English translation — מאמר ודוד עבדי תשל"ב

With the help of Heaven.

Shabbat Parshat Vayigash,

7 Tevet,

5732

"And Dovid My servant is a prince for them forever."

Now, this verse is in the haftarah of Parshat Vayigash.

And it needs to be understood,

for seemingly the connection of the haftarah to the parshah

is that the content of both is the connection of Yehudah and Yosef.

For the beginning of the parshah is "And Yehudah approached him," and in the haftarah it is stated,

"Take for yourself one stick and write upon it 'for Yehudah'... and take one stick and write upon it 'for Yosef'... and bring them close one to another for yourself into one stick... and I will make them into one nation... and one king will be for all of them..."

But in particular,

in Yehudah's approach to Yosef

(in the parshah)

it is emphasized that Yosef was more elevated than Yehudah

[both in the approach itself,

for the fact that Yehudah approached Yosef was because he needed him

(to release Binyamin),

and also in Yehudah's words to Yosef when he said,

"Please, my lord, let your servant speak a word in my lord's ears..."]

to the extent that Yosef was king over all his brothers,

including Yehudah,

and in the haftarah it is stated,

"And My servant Dovid will be king over them... and Dovid My servant is a prince for them forever."

And from the fact that these verses are in the haftarah of Parshat Vayigash,

it implies

that this matter

(the superiority of Yehudah over Yosef)

exists

(in a hint)

also in "And Yehudah approached him,"

except that in "And Yehudah approached him,"

the superiority of Yehudah over Yosef is in a hint and in concealment

(and that which is emphasized in a revealed way in "And Yehudah approached him" is the superiority of Yosef over Yehudah),

and in the haftarah it is in a revealed way.

B)

And now, this matter

[that in "And Yehudah approached him" there is

(in concealment)

also the superiority of Yehudah over Yosef]

is also understood from what is explained in Torah Ohr, the discourse beginning "Vayigash eilav Yehudah,"

that the fact that the Holy Temple was of inanimate matter

[and unlike the Mishkan,

where only the floor of the Mishkan was of earth,

inanimate,

but the walls of the Mishkan were of vegetative matter,

and the covering over the Mishkan

(the curtains)

was of living matter],

is

because that the inanimate is lower than the vegetative according to the order of Hishtalshelus (the chain of descent),

but in their root,

the root of the inanimate is higher than the root of the vegetative and living

[and analogous to heaven and earth,

for in actual existence,

heaven preceded earth,

but in their root in thought,

earth preceded.

For this very fact that the earth was created last indicates that in thought it preceded heaven,

for "the final deed was in thought first"].

And likewise is it with Zeir Anpin and Malchus

[which are analogous to vegetative and inanimate],

that in the order of Hishtalshelus,

Zeir Anpin is higher than Malchus,

but in their root,

the root of Malchus is higher than the root of Zeir Anpin.

And therefore in the future, Malchus will be above Zeir Anpin,

"A woman of valor is the crown of her husband,"

for then the root of Malchus will be revealed

(which is above the root of Zeir Anpin).

And this is that in the Mishkan the walls and roof were of vegetative and living matter, and in the Holy Temple all of this was of inanimate matter,

for the Mishkan, which was only a temporary dwelling for the Holy One, blessed be He,

was according to the order of Hishtalshelus,

and therefore the floor of the Mishkan was of inanimate matter,

the walls of the Mishkan of vegetative matter,

and the roof of the Mishkan of living matter,

for in the order of Hishtalshelus,

vegetative is higher than inanimate, and living is higher even than vegetative.

But the Holy Temple, which was a permanent dwelling for the Holy One, blessed be He,

was a semblance of the World to Come,

when Malchus

(inanimate)

will be above all the Sefiros.

And therefore even the roof was of inanimate matter.

