Vaetchanan
Grades Righteous

23. Rabbi Yosi said, What is meant by, "neither shall you desire"? "Neither shall you covet" should suffice. He said to him, Blessed are the truly righteous. Coveting is one grade, desire another. Coveting MEANS that if he can, he will grab her, for the coveting that took him over will cause him to act. Desire is not so. Even when he will not take to following her, IT IS STILL CONSIDERED DESIRE. This has already been explained.

23. אָמַר ר' יוֹסֵי, מַאי וְלֺֹא תִתְאַוֶּה, כֵּיוָן דִּכְתִּיב וְלֺֹא תַחְמוֹד, דְּהָא בְּהַאי סַגֵּי. א"ל, זַכָּאִין אִינּוּן מָארֵי קְשׁוֹט, חֲמִידָה חַד דַּרְגָּא. תַּאֲוָה דַּרְגָּא אַחֲרָא. חֲמִידָה: דְּאִי יָכִיל, אָזִיל לְמֵיסַב דִּילֵיהּ בְּגִין הַהִיא חֲמִידָה דְּנָקַט, אָזִיל לְמֶעְבַּד עוֹבָדָא. תַּאֲוָה: לָאו הָכִי, דְּהָא אֲפִילּוּ דְּלָא יִנְקוּט אוֹרְחָא לְמֵהַךְ אֲבַּתְרֵיהּ, וְהָא אוֹקְמוּהָ חַבְרַיָּיא.

Grades Judgment Mercy Zeir Anpin

24. Rabbi Yosi said to him, Why is not it written, 'Neither shall you murder' SPELLED WITH VAV like the others? He said to him, For the level OF MURDER is Judgment and comes from Gvurah THROUGH THE LEFT COLUMN instead of from the place of Mercy, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN CALLED VAV. Hence "You shall not murder" (Ibid. 17) is without Vav. Since five Vavs are needed, CORRESPONDING TO CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH AND HOD, Vav was added to "shall you covet," since in "You shall not murder" no Vav should dwell BECAUSE IT IS IN GVURAH. HENCE Vav was added here.

24. א"ל רַבִּי יוֹסֵי, אֲמַאי לָא כְּתִיב וְלֺֹא תִרְצַח, כְּהָנֵי אַחֲרִינֵי. א"ל בְּגִין דְּדַרְגָּא דְּדִינָא בִּגְבוּרָה תַּלְיָא, וְלָא בַּאֲתָר דְּרַחֲמֵי, בג"כ לֺֹא תִרְצַח לָא כְּתִיב בֵּיהּ וָא"ו. וּבְגִין דְּבַעְיָין ה' וָוִין אִתּוֹסָף וָא"ו וְלֺֹא תִתְאַוֶּה, דְּהָא בְּלֺֹא תִרְצַח לָא בָּעֵי לְמִשְׁרֵי וָא"ו, וְאִתּוֹסַף הָכָא.

Job Righteous World to Come, The

25. Rabbi Pinchas, who sat behind RABBI ELAZAR, heard it. He kissed him, wept and laughed. He said OF RABBI ELAZAR, Who can stand before him and his father in the world! Happy is the lot of the righteous, and happy is my own lot in this world and in the World to Come to have merited it. Of this it is written, "The righteous see it, and are glad" (Iyov 22:19).

25. שָׁמַע ר' פִּנְחָס דְּיָתִיב אֲבַּתְרֵיהּ, וּנְשָׁקֵיהּ. בָּכָה וְחָיִיךְ. אָמַר גּוּר אַרְיֵה, לֵית מַאן דְּקָאֵים קַמַּיְיהוּ, מַאן יָכִיל לְקַיְּימָא קַמֵּיהּ וַאֲבוּהָּ בְּעָלְמָא. זַכָּאָה חוּלָקֵיהוֹן דְּצַדִּיקַיָּיא, וְזַכָּאָה חוּלָקִי בְּהַאי עָלְמָא, וּבְעָלְמָא דְּאָתֵי, דְּזָכֵינָא לְהַאי. עַל דָּא כְּתִיב, יִרְאוּ צַדִּיקִים וְיִשְׂמָחוּ.

