גילוח ג

And Elkanah, who was very careful to fulfill the commandment of the pilgrimage festival in its proper form, as mentioned, and who would rebuke the children of Israel as mentioned — therefore he merited to beget a son who began to elevate Malchus. For Shmuel began to elevate Malchus — for he merited to anoint the first kings of Israel: Shaul and David. And therefore the essential [existence of] the kingdom of Shaul was dependent on wiping out Amalek — for Shaul the king, who was the first king of Israel and from whom began the ascent of Malchus to holiness, was therefore compelled to wipe out the memory of Amalek, who comprises the Four Kingdoms, as mentioned.

And this is the aspect of the great eminence of going to the true tzaddikim for the sake of Heaven — not for the sake of honor and provocation and strife, God forbid — for the going is with the feet. And the essential completion of the tikun is through the feet, for the essential tikun of all things depends upon this physical world of action (olam ha-asiyah). For man, who possesses free choice, was created in this very physical world — specifically in order to bind himself to the Blessed Lord from within the very materiality of this world. And through this he elevates this world together with all the worlds that depend upon it, higher and higher, until all is included in the aspect of before-creation, as above. And this world in its totality is called the aspect of "feet," as it is said: "and the earth is the footstool of My feet" (Yeshaya 66:1). And therein lies the essential emunah, which is called "feet," as is explained elsewhere — for one must believe that the Blessed Lord, in the very wondrous exaltedness of His sublimity beyond all fathoming, nevertheless watches and gazes with specific supervision upon this very physical world, to the very utmost of the lowest of levels, as it is said: "Nothing is hidden from You" (Rosh Hashana liturgy), and as it is said: "He who is enthroned on high, who stoops down to look upon heaven and earth" (Tehillim 113:5–6). And through the emunah in the supervision, one is included — after-creation — within before-creation, which is the essential tikun, as above.

And because he was not careful in this and left Agag king of Amalek alive, therefore his kingdom was cut off. For the essential sustaining of Malchus depends on wiping out Amalek, as mentioned. And this is what Shmuel said: "Osi shalach Hashem limashchacha l'melech al Yisrael v'atah lech v'hikisa es Amalek" etc. ("Hashem sent me to anoint you as king over Israel — now go and smite Amalek"). For one depends on the other — since you have been anointed as king over Israel, you must wipe out the memory of Amalek, as mentioned.

And therefore Shaul was commanded at the beginning of his reign: "shivas yamim tochal ad bo'i eilecha" ("you shall wait seven days until I come to you"). For because he was the first king, and at that time was the beginning of the ascent of Malchus, therefore he needed to wait seven days — in the aspect of the seven clean days, as mentioned. And because he was not careful in this, therefore from then on his kingdom began to be cut off.

And this is what the Sages of blessed memory specified and said: that his kingdom was cut off because he transgressed the words of a prophet — specifically "the words of a prophet". For a king must especially fulfill the words of a prophet, as the Sages of blessed memory said in the passage on the king (Parashas HaMelech) — that he must not transgress even the commandment of the prophet. For the essential sustaining of Malchus depends on the prophets, who are the aspect of feet — and from there is the building of Malchus, as mentioned.

And therefore praiseworthy are the feet that walk for the sake of a commandment — all the more so when one travels and goes to the true tzaddikim and those who cleave to them. For the true tzaddik has already merited, through the truth of his service, to have everything included in before-creation — for he has already reached the pure marble stones mentioned above. And whoever merits to travel and go to him — and the going is with the feet — through this he elevates the aspect of "feet," which is the aspect of this world of action, the aspect of "and the earth is the footstool of My feet," elevating everything to the Blessed Lord and including after-creation within before-creation. For this is the essential tikun of all things, as above. And therefore the essential thing is to travel and go for Rosh Hashana — for then on Rosh Hashana one must engage in this more than ever, on account of its being the day the world was created. And therefore it is the first day of repentance, to rectify all blemishes through this, as above. And therefore the practice was in all generations to go to one's rav — for there is an additional excellence when one goes to him, for through the going itself one rectifies greatly, as above.

And this is the aspect of: "I rejoiced when they said to me: let us go to the house of the Lord — our feet were standing within your gates, O Yerushalayim" (Tehillim 122:1–2). And this is the aspect of the eminence of those who went up on the pilgrimage festival (ha-olim la-regel), concerning whom it is said: "How beautiful are your feet in sandals" (Shir HaShirim 7:2) — for Yerushalayim is where the Beis HaMikdash stands, where the Even Shesiyah is — the foundation stone from which the world was founded — and through there this world is restored and included in its root, in the aspect of before-creation. And the essential tikun is through the tzaddik who is the yesod of the world, in the aspect of the Even Shesiyah, in the aspect of "for the pillars of the earth belong to the Lord and He has set the world upon them" (Shmuel I 2:8). And as is explained elsewhere.

And therefore a bride must count seven clean days — even if she has not seen [blood]. For because this is the beginning of her ascent — for before she marries she is not complete, and then they draw sustenance from her, as brought in the discourse "Gezalah" (Siman 69) on the topic of a consecrated woman (kedashah), see there. And therefore before the wedding, when her rectification and ascent begins, she must count seven clean days — like the menstruant woman, as mentioned.

And this is the aspect of "Yerushalayim the built-up, like a city that is joined together" (Tehillim 122:3) — which is the Yerushalayim on high and so on, as our Sages of blessed memory said — that is, the aspect of the inclusion of the lower within the upper, of Yerushalayim below within Yerushalayim on high, through which one is included in before-creation. For this is the essential tikun, as above. And this is: "Pray for the peace of Yerushalayim... may there be peace within your walls... for the sake of my brethren and companions, I will speak peace within you" (Tehillim 122:6–8) — for the essential tikun is through peace and unity and the nullification of all opposition to the truth, which is the essential evil and impurity drawn from falsehood — which draws its sustenance from the multiplicity when one does not nullify its grip at its root, as above.

And therefore the serpent, who drew falsehood into the world and caused all strife and separation, was cursed in its feet, as it is said: "upon your belly shall you go" (Bereshis 3:14) — for falsehood has no legs (Sheker ein lo raglayim) — as is cited in Tikunay Zohar (Tikun 22, p. 66), see there. And therefore the essential blemish of falsehood and those who carry tales and speak lashon hara is in the feet, for they are called "those who walk with slander" (holkhay rakhil), as it is said: "You shall not go as a slanderer (lo selekh rakhil) among your people" (Vayikra 19:16). And as Rashi explained there: in every instance we find slander expressed in the language of going, in the language of "regel" (foot/leg) — as in "he did not slander (lo ragal) with his tongue" — for the essential blemish of lashon hara and slander, which is drawn through falsehood from which comes all strife and separation, is in the aspect of "feet" — which separate the feet from the head, for they make a separation between this world (which is the aspect of feet) and the beginning-point of creation through which one is included in before-creation.

