וידבר ה׳ אל משה במדבר סיני באוהל מועד וגו׳

1“Havayah spoke to Moshe in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting,” etc. “Lift up the head,” etc., “by their skulls (legulgelosam),” etc. To understand the matter of “lifting the head,” and what this portion has to do with the Tent of Meeting.

For it is written, “Let us make man in our image”: just as in the physicality of the body there is a head and a skull — the head, whose main part is the brain, and the bone of the skull, which encompasses it — so in the spirituality of the soul there are three mochin (intellectual faculties), namely Chochmah (wisdom), Binah (understanding) and Daas (knowledge), and the will that is drawn from them to sustain the emotive attributes (middos) and their life-force (chayus). For there is will and there is will:

there is a will below and there is a will above, which is called the Supernal Will, and which is at the level of a makif (that which encompasses) over the mind.

The explanation of this: it is written, “Her husband is known in the gates,” and the Zohar explains (Parshas Vayera, p. 103): “to each one according to his own measure, as he measures in his heart” —

that is, through his deepening and contemplating, with his Chochmah, Binah and Daas, the greatness of the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, according to the depth of his thought and as much as he is able to bear in his heart; through this he recognizes his Creator with a recognition in the heart, so as to cleave to Him, may He be blessed.

Although “no thought can grasp Him at all,” that means “Him” specifically, that is, His essence and being, as it were. But this is the whole of man: to contemplate that

He brings into being upper and lower worlds without number, gives life to them all, brings them out from nothing into something, and in His goodness renews them every day and every moment.

2And each one, according to what he measures in his heart, can broaden his mind and set his heart and soul aflame, to bind his soul to G‑d and to cleave

to Him, in the measure of the depth of his intellect and understanding, and according to the abundance of the constancy and the yearning that he arouses in his heart — each one according to what he is — to become aflame and ablaze to cleave to Him, may He be blessed.

Now, nodda (“is known”) is a passive form, for the praise of the Holy One, blessed be He, who is the husband of the Matrona (see the Zohar, Shelach, 163b, Parshas Tazria, 42b, and Parshas Emor, 96b; and see what is written above, in Parshas Ki Sisa, on the verse “This they shall give,” etc.),

[is] that He is known in the gates: that He, may He be blessed, is the One who lowers Himself through the chain of descent (hishtalshelus) and the spreading forth of His greatness, may He be blessed, so as to be known

thereby, and grasped within the inwardness of a man and a deep heart, “according to what he measures in his heart” specifically, each and every one according to his own measure, so as to draw down and bind [himself] to Him, may He be blessed, to cleave to Him.

(For nodda is an expression of connection, as is known.) [This is] that “in the place where you find His greatness, there you find His humility,” as is explained elsewhere.

Now, the will that is drawn from this to sustain the emotive attributes of love and awe — for love is for a thing that accords with one’s will, and likewise, conversely, hatred is for a thing that goes against one’s will —

is in proportion to the comprehension and intellectual grasp of His greatness, may He be blessed, how He fills all worlds (memalei kol almin) and encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), for this will is taken from it. Therefore it is called the lower will, which is below Daas (knowledge).

But there is a will above, which is far, far higher than the will born of Daas and intellect, in which one grasps and comprehends with his intellect and understanding the spreading forth of the greatness of the Holy One, blessed be He, how He fills all worlds and encompasses all worlds;

rather, it is drawn from the level of the nullification (bittul) of his comprehension, and of the comprehension of all created beings, before His being and essence, may He be blessed, because of His exaltedness without end, for “no thought can grasp Him at all,” and He is above the level of comprehension and the bounds of intellect. Through this the soul will be aroused to go out of its sheath,

and this is the level of yearning and the very expiring of the soul (klos hanefesh), to pour itself out into the bosom of its Father, which is His being and essence, may He be blessed, before whom “all is considered as truly nothing,” and of whom it does not apply to say “fills all worlds” and “encompasses all worlds,”

except of the radiance and illumination from the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, which shines into and gives life to all worlds. This is the level of the Malchus (sovereignty) of the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, as it is written, “King, Unique One, Life of the worlds,” and it is written, “Your kingship is a kingship over all worlds.”

