Chapter Forty-Six:
Rabbi Yehudah Ashlag's "Introduction to the Zohar"
-- as translated and commented on by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman
__________________________________________________
46.
1.
"But understand that while (all) the spherot -- from the top-most point of Keter in the world of Adam Kadmon to the bottom-most point of Malchut in the world of Asiyah -- are G-dly, changeless and undifferentiated, there’s still and all a *great* difference (between them) as far as those who receive (from them) are concerned."
-- That's to say that from a G-d's eye-view, the sepherot are all part of the one great, smooth, clear bouillon of His own making and Being without distinction and particularity. But from our perspective -- from the other side of the picture, touching on the effect that each sephira has upon us and absolutely everything in the material universe -- there's a "world" of difference.
-- We could perhaps liken the difference between the two perspectives to the one between how parents see themselves when they make a decision about the household -- as a unit, as opposed to how their children see them -- as mother versus father.
"For the sephirot are grouped into (two aspects:) lights and vessels. While their light (aspect) is pure G-dliness, their vessel (aspect), which is termed K.C.B.T.M. (i.e., Keter, Chochma, Binah, Tipheret, and Malchut), in each of the lower worlds of Briyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, are *not* deemed G-dliness. What they are, are cloaks that conceal the light of the Infinite within them and bestow the receivers with the amount of light each is to receive according to its degree of purity."
-- Though thoroughly G-dly on their own as we just learned, the sephirot are comprised of two aspects when they touch upon creation: an inner, essential one of light; and an outer, external one of vessel. What that comes to is this.
-- If the everything-bound-to-everything-else that is the primeval bouillon of G-d's light were to emanate as-is toward us, we'd drown outright. We could withstand it and would even flourish thanks to it if it came upon us bit by bit, though. The phenomenon of it all becoming bit by bit, though, is unnatural to the primeval bouillon, as it calls for everything-bound-to-everything-else to unbind, but it's a necessary event nonetheless. In order for each element to be set off from the next, though, it has to be encased and set off by a self-container or "vessel". Thus, everything in our experience is comprised by an essential light and a necessary (albeit nonessential) vessel or encasement.
-- Rabbi Ashlag is underscoring the point that while the sephirot's light aspect is pure G-dliness, their vessel aspect actually (though necessarily) conceal the light within them, while still-and-all bestowing us receivers with the light due us, according to our purity (or, preparedness). He also makes the point of saying that all that only occurs in the lower worlds of Briyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, but not in Atzilut. Because everything in Atzilut is undifferentiated G-dliness. But since that's out of our present experience, it's not to be considered.
2.
"As such, even though the light itself is one (i.e., undifferentiated), we nonetheless refer to the lights in the sephirot as N.R.N.C.Y. (Nephesh, Ruach, Neshama, Chaya, and Yechida) ... "
-- That is, we break them down into their component parts, which can then be broken down into even more and more attenuate parts. And we do that ...
"... because the light is differentiated according to the character of the vessels."
-- That’s to say that we differentiate the lights into parts because the *recipients* of those lights each have their own needs. And we break them down by degrees, as we'll now see in *ascending* order.
"For Malchut, which is the thickest cloak, conceals (nearly all) the light of the Infinite. The amount of light that issues from the Infinite (though Malchut) to the receivers is very small in relation to the purity of the mineralness of man’s body. Its light is (thus only) termed Nephesh-light. The vessel of Tipheret is finer than that of Malchut’s, so the light that the Infinite issues (through it) is connected to the purity of the vegetable aspect of man's body, because it’s more active than the Nephesh-Light. Its light is termed Ruach-Light. The vessel of Binah is finer yet than Tipheret’s, so the light that the Infinite issues (through it) is connected to the purity of the animal part of man's body, and Its light is termed Neshama-Light. And the vessel of Chochma is the finest of them all, so the light that the Infinite issues (through it) is connected to the purity of the verbal part of man's body, and its light is termed Chaya-Light, and its actions are immeasurable (which is all the more so true of Yechida)."
-- The point is that the thinner and finer the cloak, the more light of the Infinite can shine through and the higher it passes in the human makeup, from mineralness all the way through to humanness. In ascending order that differentiated light is termed first Nephesh-light, then Ruach-Light, Neshama-Light, and Chaya-Light. "Yechidah-Light" isn't discussed because Yechida is the point at which the light is joined to ("yachad" with) the Yechida G-dliness itself, so there's absolutely no differentiation there whatsoever.
(c) 2006 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman
(Feel free to contact me at feldman@torah.org )
********************************
AT LONG LAST! Rabbi Feldman's translation of "The Gates of Repentance" has been reissued at *at a discount*!
You can order it right now from here
Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has also translated and commented upon "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His new work on Maimonides' "The Eight Chapters" will soon be available.
