פסח א

Based on the discourse "I saw, and behold, a golden Menorah," etc., in Siman 8 — see there the entire discourse, which revolves around the preciousness of the groaning and sighing of a Jewish person, which is the completion of all deficiencies, etc. See there well. For through the groaning and sighing — which is the aspect of the lengthening of the breath, the aspect of erech apayim (patience / long-suffering) — through this one draws ruach chayyim (the spirit of life) to the deficiency, and through this the deficiency is completed. But from where does one receive the ruach chayyim? From the tzaddik of the generation, for from him the ruach chayyim issues forth to each person. For the essential ruach chayyim is in the Torah. And this is the aspect of the north wind that blows upon the harp of Dovid, which had five strings corresponding to the Five Chumashim of the Torah, from whence the ruach chayyim comes — the aspect of "five lobes the lung has," etc.

Hatzeylainee mai-oyiviy Eloahuy meemeeskoamimiy tisagvainee.

2 הַצִּילֵנִי מֵאֹיְבַי א-להי מִמִּתְקוֹמְמַי תְּשַׂגְּבֵנִי And the wicked who dispute the tzaddik — they draw their lengthened breath from the rav of the Sitra Achara, the aspect of Eisav, the aspect of "I have much" (yesh li rav), etc. And their spirit is great at the moment — the aspect of a ruach s'arah (stormy wind) — but in the end it storms its own body and soul, in the aspect of "to destroy him," etc. And therefore it is forbidden to provoke them, for since their spirit is great at the moment, it can cause harm, chas v'shalom — the aspect of: "all his oppressors, he blows upon them"; the aspect of: "You are silent when the wicked swallows one more righteous than he" — "swallows" literally, for he swallows him, chas v'shalom, through their lengthened breath, which is great at the moment. For "one more righteous than he" — he swallows. Unless one is a complete tzaddik, or close to such a complete tzaddik — then one has nothing to fear from them at all. And a complete tzaddik is one who has already clarified all four elements and subdued and nullified the evil in them entirely, until there is no evil in him at all. And then he can cast down the wicked to the earth, etc. — for he can descend into the conduit of the wicked, which is the evil middah that the wicked has empowered over himself, and subdue him and bring him low, etc. And to clarify the four elements, one merits through Torah and prayer — that is, through studying the poskim, through which one clarifies the kasher from the pasul, etc. — through this one clarifies the good from the evil in all four elements. But the intellect to clarify the halachah p'sukah — this intellect one receives through prayer, from whence the wellspring of wisdom issues, etc. For prayer is creation in potential, and Torah is the aspect of creation in actuality, etc. (see there well).

And it is explained there at the end of the discourse on the verse: "I am Hashem your G-d Who brought you up from the land of Mitzrayim — open your mouth wide and I will fill it." For the aspect of the lengthening of the ruach chayyim to complete the deficiency is the aspect of m'la fum (a full mouth), etc. — see there. And in Mitzrayim, which was before the receiving of the Torah from whence the ruach chayyim issues, therefore before the Exodus it was said: "from shortness of spirit" (mikotzer ruach) — the opposite of the lengthening of the spirit. And this is: "I am Hashem your G-d Who brings you up from the land of Mitzrayim" — then, "open your mouth wide and I will fill it" — the aspect of m'la fum, the aspect of the lengthening of the spirit — see there.

And this is the aspect of Pesach. For the essential exile of Mitzrayim was in this aspect — that they were unable to strengthen themselves to draw the ruach chayyim of holiness to complete their deficiency, for it was still before the receiving of the Torah — the aspect of mikotzer ruach. And therefore the exile of Mitzrayim and Pharaoh overpowered them — which is the aspect of "You are silent when the wicked swallows" — the ruach of the Sitra Achara overpowered them, which is the spirit of impurity, the impurity of Mitzrayim, which is a ruach s'arah, the aspect of Eisav, the hairy man (ish sa'ir), who is the sar (angel/prince) of Mitzrayim (as is brought in the s'farim). And then they overpowered and sought to swallow, chas v'shalom, Yisrael — who are the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness — the aspect of "when the wicked swallows one more righteous than he." That is, the ruach s'arah, which is great at the moment — the aspect of "all his oppressors, he blows upon them" — sought to swallow, chas v'shalom, the ruach chayyim of holiness from which Yisrael nurse, since Yisrael did not yet have the power to draw the lengthened ruach chayyim because they had not yet received the Torah, as mentioned.

Save me from my enemies, O my G-d; secure me against my assailants.