Face Fire Flame Mountains Shofar Throne Torah Voice Water Wind Zeir Anpin

26. Rabbi Elazar opened with, "Go you near, and hear..." (Devarim 5:24). Come and see, when the Torah was given to Yisrael, all voices were present, NAMELY, FROM BINAH, ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT. BINAH IS CALLED AN INNER VOICE, ZEIR ANPIN AN OUTER VOICE AND MALCHUT THE VOICE OF THE WORDS. The Holy One, blessed be He, sat on the throne, WHICH IS MALCHUT, and one was visible from within another - ZEIR ANPIN WAS SEEN FROM WITHIN MALCHUT. The words of the one, MALCHUT, came from within that which was above it, ZEIR ANPIN. This is the secret of the verse, "Hashem talked with you face to face in the mountain out of the midst of the fire" (Devarim 5:4), AS ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT WERE FACE TO FACE. And speech came out and spoke from within the fire and the flame, WHICH ARE THE LEFT COLUMN that pushed the speech out OF ZEIR ANPIN by striking of wind and water, WHICH ARE the CENTRAL AND RIGHT COLUMNS that empower THE LEFT, SO THAT SPEECH, WHICH IS MALCHUT, COMES OUT FROM ALL THREE COLUMNS OF ZEIR ANPIN. For fire, wind and water, THE THREE COLUMNS OF ZEIR ANPIN, came out of the Shofar, BINAH, as it, BINAH, includes them all. Yisrael kept away from this awe.

26. ר' אֶלְעָזָר פָּתַח וְאָמַר, קְרַב אַתָּה וּשֲׁמָע וְגוֹ.' ת"ח, בְּשַׁעֲתָא דְּאִתְיְיהִיבַת אוֹרַיְיתָא לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, כֻּלְּהוֹן קוֹלוֹת אִשְׁתְּכָחוּ. וְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא יָתִיב עַל כּוּרְסְיָּיא, וְדָא מִגּוֹ דְּדָא אִתְחֲזֵי, וּמִלּוּלָא דְּדָא נָפִיק מִגּוֹ עִלָּאָה דְּעָלֵיהּ, וְדָא הוּא רָזָא דִּכְתִּיב, פָּנִים בְּפָנִים דִּבֶּר יְיָ' עִמָּכֶם בָּהָר מִתּוֹךְ הָאֵשׁ, דְּמִלּוּלָא נָפְקָא, וּמַלִּיל מִגּוֹ אֶשָּׁא וְשַׁלְהוֹבָא, דְּדָחֵי לֵיהּ לְבַר, בִּדְפִיקוּ דְּרוּחָא וּמַיָּיא, דְּיָהֲבִין חֵילָא. דְּאֶשָּׁא וְרוּחָא וּמַיָּיא, מִגּוֹ שׁוֹפָר, דְּאִיהוּ כָּלִיל לְכֻלְּהוּ נָפִיק. וְיִשְׂרָאֵל אִתְרַחִיקוּ מִדְּחִילוּ דָּא.

Moses Zeir Anpin

27. Because of that, BECAUSE OF THAT AWE, YISRAEL SAID TO MOSES, "And speak to us" (Ibid. 24), SAYING, We do not want this lofty force from above, NAMELY FROM ZEIR ANPIN, but from the place of the Female, MALCHUT, and no further. THIS IS THE MEANING OF, "and speak to us," WITH A FEMININE SUFFIX. Moses said TO THEM, You have surely weakened my power and weakened another power OF MALCHUT, for had not Yisrael distanced themselves, they would have heard all those words FROM ZEIR ANPIN as before, the world would not have been destroyed and Yisrael would have lived for generations.

27. וּבג"כ, וְאַתְּ תְּדַבֵּר אֵלֵינוּ, לָא בָּעֵינָן בְּתּוּקְפָּא עִלָּאָה דִּלְעֵילָּא, אֶלָּא מֵאֲתָר דְּנוּקְבָּא וְלָא יַתִּיר, וְאַתְּ תְּדַבֵּר אֵלֵינוּ וְגוֹ.' אָמַר מֺשֶׁה וַדַּאי חָלַשְׁתּוּן חֵילָא דִּילִי, חָלַשְׁתּוּן חֵילָא אַחֲרָא, דְּאִלְמָלֵא לָא אִתְרַחֲקוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְיִשְׁמְעוּן כָּל הַהִיא מִלָּה כַּד בְּקַדְמֵיתָא, לָא הֲוָה יָכִיל עָלְמָא לְמֶהֱוֵי חָרִיב לְבָתַר, וְאִינּוּן הֲווֹ קַיְימִין לְדָרֵי דָּרִין.

