B"H · The Wellsprings of Chassidus

The Awtsmoos Encyclopedia

Every concept, every world, every soul — drawn from Sefer HaMaamarim and the teachings of Chassidus. Search 177 articles or browse by category.

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עבודהAvodah25 articlesService of the heart — prayer, love, awe, trust מושגיםConcepts39 articlesCore Chassidic concepts and ideas השתלשלותCosmology20 articlesThe chain of worlds from Atzilus to Asiyah תאריםDivine Attributes10 articlesHow we speak of the Infinite אחרית הימיםEschatology8 articlesRedemption, resurrection, the World to Come אישיםFigures10 articlesPatriarchs, kings, and the Rebbeim מועדיםHolidays15 articlesShabbos and the festivals קליפהKelipah6 articlesThe husks — concealment and evil מצוותMitzvos12 articlesThe commandments and their inner meaning פרצופיםPartzufim7 articlesThe divine countenances ספירותSefirot11 articlesThe ten emanations נשמהSoul8 articlesNefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah, Yechidah עולמותWorlds6 articlesAtzilus, Beriah, Yetzirah, Asiyah

עבודה Avodah

Ahavah (אהבה) — LoveAhavah is the soul's drawing-near to Divinity — its essential matter is kiruv (closeness): "The ahavah's matter — kiruv: in the spiritual avodah — the nefesh's ascent and deveikus in Divinity" [15966/maamar_024 :: §778…
Avodah Shebelev (עבודה שבלב) — The Service of the HeartAvodah shebelev — "the service of the heart" — is tefillah (prayer). The identification is scriptural: "u'le'avdo b'chol levavchem" (Devarim 11:13) — "what is the service of the heart? This is prayer" (Taanis 2a). In the…
Beinoni (בינוני) — The IntermediateThe beinoni — the "intermediate" — is the central figure of Tanya, the Sefer shel Beinonim ("Book of Intermediates"), the middle level between the tzaddik (whose heart is in his domain, whose evil is transformed) and t…
Bitachon (בטחון) — TrustBitachon is trust in Hashem — the active, worked-upon counterpart to emunah (faith). The maamar on "Betach ba'Havayah va'aseh tov, shechon eretz u're'eh emunah" (Tehillim 37:3) reads the verse as four matters: bitachon a…
Bitul (ביטול) — NullificationBitul — self-nullification before the Divine — is the inner posture of all avodah and the condition of all revelation. "It is known that a vessel for Divinity is the aspect of bitul specifically: for what is battul is a …
Bitul Hayesh (ביטול היש) — nullification of the independent selfBitul hayesh ("nullification of the yesh") is the avodah of nullifying one's sense of independent, self-sustaining existence (yesh) before the Divine truth — the created returning from yesh to ayin. In the Shemin…
Dveikus (דביקות) — cleaving to HavayahDveikus ("cleaving," "adhesion") is the soul's binding itself to the Divine — in the verse's idiom, "ואתם הדבקים בהוי' אלקיכם" ("and you, cleaving to Havayah your Elokim" — Devarim 4:4). In the maamarim it denotes both…
Emunah (אמונה) — FaithEmunah, "faith," is the Jewish soul's innate, supra-rational attachment to Havayah. "All Yisroel are believers, children of believers; and emunah is above daas" [31682/maamar_020 :: עב׳ 104] — it precedes and outranks co…
Hisbodedus (התבודדות) — Seclusion / SolitudeHisbodedus is the practice and state of seclusion — withdrawing from company and from the world's disturbance into solitude with oneself and with Divinity. In the corpus it appears in two registers: as a personal avodah-…
Hisbonenus (התבוננות) — ContemplationHisbonenus is the disciplined, meditative contemplation of Divine matters by which love and fear of Havayah are born. Its definition is "the definition of histaklus" — gazing: the soul's extension toward an object thro…
Hiskashrus (התקשרות) — BondingHiskashrus, "bonding" or "connection," is the soul's binding itself to Divinity — the relationship in which the soul attaches to the Divine not by understanding alone but by essential attachment. Its primary arena is pra…
Ishapcha (אתהפכא) — transformation of darkness to lightIshapcha ("transformation," literally "it is overturned") is the turning of darkness into light, evil into good — the higher of the two movements of refinement in the soul's avodah, paired with iskafya ("subduing," "…
Iskafya (אתכפיא) — Restraint / SubduingIskafya — literally "coercion," "subduing" — is the avodah of restraining the nefesh habehamis: subduing the senses and middos so they do not act on their own impulses, without yet changing their inner nature. It is the …
Kabbalas Ol (קבלת עול) — Acceptance of the YokeKabbalas ol is the acceptance of the "yoke" — performing Torah and mitzvos as the Supernal will, from nullification (bitul) of one's own wills, rather than from reason, feeling, or delight [15962/maamar_012 :: עב׳ 527–53…
Kavanah (כוונה) — IntentionKavanah — intention, directed consciousness — is the inner soul of the mitzvah. The Gemara's dispute (Berachos 13a, Eruvin 95a) — whether mitzvos require kavanah — rests on two aspects of every mitzvah: (a) the mitzvah *…
Mesirut Nefesh (מסירת נפש) — self-sacrifice, the soul's total dedicationMesirut nefesh — literally "the giving over of the soul" — is the soul's complete self-surrender to Havayah, expressed in the readiness to give up one's life, one's will, and one's natural selfhood for the sake of divi…
Mitzvos (מצוות) — the commandmentsThe mitzvos are the 613 Divine commandments — 248 positive commands and 365 negative ones — given to be fulfilled "below, in practical mitzvos specifically." Their function is cosmic: "This done through the mitzvos's ful…
Rasha (רשע) — the wicked personThe rasha (wicked one) is, in the maamarim's moral taxonomy, one in whom evil dominates the good — the counterpart of the tzadik, in whom good dominates, and of the beinoni (the intermediate), whose avodah is the c…
Simchah (שמחה) — JoySimchah is the revelation of the soul's innerness: "simchah is the revelation of the inner delight"; "simchah is the revelation of pnimiyus of the soul" [58837/maamar_010 :: עמוד פח]. Joy is the revelation of the keli's …
Tefillah (תפלה) — PrayerTefillah is the avodah of the heart — contemplation and dveikus: "the general matter of tefillah is the contemplation," "the matter of tefillah is the intent of the heart — which is the contemplation"; "tefillah is dveik…
Teshuvah (תשובה) — Return / RepentanceTeshuvah — literally "return" — is the soul's return to its source. In the corpus it is far more than remorse for sin: it is a cosmic force that repairs the double damage of sin (vitality sunk into the sitra achra; light…
Torah Study (לימוד התורה)Torah study (limud haTorah, talmud) is the intellectual avodah of studying and understanding the Torah thoroughly — its revealed part (the laws governing conduct, man to Elokim and man to man) and its hidden part (the sp…
Tzaddik (צדיק) — the righteous oneA tzaddik is the person whose entire life is Torah, mitzvos, and closeness to the Holy One without break — "brothers and friends to the Holy One" ("למען אחי ורעי"): "brothers' love never separated; always serving in …
Yirah (יראה) — awe/fear of HeavenYirah — fear, awe — is one of the two pillars of avodah alongside ahavah (love), and the indispensable foundation of all Torah and mitzvos. "One with Torah but no yiras Shamayim is like a treasurer with inner keys bu…
Yiras Shamayim (יראת שמים) — Fear of HeavenYiras Shamayim — "fear of Heaven" — is the awe and dread of Heaven that the Sages make the precondition of all spiritual attainment: the gate through which one enters to every supernal revelation. Without it, even Torah …

