י' כסלו – קונטרס אחרון פרק ד'

However, there is yet another point here, and this applies equally to all cases. All forms of דחילו ורחימו שכליים—intellectual fear and love—whether they are found in המלאכים—the angels—or in people, are fundamentally בחי' נבראים מאין ליש—creations, brought into being from nothingness. They are not godly in essence, but rather are created entities, something new and separate from the Divine.

Even the highest levels of אהבה ויראה—love and fear—experienced by the angels are not on the level of true godliness. Instead, they are considered נפש רוח דבי"ע—the soul and spirit levels of Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah. These are all created beings, not emanations of Divinity itself. This distinction is crucial: the love and fear found in these realms, even at their loftiest, are not the same as the pure godly light of Atzilus, but are instead limited and defined creations.

By contrast, the details of ההלכות—the laws of Torah—are actually המשכות חכמה עילאה דהמאציל ברוך הוא המלובשת בגשמיות—a drawing down of the supernal wisdom of the Emanator, blessed be He, as it is invested within physicality. In other words, when we study the particulars of halacha, we are engaging directly with the Divine wisdom itself, as it is enclothed in the tangible, physical matters of this world.

This means that the halachos are not simply intellectual constructs or created forms of understanding. Rather, they are the actual expression of Hashem's supreme wisdom—chochma ila'ah—as it descends and becomes manifest in the physical realm. The laws themselves are a direct channel for the Divine will and wisdom, even as they relate to the most material aspects of existence.

This form of enclothement—where the supernal wisdom is invested in physical matters—is not the same as when חכמה עילאה—the supreme wisdom—is enclothed within דחילו ורחימו שכליים—intellectual fear and love. There is a fundamental difference between the way Divine wisdom is present in halacha and the way it is present in the emotions of love and fear, even when those emotions are based on deep understanding.

When it comes to halacha, the Divine wisdom remains in its essence, merely passing through the physical subject matter. But when it comes to love and fear, the wisdom is transformed and becomes something else entirely, as will be explained further.

For in the case of love and fear, the garment—the intellectual emotion—actually מעלים ומסתיר לגמרי—conceals and completely hides the Divine wisdom. This is similar to the way the physical, material earth conceals the supernal wisdom that is invested within it.

Just as the physical world hides the Divine light, so too, when the Divine wisdom is enclothed within the intellectual love and fear of created beings, it becomes totally concealed. The wisdom is no longer apparent; it is hidden within the emotional experience, just as the essence of the Divine is hidden within the material world.

This is the meaning of the verse, "כולם בחכמה עשית"—"You made them all with wisdom." Here, the Divine wisdom is present, but it is hidden within the act of creation. Specifically, in this world of Asiyah, what is revealed is only the חיצוניות דחיצוניות דכלים דמלכות דאצילות שבעשיה—the outermost aspect of the vessels of Malchus of Atzilus as they are found in Asiyah.

This level is מסותרת לגמרי ברוח נפש דעשיה—completely concealed within the ruach and nefesh (spirit and soul) of Asiyah. In other words, the Divine wisdom that animates the world is so deeply hidden that it is not sensed at all within the created reality of this lowest world.

The same is true in the world of Beriah: the Divine wisdom is מסותרת לגמרי ברוח נפש—completely hidden within the ruach and nefesh of Beriah. These levels are all בחי' נבראים—created beings, and in them, the Creator is concealed and hidden from the created.

This means that in all these worlds, the Divine is not openly manifest; rather, it is veiled and obscured. The love and fear experienced there are not direct expressions of Divinity, but are instead the result of the Divine being hidden within the framework of creation.

However, when it comes to ההלכות—the laws of Torah—the radiance of the Divine wisdom shines within them openly. The garment of physicality is only a דרך מעבר לבד—a mere passageway. In other words, the physical subject matter through which the halacha is expressed does not conceal or alter the Divine wisdom; it simply serves as a conduit for it.

This is a crucial distinction: while the physical world normally acts as a barrier that hides the Divine, in the case of halacha, the Divine wisdom passes through the physical without being changed or hidden. The halacha remains a direct expression of Hashem's will and wisdom, even as it addresses the most tangible aspects of reality.

This can be compared to the way, on יום טוב—Yom Tov, the attribute of חסד דאצילות—the kindness of Atzilus, which is fully enclothed within חסד דבריאה—the kindness of Beriah, gives life to this physical world. This happens על ידי מעבר חסד דיצירה ועשיה—by passing through the kindness of Yetzirah and Asiyah, which is also called enclothement.

If it were not for this process of passing through, the Divine influence would not be able to affect the physical world at all. In other words, even though the source of the Divine energy is in the higher worlds, it must pass through the lower worlds in order to have an impact here. Yet, the essential quality of the Divine influence remains unchanged as it descends, just as the halacha retains its Divine essence even as it is applied to physical matters.

Even though the physicality of this world—גשמיות עולם הזה—certainly completely conceals, even from the level of החסד דעשיה—the kindness of the world of Asiyah, nevertheless, the הלכה itself is not truly physical. The הלכה is, in essence, the Divine will—רצון—that is drawn down from the supreme wisdom, חכמה עילאה, whether it is to be lenient or to be stringent in a particular case.

What happens is that this Divine will and wisdom descends and shines openly within physical matters. It is like water that flows down from a high place to a low place: the water itself remains the same, even as it descends. So too, the חכמה עילאה—the supreme wisdom—remains unchanged as it comes down into the physical world through the הלכה. The physical world may conceal, but the essence of the הלכה is not changed by its descent into physicality.

However, the actual physical object that the הלכה is discussing—such as in the case of המחליף פרה בחמור (one who exchanges a cow for a donkey), or the question of whether a piece of meat is פיגול (invalidated by improper intent during the sacrificial service) or not, and whether it is kosher—these physical items themselves truly conceal and block the Divine light completely.

In other words, the material substance about which the הלכה speaks is itself a total concealment. The physicality of the object is a barrier; it does not reveal the Divine wisdom or will. The discussion in הלכה is about these objects, but the objects themselves remain opaque to the Divine light.

But the הלכה itself, together with its revealed reasoning—הטעם הנגלה—comes from the level of מלכות דבריאה ויצירה—the Divine attribute of sovereignty as it is manifest in the worlds of Beriah and Yetzirah. This is the level of נשמה—soul—which is godliness, and it gives life and existence to the levels of נפש and רוח in Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah.

Those lower levels—נפש and רוח—are the fear and love (דחילו ורחימו) of the angels and souls, and their intellectual faculties—חכמה בינה דעת—which are brought into being ex nihilo, from nothing into something. In other words, the הלכה is rooted in a higher, godly level that enlivens the lower, created levels of existence, including the emotional and intellectual capacities of both angels and souls.

Therefore, the הלכה—the Divine law—satisfies and quenches the thirst of these angels and souls, even before it descends into this physical world. It is like water that flows down from a high place, nourishing and sustaining those on lower levels as it descends.

Before the הלכה comes down into the realm of physicality, it already provides spiritual sustenance to the higher beings, to the angels and souls in the upper worlds. The flow of Divine wisdom and will in the הלכה is what gives them their vitality and fulfillment.

And even after the הלכה has descended into the world of Asiyah—into the realm of action and physicality—it still remains far above the level of חכמה בינה דעת דעשיה—the intellectual faculties of Asiyah, even above the level of נשמה (soul) as it exists in Asiyah, which is itself godliness.

In other words, the Divine wisdom and will that is present in the הלכה is on a much higher plane than anything found in the created intellect or even the soul-level of this world. The הלכה retains its lofty, godly essence, even as it is expressed and applied within the framework of the physical world.