שכירות פועלים א

And this is why they chose the precise word “ham’vazeh” [“one who disgraces”] for the desecration of the Mo’ados. Namely, the aspect of the blemish of the Bris — from which come all the disgrace and humiliation. For the essential kavod [honor] depends on sh’miras habris (as our master, our teacher and our Rabainu, whose light should shine, wrote; see there). 14

Choshen Mishpat — Hilchos Nezikin

Laws of Damages — Halachos 1–4

This brief but dense halacha maps Chol HaMoed onto the concept of lashon Targum — the Aramaic translation-language that stands between Lashon HaKodesh (the Holy Tongue = Yom Tov = the talmid chacham who has already won the battle) and the seventy languages of the nations (the weekday = the dominion of the Sitra Achara). Chol HaMoed is Nogah — the intermediate realm where good and evil are intermixed, where the essential battle and test takes place. 15

Halachah 1 (based on Likutay Moharan I:68 and I:57): All damage stems from anger, and anger blemishes wealth. Therefore one who causes damage must pay — even inadvertently — because the damage itself is rooted in the blemish of anger, whose rectification is through monetary payment and korbanos.

Halachah 2 (based on Likutay Moharan I:35, “Ashrei ha’am”): The prohibition of causing damage and the obligation to pay, the concept of hezeik re’iyah (damage through seeing), teshuvah as returning to one’s root, guarding the covenant, and the eyes’ power to damage or rectify — all through the prism of the teru’ah and the ta’amei Torah.

Halachah 3 (based on Likutay Moharan I:35, continued): Guarding the da’as is the root of all; whoever damages has blemished the da’as. The chochmah is the root of all; one who guards the bris guards the da’as and thereby prevents all damage.

From this, Reb Nosson derives: why some labors are forbidden and some permitted (because it is mixed of weekday and festival); why the matter was entrusted to the Sages (because it is the aspect of the Oral Torah, which is itself the aspect of Targum — the discernment of permitted and forbidden, kasher and pasul); why Chol HaMoed falls between the first and last days of Yom Tov (like the Baal Shem Tov’s parable of teaching a child to walk: first you hold him, then you let go, then you catch him again); and why disgracing Chol HaMoed is linked to breaching the Bris — because the essential guarding of the covenant takes place precisely in the realm of Targum/Nogah, where the battle is fought. 16

Halachah 4 (based on Likutay Moharan I:30, “Meishra d’sakina”): Pesach and the prohibition of chameitz; the concept of tzimtzumim through which Elokus is drawn into this world; how chameitz represents ka’as (anger) and matzah represents holy da’as. Encompasses all forms of damage, the four avos nezikin, and rectification through Pesach, matzah, and the Seder.

✺ Na Nach Nachma Nachman MayUman ✺ 17 Based on Likutay Moharan I:68 and I:57

Hilchos Chol HaMoed

Whatever a person damages, he is obligated to pay — whether inadvertently or deliberately, etc.

For this is among the ways of t’shuvah: that at first they draw him close from Above, and afterward they distance him and he has a descent. And then he must strengthen himself with whatever he can, and not let himself fall completely, G-d forbid. And then the descent is the purpose of the ascent, and he merits to return and ascend to holiness at an even higher level. 1

According to what Rabbeinu, may his light shine [Likutay Moharan I:68], wrote: that anger damages wealth. For when wealth descends to a person, then the evil inclination intensifies to produce anger from this influx of wealth; see there.

And this is hinted at in the law of Chol HaMoed described above. For when one does t’shuvah and sanctifies oneself, this is the aspect of the holiness of Yom Tov — for Yom Tov is the aspect of t’shuvah (as Rabainu of blessed memory wrote). And after Yom Tov is Chol HaMoed. And Chol HaMoed is between one holiness and another — namely, between the holiness of the first days of Yom Tov and the last days. This is an allusion to the aspect of nafik [exiting] — namely, when one goes out and becomes distant from the holiness, the aspect of the above-mentioned descent. Then one also needs to sanctify oneself with the holiness of Yom Tov, even though one has fallen from one’s holiness to the aspect of chol [the mundane]. 2

