הלוואה ד

Therefore, at first there are only three matzos — this is the aspect of before the revelation of the concealment, when it is only in the aspect of the three camps, as mentioned above. And afterward, we break the middle one into two — which is the aspect of an allusion to the breaking of the concealment. And then, from three, four are made — for now the Malchus is completed in the aspect of four camps, as mentioned above. 8

For the halva'ah [lending/borrowing] is drawn through the fact that there are y'mai tov [good days] and y'mai ra [evil days]. For the loan comes about due to the lack of livelihood — that one does not have [what he needs] now, and he anticipates that after some days he will be able to repay him. And this is because he thinks that now the time is for him in the aspect of y'mai ra, from where all the lack of livelihood comes. And therefore he borrows from his fellow, that he should wait for him until the y'mai ra pass (as it is common in the mouths of the world to say each time that the times are bad now — "di tzayt iz shlecht" — and in truth all the days of their lives they say this; and from my youth until this day I recall that they say this each time, and so too in the previous generations they would say this each time). And then he will be able to pay him off.

And therefore each person must distance himself greatly from loans. For one must believe that even within the y'mai ra themselves there is good — the aspect of y'mai tov — in the aspect of "and on a day of evil, see" (Ecclesiastes 7:14): "see" specifically etc., as is written there. And then certainly he will be able to obtain his livelihood — the matter of each day in its day — and he will not need to come to loans and debts.

For even one who engages in commerce with the nations must know and believe that even there Hashem Yisborach is found — for in all languages etc. are clothed the letters of the Torah etc. And one who believes in this, through the power of the Tzadik who conquers his yetzer etc. — certainly his livelihood will not be lacking. For he will be able to find the letters of the Torah in all the languages etc., and build Torah from them, in the aspect of "those who do His word, to hearken to the voice of His word" (Psalms 103:20) etc. And then certainly an abundance of goodness and blessing will be drawn to him through the Torah that he refines and builds from there — for the Torah is the source of blessing and abundance etc.

Therefore, we break the middle one, which is the Levi — from whom judgments are aroused, as is known. And from there the sustenance of the concealment cascades down. One must sweeten the judgment at its root, and then of their own accord they are broken and fall below. And this is the aspect of breaking the middle matzah, which is the Levi — to break and sweeten the power of the judgments within holiness. This is the aspect of the Exodus from the supernal Egypt — from the narrow passage of the throat (meitzar hagaron), which is the side of Levi, as is known. And through this, of its own accord, the concealment and the Sitra Achra below are broken. And then the daas is revealed, and then the Malchus is completed in the aspect of four camps. Therefore, from three matzos, four are now made, as mentioned above. 9

But through the overpowering of the y'mai ra over the y'mai tov, until it becomes hidden from him that even there within the y'mai ra themselves good is found — through this he cannot find the letters of the Torah in his commerce and business. And then the abundance descends in great constriction, as is brought there — that this is the secret of "ad d'lo yada bain arur Haman" etc. [until one does not know between cursed Haman etc.]. And through this he is compelled to come to loans — because he reckons that now are the y'mai ra and the y'mai tov will come afterward, and he will pay him off.

Therefore, the essential mitzvah of matzah is specifically with the one that was broken — with which we fulfill the eating of matzah and the Afikoman. And it is called lechem oni (bread of affliction/poverty), which is the essential matzah, as is brought. For specifically through the aspect of breaking the middle matzah, the aspect of matzah is formed — for it is itself the aspect of breaking chametz into matzah, that is, the aspect of the revelation of the concealment, which is accomplished through breaking the aspect of the Levi, as mentioned above. 10

And therefore, in truth, since he has come to loans it is very difficult for him to get out of them. And usually he does not pay off on time, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "If only [halevai] he would repay on time." "Halevai" indeed — for since he does not believe that even there, within the y'mai ra themselves, there is good, how will he attain y'mai tov? For in truth, the y'mai tov and y'mai ra are present each and every day — only each person according to how he overcomes his yetzer, to make the good prevail over the evil, so is the aspect of y'mai tov drawn upon him, and the reverse to the reverse, chas v'sholom.