For the exile of Mitzrayim is the aspect of swallowing — the aspect of: "let not the deep swallow me" — which is m'tzulas hayam (the depths of the sea), the aspect of Mitzrayim, which is called m'tzulah (the deep) — the aspect of "when the wicked swallows," etc. And this is the aspect of Mitzrayim — the aspect of maitzar hagaron (the constriction of the throat), from whence the ruach chayyim exits, issuing from the throat, which is the windpipe that extends from the lobes of the lung — which are five lobes corresponding to the Five Chumashim of the Torah, from whence the spirit issues to the constriction of the throat — the aspect of: "my throat is parched" — and they did not have the power to draw the ruach chayyim to complete their deficiency and to overpower them, etc. For the exile of Mitzrayim is the aspect of Yonah who was swallowed in the belly of the fish (as is written in the Tikkunim, see there). For Mitzrayim is called a "fish," and they sought to swallow the innocent dove, the holy dove — which is the aspect of K'nesses Yisrael, who are the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness — the aspect of "when the wicked swallows one more righteous than he" — they seek, chas v'shalom, to swallow through their lengthened spirit that is great at the moment.

3 הַצִּילֵנִי מִפֹּעֲלֵי אָוֶן וּמֵאַנְשֵׁי דָמִים הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי And this is the aspect of: "Every son that is born — into the River you shall cast him," etc. For the male child is the aspect of the drawing of the ruach chayyim of holiness that is drawn from the aspect of Rav Chesed, which is the aspect of the masculine side — the aspect of Yosef HaTzaddik, who is the aspect of m'la fum as is known — the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness, which is the aspect of: "And the spirit of G-d hovered over the face of the waters" — as it is written regarding Yosef: "Can there be found such a man in whom the spirit of G-d dwells?" — the aspect of: "and no spirit remained in any man." For the essential ruach chayyim is in the aspect of Yosef HaTzaddik, the aspect of guarding the bris. And therefore it was said regarding Ya'akov, when he was informed of the tidings of Yosef: "And the spirit of Ya'akov their father was revived." For Ya'akov is the aspect of k'lal Yisrael — the aspect of: "every soul that came to the house of Ya'akov" — meaning, the essential vitality of Ya'akov's spirit, which is k'lal Yisrael, is through the aspect of Yosef HaTzaddik, from whom the ruach chayyim issues — who is the aspect of the tzaddik of the generation, the rav of holiness, the aspect of Rav Chesed.

Hatzeylainee meepoa-alay uven oomai-anshay dumeem hoasheyainee. And they sought, chas v'shalom, to overpower and swallow the ruach chayyim of holiness. And therefore they cast every male child into the River of Mitzrayim — which is the aspect of "let not the deep swallow me," said regarding Yonah when he was in the belly of the fish. For the River of Mitzrayim, the aspect of the depths of the sea, is the aspect of the ruach s'arah that seeks to swallow the spirit of holiness, chas v'shalom. As it is written: "And the wicked are like the driven sea that cannot rest," etc. — the aspect of the ruach s'arah that goes on storming and cannot be quieted, for it is great at the moment, etc. For the feminine side (sitra d'nukva) is in the aspect of kotzer ruach (shortness of spirit) — the aspect of: "one of short spirit does foolishness" — the aspect of confusion of the mind. For the essential settled mind is the masculine side, as is known — as our Sages said: "Bring My sons from afar" — this is the da'as of the people of Eretz Yisrael, whose da'as is settled upon them like sons; "and My daughters from the ends of the earth" — this is the da'as of the other lands, whose da'as is not settled upon them like daughters (as is brought in his words elsewhere). And the essential drawing of the ruach chayyim is from the da'as — that is, from the Torah, which is the da'as. And when the da'as is not complete, then one is in the aspect of kotzer ruach, the aspect of dinim — the opposite of erech apayim that is drawn from Rav Chesed. For the essential chesed is according to the completeness of the da'as (as is brought many times in the words of our Rebbe elsewhere). And Mitzrayim sought to overpower the ruach chayyim of holiness. And therefore they decreed: "Every son that is born — into the River you shall cast him" — which is the aspect of "when the wicked swallows," etc. "And every daughter you shall keep alive" — for the daughter is the aspect of unsettled da'as, the aspect of kotzer ruach, etc. And this is the aspect of what Mitzrayim said: "Let us be wise against their savior" — to judge him with water, etc. For their essential effort was against the savior of Yisrael, who is Moshe Rabainu — the aspect of the tzaddik of the generation from whom the spirit issues. For they sought to swallow him, chas v'shalom, in the River of Mitzrayim, which is the aspect of the ruach s'arah — to swallow the ruach chayyim of the tzaddik of the generation, the aspect of Moshe. But in truth, Moshe Rabainu was entirely good — the aspect of: "And she saw him, that he was good." And it is explained in the discourse that the tzaddik who is in this aspect — entirely good, with no evil at all from the four elements — he can descend into the conduit of the wicked to corrupt it and subdue him and bring him low, and has nothing to fear from him at all. For the ruach s'arah has no power or dominion to seize hold of such a tzaddik who is entirely good. And this is the aspect of why Moshe