בשר בחלב א

It is forbidden to divine (le'onayn) and to take omens (lenachaysh) — that is, to say: "such-and-such a time is favorable, such-and-such a time is unfavorable" and so on. This is on account of what is stated: "You shall be wholehearted (tamim)" and so on (Devarim 18:13). For when one says "such-and-such a time is favorable" and "such-and-such a time is bad" — it turns out that one is thereby giving power and dominion to the "bad time." And all of this is connected to the blemish of the bris (pegam ha-bris) — for through the blemish of the bris the "bad time" gains strength, heaven forfend. As is explained in the discourse "Hayye man" and so on, in §29.

But Israel — the holy nation — they contract their awareness and direct their minds with great focus toward Hashem, blessed be He, alone. For they know, with perfect emunah, of the greatness of Hashem, blessed be He, and His awesome exaltedness — that He is exalted and beyond reach, exceedingly, exceedingly so, beyond every kind of spirituality in all the worlds, and certainly beyond the physicality of this lowly world. And nevertheless, He, blessed be He, Himself watches with hashgachah pratis over the entire lowly physical world. And He sustains and provides, from the horns of the wild oxen down to the eggs of lice. 27

And this is why the verse "You shall be wholehearted (tamim)" is juxtaposed to this — for it is the opposite of the diviner (me'onayn). That is: it is the aspect of the tikun of the bris, which is called tamim (wholehearted/complete) — as it is written: "Walk before Me and be wholehearted (tamim)" (Berayshis 17:1). For through this — through the tikun of the bris — the "bad time" is subdued and subjugated, which is in the aspect of the diviner (me'onayn), as above. And this is the meaning of: "You shall be wholehearted (tamim) with the Lord your God (im Hashem Elokecha)" (Devarim 18:13). "Hashem Elokecha" — "the Lord your God" — this is the aspect of the World to Come (alma d'asay), the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" (the Lord — He is God). And in the aspect of the World to Come, the "bad time" is completely nullified — for the World to Come is above time (l'ma'alah min ha-zman) and above the character traits (middos), and it is entirely good (kulo tov), and there is no aspect whatsoever of the "bad time" there at all.

And because we direct our awareness toward this holy emunah, in the path that our righteous forefathers transmitted to us — through this, the eyes of our awareness reach Him, blessed be He, Himself, in the aspect of histakulus, which is the aspect of ohr hayashar and ohr hachozer that is made by reaching that thing in a focused, contracted manner. For we too direct our awareness with great contraction, in the way of emunah, until we reach Him, blessed be He, and draw down His Providence upon us in completeness. For just as we believe in His Providence in specificity, in completeness — so too His Providence is truly drawn upon us in completeness. That is, in the aspect of sight that comes in a focused, straight manner, in the aspect of impact [haka'ah] — until we become depicted in His eyes, in the aspect of ratzo vashuv [running and returning]. And so it goes, revolving each time. And through this, the shefa is renewed each time with a great and mighty light, and an abundance of good is drawn to the House of Israel. 28

And this one merits through the tikun of the bris — for through the tikun of the bris the moychin (expanded consciousness) are elevated, which is the aspect of da'as (knowledge), the aspect of the World to Come — as is cited in many places. And therefore through the tikun of the bris the "bad time" is nullified — for one merits to the aspect of the World to Come, which is entirely good, above time, as above. And this is what is written: "Do not be frightened by the signs of the heavens, for the nations are frightened by them" (Yirmiyahu 10:2). For Israel — who are in the aspect of guardians of the bris — have no need to fear the signs of the heavens, which indicate times and seasons. For the "bad time" is nullified through the aspect of guarding the bris, and one merits to the aspect of the World to Come, as mentioned above.

But the idolatrous heretics who deny His Providence — because of the foolishness of their mind, saying that He, blessed be He, is too exalted to watch over the world Himself — and from this all their heresies are drawn, and all the forms of idolatry of the earlier generations. For in their folly they say that G-d forbid, Hashem, blessed be He, handed over the governance to the celestial constellation, until they came through this to worship wood and stone, the work of human hands. For they said that it is impossible to draw down the shefa except through the worship of a physical image — which is the essence of all their idolatries, as is known from the holy books. For this was the cause of the error of the earlier generations who worshipped idolatry. 29

"One does not consult star-gazers" and so on — "because it is stated: 'You shall be wholehearted with the Lord your God'" and so on.

