303. Come and behold, all that honest Jacob did was wise. It is written, "And he set the rods which he had peeled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs" (Beresheet 30:38). All this he did in wisdom, to draw blessings from the source of all to the supernal grades, which are his lot.

304. HE ASKS, What are "the rods?" AND HE ANSWERS, They are the grades of Judgment, "which he had peeled," NAMELY, from which he removed Judgment; "in the gutters" (Heb. rehatim) is similar to the verse, "a king is caught in its tresses (Heb. rehatim)" (Shir Hashirim 7:6), because from that king, THE SUPERNAL KING, blessings come to all the worlds.

305. Another explanation for the verse, "a king is caught in its tresses," is that this King, NAMELY ZEIR ANPIN, is bound and tied to the supernal gutters through which everything is watered by the high King. "...In the watering troughs..." refers to the rivers that run until they come to the place where they gather. "...When the flocks came to drink..." is similar to the verse, "they give drink to every wild beast, the wild asses quench their thirst" (Tehilim 104:11), which refers to the place where the water gathers, THE NUKVA, and everyone, THE INHABITANTS OF BRIYAH, YETZIRAH AND ASIYAH, comes to drink of it.

310. We already explained the verse, "in the gutters in the watering troughs." By this wise act, BY THE PERFECTION OF THE THREE COLUMNS, blessings flow downward; all the worlds are watered, and blessings dwell on them, as was explained when discussing the verses, "in the morning he shall devour the prey" (Beresheet 49:27), and, then "at night he shall divide the spoil" (Ibid.). Then all the worlds below will be blessed, THE THREE WORLDS OF BRIYAH, YETZIRAH, AND ASIYAH. And Jacob took his portion from the blessings which dwell on him below, because it is the lot of the Holy One, blessed be He.

318. When the passion of the angels is for the supernal splendor of above, the middle pillar, the perfected Jacob, takes the rods, THE PORTIONS OF the head Tefilin, AND PUTS THEM in the gutters, the place and receptacle of the Tefilin. From this place, all the supernal armies and battalions, which are attached above TO THE RIGHT COLUMN and below TO THE CENTRAL COLUMN, NAMELY, THE STRONGER CATTLE, receive light and resplendence. IN THE SAME MANNER, once they receive illumination from the gutters and the troughs of water, they become springs and sources which flow down ON BRIYAH, YETZIRAH, AND ASIYAH generously.

347. When Jacob wanted to amend this grade, THE NUKVA, he removed all Judgments and Gvurot from the rods OF WHOSE JUDGMENTS IT IS SAID, "AND MADE THE WHITE APPEAR." He set THE RODS in the gutters, the four gutters WHICH ARE THE FOUR VESSELS OF CHOCHMAH, BINAH, TIFERET AND MALCHUT, abiding underneath, "the well that the princes dug out" (Bemidbar 21:18). THE NUKVA, CALLED 'WELL,' IS AMENDED BY CHESED, GVURAH, AND TIFERET OF BINAH, CALLED 'PRINCES,' COMPRISING THE FOUR VESSELS OF CHOCHMAH, BINAH, TIFERET AND MALCHUT CALLED 'GUTTERS.' When it is filled by the higher rivers and sources, THE SFIROT OF BINAH, the water flows from that holy well, and the four VESSELS take it all. They are therefore called 'gutters,' where THE ANGELS AND SOULS come to drink.

348. These judgments and Gvurot, WHICH HE REMOVED FROM THE RODS, stand IN THE GUTTERS, so that each will receive its proper share. In the verse, "when the flocks came to drink...and the flocks conceived before the rods," THE TWO USES OF THE WORD 'FLOCK' correspond to one another - THE GRADES WORTHY OF RECEIVING CHASSADIM AND THE GRADES WORTHY OF RECEIVING JUDGMENTS AND GVUROT. He asks, What is the meaning of "heat" in the verse, "that they should conceive (lit. 'heat')?" HE ANSWERS, When THE ANGELS, THE FLOCKS, are crowned by CHASSADIM AND RECEIVE Judgment, they are heated by that Judgment, BECAUSE RECEIVING JUDGMENT IS CALLED 'HEATING.' They then roam the world inspecting the ways of men for either good or evil, IN ORDER TO REWARD OR PUNISH THEM, BECAUSE THEY INCLUDE CHASSADIM AND JUDGMENTS.

353. When all the gutters are filled on all four sides of the world, all the flocks are given water, each according to its grade, FROM THE FOUR ASPECTS OF CHOCHMAH, BINAH, TIFERET AND MALCHUT. When Jacob came to purify this grade, THE NUKVA, he chose the right side, which was worthy of him. The Other Side, which was not worthy, was separated from him, as it is written, "and he put his own flocks apart and put them not to Laban's cattle." He was "apart," on his own, and did not worship strange Elohim from the other sides. Happy is the portion of Yisrael, of whom it is written, "For you are a holy people to Hashem your Elohim, and Hashem has chosen you..." (Devarim 14:2).