# Adir BaMurom — Chapter 3: Preparations for the Revelation of Secrets; The Order of the Idra
Source: https://ajew.org/reader/ramchal-adir-bamuroam/1/3
## Segment 1
חָרוּב חוּרְבָּן ק״ב חרובין ק״ב חרובין אהי״ה הוי״ה אדנ״י יב״ק
[Continuing from Chapter 2:] These matters are further linked to the matters of gilgulim [transmigrations of souls] in the secret of Kayin and Hevel, as is known — for they go to rectify all the blemishes [pegamim] that were blemished in the world. And corresponding to this, Rashbi had with him Rabbi Eliezer his son — in the secret of the totality of the two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. And it emerges that while Rashbi was in the cave, the aspect of the teiva [ark] came to be — for the Zohar to be produced as described — during which all those luminaries that had been hidden until that time owing to the concealment of the thread became revealed. And it was necessary to rectify that secret of the light of which it says: "For all the children of Israel there was light in their dwellings" [Exodus 10:23]. And the revelation of the lights [alternate: the letters] — in the secret of the Yud of Shaddai.
But it was necessary to accomplish great tikkunim there, and to remain there until those tikkunim were complete. And the totality of the tikkunim is the secret of: "The judgment of the wicked in Gehinnom is twelve months" (Eduyos 2:10) — and this is the matter of the carob tree [חָרוּב — charuv] that grew for them — which is the churban [חוּרְבָּן — destruction: same root ח-ר-ב as charuv = carob; the wordplay is intentional and central to the Ramchal's teaching] — and in more particular detail, its secret is the 102 carobs [ק״ב חרובין] associated with Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa. And the matter is: that the purification of the soul is either through Gehinnom or through teshuva. For "every kind goes to its own kind" [Aramaic: kol zina azil le-zinei] — and thus the soul must descend into Gehinnom until the zuhama [spiritual impurity / filth] separates from it and it cleaves to its root. Or it ascends to Imma through the secret of teshuva, cleaves to its root, the zuhama separates from it and is cast downward.
## Segment 2
הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י אהב״ה א-ה-ב-ה יאא״א אהב״ה אחד אהבה יאא״א יוד הא ואו הא
And you have already heard the matter of "tohu, vohu, and darkness upon the face of the deep" — how the forces of impurity would grasp hold, chamber by chamber [me-medurah], of souls, on account of the dominance of the kelim alone. Therefore, upon Rashbi's ascent to Imma in the secret of the cave as described — he needed to extract all the souls of Israel from the grasp of the tehom [the deep / the abyss], which is Gehinnom.
Therefore they needed to remain for twelve years — to draw the aspect of this yichud — for they needed to join the Name הוי״ה in its twelve permutations [tzirufim] to אהי״ה and אדנ״י in their permutations, and each permutation of the twelve permutations of הוי״ה blessed be He required one year. Thus in twelve years the tikkun was already complete — namely the drawing of the Name הוי״ה blessed be He — and then they emerged.
## Segment 3
הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י הוי״ה הוי״ה
Therefore they needed to remain first for twelve years and afterwards twelve months. And all of this is in the secret of the 102 carobs [ק״ב חרובין] — for there are three Names: אהי״ה הוי״ה אדנ״י — which together have the numerical value of יב״ק [= Yud-Beis-Kuf = 112], and their secret is: yichud [unification — the Yud], bracha [blessing — the Beis], kedusha [holiness — the Kuf].16
## Segment 4
הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י הוי״ה הוי״ה
When the thread is not established so as to be revealed [alternate reading: "at all"], then the matter of the yichud is obscured and only kedusha and bracha remain — and this is called charuv [carob — wordplay: also desolate/destroyed], in the secret of the 102 carobs. For when the yichud is revealed, the Sitra Achra has no dominion whatsoever. And it thus emerges that the Name הוי״ה is concealed, and only the secret of אהי״ה and אדנ״י remains — these are the Kuf-Beis alone.
## Segment 5
אהי״ה אדנ״י הוי״ה
But the tikkun was not yet thoroughly complete until they also sat an additional twelve months — to accomplish the great joining of the three Names, which together make twelve: the twelve letters of הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י.16 And there is a great difference between one tikkun and the other: the first is the drawing of the Name הוי״ה blessed be He to the Kuf-Beis [kedusha + bracha] already present; and the second is the joining of the הוי״ה that was drawn with the Kuf-Beis, so that they become in one equalization [hashva'a] — as they must be in the secret of YaB"K. For the first required years — because it is more particular and no tikkun had yet been accomplished at all, and beginnings are difficult. And afterwards months sufficed — for it is more general, and moreover since a tikkun had already been accomplished at the beginning, it was easier to complete.