And then she receives the seven blessings (sheva brachos) and enters the bridal canopy (chuppah). For the seven blessings are the aspect of Chesed comprised of seven, as mentioned. And through them she is cut from them [the impure forces] and rises to the light of the Countenance — through the chuppah, which is the aspect of Binah, olam ha-ba. As the Sages said: "L'asid kol tzaddik nichveh mei-chupaso" etc. And as brought in our Rebbe's words (may his light shine) in the discourse "B'Ha'aloscha" (Siman 21), see there: that through the chuppah one receives the light of the Countenance during the seven days of the wedding feast, see there.

And this is what the Sages of blessed memory said: "kallah b'lo berakhah asurah k'niddah" ("a bride without blessing is forbidden like a menstruant") — as mentioned. For as long as she has not received the seven blessings, she has not been cut and separated from them, as mentioned. Therefore she is in the aspect of menstruant, as mentioned.

And therefore on Rosh Hashana, when one must be included within the Head — and for this reason it is called Rosh Hashana (the Head of the Year) — one must therefore come to the tzaddik who is the aspect of the Head, in the aspect of "the head of the household," in the aspect of "the true head of the children of Israel." And therefore one must travel and go to him specifically — for through this one rectifies and elevates the aspect of "feet" and subjugates and nullifies the aspect of "feet of the kelipah" — these being the carriers of tales and the speakers of lashon hara who multiply strife among Israel. For through coming to the tzaddik, one merits to truth, through which one draws down the supervision in completeness from head to end, even to the very end of this world of action which is the aspect of feet. Through this the end is included within the Head — the very end of the materiality of all the world, which is the aspect of feet, all is included within the Head, within the aspect of before-creation, and all is included within the One. And this is the essential tikun, as above.

For emes is the beginning, the middle, and the end — for the essential completeness of emes is when it is emes from its beginning to its end. For there are those who begin to speak some truth but in the end lead others astray through that very truth into a great falsehood — for it is precisely through the little truth with which they began that they have the power to mislead with their falsehood. For any falsehood that has no truth at its beginning cannot endure to the end, as our Sages of blessed memory said. Therefore the essential emes is when it is complete emes from beginning to end. And the essential thing is the end — for "better is the end of a matter than its beginning" (Koheles 7:8). And therefore now, at the end of days, falsehood grows stronger more than ever — as it is said: "And it cast emes to the ground" (Daniel 8:12). And as our Sages of blessed memory said, emes shall become flocks and flocks (Sotah 49b), as it is said: "and emes shall be absent" (Yeshaya 59:15). And so it is with every individual person: there are those who are upright men from their beginning, but afterward the adversary (ba'al davar) misleads them until he causes them to stumble through his falsehoods. And the essential means by which this occurs is through human beings — through liars and scoffers who call themselves by the name of chassidim. Concerning them it is said: "Let the lying lips be silenced — those that speak against the tzaddik arrogantly and with contempt" (Tehillim 31:19). And therefore our Sages of blessed memory said: do not trust in yourself until the day of your death (Avos 2:4) — for the essential emes is when it reaches the very end, which is the aspect of feet. And therefore the essential tikun of all the world — which is through Moshiach Tzidkeynu whom we await to come speedily in our days — is through the aspect of feet, as it is said: "And His feet shall stand on that day" (Zekharya 14:4), and as is stated (in the Zohar): "until the feet reach the feet" — as is cited extensively in the writings of the Arizal, of blessed memory. For the essential tikun is through the emes that will be revealed through Moshiach Tzidkeynu, in the aspect of "emes will sprout from the earth" (Tehillim 85:12). And the essential requirement is that the emes be complete from beginning to end — to believe in His supervision from the very highest level of all levels to the very lowest level of all levels. Through this all is included in the One, through which comes the essential tikun, as above.

And this is what the Sages specified as the measure of a ketam (stain) [for menstrual impurity]: a stain the size of thirty-six hairs — for Malchus is in the aspect of hairs, as is explained there. And the measure is three by three lentils, each [lentil] with four hairs — see the Shulchan Aruch. For Malchus comprises three by three — which are the nine sefiros — for it is the tenth and comprises them all. And it is the aspect of four (dalet), which comprises four worlds, as is explained there. And in each world it comprises the nine mentioned. Therefore they are thirty-six hairs — for "zeh l'umas zeh asah ha-Elokim" ("God made this corresponding to this") (Koheles 7:14), as is known.

And a standard woman's cycle (veset) is thirty days — each month. For she is in the aspect of the moon (levanah), which is the aspect of Malchus that wanes each month. And therefore it is forbidden to consecrate the new month before seven days have passed over it — in the aspect of the seven clean days mentioned. For the waning of the moon is the aspect of their dominion — for the essential power of the [impure forces] comes through the diminishment and blemish of the moon, as is known. And when it begins to wax — this is the aspect of its purification, as is brought: that it renews itself and purifies itself like a woman to her husband. Therefore one must wait seven [days] — in the aspect of seven clean days, as mentioned.

Niddah, Halacha 2

"V'hizartem es bnei Yisrael mi-tum'asam" etc. — from here [we learn] that one must separate close to the expected time of her cycle (veset). It is written: "v'el ishah b'nidas tum'asah lo sikrav" etc.

In the light of the Torah discourse "Amar Rabbi Akiva" cited above, there will now be explained a most wondrous Midrash — and this is its language (Midrash Rabbah, B'reishis, Chapter 8): Rabbi Simon said: when the Holy One, blessed be He, came to create the first man, the ministering angels formed themselves into factions and groups — some saying "let him not be created" and some saying "let him be created." This is what is written: "Lovingkindness (chessed) and truth (emes) met; righteousness (tzedek) and peace (shalom) kissed" (Tehillim 85:11). Chessed said: let him be created, for he performs acts of kindness. And emes said: let him not be created, for he is all falsehood. Tzedek said: let him be created, for he performs acts of righteousness. Shalom said: let him not be created, for he is all contention. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He took emes and cast it to the ground, as it is written: "And it cast emes to the ground" (Daniel 8:12). The ministering angels said before the Holy One, blessed be He: Master of the worlds, why do You dishonor Your seal (takhsis altikseya — the Matanos Kehunah explains this as "seal," for the seal of the Holy One, blessed be He, is emes)? Let emes rise from the earth! As it is written: "emes will sprout from the earth" (Tehillim 85:12). Until here is its language.

