Chukas

And therefore Moshe did not yet know how to accurately determine exactly when midnight was, for it was still before the giving of the Torah, and there was not yet the arousal from below, for there were not yet enough tzadikim who rose at midnight and engaged in Torah — because it was before the giving of the Torah. And therefore it was difficult to accurately gauge the point of midnight. And even according to the opinion that Moshe also knew — nevertheless, he was not able to speak about it to such an extent, and he was still apprehensive lest they err, etc. For he was not yet able to draw this illumination into a revealed state, because it was before the giving of the Torah. But David — he knew, for a harp was suspended above his bed. And the power of the harp is drawn from the Torah, as is brought in the words of our master, our teacher, our Rebbe, of blessed memory. For the harp of David had five strings, corresponding to the Five Books of the Torah, and it would awaken him from his sleep until he knew how to accurately determine the exact hour and point of midnight. For David is the aspect of Mashiach, who constantly engages in the rectification of the souls of Israel, to awaken them from their sleep through the above — through the nekudos tovos he finds in each one, and he teaches each one and illuminates in his heart, so that he can search and seek and find within himself nekudos tovos always, in order to awaken him from his sleep and his fall, so that he should not fall completely, G-d forbid. And the main thing is to gauge accurately the time when he is nearly, nearly about to fall, G-d forbid — then specifically, [Hashem] will shine upon him in His kindness to save him and to awaken him, in the aspect of: "Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down" — etc.; in the aspect of: "[The wicked one] watches… Hashem will not abandon him into his hand" ; in the aspect of: "For He will see that the power is gone, and there is nothing retained or remaining… and He will say… See now that I, I am He" — etc. And all this is through the power of the Torah that we have already received through Moshe Rabbeinu and through all the tzadikim who have been until now, who have explained to us the pathways of the Torah well.

And therefore David knew exactly when midnight was, through the harp mentioned above. For he was a skilled musician . For this entire holy teaching — to search for the good and to revive oneself through it — all of this is the aspect of holy nigunim that issue from the harp of David, the aspect of "Azamrah" specifically, as above — the aspect of "Awake… O nevel and kinor! I shall awaken the dawn" — as above. And through this, David merited to know how to accurately determine the point of midnight mentioned above, upon which the final redemption depends — both collectively and individually, for every Jewish soul — for David is Mashiach, through whom the final redemption will come, which is the complete redemption after which there will be no more exile. And the main thing is through the aspect of the zemiros and nigunim mentioned above, in the aspect of: "the anointed of the G-d of Yaakov, and the sweet singer of Israel" — that is, through the aspect of Azamrah mentioned above. Speedily in our days, amen. And understand these matters well, for it is impossible to explain everything. Rather, each person, according to what passes over him all the days of his life — in the days of his youth and in the days of his old age — can revive himself always through all of these words of ours, which explain somewhat the truth of the advice and the holy teaching of "Azamrah — I shall sing to my G-d with my odi" — about which our master, our teacher, our Rebbe, of blessed memory, urged us very, very much to follow. Fortunate is he who grasps hold of it.