Therefore it is called Yachatz — in the aspect of chatzos (midnight), in the aspect of "At about midnight, I will go out in the midst of Egypt" — the aspect of the revelation of the concealment, as mentioned above. And this is done after Kiddush. For Kiddush is the aspect of mikra kodesh — that one calls the holy, the wisdom and daas which is the vitality, as mentioned above. And through this the day is sanctified. And therefore, through this daas, one can reveal the concealment as mentioned above — and this is the aspect of Yachatz, as mentioned above. 11

And the essential thing is that one must look carefully and believe that even within the evil itself — the aspect of the y'mai ra — even there good is found, for "the whole earth is full of His glory" etc., as above. But this one who has fallen into loans — through the fact that he cannot find y'mai tov within the y'mai ra — it is certainly difficult for him to emerge from debts. For the evil each time grows stronger, since he does not exert himself and look to find the good within the y'mai ra themselves — for through this is the essential overpowering of the evil.

And "here the son asks" — after the middle matzah has been broken, that is, the Levi, and the daas has been revealed from the concealment (from which the aspect of matzah itself is formed, as mentioned above) — therefore, then the son asks questions and poses difficulties: "Mah nishtanah — What is different..." etc. This is the aspect of machlokes (dispute) — questions and difficulties that arouse the aspect of machlokes l'shem shamayim, which is the completeness of daas in the fullest sense, the aspect of matzah — which is a term for contention and strife, as is explained there. 12

And therefore, in truth, Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, warned that one should be careful not to become a debtor — and especially one who wishes to do t'shuvah. As is written in Sefer HaAlef-Beis HaKadosh, and this is its language: "One who wishes to return should be careful not to become a debtor." For since he knows within himself that he has sinned and made the evil prevail over the good, and now he wishes to return — and the essential t'shuvah is through finding the good within the evil itself, and believing that there is still good within him and he still has hope to return — in the aspect of "and you shall seek from there Hashem your G-d" (Deuteronomy 4:29): "from there" specifically — from all the places where he was driven among the nations, as is understood there in the parashah. Therefore he certainly must be careful not to become a debtor — for [being a debtor] stems from not believing and not looking to see that even in the y'mai ra there is good, from where all the loans and debts are drawn, as above.

Therefore, "here the son asks" — "the son" specifically — that is, questions and difficulties in the aspect of machlokes that are aroused between the son and the father. This is the aspect of machlokes within holiness, the machlokes of Shammaye and Hillel, which is exceedingly great daas and the sustenance of the world. For the essential creation and sustenance of the world is through the aspect of the machlokes within holiness — that is, the aspect of the initial tzimtzum (contraction), when, as it were, the light was contracted and divided to the sides. For without this there would have been no space for creation, as is known. 13

And therefore it is forbidden to lend without writing — that is, a sh'tar. For writing is for the purpose of zikaron [remembrance], as it is written: "Write this as a remembrance" etc. (Exodus 17:14). And the essential nature of forgetfulness and remembrance is within time. For above time — in the aspect of the ahavah sheba'da'as [love that is within the mind/knowledge] — there, forgetfulness and remembrance are not relevant, since it is above time. For forgetfulness is only with the passing of time, as it is written: "With the increase of days, everything is forgotten" (Ecclesiastes 2:16).

And creation and before-creation are in the aspect of father and son, as Rabeinu, may his light shine, wrote. And there must necessarily be a machlokes between them, as it were — that after creation there should be some division from before creation; for otherwise creation would be nullified, as mentioned above. Nevertheless, in truth, there is the ultimate unity there, and this aspect of machlokes that is in truth the ultimate peace — this is impossible to grasp, for there at the beginning of the tzimtzum, there is no comprehension and it is forbidden to investigate there, for it is the "ways of Hashem" and "into what is beyond you, do not inquire". 14

And the essential forgetfulness that depends on time is due to the overpowering of the y'mai ra over the y'mai tov — from where comes the forgetfulness that is drawn from the evil that takes hold from the departure of the mochin [mental faculties], from where is the grip of forgetfulness. And therefore one needs writing as a remembrance.