It turns out that the blemish of anger is the blemish of wealth, as mentioned above. And therefore whatever a person damages, he must pay. For all damages are the aspect of anger, since through anger come all the damages that a person causes, breaking things in his rage. And therefore he must pay, because through the anger he blemished the wealth, and exchanged the flow of wealth for anger and wrath, and caused whatever damage he caused. Therefore he must pay for the damage with his money — and this is his punishment, for he blemished in this: he exchanged wealth for anger. Therefore he is punished by being compelled to pay and diminish his money on account of the anger and the damage — for through the anger he diminishes the wealth, as mentioned above. And therefore even one who acts inadvertently must pay, since damage was done and a blemish was made through anger. Therefore he must pay, for this is the punishment and rectification of the anger, as mentioned above. For it is certainly impossible for damage to occur except through anger, through which all damages come, as mentioned above. And even though he acted inadvertently — on the contrary, for this itself he needs rectification and atonement. And the rectification is through monetary payment, which is the aspect of the rectification of anger, as mentioned above. For the blemish of the inadvertent act is the aspect of the blemish of anger. For a person has da’as [awareness/knowledge], and it is not fitting for him to do something through error and inadvertence, without settled knowledge. And when a person comes to an inadvertent act and error, he certainly stumbled through anger, through which he came to error and inadvertence. For since he came to anger, he came to error — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said [Pesachim 66b]. It turns out that all inadvertent acts come through anger, as mentioned above, for through anger the mental faculties depart and one comes to error, as is brought, as mentioned above. And therefore even one who acts inadvertently needs atonement, for he needs atonement for the blemish of anger through which he came to the inadvertent act. And therefore the atonement for the inadvertent act depends on money — that is, a korban [sacrifice], which is acquired with money. For one must diminish one’s money and purchase a korban to rectify the blemish of the inadvertent act, which is the blemish of anger, as mentioned above, which is the blemish of wealth, as mentioned above. And therefore its rectification is through money, as mentioned above. For a korban is the aspect of the rectification of anger, as Rabbeinu, may his light shine, wrote [Likutay Moharan I:57]: that fasting is the rectification of anger; see there. And fasting is the aspect of a korban, as is brought. For through anger, the divine image (tzelem Elokim) departs and one becomes comparable to an animal. And therefore one needs fasting and a korban, which is the subjugation of the animal power and the ascent from the aspect of animal to the aspect of adam [human] — which is the aspect of a korban, as is brought. And therefore the inadvertent transgressor, whose blemish is the aspect of the blemish of anger that leads to error, as mentioned above — therefore he brings with his money a korban, which is the rectification of anger and the rectification of money, as mentioned above. And therefore, regarding the payments for damages — since the entire essential rectification of the payments is the aspect of the rectification of anger, as mentioned above — therefore there is no distinction between inadvertent and deliberate. For even one who acts inadvertently needs the rectification of payment, which is the rectification of anger, as mentioned above — for the blemish of the inadvertent act is the blemish of anger, as mentioned above. Especially an inadvertent act like this, which through the inadvertence leads to damage — this is certainly the blemish of anger, for all damages come through anger, as mentioned above. And as Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, wrote in Alef-Beis [Sefer HaMiddos, Da’as 25]: when a person causes damage, let him know that he has blemished the da’as; see there. For the damage is the aspect of anger, which is the blemish of the da’as, as mentioned above. And therefore he needs payment, which is the aspect of punishment and rectification for the blemish of anger, which is the blemish of wealth, as mentioned above. Based on Likutay Moharan I:35, “Ashrei ha’am yod’ei s’ruah” It is forbidden to damage another’s property, and if one damaged it — even though one derives no benefit — one is obligated to pay full damages, whether one acted inadvertently or under duress. And in the Mishnah in the Gemara Bava Kamma it is stated more explicitly, as follows: A person is always considered forewarned — whether awake or asleep, whether inadvertent or deliberate. Even through one’s seeing, if it causes damage to one’s fellow, it is forbidden to gaze at him. Therefore it is forbidden for a person to stand over his fellow’s field when its crops are standing. The matter of the prohibition of causing damage to one’s fellow, even inadvertently and in one’s sleep; the matter of payment for damages; and the matter of hezeik re’iyah [damage through seeing]. According to the teaching beginning “Ashrei ha’am yod’ei s’ruah” [Likutay Moharan I:35], which begins: Know that teshuvah [repentance] is the aspect of zarka, that is cast back to the place from which it was taken — and what is that place? Chochmah. For chochmah is the root of all things, as it is written: “You have made them all with wisdom” [Psalms 104:24]. Therefore each person must guard his intellect from alien wisdoms, which are called “the daughter of Pharaoh.” And the alien wisdoms are the aspect of kaneh [reed] that is in the klipah, as it is written: “Rebuke the beast of the reed” [Psalms 68:31], etc. — which opposes the kaneh chochmah [reed of wisdom] that is in holiness. And when a person introduces into his intellect alien thoughts — which are alien wisdoms — then the holiness of his intellect is diminished proportionally to the space occupied by the alien wisdom, etc. And upon this intellect, all evil traits gather and attach themselves, etc. — the aspect of the great city of Rome, the aspect of “Gavriel descended and implanted a reed in the sea.” For also above the chain of emanation of the gevuros, a suspisa d’dahava [golden sediment] is produced, etc. And upon it is built the great city of Rome — that is, the nachash hakadmoni [primordial serpent], which builds its edifice upon this alien intellect. And afterwards, when a person guards himself from alien wisdoms — not only that, but he must also renew his intellect at every moment, etc. And this is through sleep, as is brought in the holy Zohar: “New every morning; great is Your faithfulness” [Lamentations 3:23], etc. — and at the time of sleep the mental faculties, that is, the neshamah, enter into emunah, etc. And there are several aspects of sleep: there is sleep in the physical sense, etc. Also, the plain meaning of the Torah is an aspect of sleep relative to cleaving to the Creator, etc. And there is sleep that is the aspect of commerce (masa u’matan), etc. — that is, commerce conducted in faith, etc. And this is: “One who wishes to become wise should engage in monetary laws” (dinei mamonos), etc. And the essential renewal of the mental faculties that one receives through faith during the time of sleep — one receives from the or hapanim [light of the countenance], etc. But when a person places his intellect into faith, in the aspect of sleep, etc. — then he must guard the faith so that the external forces do not draw sustenance from it. For it dwells among the external forces, in the aspect of “This is Yerushalayim; I have set it among the nations” [Ezekiel 5:5], etc. — and Yerushalayim is the aspect of faith, the aspect of night, the plain meaning of the Torah, the aspect of the lesser luminary, etc. And one must draw the aspect of chashmal from the world of Binah to vest the Malchus — that is, the faith — so that the nations do not draw sustenance from it, etc. And this is accomplished when one conducts commerce in faith and speaks truth in one’s heart, like Rav Safra, etc. — and then Ima shelters over her children, etc. And this is the aspect of offering the korban tamid and the ketores, for through the tamid, Chochmah, Binah, and Da’as of Asiyah ascend into Yetzirah, and all the holy sparks that are in the klipah ascend in the secret of the eleven spices of the ketores, in the aspect of Malchus, etc.; see all of this there explained well. And this is the aspect of the prohibition of causing any damage to one’s fellow. For all damages come from the blemish of the da’as and the intellect, as is explained and understood from the words of Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, in many places. And therefore in the future, when the intellect will be wondrous in the world, there will be no damage in the world at all, as it is written: “They shall not hurt and they shall not destroy… for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of Hashem” [Isaiah 11:9], etc. And likewise it is stated in the Alef-Beis of Rabbeinu, of blessed memory [Sefer HaMiddos, Da’as 25], as follows: “When you cause some damage, know that you have blemished the da’as.” It turns out that all damages come through the blemish of the da’as. And this is well alluded to in the aforementioned teaching. For each person must guard his intellect very carefully from alien thoughts. And when one blemishes one’s intellect, God forbid, and introduces into one’s intellect alien thoughts and alien wisdoms, then a suspisa d’dahava is produced, God forbid, and a place is given to the chayas kaneh [beast of the reed] to build its edifice upon this alien intellect — the aspect of “Gavriel descended and implanted a reed in the sea of wisdom,” etc., as mentioned above. It turns out that the chayas kaneh grows stronger, God forbid, through the blemish of the da’as. And the chayas kaneh is the aspect of Eisav and Yishmael, the aspect of “the boar of the forest” [Psalms 80:14], as Rashi explains there — who are the aspect of the nachash hakadmoni, mentioned above, who are the chief of all the harmful forces in the world, for they are the damagers of the world, from whom come all types of damage in the world. And this is what is written regarding Eisav: “a man who knows hunting, a man of the field” [Genesis 25:27] — who would hunt and damage all people. And this is: “who knows” — “knows” specifically, for their essential sustenance is through the da’as, through the blemish of the da’as, as mentioned above. And likewise regarding Yishmael it is written: “a wild man, his hand against all” [Genesis 16:12], etc. For he damages everything. For they destroyed the Beis HaMikdash — and this encompasses all the damages in the world. For when the Beis HaMikdash stood, everyone dwelt in peace and tranquility without any damage, “each man under his vine,” etc., as it was in the days of Shlomo. And through the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash, through the great city of Rome — the aspect of Eisav and Yishmael — through this they damaged and destroyed all the wealth and all the abundance of Yisrael. For in the Beis HaMikdash, all the holy wealth of Yisrael was included — the aspect of gold, silver, copper, etc., and precious stones that were in the Beis HaMikdash, and the vessels of the Beis HaMikdash — all of which is the aspect of holy wealth, and from there the abundance and wealth flowed to all Yisrael. And they, by destroying and damaging the Beis HaMikdash, thereby damaged everything — for since then there has been no peace and tranquility, and the harmful forces of the world have grown stronger, God forbid. It turns out that all types of damage come, God forbid, through the aspect of the chayas kaneh — the great city of Rome — who grow stronger and go forth to damage, God forbid, through the blemish of the intellect, as mentioned above — in the aspect of “Gavriel descended and implanted a reed,” etc. And therefore through the blemish of the intellect come all types of damage. And therefore a person is always considered forewarned, etc. For the essential nature of the adam [person] is the da’as, and this is the definition of the adam — that he guards his da’as and his intellect, and then he certainly will not cause damage, as mentioned above. And therefore he is liable even for damage caused during sleep. For even though during sleep he has no da’as, nevertheless even then, during sleep, the prohibition and obligation not to damage applies to him. For in truth, during sleep, even though it is the aspect of the departure of the mental faculties, nevertheless the mental faculties then enter into emunah, etc., as mentioned above. And through this the mental faculties are renewed and strengthened, and therefore sleep is a rest for the mental faculties, as mentioned above. It turns out that, on the contrary, during sleep the mental faculties are renewed even more. And therefore, one who is a true adam and whose da’as is complete and who has faith in its completeness — he will certainly not come to cause damage, even during sleep or when he acts inadvertently (which is also the aspect of sleep, the departure of the da’as). For then the mind enters into faith and is renewed through it even more. It turns out that sleep is a strengthening of the mind. And therefore he is obligated not to come to cause damage even then, during sleep. For when the mind is strong, one is saved from damage, since all damages come through the blemish of the mind, as mentioned above. For then, during sleep, the mind enters into faith, and faith is the aspect of guarding, for it is the attribute of shamor [guard], as is known, and the faith guards over the person. Just as a person needs guarding so that he not be damaged, so too he needs