Torah Ohr · Parshas Noach · Maamar 4
ויאמר ה׳ הן עם אחד ושפה א׳ לכלם…
“And G‑d said: Behold, they are one people, and one language for them all”
Kept on this device only. Sign in to save it on every device
The big idea
Unity and inclusion draw down a light higher than anything a single, separate level can receive, and this is why the builders of the Tower of Babel could really have succeeded. But true unity in holiness comes only through bittul; unity without self-nullification would feed evil, so peace among those who are nullified to G‑d is the only vessel that holds blessing.
The maamar in brief
The maamar asks how G‑d could say of the Tower’s builders that “nothing will be withheld from them,” as though they could act against His will, and what the tower was for. Following Rabbi Chaim Vital, they meant to force a flow of blessing through the holy Names without being good. To explain this, the Alter Rebbe asks why, among the Names that match the Sefiros, Havayah marks even the vessel of Tiferes. Reading Patach Eliyahu (“You are wise, but not with a known wisdom”), he distinguishes the defined Sefiros of Atzilus from their root, “the hidden ten Sefiros,” which the Arizal calls Akudim: all ten in one vessel, like the soul’s powers before they divide into the body’s organs. In Nekudim each Sefirah stood alone, and the vessels shattered (Tohu). In Tikkun they include one another through the Name Mah, which is bittul, and so the Infinite Light rests in them. Tiferes, Yaakov’s attribute, is the joining middle line, so Havayah shines even in its vessel. The builders sought that higher light through unity alone, without bittul; G‑d scattered them because the wicked are better apart, while the righteous united bring blessing — peace is the vessel of blessing.
Outline
- The question of the TowerHow could nothing be withheld from the builders against G‑d’s will, and what was the tower for? Rabbi Chaim Vital: they wanted to compel blessing through the holy Names without being worthy.¶1
- Havayah in the vessel of TiferesThe Names Kel, Elokim and Havayah match the vessels of Chesed, Gevurah and Tiferes; why is even the vessel of Tiferes Havayah? Patach Eliyahu is introduced.¶2
- “You are wise, but not with a known wisdom”The wisdom of the Essence is beyond any defined Sefirah. The Chochmah of Atzilus is “known” because the lower worlds’ wisdom descends from it by cause and effect, while it comes from the higher level as something from nothing.¶3–5
- The hidden Sefiros and Akudim, with the analogy of the soulThe hidden ten Sefiros are the Arizal’s Akudim, all in one vessel, far above Atzilus. Like the soul’s powers, which are one within the soul and divided only in the body’s organs.¶6–9
- The descent to NekudimIn Nekudim each Sefirah stands alone, a single letter torn from a word. Even Akudim is far below the Infinite Light; the kav and the reshimu show the same pattern, with a question left open.¶10
- Tohu and Tikkun; the Name MahTohu shattered because its Sefiros were separate; in Tikkun they form partzufim that include one another, and the Infinite Light rests where there is joining. The inclusion comes through the Name Mah, bittul.¶11
- Tiferes, Torah and peaceTiferes, Yaakov’s middle line, joins Chesed and Gevurah, so Havayah shines even in its vessel. The Torah of Havayah is peace, and peace comes through bittul, the foundation of Torah, service and kindness.¶12
- The builders’ scheme and G‑d’s responseThey wanted the high flow of Havayah through unity alone, refusing bittul. Because unity truly draws from on high, their plan could have worked and fed evil; so G‑d confused their language. Scattering the wicked and gathering the righteous benefits the world, for peace is the vessel of blessing.¶13–17
Key concepts
- The hidden ten Sefirosעשר ספירות הגנוזות
- The roots of the Sefiros as they exist before any division, the “wisdom that is not a known wisdom” of Patach Eliyahu. The maamar identifies them with Akudim.
- Akudim, Nekudim, Berudimעקודים נקודים וברודים
- The Arizal’s three stages of the Sefiros: all bound in one vessel; separate points (Tohu, where the vessels shattered); and interconnected configurations (Tikkun).
- A known wisdomחכמה ידיעא
- The defined Chochmah of Atzilus, with its own vessel. It is called “known” because the knowable wisdom of the lower worlds descends from it step by step.
- Inclusionהתכללות
- Each Sefirah containing all the others. Where there is inclusion and joining, a higher light from the Infinite One rests.
- The Name Mahשם מ״ה
- Havayah spelled out to the value 45 (mah, “what”). It stands for bittul, and it brings about the inclusion of the World of Tikkun.
- Something from nothing versus cause and effectיש מאין / עילה ועלול
- A result with no likeness to its source, as Atzilus comes from what is above it, versus a lower version of its cause, as the lower worlds come from Atzilus (hishtalshelus).
- The kav and the reshimuהקו והרשימו
- After the tzimtzum, the line of light drawn into the vacated space and the trace of light that remained. The kav shines in each world by its measure; the reshimu includes all worlds.
For children · ages 9–13
Unity that is for G‑d
The big idea
When people join together and set themselves aside for G‑d, their unity brings down great blessing, because peace is the vessel that holds blessing.
After the Flood, people built the Tower of Babel, and G‑d said, “Behold, they are one people, and one language for them all; and now nothing will be withheld from them.” How could anyone succeed against G‑d’s will? The Alter Rebbe explains that unity is very powerful. When things are joined together, a higher light rests on them than on any one of them alone. In a world called Tohu, every quality stood alone, and its vessels broke. In the world of Tikkun the qualities join together, and G‑d’s light rests on them. What lets them join is bittul: setting aside one’s own “I” before G‑d. Tiferes, the quality of Yaakov, joins kindness and strictness, and so G‑d’s light shines in it. The builders wanted the great blessing of unity without bittul, without giving themselves over to G‑d. Because unity is so strong, their plan could really have worked and brought blessing to the wrong place, so G‑d mixed up their languages. Unity is holy when it comes with bittul. Torah, prayer and acts of kindness all teach bittul, and peace among people who serve G‑d is the vessel that holds blessing.
The mashal
In the body, seeing and hearing are separate powers, one in the eyes and one in the ears. But inside the soul they are all one, because the soul itself is one. So too, the qualities that are separate below are one in their hidden root.
Questions for the Shabbos table
- Why does joining together bring down more light than standing alone?
- What did the builders of the Tower of Babel want, and what was missing?
- How could you help bring peace among your family or friends this week by setting your own “I” aside a little?
Explanation © likuteitorah.com, CC BY-NC 4.0: retold for children from our translation and explanation, with AI assistance; not yet reviewed by a human editor.
The question of the Tower ¶1
“And G‑d said: Behold, [they are] one people, and one language for them all,” etc., “and now nothing will be withheld from them,” etc.
The maamar opens with G‑d’s words about the builders of the Tower of Babel: because they are one people with one language, nothing they plan will be beyond them. The whole discourse will explain why their unity gave them such power.
ולכאורה תמוה איך לא יבצר3 מהם נגד רצונו ית׳ ומי זה אמר ותהי אם4 ה׳ לא צוה. גם מה הי׳ מחשבותם לעשות מגדל וראשו בשמים5 שכל זה תמוה.
At first glance this is puzzling: how could nothing be withheld from them against His will, blessed be He? “Who is it that spoke and it came to be, if G‑d did not command it?” Also, what were their thoughts in making a tower “with its top in the heavens”? For all this is puzzling.
Two questions. First, nothing can happen against G‑d’s will — as the verse in Lamentations says, nothing comes to be unless He commands it — so how could G‑d say that their scheme, which He opposed, would succeed? Second, what were they really trying to achieve with a tower whose top reaches heaven?
אך הנה בלק״ת להרח״ו ז״ל6 כתב בענין דור הפלגה שכוונתם הי׳ להמשיך להם השפעת טובה בהכרח בכח שמוש השמות7 אף אם לא היו טובים כו׳ ע״ש.
But in the Likkutei Torah of Rabbi Chaim Vital, of blessed memory, he writes concerning the generation of the Dispersion that their intention was to draw down to themselves a flow of good by compulsion, through the power of using the [holy] Names, even though they were not good, etc.; see there.
The Alter Rebbe points to Rabbi Chaim Vital, the Arizal’s chief disciple, who explains that the builders wanted to force a flow of blessing down to themselves by using the holy Names — to receive good from Above even though they themselves were not good. The rest of the maamar explains how such a thing could work and why G‑d stopped it.
The paragraph presents the verse, raises the two questions it provokes — how anything could succeed against G‑d’s will, and what the tower was for — and points to Rabbi Chaim Vital’s answer: they meant to compel a flow of blessing through the power of the holy Names.
The Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah) explains “using the Names” as the adjurations and holy Names known in early generations: by mentioning a Name one draws down the supernal power it represents. A later discourse with the same opening words (Sefer HaMaamarim 5643) takes up directly how a created being can act against G‑d’s will.
Marei mekomos
- 1ויאמר — הן עם אחד · Song of Songs 4:2
- 2ויאמר ה׳ הן עם אחד · Genesis 11:6
- 3ולכאורה תמוה איך לא יבצר · במאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות ע׳ סא ישנם עוד קושיות. וראה גם תו״ח כאן סג, ג ואילך.
- 4מי זה אמר ותהי אם ה׳ לא צוה · Lamentations 3:37
- 5מגדל וראשו בשמים · Genesis 11:4
- 6בלקו״ת להרח״ו ז״ל · באוה״ת בראשית כרך ג תרנז, א ”בלקו״ת מהאריז״ל ס״פ נח בשם מהרח״ו ז״ל” ושם מעתיק הלשון. וכ״ה שם תרסג, א. תרסד, א. אוה״ת בראשית כרך ו תתרסו, ב. שה״ש כרך ג ע׳ א׳יב. מובא גם בד״ה זה תרמ״ג ע׳ א. ושם מפרש איך שייך שנברא יעשה נגד רצונו ית׳.
- 7בכח שמוש השמות · Yevamot 116a
Havayah in the vessel of Tiferes ¶2
2וביאור הענין יובן במ״ש בכהאריז״ל ובפרדס1 בענין ז׳ שמות שאינן נמחקין23 שם אל בחסד שם אלקים בגבורה ושם הוי״ה בתפארת.
The explanation of the matter will be understood from what is written in the writings of the Arizal and in the Pardes concerning the seven Names that may not be erased: the Name Kel in Chesed (kindness), the Name Elokim in Gevurah (restraint), and the Name Havayah in Tiferes (beauty).
The Talmud lists seven Names of G‑d that may not be erased. The Arizal and Rabbi Moshe Cordovero (in his Pardes Rimonim) match these Names with the Sefiros: the Name Kel with Chesed, Elokim with Gevurah, and Havayah (the four-letter Name) with Tiferes.