And similarly regarding Yosef and Yehudah,

that Yosef is

(Yesod)

of Zeir Anpin and Yehudah is Malchus,

that now Yosef is above Yehudah,

it is,

because in the order of the chain of descent,

Zeir Anpin is above Malchus.

[And this is "And Yehudah approached him and said, 'Bi Adoni,'"

for the explanation of "Bi Adoni" is that in Yehudah

(Bi)

the flow will be drawn from Yosef the Righteous

(Adoni),

because Malchus receives flow from Zeir Anpin].

And in the future to come,

when the root of Malchus will be revealed,

which is above the root of Zeir Anpin,

it will be "And My servant Dovid shall be king over them."

And explanation is needed,

for since the matter of "And Yehudah approached him" is that Yosef

(Zeir Anpin,

growing)

is above Yehudah

(Malchus,

inanimate),

behold, in the maamar whose beginning is "And Yehudah approached him,"

its subject is not

(seemingly)

to explain the reason why the Beis HaMikdash was inanimate.

And from the fact that in the maamar beginning "And Yehudah approached him" it explains that this, that the Beis HaMikdash was inanimate, is because the Beis HaMikdash was a semblance of the World to Come,

when Malchus will be

(inanimate)

above all the Sefiros,

it is proven,

that although in the revelation of the matter of "And Yehudah approached him" Zeir Anpin is above Malchus,

there is in it

(in "And Yehudah approached him"),

in its inwardness and concealment,

the superiority of Malchus over Zeir Anpin,

like the revelation of the future to come.

3)

And this will be understood by prefacing that when Yehudah wanted to arouse Yosef to draw down flow to him,

he said to him,

"For you are like Pharaoh."

And the explanation of this is,

that because the drawing down from Zeir Anpin

(Yosef)

to Malchus

(Yehudah)

is a descent,

therefore Yehudah explained to Yosef,

that on the contrary,

through this there will be an ascent in Zeir Anpin,

that he will be "like you, like Pharaoh."

And the concept is,

that Pharaoh is the aspect of Kesser which is above the chain of descent.

And this is what is said,

"And you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh and four parts shall be yours,"

the four parts are Chochmah, Binah, Zeir Anpin, and Malchus,

and the fifth is Kesser which is above the chain of descent.

And it can be said,

that this, that "four parts shall be yours" comes after "a fifth to Pharaoh,"

it is,

that through the fifth to Pharaoh,

the drawing down of Kesser which is above the chain of descent,

also the four parts

[that shall be yours,

in the chain of descent]

are in a more elevated manner.

And as it is brought in the Zohar,

that Pharaoh is that from which all illuminations are broken through and revealed,

it can be said,

that the explanation of "all illuminations are broken through" is,

that through the drawing down of Kesser

(Pharaoh),

also the revelations

(illuminations)

of the chain of descent are in a manner of "breaking through,"

above limitation.

And although the matters in the chain of descent

(the four parts)

are always drawn from Kesser which is above the chain of descent,

nevertheless,

their drawing down from Kesser

(in the usual manner)

is in a way that Kesser is separate from them and therefore they are in limitation,

and the matter of "a fifth to Pharaoh and four parts shall be yours" is,

that even as they are drawn down in revelation

(in the chain of descent),

it is felt in them that their drawing down is from Kesser which is above the chain of descent,

and then they are in a manner of "breaking through."

And the drawing down in this manner is through the Sefirah of Yesod.

For his matter of Yesod is that it influences to Malchus,

and in order for the influence to be below it is through the drawing down from Kesser.

And this is what was said,

"Pharaoh"

(Kesser)

to Yosef

(Yesod)

"You shall be over my house, and at your command all my people shall kiss, etc.,

and without you no man shall lift his hand or his foot,"

that the drawing down from Kesser

(i.e., the additional light drawn from Kesser)

in all the levels of the chain of descent

(all my people)

is through the Sefirah of Yesod,

"at your command"

(of Yosef).