guarding so that he not damage — as it is written regarding Yaakov: “And he was afraid and distressed” [Genesis 32:8] — “he was afraid” lest he be killed, “distressed” lest he kill. And when a person merits that his da’as is complete and his faith is complete, then he will certainly be guarded from causing damage even during sleep. For the faith guards the da’as that enters within it during sleep, so that it is not blemished and so that it does not come to cause damage — so that the harmful forces of the world do not draw sustenance from it. For all damages come through the blemish of the da’as, as mentioned above, and the faith saves the da’as within it from this. And therefore a person is always considered forewarned, even during sleep, as mentioned above. And even through seeing it is forbidden to damage. For one must guard the faith so that the external forces do not draw sustenance from it, etc. And this is accomplished through the chashmal that is drawn when one fulfills “and speaks truth in his heart” [Psalms 15:2] — through which Ima shelters over her children, as is explained there in the aforementioned teaching; see there. And the essential hezeik re’iyah comes through the blemish of the truth in the heart. For the essential hezeik re’iyah comes through the desire (chemdah) in the heart — “the eye sees and the heart desires” — and through one’s eye being evil toward what belongs to one’s fellow. For there is envy and desire in his heart, and through this, hezeik re’iyah is drawn — for through this, one can damage him through one’s seeing. And this is the essential hezeik re’iyah. For certainly one whose eye is entirely good will not damage through his seeing; on the contrary, blessing is drawn through everything at which he gazes, as is brought, in the aspect of “one who has a good eye shall be blessed” [Proverbs 22:9], etc. It turns out that the essential hezeik re’iyah comes through the blemish of the heart — that is, through the desire in the heart. And this is the aspect of the blemish of truth. For the blemish of the lust for money is the blemish of truth, as is brought in the words of Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, elsewhere [Likutay Moharan I:23, “Tzivisa Tzedek”], as is brought above. For when one blemishes through the lust for money and covets what belongs to one’s fellow, God forbid, one alters the truth — for one alters the order of Creation. For according to the order of the acts of Creation that Hashem, blessed be He, created and arranged everything in its place, it follows according to this true order that this one should have such-and-such amount of money and that one should have such-and-such, etc. For everything follows the order of the acts of Creation, as they said [Taanis 25a]: “Do you want Me to destroy the world? And is it possible that it was created at an hour of sustenance?” For according to the order of the world’s creation, it was fitting that that Tanna should not have sustenance. It turns out that when one desires and covets what belongs to one’s fellow, this is the aspect of falsehood — wanting to alter the truth, that is, the true order of the acts of Creation. For all of Creation was created through truth, in the aspect of: the final letters of “B’reishis bara Elokim” spell emes [truth]. And therefore the coveter blemishes the aspect of truth, which is the blemish of the lust for money, as mentioned above — and the essential desire is in the heart. It turns out that the desire is the blemish of truth in the heart. And through this comes hezeik re’iyah — for “the root of the eye depends on the heart” (shuriyna d’eina b’liba talya) [as brought in Likutay Moharan I:54]. Also, the essential hezeik re’iyah is a matter entrusted to the heart (davar hamasur lalev), for no one recognizes this — for one can gaze at what belongs to one’s fellow and one’s fellow will not know it at all. And even when one’s fellow sees that he is gazing at his property, one can deflect and say that he did not intend to gaze at his at all, but was looking for some other purpose, and the like — whatever pretexts one can find for one’s gazing. And therefore from hezeik re’iyah, a person cannot protect himself — unless one’s fellow himself guards himself in truth, so that he does not cast his eye upon what belongs to another and does not gaze at it in order not to damage him through his seeing. It turns out that hezeik re’iyah is a matter entrusted to the heart — that is, one must have truth in his heart, so that he does not covet what belongs to his fellow. For the essential damage comes through the desire, as mentioned above — for through the desire alone one can damage one’s fellow, as Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, wrote elsewhere [Likutay Moharan I:69]. And this is the essential hezeik re’iyah, for the root of the eye depends on the heart, for the eye sees and the heart desires, as mentioned above. And the essential root of all damages is through the blemish of the da’as, as mentioned above — that is, when one has desire in one’s heart for one’s fellow’s money and the truth in the heart is blemished, then the chashmal, mentioned above, which is drawn from the truth in the heart, is blemished, God forbid. And when the chashmal is blemished and departs, God forbid, then the person’s guarding departs — for the guarding of the faith departs and the faith is blemished, God forbid. For the essential guarding of the faith is through the chashmal that is drawn from the heart, as mentioned above. And when the faith is blemished, God forbid, the mind is blemished — for the essential maintenance and strengthening of the mind is through faith, as mentioned above. And then, when the mind is blemished, one can damage through one’s seeing — for the eye is the emissary of the intellect, as is brought elsewhere. And as it is written: “And the eyes of both of them were opened” [Genesis 3:7] — which is said regarding wisdom. And therefore one can damage through one’s seeing, through the blemish of the intellect, from which all damages come, as mentioned above. For then, when the intellect is blemished through the blemish of the faith, which is blemished through the blemish of the chashmal, through the blemish of the heart — then clouds cover the eyes, which are “Romi rabbsa” and “Romi ze’irsa” [great Rome and small Rome], as is brought [in Ra’aya Mehemna, Pinchas 252] — which are the aspect of the great city of Rome that is built upon this blemished intellect, from which all damages come, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of hezeik re’iyah — through the clouds that cover the eyes, through the blemish of the mind, through the blemish of the chashmal drawn from the heart, which is the essential guarding, as mentioned above. And one who merits the aspect of “and speaks truth in his heart” — who has no desire or craving for what belongs to his fellow, for he has truth in his heart and conducts his commerce in complete faith — then he will certainly not come to any damage. For he merits to draw the aspect of the chashmal to guard the faith, and through the faith the person — which is the mind, the aspect of the da’as — is guarded from being blemished. And then he will not come to any damage at all, as mentioned above. And therefore a person is liable even for inadvertent damage, for an inadvertent act is the aspect of sleep, the departure of the da’as, and then a person remains only in the aspect of faith alone. And one who merits complete faith through the aspect of truth in the heart, through the chashmal, mentioned above, through which the faith is guarded — then his mind is guarded even in the aspect of departure, through the faith, as mentioned above. And then he will certainly be guarded from damage, as mentioned above. But when one blemishes and damages, God forbid, even inadvertently — this indicates that the guarding has departed, God forbid — that is, the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, through which the faith is blemished, and through this one comes to damage during the departure of the mental faculties — that is, inadvertently. For the essential maintenance and guarding of the mental faculties during the aspect of departure is through faith, as mentioned above, and the essential maintenance of faith is through the chashmal, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of the inadvertent transgressor bringing a korban for his sin. And this is the aspect of a person being required to guard even his property — that is, his animals — so that they do not damage. For the aspect of faith, mentioned above, which is guarded through the chashmal, mentioned above — through conducting commerce in complete faith, etc., as mentioned above — through which the mental faculties are maintained and strengthened: this is the aspect of offering the korban tamid and the ketores, for all the holy sparks ascend, etc., as is explained there; see there. And all of this is accomplished through the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above. For a person must subdue the animal spirit, which is the absence of da’as, from which come all the loathsome traits, as mentioned above, and all sins, God forbid, as is brought. And the animal spirit comes from the aspect of Nogah — “a radiance surrounding it” — as is known, which is around the chashmal, as it is written: “and from within it, like the appearance of the chashmal, and a radiance surrounding it” [Ezekiel 1:4, 27]. And Nogah is the aspect of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, which is half good and half evil, as is known. And the essential service of a person is to subdue and nullify the evil in Nogah so that the good ascends and is included in holiness — that the aspect of the animal spirit be transformed to the aspect of adam, in the aspect of “You save both man and beast, Hashem” [Psalms 36:7], in the aspect of “And I will give My sheep, the sheep of My pasture — you are adam” [Ezekiel 34:31] — “you are called adam” [Kerisos 6b] — that is, elevating from animal to adam. And this is “the sheep of My pasture, you are adam” — for this is the essential adam: when one clarifies and elevates from animal to adam, by separating the good from the evil so that Nogah is included in holiness. And all of this is accomplished through the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, which is the aspect of fire, the aspect of chayos eish [creatures of fire], etc. [as they said, Chagigah 13b]. For when the aspect of Nogah wants to ascend to holiness, then the three impure klipos also want to ascend with them. And the fire that issues from the chashmal burns them, and then they fall downward, and only Nogah is included in holiness, as is known. For this is the aspect of the flame of fire that descends on the eve of Shabbos, etc., as is brought elsewhere. But one who blemishes, God forbid, the truth in the heart and does not draw the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, to guard the faith, as mentioned above — then, God forbid, the faith is not guarded, and they draw sustenance, God forbid, from the faith, since there is no fire from the chashmal to burn them. And then Nogah cannot be included in holiness — for on the contrary, they grow stronger, God forbid, and draw sustenance from the holiness, as mentioned above. And therefore when a person sins inadvertently — and this is because he did not merit the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, to guard the faith, as mentioned above — for had the faith been guarded through the chashmal, he would have been guarded from sin even during the departure of the da’as, even inadvertently, which is the aspect of sleep, for then the neshamah and the mind enter into faith, as mentioned above. And since he blemished in the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, then the animal spirit, which comes from the aspect of Nogah that surrounds the chashmal, grows stronger, God forbid — for it was not included in holiness, as mentioned above. And therefore he must bring a korban of an animal, in order to subdue the animal spirit. For the fire on the altar is the aspect of the heavenly fire, the fire from the chashmal. For the Beis HaMikdash is the aspect of the heart of the world, in the aspect of “Speak upon the heart of Yerushalayim” [Isaiah 40:2], in the aspect of “and My eyes and My heart shall be there” [I Kings 9:3] — from which the fire of the chashmal issues, in the aspect of “My heart was hot within me; in my meditation a fire burned” [Psalms 39:4]. And this fire from the chashmal, which is the fire on the altar, burns the korban and subdues the animal spirit, and animal is included in adam — which is the essential nature of the korban, as is known, in the aspect of “When a person (adam) among you brings a korban to Hashem, from the animal” [Leviticus 1:2], etc. — that the essential purpose of the korban is to elevate animal to adam. For through the aforementioned fire, the three klipos, mentioned above, fall downward, and then Nogah is included in holiness, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of offering the korban tamid and the ketores. For through the korban, through the fire that burns the animal nature, the evil falls downward, and then one can clarify all the holy sparks in the secret of the eleven spices of the ketores, as mentioned above — which is the aspect of Nogah being included in holiness, and through which all the sparks ascend to holiness, as is known. And therefore a person is liable for damage even inadvertently, as mentioned above. For one must be guarded even inadvertently, and even during the departure of the da’as, in the aspect of sleep — through the aspect of the chashmal that guards the faith, into which the mental faculties enter during the aspect of sleep, as mentioned above. And therefore a person is liable even for the damages caused by his animals. For a person must elevate even the aspect of animal to