חלה ותרומות ומעשרות ד

And therefore the parchment must be processed lishma — for its holy purpose. This corresponds to the processing and clarification of the medam'eh, which is in the dimension of animal, as above. But when one writes letters upon one's own human flesh, one thereby degrades oneself from one's sacred status — bringing oneself down from the dimension of human being to the dimension of animal, which is the dimension of writing. And then the contamination of the serpent is strengthened within him, G-d forbid, for it clings to the body, as above. And when one writes a chesoves ka'aka upon the body, one thereby draws upon the body the dimension of animality, the dimension of medam'eh, and through this the contamination of the serpent that clings to the body is strengthened, G-d forbid, as above.

For in truth we must sanctify ourselves in order to transform matter into form — so that the body is refined in the dimension of human being. For Israel are called "Adam" — human being — through the fact that they sanctify the body through every kind of holiness, until the matter is transformed into form, the body into soul, and the body is refined in the dimension of soul. And then one is called "Adam," for the essential being of the human being is in the dimension of the soul, as above. And this ultimate perfection will be merited in the future time at the resurrection, when the refinement will reach its ultimate completion, as above. But we must sanctify ourselves in this world in order to merit this in the future at the ultimate perfection.

And when one writes a chesoves ka'aka upon one's body, one drags the body down from "human being" to "animal," as above, and the serpent's contamination — whose hold is in the body, clinging to the dimension of animality, the dimension of medam'eh — is thereby strengthened, and one enters into the dimension of the confusion of the medam'eh, as above.

Furthermore, writing is for a lasting memorial — for all writing is a memorial — and when one writes upon one's body a chesoves ka'aka, it is as though one is denying, G-d forbid, the renewal of the world, and one does not believe that this present body will be refined and clarified and all its contamination removed — namely, the present confused medam'eh. For by writing and engraving a chesoves ka'aka upon the body, an indelible inscription that can never be erased, one thereby declares, as it were, that this body will never change from its present state, G-d forbid — from its present condition of animality, of confused medam'eh — which is the dimension of the writing engraved in the body. For writing is a memorial for all generations, and one thereby indicates that this writing should remain permanently engraved in the body — that it shall never be erased, G-d forbid — meaning, that the body will never be purified or change from its present state, which is in the dimension of writing, the dimension of animal, as above.

For in truth we believe in the renewal of the world, when the body will be refined, and then all the contamination that existed in this present body will pass away, and it will be renewed and refined to the ultimate degree of refinement, as above. But through the writing — namely the chesoves ka'aka — one declares that the body shall remain forever in this state, G-d forbid, since writing is a memorial for all generations, as above.

And the core of the prohibition is the chesoves ka'aka — writing through engraving — because when the writing is more physical and concrete, namely writing through engraving, the medam'eh is strengthened to a greater degree. And then one enters into the dimension of the confusion of the medam'eh, for the more the medam'eh is caught up in the physical body, the more confused it becomes — since the primary source of the confusion of the medam'eh is through the body. And therefore for all sacred writing — even the writing of holiness — what is required is writing, not engraving, as the Sages taught: "And he shall write" — and not "he shall engrave." For sacred writing is upon animal parchment — to elevate from animal to human being through the writing, as above — and therefore the writing must be as fine and delicate as possible. And therefore "writing" and not "engraving" — for engraving is more physical, it sculpts the light into complete physicality and there is actual substance in the formed letter, and when writing is more physical it enters into the dimension of the confusion of the medam'eh, as above.

And therefore here, in chesoves ka'aka — where the prohibition is against dragging oneself from human being to animal through writing, as above — the core of the prohibition is specifically through engraving, which is more physical, through which the confusion of the medam'eh is strengthened even further, as above. For we must refine the body from animal to human being, and writing — especially engraving — is in the dimension of animality, as above.

And this is why the verse concludes with "I am Hashem" — faithful to grant reward — in the dimension of the World to Come, when the reward will be given, and then the world will be renewed, as above. And it is because of this very matter that the prohibition of chesoves ka'aka exists. And therefore it is stated here: I am Hashem, faithful to grant reward — in the dimension of the World to Come, as above.

And therefore the Kohanim are warned with a special warning regarding the prohibition of cutting, as it says, "and they shall not make a cut in their flesh" (Vayikra 21:5). For the Kohain is a man of chesed, and chesed is in the dimension of the renewal of the world — the dimension of "the world is built upon kindness" — as is explained there. And when the world is renewed, then all the contamination will be annihilated, and then "death will be swallowed up forever" (Yeshaya 25:8).

And therefore the Kohanim are warned regarding the impurity of the dead — for they are distant from the dimension of the sitra de-mosa, since they are in the dimension of chesed, the dimension of the renewal of the world, the dimension of death being swallowed up forever. And therefore the Torah doubled the warning regarding cutting for the Kohanim, as it says, "and they shall not cut their flesh" — for they must distance themselves further from the contamination of the serpent, and believe in the renewal of the world, since they themselves are in the very dimension of the renewal of the world, as above.

