Pinchas Winston - The Physics of Kabbalah

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Introduction
T
he Talmud1 speaks of a Rebi Chanina ben Dosa, a miracle
worker from the time of the Second Jewish Temple. Story after
story is told of the miracles he performed or of miracles that
were performed for him. Reflecting on these stories one cant
help but ask, Wouldnt it be nice to be able to perform miracles at will as
well?
The truth is, he was not the only one from his time period who could.
According to tradition, the greatest rabbis of that generation could
perform miracles at will.2 It was the time of the great Rebi Akiva, and Rebi
Meir Baal HaNeisMaster of Miraclesto name but a few. They were a
perfect example of the famous principle, A righteous person wills and
1
Taanis 25a.
2
Shaarei Leshem, p. 467.
The Physics of Kabbalah 1

God fulfills.3 The Talmud even speaks of times when someone who died
was soon after revived, as if in the normal course of events.4
However, after learning some Kabbalah, which explains the spiritual
infrastructure and material of reality, the question was no longer, How did
they perform miracles? but why cant we perform them as well?
The classic answer is, Simply because they were far more righteous
and on a much higher spiritual level than we are. We, on the other hand, do
not merit the kind of Heavenly help they enjoyed to perform their
supernatural feats.
Without a doubt, that is true. But it is also over-simplistic, because it
makes a faulty assumption: the physical world is a fixed reality that can
only be changed through physical means, or miraculously, meaning that
God does it for us by breaking the rules inherent in Creation. That is one
of the privileges of being God: the physical world melts before His will.
However, as science is beginning to discover, the physical world is not
so static. At the basis of everything in physical existence is energy,5 which
in itself is not physical, but spiritual. Scientists dont even understand what
energy is, though they use the term freely as If referring to something as
basic and dissectible as air.
However, what is just beginning to dawn on the world of Science has
been accepted fact in the realm of Kabbalah as long as we have known it,
for at least 3,318 years, if not longer. For, a central tenet of Kabbalah is
that the basis of all of physical creation is a completely spiritual light called
Ohr Ain Softhe Light of Ain Sof.6
Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, more commonly know as the Arizal,7 explains
that prior to any hint of Creationeven the completely spiritual
3
Taanis 23a.
4
Megillah 7a.
5
This is basically what Einsteins Theory of Relativity proved.
6
Otzros Chaim, p. 1.
7
Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, the foremost Kabbalist over the last 500 years, lived from 1534-72
CE. Arizal stands for Eloki Rabbi Yitzchakthe Godly Rebi Yitzchakmay he be
remembered for blessing.
2 The Physics of Kabbalah

aspects8there was only the Ohr Ain Sof. It represented the will of God
to reveal Himself to a created being,9 though that would be only the end of
a long and complex period of Divine creating. Man would be the crowning
touch on the creation process, coming at the end of it on Day Six, but it
was with him in mind that God did all that He did to fashion this world,
physically and spiritually.
Thus, as physical as all of Creation appears to be, and as spiritually
void it seems to be able to become, the truth is, the Ohr Ain Sof
permeates everything. Absolutely nothing can exist, even evil, if the Ohr
Ain Sof is not at its core. If the Ohr Ain Sof were to be removed from
something in Creation, no trace of it would remain.
Thus, even the term, yaish mAyin,something from nothingwhich
is used to describe the leap from a completely spiritual level of existence
to the physical one, is not an entirely accurate one. It implies that at some
point, miraculously, the light went from being totally spiritual to something
physical. In truth, the core lightthe Ohr Ain Sof, the source of ALL
energy in existenceremained completely spiritual.
What happened instead is that, as the Ohr Ain Sof moved further away
from its Source,10 it became layered with other less spiritual levels of light,
like clothing worn by a person. The more layers added the more physical
the outward manifestation of the light became, and in this sense, the
Creation Story is an account of the adding of layers of light to make
8
Physical Creation, as reported in the Torah, is not the beginning of the story, but the
end of a process that began much earlier and which was totally spiritual at first. It is the
essence of what true Kabbalah discusses at length.
9
10
Kabbalah describes Creation as existing inside a Challalhollowa ball-like structure
in the center of the Infinite Light of Ain Sof, surrounded by Ohr Ain Sof on all sides.
The creation of the Challal was the first stage in making physical creation possible since it
held back the powerful Ohr Ain Sof, which is far too spiritual to allow anything physical
to exist. The next stage allowed a stream of Ohr Ain SofKav Ain Softo enter the
Challal in Divinely-measured amounts, creating levels of existence on its way in. By moving
towards the center of the Challal the Kav Ain Sof, in effect, was moving away from its
Source, the Ohr Ain Sof beyond the Challal, allowing Creation to become increasingly
more physical (Otzros Chaim, p. 5).

Creation increasingly more physical. The story seems to flow horizontally
along a timeline when in fact it is about light descending vertically.
Thus, everything in existence is a function of spiritual light, including
man, something that was perfectly apparent in the Garden of Eden prior
to the sin. For, prior to the eating from the Aitz HaDaas Tov vRah, the
skin of man was Kesones OhrClothing of Light (spelled Alef-Vav-
Raish).11 As a result of the sin, additional layers of less spiritual light were
added to man12Kesones OhrClothing of Skin (spelled Ayin-Vav-
Raish), causing his physicalization.
The advantage is this: unlike a concrete, physical reality, one made of
spiritual light can be manipulated at will, which is what the rabbis of the
Second Temple era were able to do. Being experts in Kabbalah, they were
real with the fact that Nature was more illusion than fact; they were not
fooled by what their eyes perceived: an incredible sense of solidity and
permanence projected by the physical world. The question for them was
not, Why can we walk through walls, but rather, why cant others as well?.
The answer to this question is an issue of free will, as it says, The
secrets of God to those who fear Him (Tehillim 25:14): one must earn the
right to know Torah on its deepest levels. And, there can be no greater
secret than the nature of the physical world and how to spiritually
manipulate it.
It also says, All is in the hands of Heaven except for fear Heaven
(Brochos 33b), implying that it was for this that man was created, and that
the only area in life that our free-will impacts is in the building up of fear of
God, the key to the secrets of God. Thus, regarding this, the Talmud
states that someone who knows much Torah but lacks fear of God is like
one who has the key to the outer chamberTorah in generalbut lacks
the key to the inner onethe secrets of Creation to which the posuk
refers, and to which Torah is meant to lead a person (Shabbos 30b).
However, there is also a tradition that, at the End-of-Days, it will be a
special time, and that some of the rules that may have applied to previous
11
12
As well as the rest of Creation.

generations will be waived in the final one.13 Time may simply run out, and
as the Talmud explains, redemption may no longer be a function of merit at
that time, but of need, at which time Heaven will subsidize what is lacking
to bring it about (Sanhedrin 97b).
As physics begins to reveal what Kabbalah has always known, that time
may be now.
13
Shaar HaGilgulim (Ch. 27), states that Kabbalah will become much easier to learn then,
and latter-day Kabbalists have stressed the important of Kabbalah as the path to
prepare the Jewish people for the End-of-Days and the Final Redemption. The Zohar
states that the work itself will be necessary for the sake of a peaceful transition to the
Messianic time (Zohar 124b).

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Chapter One
A
lmost everyone in the world is spiritual in some way, even if
they dont think so. Its just a question of what one calls
spirituality, and how one chooses to express it. In fact,
corruption of the human being is always the result of a
suppression of ones spiritual component, which pushes one towards what
is called a living death. Hence, the Talmud statement that the evil are
dead even while alive.1
However, even for those who consciously choose to live a spiritual life,
there is a difference between various groups and religions, that can be
summed up by the expression: We are not human beings having a spiritual
experience, but spiritual beings having a human experience.
It is a very profound statement that embodies the essence of what we
are discussing here. The former implies that we are first and foremost
physical beings, who happen also to be capable of having, on occasion, a
1
Brochos 18a: whereas the righteous are alive even after they have died, since their legacy
lives on long after they do, evil people do meaningless things even while they are living.

transcendental experience. The latter, on the other hand, means that life
itself is a transcendental experience that often is blocked or at least
hindered by some physical component that, seemingly, can vary from
person to person.
These opposing points of view are axiomatic of the essential struggle
between the Jewish people are their anti-thesis, Amalek. The journey from
Egypt to Eretz Yisroel was the journey from an Amalekian point of
viewthe world is completely physically limitingto a Yisroelian point of
viewthe physical component is but a veil disguising the essential spiritual
reality of Ohr Ain Sof.
Likewise, the journey of the Jew from being only a Yaakov to
becoming a full-fledged Yisroel is learning the skill of accessing the Ohr
Ain Sof at will, of learning to allow the Life Force of Creation flow through
us, resulting in higher levels of spiritual consciousness. Great rabbis like
Rebi Akiva, Rebi Chanina ben Dosa, and Rebi Meir, to mention only some,
had command of this ability.
Accessing Ohr Ain Sof

The primary method for accomplishing this holy feat is a very exact and
specific usage of the Name of God, as taught by Kabbalistic tradition.
Success depends upon knowledge of which Name of God to use to
accomplish a specific result, and more important, making sure that one is a
fitting vessel for the flow of such lightsomething Torah, ideally, is
supposed to promote. A mistake in either area can have very destructive
results, which is why those today who even have such knowledge are wary
of using it in any practical manner.
However, on a far lesser level one can access this energy with amazing
results just by becoming sensitive to it. At the very least, one can feel the
energy run through them, and on a higher level, one can heal and be
healed as a result of it. Just by concentrating on the reality of this Life
Force. Meditation in search of the energy can and usually does result in a
consciousness of it, and in the case of some gifted people, access to its
flow.

Nevertheless, pure access and true control of the light can only be
through the usage of Gods Names, which in-and-of-themselves,
represent the light itself. For, just as numbers and symbols are used to
describe the nature of physical forces in Creation, Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh,
the Ineffable Name of God, together with its variations and permutations,
describe the light on an infinite number of spiritual levels.
To not access the light in this way may mean accessing it in a back
door manner, what is referred to by tradition as bderech tumathe
impure way. And, whereas this may be fine for a gentile,2 providing he does
not practice any form of idol worship, it is not acceptable for a Jew, who
can become spiritually impaired by doing so.
The Uniqueness of the End of Days

However, the time will come when history as we know it will come to an
end, and a whole new spiritual era will begin when there will no longer be
any confusion about the essence of who we are. The yetzer hara, the main
device of Amalek, will be removed from the world,3 and man will learn to see
reality through his minds eye. With such a vision, one can see the aura of
light given off by all aspects of Creation, through which the underlying
Godliness of all that exists becomes immediately apparent.
This is why it is more than entertaining that Western society is
obsessed with the idea of humans who possess super-human powers,
either for good or for evil. It is more than fascinating that man at this late
stage of history is questioning the very fabric of physical reality, for all
that happens in Creation is the result of spiritual potential embodied in the
2
As the Torah states, Avraham gave all that he had to Yitzchak, but to the sons of his
concubines, Avraham gave gifts. In his lifetime he sent them away from Yitzchak to the
east country (Bereishis 25:5-6). As Rashi explains, the gifts were names from the side
of impurity. However, would that not be tantamount to encouraging them in the direction
of idol worship, something Avraham spent his entire life trying to rid the people of?
Rather, it means that he taught them how to access the light of Creation without having to
use Holy Names of God, probably the basis of eastern religious and meditative practices
over the millennia.
3
Succah 52a.

Sefiros.4 If man thinks about something, if he understands something, or if
he discovers something, it was made possible and directed by the light of
the sefirah that governs that particular period of history.5
As to why mankind was made blind to the Ohr Ain Sof and the power it
provides, we need only to look into the Torah and see what happened to
the last generation that was able to access it:
Cush fathered Nimrod, and he began to be powerful in the land. He
was a great hunter before God, [and] thus was born the expression,
Like Nimrod, a great hunter before God. (Bereishis 10:8-9)
This would not seem troubling except for the fact that the game
Nimrod trapped was angels, not animals. As Kabbalah explains, Nimrod
knew how to use the names of the angels to invoke them to do his bidding.6
Likewise, as nave as Dor HaFlagahthe Generation of Dispersion
seemed, they were far from it. The Torah says:
God descended to see the city and the tower that the people had
made. God said, They are one nation with one language, and they do
this! Now nothing will be stop them from what they set out to do. Come,
let us go down and confound their language, so that one person will
not be able to understand the language of the other. (Bereishis 11:5-7)
However, once again the Leshem provides a deeper insight into what
angered God so: they used Kabbalah to try and manipulate the Sefiros to
their advantage.7 Indeed, there was great Kabbalistic method to their
physical madness, and the confounding of their language really meant the
end to open access to the Ohr Ain Sof.
4
The spiritual device created by God to hand over and filter the Ohr Ain Sof from level
to level.
5
Just as DNA dictates the physical make-up and development of a person, particular
sefiros contain the light/program that dictates the development of a particular
millennium. Whatever happens in history is never random, but the result of some particular
potential encoded in the corresponding sefirah for the sake of helping Creation in the
direction of its final tikunrectification.
6
7

The Ohr HaGanuz
The truth is, the hiding of this light, in essence, began far earlier in time.
In fact, as the Talmud teaches, it occurred even before the creation of
man:
God said, Let there be light! and there was light. God saw that the
light was good, and God separated between the light and the
darkness. (Bereishis 1:3-4)
Rashi, commenting on this verse, explains that the separation, even on
a Pshat level, was not what we think it was:
He saw that the wicked were unworthy of using it, and therefore set it
apart for the righteous in the Future Time (Chagigah 12a). (Rashi)
Hence, the light has another name: Ohr HaGanuzthe Hidden Light.
However, as the Talmud teaches as well that it was not completely
hidden at that time either:
With the light that The Holy One, Blessed is He, created on the first
day, Adam looked and was able to see from one end of the world until
the other. (Chagigah 12a)
For thirty-six hours the Light served . . . and Adam HaRishon saw with
it from one end of the world to the other. (Yerushalmi, Brochos 8:5)
Thus, access to the light was only made partial, and as Kabbalah
explains, conditional:
He made a separation in the illumination of the Light, that it should not
flow or give off light except for the righteous, whose actions draw it
down and make it shine. However, the actions of the evil block it,
leaving them in darkness, and this itself was the hiding of the Light.
(Shaarei Leshem, p. 133)
Of course. For, God is completely good, and therefore His light is
completely good. It cannot be used for evil, for evil is the antithesis of this
light. The power of evil is not the Ohr Ain Sof, but in distracting others
away from accessing it. Thus, we find, that even though the Jewish people
conquered Egypt and crossed the sea without becoming physically
involved in the effort, they had to appoint an actual army and physically
do battle against Amalek:

Moshe, Aharon, and Chur, went up to the top of the hill, [and] when
Moshe lifted up his hand, Israel prevailed; when he let down his hand,
Amalek prevailed. (Shemos 17:10-11)
However, the Mishnah clarifies:
Was it the hands of Moshe that made or stopped war? Rather, this tells
you that as long as the Jewish people looked upwards and committed
their hearts to their Father in Heaven they were victorious; when they
did not, they fell. (Rosh Hashanah 29a)
However, it is different for a righteous person. For, when a Tzaddik
accesses the Light, he IS empowered. He can heal, and more than this, he
can manipulate reality at will. For, if his will was not that of his Master, then
he would not have permission to access the light in the first place. The fact
that he CAN is proof that he acts in accordance with the Divine plan for
Creation.
Ultimately, this is the goal of every Jew, and as the end of history
approaches, the vessels God has allowed man to use to this end will
become, and already are, more easily accessible.

