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64 - And Hashem Said to Moses, Come to Pharaoh
(וַיֹּאמֶר יְיָ אֶל מֹשֶׁה בֹּא אֶל פַּרְעֹה - Enter the Realm of Impurity)
1.
For Hashem, blessed be He, because of His mercy (rachmonus [-mercy]), created the world, for He desired to reveal His rachmonus. For if there were no creation of the world, upon whom would He show His rachmonus? Therefore, He created all existence, from the beginning of emanation (atzilus [-divine emanation]) until the end of the central point of the physical world, in order to manifest His rachmonus. And when Hashem, blessed be He, desired to create the world, there was no place to create it, because everything was infinite (ayn sof [-without end]). Therefore, He contracted His light to the sides, and through this contraction (tzimtzum [-contraction]), an empty space (chalal panoy [-void for creation]) was formed. And within this chalal panoy, all the days and attributes, which are the creation of the world, were established (as written in Etz Chaim at its beginning). And this chalal panoy was necessary for the creation of the world, for without the chalal panoy, there would be no place at all for the creation of the world, as mentioned above. And this tzimtzum of the chalal panoy is impossible to understand or grasp except in the future to come, for it requires reconciling two opposites: being and nothingness. For the chalal panoy exists through the tzimtzum, as if, so to speak, He contracted His divinity from there, and there is no divinity there, so to speak, for otherwise it would not be empty, and everything would be infinite, with no place at all for the creation of the world. But in true truth [in true truth], certainly, even so, there is divinity there as well, for certainly nothing exists without His vitality. Therefore, it is impossible to grasp the aspect of the chalal panoy at all until the future to come. [Correlation: The tzimtzum enables creation by forming a void, yet divinity persists.]
2.
Know that there are two types of heresy (apikorsus [-heresy]). There is an apikorsus that comes from external wisdoms, about which it is said (Avot, chapter 2): “Know what to answer to an epicure,” for this apikorsus has an answer. For this apikorsus comes from external wisdoms, which come from surpluses (mosaros [-excesses]), from the aspects of the breaking of the vessels (sheviras hakaylim [-breaking of the vessels]). For due to the abundance of light, the vessels broke, and from there the shells (klipos [-husks of impurity]) were formed, as is known. And external wisdoms come from there, that is, from the sheviras hakaylim, from the mosaros, the refuse of holiness. Just as with a person, there are several types of mosaros and refuse, such as nails, hair, and sweat, and other refuse and mosaros, so too every external wisdom comes from the known mosaros and refuse of holiness. And similarly, sorcery comes from known mosaros and refuse. Therefore, one who falls into this apikorsus, although he certainly must flee and escape from there, nevertheless, one who falls there can find salvation to escape from there, for he can find Hashem, blessed be He, there if he seeks Him and searches for Him there. For since they come from the sheviras hakaylim, there are many sparks of holiness (nitzotzos hakdusha [-sparks of holiness]) and many letters that broke and fell there, as is known. Therefore, he can find divinity and intellect there to resolve the questions of this apikorsus that comes from external wisdoms, which come from the mosaros of the sheviras hakaylim, for there is divine vitality there, that is, intellect and letters that broke and fell there. Therefore, this apikorsus has an answer, and about it is said: “Know what to answer to an epicure.” But there is another type of apikorsus, which are wisdoms that are not wisdoms, but because they are profound and cannot be grasped, they appear as wisdoms. For example, when someone proposes a false reasoning in Gemara, Peirush Rashi, or Tosafos [commentaries by Rashi and Tosafos on the Talmud], and because the scholar cannot resolve the question that arises from this reasoning, it seems that he proposed a great reasoning and wisdom, even though in truth it is not reasoning at all. So too, there are many confusions and questions among investigators that in truth