Ginzay Ramchal — Section 16: Pinat HaAhavah — The Corner of Love

File 2 — The First Corner: *Ahavah* (Love) v2 — full audit

פָּנָה רִאשׁוֹנָה שֶׁל הַמֶּרְכָּבָה The First Corner of the Chariot

§ 1. The Opening Vision — The Merkavah Issuing Forth

**The order of the *Ma'aseh Merkavah* (Work of the Chariot) is thus:** Luminous and Mighty, [the first aspect] comes forth first, and covers all the Glory. And in it stands the power to open all the graves. And if you should say: what are the graves? **Come and see:** seven rungs of *tum'ah* (impurity) stand, one above another. The first of them all is *avi avos ha-tum'ah* (the Father of Fathers of Impurity). And so they ascend one above another; in them stand all kinds of *ketzef* (wrath) and *afeilah* (gloom/darkness), and from them issue forth kinds of corruption to cover the Light that goes forth from the *Shemesh HaElyon* (Upper Sun), which garbs itself in the *Shemesh HaTachton* (Lower Sun), illuminating the entire world.

And these clouds ascend and descend, and there is no rain and no bounty in them, but only every kind of tempest — and they are called *sa'aros Teiman* (tempests of Teiman/the South), and they issue forth from these seven graves. **And the one appointed over them all is called by the name *Teiman***, and of him is said: *"And your mighty-men, O Teiman, shall be dismayed"* [Ovadyah 1:9]. For many princes of wrath and destruction stand under his hand, and do things mightily, against the might of the Sun. And when the Holy-One-Blessed-be-He shall bring forth the sun from its sheath, then the *Gevurah* shall see [or: shall fear — *yir'eh* is ambiguous between "shall see" and "shall be seen"], and how many Heads of Yisrael shall be strengthened at that time — of whom is said: *"and His lovers [shall be] as the going-forth of the sun in its might"* [Shoftim 5:31], as shall be explained afterwards. And then these mighty-ones of the side of evil shall be dismayed (*yeichasim*) from before him — *"and your mighty-men, O Teiman, shall be dismayed"* — certainly.

§ 2. The Seven Evil Clouds and Their Names

Come and see: these clouds spread forth in the world into seven clouds, and these are the evil names that they have: ***Katzfiel*, *Se'ariron*, *Chamtachiron*** — and as a second triad: ***Shesfiel*, *Yo'achtiron*, *Avdiah*** [the seventh being their commander *Teiman* himself]. And each one of them brings forth a cloud on its own account. Upon them is said: *"You have covered Yourself with a cloud, so that prayer should not pass through"* [Eichah 3:44].

Corresponding to them were seven *Ananei HaKavod* (Clouds of Glory) for Yisrael in the wilderness; and the secret of this: *"Behold, I come to you in the thickness of the cloud"* [Shemos 19:9]. Just as the totality of all the [evil] seven is called *Teiman*, so too the totality of all seven Clouds of Glory is called *av kal* (*a swift cloud*); and the secret of this: *"Behold, Hashem rides upon a swift cloud, and comes to Mitzrayim"* [Yeshayahu 19:1] — **and he is Mitzrayim, and he is Teiman**. Seven evil clouds were standing under the dominion of *Rahav*, the angelic-prince of Mitzrayim, and corresponding to them were spreading in the Land of Yisrael *shiv'ah amamin* (the seven nations), of whom is said: *"You shall not keep any soul alive"* [Devarim 20:16] — for every one of them that remained made a stumbling-block for Yisrael. And when they went out of Mitzrayim, there was revealed over them this *av kal* that I said, and it subdued *Teiman*, and then [were **split open**] all the seven evil clouds [the editor's square-brackets mark *nivke'u*, "were split", as a conjecture for a damaged reading], and opposite them descended **seven good clouds** for Yisrael. And of the cloud that brought them out is said: *"And the pillar of cloud moved from before them"* [Shemos 14:19]. And the end of the matter was at *Matan Torah* (the Giving of the Torah), when the Supernal *Shofar* was aroused — ***Imma Ila'ah* (Supernal Mother)** — and it is the *Yovel* (Jubilee); then was completed the freedom of Yisrael, and all the evil clouds were split open —

entirely. For there is nothing that passes them away like the *Shofar*. And therefore at the end it is written: *"Hashem Elokim shall blow in the Shofar, and shall go in the tempests of Teiman"* [Zecharyah 9:14] — for then, by way of this Shofar, the tempests of Teiman shall pass away entirely, certainly.

