Treasury of Awe (Oatzar HaYeerah) — Volume I

In all foods there are exceedingly high lights [ oros gevohim me'od ]. Therefore the Tzadik — whose eating is in holiness, in the aspect of: "the Tzadik eats to the satisfaction of his soul" [Mishlei 13:25] — is nourished through his eating from the lights of tzachtzachos [the most brilliant, crystal-clear supernal radiances] — the aspect of: "and He shall satisfy your soul in tzachtzachos " [ v'hishbia' b'tzachtzachos nafshecha ] [Yeshayahu 58:11]. And therefore it is impossible to receive the high light of foods except through holy and pure vessels [ keilim kedoshim u-tehorim ] — which are made through the aspect of emunás chachamim [faith in the Sages]. [See the section on Emunah , entry 69 of this volume.] And when one blemishes faith in the Sages, G-d forbid, the vessels are blemished — and through this the foods are automatically blemished, and the light of holiness departs from them — since one has no vessel to receive the light within it. And then the foods remain as mere waste residue — and then the waste and dregs rise up and damage the brain. And therefore the nations — who are distant from the faith of Israel, and whose essential distance is from faith in the Sages, for many of their own wise men also know of faith in Hashem, blessed be He, but they deny the Torah and commandments — and primarily the Oral Torah, which is the aspect of faith in the Sages — and since they are distant from faith, they have no holy vessels. And all their vessels are impure in our eyes. And we cannot receive the light of holiness of the foods we eat except through the holy vessels of Israel — not through their vessels, which are the aspect of: "a vessel in which there is no desire" [ keli ein cheifetz bo ] [Hoshea 8:8]. All of this is because they are distant from faith in the Sages — through which comes the essential holiness of the vessels. And therefore when one purchases eating vessels from them, one must immerse them in mikveh waters. And through this we draw upon them the holiness of pure waters — which purify from the waste residue that comes through the blemish of faith in the Sages, as explained within. And through them the aspect of faith in the Sages is rectified — which is the essential holiness and rectification of all holy vessels, as above. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Koshering Vessels, Law 2, sections 2, 3, 4, 7)