are not wisdom at all, and the questions are null from the outset, but because human intellect cannot resolve them, they appear as wisdoms and questions. And in truth, it is impossible to resolve these questions, for these questions of this apikorsus come from the chalal panoy, where, within the chalal panoy, there is no divinity, so to speak. Therefore, these questions that come from there, from the aspect of the chalal panoy, cannot in any way have an answer found for them, that is, to find Hashem, blessed be He, there. For if one could find Hashem, blessed be He, there as well, then it would not be empty, and everything would be infinite, as mentioned above. Therefore, about this apikorsus, it is said (Proverbs 2): “All who come there shall not return,” for there is no answer at all for this apikorsus, since it comes from the chalal panoy, from where He contracted His divinity, so to speak. But Israel, through faith (emuna [-faith]), pass over all wisdoms, even this apikorsus that comes from the chalal panoy, for they believe in Hashem, blessed be He, without any investigation or wisdom, but with complete emuna. For Hashem, blessed be He, fills all worlds and surrounds all worlds. It is found that He is, so to speak, within all the worlds and around all the worlds, and there must be a difference, so to speak, between the filling and the surrounding, for otherwise everything would be one. But through the aspect of the chalal panoy, from where He contracted His divinity, so to speak, and within it He created all existence, it is found that the chalal panoy surrounds the entire world, and Hashem, blessed be He, who surrounds all worlds, surrounds the chalal panoy as well. Therefore, it is proper to say He fills all worlds, that is, all the creation that was created within the chalal panoy, and also surrounds all worlds, that is, He surrounds even the chalal panoy, and in between, the chalal panoy separates, where He contracted His divinity from there, so to speak. And behold, through emuna, they believe that Hashem, blessed be He, fills all worlds and surrounds all worlds, and since He surrounds all worlds, then even the chalal panoy itself was formed from His wisdom, blessed be He. And certainly, in true truth [in true truth], His divinity, blessed be He, is there, but it is impossible to grasp this or to find Hashem, blessed be He, there, as mentioned above. Therefore, they pass over all the wisdoms and questions and the apikorsus that comes from the chalal panoy, for they know that certainly it is impossible to find an answer for them, for if one could find an answer for them, that is, find Hashem, blessed be He, in them, then it would not be the chalal panoy, and it would be impossible for the creation to come into being. But in true truth [in true truth], certainly there is an answer for them, and certainly His divinity, blessed be He, is there. But through investigations, one sinks there, for it is impossible to find Hashem, blessed be He, there, since it is the aspect of the chalal panoy. Rather, one must believe that Hashem, blessed be He, surrounds it as well, and certainly, in truth, His divinity, blessed be He, is there as well. Therefore, Israel are called Hebrews (Ivrim [-from root עבר, to pass over]), because through their emuna, they pass over all wisdoms, even the wisdoms that are not wisdoms, that is, the second apikorsus that comes from the chalal panoy, as mentioned above. Therefore, Hashem, blessed be He, is called “G-d of the Hebrews” [Exodus 3:18], from the term “beyond the river” (Joshua 24:2), meaning sides, that is, His divinity surrounds even the chalal panoy, which came about through the tzimtzum, where He contracted the light to the sides. Therefore, Israel are called Ivrim, for through their emuna, believing that Hashem, blessed be He, is the G-d of the Hebrews, as mentioned above, they pass over all wisdoms and what are not wisdoms, that is, the second apikorsus, as mentioned above. Therefore, certainly, from this second apikorsus, one must be exceedingly cautious to flee and escape from there, not to examine or look at their words at all, for, G-d forbid, one will certainly sink there, as it is said: “All who come there shall not return” [Proverbs 2:19], as mentioned above. [Correlation: emuna transcends the unanswerable questions of the chalal panoy.]
3.
