יגלה לן טעמיה

(ענין שדה המכפלה)

(On the Field of Machpelah)

יגלה לן טעמיה כו'.

"May He reveal to us its reasons…"¹

הנה, מילוי ה' היא בה' אחרת. והיא בחינת כפילא.

Now, the milui ("filling") of the letter hei is another hei.² This is the level of kefila, "doubled."³

כנודע מענין מערת המכפלה, שהיא ה' אחרונה דשם ב"ן כו'.

As is known regarding the Cave of Machpelah,⁴ which is the final hei of the Name Ban…⁵

והענין יובן בהקדים להבין ענין האכילה.

This will be understood by first explaining the matter of eating.^[a]

כי הנה עיקר האכילה, להיות כי מן המאכל נעשה חלב ודם. והדם הוא הנפש וחיות האדם.

The essence of eating is that the food becomes fat and blood, and "the blood is the soul,"⁶ the life-force of a person.

שמקבל הכבד הדם מן המאכל, ושולח ללב ולמוח: "דתלת שליטין אינון בעלמא, כבדא ולבא ומוחא כו'".

The liver receives the blood from the food and sends it to the heart and the brain, as it is said: "There are three rulers in the world: the liver, the heart and the brain…"⁷

ועל ידי זה מתעלה המאכל, שנעשה ממנו לב ומוח האדם.

Through this the food is elevated, for a person's heart and brain are made from it.

ועל ידי זה מתחזק לבו ומוחו בעבודת ה' שבלבו, בהתלהבות כרשפי אש, שנעשה בכח האכילה, שבלא אכילה הי' מתחלש כו'.

And through this his heart and mind are strengthened in the service of G‑d in his heart, with a fervor like "flashes of fire,"⁸ which comes about through the strength of the food; without eating he would grow weak…

וגם מוחו נעשה חזק, להתבונן בגדולת ה' כו'. וזהו ענין בירור שמן המאכל נעשה אדם.

His mind, too, becomes strong to contemplate the greatness of G‑d… This is the meaning of birur ("refinement"): from the food a human being is made.⁹

אך כל זה הוא בימות החול, אבל בשבת בורר אסור, אלא האכילה היא יותר עליונה, בבחינת המשכה מלמעלה.

But all this applies on weekdays. On Shabbos, borer ("selecting") is forbidden;¹⁰ rather, eating is on a higher plane, a drawing down from above.^[b]

"וקראת לשבת ענג". "אז תתענג על הוי"ה".

"And you shall call the Shabbos a delight";¹¹ "then you shall delight in G‑d."¹²

כי הנה כתיב: "אחור וקדם צרתני" - "אחור" למע"ב כו',

For it is written: "You formed me behind and before"¹³ — "behind" in the work of Creation…¹⁴

שהמאכל כמו שהוא למטה, בירידתו בשבירת הכלים, הנה האדם הוא בבחינת קדם, שהמאכל הוא מתברר על ידי האדם.

Relative to food as it is below, in its descent through the shattering of the vessels (sheviras hakeilim),¹⁵ man is "before" it, for the food is refined by man.

אבל בשרשו למעלה, הוא מעולם התהו: "לפני מלך מלך לבנ"י". אלא, שאחר כך: "וימלך וימת, וימת וימלך כו'".

But in its root above, it comes from the world of Tohu: "before any king reigned over the children of Israel."¹⁶ Only afterwards: "he reigned and died, and he died and [another] reigned…"¹⁷

אך מכל מקום נראה ששרשו יותר גבוה מהאדם, שהרי המאכל הוא המחיה את האדם, והאדם הוא מקבל החיות מן המאכל לפי שהוא בבחינת: אחור למעשה בראשית כו'.

Nevertheless it is evident that its root is higher than man, for it is food that gives life to man, and man receives life from food, since he is "behind (last) in the work of Creation…"^[c]

ובשבת שהוא זמן עליית העולמות מתעלה המאכל כמו שהוא בשרשו, ונמשך ממנו חיות להנפש מלמעלה למטה על ידי י"ב לחמים כו'.

On Shabbos, the time when the worlds ascend, the food is elevated as it is in its root, and from it life is drawn to the soul from above to below, through the twelve loaves…^18[d]

וזהו ענין: "צדיק אוכל לשובע נפשו". כי יש ב' אכילות: הא' - הוא לשובע נפשו. והב' - הוא: "ובטן רשעים תחסר".

