What
Is,
“The
Concealed
Things
Belong
to
the
Lord
Our
God,”
in
the
work?
Article
No.
45,
1990
It
known
that
in
observing
Torah
and
Mitzvot
[commandments/good
deeds],
there
is
the
act,
and
there
is
the
intention.
An
“act”
means
that
a
person
should
observe
Torah
and
Mitzvot
with
all
its
details
and
precisions,
in
return
for
which
a
person
should
believe
that
he
will
be
rewarded.
It
is
as
Maimonides
says
at
the
end
of
Hilchot
Teshuva,
“Hence,
when
teaching
little
ones,
women,
and
uneducated
people,
they
are
taught
to
work
only
out
of
fear
and
in
order
to
receive
reward.
Until
they
gain
knowledge
and
acquire
much
wisdom,
they
are
taught
that
secret
little
by
little.”
It
follows
that
they
are
looking
at
the
practice
of
Mitzvot
as
being
for
sake
of
those
engaging
in
them.
This
is
called
“the
revealed
part
of
the
work.”
It
means
that
a
person
can
see
if
his
actions
are
in
order,
and
when
another
person
looks
at
how
he
observes
Torah
and
Mitzvot,
he,
too,
can
see.
This
is
called
the
“revealed
part,”
since
the
actions
that
a
person
does
are
revealed
to
him,
as
well
as
to
others.
This
is
not
so
with
the
intention,
meaning
to
aim
that
these
actions
will
be
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
With
the
intention,
a
person
does
not
see
the
truth.
He
might
deceive
himself
because
a
person
cannot
see
the
truth.
Because
one
does
not
find
fault
in
oneself,
it
follows
that
the
intention
is
called
the
“concealed
part.”
That
is,
it
is
concealed
from
the
person
himself.
He
cannot
know
the
truth.
And
especially,
the
intention
is
concealed
from
his
friend,
for
one
cannot
see
what
his
friend
intends
when
he
performs
Mitzvot.
This
is
why
this
part
is
called
the
“hidden
part”
of
the
work.
Accordingly,
in
our
work,
we
should
discern
a
revealed
part,
which
is
called
“actions,”
a
concealed
part,
which
is
called
the
“intention
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,”
and
we
should
discern
between
the
work
of
the
general
public
and
the
work
of
the
individual.
In
the
work
of
the
general
public,
a
person
sees
that
he
is
making
progress.
That
is,
each
time,
he
acquires
more
Torah,
more
Mitzvot,
and
therefore
has
motivation
to
work
and
is
always
happy.
He
cannot
understand
why
all
people
do
not
connect
to
Torah
and
Mitzvot,
since
he
feels
a
good
taste
in
Torah
and
work.
This
taste
shines
to
the
general
public
as
Surrounding
Light,
and
it
is
called
“still
of
Kedusha
[holiness].”
In
other
words,
as
in
corporeality,
all
the
plants
emerge
from
the
still,
so
in
the
work,
every
“vegetative”
in
the
work
comes
from
the
“still
of
Kedusha.”
Without
the
“still,”
there
is
no
“vegetative.”
This
Surrounding
Light
shines
in
the
general
public
if
they
take
upon
themselves
the
burden
of
Torah
and
Mitzvot.
But
the
main
point
is
that
they
have
no
intentions
that
go
against
the
“body,”
called
“self-benefit,”
since
with
the
general
public
we
should
learn
as
Maimonides
says,
“in
order
to
receive
reward.”
To
the
extent
that
they
believe
in
reward
and
punishment,
they
already
have
fuel
to
advance
in
the
work
happily
and
willingly.
This
is
not
so
when
a
person
wants
to
walk
on
the
path
of
meriting
to
work
in
order
to
bestow,
which
is
against
the
body’s
nature.
At
that
time,
the
body
immediately
begins
to
resist
his
path.
Then,
the
faith
that
illuminated
for
him
as
Surrounding
Light
is
not
enough
for
him,
and
he
sees
that
he
is
lacking
faith
in
the
greatness
of
the
Creator,
to
have
the
strength
to
overcome
the
body’s
questions.
Then
begins
a
procession
of
ascents
and
descents,
and
the
person
thinks
that
he
is
not
worthy
of
being
a
worker
of
the
Creator
with
the
aim
to
be
able
to
do
everything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
He
sees
that
foreign
thoughts
keep
coming
to
him,
which
he
cannot
overcome.
However,
according
to
what
Baal
HaSulam
said,
we
must
believe
that
the
Creator
sends
us
these
thoughts
so
that
by
this
we
will
receive
a
desire
to
pray
to
Him
from
the
bottom
of
the
heart,
as
it
is
written
in
the
article
“Other
Gods,”
from
the
year
Tav-Shin-Hey.
