Maamar HaVikuach (The Discourse of the Debate)

The First Discourse

Refutation of the Philosopher's objections against the truth and benefit of Chochmas HaEmes

§1Philosopher: Peace be upon you, my brother! How good is your arrival at this time, for I am greatly in need of you.

§2Kabbalist: How would a philosopher have need of a Kabbalist? You have already roamed your thought over every corner of Creation and subdued it beneath you with your decisive proofs — so what benefit could I bring you?

§3Philosopher: Excessive flattery is nothing but a snare. But let us come to the desired matter. I shall speak with you in the honesty of my heart, as befits our friendship. I have read and heard certain matters from your Kabbalah, and they appeared to me as something utterly foreign — for they are entirely contradicted by my philosophical inquiry. Yet since I have seen many pious men who walk in its ways, I said to myself: let me see what you have to say. Perhaps I will hear from you something that, if not logically necessary, will at least not be contradicted and made foolish by straight reason — as it now appears to me, since I cannot but reject it.

§4Kabbalist: I shall do as you say, and I shall make known to you a matter of truth in its truth — as it has been transmitted to us from those who know the Truth. And this shall be the entire fruit of this knowledge — that you receive from me a different knowledge: that you come to know that everything a person can attain through his philosophical inquiry — it is as nothing and emptiness compared to41 what he can attain through the true Kabbalah.42 That is why the Sage said: "For Hashem gives wisdom; from His mouth — knowledge and understanding"43 [Mishlei 2:6]. Now, open wide your mouth and I will fill it.

§5Philosopher: I wish first to know from you the matter of the Sefiros that you mention — what they are. But I would want to know this matter with clear knowledge, for I have heard such extraordinarily foreign things about it that I had to restrain my mouth out of respect — rather than proclaiming aloud at every crossroads how astonished I am by them — and I was nearly compelled to say they are matters of no substance.

§6Kabbalist: Say what you have heard about this.

§7Philosopher: I heard them saying that they are a single light that the Emanator, blessed be His Name, emanated from His primordial light, and that He Himself is clothed within them44 as the soul within the body.

§8Kabbalist: And what else did you hear about this?

§9Philosopher: I heard that there is Atzilus (Emanation), and there is Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah (Creation, Formation, Action). And the distinction between them: that Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah are nothing but a radiance from this emanated light45 that we mentioned; and that it divides into two parts — the inner part thereof, namely the soul, is called by the name of Divinity,46 while from the soul-level downward it is no longer called Divinity, but is the World of Separation;47 and so too in all three worlds.

§10Kabbalist: And what do you say about this?

§11Philosopher: By my life — I cannot even begin to arrange my objections, so numerous and weighty are they! For this contradicts all reason and the truth of our faith.

§12Kabbalist: And how so?

§13Philosopher: You cannot escape from two choices: either you say they are Divinity, or you do not.

§14Kabbalist: Have you not already heard that Atzilus is Divinity?

§15Philosopher: And if it is Divinity — how can you conceive in your mind that Divinity proceeds from Divinity?48

§16Kabbalist: You have stated two things — that this contradicts all reason, and that it contradicts our faith.

Four Objections Concerning the Sefiros of Atzilus

§17Philosopher: And so it certainly is. As to reason — it is as I said: for how can one picture Divinity proceeding from Divinity? For G-d — meaning that singular One — must necessarily49 exist, to be the Head of all created beings; since they are many, they cannot be governed with uniform, fixed order except through one single Head over all. Therefore we must understand Him as utterly uniquely one — and how can we then picture multiplicity, derivation, and change within Him? As for faith — consider: is this view so far removed, G-d forbid, from the view of the Christians, may their name be blotted out, who posited the Trinity — saying He is three and He is one, for the One derives a progeny from Himself, and yet all is one? Furthermore: that which is newly come into being must, before its coming into being, not have been in existence. If you say the Sefiros are a new Divinity50 while Ein Sof is ancient Divinity — of all such things it is said: "They chose new gods" [Shofetim 5:8]. Moreover, how greatly you stumble in faith — for we know that the Holy One Blessed be He is simple in the ultimate simplicity, and no attribute of body can apply to Him; and if your words are right, there is no greater "accident" than this — that His very essence, blessed be He, is renewed from non-existence to existence.

§18Kabbalist: You have shaken the whole world with your words. Do you have more objections like these?

§19Philosopher: Yes, many more — for I have spoken so far only in general about the matter of Atzilus alone. When we come to Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah — they multiply endlessly. And in truth I have objections and difficulties there so powerful that no wise and understanding person can bear them.

§20Kabbalist: Please, state your words, and let us know what you have to say.

Objections Concerning the Sefiros of Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah

§21Philosopher: When you come to B"Y"A,51 you say there is a continuation — and yet you call it Divinity; but then you say that part of it is called Divinity and part of it is not.52 Tell me by your life — have you ever heard that Divinity could, G-d forbid, be so divided — half remaining Divinity and half not — but becoming a servant to its first half?53 Believe me, faithful friend: these are not words of wisdom, for such things cannot enter the ears of a discerning person — only credulous fools who believe everything. But two things I wished above all to know: First — who forced us into this predicament? Second — what benefit flows from these teachings? Is not the faith that the entire congregation of Israel believes — that the Creator is One, that He governs His world, that He gave us His Torah, and that our Messiah will come — is that not sufficient? Why do we need all these matters of Sefiros and Worlds, which produce only confusion?

§22Kabbalist: Complete your words.

§23Philosopher: I have one objection that encompasses all the objections: everything I have read or heard is astonishing from beginning to end. But I think that if I could find at least one unshakeable foundation upon which all these buildings are built — perhaps the particulars would then be understandable. But without that, why should I trouble myself with the particulars when the entire general principle is beset with difficulty?

Is It Possible that Physical Matter Could Descend from Divinity?

Philosopher (cont.): Yet I shall not refrain from mentioning another powerful objection I have in their words — which branches into two, from a single root. I have heard that you say the Sefiros descended level after level until this physical world came into being. And this is an extremely difficult matter — what understanding can there be for such things? That something which is Divinity should descend until a coarse, murky physical substance comes to be?

How Can We Understand that the Sitra Achra Emerged from Holiness?

Philosopher (cont.): And the second — an even more powerful difficulty: what they say — that from the extremity of judgment54 emerged the Sitra Achra (the Other Side). And more than this — that they say in the beginning everything was mixed together, good and evil, and therefore the primordial worlds were destroyed until the good was clarified by itself — being the Sefiros of Holiness — and the evil by itself — being the Sefiros of the Sitra Achra. This appears to me as almost heresy, G-d forbid — to say that within the Sefiros the Sitra Achra was mixed in the beginning, whether openly or not; say what you will, they are both one reality.55 And how can one thing be clarified from it — one part being the Sefiros, which are Divinity, and another part the Sitra Achra? I cannot find it in my heart to accept these things, all the more to utter them aloud — for this seems to me to be heading toward heresy of two domains, G-d forbid.

If the Sefiros Are Divinity — How Are They Emanated from Divinity?

Philosopher (cont.): If you reply that the Sefiros are light emanated from Ein Sof Baruch Hu (the Infinite One, blessed be He), and therefore such things are possible in them — that already was the first objection: how is it possible to say that Divinity is emanated from Divinity? If they are emanated from Him they are outside of Him — say a hundred times over that "they are as a flame bound to a coal" [Sefer Yetzirah 1:7] — these are words said with the mouth but do not enter the heart. For a thing that is not in its essence Divinity, and yet is Divinity notwithstanding — this is among the impossibilities.

How Can We Understand Service Directed at the Sefiros?

Philosopher (cont.): Furthermore — all your service, according to your approach, is directed at the Sefiros, and I see no permission for this. For there is no escaping this: if they are not His Divinity itself — then they would have to be capable of existing separately from Him, and would be vessels without the light — like a body without a soul. And yet the attributes of Divinity itself would be ascribed to them — this is improper. For: "El, Elohim, Hashem" [Tehillim 50:1] means the Holy One Blessed be He — and according to your interpretation it means Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferes.56 According to our faith it is impossible to call by these names anyone other than the Emanator blessed be His Name — for: "You shall have no other gods before Me" [Shemos 20:3]. If you reply that Divinity cleaves to them so completely that they are called by His Name — let the matter be dropped and not spoken; for there is no greater opening for heretics, G-d forbid, than this. In sum, the matters are very astonishing, and now if you have the capacity to resolve — if not all — at least some of these things, I shall greatly rejoice.

§24Kabbalist: Until now you have made yourself witness, judge, and litigant all at once. I shall similarly place you between me and myself as an arbiter — your intellect shall be the witness before which we both stand. But I ask you: incline your ear toward me, and set aside your desire for a brief moment — until with a clear mind you can receive the true knowledge. It most certainly requires composure and descent of the mind.

§25Philosopher: Speak, and I shall listen.

§26Kabbalist: You are mistaken in absolutely everything.

§27Philosopher: But what I said is exactly what I heard the majority of your Kabbalistic sages saying.

§28Kabbalist: One must understand their words correctly — not take them as a surface skimming of the grain-tip.

§29Philosopher: Now let me hear something from you clearly.

This Wisdom Teaches G-d's Unity and the Uprightness of His Governance in Great Wisdom

§30Kabbalist: The foundation of this entire wisdom is the unity of the Emanator, blessed be His Name — that He is One in every kind of oneness; within Him there is no change, no multiplicity, no attribute of physical substance whatsoever.

§31Philosopher: The foundation is very good — if it can bear its building.

§32Kabbalist: The entire matter of Kabbalah is nothing but the elucidation of the measure of His judgment, blessed be His Name — the order of the statutes of governance: how the Holy One Blessed be He orchestrates and governs all the affairs of His world with great wisdom.

§33Philosopher: If this is what we were to find in this wisdom — we would be finding a great thing. But I do not see that this wisdom proceeds along this path.

§34Kabbalist: Did I not say that you are mistaken in absolutely everything?

How Are We to Understand Descent Through the Sefiros?

§35Philosopher: I shall tell you what I have gathered from what I read in your matters. I saw that you wish to explain hishtalshelus (the chain-descent) — how the created being emerges from the Creator — as though the Creator blessed be His Name were the prime matter for the created beings, descending from His very self,57 and this matter goes and undergoes change little by little58 until arriving at the created beings themselves. And these are the Sefiros and everything you expound in them. For you say that the Creator blessed be His Name placed Himself in a certain mode of change — until the light of His very self is found undergoing change and descending in a chain — until the lowest is reached. And if in truth this could be said, it would be a very beautiful thing — for this descent would certainly be the cause of the existents, and according to its changes — so would change the governance of these Sefiros.

Philosopher (cont., §36 context): The existence of existents59 — and therefore it is good to know it, and particularly since it is acceptable to place within it all matters of commandments and service — for one needs to arrange it according to its good character.60 But I said earlier: if it could be said — for how is it possible to say that the light of the Creator blessed be His Name would undergo change or descent? And you yourself already conceded that the Emanator blessed be His Name has no attribute of physical substance in Him.

§36Kabbalist: I concede all of this — and on the contrary, this is the foundation of all my building: that the Emanator blessed be His Name has no attribute of physical substance. But I said you are mistaken in absolutely everything — and I say so again. It is absolutely impossible to say this — that His light blessed be His Name would itself undergo change and descend, until from the Creator a created being is made. Have you never heard in all your days that Creation is yesh me'ayin — something from nothing? And if so, how can one speak of chain-descent and change?

§37Philosopher: Yes — in your words you have added water; see that you add flour as well.

Understanding This Wisdom Is Knowing His Governance

§38Kabbalist: You shall see that it is impossible that great sages — like those from whom Kabbalah flows to us — erred in this. But I shall show you by proof that you understood nothing of what you read. Tell me plainly61 — not in general, but specifically — can you explain those levels mentioned in the Sefiros, and all their changes mentioned throughout all time periods, and what their use is in Creation? How do effect and deed flow from them below? If you know this — say that you understood what you read; if not — then certainly say that you read what you did not understand.

§39Philosopher: Yes, in general I can tell you that they are all matters that need to produce descent for the world, and that when they change in their states the things of the world change. But in particular — I do not know what they are: not the line, not the impression, not Adam Kadmon, not his worlds — and the rectifications of the Partzufim and their clothings and their structures — all these are things I have read but do not know their nature, except that I see great difficulties in them.

§40Kabbalist: If so, you did not know. And I shall begin for you one path, so that you see what you did not think about in these matters.

§41Philosopher: Speak.

Ein Sof and the Sefiros — What He Can Will and What He Willed

§42Kabbalist: The Emanator blessed be His Name is certainly a possessor of will — for He has willed and He wills. Now we can speak of Him in two aspects: in terms of His essence, and in terms of His will. Do you concede this or not?

§43Philosopher: Certainly — we can speak of any subject in terms of any predicate it has, each on its own. For example: a person — when one speaks of his matter, "the person" is called the subject; what one speaks about him — the qualities — are called the predicate or predicates. So too of a person we can speak of a predicate in him: that he is learned in Torah, or that he is charitable, or that he is wise. All these are predicates in themselves, and we can speak of each subject individually.

§44Kabbalist: Now, regarding the essence of the Emanator blessed be His Name — it is forbidden for us to speak of it, and we have no need whatsoever to enter into this — for it is sufficient for us that we know of His existence. And when we know that He is the ultimate of all perfection, that He is omnipotent — we know what we need regarding this matter, and beyond this it is already forbidden for us even to speak. We shall not speak then of His essence further — only of His will,62 for this is closer to us and is permitted to us, since we are not touching His essence at all.

§45Philosopher: It is good to speak of His will. But what can you say — for there is no end to His will, no end to His thought, and in that which has no boundary or end — what can you investigate?

§46Kabbalist: This is exactly what I wanted to elicit from you — your concession that there is no end to His will and thought. And from here you will not be able to escape from what I wish to make you understand. Tell me now — in reward and punishment you certainly believe, as it is one of the fundamentals of faith. But tell me: there are deeds in the world for which the Holy One Blessed be He wishes to benefit their doers, and there are those He wishes to punish; there is a time when He elevates, there is a time when He lowers; there is a time when He impoverishes, there is a time when He enriches. If so, within His will there is the will to benefit, the will to harm, the will to lower, the will to elevate — and all of this follows a definite order, for governance has an order. Thus we can certainly speak of all this — since we are not touching His essence blessed be His Name at all. In sum — these are the attributes of His will that we can certainly investigate and know.

§47Philosopher: Yes, all of this we can reflect upon — of them it is said: "Behold, these are but the edges of His ways" [Iyov 26:14].

§48Kabbalist: You have spoken well. Now tell me — could He have created the world only in the way He did create it? You cannot say this — for with one utterance it could have been created [Avos 5:1], and yet He created it with ten utterances. Or could you say that He could only create exactly as many creatures as He created, no more — or in exactly the form He created them, no more? You cannot say all of this, since you yourself concede He is omnipotent. If so, we say: when we come to reflect upon His will, blessed be His Name — we find it omnipotent, without any boundary or limit;63 and yet we find that now He acts with purpose and acts with limited actions, according to the service of human beings, for all follows according to the abundance of deed. And the creation of the world was only within the boundary He willed — not according to His omnipotence and His infinitude;64 for had He created with His omnipotence and infinitude — the created beings would also be infinite. If so, we can certainly say there are two things we need to understand regarding this will: what He can will, and what He willed. What He can will is without measure or end; what He willed is within the measure and boundary He willed. Is all this true?

§49Philosopher: True, certainly — this is a reality that cannot be denied.