Rabainu was compelled to be in the River of Mitzrayim, and specifically the daughter of Pharaoh drew him out and called him Moshe — "for from the water I drew him" — and he was raised in the house of Pharaoh specifically. All of this indicates the great power of Moshe Rabainu, who was entirely good — through which he was able to subdue Pharaoh and Mitzrayim to take B'nai Yisrael out from there. That is, Moshe had to descend into the conduit of Mitzrayim — which is the evil middah in which they were immersed — in order to break and subdue them through this. And this is alluded to in that immediately after his birth he was cast into the River of Mitzrayim — to hint that Moshe Rabainu, who was entirely good, could descend into the River of Mitzrayim — which is the aspect of the depths of the sea that seek to swallow Yisrael — and no one could take Yisrael out from there except this tzaddik who could descend into the River of Mitzrayim like Moshe, for he could descend into the intensity of their evil and subdue them and bring them low and take Yisrael out from there, for he was entirely good. And because as soon as Moshe entered the River of Mitzrayim — which is the aspect of their evil — immediately the evil was subdued and broken and nullified before the good. Therefore immediately the daughter of Pharaoh converted, and the pure emerged from the impure — that from within the intensity of the impurity of Pharaoh himself, from there specifically it was transformed: the daughter of Pharaoh emerged and converted, and she specifically drew Moshe out. For the evil was nullified before the good, and through this all the good that was swallowed in them was released — the aspect of: "the wealth he swallowed he shall vomit up." And therefore Moshe Rabainu was raised in the house of Pharaoh specifically, for upon this specifically the redemption depends. For Moshe Rabainu had to be in the River of Mitzrayim and in the house of Pharaoh, in order to break their conduit by descending into it — for he was entirely good — and through this specifically he took B'nai Yisrael out of the exile of Mitzrayim. That is, he extracted the ruach chayyim of holiness from within the ruach s'arah. And this is the aspect of Hashem sending the remedy before the blow, sending Yosef HaTzaddik to Mitzrayim first, and afterward Ya'akov and his sons descended. For the essential ruach chayyim is Ya'akov and Yosef, as mentioned. And through Yosef and Ya'akov preceding to descend to Mitzrayim, through this they subdued the ruach s'arah through their ruach chayyim of holiness. And through this Yisrael had the strength to at least endure in Mitzrayim throughout the exile, until Moshe Rabainu came and took them out, as mentioned. And therefore it is said at the time of the Exodus: "And Moshe took the bones of Yosef with him." For the essential Exodus was through this — through Moshe's power to take the aspect of the bones (atzmos) of Yosef, the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness, through which the essential redemption came. And therefore close to the redemption, when Hashem wished to reveal Himself to Moshe at the burning bush, then it was said: "And it was in those many days, and the children of Yisrael sighed from the labor, and they cried out," etc. For specifically then their sighs began to ascend to Hashem — for they had already begun to draw the ruach chayyim to complete their deficiency through the sighing, because Moshe Rabainu was already in the world and had worked and accomplished through the power of his service until the redemption was near. And specifically then it was said: "And the children of Yisrael sighed" — for specifically then they had the power to sigh — that is, to draw the ruach chayyim through the sighing, to merit leaving the ruach s'arah, the aspect of the exile of Mitzrayim. And this is the aspect of: "At about midnight I will go out into the midst of Mitzrayim, and every firstborn shall die," etc. For the firstborn of Mitzrayim are the aspect of the ruach s'arah, which is the aspect of Eisav, the hairy man, who was a firstborn. For b'chor (firstborn) is an expression of greatness and authority — as it is written: "I too will make him a firstborn." The aspect of the rav of the k'lipah, which is the aspect of Eisav — for Eisav is the sar of Mitzrayim, and through him the essential exile of Mitzrayim came (as is explained in the words of our Rebbe on the verse: "You know all the hardship," etc.). And for this reason Ya'akov Avinu strove to take the birthright from Eisav — in order to subdue the aspect of the rav of the k'lipah, which is the aspect of the birthright of Eisav, which is an expression of greatness and authority. For the firstborn takes a double portion (pi shnayim). Pi shnayim — this is the aspect of the ruach chayyim through which deficiencies are completed through the sighing, which is the aspect of "You shall add their spirit" (tosef rucham) — that one takes in breath and expels breath — the aspect of: "Let there be a double portion of your spirit upon me" — that Elisha merited to receive from his master Eliyahu the ruach chayyim of holiness that one receives from the rav of holiness, which is the aspect of pi shnayim of your spirit, the aspect of b'chor. And therefore Ya'akov strove to take the birthright from Eisav, to subdue the rav of the k'lipah — and through this itself he took the blessing from him, as it is written: "He took my birthright, and behold, now he has taken my blessing." For all the blessings and bestowals — which are the aspect of the completeness of all deficiencies that Hashem bestows upon a person, supplying