But He alone, He is not within the category of “filling all worlds,” nor within the category of “encompassing all worlds,” and “no thought can grasp Him at all.” For “You are He before the world was created, and You are He…,” etc.,

as mentioned above. And it is written, “I, Havayah, have not changed.” This wondrous yearning and this will were drawn down to the souls and shone in revelation upon their soul on the festival of Shavuos, through the Giving of the Torah in the Ten Commandments, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said that at each and every utterance their souls flew out.

That is, the utterance drew this yearning down to them, for the utterance is a drawing down from His being and essence, may He be blessed, to the souls of Israel (and see what is written above, in Parshas Yisro, in the discourse beginning “Their appearance and their workings,” and what is written on the verse “And I was with Him as a nursling”).

And this is [the meaning of] “I am Havayah your G‑d”: “your G‑d” specifically, who shines and spreads within you. And Anochi (“I”) [is] “I, who am I” (Anochi mi she’Anochi): that is, none recognizes and comprehends the level of Anochi

except I Myself. And He, He is “Havayah your G‑d,” that is, the spark of G‑dliness that dwells within you, for “Havayah’s portion is His people,” as it is written, “And you who cleave to Havayah your G‑d are all alive today.” For

the being and essence of the souls did not descend to be enclothed in this world, in the body and the animal soul; rather, only a mere radiance and illumination from it is what spreads forth and is grasped in the intellect and the emotive attributes, as mentioned above, which are the very powers of the soul.

But the main being and essence of the soul, as it is in the source from which it was hewn, “from the head of all levels,” etc. — “I created him, I formed him, I also made him” — is far, far above the bounds of the comprehension that is grasped by human intellect;

rather, it cleaves in its root to the living G‑d with an eternal cleaving, forever and ever, and it has only one will, for its Father in Heaven alone, forever, without change, in a state of nullification (bittul) toward Him, may He be blessed, because

it is truly “a part of G‑d above” (as is explained [in the discourse] on “My dove, in the clefts,” etc.); and the changes are below, due only to the changes in comprehension in the powers of the soul.

That is, because the soul itself is not enclothed in its powers, but stands over them from above, at the level of a makif (that which encompasses) only. And on Shavuos, through the Giving of the Torah, the Supernal Will was revealed,

which is above Daas, and the root of the souls then shone within the powers of the soul with a great and mighty revelation (and see what is written elsewhere, on the verse “When you go out,” in the explanation of “Seek My face; Your face, Havayah, I will seek,” etc.).

Therefore, at each utterance their souls flew out: that is, [the soul] withdrew upward, beyond the level and bounds of intellect and comprehension, to be absorbed and nullified in its existence, utterly, into Him, may He be blessed, with a true expiring of the soul.

And this is [the meaning of] “who brought you out of the land of Egypt”: for all the worlds and levels that are below this level are called by the name Mitzrayim (Egypt) relative to this level,

for all the other kinds of comprehension and cleaving to the living G‑d are still within the category and bounds of the constraint (meitzar) and limit mentioned above, as is explained elsewhere

(below, on the verse “And you shall count for yourselves”; and see what is written in the explanation on the verse “These are the journeys,” on the concept that up to the Jordan at Jericho is called the Exodus from Egypt).

And this is [the meaning of] “Nullify your will before His will.” For “Do His will as your will” stems from the lower will, which is drawn from the comprehension and understanding of their hearts, each one, from the powers of the soul that is enclothed in the body;

and so he still has a separate will of his own, except that nevertheless, through deepening his mind and contemplating His greatness, may He be blessed, he will be moved and will do, in his soul and heart, the will of the Omnipresent, blessed be He. Whereas “Nullify your will,” etc.

is the level of nullification and complete removal, so that he has no will of his own at all, but only one will, for G‑d alone; that is, that the Supernal Will alone shine in him, so that his soul pours itself out into the very bosom of its Father.

3And this is [the meaning of] “Lift up the head,” etc., “by their skulls,” etc.: that is, to bind the lower will, which is drawn from the level of the head and the mochin (intellect) that are enclothed in the body and soul,

and to join it and raise it far, far above, to the source from which it was hewn, its essential core and its own root, which is the being of the soul itself that stands above; it is at the level of a makif (that which encompasses) and does not shine within the body.