And nevertheless

(only)

"the throne I will be greater than you,"

that this, that Yesod draws from Kesser, is from the aspect of Kesser as it relates to the chain of descent

[therefore,

the revelation of this drawing down is that the matters of the chain of descent are in a manner of "breaking through"],

but the throne,

the loftiness and exaltation,

i.e., Kesser itself which is elevated and separate from the chain of descent,

is not drawn down through Yesod.

And this is the superiority of Malchus over Yesod,

that the root of Malchus is in Kesser itself.

But in Malchus,

its root is in concealment,

and its revelation is through Zeir Anpin.

And through Zeir Anpin revealing in Malchus its root

(the essence of Kesser),

also Zeir Anpin is elevated to this level.

And this is what Yehudah said to Yosef, "Bi Adoni etc., for you are like Pharaoh,"

that through the drawing down into Malchus

(Bi,

in Yehudah)

of the flow from Yesod

(Adoni,

Yosef),

through which the root of Malchus will be revealed in it,

the essence of Kesser,

through this he will be

(like you)

like Pharaoh,

that the essence of Kesser will be drawn into him.

4)

And explanation is needed,

behold, also this, that Yesod draws from Kesser, is because his matter of Yesod is that he influences to Malchus

(as above in section 3),

and nevertheless, this, that Yesod draws from Kesser, is only from the aspect of Kesser as it relates to the chain of descent,

and what is added through the matter of "Bi Adoni"

[that in Malchus the flow is drawn from Yesod]

that specifically through this is the drawing down of the essence of Kesser.

And the explanation of this can be said,

that the matter of "Bi Adoni" is

(not that Yesod influences to Malchus,

but),

that in Malchus the flow is drawn from Yesod,

"Bi Adoni."

And the revelation of Kesser that is drawn through Malchus receiving the flow from Yesod is a more elevated revelation than the revelation of Kesser that is drawn through Yesod influencing Malchus.

And the concept is,

that the analogy for the Sefirah of Malchus in the powers of the soul is the power of speech

(Malchus is the mouth).

And among the reasons for this is,

for the difference between the power of speech and all the powers is,

that all the powers in a person are for his own need,

and the power of speech is

(not for his own need but)

for the sake of another.

And moreover,

that this, that speech is heard by another, is because it goes out externally and becomes separate from the person speaking,

from this it is understood also regarding the power of speech

(before one actually speaks),

that although the power of speech is within the person himself,

its matter is that it has the potential to go out of its existence and speak to another.

And similarly is it in Malchus,

that even when it is in Atzilus

(before it descends to enliven and bring into being the creations)

it is the root and source of the creations.

And it can be said,

that from the explanations on this, that the root of the power of speech is in the essence of the soul

(above the root of all the powers),

it is,

for the powers that are from the side of the revelations of the soul,

their matter is that they are a revelation of the soul

(revelation is in closeness to the thing it reveals),

and since the matter of the power of speech is that it has the potential to go out of its existence

(the opposite of the matter of closeness,

revelation)

it is because its root is in the essence of the soul,

which is not limited by the matter of revelation,

and it has the capacity to also be in concealment,

and even to the ultimate concealment,

going out of its existence.

5)

Now, it is explained in Torah Ohr there,

that the reason for this, that specifically in the land there is the matter of nullification

[that the land is a footstool under the soles of all feet]

is because in thought, the land preceded the heavens.

And likewise, regarding the nullification that is in the inanimate,

that the inanimate is in a state of nullification

[for the matter of the vegetative is that it grows in height and haughtiness,

and the matter of nullification is specifically in the inanimate],

is because the root of the inanimate is above the root of the vegetative.

And likewise, regarding Zeir Anpin and Malchus

[which are analogous to the heavens and the earth,

the inanimate and the vegetative],

that Malchus is in a state of nullification is because its root is in Kesser

(above the root of Zeir Anpin).

And it can be said,

that this, that the analogy for the Sefirah of Malchus among the soul powers is the power of speech,

also relates to the nullification of Malchus.

