וזה שנאמר: כי חלק ה׳ עמו, יעקב חבל נחלתו This, then, is the meaning of the verse,2 “For [G‑d’s] people is a part of G‑d; Jacob is the rope of His inheritance.” This verse implies that within the soul there are to be found two levels: the internal aspect of the soul is “part of […]

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והוא על דרך משל מחבל עב, שזור מתרי״ג חבלים דקים This is analogous to a thick rope woven of 613 thin strands. ככה חבל ההמשכה הנ״ל כלול מתרי״ג מצות So, too, the “rope” of the downward flow mentioned above is comprised of the 613 mitzvot,14 each mitzvah being an individual thin strand. וכשעובר ח״ו על […]

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The Alter Rebbe opened the fourth chapter by beginning to explain the concept of repentance according to the mystical approach to the Torah. He prefaced his commentary by noting that according to Scripture and our Sages a person who committed a sin punishable by excision would actually die before his fiftieth year, while one who […]

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ואדרבה In fact, not only is it possible for the sinner to receive his nurture from kelipah as do animals and other living beings, but indeed, ביתר שאת וביתר עז with even greater emphasis and force. על פי המבואר מזוהר הקדוש פרשת פקודי, שכל שפע וחיות הנשפעות לאדם התחתון For, as explained in the holy […]

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וזהו שאמרו רז״ל: אין בידינו לא משלות הרשעים וכו׳ Hence the statement of our Sages,19 of blessed memory: “It is not within our hands (i.e., it is not given us) to understand the reason for either the tranquillity of the wicked [or the suffering of the righteous].” בידינו דוקא, כלומר: בזמן הגלות אחר החורבן The […]

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