Glossary · Torah Ohr · Likkutei Torah
Sasim vegalya
סתים וגליא
Hidden and revealed (sasim vegalya)
The Zohar’s pair: G‑d, the Torah and Israel each have a hidden side, beyond grasp and not clothed, and a revealed side, clothed and grasped; the Torah binds Israel’s sides to G‑d’s.
Where it’s explained
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 4, ¶1Opens from the Zohar (Acharei 73a): three levels are bound to one another, the Holy One, blessed be He, the Torah and Israel, each level upon level, hidden and revealed. The hidden is what is not seen or grasped and is not clothed in place at all, “the most hidden of all hidden,” which no thought can grasp.
וביאור ענין בחי׳ סתים היינו מה שאינו נראה ומושג ואינו מתלבש במקום כלל ונק׳ סתימא דכל סתימין
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 4, ¶2The revealed is the physical world we see, “place” with its six directions. It too is G‑dliness, since in every physical thing there is a spiritual life-force that constantly gives it life; that life-force is also called “place.” The next paragraph adds that it too is called revealed and is nullified to the hidden above it.
ובחי׳ גליא הוא מה שאנו רואים עולם הגשמי בחי׳ מקום בעל ששה קצוות
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 3, ¶1Each of the three, G‑d, Torah and Israel, has sovev and memalei. Memalei, which is clothed and can be grasped, is called revealed; the next paragraph adds that sovev is above knowledge and comprehension.
וכל חד דרגא על דרגא סתים וגליא פי׳ שכל אחד הוא בבחי׳ סובב וממלא. ממלא הוא בבחינת הלבשה והשגה ונק׳ גליא
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 3, ¶2The Torah is the intermediary: because it too is hidden and revealed, it binds the revealed of the souls of Israel to G‑d’s revealed (memalei), and their inner, hidden side to sovev kol almin. This is read into “it is not hidden (nifleis) from you, nor is it far.”
והיינו שהתורה היא הממוצע המחבר ומקשר בחינת אלהותו ית׳ בנש״י בבחינת ממלא ובבחינת סובב
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 2, ¶1Every Jewish soul has an inner and an outer side, its hidden and revealed, just as the Holy One, blessed be He, and the Torah do; the Torah (“this was within Israel”) is in the inner side of each soul.
כי יש לכל נפש בחי׳ פנימיות ובחי׳ חיצוניות דהיינו בחי׳ סתים וגליא. שכמו שקוב״ה סתים וגליא. כך אורייתא וכך ישראל
Stated differently
What G‑d’s hidden and revealed are
קב״ה סתים וגליא היינו סכ״ע וממכ״עThe Holy One, blessed be He, is hidden and revealed, that is, sovev kol almin and memalei kol almin; the two Names of Havayah in the Shema correspond to them.
והנה בחינת ז״א נק׳ גליא לגבי ע״י ולכן נק׳ חסד דז״א חסד דלבר וחסד דע״י נק׳ חסד דלגאוExplaining “the Torah is hidden and revealed, and the Holy One, blessed be He, is hidden and revealed”: Zeir Anpin is called revealed relative to Atik Yomin, so the Chesed of Zeir Anpin is the outer Chesed and that of Atik Yomin the inner Chesed (Idra Rabba 133b).
וזהו ענין סתים וגליא שלמעלה מעלה בא״א ע״ד שהוא בז״אHidden and revealed is the covered and revealed chasadim at the chest of Zeir Anpin, and the same division recurs far above, even in Adam Kadmon: the Yesod of Atik ends at the chest of Arich Anpin as Yesod of Imma ends at the chest of Zeir Anpin.
What the hidden side of a Jewish soul is
ובחי׳ סתים היינו בחי׳ פנימיות חב״ד שבנפשו האלקית שאינו מושג ונראה לעיןThe soul’s hidden side is the inner Chochmah, Binah and Daas of the G‑dly soul, not seen or grasped; its revealed side is its outer side, love and fear.
וכמ״כ ישראל סתים וגליא והיינו שבחי׳ ישראל זהו בחי׳ הסובב והמקיף שבנשמהIsrael too is hidden and revealed: the level called Yisrael is the encompassing, surrounding level of the soul (its sovev), which is united with the Name Havayah that is sovev kol almin.
Main sources
Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 4, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 4, ¶2Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 4, ¶3Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 3, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 3, ¶2Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 2, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 6, ¶7
Where it appears
In 38 paragraphs of 28 maamarim.
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 3 ¶1 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Pinchas 3 ¶22 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 4 ¶8 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 6 ¶5 ¶10 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 5 ¶26 ¶27 ¶33
- Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 1 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 7 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 4 ¶1 ¶2 ¶3
- Torah Ohr, Ki Sisa 2 ¶4
- Torah Ohr, Megillas Esther 1 ¶22
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12 ¶29
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 10 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Savo 1 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 3 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 9 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Savo 3 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Shabbos Shuvah 1 ¶17
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 19 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 23 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 5 ¶21
- Torah Ohr, Megillas Esther 2 ¶2
- Torah Ohr, Va’eira 5 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Matos 3 ¶15
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 6 ¶7
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 2 ¶1
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 8 ¶8 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Savo 2 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 5 ¶12
Written with AI from the paragraphs of Torah Ohr and Likkutei Torah, each entry checked by a second AI reader and every Hebrew quote checked by code; not yet reviewed by a person. Our English: CC BY-NC 4.0.