ואשה כי תדור נדר לה׳ כו׳ בנעוריה כו׳

1“And a woman, when she vows a vow to Havayah,” etc., “in her youth,” etc. “And a woman” is the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael), the source of all the souls of Israel.

And therefore its cantillation note is a zakef gadol, which indicates that it is from a very high place, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Israel arose in [G‑d’s] thought”; “Havayah founded the earth with Chochmah (wisdom).”

(And see the Zohar at the beginning of Parshas Beshalach) (page 44a) on the verse “And there was a great woman there,” and in the Ramaz’s commentary there. And see [Midrash] Rabbah, Vayetzei, chapter 70, on the verse “the elder (hagedolah) [was] Leah”: great in her gifts, etc.;

“And Yehudah shall abide forever,” etc.; Yosef for a time, etc. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “And Yehudah approached him,” and in the discourse beginning “On the twenty-fifth of Kislev,” on the subject of the small hei, Rachel.

2And see what is written in the discourse beginning “The Song of Songs,” on the subject of the supernal Shechinah (Shechinta ila’ah); and this is the large hei. And this is the meaning of the Congregation of Israel, as is written on the verse “She is one, my dove.”

And this is the meaning of the zakef gadol. See what is written on the verse “and raises up (zokef) all who are bowed down,” and in the discourse beginning “Ado-nai, open my lips,” on the subject of “and he straightens up (zokef) at the Name.” However, there is a zakef katan, and this is the lower teshuvah (return): tashuv hei, “the small hei returns.”

3And there is a zakef gadol, the matter of the higher teshuvah (return); and this is along the lines of what is explained below in the discourse beginning “These are the journeys,” on the subject of “and these are their journeys according to their goings forth,” and in the discourse beginning “My dove, in the clefts of the rock,” on the subject of “Arise for yourself.”

And this is [the meaning of] “On that day I will raise up the sukkah of David.” And see what is written on the subject of charity: “every perutah joins together into a great sum.”

And [see] on the verse “A great shofar shall be blown,” and on the subject of “His great Name.” And therefore the Congregation of Israel is called “woman” (ishah), as it is written, “On that day, says Havayah, you will call [Me] Ishi (my Husband)” (in Hoshea, chapter 2).

Now we need to understand: what is [meant by] “on that day,” and not now? And see on this in the Gemara, at the beginning of chapter 8 of Pesachim. For there are three redemptions (and see Parshas Vayishlach, 169a, end of the side):

the first redemption was the level of Chesed (kindness), in the merit of Avraham; the second redemption was in the merit of Yitzchak; and therefore it was not a complete redemption.

The third redemption is in the merit of Yaakov (see on this the Alshich on Psalms, chapter 24). This is the meaning of the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory (chapter 8 of Pesachim, page 88a), on the verse “And many peoples shall go,” etc.,

“to the house of the G‑d of Yaakov”: not like Avraham, of whom “mountain” is written, “On the mountain of Havayah it will be seen”; and not like Yitzchak, of whom “field” is written, as it is said, “And Yitzchak went out to meditate in the field”; but like Yaakov, who called it “house,” etc. And see on this in Parshas Yisro (69b, end of the side), and in the Mikdash Melech there.

(Pekudei, 221b; 232a–b.) And see what is written on the subject of “house” at the end of the discourse beginning “The heavens are My throne,” and in the discourse beginning “A psalm, a song at the dedication of the House”; and see what is written in the discourse beginning “He will revive us after two days,” on the subject of “on the third day He will raise us up.”

And this is the level of Yaakov, the choicest of the Patriarchs. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “As an eagle stirs up,” etc.: “Havayah alone did lead him”; and it is written, “And Israel dwelt in safety, alone, the fountain of Yaakov.”

For it is the level of truth, as it is written, “You will give truth to Yaakov.” And the Torah is called truth, as it is written, “The Torah of truth was in his mouth”; “Havayah is near,” etc., “in truth”; and there is no truth

but Torah. As our Sages, of blessed memory, said in [Midrash] Rabbah, Parshas Tzav, chapter 7: “The exiles are gathered in only in the merit of the Mishnayos,” as it is said (in Hoshea, chapter 8), “Even though they study (yisnu) among the nations, now I will gather them.”

