Voice o Bride the

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The Voice of the Bride 1by Shneur Zalman of Liadi2

An An n otated Tran slation

by Susan Schne ider

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Blessed are You, HaShem , our G-d, King of the universe, Whocreated joy an d gladness, groom and bride, mirth, glad song, plea-

sure , de l i gh t , l ove , b ro t he rhood , peace , and compani onsh i p .

HaShem , our G-d, let there soon be h eard in the cities of Judah

and the streets of Jerusalem the sound of joy and the sound of

gladness, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride ,

the sound of the grooms jubilance from their canopies and of

youths from their song-filled feasts. Blessed are You, Ha She m

Who gladdens the groo m with the bride.

This is, the last of the seven marriage blessings ( sheva brochot) , the spe cial

prayers recited under the wedding canopy and at each of the seven celebratory

me als in the wee k following. The langu age o f its bolded lines is curiou s for several

reasons:1___ __ _____ __ _____ ______ ____ ___ ____ ______ ____ _______ ___ ___ __

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1 . Why is the c los ing line3 of this blessing only subtly differen t from the

one that pr ecedes it?4 The sixth1,5 sheva brocha ends with the prayer,

Blessed are Youwho gladdens th e groom a nd bride, while the sev-

enth1

ends with, who gladdens th e groom with the bride?

The difference between them must be significant enough to warrant bothblessings. Otherwise, one of the p rayers wou ld be redun dant and its recita-

tion would violate the prohibition of taking G-ds name in vain.

2. Why is the blessing stated with such urgency: let there soon be

hear dthe voice of the groom and the voice of the br ide?

3. What is the conn ection between the raised voices of groom and br ide

and th eir joy at coming together?


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4. Why is the blessing stated in the future tense, as if only then will their

voices be heard, but not n ow in th e pr esent?

5. Why is the prayer careful to explicitly mention the word voice both in

relation to the groom a nd in relation to the bride: Let there soon be

heardthe voice of the groom and th e voice of the bride, wh en it cou ldmo re simply have said, the voice of the groo m and bride.

The an swe r to the se qu estions draw s its illum ination from the b od y of kab balistic

teachings called the Dim in ishm ent of the Moon,6 a collection of mystical writings

that elucidate the m ystery of gen der.

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The sixth sheva brocha , which ends with the phrase , who r ejoices th e

groom andthe bride describes th e relationship of male and fem ale in ou r present,

fallen and exiled state . The seventh blessing wh ich reads, who rejoices th e

groom with the br ide app lies to the future and p resents the ideal and p erfected

endpoint of the collective marriage between men and women as cosmic archetypes

evo lving through time . The blessing describes a two step pro cess of realizing its

vision.7 The first shifting of relationship is described by the phrase , then will be

hear dthe voice of the groom an d the voice of the br ide. Only on ce bo th

voices are heard can the last phase of history begin wher e the groom now

rejoices with the bride. Since at pr esent the voices of bride and groom ar e

not both heard , the re ality of the sixth blessing ap p lies instead, an d a low er state of

jo y bin ds the groom a nd the br ide.

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The d ifference between th ese two blessings and the three-step sequence

of relationship they describe is known to all versed in kaballa. In the future era

described by the seventh blessing when the groom rejoices with the bride ,

their po larity of giving an d receiving will invert. While gene rally the male b estow s

and the female receives, then the awaken ing of joy will originate with th e bride

and on ly afterwards spread to the groom .

Conversely, in the sixth blessing, which describes our present, fallen stateby the phrase, who rejoices the groom a nd the bride, the situation is re-

versed, and th e arousal moves from groom to bride. Since the kindling ofjo y

starts with him, the verse describes the sequence of joy as starting with the groom

an d afterwards the br ide.

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To un derstand the r eason behind this shifting of the polarity of joys

flow, that n ow it passes fro m gro om to bride yet soon it will eman ate frombride to groom , one m ust first understand the difference between betrothal

and m arriage as seq ue ntial stages of con nu bial com mitmen t. Beside s their literal

ap plication in every we dd ing ceremo ny, they also mark the p ath of Israels evolving

relationship w ith G -d and Torah.

Betrothal and m arriage are p recisely defined term s in Jew ish law. Betrothal is

a legally binding comm itme nt to marry. Though the cou ple is not p ermitted to relate

sexu ally, in most othe r resp ects the y are as if legally married a nd the d issolution o f

their enga geme nt requires a divorce. The second level of marital com mitme nt oc-

curs wh en the bride formally enters her husban ds ho me . The wed ding cano py

symbolizes their coming togethe r und er on e-roo f and so effects this change of status.

The marriage is finalized by its physical consummation.

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SeveralMidrashim emp loy the m etapho r of engage me nt and marriage to de scribe

Israels evolving relationship with HaShem through history:

Moshe comma nded us the Tora h, a morasha (inheritance) to the con-

gregation of Jacob.8 Th e Gemara derives a homiletical teaching based on

the similarity betwe en two w ords, one of wh ich ap pe ars in this verse.Do nt

rea dmorasha (inheritance),ra th er substitute a different but similar soun d-

ing word, meorasah (a ct of betrothal). With this substitution the verse

now reads, Moshe commanded u s the Torah as an engagement token to the

congregation of Jacob.

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Two teachings emerge from this Gemara.

1 . The r e la tionsh ip be tween Is rae l and HaShem parallels the relationship

between groom and br ide.

2. The Torahs revelation at Sinai bo un d Israel to HaShem through the first

stage of matrimonial coupling, called betrothal (airusin).

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And similarly another midrash teaches:10

Go forth, O you dau ghters of Zion an d gaz e upon King Solomon , even upon

the cr ow n w her ew it h his mo th er cr ow ned him on th e d a y of his es -

p ousa ls11 Th e midrash read s this verse as m etap ho rically referring to the

union of HaShem with the Jewish p eop le and iden tifies the Torahs revelation

at Sinai as the historic event corresponding tothe da y of His espous als. It


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further proves that this dramatic encountereffected betrothal (and not

ma rr ia ge ) by another verse where Moshe com mand s the p eop le to prepare

for the Torahs revelation: And you shall sanctify yourselves today and the

day following.12 Since the word here for sanctify ( kidashtem / ______)

shares the same root as the word for engagement (kidushin / _______) this

prove s that the Sinaic bon d w as betrothal and no t marriage.

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The final consu mm ation o f Israels relationsh ip w ith HaShem as m arital union

will only happen in the future, when the messianic redeemer comes to lead the

world through its final stages of transformation. Then will Isaiahs proph esy be

fulfilled, Your husband is your maker.13 The term for husband in this verse

emphasizes the physically consummated union of man and wife.

Ramb am dep icts this joyful era of redem ption w ith the follow ing wo rds:

In that time the re will be ne ither famine no r war, envy or comp etition . Goo d will flow in

abun dance and all delights will be [as commo n] as dust . The occupa tion o f the e ntire wo rld

will be solely to kn ow G-d. Therefore the Jews will be great sages and kno w h idden m atters,

attaining knowledge of their Creator to [the full extent] of human potential as Isaiah states,

The world will be filled with the knowledge of G-d as the sea fills the ocean bed.14

In addition to these more familiar features of that yearned-for time, Kaballa adds

an oth er blessing to the list. The m essianic era will bring a profou nd transforma tion

of gender relations which it explicitly depicts as an equalizing of stature between

man and w om an, groom an d bride. This is the sub ject of Rabb i Shn eur Zalman s

essay, The Voice of the Bride, translated here.