מושגים Concepts

Achdus (אחדות) — UnityAchdus, "unity," is both a Divine attribute and a human task: the oneness of Havayah ("Havayah's achdus"), and the joining of Yisrael into a single body. "All our Torah's foundation and our people's upholding's foundatio…
Anavah (ענוה) — HumilityAnavah — humility — is "the greatest of all" middos [15966/maamar_021 :: Intro]. The Midrash Rabbah on Koheles ("im ruach hamoshel ta'aleh alecha, mekomcha al tanach") teaches: "if you came to rulership, do not leave you…
Bechirah (בחירה) — Free ChoiceBechirah — free choice, "chofshis habechirah" — is the power to choose as one wishes between two opposites. In the corpus it is defined sharply: "the matter of bechirah belongs specifically to man, since choice is accord…
Binah (בינה) — analysis, understanding in length and breadthBinah ("understanding") is the second of the intellectual sefiros (ChaBaD), the power that takes Chochmah's flash-point and develops it into full comprehension. Where "chochmah is the level of the flashing lightning-bo…
Brachah (ברכה) — blessingBrachah — blessing — is the act of drawing down Divine life and revelation. "For the blessing with which a person blesses the Holy One, blessed be He, comes to draw life from the source of life" (Zohar III, Ra'aya Mehe…
Chesed — Deeds of Kindness (חסד — גמילות חסדים)Gemilus chasadim — deeds of loving-kindness — is one of the three pillars upon which the world stands: "Upon three things the world stands: upon the Torah, and upon the avodah, and upon gemilus chasadim" (Avos 1:2). In t…
Chesed — Giving (חסד — הנתינה)Chesed as an attribute is the Divine (and human) power of giving — bestowal. "It is stated in the Zohar (III, 92b): 'There is chesed and there is chesed.' There is a chesed called 'chesed olam' (everlasting kindness) — t…
Chochmah (חכמה) — Wisdom / InsightChochmah — wisdom, the first of the intellectual sefiros and the second sefirah overall — is the flash of insight before comprehension: "the level of the flashing lightning-bolt (barak hamavrik), which has not yet come t…
Daas (דעת) — Connection / KnowingDaas — the third power of the intellect after Chochmah and Binah — is, in Chassidus, the faculty of connection: binding the mind to what it has comprehended so that it becomes felt, and binding the comprehended to the …
Darchei Noam (דרכי נועם) — "ways of pleasantness"Darchei noam — "ways of pleasantness" — comes from Mishlei 3:17: "דרכיה דרכי נועם וכל נתיבותיה שלום" ("its ways are ways of pleasantness, and all its paths are peace"), said of the Torah. In the maamarim it functions i…
Din (דין) — JudgmentDin — "judgment" — has two faces in the maamarim: the middah of strict judgment, counterpart of rachamim (mercy) and chesed; and the actual judicial process, above on Rosh Hashanah and below in the beis din. As middah, i…
Emes (אמת) — TruthEmes — truth — is what is not interrupted: unceasing, unbroken being. The corpus distinguishes two truths: truth as such, which belongs even to the lights of Atzilus, and emes la'amito — "the truth of truth" — which be…
Gevurah as judgment (גבורה בדין) — the attribute of judgmentGevurah — the second of the emotive sefiros, the left line's counterpart to Chesed — is the attribute of judgment (din). "The blow is from the Elokim name — gevurah and judgment" [19801/maamar_019 :: עב׳ 329]. All …
Gevurah as restraint (גבורה בצמצום) — the concealing, measuring modeGevurah — the left line's attribute — is not only judgment (din) but restraint: the power of arrest, concealment, and measure by which the light is held back so that it can be received. "For a sun and a shield is H…
Hallel (הלל) — PraiseHallel is praise — the lauding and thanksgiving of Havayah for the revelation He bestows, and the arousal of further revelation through the praise itself. It is said on Yom Tov because "it is the matter of praise and tha…
Hashgachah Pratis (השגחה פרטית) — Particular ProvidenceHashgachah pratis — "particular Providence" — is the doctrine that Havayah's supervision extends not only to the general order of creation but to every individual creature and every detail of its life: "He supervises wit…
Kapparah (כפרה) — atonementKapparah ("atonement") is the cleansing and removal of sin. A Shabbos Tazria-Metzora maamar gives its root meaning: "'kaparah' is a term of wiping (kinuach) — that it wipes and purifies the sin." The same maamar unpa…
Kedushah (קדושה) — HolinessKedushah, "holiness," is the order of the Divine as it stands separate and exalted above all else. The concept of "holy" (kadosh) is "that it is separate and exalted" — like a crown upon the head, above the head and moch…
Malchus as Leadership (מלכות) — Divine RuleMalchus (kingship) is the sefirah of divine leadership — the way He rules and conducts the worlds. The corpus stresses that Malchus is not only majesty but hanhagah: "ba'asher devar melech shilton — the king leads throug…