## Segment 6
הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י רפב״י
And this same tikkun also extends to another dimension — and this is the matter of the drawing of the thread we spoke of, which needed to be drawn until it clothed itself in the souls of Israel. And you have already heard that it is the Name MaH [= 45]. And within this Name there are four essential letters whose secret is אהב״ה [= love — א-ה-ב-ה. The connection is numerical: יאא״א = 10+1+1+1 = 13; אהב״ה = 1+5+2+5 = 13. Both equal 13 — which is also the gematria of אחד (One) and of אהבה (love). The Ramchal's point is thus both numerical and mystical.], and they are: יאא״א [the four letters of the fully spelled-out Name MaH — יוד הא ואו הא — in which the letters Yud, Heh, Vav, Heh respectively yield: a Yud and three Alefs].
During the first twelve years, the three alefin [the three Alef-letters] were drawn — whose secret is three אהי״ה or three אדנ״י — corresponding to the twelve permutations of הוי״ה blessed be He, which are the secret of the twelve tribes, as is known. But in the thirteenth year, during the twelve months, the Yud was drawn — which alone receives all twelve of the preceding ones. And its secret is three Yuds in the secret of three points [kotzin], which are the secret of three Havayos. And because they are the secret of the yichud, they are therefore subsumed in a single Yud. And similarly the months are alone subsumed within a single year. Understand this well.
And through this, the entire world was certainly rectified in the beginning — in the secret of the tikkunim of the 102 carobs I described. But they had not yet been mityashvim [settled / come to rest / established] in the world. That is: whereas until that time it was said "and we do not know how long", now they needed to establish their tikkun in such a manner that it would spread and reach others. And until the yichud was completed in the second set of twelve as described, they were not yet settling in the world — and they were dealing damage to human beings. Until they had to return to the cave until the completion of the second twelve, and then they settled more.
Until: even though Rabbi Eliezer — whose root is from the gevuros [stern judgments] — was dealing damage, Rashbi — whose root is from the chassadim [lovingkindness] — was healing. And afterwards they settled entirely.
And Eliyahu came to announce to them that the decree was annulled [betela gezirta]. Yet even so, he did not come and tell them directly — rather, in a roundabout way the news came to them (Shabbos 33b). And the truth is: because the tikkun of the Zohar was what had been accomplished there, therefore Eliyahu came — for he is truly the essential one in the revelation of the souls that was revealed through the composition of the Sefer HaZohar. For this tikkun was entirely accomplished through him, as is elucidated in the Sefer HaTikkunim at the beginning of its introduction. But since the tikkun was not yet complete as described, he only brought tidings from afar.
And Rashbi is rooted in Abraham our forefather, peace be upon him — and he too rectified the matter of the yichud. But he could only rectify the general [klal] — namely הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י together — but not the particular [prat], so as to join each individual permutation with the other. And it is true that after the particular, this general tikkun is the completion of the matter — but beforehand, it is not complete. Therefore, initially Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair [רפב״י] would answer Rashbi twelve pirukin [Aramaic: unravelings / resolutions — Rashbi posed 12 questions and Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair could resolve 12]. But Rashbi rectified both twelves — and therefore he [Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair] would answer him twenty-four pirukin (Shabbos 33b).
It thus emerges that Rashbi's flight created the matter of the teiva — within which the Zohar was produced, and within it all 600,000 souls were encompassed, as mentioned in the Tikkunim. And this was thereby counted as a general flight for all Israel — to the point that at the end of days, only departure [yetziah], and not flight [bericha], will be required. And this is what is written: "for not in haste shall you go out, and not in flight shall you go — for the Lord walks before you" [referring to Ze'ir Anpin] "and the G‑d of Israel gathers you behind" [referring to the Nukva] [Isaiah 52:12] — for it will not be in the secret of the Ir Miklat [City of Refuge], but rather according to the proper order of the gradations.
And the truth is that the Sefer HaZohar remained after him as a blessing — for whoever cleaves to it is considered as having fled from the Sitra Achra, such that only departure will be needed of him, not flight. And I will tell you what benefit is found in this.
The truth is that there is immense benefit — for it is deliverance from the chevlei Mashiach [the birth-pangs of the Messiah]. The matter is: the chevlei Mashiach were not necessary in themselves — except in the same way that the chibut hakever [the purgation of the grave] is necessary to separate the zuhama from a person — so too the chevlei Mashiach were necessary in order to separate from Israel the defilement of the exile, so that they could then flee as described, and afterwards return and go out. And this is the secret of: "The Holy Blessed One sets over them a king whose decrees are as harsh as Haman's, and brings them back to the good" (Sanhedrin 97b).