And it can be said,

that in the nullification that is in speech,

there are two matters.

That speech is not a matter of loftiness.

For the matter of all the [other] powers is that they reveal the soul,

a matter of loftiness and perfection,

but the power of speech, which is not a revelation of the soul,

is not a matter of loftiness.

And there is another matter in the nullification that is in speech,

that the matter of speech is that the speaking person goes out of his own existence

(nullifies himself)

for the sake of another.

And likewise, regarding the nullification of Malchus,

that in addition to the fact that Malchus is not a matter of revelation,

it descends to enliven and bring into being the creations26.

And it can be said,

that this nullification in Malchus is hinted at in what is stated in Torah Ohr, that Yehudah

(Malchus)

is a term of admission and nullification,

for the nullification of admission is that one nullifies himself to the one to whom he admits.

6)

Now, it is known27,

that by a person bringing the intellect

(which he grasped in his thought)

into speech,

there is an addition in the intellect beyond what it was initially

(in thought).

And so it is with the emotions,

that by speaking words of love, there is an addition in his love.

And so it is with the other emotions.

And the reason for this is,

because the root of speech is in the essence of the soul,

and therefore,

by the drawing down and enclothing of the intellect and emotions in speech,

their drawing down from the soul is from a more elevated place.

And it can be said,

that also the level of the soul from which the intellect and emotions are drawn through their enclothing in speech is lower than the level of the soul from which speech itself is drawn28.

For this, that the intellect and emotions

(the revelations of the soul)

are drawn down and enclothed in speech, is by means of the matter of the potential of the soul to descend downward, downward being drawn into them.

For although even this matter in the soul is at a level of the soul that is above the root of the intellect and emotions

[therefore,

by drawing down this level,

there is an addition in the intellect and emotions],

nevertheless,

this matter in the soul

(that it has the potential to descend downward, downward)

is a level of its revelation.

But the root of the power of speech itself

(which is not a matter of revelation),

its root is in the essence of the soul.

7)

And based on this, we can explain what was brought above from the Torah of the Arizal, that the explanation of "Bi Adoni" is that through it the flow is drawn from Yosef HaTzaddik,

for at first glance,

since Yehuda requested this from Yosef,

he should have asked that he

(Yosef)

draw the flow to him,

and why did he ask of Yosef that in him

(Yehuda)

the flow be drawn?29

And we can say the explanation of this according to the known30

matter of lights and vessels

(for Zeir Anpin and Malchus

(Yosef and Yehuda)

are analogous to lights and vessels),

that the reason lights are drawn to clothe in vessels is because the root of the vessels is higher than the root of the lights,

and since in the lights the superiority of the vessels from the aspect of their root31 is felt,

therefore they are drawn to clothe in vessels.

And we can say,

that since lights are revelation,

therefore,

also the superiority of the vessels

(from the aspect of their root)

as it is felt in the lights, is that through the vessels the Unlimited is revealed within the matter of revelation

[for through the lights clothing in vessels,

they are drawn also into the worlds of Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah,

and even into this physical world].

And likewise is it with Zeir Anpin and Malchus,

that Zeir Anpin desires to bestow to Malchus

[for all bestowal is through will32]

because he feels the superiority of Malchus from the aspect of her root,

the main feeling is that through the bestowal to Malchus, the drawing down of Zeir Anpin will be in completeness

[for through Malchus,

it will be drawn also into Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah,

even into this world].

And therefore Yehuda said to Yosef "Bi Adoni",

that the drawing of flow from Zeir Anpin to Malchus should be

(not in order that the drawing down of Zeir Anpin be in completeness,

but rather)

in order that in Malchus the flow be drawn33,

"Bi Adoni".

And specifically through this, "you shall be like Pharaoh",

the ascent of Zeir Anpin to the Essence of Kesser.