Israel's eating is precious, holy, and exceedingly elevated. For holy eating is the aspect of Torah itself — the aspect of: "and Your Torah is within my innards" [ v'sorasecha b'soch mei'ai ] [Tehillim 40:9]. For through the holy Torah, holy vessels are made — through which vitality is drawn from the Chai ha-Chayyim [the Living of all life] in gradual measure. And through this comes the essential vitality — and the essential holy vitality is holy wisdom and daas . And this itself is the aspect of holy eating — for through eating, vitality is drawn, as plainly observable. And this is because there is a power in every food to draw and delimit vitality from the Chai ha-Chayyim into all living creatures. And this power the foods receive from the holy Torah. Therefore one must eat in holiness according to the Torah — the aspect of: "and Your Torah is within my innards" — for only through the Torah is vitality drawn from the Chai ha-Chayyim to give life to the soul of every living thing. And therefore it is forbidden to derive any benefit from this world without a blessing — for through the blessing one recites before eating, one calls to the Creator, blessed be He — who is the Chai ha-Chayyim — Who created this thing with this power: that vitality should be drawn through it. And now through the blessing we recite over every thing, we call to the Creator, blessed be He, and draw the vitality from Him, blessed be He, into the food one wishes to eat. And then specifically the food has the power to give the person holy vitality — which is the essential true vitality. Therefore the essential vitality and satiation comes through the blessing — the aspect of: "and you shall eat and be satisfied and praise the Name of Hashem etc." [ va'achaltem achol v'savo'a v'hilaltem es shem Hashem ] [Yoel 2:26]. For the essential vitality that the food gives to a person comes through the blessing Israel recites over everything they eat and benefit from. And from there the power extends also to all the foods eaten by the nations and animals — that it should give them life as well. For everything is drawn only from Israel who fulfill the Torah, as is known. And therefore in truth there is a great difference between the vitality received by Israel through their eating with blessing and according to the Torah — and the vitality of all others. For Israel receives true vitality, holy vitality. And therefore only they are called truly alive — as it is written: "and you who cleave…are all alive today" [ v'atem ha-devekim…chayyim kulchem ha-yom ] [Devarim 4:4]. But the nations and the wicked — even in their lives they are called dead, as our Rabbis of blessed memory stated — for their vitality is no vitality at all. For they have no power to draw vitality from the Chai ha-Chayyim in gradual measure — which one only merits when eating is according to the Torah. And this is the aspect of: "the Tzadik eats to the satisfaction of his soul, but the belly of the wicked shall lack" [ tzadik ochel l'sova nafsho, u-veten resha'im techsar ] [Mishlei 13:25] — for they have no power to satisfy their soul and give it proper life, since they are distant from the Torah. And this is: "man does not live by bread alone, but by every utterance from the mouth of G-d shall man live" [ ki lo al ha-lechem levado yichyeh ha-adam, ki al kol motza pi Hashem yichyeh ha-adam ] [Devarim 8:3] — for the essential vitality received through eating bread is only through the blessing, which is the aspect of "the utterance from the mouth of G-d" [ motza pi Hashem ]. For through stirring from below, the above is stirred — and when we recite the blessing with our mouths, through this the mouth of G-d, so to speak, is awakened to draw vitality through the aspect of speech, in gradual measure — through which comes the essential power that the food has to sustain the person. And this is the aspect of the difference between all forbidden foods and permitted foods — for all forbidden foods are the aspect of eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. They are not drawn from holy vessels — only from shattered vessels [ shivrei keilim ] — which have no power to draw vitality from the Chai ha-Chayyim properly. On the contrary — through them the Sitra Achra prevails even more — which is the side of death [ Sitra d'Mosa ]. And likewise the most holy foods — such as sacred foods [ kodashim ] and terumah for non-priests — are also forbidden for eating. For since they are holy with very great holiness — the recipient has no power to receive the vitality and holiness drawn through them. And therefore if one who is unfit for them should eat them, G-d forbid — this would cause a new breaking of vessels [ shevirat keilim me-chadash ]. For the essential breaking of vessels was because the vessels could not contain the excess of light, as is known — the aspect of: "excess of oil causes the lamp to go out." And therefore through such foods too, holy vitality cannot be received properly — for the essential rectification is to receive vitality in gradual measure through the complete rectification of vessels. Therefore: "no stranger shall eat sacred food" [ kol zar lo yochal kodesh ] [Vayikra 22:10] — so that it should not be in the aspect of excess light. And this is also the aspect of the prohibition of mixed species of the vineyard [ kil'ei ha-kerem ] — for they have no power to receive the excess light drawn through planting so many different mingled species. And therefore they are forbidden in the aspect of kodesh — as it is written: "lest the full yield be kodesh " [ pen tikdash ha-mele'ah ] [Devarim 22:9] — for this is the aspect of the prohibition of kodesh : not to be in the aspect of excess light, G-d forbid. And since the essential holiness of Israel's eating comes through the Torah — which is the aspect of holy vessels to receive holy vitality from the Chai ha-Chayyim in gradual measure — therefore eating vessels purchased from non-Jews require immersion in the mikveh . This is the aspect of the revelation of holy daas that one merits to draw through the holy Torah — which itself is the aspect of the holy vitality received from the Chai ha-Chayyim through engagement in Torah. And this is the essential rectification of holy eating, as above. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Koshering Vessels, Law 3)

Through eating, vitality is drawn. And the essential holy vitality is that the lower spirit [ ruach d'lesata ] — which is the vitality garbed in a person in this world — should draw the holiness of its vitality from its root: the higher spirit [ ruach d'lei'la ]. This is the aspect of "bringing from potential to actuality" [ motzi mi-ko'ach el ha-po'al ]. And therefore one must eat in holiness according to the Torah — for it is impossible to receive and draw vitality from above to below except through the holy Torah and commandments, through which one makes and rectifies holy vessels to draw vitality from above in gradual measure as is proper. And therefore Israel's eating must be in pure vessels of Israel. But the vessels of non-Jews are impure for Israel's eating — for the vessels of non-Jews are the aspect of: "broken cisterns that cannot hold water" [ borot nishbarim asher lo yachlu ha-mayim ] [Yirmiyahu 2:13] — which cannot draw the waters of daas that are the essential vitality — from the supernal divine spirit above to below. And therefore it is forbidden to eat in them until they are immersed in the holy mikveh waters. Through this they return and are included in the divine spirit that hovers over the face of the waters — through which a new spirit is drawn upon them: a spirit of purity and holiness. And then one can eat Israel's food in them — and draw holy vitality through them from the higher spirit to the lower spirit — which is the essential true vitality, as above. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Koshering Vessels, Law 4, section 13; see the section on Mikveh , entry 17)