§50Kabbalist: Now we must give names to these levels, so that we can speak about them — for without names it is impossible to speak of subjects and distinguish between them properly. The names that the Kabbalists gave to these two aspects are: Ein Sof Baruch Hu and Sefiros. Ein Sof Baruch Hu is the will65 as regards what He could have willed — which has no end, measure, or limit. The Sefiros are what He willed in a purposeful mode,66 encompassed in specific attributes in which He willed. For example: compassion, anger, and the like — Chesed, Din, and Rachamim in all the particulars of their conditions. And these are what we call Sefiros — meaning: attributes of the will. Not those that are in Him according to His essence — for He is omnipotent — but those that He willed, to create through them and according to them His world, and to govern it with order and boundary. And His omnipotence — we do not speak of it at all, since we have no engagement or knowledge of it, and it is forbidden for us to engage with it — as it is said: "Into what is hidden from you — do not inquire" [Chagigah 13a, based on Ben Sira]; for the intellect can only inquire into what it can grasp. The intellect, which is limited, cannot grasp what is not limited — so let it set that aside. But the specific, limited attributes that the will itself willed — these are what we seek and understand: we understand what the nature of these attributes is, and how Creation emerges according to them, and how it is governed according to them, and what the purpose in them is, and how the commandments reach and are directed toward them.67 In sum — the entire matter of governance in every place — for all of it depends on them.68

§51Philosopher: Your words are good, and I am settling myself into this matter.69 Moreover, these premises are not merely plausible70 — they are logically necessary; they cannot be denied. But I still do not believe that you will be able to complete the wisdom with this — for the difficult and foreign things I found, I still do not see an opening through which to bring them in. And further, I have a difficulty with your words: for you say that the Sefiros are lights, yet what you are saying does not seem to mean lights.71

Ein Sof and the Sefiros Are Called Lights

§52Kabbalist: We call the will in general — radiance (haarah). And Ein Sof Baruch Hu we call simple light;72 accordingly, the forces of will and its attributes are called — lights.

§53Philosopher: That is speaking in metaphor — and it turns out these things have no existence except in thought.73

§54Kabbalist: Now you are erring even in your philosophy.74 Let me tell you as a general introduction to all the matters of the wisdom: whoever wishes to understand the matters of the Sefiros must take as a reference point — the soul of a human being and its matters. The soul is not merely a mental concept — it is one actual force. True, it is subtle and does not fall under the senses, but it is nevertheless a force; and all the powers and attributes it contains are actual realities within it — not in metaphor — and they are truly existing matters found within its constitution. Now understand this in terms of the higher realm: the Emanator blessed be His Name — His existence is certainly not in doubt; His will has certain existence — and it is His radiance. For radiance is what the luminous substance radiates and sends forth from itself. Thus, radiance is what the Singular Master wills — but we say: this is a simple radiance. That means: not like this lower physical light, which is a material thing, while He blessed be His Name is beyond all matter. Rather, simple light — meaning light in the way it resembles the concept of light, but as it actually is — it is simple beyond the substance of our light,75 and the forces of this will are all lights — and they are actual realities, just as they are in the soul itself. And they are the forces of the will that produce effects in the world.76

§55Philosopher: Good. In summary: the Sefiros are the forces of the limited supernal will — those that He willed — through which all effects come about. Complete your words on the matter of B"Y"A.

The Sefiros of Atzilus — Forces of Will Alone; The Sefiros of B"Y"A — Forces of Will Together with Angels

§56Kabbalist: The supernal will, blessed be He, wished to perform His acts through His agents — namely: the angels. And His radiance77 then stands over His agents so that they perform their deeds. Now we have two things to speak about: His will, blessed be He, and its forces according to the orders of His governance; and what stands over His agents — and in what manner it stands over them — while they carry out the decrees of His rulings to their implementation. This is Atzilus and B"Y"A. Atzilus is the totality of all the limited forces of His will that we mentioned — namely the Sefiros in all the particulars of their orders — and they are nothing but forces of His will. Therefore Atzilus is said to be Divinity in all its parts. That is: for all the categories of matters we speak about — each is called one world; and it turns out that Atzilus is the world of Divinity alone — which is the forces of governance, nothing more.78 B"Y"A are other categories — other worlds — from the category we mentioned: the matter of the Creator blessed be His Name standing over His agents created by Him79 to do what needs to be done. And just as Atzilus is the category of the forces of will alone — so too B"Y"A is the forces of will together with those who receive from them. B"Y"A are thus worlds built of two things: the radiance that oversees its agents and stands over them, and the agents who act according to its command. And this category is built of these two things together — it is not complete in either one alone. When we then compare the kinds within this category against each other,80 we call the entire Divine radiance, blessed be He — the soul of that world;81 and all the divisions of ministers — spirit and vital soul relative to the radiance over them. These divisions follow the orders through which all matters of governance are arranged in the secret of nefesh-ruach-neshamah. This is not the place to explain this — for it depends on knowledge of the orders of governance in particular. And even the Divine radiance itself that we call the soul — when we come to distinguish the particulars of itself alone — we also divide them into nefesh-ruach-neshamah.82 But when dividing the types within the category, we need not concern ourselves with the particulars of the type — only the types themselves are compared with each other. And in this way we say that Divinity is the soul in B"Y"A, and ruach and nefesh are the separated beings — not that they are all one essence, wherein the soul within remains Divinity and the ruach and nefesh became separated — but they are two distinct essences,82* one called soul, and the second called nefesh-ruach relative to it — like the soul to the body: two distinct essences, the body being an existence separate from the soul.

§57Philosopher: Good and beautiful. We now have two subjects to speak about: the thought of the supernal mind and its orders; and the standing of the Divine, blessed be He, over its agents to perform its deeds — this is Atzilus, and this is B"Y"A. But tell me: why do you say that the Sefiros of B"Y"A are lesser than those of Atzilus, and similarly Yetzirah less than Briyah, and Asiyah less than Yetzirah?83

The Gradation of Revelations in the Worlds of B"Y"A

§58Kabbalist: This is simple: the Shechinah rests upon the angel only according to its capacity; and according to the variation in the levels of angels, so varies this resting — from a great force to a lesser force. Therefore all of B"Y"A is found to be lesser than Atzilus — which is force alone; but B"Y"A are the agents, and the supernal forces do not reveal themselves upon the angels in their full power, but according to what the angels can receive. And each lower world of B"Y"A is lesser than its higher — for the revelation of the resting above is greater than below. And when we compare the revelation of this resting, we find three revelations, each lesser than the other — Yetzirah less than Briyah, and Asiyah less than Yetzirah.84 And each revelation is encompassed in ten levels — namely the ten Sefiros of Briyah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah. And let me tell you further a great principle: the Emanator blessed be His Name — according to His infinite nature — has no proportion at all with the creatures He created. In His omnipotence He could have created them all in other ways containing many opposites.85 But there was a decree from before Him to match His action to its recipient — like the way of human beings who use great force for a difficult thing, and small force for an easy thing. So too the supernal will, so to speak, wished to act with great force in great and weighty matters, and with small force in small ones — even though He has no need of this. Regarding this they said: "Could it not have been created with one utterance? Rather, to exact punishment from the wicked... and to give good reward to the righteous who maintain the world that was created with ten utterances" [Avos 5:1]. For we see with our own eyes that He wished to give each species of creature its own utterance, and in one utterance He did not create two things — this being His desire to match the action to its recipient.87 And here is rooted this entire Chochmas HaEmes: to discern the forces with which the Holy One Blessed be He created His world — what their forces are, what their measures are, and what the proportion between force and force, and between created being and created being. For after the forces were bounded — to will only these and not others — we can know them.88 This is because the Holy One Blessed be He created His world according to one intention, and according to this intention He bounded and ordered the kinds of forces He wished to introduce into this matter, and inscribed the order between them and the proportion and the statutes. And this is a thing a person can understand when it is transmitted to him — since it is not an unlimited thing that goes beyond the rule of human intellect. And the totality of this entire order is this wisdom. Therefore we assess in gradation the measures of these forces, and understand how things depend one on another, and how the created beings are connected thing with thing. And the main point is to understand for each thing in the created beings — a root of its own, in the forces — all in gradation and order, such that they are all connected one with another and directed toward one single intention alone.

§59Philosopher: These words are certainly good and are logically necessary — for we have seen this: the matter of the ten utterances that are distinct from one another. And behold, each utterance is placed as the beginning of the created being derived from that utterance. And when the utterances are discerned — there is a distinct beginning relative to each species of created beings.89 From this we now learn that there is a particular beginning for each matter individually. And when things in their content are connected and united according to the purpose-intention, their beginning is what goes first in this gradation and order.90 And following it — the created beings that emerge from it. So we have in our hands the distinctions of all the lights mentioned in the wisdom.91 One more thing I would ask of you, if you have a tradition about it: why did the supernal will need or wish to make a distinct beginning for the created beings — and what is the benefit in this?

Each Created Being Has Its Own Root

§60Kabbalist: These words you have spoken have no [other] explanation. Do you think the world and its creatures were made without a purposive intention? Certainly — it is necessarily the case that there is one intention92 behind everything created. I imagine you will not ask now why there are so-and-so many creatures — no more and no less — for these are exactly what is needed to arrive at this intention — all these things with all their conditions. And is it not now necessary that there be a distinct beginning for each created being, in the supernal mind, in the supernal light that is all One? Every created being exists because no other is sufficient without it to do what is required according to the purposive intention. Thus each matter has its own beginning.93

Rootedness in the Sefiros Is the Reason for Service and for Reward and Punishment

Kabbalist (cont.): But there is yet another matter you will understand from this: that the service of human beings is understood here — and reward and punishment. For since each created matter has its own distinct beginning, the supernal will willed and made the existence of that thing, the activity of that beginning, depend upon the free choice of man — for good — in one specific commandment. Thus, one who fulfils one commandment causes that particular beginning — the one upon which the commandment depends — to perform its work well.94 And the Creator blessed be His Name — Who created it — knows how to divide these kinds of beginnings into the divisions He willed,95 and to give commandments that depend upon these kinds so that they be fulfilled for good — and He declared and transmitted these acts to Israel, whom He chose for His service. And the reason for every commandment and every condition it has follows from the beginning upon which it depends. And the supernal mind intended and directed all that was needed according to the choice — for the sake of reward and punishment, and for the sake of maintaining the world at every time, and for all the revolutions of things — until the entire created existence reaches its full perfection. And it inscribed forces for all of this and brought forth existents from these forces. And these are the lights — they are lights because they are forces of the supernal will which is a light, except that it is called simple light — meaning: unrevealed and not seen at all.96 And the Sefiros are lights for which He wished to reveal their matter more — and also to reveal their light to created beings or to angels or to souls — in the way it is said: "and they enjoy the radiance of the Shechinah."97

§61Philosopher: It is the way of scholars to concede the truth. In all my days I never regarded the Kabbalists as anything other than what all philosophers regard them — fools full of credulity, stuck in their Kabbalah, who never tested their intellect to walk in the paths of demonstrative wisdom98 — to know a matter clearly — and who blindly committed themselves to a faith that serves no purpose. But now I see that this is not so, and I honestly concede that Kabbalah is true wisdom — and it is wisdom indeed. On the contrary — it alone is the wisdom that conveys a matter in its rectitude, more than anything counted by all other human beings as wisdom. And I have already stood in my comprehension and I see with certainty that the true knowledge cannot be attained by rational proofs — for it is only a kindness that Hashem performed in revealing this Kabbalah to Israel His people, transmitting it to them; and in it the intellect can truly delight and be satisfied by its nature, which desires to attain and comprehend.99 However, we have not yet come to the resolution of the first two objections I raised: first — how physical matter can descend from the Sefiros; and second — how it can be said that the Sitra Achra — even its root — was mixed within the Sefiros.

How Do Separated Beings and Physical Matter Come from the Sefiros?

§62Kabbalist: You have already seen that the entire essence of this wisdom is the discernment of the root of each thing — each matter individually: what its nature is, whence it comes, and where it is going — meaning, for what purpose and what benefit it contains. Therefore one who mixes the things produces the exact opposite of what the wisdom intends — and will not attain it. In any case there are two things from which we must speak — if you do not distinguish between them you will understand nothing but confusion: First — the Divinity, blessed be He — meaning the Creator — but not His essence, which cannot be spoken of, but His will — and not even His will in the aspect of omnipotence, but in the aspect of ordered thought — meaning, according to the things He willed to rectify in His world's creation,100 all in proper order and gradation. This is one matter: the forces and attributes of the supernal will, according to which are the Creation and the governance of created beings. And the second matter: the separated beings — meaning the created beings who are separated from the Creator; thus they are not the Creator, not His forces, not His Divinity — but what He created through His power. If you mix these two things together — you will not understand anything true. All the matters of governance — all the lawful order that the supernal will arranged for creating the created beings and governing them — this is the entire matter of the Sefiros in all their conditions and matters mentioned in them, encompassed in ten Sefiros and five Partzufim (configurations). They are the totality of the forces of the supernal will — meaning, His attributes in all their matters as they are, in all their connections — how they are connected to one another and depend on one another, such as how compassion flows from Chesed and dominion from Din — and the totality of all the forces, what He willed to create through them; and the totality of the order He willed in them; and the relation and connection He willed between them — this is the sum of what is mentioned in the Sefiros. And this is because all these matters are encompassed in the ten Sefiros and five Partzufim, and here the gradation of these forces is known in their proper order. And the totality of the separated beings — from their beginning to their end in their gradation — is another matter. And the truth is that the separated beings — the Creator, the supreme Emanator blessed be His Name, created them from absolute nothingness. And we cannot speak about the way He brought them out from nothing to something — for He alone knows it.101 And here we have two subjects to expound upon, each as it actually is. And a third matter arises for us from the existence of these two — which is the relation between them: between the Sefiros and the separated beings. And this is: even though we do not know the way of the bringing from nothing to something — we do know certainly that the Sefiros are what bring them forth; and we know that each and every force brings forth a particular derivative relating to it. And according to this — one force, before it reaches the point of producing one derivative, can be understood as having many conditions, and also as having chain-descent — for one force flows from another force, a third from the second, and so on for many forces. And the last force produces one of the separated beings. Thus the separated being was rooted, as though as an effect in its cause, already in the very first force of all — yet it emerged only from the last. And these matters are simple to one who knows the laws of prior and subsequent, cause and effect. And the main point is to discern each thing in its correct definition. It turns out that when we see a discourse of the wisdom, we must first discern where it is speaking — whether in Divinity blessed be He, or in His created beings, or in the relation between the two — and then immediately we understand the matters according to the subject being discussed. For what speaks of Divinity — it speaks only of the gradation of forces for the sake of the proper order that needs to be preserved according to a fitting and appropriate normative order. And nothing is spoken there of changing essences or their alteration — only of orders of forces and attributes: these are the lights I mentioned, which are portions of the will, blessed be He, which we called light, as I explained above. And what speaks of separated beings — there will be true alternation of essences and their change — an essential change in gradation. This means: there are forces that are finer and greater — such as what they called the nefesh and ruach of the Heichalos;102 and there are those that are coarser — descending in gradation until becoming these physical matters below. And this is the light of the angels103 and the light of the Throne104 which our Sages explained was created first — and from this light all other created beings were created.105 And when the relation between them is discussed — it is from the side of what we said: each force produces derivatives relating to it. And just as all the matters of the forces of the will are encompassed in ten Sefiros — so too all the matters of the separated beings are encompassed in ten Sefiros and all their other divisions. And when we discern the worlds according to all the matters encompassed in them — we say, as we explained above, that they are built of nefesh-ruach-neshamah and all other levels that are discerned in them — namely: garments and Heichalos (chambers/palaces)106 and all that is mentioned in them in the discourses. And each matter is encompassed in ten Sefiros. For just as there are in the worlds Divinity — ten Sefiros — so too in the Divinity, blessed be He, that spreads there to oversee His created beings, there are also ten Sefiros. And the created beings in many levels, one above the other — the one closer to the matter of Divinity is called neshamah; the ones closer of the separated beings — ruach; the more distant — nefesh; more distant still — body; still more distant — garment; most distant — Heichal. And within each of these levels there are many divisions according to the matter of that level, each as it actually is. And all the matters in all the levels are always encompassed in the ten Sefiros and all that is mentioned in the order of the Sefiros. And now it remains for the listener to discern in the discourses he hears — which Sefiros are being spoken of: whether of the neshamah, whether of the nefesh, or any other aspect. And the discourses proceed well according to the level in which they were expounded — not otherwise. And let me now come to the root of your questions. Your first question was that the Sefiros appear to descend until they produce physicality — and you found it difficult how Divinity can descend and become physical matter. Here is your answer: this is said only where it can be said — and this is in the Sefiros of ruach and from there onward — which is in the worlds of B"Y"A.107 But the ruach itself descends from the neshamah only in the mode of something from nothing — not more. And yet that force that brings forth this ruach has already been arranged within the normative laws of gradation — such that it is related in its gradation to the ruach that emerges from it.108 But the mode of emergence is from nothing to something. Yet from the ruach onward — where all is separated beings — there is actual chain-descent, from something to something.

