Daf 61b (דַּף ס״א ע״ב)

And every expression of Amirah [Saying] is a gentle expression (וְכָל אֲמִירָה הוּא לְשׁוֹן רַכָּה), and not harsh like the places where it is said, “And He spoke” (וְאֵינוֹ קָשֶׁה כְּמוֹ בַּמָּקוֹם שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וַיְדַבֵּר), as our Rabbis of blessed memory said in many places (כְּמוֹ שֶׁאַרְזַ״ל בְּכַמָּה מְקוֹמוֹת), and it is MNTZPKH sweetened (וְהוּא מנצפ״ך הַנִּמְתָּק), called Meisharim [Uprightness] (הַנִּקְרָא מֵישָׁרִים), for when it is sweetened it does not proceed in a crooked manner like the serpent (כְּשֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ מִתּוּק אֵינוֹ הוֹלֵךְ דֶּרֶךְ מְעוּקָּל כְּמוֹ הַנָּחָשׁ), rather, “The upright love You” (אֶלָּא מֵישָׁרִים אֲהֵבוּךָ) (Song of Songs 1:4), for they bestow Chesed [Kindness] upon Yisrael (שֶׁהֵם גּוֹמְלִים חֶסֶד עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל), and this is the meaning of the Zohar, “Scripture employs concerning it the expression of Amirah [Saying]” (וְזֶהוּ שֶׁאוֹמֵר הַזֹּהַר כְּתִיב בֵּיהּ אֲמִירָה), “as it is written, ‘And Elohim said’” (דִּכְתִיב וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים) (Genesis 1:3). But Above, Scripture does not employ concerning it the expression of Amirah [Saying] in the Particular (אֲבָל לְמַעְלָה לָא כְּתִיב בֵּיהּ אֲמִירָה בִּפְרָט), that is to say, the Yod did not emanate these Kelim [Vessels] individually through the aforementioned Heh (דְּהַיְינוּ שֶׁלֹּא הֶאֱצִילָה הַיוֹ״ד בִּפְרָטִיּוּת הַכֵּלִים הַלָּלוּ ע״י הַה״י הַנִּזְכָּר), for everything was intermixed in the power of the General, in the mystery of Avir [Air] (כִּי הַכֹּל הָיָה מְעוֹרָב בְּכֹחַ כְּלָל בְּסוֹד אֲוִיר), as we explained above (כְּמוֹ שֶׁפֵּרַשְׁנוּ לְמַעְלָה), and was not divided into the mystery of the Kelim [Vessels], which is the Particular (וְלֹא נִתְחַלֵּק לְסוֹד כֵּלִים שֶׁהוּא הַפְּרָט), because it is Above (כֵּיוָן שֶׁהוּא לְמַעְלָה), where the Yod was fixed in the Garment called Reshit [Beginning] (שֶׁהַיוֹ״ד נִקְבְּעָה בַּמַּלְבּוּשׁ הַנִּקְרָא רֵאשִׁית), which is “two Beginnings,” namely the two hundred and thirty-one combinations, front and back (שֶׁהִיא ב׳ רֵאשִׁית שְׁנֵי רל״א פָּנִים וְאָחוֹר), therefore the expression of Amirah [Saying] in the Particular does not apply to it (לֹא שַׁיָּךְ בֵּיהּ אֲמִירָה בִּפְרָט), although the particulars were included within it (אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁנִּכְלַל בּוֹ הַפְּרָטִים), through which Elohim emerged, giving boundary to all the particulars (שֶׁעַל יָדוֹ יָצָא אֱלֹהִים הַנּוֹתֵן גְּבוּל לְכָל הַפְּרָטִים), and from it proceeded General, Particular, and General (וּמִמֶּנּוּ יָצְאוּ כְּלָל וּפְרָט וּכְלָל), which is the