The essential aspect of "bringing from potential to actuality" [ motzi mi-ko'ach el ha-po'al ] is through the aspect of hands [ yadayim ]. Therefore before eating one must wash the hands in water [ netilat yadayim ] — and through this one draws upon the hands the aspect of the holiness of mikveh waters. Through this one brings forth from potential to actuality completely — and this is the essential holiness of Israel's eating, as above. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Koshering Vessels, Law 4, section 42)

Bringing from potential to actuality is through the completeness of speech [ shleimus ha-dibur ] — and completeness of speech is drawn through causing the downfall of the wicked in this world to occur as it will occur in the future. And this is accomplished through truth [ emes ] — through serving Hashem, blessed be He, in truth, with no other aim whatsoever, only for the sake of Heaven in complete truth. And this is the aspect of the koshering of non-Jewish vessels that had absorbed prohibition through fire — they require koshering first through fire as well: through hag'alah [immersion in boiling water] or libun [direct heat purging] — according to how each vessel was used, so is its koshering. And afterward they require immersion in water. For since one must eat Israel's food in them — through which the holy spirit of life is drawn, which is the aspect of "bringing from potential to actuality" — therefore one must first expel their prohibition through fire. This is the aspect of the downfall of the wicked — who are expelled and cast out by the fire of the great and awesome Day of Judgment to come — as it is written: "and that coming day shall burn them" [ v'lihat osom ha-yom ha-ba ] [Malachi 3:19], and it is written: "for behold the day is coming, burning like a furnace etc." [ ki hineh ha-yom ba bo'er ka-tanur ] [Malachi 3:19]. And the future judgment itself is the aspect of fire — the aspect of: "for through fire Hashem shall judge" [ ki va-eish Hashem nishpat ] [Yeshayahu 66:16]. For they heated themselves with the fire of desires, and not only that — they also kindled with the fire of their jealousy against the true Tzadikim and the fit among Israel and pursued them without cause. Therefore their downfall will be through fire — the aspect of: "everything that comes through fire, pass through fire" [ kol davar asher yavo va-eish ta'aviru va-eish ] [Bamidbar 31:23]. And this is the aspect of: "but the gold and the silver…everything that comes through fire etc." [Bamidbar 31:22–23] — and our Rabbis of blessed memory expounded: "but the gold" — one must first remove the rust [ chaluda ] before koshering. This is a hint that it is impossible to bring about the downfall of the wicked — the aspect of expelling the prohibition outward through fire — except through truth. And this is the aspect of removing the rust — which is the aspect of falsehood [ sheker ] that covers over the truth until the truth is unrecognizable. For falsehood too clothes itself in some semblance of imagined truth. Therefore one must first remove the rust — so that only the vessel remains as it truly is: of silver or gold etc. — without any other thing or ulterior motive cloaking it. This is the aspect of the rust on the metal, as above. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Koshering Vessels, Law 4, section 43)

The matter of why most foods spoil when left over from one day to the next — and in particular the taste absorbed into a vessel, about which our Rabbis stated that after a full twenty-four hours [ me'et le'et ] it imparts a spoiled flavor [ noten ta'am li-fegam ] — see [the section on] Bitachon [Trust in G-d], entry 3 of this volume. Cross-reference to the Oatzar HaYeerah section on Bitachon , entry 3. (Likutay Halachos)

