The Brightness of the Firmament

3) “And the educated will shine as the brightness of the firmament.” The educated are ZON of Atzilut, or the souls of the righteous. “The brightness of the firmament” is illumination of GAR that appears through the association of the quality of mercy. Here the text relates specifically to Malchut that is sweetened with the quality of mercy, Malchut that divided the whole degree by her ascent to Bina, and made a new Sium in the middle of the Sefirot of the degree, in the place of Bina in the Guf, in the Chazeh.

That new Sium is called Parsa, which stands at the Chazeh and ends the Partzuf there. That Parsa in the entrails of the man, in his Chazeh, separates between the organs for vitality—the lung and the heart—and the organs for feeding.

That new Sium is also called “The firmament that divides between the upper water and the lower water.” This is so because there are five Sefirot in the Guf: HGT NH, corresponding to the five Sefirot KHB TM. HGT of Guf are considered KHB, GAR of Guf, and end at the Chazeh, where there is the Parsa, which is called a “firmament.” This is why those HGT are called “upper water.” From the Chazeh and below, Tifferet and Malchut of Guf are called “lower water.” Thus, the firmament stands in the middle of each degree, separating between the upper water and the lower water, as it is written, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the water, and let it separate between water and water.”

The world would not persist in the quality of judgment, Malchut of AK, before she was sweetened in Bina, since the world is ZON of Atzilut, including people in this world, for all that is received in ZON of Atzilut can be received in people in this world. And all that is not received in ZON is not received in people in this world because we do not receive anything from higher than ZON.

Therefore, if Nukva of ZA, Malchut, were not sweetened in Bina, she would not be fit for reception of any direct light, the upper light, but only reflected light, tiny lights, lights of judgment‎, and then people in this world would be unfit to receive any Mochin—direct light from Ein Sof. However, He saw that the world did not persist, so he associated the quality of mercy with it, raising her to Bina, and all the degrees were divided and a new Sium was made, called “firmament,” at the half of each degree. It follows that Malchut that rose to the place of Bina gained two Sefirot that are fit for reception of upper light—Bina and Tifferet—since because Malchut is in the place of Bina, Bina and Tifferet are under her, included in her.

And therefore, once people in this world raise MAN through Mitzvot and good deeds, they extend a new illumination from above, which lowers the Malchut and the place of the coupling back to her place, below Tifferet, and a complete degree comes out, NRNHY, received in the Sefirot Bina and Tifferet that were previously included in Malchut, and which are fit for reception of upper light. Then the souls of the righteous, too, receive the upper Mochin from ZON of Atzilut because they are included in the upper Malchut.

Thus, all the Mochin are only because of Malchut that rose to Bina, making a new Sium there, called a “firmament.” Were it not for the firmament, ZON would not be able to receive any of the upper light. This is why the text calls those Mochin “The brightness of the firmament,” meaning the light that appears at the end of the association of mercy with judgment‎. It is written, “And the educated,” meaning ZON and the souls of the righteous, “Will shine as the brightness of the firmament,” receive Mochin that illuminate like the brightness of the firmament, since all of their Mochin comes from the brightness of the firmament.

This is why The Zohar brings this text, over all the Mochin that were emanated from AA and below, for they all came out from those lights of the brightness of the firmament. This is also why there is attainment to the lower ones in them.

There are three phases in the brightness of the firmament.

1) The brightness that is more hidden than all that is hidden and its Avir [air], male and Nukva of Atik, since the male of Atik is called “more hidden than all that is hidden,” and his air is the Nukva of Atik, who emanated to AA in the brightness of the firmament.

2) The brightness of Beresheet, from which YESHSUT was emanated.

3) The hidden brightness, YESHSUT, from which all ten utterances in the work of creation were emanated, the Mochin of ZON. But upper AVI are not from the brightness of the firmament, as they are unknown, and the Yod did not depart from their air.

The first brightness of the firmament is a root to emanate to AA, for he himself is hidden.

The second brightness of the firmament is the carrier of the upper dot, key. This is why it is considered the beginning of all the Mochin of the brightness of the firmament. This is why it is called Beresheet [in the beginning], and this is why those Mochin do not appear in it, rather it gives them to YESHSUT, the third brightness of the firmament. In YESHSUT, all those Mochin, from whom ZON receive, appear in actual fact.

The air of the brightness that is more hidden than all that is hidden made a coupling and illuminated in this dot. The one who is more hidden than all that is hidden is Atik and his Nukva. And although his Nukva has already been established with the Malchut that is sweetened in the quality of mercy, with the firmament, yet, because she is hidden, she is included in the male of Atik and is called “the most hidden of all that is hidden,” like him. However, she is considered his air because she is only half a degree, vessels KH with lights of Nefesh and Ruach.

