Jacob
Went
Out
Article
No.
10,
1985
“Jacob
went
out.”
According
to
RASHI’s
interpretation,
“It
should
have
written
only
‘Jacob
went
to
Haran.’
Why
does
it
mention
his
exit?
It
says
that
the
exit
of
a
righteous
from
a
place
leaves
an
impression.
When
the
righteous
is
in
town,
he
is
its
splendor,
he
is
its
brilliance,
he
is
its
majesty.
When
he
exits
it,
its
splendor
exits,
its
brilliance
exits,
and
its
majesty
exits.”
Thus
far
his
words.
We
should
understand
the
above
in
the
work.
What
is
a
righteous,
and
what
is
the
impression
that
a
righteous
makes
upon
his
exit?
We
should
interpret
that
the
Creator
is
called
“righteous,”
as
it
is
written,
“The
Lord
is
the
righteous,
and
I
and
my
people
are
the
wicked.”
This
means
that
when
a
person
is
close
to
the
Creator,
meaning
feels
that
the
Creator
is
close
to
him,
he
feels
how
the
Creator
does
him
good.
At
that
time
he
feels
good
taste
in
Torah
and
in
prayer,
and
in
all
his
engagements,
he
feels
that
the
Creator
is
close
to
him.
Whatever
he
does,
he
does
it
with
joy
and
elation.
Afterwards
he
comes
into
a
descent,
feeling
tastelessness
in
the
study
of
Torah
and
good
deeds.
However,
he
is
left
with
the
impression
that
he
had
during
the
ascent,
when
he
felt
good
taste
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
[commandments],
and
was
in
a
state
of
joy.
That
remaining
impression
make
him
long
to
return
to
the
previous
state.
That
is,
after
some
time
he
awakens
through
the
impression
left
in
him,
so
as
to
seek
advice
how
to
return
to
the
state
he
had,
which
was
called
a
“state
of
ascent,”
while
now
he
feels
his
lowliness—how
remote
he
is
from
anything
spiritual.
This
brings
up
the
question,
“Why
did
he
get
this
descent?
Who
is
gaining
by
this?”
Or,
perhaps
it
came
to
him
as
a
punishment,
for
now
he
must
correct
himself
for
his
sin.
However,
he
does
not
know
what
was
the
sin
for
which
he
has
descended
from
the
state
of
ascent
he
was
in.
Thus,
he
does
not
know
what
to
correct.
It
follows
that
on
the
one
hand
he
does
not
see
any
deficiency
in
himself
that
could
have
caused
him
a
descent,
so
he
is
compelled
to
say
that
it
came
from
the
Creator.
This
begs
the
question,
“What
did
He
gain
from
lowering
him
from
his
degree?”
By
this
we
can
interpret
what
our
sages
said,
“The
exit
of
the
righteous
from
the
place
leaves
an
impression.”
During
the
ascent
it
is
regarded
as
the
Creator
being
present
in
the
place,
meaning
in
the
body.
At
that
time
He
causes
him
the
sensation
of
excitement
from
Torah
and
Mitzvot.
But
he
could
not
give
that
importance—that
the
Creator
is
in
him,
as
it
is
written,
“I
am
the
Lord,
who
dwells
within
them,
in
the
midst
of
their
impurity—to
appreciate
it,
to
know
who
is
in
him
and
pay
the
due
respect.
Thus,
they
could
never
help
him
receive
a
higher
degree,
since
he
was
satisfied
with
the
work.
Therefore,
he
was
lowered
from
heaven
so
as
to
know
once
more
how
to
appreciate
it,
since
from
above
they
raised
him
and
brought
him
closer,
but
he
did
not
value
it.
If
you
should
ask,
“Why
must
one
value
his
state
of
ascent?”
It
is
as
I
heard
from
Baal
HaSulam,
that
there
is
no
distinction
of
degrees
in
the
light.
Rather
the
matter
of
Gadlut
[adulthood/greatness]
and
Katnut
[infancy/smallness]
depends
on
the
attainment
of
the
Kelim
[vessels].
According
to
the
vessels’
attainment
of
the
light,
so
is
the
measure
of
the
light.
This
is
why
he
said
that
if
a
person
receives
something
from
above,
and
has
the
sense
to
value
it,
to
that
extent
the
illumination
grows
for
him
and
he
does
not
need
a
greater
light
at
all.
