The Good of the Land of Israel - Tuv HaAretz by Rabbi Shapira

This is a Sefer - book that describes many aspects of the spiritual concept of the Land of Israel and what it means both spiritually and physically. It is a series of classes that will be reading from this book and will be quite meaningful to understand on a personal level what it means when a leader of the Jewish People calls on the Jewish Nation to return to the Good Land of Israel.

Tuv HaAretz:

Temple Waters

Chapter Ten, Part 4

Since the Destruction, the spiritual quality of earth's waters has changed

Nowadays, after the destruction of the Holy Temple, the system has changed. We [in Israel] now take the "watered down" rains, and they [outside of Israel] get the full influence. This can be understood from a passage in the Zohar:

"'And you shall make a table of Cedar wood' (Ex. 25:23) teaches us, that as long as the Jews are fulfilling the will of their Master, they shall eat from the 'table of the king', and all their meals shall be prepared for them, and they, experiencing this delight, shall give the remnants to the nations of the world. Conversely, at the times when the Jews are not fulfilling the will of their master, then the meals will be cast to the dogs, leaving the Jews only the scraps. 'Thus shall the children of Israel eat their breads, impure amongst the nation to where I shall disperse them.' (Ezekiel 4:13). That refers to the scraps of the abhorrent idol-worshipping nations. Whoa unto the son of the king that is sitting and waiting for the scraps of servants' table." (Zohar, parashat Teruma 152b)

And so in our days the verse, "And I shall stop up the heavens and there shall be no 'matar'" (Deut. 11:17), has been fulfilled. For the 'matar', which is Sag [in the Atbash system] now travels to the lands outside Israel, to the "servants". And the milu'im descend to Eretz Yisrael as the number "geshamim" ["rains" =393]. This is the secret of the verse, "Under the maidservant who inherits her matron". (Proverbs 30:23) Even though at present she has the status of a maidservant, nonetheless, she rules all…

Originally (when Eretz Yisrael was in its full glory) the four miluim of Eh-yeh [161 + 143 + 151 = 616] were entirely given over to Eretz Yisrael. This is seen from the verse, "They spied [in Hebrew, 'vayaturu'] the land of Canaan', (Num. 13:2) in which "yaturu" has the numerical value of 616. It is then that Eretz Yisrael is called "The Matron" [in Hebrew, "gevirta"]. This is so being that the four miluim [equaling 616] together with the four kolels [=4] have the same value as "gevirta" [which equals 620, also the numerical value of "keter"]. Under that circumstance, only the miluim of the three Eh-yehs [140 + 130 + 122] would descend to outside of Israel, for they have the value of the word "shifcha" [meaning "maidservant", which equals 393.

Yet nowadays, when we are at the times of "Under the maidservant who inherits her matron". (Proverbs 30:23) That is understood by the fact that the amount of influence descending now in Eretz Yisrael is the number 393 - "shifcha" ["maidservant"], whilst, simultaneously, outside of Israel they are receiving a full 455 - "tenna". This is what is meant by the verse, "Give iniquity to their iniquities, and not let them have access to your righteousness [in Hebrew, 'tzidkotecha']", (Psalms 69:28) for "tzidkotecha" has the numerical value of "Yitro" ["Jethro"], with the four miluim of Eh-yeh.

This is what is meant by the verse, "When a man shall sell his daughter as a maidservant, she shall not go out as the rest of the servants". (Ex. 21:7) In other words, in "When a man sells…", "Man" here is hinting to G‑d. "…His daughter" is referring to the Shechinah. "…As a maidservant" implies that she, the Shechinah, will only receive divine beneficence to the extent of what the maidservant would have received, whereas the maidservant will receive that which the Matron, the Shechinah, would have gotten.

"She shall not go out as the rest of the servants", for most servants are freed if any of their "roshei evarim", literally, "the head of their limbs", i.e. main limbs become damaged. Yet she, the Shechinah, isn't freed in the same fashion. For our purpose, "the head of their limbs" refers to the top part of each realm; therefore that would normally indicate only the aspect of the first milui of 161 [Eh-yeh spelled out with yud's], which stems from chochma bina and daat, which are the top - the three primary sefirot. Rather, she goes out, by means of the three miluim of Eh-yeh alone. They have the value of "tenna" [455]. This is hinted to in the first letters of the words in the verse, "Lo teytze k'tzet ha'avadim" [Hebrew for "She shall no go out as the leaving of the servants", whose initials equal 30 + 400 + 20 + 5 = 455].

This is true even though She, the Shechinah, has been given over to the commands of the maidservant. Nonetheless, she shall not exit servitude as the servants. Rather, "And her sovereignty is over all the domain". That is why the three miluim with the three kolel's add up to "shilton" [meaning "dominion" and equaling 395], also to "shofet" [meaning "judge"]. This indicates that even though at present she has the status of a maidservant ["shifcha"], nonetheless, she rules all.

Nowadays the angel Meta‑tron rules in Eretz Yisrael…

Therefore, nowadays the angel Meta‑tron rules in Eretz Yisrael, for he is known as "Second to the King" [in Hebrew, "Mishne La'Melech"], for the three miluim [of Eh-yeh] with their kolels equal "Mishne", 395. Originally the Shechina was alone without garments, and supplied sustenance and nurturing to Eretz Yisrael, but now she is enclothed by Meta‑tron. Now she is called the "maidservant" of the Shechina. Through her the Land of Israel gets its sustenance. This is why now, during the exile, Eretz Yisrael is called "Eretz Ha'tzvi" [Hebrew for "the land of the deer"], the numerical value of which equals 393, the same as "shifcha" ["maidservant"]. She only is capable of receiving influence of "rains" [in Hebrew, "geshamim", which equals 393], again, the value of "shifcha".

This is what is meant by the passage in the Zohar:

"'Woe to you, oh land, whose king is a lad?' (Ecclesiastes 10:16): Woe unto the world that nurses from that side." (parashat Lech Lecha 95b) For that is through Meta‑tron, who is termed "the lad", who is "Mishne" - secondary to the King. "Mishne" has the same value as "parnasa" [which means "sustenance"], 395. It is though him that the Land is sustained.

This is what the Sages meant by their statement, "Rabbi Abahu said, 'Even a Canaanite maidservant [shifcha] in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come'. For behold it is written, 'I will give a soul to the nation upon her [the Land]' (Isaiah 42:5) and it is also written, '[Ishmael,] remain here with the donkey' (Gen. 22:5) [for you are] the nation whose is similar to a donkey." This would imply that any one who lives in the Land and only receives the aspect of the 'Shifcha', should stay there. This is because it is through her that he is guaranteed a place in the World to Come, for the three miluim are indicative of the World to Come, as was mentioned earlier.

Eretz Yisrael, even amidst its status of destruction, remains the epitome of purity and holiness…

The three Eh-yehs are from the aspect of bina, which is called "Olam Haba" ["the World to Come"]. The three miluim are called the "Bat Olam Haba" [literally "Daughter of the World to Come"]. And just as she is guaranteed a portion in the World to Come [Olam Haba] (for all her influence stems from bina), so too he who receives from that influence is called a "Ben Olam Haba" [literally, "a son of the World to Come"].

The equating of the two verses mentioned above: "Remain here with the donkey" - the nation that is similar to a donkey, and "I will give a soul to the nation upon her [the land]" (Baba Kama 49a) can best be understood from the following passage in the Zohar:

"He is not called King until he rides on his horse - the Jewish people. When the Holy One Blessed be He is away from his place, He seems not to be King." (Raya Mehemna, parashat Ki Teitzei 275b) Therefore He rides a donkey - Meta‑tron, who is considered a donkey, relative to G‑d. Nonetheless he's still second to the King. Therefore anyone living inside of Eretz Yisrael whilst it is in a state of destruction, and receives even just a morsel of bread, is receiving from the influence of Meta‑tron, who is the "Mishne". G‑d still gives him a "Neshama" (the same letters as "Mishne"). That is what is meant by the language of the verse, "I will give a "Neshama" to the nation upon her [the Land]'.

This is also what is meant by the verse, "To the 'matar' ['rains'] of the heavens you shall drink water." (Deut. 11:11) For the letters of "matar" are found in "Meta‑tron", who is called the "chamor" [Hebrew for "donkey"], who, together with the kolel, equals that of "matar". The remaining three letters of Meta‑tron, tet vav and nun, have the same value as "Ado-nai". This is another way to see how Meta‑tron is the "Chamor Ado-nai" [literally, "the donkey of G‑d"]. This indicates that through the Shechina dressing itself by Meta‑tron, the various rains ["geshamim" and "matar"] fall in Eretz Yisrael. Thus the value of "Ado-nai" in the Albam code has the same value as "geshamim".

chanoch adds: The Albam code is one method of gematria/letter substitution. Please the beginning classes of the Hebrew Letter Classes or the Gematria page on the yeshshem website.

Since Eretz Yisrael, even amidst its status of destruction, remains the epitome of purity and holiness, "male" waters nourish her. Even nowadays, the little "watered-down" scraps that she receives are "male" waters. Egypt, however, is the epitome of defilement, which is why she is called "the disgrace of the earth", and therefore it wasn't befitting for her to be nourished from the "male" waters, rather from the Nile, which is "feminine" water. That might be the essence of the verse, "For the land to which you come to possess, is not like the land of Egypt that you left from, where you would plant your seeds and water them on foot like a vegetable garden." (Deut. 11:10).