And similarly, all the error of the heretics of these generations — it is all through errors like these, because they do not direct and contract their awareness to understand and comprehend that it is impossible to understand the ways of His greatness, blessed be He, and His conduct, blessed be He. And through this, they cannot reach Him, blessed be He, with the eyes of their awareness — like a person who wants to see something from a distance but does not direct and contract his eyes toward that thing, but rather looks from the side; through this, the sight becomes scattered and he cannot see or bring that thing to his eyes. Exactly so is it with the errors of their evil thinking — that they want to gaze at the comprehension of His greatness, blessed be He, but do not direct their awareness to look toward Him, blessed be He, alone; rather, they look from the side, through the paths of their evil philosophical investigations, until they depart from the boundary. And they do not return to draw down His Providence, blessed be He, upon them — because they cannot reach Him, blessed be He, because they have no emunah. For through the intellect alone, it is impossible to attain Him, blessed be He — only through emunah alone. And as is explained in many places, and as mentioned above. 30

According to what Rabbaynu wrote in the discourse "Tik'u" (Sound the shofar), which speaks of rebuke (tochachah), in Likutay Tinyana (Part Two), §8 — that through prophecy (nevuah) the imagination (medame) is rectified, and through this one merits to upright emunah (emunah yesharah), and false beliefs (emunos kozoyviyos) are nullified — which are the filth of the snake (zuhamah de-nachash) — the aspect of diviners (menachashim) and conjurers (me'onenim) and so on. And through emunah one merits to chesed (lovingkindness), through which will come the renewal of the world (chidush ha-olam) in the future — the aspect of: "The world will be built through chesed (olam chesed yibaneh)" (Tehillim 89:3). And the renewal will be in the aspect of the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisroel) — which is the aspect of Divine Providence (hashgachah) — the aspect of: "Always the eyes of the Lord your God are upon it" (Devarim 11:12). For then the world will be guided through Providence and miracles, as is the Land of Israel. For the essential aspect of the Land of Israel comes through the principle of "the power of His deeds He told His people (koach ma'asav higid le-amo)" — as it is written: "In the beginning (bereishis)" and so on. Rabbi Yitzchak said: It need not have begun the Torah except from "This month shall be for you (ha-chodesh ha-zeh lachem)" — except because of "the power of His deeds" and so on, so that the nations would not say "robbers" and so on. See all of this there well.

And therefore, also Hashem, blessed be He, does not draw upon them complete Providence. And He does not watch over them except in the aspect of "half-sight" [chatzi hare'us], as explained in the Torah [teaching] "Happy is the People" mentioned above. That is, so to speak, the flow of Providence becomes scattered before it reaches them. For the Providence and shefa do not reach them in the aspect of impact [haka'ah]. For "to look upon iniquity, You cannot" (Habakkuk 1:13). For just as they do not direct their awareness toward Him to believe in His Providence, blessed be He, so too He, blessed be He, measures for them measure for measure. 31

For in truth, Israel — the holy people — are in the aspect of being above nature (l'ma'alah min ha-teva). For they are not given over to any ministering angel (sar) and they are not governed by the nature of the celestial order (ma'arechet ha-shamayim) — rather only by His providence, blessed be He. And therefore they are commanded not to consult the signs of the heavens and not to divine and take omens — as it is written: "Do not be frightened by the signs of the heavens, for the nations are frightened by them" (Yirmiyahu 10:2). For in truth, one thing is dependent on the other (ha bihu talya) — for when Israel do not consult these liars and false imaginations of the diviners (me'onenim) and those who consult the signs of the heavens and the star-gazers and the like — it turns out that they are thereby subduing the filth of the snake (zuhamat ha-nachash) and cleaving to holy emunah. For these false imaginations of the liars mentioned above — those of the diviners and conjurers — are the filth of the snake, as above.

And even though in truth, even all the livelihood of the idolaters — everything is from Him, blessed be He, through His Providence alone — nevertheless, He, blessed be He, hands over their shefa to the chitzonim [external forces]. And they are nourished through the path of the shaidim [demons] and the klipos [husks of impurity] that came into being from the shattering of the vessels — which were caused by excess of light. And all of this is because they do not contract their awareness. And their awareness is in the aspect of excess of light that causes shattering of the vessels — for they say that because of His exaltedness and greatness, He, blessed be He, is G-d forbid far from this world. And this is itself the aspect of excess of light that causes shattering of the vessels — for due to the excess da'as, in wanting to grasp the loftiness of His greatness, blessed be He, they split apart and fell completely, until they deny His Providence, blessed be He. 32

And when they distance themselves from this, and only believe in the Blessed Lord alone — then through this emunah they merit to the aspect of the renewal of the world (chidush ha-olam) — the aspect of the Land of Israel. And then their governance is through Providence alone — through the aspect of miracles (nisim) above the nature of the celestial order. It therefore turns out that through this itself they have no need to fear the signs of the heavens at all — for they are governed through Providence alone, as above. It therefore turns out that through this very thing — that they distance themselves from this — through this they need not fear it, as above.