The air of Atik, which is his Nukva, made a coupling and illuminated in this dot, meaning extended illumination to AA, who is called “the upper dot,” and the Mochin of GAR, called “brightness of the firmament,” came out in him. And once AA received the illumination of Nukva of Atik, that Resheet, which is AA, expanded in Rosh and Guf and made a palace for himself for honor and glory. That is, he emanated Partzuf upper AVI, who clothed him and surrounded him as a palace.

There are six Partzufim in the world of Atzilut, where one emerges from the other. In each Partzuf there are male and female. They are called Atik and his Nukva, AA and his Nukva, upper AVI, YESHSUT, the great ZON, and the small ZON.

This is the order of their degrees: air of Atik emanated AA and his Nukva, AA and his Nukva emanated upper AVI and YESHSUT, and YESHSUT emanated the great ZON and the small ZON. It explains how all those are implied in the verse Beresheet Barah Elokim et HaShamayim VeEt HaAretz [“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth”].

AA illuminates two kinds of Mochin in upper AVI, in the palace that he made—which is Partzuf upper AVI, the seed of AA, a seed of holiness—for begetting souls and for the benefit of the world: 1) Mochin of Hassadim to sustain the worlds; 2) Mochin of Gadlut to beget the souls.

4) The brightness that planted a seed in his honor is like a seed of good silk and purple. The worm that weaves the silk covers itself in the insides of the silk, for so is the nature of that worm—it brings out of itself the silk threads and wraps itself with them around it until it is completely covered by the silk threads and is invisible. Similarly, when AA sows the lights in the palace, YESHSUT, he hides and covers his own lights, and disappears through those Mochin of YESHSUT that he emanates, like the worm that is hidden by the silk threads that she makes.

Out of that seed, he made for himself a palace for glory for himself and for the benefit of all. That second palace is Partzuf YESHSUT, which AA emanated similar to a seed of silk. AA had to disappear during his emanation of that Partzuf and sowed in that palace the seed of lights for his correction, as it is written, “Wearing light like a garment,” when it is wrapped light, without expansion, and he is hidden. At that time, he is called air, for the light is made hidden by the letter Yod that entered the word Ohr [light], forming the combination air, a dot in his palace.

Malchut is called a “dot,” and YESHSUT, which are Bina, are called a “palace.” In the sweetening of the quality of mercy, the dot went up to the palace of AA, when Malchut rose to Bina. It follows that the light of the palace was hidden and became air, the level of Ruach, since when there are all five lights NRNHY there, it is called “light.”

But through the ascent of the dot to the hall, the Sium and coupling was done below the Hochma, and Bina, Tifferet, and Malchut descended outside the hall and below. And because only two vessels KH remained in the hall, only two lights remained there, NR, and the light of Ruach is called air. Thus, due to the ascent of the dot to the light of the palace, the light departed from there, from the GAR—Neshama, Haya, Yechida—and only the level of Ruach Nefesh—the air—remained there.

It is written, “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Afterwards, when the Mochin of Gadlut of YESHSUT illuminated, he lowered the Yod from the air once more, and the combination of Ohr [light] returned to its place as before, since once he returned Malchut to her place, the three vessels Bina and TM returned and reunited with their degree. And because there are already five vessels, the five lights NRNHY clothed in them once more.

The entrance of the Yod into the light is the emanation of AA to YESHSUT, for when he emanated to YESHSUT, he raised Malchut to his Bina, a dot in his palace, and AA remained with two vessels KH, in which there are two lights NR. Then he also emanated to YESHSUT in half the degree, such as him, in two vessels KH, and in two lights NR. It follows that AA, too, had to disappear and diminish in his light into an air when he emanated to YESHSUT, like the seed of silk.

By that, the Resheet created that hidden one, which is not known to this palace. It concerns the verse Beresheet Barah Elokim [“In the beginning God created”]. By that beginning, he—AA—created that hidden one, the ascent of the Yod to the light of the palace, becoming a hidden air, a dot in his palace. The one who is hidden to this palace is YESHSUT at the time of Katnut. And because he extends from AA, he is therefore revealed during the Gadlut, for then the Yod comes out from the air once more, and it becomes light. But if it were extended from Atik, it would always remain hidden, and the Yod would never have departed the air, as is done in upper AVI that came out of Atik.

The second palace is called Elokim, to distinguish it from the first palace of AA, which is upper AVI, which is not considered Elokim but EKYEH. It is written, “In the beginning God created.” AA, called Resheet [beginning], created, emanated the Katnut and concealment, called “hidden brightness,” which in Gadlut is the name Elokim. The word “created” always indicates a formation of something hidden.

5) That palace is glowing, and all ten utterances were created from it, in the expansion of the dot from that hidden brightness. The Mochin of Gadlut of ZON are called “utterances.” All the Mochin of ZON came from the hidden brightness of YESHSUT, meaning by an expansion and emergence of the dot from the hidden air, at which time the letters of Ohr remained.