For “your iniquities separate between you and your G‑d,” and “that soul shall be cut off from before Me: I am Havayah,” as is explained elsewhere. It is like the analogy of a person whose body is cut off from his head.

4The counsel prescribed for this is, by way of analogy, as if a remedy were to be found to join his body to his head. So is the matter of “lifting the head”: that the lower will, which is born of the intellect and the emotive attributes (middos), the powers of the soul, is to be raised up to the level of “their skulls” specifically,

that is, their own skull, which is the root of their soul above, for there the Supernal Will shines, as mentioned above (and see what is written in Parshas Ki Sisa, at the end of the discourse beginning “His left hand is under my head,” and on the verse “And Moshe assembled”).

And this is the matter of the Counting of the Omer: “Today is [such-and-such a] day,” etc. The explanation: days are the level of drawings-down, namely the drawing down of the Supernal Will

(see what is written in the discourse beginning “And you shall count,” mentioned above, in the explanation of the matter of “You shall count fifty days”; and see also what is written in Parshas Emor, in the explanation of “And you shall count for yourselves from the morrow of the Shabbos,” etc.)

from above to below. And this is through the level of the Tent of Meeting (Ohel Moed), for moed is named for “And I will meet there with the Children of Israel.”

Now, venoadti (“I will meet”) and venodati (“I will be known”) are one matter — the letters of the one are like the letters of the other — and both are expressions of the connection and cleaving of the Holy One, blessed be He, with the souls of Israel. But nodati is through Daas (knowledge) and comprehension of His greatness, may He be blessed, as it is written, “Her husband is known in the gates,”

whereas venoadti is the level of a supernal union and bond from the level of “I, who am I,” binding their soul to pour itself out into the bosom of its Father

(and see what is written on the verse “to offer to Me in its appointed time”; and see the Zohar, Parshas Vayigash, p. 206b, and the Ramaz there; and the Zohar, Mishpatim, p. 97a).

However, it is impossible to draw down and shine the light of this level upon their soul in actual revelation except through the level of a Tent and a Mishkan, which is what is written, “I held him

and would not let him go, until I brought him into my mother’s house and into the chamber of her who conceived me.” “My mother’s house” is the Written Torah, and “the chamber of her who conceived me” is the Oral Torah.

Just as the unborn child is set in its mother’s womb, so the Supernal Will is enclothed in the laws of the Oral Torah — forbidden and permitted, guilty and innocent, etc.

And although the Torah descended and was enclothed in physical things, nevertheless the Supernal Will itself is enclothed in it; and through this, the person who occupies himself with it also draws down and shines upon his soul the light of the Supernal Will itself, which “no thought can grasp at all,” as is explained elsewhere (and see Zohar, Part II, 96a).

But a person must set counsels in his soul so as not to remain below, and for this two levels are needed: the level of Kohanim and the level of Levites.

The level of Kohanim is from above to below, the level of water, which descends from a high place to a low place; and the level of Levites is the level of a flame of fire, which rises from below to above.

5The explanation of this: it is written, “And when the Mishkan comes to rest, the Levites shall set it up.” The meaning: “when the Mishkan comes to rest” — when the level of the Mishkan descends from its rank, the setting up will be through the Levites. That is, in the soul of man below, whose radiance descended and was enclothed in the body and the animal soul in this world:

here is the counsel: to arouse upon his soul the level of holy gevuros (powers of restraint). These divide into three levels: Gershon, Kehas and Merari. Gershon is the matter of what is written, “Drive out this handmaid and her son,” which is from the level of gevuros (which is why this portion is read on Rosh HaShanah),

for “the left pushes away” and drives the evil out from within him, and “Who is mighty? One who conquers his inclination.” This is a higher level than what is written of the Exodus from Egypt, “for the people had fled,” because the evil was still in its strength, as is explained elsewhere.

But the main thing is to drive the evil out from within him, so that the evil flees from him, as it is written, “Five of you shall pursue a hundred.”

