, blessed be He, and His providence alone, for a person does not know through what he will earn.

A person is therefore forbidden to force the hour and pursue livelihood with tremendous effort, as though, God forbid, livelihood depended solely upon this. On the contrary, this diminishes his livelihood, for one who forces the hour is forced by the hour (Eruvin 13b). There is no need to conduct business and enterprise except to fulfill the mitzvah of conducting business with emunah and to form a vessel and channel for receiving the bounty; whatever he does suffices for this. This is: “Hashem your God will bless you in all that you do”—whatever you do, even something easy and small, Hashem will bless you.

This is perceptible among most people. Many times they run and pursue livelihood intensely for extended periods and with tremendous effort, yet gain no profit and carry nothing away from their labor. Hashem, blessed be He, afterward has compassion upon them and arranges their livelihood, sometimes even great wealth, through an exceedingly easy means that is almost beyond the natural course. The world is filled with such events, which occur with almost everyone engaged in business. If a person possessed understanding and relied upon Hashem from the outset without worrying at all, he would not have required all that wasted effort. When the time arrived, Hashem would arrange his livelihood through an easy means. Not only does he earn nothing through his worry, sadness, extensive effort, and immense exertion; on the contrary, he thereby loses the bounty of his livelihood.

In truth, the bounty of livelihood is principally drawn from the aspect beyond time and place; only in this world must livelihood be clothed in time and place. For this reason, one must conduct some enterprise and business for livelihood, forming a vessel in which the bounty can be clothed within this world. When he believes that everything comes from above, his emunah and bitachoan bind time and place to the aspect beyond time and place. He then possesses abundant livelihood because he binds himself to the root of all bounty. But when he pursues his livelihood with tremendous effort, he is drawn and bound more strongly to place and time, separating time and place from the aspect beyond them. He thereby becomes distant from the root of bounty, and it becomes difficult for him to find his livelihood; even when a small livelihood reaches him, it must come through exceedingly great and immense effort.

This is “One who forces the hour is forced by the hour.” The more he is drawn after time and forces the hour, the more strongly he becomes bound to and held by time and place, and the more distant he becomes from the root of bounty, which is beyond time and place. Specifically the hour therefore forces him, because he has bound himself more strongly to the aspect of an hour and time. He consequently experiences greater constraint, since his livelihood has become distant in time and place, until he must sometimes wander to exceedingly distant places for an extended time to obtain it. But one who yields before the hour, believes everything comes from Hashem, blessed be He, and trusts that He will certainly give him his livelihood at its proper time through an easy means, binds himself more strongly to the aspect beyond time and place. The hour then yields before him, for he merits diminishing and nullifying time and place, and Hashem sends him his livelihood in little time and nearby. Were he to attain exceedingly powerful bitachoan, he would need no means whatsoever for livelihood; bitachoan itself would become the vessel and channel for livelihood, for bitachoan forms a vessel to receive the bounty descending from above, as explained elsewhere. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Interest 3; following Otzar HaYirah, “Bitachoan,” 4)

The principal perfection of emunah is for a person to remove his understanding and wisdom completely, make himself like an animal, and believe in Hashem, blessed be He, and in the true tzaddikim solely with complete emunah. Emunah principally applies to what the intellect does not understand; where something is understood intellectually, emunah does not apply. The essence of emunah is therefore the aspect of “I was brutish and did not know; I was like an animal with You” (Psalms 73:22), and the aspect of “You save man and animal, Hashem” (Psalms 36:7). Our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: these are people who are intellectually subtle like Adam HaRishon yet make themselves like animals (Chullin 5b).

Thus King Shlomo, peace be upon him, said: “For I am more brutish than any man and possess no human understanding” (Proverbs 30:2), and it is written: “I said, ‘I shall become wise,’ but it remained distant from me” (Ecclesiastes 7:23). This is the greatest wisdom of all wisdoms: to remove one’s understanding, intellect, and wisdom completely and rely solely upon emunah. Through this, over time one will merit comprehending and understanding genuine apprehensions and wisdoms of Godliness that human intellect cannot attain, provided that he does not make this a test, but conducts himself with wholeheartedness and simplicity in genuinely upright emunah.