Thus,
we
must
only
increase
our
prayers
to
the
Creator
to
give
us
the
desire
to
bestow,
and
we
cannot
obtain
that
desire
by
ourselves.
We
must
only
seek
advice
in
two
manners:
1)
to
seek
advice
how
to
feel
that
all
that
we
are
missing
is
the
power
to
bestow,
2)
to
ask
Him
to
give
us
this
power.
This
is
called
“613
Eitin
[Aramaic:
counsels],”
meaning
613
counsels
how
to
come
to
have
a
Kli
[vessel],
called
“lack,”
and
the
filling,
which
is
called
“light.”
In
other
words,
the
Creator
gives
the
desire
to
bestow.
This
is
called
“Whatever
you
can
do
with
your
hand
and
strength,
that
do.”
At
that
time,
the
Creator
gives
him
the
second
nature,
called
“desire
to
bestow.”
Only
once
we
achieve
the
desire
to
bestow
can
we
be
rewarded
with
613
Pekudin
[Aramaic:
deposits],
which
is
the
light
that
is
clothed
in
the
613
Mitzvot.
According
to
the
above,
we
should
interpret
the
verse,
“The
concealed
things
belong
to
the
Lord
our
God.”
This
pertains
to
the
intention,
which
is
to
aim
that
all
his
actions
will
be
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
This
belongs
to
the
Creator.
In
other
words,
it
is
not
within
man’s
power
to
obtain
this
force
by
himself.
For
this
reason,
a
person
needs
to
know,
when
he
sees
that
he
will
never
be
able
to
come
to
work
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
at
that
time
a
person
wants
to
escape
the
campaign
because
he
sees
that
he
will
never
achieve
it.
This
is
why
the
verse
says,
“The
concealed
things
belong
to
the
Lord
our
God.”
This
means
that
the
concealed
part,
the
aim
to
bestow,
is
out
of
one’s
hands,
but
in
the
hands
of
the
Creator
to
give
the
second
nature,
called
“desire
to
bestow.”
This
is
why
it
is
written,
“concealed,”
and
it
belongs
to
the
Creator,
as
He
should
give
this.
However,
when
a
person
is
rewarded
with
the
desire
to
bestow,
he
should
not
pray
for
the
will
to
receive
to
die,
since
then,
if
the
will
to
receive
dies,
the
person
will
not
be
able
to
see
the
lowliness
of
the
will
to
receive.
It
follows
that
the
will
to
receive
within
him
will
die
without
repentance,
but
the
person
wants
the
will
to
receive
to
repent,
for
by
this
he
takes
vengeance
against
the
will
to
receive.
That
is,
a
person
sees
how
the
will
to
receive
must
work
according
to
the
will
of
the
desire
to
bestow,
for
“repentance”
means
that
the
will
to
receive
surrenders
to
the
desire
to
bestow,
and
the
will
to
receive
must
now
work
in
a
manner
of
receiving
in
order
to
bestow.
But
if
the
will
to
receive
were
to
die
before
a
person
could
subdue
it,
so
it
receives
in
order
to
bestow,
it
follows
that
the
person
did
not
correct
the
will
to
receive.
According
to
the
above,
we
should
interpret
what
is
written
(Psalms
59:11),
“The
God
of
my
mercy
shall
meet
me.”
RASHI
interprets,
“Will
help
me
before
the
hand
of
my
enemies
governs
me.
‘Will
see
me
in
my
victory,’
Which
I
crave
to
see.
‘Do
not
kill
them,’
as
this
is
not
an
apparent
vengeance,
‘lest
my
people
forget,’
for
all
the
dead
are
forgotten.
‘Move
them
with
Your
power
and
bring
them
down,’
Rather,
move
them
from
their
assets
so
they
become
poor.
This
is
a
vengeance
that
will
be
remembered
for
many
days.”
We
should
understand
who
David
cursed
like
that,
telling
the
Creator
not
to
kill
his
enemies
but
leave
them
alive
and
poor,
whereas
if
He
kills
them,
they
will
not
suffer,
so
he
asks
Him
to
keep
them
alive
but
poor.
Only
in
this
manner
will
he
be
able
to
take
revenge
from
them,
by
bringing
them
down
from
their
governance,
as
it
is
written,
“Bring
them
down.”
How
is
this
matter
interpreted
in
the
work?
First,
we
must
understand
who
is
David.
David
is
called
Malchut,
which
is
the
kingdom
of
heaven.
Malchut
of
Kedusha
is
the
desire
to
bestow,
and
its
opposite
is
the
desire
to
receive
for
oneself,
which
is
called
Sitra
Achra
[other
side].
