WEDNESDAY PRAYER: GEVURAH-MAIN READING OF THE WEEK – THE ZOHAR BOOK
READING: SUNSET MONDAY
Main Reading for PRAYER OF MANY, today with ENGLISH ZOHAR READING, page 175-178.
ARVUT OF : Robin Anderson
THE LETTER OF ALEPH
- The letter Aleph stood outside and did not enter to appear before the
Creator. The Creator said to it: “Why do you not come to me like all the
other letters?” Aleph replied: “Because I saw all the letters leaving your
presence without the desired answer. And besides, I saw You presenting the
letter Bet with this great gift. And, indeed, the King of the universe cannot
take back his gift and give it to another!” The Creator replied: “Although I
will create the world by the letter Bet, it is you who will stand at the head
of all the letters, and there shall be no unity in Me, but through you alone;
all accounts and deeds of this world shall always begin with you, and all of
unity shall be in you alone.”
As we already know, all the letters’ questions are Aliyat MAN—their individual
requests, prayers, desires to ascend to the Creator. And the Creator’s answers
to them are called Yeridat MAD—the descent of the Light from Above, giving
strength and abundance according to the letters’ requests. The great perfection
in the letter Aleph stems not from the lower ones’ request for spiritual ascent and
correction, but from a force (Light) descending from Above and elevating those
that dwell below.
This is why from the beginning of correction to its end, Aleph (unlike the
other letters, whose properties fuel the process of correction during the 6,000
years) is never stimulated to raise its request to the Creator. And only if the Light
that bestows strength for spiritual ascent descends from Above and begins to
shine upon Aleph will it be stimulated. However, this will only take place at the
end of correction.
Aleph did not raise its plea (MAN) to the Creator, for it saw that all the other
letters asked, but to no avail, for there was an opposite property in the system
of the impure forces against each of their properties. Therefore, Aleph decided
that it was no better than the rest, that there is a corresponding impure force
against it as well.
Furthermore, it raised no requests (MAN) to the Creator because it saw that
the Creator decided to create the world with the letter Bet, mercy. And since it
had no doubt that His decision was irrevocable, it decided not to ask Him.
Although it is true that the world was already created with the property of
Bet, and that the Creator will not turn His gift over to another letter, the Partzuf
that was created by the property of Bet is incomplete, small, VAK without a head.
And since a Partzuf needs a head in order to reach the state of Gadlut, which is
possible only when the Partzuf is filled not only with the Light of Mercy (Hassadim),
but also with the Light of Wisdom (Hochma), more letters are necessary
for the connection, conception and birth of a new Partzuf, a new state.
A state of Gadlut can only be achieved with the help of the property of the
letter Aleph. Only Aleph can bring a Partzuf to Gadlut, to supplement its body,
VAK, with a head, GAR, Mochin—the Light of Hochma. The letter Aleph brings
the union between ZA and Malchut in a face-to-face position, whereas previously,
in Katnut, while being filled with only the Light of Mercy, ZA and Malchut were
connected back-to-back. This is why Aleph creates a head for all the letters, and
hence stands at the head of the alphabet.
The Creator said: “That is why My Unity in the world is expressed only through
the property of the letter Aleph. Furthermore, all rewards and punishments,
distancing and drawing nearer, as well as the aspiration for spiritual correction
(Teshuvah), all of which lead to the achievement of the end of correction, will
only happen by the property of the Aleph. I have made Bet the basis of the Partzuf
so that it would be in no way dependent on the deeds of the lower ones. Thus,
even if they begin to sin, those above will remain unaffected.
He continued: “But the Light in you, Aleph, is directly related to the actions
of the lower ones. So if they sin, the Light of Wisdom (the Light of GAR in
you) will immediately disappear. But if they correct their actions (Teshuvah), the
Light of Hochma will return. And My unity with all the creatures at the end of
correction will only be realized through the letter Aleph.”
