הנך יפה רעיתי יפה עיניך יונים כו׳

1“Behold, you are fair, my beloved, [you are] fair; your eyes are doves, etc.” Now, the meaning of the repetition, “Behold, you are fair, etc.” twice, is that the first corresponds to “we will do” (na’aseh) and the second to “we will hear” (nishma).

Now, ra’yasi (“my beloved”) has two meanings, and both fit together as one. The first is as our Sages, of blessed memory, said in the Midrash on Shir HaShirim, on the verse “To my mare, etc.”: “Ra’yasi: they are my sustainers (mefarnesasi), for they feed (yir’u) Me with two tamid offerings every day.” And our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Israel sustain their Father in heaven.”

And it is written, “O Shepherd of Israel, give ear,” which means that He, blessed be He, is the shepherd and sustainer of the souls of Israel (as it is written in Yechezkel) (34:14), “In a good pasture I will feed them.” And it is written, “And his bow abode in strength, etc.,”

“from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel.” And it is written in Yechezkel (34:12), “As a shepherd inspects his flock, etc., so will I inspect My sheep,” and we say this in the piyut on Rosh Hashanah. That is because then it is the level of “he who shepherds among the lilies,” and as is said in the Grace after Meals, “Shepherd us, nourish us, sustain us.”

The second meaning of ra’yasi is its plain sense, a term of friendship (re’us) and love, as it is written, “or your friend who is as your own soul”; and it is written, “For the sake of my brothers and my friends”; and it is written, “This is my beloved, and this is my friend.”

2The matter is like this, by way of analogy, below: the binding and joining of the soul with the body is through food. For when a person eats his bread, what he eats is refined in his innards, refinement after refinement, until the choicest part of the food is transformed into the blood of the soul and rises to the heart; and from the heart the choicest part rises to the brain.

3So too it is to be understood Above. For the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He, has nothing whatsoever comparable to Him, and even all the emanated [levels] are reckoned as nothing; and their entire coming into being is only from the level of a single thought alone, which arose in His thought, blessed be He: “I will reign, etc.”

For this thought is the life-force of all the worlds. And because this thought is for there to be the level of Malchus (sovereignty), therefore it is said, “One is she, my dove, etc.” And this is [the meaning of] “last in deed, first in thought.”

4Similarly, the entire length of time of the destruction of the Holy Temple is considered truly as a single moment to Him, blessed be He, as it is written, “I hid My face from you for a moment, etc.”

Accordingly, this one thought is a great and exceedingly mighty contraction (tzimtzum) for Him, blessed be He. At the beginning of creation this was out of freely given kindness; but now there is need to draw it down and to bring about a will in Him, blessed be He, to be enclothed in this thought. And this power is in the souls of Israel, because they arose in thought.

This is the meaning of “Israel sustain”: they draw down the revelation of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) into the supernal thought. Just as through food the brain is strengthened, which is the joining of the soul with the brain, and from the brain it spreads to the heart and to all the limbs, so

Above, from the supernal thought it is drawn and afterwards spreads into all the nine utterances, etc. But by what do they draw [it] down?

That is the second meaning of ra’yasi, a term of love and friendship: by arousing the level of will toward Him, blessed be He, so as to have no other desire or will, as it is written, “Whom have I in heaven? And besides You I desire nothing, etc.,” through this they also arouse the supernal will, that it lower itself to be enclothed in this thought.

52. Now, it is written, “You are fair, my beloved, as Tirtzah.” The matter is that there are two levels of will. The first is the will that rests in one’s brain, in concealment;

for when a person of understanding contemplates the greatness of the Infinite One, blessed be He, the will is born and aroused in his brain; and see Sefer Shel Beinonim, chapter 16. And it still rests in his brain and does not actually spread into his heart. This is what is called ratzon (“will”) in the Holy Tongue.

(As is known, the Skull (Gulgalta) is called ratzon, as it is written, “And it shall be on his forehead always, for favor (leratzon)”; and see what is written in the discourse beginning “Blow the shofar at the New Moon,” concerning the supernal will, which is far, far above the level of Chochmah (wisdom), and is revealed on Rosh Hashanah, which is the level of the head, and “the Skull that covers the brain,” etc.; see there.)