For the aspect of Kesser that is revealed in Zeir Anpin through the drawing down of Zeir Anpin being drawn downward, downward,

the matter of the Unlimited

(of Kesser)

that is in His ability to be drawn downward, downward,

is the revelation of Kesser,

and through Yosef

(Zeir Anpin)

drawing the flow to Yehuda

(Malchus)

in order that in Malchus the flow be drawn

("Bi Adoni"),

through this there will be in him a revelation of the Essence of Kesser.

8)

And explanation is needed,

for since the matter of Zeir Anpin

(Yosef)

is revelation,

it would seem that there cannot be in him a matter that is not revelation,

and how did Yehuda effect in Yosef the matter of "Bi Adoni",

that he should draw flow to Malchus for the sake of Malchus,

a drawing that is not relevant

(seemingly)

to the matter of revelations.

And this will be understood by prefacing34

what is explained in Likkutei Torah, Parshat Beha'alotecha, "the lights"35

and also in the discourses of Parshat Vayigash36

regarding the matter of "for your servant became surety for the lad" etc.37,

that the fact that Israel are guarantors for one another38

is because they are intermingled with one another

("areivim" [guarantors] meaning "me'uravim" [intermingled]).

For this is one of the reasons that the Congregation of Israel is compared to the Menorah

("a Menorah of pure gold"39),

for just as it is said of the Menorah40

"of hammered work shall the Menorah be made",

for through the hammering with which they hammer it, what is above descends below and what is below ascends above and everything becomes intermingled together,

so too all of Israel are intermingled

(and included)

with one another,

to the extent that there is found among them neither head nor end41.

And this is "you are called 'Adam'"42,

that all of Israel are

(like)

one man.

And we can say,

that this matter—that all of Israel are like one man—is higher than the matter that all of Israel are intermingled with one another.

For the term "intermingled with one another" applies to separate things that have become mixed together.

And so too is it regarding the matter of "of hammered work shall the Menorah be made",

that the inclusion of hammered work is in a manner that there exist the two matters of above and below,

except that they are intermingled with one another,

for what is above descends below and what is below ascends above.

But that all of Israel are like one man is above division.

And we can say43,

that this—"you are called 'Adam'"—is,

for also in the unity of the limbs of a human body there are two matters.

All the limbs complete one another,

for they all need one another.

For just as the head bestows upon the foot, so too the foot bestows upon the head.

And regarding this matter

(that the foot bestows upon the head)

the foot is called "head".

For in this inclusion there is the division of head and foot,

except that since every limb is a head

[for every limb has a unique superiority,

from which aspect it bestows upon all the limbs],

therefore,

their inclusion is in a manner that there is found among them neither head nor end.

And likewise is it with Israel,

that in each and every one of Israel there is a unique superiority,

and this superiority he bestows upon all the rest of Israel.

And it is found that all of Israel complete one another,

in a manner that there is found among them neither head nor end.

[That is,

there is a matter of head and end,

except that it is impossible to determine

(there is not found)

who is the head and who is the end].

And there is another matter in the unity of the limbs of a human body,

that its main point is that they are parts of the human body.

For this matter is equal in all the limbs.

And likewise is it with Israel,

that each and every one of Israel is a part of the entirety of Israel,

that from the aspect of this matter,

all of Israel are one essence44.

And it may be said,

that the guarantee of Yehudah,

who bound himself with a strong bond to be etc. in both worlds,

comes from the aspect that all Yisrael are truly one essence

(above the level of being intermingled with each other).

And therefore this guarantee was specifically with Yehudah,

for Yehudah is the aspect of Malchus,

for the root of Malchus is in Kesser

(and in Kesser itself, in the innerness of Kesser)

which is above division.

And one may add,

that by Yehudah saying to Yosef, "For your servant guaranteed the youth,"

this guarantee being from the aspect that all Yisrael are one essence,

this matter was drawn

(in an encompassing manner, at least)

also to Yosef,

and therefore Yosef could not restrain himself etc.

and he made himself known to his brothers.

