פירוש על שיר השירים 4:18

Behold you are beautiful my beloved. He praised them and appeased them, and their sacrifices pleased Him.

These are the words of the Glory when he dwelt with His mighty Presence in the House built by Solomon. For that generation was perfect; the time was a period of peace and joy; anguish and sighing were put to flight. The Glory sets forth the praise of Her eyes and hair, her lips and neck. All these are similes and parables known to the mystical illuminati.

Until the sun spreads. When they sinned before Me,¹The captioned text of Rashi belongs to Verse 6 below; Rashi comments here to inform us until when did the sacrifices please God. in the days of Chofni and Pinchas.²See I Shmuel 2:12-17.

Your eyes are like doves. Your hues, appearance and characteristics³I.e., עיניך here does not mean your “eyes” but your “characteristics,” i.e., appearance, as in כעין הבדלח, meaning, “as the appearance of crystal,” in Bamidbar 11:7. (Sifsei Chachomim) are like those of a dove, which cleaves to its mate, and when they slaughter it, it does not struggle but stretches forth its neck; so have you given your shoulder to bear My yoke and My fear. From within your kerchief;

your hair is like a flock of goats. This praise is allegorized as the praise of a woman beloved by her bridegroom [who says to her], “Within your kerchief, your hair is beautiful and shines with brilliance and whiteness, like the hair of white goats descending from the mountains, and whose hair shines from a distance.” And the allegory with which he compares the congregation of Yisroel is as follows: From within your camps and your dwelling places, even the empty ones among you⁴See Rashi in Verse 3 below. are as dear to Me as Yaakov and his sons, who trailed down from Mount Gilad when Lavan overtook them there.⁵See Bereishis 31:23. Another explanation, like those who mobilized against Midyan beyond the Yardein, which is in the land of Gilad. This version is in Midrash Shir Hashirim.

From within. This מִבַּעַד is a term meaning “from within,” for the majority of ‘בְּעַד’ in Scripture refers to something that covers and shields against something else, as in, “and He sealed up וּבְעַד the stars,”⁶Iyov 9:7. [and as in,] “the earth [closed] its bars against me בַּעֲדִי,”⁷Yonah 2:7. [and as in,] “Can He judge through הַבְעַד the heavy darkness?”⁸Iyov 22:13. And ‘מִבַּעַד’⁹The equivalent of ‘בעד’, with the mem as a prefix. is the thing that is within that ‘בְּעַד’[=covering], therefore, it says ‘מִבַּעַד’[=from within].

Your kerchief. An expression denoting an object which confines the hair so that it does not show, and this refers to a kerchief and ribbons. It is impossible to interpret ‘צַמָּתֵךְ’ [meaning] a veil צֹמֶת, where the tav is a radical, for if so, it should have been punctuated with a dagesh when immediately preceding a hey, which makes it in the feminine possessive, or a vav, which makes it in the masculine possessive, like the tav of ‘שַׁבָּת [Shabbos]’, which, when used in the feminine possessive form, is punctuated with a dagesh, as in, “her festival, her new moon, and her Shabbos וְשַׁבַּתָּהּ,”¹⁰Hosheia 2:13. ¹¹Bamidbar 28:10. and similarly in the masculine form, “the burnt offering of each Shabbos in its Shabbos בְּשַׁבַּתּוֹ.”¹²Vayikra 13:41. But the tav of ‘צַמָּתֵךְ’, is not punctuated with a dagesh, we must perforce conclude that it comes instead of a hey, and the noun denoting kerchief is צַמָּה, and when it is possessive, to render it either in the masculine or in the feminine form the hey is converted to a tav without a dagesh, e.g., שִׁפְחָה [handmaiden] is converted in order to say שִׁפְחָתוֹ [his handmaiden] or שִׁפְחָתָהּ [her handmaiden]. And similarly אָמָה [maidservant] becomes אֲמָתוֹ [his maidservant] or אֲמָתָהּ [her maidservant]. [And similarly,] עֶרְוָה [nakedness] becomes עֶרְוָתוֹ [his nakedness] or עֶרְוָתָהּ [her nakedness]. And similarly in this case, צַמָּה [kerchief] becomes צַמָּתוֹ [his kerchief], צַמָּתָהּ [her kerchief], or צַמָּתִי [my kerchief], צַמָּתֵךְ [your kerchief].

Descending. That were plucked. The word גִּבֵּחַ [bald] is rendered by the Targum as גְּלוֹשׁ.¹³Corresponding to “כעדר הקצובות,” i.e., “like a counted flock.” When the animals descend from the mountain, the mountain becomes bald and bare of them.

Your teeth are like a counted flock, etc. This praise, too, is expressed in terms of a woman’s beauty.

Your teeth. Are fine and white and arranged in their proper order like wool and like the order of a flock of ewes, selected from the rest of the flock by count and number,¹⁴Corresponding to “שעלו מן הרחצה,” i.e., “who have come up from the washing.” and are assigned to a clever and capable shepherd to be careful with their wool, because they make them into fine woolen garments. They watch them from the time of birth, that the wool should not become soiled, and they wash them daily.¹⁵Tehillim 38:4.