Therefore (of the Time to Come) it is written, “For you shall not go out in haste,” etc., for the sitra achra (the other side) has been subdued. And this is [the meaning of] “And Sarah said” — she being the level and attribute of His Malchus (sovereignty), may He be blessed — “to Avraham” — he being the level of supernal Chesed (kindness) — “Drive out this handmaid and her son,

for [he] shall not inherit,” etc. Yishmael is the level of evil desires and their root, as in the matter of “not like Avraham, from whom Yishmael issued,” as is explained elsewhere.

6And Merari is the matter of bitterness (merirus): when one is among the “masters of reckoning” over the days of his life, most of which, as good as all, “went in darkness,” with the body cut off from the head — which is the level of “their skulls” of his soul, which does not shine in his soul except at rare times, because of his iniquities that separate.

Or because the sitra achra (the other side) has not yet been subdued, etc. Or because he has clothed his soul in filthy garments of vanity and striving after wind: idle words, and the thoughts of man and his schemes in matters of this world, and his own idle longings.

This level, too, is from the level of the Levites, the root of the gevuros (powers of restraint); for bitterness is from the element of fire, and through it the power of warmth is aroused, as is explained elsewhere. And through this he comes to the level and distinction of Kehas, from the expression “and to him shall be the gathering (yikhas) of the peoples”

(except that the yud is added to indicate the action in the future), which is an expression of gathering and assembling, as the Targum renders it, “and to him shall the peoples gather.”

That is, his heart is gathered and assembled to Him, and “his spirit and his soul He will gather to Himself,” into the source from which it was hewn, with flashes of fire, a flame rising upward.

And the reason it does not say the expression of gathering (asifah) explicitly, as it is written, “When the heads of the people gathered,” etc., is that there it says, “together, the tribes of Israel,” whose assembling is called asifah;

but for the assembling of the level of the other peoples, to gather to their source, it says yikhas, from the expression kiyuha, which is the matter of sharpness and sourness,

as, by way of analogy, one who makes delicacies from sharp and sour things, etc. So it is in this matter: the bitter is turned into sweet. And

therefore this level is called Kehas. It, too, is the service of the Levites, from the level of gevuros, whose bitterness is turned into sweetness and darkness into light (and see what is written on the verse “Lift up the head of the sons of Gershon,” etc., on the matter of the three levels of the Levites).

Now, all this is the service of the Levites: to raise one’s soul to G‑d from below to above, so that it cleave in its root to the living G‑d. But the level of the Kohanim is from above to below. For

it is written, “Aharon and his sons shall come,” etc., “and they shall cover,” etc.: they are the ones who cover and clothe the holy vessels in many garments, fine linen and purple, etc.

The six colors are the six orders of the Mishnah, in which the Supernal Will, may He be blessed, is enclothed. Whereas of the sons of Kehas it is written, “But they shall not come in to see when the holy is covered.”

7The explanation is this: our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Whoever says, ‘I have nothing but Torah,’ does not even have Torah.” For his main yearning and desire must be for G‑d alone, and to cleave to Him, may He be blessed, and not to the Torah alone; as it is written, “I held him and would not let him go” — “I held him” specifically,

except that “I brought him into my mother’s house,” etc. And this is through the level of Aharon, the supernal Kohen, who brings the Supernal Will into “my mother’s house,” as mentioned above

(and see the Zohar, Parshas Korach, p. 177b, and the Ramaz there; and see the Zohar, Vayechi, p. 232b, which explains the verse “And they shall not come,” etc., in another way),

and as is written in the Torah many times, “Havayah spoke to Moshe and to Aharon”: the word of G‑d is drawn down to Israel through the level of Moshe and the level of Aharon. And this is the matter of “Who wraps [Himself] in light as with a garment,” as is explained elsewhere.

(And on the matter of “Lift up the head,” see the Midrash Rabbah: Metzora, at the end of section 18; Bamidbar, section 1, that this is the matter of “And He raised up a horn”; there, at the beginning of section 4; section 7, p. 223b;

section 9, p. 230b; section 10, p. 236c; Pinchas, section 21, p. 281b; Shir HaShirim Rabbah, on the verse “Your navel is a round goblet”; Zohar, Part III, Pinchas, 253b.)