If in YESHSUT it is written “created,” there is no wonder about what is written, “And God created the man in His own image,” since the man of Atzilut is ZA who came out with the Malchut in two Partzufim. It is known that Malchut was restricted from receiving any direct light into her, but only reflected light. Thus, how can ZON receive Mochin from YESHSUT, which are direct light?

It explains that if in YESHSUT it is written “created,” that Malchut rose to the place of Bina, and Bina and TM of YESHSUT descended to ZON, there is no wonder that it is written, “And God,” Bina, “Created the man,” ZON, “In His own image,” in Mochin of Ima, although they are originally unfit to receive direct light. It is so because those Bina and TM of YESHSUT who descended to ZON during the Katnut became one with ZON, receiving the Mochin of Ima in them, which is direct light, as Ima [mother] lent her clothes to her daughter.

6) The brightness, AA, is Beresheet, as his name is the first of all. After he interprets the verse “In the beginning God created,” in general, relating to AA, who emanated to YESHSUT, who is called Elokim [God], he returns to explain the matters in particular. He says that the word Beresheet is a holy name, and it is the name of AA, whose name is the first of all, for in the Mochin of the brightness of the firmament, AA is considered the beginning of everything, as he is the first Partzuf established as a first dot, the key.

The holy name EKYEH is carved on the sides of AA, which are upper AVI who clothe the right and left of AA through the Chazeh. They are the name EKYEH, and they are always in pure air, since the Yod never departed from their air, while the Mochin of the brightness of the firmament are not in them.

The name Elokim is carved in the crown, Mochin of GAR, as it is written, “Go forth and see, O daughters of Zion, King Solomon with the crown with which his mother crowned him.” YESHSUT, the name Elokim, is carved in AA in the crown, in Mochin of GAR.

It relates to the clarification of the names EKYEH Asher EKYEH [I will be that which I will be]. The first EKYEH is upper AVI, carved and inscribed on the sides of AA, which are pure air, and hidden. Elokim is carved in AA in GAR, in the brightness of the firmament, YESHSUT. It is a hidden and concealed hall, the beginning of the disclosure of Beresheet. The name Elokim is the word Asher [that] in EKYEH Asher EKYEH.

Thus, first EKYEH is upper AVI, and Asher is YESHSUT, Elokim, a hidden and concealed hall at the time of Katnut, the beginning of the disclosure of Beresheet. In YESHSUT, the beginning of the disclosure of the Mochin of the brightness of the firmament is from AA, who is Resheet [beginning].

Asher is Rosh that came out of Resheet. Asher has the letters of Rosh in a reversed order: Reish is first in Rosh and last in Asher, indicating that it is a Rosh that came out of Resheet, from AA, hence it departed the Rosh and became a Guf without a Rosh.

Explanation: To emanate YESHSUT, AA became covered and hidden, like the seed of the silk that first made that correction of the ascent of Malchut to Bina in his own Partzuf, to emanate YESHSUT to that extent. Therefore, AA was established with only KH in his Rosh, and his Bina departed from the Rosh into the degree of Guf. From that Bina, the Partzufim AVI and YESHSUT were made: Upper AVI were established from her GAR, and YESHSUT were established from her VAK.

For this reason, AVI always remained in the Rosh, even though they are only Hassadim, since the GAR of Bina do not receive Hochma even when they are at the Rosh. And therefore, they do not feel any difference when they are outside the Rosh. YESHSUT, however, ZAT of Bina of AA, whose conduct is to receive Hochma, were diminished from reception of Hochma due to the exit of Bina of AA into the Guf, and are therefore regarded as Guf without a Rosh.

This is why Asher is Rosh that came out of Resheet. The word Asher, whose order of letters is opposite from the combination Rosh, indicates that it was in the Rosh of AA, but came out of it, meaning YESHSUT, Bina of AA, who came out from Rosh to Guf. For this reason, the letters Asher are like Rosh, and the reason why the order is inverted is because of its exit from the Rosh of Beresheet, the Rosh of AA.

7) Once the dot and the hall were established as one, Beresheet, AA, includes a high beginning for the light of Hochma. YESHSUT is called Asher, indicating a Rosh that emerged from Resheet after YESHSUT was established in the dot and in the palace as one, in the ascent of the dot, Malchut, to Bina, the palace, when only KH remained in AA, and Bina and TM of Rosh of AA came out of the degree of Rosh to below the Rosh. Also, only KH remained in YESHSUT, and his Bina and TM descended to the degree below them, to ZON.

When that diminution took place, a high beginning for disclosure of Hochma to the lower ones was included in AA. That is, were it not for that diminution, the Mochin of Hochma would not have reached ZON and the souls of the righteous. Afterwards, the appearance of that palace changed, and it was called “a house.”