his every need — are through the ruach chayyim, which is the vitality of all blessings and bestowals, for it is the essential vitality of everything (as explained at the beginning of the discourse). And this is the aspect of "Borai n'fashos rabbos v'chesronan" — Who creates many souls and their deficiencies — "al kol mah shebarasa l'hachayos bahem nefesh kol chai" — for all that You created to sustain with them the soul of every living thing. For the essential completion of the deficiencies of all the souls is through the ruach chayyim — the aspect of "for all that You created to sustain with them the soul of every living thing" — that is, through what You created to sustain them, which is the ruach chayyim — through this the deficiencies of all the souls are completed. And therefore, through Ya'akov taking the birthright from Eisav, the hairy man — who is the rav of the k'lipah, the aspect of the ruach s'arah — and subduing the rav of the k'lipah, through this he had the power to draw the ruach chayyim of holiness, from whence come all the blessings and bestowals. And therefore through this he received the blessing. And therefore Ya'akov gave over the birthright to Yosef, as it is written: "And I have given you one portion" (sh'chem), etc. — "which I took from the hand of the Emori." And our Sages expounded: from the hand of Eisav, who would trap his father with the words of his mouth (imrai fiv), etc. For the birthright — which is the aspect of greatness and authority — Ya'akov took from Eisav and gave it over to his son Yosef, to subdue the rav of the k'lipah, the aspect of ruach s'arah, the aspect of the birthright of Eisav, and to empower the rav of holiness — which is the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness, which is the aspect of Yosef HaTzaddik. And therefore the essential Exodus from Mitzrayim was through the smiting of the firstborn — through which the rav of the k'lipah, which is the aspect of b'chor, was subdued, and all the ruach chayyim that was in them was extracted until they all died that night. And then Yisrael left from there — for through the subduing of the ruach s'arah of the rav of the k'lipah, which is the aspect of the firstborn of Mitzrayim, through this the ruach chayyim of holiness left from there — the aspect of Yosef, the aspect of: "And Moshe took the bones of Yosef with him." And therefore the smiting of the firstborn was at midnight — for at midnight the north wind blows upon the harp of Dovid — which is the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness, the aspect of: "And the spirit of G-d hovered over the face of the waters" (as explained in the discourse, see there). And this is the aspect of the korban Pesach, through which the essential smiting of the firstborn occurred, as it is written: "And I will see the blood and I will pass over you," etc.; "and Hashem will pass through to smite Mitzrayim," etc. For the essential purpose of the korban is to clarify the spirit of man from the spirit of the beast — that is, to clarify the ruach chayyim of holiness from the ruach s'arah, the spirit of impurity. For Yisrael and the idolaters are the aspect of man and beast, as is known — for "you are called 'adam' (man), and the idolaters are not called 'adam.'" And "the advantage of man over the beast is nothing, for all is breath" (hevel) — for they all have the aspect of hevel, which is the aspect of the breath of the mouth, the drawing of the ruach chayyim through sighing to complete the deficiency. For even the nations of the world — who are the aspect of beast — also have the aspect of lengthened spirit, which is the breath of the mouth. But "who knows the spirit of man that ascends upward, and the spirit of the beast that descends downward to the earth" — for the spirit of man, the aspect of the lengthened spirit of Yisrael, which is the ruach chayyim of holiness, ascends upward and receives and draws ruach chayyim from holiness, from the Living G-d. But the spirit of the beast descends downward — for the lengthened spirit of the beast, the aspect of the idolatrous nations, descends downward to the earth, for they have no vitality at all, for the living are called dead, for their spirit is a ruach s'arah, which is only great for a brief moment, and in the end it storms their own body and soul. For the spirit of the beast is the aspect of the lengthened ruach s'arah that the idolaters draw through sighing — as is seen tangibly: the breath and respiration of an animal is very great, for they bellow and groan with their voice constantly. And they have no speech, only voice. And all their voice is like one who groans and sighs with a great voice and extends the breath and respiration greatly — as all this is seen tangibly. That is, they are in the aspect of the lengthened spirit of the idolaters, which is great at the moment — the aspect of the ruach s'arah — but in the end it storms their own body, etc. And the essential purpose of the korban is for this: to clarify the spirit of man from the spirit of the beast — the aspect of "who knows the spirit of man that ascends upward and the spirit of the beast that descends," etc. For through sin one is drawn, chas v'shalom, after the spirit of impurity, the aspect of the ruach s'arah — that is, one's own ruach chayyim, which is the aspect of the spirit of man, becomes intermingled with the spirit of the beast. And therefore the wicked, even while alive, are called dead — because the ruach chayyim has departed from them. And therefore the tikkun of the sinner is through the korban, through which the spirit of man is clarified from the spirit of the