This is the meaning of "The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul."¹⁹ For there are two kinds of eating: the first is "to satisfy his soul," and the second is "but the belly of the wicked shall want."^[e]

"לשובע נפשו" - הוא חיות הנפש הבאה מלמעלה. "ובטן רשעים כו'" - היינו, כי רשעים הם החיצונים, ועל ידי האכילה מבררים מהם. "חיל בלע, ויקיאנו".

"To satisfy his soul" is the life of the soul that comes from above. "But the belly of the wicked…": the "wicked" are the external forces (chitzonim),²⁰ and through eating one extracts [the good] from them: "He swallowed wealth, and he shall vomit it up."²¹

כי בכל מאכל יש תאוה שהוא שרש הקליפה, ועל ידי שנכלל בגוף האדם ונעשה ממנו דם הנשלח ללב ומוח - מתהפך לטוב בקדוש, על ידי חיזוק הלב ומוח בעבודת ה'.

For in all food there is desire, which is the root of kelipah; but by being absorbed into the human body and becoming blood that is sent to the heart and brain, it is transformed to good, in holiness, through the strengthening of the heart and brain in the service of G‑d.

ועל ידי זה לוקח ממנו החיות שבזה לעומת זה. וזהו: "ובטן רשעים תחסר". שנחסר החיות שבלעו: "ומבטנו יורישנו אל".

Thereby the life-force of "the one opposite the other"²² is taken from it. This is "the belly of the wicked shall want": it is deprived of the life-force it swallowed — "G‑d shall drive it out of his belly."²³

והנה האכילה שבחול, שהיא בבחינת בירור, הוא להיות: "ובטן רשעים תחסר", אבל האכילה שבשבת היא המשכה מלמעלה: "לשובע נפשו" מחמת המאכל כמו שהוא בשרשו למעלה קודם שנפל בשבירת הכלים, שאין בו בירור.

Weekday eating, which is a matter of refinement, brings about "the belly of the wicked shall want." But eating on Shabbos is a drawing down from above, "to satisfy his soul," from the food as it is in its root above, before it fell in the shattering of the vessels, where there is no refinement.

וכמו שכתוב בזוהר: "פרש שבתכם לא קאמר".

As the Zohar says: "It does not say 'the dung of your Shabbos.'"²⁴

שמה שנעשה מלמטה למעלה על ידי בירור, כמו בימות החול - יש בו פרש שהוא פסולת, שהמובחר שולח ללב ולמוח והפסולת יורד למטה בקרביים ובני מעיים כו'. וזהו הבירור.

What is done from below to above through refinement, as on weekdays, contains peresh, waste: the choicest part is sent to the heart and brain, and the waste goes down into the innards and intestines… This is refinement.^[f]

אבל בשבת, שהוא נעשה מלמעלה למטה - אין בו פסולת כלל. כי הפסולת הוא מעץ הדעת טוב ורע. ולמטה נעשה טוב ורע בכל הבחינות על ידי אכילת אדם הראשון מעץ הדעת טוב ורע.

But Shabbos, which comes from above to below, has no waste at all. For waste comes from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,²⁵ and below, good and evil became mixed in every level through Adam's eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

וגם בכל אדם יש תערובת טוב ורע כו', רק שאינו שוה בכל נפש. יש שטוב שלו מרובה כו', וכן יש שטוב שלו הוא, בבחינה זו כו'.

In every person, too, there is a mixture of good and evil…, only it is not the same in every soul. There are those whose good is greater…,²⁶ and there are those whose good is of this measure…²⁷

אבל בשבת: "אז תתענג על ה'" - למעלה מעץ הדעת: "ולא יגורך רע כלל".

But on Shabbos, "then you shall delight in G‑d" is above the Tree of Knowledge: "evil shall not dwell with You" at all.²⁸

רק ביום טוב כתיב: "פרש חגיכם". לפי שביום טוב יש בו קצת בירור, שהרי הותרה בו מלאכת אוכל נפש כאפיה ובישול כו',ואינו אסור רק קצירה וזריעה וחרישה כו'. ולפי שהותרו קצת מלאכות באוכל נפש, יש בו בירור ושייך פסולת.

