Kabbalah Library

32) “Happy is the man for whom the Lord does not count iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.” How dense are people for not knowing and not observing why they are in the world. After all, when the Creator created the world, He made man in His image and established him with His corrections, to engage in Torah and to walk in His ways.

33) When Adam haRishon was created, he was established out of the dust of the Temple below, out of Malchut that is sweetened in Bina. And the four directions of the world, HG TM, connected in that place, in the Temple, in Malchut that was sweetened in Bina.

And those four directions of the world conjoined in four sides, the foundations of the world—fire, wind, water, and dust—the internality of HG TM. The four directions of the world conjoined in the four foundations of the world and the Creator established out of them a single body in the upper correction, which is Bina, in which the Malchut was sweetened in Bina.

It follows that that body was made of two worlds from this bottom world, Malchut, and from the upper world, Bina. This is the meaning of the two dots that were joined together.

34) The first four, which are the four directions of the world, in which faith was established, are the patriarchs of all the worlds. This is because all the worlds—Bina, ZA, and Malchut in Atzilut, and the three worlds BYA—were established by these HG TM, which are the three lines, and the Malchut that receives from them. Also, they are the upper, holy Merkava [assembly], the Bina, which is a Merkava for the Hochma.

And the four foundations—fire, wind, water, and dust—are the upper meaning of the four directions of the world; they are the internality in the HG TM. Of those four foundations—fire, wind, water, and dust—gold, silver, copper, and iron come out. The gold comes from the coupling of ZA and Malchut that are dominated by the fire from the left line. Silver comes from the coupling of ZA and Malchut dominated by the water from the right line. Copper comes from the domination of the middle line, and iron comes from Malchut when she is without coupling with ZA. Beneath those four are other metals that are similar to them. From the metal of gold, green waste comes, and from the metal of silver—lead.

35) Fire, wind, water, and dust are the first and the roots of above and below. Lower and upper stand on them because they are the three dots—Holam, Shuruk, Hirik—with the Malchut that receives them. Thus, the four foundations, fire, wind, water, and dust are the roots of everything.

And those four foundations, fire, wind, water, and dust are four for the four directions of the world because they are related as externality and internality. Hence, they stand in those four—north, south, east, and west. These are the four directions of the world and the four foundations—fire, wind, water, and dust—stand in them. Fire stands in the north, which is Shuruk, left, Gevura. Wind is to the east, Hirik, middle line, Tifferet. Water is to the south, Holam, right, Hesed. And dust is to the west, which is Malchut that receives fire, wind, and water within her.

And those four foundations—fire, wind, water, and dust—are tied to the four directions—north, south, east, and west—and they are all one, although they clothe each other by way of externality and internality. And those—fire, wind, water, and dust—create four metals—gold, silver, copper, and iron—by a coupling with the Malchut. Together they are twelve discernments, and they are all one, three lines and the Malchut that receives them. And they are three times four because the first eight are internality and externality, and the four metals are offspring born from them.

36) Fire is on the left line, north, Gevura, since there is the force of heat and the force of dryness in fire. Its opposite is the north—cold and moist. They merge in one another and they are one. The water is on the right line, south, Hesed, warm and dry. And the Creator made their tempers opposite from each other to merge them together.

37) The north, which is cold and damp, is where fire is placed, which is hot and dry. Also, He exchanged them in the south: water, which is cold and moist, was placed in the south, which is warm and dry. The Creator merged them as one because water comes out of the south and comes into the north, and water is extended from the north. Fire, too, comes out of the north and arrives at the force of the south, and the force of the heat comes to the world from the south. Thus, the north educes the water, which belongs to the south, and the south emits the heat, which belongs to the north.

Since the Creator made them lend from each other, and each lends of his own to his friend as it should be. Similarly, wind and east, which are warm and moist, have two opposites in them, since the warmth is extended from the fire in the north, and the moisture is extended from the water in the south, so they would each lend to one’s friend and they would be mingled in each other and join together.