All of which are perfect. An expression of perfection, [as in,] “There is no perfection מְתם in my flesh,”¹⁶See Bamidbar 31:1-7. i.e., “whole” תְּמִימוֹת=מַתְאִימוֹת, entires in O.F.

And [none are] blemished. There is no miscarriage or defect among them. This allegory was stated in reference to: The mighty men of Yisroel, who cut down and consume their enemies surrounding them with their teeth, and yet they distance themselves from robbing from [Bnei] Yisroel and from lewdness, so that they should not become sullied with sin. This praise was stated concerning the twelve thousand men who mobilized against Midyan with a count and a number,¹⁷Ibid. 31:49. of whom not one was suspected of lewdness, as it is stated, “and not a man among us is missing.”¹⁸Ibid. 31:11-12. And even for improper thoughts they brought atonement offerings. Also, they were not suspected of theft, for Scripture attests regarding them, “And they took all the spoils... and they brought it to Moshe and to Elazar the kohein, etc.,”¹⁹Yehoshua 2:18. and not one of them concealed even one cow or one donkey.

Like a scarlet thread are your lips. Beautiful to promise and to keep their promise, as the spies did to Rachav Hazonah. They said to her, “[you shall bind] this line of scarlet thread, etc.,”²⁰Alternatively, your lips were thin and red as a scarlet thread, a sign of beauty in a woman. (Metzudas Dovid) and they kept their promise.²¹Yechezkeil 33:30.

And your speech. Your speech, and this is from the structure of, “who speak הַנִּדְבָּרִים against you near the walls,”²²Malachi 3:16. [and as in,] “Then the God fearing men spoke נִדְבְּרוּ,”²³See Rashi in Maseches Avodah Zarah 30b. parlediz in O.F.

"That you shall accept from them": Not donation of grain, wine, and oil, but gold, silver, and bronze. The Blessed, Holy One said: I set up thirteen things for you in Egypt; you, too, should offer thirteen. The thirteen which [God] did in Egypt are written down by Ezekiel: "I clothed you with embroidered garments, and gave you sandals of dolphin leather to wear, and wound fine linen about your head, and dressed you in silks. I decked you out in finery and put bracelets on your arms and a chain around your neck. I put a ring in your nose, and earrings in your ears, and a splendid crown on your head....the choice flour, the oil, and the honey, which I had provided for you to eat" (Ezekiel 16:10-12, 19) -- which come to thirteen. You, too, should offer me thirteen things: gold, silver, bronze; blue, purple, and crimson yarns; fine linen, goats’ hair; tanned ram skins, dolphin skins, and acacia wood, oil for lighting, spices for the anointing oil and for the aromatic incense; lapis lazuli and other stones for setting" (Exodus 25:4-7).....

Your cheeks. This is the upper part of the face, called pomels in O.F., next to the eyes. And in the language of the Talmud, it is called “ the pomegranate of the face.”²⁴‘רקתך’, from ‘רק’, meaning empty; see Bereishis 37:24. It resembles the split half of a pomegranate from the outside, which is red and round. This is a praise in terms of a woman’s beauty. Our Rabbis explained the allegory as follows: Even the worthless²⁵See Verse 1 above. ones רֵיקָנִים among you are full of mitzvos as a pomegranate.²⁶Iyov 35:11.

From within your kerchief. From within your kerchief.

Your neck is like the Tower of Dovid. An erect posture is a sign of beauty in a woman. The allegorical meaning is: “Like the Tower of Dovid,” i.e., the fortress of Tzion, is a place of strength, stronghold, and a fortress. So is “your neck,” i.e., the Chamber of Hewn Stone, which was Yisroel’s strength and fortification, and that tower was built as a model of beauty, so that everyone should look at it, to study its forms and the beauty of its architecture. The word תַּלְפִּיּוֹת is of the grammatical structure of, “He teaches us מַלְּפֵנוּ more than the beasts of the earth,”²⁷Whose radicals are respectively רמה and בנה. and the first tav in תַּלְפִּיּוֹת is [a prefix] like the first tav in תַּרְמִית [deceit] and תַּבְנִית [construction].²⁸Yirmiyahu 51:11.

A thousand shields are hung upon it. It was the custom of the princes to hang their shields and their quivers on the walls of the towers.

Quivers. Quivers in which they place arrows, as in, “Prepare the arrows, fill the quivers הַשְּׁלָטִים,”²⁹I.e. Teaching [אלף] the Torah acts as a shield [המגן]. and it corresponds to the Chamber of Hewn Stone, from where instruction goes forth, for the Torah act as a shield to Yisroel.³⁰I Divrei Hayamim 16:15. It is also possible to render that אֶלֶף הַמָּגֵן is the same as מָגֵן הָאֶלֶף, the shield of the thousand, alluding to, “the word [of the Torah] He commanded for a thousand generations.”³¹Alternatively, שלטי are shields. (Metzudas Tzion)

All the quivers of the mighty. We find that disciples are described as arrows and quivers,³²The shields represent the great scholars of each generation. (Gra) as the matter is stated, “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of youth. Fortunate is the man who has filled his quiver with them.”³³Tehillim 127:4-5.