But know, if there is a great tzadik [tzadik - righteous one], who is in the aspect of Moses, he must specifically examine the words of this apikorsus, and even though it is impossible to resolve them, as mentioned above, nevertheless, through his examination there, he raises many neshamos [-souls] that fell and sank into this apikorsus. For these confusions and questions of this apikorsus that come from the chalal panoy are in the aspect of silence (shtika [-silence]), since there is no intellect or letters to resolve them, as mentioned above. For the creation was through speech, as it is written (Psalms 33:6): “By the word of Hashem the heavens were made, and by the breath of His mouth all their host.” And in speech, there is wisdom, for the entirety of speech is only through the five outlets of the mouth, and through them, all the things of all creation were formed, as it is written (Psalms 104:24): “You have made them all in wisdom.” And speech is the boundary of all things, for He limited His wisdom in letters, these letters being the boundary for this, and those letters being the boundary for that. But in the chalal panoy, which surrounds all worlds, as mentioned above, and is empty of all, so to speak, as mentioned above, there is no speech at all, nor even intellect without letters, as mentioned above. Therefore, the confusions that come from there are in the aspect of shtika. And as we find with Moses (Menachot 29b), when he asked about the death of Rabbi Akiva, “This is Torah and this is its reward,” he was answered: “Be silent, thus it arose in thought,” meaning, you must be silent and not ask an answer or resolution for this question, for thus it arose in thought, which is above speech. Therefore, you must be silent about this question, for it is in the aspect of “it arose in thought,” where there is no speech to resolve it. And similarly, these questions and confusions that come from the chalal panoy, where there is no speech or intellect, as mentioned above, are in the aspect of shtika, and one must only believe and be silent there. Therefore, it is forbidden to enter and examine the words of this apikorsus and these confusions, except for a tzadik who is in the aspect of Moses, for Moses is in the aspect of shtika, in the aspect of being called “heavy of mouth” [Exodus 4:10], the aspect of shtika, which is above speech. Therefore, the tzadik who is in the aspect of Moses, in the aspect of shtika, can examine the words of these confusions, which are in the aspect of shtika, as mentioned above, and he must specifically examine them to raise the neshamos that fell there, as mentioned above. [Correlation: Moses’ shtika aligns with the silence of the chalal panoy.]
4.
Know that controversy (machlokas [-dispute]) is in the aspect of the creation of the world. For the main aspect of the creation of the world was through the chalal panoy, as mentioned above, for without this, everything would be infinite, and there would be no place for the creation of the world, as mentioned above. Therefore, He contracted the light to the sides, and the chalal panoy was formed, and within it, He created all existence, that is, the days and attributes, through speech, as mentioned above: “By the word of Hashem the heavens were made” [Psalms 33:6], etc. And so it is with the aspect of controversies, for if all the disciples of the sages were one, there would be no place for the creation of the world. But through the machlokas among them, where they are divided from one another, and each one draws himself to a different side, through this, an aspect of the chalal panoy is formed among them, which is the aspect of the tzimtzum of the light to the sides, through which the creation of the world occurs by means of speech, as mentioned above. For all the words that each one of them speaks are only for the sake of the creation of the world, which is formed through them within the chalal panoy among them. For the disciples of the sages create everything through their words, as it is written (Isaiah 51:16): “And to say to Zion, you are My people”—read not “My people” but “with Me”; just as I create the heavens and the earth with My speech, so too do you (as written in the Zohar, Introduction, page 5). But one must be cautious not to speak excessively, only as needed for the creation of the world, no more. For through the abundance of light, which the vessels could not bear, they broke, and from the sheviras hakaylim, the klipos were formed. Similarly, if one speaks excessively, this causes the formation of the klipos, for it is the aspect of the abundance of light, through which the sheviras hakaylim occurred, through which the klipos were formed. And this is the meaning of the Mishnah (Avot, chapter 1): “All my days I grew among the sages, and I found nothing