תולעים ד

Therefore Shabbos was stated before m'leches HaMishkan — as in Parashas Vayak'hail and other places. Shabbos = Sh'ma d'Kudsha B'rich Hu [the Name of the Holy One]. The essential Ma'aseh HaMishkan (= enlarging the holy kibbutz of Yisrael's neshamos) = for magnifying the Name of Hashem (= Shabbos = His Name). The essential emunah = emunas chiddush ha'olam (as explained there) = Shabbos — which testifies to chiddush ha'olam: He created the world in six days and rested on Shabbos. 20

According to the Torah — "achavai lan mana d'la shavya l'chavala" (Aramaic: "show us a vessel that does not lead to destruction" — a reference to the teaching in Likutay Maharan, Tinyana, §25 [LM II:25], concerning the show-us-a-vessel-that-does-not-lead-to-destruction — see there) — and so on, in §25 of the previous volume, see there. The general principle is that every person is obligated to draw himself out of the koach hamidameh (the imaginative faculty — the power of fantasy, imagination, and animalistic desire) and to ascend to the seichel (the intellect — the faculty of true, Divine reason) — and so on. For the koach hamidameh is the force of animality, from which all desires and confusions arise — these are the klippos (husks — the forces of spiritual impurity and obstruction) that precede the fruit and so on. And it is impossible to subdue the klippos — that is, the fantasies, thoughts, desires, and confusions that exist at every level, all of which are the aspect of the koach hamidameh — it is impossible to subdue them except through the greatness of the Creator — that is, through the revelation of the gevonin (the supernal colors — the hidden radiance within all things, especially within silver and gold, which constitutes the primary manifestation of the Creator's greatness) in silver and gold, which one merits through giving tzedakah (charity) to a worthy pauper. For through this the supernal gevonin — which are clothed within silver and gold and which constitute the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator — are revealed and begin to radiate. And the supernal gevonin clothed within silver and gold do not radiate except in the presence of Israel — for that is their dwelling place — in the aspect of "Israel, through whom I am glorified" (Yeshayahu 49:3) — and so on. But as long as the silver and gold remain in the possession of the nations of the world, the radiance of the gevonin is concealed and they do not illuminate — for that is not their dwelling place — for their dwelling place is only with the man of Israel, in the aspect of "Israel, through whom I am glorified" — for that is where the glory of the gevonin dwells — and so on. See all of this there [in LM II:25] carefully. For the essential power of idolatry — the power by which a person can fashion an idol, forbid it for any benefit, and with it deceive all creatures — flows only from the blemish of the aforementioned gevonin. Through this blemish, the koach hamidameh becomes dominant — meaning the evil within the imagination becomes dominant — which is the confusion of the imagination — and from there all the errors of all the forms of idolatry in the world are drawn, as explained in the words of our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, of blessed memory, elsewhere — in the Torah "Tik'u" ("Blow the trumpet" — Tehillim 81:4) in §8 of Likutay Tinyana [LM II:8] — that all the diviners and sorcerers and all the false beliefs are entirely the product of the confusion of the imagination — see there. And the confusion of the imagination is the aspect of the blemish of the aforementioned gevonin — for these two things are dependent upon one another, as above. Meaning: one who merits giving tzedakah from his money properly — through this the gevonin within the coins, within the silver and gold, which are the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, are illuminated — and the Divinity of the Creator, blessed be He, is revealed — and then the imagination is subdued and one merits to ascend to the intellect — and then all the heresies, false beliefs, desires, and klippos that are drawn from the confusion of the imagination, as above, are completely nullified. And conversely — one who does not strive to reveal and illuminate the gevonin within his money and does not give tzedakah — and on the contrary, spends all day pursuing the lust for money — then the gevonin within the money become concealed and hidden and do not illuminate. And the more the gevonin are concealed, so too does the koach hamidameh become more dominant — for when one rises, the other falls, and conversely, as above. And when the imagination dominates the intellect, G-d forbid — from there all the false beliefs arise that come from the confusion of the imagination as above. And from there all the idolatry in the world is drawn — for all idolatry takes its grip from silver and gold — as it is said: "Their idols are silver and gold" (Tehillim 115:4), and it is written: "The idols of the nations are silver and gold" (Tehillim 135:15) — and as it is said: "and Di Zahav" (Devarim 1:1) — as our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded — and as it is said: "I gave them abundant silver and gold, and they made it for the Ba'al" (Hoshea 2:10). Meaning: since in holiness the primary revelation of His Divinity and greatness, blessed be He, is through the revelation of the gevonin within silver and gold as above — so too, in contrast, "G-d has made one corresponding to the other" (Koheles 7:14): for one who blemishes the money and does not reveal the radiant gevonin within it — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — then the imagination becomes dominant within him as above, and misleads him from one extreme to the other: making from silver and gold other gods. And all of this comes from the blemish of the falling and concealment of the gevonin as above. For since within silver and gold are clothed supernal gevonin which are the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, and the revelation of His Divinity, blessed be He — therefore when the silver and gold are blemished in their possession, they are seized by these fallen gevonin and make from them idols, other gods — because at their root these gevonin are exceedingly lofty and they are the revelation of His Divinity, blessed be He, as above. And this is what is said: "And in every place incense is offered and brought near to My Name" (Malachi 1:11) — for they call Him Eloha d'Elohaya (Aramaic: "the G-d of gods"). For the root of idolatry is from the nitzotzos (holy sparks) of the holiness of the supernal gevonin that have fallen among them, as above. And since these gevonin in silver and gold have their dwelling place only with the man of Israel, as above — therefore the idolatry of a Jew is much more severe, and it can never be nullified. But the idolatry of a non-Jew can be nullified — for the idolatry of a non-Jew draws no vitality from holiness with the same force. Therefore the idolatry of the nations can be nullified — but the idolatry of a Jew can never be nullified — for among Israel is the primary source of the gevonin, as above. And when a Jew blemishes, G-d forbid, and makes idolatry, it draws vitality from the gevonin with much greater force as above — therefore it is exceedingly severe and can never be nullified — for the primary power of idolatry is from the falling of the gevonin as above, which are the revelation of Divinity — and the primary gevonin are found only among Israel, as above.

And therefore at the onset of the prohibition of idolatry — at the moment it is made — the rule is reversed: the idolatry of the nations is forbidden immediately, while that of a Jew is not forbidden until it has been worshipped. For in truth, Israel are entirely remote from idolatry — for Israel as a whole are in the aspect of the radiance of the gevonin, in the aspect of the light of the true intellect of holiness. And the nations are in the aspect of the koach hamidameh — for within a human being there is both the faculty of intellect and the faculty of imagination. And this koach hamidameh is itself also a faculty derived from the intellect — namely the lower faculty of the intellect, which is the imagination and pictorial faculty — the faculty that pictures all material things and all crafts within the mind and brings them all into the brain and the intellect. And one who possesses the faculty of true intellect must cause the intellect to prevail over the imagination — that is, he must strip every thing of its materiality and understand from within it the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — until he strips his mind of the material form of a thing that was pictured in his mind — which is the aspect of the imagination — and returns to the faculty of true intellect — to be included in the Infinite, which is the Creator, blessed be He. For the entire purpose of the true intellect is to know and recognize Him, blessed be He — to nullify the koach hamidameh that is clothed in the materiality of asiyah (action — the lowest spiritual world, corresponding to physical reality), and to ascend to the attainment of the true intellect: to recognize the Creator, blessed be He, Who is above all the forms and images of the koach hamidameh — from which all forms and images are drawn — for all forms and images are drawn from the Infinite, which itself has no form (as is explained in the Torah "Anochi Hashem Elokecha" — "I am the L-rd your G-d" — in §4 of Likutay, Part One [LM I:4]) — see there. And just as in the totality of the world, man in general is in the aspect of intellect and animal in the aspect of imagination — as brought in the holy books — so too among human beings themselves: Israel are called "Adam" (man — the Hebrew designation for a complete human being) and the nations are not called "Adam" — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said — meaning that Israel as a whole are in the aspect of the faculty of true intellect as above. And the nations are from the aspect of the imagination, which is the force of animality — for they are not called "Adam" as above. And the essential rectification of the imagination within a human being occurs when it becomes a chariot to the intellect and does the will of the intellect — just as an animal which has no understanding finds its essential rectification and growth through the human being. So too the imagination within a human being — which is the aspect of the force of animality — its essential rectification is when it follows the intellect, which is the defining character of the human being, the defining character of Israel — that is, when the imagination does not follow physicality, does not follow the desire of animality — but rather nullifies its fantasies and vanities before the intellect and nullifies everything toward the intellect — and then the evil within the imagination is nullified and the imagination is included within the intellect. And so too the nations — who are as a whole in the aspect of the imagination, in the aspect of animal — their entire rectification is when they nullify themselves before Israel, who are the aspect of intellect, the aspect of Adam. And when the nations become a chariot to Israel and nullify themselves before them — and serve them and fulfill their will and attend to their every need like a servant to his master — this is the essence of their rectification. Just as the essential rectification of the animal is when it follows the human being — and just as within the human being, the essential rectification of the imagination is when it follows the intellect — so too the essential rectification of the nations is when they follow and are nullified before Israel as above. And as it shall be in the future in truth — when all will recognize the holiness of Israel and nullify themselves and follow after them — as it is said: "And kings shall be your nurturers... they shall prostrate themselves before you with their faces to the ground" (Yeshayahu 49:23) — and similarly in many verses. For the essential force of the triumph of the intellect over the imagination is through the silver and gold as above. And these gevonin radiate only in the presence of Israel — but in the presence of the nations the radiance of the gevonin is concealed. And when the radiance of the gevonin is concealed — the imagination is in full force — and therefore they have no power to reveal the gevonin and to nullify the imagination before the intellect except through Israel, among whom the primary radiance of the gevonin dwells. Therefore Israel are truly in the aspect of intellect, as above. And when the nations nullify themselves before Israel and become a chariot to them — then specifically they are able to be included in the intellect and to recognize the Creator, blessed be He — for this is the aspect of the total inclusion and nullification of the imagination before the intellect, as above.