It follows that holy emunah is the aspect of an animal. Yet a person must guard himself carefully against false beliefs, so that he is not “a fool who believes everything” (Proverbs 14:15). This is the aspect of kosher and non-kosher animals, concerning which Hashem, blessed be He, warned us to distinguish between impure and pure, for emunah is the aspect of an animal. This is the aspect of the holiness of the firstborn kosher animal, which must be given to the kohen. Holy emunah, the aspect of a kosher animal, must be refined from the aspect of “he sealed his flesh,” which took hold of it when it fell; it must be refined from there and elevated to the aspect of a holy seal, as explained in the teaching “Sound Emunah” (Likutay Moharan II 5).

The firstborn animal must therefore be given to the kohen, who is “holy to his God” (Leviticus 21:7). Through this, the first birth is refined from the aspect of “he sealed his flesh,” which took hold of every birth as a result of Adam HaRishon’s sin, through which he caused this blemish, as is known. The first birth—the firstborn—must therefore be sanctified and given to the kohen. It is thereby elevated to the aspect of a holy seal, the aspect of “engraved like a seal: Holy to Hashem” (Exodus 28:36). The kohen is called holy, and he offers the firstborn upon the altar as an offering. Through this, the animal, the aspect of emunah, is elevated and refined from the aspect of “he sealed his flesh” to the aspect of “engraved like a seal: Holy to Hashem.” The principal matter is the firstborn, the first birth, for everything follows the beginning. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of the Firstborn of a Kosher Animal 3:2–3; following Otzar HaYirah, “Emunah,” 116)

A person must remember very carefully, throughout all the days of his life and every single day, the day he departed from Egypt. That is, he left Egypt hurriedly, before the appointed end, solely through His kindness; because of this, he now undergoes whatever he undergoes. For in every generation each person is obligated to regard himself as though he personally departed from Egypt (Pesachim 116b).

One must therefore remember every day the greatness of His kindness, blessed be He, in extracting him from the place from which He extracted him—the aspect of the Exodus from Egypt. Although he presently undergoes whatever he undergoes, the kindness and goodness Hashem, blessed be He, performed for him were certainly not in vain, God forbid. He must only pass through these matters now and be tested through them. Ultimately, however, Hashem will complete what He began in His compassion: extracting us from Egypt, from the force of the sitra achara, in order to draw us near to His service, blessed be He. For “the word of our God will endure forever” (Isaiah 40:8). (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Blessings over Fruit 5:10)

During the forty-nine days of the Counting, a person purifies himself from the forty-nine gates of impurity, which are encompassed within Pharaoh’s klipa. Nevertheless, klipoas and falsehoods still remain that are the aspect of the fiftieth gate of impurity—the aspect of Lavan’s klipa and the klipa of Amalek and Edom.

Through the power of receiving the Torah on Shavuos, the fiftieth day—when the Torah’s root is in the fiftieth gate of holiness—even these klipoas and falsehoods can be subdued and broken. Therefore, on Shavuos, the day of the first fruits, and when bringing the first fruits, the incident involving Lavan is recalled, as it is written: “An Aramean sought to destroy my father” (Deuteronomy 26:5), for then a power is drawn to subdue and nullify him. This is the aspect of “Seven weeks… and you shall make the festival of Shavuos” (Deuteronomy 16:9–10). (Likutay Halachos, Laws of the Signs of a Kosher Animal and Wild Animal 4:22; following Otzar HaYirah, “Pesach and the Counting,” 101)

It is forbidden to harvest before the Omer is harvested, which is “the beginning of your harvest,” for Adam HaRishon’s sin intermingled everything, requiring many refinements. The principal damage affected the bread that comes from the earth, as it is written: “The earth is cursed because of you” and “By the sweat of your brow shall you eat bread” (Genesis 3:17, 19). The Egyptian exile occurred because of this. The bread must therefore be sanctified exceedingly at the time of the Exodus from Egypt, in the aspect of the mitzvah of eating matzah on Pesach and the prohibition of chametz.

It is therefore forbidden to harvest grain before the Omer is harvested on the day after Pesach. Through the barley Omer one begins rectifying speech so that fiery words like burning coals can be drawn upon us; through them the Torah is principally given. One who wishes to draw explanations of Torah must first draw upon himself fiery words like burning coals. In the merit of the Torah one draws, one merits Eretz Yisrael. In order to travel to Eretz Yisrael, one must first subdue the wicked people who slander the Land and punish them with sword and death. This power must be received from Edom, who is appointed over all punishments and the sword, as it is written: “By your sword shall you live” (Genesis 27:40). The Torah letters a person originates create spiritual forces; these are actual angels who receive the power from Edom described above.