Commentary: During the diminution, when the dot and palace were established as one, the palace was only in light of Hassadim, without Hochma—a Guf without a Rosh—for the dot entered the light of the palace and the light became air, which is light of Hassadim. At the time of Gadlut, the Yod exits the air by raising MAN from the good deeds of the righteous, and the palace returns to being light. Then it is considered that the color of Hassadim of the palace had changed and regained the color of Hochma. Then the name of the palace also changes to be called a “house,” since when there is light of Hochma in the palace, it is called a “house.”

When the dot is in the air, the light is hidden and is not seen at all. And when the illumination expands to be disclosed, a dot comes out of that air, and what remains after the elicitation of the dot is light. And once that dot has come out of that light, the light clothed in the upper palace in four colors HB TM, and then it is a house. And it is said about it, “In wisdom [Hochma] shall a house be built,” for when the Yod comes out of the air and returns to being light, the name of the palace is changed into being called a “house.”

However, this is after the clothing of Hochma in Hassadim, a clothing with which the four colors HB TM expand. This will be called below, “expansion for settling the house.” However, here there was still no clothing of Hochma in Hassadim, but only light of Hochma without Hassadim. It follows that the color of Hassadim only changed to the color of Hochma, and for this reason, it is considered that the light is hidden and does not illuminate because the light of Hochma cannot illuminate without a clothing of light of Hassadim.

This is why the exit of the Yod from the air and the disclosure of the light of Hochma is called “expansion of the correction of the house,” to distinguish that there is still no expansion for settling of the house here yet, for as long as the light is hidden, there is no settlement in the house in which to live. Rather, it is the first correction, as it is impossible to obtain GAR without this correction. This is why it is referred to as only the correction of the house, and not the settling of the house.

This is why it was said that the appearance of that palace had changed, and it was called “a house.” That is, the color of Hassadim in the palace changed into the color of Hochma, and it is called “a house.” And the upper dot, Partzuf AA, is called Rosh, and they are included in one another in the form of Resheet, meaning although the color of Hassadim had changed into light of Hochma, the house still cannot stand in itself as settling of the house for lack of clothing in light of Hassadim. It is therefore considered that the house is still included in AA, who is called a Rosh, and the combination Bet-Rosh together was made on it, meaning the letters of Beresheet. This indicates that the house still does not illuminate by itself, but is still included in the illumination of AA.

That illumination is called Mochin of VAK because when the Yod was in the light of the palace, the palace was in the form of air, Hassadim without Hochma, which is called VAK without a Rosh. And now that the Yod departed the air of the palace and the palace returned to being light of Hochma, GAR, it is regarded as only Mochin of VAK, for although there are Mochin, he is still like VAK without GAR due to the absence of Hassadim, for the light of Hochma cannot illuminate without clothing in light of Hassadim.

Bet-Yod-Tav Reish-Aleph-Shin are included in one another in [the word] Beresheet as long as they are as one, as long as there is no settling of the house, when there is still no clothing of Hochma in Hassadim, which reveals four colors in the house, HB TM, which are Mochin of GAR. But prior to that, it is considered merely Mochin of VAK because the Hochma does not illuminate without clothing in Hassadim.

Once he is sown for the correction of the settling, he is called a hidden and concealed God, since when the Yod entered the light and became air, the degree was divided into two halves. KH alone remained in the degree, and Bina and TM fell to the degree below it. YESHSUT is called Elokim. It follows that once he remained at half the degree, it is considered that two letters MI of Elokim remained in the degree of YESHSUT, the three letters ELEH fell from the degree of YESHSUT to the degree below it, and the name Elokim completely disappeared from them.

But afterwards, the dot departed from the air of the palace, and the palace returned to being light of Hochma. It is so because an upper illumination was drawn from AB SAG of AK through the MAN of the righteous, which takes Malchut out of the place of Bina, and returns her to her place as before. At that time, the three vessels Bina and ZON, called ELEH, reunite with MI that remained in YESHSUT, and then the name Elokim reappears in YESHSUT as before. However, it is considered that the name Elokim is hidden and concealed in YESHSUT due to the lack of clothing in Hassadim.

Once he was sown for the correction of the settling, he was called “a hidden and concealed God.” That is, although there is still no expansion of the settling there, which is Mochin of GAR that illuminate, still, because there was a correction that qualifies the expansion of the settlement—through the exit of the Yod from air, elevating ELEH back to YESHSUT—the name Elokim was completed in them. However, it is considered a hidden and concealed God, as long as there is no expansion for the settlement of the house there yet.

8) The brightness is hidden and concealed before the sons come into him to beget, and the house stands in the expansion of the correction of the holy seed. As long as she did not conceive and the expansion of settling the house did not expand, he is still not called Elokim. Rather, he is all still Beresheet. That is, before the four corrections expand, he is not called Elokim because he is not illuminating perfectly. It is considered that everything is still included in AA, who is called Resheet.