Therefore the essential kedushah of all 39 m'lachos of the weekdays (= all business and dealings) — their essential kedushah = through Shabbos: drawing kedushas Shabbos into the six weekdays. Through emunas chiddush ha'olam merited through Shabbos → the essential birur and tikkun of all 39 m'lachos of the six weekdays. We believe that everything worked upon in the world — Hashem created it all yaish mai'ayin hamuchlat [something from absolute nothing] during the six days when He performed all His work and rested on Shabbos: "Vay'chal Elokim bayom hash'vi'i m'lachto asher asah" (B'raishis 2). Through this = the essential tikkun of all m'lachos, business, and dealings during the weekdays → becoming m'leches HaMishkan. Therefore Shabbos was stated before m'leches HaMishkan. 21

It is found, then, that the nations are in the aspect of the imagination, and Israel are in the aspect of the intellect. And therefore idolatry is primarily found among the nations — as it is said: "which He assigned to them" (Devarim 4:19) — for the primary source of idolatry is from the koach hamidameh as above. And therefore the nations — who are in the aspect of the imagination — are very close and near to idolatry, and they cannot escape from their confusions except through Israel — when they nullify themselves before Israel — just as the imagination cannot be clarified except through the intellect, as above. And therefore the idolatry of the nations becomes forbidden immediately the moment it is made — as it is said: "the carved images of their gods" (Devarim 7:25): "once he has fashioned it (pasalo), it has become a god" (Aramaic rendering of the Talmudic teaching — Avodah Zarah 52a) — for as soon as the non-Jew separates himself from Israel and fashions an idol for himself, it immediately becomes idolatry — for the primary dwelling place of idolatry is in the non-Jew — for he is in the aspect of the imagination, in which the primary dwelling place of idolatry is found, as above. He only has the power to nullify himself and to become a chariot to Israel, who is the aspect of the intellect. But as soon as he fashions idolatry for himself and separates himself from Israel — it immediately and automatically becomes idolatry — for that is the dwelling place of idolatry, as above. And this is alluded to in the words of our Sages, of blessed memory, cited above: "once he has fashioned it (pasalo), it has become a god" — "once he has fashioned it" precisely — meaning that he has cut and severed (pasal — also meaning "to hew away") the imagination from the intellect by making for himself an idol — then it immediately becomes idolatry — for as soon as he severs himself from Israel, it easily becomes idolatry, as above. But the idolatry of a Jew is not forbidden until it has been worshipped — for Israel is in the aspect of the radiance of the gevonin, in the aspect of intellect — and they are remote from idolatry. Therefore he cannot easily uproot himself from the intellect toward the imagination — since at his root he is remote from idolatry, for he is in the aspect of intellect as above. Therefore the idolatry that belongs to him is not forbidden until it has been worshipped — for the act of worship is in the aspect of the imagination — which is the aspect of action and service. And all the sacred acts of service — whereby one must serve the L-rd, blessed be He, through actual deed and action — all of this exists for the sake of clarifying the imagination, which can only be clarified through deed and service. And conversely — when one worships idolatry through an actual deed, G-d forbid — then the power of idolatry is drawn in, and it becomes forbidden for all time — for where there is greater holiness, the grip of the Sitra Achra (the Other Side — the forces of spiritual impurity) is also greater — as is known. For certainly the human being has free choice — and even a Jew, who at his root is entirely remote from idolatry — nonetheless free will remains free. And when the imagination triumphs within him to the point that he actually transgresses idolatry in deed — it then becomes forbidden through the act of worship precisely, as above — for worship is in the aspect of the imagination as above — and then it is forbidden for all time, as above.

010 COMPLETE_Masa_Umasan_Halachos_1-2 have to fix masan in all the files.html And therefore Israel did not leave Egypt until they borrowed from the Egyptians vessels of silver and vessels of gold and garments — as it is said: "Speak now in the ears of the people that they shall ask..." (Shemos 11:2). For Pharaoh and Egypt represent the klippos (husks) — the aspect of the koach hamidameh — as is explained in the Torah "Vay'hi mikeitz" ("And it was at the end of two full years" — Bereishis 41:1) in §54 of Likutay, Part One [LM I:54]: that Pharaoh and Egypt are the aspect of the imagination — and this is the essential nature of exile: when the koach hamidameh — from which all desires and confusions and so on arise — gains dominance over Israel, which is the intellect, as above. And this represents the magnitude of the servitude of Egypt — that they enslaved the Children of Israel with crushing labor (b'ferech) — as it is said: "let the labor be heavy upon them... and they embittered their lives with hard labor with mortar and with brick" (Shemos 1:14) — for the essential servitude and bitterness that most of the world endures — those who chase after the lust for money — who are slaves to themselves and enslave themselves with hardship, and embitter their own lives with hard labor with mortar and brick: building great structures for themselves like Pisom and Raamses, in order to embitter their own lives through them — and through all the hard labor in the field — roaming and wandering always across the fields on distant roads, and enduring the bitterness of servitude exceedingly — all that they themselves impose upon themselves. And all of this comes from the koach hamidameh — which is the aspect of Egyptian exile in every person and in every generation — for this imagination misleads and confuses the person in desires and superfluous luxuries and enslaves him with crushing labor and hard toil and so on. For the essential servitude and labors are in the aspect of the imagination as above. And the essential rectification of the Egyptian exile is through the aspect of Yosef — as explained in the words of our Sages, of blessed memory, in many places: that the essential redemption from Egypt was through Yosef — as it is said: "And Moshe took the bones of Yosef with him" (Shemos 13:19). That is — for Yosef is the aspect of charity to worthy paupers — as it is said: "And Yosef sustained his brothers" (Bereishis 47:12). And therefore Yosef is called Yosef HaTzaddik — in the aspect of "a righteous man is gracious and gives" (Tehillim 37:21) — that is: it is impossible to be saved from the bitterness of the servitude of the confusion of the imagination — which is the aspect of the Egyptian exile — except by greatly increasing charity to worthy paupers. And through this all one's money is rectified and the gevonin in the silver and gold begin to radiate — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and through this the imagination is subdued, as above. And this is the aspect of the great wealth that Israel merited at the Exodus from Egypt — for through the power of Moshe, who is the da'as (knowledge — the faculty of Divine knowing that unifies the other faculties), they merited to reveal and illuminate the gevonin in the silver and gold. And therefore they did not depart from there until they were commanded to borrow from Egypt vessels of silver and vessels of gold and garments — in order to extract the money and wealth from the imagination, from Pharaoh and Egypt, and to return it to holiness — that is, to Israel — among whom the supernal gevonin within silver and gold radiate. For the gevonin do not radiate except in the presence of Israel — and through this specifically they departed — in the aspect of: "and afterward they shall go out with great wealth" (Bereishis 15:14) — "with great wealth" precisely — for through the great wealth itself, through this very thing, they departed — through their meriting to reveal the gevonin within the silver and gold, which are the greatness of the Creator — and through this the klippos — which are the aspect of the koach hamidameh, the aspect of Pharaoh and Egypt — were subdued. And then they departed from there, as above. And this is the aspect of "And Moshe took the bones of Yosef with him" — and our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: "The wise of heart takes commandments" (Mishlei 10:8) — for all of Israel were occupied with the spoils of Egypt, while Moshe was occupied with the bones of Yosef. And at first glance this is difficult — was not the plunder of Egypt also a great mitzvah from the L-rd, blessed be He, Who commanded and warned them to engage in this — as it is said: "Speak now in the ears of the people that they shall ask..." — and our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: "I beg of you — warn them about this..." — and so on? But in truth everything is well resolved according to the above — for certainly the holy wealth of Israel's upright people is exceedingly precious — for through it the supernal gevonin are revealed, which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and this wealth, this revelation, is the primary subduing of the klippos and desires that are the koach hamidameh and so on. And through this one goes out from the imagination to the intellect, as above. But one does not merit such wealth except through abundant charity to worthy paupers — for through this specifically all one's money is rectified and the supernal gevonin radiate within it and so on, as above. And therefore at the time of the Exodus from Egypt — which is the aspect of the subduing of the imagination — whose primary subduing is through the revelation of the gevonin within the money of Israel and so on, as above — which is the aspect of the plunder of Egypt, as above — Moshe at that time was occupied with the bones of Yosef the Tzaddik — for the bones of Yosef the Tzaddik are the aspect of the power of charity, as above. Meaning: while Israel were occupied with the plunder — to elevate the wealth from the klipah (husk) to holiness in order to reveal the gevonin within the wealth — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and through this the subduing of the imagination, which is the aspect of the Exodus from Egypt as above — at that time Moshe, who is the da'as, was occupied with the bones of Yosef, which are the power of charity as above — for this is the essential rectification as above — for specifically through the power of charity the gevonin within the silver and gold are awakened and illuminated — and through this comes the essential Exodus from Egypt as above. And now you will understand on your own how this aspect of the Exodus from Egypt applies to every person and in every generation: when one is engaged in commerce, one's entire intention must be to reveal the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, through one's money — for therein are clothed supernal gevonin and so on, as above. And one merits this by placing all one's heart and mind on charity — to greatly increase charity to worthy paupers from one's money — and then all one's money is rectified, and one merits through the money specifically to reveal the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, and to subdue the imagination and ascend to the intellect, as above. But conversely — when one does not give charity, G-d forbid — then one falls into the lust for money, which is literal idolatry, drawn from the confusion of the imagination, which is the aspect of Pharaoh and Egypt — which enslaves with crushing labor and so on — which is the aspect of the bitterness of the labors of all those mired in the lust for money, as above. But when one gives charity — then one's money is rectified and the supernal gevonin radiate and so on. And then the imagination — which is Pharaoh and Egypt — is subdued, and one is saved from the bitterness of servitude as above, which is the aspect of the Exodus from Egypt — going out from the bitterness of the exile of the lust for money, as above. For one merits to be content with one's portion — as Rebbe said in §13 on the passage of the holy Zohar (Pinchas, folio 224): "Rucha nacheis l'shakei chamima d'liba..." (Aramaic: "A spirit descends to cool the fervor of the heart...") — see there.