And this is the aspect of: "Awake, my glory! Awake, O nevel and kinor! I shall awaken the dawn!" . That is, a person must arouse himself from his sleep and from his fallen state. And through what will he arouse himself? Through the nekudos tovos that he still finds within himself. And this is: "I shall awaken the dawn [shachar]" — for the nekudah tovah is in the aspect of shachar, in the aspect of: "I am black [shechorah] but comely, O daughters of Jerusalem" . For since this nekudah is intermingled with much pesoles and with many blemishes that this person has committed, therefore it appears as though she is shechorah — for she lies in gloom and darkness, G-d forbid, within him. But when one judges himself to the side of merit and arouses and finds within himself the nekudah tovah, as above, then she declares: "I am black but comely — do not gaze upon me that I am swarthy," etc. — for the darkness is not from me, etc., as Rashi explained there. For the nekudah tovah itself that exists within a person — even within the sinners of Israel — is comely and beautiful exceedingly. Only the darkness covers over her. But when one arouses her, she declares: "I am black but comely — do not gaze upon me that I am swarthy" — for on my own account, I am comely exceedingly. And this is the aspect of what our Sages, of blessed memory, said : "I am black" — through the deed of the [Golden] Calf; "and I am comely" — through the making of the Mishkan. That is, even though I have many sins and have become very distant from Him, yisbarach — and this is the aspect of the deed of the Calf, which encompasses all the sins in the world, for "anyone who acknowledges idolatry is as if he denies the entire Torah" — even so: "I am comely through the making of the Mishkan" — that is, the aspect of the little bit of good that I still find within myself. For immediately after the deed of the Calf they were commanded regarding the work of the Mishkan, since Hashem yisbarach became appeased toward Israel through Moshe, who devoted his very life on their behalf and prayed for them. For Moshe was able to find a nekudah tovah even in the most lowly of the lowly, as is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, many times . And through this he was able to pray on their behalf, even when they had blemished the entire Torah through the deed of the Calf; nevertheless, he found nekudos tovos within them. And therefore Moshe said: "Why, Hashem, should Your anger flare against Your people?" — etc. For he found the good within them, and then the evil is completely repelled, as above. And therefore he said: "Why, Hashem, should Your anger flare against Your people?" — for the evil is not considered at all in comparison to the bit of good that is still within them. And Hashem yisbarach was appeased by him: "and Hashem relented regarding the evil" , etc. And then Hashem yisbarach taught Moshe the order of prayer, and arranged before him the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy. And this is: "and He said: I shall cause all My goodness to pass before you" — etc. That He taught him and revealed to him all of His goodness, yisbarach, as it were — so that he should know that Hashem yisbarach is good to all, always, and one can awaken the good in the worst of the worst, and bring him to the side of merit, and return him in teshuvah. And this is the aspect of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, the aspect of: "Hashem, Hashem, G-d, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger" — etc. That Hashem yisbarach is full of mercy and good to all, and extends patience to the righteous and to the wicked alike. For He inclines toward chesed and judges everyone to the side of merit, and finds a nekudah tovah even in the sinners of Israel. And through this, He tips the scale to the side of merit, as above. And this is the aspect of: "He preserves chesed for thousands" — that the aspect of chesed, His inclining toward chesed, yisbarach, and judging to the side of merit, and finding a nekudah tovah, etc. — this chesed is preserved and sweetens for "thousands" — that is, even though there are thousands and myriads of blemishes that this person committed standing against it, even so, the little bit of good that is found through the chesed repels everything, as above. And through this: "He bears iniquity and transgression" — etc. For through this, one truly enters the side of merit, etc., as above. And then, when Hashem yisbarach became appeased by Moshe — through his finding good in all of Israel even after the deed of the Calf, as above — for Moshe was entirely good, in the aspect of: "and she saw him, that he was good" , and therefore he always had the power to find the good in each person, even in the sinners of Israel, as above — through this, Hashem yisbarach was appeased, as above. And then He commanded them regarding the work of the Mishkan: that each one should bring the donation of his heart for the work of the Mishkan. For He was arousing the good within each person, and each one, according to the good he possessed, brought the donation of his good heart for the work of the Mishkan. For the Mishkan was built from all the good that was sifted and clarified from each individual of Israel. And this is the aspect of: "gold and silver and copper, and turquoise and purple and scarlet thread" — etc. — that each and every person brought according to the nekudah tovah that was his. For gold, silver, copper, and turquoise, etc. are aspects of the supernal colors, which are aspects of the good that exists within each Jew. And this is the aspect of: "Israel, in whom I take glory" — that they are comprised of many colors — that is, the nekudos tovos that exist in each Jew. There is a nekudah tovah even in the most lowly among them, which his fellow does not possess, as is explained elsewhere . And Hashem yisbarach takes glory in them, as above. And this is the aspect of the colors in the Beis HaMikdash and the Mishkan, the aspect of gold and silver, etc., that each one brought from the donation of his good heart. For there, all the nekudos tovos were gathered — which are the aspect of the supernal colors that exist in each Jew. And therefore, after the deed of the Calf, when Moshe needed to search and find the nekudos tovos in each Jew, as above — therefore at that time specifically they were commanded regarding the work of the Mishkan. For the Mishkan was built from this — from the nekudos tovos, as above. And this is: "I am black" — through the deed of the Calf; "and I am comely" — through the work of the Mishkan — that is, through the nekudos tovos that I find within myself, which are the aspect of the work of the Mishkan, as above. And similarly it is understood from the words of our Rebbe mentioned above: that through the good found in each Jew, the Mishkan is built. And therefore, he who can find all the good in Israel — who is the aspect of the chazan, as above — he knows all the aspects pertaining to the Mishkanos of each of the tzadikim mentioned above — see there. For the essential building of the Mishkan is through this — through the good mentioned above. And in this, the words of our Rebbe mentioned above are beautifully connected — see there well.