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Chapter Two
S
uperstring Theory speaks of a multi-dimensional reality. Until a
decade ago, physicists spoke of four dimensions, three spatial
ones and time, and Einstein in his day surprised the scientific
world by showing how all four of them are inter-related.
However, as research continued and new questions arose, scientists
immersed themselves ever so deeply into theoretical physics, and got the
idea that other dimensions must also exist, albeit on a non-observable
scale. It has to be, for there seems to be no other way to explain the fabric
of existence as it appears to man.
It is nothing short of amazing how abstract and complex Creation really
is, and how the human mind is able to increase its grasp of it.
However, it is also something of a phenomenon how scientists assume
that they are at the forefront of all energy work. Even though many have
heard of Kabbalah, their lack of belief in God as the Source of that
knowledge means they cannot accept that it already knows what they

continue to seek: the single force that unifies all aspects of Creation.
They are the intellectually sophisticated ones, they assume, not the
bearers of a 3300-year old religion.
An extremely central theme of Kabbalah is the concept of Sefiros,
spiritual emanations created by God to receive the Ohr Ain Sof, filter its
light, and produce Creation. They themselves, like everything else in
Creation, were made from Ohr Ain Sof. However, it was this act itself that
resulted in a weaker level of Ohr Ain Sof necessary to produce newer, less
intense, and lower levels of sefiros.
The Sefiros are also called Middos, which means measurements,
for it was the creation of the Sefiros that resulted in the concept of
measurement, necessary for spiritual growth.1 Thus, as the result of the
Sefiros, it is possible to come closer to God, or to move away from
Him, making free-will possible and reward and punishment meaningful.
However, if you could analyze the light flowing through the Sefiros and
their countless subsets of sefiros,2 you would see that the light is really
just Names of God. Just as in the physical world smooth water can be
viewed on a microscopic level, yielding a view of a quite non-smooth reality,
so too does the light of Creation, when viewed on a spiritually microscopic
level, reveal combinations of Names of God responsible for every last
detail of spiritual and physical Creation.
Since the physical world is the direct, end result of this system, it is, by
definition, an expression of it. In very much the same way that one can
study the genetic make-up of a child to understand the DNA structure of
the parent, one can expect the physical world to reflect the System of Ten
Sefiros that gave birth to it. And, if Ohr Ain Sof is the basis of all that
exists, then it should be possible to trace it on some level, and to some
degree, even in the realm of the physical world.
1
In the realm of pure Ohr Ain Sof, there is no up or down, right or left, or any form of
measurement.
2
Each of the Ten Sefiros is comprised of its own set of Ten Sefiros, which are comprised
of their own sets of Ten Sefiros, etc., until all the sefiros necessary to account for all of
Creation throughout all of history exist.

Judging by the way you hair has turned gray prematurely, your
fathers hair must have done the same thing, one might say to another,
and possibly with great accuracy. The color of our hair is the result of a
certain genetic property that by necessity we have inherited from, or at
least through, our parents. However, it would be far more accurate to
draw a conclusion after actually checking the DNA of both son and father.
Likewise, scientists look at the physical universe. They analyze it, not
with foreknowledge of its make-up but by paying extremely close
attention to its properties and the way it behavesto the best of our
observational ability. It is absolutely amazing how much they have come to
understand, and how deep and sophisticated their power of observation
is, not to mention their ability to project their understanding in order to
assemble complex and arduous equations to describe realities that they
can barely test, if at all.3
In a sense, theoretical physics is a form of conscious meditation
through which one can gain deep insight about the universe through a
certain state of being. It is approaching the essence of physical existence
from the outside.
The Kabbalist is not concerned though with such elegant equations
and mathematical expressions of what, at the end of the day, only defines
the physical reality. His approach to the universe is based upon a tradition
that goes far back in time to Mt. Sinai, or to that which was revealed
through master Kabbalists such as the Arizal.4 Either way it is knowledge
that comes from God Himself, the Creator of everything; knowledge that
does not suggest how reality works, but states explicitly how it works.
Thus, while the modern physicist tries to understand the genetic
ancestry of the universe by analyzing what has been born,5 the Kabbalist
looks directly at the cosmic DNA itself, which is the various combinations
3
Recent theories speak of possible dimensions that, at present, are too small for us to
see them given our existing methods of experimentation and observation.
4
Who, like many of his contemporaries, and those before him, was visited by Eliyahu
HaNavi, among other Heavenly sources of information.
5
And only from the Big Bang onward, whereas Kabbalah goes back further in time.

of Names of God employed to create every last detail of spiritual and
physical Creation. The scientist does a remarkable job, but the Kabbalist
does a near-perfect one, depending upon the depth of his understanding
of the Zohar and the Kisvei Arizalthe writings of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria.
Indeed, one of the greatest stumbling blocks of modern man is his
resistance to the Spiritual World. The human body is mapped in great
detail, yet the essence of personality and life itself remains elusive,
because it is sought in a realm to which it does not belong. You cannot find
a trace of the soul on a glass slide, no matter how sophisticated the
electron microscope. The spiritual world cannot be seen with the physical
eyes, only the minds eye.
Likewise, the underlying source of energy that gave rise to all of matter
lies beyond the Superstring Theory. Shema Yisroel, Hashem Elokeinu,
Hashem Echad is the only true Fact of Everything.6 It is not only a
religious statement of the commitment of a Jew to God and Torah, but a
Kabbalistic equation that attributes all of existence to God Himself. Thus,
never has so little described so much:
Shema YisroelHear O Israelsee with you minds eye what you
cannot see with your physical eyes.7
Hashem ElokeinuYud-Heh-Vav-Heh, the representation of the Ohr
Ain Sof in Creation, operates through Elokeinu, the force behind
natural Creation.
Hashem EchadYud-Heh-Vav-Heh is One, that is, all of Creation is
unified through Him, because He is the only true Source of Unity.
Ironic how billions of dollars and countless man-hours are spent trying
to discover and then understandrelying on the most brilliant of human
minds in the secular worldthat which the average religious Jew recites at
least twice a day. Equally ironic is how so few Jews understand the true
6
As opposed to the physicists pursuit of a Theory of Everything.
7
Amalek is spelled: Ayin-Mem-Lamed-Kuf, which can be read ayin malak which means
severed eye. Thus, Amalek tries to disconnect the Jews mind eye so that he will only be
able to see the physical world, and therefore assimilate. The Shema is designed to
counteract Amaleks attack, which comes in many forms, from many sources, and on many
levels.

depth of what they are reciting twice daily, for it is enough, from a mitzvah
point of view, to understand the basic intent: there is nothing else other
than God.8 Pshat,9 the simple understanding the of the words, is enough.
As to what extent we can understand the Oneness of God and its
expression in Creation as we know it, the Zohar and Kisvei Arizal explain.
They, in turn, have been followed by other great Kabbalists who have tried
to make their words more accessible to lesser minds. Often, as a result of
technological advancements in the Western world, paradigms have come to
exist that make grasping abstract Kabbalistic ideas a little easier.
Nevertheless, the detailed description that Kabbalah offers in order to
understand just how the Ohr Ain Sof resulted first in the Challal, then in
the Kav Ain Sof, and eventually in the countless sefiros and partzufim,10 all
just to make a world in which man could exist, exercise free-will, and earn
his portion in the World-to-Come, is not something that can be described.
It has to be experienced first hand.
However, in the meantime, it is still possible to extract a path in the
direction of the Ohr Ain Sof that can be walked in everyday life,
something incumbent upon the nation that was designated as an Ohr
LgoyimLight unto Nations.11
8
Sanhedrin 66b.
9
Torah can be understood on four levels: Pshat, Remez, Drush, and Sodsimply,
through hints embedded in the words or verses, exegetically, which usually relies on a
tradition going back to Mt. Sinai itself, or mystically, that is, on the level of Kabbalah.
Though many see Kabbalah as being the least accurate interpretation, in truth it is the
most precise. And, though many believe that there is no obligation to learn Torah on all
four levels, the Arizal states that one must reincarnate until he does. Indeed, he explains
that one actually damages himself for not doing so (Shaar HaGilgulim, Ch. 17).
10
Literally, faces, but it is the technical name given to a sefirah when considering it as an
independent unit of ten sefiros, the basic unit of Godly Light.
11
I am God; I called you for righteousness and I will strengthen your hand; and I formed
you, and I made you for a peoples covenant, for a light to nations. (Yeshayahu 42:6)

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Chapter Three
T
here are two episodes in the Talmud that have much to say
regarding this discussion. The first one is an actual example of
healing that truly worked with dramatic results, and the
second one is more about the nature of illness itself, and
therefore, of healing as well.
The Talmud writes:
Rebi Chiya bar Abba fell ill and Rebi Yochanan went in to visit him. He
said to him,
Are your sufferings welcome to you?
He replied, Neither they nor their reward.
He said to him, Give me your hand.
He gave him his hand and he arose. (Brochos 5b)
Anyone practicing energy-healing can immediately identify with what
occurred in this story. Obviously, Rebi Yochanan had hands that heal,
and being able to channel energy existent in the universe, he used those

hands to cause Rebi Chiya to have a miraculous recovery. Seemingly, it is
ancient source for a new approach to healing, at least as far as modern
Jewry is concerned.
However, the Arizal provides an additional detail that changes the
focus of the account:
The Name Yud-Lamed-Yud is the second Name of the Names of Ayin-
Bais,1 and with it Moshe raised the coffin of Yosef,2 as explained on the
posuk, The ox knows its Master (Yeshayahu 1:3).3 This Name is also
used to raise the sick from illness. Hence, it is alluded to in the roshei
teivos (first letters of each word): yehiv lei yadeihe gave him his
handwhose initial letters spell Yud-Lamed-Yud, and therefore he
arose. Therefore, one must say to a sick person, Yehiv lei yadei, after
which the sick person should give him his hand. Then the one making
him arise should say to him, And he gave him his hand and he arose,
while contemplating the roshei teivos of the Name. (Shaar Maamrei
Chazal, Meseches Brochos, Ch. 1, 5b)
Thus, we see that Rebi Yochanans healing technique wasnt simply a
1
The 72-Part Name is made out of 72 three-letter Names, of which Yud-Lamed-Yud is the
second, and is one of the most powerful Names. It is derived from pesukim in the Torah
(Shemos 14:19-21). Tradition states that this Name was revealed to Moshe at the Burning
Bush, and is what he used to part the sea.
2
The Midrash explains that the Egyptians knew that Yosef had imposed an oath on the
Jewish people that, when the time for redemption came much later in the future, they
would take his bones with them for burial in Eretz Yisroel (Devarim Rabbah 11:5).
Therefore, in preparation for the possibility that the Jewish people might try and leave
Egypt in the future, Pharaoh had Yosef placed in a lead coffin and submerged in the Nile
river, beyond the reach of men. Therefore, in order to fulfill the vow and leave Egypt,
Moshe had to use Kabbalah to raise it from the bottom of the Nile river, and the Arizal
has told us which Name of God he concentrated on to achieve success.
3
The Arizal explains there: It is already know that the Erev Rav, as well as the gold that
they threw into the pit, also threw in the golden plate upon which was written, Arise ox.
Moshe had thrown this into the river in order to raise Yosef (with respect to whom the
term ox is used; Bereishis 49:6), and with the power of this name, the calf emerged.
Know that on this plate was written the second Name of the Name of 72 Names, which is
Yud-Lamed-Yud, which is bsod Binah, which has 50 gates (Yud-Lamed-Yud equals 50 in
gematria) (Shaar HaPesukim, Neviim Acharonim, Siman 1).

matter of passing energy over to Rebi Chiya through his hands in order to
heal him. Rather, it was the result of invoking a particular Name of God
that, according to Kabbalah, draws down a particular amount of spiritual
light used to raise things.
Furthermore, the Talmud continues:
Rebi Yochanan once fell ill and Rebi Chanina went in to visit him. He
said to him,
Are your sufferings welcome to you?
He answered, Neither they nor their reward.
He said to him, Give me your hand.
He gave him his hand and he healed him.
Now the Talmud asks the obvious question:
Why couldnt Rebi Yochanan heal himself?
The Talmuds answer is fascinating:
A prisoner cannot free himself from [his own] jail.
That is, Rebi Yochanan, though he was able to free another from his
jail, meaning his illness, he was unable to cure himself from his own illness.
Someone else had to do that for him. If healing at that time was simply a
matter of tapping into the energy of the Universe, he should have been
able to heal himself as well.
The Talmud does not explain why this is the case, or if this is universal,
that is, whether or not it applies equally to Jews and Gentiles alike. In the
meantime, the second Talmudic account seems to add a whole new
dimension to the idea of illness and recovery:
A Jew named Zunin asked Rebi Akiva,
Both of us know that idols have no power. So how do we explain the
fact that sometimes their worshippers come to them crippled from
illness and walk away with their limbs healed?
He replied with a parable: There was once a very honest person in a
town whom people trusted to the point that they would leave their
precious belongings in his safekeeping even without witnesses. One
man, however, refused to rely on his honesty and would insist on
witnesses being on hand when he left something in his safekeeping, but

on one occasion he left something and forgot to bring witnesses. The
guardians wife (insulted by the depositors past insistence on
witnesses), suggested to him that they deny that they ever received the
item he had just left in their safekeeping.
Because this fool acted improperly, said her husband, we should
abandon our faithfulness? Likewise, concluded Rabbi Akiva, when
pains are sent from Heaven to afflict a person they are sworn to a
strict schedule exactly when they must come and when they must leave,
at precisely which hour they must depart and which healer and
medicine should be the agents of the cure. When the appointed time
comes for them to leave and the sufferer visits the idols temple these
pains first say It is only right that we should not leave. But then they
say Because this fool acted improperly we should abandon our
faithfulness about which we swore? (Avodah Zarah 55a)
What did we assume before? Why does a person get sick in the first
placefrom a Torah perspective? The Talmud answers that question as
well:
Rava, and some say, Rav Chisda says, If a person sees that sufferings
has come to him, let him examine his conduct, for it says, Let us search
and try our ways, and return unto the Lord (Eichah 3:40). If he
examines and finds nothing [objectionable], let him attribute it to the
neglect of the study of the Torah, as it says, Happy is the man whom
God disciplines, and whom You teach from Your Torah (Tehillim
94:12). If he did attribute it [thus], and still did not find [this to be the
cause], let him be sure that these are sufferings of love, since it says,
Whom the Lord loves He corrects (Mishlei 3:12). (Brochos 5a)
Thus, we see, that on whatever level a person is made to suffer, it is
always from God, and custom-designed as a corrective devicea
tikunas a physical wake-up call for a spiritual illness. And God, being
Omnipotent and Omniscient, always knows exactly what kind of illness will
work with a particular person, how long it will physically take to have the
desired spiritual effect, and with which medicine and doctor it is best
cured, again, for maximum spiritual effect.