Only of Yom Tov is it written: "the dung of your festivals."²⁹ For Yom Tov contains some refinement: the labor of preparing food (ochel nefesh), such as baking and cooking…, is permitted on it,³⁰ and only reaping, sowing, plowing and the like are forbidden. Since some labors are permitted for preparing food, it contains refinement, and waste applies to it.^[g]

והתקון הוא: למחדי למסכני. כי שעת שמחה היא לשמח את הכל. וכמו שכתוב: "ושמחת בחגך אתה והלוי והגר כו'".

The remedy is "to gladden the poor."³¹ For a time of joy is for gladdening everyone, as it is written: "You shall rejoice on your festival, you… and the Levi, and the stranger…"³²

לפי שהשמחה היא בחינת המתקת הדינין, וצריך לשמח את כולם שיהיו כולם נכללים בבחינת שמחה. וכנודע ממי שהוא בשעת שמחה שאז רוצה שיהיו כולם שמחים, שבזה נמתק הדין מאחר שמשוה את כולם.

For joy sweetens the severities (dinim),³³ and one must gladden everyone so that all are included in joy. As is known, a person who is rejoicing wants everyone to rejoice; this sweetens judgment, since he makes everyone equal.

אבל מאן דלא יהיב למסכני כו' - אין הדין נמתק ונשאר הפרש. ולכן העונש הוא מדה כנגד מדה - שנותנין לו הפרש. כי הוא גרם שישאר פסולת הפרש בעבור שלא המתיק הדין. וזהו ביום טוב.

But one who does not give to the poor… — the judgment is not sweetened, and the peresh remains. Therefore the punishment is measure for measure:³⁴ he is given the peresh, for he caused the waste to remain by not sweetening the judgment. This is on Yom Tov.

אבל בשבת, אף על גב דלא יהיב למסכני - אין עונשו רב, כי בשבת אין פרש כלל. לפי שהוא רק בחינת המשכה שמלמעלה: ד"לא יגורך רע כלל".

But on Shabbos, even if he does not give to the poor, his punishment is not great, for on Shabbos there is no peresh at all, since it is only a drawing down from above, of which it is said "evil shall not dwell with You" at all.^[h]

והנה המשכה זו היא בב' בחינות: "כפילא, וקלישא".

Now, this drawing down is on two levels: kefila and kelisha, "doubled" and "fine."^35[i]

פי': "קלישא" - היא המשכת יודי"ן ווי"ן. שמיו"ד נעשה וי"ו, שהיו"ד עצמה נמשכה ונעשית וי"ו.

That is: kelisha is the drawing of yuds into vavs — from a yud a vav is made, the yud itself extending and becoming a vav.³⁶

כי לפי שהיו"ד הוא בחינת צמצום, לכן יכול להיות ממנה המשכה בבחי' וי"ו מן היו"ד עצמה.

Since the yud is contraction (tzimtzum), a drawing-forth in the form of a vav can come from the yud itself.³⁷

אבל הה', שהיא התפשטות אורך ורוחב, ואין התפשטות אורך ורוחב שלמעלה יכולה להתגלות למטה כמו שהוא למעלה בבחינת אורך ורוחב עד אין קץ כו'.

But the hei is expansion in length and breadth,³⁸ and the expansion in length and breadth above cannot be revealed below as it is above, in length and breadth without end…

אלא ההמשכה היא בבחי' ה' אחרת למטה. והיא בחי' המילוי של ה', דהיינו כח הה' שהי' בהעלם למעלה.

Rather, it is drawn down as another hei below. This is the milui of the hei: the power of the hei that was concealed above.

כי לעולם המילוי, הוא מה שבהעלם. ומה שבהעלם למעלה יצא מההעלם אל הגילוי למטה. והיינו בחי': "כפילא" שהיא בחינת מילוי ההי"ן, כנודע מענין המכפלה.

For the milui is always what is concealed,³⁹ and what is concealed above comes out of concealment into revelation below. This is kefila, the milui of the hei, as is known regarding the Machpelah.^[j]

אך כל זה הוא שאנו מקבלים ההשפעה, על ידי י"ב לחמים בזמן הזה. אבל לעתיד לבא, "יגלה לן טעמיה, דבתריסר נהמי" כו'. ואזי לא יהיה בחי' "כפילא" כו'.

