Translation:Likutei Halakhot/Even HaEzer

by Nathan of Breslov

Even Ha'Ezer/Stone of Help

Laws of Procreation and Laws of Matrimony

Halakhah 1

"A Kohen is forbidden to marry a divorcee, promiscuous woman, or challalah... Kohanim, Levi'im, and Yisraelim are permitted to one another, and the child is [a Kohen, Levi or Israel] according to the male parent. Levi'im, Israelim, challalim, converts etc. are permitted to one another.”

Oth 1

See the [Likutei Moharan Ch. 61] torah on Chadi Rabbi Shim`on from beginning to end; take a good look at it. And the rule is: everything is interconnected, and it is all one [thing], for they all belong to one aspect. That is, through perfection of faith in the Sages, through which the semikhah/rabbinic ordination is as it should be, through which the Yisraelite writing is as it should be, through which is made the aspect of Eretz Yisrael/The Land of Yisrael and through which are born great souls and the Name is raised up -- for it is through perfection of this faith that the aspect of abundance of books is made –- through this all the judgements are sweetened, by the Written Torah being made complete by the Oral Torah and it receiving from the chokhmah `ila'ah/Upper Wisdom, the Sekhel haKollel/the comprehensive intellect, the Holy of Holies; and through this all the constrictions and judgements are sweetened, whether it be sweetening each constriction and judgement through the particular intellect pertaining to it, which needs to be drawn down from the Upper Wisdom to this intellect so that it will have power to sweeten, or whether it be sweetening via the Upper Wisdom all of the constrictions and judgements from whatever aspect of intellect. And when the Torah has completion, they are all sweetened in general and in particular through the aspect of the Upper Wisdom, as mentioned above, through which is made the aspect of happiness via the inclusion, for all of them are included inside the aspect of Holy of Holies, the Even Shetiyah/Foundation Stone, the Upper Wisdom mentioned above. Take a good look at it.

And behold, it is all one theme, for this sweetening corresponds to writing, which corresponds to semikhah mentioned above, for the sweetening is through receiving the constrictions from the Upper Wisdom, and is like the writing, for the letters of the writing are like constrictions, for each and every letter has a particular intellect clothed in its image and the constrictions, as mentioned there in the above chapter, and all these constrictions and intellects which are the letters which are like the Chokhmah Tata'ah/Lower Wisdom, Malkhut/Kingship, need to receive from the Upper Wisdom, the Sekhel haKollel which is the brain which is like the Chokhmah Ila'ah, and when one writes in the fashion of Yisraelite writing in completion, then he draws the Sekhel ha`Elyon/Upper Intellect into the letters that he writes and the Chokhmah Ila`ah in the mind is joined with the Chokhmah Tata'ah in the letters which are the constrictions, and through this all the judgements that hold them are sweetened through receiving from the Chokhmah Ila'ah as mentioned above. And therefore the writing receives power from the semikhah, for the semikhah that a Rav ordains a student is also in this fashion, for a Rav and student are like the Upper Wisdom and Lower Wisdom, Upper Intellect and Lower Intellect, as mentioned in the beginning of the essay “Meishra deSakina” (Likutei Moharan #30) and therefore through the semikhah when a student receives wisdom from the Rav, i.e. like the Lower Wisdom from the Upper Wisdom, through this the power of the writing which is also in this fashion also receives, and therefore through this is made the aspect of Eretz Yisrael, as is written there; see there. That is, the impure air of the foreign lands is driven out and sweetened, and the aspect of the holiness of Eretz Yisrael is drawn down, and all this is through the writing and the semikhah, as is written there. For this accomplishes the sweetening, that all the judgements are sweetened that hold on to the constrictions of the letters as mentioned above, and through this the aspect of the Land is sweetened, which is like Malkhut, as is brought down, and all the evil is sweetened and removed from there, until the air outside the Land is clarified and is made like Eretz Yisrael through the sweetening of the writing as mentioned above. And the purpose of all the sweetenings is that holy souls should be born, for birth is the main sweetening, as is brought down, and all this is done through faith in the Sages, for faith is like Malkhut, Chokhmah Tata'ah, and when faith in the Sages is complete then the Chokhmah Tata'ah receives faith from the Chokhmah Ila'ah through believing in the Sages, and therefore through this is made the aspect of semikhah, as is fit, and the aspect of the writing and the aspect of Eretz Yisrael; and through this all the judgements are sweetened through the constrictions, which are like the Chokhmah Tata'ah, Malkhut, like the letters as mentioned above, receiving the aspect of the Chokhmah Ila`ah as mentioned above; and this is like birth, that great souls are born which are like sweetening as mentioned above; and this is like Nisu'in/marriage, for marriage is a sweetening through the Chokhmah Tata'ah receiving from the aspect of the Chokhmah Ila'ah as is brought down, and therefore the root of the mitzvah is to bear children, which is the main sweetening, as mentioned above.