Yet Abraham, in his love for his son Ishmael, prayed for him saying, "Oh! That Ishmael might live before You." (Gen. 17:18) This is because the fate of one to be nourished from the feminine waters, is not a life. Therefore G‑d responded to Abraham saying, "Yet regarding Ishmael, I have heard you, I have blessed him…" (Gen. 17:20) The blessing is the mystery of the "drop" of "male" water, mentioned previously. The intention of this is that subsequent to a decree from the wisdom of the Holy One, that there shall be no rains in the land of Egypt, and it is impossible to void that decree. Thus when Abraham prayed, the decree remained intact, and yet there was an addition of that "drop" of blessing.

The most significant and beautiful trait in G‑d's eyes is humility…

Know that the "feminine" waters are divided into three categories, one atop the other:

The first and lowest level is the water that is hand-drawn by people, out of streams and springs to water their gardens; these drawn waters are called "dead", which was the level of the water of Egypt before Abraham's prayers. That is probably why the verse says, "Not like the land of Egypt that you left from, where you would plant your seeds and water them on foot like a vegetable garden." (Deut. 11:10)

The next level up are the waters that flow out of the springs and streams by themselves. They are called "living waters".

The third and highest level of "feminine" waters are those of rain that fall from the clouds that have been filled by condensation of the salty oceans and lakes etc. that get purified by the clouds and then descend.

Just like the "feminine" waters are divided into three levels, so too, the "male" waters are divide into three categories: The lowest level is when the rains descend, the hue of the heavens is contiguous. In other words it is not spotted with different shades.

chanoch adds: In my opinion, this means that the sky is a consistent pattern and color.

The next level is when the "groom" goes out to meet the "bride". In other words, the rain is falling with such strength, that before the next drop (bride) hits the ground, the previous one (groom) has bounced up to greet her.

The highest level is when it rains day and night, for three consecutive days

We see that 29 of the 30 types of fruits can grow only with a particular type of "male" water, yet the etrog [citron] can grow even by means of drawn water. This is what is meant when the Sages say, "Etrogs grow on all waters" (Sukkot 38a). This is why etrogs share certain laws [i.e. tithing] with vegetables (that also grow with any water). Yet this is why it is called a "Pri Etz Hadar" ["fruit of the beautiful tree"]. Its humility is its beauty. For the most significant and beautiful trait in G‑d's eyes is humility.

Know that everything physical in this ethereal world originates from a spiritual example of it in the heavens. In other words, the physical is a mere shadow of the spiritual. In that fashion, all 30 types of fruits can be found above in their spiritual form, hue, and shape. Rather that up in heaven they are in their spiritual form and down below they are in their physical form as a shadow of their spirit.

Footsteps in the Land

Chapter Eleven, Part 1

The mere act of walking in the Land of Israel shakes the spiritual worlds.

Rabbi Yochanan said, "Whoever walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come." (Babylonian Talmud, Ketubot 111a)

The first aspect of the above concept is as follows: According to the Arizal, Eretz Yisrael is called "Rachel" and "Leah". Therefore the intentions one should have when walking in Eretz Yisrael have two aspects: one Rachel and one Leah.

For Rachel one should concentrate that the legs doing the walking parallel netzach and hod of Zeir Anpin, for they draw down consciousness [known as "mochin"] for Rachel, as is known. This is because the partzuf of Rachel has two mochin, which are [represented by two] names Y-ah [spelled out, equaling 35 each]. Together, their numerical value equals 70, which is the value of the word "halicha" [Hebrew for "walking"].

The partzuf of Leah is located behind that of Yisrael, none of her being parallel to Yaakov…

For Leah, meditate on the statement above, "Whoever walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come". The idea behind this is as follows: The partzuf of Leah is located behind that of Yisrael, none of her being parallel to Yaakov. Hence she is called more appropriately "Eretz Yisrael" as opposed to Rachel. One should concentrate that the mochin that enter Zeir Anpin, are the mochin of Abba and Imma. Once inside Leah there are four divisions: 1) the yesod of chochma, 2) is the yesod of bina, 3) from within Zeir Anpin and 4) from outside Zeir Anpin. Two of them are from the illumination of chochma and the other two are from the illumination of bina. They are organized as Abba and Imma, Abba and Imma. These four mochin are from the aspect of chochma and bina, with chesed and gevura.

In reality, the highest level of Leah, which is at the same level of the yesod of chochma, there, she has all four levels of the illuminations of chochma. On the next level down, one of the illuminations goes up and she remains with three. At the third level she is left with two. At the fourth level (the outermost) she remains with only one from chochma.

The four "ammot" [the Hebrew word for "cubits" in the above quote] shouldn't be pronounced "ammot", rather "immaot", from the term "Imma". Behold all four of them are mochin that stem from chochma. For those mochin that stem from bina, we have no concept of them. The walking through Leah is not the same as through Rachel…

We already know that the general revelation of G‑d through chochma, is the name of Ab [72], the milui of which equals 46, which is the numerical value of "amma" ["cubit"]. They are the secret of the "Four Cubits". For from them, are the formations of the four "Mothers". This is all fine and well, even though they stem from chochma, bina, chesed, and gevura, they are still from the aspect of chochma, whose milui is 46, equaling "Imma".

Being that all the mochin are in Zeir Anpin when they leave towards the Nukva, all that leaves is the milui. For the word "milui" itself [mem - 40, lamed - 30, vav - 6, yud - 10 = 86] has the numerical value of 86, which is the value of Elokim, i.e. judgment. Therefore the Nukva is related to judgment.

Behold the walking through Leah is not the same as through Rachel. For Rachel is at the level of netzach and hod of Zeir Anpin, whereas Leah is at the level of netzach and hod of Bina's top two segments! When walking in Eretz Yisrael one should have intention towards the netzach and hod of Bina…

Therefore when walking in Eretz Yisrael one should have intention towards the netzach and hod of Bina.

Yet there is another distinction which should be made, being that the four cubits are each a counter to the four mochin of chochma, yet upon their descent they are the four mochin of bina! To understand this, we must recall that the illuminations that depart from chochma are only able to travel due to bina! That's why it is called "traveling" [i.e. "walking"]. That is the mitzvah of walking four cubits in Eretz Yisrael, for the numerical value of "mehalech" [Hebrew for "walker"] equals 95, which is the milui of achorayim of Sag which is bina, which represents Sag and whose numerical value equals 63. When you remove the Av [72] which are the achorayim from the 166, you have a remainder of 95 which equals "mehalech".

The second aspect is according to the writings of the Arizal, in the Sefer Hadrushim. Eretz Yisrael begins at the top of the lower half of Bina…

Know that the size of the stature of Malchut, which is known as "Eretz Yisrael", is ten sefirot. That is also the measure of the stature of Zeir Anpin. We already know that from the half of the tiferet of the Upper Bina, is the place where the head of Zeir Anpin starts. When she [Malchut] is in a state of gadlut, then her head reaches up to the same point as the head of Zeir Anpin. From this we see that Eretz Yisrael begins at the top of the lower half of Bina. There remains above Eretz Yisrael two and a half sefirot, namely Keter, Chochma, and the upper half of Bina. In a strikingly similar fashion we have the same pattern down beneath its starting place, for her measurement is ten sefirot. She starts at the halfway point of the tiferet of Zeir Anpin, as is written in the Idra. If we were to split the ten sefirot from that point downwards, we would find that the ten personal sefirot of Malchut extend down until half of the netzach of Beriya. For she [Malchut] has a place in Zeir Anpin, the height of which is three and a half sefirot, from half of the tiferet until the yesod [of Zeir Anpin of Atzilut]. Then to complete her ten sefirot, she takes another six and a half sefirot from Beriya. They are the keter, chochma, bina, chesed, gevura, tiferet, and half of netzach. In that fashion she has completed her ten sefirot, for her real place is from half of the tiferet of Zeir Anpin until half of the netzach of Beriya. There are three and a half sefirot left in Beriya [that have no counterpart]. Yet we know that the Malchut of Beriya is constantly at the seventh palatial chamber of Yetzira. This is also the case with each Malchut of Beriya, Yetzira, and Asiya (i.e. they are rooted in the World above them.). That leaves us with two and a half still unconnected to the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael (which is ultimately the Malchut of Atzilut). Therefore, corresponding to those two and a half, were the two and a half tribes that remained outside the borders of the Land.

chanoch adds: I suggest that to truly understand this one paragraph it is could to build a visual pattern diagram to see how these levels interact with each other.

Thus far the words of the Arizal. He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael…has merited bina of Beriya, which is called the World to Come…

It appears to me, that from the above we can get a better understanding of the statement of the Sages "He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael…". The four cubits mentioned really correspond to the following: the upper half of the netzach, all of the tiferet, gevura, and chesed, and half of the bina of ten sefirot of Beriya. [This person is] guaranteed a portion in the World to Come, for he has merited bina of Beriya, which is called the "World to Come".

chanoch adds: to reach and inherit the world that is coming requires one to reach a spiritual level of half of the Bina of Ten Sefirot of Beriya.

Israel: A Step Up

Chapter Eleven, Part 2

A simple stroll in the Land of Israel is compared to receiving atonement on the Altar.

The following is a continuation of the previous section, which discusses the various ways in which the act of a Jew walking in the Land of Israel is a tremendous tikun for both the individual and all of Creation.

Man must make his tikun from bottom upwards…

The third fashion is in accordance to that which Rabbi Chaim Vital quotes in the Sefer Hagilgulim chapters 15 and 16.

chanoch adds: For additional information see the advanced reincarnation classes on the yeshshem webpages.

