Part IV; Iggeret HaKodesh, Chapter 27
The whole chapterב אֲהוּבַיי אַחַיי וְרֵעַיי אֲשֶׁר כְּנַפְשִׁי כוּ׳, ה׳ עֲלֵיהֶם יִחְיוּ חַיִּים עַד הָעוֹלָם, וְצֶאֱצָאֵיהֶם אִתָּם זֶרַע אֱמֶת בְּרוּכֵי ה׳ הֵמָּה מֵעַתָּה וְעַד עוֹלָם.
גאַחֲרֵי דְּרִישַׁת שְׁלוֹמָם כְּמִשְׁפָּט לְאוֹהֲבֵי שְׁמוֹ, בָּאתִי לְדַבֵּר עַל לֵב נִדְכָּאִים הַנֶּאֱנָחִים וְהַנֶּאֱנָקִים, וּלְנַחֲמָם בְּכִפְלַיִים לְתוּשִׁיָּה, אֲשֶׁר שָׁמְעָה אָזְנִי וַתָּבֶן לָהּ, עַל מַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ־זִכְרוֹנָם־לִבְרָכָה ״דְּשָׁבַק חַיִּים לְכָל חַי״.
3Following the enquiry after their welfare as is becoming those that love His Name, I have come to comfort the smitten “that sigh and groan”11 and to console them doubly for salvation with what my ear has heard and noted for itself12 on the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, that “He has left life for all the living.”13
דכִּי ״צַדִּיק בֶּאֱמוּנָתוֹ יִחְיֶה״, וּבְ״יִרְאַת ה׳ לְחַיִּים״, וּבְרִשְׁפֵי אֵשׁ שַׁלְהֶבֶת אַהֲבָתוֹ מֵחַיִּים, לְכָל בָּהֶן חַיֵּי רוּחוֹ [נוסח אחר: וְנִשְׁמָתוֹ] כָּל יְמֵי חֶלְדּוֹ, וַיְהִי בְּהַעֲלוֹת ה׳ רוּחוֹ, וְנִשְׁמָתוֹ אֵלָיו יֶאֱסוֹף, וְיַעֲלֶה בְּעִילּוּי אַחַר עִילּוּי עַד רוּם הַמַּעֲלוֹת – שָׁבַק חַיֵּי רוּחוֹ, ״פְּעוּלָּתוֹ אֲשֶׁר עָבַד בָּהּ״ לְפָנִים בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל, פְּעוּלַּת צַדִּיק לְחַיִּים לְכָל חַי, הִיא נֶפֶשׁ כָּל חַי הַקְּשׁוּרָה בְּנַפְשׁוֹ בְּחַבְלֵי עֲבוֹתוֹת אַהֲבָה רַבָּה וְאַהֲבַת עוֹלָם, בַּל תִּמּוֹט לָנֶצַח, אֲשֶׁר ״מִי הָאִישׁ הֶחָפֵץ חַיִּים״, לְדָבְקָה בַּה׳ חַיִּים – בַּעֲבוֹדָתוֹ תִּדְבַּק נַפְשׁוֹ, וְהָיְתָה צְרוּרָה בִּצְרוֹר הַחַיִּים אֶת ה׳, בְּחַיֵּי רוּחַ אַפֵּינוּ אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְנוּ בְּצִלּוֹ נִחְיֶה בַגּוֹיִם.
4The righteous lives by his faith,14 and by the fear of the L–rd which leads to life,15 and by the flashes of fire of the flame16 of his love (of G–d, which to him) supercedes life, to absorb therein the life of his ruach17 all the days of his duration. And when it comes about that the L–rd takes up18 (and) gathers to Himself his ruach and neshamah,19 and he ascends from one elevation to another—to the peak of levels, he, then, leaves the life of his ruach, his effectuation on which he has labored20 previously among Israel [the labor of the righteous is for the living21], to every living being. That is, (he leaves it to) the soul of every living being bound to his soul by the thick ropes of a magnanimous love, and an eternal love,22 that will not be moved forever. For he who is the man who desires life23 to become attached to the L–rd of life, his soul will become attached through his service; (his soul) will be bound up in the bundle of life with the L–rd,24 in the life of “the breath (ruach) of our nostrils of whom we said: in his tzel we shall live among the nations.”25
האֲשֶׁר שָׁבַק לָנוּ, בְּכָל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד כְּפִי בְּחִינַת הִתְקַשְּׁרוּתוֹ בֶּאֱמֶת, וְאַהֲבָתוֹ אַהֲבַת אֱמֶת הַטְּהוֹרָה, ״מִקֶּרֶב אִישׁ וְלֵב עָמוֹק״, כִּי ״כַּמַּיִם הַפָּנִים וְכוּ׳״, וְ״רוּחַ אַיְיתִי רוּחַ וְאַמְשִׁיךְ רוּחַ״, וְרוּחוֹ עוֹמֶדֶת בְּקִרְבֵּינוּ מַמָּשׁ, כִּי בִּרְאוֹתוֹ יְלָדָיו מַעֲשֵׂה יָדָיו בְּקִרְבּוֹ יַקְדִּישׁוּ שְׁמוֹ יִתְבָּרֵךְ, אֲשֶׁר יִתְגַּדֵּל וְיִתְקַדֵּשׁ, כַּאֲשֶׁר נֵלֵךְ בְּדֶרֶךְ יְשָׁרָה אֲשֶׁר הוֹרָנוּ מִדְּרָכָיו, וְנֵלְכָה בְּאוֹרְחוֹתָיו נֶצַח סֶלָה וָעֶד.
5(This) he left for us, in each and every one corresponding to the degree of his genuine alliance and his pure love, a pure love of truth from “the inward of man and a profound heart.”26 For “As waters (reflect) the face…,”27 and “spirit (ruach) rouses spirit, and brings forth spirit.”28 Thus his ruach remains truly in our midst, when he sees his children, the work of his hands, in his midst sanctifying His Name, blessed be He.29 For (His name) is magnified and sanctified when we walk in the right way that he has shown us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths30 forevermore.
Kehot Publication Society · CC BY-NC · sefaria.org
Kehot Publication Society · CC BY-NC · sefaria.org