Faith healer? It is merely a question of being in the right place at the
right time for the right purpose. And, for the sake of those looking on, it is
best for free-will that one be someone who looks the part of a healer. For
ones own sake, it is important to make it clear to others that only God
heals. God may not talk to us in order to allow us to tell others what to
change, but He can still send His light through us to help them heal.
Illness? Sin adds Klipos,4 increasing the amount of layers over the Ohr
Ain Sof that flows through every human being. Teshuvah removes them,
allowing the Ohr Ain Sof to reach a persons extremities, bringing with it
healing power. Thus, when God came down and met with the Jewish people
at Mt. Sinaian extremely intense exposure of Ohr Ain Softhey
actually died in spiritual ecstasy requiring resurrection, and everyone
became completely healed.5
However, sometimes the teshuvah process demands that we turn to
others for help, if only to make sure that we remain inter-dependent,
especially the Jewish people. Not only is a Jew a guarantor for his fellow
Jew by need, but he is expected to be that way as a matter of philosophy
as well.6 At least for the Jew, not being able to free himself from the
shackles of illness may be built into the nation to keep it whole and unified.
Having said this, it is important to bring into the discussion the words
of the Ramban:
When the Jewish people were whole and perfect, they did not run their
lives according to nature at all, not with respect to themselves or with
respect to their land; not as a community and not as individuals. For
God blessed their bread and water, and removed all sickness from their
midst, until there was no need for doctors or to seek out medical
advice, as it says, I am God who heals you (Shemos 15:26). Thus,
righteous individuals during the time of prophecy, when sin led to
illness, did not inquire of doctors, but only of prophets, as Chizkiyah
4
Literally, peels and the Kabbalistic term for spiritual interpositions that decrease
ones spiritual sensitivity.
5
Rashi, Shemos 20:15.
6
Sanhedrin 27b.

did when he became ill . . . What place is there for doctors in the home
of one who does Gods will, after it promises, You will serve God, your
God, and He will bless your bread and your water, and I will remove
sickness from amongst you (Shemos 23:25)? Doctors were only
supposed to advise regarding eating and drinking . . . Had they not
chosen the path of medicine, man would have become ill in accordance
with the punishment for his sin, and be healed by the will of God. But,
they followed medicine, and God left them to natural circumstances.
(Ramban, Vayikra 26:11)
Thus, we see a great difference historically with regard to the healing
process during the time of prophets and post. Does it mean that God has
removed Himself completely from the illness-healing process, making it
meaningless as far as the Talmud quoted earlier is concerned? Does it
mean that illness today has nothing to do with tikun, but that the world,
including the Jewish people, are on auto-pilot?
No. And, understanding why will help us to understand the role we can
play in the healing process.
According to Kabbalah, when God wants to increase Hester Panim,
which is always to increase the possibility of free-will choice, the purpose
of Creation,7 he introduces additional sefiros into the System. This
increases the distance Ohr Ain Sof must travel to a person, causing it to
become more filtered, and therefore less revealing of the Presence of God
in Creation.8
Its like a person who begins a small business. At first, he maintains
direct and constant contact with his handful of employees, whom he
knows by name. However, as the business grows and the company
expands, eventually the owner is forced to hire middle management
personnel to oversee the employees while he deals with other more
7
Derech Hashem, 4:1.
8
However, Eretz Yisroel is spiritually higher than all other lands, meaning that when a
person makes aliyah, that is, ascends there, less sefiros exist between him and God than
would otherwise be the case if he lived in the Diaspora. Hence, more miracles occur there.

pressing matters. They became his liaison to the people, making it more
difficult for him to maintain personal contact with the man on the floor.
If the company grows even bigger, then additional staff are added until
the CEO loses all contact with his employees, except for the personnel he
himself deals with on a day-to-day basis. However, the employees have no
difficulty recalling the name of their boss who signs their checks and runs
their company.
With respect to God, it is just the opposite. No matter how many
systems of sefiros He adds to increase the spiritual distance between
Himself and man, He never loses track of His employees. However, it
becomes increasingly difficult for them to remember Him, because the net
effect of additional sefiros is the increased involvement of what man has
come to call Mother Nature.
The blessing of Nature is that it is consistent. The Hebrew word for
Nature is teva (Tet-Bais-Ayin), from the word matbeiya (Mem-Tet-
Bais-Ayin), which means coin, for each minted coin is exactly the same.
Something is said to be natural when it occurs frequently and with a
certain amount of predictability.
The curse of Nature is that it is consistent. It is the consistency of
Nature that gives men the impression that Creation is on auto-pilot, and
makes them less appreciative of the gift of life. It is, essentially, what
creates the spiritual and intellectual veil that man must pierce in his lifelong
pursuit of God, the purpose of free-will.
Miracle, as the Hebrew word neisbannersuggests, dissolves the
veil of Nature and proclaims the existence of an all-powerful Creator.
When something happens in an irregular and inexplicable manner
according to our understanding of how Creation works, it suggests
another level of Providence: God. Therefore, in order to maintain the
veil, again for the sake of free-will, any miracles that God performs
must happen in the most consistent way possible, giving the impression
that the physical source of the cure intrinsically has the power to heal.
Thus, in the days of Rebi Chiya and Rebi Yochanan, when Hester
Panim was less of an issue, there were less sefiros in-between God and

man. Hence, even though Roman times were barbaric, nevertheless the
Talmud speaks about how legions of Romans were easily converted to
Judaism.9 As a result, miracles abounded, the hand of God was revealed,
and Rebi Yochanan was able to heal Rebi Chiya, but not himself.
However, about two thousand years have passed since then. As the
Jewish people went deeper into this fourth and final Roman exile, so did
the world. The world has become smarter but not wiser. The former is
knowledge of the physical worldthe Aitz HaDaas Tov vRah10the
latter, knowledge about life in the ultimate senseAitz HaChaim. With the
help of the Age of Enlightenment, the hand of God went further
underground, buried beneath layers of Nature, distanced by countless
additional sefiros inserted between Heaven and earth.
Hence, we have Kabbalah today, but not the type of the Arizals day,
and certainly not the Kabbalah MaysiosPractical Kabbalahof Rebi
Akivas time. In the time of Rebi Akiva, Holocausts could be avoided by
entering Pardes, by meditating on Names of God and spiritually ascending
the heights of Torah.11 The Arizal could bring an entire group of men from
Tzfas to Jerusalem just by willing it, among other great feats. We dont
have people like that today, and consequently we dont have their level of
miracle either.
Nevertheless, the Ohr Ain Sof is still there, doing what it has always
been doing, miraculously bringing life to all that lives. The surface river bed
may appear dried up, but the spring continues to flow underground.
And, like the Ohr HaGanuz itself, it remains accessible to those whose
character traits permit its revelation, albeit on a far more subtle level.
However, for the time being, for the sake of free-will, it is accessible only,
seemingly, through methods that mimic the ways of those not versed in
Torah and Kabbalah.
9
Avodah Zarah 11a speaks of Onkeles and the legions he converted, 18a speaks of the
Roman executioner who converted while Rebi Chanina ben Teradyon was martyred.
10
The knowledge of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was the level of knowledge
of HOW Creation is what it is. The Tree of Life, on the other hand, is Torah, the
knowledge of WHY everything is the way it is.
11
Tosfos, Chagigah 14b.

That is, for now. For, as the Arizal taught:
Since the ten students of Rebi Shimon Bar Yochai were from the level
of the Chassadim and an excellent zivug12Yisroel with Rachelall the
secrets of Torah could be revealed to them without the need for any
suffering. This will not be the case again until the generation of Melech
Moshiach, as mentioned in the Zohar in many places (Zohar 2:149a and
2:156a). (Shaar Hagilgulim, Ch. 26)
Thus, one of the main features of Yemos HaMoshiach will be the return
of the light of Kabbalah in a more easily accessible way. And, more than
likely, this will not happen over night, but in stages, as it says:
It will be the same way in Yemos HaMoshiach: the redemption will be a
function of both great miracles and nature. The entire world will remain
quite physical including the Jewish people, and any annulment of
zuhama and refinement of physicality will only begin later and progress
slowly. For, this will be a major transition. One posuk says, Who
magnifies (magdil) the victories of His king (Tehillim 18:51), and one
posuk says, He is a tower (migdol) of His kings salvations (II Shmuel
22:51). Rebi Yudan says: It is because the redemption for this people
will not come all at once but will progress over time. What does magnify
(magdil) mean? It will become increasingly larger (misgadeles) and
continue before Israel, etc. (Midrash Shochar Tov, Mizmor 19). For this
reason, the redemption is compared to dawn, as it says, Then your
light will burst out like the dawn (Yeshayahu 58:8). (Shaarei Leshem,
p. 488)
Therefore, we may be living in times far more special than we may think,
when the glorious and spectacular ways our ancestors, albeit slowly, may
be becoming our own. The entire world may already be benefiting, but it
will be up to every individual Jew to learn how to do so on the level fitting
for a people meant to be a light unto nations.
12
This is a Kabbalistic term for the mating of particular sefiros, or partzufim, of which
Yisroel and Rachel are but two, for the sake of creating new lights for lower levels.
These lights carry the blessing and wisdom that we need for growing closer to God.

bsd
Chapter Four
T
here is another angle to this discussion. The Torah speaks
about how Moshe Rabbeinu spent forty days and nights on
top of Mt. Sinai in order to receive Torah directly from God.
Question: How did he survive? What did he eat? What did he
drink? Did he take provisions with him for his long stay on top of the
mountain?
Moshe Rabbeinu himself supplied the answer:
When I went up the mountain to receive the stone tablets, the tablets
of the covenant which God made with you, I stayed on the mountain for
forty days and forty nights neither eating bread nor drinking water . . .
(Devarim 9:9)
The question is, how did he do it? Obviously it was a miracle, but what
kind of miracle? The truth is, though such a feat seems so far from our
everyday experience, in actuality it was the same kind of miracle that
keeps all of us going as well, except that in Moshe Rabbeinus case, the

veil of Nature was removed; Moshe Rabbeinu received his daily
nourishment directly from God Himself.
After all, what is physical food? Is it really the food that sustains us, or
something else more spiritual for which the food is merely a vehicle and a
veil at the same time? To appreciate the answer to this question, we have
to first recall what man is:
Our Rabbis taught: There are three partners in [in the creation of] a
person: The Holy One, Blessed is He, the father, and the mother. The
father provides the white substances out of which are formed the
childs bones, sinews, nails, the brain in his head, and the white in his
eye. The mother supplies the red substances out of which are formed
the skin, flesh, hair, blood and the black of the eye. And, The Holy
One, Blessed is He, provides the spirit and the breath, beauty of
features, eyesight, the power of hearing, the ability to speak and to
walk, understanding and discernment. When his time to depart from the
world comes, The Holy One, Blessed is He, takes away his share and
leaves behind the portions of his father and his mother. (Niddah 31a)
Thus, a body has no intrinsic life of its own, but rather it lives by virtue
of the fact that it has a soul. Take the soul away from the body, and it
dies, and all the healthiest food in the world cannot revive it. Contrary to
the way it appears (and marketing and advertising would have us believe),
the physical body is not nourished by physical food. But then again,
neither is the soul.
On the contrary, if the soul is a spiritual spark of life, then it can only
be sustained through spiritual sparks of life, something Kabbalah calls
calls Nitzotzei KedushahHoly Sparks. And, just as a car merely
transports a living being inside of it, but is not intrinsically a part of him,
likewise the food is merely a vehicle to transport Holy Sparks to the soul,
for the sake of doing one thing only: to maintain the connection between
the body and the soul. When we eat and consume Holy Sparks, we feed
the connection between our bodies and our souls.
As long as that spiritual connection is maintained, the body survives. If
it remains strong, then the body will thrive and be able to feel the very

spiritual reality for which it is a temporary home. If the connection is
weakened, then the body weakens, ages, and eventually decays. Thus, the
Talmud explains:
Until Avraham there was no old age; whoever wished to speak to
Avraham would [mistakenly] speak to Yitzchak, and the reverse.
Therefore, he prayed, and old age came into existence, as it says,
And Avraham was very old (Bereishis 24:1). Until Yaakov, there was
no illness. Then Yaakov came and prayed, and illness came into being,
as it says, Someone told Yosef, Behold, your father is sick
(Bereishis 48:1). Until Elishah, no sick man ever recovered,1 but Eliyahu
came and prayed, and he recovered, as it says, Now Elishah became ill
from his sickness from which he died (II Melachim 8:14), thus proving
that he had been sick on previous occasions too, [but had recovered].
(Bava Metzia 87a)
How did these changes occur? By Divinely weakening the body-soul
connection in mankind in general, as part of the spiritual weakening of the
generations referred to as Yeridos HaDoros. With the except of certain
individuals, the generations have become progressively weaker, spiritually-
speaking.
Now we can better understand the test of the manna that the Torah
speaks about:
You shall remember the entire way which God your God led you these
forty years in the desert, in order to afflict you and to test you, to
know what is in your heart, whether or not you will observe His
commandments. He afflicted you and made you hungry, and fed you
manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, in order to
teach you that man does not live by bread alone, but by the word of
God does man live. (Devarim 8:2-3)
1
Sickness, when it came, was fatal, and therefore only necessary when a persons time to
die approached. It was not used as a source of yesurim, and therefore people did not do
teshuvah. Elishah, wishing to change that, prayed for sickness that could come and go to
inspire teshuvah.

And, what are the words of God that keep man alive? Nitzotzei
KedushahHoly Sparkssomething, apparently, on which Moshe
Rabbeinu was able to dine without the medium of food. Indeed, the Holy
Sparks necessary to keep body and soul bound together came to Moshe
Rabbeinu directly from the mouth of God, so-to-speak. The rest of the
nation was supposed to learn how to do this through the manna.
After all, did Adam HaRishon have to eat physical food to survive in
the Garden of Eden, and if not, what changed that we do?
Thus Adam stumbled in two ways: looking [at the tree] and then eating
[from it]. As a result, the world became more physical, as did Adam and
Chava. They were transformed from clothing of the Ohr HaGanuz2
Kesones Ohr with an Aleph (Aleph-Vav-Raish)to Kesones Ohr
(Ayin-Vav-Raish), the skin of the snake.3 (Shaarei Leshem, p. 345)
After he stumbled with the sin of the Aitz HaDaas, not only did he not
rectify the world but rather he destroyed much of Maaseh Bereishis.
All of the worlds greatly descended from their levels, and evil increased
and spread throughout them, from bottom to top. (Shaarei Leshem,
p. 170)
Thus, before the sin, Adam received the Holy Sparks of life directly
from God, for free-will did not necessitate the hiding of the word of God
inside the medium of food. However, all that changed because of the sin,
and now it is up to the individual to realize for himself what it is that is truly
sustaining him, so that he will strive to increasingly higher levels of spiritual
growth. That is, in essence, the Manna-Test in any generation.
All of this is to lead to and reiterate the point that we are always
dealing with light, spiritual light. Holy Sparks are merely little individualized
2
The Supernal Light that God hid on Day One of Creation.
3
Originally, Adams skin was made from light, called clothing of lightKesones (coat)
Ohr (light), spelled with an Aleph. We look at our fingernails at Havdalah on Motzei
Shabbos in order to remind us of the spiritual level on which we once lived, and work on
returning to. When ohr is spelled with an Ayin instead, it becomes the word skin, which is
the present state of the body. Since the Snake caused that, our skin is called Clothing
of the Snake.

packets of this light, of energy.4 The more Holy Sparks a person draws
to himself, or to others, as the case may be, the more healing power there
will be available to assist a person both spiritually and physically. For,
healing, ultimately, is about bringing light to the parts of the body that are
showing signs of decay, so that the soul can attach itself more securely
in that place. This automatically results in recovery.
For, as the rabbis have taught, everything in the physical world works
the way it does in order to allow us to understand how the invisible
spiritual world functions. Hence, just as blood must reach the extremities
of the body to maintain life there, so too must the Holy Sparks be there to
maintain life. Indeed, just as food acts as a vehicle to brings Holy Sparks
from outside our bodies into them, so too does the blood act as a vehicle
to bring those sparks to different parts of the body, nourishing behind a
veil of physical sustenance.5 Thus, the Torah states:
For the soul of the flesh is in the blood . . . (Vayikra 17:11)
Thus, the essence of healing from a Torah perspective is the drawing
down of Nitzotzei Kedushah into ourselves or others, and to bring them to
the parts of the body that require them, as indicated by illness. When Rebi
Yochanan healed Rebi Chiya, that is precisely what he was doing. By
saying the proper words and having intention for the proper Name of God,
the Light and the Sparks were able to do the rest as directed by God
Himself.
Hence, even today during this time of Hester Panim when people rely
heavily on Nature to cure their ills, others first recite this little prayer
before ingesting medicine or seeing a doctor:
May it be Your will that this matter will be for the sake of recovery
because You heal without need for recompense. Blessed are You,
Healer of the sick.
4
Perhaps this is why String Theorists will never be able to physically see the strings they
believe are the basis of all that exists in Creation. Being pure energy, they are spiritual.
5
It is no coincidence that healthy food is determined by the amount of Holy Sparks it
contains. For, just as Holy Sparks enhance our lives, it also enhances the quality of the
life of that which feeds us.

