Halakha Kejadian 1:26: Shulchan Shel Arba, Mishneh Torah, Foundations, Shev Shmateta & Sefer HaChinukh

And when I explained to you the requirement for three meals on Shabbat and informed you of its reward, I revealed it to you only partially, leaving some of it secret. Now I shall explain to you further the topic of panim hadashot –“a new face.” ²⁷⁵Hadashot panim – a “new face,” a term taken from the marriage custom of the Sheva’ Berakhot, when friends of the bride and groom host them for seven meals on the seven days following their wedding. At these meals they recite a special birkat ha-mazoncontaining the traditional Seven Wedding Blessings – the Sheva Berakhot. But they only recite this special birkat ha-mazon with the seven blessings on the second through seventh days following the wedding if there are at least 10 adults, and at least one “new face” – panim hadashot – a person who wasn’t there on the previous day. This custom and the words for the sheva Berakhot are introduced in b. Ketubah 7b-8a. This refers to the virtue particularly associated with Malkhut, about which Scripture remarked when it said, “Let us make human being in Our image and according to Our likeness,”²⁷⁶Gen 1:26. and when it is the great Shabbat, for indeed when Shabbat comes, a “new face” comes. And for this reason you will find in the discussion of the Sheva Berakhot, which is connected to a “new face,” as we maintain in the Gemara, “On the first day [after the wedding] one says all seven blessings. From then on, if there is a new face (panim hadashot), one recites them, but if not one doesn’t.”²⁷⁷B. Ketubot 8a. And Shabbat itself is like a new face.²⁷⁸In other words, even if there is not a new guest, if it is Shabbat, one can still recite the Sheva Berakhot in birkat ha-mazon. So Tosafot to b. Ketubot 7b. By analogy, this principle was also applied to other holidays which occur uring the week of Sheva Berakhot. But all the words of our rabbis z”l are built upon the wisdom of kabbalah, and it is the great foundation upon which all of their words depend. Happy is the one who meditates upon them and looks at their shining mirror. And at this point I do not need to expand upon the explanation of the topic of marriage in the lower formation of the world involving male and female, because of what I hinted at in my discussion of zakhor ve-shamor “remember and observe.” From this little hint you should be able to understand much more.

The soul of all flesh is the form which God gave unto him, and the high intelligence which is found in the soul of man is the form of the man who is perfectly intelligent. Concerning this form it is said in the Torah: "Let us make man in our form after our image" (Gen. 1.26), as if saying, that he should possess a form which knows and attains the Intelligences which have no body, as angels, which are forms without a body, thereby being like unto them. But this is not spoken of a given form which is recognized by the eyes, as the mouth, the nose, the cheek-bones, or any other description of the body, for such is the name of its shape; neither does it apply to the life of living creatures by which it can eat, drink, reproduce, feel and ponder; but it is concerning the Intelligence which is the form of the soul, for it is about the form of the soul that the Verse speaks—"in our form after our image". Often times this form is called soul and breath of life, and, therefore, it is necessary to take care in naming them, so that man will not err in such, but each and every name one will learn from the subject thereof.

(Nun) “We hold that a lion does not pounce upon two people. But [how is it that] we see that it [actually] pounces? [That only happens when they appear to the lion to be like beasts], as it is stated, ‘[But man does not abide in honor], he is like the beasts that perish’ (Ps. 49:13).”⁴⁹Shabbat 151b. And it appears to me that this is according to that which is written in the Zohar, Parashat:⁵⁰Zohar 1:13b.
The ninth commandment is to give to the poor, etc., as it is written (Gen 1:26), “Let Us make man in Our image, in Our likeness” – “Let Us make man,” a partnership that includes male and female (attributes); “in Our image,” wealthy, and from the side of the female, poor, etc. So must man below be rich and poor in one association, etc. It is a secret. As so do we see in the book of King Shlomo, that anyone who has pity on the poor with his heart’s desire never has his image transformed from being the image of man. And since the image of man is imprinted upon [such a man], he rules over every creature. This is what is written (Gen. 9:2), “The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon all the beasts of the earth, etc.” From where do we [know this]? From Nevukhadnetsar – the whole time that he fed the poor, he was not punished, even though he dreamt that dream.⁵¹See Dan. 2. And when he became liable [for punishment], what is written? “The word was still in the mouth of the king, etc.” (Dan. 4:28). Immediately, his image changed, etc. [See there].
And this is [the understanding of] “a lion does not pounce upon two people” – its explanation is that if a man includes⁵²Kallul. Some editions have ballul (mixed) instead, but the two parallel passages in this paragraph read kallul in all editions, indicating that it should be so here as well. both male and female – poor and rich – together, [then] the face of man is in front of him and he will rule over every creature. But the questioner [in the Talmud] did not understand [this]. And for this reason, he asked, “But [how is it that] we see that it does pounce?” And it answers, “That is when he appears to it as a beast,” meaning that male and female are not included in him. [In that case], even a hundred of them are like a beast to them. But “two people” in one association (within one man) – in image and likeness – fulfills [the requirement for] “The fear of you, etc.” And this is the intention of the singer of the Psalms: “Man walks about only as an image; mere futility is his hustle and bustle, amassing and not knowing who will gather in” (Ps. 39:7). Its explanation is that if a man only walks about with the image; but the likeness – which is the side of the female, the destitute – is not included; then “mere futility is his hustle and bustle, amassing and not knowing who will gather in.” And [so] he has no permanence in him.