There are four corrections here: first Ibur [conception], Mochin of VAK, second Ibur, and Mochin of GAR. This is their order: 1) Before the sons come into him to beget, meaning the first Ibur, the entrance of the Yod into the light, which became air, at which time the VAK of the degree exit. 2) The house stands in the expansion of the correction of a holy seed, meaning the correction of the exit of the Yod from air. This is called Mochin of VAK. 3) As long as she did not conceive, meaning the second Ibur of ZON, as they are attached to the letters ELEH from Katnut. When the Yod departed from air and ELEH rose from ZON, the ZON rise with them to YESHSUT. This is considered the second Ibur. 4) The expansion of settling in the house did not expand, meaning the expansion of Mochin of GAR, at which time it was considered settling in the house.

This is why it was said, “The brightness is hidden and concealed: 1) before the sons came into to him to beget, 2) the house stands in the expansion of the correction of a holy seed, 3) as long as she did not conceive, and 4) the expansion of settling in the house did not expand.

Before YESHSUT went through these four corrections one at a time, YESHSUT was not called Elokim. Rather, he was all still Beresheet, AA. And the reason why in the second correction he is called Elokim is that he is hidden and concealed there, and does not illuminate at all. But at the end of those four corrections, he is called Elokim, illuminating the entire Mochin to the ZON.

When the four corrections were completed and he was established in the name Elokim, he emitted these offspring from that seed that was sown in him. That is, once YESHSUT went through the four corrections—Ibur for VAK, Mochin of VAK, a second Ibur for VAK of Gadlut, and Mochin of GAR of Gadlut—the name Elokim illuminates in full in YESHSUT, and emanates the Mochin to the sons, ZON, who rose to him in the two conceptions, for the Mochin of ZON are the seed that was sown in YESHSUT.

Who is that seed in YESHSUT? He is those carved letters, the Torah, ZA, who is called Torah, emerging from that same dot, which is AA, for while being in conception in YESHSUT, he receives Mochin of Hochma from AA.

9) The upper dot, AA, sowed three dots within the palace, YESHSUT: Holam, Shuruk, and Hirik. Holam is the color Hassadim, a dot, and a palace as one. Shuruk is the color Hochma, a hidden light. Hirik is dressed in the glory of Hassadim, coming out on screen of ZON, clothing the color Hochma in the color of Hassadim one within the other, and both illuminate in full.

Explanation: You find that there are three sowings here, for each concealment that is done in the light is regarded as sowing.

1. The first sowing is when YESHSUT come out of Rosh of AA, in Asher, a Rosh that departed from Resheet and was established in a dot and a palace as one. The GAR of lights disappeared from them and they remained in VAK without a Rosh. At that time, their three letters ELEH fell to the degree of ZON, and YESHSUT remained with only two vessels GE, the letters MI.

2. The second sowing is when the color of that palace changed from the color Hassadim to the color Hochma because the dot that was in the place of Bina returned to the place of the Peh, and the three vessels Bina and TM, ELEH, rose and united with YESHSUT, and could rise to Rosh AA to receive the color Hochma. However, they became a hidden brightness due to lack of Hassadim.

3. The third sowing is after YESHSUT raised their three vessels ELEH. ZON rose along with them because the upper one who descends to the lower one becomes exactly like it. And because the vessels ELEH of YESHSUT fell to the place of ZON, they became attached to ZON as a single degree. Therefore, now that YESHSUT raised ELEH back to their degree, ZON were pulled along with them to the degree of YESHSUT. Thus, it is considered that YESHSUT, Tevuna, was conceived with the ZON, since they came into her like a fetus placed in its mother’s entrails, eating what its mother eats. That is, they receive there from all the lights that are in Tevuna, as though they truly were from Tevuna herself. And regarding YESHSUT, the coming of ZON into them is regarded as sowing because they are a lower phase than they, and they are made more turbid to an extent, due to their incorporation with them.

Those three sowings are called Holam, Shuruk, and Hirik. The first sowing is Holam, Asher, a Rosh that departed from Resheet. The second sowing is Shuruk, when the color of that palace had changed from the color of the light of Hassadim to the color of the light of Hochma, becoming a concealed brightness. The third sowing is Hirik, into which the ZON rose with their letters ELEH, and the Tevuna was diminished because she was impregnated with ZON.

The letters are vessels, and the dot of Holam stands above the letters. At the exit of Bina from Rosh of AA to VAK, there is light of GAR of YESHSUT that remains inside Rosh of AA and does not clothe inside the vessels of YESHSUT. This is similar to the dot of Holam, which is not inside the letters but above them. This is why this sowing is called Holam.