Halachah 1 (LM I:69): The root of nefashos is in wealth. Jewish money = shem and nefesh = the Name of Hashem. Idolaters' money = the name of other gods = avodah zarah. Partnership mixes these roots. Oaths = the Name of Hashem = clarify money's true ownership. Since idolaters are rooted in sheker, their oaths = name of other gods. Therefore partnership is forbidden. 1

And this is the aspect of what Israel was commanded after the incident of the Golden Calf regarding the donations for the Mishkan. For the Calf — which is idolatry — was drawn only from the confusion of the imagination as above — through not striving to illuminate the gevonin within the silver and gold in order to subdue the imagination — and thereby the imagination gained strength and inverted the matter: it drew vitality from the falling of the gevonin and made from the silver and gold an act of idolatry — because in truth the supernal gevonin were concealed within them and so on, as above. And this is the aspect of "V'di Zahav" ("and Di-Zahav" — Devarim 1:1) said concerning the Calf — as our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: that through the abundance of gold, they made the Calf — as above. Therefore the rectification was through the donations for the Mishkan (the Tabernacle), which are the aspect of charity — the aspect of the revelation of the supernal gevonin — which are the aspect of the thirteen materials that came with the donations of the Mishkan: gold, silver, copper, blue, purple and so on — all of which are the aspect of the supernal gevonin — the aspect of bigday yesha ("garments of salvation" — the radiant garments of holiness that correspond to the revealed glory of the Creator) — explained in the aforementioned Torah teaching. And through this the imagination — from which idolatry springs — was subdued. And therefore through this the sin of the idolatry of the Calf was rectified — and therefore from these donations the Mishkan was built — where all the sacrifices were brought — for the sacrifices brought from animals are the aspect of subduing the imagination, which is the force of animality. As explained in the aforementioned Torah teaching on the statement of our Sages, of blessed memory: "Since the Beis HaMikdash was destroyed..." — see there. And therefore through these donations — which are the aspect of the revelation of the gevonin — they merited the building of the Mishkan where all the sacrifices were brought — which are the subduing of the imagination — for the imagination was subdued there through the revelation of all the gevonin — and through this the imagination was essentially subdued, as above.

And therefore the Kohanim (Priests) were blessed with wealth — as it is said: "They shall place incense before Your nostrils... the L-rd shall bless his wealth" (Devarim 33:10–11). And as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: incense enriches — and no person ever repeated the incense formula — so that all the Kohanim might be wealthy. For the Kohanim are occupied with the sacrifices of animals, which are the aspect of the breaking of the imagination, as above. And therefore the High Priest — who is the primary holiness of all the Kohanim as a whole, included within all of them — therefore Israel was commanded to enrich him — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said on the verse: "And the Kohen who is greater than his brothers" (Vayikra 21:10) — "elevate him above his brothers" — that is, as above. So that he should be able to engage in the Temple service with wholeness — which is the service of the sacrifices — which is the breaking of the imagination — whose breaking and subduing comes specifically through holy wealth — for through it the gevonin are revealed, which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, as above.

Halachah 2 (LM I:35): Business gives rest to the mind after Torah study, preventing "excessive light shattering the vessels." "Torah without work is destined to be nullified and brings sin." Mentioning the Name of Heaven in vain ruins the vessels — worse than a berachah in vain: "excessive oil extinguishes the lamp." "Wherever mention of the Name is common, death is common." During business (which preserves vessels), one must be especially careful about mentioning the Name in vain. 2

And this is the aspect of the severity of the prohibition of ribbis (interest — charging a fee for a loan). And the primary prohibition is agar natar (Aramaic: "payment for waiting" — the act of taking a fee for the gift of time during which one's money sits with the borrower, which is the essential Torah prohibition of interest) — that is, to take payment for the gift of one's money — for this is the primary prohibition of interest, which is exceedingly severe, as explained in the Gemara and the decisors. For the holy money of Israel is exceedingly precious — for through it the supernal gevonin are revealed, which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and through this one subdues the koach hamidameh — which is all the klippos and desires and obstructions and so on — and one merits to ascend to the true intellect — which is the ultimate purpose of everything. For this is the essential task and ultimate purpose of the person who comes into this world: to break the evil inclination, which is the koach hamidameh from which all desires arise and so on — and to merit the intellect: to recognize the Creator, blessed be He — which is the entire essence of true intellect. And beyond this there is no wisdom and no understanding and nothing that may be called intellect and wisdom at all — as it is said: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom... but only in this let one who glories glory: that he has insight and knows Me" (Yirmiyahu 9:22–23). And as it is said: "And you shall know this day and take it to your heart that the L-rd, He is G-d" (Devarim 4:39). And it is written: "You have been shown to know that the L-rd, He is G-d" (Devarim 4:35). For the essential knowledge and intellect — the Jewish intellect — is to merit through the da'as to serve Him, blessed be He, and to recognize Him, blessed be He, with complete faith. And all of this one merits through the revelation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, which is revealed through the money of Israel — within which the supernal gevonin are revealed. And through this one breaks the imagination, which is all the desires of the evil inclination and so on, and merits this intellect as above. It is found, then, that the holy money of Israel is exceedingly precious — for through it the supernal gevonin are revealed, which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and through this one merits the ultimate purpose as above. But the supernal gevonin are not revealed within the money except through the mitzvah of charity and acts of kindness — which is even greater than charity — for through this all one's money is rectified. And then specifically the gevonin are revealed and one merits through this to break the imagination and so on, as is explained in the aforementioned Torah teaching. For it is explained there in that Torah teaching in section 3 and these are its words: "And know: no two human beings are equal — for all souls are one above the other, and each is a garment to the other and so on. It is found: when one wishes to ascend from one's level to a higher level, the person standing at the higher level proceeds and is transferred to an even higher level, and so on." And it is explained there at the end in the addenda pertaining to this: that this is the aspect of the "elevation" (haramah) — where one lifts and raises his fellow and so on — see there. It is found that it is impossible for a person to draw close to the L-rd, blessed be He, and ascend from level to level except when one also lifts and raises one's fellow — as is understood and explained in the aforementioned Torah teaching. And this is the aspect of: all Israel are guarantors one for another. And this is the aspect of: "Love your neighbor as yourself — this is a great principle of the Torah" (Vayikra 19:18) — for all Israel are as one person. And each person must lift and raise his fellow toward holiness until the Tzelem Elokim ("image of G-d" — the spiritual likeness in which each person was created) is perfected completely — until all souls ascend to their place and level — each to his proper place — and then the rectification will be complete and so on. And all of this one merits through charity and kindness done from one's money — for through this the supernal gevonin within the money are revealed, which are the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and through this one breaks the imagination and ascends from level to level — and through this one's fellow also ascends from level to level — and one lifts and raises one's fellow as above. And now the matter is explained and connected well — for certainly the essential rectification is specifically through charity and kindness that each person does with his fellow Israel. For through this one establishes and elevates him and illuminates within him the supernal gevonin in the money of Israel — and through this itself one merits to ascend from level to level — for the essential ascent is when one also elevates one's fellow as above — which one merits through charity and kindness specifically done with one's fellow. And just as one merited to illuminate within one's fellow through the money given to him in charity or in a loan of kindness, and illuminated within him the supernal gevonin — so too one merits to ascend from level to level — for the essential ascent also comes through striving for the benefit of one's fellow, to elevate one's fellow as above — for all Israel are included one within the other. And the greatness of the Creator is not revealed and the gevonin are not revealed except when the gevonin are included within one another and illuminate one to the other — as understood from the aforementioned Torah teaching — see there what is explained there: "and when they are included one within the other these gevonin shine and illuminate..." — see there. That is: when Israel do charity and kindness one with the other — for Israel themselves are the gevonin — in the aspect of "Israel, through whom I am glorified" (Yeshayahu 49:3) — in whom the glory of the gevonin is manifest. And each individual of Israel contains a unique gavon (color-radiance) according to his root — corresponding to the stones of the Choshen (breastplate) and the Eifod (priestly apron), which are the holy wealth of Israel — for they were worth a great fortune and within them were all the gevonin. And when they are included one within the other and illuminate one to the other through the charity and kindness each does with the other from his money — in which the primary gevonin dwell, as above — then the gevonin are included one within the other and illuminate one to the other — and then the primary revelation of the glory of the gevonin occurs. And then specifically the greatness of the Creator is revealed and the klippos — which are the koach hamidameh — are subdued — and one ascends from level to level and elevates one's fellow from level to level. And then the L-rd, blessed be He, is increasingly glorified and praised — for the more Israel ascend from level to level above and above, the more the L-rd, blessed be He, is magnified and sanctified and glorified and exalted, as it were, more and more. And therefore the Torah warned us to lend to one's fellow a loan of grace and kindness — as it is said: "If you lend money to My people..." (Shemos 22:24). And it is greater than charity — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: acts of loving-kindness are greater than charity. For through a loan one supports one's fellow even more — enabling him to sustain himself through the loan. And in the livelihood of the man of Israel the gevonin are illuminated as above. It is found that one does a great favor and kindness both physically and spiritually. And afterward the fellow repays and settles — and returns the gevonin within the money — and they illuminate one to the other — which is the essential wholeness of the radiance of the gevonin when they shine and illuminate reciprocally. And therefore this is called by the name loveh u'malveh (borrower and lender) — the language of livui — accompaniment and connection — for through the grace-loan, one accompanies and connects to the other, and the supernal gevonin illuminate reciprocally, as above. And therefore it is called in common parlance "halvoas chain" — a "charm-loan" — chain precisely: this is the aspect of the radiance of the gevonin, which are the primary grace and beauty — as our master, our teacher and Rebbe, of blessed memory, explained on the verse: "grace in the eyes of the L-rd" (Shmuel I 2:26) — see there.