Based on the discourse "Rabbi Yochanan Mishta'i" (Siman 16): that it is impossible for a tzaddik to have his mind continuously wandering in the supernal wisdoms, etc. For sometimes the suspension of Torah is itself its fulfillment (betulah shel Torah zohu kiyumah), etc. And it is explained there that the essential reason the tzaddik must sometimes suspend his attachment [to Hashem] is on account of the "clouds that cover the eyes" (ananin d'mechasyin al einin) — which are Eisav and Yishmael — so that these clouds should not overpower his eyes and his wisdom be entirely nullified, God forbid. And then when he suspends his attachment, his eyes shine like the moon, etc. But through the two Mashiachs, who will spread their springs outward, and it will be transformed for all to a clear language — then it will be fulfilled: "v'hayah or ha-levanah k'or ha-chamah" ("and the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun"). And then he will not need to suspend his attachment, see all this there well.

For in truth it is certainly fitting to be attached to Hashem the Blessed without any interruption at all — for He is our life and the length of our days. But it is necessary to sometimes be suspended — and this is the essential sustaining of Da'as. For sometimes the suspension of Torah is itself its fulfillment, etc. For it is impossible to attach oneself and draw close to Hashem the Blessed in truth except through Emunah — which is the foundation of the entire Torah. As the Sages said (Makkos 24): "Chavakuk came and established them all on one principle: v'tzaddik be'emunaso yichyeh" ("the righteous shall live by his faith"). And as it is written (Tehillim 119): "kol mitzvosecha emunah" ("all Your commandments are faith").

And this is exceedingly puzzling: how can it be that the Blessed Lord would cast emes to the ground — which is the very essence of His seal — to the point that the ministering angels were compelled to ask: "Why do You dishonor Your takhsis?" And furthermore it is very difficult to understand how there could be a dispute between the attribute of emes and the Blessed Lord — for since it was the true will of the Blessed Lord to create man as we have seen from the outcome of the matter (for He did create him), how can it be that emes would bring accusations against this?!

And all the worlds — all the Emanated, Created, Formed, and Made — all stand only on Emunah, as it is written (Tehillim 33): "v'chol ma'aseihu be-emunah" ("and all His works are with faithfulness"). For when it arose in His will, blessed be He, to create the world, there was no place to create it — for everything was infinite (Ein Sof). And it was necessary, so to speak, to contract and vacate His divinity until the vacated void (chalal ha-panui) came to be, etc. And there He drew all the lights and all the midos until He created all the worlds there, etc. And at first the vessels could not bear the light due to the profusion of light — and because of this came the Breaking of the Vessels, from which comes the grip of the Kelippos and Sitra Achra. And in every generation we labor to clarify and rectify this, etc., as all this is explained in the Etz Chaim at its beginning.

And it is known that the beginning of the contraction (tzimtzum) is the aspect of Malchus. For even though Malchus is the last attribute, even so at the highest level, in the ultimate heights, the essential beginning is from the aspect of Malchus concealed in the Ein Sof — as is known to those who understand. From there is the beginning of the contraction for the sake of creation. For "sof ma'aseh b'machashavah techilah" ("the end of the deed is first in thought") — in the aspect of "Ani rishon v'Ani acharon" etc. ("I am first and I am last"). "Ani" is the aspect of Malchus, as is known. And as it is written there in that verse: "Ko amar Hashem Melech Yisrael v'go'alo Ani rishon v'Ani acharon" ("So says Hashem, King of Israel and his Redeemer: I am first and I am last"). That is: the aspect of Malchus, the aspect of "King of Israel" which is called Ani — it is at the beginning and the end, etc.

The general principle: the beginning of the contraction is the aspect of Malchus, and Malchus is the aspect of Emunah, as is known. That is: when Hashem the Blessed wished to create the world, He looked with His primordial wisdom and saw that it is impossible to attain Him, blessed be He, through any wisdom or any intellect or any understanding in the world. And therefore it is impossible for the worlds to be sustained through any attribute — for their essential sustaining is through knowing of Him, blessed be He, that He is great and the Master, the root and source of all worlds. This is the essential ultimate purpose of all the worlds, as is stated in the holy Zohar: "bigin d'yishtamoda'in lei" ("in order that they may know Him"). And in truth it is impossible to recognize Him or know of Him, blessed be He, through any attribute or any sefirah — except through Emunah, which is the aspect of Malchus, which is the beginning of the contraction. Through it is the essential revelation of all the midos and all the worlds.

But this is a great principle: the entire creation was "in order that they might know Him" — so that we might merit to know and recognize Him, blessed be He. And the essential purpose of creation is man — that is, the children of Israel, the righteous ones, who alone merit to truly recognize Him through having free choice and standing in trial and refinement in this physical world that is exceedingly distant from Him, blessed be He. For the Blessed Lord is utterly hidden and concealed in absolute hiddenness, for "no thought can grasp Him at all" — as Eliyahu stated and estimated in his mind that it is impossible for any angel or seraph or any created being whatsoever to attain the truth of His being — only the souls of Israel, through their descending into this physical world and having free choice and standing in the trial. And through this very thing they will be refined and purified until they merit to attain the perception of divinity in a way that no angel or seraph can merit. For this is the purpose and goal of Israel: that they merit to the attainment of divinity, to the point that the angels will receive from them and learn from them — as our Sages of blessed memory explained on the verse "At that time it will be said of Yaakov and of Israel: what has God wrought!" (Bamidbar 23:23) — the righteous are destined that their partition will be within that of the ministering angels, and so on. But that attainment which the righteous will then attain is something that no angel or seraph knows at present.

