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אמַה שֶּׁכָּתַב לִמְחוּתָּנוֹ, הָרַב הַגָּאוֹן הַמְפוּרְסָם, אִישׁ אֱלֹקִים קְדוֹשׁ ה׳, נֵר יִשְׂרָאֵל, עַמּוּד הַיְמָנִי, פַּטִּישׁ הֶחָזָק, מוֹרֵנוּ וְרַבֵּנוּ הָרַב לֵוִי יִצְחָק נִשְׁמָתוֹ עֵדֶן, אַב בֵּית־דִּין דִּקְהִלַּת קוֹדֶשׁ בַּארְדִּיטְשׁוֹב, לְנַחֲמוֹ עַל פְּטִירַת בְּנוֹ הָרַב הֶחָסִיד, מוֹרֵנוּ וְרַבֵּנוּ הָרַב מֵאִיר נִשְׁמָתוֹ עֵדֶן:

1TWENTY-EIGHT. What he wrote to his relative by marriage, the Rabbi, famous Gaon, G–dly and holy man of the L–rd, “Lamp of Israel, pillar of the right hand, mighty hammer,”¹ our master R. Levi Yitzchak,² may his soul rest in Eden, head of the Bet Din of the holy community of Berdichev, to console him on the passing of his son, the pious rabbi, R. Meir,³ may his soul rest in Eden.

בלָמָּה נִסְמְכָה פָּרָשַׁת מִרְיָם לְפָרָשַׁת פָּרָה, לוֹמַר לְךָ: מַה פָּרָה מְכַפֶּרֶת וְכוּ׳.

2“Why was the section of Miriam⁴ adjoined to the section of the heifer?⁵ To teach you that just as the heifer effects atonement….”⁶

גוְצָרִיךְ לְהָבִין, לָמָּה נִסְמְכָה דַּוְקָא לְפָרָה אֲדוּמָּה הַנַּעֲשֶׂה חוּץ לְשָׁלֹשׁ מַחֲנוֹת, אֶלָּא דְּחַטָּאת קַרְיֵיהּ רַחֲמָנָא [בכתב יד הנוסחא: ׳הַנַּעֲשֶׂה בַּחוּץ׳. ומן תיבת ״לשלש״ עד תיבת ״רחמנא״ ליתא בכתב יד] וְלֹא נִסְמְכָה לְפָרָשַׁת חַטָּאת הַנַּעֲשֶׂה בִּפְנִים עַל גַּבֵּי הַמִּזְבֵּחַ – כַּפָּרָה מַמָּשׁ.

3Now it needs to be understood why it was adjoined precisely to the “red heifer” (⁷which was prepared outside the three camps;⁸ it is just that the Torah calls it a sin-offering⁹),¹⁰ and it was not adjoined to the section of the sin-offering that was prepared within, on the actual altar of atonement.

דאָמְנָם, נוֹדָע מִזּוֹהַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ וְהָאֲרִיזַ״ל, סוֹד הַקָּרְבָּנוֹת שֶׁעַל גַּבֵּי הַמִּזְבֵּחַ – הֵן בְּחִינַת הַעֲלָאַת ״מַיִּין נוּקְבִין״ מִנֶּפֶשׁ הַבַּהֲמִית שֶׁבְּנוֹגַהּ, אֶל שָׁרְשָׁן וּמְקוֹרָן – הֵן בְּחִינוֹת ד׳ חַיּוֹת שֶׁבַּמֶּרְכָּבָה הַנּוֹשְׂאוֹת אֶת הַכִּסֵּא, פְּנֵי שׁוֹר וּפְנֵי נֶשֶׁר וְכוּ׳, וְעַל־יְדֵי זֶה נִמְשָׁכִים וְיוֹרְדִים ״מַיִּין דּוּכְרִין״ מִבְּחִינַת ״אָדָם״ שֶׁעַל הַכִּסֵּא, הַנִּקְרָא בְּשֵׁם ״מַלְכָּא״ וּ״זְעֵיר אַנְפִּין״.

4However, it is known from the sacred Zohar, and from the Arizal,¹¹ that the principium of the sacrifices brought on the altar is that they are an aspect of the elevation of mayin nukvin:¹² from the animal soul, which is in (the class of) nogah,¹³ to their root and source, i.e., the forms of the four animals of the chariot bearing the throne:¹⁴ the face of the ox, and the face of the eagle….¹⁵ Thereby the mayin duchrin¹⁶ are elicited and descend from the aspect of the “man upon the throne,”¹⁷ referred to as malka,¹⁸ and z’eyr anpin.¹⁹

האָכֵן, בִּשְׂרֵפַת הַפָּרָה אֲדוּמָּה, הִנֵּה עַל־יְדֵי הַשְׁלָכַת עֵץ אֶרֶז וְאֵזוֹב וְכוּ׳ וּנְתִינַת מַיִם חַיִּים אֶל הָאֵפֶר – נִקְרָא בְּשֵׁם ״קִידּוּשׁ מֵי חַטָּאת״ בַּמִּשְׁנָה, וְהִיא בְּחִינַת ״קֹדֶשׁ הָעֶלְיוֹן״, הַנִּקְרָא בְּשֵׁם ״טַלָּא דִבְדוּלְחָא״, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בַּזּוֹהַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ, שֶׁהִיא בְּחִינַת ״חָכְמָה עִילָּאָה״ וּ״מוֹחָא סְתִימָאָה״ דַ״אֲרִיךְ אַנְפִּין״, וַעֲלָהּ אִיתְמַר בְּדוּכְתֵּי טוּבָא בַּזּוֹהַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ: ״בְּחָכְמָה אִתְבְּרִירוּ״, וְ״אִתְהַפְּכָא חֲשׁוֹכָא לִנְהוֹרָא״, דְּהַיְינוּ עוֹלַם הַתִּיקּוּן, שֶׁנִּתְבָּרֵר וְנִתְתַּקֵּן עַל־יְדֵי ״מוֹחָא סְתִימָאָה״ דַ״אֲרִיךְ אַנְפִּין״, מֵעוֹלַם הַתֹּהוּ וּשְׁבִירַת הַכֵּלִים, שֶׁנָּפְלוּ בִּבְרִיאָה־יְצִירָה־עֲשִׂיָּה וְכוּ׳, כַּנּוֹדָע. וְלָזֹאת – מְטַהֶרֶת טוּמְאַת הַמֵּת, אַף שֶׁהוּא אֲבִי אֲבוֹת וְכוּ׳, וּלְמַטָּה מַּטָּה מִנּוֹגַהּ:

5As for the burning of the red heifer, however, by throwing in the cedarwood, and the hyssop…, and the placing of running waters into the ashes, the Mishnah²⁰ refers to this as the sanctification (kiddush) of the waters of lustration. This is the aspect of kodesh ha’elyon,²¹ referred to as tala d’bedulcha,²² as mentioned in the sacred Zohar,²³ the aspect of the supreme chochmah and the mocha stimaah of arich anpin.²⁴ Of it is said in many places in the sacred Zohar that through chochmah they are disencumbered,²⁵ and darkness is converted to light.²⁶ That is, by means of the mocha stimaah of arich anpin, the world of Tikkun²⁷ is disencumbered and corrected from the world of tohu²⁸ and the breaking of the vessels²⁹ that fell into Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah…, as known. That is why (the red heifer) purifies from the defilement by a corpse, even though such is the highest degree of impurity, and much lower than nogah.³⁰

Kehot Publication Society (English Translation)