The end of Halachah 2 includes a brief outline of key concepts from Netilas Yadayim/Betzias HaPas Halachah 2. Halachah 3: "its whereabouts is not known to us." 3

And this is the severity of the prohibition of interest — for it is exceedingly severe and is equivalent to denying the G-d of Israel and the Exodus from Egypt — and many negative commandments are stated concerning it — as explained in Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De'ah — see there. And the primary prohibition is to take payment for the gift of money as above. For it is brought in Likutay Tinyana §61 and these are its words: The L-rd, blessed be He, is above time and so on. The general principle is that the essence of time comes from the deficiency of da'as and so on. And therefore in a dream — when the intellect has departed and one has only the koach hamidameh — it seems as though a short while is a very long time and so on. For in a dream it seems as though seventy years pass in a quarter-hour. But when one wakes from sleep and returns from the imagination to the intellect — one understands that this time which seemed like seventy years in the dream was in reality only a quarter-hour. Yet seventy actual years are indeed seventy years. But for the intellect that is higher than ours, even these seventy years are only a quarter-hour and so on. And there is an intellect even higher than that and so on — until there is a true intellect so lofty that there all time is entirely nullified and one is included in the aspect of above time — see there carefully. And apply your intellect and your mind to understand this matter very, very well — for it is a wondrous and awesome thing, very, very much. It is found that the essence of time exists only in the koach hamidameh — but in the intellect time is diminished — and the higher one ascends in intellect, the more time is diminished and eventually completely nullified, as above — which is the essential ultimate purpose — for the essential purpose is to be included in the L-rd, blessed be He, who is above time — which one merits through the perfection of the intellect specifically — which one merits through the breaking of the imagination. For through the true intellect one is included in Him, blessed be He — as the sage said: "If I knew Him, I would be Him." As is explained elsewhere (§21 of Likutay, Part One [LM I:21]) — see there. It is found: one who merits to do charity and a loan of kindness — through which the gevonin radiate and one merits to break the imagination and ascend to the intellect — through this one nullifies time and is included in the aspect of above time. For according to one's breaking of the imagination and one's ascent to the intellect — so too does one nullify time and is included in the aspect of above time, as above. And this is the severity of the prohibition of interest: to take agar natar — payment for the gift of one's money for a certain period of time — for the essential purpose of the holy money is to reveal the gevonin within it in order to break the imagination and nullify time, as above. And this one who takes interest blemishes this greatly — for he takes payment from his money for the gift of time. It is found that he reinforces the imagination over the intellect — in which the essential grip of time lies — upon which all the blemishes of the world depend. For all blemishes and sins come from the koach hamidameh from which all desires arise, as above. And the essential root of all desires and sins, G-d forbid, is only through the reinforcement of the evil that is gripped within time precisely — which is comprised of both good and evil — from the aspect of the good days and evil days — the aspect of "on a good day, be in good, and on an evil day, consider..." (Koheles 7:14) — which are the twenty-eight times: times for good and their opposite — the aspect of the blemish of the Tree of Knowledge — of which it is said: "on the day you eat of it..." (Bereishis 2:17) — "on the day" precisely — for the essential power of the tempter is through the evil gripped within time precisely. For above time there is only good and no evil whatsoever. And this is the entire service of the human being in this world — in the time and the limited days allotted to him: to strive to exit from the imagination to the intellect — that is, to merit to nullify time, whose essence is in the imagination — and to ascend to the intellect where time is nullified and one is included in Him, blessed be He, who is above time — which is the summation of the entire Torah and commandments. As is understood from the headings of the chapters that our master, our teacher and Rebbe, of blessed memory, wrote in §79 of Likutay Tinyana [LM II:79] — see there. And the essential purpose is to give charity and to do kindness with one's fellow Israel — for charity is equal in weight to the entire Torah — for specifically through charity and kindness the gevonin within the coins illuminate — and through this one breaks the imagination and ascends to the intellect as above. And through this time is nullified and one is included in the aspect of above time — which is the essential purpose, as above. And therefore when one takes, G-d forbid, interest from the money in exchange for the gift of time — one blemishes this greatly — as if one wishes, G-d forbid, to conceal the supernal gevonin in the money of Israel — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — which nullify the time of the imagination as above. And one wishes, G-d forbid, to reinforce time — which is the aspect of the imagination — over the gevonin of the coins. Therefore this iniquity is exceedingly severe and is reckoned as absolute denial of the G-d of Israel — since through him the gevonin are concealed, G-d forbid, and the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, is concealed, and the imagination is reinforced — from which all idolatry and heresies spring, as explained above. And therefore it is also reckoned as denial of the Exodus from Egypt — for the essential Exodus from Egypt was through the revelation of the gevonin within the money of Israel — as is explained above — see there.

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For in truth the root of the coming-into-being of time in holiness is through kindness (chesed) — as is explained in the story of the third day — that the essential coming-into-being of time occurs through the acts of true kindness and so on — see there [LM II:25]. And this is the aspect of: "By day the L-rd commands His kindness" (Tehillim 42:9) — for chesed is the "yoma d'azil im kulhon yomin" (Aramaic from the Zohar: "the day that goes with all the days") — and from there comes the essential coming-into-being of all time and all days, whose root is the seven days of building (shivas y'may habinyan) (the seven primordial days — corresponding to the seven Sefiros from Chesed to Malchus), which are the aspect of the seven midos (Divine attributes) — which are the aspect of the gevonin within the silver and gold — which are the aspect of the seven metals — as is known. And it is known that every thing is sweetened at its root specifically. And therefore the essential maintenance of the world is through kindness — as it is said: "The world is built upon kindness" (Tehillim 89:3). For the essential coming-into-being of time exists for the sake of free choice — which operates specifically within time — that is: so that the person might prevail in his service to break the imagination — and through this he will rise from time to the aspect of above time — which is the aspect of eternal life of the World to Come — where the essential reception of reward occurs. Fortunate is the one who merits this. And therefore the essential purpose is charity and kindness — for there is the root of the coming-into-being of time — and there specifically is where time is sweetened and nullified and elevated and included in the aspect of above time. For it is from kindness that the essential beginning and essential structure of the seven days of building comes — for above kindness is above time — the aspect of Binah (Understanding — the third of the ten Sefiros, associated with the World to Come and the transcendence of time) — the great Yovel (Jubilee) which is above the days. As our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "ask now about earlier days" — for the earlier days you may ask — but you may not ask what is above or what is below (Devarim 4:32) — that is, referring to the first three Sefiros, as explained in the holy writings. Therefore kindness — which is the beginning and the essential coming-into-being of time — through it specifically one sweetens and nullifies time and elevates and includes it in the aspect of above time — which is the essential purpose as above. And therefore one must do charity and acts of kindness — for through this specifically the imagination — in which time resides — is nullified, and one ascends to the intellect — in which time is nullified — which is the essential purpose, as above.