The holiness of receiving the Torah then begins to illuminate upon us. His way, blessed be He, is that as soon as a person begins engaging in and drawing upon himself a holy matter, an illumination from that entire holiness is immediately drawn upon him, although he has not yet attained it; for Hashem, blessed be He, declares the end from the beginning, as explained elsewhere (Likutay Halachos, Laws of the Blessing over Fragrance 4:18–19). Therefore, as soon as we begin engaging in harvesting the Omer, the holiness of Eretz Yisrael is drawn, and we merit receiving the sword from Esav to subdue those who obstruct Eretz Yisrael, through our preparation to receive the Torah. Through this we take the power of the sword from Esav to subdue the obstructers.

No grain may therefore be harvested before the Omer is harvested. The sickle and scythe used to harvest grain then receive their power from the sword taken from Esav through the holiness of receiving the Torah; through them the enemies and those who obstruct Eretz Yisrael are cut down, removed, and subdued. Even when Israel dwells upon its land in Eretz Yisrael, those who slander the Land and obstruct its holiness must continually be removed and nullified. Through them came all the damage and blemishes when Israel dwelt in Eretz Yisrael. The obstructers of holiness intensified until they incited Israel as they did, leading to Israel’s exile from Eretz Yisrael. They continually lie in wait to drive Israel from Eretz Yisrael, “from joining the inheritance of Hashem” (I Samuel 26:19).

We must therefore sanctify bread through the many mitzvoas dependent upon Eretz Yisrael, in order to refine the bread from the serpent’s contamination, from which all obstruction to Eretz Yisrael emerges. Adam HaRishon was expelled from the holiness of Eretz Yisrael, from which he was created, as our Sages, of blessed memory, taught. It is the aspect of the holiness of the Garden of Eden in which he dwelt; the earth was then cursed. Consequently, even upon entering Eretz Yisrael, immense refinements and rectifications are required to eliminate those who obstruct the holiness of Eretz Yisrael, which encompasses the holiness of the Jew.

The grain therefore cannot be harvested before the Omer is harvested, when preparation to receive the Torah begins. The Torah’s holiness is thereby drawn upon us, and from it comes the power of Esav’s sword, which we receive from him in order to subdue those who obstruct Eretz Yisrael. From there the scythe and sickle—the aspect of a sword—receive the power to harvest grain in the holiness of Eretz Yisrael and refine it from Adam HaRishon’s sin and the curse placed upon the earth because of him: “By the sweat of your brow shall you eat bread.” The Counting of the Omer, the principal preparation for receiving the Torah, then begins, after we have begun rectifying fiery speech like burning coals through harvesting and offering the Omer.

The holy Torah therefore made the mitzvah of counting dependent upon “when the scythe begins cutting the standing grain” (Deuteronomy 16:9), for the scythe is an aspect of the sword. It then receives its power from the sword described above, through which those who obstruct Eretz Yisrael are removed. This is alluded to in the Hebrew letters of chermesh, “scythe,” which may be divided into chash and mar. One then receives fiery speech, the aspect of chash and chashmal—living fire speaking—which is received from the soul called Miriam because of the bitterness it suffers through the burden of Torah, all of whose words are like burning coals, as brought in Likutay Moharan I 20; see there. Mar is the aspect of the bitterness the soul suffers, from which one receives the power of fiery speech, the aspect of chash, living fire speaking. Therefore, on the day the Omer was harvested, several enemies of Israel suffered a great downfall, including Sancheiriv and Midian, and particularly Haman the Amalekite, may his name be blotted out, for “from the forest itself comes the handle for the axe”: they are subdued and killed specifically through Esav’s own sword. Through the holiness of receiving the Torah, we take from him the power of the sword to subdue the enemies and those who obstruct Eretz Yisrael. All enemies who arose against Israel envied the holiness of Eretz Yisrael and sought to expel Israel from its land; they therefore fell on the day the Omer was harvested. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Robbery 5:29; see also the abridged Likutay Moharan I, Teaching 20, “Nine Rectifications”)

Waving the barley Omer, which is animal food, is the aspect of elevating, waving, and raising to Hashem, blessed be He, all souls and improper desires that fell into animalistic cravings. They too are raised and elevated within the collective gathering of souls. This is the aspect of the subsequent Counting of the Omer: we engage in gathering and assembling all fallen souls and bringing them too beneath the holy number and count, so that not one of them will be absent or lost.