But we are warned against all this. And therefore we are warned that all our eating should be in accordance with the Torah, as it is written, "and Your Torah is in my inward parts" — and as Rashi explains there: "All my eating [is] according to Your word". Because we must eat all foods in holiness according to the Torah and recite a blessing over each thing before and after, so that through the eating we merit to receive vitality, which is holy intellect [sekhel d'kedusha] — for the main intellect is the wisdoms of the holy Torah, whose main [goal] is the study that leads to deed — to the eternal observance of Torah, as above. Therefore the main food should be bread and salt, as above, for their root is drawn from this holy study, within which all the world's studies are included — which are the aspect of all the flavors of the fruits and foods of the world, as above. But now on Rosh Hashanah, we must merit teshuva — to turn everything to goodness through the power of the true tzadikim who have completely separated themselves from all the desires of this world. Therefore we eat bread with honey at birchas hamotzi — to indicate that we hope to merit a good and sweet year, which is to merit teshuva and good deeds, which is the main goodness — that we merit to have the honey included within the bread, that we merit to sense all the sweetness of flavors in the world — which are the aspect of honey — to sense them all within eating bread, which is the aspect of eating manna — which is the aspect of the shofar, which is the aspect of receiving the Torah that is recalled on Rosh Hashanah, in the aspect of "You revealed Yourself", etc. . For "the Torah was given only to those who ate the manna", etc. — as above. And therefore it is explained in the mystical intentions [kavanos] of the Arizal that honey is alluded to in the shin-vov [numerical value 306] of shofar, which equals [the numerical value of] honey [dvash]. And together with the hand holding the shofar it is shin-chaf [320], etc. And through this the dinim [harsh judgments] are sweetened. And according to our approach, this alludes to the above matter — that the main rectification is through the remozim of daas, as above, within which all the world's flavors are included — which are the aspect of honey. And this is the hand that holds the shofar, which is the aspect of remozim, the aspect of "I have stretched out My hand", as above — and it rectifies the honey, because the main rectification of all the imagined sweetness of this world is through the remozim, as above — through which one understands [how] to accustom oneself to separate from it and to be satisfied with little, in the aspect of "If you have found honey, eat what is sufficient for you, lest you surfeit of it and vomit it", etc. — until one merits that all flavors be included within the bread. And similarly all the flavors of all types of intellect will be included within the true intellect — which is the intellect of the observance of Torah — that all one's wisdom and intellect will be only to understand counsel that will bring to the eternal observance of Torah. This is the aspect of "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem; a good intellect have all who practice it" . And it is written, "Behold, the fear of Hashem — that is wisdom", etc. . And all this is the aspect of the hand that holds the shofar, as above — for the sounds of the shofar too are the aspect of the above-mentioned remozim, as above.

And this is the aspect of what is called "keren" [horn] — the aspect of keren kayemes [principal that endures] — the aspect of money [mamon] — as Rabbainu, may his light shine, explained in the Torah-teaching "Va'yehi heim merikim sakaiyhem" ["And it was as they were emptying their sacks"] — on the saying of our Sages of blessed memory: "a small creature in the sea that had horns" [briyah kalah she'b'yam d'havu lah karnei]. For the keren is the aspect of money — the aspect of enduring principal, as above. For the horns — which are the aspect of the surplus of the minds — from there flows the holy abundance of money: the aspect of enduring principal, as above. (As is explained above in Laws of Chailev, Halacha 1.)

