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Likutay Halachos – Choshen Mishpat II – Pikadon v'Arba'ah Shomrim, Halacha 5 (Part B: §§8–15)

And this is what the daughters of Tzelafchad asked: “If we are not considered progeny, let our mother undergo yibum” (Bava Basra 119b). For the secret of yibum is in the aspect mentioned above — to repair the soul of the deceased through his family, that is, through his brother. And since the daughter is considered progeny to exempt from yibum, certainly she deserves the inheritance, for they are one and the same aspect, as above. For the secret of yibum is in the aspect of “the spirit that he cast into her” [hahu rucha d’shadei b’gavei] — which is the aspect of strengthening oneself in tefillah through having seen that one has already accomplished something and already made some impression in the world through one’s tefillah. For one has already begun to draw some shefa, however minimal. And even though it has not yet been completed at all — and even if, G–d forbid, he died in the meanwhile — nevertheless, he is repaired through this, since he has already made some impression, however minimal, through his tefillos.

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And therefore, certainly if he left a daughter in the world, he can certainly be repaired more. For even though this is not the completeness of the repair — for the essential completeness of the repair is through the aspect of a male son, who is the aspect of mashpia, as above — nevertheless, he can be repaired through her far more than he would be repaired through his family members, since in any case he left a genuine remnant in the world. And therefore, she exempts from yibum, as above. And therefore, the daughters of Tzelafchad were wise, and they linked the law of inheritance to yibum, for they are one and the same aspect, as above. And this is why the section of the daughters of Tzelafchad — which is the section of nachalos [inheritances] — is juxtaposed to the section of the families of the children of Israel, which are all enumerated in Parshas Pinchas. For the law of inheritance is drawn from the aspect of the Mishkan — which is the totality of the tefillah of Israel — which is the aspect of the totality of the families of Israel, who all traveled surrounding the Mishkan, as above. And this is the aspect of Purim, which is the subjugation of Haman-Amalek. For it is explained in the Torah mentioned above, at its conclusion, and this is its language: “And this is what Rabbah bar bar Chanah said,” etc. For in our exile, as it were, the Holy One, blessed be He, is in a state of hester panim [hiddenness of face], etc. And all our tefillos and requests are about this — that He has turned His back to us, that He should return His face, as it is written: “Turn to me” (Tehillim 25:16), etc. And when we see the length of the exile, and every day we cry out to Him and are not saved — there are among our people, the children of Israel, those who err, G–d forbid, in their hearts, thinking that all the tefillos are in vain. But in truth, all the tefillos — the tzaddikim in every generation elevate them and establish them, as it is written: “And Moshe erected the Mishkan” (Shemos 40:18), and they bring every limb to its place, and they build the stature of the Shechinah little by little, until its full stature is completed. Then Mashiach — this is Moshe — will come and complete it and establish it in its fullness. [And this is explained,] etc., etc., until: “and they thought it was dry land” [savrinan yabeshta hu] — meaning, they thought the tefillos were not producing fruit. But in truth it is not so; rather, “we ascend and bake and cook” [salkinan va’afinan u’vashlinan] — meaning, all the tefillos ascend and rise, and the more we increase in tefillah, the more the Shechinah is built, etc. When the stature of the Shechinah will be completed — that is, through the multitude of tefillos — His compassion will be stirred and midas hadin will be transformed into midas harachamim [the attribute of judgment into the attribute of mercy]. And this is: “when it heated up, it overturned” [kad cham gabei is’hapech], etc. And “had we not brought the ship close” [v’i la havei m’karbinan li’sfinta], etc. — this is the aspect of chesed, etc. That is: “For My sake, for My sake, I will act” (Yeshayahu 48:11), as it says in the Midrash: “Who preceded Me that I should repay?” (Iyov 41:3), etc. And even though it appears that through our tefillah and our Torah the redemption will come, nevertheless, we need His chesed — that through His chesed He will redeem us, etc. See there all this well. And just as it is with the totality of Israel, so it is in particular with each and every individual. For everyone who has entered somewhat into the service of Hashem, and has