הלכות יין נסך א

And this is the aspect of the mikveh of water that they merited immediately on the eve of Pesach. And afterward He brought them down from their level. And this is the aspect of the Counting [ Sefirah ], as is known — which is like a woman who purifies herself for her husband. Which is the aspect of "Wait" — that one must wait and tarry in order to purify oneself from the blood of nidah [menstrual separation], as above. And then they merited to complete the rectification on Shavuos . And then they merited to enter into the mikveh — the aspect of a supernal, very exalted mikveh — which is the ultimate rectification. And this is the aspect of the two rinsings — the aspect of the two mikvaos [ritual baths] cited above — which are needed in order to be rectified: namely, at the beginning of the teshuvah and at the end of the teshuvah , as above. And in between is the waiting in salt — which is the aspect of "Wait," as above — in order to expel the evil bloods, as above. And as is explained in the Torah-teaching that speaks of this : that the above-mentioned aspect of "Wait" is the aspect of shfikas damim [shedding of blood] that one must endure, as above. And through this one merits the aspect of teshuvah — which is the aspect of Ekyeh [the Divine Name of pure Being] (as is explained there) . And this is the aspect of the mikveh of water — which is the aspect of Ekyeh . For mikveh in gematria [numerical value] equals 151 — which is the numerical value of Ekyeh when spelled out fully — as is known, and as above. And as is already explained in Laws of Pesach, Halacha 1: that therefore the measure of salting is eighteen [ chai ] minutes — for this is the aspect of the rectification of the bris — in order to return to life [ chaim ]. And this is what our Sages of blessed memory said: that the measure is [the time required to walk] one mil [a Talmudic mile]. For a mil is two thousand cubits — the techum Shabbos [the Shabbos boundary] — which is the aspect of the boundary of holiness [ gevul ha-kedushah ], as mentioned above (in Laws of Techumin, Halacha 1) . And this is the very same measure of eighteen minutes — for there is life [ chai ] (as is explained there) . And therefore one must wait through the rectification of salting for this measure — in order to merit to return within the boundary and domain of holiness [ gevul u'tchum ha-kedushah ] — in order to merit life — the aspect of " tzadik chai olaimin " [the tzadik lives forever]. And this is what our Sages of blessed memory said: roasting [ tzli ] requires no salting. For fire is the rectification — of the aspect of: "Everything that comes into fire, you shall pass through fire, and it will be purified" . And it consumes the filth [ zuhama ]. But when one merits to attach oneself to the tzadik — who is of the aspect of the covenant of salt — then one receives from him the aspect of saltiness [ milcha ] — the aspect of rectifications — to sweeten his bitterness. And then one is saved from the fire through which one would have had to be refined, G-d forbid — of the aspect of "you shall pass through fire" , as above. For "that which is salted is like that which is boiling" [ maliyach harei hu k'roteach ] — like roasting that is roasted in fire. For through the aspect of salting — which is the aspect of attaching oneself to the tzadik , as above — one is finely purified and saved from the fire, and emerges pure and beautiful and complete without any blemish whatsoever. And one merits the ultimate rectification, as above.

This mirrors the spiritual arc: subdue the all-encompassing evil (shechitah) → remove the smaller evils within (nikur) → first elevation in teshuvah (1st rinse) → the "Wait" — the crucible of shfikas damim in between — → complete rectification (final rinse). The 18-minute measure of salting is chai — life — the time needed to cross back into the boundary of holiness. And the tzadik, who is the covenant of salt, saves one from having to pass through fire alone.

And this is the aspect of the signs of purity [ simanei taharah ] — which are: chewing the cud [ ma'aleh geirah ] and having split hooves [ mafris parsah ]. For as is known: the species of kosher animals and wild beasts [ beheimos v'chayyos tehorim ] are from the aspect of Nogah [the luminous shell]. And the impure species are from the aspect of cloud and storm [ anan, se'arah ] and so on — from the entirely impure klipos [husks]. This is the aspect of the language of translation [ leshon targum ], which is the aspect of Nogah — the aspect of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil [ Etz ha-Da'as Tov v'Ra ] — from which the pure species come. And the impure species are from the aspect of the languages of the nations [ leshonos ha-amim ], which are the all-encompassing evil [ ra ha-kolel ] — which are the aspect of the klipos cited above, in which there is no good whatsoever. And therefore the signs of purity are: chewing the cud and having split hooves. For it has already been explained that the souls and vitality within the animals and other living species are souls that fell from the level of speech [ medaber ] to the level of the living creature [ chai ] — and they are there of the aspect of oppressed souls [ nefashos ha-ashukos ]. For they are oppressed and robbed there — for speech was taken from them in their falling to that place. And the way of the holy soul is always to rise upward — for it desires and draws itself always toward its root. And this is the aspect of chewing the cud in the kosher animal — that the souls of the thing that is eaten, which have now come and fallen into the aspect of the living creature, cannot bear to remain there. And they raise and lift themselves upward to the mouth and throat — for there is the place of speech, which is the place of the soul. Of the aspect of: "My soul went out at his speaking" . For the souls in all living and speaking species come from the things that are eaten. For eating is the essential vitality and sustaining of the body — from which the body receives its vitality — the aspect of the soul [ nefesh ]. And from this very eating, speech is made. For speech is the aspect of the soul, which is the blood. For speech is made from the bloods, which are souls — as Rabbainu, may his light shine, explained. And when one eats something, the souls within the thing eaten go forth and are transformed into the substance of the soul of the one who eats. For from the foods, bloods are made — which are the soul of the one who eats. And those souls rise up and from them speech is made, as above. And this is the aspect of: "And you shall eat, eat and be satisfied, and praise [Hashem]…" — for speech is made from eating. And therefore when the soul within the food comes into the living creature, it cannot rest and be still there — for its way is always to rise upward, so that speech should be made from it. And this is the aspect of chewing the cud, as above — that the food cannot be digested there at once, for it raises itself upward to the place of speech, as above. And all of this is in the pure species — which are the aspect of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, as above. For the souls are not immediately caught and trapped there — and they have the strength to lift themselves upward as is their nature, as above. For because there is good there, they are therefore not so fully trapped there — and therefore they have the strength to lift themselves upward to the place of speech, as is their nature, as above. And therefore they have the permission [ hetter ] of shechitah [ritual slaughter] — which is the aspect of the perfection of the Holy Tongue [ leshon ha-kodesh ], as above — through which one subdues the evil within the Tree of Knowledge — in the aspect of targum — that is, through which the evil within the kosher animals is subdued, as above. And then all the souls within the living creature are rectified and elevated through the shechitah at the throat — for there is the place of the ascent of souls and of speech, as above. But the impure species — whose sustenance is from the languages of the nations [ leshonos ha-akum ], which are the very opposite of holy speech entirely and in which there is no good whatsoever — therefore the souls that come there are immediately and instantly caught and trapped there and they are unable to rise and lift themselves and ascend. Of the aspect of: "Hashem has delivered me into the hands of those from whom I am unable to rise" . And therefore they do not chew the cud, as above. And therefore this is a sign of impurity in an animal or wild beast.