And [we need] to understand why the attribute of Yaakov is called truth: are the attributes of love and awe, the attributes of Avraham and Yitzchak, then not truth, G‑d forbid? Also, what is the attribute of Yaakov in a person?

(And the essential meaning of “truth” is not only the opposite of falsehood, G‑d forbid; rather, it is as it is written, “and like a spring of water whose waters do not deceive (lo yechazvu)”: that is, the opposite of the “deceiving rivers” (mechazvim) in the Mishnah, chapter 8 of Parah, which are those that sometimes stop flowing. And see Parshas Beshalach)

(44b), on the verse “Do not deceive your maidservant”: that his soul was from the side of Nukva (the feminine), which has no permanence, for it is “a place that changes”;

and therefore the “deceiving rivers” are unfit for sanctifying the waters of purification (mei chatas), which require living water, along the lines of the Tree of Life, “a place that does not change,” as is written in Parshas Emor, 107.

And this is the meaning of “I, Havayah, have not changed.” And this is the essence of truth. (And see what is written on this in the explanation on the verse “These are the journeys.”)

And so too, at the redemption from Egypt [the song was] shirah, a feminine [form], whereas in the Time to Come there will be shir, a masculine term, as it is said, “Sing to Havayah a new song (shir),” as is written in [Midrash] Rabbah, Beshalach, at the end of chapter 23. And see there, in Parshas Bo, at the end of chapter 18: “A night of watching,” etc.; a passing miracle,

but in the Time to Come, etc. And see what the Ramaz wrote in Parshas Tisa (188b) on the subject of the masculine shir; and see what is written on the verse “The lip of truth shall be established forever,” in the discourse beginning “The land shall rest a Shabbos to Havayah.”

Now, on the subject of Yaakov being called truth, see the explanation on the verse “And you shall know this day”; and see Parshas Acharei (66b) on the subject of “And I will remember My covenant with Yaakov,” etc.

And see [Midrash] Rabbah, Vayetzei, chapter 70: The Holy One, blessed be He, took the speech of the Patriarchs and made it a key to the redemption of the children. You said, “And Havayah shall be (vehayah) Elokim to me”; by your life, all the good things, blessings and consolations that I give to your children, I give

only in this expression, as it is said, “And it shall be (vehayah) on that day, living waters shall go out from Jerusalem,” etc.; “And it shall be (vehayah) on that day, a great shofar shall be blown.”

We see, then, that every level of the Time to Come is along the lines of the level and the matter of “And Havayah shall be Elokim to me,” which Yaakov said. And this is because it comes through the revelation of the essence of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, which is far, far above the level of the Name Havayah; and this is what will be revealed in the Time to Come,

and this is through the level of Yaakov, as is written on this at the end of the discourse beginning “Return, O Israel, to Havayah your G‑d.” And see what is written on the saying in Parshas Vayeshev (181b): “He shall be exalted” — from the side of Avraham, etc.;

“exceedingly” — from the side of Yaakov. And this is [the meaning of] “and also My covenant with Yitzchak, and also My covenant with Avraham,” etc. And an example of the matter is what is written, “For as the new heavens,” etc., “so shall your seed and your name endure.”

Now, there are three lines: Torah, avodah (service) and gemilus chassadim (acts of kindness); and Yaakov is the level of Torah: “He established a testimony in Yaakov,” etc. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “And I appeared to Avraham,” that love and awe are still the level of “there is one who loves,”

whereas occupation with Torah is complete self-nullification (bittul), and one takes up no room at all; and this is the essential revelation of the level of truth,

that is, as in “All before Him is considered as nothing,” as is written in Sefer Shel Beinonim [Tanya], chapter 35, in the gloss. And the way for a person to merit the light of the Torah is through the level of Yaakov, as is written at the end of the discourse beginning “Who has counted the dust of Yaakov.”

42. For it is written, “Tell me, you whom my soul loves,” etc. The meaning: “my soul,” which is the spark of G‑dliness that is in each and every one, has in it

the quality of love, to cleave to Him. And though he does not feel it at all, this is because the soul in his body is in exile with him, as it is written, “And I was in the midst of the exile,” as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “They were exiled to Edom,” etc.