Rather,
by
himself,
by
appreciating
(the
illumination),
it
grows
and
illuminates
for
him
each
time
on
a
higher
degree.
It
follows
that
the
whole
sin
for
which
he
fell
from
his
degree
was
that
he
did
not
value
his
condition
and
was
content.
It
therefore
follows
that
he
would
have
had
to
stay
in
this
degree
forever.
Therefore,
the
descent
he
had
received
was
for
his
own
good,
so
as
to
give
him
the
ability
to
ascend
in
the
degrees
of
holiness.
Therefore,
“The
exit
of
a
righteous
from
a
place
leaves
an
impression.
When
the
righteous
is
in
town,
he
is
its
splendor,
he
is
its
brilliance,
he
is
its
majesty,”
means
that
all
the
importance
was
in
it,
but
he
did
not
know
how
to
appreciate
its
value.
Hence,
“its
splendor
departs,
its
brilliance
departs,
and
its
majesty
departs.”
It
follows
that
“The
exit
of
a
righteous
from
a
place
leaves
an
impression.”
He
should
know
that
when
the
righteous
was
in
town,
he
did
not
pay
attention
to
appreciating
it:
its
splendor,
its
brilliance,
and
its
majesty.”
Instead,
he
turned,
meaning
that
he
did
not
have
the
importance
of
all
the
above-mentioned
degrees
of
importance.
This
is
called
“leaves
an
impression,”
meaning
that
it
had
to
be
imprinted
in
him
that
the
exit
of
the
righteous
from
the
place
was
because
of
the
turning,
meaning
that
in
fact,
all
the
degrees
were
there,
but
he
did
not
notice
it
because
he
should
have
known
that
there
are
no
changes
in
the
light,
but
everything
depends
on
the
Kelim
[vessels].
It
follows
that
we
can
say
that
this
departure
was
not
due
to
a
sin,
but
so
as
to
allow
him
to
rise
in
the
degrees
of
holiness.
We
should
also
interpret
regarding
the
above-mentioned
verse,
that
the
exit
of
a
righteous
from
the
place
leaves
an
impression
refers
to
a
person,
for
when
the
righteous
is
in
town,
it
means
that
a
person
can
justify
Providence.
Then,
when
he
overcomes
the
state
he
is
in
and
says,
“There
is
no
doubt
that
the
Creator,
who
is
good
and
does
good,
is
behaving
benevolently
with
me.
However,
He
wants
me
to
feel
as
I
do.”
It
follows
that
he
is
justifying
Providence.
At
that
time
he
immediately
sees
the
importance
of
the
work
of
bestowal
and
above
reason.
This
is
called,
“When
the
righteous
is
in
town,
he
is
its
splendor,
he
is
its
brilliance,
he
is
its
majesty,”
for
then
he
(sees)
all
the
virtues.
“When
he
departs
from
there”
means
that
he
has
departed
from
justifying
Providence
and
wants
to
see
everything
within
reason.
At
that
time
he
feels
no
taste
in
the
work
in
order
to
bestow.
And
then,
“its
splendor
departs,
its
brilliance
departs,
and
its
majesty
departs,”
and
he
falls
once
more
into
self-love.
In
other
words,
at
that
time
he
knows
nothing
but
work
that
is
built
on
a
basis
of
within
reason.
This
is
regarded
as
the
“exit
of
the
righteous
from
the
place
leaves
an
impression.”
It
means
that
only
then,
through
the
exit
of
the
righteous,
when
he
thinks,
“Now
that
I
feel
good
taste
in
the
work,
I
no
longer
need
to
work
above
reason,”
it
causes
him
the
exit
of
the
righteous
from
the
place.
This
creates
in
him
an
impression,
so
he
will
know
how
to
keep
himself
from
exiting
the
work
of
above
reason
from
here
on.
As
I
heard
from
Baal
HaSulam,
when
a
person
says,
“Now
that
he
has
support
and
no
longer
stands
between
heaven
and
earth,”
he
must
fall
from
his
degree
because
then
he
flaws
the
discernment
of
above
reason.
It
therefore
follows
that
precisely
the
departure
of
the
degree
he
had
leaves
an
impression
on
him
so
he
will
know
how
to
be
careful
next
time
and
will
not
blemish
the
faith
above
reason,
but
always
justify
Providence.
