Glossary · Torah Ohr · Likkutei Torah
Tiferes
תפארת
Tiferes (beauty)
The Sefirah of the middle line (Yaakov’s attribute) between Chesed and Gevurah: it joins and includes them, so Or Ein Sof shines in it constantly. It is mercy and truth, and is rooted in Keser.
The word תפארת also means glory or splendor in its plain sense, often in verses (לכבוד ולתפארת, תפארת ישראל, עטרת תפארת, תפארת שיבה). The Sefirah is meant in ת״ת, מדת תפארת, תפארת דז״א / דאימא / דאצילות, and where it is set between חסד and גבורה (חג״ת) or called the middle line or Yaakov’s attribute.
Where it’s explained
- Torah Ohr, Noach 4, ¶12In the world of tikkun the inclusion of the middos comes mainly through the middle line, Tiferes, Yaakov’s attribute, which joins Chesed and Gevurah so they are not opposed to each other; therefore it is called “a sign of truth,” and the Name Havayah shines even in its vessel, which is not so in the vessels of Chesed and Gevurah (Noach 4:2).
עיקר ההתכללות הנעשה בעולם התקון הוא ע״י קו האמצעי שהוא בחי׳ תפארת מדתו של יעקב
- Likkutei Torah, Tazria 6, ¶20Chesed and Gevurah stay separate unless Or Ein Sof shines in them beyond their measure, which happens only at times; Tiferes, the mediator between them, is that inclusion itself, so the light of Ein Sof must shine in it constantly. Therefore it bears the highest Name, Havayah.
מאחר שכל בחי׳ ומהות מדת התפארת הוא ענין התכללות המדות ביחוד גמור ממש מוכרח שיהיה בו הארת אור א״ס בתמידות
- Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 5, ¶5Yaakov’s attribute is called truth: being included of Chesed and Gevurah, it has no interruption, and the outside forces cannot draw from it. In the service of G‑d, Tiferes is contemplating His endless greatness, beside which all the worlds are a drop, which arouses great mercy on one’s soul that has come down.
ובעבודת ה׳ ענין תפארת היינו כשמתבונן בתפארת יקר גדולתו ית׳ שאין לה קץ ותכלית
- Likkutei Torah, Kedoshim 1, ¶15The word Tiferes means glorifying: that G‑d’s greatness be revealed below. The added light in speech beyond its fixed measure, as at the Giving of the Torah (“and the tiferes: this is the Giving of the Torah”), is drawn through Tiferes, which is above Netzach, Hod and Yesod: the middle bar that runs from end to end.
כי פי׳ תפארת הוא ע״ד מארז״ל ספ״ו דאבות כל מה שברא הקב״ה לא בראו אלא לכבודו
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17, ¶17Tiferes and Keser are one matter, the power of joining, both of the middle line: as Keser mediates between the Emanator and the emanated, so Tiferes is the mediator that brings the flow down from Imma to Z”A and from Z”A to the Nukva. So the Tiferes of Imma becomes the Keser of Z”A.
כך ת״ת הוא ממוצע המחבר כמו מאימא לזעיר אנפין ומז״א לנוקבא
Stated differently
Why Tiferes is called kadosh: because its root is Keser (kadosh is Keser, baruch is Chochmah), or because it rises to receive from Chochmah, called kodesh
ואע״פ שלפעמים בחי׳ תפארת דאצילות נק׳ קדוש. זה הוא להיות כי שרש הת״ת הוא מבחי׳ כתרKadosh is Keser, separate and above hishtalshelus, while baruch is Chochmah; Tiferes of Atzilus is sometimes called kadosh because its root is Keser (so the Tiferes of Imma becomes the Keser of Z”A), and the great light of Ein Sof in it, through which it includes Chesed and Gevurah, comes from Keser.
דת״ת נק׳ קדוש ע״ש שנמשך בו מבחי׳ כתר שהוא למעלה מסדר ההשתלשלותTiferes is called kadosh because light is drawn into it from Keser, which is above the order of hishtalshelus.
תחלה עולה סוד ו׳ של תפארת לקבל הארה מחכמה הנקרא קדש ונעשה קדושCiting Pri Etz Chaim: the vav of Tiferes first rises to receive light from Chochmah, which is called kodesh, and so becomes kadosh; afterwards it spreads down to Tiferes and becomes the second kadosh.
Main sources
Torah Ohr, Noach 4, ¶2Torah Ohr, Noach 4, ¶12Likkutei Torah, Tazria 6, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Tazria 6, ¶20Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 5, ¶5Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 5, ¶8Likkutei Torah, Kedoshim 1, ¶15Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17, ¶17
Where it appears
In 115 paragraphs of 64 maamarim.
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 10 ¶14
- Likkutei Torah, Korach 1 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 2 ¶5 ¶8 ¶11 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 3 ¶16
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 8 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 8 ¶19
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 18 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 20 ¶32
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 33 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Tazria 6 ¶1 ¶17 ¶20 ¶23
- Likkutei Torah, V’Zos HaBerachah 4 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 5 ¶5 ¶6 ¶7 ¶8 ¶11 ¶16 ¶17 ¶18 ¶20
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 8 ¶15
- Torah Ohr, Megillas Esther 1 ¶15
- Torah Ohr, Vayeishev 5 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 5 ¶23 ¶30
- Likkutei Torah, Haazinu 3 ¶35
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Seitzei 2 ¶15
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Seitzei 3 ¶3 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 7 ¶11 ¶17
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 4 ¶32
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 39 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 41 ¶16 ¶17
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 42 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Emor 2 ¶3 ¶8 ¶10 ¶11 ¶18 ¶19 ¶22 ¶28
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Savo 1 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 6 ¶21
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 12 ¶15
- Likkutei Torah, Eikev 4 ¶3 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 5 ¶16
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 5 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 5 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 6 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 7 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 22 ¶26
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 5 ¶52 ¶55
- Likkutei Torah, Acharei 2 ¶14
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 4 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 6 ¶1
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 12 ¶8 ¶10
- Torah Ohr, Noach 4 ¶2 ¶12
- Torah Ohr, Vayeitzei 2 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Kedoshim 1 ¶7 ¶9 ¶15 ¶16 ¶17 ¶18 ¶19 ¶20 ¶21 ¶22 ¶23 ¶24 ¶25 ¶26 ¶27 ¶28 ¶29 ¶31
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17 ¶17 ¶18
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 5 ¶17
- Torah Ohr, Tetzaveh 3 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 6 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 8 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 3 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 3 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 4 ¶8 ¶9
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 6 ¶1
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 7 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Savo 2 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 3 ¶4
- Torah Ohr, Vayeishev 4 ¶26 ¶31 ¶32 ¶39
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 5 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Haazinu 4 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 9 ¶1
- Likkutei Torah, Tazria 4 ¶34
- Torah Ohr, Va’eira 2 ¶10
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 2 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 2 ¶14
- Torah Ohr, Va’eira 5 ¶39
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.