And this is the natural love that is in each and every one of Israel, like the love of a son for his father. For the love of a son for his father is not like flashes of fire, for he is “a son, his father’s leg,” a thing by itself.

5Now, as for the love of a son for his father: even though the son receives no satisfaction and delight, but only cries out to his father to bring him close to him, nevertheless the father receives delight from this; and the more he cries out, the more delight the father receives.

And this is [the meaning of] “I have eaten my honeycomb (yaari),” which is the blessings before the Shema, “with my honey,” which is the Shema: this is the matter of the sweetness and delight Above from the cry of the son who wants his soul to return to Him, even though his soul does not feel at all; for the level of the spark of G‑dliness within him is wrapped and clothed in other desires.

And therefore the love is not like flashes of fire, for the warmth of the desires of this world cools him. (See what is written in Parshas Shelach, in the discourse beginning “In the section on the libations.”)

And this is [the meaning of] “I remember for you the kindness of your youth,” which is the manner of the beginning of the [divine] service (and see what is written in Shir HaShirim, in the discourse beginning “For the fragrance of your oils,” on the subject of “youth” (naar), and in the discourse beginning “And the light of the moon shall be,” on the subject of “and youths from the feast of their song,” etc.); “the love of your bridal days (kelulosayich),” which is the level of a bride (kallah) and not of a wife; “your going after Me in the wilderness.”

The meaning of “after Me” (acharai) is that he is still on the level of the back (achorayim), which is the level of iskafya (subjugation) and not the level of is’hapcha (transformation), the turning of darkness into light, as is written on this in the discourse beginning “Remember what Amalek did to you,” etc. And therefore he is still on the level of a wilderness and desolation, “a parched land,” etc.

And also, midbar (wilderness) is a term of speech (dibbur): that he speaks of physical things; and the open mem [of midbar] indicates that from this, foreign thoughts came to him.

(And along the lines of what was explained in the discourse beginning “And I will betroth you to Me,” that the cause of foreign thoughts is that one’s intellect and thought are vacant, like the analogy of a courtyard that has no roof and is open, etc.; see there. And see on the subject of “I remember for you the kindness of your youth,” etc., in Parshas Vayishlach)

(176b), Emor (103b), Shelach Lecha (168b), Pinchas (257a), Eikev (274a), [Midrash] Rabbah, Bamidbar, chapter 2 (212d). And see what is written in the discourse beginning “Take from among you an offering.”

And this is [the meaning of] “Draw me (moshcheni)”: for a person knows in himself, each and every one, that the G‑dly soul within him is sunk in darkness, the “skin (mashcha) of the serpent,” which covers and conceals the light of holiness; and a prisoner cannot free himself.

And this is why the Congregation of Israel asks, “Draw me”: that You draw me out of my exile, and then “after You we will run.” And see what is written on this in the discourse beginning “When a man from among you brings an offering.”

6And this is [the meaning of] “Where (eichah) do You pasture?” The meaning is that the request is not for our sake alone; rather, otherwise, “how (eichah) will You pasture?” For the Congregation of Israel is called “My beloved” (rayasi), and the Holy One, blessed be He, is called “the Shepherd (Ro’eh) of Israel.”

As our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Israel sustain their Father in heaven”; that is to say, that there be the enclothing of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, in the supernal attributes (middos), which are called “a body”: “Chesed is the right arm,” etc. For He, may He be blessed, in and of Himself, “is not of these attributes at all.”

And see what is written on the verse “I sleep, but my heart is awake,” regarding the explanation of “my perfect one” (tamasi) as a term of completeness, etc.; see there. And in the discourse beginning “Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved”; and above, on the verse “The heads of the tribes,” on the subject of “Come, eat of my bread.”

“Where do You rest [Your flock] at noon (tzohorayim)”: this is a term for the heat of other desires (for noon is the time when the heat is at its strongest; and there is a foreign strength of heat, of physical cravings, of which it is said, “and the sun (chamah) shall be ashamed.” And Cham is the father of Canaan; and see Pardes, the entry “Cham”; and see on all this in Parshas Vayikra)

(17b), and in Parshas Balak (197a–b), and in Parshas Terumah (143b), on the subject of ei koh (“where is Koh”). And see what is written on this in the discourse beginning “I will greatly rejoice.”