In summary, we are not on the level of the Kabbalists of yesteryear who
commanded the Natural world with Names of God. On the other hand, we
do not want to simply follow in the ways of the rest of the world whose
gifts only allow them to access some aspect of the spiritual realm via the
physical one. Therefore, the question becomes, what, if anything,
represents the middle ground?

bsd
Chapter Five
L
ike a waterfall, Ohr Ain Sof cascades downward from the top of
the Challal to the levels of reality below, bring life to everywhere
it goes, blessing to everything it touches. It travels to things, and
through things, usually being filtered as it does in preparation
for lower levels. All of it is perfectly orchestrated by the Master
Conductor HimselfGod to suit the needs of Creation in order to fulfill
the purpose of Creation.
We live off that light, everything does, including evil. On one level, it
provides us with our soul, while on another level, it provides us with a body
into which our soul can go and exercise its will. It is the source of the Holy
Spark that keeps us alive, and the source of the food that transports
those sparks to us. It is the ground we walk on, the sun that shines for us,
and the rain that allows our food to grow. It is in everything.
What makes one thing different from the next, even though the basic
material from which everything was created is the same, is the Divine

adjustments to the light which cause it to result in all the various different
elements of Creation. It is beyond comprehension, beyond imagination,
but true nevertheless.1
Thus, the potential of something or someone can be far greater than
the present reality of that thing, or person. Once man could receive
prophecy. Once he could perform miracles at will. Once he lived a
millennium and never knew a sick day until the day he was destined to die.
Then he sneezed, and that was it, the soul leaving the person the same way
it entered him.
As the generations progressed scientifically, they regressed spiritually.
It is as if God has His hand on some kind of spiritual valve, gradually
closing it, reducing the amount of Ohr Ain Sof allowed to filter down to the
lower levelswhich is exactly the casereducing our spiritual ability. Man
has become more physical as a result, and in response to this, the world
around him as well. There have always been miracle workers, but their
numbers become fewer and fewer with each passing generation.
To take this for granted is to be born into the world and simply live on
the level we find ourselves. We learn Torah, we pray, we perform mitzvos,
but all to a limit. Sometimes miracles occur when we seem to be able to
accomplish a little more than we thought we could, or a little better than we
assumed we could, and chalk it up to siyita ShamayaHeavenly
assistance.
Special powers? In the past. In the future. But in the present? Unlikely,
so why try? Enhance a good situation? Change a bad one? Lets stick to
the conventional means: learn, doven, do chesed, and hope that God
considers it worthy of performing a miracle on our behalf. No wonder
Heaven imposes crises on the Jewish people,2 pushing us to extraordinary
1
String theorists should have no difficulty with this idea, since every aspect of Creation is
made from sub-atomic, non-seeable strings. What makes one thing different from the
next is merely the vibration of a string, and the combinations of them.
2
Most recently, the Gulf War showed us the power of community prayer and learning, and
of achdusJewish unityending the war on Purim. Then, rather than say, Wow! Thats
incredible! What will happen if we continue this way now that the war is over? Will we
actually bring Moshiach? we simply went back to the way we were prior to the crisis, and

levels, to show us the power that is available to us if we only believe, and
use it.
In fact, if modern science has taught us anything at all, it is that the
physical world is not the way we perceive it. The concrete and seemingly
immutable physical world is, at its smallest level, made up of non-physical
energy. The flexibility that results in miraculous deeds in science-fiction
movies, theoretically, is the every day world of quantum physics. The
physical world is beginning to look more like the spiritual world with each
passing day.3
Perhaps, one of the most deceiving aspects of Creation is the human
body itself. On average, a person might be five feet, ten inches tall, almost
nothing compared to the expanse of physical space. On the other hand,
the same body is home to a soul made up of five parts that reach far
beyond our physical universe, all the way to the top of the Challal.
The uppermost part is called YechidahSingularbecause on that
level there is sublime unity of all the parts. The level of soul below that is
called ChiyahLivingsince it is the source of light and therefore life for
the levels below it, which include NeshamahBreath, RuachWind, and
NefeshRest.4 It is like a five-rung ladder that spiritually spans between
earth and Heaven.
Adam HaRishon, prior to the sin, had access to just about every level
of soul. However, as a result of the sin and being exiled from Gan Aiden,
the upper levels were sealed off from him. That is why, in spite of all the
teshuvah he did130 years worthhe could not rectify the effect of his
now find ourselves in deeper hot water than before. Heaven has made its move; it waits
for our next one.
3
What is interesting is that physicists point out that as long as String Theory cannot be
tested in experiments to actually confirm its equations and propositions, it will not belong
to the realm of Physics, but to the realm of Philosophy. How religious can you get?
4
An analogy is made to a glass blower, who starts with a breath in his mouth, which he
blows down a tube in order to fashion the molten glass at the other end. The Neshamah is
called the breath in Gods mouth, which He blows downwardRuachin order to
breathe the soul into the nostrils of the waiting bodythe molten glass. The breath itself
comes to restNefeshinside the newly formed container.

sin. Succeeding generations had even less access, with the exception of
certain individuals, and hence people can even doubt the existence of their
own soul.
However, they remain there whether we can access them directly or
not, for if just one level were to disappear, the connection between
Heaven and the person would be severed; the person would disappear
completely, instantly. Each level of the soul is an indispensable link in the
chain between the physical person and God Himself.
Furthermore, the five levels of soul correspond directly to the five
worlds that exist between the top of the Challal and the bottom of the
Kav Ain Sof.5 So, when a person accesses higher levels of soul, he is also
accessing higher levels of Creation. It is one and the same thing.
Not only this, but the bottom four levels of the soul, from Nefesh to
Chiyah, also correspond to the four levels of Torah learning: Pardes,
which stands for Pshat, Remez, Drush, and Sod, which, in turn,
correspond to Mikrah,6 Mishnah, Talmud, and Kabbalah. Thus, the
intellectual journey from Mikrah to Kabbalah is the spiritual journey from
Nefesh to Chiyah, as per the following diagram:
Yechidah Adam Kadmon
Chiyah Atzilus Sod/Kabbalah
Neshamah Beriyah Drush/Talmud
Ruach Yetzirah Remez/Mishnah
Nefesh Asiyah Pshat/Mikrah
The bottom line to all of this is that we are much more than we feel that
we are. The Sitra Achra does a good job of convincing us that we are
something that we are not, and of convincing us that we are not something
that we are. In this way he can convince us to do things we shouldnt, and
to not do things we should. The greatest sin of all is misused potential.
The more one becomes aware of this sublime fact, the more one tries to
access the more. And, the most amazing thing, as the Torah itself says:
For this commandment which I command you today is not hidden from
5
Asiyah, Yetzirah, Beriyah, Atzilus, and Adam Kadmon.
6
A verse from the Torah.

you, nor is it far away. It is not in Heaven, that you can say, Who shall
go up to the heaven and bring it to us, and let us hear it that we can do
it? (Devarim 30:11)
you dont have to go anywhere to get it, at least physically. Rather:
The rabbis taught: Four entered Pardes: Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Acher,
and Rebi Akiva . . . (Chagigah 14b)
Entered Pardes: For example, by way of a Name; they didnt actually
go up, rather it appeared to them as if they ascended. (Tosfos)
In other words, they ascended the Orchard (Pardes) by invoking a
particular Name of God, which had the effect of allowing them to ascend
levels of spiritual reality. While their bodies remained perfectly stationary,
they became aware of increasingly higher levels of spiritual consciousness,
as their minds underwent an experience of ascending.
However, these were rabbis from the Second Temple Era, on a much
higher level of spiritual greatness, far more capable of breaking through
spiritual barriers that we dont even know about. Nevertheless, their
journey is one that a person can go on, to some degree, on his own level.
For example, morning prayer has been set up in such a way as to permit
this type of spiritual expedition. The service itself can be divided into four
sections, each one corresponding to a different level of spiritual
consciousness:
1. Birchas HaShachar/Karbonos: Asiyah
2. Pesukei DZimrei: Yetzirah
3. Birchas Krias Shema: Beriyah
4. Shemonah Esrai: Atzilus
Aside from the fact these sections of prayer are loaded with Names of
God, they also express particular concepts that when focused on change
the relationship of the person to the world around him. Section one deals
with matters of life on earth, working the person towards ascending to
Yetzirah by the time he recites Pesukei DZimrei. That is why the prayer
Anah BKoach ends the first section, since it itself corresponds to the
Forty-Two Letter Name of God that prophets used to meditate on in
order to go into a state of prophecy.

The blessings talk about angels praising God, because after Borchu
one is supposed to be ascending to the level of Heaven, on his way to
Atzilus, where he will stand before God and recite his Shemonah Esrai. All
that follows after this is meant as a debriefing as the persons
consciousness makes its way back down to earth and everyday matters.
Exercise One:
I imagine the Challal, huge, at first simply dark and empty beyond
experience. On the outside of the Challal there is nothing but brilliant Ohr
Ain Sof, infinite in all direction. But on the inside, total blackness.
Then I imagine the Ohr Ain Sof spilling into the Challal through an
opening on top, entering the Challal, thoughtfully, methodically, working
its way down towards the center in a thin, but exceedingly powerful line of
light.

It enters a little, then spreads out into a ball, mirroring the shape of the
Challal, forming the first level of realityAdam Kadmon (if you really want
to get technical, you can imagine it happening in ten stages, sefirah by
sefirah).
Kav Ain Sof
Then you can imagine the same thing happening for Atzilus, and
Beriyah, Yetzirah, and finally Asiyah.
Kav Ain Sof
Outer Layer of
Ten Sefiros of Adam Kadmon Challal
Ten Sefiros of Atzilus
Ten Sefiros of Beriyah
Ten Sefiros of Yetzirah
Ten Sefiros of Asiyah
At some point, I imagine the light reaching the top of my head and
entering my head, filling it up with warm, brilliant, Godly light. Then the light
makes its way down, moving through my neck to the rest of my body, to my
shoulders, my arms, and to the ends of my fingers. At that point, I
concentrate on feeling the energy of this light in my hands. I imagine the
light wanting to burst through my fingers, which usually results in a tingling

sensation.
I hold that as long as I can, and when I lose it, I start all over again. The
slower I go, the more intricately I imagine the process, the more I sense the
reality of it.
Ultimately, we shall see, it is the Presence of the Shechinah that we
wish to feel.

bsd
Chapter Six
W
e have already spoken about the Sefiros, the ten spiritual
emanations that act as the system to transport the light of
Ohr Ain Sof from outside the Challal to the bottom of the
Kav Ain Sof. In a sense, it is like the Central Nervous System
of the human body, which acts as the information highway between the
brain and the rest of the body.
However, the Sefiros are far more sophisticated. Each one of the ten:
Keser, Chochmah, Binah, Chesed, Gevurah, Tifferes, Netzach, Hod,
Yesod, and Malchus, is a unique light, and repository of historical
potential. And, since each sefirah corresponds to a specific 1,000-year
period of history, it provides the potential for that particular period of
time.
Thus, all that Creation becomes during a specific period is the result of
the Divine instructions encoded in the sefirah that corresponds to it, as
follows:

Chesed: 1-1000
Gevurah: 1000-2000
Tifferes: 2000-3000
Netzach: 3000-4000
Hod: 4000-5000
Yesod: 5000-6000
Malchus: 6000-7000 (Soul World)
Binah: 7000-8000 (Olam HaBahWorld-to-Come)
Chochmah: 8000-9000
Keser: 9000-10,000
What DNA is to life the Sefiros are to history. Hence, the same way
that changes to the body seem to occur randomly and often without
reason, but in fact were actually scripted into a persons personal DNA,
likewise do events of history often seem random, but are actually the
result of a section of script recorded in the sefirah that governs that
epoch of history.
The Sefiros flavor the millennia.
The sefirah that is the basis of all that occurs in our millennium is
Yesod, which literally means foundation. It is associated with Yosef
HaTzaddik, and hence the posuk:
Tzaddik yesod olamthe righteous person is the foundation of the
world. (Mishlei 10:25)
To appreciate the unique potential of the sefirah of Yesod, and
therefore of our millennium, we need to understand the following:
Yosef had a dream, and he told it to his brothers, which made them
hate him even more. He told them, Please, listen to this dream that I
dreamed. We were binding sheaves in the middle of the field and my
sheaf stood up and remained standing. Your sheaves gathered around
and they bowed down to my sheaf. (Bereishis 37:5-7)
On the surface of it, Yosefs dream, as the brothers suggested, is only
an illusion of grandeur, in keeping with their suspicions of him. However,
on a deeper level the dreams are really an indication of the role of the
sefirah of Yesod itself, something the brothers came to learn the hard way

and over time, after they were forced to descend to Egypt in search of
food. It was then that Yosefs dream was fulfilled: thinking they were
standing before the viceroy of Egypt, the brothers bowed down before
him.
Yosef, in turn, fed them:
Yosef fed his father and his brothers and all of his fathers house,
including the little ones. (Bereishis 47:12)
For, it is the nature of Yesod to act as the channel through which the
sefirah of Malchus can receives its shefa, its measure of Ohr Ain Sof.
Whereas the sefiros of Netzach and Hod before Yesod distribute the light
and determine the amount each recipient is to receive, Yesod is the actual
point of distribution, of revelation.
Thus, Yesod unites the Malchus with all of the sefiros preceding it, in
the same way that the Tzaddik unites man below with God above, making
him the foundation of the world. Hence, Yesod, the ninth sefirah is also
called EmesTruth1 which is said to be the seal of God.2
Furthermore, it corresponds to the Hebrew letter Vav (which looks
like a pipe) of Gods Four-Letter Ineffable Name, funneling the light from
Yud-Heh to the final Heh. Furthermore, the letter Vav corresponds to the
number six, and it represents the world of Yetzirah, which is made up of
the six sefiros, Chesed through Yesod.
The letter Aleph itself is comprised of a Vav that binds together an
upper Yud with a lower Yud, symbolic of the connection between the
Upper Chochmah, and the lower one (Malchus). Once again, the Vav is
the device to bind together.
The upshot of this is that our entire millennium, because it corresponds
to Yesod, acts like Yesod. This means that the entire millennium itself is a
conduit, so-to-speak, between the first 5,000 years and the seventh
millennium. It is the millennium during which the Ohr HaGanuz, with which
Creation began, ceases to remain internal, but must become revealed
1
The gematria of Emes is: Aleph-Mem-Tav1+40+400=441. However, another form of
gematria adds the numbers together like this: 4+4+1=9, and Yesod is the ninth sefirah.
2
Shabbos 55a.

instead. Thus, it is revealed that:
In the 600th year of the sixth millennium (5600/1840 CE), the gates of
supernal wisdom above together with the wellsprings of wisdom below
will be opened up, and the world will prepare to usher in the seventh
millennium. This is symbolized by a man who begins preparations for
ushering in the Shabbat on the afternoon of the 6th day. (Zohar 1:117a)
However, there is something unique about the millennium of Yesod that
makes it different from all the others:
The Yesod divided into two kings, the Yesod and the Atarah. The
Atarah is relevant to Malchus since it is her (Yesods) crown, which is
why it is called Atarah . . . Therefore, the Yesod and the Atarah
became two, but after the tikun the Yesod and the Atarah became one
in order to join together Zehr Anpin (Chesed through Yesod) and
Nukveh (Malchus) forever . . . This is the sod of Yemos HaMoshiach
being at the end of the sixth millennium, the time when the Atarah
governs . . . and gives off light for Yemos HaMoshiach . . . Yesod itself
governs the time of exile until Yemos HaMoshiach . . . Since the Atarah
is rooted in an independent king and the Yesod divided into two,
therefore the sixth millennium, which corresponds to Yesod, divides
into two. During the time which corresponds to the Yesod there will still
be destruction and exile. However, the time that corresponds to the
Atarah will be Yemos HaMoshiach . . . (Hakdomos vShaarim, page 172)
. . . [It is also a long period of time.] The entire period of time is
referred to as keitz dbittah (end in its time), and this is the simple
reading of the verse, I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time (bittah)
(Yeshayahu 60:22). The verse is promising that the entire period of
bittah will not pass, rather that the time of redemption will be
hastened, and that early will also be in its time and thus both will be
fulfilled . . . It will not be delayed for the entire period of bittah, God
forbid, but rather it will be hastened. (Hakdomos vShaarim, page 211)
What this means is that the end of the sixth millennium, and not just a
few minutes of it, but a significant portion of it, will already have a very
strong Messianic quality to it. And, among the many wonderful things

destined to happen then, the most important of all will be the end of
Hester Panim. The reality of God will become unquestionable. The
revelation of God to man will be the strongest ever to date.
It wont just be an overnight transition either. Just as the sun begins to
spark in advance of its rising over the horizon, so too will Yemos
HaMoshiach overlap with the period previous to it, and that generation will
benefit from the light destined to be revealed at that time. Given that we
are presently in the year of 5766, and in general, Atarah HaYesod is
usually one-third of the entire Yesod, we are well into that period of time.
What is the overall goal? What is our prime objective?
It is to become one with the Shechinah as much as is humanly possible.
It is to be able to feel the Divine Presence permeate every aspect of our
being, as much as we are capable of receiving it. The goal is to become a
conduit for the Ohr Ain Sof, which means becoming a fitting vessel to do
so.
Exercise 2: An Anonymous Personal Account
Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are the days I make my supreme
effort. I try hard to have kevanah the rest of the year, but everything
always feels rushed. Sometimes, if I am relaxed, I can reach a high enough
level that I leave my present reality, and the feeling is wonderful.
But on the Yemai Norayim, it is a different story. I am not going
anywhere for some six hours, and neither is anyone else around me. It is
God-time, pure God-time. From the moment I start Pesukei dZimra, I cant
wait to step into Shemonah Esra with selfless abandon.
It does not come easy at first. As the room goes silent, my body is still
anxious and running around in one spot, like a child raring to go. As I begin
the first brochah, I focus on relaxing, and feeling every word, every
syllable come through my mouth. The goal is to become unified with my
tefillah, so that we become one and the same thing, as we should always
be. As Dovid HaMelech wrote:
As for me, may my prayer to You be at an opportune time . . . (Tehillim
69:14)
which can be read: I am my prayer . . .

