פתיחה לפירוש הסולם 63

סג. והפרצופין נחלקים לפרצופי שלש ראשונות, שהם: פרצוף הכתר ופרצוף החכמה, ופרצוף הבינה. ולפרצופי ו"ק, שהם: פרצוף שבע תחתונות דבינה הנקרא 'ישראל סבא ותבונה', ופרצוף זעיר אנפין, ופרצוף המלכות. ואלו שלשה הפרצופין נבחנים תמיד לפרצופי ו"ק. ואפילו בשעה שהם מקבלים שלש ראשונות אינם יוצאים מבחינת ו"ק. מפני שהם מחוסרי כח"ב משורשם, כמו שנתבאר בזהר משפטים אות תק"כ, “רישא דמלכא בחסד וגבורה אתתקן". עיין שם.

63. The partzufim can be divided into the partzufim of the first three, which are the partzuf of Keter, the partzuf of Ḥokhma, and the partzuf of Bina, and into the partzufim of the six extremities, which include the partzuf of the lower seven sefirot of Bina, which is called Yisrael Sabba and Tevuna, the partzuf of Ze’er Anpin, and the partzuf of Malkhut. These latter three partzufim are always considered the partzufim of six extremities, and even when they receive the first three, they do not leave the aspect of six extremities.¹⁴⁷There are situations in which these partzufim of the six extremities become connected to a set of the first three sefirot, but they still retain their status as the partzufim of six extremities. This is because they lack Keter, Ḥokhma, and Bina at their roots, as explained in the Zohar, Mishpatim, section 520: “The head of the king is established in Ḥesed and Gevura.”¹⁴⁸The Sulam idea conveyed by this quote is that even when Ze'er Anpin (the “king”) is established with a head (a “first three”), it still is only of the level of Ḥesed and Gevura, the first two of the six extremities.

ויש הפרש מפרצופי שלש ראשונות לפרצופי ו"ק, הן מבחינת יציאתם ולידתם, והן מבחינת הלבשתם לגוף דעליון. כי פרצופי שלש ראשונות יוצאים מפה דראש העליון הסמוך להם. שזה מתחיל מפרצוף הכתר דא"ק. כי אחר שיצא פרצוף הכתר דא"ק בראש וגוף (כמו שנתבאר לעיל אות ה' ו'), נעשה ביטוש דאור מקיף באור פנימי בעשר ספירות דגוף. שפירושו, שאותו האור שעביות המסך היתה מעכבתו מלהכנס בגוף הפרצוף נקרא 'אור מקיף', והוא הכה בעביות המסך שאור הפנימי מלובש באור חוזר שלו.

There is a difference between the partzufim of the first three and the partzufim of the six extremities, both regarding their emergence and birth and with regard to their enclothing of the body of the upper partzuf. This is because the partzufim of the first three emerge from the mouth of the head of the upper partzuf that is adjacent to them. This process begins from the partzuf of Keter of Adam Kadmon.¹⁴⁹The partzuf of Keter of Adam Kadmon is the first partzuf in the layers of existence from the Creator “down” to the lowest point of Creation. This process of descending levels of partzufim begins there. After the partzuf of Keter of Adam Kadmon emerged, including both the head and the body (as explained in sections 5 – 6 above), the beating of the surrounding light on the inner light in the ten sefirot of the body commenced.¹⁵⁰The surrounding light, unable to become contained within the partzuf beats against the barrier of the returning light containing the inner light. As this section explains, this beating pressure ultimately purifies an aspect of the partition, creating a new level of returning light and a new partzuf as a result. This means that the light that the opacity of the partition had blocked from entering the body of the partzuf is called surrounding light, and this surrounding light struck against the opacity of the partition in whose returning light the inner light was enclothed.

שמתוך הכאה זו של האור המקיף בעביות שבמסך, נזדכך המסך שבגוף ונשתותה צורתו למסך המזדווג שבראש הפרצוף. שזה נבחן, שמסך דגוף עלה ונכלל במסך שבפה דראש בתוך הזווג אשר שם, כי השתוות הצורה נבחנת לדבקות. ולפיכך על ידי התכללותו בזווג של ראש, נתחדשו כל בחינות העביות שבמסך, חוץ מבחינה אחרונה. ואז יצא עליו זווג דהכאה מהאור העליון שבראש על שיעור העביות שנשאר במסך, שהיא עביות דבחינה ג', ויצאה עליו קומת פרצוף החכמה.