But all this is how we receive the flow now, through the twelve loaves. In the time to come, however, "May He reveal to us the reasons of the twelve loaves…" — and then there will not be the level of kefila…

רק הה' עצמה שלמעלה יהיה לה גילוי למטה גם כן על ידי כי: "יגלה לן טעמיה" כו'. וכמו שכתוב, "ביום ההוא יהיה כו'":

Rather, the hei itself, as it is above, will be revealed below as well, because "He will reveal to us its reasons…" As it is written: "On that day [G‑d] will be…"⁴⁰

Summary

Why is the Machpelah, the "doubled" cave, connected with the "twelve loaves" of Shabbos, of which the Arizal sang "a letter of His Name, kefila u'kelisha"? Eating on a weekday is birur, refinement: food, whose sparks fell in the shattering of the vessels, is raised by becoming the blood that strengthens a person's heart and mind in serving G‑d, and the life-force it held is taken from the kelipah, "the belly of the wicked shall want." Refinement always leaves waste. On Shabbos, when selecting is forbidden, eating is a drawing down from above, from food as it is in its lofty root in Tohu, before the shattering, "to satisfy his soul," and it leaves no waste: "it does not say the dung of your Shabbos." Yom Tov, when cooking is permitted, holds some refinement, and its remedy is gladdening the poor. The drawing down on Shabbos is in two ways: the yud extends itself into a vav (kelisha), but the hei, being expansion, comes down only as another hei, its milui (kefila), the doubling of the Machpelah. In the time to come the hei itself will be revealed.

Flow of the maamar (where the Alter Rebbe is heading)

a. To explain kefila and the Cave of Machpelah from the opening, he first explains eating, through which the flow (by way of the twelve loaves) is drawn down. Later, under kefila u'kelisha, he returns to the hei and its milui.

b. Here the maamar's main distinction begins: weekday eating is refinement, from below to above; Shabbos eating is a drawing down, from above to below. The verse "You formed me behind and before," brought next, explains where food gets the power for this drawing down.

c. Here he concludes what he set up: man is "before" food only as food has fallen below; in its root, in the world of Tohu, food is higher than man. On this rests what he says next: on Shabbos, when the food rises to its root, life is drawn from it to the soul from above.

d. The twelve loaves appear here for the first time; they are the "twelve loaves" of the opening line, "May He reveal to us the reasons of the twelve loaves." At the end of the maamar he returns to them and explains what will be revealed in them in the time to come.

e. The two halves of the verse "The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul, but the belly of the wicked shall want" are the two kinds of eating just explained: "to satisfy his soul" is the drawing down from above (Shabbos), and "the belly of the wicked shall want" is refinement (weekdays), as he now details.

f. The Zohar's "It does not say the dung of your Shabbos" proves the distinction: refinement always leaves waste (peresh), while Shabbos, which has no refinement, has no waste at all. From here he moves to Yom Tov, which stands between the two.

g. Now he explains why Yom Tov is called "the dung of your festivals": it contains some refinement. This leads to the remedy, gladdening the poor, which sweetens judgment so that no peresh remains.

h. This completes the distinction between weekday, Yom Tov and Shabbos. From here he returns to the opening: the Shabbos drawing down through the twelve loaves, and the meaning of kefila u'kelisha.

i. Here he returns to the words of the song from the opening, "which are a letter of His Name, doubled and fine," and explains the two levels: kelisha, the yud that extends into a vav; and kefila, the hei drawn down through another hei, its milui.

j. This explains the opening statement that "the milui of the hei is another hei," the meaning of the Cave of Machpelah. He then concludes: all this applies now; in the time to come, "He will reveal to us its reasons," and the hei itself will be revealed below, without kefila.

Notes

1. From the Arizal's Shabbos-night song Azamer Bishvachin: "May He reveal to us the reasons of the twelve loaves, which are a letter of His Name, doubled and fine (kefila u'kelisha)." The twelve loaves are the challos set on the Shabbos table; this maamar explains the "letter" drawn down through them.

2. When the letter hei is spelled out in full (its milui), it is written with a second hei: ה"ה.

3. The letter is doubled: one hei is written twice.

4. Bereishis 23:9: "That he may give me the Cave of Machpelah, which is his, at the end of his field." Rashi there: "Machpelah — a house with an upper story over it. Another explanation: it was doubled with couples." That is, Machpelah means "doubled," like kefila.

5. The Name Ban is the four-letter Name spelled out with heis (יו"ד ה"ה ו"ו ה"ה), whose numerical value is 52 (ban); it corresponds to the sefirah of Malchus. The Cave of Machpelah is the final hei of the Name, Malchus, where the hei is doubled.