In truth, within the prohibition itself — which is the aspect of the husk [ kelipah ] — there is no taste whatsoever. The aspect of: "is there taste in the white of an egg?" [ im yesh ta'am b'rir chalamut ] [Iyov 6:6] — for the essential taste is drawn from the aspect of the good — the aspect of: "Taste and see that Hashem is good" [Tehillim 34:9]. And therefore the closer a thing is to holiness, the better taste it has. Therefore the man [manna] changed to many flavors — for the manna is the aspect of very high holiness, as is known. And therefore its taste was exceedingly good and it encompassed all the flavors in the world. Therefore our Rabbis of blessed memory stated: "the Shabbos dish — its fragrance spreads" — and the taste of Shabbos foods is far better than the taste of weekday foods. As our Rabbis stated: "there is one spice we have and Shabbos is its name" — for then the taste of food is drawn from a very high holiness: the holiness of the holy Shabbos. But in forbidden foods — there is in them from their own side no taste whatsoever. And the essential taste within them is only from the small amount of good that has fallen there — namely from the holy sparks that are imprisoned there in a very great and bitter exile. And we have no power to refine them now — therefore they are forbidden to us. And for this reason they are called issur [prohibition] — from the word asurim [imprisoned] — because the holy sparks are imprisoned there in a great captivity. And the essential grip of the kelipos upon forbidden things is only because of the holy sparks within them — for they always cling to a place where there is some holiness. And then their way is to exchange good for evil — as if there were taste, G-d forbid, in the forbidden thing itself — when in truth there is no taste in it from its own side whatsoever, as above. And therefore when the prohibition is blemished and the taste exits from it — this is the aspect of the good within it, namely the holy sparks within it, having departed from it. Then the prohibition has nothing from which to draw sustenance — and then the prohibition itself is nullified and becomes mere dust, with no more power to prohibit. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Nosen Ta'am li-Fegam [Imparting a Spoiled Flavor], Law 2)

Wine in holiness is the aspect of daas and wisdom — the aspect of the seventy facets of the Torah [ shiv'im panim la-Torah ]. This is the aspect of: "wine was given in seventy letters" [ yayin nitan b'shiv'im osiyos ] — as our Rabbis of blessed memory stated. And it is the aspect of the wine that gladdens — the aspect of: "a joyful heart makes the face shine" [ lev same'ach yeitiv panim ] [Mishlei 15:13] — namely one merits to the radiant face [ or ha-panim ] of holiness through holy wine. This is the aspect of the awakening from sleep — which is the aspect of the revelation of holy speech — the aspect of: "your palate is like good wine…making the sleeping ones' lips move" [ v'chichech k'yayin ha-tov…dovev siftei yeshenim ] [Shir HaShirim 7:10]. And therefore song is only recited over wine — for song is also the aspect of awakening from sleep — the aspect of: "Awake, awake, speak a song" [ uri uri dabri shir ] [Shoftim 5:12]. But in the opposite direction, G-d forbid — when the wine is not in holiness — on the contrary it brings sleep, as is plainly observable. This is the aspect of the departure of the daas and mochin of the seventy facets of the Torah — which are the aspect of "radiant faces" [ anpin nehirin ] — and the "darkened faces" [ anpin chashochin ] prevail, G-d forbid — which are the aspect of the seventy nations, who are in the ultimate darkness and distant from the seventy facets of the Torah. And therefore wine is forbidden upon the touch of a non-Jew — for as soon as the non-Jew touches the wine, the wine is drawn toward sleep — the aspect of the departure of the seventy facets of the Torah. And therefore it is forbidden to us. And this is why libation-wine is called yayin nesech — after the verse: "for Hashem has poured upon them a spirit of slumber" [ ki nasach Hashem aleihem ruach tardaimah ] — the aspect of the prevailing of the sleep of the Sitra Achra through such wine. And as for why wine is specifically forbidden through the touch of a non-Jew — see within. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Libation Wine, Law 2)

Food sometimes brings sleep and the withdrawal of mochin . And therefore one must recite Birchas ha-Mazon [Grace After Meals] — for through blessing Hashem, blessed be He, over every thing and revealing that Hashem, blessed be He, created all — the vitality within the food is awakened. This is the aspect of the awakening from sleep. And therefore Birchas ha-Mazon is recited over wine — for wine by nature brings sleep. Only through ordering blessings over it — through this the wine is included in holiness. And then through it specifically the awakening from sleep is drawn — which is the aspect of the awakening from sleep through stories [ sipurei maasiyos ] specifically, as explained within. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Libation Wine, Law 2, section 4)