And this is itself the aspect of the machlokes l'shem shamayim between the true Tzadikim and sages — the aspect of the machlokes of Shammaye and Hillel — which is the sustenance of the world: so that there be space for creation. That is, their dispute is in the aspect of the division of the light to the sides so that there be the aspect of the chalal hapanui (empty space), so that there be space for creation, as Rabeinu, may his light shine, wrote in the discourse "Bo el Pharaoh" (Siman 64), on the Mishnah "All my days I grew up among the sages"; see there well. 15

It emerges that the essential purpose of writing — which is for remembrance — is to make the good prevail and to subdue the y'mai ra. Therefore it is forbidden to lend without a sh'tar. For the essential settling of debts is through making the good prevail over the y'mai ra, which is accomplished through writing specifically — which is for remembrance, as above. For settling a debt is a mitzvah, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "The repayment of a creditor is a mitzvah" (Kesubos 86a). For settling the debt is accomplished through meriting to attain the abundance and blessing to settle the debt — which comes from the prevailing of the good over the evil, which is drawn through the aspect of writing that is for remembrance, as above.

And therefore one who falls into loans falls into servitude, in the aspect of "the borrower is a servant to the lending man" (Proverbs 22:7). For servitude is the aspect of "cursed is Canaan" (Genesis 9:25), the aspect of the curse stated regarding the serpent, as is written elsewhere. This is the aspect of "cursed is the ground" etc. (Genesis 3:17), the aspect of "by the sweat of your brow" etc. (Genesis 3:19) — from where all the toils and servitude of livelihood come, which are drawn from the sin of Adam HaRishon, who did not overcome [his yetzer] to subdue the y'mai ra against the y'mai tov, and ate from the Aitz HaDa'as Tov VaRa [Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil]. Regarding which it is said: "A fool — on the day [bayom] his anger is known" (Proverbs 12:16): "on the day" specifically — the aspect of "on the day you eat of it" etc. (Genesis 2:17): "on the day" specifically. For the essential blemish reached into the yom [day] — that he did not exert himself to find the good on that day, to make it prevail over the evil etc. And from there are drawn all the loans, which come from the lack of livelihood etc., as above.

And this is the aspect of the machlokes and questioning of the son to the father — the aspect of the machlokes of Shammaye and Hillel, which is the sustenance of the world, as mentioned above. And this is needed now, on the night of Pesach, when there is the aspect of the renewal of the world, as is brought. That is: the essential aspect of the concealment — which is the sustenance of the Sitra Achra — is from the aspect of the shattering of vessels that comes from an excess of light, as mentioned above. And then, in Egypt, they reached the ultimate descent until the world nearly returned, chas v'shalom, to tohu vavohu (chaos and void). Therefore, they needed to return and rectify the world anew through the aspect of machlokes l'shem shamayim, which is the aspect of the initial tzimtzum within holiness — to draw the light in measure — and this is the essential sustenance of the world, as mentioned above. And this is the essential completeness of holiness and the revelation of Malchus — b'gin d'yishtamud'un laih, "in order that they should know Him," for "there is no king without a people". 16

And therefore the essential shibud [lien/encumbrance] is through the sh'tar — that then [the lender] can seize from encumbered properties. For the writing subdues the evil in favor of the good, until [the borrower] is compelled to pay him off and cannot deny him. For all the delay in payment and the denials are drawn from the overpowering of the evil afterward so greatly, until it prevents him from paying on time — in the aspect of "the wicked one borrows and does not repay" (Psalms 37:21). That the verse attributes all the wickedness of the wicked to the name "a wicked borrower" etc. — for the essential wickedness stems from the overpowering of the y'mai ra over the y'mai tov, from where all the loans and the delay in payment come, as above.