Oth 2

And this is like kiddushin/betrothal/sanctification, aspect of kodesh/the holy, which is aspect of sekhel/intellect, which is the agent of the sweetening, as explained there in that essay. And this is aspect of kiddushin by writing, namely a shtar/wedding contract, for, the aspect of writing is aspect of completion, which is Chokhmah Tata'ah which is completed and sweetened via the aspect of writing, as mentioned. And therefore even if he does not mekadesh/betroth her with the shtar, he gives her the writing of the ketubah/wedding contract, for she receives from him via the aspect of writing, as mentioned, and this is the aspect of get kritut/divorce-bill of severance, which is in writing specifically, for the document severs, and nothing else can sever, for after she has been joined with and tied to him and they have become one, it is impossible to separate her and sever her from him except at his root. That is, that he separate and sever her he'arah/light from him at its root, and draws to her this light of the aspect of severance from his root, and by this she is detached from him. And this is impossible except via writing, and this is the aspect of the get kritut, that is, that he goes back and draws to her her light from the Chokhmah `Ila'ah to the Chokhmah Tata'ah via the aspect of the writing of the severance. And by this she is cut off from him from his root, and therefore she is forbidden to be married to a Kohen, for a Kohen is aspect of Chokhmah `Ila'ah, as brought, aspect of KeTz [ketz/pinnacle, or K"ohen T"zedek, priest of righteousness], aspect of the uppermost sweetening that is accomplished by the Sekhel haKolel, Chokhmah `Ila'ah itself, for there are two aspects of sweetenings as mentioned, that is, there is sweetening in particular, that the constriction and judgment are sweetened via the particular intellect that pertain to them, and this is aspect of Levi and Yisrael who are aspects of particular intellects, for Levi and Yisrael are lower that the Sekhel haKolel, as is brought, and therefore they are aspects of particular intellects; but a Kohen is aspect of Chokhmah `Ila'ah as mentioned, who is aspect of the uppermost sweetening via the Sekhel haKollel, and this sweetening is impossible except via the aspect of haklalut/inclusion/generality, as is understood there in that essay, that we need all the souls, which are the constrictions and the intellects, to be included together in full inclusion inside the aspect of the Even Shtiyah, the Sekhel haKolell, and then we can sweeten the aspect of this sweetening via the Sekhel haKolel itself. And this is the aspect of "Ve'ahavta lere`akha kamokha/And you shall love your neighbor as yourself -- Amar Rabi `Akiva zeh klal gadol baTorah/said Rabbi Akiva, this is a big klal/inclusion/rule/generality in Torah," for the whole entire Torah depends on this, for the main wholeness of the Torah is that it be able to receive from the Chokhmah `Ila'ah, as written there. For that is where the Torah goes out from, and it is impossible except by the love and the inclusion as mentioned; ve'Oraita v'Yisrael kula chad/and the Torah and Yisrael are all one." For the souls of Yisrael -- they are the very letters of the Torah, and therefore when there is love among Yisrael, which is aspect of klalut, that we are included in eachother, then we are all included in the aspect of Chokhmah `Ila'ah, and then there is wholeness to the Torah as mentioned. And this is the aspect of zeh klal gadol baTorah -- klal gadol specifically, aspect of klalut gadol/big inclusion, that we are included in and united with eachother, and then we receive from Chokhmah `Ila'ah which all the Torah depends on, as mentioned. And therefore Aharon haKohen, ish hachesed/the man of kindness is aspect of Sekhel haKolel, Chokhmah `Ila'ah as mentioned, and therefore he loved peace and pursued peace, in order to make love and inclusion with the souls of Yisrael in order that he could sweeten by means of this the aspect of the upper sweetening of the Sekhel haKolel which is aspect of Kohen as mentioned above. And therefore the Torah was given over mainly to the Kohanim, as written (Deut. 33), "Yoru mishpateikha leYa`akov/they shall teach Your ordinances to Ya`akov," and as written, "veyitnah el-haKohanim/and gave it to the Kohanim," etc., for the are the aspect of the Sekhel haKolel which is where the the root of the Torah hangs on, as mentioned. And therefore a gerushah/divorcee is forbidden to a Kohen, for she is in the aspect of sin'ah/hatred, as it is written, "u's'ne'ah ...vekatav lah sefer keritut/shall hate her... shall write her a bill of severance/divorcement" (Deut. 24:3), and by this she is severed and separated from her husband who is the aspect of Sekhel as mentioned, and therefore she can no longer be married to a Kohen, for she cannot be included in the aspect of klalut to receive the sweetening from the aspect of Sekhel haKolel, aspect of Kohen, since she already has severance and separation from one member of Yisrael, who is an aspect of Sekhel, as mentioned.