already engaged a little or a lot in hisbodedus and tefillos and supplications and requests, that he should merit that Hashem, blessed be He, should turn His face toward him and bring him close to His service and redeem him from his desires and his evil character traits — and he sees that he has still not been answered, for he is still very far from Him, blessed be He — through this, he can err, G–d forbid, thinking that all his tefillos and conversations [with Hashem] were in vain, G–d forbid. But in truth it is not so. For no word is ever lost at all. Rather, every tefillah and conversation makes a great impression. And the true tzaddikim gather all these tefillos and conversations and build from them wondrous structures — the aspect of the Mishkan. And each person needs to strengthen himself greatly in tefillah and conversation [with Hashem] always, come what may, until through the multitude of tefillos, the building of the tzaddikim — who are engaged in gathering and connecting and elevating these tefillos — will be completed. And then His compassion, blessed be He, will be stirred, and He will return to him and have mercy upon him. And this is the aspect of the overwhelming power of the miracle of Purim, which is the downfall of Haman-Amalek, which is greater than all the miracles, as our Sages of blessed memory said. For this error that enters the hearts of many people — to err as if all the tefillos are in vain, G–d forbid, when they see that they cry out and pray and beseech for days and years and are not saved, as above — this error is drawn from the aspect of the klipah of Haman-Amalek, through whom is the essential lengthening of this bitter exile, which is the exile of Edom, which is the aspect of Amalek, who is of the seed of Edom. For Amalek is the totality of all the klipos and the Sitra Achra. And he is the enticer, and he is the accuser, and he is the one who weakens the mind from strengthening itself in tefillah. For he himself entices each member of Israel with whatever he entices him — with desires and evil thoughts and evil character traits, may the Merciful One save us. And because of this, the exile intensifies, G–d forbid. And through this itself, he weakens the mind from strengthening itself in tefillah, since he misleads them in their thinking: “Don’t you see that you are accomplishing nothing at all through your tefillah?!” G–d forbid. And when they become lax in tefillah, the exile lengthens more, G–d forbid. And the more the exile lengthens, the more he weakens the mind from praying more and more. And so the cycle continues, G–d forbid, G–d forbid. And therefore, the exile indeed lengthens greatly, until it would have been impossible to leave the exile, G–d forbid, due to the multitude of his evil schemes — were it not for Hashem Who was with us, Who Himself fights against him in every generation, as it is written: “A war for Hashem against Amalek from generation to generation” (Shemos 17:16). And He in His mercy sends us in every generation wondrous tzaddikim, who with their sublime wisdom implant in our minds never to despair of compassion under any circumstances, and implant in our hearts wondrous strengthening — to strengthen ourselves in tefillah always, come what may. And through this, the redemption will come speedily. And this is the aspect of the overwhelming power of the miracle of Purim. For Haman the wicked, may his name be blotted out, is the aspect of the klipah that sought to intensify at the end of the Babylonian exile, to prevent the redemption and to weaken the hearts of the children of Israel from increasing in tefillah — since they saw that the time had already passed that they had been promised to be redeemed after seventy years, and they had still not been redeemed. As our Sages of blessed memory said, that they all calculated and erred, and even Daniel calculated and erred — see there. And therefore, Haman thought to implant the error in their hearts as if there is no more hope, G–d forbid. And therefore he said: “There is one people” [yeshno am echad] (Esther 3:8). And our Sages of blessed memory expounded: “Their G–d is asleep” [Elokeihem yashen hu]. For during the entire exile, as long as Hashem, blessed be He, does not answer His people Israel to redeem them, He is called “asleep,” as it were, as it is written: “Awake! Why do You sleep, Hashem?” (Tehillim 44:24). And it is written: “And Hashem awoke as one who had been sleeping” (Tehillim 78:65), as it is found in Midrash Esther. But in truth, Israel through their tefillah arouse His compassion, blessed be He, little by little, each time, until speedily He will awaken, as it were, from His sleep, in the aspect of: “And Hashem awoke as one who had been sleeping” — and He will redeem us speedily. For in truth, there is no sleep before Him, blessed