38) Now he explains the oppositeness in wind and east. The fire is from the south and the water is from the north. They are in dispute—the fire wishes to burn the water, and the water to quench the fire. The wind comes between them and grips both sides together, canceling the dispute and sustaining both. It is written, “And the spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters.” The water, wind, and fire stand on the dust, and through those three, she receives from all of them.

39) The wind stands on the east. The east is warm and moist, and the wind is warm and moist, as well. This is why it grips to both sides—since the fire is hot and dry and the water is cool and moist. It turns out that the warm side of the wind, which is warm and moist, grips to the fire and its cold side grips to the water. Hence, it makes peace between them and cancels the dispute between fire and water.

40) Dust is cold and dry, which is why it receives everyone atop it—fire, water, and wind. And they all do their work in it and it receives from all of them to produce food for the world through them. This is so because dust clings to the west, which is cold and dry. The cold side in the dust clings to the north, which is cold and moist, since cold grips cold; hence, the north grips to the west on that side. The south is warm and dry, and the dryness in it grips to the dryness on the other side, on the west. Thus, the west grips both sides.

41) Also, the south grips to the east because the warmth in the south grips to the warmth in the east. And the east grips also to the north because its moisture grips to the moisture in the north. It turns out that south and east are tied to each other through the warmth in both; the east and north—through the moisture in them; north and west—through the cold in both; west and south through the dry in both; and all are included in one another, hanging down in one another.

Thus, three kinds of names of these four discernments HG TM are presented here, and they are the three lines that extend from the three dots—Holam, Shuruk, Hirik—and the Malchut that receives them. The first is south, north, east, and west; the second is fire, water, wind, and dust; and the third is hot and dry, cold and moist, warm and moist, cool and dry. We must understand their meaning and the differences between them.

The south is considered Hesed, water, and the north is considered Gevura, fire. The east is Tifferet, Ruach, and the west is dust, Malchut. Fire is Gevura and judgments; water is Hesed, Ruach that is merged of Hesed and judgment; and dust is Malchut. Also, there are two discernments in each of the fire, wind, water, and dust: One indicates the quality of judgment in it, and the other indicates its manner of bestowal.

Also, it is known that there are two kinds of judgments: 1. Female judgments, which come from the screen in Malchut and are called “heat”; 2. Male judgments, which come from extension of illumination of Hochma from the left from above downwards. Those freeze the lights and are not extended below. They are called “cold,” as it is written, “Out of whose womb came the ice?”

And two kinds in the manner of bestowal: 1. From below upward, regarded as abundance of VAK without GAR. This is called “dry,” not being drawn below. 2. From above downward, considered abundance of GAR, which is called “moist,” meaning liquids that extend from above downward.

In fire, there is the force of the heat, female judgments that come because of the screen. The force of dryness, the abundance in it, which goes from below upwards and does not pour down, is seemingly dry downwards.

Water is cool and moist, since the judgments in them are only male judgments, called “ice” and “freeze.” But when they are corrected, they shine from above downwards like liquids. This is called “moist.”

The wind is warm and moist because it contains female judgments, called “heat,” and yet, its abundance is considered GAR and pours from above downwards, which is called “moist,” meaning liquid.

The dust is cold and dry since it contains male judgments, called “cold.” It shines only from below upwards and does not pour down at all, hence it is called “dry,” which is illumination of VAK.

Thus, The Zohar explains from the perspective of judgment and from the perspective of the abundance in the four discernments—fire, water, wind, and dust. Who caused the division of the judgments and the abundance in these measures among the four discernments? The four discernments—south, north, east, and west—their internality—fire, water, wind, and dust—extend from the three dots—Holam, Shuruk, Hirik, and the Malchut that receives them. The four discernments emerge in Bina, from which the whole of the Mochin of ZON of Atzilut and BYA come, in that order.

First, Malchut should be sweetened in Bina. Malchut is raised to the place of Bina and then the VAK, Katnut [infancy] come out there. This is so because then the degree is split into two halves: Keter and Hochma remain in the degree, and the Malchut that rose beneath them ends the degree, and Bina and ZON of the degree fall outside the degree to the degree below it.