The second is when the will is drawn, in a revealed way, into the heart itself; then it is called re’usa deliba (“the heart’s desire”), and it is the translation (Targum) of ratzon in the Holy Tongue,

just as the role of the Targum is the explanation of the Holy Tongue and its revelation, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Were it not for the Targum of this verse, I would not know what it says, etc.”

So too, the heart’s desire is the revelation of the will that is in the brain; for when the will is revealed and drawn into the heart, this is a greater revelation, since the heart is more physical and closer to the body than the brain, as is written in Sefer Shel Beinonim, Part I, chapter 16.

And this is the level of ra’yasi, a term of friendship and affection, and it is re’usa deliba, the heart’s desire. And this is [the meaning of] “You are fair, my beloved (ra’yasi)”: the level of the heart’s desire.

“As Tirtzah (kesirtzah)”: like the level of the will (ratzon) in the brain. That is, when the two wills, of the heart and of the brain, are joined together. And this is [the meaning of] “And you shall love with all your heart”; and ve’ahavta (“and you shall love”) is [numerically] twice or (“light”), that is, the two wills mentioned above.

6Now, through the souls of Israel being aroused in brain and heart to be “my beloved, as Tirtzah,” they thereby likewise arouse Above the revelation of the supernal will in the one thought.

And it is called ra’yasi, parnasasi (“my sustainer”), like the analogy of food, which brings about the spreading and joining of the soul in the brain, and from there to the heart and to all the limbs; so Above, the revelation of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) is drawn into Chochmah and Binah, the “two companions (trein rei’in),” etc.

7Now, through this, when the light is drawn into the supernal Chochmah (wisdom), then there is also drawn the flow of the supernal Chochmah, and of the supernal will that is enclothed in it, into all the souls of Israel as well. It is like, by way of analogy, when the brain is strengthened through food and the life-force of the soul is drawn into it:

then the life-force is drawn and spreads from the brain to all the limbs of the body, even to the level of the feet, so that he has the strength to lift his feet, and it sets him on his feet, etc.

And also, any distress or pain in the foot he feels immediately in his brain, etc. So too Above: when the Infinite Light is drawn to be enclothed in the supernal Chochmah, He is called “our Father,” for the supernal Chochmah is called Abba (Father), and the righteous are called His children, as it is written, “You are children to G‑d your G‑d.”

That is, for “a son is his father’s leg (kar’a)”: he is the level of the foot (regel). And see what is written on the verse “And the earth is My footstool.” And when the Infinite Light, blessed be He, is enclothed in the supernal thought,

then it spreads and is drawn into the level of the foot, as we see that thought is drawn into the foot, to turn it wherever it wishes.

That is, specifically when the Infinite Light, blessed be He, is enclothed in the supernal Chochmah, then He is called “our Father,” etc. And this is what we say: “our Father, our King, our Shepherd,” etc.

Meaning: this is why the Holy One, blessed be He, is called Shepherd, for He sustains the souls, in that His wisdom and His will, blessed be He, are drawn into and shine within the souls, which are the level of the foot. As it is written, “You open Your hand (yadecha)”: Your yud (yudecha), the supernal Chochmah; “and satisfy every living thing [with] will (ratzon), etc.,”

so that the will of the Holy One, blessed be He, and the will of the righteous draw close together and become truly one, so that they have no other will besides what the Holy One, blessed be He, wills.

And likewise, the Holy One, blessed be He, does the will of those who fear Him. And see what is written in the discourse beginning “For with You is the source of life,” on the subject of “Look down from Your holy dwelling, from heaven, and bless, etc.”

And the meaning of “from heaven” is as was written in explaining “sustain their Father in heaven.” (And one may further say, concerning “my beloved, as Tirtzah,” that they are the two levels of Chochmah and Binah mentioned on the verse “See, I [set before you], etc.”: “a point in its palace, etc.”; see there. And this is [the meaning of] “And his bow abode in strength (eisan), etc.”

“From there,” specifically, “is the shepherd, the stone, etc.”: for through this they arouse Above the drawing down into Chochmah and Binah, and through this, afterwards, “from there is the shepherd, the stone, etc.,” as mentioned above.) (And see [the Zohar,] Parshas Vayechi, folio 231b.)