be He, G–d forbid, as it is written: “Behold, He neither slumbers nor sleeps, the Guardian of Israel” (Tehillim 121:4). It is only that because of midas hadin, He, blessed be He, as it were, hides His face from us, until it appears as if He is sleeping, G–d forbid. And we are obligated to pray and to— And this is: “And he struck at your tail, all the stragglers behind you” (Devarim 25:18) — that he overpowers only the weak among Israel. And this is: “And you were weary and exhausted, and did not fear G–d” (ibid.). “Feared G–d” — this is the aspect of tefillah, which is the aspect of yir’ah [awe], as it is written: “A woman who fears Hashem — she shall be praised” (Mishlei 31:30). That is, you are weary and exhausted and you do not strengthen yourself in tefillah, which is the aspect of yir’as Elokim. And this comes from him himself, who weakens your mind, etc., as above. And the Torah warned us to remember this well, for one needs to remember this very, very well in one’s heart. For his intensification through this weakening of the mind is beyond measure. And one needs to remind oneself each time of the great warnings of the true tzaddikim, who warned us in many different expressions never to despair of compassion under any circumstances, as above. For the aspect of the klipah of Haman-Amalek seeks to cast forgetfulness into a person’s heart, as if Hashem, blessed be He, has not yet begun to save us at all, G–d forbid. Whereas in truth, we have already seen with our own eyes awesome salvations, miracles and wonders beyond investigation and without number, that He performed with us in every generation until this very day. For He took us out of Egypt with awesome signs, with trials, with signs and wonders, etc., and gave us the Torah with awesome signs, etc. And Yehoshua conquered the Land of Israel — thirty-one kings, etc. And all the miracles and salvations in the days of David and Shlomo, and so in every generation. But Amalek, may his name be blotted out, seeks to intensify each time and to weaken a person’s heart, as if Hashem, blessed be He, has not yet begun to save at all. And through this itself, he overpowers Israel also physically and lengthens the exile. And this is why the verse “And Amalek came” (Shemos 17:8), etc., is juxtaposed to the verse: “And they tested Hashem, saying: Is Hashem in our midst or not?” (Shemos 17:7). For this itself — that Israel stumbled and tested Hashem and said, “Is Hashem in our midst or not?” — this itself is drawn from the klipah of Haman-Amalek. And through this: “And Amalek came and fought with Israel” also physically. That is, the klipah of Amalek weakens a person’s heart in a time of distress, G–d forbid, until it seeks to cast forgetfulness into him, that he should forget all the good things and salvations that Hashem, blessed be He, has already done for him. Just as it was then — that this was right after He took them out of Egypt with such awesome signs, and split the sea for them, and gave them their wealth, and brought down the manna for them, etc. And afterward, when they had no water, He weakened their minds so much until they erred and doubted and said: “Is Hashem in our midst or not?” See and understand and behold how far the power of the klipah and the Sitra Achra reaches! And all of this is the doing of the klipah of Amalek, who encompasses all the klipos and the Sitra Achra, who can twist the heart so much until one can come to such an error — if one does not strive to overcome him through the power of the true tzaddikim. And so it is explained in the words of our Sages of blessed memory, and it is brought in Rashi’s commentary there on this verse: “Is Hashem in our midst or not? And Amalek came” (Shemos 17:7–8). And this is its language: “He juxtaposed this section to this verse, to say: I am always among them and available for all your needs, and you say, ‘Is Hashem in our midst or not?’ By your lives, the dog will come and bite you,” etc. A parable of a man who carried his son on his shoulder, etc. — see there. That is, as above: that Hashem, blessed be He, performs such miracles for us in general and in particular every single day, as we say: “For Your miracles that are with us every day, and for Your wonders,” etc. And the Sitra Achra, the aspect of the klipah of Amalek, with his schemes implants in the heart heresy and discouragement until one doubts whether Hashem is in our midst or not. And then: “And Amalek came upon them and fought with them” also physically, as above. And therefore, the essential war of Moshe Rabbeinu against him was through tefillah, as it is written: “And his hands were emunah” (Shemos 17:12). And its Targum is: “spread out in prayer.” For the essential subjugation of Amalek is through Moshe — who is Mashiach, the aspect of the tzaddikim of the generation — who