Chasidut for Job 28:12
וְֽ֭הַחָכְמָה מֵאַ֣יִן תִּמָּצֵ֑א וְאֵ֥י זֶ֝ה מְק֣וֹם בִּינָֽה׃
But wisdom, where shall it be found? And where is the place of understanding?
Sha'ar HaEmunah VeYesod HaChasidut
Our subject is explained by the Holy Ra’avad318Twelfth century talmudist and kabbalist, Rabbi Avraham ben David of Posquieres. in his introduction to the Sefer Yetsira319Hayim Vital (Introduction, Ets Hayim) states that this work was not actually written by the Ra’avad, but by another sage. Nonetheless, it is an authentic and trustworthy work of Kabbalah. where he explains the concept of the Fifty Gates of Binah. He says, “It is the contention of the philosophers that substance cannot come into being from nothing, but rather can only be created from a similar substance. It is our view, and the view of the Torah, that the world was created ex-nihilo. Based on this, the heretics ask us their impudent questions, for the world must now be understood in one of two ways. Either there was some primordial substance out of which God created the world (a view hinted at in Bereshit Rabbah, Chapter One, that God is a “Painter,” who found lovely paints, namely “chaos and void and darkness320See the second verse in the Torah. “), or that there was no material at all before the world’s creation, only the Cause of all Causes, God Himself. Now, the assertion that there was something that existed eternally, other than God, is a purely heretical notion. Yet, if we say that nothing existed – that God created His world out of His own essence – it means that His essence took on a physical form.321This is an equally heretical statement. Concerning this mystery, God responds by saying (Iyov, 38:4), ‘Where were you when I laid the foundations of the world? Tell me, if you possess understanding!’ Meaning, the world came into existence through the power of Hokhmah – Wisdom, and the power of Binah – Understanding. One can further ask, ‘Why was the world created with this exact measurement, no more or less?’ And, ‘How did a finite world consisting of substances with specific dimensions come forth from a power that is immeasurable by definition?’ Concerning these questions, God answers (Iyov, 38:5), ‘Who determined its measurements, do you know? Or who has stretched the line upon it?’ The inquirer can further raise the question, ‘Can the basic qualities of creation become opposite of their nature, or not? And if you say that it is possible,322The Ra’avad does not address the opposite possibility, that the basic qualities of creation cannot become opposite of their nature. Perhaps to do so would attribute to them a degree of necessary existence, which contradicts the principle of creation ex nihilo. then we may ask, seeing as there are four qualities – hot, wet, cold, and dry – from whence were they created? If they were created out of the very first Cause of all Causes, then how could this Primal Cause contain these opposite qualities? And if you say that the Primal Cause is a simple unity, then from were are these qualities and their opposites derived?’ In response to this, God says (Iyov, 38:6), “Upon what (mah) are its foundations fastened?” (Referring to the elementary materials of nature, which are garments for the foundation of Divine Sovereignty – Malkhut Shamayim.) The verse uses the words, “Upon what,” as a coded way of saying, “Upon Hokhmah – Wisdom, which is called ‘mah.’”323The sefirah of Hokhmah refers to a level of reality in which the entire creation exists as a single point of potential, before it unfolds in a downward process of expansion and formation. This is alluded to by very word Hokhmah, which can be divided into two words: ko’ah mah (כח מה) – the “potential” for “what is.” Nature’s foundations are fastened upon God’s Wisdom, which can contain all of these contradictory qualities, just as the Hiyuli324The Hiyuli is the primordial, formless substance of creation, which preceded the physical elements. The Ramban writes, “The heavens and all that is within them is one substance. And the earth and all that is within it is one substance. God created both of them out of non-existence. Only these two were created, and everything was made out of them. This substance is called the Hiyuli. In Hebrew it is called tohu – ‘formless matter.’” can contain the simple elements of creation. The heretics believe that it is impossible for material (homer) to exist without retaining some sort