adam, through the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above. And then even his animal will not come to cause damage — through the completeness of the da’as that is achieved through the aspect of the chashmal, as mentioned above. For the essential damage comes through the blemish of the da’as, as mentioned above. And as it is written: “They shall not hurt and they shall not destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of knowledge” [Isaiah 11:9] — that through the abundance of da’as, even the animals and beasts do not damage at all. For the da’as has no completeness as long as one does not merit to draw the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, which guards the faith, which is the essential maintenance of the da’as, as mentioned above. And when one merits the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, then Nogah is included in holiness, and then one elevates all the sparks to holiness, and animal is elevated to adam, to the aspect of da’as. And then there is no damage at all, even through animals and beasts, as mentioned above. For the holy sparks that fell come from the sheviras hakeilim [breaking of the vessels], and from there come all the damages, which are the aspect of breaking. But when one elevates all the sparks, the aspect of breaking — the aspect of damage — is nullified. For everything ascends to the da’as, in the aspect of zarka that is cast back to the place from which it was taken, which is chochmah, as mentioned above. And through the da’as, all damages are nullified, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of the payment of damages, as it is written: “He shall restore money to its owner” [Exodus 21:34]. “Money” (kesef) specifically — the aspect of “from the side of the right, the brain is white like silver (kaspa)” — the aspect of the completeness of the da’as, the opposite of the suspisa d’dahava that comes through the blemish of the da’as, as mentioned above. For the essential completeness of the da’as depends on commerce conducted in faith, as is explained in the aforementioned teaching. For the essential clarification of the sparks is through commerce, as is brought in the words of Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, in many places — for in the money are all the sparks, as is brought elsewhere. And when one conducts commerce in faith, this is the aspect of offering the korban tamid and ketores, through which all the sparks ascend to holiness, as mentioned above. And then one’s mind is renewed, in the aspect of “one who wishes to become wise should engage in monetary laws,” as mentioned above. And when one conducts commerce in faith, one engages in monetary laws, as mentioned above. And all monetary laws are included in the laws of damages — and therefore the Tanna called the order of Mishnah that discusses monetary laws by the name “Nezikin.” And as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “One who wishes to be pious should fulfill the words of Nezikin.” For it is impossible to conduct commerce in faith unless one is happy with one’s portion, is content with what one has, and does not covet what belongs to one’s fellow — on the contrary, one yields from what is one’s own to one’s fellow, fulfilling “and speaks truth in his heart,” like Rav Safra, who acted beyond the letter of the law. And when one does not covet what belongs to one’s fellow, then one’s heart is not blemished and the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, is not blemished — and then one can fulfill the words of Nezikin, for then one can be guarded from damaging one’s fellow, as mentioned above. But as long as one has desire for one’s fellow’s money, one will certainly not be guarded from damage — for through mere seeing one can damage him, and even through desire alone one can damage him, as is explained in the words of Rabbeinu elsewhere, as mentioned above. It turns out that all the laws of damages — that is, being guarded from damage — depends on guarding the heart, that is, not coveting what belongs to one’s fellow, as mentioned above. And on this depends all commerce in faith, which is the aspect of monetary laws, as mentioned above. And therefore the Tanna called all monetary laws by the name “Nezikin” — to teach that it is impossible to fulfill all monetary laws unless one guards oneself from damaging one’s fellow. And the essential thing is through not having desire in the heart for what belongs to one’s fellow — for without this it is impossible to be guarded from damage, and it is impossible to fulfill monetary laws — that is, to conduct commerce in faith, as mentioned above. For everything depends on the aspect of the chashmal that is drawn from the heart. And therefore the essential thing is to guard the heart — not to covet what belongs to one’s fellow, so that the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, which is produced from the aspect of “and speaks truth in his heart,” is not blemished, God forbid, as mentioned above. And one who blemishes in this and damages his fellow, God forbid, must pay him with the best (meitav) — with the best specifically. For one must go back and clarify the good that became intermixed, etc., through the blemish of the da’as, from which the damage came — for through this a suspisa d’dahava was produced and good and evil became intermixed, God forbid. And through the money that one pays, one goes back and clarifies the good from the evil, and elevates it to its root, and returns it to the owners — in the aspect of “he shall restore money to its owner,” in the aspect of zarka that is cast back to the place from which it was taken, which is chochmah, which is the aspect of the owners. For chochmah is the owner of all things in the world, for “You have made them all with wisdom” [Psalms 104:24]. And therefore the Torah calls the payment “money” (kesef) — the aspect of “from the side of the right, the brain is white like silver” — that is, the mind is restored and rectified in the aspect of “white like silver,” the opposite of suspisa d’dahava. And this is the aspect of the damager needing to pay with the best specifically — for one must clarify the good, etc., as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of: “One who wishes to be pious should fulfill the words of Nezikin.” “One who wishes to be pious should fulfill the words of Avos”; “and some say, the words of Berachos” — for they are all one. For it is impossible to fulfill the words of Nezikin except through the three aspects stated in the aforementioned teaching: that one guard one’s mind and da’as from alien thoughts; and also that one renew one’s mind through the aspect of sleep, and this depends on faith — when one merits complete faith, as mentioned above; and also that one guard the faith through truth in the heart, through the chashmal, mentioned above — the aspect of Ima sheltering over her children. And then one can be careful to avoid damage, whether deliberate or inadvertent, whether awake or asleep, and even hezeik re’iyah, as mentioned above. And these three aspects, mentioned above, are the aspect of the three Patriarchs. Chochmah in its completeness — which is the root of all creation, the aspect of “You have made them all with wisdom” — this is the aspect of Avraham, who is the right side, the aspect of “from the side of the right, the brain is white like silver,” as is brought elsewhere. And this is the aspect of “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created” [Genesis 2:4] — b’hibar’am — b’Avraham [with Avraham], for “You have made them all with wisdom.” Sleep, mentioned above, in which the mind enters into faith — the aspect of night, the aspect of darkness, etc., as mentioned above — this is the aspect of Yitzchak, gevuros, the aspect of darkness, the aspect of “and his eyes grew dim from seeing” [Genesis 27:1]. This is the aspect of Rosh Hashanah, which is the aspect of pachad Yitzchak, as is known — and then it is the aspect of sleep, as is known, as is brought in the aforementioned teaching. And the essential sweetening of pachad Yitzchak — the aspect of sleep, mentioned above — is through Yaakov, who is the aspect of truth, the aspect of “and speaks truth in his heart,” mentioned above. For Yaakov, the aspect of truth, tilts the balance to the side of the right and sweetens pachad Yitzchak, as is known. For Yaakov is the aspect of the or hapanim — that is, the renewal of the mental faculties that one receives from the faith during the time of sleep, through which the mental faculties — which are the aspect of Avraham — are renewed, as mentioned above. And then all the gevuros are sweetened. For Yaakov is the aspect of truth in the heart, from which the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, is drawn — the aspect of Ima sheltering over her children, which is the aspect of the sukas shalem [shelter of peace], which is the aspect of Yaakov, in the aspect of “And Yaakov journeyed to Sukkos” [Genesis 33:17] — “and for his livestock he made sukkos.” And therefore Yaakov is the choicest of the Patriarchs and his bed is complete — for he is comprised of all three. For the essential rectification of the mind and the faith, which are the aspects of Avraham and Yitzchak, as mentioned above, is through the chashmal, mentioned above, which is drawn through truth in the heart, which is the aspect of Yaakov, as mentioned above. And therefore, as long as Yaakov was not yet born, the mind was not yet in its completeness and it was not possible to be guarded from damage. For from Avraham came Yishmael, and from Yitzchak came Eisav, who are the damagers of the world, as mentioned above — who destroyed the two Temples, which corresponded to Avraham and Yitzchak. For as long as Yaakov was not revealed, it was impossible to guard the mind in its completeness — for the essential guarding of the mind is through faith, as mentioned above, and the essential guarding of the faith is through truth in the heart — the aspect of Yaakov. And therefore, one who wishes to be pious — the aspect of a pure mind, like silver, the aspect of Avraham, the man of chesed — should fulfill the words of Nezikin, as mentioned above. For when one is guarded from damage — and this is impossible except through the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, through which the faith is guarded and through which the mental faculties are maintained — for without this it is impossible to fulfill the words of Nezikin, as mentioned above. And therefore, when one fulfills the words of Nezikin, one is certainly pious — that is, one’s mind is in its completeness, which is the aspect of Avraham, the man of chesed, as mentioned above. And this is: “and some say, the words of Avos.” It is the same thing. For it is certainly impossible to guard the mind so as not to come to damage unless one merits to be included in the three Patriarchs, through the three aspects, mentioned above — for without this it is impossible to guard the mind, as mentioned above. And this is: “and some say, the words of Berachos” — for the essential guarding from damage depends entirely on the aspect of the chashmal drawn from the heart, as mentioned above — that is, not having desire in one’s heart. Through this one has a good eye — the aspect of “one who has a good eye shall be blessed” [Proverbs 22:9] — the opposite of an evil eye, which comes through an expansive appetite, through the desire of the heart, as mentioned above — whose eye is evil toward what belongs to his fellow and who can then damage, God forbid, through his seeing, which is the aspect of a curse, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Everything at which he gazed was cursed.” And a person must have no desire in his heart, and must have a good heart, so that he is in the aspect of “one who has a good eye shall be blessed.” And then specifically one can be guarded from damaging — for everything depends on this, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of “the words of Berachos” — the opposite of an evil eye, the aspect of hezeik re’iyah. Rather, one should be in the aspect of blessing, the aspect of “one who has a good eye shall be blessed,” as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of the tam [innocent animal] paying half damages and the mu’ad [forewarned animal] paying full damages. For a person has da’as, and as soon as he damages, this is the aspect of the blemish of the da’as, from which the damage comes — which is drawn from the aspect of the chayas kaneh, as mentioned above. But an animal has no da’as and is from the aspect of Nogah, which is half good, etc. And it is the way of an animal to damage without intention — such as with its foot, in the course of walking, or with its tooth, for its enjoyment, and the like. For because it has no da’as, through this it damages — for all damages come from the absence of da’as, as mentioned above. But that an animal should have intention to damage — to damage with intention, not for its enjoyment, such as with its horn and the like — this is a deviation, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said. And therefore it does not become mu’ad until three times, and before that it is called tam and pays only half damages. For where does it come from that an animal should have intention to damage? This is from the aspect of the blemish of the da’as of the person — which was blemished through the blemish of the heart, mentioned above, where the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, was blemished. And when the chashmal is not drawn, then they draw sustenance from the holiness, from the aspect of the da’as — for one cannot clarify Nogah, from which the animal takes hold, to be included in holiness. And on the contrary, they draw sustenance from the da’as, God forbid — and the animal becomes included in the three impure klipos, mentioned above. And then, when they draw sustenance from the da’as, the da’as is drawn to the aspect of