Kabbalah Library

384) It is written, “He created them male and female.” We should consider the words of Torah, ZA, the middle line. Woe unto them, those whose heart is uncircumcised and whose eyes are blocked, who cling to the left line and who were blocked out of Hochma, which is eyes, and from Bina, which is heart. The Torah, which is from the middle line, calls before them, “Come, eat of my bread,” which is extended from the right line of the Torah, “And drink of the wine which I have mixed,” the left line of the Torah. “Whoever is a fool,” who clings to the left, “Let him turn in here, to him who lacks understanding she says,” and there is none to watch over her.

385) The verse, “He created them male and female.” This applies internally and externally. There is connection of male and female internally, in Gadlut, and there is connection of male and female externally, in Katnut. In one way, it is considered internal, and in another way, it is considered external. It means that the sun and the moon, ZON, are in one bonding. It is written, “Created them,” male and female internally. The text implies that Adam and Eve were created and came out of a single coupling from the upper ZON, that they first came out in externality. And since they were in a single coupling, promptly, it is written, “And God blessed them,” since there is blessing only where there are male and female. Afterwards they became male and female in internality.

386) When Jacob went out to go to Haran, he was alone, since he had not married a wife. It is written, “He came to a certain place.” But they answered him only in a dream. But now that he married a wife and came into all the tribes, it is as though the upper camps met him and begged him, as it is written, “And the angels of God met him,” meaning they returned to meet him, to beg of him.

In the beginning he was the one who begged, as it is written, “He came to a certain place.” Now, they were begging, as it is written, “And … met him.” This is so because thanks to Jacob, they were watered by the waters of the great sea, the abundance of the Nukva in Gadlut. Hence, they begged him to draw this abundance to them. First, he saw them at night, in a dream, as it is written, “And behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.” But now he saw them with the eye, at daytime, as it is written, “And Jacob said when he saw them, ‘This is God’s camp.’”

Above, it is written, “He came to a certain place.” And here it writes, “And … met him.” Why does it say “Met” in both places [in the Hebrew]? Meeting means reconciliation, extension of illumination of the left at the beginning of the coupling. Thus, what is the difference between them? There Jacob was ZA, appeasing the Nukva, and here the angels of the Nukva were appeasing him.

To explain that, the text begins with bringing, “He created them male and female,” that there is an internal and external coupling. “He came to a certain place” is illumination of the left from externality. This is why it is said that he was alone then, that he had not married a wife, that the Nukva was still not corrected for him face-to-face.” “He came to a certain place” means he had to appease the Nukva, to draw to her in a coupling from the illumination of the left line, externality. This is why it is said that they answered him only in a dream because a dream is externality.

And now that he has already married a wife, when the Nukva was corrected into being face-to-face with him, it is written, “And … met him.” This means that they returned in order to meet him because once the Nukva is in Gadlut, he no longer needs to draw to her from the left line, but gives her Hassadim only from the right. It is to the contrary with the illumination of the left, since because the Nukva is already corrected with lower Hochma, her angels affect him from the illumination of the left, which is, “And the angels of God met him.”

387) Because Jacob had already married a woman and was corrected in the twelve tribes, meaning that he was face-to-face, they were watered from the waters of the great sea. They were already watered by illumination of Hochma in the left, which is called “the great sea.” Hence, “And … met him” means that they imparted upon him of the illumination of the left. However, in the beginning, he saw them at night, in a dream, since in the beginning, when Jacob had to appease her and draw upon her from the illumination of the left line, this was possible only at night, since during the illumination of the left without right, it became darkness and night. Now, however, he saw them with the eyes, at daytime, since now there was no need to impart upon her from the left, but from the right, illumination of Hassadim, whose impact is during the day.

388) “And Jacob said when he saw them, ‘This is the camp of God,’ and he named that place Mahanayim [two camps].” He recognized that they were God’s angels because he saw that they were the same angels that he saw in the dream. This is why he called them “Mahanayim,” as it is written, “And behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it,” meaning he saw in his dream that they were seen above and seen below, that they were two camps.

389) Why did the angels appear now to meet him, to appease him with illumination of Hochma? Rather, the Shechina went to Jacob to take his home, to be incorporated with the upper Nukva, Leah, into being a single Partzuf, for then she would have the whole of the house of Jacob, all twelve tribes, including the six sons of Leah. Also, the Shechina waited for Benjamin, to take the house with Jacob in all twelve tribes.

This is why the angels appeared before him in reconciliation, illumination of the left, to complement him entirely, as it is written, “And Jacob shall again be quiet and at ease, and none shall make him afraid,” since the illumination of Hochma subdues all the shells in the world, and none shall be afraid.

390) “And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.” The protectors of the ministers are upstanding from above, and the blaze of the fiery sword is appointed over all the armies and camps. Ministers are AVI. The Mochin in the left line of AVI are the protectors of the ministers. Upstanding are GAR, which erect the Mochin of VAK, which are regarded as bent.