§ 3. Yisrael Buried in the Graves of Galus — The Name *Kuzu*

Come and see: these seven clouds are seven graves, in which Yisrael were buried in the Galus. And when they stand there in this burial, no light at all reaches them, and their voice is almost not heard, and it appears as though it does not reach Above. And of them is said: *"like the slain that dwell in the grave"* and so forth [Tehillim 88:6]. And how does the Holy-One-Blessed-be-He bring Yisrael out from among them? Rather — [(like)] [the power of] His Rulership is what arouses [them], in the secret of His Supernal Unity — *Heh Echad* — and this is the gematria of this Name ***Kuzu*** [[כוז״ו] = 39 = ה' אחד]. And with this Name He opens the graves, and brings them forth from there. **And this is the hope of the Redemption of Yisrael — and the secret of the *Chevlei Mashiach* (birth-pangs of the Mashiach) — they issue forth from these graves.**

Come and see: with the opening of this Holy Name against the graves — to bring forth from within them His people Yisrael — even with all this, they have not yet gone out from the graves, … [only] found within the graves, with the grave opened upon them — and the Holy-One-Blessed-be-He needs to bring them forth. And we shall now set forth the order of the Merkavah as it stands after the opening of the graves. As long as the graves were sealed, the voice of Yisrael was almost not heard, and so it is said: *"And their cry went up to God from the labor"* [Shemos 2:23]. And this was said at the time when the Redemption of Yisrael began to sprout in Mitzrayim — behold, at first it did not ascend. And likewise is said: *"You have covered Yourself with a cloud"* and so forth. Once the graves are opened, behold the voice ascends; and to its force all the Supernal Lights are aroused in great *Ahavah* (love). Of that time is said: *"For Ahavah is fierce as death, jealousy is cruel as the grave; its flashes are flashes of fire, the flame of Y-H"* [Shir HaShirim 8:6]. For the clouds have not yet passed from the world, and there is no voice that ascends without the clouds rising against it to do evil, God-forbid. The voice ascends and is bound to the roots with force, and they are aroused and they tremble, and all the Heavenly Host trembles after them, and they wish to bring out their operation into the light. These clouds rise up against them and darken the atmosphere; and therefore the Supernal Roots were unable to complete their operation — and they begin with great arousal, and they cease in the middle, and they return and are aroused again; and though some of them would complete much, even so they do not complete the whole. **And a fierce war stands always between the Lights and the clouds — and the more the voices of Yisrael ascend, the more the war intensifies.** And from the time of the opening of these graves, up to this very day, *menuchah* (rest) is not found Above.

§ 4. The Shofar and the Awakening of the Worlds

Come and see: in the Redemption of Mitzrayim, after the opening of the grave, in the secret of *"and their cry went up"* — as I said — the Lights were revealed, and there was the Vision to Moshe. But immediately *"the service grew heavy"* [Shemos 5:9] is written. And behold, then they are aroused, certainly, and the Lower Ones come near with great nearness — until there is between them a distance only like a thread of a hair. But in one instant the cloud ascends, and the light returns to its place. And at the hour that the light returns, how much dread and quaking is there in all the worlds — for they think [it to be] the opposite, God-forbid.

this cloud gains strength, and desires to cast-darkness against this Line (*Kav*), God-forbid; and it rages and stands in great panic. And then you have no rung that is not trembling, and from the excess of the trembling all the rectifications that stand the world upon its base — they convulse, as though to break, God-forbid — until there is revealed one Light, most pleasant exceedingly, and there is seen in it the likeness of **four Flames (*Shalhaviyos*) without any hue**, and it is fine, descending in great purity, and it sinks this tumult. And their name is **the four *Shalhaviyos*, and they are called *Ahavah***. And from within it there is seen shooting forth one strong force, for the Great Force is not seen except after its expansion. And in its expansion it brings forth *Shalhaviyos* without end, and it is called by the name ***Yud-Heh HaGadol* (the Great Yud-Heh)**. All the *Shalhaviyos* that spread from it are included under *forty-two* great and strong ones; and of them is said: *"its flashes are flashes of fire, the flame of Y-H"*. And all these *Shalhaviyos* spread throughout all the Corners of the Merkavah.