of form (tsura), or homer without tsura. Yet according to the Torah “Hokhma – Wisdom comes forth from nothing (Iyov, 28:12),”325Literally, the verse reads, “Wisdom, from whence is it found?” Interpreted Kabbalistically, however, the word “from whence” – m’ayin – is understood to refer to the highest sefirah of Keter, also called Ayin, “nothingness”; that is, the Divine “No-thingness” that precedes the creation. It is from here that the sefirah of Hokhmah emerges – m’ayin. In terms of the author’s discussion, Hokhmah is understand to be the pure, formless potential for creation, emanating out of Keter. Thus, it has the potential to hold all opposites, for it is only in Binah that reality attains a level of form and division. (Recall the discussion in the previous chapter, the Ben Zoma perceived the supernal traits only in their root in Binah, where they still maintained their independent forms, and not in Hokhmah, where they were united and absorbed in their root.”) and Binah – Understanding is its form. This is the matter explained above, through which one can well understand the teaching of the Ra’avad. For according to man’s limited understanding, there is neither matter without form, nor form without matter. Either the creation can not exist, or it exists through one of the two, erroneous conjectures provided by the philosopher, quoted by the Ra’avad. However, the man of perfect faith knows that his own intellect and knowledge are entities created by God, and he sees that his own intellectual conception of that which is possible and that which is impossible is only a veil of the limited human consciousness, which was created in order to establish a separation between the lower, human realm and the upper, Godly realm. God is one simple and absolute unity. All perception of division is only a product of the veil of creation.
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Kedushat Levi
Exodus 33,23. “You will see My back, but My face is not visible (to any creature).” In addition to the fact that of course, G’d’s “back” is also invisible, as He is not corporeal, the author quotes two verses from Job and Proverbs respectively, which require further clarification. We read in Proverbs 15,20: בן חכם ישמח אב, ”a wise son causes joy to the father.” We also read in Job 28,14: והחכמה מאין תמצא “but where does wisdom come from?“ We know that the most important ingredient of wisdom is acquired by man when he looks (with his mental eye) at the concept of אין, i.e. the “nothingness” from which the (perceptible) phenomena of the universe came into existence, emanated. When man trains himself to cleave ever more to the roots of his life, i.e. to the Creator, this aspect is known as אצל הבורא, being next to the Creator, Who Himself is garbed in a “garment,” i.e. a protective shield that prevents the powerful rays of light emanating from Him from harming those exposed to this. The prophet Isaiah 23,18 alludes to this when he said: ולמכסה עתיק (יומין) “dressed in primeval (of prehistoric origin) garments” (compare Talmud Pessachim 119) This is also the meaning of the allusion in the Talmud Chagigah 7 that Israel provides G’d with His “parnassah,” livelihood, basing itself on the word לבוש being used in that context, so that חכמה, “wisdom” in many instances refers to the אור חוזר, the “reflected light,” emanating from Israel in response to G’d’s largesse, as it requires חכמה, “wisdom or ingenuity,” for the original light beamed at His creatures by G’d to be aimed back accurately at its source. This is also referred to by way of allusion in Job 33,32, ואאלפך חכמה “I shall teach you wisdom.” The letters א-ל-פ when reversed spell פלא, miracle, something supernatural, as in the word נפלאות, and hint at the fact that the ability to reattach oneself to the original source that has given one life is something beyond man’s innate ability, and cannot be achieved without direct Divine intervention. The process by which this is achieved is known as תנועה, normally translated as “motion,” meaning in this context that G’d sets in motion some part of the word תנועה.
[I confess that from this point on I have not understood the author’s allusions on this subject based on the meaning of the vowels underneath the consonants. Ed.]
[I confess that from this point on I have not understood the author’s allusions on this subject based on the meaning of the vowels underneath the consonants. Ed.]