The general principle is: through peace it is possible to bring the entire world back to the service of Hashem. And it is impossible to attain peace except through the illumination of the face — the adornment of the face — which is the dimension of Yaakov. And one attains this through the guarding of the bris. And the illumination of the face consists of the Torah discourses and their explanations, derived through the thirteen hermeneutical principles which flow from the thirteen configurations of the holy beard — and these are the primary dimension of the adornment of the face, as it says, "and you shall honor the face of an elder" (Vayikra 19:32). And through this one merits the refinement of one's joyful voice, and through the refinement of the voice one attains peace. And specifically in Marah did they receive the Shabbos of Peace — for the way of peace is to clothe itself in bitterness, in the dimension of "behold, peace became bitter for me" (Yeshaya 38:17) — just as all healing requires bitter medicines, so too peace, which is the healing for all things, must clothe itself in bitterness. And this is: "behold, peace became bitter for me, very bitter, and You desired my soul."

For in truth, every single one of Israel possesses the power to bring the entire world back to teshuvah, since every human being is obligated to say: "For my sake was the world created!" For every one of Israel is comprised of the entire Torah, as it says, "this is the Torah — a human being" (Bamidbar 19:14). For each and every individual of Israel is comprised of 248 limbs and 365 sinews, which correspond to the 248 positive commandments and 365 prohibitions, which is the totality of the entire Torah. And the Torah is comprised of the 600,000 souls of Israel, as is known. It follows, therefore, that every individual of Israel is comprised of all of Israel — and therefore all of Israel are mutual guarantors for one another, for each individual of Israel is comprised of all of them, and has the power to bring them all back to teshuvah, and is obligated to strive for this.

And this is the dimension of what Rabbaynu said in the discourse mentioned above — that through the illumination of the face one merits peace, through which one can draw the entire world to the service of Hashem. For the illumination and adornment of the face comes through Torah discourses — for one must adorn one's face and body so that one has a beautiful countenance, the dimension of the adornment of the face. For through precisely this one is able to draw all who are comprised within the limbs of one's body toward Hashem. And the essential quality of the illumination of the face is through the Torah, as above — for all is one, for the human being is the Torah, as above. And through the Torah his face illuminates, for this is the totality of the body of the human being — for the face, which is the intellect, spreads and illuminates throughout the entire body and gives it life, as is known. And through the illumination of the face, through the Torah — that is to say, through the intellect of the Torah spreading through one's face and body until one merits the illumination of the face — through this one is able to draw all the worlds comprised within the limbs of one's body toward Hashem, for they are all comprised within the image and likeness of the human being that illuminates through the Torah. And this is the dimension of the illumination of the face, as above.

And therefore the Torah prohibited chesoves ka'aka, as it says, "and a tattoo inscription you shall not place in your flesh" (Vayikra 19:28). For one must guard the flesh of the body from marring it, from engraving into it a tattoo inscription — so as not to mar the image and likeness of the human being who is comprised of all the worlds, and in whom every limb and every portion of the flesh of his body corresponds to a specific part of the world, with the power to draw that part of the world toward Hashem. For every part of the body corresponds to so many souls — "some of them depend upon the ears, some upon the hairs," and so forth. And similarly with all the other parts of the body from head to foot — for there is not a single hair in a person, and not a single limb or sinew or any portion of the flesh or skin of his body, in which there do not depend countless souls and worlds.

And therefore it is forbidden to engrave in one's skin a tattoo inscription — so as not to mar the structure of one's body which is comprised of all the worlds, and through which one has the power in every single limb, and in every portion of the flesh of one's body, to draw the corresponding part of the world toward Hashem — according to the degree to which one merits to illuminate the truth of Torah explanations within one's body. For the primary illumination of the human body is only through Torah discourses and explanations that shine within one's body — and through this one merits the adornment of the face. And through this all 600,000 letters of the Torah shine within one's body and one's limbs.

But it is forbidden to engrave in a physical manner any letter in the skin of one's body — that is, the chesoves ka'aka. For on the contrary, through this one mars and destroys the structure of one's body which is comprised of all the worlds, as above. For one must beautify one's body so that it is whole and unflawed without any engraving — for one's body is comprised of all the letters of the Torah. And in truth the human being is above the Torah, as is found in the words of Rabbaynu of blessed memory — as our Sages taught, "how foolish are those who rise before the Torah scroll but do not rise before a Torah scholar." Therefore the primary illumination and adornment of the human body is only through Torah discourses and explanations that one renews through one's intellect — and through this one becomes included within the Torah and an illumination spreads over one's entire body in the dimension of the adornment of the face, as above. But it is forbidden to engrave letters physically in the skin of one's body — for by doing so one mars the adornment of one's body, the dimension of the adornment of the face, as above.