Your two breasts. Which nourished you. This refers to Moshe and Aharon.

Like two fawns, twins of a gazelle. It is a gazelle’s nature to bear twins, similarly, they [Moshe and Aharon] are equal, this one to that one.³⁴This is in accordance with Rashi in Shemos 6:26 who states “there are places where the Torah sets Aharon ahead of Moshe and there are places where it sets Moshe ahead of Aharon, to tell you that they were equal.” Another explanation, “Your bosom,” is a reference to the Tablets, “twins of a gazelle,” they are equal with one measure; five commandments on this one and five on the other, each commandment corresponding to the other.³⁵I.e., the five commandments on one side of the Tablets correspond to the five commandments on the other side of the Tablets. “I [am Adonoy...],” אָנֹכִי,³⁶Shemos 20:2. corresponds to, “You shall not murder,” לֹא תִרְצַח,³⁷Ibid. Verse 13. for the murderer diminishes the image of the Holy One, Blessed Is He. “You shall not have other gods,” לֹא יִהְיֶה לְךָ,³⁸Ibid. Verse 3. corresponds to, “you shall not commit adultery,” לֹא תִנְאָף,³⁹Ibid. Verse 13. for one who commits idolatry is like an adulterous woman who takes strangers while bound to her husband. “You shall not take לֹא תִשָּׂא⁴⁰Ibid. Verse 7. [the name of Adonoy your God in vain],” corresponds to, “You shall not steal,” לֹא תִגְנֹב,⁴¹Ibid. Verse 13. for one who steals will eventually swear falsely. “Remember [the day of Shabbos],” זָכוֹר אֶת יוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת,⁴²Ibid. Verse 8. corresponds to, “You shall not bear [false witness],” לֹא תַעֲנֶה,⁴³Ibid. Verse 13. for one who profanes the Shabbos testifies falsely against his Creator, saying that He did not rest on the Shabbos of Creation. “Honor [your father and mother],” כַּבֵּד אֶת אָבִיךָ וְאֶת אִמֶּךָ,⁴⁴Ibid. Verse 12. corresponds to, “You shall not covet,” לֹא תַחְמֹד,⁴⁵Ibid. Verse 14. for one who covets⁴⁶His friend’s wife. will eventually beget a son who [unknowingly] slights him and honors one who is not his father.

Who pasture. Their sheep among the roses and guide them on a tranquil and straight path.

Until the sun spreads. Until the sun spreads.

When the day blows gently: This refers to the removal of the sovereignty of the nations.

And the shadows flee. That is the time of intense heat, the hottest time of the day. I will save you, and you are pleasant to me.

And the shadows flee; As we have explained.

The sun. הַיּוֹם here means] “the sun,”⁴⁷Usually it means “the day.” and similarly, “in the direction of the sun הַיּוֹם,”⁴⁸Bereishis 3:8. and similarly, “for behold, the sun הַיּוֹם comes, burning like a furnace,”⁴⁹Malachi 3:19. and once the sun has spread, “I will go to Mount Moriyah,” into the eternal Temple, [from] Bereishis Rabbah,⁵⁰Bereishis Rabbah 55:7. i.e., from when they sinned before Me by profaning My sacred offerings and by spurning My meal offerings in the days of Chofni and Pinchas.⁵¹See I Shmuel 2:12-17. I will leave you and I will abandon this Tabernacle, and I will choose for Myself Mount Moriyah, into the eternal Temple. And there, “you are completely beautiful ... and you are without blemish,”⁵²Below Verse 7. and there I will accept all your sacrifices.

I will betake myself to the mountain of myrrh: This is Jerusalem, as it is written: “In Jerusalem which is upon Mt. Moriah” [II Chron. 3:1].

To the hill of frankincense: This is Mt. Zion. Jerusalem is compared to myrrh which is red, referring to the attribute of justice, as it says: “Within her righteousness dwells” [Isa. 1:21]. Mt. Zion is compared to a hill of frankincense, the attribute of compassion. This verse refers to the time when Israel acts in accordance with rectitude, in accord to justice and the Torah. The shekhinah was lovely, beautified by the Holy Spirit. Indeed, over all the glory hangs a canopy and crown. In contrast to this, she is like a bird wandering from her nest, departing her house and kingdom, as it states: “A son who causes shame and disgrace, plunders his father, puts his mother to flight” [Prov. 19:26].

With me [will you come] from Levanon O bride. When you are exiled from this Levanon [Beis Hamikdosh], with Me you will be exiled, for I will go into exile with you.

From Lebanon my bride with me: The Glory says (to the shekhinah): “You were with me among the profound essences,⁹⁷Ha-havayot ha-‘amukot, i.e., the uppermost sefirot. hidden within primordial Wisdom.”