Onesh (עונש) — punishmentOnesh is Divine punishment — the suffering that follows sin, whether in this world or after death. The maamarim treat it not as retribution but as rectification: "if there must necessarily be some punishment, it is for…
Rachamim (רחמים) — Compassion / MercyRachamim is Yackov's middah — Tiferes, the hachra'ah (deciding) between Chesed and Gevurah: "the middah of rachamim is the middah of Yackov our father" [31685/maamar_011_kol_hamerachem :: עמוד 7]. In the Zohar's mapping:…
Rachamim (רחמים) — MercyRachamim — mercy, compassion — is in the corpus primarily the middah of Tiferes: "the middah of Tiferes, the middah of mercy that includes Chesed and Gevurah together" — "called 'mercy,' for it effects the inclusion of C…
Savlanut (סבלנות) — patience, forbearanceSavlanut — patience, the bearing (sevel) of yoke and decree — is the soul's capacity to endure what opposes it without inner rebellion. In the corpus's main exposition, on Yeshaya 29:19 ("and the humble shall increas…
Schar (שכר) — the reward of the mitzvahSchar ("reward") in Chassidus is not an external payment but the essence of the mitzvah itself, revealed in the future: "schar mitzvah mitzvah" (Avos 4:2) — "the mitzvah itself drawn/revealed — the mitzvah itself is …
Selichos (סליחות) — Forgiveness PrayersSelichos — the penitential liturgy recited before dawn on the days leading up to Rosh Hashanah (and on fast days) — centers on the thirteen attributes of mercy (״יג מדות הרחמים״) and the confession of sin. The Chabad sed…
Shalom (שלום) — PeaceShalom is the vessel that holds blessing: "lo matza HaKadosh Baruch Hu kli machzik berachah leYisrael ela hashalom" — the Holy One found no vessel holding blessing for Israel but peace (Berachos 64a) [58837/maamar_052 ::…
Shlichus (שליחות) — mission and the emissaryShlichus ("mission," the charge of the shaliach, emissary) is the charge entrusted by a sender (meshale'ach) to one who becomes his extension: "a person's shaliach is like himself." Its inner definition is radi…
Taharah (טהרה) — PurityTaharah is purity as distinct from kedushah (holiness): "kadosh" is utterly separate — the ayin aspect, utterly separate from yesh; but taharah is not utterly separate — "only pure of yeshus and murkiness; nevertheless i…
Tefillas HaDerech (תפלת הדרך) — The Traveler's PrayerTefillas HaDerech — the traveler's prayer, and in the corpus specifically the short prayer of desert travelers (Mishnah Berachos 4) — is expounded as a prayer for the exile itself: "u'vechol parashat ha'ibur yihyu tzor…
Temimus (תמימות) — wholesomeness, simple wholeheartednessTemimus ("wholesomeness," "innocence") is the simple, undivided wholeness of the Jew's service: fulfilling without asking why, with emunah peshutah (simple faith), "all in temimus, for so the Creator commanded" [58…
Tiferes (תפארת) — Harmony / BeautyTiferes — "harmony," "beauty," "glory" — is the sefirah of the middle line: the attribute of mercy (rachamim) that joins and harmonizes Chesed (kindness) and Gevurah (severity), the two opposed lines. It is Yackov's mi…
Tumah (טומאה) — ImpurityTumah is the halachic and spiritual state of impurity — concealment of and separation from Divinity — whose supreme grade is tumas meis, the impurity of the dead: "the dead is the 'avi avos ha'tumah'" (the father of fath…
Tzedek (צדק) — Righteousness, JusticeTzedek is righteousness — the attribute of justice as it is divine. Above, "צדק מלכותא קדישא" — tzedek is the holy kingship (Zohar): it is identified with Malchus, the attribute through which the divine order reaches the…
Viduy (וידוי) — ConfessionViduy — confession of sins before Havayah — is a distinct mitzvah and a central component of teshuvah. The corpus focuses on viduy devarim, the verbal confession: "the confession's letters: saying and mentioning the sin …
Yediah (ידיעה) — knowledgeYediah ("knowledge") is the soul's firm grasp of a matter — "that he knows that comprehended object in all the details of its matters in a good comprehension." It is the fruit of study and contemplation: the rung at wh…
Yesod (יסוד) — Foundation, ConnectionYesod ("foundation") is the ninth sefirah, the last of the lower triad Netzach–Hod–Yesod (נ"ה"י) [15911/maamar_002 :: עב׳ 106]. Its function is connection: it receives the flow from the sefiros above and transmits it to …
Yosher (יושר) — uprightness; the "straight" orderYosher ("straightness," "uprightness") is one of the two fundamental orders in Kabbalah — the igulim (circles) and the yosher. Where igulim are concentric, undifferentiated, and hierarchical only by proximity to …
Zechus (זכות) — MeritZechus — merit — is both a spiritual currency and a metaphysical substance. In its simplest sense it is what a person earns and what can stand for him; in the corpus it unfolds in two great forms: zechus avos (the meri…
Zerizus (זריזות) — AlacrityZerizus — alacrity, zeal, energetic quickness in doing — is the tempo of avodah done from love. "For one who does with will does with running and with alacrity" [19800/maamar_003 :: §582] — zerizus is the body's signatur…