After about 12 minutes of intense concentration, my entire system slows
down. By this time, I am barely aware of anyone or anything else around
me. I have gone inside of myself, and I begin to feel what I believe is the
Shechinah, the Presence of God, filling up my body as if it was an empty
shell.
Immediately, I feel intense love for God, and a yearning to never part
from Him again, not even a little. I often start too cry tears of longing. I feel
like a child who has wandered away from home for a long time and
returned to open arms. It is an overpowering feeling.
All of a sudden, the words of the Shemonah Esrai become my own, and
I feel totally connected to Heaven, and to my people in ways I have
difficulty doing the rest of the year. I feel plugged in, and it is an awesome
sensation.
The time goes by fast. An hour passes quickly, and though there is
pain in my feet from standing in one spot for such a long time, it doesnt
compare to the pleasure of awareness and connection I have achieved
after working so hard. At this time, I wish to remain connected to God on
this level forever, and would if I could. It feels as if the Shechinah has filled
every aspect of my being, and as if stepping out of Shemonah Esrai would
tear It out from within me.
However, this year I decided that it is not enough to have such holy
encounters only once a year, and partial ones intermittently throughout.
Therefore, I decided to try and re-create the experience on a regular
basis, both while dovening and when relaxing at home or at work.
I have met with some success, Boruch Hashem, and it is having a
tremendous impact on the quality of my life. There is no turning back now,
only moving forward, and with greater growth, bezras Hashem Yisborach.

bsd
Chapter Seven
W
hen it came time for Dovid HaMelech to leave this world, the
Malech HaMaves was dispatched. However, he found the
king immersed in learning as always, and with such intensity
that he could not take his soul. He was in a quandary, for his
mission was from Heaven itself, and so not to be outdone, the Angel of
Death created a distraction:
Every Shabbos day he would sit and study all day. On the day that his
soul was to be at rest, the Angel of Death stood before him but could
not prevail against him, because learning did not cease from his mouth.
What shall I do to him? he asked. So, there was a garden behind his
house, so the Angel of Death went, ascended and rustled the leaves in
the trees. He went out to see, and as he was ascending the ladder, it
broke under him. As a result, he became silent [from his learning] and
his soul rested. (Shabbos 30b)

Life is very distracting, that is for sure. However, most people do not
know or appreciate just how distracting it is, or why. They think that it is
just a fact of life, when in fact distractions have a very ominous source,
and a very ominous intent. To be oblivious to this very important fact is to
remain intellectually blind to ones true potential.
It is no coincidence that we achieve our greatest results in life when we
are focused. Not only this, but when we are truly focused we become the
most aware of our existence, and less aware of the world around us. We
feel a sense of calm, of oneness, at first internally, and then with the rest
of Creation. This is what makes meditation so popular.
However, it only truly becomes a spiritual experience when the reason
for focusing is a holy one. Even an accountant, immersed in numbers, can
feel a sense of oneness with the work he is doing. Professional athletes
play sports with a single-mindedness that makes what they do sometimes
seem like a holy endeavor. People pay good money for entertainment that
can captivate their attention to the point that its reality becomes their own
for a couple of breath-taking hours.
But spiritually-speaking, all of them come out on the same level after
the experience as they were prior to it.
Indeed, the Sitra Achra can and often uses such non-spiritual forms of
mental intensity to pre-occupy people so that they will not utilize this
Godly ability for a Godly purpose, as did Dovid HaMelech while he
learned Torah. Hence, the Angel of Death can take the soul of an athlete
at the top of his game, but not that of a talmid chacham at the height of his
learning, or the soul of a Tzaddik while in intense prayer.
Thus, distraction is the number one tool of the Sitra Achra, of the
yetzer hara, to keep a person from becoming focused on spiritual matters.
Quite simply, the more one is focused on the outside world, the less one
can be focused on the inside world, the world of Kesones Ohr with an
Aleph.
This is why the Talmud advises:
Torah comes from the mouths of the poor. (Nedarim 91a)

For, though they may want more materialism, they only HAVE Torah. With
a material lifestyle comes material concerns, and even the most righteous
wealthy person has to spend time away from learning managing his material
blessing.
That was MitzrayimEgypt. Mitzrayim is a combination of two words:
meitzer yum. A meitzer is a boundary, and the gematria of yum (Yud-
Mem) is equal to fifty, as in the Fifty Gates of Understanding of Torah.
Thus, conceptually, Mitzrayim was, is, a place whose society works
contrary to the Nun Shaarei Binahthe Fifty Gates of Understanding.
Avodah bpharech, the labor imposed upon the Jewish people, was to so
break them physically that they could not find the energy to be spiritual.
Freedom is expressed through the matzah, which is only flour and
water. As the Maharal points out,1 the flour and water is an allusion to
Olam HaBah, which is symbolized by the simplicity of the letter Yud.2 It is
even called Lechem Ani, Poor Mans Bread, and Lechem Oni, the
Bread of Answering. For, as the Talmud has taught, Torah comes from the
mouths of the poor, that is, those who are detached from the material
world to the extent that they are not spiritually blinded by it.
This is why speaking to the rock was an important part of the
preparation for the Jewish people to enter Eretz Yisroel. Hitting the rock
to bring forth water represented the material approach to survival in this
world, which is not the main approach to parnassah in the Holy Land.
Speaking to the rock, on the other hand, represented freedom from the
shackles of the Natural World, which is precisely the threshold Eretz
Yisroel is supposed to represent:
For, the land you are about to possess is not like Egypt from where
you came, and in which, if you sowed seeds, you had to bring water to
them as you would for a garden of green herbs. The land you are
about to possess has mountains and deep valleys, and is watered by
rain from the skya land for which God, your God, cares, God, your
God pays attention to continuously the entire year. (Devarim 11:11-12)
1
Haggadah Shel Pesach.
2
Menachos 29b.

In a sense, this is really the basis of bitachon and emunahtrust and
faith in God. It is hard to have trust or faith in anyone when feeling
abandoned, how much more so when it comes to our relationship with God.
However, God never abandons His children, but rather it is His children
who abandon Him: by becoming more material, they block the channels
through which the Ohr Ain Sof can flow, denying a person the
experience of relating to God.
Thus, we are commanded in the Shema to serve God with all of our
possessions.
It is the feeling of the Shechinah that one feels when the Ohr Ain Sof is
able to flow through ones spiritual veins that gives a person the
confidence to follow God into the unknown. That is how fear of God is the
basis of trust in God: to see God is to feel His very Presence internally,
and there can be nothing more heart-warming, more satisfying, more
reassuring than that.
In this sense, fear of God and bitachon are one and the same mitzvah,
just two different ways of expressing the same reality. Hence, the Talmud
teaches:
Rebi Chanina said: All is in the hands of Heaven except for fear of
Heaven, as it says, Now, Israel, what does God, your God, ask of you?
Only to fear . . . ( Devarim 10:12) . . . Rebi Chanina said in the name of
Rebi Shimon bar Yochai: The Holy One, Blessed is He, only has fear
of God stored away in His storehouse, as it says, Fear of God is His
storehouse (Yeshayahu 33:6) . . . (Brochos 33b)
and the Midrash reveals:
One who trusts in God will be surrounded by kindness (Tehillim 32:10)
Even an evil person who trusts in God will be surrounded by kindness.
(Midrash Tehillim 32:10)
Indeed, both ideas came together in a single individual so unique in
Jewish history that he was made the father of Moshiach, perhaps for

the very words uttered before the previously indomitable enemy of the
Jewish people, Goliath:3
You come to me with spear and javelin, and I come to you with the
Name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel which you
have taunted. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I
shall kill you, and take off your head, and I will give the carcasses of
the camp of the Philistines this day, to the fowl of the air and to the
beasts of the earth, and the earth will know that Israel has a God! And
all this gathering will know that not with sword and javelin does the Lord
save, for the battle is the Lords, and He will deliver you into our hand.
(I Shmuel 17:45)
Goliath was one big distraction, physically and conceptually. What
Dovid HaMelech possessed and utilized to slay the giant Philistine was, is,
in every Jew, especially Shaul HaMelech. Dovids greatness lay in his
ability to fight off the distractions of the Sitra Achra,4 of which there were
so many in his personal lifetime, and see the more that was inside of him.
The rest of the Jewish army was distracted and left feeling like mere
mortals caught up in the numbers game, over which Goliath had command.
In other words, if you had cut open one of Dovid HaMelechs veins,
figuratively speaking, you would have found Ohr Ain Sof flowing through
it. He drew down the light, which is why he was so sensitive to the
importance of Eretz Yisroel as well:
. . . It means that whoever lives outside the Land may be regarded as
one who worships idols. Similarly, it says regarding Dovid, For they
have driven me out this day that I should not cleave to the inheritance
of the Lord, saying, Go, serve other gods. (I Shmuel 26:19). Now,
whoever said to Dovid, Serve other gods? Rather, it tells you that
3
In Hebrew, his name was Golios, symbolic, perhaps, of the entire concept of
golusexilethat makes the Jewish people so pragmatic as to live spiritually limiting
lives.
4
From Day One, Dovid HaMelech had to defend himself against enemies who, at first,
questioned his right to be a Jew, and later, his right to rule over the Jewish nation. On a
cosmic scale, this tested the resolve of Dovid HeMelech, and Tehillim is a testimony to his
unwavering loyalty to God in spite of all that he had to live through.

whoever lives outside the Land may be regarded as one who worships
idols. (Kesuvos 110b)
What Dovid HaMelech meant was that by leaving the borders of Eretz
Yisroel, the amount of Ohr Ain Sof that was able to flow through him was
greatly decreased, reducing his sense of Shechinah, which he considered
to be an aspect of idolatry. For, as the Arizal taught:
In the firmament above the Land of Israel exists a portal called G'vilon;
under it exists seventy other portals with seventy guards at a distance
of 2,000 cubits; they don't approach the main portal. G'vilon extends
upwards until it reaches the Divine Throne; from that portal in all
directions until the Gates of Opening, is called Megadon, where the
end of the firmament of the boundary of the Land of Israel lies
(Zohar, Vayakhel 209). The Arizal explained that in the middle of this
gate and opening, which is in line with Eretz Yisroel, there is a large
opening. Around that opening there are seventy openings from which
the seventy nations of the world receive their sustenance, a fraction of
the Divine influence that flows from the large gate. In that very gate
there is a holy curtain which prevents the forces of the Other Side5
from being nurtured from the influx, as is mentioned in the Zohar
(Terumah 141a). This curtain is a garment as well; it is holy but its the
holiness is not revealed in our time. (Tuv HaAretz, p. 2)
Exercise 3:
In a calm and meditative state of mind, imagine being able to hear the
blood flowing through your veins, nourishing every aspect of your
physical and spiritual being. Focus on the blood, and gradually imagine
seeing lightOhr Ain Sofflow through your veins instead, in place of
the blood. Stay with this for a while until you can see light circulating
through your entire body, providing it with life.
5
That is, the Sitra Achra, the side of spiritual impurity which lives off holiness on lower
levels. Since evil has no intrinsic existence of its own, it must sustain itself by drawing to
itself Divine light from the side of holiness, the primary impact of a sin. Thus, when a
person sins he is said to strengthen the Sitra Achra, but when he acts in a holy manner he
weakens it.

When you are doing this calmly, and you feel real with this idea
(because it is real, its just camouflaged by the blood), then imagine the
light to be an aspect of the Divine Presence filling you, circulating through
you. Feel the spiritually radiating warmth, and the security of the Master
of the Universe filling your entire being.
Feel completely secure, empowered with a deep, profound, and
satisfying bond to The Holy One, Blessed is He.
Feel His awesome love and concern for you, and His desire to do good
for you, to enhance your life, to communicate with you.
Feel His desire for you to rely upon Him, to trust Him, to know that all
He does, He does for the good.
Quietly say to yourself, slowly, deliberately, Shema Yisroel, Hashem
Elokeinu, Hashem Echad. On the word Echad, focus on feeling one
with Him.
When you are finished the session, end by saying the following three
words, each one with intense, but relaxed concentration, as if to make sure
every element of your body feels each word as it emerges from your being:
Gum zu ltovah: All that God does, He does for the good.

bsd
Chapter Eight
F
or the longest time, there has been the idea of a sixth sense,
what is often referred to as Extra-Sensory Perception. With
ESP, people are purportedly able to see things that are not
picked up by the other five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste,
and touch. From a Western perspective, if such an extra sense truly
exists, as many claim it does, then it certainly belongs to the realm of the
supernatural.
Whatever it is, it means one thing: the physical world is not the complete
picture of reality. The fact that we dont see something, or sense it with
any of the other four senses, does not mean that it does not exist. By now
we know that it would be extremely nave of a person to assume otherwise,
and certainly spiritually dangerous.
Whenever the number six comes up, it is very significant. True, every
number, in Kabbalah at least, is significant in its own right. However, the
significance of the number six is in the fact that it represents Yesod, and

therefore redemption. Indeed, it is no coincidence that the sixth sense
should become such an issue in the sixth millennium, the millennium that
corresponds to Yosef HaTzaddik, or rather, Tzafnas Panayachthe
Revealer of Hidden Things.1
Yesod itself is made up of a Yud, which corresponds to the sefirah of
Chochmah, and the word sod, which means secret. Hence, this is the
millennium of revealing secret wisdom, the purpose of which is to prepare
mankind for Yemos HaMoshiach and a far more intense relationship with
God.
That is why promiscuity is an issue in this millennium, especially in
recent times. In truth, it has always been a problem, but what is unique
about this generation is the way it has been brought out into the open,
into the public domain as if keeping it any other way is unnatural and
unhealthy.
For, the prophet taught:
For the ways of God are straight; the righteous walk in them and the
transgressors stumble over them. (Hoshea 14:10)
This means that there is only ONE path in life, but more than one way to
walk it; it is up to the person to decide that. One type of attitude makes
the journey spiritually smooth, while another can make it rough and
difficult, and even harmful, if not deadly.
Thus, while the Torah world tries to reveal that which is destined to be
revealedSodand through measures of modesty keep concealed that
which is meant to remain concealed, the Western world does just the
opposite. Instead, they shun the truth of Torah while making promiscuous
behavior and dress fashionable.
In keeping with this idea, Yosef earned his title of righteous by
rejecting the wife of his master. He left concealed that which was not
meant to be revealed, at least to him. As a reward for this, he ended up
1
Bereishis 41:45.

revealing the secrets of God to Pharaoh, earning the title, Tzafnas
Panayach, the revealer of hidden things.2
Thus, what seems in our generation to be two entirely separate
realities, the drive towards greater spiritual ability on one hand, and the
incessant breaching of standards of propriety on the other, are in fact the
same drive working in opposite directions. That is why, no doubt, that
members of both camps seem susceptible to the draw of the other side:
there are somewhat righteous people engaging in not-so-righteous acts,
and there and promiscuous individuals involving themselves in Kabbalah
and the like.
It can be compared to a wild stallion. Left unharnessed, it is brute
power that can just as easily harm and destroy as it can be a swift vehicle
to freedom. It is up to man, the rider, the one with the ability to channel the
energy of the horse to determine down which path the horse will trot. It is
up to the Jewish people to harness the energy that God has put into the
world to facilitate a safe and smooth transition to Yemos HaMoshiach.
It all has to do with the Yud:
The Yesod divided into two kings,3 Yesod and AtarahCrown. The
Atarah is relevant to the Malchus,4 since it is her crown, which is why it
is called Atarah.5 Therefore, the Yesod and the Atarah [prior to
Creation] were actually two, but after the tikun (i.e., Creation), the
Yesod and the Atarah became one in order to join together Zehr Anpin
2
Rejecting Potiphars wife landed Yosef in jail, which led him to the wine steward, who
reported Yosefs dream-interpreting abilities to Pharaoh when the latter had his dream.
This, in turn, caused Yosef to be brought from jail and before Pharaoh, who was duly
impressed by Yosefs ability and wisdom, and who subsequently made Yosef viceroy of
Egypt.
3
That is, into two independent sefiros prior to the first day of Creation, as part of the
Creation process.
4
The tenth and final sefirah that follows Yesod, and corresponds to the period of
history between 6000 and 7000.
5
That is, in the system of Sefiros, the Atarah sits directly above the sefirah of Malchus,
like a crown sits on a head.