On account of this beating of the surrounding light on the opacity of the partition, the partition of the body was purified, and its form was equated to the fusing partition that is in the head of the partzuf.¹⁵¹This process can be thought of as follows: when the surrounding light beats against the opacity in the partition, it incrementally renders it increasingly intangible, “purifying” it of opacity. When this is complete, the partition is now identical to the partition in the bottom of the head (the mouth), and that leads to an equating of form and merging of the two partitions. This equating of form between the partition of the body and that of the head means that the partition of the body ascended and was incorporated in the partition in the mouth of the head. The lower partition joined in the fusion that is taking place in the head, since the equating of form is regarded as a unification.¹⁵²Since the two partitions are now unified through the equating of form, the lower partition can participate in the fusion through collision transpiring in the partition of the head. Therefore, through the lower partition’s incorporation in the fusion through collision of the head, all aspects of the opacity of the partition were renewed, except for the last aspect.¹⁵³The aspect that was not renewed in this example context is the level of opacity of the fourth level, the level of Keter. Therefore, the returning light of this partition (now a partition with only opacity of up to the third level) will only reach a height capable of enclothing Ḥokhma. This is because the less the opacity in a given partition, the less height the rebounding returning light can reach and enclothe. Then a fusion through collision from the supernal light in the head transpired upon the lower partition, upon the amount of opacity that remained in the lower partition, which is the opacity of the third level, and the height of the partzuf of Ḥokhma emerged from upon the lower partition.

ואז הוכר המסך שהוא מבחינה אחרת, כי העליון הוא פרצוף כתר, וקומה זו שנתחדשה על המסך היא קומת חכמה, מטעם שהבחינה האחרונה נאבדה. והכרה זו נבחנת ללידה, כלומר שיצא מקומת הכתר ונעשה לפרצוף מיוחד, שיש לו רק קומת חכמה. הרי שהמקור של פרצוף חכמה הנולד, הוא המסך דגוף דקומת כתר שנזדכך ועלה לפה דראש, ומקום היציאה והלידה הוא מפה דראש דפרצוף הכתר (כמו שנתבאר כל זה בפתיחה לחכמת הקבלה אות ל"ה עיין שם).

At this stage, when the enclothing returning light only reaches a height of Ḥokhma, it becomes recognizable that the lower partition is of another level, since the upper partzuf is the partzuf of Keter, and the structure that was generated from upon the lower partition is the height of Ḥokhma, resulting from the loss of the last level in the partition. This recognizable difference is considered “birth,” meaning that the new partzuf emerged from the level of Keter and became a distinct new partzuf that has only the height of Ḥokhma.¹⁵⁴Since the emergent partzuf is different from the original partzuf, the equating of forms is essentially nullified. This difference is considered “birth” because it leads to the new partzuf existing as distinct from the original partzuf. Thus, the source of the partzuf of Ḥokhma that has been born is the partition of the body of the level of Keter that was purified and ascended to the mouth of the head of the partzuf of Keter, and the place of the emergence and birth of the partzuf of Ḥokhma is from the mouth of the head of the partzuf of Keter. (All this is explained in Petiḥa LeḤokhmat HaKabbala, section 35).

ואחר שנולד פרצוף החכמה ויצא מפה דראש פרצוף הכתר, נבחן שמלביש רק על הגוף דפרצוף הכתר, דהיינו בשלש ראשונות דגוף, שהוא חג"ת, כי המסך דגוף הוא שורשו, שמשם נולד. והוא מלביש רק על חיצוניות דגוף פרצוף הכתר, מפני שקומת בחינה ג' היא חיצוניות לפרצוף הכתר, שקומתו היא מאור חוזר דבחינה ד'. ולפיכך נבחן זה להלבשה, שמורה על דבקות בחיצוניות כנזכר לעיל.

After the partzuf of Ḥokhma has been born and emerged from the mouth of the head of the partzuf of Keter, it enclothes only the body of the partzuf of Keter,¹⁵⁵Even the head of the partzuf of Ḥokhma only reaches as high as the mouth of the head of the partzuf of Keter. This is because it draws its origin from the partition of the body of the partzuf of Keter, so it can only enclothe that body and nothing higher. that is, on the first three sefirot of the body, which are Ḥesed, Gevura, and Tiferet. This is because the partition of the body is the root of the newly emerged partzuf of Ḥokhma since it is born from there. It enclothes only the exterior of the body of the partzuf of Keter, because the height of the third level is external to the partzuf of Keter since the height of the partzuf of Keter is generated from the returning light of the fourth level.¹⁵⁶The returning light of a different, lower height is described as covering and enclothing the “outside”“ of the previous, higher partzuf. This is therefore considered enclothing, which means the attachment to the exterior, as stated above.¹⁵⁷See section 61.