One may further say that “their Father in heaven” is the light of Abba (Father) enclothed in Z’eir Anpin, which is called shamayim (“heaven”): Chesed and Gevurah. That is, the conduct of the worlds is through the attributes (middos);

but the revelation of the supernal Chochmah must be drawn into them, as is written in the discourse beginning “I have come into My garden.” Therefore the light of this drawing down comes through the two levels in a person: the will in the brain and the heart’s desire. And this is the meaning of “You are fair, my beloved, as Tirtzah.”

83. Now, the meaning of “Behold, you are fair, my beloved”: the meaning is that, just as below, in physical things, the essence of beauty and comeliness is in a picture and an appearance that includes three colors together, for then there is the essence of comeliness and splendor;

and in general these are three colors, white, red and green. When they are combined together, then the picture is beautiful and splendid; whereas the color white alone or the color red alone does not have such complete splendor.

(As in what is written, “Like the appearance of the bow that, etc.”; and it is known that the three colors of the rainbow are white, red and green (chivar, sumak and yarok); and see [the Zohar,] Parshas Noach, folio 71b.)

Meaning: the color white in the Community of Israel is the attribute of love and kindness, “to love G‑d and to cleave to Him”; for love is the level of silver (kesef),

as in “you longed greatly (nichsof nichsafta) for your father’s house,” and it is the color white. And elsewhere it is explained that this is the natural love rooted in every one of Israel, which is therefore likened to the color white, for that is an essential color and is not compound.

So too is the love mentioned above, which comes from the very essence of the soul, which is above comprehended intellect, etc. But after the love, longing and yearning mentioned above, one must lower oneself

in the manner of “the left hand pushes away,” in the manner of awe; and see what is written on the verse “The heavens are My throne, etc.” And this is the red color in the souls, which is from the level of Gevurah (restraint). And these are the two levels of “Avraham, who loves Me,” and “the Fear of Yitzchak.”

9The third color is the level of green, which is the intermediate between the two opposite colors mentioned above. That is the attribute of Yaakov,

which is the attribute of compassion: to arouse compassion on his soul when he sees the greatness of G‑d, blessed be He, “whose greatness is unsearchable,” and contemplates the descent of his soul from a lofty height, etc.; and through this his compassion is stirred. This compassion is intermediate between Chesed and Gevurah,

for the stirring of his compassion and the great warming of his heart is akin to the level of Gevurah, etc.; yet its essence inclines toward Chesed and love. (And see the Pardes, Sha’ar HaGevanim (the Gate of Colors), end of chapter 3 and end of chapter 2.)

Now, a single attribute is not beautiful, but only when all three attributes are together; for through this they can be “ones who walk” (mehalchim), to ascend from elevation to elevation, etc.

And see what is written in the discourse beginning “Your teeth are like a flock of ewes, etc.,” and in the explanation on “Know this day,” concerning “And there all the flocks would be gathered, etc.” And all these attributes are present in prayer,

for “the prayers were instituted by the Patriarchs,” who are Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, who are the source of these three attributes. Therefore all these attributes, Chesed, Gevurah and Tiferes, are present in the prayers that the Patriarchs instituted, as mentioned above.

And this is [the meaning of] “to Yaakov, who redeemed Avraham”: for the attribute of love, the attribute of Avraham, without the attribute of compassion, which is the attribute of Yaakov, is not considered beautiful;

but when this attribute is included in the three attributes, then it is beautiful, and they can ascend without end. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “Your teeth are like a flock of ewes.” And so it is: [with] all the attributes, Chesed, Gevurah and Tiferes, love, awe and compassion, it is then beautiful, as below, in appearances.

10Now, this is the first “fair”: it is the level of “we will do” (na’aseh), for it is fair through our own doing, with love, awe and compassion, to cleave to Him and “to nullify your will before His will,” a nullification of being (bittul bimetzius).

But the second “fair” is greater than the level of the first “fair,” as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “One who comes to purify himself is helped” greatly, for he came to purify and sanctify himself. And this is the drawing down of the supernal attributes, the level of “Israel, in whom I am glorified (espa’er),” which is the level of Israel Above (Yisrael dile’eila),

“for you have striven with G‑d”; “as a bridegroom adorns himself with glory (pe’er)”; “Yours, G‑d, are the greatness, and the might, and the splendor (tiferes).” And the Community of Israel is the one that receives the glory from the level of Israel Above. And this is the meaning of the second “Behold, you are fair.” And see what is written further on this on the verse “And they shall make for themselves tzitzis, etc.”

