{"id":193,"date":"2020-03-30T20:54:12","date_gmt":"2020-03-30T20:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/?p=193"},"modified":"2020-03-30T20:54:12","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T20:54:12","slug":"nephesh-hachaim-113","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/2020\/03\/30\/nephesh-hachaim-113\/","title":{"rendered":"Nephesh Hachaim 1:13"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nephesh<\/em> Hachaim<\/em> 1:13<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. T<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The things we say<\/em> can also link celestial worlds, rectify this one, and interconnect with the upper worlds, as we\u2019ll now see. After all, we\u2019re taught that \u201cHe who forms mountains and creates the wind, and 1 <\/sup>declares to man what he has said\u201d (Amos 4:13) 2<\/sup>. And we\u2019re told that the word \u201cdeclares\u201d here refers to the hidden<\/em> dimension of each thing we say 3<\/sup>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re thus warned that even though we\u2019re in the physical world and can\u2019t fathom the sort of destruction or construction we bring about up above with each and everything we say so we take our words lightly, we\u2019re nevertheless to know that everything we say has supreme consequences 4<\/sup>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Words of Torah\nare especially auspicious. Joy and light permeate the entire universe as well as\nthe supreme palaces and they\u2019re all adorned by diadems of holiness when words of\nTorah are uttered 5<\/sup>. A slew of holy angels is created with each and every\nword and utterance of Torah and of prayer too, while each harmful or untoward utterance\ncreates senseless and satanic worlds 6<\/sup>, G-d forbid, which destroy celestial\nworlds and put the arrangement of the Holy Chariot which corresponds to the\nsource of speech in disarray 7<\/sup>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Woe to those\nwho \u201csee but don\u2019t understand what they\u2019re looking at\u201d, R. Chaim says 8<\/sup>,\nas there is no utterance without its effect. Thousands upon thousands of angels\ntake hold of each utterance and bring it before celestial judges who evaluate\nit as being for the good or not 9<\/sup>. And if it isn\u2019t for the good,\nthen many angels of destruction join it and bring it down to the abyss, which\nhas a terrible effect upon the person uttering it 10<\/sup>! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, it\u2019s said that sinful speech is worse than sinful action 11<\/sup>, and that it\u2019s tantamount to idol worship 12<\/sup>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why we\u2019re taught that once one has died and stands before G-d to be judged for what he\u2019d done, G-d then reveals to him the hidden dimension of his words in life 13<\/sup>, which is to say, He reveals to that person just what his speech brought about up above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1                  <\/sup>I.e., Also.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2                  <\/sup>That is, the\nvery same G-d who forms mountains and creates the wind system is intimately aware\nof everything you say. It also implies that everything you say affects the\nlower worlds (i.e., mountains) and the upper ones (i.e., wind),<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3                  <\/sup>R\u2019 Chaim\ncites various locations in the Zohar that make this point including 1:86b,\n234b, 249a; 2:80a; 3:50b, 161a, 293a; and Zohar<\/em>\nChadash<\/em> 2:17b.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apparently because he has just referred to the hidden dimension of things, R\u2019 Chaim now feels obliged — or at liberty — to explicate the hidden, recondite and Kabbalistic dimensions of the cosmos in a very arcane, fulsome, and stunning note of his own here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