And because of this, Hashem, blessed be He, too watches over them in the aspect of excess light without boundary — meaning, in the aspect of shattering of the vessels. And He does not direct and contract the shefa upon them in impact, but rather basar kasfaih [behind His shoulder, i.e. indirectly], as found in the Holy Zohar. Through this, all their sustenance descends to the chitzonim and klipos that came into being from excess of light, from shattering of the vessels. And from there they receive their livelihood. 33

And this is the meaning of: "For the nations are frightened by them" — for they indeed have reason to fear, since their governance is through nature. For they do not merit to the aspect of complete Providence in its fullness — since their filth has not ceased: the filth of the snake. And they listen to conjurers and sorcerers, and they have no emunah in God. And because of this they do not merit to the aspect of the Land of Israel — the aspect of Providence — the aspect of the renewal of the world. For it is impossible to merit to this except through holy emunah. And therefore — since they do not merit to the aspect of Providence — it turns out that they are governed by nature. And therefore they have reason to fear the signs of the heavens. And this very fact — that they consult the signs of the heavens and have no holy emunah, as above — is itself the very reason they are governed by nature and have reason to fear. For one thing is dependent on the other (ha bihu talya), as above. And this is what is written alongside the prohibition against consulting sorcerers and conjurers: "You shall be wholehearted (tamim) with the Lord your God (im Hashem Elokecha)" — specifically "with the Lord your God." "Hashem Elokim" — this is the aspect of the complete Name (shaym malay) — the aspect of the World to Come — when it will be: "Hashem is One and His Name is One" — the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" — the aspect of entirely good (kulo tov). As our Sages of blessed memory expounded, and as is cited in the words of Rabbaynu, of blessed memory, in many places — for then nature will be nullified and everything will be governed through His Providence alone. And His Providence, blessed be He, is entirely good, entirely chesed — the aspect of "olam chesed yibaneh" (the world will be built through chesed). For nature is the concealment (hastarah) of His Providence, blessed be He — the aspect of din (strict judgment) — the aspect of "Elokim" whose gematria equals "ha-teva" (nature), as is known. For in truth, even nature is governed through His Providence, blessed be He — only that the Providence is hidden and concealed — in the aspect of concealment, in the aspect of din. And when the Providence is revealed — then it is entirely good, entirely chesed. Which is the aspect of the renewal of the world (chidush ha-olam) — the aspect of "olam chesed yibaneh" — for then everything will be governed through Providence alone, as above. And then it will be revealed that it is all one — for even nature is Providence — for "Hashem is One and His Name is One" — the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim." "Hashem" — this is the aspect of Providence, the aspect of chesed. "Elokim" — this is the aspect of din, the aspect of nature, as above. And in the future it will be revealed that "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" — for it is all good, all one — for even nature will be encompassed within Providence — for it is all one, as above. And we — the holy people — are commanded even now to cleave our thought to the World to Come (le'adabka machashvasa b'alma d'asay) and to draw down the aspect of the World to Come — the aspect of Providence — even into this world. For this is the essential purpose of our service: that this world should be encompassed in the aspect of the World to Come — that it should be all one. And therefore we are commanded not to consult the signs of the heavens, and not to engage with diviners and conjurers — only to believe in God. So that through this we merit to the aspect of Providence, the aspect of the World to Come. And this is the meaning of: "You shall be wholehearted (tamim) with the Lord your God (im Hashem Elokecha)" — written after the prohibitions "there shall not be found among you a diviner (me'onayn), an omen-taker (menachaysh)" and so on — specifically "with the Lord your God" — the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" — the aspect of the World to Come — for we are commanded to cleave ourselves to the aspect of the World to Come — the aspect of Providence — the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" — the aspect of entirely good — the aspect of the nullification of nature. For nature — which is the aspect of "Elokim" — is encompassed within the aspect of "Hashem," the aspect of Providence — for it is all one, all good, as above. And this is the aspect of "tamim" (wholehearted/complete) — for this is the essential wholesomeness (t'mimut) and completeness (shlaymut) that has no deficiency at all. For all the deficiencies and all the judgments (dinim) are in the aspect of nature — which draws its sustenance from the aspect of din, from the aspect of "Elokim." But in the aspect of Providence — the aspect of the World to Come — there is no deficiency and