This is the aspect of counting the days, which are the aspect of the seven holy attributes from which all souls emerge, until afterward, on Shavuos, one merits all the souls gathering together. It is therefore called Atzeres, connoting assembly and gathering. This is the aspect of “Israel encamped there opposite the mountain” (Exodus 19:2), stated concerning the giving of the Torah; our Sages, of blessed memory, explained: all of them were like one person (Rashi ad loc.). This is the aspect of gathering and integrating all the souls of Israel together, through which Torah is drawn—the aspect of receiving the Torah on Shavuos. Drawing Torah brings complete Divine providence from the aspect of the ever-open eye that does not sleep. This is why seven weeks are counted, corresponding to the seven layers of the eye, which are the aspect of providence. One must count the days and count the weeks, and so forth; see the full teaching.

This is the aspect of “When the scythe begins cutting the standing grain, you shall begin counting seven weeks” (Deuteronomy 16:9). Harvesting grain from the fields is the aspect of gathering and refining souls, as is known. Specifically waving the barley Omer permits the harvest, for the sitra achara is then subdued and we possess the power to elevate fallen souls—the aspect of waving the Omer described above. From that point we must count, which is likewise the aspect of gathering and assembling all those souls and bringing them beneath the number and count. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Oaths 1; following Otzar HaYirah, “Pesach and the Counting,” 85)

The principal holiness of a festival is the revelation of ratzoan, which shines on a festival through the Sage of the generation, who binds all individual forms of ratzoan to the root of ratzoan. The root of ratzoan is the aspect of the holiness of Shabbos, upon which the ratzoan of all ratzoan shines. The principal holiness of a festival therefore depends upon the Sages of the generation, in accordance with our Sages’ teaching concerning “which you shall proclaim” (Leviticus 23:2), for the Sages of the generation possess the power to bind all forms of ratzoan to the root of ratzoan, the aspect of Shabbos. Shabbos is therefore called “the first of the sacred convocations,” for the sacred convocations, the aspect of revealed ratzoan, receive their holiness from Shabbos. When ratzoan is revealed, no enterprise or labor is required, as explained in the full teaching; this is the aspect of the prohibition against labor on a festival.

Ratzoan is principally revealed, and the serpent’s forehead—the root of naturalistic wisdom—is principally subdued, through tzedakah. We were therefore especially commanded to give tzedakah on a festival, as it is written: “You shall rejoice before Hashem,” and so forth, “and the convert, the orphan, and the widow” (Deuteronomy 16:11). The holy Zohar likewise explains the great obligation to gladden the hearts of the poor on a festival through tzedakah and hospitality. All this serves the revelation of ratzoan described above, which must be drawn on a festival. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Chol HaMoed 3; following Otzar HaYirah, “The Three Festivals,” 9)

We were commanded to bring many offerings on the festivals, for all offerings serve to subdue the animalistic ruach and elevate from animal to human, as is known—to subdue the forms of naturalistic wisdom, which are animalistic folly, and bind nature to ratzoan. The Torah therefore issued a particular warning to give tzedakah on the festivals, as it is written: “You shall rejoice before Hashem your God, you and your son,” and so forth, “and the convert and the orphan,” and so forth (Deuteronomy 16:11), as is also brought in the holy Zohar. At that time the power of tzedakah is especially necessary in order to subdue the serpent’s forehead and reveal the forehead of ratzoan. Through this one merits hearing the festival’s sacred proclamation, which calls out and reveals ratzoan as a “sacred convocation”—revealing and proclaiming that everything is governed by His blessed ratzoan, as brought in Likutay Moharan II, Teaching 4; see there.

One then specifically merits the joy of the festival, for the principal joy of a festival accords with the degree to which one merits hearing its sacred proclamation. This is the aspect of “The righteous one shall rejoice when he beholds vengeance; he shall bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked” (Psalms 58:11), as discussed in the teaching cited above. This explains Rashi’s interpretation of the preceding verse, “You shall rejoice”: If you gladden Mine, I will gladden yours. That is, if you give tzedakah and gladden the poor, then specifically I will gladden yours, for only then will you merit the joy of the festival. The principal festival joy comes specifically through tzedakah, through which one merits hearing the festival’s sacred proclamation that reveals ratzoan; this is the principal joy of the festival, as stated above.