During this interim period until the messianic time, Israels spousal rela-

tionship with HaShem is da ily ripen ing. Yet, since it rema ins un con sum ma ted, th eterm that most accurately describes their level of intimacy is betrothal, a prepara-

tory period wherein the couple readies for wedlock.

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Kabba lah is the b od y of Jew ish teach ings that elucidates the eso teric layers of

implication in every story, sentence, word, and law of the Torah as well as its cus-

toms and rituals. The sequence of betrothal and m arriage as a step wise progres-sion of relationship has mystical significance that is likewise explicated by kabbala.

In b etrothal, the ex ternal layers of the cou p le engage , but their inside s do

no t yet touch. As abo ve so below. When they marry and be gin their ph ysical

relationship a core-level bon ding of soul simultaneously occurs.

Although the inner essence of Divinity called th e Inf inite Light r evealed

Itself at Sinai a s th e radiant wisdom o f the Torah , and condensed Itself in to ten


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infinitely compact seeds of teaching called the Ten Precepts, nevertheless, only

the m ore extern al layers of the Inf in ite Light were actually manifest in that en-

counter. Consequently the relationship between HaShem and Israel created by

that r evelation of Torah was an external bonding. Though their attachment was

profound, their insides were not yet engaged.

Th e Torah has infinite layers of teachings , some of which are visible

while other lie deeply concealed beyond the grasp of human comprehension. At

Sinai o nly its m or e accessible layers actually shone forth as exp licit teachings

an d visible lights. HaShem l imited Himself to wh at wou ld be ap preh ensible to that

generation, at that point of history.

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Conversely, the inner dimension of Torah, the repository of secrets

hidden within the text elucidating the d eeper r easons behind its laws, stories,

and textual structure; this was n ot r evealed at Sinai. Yet it initiated a process of

un folding that assures its eventual release, for ea ch ge neration from that po int hence

peers into the Torah and exposes another layer of i ts hidden light . By th e end -of-

days there will be no secrets left. The Torahs inn er r ecesses will blaze forth ,

and all will beho ld the glory ofits every detail. The m ost inward and abstract

beauty of the Infini te Light will shine through the Torah l ike a holograph,

ren der ed visible by the pe rfectly groun d lens o f its Oral Teachings em bo died as the

living community of Israel.

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Behold , there are certain terms w hich mu st be de fined b efore the translation

can proceed.

In the Talmud, as in most areas of original Jewish thought, there is deliberate avoidance of

abstract thinking based o n ab stract concepts. Even matters that could easily be discussed

through abstraction are analyzed by other methods The Talmud employs models in place

of abstract conceptsThe model is utilized in accordance with a series of clearly defined

steps, approved by tradit ion

The great advantage of emp loying such mo dels, as oppo sed to ab stract concepts, lies

in the ab ility to con stantly sup ervise the validity of on es metho ds of de mo nstration. The

elemental and relatively simp le mod el serves as the basis for exam ination and enables u s to

draw inferences or examine whether we have diverged from the fundamental issue through

abstract thinking o n un clear issues. The we akn ess of all abstract thoug ht lies in the fact thati t is constantly creating new terms and con cepts, and since they cann ot be d efined except by

use of similarly abstract terms we can ne ver know wh ether they con stitute a dep arture from

the sub ject or are still relevant. Therefore w e almost neve r find abstract terms in the Talmud ,

even when they would seem to be vital to the discussion and when any other legal system

would have introduced themThe Talmud very rarely employs such terms, al though i t fre-

quen tly deals with the p roblems defined b y these w ords in w ays that differ greatly from those

of other philosophical or legal systems.15


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One could substitute the word, Kaballa for Talmud and the above statement

wo uld still be true. Kaballa em ploys an anthropo mo rphic mode l, called the Tree of

Life, w hich serves as its map of reality and p rovides a co ncrete focus for its teach ings.

The Tree of Life is a spe cific arrangem en t of ten p oints called sefirotwhich combine

into six archetypal personages called partz ufim .

The ten sefirotare ten chann els of Divine flow an d revelation which link the

Tran scend en t Light with Its evolving (an d ap p aren tly finite) creation. Each has its

unique character and is hierarchically organized and interrelated with every other.

They bring into being the entirety of existence from the superconscious regions

be yond hu man tho ught, through mind and e mo tion s, to the p hysical wo rld. While

the pure essence of Divinity is beyond attribute, number and categorization, when

HaShem choo ses to co mm unicate with creation He lowe rs Himself (so to speak) an d

assumes one of these ten guises in order to provide a handle of apprehension, to

present a familiar face within the vast expa nse o f pure abstraction that is His natural

state. The sefirotinclude within them selves all facets of reality. The y are n ot discrete,

bu t systematically interconn ected an d interinclude d to form an organic who le that is

greater than the sum of its parts.

Th e Tree of Life com p rises three ve rtical pillars. The right is the pillar of

expansion and has a masculine association; the left is the pillar of contraction and is

feminine in expre ssion ; the cen tral p illar is theo retically an drog ynou s tho ugh ea ch

of its lowe r three sefirotleans toward the right or the left and so h as a m asculine o r

fem inine ten den cy desp ite their positioning on the cen ter line.

Sometimes these ten sefirot are organized into six groups each of which is

called a partz uf, an archetypal personage constructed in the image of a human

being. Kaballa then arranges these partz ufim into an archetypal family unit and

uses this mo de l to groun d its metap hysical inqu iries. Each of the sixpartz u fim plays

a d ifferent role in the family system:Atik Yomin (Ancien t of Days) is the gre at grand -

father, Arik Anpin (Long Countenance) is the grandfather, Aba an d Ima are father

an d mother. Zer Anpin (Short Coun tenance) is man (also son ) and Nuk va is womano r wife (also dau ghte r). Equ ally freq ue ntly, these partz ufim function as different

voices or sub-personalities within a single individual. When the translation em-

ploys the terms father an d mothero r man an d woman as referring to partz u fim ,

they w ill be italicized and follow ed by the ir Hebrew equ ivalent.

[Diagram of Tree of Life an d Parzu fim]

Each of the ten sefirot and six partz ufim have a distinguishing trait that is

theircon tribution to the sou l (wh ethe r of the individual or fam ily unit). A p erson s

nature and level of spiritual de velopme nt de termines w hich o f tho se traits are inte-

grated in stron g and h ealthy ways, and w hich are und er- or overdevelop ed. The tree

of life marks a ten-step path from below to above that each soul follows in its

jou rn ey to ward p e rfe ct io n an d re u n io n w ith its Cre ato r.

The last stop in its trek is the sefira called Crown (Keter) wh ich co ntains two

partz ufim : an up pe r one called Atik Yom in (Ancient of Days) and a lower o ne called

Arik Anpin (Lon g Coun tenan ce). The trait associated with Atik is spiritual bliss

(_____), and the trait associated with Arik is will (____) for it is the source of all

mo tivating imp ulses within the p erson ality. For various reaso ns, som etimes the se

tw o partz ufim are con sidered a single level, in wh ich case Arik Anpin (Lon g Coun -


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tenance) is absorbed by Atik, which now comp rises two layers, one outer and one

inne r. In this essay, Rav Shn eu r Zalman e mp loys this latter mo del.