The bottom six sefirot of Yetzira were, before the sin of Adam, at the level which is now the first six of Beriya. The first four sefirot of Asiya were at the level what is now the place of the bottom four of Beriya. The last six of Asiya were at the place that is now the first six of Yetzira. From that we see that the Zeir Anpin and Nukva of Atzilut were originally at the place that is now that of Abba and Imma of Atzilut, for the world of Beriya was originally at the place of Zeir Anpin of Atzilut. The first four of Yetzira were at the place of the Nukva of Atzilut.

From this we see that, that which is now the four lowest sefirot of Yetzira as well as all the ten sefirot of Asiya, were all previously an empty and void space; that was the territory of the kelipot and the External Forces. We see that the measurement of that empty space was fourteen sefirot. From that we can understand a statement of the Sages, "He is called 'Sha-dai', for He told the world 'dai' [Hebrew for 'enough']". (Chagiga 12) In other words, G‑d told the world, "dai ['enough']…" (the numerical value of which is 14), "…don't spread out any further than these 14 sefirot, for that is the maximum amount of empty space need for the kelipot and External Forces." Yet after the sin of Adam, the worlds descended into the realm of the External Forces and kelipot. So now joining the External Forces are the four lowest sefirot of Yetzira and the ten of Asiya.

chanoch adds: Adding 14 sefirot to the empty space does not fill up the empty space as one might think logically. it means that the sefirot are covered by the Klipot which adds to the energy available to the klipot.

It is known that man must make his tikun from bottom upwards. First, he must rectify the Nefesh, Ruach, Neshama, Chaya, and Yechida [together known as "NRNCh"Y"] of Malchut of Asiya. Then the NRNCh"Y of Zeir Anpin of Asiya. Then the NRNChYof Bina of Asiya. Then the NRNCh"Y of Chochma of Asiya. Then the NRNCh"Y of Arich Anpin of Asiya. In that fashion thousands and myriads of realms within Asiya need to be fixed. All of those a man must rectify before he can be elevated level by level to the realm of Yetzira. Once there, he must accomplish the same for all aspects of Yetzira before he can rise up to Beriya. And so on for each world.

So long as a person has not yet rectified himself and the aspects of the worlds all the way up to (and including) the level of tiferet of Yetzira, he is in grave danger of being seduced by the External Forces and kelipot, for that is the end of the fourteen worlds, which are the zone occupied by those negative forces. It is called "the home of the kelipot of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil". Whilst still entrenched in that dimension, a person can destroy all that he had worked to fix. Once he has rectified the tiferet of Yetzira...he no longer is susceptible to the forces of the kelipot…

Once he has rectified the tiferet of Yetzira, however, he no longer is susceptible to the forces of the kelipot. Upon him is written the verse, "There shall not befall for a righteous man any iniquity". (Proverbs 12:21) For directly above that is the "Tree of Life", and then he is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come.

That is the understanding of Rabbi Yochanan's statement, "He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed a portion in the World to Come". The four, refer to the four sefirot of the world of Yetzira from the malchut until tiferet. Once there, he is guaranteed a portion in the World to Come, for at that level G‑d guards you and prevents sin from coming your way. This is also hinted to in the verse, "Who shall rise up to the mountain of G‑d…", (Psalms 24:3) the numerical value being 398, which is the value of "Eretz HaTzvi" [literally "Land of the Deer", a common name for Israel].

The second part of the verse is "…and who shall stand up in His holy place". That place refers to the tiferet of Yetzira. For at that level one has completely left the quarters of impurity and has entered the land of holiness, the Land of Life, for there is the Tree of Life - no longer any [mixture of] good and evil. Therefore the numerical value of that verse is also the value of "Chanoch" [Enoch], 84, and "Meta‑tron", 314 = 398, for Meta‑tron's realm is that of Yetzira. This is the essence of the statement of the Sages about the verse, "He gave a soul to the people in the land", (Isaiah 42:5) [Rabbi Abahu said, "Even a maidservant in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed to enter the World to Come." (Ketubot 111a)]. To whom is it befitting to give a special soul? To those who merited elevating themselves to above Eretz Yisrael, (which is above the world of Yetzira) to the level of Beriya. For Beriya is the world of Neshama. "…And a spirit to those who walk in the Land" indicates to us that while a person is still trying to rectify Yetzira, he can only attain the level of Ruach, for Yetzira is the level of Ruach.

Eretz Yisrael is considered the Altar…

It is also known that the world of Beriya is called "E-l Sha-dai", whereas Yetzira is called "E-l Havayah", and the world of Asiya is called "E-l Adon-ai". "E-l Havayah" is the numerical value of "mizbayach" [Hebrew for "altar", =57]. For in the world of Yetzira there is an altar. And about that the Sages taught, "Rabbi Anan said, 'He who is buried in Eretz Yisrael, is considered to be buried underneath the Altar'". (Ketubot 111a) For one verse says, "An altar of land make for Me" (Ex. 20:21) and the other verse says, "And His land shall atone for His nation". (Deut. 32:43) We see from the above that all of Eretz Yisrael is considered the "Altar". To be buried under the altar implies the ability to arouse divine mercy.

The fourth aspect is from the Masters of Commentary. In the verse "And His land [in Hebrew, "admato"] shall atone for His nation", (Deut. 32:43) the word "admato", contains the letters of "D' Amot", meaning "four cubits". How befitting and pleasantly appropriate is that comment, for the lower four sefirot of Yetzira are called the "Four Corners of the Altar", for the Altar is the malchut of Yetzira, which stands at the top of Asiya. The first four sefirot of Asiya ascend to the place of the four lowest sefirot of Yetzira, for they are called the "Four Corners of the Altar". That explains how the four cubits bring atonement, for the lower four sefirot of Yetzira, which are called the "Four Corners of the Altar", are the forces that cause the atonement, for they are the root of the Altar of the earth that brings atonement for the Jewish people.

Eretz Yisrael is considered to be in the middle of civilization…

Also, the statement of "He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come" can be understood in a similar fashion. For once a person has elevated himself above the "Altar", he has essentially been pardoned for all his iniquities. Being that he no longer carries with him any sin, logically we would conclude that he would gain entrance to the World to Come.

The above also helps us resolve another difficulty in understanding the statement of the Sages, "Eretz Yisrael is in the middle of civilization". For Atzilut is called the world of the "Male" and the world of "Standing", while Beriya, Yetzira, and Asiya are referred to as the world[s] of the "Feminine" and the world of "Sitting". That's why Eretz Yisrael is considered to be in the middle of civilization [in Hebrew, "Yishuv", literally, "Sitting"), for Israel corresponds to Yetzira which is in between Beriya and Asiya, hence the middle of the worlds of "Sitting".

The fifth aspect is derived from the Writings of the Arizal. (Shaar Hakavanot, drush Isru Chag 3) Those four highest sefirot of Asiya while they inhabit the place of the lower four sefirot of Yetzira (the corners of the Altar), are the secret of the consciousness [mochin] that is drawn forth from Atzilut until that place. They are the secret of the four names of G‑d, Ab, Sag, Mah, and Ban. They are enclothed by the four [spellings-out of the] names of Eh-yeh, two with yuds, another with alefs, and another with heis. For they are the mystery of the mochin that are enclothed within the netzach, hod, yesod, and malchut of Imma, and subsequently are drawn down towards Asiya. The numerical value of those equal that of the word "karnot" [meaning "corners", i.e. of the Altar]; they are the first four sefirot of Asiya. When one recites…the Daily Offering, he should intend to elevate the internal aspects of Asiya that enclothe the four external aspects of the lower sefirot of Yetzira…

We also arrive at the numerical value of "shenot chaim" [literally meaning "years of life"]. For the mochin are called "the life of the king", for, together, the names Eh-yeh, Havayah, and Eh-yeh equal "chaim". They are each connected to the names mentioned above, whose value is equal to the word "shenot". Therefore they are called "shenot chaim". This is the secret of the illumination that emanates from above down to Asiya on Isru Chag, the day after Yom Tov.

It is known that the four names of Havayah and those of Eh-yeh, each have the numerical value of "D' Amma" ["four cubit"]. For the numerical value of Havayah and Eh-yeh equals 47, which is the value of "amma" ["cubit"] with the kolel. Behold, each morning when one recites the parasha of Tzav - the Daily Offering, he should intend to elevate the internal aspects of Asiya that enclothe the four external aspects of the lower sefirot of Yetzira. Therefore, one must also intend to draw forth the Four Corners of the Altar towards them, in order to be elevated by that force. That is the understanding of the statement "He who walks four cubits…", that he causes the walking in the way of the drawing forth the influence of the four "Ammot" [cubits] discussed above, which are the four Havayahs and the four Eh-yehs. "…in Eretz Yisrael is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come" - for those are the mochin that are enclothed in the netzach , hod, and yesod of Imma whom is called "Olam Habba" - the World to Come.

Being that he caused the walking there, which are the Four Cubits, he merits the level of bina, which is also referred to as the "World to Come". For at that level he is constantly receiving the influence from bina. For the verse says, "Blessings to the head of the tzadik" (Proverbs 10:6). And precisely the terminology of "He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael…" indicates that "shenot chaim", together with the kolel's of each of the four Havayahs and the four Eh-yehs equal 832 - "Eretz Yisrael" [= 832].