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Kedushat Levi
An additional meaning based on the verse quoted above, linked to Moses telling the people (verse 3) as an introduction to this legislation זכור את היום הזה וגו', “Keep on remembering this day, etc.;”.
The Ari’zal writes that the reason why Moses introduced relaying the legislation about the sanctity of the firstborn with the words: זכור את היום הזה, followed by the line: והעברת כל פטר רחם, “you are to set apart for the Lord every first issue from the womb, etc,” only 9 verses later, is that when G’d told him about this legislation He appeared to include only the natural born Israelites in the sanctity of the firstborn, בבני ישראל, in verse 2, not the mixed multitude of new converts that Moses had accepted. The mixed multitude had not yet attained a level of spirituality that would allow their firstborn to be included in the additional degree of sanctity accorded to them when compared to the ordinary Israelite who was not a firstborn. Moses was afraid that the existing situation would result in jealousy of the mixed multitude as they would feel as second class Jews. In order to bridge this gap, Moses instructed the Israelites with an additional commandment to be observed when they would enter the Holy Land, a commandment that would apply to every Jew crossing the Jordan whether a natural born Jew or a convert This additional commandment concerned the observance of the Exodus for seven days on the anniversary of the dates on which it took place, and the eating of matzot and the offering of the Passover lamb on the eve of the first day Matzot would be eaten for seven days; this commandment was to apply to all Jews be they be natural born Jews or converts. It was a compliment to the mixed multitude as this group of people had not been “redeemed” from Egypt since they had not been slaves there, having placed themselves voluntarily under the protective “umbrella” of the Jewish G’d, the Creator of the universe. As a result of their embracing these commandments, the mixed multitude would cross the threshold of being ushered into the Jewish people as full partners as soon as they would cross into the Holy Land. (verse 11)
The author adds, that he feels that the reason that Moses did not immediately convey the commandment of the sanctification of the firstborn and first inserted the commandment of the Passover lamb and the eating of matzot on the anniversaries as something that would continue for all future generations, was that the period of the Exodus, the 10 plagues, the removal of one nation from amidst another nation with whom the first nation had felt inextricably interwoven, had all been part of what our sages describe as ‘re-enactment” of the 6 days of the creation of the universe, a חדוש העולם, creation of a new world. It resembled the creation of the יש מאין, the tangible emerging from the totally intangible. We acknowledge this concept of G’d renewing the universe constantly in our daily prayers before the recital of the קריאת שמע, when we say המחדש בטובו בכל יום תמיד מעשה בראשית, that “the Creator renews the whole universe on a daily basis, constantly, innumerable times.” When Job asks rhetorically in Job 28,12 והחכמה מאין תמצא, “from where did wisdom originate?,” he clearly cannot mean that the word אין means the same as the Greek: “nihil,” i.e. “nothing,” but refers to domains beyond those accessible to creatures rooted in the יש, the domain of the tangible, physical world. Our author explained already on the first two pages of Genesis that unless man first negates his ego completely, he does not have access to the source of wisdom in the domain called אין, or “eyn,” “negation,” for want of a better word. Although G’d, as pointed out in our daily prayers, renews the creation every single day, on the occasion of the first of Nissan, He does so especially for the Jewish people, and at the same time even the “year” for the count of the number of years that a Jewish king rules, is considered as renewing its cycle on that day. We know this from the Mishnah in Rosh Hashanah, 1,1 Although the names of the months in the Jewish calendar are generally understood to reflect the names in the Persian calendar, our author sees in the word ניסן, the month in which the Exodus occurred, an allusion to the נסים, earth shaking miracles that occurred in that month at that time. The reason why the Seder evening must conclude with the eating or the Passover lamb, or its substitute the “afikoman,” is so that the taste lingers in our mouth, and we can draw inspiration from it during the many months to come. [The reader is referred to pages 1-4 where the author explained the allegorical meaning in the letters of such words as אין, מצוה וגו'. Based on this he feels that the linkage of months and years in our verse, i.e. לחדשי השנה is entirely justified. Ed.]