In summary:

Sefira Partzufim Terminology This Essay Trait I n -

clusive Term

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(An cien t of Days) (Mo st Ancien t O ne) ( s p i r i t u a lpleasure)

(Crown)________

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(Long Coun tenance) (An cien t O ne) (w ill)

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When it says that only the outer layers of the Inf in ite Lightwere revealed at

Sinai, while its inner lights stayed hidden, encased within the text as unrealized

p ossibilities o f interpre tation , the term s inner an d oute r refer to specific levels in

the k abalistic ma p o f reality. In this con text the y indicatethe two layerso f Ati ka ,

the dee pes t root of soul and po int whe re i t is hewn from the pu re s imp le o nene ss of

the Infinite Light. Atika is the place where man touches G-d (so to speak).

The inn er , hidden lights of the Torah form the inn er layer of Atika wh osetrait is spiritual bliss. This is the highest level of consciousness available in this

wo rld (as opp osed to the w orld to come ). I t is defined as a pure, unselfconscious

pleasure that comes when the self is nullified before th e consum ing fire ofDivine

Presence an d ye t, like Moshes bu sh, is no t con sum ed . Rathe r, in th is self-nullified

state, awareness permeates every cell of the body, no longer is it limited to the

organs of brain and mind. As is kn own to all who are studied in kabbalistic litera-

ture, this exalted state of consciousness awaits all who reach the last milestone of

their journey, called Atika d Atikin ( Most Ancient One ) . And yet, like all the

pro mised rewards of the n ext world and nether realms, a taste (diluted as it may be )

is always available in this world as well.

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The outer aspect of the Inf in ite Light revealed at Sinai, that congealed into the

visible letters of the Torah is called Atika, Ancient One (as opposed to MostAncient

On e). This outer layer ofAtikais the earliest beginnin g of the em anated worlds

and serves as their cr ow n , which m ean s that it holds the vision of their p erfection


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and motivates them to realize that end.

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Now, since m any ofth e Tor ah s enlightening teachings remain locked aw ay

inside itself, th e pleasure that comes from knowing them is not available to us.

Only a surroundin g glow is visible an d the lower-order pleasure that comes

from b eh olding that outer layer of truth . Altho ugh only the external teachings of

the Torah ar e actually revealed no w , this is a tem p orary cond ition. Each gene ra-

tion daily mines new jewels from its rich quarry and eventually our tunneling will

reach the bedrock core of consciousness itself. The p ur e ecstasy of Atika will

i r rupt into the w orld and infuse all living things with rap ture, inau gurating a ne w era

of b lissful u nion with HaShem called, th e delight of the King in His essence.

This phrase can be read in three ways:

1 ) Th e o th e rw o rld ly delight th at comes when creation (who will then be called,

k ing , having com pleted their pe rfection a nd assum ed the role ofHaShem s royal

em issary, i.e. k ing) reu nites with its source (essence) in the Infinite Light.

2) The delight of the Creator (the King of Kings) when he r eunites with th e

lost pieces ofHis essence that were strewn throughout creation at the primor-

dial cataclysm called the sha ttering o f the vessels. These sha rds of light are the

spark s of sou l that are finally comp leting the ir 6,000 year p ilgrimage b ack to the ir

source.

3) The rest state of Divinity, the natu ral vibration of His being is delight. This

phrase thus refers to the delight of the King (HaShem ) that pervades Hisessence and characterizes it . Anyon e wh o accom plishes the feat of making

contact with Divine essence is instantly electrified by that rapture called, the

King s d elight.

This idea is conveyed in a verse from Proverbs,16 wh ich d ep icts the Torah as

HaShem s be loved child. The Torah rem inisces, I was by Him a nursling, a nd I

wa s d aily His d elight. Playin g always before Him; playing with the u niverse, His

earth; and m y delights were with the sons of men.

In the end of days the in war dn ess of the Torah will be revealed below,

its hidden , sou l satisfying truths will illuminate e very que stion , resolve e very dou bt,

explain every suffering. These ex planation s of Torah have their r oot in th e

highest level o fAtik , called spiritual delight , for pleasure always reduces to an

exp ansion of awareness. As Israel absorbs the d eep er and m ore mystical teachings

of the Torah, they become en lighten ed , literally. Their mind s illumina ted with the

ho ly radiance o f Torah w isdom , they will again see from o ne end of the wo rld to the

other17 an d this itself will be their bliss.

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While it is true that on ly the outer layersofth e Infinite Light wer e actually

revealed at Sinai, nevertheless the inw ard ness of the Infinite Light d id comeforth into the lower worlds at that time , as th e Torah itselfattests,An dHaShe m

came down upon moun t Sinai.18 When the verse anthrop omo rphically describes

HaShem coming down , it is teaching that the actual source of light , i.e. the

Inf in ite Light, itselfcame down into this wo rld. This is qu alitatively differen t from

all other revelation s wh ich are enco un ters with the aura surroun ding the luminary,

but not with the actual bodyof lightitself.

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Another proo f that the inwardness of the Inf in ite Lightcame down at Sinai

although it was not actually revealed at that time is the fact that HaShem began Hisrevelation o f the Torah w ith the word, Anochi (I am). The first comm and men t reads,

I am HaShem your G-d wh o b rought you o ut of the land o f Egypt, out of the h ou se

of bondage.19 That aspect that HaShem refers to as I is the level of conscious-

ness identified with the innermost point of the sefi ra of crown (kete r) as is

known . Th e partz ufassociated with this point is Atika dAtikin, the Infinite Light

hidden inside the Torah, the source of holy pleasure and infinitely expan ded aware-

ness.

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Nevertheless, although this inner light of Atika cam e d ow n into the w orld,

it did not enter the visual field of those beholding the revelation . Instead it

hovered beyond the edge of conscious perception, effectively invisible.

Lights that can b e grasped and integrated are called inner and internalizable

___ _____)), lights that are p resen t but too high or de ep or vast to be co ntaine d

within their vessel of consciousness are described as surroun ding or hovering

(___ ____). Th e light o fAtika de Atikin that held the inner secrets of the Torah

could not integrate into the n ation at that time. It literally cou ld no t fit into the ir

minds, even at the Eden ic level of developm ent that they attained at Sinai.20 Dis-

placed , the light o fAtika de Atik informed a k ind of invisible halo around th eintegrated lights of the revealed Torah, enclosing them as if in a sphere o f

radiant con sciou sness.

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Th is is wh y the Talmu d d escribes the relationship forme d b etwee n Israel and

HaShem at Sinai as betrothal, interpreting, The day of his espousals (engage-

ment) as a reference to the revelation at Sinai. In both cases (engagement andSinai) only the more superficial layers of the couple enter into active relationship

while their inner essence stays unengaged, and assumes a position of surrounding

light. The vessel of their relation ship is no t developed en ou gh to ho ld the full

intensity of their inne r selves. For this reason th e classic symbol of betroth al is a

r ing, a circular or nam ent that surround s the finger. And when the groom

propo ses, and speaks th e halachic formu la of engage me nt, Beho ld you ar e sanc-

tified (______) to me (i.e., betrothed)21 he effects two mergers:

1. The supe rficial layers of himself and h is be loved e nter into active and com -

mitted relationship.

2. Their respective core levels of sou l bo nd to the vessel of relationship as

surrounding lights.

This is symbolized by the rin g that he places on his fiancees finger.

[Diagram of Marriage and Betrothal]

The reason that he uses th e lan guage of san ctification (______) instead of

the a ctual term for en gagem ent (______)22 is to linkhis action up to the suprem e

holiness (___ _____)23 associated with the sefira o f keter(crown), also a circular

ornam en t that sits up on the h ead a nd surroun ds the p rimary organ of consciou sness,

the brain.

