The secret of Sh'ma

420. The secret meaning of the word sh'ma (lit. 'hear') is a name (Heb. shem), WHICH IS MALCHUT, amounting to Ayin (= 70) names, WHICH IS THE NAME OF SEVENTY TWO NAMES (AYIN BET= 72) OF THE UPPER CHARIOT, THAT IS, CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET AND MALCHUT OF ZEIR ANPIN ABOVE THE CHEST. Everything is one whole, THAT IS, MALCHUT CALLED NAME IS INCLUDED WITHIN ZEIR ANPIN ABOVE THE CHEST, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF LARGE AYIN. 'Yisrael' refers to Yisrael - Saba, THE SIX ENDS OF BINAH. For there is also Small Yisrael, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, as is written: "when Yisrael was a child, then I loved him" (Hoshea 11:1); BUT HERE it is Yisrael - Saba, one mystery into one whole, FOR ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT ALLUDED TO IN THE 'SH'MA', ARE ONE WITH YISRAEL - SABA, FOR THEY RISE UP AND BECOME ONE WITH HIM. 'Sh'ma Yisrael' (lit. 'Hear, O Yisrael') INDICATES THAT here, IN YISRAEL - SABA, wife is united with her husband, THAT IS, MALCHUT WITH ZEIR ANPIN.

421. After ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT were included the one within the other into one IN YISRAEL - SABA, then all the organs should be joined together, THE SIX ENDS OF ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT, to unite two tabernacles together in all the organs, THE SUPERNAL DWELLING IS THE SECRET OF YUD-HEI, AND THE LOWER DWELLING IS THE SECRET OF VAV-HEI, with the heart wishing to rise to cleave with the Endless Light, where all, the upper and lower, will cleave and become one will.

422. This is the inner meaning of 'Yud Hei Yud Hei', as is said "and Hashem will be (Heb. yihyeh, Yud Hei Yud Hei) one" (Zecharyah 14:9), NAMELY, ONE in the secret of Yud Hei Yud Hei: Yud OF YUD HEI YUD HEI, THE SECRET OF CHOCHMAH, is to be united and attached to the Hei OF YUD HEI YUD HEI, which is an inner chamber, BINAH, the place where the supernal point is concealed, which is Yud, CHOCHMAH. This is the secret of Yud Hei Vav Hei our Elohim. These two names are Yud Hei, CHOCHMAH AND BINAH, HASHEM BEING CHOCHMAH AND OUR ELOHIM BEING BINAH.

423. Also all the body parts are put together, THE SIX ENDS OF ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT, where they came from, in the inner chamber, BINAH, AS WAS SAID; and everything returns to its place, to its essence and root, up to where the root of the covenant is, THAT IS, ABA.

424. Then the other two letters OF YUD HEI YUD HEI are combined and attached together, the Yud with the Hei. The Yud is the inner meaning of the holy covenant, TO WIT, YESOD OF ZEIR ANPIN. And the Hei is a temple, and a place to conceal the holy covenant, the Yud. NAMELY, MALCHUT IS A TEMPLE TO YESOD, AS BINAH IS A TEMPLE TO CHOCHMAH AS SAID. And though we explained that Yesod is the second Vav OF THE LETTER VAV FULLY SPELLED (VAV VAV), THE FIRST VAV BEING TIFERET AND THE SECOND BEING YESOD, WHY THEN IS IT SAID HERE TO BE YUD? HE ANSWERS: the implication of Yud is uniting them into one, THAT IS, WHEN IN THE SECRET OF UNITY WITH MALCHUT, YESOD IS CALLED YUD.

425. THE PURPOSE OF THE WORD One is to cause unity from there upward, THAT IS, FROM MALCHUT UPWARD, to awaken the desire to bind all together and awaken our wish with awe and love up to the Endless Light. This desire TO GO UP TO THE ENDLESS LIGHT will not be lacking in these grades and body parts, but will appear in them all, NOTHING SHALL BE WITHOUT IT, to attach them, so that all will be one unity bound together in the Endless Light.

426. This is the avowal of unity of Rav Hamnuna Saba (the elder), who learned it from his father, and his father from his Rabbi, and so on up to the mouth of Elijah. This avowal is very well and by reparation. And though we explained this avowal by many secrets, OTHER WAYS, all the secrets amount to one. But this I found in his book and it is well for it is an avowal of unity by amendment. We expounded upon another secret elsewhere, which is well and proper as it should be. But this avowal is by amendment, the avowal of Rav Hamnuna Saba (the elder).

427. He also says that whoever wishes to unite all the secrets of the avowal of unity within the word One, this is better. Therefore we lengthen the pronunciation of 'one' to awaken the desire to draw from above downward and to raise from below upward, so all will be one. This is the secret of Yud Hei Yud Hei, that alludes to this, AS WE SAID.

428. We learned THAT WITHIN THE WORD One is the secret of above, below and the four directions of the world. It is so, and we need to unite the higher and the lower as we said, THEY BEING ABA AND IMA AND MALE AND FEMALE. The four directions of the world are the secret of the supernal Chariot, CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET AND MALCHUT OF ZEIR ANPIN ABOVE THE CHEST, and we should put them all together in one bond, one unity, all the way to the Endless Light, as we explained.