ופי׳ דהיינו בהכלים דחג״ת כי האור הוא בכולם משם הוי״ה ורק בהכלים הוא בחסד שם אל כו׳.
The explanation is that this refers to the vessels of Chesed, Gevurah and Tiferes; for the light in all of them is from the Name Havayah, and only in the vessels is it the Name Kel in Chesed, etc.
Every Sefirah has a light (the revelation within it) and a vessel (the form that contains it). The Alter Rebbe explains that the light in all of them is from Havayah; the different Names apply only to the vessels, which give each Sefirah its particular character.
ובתפארת אפי׳ בהכלי מאיר שם הוי״ה4 (ועמ״ש בפ׳ בא5 בפסוק בעצם היום הזה). ולהבין זה מפני מה בתפארת הוא הכלי ג״כ מבחי׳ שם הוי״ה6 משא״כ בשארי הספי׳.
But in Tiferes, even in the vessel, the Name Havayah shines (and see what is written in Parshas Bo on the verse “On that very day”). [We need] to understand this: why in Tiferes is the vessel, too, from the level of the Name Havayah, which is not so in the other Sefiros?
Tiferes is the exception: even its vessel is Havayah, not only its light. Why should Tiferes be different from the other Sefiros? This question will be answered in paragraph 12, after a long explanation of how the Sefiros become included in one another.
To prepare the answer, the Alter Rebbe turns to “Elijah opened” (Patach Eliyahu), the famous passage in the introduction to the Tikkunei Zohar. It describes G‑d bringing forth ten “tikkunim,” the ten Sefiros, and matches them to the limbs of a body: Chesed the right arm, Chochmah the brain, Binah the heart.
The paragraph sets up the maamar’s first problem: of the Names of G‑d linked to the Sefiros, why does Havayah mark even the vessel of Tiferes? It then opens the passage of Patach Eliyahu that will supply the answer.
The Alter Rebbe refers to Torah Ohr on Parshas Bo for more on Havayah in the vessel of Tiferes. The Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah, Shemos) notes that Havayah is called “the unique Name” because it is of the level of simple light — and yet here it appears as the vessel of Tiferes.
Marei mekomos
- 1בכתבי האריז״ל ובפרדס · ע״ח שמ״ה פ״ג. ראה לקו״ת ויקרא הוספות נא, ג.
- 2ז׳ שמות שאינן נמחקין · ראה בלקו״ש חכ״א ע׳ 195 הערה 60.
- 3ז׳ שמות שאינן נמחקין · Shevuot 35a:27
- 4ובתפארת אפי׳ בהכלי מאיר שם הוי״ה · ראה ד״ה ויאמר אלקים יהי רקיע — תרס״ה ע׳ מח.
- 5ועמ״ש בפ׳ בא · לקמן ס, א. ובמ״מ לשם.
- 6מפני מה בתפארת הוא הכלי ג״כ מבחי׳ שם הוי״ה · ראה לקמן י, ד. ראה באוה״ת פ׳ שמות כרך א ע׳ קו שכתב ”אין לתמוה . . נתבאר דשם הוי׳ נקרא שם המיוחד להיותו בבחי׳ האור שהוא פשוט כו׳ והרי כשהוא בבחי׳ כלי הת״ת” ע״ש בארוכה. בלקו״ת שה״ש כ, ד מציין לכאן.
- 7במאמר דפתח אליהו · ת״ז בהקדמה.
- 8פתח אליהו אנת הוא דאפיקת עשר תיקונין וקרינן להון עשר ספירן. חסד דרועא ימינא כו׳ חכמה מוחא בינה לבא · Tikkunei Zohar 17a:11–12
“You are wise, but not with a known wisdom” ¶3–5
3וכל ספירה אית לה שם ידיעא כו׳ ואנת לית לך שם ידיעא אנת הוא חכים ולא בחכמה ידיעא אנת הוא מבין ולא בבינה ידיעא.1
“And each Sefirah has a known name, etc., but You have no known name. You are wise, but not with a known wisdom; You understand, but not with a known understanding.”
Patach Eliyahu goes on: every Sefirah has a “known name” — a definite, defined identity — but G‑d Himself has none. He is wise, yet not with any wisdom we could define; He understands, yet not with any understanding we could define.
דהנה תחלה הזכיר חו״ב חכמה מוחא ובינה לבא ומהו שאמר אח״כ אנת הוא חכים דאין ר״ל אנת הוא חכים שמתלבש באותו בחי׳ חכמה שהזכיר תחלה שהוא מהע״ס.
For first it mentioned Chochmah and Binah — “Chochmah, the brain, and Binah, the heart” — so what does it mean when it says afterwards, “You are wise”? For it does not mean “You are wise” in the sense that He is clothed in that very level of Chochmah it mentioned first, which is one of the ten Sefiros.
The difficulty: the passage has just called Chochmah “the brain” and Binah “the heart.” So “You are wise” cannot mean G‑d clothed in that Chochmah, one of the ten Sefiros — otherwise it would simply repeat what was said.
דמדקאמר וכל ספירה אית לה שם ידיעא ואנת לית לך שם ידיעא אנת הוא חכים. זה מורה דפי׳ אנת הוא חכים הוא ג״כ בבחי׳ דלית לך שם ידיעא.
For from its saying, “And each Sefirah has a known name, but You have no known name; You are wise,” this indicates that the meaning of “You are wise” is also in the sense of “You have no known name.”
The context proves it: “You are wise” comes right after “You have no known name.” So G‑d’s being “wise” must itself be beyond any defined name — a wisdom that is not one of the known Sefiros.
Reading Patach Eliyahu closely, the Alter Rebbe shows that “You are wise, but not with a known wisdom” refers to a level of wisdom in G‑d that is beyond the Sefirah of Chochmah and has no defined name.
Marei mekomos
- 1וכל ספירה אית לה שם ידיעא כו׳ ואנת לית לך שם ידיעא אנת הוא חכים ולא בחכמה ידיעא אנת הוא מבין ולא בבינה ידיעא · Tikkunei Zohar 17a:5–8
4ואלו בהתלבשות אור א״ס ב״ה בע״ס דאצי׳ אזי נקרא הוא ית׳ בשם לפי הספי׳ שמתלבש בה
Now, as the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, clothes itself in the ten Sefiros of Atzilus (Emanation), He, blessed be He, is then called by a name according to the Sefirah in which He is clothed,
When the Infinite Light clothes itself in the Sefiros of Atzilus, the highest world, G‑d is called by the Name that belongs to that Sefirah — as in the list of the seven Names above.
כמ״ש בפרדס שער השמות12 באריכות וכנ״ל שם אל בחסד כו׳. וא״כ איך יתכן בחי׳ אנת הוא חכים וגם לית לך שם ידיעא.3
as is written at length in the Pardes, in the Gate of the Names, and as [stated] above: the Name Kel in Chesed, etc. If so, how is it possible [to speak of] the level of “You are wise,” and also “You have no known name”?
This is set out in Pardes Rimonim, in its Gate of the Names. So the question is sharper: if speaking of G‑d as “wise” means He is in a Sefirah, He would then have a known name — how can the Tikkunei Zohar say both “You are wise” and “You have no known name”?
אלא הפי׳ דמתחלה אמר אנת הוא חד ולא בחושבן ואע״ג דאפיקת עשר תקונין4 שהם ע״ס דתקון דאצי׳ אשר כל ספירה היא בחינה מיוחדת מזולתה חכמה חסד כו׳
Rather, the meaning is this: it first said, “You are One, but not in number”; and although “You brought forth ten tikkunim,” which are the ten Sefiros of the Tikkun of Atzilus, in which each Sefirah is a level distinct from the others — Chochmah, Chesed, etc. —
The answer begins from the start of the passage, “You are One, but not in number”: G‑d’s oneness is not the “one” of counting. Yet He brought forth ten distinct Sefiros, the ten of the World of Tikkun in Atzilus, each quite different from the others.
וא״כ הוה ס״ד שגם בהעצמות יש ח״ו ג״כ בחינות מיוחדות חכמה חסד כו׳ לזה אומר שאינו כן כי בחי׳ אנת הוא חכים הוא ולא בחכמה ידיעא.
then one might have thought that in the Essence, too, there are, G‑d forbid, likewise distinct levels, Chochmah, Chesed, etc. To this it says that it is not so; for the level of “You are wise” is “but not with a known wisdom.”
Someone might think that since the Sefiros are distinct, G‑d’s own Essence also has separate parts — a wisdom here, a kindness there. Elijah rules this out: in the Essence there is “wisdom,” but not a defined, known wisdom set apart from the rest.
ר״ל כי חכמה דאצי׳ נק׳ חכמה ידיעא אע״פ שהיא ג״כ באמת למעלה מעלה ממהות חכמה דבי״ע מ״מ כיון
The Chochmah of Atzilus is called “a known wisdom.” It is immeasurably higher than the wisdom of the three lower worlds, Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah; yet the next part explains why even it is still called “known.”
שהיא מקור ושרש להן נקראת חכמה ידיעא והיינו ששם הוא בחי׳ כלים ממש חכמה יש לה כלי בפ״ע בינה בפ״ע.
it is their source and root, it is called “a known wisdom.” That is, there it is the level of actual vessels: Chochmah has a vessel of its own, Binah [a vessel] of its own.
Because it is the source of their wisdom, and because in Atzilus there are real, separate vessels — Chochmah in its own vessel and Binah in its own — the Chochmah of Atzilus counts as a defined, “known” wisdom.
The paragraph resolves the contradiction: “You have no known name” speaks of G‑d’s Essence, where there are no separate attributes, while “known wisdom” is the Chochmah of Atzilus, a distinct Sefirah in its own vessel.
In the parallel transcript (Maamarei Admur HaZaken) the Alter Rebbe explains this through “the ten hidden Sefiros,” which the maamar introduces in paragraph 6.
Marei mekomos
- 1כמ״ש בפרדס שער השמות · ש״כ.
- 2כמ״ש בפרדס שער השמות · Pardes Rimmonim 20:1–4
- 3איך יתכן בחי׳ אנת הוא חכים וגם לית לך שם ידיעא · במאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות שם ע׳ סד מבאר זה בענין ע״ס הגנוזות. וראה בלקו״ש חי״ט ע׳ 419 בשולי הגליון. בלקו״ת שה״ש ד, ג מציין לכאן.