This is the meaning of our Sages’ statement concerning festival joy: “There is no joy except through meat”—the meat of animal offerings (Pesachim 109a). The principal joy of a festival comes specifically through the revelation of ratzoan, which occurs when naturalistic wisdom is subdued; and this is accomplished through the offerings. Through them one subdues the animalistic ruach, which is folly and an aspect of naturalistic wisdom, and elevates from animal to human—from nature to ratzoan and Divine providence, knowing that everything is governed by His blessed providence. It follows that through the offerings naturalistic wisdom is subdued and ratzoan is revealed; this is the principal festival joy. The principal joy of a festival is therefore specifically through the meat of the offerings.

The verse “You shall rejoice before Hashem, you and your son,” and so forth, “and the convert and the orphan,” and so forth (Deuteronomy 16:11), is therefore stated in connection with the offerings. Since the offerings—and particularly the offerings of a festival, which is a sacred convocation—reveal ratzoan, one must give tzedakah from them and invite the poor, the convert, the orphan, and so forth to partake. Through tzedakah the serpent’s forehead is subdued and the forehead of ratzoan is revealed; the festival’s sacred proclamation is then heard, revealing ratzoan, and this is the principal festival joy. This is the aspect of “You shall rejoice”: If you gladden Mine, I will gladden yours. The emphasis is specifically on gladdening, for the principal festival joy, which comes through revealed ratzoan, depends upon tzedakah; through it the forehead of ratzoan is revealed and the festival’s sacred proclamation is heard. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Fish 3:6–7)

The principal holiness is to believe that everything is governed by His blessed ratzoan, and always to yearn and long for Him, blessed be He, with a powerful ratzoan. This is as Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, wrote in Likutay Moharan II, Teaching 4, concerning the three pilgrimage festivals, which for this reason are called “sacred convocations”; see there. The principal holiness of the Beis HaMikdash derives from the Holy of Holies, where holiness is concentrated, for the Holy of Holies is the aspect of the ratzoan of all ratzoan—the ratzoan within all forms of ratzoan. Ratzoan is called holy; the ratzoan within all forms of ratzoan is therefore the aspect of the Holy of Holies.

Therefore, on the three pilgrimage festivals one must make the pilgrimage—that is, appear before Hashem in the Beis HaMikdash. The three festivals are sacred convocations, upon which ratzoan is revealed, as brought in the teaching cited above. One must therefore ascend at that time to the Beis HaMikdash, where the principal revelation of ratzoan is drawn from the ratzoan within all forms of ratzoan, the aspect of the Holy of Holies. This is the meaning of “Three times a year all your males shall appear before Hashem” (Deuteronomy 16:16). Specifically “before Hashem,” literally “the face of Hashem,” is the aspect of the illumination of ratzoan, which is called face, as explained in the teaching cited above. This is also the meaning of “They shall not appear before Me empty-handed” (Exodus 23:15), for it is impossible to receive the light of the face—the aspect of ratzoan—except through tzedakah, as brought there.

For this reason they required one, at that time on the festival, to bring offerings, vows, and freewill gifts. These are the aspect of tzedakah and willing-hearted generosity—the aspect of ratzoan—in order to draw the illumination of ratzoan, which is the aspect of the illumination of the face that one merits on the festivals in the Beis HaMikdash. This is the meaning of “How beautiful are your footsteps in sandals, O daughter of the generous one” (Song of Songs 7:2). Specifically “daughter of the generous one” is the aspect of willing-hearted generosity and the illumination of ratzoan that one merits when making the pilgrimage three times a year. It is concerning this pilgrimage that the verse says, “How beautiful are your footsteps,” as Rashi explained there.

The Torah therefore issued a particular warning to give tzedakah on the pilgrimage festivals, as it is written: “You shall rejoice before Hashem your God, you and your son and your daughter, and the convert and the orphan and the widow,” and so forth (Deuteronomy 16:11). Our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: If you gladden Mine, I will gladden yours. The principal festival joy accords with the revelation of ratzoan one merits, in the aspect of “The righteous one shall rejoice when he beholds vengeance; he shall bathe his feet,” and so forth (Psalms 58:11); see the teaching cited above. Ratzoan is principally revealed through tzedakah. Therefore, on a festival, when ratzoan must be revealed, one must increase tzedakah; through it comes the principal festival joy, for joy principally comes through the revelation of ratzoan. This is the meaning of: If you gladden Mine—that is, if you give tzedakah—then I will gladden yours, for the principal joy comes through the illumination of ratzoan that one merits through tzedakah. (Likutay Halachos, Laws of Eruvei Techumin 3:18)