§ 5. The Primary Four Flames and the Throne of the Hidden Union

The four primary *Shalhaviyos* are made a *Kisei* (Throne) for the *Yichud HaNe'elam* (Hidden Union) — and then is found the *sheket* (quietude) in all the rungs. And the Darkened Fire [*ha-aish he-chashuch*] that I mentioned is continually aroused, and is made for the Supernal Merkavah as a kind of *Chomah* (wall), to be a guard over it against these clouds. **Then the Glory stands with great power to illuminate for all the Tzadikim — and this is *Kavod* (Glory).**

**Thirty-two *Elokim*** blaze forth from him, and they bring forth torches — which are those that are given into the hand of the angel *Gavriel*, ready to become vengeance. This is the flame of fire that appeared to Moshe from within the bush, for there it was needful so. At that time they all stand and praise with Ahavah, and a great praise is heard in all the worlds.

§ 6. *Sh"Y* Worlds and the Secret of *K'Tze'is HaShemesh*

***Sh"Y* (310) great illuminating worlds,** which are prepared to be given as reward to the Lovers of Hashem — of whom is said: *"and His lovers [shall be] as the going-forth of the sun in its might"*. For these Lovers of Hashem were strengthened against the tempest — and they [the evil forces] shall be dismayed to them at the time of which is said: *"And your mighty-men, O Teiman, shall be dismayed"*. And this is *Sh"V"A* [the printed text is apparently corrupt here — likely a copyist's garble of either *Sh"Y* (310) or *Sh"Z* (317); see translator's note below], which is the gematria of ***Yesh*** [[י"ש] = 310], of which is said: *"To cause those who love Me to inherit Yesh* (Substance)" [Mishlei 8:21]. And why *Sh"Z* (317)? — because the illuminating Light is called ***Or Yekar*** (Precious Light), and from it these worlds are made. And of them is said: *"For there is a reward (יֵש) for your work, and there is (יֵש) hope"* [Yirmiyahu 31:15], and so forth. And the meaning is: "*yesh*, *yesh*," [is] as-long-since to the spirit [phrase partially illegible] — for these *Y"sh* shine like the light of the sun, and when the sun goes forth from her sheath, they shall all illuminate with great power, and shall be given to the Possessors of Ahavah.

**A pure Light is aroused at that time,** pure and clean, in which there is no admixture of *din* (judgment) at all, but rather all is perfect *rachamim* (mercy). And of it is said: *"and with great mercies I shall gather you"* [Yeshayahu 54:7]. And the operation of this Light is very great — for in its descending with great power, it guides all the Possessors of Ahavah in the upright way, that they shall not stumble in it. For while they are covered under the evil cloud, all the Princes of Wrath strive to cast them away from the good way. **This Light is called *zechus* (merit),** and of it is said: *"Wherewith shall a young man purify (יזכה) his path?"* [Tehillim 119:9] — for by this Light they grant merit upon their path, and from it are drawn straight ways to the Possessors of this Ahavah, and they do not stumble at all. And at the end of all, they shall receive from here that which relates to further strength — **and this is *Kavod* and *Shevach Zechus* (Glory, and the Praise of Merit).**

§ 7. Three Great Lights, the "Precious Thread," and the Cord of Yaakov

**Three great Lights in the form of a *segulta*** [the trigon cantillation-mark — three dots in triangular arrangement] go forth within this Light, and their secret is: *"On that day Yisrael shall be a three-fold"* [Yeshayahu 19:24]. And they are made *one thread*, like the three-fold cord. And the name of the thread is ***Yekar*** (Precious); and it descends and binds the Possessors of Ahavah. And from there spread forth many great Lights to illuminate in all the souls of Yisrael. **And this thread is the *Chevel Yaakov* (Cord of Yaakov),** in the secret of: *"Yaakov is the cord of His inheritance"* [Devarim 32:9], and it goes from within, and binds the souls of Yisrael — even those who do not know. Until at the end of all, this thread shall be revealed, and then it shall be seen that Yisrael are *one nation in the Land*.