6. After Devarim 12:23: "Only be strong not to eat the blood, for the blood is the soul."

7. After the Zohar (see Zohar II, 153a). The liver, heart and brain are the three organs that govern the whole body.

8. After Shir HaShirim 8:6: "for love is as strong as death… its flashes are flashes of fire, a flame of G‑d."

9. Birur: separating the good in the food from the bad and raising it to holiness, as it becomes part of a person who serves G‑d.

10. See the Mishnah, Shabbos 73a: "The primary labors are forty less one: sowing, plowing, reaping… winnowing, selecting (borer)…" Selecting is forbidden on Shabbos, and on Shabbos there is no work of refinement.

11. Yeshayahu 58:13: "If you restrain your foot because of the Shabbos… and call the Shabbos a delight."

12. Yeshayahu 58:14: "Then you shall delight in G‑d, and I will make you ride upon the high places of the earth."

13. Tehillim 139:5: "You formed me behind and before, and You laid Your hand upon me."

14. Berachos 61a: "'Behind' in the work of Creation and 'before' for punishment… 'behind' in the work of Creation, for he was created only on the eve of Shabbos." Man was created last of all.

15. Sheviras hakeilim: the vessels of the world of Tohu could not contain the abundant light and shattered; their sparks fell and became clothed in physical things, food among them.

16. Bereishis 36:31: "These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the children of Israel." In Kabbalah these kings represent the world of Tohu, which preceded the world of Tikkun.

17. See Bereishis 36:33 and on: "Bela died, and Yovav son of Zerach reigned in his place." Of each king it says he reigned and then he died: the shattering of the vessels of Tohu.

18. The showbread, Vayikra 24:5–8: "You shall take fine flour and bake twelve loaves… Every Shabbos day he shall arrange it before G‑d continually." The twelve challos on the Shabbos table are the "twelve loaves" of the song quoted at the opening.

19. Mishlei 13:25: "The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul, but the belly of the wicked shall want."

20. Chitzonim: the forces of kelipah and the sitra achra, which draw their life from holiness.

21. Iyov 20:15: "He swallowed wealth, and he shall vomit it up; G‑d shall drive it out of his belly."

22. After Koheles 7:14: "G‑d made the one opposite the other." Opposite every power of holiness there is a corresponding power of kelipah.

23. The end of the same verse, Iyov 20:15: G‑d takes back out of his belly the life-force he swallowed.

24. Malachi 2:3: "I will spread dung (peresh) upon your faces, the dung of your festivals." The Zohar (II, 88b) notes that the verse says "your festivals," not "your Shabbosos," for Shabbos has no waste.

25. After Bereishis 2:17: "But of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat." Through that sin good and evil became intermixed in everything.

26. See Tanya, ch. 1: "A tzaddik who prospers, a tzaddik who suffers, a rasha who prospers, a rasha who suffers, and a beinoni." (In the Alter Rebbe's explanation there, these are degrees of how much good prevails over evil in a person.)

27. Apparently meaning: there are those whose good is small.

28. Tehillim 5:5: "For You are not a G‑d who desires wickedness; evil shall not dwell with You." Shabbos is above the Tree of Knowledge, so there is no evil in it at all.

29. Malachi 2:3: "I will spread dung upon your faces, the dung of your festivals."

30. See Shemos 12:16: "No work shall be done on them, except what every person must eat — that alone may be done for you." On Yom Tov, labors needed to prepare food are permitted.

31. Zohar I, 10b: on Yom Tov one must gladden the poor.

32. Devarim 16:14: "You shall rejoice on your festival, you, your son and your daughter… and the Levi, the stranger, the orphan and the widow who are within your gates."

33. Joy sweetens the severities (gevuros) and nullifies their force.

34. Sanhedrin 90a: "All the measures of the Holy One, blessed be He, are measure for measure."

35. Kefila u'kelisha, "doubled and fine," are the words of the song Azamer Bishvachin (note 1).

36. Apparently meaning that the yud spelled out in full (יו"ד) contains a vav: the vav is a line extended from the point of the yud.

37. The yud is a point, contraction and concealment; therefore it can itself extend into a line, the vav.

38. The form of the hei has length and breadth: it is expansion.

39. The milui is the hidden power within the letter; when the letter is spelled out in full, it comes into revelation.

40. Zechariah 14:9: "G‑d shall be King over all the earth; on that day G‑d shall be One and His Name One." In the time to come the Name will be revealed in its fullness, and the hei itself will be revealed below, not only through its milui.