(And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “When you light the lamps,” concerning “that runs down over the edge of his garments (middosav),” that is, the attributes (middos) of the Holy One, blessed be He. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “I sleep,” concerning “Open for Me [an opening] like the eye of a needle, and I will open for you, etc.” And see what is written in the discourse beginning

“When you go out,” on the meaning of “beautiful of form” (yefas to’ar); and what is written on “And Rachel was beautiful of form and beautiful of appearance” in the discourse beginning “If you do not know, etc.” And see what is written in the discourse beginning “So shall you bless,” concerning “May G‑d make His face shine upon you,” and in the explanation on “These are the journeys,” concerning “You will give truth to Yaakov, etc.”

And see what is written on the verse “How fair you are and how pleasant, love, in delights.” All this is the meaning of “Behold, you are fair” through “we will hear”: that is, the level of beauty that is drawn from Above. And see what is written in the explanation on “My dove,” concerning “and your appearance is comely.”)

Now, what is written, “your eyes are doves,” is, by way of analogy, like a pair of doves, one male and one female, where the female receives bestowal from the male. So too, by way of a parable, Above: the Holy One, blessed be He, is likened to a bridegroom and the Community of Israel is likened to a bride, and they are called the level of recipients from the Holy One, blessed be He.

And just as doves gaze at each other, so from everything they can gaze and see that “there is none else besides Him” and that He is One, as mentioned above, and to be in nullification of being, until “your will” is nullified, etc.

And this is [the meaning of] “your eyes are doves”: for doves are male and female, who constantly gaze at each other and delight in seeing each other; so the Community of Israel is at the level of “gazing upon the glory of the King,” and from everything they can see and contemplate that there is none else besides Him.

11Now, it is written, “For eye to eye they shall see.” Meaning: the first “eye” is the gazing from below upward, and the second is the bestowal from Above, to see eye to eye: “as one comes to see, so one comes to be seen.” And this is [the meaning of] “The eye of G‑d is toward those who fear Him, toward those who hope for His kindness, etc.,”

and through this, “to save their soul from death.” For it is written, “Her feet go down to death”: at times the flow of the level of the light that fills all worlds (memalei kol almin) descends to the chambers of the kelipos (husks), as it is written, “See, I have set before you today life and good, and death and evil; and you shall choose life, etc.,” and as is written elsewhere.

But through “those who hope for His kindness,” He then saves “their soul from death”: “their soul” is the level of the light that fills all worlds, so that “her feet” not “go down.”

As it is written, “I have washed my feet”; and see what is written on the verse “And the earth is My footstool.” “And to keep them alive in hunger”: for it is written, “For not by bread alone does man live, etc.”; “bread” is the level of the Torah.

12And this is the meaning of “Behold, you are fair” through “we will do.” But this alone is not the life-force; rather, “by everything that comes forth from the mouth of G‑d”: this is the level of the bestowal that is drawn from Above,

that is, “Behold, you are fair” through “we will hear,” in the manner of “Let your ears hear what you bring forth from your mouth.” Then the Torah is called “what comes forth from the mouth of G‑d,” and “My words that I have placed in your mouth”; “My tongue shall respond to Your word.” And as is written elsewhere, at the end of the discourse beginning

“To understand what is written, ‘On the eighth day, an assembly (atzeres).’” And this is [the meaning of] “to keep them alive in hunger”: their life-force is from the level of the hunger itself, from their being hungry and thirsty for Him, blessed be He. And this is [the meaning of] “Hungry and thirsty too, their soul faints within them.” The meaning of “their soul” is explained above.

“Faints within them” is as it is written, “Our soul waits for G‑d.” And this is [the meaning of] “And He afflicted you and let you hunger, and fed you the manna, etc.,” “for by everything that comes forth, etc.”

And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “And He fed you the manna.” And it is further possible to say, concerning “to keep them alive in hunger,” that this is the matter of Yom Kippur, of which it is said, “And you shall afflict your souls,” for it is above the level of eating, etc.

For eating is the food being refined and transformed into blood and included in the level of the outer dimension (chitzoniyus) of the heart, just as all the offerings were only on the outer altar.

But the inner dimension (pnimiyus) of the heart is above the level of eating, as is written in the discourse beginning “On the eighth day he sent away.” And of this it is said, “and to keep them alive in hunger, etc.,” as mentioned above; and this is through “the eye of G‑d toward those who fear Him, etc.”