Chapter Three (פֶּרֶק שְׁלִישִׁי)

And this is the secret of the verse: “Back and front You have formed me, and You placed Your palm upon me” (וְזֶהוּ סוֹד הַפָּסוּק: "אָחוֹר וָקֶדֶם צַרְתָּנִי וַתָּשֶׁת עָלַי כַּפֶּךָ") (Psalms 139). That is to say, this Yod had no other letter after it (כְּלוֹמַר שֶׁהַיּוֹ״ד הַזֹּאת לֹא הָיְתָה אַחֲרֶיהָ אוֹת אַחֶרֶת), and this is the secret of what our Rabbis, of blessed memory, said (וְזֶהוּ סוֹד שֶׁאָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז"ל), that the Holy One, blessed be He, diminished Adam haRishon and established him at one hundred cubits (שֶׁמִּעֵט הקב״ה לְאָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן וְהֶעֱמִידוֹ עַל מֵאָה אַמָּה), that is, the measure of his stature was Kaf, which is the gematria of one hundred cubits (הַיְנוּ שִׁיעוּר קוֹמָתוֹ כּ״ף, גִּימַטְרִיָּא מֵאָה אַמָּה), as it is said: “And You placed Your palm upon me” (שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: "וַתָּשֶׁת עָלַי כַּפֶּךָ"), and understand this well (וְהָבֵן). And therefore it says: “Back and front You have formed me” (וְלָכֵן אָמַר: "אָחוֹר וָקֶדֶם צַרְתָּנִי"), meaning that her front and back are revealed (שֶׁפָּנֶיהָ וְאָחוֹרֶיהָ מְגֻלִּים), and afterwards: “And You placed Your palm upon me” (וְאַחַר כָּךְ: "וַתָּשֶׁת עָלַי כַּפֶּךָ"), there is Kaf–Hei (יֵשׁ כּ״ף־ה״), which alludes to what we said (שֶׁמוֹרֶה עַל מַה שֶּׁאָמַרְנוּ). Its meaning is: the Kaf of K”T, the Partzuf of Shekhina (פֵּירוּשׁוֹ: כּ״ף שֶׁל כּ״ת, פַּרְצוּף שְׁכִינָה), adjacent to the Yod of the Name S”G (הַסָּמוּךְ לַיּו״ד שֶׁל שֵׁם ס״ג), and this Kaf struck her on the head (וְהַכּ״ף הַזֹּאת טָפְחָה לָהּ עַל רֹאשָׁהּ), and pushed her downward (וְדָחְפָה אוֹתָהּ לְמַטָּה), to build the sphere of Tehiru (לִבְנוֹת כַּדּוּר הַטְּהִירוּ), in the vacant space which is in the primordial air (בַּמָּקוֹם הַפָּנוּי אֲשֶׁר בְּאוֹוִיר קַדְמוֹן). And this is the secret of the striking (וְזֶהוּ סוֹד הַהַכָּאָה), that the Kaf was striking the Yod (שֶׁהָיְתָה הַכּ״ף מַכָּה עַל הַיּו״ד), with the force of the letters preceding it (בְּכֹחַ הָאוֹתִיּוֹת שֶׁלְּפָנֶיהָ), so that she was compelled to descend below (שֶׁנֶּאֶנְסְרָה לֵרֵד לְמַטָּה). And the secret of this extension is by way of a fall from the force of the striking (וְסוֹד זֶה הַהִתְפַּשְׁטוּת הוּא דֶּרֶךְ נְפִילָה מִכֹּחַ הַהַכָּאָה), and hold this principle in your hand (וּנְקוּט הָאִי כְּלָלָא בְּיָדָךְ), that every extension of light is Chesed [Kindness] in the manner of water that flows (שֶׁכָּל הִתְפַּשְׁטוּת אוֹר הוּא חֶסֶד עַל דֶּרֶךְ הַמַּיִם הַנִּגָּרִים), and every return of the light upward is