Giant Steps for Mankind

Chapter Eleven, Part 3

Four cubits in Eretz Israel refer to the four upper Sefirot of the world of 'Yetzira'

[The following is a continuation of the previous section, which discusses the various ways in which the act of a Jew walking in the Land of Israel is a tremendous tikun for both the individual and all of Creation.]

After Adam was created on the fifth hour and onwards, the worlds were ascending…

The sixth aspect is derived from the Sages. It appears to me that the Eretz Yisrael referred to in the Talmud hints at the status it had prior to the sin the Adam. For then the four highest sefirot of Yetzira were at the place which is now the Nukva of Atzilut. That is opposite the four sefirot of tiferet netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin. The six lower sefirot of Yetzira were in the place that is now the upper six of Beriya. And this is what the Sages meant by "He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael…": that they are the upper four sefirot of Yetzira; that he merited to rectify all the levels until he reached the four Upper ones of Eretz Yisrael, that are now the Nukva of Atzilut. "…He is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come", for once he has attained the level of Nefesh of Atzilut he is guaranteed never to fall into sin. About this is written, "No iniquities shall befall a tzadik". That is for a person who has attained the level of the Nefesh of Atzilut.

The seventh aspect of this is from the Sefer Hagilgulim, at the end of chapter 17:

After Adam was created on the fifth hour and onwards, the worlds were ascending. Zeir Anpin had gone up to the place of Arich Anpin, the Nukva of Zeir Anpin had gone to the place of chochma, the ten sefirot of Beriya had gone up to the place of bina of Atzilut. The ten sefirot of Yetzira had gone up to the place of the Zeir Anpin of Atzilut. The first four sefirot of Asiya had gone up to the place of the Nukva of Atzilut. The only parts that were not in Atzilut were the lower six sefirot of Asiya. They are like the aspect of the 'Ibbura Shel Ir' [' extension of the city'].

Zeir Anpin of Atzilut is called Eretz Yisrael…

We now know that Zeir Anpin of Atzilut is called "Eretz Yisrael". This is attained each Shabbat afternoon. Yet because of the sin of Adam there is no higher level to which they can ascend. Therefore we must conclude that the four mochin of Zeir Anpin are called "the four cubits of Eretz Yisrael". That is why it is said that "He who walks four cubits in Eretz Yisrael…" - meaning he who causes the entrance of the four mochin into the aspect of Zeir Anpin in the state of Gadlut - "is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come", for he has the Neshama of chochma and bina of Atzilut. Meaning that he has the capacity to draw forth the mochin into Zeir Anpin. Behold the mochin are the four names Havayah and the four Eh-yehs, the combination of which equals "amma" as explained above.

The eighth aspect of this is based on the well-known verse: "G‑d founded the land in wisdom [chochma]" (Proverbs 3:19). Behold, within chochma there exist ten sefirot. Each one is correlated to the name of Ab [72]. Those ten multiplied by their individual 72 have the same numerical value as the term "arba ammot [meaning 'four cubits']" (= 720). This is why the statement of "He who walks arba ammot in Eretz Yisrael (the Nukva of Zeir Anpin) is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come", for just as Zeir Anpin is called "A son of the World to Come" - for he rectifies the malchut through drawing forth the ten Ab's of chochma into her [Nukva], which is called "Eretz Yisrael" which is Zeir Anpin. For her only way of rectification is through the chochma.

The ninth aspect of this, is in accordance to the writings of the Arizal: The netzach-hod-yesod of Zeir Anpin …are the builders of the partzuf of Nukva…

'The entire structure of the Nukva of Zeir Anpin, is made up of the netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin, who are called "bonim" [Hebrew for "builders"]. As the verse says, "And all your children [in Hebrew, 'bnaich'] will be students of G‑d". Don't pronounce it "bnaich" ["your children"] rather "bonayich" [meaning "your builders"] (Talmud Berachot 64a). They are the builders of the partzuf of Nukva.

The first three joints of netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin make the chochma bina and daat of Nukva. The three middle joints of netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin make the chesed gevura and tiferet of Nukva. The three lower joints of netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin make the netzach hod yesod of Nukva. The lower third of the tiferet of Zeir Anpin makes the keter of Nukva. A person causes, through his observance of the mitzvot performed in Israel, the illumination of the light …to shine in Eretz Yisrael, who is the Malchut…

The idea is that the illumination of the tiferet netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin leaves its place to rectify and create the partzuf of Nukva, who is called "Eretz Yisrael". These four sefirot, tiferet netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin, are called the "four cubits". That is similar to that which the Sages teach us: "Since the day of the destruction of the Temple, all G‑d has in This World is the four cubits of 'halacha' [literally meaning 'Jewish law', but also referring to the word for 'walking']" (Talmud Berachot 8a). The intention here is that her partzuf was reduced, leaving her stature to reach only opposite the four sefirot - tiferet netzach hod yesod of his. Therefore the essential rectification that we do for her in our exile is to illuminate those four "ammot" [cubits] in the Malchut, which is called "Eretz Yisrael".

That is what the statement of the Sages, "He who walks four 'ammot' (cubits)…" means: A person causes, through his observance of the mitzvot performed in Israel [especially those that are dependent upon the Land of Israel], the illumination of the light of the "four cubits", namely tiferet netzach hod yesod of Zeir Anpin, to shine in Eretz Yisrael, who is the Malchut. He "…is guaranteed entrance to the World to Come" - in other words, he has elevated himself to the level of one who is called a "son of the World to Come", which is the level of Zeir Anpin, the son of bina, whose realm is called "the World to Come". For just as Zeir Anpin is constantly observing her and illuminating her, so too he who causes the walking of the "four cubits" in her, is similar to the husband of the Matron, who is called the "son of the World to Come".

To Die in the Holy Land

Chapter Twelve, Part 1

Those that die in Israel attain easy atonement.

There are four levels that will be discussed:

The highest level [of holiness] of those that dwell in Eretz Yisrael

The remainder of those dwelling in the Land.

The higher level of those that live outside the Land.

The remainder of those that reside outside the Land.

People of the highest caliber…don't really die….

The first category, are those whom can never really be justly described as dying, except for at the hands of G‑d. Upon those, the term used for their passing is "Geviya" [or "expiration"]. They could be compared to a person lying in his bed imprisoned in his house without neither exiting nor entering. So too, even their flesh of the people of the highest caliber shall remain secure, as in the case of Rebbe Elazar Barebbi Shimon who remained perfectly intact for a very long time without burial (Bava Metzia 84b); this was also the case as well for Achai Bar Yoshia, who didn't experience decomposition, as well as a few people in each generation, who have incorporated in themselves the stature of the Patriarchs [and Matriarchs]. This was accomplished by their sanctifying themselves in those areas that are permitted, even on the level of thought. Those types of people don't really die.

chanoch adds: According to legend the Martyrs of the Bar Kochba Revolution against Rome - their bodies remained unburied and also undecomposed for 7 years. There is also a prophecy to this effect that will be true if Has V' Shalom will occur through the Armageddon War.

Second to that level are those holy masters who pass away outside the Land, such as our father Jacob. That is why he commanded his sons to bury him immediately in Eretz Yisrael. For he knew that there would be no hindrance, for the External Forces had no protest to him. Similarly was the level of Rebbe. Upon his passing he held up his ten fingers [and proclaimed that he had derived no pleasure for all his material possessions]. A level akin to those was that of Moses, for whom G‑d himself took care of his burial. Again with Aaron and Miriam they all enjoyed a similarity of sorts, due to their holiness. They all were spared the decay in the earth of their physical bodies, for they had escaped the sin of Adam, totally purifying themselves from any remnant of it. They became transformed into a Chariot for the heavens. Thus their bodies exist, and they didn't die; rather they are called, "slumberers of the earth".

Those that died in Eretz Yisrael…have no accountability to the External Forces….

The third level, is that of the rest of those that died in Eretz Yisrael. They have no accountability to the External Forces, despite their partaking in the pleasures of the world. For their consumption was not provided for by them (by the External Forces), for Eretz Yisrael derives its nourishment and sustenance from the "hand" of G‑d. Therefore when they (the External Forces) come and accuse them of consuming from their sources, they will be able to answer that they didn't derive benefit from them. Nonetheless they will need to have their bodies decompose, for they did not remove themselves completely from the sin of Adam. Therefore they must be subjected to the punishment of "for you are earth". Upon death, their bodies decay, yet their souls are sanctified. That is the reason why they are impure and they transfer impurity through contact and transportation, which all stems from the first "shell" [kelipa] resulting from Adam.

This leaves room for a rectification for those that live abroad, to entirely avoid being ruled by the forces of impurity. For we have found many thousands of tzadikim that died abroad, yet they had a rectification, for they had absolved themselves from partaking in worldly pleasures their whole lives. For nourishment and physical pleasures [abroad] are controlled by the External Forces. [These tzadikim avoided this by] only deriving benefit from mitzvot, such as official meals in celebration of a wedding or circumcision or on Shabbat and Yom Tov. For in those circumstances, the forces of impurity have no grasp, for they are all protected by the Feminine force of the great depths, for all Shabbat food is derived only from holiness. So even if they are abroad, the forces of spiritual impurity have no control over them, for they will be able to say that they derived no benefit from them [the purely physical pleasures] even in a corporeal sense, only enough to support the body's function in enabling the soul to deal in Torah. This is as is stated, "A tzadik eats to satisfy his soul" (Proverbs 13:25), thus attaining a rectification despite their death outside of Eretz Yisrael.