This is the basis for the Gemaras comment: Dont rea d mora sha ,

inheritance, ra ther rea d m eura sa, fian cee, thereby implying that the Torah s

revelation was an engagemen t ceremon y between HaShem and the Jewish peo ple,

the transcendent lights serving as the circular ring effecting betrothal.

___ ___ _______ _____ ___ ___ ____ __ ______ _____ ______ ____

___ ______ ______ _____ __ ______ ___ _____ __ _____ ___ ___ _____

____ ___ ___ _____ ___ __ ____ __ ______ _____ __ ___ ____ ____

____.

Marriage, on the other hand , is a deeper state of union. Th e flow of

boun ty and revelation passes fro m b estower to receiver completely. There is

nothing of the revealer that cannot be seen, held and contained by the perceiver.

Their union is consummate and parallels the physical relationship between

husband and wife.

There are thirty-nine categories of prohibited work on Shab bat, each of which

con stitutes a particular type o f creative lab or. On e of the se catego ries is called

bu ilding, and included within it is the p rohibition of ope ning containers. While the

container is factory sealed (for example the can of tuna or bag of sugar) i t is not

actually functioning as a vessel since its contents are not available to the outside

world. Halacha defines vessel as a container with an openin g that allows access to


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the product within. Consequently when a person opens a can of tuna they are

effectively creating a vessel in that mo me nt. Until the y removed the bo nd ed m etal

top , the tin w as a p artially constructed vessel-in-po tential. By cutting aw ay the top

its contents beco me accessible to hu man usage, and it enters the category of vessel

p rop er. It is thu s true to say tha t the op en er of the vessel, is its ma ke r.

Similarly the first time a wom an h as physical relations, she becom es a

vessel in the fullest sen se of the w ord. And , as below so abo ve he r capacity to

receive on every level of soul is similarly aw ake ne d. Her con tours of sp iritual

recep tivity are mo lded into shape b y that en coun ter. A me tapho r that describes this

idea is an embossing stamp. The metal has a design engraved in boss relief, and

when pressed against the paper or wax it creates a negative image that perfectly

ma tches the original design. The ou tward p rojecting me tal die actually carves out a

custom vessel of perfectly suited proportions to hold its unique image.

Similarly, an inner coven ental bon d o f spirit forms be tween a wo man and her

hu sban d in their first relation s. A ma n w ho lacks the strength o f sou l to imp act his

bride in this way will not succeed in forming the bon d that de fines marriage o n all i ts

inner levels, and their union will likely not succeed. This is what th e sages meanwhen they say, A woman does not bind herself in a covenant of marriage

except with the on e that can make h er a vessel.24

And so its says regarding the end of days, when Israel and HaShem finally

consumm ate their union, Your hu sband is your m aker.25 Your husband (i.e.

the on e w hose revelation of light and beau ty has entered into you r sou l and carved

ou t a space that can h old the full con tent of that revelation ), He is your m aker(i.e.

you have become your full self by this experience. Now you can fulfill your highest

fun ction. The pleasure of con summ ation is the pleasure of becoming wh o you really

are. It is as if you we re ma de in that mom ent, wh ile be fore you we re a p artially

con structed vessel-in-po tential.) You r hu sban d is [truly] your mak er.

In marriage proper, the inner lights are no lon ger displaced to a surround-in g position, rather they return to their centers, which have now merged into a

common core .26

_______ ___ ____ _____ ____ _____ ___ ______ ___ _____ ______

____ ___ ____ ____ ______ ____ __ ____ __ ___ _______ _____ ____

___ _____ _____ ___ _______ _______ ____ ____ __ ____ _____ _____

_____ ____ __ _____ ____ ____ ___ ______ ____ ____ _____ _______

__.

Similarly in th e future, the full radiance o f the Inf init e Lig ht will shin e

thr ough the Torah , its soul no longer hidden by the coarse materiality of ink on

p archm en t that cloak s it no w. Every wisdo m, insight, an d mystical reverie willradiate forth for all to see.

Con sequen tly the sages equate th e d a y o f his e sp ousa ls to th e givin g

of the Torah at Sinai for ther e began the en gagemen t bond be tween HaShem

and Israel. They vowed to wait for each o ther until the end of days when their t ime

wo uld be ripe for wedlock. The entire verse read s, Go forth, O you daughters of

Zion an d gaz e upon King Solomon , even upon the crown wherewith his mother


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crowned h im on the day of his espousalsa nd on th e d ay o f his gla dness o f hea r t .

The phrase, ..day of his gladness of heartrefers to the future when the

marriage betweenHaShem and Israel will finally be con summ ated. The fullness

of Divine light will shin e thr ough th e Torah and be received by Israel, filling

their collective he art, bo ne s, cells and space s with Holy Presen ce. There w ill be n o

place inside the m that is not perm eated with G-d an d n othing of G-d that do es not f itinside the m. A pe rfect marriage, a consum mate un ion of glory and aw e.

Jewish law defines betrothal as a legal contract of intention to marry that

requires one of several specific deeds to activate the obligations associated with that

com mitmen t. The Mishn a states, A w oma n is be troth ed in three w ays: When

she rece ive s a sum of m oney [or a gift of equivalent monetary value]27 Nowa-

days this is fulfilled by the exchange of a ring,28 an ornament that encircles h e r

finger. Similarly Israel is called woman in relation to HaShem , and she was

betrothed by the encircling light that descended at Sinai and served as her

engagemen t r ing.

____ ____ ___ ______ ___ ___ _____ ____ ____ __ ____ ____ ____

_____ __ ____ __ ____ _____ _____ ____ ____ ___ _____ _____ __

___.

According to kaballa, the role relations that characterize marital union are

evolving through time . The mod el that describe s our present stage of develop me nt

is slow ly shifting an d after passing throug h seve ral interm ed iate m ilestone s will even-

tually invert. Rab bi Isaac Luria ide ntifies seve n d evelop me ntal stage s in the evo lving

relationship of men and women from Eden to the end of t ime. 29 Until the final

stage, w oma n ( _____) receives her cosmic flow oflight, bounty, and conscious-

ness via the in termediary of her spouse . Her relation ship to the transcend ent

aspects of G-d is mediated by her husband (____ _____) and all of her Divinely

be stowe d gifts mu st first pa ss throu gh h im. His wo rk is to iden tify wh ich of his

spiritual bo unties truly belon g to him an d w hich are her rightful inheritance that he

mu st release into h er po ssession .

The m asculine in turn receiveshis flow oflight an d consciousness from

th e partz uf directly abo ve him, called moth er (___). His brains30 derive from

there an d rem ain rooted w ithin he r. She th us serves as his crow n, for he r lights sit

ab ove h is he ad an d en circle it with tran scend en t brilliance. Always, the integrated

awareness of a higherpartz u f is superconscious and ungraspable by the one below

it. This further explains the verse from Song of Songs which describes betrothal

with the words, the crown wh erewith h is mother crown ed him on the day

of his espousals. The mother in this verse is Bin ah ___)) and the crown is herintegrated lights that exceed the cap acity of his brains, and so surroun d his head like

a crown.