And therefore the angels brought accusations against the creation of man — for just as the angels cannot attain Him, blessed be He, likewise they cannot understand and attain the innermost reaches of His mind and wisdom, blessed be He. For He and His knowledge are one, as is known. And as the Psalmist declares: "How very deep are Your thoughts!" (Tehillim 92:6). And the angels are called by the name of chessed — after the attribute of chessed. And likewise some are called emes, for they are drawn from the attribute of emes — and so all of them. And because it is impossible to fathom the depths of the Blessed Lord's mind, there was a great dispute among the angels regarding the creation of man. And even the angels called emes — whose attribute is emes — brought accusations against his creation. For even though their attribute is emes and they desire only emes, even so they could not attain and comprehend the ultimate purpose of man — that he would be able to reach such an elevated level as to attain and recognize Him, blessed be He, more than all the angels. Therefore they brought accusations against his creation — rather, it was on account of the very greatness of their truthfulness that those angels specifically brought accusations against his creation. For in accordance with the power of their truthfulness, they could not bear that man should be created who is entirely full of falsehood, as stated in the Midrash cited above. For there are several aspects in the matter of emes — for emes is one, as above in the Torah discourse — but great toil is required to attain the emes in its truth to its ultimate end. For even in the wisdoms of this world it is difficult to attain the emes, as all the philosophers who investigate so deeply in all fields of wisdom have acknowledged — for they still do not know any field of wisdom in its true reality with certainty (apart from mathematics and geometry). How much more so in the wisdom of attaining His divinity, blessed be He — which it is impossible to attain through any wisdom or intellect at all, but only through the toil and service of the true tzaddikim who stand in trial and refinement against all the desires of this world. For only they merit to attain in truth the perception of divinity, until they merit to recognize Him in the time to come — to the point that all the angels will be compelled to receive from them, as above. And because it is difficult to attain the emes in its truth, through this strife increased — and the essential strife is through emes itself, for each person holds that he has the emes. For in the matter of emes and falsehood there are many distinctions: there is one who is a great liar and complete deceiver and knows his own falsehood, but misleads people and covers falsehood with emes — for even the complete liar must necessarily say some truth at the beginning, as our Sages of blessed memory said: any falsehood that has no truth at its beginning cannot endure to the end. But there is one who is not so great a liar, only that through his deeds not being pure as they should be, his mind slipped from error to error until the emes was reversed for him — until he calls evil good and good evil and believes that this is the truth. And in this matter there are many distinctions: there is one whose error is gross, and one who exerts himself a little can immediately see his error. And there is one whose error is subtler, so that greater exertion is required to see his error and to clarify the emes. And there is one whose error is subtler still, and so on. And the subtler the error, the greater the exertion required to clarify the true emes — to the point that there are those whose error is of the subtlest subtlety to an extreme degree, such that it is impossible to clarify their error except through enormous exertion with total self-sacrifice throughout all the days of one's life. And this is the service of the great holy tzaddikim — the choicest individuals of the generations — who toiled in tremendous labors and suffered bitterness beyond measure, and stood in trials without number, and gave their very souls for Israel throughout all the days of their lives, until through this very thing they merited to clarify the true emes in its truth — which no angel or seraph is capable of attaining. For the world was created only for the sake of those tzaddikim, as it is said: "For this is the entire man" (Koheles 12:13). But even the great tzaddikim — even those called emes — cannot attain the truth of the depth of His mind, blessed be He, as above. And even the great tzaddikim sometimes erred in some matter of law and conduct — as is discussed extensively in the words of our rebbe, of blessed memory. And certainly their intention was acceptable to Heaven in truth, but they themselves erred at times — particularly in the matter of strife, for a covenant has been made with the tongue for evil speech. To the point that King Sha'ul, who was a very great tzaddik, pure as a one-year-old without sin, erred through the abundance of lashon hara until he killed Nov the city of the kohanim and so on — and many similar cases. For in this world emes fell very greatly, to the point that even great tzaddikim and genuinely wise men find it difficult to stand upon the emes in its truth. For the essential aspect of free choice is in the matter of emes and falsehood — as is explained in the Torah discourse mentioned above: that falsehood is the evil and impurity, and the essential grip of falsehood comes from the distance from the One. For the moment creation emerged from potentiality into actuality and the aspect of two came into being, and so on, immediately the aspect of free choice came into being — which is the aspect of purity. For immediately an impression was formed from which impurity which is falsehood would descend, and so on — see there carefully in that Torah discourse. It follows that the essential grip of falsehood comes from the aspect of multiplicity, through the distancing from the One. And the further one distances from the One, and the greater the multiplicity that is drawn down, the more falsehood intensifies. As we find: the moment Chavah was created and there were two human beings in the world, they sinned greatly and ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and caused death to be decreed upon the generations. And as Rashi explained on the verse "God made man upright, but they sought many calculations" — the moment they became two, called "they," they sought many calculations and so on — see there. And likewise afterward when Kayin and Hevel were born and human beings began to multiply further, a quarrel arose between them until Kayin rose against Hevel and slew him. And likewise afterward all the deteriorations came about through the multiplicity increasing further — as is explicit in the verses, as it is said: "And it came to pass when men began to multiply upon the face of the earth... and the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great" (Bereshis 6:1, 5). For the greater the multiplicity that was drawn and the further people distanced from the One, the more falsehood — which is evil, which is impurity, through which come all the deteriorations and blemishes — took hold. For the essential intensification of falsehood is through multiplicity, as above. But in truth, the essential excellence of emes and its completeness lies specifically in clarifying and revealing the emes in its truth within the place of multiplicity. And the greater the multiplicity — where there is a greater grip of falsehood — when one merits to clarify and reveal emes there, this is the essential excellence and completeness of emes. And for this reason the entire creation took place from beginning to end — for everything was created for the sake of the tzaddik, whose entire excellence lies in the fact that he had free choice. And the essential free choice is in the matter of emes and falsehood, as above. And therefore the greater the multiplicity where the grip of falsehood is stronger, when one merits to reveal the emes, therein His Name, blessed be He, is further glorified and sanctified. And therefore one does not recite a matter of holiness with fewer than ten — and this is the aspect of "in the multitude of people is the king's glory" (Mishlai 14:28). And this is the aspect of what our master, teacher and rebbe, of blessed memory, said (in the Torah discourse "Yemay Chanukah," Likutay Tinyana §2): that this is exceedingly precious when the Simple Unity is revealed from within varied actions and so on. And therefore the very first commandment in the Torah is to engage in settling the world — that human beings should multiply, as it is said: "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth" (Bereshis 1:28). For it is specifically necessary that human beings multiply — for then free choice intensifies further, as above. And then specifically the tzaddikim merit to complete the intent of creation through standing in trial and refinement and clarifying the emes in its truth from within the multiplicity, where the grip of falsehood is strongest. For the greater the grip of falsehood, likewise the excellence and elevation of the emes grows greater