8. NOW HE EXPLAINS THE VERSE: "Hashem said" is in the future to come. The Holy One, blessed be He, will arise and bring back from Bashan all those whom the wild beasts killed and devoured, SINCE "MI (ENG. 'FROM') BASHAN" IS SPELLED WITH THE SAME LETTERS OF MIBEIN SHINEI (LIT. 'FROM BETWEEN THE TEETH OF') THE BEASTS. There exists in the world a dwelling place where all the great beasts and the great high mountains are, and these are hidden in those, THE BEASTS HIDE IN THE MOUNTAINS. THAT PLACE IS CALLED 'BASHAN.' There is the strong wild desert donkey. This is Og, who dwelt among the wild desert asses. There lies his strength, because he was the King of Bashan, MEANING THE KING OF THAT AREA, and none of the world's kings could fight with him due to the powerful might of Bashan. Moses came and waged war with him.

46. They approached and kissed him. Rabbi Yehuda cried and said, Rabbi Shimon, praised is your lot and praised is YOUR generation, since because of your merit, even school children are high and mighty mountains. His mother approached and said to them, My teacher, I beg of you, Look at my son only with a benevolent eye. They said to her, Praised is your lot, worthy woman. You are a distinguished woman above all other women, since the Holy One, blessed be He, chose your lot and raised your banner over all other women of the world.

80. That child said, This is definitely the meaning of the verse with which we began, because barley appeared first in the world. It is only good for animal food, MEANING MALCHUT THAT IS CALLED 'BEAST' (HEB. BEHEMAH) THAT EQUALS IN NUMERICAL VALUE 52, YUD HEI VAV HEI FULLY SPELLED WITH HEI'S. AND BARLEY is the secret of thousand mountains, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF CHOCHMAH THAT IS CALLED 'THOUSAND' that is grown every day, and she, MALCHUT, eats them. She is called 'loaves offering,' which is the food of that offering, WHICH IS MALCHUT, that is offered at night, SINCE CHOCHMAH WITHOUT CHASSADIM IS THE SECRET OF DARKNESS, BECAUSE CHOCHMAH CANNOT SHINE WITHOUT CHASSADIM. THEREFORE, THE TIME WHEN IT IS REVEALED IS AT NIGHT, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF DARKNESS, WITHOUT CHASSADIM THAT ARE THE LIGHT OF DAY. It is written: "And when the sun is down, he shall be clean, and shall afterwards eat of the holy things; because it is his food" (Vayikra 22:7). "Of the holy things" indicates offering. "Of the holy things" and not just 'the holy things,' since just any holy thing is not considered an offering (Heb. trumah). We have studied the ritual restrictions of holiness over trumah.

140. When Rabbi Shimon came, he approached and asked this again. RABBI SHIMON said to him, This inquiry has been settled, as "Hashem came from Sinai" is as it says, "Lo, I come to you in a thick cloud" (Shemot 19:9) and "came from Sinai" and appeared over them, "and rose up from Seir to them," WHICH MEANS THAT because the inhabitants of Seir said that they do not wish to accept the Torah, He shone upon Yisrael, and added light, and great love, to them. Similarly, He "shone forth" and brightened the light from the mountain of Paran; additional love and bright light was available from the inhabitants of Paran's refusal to accept the Torah, and that was given to Yisrael as well, as is proper.

165. The evil Bilaam used to praise himself in everything. With all these, he used to deceive people's minds and reached a high level with his RHETORICAL speeches. He used to make mountains out of molehills. Whatever he said was about these levels of filthy speech, and he spoke the truth. However, that wicked one used to speak and heap praise upon himself disguised manner and arrogantly speak highly UNTIL whoever listened to him would think that he had exceeded above all the prophets of the world, as it says, "The saying of him, who hears the words of El, and knows the knowledge of the most High" (Bemidbar 24:16). Who in the world could hear such talk, and imagine any other prophet in the world as trustworthy.