And this is the aspect of commerce (masa u'matan — buying and selling, conducting business) — in which one must be exceedingly careful to conduct commerce in faith (emunah) — not blemishing the money, G-d forbid — for within it the supernal gevonin dwell, as above. And when one conducts commerce in faith — it is a very great good — for through the commerce in which one gives and receives with one's fellow through their coins — through this the gevonin are illuminated and included from one to the other. And this is the essential intention of commerce — that the L-rd, blessed be He, arranges for one to give and take with the other — all for the sake of the clarification of the nitzotzos (holy sparks) within the money — as is known — that is: so that the gevonin may illuminate from one to the other — and through this the nitzotzos — which are the gevonin themselves — ascend, as is brought in §56 [LM I:56] — see there. And this is the Torah's warning: "And when you sell anything to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor's hand..." (Vayikra 25:14) — and our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: when one sells, one should sell to a fellow Jew specifically — and so too when one buys and so on — as brought in Rashi's commentary. That is: one must strive to give and take, to sell and buy with one's fellow Israel specifically — so that the gevonin within the money of Israel may illuminate from one to the other and be included one within the other and shine and illuminate one to the other — for this is the essential revelation of the greatness of the Creator as above. And through this the imagination is broken and one ascends to the intellect and time is nullified, as above. And this: "you shall not wrong one another" (Vayikra 25:17) — so as not to blemish the gevonin within the coins of Israel as above. And this is why the Torah linked the commandment of commerce in faith — and not wronging one's fellow — to the Yovel year — as it is said in the portion of Behar, where the passage "And when you sell anything to your neighbor..." is linked to the passage of the Yovel. And in this very passage itself, the prohibition of wrongdoing is linked to the Yovel — as it is said there: "You shall not wrong one another — according to the number of years after the Yovel you shall buy from your neighbor..." (Vayikra 25:17). For the essential prohibition of wrongdoing — which is the blemish of commerce, the blemish of the gevonin within the money of Israel — the essential prohibition and blemish is in what one has blemished in the Yovel, G-d forbid. For Yovel is the aspect of Binah — the World to Come — which is above time, as is known. And therefore the Yovel is called "olam" (eternity) — as it is said: "and he shall serve him forever" — this refers to the Yovel (Kiddushin 15a) — for it is the aspect of above time: the aspect of eternal everlastingness. Therefore the essential holiness of the Yovel falls on Yom Kippur — for Yom Kippur is above time — as is said in the Alef-Beis section under the letter Teshuvah — see there. And from there — from the aspect of the Yovel which is above time — comes the essential coming-into-being of time. For the essential coming-into-being of time and its vitality is from the aspect of above time — from the L-rd, blessed be He, who created time and vivifies and sustains it by His will for all the days that this world endures. And this is what the Torah specified: "You shall not wrong one another — according to the number of years after the Yovel you shall buy..." — meaning: all the purchases and sales and all the commerce in the world all take place according to the number of years after the Yovel — that is: within the dimension of time — the aspect of "the number of years" — for in truth it is only "after the Yovel" — which is above time. For after the Yovel — which is Binah, the World to Come — from there begins the counting of years in the aspect of time, in the aspect of the seven days of building. And all commerce is for the purpose of illuminating the gevonin within the money — to reveal the greatness of the Creator — to subdue the imagination and ascend to the intellect which is above time — the aspect of Yovel. And therefore one must buy and sell and conduct all commerce in faith, and not wrong one's fellow — so as not to blemish the gevonin: which is the aspect of "the number of years after the Yovel" — so that one not be unable to ascend and be included in the Yovel — in the aspect of above time — through the dominance of the imagination, G-d forbid — which is strengthened through the blemish of money — through not conducting commerce in faith, G-d forbid. And this is "You shall not wrong one another — according to the number of years after the Yovel you shall buy" — as above.

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And this is the aspect of the commandments of Shmitta (Sabbatical year — every seventh year, when all agricultural land is declared ownerless) and Yovel (Jubilee — the fiftieth year, when all land returns to its original owner and all Hebrew servants are freed) — for then everything is ownerless (hefker) and all are companions and included one within the other. For then it is in the aspect of above time — which one merits through declaring one's property ownerless and being included one within the other — and through this the gevonin illuminate — and through this one is included in the aspect of above time, as above.

And this is the aspect of (Shemos 30): "When you take the count of the Children of Israel for their numbers — each man shall give a ransom for his soul..." (Shemos 30:12) — that is: the shkalim (half-shekel coins — the annual contribution given by every Jew for the communal sacrifices) for the communal sacrifices — for the sacrifices are the aspect of the breaking of the imagination, as above. And through the shkalim that one gives for the sacrifices — which are the aspect of charity — through this the gevonin are illuminated and the imagination is subdued and so on, as above. And then each one lifts his fellow and so on, as above. And this is: "When you take the count (ki sisah) of the Children of Israel" — the aspect of the lifting of the head (n'sias rosh) — to lift and elevate each and every individual to his place and level. For this is the essential commandment of the counting — to count Israel through the shkalim so that they be included one within the other and illuminate one to the other — so that each individual may ascend and be elevated to his place and level. Therefore each person must give charity — that is: shkalim for the communal sacrifices — through which the gevonin are illuminated and the imagination is subdued and so on — and one lifts and elevates one's fellow as above. And therefore one must give the shkalim every single year — in order to rectify and elevate time — the aspect of the number of years — so that it be included in the aspect of above time, as above.

It is explained there that histakulus [gazing / contemplative looking] is an aspect of ohr hayashar [direct light] and ohr hachozer [returning light], etc. And this is the aspect of: "For Hashem is exalted, yet He sees the lowly, and the haughty He knows from afar" (Psalms 138:6), etc. And through histakulus, a kli [vessel] is formed — that is, boundary and time. For before one sees the thing, it is without boundary. And through the histakulus — by seeing the thing and it becoming engraved in one's mind — through this, a boundary is made for it, etc. 1

And this is why the passage "If you lend money" (Im kesef talveh — Shemos 22:24) is publicly read on Pesach — which is the Exodus from Egypt — for this is as above.

And this is the aspect of the virtue of bitachon [trust in G-d]. For bitachon is an aspect of histakulus, an aspect of: "The eyes of all look hopefully to You" (Psalms 145:15). And through this, one draws down the shefa [influx / sustenance] and livelihood — for the hashpa'ah [Divine flow] descends from Above constantly, except that it is without boundary and time. And it could be that what one needs now might come to him only after many years. But through bitachon — which is an aspect of histakulus toward Hashem, blessed be He — through this, one makes a vessel for the hashpa'ah, that is, boundary and time, so that the hashpa'ah should come at the time it is needed. 2

And this is the aspect of Purim — for Haman Amalek is the aspect of "mana d'la shavya l'chavala" — the vessel that leads to destruction, mentioned above — for he is the force of the klipah that spreads itself across every level and level when one wishes to ascend from level to level, as above. For "Amalek is the first of the nations" (Bamidbar 24:20) — for Amalek is the beginning and totality of all the nations — which are the klippos and fantasies that come from the koach hamidameh. And he is the primary one who triumphs and spreads exceedingly at every level as above. Therefore the essential subduing of him is through charity as above — for through this the gevonin are revealed, as above. And this is what our Sages, of blessed memory, said on the verse (Esther 3:9): "And ten thousand talents of silver I will pay..." — "Revealed and known before the One Who spoke and the world came into being that Haman... and therefore He preceded their shkalim to the shkalim of Haman" — for the shkalim of Israel are the aspect of charity for communal sacrifices as above — through which the essential subduing occurs, as above. And this is what he said: "There is a certain people" (yeshno am echad — Esther 3:8) — and our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded: yeshno am echad — that they have fallen into the aspect of sleep, G-d forbid — for the essential dominance of the imagination is in the aspect of sleep and slumber — for that is when the imagination is dominant and that is where the essential grip of time lies, as above. And therefore Haman said that Israel in the intensity of the exile are in the aspect of sleep — which is the aspect of the dominance of the imagination — the withdrawal of da'as. And therefore he would be able to overcome them, G-d forbid — for the Babylonian exile and similarly all the exiles are compared to sleep — as it is said: "When the L-rd returned the captivity of Zion, we were like dreamers" (Tehillim 126:1) — and as our Sages, of blessed memory, said. And therefore the miracle came about through the king's troubled sleep — as it is said: "On that night the king's sleep was disturbed" (Esther 6:1). And therefore the Megillah begins its account of the greatness of the miracle from the vastness of Achashverosh's glory — as it is said: "When he displayed the wealth of his glorious kingdom and the honor of his magnificent greatness... white, fine cotton, and blue..." (Esther 1:4–6). For the Megillah is telling us herein the greatness of the miracle of the downfall of Haman Amalek — which the L-rd, blessed be He, did for us in every generation. For the essential subduing of the imagination that spreads and expands greatly at every level — which is the aspect of Haman Amalek as above — is through holy wealth, which one merits through charity — and through this the gevonin within the money are revealed, which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, His Name. And at that time in the days of Achashverosh, the wicked kingdom grew so powerful that all the wealth was in their hands and all the gevonin were concealed among them. And this is what the Megillah recounts — of the multitude of gevonin and the extreme and lavish wealth that they possessed — until the very ground was paved with precious stones comprising multiple colors — as it is written: "beds of gold and silver on a pavement of bahat and shesh and dar and sochares..." (Esther 1:6). And through this they were exceedingly powerful against Israel — for it is known that G-d made one corresponding to the other. And just as through holy wealth one overcomes the imagination as above — so too conversely, G-d forbid: when the Sitra Achra prevails and draws all the wealth and the multitude of gevonin to itself — then it grows exceedingly powerful through the abundance of wealth it has seized. And this is the aspect of the bitterness of the present exile — where all the greatness and wealth belongs to them — and through this they are exceedingly powerful. But in truth all their power is only temporary — and ultimately they fall through this very thing, in the aspect of "wealth kept by its owner to his own harm" (Koheles 5:12). For the supernal gevonin within the money cannot radiate when the money is seized by the nations and the wicked. And these gevonin themselves fight against them and prevail over them and fell them and extract from them all the nitzotzos that they had swallowed long before — for this is the aspect of "a time when man dominates another man to his own harm" (Koheles 8:9) — and this is the aspect of: "instead of bronze I will bring gold, and instead of iron I will bring silver" (Yeshayahu 60:17) — for the wealth that they now conquer from Israel through the multitude of taxes and levies — this very money that they take from Israel will itself take vengeance upon them and overcome them and extract from them all the wealth in doubled measure, as above. And so it is alluded to in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, mentioned above — that through the taxes and the levies which they collect from Israel — through this very thing they are subdued and fall — for it is explained there in the aforementioned Torah teaching: that all the taxes and levies that they collect from Israel are the aspect of charity — the aspect of "your taskmasters are righteous" (Yeshayahu 60:17) — and through this too the gevonin are revealed — and through the revelation of the gevonin comes their downfall. For the nations' grip is in the imagination — which is the force of animality — for they are compared to animals as above. And when the imagination is subdued through the gevonin that are revealed through the very collecting of taxes specifically — then all the nations whose grip derives from it fall. And therefore even then in the days of Achashverosh their downfall came through themselves — through the very excess of their own arrogance — in which they showed off and glorified themselves with the honor of the magnificence of their greatness and wealth during the feast. And they clothed themselves in the garments of the High Priest (Megillah 12a) — which are the primary glory of the gevonin — the aspect of bigday yesha ("garments of salvation"). And they sought to blemish these holy garments — and through this the Adversary leaped among them as well and incited them — until they slew the wicked Vashti. And through this came the essential downfall of Haman Amalek — for Esther was taken in her place. For all of this is the aspect of: "a time when man dominates man to his own harm" — for through the great dominance over Israel, whose primary dominance was over the money and wealth of Israel — in which the glory of the gevonin dwells, as above — then these gevonin — which cannot radiate in their domain, and are there in exile in great concealment and hiddenness — gain power and glean and clarify from them all the holy sparks they had swallowed — and extract from them their very vitality — until they are subdued and fall through this very thing, as above.