better for the body than shtika. And not study is the main thing, but action. And anyone who multiplies words brings sin.” “Among the sages” is the aspect of the chalal panoy, which was formed and came into being among the sages through the separation and machlokas among them, as mentioned above. And this is specifically “among the sages,” meaning there is separation and machlokas among them, for if they were all one, it would not be appropriate to say “among the sages.” And through the machlokas, the aspect of the chalal panoy is formed, and within this chalal panoy, the creation of the world occurs, that is, the days and attributes. And this is: “All my days I grew”—meaning I caused my days and attributes to grow, which is the aspect of the creation of the world. “Among the sages”—specifically among the sages, within the chalal panoy, as mentioned above, for there all creation is formed, as mentioned above. And this is “I grew”—I caused my days and attributes to grow, from smallness to greatness. And this is why he called them “my days,” for they are his days, for he creates the world, etc., as mentioned above. And this is: “I found nothing better for the body than shtika”—for there in the chalal panoy, nothing is better than shtika, as mentioned above, for it is forbidden to enter there except for one who is in the aspect of shtika, in the aspect of Moses, as mentioned above. And this is what he said: “All my days I grew among the sages, and I found nothing better, etc.,” for through holding to this level, the aspect of shtika, as he said that nothing is better than shtika, therefore he caused his days and attributes to grow there in the chalal panoy, for it is forbidden to enter there except for one who is in the aspect of shtika, as mentioned above. And this is: “Not study is the main thing, but action, and anyone who multiplies words brings sin”—for all their study and words that these sages speak, the main thing is not study alone but action, that they perform and create the world through their words, as mentioned above, “read not ‘My people’ but ‘with Me,’” as mentioned above. But anyone who multiplies words brings sin, for from the abundance of light, the klipos were formed, as mentioned above. [Correlation: Disputes mirror the tzimtzum, creating space for divine speech.]
5.
Know that through the melody (nigun [-melody]) of the tzadik, who is in the aspect of Moses, he raises the neshamos from the apikorsus of the chalal panoy where they fell. For know that every wisdom in the world has a specific song and nigun, where this song is specific to that wisdom, and from this song, that wisdom is drawn. And this is the aspect of (Psalms 47:8): “Sing, O wise,” for every intellect and wisdom has a song and nigun. And even the wisdom of apikorsus has a nigun and song specific to the wisdom of apikorsus. And this is what our sages, of blessed memory, said (Chagigah 15b): “What became of Elisha? Greek song did not cease from his mouth, and when he arose from the study hall, many heretical books fell from him.” For this is dependent on that, for through the aforementioned song that did not cease from his mouth, through this, the heretical books fell from him, for this song was specific to that apikorsus and heresy that he had. It is found that every wisdom, according to its aspect and level, has a song and nigun that is appropriate and specific to it. And so from level to level, for the wisdom in the higher level has a higher song and nigun according to its aspect. And so upward and upward until the beginning of the point of creation, which is the start of atzilus, and there is nothing above it, and there is no surrounding for that wisdom that is there, except the light of the ayn sof, which surrounds the chalal panoy, within which are all creations and wisdoms. And certainly, there is also an aspect of wisdom there, but the wisdom that is there in the light of the ayn sof cannot be known or grasped, for the ayn sof is Hashem, blessed be He, Himself, and His wisdom cannot be grasped at all, and there is only the aspect of emuna, where they believe in Him, blessed be He, that His light, the ayn sof, surrounds all worlds and encompasses everything. And emuna also has a song and nigun specific to emuna. And as we see, even the faiths of idolatry in their erroneous words have a specific nigun for each faith of idolatry, which they sing and perform in their house of worship. So too, conversely, in holiness, every emuna has a song and nigun. And that song specific to the aforementioned emuna, which is the supernal emuna above all kinds of wisdoms and faiths in the world, that is, emuna in the light of the ayn sof itself, which surrounds all worlds, as mentioned above, that song is also above all the melodies and songs in the world that are related to