With me from Levanon will you come. And when you return from the exile, I will return with you, and also throughout the exile, I will be distressed in your distress.⁵³See Yeshayahu 63:9. Therefore, [Scripture] wrote, “with me from Levanon will you come.” When you are exiled from this Levanon, you will come with Me, and [Scripture] does not write, “With me to Levanon will you come,” to denote that from the time of your departure from here until the time of your return, I am with you wherever you will go and come.

From Lebanon come with me: You came forth and were emanated with me from a single place.⁹⁸Following ms. mi-makom eḥad. Shekhinah’s origin is one with that of the Glory, in the most hidden sefirotic realms. The parable refers to the journeying of the shekhinah before the Israelite camp to seek out resting places, as it is written: “The Ark of the Covenant traveled in front of them on that three days’ journey to seek out a resting place for them” [Num. 10:33].

You will look from the peak of Amanah. When I gather your dispersed ones, you will look and ponder what is the reward of your actions from the beginning of your faith [=מֵרֹאשׁ אֲמָנָה that you believed in Me, [e.g.,] your following Me in the wilderness,⁵⁴See Yirmiyahu 2:22. and your travels and your encampments at My command,⁵⁵See Bamidbar 9:17-23. and your coming to the peak of Snir and Chermon, which were the lions’ dens, Sichon and Og. Another explanation, “מֵרֹאשׁ אֲמָנָה” [=from the peak of Amanah], this is a mountain on the northern boundary of Eretz Yisroel, named Amanah. In the language of the Mishnah,⁵⁶Maseches Gittin 8a. [these are] the mountains of Amnon [or] Mount Hor, about which it is stated, “from the Great Sea you shall draw a line extending to Mount Hor.”⁵⁷Bamidbar 34:7. When the exiles gather and arrive there, they will look from there and see the boundary of Eretz Yisroel and the air of Eretz Yisroel, and they will rejoice and offer thanks. Therefore, it is stated, “תָּשׁוּרִי [=You will sing] from the peak of Amanah.”

You captured my heart. You have drawn My heart to you.

You have ravished my heart — my bride: Your extraordinary attractiveness has stopped my heart. This [ravishing of the heart] is the thing and its opposite, similar to “they shall ash the altar” [Num. 4:13].⁹⁹Ravishing excites and stops the heart at once. “Ashing” the altar means removing the ashes. For desire and inclination and their union are drawn to her lofty beauty.

With but one of your eyes. Of the many good characteristics that you possess, if you had only one, I would love you dearly, and all the more so with all of them. And similarly, “with one necklace of your necklaces,” with but one of the chains of your necklaces. These are the adornments of commandments through which the [Bnei] Yisroel are distinguished. Another explanation of “בְּאַחַד עֲנָק,” with one of your forefathers, [the one] referred to as, “was one,”⁵⁸Yechezkeil 33:24. the one singled out, and this is Avrohom, who is called עֲנָק [=a giant], “the greatest man among the giants בַּעֲנָקִים.”⁵⁹Yehoshua 14:15.

With one of your eyes: This refers to the generation of Solomon, a perfect one, all righteous, including the Sanhedrin of sages who know the wisdom of the proper times. They are called “eyes” for they are the light of the world, as in “if it was in error, hidden from the eyes of the community” [Num. 15:24]. It says “one” because that generation was singular; there was never another like it, either earlier or later.

With one coil of your necklace: This is an allusion to the king, the glory of his people. Because he foresaw through the holy spirit of prophecy that in the future the kingdom would be split asunder into two states after his demise, he specified “with one coil of your necklace,” meaning “while the kingdom is yet one.”

The Glory begins to expound upon the pleasantness of her love, the scent of her ointments and garments, the honey of her lips.

How beautiful is your love. Every place where you showed me affection is beautiful in My eyes; Gilgal, Shiloh, Nov, Givon, and the eternal Temple. That is what the [poet] from Bavel composed, “A resting place and other meeting places,” “resting place” refers to Yerusholayim, and “other meeting places” refers to each place where the Divine Presence met with Yisroel.

He said: How sweet is your love emanating forth from the wine of Torah, that is to say, Wisdom’s font and its paths.

And the fragrance of your oils. Your good name.

Your ointments more fragrant: The allusion is to the expanding light of Wisdom, descending via its attributes, drawn out of that place encompassing all spices.¹⁰⁰The light of Wisdom is the flow of sefirotic energy, coming from supernal ḥokhmah, the source of all the sefirot.

Honey. [Which is] sweet.

Honey and milk: The allusion is to the two modalities of Torah (written and oral) and the fact that the shekhinah is situated between the two cherubim.

Your lips drip. [With] explanations of Torah.

And the scent of your robes: The robe is not an entity distinct from Her. Rather, it is the overflow of Wisdom’s brightness which surrounds her. Our Sages state in Genesis Rabbah [21:5] concerning the verse “I looked and saw a man dressed in linen” [Daniel 10:5]: “He was comparable to a snail whose shell is inseparable from his body.” Since Wisdom’s brightness, encompassing thirty-two paths, surrounds the Glory, as in “Your faithful ones surround You” [Ps. 89:8], it is called “the garment of God,” as it says: “You are garbed in splendor and majesty” [Ps. 104:1].