beast, and then one has the power to draw the ruach chayyim through the sighing — sighing and regretting the sin at the time of bringing the korban. And this is the aspect of the korban Pesach — to leave the impurity of Mitzrayim. And therefore it is brought from sheep and from goats. For the s'ir izim (he-goat) — this is the aspect of Eisav, the hairy man (ish sa'ir). And likewise the keves (sheep) is the aspect of hair (s'aros) — the aspect of tzitzis that are made from the wool of sheep, which are the aspect of hairs (as brought at the end of the discourse). And from these we bring the korban Pesach — in order to subdue Eisav, the hairy man, the aspect of the ruach s'arah, the aspect of the rav of the k'lipah, which is the aspect of the b'chor of the Sitra Achara — and to clarify from there the ruach chayyim of holiness, the aspect of the rav of holiness, which is the aspect of the firstborn of Yisrael. And therefore through the korban Pesach, Hashem passed over (pasach) the doorway and clarified and saved the firstborn of Yisrael from among the firstborn of Mitzrayim — which is the aspect mentioned above: the clarification of the ruach chayyim of holiness, which are the aspect of the firstborn of Yisrael, from within the ruach s'arah, which are the aspect of the firstborn of Mitzrayim, upon whom the Destroyer had dominion. For the Destroyer is the ruach s'arah itself that killed them — for the ruach s'arah itself takes vengeance upon them in the end, for in the end it storms their own body and soul. And this is the aspect of: "And I will see the blood and I will pass over you," etc. And this is the aspect of: "And I passed over you and I saw you wallowing in your blood, and I said to you: 'In your blood, live!' And I said to you: 'In your blood, live!'" For the ruach s'arah is the aspect of Eisav, who was admoni (ruddy) — the aspect of blood (damim). And one must clarify the ruach chayyim from within the ruach s'arah, to break the conduit of the wicked and clarify from within it the ruach chayyim. This is the aspect of the sprinkling of the blood of the korban upon the mizbai'ach — to clarify and elevate the blood so that the ruach chayyim of holiness is clarified and extracted from them. And this is the aspect of: "In your blood, live!" — for specifically through the blood, life is drawn — the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness. For from the intensity of the blood — which is the aspect of the ruach s'arah — from there one clarifies the ruach chayyim. And this is the aspect of S'firas HaOmer, that we count seven complete weeks — which are 49 days — "from the morrow of the Shabbos until the morrow of the seventh Shabbos you shall count fifty days." And through this one is purified from the impurity of Mitzrayim. For the six days of the workweek are deficient and have no completeness except through Shabbos, which is the purpose of the creation of heaven and earth, which gives life to all the six workdays, as is known. And as our Sages said: "And G-d completed on the seventh day." What was the world lacking? Rest. Shabbos came, rest came — the work was completed and perfected. It follows that the six workdays have no vitality except through Shabbos — as is brought: three days after Shabbos receive vitality from the Shabbos that passed, and three days before Shabbos receive vitality from the coming Shabbos. It follows that of themselves, the six days lack the ruach chayyim. And therefore they are in the aspect of sighing over the deficiency — for the essential hold of the sighing is in the six weekdays that lack the ruach chayyim, when one must sigh to draw the ruach chayyim to complete the deficiency of the six workdays from Shabbos, where the essential life is — as it is written: "Those who taste it merit life." For Shabbos is the aspect of completeness, as is written in the holy Zohar: "The Name that is complete from all sides." For Shabbos is the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He, where is the essential completeness — for all things in the world are deficient and have no completeness except through the ruach chayyim that they receive from Hashem, Who is, as it were, complete in all kinds of completeness. And this is the aspect of the six workdays, which are the aspect of vav (6) — which is the drawing of the spirit. For then one must draw and lengthen one's spirit — the aspect of sighing over the deficiency — in order to draw the ruach chayyim from Shabbos, which is bris olam (an eternal covenant) — the aspect of yud, as is brought. And m'la fum is made, which is yud-vav — which is the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness (as explained in the discourse). And this is the aspect of: "seven complete weeks shall they be" — "t'mimos" (complete) specifically. Complete and not deficient — for through S'firas HaOmer of 49 days, seven weeks, through this the deficiency is completed. And this is: "t'mimos tih'yenah" — "complete" specifically. And this is the aspect of the S'firah — "from the morrow of the Shabbos until the morrow of the Shabbos," etc. For all counting is in the aspect of deficiency — for wherever there is counting, there is deficiency. For there is no completeness except above the counting, which is with Hashem, as it were — Who is, as it were, above counting, as it is written: "Before the One, what do you count?" And there is the essential completeness. But after creation, where counting begins, there is deficiency — for the essential creation was through deficiency, through the tzimtzum and diminishing of the Light, without which it would have been impossible to create the