For this is a great principle: as long as a person is within the prevailing strength of the Sitra Achra, he cannot accomplish the necessary tikkun. And the Sitra Achra must remain bound and fettered beneath Israel as described. Therefore they require two operations: first — to exit from those klippos by way of flight, for by way of orderly departure it is impossible at the outset. And afterwards — to truly go out from the klippos with a high hand, such that the klippos remain bound beneath them. But since much zuhama had adhered to them, they could not flee except through the chevlei Mashiach — for then they would return in teshuva, which is Imma the Ir Miklat — and this is the flight.
And I will tell you in this a great secret of what Scripture says: "In your distress, when all these things have found you... and you return to the Lord your G‑d..." [Deuteronomy 4:30]. Know: the prevailing dominance of the Sitra Achra to issue — heaven forbid — harsh decrees against Israel is drawn according to its ascent to grasp hold of and suckle from [לינק — linek: to nurse/suckle — the Sitra Achra draws parasitically from the divine gradations like a nursling feeding from a source not its own] the gradations — for as it ascends, so it grows stronger. And it rises and grows stronger through the sefiros of Zu"n, and Israel are pressed with oppression after oppression. Until it reaches Imma — thinking it can cleave there as well, in the secret of: "from Imma, judgments are aroused" (Zohar III, 65a). But in truth it cannot — for Imma is freedom [cheirus]. And then, on the contrary, Israel cleave to her and flee through the secret of teshuva. Therefore it was necessary that the king whose decrees are harsh go and grow stronger from gradation to gradation until reaching Imma — where his power is broken — for on the contrary, teshuva is aroused for Israel. And this is the secret of: "Before destruction, pride" [Proverbs 16:18]. And therefore also the flights of Moses and of Rashbi were brought about through decree.
And since through this flight the Sefer HaZohar was produced, the matter of the teiva is now established and stands ready for all who come to it — namely: whoever cleaves to the Sefer HaZohar has already reached Imma and exited the Sitra Achra — and does not need the chevlei Mashiach — as mentioned in the Ra'aya Mehemna, Parshas Naso, in the matter I cited at the very beginning [of this work].
And yet, the Zohar was not revealed until much later after it was produced — for this action was only needed at its proper time — meaning: that Israel should flee through the secret of this Zohar, for its effect is only at the end of days, in the generation of the King Messiah [dara de-malka Meshicha].
Let me now explain to you what dara de-Meshicha [the generation of the Messiah] is. Our Sages of blessed memory said: "In the footsteps of the Messiah [be-ikva de-Meshicha], insolence [chutzpa] will increase" (Sotah 49a). The matter is: in the footsteps of the Messiah there will be the chevlei Mashiach — for everything the Holy Blessed One does is in the secret of the form of Adam [the cosmic man], and within that operation one finds the head, the body, and all the parts found in a human being. And the exile itself is likewise thus — and therefore all these limbs are found within it. And from each and every limb there depend, in number, years [of exile], according to the nature and matter of that particular limb.
Now, in the days of Rashbi, they had already reached the chazeh [the chest/breastbone — the cosmic midpoint from which the chassadim are revealed downward] — and this is the place from which the chassadim are revealed. Therefore until that time everything was in sealment [situm] — and then the sealment was opened, for the place brought it about so. And you must know: the Messiahs stand in the two akevos [heels — the lowest point of the cosmic partzuf] of this partzuf — but from there they radiate illuminations to the entire body. Therefore they said: "Today, if you hearken to His voice" (Sanhedrin 98b) — he is ever ready, but his true place is the akevos. And all the generations that depend upon those gradations are called dara de-Meshicha in the truest sense — for the Messiah is bound to them with a great bond, unlike in the earlier periods, when he would send illumination but was not himself present there.
And from the side of the akevos, in those generations, the chevlei Mashiach were bound to appear. Therefore it was necessary that the Sefer HaZohar of Rashbi be revealed then — for it was made for precisely this purpose. Only it was produced at the proper time for its production: namely at the time when the chassadim were spreading from the chazeh downward — for then it was immediately said: "For all the children of Israel there was light in their dwellings" [Exodus 10:23] — and it was revealed later, in the time when it was needed. But certainly, since it was produced even if not yet revealed, some great effect must be born from it. And the truth is: immediately [from the moment of its production], the souls contained the secret of the flight. And this is what is stated in the Tikkunim regarding the verse: "Also the sparrow has found a house" [Psalms 84:4] — look it up there. Only the matter was not revealed to those below. And yet certainly this is a great sweetening [mituk] for the exile, and a great preparation for the redemption. And therefore they said: that the supernal ones would be nourished from it until the end of days, when it will be revealed to those below — and through it: "you shall return, each man to his possession" [Leviticus 25:10].