If he were to die abroad, then his pure Neshama leaves him, leaving him with only that negative force….

The forth level applies to those who indulged in delicacies of the material world. Therefore, de-facto, they were under the influence of the evil influence. Even though they have to their credit Torah and good deeds, the spirit of evil affects them. Therefore, upon their deaths this spirit doesn't leave them right away and is only removed when their physical bodies return to earth. Being that this spirit resides in them at the time of their passing, even if the body was then brought to be buried in Eretz Yisrael it won't get rectified. But if a person were to live the vast majority of his life abroad, yet towards the end he came alive to Eretz Yisrael, he, upon arrival to Eretz Yisrael, is purged of this negative spirit.Yet if he were to die abroad, then his pure Neshama leaves him, leaving him with only that negative force. That force defiles his body.

That is the secret of the drop of poison that the Angel of Death uses on the body to cause death. That is why a corpse is considered the most powerful source of impurity. For, through the defilement and attachment of that evil spirit, the holy Neshama is forced to leave. Therefore, even if he is buried in Eretz Yisrael, he doesn't attain rectification, for his soul left his body whilst abroad. Upon those it is written, "And they shall come and defile My land" (Jeremiah 2:7).

Bones of the Righteous

Chapter Twelve, Part 2

Even after death, one must be careful not to contaminate the Land of Israel.

Who was greater than Joseph the Tzaddik, who was connected to Eretz Yisrael with the characteristics of Tzadik (i.e. yesod) and Tzedek ["righteousness"] and was never under the control of the evil spirit? Despite that, being that his soul departed from him outside of Eretz Yisrael, he didn't want to enter Eretz Yisrael until his flesh would decompose and all that would remain of him would be bones. For the forces of evil can only attach themselves to the flesh and blood, even of evildoers. How much more so regarding the tzadikim in their death.

Likewise all those that live outside Eretz Yisrael, even if they are such great tzadikim as Joseph was, they would still be better off living in Eretz Yisrael. If they don't come to live [in Israel], it is prohibited for their bodies to be brought to Eretz Yisrael posthumously, until their flesh has decomposed and all that remains of the physical are bones. Upon the bringing of bones, the verse "And you shall come and defile My land" doesn't apply. Rather it applies to bones that are brought with flesh. For after the flesh is decomposed, G‑d blows a spirit and it pushes out any evil forces, for G‑d has pity for the land. All this is written in the Zohar. (parashat Teruma p. 141)

For both the righteous and the wicked, there is benefit in the decomposition of the flesh….

Yet despite the above explanation we are left with a strong question. If so, then why did our patriarch Jacob, of blessed memory, command that his children bring his [entire] body to be buried, as opposed to Joseph 's bones? The answer is that Jacob was unique, nobody who ever existed could be compared to him, for he was complete, in all aspects of life. His twelve sons and the seventy souls were exactly parallel to the Divine Chariot of the Shechina. That's why he commanded them, that nobody, aside from his children, should touch his coffin, in order that no spirit of defilement shall descend upon him. (Bereishit Rabba 100:2)

And how did he attain this level? The answer is based on the following: Abraham, Isaac, and all the other tzadikim had not perfected the chaos resulting from Adam's sin, except in partial form (corresponding to a limb or parts of the body), whereas Jacob rectified the entire body [of Adams sin]. His whole essence was purged of any forces of defilement. The putridity of the primordial snake was expelled from him, manifested by his attaining the blessing [from Isaac] and the birth-rite [from Esau] and subjugated the angel 'Satan' (as mentioned in parashat Toldot). Therefore the spirit of evil and the defilement of the primordial snake were absolutely removed from him. That is why he had no fear at all.

Another proof explained in the Zohar is that for both the righteous and the wicked, there is benefit in the decomposition of the flesh. For the individual won't merit entering into his own domain until his physical body disintegrates. This raises a question as to why Joseph ordered that Jacob be embalmed. Yet with what we have mentioned above there is no problem, for Jacob didn't need to have his flesh decayed; on the contrary he was to remain totally intact, for he embodied absolute and complete pristine holiness.

Know, that all of the sin of Adam, the physical existence, it's actions and pleasures - all stem from the primordial snake. For through the Sin, they became physical, after being spiritual with an intellectual connection to the wisdom of G‑d. Therefore an wise person who pushes off all lusts and only partakes of the material world his bare necessities [without intention for the pleasures involved], will not be infected by physical impurity, as well as ailments of the physical nature. The only cause of his death stems from the poison of the Snake, that has been transferred down to him from the sin of Adam, not his own shortcomings. Nonetheless, those people who indulge in the pleasures of this world and its lusts add to the poison of the Snake. It's as if they are renewing within themselves the sin of Adam. Therefore they die their own deaths.

Straight Path to Heaven

Chapter Twelve, Part 3

While departing this world, all Jewish souls ascend via the Land of Israel.

There are two types of spiritual impurity. One is the poison of the Snake. From that nobody is spared except for Hanoch, Elijah, and a few the others who entered the spiritual Gan Eden alive. (Derech Eretz Zuta) That impurity is very "thin" and doesn't damage the soul, rather it makes the separation of body and soul difficult, each person in accordance with his strengths and merits.

All those who die in Eretz Yisrael, their souls ascend in a straight path….

The second impurity, is the type that chases after a person after death. It is a "thick" impurity, which encourages a person to pursue the fulfillment of his materialistic desires, even in a permissible way. Such as indulgence in food, sleeping late in the morning, and excessive intimate relations all of the above being done to satisfy his physical desires. They all turn to the venom of the Primordial Snake in addition to the poison that was incurred from the sin of Adam. The more a person adds to those pursuits the stronger the power of the kelipa. Subsequently his flesh will pain him greatly. That is the secret of those who avoided that type of impurity such as Rebbe, who held up his ten fingers and declared that he hadn't derived pleasure [with the intent of physical for the sake of physical] from this world even the amount of his small finger. (Ketubot 104a) And also Rebbe Elazar, who declared of himself the verse, "Even my flesh shall rest in security" (Psalms 16:9). (Baba Metzia 83b)

It is known that regarding all those who die in Eretz Yisrael, their souls ascend in a straight path; there the thin veil accepts them. Yet even those who died abroad also pass through this veil, yet tremendous pains accompany them. The circuitous route they must take in order to reach Eretz Yisrael causes that. That route entails being cast about by the kelipot and [spiritual] rulers of each country, until they finally reach the place of the holiness.

Lands outside of Israel don't have the strength to tolerate their holiness….

Behold, in the same fashion that Eretz Yisrael vomits out and expels the non-Jews, (as is stated in the Zohar parashat Teruma 141a, "And it pushes them out, and they float about and are recycled until they leave the Holy Land and are led in circles by there evilness") so, too, the lands outside of Israel expel those souls of the Jews, for lands outside of Israel don't have the strength to tolerate their holiness. Therefore those souls must travail until it reaches the entrance of Eretz Yisrael and then it ascends. The intention of the above is to teach us that the kelipot cannot push the Jew from Eretz Yisrael, only physically - not spiritually.

Eretz Yisrael is compared to the Garden of Eden whereas the lands outside Israel are likened to Gehinom….

Furthermore, Eretz Yisrael is compared to Gan Eden, whereas the lands outside Israel are likened to Gehinom. This is why our Rabbis of Blessed memory taught: In the future, Gan Eden will say, "I have no desire for the evildoers" as the verse says, "And I shall shake the evildoers from her" (Job 38:13), which implies even the physical bodies of the evildoers. And Gehinom says, "I have no desire for the tzadikim", which implies even their physical bodies, for those bodies have been purified and Gehinom (i.e. the lands outside Israel) can not tolerate the holiness in its midst. Therefore all those Jews who died outside the Land of Israel just roll in subterranean tunnels till they reach Eretz Yisrael. Only then can they stand up for Resurrection of the Dead.

Once I clarified this concept, and I must apply it to understanding a statement of the Talmud: "The Holy One, Blessed Be He, grabbed Jeroboam by his garments, and told him, 'Return to yourself.'" (Sanhedrin 102a)

The first question is why is G‑d conversing with, and holding the clothes of Jeroboam (who was not only a sinner, but one who causes others to sin)? The answer lies in the following concept: Aside from the different levels of soul (Neshama, Ruach, Nefesh) each person has a garment for his Nefesh. This exists in between his Nefesh and his body. This is the concept of Adam's realization of his nakedness after his sin; before the sin he was in Gan Eden, where their souls were enclothed with these special garments.

It is the custom of the Snake to encircle the walls of Gan Eden a few times a week….

Behold it is the custom of the Snake to encircle the walls of Gan Eden a few times a week. This is done to show his greatness, as well as to entice those who dwell therein. Nonetheless, those that recognize him for what he is pay no heed to him at all. Yet those who follow his temptations end up losing their special garments to the Snake where they continue naively in his wake. This is what had happened to Adam and Eve; their special garments left them and pursued the Snake. That is what is meant when the Torah states, "And they knew that they were naked." (Gen. 3:7) For before the Sin, those garments adorned them. That was the garment [not the material garment] of Jeroboam that G‑d grabbed while imploring him to repent. This is the deeper meaning of the verse: "The garments of the treasonous have been dealt with treacherously". A more lengthy discourse can be found in the "Sefer Gilgulim" chapter 70.