“And
behold,
a
ladder
was
set
on
the
earth
with
its
top
reaching
to
heaven;
and
behold,
the
angels
of
God
were
ascending
and
descending
on
it.”
The
interpreters
ask,
“It
should
have
said,
‘descending,’
and
then
‘ascending.’”
To
understand
this
in
the
work
we
need
to
explain
that
the
ladder
implies
a
person:
A
person
stands
below,
on
the
earth,
but
the
man’s
head
reaches
the
heaven.
That
is,
when
a
person
begins
to
advance
upward,
he
reaches
the
heaven,
and
he
should
not
complain
that
the
ladder
is
set
on
the
earth.
However,
first
we
need
to
understand
what
“on
the
earth,”
means.
We
see
that
the
earth
is
the
lowest
thing.
And
yet,
we
also
see
that
all
the
stately
buildings
and
wholesome
fruits
come
specifically
from
the
earth.
It
is
known
that
Eretz
[earth]
implies
the
will
to
receive,
which
is
the
foundation,
since
all
of
creation
and
all
the
bad
that
exists
in
the
world
extend
from
this
desire,
as
it
is
known
that
all
the
wars,
murders,
and
so
forth
are
rooted
in
the
will
to
receive.
This
is
called
“a
ladder
set
on
the
earth,”
for
when
a
person
first
comes
to
the
world,
he
is
placed
on
the
Eretz
[earth],
from
the
word
Ertzeh
[I
will
want],
meaning
I
want
to
receive.
This
is
regarded
as
lowliness,
that
there
is
nothing
lower
than
that.
However,
“its
top
reaching
to
heaven.”
That
is,
precisely
through
the
ladder
being
set
on
the
earth,
I
will
want,
for
Ertzeh
[“earth,”
“I
will
want”]
has
two
meanings:
1)
from
the
word,
Ertzeh,
meaning
“I
want,”
2)
from
the
word
Eretz
[land],
which
is
regarded
as
lowliness.
It
is
known
that
the
essence
of
creation
is
only
the
desire
to
receive,
that
in
the
beginning
of
creation
only
the
will
to
receive
emerged.
Afterwards
there
were
corrections,
called
“equivalence
of
form,”
which
means
that
the
lower
one,
called
“earth,”
achieves
equivalence
with
heaven,
which
is
called
the
“giver.”
We
can
interpret
this
as
man,
although
he
is
in
worldliness,
can
still
correct,
by
his
head—called
“the
end
of
the
ladder”—reaching
to
heaven,
namely
being
in
equivalence
of
form
with
the
heaven,
which
is
regarded
as
receiving
in
order
to
bestow.
As
in
the
beginning
of
creation,
the
receiver
emerged
first,
and
then
was
corrected
in
order
to
bestow,
so
is
the
ladder,
which
is
akin
to
a
person
standing
on
the
earth.
The
beginning
is
on
the
earth,
and
then
he
reaches
heaven.
This
means
that
we
should
not
be
impressed
when
we
see
that
man
is
full
of
worldliness
and
has
no
sparks
of
bestowal,
and
he
cannot
believe
that
it
is
realistic
that
his
body
will
ever
agree
to
work
only
in
order
to
bestow.
Instead,
he
should
believe
that
it
is
the
way
and
the
order
of
the
work
that
the
Creator
wants
it
specifically
in
this
way—that
a
ladder
will
be
placed
on
the
earth
with
its
top
reaching
to
heaven.
By
this
we
will
understand
what
is
written,
“The
angels
of
God
were
ascending
and
descending
on
it.”
The
interprets
ask,
“Angels
are
in
the
sky,
so
it
should
have
been
written
there
‘descending’
and
then
‘ascending.’”
We
should
interpret
that
this
refers
to
man,
who
is
the
emissary
of
the
Creator,
since
an
angel
is
called
a
“messenger.”
These
men,
who
are
walking
on
the
path
of
the
Creator,
are
called
“God’s
angels.”
First
they
ascend,
by
the
ladder
being
set
on
the
earth,
and
reach
the
top
of
the
ladder,
regarded
as
“its
head
reaching
to
heaven.”
Afterwards
they
descend,
meaning
that
all
the
ascents
and
descents
are
because
there
are
two
ends
to
the
ladder:
1)
“set
on
the
earth,”
meaning
the
place
of
lowliness,
2)
but
“its
top
reaching
to
heaven.”