And then the verse was fulfilled: "G‑d, my King from of old, working salvations in the midst of the earth" [Psalms 74:12]. For the earth had been tohu va-vohu until that time — which is Malchus in exile — and this is the Name Elokim. And then the chassadim had turned backward, and even Ze'ir Anpin was left in the secret of: "his strength weakened like a woman's" (Berachos 32a). But at that time the aspect of the teiva was formed — within which all the many tikkunim described were accomplished — in the secret of: "a window [tzohar] shall you make for the ark" [Genesis 6:16], which is the radiance [zohara] from Imma Ila'a as explained — and this is in the secret of the Elokim of those gradations.
And it is called me-alma de-duchura [Aramaic: from the world of the masculine] — for even Imma is so called, since she is concluded [sealed / completed] in the masculine [duchura], as is known. And this is precisely the matter of the vessels of Imma that she lends to her daughter — when she is then called Adon kol ha-aretz [Master of all the earth], as expounded in the Zohar at the beginning of Parshas Bereshis — look it up there. And regarding this Name of Elokim it says: "G‑d, my King from of old" — for it is in the secret of kedem [primordial / east / anterior], in the secret of the masculine. And this is: "working salvations" — for from then the salvations began through the tikkunim of the Zohar and its battles, as mentioned in the Ra'aya Mehemna and the Tikkunim. But it was only: "in the midst of the earth" — inside [sealed within], in the secret of the teiva, in which the tikkunim were accomplished inwardly and were not revealed outward.
And you have now thoroughly understood the matter of the Zohar and why it was produced — for it is in the secret of the teiva: that Imma spreads within the Nukva even while she is in exile, and it becomes in the secret of an Ir Miklat in order to flee within it from the exile — such that whoever flees within it will not require the chevlei Mashiach for the other flight of teshuva that is revealed in the time of great distress, as I explained.
Let me now explain to you in particular the matter of the Zohar, the Idra, and the Tikkunim. Rashbi composed the Sefer HaZohar — in accordance with the illumination that reached him in his rectification in the cave — and it is a commentary upon the Torah, elucidating great secrets according to the orderings of the Torah itself. This is distinct from the other works produced by later masters — such as Sefer Yetzira, Pirkei Hechalos, and the like — and all the works of the ancients — such as Sefer Raziel, Sefer Chanoch, and the like — for these are not upon the Torah and not according to the orderings of the Torah. But this work is a great and awesome composition that reveals the depth of secrets with great clarity upon the Torah itself — and it is therefore called the revelation of the Torah in its inwardness [pnimiyus], just as the Holy Blessed One is destined to reveal the Torah itself in yet deeper inwardness in the time to come. And Rashbi would reveal secrets of the Torah, and his companions would listen to his voice and join with him in this composition, each one contributing his portion — just as the Mishnah was produced through the Tannaim, and Rabbeinu HaKadosh [Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi] compiled the views of all of them and produced from them the Sefer HaMishnah. So too Rashbi desired that a work be compiled comprising the teachings of all the members of his yeshiva, and that the work be ordered upon the Torah as described. For works that speak of individual topics — one piece of wisdom here and one there — are called as it were private treasuries; but the Zohar, produced upon the Torah, is called the great opening [pesach hagadol] of the totality of the Torah.
And Rashbi charged Rabbi Abba to be the writer and arranger of all the words that the wise ones of the yeshiva would speak at all times and in all places — and to arrange everything according to the ordering of the Torah. And the book was not to be sealed as long as Rashbi and his yeshiva were alive — for he would bring all their words from every time, each man in his place within the orderings of the book. And this is what Rabbi Abba said in Parshas Mishpatim (fol. 163b): "That which I have written — from the holy luminary..." and so on.
And in the days of Rashbi's life, great tikkunim were accomplished and compositions were gathered in accordance with the illuminations that were revealed. For the Ra'aya Mehemna [the Faithful Shepherd — Moses' discourse on the commandments] took upon itself to expound the commandments [pikudim], and the Sefer Ra'aya Mehemna was produced. And furthermore the Sefer HaTikkunim was produced — and these two are great compositions in which great revelations from above appeared, supernal beings entering them openly from above. And the Idra Kadisha [the Holy Assembly] was produced before the Tikkunim — and therefore the opening of the Tikkunim says: "And there arose with you, Rabbi Shimon, and your six companions who had assembled in the beginning..." — for there were only seven after the Idra, as is explained further on: ten entered and seven emerged. And the matter of it is: that in the beginning, although the companions were before him and engaged in matters of Torah — even so, a strong bond was not yet made among them except through this matter of the Idra. And I will explain this matter to you thoroughly.
16 See Kitzur Hakonos, p. 37, in the kavana of the immersion of the Ayin-Shin.
## Segment 7
לינק