overcome him through tefillah and implant in the hearts of Israel to strengthen themselves in tefillah always and not to listen to his enticements and his errors, G–d forbid. And this is: “And it was, whenever [Moshe raised his hand…]” (Shemos 17:11). And this is the aspect of: “The first of nations is Amalek” (Bamidbar 24:20). For it has already been explained there in the Torah mentioned above that tefillah is the aspect of the bechor who takes pi shnayim, which is the aspect of arranging His praises, blessed be He, and the requesting of one’s needs, etc. — see there. And we have already explained above the matter: that the essential strengthening in tefillah is through the aspect of the begetting of the bechor — which is the aspect of the first begetting and result that a person accomplishes through his tefillah. For when a person sees that he has already accomplished something through his tefillah — which is the aspect of the begetting of the bechor, as above — through this, he is strengthened in tefillah further, for his emunah is strengthened and a kli is made to receive the shefa, through seeing that he already accomplished something through his tefillah. And for this reason, tefillah is in the aspect of bechor — see there. And this is the aspect of: “My firstborn son is Israel” (Shemos 4:22). For the revelation of the service of tefillah — Israel revealed it in the world, for our craft is only with the mouth. And in the future, at the time of the redemption, when the entire world will see the greatness and the multitude of accomplishments and salvations that we achieved through our tefillos throughout all the days of the exile, then they will all strengthen themselves in tefillah — since everyone will then see the greatness of tefillah, through the greatness of Israel, whose entire greatness they merited through tefillah. As it is written: “For then I will transform the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them call upon the Name of Hashem” (Tzefanyah 3:9), etc. But the value of the tefillah of the nations of the world will not be considered so significant then, since they did not strengthen themselves in tefillah, as above, except after they saw what Israel accomplished through their tefillah. But the holy people of Israel merited to strengthen themselves in tefillah throughout all the days of the exile, at a time when they had not yet seen what they had accomplished. And therefore, Israel is called “firstborn” and “first,” for they revealed the service of tefillah in the world — which is the aspect of the begetting of the bechor, which is the aspect of the first result accomplished through tefillah. And this begetting and accomplishment is exceedingly precious and dear, for then the essential strengthening in tefillah is needed — at a time when one has not yet seen what one has accomplished, as above. And therefore, the essential departure from Egypt was through the striking of the firstborn specifically. For through all the wonders, Pharaoh was not subdued in completeness and strengthened his heart, until He brought upon him the striking of the firstborn. And the firstborn of Israel were saved. And through this, the aspect of the bechor of the Sitra Achra was subdued, and the aspect of the bechor of kedushah was elevated and magnified — which is the aspect of the service of tefillah. And then the accomplishment of the tefillah and the crying out of Israel throughout all the days of the exile was revealed, and then they were redeemed and left Egypt. And then the firstborn were sanctified, as it is written: “Sanctify to Me every firstborn” (Shemos 13:2), etc. For “G–d made this corresponding to that” (Koheles 7:14). For just as there is the aspect of the bechor in kedushah — the aspect of the holiness of Israel, the aspect of the service of tefillah, as above — so too there is the aspect of the bechor of the Sitra Achra, which is the aspect of Amalek, the aspect of: “The first of nations is Amalek.” That is, the aspect of the klipah of Amalek overpowers each time against the aspect of the bechor of kedushah, which is tefillah. That is, even when one accomplishes something through tefillah — which is the aspect of the begetting of the bechor — he overpowers and implants heresy and forgetfulness in the heart, as if Hashem, blessed be He, has not yet begun to hear one’s tefillah at all. And therefore, Amalek is called “first” — the aspect of “the first of nations,” etc. — for he seeks to overpower against the aspect of “first,” which is the aspect of bechor, as if Hashem, blessed be He, has not yet begun to save at all. And from there — from the aspect of “the first of nations is Amalek” — from there was the nourishment of the firstborn of Egypt. For Amalek encompasses all the nations, and especially Egypt, for the heavenly prince