Chapter 53
פרק נג
At the time the First Temple stood, in which the Ark and the Tablets were housed in the Holy of Holies,
וְהִנֵּה, כְּשֶׁהָיָה בַּיִת רִאשׁוֹן קַיָּים, שֶׁבּוֹ הָיָה הָאָרוֹן וְהַלּוּחוֹת בְּבֵית קָדְשֵׁי קָדָשִׁים –
the Shechinah—which is malchut of Atzilut, that is, the revealed light of the Ein Sof, a light which intrinsically is infinite and transcends all Worlds and which nevertheless was revealed in them—
הָיְתָה הַשְּׁכִינָה, שֶׁהִיא מַלְכוּת דַּאֲצִילוּת, שֶׁהִיא בְּחִינַת גִּילּוּי אוֹר־אֵין־סוֹף בָּרוּךְ־הוּא,
dwelled there and was clothed in the Ten Commandments, which were engraved upon the Tablets found in the Ark in the Holy of Holies,
שׁוֹרָה שָׁם, וּמְלוּבֶּשֶׁת בַּעֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְּרוֹת,
far more intensely, and with a greater and mightier revelation, than its revelation in the shrines of the Holy of Holies above in the upper Worlds.
בְּיֶתֶר שְׂאֵת וְיֶתֶר עֹז, בְּגִילּוּי רַב וְעָצוּם יוֹתֵר מִגִּילּוּיָהּ בְּהֵיכְלוֹת קָדְשֵׁי קָדָשִׁים שֶׁלְּמַעְלָה בְּעוֹלָמוֹת עֶלְיוֹנִים.
For the Ten Commandments are the all-embracing principles of the whole Torah,
כִּי עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְּרוֹת הֵן כְּלָלוּת הַתּוֹרָה כוּלָּהּ,
which derives from the level of supernal chochmah, i.e., chochmah of Atzilut, that is far higher than the “world of manifestation.”
דְּנָפְקָא מִגּוֹ חָכְמָה עִילָּאָה, דִּלְעֵילָּא לְעֵילָּא מֵעָלְמָא דְאִתְגַּלְיָא,
In order to engrave them on material tablets of stone, it (supernal chochmah, which is Torah) did not descend degree by degree, parallel to the order of descent of the Worlds, which descend by stages from a higher world to a lower world, until it reached this material world.
וּכְדֵי לְחָקְקָן בְּלוּחוֹת אֲבָנִים גַּשְׁמִיִּים – לֹא יָרְדָה מִמַּדְרֵגָה לְמַדְרֵגָה, כְּדֶרֶךְ הִשְׁתַּלְשְׁלוּת הָעוֹלָמוֹת עַד עוֹלָם הַזֶּה הַגַּשְׁמִי,
For this material world functions through the garb of material nature,
כִּי עוֹלָם הַזֶּה הַגַּשְׁמִי – מִתְנַהֵג בְּהִתְלַבְּשׁוּת הַטֶּבַע הַגַּשְׁמִי,
while the Tablets are “the work of G-d,”2 a Divine creation, in which G-dliness—not nature—is revealed,
"וְהַלּוּחוֹת – מַעֲשֵׂה אֱלֹהִים הֵמָּה,
“and the writing is the writing of G-d,’’2 writing in which G-dliness is perceived,
וְהַמִּכְתָּב – מִכְתַּב אֱלֹהִים הוּא",
beyond the nature of this material world which is derived from the radiance of the Shechinah in the shrine of the Holy of Holies of Asiyah, from which light and vitality issue to the World of Asiyah, in which this physical world is also included.