the animal, and the sustenance of the da’as is transformed into intentional damaging — for they are the damagers of the world. It turns out that the essential reason the animal damages with intention is from the blemish of the da’as of the person — through the departure of the aspect of the chashmal, through which the da’as is drawn to them, God forbid, to the aspect of animality, and there the da’as is transformed, God forbid, and damage with intention results from this — the opposite of the holy da’as that guards from damage. And therefore it does not become mu’ad until three times — that is, on the third time it becomes mu’ad and pays full damages — corresponding to the aspect of the three impure klipos, mentioned above, that draw sustenance, God forbid, from the da’as, through the blemish of the heart, mentioned above. Through this the animal becomes forewarned with intention, as mentioned above. But before this, it is still tam and pays half damages — for it is still not included in them, but is in the aspect of Nogah, which is mixed — half good and half evil. And therefore one is only liable for half the damage. For the essential guarding of damages is through the da’as, through the chashmal, mentioned above, etc. — which is the aspect of the three Patriarchs, as mentioned above, who subdue and nullify the three impure klipos, mentioned above, and Nogah is included in holiness. And then even the animal is guarded from damage entirely. And this is the aspect of korbanos, as mentioned above — the aspect of offering the korban tamid, mentioned in the aforementioned teaching, that animal be included in adam — that the aspect of Nogah, etc., be included in holiness, as mentioned above. And then all the holy sparks ascend in the secret of the eleven spices of the ketores, as mentioned above. And then the aspect of the shor hamu’ad [forewarned ox] is subdued and nullified — which is the aspect of tola [worm], whose numerical value equals shor [ox], which is subdued through offering the korban tamid, as is brought in the Pri Eitz Chaim. And this is the aspect of “a continual burnt offering” (olas tamid), as is explained there. And this is: “to offer to Me at its appointed time” [Numbers 28:2] — spoken regarding the tamid — that by offering the tamid at its appointed time (b’mo’ado), the aspect of the shor hamu’ad is subdued, as mentioned above. And all of this is through the aspect of Yaakov, as mentioned above — the aspect of “Fear not, worm of Yaakov” [Isaiah 41:14], as is explained in the Pri Eitz Chaim. For through Yaakov the aspect of tola, mentioned above — the aspect of the shor hamu’ad — is subdued. For the essential nullification of damages is through the chashmal, mentioned above, which is drawn from the aspect of Yaakov, which is the aspect of truth, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of what is stated in the Tikkunim at its end: “B’reishis bara Elokim” — the initial letters spell Bava, which are the three Bavos [gates, i.e. Bava Kamma, Bava Metzia, Bava Basra], etc. — “regarding an ox, regarding a sheep,” etc. — that is, all the monetary laws in the three Bavos, etc.; see there. For the laws of damages in the three Bavos are alluded to in the beginning of the Torah, at the beginning of the creation of heaven and earth. For they are the aspect of guarding the mind, as mentioned above — through which He created the world, the aspect of “You have made them all with wisdom.” And this is: “B’reishis bara Elokim” — initial letters spell Bava, as mentioned above. And the final letters spell emes — for the essential guarding of damages, the aspect of the monetary laws in the three Bavos, is through truth — the aspect of Yaakov — through which the chashmal is drawn, through which the mind is guarded, and through which all types of damage are nullified, in the aspect of “They shall not hurt and they shall not destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of knowledge,” as mentioned above. And therefore there are three Bavos — corresponding to the aspect of the three Patriarchs, mentioned above, through whom comes the essential guarding from damages, as mentioned above. And the essential thing is through Yaakov, who is comprised of all three, who is the aspect of truth, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of: “So says Hashem to Yaakov, who redeemed Avraham” [Isaiah 29:22]. For through the aspect of Yaakov, Avraham — who is the aspect of chochmah, as mentioned above — is rescued. And this is: “who redeemed Avraham” — that is, from Ur Kasdim, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: that in the merit of Yaakov, Avraham was rescued from Ur Kasdim. For through Yaakov, the aspect of the chashmal is drawn, as mentioned above, and the fire of the chashmal burns and subdues the fire of the Sitra Achra, which wanted, God forbid, to overpower Avraham, who is the chochmah. For “from the fire they emerged, and the fire shall consume them” [Ezekiel 15:7]. And therefore, when the fire of the Sitra Achra wanted to take hold of Avraham, in the aspect of the chochmah, the fire of the chashmal drawn from the aspect of Yaakov emerged and burned them, and their fire was nullified, and it could not dominate Avraham — for “from the fire they emerged, and the fire shall consume them,” as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of: “And I will remember My covenant with Yaakov, and also My covenant with Yitzchak, and also My covenant with Avraham I will remember, and the land I will remember” [Leviticus 26:42]. For the two Temples, which corresponded to Avraham and Yitzchak, were destroyed, as mentioned above — for the essential guarding is through the aspect of Yaakov, as mentioned above. And therefore in the future, when there will be a complete redemption, the Beis HaMikdash will be in the merit of Yaakov. And therefore the verse lists the Patriarchs in reverse order, beginning with Yaakov first — for the essential rectification is through the drawing of the sukas shalem, the aspect of the chashmal, mentioned above, from the aspect of Yaakov. And through this, the faith will be guarded — the aspect of sleep, the aspect of night, the aspect of Yitzchak. And this is: “and also My covenant with Yitzchak.” And through the faith, the mind and the chochmah will be maintained — the aspect of Avraham. And this is: “and also My covenant with Avraham.” For originally, when Avraham and Yitzchak preceded Yaakov, it was not possible for the mind to be in its ultimate completeness. And through this the two Temples were destroyed, through the great city of Rome, etc., as mentioned above. But in the future it will be the reverse — beginning from Yaakov. And then the faith and the chochmah, the aspects of Avraham and Yitzchak, will be guarded. And then: “and the land I will remember” — for then Hashem, blessed be He, will remember the Holy Land, to return Yisrael to their land and build within it the Beis HaMikdash that will stand forever. For “You, Hashem, ignited it with fire, and with fire You will in the future rebuild it,” as it is said: “And I will be for it, says Hashem, a wall of fire round about” [Zechariah 2:9], etc., as mentioned above. Blessed is Hashem forever, Amen and Amen. It is forbidden to damage the property of one's fellow, and if he damaged it, he is liable to pay full damages. A person is always forewarned — whether awake or asleep, whether inadvertent or intentional. Based on the teaching "Ashrei ha'am zarka etc." (Torah 35), see there the entire teaching in its entirety. And the general principle for our subject is that one must guard the da'as very much, for chochmah is the root of everything, as it is written: "You have made them all with wisdom" [Psalms 104:24]. And the essential teshuvah is the aspect of returning the thing to its root, to the place from which it was taken, in the aspect of zarka — that was cast to the place from which it was taken. And the place from which all things in the world were taken is the chochmah, which is the root of everything, as mentioned above. Therefore the essential thing is to guard one's da'as and wisdom and thought very carefully, not to allow any alien wisdoms to enter one's mind, nor any alien thoughts and musings. For when, God forbid, one introduces into his mind alien thoughts and alien wisdoms, then this alien wisdom plants a reed in the sea of his wisdom and diminishes the place of holiness. And upon this reed of the Sitra Achra is built the entire edifice of the evil inclination, which is the aspect of the great city of Rome — which is the aspect of all the evil and disgraceful character traits, all of which are drawn and built through not guarding one's thought and allowing alien wisdoms and alien thoughts to enter one's thought, etc. And this is the aspect of "when Shlomo married the daughter of Par'oh," etc. And even when one guards his thought and sanctifies his da'as greatly — not only this, but furthermore he must renew his mind at all times. And the renewal of the mind is through sleep, for then the mind and the chochmah enter into emunah and are renewed there, in the aspect of "They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness" [Lamentations 3:23]. And through this one merits to receive a new intellect and a new neshamah from the light of the panim [face/countenance], which is the aspect of seventy faces of the Torah, or through the faces of the tzaddikim, through their showing him a friendly countenance, etc. And there are several aspects of sleep: for there is physical sleep in its literal sense — that one must sleep as necessary in order to preserve his mind, for sleep is rest for the mochin. And then his neshamah, which is his intellect, enters into emunah and is renewed there, and he receives a new intellect, which is a new neshamah, from the light of the panim, etc. And there is sleep that is the plain meaning of the Torah in relation to deveikus with the Creator, etc. And there is sleep that is the aspect of business dealings — when a person conducts business dealings in faithfulness, then his neshamah and intellect enter into the aspect of emunah and are renewed there, in the aspect of "they are new every morning," etc., and he receives a new intellect and a new neshamah from the light of the panim, as mentioned above regarding physical sleep, etc. And this is the aspect of the blowing of the shofar, for Rosh Hashanah is the aspect of sleep, and the shofar blasts are the awakening of the sleep, and then lights are drawn from the supernal panim, which is the aspect of the 370 illuminations of the light of the panim, which is the aspect of the reddening of the face of the one who blows the shofar, etc.; see there all of this well. Much of this is explained above in Halachah 2, and it is repeated here on account of several new things that are introduced in it. And this is the aspect of: a person is always forewarned, whether awake or asleep. For it is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, in another place (Torah 21) that all damages come through the blemish of da'as. For in the future, when da'as will be in its completeness, as it is written: "For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of Hashem" — then all damages will be nullified from the world, as it is written: "And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb... they shall not hurt and they shall not destroy... for the earth shall be full of knowledge," etc. [Isaiah 11:6,9]. It follows that all damages come through the blemish of da'as. For when one blemishes the da'as — that is, when he introduces alien wisdoms and alien thoughts into his mind — through this he plants a reed in the sea of wisdom, and upon this is built the great city of Rome, as mentioned above, which is the aspect of the edifice of the evil inclination and the Sitra Achra, etc. And this great city of Rome is the aspect of the damagers of the world, who are the aspect of Eisav and Yishmael, who destroyed the Beis HaMikdash and strengthened the edifice of the Sitra Achra, which is Romi rabbasa and Romi ze'irsa, as is brought. It follows that all the damagers of the world are drawn from the blemish of da'as. For in truth, the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash — which came through the blemish of da'as, through the building of the great city of Rome, through the damagers of the world who are Eisav and Yishmael, as mentioned above — from there all the damages in the world are drawn. For when the money of Yisrael is damaged, God forbid, this is the aspect of the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash. For the money of Yisrael is very precious and must be guarded very carefully, for all the money of Yisrael of holiness is drawn from the aspect of the 39 labors of the Mishkan. For all the businesses and commerce and labors through which the flow of wealth comes are all included in the 39 labors, and they are all derived from the Mishkan, as is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, in another place. And therefore all the money of Yisrael is in the aspect of the labor of the Mishkan, which is the Beis HaMikdash. And therefore when one destroys and damages, God forbid, the money of Yisrael, it is the aspect of the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash. And all of this is drawn from the blemish of da'as, from which come all damages, as mentioned above. For through the blemish of da'as, the great city of Rome is built, God forbid, which is the aspect of the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash, as mentioned above. And therefore a person is always forewarned, whether awake or asleep. For even though he was asleep and damaged without intention, nevertheless he is liable for this. Since the essential damage is drawn from the blemish of da'as, as mentioned above, and for the blemish of da'as a person is liable even during sleep. For, on the contrary, sleep is the essential rectification and guarding of da'as — for through