This relationship system , wh ere the flow of influen ce p asses from the Inf i-

nite Light to mother (___) to man (____ _____) to woman (_____), is kabalisticly

expressed by a particular form ofthe un ion between two names of G-d, _/_/_/_

(the unpr onouncable name of G-d) an d _/_/_ /_/_ (pronounced Elo-him ). 31


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__ ___ ____ _____ ___ ___ __ _______ _____ _____ _____ ___ ___

____ ____ ____ ____ _____ ______ ____ ____ __ ____ ____ ___ ___

____ _____ ____ ____ ____ _____ _____ ___ ___ _____ _____ _____

___ ___ ____ ______ ______ ___.Kaballa iden tifies four p lanes o f reality which it calls the fou r wo rlds b ecau se

each contains an e ntire set of ten sefirotand six partz ufim within it. From above

to below they are:

atz ilu t ______spiritual plane

briyah _____ mental plane

yetz irah _____ emotional (also psychic and as-

tral) plane

asiya ____ ph ysical plane

Atz ilu t, the h ighe st and sp iritual wo rld is the p lane of cosmic archetypes, and the

first app earance ofpartz u fim . The heaven ly gro om discussed in this essay

indicates the level ofma n ( ____ _____) in th e wor ld of Atzilut. He embo dies

the for ce of divine bestowal and he avenly influence up on the lower realms.

Th e Hebrew term for groom ___ (ch a ta n) relates to the phrase ____

____, to dr op r ank , suggesting mo vemen t from above to below, fall and

descent . This sem antic de rivation emp hasizes his role as ho ly en voy, p ulling

transcendent l ights from above and transferring them to his spouse below. Th e

Hebrew ter m for br ide, ___ (kha la ), relates to th e r oot ___, to include, and

highlights h er tr ait of receptivity.32

The flow o f con sciou sness in the w orld of Atzilut thus pa sses from mother

(___) to man (____ _____) to woman (_____). Mother ( Binah) pulls wisdomdown and p asses it to her son . The lights ma n ( ____ _____) receives from

mother empower h im to ex tend bounty to his own wife, th e sefi ra of

ma lchut, an d partz ufo fwoman (_____).

____ _____ ____ ___ ______ _____ __ ___ ____ ____ ______ __ ___ __ _____ ____

Thus wh en the verse describes, the crown which his mother crowned him

on the d ay of his espo usals... it refers to the enlightened insights thatmo th er

(___) br ings down from the h igher realms an d transfers to her son. These lights,

however, exceed his mental capacity at that t ime and so, unable to fit insidethey hover around his head as surrounding lights, appearing as a crown.

Th is was his mo thers engagemen t gift, to assure that he wo uld have the n eces-

sary resources to fun ction a s a true husban d an d ho ly envoy to his bride. All th is

still applies today.

___ ___ _____ ____ ___ ___ ____ ____ ___ ___ __ ___ ___ ___ ____


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____ _____ ____ __ _____ ___ _____ _____ __ ___ ____ ______ ____

__ ___ _____ ___ __ _____ ___ ____ ____ _____ ___ ____ ____ ____

______ _____ __ _____ ____ ____ __ ___ _____ ____ _______ __ ___

____ ____ ___ ______ ____ ____ _____ ___ __ ___ _______.

This hierarchy of flow describes the relationship b etwee n man (____ _____)an d woman (_____) in the ir earlier stage s of de velop me nt. Just as each d ay

brings messiach o ne step closer, so do es the relation ship of groom and bride daily

mature into its ideal of equal-statured union . Th e verse that describes its fu -

ture and perfected state is, A woman of valor is the crown (____) to her

husband.33 This sour ce depicts the br ide as a valiant or mighty woman

who n ow assumes the p osition of cr ow n to her h usband ( the groom). Their

roles have reversed . Until this stage he served as hercrown ho lding the lights that

we re ultima tely destine d to h er, bu t still too big for her vessel. Here she b e-

comes his crown and holds the consciousness that eludes his now more limited

grasp.

One could summarize the entire 6,000 year odyssey of Biblical history as the

progressive enlightening of the lowe r realms. Each instant some increme nt ofInf in ite Light tr ickles down into the world and integrates into the minds of i ts

inhabitants. An e laborate prod uction line exists, extending from abo ve to below ,

that packages the Infin ite Light into a form that can be absorbed by the lower

wo rlds. On e ke y feature of this cosmic chain o f descen t is that the higher level

always functions as a crown to the w orld b elow it .

In the betrothal period initiated at Sinai, the flow of consciousness passed

from from mother(___) to man (____ _____) to woman (_____), and each served

as the crow n to the o ne b elow it. The verse which de scribes this arrangeme nt is ,

the crown wh erewith his mother crown ed him on th e day of his espous-

als, fo r at Sina i th e man (____ _____) received his supe rconsciou s inheritance

of lights from motheras an engagem ent gift . He internalized a p ortion an d passed

a fraction on to his fiancee as a b etrothal token, as an engage me nt ring.

In the future, this crown of superconscious lights that man (____ _____)

received from moth er will instead com e from woman (i.e., his wife). Sh e,

who had p reviously been below him in stature and intelligence, will now

surpass him , and th eir roles will reverse. She will be h olding the ir highe r lights

and he will receive his po rtion from her.

The m echan ism wh ich u nde rlies this turn o f events is a me taphysical law that

has two formu lation s. Sefer Yetzira states, The en d is enwedged in the begin-

n ing.34 The last (and lowest) point of creation was actually the first and essen-

tial rea son for it. Similarly a verse from Shab ba t liturgy states, Th e final act was

the first tho ught .35 These ideas are discussed at length in o the p laces.36

Kaballa teaches that this first thou ght was a piercing vision of the accom-

plished pu rpose o f creation . I ts utter and comp elling beau ty inspired HaShem (a s

it we re) to b egin this labo r of ma terializing th at drea m. Itis the wh ole po int of

creation an d yet it is the last to com e forth. Everything else is an interme diate

bu ilding block toward one culminating en d, the p erfect emb odime nt of that origi-

nal vision . The last piece of han diwork in the six days of creation was wo man

(____ _____). This mean s, according to these p rinciples, that her roo t is highe r


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than all that p receded her, for the last and lowest end derives from the first and

highest beginning. It follows that hertrait of rece ptivity must b e the ultima te an d

eternally en during pu rpose o f creation .37

When the un iverse is a work in p rogress,HaShem nee ds builde rs to comp lete

the millen iums-sized task of pe rfecting the w orld. This do wn wa rd-facing work isa masculine skill and when it is in demand, power and status resides with those

wh at have it. But eventually (and actually quite soon in the relative scheme of

things) the wo rld w ill be b uilt, the job will be d on e, Sha bb at will com e. And th en

the trait in high demand will be receptivity, the capacity to receive the Divine

revelation o f love and light and Pre sence tha t is the p leasure of eternity. This

upward-facing activity is a feminine skill and, apparently, the ultimate purpose of

creation.

In the world of app earances, woman (_____) is lowe st, in the w orld o f roots,

she is highest. When creation returns to its roo ts and its hierarchy rules, the

po larity of masculine an d feminine w ill reverse an d she w ill beco me s the crown

to her husban d. Now the op po site is so.

______ __ ____ ____ _____ __ _____ ____ _____ ______ ______

______ ______ ____ __ ____ ____ _______ ___ __ ______ _____ ____

___ ____ ___ ______ ____ _____ ______ ____ ___.

This also explains th e mysterious statemen t bych a z a lconcerning the m essi-

anic time :38

Now the angels gather before HaShem and worship him with the formula of

ado ration that we imitate in our ked usha p rayer when we say, Holy, holy ho ly

is the Lord of ho sts.39 There w ill come a time w hen the heavenlyhos ts w ill

reci te ho ly , ho ly , ho ly befo re the r ig hte ous ts a d ik im as it is now said

before the Holy One, Blessed be He. This is the mystical in terpretation of the

verse,40 And it shall come to pass that he that is left in Zion , an d he that rem ain s

in Jerusalem shall be called Holy.