In this thread stand all kinds of colors to illuminate with great *pe'er* (splendor), and its secret: ***Tiferes Yaakov, Tiferes Yisrael, and this is Pe'er***. And these are four things that stand from the side of the operation of the Holy Name ***Kuzu***, which stands at the First Corner of the division of the pathways according to the ways of the Merkavah. And they are: ***Kavod* (Glory), *Shevach* (Praise), *Zechus* (Merit), and *Pe'er* (Splendor)**.

§ 8. The Enclosing Wall — *Y-K-V-K Echad* — and the Gate of the Tzadikim

These are the operations of this Holy Name, whose gematria is ***Y-K-V-K Echa"d*** [[יקו"ק אחד] = 26 + 13 = 39 = כוז"ו] — which goes forth to reveal the Unity with great power, and to turn all evil into good. **And this is the Wall (*Chomah*) that surrounds all the Merkavah, and it is a *Samech Stumah* (closed ס),** as I said. And one opening does it have, and it is opened to every one of Yisrael who has merited *Kavod*. And the secret of this: *"And I shall be for her a wall of fire, says Hashem; and for Glory shall I be in her midst"* [Zecharyah 2:9]. And this [wall] is the *Mem* of *Minchah* — **the *Mem Pesuchah* (open מ)** that stands to guard the Merkavah from every side, that no *arel* (uncircumcised one) or impure one shall pass through it. And she herself is opened for Yisrael, in the secret of: *"This is the gate to Hashem — the righteous shall enter through it"* [Tehillim 118:20].

§ 9. The Seven Holy Clouds Opposite the Seven Evil Ones

**Seven holy clouds** stand in the secret of *shivah korsei bris* (the seven Covenant-cutters), to elevate Yisrael through the opening of this Wall — of whom is said: *"Who are these that fly like a cloud?"* [Yeshayahu 60:8] — and this is the *av kal* (swift cloud) that stands against *Teiman*. And this *av kal* shall rule in the going-forth of the sun in its might. Up to here — the operation of the Holy Name that stands at the First Corner, which is the place of Ahavah, whose letters' secret is ***Kavod, Shevach, Zechus, Pe'er***, as I said.

§ 10. The Wall Seen in the Glory of the *Malkei HaMelachim*

**Upon this Wall the Glory of the King of kings of kings, the Holy-One-Blessed-be-He, is seen.** And upon the opening — His *Memshalah* (Dominion) stands with great power, in the secret of the Supernal Unity which needs no setting-of-order, but rather *"He is One, and who can turn Him back?"* [Iyov 23:13]. And by this He rectifies His world through the three Patriarchs, for He placed them in the secret of His Rule over the world. And the secret of this: *"for the day when I make [them] My segulah*" [Malachi 3:17]. And the meaning is: *"Your kingdom is the kingdom of all worlds, and Your dominion is throughout every generation"* [Tehillim 145:13]. **And from the side of *Malchus* (Kingdom) alone, she is the *Mem Stumah* (closed ם) of *"le-marbei ha-misrah"*** [Yeshayahu 9:6 — the famously-closed *mem* in mid-word]. And from the side of *Memshalah*, she is the *Mem Pesuchah* (open מ), and in her is *menuchah* (rest) — *"and His rest shall be Kavod"* [Yeshayahu 11:10], certainly.