sleep the da'as is renewed, etc., as mentioned above. And therefore one who exerts himself to guard his mind and da'as during the day while awake, and his mind is holy — then even during sleep his mind enters into emunah and is renewed there, and then his mind is completed even more through the sleep, in the aspect of the renewal of mochin, as mentioned above. But one who does not guard his mind during the day — then he does not merit the renewal of mochin in its completeness. For they do not allow a person's neshamah to enter into the gates of holiness, which is the emunah, at the time of sleep, except according to how much he merited to sanctify his thought — which is his neshamah — during the day while awake, in the aspect of "Who shall ascend the mountain of Hashem, and who shall stand in His holy place?" [Psalms 24:3] — as is brought in the holy Zohar and in the writings [of the Arizal], that the ascent of the neshamah to be renewed in the aspect of ibur [gestation] at the time of sleep is according to the holiness with which one sanctifies himself during the day. For then he merits at the time of sleep that his neshamah enters into emunah and is renewed there, as mentioned above. And also the sleep itself must be sanctified greatly, through accepting the yoke of the kingdom of heaven with love and with self-sacrifice before sleep — to recite the Krias Shema that is said upon one's bed with great kavanah — which is the faith of the Unity. And through this one merits to enter into emunah at the time of sleep, and then his intellect is renewed and strengthened even more through the sleep. And therefore one who damages something during sleep bears great liability for this, even though he was sleeping — for he is liable for the blemish of da'as that he blemished, or for blemishing the emunah, through which he did not merit to enter into emunah at the time of sleep, and his intellect was not renewed for good, and through this his da'as was blemished of its own accord. And through the blemish of da'as and emunah comes this damage during sleep, for all damages are drawn from the blemish of da'as, as mentioned above. And therefore a person is always forewarned, whether awake or asleep — for he is liable for the damage during sleep, because had he guarded his da'as and emunah, this damage would not have come to his hand. For even during sleep one must guard the da'as through accepting the yoke of the kingdom of heaven before sleep, and through guarding the da'as during the day. And then, on the contrary, during sleep the da'as is strengthened even more, as mentioned above. And one who damages during sleep has certainly blemished his da'as, as mentioned above, and therefore he is liable for this, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of Lag Ba'Omer, which is the hillula [celebration of the passing] of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, on which it is customary in Eretz Yisrael to have great rejoicing. For Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai is in the aspect of the awakening of the sleep. For it is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, that Rabbi Shimon is the aspect of "a watcher and holy one descending from heaven" [Daniel 4:10] — whose initial letters spell Shimon. "A watcher and holy one" specifically — the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, for ir [watcher] is the opposite of sleep. And therefore he revealed the most of all the secrets of the Torah and the hidden Torah, for "to him they gave permission," etc. For the secrets of the Torah are in the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, since the plain meaning of the Torah is the aspect of sleep, as mentioned above, and the secrets of the Torah are the aspect of the awakening of the sleep — which were revealed through Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who is "a watcher and holy one" — "watcher" specifically, the opposite of sleep, as mentioned above. And therefore his passing was during the days of the Sefirah, on Lag Ba'Omer, when the illumination of Shavuos — which is the receiving of the Torah — begins to shine forth. For all the days of the Sefirah are in the aspect of a holy sleep, which is a great good for the mochin — for through this the mind enters into emunah and is renewed there, and one receives a new intellect and a new neshamah from the light of the panim, which is the seventy faces of the Torah, etc., as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of the Exodus from Mitzrayim on Pesach, and afterwards the days of the Sefirah, and afterwards Shavuos which is the receiving of the Torah — for it is all for the sake of the rectification of da'as and the mochin, as is brought in the Kavanos [of the Arizal], that all the kavanos of Pesach, Sefirah, and Shavuos are to restore and draw and rectify the mochin that were blemished and damaged through the sin of Adam HaRishon and through the sins of all the generations after him — the generation of the Flood and the generation of the Dispersion — all of whom blemished the da'as through the lust of immorality and through their idolatry, which is the blemish of emunah, which is also the blemish of da'as, as mentioned above. And so too in every generation one must make these rectifications — which is the rectification of da'as through the aspects explained in the aforementioned teaching — which is the aspect of Pesach, Sefirah, and Shavuos. For on Pesach is the Exodus from Mitzrayim, and then all the mochin were drawn in wondrous revelation and in very great illumination, as is known — for this is the essential meaning of the Exodus from Mitzrayim. For in Mitzrayim the mind and da'as were in exile, as is known, for then the mind had not yet been purified to completeness. And so it is with every person: as long as he does not merit to sanctify his mind from alien and foreign thoughts and wisdoms, he is in the aspect of the exile of Mitzrayim, for Par'oh overpowers him because he did not guard his mind from the aspect of the daughter of Par'oh, which is the aspect of alien wisdoms, as mentioned above. And therefore the redemption from Mitzrayim did not begin until Moshe was born, for he was the redeemer, because he was the aspect of da'as, as is known. And immediately when he was born, the light of da'as was revealed and the redemption of Yisrael began to shine forth, as it is written: "And she saw him, that he was good" [Exodus 2:2]. "Good" refers only to holy da'as, the da'as of the holy Torah, as it is written: "Also, without da'as the soul is not good" [Proverbs 19:2]. And as it is written: "For I have given you a good teaching; do not forsake My Torah" [Proverbs 4:2]. And therefore, because then the da'as began to be completed, therefore the daughter of Par'oh immediately returned to holiness, and specifically the daughter of Par'oh saved Moshe from the river — this is a hint that the da'as was completed in great completeness, to the point that the daughter of Par'oh, which is the alien wisdoms, returned to holiness and to the holy da'as — which is the aspect of Moshe — and she gave up her life for his sake. And through this came the redemption, for the essential redemption from Mitzrayim is through the completeness of da'as, as mentioned above — that is, when the alien wisdoms, the aspect of the daughter of Par'oh, are nullified and return to holiness, and all recognize and know that Hashem is God in the heavens above and upon the earth below, etc. — which is the essential da'as, as it will be in the future, as it is written: "For then I will transform the peoples to a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of Hashem" [Zephaniah 3:9]. It follows that on Pesach, at the time of the Exodus from Mitzrayim, the da'as was completed and the alien wisdoms — which is the aspect of the daughter of Par'oh — were nullified and returned to holiness, as mentioned above. But even so, the da'as is still not in its completeness until it is renewed in the aspect of ibur [gestation] through sleep. And this is the aspect of Sefiras Ha'Omer, which is the aspect of sleep, the withdrawal of da'as — for after the first day of Pesach, all the mochin and da'as withdraw again, as is brought. And the withdrawal of da'as is the aspect of sleep. And this is the aspect of the omer of barley, which is animal food — which is the absence of da'as, the aspect of sleep. And as is brought in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, in another place, that animal food is the aspect of sleep — that is, that now we withdraw our da'as and place our mind into emunah alone, which is the aspect of sleep, so that our mind will be renewed — so that we will merit to receive a new intellect and a new neshamah from the light of the panim, which is the aspect of receiving the Torah — which is the seventy faces of the Torah — which we merit to receive on Shavuos. This is the aspect of receiving the new intellect, which is the Torah, through the forty-nine days of the Sefirah, which are the aspect of sleep — through which the mind is renewed, etc., as mentioned above. And therefore the days of the Sefirah are days of judgment, as is known — this is the aspect of sleep, which is the aspect of night, the aspect of darkness, the aspect of judgments, as is known, as is explained in the holy Zohar that at night judgment prevails, etc. And therefore the custom is to stay awake the entire night on Shavuos — this is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep. For the Sefirah is the aspect of holy sleep, through which specifically the mind is renewed through emunah, and then we merit Shavuos, which is the awakening of the sleep, when we receive a new intellect and a new neshamah from the light of the panim — which is the aspect of receiving the Torah, the aspect of the seventy faces of the Torah, as mentioned above. It follows that Shavuos is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, and therefore we stay awake the entire night, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of the sound of the shofar at the giving of the Torah, as it is written: "And it was on the third day... and there were thunders and lightnings... and the sound of the shofar was very strong" [Exodus 19:16], etc. For the shofar is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep — which is the aspect of the shofar of Rosh Hashanah, as is explained in the aforementioned teaching, as mentioned above. And therefore we mention the verses of the shofar of the giving of the Torah on Rosh Hashanah, and we mention the entire matter of the giving of the Torah on Rosh Hashanah, as we say: "You revealed Yourself in the cloud of Your glory on Mount Sinai," etc. For the giving of the Torah with the sound of the shofar and the shofar of Rosh Hashanah are one and the same aspect — the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, which is the renewal of the mochin and the neshamah — which is the aspect of receiving the Torah, as mentioned above. And on Lag Ba'Omer, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai passed away, and then the illumination and holiness of Shavuos — which is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, the renewal of the mochin — begins to shine forth. And therefore then is the hillula rabba [great celebration] of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, the aspect of "watcher and holy one," as mentioned above. For Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai is the rainbow of the covenant, as is explained in the words of our Sages, of blessed memory — that for this reason the rainbow was not seen in his days, because he himself was the aspect of the rainbow. And for this reason the custom is to shoot the bow on Lag Ba'Omer. And the rainbow (keshes) is the aspect of tekiah, shevarim, teruah — whose mnemonic is keshes (as is brought, and as is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, in another place) — which are the general sounds of the shofar, which is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, as mentioned above. And because Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai was in the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, the aspect of the light of the panim — therefore he boasted in the Idra that "behold, I see that my face is shining," etc. — the aspect of the light of the panim, the aspect of the reddening of the face of the one who blows the shofar, for lights are drawn from the supernal panim — the aspect of the radiance of the face of Moshe Rabbeinu through receiving the Torah. And therefore Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai could not bear it when he saw people engaged in worldly occupation, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said (in the Gemara, Shabbos [33b]): when he came out of the cave, he saw people plowing and sowing. He said: "They abandon eternal life and engage in temporal life!" etc. For all the labors and worldly occupations that people do are all in the aspect of sleep — which is the aspect of business dealings. And because Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai was far from sleep, for he was "a watcher and holy one," as mentioned above — therefore he could not bear them at all and said: "They abandon eternal life and engage in temporal life." That is, it was difficult for him — the question explained in the aforementioned teaching: for it is understandable regarding one who engages in Torah study, that then sleep is good for him, for his mind is renewed through it, and he can afterwards engage in Torah with a mind that is even more pure. But one who does not engage in Torah study — what does sleep accomplish for him? And this is: "they abandon eternal life," etc. — that is, had they been engaged in eternal life, meaning in the Torah, and also engaged in worldly occupation, which is the aspect of sleep, they could say that the business dealings, which is the aspect of sleep, is good for them for the