Oth 3

And this is the aspect of a Kohen being forbidden to marry a convert ...

Oth 10

Because from the beginning, the birth of Mashiach was in in order to repair this sin, because the beginning of the revelation of Masheiach was from Yehudah, who begat from Tamar Peretz and Zerach, and they were the remedy for the sin of `Er and `Onan who wasted their way, as is brought, and therefore Yehudah needed to draw down the aspect of the soul of Mashiach, through which they would be repaired. Because the repair of this sin depends on Mashiach, as mentioned.

Oth 11

And this is the aspect of King David, `alav HaShalom, who always prayed for life. As is written (Ps. 16), "Make known to me the apth of life" etc. and so on, because he needed to repair the sin of the blemish of the brain drops of the sons of Yehudah, as mentioned, and this is aspect of (ibid. 5), "For you are not a God who desires wickedness; evil shall not dwell with you," which was said regarding this sin...

Oth 12

And when Mashiach comes, soon in our days, then we will attain the Oraita d`Atika Setima'ah/Torah of the "Ancient Hidden One,", which is the very most supreme and high wisdom, and then shall be the finish of the repair in completion, and specifically in what [he] blemished -- there it shall be repaired, in the aspect of "one's sins become his merits," i.e. the sin was as if he stripped the wisdom of its clothing, and therefore the finish of the remedy is that he merit to expound new revelations of the Torah, until he merits to the Oraita d`Atikah Setima'ah...

Oth 13

And this is what our Sages said, that one who remains without a wife, remains without joy, without Torah, because the aspect of Oral Torah is the aspect of faith in the Sages as mentioned, throuth which the Written Torah is completed, as mentioned, through which is the aspect of joy, as mentioned.

Halakhah 3

Oth 10

And this is the aspect of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and the Ten Days of Repentance. For they are ten days, corresponding to the ten types of melody, which are the generality of joy, as mentioned. Therefore on Rosh Hashanah which is the first day of the Ten Days of Repentance, we arouse all kinds of melody through the mitzwah of sounding the shofar. For hearing the shofar's sound is the aspect of the ten types of melody, as written, “Shiru-lo shir chadash, heitivu nagen bithru`ah/Play skilfully amid shouts of joy” (Ps. 33:3), and as we say before the blasts (Ps. 47:6-7), “God is gone up amidst the shouting sound (teru`ah), Hashem amidst the sound of the shofar. Make music (zammeru) to God, make music; make music to our King, make music.” For the shofar is the aspect of music (zemiroth) and melodies (niggunim), the aspect of the ten types of melody, to which corresponds the aspect of the ten soundings of the shofar, which are TShR"T TSh"T TR"T [T=Teki`ah, Sh=Shevarim, R=teRu`ah], which is blown during the ten Malkhiyoth (Kingship), ten Zikhronoth (Remembrance) and ten Shofaroth, which all this is in the aspect of these ten types of melody, as discerned in the Tikkunim.