§ 11. "*And a soul, when it offers a Minchah*" — the *Shechinah* in Asiyah

And upon this secret is said: *"And a soul, when it offers a Minchah* offering" — **to make a satisfying spirit to her Maker, certainly**. This depends upon the Nefesh — which is the *Shechinah* that stands within *Asiyah*, and receives from there her rectifications that are done for Her sake (*lishmah*). She raises up from them a very great Light, pure and clean, which causes a satisfying spirit to the King, the Holy-One-Blessed-be-He. **This Light stands to reveal the Supernal Powers,** to guide the Merkavah with the full force. And the main of her arousal reaches unto the *Ruach* — for in it *"wherever the spirit would go, they went"* [Yechezkel 1:12] — [the verse] shall now be expounded according to the First Corner, upon which depends this Minchah: ***"soles tihyeh"* ("fine flour shall she be")**, certainly. For she is none other than *zechus*, and is found in *mitzvos*, that she be pure. And the *Ruach* is aroused from her in great Ahavah, and draws down two forces, in the secret of the *Memshalah* that I said. They stand in the secret of the Unity, to silence the quaking that issues forth from the graves, which I have already explained.

§ 12. "*Dishanta va-shemen roshi*" — the Oil of the Upper Brains

**The first force is *Shemen* (oil),** and its secret: *"You have anointed my head with oil ( dishanta va-shemen roshi*)" [Tehillim 23:5]. For this reaches the Supernal *Mochin* (brains) and they shine with a great light, and this is called ***shemen ha-tov*** (the good oil). And the secret of this: *"Surely goodness and lovingkindness shall pursue me"* [Tehillim 23:6]. Come and see: *Shemen* (שמן) in the *atbash*-cipher is one Name, its secret is ***BeYa"T*** (בי"ט), and it equals the gematria of ***A"Kh*** (אך = 21). And the secret of this: *"Surely God is good to Yisrael, to the pure of heart"* [Tehillim 73:1], included in the verse: *"Because he has clung to Me, therefore I shall deliver him ( va-afaltehu*)" [Tehillim 91:14] — for the *Tes* (ט) is from *afaltehu* [[i.e., the atbash-letter ט] in *shemen* hints to *afaltehu* = "I shall deliver him"]. And here the verse reveals its secret: that it is in the secret of *cheshek* (longing) and Ahavah. And its secret: *"Only with your fathers did Hashem long (חשק), to love (לאהבה) them"* [Devarim 10:15] — and these are the *nekudos* (vowel-points) of the Name [*Havayah*] blessed-be-He, upon which depend the three Patriarchs; and they stand to join — in the secret of Ahavah — **Yisrael to their Father in Heaven**. And their secret is the three-fold cord (*chut ha-meshulash*), which was explained above. And one who is strengthened with this — the Evil Cloud cannot [prevail over] him. For thus is said: *"Many waters cannot extinguish the Ahavah, nor shall rivers [drown her]"* and so forth [Shir HaShirim 8:7]; and this is: *"I shall exalt him, because he knows My Name"* [Tehillim 91:14] — for upon the Name the matter depends. And this is in the secret of the *Rosh* (Head): for while they [the Avos] are in *Chaga"T* (*Chesed–Gevurah–Tiferes*) — the force is not so much. But when they are in the secret of the *Rosh*, is said: *"And now my head shall be lifted over my enemies round about me"* [Tehillim 27:6].

§ 13. "*I will place enmity*" — the Dimension of the Foe; and the *Eshel* of Avraham