And this is [the meaning of] “For why should I be as one who is veiled (ke’otyah) beside the flocks of your companions?”: this is a term of shame, as in “You have covered him with shame” (in Psalms, chapter 89),

“And let them be wrapped in their shame as in a robe” (there, chapter 109), “Let them be wrapped in reproach and disgrace” (there, chapter 71). And see the Zohar, Bereshit (page 20a).

It is also a term for being wrapped and clothed in “the flocks of your companions,” which are thoughts and words from other desires, which are drawn down and flow from the supernal princes; for there is no speech or thought below that does not flow and is not drawn down from Above.

(And see the Zohar, Parshas Vayetzei) (page 162), in the Sisrei Torah, on the verse “And the feeble ones (ha’atufim) were Lavan’s,” etc.: “they are ashamed (iskasfan) and wrapped (misatfei).” And this shame is the subject of our request, “and may we not be ashamed forever and ever”; see the explanation in the discourse beginning “I saw,

and behold, a golden menorah.” And see the Zohar, Parshas Emor (page 89b), on the verse “To You, Ado-nai, belongs righteousness, and to us shamefacedness”; and these levels are called “Lavan’s” (lelavan).

And this is the meaning of “the flocks of your companions,” as is written in [Midrash] Rabbah on Shir HaShirim. Which is not so with “the bound ones (hakesurim), Yaakov’s,” who are bound with a firm and strong bond to Him, may He be blessed,

as is written in the Zohar, Parshas Acharei (page 73): “There are three levels bound one to another: the Holy One, blessed be He, the Torah, and Israel.” And see what is written on this in the explanation on the passage “Take the head count of the sons of Gershon,” on the subject of the incense (ketores).

73. Now, there is yet another level of love, which is the love of a wife for her husband, which is a love like flashes of fire, and he has no other desires at all; [a love] that comes through the Torah, as it is written, “And besides You I desire nothing,” only “and your longing shall be for your husband.”

(And see what is written on the subject of this love in the discourse beginning “Your cheeks are comely with rows (torim),” on the subject of “rows of gold.” And this is [the meaning of] “and the name of his wife,” etc., “the daughter of Mei-zahav (waters of gold)”: for this level of love is on a level like the superiority of gold over silver;

and also, the meaning of “the daughter of Matred” may be said to be the preoccupation (tirdas) of this great love (ahavah rabbah), to the point that he has no other desire at all.) And this is [the meaning of] “with all your heart,” as is written elsewhere, in the discourse beginning “The matter of the Shema.”

That is, because of the greatness of his passion and desire for Him, may He be blessed, like flashes of fire, a flame that blazes up, on the level of “When you raise up the lamps”; and this great love is drawn forth through the Torah

(for “on the day of his wedding” — this is the Giving of the Torah; and the Torah is the level of “from His right hand, a fiery law,” for it was given as black fire upon white fire. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And it shall be for you as tzitzis,” on the subject of “this one shall be called woman (ishah),

for from man (ish) was she taken”; and in the discourse beginning “After Havayah your G‑d shall you walk,” regarding “and to His voice shall you listen”; and in the discourse beginning “So that the Torah of Havayah may be in your mouth,” in Parshas Bo.

And this level of great love is called truth; and this is [the meaning of] “You will give truth to Yaakov,” for “the voice is the voice of Yaakov,” the level of Torah, as mentioned above. And see what is written on this in the discourse beginning “On the eighth day, an assembly (atzeres).”)

And this is [the meaning of] “I have drunk my wine with my milk,” which is the level of Torah. And this is [the meaning of] “For your love (dodecha) is better”: that is, great love, and it is drawn from wine, the wine of Torah. And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “And the man (ha’adam) said”: the Supernal Man (Adam).