[An interjection from my beloved RaMaZ, Rabbi Moshe Zaccutto:]

Jeroboam was from the root soul of Cain (who stems from the mystery of the "Tzelem", which has a numerical value of 160). He was overpowered by the "Sayagim" [the adhesions], that are totally "Sag" [Hebrew for "dross", as in Psalms 53:4]. Then, by switching the order of the letters, they are transformed to "gas" [Hebrew for "arrogant"] spirit. Then ascended the internality [the "Sag" = 63] of the Supernal Pleasance ["Noam" = 166], and that leaves us with the word "egel" [ = 103, Hebrew for "calf", as in "golden calf"]. Being that he was from two aspects of the name Eh-yeh spelled out with yuds [ = 161] which are the depth of the two Tzelems, they equal the numerical value of "Jeroboam" [ = 322]. That is why Jeroboam had two "Egels" [golden calves] erected. Nonetheless, a sin can not extinguish his Torah, which is his "new garment" (Sanhedrin 102a). [The word for "new" used here, "hachadasha", has the numerical value of 322, also.]

That is why G‑d told him, "Return to yourself," the explanation of which is, "Return and replace inside yourself, in your essential being, lest you prepare it and a tzadik shall wear it. For if you do then 'I and the son of Jesse will stroll in Gan Eden'. The explanation of this is that "Ben Yishai" [Hebrew for "the son of Jesse" is the secret of two times "E-l" [each = 31], based on the mystery of "Hekef" [meaning "surrounding" = 185]. The numerical value of "and Ben Yishai" equals 378, for there are the roots of "Malbush" ["clothing", = 378] and "Chashmal" [ = 378]. And you from the two 161's [spellings out of Eh-yeh with yuds] that from we get two "E-l"s as is known. Then they will tour "Gan Eden" [ = 124], which represents the mystery of the four times "E-l" [each 31] that shines from the "Ohr P'nei E-l" ["light of the face of G‑d", = 378] as is known from the verse "In the face ["p'nei"] of your elders stand up" (Lev. 19:32). The tour is the delight [in Hebrew, "sha'ashua"]. They are the four [times the spelling-out of " E-l", based on "hekef"] from above with the numerical value of " shin ayin shin ayin" [ = 740]. Yet, being that G‑d told Jeroboam that Ben Yishai [referring to David] will be at the head [for he was already rectified], he didn't want to return and he was castigated.

In the future Gehinom will scream, I have no desire for the completely righteous….

Based on the above, we can understand a teaching from our sages about Moses. He was an Hebrew, yet his garments were of an Egyptian. This was from the mystery of the ark [in Hebrew, "teiva"] in which he was placed, which was the secret of "Batya" [which has the same letters as "teiva"]. And the enlightened shall comprehend.

Further we must know that the soul when it departs from this world, it must pass through and be dunked into the Dinor [fire] river - This river is described be our sages as being formed from the sweat of the supernal angelic creatures, and flows down upon the heads of the evildoers in Gehinom (Chagiga 13b -. For behold, even the angels when they must descend to this world to perform their duties, upon their return they must also be dunked in the Dinor River. What happens to the soul during the dunking is dependent on each one's level.

In regards to this verse (apparently Daniel 7:10), that when a completely righteous person from the highest caliber passes through the river, needless to say he is not damaged in any way, so much so that he wouldn't feel the heat from those burning flames. Rather on the contrary, for him the river is transformed into a flowing spring of living waters, from which this righteous person derives pleasure.

This is what is meant by the verse "They who pass in the valley of weeping" (Psalms 84:7), the valley refers to the river or even to Gehinom itself. "Into a spring they shall transform it" (ibid.). Not only that, but even, "Also the blessings shall be encloaked by the 'moreh'" (ibid.). That is understood to mean that the blessings and gifts will enclothe one that passes through if he is a "moreh", an instructor of the Torah laws. From this we can understand a statement of the Sages that stipulates that a righteous person passing through Gehinom can take out some souls with himself. After the righteous person enclothes himself with these souls, then "they shall go from strength to strength" (ibid.), the numerical value of which equals "Etz HaChaim" [Hebrew for "Tree of Life" = 233]. To the Tree of Life goes the soul of the righteous with these clothes. He travels from one yeshiva to another, in a fashion that gives merits to those souls because of him. They are thus (as the garments of the tzadik) able to enter realms that on their own merit they wouldn't gain admittance. That is why the verse "they shall go" (ibid.) is in the plural form. This is also the understanding of the verse "the fruit of the righteous is the Tree of Life" (Proverbs 11:30). In other words, through the good deeds he had performed he has the merit to "go from strength to strength" (Psalms 84:8), with the Tree of Life.

Yet, "The wise man acquires souls" (Proverbs 11:30). In other words "He who passes through the valley of tears" (Psalms 84:7), in order to take souls, he must be a wise man as in the verse, "the blessings shall encloak the moreh'" (ibid.) The verse continues, "…and will appear before the Lord in Zion" this is in singular form. That indicates that when the righteous soul ascends to a higher level, as in "to appear before G‑d in Zion", then he must remove that garment. For it is known, "One mustn't appear before the King in a garment of sackcloth" (Esther 4:2). That is why the phrase "will appear" is in the singular form. (Thus far is from Rabbi Chaim Vital, of blessed memory.)

From this we can gain a very clear understanding of the statement of the Sages: "In the future Gehinom will scream, 'I have no desire for the completely righteous.'" The reason is quite obvious, for the completely righteous enter Gehinom the take out with them the souls of many evil-doers. And Gan Eden screams, "I have no desire for the evildoers," who are the angel Sama'el and the Snake, for they encircle the walls of Gan Eden twice a week, in an attempt to entice and lure away those garments of the souls.

chanoch adds: Why does Satan circle the Gan Eden? Because even in heaven people are aware that they were attracted to physical pleasures and they still have memories of fondness for those pleasures. These souls are closest to the walls.

Agents of a Foreign Death

Chapter Twelve, Part 4

At least those who die in Israel do so by the sword of G-d.

Let us resume discussing the types of death in Eretz Yisrael and abroad. There are three main types.

Slaughtering with a blemished knife results in [a category in Jewish law rendering food unkosher referred to as] "nevayla". This happens to those who are killed by 'Satan' [the Angel of Death], who uses a blemished knife. There are two types of blemishes in a slaughtering knife: 1) "Ogrot" [meaning "jagged"] and 2) "Mesuchsachot" [meaning smooth in one direction yet jagged in the other]; that knife doesn't kill those who die in Eretz Yisrael, rather they get killed with the sword of G‑d.

Yet abroad, the angel literally grabs him precisely as a snake….

This happens to the those ignorant of Torah ["amei ha'aretz", literally, "people of the land"], who lived as animals, therefore they need to gain atonement through slaughtering. This is accomplished through the pain of death. This is alluded to in the verse, "And the land shall atone for the nation [ami ha'aretz]" (Deut. 32:43) yet their death is done by the means of a "kosher" angel. This angel goes up and acquires permission, then descends and grabs the Neshama, somewhat like a snake. Yet abroad, the angel literally grabs him precisely as a snake.

"Ogr--" is from the root of Ogr-- bat Machal-- [a female demonic force]; she causes blemishes to the soul from all directions. She is most distressing for mankind to experience. This is also referred to as "nevayla" [improperly slaughtered kosher animal] hinting to: "neval - Y-a [G‑d]". "Neval" [in the male form] is 'Satan', whilst "Nevala" [in the female form] is Lil-- [basically the queen of all demonic forces, also the wife of 'Satan']. This is the Ogr-- that gathers together all the soldiers of defilement, she is the mother of demons, definitely jagged; through her are contaminated all those who excite themselves for naught. She collects all those wasted drops and uses them for her own wishes. She impregnates herself from them and gives birth to these demented sons, may G‑d save us. She mutilates and causes a nevayla.

Torah scholars that toil in…the Tree of Life, need no slaughtering….

Mesuchsechet is difficult yet not so extreme, for it has a side of purity to it despite its distortion of man. Her repentance is very difficult; she grasps and defiles the soul from only one side.

Both these knives create a nevayla. Therefore their slaughtering results in real death, for 'Satan' and the primordial Snake are in the blade, and his flesh becomes defiled for it has been taken hold of by the External Forces.

Yet Torah scholars that toil in G‑d's Torah, which is the Tree of Life, need no slaughtering. Rather they are collected to G‑d in Zion. In other words, the Shechina appears to them in the contingency of all the tzadikim in Gan Eden. The Torah scholar lifts himself above the physical and material and is collected to his nation with the Shechina. His being gathered towards the glory of G‑d frees him. The concept of the sea [in Hebrew, "yam"] is the notion of the Sea of Torah. His being collected from the "sea" is possible only by interrupting his Torah learning. As can be seen by the deaths of Rabba bar Nachmani (Baba Metzia 86 a) and King David (Shabbat 31) as well as those mentioned in tractate Moed Katan 28a [where we see that Rav Chisda couldn't be taken by the angel of death for he never stopped learning].

Reciting Shema at bedtime… distances the External Forces from attacking the soul while it ascends….

'Satan' is called the "Mota Ravreva" ["Great Death" in Aramaic] and was created on the second day of Creation, while Lil-- is called the "Mota Zutrata" ["Smaller Death"] and was created on the fourth day of Creation. Yet he who is a Torah scholar can not be taken by either. Rather G‑d takes his soul in a manner similar to that of a kiss. This is what is meant by the verse, "An illegitimate child [in Hebrew, 'mamzer'] shall not enter the congregation of G‑d". For the word "mamzer" spells the beginning letters of "Mota Ravreva" and "Mota Zutrasa". They shall not enter the congregation of G‑d (which are the tzadikim). Rather they [Torah scholars] die be means of the kiss of G‑d.