And when there is no machlokes within holiness — which is the aspect of the initial tzimtzum — there is no space for creation and no one to know of His Kingship, blessed be He, as it were. Therefore, the essential completeness of the holy Malchus is through the aspect of the machlokes within holiness, as mentioned above. And therefore, we make changes on the night of Pesach, so that the son should ask "Mah nishtanah" — to arouse the machlokes within holiness, as mentioned above. 17

And to subdue all of this — until [the borrower] is compelled to pay off and subdue the y'mai ra in favor of the good — is through writing as a remembrance, which is the sh'tar, as above. And therefore the Torah warned: "If you lend money... to the poor... you shall not be to him as a creditor; you shall not place upon him usury" (Exodus 22:24) — for one must have mercy on the poor person, not to be upon him as a creditor, to bring him out of [the state of] being a debtor, as above.

And then we tell the Haggadah. For to merit machlokes l'shem shamayim is through a sigh (anachah), through which the melancholy — the contamination of the Serpent — is subdued; see there. That is: one needs teshuvah and sighing afterward to rectify and subdue the Sitra Achra, the contamination of the Serpent, so that they should not grasp hold of the machlokes within holiness mentioned above. For this is what Rabeinu, may his light shine, wrote there — that one must purify and cleanse the heavens, that is, the machlokes within holiness, which is fire and water — so that it should not be in the aspect of "the heavens are clothed in darkness". That is, so that they should not grasp hold there, chas v'shalom. For the machlokes, even though it is within holiness and is supernal daas and completeness of holiness — nevertheless, from there it cascades downward until they gain a grip from there, as is known. For the Sitra Achra is the aspect of machlokes, and its sustenance is from the machlokes within holiness. Therefore, one must guard and purify the heavens — the aspect of the machlokes within holiness — and this is through sighing and teshuvah, as mentioned above. 18

And this is the aspect of Rosh Hashanah and Yom HaKippurim and Sukkos and Hoshana Rabbah and Sh'mini Atzeres and Simchas Torah. For from Rosh Hashanah until Yom Kippur are the Aseres Y'mai T'shuvah [Ten Days of Repentance], and the essential t'shuvah is through the aforementioned aspect — the aspect of "and on a day of evil, see" etc., as above.