world, as is known. And immediately after creation, when counting begins, deficiency begins. And the more one distances after creation from before creation, and the counting increases more and more, the deficiency increases more and more — for where there is counting, there is deficiency. For example, when one wants to count to a hundred, one counts from one to a hundred to complete his deficiency of what he lacks up to a hundred. And when he counts and reaches a hundred and it seems that he has completed his deficiency — immediately upon reaching a hundred, he lacks still more, up to two hundred. And this is the aspect of: "one who has a maneh seeks two hundred," etc. For when a person falls into desires and falls, chas v'shalom, below the counting, it is impossible for him ever to complete his deficiency. For the more the counting increases, the further he distances from the One — and then he distances more from completeness, and therefore he lacks more and more. And this is the aspect of: "and the deficiency cannot be counted" — for one who falls below the deficiency, which is after creation, etc. — he cannot complete the deficiency through counting, for the more he tries to complete his deficiency through counting, the more he will lack — the aspect of "one who has a maneh seeks two hundred." It follows that the essential completeness of the deficiency is only above the counting, from whence the ruach chayyim of holiness is drawn. And this is the aspect of the ruach chayyim of Yisrael, who are included in His Unity, blessed be He, and are in the aspect of above the counting — for it is forbidden to count Yisrael. And as it is written: "And the number of the children of Yisrael shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or counted." And as it is written: "that cannot be counted for multitude." And therefore the seventy souls of Yisrael are called one soul, as it is written: "All the soul that came to the house of Ya'akov," etc. — as Rashi explains. For Yisrael, the holy people — the more they multiply, the more they are included in His Unity. For every individual of Yisrael is connected to Him, blessed be He, and draws ruach chayyim from the Living G-d. And the more Yisrael multiply, the more they draw the ruach chayyim, and the more they are included in His Unity, blessed be He. And therefore all Yisrael are considered as one — for they are included through the ruach chayyim in Him, blessed be He. And this is the aspect of S'firas HaOmer — that through the S'firah and the counting that Yisrael count the days, which is a holy counting, through this they elevate and raise the aspect of counting and number — which after creation is the aspect of deficiency — they elevate it to the aspect of above the counting, and draw the ruach chayyim to complete the deficiency, which is the aspect of counting. For the holy counting that Yisrael count the days — to leave impurity and enter purity, to merit the receiving of the Torah on Shavuos — this is the aspect of holy sighing, sighing for the lack of the ruach chayyim of holiness. For all countings in the world are in the aspect of sighing — for everyone who counts something wants to complete what is lacking until the full count, and wants to complete the deficiency through the counting. And when the counting is in worldly matters and vanities — such as the desire for money and the like, wanting to have a great sum — then one does not complete the deficiency through the counting. On the contrary, the counting is in the aspect of deficiency, for counting is in the aspect of after creation, etc. And this counting is in the aspect of the sighing of the wicked, who receive from the ruach s'arah of Eisav, the hairy man, whose souls are many (rabbim), as Rashi explains there — for he is very far from His Unity, blessed be He. And therefore, even though their ruach s'arah is great at the moment — and therefore they are called "many" (rabbim), the aspect of the multitude of counting and number, the aspect of "they sought many calculations" (cheshbonos rabbim), the aspect of r'shus harabbim (the public domain), which is the Sitra Achara — nevertheless they are always deficient and have no completeness at all, since they are distant from the Living G-d, from Whom is the essential completeness of the deficiency. And this is the aspect of: "If you lack da'as, what have you acquired? If you have acquired da'as, what do you lack?" For the essential completeness of all deficiencies is through the da'as, which is the Torah — from whence the ruach chayyim essentially issues, which completes all deficiencies. But the idolaters who are distant from the Torah, which is the essential da'as — certainly they are deficient and have no completeness at all. And therefore through the holy counting — which is S'firas HaOmer, counting the days until Chag HaShavuos in order to leave impurity and enter purity and to merit receiving the Torah on Shavuos — it follows that it is the aspect of holy sighing, yearning and longing to merit the fiftieth day, which is the receiving of the Torah, from whence is the essential completeness, for from there is the essential ruach chayyim. Therefore through the counting and the S'firah, through this specifically one leaves impurity for purity — that is, one leaves the spirit of impurity and merits the spirit of purity, the ruach chayyim of holiness — through elevating the aspect of the counting and the number to holiness, through counting the days to merit receiving the Torah from whence is the essential completeness of the deficiency, which is the aspect of counting. And therefore we count toward