and the Nukveh forever.6 This is the sod of Yemos HaMoshiach being
at the end of the sixth millennium, the time when the Atarah governs
and gives off light for Yemos HaMoshiach, whereas Yesod itself will
have governed the time of exile (during the sixth millennium) until
Yemos HaMoshiach. Since the Atarah is rooted in an independent
king and the Yesod divided into two, the sixth millennium, which
corresponds to Yesod, divides into two. During the time which
corresponds to the Yesod there will still be destruction and exile.
However, the time that corresponds to the Atarah will be Yemos
HaMoshiach. [The length of the Atarah of Yesod is known to those
who have tasted the Aitz HaChaim, for the Atarah [with rest to
Yesod] is the Bris Yisroel that was given to Avraham Avinu, made with
thirteen covenants, the gematria of Echad.7 It is the kotz of the Dalet
of Echad,8 the Yud of Hovayah,9 the Yud of Adonai, the Yud of
Shaddai, the Yud of Yaakov, the Yud of Yisroel. At that time the
Chesed will be revealed in the opening of the Yesod . . .10 (Hakdamos
vShaarim, p. 172)
The following provides a little more background information regarding
the meaning and role of the Yud in the redemption process:
It is clear from the Zohar HaKodesh (Vayishlach 169b-171), that the war
between the SM with Yaakov Avinu was with all 248 limbs and 365
tendons, spiritually and physically.11 For, the SM12 used all his power
6
The former term refers to a unit comprised of the six sefiros from Chesed through
Yesod, and the latter term refers to the Malchus itself.
7
Of the Shema.
8
In sofrus, the letter Dalet has a line extending upward from its top piece, and is
compared to the letter Yud.
9
Gods four-letter Ineffable Name, which begins with the letter Yud.
10
An expression referring to the special revelation of light that will occur at that time to
make redemption a final reality. In the Sefiros, the Yesod is always considered the point
that the light makes its way from the inside to the outside, resulting in a specific level of
revelation.
11
As it is clear from Shaar HaGilgulim, the spiritual world mimics the physical world, so
that even the soul set-up has 248 limbs and 356 tendons, but obviously not physical.
12
Short form for the name of the Sitra Achra.

against him, and tried to put into him all kinds of evil thoughts, desires,
and ideas of idol worship.13 He came at him with all the strength of the
Original Snake, just as he did against Adam HaRishon during the
incident of the Aitz HaDaas.14 The sin of Adam HaRishon was both in
thought and action, as it says in Sanhedrin (38b): He became a denier,15
and he extended his foreskin.16 Both are in the letter Yud,17 for thought
is in the letter Yud, because the seed is the drop of the Yud (that
comes from the brain), as it is known.18 It is the Yud of Yaakov, the Yud
of Yisroel, the Yud of Adonai, the Yud of Hovayah, the Yud of
Shaddai, and it is the kotz of the Dalet of Echad, as it says in
Tikunim (Tikun 69, 118b). It mentions there that Adam HaRishon sinned
in thought and action, and that this was rectified by the three Avos, at
first, when Adam reincarnated into Avraham, who was tested ten19 times
(the sin of thought was rectified, which is the Yud, and the Yud of
Hovayah, of Adonai, and the kotz of the Dalet of Echad). Secondly,
when he reincarnated into Yitzchak, who was tested in action.20 Thus,
thought was corrected through Avraham, and action through Yitzchak;
13
The Sitra Achra may take on the appearance of a man, but he has at his disposable far
more than a man. He can create or cause the necessary distractions that make a person
long for the forbidden, or think about heretical ideas. The means can appear naturally
physical, or be described in such terms, but they really occur on the spiritual plane.
14
Thus, the struggle Yaakov faced with the Sitra Achra in his day in the form of the
fight with the stranger is seen as a replication of the struggle between Adam
HaRishon the Original Snake, the vehicle of the SM at that time.
15
The sinful thought.
16
Undoing the Bris Milah with which he was created, the sinful act.
17
The Ten Sefiros correspond to the four letters of Gods Ineffable Name, with the Yud
representing the level of Keser and Chochmah; the Yud itself is Chochmah, and the
crown represents Keser.
18
The process in the Sefiros resembles that of man, whose seed originates, so-to-speak,
as a thought in the brain (Chochmah). This thought triggers a message which then travels
down the spinal cord (Binah though Hod) in order to actually produce a seed (light) to
be emitted lower down (Yesod).
19
Which corresponds to the letter Yud. Each time, Avraham had to make sure that he did
not abandon his belief in God, in spite of what was happening to him.
20
By allowing himself to be sacrificed to God by his father.

Yaakov incorporated both of them.21 (Klalei Hispashtus vHistalkus, p.
70)
The obvious question is, where does the period of Yesod end and that
of Atarah begin, because then you can figure out when as well. For, the
Yesod with the Atarah corresponds to our millennium, from 5000-6000,
and therefore the Atarah, and hence Yemos HaMoshiach, begins in a
certain year, indeed on a certain day, indeed during a single moment in the
course of that 1000-year period of time.
And the Leshem, author of the quote above, is stating outright that it is
known to those who have tasted of the Aitz HaChaimone of the Arizals
principle works. Regardless, it is not a moment in time right before the year
6000, for according to the Zohar, Techiyas HaMeisimResurrection of
the Deadbegins at least 210 years before 6000.22 And, as the Leshem
further points out:
[It is also a long period of time.] The entire period of time is referred to
as keitz dbittah (end that is in its time), and this is the simple reading
of the verse, I, the Lord, will hasten it (achishenah) in its time
(bittah) (Yeshayahu 60:22). The verse is promising that the entire
period of bittah will not pass, rather that the time of redemption will
be hastened, and that early will also be in its time; thus both terms
will be fulfilled . . . It will not be delayed for the entire period of bittah,
God forbid, but rather it will be hastened. (Hakdamos vShaarim, p.
211)
Therefore, without having to predict the exact arrival date of
Moshiach, it is safe to assume that we are in a period of transition, which
explains so much about what history is throwing at us. More importantly,
and more relevant to this discussion is that we need to learn how to
harness the power of the Yudthe eternal power of Olam HaBah23
21
Therefore, when he fought with the angel, he fought on both levels and completed the
rectification of Adam HaRishon.
22
Midrash Neelam, Parashas Toldos, 140a.
23
As the Talmud states, the World-to-Come was made with the letter Yud (Menachos
29b).

available to us in this worldso that we can be recipients of Sod, conduits
for the Ohr Ain Sof, bringing completion to ourselves and the world.
For, though geulah may be destined to arrive at a specific moment in
history for the nation as a whole, it can begin to arrive earlier for
individuals. On a national level, it has always been, the state of mind
follows the reality, which means that only after people see that redemption
has occurred do they act accordingly. This is not necessarily so on the
level of the individual.
In other words, an individual can build a redemption-mentality for
himself, and the world around him will respond accordingly. In the ultimate
sense, we are talking about Yaakov Avinu who, according the Talmud, did
not die.24 In a level less than this, we can talk about Rebi Akiva and his nine
colleagues, who maintained themselves and sanctified the Name of God in
spite of the horrible torture they were forced to endure at the hands of
the Romans. The elevated themselves above physical pain, freeing their
minds while their bodies remained cruelly enslaved.
On a lesser level yet, a person can rise above the problems of everyday
life with which just about everyone is inflicted. The miracles of health or of
daily sustenance may be subtle, so as to not attract the attention of
others, but they are there, nevertheless. The person may not be the
symbol of health, yet he will not be afflicted by common illnesses. He may
not become noticeably wealthy, but he will get by, nevertheless, in a
somewhat miraculous way.
In other words, if you dont pay too close attention to such people
they dont seem mysterious at all, but, perhaps, rather simple and
unassuming. However, upon closer investigation, the questions arise: How
does he survive on so little income? How come she doesnt get sick more
often? How does that person take everything thats happening in stride.
Its as if they live in another reality . . . as if they have one foot in this
one and one foot in another.
Thats what were all striving to achieve, to what ever level we can reach,
and it is what the Sitra Achra constantly and connivingly tries to prevent. A
24
Taanis 5b.

person has two options: either he can go with the flow and suffer along
with the rest, remaining a victim of the machinations of the Sitra Achra,
realizing so little spiritual return for so much spiritual effort. Or, he can
shut out the Sitra Achra as much as he can, even if only for short periods
of time, find inner peace, and begin to experience the effects of
redemption that come automatically once the intake of Ohr Ain Sof is
increased. This, we shall see, is the Torah definition of a zealot.
This is how, in the words of the Talmud, a Jew is able to rise above his
mazel,25 mazel that, for the most part, dictates the direction the average
persons life will go. To enter Pardes, is to enter the program of
history,26 to understand the effects of our causes, to make the necessary
adjustments to affect the outcome. Hence the Talmud asks, Who is a wise
man? and answers, he who sees what has been born,27 and can thus see
the direction events are going.
Then come the insights, brilliant insights. Ideas that seem Heavenly,
inter-connecting various concept with breath-taking precision and clarity.
The person may appear brilliant, but the brilliance is the Ohr Ain Sof that
has come into the world through him, as had been the case with Moshe
Rabbeinu, who taught the Torah to the Jewish people in thirty-six days,28
the number of the Ohr HaGanuz.
This is the deeper meaning of the posuk:
God said, My spirit that is upon you and My words that I have placed
in your mouth . . . (Yeshayahu 59:21)
What does it mean for God to put HIS words in OUR mouths? It is an
allusion to the Ohr Ain Sof that enters us and informs us about what to
say on as high a spiritual level as we can comprehend.
Ultimately, it may be the gift of additional souls, given to us to help us
achieve wondrous results. Usually, we talk in general terms about
Heavenly help to do that which we doubt can be done on our own (as if
25
Shabbos 156a.
26
27
Tamid 32a.
28
Seder Olam 10.

anything ever is). But, specifically this is the concept of ibur,29 the idea of
souls of tzaddikim sent down to help us achieve what we will to do, but
are physically incapable of doing on our present level.
Eventually, the time will come when free-will will no longer be an issue,
and the Sitra Achra will be no more.30 Evil will be completely eradicated,
and the world will be distractionless. Then, those living at the time will
become perfect conduits for the Ohr Ain Sof, and enjoy all the benefits of
being so: prophecy, ESP, being able to communicate and understand
without having to actually speak, eating without having to consume food,
etc.
However, until such time, and at this late stage of history there is
additional point to consider in this process, one that can lead to
extraordinary results when a particular path is taken.
29
From the word that means impregnation, since it is a soul that comes from outside of
us and joins our present one. Unlike our personal soul, this is one that can come while we
are already living, and leave without causing physical death (Shaar HaGilgulim, Ch. 5).
There can be up to three additional souls per person.
30
Succah 52.

bsd
Chapter Nine
O
nce God determined to destroy the city of Sdom, He
decided to include Avraham Avinu in the plan. He said:
Can I hide from Abraham what I intend to do? Avraham is
destined to become a great and mighty nation, and all the
nations of the earth will be blessed through him? I know that he will
command his children and his household after him to keep the way of God,
to do righteousness and justice, so that God may bring upon Avraham
what He told to him. (Bereishis 18:17-19)
So what? God is God. He can do whatever He pleases, in whatever way
it pleases Him, without any concern for what human beings might think
about His ways. Why did God make a point of including Avraham Avinu in
His plan, and even in the decision-making process?
For the simple reason that God wants partners. He doesnt need
partners, but He wants them. He made man, not to rule over him in a
dictatorial way, but to create an opportunity for him to act in a God-like

function, bringing perfection to Creation that God Himself held back, for
that very reason. Everything we do and become throughout our lifetimes is
to this end, to be a senior partner in Gods firm, Creation, Inc.
There are many ways to do this, many opportunities to work with God
to bring some aspect of Creation closer to its intended state of
perfection. However, ultimately, the one thing Creation was meant to
result in is redemption. According to the Long Term plan, that means
Olam HaBahthe World-to-Come. In the short run, that means the end
of exile for the Jewish people, and hence for the world as well.
Every aspect of Creation and every detail of history is working to this
end. This is why we can say, All that God does He does for the good,1
because it is completely true. What happens to us or the world in general is
for the sake of building towards the Final Redemption, and though it may
not be easy to see how this is true, it is.
However, what separates the Avrahams from the rest of the Jewish
people is ones commitment to consciously be involved in the redemption
process. Other peoples may sense the energy in the world, and may even
be able to channel it to some good. But, a Jew has the potential to use this
energy for the sake of enhancing and even precipitating the Final
Redemption, as the Vilna Gaon taught his most trusted students:
Heavenly help in general, and specifically in a miraculous manner,
usually comes measure-for-measure.2 That is, it is a measured
response corresponding to the effort of a person: to the extent that a
person extends himself to perform a mitzvah, that is the extent to which
Heaven helps him, level-for-level3 . . . Thus, a person could ask, How is
1
Brochos 60b.
2
As the Talmud says, Heaven works measure-for-measure (Sanhedrin 90a). That is
usually in terms of punishment, but now we see it is also in terms of Heavenly assistance.
3
Hence, even though we may feel as if we are totally responsible for carrying out a
mitzvah, the truth is that we receive help from God as well.

it possible to even begin to act?especially if one has to rely partially
upon miracles from the outset, which surely is dangerous! 4
Rather, when it comes to acting on behalf of the beginning of the
redemption, the miraculous part is much greater in many ways, and
even more so when a community is involved. Thus, we find, according to
the explanation of the GRA, when it comes to miraculous help from
Heaven, it goes far beyond the rule of measure-for-measure,
sometimes even one thousand times more.5 (Kol HaTor, Ch. 5:3)
The upshot is that when a person works for the sake of Geulah, they
requireand getextra Heavenly help. This can translate into extra
spiritual qualities, or the unnatural improvement of the ones a person
already has. And THAT means more Ohr Ain Sof to the person, to extend
their capabilities in order to allow them to have an even bigger share in the
process of redemption.
Thus, even though Mordechai antagonized Haman to no end, and the
latter was an extreme anti-Semite with the power to annihilate the Jewish
people, God forbid, Mordechai was able to come and go as he pleased,
just as his predecessor Moshe Rabbeinu had been able to do in Pharaohs
court. It was absurd how much freedom Mordechai was able to take
advantage of given the circumstances of his time.
The same was true of Yosef HaTzaddik. A Jewish slave running the
entire household of the chief butcher of the Pharaoh of Egypt? A Jewish
convict head of the royal jail, and then viceroy of all of Egypt? Does that
make any sense? Yes, but only if one is a conduit for the Ohr Ain Sof, as
Yosef and Mordechai had been.
And, for that matter, Pinchas, the grandson of Aharon HaKohen,
about whom the Torah writes:
God told Moshe, Pinchas, the son of Elazar, the son of Aharon
4
Some of the acts that have to be performed in order to facilitate redemption cannot be
accomplished by natural means. The Talmud says that one is not allowed to rely upon a
miracle to be saved (Shabbos 32a).
5
Thus greatly minimizing the actual human effort, greatly reducing the risk involved and
greatly increasing our leverage in getting the job done.