Rabbi Feldman also offers two free e-mail classes on www.torah.org entitled
"Spiritual Excellence" and "Ramchal"
Rabbi Yehudah Ashlag's "Introduction to the Zohar"
-- as translated and commented on by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman
__________________________________________________
46.
1.
"But understand that while (all) the spherot -- from the top-most point of Keter in the world of Adam Kadmon to the bottom-most point of Malchut in the world of Asiyah -- are G-dly, changeless and undifferentiated, there’s still and all a *great* difference (between them) as far as those who receive (from them) are concerned."
-- That's to say that from a G-d's eye-view, the sepherot are all part of the one great, smooth, clear bouillon of His own making and Being without distinction and particularity. But from our perspective -- from the other side of the picture, touching on the effect that each sephira has upon us and absolutely everything in the material universe -- there's a "world" of difference.
-- We could perhaps liken the difference between the two perspectives to the one between how parents see themselves when they make a decision about the household -- as a unit, as opposed to how their children see them -- as mother versus father.
"For the sephirot are grouped into (two aspects:) lights and vessels. While their light (aspect) is pure G-dliness, their vessel (aspect), which is termed K.C.B.T.M. (i.e., Keter, Chochma, Binah, Tipheret, and Malchut), in each of the lower worlds of Briyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, are *not* deemed G-dliness. What they are, are cloaks that conceal the light of the Infinite within them and bestow the receivers with the amount of light each is to receive according to its degree of purity."
-- Though thoroughly G-dly on their own as we just learned, the sephirot are comprised of two aspects when they touch upon creation: an inner, essential one of light; and an outer, external one of vessel. What that comes to is this.
-- If the everything-bound-to-everything-else that is the primeval bouillon of G-d's light were to emanate as-is toward us, we'd drown outright. We could withstand it and would even flourish thanks to it if it came upon us bit by bit, though. The phenomenon of it all becoming bit by bit, though, is unnatural to the primeval bouillon, as it calls for everything-bound-to-everything-else to unbind, but it's a necessary event nonetheless. In order for each element to be set off from the next, though, it has to be encased and set off by a self-container or "vessel". Thus, everything in our experience is comprised by an essential light and a necessary (albeit nonessential) vessel or encasement.
-- Rabbi Ashlag is underscoring the point that while the sephirot's light aspect is pure G-dliness, their vessel aspect actually (though necessarily) conceal the light within them, while still-and-all bestowing us receivers with the light due us, according to our purity (or, preparedness). He also makes the point of saying that all that only occurs in the lower worlds of Briyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, but not in Atzilut. Because everything in Atzilut is undifferentiated G-dliness. But since that's out of our present experience, it's not to be considered.
2.
"As such, even though the light itself is one (i.e., undifferentiated), we nonetheless refer to the lights in the sephirot as N.R.N.C.Y. (Nephesh, Ruach, Neshama, Chaya, and Yechida) ... "
-- That is, we break them down into their component parts, which can then be broken down into even more and more attenuate parts. And we do that ...
"... because the light is differentiated according to the character of the vessels."
-- That’s to say that we differentiate the lights into parts because the *recipients* of those lights each have their own needs. And we break them down by degrees, as we'll now see in *ascending* order.
"For Malchut, which is the thickest cloak, conceals (nearly all) the light of the Infinite. The amount of light that issues from the Infinite (though Malchut) to the receivers is very small in relation to the purity of the mineralness of man’s body. Its light is (thus only) termed Nephesh-light. The vessel of Tipheret is finer than that of Malchut’s, so the light that the Infinite issues (through it) is connected to the purity of the vegetable aspect of man's body, because it’s more active than the Nephesh-Light. Its light is termed Ruach-Light. The vessel of Binah is finer yet than Tipheret’s, so the light that the Infinite issues (through it) is connected to the purity of the animal part of man's body, and Its light is termed Neshama-Light. And the vessel of Chochma is the finest of them all, so the light that the Infinite issues (through it) is connected to the purity of the verbal part of man's body, and its light is termed Chaya-Light, and its actions are immeasurable (which is all the more so true of Yechida)."
-- The point is that the thinner and finer the cloak, the more light of the Infinite can shine through and the higher it passes in the human makeup, from mineralness all the way through to humanness. In ascending order that differentiated light is termed first Nephesh-light, then Ruach-Light, Neshama-Light, and Chaya-Light. "Yechidah-Light" isn't discussed because Yechida is the point at which the light is joined to ("yachad" with) the Yechida G-dliness itself, so there's absolutely no differentiation there whatsoever.
(c) 2006 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman
(Feel free to contact me at feldman@torah.org )
********************************
AT LONG LAST! Rabbi Feldman's translation of "The Gates of Repentance" has been reissued at *at a discount*!
You can order it right now from here
Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has also translated and commented upon "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His new work on Maimonides' "The Eight Chapters" will soon be available.
Rabbi Feldman also offers two free e-mail classes on www.torah.org entitled
"Spiritual Excellence" and "Ramchal"
posted by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman at 11:19 AM
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