As it is written, “And upon the likeness of the throne was a likeness like the appearance of a man (adam),” etc. “This time (zos hapa’am)”: the Torah, which is called zos (“this”) (chapter 5 of Menachos, 53b); for in the Time to Come the Torah will be unveiled from its garments and its physicality

(and therefore it is said, “On that day you will call [Me] Ishi (my Husband).” For the Torah is called light, as it is written, “and the Torah is light”; and it is also called water, as it is written, “Ho, everyone who thirsts, go to the water.”

And the matter is as is written elsewhere, on the verse “Praise G‑d in His sanctuary,” on the subject of three levels: light, water, firmament, etc.; see there. And in the same way with the Torah: the Torah as it is Above is the level of light, and in its descent to be clothed below it is called water, which descends from a high place to a low one.

And see what is written in the discourse beginning “The Song of Songs,” on the subject of two levels of bridegroom. And now the Congregation of Israel receives the drop of supernal Chochmah (wisdom) on the level of enclothement, [as] water [and] firmament;

but in the Time to Come, when the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the Torah will be revealed, it is the level of light. And this is the meaning of “you will call [Me] Ishi”: that she will receive from the level of light, as the Ramaz wrote in Parshas Pekudei) (page 220b).

Yet nevertheless, even now the light is drawn down through enclothement, etc., as mentioned above. And this is [the meaning of] “this time”: even as it is now, clothed in many garments, in physical things, nevertheless it is “bone of my bones” (etzem me’atzamai), of my very essence (atzmiyusi), which is the inner dimension of His will, which is the Written Torah.

8“And flesh of my flesh”: a term [related to] “red flesh” (bisra sumka), the Oral Torah, stringencies and distinctions. “This one shall be called woman (ishah)”: esh (fire) [and the letter] hei, which is a love like flashes of fire,

“for from man (ish) was this one taken”; as it is written, “For Havayah gives wisdom” — this is the Written Torah — “from His mouth, knowledge and understanding” — this is the Oral Torah, as is written in [Midrash] Rabbah, Ki Sisa, chapter 41.

For because it is grasped and cleaves in his mind at the time that he learns, and all the more so when he remembers it and it is not forgotten by him — and this is the level of “male” (zachar), as it is written, “He remembered (zachar) His kindness” —

then His wisdom and understanding, may He be blessed, are absorbed in him, which is the level of the drop drawn from the father’s brain. (See what is written on this in the discourse beginning “I am black, but comely,” and in the discourse beginning “And you shall honor the face of the elder.”)

And this is [the meaning of] “And they were both naked”: that is, through this love, of the level of flashes of fire, he is stripped of all foreign desires, and has no other desire at all, as it is written, “And besides You I desire nothing.”

Not like the love that is in coolness, which is because he is still also clothed in foreign desires, and it is only the level of iskafya (subjugation).

But through this great love, of the turning of darkness [into light], he has no other desire at all except to cleave to Him. It follows that he is not clothed in foreign garments. And through the arousal from below [comes] the arousal from above in the Time to Come, that “your Teacher shall no longer be cloaked.”

9And this is [the meaning of] “And they were both naked, the man and his wife”: that is, in the Time to Come there will be a revelation of the inner dimension of the Torah without garments.

Yet even “this time,” when the Torah is clothed in a garment, as mentioned above, it is nevertheless along the lines of “And they were both naked.” For through occupation with the Torah, the soul of the person is clothed in the Torah.

10And likewise, through this, the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, is drawn down and clothed in the Torah; and this is the meaning of “one who occupies himself with Torah lishmah”: for the sake of the Torah.

It follows, then, that the Holy One, blessed be He, as it were, and the person who occupies himself with Torah are clothed in one garment, by way of analogy like two who cover themselves with literally one tallis, as is written on this in the discourse beginning “For on this day He shall atone.” And this is specifically when the person is stripped of foreign desires.

Which is not so when he has a foreign desire and soiled garments: this is called “he in his garment and she in her garment,” and “he must divorce [her] and give [her] the kesubah.”

But when he is stripped of foreign desire, so as to be [in the state of] “And besides You I desire nothing,” there is likewise a drawing down from Above, as mentioned above. And this is [the meaning of] “and they were not ashamed”: that is, that there will not be the level of “as one who is veiled beside the flocks of your companions,” mentioned above.