The Root of the Sitra Achra in the Sefiros

Kabbalist (cont.): Your second question — about the matter of the Sitra Achra whose root was within the Sefiros. Here too, when you will examine it carefully, you must discern where it is said — and then you will understand it according to the context in which it is said. This matter is at the beginning — in the Sefiros — before any created beings exist. If so, we are not speaking there of changing essences — but of orders of forces that will arrange themselves in one order and afterward in another — on account of the matter desired in them. And the supernal mind wishing to think in the mode of human thinking — although it could act in its mode of omnipotence — did not act except in the human way. A person, when he thinks to do something in its perfection, must look in his mind at the good ways to do it, and at the ways that are not good. And how does he distinguish between them? He must envision each matter in his thought as though it were done, and see the outcome that will come until the end of that matter; and he sees the outcome of that matter — and either dismisses that matter from his will and chooses another path. Therefore the Holy One Blessed be He wished to show both ways — what would be good to create the world with, and what would not be good. And His forces were first arranged in one order — and no created being emerged from them, for He did not bring Creation out in that order; rather He left those forces to produce all their orders and all that depends upon them. And what would have emerged from them — would only have been great corruptions, kinds of evil things that would have come out and been begotten from them in the world had they been the producers and makers of Creation. Therefore Creation was not made from them — but from the arrangement of other forces. And what we call the root of the Sitra Achra — is nothing other than those forces that produce it — not an essence destined to be a Sitra Achra in any way whatsoever — for no separated essences had yet been created at all. And I have answered you only so that you know the style of the wisdom — but not so that I could explain the reason for this entire matter and all its conditions — for you lack many prerequisites needed before this. Did I not already say: you do not know what is the matter of the line and the impression, and the matter of Adam Kadmon, and the lights of ear-nose-mouth — and all the things you read, you certainly do not know their content. And the matter of the Shevirah (the Breaking) comes after all of these. When you know all these matters clearly — then I will be able to tell you about the Shevirah.109 And you will see that I will be telling you very long and very deep things. But now I wished only to remove from the world the great astonishments that you were astonished and shaking the world over — which all the other philosophers like you similarly shake.

The Descriptions of the Sefiros Are Not Mere Metaphor

§63Philosopher: I have already left the category of these philosophers — I have already seen, and I have already conceded, that Kabbalah has a great superiority over all other wisdoms — a very great superiority. But there still remains one great objection for me regarding the existence of most of the discourses expounded in this wisdom: for they anthropomorphise things greatly. And from this I have difficulty: if the matters are understood literally — this is impossible, for when speaking of forces of the supernal will, physical language cannot apply — for there is no bodily likeness in the Creator blessed be His Name, certainly — this is a fundamental of faith. And if you say they are metaphors — all the discourses turn out to be allegory and parable, none of them being things as they actually are — and why should one exhaust oneself with parables?

§64Kabbalist: They are certainly not metaphors — for all the sages would not have exhausted themselves in producing so many parables.

§65Philosopher: What explanation do they give to: "For you saw no image" [Devarim 4:15]?110

§66Kabbalist: This is certainly a great principle in the wisdom. Therefore it was said: "from the mouths of scribes, not from the mouths of books" — for the sages conceal the roots of the wisdom within themselves, to transmit them to whoever is fitting for them. One who takes the text without knowing what is concealed in the heart of the writer — greatly errs on the way. Moreover, it is impossible for writing to contain words sufficient to give correct understanding to every reader — just as eyeglasses111 cannot be equal for every eye, so too there are no words sufficient for every heart and intellect. Let me come to the answer to your question. The verse is full: "And through the prophets I shall be likened" [Hoshea 12:11] — tell me your interpretation of it.

§67Philosopher: What interpretation is needed? Prophecy is a revelation that the Holy One Blessed be He wishes to reveal to the prophet — either words of knowledge about His greatness, blessed be He, or about future events that will come in the world. The supernal glory appears to the eyes of the prophet and shows him these matters. But it is the law of prophecy that neither the supernal glory nor the matters shown appear in a simple straightforward way — but through imaginative visions. This is to say: the soul of the prophet forms images before itself — like the vision of the Chariot of Yechezkel, and all other prophecies. And those images — these are the knowledge that reaches the soul of the prophet, such that even though he sees a vision, he understands true knowledge.

§68Kabbalist: You have resolved your own difficulty! For you yourself conceded that prophets see the supernal glory in a visionary mode. And all these things are explained in Scripture: "The Ancient of Days was seated" [Daniel 7:9]; "A likeness like the appearance of a man" [Yechezkel 1:26] — and others like these. I too tell you that the totality of seeing the supernal glory according to the prophetic vision — is the entire Tree of Sefiros and Partzufim. And what the prophets were concise about — the Sages elucidated. And the prophet to whom the Holy One Blessed be He shows His Chariot — would see all that is mentioned in the words of Rashbi (R' Shimon bar Yochai) z"l and his commentators, and all that is mentioned in Pirkei Heichalos, and all similar to them. Therefore, the discourses of this wisdom are not metaphors — they are true: they are all that which the prophets saw when they beheld the supernal glory and His Chariots. But this we know: everything prophets see is in a visionary mode, and they themselves know the truth about this — namely: "To whom will you liken Me and make Me equal?" [Yeshayahu 40:25]. But the benefit of knowing all these prophetic visions is the very same benefit that reaches the prophets themselves upon seeing them — for these visions convey to the prophets who see them — and to the Sages who know through their received tradition what the prophets see — all the orders of governance and its laws.

§69Philosopher: This matter settles in my heart, and I desire to learn this wisdom in a fitting manner — for I see in it great and very upright depth. But I have not understood the written texts and was greatly confused by them. Now I strip away everything I knew and read of this, and I ask you to be so good as to teach me in a proper, straight manner from the very beginning of the entire matter as is fitting — if you wish to benefit me. On this matter of the vision I still have questions: what do the prophets see in their visions — for one verse says "you saw no image" [Devarim 4:15], while another says "and the likeness of Hashem he beholds" [Bamidbar 12:8] — and the verses themselves seem to contradict one another. And I also desire to know a matter I saw the sages of Kabbalah greatly perplexed about — the matter of the positioning of the worlds: in one place it appears that Asiyah is at the center of the worlds and the line pierces and passes through it all the way down to the bottom of the circles of Atik; and in another place it appears that Asiyah is under the feet of Adam Kadmon and in his heels. I have not seen a satisfactory answer. But I do not wish you to answer each thing individually — for I have already seen that a different kind of learning is needed for this wisdom.112 Therefore I beg you to guide me on the straight path from beginning to end.

§70Kabbalist: So I shall do, and I shall teach you learning sufficient for a wise man like yourself — to get to the bottom of this matter upon which the wisdom is built. Let me tell you what order is needed for learning this wisdom. You have heard that there is the totality of the visions seen in the Chariot,113 and afterward the matters of governance desired in these visions.114 One must first know the entire vision, and afterward the solution.

§71Philosopher: It pleases me greatly that you proceed with me in order — for this is a great principle: without order there is nothing but confusion, and it is impossible to learn anything, for the intellect cannot settle in a matter that is stuffed into it in confusion and muddle; rather, it must see its parts — each matter on its own framework — and all its matters, each group separately, until each matter is clarified in its place.

The Core of the Wisdom — To Know the Path of Governance

§72Kabbalist: Know this for certain: merely to know the names of the Sefiros and Partzufim and all that is found in them — without knowing what their nature is and why they are — this is no knowledge at all. For what benefit is there in knowing that there are so-and-so many kinds of lights Above that govern the world — when we do not know what the governance flowing from them in these creatures governed by them is? And what do we see of the depth of His wisdom, blessed be His Name, in this matter, and His deep counsel? But if we can truly attain the secret of His counsel, blessed be He, in creating His world and the way of His governance — until all things that exist and all that are done are well understood, with good reasoning and knowledge, in the depth of wondrous thought that knew how to revolve things in so sublime a revolution that all these results emerged from there, and all is beautiful and perfectly ordered — this is what deserves to be called wisdom. And if the entire essence of this governance is found — which is nothing other than these Sefiros and all their laws — then when we speak of the Sefiros and all that is in them, it will no longer be called discoursing about tales that are like the words of a sealed book — but one great wisdom: the wisdom of knowing His sublime governance, blessed be His Name, to the extent it has been given to us to attain and know.

§73Philosopher: Of this there is certainly no doubt — for it was for this very reason that I could not bear the things I was hearing in this wisdom: because I saw them as tasteless food without salt, and I found in them nothing that could be called wisdom. But now, on the contrary, I say it is a most wondrous wisdom, and it is certainly fitting for every man of knowledge to abandon all other kinds of wisdom in the world for the sake of this great and holy wisdom — before which all other wisdoms are as nothing.

The Second Discourse

The Sacred Tree — Overview of the Worlds, Sefiros and Partzufim[The ten chapters of Klalus HaIlan HaKadosh are here presented to the Philosopher — they appear as a separate work in this volume]

§74Kabbalist: From now on, two things must we learn in order — one after the other — as I told you. First, we must know the totality of all that we have received in our Kabbalah — what is in the vision of the supernal Chariot — meaning, the totality of the Sefiros and all the laws mentioned in them. This matter stands only in tradition — for thus was transmitted to us by the possessors of prophecy and holy spirit. Afterward we must return over all this and know the solution to this entire vision.115 And the totality of this solution is the totality of the entire supernal governance, to the extent given to us to attain — as we said above. Therefore I shall divide all this into two parts: the first — I shall arrange for you the totality of the entire Sacred Tree and all that is in it, in brief chapters — so that you can become fluent in them, always knowing them, having them sharp in your mouth. For whoever wishes to understand the discourses of the wisdom must always know all of these — since the discourses move hither and thither among the chapters of the Tree and its branches.116 And afterward I shall arrange for you the totality of the solution — namely the totality of supernal governance with its laws. And for this too I shall arrange for you preliminary definitions in brief formulas117 — to arrive at the content of this knowledge — through which you can afterward walk in the paths of the wisdom and its ways fittingly.

§75Philosopher: Here I am, my brother, with all my soul's desire — to receive from you what you promised me; for I cannot restrain myself from ascending to the sweetness of your wisdom, for which my soul has yearned and pined — for your pleasant words and for this holy wondrous wisdom, whose eyes have been opened to see what I did not think of and what had never entered my mind. Now favour me with your good promise.

§76Kabbalist: I have done what I said to you — and here are the brief chapters I have arranged, to be fluent in your mouth.117*

§77Philosopher: I have already heard that you wish to encompass in these chapters everything that exists in the Sefiros and supernal worlds — according to the Kabbalah of the possessors of the holy spirit. Even so, I wished to know from you: have you gathered in them everything found written in the words of the Kabbalists — or what did you take and place in them?

§78Kabbalist: Had I wished to take everything the holy Ari z"l said, I would have been very lengthy and would not have established clear knowledge for you — for the burden would have been too great for you, and you would not have seen the end of things. But it is simple that every wisdom has roots and branches, and I took the roots and left the branches. For after you know the roots — all the branches that depend on them, when you find them in the words of the Kabbalists, you will understand them. But had I left out one of the roots — when you then found a discourse built upon it, you would not understand it at all.

Roots and Branches in Chochmas HaEmes

§79Philosopher: Good — and I hope to receive abundant knowledge from you, since you clarify the paths of learning greatly. But make known to me: what do you call "root" and what "branches" in this wisdom?

§80Kabbalist: I call "root" what is a new subject in the wisdom, and "branch" — what is expounded about the known subjects.118 We need to know all the subjects received by the possessors of the holy spirit — they and their names and their states,119 and all that depends on their structure — and the totality of all this I call: the Sacred Tree. And I call these roots — because from each of these, many subsequent discourses emerge. And if we do not know the subject — the discourse is not understood at all. But once we know all this — the amount of what is expounded about each one is great, and there is also no end to all the great particulars expounded about each subject — and I have no need to gather them; for once you know all the roots you will know all the particulars on your own when you read them in their place.120 And let me explain this matter more clearly: all our engagement is with the forces of the will that derive from the will itself — to have through them all Creation and its governance; and they are all the statutes of this Creation and this governance and their laws. And the intellect compels: not every deed needs to have a separate statute for itself — not so many statutes as deeds. Rather, it is from wisdom to establish one way and one statute that can suffice for every deed that is born and done afterward at every time and moment.

§81Philosopher: This is obvious to me — for multiplicity where less suffices is a deficiency. On the contrary, the perfection of the Emanator blessed be His Name dictates this very thing — that He need not require separate statutes for each instance;121 rather — that He foresee from one comprehensive view122 — and establish one way sufficient for all.

§82Kabbalist: And so the universal statute is the matter of the ten Sefiros — to which nothing is to be added and from which nothing subtracted. These suffice for every time and every eventuality — because of the many conditions found within them in their fullness,123 such that the One Who foresaw all foresaw all that was needed and gathered and encompassed all within these ten — such that no new existence is needed after the first existence. But the paths through which all things are born from the ten Sefiros in their times — these too were established from the beginning according to what each thing needs. But the derivatives themselves that emerge from them — these are all the creatures and events that were subsequently born, according to the paths already prepared in them. And the totality of all these paths is what needs to be known — for upon them depend all the changes that were subsequently changed, and that are changing throughout all of existence. And if we lack the knowledge of one of these paths — we lack knowledge of many creatures that emerge from there, since it is impossible to know how they emerge. And these paths are what I encompassed for you in these chapters — they are the sum of paths that I call: the Sacred Tree.

The Kabbalah of the Ramak and the Kabbalah of the Ari

§83Philosopher: Make known to me one thing I greatly desire to know: the matter of the two Kabbalahs that exist — the Kabbalah of the Ramak (R' Moshe Kordovero) z"l and the Kabbalah of the Ari z"l. What are they, and what is the difference between them?