- 4אנת הוא חד ולא בחושבן ואע״ג דאפיקת עשר תקונין · Tikkunei Zohar 17a:9–11
5וזהו דייקא בע״ס דאצילו׳. אבל מה דאנת הוא חכים הוא לא בחכמה ידיעא כלל עד שהתהוות חכמה דאצי׳ מבחי׳ אנת הוא חכים הוא
And this is specifically in the ten Sefiros of Atzilus. But that of which [it says] “You are wise” is not with a known wisdom at all — so much so that the coming into being of the Chochmah of Atzilus from the level of “You are wise” is
The “known” Sefiros belong to Atzilus. The wisdom of “You are wise” is not a known wisdom at all, and the gap between them is total: the Chochmah of Atzilus comes from it the way something comes from nothing.
ע״ד התהוות יש מאין ולא בחי׳ עילה ועלול כלל ולא ע״ד התהוות חכמה דבי״ע מחכמה דאצי׳ שזה נק׳ ג״כ השתלשלות שלכך נק׳ חכמה דאצי׳ חכמה ידיעא ואיך היא ידיעא
in the manner of coming into being as something from nothing (yesh me’ayin), and not [in the manner of] cause and effect at all; and not like the coming into being of the Chochmah of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah from the Chochmah of Atzilus, which is also called the chain of descent (hishtalshelus). This is why the Chochmah of Atzilus is called “a known wisdom.” And how is it “known”?
Two kinds of coming into being are contrasted. Something from nothing (yesh me’ayin) means the result bears no likeness to its source; cause and effect means the effect is a lower version of its cause. The wisdom of the lower worlds comes from the Chochmah of Atzilus in the second way, and so it counts as part of the chain of descent (hishtalshelus).
אלא שלפי שחכמה דבי״ע נתהווה ממנה ע״י השתלשלו׳ והיא גלויה וידועה לכך גם החכמה דאצי׳ נק׳ חכמה ידיעא.1
Only because the Chochmah of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah came into being from it by way of hishtalshelus, and it is revealed and known — therefore the Chochmah of Atzilus, too, is called “a known wisdom.”
This explains the name “known”: the lower worlds’ wisdom, which comes step by step from the Chochmah of Atzilus, is revealed and knowable. Since what descends from it is known, its source, the Chochmah of Atzilus, is also called “known.”
The paragraph distinguishes the unbridgeable leap from “You are wise” to the Chochmah of Atzilus (something from nothing) from the continuous descent from Atzilus to the lower worlds (cause and effect), and explains why Atzilus’s Chochmah is called “known.”
In Likkutei Torah (Behar), to which the note points, the Alter Rebbe uses a parallel: the letters of a written teaching bear no comparison to the insight they carry; for one who cannot understand, the insight stays entirely hidden, and only a trace of it reaches him.
Marei mekomos
- 1לכך גם החכמה דאצי׳ נק׳ חכמה ידיעא · ע׳ בלקו״ת פ׳ בהר מג, ג [כ]. בלק״ת נשא כב, ד מציין לכאן.
The hidden Sefiros and Akudim, with the analogy of the soul ¶6–9
6וכמו ע״ד שנק׳ אדם דאצי׳ אדם דעשייה. משא״כ בחי׳ אנת הוא חכים הוא לא בחכמה ידיעא וזהו הנק׳ בלשון הפרדס עשר ספירות הגנוזות1 במאצילן שע״ז אמר אנת הוא חכים כו׳.
And it is like the way that Adam of Atzilus is called Adam of Asiyah. But the level of “You are wise” is not with a known wisdom; and this is what is called, in the language of the Pardes, “the ten Sefiros hidden in their Emanator,” of which it said, “You are wise,” etc.
“Adam” (Man) is the Kabbalistic name for the full ten-Sefirah structure of a world. Even the Adam of Atzilus, so lofty compared with what is below it, is like the lowest world, Asiyah, compared with what is above it. The wisdom of “You are wise” is what Pardes Rimonim calls “the ten Sefiros hidden in their Emanator,” the roots of the Sefiros as they are within G‑d Himself.
וענין זה עולה בקנה אחד עם מ״ש בע״ח שיש עקודים נקודים וברודים והיינו שבעקודים כל הע״ס הם עקודים בכלי א׳ ואין שם שום
This matter is fully of one piece with what is written in Etz Chaim: that there are Akudim, Nekudim and Berudim. That is, in Akudim all ten Sefiros are bound together in one vessel, and there is no
The Arizal’s Etz Chaim describes three early stages of the Sefiros: Akudim (“bound together”), Nekudim (“points”) and Berudim (“speckled,” or interconnected). In Akudim all ten are held in a single vessel, with no division among them.
התחלקות כלל לע״ס2 ובנקודים הוא שנחלקו לעשר נקודות וברודים הוא עולם התקון בחי׳ פרצופים כו׳ וז״ש אליהו אנת הוא דאפיקת עשר תקונין שהם ע״ס דברודים.
division there at all into ten Sefiros; in Nekudim they were divided into ten points; and Berudim is the World of Tikkun (Rectification), the level of partzufim (configurations), etc. And this is what Elijah said: “You are He Who brought forth ten tikkunim,” which are the ten Sefiros of Berudim.
In Nekudim the Sefiros separate into ten isolated points (this, the maamar will explain, is the World of Tohu, of chaos). In Berudim, the World of Tikkun, they form partzufim — full configurations in which each Sefirah includes the others. Elijah’s “ten tikkunim” are these Sefiros of Berudim.
אמנם שרשם ומקורם שהם בחי׳ עקודים הרי הם בכלי א׳ ממש כל הבחי׳ חו״ב כו׳ והיינו לפי שהם למעלה מעלה ממהות בחי׳ חכמה ובינה הידועים דאצילות
However, their root and source, which is the level of Akudim — there they are literally in one vessel, all the levels, Chochmah and Binah, etc. This is because they are far, far above the essence of the known levels of Chochmah and Binah of Atzilus.
Their source, Akudim, is where Chochmah, Binah and the rest are literally in one vessel. That is possible because this level is far above the defined Chochmah and Binah of Atzilus.
(והתהוות חכמה ובינה דאצילות הוא יש מאין היינו ע״י צמצום א״ק וצמצום הדיקנא3 עד דאו״א יונקים רק מבחי׳ שערות כו׳ משא״כ מאצי׳ לבריאה אינו רק ע״י פרסא שאינו מערך הצמצומים אלו שבין א״ק לאצילות ולכן נק׳4 השתלשלות)
(And the coming into being of the Chochmah and Binah of Atzilus is something from nothing, that is, through the tzimtzum (contraction) of Adam Kadmon and the tzimtzum of the Beard, until Abba and Imma draw nourishment only from the level of the hairs, etc.; whereas from Atzilus to Beriah it is only through a parsa (partition), which is not of the order of these contractions between Adam Kadmon and Atzilus; and therefore it is called hishtalshelus.)
A bracketed aside: between Adam Kadmon (the primordial level above Atzilus) and Atzilus there are drastic contractions — of Adam Kadmon, and of the “Beard” — so that Abba and Imma (Chochmah and Binah of Atzilus) receive only through the “hairs,” thin channels of light. That is a leap of something from nothing. Between Atzilus and Beriah there is only a parsa, a partition, not a contraction of that order, so the passage is a continuous chain of descent.
ולכן נקראים בשם ע״ס הגנוזות. ויובן עד״מ כי הנה כחות הנפש5 המתלבשים באברי הגוף הרי הם מתחלקים כל כח מהות בפ״ע ובאבר מיוחד בפ״ע.
Therefore they are called by the name “the hidden ten Sefiros.” This will be understood by way of analogy: the powers of the soul that clothe themselves in the limbs of the body are divided, each power a distinct entity of its own, and in a particular limb of its own.
That is why they are called “hidden.” To illustrate, the Alter Rebbe turns to the human soul: its powers, once clothed in the body, are separate from each other, each working through its own organ.
כח הראיה בעין וכח השמיעה באוזן וכח המעשה בידים. וכן בכחות עליונים מהן כח השכל במוח וכח המדות בלב.
The power of sight is in the eye, the power of hearing in the ear, and the power of action in the hands. And so too among the higher powers: the power of intellect is in the brain, and the power of the emotive attributes (middos) in the heart.
Sight works through the eye, hearing through the ear, action through the hands; and the higher powers too — intellect in the brain, emotions in the heart. In the body, each power is distinct and has its own place.
The paragraph identifies “You are wise” with the ten hidden Sefiros, matches this to the Arizal’s Akudim, Nekudim and Berudim, explains why the leap to Atzilus is “something from nothing” while the descent below it is a chain, and begins an analogy from the powers of the soul.
In Likkutei Torah (Bechukosai), cited by the note, the Alter Rebbe says that “the ten hidden Sefiros” of the Geonim correspond, in the Arizal’s terms, to the ten Sefiros of Atik and Arich Anpin — the level of Keser, which is above all the Sefiros of Atzilus. The Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah) notes the Pardes’s view that the hidden Sefiros are the roots of the vessels.
Marei mekomos
- 1בלשון הפרדס עשר ספירות הגנוזות · נתבאר בלקו״ת בחקותי מו, ג. ובארוכה ספר הערכים-חב״ד כרך ג ע׳ רכז ואילך. אוה״ת ענינים ע׳ קא ואילך. שם ע׳ קע מבאר שיטת הפרדס שענין ע״ס הגנוזות הם שרשי הכלים. וראה שם ע׳ של ואילך. באוה״ת סידור ע׳ קנה מציין לכאן.
- 2ואין שם שום התחלקות כלל לע״ס · נתבאר בארוכה באוה״ת בשלח ע׳ שצד ואילך. בד״ה כל הנהנה תרנ״ב ע׳ ק ואילך. אוה״ת ענינים ע׳ שיב. סה״מ תרל״ג כרך א ע׳ שטז. בלקו״ת אמור לח, א מציין לכאן.
- 3היינו ע״י צמצום א״ק וצמצום הדיקנא · ראה תניא שער היחוד והאמונה פ״ט בהגהה. שרש מצות התפלה פרק לט (רלז, א).
- 4ולכן נק׳ בשם ע״ס הגנוזות · במאמרי אדה״ז — פרשיות ע׳ סד ”דלכאורה דבר זה כפלא יחשב דאם הן גנוזות בהעלם העצמות ממש א״כ איך ימצאו במספר ע״ס דוקא הלא אור העצמות הוא אור פשוט בתכלית למעלה מבחי׳ התחלקות לגמרי. ראה תורת חיים כאן סט, א דמבאר הקושיא יותר ”דאיך ימצא המספר שהוא הגבול מלמעלה מן המספר ובלתי בע״ג” ע״ש בארוכה.