And this is [the meaning of] “and may we not be ashamed forever and ever.” And see what is written of a yet greater level in the explanation of “and My people shall never be ashamed,” in the discourse beginning “And you shall eat, eating.”

114. And this is [the meaning of] “And a woman, when she vows a vow,” etc. Now we need to understand: what is the matter of the vow, to forbid upon herself things that are permitted?

And surely it can be said, “Let what the Torah has forbidden you suffice you,” as is written in the Rambam’s Eight Chapters, chapter 4, in the name of the Jerusalem Talmud, chapter 9 of Nedarim.

However, there is in fact no difference between the permitted and the forbidden, except that the permitted can be elevated to G‑d. But as long as he does not elevate it, it too covers and conceals.

12And this is the meaning of “Vows are a fence for abstinence”: that is, “Sanctify yourself in what is permitted to you.” For he sees that he will not be able to elevate the thing, and he will bring the thing down into physicality, and as a result the person too is drawn after it into physicality.

And this is “heaviness of head” (koved rosh): for “Israel is to Me a head (rosh),” and this level is hidden because of the heaviness of physicality, which covers and conceals “like a heavy burden,” etc. (see what is written on this in the discourse beginning “A menorah all of gold”). And therefore there must be abstinence.

However, this, that he will not be able to elevate the thing, is when he is still on the level of “And a woman,” etc., “in her youth,” which is the level of Nukva (the feminine)

(“before she has received the male,” as was explained on the verse “For the fragrance of your oils”), that is, the first love. “In her youth, in her father’s house,” which is “the kindness of your youth”; “her father’s house,” like the love of a son for his father.

“He shall not profane his word”: since he is still on the level of a woman, Nukva; and “it is the way of a man to conquer, and it is not the way of a woman to conquer,” for “women are light of mind,” as is written in the discourse beginning “You shall surely rejoice,” in Parshas Tazria, and in the discourse beginning “And they shall take to you a heifer.”

13And therefore he cannot refine (levarer) the permitted and elevate it Above, for he still cannot come to the level of is’hapcha, the turning of darkness into light, but only the level of iskafya; which is the meaning of “your going after Me in the wilderness,” as mentioned above.

And therefore whatever is somewhat superfluous (mosros) will bring him down into physicality. And see what is written on the verse “When you go out to war,” etc., regarding “and she shall shave her head,” etc.,

14and in the discourse beginning “And I shall be sanctified among the children of Israel,” regarding “your hair is like a flock of goats.” And therefore Tractate Nedarim is in the Order of Nashim (Women), since it [applies] only when one is on the level of Nukva. But: “And if she shall be [married] to a man (ish).”

“And if she vowed in her husband’s house”: that is, when she has received the male, receiving the drop of supernal Chochmah, which is the Torah, which is His wisdom, may He be blessed; and “the Torah is the supernal palace of the Holy One, blessed be He.”

And then “both are naked,” for he is stripped of every foreign desire. And then “he shall annul (hefer) her vow”: that is, he transforms (mehapech) darkness into light, for “through Chochmah they are refined,” etc.

(And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And all your children,” on the subject of “and great shall be the peace of your children (banayich)”: “do not read ‘your children’ but ‘your builders’ (bonayich)”; that for there to be “great peace,” it is specifically through “your builders,” because “through Chochmah they are refined,” etc.; see there. And it is stated in Parshas Tazria)

(42b, end of the side), on the verse “When a woman conceives and bears a male”: Rabbi Acha said, “A woman, from the day she conceives, has nothing in her mouth

but her offspring, whether it will be male.” And the Ramaz explains that although the Nukva is the level of Gevurah (restraint), nevertheless, through her union with the chassadim (kindnesses), her gevuros (severities) are sweetened and mellowed, until

her desire and longing is that her offspring be specifically male, which is the level of chassadim. And see Parshas Shemini (38b, end of the side), on the verse “And Aharon took Elisheva,” and in the Ramaz’s commentary there.

And so it is here: through the supernal union in occupation with Torah, within which the light of G‑dliness shines, the soul comes to be on the level of the male (dechar), and “it is the way of a man to conquer.” And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And it shall be for you as tzitzis,” on the explanation of “so that you remember (tizkeru),” etc.: that you be on the level of males (zecharim), etc.