every wisdom and faith. And all the songs and melodies of all the wisdoms are drawn from this song and nigun, which is above all the songs and melodies of all the wisdoms, for it is the song related to the emuna in the light of the ayn sof itself, which is above all. And in the future to come, when He will turn to all the peoples a pure language to call all in the name of Hashem (Zephaniah 3:9), and all will believe in Him, blessed be He, then it will be fulfilled (Song of Songs 4:8): “Come, behold from the peak of faith,” specifically from the peak of faith, that is, the aspect of this supernal emuna, which is the head of all faiths, as mentioned above. And this is specifically “behold” (tashuri), that is, the nigun and song related to this peak of faith, as mentioned above. And to the aspect of the song of this supernal emuna, no one merits it except the tzadik of the generation, who is in the aspect of Moses, who is at the level of this emuna, which is the aspect of shtika, the aspect of: “Be silent, thus it arose in thought,” meaning it is still above speech, as mentioned above. For Moses is the aspect of shtika, as mentioned above. And this is (Exodus 15:1): “Then Moses will sing,” and our sages, of blessed memory, said (Sanhedrin 91b): “It does not say ‘sang’ but ‘will sing,’ indicating the resurrection of the dead from the Torah,” that Moses will sing in the future to come as well. For all the songs, whether of this world or the future to come, are only with Moses, who is the aspect of shtika, who merited the song related to the supernal emuna above all, where all songs are included, for they are all drawn from it. And this is what Rashi explained: “Will sing,” the yud is said for the sake of thought, that is, the aspect of “thus it arose in thought,” the aspect of Moses, the aspect of shtika, as mentioned above. Therefore, through the nigun of the tzadik, who is in the aspect of Moses, as mentioned above, through this, all the neshamos that fell into this apikorsus of the chalal panoy rise and come out, for his nigun is in the aspect of the peak of emuna, that is, the supernal emuna above all. Through this nigun and emuna, all apikorsus is nullified, and all melodies are included and nullified within this nigun, which is above all, from which all melodies are drawn, as mentioned above. [Correlation: The tzadik’s nigun transcends all wisdoms.]
6.
And this is: “And Hashem said to Moses, Come to Pharaoh, for I have hardened,” etc. Paroh [-Pharaoh] is the aspect of the chalal panoy, for Paroh is a term of nullification (bitul [-from פרע, to disturb, Exodus 5:4]), and also Paroh is a term of revelation (hisgalus [-from פרע, to uncover]), that is, the aspect of the chalal panoy, which is null and empty of all, and within it is the revelation of all creation, as mentioned above. And there in the chalal panoy, there is heaviness of heart (kavedus lev [-heaviness of heart]), for it is impossible to grasp the aspect of the chalal panoy, as mentioned above. And all the wisdoms that come from there have kavedus lev, for they remain in a question against Hashem, blessed be He, and it is impossible to find Hashem, blessed be He, there, because He withdrew His divinity from there, so to speak, so that the creation could come into being, as mentioned above. Therefore: “And Hashem said to Moses, Come,” etc.—specifically Moses, he shall come to Paroh, the aspect of the chalal panoy, for it is forbidden to enter there except in the aspect of Moses, as mentioned above, for it is impossible to find Hashem, blessed be He, there, as mentioned above. And this is: “For I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants.” The servants are the aspect of the premises of all wisdoms, for every wisdom has premises, and they are called servants and attendants to the wisdom, that is, all the wisdoms and premises that come from the chalal panoy have kavedus lev, for they remain in a question, as mentioned above. And this is: “That I may place these My signs in his midst”—meaning that because I have hardened his heart, etc., that it is impossible to find Hashem, blessed be He, there, this was so that I may place, etc., in order to place within him the letters of creation, that is, so that the creation could come into being there, within the chalal panoy, where He contracted and withdrew His divinity, so to speak, for if He had not contracted His divinity from there, there would be no place for the creation, as mentioned above. And this is: “And that you may tell,” etc.