ביאור ואתחנן

1An explanation of “And I pleaded” (Va’eschanan).

2Now, the matter of “Blessed are You, Havayah” in Baruch She’amar is that it is the matter of “And in His goodness He renews,” etc. For the Name Havayah is in the World of Atzilus (Emanation),

and from Chochmah (wisdom) onward is the level of the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus); whereas Chochmah “is found from nothing (ayin),” not by way of hishtalshelus, for there is a parsa (partition) that separates Chochmah from Keser (the Crown) (and see in the Zohar, Parshas Noach)

(65a), and in what is written in the explanation on the verse “For on this day He shall atone,” in Parshas Acharei. And all this is after the tzimtzum (contraction) and the vacated space, etc.

And see Sefer Shel Beinonim [the Tanya], Part II, chapter 9, in the gloss: that through this the flow (shefa) is changed into another essence, and not by way of a chain (hishtalshelus) of cause and effect, as there is from Chochmah downward, etc.

Therefore Chochmah, relative to Keser, is called “something from nothing” (yesh me’ayin). And this is the matter of “And in His goodness He renews”: truly something from nothing. That is, through the yud of the Name Havayah, which is the level of the parsa, etc.

(See the Mikdash Melech there, which explains that the parsa is Mocha Stima’ah (the hidden brain). And it may be said that this means the membrane that is spread over Mocha Stima’ah, for this hidden Chochmah is covered by that membrane; therefore the membrane is called parsa.

He also explains there yet another level of parsa, which is above even Mocha Stima’ah. Also, in the Pardes, Shaar HaTzachtzachos, chapter 6, it is explained that the parsa is Keser itself, etc. And this is [the meaning of] the yud of the Name Havayah being the level of the parsa: for the yud and its tip (kotz) are Chochmah and Keser.)

And this is the matter of “the seed that Havayah has blessed”: that they draw the revelation of the Name Havayah below, that is, from above hishtalshelus. And this is through an arousal from below (isarusa dilesata): the refinements (birurim) of the 288 sparks in prayer, which is the level of raising mayin nukvin (feminine waters), [as in] “And they cried out to Havayah,” etc.

So too, the making involved in the performance of the mitzvos, the parchment of the tefillin, etc., are refinements of the 288; and through this mayin duchrin (masculine waters) are drawn from their root, from the hidden Chochmah.

Now, the matter of the blessing over the mitzvos is the drawing down of an arousal from above (isarusa dile’eila) before the arousal from below; therefore it is [said] “before their performance” (over la’asiyasan). And this drawing down has its root in a level that the arousal from below does not reach,

and this is why the blessings were instituted by the Sages, who are “the eyes of the congregation,” the level of “your eyes are doves.” And this is along the lines of what is written in Etz Chaim (Shaar Arich Anpin, chapter 14):

that through the gazing of Abba and Imma (Chochmah and Binah), or of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, at Arich Anpin, or the gazing of Arich Anpin at them, the power of union (zivug) is drawn to them, etc. The explanation is that the union of mayin nukvin and mayin duchrin is only in Atzilus alone;

but above Atzilus, the union there is by way of gazing alone, because from so high a place the revelation can only come about through sight alone (as is written at the end of the explanation on “Red of eyes”).

And this gazing, through which the radiance is drawn from the Forehead of Atika to Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, brings about the union of mayin nukvin and mayin duchrin of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva; for the union comes about through the drawing down of the intellect (mochin) first,

as, by way of analogy, below: a minor does not beget, because he has no Daas (knowledge), for his intellect is in a state of smallness and is not complete; and when he becomes an adult and his intellect grows strong and matures,

then he has the power to beget. So too, by way of analogy, the supernal union comes about through the drawing down of supernal intellect to Abba and Imma and to Z’eir Anpin and Nukva.

And this is drawn into them through the gazing of Arich Anpin, for through this a great radiance is drawn into them, as is written in Etz Chaim there and in Mishnas Chassidim, Tractate Zivug Abba ve-Imma; therefore, through this the power for union is drawn into them, etc.