Wine is the aspect of the heating of the blood — as is plainly observable: wine and other intoxicating drinks heat the blood. And therefore wine encompasses two aspects: "merited" or "did not merit" — as our Rabbis of blessed memory stated. For the root of all the Evil Inclination and desires etc. is only from the boiling of the blood. But when one merits to drink wine in holiness — from the cup of blessing, and on Shabbos and Yom Tov — and guards one's soul not to come to drunkenness, G-d forbid — then through the wine one's daas is elevated and one's heart is gladdened: one feels in one's daas the knowledge of the longing and cleaving to His divinity, blessed be He — which is the essential daas . And the heart is warmed with great ardor and great joy to be included in Hashem, blessed be He, and to cleave to Him — which is the essential wholeness of holy love — when the heating of the blood is transformed toward holiness: to blaze with the flames of love for Hashem, blessed be He. And this is the aspect of the wine that gladdens — for the essential joy is when one feels in one's heart the knowledge of His divinity, blessed be He — from which all joys in the world are drawn, as explained within. And therefore song is only recited over wine — for the essential cleaving to Hashem, blessed be He, is through prayer, songs, and praises. And this is the aspect of the wine that gladdens. And the essential joy merited through holy wine is through meriting thereby to transform the heating of the blood — whose grip is in the aspect of gevuros [powers of severity] and the left [ smol ] — where the grip of the seventy nations resides. And when the wine is included in holiness, this is the aspect of "the left is included in the right" [ smol nichlal b'yamin ] — and there is the essential wholeness of holy love and the essential joy, as explained within. Therefore wine requires very great guarding — not to drink it at an optional meal [ seudas ha-reshus ] and the like. And even at a meal for a mitzvah, not to drink more than necessary — so as not to come to drunkenness, G-d forbid. For through this the evil heating of the blood in the 365 sinews [ shesas-yud-heh gidin ] prevails — and one can thereby come to all transgressions, may the Merciful One save us — the aspect of: "if one fixes his eye on the cup, it will go as if in straight paths" [ ki yitein ba-kos eino, yithalech b'meisharim ] [Mishlei 23:31] — as our Rabbis of blessed memory explained. And therefore wine is forbidden upon the touch of a non-Jew — for as soon as the non-Jew touches the wine, the grip of the seventy nations is drawn upon it — which is the evil within the blood — which is the aspect of the blemish of wine — the aspect of: "do not look at wine when it reddens" [ al tere yayin ki yis'adam ] [Mishlei 23:31] — for its end is blood — from which all transgressions in the Torah are drawn, G-d forbid. And therefore the essential punishment of all the nations and all the wicked is the aspect of "the cup of poison" [ kos ha-tar'eilah ] — the aspect of: "for there is a cup in the hand of Hashem, and the wine foams…but its dregs, all the wicked of the earth shall drain and drink" [ ki kos b'yad Hashem v'yayin chamar…ach shmarav yimtzu yishtu kol rish'ei aretz ] [Tehillim 75:9]. For the blemish of all the wicked — which comes through the blemish of the boiling of the blood — is the aspect of the dregs of wine, the aspect of blemished wine — from which all their wickedness comes and from which all their punishment comes, may the Merciful One save us, as above. And in the opposite direction in holiness — the essential reception of reward is called by the name wine: the aspect of the wine preserved for the Tzadikim for the World to Come — the aspect of the "cup of salvation" [ kos yeshu'os ] — the aspect of: "my cup overflows" [ kosi revayah ] [Tehillim 23:5] — the aspect of: "Hashem is the portion of my share and my cup" [ Hashem menat chelki v'chosi ] [Tehillim 16:5] — the aspect of the cup of blessing given in the right hand. For the left is included in the right — from which comes the essential song, melody, and joy of holiness, as explained within. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of Libation Wine, Law 3, sections 3, 4)