And this is [the meaning of]: "The eyes of all look hopefully to You, and You give them their food in its time" (Psalms 145:15–16). For through the histakulus with bitachon toward Hashem, blessed be He — the aspect of "the eyes of all look hopefully to You" — through this: "and You give them their food in its time" — "in its time" specifically, meaning in the aspect of boundary and time, for the histakulus makes a vessel, as mentioned above. 3

And this is what is written concerning the greatness of Mordechai: "And Mordechai went out from before the king in royal garments of blue and white, with a great crown of gold..." (Esther 8:15). This is the aspect of the glory of the gevonin that returned to holiness — for Mordechai the Tzaddik merited all these gevonin, which are the aspect of bigday yesha as above — which is the aspect of royal garments of blue and so on. And through this came the essential salvation — through the gevonin returning and being revealed in holiness, at Mordechai the Tzaddik, as above. And this is what is written: "And Haman recounted to them the glory of his wealth..." (Esther 5:11) — for he told them that he possessed great wealth and believed that the supernal gevonin were seized in his possession — and therefore the side of holiness — which is Mordechai and Israel — would have no power to prevail against him, as above. But the L-rd, blessed be He, had compassion on His people and the matter reversed from one extreme to the other — all the wealth and all the gevonin returned to Mordechai — as it is said: "And Esther appointed Mordechai over the house of Haman" (Esther 8:2) — for Mordechai received all the wealth of Haman. And then the wealth returned to holiness and the supernal gevonin — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — were revealed. And through this they merited to subdue and humble the Amalekites — who are the Sitra Achra — and to elevate and exalt Israel — for the essential subduing of the Sitra Achra — which is the aspect of the imagination — is through the revelation of the gevonin within holy wealth, as above.

