Kabbalah Library

77. The Temple and the name of the Messiah are called HaVaYaH. The four letters Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey are four faces of man, and they are the tribe of Levi, who emerged from the animals of the rest of the tribes, which are the face of a lion, an ox, and an eagle, and entered the part of the face of a man, which are his four faces, since the face of a man incorporates all four faces.

Moses is a man in the form of Adam HaRishon above, as it is written, “What is his name, and what is the name of his son?” What is his name? Adam HaRishon. What is the name of his son? Moses. For this reason, priests and Levites, their nourishments are by the King; they eat at His table, while the rest of the armies of the King, each one is given to eat in his own dwelling place. Moses, as the King’s son, is closer to the King than those who eat at His table, since there is none closer to the King in all His household than him.

78. Rabbi Shimon arose and said to the author of the words, “Old man, old man, by your words, it is known who you are, you are Adam HaRishon. ‘What is his name’ is written about you. ‘What is the name of his son’ is written about Moses. And because Moses made several innovations in the Torah, there is joy for you, since a wise son delights a father.

79. “Moses, this portion mentions your passing to that world, as it is written, ‘Go up into this mountain of Avarim and see the land that I have given to the people of Israel. When you have seen it, you also shall be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was.’ In this portion, you are to return to the world and live, and enter the Land of Israel, and connect in this portion with your bride, the Land of Israel, Malchut, of whom it is written, ‘Behold, I give you My covenant of peace,’ for she was his, but he gave her to Pinhas, and he is not deficient. This is why the Creator did not tell you here ‘Go down,’ but rather ‘Go up to this mountain of Avarim,’ since from that mountain, you will enter the Land of Israel.

80. “What is written about you, ‘but no one knows his grave,’ woe to those whose heart is obtuse, whose eyes are closed, who do not know your grave, since you were asking for mercy before the Creator, that you would not be placed in that burial where you are called ‘dead,’ as it is written, ‘Moses My servant is dead,’ and those fools would say that Moses feared death like the rest of the people, to emerge from this world to the next world, and do not know what your burial and death were like.”

81. This is how the authors of the Mishna explained, that the dead of abroad are not living. They do not say that they are not destined to be revived, for if they were to say so, they would be denying the revival of the dead. However, there is a big secret here.

Moses’ burial was in an image that was unfitting for him, as it is written, “in a dry and weary land without water,” in the desert. But there is no water except the Torah, meaning that the desert is the place of the shells, and it is written about it, about the dry land, “He had no stately form or majesty,” and whoever saw him in that image, it is written, “when we see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.” For this reason, the prophet of Isaiah, which begins with the words, “Behold, My Servant shall deal wisely,” refers to him.

82. Because of that burial, he was asking for mercy, that he would not die out there abroad, because it was a dry and weary land without water, which is the Torah. This is why it is written about him, “Go up to this mountain of Avarim”; from his lowliness, He showed him his virtue.

Although you are buried in a place that is unsuitable for you, without your garments, which are skin and flesh, wandering from your place and being pushed and exiled, there is Pinhas, to whom you have done mercy, as it is written about you, “Behold, I give him My covenant of peace,” he will do mercy with you, and in him you will rise, in his portion, in the portion “Behold, I give him My covenant of peace.” Pinhas is Elijah, an angel of the covenant, who will help Moses connect with two Messiahs, to bring Israel out from the exile. In his portion, your bride, Malchut, there you will unite with her as a groom with his bride.

83. For you, if you were not buried outside the holy land, outside your bride, Israel would not come out from the exile. It is written about you, “And he is pierced by our iniquities,” since you have become unholy in your burial because of the iniquity and crime of Israel, as it is written about you, “and he buried him in the valley.” And what is written about your burial? “Any valley shall be lifted up,” meaning that every lowly and low, which are Israel, who are lower than any nation and tongue, will be lifted up by your merit, and every mountain and hill will be lowered down, namely the wicked and audacious.

84. It is written, “And by His healing, we are healed.” By the bonding that he bonded with us in exile, we were healed, for you are like the shining sun, where although the sun sets at night, it shines in the moon and in all the stars and signs. So you shine in all the authors of the laws and Kabbalah, and from you they are watered in secret, like a spring that waters the trees under their roots in secret, until its waters burst openly, as it is written, “Your springs shall be dispersed outwards.”

85. You are like the sun. During the winter, it goes under the springs, in secret, and warms them. When redemption comes, you will be as the sun that walks during the summer above the springs, and they will be cool, without judgment, with mercy, since when you are under them, they are hot with judgment.

Moses came and blessed Rabbi Shimon and said, “Indeed, you are the one who shines for me when it is written about me, ‘for the sun has set,’ which is the letters of ‘the sun has quenched,’ that its light has been darkened. May the name HaVaYaH shine His name on you.”