And the fragrance of your garments. The proper commandments pertaining to your garments; ritual fringes, blue thread, the garments of a kohein, and the prohibition of sha’atnez [=wool and linen].

In order to fulfill the verse “You shall walk in His ways” [Deut. 28:9], Israel were commanded to wrap themselves in the tallit,¹⁰¹Prayer shawl, a rectangular garment bearing fringes at its four corners. which possesses thirty-two fringes. Concerning the tallit it is written: “You shall gaze upon them and remember all of God’s commandments” [Num. 15:39]. Now Wisdom encompasses, is endiademed and crowned¹⁰²Me-‘uteret u-mukhteret. with six hundred and thirteen precious gems. For each of the thirty-two paths within is divisible into two portions: good and evil, the positive and negative commandments. This division finds allusion in the ten divine statements (revealed directly at Sinai) in the words “remember” and “keep” the Sabbath day.¹⁰³The two versions of the decalogue (Exod. 20 and Deut. 5) differ in the wording of the Sabbath command. Exodus says “Remember the Sabbath Day” and Deuteronomy says “keep.” These are taken to refer to positive and prohibitive aspects of Sabbath observance, and then generalized to refer to positive and negative commandments altogether. For kabbalists they also refer to the two sefirot yesod and malkhut. Thus there are sixty-four paths. And as each and every one contains the ten [sefirot], their sum is six hundred and forty. If one deletes the twenty-seven letters of the Torah,¹⁰⁴Twenty-two plus the five final forms. the final sum is six hundred and thirteen. Thus concerning the fringes, Scripture states: “You shall gaze upon them and remember all of God’s commandments” [Num. 15:39]. Therefore our sages said in the tractate Shavuot: “The precept of fringes equals all of the commandments.”¹⁰⁵b. Nedarim 25b.

It is incumbent upon us to engage in a detailed enquiry concerning all of the commandments, to find an allusion pointing to them in the ten divine statements revealed at Sinai. This is comparable to the manner in which the sages of Israel sought an allusion in the Torah for every aspect of fundamental ethics and courtesy which was not included within its commandments. Thus our sages¹⁰⁶In b. Ta‘anit 9a. stated that R. Yohanan encountered a child who was reciting: “A man’s folly subverts his way and his heart rages against the Lord” [Prov. 19:3]. He said: “Does Scripture¹⁰⁷The prophetic and hagiographic sections of the Bible. contain anything which is not already intimated in the Torah? An allusion to this indeed appears in the Torah. Their hearts sank; and, trembling, they turned to one another, saying, ‘What is this that God has done to us?’ [Gen. 42:28]. How much the more so should we say concerning the fundamentals of the Torah and its precepts that there is no doubt that the six hundred and thirteen commandments find their allusion in that divine voice described as ‘a great voice, which went on no more’ [Deut.5:19].”¹⁰⁸And thus everything must be included within it. Alternatively the concluding phrase ve-lo’ yasaf can be understood as “and He added nothing [further].”

We should interpret each and every commandment in accord with our path, determining from which sefirah it derives and finding allusion to all of the reasons for the commandments which are not explicitly stated in the Torah. The reasons of many precepts are indeed explicated, an example being the law concerning the first born: “When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord slew every first-born in the land of Egypt, the first-born of man and beast. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord every first male issue of the womb, but redeem every first-born among my sons” [Exod. 13:15]. A similar case is that of tithes: “You shall consume the tithes of your new grain … before the Lord” which concludes “so that you might learn to revere the Lord your God forever” [Deut. 14:23]. Like these are many other commandments whose meaning is explained. But there are many whose purpose are not explicated, such as the reason for sacrifice, the Sabbatical year and Jubilee, circumcision, the blowing of the ram’s horn at New Year’s, forbidden acts of sexual union, oaths, vows and phylacteries, ritual fringes, Naziriteship, the palmfrond and citron, the ban on the consumption of the produce of fruit-bearing trees during their first three harvest years, the mixing of seeds in a field, the sacrifice of the red heifer, and many others, excluding those whose meaning is hinted at where they are mentioned.

You should realize that all of the precepts depend upon two fundamental principles: the positive and negative commandments. The positive commandments are born of the quality of remembrance [zakhor]; the negative commandments of the quality of observance [shamor]. It is also well known that remembrance and observance correspond to two of the attributes of the Holy One, blessed be He. Consequently, an individual who performs the command of his master and fulfills it, does so as a consequence of the quality of love. This constitutes the highest degree [of service] and the most excellent virtue, and corresponds to the category of positive commandments. An individual who desists from performing a deed out of fear of his master, does so as a consequence of the quality of awe. This stands on a lower rung than the quality of love, just as negative commandments occupy a gradation lower than the positive. For the person who fulfills the command of his master with his body and his possessions is not to be likened to one who is scrupulous about desisting from evil out of fear of him. Thus our Sages say: “Concerning what situation were these matters related? Concerning negative commandments. That is to say that the transgressor is smitten with forty lashes. However, with respect to positive commandments, such as the case when they instruct him to construct a Sukkah but he does not build it, or take a palm frond but he does not do so, they smite him until his soul departs his body.”¹⁰⁹b. Ketubot 86a. The two examples given refer to the commandments of the Sukkot festival, but could be any positive commandments of the Torah.