Death Death and the Afterlife Female Mochin Moses Nukva Resurrection Tents Tree Tree of Life Zeir Anpin

28. The first time, AFTER HEARING THE FIRST WORDS, they died. The reason is that it had to be so, since the tree of death, MALCHUT, brought it upon them. Later they were resurrected, rose and grew BY RECEIVING MOCHIN OF GREATNESS. The Holy One, blessed be He, wanted to bring them into the Tree of Life, ZEIR ANPIN, that is situated above that tree of death, so they will live forever. But they distanced themselves and refused AS MENTIONED. Then the power of Moses who was above them weakened, and another power OF MALCHUT weakened. The Holy One, blessed be He, said, 'I desire to uphold you in a supernal place, that you shall cleave to life, yet you wish the place where the Nukva dwells. For that reason, "Go say to them, Return again to your tents" (Ibid. 27), each one will go to his wife and mate with her,' BECAUSE THEY DESCENDED TO THE WORLD OF THE FEMALE.

28. דְּהָא בְּשַׁעֲתָא קַדְמֵיתָא מִיתוּ. מ"ט. בְּגִין דְּהָכִי אִצְטְרִיךְ, דְּהָא אִילָנָא דְּמוֹתָא גָּרִים. לְבָתַר דְּחַייוּ וְקָמוּ וְקָא סָגּוּ, וּבָעָא קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא לְאַעֲלָא לוֹן לְאִילָנָא דְּחַיֵּי, דְּקָאֵים עַל הַהוּא אִילָנָא דְּמוֹתָא, בְּגִין לְמֶהֱוֵי קַיְימִין לְעָלְמִין, אִתְרְחַק וְלָא בָּעוּן, כְּדֵין אִתְחֲלָשׁ חֵילָא דְּמֺשֶׁה עָלַיְיהוּ, וְאִתְחַלָּשׁ חֵילָא אַחֲרָא. אָמַר קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, אֲנָא בָּעֵינָא לְקַיְּימָא לְכוּ בַּאֲתָר עִלָּאָה, וּלְאִתְדַּבְּקָא בַּחַיִּים, אַתּוּן בָּעִיתוּן אֲתָר דְּנוּקְבָּא שַׁרְיָא. וּבג"כ, לֵךְ אֱמוֹר לָהֶם וְגוֹ.' כָּל חַד יְהַךְ לְנוּקְבֵיהּ, וְיִתְיַחֵד בָּהּ.

Evil Fear Heart Punishment

29. Nevertheless, since Yisrael did it only because of the highest awe that rested upon them, it did not say of them but, "O that there were such a heart in them, that they would fear Me" (Ibid. 26). From this we learned that whoever does something but does not concentrate in his mind and wish on the Evil Side, even though it is evil, since he did not do it on purpose there is no punishment for him, and he is not like another WHO DOES IT PURPOSELY. And the Holy One, blessed be He, does not sentence him for evil.

29. וְעִם כָּל דָּא, כֵּיוָן דְּיִשְׂרָאֵל לָא עָבְדוּ, אֶלָּא בִּדְחִילוּ עִלָּאָה דַּהֲוָה עָלַיְיהוּ, לָא אִתְּמַר עָלַיְיהוּ, אֶלָּא מִי יִתֵּן וְהָיָה לְבָבָם זֶה לָהֶם וְגוֹ.' מִכָּאן אוֹלִיפְנָא, כָּל מַאן דְּעָבֵיד מִלָּה, וְלִבָּא וּרְעוּתֵיהּ לָא שַׁוֵּי לְסִטְרָא בִּישָׁא, אע"ג דְּאִיהוּ בִּישׁ, הוֹאִיל וְלָא עָבֵיד בִּרְעוּתָא, עוֹנְשָׁא לָא שַׁרְיָא עָלֵיהּ. וְלָא כב"נ אַחֲרָא. וְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא לָא דָּאִין לֵיהּ לְבִישׁ.