Therefore, in the same way, the Sages, who are called “the eyes of the congregation,” instituted the blessing over the mitzvos, which is the drawing down of the power for there to be the arousal from below and the arousal from above that come through the performance of the mitzvos,

which are the mayin nukvin and mayin duchrin that are in the performance of the mitzvah. And this drawing down of the blessing is specifically from the level of “the eyes of the congregation,” who have it in their power to draw the gazing of Atika into Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, which is the power for the union of mayin nukvin and mayin duchrin.

For the level of gazing is above the mayin nukvin and mayin duchrin themselves, which are from the level of Tohu and Tikkun: the shattering was in the World of Nekudim, and the refinement of sparks from the shattering of the vessels is the mayin nukvin, and through this mayin duchrin is drawn from the World of Tikkun. And this is the arousal from below, and the arousal from above that comes through the arousal from below.

But the level of Akudim is above the shattering and the Tikkun, and from there is the arousal from above that is above the arousal from below; and see what is written on the verse “Eat it today,” concerning the manna. And this is the matter of the gazing, etc., from which the blessing over the mitzvos has its root.

(And see what is written elsewhere, in the discourse beginning “To understand the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory,” on the verse “For your love is better than wine”: “The words of the Scribes are sweeter to me than the wine of Torah,” which refers to the blessing over the mitzvos, etc.; and see further what is written on “The words of the Scribes are sweeter to me” on the verse “And you shall draw water with joy.”)

Now, this is the matter of Moshe’s request, “Let me cross over, please, and see the land.” For Moshe is Yesod of Abba, and Chochmah is the level of sight. And this is what is written of Moshe, “And he saw the first for himself”; and so it is up to the highest of levels, in all the worlds.

Now, Malchus (sovereignty) was in the state of back to back for the entire span of the generation of the wilderness (and see Etz Chaim, Shaar 31, and Shaar 37, beginning of chapter 16).

And Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him, wanted there to be the return to face to face; and this is the matter of their entering the Land through him specifically, through “and let me see the land”: that he would draw into it from the level of sight and gazing mentioned above, which is the level of the arousal from above that is above the arousal from below.

(And on the matter of the level of sight, see Etz Chaim, Shaar Ozen-Chotem-Peh [ear, nose and mouth], chapter 1 and chapter 3; and see what is written on the verse “The heavens are My throne,” etc., “But to this one I will look,” etc.)

And what the level of sight is in spiritual terms can be understood somewhat from what is written in Pri Etz Chaim, Shaar 16, chapter 1: that once Rabbi Avraham HaLevi came in to the Arizal, of blessed memory, and found him

sleeping. And he awoke and said that he had heard in the Academy on High secrets and supernal mysteries on the portion of Balak and Bilaam, such that were he to expound for eighty consecutive years, day and night, he would not be able to finish.

Now, how can it be that he would grasp in two hours what needs a time of eighty years and more to say? The explanation is that this grasp and revelation is called the level of sight, which is above the level of understanding (tevunah) and actual comprehension.

(Likewise, there are these two levels in the higher attainments above, in Gan Eden, too: what is drawn as actual comprehension, and what is above comprehension and is called “And Havayah shall be seen over them, and His arrow shall go forth like lightning,” in the manner of lightning that flashes upon his comprehension.

As is written on the verse “Then Israel sang,” etc., “Spring up, O well,” etc. And so it is stated in Etz Chaim, Shaar Ozen-Chotem-Peh, chapter 3, that sight is the level of a makif (encompassing light), etc. And in the same way one will understand the attainment of the Arizal mentioned above, which was by way of sight, etc.

And this is the matter of “And he saw the first for himself”; and this level he wanted to draw into the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael), and this is the matter of “and let me see the land,” etc. And see what is written on this matter in the explanation of the Splitting of the Sea of Reeds; there it is explained that this is the level of Eden, and it is what will be revealed in the Time to Come through Mashiach. And this is what is said in the Zohar, Va’eschanan)

(260b): “The completion is King Mashiach,” etc.; see there. And this is what is written of Moshe, “And now, Israel, hear,” etc.: for he did not accomplish the drawing of the level of sight mentioned above into the Congregation of Israel, but only the level of hearing. However, in the Time to Come this level will be revealed, as mentioned above.