§84Kabbalist: Both are certainly true, and there is no disagreement between them. Rather, I have already explained both in my words. Did I not say that the ten Sefiros are the first foundation sufficient for all governance? It turns out that every event that occurs in the world — it certainly is born from the movement of one of these Sefiros. Now it is possible that we know the Sefirah from which it is born — but not the specific path fixed within it for producing that particular matter. And it is possible that our knowledge would be deeper — and we would also know the specific path of that particular Sefirah through which it produced that event. And these are the two Kabbalahs — of the Ramak and the Ari: The Ramak z"l explained only the ten Sefiros and all that is born from them — but not the path of how they produce things. And everything he said is true, and the entire Torah can be explained according to this approach — for indeed everything comes from these. But the Ari z"l explained for us more clear knowledge — for he explained the specific paths of the Sefiros, and through them we know how different things emerge from one Sefirah — since each one has its own path.124 And this is the proportion and connection between Sefirah and Sefirah — for according to these connections is the bringing forth of their derivatives according to their nature. But the variations that change within these paths — these are without number, and they are what I called branches of the root. For outside of these mentioned paths — no discourse will be found at all that speaks about them.125

§85Philosopher: Can you tell me in brief the sum of these subjects?

§86Kabbalist: They are all the worlds from after the Tzimtzum until the end of Asiyah; their sum: Adam Kadmon with all his known branches. Atzilus in its five Partzufim — with all their chapters and the proportions of their orders, and their fixed and changing states. All these fixed and changing matters — in what they are fixed and in what they change. The totality of all this is the root of the wisdom — and all the rest is the explanation. Now apply your mind and understand — for its branches are without end, and its particulars are without limit. Once you have stood upon the root — receive the particulars as G-d favours you.

§87Philosopher: Speak your words — for I listen to you with all my heart and all my soul.

§88Kabbalist: Here are ten chapters — I have arranged them in a brief manner. Hear them, and know them well.

§89Philosopher: I have already heard and seen your chapters — and your words are good and correct. They are the roots of the wisdom that one must know — all of them fluent in the mouth, to hear afterward in specific teachings the details of things. Now I shall hear from you the solution to all this — for it is evident to the eyes that things go to a much greater depth. And it is not acceptable to the intellect that they should not have a deeper intention — for if not, they would all be like a sealed book, with many difficulties about them; it is impossible to understand them except with a great explanation.

§90Kabbalist: As you have said, so shall I do — and I shall encompass for you the explanation of all this, with G-d's help. But I wish to hear from you what is so difficult for you in these matters — now that you have heard what I already explained to you.

§91Philosopher: So I shall do as you said. But let us make this another discourse — for I see the matters are very extensive. And also we are going into another matter — for until now we were doing "let the person review" — and afterward we will fulfill "and then reason deeply" [Shabbos 63a].

The Third Discourse

The 138 Gates of Wisdom — the Philosopher's remaining difficulties and the Kabbalist's brief principled responses[The 138 Pischim themselves appear as a separate work in this volume]

§92Kabbalist: Here I am, my brother — arrange your words and let me hear them.

Complete Understanding of Chochmas HaEmes Is Understanding the Ways of Governance

§93Philosopher: You have already preceded me with one necessary premise of natural reason: that whoever wishes to know this wisdom must certainly know all the matters of the Sefiros and Partzufim — what their nature and their operations are — for if not, he is not called one who knows this wisdom, but only one who remembers the names mentioned in this wisdom. For when a person knows there are so-and-so many Partzufim, so-and-so many states, so-and-so many ascents, so-and-so many descents, and all other matters mentioned in the wisdom — and he does not know where all these are directed, toward what point all these lines converge — what knowledge does he have? He has only a jumble of many matters in his head like a basket crammed with books [Megillah 28a — Rashi: "a basket filled with books, not knowing what is within"]. Even if we exit from the first difficulty that appears at the surface of the entire wisdom — namely: anthropomorphisation, which these discourses on the surface greatly apply to Divine matters, which is against true faith — we have already exited from this when we knew in general that all this is nothing but the vision of prophecy; yet all that is seen is nothing but attributes and statutes of the Divinity, blessed be His Name, in what He maintains and governs His creatures. Now at the beginning we still desire to specify and know — how all this is a normative order and governance. Moreover, the matters have no order — no head and no end — and we found the discourses skipping from matter to matter with no connection.

§94Kabbalist: Elaborate your words — where did you find the lack of order you mention?

Questions About the Order of Tzimtzum and Worlds

§95Philosopher: This too I heard outside — which you did not bring in your words.128 But it is written in the words of R' Chaim Vital z"l: that in the void remaining from the Tzimtzum there are worlds without end — but only one particular is discussed; and this is difficult for me either way. Either these other worlds have effects on Creation and governance, or they do not. If you say no — then they were for nothing. And if you say yes — then when we know one particular, what have we gained, since it is not even a drop in the ocean compared to worlds without end? One cannot say that this particular produces this world, and from the other worlds come other matters not in this world — for if we say this, we have no footing in all this wisdom. Is it not the case that the Tzimtzum and all of Atzilus were only for the sake of this world — and other worlds we know do not exist, other than the chain of Atzilus-Briyah-Yetzirah-Asiyah? If so — what are these worlds and why are they?

§96Kabbalist: All of this is about what I did not say. State your objections about what I did say.

Questions About the Order of the Branches of Adam Kadmon

§97Philosopher: When you came to this particular129 alone — you began and said there is AB, SaG, MaH, BaN (72, 63, 45, 52 — the four spellings of the divine name that represent the four levels). I thought you wished to present the order of the emergence of the branches of these names. Had you done so, I would at least know one thing. But AB you set aside and began with SaG, which you divided into AB SaG MaH BaN. I thought you would then set out the order of these — but you did not do this either; instead you divided the AB of SaG into three groups of lights: upper, middle, lower, each a group of 150 lights130 by itself. I also thought the points would be divided similarly — but you did not divide them this way, encompassing them all in one group. Then you skipped from this to MaH — and there too you did not divide anything — all in one group. And there were also matters confused in my ears between the BaN of SaG and the general BaN. In sum — I am confused by the abundance of your words, which are individually good — but I find no order that proceeds through the whole from the beginning of the matters to their end, which is what I desired to hear.

§98Kabbalist: So far you have valid argument — each one I shall explain for you with G-d's help. If you have more difficulties — complete your words.

Questions About the Lights of Ear, Nose, Mouth

§99Philosopher: You spoke of the lights of ear-nose-mouth — and I do not know what they are or what their matter is; for according to what I heard from you — the creatures of this world do not come from them at all. And what troubles me more — is the matter of the lights of the mouth, in which is mentioned the event of going out and returning (yetziah v'chazarah) — and I do not know what these matters are and what their use is. If you say one cannot know the thoughts of the Emanator blessed be His Name — then what need do we have to know even a single thing about these matters? I am greatly pleased with what you said at the beginning — that Chochmas HaEmes is the statute of the order of His governance, blessed be His Name — and yet it still does not seem so. And likewise the letters mentioned in the lights of Aleph-Ches-Peh: in the ear — Heh, in the nose — Vav, in the mouth — Dalet; there must be some matter to these letters. In sum — all of this is certainly only surface-level rote learning, and I find in them no analytical understanding that would put my heart at rest in seeing in them wisdom and knowledge. I see in the lights of the mouth one event — namely: emergence and return; in the Nikkudim (Primordial World of Dots) another event — namely: the Shevirah (Breaking). There must be a root and reason for all of this. I know that answers will not be lacking to answer each thing individually — but I will not believe that these things are so disconnected that each one is a wisdom by itself. Rather, I will believe that there is one general order — ordering all these things together; and the answers that will be found according to it for each particular — these I will accept, and I will know I have stood upon the truth of things.

Questions About the Shevirah

Philosopher (cont.): See the matter of the Shevirah — it has so many matters I cannot enter into: that the vessels were one beneath the other and not one beside the other, and that the lights entered and returned — all of this requires a great root and sufficient reason. And I have a great difficulty about the words of R' Chaim Vital z"l regarding the Shevirah — although I saw you tried to correct it. But I wish to understand the matter well. For they said that the Sefiros of Atzilus broke and descended into B"Y"A — the inner part into Briyah, the middle into Yetzirah, the outer into Asiyah; but afterward all of them returned and ascended and made Atzilus — so then where did B"Y"A come from? One cannot say they are a new radiance that emerged from the first,131 for it says regarding the clarification that the good remained in Atzilus and the lesser went to B"Y"A — so now Atzilus is greatly lacking.132 And the matter of the 288 sparks — R' Chaim Vital z"l makes many calculations to arrive at the number 288. And I have great difficulty — what do we care about this calculation? If the reality was so — fine; but why do we need to seek so many reasons to arrive at this number — either we count everything that descended, or we count nothing. And on the matter of clarification they said — the Malchus of Asiyah was not fully clarified, until the holy Ari z"l said one should not fear from Malchus of Asiyah but from Malchus of Yetzirah; and these words have absolutely no explanation. What does it mean to fear from Malchus of Asiyah or from Malchus of Yetzirah — there is but one fear: to fear the Master of all — and how does one make this distinction — to fear from one Sefirah or another? And regarding the Tikkun — there too so many scattered ways and matters, without my being able to gather them.

§100Kabbalist: For instance, what?

Questions About the Tikkun

§101Philosopher: For instance — Reisha d'Lo Isyada (the Head That Is Not Known), and the doubts mentioned about it. I have two difficulties: first — what need is there for these doubts and to know them? And further — these doubts exist in all of Atzilus, so then all of it should be called "not known." And Arich Anpin — they said it has three heads (Telas Rashim); and what is relevant in this — say that it has Keter, Chochmah, and Da'as like all the others?133 There must be a great root in this matter — it is mentioned as a very great secret. And similarly all the other rectifications: the seven rectifications of the head, the thirteen rectifications of the beard. Could all these lights be without effect? That is impossible — and these things require great explanation. And Abba and Imma, Israel Saba and Tevunah — there are so many kinds of divisions in them. And likewise in Zair Anpin and his Female in their smallness and greatness and unions — there are so many kinds of matters. What does smallness and greatness, first and second, mean? If we answer with one general answer — that all of this is the descent for coming to this world — we say in one sweeping statement: we know nothing; we only know that there are many levels for arriving at this world, and just as we skip all the other worlds in the void — so too we skip all these matters.

§102Kabbalist: I have heard your difficulties. And now I am arranging for you 138 brief principled formulations — defining the totality of governance in all matters of the Tree in sharp conciseness. You must apply your mind to each and every word — and you will see very great and deep wisdom.134 And here they are before you: Gate 1: The unity of Ein Sof Baruch Hu... until Gate 138.135

The Fourth Discourse

The Commentary on the 138 Gates — Learning to Enter the Inner Chambers of the Wisdom

The Path of Learning the Book Klah Pischay Chochmah

§103Philosopher: I have seen the depth of the wisdom — and your formulations which you defined in brief136 are very fitting for receiving complete knowledge from these discourses — like something holding the greater part within it. However, one who has not descended to the depth of the matters — passes over them in a rush and does not pause to understand each part individually. And it has already been said: everything is easy for one who does not understand. Therefore I ask you to have pity on me; and after you compressed the expansive — expand the compressed. Show me, regarding the words of the brief formulations, how many of the discourses are encompassed in them, and toward how many sides one must turn in that matter — to attain it from all its sides. Therefore you shall divide each and every formulation into parts and distinctions — and then I will be compelled to understand it, to press into every part and not skip. And I will be found to enter the chambers of the wisdom fittingly — for the matters will at least be wide-open before me; and afterward the attainment — to attain this deep subject. "For G-d's kindness is upon him, for Hashem gives wisdom — from His mouth, knowledge and understanding" [Mishlei 2:6].

§104Kabbalist: I shall do as you say — for my desire is to guide you on the good path, to stand upon the content of this wisdom in uprightness. Here is the explanation of the 138 formulations I arranged for you: The foundation of the wisdom and pillar of faith... until the end.137

The Fifth Discourse

The Four Root-Knowledges of Chochmas HaEmes — and the Practical Dimension: Why We Need This Wisdom

§108Philosopher: I have heard from you a great and deep wisdom — and upon me now is to inscribe it upon the tablet of my heart, to contemplate it always every single day; for I know all the days will not be sufficient for me to reach the end of this great wisdom. And this is the root of what I have received from you. Now, please make known to me — according to this root — how many sides the discourses of the wisdom face;138 for I already think it fitting that we should also know this — where to turn after knowing this root.

The Four Root-Knowledges of Chochmas HaEmes

§106 [cited]Kabbalist: The knowledges of the wisdom are four — they were explained by the holy R' Shimon bar Yochai z"l in Zohar Chadash, Shir HaShirim, on the verse "If you know not" [Shir HaShirim 1:8] — he said: "The wisdom that a person needs to behold..."139

§107Philosopher: It will be a pleasure for me to hear this matter properly — for now I know I shall stand upon the path of the wisdom, to know how to use the root fittingly for all the particulars correctly.

A — The Tree of the Descent of the Worlds

§108Kabbalist: These are the four knowledges. The First is the knowledge of the expansion of the supernal light that created the worlds and governs them — this is called "to behold in the secret of one's Master" — for this is what we attain of the Creator, blessed be His Name. And this is the first knowledge I have transmitted to you until now — namely the knowledge of the Tree in all its particulars and governances. And this is called knowledge of the expansion of the supernal light — because throughout all of this140 the light that is emanated after the Tzimtzum expands, and this is all that is within it. And the totality of this: the Tzimtzum of Ein Sof Baruch Hu, the residual impression, the incoming line, Adam Kadmon and his branches — which are: the lights of the skull, and ear-nose-mouth, and the lights of the mouth which are the Akudim (Bound Ones), the matter of the emergence of the vessel through the emergence of the Sefiros and their return, and the lights of the eyes which are the Nikkudim (Dotted Ones) — their breaking and falling, the World of Tikkun in all its Partzufim — namely: Atik, Arich Anpin, Abba and Imma, Zair Anpin and his Female; the other radiances in Atzilus — namely: Yisrael Saba and Tevunah, Ya'akov and Leah, and other recorded radiances — namely: the tribes, the generation of the Wilderness, and other diagonals. And all of these — to know the state of each of these Partzufim and their clothings, their smallness, their greatness, their ascents, their unions, Mayin Duchrin, Mayin Nukvin (male waters, female waters); and afterward the matters of Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah, the Heichalos within them, and the Divinity that spreads within them in the secret of the glory descending in Briyah; and likewise what appears to be parallel to His holiness blessed be His Name and opposed to it — to give room for the deeds of the lower beings — namely the Sitra Achra and its Sefiros and all its parts. This is the totality of this knowledge.141

B — The Connection and Relation of Man and Created Beings to the Worlds

Kabbalist (cont.): The Second Knowledge — "to know oneself" — namely: the matter of man and the secret of his form, in which all matters of service are explained; and the connection between man and all the worlds — what his effect upon them is and what their effect upon him is; man's coming into this world and his departure from it; in sum, everything that depends on the matter of man. And here all matters of the Sefiros are understood — and the operations of their lights, which literally parallel the form of man,142 in all its laws and the decrees of its nature. And dependent here are all the laws of governance, and the matter of the emergence of created beings — how they were born and created from the Sefiros, and their matter, and the circuit they travel from the beginning of their existence to the end of the completion of their rectification — each according to its matter.

C — The Ways of Souls and Their Transmigrations

Kabbalist (cont.): The Third Knowledge: "to know and behold in the secrets of souls" — this is knowledge of the secret of the ways of souls and their transmigrations, and the many matters that are found in this area. And there is inner knowledge within knowledge here: the surface knowledge is to know the laws of gilgul (transmigration) in all its particulars; and the inner knowledge is to know how the clarification of governance and the completion of the radiance of Malchus — given to the service of the lower beings — all depends on the souls.143 And the ways of clarification are the ways of gilgul I mentioned. And here are dependent all the deeds done under the heavens — from the beginning of Creation to the end of the six thousand years, which is the resting of the world from its transmigrations, when governance has already been clarified and service is no longer needed.