השתלשלות Cosmology

Akudim (עקודים) — the Bound WorldAkudim is the first of the three "general worlds" (עולמות כללים) — Akudim, Nekudim, Berudim — the primordial stages of the light's enclothement in vessels following the tzimtzum [15911/maamar_007 :: עב׳ 127]. Akudim mean…
Awtsmoos (עצמות) — EssenceAwtsmoos is the Divine Essence — the Divine "self" before and beyond every light, name, and revelation. Even the Ohr Ein Sof as it is before the tzimtzum is in "ein aroch" (utterly incomparable) toward the Awtsmoos, as t…
Berudim (ברודים) — The SpottedBerudim — "the spotted" (from בָּרֹד, spotted, dappled) — is the third of the three "general worlds" of Tohu: Akudim, Nekudim, Berudim [15911/maamar_007 :: עב׳ 127]. In the Chassidic usage, the three names mark three…
Hishtalshelus (השתלשלות) — The Chained DescentHishtalshelus — from שלשלת, a chain — is the ordered, step-by-step descent of divine light and vitality from level to level, "descent after descent" (ירידה אחר ירידה), like a chain of many rings grasped one in another [1…
Hislabshus (התלבשות) — Clothing / EnclothingHislabshus is the principle by which a higher, spiritual reality "clothes" itself in a lower vessel (malbush, "garment") and thereby becomes operative within it. It is the master-mechanism of both cosmic emanation (light…
Igulim (עיגולים) — the "circles," the encompassing divine lightIgulim ("circles") is the Kabbalistic image of divine light as a circle — no up and down, no division, no parts — in contrast to yosher ("uprightness," the straight-line form), in which the light descends in ordered …
Kav (קו) — the line of light drawn after the tzimtzumThe kav ("line") is the thin, contracted thread of the Ohr Ein Sof drawn into the empty space (makom panui) after the tzimtzum (contraction), in measure and bound according to the worlds' manner. "What shines in …
Memale Kol Almin (ממלא כל עלמין) — the light that fills all worldsMemale kol almin ("that which fills all worlds") is the contracted, measured light that clothes itself within the worlds and their vessels in inwardness (b'pnimiyus), giving each created thing its inner vitality …
Nekudim (נקודים) — The World of PointsNekudim ("points") is the second of the three general rungs of the hishtalshelut after the tzimtzum — Akudim, Nekudim, Berudim. The order of revelation is: first Akudim (the first revelation in the rungs after the tzimtz…
Ohr Ein Sof (אור אין סוף) — The Infinite LightOhr Ein Sof, "the Infinite Light," is the Divine light as it is without limit — the revelation of Awtsmoos itself in the aspect of light, before and beyond all contraction, vessel, and world. "The lights of Atzilus are r…
Ohr Makif (אור מקיף) — The Surrounding LightOhr Makif, "the surrounding light," is Divine light that encompasses its recipient without being grasped inwardly. It is the counterpart of Ohr Pnimiyus (the inward light): where pnimiyus is tailored to the vessel and ac…
Ohr Pnimi (אור פנימי) — Inner LightOhr Pnimi is the "inner light" — the Divine light as it is drawn into the worlds in a measured, comprehensible way, in contrast to the ohr makif (encompassing light) that surrounds without being grasped. In Korach's para…
Olam HaTikun (עולם התיקון) — The World of RectificationOlam HaTikun, the "World of Rectification" (or "World of Repair"), is the cosmic order that succeeded the shattered World of Tohu (Chaos). Where Tohu was an order of immense, unbounded lights poured into fragile, few ves…
Olam HaTohu (עולם התהו) — the World of ChaosOlam HaTohu — the world of Tohu (literally "chaos" or "wilderness," from tohu va'vohu) — is the earlier cosmic order that preceded our own, the world of Tikun (rectification). "The Holy One would build worlds and d…
Reshimu (רשימו) — the Impression remaining after the tzimtzumReshimu ("impression," "trace") is the remnant that remains in the chalal (the vacated space) after the tzimtzum — the primordial contraction by which the Ohr Ein Sof withdrew, as it were, to make room for worlds. "T…
Sheviras HaKeilim (שבירת הכלים) — the Shattering of the VesselsSheviras HaKeilim — "the shattering of the vessels" — is the primordial cosmic catastrophe in which the vessels of the world of Tohu (chaos), unable to contain the great light that flowed into them, broke and fell. "For …
Sovev (סובב) — the Encompassing light; Sovev Kol AlminSovev ("encompassing," "surrounding") denotes the Divine light that relates to the worlds in distance rather than in nearness: it encompasses creation without being internalized in it. In the Zoharic idiom *sovev kol a…
Tzimtzum (צמצום) — ContractionTzimtzum — "contraction" — is the foundational act of creation in Kabbalah and Chassidus: before emanation, the simple light of the Ein Sof filled all existence, with no empty space; when it arose in His will to create a…
Yesh Me'ayin (יש מאין) — something from nothing, creatio ex nihiloYesh me'ayin — "being from nothingness" — is the doctrine that Elokim creates the world from absolute nothingness, not from any pre-existing matter. In the corpus's philosophical idiom, it is contrasted with *alul me'i…
Yosher (יושר) — UprightnessYosher — literally "uprightness" or "straightness" — is the mode of divine revelation that proceeds in a straight line: with division, distinction, and the coordinates of above and below. It stands opposite igulim (cir…