32. And this is [the meaning of] “And I pleaded (va’eschanan) to Havayah”: it is the matter of a free gift (matnas chinam). And the Maggid, whose soul is in Eden, explained what is written (Numbers 11:5), “We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt for free (chinam).”

Rashi explains, “Free of the mitzvos”; that is, the flow was drawn from a lofty place that is above the arousal from below (isarusa dilesata), which the raising of mayin nukvin (feminine waters) from the performance of the mitzvos does not reach

(see in the Zohar, Parshas Behar, 108a; and see what is written on the verse “And these are the laws,” etc., “and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing (chinam)”; see there).

Now, it is written, “Gracious and compassionate is Havayah,” and it is written, “Havayah is compassionate and gracious.” The explanation is that there is a level of the attribute of mercy that is drawn from the Name Havayah, and of this it is said, “Havayah is compassionate and gracious,” etc.;

but there is a level of mercy that is above the Name Havayah, which is the level of great mercy (rachamim gedolim), and of this it is said, “Gracious and compassionate is Havayah,” putting the level of “gracious and compassionate” first, for there to be Havayah (as is written elsewhere on the verse “I will sing to Havayah”; see there).

And this is the meaning of “And I pleaded to Havayah,” and it does not say, as is written regarding Shlomo, “which I pleaded before Havayah”: because the level of grace spoken of with Shlomo is below the Name Havayah, like “Havayah is compassionate and gracious”;

but “And I pleaded to Havayah” means that Moshe drew from the level of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, the source of Atzilus, to the level of Havayah.

And this is “to Havayah at that time,” which is the level of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva: that through the power of this drawing down, the union of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva is drawn forth and brought about, as mentioned above

(and according to this one will also understand what is said in the Sifra deTzniusa) (Terumah 177a): “At this time, ‘Ado-nai Havayah, You have begun,’ etc.,”

which refers to the revelation of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy in the month of Tishrei; see there. For at first glance it is not understood how the matter of that revelation is alluded to here; but according to what has been written, it is well [understood]:

for this is the meaning of “You have begun”: that is to say, You are the One who begins of Yourself, for it is the level of the arousal from above (isarusa dile’eila) that is above the arousal from below; and this is the matter of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy.

And this is also the matter of “And I pleaded,” as mentioned above. And why these two Names are said, “Ado-nai Havayah, You have begun,” will be understood according to what is written elsewhere on the verse “For as the earth brings forth its growth,” etc.,

“so will Ado-nai Havayah cause righteousness and praise to sprout”: that of these two Names, the Name Ado-nai is the one that shines on Rosh HaShanah, and the Name Havayah with the vowels of Elokim is the one that shines on Yom Kippur; and they are what cause to sprout and draw down the light and revelation of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, etc.; see there. And one may further say that,

behold, with Avraham, at the Covenant between the Parts, when he was told, “to give you this land,” he too mentioned these two Names, “Ado-nai Havayah, how shall I know

that I shall inherit it?” That is because these two Names are themselves the root of “the land of the living,” which is called “the lands of the living”: two lands, Malchus (sovereignty) and Binah (understanding).

As is explained in the Pardes, Erchei HaKinuyim, the entry “Eretz” (land); and as is written on the verse “And Lavan had two daughters”; and they are the two Names mentioned above, as is known. And see on the matter of “in the lands of the living” in the Zohar, at the end of Parshas Terumah (end of 178b).

And so Moshe, who asked to enter the Land, therefore also mentioned specifically these two Names. And see further on the matter of “You have begun” in Parshas Shemos (13a), Parshas Shelach (174a),

and on the matter of “And I pleaded” in Parshas Pinchas (226a, and 260b). And “Let me cross over, please” can also be explained as referring to the drawings down of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, along the lines of what is explained in Parshas Lech Lecha (79b)

on what is written, “And Avram passed through the land”: it is written here “passed,” and it is written there, “And Havayah passed before him and proclaimed,” etc.;

see there, in the commentary of the Ramaz. And so is the meaning here, in the matter of “Let me cross over, please”: to draw from the level of “And He passed,” etc., to the Land; and this is through “and let me see,” etc., as mentioned above.

4Now, with this one will understand why in most of Mishneh Torah [Deuteronomy] it says “Havayah your G‑d,” while in the verse “Hear, O Israel” it says “Havayah our G‑d.”