And therefore in the horns — which are of the aspect of the surplus of the minds, where there is the aspect of money — there it is apparent which is a wild beast and which is an animal: which has permitted fat and which has forbidden fat. For fat is of the aspect of the surplus of the minds — the aspect of money, as above. Reb Noson reveals the deep spiritual logic behind the two kosher signs — cud-chewing and split hooves — and the distinction between beheimah (animal) and chayah (wild beast). The entire framework rests on three axes:

Behold, we, the Children of Israel, need our eating to be holy — in order that during the time of eating the illumination of the Will [he'aras ha-ratzon] should shine, as above. And therefore it is forbidden for us to eat impure species — only pure species that have signs of purity [simanei taharah]. For the signs hint that in these species there has already begun to shine the illumination of the above-mentioned tzadik who illuminates in all the worlds — in the dwellers above and in the dwellers below. For the above-mentioned tzadik rectifies and gives life to all the worlds — of the aspect of the World of Rectification [olam ha-tikun]. For "the tzadik is the foundation of the world" — he is the aspect of the rectification.

(For the rectification is through the Eighth King — who is "Hadar" — who is the aspect of Yesod, the aspect of the tzadik. For the above-mentioned tzadik merits the aspect of mah, as above. And from there the rectification of the worlds flows. For the World of Rectification is through the new light of "mah" — as it is stated in the Etz Chaim, Heichal 2, Sha'ar Ha-Tikun, Chapter 2.)

And therefore he rectifies and gives life to the dwellers above and the dwellers below. For all of them require rectification. For the flaw and ruin of the worlds through the breaking of the vessels [sheviyas ha-kailim] came because of the excess of light — because they could not endure the excess of the light — and through this they were broken, and the light rose upward, and the vessels were broken and descended in the Creation, and so on. And afterward they were rectified. Only several sparks [nitzotzos] still remained below — and with these the tzadikim and all Israel are engaged — to clarify them and elevate them in every generation, as is known. And those sparks fell and spread into all the worlds, even into the world of Asiyah [Action]. And therefore the tzadik — who is the rectification — rectifies and gives life to the dwellers above and the dwellers below. That is to say: the dwellers above — where the flaw and the breaking occurred because of the excess of light — he gives life and rectifies them through the aspect of Ayyeh [Where?], the aspect of: "meh chamisa" [what did you see?]. That is to say, he shows them that they are distant from Him Yisborach. And through this they are able to endure the light and are not nullified. For he shows them that they are distant from Him Yisborach — of the aspect of "meh chamisa", the aspect of: "Where is the place of His glory?"

And the dwellers below — where the fallen sparks are, which fell completely from the place of their holiness from the time of the breaking, and fell to all the lower levels until they spread even into animals and wild beasts and birds — and because of the greatness of their descent they forgot their original elevated state, and it appears to them that they are exceedingly, exceedingly distant from Him Yisborach, to the point that they are no longer able to raise themselves up to ascend — therefore the tzadik gives them life through the aspect of: "The whole earth is filled with His glory" . Of the aspect of the resurrection of the dead [techias ha-meisim] — which is the aspect of the World of Rectification — the aspect of: "Your dead shall live, my corpse shall arise; awaken and sing, you who dwell in the dust" . That is to say, he arouses and gives life to those sparks that descended very far below — lest they despair of themselves. For "the whole earth is filled with His glory." And this is the aspect of pure species and impure species. For we are able to eat only those species in which the illumination of the World of Rectification has already begun to shine — that is, the illumination of the above-mentioned tzadik. Only those specifically are we permitted to eat. For we have the power to clarify them through our eating. But the species in which the illumination of the rectification has not shone — we do not have the power to clarify them, and we are forbidden to eat them.