no judgment at all — for it is all good, as above. And this is why the Land of Israel is mentioned in connection with this prohibition — and why the conquest of the Land of Israel (k'vishyas Eretz Yisroel) is made dependent upon this commandment. As it is written: "For the nations that you are dispossessing listen to conjurers and to diviners — but as for you, not so" and so on (Devarim 18:14). For in truth the essential conquest of the Land of Israel comes through our separation from this prohibition. For through distancing ourselves from this filth of diviners and conjurers — and only believing in God — through this we merit to the aspect of the renewal of the world, which is the aspect of the Land of Israel. For the essential aspect of the Land of Israel comes through "the power of His deeds" — through believing that the Blessed Lord created everything by His will and so on. And this is what is written: "For because of these abominations (toayvos) the Lord your God is driving them out before you" (Devarim 18:12). For through consulting these abominations and having no emunah — through this they are expelled from the Land of Israel. For it is impossible to merit to the Land of Israel except through emunah, as above. And this is why "a prophet I will raise up for you (navi akim l'cha)" (Devarim 18:15) is juxtaposed to this prohibition. For all of this depends on the true prophet — for through prophecy (nevuah) one merits to holy emunah and to separating from the filth of the snake — which is the aspect of diviners and conjurers, as above. It therefore turns out that the essential prohibition of diviners and conjurers and the like is in order to separate from the filth of the snake, and to draw upon ourselves His Providence, blessed be He — in the aspect of the World to Come — through holy emunah, as above. And according to this there is something to say in justification of a widespread custom cited in the Shulchan Arukh: that people have a practice not to begin undertakings on Monday and Wednesday. And at first glance this resembles divination (me'onayn), heaven forfend. Yet one can explain and justify the custom — for on the contrary, through this we are showing that we do not want our conduct to be according to nature, heaven forfend — only according to His Providence, blessed be He, alone. For on the second day (Monday) there was "division" (havdalah) — and havdalah is the aspect of this world — in which is the secret of the separation between good and evil and so on. But in the future there will be no aspect of havdalah at all — for then it will be entirely good and there will be no evil whatsoever. And therefore we do not begin on Monday — to show that we do not conduct ourselves according to the conduct of this world — which is the aspect of the second day — the secret of havdalah, as above. And therefore it was not said "that it was good (ki tov)" regarding the second day, as above. And this is the aspect of not beginning on Wednesday — for on the fourth day it is written: "Let there be luminaries (yihi me'oros)" — spelled deficiently (chaser, without the vav) — for on that day occurred the complaint (kitreg) of the moon, and it was diminished (nitma'atah). And the diminishing of the moon is the aspect of the conduct of this world — the aspect of nature — the aspect of din — for Providence and chesed are hidden, as it were — and through this the aspect of the moon (l'vanah) is diminished and does not shine in fullness. But in the future — when nature will be nullified — and then nature will be encompassed within Providence, for it will be all one, all good — then it will be fulfilled: "And the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun — like the light of the seven days of Creation" (Yeshayahu 30:26). For the deficiency of the moon will be filled and there will be no diminishment in it at all — for then His Providence and His chesed, blessed be He, will be revealed, and it will be all one — the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim." And that is the aspect of: "the light of the moon like the light of the sun," as is known. And therefore we do not begin on Wednesday — for on it is the aspect of "me'oros" spelled deficiently — the aspect of the diminishing of the moon — which is the aspect of the conduct of this world, the aspect of the governance of nature, as above. For we wish that our conduct should not be according to nature — only according to Providence — which is the aspect of the World to Come — when the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun and so on, as above. All of this we wrote to justify the custom — but in truth it is better not to be particular about this at all, as the Ramban wrote — for it is not from the practice of the pious (mishnas chasidim). And therefore we count by the moon — for we are thereby drawing down into this world the aspect of the World to Come — the aspect of the fullness of the moon (milu'i ha-l'vanah) — the aspect of "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" — the aspect of "the light of the moon like the light of the sun." And therefore we make the essential reckoning from the moon — for this is the essential purpose of our service: to fill the deficiency of the moon (l'mallot p'gimat ha-l'vanah). And therefore we sanctify the new month (m'kadshin ha-chodesh) and