Likutay Moharan - Torah-teaching 34

34 - And You Shall Be to Me a Kingdom of Priests

[Note from English translator: This Torah explores the role of the tzadik [righteous person] in illuminating Israel’s hearts through the nekudah [point] and mela’fum [this is a vowel that sounds: oo. It is usually called: shoorook. It is a dot in the front of the middle of the Hebrew letter vuv - וּ. Mela'fum literally means: full mouth], nullifying reproaches via holy love and speech.]

[In the language of our rabbi, of blessed memory] And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel (Exodus 19:6).

1.

It is written (Psalms 69:20): Reproach has broken my heart. That is, reproaches and disgraces break the heart of a man. The rectification is by means of connecting his heart to the nekudah [point, divine spark] that belongs to his heart at that time. Thereby, the reproach dwelling on his heart is nullified.

2.

Behold, this is a general principle: The government is in the hand of the tzadik [righteous person] to act according to his will, as our sages expounded (Talmud Bavli, Mo’ed Katan 16b): Tzadik rules, and so on, who rules over Me, the tzadik [righteous person]. This is (Genesis 42:18): And Joseph, he is the ruler. He is the root of the generality of souls of Israel, and they are his branches that receive from him. The main [purpose] of the government is to illuminate and arouse their heart to the service of Hashem, blessed be He, as it is written (Deuteronomy 33:21): Hear, Hashem, the voice of Judah, and to his people bring him. That is, to illuminate the illumination of the tzadik [righteous person] in the branches, that is, in the heart of Israel. This is: And to his people bring him.

3.

This aspect, that is, And Joseph, he is the ruler, is the aspect of mela’fum [this is a vowel that sounds: oo. It is usually called: shoorook. It is a dot in the front of the middle of the Hebrew letter vuv - ו. Mela'fum literally means: full mouth. see Sha’arei Tzion, gate of rectification of the soul], the bris [covenant, referring to circumcision], chariot to the yesod [foundation], that Hashem of it in the vocalization of mela’fum [vowel וּ, full mouth; see Tikkun 70]. For the mela’fum [the vowel: וּ] is the letters mulai pum [full mouth], to indicate that the vessel of abundance, that is, the mouth of the tzadik [righteous person], is full from the divinity of Hashem, blessed be He. For, apparently, it is difficult: Why do we need prayer, when Hashem, blessed be He, knows thoughts? But the speech is the vessel of abundance in which the abundance is received, as it is written (Deuteronomy 1:45): And He blessed you as He spoke to you. That is, according to the speech, so is the abundance. If the speech, that is, the vessel of abundance, is in perfection and fullness, then it can receive much abundance. The speeches of the tzadik [righteous person] are certainly in perfection and fullness, therefore able to draw the abundance to Israel. By means of this, it is called the aspect of mele pum [full mouth], to indicate that his mouth is in fullness and perfection.

4.

Every one from Israel has in him the aspect of Tzadik rules, which is the aspect of mele pum [full mouth], as it is written (Isaiah 60:21): And your people, all of them tzadikim [righteous]. This is the explanation (Psalms 114:8): Israel, his governments. That is, who rules over Me, the tzadik [righteous person]. For every one from Israel has a precious thing, which is the aspect of nekudah [point], that is not in his fellow, as in the story of Abbaye and Abba Ummana (Talmud Bavli, Ta’anit 21b), who said to him: You cannot do the deed of Abba Ummana, and so on. This aspect that he has more than his fellow influences, illuminates, and arouses the heart of his fellow. His fellow needs to receive arousal and this aspect from him, as it is written: And receiving this from that [Targum: And this one called to that one] (Isaiah 6:3). For before the giving of the Torah, the government was in the hand of Hashem, blessed be He. After the giving of the Torah, He gave the government to the hand of all Israel, each according to his aspect. For the letters of the Torah are the clothing of the will of Hashem, blessed be He. For the will of Hashem, blessed be He, is that the commandments be so; for example, the commandment of tefillin [phylacteries] was His will to be in four sections and leather boxes, not silver, for such is His will. Thus, His will is clothed in all the Torah. Now that the Torah is given into our hands, the will of Hashem, blessed be He, is given into our hands, that we rule, as it were, to make His will according to our will. This is the aspect of Israel, his governments, as above. This is what our sages expounded (Yerushalmi, Rosh Hashanah 4:1): Many things You have done, You, Hashem, my G-d, before the giving of the Torah, and after the giving of the Torah, Your wonders and Your thoughts toward us. That is, all is in our hands. This is (Psalms 81:6): I am Hashem, your G-d, who brought you up from the land of Egypt. That is, before the giving of the Torah, all was I. After the giving of the Torah, Widen your mouth, and I will fill it. This is the aspect of mela’fum [וּ, full mouth], which is the aspect of And Joseph, he is the ruler. That is, who rules over Me. That is, the abundance is according to the expansion of the mouth, and according to the vessel of speech, each one according to his aspect.