D — The Inner Governance of Creation and the Ways of Nature

Kabbalist (cont.): The Fourth Knowledge is: "to behold this world" — namely: to know the secret of this world, which is to know all the creatures of this world — how they are governed. This means that what the philosophers saw regarding the nature of creatures and the ways of nature — it is only the surface externality visible to the eyes, and it is not even the truth. Rather, all the matters of creatures are governed according to one inner governance — and an inner dimension clothed in all the creatures.144 And this is what they said: "the word Teva (Nature) has the same numerical value as Elohim (G-d)." And this is the truth that the Holy One Blessed be He hid from the philosophers. And this knowledge was given only to the Sages of Israel — and most of the Midrashic statements of our Sages that speak of ma'aseh Bereishis and of the matters of all the products of heaven and earth revolve on the axis of this primary and inner governance.145 Therefore they differ from the ways of the philosophers. And there are things that appear strange, and that the senses witness to the contrary. But the truth is that they speak according to the true inner governance hidden from the eyes of human beings — which is transmitted to them from the prophets and through the holy spirit. And this knowledge divides into two: knowledge of this governance below — how the lower creatures are governed according to the influence of the Sefiros and the command of the appointed ministers over each and every creature; and there is also knowledge of what is in the Sefiros themselves — parallel to these things below, and for the sake of these things below. For everything that exists below — besides being governed according to the supernal ones, there is also an analogue above.146 And these are the four knowledges that come after the root I explained to you — and their matters are found in the treasuries of our Sages of blessed memory and the precious writings of the holy Rashbi z"l, holy of Israel. And you — be wise with the goodness of your intellect, and may G-d help you — for "Hashem gives wisdom; from His mouth, knowledge and understanding" [Mishlei 2:6].

There Is a Need to Make a Brief Order for Beginners

§109Philosopher: Everything you said is very good — and I think this is sufficient to know the root of the wisdom clearly. And there is in my heart a certain path I have been contemplating — that it might be possible to do something to expand the path of this wisdom; for not all minds are equal, and the thinking of human beings varies greatly from one another. It is necessary to widen the path — not for one intellect alone, but for all — if possible.

§110Kabbalist: Please state this advice of yours — for I know you are a man of order; and I too agree with your words and your divisions147 which are certainly useful for making straight paths within the soul and widening them. One who studies without order — cannot receive wisdom, for the studies become confused in his intellect and nothing remains in its proper place.

§111Philosopher: What was needed — was to make a brief order for the beginner in this wisdom, so that he can run in its ways without stumbling. And let me tell you my reasoning. A very correct study order is: to learn the chapters you arranged first, and then the 138 Gates of the Wisdom, and then their commentary. This is true — and it is what is needed for a person to arrive at correct knowledge. But there is the kind of mind that cannot contain all the chapters at the beginning — before knowing anything of the governance — because the matters are foreign to him, and he does not descend into their depth at all. And the matters are many — not few — such that he cannot wait for the end; and if you wish to establish someone on the content of things, if he is not a patient person — he cannot wait so long without understanding.

§112Kabbalist: Good — please say how you would wish this order.

§113Philosopher: Let us do so: I shall tell you — according to the order I think is good — "tell me this matter or that matter," and you shall respond to me from your Kabbalah.

§114Kabbalist: So let us do — begin to ask, and I shall answer you on everything you wish.

§115Philosopher: I shall begin. Answer me first: what is the need for this wisdom?148

Chochmas HaEmes Explains the Ways of Providence

§116Kabbalist: The need for this wisdom is great. And I shall give you several answers to this. First let me tell you that we are obligated to know it — for it is a commandment upon us; as it is written: "Know this day and take it back to your heart that Hashem — He is G-d in the heavens above and upon the earth below — there is none other" [Devarim 4:39]. Behold, we are obligated to know through knowledge — not through faith alone — but through things that settle in the heart, as it says explicitly: "and take it back to your heart." And what is it we need to know? The truth of His unity, blessed be His Name: "For Hashem — He is G-d in the heavens above and upon the earth below — there is none other," etc. If so, two things we need to know: the first — that the singular Master oversees and governs everything — both the supernal and the lower;149 and the second — that there is no other, G-d forbid,150 meaning: to know the truth of His unity, blessed be His Name. These two things we need to know — tell me: from where shall we know them, and what wisdom will make them known to us? We need to know that the Holy One Blessed be He governs all — and to know this through clear knowledge through things that settle in the heart. From the plain wisdom of Torah we cannot understand this — for what does the plain Torah revolve around? Only around the commandments — how to do them and all their laws; or around understanding the narrated events that occurred — as they are mentioned in it. And these are two parts of the plain Torah.151 From the first part we will certainly not learn this — for the performance of the commandments and their laws does not convey anything of the Holy One Blessed be He and His perfection at all; for all that learning could be done even if the commandments had been commandments of some human being whom we wished or needed to serve, or to understand his words. If so, this knowledge does not emerge from here. If you say from the narratives — obviously it does not emerge from there — for narratives are not laws152 — but events, not knowledge. If you say: by contemplating those narratives this emerges — then you need another reflection upon the narratives themselves that will explain how those deeds were done according to supernal Providence with deep wisdom.155 Behold — this is a learning by itself, and is not the learning of the narratives of Torah. And even if you wished to extract this from the wondrous narratives themselves — that since these miracles occurred, the Holy One Blessed be He must certainly be overseeing and acting — this is not called anything other than inferring in your mind that it must be so. But this does not mean that you know through wisdom and knowledge that it is so — and that you stood upon the entire governance of the world, understood its ways, seeing with settled thought that all of it is from the Singular Master, blessed be He, with great wisdom — as it truly is. And the intention of the commandment is: "Know this day and take it back to your heart" — knowledge and settling of the heart: to know through true wisdom that it is so — that all that exists in the world is the governance of His blessed Name, and that all is beautiful and perfectly ordered — not through faith alone, but through knowledge, that you understand and comprehend that it is so, good and beautiful. This you will certainly not be able to extract from the narratives at all.154 Furthermore — from the narratives you would extract: that in those times the Holy One Blessed be He acted thus in His world — but you would not from this extract that the entire governance of nature is conducted by Him. On the contrary — the denier of Providence could say, G-d forbid: the miracles are from the Holy One Blessed be He, but the natural things are not from Him — rather He leaves things to proceed according to natural chance, and His Providence does not operate in them. And if you say you would extract the knowledge of this wisdom from the science of nature — as others thought — calling natural processes "the work of Creation"155 — this is certainly not so, for the deniers of Providence also contemplate nature — on the contrary, they say: the world proceeds according to its custom. And if from none of all these can you extract this knowledge — the commandment is still upon you to fulfil it.156 It is necessary that you find a way to fulfil it. And there is none other than this Chochmas HaEmes — for it is what reveals and makes known this truth of Providence, and all that depends upon it — and it will make known His unity, blessed be His Name, from every possible angle. For its entire matter is only this — to make known the supernal unity, blessed be He, fittingly, and to make known that everything that was, is, and will be — all is under His particular Providence; and to explain the ways of this Providence; and to explain according to them all the deeds — meaning the creatures in the world and all the deeds done to them — from the first day to the end of all things.157

§117Philosopher: Why should we labour over all this trouble — to see if this knowledge can be found from other places? I shall bring you clear proof for your words that contains no doubt whatsoever. See: every subject upon which wisdom builds — has its own mode of inquiry;158 and all the matters of that subject need to be explained in that mode of inquiry and no other — and this is obvious.159 Now in reality there exist: created beings and their Creator blessed be His Name. We have here two modes of inquiry: the inquiry into the created beings, and the inquiry into the Creator blessed be His Name. Into the Creator — it is impossible for us to inquire into His existence, for it is forbidden to us, and is utterly beyond attainment; except into the relation between the Creator and His creatures — meaning: the inquiry into the Creator in what He oversees them — to influence them or to receive their service. Say then: the inquiry into the Creator is not the inquiry into the created beings, nor any other inquiry — but only into what depends on the Creator blessed be His Name — namely the relation between Him and His creatures. One who wishes to know matters that depend on the relation between the Creator and His creatures — to which inquiry shall he go? He can only go to inquire into His Divinity, blessed be His Name — and this is the inquiry we mentioned between the Creator and His creatures. Providence — we already said it is what is between the Creator and His creatures — so its place is the inquiry into His Divinity. Let us now draw the inference: the Holy One Blessed be He commands us to know His Providence; and we wish to learn what will make this Providence known to us. And what makes this Providence known to us is nothing other than Chochmas HaEmes — which is the inquiry into His Divinity, blessed be His Name. If so — we see without doubt the obligation to learn Chochmas HaEmes.160

§118Kabbalist: Your words are good — may the Supernal be praised through you and through me.

§119Philosopher: That was your first reason — complete your words.161

Chochmas HaEmes Explains That All Is from Hashem's Hand for the Good — Even What Appears Otherwise

§120Kabbalist: And the second: even if we were not commanded concerning this, we would need to pursue it — in order to quiet our thoughts and have our path clear before us, to be saved from the evil inclination and from its terrible confusion. For what the evil inclination places constantly before our eyes — is to show that the world proceeds in emptiness and chaos and by chance — as if there is no judge and no judgment. And King Solomon of blessed memory already gathered in the book of Koheles all the things that circulate in the mouths of human beings — beginning: "Vanity of vanities" — and shows all the matters of this world and all the errors of human beings who go far off the straight path — all because they do not know the truth clearly. For according to what is visible to the eyes: one who works hardest in commerce is the one who becomes wealthy, and one who has silver and gold is the one who is honoured — and yet it appears to thousands and tens of thousands that this is not so: servants ride on horses and princes walk like servants; those who grasp the Torah are degraded and despised; the nations stand at ease, while Israel is pressed and crushed through the length of this drawn-out exile — no one takes it to heart, they are on the lowest rung, and no one is aroused to repentance, and Torah has been forgotten. True — of all this it is said: "And the righteous one lives through his faith" [Chavakuk 2:4]. But if you find a wisdom that explains all these things with sufficient explanation — clarifying everything correctly, showing that all of this is from Hashem's hand for the good, and showing how this is so — through clear and ordered study — would its benefit be small? Surely we shall pursue it with every kind of pursuit.

Through Chochmas HaEmes One Understands the Commandments and Their Particulars

Kabbalist (cont.): And the third: the service we render to the Holy One Blessed be He. It is true — it is desirable162 that we not seek reasons for the commandments, but perform them as instructed — with eyes closed. But you see that the intellects of people cannot stand firm concerning the detailed particulars of the commandments that appear as relatively insignificant matters.163 And our Sages of blessed memory already said: "Things that stand at the heights of the world, and people treat lightly" [Brachos 6b]. Have the heretics not already carped more than enough about the rabbinic statement — that if a Gentile touched wine, it becomes stam yaynam (wine of a Gentile forbidden for use)? "One who eats three meals on the Shabbos is saved from the judgment of Gehinnom" [Shabbos 118a]? "One who recites Tehillah l'David every day is assured of being a son of the World to Come" [Brachos 4b]? A palm-branch requires shaking precisely in six directions of the world and in the manner that our Sages taught — while the Torah says nothing more than "take for yourselves on the first day" — and such cases are without number. Certainly the Sages gave reasons for all of them — but the hearts of people who wish to be clever do not stand by them.164 But Chochmas HaEmes — it is what clarifies all these things, and shows what the service is, and how far its every particular reaches, and how every small thing here below on earth — goes and expands above and shakes all the worlds. Then a person will take it to his heart. This is certainly the entire benefit of this wisdom.

§121Philosopher: I have heard in this what is sufficient for every understanding person. Now please tell me the first foundations of this wisdom.

First Foundations of Chochmas HaEmes — Tzimtzum

§122Kabbalist: The very first thing is to know that both in the creation of the world and in its governance — the Holy One Blessed be He did not act in the mode of His omnipotence, as He truly is,165 but in the mode of human beings who do things little by little.166 All the existences — He made them and makes them in this gradation. For had He acted in the mode of His omnipotence — we would not be able to say anything about His deeds, since we would have no understanding of them at all; and because He acted in gradation — there is room for us to reflect on them.

§123Philosopher: Good — and this is the Tzimtzum that we said: that Ein Sof contracted Himself — meaning He did not wish to enter the matter of creating the world through His omnipotence, but through a measured mode.

§124Kabbalist: So it is — for there are two paths of the supernal mind: the path of His omnipotence, and the path of gradation. Now, before He created the world — the path of gradation was not needed; but when He wished to create the world — that was the time when this path was to be revealed. And it turns out He did not wish His omnipotence to enter the matter of creating the world except through the path of gradation. He therefore contracted His omnipotence so that it not enter this matter — and established the path of gradation. And the parts of this path and its laws — these are what we understand.

§125Philosopher: State this matter in the terminology known among the sages of Truth.

§126Kabbalist: His omnipotence — we call: Ein Sof Baruch Hu — meaning the supernal will in its completeness. And the path of gradation — we call: Sefiros. It turns out that the Emanator, blessed be His Name — Who is the First Existent — contracted His omnipotent will and established the path of gradation. And therefore we say: the Ein Sof contracted Himself — and then the Sefiros arose. From here onward we shall speak of the Sefiros and their gradations. And it turns out that for every and each effect found in the lower beings — there is one root in this path of gradation — namely the Sefiros. Until when we understand all the parts of this path of gradation — we understand the root of everything found in the creatures and their governances.

Lights

§127Philosopher: What are the lights that the masters of the wisdom mention in this wisdom — and what is their matter?

§128Kabbalist: His omnipotence — which is what we called Ein Sof Baruch Hu — is not attained: neither through understanding nor through sight, even prophetic. But through the path of gradation — it is understood through understanding and through prophetic beholding — meaning: each statute that we understand in the path of gradation — in prophetic beholding is seen as one light, that is to say: as that particular statute. So the entire gradation is found to be expressed in lights — for we say: there is one light whose effect is such, and another whose effect is such. And not that the main matter is light — but it is one statute whose nature is thus, and another statute whose nature is thus. Rather, the statutes are seen as so many lights. Therefore we speak of all in terms of lights — and the entire matter is — governance.

§129Philosopher: Complete the matter of governance.

Sefiros

§130Kabbalist: The totality of the statutes of governance is encompassed in ten — and all the rest are the conditions of these statutes and their particulars. And since the statutes are seen as lights — there are ten lights that are the roots of all governance — and they are what are called the ten Sefiros. When we understand them with all their parts — we understand all governance.167

Partzufim

§131Philosopher: And what is the matter of the Partzufim that we mention?

§132Kabbalist: We can speak of the statutes in general — and of the statutes with all their particulars. And the lights are either: lights in general that do not show their parts, or detailed lights that show their parts. But every light that needs to produce a particular effect of its own — needs to reveal all its parts. Therefore there are ten Sefiros — but according to the effects they need to produce, they become Partzufim. For example: if one light alone acts — it reveals all its parts and becomes one Partzuf; if two, three, four, or however many act together — among them all they reveal the parts needed for that particular effect, and among them all they are called one Partzuf. And therefore, if even one part of the parts that were revealed needs to produce an effect by itself, and reveal its particular parts — it too is called a Partzuf.168 In sum: everyone who has independent dominion and effect — reveals its parts and is called a Partzuf by itself. And according to the totality of governance — ten Sefiros build five Partzufim: Keter acts alone — becomes Arich Anpin; Chochmah — Abba; Binah — Imma; the six extremities act together — become one Partzuf alone — namely Zair Anpin;169 Malchus becomes Nukva. And there are further divisions — for since the Malchus of Abba and the Malchus of Imma have dominion by themselves — they also become Partzufim: namely Yisrael Saba and Tevunah. And even the Malchusos of Yisrael Saba and Tevunah become two more Partzufim.170 So the Partzufim are: Arich Anpin; Abba and Imma; Yisrael Saba and Tevunah; Ya'akov and Leah, whose matters I shall yet explain; and Zair Anpin and his Female.