make Rosh Chodesh. And the essential sanctification of the new month is to fill the deficiency of the moon, as is known — for we draw down holiness from the World to Come — when the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun — even into this world as well. And we sanctify the new month to fill its deficiency, as above. And therefore Rosh Chodesh is named with the name "renewal of the world (chidush ha-olam)" — for then its deficiency will be filled. And through the holiness of Rosh Chodesh we draw down this aspect even now. And therefore it is called Rosh Chodesh (the head of the month) — on account of the renewal of the world, as above. And therefore all the festivals (yamim tovim) are counted by the moon — for all the festivals are a remembrance of the Exodus from Egypt (Yetzi'as Mitzrayim), when He performed with us those awesome wonders: the overturning of nature (shinnuy ha-teva). It therefore turns out that on each and every festival His Providence is revealed, blessed be He — the nullification of nature — the aspect of the World to Come. And therefore they are counted by the moon — for the essential purpose of our counting by the moon is to show that we believe that its deficiency will be filled and that the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun. And through this very thing — that we count by the moon and sanctify it and make festivals through it — through this itself its deficiency is filled. For the festivals hint at the filling of its deficiency — for they are in the aspect of the World to Come — the aspect of the nullification of nature — which is the aspect of the fullness of the moon — the aspect of the light of the moon like the light of the sun, as above. And therefore the essential sanctification of the new month is the first commandment that Israel were commanded when they went out from Egypt — for then His Providence was revealed, blessed be He — for He overturned the celestial order (shidayd ha-ma'arachos) and performed great wonders with us. And then the aspect of the World to Come was revealed and drawn down into this world. Which is the aspect of the sanctification of the new month, as above. It therefore turns out that the sanctification of the new month is in the aspect of the World to Come — the aspect of Providence — the aspect of the Land of Israel. And this is what our Sages of blessed memory connected one to the other in the teaching of Rabbi Yitzchak: "It need not have begun the Torah except from 'This month shall be for you' — except because of 'the power of His deeds' and so on" — meaning the conquest of the Land of Israel and so on. For in truth everything is one — and the beginning that ought properly to have been from "this month" and so on, and the beginning of "In the beginning (bereishis)" and so on — it is all one. For "this month" — meaning the commandment of sanctifying the new month — is to draw down the aspect of Providence — the aspect of the renewal of the world — the aspect of the Land of Israel — into this world. And this is the same as the aspect of the beginning from "In the beginning" — "because of the power of His deeds" — in order to conquer the Land of Israel — which is the aspect of Providence, the aspect of the renewal of the world, as above. Blessed is the Lord forever, Amen and Amen. And this is the meaning of: "For there is no omen in Yaakov and no divination in Israel — at this time it is said to Yaakov and to Israel: what has God done (mah pa'al El)" (Bamidbar 23:23). For through their having no omen and no divination — only believing in God — through this they merit to the aspect of Providence, the aspect of the renewal of the world. Which is the aspect of: "at this time it will be said to Yaakov" and so on, as above. "There shall not be found among you one who passes his son or daughter through fire — a diviner of divinations (kosem k'samim), a conjurer (me'onayn), an omen-taker (menachaysh) and a sorcerer (m'kashayf) — or one who consults a spirit of the dead (ov) or a ghost (yid'oni) or one who binds spells (chovayr chavayr) or one who inquires of the dead — and so on. You shall be wholehearted with the Lord your God — for these nations that you are dispossessing listen to conjurers and to diviners, but as for you — not so" and so on (Devarim 18:10–14). According to the discourse that begins "Rabbi Yonasan mishtayi" in Likutay Tinyana, §18 — see the entire discourse there well. And what emerges from there for our subject is this: It is impossible to be a leader (manhig) of Israel except when one has complete emunah such that there is no completeness beyond it — for even if one believes in a single thing from the ways of the Emorites (darkay ha-Emori, superstitious folk customs) — such as "a deer crossed his path" — he cannot be a leader and so on. And this true leader — the true tzaddik (tzaddik ha-amiti) — merits to attain the ultimate purpose (tachlis) of all creation: which is the delight of the World to Come (sha'ashu'a olam ha-ba). And this ultimate purpose cannot be attained except through the tzaddikim. And each one according to his root in the soul of the tzaddik — so he merits to attain this final ultimate purpose: which is the delight of the World to Come — which is the purpose of all of creation — of all things in the world. For everything has a