תארים Divine Attributes

Chochmah Stimah (חכמה סתימאה) — Concealed WisdomChochmah Stimah ("concealed wisdom") is the wisdom of Keser: the second of the "heads" (ראשין) of Arich Anpin, called mocha stimah — the concealed brain — and defined as "the concealed Chochmah — Chochmah in Keser" [15…
Elokus (אלקות) — Divinity; ElokusDivinity (אלקות, "Divinity") is the Chassidic term for Divinity as it is revealed and knowable — the Divine as light, vitality, and presence in the worlds — as distinct from Awtsmoos, the Divine essence in itself, wh…
Keser Elyon (כתר עליון) — The Supernal CrownKeser Elyon — "the Supernal Crown" — is the highest rung of the chain of being: the first garment (levush rishon) of the Ohr Ein Sof, as the Pardes (Shaar 3:7) teaches [31688/maamar_012 :: §83–84]. The 5634 maamar define…
Midos (מדות) — the traits, emotional attributesMidos ("traits," "measures") are the emotional attributes — love, awe, mercy, severity, and their kin — as they exist in the soul of man and, by reflection, in the sefirot above. The corpus treats the seven lower sefir…
Mochin (מוחין) — Intellects / MindMochin — literally "brains" or "intellects" — is the Chassidic term for the intellectual faculties, the ChaBa"D (Chochmah, Binah, Da'as). In the soul, mochin are the nefesh ha'elokis itself: "the Divine soul is compris…
Ratzon (רצון) — WillRatzon is the faculty of will — in the soul, "the nefesh's turning and drawing": the nefesh itself drawn to the thing it sees and wants. Though will is called a "power," it is not like the other powers: the middos ar…
Shechinah (שכינה) — The Divine PresenceThe Shechinah, "the Presence," is the Divine as it dwells within the lower worlds — identified with the sefirah of Malchus. "The Shechinah is the aspect of Malchus, as is known"; "the life (chiyus) of the Shechinah is ex…
Ta'anug (תענוג) — DelightTa'anug is delight — one of the soul's two makifim (encompassing powers), alongside Ratzon (will), which have no vessels. It is the power in which the soul delights, the innermost sweetness of the soul's experience, an…
Yichud Ila'ah (יחוד עילאה) — The Higher UnityYichud ila'ah — the "higher unity" (יחודא עילאה) — is the unity of the Divine from the perspective of the essence of the Ohr Ein Sof: "all before Him is as nothing" (כולא קמי' כלא חשיב) — there is no existence at all bes…
Yichud Tataah (יחוד תתאה) — the lower unityYichud tataah ("the lower unity") is the lower knowledge (da'as tachton) of Elokim's unity, apprehended from below to above: the created being senses himself as a being (yesh) and his Source as a naught (ayin…

אחרית הימים Eschatology

Gan Eden (גן עדן) — the Garden of EdenGan Eden is the spiritual realm in which the souls of the righteous dwell after the body's death — the World to Come in its revealed, soul-experienced form — and also the primordial garden of Adam. In the maamarim it is …
Gehinnom (גיהנום) — PurgatoryGehinnom — "Gehenna," the purgatorial punishment of the soul after death — is the counterpart of Gan Eden: "it is known that Gan Eden and Gehinnom are the aspects of life and death" [58845/maamar_021 :: עב׳ 1014], as in …
Gilgul (גלגול) — Reincarnation / TransmigrationGilgul is the transmigration of the soul: "The gilgul's matter: man's soul is reincarnated, Elokim save us, in the animal's body — drawn by force in all the animal's coarse, material, turbid matters" [15966/maamar_019 ::…
Mashiach (משיח) — The MessiahMashiach is the future redeemer — a man, yet of a level above all others: the Yechidah of Atzilus. His coming completes the cosmic work of the birurim (refinements): the ingathering of the exiles, the building of Yerus…
Olam HaBa (עולם הבא) — the World to ComeOlam HaBa, "the World to Come," is the general name for the future world of reward and revelation — the "truth's world, a clear world," set against Olam HaZeh, "the falsehood's world" [15881/maamar_024 :: §324–378]. The …
Olam Hazeh (עולם הזה) — This WorldOlam hazeh — "this world," the physical world of action — is the lowest level of creation and, in the maamarim's paradox, the most important: "the intent being that specifically the revelation of light be drawn in this p…
Techiyas HaMeisim (תחית המתים) — The Resurrection of the DeadTechiyas hameisim is the future revival of the dead — the thirteenth principle of faith — when the neshamas shall stand in bodies again. "Ahavah ba'ta'anugim" (Shir HaShirim 7:7) is for techiyas ha'meisim: "the physical …
Yemos HaMoshiach (ימות המשיח) — the days of MoshiachYemos HaMoshiach — the days of Moshiach — is the messianic era: the redemption's time and the exiles' ingathering "through our righteous Moshiach," when "the King Mashiach is destined to arise and restore the kingdom o…

אישים Figures

Avraham (אברהם) — The PatriarchAvraham, the first of the Patriarchs, is the middah of Chesed and the "merkavah" (chariot) to Divinity: the soul in whom the Divine attribute of kindness is perfectly enclothed. The verse of Nechemiah 9:7 — "You are Hava…
Baal Shem Tov (בעל שם טוב) — Founder of ChassidismThe Baal Shem Tov (Rabbi Yisrael ben Eliezer, 1698–1760) is the founder of the Chassidic movement — in the corpus, the one "sent to this world to reveal the Torah's inwardness" and whose soul "descended to this world to …
Dovid (דוד) — King of IsraelDovid HaMelech — King Dovid — is the second king of Israel, the sweet singer of Tehillim, the founder of the Davidic dynasty, and the progenitor of Moshiach ("And My servant Dovid shall be king over them" — Yechezkel 37:…
Moshe Rabbeinu (משה רבינו) — the faithful shepherdMoshe Rabbeinu is "the ra'aya mehemna (faithful shepherd)" — "who shepherds and sustains the neshamas Yisroel in emunah: that there be the multiplication and spreading, in strengthening of power more" [31682/maamar_0…
Rebbe Rayatz (רבי יוסף יצחק שניאורסון) — Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak SchneersohnThe Rebbe Rayatz — Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn (referred to in the volumes as "Moharayatz," the Admor Moharayatz, of blessed memory) — was the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe [31621/michtav_001 :: Summary]. The Sefer HaMaam…
Shlomo (שלמה) — King Shlomo, the wise kingShlomo — King Solomon, Dovid's son and builder of the first Beis HaMikdash — is the Torah's embodiment of wisdom and of peace. "Shlomo" is explained as "the term of wholeness (shleimus)" [31621/maamar_027 :: Page 288 s…
The Alter Rebbe (אדמו״ר הזקן) — Rabbi Shneur Zalman of LiadiThe Alter Rebbe — Rabbi Shneur Zalman, the son of the hidden tzaddik R. Baruch, "a master of a new soul" — was the founder of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and the first of its Rebbeim [31621/sicha_001 :: עב׳ 155–156]. T…
The Tzemach Tzedek (צמח צדק) — Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (1789–1866)The Tzemach Tzedek — Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (5549–5626 / 1789–1866), named for his responsa work Tzemach Tzedek — was the third Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch, grandson of the Alter Rebbe (Rabbi Shneur Zalman of …
Yackov (יעקב) — the third PatriarchYackov, son of Yitzchak and grandson of Yackov, is the third of the three Patriarchs (Avos) — and in the maamarim, their perfection: "Yackov is the choicest of the Avos (bechir sheba'avos), their perfection (*shleimu…
Yitzchak (יצחק) — The PatriarchYitzchak, the second of the three patriarchs, is the middah of Gevurah — the left line, as Yackov is Chesed, the right line: "'His left hand is under my head' is the middah of Yitzchak, and 'his right hand embraces me' i…