mystery of the Ohr Makif [Encircling Light], the Ohr Penimi [Inner Light], and the Kli [Vessel] (שֶׁהוּא סוֹד אוֹר מַקִּיף וְאוֹר פְּנִימִי וְהַכְּלִי), nevertheless they had not yet become differentiated (עַל כָּל פָּנִים לֹא נֶחְלְקוּ), but remained in the mode of the General (וְהָיְתָה בְּדֶרֶךְ כְּלָל), in the mystery of the Heh of the Name B"N [Fifty-Two] (בְּסוֹד ה״י שֶׁל ב״ן), and this is the mystery of Bereshit (וְהוּא סוֹד בְּרֵאשִׁית), which is the thought of the writer (שֶׁהִיא סוֹד מַחֲשָׁבָה שֶׁל הַכּוֹתֵב), assigning measure and proportion according to the needs of the worlds (שֶׁהוּא נוֹתֵן גְּבוּל וְשִׁעוּר לְצֹרֶךְ הָעוֹלָמוֹת), and it is called Reshit [Beginning], which is the measure of Thought (וְהִיא נִקְרֵאת רֵאשִׁית שֶׁהוּא שִׁעוּר הַמַּחֲשָׁבָה), and this is the mystery of the Targum, which says, “With Wisdom,” concerning the word Bereshit (וְהוּא סוֹד הַתַּרְגּוּם שֶׁאוֹמֵר בְּחָכְמְתָא עַל מִלַּת בְּרֵאשִׁית).

It thus follows from our discussion (וְיָצָא לָנוּ מִנְּדוֹן דִּידָן), that within the mystery of the word Bereshit the Utterance is included (כִּי בְּסוֹד מִלַּת בְּרֵאשִׁית נִכְלַל הַמַּאֲמָר), yet it is not in actuality (וְאֵינוֹ בְּפֹעַל), but only in Thought (אֶלָּא בַּמַּחֲשָׁבָה), just as a person writing proceeds from the understanding of Thought (כְּמוֹ הָאָדָם הַכּוֹתֵב מֵהֲבָנַת הַמַּחֲשָׁבָה), and unless the hand actually writes, the Thought accomplishes nothing (וְאִם לֹא יִכְתֹּב הַיָּד בְּפֹעַל הַמַּחֲשָׁבָה אֵינוֹ פּוֹעֶלֶת כְּלוּם), but here one cannot exist without the other (אֲבָל זֶה אִי אֶפְשָׁר בְּלֹא זֶה), thus here the Yod (כָּךְ בְּכָאן הַיוֹ״ד הַנִּקְרֵאת), possessed together with it the power of Judgment (שֶׁהָיְתָה עִמָּהּ כֹּחַ הַדִּין), in the mystery of the Heh of the Name B"N [52] (בְּסוֹד ה׳ שֶׁל שֵׁם ב״ן), within which the mystery of MNTZPKH and the power of the Name Elohim were implanted in potential but not in actuality (אֲשֶׁר בָּהּ תָּקוּעַ סוֹד מנצפ״ך וְכֹחַ שֵׁם אֱלֹהִים בְּכֹחַ וְלֹא בְּפֹעַל), until the sphere of the Tehiru was created (עַד אֲשֶׁר נִבְרָא הַכַּדּוּר שֶׁל הַטְּהִירוּ), and it burst forth within it, bringing the Particular out of the General (וּבָקְעָה בּוֹ וְהוֹצִיאָה הַפְּרָט מִן הַכְּלָל), therefore the Zohar says, “For Above, Scripture does not employ concerning it the expression of Amirah [Saying] in the Particular, and although Bereshit is an Utterance, nevertheless Scripture does not say concerning it, ‘And He said’; this ‘And He said’ exists in order to inquire and to know” (וְלָכֵן אוֹמֵר הַזֹּהַר דְּהָא לְעֵילָא לָא כְּתִיב בֵּיהּ אֲמִירָה בִּפְרָט וְאַף עַל גַּב דִּבְרֵאשִׁית מַאֲמָר הוּא אֲבָל לָא כְּתִיב בֵּיהּ וַיֹּאמֶר דָּא וַיֹּאמֶר אִיהוּ קַיְימָא לְמִשְׁאַל וּלְמִנְדַּע).