And the matter of “her father annulled for her” may be explained according to what is written in Parshas Emor (page 100b), on the subject of “She is my sister, the daughter of my father”: “at the time when they take from the house of Abba (the Father),” etc.;

that is, on Shabbos, for then there is an illumination in the soul from the level of Chochmah, which is the matter of the additional soul (neshamah yeseirah); and then she can come to the level of is’hapcha, etc., as is written at length elsewhere. And see on this below, at the end of the discourse beginning “And her father hears her vow.”

15And this is [why] “vows may be annulled on Shabbos.” And the illumination of Shabbos shines every day, in the prayer of each day, as is written on the verse “to offer to Me in its appointed time.”

And see Sefer Shel Beinonim [Tanya], at the end of chapter 18 and chapter 19; and see what is written on the verse “and the poor shall not give less”: that the light of Abba (the Father) shines in all the souls of Israel, which is the meaning of

“For the thing is very near to you.” Now, our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “A betrothed maiden: her father and her husband annul her vows. If the father annulled,” etc.

And the matter is that it is stated in [Midrash] Rabbah, Bo (at the end of chapter 15), that now is the level of “And I will betroth you to Me,” while of the Time to Come it is written, “For your Maker is your husband (bo’alayich),” the level of marriage (nisuin). And so it is in the Gemara (at the beginning of chapter 8 of Pesachim),

on the verse “On that day you will call [Me] Ishi”: “like a bride in her father-in-law’s house,” that is, the level of marriage; whereas now it is “like a bride in her father’s house,” which is the level of betrothal (erusin).

That is, because “the Torah is concealed and revealed,” and now only the outer dimension (chitzoniyus) of the Torah has been revealed to us; therefore it is called only betrothal, as mentioned above on the subject of “this time,” etc.

16And therefore it must be that “her father and her husband annul her vows.” The meaning: “her father” is through occupation with prayer, to arouse love and awe, so that she be on the level of “the daughter of my father,” and “He did not cease cherishing her until He called her ‘my daughter’”; and afterwards, “and her husband,” which is occupation with Torah, etc.

Which is not so [with] “whoever says, ‘I have only Torah,’ does not have even Torah,” as is written in the discourse beginning “And all your children,” mentioned above, on the subject of “because they did not first recite the blessing over the Torah.”

17And this is [the meaning of] “her father and her husband annul”: “her father” is the level of the yud, and “her husband” is the level of the vav, which is the voice of the Torah.

However, in the Time to Come, when the inner dimension of the Torah will be revealed, this is the matter of “her husband’s house,” the level of “you will call [Me] Ishi.” And so too [one] such as Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, whose Torah [study] was his occupation,

as he said, “With one knot I am bound,” etc., for he was not in a state of separateness even for one moment, along the lines of what was explained in the discourse beginning “And these are the ordinances,” regarding the souls of the World of Atzilus (Emanation), etc.;

see there; and see [Midrash] Rabbah, the order of Noach, chapter 35. And he did not need to arouse the love, and therefore he was exempt from prayer. And this is the meaning of “And if in her husband’s house,” etc. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “How goodly,” on the subject of “your dwellings, O Israel.”

18Summary. “And a woman, when she vows.” “And a woman” is the level of Nukva, that is, “in her youth,” before she has received the male, as it is written, “the kindness of your youth,” etc.;

“your going after Me”: on the level of the back. A love in coolness, like the love of a son for his father; and of this it is said, “Draw me, after You we will run.” “Tell me, you whom my soul loves”:

for otherwise, “how will You pasture?” “Israel sustain their Father in heaven” through the love of the son, too. “I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey”: the two [blessings] before it, and the Shema; prayer [said] seated.

“For why should I be as one who is veiled”: shame; and “the feeble ones were Lavan’s.” The level of “your going in the wilderness”: an open mem. And then “when she vows,” for there must be “vows, a fence for abstinence,” since “it is not the way of a woman to conquer.”

