וכמו שכתב הרמב״ם ז״ל, שהוא היודע והוא הידוע והוא הדיעה עצמה, הכל אחד As Maimonides, of blessed memory, stated,12 that He is the Knower, He is the Known, and He is Knowledge itself: all are one. This is radically different from mortal knowledge, which comprises three distinct elements: (a) the person’s soul — the knower; […]

וכתיב: החקר אלקה תמצא וגו׳, וכתיב: העיני בשר לך, אם כראות אנוש תראה It is likewise written,18 “Can you by [intellectual] searching find G‑d?…”; and so too,19 “Have You eyes of flesh, and do You see as man sees?” שהאדם רואה ויודע כל הדברים בידיעה שחוץ ממנו For man sees and knows everything with a […]

והנה מכאן In the light of what has been said above — that G‑d’s knowledge is wholly one with G‑d Himself, for otherwise it would imply multiplicity in One Who is perfect unity, יש להבין שגגת מקצת חכמים בעיניהם, ה׳ יכפר בעדם it is possible to understand the error of certain scholars in their own […]

והנה מכאן In the light of what has been said above — that G‑d’s knowledge is wholly one with G‑d Himself, for otherwise it would imply multiplicity in One Who is perfect unity, יש להבין שגגת מקצת חכמים בעיניהם, ה׳ יכפר בעדם it is possible to understand the error of certain scholars in their own […]

וזהו גם כן ענין סובב כל עלמין And this is also the meaning of “He encompassess all worlds.” This does not mean to say (heaven forfend) that G‑d is not found within the worlds but merely encompasses them. Rather: פירוש, דרך משל: כשאדם מתבונן באיזה דבר חכמה בשכלו, או דבר גשמי במחשבתו This means, by […]

וממלא כל עלמין היא בחינת החיות המתלבש תוך עצם הנברא And “He fills all worlds” is the life-force that becomes enclothed i.e., is internalized within the essence of the created being. שהיא מצומצמת בתוכו בצמצום רב, כפי ערך מהות הנברא, שהוא בעל גבול ותכלית בכמותו ובאיכותו, דהיינו מעלתו וחשיבותו It is powerfully contracted within it […]

Creation effected absolutely no change in the Creator, neither in His Unity nor in His knowledge. This we learn from the verse, “I, Havayah, have not changed,” as the Alter Rebbe explained in the preceding chapter. Though one might assume that by bringing created beings into existence G‑d’s knowledge was supplemented — in that only […]

אבל לגבי הקב״ה, מדרגת החכמה שהיא תחלת מחשבה וראשיתה, היא סוף מעשה אצלו In regard to the Holy One, blessed be He, however, the level of wisdom — which [in all created beings] is the beginning of thought and its genesis — is to Him the final stage of action; דהיינו שנחשבת כאילו היא בחינת […]

אבל הקב״ה, שהוא למעלה מן השכל והחכמה, לא שייך כלל לומר בו שאי אפשר להשיגו מפני עומק המושג However, concerning the Holy One, blessed be He, Who transcends intellect and wisdom, it is not at all appropriate to say that one cannot comprehend Him because of the profundity of the concept, כי אינו בבחינת השגה […]

Concluding the previous chapter, the Alter Rebbe explained that since G‑d is infinitely exalted above intellect, intellectual means are inadequate to grasp His absolute union with the Sefirot of the World of Atzilut. These are limited to the particular Divine attributes of wisdom, kindness, and so on. The Zohar thus terms these attributes “the secret […]