for one who merits to aim the emes there — for it is for this that man came into the world and all the worlds were created. For everything was created for the sake of free choice — which is the choice between emes and falsehood. And the greater the opposition of falsehood and the more difficult it is to stand the trial and aim at emes, the greater the stature of one who merits to aim at the true emes, as above. And therefore in the time to come, when the righteous redeemer comes — whose essential coming is to reveal emes in the world, as it is said: "Send out Your light and Your truth" (Tehillim 43:3) — for then will be fulfilled "emes will sprout from the earth" — therefore his essential coming is specifically when Israel will have multiplied greatly. As it is said: "The smallest shall become a thousand and the youngest a mighty nation; I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time" (Yeshaya 60:22). And this is what is said: "And the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea which cannot be measured or counted, for its multitude; and it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said to them: you are not My people, it will be said to them: children of the living God" (Hoshea 2:1). That is, the verse announces that in the future, at the time when emes will be revealed in the world, specifically then Israel will multiply exceedingly — for this is the essential excellence of emes when it is revealed from within the multiplicity, as above. And this is "it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them: you are not My people" — that is, within the greatest multiplicity, where the grip of falsehood is strongest, as above — where it would be fitting to say to them "you are not My people" because of the great grip of falsehood there. But then, on the contrary, specifically there it will be said to them "children of the living God" — for on the contrary, this will be the very essence of their excellence: that they merited to the emes within such a great multiplicity. For this is the essential excellence of emes when it is clarified from within the greatest multiplicity — for everything was created for this, as above. And then specifically all will merit to know and recognize Him, blessed be He, in truth — as it is said: "for they will all know Me, from the smallest of them to the greatest" (Yirmiyahu 31:33). For the essential revelation of emes is to reveal the knowledge of His true being in the world — for He, blessed be He, is the very substance of emes, as it is said: "and the emes of the Lord endures forever" (Tehillim 117:2), and as it is written: "And the Lord God is emes" (Yirmiyahu 10:10). And every person, in proportion to his distance from emes, is likewise distant from the Blessed Lord. And conversely, the closer one is to emes, the closer one is to the Blessed Lord. But the truth of the emes is impossible to attain except through free choice in many and powerful trials — as we find with all the great tzaddikim, who merited to attain emes only through many trials. The first was Avraham Avinu, who had exceedingly powerful trials against the entire world which was filled with falsehood and claimed that truth was with them — to the point that they declared Avraham a heretic and a denier and cast him into the fiery furnace and pursued him greatly. And he stood through all the trials and through this revealed emes in the world, and made known that there is a true God who rules and governs and supervises and so on. And likewise all the tzaddikim who came after him. And the essential revelation of emes in its completeness will be through Moshiach Tzidkeynu, who will come at the end in the final days of these times — when the world has already multiplied greatly. And the essential multiplicity is in the minds — for there are many differences of mind, which is the essential multiplicity, the aspect of "greatly multiplied in minds." And Moshiach, through the power of his righteousness, will merit to attain the emes in its truth and to reveal emes in the world. And then there will be the complete redemption, and then the intent of creation will be fulfilled in the ultimate completeness. For this is the essential intent of creation: that creation emerge from potentiality into actuality — then the multiplicity began, from which the grip of falsehood is drawn — and the world should multiply, multiplicity upon multiplicity, greatly. So that through this falsehood should intensify further. And therefore in truth, whatever happened — all the destructions and deteriorations and so on — happened. Only the tzaddikim in each generation who merit to emes sustain the world in each and every generation, until at the end when the minds multiply exceedingly, for this is the essential multiplicity — and falsehood intensifies greatly — then specifically the righteous redeemer will merit to clarify the emes through the force of his toil. And then specifically His Name, blessed be He, will be glorified and sanctified through the revelation of emes in its truth from within the multiplicity specifically, as above. But this emes that will then be revealed — no angel or seraph is capable of attaining it. Only the genuinely true tzaddikim who stood in the trial until they merited to reveal emes from within the multiplicity — from within this physical world, where the multiplicity is at the utmost distance from the One — and when they reveal the emes here, they draw close to the Blessed Lord with the utmost closeness, for which everything was created, as above. And therefore even the angels called "emes" — whose attribute is emes — they too could not understand and attain the depths of the Blessed Lord's mind. Therefore they brought accusations against the creation of man, and the one called emes said: let him not be created. For even though his attribute is emes, even so he could not attain the depth of the Blessed Lord's mind — to attain the true emes which the tzaddikim will merit in the end through standing in the trial in the very world of falsehood (alma d'shikra). And therefore emes said: let him not be created — for emes saw that the moment man would be created, falsehood would intensify. And therefore emes could not bear that man be created, for emes cannot endure falsehood. But in truth even the angels called emes erred in this — for even though their intention was in truth, they could not stand upon the true emes. For the emes in its truth is impossible to attain except specifically in this world, through standing in the trial, as above. Therefore the Blessed Lord decreed to cast emes to the earth — for this itself is the tikun and clarification of emes: that through emes being cast down to the earth in the aspect of "and it cast emes to the ground," through this very thing emes will be clarified and refined through the true tzaddikim. And then specifically the clarified emes will be revealed — that they will merit to attain the knowledge of His true being, blessed be He — which in no way would have been possible to attain when emes was above in the supernal worlds where there is no falsehood at all. For even the attribute of emes itself cannot attain Him, blessed be He, except through emes descending into this world and being clarified through the tzaddikim, as above. And therefore the moment the ministering angels said: "Why do You dishonor Your takhsis? Let emes rise from the earth!" — the Holy One, blessed be He, agreed with them, as is understood from the Midrash cited above. For the intention of the Blessed Lord from the outset was also this: that emes should be cast to the earth — to the place that is very far from emes, for there is the multiplicity, far from the One in the extreme, where the grip of falsehood is very strong — and there specifically emes will be clarified through the tzaddikim. And through this emes will rise from the earth in the ultimate completeness, in the aspect of "emes will sprout from the earth" — where emes will grow and increase further. And then emes will be completed and all will attain the true emes, as is cited above. And this is the meaning of: "Behold, You desire emes in the hidden places (ba-tuchot), and in the concealed place You will make wisdom known to me" (Tehillim 51:8) — for regarding this matter that we have written concerning the Midrash cited above: whoever truly desires emes and wishes to be careful for his eternal purpose in truth and not to mislead himself — he can derive from this genuine counsel and immensely powerful encouragement beyond all limit and measure, in such a way that he will remain standing on his position, remaining steadfast at the point of emes rooted within him — and nothing in the world will be able to distract or confuse him or hold him back, through any impediment or incitement or rejection whatsoever. Even if he passes through whatever he passes through. Even if he knows within himself that his deeds are very much deteriorated and that he is as distant as he is distant from the Blessed Lord and His Torah. And in addition to this, they oppress and torment him with various oppressions and afflictions and rejections — to prevent him and distance him from the true point of emes, God forbid. And even so he