Come and see: *Oyevim* (enemies) — the secret of the **twenty-four *zinei de-mesa'avusa*** (twenty-four species of impurity), which hang in the secret of ***"And enmity shall I place (וְאֵיבָ"ה אָשִׁי"ת)"*** [Bereishis 3:15] — and they are the very reverse of *Ahavah*. And they are those who surround the *Mishkan* — they are the Evil Clouds. And in the arousal of this *Shemen*, then the *Rosh* alone is strengthened, and it places upon the head [that which says] *al yachsar* (*he shall not lack*) [an allusion to Tehillim 23:1, *Hashem ro'i lo echsar*]. And its secret: *"and over my head"* — and this Name delivers the Exalted Ones, of him [it says]: *"I shall exalt him, because he knows My Name"*… The uplifting of the Head — *"And now my head shall be lifted"*; *"Surely God is good to Yisrael, to the pure of heart (לברי לבב)."* And *Bris ha-Lev* (the covenant of the heart), its secret: *"and he shall place upon her Levonah*" [Vayikra 2:1] — *Levonah* — the secret of *libbun* (whitening). And the general matter: the *Lev* (heart) is ***Lamed-Beis Elokim*** (the 32 divine Names *Elokim*), and it is made ***Aish* (fire) — [colored] Red, Black**, the initials of which (*Adom-Shachor*, אָדֹם שָׁחֹר) spell **אָ"שׁ** (*Aish* = Fire). And when the *Chesed* increases with power — it becomes ***Lavan*** (white). And the secret of this: *"If your sins shall be like scarlet, like snow shall they whiten"* [Yeshayahu 1:18]. And [this] is now expounded in the secret: *"And he planted an eshel* (אש"ל) in Be'er-Sheva" [Bereishis 21:33] — the initials: ***A*dom, *Sh*achor, *L*avan** (Red, Black, White). For he [Avraham] stood to whiten the sins, in the secret of the Name **אֵ"ל**; and the secret of this: *"And he called there in the Name of Hashem, E-l Olam (Everlasting God)"* [Bereishis 21:33]. And the secret of this: *"Elokim to the pure of heart"* — they are the 32 *Elokim* performing the Black — in the secret of: *"Do not look at me that I am blackish"* [Shir HaShirim 1:6]. And whoever purifies his heart — strengthens the White, and they return to the state of whiteness, and all the blemishes are rectified. And the secret of this: *"and over all transgressions Ahavah shall cover"* [Mishlei 10:12]. **This is the order of *Ahavah* and of *Kavod*,** which I have explained — for all the Fire is poured upon [a Name that is illegible] and upon the *Sitra Achra*. And thus [(the garment-aspect)] [the whiteness] shall remain for Yisrael — up to here: *"and he shall place upon her Levonah*" — a great arousal by which the *Ruach* is aroused, that every side where there are blemishes — [she] passes them away.

§ 14. The Four *Shalhaviyos* Coupling the Attendants

And in truth, all this is drawn from the four *Shalhaviyos* that I spoke of, which are in the secret of Ahavah. Then the Attendants who stand over the charges of Ahavah are **coupled (*mizdavgim*)**, and they bring this Ahavah below. **And *Michael* the Great Prince stands over them, comprising them all with great power.** And of these Attendants is said: *"and he shall bring it to the sons of Aharon, the Kohanim"* [Vayikra 2:2] — for they all sparkle with power. And then *Michael* the Great Prince ascends above, and is crowned with the sealed Light standing *lifnei ve-lifnim* (innermost of the inner), and its secret in *nekudos* is ***Kamatz***, as is said: *"And he shall take a handful (וְקָמַץ)* from there, the fullness of his handful" [Vayikra 2:2]. And the secret of this: *"a hidden Ahavah"* [Mishlei 27:5]. For how many operations does Ahavah perform, and they are not revealed. And what is revealed of her sparkles in the Attendants — as I said. And the matters ascend until *Ein Sof* and until *Ein Tachlis* (the Endless), in great concealment. And this is not given except to *Michael* the High Priest, who stands to minister unto the Holy *Shechinah*.

§ 15. The Conclusion — The Blazing Fire of Ahavah

**And come and see — all this is included in the *Minchah*.** And the meaning is: that the Light that ascends from the side of the *Nachas Ru'ach* of the Lower [One] comprises so many forces, that they may arouse all this arousal. Therefore all the Attendants are assembled there to perform their operation. And *Michael* the High Priest, [(*be-hiskako* — an erased reading)] [*be-hischazko* = "in his being strengthened"] with the power of this Great Light, arouses what he arouses. And the end of the matter: the *Livnas HaAvonos* (whitening of the iniquities) prevails over all — and she is what ascends upon the Altar; she is in the secret of *Nukva*, the place where the matters are bound to arouse the King in all the crowns of His Holiness. Then the *Minchah* performs her operation. And what remains of her below, shines-forth to be divided into portions for *Aharon* and his sons — each one according to his portion. And its secret: *"Eat, O companions! Drink and become drunken, O beloved ones!"* [Shir HaShirim 5:1] — ***Kodesh Kadashim* (Holy of Holies), certainly**. And the All is in the secret of the *Aish HaLohet* (Blazing Fire), the ***Aish HaAhavah*** (Fire of Ahavah), of which is said: *"her flashes are flashes of fire, the flame of Y-H"*.