And through the t'shuvah of Rosh Hashanah and Yom HaKippurim — through finding the good in every place, through the kol shofar — the aspect of "those who do His word, to hearken to the voice of His word", which is stated regarding Rosh Hashanah, as is written in the holy Zohar — and this is the aspect of the five afflictions [inuyim] of Yom HaKippurim, which are the aspect of the five kolos [voices]; and all of this is to unify the kol with the dibur [speech] etc. — through this they build the Torah. This is the aspect of the receiving of the Torah on Yom HaKippurim. And through this they draw close to shalom [peace], which is the aspect of the Sukkah — the aspect of Sukkas Shalom [the Shelter of Peace] — the aspect of the ahavah [love] that one merits through this. This is also the aspect of the Sukkah, which is the aspect of ahavah — until one merits through this the ahavah sheba'da'as [love that is within the mind/knowledge]: to illuminate the ahavah sheba'da'as into the days. This is the entire intention of the na'anu'im [wavings] with the Arba'ah Minim [Four Species] on Sukkos, as is explained at the end of the aforementioned Torah; see there. And through this one merits the Simchas Beis HaSho'aivah, in the aspect of "and you shall draw water with joy from the wellsprings of salvation" (Isaiah 12:3). For there, in the aspect of the ahavah sheba'da'as, are the ma'ayanai hayeshuah [wellsprings of salvation]. For the Torah is called "a store of salvations" (Isaiah 33:6) etc. — but the hidden Torah etc. is the aspect of the ma'ayanai hayeshuah. And through this one merits Sh'mini Atzeres — in the sense of k'nishah [gathering] and assembly: that one gathers and encompasses the ahavah sheba'da'as with the ahavah sheba'yamim [love that is within the days] — where is the source of simchah. And this is the aspect of the joining of the completion of the Torah with its beginning. "Bereishis" — the aspect of reishis hamachashavah [the beginning of thought], the aspect of ahavah sheba'da'as, the aspect of "Yisroel arose in [G-d's] thought first" etc. [Connected to:] "for all the signs and wonders... before the eyes of all Yisroel" (Deuteronomy 34:11–12) — these are the aspect of the ahavah sheba'yamim, from where all the revealed Torah comes, which is "before the eyes of all Yisroel": that He showed His love, Yisborach, before the eyes of all Yisroel through all the signs etc. But the ahavah sheba'da'as is impossible to see — except for each person according to what he estimates in his heart. Yet all the revelation of love through the awesome wonders that Moshe showed — all of it is drawn from the ahavah sheba'da'as that illuminated into the ahavah sheba'yamim — through his overturning the natural order within the days and time specifically. This is the essential completeness. Therefore each year, at the conclusion of the rectification of Rosh Hashanah, one must encompass the Torah's end within its beginning — to encompass the ahavah sheba'yamim within the ahavah sheba'da'as, which is the aspect of "Bereishis" etc. And this is why we bless for rain on Sh'mini Atzeres. For then the ahavah sheba'da'as is encompassed and shines into the ahavah sheba'yamim. And therefore then is the essential love between Yisroel and their Father in Heaven — as our Sages, of blessed memory, elaborated regarding this: as it is written, "I beseech you, stay with Me one more day" etc. (Sukkah 55b). The aspect of "one day" — "it shall be known to Hashem" etc. (Zechariah 14:7) — which is the aspect of the ahavah sheba'da'as etc. And therefore then we bless for rain — for then the shefa [abundance] is drawn, which is the aspect of the waters of rain and blessing, in the aspect of "Hashem will open for you His good treasure" etc. (Deuteronomy 28:12). For in the ahavah sheba'yamim — the aspect of "by day Hashem commands His lovingkindness" (Psalms 42:9) — which are the aspect of the seven days of Sukkos: in them there is still some grip for the y'mai ra, from which is the grip of the seventy nations. Only that on Sukkos, Yisroel merit — through the service of Rosh Hashanah and Yom HaKippurim, through the power of the true Tzadikim — to draw close to the love and peace that are the aspect of the Sukkah, as above. For we have already merited to find the good — which are the letters of the Torah — within the y'mai ra themselves, that is, the good within the seventy languages of the nations. And through this — that we draw close to shalom, having great peace with the nations since we have merited to find even among them Torah, as above — this is the aspect of the seventy parai hechag [bulls of the festival] etc. And then, on Sukkos, through the Arba'ah Minim we work through the na'anu'im to draw an illumination from the ahavah sheba'da'as into the ahavah sheba'yamim. And this is the aspect of the binding of the Arvai Nachal [willow branches] with the Arba'ah Minim. For the Arvai Nachal