will not listen to this at all, but will look each time at the point of emes and will say in his heart: even so — what is the true emes? And through this he will constantly strengthen himself and remain steadfast at the point of emes. And the essential thing is that emes should not prevent him from the true emes — for the essential distancing of each person from the very substance of the true emes is through emes itself. As one sees tangibly that all strife is through emes — for the opponents say that they have the emes. And so it is in every generation. And in particular in the generations that immediately preceded us — when the strife between the scholars (lomdim) and the chassidim was exceedingly powerful and cut to the very soul. And how many and how many souls were sunk through this. And how many separations were made between husband and wife through this. And how many were lost from both worlds through this — as is well known to those who are versed in the events that occurred in the generations that immediately preceded us, which our fathers and teachers told us. And the essential cause of all the strife was through emes itself — for now we know that the great scholars who disputed the great leaders of the chassidim were also, for the most part, genuinely great righteous men. And all their dispute with the great leaders of the chassidim — who were exceedingly holy and awesome tzaddikim — was only because of emes: for the great scholars said that emes was with them, and that the great leaders of the chassidim were far from emes because they transgressed the Torah of emes. As I myself heard in my own ears a great many of their arguments — particularly from the mouth of my father-in-law, the gaon and tzaddik, our rebbe Rav Dovid Tzvi, of blessed memory, who was a great tzaddik as is widely known, and who disputed greatly with the great leaders of the chassidim — and all of it was because of his emes. And likewise it is in every generation and generation. And all this descended from the accusation of the angels cited above, who brought accusations against the creation of man — from which is drawn the entire power of the evil inclination, whose essential power is through strife, which is drawn through the accusation of the angels enclothing itself in those who dispute and oppose. And the essential power of their accusation was drawn from the aspect cited above: that even the attribute of emes itself, when it descended among the angels, brought an accusation — emes itself brought accusations against the creation of man, as above. And from there descended all the accusations and conflicts in the world below — particularly among Torah scholars, whose essential strife is through emes, as above — that is, through the aspect cited above: that even emes itself cannot attain the true substance of His being, blessed be He. And just as it cannot attain His very being, so it cannot attain the depth of His mind — for He and His mind are one, and there is the essential true emes. But the moment emes descends from Him, blessed be He — the moment the attribute of emes had already descended from Him — immediately the depth of the truth of His holy mind became concealed. For the attainment of the depth of His mind in true emes is hidden and concealed from all created and emanated beings, and so on. It is impossible to fathom the depths of His mind, blessed be He — and not any angel or seraph, and so on — except the souls of the genuinely great tzaddikim who are very elevated in stature, who merit through their deeds and service to the attainment of His mind, blessed be He, in truth. And this will be the essential reward for them as is known. And the essential excellence of the tzaddikim comes from the fact that they had free choice. And the essential free choice comes only from the fact that the moment emes descended from Him, blessed be He, it immediately became impossible to attain the depth of His mind, blessed be He — to the point that emes itself brought accusations against the creation of man and said that he should not be created. Even though we now know that the true mind of the Blessed Lord was that man should be created — as we see that the Blessed Lord did create man — and if so the difficulty with the Midrash cited above is all the stronger. For the essential point of the case is refuted, it would seem: how can it be said that the attribute of emes brought accusations and said that man should not be created — how can this attribute be called emes when it did not hit upon the true mind of the Blessed Lord? For do we not see with our own eyes that He created man — contrary to the opinion of the attribute of emes? And if so, why is it called emes? But certainly the attribute of emes that brought accusations against the creation of man — its argument was truthful and all its words were in emes. For it said that man should not be created since he is entirely falsehood — and this is indeed the truth as we see with our own eyes. But even so, emes itself erred — for it could not fathom the depths of the Blessed Lord's mind. And likewise it could not fathom the depths of the minds of the great tzaddikim, who would attain the true emes specifically through there being a grip for falsehood — because it is impossible to attain the depth of the true mind of the Blessed Lord, to the point that even the angels whose attribute is emes cannot attain His mind and end up bringing accusations — saying the contrary of His mind, blessed be He. And this in itself is the very power and wondrous greatness of the stature of the holy tzaddikim — for through all this free choice was drawn down. And they with the force of their strength broke through the free choice and stood in the trial and chose the good, and through enormous toil in this very physical earth, specifically they merited to clarify the true emes in this very world — for it is impossible to stand upon the true emes except specifically in this physical world when one stands in the trial as is proper. And this is something that only the choicest individuals of the generations merit — may their merit protect us. But the angels, even those called "emes," cannot attain the truth of the depth of His mind, blessed be He, as above. And from there descended the great strife in every generation — disputing the great holy tzaddikim mentioned above, who are the aspect of the point of emes. For even though the other Torah scholars and tzaddikim are also truly righteous men, they have not yet passed through all seven kinds of water (alluded to in the tale of the water-carrier, in the stories of our rebbe, of blessed memory) and have not been tested and refined as is proper. Therefore, even though their intention is emes, the accusation of the angels enclothes itself in them specifically — until emes itself misleads them to bring accusations and to dispute the great holy exalted tzaddikim mentioned above. And because the accusation descended into this world which is very coarse and full of husks and falsehood, therefore here in this world when they err through emes that is not yet clarified as above, they can cause very great damage, God forbid — to the point of permitting murder and actual bloodshed, God forbid. As we see from the abundant destruction that strife has caused in the days of Dovid and Sha'ul — and particularly in the days of the Second Temple which was destroyed through causeless hatred, as our Sages of blessed memory said. And see in the Midrash on the verse (Tehillim 5:7): "You destroy those who speak falsehood" — "this one permitted sexual immorality and bloodshed" and so on. And all of it through emes, as above. For there are two kinds of emes: there is the emes in its truth — who attains and knows the matter as it truly is. And there is another emes — whose intention is genuinely in emes, but who errs himself. And in this matter there are very many distinctions: there is one whose error is large, and one who exerts himself a little can immediately recognize his error. And there is one whose error is subtler, so that greater exertion is needed to recognize his error and clarify the emes. And there is one whose error is subtler still, and so on. And the subtler the error, the greater the exertion needed to clarify the true emes — to the point that there are those whose error is of the subtlest subtlety to an extreme degree, such that it is impossible to clarify the error except through enormous exertion with true self-sacrifice throughout all the days of one's life. And this is the service of the great holy tzaddikim — the choicest individuals of the generations — who toiled in enormous labors and suffered bitterness beyond measure, and stood in trials without number, and gave their souls for Israel throughout all the days of their lives, until through this very thing they merited to clarify the true emes in its truth — which no angel or seraph is capable of attaining. For the world was created only for those tzaddikim, as it is said: "For this is the entire man" (Koheles 12:13). And for this the Blessed Lord cast emes to the earth — for the Blessed Lord knew that the intention of the attribute of emes which brings accusations against the creation of man, even though