The Ari’zal writes that the reason why Moses introduced relaying the legislation about the sanctity of the firstborn with the words: זכור את היום הזה, followed by the line: והעברת כל פטר רחם, “you are to set apart for the Lord every first issue from the womb, etc,” only 9 verses later, is that when G’d told him about this legislation He appeared to include only the natural born Israelites in the sanctity of the firstborn, בבני ישראל, in verse 2, not the mixed multitude of new converts that Moses had accepted. The mixed multitude had not yet attained a level of spirituality that would allow their firstborn to be included in the additional degree of sanctity accorded to them when compared to the ordinary Israelite who was not a firstborn. Moses was afraid that the existing situation would result in jealousy of the mixed multitude as they would feel as second class Jews. In order to bridge this gap, Moses instructed the Israelites with an additional commandment to be observed when they would enter the Holy Land, a commandment that would apply to every Jew crossing the Jordan whether a natural born Jew or a convert This additional commandment concerned the observance of the Exodus for seven days on the anniversary of the dates on which it took place, and the eating of matzot and the offering of the Passover lamb on the eve of the first day Matzot would be eaten for seven days; this commandment was to apply to all Jews be they be natural born Jews or converts. It was a compliment to the mixed multitude as this group of people had not been “redeemed” from Egypt since they had not been slaves there, having placed themselves voluntarily under the protective “umbrella” of the Jewish G’d, the Creator of the universe. As a result of their embracing these commandments, the mixed multitude would cross the threshold of being ushered into the Jewish people as full partners as soon as they would cross into the Holy Land. (verse 11)
The author adds, that he feels that the reason that Moses did not immediately convey the commandment of the sanctification of the firstborn and first inserted the commandment of the Passover lamb and the eating of matzot on the anniversaries as something that would continue for all future generations, was that the period of the Exodus, the 10 plagues, the removal of one nation from amidst another nation with whom the first nation had felt inextricably interwoven, had all been part of what our sages describe as ‘re-enactment” of the 6 days of the creation of the universe, a חדוש העולם, creation of a new world. It resembled the creation of the יש מאין, the tangible emerging from the totally intangible. We acknowledge this concept of G’d renewing the universe constantly in our daily prayers before the recital of the קריאת שמע, when we say המחדש בטובו בכל יום תמיד מעשה בראשית, that “the Creator renews the whole universe on a daily basis, constantly, innumerable times.” When Job asks rhetorically in Job 28,12 והחכמה מאין תמצא, “from where did wisdom originate?,” he clearly cannot mean that the word אין means the same as the Greek: “nihil,” i.e. “nothing,” but refers to domains beyond those accessible to creatures rooted in the יש, the domain of the tangible, physical world. Our author explained already on the first two pages of Genesis that unless man first negates his ego completely, he does not have access to the source of wisdom in the domain called אין, or “eyn,” “negation,” for want of a better word. Although G’d, as pointed out in our daily prayers, renews the creation every single day, on the occasion of the first of Nissan, He does so especially for the Jewish people, and at the same time even the “year” for the count of the number of years that a Jewish king rules, is considered as renewing its cycle on that day. We know this from the Mishnah in Rosh Hashanah, 1,1 Although the names of the months in the Jewish calendar are generally understood to reflect the names in the Persian calendar, our author sees in the word ניסן, the month in which the Exodus occurred, an allusion to the נסים, earth shaking miracles that occurred in that month at that time. The reason why the Seder evening must conclude with the eating or the Passover lamb, or its substitute the “afikoman,” is so that the taste lingers in our mouth, and we can draw inspiration from it during the many months to come. [The reader is referred to pages 1-4 where the author explained the allegorical meaning in the letters of such words as אין, מצוה וגו'. Based on this he feels that the linkage of months and years in our verse, i.e. לחדשי השנה is entirely justified. Ed.]
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