This switch hap pen s because the souls of the tsadikim (the righteous and pious

ones) ar e , surprisingly, rooted in the lowest sefi ra called ma lchut , which forms

th e partz u fo fwoman (_____), whereas the partz u findicated by the title, Holy One,

Blessed be He, is man (____ _____). Consequently, when the universe returns to its

roots and woma n ( _____) rises to her holy beginnings in the highest sefi ra

called cr ow n, she will be manifesting a higher octave of Divine majesty than man

(____ _____), also called Holy one, Blessed Be He, and the angels will address

their adoration to her, and to th e righteous tsadikim that emb ody her traits.

____ __ ____ __ ____ ______ ___ ____ ___ ____ ______ ____ ___ __

____ __ __ ___ ___ ___ __ ___ ___ _____ ____ __ ___ ___ __ ___

_____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ __ ____ __ __ ____ __ __

_____ _____ ____ ____ ___ ___ ____ _____ __ ___ __


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It is no w po ssible to answer the essays original five questions regarding

the last two marriage blessings.

The sixth brocha , which app lies to the relationship of man and wo man in their

present, unperfected state, closes with the words, Blessed are You, HaShem , wh orejoices the groo m a ndbride. The seventh blessing, which ap plies to the future,

read s instead, wh o r ejoices the groom with the br ide.

Now, w oma n ( _____) who is called bride r eceives her lights from ma n

( ____ _____) wh o is called gro om. His larger stature affords h im greate r access to

the transcend ental realms and she is depe nd ent up on h im for this. He pu lls their

lights down from mother(___) and afterward s transfers hers to her. Since lights and

con sciou sness are always syno nym ou s with joy, the sixth marriage b lessing d escribe s

the present as a t ime when gladness passes from groom to bride, and h e is the

agent of her joy.

This h ierarchy of descent begins with mo th er (___), who passes

superconscious and surrounding l ights to her son, man (____ _____) , an actdescribed by the verse, the crown wher ewith h is mother crowned h im o n

the d ay of his espo usals. He internalizes some of that light, separates out a portion,

an d con veys it to w oma n ( _____) , his w ife.

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ____ ____ ______ ___ ____ _____ _______

_____ ____ __ __ ____ ____ ___ __ ____ ______ _____ _____ ____ __

____ ____ ___ __ ___ __ _____ ____ _____ ____ _______ ___ ____

___ ___ ___ ____ ___ __ ____ ___ ___ ___ ____ ____ ____ __ ____

____ ____ ____ __ _____ _____ ___ __ ___.

This hierarchy of flow is not the ide al, and w ill not always be so . Eventually,The w om an o f valor [will become] the crown to her hu sband . Like a rub ber

band s tretched b ack and released, when woman (_____), comp letes her tikun, sh e

will spring beyond the level of man up to the level ofcr ow n (the first and

highest sefira). When th is happens their gend er p olarity of higher and lower, giver

and receiver will reverse and she will be stow consciousness to him. The seventh

blessing de scribe s this turn o f eve nts with the p hr ase, wh o rejoices the groom

with th e bride. The essen tial sour ce of joy (and co nsciou sness) will originate

with the bride, woman (_____), who has reattained her full stature after nearly

6,000 years on the lowest run g of creation. This is wh at it mean s that, The

end is enwedged in the beginning. When the end finally reattains its begin-

ning, the low est become s the h ighest and the groom will receive his flow of light

and joy from the bride, who has become his crown, as the verse foretells, Awom an of valor is the crown to her hu sband . This future era is also alluded

to by anoth er verse in Yirmiyahu , Beh old I will create a n ew thin gthe w om an

will surround the man.41 Now, since his intelligence is higher than hers, his

lights are the surrounding ones, for her vessel of consciousness is too limited to hold

them . In the future the o pp osite will be true. Her con sciou sness will supe rcede h is,

spilling over as surrounding lights to his more limited vessel at that time.


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____ ____ ____ ____ _____ __ ___ ___ ____ ___ __ ___ ___ ____ _____

___ ____ __ __ __ ______ ____ __ ____ __ ___ __ _____ ____ ____

______ __ _____ _____ ____ ____ ____ ___ _____ ___ ____ ____

_______ ____ ______ _____ ____ ______ ____ ____ _____ ________ ____ ____ __ ____ ___ ___ ___ ____ ___ __ ___ ____ ____ __

____ __ __ _______ _____ ____ _____ ___ ____ _______ __.

This also explains wh y the seventh blessing exp resses imp atience with the

present and seeks to hurry its envisioned end, Let there soon be heard in the

cities of Judah the voice of the gr oom and the voice of the b ride...

Now, in our fallen and exiled state, the w oma n ( _____) only has what

she receives from her h usband (____ _____), she h as absolutely no thin g that

is intrinsically her o wn.42 She is com pletely dep end ent on him. This mo del of

gender relations plays itself out on other planes as well.

Every leve l of reality displays gend er. There is always a giver and a rece iver,

a ma sculine a nd a fem inine . It is certainly po ssible (if no t prob able) that within a

given cou ple the se roles wo uld switch from situation to situation . For examp le in

certain co ntexts, one of the pair assum es the role of active b estower wh ile in ano ther

context he b ecom es the mo re passive receiver and vice verse. Nevertheless, in every

field of focu s gend er exists. Conse qu en tly, if on e exa mine s the su bject of divine

service, Torah study is considered a masculine expression and prayer, a feminine

on e. There are many reasons for these associations.

Among the variety of prayer forms found in Judaism (praise, request, thanks-

giving, affirmation, the Shema, etc.) the most complete and essential expression of

prayer is the Shemonah Essray, which means literally, the Prayer of Eighteen Bless-

ings (thou gh it actually has nineteen, for one was ad ded at a later p eriod in history).

This prayer is the h eart of each wo rship service. All othe r liturgy is eithe r bu ilding u p

to or winding dow n from it . When the wo rd prayerappears unqualified in Jewish

writing it refers to the Shemona Essrey (also called the Amida, or standing prayer).

Halacha derives many of the laws regarding its recitation from Chana, the

mo ther of Samu el who se p rayer for child app ears in the first book of Shmu el.43 Th e

mo st distinctive rule is that it mu st on ly be w hispe red . Nearly all oth er liturgical

exp ressions are pron oun ced with full voice. Con versely the Shem ona Essray is enun -

ciated just loud enough for ones own ears to hear, no more.

Since p rayer is a fem inine mod e o f worship, and the essential exp ression

of prayer is th e Shem ona Essray , the whispered pr ayer , then its thrice-daily reci-

tation symb olically reen acts the brides absence o f voice at this point in history.

Spe ech is a hu ma n b eings primary tool for projecting h im or he r self ou t into

the world. The hidden con tent of on es thou ghts be com es heard by another, and

even m ore, once spok en, they influence the subsequen t actions of those that heardthem. Since speech is an outward projecting extension of influence it is a masculine

mo de o f expression , while the m ore recep tive, listening role is fem inine . On e wh o

has no voice, whether literally or metaphorically, lacks the normal chann els of


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exerting powe r and influence over their environm ent, and m ust resort to n onver-

bal m ethod s, which often include violence o r passive aggressive p rotest.

King David describes this voiceless state by the verse, I was struck m ute

with silence. Kaballa identifies this phrase from Psalms with a profoundly re-

gressed developmen tal state th at it calls ka tnut44

(literally, sm allne ss), con veyingthe idea of narrow-minded and constricted consciousness.