- 5ויובן עד״מ כי הנה כחות הנפש · נתבאר בארוכה בתו״ח שמות לז, ב (צילום כת״י הר״ש סופר). בדרך מצותיך עו, ב. ובאוה״ת שמות כרך ז ע׳ ב׳תצא ואילך. אוה״ת ענינים ע׳ רסט. שכח. המשל מכחות הנפש — ראה לקמן יג, ג ובארוכה בד״ה הגהות לפתח אליהו — תרנ״ח. בלקו״ת שה״ש ד, ב מציין לכאן: מהות הנפש שכל ומדות כו׳ (ר״ל שהוא מקור השכל והמדות כמ״ש בביאור ע״פ ולא תשבית מלח ובד״ה הן עם אחד ובד״ה פתח אלי׳).
7והנה כל כחות אלו נמשכים ומתפשטים מן הנפש האחת שהיא עצם1 א׳ וא״כ החילוקי כחות הנ״ל כשהיו עדיין כלולים בהנפש ודאי היו כולם בהתכללות אחת ממש בלי שום התחלקות וכמו שהנפש היא עצם א׳.
Now all these powers are drawn and spread forth from the one soul, which is a single essence. If so, the distinct powers mentioned above, when they were still included in the soul, were certainly all in literally one inclusion, without any division, just as the soul is a single essence.
All of the soul’s powers come from one soul, and the soul is a single, simple essence. So before they were drawn into the body, while still within the soul, they must have been completely merged, with no separation at all.
The analogy’s central point: powers that are separate in the body are one within the soul, because the soul itself is one.
The Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah, Inyanim) adds that otherwise the soul would be divided into 248 distinct parts, like the body’s limbs — which cannot be, since it is one spiritual essence.
Marei mekomos
- 1שהיא עצם א׳ · באוה״ת ענינים ע׳ רסט ”שלפ״ז יהי׳ בההתחלקות לרמ״ח חלקים שונים כו׳ וזה אינו שהוא עצם א׳ רוחני”.
8ואיך הוא זה והלא אנו רואים ראיה ושמיעה הם שני בחינות שונות זו מזו אלא ודאי משום כשהיו בחי׳
And how can this be? Do we not see that sight and hearing are two levels different from one another? Rather, it must certainly be that when
An objection: sight and hearing are plainly different things. How can they be “one” in the soul?
כחות אלו בנפש הם בבחי׳ דקה ורוחני׳ יותר לאין שיעור מכשהם אח״כ בגוף החומרי עד ששם הם כולם מיוחדים כאלו הם רק דבר1 א׳ ממש.
these powers were in the soul, they were in a state infinitely finer and more spiritual than afterwards, when they are in the physical body — so much so that there they are all united as if they were literally only one thing.
The answer: within the soul these powers exist in a form infinitely subtler and more spiritual than in the body, so there they are truly united as one. This will serve as the model for the Sefiros, which are ten distinct things in Atzilus but one in their hidden root.
The paragraph answers the obvious objection to the analogy: the difference between sight and hearing belongs to their bodily form; in the soul’s subtler state they are one.
Marei mekomos
- 1ששם הם כולם מיוחדים כאלו הם רק דבר א׳ ממש · ראה באוה״ת שמות כרך ז ע׳ ב׳תצב. דרך מצותיך עז, א.
In the same way the analogue will be understood: the ten Sefiros of Atzilus are each a level in a vessel of its own — Chochmah a level of its own, and Chesed of its own, etc.
Now the analogy is applied. The Sefiros of Atzilus are like the soul’s powers once they are in the body: each is distinct, with its own vessel — Chochmah here, Chesed there.
אבל בשרשן בבחי׳ ע״ס הגנוזות הם בעילוי יותר דק ונעלה לאין קץ עד ששם הם כולם רק דבר א׳ ממש וזהו שהן עקודים בכלי א׳ ממש.
But in their root, at the level of the hidden ten Sefiros, they are in a state infinitely finer and more exalted, so much so that there they are all literally only one thing; and this is [the meaning of] their being Akudim, [bound together] in literally one vessel.
Their root, the hidden ten Sefiros, is like the soul’s powers within the soul itself: so subtle and exalted that they are simply one. That is what “Akudim” means — all the Sefiros bound together in a single vessel.
וזה שבאצי׳ חכמה וחסד הם שני דברים שונים זמ״ז היינו לפי שחכמה דאצי׳ אינה בערך כלל מהות החכמה דעקודים וכנ״ל שהיא הנק׳ חכמה ידיעא.
And the fact that in Atzilus Chochmah and Chesed are two things different from each other is because the Chochmah of Atzilus bears no comparison at all to the essence of the Chochmah of Akudim, and, as [stated] above, it is what is called “a known wisdom.”
Why then are Chochmah and Chesed separate things in Atzilus? Because the Chochmah of Atzilus is a different order of being from the Chochmah of Akudim, not a slightly lower version of it. That is why it is called “a known wisdom,” while the Chochmah of Akudim is not.
The analogy of the soul is applied: the Sefiros are separate in Atzilus, as the powers are in the body’s organs, but one in their hidden root in Akudim, as the powers are within the soul.
In Likkutei Torah (Behar), to which the note points, the Alter Rebbe calls Akudim, where the ten Sefiros are bound in one vessel and not yet divided, “Adam of Yetzirah”; Adam Kadmon, higher still, he calls “Adam of Beriah,” because relative to the Emanator even it comes into being as something from nothing.
Marei mekomos
- 1שו״ה ועד״ז — כל בחי׳ בכלי בפ״ע · ראה לקו״ת בהר מג, ד.
The descent to Nekudim ¶10
10והנה אח״כ נמשך בחי׳ עולם הנקודים ושם כל ספי׳ בפ״ע והן עשר נקודות. והיינו שכבר ירדו בירידה גדולה ממדרגת ע״ס דעקודים שהן כולם דבר א׳ כנ״ל משא״כ בע״ס דנקודים וזהו כמו בחי׳ חכמה ידיעא כו׳.
Now afterwards the level of the World of Nekudim was drawn forth, and there each Sefirah is on its own, and they are ten points. That is, they had already descended in a great descent from the rank of the ten Sefiros of Akudim, which are all one thing, as [stated] above — which is not so in the ten Sefiros of Nekudim; and this is like the level of “a known wisdom,” etc.
After Akudim came the World of Nekudim (“points”), where each Sefirah stands alone as a separate point. This is a great descent from Akudim, where all are one; the Sefiros of Nekudim are now defined and separate, like “a known wisdom.”
(והרי מובן גודל הצמצום והירידה כי מלבד זה שבעקודים וע״ס הגנוזות היו בעילוי רב יותר עד שנק׳ חכים ולא בחכמה ידיעא כנ״ל.
(And so the greatness of the contraction and the descent is understood: for besides the fact that in Akudim and the hidden ten Sefiros they were at a much greater elevation, so much so that it is called “wise, but not with a known wisdom,” as [stated] above,
A long bracketed aside explains how great the descent from Akudim to Nekudim is. The first difference has already been given: in Akudim wisdom is so exalted that it is “wise, but not with a known wisdom.”
הרי עוד זאת כי התם כיון שכולן בכלי א׳ ואין בהם שום התחלקות א״כ בהמשכת בחי׳ חכמה עד״מ הרי יש בזה כל הע״ס הגנוזות יחד ולא בחי׳ חכמה בפ״ע כיון דהתם אין חכמה בחי׳ בפ״ע כלל לבדה.
there is this besides: since there they are all in one vessel and there is no division in them at all, then in drawing forth the level of Chochmah, for example, all the hidden ten Sefiros are present in it together, and not the level of Chochmah on its own, since there Chochmah is not a level on its own, by itself, at all.
The second difference: because in Akudim everything is in one vessel, whatever flows from its “Chochmah” is really all ten hidden Sefiros at once. There is no such thing there as Chochmah by itself.
כ״א כל הע״ס הגנוזות הם דבר1 א׳ ממש. א״כ אין שייך כלל לומר המשכת חכמה בפ״ע כ״א המשכת דבר הנק׳ ע״ס הגנוזות כו׳ יחד.
Rather, all the hidden ten Sefiros are literally one thing. If so, it is not at all fitting to speak of drawing forth Chochmah on its own, but only of drawing forth the thing called the hidden ten Sefiros, etc., together.
So in Akudim one cannot even speak of drawing down Chochmah alone. What flows is the single whole called the hidden ten Sefiros.
משא״כ בבחי׳ ע״ס דנקודים נתצמצם להיות חכמה נמשכת בחי׳ א׳ לבדה ממש וכן חסד כו׳.
Whereas in the level of the ten Sefiros of Nekudim it was contracted, so that Chochmah is drawn forth as literally one level alone, and likewise Chesed, etc.
In Nekudim the light was contracted, so that Chochmah flows out as one level alone, Chesed alone, and so on. The whole has broken up into parts.
והרי מובן שאין ערוך כלל בחי׳ חכמה כשהיא בפ״ע לבחי׳ הכוללת כל הע״ס יחד ממש וכמו שאין ערוך אות אחת הנפרדת מתיבת למשפחותיכם234 עד״מ לגבי התיבה כולה כשהיו כל האותיות יחד.
And so it is understood that the level of Chochmah on its own bears no comparison at all to the level that includes all ten Sefiros literally together — just as, by way of analogy, a single letter separated from the word lemishpechoseichem (“by your families”) bears no comparison to the whole word, when all the letters were together.
A single attribute on its own cannot compare with the whole that contains all ten together. The Alter Rebbe’s illustration is a long word from the Torah, lemishpechoseichem: one letter taken out of it is nothing compared with the whole word, which carries meaning only when all its letters are together.
מלבד מה שבחי׳ החכמה זו כשהיא בפ״ע נק׳ חכמה ידיעא משא״כ החכמה דע״ס דעקודים נק׳ חכים ולא בחכמה ידיעא. וגם ע״ז שייך אנת הוא חד ולא בחושבן כיון שאין שם בחי׳ התחלקות עשר ספירות כנ״ל.
This is besides the fact that this level of Chochmah, when it is on its own, is called “a known wisdom,” whereas the Chochmah of the ten Sefiros of Akudim is called “wise, but not with a known wisdom.” And to this, too, “You are One, but not in number” applies, since there there is no division into ten Sefiros, as [stated] above.
On top of that, Chochmah on its own is “a known wisdom,” while the Chochmah of Akudim is “wise, but not with a known wisdom.” And since there is no division into ten there, Akudim can also be described as “One, but not in number.”
ומ״מ אור א״ס ב״ה עצמו הוא למעלה מעלה מבחי׳ עקודים כי גם עקודים נק׳ אדם דבריאה לגבי א״ס ב״ה ועמ״ש ע״פ את שבתותי תשמרו5 בענין שבת תתאה ושבת עלאה).
Nevertheless, the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, itself is far, far above the level of Akudim; for even Akudim is called Adam of Beriah relative to the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He. And see what is written on [the verse] “You shall keep My Sabbaths,” concerning the lower Shabbos and the higher Shabbos.)