And therefore King David a"h ended the book of Psalms — which is composed of all the ten types of melody, which are the aspect of the ten lyrical styles in which the book of Psalms is composed; and as explained in Rabbeinu z"l’s words (LM II #92) — with the psalm “Praise the Almighty in His Sanctity” [Ps. 150], which are ten Hilluls, which are the aspect of the ten types of melody in which the Psalms are composed. So he ended with all the ten Hilluls as the conclusion of the book of Psalms. The final one of all these ten types of melody is “Praise him with the ringing of Teru`ah,” for Teru`ah, which is in the aspect of the shofar’s sound, on Rosh Hashanah is comprised of all the ten types of melody as mentioned. For Rosh Hashanah is the first of the Ten Days of Repentance, and the essential repair of repentance is by the aspect of the ten types of melody, which are the entirety of joy, the aspect of reversing grief and sorrow to joy as mentioned. And as discerned in Rabbeinu z"l's words in many places, how much a man who is far from serving Hashem needs to rise up and make himself happy by any possible means of still finding in himself any good point. And this is the essence of his cure, for thereby he truly enters the scale of merit and can attain repentance, as is thoroughly explained on the verse, “I will make music to my God in my yet [being]” [LM 282 on Ps. 146:2].

Have a thorough look there, for this lesson, “I will make music to my God in my yet,” needs to be reviewed a great deal and practiced, as Rabbeinu z"l heeded us a great deal to walk with this torah. For, every man, as long as he has pity on himself, and considers the eternal purpose, needs to very, very much enliven himself and to see, to seek, and to find in himself some good points, what he has ever done, some mitzwah or good things, in order to not be entirely downcast, and to accustom himself to make some joyful melody from time to time, especially on Shabbatoth and Yamim Tovim, when we need to be very, very happy in all sorts of joys from evening until morning, and make a great deal of joyous melody.

For the main way to follow Hashem Yithbarakh, especially for far people who need to return, is solely by means of the ten types of melody which are the aspect of the generality of joy as mentioned, and as discerned from the Rabbeinu z"l’s words in the awesome and wondrous story which has never been heard in the history of the world: the awesome final story in the Seven Beggars, regarding which he said of himself that if he would know nothing but this story, he would still be an extremely great and wondrous marvel. For it is comprised of many torahs and many foremost tzaddiqim etc. etc.

And there at the end of this story, in the story of the Sixth Day, in which the handless beggar glorifies himself versus each and every one of them who boasted of the power in his hands etc. etc. — see there this whole wondrous and awesome matter — if you would have been amongst the Machatzdei Chaqla (Harvesters of the Field), or [even] if you have gotten a look from the holy books, especially the Tikkunim, the Zohar and the Saba, you would discern from afar, like one who “peers through a crack,” the awesome “wonders of a perfect mind” [Job. 37:16]; but here is not the place to elaborate on this.