לְמַעְלָה מֵהַטֶּבַע שֶׁל עוֹלָם הַזֶּה הַגַּשְׁמִי, הַנִּשְׁפָּע מֵהֶאָרַת הַשְּׁכִינָה שֶׁבְּהֵיכַל קָדְשֵׁי קָדָשִׁים דַּעֲשִׂיָּה, שֶׁמִּמֶּנָּה נִמְשָׁךְ אוֹר וְחַיּוּת לְעוֹלַם הָעֲשִׂיָּה, שֶׁגַּם עוֹלָם הַזֶּה בִּכְלָלוֹ,
But the level of the supernal chochmah of Atzilut, consisting of the totality of the Torah as it is encapsulated in the Ten Commandments, clothed itself in malchut of Atzilut and of Beriah alone and did not clothe itself further in the lower Worlds,
אֶלָּא, בְּחִינַת חָכְמָה עִילָּאָה דַאֲצִילוּת, שֶׁהִיא כְּלָלוּת הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁבְּי' הַדִּבְּרוֹת, נִתְלַבְּשָׁה בְּמַלְכוּת דַּאֲצִילוּת וְדִבְרִיאָה לְבַדָּן,
and they alone (chochmah of Atzilut as it is garbed in malchut of Atzilut and malchut of Beriah without further vestment), united as they are with the [infinite] light of the Ein Sof that is within them,
וְהֵן לְבַדָּן הַמְיוּחָדוֹת בְּאוֹר־אֵין־סוֹף שֶׁבְּתוֹכָן –
are referred to as the Shechinah, which rested in the Holy of Holies of the First Temple, through its being vested in the Ten Commandments, which were engraved by miraculous means in the Tablets reposing in the Ark.
הֵן הַנִּקְרָאוֹת בְּשֵׁם "שְׁכִינָה", הַשּׁוֹרָה בְּקָדְשֵׁי קָדָשִׁים דְּבַיִת רִאשׁוֹן, עַל יְדֵי הִתְלַבְּשׁוּתָהּ בְּי' הַדִּבְּרוֹת הַחֲקוּקוֹת בַּלּוּחוֹת שֶׁבָּאָרוֹן בְּנֵס
Moreover, the Ten Commandments upon the Tablets were the work of the Living G-d—Elokim Chaim,
וּמַעֲשֵׂה אֱלֹהִים חַיִּים
(4this being, in terms of the sefirot, binah of Atzilut, which is known as “the concealed world” which nests in the World of Beriah, as is known to the students of the Kabbalah).
[הוּא "עָלְמָא דְאִתְכַּסְיָא", הַמְקַנֵּן בְּעוֹלַם הַבְּרִיאָה, כַּנּוֹדָע לְיוֹדְעֵי חֵן],
Footnotes
1.
The Rebbe notes that while the simple explanation of the phrase, “the upper Worlds,” would tend to favor the explanation given above—that it refers to the Worlds of Asiyah and Yetzirah—a more thorough analysis indicates that this is not so. Were this indeed the case, it would be extremely difficult to understand why the Alter Rebbe points out at length that the Ten Commandments are the “all-embracing principles of the whole Torah,” and so on. Moreover, why the lengthy explanation even before this—that the Shechinah resided in the Holy Temple “far more intensely, and with a greater and mightier revelation,” than in the upper Worlds? How is this “far more intensely,” and so on, when the only difference is whether or not the Shechinah was garbed in Yetzirah? Most importantly, in Shaar Hatalmud Torah of the Alter Rebbe’s Siddur, it is almost surely indicated that what was revealed in the Holy Temple was a degree of Shechinah which surpassed the revelation in all of the higher Worlds. This is also indicated in Or Hatorah, Bamidbar, end of p. 16. The Rebbe therefore understands that the Alter Rebbe speaks of two distinct qualities found in the Holy Temple. The first is that the revelation in the Holy Temple was greater than in all Worlds, because therein was found the Ten Commandments, which are the “all-embracing principles of the whole Torah.” Because of this, the revelation of the Shechinah was the illumination of chochmah of Atzilut after it had been clothed in malchut of Atzilut and malchut of Beriah. A second quality found in the illumination of the Shechinah in the Holy Temple was the manner of its descent: it clothed itself only in malchut of Atzilut and malchut of Beriah (for “in order to engrave them on material tablets…[the Shechinah] did not descend…”). Thus, the manner in which the Shechinah was drawn down surpasses only the World of Yetzirah, but as to the actual illumination that shone there, this was a light which was higher than that in all the upper Worlds. The special quality it possessed: (a) in the Temple, there was revealed the essence of the light of Ein Sof since the Tablets were there, as mentioned earlier; (b) in the Temple, there was a “comprehension of essence” and not only “knowledge of manifestation”; and (c) the Temple was illumined by a revelation that transcended both transcendent and immanent manifestations of G-dliness. This was due to the supernal delight (oneg ha’elyon) that was found there. This was why “The place of the Ark did not take up space”—at one and the same time, it both took up space and yet did not take up space. Space derives from the immanence of G-dliness. That which transcends space derives from the transcendence of G-dliness. That which transcends both these levels finds expression in there being space—and yet at the same time, this very real space occupies no space whatsoever.
4.
Parentheses are in the original text.