Still, Akudim is not G‑d’s Essence. The Infinite Light itself is far above it; compared with the Infinite One, even Akudim is only “Adam of Beriah,” a created level. The Alter Rebbe refers to his explanation of “You shall keep My Sabbaths,” where two kinds of “Shabbos” stand for two levels of self-nullification.
ועד״ז ההפרש בין הארת הקו להרשימו6 שנשאר אחר הצמצום ומקום פנוי. דהנה הארת הקו מאיר בכל עולם לפי ערכו7 אך הרשימו היא בחי׳ הכוללת לכל העולמות.8
And in the same way [is] the difference between the illumination of the kav (line of light) and the reshimu (impression) that remained after the tzimtzum (contraction) and the vacated space. For the illumination of the kav shines in each world according to its measure, but the reshimu is the level that includes all the worlds.
The same pattern is found in another pair of Kabbalistic concepts. After the first tzimtzum, when the Infinite Light withdrew to leave a “vacated space,” a thin line of light, the kav, was drawn back into it, and a trace of the withdrawn light, the reshimu, remained. The kav shines into each world according to that world’s capacity, like the separate Sefiros; the reshimu is one general level that includes all worlds, like Akudim.
(וצ״ע דמבואר בכמה מקומות דהקו גבוה הרבה מהרשימו וע׳ באגה״ק מאמר איהו וחיוהי9 הארת הקו והארה דהארה והארה דהארה דהארה10 כו׳):
(This requires further study, for it is explained in several places that the kav is much higher than the reshimu. And see in Iggeres HaKodesh, the discourse “He and His life-force”: the illumination of the kav, and a glimmer of a glimmer, and a glimmer of a glimmer of a glimmer, etc.)
The Alter Rebbe marks a difficulty: in many places the kav is described as far higher than the reshimu, and the Tanya’s Iggeres HaKodesh speaks of the illumination of the kav and of ever-fainter “glimmers of glimmers” below it. How can the reshimu then be compared to the higher, inclusive level? He leaves the question open for further study.
The paragraph describes the descent from Akudim to Nekudim, where the Sefiros first became separate, explains why a single attribute on its own is incomparable to the undivided whole, and notes that even Akudim is far below the Infinite Light. It closes with a parallel, left open to question, between the kav and the reshimu.
On the difficulty about the kav and the reshimu, the Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah) suggests that in revelation the kav is higher, since it brings revelation into Atzilus and above, and its root is in the Infinite Light above the tzimtzum. The reshimu, however, is light that the tzimtzum never touched at all. He notes that the Mikdash Melech identifies the reshimu with the Or HaKadmon (the Primordial Light).
Marei mekomos
- 1כ״א כל הע״ס הגנוזות הם דבר א׳ ממש · באוה״ת ענינים ע׳ רפב ואילך מבאר שיטת האריז״ל בעקודים איך הם נקראים ע״ס. וראה שם בעמוד רפד מה שמעתיק מהנחות הר״פ ע׳ קסט. וראה גם במאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות פ׳ נח ע׳ סו. וע׳ סז. באוה״ת ענינים ע׳ רפה וכנראה שמציין לד״ה זה, שכאן מבאר דע״ס הגנוזות לא שייך בא״ס רק הן בעקודים וכן מבואר בכמה דרושים, ושם מציין להנחות הר״פ הנ״ל דשם משמע דאפי׳ באור א״ס הבלתי מוגבל שלמעלה מהקו שייך ספירות ע״ש.
- 2מתיבת למשפחותיכם · Menachot 30a
- 3למשפחותיכם · Exodus 12:21
- 4למשפחותיכם · Numbers 33:54
- 5ועמ״ש ע״פ את שבתותי תשמרו · ראה לקו״ת בהר מג, ב.
- 6שו״ה בענין — ועד״ז ההפרש בין הארת הקו להרשימו · מובא באוה״ת כי תצא ע׳ תתקכד.
- 7הארת הקו מאיר בכל עולם לפי ערכו · ראה באוה״ת בשלח ע׳ תצה. ובביאוה״ז לכ״ק הצ״צ כרך א ע׳ פח ואילך בענין המשכה שע״י הקו.
- 8בחי׳ הכוללת לכל העולמות · באוה״ת פ׳ כי תצא ע׳ תתקכד מציין ע״ז כ״ק אדמו״ר הצ״צ ”ועי׳ במק״מ שהרשימו הו״ע האור הקדמון” ע״ש בארוכה. ובמאמרי אדמו״ר הזקן תקס״ח ע׳ שכח.
- 9וע׳ באגה״ק מאמר איהו וחיוהי · Tanya, Iggeres HaKodesh 20:22
- 10שו״ה וצ״ע . . דהארה דהארה · ראה ביאור ע״ז באוה״ת פ׳ נח (מלקו״ת לג׳ פרשיות) תתשצד, א. ובדף תתרסח, ב מתרץ וז״ל: ”ואולי י״ל שבענין הגילוי הקו גבוה יותר שע״י הארת הקו נמשך הגילוי באצי׳ ובלמעלה מהאצי׳, וגם כי שורש ענין בקיעת הקו הוא באוא״ס שלמעלה מהצמצום שהוא בוקע להיות נמשך בחי׳ צמצום הקו כו׳, אמנם הרשימו היא בלתי צמצום כלל, שהרי מה שנתצמצם עד שלא נשאר רק רשימו . . נסתלק לצדדי׳ . . ומה שנשאר בבחי׳ הרשימו ה״ז אור שלא נגע בו הצמצום כלל” ע״ש עוד פי׳. ובכרך ז תתשצד, א כתב שכן דעת המק״מ בפ׳ בראשית בביאור בריש הורמנותא. וכן מציין לזה בד״ה קן ציפור אוה״ת כי תצא ע׳ תתקכד. בענין הצ״ע ראה בספר שערי ענינים בדא״ח כרך ב שער החמישי סי׳ ח שמבאר בארוכה הצ״ע של הצ״צ, ומה שכתב כ״ק מהר״ש על ענין זה. וראה גם באוה״ת ענינים ע׳ קסו. ובארוכה בהמשך ר״ה תרס״א ע׳ קסו ואילך. המשך יונתי תר״מ פרק ו. תער״ב ח״ג ע׳ א׳רסט מציין להלקו״ת לג״פ.
Tohu and Tikkun; the Name Mah ¶11
11והנה בעולם הנקודים12 הי׳ שבה״כ שזהו ענין עולם התהו והיינו לפי שהיו רק בבחי׳ נקודות כל3 א׳ בחי׳ בפ״ע ואח״כ עולם הברודים הוא עולם התקון שנעשו בבחי׳ פרצופים שהוא להיות בחי׳ התכללות.
Now in the World of Nekudim there was the shattering of the vessels, which is the matter of the World of Tohu (chaos); that is because they were only in the state of points, each a level on its own. And afterwards the World of Berudim is the World of Tikkun (rectification), in which they became partzufim (configurations), which is to be a state of inclusion,
In Nekudim the vessels shattered; this is the World of Tohu (chaos). They broke because each Sefirah was a lone point that could not join the others. In the World of Tikkun (Berudim) the Sefiros became partzufim, full configurations in which each includes the others.
שלא יהיה חכמה בפ״ע כ״א תהיה כלולה ג״כ מכל הע״ס ונק׳ פרצוף אבא וכן פרצוף ז״א4 שעיקרו בחי׳ המדות
so that Chochmah would not be on its own, but would also be included of all ten Sefiros, and it is called the partzuf of Abba; and likewise the partzuf of Z’eir Anpin, whose essence is the level of the emotive attributes (middos),
In Tikkun, Chochmah does not stand alone: it contains all ten Sefiros within itself and becomes the partzuf of Abba (“Father”). Likewise Z’eir Anpin, the configuration of the emotions, contains all the Sefiros.
אך כולן היו כלולים יחד וגם המוחי׳ דאו״א מאירים בהם. וה״ז מעלה יתירה מבבחי׳ נקודים שהי׳ רק כל בחי׳ בפ״ע חסד לבדו וגבורה לבדו.
but they were all included together, and the mochin (intellect) of Abba and Imma, too, shine within them. And this is a surpassing advantage over the level of Nekudim, where each level was only on its own: Chesed by itself and Gevurah by itself.
In Z’eir Anpin all the emotions are included together, and the intellect of Abba and Imma shines within them. This is a great advantage over Nekudim, where Chesed stood alone and Gevurah stood alone.
אבל בתקון יש בחי׳ התכללות והתחברות (כמו עד״מ חבור האותיות שנפרדו להיות מצטרפין יחד לתיבות ומ״מ אין זה כמו בחי׳ עקודים שהיו כולן דבר א׳ ממש עד שהיו רק בכלי א׳
But in Tikkun there is inclusion and joining (as, by way of analogy, the joining of letters that were separate so that they combine together into words. Nevertheless, this is not like the level of Akudim, where they were all literally one thing, so much so that they were only in one vessel;
The inclusion of Tikkun is like separate letters joining to form words. But it is not the oneness of Akudim, where everything was truly one in a single vessel.
משא״כ בברודים שכל ספירה יש לה כלי בפ״ע רק שמתכללים מכל הע״ס וכו׳ ומ״מ ע״י התכללות זו מאיר בהן הארה עליונה מא״ס ב״ה כי אור א״ס ב״ה מאיר ונמשך דוקא במקום שיש חבור והתכללות.
whereas in Berudim each Sefirah has a vessel of its own, only that they are included of all ten Sefiros, etc. Nevertheless, through this inclusion a supernal illumination from the Infinite One, blessed be He, shines in them; for the Infinite Light, blessed be He, shines and is drawn specifically in a place where there is joining and inclusion.
In Tikkun each Sefirah keeps its own vessel and yet includes all the others. Through this joining a higher light from the Infinite One shines in them, because the Infinite Light rests specifically where there is joining and inclusion.
וכמו למטה זכר ונקבה בראם ועי״ז ויברך אותם5 ע״י ההתכללות כו׳ וכמו בצירוף עשרה אומרים דבר שבקדושה דאכל בי עשרה שכינתא שריא6 משא״כ אם היו אלו העשרה כ״א בפ״ע כו׳).
So too below: “Male and female He created them,” and through this, “and He blessed them” — through the inclusion, etc. And so too, when ten are joined together they say a matter of holiness, for “over every ten the Shechinah rests” — which is not so if these ten were each on their own, etc.)
Two examples from our world: G‑d blessed man and woman only once they were joined, as the verse says, “Male and female He created them, and He blessed them”; and ten Jews who join together can say the prayers of holiness that need a minyan, because the Shechinah rests on a group of ten — which is not so for ten individuals each on his own.