19However, “And if she shall be [married] to a man”: for there is a love greater than the love of the son, which is in coolness; rather, [a love] in flashes of fire, the level of a wife: “And the name of his wife,” etc., Matred, “the daughter of Mei-zahav.” “And besides You I desire nothing,” only “and your longing shall be for your husband.”

And it is drawn forth through the Torah, which was given as black fire upon white fire; and of this level it is said, “And they were both naked,” the opposite of the level of “as one who is veiled.” “On that day you will call [Me] Ishi.” And this redemption is in the merit of Yaakov, who is called truth.

Now, “this time”: even now, when it is clothed in physicality, nevertheless it is “bone of my bones,” etc. And since this is so, “he shall annul her vow.”

20Now, “a betrothed maiden: her father and her husband annul her vows.” The meaning is along the lines of “He did not cease cherishing her until He called her ‘my daughter’”: this is the first level, “in her youth, in her father’s house.”

Afterwards, “He did not cease cherishing her until He called her ‘my sister’”: and this is through occupation with Torah, and then it is the level of “And if she shall be [married] to a man,”

as in “She is my sister, the daughter of my father,” etc., “and she became my wife.” And this is still the level of betrothal, for “the Torah is the fallen fruit (novlos) of the supernal wisdom.”

And see the Zohar, Part III, Parshas Acharei (77a, end of the side), on the verse “And a man who takes his sister, his father’s daughter,” etc., “it is chesed”; and this is the matter of the union of vav and hei. And therefore “her father and her husband annul her vows.”

But “He did not cease cherishing her until He called her ‘my mother’”: the inner configuration (partzuf) of Nukva, “the desire of the heart” (re’usa deliba), “with all your might”; “She is one, my dove; she is the only one of her mother,” for she is like the level of Imma, the supernal bride (kallah ila’ah). And this is the matter of marriage, “and if in her husband’s house.”

And this is [the meaning of] “On that day you will call [Me] Ishi”: for on that day it will be that the level of vav-hei will be like yud-hei, “two companions who never part.”

“A tent that shall not be moved,” etc. If so, the superiority of Ishi (my Husband) over the level of Baali (my Master) is like the superiority of companions (re’im) over lovers (dodim).

And see the Zohar, Part I (236b, end of the side), on the verse “her husband may uphold it (yekimenu)”: that it is along the lines of “And it was, when the Ark set out,” “Arise (kumah), Havayah”: the elevation of Malchus.

That is, as is written in Parshas Vayikra (6a, end of the side), on the verse “She shall rise no more”: rather, “the Holy One, blessed be He, will raise her up.” And see what is written on this at the end of the discourse beginning “For the mountains may depart.”

And then also “her husband may annul it,” along the lines of what is said in the Gemara at the end of Nedarim (page 90a); this is the matter of “And the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed” (in Isaiah 24:23). And as is explained in the Tikkunei Zohar (Tikkun 8): this is Samael and [his] Nukva; and so it is written at the end of Tikkun 69.

And this is as it is written, “Havayah has annulled,” etc. However, in [Midrash] Rabbah (Bamidbar, chapter 2, page 212b): And why were they compared to the stars and not to the sun and moon?

Rather, Avraham is compared to the sun, Yitzchak to the moon, and Yaakov to the stars. In the Time to Come the sun and the moon will be ashamed, as it is said, “And the moon shall be confounded,” etc.; but the stars will not be ashamed, etc., as it is said, “Not now shall Yaakov be ashamed,” etc.

21And Rashi explains at the end of Nedarim, there, that it is because regarding the Time to Come it is said, “And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be,” etc.; for at that time the light of the present moon will be confounded.

And see what is written elsewhere on this matter: that specifically the stars have no shame, because they appear very small; that is,

as Above is the yesh (existence), and below “all is considered as nothing.” Which is not so with the level of the sun and moon, from which it is drawn forth that there be the yesh and a separate thing, etc.

And this is [the meaning of] “her husband may annul it”: “and the moon shall be confounded,” [the moon] of now. And the matter of “and her husband may uphold it” is that the light of the moon of the Time to Come will be as the light of the sun, etc., “sevenfold,” etc.; and also as it is written, “On the third day He will raise us up (yekimenu).” And see [Midrash] Rabbah, Vayera, chapter 56.