And at the end it explains that he boasts against all of them, because all of them, even though they were supreme on a most very exceedingly high level, and each one had a wondrous and awesome power in his hands that is not found even in one person per era, but only in singularly wondrous great tzaddikim that were one in many, many generations, for example the one boasting that he can remove the arrows with his hands even after the arrow has been shot and after the arrow has reached inside the one whom they shot the arrow at — “who has heard such a thing?” — who has heard such permutations of letters, a man boasting of such a novelty even in physicality, that in the place where an arrow was shot, a man can return and bring back the arrow after the arrow was dispatched and shot into the target person? — for only Hashem Yithbarakh boasts of this, as our Rabbis z"l have said, “Flesh and blood shoots and arrow and cannot return it, but HK"BH shoots an arrow then returns it, as it says, ‘Yet my hand shall maintain hold of judgment’” [Deut. 32:41 and Rashi there] — and especially since the matter of the arrows actually alludes to all the transgressions' damage to the Shekhinah, which are like arrows that are shot and cause a great deal of damage to the Israelite soul, and to each and every man for every transgression and damage that he does, especially blemishing the Covenant; he really shoots an arrow at his soul, for the Covenant is called a “bow and arrow,” as is known, in the aspect like our Rabbis z"l said, “Any sperm that is not shot like an arrow [cannot impregnate, Chag. 15a; Nid. 43a.]” — and definitely the one who boasted that he can pull back the arrows after they have hit the target person was for sure a wondrous and awesome tzaddik and a wondrous novelty like no other in many generations, that he boasted that he can perform repair of the Covenant for one who has damaged it, which is the aspect of removing the arrows from where they were shot: Even though the one who boasted of this was such a wondrous and awesome novelty, still he was considered not in compare to this beggar without hands.

For, the one without hands immediately asked him, “What kind of arrow can you pull back?” And he answered: such a kind. He spoke up and said, “You cannot heal the king's daughter;” see there. And even though I definitely do not attain knowing even one drop in the sea of the deepest meaning of the stories that Rabbeinu z"l told that are brought in Sipurei Ma`asiyoth — and even more so, and all the more so, this story that is more awesome and holy that them all, as written there — nevertheless this matter is definitely hinted to in his words among all the rest of the awesome interests and secrets that he intended. But this interest is definitely also included in his holy words in this story. That is, this one asked him what kind of arrow can you remove, meaning what kind of Covenant damage can you repair, for there are many, many aspects of Covenant damage, thousands of thousands and myriads of myriads, for definitely not all damages and mistakes are equal, as everyone knows. He answered him, this kind (see there, what is written regarding the poisons that the arrows are smeared in, whereby the arrows injure etc., and everything alludes to this matter), in other words, this part of Covenant damage which is the aspect of this kind of arrow, he can pull back and repair. The handless one replied: Still you cannot heal the king's daughter, since you can only pull back one kind of arrow.

And this is known, that the king's daughter there alludes to the Shekhinah, which is Kenesseth Yisrael, the entirety of the Israelite souls who are called “the King's Daughter,” as it is written, “All-glorious is the King's daughter who is within” [Ps. 45:13], and similarly in the Zohar and the Tikkunim it is called “the King's Daughter” in many, many places, and the Shekhinah in exile is downtrodden in afflictions and transgressions, as our Rabbis z"l said: when a human being suffers, what does the Shekhinah say? ‘Pain from my head, pain from my arm.’” As it says, “Rachel crying for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children” etc. [Jer. 31:14], and regarding this it says, “He has bent His bow and set me as a target for the arrow. He has caused the arrows of His quiver to enter in my inward parts” [Lam. 3:12-13]. For, all the wicked arrows of Covenant damage are cast at the Shekhinah and Kenesseth Yisrael, as is known, and this is also the aspect of, “For Your arrows are gone deep into me, and Your hand is come down upon me” [Ps. 38:3].

And therefore even though this one boasted that he can remove an arrow, he still cannot heal the King's daughter, who is the Shekhinah, all the souls of Yisrael, since he can only remove one arrow. That is, he can only repair one kind of Covenant damage that he knows, but there are still wicked arrows that cause such great damage that even he cannot remove them and make repair.