וזהו ע״י שם מ״ה המאיר בעולם התקון7 ששרשו למעלה מבחי׳ נקודים כי הוא שם מ״ה דא״ק8 שהוא בחי׳ האור הכללי ע״ד הנ״ל בעקודים ע״כ ממנו נמשך התקון שיהיה נעשה ההתכללות בברודים
And this is through the Name Mah that shines in the World of Tikkun, whose root is above the level of Nekudim; for it is the Name Mah of Adam Kadmon, which is the level of the all-inclusive light, in the manner mentioned above regarding Akudim. Therefore from it the Tikkun is drawn forth, so that inclusion comes about in Berudim.
What brings about the inclusion of Tikkun is the Name Mah — Havayah spelled out so that its letters total 45, the numerical value of mah. It is rooted in Adam Kadmon, above Nekudim, and like Akudim it is a general, all-inclusive light; that is why it can bring the separate Sefiros together.
והיינו כי שם מ״ה הוא בחי׳ בטול מלשון ונחנו מה9 וההתכללות נמשך מחמת הבטול לאור א״ס ב״ה. ולכן ע״י שם מ״ה נעשה ג״כ ההתכללות בע״ס דתיקון כו׳:
That is, the Name Mah is the level of self-nullification (bittul), from the expression “and what (mah) are we?” — and the inclusion is drawn forth because of the bittul before the Infinite Light, blessed be He. Therefore, through the Name Mah, the inclusion in the ten Sefiros of Tikkun also comes about, etc.
Mah means “what,” as when Moshe and Aharon said, “And what are we?” — an expression of self-nullification. The Sefiros can include one another only when each sets aside its own separate existence before the Infinite Light; so the Name Mah, which is bittul, is what makes the Tikkun.
The paragraph explains that Tohu shattered because each Sefirah stood alone, while Tikkun endures because its Sefiros include one another; this inclusion draws a higher light from the Infinite One, and it comes about through the Name Mah, the quality of self-nullification.
The parallel transcript (Maamarei Admur HaZaken) distinguishes three stages: a point (nekudah), which is not divided into ten; a Sefirah, where each of the ten contains ten (Chochmah of Chesed, Chesed of Chesed …); and a partzuf, where each of those is further included of ten again. That full inclusion is the essence of Tikkun, called the partzuf of Adam. It also cites Etz Chaim that the inclusion of Tikkun comes from the illumination of the new Name Mah that shines from Adam Kadmon.
Marei mekomos
- 1בעולם הנקודים הי׳ שבה״כ · ראה ע״ח שער ז פ״א. דרך מצותיך ביאור ושבתה קע, א.
- 2בעולם הנקודים הי׳ שבה״כ · Sefer Etz Chaim 7:1
- 3לפי שהיו רק בבחי׳ נקודות כל א׳ בחי׳ בפ״ע · וכ״ה לקמן. ובמאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות ע׳ סט מבאר זה יותר שכ׳ ”אבל כאו״א אינו מתחלק עוד לי׳” ע״ש בארוכה. ונתבאר בתו״ח כאן עה, ג בענין ב׳ מיני התחלקות דתהו ותיקון.
- 4ונק׳ פרצוף אבא וכן פרצוף ז״א · ההפרש בין נקודה ספירה ופרצוף (המובא בע״ח שער הפרצופים פ״ז) מבואר במאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות ע׳ סט ”שהנקודה בלתי מתחלק לי׳, ובחי׳ הספירה היינו שכאו״א מהי״ס מתחלק לי״ס כמו אור החסד מתחלק לי״ס כחב״ד שבחסד חג״ת שבחסד כו׳ ואז נק׳ ספירה, ובחי׳ הפרצוף הוא ריבוי התחלקות יותר, דהיינו שגם הע״ס שכלולים בכאו״א מהי״ס מתכללים עוד להיות כלול כאו״א מי׳, וכמו חסד שבחסד שבגבורה . . והוא עיקר בחי׳ התיקון שנק׳ פרצוף אדם” ע״ש. וראה בשרש מצות התפלה פרק מו. באוה״ת פ׳ פנחס ע׳ א׳פח (מיוסדים על סה״מ תקס״ה כרך ב ע׳ תשמח) שמביא משל לזה מזריעה.
- 5זכר ונקבה בראם ועי״ז ויברך אותם · Genesis 5:2
- 6דאכל בי עשרה שכינתא שריא · Sanhedrin 39a:11
- 7ע״י שם מ״ה המאיר בעולם התקון · Sefer Etz Chaim 7:2–3
- 8ע״י שם מ״ה המאיר בעולם התיקון . . שם מ״ה דא״ק · במאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות שם ע׳ עא בשם הע״ח [שער ז פרק ב] שסיבת התהוות ההתכללות בעולם הברודים הנק׳ עולם התיקון הוא ע״י הארת שם מ״ה החדש שמאיר בא״ק. וראה ד״ה ושבתה בדרך מצותיך קע, א.
- 9ונחנו מה · Exodus 16:7
Tiferes, Torah and peace ¶12
12ומעתה יובן מה דבתפארת בהכלי ג״כ הוא מבחי׳ שם הוי״ה1 משא״כ בכלים דחו״ג כי הנה עיקר ההתכללות הנעשה בעולם התקון הוא
From this it will be understood why in Tiferes the vessel, too, is from the level of the Name Havayah, which is not so in the vessels of Chesed and Gevurah. For the essence of the inclusion that comes about in the World of Tikkun is
Now the question of paragraph 2 can be answered: why is even the vessel of Tiferes marked by the Name Havayah, while the vessels of Chesed and Gevurah bear the Names Kel and Elokim? The answer lies in what brings about the inclusion of the World of Tikkun.
through the middle line, which is the level of Tiferes, the attribute of Yaakov — “the completion of the Patriarchs,” “a dweller of tents” — which joins Chesed and Gevurah.
Chesed and Gevurah are opposites — giving and holding back. Tiferes is the “middle line” that joins them. It is the attribute of Yaakov, called in the Zohar “the completion of the Patriarchs” because he unites Avraham’s Chesed and Yitzchak’s Gevurah; the Torah calls him “a dweller of tents,” in the plural, as one who holds both together.
ולכן יעקב המשיך בחי׳ עקודים נקודים וברודים4 שהמשיך מבחי׳ עקודים גם בברודים ע״י שם מ״ה להיות התכללות כו׳
Therefore Yaakov drew forth the level of akudim, nekudim and berudim [— “streaked, speckled and spotted”]: he drew from the level of Akudim into Berudim as well, through the Name Mah, so that there would be inclusion, etc.
The Torah describes Yaakov’s flocks as akudim, nekudim and berudim — “streaked, speckled and spotted” — the very names of the three worlds of the Sefiros. The Alter Rebbe reads this as a sign that Yaakov, Tiferes, draws the oneness of Akudim down into Berudim through the Name Mah, and so brings about inclusion.
ולכן תפארת נק׳ אות אמת5 (עי׳ בזוהר ר״פ ויקרא)6 מפני שמחבר ועושה התכללות שלא יהיו המדות חו״ג נגדיים זה לזה.
Therefore Tiferes is called “a sign of truth” (see the Zohar, at the beginning of Parshas Vayikra), because it joins and brings about inclusion, so that the attributes, Chesed and Gevurah, should not be opposed to one another.
The Zohar calls the vav, the letter of Tiferes, “a sign of truth.” Truth here means what joins and does not take sides: Tiferes brings Chesed and Gevurah together so that they no longer oppose each other.
Now, “the great, the mighty” is the level of Chesed and Gevurah, and “the awesome” is the level of Tiferes; and it has an added vav: “and the awesome” (ve-hanora),
In the phrase “the great, the mighty and the awesome,” “great” is Chesed and “mighty” is Gevurah, while “awesome” is Tiferes. Only the last word has an added vav — “and the awesome.”
שנמשך המשכה עליונה שעי״ז נעשה ההתכללות וכענין הנ״ל דהתקון וההתכללות הוא ע״י המשכת שם מ״ה וכן ביעקב נאמר מה נורא המקום הזה.9
[meaning] that a supernal flow is drawn down, through which the inclusion comes about — as in the matter mentioned above, that the Tikkun and the inclusion come through drawing down the Name Mah. And so of Yaakov it is said, “How (mah) awesome is this place!”
The vav, a straight line, is the letter of drawing down. Its presence in “and the awesome” shows that Tiferes draws down a higher flow, which is what brings about inclusion — just as the Name Mah does. Fittingly, Yaakov says of the place of his vision, “How (mah) awesome is this place!”, combining mah and “awesome.”
וזהו דבכלי הת״ת הוא מאיר שם הוי״ה שהוא הארה גדולה ונעלית יותר מבכלים דחו״ג והיינו
And this is why in the vessel of Tiferes the Name Havayah shines, which is an illumination greater and more exalted than in the vessels of Chesed and Gevurah. That is,
That is why the Name Havayah shines even in the vessel of Tiferes: its vessel carries a greater light than the vessels of Chesed and Gevurah.
through the Name Havayah the level of inclusion is drawn forth; and this is [the meaning of] what is said, “Havayah is One” (and see what is written on [the verse] “to execute the vengeance of Havayah upon Midian”).
Havayah is the Name through which inclusion is drawn down, which is why Scripture says “Havayah is One.” The Alter Rebbe refers to his discussion of Moshe’s war against Midian, where inclusion is shown to be the vessel for revealing the Infinite Light.
והנה התורה נק׳ תורת הוי״ה12 כי בתורה כתיב וכל נתיבותיה שלום13 וכמ״ש או יחזיק במעוזי14 יעשה שלום לי וגו׳
Now the Torah is called “the Torah of Havayah,” for of the Torah it is written, “and all its paths are peace”; and as it is written, “Or let him take hold of My strength, that he may make peace with Me,” etc. —
The Torah is called “the Torah of Havayah” because it is all about peace: “all its paths are peace.” The Sages read the verse “let him take hold of My strength (the Torah), that he may make peace with Me” as referring to one who studies Torah.
שלום בפמליא של מעלה ובפמליא של מטה15 שיהי׳ בחי׳ ההתכללות ויחוד הספירות וההיכלות ועי״ז יומשך גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה. והתכללות זו הוא ע״י הבטול.
peace in the heavenly household and in the earthly household: that there be the level of inclusion and unification of the Sefiros and the chambers (heichalos), and through this the revelation of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, will be drawn down. And this inclusion is through self-nullification (bittul).