This
is
the
opposite
of
Kedusha
and
is
the
enemy
of
Kedusha,
as
it
is
written,
“The
wicked
watches
the
righteous
and
seeks
to
put
him
to
death.”
That
is,
the
will
to
receive
wants
to
kill
the
desire
to
bestow.
David,
who
is
the
Merkava
[chariot/structure]
for
Malchut
of
Kedusha,
prayed
that
his
enemy,
the
will
to
receive—who
wants
to
kill
the
desire
to
bestow,
which
is
Kedusha—that
the
Creator
will
hurry
His
salvation
so
that
the
will
to
receive,
meaning
the
enemy,
will
not
be
able
to
govern
him.
This
is
the
meaning
of
“The
God
of
my
mercy
will
meet
me,”
meaning
that
the
Creator
will
deal
mercy
with
me
first.
In
other
words,
the
desire
to
bestow,
called
Hesed
[mercy/grace],
will
govern
the
will
to
receive.
However,
“Do
not
kill
them,”
for
this
is
not
an
apparent
vengeance,
“lest
my
people
forget,”
since
the
dead
are
all
forgotten.
“Move
them
with
Your
power
and
bring
them
down,”
meaning
move
them
from
their
assets
and
make
them
poor.
This
is
vengeance
that
will
be
remembered
for
many
days.
To
understand
these
curses
in
the
work,
we
should
interpret
that
he
was
cursing
the
enemy,
the
will
to
receive
for
himself,
that
it
would
not
die.
That
is,
if
the
will
to
receive
were
to
be
cancelled,
the
will
to
receive
would
not
witness
the
domination
of
the
desire
to
bestow.
In
other
words,
“vengeance”
means
that
the
other
one
sees
how
he
must
be
subdued.
Here,
it
means
that
the
wholeness
is
the
sweetening
of
the
judgments,
which
is
called
“delighting
Gevurot.”
For
this
reason,
if
the
will
to
receive
is
cancelled
and
only
the
desire
to
bestow
governs,
this
will
not
complete
the
purpose,
since
the
purpose
of
creation
was
to
do
good
to
His
creations,
and
not
for
the
creations
to
bestow
upon
the
Creator
delight
and
pleasure.
It
is
known
that
the
reason
why
the
creatures
must
bestow
contentment
upon
the
Maker
is
only
a
correction
for
the
creatures,
so
there
is
no
apparent
vengeance
here,
since
the
will
to
receive
does
not
surrender
to
the
desire
to
bestow,
since
the
will
to
receive
is
no
longer
in
existence.
But
when
the
will
to
receive
is
alive
and
must
accept
the
governance
of
the
desire
to
bestow,
this
is
called
“apparent
vengeance.”
In
other
words,
it
is
apparent
to
all
that
the
will
to
receive
is
now
working
only
thanks
to
it,
meaning
by
taking
upon
itself
the
desire
to
bestow.
This
is
called
“receiving
in
order
to
bestow.”
That
is,
it
accepted
the
purpose
of
creation
to
do
good
to
His
creations,
and
at
the
same
time,
he
is
in
Dvekut
[adhesion]
with
the
Creator,
for
he
wants
to
give
contentment
to
his
Maker.
At
that
time,
he
feels
what
he
can
give
to
the
Creator
so
He
will
enjoy.
He
sees
that
only
by
receiving
from
the
Creator
delight
and
pleasure
the
Creator
enjoys,
as
this
was
the
purpose
of
creation.
According
to
the
above,
we
should
understand
the
meaning
of
the
sweetening
of
the
Gevurot.
Gevurot
means
Hitgabrut
[overcoming],
which
pertains
primarily
to
when
a
person
works
and
uses
the
vessels
of
reception.
Normally,
we
learn
that
the
acts
impact
the
intention.
Therefore,
when
he
uses
the
vessels
of
reception
and
wants
to
aim
the
opposite
of
the
act,
meaning
to
bestow,
this
requires
extra
overcoming.
Usually,
the
Gevurot
are
called
“judgments”
because
there
were
Tzimtzum
[restriction]
and
judgment
over
the
vessels
of
reception,
that
it
is
forbidden
to
use
them
without
the
aim
to
bestow.
Hence,
when
a
person
is
placed
under
the
rule
of
the
desire
to
receive,
these
desires
cause
him
a
state
of
bitterness
and
he
wants
to
get
rid
of
them.
He
always
thinks,
“How
can
I
get
rid
of
them?”
They
poke
his
mind
and
if
he
could
kill
them
so
they
would
vanish
from
the
horizon,
he
would
be
so
happy!
But
this
is
what
David
says,
“Do
not
kill
them,
lest
my
people
forget.