מועדים Holidays

Chanukah (חנוכה) — DedicationChanukah ("dedication") is the eight-day festival commemorating the rededication of the Beis HaMikdash after the defeat of the Greek decrees. Its mitzvah is the kindling of lights: "the Chanukah light (נר חנוכה): it is a…
Lag BaOmer (ל״ג בעומר) — The 33rd Day of the OmerLag BaOmer — the 33rd day of the counting of the Omer (18 Iyar) — is the hillula (day of rejoicing) of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai (Rashbi), the day of his histalkus (passing). A hilula is the wedding's joy — the joy of a ch…
Pesach (פסח) — PassoverPesach — the festival commemorating the Exodus from Egypt — is, in the corpus's Chassidic reading, the festival of dilug, the leap. "This is the whole main matter of Pesach: that it is the great dilug (leap) of the sup…
Purim (פורים)Purim — the 14th (and in walled cities, 15th) of Adar, commemorating the downfall of Haman and the salvation of the Jews of Persia under Achashverosh — is presented in the corpus not merely as a historical commemoration …
Rosh Chodesh (ראש חודש) — Head of the MonthRosh Chodesh — the first day (or two days) of each Hebrew month, the moon's rebirth — is, in the Chassidic calendar, a minor festival with a distinctive metaphysical character: a level of revelation. Rosh Chodesh is "the…
Rosh Hashanah (ראש השנה) — The New YearRosh Hashanah — the first two days of Tishrei — is at once the world's birthday and the Day of Judgment (יום הדין). "Today is the birth (conception) of the world; today He will set in judgment all the creatures of the wo…
Sefiras HaOmer (ספירת העומר) — the counting of the OmerSefiras HaOmer is the forty-nine-day count from "the morrow of the Shabbat" (Pesach) until Shavuos: "seven complete Shabbasos shall they be; until the morrow of the seventh Shabbat you shall count fifty days." The Tora…
Shabbos (שבת) — the Sabbath dayShabbos, the seventh day, is the day on which Elokim "rested from all His work" — the cessation of creation's six days' labor and the revelation that completes it. The corpus develops Shabbos as the bride, the seal of tr…
Shavuos (שבועות) — The Festival of WeeksShavuos — the festival of the Giving of the Torah, fifty days after Pesach — is named, the maamarim teach, not for the counting of weeks alone but for the three readings of "u'veshmo tishavei'a" (Devarim 10:20): *seven…
Shemini Atzeres (שמיני עצרת) — The Eighth Day of AssemblyShemini Atzeres — "on the eighth day, an atzeres shall be for you" (Bamidbar 29:35) — is the festival that closes the Tishrei cycle after Sukkos. "Atzeres" is read as kelitah, absorption [57652/maamar_011 :: עב׳ 55]:…
Simchas Torah (שמחת תורה) — The Joy of the TorahSimchas Torah, the eighth day of Sukkos (Shemini Atzeres outside Eretz Yisrael), is the day Israel makes the Torah rejoice: taking the Sefer Torah, encircling the reading table, dancing with great simchah — Israel rejoic…
Sukkos (סוכות) — the Festival of BoothsSukkos (15–21 Tishrei, with Shemini Atzeres/Simchas Torah concluding the festival) commemorates the Divine protection of Israel in the desert: "So that your generations shall know that I caused the children of Yisrael to…
Tu Bishvat (ט״ו בשבט) — the fifteenth of Shevat, New Year of the treesTu Bishvat, the fifteenth day of the month of Shevat, is the Rosh Hashanah (New Year) of the trees. The Sefer HaMaamarim corpus — the 81 volumes underlying this encyclopedia — contains no maamar expounding the holiday of…
Yom Kippur (יום כפור) — the Day of AtonementYom Kippur is the culmination of the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah: the day of pardon and forgiveness in which teshuvah reaches its essence — "the very essence of the day atones" — and the supernal level of Atik (רדל״א) …
Yom Tov (יום טוב) — the festivalsYom Tov ("a good day") is the festival's inner reality: the mochin (supernal intellects) of Imma (Binah) shining below. "The difference between Shabbos and Yom Tov is known: Shabbos is the mochin of Abba (Choch…

קליפה Kelipah

Chet (חטא) — SinChet — sin — is, in the Chassidic account, not a mere transgression of rules but an act with cosmic mechanics: every sin draws holy light down to the sitra achra and strengthens it. The archetype is the chet of the Tree …
Choshech (חושך) — DarknessChoshech is the created reality of darkness and concealment: "the root of light and darkness: the two middot, Chesed and Gevurah. Chesed is in the aspect of light and revelation... Gevurah is in the aspect of the absence…
Kelipah (קליפה) — the HuskKelipah ("husk," "peel," "shell") is the realm of concealment and opposition to holiness — the sitra achra ("the other side"), whose entire existence is as a husk around the fruit: "as our Sages said of Rabbi Meir: 'rimo…
Kelipas Nogah (קליפת נוגה) — the translucent huskKelipas Nogah — the "husk of nogah" (nogah = glow, brightness) — is the neutral, translucent kelipah, distinct from the three kelipos ha'temei'os (the impure husks, which are utter evil and cannot be elevated). Nog…
Sitra Achra (סטרא אחרא) — The Other SideThe Sitra Achra — Aramaic for "the Other Side" — is the realm of kelipah (the "husks"): the forces opposed to holiness, the domain of evil and impurity, the "chitzonim" (the outer ones). It has no independent being: its …
Yetzer Hara (יצר הרע) — The Evil InclinationThe yetzer hara is the soul's evil inclination — the inner force of darkness whose desire is to the physical. In the Noach discourse's battle-schema, the yetzer hara is darkness against the yetzer tov's light: his intell…