5.

The mela’fum [וּ, full mouth], that is, the aspect of And Joseph, he is the ruler, is the aspect of nekudah [point] with vav [letter vav]. For the aspect of Joseph is drawn from chokhmah [wisdom] and binah [understanding], as it is written (Genesis 41:39): After making known to you all this, there is no discerning and wise like you. That is, chokhmah [wisdom] and binah [understanding]. By means of this, And Joseph, he is the ruler is made. Chokhmah [wisdom] is the aspect of nekudah [point], that is, yud [letter yud], a ma’yan [spring]. Binah [understanding] is a nachal [stream] drawn from the ma’yan [spring]. On account of the drawing, it is vav [letter vav], called nachal [stream], drawn from the ma’yan [spring] that is yud [letter yud].

6.

The aspect of mela’fum [וּ, full mouth] exists in generality and particularity. For the ten commandments with the tablets are the aspect of mela’fum [וּ, full mouth], which is yud [letter yud], and the tablets are vav [letter vav], as our sages said (Talmud Bavli, Bava Batra 14a): The tablets, their length six and their width six. The Torah with the world is also yud [letter yud] and vav [letter vav]. For the Torah is yud [letter yud], called (Psalms 111:10): The beginning of chokhmah [wisdom]. The world is vav [letter vav], created in six days of creation. The tzadik [righteous person] with Israel is also yud [letter yud] and vav [letter vav]. For the tzadik [righteous person] is yud [letter yud], for the tzadikim [righteous] are called sages of the congregation [see Introduction to the Zohar, page 8; Exodus 27; see Ma’orai Or]. Israel is the aspect of vav [letter vav], for they are tamkei oraita [supporters of Torah] and are called vavei ha’amudim [hooks of the pillars]. With every one from Israel by himself, there is also the aspect of yud [letter yud], vav [letter vav], yud [letter yud], on account of the mouth, as it is written (Psalms 49:4): My mouth speaks wisdoms. Vav [letter vav], on account of And the meditation of my heart, understandings, which is the aspect of tablets, which are vav [letter vav], as above, as it is written (Proverbs 3:3): Bind them on your throat, write them on the tablet of your heart.

7.

When the heart, that is, the aspect of vav [letter vav], the aspect of tablets, is immersed in evil loves, that is, reproaches and disgraces, called orlat lev [foreskin of the heart] (Deuteronomy 10:16), then it is in the aspect of broken tablets. Reproach is the aspect of orlah [foreskin], as it is written (Genesis 34:14): We cannot give our sister to a man who has orlah [foreskin], for reproach it is to us. It is the aspect of fallen and broken love. For it is known that the evil inclination and the klipot [shells, spiritual husks] were formed from shevirat hakelim [breaking of the vessels; see Hall of the Points, Gate of Breaking of the Vessels, chapter 3]. For the shevirat hakelim [breaking of the vessels] of chesed [lovingkindness] fell to binah [understanding] of Creation, that is, binah [understanding], the heart [Patah Eliyahu]. The light of chesed [lovingkindness] remained in yesod [foundation] of Emanation, which is the aspect of (Proverbs 10:14): Tzadik, yesod [foundation] of the world. Thus, evil loves come from the shevirat hakelim [breaking of the vessels] of chesed [lovingkindness]. This is what Onkelos translated: For reproach it is to us, for chisuda [humiliation] it is to us. For the reproach, that is, orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], that is, evil loves, is made from the shevirat hakelim [breaking of the vessels] of chesed [lovingkindness]. This is seen in sense, that On all transgressions covers love (Proverbs 10:12). Even if one sins against his fellow, he does not reproach him, for love covers all transgressions. When the bris [covenant] of love between them is corrupted, that is, the aspect of shevirat hakelim [breaking of the vessels] of chesed [lovingkindness], then he reproaches him. For the reproach is from the shevirat hakelim [breaking of the vessels] of chesed [lovingkindness], as above. When the heart is immersed in reproach, that is, in orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], the aspect of broken tablets, that is, Reproach has broken my heart. When he connects the heart, that is, the aspect of vav [letter vav], as above, to the yud [letter yud], that is, nekudah [point], which is the aspect of the tzadik [righteous person], where the light of holy love dwells—for the light of chesed [lovingkindness] remained in yesod [foundation] of Emanation—then the evil loves, that is, the reproaches, that is, orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], are nullified. For the tzadik [righteous person], who is the nekudah [point] where holy love dwells, illuminates to the vav [letter vav], which is the aspect of the heart. The reproach, that is, orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], is nullified, for On all transgressions covers love, where holy love dwells. This is what our sages said (Talmud Bavli, Nedarim 32b): The Holy One, blessed be He, sought to bring out priesthood from Shem. Because he preceded the blessing of Abraham to the blessing of the Place, He took it from Shem and gave it to Abraham, as it is said: You are priest forever on my word Malki Tzedek [king of righteousness] (Psalms 110:4). When the Holy One, blessed be He, gave the priesthood to Pinchas, He said: Behold, I give to him My bris [covenant] of peace (Numbers 25:12). For the priesthood is the aspect of love, it is Abraham, dwelling in the place of bris [covenant] of peace, that is, the tzadik [righteous person], yesod [foundation] of the world.