allude to the transgressors of Yisroel, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said (Vayikra Rabbah 30:12). For now we are finding also the good in all the transgressors of Yisroel — in the aspect of: "If a person says to you, 'Where is your G-d?'" etc. — as is written there in the aforementioned Torah. And on Hoshana Rabbah, at the conclusion of the sealing, we perform great services with the Arvai Nachal themselves, and we beat them on the ground — to subdue and nullify from them the dinim and the concealments and the hiddennesses, to demonstrate that even within the Arvai Nachal themselves one finds Torah and service, even when they are on their own. For the Torah that is within the y'mai ra has been revealed etc. And through all of this, one merits on Sh'mini Atzeres that all these rectifications are completed in wondrous perfection — for the essential completeness is when the ahavah sheba'da'as fully illuminates into the ahavah sheba'yamim. This is the aspect of Sh'mini Atzeres. And then the y'mai ra are entirely nullified, and therefore there is no grip for the nations, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said — only Yisroel themselves unify and connect with Hashem Yisborach in surpassing love, through the illumination that shines upon them then of the ahavah sheba'da'as, with wondrous radiance. And therefore then, specifically, they draw down gishmai brachah [rains of blessing] — which are the totality of all the influxes that are drawn to holiness, to the upright of Yisroel who cling to the true Tzadikim who are engaged in these rectifications. For on Sukkos, rain is not a sign of blessing — so as not to draw the abundance to the nations who still have some grip, as above. But on Sh'mini Atzeres, when "no stranger shall mingle in their joy" (Sukkah 55b), then we draw down gishmai brachah. This is the aspect of Birkas Geshem on Sh'mini Atzeres — for then all their sustenance is nullified, because the ahavah sheba'da'as shines with great radiance. And therefore then the abundance is drawn — the aspect of gishmai brachah — to the upright of Yisroel alone. And therefore then we bless for rain and pray that it should be for blessing and not for curse etc. — that the y'mai ra should not return and reawaken, chas v'sholom, to draw sustenance from them. And each person, according to his closeness to the true Tzadikim, and according to his rectification on Rosh Hashanah, Yom HaKippurim, and Sukkos — so does he merit to draw the abundance as a blessing, to the upright of Yisroel, through the power of the true Tzadikim who engage in all these rectifications in completeness. And this is the aspect of "and he went on his journeys" (Genesis 13:3), stated regarding Avraham. And our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded (Bereishis Rabbah 41:3): on his return he repaid his debts [hakafos]. For it has already been explained that one must distance oneself from credit purchases and loans — for all the loans are drawn from the overpowering of the y'mai ra etc., as above. But nevertheless, sometimes even the Tzadik is compelled to come to loans. And this is for the benefit of the world, in the aspect of y'ridah tachlis ha'aliyah [a descent that is the ultimate purpose of ascent]. For through the y'mai ra overpowering so greatly that even the Tzadik cannot draw the abundance immediately and is compelled to borrow — through this, the Tzadik subsequently overcomes to an even greater degree, and searches and seeks and finds a great deal of good within the very intensity of the overpowering of the y'mai ra that overpowered so greatly. For this is the aspect of the battle of each Jew — especially of the Tzadik — who does not fall in his spirits and does not despair through all the evil days and difficult times that pass over him. Rather, on the contrary: the more the y'mai ra overpower, more and more, he overcomes even more to search and seek even within them, until he finds within them too the letters of the Torah and builds Torah from them, in the aforementioned aspect. For in truth, there is no place so low and degraded in the world, and no day or time or moment in the world, in which words of Torah are not present in a hidden and constricted way — which is the aspect of His G-dliness that enlivens that place and time. And therefore this man who has already fallen into loans through the overpowering of the y'mai ra — his rectification is that he should exert himself with all his might to repay and settle the loans. And through repaying, he fulfills "the repayment of a creditor is a mitzvah". For he rectifies greatly through this — through having overcome after the loan and having found y'mai tov within the very intensity of the y'mai ra, until he drew blessing and abundance to settle the debt. And then, if he is a man of valor, he can afterward draw even greater abundance — for the more one finds good within the