All of the above derives from the principles of “remembrance” and “observance,” for the quality of remembrance occupies a gradation higher than that of observance and the branches which derive from it are in its likeness. Since Abraham our father took divine love as his portion, corresponding to remembrance, and he knew God’s name with a true and real knowledge, the Omnipresent One called him “My lover.” Nor is the [attainment of the] quality of love possible save through perfect knowledge. Thus one finds that many principles of the negative commandments are derived from the positive. For the quality of love exists within the quality of awe, since awe derives from love and is thus included within it.

You should know that a human being, by nature and the process of generation, contains and is impressed with the stamp of these two qualities, that is to say the essential force of the positive and negative commandments, that is water and fire, the former at his right hand, the latter at his left. This is as our sages said: “Two angels escort an individual, one good and one evil.”¹¹⁰Shabbat 119b. And as that wise man said: “A wise man’s heart tends towards the right hand, a fool’s to the left” [Eccles. 10:2]. It is the truth that right conduct and the inclination to good are on the right while evil behavior and the inclination towards wickedness are on the left, as is the Accuser. Concerning this David said: “I am ever mindful of the Lord’s presence; He is at my right hand, I shall never be shaken” [Ps. 16:8]. “I shall not be shaken”: I shall never neglect, even for an instant, that inclination towards the good that stands at my right hand.

Since these two qualities, the inclination to the good and the inclination to evil, which correspond to the positive and negative commandments, are impressed upon human nature, the Torah was given with positive and negative commandments to direct an individual and habituate him towards positive qualities. The inclination towards evil would be drawn after the good and annihilated within it. Concerning this our sages said: “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart’ [Deut. 6:5]—with your two inclinations, towards good and evil.”¹¹¹b. Berakhot 54a. This is the purpose of the commandments, the acts of worship, prayers, and fasting. They serve to subjugate the evil inclination so that it might be rendered subordinate to the impulse towards good. Thus the body, whose foundation is dust and nature evil and which descends below, will be drawn after the faculty of the soul, whose foundation is life, whose nature is wholly for the good and ascends upwards. Give careful heed and listen to my wondrous words, let them always be present before your eyes, for they are pleasant and should be stored inside you.

[There ensues a listing of the six hundred and thirteen commandments, as derived from the ten. See Chavel’s edition of the Hebrew text in Kitvey RaMBaN II, pp. 521–48. The concluding summary of that discussion follows.]

These¹¹²The following, down to the resumption of the commentary with 4:12, is found on p. 548 of Chavel’s Hebrew edition. are the six hundred and thirteen commandments, positive and negative, derived from the ten commandments as “Remember” and “Observe.” Of this our rabbis said: “‘Remember’ and ‘Observe’ were proclaimed in a single utterance, something no mouth could speak nor any ear hear.”¹¹³b. Rosh Hashanah 27a. No one voice could simultaneously speak two things, opposite to one another, positive and negative; such is beyond the capacity of the human mouth or ear. He explained the two hundred forty-eight positive commandments guiding the human limbs,¹¹⁴Also said to number 248, according to a Talmudic source (Makkot 23b). which number two hundred forty-eight, in a goodly and upright path, thus purifying, cleansing, and sanctifying the person that he might resemble his Maker. The remaining three hundred sixty-five commandments guide the sinews, which are of that number, in a goodly and upright way, keeping the person from evil paths and ugly qualities. Thus body and soul will be on a single path in harmony with one another.

You should know that the Torah is entirely clear, spoken by the divine dynamis,¹¹⁵Or: from the mouth of gevurah, the God of power. containing not a single letter or vowel point that is not needed. All of it is a divine structure, hewn out in the name¹¹⁶Perhaps should read: “hewn out of”; mi-shemo rather than bi-shemo. of the blessed Holy One. There is no difference between “Timna was the concubine of Eliphaz” [Gen. 36:12] or “the chieftain of Magdiel, the chieftan of Eram” [Gen. 36:43] and the ten commandments or “Hear O Israel” [Deut. 6:4]. Whoever deletes a single letter is like one who deletes God’s whole name and a whole world. Therefore it was necessary that the letters and words be counted, that plene and lene¹¹⁷“Full” and “lacking,” two ways of spelling Hebrew words. spellings be recorded, forms written but not pronounced, as well as forms pronounced but not written, open and closed beginnings of sections [i.e., paragraph divisions], larger and smaller letters. Let this be implanted in your heart and inscribed within you. Take care for your soul and lend no ear to [those who] say that Ezra the Scribe added things of his own accord as he copied it, such as “The Canaanites were then in the land” [Gen. 13:6] or “Behold his bed, a bed of iron” [Deut. 3:11].¹¹⁸These passages seem to indicate a later narrative voice, as was already noted by several medieval authors. See commentary of Abraham Ibn Ezra to Deut. 1:2. This is total heresy, that of which the rabbis spoke in the chapter called “A Portion,” on the verse “For he has despised the word of the Lord” [Num. 15:31]: “This refers to one who says ‘Torah is not from heaven.’ Even one who says that all of Torah is from heaven except for a single verse that Moses spoke on his own: such a person ‘despises the word of the Lord.’”¹¹⁹b. Sanhedrin 99a.