This is the meaning of the dot of Holam, anterior vessels, right side, which contains two vessels—Keter and Hochma—and two lights—Ruach and Nefesh—and lacks GAR because of the absence of the three vessels—Bina and ZON—that fell from the degree. At that time, it is considered fire, which is hot, meaning judgments of Nukva that extend from the screen of Malchut that split the degree. It is also considered dry, meaning the lights extend in it from below upwards, where with respect to below it is considered dry. And it has been explained why the fire, which is extended from the Holam, is hot, dry, and south.

Now we will explain the dot of Shuruk. MAN draws illumination of AB SAG of AK, which are governed by Malchut of the first restriction, which stands in her place after the Sium [end] of ZA. This illumination brings down the ending Malchut that rose to the place of Bina, too, and brings her back to Malchut. Then those Bina and ZON that fell from the degree because of her ascent return to the degree as before. And since the five vessels KHB ZON are now present in the degree, the five lights NRNHY clothe in them and the degree returns to the state of GAR.

However, the dot of Holam remains as it was prior to Malchut’s descent to her place. It does not change due to the extension of GAR, and the whole of this new extension is received by Bina and ZON that returned to the degree after their fall. However, they become two lines within the degree: The dot of Holam, containing Keter and Hochma, becomes the right line, and the dot of Shuruk, containing Bina and ZON that returned to being GAR through Malchut’s descent to her place become the left line.

Also, there are two extensions at the dot of Shuruk: 1. It serves to enhance the Hassadim that it receives from the Hochma, and then there is great peace between them. 2. It draws light of Hochma from above downwards, and then there is dispute between them. This is so because the dot of Shuruk wishes to annul the dot of Holam, and vice versa, the dot of Holam wishes to annul the dot of Shuruk, and then the lights in the Shuruk freeze.

And those two extensions at the dot of Shuruk are in the degrees of Abraham in the matter of approaching Egypt and in the matter of descending to Egypt.

What was said, that the north, the dot of Shuruk, is water, whose nature is cool and moist. This is said about the extension of the first kind. At that time it is moist, meaning extending from above downwards like liquids. And then it is cold, the root of the male judgments, where if it were to continue the extension of the second kind, the coolness would intensify and the water would freeze. However, as long as it is in the first kind of extension, they do not freeze but flow. They are only cold, which is the root of the freeze, and this explains why the water that is extended from the dot of Shuruk is cool and moist.

So why did The Zohar change here from other places, saying that south is fire and north is water? It is because the south is extended from the Holam, fire, meaning hot and dry, while the north is extended from the Shuruk, water, cool and moist. And what is said, that south is Hesed and water, and north is judgment and fire will be explained below.

Once the dot of Shuruk completes the first kind of extension, it draws the second kind of extension, which brings it into a dispute with the dot of Holam, at which time the lights in it freeze and block. And then ZA rises for MAN to Bina, which has a screen of phase one, called the screen of Hirik. This screen diminishes the dot of Shuruk from GAR to VAK, by which the Shuruk surrenders under the Holam, and peace is made between them, sustaining the illumination of both of them. However, the right, which is south, will shine from above downwards, and the left, which is north, will shine only from below upwards.

It turns out that the Mochin have now been swapped, since the water that were in the phase of cold and moist in the north have now come to the south, where they are imparted upon from above downwards. And the fire that was in the south has come to the north because of the screen of Hirik that diminished it from GAR to VAK, and contains judgments of the screen, and the Mochin in it do not pour from above downwards. Hence, it is hot because of the judgments of Nukva in the screen of Hirik, and it is dry for it no longer bestows from above downwards, but only from below upwards. Thus, because of the decision in the middle line, the Mochin have been replaced—the fire, which was in the south, came to the north, and the water, which was in the north, came to the south.