The dot of Shuruk, Melafom, is Vav and a dot within it []. The dot is clothed inside the letters, which are vessels. Likewise, when YESHSUT brought the letters ELEH back to them and rose to Rosh of AA, the light of GAR of AA came into their vessels once more, like the dot of Shuruk that is clothed inside the letters. This is why this sowing is called Shuruk.

The dot of Hirik stands below the letters, which are the vessels. Also, that diminution, which YESHSUT obtain because of the ZON that connected to them, is not from the degree of their own vessels, but from a degree below their vessels, which are the ZON below them, like the dot of Hirik that stands below the letters. This is why this sowing is called Hirik.

That upper dot, AA, is a seed inside that palace, Bina, the three dots—Holam, Shuruk, Hirik. They were included in one another and became one, a voice that comes out of the bonding of three dots together.

Commentary: After the dot, AA, sowed three sowings—Holam, Shuruk, Hirik—in YESHSUT, called a “palace,” YESHSUT were considered Elokim, hidden and concealed. When the level of Hassadim came out on the screen of Hirik—who is a screen of phase one in ZON, who makes a coupling with the upper light and the level of NR, which is the level of Hassadim, comes out on it—the light of Hochma clothed in a garment of honor that illuminated, created ELEH, and they were completed in the name Elokim. This is because the level of Hassadim became a garment of honor for the light of Hochma, and then MI, which is the Holam, connected with the letters ELEH that rose and connected to her at the dot of Shuruk, and the name Elokim appeared through a garment of honor of Hassadim that emerged through the screen of Hirik. It is now considered that all three sowings were complemented together through the screen of Hirik, through the level of Hassadim that emerged through it.

The level of Hassadim complemented all of them, and they were all connected by it, included in one another as one phase, for in the absence of one of them, that wholeness would have been denied. Now, however, they have all four colors HB HG, since HB came out through MI ELEH, which are Holam Shuruk, and HG through the screen in Hirik. They complement one another and became one voice.

Also, ZA is called a “voice,” on which is the Hirik on which the level of Hassadim came out, connected MI ELEH in the holy name Elokim, and the lower one, who complements the upper one, is rewarded with the same measure of Mochin that it complemented to the upper one. It follows that on all of those four colors HB HG that emerged through completion of the three sowings, Holam, Shuruk, Hirik, ZA was rewarded with them because they came out only through him.

This is why it was said, “And they became one,” a voice that comes out of connecting three dots together, since Holam, Shuruk, Hirik, all bonded in the Mochin of ZA and were born and emerged from YESHSUT outward, coming to his place in those Mochin, HB HG, which bonded in him in a single bonding.

When the voice came out, his mate went out with him. She includes all the letters, as it is written, “The heaven,” which are a voice and his mate.

Commentary: The meaning of male and female is that the light is ascribed to the male, and the vessels, the letters, to the female. This is why the Nukva is called Et [the], indicating that all the letters from Aleph to Tav are included in her. Hence, when ZA came out and was born from Bina, arriving at his place, Nukva—who includes all the vessels, called “letters”—went out with him, as it is written, “The heaven,” where “heaven” is ZA, called a “voice,” and “the” is the name of the Nukva. Thus, the voice and his mate, who are ZON, came out.

The voice, heaven, is the last name EKYEH, since EKYEH Asher EKYEH [I will be that which I will be] are HBD. The first EKYEH is Hochma, Asher is Bina, and the last EKYEH is Daat. The Sefira Daat is ZON in Mochin of Bina, since because the whole essence of Mochin of YESHSUT is to complement the holy name Elokim, it is through the Hirik in ZON, which rose with the letters ELEH, meaning through the level of Hassadim and Gevurot that emerged there on his screen. Hence, ZON necessarily leaves his phase there even after his exit and birth into his place, for were it not for his garment of Hassadim, the name Elokim would not be completed there.

The ZON that he left in YESHSUT, to be the level of HG there, to always clothe the light of Hochma with his illuminating garment, is called “the Sefira Daat.” Thus, the Sefira Daat is ZA himself, who stayed to illuminate in YESHSUT. But since the Nukva is always included in the Guf of ZA, there are two phases in Daat: right and left. The right is called Hassadim, the male in Daat. The left is called Gevurot, his Nukva. However, both are considered ZA himself, hence the voice, heaven, is the last name EKYEH, the Daat in Bina, but must not be interpreted as actual ZON, since the name EKYEH is only in Bina, and not in ZA, but applies to Daat.

The last EKYEH, the brightness, includes all the letters and colors in this manner. Colors are HB TM, and letters are vessels. The last EKYEH, ZA, heaven, light of Hassadim, comes out and clothes Hochma, and MI ELEH unite in the name Elokim. Thus, his brightness includes all the letters, which are the vessels, and all the colors, which are the lights, since they came out only through the screen of Hirik in him, for all the sowings of Holam, Shuruk, Hirik are included in ZA. This is why that voice includes all of them.