In regards to death, outside Eretz Yisrael it is accomplished by the Angel of Death, whereas in Israel it comes about via a holy force. The same rules will apply to sleeping. For one who sleeps away from Israel, enters that state with kelipot and the External Forces, whereas in Eretz Yisrael it is through holiness, for the kelipot are prohibited from entering Eretz Yisrael (as per Zohar parashat Teruma). Just like death in Israel enables tranquility for the soul leading to ascension to Gan Eden, so too sleep is for the tranquility of the soul, that it should cleave to holiness and to revel and bask in the sweet supernal light.

Just as evildoers, through their sins and death, their souls are cast aside and cut off from holiness, the same is true during their lifetimes. That's why evildoers are called "dead" whilst they are alive, only that there is a vast difference between the two types of deaths. In real death, the External Forces rule over the soul to punish her in accordance to her evilness; in death during life, however, there exists a protection preventing the External Forces from controlling the soul, yet the External Forces still are able to pester the soul. This is a benefit of reciting Shema at bedtime, for it distances the External Forces from attacking the soul while it ascends for the night.

There exists an angel for each and every soul, and the level of each angel corresponds to the level of the soul that they are going to take….

Rabbi Chaim Vital wrote that there exist two angels who are in charge of death. The one in charge of death outside of Israel is named "Satan"; the one in charge of death within Eretz Yisrael is called "Gabriel". Each of them has great armies, comprising of angels who are called "angels of death". Yet the two of them are both servants to Meta‑tron. Each day G‑d informs Meta‑tron of who and how many have been sentenced to death. In turn Meta‑tron goes and commands 'Satan' his servant to take the souls of those sentenced to death on that day outside of Eretz Yisrael; likewise he commands Gabriel to go and remove the souls of those who had been sentenced to death in Eretz Yisrael.

Nonetheless those two have never taken a soul themselves. Rather they send one of their troops to perform the deed instead, for there exists an angel for each and every soul. And the level of each angel corresponds to the level of the soul that they are going to take. After completing the mission and handing over the newly removed soul to their boss, that angel is voided from the world. For the sole purpose of the angel's existence was to remove the soul from that person. This is as our Sages taught in regards to the verse, "As shall do the bees". (Deut. 1:44) For the life of the bee is dependant upon its stinger when lodged in the flesh of a person. Shortly after the sting she dies, nonetheless she is happy that she caused pain to the person. Thus all angels of death are happy in their removing the soul of the person, thinking how great it is to be granted the ability to take the soul from a descendent of the Holy Nation.

Inheritance of Jacob

Chapter Twelve, Part 5

The angel of destruction has no real power in Israel.

According to what we have said previously, namely that 'Satan' has no power to remove a Jewish soul in Eretz Yisrael. That concept shall smooth out a seemingly difficult saying of the Sages: "Regarding the verse 'The land upon which you [Jacob] lay, I [G‑d] am giving to you and your descendents,' (Gen. 28:13) what kind of great gift is the space of four cubits as an inheritance? Rather Rav Yitzchak teaches that the true meaning of this verse is as follows: G‑d folded the entire land of Israel underneath Jacob to indicate to him that the conquest of the entire land will be as simple as conquering four cubits." (Chullin 91b) From here we should be exacting and deduce that if G‑d had not folded the land underneath Jacob, then we wouldn't be able to conquer it. If that is so, what happened to the promise G‑d made to Abraham at the Covenant Between the Parts? As it says, "On that day G‑d made a covenant with Abraham saying, 'For your descendents I have given the land.'" (Gen. 15:18) It is possible to say that what G‑d promised to Jacob was that his children will eternally inherit the land, yet conquering it might be accomplished with much strife and difficulty. Therefore it was imperative that G‑d would promise the inheritance through ease.

chanoch adds: This last sentence implies that the call to move to the Land of Israel by the orthodox Rabbi's of this generation is premature.

Yet still a question arises: Couldn't G‑d have made that same promise through a mere statement? What was the necessity of folding up the land underneath Jacob?

The intention of folding the entire land of Israel under Jacob was to envelope the Malchut in its garments….

Based on the secret [sod] level of Torah interpretation, we can say as follows: "And he touched the "makom" [Hebrew for 'place'] and rested there". (Gen. 28:11) That night Jacob touched [or attained] and connected to the level of Malchut of Atzilut, which is known as "Makom". For the letters that are used to spell out "malchut" have the same numerical value as "makom". That realm is also known as "Eretz Yisrael Zuta [small]". Its place in the stellar world of partzufim is four cubits behind Zeir Anpin, corresponding to tiferet, netzach, hod, and yesod. Likewise Jacob (the partzuf of Yaakov) stands in front of Zeir Anpin, at the level that corresponds to those four as well. Yet when the patriarch Jacob connected with the Makom, it became conquered underneath him as the secret of the Yichud [unification]. That is why G‑d told him that the land upon which he lays shall be given to him; just as in marriage, the pair connect eternally.

"…[to him] and to 'zaro' [Hebrew for 'his descendants'] - as in the verse "A light is 'zarua' [Hebrew for 'sown'] for the righteous," (Psalms 97:12) as per the explanation of the children of Rav Safra. (Zohar parashat Teruma p. 187) The intention of folding the entire land of Israel under Jacob was to envelope the Malchut in its garments.

Her [Malchut's] most external garments are from the aspect of the Neshama of Asiya; the middle garments are from the aspect of the Neshama of Yetzira; the innermost garments are from the aspect of the Neshama of Beriya. Yet her "Ten Lights" remain in Atzilut. They are the ten sefirot of Mah with its ten lights. The thirty garments that descend they are from the aspect of Ban.

The one who has lost something is the one who goes searching for it….

Just as the one who has lost something is the one who goes searching for it, the purpose of the descent is to refine the refinement of the vessels of Ban that had shattered and to re-elevate them to their roots. This is what the idea of the land of Israel stretching out until it is four hundred miles square means. This is so, for each sefira is comprised of its own ten. Behold, the three worlds Beriya, Yetzira and Asiya make up three hundred miles, and the ten sefirot of Mah that remain in Atzilut are also comprised of their own ten, giving us the total of four hundred square cubits as the area of Eretz Yisrael.

What did G‑d do? He folded up the thirty vessels one atop the other, and then brought them face to face with Jacob opposite his four cubits which represent his tiferet, netzach, hod, and yesod. Then they all united. That is the meaning of "And he [Jacob] lay down in that place", for we would really desire that all her [Malchut's] thirty sefirot would be enough that she could stand next to Zeir Anpin, face to face.

This is the mystery of the statement "it was folded that it should be as easy to conquer as four cubits": that it should be easy for his descendants to rectify her [the malchut and the land], similar to the rectification of tiferet, netzach, hod, yesod of Zeir Anpin himself.

This Malchut at times connects with Jacob at the stage of "Katnut" [immaturity], at times with Yeshurun during the stage of "Yenika" [nursing], and with Yisrael at the stage of Gadlut [maturity], as we shall discuss later, G‑d willing, in the second book about the Mishna of "The ten sanctifications" [Ed.: not yet available]. This instructs us that Eretz Yisrael is the land in which is planted the above-mentioned three [Yisrael, Yeshurun, and Yaakov], whose numerical value equals "Eretz" [1290, with alef meaning "1000"]; the ending letters of those three spell "Lavan" [Hebrew for "Laban"], which indicates to us that through the house of Laban, Jacob [Yaakov] merited to ascend to the level of Yisrael and Yeshurun. That was accomplished by his marrying Rachel and Leah.

Yet in similar fashion, according to the book Galya Razya by Rav Eliezer from Garmiza [known as the "Rokeach"], we can understand why G‑d folded up the entire land under Jacob:

Note: Galya Razya Some authorities surmise the book to have authored by Rabbi Avraham, a student of the Arizal.

"When G‑d saw that his children would sin and perish from the world, G‑d, being that he desires that no soul of the Jews be lost, established circumcision upon the flesh of all males. If a person fails to perform this rite he has cut himself off of the nation. He also established reincarnation, to rectify oneself, in order to return to its original source.

'Satan'…requested from G‑d to grant him permission to make a covenant with Jacob….

At that moment, 'Satan' and his seventy generals gathered before G‑d. They said, "Master of the world, we have also been formed by the work of Your hands, You are the father for all creatures. Just as You have established a path of rectification for the souls of the Jews by means of reincarnation that each one will ultimately receive a portion of the World to Come, so too do for us. What did You see that you chose the seed of Abraham over us?

At that moment G‑d responds to them, "Have you done for me as Abraham did? Abraham recognized me even from his youth. He lovingly and willingly subjected himself to enter the fiery furnace for Me, yet you saw how I saved him from you and from the fiery furnace and nonetheless you didn't believe Me to sanctify Me. Therefore, from here and onwards don't say a word, neither positive nor negative. 'Satan' responds, "The daughters are my daughters and the sons are my sons, and all you see belongs to me. For I cause them to have a desire for intimacy, Therefore I am the ultimate cause of their creation."

Note: 'Satan' is the root of the soul of Laban, as well as the root of Esau and Haman as we shall see shortly.

G‑d replies, "Evil-one, being that I had known that you would say such vile things, I preempted you and commanded Abraham to circumcise his whole household. Further I wrote in the Torah, 'Any uncircumcised man who doesn't remove his foreskin shall be cut off from his nation' (Gen. 17:14); your portion shall be the foreskin, being that you arouse lust."