§133Philosopher: Please explain now the matters of all these according to governance.

Zachar and Nekavah — Influencer and Receiver — in Their Various Stages

§134Kabbalist: The Supernal One wished to give service into the hand of man — such that from it reward and punishment would flow to him. Therefore He placed a root for this in the governance — meaning in the path of gradation. And He established the statutes of heaven and earth and all that is in them, and all that is needed for the maintenance of all Creation. And all of these are revealed in the mode of lights — and their totality is called Zair Anpin and his Nukva.171 And these statutes He did not place as fixed in one way — but made them capable of being in a mode of abundance or in a mode of constriction, G-d forbid, on account of reward and punishment. If human beings merit — these statutes will be in abundance: much rain, long and good lives, great subjugation of enemies, much removal of harm. If they do not merit, G-d forbid — all the statutes will be constricted: rain only a little, wealth little or complete poverty — and so all of them. It turns out that these statutes have many paths — paths of abundance and paths of constriction. This thing appears in the lights: if there is in these lights an alternation of times — a time when they shine greatly, or a time when they shine little — according to the matter of these statutes; and these are called the states of Zun (Zair Anpin and Nukva). And two things are seen here: the preparation of the receivers — whether much or little — and these are the states of Nukva and all her matters; for the entire matter of Nukva is nothing other than the matter of the receivers according to their preparation in their service. And the preparation of the influencer, so to speak, according to the receivers — these are the states of Zair Anpin. And all of these have fixed and known paths through which the entire governance of this world revolves.

§135Philosopher: Speak in the terminology of the masters of Truth.

Ibur, Yenikah, and Gadlus of the Partzuf of Zair Anpin

§136Kabbalist: The beginning of the matter is that all of this is hinted at in the secret of the human form and all its states. Therefore we speak of all according to this path. In man there exists a reality — that he is not born complete from the start, as Adam the first man was made; rather he grows little by little. And this is the secret of the gradation found in supernal governance — the totality of the statutes of heaven and earth: they are the secret of the limbs of man in all their configurations. And man is found at first as a small drop that progressively forms in its limbs — but is still enclosed in his mother's womb and in an incomplete state. This is the secret of the first state of these statutes — the minimal preparation needed to exist. Afterward there is one who emerges and nurses from his mother's breast — still needing his mother — and this is another appearance of the statutes. And there is one who is grown and standing on his own — and this is the appearance of the complete state of the statutes. Therefore we call the first state: ibur (gestation) of Z"A (Zair Anpin); the second: yenikah (nursing); the third: gadlus (maturity). And this is a great principle: every effect is measured in ten parts — which are the ten Sefiros. And the completion of these statutes is in ten levels — which are the ten Sefiros. In the first state the effect is not complete — there is in it only the lowest level: the Sefiros of Netzach-Hod-Yesod. In nursing it is more complete: the Sefiros of Chesed-Gevurah-Tiferes. In maturity: Chochmah-Binah-Da'as.

The Two Operations of Arich Anpin: Giving Existence and Complete Beneficence

Kabbalist (cont.): And there is yet another governance — which is the governance of existence: since it is impossible for the world to always stand in everything according to the deeds of the lower beings — for it would have been destroyed many times over. Therefore there is one governance — entirely according to the attribute of Chesed and its matters: all for doing Chesed, and to suffice in every place where the attribute of judgment would not have given that the world be benefitted — this complete Chesed would benefit it. And this governance is called Arich Anpin — and it stands always in one equilibrium in which there is no alternation of times. All that there is there — is either that it is revealed, or that it is not revealed. That is: Chesed acts in hiddenness173 — "A king through justice establishes the land" [Mishlei 29:4] — but he conceals his thought, which is Chesed; and through this the world subsists. And sometimes He reveals the attribute of His goodness and benefits openly without any concealment. And known fixed paths exist for this as well — both for what suffices for governance so that the world is not destroyed, and for what is needed for times — to act in revealed Chesed.

Judgment Flows from and Is Sweetened by Arich Anpin

Kabbalist (cont.): But you must know: the first wish of His will, blessed be His Name, is to benefit — except that in order to benefit with complete beneficence through justice — so that in the end the benefit will be true — like a father who disciplines his son to benefit him in the end — judgment itself is found emerging and being born from the Chesed we mentioned. And there are also paths for this — from which matters of this beneficence the matter of judgment emerges. And this descent-chain itself is a matter to understand on its own — and this is called Abba and Imma.174

The Stages of Judgment: A"A, Av"A, Zu"N

Kabbalist (cont.): The totality of governance is thus found to have three levels: the first — the attribute of complete Chesed in all its matters, wishing to benefit all — this is Arich Anpin. But there is in this one matter that causes judgment to be needed — for the beneficence must be complete; and it is not complete if the receivers do not receive it as a full reward,175 for if not — they are ashamed in receiving it.176 And it turns out that one must think things through according to the beneficence itself177 — how judgment is to be built in its parts. And the judgment itself in all its matters is Zair Anpin and his Nukva — the Nukva according to the matter of the receivers relative to their preparation;178 and Z"A — the matter of the influence. And what is in between — meaning the path of the emergence of this judgment from the beneficence — these are Abba and Imma. Thus Av"A (Abba and Imma) are nothing other than the causes of this judgment179 according to the first statute of the beneficence.180 And the deep counsel is now revealed before us: the supernal will wished to benefit everyone with complete beneficence — and this attribute is A"A (Arich Anpin). But from here emerges the matter of judgment that must exist, and there are certain known paths for producing this judgment — and the judgment is built upon them. Behold — judgment and the ways of its existence: when we wish to understand the roots of this judgment — meaning the roots of these statutes, how they are founded — we must discern Av"A and all their matters. But when we wish to know the statutes themselves — we understand Z"A (Zair Anpin). And you will see that causes beget their effects — therefore Av"A are what bring forth Zu"N.181 Abba — a distant cause, a first cause;182 Imma — a proximate cause,183 a second cause. And now — the first stage of judgment is complete judgment, but since the matter goes according to the matter of beneficence — the statutes must be completed — meaning they draw closer to beneficence; therefore things go and are perfected — namely: the attribute of judgment and its sweetening. Therefore ibur is the beginning of the existence of judgment — which is complete judgment. Yenikah is judgment more sweetened — for sweetening has begun. And the end of the sweetening is gadlus — which is the revelation of how judgment itself is made only for beneficence. And all this governance is always expressed in the secret of the human form. So we shall mention all

Kabbalist (§136 cont.): ...in human terms — both in limbs and in movements, and in all the governances — encompassing all of this.184 We have three: the attribute of complete Chesed, the attribute of judgment, and the roots of the attribute of judgment that depend on Chesed itself — and these are the five Partzufim. A"A — the attribute of Chesed, the root of all; the roots of judgment depending on Chesed — these are Av"A; the statutes of judgment itself in all its paths — these are Zu"N. And the changes of their states are the particulars of these statutes. From now on, everything we wish to know of the attribute of complete Chesed — we shall seek it in the matters of A"A and its particulars, which are the particulars of the attribute of Chesed and all its paths. When we seek to know of the matters of judgment185 — we shall go to seek it in the matters of Av"A, and all their particulars and the divisions of Partzufim we mentioned. And governance is now found to depend on these Partzufim and on the relation between them. Every light we shall mention in them is one condition of their matter — understood according to the matter of that light we mentioned above. All is the form of man — for you shall see what is the matter of that limb in man — so is the matter of that light in governance. And in whichever Partzuf you are speaking — so shall you know of which part of governance you are speaking.

§137Philosopher: In truth this path is very straight for beginning with it — and from here a person can then go to learn the chapters,186 and afterward to the Pischay Chochmah with their commentaries.187 But please complete now by explaining what is before Atzilus, and what is after it. And the unions too you still need to explain within Atzilus itself.

§138Kabbalist: Why did you ask first about what is before and after Atzilus — and afterward the unions which are within Atzilus itself?

§139Philosopher: Because the unions are a general matter throughout all the worlds. Therefore I shall ask you first to explain the worlds themselves — and afterward the unions that are in all of them.

Adam Kadmon, Atik, and the World of Atzilus

§140Kabbalist: I shall answer you first things first — and begin with what is before Atzilus. I spoke of the governances needed for this world — but the end of things is not here; rather it is after the six thousand years, which is the World of Reward. For Gan Eden is not the World of Reward — there is only the soul there; but after the Resurrection the Reward will be — where soul and body together are there. And this too is a particular governance of its own.188 And this world is before the World to Come as a vestibule before the banqueting hall. And what one does in this world must be established for the sake of the Reward in the World to Come. And here we have two things: the attribute of Reward in the secret of the World to Come, and the passage between this world and the World to Come — such that the deeds of this world will be established there. And the World to Come is a matter above Atzilus — beyond the [realm of] service. And for this matter there exists a world of Ein Sof, called Adam Kadmon, and all that depends on him — and Atzilus is a vestibule before him. And the Malchus of A"K comes into Atzilus and clothes itself in it. And this is the connection and passage I mentioned — between the World of Service and the World of Reward — and this is called Atik.190 Now the totality of all existence is found: A"K and all that depends on him; Atik — which is his Malchus; five Partzufim in Atzilus with all their divisions — which are the totality of all governance. And "the beginning of thought — the end of the deed" — for the purposive intention is the Reward for the future, for such is the entire desire of the Singular Master: to benefit. And this attribute of His goodness is the first matter,191 and it is A"K and all that depends on him as above. But in order to arrive at the banqueting hall — the vestibule was necessary on account of the service that must be found — and this is the World of Atzilus that emerges from A"K, and the Malchus of A"K is the connection between the two as above. Atzilus itself — the first and central Partzuf in it192 is Chesed — for the Holy One Blessed be He did not place judgment in the world unless Chesed first preceded it; for on the contrary — all the intention is to benefit, and this is A"A. But from there further emerges the matter of judgment — and these are the roots of judgment and its causes, which are Av"A. And afterward — judgment in its own statutes — and this is Zu"N, and the changes of matters in all these lights in many kinds of paths in all these statutes.

§141Philosopher: You have explained well what is before Atzilus. Now explain what occurred before Atzilus in the time of the act.193

The World of Nikkudim, the Shevirah, and the World of Tikkun

§142Kabbalist: Until we come to the matter of service — there is no place for good and evil. But when we come to this — good and evil must be introduced; and this is simple. And there is a great principle: so long as the cause influences its effect — the power of the cause will be strong; and when the cause is concealed — the effect will not endure. And the supernal will wished to introduce generation and decay in the world — He then prepared all of this for this purpose: first — the cause of the existents itself; then He gave room for the concealment of these causes so that the effects would be left to dissipate; and then He revealed again these causes and their power as needed. And in the concealment of the causes — the very concealment of the cause of generation becomes a cause of decay,194 and this is simple. And according to the kinds of concealments that came to be — so many kinds of causes came to be for decay. And it is found that when the supernal will established the causes of generation, the lights that were shining shone. And when they were concealed — the lights were as if annulled and dimmed, and this itself became a cause of decay — the concealment of generation becoming the cause of decay. And then He revealed again the causes of generation — and alongside them the causes of decay were also found — and this is the preparation for what is needed in this world. This is to say: the end of the Tikkun of the world will be when only the causes of generation remain — without any existence of the concealment of causes at all. And then there will be no more evil in the world.

§143Philosopher: Say it in the words of Chochmas HaEmes.

§144Kabbalist: We say that ten Sefiros emerged at the beginning — and these are what we call the World of Nikkudim, which were the causes of all existents in this world. And they broke and were annulled — and this is the concealment of the cause we mentioned. And from that breaking all corruptions were born. And afterward the Sefiros were rectified — and this world came to be as it is now; and this is the Tikkun — which gave room for generation. But because a complete Tikkun was not made — corruptions still remain in the world. And when the Tikkun is complete — there will be no more evil at all in the world. And when we wish to know the matters of good and evil and the general Tikkun of the world — we shall go to seek them in the matter of the Shevirah and the Tikkun.

From Where Did the Sefiros Emerge?

§145Philosopher: And these Sefiros195 — from where did they emerge?

§146Kabbalist: The totality of all governance whose beginning is in the mind — the World of Reward. And afterward all the other stages preceding it in the deed.196 The totality of all this is what we called A"K. And from this A"K emerge these Sefiros — from which the World of Atzilus — the World of Service — is subsequently built, as above. And this means: that even this world — its cause is the World of Reward, which is the purposive intention; and in order to arrive at it, this service is needed. Therefore Atzilus is said to emerge from Adam Kadmon — from that particular matter within him that causes this; meaning: what requires that the beneficence be without shame, etc. — from that matter this descended and came forth197 — and these are these Sefiros. And within them was all the matter we mentioned.

§147Philosopher: Tell me the way of the Tikkun.

The Way of the Tikkun

§148Kabbalist: Since the causes were annulled and concealed — there was no existence for the existents to exist, and on the contrary — the causes of decay were revealed.198 Afterward the causes of generation returned and were revealed, and all the levels and statutes were revealed one by one — the levels of A"A first, then Av"A, and so on for all of them. And all of this was also with the aid of another light that was revealed — called MaH Chadash,199 whose matter is what causes strength for the causes to be revealed and not annulled. And this gave Tikkun to the causes we mentioned — so they would not be concealed but revealed and perform their actions; and the causes we mentioned were clarified — for each to be in its proper station performing its proper action. But the decay was not fully annulled from the world — rather at the end of all the levels there remained causes producing corruptions in the world, and from them emerged the Sitra Achra — which is what causes all the evils in the world, as follows.

§149Philosopher: You have explained what is before Atzilus — now explain what is after it.

The World of Atzilus and the Worlds of Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah

§150Kabbalist: Atzilus is the measures of the supernal thought — which are the roots of creatures and their governance; for the kinds of creatures are themselves like the kinds of statutes that are in governance — each creature indicates one part of the statutes of governance. And it is found that the statute is the root of that creature.200 Therefore Atzilus is called the root of all existents.201 But the existents themselves are from Briyah and below. For in Briyah there is the Divinity, blessed be He — namely the ten Sefiros themselves that radiate their radiance. And from that radiance receive the ministers who stand to carry out the decree of the supernal mind into actuality. For such was the desire of the supernal will — that the actions be performed through ministers — the agents of the King — the supernal King riding upon them. And this is the radiance of the Sefiros we mentioned — riding upon the angel and carrying the matter to actuality. And for each single mission there is one angel to perform it. And behold — Briyah, Yetzirah, Asiyah are three worlds, one beneath the other, where the created beings dwell in gradation: the higher above and the lower below them, and the lower ones still lower. And in all of them there is the radiance of the Sefiros themselves — revealing itself there in every place according to its nature: above the radiance shines brighter, and from there the lesser ministers receive — until man and all physicality are found in the lowest of all the worlds.202

Inner Dimension, Outer Dimension, and Surrounding Light

§151Philosopher: You still need to explain the matter of inner dimension, outer dimension, and surrounding light.