The explanation: “Havayah your G‑d” is the investment of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) in the intellect (mochin) of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, from which all the souls of Israel, and those who entered the Land, receive.

But Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him, who attained Binah (understanding), is called “a man of G‑d (ish Elokim),” for he was above the level of Malchus of Atzilus, which is the level of speech; and he was “heavy of mouth,” for he could not lower himself into the level of speech; rather, the Shechinah (Divine Presence) spoke from within the throat of Moshe.

Therefore he said “Havayah your G‑d” specifically of the intellect of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, for Moshe himself attained Binah, so that he receives from Abba and Imma (Chochmah and Binah), where the Infinite Light is revealed more, etc. (And see Etz Chaim, Shaar Rachel and Leah, end of chapter 6; and see Sefer Hadras Melech, section 156, folio 86b.)

However, in the first verse of the Shema, “Hear, O Israel,” which is the union of Abba and Imma, he said “Havayah our G‑d,” etc. And this is why it is said of Moshe, “And he saw the first for himself”: it is the level of the supernal Chochmah (Chochmah Ila’ah).

Therefore Moshe wanted “and let me see the land,” the level of “a land of desire,” which is the Congregation of Israel: that he would draw into it from this level specifically.

But he did not accomplish this, to cross into the Land, for then he would have bestowed upon it by way of inner light (or pnimi); rather, he saw it from afar, and through this seeing from afar the level of encompassing light (or makif) was drawn to it,

and not actual inner light. And this is the matter of the blessing over the mitzvos, which is an arousal from above (isarusa dile’eila) in the manner of a makif: “over la’asiyasan” (before their performance), as in “over lasocher” (current with the merchant), etc.

Whereas for the revelation of the arousal from above to be in an actually inner manner, this comes only through an arousal from below (isarusa dilesata) first, and this is what is drawn through fulfilling the mitzvos. And see what is written in the explanation on the verse “These are the journeys,” etc.

(And see what is written in the explanation on the verse “Go out and see.” Now, although “Moshe commanded us the Torah, an inheritance,” and the Torah is an arousal from above that is above the arousal from below, if so, how was this request not fulfilled now? Moreover, the Torah had already been given before Moshe asked, “And I pleaded,” etc.

But the explanation is this: our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Whoever says, ‘I have nothing but Torah,’ does not have even Torah.” For this drawing down too, which is through the Torah, must come through first praying from “the inward part of a man and a deep heart,” as is written elsewhere that this is the matter of “Arise, go, my beloved,” etc.:

“Arise, go” is the matter of prayer, and through this, afterward, there will be “my beloved” (ra’yasi), the level of “Come, eat of my bread,” which is the study of Torah, as was explained on the verse “My dove, in the clefts of the rock,” etc. And although the Torah is in truth a drawing down from a place that is above the arousal from below, nevertheless it is as is written on the verse “Open to Me, My sister, My beloved.”

For our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Open for Me like the eye of a needle, and I will open for you like the entrance of the Hall (Ulam).” Now, although the entrance of the Hall had no doors and was always open, which alludes to the drawing down of an arousal from above that does not depend on the deeds of the lower beings,

nevertheless it rests and is revealed only when there is completeness below; for it is impossible to reach the entrance of the Hall until one first opens the entrances that have doors, which were before the Hall. And this is the matter of the arousal from above: “Open for Me,” etc.

So too, reaching the drawing down of this light that comes through the Torah, which is an arousal from above from a very lofty level, is through “Open for Me” first, and this is the matter of prayer, etc. And although through the Torah alone, even without prayer preceding it, a lofty drawing down is also drawn, from the level of the arousal from above alone,

nevertheless, it is known that there are endless levels and degrees in this drawing down. Therefore the Torah that precedes prayer is not comparable to the study of Torah that follows prayer, as is written elsewhere that this is the saying of Abba Binyamin, “over my prayer, that it be close to my bed,” etc. And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “When a man among you brings an offering.”

But the essence of Moshe’s request was to draw the level of sight into the study of Torah, in the manner of what King David, peace be upon him, said: “Open my eyes, that I may behold wonders out of Your Torah.”)