A pr imar y feature ofkatnut is the inability to expr ess oneself in words.

A chasm exists between awareness and speech due to ones inadequate capacity of

articulation (w hether chronic or mo me ntary). On es dep th or intensity of though t

cann ot be conveyed through the insufficiently developed instrument of spe ech. In-

stead one retreats into frustrated silence.

An d so the Shemon i Essray be gins with the w ords, Ha Shem op en my mo uth

that m y lips may declare your praise. HaShem , if You wa nt m y praye rs, if You wa nt

a dialogue of communion then You must assist the process . You must help me

speak. On my ow n I lack the skill . I have regressed to such a p oint that I have lost

my voice an d capacity for self-expr ession, along w ith man y other powers that

associate with maturity and exp and ed con sciou sness. I cann ot even stand u pright. I

am a pud dle. All of my upp er nine sefirot(representing my h igher levels of aware-

ness) have collapsed into the lowest one (malchut), and I am r educed to a single

poin t occupying the lowest level of the em anated wor ld.

____ _____ ____ _____ ___ __ ______ __ _____ _____ _______ ___ ___

______ _______ ___ ______ _____ ____ ___ ______ ________ ____.

For th is reason engagemen t happe ns through a one w ay flow o f spee ch. Th e

groom talks while the b ride stays silen t. He pron oun ces his inten tion, Beho ld

you are sanctified (betroth ed) to me and sh e does not r espon d. Her silen ce

exp resses he r lack of protest wh ich e stablishes the criteria o f mutual consen t. Their

engagement, with all its contractual responsibilities, activates by her mu teness.

Why d oesnt she speak at least a wor d of verbal consent? That would seem to

be mo re con sisten t with the m utually binding ch aracter of their relation ship.

__ _____ ___ ___ ____ ______ ___ ___ ___ _____ ___ ___ ____ ____

____ ____ ____ __ ____ __ ______ ___ _____ _______ ___ __ ______

______ __

The r eason for this custom is that the engagement ceremony models the ear-

lier develop me ntal stages in the evolving relationship o f man and w om an. In those

stages the bride is just beginn ing to recove r from h er fall and d iminishm en t. Her

stature r emains severely decreased and overwhelmed to the p oint of near

no n-existence before the groom . The m ost obvious symp tom o f this disparity in

stature is he r lack of voice, both in her associated form of worship, i.e. prayer ;

and in her mu te acceptance of engagemen t. Each reflects he r katnutan d is thus

perform ed in silence.

___ _____ _______ ___ ______ ____ _____ ____ ____ ___ ___ ____


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___ _____ ___ ____ ___ ____ __ __ ___ ___ ________ ___ ____ ___

___ _____ ____ ___ ___ ___ ______ ________ _____ ____ __ _____

___ _____ _____ ______ ___.

However th e time is rapidly approaching when woman (_____) will com-

p lete her jou rne y of pe rfecting. Fully recovered from he r fall, she will return toher r oot in the sefira ofketer , (___), and m anifest as a cro wn to her hu s-

band having now superceded him in stature. Their roles will have inverted an d

she will be drawing down their light, bo un ty and consciousness and passing it

on to h im (a service he ha s pro vided for m illenn iums). All this will follow an earlier

shift when the bride comes into her voice, both literally and metaphorically, for

voice symbolizes the m ore gen eral activity of pr ojecting her self out into th e

world as an independen t agent. The seventh marriage blessing reads, Let there

soon be heard the voice of the br ide. Let the br ide come into h er voice. Le t

h er exp ress h erself and pr oject her self in fully audible speech, the very opp o-

site of the wh ispered prayers we now em ploy in ou r Shem ona Essray.

____ ____ __ ___ ___ _____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ __ ____ _________ ___ ___ ___ _______ ___ ____ ____ ___ ___ ______ ____ ___

___ _______ _____ ____ __ ___ ____ _______ ____ ____ _______

____ __ ____ ____ ____ ____ ________ _____ ___ ___ ______ ____

______ ______ ______ ____ ____ _____ ______ _____ __

This is what it m eans th at the voice of the b ride willbe heard, mean -

ing, Let it soon be heard. Both ph rases indicate a future state when the

supern al bride will finally attain her full stature and recover her voice. Now we

are still in th e era of engagement an d the bo nding between man (____ _____)

an d woman (_____)only incorporates their mor e extern al layers of light an d

consciousness. Their inne r selves are displaced. Prevented from entering into directcontact the y surround the co up le instead, exe rting an indirect influence and serv-

ing as their cosmic engagemen t r ing. Reflecting th is cosmic stage o f develop-

ment , where woman (and all things feminine) is still profoundly diminished , a

bride accepts her engagemen t in silence and prayer is whispered.

___ _____ ______ ______ ____ ____ _____ ____ ______ ___ ____

___ ______ ______ ______ ___ ___ __ _____ ____ ___ ___ ___

________ ______ __ ___ ___ ___ ___ ____ __ ___ ______ ____ ___

__ ____ ____ _____ ____ ___ ___:

But in the future woman (_____) will return to her root as crown andreceive her lights straight from the very source of consciousness itself, the inward-

ness of the Inf init e ligh t. The relationsh ip between groom and br ide, God and

Israel will then be fully con summ ated, for wom an w ill become a vessel unto

herself, a freestanding, inde pe nde ntly acting pa rtner in marriage . She will re cover

her voice and p roject h erself out into th e world to such an extent that th e

roles ofman an d woman will invert. Man will receive his light and boun ty from


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the transcende nt levels ofHaShem via the agency ofwoman as his intermediary, a

state described by the seventh marriage blessing, Blessed are You, HaShem wh o

rejoices the groo m with the bride.

This shifting of dynamic between man and woman under-

lies all of the p rom ised m essianic blessings th at awa it Israel

in the end of days.

1 ___. _____ ___ ____ ___ _____ ____, _ ___ -

2 Reb Shneu r Zalman (1745-1813) was the found er of Chabad ch assidut, and learned ab ou t Chasidism

from Rabbi Dov Baer HaMaggid, leader of the Chasidic moveme nt and student o f the Baal Shem Tov.

Under the Maggid, Reb Shneur Zalman wrote and upd ated profoun d com men taries abou t the Shulchan

Aruch. When the anti-Chassidic movem ent was taking place in the mid 18th

century, Reb Shneur

Zalman went to Vilna and attempted to speak to the Gaon of Vilna to try to reach some kind of

und erstanding betw een Chasidim and Mitnagdim. Reb Shneur Zalman late published the Tanya,

wh ich was accep ted as the written law of Chabad Chassidut. His abili ty to explain even the mo st

comp lex issues of Torah m ade h is writ ings po pular with Torah scholars everywhere. Reb Zalman had

a vast know ledge of mathematics and science as well . His son, Rabbi Shalom Do ve Baer Schnee rson,

be came the lead er of the Chasidic movem en t after Rab Zalman s death. (Biograph y from Parde s Project,

OU, 1996).

3 The closing line of a blessing, expressed in the formula of Blessed are you, is called its seal. It

condenses all the thoughts that precede it into a single statement of prayerful affirmation.

4The entire sixth b lessing reads, Gladden the b eloved com pan ions as You gladdened Your creature in

the Garden of Eden from aforetime. Blessed are You , HaShem , Who gladdens groo m and bride.