The Sages say that such a person makes peace in the heavenly household and in the earthly household. In Kabbalistic terms, this peace is the inclusion and union of the Sefiros and of the heichalos (the “chambers” of the lower worlds), and through it the Infinite Light is revealed. And inclusion comes only through bittul.
וזהו יסוד כל התורה להיות בטול היש לאין וכל השלשה דברים שעליהם העולם עומד היינו תורה ועבודה וגמ״ח16 כולם ענינם בטול היש לאין וע״י הבטול נעשה ההתכללות משא״כ בבחי׳ יש כו׳.
And this is the foundation of the entire Torah: to be the nullification of the “something” into the “nothing.” And all three things on which the world stands — namely Torah, service and acts of kindness — are all, in their essence, the nullification of the “something” into the “nothing.” And through bittul the inclusion comes about, which is not so at the level of “something,” etc.
This is the heart of the whole Torah: to set aside one’s own separate “something” before G‑d’s “nothing.” The three pillars on which the world stands — Torah, prayer (“service”) and acts of kindness — all serve this purpose. Only when there is bittul can separate things truly join; while each insists on its own existence, they cannot.
The paragraph answers the opening question: Tiferes, Yaakov’s attribute, joins Chesed and Gevurah and brings about inclusion; since inclusion draws on the Name Havayah, Havayah shines even in its vessel. This inclusion depends on bittul, which is the foundation of the Torah and of Torah, service and kindness.
The Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah, Inyanim) explains that although the light of Keser shines in the two side lines too (Chochmah–Chesed–Netzach and Binah–Gevurah–Hod), they are not called Havayah; only the middle line, which joins them, is. The Zohar the note quotes reads “Give me a sign of truth” as the letter vav: all the letters are true, but this one is called “the sign of truth.”
Marei mekomos
- 1דבתפארת בהכלי ג״כ הוא מבחי׳ שם הוי״ה · וע׳ מזה בלקו״ת פ׳ תזריע בד״ה אם בהרת קדמה. ובד״ה החלצו מאתכם בענין לתת נקמת הוי׳ במדין שע״י ההתכללות דוקא זהו כלי לגילוי אוא״ס. — אוה״ת כרך ו שם תתרסד, ב ובלקו״ת לג״פ פ׳ נח עה, ד. ראה באוה״ת ענינים ע׳ קעב שמבאר הגם שבב׳ הקוין חח״נ ובג״ה מאיר אור הכתר ואעפ״כ לא יקראו בשם הוי׳ ע״ש.
- 2יעקב שלימו דאבהן · Zohar I, 171a
- 3ישב אוהלים · Genesis 25:27
- 4יעקב המשיך בחי׳ עקודים נקודים וברודים · Genesis 31:10
- 5תפארת נק׳ אות אמת · Joshua 2:12
- 6ע׳ בזהר ר״פ ויקרא · ”ע״פ ונתתם לי אות אמת דא אות וי״ו ואי תימא שאר אתוון לאו אינון אמת אין אלא אות דא אות אמת אקרי” — אוה״ת ענינים ע׳ קעד. וראה גם בביאוה״ז להצ״צ כרך א ע׳ שיג ואילך.
- 7הגדול הגבור · Deuteronomy 10:17
- 8ויש בו תוספות וי״ו והנורא · ראה לקו״ת ואתחנן ח, א. אוה״ת ענינים ע׳ קעא ואילך בארוכה.
- 9מה נורא המקום הזה · Genesis 28:17
- 10הוי״ה אחד · Deuteronomy 6:4
- 11לתת נקמת הוי״ה במדין · Numbers 31:3
- 12תורת הוי״ה · Psalms 19:8
- 13וכל נתיבותי׳ שלום · Proverbs 3:17
- 14או יחזיק במעוזי · Isaiah 27:5
- 15שלום בפמליא של מעלה ובפמליא של מטה · Sanhedrin 99b:10–11
- 16השלשה דברים שעליהם העולם עומד היינו תורה ועבודה וגמ״ח · Pirkei Avot 1:2
The builders’ scheme and G‑d’s response ¶13–17
13והנה דור הפלגה אמרו ונעשה לנו שם1 פן נפוץ כו׳ פי׳ שרצו ג״כ שיקבלו השפע מבחי׳ שם2 הוי״ה שהוא המשכה עליונה.
Now the generation of the Dispersion said, “And let us make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered,” etc. The meaning is that they, too, wanted to receive the flow from the level of the Name Havayah, which is a supernal drawing-down.
Now the Alter Rebbe returns to the Tower. “Let us make ourselves a name” means they wanted their flow of blessing to come from the Name Havayah — the supernal flow that, as just explained, is the source of inclusion.
וזהו ונעשה לנו שם פן נפוץ פי׳ שלא רצו שיומשך להם ההשפעה מבחי׳ שלמטה במדרגה שמשם יניקת החיצונים שיניקתם מאחוריים דשם אלקים ונק׳ לכך אלקים אחרים כו׳
And this is [the meaning of] “And let us make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered”: that is, they did not want the flow to be drawn to them from a level lower in rank, from which the external forces draw their nourishment — for their nourishment is from the hind-part of the Name Elokim, and therefore they are called “other gods” (elokim acherim), etc.
They did not want to receive from a lower level, from which the “external forces” — the forces of kelipah that oppose holiness — draw their nourishment. These forces are fed from the “hind-part,” the most external aspect, of the Name Elokim, which is why idolatry is called elokim acherim, “other gods.”
כי זהו כל עיקר מעלת עולם התקון שהוא בחי׳ ההתכללות ולכן נאמר גבי יעקב שבעים נפש3 לשון יחיד משא״כ בעולם התהו מחמת שלא היה התכללות נמשך שבה״כ.
For this is the entire essence of the superiority of the World of Tikkun: that it is the level of inclusion. Therefore of Yaakov it is said, “seventy soul” (nefesh), in the singular; which is not so in the World of Tohu, where, because there was no inclusion, the shattering of the vessels followed.
The advantage of Tikkun is inclusion. The Torah counts Yaakov’s family as “seventy nefesh” — “soul” in the singular — because they were united as one. In the World of Tohu there was no such inclusion, and so its vessels shattered.
The paragraph explains “let us make ourselves a name”: the builders wanted to receive from the Name Havayah, the high source of inclusion, rather than from a lower level that feeds the forces opposed to holiness.
The Tzemach Tzedek (Or HaTorah, Devarim) adds that they wanted the letters of G‑dliness that give them life to remain only as an encompassing (makif) influence over them, not to shine within them.
Marei mekomos
- 1ונעשה לנו שם · Genesis 11:4
- 2פי׳ שרצו ג״כ שיקבלו השפע מבחי׳ שם הוי׳ · ראה באוה״ת דברים כרך ו פ׳ תצא ע׳ ב׳שנג ”שרצו שיהי׳ אותיות אלקות המחיה אותם רק בבחי׳ מקיף לבד עליהם ושלא יאיר בפנימיות” ע״ש.
- 3נאמר גבי יעקב שבעים נפש · Genesis 46:27
However, they knew that to receive from the World of Tikkun is through the nullification of the “something,” as [explained] above concerning the Tikkun through the Name Mah; and they did not want this.
The builders knew that receiving from the World of Tikkun requires bittul, as shown above: inclusion comes through the Name Mah, which is self-nullification. That is exactly what they refused to do.
וכמ״ש בלק״ת להרח״ו ז״ל שרצו לילך בשרירות לבם ושאעפ״כ יומשך להם השפעת טובה כו׳ ע״כ נתחכמו לעשות המגדל והעיר.
And as is written in the Likkutei Torah of Rabbi Chaim Vital, of blessed memory: that they wanted to go in the stubbornness of their heart, and nevertheless have a flow of good drawn to them, etc. Therefore they cleverly contrived to make the tower and the city.
As Rabbi Chaim Vital wrote (paragraph 1), they wanted to follow their own desires and still receive blessing. So they devised a clever way around the requirement: the city and the tower.
The builders’ problem: blessing from the World of Tikkun requires bittul, which they would not accept, so they sought a way to receive without it.
Marei mekomos
- 1ואמנם הם ידעו · אוה״ת תבוא ע׳ תתרעב.
15והוא שנתייעצו שע״י האחדות שיהיה ביניהם להיות חבור עצבים1 ע״כ עי״ז ימשיכו להם טובה והשפעה גשמית עכ״פ אף אם לא יהיה להם הבטול ועבודת השי״ת.
That is, they took counsel that through the unity there would be among them — to be “joined [even] to idols” — through this they would draw to themselves good and a material flow at least, even if they would not have bittul and the service of G‑d, blessed be He.
Their plan was unity. The prophet Hoshea says, “Ephraim is joined to idols; let him be” — the Sages read this as teaching that even people serving idols are left alone when they are united. The builders hoped their unity alone would bring them at least material blessing, without bittul or serving G‑d.
והיינו כי ידעו בכח שמוש השמות עליונים שבבחי׳ התכללות מאיר אור עליון ביותר וכמש״ל בענין עקודים בכלי א׳ שהוא בחי׳ ומדרגה גבוה מאד שהוא למעלה מעולם התהו ומעולם התקון.
That is, they knew, through the power of using the supernal Names, that in a state of inclusion a most supernal light shines — as explained above concerning Akudim in one vessel, which is a very high level and rank, above the World of Tohu and the World of Tikkun.
Through their knowledge of the holy Names they understood that inclusion draws down a very high light — like Akudim, where all is in one vessel, a level above both Tohu and Tikkun.
The builders’ strategy: they meant to draw blessing through unity, which by its nature draws a very high light, without the bittul that holiness requires.
Marei mekomos
- 1חבור עצבים · Hosea 4:17
16וע״כ אמרו ונעשה לנו שם שימשיכו ג״כ משם הוי״ה דהיינו ממקום הכולל לכל ההשתלשלות בשוה שהוא אור כללי כנ״ל
Therefore they said, “And let us make ourselves a name”: that they would draw also from the Name Havayah, that is, from the place that includes the entire chain of descent (hishtalshelus) equally, which is an all-inclusive light, as [stated] above,
“Let us make ourselves a name” means drawing from the Name Havayah, the all-inclusive light that relates equally to every level of the chain of descent — a level above the distinctions of the worlds.
ולא יצטרכו להיות נכנעים תח״י הקדושה דעולם התקון דאצי׳ שמשם א״א להם לקבל רק מבחי׳ חיצוניות כו׳.
and they would not need to be subdued under the holiness of the World of Tikkun of Atzilus, from which it is impossible for them to receive except from the level of the outer dimension (chitzoniyus), etc.
That way they would not have to submit to the holiness of Atzilus, the World of Tikkun. From Atzilus the unholy can receive only its outermost aspect, and only by being subdued; they wanted to bypass that submission.