10) Thus far is “The Lord our God the Lord.” These three degrees correspond to the upper secret “In the beginning God created,” since “The Lord Our God the Lord” are HBD. “The Lord” is Hochma, “Our God” is Bina, and “The Lord” is Daat. Also, “In the beginning God created” and “I will be that which I will be” are also HBD.

All that is clarified thus far is “The Lord our God the Lord.” Those three degrees, which are three degrees in the three names HBD, correspond to “In the beginning God created.” “In the beginning” is the first “I will be,” Hochma. “[God] created” is “that which,” which came out of the Rosh, as well as his return to the Rosh in a hidden brightness, which is Bina, Elokim, hidden and concealed, for He is deep and hidden in his name and cannot be revealed without Hassadim. And the revealed Elokim is the last “I will be,” Daat.

This is so because once the level of HG emerged on screen of ZON and the Hochma clothed in Hassadim, MI conjoined with ELEH, and the name Elokim was completed, since the disclosure of the name Elokim came only in the last EKYEH [I will be], which is Daat and ZON. Thus, “In the beginning God created” are also HBD, like “I will be that which I will be,” and like “The Lord our God the Lord.”

The word Beresheet [In the beginning] means primordial. Hochma is called Resheet [beginning]. “Created” indicates a hidden secret, so that everything will expand from there, since “created” indicates concealment and diminution. It is the sowing of Holam, Shuruk, Hirik, for everything expands and persists through that sowing. The name Elokim is to keep everything below, since by connecting MI ELEH to complement the name Elokim through clothing of Hassadim that illuminate in Daat, everyone exists from him, meaning HB and ZON below.

“The heaven” indicates male and female as one. It is forbidden to separate them. ZA is called “heaven,” Nukva is called Et [the], and it follows that “The heaven” indicates the male and female together. This is why the Nukva is implied in ZA, as well, to show that it is forbidden to separate them, but to unite them as one, which are voice and speech, HaVaYaH ADNI, and the voice and speech are unified as one.

11) When Et [the] takes all the letters, she is the inclusion of all the letters, Rosh and Sof. Nukva is called Et when she takes all the letters because the letters are vessels, and the vessels are included only in the Nukva. She is the inclusion from Rosh [beginning] Aleph to Sof [end] Tav. This is why the Nukva is called Et [Aleph-Tav].

Afterwards, the letter Hey joins the Et to connect the twenty-two letters with the Hey, since once they have already mingled with all the letters of ZAT, the first Hey from Ima joins her, and then she is fit for a coupling with ZA. At that time, she is called Atah [“you,” Aleph-Tav-Hey], as it is written, “You revive them all,” for by her coupling with ZA, she can revive all her hosts in the three worlds BYA and bestow upon them all that they need.

Et is ADNI. “The heaven” is HaVaYaH, who is the upper one of the name ADNI, since ZA is called “heaven,” and is called “voice.” He is HaVaYaH, and his Nukva, Et, is called “speech,” and she is ADNI.

12) “And the earth” indicates the correction of male and female in regard to “And the Lord.” It is all one because as the heaven in the words “The heaven” include male and female, the Nukva, earth, consists of male and female. This is implied in the word “And the,” for Et [the], the Nukva, is Vav, the male in the Nukva.

The difference between the heaven, the upper ZA, voice, and the lower ZA, included in the letter Vav in the word “And the,” is why he brings the matter of “And the Lord,” that the Vav is to include His courthouse, the Nukva, who is included with Him together. It is so because wherever it is said “And the Lord,” it means He and His courthouse. Likewise, ZA that is included in Nukva here in the letter Vav in the word “And the” is included in His courthouse, the Nukva.

This is so because ZON divide into two Partzufim, as it is written, “And I am a smooth man.” From the Chazeh and above, they are called Israel and Leah, and from the Chazeh and below, they are called Jacob and Rachel. Hence, “The heaven” are the upper male and female, called Israel and Leah, from Chazeh of ZON and above, and “And the earth” are the bottom male and Nukva, who are called Jacob and Rachel, below ZA.

The Nukva in the words “The heaven” is called ADNI, which is the name of the small Rachel, since it is about Mochin of Gadlut of ZON. This is so because only during the Gadlut are ZON called “voice” and “speech,” for then the ZON are PBP [face-to-face] on the same level, for the small Nukva, Rachel, ascends to the Nukva of the great Nukva, Leah, and clothes her. This is why at that time, Nukva is named after the small Nukva, ADNI, for then the small Nukva has grown to the level of the great Nukva, and at that time, her name is ADNI, the unification of the name HaVaYaHADNI, voice and speech as one.