HaKohen, stopped My anger towards the Children of Israel, because
he was zealous on My behalf, and this prevented Me from destroying
them because of jealousy. Therefore, I give him My covenant of peace.
The covenant of the priesthood will be his and his descendants forever
because, he was zealous for his God, and atoned for the Children of
Israel. (Bamidbar 25:10-13)
Which had not be a simple feat. Indeed, it had been an impossible one,
and the Talmud explains why Pinchas was successful against all natural
odds:
Rebi Yochanan said: Six miracles happened for Pinchas . . . (Sanhedrin
82b)
It had not simply been Pinchas lucky day. Rather, it was the inevitable
result of being a zealot for God, which automatically connects a person to
Heaven, allowing for the Ohr Ain Sof, the Ohr HaNissiMiraculous
Lightto flow to and through Pinchasa descendant of Yosef6
providing him with the necessary extended capability he required to
perfectly complete the mitzvah and sanctification of Gods Holy Name.
Kanaoszealousness for Godis the ultimate meditation.
And, not only did the influx of Ohr Ain Sof make Pinchas a miracle-
worker, but it had a far greater lasting effect:
Therefore, another new soul had to come bibur in Pinchas called
Eliyahu HaTishbi from the inhabitants of Gilad, and from the root of
Gad, which was a new soul at that time. This was in order to combine
the Nefesh of Nadav and Avihu with the Nefesh of Pinchas itself, a
gilgul from the time of his birth. (Shaar HaGilgulim, Ch. 32)
6
Regarding Pinchas birth it says, Elazar the son of Aharon took a daughter of Potiel
for a wife and Pinchas was born (Shemos 6:25). On this Chazal say: Potielthis is
Yosef, shpatpet (controlled) his yetzer hara; this is Yisro, shpatem (fattened) calves
for idol worship. This is the sod: when Pinchas was born, he incorporated two soul-
sparks. This is the meaning Potiel, which is similar to tippin (drops), for he was from
two soul-drops, one spark from the root of Yosef HaTzaddik and the second spark was
from the side of Yisro. This level that incorporates these two souls is called Pinchas.
(Shaar HaGilgulim, Ch. 32)

In essence, the Arizal is just explaining the basis of the tradition that
says Pinchas evolved into Eliyahu the prophet, who will merit, among other
things, to announce the eventual arrival of Moshiach. Thus is the fate of
one who has been touched by the Ohr Ain Sof. And though what
happened for Moshe, Mordechai, Yosef, and Pinchas may be results far
beyond anything we can, today, hope for ourselves, it does point us in the
right direction to become conduits for the Ohr Ain Sof on whatever level
we can.
In a certain capacity, this light has a different name, or at least another
one: Nehura dMoshiach Ben Yosefthe Light of Moshiach Ben Yosef.
According to the Vilna Gaon, there is always someone who emanates this
light in every generation, giving him the potential to function in that
capacity. And, not just somebody, but somebodies:
The essence of Moshiach Ben Yosef is threefold:
i) Upper Moshiach Ben Yosef: Metatron,7 the Minister of Interior; as
it is known, Yosef and Metatron. Both of them are from the Zehira
Ilaa8 and both are in the sefirah of Yesod, and fight in the war against
Armilus (especially in the War of Gog and Magog). He is helped by
Seriah ben Dan.
ii) Lower Moshiach Ben Yosef: In every generation there is one who is
on the level of Tzaddik yesod olamthe righteous person is the
foundation of the world (Mishlei 10:25), who because of his deeds and
the root of his soul merits to bring about the salvation of Israel,
performing saving deeds and glorifying the Torah through his self-
sacrifice, reaching the highest level of Moshiach Ben Yosef, the 999 of
Yesod.
iii) Moshiach Ben Yosef who is present in every house of Israel in
general, bsod remnant of Yosef which was said about all of Israel in
general and regarding every Jew in particular. He resides within the 999
7
Chanoch, mentioned in the Torah, ascended on a fiery horse to Heaven and became the
angel Metatron.
8
This is the levels of the Ruach, Neshamah, Chiyah, and Yechidah of Atzilus (Shaar
HaGilgulim, Ch. 7).

sparks of the souls of many Jews, those of deed who merit to bring
about the ingathering of exiles, etc. Whoever merits, based upon his
own actions as well as the merits of his ancestors, to perform deeds
that are characteristic of Moshiach Ben Yosef, is considered a spark
from the root of the soul of Moshiach Ben Yosef, each person
according to the level of his deeds. (Kol HaTor, Ch. 1, 20)
All of this may be new for many, but in fact it is the underlying message
of all of Torah, and certainly the message of the last holiday-causing
redemption we merited, just before entering this long and final exile. It is
the holiday of Chanukah, and its revelation of the Ohr HaGanuz, that
reminds us each year that we are capable of being more than we seemingly
choose to be.
Exercise Four:
Take about 30 minutes, a pen, and some paper, and draw a profile of
what a zealot for God looks like in your mind. Describe all the
characteristics of such a person, and jot down what such a persons daily
activities would consist of. Study the list, and maybe even discuss it with
someone else interested in the exercise. Then, while relaxed and away
from any distraction, and with list in hand, meditate on the qualities listed,
imagining yourself evolving into such a person. Write down the positive
feelings in one list, and any sense of concern that arise in a second list.

bsd
Chapter Ten
A
ccording to tradition, the light of the first day of Creation was
hidden by God in four places: the thirty-six hours of
Shabbos, the thirty-six righteous people in every generation,
the thirty-six tractates of the Babylonian Talmud, and the
thirty-six candles of Chanukah. Their most common denominator is NOT
the number thirty-six;1 that is just the sign that they each have something
1
As the Yerushalmi says: For thirty-six hours the Light served . . . and Adam HaRishon
saw with it from one end of the world to the other (Yerushalmi, Brochos 8:5). There is
another reason why the number thirty-six represents this light. Kabbalah explains that
the Ohr Ain Sof only penetrated only up until fourteen of a possible fifty levels inside
the Challal to leave space for the Klipos to exist, so that man could utilize free-will
(Shaarei Leshem, p. 188). That is the Dalet-Yud of the Name ShaddaiShin-DALET-
YUDto which Yaakov Avinu referred (Bereishis 43:14). That would mean the Kav Ohr
Ain Sof descended thirty-six levels altogether, and man, through Torah and mitzvos, is
expected to draw the light down the last fourteen levels in an effect to perfect Creation.

else in common that unites them with the idea of the Ohr HaGanuz, the
hidden Ohr Ain Sof.
What is that common denominator?
If you recall, the Talmud states:
With the light that The Holy One, Blessed is He, created on the first
day, Adam looked and was able to see from one end of the world until
the other. (Chagigah 12a)
This statement says everything. As we have already stated, the Ohr
Ain Sof is not a physical light, and therefore the vision it provides is not a
physical one either. Physical light is far more limiting, affected by distance
and blocked by physical obstructions. As powerful a light as the sun may
be, it does not permit one to see around a corner, let alone from one end
of the world until the other.
This is why the anti-thesis of the Jewish people is Amalek, whose name
implies that he tries to keep the Jewish people from accessing this light.2
As revealed earlier:
He made a separation in the illumination of the Light, that it should not
flow or give off light except for the righteous, whose actions draw it
down and make it shine. However, the actions of the evil block it,
leaving them in darkness, and this itself was the hiding of the Light.
(Shaarei Leshem, p. 133)
Hence, Amalek does everything in his power to cause a Jew to act in a
way that makes him unworthy of accessing this powerful spiritual light. He
cant block the light himself, but he can confuse a Jew to act in ways that
makes him an unworthy recipient of the Ohr HaGanuz, making him even
more susceptible to the world of Amalek.
So, then, what does the Talmud mean when it refers to a vision that
allows one to see from one end of the world until the other end? It is
talking about the Big Picture, an all-encompassing understanding of
2
AmalekAyin-Mem-Lamed-Kufcan be read ayin malak, the severed eye,
referring to the minds eye, and the gematria of his name is 240, that of suffek, which
means doubt in Hebrew.

Creation on a sublimely profound level, one that allows a person to see
every aspect of Creation as it really exists.
We have an example of this in everyday life. Today it is possible to
watch a video on a computer, thanks to digital technology. On the screen
we see pictures of people, acting out that which the script has told them to
perform. If the script is good, and the acting decent, we can become
absorbed in the vision to such a degree that our emotions become
affected. We feel happy during the happy parts, sad during the sad parts,
and scared during the scary scenes.
Yet, we are responding to numbers, to digital data, which have told our
computers what to rebuild on the screen for our viewing pleasure. If we
read the script that our computers read, wed find nothing to be happy
about, or sad about, and the only scary part would be the amount of data
confronting us. It would be overwhelming.
However, for a technician, that is precisely the kind of information he
needs in order to construct a computer program, or diagnose one that has
failed. And, knowing that information gives him the added ability of being
able to know what he can expect from the program, and what he cannot.
For the rest of us, we are guided only by the manual, and trial-and-error,
which doesnt necessarily mean that we will understand what we are doing
or can do.
This is true about life as well. If life is a stage, then we are part of the
most elaborate show ever produced. And, if it is easy to be fooled by a
two-dimensional presentation of characters and plots, how much more so
by this three-dimensional presentation of which we are a part, and by
which we are physically, intellectually, and emotionally affected!
However, that reality is also only a projection of data, Divine data, and
though you wouldnt find strings of numbers if you could see it, you would
find strings of letters, letters from the Aleph-Bais, to be precise. And,
even more precisely, they would always be arranged to form Names of
God, and permutations of those Names, until everything that exists, has
existed, and will exist in Creation, has come to be.
Including us.

However, if you look at the reality available to the five senses that we
use to probe and feel the physical world around us, you do not see any
letters, just people and things. And, judging by the way they look and act,
we are given the impression of strength, or weakness, of beauty, or
ugliness. Indeed, the world seems to be made up of beings and objects
acting independently of one another, to such an extent that life can
appear a function of survival of the fittest, or in some cases, the luckiest.
Once again, the world of science is revealing something on the physical
level that resonates the reality on the spiritual plane. After seeing
ourselves as being so incredibly different, genetically-speaking, from
other forms of life, such as a banana for instance, in turns out that we
have a lot more in common than we would care to believe. This is because
at the molecular level, the same substance of physical Creation was used
to make everything that physically exists.
Even more incredible, and perhaps frightening, is the way that
infinitesimally small changes in DNA change can result in dramatic changes
in the created being, even a terrible disease, God forbid. Nevertheless, the
basic building blocks of all that exists remains the same, which in the
human being amounts to some 3,000,000,000 letters which have since
been mapped.
Likewise, in Shaar HaGilgulimthe Gate of ReincarnationRabbi
Chaim Vital discusses what he learned from his teacher, the Arizal, in terms
of the make-up of individual souls, and how this affects the persons
spiritual, and even their physical life. It all depends upon the level within
the Sefiros from which ones soul has been quarried, and even length of
life depends upon from what part of which sefirah the soul has come.3
The Sefiros themselves are just individual packages of Ohr Ain Sof,
represented by Names of God. And each sefirah has subsets, smaller units
of Divine light, and therefore lesser souls, represented by other Names of
God. And these subsets have their own subsets, smaller packets of Ohr
Ain Sof, representing more, but lesser souls, and represented by other
3
Shaar HaGilgulim, Ch. 35.

permutations of Gods Names, and so on, until one sefirah exists for every
soul, or rather Spark, that exists.
Imagine that all of those sparks were part of a tapestry, a master
tapestry, one that united everything in Creation, not just in the present,
but from the past also, and, yes, from the future as well. Now, imagine
being able to see that tapestry, not in sections, but in one eye-shot, and
not in general way, but in a very detailed and specific manner. Would that
not provide a very powerful, indeed Godly, vision?
All of a sudden, every aspect of life would make sense and become
clear to you. Events would not be cut off from their original causes, which
may be buried in past events long forgotten, nor would it be unclear to
what they will give birth to in the future. The continuous stream of history
and life would flow before you, as it does before its Creator. You would
have the Big Picture.
Unfortunately, such a vision is not possible to man, at least in his
present state, and while free-will proves useful. It was this that Moshe
Rabbeinu asked of God when he said:
He [Moshe] requested to know the ways of The Holy One, Blessed is
He, and it was granted him, as it says, Please show me Your ways
(Shemos 33:13). He asked before Him, Master of the Universe! Why
are there righteous people who prosper and righteous people who
suffer; evil people who prosper and evil people who suffer? (Brochos
7a)
Moshe was asking the same question that mankind has been asking for
millennia: Why is there an apparent lack of justice in This World? If Youre
such a benevolent God, people call out in frustration, and You created
existence for a good reasonto benefit man, why isnt that obvious in
history? Fill in the intellectual gaps for us, we plead, so we can make
sense of every aspect of history and not be forced to grope in spiritual
darkness! Give me a glimpse of the bigger picture! Moshe asked of The
Master of the Universe.
At first, in the Talmudic passage mentioned above it seems as if Moshe
was given an answer to his question. However, in the end, the Talmud

concludes that Moshe was not answered, and the reason is because of the
posuk:
No one can see My face because no man can see Me and live! (Shemos
33:20)
For, to LIVE in this world is justified only by the potential use of free-
will, and to see Gods face would have denied Moshe that potential.
There would have been no surprises anymore, no chance to react in a way
that was uniquely his as a result of his personal development over the
years. Being intimately involved with the Divine thread of history, Moshe
would have understood the past, as well as the future it was destined to
create. Such a vast vision would have necessitated an early departure from
this world for Moshe Rabbeinu.
Nevertheless, God was not telling Moshe to go to the other extreme,
God forbid. On the contrary, we are here to try and grasp as much of that
picture as we can, to approach the Big Picture as much as Heaven permits,
which is far, far more than one might think. That is why Pardes exists,
allowing us to ascend from Pshat, to Remez, to Drush, and ultimately to
Sod, at least in this world.
And when a person does, something very unique happens.
Imagine a massive puzzle consisting of countless pieces, each of which
contributes something unique to the overall picture. However, until a piece
is able to find its unique location and enter it, it remains isolated, in a world
all of its own. It is as if the rest of the pieces dont exist, and as if it does
not exist to the rest of the pieces. There is no synergy.
However, once the piece is placed in its proper location, not only does
it become fulfilled, but it gains an even greater sense of identity and
destiny by virtue of its being attached to the rest of the pieces of the
puzzle. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
The same is true of life. As a person gains a greater grasp of the Big
Picture, a more comprehensive understanding of the Divine thread that
joins together all the moments of history like pearls on a string, he himself
moves closer to finding his place in that Big Picture. He approaches his
unique location in the tapestry of life that allows him to make his

contribution to the fulfillment of history as no other person can. And the
more he does, the more he is impacted by the rest of Creationand the
Ohr Ain Sof.
This is the underlying premise of the idea that every Jew is a
guarantor for his fellow Jew.4 The interconnectivity of the Jewish people
is a subset of the interconnectivity of all of Creation, for Adam was
created from the ADAMahthe groundso that he would also be
attached to the rest of Creation, and the Jewish people are called
Adam.5
This unity with the rest of existence and the unification with the
purpose of Creation is what plugs a person into the rest of Creation. It is
what permits the energy of Ohr Ain Sof to flow into and through a person,
providing additional life force and far greater spiritual capability. It is to
this end, ultimately, that Torah with its seventy facets was given to Klal
Yisroel, who in turn bears the responsibility to reflect an aspect of this to
the rest of mankind.
It is to all of THIS that the number THIRTY-SIX refers.
4
Sanhedrin 27b.
5
Yevamos 63a.

bsd
Chapter Eleven
R
av Papa asked Abaye, Why was it that for the former
generations miracles occurred, but for us miracles do not
occur? It cannot be because of their learning, because in Rav
Yehudahs time, the whole of their studies was confined to
[Seder] Nezikin, whereas we study ALL six Orders.1 And, when Rav
Yehudah came in Uktzin2 [to the law], If a woman presses vegetables in a
potor, according to others, olives pressed with their leaves are
cleanhe used to say, I see all the difficulties of Rav and Shmuel here,3
whereas we have thirteen approaches to Uktzin! And yet, when Rav
1
The Mishnah, the basis of Torah Shbal Pehthe Oral Lawis comprised of six
sedarim, or orders, and they are: Zerayim (Seeds), Moed (Appointed Times), Nashim
(Women), Nezikin (Damages), Kodashim (Holy Things), and Taharos (Pure Things).
2
One complicated area of law in the seder of Tahoros.
3
As Rashi explains, this means that many questions arise that are as difficult as those
asked by Rav and Shmuel throughout the rest of the Talmud.