This
means
that
to
the
extent
that
he
appreciates
“its
top
reaching
to
heaven,”
he
can
feel
the
lowliness
of
being
“set
on
the
earth,”
and
regret
being
in
worldliness.
But
if
he
has
no
real
clue
about
“its
top
reaching
to
heaven,”
he
has
nothing
to
impress
him
about
being
in
a
state
of
descent.
It
follows
that
to
the
extent
that
he
ascends
and
“its
top
reaching
to
heaven,”
he
can
appreciate
the
measure
of
lowliness
of
the
descent.
This
is
why
it
is
first
written
“ascending”,
and
then
“descending,”
since
one
can
feel
that
he
is
in
a
state
of
descent
only
to
the
extent
that
he
feels
the
importance
of
reaching
to
heaven.
This
is
the
meaning
of
“ascending”
and
then
“descending,”
since
the
ladder
that
one
should
climb
in
order
to
carry
out
his
vocation—for
he
was
sent
to
this
world
by
the
Creator—begins
from
the
degree
of
“a
ladder
set
on
the
earth
with
its
top
reaching
the
heaven,”
meaning
from
the
beginning
of
lowliness,
which
is
the
will
to
receive,
which
is
his
nature.
“Its
head”
means
that
at
the
end
of
the
ladder
he
should
reach
the
heaven,
which
is
only
to
bestow.
This
is
called
“heaven,”
as
earth
is
called
“receiving,”
and
heaven
is
called
“giving.”
We
should
also
interpret
ascending
and
descending
as
a
person
having
to
know
that
when
he
feels
that
he
is
in
descent,
such
as
when
he
engages
in
commerce
or
works
at
a
factory,
or
simply
walks
on
the
street,
and
he
suddenly
wakes
up
from
his
sleep
and
finds
himself
in
a
state
of
descent,
at
that
time
he
should
know
that
knowing
that
he
is
in
a
descent
has
come
to
him
from
the
ascent.
This
is
called
“ascending”
first,
and
then
“descending,”
for
if
there
were
no
ascent
in
degree,
owing
to
the
awakening
from
above,
he
would
not
come
to
feel
this.
However,
he
is
being
called
upon
from
above.
It
follows
according
to
the
above
that
our
entire
work
is
as
“a
ladder
set
on
the
earth
with
its
top
reaching
the
heaven.”
That
is,
man’s
ladder
has
two
discernments,
and
with
those
two
discernments
he
ascends
on
the
ladder
of
the
living.
1)
From
his
perspective,
the
“ladder
set
on
the
earth,”
which
is
the
will
to
receive,
is
set
on
the
earth,
which
is
lowliness.
Earth
means
receiving,
Nukva
[female],
who
receives
from
the
heaven,
where
heaven
is
called
“male,”
giver.
“Its
head
reaching
to
heaven”
means
that
bestowal,
called
“heaven,”
is
to
him
the
head,
meaning
important.
To
the
extent
that
he
regards
bestowal
as
the
head,
he
regards
the
earth,
which
is
the
will
to
receive,
as
“earth,”
meaning
lowliness.
2)
He
regards
the
Eretz,
meaning
Ertzeh
[I
will
want],
as
the
head,
and
heaven
is
regarded
as
lowliness.
Also,
“angels
of
God”
means
that
one
who
makes
the
calculation
that
he
has
come
to
this
world
on
a
mission
from
the
Creator
to
correct
corrections
is
called
“angels
of
God
ascending
and
descending”
on
it.
That
is,
they
see
the
ladder
of
the
living
set
on
the
earth,
meaning
that
the
will
to
receive
is
regarded
as
lowliness.
“Its
top
reaching
to
heaven”
means
that
to
him
bestowal
means
heaven.
That
is,
they
are
awaiting
bestowal
because
the
essence
of
their
work
is
to
bestow
contentment
upon
the
Creator,
and
this
is
what
they
regard
as
“head.”
When
they
receive
a
desire
with
which
they
can
bestow,
they
consider
it
elation,
and
this
is
what
they
wait
for.
Conversely,
when
they
are
placed
under
the
rule
of
the
earth,
they
feel
lowliness,
and
are
looking
only
to
bestow
upon
the
Creator.