מצוות Mitzvos

Bris Milah (ברית מילה) — the covenant of circumcisionBris milah ("the covenant of circumcision") is the mitzvah of removing the foreskin, the sign of the covenant sealed in the flesh. In Chassidus it is "distinct from all the mitzvos": through it the Jew cleaves to the…
Kashrus (כשרות) — the dietary lawsKashrus — the laws of permitted and forbidden foods — is the Torah's regime governing what a Jew may eat. The corpus develops it through the Chassidic doctrine of birurim (refinements): all food exists to be refined;…
Lulav (לולב) — the palm branch and the four speciesThe lulav — the palm branch — is taken on Sukkos together with the esrog (citron), hadasim (myrtle branches), and aravos (willows): "three hadasim, two aravos, lulav, and esrog" — seven mitzvos in the species [58837/ma…
Matzah (מצה) — the Unleavened BreadMatzah is the unleavened bread eaten at the Pesach seder, "the bread of affliction" (לחם עוני) "without taste at all" — the aspect of nullification and lowliness (bitul and shiflus), the opposite of chametz, which is "in…
Menorah (מנורה)The Menorah — the seven-branched candelabrum of the Beis HaMikdash, kindled daily with pure olive oil — is read in the corpus as the image of the Jewish soul and its service. "Ha'neiros" plainly means the souls: "ner Hav…
Mezuzah (מזוזה) — The Doorpost ScrollMezuzah is the Torah mitzvah to affix a parchment bearing the two parshiyos "Shema" and "v'hayah im shamoa" on the doorposts of the house. It is a constant mitzvah (מצוה תמידית) of the Torah, for the house — "and you sha…
Shofar (שופר) — The Ram's HornThe shofar — the ram's horn sounded on Rosh Hashanah — is the instrument of the day's central mystery: at its sound, the Holy One rises from the throne of judgment to the throne of mercy. The Midrash (Vayikra Rabbah, Emo…
Sukkah (סוכה) — the BoothThe sukkah is the temporary booth in which Jews dwell for the seven days of Sukkos, in commemoration of the booths of the Exodus ("I made the children of Israel dwell in booths when I took them out of the land of Egypt" …
Tefillin (תפילין) — phylacteriesTefillin are the four-compartmented head-box (shel rosh) and single-compartmented arm-box (shel yad) containing the four Torah portions (Shema, V'haya im shamoa, Kadesh, V'haya ki y'viacha), worn in prayer. In the ma…
Tzedakah (צדקה) — CharityTzedakah is giving to the poor one — "who has of his own nothing" (דלית לי' מגרמי' כלום) [31633/maamar_017 :: §72; 31621/maamar_023 :: §414]. In the corpus it is not only a mitzvah but a cosmic principle: "the tzedakah's…
Tzitzis (ציצית) — StringsTzitzis — the knotted strings attached to the four corners of a four-cornered garment (the tallis) — is the mitzvah of seeing: "V'hayah lachem l'tzitzis, u're'isem oso, u'zechartem es kol mitzvos Hashem, va'asisem osam, …
Tzitzis (ציצית) — The FringesTzitzis — the fringed threads commanded in Bamidbar 15:39, "v'hayah lachem l'tzitzis, u're'isem oso, u'zechartem es kol mitzvos Hashem" — is the mitzvah of remembrance: seeing the threads recalls all of Hashem's mitzvos.…

פרצופים Partzufim

Abba (אבא) — the FatherAbba ("the Father") is the partzuf (Divine persona) of Chochmah — the supernal father-principle that, together with Imma (Binah), gives birth to the lower partzufim Ze'ir Anpin and Nukva and supplies them with their moch…
Arich (אריך) — The Long Face / Arich AnpinArich Anpin ("the Long Face," Aramaic for "long-suffering/patient countenance") is one of the two partzufim into which the supernal Kesser divides: Atik Yomin and Arich Anpin — "the aspect of the supernal keser in genera…
Atik (עתיק) — The Ancient OneAtik — literally "the Ancient" — is the inner and higher of the two partzufim of Kesser, the counterpart and root of Arich Anpin. The Zohar's phrase "da Atika," "this is Atika" [31674/maamar_026 :: עב׳ 67], points to a l…
Imma (אימא) — the Mother, the partzuf of BinahImma — "the mother" — is the partzuf of Binah (understanding), paired with Abba ("the father"), the partzuf of Chochmah. Where Abba is the flash of intellect, a seeing from close in the essence of the thing, Imma is …
Nukva (נוקבא) — the FemaleNukva ("the female") is the female partzuf of Atzilut, corresponding to Malchus: the receptive counterpart of Ze'ir Anpin (the male, comprising the six middos). Together they form the pair zu"n (זו״נ), whose yichud — "…
Yackov, Leah and Rachel (יעקב, לאה ורחל)In the corpus's kabbalistic reading, the Patriarch Yackov and his wives Leah and Rachel are not only historical figures but a map of the divine structure: Yackov is the central, joining partzuf (Tiferes / Ze'ir Anpin, "t…
Ze'ir Anpin (זעיר אנפין) — The "Small Face"Ze'ir Anpin ("the Small Face," abbreviated Z"A) is one of the partzufim (Divine "countenances" or configurations) of the Kabbalah — the configuration comprising the six emotional sefiros (Chesed through Yesod), the "so…