Because the commandments are the very body of purity and holiness, and the one concerned with them becomes purified and holy, Scripture said the fragrance of your garments is like that of Lebanon,¹²⁰Deriving “Lebanon” from libbun, “cleansing.” for that fragrance is the life of both worlds.

A locked garden. This refers to the modesty of the daughters of Yisroel, who are not of loose morals.⁶⁰Alternatively, ‘גן’ refers to the Pentateuch which has fifty-three sidros, the numerical value of ‘גן’. (Gra)

A garden locked is my own, my bride: The shekhinah is compared to a garden, since a person plants and fences it, bringing in water to irrigate it and producing all manner of lovely herbiage and plants. The shekhinah’s fence is the cherubim, the plants are the seventy nations, the trees are the angels. All these are supplied by that spring which proceeds from Wisdom’s paradise, within which souls flower in joy. It flows forth without ceasing either day or night; on its account the world is sustained. As our sages said in tractate Yoma:¹²¹b. Yoma 38b. “On account of the righteous one is the world created and sustained,” as it says: “The righteous one is the world’s foundation” [Prov. 10:25].¹²²Zaddik or “the righteous” is yesod, the source of sefirotic energy as it flows into the shekhinah. Our sages also said concerning this: “The circumference of the tree of life is a journey of five hundred years and all of the waters of creation are divided forth from it.” Rabbi Yehudah said: “It is not the circumference of its bough, but its trunk that constitutes a journey of five hundred years.”¹²³Genesis Rabbah 15:7.
“A river goes forth from Eden to water the garden” [Gen. 2:10]. The garden constitutes the beginning of the differentiated universe. As it says: “from there it divides and becomes four branches” [ibid.]. The verse is in present tense, the process is eternal. Thus it says: “There is a river whose streams gladden God’s city, the holy dwelling-place of the Most High” [Ps. 46:5]. And “You make springs gush forth in torrents; they make their way between the hills, giving drink to all the wild beasts” [Ps. 104:10–11].
Concerning this spring, it states: “a garden spring, a well of fresh water, flowing streams from Lebanon” [Cant. 4:15]. Our Sages of blessed memory said: “‘a garden spring’: this is Jacob who is a spring for the garden. ‘A well of fresh water’: this is Isaac. ‘Flowing streams’: this is Abraham.”¹²⁴No such interpretation is found in the extant rabbinic sources. It is also found, however, in Zohar 1:135b, a passage possibly dependent upon R. Ezra. Everything is sated from that Lebanon which is divine Wisdom.¹²⁵The three patriarchs represent ḥesed, gevurah, and tiferet, way-stations in the flow of life from Wisdom, the primal sefirotic font, to the shekhinah.
Contemplate the wonders of this symbolism and you will know and understand what our Sages wrote, the manner in which their words constitute the height of completeness and perfection. Such truly befits sages like these, whose every word was uttered through the holy spirit in allegoric allusion, so as to arouse the consciousness of the Kabbalistic illuminati, rather than the fools, idiots, and confused who treat their words as if they were fox fables! Thus we find in the tractate Sanhedrin: “‘As I looked upon, thrones were set down …’ [Dan. 7:9]—one for God and one for David: these are the words of R. Akiba. R. Yose the Galilean said to him: ‘Akiba, how long are you going to profane the shekhinah!? Rather, one throne is for justice and one is for righteousness.’ R. Elazar b. Azaryah said to Akiba: ‘What are you doing occupying yourself with words of aggadah!? Desist from your discourse and occupy yourself with the laws of leprosy and tents.¹²⁶Return to your safe haven of halakhic expertise. Rather one is a throne and one is for a footstool: a throne upon which to sit, a footstool to rest the feet.’”¹²⁷b. Sanhedrin 38b. Surely these sages had no essential argument with one another, but they differed on whether it was appropriate to reveal the secret meaning. This occurs in several places where the rabbis are in dispute.

A locked up spring. This can be explained as a term referring to a fountain, as in, “upper fountains גֻּלּוֹת,”⁶¹Yehoshua 15:19. and it can also be explained as a term referring to a gate, and it is an Aramaic term in the Talmud, “lock the gates גַלֵּי.”⁶²Maseches Berachos 28a.

A garden locked: A closed gate.

A fountain sealed: The light lacks nothing for it is preserved in its “grapes” from the seven days of creation.¹²⁸Here the light imagery becomes that of wine. The primal flow is as perfect and undiminished as it was before creation, before the flow through the seven primal “days.”