9)

And based on this, it may be said,

that the explanation of "like you, like Pharaoh" is,

that even the true root of Zeir Anpin

(Yosef,

"like you")

is in the essence of Kesser

(above the level of Kesser which is the root of Zeir Anpin),

Pharaoh.

That is,

that the intention in the emanation of Zeir Anpin,

and also in the level of Kesser which is the root of Zeir Anpin,

is in order to complete the intention of the innerness of Kesser.

And by Yehudah

[the aspect of Malchus,

whose root is in the innerness of Kesser,

that is,

that even after it was drawn downward, its root in the innerness of Kesser is felt in it]

saying to Yosef "like you, like Pharaoh,"

there was deposited

(laid down)

this matter also in Yosef,

and this effected in him the matter of "bi adoni,"

that he should draw down influence to Malchus for the sake of Malchus,

in order to complete the intention of the innerness of Kesser.

10)

And 4)

Now, according to this explanation,

the connection of "bi adoni" to "like you, like Pharaoh" is,

that "like you, like Pharaoh" is the cause for the matter of "bi adoni."

For by it being deposited with Yosef that the true root of Zeir Anpin

(the intention in the emanation of Zeir Anpin)

is in the innerness of Kesser,

this brought him to draw down influence to Malchus for the sake of Malchus,

in order to complete the intention of the innerness of Kesser.

And another explanation of the connection of these two matters,

that by Yosef drawing down influence to Malchus for the sake of Malchus,

"bi adoni,"

through this there will be in him a revelation of the innerness of Kesser,

"like you, like Pharaoh"

(as above, section 7).

For this, that the matter of "like you, like Pharaoh" was deposited with him before he influenced Malchus,

was

(not in a revealed manner,

but rather)

that he positioned himself to influence Malchus,

in order to complete the intention.

And by his influencing Malchus,

the revelation of the innerness of Kesser was drawn to him.

And this is the connection of “And Yehudah approached him” with the haftarah of Parshat Vayigash, whose content is that in the future to come, Yehudah will be above Yosef.

For also the approach of Yehudah to Yosef was in a manner that the superiority of Yehudah was placed [in awareness] by Yosef,

and moreover,

that afterwards it was

(like)

receiving from Yehudah,

for by his influencing Yehudah, the revelation of the innerness of the Keter was illuminated within him,

in the manner that will be in the future to come, that Zeir Anpin will receive from Malchut.

10)

A)

And behold, the explanation is known from the Rebbe, my father-in-law, the Rebbe [Rayatz], in his maamar beginning “And My servant Dovid shall be king over them,” etc.49,

that the reason that King Moshiach is called by the name Dovid,

is,

that the essence of Dovid is humility and self-nullification.

For although he was a king,

nevertheless he called himself a poor and needy one50.

And so it is with King Moshiach,

for although he will be at the ultimate level of greatness,

as it is stated51

“And the spirit of Hashem shall rest upon him,” etc., and he will study Torah with the Patriarchs and Moshe Rabbeinu, peace be upon him,

nevertheless he will be at the ultimate level of humility and self-nullification, to also study with simple people.

And based on what is known52

that all the revelations of the future depend on our deeds and service now,

it is understood,

that among the matters that bring closer and hasten the coming of Moshiach is the study and dissemination of Torah,

the revealed aspect of Torah and the innerness of Torah,

to everyone,

even to simple people.

And that this will be in a manner of humility and self-nullification.

That is, the study and dissemination must be not for the sake of the elevation that occurs through this for the teacher and disseminator

(from my students more than from all of them53),

but rather for the sake of the recipients.

[And in the manner explained above regarding the matter of “Bi Adoni.”]

And through this, they bring closer and hasten even more the fulfillment of the prophecy “And My servant Dovid shall be king over them,” etc., and “Dovid My servant shall be their prince forever,”

with the coming of Moshiach Tzidkeinu, speedily and truly.