209. Then is the opportune period for prayer, because they, THE OTHER SIDE, go to loiter in the dark mountains and Mount Nishpe. At that moment, the windows of the upper lights are opened and leave to dwell upon the houses of worship on the heads of those who say prayers. And the lights are dispersed over their heads. The Holy One, blessed be He, inquires about the one who isn't there and declares, It is a pity about so-and-so who used to come here. Now, he "walks in darkness," is removed from the lights and has gone to wander in the mountains in the world, BECAUSE HE FINDS HIMSELF UNDER THE DOMINION OF THE OTHER SIDE THAT IS IN THE DARK MOUNTAINS. He left that brightness, which is the lamp that gives light IN THE HOUSE OF WORSHIP, and he has no part in it. This is what is written: "And has no light," as it was spread and laid upon the others that are there, IN THE SYNAGOGUE. How much benefit was lost to him. If he were there, "let him trust in the name of Hashem," meaning he would be included in the first servant THAT IS BEFORE THE PRAYER SERVICE "and rely upon his Elohim" in the secret meaning of the second servant, THAT IS, AFTER THE PRAYERS IN THE AMIDAH PRAYER.

295. He said to his friends, Friends, what I inquired of these Arabs who are always present in the field WAS if they heard the voices of the friends who study and deal with the Torah. Rabbi Shimon and Rabbi Elazar, his son, and the rest of the friends are traveling in front of us and are not aware of us, and I inquired of those Arabs about them, since I know that Rabbi Shimon's voice shakes up the fields and the mountains. They told me something I did not know of, MEANING THAT MIRACLE.

384. Rabbi Aba said, I wonder about the children of this generation. How strong they are, like high and mighty mountains. Rabbi Elazar said, Praised is my father's lot, that he is the leader of this generation. During his lifetime, the Holy One, blessed be He, wishes to establish His two Yeshivot and wants to make them into a great and lofty settlement, because there will not be another generation like this until the coming of King Messiah. They left.

421. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He saw that they, AZA AND AZAEL, were misleading the world. He bound them with chains of iron in the dark mountains. Where are they situated? In the valley of the mountains. He placed Aza there and threw darkness in his face, because when the Holy One, blessed be He, bound them, he strengthened himself to provoke anger to the higher. AS A RESULT, the Holy One, blessed be He, dropped him down to his neck and threw darkness in his face. He placed Azael, who did not strengthen himself, next to Aza and illuminated the darkness for him.

422. People that know the location OF AZA AND AZAEL visit them. They teach people witchcraft, enchantments and divinations. These dark mountains are referred to as the mountains of old. What is the reason? Because the darkness preceded the light. That is why the dark mountains are called "Mountains of old." Laban and Bilaam learned witchcraft from them and that is what Bilaam said, "Balak the king of Moab has brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of old" (Bemidbar 23:7).

425. During that time, there was nobody in the world who was with them, AZA AND AZAEL, except for him, BILAAM, who would daily shut himself with them in those mountains. That is why it says, "Balak the king of Moab has brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of old," surely from "the mountains of old," WHICH ARE THE MOUNTAINS OF THE DARKNESS, AS MENTIONED, and not from the land of the people of the east (also: 'of old').

494. "And now, behold, I go to my people..." (Bemidbar 24:14). Rabbi Yehuda opened the discussion with the verse: "You shall not deliver to his master the servant...he shall dwell with you" (Devarim 23:16). How lovely are the words of the Torah before the Holy One, blessed be He, and how beloved is the Torah that he gave her as a legacy to the Congregation of Yisrael. Come and see: At the time they left Egypt, Bilaam heard that his witches and sorcerers, and all those ties THAT THEY PERFORMED, were not effective against Yisrael. He began to scratch himself and tear his hair out of his head. Then, he went to the mountains of darkness and reached the iron chains, WITH WHICH AZA AND AZAEL ARE BOUND.

497. Afterwards, AZA AND AZAEL teach him magic and sorcery, and he stays with them for fifty days. When the time arrives to leave on his way, that LITTLE CREATURE CALLED 'Onimta' and all these snakes walk in front of him, until he leaves the mountain ranges from in between that heavy darkness.

498. When Bilaam reached AZA AND AZAEL, he told them WHAT HE NEEDED FROM THEM, locked himself with them in the mountains and asked to denounce YISRAEL and return them to Egypt. The Holy One, blessed be He, confused and impaired all the wisdoms in the world, and all the magic in the world, so they could not get close TO YISRAEL.