service of the Creator, since through this their minds are renewed, as mentioned above. But since they abandon eternal life and do not engage in Torah, and engage only in temporal life — in labors and business dealings, which is the aspect of sleep — therefore he was especially upset with them. However, the Holy One, blessed be He, was displeased with Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai for not being able to bear them at all and punishing them immediately, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said (there) that the Holy One, blessed be He, said: "Did you come out to destroy My world?!" etc. For in truth, this too is needed, as is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, in the aforementioned teaching: "d'karei karei, u'd'lo karei lehevei tzavsa l'chavreh" — that even one who does not engage in Torah study, when he does business dealings in faithfulness, which is the aspect of sleep, he does good for his fellow who is of his root, whose mind and neshamah is renewed through the business dealings of his fellow; see there. And therefore great rejoicing is made specifically on the day of his passing, which is Lag Ba'Omer. For the passing of the tzaddik makes a great rectification in all the worlds, more than during his lifetime — for "great are the righteous in their death more than in their lifetime" [cf. Chullin 7b]. And they rectify the neshamos of Yisrael in their death more than in their lifetime, and they subdue the Sitra Achra and the klipos that cling to the fallen neshamos on account of their sins. For the tzaddikim subdue and nullify them in their death more than in their lifetime, in the aspect of: "And the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those he killed in his life" [Judges 16:30] — for the true tzaddik, the true leader of the generation, kills the enemies of holiness and the klipos and the Sitra Achra in his death more than in his life. For death is the aspect of a long sleep, and the resurrection of the dead is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, as it is written: "Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust" [Isaiah 26:19]. And as it is written: "And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake" [Daniel 12:2], etc. And the tzaddik, who always desires the good and the benefit of Yisrael — and the essential good and the essential true success is the success of the soul, to purify the souls of Yisrael from their contamination and to bring them back in complete teshuvah, to awaken them from their sleep so that they should not, God forbid, sleep an eternal sleep — but the essential occupation through which the true tzaddik works to rectify the neshamos of Yisrael is specifically at the time of sleep. For from the mind of the tzaddik himself it is impossible to receive, for his mind is great and exalted and extremely lofty, to the point that it is impossible to receive from it in any way, except through the tzaddik lowering himself to the world and withdrawing his da'as and speaking with the world in mundane conversation and stories — which is the aspect of sleep. And as I heard explicitly from our Rebbe, of blessed memory, that mundane conversation that one sometimes speaks with the world in order to refresh his mind, to give rest to the mochin when they are weary from Torah and the service of Hashem — this is literally the aspect of sleep, through which the mind is renewed, as mentioned above. It follows that when the tzaddik speaks with the world, this is the aspect of sleep for him, the aspect of the withdrawal of da'as. And through this specifically he awakens them in teshuvah and brings them back to Hashem, blessed be He. For at the time of sleep, the mind enters into emunah, etc. And the emunah always dwells among the nations and the klipos, to clarify from there the holy sparks that fell there — which are the aspect of the fallen neshamos of those who are far from Hashem, blessed be He, who fell through their sins to the place where they fell, may the Merciful One save us. And the emunah has compassion on them and is always engaged in clarifying them. But the essential power of the emunah to clarify and extract them is when the neshamos of the tzaddikim ascend to her and are included in her at the time of sleep, in the aspect of the raising of mayin nukvin [feminine waters], as is known. For then the emunah has the power to ascend to her Beloved and the supernal yichud [unification] is made. And with every supernal yichud, many sparks that fell — which are the aspect of fallen neshamos — are awakened then in teshuvah, and those wicked ones who are the root of the sparks of these neshamos return to Hashem, blessed be He. And then the neshamah of the tzaddik is also renewed through this yichud, and through this he merits to receive a new intellect and a new neshamah, etc., as mentioned above (and see in the Kavanos, and you will understand this matter well — how all the Kavanos are included in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory). And just as this matter is accomplished through literal sleep — which is the secret of all the kavanos of Krias Shema and sleep and the awakening of sleep, as mentioned above — so too through every aspect of sleep this matter is accomplished. And therefore the essential occupation through which the tzaddik works to draw people close to Hashem, blessed be He, is specifically during his aspect of sleep — that is, when he speaks with them in mundane conversation and stories, which is the aspect of sleep, as mentioned above. And even when the true tzaddik reveals Torah to the world — even though it is very lofty Torah — nevertheless, it is in the aspect of sleep relative to his own comprehension, which is so very lofty that it is impossible to grasp even in thought, let alone in speech. Just as the plain meaning of the Torah is the aspect of sleep relative to deveikus with the Creator, so too the revelation of the Torah that the tzaddik reveals to the world is the aspect of sleep, the aspect of the plain meaning of the Torah, in comparison to his own comprehension. It follows that the essential drawing close of Yisrael to their Father in heaven — which the tzaddik is always engaged in — is specifically through the aspect of his sleep, as mentioned above. And therefore "great are the righteous in their death more than in their lifetime" — for the essential greatness of the tzaddik in his life and in his death is according to how much he merits to draw the souls of Yisrael close to Hashem, blessed be He, for this is the essential delight and pleasure of Hashem, blessed be He, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "Did I give you greatness except for the sake of Yisrael?" And therefore the greatness of the tzaddikim is in their death more than in their lifetime, for in their death they draw close even more the souls of Yisrael to Hashem, blessed be He. For death is the aspect of a long sleep, as mentioned above, and at the time of sleep is specifically the essential occupation of the tzaddik to draw Yisrael close to Hashem, blessed be He, as mentioned above. And in truth the matter is well-explained for one who is somewhat familiar with the Zohar and the writings of the Arizal — regarding the yichud that is made through the neshamah of the tzaddik at the time of sleep and at the time of death, and the great magnitude of the clarification of sparks that is accomplished then. For the greater the yichud, the more sparks are clarified, and the greatness of the yichud is according to the greatness of the neshamah of the tzaddik. And there is also a difference between sleep — which is one-sixtieth of death — when the neshamah of the tzaddik ascends into emunah to be unified only temporarily, in the aspect of a deposit. But at the time of actual death, then the entire neshamah ascends completely for a long time, until the resurrection, and then the yichud is exceedingly great — as is explained in the sacred texts, regarding the enormity of the yichud that is made at the time of the passing of the tzaddik, which is called a hillula rabba, the aspect of a wedding — which is the aspect of a yichud. And as is understood and explained in the holy Zohar, in the Idra, regarding the passing of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai — with whom we are presently engaged — regarding the greatness of the yichud that was made then, when his neshamah ascended into the aspect of the Malchus, into the foundation of emunah, as is explained on the verse: "For there Hashem commanded the blessing — life" [Psalms 133:3]. The holy lamp [i.e. Rabbi Shimon] did not finish saying "life" before his neshamah departed, etc.; see there. For the tzaddik, at the time of his passing — when he merits the ultimate completeness of his being, for all his days he was engaged in the service of Hashem and ascended each time from level to level — therefore each time his neshamah ascended during sleep, it was not yet at the ultimate completeness as at the time of his death, when he is at the ultimate completeness. And also during sleep it did not ascend completely, for some of it remained in him for the sake of his vitality, so that he could awaken from his sleep. But at the time of the death of the tzaddik — when the neshamah is at its ultimate completeness and the entire neshamah ascends completely into emunah — therefore then the aspect of the raising of mayin nukvin of the Shechinah is greatly magnified, in the aspect of "see with what a son I come before You." And then the yichud is greatly magnified, and according to the greatness of the yichud, so many more fallen sparks rise up — through which very many wicked people return in teshuvah. And so it continues for all the days of the world, until the resurrection: that the neshamah of the tzaddik who died — which is in the aspect of sleep — constantly raises the aspect of mayin nukvin to the Shechinah, which is the emunah, and through this she clarifies very many neshamos that fell, without end. For there are neshamos that are very, very fallen, that fell so greatly, to the point that it is impossible for them to have any rectification at all except through the neshamah of the tzaddik — and specifically through his death, as is understood from the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory. For according to the greatness of the supernal yichud, so many sparks rise from the depths of the klipos in greater measure. And therefore it is stated in the holy Zohar that tzaddikim are found even more in this world after their passing than during their lifetime. And this is the aspect of prostrating oneself at the graves of true tzaddikim — which is a very great thing and is very beneficial for the service of Hashem, blessed be He, to merit to emerge from one's evil and to return to Hashem, blessed be He. For there are people who have fallen so greatly through their sins, to the point that the evil has taken hold of them so much, that it is impossible for them in any way to return to Hashem, blessed be He, except by coming to the graves of the true tzaddikim, and then they are included in the neshamah of the tzaddik who died — who is constantly engaged in clarifications — and he, with his great power, which is greater in his death than in his lifetime, is able to clarify even the neshamos that have fallen very, very greatly. However, one who has free will cannot be clarified against his will, but only when he comes to the grave, to the place of his holy resting, and arouses himself in teshuvah — then the tzaddik has the power to clarify him with his great power and to extract him from the place to which he fell and to rectify him, even though it would have been impossible for him to be rectified in any other way, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of the hillula of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai that is made specifically on the day of his passing. For specifically through his passing he rectifies and brings back in teshuvah many souls, even more, as mentioned above — through which the joy is increased even more, the aspect of the joy of the future at the time of the resurrection, as it is written: "And everlasting joy shall be upon their heads" [Isaiah 35:10] — which is the aspect of receiving the Torah, as our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded (Shabbos 88). For the resurrection of the dead is the essential aspect of the awakening of the sleep, the aspect of "and many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake," as mentioned above. And therefore then a great shofar will be blown — which is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, as mentioned above. And through this, all the outcasts and the lost will ascend then, as it is written: "And it shall be on that day, a great shofar will be blown, and those lost in the land of Ashur and those cast away in the land of Mitzrayim shall come, and they shall bow down to Hashem on the holy mountain in Yerushalayim" [Isaiah 27:13]. For all of them will have an ascent and a rectification, each one according to what is fitting for him, through the clarification that the tzaddik was engaged in clarifying them all the days of his life, and even more so, in double and redoubled measure, from the time of his death onward — which is the aspect of sleep, etc., as mentioned above. And then the joy will be exceedingly great, as is explained in many verses and in the words of our Sages, of blessed memory, regarding the immense joy of the future after the resurrection, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "In the future, the Holy One, blessed be He, will make a dance for the righteous," etc., as it is written: "And they will say... let us be glad and rejoice in His salvation" [Isaiah 25:9]. And this is the aspect of the great joy of Shavuos, which is also the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, as mentioned above — the aspect of the resurrection