The earth is the name Elokim, like the upper one, who is fit to produce fruit and offspring. The Nukva is called “earth” only when Ima lends her clothes to her daughter and was established like the upper one, with Mochin of Elokim, which is Bina, in a lower unification. At that time, what was dry became a land that bears fruit and offspring.

That name is included in three places, and from there the wholeness of the name Elokim is clarified by connecting in three places: 1. MI, concerning Asher, which came out of Resheet, since her place was at Rosh AA and emerged to the place of his Guf. 2. The letters ELEH, which are her AHP, which fell to ZON and acquired a new place once more, then returned to their place in Gadlut. 3. After the return of the letters ELEH with ZON to her degree, she receives the level HG, which comes out on screen of ZON that are attached to her ELEH. At that time, the light of Hochma dresses in Hassadim, MI connects to the letters ELEH, and the name Elokim is completed.

That is, the name Elokim appears only by collecting three places, since from there the name Elokim has many combinations, as there are 120 combinations of Elokim, according to the change of the governance of three places.

Thus far is the meaning of the concealment in concealments that carved, built, and sustained in a hidden way, in one verse. Carved, built, and sustained are three places: “Carved” is the dot of Holam that took out the Bina from Rosh to VAK, by which her letters ELEH fell to ZON. It is considered that a carving and deficiency were made in her because she lost the letters ELEH.

“Built” refers to the return of the letters ELEH to her, and its return to Rosh AA, the place of Hochma. This is considered a complete structure of her ten Sefirot in terms of the vessels, for now she obtained the letters ELEH and her ten Sefirot were completed in terms of the vessels. Also, she rose to the place of Hochma, although she still has no existence there to receive the Hochma from AA due to lack of Hassadim. Thus, she needs sustenance.

This is the meaning of “sustained,” since in the coupling on screen of Hirik, when she obtained a clothing of Hassadim, the light of Hochma clothed inside the Hassadim, and her Mochin existed in the four colors HBD.

All of that is in a hidden manner in the three sowings Holam, Shuruk, Hirik, implied in the verse “And the educated will shine as the brightness of the firmament.”

13) Beresheet has the letters Bet-Reish-Aleph Shin-Yod-Tav (6). “From the end of the heaven to the end of the heaven” there is VAK that expand from the upper one, since Beresheet is AA, the letters Bet-Reish-Aleph Shin-Yod-Tav, to indicate that AA is the root of VAK of ZA. ZA is called “heaven.” “From the end of the heaven to the end of the heaven” includes all the Sefirot in ZA, all of his VAK, all of which he took from the upper VAK that extend from the upper AA in the expansion of “created.”

Through Asher [that which] that emerged from the Rosh of Beresheet—which is expansion of “created,” which is a hidden brightness that includes Holam, Shuruk, and Hirik—ZA obtained upper VAK from AA, VAK of Hochma in voice and speech.

Out of the first dot, which AA, he created an expansion of one dot above. Because AA took Bina out, he created an expansion of one dot above. By taking it out, a dot entered the light of Bina and became Avir [air]. This is “created.” By that, an expansion of the dot from the air and her return to the light were created, as all the Mochin of ZON are from here. Thus, out of the first dot, which is AA, he created an expansion of the dot from air, from which comes the VAK of ZA, implied in Beresheet, Bet-Reish-Aleph Shin-Yod-Tav.

And regarding what was said, one dot above, The Book of Zohar implies two dots that exist in the screen of upper AVI, which are called lock and key. The expansion of the Yod from air is only on one of those dots, the key, but the dot of the lock remains in upper AVI and does not come out of the air of upper AVI.

Here the name of forty-two letters was inscribed. The carving of the name 42 is three hands of Ima that were renewed by AA taking Bina outside, which are the letters ELEH of Ima, regarded as HGT of Ima, which are called hands. It is so because with these hands she raises the ZON to her. By exiting the Rosh, her ELEH fell to ZON, hence while raising the letters ELEH back to her, the ZON are also drawn with them to the Rosh. They are like hands that raise the ZON from their lowly place to her own place.

Three times 14 is 42 in Gematria. This is the meaning of the name Mem-Bet [42] being called “the elevating name.” Yet, the name Mem-Bet itself is from the Chazeh of AA and above, where there are three Partzufim, Atik, AA, and AVI. Those are: 1. Simple HaVaYaH, four letters, Partzuf Keter, which is Atik, Keter of MA. 2. HaVaYaH filled with Yod, the letters of Partzuf Hochma, which is AA, AB of MA. 3. HaVaYaH filled with the filling of twenty-eight letters, Partzuf Bina, which is AVI, SAG of MA. 4. Dalet, Yod, and twenty-eight letters of the forty-two letters together. And since ZA ascends to Bina, he obtains there GAR from Chazeh of AA and above, which are three Partzufim KHB, which are forty-two letters.