—for there, within the creation that was formed within the chalal panoy, there you can tell and speak, for there are letters and speech through which the creation was formed, as mentioned above. And this is: “In the ears of your son and your son’s son”—for the main purpose of all creation was for the sake of His rachmonus, as mentioned above, and the creation was through speech, as mentioned above. It is found that in every thing that was created within the chalal panoy, there is a contraction of His rachmonus, for Hashem, blessed be He, contracted His rachmonus and created this thing in this form and image, according to His rachmonus, for His attribute of rachmonus, blessed be He, necessitated that this thing be so. For rachmonus is the root of all creation, for everything was created to reveal His rachmonus, as mentioned above. And this is: “And that you may tell in the ears of your son and your son’s son”—thus far extends the mercy of the father upon the son (as Rashi explained on Genesis 21:8, on the verse “If you lie to me and to my grandson and to my great-grandson”), for in that which is after the creation, there you can tell and speak and grasp the contraction of His rachmonus that is in every thing. Thus far extends the mercy of the father, etc., meaning that in this thing there is such and such rachmonus, and in this thing there is such and such rachmonus. And this is: “What I have done in Egypt,” etc.—this is the aspect of the klipos that come from the abundance of light from the sheviras hakaylim. For “I have done” (hit’alalti)—Rashi explained: “I played,” meaning I made a mockery and folly in the world, that is, the aspect of the klipos, which are against holiness, only like one who mimics and plays and distorts himself to his fellow, for they are only like a monkey that plays and mimics itself to a human. And this is: “And My signs which I have placed in them”—for there are letters there, for they come from the abundance of light, from the sheviras hakaylim, as mentioned above. Therefore, “And you shall know that I am Hashem,” for there you can recognize Hashem, for there are nitzotzos hakdusha and letters there, as mentioned above. That is, even within the aspect of the mockery, the aspect of the klipos, that is, the aspect of the first apikorsus, which comes from the aspect of the abundance of light, as mentioned above, even there you can recognize Hashem. For about it is said: “Know what to answer to an epicure,” as mentioned above, for it is possible to find letters and sparks there to resolve them, for they come from the sheviras hakaylim, as mentioned above. And this is: “And Moses came to Pharaoh,” etc., “Behold, I am bringing tomorrow locusts in your border.” “Tomorrow” is the aspect of the future to come, for “tomorrow” is for receiving reward (Eruvin 22a), the aspect of (Genesis 30:33): “And my righteousness will answer for me on the day of tomorrow,” that is, the aspect of receiving reward in the future to come. And then they will understand the aspect of the chalal panoy, which is through the tzimtzum, how it is possible that in truth there is divinity there, and yet it is the chalal panoy, as mentioned above. And this itself is the receiving of reward, for the main receiving of reward in the future is that they will attain understandings and understand what was impossible to understand in this world. And then they will know that the chalal panoy is in the aspect of locusts, like that locust whose garment is from it and in it (Bereishis Rabba 21), (as brought in all Kabbalistic books, that this is the aspect of the secret of the chalal panoy). The garment is the aspect of the tzimtzum of the chalal panoy, through which is the aspect of garments, they will understand that it is from Him and in Him, that in truth there is divinity there, and yet it is the aspect of a garment, the aspect of tzimtzum, the aspect of the chalal panoy. And this is the aspect of: “And my righteousness will answer for me on the day of tomorrow.” “My righteousness” is the aspect of garments, the aspect of (Job 29:14): “I put on righteousness”; for then, on the day of tomorrow, which will be the receiving of reward, the secret of the aspect of garments, the aspect of the tzimtzum of the chalal panoy, will be revealed, as mentioned above. For then the peak of faith, as mentioned above, will be revealed, the aspect of: “Come, behold from the peak of faith,” the aspect of the supernal nigun of the peak of emuna, as mentioned above, through which all the confusions of the chalal panoy are nullified, as mentioned above. And this is: “Behold, I am bringing tomorrow locusts”—the initials form: Achen Ruach Hu Beenosh [Job 32:8, “Surely the spirit is in man”], the aspect of melody, which is the aspect of spirit. That is, then the nigun and song of the peak of emuna will be revealed, as mentioned above, and through it, all apikorsus, even that of the chalal panoy, will be nullified, as mentioned above. [Wordplay: Paroh connects nullification and revelation; Arbeh אַרְבֶּה links to divine spirit.]
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