purpose, and this purpose itself has yet a higher purpose above it — for example: the purpose of building a house is so that the person should have a place to rest. And the purpose of the rest is so that one should be able through this strength to serve the Lord, blessed be He. And the purpose of the service and so on and so on — see all of this there well. And this is the aspect of the prohibition against divination (me'onayn), omen-taking (menachaysh) and sorcery (m'kashayf). For all diviners and omen-takers and so on — this comes from a deficiency in counsel (chisaron ha-eytza). For they do not know how to give counsel to their own souls — how to conduct themselves in a particular matter: whether to do it or not to do it. And therefore they divine and take omens — and wish to attain counsel through this. For they are entirely dependent on such things — for example: if a deer crossed their path, or if their bread fell from their mouth, they say that this is a bad sign for them and they no longer need to proceed with that business transaction — and the like. Or: "such-and-such a time is favorable to begin" and so on. But in truth they are great fools and simpletons — for it is impossible in any way whatsoever to receive complete counsel through this. For in truth the essential deficiency exists in this world — in the aspect of "after creation" (achar ha-briyah). For in the aspect of "before creation" (kodem ha-briyah) it is all one, all good — and there no counsel is at all relevant. For the essential need for counsel is in a place where there are two paths and one does not know which path to take and which mode of conduct to follow — and then one needs counsel as to how to act. But in the aspect of "all one, all good" counsel is not relevant at all. It therefore turns out that the essential necessity of counsel arises specifically in the aspect of "after creation." And therefore counsels (eytzos) are called "feet" (raglayim) — as it is written: "And all the people who are at your feet (b'raglecha)" (Devarim 33:3). And our Sages of blessed memory expounded: "those who walk after your counsel." For the essential counsels are in the aspect of "after creation" — which is the aspect of "feet" — the aspect of "and the earth is the footstool of My feet (hadom raglai)" (Yeshayahu 66:1). And this is the aspect of "the kidneys counsel (k'layos yo'atzos)" — for the two kidneys are in the aspect of the two thighs (shukin) — the aspect of Netzach-Hod — which are the aspect of counsels, as is known. And the essential deficiency in counsel comes from not knowing the ultimate purpose (tachlis) of each thing — for certainly if one knew the ultimate purpose of each thing there would be no room for doubt in any counsel at all. For example: a person is in doubt whether to engage in this trade or in a different trade. And his essential intention in the trade is only for its ultimate purpose: in order to earn money, so that he should have his livelihood. It therefore turns out that the essential reason he is in doubt and needs counsel is because he does not know through which trade he will attain his intended ultimate purpose. For in the trade itself there is no room for doubt and division of counsel — for he does not need the trade itself at all. He does not need the wax and he does not need the tallow (la sheiva vela ha-chelev) — that is, he needs neither this commodity nor that commodity. Rather, all his doubts and all his divisions of counsel concern only how to earn money — which is for him the ultimate purpose. And because of this the world is always in doubt about counsels and does not know how to give counsel to its own soul. But one who looks toward the ultimate final purpose of each thing — to attain the ultimate final purpose alone — he certainly merits to complete counsel, and also does not need so very much counsel at all. For the ultimate final purpose is all one, all good — and there it is not at all relevant to be in doubt about any counsel whatsoever, as above. For in truth everything follows the intention (kavanah) — and the Merciful One desires the heart (rachamana liba ba'ay). As our Sages of blessed memory said: "Provided that one directs one's heart toward Heaven (u-vilvad she-y'chavayn libo la-shamayim)" (Brachos 17a). And therefore one who has regard for his own soul, and looks toward the ultimate final purpose, and in every matter in the world intends only so as to attain through it the ultimate final purpose — which is the aspect of the delight of the World to Come: to know and recognize Him, blessed be He — even though even in the service of the Blessed Lord there are many many paths before a person: by which path will he merit to serve Him, blessed be He, in fullness and in truth. And as King David, may peace be upon him, sought this many times — as it is written: "Guide me, O Lord, in Your way — let me walk in Your truth (hora'ni Hashem darkecha ahalaych b'amitecha)" (Tehillim 86:11). "Lead me in Your truth and teach me (hadricheni v'lamde'ni)" and so on. "In Your counsel guide me (b'atzascha tancheni)" and so on. "Guide me in Your path (hadricheni b'orchosecha)" and so on. And the like many times. Even so — if his essential intention is truly toward Heaven in every matter, in order to attain through it the true ultimate final purpose — then in whatever