Kabbalah Library

37. It is written, “And of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden.” It is a place where the spirits of people are concealed, the place called the “treasury of the souls.” It is with the Creator, and He said to them, “Do not try to know how the spirits are separated from My honorable coupling.”

The souls are born from the coupling of ZA and Malchut. Hence, there are males and there are females among the souls. The male light is bestowed from above downward, in GAR, and the female light is bestowed only from below upward, in VAK.

This is why Adam HaRishon was commanded not to look at the exit of the souls from Malchut, which are the tree within the garden, since he might adhere to male souls, and he, too, will draw illumination of Hochma from that coupling from above downward in a male light.

Extension of Hochma from above downward is left without right, and causes the separation of ZA, the middle line, from Malchut, so Malchut will remain as left without right.

38. It is written, “If a woman inseminates and delivers a male child,” and not one that incorporates male and female, as with the souls, in whom each soul consists of male and female. Rather, it is according to the manner of the world, for in this world, males and females do not connect, as they emerged above, in the souls that emerge from ZON, which emerge in couples, male and female together.

39. For this reason, they do not emerge in couples in this world, since Adam HaRishon and his coupling sinned before the Creator, and therefore, when the souls emerge from above and descend to this world, the male and the female separate until the Creator wishes to reconnect them together. If a person merits, he is given his mate. If not, she is separated from him, and is given to another man, and they bear children that are not proper.

40. This is why it is written, “My Spirit shall not dwell in man forever.” Should it not have said, “his spirit”? However, they are two spirits that emerge in couples, and “my spirit” is as though it is punctuated with a Het with a Patach, “my spirit,” in plural form, will not dwell together since they come to this world when they are separated from each other. This is why it is written, “delivers a male child,” who does not consist of male and female, but as is the manner of the world, that Adam and Eve caused by their sin.

Because Adam HaRishon adhered to the male souls, which shine from above downward, he separated the tie of male and female together. When they are together, the male, too, does not shine from above downward. But when he ate from the tree of knowledge, meaning drew illumination of Hochma from above downward, he made separation in the souls, and they come to the world—the male separately and the female separately.

This also caused the male to be Hassadim without Hochma, since because he separated from the female, he can no longer shine there with Hochma, since it is forbidden to bestow illumination of Hochma from above downward in the manner of the male. Therefore, he bestows only covered Hassadim.