Din [Judgment] (וְכָל חֲזָרַת הָאוֹר לְמַעְלָה הוּא דִּין). But specifically an extension in its simplicity, not by way of a fall (וּדְוַקָּא הִתְפַּשְׁטוּת כִּפְשׁוּטָה שֶׁלֹּא כְּדֶרֶךְ נְפִילָה). But the extension of light that is Din [Judgment] from Gevurah [Severity], which falls by way of a fall (אֲבָל הִתְפַּשְׁטוּת אוֹר שֶׁהוּא דִּין דִּגְבוּרָה שֶׁהוּא הַנּוֹפֵל דֶּרֶךְ נְפִילָה), is in the mystery of the forty-two-letter Name (בְּסוֹד שֵׁם מ״ב), when His will, blessed be He, decrees upon it to perform His mission (כְּשֶׁרְצוֹנוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ גּוֹזֵר עָלָיו לַעֲשׂוֹת שְׁלִיחוּתוֹ), or to elevate one who needs to ascend (אוֹ לְהַעֲלוֹת לְמִי שֶׁצָּרוֹךְ אֵלָיו לַעֲלוֹת), it acts swiftly and with speed (פּוֹעֵל בִּמְרוּצָה וּבִמְהִירוּת), and its nature is like the way of fire, whose nature is to rise upward (וְטִבְעוֹ כְּדֶרֶךְ הָאֵשׁ שֶׁטִּבְעוֹ לַעֲלוֹת לְמַעְלָה), and not to descend below (וְלֹא לֵרֵד לְמַטָּה), except by way of falling with speed (אֶלָּא דֶּרֶךְ נְפִילָה בִּמְהִירוּת), and immediately afterward it returns to rise above (וּתְכֵף אַחַר כָּךְ חוֹזֶרֶת לַעֲלוֹת לְמַעְלָה). Not so is the Name B”N A”B (מַה שֶּׁאֵין כֵּן הַשֵּׁם בֶּן ע״ב), whose nature is to extend and descend gently (שֶׁטִּבְעוֹ לְהִתְפַּשֵּׁט לֵרֵד לְמַטָּה בְּמְתוּנָה), and not with speed, like water that flows on a slope (וְלֹא בִּמְהִירוּת כְּמוֹ הַמַּיִם הַנִּגָּרִים בְּמוֹרַד), and regarding this the Zohar said in Parashat Beshalach (וְעַל זֶה אָמַר הַזֹּהַר בְּפָרָשַׁת בְּשַׁלַּח): "This one ascends and this one descends" (דָּא סָלִיק וְדָא נָחֵית). And an extension in simplicity is Chesed [Kindness] (וְהִתְפַּשְּׁטוּת כִּפְשׁוּטוֹ הוּא חֶסֶד), but an extension by way of a fall is Din [Judgment] within the Chesedim [Kindnesses], like the forty-two-letter Name (אֲבָל הִתְפַּשְּׁטוּת דֶּרֶךְ נְפִילָה הוּא דִּין שֶׁל חֲסָדִים כְּמוֹ שֵׁם מ״ב). And the hint is in the name Ya'akov (וְהָרֶמֶז בְּשֵׁם יַעֲקֹב): Yod, which is Rachamim [Mercies] (יו״ד שֶׁהִיא רַחֲמִים), the fissure, which is the fall of the light and is Din [Judgment] (בַּקַּע שֶׁהִיא נְפִילַת הָאוֹר וְהוּא דִּין). And so too is the judgment in the fall of this Yod, which the Kaf pushed downward (וְכֵן הַדִּין בְּנְפִילַת הַיּו״ד הַזֹּאת שֶׁדָּחָה אוֹתָהּ הַכּ״ף לְמַטָּה), for the good of the world (לְתוֹבַת הָעוֹלָם), in order to build from her the structure of the world (כְּדֵי לִבְנוֹת מִמֶּנָּה בִּנְיַן עוֹלָם), and this Yod was the architect (וְהַיּו״ד הַזֹּאת הִיא הָיְתָה הָאַדְרִיכָל), who built all the worlds (שֶׁבָּנְתָה הָעוֹלָמוֹת כֻּלָּם), as I will explain (כַּאֲשֶׁר אֲבָאֵר).