Yehudah slipped off one shoe,4 rain used to come! However, we torment
ourselves and cry out loud [in prayer], and no notice is taken of us!5 He
replied, The former generations used to sacrifice their lives for Kiddush
Hashemthe sanctification of Gods Name; we do not sacrifice our lives
for Kiddush Hashem. (Brochos 20a)
Kiddush Hashem, the sanctification of Gods Name, is what the Jewish
people are all about, or supposed to be about:
The entire House of Israel is commanded to sanctify this Great Name,
as it says, I will be sanctified within Bnei Yisroel (Vayikra 22:32), and
they must be careful not to profane it, as it says, Do not profane My
holy Name (Ibid.). (Yad, Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah, 5:1)
Thus, it is the role of the Jewish nation, the light unto nations, to
make it eminently clear to the entire world that God is the Creator,
Sustainer, Maintainer of all existence, and that He represents everything
that is good. And, if at any time we dont maximize the opportunity to do
so, then to the extent that we fail to sanctify the Name of God, we have
instead profaned it.6
The fact that the Talmud has connected up the merit of miracles to the
concept of Kiddush Hashem demands that we better understand the
concept of Kiddush Hashem, and by inference, Chillul Hashem. For, the
latter is the direct result of the absence of the former, and therefore the
antithesis of Ohr Ain Sof.
4
Part of the procedure for preparing for a fast day to bring rain during a drought. From
Heavens point of view, that would be enough of an effort from Rav Yehudahs
generation to warrant ending the drought with a rainfall.
5
That is, in spite of our great effort to inspire Heaven to end the drought, rain still does
not fall.
6
In other words, a Kiddush Hashem can be incomplete, only partially sanctifying Gods
Name. What remains unsanctified is, instead, profanation. For example, it was a Kiddush
Hashem that Moshe Rabbeinu was able to bring forth water by hitting the rock
(Bamidbar 20:7-11); the people were duly impressed. However, since he was told to bring
forth water by only speaking to the rock, a much greater miracle and Kiddush Hashem,
God told him, Since you did not believe in Me to sanctify Me before the Children of
Israel, you will therefore not bring this people into the land which I have given to them.

And, somehow the concept of Kiddush Hashem must be intertwined
with that of bitachontrust in Godfor according to the Midrash that
too is a great source of miracles:
One who trusts in God will be surrounded by kindness (Tehillim 32:10):
Even an evil person who trusts in God will be surrounded by kindness.
(Midrash Tehillim 32:10)
The question is why, and the answer is best approached by first
dealing with the concept of Chillul Hashem.
The word for profanechillulis derived from the word challal,
which means a void, as in an empty space, as mentioned in the
Introduction. In this case, the void is one of Ohr Ain Sof, resulting in what
the Torah refers to as Hester Panimthe hiding of Gods Face. A Chillul
Hashem is the result of something that blocks Ohr Ain Sof from entering
some aspect of Creation, at least in any obvious way.7
This is obviously a moral issue. Moral behavior draws the light of Ain
Sof into Creation, a Kiddush Hashem.8 Immoral behavior pushes Ohr Ain
Sof out of Creation, a Chillul Hashem. Less moral behavior than might be
possible results in some of both, with how much of each being determined
by how much light was kept away.
Theres no neutral ground, and thus the Talmud writes:
There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against God
(Mishlei 21:30): whenever the Divine Name is being profaned, honor
must not be paid to ones teacher. (Sanhedrin 82a)
This is the Talmuds response to the question: How could Pinchas
teach a halachah, in killing Zimri,9 in such close proximity of his teacher,
Moshe Rabbeinu? In general, one is deserving of death for deciding a
matter of law in such close proximity of his teacher, so the Talmud wanted
to know the basis of the exception in the case of Pinchas. The Talmuds
answer: when it comes to Chillul Hashem, such all-important
7
There is always Ohr Ain Sof on some level, otherwise even the Challal would cease to
exist.
8
See Chapter Two, page 11.
9
Bamidbar 25:1.

considerations are waived in order to limit and put an end to Chillul
Hashem. After all, what good are such laws in a world devoid of Ohr Ain
Sof?
Chillul Hashem is that serious a transgression.
Thus, the Talmud points, the only real tikun for causing Chillul Hashem
is death:
For someone who has been responsible for Chillul Hashem, there is no
power in teshuvah upon which to depend, none in Yom Kippur to atone
for him, nor is suffering able to clear him; rather they are suspended
and death clears him. (Yoma 86a)
The truth is, there is no sin that does not result in Chillul Hashem on
some level, for every sin prevents Ohr Ain Sof from permeating Creation
to some degree. But, from the Talmud, it is clear that there is Chillul
Hashem, and then there is Chillul Hashem, meaning that there are some
sins that privately dispel Ohr Ain Sof, and can be rectified by teshuvah,
or Yom Kippur, or suffering.
However, when at least ten people witness an act that states, I do not
really believe in the reality of God, Torah, and the World-to-Come, it is a
Chillul Hashem of a much more profound degree. Worst, it is not one that
is easily undone. The damage to the world is catastrophic, and if it were
not for the mercy of God, it would be far more apparent, far more quickly.
On the other hand, a Kiddush Hashem repairs the world, and
enhances it. It is either an act, a word, or a thought that creates the proper
spiritual environment that draws into Creation additional Ohr Ain Sof. The
result is some kind of statement that says, God is real, God is here, and
Torah is His eternal word.
This does not mean that the people witnessing the Kiddush Hashem will
necessarily enjoy it. On the contrary, evil people will reject it and resent it.
People who are not used to it may fear it. However, anyone who wishes to
know God exists, or who already has a relationship with Him, will be
delighted by the Kiddush Hashem, and recipients of the light that results.
They will become strengthened by it.

Regarding the person who created the Kiddush Hashem, the Talmud
writes:
You shall love God, your God (Devarim 6:5): the Name of God should
become loved through you . . . What do people say [about such a
person]? Happy is his father who taught him Torah, happy is his rabbi
who taught him Torah, and woe to those who do not learn Torah. So-
and-so learned Torah, and look how pleasant his actions are, how
perfect are his deeds. Regarding him, the posuk says, He said to me,
My servant, you are Yisroel through whom I will be glorified
(Yeshayahu 49:3). (Yoma 86a)
However, the real result is that they become a spiritual lightening rod
for the Ohr Ain Sof that they have brought down into the world,
empowering them. This is why simply meditating cannot bring about the
same results, for true access to the light is the result of sanctifying the
Name of God. This is something that is only really possible through the
observance of Torah, and beyond that, observance with the proper
intention, and beyond that, observing the mitzvos with the proper
Kabbalistic intention.
To this end, the Arizal explained:
A person must fulfill all the 613 Mitzvos in deed, verbally, and in
thought, as Chazal have said on the verse, This is the law for the
Burnt-Offering and the Meal-Offering (Vayikra 7:37): All who learn
the section of the Burnt-Offering is like one who offered it (Menachos
110a). They were indicating that a person is obligated to fulfill all 613
Mitzvos verbally, and in thought as well. If a person fails to fulfill all 613
Mitzvos on all three levels of deed, speech, and thought, then he will
have to reincarnate until he does. As well, a person must learn Torah
on four levels, alluded to by the word PaRDeS, which stands for Pshat,
Remez, Drush, and Sod. He will have to reincarnate until he does.
(Shaar HaGilgulim, Ch. 16)
When this is the case, and to the extent that it is, the person is no
longer simple performing lofty actions in a mundane world, perhaps even
detached from the impact they are having above. Rather, the person,

through the lofty act, becomes a channel between Above and Below,
expressly for the sake of increasing the flow of Ohr Ain Sof into the
everyday world.
The mechanics may be complicated and too Kabbalistic to go into, but
the result is something like Moshe Rabbeinu using the Name of God to kill
the Egyptian task master, or to bring all the plagues against the Egyptian
people, or to split the sea, etc. And, who knows how many other miracles
have been performed over the millennia by those who have sacrificed
themselves to sanctify the holy Name of God?
Who knows what potential we have, even at, or perhaps because of this
late time in history, to do the same?

bsd
Chapter Twelve
T
here are so many ways to describe the ultimate goal of a
Torah-observant Jew, but they all dove-tail into one
description: to become close to God. God didnt need to make
Creation, but did so as a function of His own good, to do good
to another, as the Ramchal explains:
Gods purpose in Creation was to bestow of His good to another . . .
Since God desired to bestow good, a partial good would not be
sufficient. The good that He bestows would have to be the ultimate
good that His handiwork could accept. God alone, however, is the only
true good, and therefore His beneficent desire would not be satisfied
unless it could bestow that very good, namely the true perfect good
that exists in His intrinsic nature . . . His wisdom therefore decreed that
the nature of His true benefaction be His giving created things the
opportunity to attach themselves to Him to the greatest degree
possible . . . (Derech Hashem 1:2:1)

In general, that is talking about the World-to-Come. However, for that
to be true, it must also be talking about this world as well, for it is in this
world that we prepare for Olam HaBahthe World-to-Come:
This world is like a corridor before the World-to-Come. Rectify
yourself in the corridor in order to be able to enter the Banquet Hall.
(Pirkei Avos 4:16)
That is why life in this world comes down to relationships, and
specifically, ones relationship with God Himself. If the World-to-Come is
defined in terms of that relationship
This World is not like the World-to-Come. In the World-to-Come, there
will be no eating, no drinking, no procreation, no business, no jealousy,
no hatred, and no competition. Rather, there will only be tzaddikim
sitting with their crowns on their heads enjoying the light of God.
(Brochos 17a)
then, so too is life in this world defined in terms of relationship to the
Creator. And, there is no way to define and measure that depth of
relationship than in terms of Bitachon and Emunahtrust and faith in
God.
The Talmud provides a fascinating account that, at first, seems
somewhat unusual, to say the least. However, in light of this discussion
about light, it makes perfect sense.
The Talmud records that during one of the periods of drought, during
the Second Temple period, the people turned to Choni HaMaggelthe
Circle-Drawerto invoke a miracle from Heaven.1 Choni went out
before God and drew a circle around himself, threatening Heaven, so-to-
speak, that he would not leave the circle until rain fell, which it did.
He acted purely for the people, and on behalf of Heaven as well.
However, the rain did not come down in a substantial amount, so he
complained that the people did not summon him for such a poor showing
of salvation. So, Heaven complied and it poured, an even greater miracle,
enough to leave anyone watching in awe and grateful.
1
Taanis 19a.

But not Choni. Instead, he complained that it rained too hard, and
asked Heaven to provide a pleasant rain, seemingly an outrageous request
for a flesh-and-blood creation to ask of the Master of the Universe.
However, once again, Heaven complied, and the drought came to a
pleasant end, and Choni left his circle, mission accomplished.
Nevertheless, in spite of Chonis miraculous antics, and the redemption
he arranged on behalf of the nation, he attracted some negative
attention as well, as the Talmud records as well:
Shimon ben Shetach sent to Choni HaMaggel, You deserve to be
excommunicated, and were you not Choni, I would pronounce
excommunication against you. But what can I do seeing that you
ingratiate yourself with the Omnipresent and He performs your
desires, and you are like a son who ingratiates himself with his father
and he performs his desires. To you applies the verse, Let your father
and your mother be glad, and let her that bore you rejoice! (Mishlei
23:25). (Taanis 19a)
Miracle not withstanding, there is a very strict protocol between man
and God, Shimon ben Shetach, the Gadol HaDor, told Choni HaMaggel.
But, if that was the case, miracle notwithstanding, why did Shimon ben
Shetach not put Choni into excommunication anyhow? The answer,
because God didnt. We might have, and would have, had Heaven not
confirmed the special relationship between Choni and God, the goal of
every Jew. Thats why the Talmud concludes with: Let your father and
your mother be glad, and let her that bore you rejoice! (Mishlei 23:25).
Hence, bitachon at such an extreme stage can even appear chutzpadik
to onlookers. However, Choni HaMaggel was far from having even a little
chutzpah; rather, his great love for his people, and his unwavering
confidence in Gods willingness to help His people is what drove him to be
so demandingwhich is precisely what Heaven wanted from him.
Bitachon, on such a level, makes one like a Ben-Bayis in Gods house,
with all kinds of special privileges.
However, what is really happening as a result of the bitachon is that the
person is binding with God, in whatever way God allows. That binding is an

aspect of the type of connection well have to God in Olam HaBah, and
even though our bodies will not yet reflect this, our actions will, in the form
of miracles. That was Choni HaMaggel, Rebi Chanina ben Dosa, Rebi Meir
Baal HaNeis, and all the great miracle-workers throughout the ages, on
whatever level they were bound to God through their trust and faith in
Him.
This is where Bitachon dovetails with the concept of Kiddush Hashem.
There is no greater Kiddush Hashem than an act, either before ourselves
or in front of others, that is based upon our trust in Hashem. An act, a
word, or even a thought that ends up coming into existence because
Bitachon says it should, automatically binds a person to God, and turns
the Baal Bitachon into a conduit for Ohr Ain Sof.
And, if the result is not a life-saving miracle, since the needs of history
are also part of the decision, then those watching the person persevere in
his belief in God in spite of his circumstances are touched by the Ohr Ain
Sof, and educated in the Way of God.
This may not always result in redemption in this world for the Baal
Bitachon, but it is guaranteed to bring unimaginable reward to him in the
World-to-Come. The Ten Martyrs DID die at the hands of the Romans.
However, explains the Leshem, when it comes to Tzaddikim of such
incredible prominence, whose lives affect the merits of the entire
generation, the rules can be somewhat different.2
In other words, were not supposed to use such heroic righteous
people as examples of the results of having bitachon. Very ironically, being
on lower spiritual levels, our levels of bitachon CAN guarantee miracles,
whose impact on history overall may be too small to deny us their
occurrence. We may lack the opportunity to gain the kind of eternal
reward that a Rebi Akiva can, but we maintain our ability to be miraculously
saved in this world.
On an everyday, less dramatic scale, this is the source of the energy
flow a Jew is meant to access. While the rest of the world does everything it
can to access the Ohr Ain Sof, being successful to some degree, they lack
2

the official vessels to do it: a mitzvah of Kiddush Hashem, and the concept
of Bitachon and Emunah.
However, even for the Jew these are not automatic realities. Like a
muscle that must be exercised and pushed to its limits before it can be
counted on to perform its task, so too must one work on his or her
bitachon and emunah to make it available when the moment comes, which is
just about every moment. For, the extent to which we extend ourselves to
do a mitzvah is also an expression of our bitachon and emunah.
And, if we carry the analogy further, in the same than exercise rooms
have been built to facilitate the development of muscles, likewise there are
ideal environments in which one can best develop his or her bitachon and
emunah: Eretz Yisroel. Indeed, the very fears that Jews express today
about even considering moving there from the Diaspora are the very fears
that bitachon and emunah exist to combat.
However, after so many years in exile, and more recently, after so many
years of living comfortably, we are out of spiritual shape. Our muscles of
bitachon and emunah have gone soft, and as a result, our level of Kiddush
Hashem is greatly weakened as well. As a result, the energy of Ohr Ain
Sof is distant from us, and instead of being impressed with our own,
inherent supernatural abilities, we are awed by those of others.
Exercise:
Ask yourself:
1. Who do I really rely upon for livelihood? (This means, even though
you know that God runs the world and provides everyone with
sustenance, how real are you with this idea, practically-speaking? How
much power do you subscribe to your boss to fire or hire you, to pay
your check or withhold it?)
2. What are my five most pressing insecurities, and what is the basis?
3. How much do I yearn for the Final Redemption, and how much does
it affect me that we are still in exile? How many times a week do I think
about this?
4. What is my idea of a spiritual risk, and why?
5. What keeps my from considering/making aliyah?

6. On a scale of ten, how much do I trust in God, with 1 being not at all,
and 10 being completely? What, if anything holds me back, from
trusting in Him more?

Pinchas Winston - The Physics of Kabbalah

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Pinchas Winston - The Physics of Kabbalah

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The Physics of Kabbalah 1

2 The Physics of Kabbalah

The Physics of Kabbalah 3

4 The Physics of Kabbalah

The Physics of Kabbalah 5

The Physics of Kabbalah 7

Accessing Ohr Ain Sof

8 The Physics of Kabbalah

The Uniqueness of the End of Days

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40 The Physics of Kabbalah

Kav Ain Sof

Kav Ain Sof

Ten Sefiros of Atzilus

Ten Sefiros of Beriyah

Ten Sefiros of Yetzirah

Ten Sefiros of Asiyah

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