This swap is only in the interior, in Mochin, which are called “fire” and “water.” But the exterior, which are the vessels, called “north south,” do not change at all and remain as they were in the place where they came out, prior to the decision in the middle line. The south was and remained hot and dry, and the north was and remained cool and moist. And because of that, oppositeness was created between the Mochin and the vessels: the vessel of the right, south, is always hot and dry, while the Mochin in it—after the decision in the middle line—are cold and moist. And the vessel of the left, north, is always cool and moist, but the Mochin in it—after the decision in the right line—are hot and dry.

After the decision in the middle line, when the Mochin have already been swapped, fire is on the left line, the north, Gevura, since the force of the heat is in the fire, meaning judgments of Nukva, which are called “heat.” And the force of dryness is in it, which bestows nothing below, but only from below upward. Its opposite is the north, since the vessel called “north” does not change at all because of the decision in the middle line and remains as cold and as moist as before. Thus, it is opposite from the Mochin that are clothed in it.

This is so because the Mochin have been changed by the decision of the middle line, when the water came in the south and the fire in the north, which is hot and dry. But the north, which is the vessel, still remains in the form of water, which is cold and moist, as prior to the decision. Thus, the north is opposite from the Mochin that are clothed in it, which are the fire. Water is to the right line, to the south, since the vessel is hot and dry, and the Mochin are water, which are cold and moist. Also, they are opposite to one another.

The north, which is cold and moist, fire clothed in it, which is dry and hot. And it also swapped them on the south side: The south, which is hot and dry, since the vessel does not change, water clothed in it, which is cold and moist, having come from north to south.

Because of their inversion, the Mochin are completed only through the vessel they had had prior to the decision in the middle line. It was said that water comes out from the south and comes into the north because the vessel, meaning the south, cannot complement the GAR in the Mochin of the water and they return back to their vessel—the north. And water is extended from the north because it is in the north that it receives its completeness.

It is likewise in the Mochin of the fire in the vessel of the north. The fire comes out of the north and comes into the force of the south to be complemented there. This is because the judgments of Nukva are not revealed in the vessel of the south, since the screen there is below the vessels of Keter and Hochma, the vessels of the right and the south, and the coarseness of the screen cannot blemish anything above its place. This is why it was said that the force of the heat goes out to the world from the south, for because they come from the south, there is no flaw in them because the Creator, which is the middle line, made them borrow from each other. This means that He borrows from the completeness of the south and gives to the north, and borrows from the completeness of the north and gives to the south.

Indeed, in wind and east, and dust and west, there is no oppositeness in them between the light and the vessel because they both come after the determining of the middle line. Hence, the inversion of Mochin does not apply in them, and there is no reason that there will be a difference between the light and the vessel.

Hence, both wind and east are warm and moist, since being a middle line, it carries the screen of Hirik in which there are judgments of Nukva, which are called “hot.” Also, there is illumination of GAR in it, imparted from above downwards, and they are called “moist” because it complements the GAR in the right and the left of Bina, where three come out of one and one is rewarded with three.

Dust and west are both cold and dry. This is because Malchut, called “dust” and “west,” is built of the left line of Bina, from the vessel in it, called “north,” “cold.” And because she is a female and has judgments of Nukva, she must receive sweetening from the vessel in the right of Bina, called “south,” “dry.” And in the dust and in the west, there is no difference between Mochin and vessel because both receive from the south and the north, which are vessels.

This is so because Malchut is only a vessel and her light is not her own but from ZA. However, in wind and east there is a difference between Mochin and vessel, since the Mochin in it, called “wind,” receives from the right and from the left, which are called “fire” and “water.” And the vessel in it is called “east,” receiving from the right and left of the vessels that are called “north” and “south.”

42) Similarly, the north makes the gold because the gold is made by the force of the fire, as it is written, “Out of the north comes gold,” since the fire grips the dust and becomes gold. It is written about that, “And it has dust of gold,” and this is the two golden Cherubim.

Fire is judgments of Katnut of Bina. When this fire connects with the dust, the screen comes down from Bina and back to its place, and the Hochma appears in the dust, in Malchut. This is the gold. It is written, “Out of the north comes gold” because this is where the fire is clothed. And it is written, “the two golden Cherubim,” in which the Mochin of Hochma, called “gold,” are extended. However, there is no gold without dust, since Hochma appears only in Malchut, as it is written, “And it has dust of gold.”