very intensity of the greater overpowering of the y'mai ra, the more he makes and builds Torah in the aforementioned aspect and draws greater abundance and blessing, as above. And this is the aspect of "the wicked one borrows and does not repay", which we mentioned above. "A wicked borrower who does not repay" — these are the aspect of two blemishes. First, he was a "wicked borrower" — for he did not exert himself to seek and find the good within the y'mai ra, until he came to loans, as above. And afterward he added even greater wickedness — "and does not repay" — for he does not exert himself to seek and search now even more, as above. And through this he does not repay. From this comes the fact that usually they become great debtors who are called "ba'alai y'shivos" — "on zetzirsˮ [those who sit, i.e., who are stuck in debt]. But: "and the Tzadik is gracious and gives" (Psalms 37:21). That is, the Tzadik is the opposite: not only is he not a debtor, but he also exerts himself each time to find the good within the evil, until he draws blessing and goodly abundance always — until he is gracious and gives and bestows to all through this. And even when [the Tzadik] comes to loans at times, he overcomes through this very thing to search even more, until he finds even more good and draws and bestows even greater abundance, as above. And this too is hinted at in this verse — "v'Tzadik chonain v'no'sain" — that is, the word "v'Tzadik" may also be understood as connected upward to the word "loveh" etc. As if to say: "v'Tzadik" — that is, when the Tzadik is compelled to be a borrower, not only does he repay on his date and on time, certainly — but also he is gracious and gives. For through having come to a loan — which stems from the overpowering of the y'mai ra until it is difficult to find the good there — through this very thing he overcame with even greater determination, until he found there specifically a great deal of good, until he drew great blessing and abundance — through which he is gracious and gives, as above. And therefore Avraham Avinu, alav hashalom, who was the first to reveal His G-dliness in the world — whose entire service was in this aspect, in the aspect of: "If a person says to you, 'Where is your G-d?' say to him, 'In the great city of Rome'" etc. For then the entire world was far from Hashem Yisborach, and all the places where [Avraham] grew up were full of idols. And he overcame his yetzer in the aspect of "those who do His word, to hearken to the voice of His word" etc. — until he began to build the Torah through this. For the beginning of the building of the Torah was from Avraham, as is known — that is, through the aforementioned aspect. Therefore it is stated regarding Avraham: "and he went on his journeys" — on his return he repaid his debts. For Hashem Yisborach tested him until he was compelled to descend from Eretz Yisroel to Mitzrayim — which was full of immorality and idols in the extreme — and he overcame there until he found there too the good, until he went up from there "very heavy in cattle, in silver, and in gold" (Genesis 13:2) etc. And through this: "and he went on his journeys" — that he repaid his debts. For this is the essential rectification of the Tzadik, in the aspect of "v'Tzadik chonain v'no'sain", as above. And this is also the aspect of "and he went on his journeys" — that he lodged at the same inn [as before]. This is the aspect of "set your heart toward the highway, the path by which you went" (Jeremiah 31:20). For the Tzadik and the upright man, when he descends to such degraded places — when he overcomes to search even there for His G-dliness, which is the letters of the Torah — afterward he must return on the path by which he descended there, in order to elevate and refine all the sparks that fell there at the time of the descent, to return everything to "the place where his tent had been at the start" (Genesis 13:3) etc. And this is [the meaning of] what is adjacent [in the Psalm]: "The wicked one borrows" etc., "and the Tzadik" etc. — "for those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth, and those cursed by Him shall be cut off" (Psalms 37:22). "For those blessed by Him" — who are the Tzadikim and the upright — "shall inherit the earth," through the fact that they always overcome to search for the good within the very intensity of the y'mai ra, as above. For through this Avraham merited to inherit the Land — in the aspect of "Avraham was one, and he inherited the Land" (Ezekiel 33:24). And this is: "By Hashem are the steps of a man established" etc. (Psalms 37:23) — which is adjacent to this. "For by Hashem are the steps of a man established" — that He sometimes causes a person to fall to such low places as a test, whether he will overcome there to search and seek the good, as is fitting, within such an evil place and time, as above. And this is: "and He desires his way" — for