§152Kabbalist: All the Sefiros are the actions performed by the Creator, blessed be His Name, upon His creatures. And within them is what relates to the active, and what relates to the acted-upon — and this is inner dimension and outer dimension — which is itself: light and vessel. And in order for the active to oversee from every direction — the light is found inside, meaning: concealed within; and surrounds from without — meaning: oversees from without. And this is inner light and surrounding light. And to understand this matter in particular — it is the secret of the root of body and soul in man. The vessels are the root of the body — and therefore in them are rooted all matters depending on the body. And the light within them, or surrounding them, is the root of the soul. And when we proceed in gradation — the inner dimension is found to be of much higher value than the outer dimension — by the measure of the soul relative to the body. But when we compare a lower level with the one above it — we say that the end of the outer dimension of the higher level is the inner dimension of the lower level.203 And in all of them the lower is inferior to the upper.204 Therefore we say that Netzach-Hod-Yesod of Imma205 are the Mochin (brain-intellect) for Z"A,206 and similarly those of Z"A are for the Nukva.

Unions

§153Philosopher: Now explain the unions.

§154Kabbalist: The root of all governance is right and left — meaning: Chesed and Din. And governance needs to emerge with the agreement of both.207 And the expansion of all the statutes — in the proper order — in the aspect of Chesed — this is the male. And their expansion — also in order — in the aspect of Din — this is the Nukva. And these must unite together.208 And the derivative begins to emerge from the first force of that statute.209 And it descends and is drawn through all the forces210 — into one drop containing all of them211 — which are the person, with his 613 limbs, going out to the right and the left.212 And Din is more predominant in influencing the world — for the world was created in Din, except that He combined with it the governance of Chesed and its predominance. And this is the Nukva receiving from the male. And it is influenced upon the world — which is governed in Din as above — through the Nukva.213 And since there are many levels of Chesed and Din — according to the power of the lights and according to their weakness, in the secret of the gradation — therefore many kinds of unions were fixed, all in gradation, this greater than that, to influence upon the worlds kinds of abundance — the one more than the other — according to the need at every time.

§155Philosopher: This is certainly sufficient to give the first structure of the wisdom — and all the rest is interpretation. Whoever wishes to go down to the depth of things — let him go in the straight path you have prepared in your chapters214 and your Gates.215 "And Hashem will give wisdom — from His mouth, knowledge and understanding" [based on Mishlei 2:6]. Amen — may it be His will.

What Chochmas HaEmes Teaches Us

Appended to Maamar HaVikuach · Written by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto z"tzal

It is written: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom... but let the one who glories glory in this: that he has the insight to know Me" [Yirmiyahu 9:22–23]. From here is a proof that the wisdom the Holy One Blessed be He chooses is to have insight and to know Him, blessed be He — as far as it is possible to know. He did not say "have the insight to know My commandments," "My words" — for then He would be indicating that it is sufficient to know the commandments and the order of performing them in all their particulars. Rather — "to know Me." If so, He specifically desires that human beings occupy themselves with knowing the splendour of His greatness. And of all other wisdom it is said: "let not the wise man glory in his wisdom."

The philosophers say that one must follow investigation and the external wisdoms — to know from them the preciousness of the Creator; for from the commandments no splendour and greatness appears at all, nor any wisdom. And because of this they went after the vanity of the wisdoms of the nations. But they certainly forged a lie — for the Torah explicitly commands: "and you shall contemplate it day and night" [Yehoshua 1:8]. And if both day and night are bound up in learning Torah — there is no time remaining for other wisdoms. And it is stated explicitly: "the book of the Torah shall not depart from your mouth" [ibid.]. So this is certainly not the path — and far be it from holy seed to be enticed by such a vain and misleading error.

But we still need to make it known — which is the path we shall follow to see our Creator, blessed be His Name. For it is true that from the commandments alone this does not emerge. It is none other than in the Torah itself — the part which truly makes known His greatness, blessed be His Name, and the secret of His wondrous deeds; for then one knows Him in truth. And the fundamental is: the Holy One Blessed be He set apart for Himself a treasured people — Israel — as it is written: "and you shall be to Me a treasured possession above all peoples", "and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" [Shemos 19:5–6]. And this is the great root — for here stands the true secret of faith: when the Holy One Blessed be He chose Israel — He set them apart completely from all the nations of the earth. And He wished to make them holy with His holiness itself. And this is the matter of which our Sages of blessed memory said [on Tehillim 77:14]: "Elohim — Your way is in holiness" — His walking is in holiness, His speaking in holiness, etc. [Yerushalmi Brachos 9:1]. For the Holy One Blessed be He is the source of holiness — all His matters are nothing other than matters of holiness. And so for all of Israel to be holy in this holiness — all their matters and deeds must be matters of holiness in truth. And this means: it is not sufficient that their matters be physical matters — like all other human beings — even if there are commandments attached to them that they need to observe. This is not sufficient to make them a truly holy nation — like the ministering angels. For the Holy One Blessed be He desires them below as the ministering angels above — for the ministering angels are not in this mode: that their actions be physical actions, with certain commandments of service tied to them; rather all of them are holy and all their deeds are holy.

So it is fitting that Yisrael be below in truth. And this means: just as the Holy One Blessed be He turns exclusively to Yisrael — so Yisrael must turn only to the Holy One Blessed be He. And this is: "I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine" [Shir HaShirim 6:3], "I am my Beloved's and His desire is for me" [ibid. 7:11] — and all their deeds to proceed in this way. And this is the matter of "In all your ways know Him" [Mishlei 3:6]. And even though the verse can also be interpreted as meaning it is sufficient to intend for the sake of Heaven — that is, that one eats in order to live and serve Hashem, and similarly the other deeds — this is not the fundamental. Rather: that all the deeds be literally matters of holiness — and then Yisrael will be entirely set apart from all other nations — without any admixture whatsoever. The other nations — humans; and Yisrael — like ministering angels.

Therefore the main thing a person needs to comprehend is the matter of His holiness, blessed be He, that spreads through His world — in which Yisrael were sanctified — what the nature of this holiness is, and what its ways are, and how it spreads, and how one prepares to receive it and be sanctified in it fittingly. And one who sees this will see in truth that the entire Creation was created for nothing other than this. And this is: "In the beginning — for the sake of Israel who are called 'the beginning'" [Vayikra Rabbah 36:4]. And one will see clearly that the entire world was created only because the Holy One Blessed be He yearned to rest His holiness upon Yisrael — and how many great preparations He made for this. For certainly Yisrael must be fitting for it — and they are not fitting unless they observe all the Torah and commandments in all their detailed particulars and minutiae, and the guard of the guard thereof in all its stringencies — for on this everything depends.

But how many paths He prepared for this matter — and how many great revolutions — with deep wisdom, being the One Who foresees all the future. And He wished to give an evil inclination — to test human beings through it. And because they were destined to sin — He prearranged many great revolutions — until at the end of everything Yisrael will be completely rectified. And this holiness will spread among them for all eternity. And this is the matter of the great love between the Holy One Blessed be He and Yisrael. And one who does not know these things is called one who walks as a blind person in darkness — for he knows nothing of why he lives, of why the world exists, and all the more — of why the entire world stands.

And of this our Sages of blessed memory would cry out: "Woe to the creatures who see and do not know what they see — who stand and do not know upon what they stand" [Chagigah 12b]. For this is not the honour of G-d, blessed be He — nor the praise of Yisrael. To what may this be compared? To a king who loves one of his servants, and does many great things for him on account of his love — would it be pleasing to him that this servant gives no thought in his heart to all these many great things, and does not even wish to know what he has done for him? So it is with this: for in truth the entire world and its fullness stands only on the love that the Holy One Blessed be He loves Yisrael. And if Yisrael do not pay attention to see so great a thing — is it pleasing in the eyes of Hashem?

This is the reason R' Shimon bar Yochai cried out so greatly about this — calling those who engage in the plain meaning of Torah those who are sleeping in a deep slumber — for they do not open their eyes at all to see the love with which the Holy One Blessed be He loves them — as though they were, G-d forbid, ungrateful to Him. And furthermore: they neither see nor know the path of holiness at all, nor the cleaving to Him, blessed be He. Yet the Torah commands and says: "and to Him you shall cleave" [Devarim 10:20]. And although it was explained as referring to one who cleaves to a Torah scholar — nonetheless a verse does not lose its plain meaning. And the truth is that Yisrael need to cleave to Him in a literal and complete cleaving — to know His particular ways according to His holiness, and to walk in them. And therefore it was said: "Shir HaShirim is holy of holies" [Shir HaShirim Rabbah, end of the introduction] — for it is literally founded on this very matter; it explains this love and all the striving with which the Holy One Blessed be He strives to attach His holiness to Yisrael — and Yisrael must respond in kind with yearning for Him, blessed be He — to cleave in literal cleaving.

And this is the fruit of the exile, in our many sins — that Yisrael have forgotten this path, and have remained sleeping, sunk in their slumber, paying no attention to this. But the Torah girds itself in sackcloth over its affliction. And here we are in darkness as those forever dead — literally like blind people feeling the wall. For the upright, it is not fitting to walk in this way — but on the contrary: to open blind eyes, and to see the love of Hashem, and to know holiness and its ways, to be sanctified through it in truth.

And all of this is the matter of the holy Chochmas HaEmes — for it is nothing other than the explanation of this matter of holiness: what the Master, blessed be His Name, wished to rest upon His creatures, and the orders He arranged for this for all the times — meaning: for the time of this world, which is the time of service. And here branches out into divisions of orders: for the time when Yisrael are meritorious; for the time when Yisrael are fit to be on their land; and for the time when they must be in exile; for the time when it is fitting to shine His face upon them, and for the time when it is fitting to conceal — and yet even in the hiding of the face, to maintain the holiness for them. And afterward: for the time of receiving their reward — which is in the future for all eternity. It is found that all of Chochmas HaEmes stands only on this matter — on the matter of the holiness of Yisrael: the way the Holy One Blessed be He cleaves to them from His holiness, and the way Yisrael must cleave with their yearning and their service to His holiness, blessed be His Name; and how upon this stand all the matters of the world and all of Creation — from the time it came into being until the end of all eternity.