43) Water grips to dust. The cool of the dust in the moisture of the water makes the silver, which is the light of Hassadim in the south, poured from above downwards. When it connects with the cold and dry in the dust, the dryness in the dust is cancelled and becomes moist, meaning liquids from above downwards. This degree of the dust is called “silver.”

Now the dust grips to both sides, the gold and the sliver, and is placed between them. The wind grips to the water and to the fire because it is the middle line, and educes both as one. It is called “burnished bronze.” And when dust is cold and dry, iron comes out of it, as it is written, “If the iron is blunt, and one does not sharpen the edge.” And the dust, Malchut, is called “the weaker hand,” since the Malchut is the hand Tefillin.

44) This dust grips to all of them—the fire, the wind, and the water—and they create in it what is similar to them. The fire brings gold out of it, which is similar to it. The water brings silver out of it, which is similar to it, and without dust there is no gold or silver or copper, since each one lends to his friend of his own, to connect with one another.

The dust grips to all of them because both sides, fire and water, cling to it: the cold in it grips to the water and the dry in it grips to the fire. And the wind, ZA, comes closer to it because it contains fire and water, and does its thing in it. This is so because the wind, too, contains fire and water, where the warmth in it is from fire and the moist in it is from water.

45) It follows that when dust connects to fire, water, and wind—which bring out of it gold, silver, and copper—the dust creates and begets other metals, like the gold, silver, and copper. Like the gold, the dust begets the waste of gold, as green as the actual gold. Like the silver, it begets lead, and like the copper, it begets tin. And like the iron, it begets iron in iron, as it is written, “iron in iron together,” two kinds of iron.

46) Fire, wind, water, and dust are gripped to each other, tied to one another and there is no separation between them. Hence, gold, silver, and copper that come out of them have no separation between them. But when dust later begets the waste of gold, the lead, the tin, and the iron, they do not connect with each other like the gold, silver, and copper that came out of the fire, water, and wind that are connected to the dust. Rather, it is written, “And from there it parted and became four heads,” and in those there is separation.

47) When the dust begot by the force of the three upper ones, it educed four rivers where there are precious gems. And they are in one place, in the river Pishon, which came out by the force of the fire in the dust. And those four gems are twelve, and they are to the four directions of the world, three to each side because when they are included in one another, there are only three to each side in them, from fire, water, wind, and dust, and not four to each side, since the dust does not shine in itself but only receives.

Also, they correspond to the twelve tribes, as it is written, “And the stones shall be according to the names of the children of Israel,” twelve after their names, while they are twelve oxen standing under the sea that Solomon made.

48) Even though all four discernments are connected to one another and they are the sustenance of the world, the sustenance of the world is still primarily the Ruach because everything exists for it. Also, the Nefesh exists in Ruach because if the Ruach is absent from it for even a moment, the Nefesh will not persist, as it is written, “Also, that the soul be without knowledge is not good,” and Daat is the middle line, called Ruach.

49) These twelve stones are twelve oxen under the sea that Solomon made. This is so because the Nukva is called “sea” and stands on the twelve oxen, which are four oxen that each comprises three in the world of Beria. They are called “oxen” because they are dominated by the left, the face of an ox. This is why the twelve presidents took them, as it is written, “All the oxen for the burnt-offering twelve bulls.”

50) When the Creator created man, meaning his body, he was created out of the dust of the Temple below, Malchut. The soul was placed within him out of the dust of the Temple above, which is Bina. As he was created from the dust below, the three foundations of the world were joined in him—fire, wind, and water below. Similarly, when he was created from the dust above, the three foundations of the world were connected to that dust, fire, wind, and water above, and man was completed with a body and a soul.

51) Moses was more complete than the patriarchs because the Creator spoke to him from a higher degree than all of them, meaning the degrees of the patriarchs. Moses was inside the King’s house, ZA, the Daat, which is the interior of ZA.

This is why it is written, “And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord, I was not known to them.”