At one point R’ Chaim Vitale uncharacteristically presented the story behind the story — the circumstances under which Ar”i divulged the notion of “The Breaking of the Vessels” that underlies this entire section and is the second most important theme in Kabbalah behind the formation of the Tzimtzum. Vitale writes in his journal [1] that in the course of the evening of a certain Rosh Chodesh — a new month, when the moon is scant and the night is dark and star-lit — that Ar”i lead his disciples outdoors with torch in hand. (It’s of course clear to the astute reader that the idea of Ar”i leading his disciples through the darkness with his own light is utterly apropos, but that’s not the point here.)
They soon reached their destination, the gravesite of R’ Shimon bar Yochei. Ar”i began to pray fervently, as did the others, and seemed to be quaking and swooning in a sea of starlight. They eventually finished and were surrounded by as vast a wall of silence as the air right before creation. Came midnight and Ar”i began to divulge the secret of how the frail and arcane vessels broke apart, spilled the sparks of light they’d held, and how that we’ve been called upon to rectify all that.
[1] The journal was subsequently published as Sefer HaChazayonot (The Book of Visions), which is actually a journal or diary in which Vitale recorded his celestial visions as well as his metaphysical encounters, revelations, and the like.
(c) 2012 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman
Feel free to contact me at feldman@torah.org
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