of Egypt is Edom, who is Amalek. And therefore, through Hashem striking the firstborn of Egypt, through this the nourishment of Egypt from the aspect of the klipah of Amalek was severed and cut off — through whom are all the exiles. And through this, the klipah no longer had the power to harden his heart, and then he was compelled to agree that they should leave. But because Amalek himself had not yet fallen — only the nourishment of Pharaoh and Egypt from him was severed through the killing of the firstborn, as above — therefore, afterward, after they left, he intensified again and overturned the heart of Pharaoh and his servants, and they said: “What is this that we have done?” (Shemos 14:5), etc. And all of this was through the klipah of Amalek, which had returned and reawakened. For he reawakens and intensifies each time. And this is what is found in the Midrash: “And it was told… that the people had fled” (Shemos 14:5) — that the one who told was Amalek. That is, as above: the one who told and enticed Pharaoh, saying that Israel had fled and that he should intensify to pursue them — this was Amalek. For this is the way of Amalek: to intensify each time and deny everything and implant forgetfulness and errors in the heart, as if there had not yet been any salvation, G–d forbid, as above. And therefore, after Pharaoh and his army fell in the sea completely, afterward Amalek himself came against them. For he himself had not yet been subdued, as above. And therefore, he himself intensified and did not pay attention to all the wonders and salvations that Hashem, blessed be He, had performed for us, and came to fight against them. For he is the aspect of “first” that overpowers against the aspect of the bechor, which is the aspect of “first,” which is the aspect of the service of tefillah, as above. And therefore, Hashem, blessed be He, Himself fights against him in every generation, as above. And this is the aspect of semichas ge’ulah li’sefillah [juxtaposing the blessing of redemption to the Shemoneh Esrei]. For before we enter into tefillah to pray for our needs in the tefillah of Shemoneh Esrei, we mention the redemption from Egypt and we mention the subjugation of the bechor of the Sitra Achra, as we say: “All their firstborn You slew, and Your firstborn Israel You redeemed.” And through this, we remind ourselves of what Israel already accomplished through their tefillah — which is the aspect of the begetting of the bechor of kedushah, which is the aspect of the service of tefillah. For through this, the heart is strengthened to pray, as above. And therefore, it is then that we begin to pray. For the essential strengthening in tefillah is through the aspect of the begetting of the bechor, which is the aspect of the redemption from Egypt — through our reminding ourselves of what we have already accomplished through our tefillah, as above. The principle is that the klipah of Haman-Amalek is what weakens the hearts of the children of Israel at the end of the exile, at a time when the redemption is ready to come — only a certain number of additional tefillos are still needed to complete the building of the Mishkan, so that His compassion, blessed be He, will be stirred and He will return to us face to face. And he, with his schemes, weakens a person’s heart, as if all hope is already lost, G–d forbid, since they see the exile has lasted so long, and for so long they have been crying out and are not saved, as above. And so it is explained in the kavanos of the Ari z”l, in the kavanos of Purim: that the intensification of Haman at that time was at the end of the Babylonian exile, at a time when the tikkun above had already begun, that they would return face to face. And he sought to nullify this. And therefore, he intensified to nullify the building of the Beis HaMikdash, etc. — see there. Thus, at a time when the redemption is already close and ready to come, and the tikkun above has already begun in the aspect of “face to face” — he intensifies to nullify this, implanting in the heart as if all the tefillos are in vain, G–d forbid, and accomplish nothing at all, as above. And therefore, he sought to annihilate Israel completely, G–d forbid — “to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate” (Esther 3:13), etc. For the essential power of Israel is through tefillah, which is the aspect of the sword and the weaponry of Mashiach — who are the tzaddikim in every generation, as above in the Torah mentioned above. And then, when he weakened their minds from praying, through this he intensified in the aspect of his sword — the aspect of: “And by your sword shall you live” (Bereishis 27:40). And therefore, he sought to annihilate them completely, G–d forbid, through his sword, which has power when Israel does not strengthen themselves in tefillah, which