Their aim was to draw from the all-inclusive light of Havayah and so avoid submitting to the holiness of Atzilus.
17והיינו ע״י האחדות1 וההתכללות שיהיה ביניהם ולכן עשו העיר ומגדל2 דהיינו שהיה סימן להם שלא יתפרדו איש מעל אחיו
That is, through the unity and inclusion there would be among them. Therefore they made the city and the tower: that is, it was a sign for them that they would not separate one from another,
The city and tower were the means to that unity: a landmark that would keep them together as one people.
כי רועי צאן היו זה הולך אנה וזה אנה ע״כ עשו עיר ומגדל גבוה כדי שיתקבצו כולם שם ולא יפרדו איש מעל אחיו וכמ״ש הראב״ע.3
for they were shepherds, this one going here and that one going there; therefore they made a city and a tall tower, so that they would all gather there and not separate one from another, as Rabbi Avraham ibn Ezra writes.
Ibn Ezra explains the plain meaning: they were shepherds who wandered in all directions, so they built a city and a tall tower where all could gather and stay together.
וגם ע״פ רוחניות ג״כ ענין העיר והמגדל היה לתועלת החבור והיחוד (ע׳ בזוהר פ׳ נח דף ע״ד4 ע״ה).
And according to the spiritual [dimension] too, the matter of the city and the tower was for the purpose of joining and unification (see the Zohar, Parshas Noach, pages 74 and 75).
The Zohar (on Parshas Noach) explains the same thing on the spiritual level: the city and tower served to join and unify.
וזהו מה שאמר הקב״ה הן עם אחד5 ושפה אחת לכולם כו׳ ועתה לא יבצר מהם כל אשר יזמו לעשות.
And this is what the Holy One, blessed be He, said: “Behold, [they are] one people, and one language for them all,” etc., “and now nothing that they have schemed to do will be withheld from them.”
Now G‑d’s words, quoted at the start, become clear: because they are “one people with one language,” nothing they plan will be beyond them.
פי׳ כי לפי שבאמת ע״י ההתכללות והחבור נמשך ממקום עליון ביותר וכמ״ש חבור עצבים6 וגו׳
The meaning is: because in truth, through inclusion and joining, [a flow] is drawn from a most supernal place — as it is written, “joined to idols,” etc. —
Unity really does draw down light from a very high place, as the verse “joined to idols” shows. That is why G‑d could say that nothing would be withheld from them. It was not that they could override His will, but that unity itself draws a flow from on high, and G‑d had made it so.
וא״כ לא יבצר מהם כו׳ וא״כ הרי ח״ו ימשיכו המים היוצאים מבית ה׳ לבית הכסא כו׳
then “nothing will be withheld from them,” etc. And if so, then, G‑d forbid, they would draw “the waters that go forth from the House of G‑d” to the privy, etc.,
The danger: they would draw this holy flow — pictured as “waters that go forth from the House of G‑d” — into the most degraded places.
אשת הזמה כו׳ כיון שהם היו הולכים בשרירות לבם7 כו׳ ולא רצו לקבל הבטול והעול
the lewd woman, etc. — since they were walking in the stubbornness of their heart, etc., and did not want to accept bittul and the yoke.
The Alter Rebbe adds a second image, a lewd woman, for holy influence being used for what is impure. This would happen because they followed their own desires and refused bittul and the yoke of Heaven.
(וזהו כעין מ״ש פן ישלח ידו8 ולקח גם מעץ החיים ואכל וחי לעולם ואין זה ראוי כיון שכבר נפגם ע״י עץ הדעת א״כ ימשיך תוקף זה דעץ החיים בסטרא אוחרא ויגביר הרע וכמ״ש במ״א וכך הוא כאן).
(And this is akin to what is written, “lest he put forth his hand and take also from the Tree of Life, and eat, and live forever”; and this is not fitting, since he had already been blemished through the Tree of Knowledge. If so, he would draw this strength of the Tree of Life into the sitra achra (the other side) and strengthen evil, as is written elsewhere; and so it is here.)
A parallel from the Garden of Eden: after Adam ate from the Tree of Knowledge, G‑d kept him from the Tree of Life. Once Adam was flawed, the power of the Tree of Life would have strengthened the “other side,” the forces opposed to holiness. The same danger existed with the builders of the Tower.
ועל כן הבה ונבלה שפתם9 כו׳ פיזור לרשעים הנאה להם והנאה לעולם.10 וכנוס לצדיקים שיש בהם הבטול להש״י הנאה להם והנאה לעולם כי ע״י ההתכללות נמשך ממקום עליון כנ״ל ולכן השלום הוא הכלי המחזיק ברכה:11
Therefore, “Come, let us confound their language,” etc. “Dispersion for the wicked is pleasant for them and pleasant for the world”; and gathering for the righteous, who have bittul to G‑d, blessed be He, is pleasant for them and pleasant for the world — for through inclusion [a flow] is drawn from a supernal place, as [explained] above. And therefore peace is the vessel that holds blessing.
So G‑d confused their language. The Mishnah teaches that it is good for the world when the wicked are scattered and when the righteous gather. United, the righteous, who have bittul, draw blessing from above for everyone; hence the Sages’ saying that peace is the only vessel that can hold blessing.
The paragraph completes the answer: unity draws down a very high light, so the builders’ scheme could truly have succeeded; but since they rejected bittul, that light would have fed evil, and so G‑d scattered them. Unity is a blessing only among those who are nullified to G‑d.
In Likkutei Torah (Rosh Hashanah), to which the note points, the Alter Rebbe describes the “city” of the generation of the Dispersion as combinations of letters and flows drawn to the side opposed to holiness, and says that in the future, when all souls are elevated, the flow will no longer be drawn to such a “city.”
Marei mekomos
- 1והיינו ע״י האחדות והתכללות · ראה ד״ה תורה צוה תרנ״ד.
- 2ולכן עשו העיר ומגדל · ראה אוה״ת נצבים ע׳ א׳רפא.
- 3וכמ״ש הראב״ע · ”שהכוונה שלהם בבנין עיר ומגדל כדי שיהי׳ להם אחדות, ע״כ עשו עיר ומגדל כדי שיתקבצו שם כולם ולא יפרדו איש מעל אחיו, וע״י האחדות שלהם היו יכולים להמשיך טובה והשפעה גשמי׳ אף שלא יהי׳ להם הביטול ועבודת השי״ת” — סה״מ תר״ל ע׳ ז. ראה גם תו״ח כאן סג, ד.
- 4ע׳ בזהר פ׳ נח דף ע״ד · ראה הלשון במאמרי אדה״ז פרשיות ע׳ סב. אוה״ת בראשית כרך ו תתרע, א. בהמשך זאת חנוכת המזבח תר״מ סעי׳ יד. ובאוה״ת נ״ך כרך א ע׳ תקג. זהר זה נזכר בלקו״ת ר״ה ס, ב.
- 5הן עם אחד · Genesis 11:6
- 6חבור עצבים · Hosea 4:17
- 7שהם היו הולכם בשרירות לבם · קטע מובא באוה״ת פ׳ בלק ע׳ א׳יז.
- 8פן ישלח ידו · Genesis 3:22
- 9הבה ונבלה שפתם · Genesis 11:7
- 10פיזור לרשעים הנאה להם והנאה לעולם · Mishnah Sanhedrin 8:5
- 11השלום הוא הכלי המחזיק ברכה · Mishnah Oktzin 3:12
Finished the maamar?
Mark it as learned; it counts toward the week and the year’s siyum.
In one’s avodah
Unity draws down the highest blessing, but only unity grounded in bittul — setting aside one’s own “something” before G‑d — is holy. Torah, service and acts of kindness are all ways of bittul, and through them a person makes peace above and below; peace among those nullified to G‑d is the vessel that holds blessing.
Questions for discussion
- How does the maamar answer the question of how the builders could have succeeded “against G‑d’s will”?
- Why is the Chochmah of Atzilus called “a known wisdom,” even though it is far above the wisdom of the lower worlds?
- How does the analogy of the soul’s powers — one in the soul, divided in the body — illuminate the difference between Akudim and Atzilus?
- Why does inclusion depend on bittul, and why does the Name Mah bring it about?
- If unity draws blessing even for those “joined to idols,” why is it good for the wicked to be scattered? What does this teach about the unity we should seek?
Key terms in this maamar
- Chesed (kindness)חסד
- Expansive giving. ×10
- Gevurah (restraint)גבורה
- Measure, limitation and judgment. ×2
- Tiferes (beauty)תפארת
- Harmony of kindness and restraint; associated with compassion. ×7
- The Name Havayahהוי׳
- The Tetragrammaton: G‑d as transcending time and bringing all into being.
- The Name Elokimאלקים
- G‑d as concealed within nature, measuring and limiting. ×3
- The Sefirosספירות
- The ten divine attributes through which G‑d relates to creation. ×3
- Chochmah (wisdom)חכמה
- The first flash of insight. ×42
- Binah (understanding)בינה
- Developing and grasping an insight in detail. ×6
- The Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof)אור אין סוף
- G‑d's light as it is, beyond all limits, before any contraction.
- The World of Atzilus (Emanation)אצילות
- The highest world, still one with G‑d. ×3
- The World of Beriah (Creation)בריאה
- The first world of separate existence. ×2
- The World of Yetzirah (Formation)יצירה
- The world of the angels and emotions.
- The World of Asiyah (Action)עשיה
- The lowest world, including our physical one.
- The chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus)השתלשלות
- The step-by-step descent of divine light from the highest level down to this world. ×3
- Abba and Imma (Chochmah and Binah)אבא ואמא
- The intellectual configurations.
- Tzimtzum (contraction)צמצום
- The self-concealment of the Infinite Light that makes room for finite worlds. ×4
- The emotive attributes (middos)מדות
- Love, awe, compassion and the rest. ×3
- The Infinite One (Ein Sof)אין סוף
- G‑d's own boundless essence.
- The kav (line of light)קו
- The thin ray of light drawn into the space left after the tzimtzum. ×5
- The reshimu (impression)רשימו
- The trace left after the tzimtzum. ×3
- Z'eir Anpin (the emotive attributes)ז״א
- The six emotive Sefiros as one configuration. ×1
- The intellect (mochin)מוחין
- Chochmah, Binah and Daas as a whole.
- The Shechinah (Divine Presence)שכינה
- G‑d's presence as it dwells in the world.
- Self-nullification (bittul)ביטול
- Setting aside one's own sense of self before G‑d.
- The outer dimension (chitzoniyus)חיצוניות
- The external, expressive aspect. ×1
- The Holy One, blessed be Heקב״ה
- ×1
- The sitra achra (the other side)סטרא אחרא
- The realm opposed to holiness.