Move
them
with
Your
power
and
bring
them
down.”
“Move
them”
means
move
them
from
place
to
place
and
bring
them
down
from
the
height
of
their
wealth
so
they
are
poor.
That
is,
let
them
not
receive
anything
in
their
vessels
of
reception
but
be
poor
without
any
abundance.
His
vengeance
will
be
that
the
will
to
receive
will
surrender
and
take
upon
itself
the
control
of
the
aim
to
bestow.
His
curse
will
be
that
they
will
all
come
into
the
Kedusha,
called
“reception
in
order
to
bestow.”
This
is
called
“sweetened
Gevurot.”
This
is
the
meaning
of
Rosh
Hashanah
[beginning
of
the
year],
called
“terrible
days.”
The
ARI
says
that
Rosh
Hashanah
is
the
building
of
Malchut,
called
“the
quality
of
judgment.”
Malchut
[kingship]
means
that
the
whole
world
follows
her
quality,
since
Malchut
is
called
“the
assembly
of
Israel,”
in
which
all
600,000
souls
of
Israel
are
included,
and
the
whole
work
of
Rosh
Hashanah
is
to
accept
the
burden
of
the
kingdom.
This
is
why
we
pray,
“Reign
over
the
whole
world
with
Your
glory.”
In
other
words,
Malchut
means
that
we
must
accept
and
crown
His
kingship
over
us,
so
it
does
not
have
the
form
of
Shechina
[Divinity]
in
the
dust,
but
a
form
of
glory.
This
is
why
on
Rosh
Hashanah,
we
pray,
“And
give
glory
to
Your
people.”
That
is,
we
ask
that
the
Creator
will
let
us
feel,
so
we
will
feel
the
glory
of
heaven.
Since
Rosh
Hashanah
is
the
kingdom
of
heaven,
which
is
in
a
state
of
Shechina
in
the
dust,
therefore,
Rosh
Hashanah
is
the
time
when
we
must
ask
the
Creator
to
feel
the
glory
of
heaven,
meaning
that
the
kingdom
of
heaven
will
be
glorified
in
our
eyes.
And
since
when
we
want
to
ask
the
kingdom
of
heaven
to
be
revealed
throughout
the
world,
meaning
that
“the
whole
earth
is
full
of
His
glory”
will
be
sensed
the
world
over,
as
it
is
written,
“And
will
bring
everything
to
Your
servants,”
this
prayer
applies
to
both
the
general
public
and
the
individual.
That
is,
since
“Man
is
a
small
world,”
it
means
that
he
is
included
with
the
whole
world.
At
that
time,
we
ask
that
within
our
bodies,
there
will
be
no
residue
of
desire
to
work
for
our
own
sake.
And
likewise
in
the
whole
world,
meaning
that
it
will
be
“The
whole
earth
is
full
of
the
knowledge
of
the
Lord.”
In
this
manner,
all
the
prayers
on
Rosh
Hashanah
are
general
prayers.
The
order
of
the
blowing
[of
the
Shofar]
is
also
according
to
the
order
of
the
work,
which
is
in
three
lines.
That
is,
when
we
begin
with
the
work
of
the
Creator,
we
begin
with
one
line,
since
we
can
speak
of
“right”
and
“left”
only
when
we
have
two
lines.
One
line
is
called
“wholeness,”
and
this
is
regarded
as
beginning
with
action.
That
is,
a
person
must
say
that
since
it
is
written,
“This
day,
the
Lord
your
God
commands
you,”
and
our
sages
said,
“Each
day,
they
should
be
as
new
in
your
eyes,
as
though
today
you
were
commanded
them,”
it
follows
that
each
day
is
a
new
beginning.
Hence,
when
he
begins
with
one
line,
he
should
be
happy
that
he
has
the
privilege
of
observing
the
law
of
the
Creator.
Afterward,
he
shifts
to
the
intention,
meaning
to
criticize
how
much
he
needs
to
do
everything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
At
that
time
begins
the
real
work,
since
then
he
sees
that
he
has
not
a
single
organ
that
wants
to
do
anything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
This
is
already
called
“left
line,”
as
our
sages
said,
“the
left
rejects.”
That
is,
he
sees
how
far
he
is
from
the
Creator,
and
he
must
believe
that
the
Creator
pushed
him
away
so
that
by
this
he
will
exert
to
make
more
efforts.
Afterward,
he
returns
to
one
line,
called
“wholeness.”
But
now
the
one
line
is
called
“right
line,”
since
the
left
line
makes
the
one
line
become
“right.”
Then
the
person
is
rewarded
with
the
middle
line,
called
“the
Creator
gives
the
soul.”