is the aspect of the sword and weaponry of Israel, as above. For: “At a time when the voice is not the voice of Yaakov, then the hands are the hands of Eisav” (Bereishis Rabbah 65:20), as our Sages of blessed memory said. For the essential intensification of Haman was through the fact that they bowed to the idol in the days of Nevuchadnetzar, and through the fact that they derived benefit from the feast of that wicked one, and through the fact that they stumbled with foreign women, as our Sages of blessed memory said. For all these blemishes are the aspect of the blemish of the service of tefillah. For they bowed to the idol — which is idolatry, heresy — and this is the opposite of the service of tefillah, which is emunah, as above. And they stumbled with foreign women — which is a blemish of the bris — this is a blemish of tefillah, which is the aspect of the holy sword that depends upon tikkun habris, the aspect of: “Gird your sword upon your thigh” (Tehillim 45:4), as above in the Torah mentioned above. And they derived benefit from the feast of that wicked one — this is the aspect of the blemish of mishpat [justice], which one merits through tzedakah, as is explained there in the Torah mentioned above. For holy eating is the aspect of tzedakah and chesed, the aspect of tikkun hamishpat, in the aspect of: “A tzaddik eats to satisfy his soul” (Mishlei 13:25), the aspect of: “He who deals kindly with his own soul is a man of chesed” (Mishlei 11:17). As they said: Hillel, when he wanted to eat, would say: “I will go and perform chesed with my soul,” as our Sages of blessed memory said in Midrash Rabbah. For one needs to eat in measure and in balance, in the aspect of mishpat, in the aspect of: “He sustains his words with justice” (Tehillim 112:5). And this is what is written: “Did not your father eat and drink and perform justice and righteousness? Then it was good for him” (Yirmiyahu 22:15). For tikkun hamishpat is through holy eating. And this is the aspect of: “Happy are you, O land, whose king is a free man, and whose ministers eat at the proper time. Woe to you, O land,” etc. (Koheles 10:16–17). For the king and the ministers who are engaged in mishpat need to eat at the proper time and occasion, with composure of mind, in holiness and purity — so that they not corrupt the mishpat through the blemish of the desire for eating, as above. And so it is understood from the Torah “Chadi Rabbi Shimon” in siman 61, that through excessive eating, the mishpat is blemished. And therefore, it is forbidden to eat before tefillah, as it is written: “You shall not eat upon the blood” (Vayikra 19:26) — so as not to blemish the mishpat through eating, for through this the tefillah is blemished, G–d forbid. For the essential tikkun of tefillah is through tikkun hamishpat, as above. And Eisav, who blemished the service of the bechorah, which is the aspect of tefillah, and despised it, as it is written: “And Eisav despised the birthright” (Bereishis 25:34) — his blemish was through the desire of eating, the aspect of: “Pour into me, I pray” (Bereishis 25:30), etc. Therefore, through their deriving benefit from the feast of that wicked one — which is the blemish of the desire of eating — through this they blemished the mishpat, which is the blemish of tefillah, as above. And therefore, Haman, may his name be blotted out, sought to overpower against the righteousnesses of Israel, which are the aspect of shekalim. And he said: “And ten thousand talents of silver I will weigh out into the hands of those who carry out the work, to bring into the king’s treasuries” (Esther 3:9). For tzedakah is the aspect of tikkun hamishpat, which is tikkun hatefillah — and he sought to overpower against this. For the essential intensification of his power is against the holy emunah, which is the service of tefillah. For the essential emunah depends on tefillah — that one needs to believe that Hashem, blessed be He, is all-powerful, and He is full of compassion, and He desires the tefillos of Israel, and He hears their tefillah always, as above. And this is what our Sages of blessed memory said, that the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: “Wicked one! Their shekalim have already preceded yours. There we learned: On the first of Adar, they announce concerning the shekalim” (Megillah 13b). For the essential tzedakah is in the aspect of shekalim. For it is explained there in the Torah mentioned above that tzedakah is the aspect of mishpat, through which one knows how to fight with the sword — that one should strike the target precisely and not miss, etc. — see there. And this is the aspect of shekalim. That is, tzedakah is in the aspect of shekalim, because through tzedakah one merits the aspect of mishpat — which is the aspect of shekalim, the aspect of weighing — that one sustains one’s words with justice, that is, with balance — that one should strike the target precisely and not miss, as above. (And regarding the matter of shekalim, I had much in my heart to explain, but the matter did not avail itself to be written in its time, and it was forgotten.) Thus, the klipah of Haman-Amalek is the aspect of the klipah that weakens and enfeebles a person’s heart from praying, due to seeing the lengthening of the distresses and the exile, may the Merciful One save us, as above. And this is the aspect of “they thought it was dry land” [savrinan yabeshta hu], as stated in the Torah mentioned above — that they think, G–d forbid, as if all the tefillos are in vain, G–d forbid. And this error is drawn from the klipah of Haman-Amalek, as above. And therefore, his subjugation was through Mordechai and Esther, who are the aspect of the totality of the tefillos of the true tzaddik and of Knesses Yisrael [the Congregation of Israel]. For Mordechai the Jew — this is the aspect of the tzaddik of the generation, who is the aspect of Mashiach, who is the aspect of rei’ach [fragrance], who encompasses all the tefillos. For all his wars and all his conquests are through tefillah, as is explained there in the Torah mentioned above. For Mordechai is the aspect of “the chief of the spices, mor dror [pure myrrh]” (Shemos 30:23), whose Targum is marei dach’ya, as our Sages of blessed memory expounded (Chullin 139b). That is, the aspect of the head and root of all the tefillos, which are the aspect of fragrance, the aspect of Mashiach. For he is the aspect of “the chief of the spices, mor dror.” And this is “the chief of the spices” — “chief” [rosh] specifically, the aspect of rosh and bechor, which is the service of tefillah, as above — the opposite of the aspect of “the first of nations is Amalek,” which is the aspect of laxity in tefillah, as if we have not yet begun to accomplish anything at all. And Mordechai, the aspect of “the chief of the spices,” etc., strengthens the heart of each and every member of Israel to begin anew each time — to strengthen oneself in tefillah. For we have already accomplished much, but we still need to accomplish very much more until we complete the building in completeness — the aspect of the building of the Mishkan — to bring Hashem, blessed be He, back to us in the aspect of “face to face,” as above. And in comparison to the enormity of the greatness and the wondrous salvations, etc., that we still need to accomplish — we have not yet begun to pray properly at all. And nevertheless, Hashem, blessed be He, has already helped us very, very much. But each and every day, we need to begin anew to strengthen ourselves and to overcome in tefillah. For His greatness, blessed be He, is without limit, and He strengthens our hearts to trust in His kindness, blessed be He, always and to strengthen ourselves in tefillah always. For no tefillah is in vain, G–d forbid. Rather, each and every tefillah makes an impression, and from them the stature of the Shechinah is built — which is the aspect of the building of the Beis HaMikdash, etc. — until its full stature is completed. Then His compassion will be stirred and He will return to us, etc., as above. And all of this is the opposite of the aspect of the klipah of Haman-Amalek. And therefore, he [Mordechai] subdues and uproots their evil klipah. And therefore, in truth, at the time of Haman’s decree, he [Mordechai] strengthened himself in tefillah greatly, as it is written: “And Mordechai knew all that had been done, and Mordechai tore his garments and cried a great and bitter cry” (Esther 4:1). And as our Sages of blessed memory said: “Ben Shim’i ben Kish” — that he knocked upon the gates of mercy, etc. And he also implanted in the hearts of all Israel to strengthen themselves in tefillah, as it is written: “And in every province… fasting and weeping,” etc. (Esther 4:3). And as it is written: “And the words of the fasts and their outcry” (Esther 9:31). Thus, Mordechai is the tzaddik of the generation, the aspect of Mashiach, the aspect of fragrance, the aspect of the root of the totality of the tefillos of Israel, to whom all Israel need to bind their tefillah, as is explained there in the Torah mentioned above. And Esther — she is the aspect of Knesses Yisrael, the aspect of the tefillos of each and every member of Israel — of what they pray in the intensity of the lengthening of their exile and their distress, in body and soul. And she is called Esther on account of the concealment [hester], in the aspect of: “And I will surely hide [haster astir] My face” (Devarim 31:18), etc., as our Sages of blessed memory said (Chullin 139b). That is, during the lengthening of the exile, it appears as if Hashem, blessed be He, hides His face from us, and as if the tefillos are