ספירות Sefirot

Binah (בינה) — UnderstandingBinah is the third sefirah, the faculty of comprehension and understanding "in length and breadth" — the expansion of an idea into full detail [31671/maamar_006 :: עמוד פג]. Where Chochmah is a single flash of insight, a…
Chesed (חסד) — Kindness, the first of the emotive sefirosChesed is the first of the middos (the emotive attributes) — "the first middah by the name chesed," heading the triad cha"g"as: chesed-gevurah-tiferes [58837/maamar_013 :: Chunk 1]. It is the attribute of unbounded b…
Chochmah (חכמה) — WisdomChochmah, "wisdom," is the second of the ten sefiros and the first of the intellectual triad ChaBaD (Chochmah, Binah, Da'at). In the human model it resides in the head alongside the other intellects [31654/maamar_011 :: …
Daas (דעת) — KnowledgeDaas is the third of the three intellectual faculties (ChaBa"D — chochmah, binah, daas), and in the Chassidic treatment of the corpus it means something sharper than "knowledge" as mere information: daas is the faculty b…
Gevurah (גבורה) — Strength / SeverityGevurah is the Divine attribute of strength, judgment, and restraint — the sefirah of the "left line," the counterpart and opposite of Chesed (kindness). Where Chesed expands and bestows, Gevurah contracts, limits, measu…
Hod (הוד) — Splendor / AcknowledgmentHod is the eighth of the ten sefiros, paired with Netzach and standing directly above Yesod. Together the three form the lower triad NeH"Y (Netzach, Hod, Yesod), the third of the three vessel-groups — ChaBa"D (the in…
Keser (כתר) — the Crown, first of the sefirosKeser ("crown") is the first and highest of the ten sefiros — the head and source of the entire sefirotic structure, positioned above chochmah (wisdom). In the idiom of the maamarim it is the beinoni between the infini…
Malchus (מלכות) — KingshipMalchus, the tenth and lowest of the sefiros, is the middah of kingship and sovereignty — the dimension of the Divine that rules, speaks, and creates. It is the "end of all levels" (סופא דכל דרגין) [31674/maamar_026 :: §…
Netzach (נצח) — Endurance / VictoryNetzach is the seventh of the ten sefiros: the attribute of endurance, persistence, and victory — the power that holds fast against opposition and never changes course. It forms a pair with Hod (הוד, splendor/acknowledgm…
Tiferes (תפארת) — BeautyTiferes is the third of the middos (emotional sefiros), the central pillar of the sefiros standing between Chesed (right) and Gevurah (left) [15966/maamar_035 :: עב׳ 490]. The name means beauty and glory: beauty is not a…
Yesod (יסוד) — foundation, the ninth sefirahYesod ("foundation") is the ninth of the ten sefirot, positioned between the six emotional attributes (middos) and malchus. Its role is gathering and transmission: it collects all the bestowals flowing from above a…

נשמה Soul

Chayah (חיה) — Living / the Living OneChayah — "the living one" — is the fourth of the five levels of the soul. Bereishis Rabbah (ch. 14) teaches that "five names are called to it: NaRa"N, Chayah, Yechidah" — nefesh, ruach, neshamah (the soul's revealed, clo…
Chelek Elokah Mima'al (חלק אלקה ממעל) — "a portion of Elokim Above"Chelek Elokah mima'al — "a portion of Elokim Above" (Iyov 31:2, as read in the Tanya's second chapter) — is the classical Chassidic definition of the Jewish soul's essence: the soul is not a created being that *relates…
Nefesh (נפש) — SoulNefesh is the soul — but in the Chassidic corpus the word carries several distinct meanings that must be kept apart. It denotes (1) the lowest of the five levels of the soul (Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah, Yechidah);…
Nefesh Ha'Elokis (נפש האלקית) — The Divine SoulThe nefesh ha'Elokis — the "Divine soul" — is the soul in every Jew that is "part of Elokah from Above" (חלק אלוק ממעל): it is from kedushah, "utter tov" (תכלית הטוב), set against the nefesh ha'behamis (the animal soul),…
Nefesh Habehamis (נפש הבהמית) — the animal soulThe nefesh habehamis ("animal soul") is the soul's desiring, emotive power, rooted in the lower levels and drawn after chomrius (materiality) and physicality. In the Bechukosai 5689 maamar it is identified with *ru…
Neshamah (נשמה) — SoulIn the corpus, "neshamah" is used in two senses. Broadly, it denotes the divine soul of the Jew in general — the Divine life-force enclothed in the body. Narrowly, it is the third of the soul's five names/levels: **Nefes…
Ruach (רוח) — SpiritRuach (literally "spirit," "wind") is the second of the soul's levels, seated in the heart: "in the neshamah are three levels — נפש, רוח, נשמה — nefesh is the lower aspect, ruach is the middos, neshamah is the intellect"…
Yechidah (יחידה) — the unique, singular level of the soulYechidah ("the unique one," feminine form) is the highest of the soul's five levels — nefesh, ruach, neshamah, chayah, and yechidah ("five names were called to it," as in Bereishis Rabbah). It is the soul's very essenc…

עולמות Worlds

Adam Kadmon (אדם קדמון) — Primordial Man, the first parzuf after the tzimtzumAdam Kadmon ("Primordial Man") is the first parzuf (configuration) to emerge after the tzimtzum (contraction) and the drawing of the kav (thin line). It stands as the intermediary between the boundless light of…
Asiyah (עשיה) — the World of ActionAsiyah is the lowest of the four worlds — Atzilus (Emanation), Beriah (Creation), Yetzirah (Formation), Asiyah (Action) — and specifically the world of action: the realm where Divine light descends into physicality, wh…
Asiyah HaGashmis (עשיה הגשמית) — the physical worldAsiyah is the lowest of the four worlds, ABYA: Atzilus, Beriah, Yetzirah, Asiyah — "the ten sefiros of Asiyah" completing the chain of descent [58845/maamar_010 :: Summary (עמוד קג)]. While the Ohr Ein Sof's revelation…
Atzilus (אצילות) — the World of EmanationAtzilus ("Emanation") is the highest of the four worlds (Atzilus–Beriah–Yetzirah–Asiyah), the world of the ten sefiros as pure Divine light. Its name carries two classical readings: "Atzilus" is explained as *"atzlo v'ka…
Beriah (בריאה) — The World of CreationBeriah is the second of the four worlds of Hishtalshelus (Atzilus–Beriah–Yetzirah–Asiyah), the "world of Creation" in the strict sense. Its defining marks are two, in tension with each other: it is the realm where separa…
Yetzirah (יצירה) — FormationYetzirah is the third of the four worlds — Atzilus, Beriah, Yetzirah, Asiyah (ABY"A). It is called "the world of angels," as Beriah is the world of neshamahs and Asiyah the world of spheres (galgalim); the source of thei…