5 The blessings are said in a d ifferent order un der the chu pa than at the celebratory meals. Under the

chupa the prayer over the wine is said as the first sheva brocha and then the six special blessings

follow. At the celebratory meals, the six special blessings preced e the p rayer over wine so the num -

bering changes. What is here called the seventh becomes the sixth. What is he re called the sixth

becomes the fifth .

6 ____ ____

7 In the siddur containing the essay here translated, there also ap pears ano ther essay enti tled, __ __ __

____ ____, wh ere this point is explicitly elabo rated. ______ ____ ,266 _256 -.

8 Deuterono my 30:20.

9 TB Pesachim 49b.

10 Bmidba r Rabba 12:10, Mishna, Taan it 4:8, TB Taanit 26b.

11 Son g o f Son gs 3:11.


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12 Exodus 19:10.

13 Isaiah 54:5.

14 Maimonides, Mishna Torah, Hilchot Melachim 12:5.

15 Adin Steinsaltz, The Essential Talmu dand trans. Chaya Galai (Basic Books, Inc., New York) p. 228-

230.

16 Proverbs 8:30.

17 TB Hagiga 12a.

18 Exodus 19:20.

19 Exodus 20:2.

20 TB Shabbat 146a.

21 Mishna, Kidus hin 3:1.

22 A clarification for those less familiar with Heb rew. The Mishna pre sents a formu la for effecting

halachic engagemen t which includ es the statement, Behold you are sanctifiedto me Why doesnt

the groom say a m ore exp licit and straight forward statement, Behold, you are en gaged to m e. The

paragraph explains that the Hebrew wo rd for sanctified has o ther associations that the sages wished to

bring into the process.

23 Zoha r II121b, 122; III66a, b. This is the term for the p oint wh ere the sefira ofchokmah contacts the

sefira o fketer.

24 TB Sanhedrin 22b.

25 Isaiah 54:5.

26 Israel is defined as a creature, un ique in the universe, for i ts capacity to k now , contain and reveal

the full range o f existen tial po ssibilities that ex ist within Divinity Itself. At prese nt this is only a

potential, but a potential that will be realized.

27 TB Kidushin 2a.

28 ___ ___ ___.

29 ___ ____ ____.

30Brain s is a literal translation o f the Heb rew w ord, _____ and is a frequ ently used term in kaballa. It

refers to the u pp er three sefirot , keter, chokmah , binah (and sometimes daat) , and thus indicates the

facult ies of con scious and supercon scious awarene ss, i.e., intelligence in broadest sense o f the term.

31 Each o ne of the ten sefirot correspon ds to a divine n ame , for i t is the age ncy by w hich that part icular

aspect of divine expression m anifests in the w orld.

These two nam es express the two primary modes of divine interaction with creation. The

Tetragrammaton (_/_/_/_) signifies the transcendent aspect of divinity, perfect and absolute, that exists

beyon d t ime and space, name a nd form. Its combination of let ters and sound s creates such a potent

vibration that w e are forbidden from sp eaking i t aloud . On ly the h oliest man (the High Priest) on the


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holiest day (Yom Kipp ur) in the holiest place (the Inne r Sanctum of the Temp le) having comp leted a

full da ys regimen of fasting and pu rification s on ly he cou ld say this nam e alou d in its full and mo st

po tent pronun ciation. Only unde r these condit ions w ould i ts influence be assuredly clean an d l ife

giving. When the secon d Temple was de stroyed Israel lost the tradit ion of how to pronou nce this

nam e altogethe r. Since the Tetragrammaton is associated w ith the sixth sefira oftiferet (beauty) an d

th e partz ufof man (____ _____), it also represnts HaShems compassion..

The other nam e, Elo-him, is the only name used throu ghout the creation chap ter of Genesis. I t is theform bu ilding, bou ndary sett ing e xpression of divinity that operates within the system of natural law

that HaShem devised to govern the w orld in accordan ce with His will . This name associates with the

fifth sefira ofgevurah (justice) and yet is explicitly connected with all of the feminine sefirot that lie

along the left pillar of the Tree of Life.

The n ame of G-d associated w ith the third sefirah ofbinah comb ines the energies of both Tetragramm aton

and Elo-him, as will be exp lained.

Since the Tetragrammaton is unspeakab le, when encou ntered in scripture or l i turgy the reade r

substitutes anothe r name o f G-d in its place. Gen erally, the sub stituted nam e is (Ado-n oi) ,_/_/_/_ , the

name of G-d associated with the tenth sefira ofmalchut(kingdom) and the partz uf, woman (_____).

Some times, ho we ver, the vow el po ints that app ear un der the letters of the Tetragrammaton indicate

that the substituted name sh ou ld be Elo-him instead. This latter com bination of letters and vow els is

the nam e o f G-d associated with binah . When this name app ears, invariably the Tetragrammaton, no w

with the vowel points of Elo-him (and so pronounced, Elo-him), is followed (or preceded) by the

name of G-d in malchut, (Ado-noi) _/_/_/_ (the nam e that is usually pronou nced in i ts stead). In

summa ry, when Tetragrammaton ap pea rs with the vo wel p oints of Elo-him (instead of i ts usual form,with the vow el points associated w ith Ado-noi) the following com bination of name s of G-d occur:

The names based on pronunciat ion are: _/ _/_/_/_ (_/_/_/_) _/_/_/_.

The name s based on their written form: (let ters) _/_/_/ _ (letters) _/_/_/ _ (vowels) _/_/

_/_/_

This comb ination of names thu s describes the flow of boun ty from mother(___) to son (____ _____) to

woman (_____) for:

Mother(___) = the Tetragrammaton with the vow el points of Elo-him and so p ronoun ced as Elo-him.

Man (____ _____) = the letters of the Tetragramm aton itself, wh ich are not spo ke n but app ear in the

text.

Woman (_____) = (Ado-noi) the name of G-d that is usually substituted for the Tetragrammaton and

accompanies i t in i ts full phonetic spell ing whenever the Tetragrammaton appears instead with the

vowel point of Elo-him.

These three nam es comb ine in many w ays, and this particular combination h olds the flow of

energies described in this stage of development. (____ ____, ______ ______, ____ ______).

The places whe re this combination of names ap pe ars in the Bible are: I Shm uel 1:28, Habaku k

3:19, Psalms 109:21, Psalms 140:8, Psalms 141:8.

32 The word khala also relates to a similar root, ___, which m ean s to com plete, finish, pe rish, as in the

phrase ____ ___, a state of fatal rapture where the soul actually leaves the body because of its insa-

tiable longing to unite with its Beloved above.

33 Mishley 12:4

34 Sefer Yetzira, I:7,

35 Kaballat Shabbat Liturgy, LCha Dodi.

36 Need to track down sources

37 ____ ___, __ ____, __ ____ ____ _____, ___ _____ __ ___.

38 TB Baba Batra 75b.

39 Isaiah 6:3.

40 Isaiah 4:3.


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41 Jerem iah 31:22.

42 Zohar I:140a, and m any othe rs.

43 I Shm ue l 1:1 2:10; TB Brocho t 31a,b.

44 The term katnutdescribes an immature state, gen erally correspon ding to the souls pread olescent

period o f developme nt where the individual is only able to u nderstand the externality of things

The term app lies both to the natural grow th process whe n the so ul is passing through katnut for the

first time, and it is an age-appropriate condition, as well as regressed expressions ofkatnut, where an

adu lt lapses into age -inap pro priate imm aturity. The verse from Psalms, I was struck mute w ith

silen ce refers to th e latter.

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