he does and in whichever path he conducts himself, he will certainly merit to the ultimate purpose. Provided that he does not depart from the words of the Torah. And this is the aspect of "In all your ways know Him (b'chol d'rachecha da'ayhu)" (Mishlai 3:6) — that is, to have intention in all one's ways for the sake of the Blessed Lord — which is the ultimate final purpose. "And He will direct your paths (v'hu y'yashser orchosecha)" — for then the Blessed Lord will certainly lead him on the straight path and will bestow correct counsels as to how to conduct oneself on the straight way. For in truth it is impossible to attain any counsel except from the aspect of the ultimate final purpose — which is the attainment of the Blessed Lord. For He, blessed be He — as it were (kivyochol) — is the source and root of all counsels in the world — for there there is one counsel, in the aspect of all-one and so on. And all true and correct counsels are drawn from there. And one who wishes to receive complete counsel — it is impossible for him to receive any counsel at all except when he links "after creation" to "before creation" — that is, when he connects every matter to the Blessed Lord and has intention in all the things he does for the sake of the ultimate final purpose — for the sake of the Blessed Lord — and all his deeds will be for the sake of Heaven. Then he will certainly merit to complete counsel — that is, to receive correct counsels from the aspect of "before creation" — from the aspect of the ultimate final purpose — and he will draw from there correct counsel for this world as well. For this world is the aspect of "after creation" — where the essential doubt of all counsels lies, as above. And he merits to link it to "before creation" — the aspect of the World to Come — to the aspect of the ultimate purpose — where there is complete counsel, one counsel, in the aspect of all one, as above. Which is the source of all counsels, as above. It therefore turns out that the essential counsels needed specifically in this world, as above, are impossible to receive except when one links this world to the World to Come — that is, to the ultimate purpose, as above. But one who does not connect and link this world to the World to Come — and does not heed the ultimate final purpose — and does not intend in all his ways to attain the ultimate final purpose — such a one does not merit to complete counsel. For when one separates this world from the ultimate purpose — then one's counsels are always divided into two, and one cannot give oneself any counsel at all. For this world is the world of separation (olam ha-payrud) — and there is no complete counsel there, as above. And in truth, certainly such a one has no counsel at all — and it is impossible in any way that he should have complete and good counsel — since he does not intend his actions for the sake of Heaven, for the sake of the ultimate final purpose. This is in the aspect of: "There is no counsel and no wisdom and no understanding before the Lord (laygev Hashem)" (Mishlai 21:30). For whatever path he takes — woe to him and woe to his soul. For example: when a person is in doubt whether to engage in this trade or that trade — for he does not know through which trade he will earn — if he has no heavenly intention, then in whatever manner he proceeds it is bad for him. For even if he earns — what will be his end and his ultimate purpose from the money? All his days will be anger and pain, and great worry will multiply, and naked he will return to his eternal home and will take nothing with him from all his toil. "As he came, so shall he go (kol asher ba kein yayleich)" (Koheles 5:15) — and what profit is it to him that he toiled for the wind? For neither silver nor gold nor precious stones nor pearls accompany a person — only Torah and good deeds alone. It therefore turns out that one who does not intend his actions for the sake of the ultimate purpose — then all paths are equally available before him — as our Sages said: "Both the one who does much and the one who does little — provided that one directs one's heart toward Heaven (u-vilvad she-y'chavayn libo la-shamayim)" (Brachos 17a). And the like. And also — he merits to complete counsel that flows to him from the source of counsels — from "before creation" — from the aspect of the ultimate purpose — which is the root of all counsels. For the essential counsel is for the sake of the ultimate purpose — and therefore the ultimate final purpose is the source and root of all true counsels. And this is the aspect of the 613 counsels of the Torah (tarya"g atin d'orayta) — for Moshe Rabbaynu, by cleaving to the Blessed Lord until he merited to attain the ultimate final purpose — through this he merited to receive from the Blessed Lord the entire Torah in its totality — which is the 613 holy counsels of the Torah. For he merited to receive all the holy counsels through which alone one can attain the true ultimate purpose — which is the ultimate final purpose: the delight of the World to Come. But regarding the nations of the world — who did not merit to receive the Torah — it is said of them: "Take counsel and it will be confounded (utzu eytza v'sufar)" (Yeshayahu 8:10). "The Lord has frustrated the counsel of the nations (Hashem hayfer atzas goyim)" (Tehillim 33:10). For