it is contrary to His holy mind, blessed be He, even so all its intention is in truth. For the moment the attribute of emes descended from Him, blessed be He, it could no longer attain the truth of the depth of His mind, blessed be He. And therefore it erred through emes specifically and said that man should not be created — for certainly the plain emes at first glance requires that man, who is all falsehood, not be created. But in the true emes — "very deep are His thoughts, blessed be He" — to the point that even the attribute of emes cannot attain this, as above, except the great tzaddikim of this very world through their free choice, as above. And therefore He cast emes to the earth — for this itself is the tikun of the second kind of emes mentioned above, who desires emes but cannot stand upon emes. His entire tikun is specifically in this world through the great tzaddikim who stand in many and powerful trials — for only they merit to the point of the true emes. And through them "emes will sprout from the earth" — through which all the worlds will be rectified, as is cited above. And therefore in this world the essential completeness of emes is emunah (faith). For the essential emes is to know that it is impossible to attain the very substance of emes — for the very substance of emes is the Blessed Lord alone, as it is said: "and the emes of the Lord endures forever." And this is impossible to attain. Rather the essential emes is to know that it is impossible to attain the very substance of emes — in the aspect of "the ultimate knowledge is that we cannot know" (Rambam). And therefore the essential completeness of emes is emunah — in the aspect of: "when tzedek combines with emes it becomes emunah" (Tikun 21 of Tikunay Zohar). And this is the entire service of man in this world: to come to this — to merit to emes and emunah in completeness, in true emes. But it is impossible to come to this except through the great tzaddikim mentioned above, who merited to this through much toil, as above. And whoever truly desires emes and does not allow himself to be misled will be able to understand from afar where the true emes lies — provided he is not so foolish as to become haughty in his mind and say that he can understand the emes immediately and stand at once upon the depths of their mind. For even the true mind of the great tzaddikim is impossible to attain, as is known — for they are included in Him, blessed be He, and their thoughts too are very deep. Only through emes can one merit to come to emunah — for through emes, if one wishes to look upon the true emes, one will understand that it is proper to believe in them. And then one will merit to emes and emunah, which is the entire completeness of man. And this itself is the aspect of the casting of emes to the earth — for eretz (earth) is the aspect of emunah, in the aspect of "dwell in the land and tend emunah" (Tehillim 37:3) — as is cited in the works of our master, teacher and rebbe, of blessed memory, many times. And for this very reason emunah is called eretz — because the essential emunah is in this very physical earth which is at the utmost distance from the attainment of the true mind of the Blessed Lord. But specifically in this eretz the tzaddikim attain the true emes through strengthening themselves in emunah, as above. Therefore He cast emes to the earth — which is the aspect of emunah — so that through this emes will be clarified through emunah, through the great tzaddikim. And as is written regarding the verse "and his hands were emunah" (Shemos 17:12): that through emunah one comes to true attainment of the da'as — each one according to his level, and so on — see there. For emes and emunah are in the aspect of man and woman, as is known — regarding which it is said: "It is not good for man to be alone" (Bereshis 2:18). For man — who is the da'as, who is the emes (for emes and da'as are the same aspect, since the essential da'as is to attain and know the truth of the matter as it truly is, as is known) — it is not good for him to be alone, for it is impossible to attain the very substance of emes, as above. Therefore "I will make him a helper corresponding to him (ezer ke-negdo)" — which is the aspect of the woman, the fear of God (yiras Hashem), which is the aspect of emunah — which is a helper corresponding to emes. For the essential completeness of emes is through emunah, as above. And through both of them together comes the essential birth — which is the birth of da'as. For all births come through da'as, as is known. For through the union of emes and emunah in the proper completeness, all the true attainments and knowledges are born — which is the attainment of our holy Torah, whose foundation is emes and emunah, as it is written: "and Your Torah is emes" (Tehillim 119:142), and as it is written: "all Your commandments are emunah" (Tehillim 119:86). And this is "a helper corresponding to him (ezer ke-negdo)" — for specifically because there is opposition in the aspect of "neged" (against/corresponding to) among human beings, as is explained at the end of the Torah discourse mentioned above (in the very language of our master, teacher and rebbe, of blessed memory — see there) — through this very opposition emunah becomes a helper to emes. For the opposition is drawn from the fact that it is impossible to attain the very substance of emes, as above. Therefore the essential help and tikun of emes is emunah, as above. And for this very reason He cast emes to the earth — so that through this emes will sprout from the earth. "From the earth" specifically, as above. And this is the teaching: if one merits — ezer (helper); if one does not merit — ke-negdo (against him). And this itself is the aspect of the casting of emes to the earth — which operates in these two aspects. For this is the aspect of free choice — through which comes the essential tikun and clarification of emes. For the Blessed Lord saw that emes, which had been emanated from Him, also found it impossible to attain the truth of His mind, as above. Therefore He cast it to the earth — for the Blessed Lord does not desire that kind of emes, and therefore He distanced it from before Him. But this itself is its tikun — through the great tzaddikim of this very earth, who hold fast to emes and toil in enormous toil until they merit to understand that it is impossible to attain the very substance of emes — only to strengthen themselves in complete emunah through emes, and to go from level to level (and see more of this elsewhere and in Likutay Etzos a little of this) — until they specifically merit to clarify and elevate emes from the earth in the aspect of "emes will sprout from the earth" — "will sprout" specifically. Like one who plants a seed and it decays and from it there grows a great tree — and all through the labor of man — so the tzaddikim toil in the clarification of emes: to plant it and set it in the aspect of "all of it is seed of emes." Which is through their good deeds and their Torah and the wondrous novellae they innovate in Torah, and so on — until through this emes sprouts from the earth specifically, in the aspect of "emes will sprout from the earth," as above. And see further on in §44. And all of this every person must know — and through this he will be saved from the many stumbling-blocks that come through emes itself when it is not clarified as it should be. It goes without saying that it will save him from the fire of strife and opposition, which uproots those who dispute from both worlds for nothing. For this attribute is worse than all the evil attributes in the world — for the other attributes and desires have some element of necessity in them, and one only needs to conduct oneself according to the holy Torah concerning them, and even when permitted one should not indulge in them excessively. But in any case they have some necessity for the existence of man — such as eating and drinking and the like. But the matter of strife — this man does not need at all. And it consumes and uproots him from both worlds more than all the desires combined. As many have already been expelled through this from both worlds. And even strife for the sake of one's livelihood one must avoid very greatly — for nothing is accomplished through strife at all. On the contrary: one single strife drives away a hundred livelihoods. And one must believe that no man touches what is prepared for his fellow. And with your name shall you be called and from what is yours shall they give you and so on, as our Sages of blessed memory said (Yoma 38a). How much more so — and certainly all the more so — strife regarding the service of God, which is the strife between the chassidim and the scholars, or strife among the chassidim themselves, or among the scholars themselves. For this strife is the worst of all — it causes great damage and delays the redemption more than all the transgressions in the Torah. And all this strife is nothing but causeless hatred, and all of it comes from emes — for each one imagines that he has the emes. But in truth, if one looks at the true emes and does not mislead oneself, one will certainly not persist in strife in any case — for one will look at oneself and consider: perhaps it is I who am erring. And even if one is not erring, one will understand that nothing will be rectified through strife at all — on the contrary, one will cause far more damage than one imagines one will rectify with one's confused mind. For through strife it is impossible to rectify anything whatsoever — for strife is exceedingly hated and it is impossible to explain all this in writing. But whoever truly desires emes will certainly not be misled through his own unclarified emes to persist in strife, God forbid — particularly in these generations when Israel is in great degradation and we have no authority whatsoever. How is it possible to rectify what needs to be rectified — particularly through strife? For to rectify the world and draw the entire world to the service of the Blessed Lord is possible only through peace, as is explained in the Torah discourse on "r'tzitza" and so on. And therefore Eliyahu and Moshiach — through whom the essential tikun of the world will come — will engage only in making peace in the world, as our Sages of blessed memory said: Eliyahu does not come to declare impure or to declare pure, but only to make peace in the world. And likewise Moshiach Tzidkeynu is called "Sar Shalom" (Prince of Peace) and so on. And therefore if emes incites one to persist in strife, God forbid, one must cast that kind of emes from oneself to the earth and distance it from before one — for the Blessed Lord does not desire that kind of emes, as above. And even the one who guards himself from this and walks in his innocence and does not persist in strife against others — even he must take care to remember well the matter mentioned above, and take very great care that emes not distance him, God forbid, from the Blessed Lord and His holy Torah. For all the distancing and the falls in one's mind come entirely through emes — because one knows within oneself the true state: that one has blemished and deteriorated. Particularly one who knows that he has deteriorated greatly. And he is as he is even now. And therefore he says in his mind: "But I myself know the truth about the extent of my own ruin!" And through this he falls in his mind and distances himself as he distances himself, God have mercy. It follows that all his distancing and falling is through emes — but in truth one must distance oneself from that kind of emes, for this is not the true emes at all. Rather one must know that we do not know at all. And even if we have not merited to come to the ultimate knowledge that is "the ultimate knowledge is that we cannot know" — which is very deep and exceedingly concealed — but in any case we simply do not know at all. Only this do we know in truth: that the Blessed Lord is emes and His Torah is emes. And He, blessed be He, revealed to us through His true tzaddikim the power of His kindness and mercy beyond all fathoming — as is explained in our writings at length on this. And therefore if emes incites one to persist — this is the essential emes: "and whatever your hand finds to do with your strength, do it" (Koheles 9:10). For "His thoughts, blessed be He, are very deep" — and He knows our inclination, for we are dust. And it is exceedingly precious in His eyes — every movement and stirring as thin as a hair's breadth by which a person draws himself toward the Blessed Lord in this very coarse physical world. And the more distant and coarse one is, likewise every movement and drawing toward the Blessed Lord from such a distant place is the more precious in His eyes. And this is the essential emes, in the aspect of "emes will sprout from the earth" — "from the earth" specifically, as above. And one must know that all these incitements — whether in the matter of strife, God forbid, where emes that is not yet clarified incites one to persist in strife; or in the matter of the person against himself, where it incites him to distance himself from the Blessed Lord and to fall in his mind through this — all of it is drawn from the descent of the accusation of the angels mentioned above, from which comes the entire power of the evil inclination, as above. For their accusation too was through emes that had not yet been fully clarified — to the point that the attribute of emes itself brought accusations and said that man should not be created (Midrash Rabbah, B'reishis 8:5). And this itself is the aspect of the accusation of the angels who said: "What is man that You should remember him?" (Tehillim 8:5). And therefore if emes incites one to persist — it descends from the accusation among human beings to the point that they err through emes that is not clarified, and bring accusations one against another and multiply strife for nothing, God forbid. Or it causes one to bring accusations against oneself through that kind of emes — to distance oneself from the Blessed Lord and His Torah, God forbid. Therefore one must beseech the Blessed Lord very greatly throughout all the days of one's life to merit to the point of the true emes. And the essential thing is that one merit to draw close to the true tzaddikim and their disciples who cleave to them — those who have merited to the point of the true emes. For the very point of emes is attained only by the great tzaddikim mentioned above, and from them everyone who merits to draw close to them can receive. But great toil is required for this — to search and seek and pray much to the Blessed Lord concerning this, as above. And this is what Dovid argued when he confessed his sin regarding Bas Sheva: "For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me" (Tehillim 51:5). And if so, I could distance myself and fall through this, God forbid, saying that there is no hope, God forbid. And as many sought to push him aside through this — as it is written: "Many say of my soul: there is no salvation for him in God, Selah" (Tehillim 3:3). And as Rashi explained there: this was on account of that very sin. But King Dovid did not look at all these rejections — whether from others or from himself. Rather he strengthened himself and said: "Against You alone have I sinned and done what is evil in Your eyes" (Tehillim 51:6). For I have not sinned against any angel or seraph — only against You alone. And therefore it is in Your power to forgive — for You are compelled, as it were, to forgive, "so that You be justified in Your word" (Tehillim 51:6) — in order that You be justified and prevail against the angels who brought accusations and said: "What is man that You should remember him?" For "he is destined to sin before You and to provoke You" and so on. And they did not know the power of the abundance of Your mercy and kindness beyond all fathoming — that You are abundant in forgiveness to all who seek pardon and forgiveness from You. Therefore You are compelled to forgive, in order to be justified in Your word and to prevail against them — so that they may see that You were justified in Your word and in Your judgment that You created man. And as is written there in the Midrash: the Blessed Lord answered: "Is it for nothing that I am called 'Merciful and Gracious'?!" And this is what he said afterward: "Behold, You desire emes in the hidden places (ba-tuchot)" — that is: even though according to the emes in my own mind it seems very far-fetched to me that the Blessed Lord would forgive me for such a great sin. And because of this I nearly, nearly fell in my mind and distanced myself from You through this, God forbid. But Your kindness prevailed upon me, granting me the merit to understand from afar that the truth of Your mercies — the truth of Your holy mind — is impossible to attain. Therefore I am obligated to do my part: to strengthen myself each time and to cast my supplication before You, until "the Lord will look down and see from heaven" (Ekhah 3:50). And this is what he said: "Behold, You desire emes in the hidden places" — for certainly the essential thing is emes and all that You desire and request from this lowly man is only the emes. But I request: "and in the concealed place You will make wisdom known to me" — teach me genuine wisdom that is hidden and concealed from me, which is the very essence of the true emes. That is: he strengthened himself and argued with the Blessed Lord: even though You desire only emes — in the aspect of "Behold, You desire emes in the hidden places" — according to the emes in my own mind it seems very far off that the Blessed Lord will forgive me. To the point that it appears, God forbid, as though there is no hope whatsoever, heaven forfend. But I know that I have still not attained the truth of Your mercy in its completeness. And I request: "and in the concealed place You will make wisdom known to me" — teach me what is hidden and concealed from me, which is the truth of Your mercy and kindness, which are so very exalted and deep and concealed from me. Through which I too have great hope — for "His thoughts are very deep" and we do not know at all. And there is a matter through which everything will be rectified and turned for good, and all sins will be turned into merits. Only he must not despair of crying out and praying and supplicating. And as I heard from his mouth, of blessed memory, as is explained in its place — see there.