And this is the aspect of matanos la'evyonim ("gifts to the poor" — one of the four special mitzvos of Purim: giving charity to at least two paupers) which one is obligated to give on Purim — that is, to greatly increase charity. For the essential revelation of the gevonin in holiness is through charity as above — and through this comes the essential subduing of the imagination, which is the Sitra Achra — which is the essential aspect of Purim as above. And this is the aspect of mishloach manos ish l're'ehu ("sending portions, each man to his friend" — the mitzvah of sending food gifts to one's fellow on Purim) — for each person must connect with and be included in one's fellow through the sending of portions from one to the other. For when the imagination is subdued — which is the aspect of Purim as above — then each lifts and raises his fellow from level to level as above. Therefore one must send portions from one to the other — so that each may be included in one's fellow — to demonstrate that now, when the imagination at every level is subdued — for the wicked Haman, may his name be erased, was included in all the evil of the imagination at every level — and now that he has been subdued and fallen through the force of the miracle of Purim — therefore now each is included in his fellow. For each lifts and raises his fellow. And this is the aspect of mishloach manos ish l're'ehu, as above. And this is the aspect of the great force of the joy (simchah) of Purim — for when the gevonin — which are the aspect of bigday yesha and so on — are revealed — which is the aspect of Purim as above — the joy is very great and mighty. And the more the glory of the gevonin is revealed and the evil within the imagination is subdued — the more the joy grows and grows. For the glory of the gevonin is the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, as above. And the more His glory and His greatness, blessed be He, is revealed — certainly the joy is greater — for this is the essence of all joys: when His greatness and His glory, blessed be He, is revealed — as it is said in many verses: "Give thanks to the L-rd, call upon His Name" (Tehillim 105:1). And in the psalm "Come, let us sing" (L'chu N'ranena — Tehillim 95) — recited at the entrance of Shabbos — from the greatness of the joy that will be in the future when His glory and His beauty, blessed be He, will be revealed — as it is said: "Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be glad, and let the nations say: the L-rd reigns" (Tehillim 96:11) — and so too in many verses there. And all of these psalms from beginning to end are founded entirely upon the greatness of the joy from the revelation of His greatness, blessed be He — as it is said: "Come, let us sing to the L-rd, let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation... in song we shall shout to Him, for G-d is a great L-rd" (Tehillim 95:1–3). And song and melody are the aspect of joy — as is known and explained elsewhere. And all those psalms speak there of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, and of the intense joy with which one must rejoice in His greatness and in His Name, blessed be He — as it is said: "Be glad in the L-rd, O righteous ones... the L-rd reigns, let the earth exult..." (Tehillim 33:1; 97:1). For these psalms of L'chu N'ranena recited at the entrance of Shabbos were instituted also to subdue the imagination that becomes powerful when one rises toward holiness — for since one must exit from the six weekdays and ascend to the holiness of Shabbos — therefore these psalms that speak of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, were instituted — in order to subdue the klippos that become powerful when one ascends from level to level. Just as the recitation of "Hodu" ("Give thanks" — Tehillim 136) was instituted — which speaks of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, and of the intensity of the joy in Him, blessed be He — because one must ascend from Asiyah to Yetzirah, as above in the aforementioned Torah teaching. And this is the aspect of: "In Your Name they shall rejoice all day, and in Your righteousness they shall be exalted... for the splendor of their strength is You" (Tehillim 89:17–18) — for through the glorification that is revealed, through this joy flows — the aspect of "In Your Name they shall rejoice all day" and so on. And this is: "and in Your righteousness they shall be exalted" — for the essential glorification — which is the glory of the gevonin — is revealed through charity (tzedakah) as above. And this is: "I will greatly rejoice in the L-rd, my soul shall exult in my G-d — for He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me in a mantle of righteousness" (Yeshayahu 61:10). "Bigday yesha" — "m'eil tzedakah" — this is the aspect of the glory of the gevonin that are revealed through charity — as is explained well in the aforementioned Torah teaching on this verse — see there. And through this: "I will greatly rejoice in the L-rd, my soul shall exult in my G-d" — for the essential magnification of joy comes through this, as above. And therefore — since on Purim the imagination is subdued more greatly — for this is the essential downfall of Haman Amalek — through the revelation of the gevonin, through the abundance of charity that one gives then — and through the commandment of the shkalim that precede Purim — through which comes the essential miracle of Purim, as above — therefore the joy then is very great and mighty. For through the revelation of the gevonin — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — the joy is greatly magnified, as above. And this is the aspect of the intoxication of Purim — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "chayav inash l'v'sumay b'Puraya ad d'lo yada bein arur Haman l'varuch Mordechai" (Aramaic: "a person is obligated to become intoxicated on Purim until he cannot distinguish between 'cursed is Haman' and 'blessed is Mordechai'" — Megillah 7b). For intoxication is the aspect of sleep — the aspect of the dominance of the imagination — as one observes tangibly: that the drunk person is overcome by the confusion of the imagination and speaks foolish things that come from the confusion of the imagination. And therefore one must normally be very, very far from intoxication — so that the imagination should not become dominant within him — from which all evil desires arise, as above. But on Purim — when the subduing of Haman Amalek occurs — the subduing of the evil within the imagination is so complete that intoxication causes no harm whatsoever on this day. On the contrary: through the drinking one rectifies the imagination to be included in holiness and transforms evil to good — for on Purim the evil within the imagination is so thoroughly subdued that through the abundance of drinking one can transform the imagination specifically toward holiness. For wine has two aspects: if one has merited, it gladdens; if one has not merited, it desolates. And everything depends on the clarification of the imagination — for one who has not merited to clarify the imagination from evil to good — the wine desolates him — for desolation is the aspect of madness, the aspect of the confusion of the imagination. But one who has merited — meaning one who has already subdued the evil within the imagination — the wine gladdens him. And this is the aspect of the drinking of Purim — when the imagination is subdued through the revelation of the gevonin — and then the joy is very great through this as above. And therefore the drinking is in the aspect of the wine that gladdens. And this is: chayav inash l'v'sumay b'Puraya ad d'lo yada bein arur Haman l'varuch Mordechai — for Haman the wicked is the aspect of the evil within the imagination at every level — for he was of the seed of Amalek, who is comprised of all the evil and klippos of every level — in the aspect of "Amalek is the first of the nations" as above. For at every single level the imagination spreads and dominates. And Haman the wicked was included in all the evil of every level as above. And he gained great dominance then over Israel — for the koach hamidameh — the klippos at each level — cannot gain dominance except in proportion to the level in holiness — and then the person has choice and power to prevail against it. But Haman the wicked was comprised of all the evil of every level and wished to prevail against every individual of Israel with the power of the evil of every level — including the levels far above him. And certainly no person at a lower level has the power to stand against a klipah of a level far above his own — and all the more so against the klippos of many many levels far above him. And Haman the wicked, may his name be erased, who was the evil of every level, wished to prevail against each individual of Israel with the power of the evil of all those levels of which he was comprised. And therefore it was utterly impossible to stand against him — as it is said: "Had not the L-rd been with us when a man rose against us" (Tehillim 124:2) — and our Sages, of blessed memory, counted this as Haman. For it is brought in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory: that human beings can obstruct holiness more than the ba'al davar (the adversary — the evil inclination) — for the evil inclination of a person is only in proportion to his level — each person has an evil inclination from whichever world corresponds to his level. But a human being is comprised of everything — therefore he has the power to obstruct even more — see there. And in particular, Haman the wicked, may his name be erased — who was comprised of all the evil of every level — wished to prevail against every single individual of Israel with the power of the evil of every level. And even against the person at the lowest level he wished to prevail with the power of the evil of all the levels far above him — and how was it possible to stand against him? And therefore he wished to destroy, to slay, and to annihilate all the Jews from young to old and so on — for he wished to prevail against all Israel from the great to the small — since he was comprised of all the evil of every level. And so it is in every generation. And this is the aspect of the intensity of the battle in every generation — for when the adversary clothes himself within human beings, it is exceedingly difficult to stand against them — since human beings are comprised of everything and have the power to obstruct more than the evil inclination alone, as above. And about this it is said: "Had not the L-rd been with us when a man rose against us" — certainly when a person rises against a person to obstruct him from the path of life it is exceedingly difficult to stand against him — unless the L-rd is his helper. And this is the intense and extraordinary and awesome miracle of Purim — as explained in all the holy books regarding the greatness of the wonders of this great miracle — the greatest of all miracles — and all the Moadim (sacred festivals) will be nullified but the days of Purim will never be nullified. For then it was utterly impossible to stand against Haman — for he prevailed against each individual with the power of the evil of every level. Therefore the L-rd, blessed be He, had compassion on Israel and performed for them a wondrous miracle by sending them then a savior and leader — Mordechai the Jew — who was the very opposite of Haman. For Mordechai was comprised of the holiness of the revelation of the supernal gevonin of every level — for at every single level, when one must subdue the evil within the imagination, one must reveal the gevonin that are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — and certainly according to the level one must ascend to — so too must one reveal the gevonin. And Mordechai was comprised of the holiness of the revelation of the gevonin of every level — and therefore he had the power to subdue the klipah of Haman — which is the evil within the imagination at every level — for it is subdued by the holiness of the revelation of the gevonin of every level — which is the aspect of Mordechai. For Mordechai is the aspect of b'samim rosh — mar d'ror (the "chief of spices" — Shemos 30:23 — whose Aramaic translation is meira d'chaya — "flowing pure myrrh") — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said. That is: Mordechai is the aspect of the chief of the spices of the anointing oil — through which the Mishkan and its vessels and the Kohanim and the kings and the priestly garments and the Mishkan and so on were all anointed. All of these are the aspect of the revelation of the supernal gevonin — for all the supernal gevonin were within the Mishkan and its vessels and the priestly garments — which are the aspect of gold, silver, copper, blue, purple and so on, as above. And therefore there all the sacrifices were offered — which are the subduing of the imagination — for there the imagination was subdued through the revelation of all the gevonin — and through this the imagination was essentially subdued, as above. And the essential revelation of the holiness of all these gevonin in the Mishkan and its vessels and the priestly garments and so on — all of it did not illuminate and was not revealed except through the anointing oil through which they were all anointed. And through this they were sanctified in their holiness — for the entire Mishkan and its vessels and so on were not sanctified in their holiness until they had been anointed with the anointing oil. And their essential holiness was through the revelation and illumination within them of the gevonin — which are the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — from which holiness essentially derives. For everywhere that the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He, is revealed more greatly — there holiness falls more greatly — as it is said: "And I will be magnified and sanctified" (Yechezkel 38:23). It is found, then, that the holiness of the entire Mishkan and its vessels and so on — all of which came through the revelation of the gevonin, which are the greatness and holiness of the Creator, blessed be He — all came through the anointing oil — through which they were all anointed — which is the aspect of Mordechai — the aspect of b'samim rosh mar d'ror and so on — from which the anointing oil was made. It is found that Mordechai was comprised of the holiness of all the gevonin of every level — since through him comes the essential radiance of the gevonin within all the particular elements of the Mishkan. For the Mishkan and its vessels were comprised of all the levels of all Israel — included within the komas adam ("stature of a man" — the totality of all spiritual levels structured as the form of a human being). As is known: all the levels in their totality are the komas adam — as explained in the holy writings. And the Mishkan was in the aspect of the komas adam — as the holy Zohar says: "tziyura d'mishkana k'tziyura d'adam" (Aramaic: "the structure of the Mishkan is as the structure of man" — Zohar II:162). And therefore the Mishkan was comprised of all of them, as above. And Mordechai is the chief of the spices of the anointing oil — from which comes the essential holiness of the Mishkan — namely the essential revelation of the gevonin within all the particulars of the Mishkan. Therefore he was comprised of the holiness of the gevonin of every level. And therefore the L-rd, blessed be He, gave him the power to subdue and to humble Haman the wicked, may his name be erased, and to save each and every individual of Israel from his hand — from the small to the great. For just as