Sexuality and the Suspicious Spirit

From the teachings of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria; translated and edited by Moshe Yaakov Wisnefsky. The original is avaiable on the website kabbalaonline.com

Original translation is in bold font. The translator's commentary is in regular font. Chanoch's commentary or dditions are clearly identified.

Kabbalah exposes the spiritual roots of righteous sexuality.

chanoch adds: The term Righteous Sexuality is not yet defined. I caution the student to not have the consciousnes that he or she understand this term and remains open to learn its definition.

In this Torah portion - BehaAlotcha, HaShem gives the laws of the suspected adulteress (called in Hebrew, "sotah"). The passage begins:

HaShem spoke to Moses, saying: "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: '[This is what should be done] should any man's wife stray and be unfaithful to him, and a man lie with her carnally unbeknownst to her husband, and she was secluded and defiled but there was no witness against her, and she was not seized. If a spirit of jealousy had come upon [the husband] and he had warned his wife, and she was defiled, or a spirit of jealousy had come upon him and he had warned his wife, and she was not defiled. Then the man shall bring his wife to the priest and bring her offering for her, one tenth of an ephah of barley flour. He shall neither pour oil over it nor put frankincense on it, for it is a grain-offering of jealousies, a grain-offering of remembrance, recalling iniquity. The priest shall bring her forth and present her before HaShem. The priest shall put holy water in an earthen vessel, and the priest shall take some earth from the Tabernacle floor and put it into the water….'"

(Num. 5:11-17)

He may proceed with the ritual if he is sure that his motivations are pure….

The word translated above as "jealousy", "kinah" and the one translated as "had warned", "kinei", are from the same root. Thus, a more literal translation of the phrase in which these words occur would be: "If a spirit of jealousy had come upon him and he had expressed his jealousy to his wife [by warning her not to be secluded with the other man]…."

Our sages said, "A man only warns his wife if a spirit of purity enters into him [from heaven]."

(Sotah 3a)

This is based on the idiom "a spirit of jealously had come upon him."

chanoch adds: As the reader reads the above statements it is recommended to contemplate the relationship between jealously and purity.

It is considered commendable for a man to warn his wife not be secluded with another man if he senses that she is becoming overly frivolous or flirtatious. The feminine principle of reality can "lose track" of its purpose and misdirect its energies in the course of going about the business of expressing divinity in the world, and it is the male principle's role to re-inspire her with the purity of intention his abstract orientation provides. The Sages disapprove of a husband who is uninterested in the moral purity of his family, beginning with his wife.

To be sure, a husband can delude himself into thinking an overbearing manner or unreasonable suspicion is a "spirit of purity". There is therefore an opinion in the Talmud that the spirit that enters into the husband, causing him to warn his wife, is in fact a spirit of impurity. The Sages therefore advise husbands to assume their wives are innocent of any wrongdoing unless they have clear justification to suspect otherwise. (Jerusalem Talmud Kidushin 4:4) Even if the husband is convinced that there is cause for concern, he must first appeal to his wife privately to improve her behavior. (Mishneh Torah, Sotah 4:19) If this does not work, he may proceed with the ritual if he is sure that his motivations are pure - he may not invoke the rite in jest, in anger, or in order to frighten her. (Ibid. 4:18) Furthermore, the rite only works if the husband himself is not guilty of adultery. (Sotah 47b)

The Arizal now discusses what this "spirit of jealousy" is in mystical terms.

Know that Joseph manifested the sefira of yesod, and that his numerical value is the same as that of "Zion" [in Hebrew, "Tzion" = 156], which signifies the yesod of malchut [the feminine], while Joseph manifest the yesod of the male principle, which enters this "Zion".

chanoch adds: Kabbalah teaches that the same Sefira communicates with its namesake Sifirah in / from different frames of reference. Thus Zion / Yesod in the female frame communicates with Joseph / Yesod in the male frame. This communication is closer when the regular gematria is the same.

Joseph is associated with yesod because he exhibited sexual purity in the incident with Potiphar's wife (Gen. 39:7-20), and yesod is associated anatomically with the male sexual organ.

"Joseph" (in Hebrew, "Yosef") is spelled: yud-vav-samech-pei = 10 + 6 + 60 + 80 = 156.

"Zion" (in Hebrew, "Tzion") is spelled: tzadik-yud-vav-nun = 90 + 10 + 6 + 50 = 156.

Zion therefore specifically refers to…the womb of the world….

The word for "Zion" ("tzion") means "point", "sign", or "designation". It is also an appellation for the Holy Land, the location designated for the revelation of HaShem's presence. Specifically, "Zion" refers to the inner sanctum (the "Holy of Holies") of the Holy Temple. We have seen previously how the Holy of Holies is considered the "bridal chamber" where the marital union of HaShem and the Jewish people takes place. "Zion" therefore specifically refers to the female sexual organ, or the "womb" of the world, where reality is impregnated with divine consciousness and from which new divine consciousness is born and spreads throughout the world.

[156] is also three times the numerical value of the 52-Name [Ben] that are given from the yesod of Zeir Anpin to the yesod of Nukva. This is why the numerical value of both "Joseph" and ""Zion is three times 52, as is mentioned in connection with [our exposition of Psalm 25 (Shaar HaKavanot, Inyan Nefilat Apaim, 3rd discourse ), which begins, "Unto You, O HaShem, I lift up my soul." As is explained there, [these three 52-Names] are manifestations of Nefesh, Ruach, and Neshama.

Psalm 25 is recited in the daily liturgy as part of Tachanun, the penitential prayers recited after the climax of the prayers, the Standing Prayer. After achieving total self-effacement and union with HaShem in the Standing Prayer, we become acutely aware of our shortcomings, and for these we ask forgiveness in Tachanun. ?

chanoch adds: The Kabbalists only say Tachanun on days that there is no Tzadikim Hilulot. The rationale fror this change from orthodox Halacha is the understanding revealed in the Zohar that each Tzadik provides access to all living beings to the Light each Tzadik revealed during their lifetime. This Light provides protection that makes Tachanun unnecessary to recite.

Psalm 25 expresses remorse for sin and rededication to HaShem. We rededicate ourselves, mystically, by elevating our consciousness out of the world of Asiya and up through the three worlds into the world of Atzilut. By doing this, we arouse HaShem to forgive us. Thus, the elevation of consciousness through these three worlds creates three forms of arousal, signified by the three 52-Names mentioned here. The three worlds of Beriya, Yetzira, and Asiya correlate to the three aspects of the soul, Nefesh, Ruach, and Neshama, which manifest the three "garments" of the soul - intellect, emotion, and action – respectively.

Significantly, the sin mentioned explicitly in Psalm 25 is in the verse "Recall not the sins and transgressions of my youth…," referring to sexual sins. Thus, the Psalm we recite in order to arouse HaShem to restore our sexual purity is connected with the theme of sexual purity alluded to in the names of Joseph and Zion.

The fact that the numerical value of "Joseph" is 156 alludes also the [following] mystical principle I have taught you:

When righteous people pass away, their souls ascend and enter malchut….

There are five states of chesed and five states of gevura [that descend from Imma into Zeir Anpin], which are manifest as ten names Havayah. The five states of gevura [descend] into malchut [of Zeir Anpin], while the five states of chesed [descend] into [the five sub-sefirot] from chesed to hod. All these five issue [to Nukva] via yesod [of Zeir Anpin]. [Yesod, however,] has its own Name Havayah. Thus, there are [in yesod] five name Havayah's [manifesting the five states of chesed that enter Zeir Anpin] and one of its own, giving six. Their combined numerical value is thus 156.