But this handless one boasted at the end that he can extract all the ten kinds of arrows that include all the kinds of mistakes, and all kinds of Covenant damage in the world, all the very greatest mistakes, transgressions and iniquities, God spare us; absolutely everything he can pull back and remove, and repair it all, for he can enter in all the ten types of walls of water wherein the King's daughter is lying, who fell down faint so many, many hundreds of years. And he can go in there in all the ten types of walls of water, and knows how to remove all the ten kinds of arrows. And he knows all the ten kinds of pulsebeats and knows how to heal her through all the ten types of melody. Hence the essence of the King's daughter's, the Shekhinah's, the entirety of the Yisraelite souls' healing, is through the ten types of melody making, which are the generality of joy. And this is Rabbeinu z"l writing in that torah that the essence of all physical and spiritual healing is through joy, which is the aspect of the ten types of melody making, for the ten types of melody making vitalize all the ten kinds of pulsebeats which are the man's vitality, and all the illnesses and all the healings depend on them, on the ten kinds of pulsebeats, as is known. And the essence of the vitality of the ten kinds of pulsebeats is through joy, which is the aspect of the ten types of melody making, therefore joy is an extremely great thing, and one needs to fortify himself in joy constantly with all his powers, for it is the essence of the body and the soul's healing, the aspect of the king's daughter's healing as mentioned.

Hence the essence of the repair of repentance — which is bodily and mental healing, as written, “Go and let us return to Hashem, for He has torn, and He will heal us” etc. [Hos. 6] — is by joy, which is the aspect of the ten types of melody making.

Therefore on Rosh Hashanah which is the first of the Ten Day of Repentance, all the ten types of melody are aroused through the mitzwah of hearing the shofar's sound which is comprised of ten types of melody. And this is what is brought in the Tikkunim many times, “Now the King's daughter ascends with ten types of melody making” etc.; see there.

Laws of Ishut/Matrimony

Halakha 1 is in Laws of Procreation 1 [above]

2

A Kohen, Levi, and Israel are permitted to eachoter, and the offspring go according to the male:

1. For it is brought in the Torah "Tik`u" 3, which speaks of rebuke (Likutei Moharan II #8), that the essense of prayer is rachamim/compassionate prayer and pleading, and rachamim depends mainly on da`at/knowledge etc. ...

5. And therefore there are nations that even after they convert, they are forbidden to enter the congregation of Hashem -- this is because in them is gripped the cruelty and harsh judgment, so much so that they cannot be included inside the rachamim and the da`at, which is the aspect of the holiness of Israel, even when they convert, and this is what our Sages said, that David decreed on the Nethinim because they had no compassion at all, as brought there [Yevamot 79a], he said to them: "This nation is distinguished by three characteristics: They are merciful, bashful and benevolent." Whoever has these three characteristics is fit to join this nation, and whoever does not have these three characteristics is not fit to join it, i.e. as mentioned, because he is not fit to cleave to the congregation of Hashem, to the holy seed Israel, except one who is in the category of compassion, which is the aspect of da`at, but whoever does not have compassion for example the Nethinim are forbidden to enter the congreation of Hashem, because the blemish of rachamim is blemish of knowledge which is aspect of the sexual craving, because the holy mating of Israel needs to be separated from the blemish of this craving, and as mentioned, and this is why our Sages counted three characteristics -- merciful, bashful and benevolent, which are aspect of the three brains mentioned, which are the three types of compassion etc. as mentioned, because also the bashfulness is aspect of knowledge and compassion, becasue bashfulness depends mainly on knowledge as is written (Jer. 30 [6?]) "They are not even ashamed at all; They did not even know how to blush," because the beast which has no knowledge has no shame, and so it is understood in the words of Rabbeinu z"l in another place in the essay on the chariots of Phar`oh and his army (LM 38) that bashfulness depends on knowledge; also bashfulness is aspect of compassion, opposite of brazenness, which is aspect of strictnesses and harsh judgements. Hence all the three characteristics mentioned which are bashful compassionate and benevolent, all three traits are the compassion mentioned, for they come from the three brains as mentioned, for the holy mating of Israel is mainly dependent on this, and whoever does not have these three traits of compassion metnioned, is forbidden to enter the congregation of Hashem, and therefore specifically because of this the Nethinim were forbidden to enter the congregation, as mentioned.