Chapter Nine

In regard to the Holy One, blessed be He, however, the level of wisdom - which [in all created beings] is the beginning of thought and its genesis - is to Him the final stage of action; i.e., in relation to the Holy One, blessed be He, [wisdom] is considered as if it were the quality and level of action, as it is written, [1] "You have made them all with wisdom."

[At first glance, it would seem more appropriate for the verse to have said something such as "You have `intellected' them all." Why instead does it state, "You have made ...." when speaking of wisdom?]

That is to say that [wisdom relative to Him] is as the quality of the life-force in physical and material action is in relation to the quality of the life-force of wisdom, [wisdom being] the beginning and source of the life-force in man and all the physical creatures.

[I.e., the life-force of physicality is incomparably lower than wisdom, which is the source of all life-force].

[For the life-force of physicality] is as nothing in comparison with the life-force in the letters of speech, which [in turn] is as nothing compared to the life-force in the letters of thought, which [in turn] is as nothing in comparison to the life-force and level of the emotive attributes from which this thought is derived, which [in turn] is as nothing in comparison to the life-force and level and degree of wisdom, understanding and knowledge, the source of the emotive attributes.

[For, as explained earlier, all letters of thought emanate from some emotion which brings them into being, so that the individual concerned should think these particular letters. Clearly, the life-force of these letters of thought bears no comparison to the life-force of the emotions from whence these letters emanate.

Thus, from the level of action to the lofty level of wisdom in the World of Atzilut there are but five levels, each of which is of no account in comparison to the level above it.

Clearly, then, the lowest level of action is surely of absolutely no account in comparison to the highest level, which is the level of wisdom in the World of Atzilut.

And just as action is infinitely distant from the wisdom of Atzilut], - exactly so is the quality and level of wisdom, the beginning and source of the life-force in all the worlds.

[For we are speaking here of the Sefirah of Chochmah of the World of Atzilut, which is the source of the entire World of Atzilut, the highest of all the worlds. As such it is also the source of all the worlds below it.

Now this level of wisdom is as nothing] - in relation to the Holy One, blessed be He, in His Glory and Essence, Who is elevated and exalted by myriads of degrees of elevation more than the quality of wisdom is elevated over the quality of the life-force in action.

For this is an elevation of only five degrees, namely, the levels of action, speech, thought, the emotive attributes, and intellect.

The Holy One, blessed be He, however, is "high and exalted" above the level of wisdom by infinite myriads of such degrees.

[This being so, why do we compare the distance of wisdom from G-d to the distance of action from wisdom, when in actuality wisdom is infinitely more distant from Him?]

   

Notes:

1. (Back to text) Tehillim 104:24.