And this is the dimension of the prohibition of cutting over the dead. For even though one is obligated to feel pain over the dead, over the departure of a soul from Israel, and one is obligated to mourn for them — nonetheless, the essential purpose of the eulogy and mourning is in order to draw back and restore the dimension of the adornment of the face, the dimension of peace. For through this one draws the entire world to the service of Hashem. For this is the essential purpose of the eulogy: for every individual of Israel has the power to bring the entire world back to teshuvah, as above, and to bind and elevate all the worlds to Hashem — since the deceased was comprised of all the worlds, for one's soul is from Above and one's body is from Below, as our Sages of blessed memory taught. And through the bonding of one's soul to one's body during one's lifetime, one had the power to bind all the worlds together and bring them close to Hashem.

And when one departs — when one's soul ascends above and one's body remains below within the earth — they mourn and grieve over this separation. For this constitutes the dimension of the disruption of the peace that existed between one's soul and body during one's lifetime. For the union of soul and body is itself the dimension of peace — since the essential quality of peace is between two opposites, as Rabbaynu of blessed memory said elsewhere. And the body and the soul are two opposites, and when they are bound together during one's living lifetime, this is the dimension of peace. And when the soul departs from the body, this is the dimension of the disruption of peace. And therefore they mourn and eulogize the departed — for through the eulogy one draws the soul of the departed back downward, as is known. And the illumination of the soul once again becomes bound to the body of the departed, and the peace is restored, as above. And this is the dimension of the eulogy upon the departure of the righteous, which is profoundly and deeply beneficial for repentance — for through the eulogy and the prostration upon the grave of the tzaddik, weeping and yearning greatly over the fact that the tzaddik has departed and there is no longer a guide who leads us back to Hashem — through this one awakens the soul of the tzaddik still further, and the soul returns and becomes bound again to the body, as is known. For this is the essential quality of the act of prostration — and the righteous are greater in their death than in their lifetime, and the righteous in their death are called living.

The general principle: through the eulogy and the prostration, the illumination of the holy soul is drawn back downward, and the soul becomes even more deeply bound to the body of the departed, and peace flows back once more, as above. And this peace — namely, the illumination and binding of the soul within the body after the departure — is greater by far than the peace and the binding that existed during one's living lifetime. For the greater the separation and the distance between the two, the greater the peace becomes when they are turned and reunited together — since the essential quality of peace is between two opposites, as above. And the greater the distance between the two opposites, the more precious and great and powerful is the peace when they return and unite together once more.

And therefore after the departure — when the soul is utterly and completely removed from the body and from this world, in the ultimate degree of removal — the peace is all the greater. And in particular the soul of the great tzaddik of exalted spiritual standing — very, very exalted in degree — whose soul departs and ascends higher and higher to wherever it ascends, while the body is buried deep in the earth several cubits below — it follows that now the soul is at the ultimate degree of distance from the body. And therefore the peace is all the greater. And therefore the righteous are greater in their death than in their lifetime — for now the peace is even greater, as above. And one has even greater power now to draw the entire world to His service, through the magnitude of the peace that one now attains — in the dimension of "let him come in peace, let them rest on their resting places" (Yeshaya 57:2). And as our Sages of blessed memory taught: at the moment when the tzaddik departs from the world, three divisions of ministering angels go out to greet him and say to him, "let him come in peace…" — for the essential quality here is the peace, which is the dimension of the binding and illumination of the soul within the body even after the departure, with ever greater power and force and intensity. For in truth, the great tzaddik — although his soul departs to the lofty place to which it departs — nevertheless, the essential perfection must also be below as well, as Rabbaynu of blessed memory said in Siman 7 of Likutay Moharan, Part Two. For on the contrary — precisely because of the immense and awe-inspiring and most lofty elevation of his stature, therefore he is able to lower himself further and further below, and to raise up and elevate even those who are lowest and most distant — very, very far in the ultimate degree of distance. For from the immensity of the peace that he now attains, as above, he is able to bind and draw all of them toward Hashem — even those who are very distant from holiness.

And therefore it is a very very great thing to go frequently to the graves of the true righteous. For through coming to the place of their holy burial — which is in the dimension of Eretz Yisrael, as it says, "the righteous shall inherit the land" (Tehillim 37:29), as is said in the name of the Baal Shaym Tov of blessed memory — and Eretz Yisrael is the land of Life and Peace, as it says, "I shall walk before Hashem in the lands of the living" (Tehillim 116:9). And life is in the dimension of peace, as above. And as it says, "My covenant was with him, life and peace" (Malachi 2:5). And therefore we pray: "bestow peace, goodness and blessing, life…" — for the essential quality of life is peace, which is the dimension of the union of opposites, the union of soul and body, the union of very elevated tzaddikim with absolute sinners, in order to draw them toward Hashem and return them to complete teshuvah.

And through each person who comes to the grave of the true tzaddik, weeping and praying there, beseeching and pleading — through this the soul of the true tzaddik is awakened still further, and shines still more abundantly below in this physical world. For "the tzaddikim are found even more in this world after their passing" — as stated in the holy Zohar — and the soul of the tzaddik becomes even more bound to this world, and peace increases all the more, as above, and the entire world is drawn toward the service of Hashem.