41 — Compared to. 42 The different knowledge you receive from me is: not only that you will understand the truth of Kabbalah, but you will also recognise that what you attained through your philosophical investigation is as nothing and emptiness compared to what you can attain through the true Kabbalah. 43 — Only through true transmission from the prophets and persons of Kabbalah, to whom Hashem revealed His wisdom, is it possible to merit wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. 44 — Within the Sefiros, descending from the primordial light. 45 That is: the World of Atzilus. 46 That is: the World of Atzilus. In "Choker u'Mekubal": "The portion of Atzilus — which is the soul — is called by the name of Divinity." 47 These are the worlds of B"Y"A, where there are creatures who have an existence separate from Divinity. 48 As stated in §7: "they are one light that the Emanator blessed be His Name emanated from His primordial light, and He Himself is certainly Divinity." 49 See Derech Hashem (I:1:3-5) — explanation of why the Creator is necessary existence. 50 For the Sefiros came into being after it arose in His will, blessed be He, to create Creation — so if they are Divinity, how can they be a new existence? 51 The existence of B"Y"A continues from Atzilus. 52 For in B"Y"A, Divinity is clothed — so part of it is Divinity, and part of it is not Divinity. 53 The creatures in the worlds of B"Y"A become servants to the Divinity clothed in them. See the answer in §56. 54 = "from the extremity of." 55 — The Sefiros together with the Sitra Achra that was initially mixed in them, even if at that stage the Sitra Achra had not yet been revealed, only in its root. 56 These three names designate the governance of three Sefiros. 57 The prime matter descends from Him, blessed be He, Himself. 58 Passes through stages of descent. 59 According to the level of descent, so the level of existents — whether spiritual or physical. 60 The commandments and service arrange and strengthen the descent toward its good character — meaning, they reach the roots of Creation and strengthen the roots and establish them in their proper existence; and through this they strengthen the existence of Creation that descends from these roots. 61 Tell me the particulars of the things, not a general answer. 62 Compare Sefer Klah Pischay Chochmah, Gate 1, commentary there: "You already know that the essence of the Emanator — we do not speak of it at all, and He is the possessor of will, and that which is permitted for us to speak — is His will." — See also the boundary up to where we can contemplate, as below. 63 = Limitation. 64 = Without limit and end. 65 For we speak only of His will, to the extent that it relates to us — not of His essence, as above. 66 The limited will that He willed to reveal to us in practice "in the mode of purpose" — with limit and boundary. 67 What is the specific influence of each commandment to activate one of His attributes. 68 All governance depends on the Sefiros — on His attributes in all their particulars. 69 This matter settles in my opinion. 70 Not only plausible — they are also necessary. 71 For you say they are modes of His governance. 72 Spreading without limit, therefore abstract beyond all attainment. In the words of Rabbenu: "simple light that cannot be defined by any definition" (Ginzei Ramchal, p. 297, §2). 73 You call the will "radiance" — but there is no actual existence of light here, or any other existence, only a mental definition. 74 An error in the mode of inquiry — not because of lack of knowledge of Chochmas HaEmes. 75 Abstract from physical concepts, but as it actually is — as it is — in its subtle spiritual aspect. 76 Summary: the forces of the will of the Creator are actual spiritual realities that we designate by the name lights (for the most powerful force in the physical world that can serve as expression of a spiritual force — is light). 77 The second thing is: His agents who carry out the decrees to their implementation. 78 There are no created agents there. 79 In B"Y"A we discern the agents, and on the other hand the activation of the agents by the Holy One Blessed be He — this is the Divinity in B"Y"A — the Creator's standing over His agents. 80 When we speak about B"Y"A as a category different from the world of Atzilus, we can divide this category into two types: the Divinity that governs B"Y"A, and the creatures in each world of B"Y"A. 81 Relative to the ministers in the worlds of B"Y"A — for it gives them life and governs them. 82 We also divide the governances of Hashem into nefesh-ruach-neshamah — aspects of the inner and external governance. 82* See §21 — the Philosopher's words: "Have you ever heard that Divinity could divide — half remaining Divinity and half not, but becoming a servant to the first half?" — Here he explains that Divinity — His attributes — that governs the separated beings of B"Y"A is not one essence with the separated beings, but they are two distinct essences, different beings. But if we look at the world of Briyah — both from the side of the governance of the governor toward the world of Briyah, and from the side of the governed (creatures in the world of Briyah) — as one category (encompassing within it two types — Divinity and separated beings), then they divide into soul (the governor) and ruach-nefesh (the governed). 83 For the Sefiros of B"Y"A are Divinity — so why should they be lesser than those of Atzilus? 84 We are not dealing with Divinity itself — but with its revelations. These revelations are lesser in a lower world than in a higher world. 85 In ways opposite and entirely different from the way He created the creatures. 86 That is: He created the world according to ways that seem understandable to us — not according to ways opposite to our understanding. 87 To create in gradation according to our understanding. Compare Daas Tevunos, beginning of §40. 88 After they were bounded by these boundaries — we can know them (for the unbounded we cannot grasp). 89 We discern that each utterance is a beginning for those created through that utterance. 90 There is an order among the utterances — proceeding in gradation — for all of them emerge from one purposive intention; therefore they emerge in gradation one after another, and there is order and chain-descent among the ten utterances. 91 The order of the ten utterances is the order of the ten Sefiros. 92 = All was created for one goal. 93 According to each created being's particular portion in the realisation of the purposive intention — it has a root: a beginning of its own in His thought, blessed be He. 94 For the spiritual beginning also sustains the created being with greater or lesser abundance — according to the force of the commandment. 95 — To divide them into 248 parts. 96 That spreads without limit — therefore is not attained by us. 97 This is the enjoyment of His light — through understanding His ways which are full of radiance and emanate brightness. 98 Built upon rational proofs — that is, on logical demonstrations. 99 To satisfy its desire embedded in the nature of intellect — to attain and comprehend. 100 — His limited will according to the need of creating His world — not His essential unlimited will. 101 In Daas Tevunos (p. 214) it is explained — why we cannot understand how He created something from nothing. 102 That are found in the World of Briyah. 103 That is in the World of Yetzirah. 104 That is in the World of Briyah. 105 That is in the World of Asiyah. 106 For nefesh-ruach-neshamah there are garments, and nefesh-ruach-neshamah and their garments are surrounded by Heichalos (like a person clothed in a garment and sitting in a house). 107 But there is no actual chain-descent from Sefiros of neshamah to Sefiros of ruach and nefesh in B"Y"A. 108 Since there is here an order and relation of gradation — therefore we speak of an aspect of chain-descent between Atzilus and Briyah, between neshamah and ruach. 109 For in the matter of the Shevirah, the emergence of the Sitra Achra into actual existence is explained. 110 If we say they are not metaphors but that prophets literally saw them thus — then what is the explanation of "you saw no image"? 111 = Eyeglasses. 112 When one learns the foundations of the wisdom in the proper explained order — the difficulties resolve themselves, without the need to answer each thing individually. 113 This is the structure of the worlds of Adam Kadmon and the four worlds A"B"Y"A with their Sefiros and Partzufim, explained in Chochmas HaEmes. 114 This is the solution to the visions — the modes of His governance that one understands from the visions. Rabbenu's words at the beginning of his commentary on Otzaros Chaim: "All of this is like the visions of Yechezkel — the beholding of the Chariot — which are seen in their orders and through them one understands the greatness of His governance" (Ginzei Ramchal, p. 297, §1). 115 After we have learned the particulars of the laws of the Sefiros — which are the mashal — one must return over all the mashal from the beginning and know in each particular the solution of the appearance of the mashal — the nimshal. 116 The discourses of the wisdom deal with various particulars of the parts of the Tree and its branches — therefore one must first know the entire Tree of the descent of the worlds — explained in these ten chapters — in order to understand which part of the Tree a given discourse deals with. 117 These are the 138 brief gates — which Rabbenu explains at length in his commentary. 117* Here the Kabbalist presents to the Philosopher the ten chapters of Klalus HaIlan — which appear below in this volume. 118 In Choker u'Mekubal adds: "For example: when I mention Adam Kadmon — Adam Kadmon is called the subject, and upon it and about it turn many discourses — these are called the predicates. And the discourses are called: each and every one — a branch, the predicates upon the subject." 119 Their states of the worlds and the Partzufim relative to one another, and the relation of the different subjects to one another. 120 When we know the root subjects, we will understand all the particulars expounded upon them — even though they are many — when we read the particulars in our learning. 121 But rather the principles encompass all the particulars for every case. 122 Foreseeing from the outset with a comprehensive view that unifies all the deeds. 123 The ten Sefiros have many particulars — through which a complete system of His governances is created — sufficient for every time and every eventuality. 124 From one Sefirah different things can emerge — for each Sefirah is connected in different connections with the other Sefiros, and through this different paths of emergence of results from each Sefirah are created according to its connections with the other Sefiros. These connections are explained in the Torah of the Ari z"l through the relation of Partzuf to Partzuf and their clothing one within the other. 125 No discourse whatsoever is found that speaks of a subject not encompassed in these mentioned paths. That is: all stated in the Torah of the Ari z"l comes to explain the ten Sefiros in all their particulars, and the relation and paths and connections between Sefirah and Sefirah, from which all derivatives emerge — encompassing all the governances and all the creatures in all their particulars which are without number. 126 Through the ten chapters — which must be reviewed greatly — and only afterward is it possible to come to "reason deeply." 127 Rashi: "Nothing other than a basket filled with books — not knowing what is within." 128 An objection not against your words — but about what I heard elsewhere. 129 From among the worlds without end — that particular relating to the creation of our world. 130 = A group of lights. 131 That the Sefiros of B"Y"A are a new radiance that emerged from Atzilus (after all the Sefiros ascended again to Atzilus at the time of the Tikkun). 132 For since these parts descended to B"Y"A — they are lacking to the building of Atzilus. 133 Why were the first three Sefiros of Arich Anpin given the special name of Telas Rashim (three heads)? 134 In Sefer Klah Pischay Chochmah all the difficulties the Philosopher asked are resolved, and the depth of the wisdom is revealed. 135 The Kabbalist presents to the Philosopher the 138 Pischim without the commentary. 136 — In the 138 Pischim. 137 The Kabbalist presents to the Philosopher the commentary on the 138 Pischim — the commentary on each gate is divided into parts, and each part into distinctions — so that he should be precise in each and every detail, as the Philosopher mentioned above. 138 What are the various benefits in Divine service from these discourses. 139 These four knowledges were also printed in the introduction to Sefer HaKlalim (Daas Tevunos and Sefer HaKlalim, p. 240); see there our commentary. 140 In all the Tree of the descent of the worlds. 141 The knowledge of the Sacred Tree with all its subjects — Rabbenu transmitted briefly in the ten chapters of Klalus HaIlan, and explains further at length in Pischay Chochmah VaDaas. 142 As it says: "Let us make man in Our image, after Our likeness." See Daas Tevunos, p. 321, 323, 329. 143 Each soul has a part in the completion of Creation. This is the clarification of governance and the completion of the radiance of Malchus entrusted to all the souls. If the soul does not complete its part — it must descend again to this world. See Ginzei Ramchal, p. 272 and following. 144 This inner dimension is clothed in all the creatures and governs them as the Sages said (Bereishis Rabbah 10:6): "There is not a single blade of grass that does not have a constellation Above that strikes it and says: Grow!" See also the work Binyan Olam in this volume. 145 These are Rabbenu's words in his book Adir Bamarom (p. 66b): "...and all the things you find in the Sages regarding the sun and other stars — which do not stand according to what appears to our eyes — all speaks of their inner dimension — in which the main governance lies. And one who does not know the ways of the wisdom cannot attain except the external dimension of things according to their physicality... and the main of what the Sages spoke will be in its inner dimension — which is knowledge of the Torah encompassing all wisdoms — but all in the secret of the inner dimension, not in the secret of the external dimension which is not relevant to it." 146 Just as the structure of the human body hints at the structure of the supernal worlds — as it says "from my flesh I will behold G-d" — so every created being hints at one of His governances — and the totality of all created beings together teaches about the totality of all His governances (though man — who is a microcosm — encompasses all His governances in the structure of his body with all its 248 limbs and tendons). 147 To the divisions and orders you propose. 148 In Choker u'Mekubal adds: "For it seems that it would be sufficient for us to know that the Emanator blessed be His Name is omnipotent, and the Creator of the world, and gave us His Torah and commandments, and that there is reward and punishment in the World to Come — so why do we need to know all the matter of the Sefiros?" 149 As it says "Hashem — He is G-d" (the Governor) "in the heavens above and upon the earth below" — in the supernal and in the lower. 150 As the verse concludes: "there is none other." 151 — The commandments and the narratives. 152 = The general laws and statutes of His governance of His world. 153 From knowledge of the narratives alone it is impossible to stand upon knowledge of His unity, the ways of His Providence and governance — only through additional knowledge (that Chochmas HaEmes provides). 154 Summary: From the narratives of Torah we see G-d's deeds of Providence and departure from natural order through miracles. So we understand there is a Creator of the world, active and overseeing. However as long as we do not understand how He acted in all this "it is not called knowing through wisdom and knowledge that it is so" — but is called only "inferring in your mind that it must be so." That is: we understand through inference from these deeds a general understanding — and we conclude through inference a general understanding about all deeds — and we infer that the Holy One blessed be He oversees "but this does not mean that you know through wisdom and knowledge that it is so." Rather, Chochmas HaEmes explains to us all the general principles and laws of governance and Providence — both the way of nature and the way of miracles. And thus all the deeds we know from the narratives of Torah fit into a complete and whole system — encompassing all the governance of Hashem from the beginning of Creation to the end of all generations. Thus all the ways of Hashem — with all their changes in different eras — become understandable and explained to us to the extent human knowledge can reach; and we understand "that all that exists in the world is the governance of His blessed Name" — and the matters settle in the heart, and we fulfil the commandment of "take it back to your heart" — understanding "that all is beautiful and perfectly ordered — not through faith alone but through knowledge...that it is truly good and beautiful." 155 See Rambam, Laws of Torah Foundations (4:10), and the explanation of the Vilna Gaon on Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah (246, note 18). 156 The commandment of "Know this day..." etc. 157 Chochmas HaEmes teaches us the ways of Hashem — both in the governance of nature and in the miraculous governance, both in the governance of revealed face and in the governance of hidden face — through the structure of the totality of His governances — His attributes — His Sefiros. Through this His complete unity is clarified to us — that He is the sole governor and ruler in all states and all times, leading all to rectification and perfection. 158 That is: each wisdom has its particular modes of inquiry. 159 In Choker u'Mekubal adds the analogy: "For example: geometry — through numbers; music through movements of the hands on every instrument; rhetoric through the laws of rhetoric — and so all of them. And upon each wisdom and wisdom a separate inquiry is needed." 160 Summary: there are particular modes of inquiry for the wisdom of Divinity — they are the modes of inquiry into His relation, blessed be He, to His creatures — which is the knowledge we have of Him, for we have no apprehension of His essence. The knowledge of His Providence and governance of His creatures — this is the subject of Chochmas HaEmes — the wisdom of Divinity. Hashem wants us to engage in it and know His Providence, as it says: "Know this day... for Hashem — He is G-d (the Governor)" etc. — so through learning Chochmas HaEmes we fulfil this commandment in its completeness. 161 See at beginning of §116 — where he undertook to give several answers. 162 = Desirable. 163 = Important. 164 In Choker u'Mekubal: "they do not find in it clear knowledge." 165 As the Holy One Blessed be He truly is omnipotent. 166 In Choker u'Mekubal adds: "with great force for a difficult thing, and with small force." 167 Here the printed Choker u'Mekubal ends — from here onward the continuation is found in Sefer Milchemes Moshe and in the manuscript. 168 For example: if the Malchus of the Partzuf of Imma acts independently — it becomes the Partzuf of Tevunah. As explained below. 169 See the introduction to Pischay Chochmah VaDaas in the chapter "Zair Anpin" — explanation of why the six Sefiros from Chesed to Yesod become one Partzuf alone. 170 — Yisrael Saba and Tevunah, the two. See Pischay Chochmah VaDaas gates 52, 53. 171 That is: the ways of influence and the ways of receiving the influence. 173 Chesed always operates — but sometimes it operates in concealment and is not revealed. That is: it operates in such constriction only to give existence to Creation, so the world is not destroyed — to the point where we barely discern it because of its constriction. 174 See Daas Tevunos §154. 175 That they receive His good as a reward merited through their service — and not as an unearned gift accompanied by shame. 176 See Daas Tevunos §18. 177 According to what complete beneficence requires the judgment — so that man receives the good as reward for his deeds, and not as a gift. 178 Nukva is the root of the receivers, and in it the ways of preparation of the receivers are fixed — so they receive according to their preparation through Torah and commandments. 179 The laws of influence are fixed in Z"A; however the causes of judgment — the reasons for judgment emerging from the cause of Creation — to benefit with complete benefit — are fixed through Abba and Imma (in Abba in general in the aspect of Chochmah, and in Imma the particulars are detailed in the aspect of Binah). See Daas Tevunos, p. 157. 180 — According to the primary aim of Creation — which was created to benefit creatures with complete benefit. 181 They are the roots of Zu"N and "beget" them — therefore they are called by the name Abba (Father) and Imma (Mother). 182 — A general cause. 183 A more detailed cause, closer to bringing to actual reality. 184 In the manuscript there is an empty space here. 185 [fn. 185 in original — on discerning judgment and its stages, whether severe or sweetened — this depends on the power of the influence of Av"A upon Z"A.] 186 The ten chapters of Klalus HaIlan HaKadosh. 187 The book "138 Pischay Chochmah" with the commentary on the Gates. 188 — The World of Reward. 189 — A particular governance, different from the governance of the World of Service — it is the governance of Adam Kadmon, as explained below. 190 The Malchus of A"K is a Partzuf in itself, called Atik (based on the verse "and the Ancient of Days sat" — Daniel 7:9). It "transfers" [ma'atik] the service to the reward — in it is fixed what reward is due for each particular form of service. See the introduction to Pischay Chochmah VaDaas, chapter on "Atik." 191 That is: the first world after the Tzimtzum — therefore called "Adam Kadmon" — for every world is built in the form of man upon all his limbs; and it is the first structure in the form of man. 192 — The first and central Partzuf. 193 In the first stages of the act of Creation. 194 See Daas Tevunos — explained there at length that the absence of good is the cause of evil. 195 The ten Sefiros of the World of Nikkudim — from which the World of Atzilus and the other worlds were subsequently built. 196 In the act, the World of Service preceded the World of Reward. But in the thought — in the planning — the World of Reward preceded the World of Service; for the Holy One Blessed be He created the world for man — to benefit him — that he attain the Reward. So the Reward is the purposive cause for the planning of the possibility of Service. Therefore A"K preceded Atzilus — for it is the World of Reward; and from it descended the World of Atzilus and the worlds of B"Y"A that follow it — which are the worlds of Service. 197 From the cause of the complete beneficence — that it be without the shame of the receiver — the ten Sefiros of the World of Nikkudim were necessitated and descended — from which the World of Service was built. 198 This is the World of Tohu — the Shevirah. The Sefiros "broke" because the causes of decay arose in them. 199 It emerged anew from A"K in the World of Tikkun — after the World of Tohu — that is, after the measure of the Sefiros — in order to rectify them and build from them all the worlds and Partzufim in the World of Tikkun. MaH is the numerical value of the divine name YHVH spelled out as Yod-Heh-Vav-Heh. 200 For that creature descended from this statute and was created in a form that this statute is reflected in it. And the entire being, form, and all the particulars of that creature flow from this statute and are fixed by it. 201 For it is the totality of all the statutes. 202 In the lowest world, the radiance of the Sefiros is received in its most contracted state — for it is revealed "in every place according to its nature." Therefore physicality comes to be. 203 Even though inner dimension is essentially different from outer dimension — relatively, the outer dimension of the higher level is inner dimension compared to the lower level. Therefore the lower part of the higher level — which is its outer aspect — clothes itself in the lower level and becomes the inner dimension of the lower (as explained below — that the Sefiros of Netzach-Hod-Yesod of the higher Partzuf become the brain-intellect-vessels — the inner dimension — for the lower Partzuf). 204 Even though essentially inner dimension is higher than outer dimension — relatively, the inner dimension of the lower is inferior to the outer dimension of the upper. 205 Which are the aspect of the outer dimension of Imma. 206 — The inner dimension of Z"A — just as the brain governs the movements of the body according to its inner will. 207 Agreement of both — this is what is called union. 208 In order to produce together through partnership — union — the balanced governance. 209 From the brain of the male. 210 Descending through all the Sefiros of the male. 211 In this drop all the forces are encompassed. 212 The person born with his 613 limbs — most of his limbs are doubled: right and left — indicating the governances of Chesed and Din. 213 The Nukva that receives from the male (this is the combination of the governance of Chesed) is what influences the world. This is the Sefirah of Malchus that receives from the six Sefiros (from Chesed to Yesod) which constitute the Partzuf of Z"A in the aspect of the male who influences her. The Sefirah of Malchus is the root of the lower beings (for they were created for His glory — to crown Him in the world), and through it the lower beings receive all the abundance — that is, according to how they receive His kingship upon them. So they receive the abundance in Din — in that measure and amount due to them according to their deeds. See Daas Tevunos, p. 175, in study [50]. 214 In the ten chapters of Klalus HaIlan HaKadosh. 215 The book "138 Pischay Chochmah."