Let’s return now to his statement in Petach 22 that the entire range of functions of the Sephirot is governed by the order of the ten Sephirot, which is itself contained within the order of the four letters of God’s Name, and which is also the order that governs the trope, vowels, “crowns” and letters through the mystical import of those four letters as well as the four names contained in each individual name.
As he explains in his comments there, “the four letters of God’s name (י-ה-ו-ה) incorporate all ten Sephirot, according to the mystical import of their essential division (which is) into the five Partzufim (Erech Anpin, Abba, Imma, Zeir Anpin, and Nukva).”
The first question is, how could the four lettered name of God represent five Partzufim? As he explains it, “the pointed (upper) end of the Yud (where the quill first touches the parchment in the process of setting down the letter) is (equivalent to Partzuf) Erech Anpin; (the body of) the Yud (i.e., which is fleshed out) is (equivalent to Partzuf) Abba; the (first) Heh (in its entirety) is (equivalent to Partzuf) Imma; the Vav (in its entirety) is (equivalent to Partzuf) Zeir Anpin; and the (second) Heh (also in its entirety) is (equivalent to Partzuf) Nukva” [1].
He then offers that the trope, vowels, and “crowns” likewise fall under the mystical import of those four letters in their own way. And the same is true of what he here terms “the four names”. These aren’t Divine names discussed just above, nor are they the attributes we also discussed; Ramchal explains them to refer to the “names” AV, SaG, MaH, and BaN. These are more like nick-names than actual appellations, if you will: acronyms formed from the various numerical equivalents of the Tetragrammaton, as we’ll see.
Note:
[1] See 4:1,5 above.
(c) 2011 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman
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