8.

It turns out that every one needs to speak between himself and his Creator, so that the aspect of nekudah [point], the aspect of My mouth speaks wisdoms, illuminates to the vav [letter vav], which is the aspect of And the meditation of my heart, understandings. Thereby, the orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], that is, reproaches, that is, evil loves, is nullified. Also, every man needs to speak with his fellow in yiras shamayim [fear of heaven], to receive arousal in his heart from the nekudah [point] that is in his fellow more than in himself, as it is written: And receiving this from that. For this aspect that is in his fellow more than in himself is the aspect of nekudah [point]. There, in this nekudah [point], dwells the love called priest. This nekudah [point] is the aspect of tzadik [righteous person] regarding his fellow. This nekudah [point] illuminates to the heart of his fellow, called vav [letter vav]. All these points, that is, the nekudah [point] called My mouth speaks wisdoms, and also the nekudah [point] that is in every one, that is not in his fellow, are branches to the tzadik [righteous person], who is the nekudah [point] of generality of all Israel. All need to receive first from the tzadik [righteous person]. Afterward, they receive this from that, and each one receives from himself and in himself. By means of these three aspects, the reproaches, that is, orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], that is, evil loves, are nullified. This is: On all transgressions covers love. For there dwells holy love. When Joseph, the tzadik [righteous person], was born, Rachel said: G-d has taken away my reproach (Genesis 30:23). For when the nekudah [point] where holy love dwells was revealed, the reproaches, that is, orlat lev [foreskin of the heart], that is, evil loves, were nullified. This is written of Joseph (Genesis 45:14): For my mouth speaks to you. Rashi explains: As my mouth, so my heart [see Megillah 16b]. That is, he illuminated his nekudah [point] in his vav [letter vav], illuminating My mouth speaks wisdoms in And the meditation of my heart, understandings. It is written of him (Genesis 50:21): And he spoke to their heart. Rashi explains: Words that settle on the heart. That is, he illuminated his nekudah [point] of generality in the heart of all Israel. Thus, by means of these three aspects, that is, connection to the tzadikim [righteous], who illuminate in him, for they are the nekudah [point] of generality of Israel and arouse his heart; also by speaking with his fellow, each one can illuminate and arouse his fellow’s heart; also by himself speaking between himself and his Creator, he can arouse his heart by means of My mouth speaks wisdoms and remove from himself orlat lev [foreskin of the heart]. This is the explanation: And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests, that is, the aspect of holy love, as above, And a holy nation, that is, holiness, which is the aspect of nekudah [point] and vav [letter vav], the aspect of the heart, as above. By what means do you come to the aspect of love and the aspect of holiness, vav [letter vav]? By means of These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel. For Moses is the nekudah [point] of generality of the souls of Israel. All need to receive first from the nekudah [point] of generality. Afterward, each one needs to illuminate in his fellow from the nekudah [point] that is in him. Also, he can illuminate from himself and in himself from the nekudah [point] in him, which is My mouth speaks wisdoms, to the vav [letter vav], which is And the meditation of my heart, understandings. Then he is called a holy nation, that is, holiness, vav [letter vav], where the nekudah [point] illuminates to the vav [letter vav]. Thereby, And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests, that is, holy love. For when you receive from all these points, whether from himself and in himself, or from the points in every one from Israel, or from the nekudah [point] of generality, where all the points dwell, there dwells holy love, called priest, as it is written: Behold, I give to him My bris [covenant] of peace. The nekudah [point] is the bris [covenant] of peace, as it is written in Etz Chaim: The light of chesed [lovingkindness] remained in yesod [foundation] of Emanation. [When he speaks with his fellow in yiras shamayim [fear of heaven], he receives the nekudah [point] in his fellow’s heart without a garment. Sometimes, he receives the nekudah [point] from his fellow by means of other things that he tells with him. For sometimes one can receive light and arousal for the service of Hashem, blessed be He, from the nekudah [point] of his fellow by means of secular talk that they speak with him. Then, he receives the light of the nekudah [point] by means of clothing. For sometimes the nekudah [point] needs to clothe itself, and it clothes itself in these speeches, and he receives from it.]