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Chapter 50
Now, all the aspects and levels of love spoken of above are from the right side, and they are the aspect of a priest, a man of kindness. And they are called “the silver of the holy things” (2 Kings 12:5), from the expression “longing, you have longed for your father’s house” (Genesis 31:30). But there is yet another aspect of love, which rises above all of them, as gold rises above silver, and it is a love like the sparks of fire, from the aspect of the supernal severities of the higher understanding. That is, through contemplation of the greatness of Ein Sof (the Endless), blessed be He, before whom all is reckoned as actually nothing, the nefesh (the lowest level of the soul) catches fire and blazes for the precious splendor of His greatness, and to gaze upon the glory of the King, like the sparks of fire, a strong flame that rises upward and separates from the wick and the wood to which it clings. And this comes about through the growing strong of the element of divine fire that is in the nefesh elokit (the soul from God). And from this it comes to thirst, as it is written: “My soul thirsted for You” (Psalms 63:2). And afterward, to the aspect of “sick with love” (Song of Songs 2:5). And afterward it comes to the soul actually expiring, as it is written: “My soul, too, is spent” (Psalms 84:3).
Now, from here the root of the Levites issued below. [And in the time to come, when the world is raised, they will be the priests. And as the Ari, of blessed memory, explained the verse “and the priests, the Levites” (Deuteronomy 27:9; Ezekiel 44:15), that the Levites of now will be priests in the time to come.] And the service of the Levites was to raise a voice of joyous song and thanksgiving, in song and chant, with melody and sweetness, in the aspect of running and returning. That is the aspect of this strong love, like the flame that comes out of the lightning, as it is stated in the Gemara [chapter 2 of Chagigah] (Chagigah 13b).
And it is not possible to explain this matter well in writing. Only every wise hearted and discerning man, who looks into a matter and goes deep, to bind his mind and his understanding to Hashem (God), will find good, and the light hidden in his understanding soul, each one according to his measure, [there is one who is moved, and so on, and there is one who is moved, and so on], after fear of sin has come first, so that he turn from evil to the utmost, so that “your iniquities” not “separate,” and so on (Isaiah 59:2), God spare us.
Now, the order of the service, in the occupation with the Torah and the mitzvot (commanded deeds) that is drawn from this aspect of strong love, is in the aspect of returning alone, as is explained in the Book of Formation (Sefer Yetzirah, chapter 1, Mishnah 8): “And if your heart runs, return to One.” The meaning of “And if your heart runs” is the yearning of the nefesh that is in the heart, in the right cavity, when it grows strong and blazes and flames exceedingly, exceedingly, until the soul actually expires, to pour itself out into the bosom of its Father, the Life of life, blessed be He, and to go out of its prison in the corporeal and material body, to cleave to Him, blessed be He. Then let him bring this back to his heart, the saying of our sages, of blessed memory: that against your will you live in this body, to give it life, so as to draw supernal life down from the Life of life, blessed be He, by the Torah of life, that there be a dwelling in the lower worlds for His unity, blessed be He, in an aspect of revelation, as was explained above. And as it is written in the holy Zohar (Zohar, part 2, 135a), “that one be in one.” The meaning is that the hidden union shall be in the aspect of the revealed world. And this is what we say: “Come, my beloved,” and so on. And with this, the saying of our sages, of blessed memory, will be understood (Mishnah Avot 4:22): “Against your will you live, and against your will,” and so on. But then, how shall his will be? And as is explained in another place at length, on this mishnah: against your will you live, with the help of the Life of life, blessed be He.
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