the waving of the Omer of barley. The Omer of barley (s'orim) — this is the aspect of subduing Eisav, the hairy man (ish sa'ir), and elevating the ruach chayyim that was swallowed within him to holiness. And therefore it is waved in all six directions — for the drawing of the ruach chayyim is the aspect of vav. And this is the aspect of waving back and forth to restrain evil winds, up and down to restrain evil dews — that is, to subdue the evil spirit, the spirit of impurity, and to clarify from there the ruach chayyim of holiness from within the ruach s'arah. Which is the aspect of s'orim (barley) — an expression of s'arah (storm), as it is written: "like storms upon grass." For barley is animal feed, the aspect of the spirit of the beast that descends downward, which is the aspect of the ruach s'arah. And now we elevate and wave the Omer of barley to subdue the ruach s'arah and elevate the ruach chayyim, to clarify it from within, as mentioned. And then we begin to count the days — to connect the number of the days, which are the aspect of deficiency, to the ruach chayyim of holiness, where is the essential completeness of the deficiency of all the countings and numbers in the world. And it is impossible to complete the deficiencies of the numbers except through the aspect of S'firas HaOmer — through connecting the counting to above the counting, where is the completeness of all deficiencies, for from Him are the issues of life. And therefore we count from Shabbos to Shabbos — "from the morrow of the Shabbos until the morrow of the Shabbos" — for Yom Tov is also called Shabbos, as our Sages said. For the essential completeness of the counting is through Shabbos. And this is the aspect of: "you shall count fifty days." And in truth we only count 49 days. But in truth, the essential tikkun and completeness of all deficiencies — which are the aspect of counting and number — is through the aspect of the fiftieth day, which is the receiving of the Torah. For the fiftieth day, which is the fiftieth gate, is in the aspect of above the counting, above creation — for it is impossible to attain it in this world. And therefore it was said regarding Moshe: "And You made him lack a little from G-d." For it is brought that Moshe merited 49 gates of understanding, but the fiftieth gate he did not attain until the future. And because he did not yet attain the fiftieth gate, it was said of him: "And You made him lack a little" — for he still lacked a little, because the essential completeness is in the fiftieth gate, which is above creation. But in truth it is impossible to attain it in this world. And Moshe Rabainu merited to complete and elevate all the deficiencies higher and higher, until the aspect of all deficiencies was completed and they were adjacent to the completeness of deficiencies — which is the aspect of the 49 gates of understanding, which are adjacent in the ultimate degree to the fiftieth gate, from whence is the ultimate completeness. For this is the essential purpose: that the deficiencies — which are the aspect of the entirety of the world — should be truly adjacent to the aspect of the completeness of all deficiencies. For the aspect of completeness itself, which is the fiftieth gate, cannot be drawn into this world lest the world be nullified. And this is the aspect of: "you shall count fifty days" — that one must connect and elevate all the numbers up to the fiftieth day. And then the deficiencies are included in the completeness, and the ruach chayyim is drawn from there to complete the deficiencies that are contained in the numbers of this world — through which one leaves impurity for purity, meriting to leave the spirit of impurity, the ruach s'arah, and meriting the ruach chayyim of holiness. And this is the aspect of the filling of the moon — the aspect of: "And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold," etc. For the filling of the moon from its blemish is the aspect of the completeness of the deficiency. For the deficiency is the aspect of the deficiency and blemish of the moon, which is the aspect of Malchus that was diminished through the accusation — from whence come all the deficiencies of sustenance. And through the 49 days of S'firas HaOmer, which are the aspect of "sevenfold," the aspect of "purified sevenfold" — through this all the deficiencies are completed, which is the aspect of the filling of the deficiency and blemish of the moon. And this is the aspect of: "seven and seven conduits to the lamps" — brought at the end of the discourse "I saw, and behold, a golden Menorah" — which are 49 lights, etc. — see there. And this is the aspect of the 49 days of the Omer, through which one merits to draw the ruach chayyim from the Torah to complete the deficiencies — which is the aspect of: "and a river goes out from Eden," etc. — see there. And this is the aspect of: "When you take the count of the children of Yisrael according to their number, they shall each give a ransom for his soul to Hashem when counting them, and there shall be no plague among them," etc. For it is forbidden to count Yisrael — for counting is in the aspect of deficiency, the aspect of the lack of ruach chayyim. And therefore through this, a plague can hold sway, chas v'shalom — as it is written: "and there shall be no plague among them" — which is the departure of the ruach chayyim through the counting, which is the aspect of deficiency. And therefore counting and numbering is called mifkad — as it is written: "And he gave the number and count of the people," when Dovid commanded to count Yisrael. For mifkad is an expression of deficiency — as it is written: "and not a man was missing from us" (v'lo nifkad) (as Rashi explains there). For all counting is in the aspect of deficiency, and therefore it is called mifkad — an expression of deficiency. And therefore it is forbidden to count Yisrael, unless they give a ransom for their souls — for charity, for korbanos. For through the korbanos, the ruach s'arah, the spirit of the beast, is subdued, and the ruach chayyim of holiness is clarified from there. And then all deficiencies are completed — and then the counting, which is the deficiency, rises to the aspect of completeness, and the ruach chayyim is drawn into the counting and the deficiency. And then specifically it is permitted to count. And this is: "When you wish to raise the count of the children of Yisrael according to their number" — that is, when you wish to raise and elevate the aspect of counting so that the deficiency that comes from counting should be completed — and this is "lifkudaihem" — an expression of deficiency — that is, when you wish to raise the counting and complete the deficiency — then "they shall each give a ransom for his soul to Hashem... and there shall be no plague among them." For through the tzedakah of the korbanos, the ruach chayyim is drawn and they are saved from the plague — which is the departure of the ruach chayyim that comes through counting. And this is the aspect of tzedakah. And this is the aspect of pidyon (redemption), where one counts the money according to the numbers needed on the basis of the kavanos — and through this one effects a redemption and draws ruach chayyim to the sick person. For the essential cause of illness is the aspect of the departure of the ruach chayyim, the aspect of deficiency whose root is from the aspect of counting. And therefore through the holy counting of the money according to the kavanos, through this one elevates the counting and the number to holiness — for the principle is that judgment is sweetened only at its root. And then, when one sweetens the aspect of counting and number at its root, through this one merits to draw the ruach chayyim, which is the aspect of the completeness of the deficiency and the counting. And through this one draws ruach chayyim to the sick person. And the main thing is through giving the money to tzedakah — for tzedakah is the aspect of ruach chayyim, as it is written: "In the path of tzedakah is life." For the poor person is in the aspect of deficiency, lacking all good — and the essential poverty is drawn from the deficiency and blemish of the moon, as is known. And through having compassion upon him and giving him tzedakah and completing his deficiency — the aspect of: "You shall surely open your hand to him... sufficient for his need, whatever he lacks" — through this, compassion is aroused from Heaven and the aspect of the completeness of the deficiency — which is the ruach chayyim of holiness — is drawn upon him as well. And therefore "tzedakah saves from death" — which is the departure of the ruach chayyim. For through the tzedakah that fills the deficiency of the poor person, the ruach chayyim is drawn — which is the completeness of the deficiency — the aspect of: "In the path of tzedakah is life." And therefore it is said regarding tzedakah: "And test Me, please, in this — if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without limit" (ad b'li dai) — meaning, the completeness of all deficiencies: that the blessing is drawn ad b'li dai (without limit). For the essential completeness of deficiencies is through tzedakah. And therefore we begin to say Tal (dew) on the first day of Pesach. For tal is the aspect of tal oros (the dew of lights) — which are included in the vav of Hashem's Name, from whence is the essential drawing of the ruach chayyim of holiness, which is the aspect of vav. And this is the aspect of our Sages grouping tal (dew) and winds together, as they said: "Dew and winds are never withheld." And as we say: "He makes the wind blow and brings down the dew." For the dew is in the aspect of the ruach chayyim of holiness. And therefore they included dew and winds in the blessing of M'chayyai HaMaisim (Who revives the dead) — for the essential t'chiyas hamaisim (resurrection of the dead) is through the ruach chayyim of holiness — the aspect of: "From the four winds, come, O spirit" — said regarding the resurrection of the dead of Y'chezkel. And therefore we begin Tal on the first day of Pesach — for this is the essence of the Exodus from Mitzrayim: that they left the aspect of mikotzer ruach (shortness of spirit) and merited the ruach chayyim of holiness. And therefore we read as the Haftarah the passage of the resurrection of the dead of Y'chezkel on Shabbos Chol HaMo'ed Pesach. And this is the aspect of Shabbos HaGadol before Pesach — for the essential drawing of the ruach chayyim of holiness is from Shabbos. And therefore it is called Shabbos HaGadol (the Great Shabbos) — for through Shabbos one leaves the exile of Mitzrayim, which is the aspect of mikotzer ruach, and merits the aspect of the lengthened ruach chayyim of holiness — the aspect of erech apayim v'rav chesed (patient and abundant in kindness). And therefore it is called "great" (gadol) — for one merits that the ruach chayyim of holiness should be great, the opposite of mikotzer ruach. And this is drawn from Shabbos specifically, from whence is the essential ruach chayyim of holiness. And therefore they took the korban Pesach then — which is the subduing of the ruach s'arah, the spirit of the beast, the rav of the Sitra Achara — and the clarification from within it of the spirit of holiness.