R. Chaim starts off by explicating the makeup of the various supernal \u201cworlds\u201d or realms he\u2019d cited only abstractly until now. In general, there are four such worlds which are termed in descending order Atzilut<\/em>, Beriah<\/em>, Yetsirah<\/em>, and Assiyah<\/em> (see 1:5:2 for another layout). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He notes that there are even more sublime and unfathomable realms than these that are known as the \u201csupernal lights\u201d, which R. Chaim referred to before, starting at 1:4:1 (see our footnote 5 there), and which will be discussed below in 2:17 in terms of Adam<\/em> Kadmon<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In any event, the first world most commonly discussed in Kabbalistic literature is Atzilut<\/em> (termed \u201cThe World of Emanation\u201d). The word Atzilut<\/em> implies being in close proximity to something or someone as in the word aitzel<\/em>, \u201cnext to\u201d; to emanate (as in the passing on of something intangible from one\u2019s being to another\u2019s, see Numbers 11:25); and it also refers to the armpits (see Ezekiel 13:18) which, as R. Chaim points out, are permanently connected to the body while also being the point at which the arm and hand begin to emanate outward from the body. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This world is utterly Divine<\/em> (R. Chaim cites Tikkunei<\/em> Zohar<\/em> 3b and Eitz<\/em> Chaim<\/em> 42:5, 43, 2:3, 26: 1, 44:1, and 47:2. But also see 2:2 below in R. Chaim\u2019s note, and 3:4 below), since it emanates from and is connected to the pure G-dliness out of which it derives. So celestial is this realm in fact that it\u2019s unfathomable and metaphorically termed \u201cnothingness\u201d. That\u2019s not at all to suggest that there\u2019s nothing there, G-d forbid. It only means that from our very limited perspective it seems<\/em> to be nothing, given that there\u2019s absolutely nothing about it that we can fathom or even imagine (see 3:2 below and Gra\u2019s comments to Sifre<\/em> D\u2019tzniyusa<\/em>, Ch. 1 \u201cMilya<\/em> tulya<\/em> d\u2019bdulcha<\/em>\u201d).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world below it is Beriah<\/em> (termed \u201cThe World of Creation\u201d), where \u201ccreation ex<\/em> nihilo<\/em>\u201d (creation out of a sheer void) occurred in the course of the six days of creation (R. Chaim cites Zohar<\/em> Chadash<\/em> 1:29b and directs to the earlier commentators who dwelt on this). In fact, R. Chaim adds, this phenomenon occurs all the time! G-d is constantly infusing things with being, each and every moment (see 1:2 above), as we\u2019re taught in Pirkei<\/em> Avot<\/em> (4:22) where G-d is termed \u201cthe one who formulates, who creates\u201d (in the present tense). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world below\nit is Yetzirah<\/em> (termed \u201cThe World of Formation\u201d),\nwhere rather than creation out of sheer nothingness, there\u2019s a process of\nformulating a new thing out of pre-existing material (the way we use preexisting\nmaterials to formulate new ones. See 1:2:1 above).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the last\nworld is Assiyah<\/em> (termed \u201cThe World of\nAction\u201d). It\u2019s the culmination of everything that preceded it which it \u201cfleshes\nout\u201d, if you will. It\u2019s the physical world that G-d ultimately intended to bring\nabout, and where humankind does the things that affect and rectify those upper worlds\n(R. Chaim cites Genesis 18:7 and 2 Samuel 8:13). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

See 4:10 below\nfor more on all 4 worlds.     <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is obviously\na plethora of things to be said about all of this,, as the Ari and other kabbalists\nsubsequent to him did, but we\u2019ll take our cue from R. Chaim and stop here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4                  <\/sup>R. Chaim cites\nZohar 2:100b, 3:55a, 105a, 121b. But also see R. Chaim\u2019s own remarks in Ruach<\/em> Chaim<\/em> 4:3 and in his Drasha <\/em>on Rosh Hashanna<\/em>, the Gra\u2019s remarks in Even<\/em> Shleima<\/em>\n6:1-2, as well as others\u2019 in Arvei<\/em> Nachal<\/em>, Vayeishev<\/em> 1; Maggid<\/em> Devarav<\/em> L\u2019Yaakov<\/em> 26; and Tanya<\/em>, Iggeret<\/em> Hakodesh<\/em> 28.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5                  <\/sup>R. Chaim\ncites Zohar 2:217a, 3:85a.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6<\/sup>             See Zohar 2:5a.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7                  <\/sup>R. Chaim\ncites Zohar 3:31b for the idea of all things in this world (i.e., speech, etc.)\nhaving a source up above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8                  <\/sup>See Chagigah<\/em> 12b.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9                  <\/sup>R. Chaim\ncites Zohar 1:92a.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10               <\/sup>R. Chaim\ncites Zohar 3:85a.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

11               <\/sup>R. Chaim cites Arachin<\/em> 15a. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

12               <\/sup>R. Chaim cites\nSanhedrin 92a.<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

13  <\/sup>        This draws us back to the reference to the\nhidden dimension of our words cited at the beginning of this chapter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(c) 2020 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feel free to\ncontact me at feldman@torah.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

———————————————————-<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rabbi\nFeldman’s new annotated translation of Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag\u2019s \u201cIntroduction to\nthe Zohar\u201d is available as \u201cThe Kabbalah of Self\u201d on Kindle here<\/a>. His\nannotated translation of Maimonides’ “Eight Chapters” is available here<\/a> and his\nannotated translation of Rabbeinu Yonah\u2019s “The Gates of Repentance”\nis available here<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has also\ntranslated and commented upon “The Path of the Just” and “The\nDuties of the Heart” (Jason Aronson Publishers).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rabbi\nFeldman also offers two free e-mail classes torah.org entitled \u201cSpiritual\nExcellence<\/a>\u201d\nand \u201cRamchal<\/a>\u201d that can\nbe subscribed to.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nephesh Hachaim 1:13 1. T The things we say can also link celestial worlds, rectify this one, and interconnect with the upper worlds, as we\u2019ll now see. After all, we\u2019re taught that \u201cHe who forms mountains and creates the wind, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8YhFQ-37","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=193"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":195,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193\/revisions\/195"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=193"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=193"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/nephesh-hachaim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}