they have no counsel at all — since they are bound to this world and do not intend their actions for the sake of the ultimate purpose. And because of this they are bound to these follies — and they are diviners and omen-takers and sorcerers — and they hang their counsels upon these follies. For they wish to receive counsels from the affairs of this world, from physical (gashmiyus) things. For they are bound to this world and are not connected to the ultimate purpose — and therefore they wish to receive counsels from this world alone, from physical things — until they have fallen into these errors and follies. Such as "a deer crossed his path," "his bread fell from his mouth" and so on, or "such-and-such a time is favorable to begin." For they attach everything to place and time — to physical things — because they are bound to the desires of this world and have severed "after creation" from "before creation." And therefore they wish to receive counsels from this world alone, as above. And the Torah separated us from this — for this is the essential filth of the snake (zuhamat ha-nachash) that incited the human being to eat from the Tree of Knowledge: "for the tree is good for eating and desirable to contemplate (ne'chmad l'haskil)" (Berayshis 3:6) — and it incited them and said to them: "From that very tree did He eat and create the world." For they overturned the bowl on its face — for in truth we need to link "after creation" to "before creation." And this essential task is accomplished through emunah — which is the foundation of the entire Torah. For through believing that the Blessed Lord created everything — through this the entire creation is linked to "before creation" — that is, to the Blessed Lord. But they overturned everything in their error — through the counsel of the snake — and attached everything to physicality — saying: "From that tree He ate and created" and so on. And this is the aspect of the diviner and omen-taker and so on — who wishes to receive counsels from the physicality of this world. But in truth it is the very opposite — for in the physicality of this world there is no counsel whatsoever. And the essential counsel is impossible to receive except from the ultimate purpose — from the aspect of "before creation" — from the Blessed Lord. And one needs to link "after creation" to "before creation," as above. And this is how the verse concludes: "You shall be wholehearted (tamim) with the Lord your God (im Hashem Elokecha)." For when one is not linked — "after creation" to "before creation" — then there is no completeness or wholeheartedness (shlaymut u-t'mimut) in him at all. For there is no completeness except in the Blessed Lord — and without Him, blessed be He, everything is deficient. But when one links everything to the Blessed Lord — then one is wholehearted (tamim) with God. For through linking everything to the Blessed Lord one becomes wholehearted and complete. And this is: "You shall be wholehearted with the Lord your God" — that you should see to be wholehearted and complete with God — that is, that you connect yourself and all of creation to the Blessed Lord. Which is the essential completeness and wholeheartedness. And then specifically — you can receive complete counsels — for the essential counsels are drawn from there, from "before creation" — and it is impossible to receive any counsel whatsoever except when one links everything to the Blessed Lord. Which is the essential completeness of all of creation. And this is: "You shall be wholehearted with the Lord your God." And therefore it is impossible to receive correct counsels except through the true tzaddikim of the generation — for ordinary people are far from the ultimate purpose, and therefore they are far from counsels. But the tzaddikim attain the light of the ultimate purpose — and therefore they are able to give complete counsels to each and every person — through the attainment of the ultimate purpose that they attain, from which all counsels come, as above. And this is what is said regarding the leader: "The people who are at your feet (b'raglecha) — who walk after your counsel" (Devarim 33:3, as expounded by our Sages). But it is impossible for a leader to exist who can give counsel — which is the essential leadership, as above — except when this leader has complete emunah such that there is no completeness beyond it: that he does not believe in any matter whatsoever from the ways of the Emorites (darkay ha-Emori, folk superstitions). For certainly when one believes, heaven forfend, in any matter from the ways of the Emorites — he himself has no complete counsel, as above — and how can he lead the world? And this is what Rabbaynu, of blessed memory, wrote there in the discourse cited above: that the leader must not err in any matter from the ways of the Emorites — for then certainly he cannot be a leader — that is, to lead in the straight path, to give correct counsels. For he himself is far from complete counsel — since he believes in the ways of the Emorites — which are the very opposite of complete counsels, as above. For it is impossible to receive any complete counsel except from "before creation" — from the aspect of the true ultimate purpose — which is the attainment of the Blessed Lord — which is the source and root of all complete counsels, as above.