When 'Satan' saw that the judgement wasn't in his favor, he requested from G‑d to grant him permission to make a covenant with Jacob, saying, "In the future he [Jacob] shall be my son-in-law, I ['Satan'] will give him my daughters as wives and we shall live in peace together." At that point G‑d granted him permission to give his daughters to Jacob as wives.

Jacob began crying and established the Evening Prayer through his tears….

Then ['Satan' left the heavenly courthouse in a similar fashion to the way that his descendent Haman Left the palace of Ahasuerus. As it says,] "And Haman left with happiness and content of heart." (Esther 4:9) Then 'Satan' waited until the time when Isaac and Rebecca sent Jacob to Paden Aram. He plotted to follow him and kill him for he was enraged with him in regards to Jacob's deceiving Esau out of the blessing and birth rite, especially after Isaac ratified it, as it says, "And the Lord Sha-dai shall bless you…." (Gen. 28:3) Therefore, what did he do? As soon as Jacob left Beer Sheva, 'Satan' sent Elifaz to confront Jacob. Elifaz caught Jacob on that very day and took every thing that Jacob owned. This is why the verse "And Jacob left Beer Sheva and went to Haran" (Gen. 28:10), the comma [or pause] indicates that each was its own episode. This also indicates to us that 'Satan' is associated with "Charon Af" [meaning the characteristic of rage, a play on the name "Haran"] because of his anger. This was displayed by his going out to exact vengeance upon Jacob.

We see that after the sun had set on Jacob he was overcome with fear, becauase he was left all alone in a field at night; as we know, a Torah scholar requires guarding. At that point Jacob began crying and established the Evening Prayer through his tears. Upon viewing Jacob's fear and humility, 'Satan' left him, causing him no harm. Thus far the book Galia Razia.

In my opinion the above is very far-fetched, for just because it seemed that Jacob was afraid, 'Satan' decided to leave him alone? On the contrary, when one is afraid then his heavenly assistance is worsened and it is very easy to do away with him, as it is said, "When the ox falls sharpen the knife." (Shabbat 32a) Especially having such a deep-seated hatred towards Jacob from the day he was born, how could he be transformed into pitying him right when he had fallen into his hands? Furthermore, does 'Satan' even have the capacity for pity, for all bile and fury dwell within him?

'Satan' has no power over a Jew in Eretz Yisrael….

We can resolve this problem with what we had mentioned previously. Namely, being that 'Satan' has no power over a Jew in Eretz Yisrael, G‑d saw a way to protect Jacob. What did he do? He folded the entire land of Israel underneath Jacob, which effectively prevented 'Satan' from harming Jacob. That caused 'Satan' to grind his teeth at Jacob trying to figure a way to harm him. Especially after G‑d had shown Jacob all he promises (by means of the dream with the angels and the ladder), 'Satan' also saw part of Jacob promises. This enraged him even more. For all was futile. That is why the next morning when Jacob got up the Torah describes it as, "And Jacob lifted his feet and traveled to the land of the sons of Kedem." (Gen. 29:1) The term of lifting feet implies the alacrity and joy Jacob was feeling after receiving the promises and reassurances from G‑d. As our sages say, "the belly carries the feet" (Bereishit Rabba 70:8), meaning that when Jacob received the good tidings from G‑d his heart was elevated and lifted his feet. When the verse states, "...And he traveled..", it is preceded by a comma [or pause]. That indicates to us that there are two distinct occurrences: one was Jacob's joyous departure, the other was 'Satan''s journey to the land of the sons of Kedem, where he tried attaining advice from the two fallen angels Aza and Aza'el as to how to destroy Jacob .

According to the above, we must try to understand what message G‑d was conveying to Jacob by showing him the vision of the Ladder.

Apparently, when G‑d saw the fear of 'Satan' upon Jacob, He wanted to show Jacob the truth about the power of 'Satan'. Therefore G‑d showed him the Ladder [in Hebrew, "Sulam" = 130 plus one for the kollel] whose numerical value equals that of "'Satan'" [= 131], for 'Satan' is the symbol of denying the unity of G‑d.

Yet G‑d was revealing to Jacob that even though 'Satan' (i.e. the "sulam"/"ladder") is on the earth attempting to eliminate you, nonetheless "his head reaches heaven" (ibid.). This means that while 'Satan''s head is rooted in the heavens, he's ultimately controlled by G‑d and has no permission to do neither good nor bad to you. His head reaches the angel Meta‑tron in the heavens; he has no permission to take any so/ul without the permission of Meta‑tron.

chanoch adds: And we learned earlier that Meta-tron has no permission without receiving the death notice from HaShem Himself.

Furthermore when the verse says, "The angels were ascending and descending upon it", "it" refers to Meta‑tron. In other words 'Satan' has no permission in Eretz Yisrael, rather it is Gabriel who was granted permission. This is why the Torah uses the term "Malachei Elokim" ["Angels of G‑d"], For "Elokim" implies the quality of judgment, and Gabriel and 'Satan' are both angels of judgment. "Ascending " - to prosecute and "descending" - to take the soul. "Upon it" - with the permission of Meta‑tron, who is the ruler of the six days of the week.

"And behold G‑d was standing above of him (Meta‑tron)" - this was to teach us not to make the same mistake that Elisha ben Avuya made. For Elisha mistook Meta‑tron as an independent power (G‑d forbid). Therefore, when you see all the heavenly angels performing the bidding of Meta‑tron, taking the quota of souls he assigns them, don't think that it is his independent decision. For "G‑d is standing above him", and therefore don't be afraid, for, "Behold I am with you and I shall guard you wherever you shall go".

Even though Michael came and wrestled with Jacob, he is just one of the seventy names of Meta‑tron. "And he bruised him in the indent of the hip", this happened when Jacob refused to let go of Michael. The forces of Michael wanted to endanger Jacob, and at that point G‑d appeared, frightening the hosts of Michael, yet simultaneously weakening Jacob. This gave Michael the opportunity to break free. He did this by bruising Jacob in his hip.

At that point, G‑d rebuked Michael saying, "Nice job. You've just rendered my High Priest invalid for service." Immediately Michael set out to find Raphael [the angel of healing] to come and heal Jacob. After that, "And Jacob lifted his feet", implying that Jacob was elated at the news of his elevated stature, whereas 'Satan' went to seek council from Nofel and Giluyi Aynayim, as to how to contend with Jacob. The advice he received was to go to Laban and convince him to give his daughters to Jacob.

Immediately, 'Satan' went to Laban's house and enclothed himself in the terafim [idols] of Laban. When Jacob made it to Laban's house empty handed, Laban didn't want to receive him, for Laban remembered how Jacob's grandfather's servant [Eliezer] had brought such lavish gifts when looking for a wife for Isaac. Laban went to the terafim for advice. 'Satan', through the terafim responded, "Don't send him away, rather give your daughters to him so that they shall rule over him, he will thus be subjugated to the kelipot and we'll be able to do what ever we want with him." Hence Laban returned to Jacob saying, "Just because we are related should you work without pay? Tell me your wages." (Gen. 29:15) Jacob responded that he only wanted to marry Rachel. Subsequently, he married both of Laban's daughters.

Laban was under the impression that his daughters sided with him and would be victorious over Jacob. Yet G‑d foiled his plans, and in the very same pot Laban planned to boil-up Jacob, he himself got boiled in. (His daughters became completely righteous, giving birth to 12 tribes without flaw.) That's how the advice of the general opposite holiness can reflect all ones' strategies back upon the planner. That's what is meant by the verse. "Your ruiners and your destroyers shall emerge from you." (Isaiah 49:17) Laban thought his daughters would seduce Jacob to follow Laban's gods, yet they rebelled against their father and his gods, as is says, "And they said we have no more portion in our fathers' house". (Gen. 31:14)

chanoch adds: Do you think that Jacob wrestled with Michael? Remember many Kabbalah authors will conceal some aspect so that only the knowledgeable will be able to understand.

Retrieving Angels

Chapter Twelve, Part 6

Kabbalah teaches that the servants of the angels of death and judgment retrieve dead souls.

Regarding our previous topic [on the means through which one's soul is "collected" after death], the angels Gabriel and the 'Satan' themselves don't take the [departed] soul, rather they send an underling. These forces are known to have been created from the particles that fell during the Shattering of the Vessels. Their root is in the name of Sag. From there comes the Evil Inclination for each individual.

….as soon as they accomplish their mission they disappear.

The initials of Satan and Gabriel are Sag, that is, the essence of the verse, "they were all dross [in Hebrew, 'Sag']". (Psalms 53:4) In other words, each one that takes people's souls is of the servants of Sag. And as soon as they accomplish their mission they disappear. As is stated, "…together they have become depraved", (ibid.) for both the man and his Evil Inclination die together. [As the verse declares,] "There is no doer of good, there remains not even one", being that the Angel of Death, the Evil Inclination, and the Satan are one in the same, therefore there is no good. In other words, each of them entice for bad, for he will seduce, then prosecute and then take the soul, simultaneously ending his own existence. That is what is meant by the verse "There remains not even one": (ibid.) even the angels cease to exist. This is true despite the fact that he himself knows and even sees from others before him that he will terminally perish as soon as the soul is taken from the Jew. The reason for this is that they are only satisfied with the soul of one Jew, much more that with a thousand gentiles.