Hashem Yisborach desires to see the way of the person: whether he will overcome to choose the path of good, to search and seek until he finds there too the goodness of Hashem — until he returns to his place with even greater elevation. And this is: "Though he fall, he shall not be cast down, for Hashem supports his hand" etc. (Psalms 37:24). This is the aspect of the rectification regarding all of the above, in the aspect of y'ridah tachlis ha'aliyah — the aspect of "Yisroel were not exiled among the nations except so that converts should be added to them" (Pesachim 87b) etc. And as it is written: "and there shall remain even he, for our G-d" (Zechariah 9:7) etc. And as it is written: "For seven times does the Tzadik fall and rise" (Proverbs 24:16) etc. For He will never allow the Tzadik to be shaken — for Hashem supports his hand through all the falls and descents in the world. And through this: "I was young and also I have aged, and I have not seen a Tzadik forsaken" etc. (Psalms 37:25). Rather, on the contrary: "all the day he is gracious and lends, and his seed is a blessing" (Psalms 37:26). For [the Tzadik] merits afterward to be a lender and not a borrower, as it is written: "And you shall lend to many nations, and you shall not borrow" etc. (Deuteronomy 28:12). And all of this is through the aforementioned aspect — through having overcome each time, through all the falls and descents in the world, through all the times and y'mai ra that overpowered and spread as they spread: to seek and search even there, each time more and more, until he found even there the good — which are the letters of the Torah, which is His G-dliness that enlivens them. And through this he rectified very greatly and made a paved road for all the world to return to Hashem Yisborach through this. For through the Torah that he gathered and refined and built from such places, and added upon them wondrous light from above, as above — through this he illuminated for the entire world this path: that each person should return, even the lowest of the low, to Hashem Yisborach, from every place where he is, as above. And through this he draws goodly abundance and blessing to all who are joined to him — in the aspect of "all the day he is gracious and lends, and his seed is a blessing," as above. This halachah (6 osiyos, based on LM I:54 "Mi HaIsh HeChafetz Chaim") locates the root of all debt in the dichotomy of y'mai tov / y'mai ra. Borrowing = believing the present is purely "bad days" and the future will be "good days" — a split that is itself the blemish. The person who believes that even within the y'mai ra themselves good is hidden (the letters of Torah clothed in all languages, all contexts, all hardships) will find parnasah davar yom b'yomo and never need to borrow. The Yiddish aside in Os 1 — "di tzayt iz shlecht," everyone always says the times are bad, generation after generation — is a striking moment of self-aware, almost wry commentary. The point: if every generation says "now is bad, later will be good," the schema itself is the problem. The sh'tar = writing = zikaron. Shich'chah (forgetfulness) is a function of time; writing overcomes time by making the good prevail over the y'mai ra. Settling debts = making good prevail = a mitzvah ("pri'as ba'al chov mitzvah"). Os 2 traces the servitude of debt back through "arur Canaan" → "arurah ha'adamah" → chet Adam HaRishon: Adam failed to subdue the y'mai ra on that very day → "evil bayom yivadah ka'aso" / "ki b'yom achalcha" — "bayom" specifically. Os 3-4 map the entire Yamim Nora'im cycle through LM I:54's framework: RH/YK = t'shuvah through finding good within evil → kol shofar → 5 inuyim = 5 kolos → build Torah → approach shalom (= Sukkah) → Sukkos = ahavah sheba'yamim, still has grip for 70 nations → na'anu'im illuminate ahavah sheba'da'as into yamim → Arvai Nachal = finding good in posh'ai Yisroel → Hoshana Rabbah: beat willows to reveal Torah within y'mai ra → Sh'mini Atzeres: ahavah sheba'da'as fully radiates, no more grip for nations → Birkas Geshem drawn only for Yisroel → Simchas Torah: join Torah's end (ahavah sheba'yamim) to its beginning (Bereishis = reishis hamachashavah = ahavah sheba'da'as). Os 5 is the crown: Avraham descending to Mitzrayim = y'ridah tachlis ha'aliyah. Even the Tzadik sometimes must borrow (= y'mai ra overpower) — but this descent enables finding deeper good than ever. "Vayeilech l'masa'av — b'chaziraso para hakafosav": on his return he repaid his debts, ascending "heavy in cattle, silver, and gold." The "loveh rasha v'lo y'shalaim" = two blemishes (borrows wickedly + fails to repay). But "v'Tzadik chonain v'no'sain" = even when compelled to borrow, the Tzadik finds so much good that he not only repays but becomes a giver. "Sisi libech lamesila derech halachti" — return by the same road to elevate what fell during the descent. Based on Likutay Moharan I:54 "Mi HaIsh HeChafetz Chaim"