in vain, G–d forbid. But Knesses Yisrael, the holy people, the aspect of Esther — they strengthen themselves in tefillah always, even in the intensity of the concealment within the concealment. Even the weak among Israel, who do not have the strength to arrange their tefillah properly, until the kingdom of wickedness overpowers them — the aspect of the kingdom of Achashveirosh, the aspect of: “And Esther was taken to King Achashveirosh” (Esther 2:16) — even then they overcome in tefillah always. As our Sages of blessed memory said, that at the time when Esther came into the house of Achashveirosh and the Shechinah departed from her, she then cried out: “My G–d, my G–d, why have You forsaken me?” (Tehillim 22:2), etc. And this alludes to every member of Israel: when one descends, G–d forbid, even to places where the Sitra Achra — the aspect of the kingdom of wickedness — extends, and the holiness, which is the Shechinah, departs from him — one also needs to strengthen one’s heart then and cry out: “My G–d, my G–d, why have You forsaken me?” etc. And all of Esther’s strengthening to cry out always to Hashem, blessed be He, was through Mordechai, who hinted to her about this. For Mordechai, the aspect of the tzaddik of the generation, is always engaged in teaching the totality of Israel — the aspect of Esther — that they should strengthen themselves in tefillah always, even during the lengthening of the exile in general, and in particular in body and soul, even in the intensity of the concealment. As it is written: “And he raised Hadassah, she is Esther, his uncle’s daughter” (Esther 2:7). For Esther is called Hadassah on account of the tefillos that they are always engaged in — which give off a good fragrance like a hadas [myrtle]. For even the tefillos of the weak among Israel — who are in the aspect of Esther, in the aspect of concealment — even they give off a good fragrance before Him, blessed be He, through the tzaddik of the generation, the aspect of Mordechai, to whom we bind our tefillah. And he elevates even our tefillah before Him, blessed be He, as a pleasing fragrance. For all the vitality and greatness of Esther — who is the aspect of Knesses Yisrael — is through the tzaddik of the generation, who is the aspect of Mashiach. For the tzaddik implants in the heart of Israel and strengthens their heart to pray always, and he receives all their tefillos that they bind to him and elevates them— And as our Sages of blessed memory said: She sat in the lap of Achashveirosh and immersed and sat in the lap of Mordechai (Megillah 13b). That is, even though the intensity of the kingdom of wickedness overpowered her, she strengthened herself each time and would immerse and sit in the lap of Mordechai. That is, the woman who fears Hashem — the aspect of Esther, the aspect of the tefillah of the weak, upon whom the impurity of the kingdom of wickedness has overpowered — nevertheless, she did not abandon her place. And she strengthened herself each time to purify herself and to bind herself to the aspect of Mordechai, who is the tzaddik of the generation, to fulfill the word of Mordechai, who urges her and strengthens her to increase in tefillah always, come what may. And through this, we merited the overwhelming power of the miracle of Purim, the like of which had never been. And the days of Purim were established for all generations, to make them days of feasting and simchah [joy]. For Mordechai and Esther merited then, through the greatness of their holiness and their greatness, through their increasing in tefillah and implanting in Israel to increase in tefillos and cries — even after their decree of judgment — until they annulled the decree and the matter was overturned, and they hanged Haman, etc. And they had an awesome miracle and such a salvation, until they merited to draw this illumination into every generation, that also in the days of this last, long, bitter exile, the illumination of Mordechai and Esther should shine upon us every single year. Through this, we will merit to strengthen ourselves in tefillah always — even now, when the exile lengthens exceedingly in our many sins, in body and soul, in general and in particular. And this is the aspect of the greatness of the simchah of Purim. For this is the essential simchah — when one merits to know with certainty that Hashem, blessed be He, hears our tefillos always, just as He heard our tefillah in the days of Mordechai and Esther. As it is written: “I will rejoice and be glad in Your kindness, for You have seen my affliction” (Tehillim 31:8), etc. Through this, we are confident that also now He will hear our cry, in general and in particular, as it is written: “And I have trusted in Your kindness; my heart will rejoice in Your salvation” (Tehillim 13:6), etc. [Continued in Part C: §§17–25]