Your arid fields. Dry land is called בֵּית הַשְּׁלָחִין [=thirsty land], and it necessary to irrigate it constantly; a field watered by rain [=בֵּית הַבַּעַל is superior to it.⁶³The Mishnah in Bava Basra describes בית הבעל as a field in the valley that is moist and does not require irrigation. (Sifsei Chachomim) Here he praises the arid field, “Your arid fields” are replete with all good like a pomegranate orchard. This is said of the smallest of Yisroel, who are succulent with good deeds like a pomegranate orchard.

Your limbs are an orchard of pomegranates And of all luscious fruits…. Solomon mentions here [Cant. 4:14] the twelve types of spices, corresponding to the twelve channels of the Holy One, blessed be He, through which the fragrance of divine Wisdom spreads forth and is directed towards the Patriarchs.

Henna with spikenard. These are types of spices.

You are a garden spring. All this refers back to, “Your arid fields,” and he praises them like a fountain which irrigates them. The allegory is: It refers to the immersions of purification which the daughters of Yisroel immerse themselves.

And flowing streams from Levanon. From a place of cleanliness, without the murkiness of mud.

Awake, wind from the north, and come, wind of the south. Since they are pleasing to me— your fragrance and the beauty of your dwellings, I command the north and south winds to blow upon your garden so that your good fragrance should spread afar. The allegory is: It refers to the ingathering of the exiles, and from all the nations they will bring them as an offering to Yerusholayim, and in the days of the rebuilding [of the Beis Hamikdosh], the [Bnei] Yisroel will be gathered there for the festivals and for the pilgrimages, and Yisroel will reply, “Let my Beloved come to His garden,” for if You are there, all are there.

Awake, O north wind: Awake O attribute of the north, that great fire which consumes the holocaust offering and the fat upon the altar.

Come, O south wind: After the attribute of the north takes its portion, the attribute of the south draws its sustenance.¹²⁹“North” is kabbalistically din, divine judgment, and “South” is ḥesed, divine love. The two of them draw forth and supply us from that spirit which overabounds in its provision and support. This is the meaning of blow upon my garden, that its perfume might flow. The spiced perfumes represent the emanation of the radiance of Wisdom with the addition of the Holy Spirit,¹³⁰Ḥokhmah and binah. drawn closer in great abundance to the Patriarchs¹³¹The intermediate sefirot: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob represent ḥesed, din, and tiferet. on account of the sacrifice.
Concerning this our sages stated allusively: “‘Awake, O north wind’—this is the holocaust offering slaughtered on the northern side of the altar. ‘Come, O south wind’—these are the whole offerings slaughtered on the southern side of the altar. ‘That its perfume might spread’: this is incense. ‘Let my beloved come to his garden’: this is the shekhinah. ‘And enjoy its luscious fruits’: these are the sacrifices.”¹³²Cant. Rabbah 4:31.

And enjoy its luscious fruits: This is the sifted flour refined of its waste matter. In accordance with this theme it is said: “An offering by fire, of pleasing odor to the Lord” [Lev. 1:17]. Our sages say in Torat Kohanim: “‘An offering’: it must be specifically for an offering.” This refers to the tenth Sefirah [the shekhinah] which ascends above to the place of its origin.¹³³Literally “an ascent for ascent.” Or “an ascent unto the Name.” “‘By fire’: for the sake of the fires.” Our master, the Hasid of blessed memory,¹³⁴The reference is to R. Isaac the Blind. explained that these are corporeal things. “‘For an aroma’: for the sake of providing an aroma”—the spiritual dimension of physical things. “‘A pleasing aroma’: in order to be pleasing (to God).” Pleasure entails the invocation of Penitence, the hidden place of His power. “‘For the Lord’: for the One who created the world.”
The intent of the sacrifice is to provide sustenance to each and every divine attribute. This was the intent of the princes of Israel when they offered twelve goats, twelve rams, twelve lambs for a burnt offering, and twelve billy goats for a sin offering when the altar was consecrated. Everything is transmuted into spirit via the sefirotic channels which number twelve. And twenty-four bullocks were offered as sacrifices of well being, corresponding to the power of the left side of divinity, the aspect of Might, which is twenty-four [ד״כ], as it is written: “I will lay carbuncles [kadkod] as your foundation stones” [Isa. 54:12]. This alludes to the twenty-four permutations of the divine name Adonai. The sacrifices of well-being constituted sixty rams, sixty billy goats, and sixty yearling lambs [Num. 7:88]. These correspond to the sixty steps, the sixty heroes [Cant. 3:7], and the three-score queens [Cant. 6:8]. The meaning of a pleasing [niḥoaḥ] aroma is that of descent, the Aramaic of descent [yarad] being naḥat. Through the sacrifice, divine spirit descends and the force of holiness unites and is drawn into close continguity within the channels. For this reason, sacrifice is designated korban. This is the meaning of “Let my beloved come to his garden and enjoy its luscious fruits.”