And therefore Ya'akov, by taking the b'chorah from Eisav, through this he took the blessing from him — as it is written: "He took my b'chorah, and behold, now he has taken my blessing." For one depends on the other. And therefore Ya'akov took the blessing from his father through the delicacies (mat'amim) he made for his father as he loved — for the mat'amim of Ya'akov are the aspect of eating in holiness, the aspect of oneg Shabbos, as it is written: "See, the fragrance of my son is like the fragrance of a field that Hashem has blessed" — which is the chakal tapuchin kadishin (holy apple orchard), as Rashi explains there — which is the aspect of the seudas Shabbos, known as chakal tapuchin kadishin. And therefore Ya'akov received the blessing on the night of Pesach, through the two kids of goats he made for his father — one he offered for Pesach and one for the chagigah. For korbanos are the aspect of neder, through which one merits oneg Shabbos and subdues the liver full of blood, which is Eisav — and one takes from him the b'chorah and the blessing and restores them to the brain, which is the b'chor of holiness, the aspect of Ya'akov. This is the essential aspect of the Exodus from Mitzrayim, which was on the night of Pesach, when Ya'akov received the blessing — all the sustenance and all the wealth, as it is written: "And G-d shall give you from the dew of heaven and from the fatness of the earth," etc. — the aspect of: "And afterward they shall go out with great possessions."

The dispute is only for your sake — that you should return from death to life. For ostensibly one could become more distant through the disputes among the Tzaddikim, not knowing how to draw close, troubled by questions on account of the dispute. But in truth, the holy dispute is specifically their rectification. In truth, they deserve to be pushed away from teshuvah, for of them it says "Kol ba'eiha lo yeshuvun." But as soon as they sense this — seeing and understanding that they are being pushed away — and as our Rebbe wrote there: "Certainly if your brain had not been blemished, you would not hear the disputes… and the dispute is only for your sake, making you hear a rebuke" — then in this very thing they hear the rebuke. When they see that the dispute reaches their ears, they understand the magnitude of their blemish, and begin to have compassion on themselves, looking at where they are in the world — having blemished so greatly that they are being pushed away. Then the distancing itself becomes the ultimate closeness.

For in truth, to its very depths, nothing stands before teshuvah. Even though it says "Kol ba'eiha lo yeshuvun," and the Zohar says teshuvah does not avail for the blemish of the drops of the brain — nevertheless, in ultimate truth, teshuvah does avail, as brought in all the mussar sefarim, and as I heard explicitly from our Rebbe. Only, because he blemished so greatly, he must be tested and refined, standing in this trial of being pushed away — enduring all manner of distancing, even that they write of him that teshuvah does not avail. A fool finds an excuse to distance himself from teshuvah since it is written that it does not avail. But one who truly thinks about his ultimate purpose and has compassion on himself — even though he sees every kind of distancing and even though it is written that teshuvah does not avail — does not look at this at all. On the contrary, he has even more compassion on himself — for what will be his end, and what will he do on the day of reckoning? One who does not wish to deceive himself: every additional distancing he encounters, he has more compassion on himself and cries out to Hashem more and more me'umka d'liba — from the depths of his heart — until "yashkif v'yeireh Hashem miShamayim" — "Hashem looks down and sees from Heaven." For in truth, Hashem desires kindness and nothing stands before teshuvah. When he merits standing in this trial and repents fully despite feeling pushed away — then Hashem has mercy on him, and he is drawn close through this very thing. This is itself the holy dispute among the true Tzaddikim — through this very Da'as, they draw close and return from death to life those who blemished the drops of the brain. But the fool — "like a horse, like a mule, without understanding" — becomes more distant through seeing the disputes. But one who has a brain in his skull hears the "rebuke of life" through hearing the disputes — seeing thereby the magnitude of his distance from Hashem, remembering his blemish, and returning through teshuvah. For in truth, the dispute among the true Tzaddikim is only to draw close and return the distant ones from death to life, as our Rebbe said: "The dispute is only for your sake — that you should return from death to life."

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Section 4

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Section 9

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