of the dead, the aspect of the sound of the shofar of the future, as mentioned above. And therefore in truth there was an aspect of the resurrection of the dead at the time of the giving of the Torah, as our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded on the verse: "A rain of gifts You poured down, O God" [Psalms 68:10] — that their souls departed at the time of the giving of the Torah and He revived them again. And the intensity of this joy is aroused at the time of the passing of true tzaddikim, for the tzaddik goes to his world, to good life and peace, for the righteous in their death are called "alive" — fortunate are they. And this is the aspect of the immense joy of the hillula rabba of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai that is made on Lag Ba'Omer. For on this day the judgment that clings during the days of the Sefirah — which is the aspect of sleep — begins to be sweetened, and the illumination of Shavuos — which is the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, the aspect of receiving the Torah — begins to shine forth. And then the joy is very great, the aspect of the joy of the future — which is the aspect of the joy of Shavuos, as mentioned above. For there is no joy before Him, blessed be He, like the time when outcasts are returned to Him, blessed be He — that is, when those who are very far from Hashem, blessed be He, are brought back in teshuvah. For Hashem, blessed be He, desires kindness and He looks upon the wicked and desires their righteousness. And as long as a person is far from Him, blessed be He, through his sins, it is very painful to Him, as it were, as it is written: "In all their suffering, He suffers" [Isaiah 63:9]. And the essential suffering is the suffering of the soul that is far from Hashem, blessed be He, as is explained in another place — for Hashem, blessed be He, devises plans so that no outcast remains banished from Him. And therefore, through the tzaddik raising and rectifying many souls of Yisrael and returning them to Him, blessed be He — through this the joy is immensely magnified. It is like returning to the King his son whom he banished from his presence on account of his sins, and because of the distance he deteriorated more each time, because he fell in his mind when he saw the extent of his distance from the King, until he erred and it seemed to him that the King had distanced him forever, and he no longer expected to return to the King, as it is written: "He does not believe he will return from darkness" [Job 15:22]. And in truth, the King has great pain at all times and remembers His distant son at all times. And when someone is found who has compassion on the King and on his son, and goes to the contaminated place where he fell, and signals to him with hints, and conducts himself with him with wondrous and amazing wisdom until he instills in him thoughts of teshuvah and returns him to the King — how much joy and delight this causes the King, beyond measure. For this is the essential joy and greatness and delight and pleasure of the King, blessed be He: when those who are far from Him are returned to Him, as is stated in the Zohar (Yisro 69a): "When Yisro came and said, 'Now I know,' etc. — then the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He, was elevated and glorified above and below." And this is the aspect of the great joy of the hillula of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, on the day of his holy passing, on Lag Ba'Omer — for then many distant ones ascend and are rectified and return in teshuvah. This is the aspect of prostrating oneself at the graves of true tzaddikim, as mentioned above — through which the joy is immensely magnified, as mentioned above. And this is the aspect of counting the days from Pesach until Shavuos, which is the mitzvah of the holy and awesome Sefirah. For it is stated in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, in Likutay Tinyana (Torah 61), on the verse "I have this day begotten you" [Psalms 2:7], that the essential existence of time comes from the deficiency of da'as. For the greater the da'as, the more time diminishes and is nullified — until there is a da'as so great, which is the da'as of Mashiach (may he come speedily in our days), where time is nullified entirely, for one will merit to perceive the aspect of above-time, which it is impossible for us to perceive in any way due to the deficiency of our da'as. For the smaller the da'as, the more time grows in one's perception. And therefore during sleep, when da'as withdraws, time grows in one's perception exceedingly, to the point that it seems in his dream that a quarter-hour is seventy years — for in a dream it sometimes seems that a long time, seventy years, passes in a quarter-hour. It follows that because of the withdrawal of da'as during sleep, time grows in one's perception until a quarter-hour is perceived as seventy years. And afterwards, when he awakens from his sleep and his da'as returns to him, he understands that all the time that passed in his dream, which seemed to him to be seventy years, is in truth only a quarter-hour. But the seventy years of our lives are, according to our da'as, truly seventy years. Similarly, one who has an even greater da'as, to the extent that our da'as is considered in comparison to his like sleep — for him, even our seventy years are merely a quarter-hour. And so on, ever higher, until there is a da'as so great that it is truly above-time, where all the time of the world is nothing — but it is impossible for us to perceive this in any way, due to the smallness of our da'as, and because of this it is impossible for us to perceive and understand the aspect of above-time at all, etc.; see there all of this well. It follows that the essential coming into being of time is in the aspect of the diminishing of da'as, the aspect of sleep, as mentioned above. And therefore during the days of the Sefirah, when it is the aspect of sleep — when we withdraw our da'as intentionally, in the aspect of sleep, and place our mind into the aspect of emunah alone, in order to renew our mind, etc., as mentioned above — therefore during the days of the Sefirah, that is the essential coming into being of time. For the essential coming into being of time is in the aspect of sleep, as mentioned above, which is the aspect of the Sefirah, as mentioned above. And therefore we count the days then, for the essential aspect of counting and numbering pertains to the aspect of time — which is days and measures — where counting and numbering apply. But above-time, which is the aspect of Godliness, there counting and numbering do not apply at all, in the aspect of "Before the One, what do you count?" [Sefer Yetzirah 1:7]. And therefore during the days of the Sefirah, when it is the aspect of sleep, which is the essential coming into being of time, then we count each and every day. And through this specifically, we draw time into holiness. For the counting and numbering pertains to the aspect of time specifically, where it is applicable to say: "Today is one day," "Today is two days," etc. And from this are drawn all the countings and numberings in the world. And therefore the Torah itself counts and numbers each and every day of the six days of creation, as it is written: "And there was evening and there was morning, one day" [Genesis 1:5], and so with the second day, etc. For the essential creation is in time specifically, and there is the essential counting and numbering. For there is no existence for time — which is the totality of creation, which is in time and in measures — except through the speech of the counting, when we count and number each and every day with a full mouth, in speech, as it is written: "By the word of Hashem the heavens were made" [Psalms 33:6], etc. — which is the totality of creation, which is the aspect of time that encompasses all of creation, as mentioned above. And as is explained in the holy Zohar in Parashas Bamidbar, at its beginning: "Come see — every matter that needs to be settled in its place is not settled until it is mentioned by mouth and counted upon it... and therefore their hosts enter into the counting," etc. For time — which is the totality of creation, drawn from the aspect of above-time — is impossible to draw and sustain in the world except through the speech of the counting, for then "it is settled in its place," as in the Zohar mentioned above. And in truth it is impossible for us to grasp this with the intellect at all — how time is drawn from Hashem, blessed be He, Who is above-time — for the renewal of the world is impossible to grasp with the intellect at all, but only through emunah alone, as is known and as is explained in the words of our Rebbe, of blessed memory, many times. And therefore from Pesach until Shavuos, when all our engagement is to receive the Torah on Shavuos — which is the aspect of a new intellect and a new neshamah, etc., which we merit through the holy sleep of Sefiras Ha'Omer, as mentioned above — therefore we count and number the days then, in order to draw time into holiness, in the aspect of emunah, to bind each and every day to holy emunah, to know with complete faith that each and every day of time is drawn from Hashem, blessed be He, Who is above-time — which is a matter impossible to grasp with our intellect, but only through emunah, as mentioned above. For now, during the days of the Sefirah, we withdraw our da'as and place our da'as into emunah alone, as mentioned above. And therefore we count the days of the Omer, for the Omer of barley, which is the aspect of sleep, as mentioned above, is the aspect of emunah, as mentioned above. And therefore one would wave the Omer, which is the aspect of the faith in His unity, blessed be He — as our Sages, of blessed memory, said (Berachos 13b) that one must lengthen the dalet of "Echad" in order to enthrone Him above and below and in the four directions. It follows that the waving of the Omer is the aspect of the faith in His unity, blessed be He, Who is above-time. For Hashem, blessed be He, is above-time, as is known. And therefore we count the days of the Omer, for we bind all the days and the time — which is the aspect of counting and numbering, as mentioned above — we bind it all to the holy emunah, which is the aspect of waving the Omer of barley, as mentioned above — in order to believe with complete emunah that all of time is drawn from the aspect of above-time. This is the essential sanctity of the appointed times (zemanim), as is explained in another place. For it is impossible to grasp this with the intellect at all, but only through emunah alone, as mentioned above. And therefore we count seven Shabbosos [weeks/sabbaths] — in order to include each and every day of the seven days of creation within the aspect of Shabbos, which is the seventh day. For Shabbos is in the aspect of above-time more than any other holy day, as it is written: "And He blessed it above all the days, and He sanctified it above all the times." For every day that has additional holiness is closer to the aspect of above-time, since the essential holiness is when one merits to draw the holy da'as through the holy emunah, through which time diminishes further, as mentioned above. And on every day that has additional holiness, such as the festivals, the illumination of emunah and da'as is drawn to us more, and through this time diminishes further and is included further in its root, within the aspect of above-time — which is the essential sanctity of the days and the appointed times. And the holier the day, the more time diminishes and is nullified. And Shabbos, which is a semblance of the World to Come, is therefore in the aspect of above-time entirely in comparison to the rest of time. And all the holy appointed times receive from Shabbos, which is in the aspect of above-time, for all the festivals receive from Shabbos, as is known and as is explained in another place. And therefore we count seven Shabbosos, in order to include each day of the seven days of creation — which is the totality of time — within the aspect of Shabbos, in order to bind time to the aspect of above-time, which is the essential holiness, as mentioned above. And through this we merit to receive the Torah on Shavuos, which is the fiftieth day — which is the secret of the Yovel [Jubilee], the aspect of Yom HaKippurim, as is known. For the essential sanctity of the great Yovel, the fiftieth year, is on Yom HaKippurim, through the blowing of the shofar, as it is written: "And you shall sound the shofar blast in the seventh month, on the tenth of the month, on Yom HaKippurim" [Leviticus 25:9]. For Yom HaKippurim is in the aspect of above-time, as our Rebbe, of blessed memory, wrote in the new Aleph-Beis (letter tav, entry: Teshuvah) that the day a person does teshuvah is above-time. And similarly, Yom HaKippurim is above-time. For we merit on Shavuos, through the forty-nine days of the Sefirah, the illumination of the fiftieth day — which is the aspect of the Yovel, the aspect of Yom HaKippurim, the aspect of the awakening of the sleep, the aspect of the shofar — all of which is in the aspect of above-time, as mentioned above. And therefore on Shavuos the world is sustained, as our Sages, of blessed memory, expounded (Shabbos 88a) on the hei of "the sixth day" [Genesis 1:31] — that the entire world was suspended and tottering until the sixth of Sivan, when Yisrael received the Torah. For this is the essential sustaining of the world and of time — when one knows with complete emunah that all of time is drawn from the aspect of above-time. This is the aspect of the emunah in the renewal of the world, which we merit on Shavuos — through which the world is essentially sustained. For the essential sustaining of the world is through emunah, as it is written: "And all His works are in faithfulness" [Psalms 33:4]. Blessed is Hashem forever, Amen and Amen. Na Nach Nachma Nachman MayUman