The protectors of the ministers are upstanding from above means that the GAR shine in the left line of AVI, who are called ministers, and this is when they are upstanding. At that time, the Nukva that receives from AVI becomes the blaze of the sword that turns every way, and with that power of judgment, it governs all the armies and camps of angels that are extended from her, from the right and from the left, and they all operate in judgment. It is written about it, “The well, which the ministers dug.” The well is the Nukva, the ministers are AVI, and they dug it by the force of the judgments.

391) The blazing sword is red because those judgments are extended in her from the left line of Bina, which is red. It is written about it, “The sword of the Lord is filled with blood.” The inversion depends on that sword, meaning that those angels turn to several forms: once they are women and once they are men. In that discernment, other discernments spread to several degrees, since there are two more discernments, which are called “angels” and “spirits” in women and in men.

Questions concerning the meaning of the text:

1. How did Jacob go his way if he does not know which way?

2. Is “when he saw them” not redundant? Since they met him, he obviously saw them.

3. Why does it say “The angels of God” in regards to the meeting, and in the calling of a name, God’s camp?

It is written, “And Jacob went on his way,” for extension of Mochin from AVI to the Nukva. In the beginning, when he extended the left line in AVI, the angels of judgment appeared in the Nukva, as it is written, “And the angels of God met him.” Jacob awakened to guard the Nukva from those judgments, as it is written, “And Jacob said when he saw them,” meaning he revealed the seeing in them by drawing the middle line that unites the two lines. Then he said, “This is God’s camp.”

A camp means he tied the four discernments in the angels into one camp, and afterwards four legs were made for the Nukva in her four corners. Then, “And he called the name of that place,” referring to Nukva, which is called “place.” Now he called her “Mahanayim” [two camps], since God’s camp had spread into four camps in her four corners.

Therefore, first he had to clarify the place of the elicitation of the Mochin, which are from AVI, that the Nukva receives from AVI and that the angels spread from the Nukva. Also, he needed to clarify these three discernments in the domination of the left: 1) The issue of the protectors of the ministers that are upstanding from above, meaning Mochin of the left in AVI. 2) That Nukva in Mochin of the left is extended from them to the blaze of the sword, and 3) That the inversion depends on that sword. Those three angels turn to several manners, and the angels that are extended from the Nukva are once men, once women.

392) From the side of the tree of life, the middle line, those that unite, the three lines, come out in one unification in AVI through the connection of the screen of Hirik that Jacob raised as MAN.

These three holy lines are always filled by the dew of heaven. This means that although there are all three lines as one there, the left still does not govern them at all, and only the right governs them, covered Hassadim, which are called “the dew of heaven,” since there is no disclosure to the left except in the Nukva. This is phase one of the middle line.

The name God, the Nukva, is corrected in Mochin of AVI, and this is phase two of the middle line.

The Mochin became the pillars of the throne, which is Nukva, called “throne,” by the four directions of the world, which is the Nukva. In other words, to the four legs of the throne—the four angels—Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael. This is phase three of the middle line, and this explains the three phases, which are AVI, Nukva, and the angels, from the perspective of the middle line, as well.

All three phases—gems, organs, and pillars—never part from the name Elokim [God], the Nukva. They are Jacob’s tied ones, whom he has chosen for his lot, and they were connected to that name, the Nukva, and everyone came out in Jacob.

The source of the exit of all three phases is in AVI, and their arrival to the Nukva and expansion in angels connect in the Nukva. In her, they are called “gems,” “organs,” and “pillars” because NHY of AVI clothe the Nukva with their Mochin, where these NHY are the Ima who lends her clothes to her daughter. They are called “gems” from the words, “And uncovered his feet,” since NHY are called “feet” [“gems” and “feet” have the same root in Hebrew].

When these Mochin spread in her, she is called “a throne.” The angels that spread from her become the four legs of the throne, and the Mochin that expand in the Nukva herself are called “organs,” meaning organs and parts of the throne itself. The ones that expand to the angels are called “pillars,” who support the throne and are not the throne itself.

This explains the bonding of the three phases together within the Nukva. And even though the Nukva receives these three phases from AVI, she does not receive them directly from AVI. Rather, they first come out in Jacob, ZA, and the Nukva receives them from Jacob.

393) When Jacob went on his way, when he went to receive three phases from AVI for the Nukva, he was surrounded from four sides, HB TM. This means that he rose to AVI for MAN and in the middle line he discovered four lights there—HB TM in the surrounding light. The four corners of the world, the Nukva, kept him, meaning he extended HB TM from AVI to Nukva in the full perfection, and only for a short time was he excited from the high place, from the governance of the left in AVI, from which the turning angels spread to several colors. It was said about them, “And the angels of God met him,” meaning he met and was excited by the judgment in them. This was so as to keep the tree below so it would raise MAN to AVI and reveal the middle line there, for keeping the tree below— the Nukva—from the judgments.

After he extended the middle line, “And Jacob said when he saw them,” when he disclosed the vision in them, meaning the Mochin of HB TM that come out on the middle line. He said, “This is God’s camp,” meaning he united the angels of God into a single camp and they became pillars for the Nukva, for her four corners. And then, “And he called the name of that place Mahanayim,” since they became four camps to the four corners of the Nukva, the four legs of the throne.