Letters are Kelim (plural for Kli—vessel), desires. And this refers to both the
individual letters of the alphabet and those that form words. In the names of
spiritual objects, letters signify the force of their desire, which the Light can fill.
Letters of a simple name, without filling, designate its basis without Light—Kli
of Aviut zero with the Light of Nefesh. Letters of a fulfilled name designate the
magnitude of desires that are filled by Light.
There are two sources of letters: Yod and Aleph. Yod is a genuine source, for
when we write something, we begin with a dot (Yod), and then, as we proceed
from the dot in one of the four directions, we get a line. Letters are Kelim,
desires, in which the Light (pleasure) is received.
A desire for something specific may only emerge if: (i) the initial, still
unconscious desire is filled with delight, and (ii) the delight exits the desire.
It is the memories (Reshimot) of past pleasures that lead to the emergence of a
true desire to receive it, to feel it once more. And this is the very desire that
is called Kli.
A filled Kli cannot be called a desire, for it is satisfied. Therefore, expulsion of
the Light and sensation of spiritual descent constitute the period of the creation
of new Kelim for future receptions of Light, for new attainments. Because the
first restriction is the reason for the disappearance of Light from all the vessels,
its black dot, Yod, is the basis of all the letters-Kelim.
However, the second restriction is the only true root of all the worlds,
because the first restriction was only made on a point, (Phase Four, Malchut,
the fourth letter Hey in the Creator’s name HaVaYaH). The second restriction,
however, was made on Bina, in whom the two points, Bina and Malchut, were
joined. The union of the two points forms a line, either vertical or horizontal. If
it is a horizontal line, it is called “firmament” or Parsa.
The sum of consequences of both the first and second restrictions forms
a slanted line (); GE (Keter-Hochma) is depicted to its right, and AHP (Bina-
ZA-Malchut) to its left. Keter-Hochma remain on their previous level and are
designated by the letter Yod, the first root of the world, whereas, a result of the
second restriction, designated by a slanted line (), Bina-ZA-Malchut fell to a lower
level. And since the letter Yod is the first, though a very remote root of the worlds,
and all the worlds were created afterwards and in accordance with the law of the
second restriction, the letter Aleph stands at the head of the alphabet.
The kind of Light that fills the spiritual Kli or Partzuf can also be seen from
its designation: if it is filled with the Light of Wisdom (Ohr Hochma), the filling
is designated by the letter Yod; and if it is filled with the Light of Mercy (Ohr
Hassadim), it is the letter Aleph. - The Creator made the Upper letters, which refer to the Sefira Bina,
large, and the lower letters that refer to Malchut—small. Therefore it is said:
“Beresheet Barah” (in the beginning He created)—two words that begin with
Bet, and then Elokim Et (the Creator Himself)—two words that begin with
Aleph. The first set of Aleph and Bet are letters of Bina, and the second set
of Aleph and Bet are letters of Malchut. And they should mutually affect one
another with their properties.
When the Upper One wishes to give Light to the lower one, it should clothe
in the lower one, signified by the first two letters Bet and the two letters Aleph
in the first four words of the Torah. For the first, Upper Bet is Bina, the second,
lower Bet is ZA, and the first Bet clothes into the second one.
Similarly, the first Aleph refers to Bina and clothes into the second Aleph in
ZA so as to fill it with Light. Therefore, the two letters Bet are like one letter Bet
and the two letters Aleph are like one letter Aleph, since the lower letter merely
constitutes the influence of the Upper One, which tells us that the Upper Partzuf
fills the lower one.
The world cannot be created with Aleph, for the word Arur (cursed) begins
with it, and had the world been created with Aleph, the impure forces, called
“cursed,” would have received great power from the pure forces, called Baruch
(blessed). This is why the world (Nukva of ZA) is created with the letter Bet.
Likewise, Adam in Nukva of ZA is also created by the power of Bet. Thus, Malchut
of the world of Atzilut constitutes the root of all creation, all the worlds, and all
that inhabit them.