Haman prevails in every generation against every individual of Israel — even against the one lowest in spiritual standing — with the power of the evil of the many levels far above him — in the form of enticements, temptations, fantasies, and obstructions beyond measure drawn from levels far higher than him. So too the L-rd, blessed be He, sends in every generation a Tzaddik who is the aspect of Mordechai — comprised of all the levels of holiness — who has the power to illuminate even the least of the least with a wondrous and mighty illumination drawn from the levels exceedingly far above him. And through this saves him from the klipah of Haman — which wishes to prevail against him with the power of the evil of all the levels above his. And this illumination of Mordechai the Tzaddik we merit in every generation — in every year during the days of Purim — as it is said: "And these days are to be remembered and observed in every generation, in every family..." (Esther 9:28). For this is the essential battle of every person in every generation — that apart from one's personal evil inclination and one's evil desires which one has from within oneself, against which one must wage great war and exert great effort to stand against them — in addition to this, there stand against every individual many many people who wish to obstruct him from the path of life. And in this matter there are countless variations — for sometimes the adversary himself clothes within a worthy person — and sometimes within a certain tzaddik, instilling in his heart a dispute against the straight path that the one wishes to enter. For the adversary confuses the world greatly in every generation — and his primary incitement is against the straight path that the great perfect Tzaddikim of the highest level — who are comprised of all the levels of holiness — have revealed in the world. And he clothes himself within human beings specifically — to dispute such great Tzaddikim and the straight and true paths they have revealed in the world — and he inverts the truth and thereby prevails over the lesser person through arguments, difficulties, and confusions drawn from levels far above him. And it is very difficult to stand against this except through the power of the great Tzaddik of the highest level — who is the aspect of Mordechai — the aspect of b'samim rosh — who is comprised of all the levels of holiness — who illuminates within us a wondrous and mighty illumination from the levels far above and above. And through this even the least of the least has the power to stand against the many obstructors — for the holiness of the Tzaddikim — the aspect of Mordechai — rises above all the levels to the ultimate holiness — where the klipah of the imagination is completely nullified. For it has been explained above that at every level there are fantasies and klippos — and when a person wishes to ascend from level to level, the klippos of that level anew gain power and so on, as above. But there are Tzaddikim so lofty that they have already become included in the ultimate supernal holiness — for they have already broken the klippos of every single level — until they have already become included in the ultimate holiness — where the klipah is completely nullified. And this is the aspect of the holiness of Mordechai the Jew as above. And this illumination is revealed on Purim — and this is the aspect of chayav inash l'v'sumay b'Puraya ad d'lo yada bein arur Haman l'varuch Mordechai — for from the greatness of the joy one should ascend to such a lofty level that the illumination of Purim shines within him — the illumination of Mordechai — at its highest root — where there is no klipah nor any evil of the imagination whatsoever. And therefore there it is not applicable to say "cursed is Haman" and "blessed is Mordechai" — for at every level where there is klipah and holiness — which are the aspects of Haman and Mordechai — it is applicable to say "cursed is Haman" — which is the klipah — and "blessed is Mordechai" — which is holiness. But at the root of the ultimate supernal holiness — there the imagination and the klipah are completely nullified — and there it is not applicable at all to say "cursed is Haman" and "blessed is Mordechai" — since there all is holy, all is good. And this is the aspect of the illumination of Purim — which is the illumination of Mordechai — a great and awesome light that does not illuminate on any other holy day but only on Purim — as explained in the writings of the holy Ari, of blessed memory. That is: as above — for this light is comprised of the holiness of every level up to the ultimate supernal holiness — where the klipah is completely nullified. And this is "until he knows not" — for there all is good, as above. Mordechai was comprised of the holiness of all the gevonin of every level — for Mordechai was of the tribe of Binyamin — in whose portion the Beis HaMikdash (Holy Temple) was built — where all the sacrifices were offered — which are the subduing of the imagination. For in the Beis HaMikdash all the gevonin were found — for there was great wealth there — all the treasuries of the house of the L-rd. For the Mikdash and the Mishkan are one and the same aspect. And this is what is said: "The L-rd is great and very much praised in the city of our G-d, His holy mountain" (Tehillim 48:2) — for there in the Beis HaMikdash is the primary manifestation of His greatness, blessed be He. And the verse explains: the primary manifestation of His greatness, blessed be He, was revealed there because there was all the beauty and glory of the gevonin. And this is: "beautiful in elevation, the joy of the entire earth, Mount Zion..." (Tehillim 48:3) — for there was all the beauty and glory of the revelation of the gevonin — which are the primary glory and beauty — and they are the primary manifestation of His greatness, blessed be He — the aspect of "great is the L-rd and very much praised," as above. And this is: "beautiful in elevation, the joy of the entire earth" — for this is the essential joy when His greatness, blessed be He, is revealed through the revelation of the gevonin — the aspect of "I will greatly rejoice in the L-rd... for He has clothed me with garments of salvation" and so on — which are the revelation of the gevonin, called "bigday yesha" and so on, as above. And this is what is written: "To all of them he gave each man changes of garments, and to Binyamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and five changes of garments" (Bereishis 45:22). For it has already been explained that Egypt and Pharaoh are the aspect of the imagination — and this is the essential nature of the Egyptian exile: that the imagination grew dominant. And the essential subduing of them was through Yosef the Tzaddik — who descended there beforehand to subdue through his power the imagination and the klipah of Egypt — as it is said: "For G-d sent me before you to preserve life" (Bereishis 45:5). And therefore the L-rd, blessed be He, arranged in His compassion that Yosef should merit there to great wealth — gathering all the silver of Egypt and of the other lands — as it is said: "And Yosef gathered all the silver..." (Bereishis 47:14) — for through the silver and wealth that Yosef gathered there, the supernal gevonin — which are the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — were revealed. And through this came the essential subduing of Pharaoh and Egypt — which are the imagination — as above. And therefore when the tribes gathered with Yosef, he gave to all of them from his wealth — for he gave each person gifts — to demonstrate to them that he had already merited to elevate the wealth to holiness — and he gave to all of them a portion of his wealth, which is the aspect of the glory of the gevonin — the aspect of bigday yesha. And this is the aspect of the changes of garments that he gave to all of them — the aspect of the garments of glory as above — which are the aspect of the glory of the gevonin — so that all the tribes would have the power to subdue the klipah of Egypt — which is the imagination — through the power of the bigday yesha — the glory of the gevonin — that they received from Yosef. For the essential subduing of the imagination — which is the aspect of Egypt — is through bigday yesha and so on, as above. And therefore to Binyamin — in whose portion the Beis HaMikdash was built — where the essential subduing of the imagination takes place — therefore he needed the greatest wealth more than any other. And therefore he gave him five changes of garments — an allusion to the five changes of garments that the High Priest changes on Yom Kippur — for on Yom Kippur the High Priest enters the innermost sanctum — where resides the essential supreme holiness of the Beis HaMikdash — and there is the essential glory of the gevonin. For there stood the Ark and the Cherubim — and there His greatness, blessed be He, was recognized — for there is the essential dwelling of the Shechinah (Divine Presence) — as it is said: "And I will meet there with the Children of Israel..." (Shemos 29:43). And this is the aspect of the three hundred pieces of silver — corresponding to the three aspects of the intellect: intellect-in-potential (seichel b'koach), intellect-in-action (seichel hapo'el), and acquired intellect (seichel haniken) — which one merits through the revelation of the gevonin within holy wealth — and through this the imagination is subdued and one ascends to the intellect comprised of these three aspects as above. And Haman — who wished to blemish the holiness of the gevonin and reinforce the imagination as above — therefore cast the pur (lot) — for he wished to blemish the holiness of Yom Kippur — of which it is said: "And Aharon shall place lots upon the two goats..." (Vayikra 16:8). And this is what is brought in the holy Zohar: that Purim is the aspect of Yom Kippur — that is: as above — for afterward, when they merited to subdue him, they drew back the holiness of Yom Kippur — which is the essential holiness of the Beis HaMikdash — within which are all the gevonin. For on Yom Kippur the High Priest entered the ultimate supernal holiness of the Beis HaMikdash — where is the essential revelation of the glory of the gevonin — the primary manifestation of the greatness of the Creator, blessed be He — from which comes the essential subduing of Haman Amalek — which is the totality of the evil within the imagination at every level, as above. For Yom Kippur is above time — as our Rebbe, of blessed memory, said. And the essential nature of time is in the imagination as above. And Haman wished to reinforce time — for he attributed everything to nature and to time. And therefore he cast the lot from day to day and from month to month and so on — for he said that everything depends on time — and therefore he wished to cast the lot until he would know the day and the time when he could prevail over Israel, G-d forbid. And even though his lot was through great sorcery and he possessed great arts in this — the L-rd, blessed be He, foils the plans of the cunning and the matter was reversed. For the L-rd, blessed be He, drew the salvation and the miracle from the aspect of Yom Kippur — from the aspect of above time — from the aspect of the great Yovel — which is the aspect of the fiftieth gate (sha'ar hacha'mishim). For Haman wished to bring the blemish even there, G-d forbid — and therefore he made a tree fifty cubits tall. But this was his primary downfall — for there, in the aspect of the fiftieth gate, in the aspect of Yovel, in the aspect of Yom Kippur, in the aspect of above time — there he has no dominion or grip whatsoever. And no one can ascend there except the great Tzaddik who is the aspect of Mordechai. And therefore he was hanged on that very tree that is fifty cubits tall — for the essential downfall came through the aspect of the fiftieth gate of holiness — which is the aspect of above time, as above. And regarding this matter of above time there is still much to explain — may the Name, blessed be He, help us to complete the matter well. And this is the aspect of "Write this as a memorial in the book" (Shemos 17:14) — for zikaron (memorial-memory) is in the aspect of the imagination — as Rebbe, of blessed memory, said elsewhere — that is: the clarification of the imagination. And this is the aspect of the public reading of the Torah — for the minimum number for a Torah reading is three men, and each one reads no fewer than three verses — all of this in order to subdue the imagination and ascend to the intellect, which is comprised of three aspects as above: intellect-in-potential and so on, as above. And therefore the entire Torah is threefold — as it was said: "b'rich rachamana d'yahiv lan orayta t'lita'ah" (Aramaic: "Blessed is the Merciful One who gave us the threefold Torah" — Shabbos 88a — an allusion to the Torah being threefold: Torah, Nevi'im, Kesuvim; given to a threefold people: Kohanim, Leviim, Yisraelim; in the third month). And likewise (Shemos 15:22) — when Israel walked three days without Torah they grew weary and so on — and they instituted reading on Monday and Thursday — so that no three days would pass without Torah. All of this in order to subdue the imagination and ascend to the intellect comprised of the three aspects as above. And this is the aspect of the three Kedushot (sanctifications — the Kedushah prayers) — for the intellect is called "holy" as is known — and therefore there are three Kedushot — the aspect of the holiness of the intellect comprised of three aspects as above. "Mo'eid mo'adim va'chetzi — idan v'idanin u'plag idan" ("A time, times, and half a time" — Daniel 12:7; 7:25) — this is the aspect of the diminution of time — that the intellect of the diminution and nullification of time will be revealed — for the greater the intellect, the more time is diminished and nullified. And this is: "until a time, times, and half a time" — for from two times, one time will be made. And afterward one will ascend to an even higher intellect until time is further diminished and nullified — until all time is in the aspect of "and a half" — and then Mashiach will come — who will attain the intellect of the aspect of above time in complete perfection — see carefully §61 cited above and understand well. And this is the aspect of the prohibition of chametz (leavened bread) — whose primary prohibition is through time — that is: it is forbidden to allow the dough to sit for any period lest it become leavened — as our ancestors' dough did not have time to become leavened and so on — as it is said: "And they could not delay" (Shemos 12:39). That is: the essential prohibition of chametz is that the abundance of time should not take hold within the dough — for from there comes the essential grip of the external forces. And their essential subduing is through the revelation of the intellect that diminishes time and elevates everything above time — and through this comes the essential redemption of Egypt — which took place in haste, and they could not delay. And the L-rd, blessed be He, leaped and skipped over the end (ketz) — all of which is the aspect of the diminution of time — the aspect of above time, as above. To establish the days of Purim at their appointed times — to rectify the aspect of time — to elevate the times and to connect them to the aspect of above time — through the clarification of the imagination that one merits on Purim as above. For the essence of time is in the aspect of the imagination and so on, as above. [Note in the source text: Laws of Idolatry, Halacha 4 is included within Laws of Wine of Libation (Yayin Nesech), §13 and onward.]