"Into Your hand I commit my spirit"

41. Rabbi Elazar said: It is written, "Into Your hand I commit my spirit: You have redeemed me, Hashem, El of Truth" (Tehilim 31:5). This verse must be examined. Have you ever seen someone who would deposit something in the hands of the King, WHO IS THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED BE HE? AND HE REPLIES: Therefore most certainly, happy is the man that follows the ways of the Holy King and does not sin before Him. Come and behold: as soon as night falls, the Tree of Death rules in the world and the Tree of Life disappears high above. Then the Tree of Death is the sole ruler in the universe, and all inhabitants of the world taste of death - SINCE SLEEP IS A ONE-SIXTIETH PORTION OF DEATH. What is the reason? Because this tree causes this; MALCHUT THAT REIGNS ALONE, WITHOUT ZEIR ANPIN, GIVES RISE TO THIS, SINCE, MALCHUT IS CALLED 'NIGHT.'

42. And a person should take precautions and entrust his soul in His hand for deposit. This is as a man provides another man with a deposit, THAT IS, A PLEDGE. Even if he owes more than the value of the security, it is not worthy for him to be involved IN A CONFLICT with him, since he gave a deposit. However, if he refuses TO GIVE HIM A DEPOSIT, we should certainly examine him, because he is not from the holy seed or from the faithful.

43. Likewise is this tree, WHICH IS MALCHUT, to which people give their soul as a deposit. It receives all the souls of the inhabitants of the world. And everyone tastes of death because this is the Tree of Death. DURING THE TIME THAT MALCHUT IS SEPARATED FROM ZEIR ANPIN, WHICH IS THE TREE OF LIFE, IT IS A TREE OF DEATH. In spite of the fact that these souls are all guilty before it and it is not appropriate to return the deposit to man, nonetheless, since they were presented to it as a pledge deposit, it returns all these deposits to their owners.

44. Come and behold: this Tree of Death is not obligated to return the man the deposit IN THE MORNING, only when the Tree of Life awakens in the world. And when does that Tree of Life awaken? When the morning comes. Then, SINCE THIS TREE OF LIFE awakens in the universe and all people COME OUT alive, that Tree of Death leaves and returns all the deposits provided to it and goes away. What is the reason that they live? It is because of that Tree of Life, THAT IS, ZEIR ANPIN THAT REIGNS DURING THE DAY.

45. And you may ask why, if this is so, we see many people getting up at night from their sleep, AND THEIR LIFE IS RETURNED TO THEM, while the Tree of Death still reigns. AND HE REPLIES: Most certainly the Tree of Life does this. What is the reason? Because it is written: "to see if there were any that understood, and sought Elohim" (Tehilim 14:2), so there will be no excuse for the person to say that if he had been in control of his soul at night, he would have RISEN AND studied the Torah. Rabbi Yehuda said: That is certainly CORRECT for Yisrael, and so it is. However, for the nations of the world, we also see likewise, THAT THEY WAKE UP FROM THEIR SLEEP AT NIGHT. What is the reason? He told him: Most certainly, what you said is true.

46. He opened the discussion and said: "How shall I curse whom El has not cursed? Or how shall I denounce whom Hashem has not denounced?" (Bemidbar 23:8) Come and behold: that which is there above, likewise is down below. Above IN MALCHUT, there is right and there is left. ALSO, down below are Yisrael and the other nations. Yisrael hold on to the right, to the holiness of the Holy King. The idolatrous nations hang on to the left, NAMELY ONLY on the side of the Defiled Spirit, which is the lowest level of the left. And all the levels are attached to each other FROM BELOW until they hang from the top, THAT IS, EROM THE LEFT SIDE OF MALCHUT ABOVE. And in the same manner the head moves ABOVE, the tail also moves below, which is THE LOWEST LEVEL, WHICH IS THE DEFILED SPIRIT. The reason is that it is attached to it, SINCE THEY ARE INTERLINKED FROM BELOW UPWARDS, LIKE A CHAIN, the idolatrous nations are guided after the MANNER, WHICH IS THEIR aspect of the Defiled Spirit.

47. Bilaam employed all the lowest levels THAT DESCEND FROM THE LEFT ASPECT OF MALCHUT. He used to gaze at the lowest LEVEL, the tail, AND HE FIGURED OUT WHAT WAS ABOVE, SINCE THE LOWEST is controlled solely by the head. He therefore declared, "How shall I curse whom El has not cursed?" SINCE HE COULD SEE THE LOWER, AND KNEW that the supreme head, WHICH IS THE LEFT OF MALCHUT, is not in a state of Judgment during that period.

48. And even though we explained the name El TO BE SUPERNAL CHESED, holy Malchut receives this name in the likeness of above and becomes goodness, and Chesed in this world. Therefore, it is called BY THE NAME 'El.' However, it displays anger every day, ACCORDING TO THE MEANING OF, "EL WHO HAS INDIGNATION EVERY DAY" (TEHILIM 7:11), because there is Judgment in it. BUT IN THAT PERIOD THERE WAS NO JUDGMENT IN IT. THEREFORE, BILAAM SAID, "HOW SHALL I CURSE WHOM EL HAS NOT CURSED?"

49. Come and behold: we explained about El Shadai, that satiates the world and said to the world, 'Enough (Heb. dai)' - THAT HE, YESOD, PROVIDES ENOUGH BOUNTY TO MALCHUT THAT IS CALLED 'WORLD.' This El, WHO IS MALCHUT, conjugates with him, and therefore it is called 'El-Shadai,' SINCE EL, WHICH IS MALCHUT, UNITES WITH SHADAI, WHICH IS YESOD. And therefore, HE DECLARED, "How shall I curse whom El has not cursed?" REFERRING TO MALCHUT, WHICH IS CALLED 'EL.' HE KNEW THAT as the head awakens, WHICH IS MALCHUT, so the lower also awakens, WHICH IS THE TAIL - NAMELY THE SPIRIT OF DEFILEMENT. AND BILAAM OBSERVED THE TAIL AND KNEW WHAT WAS IN THE HEAD.

50. Rabbi Elazar wept. He opened the discussion and said: "Her sound is like that of a snake on the move..." (Yirmeyah 46:22). Now that Yisrael are in exile, most certainly MALCHUT goes on like a snake - BECAUSE THE WAY of a snake is that when it bows its head to the dust, it raises its tail. THE TAIL controls and hits those who are in its way. And now it is also that way; WHEN YISRAEL ARE in exile, MALCHUT BEHAVES LIKEWISE. In the same manner as OF THE SNAKE, the head is in the ground and the tail, NAMELY THE LOWEST LEVEL MENTIONED ABOVE, rules. Who caused the tail to rise above to guide and hit? That is the head, which is bowed downwards. Who drives the tail, and who propels the tail on its journeys? It is the same head. Although it is lowered to the dust, it still leads the movements OF THE TAIL. Therefore, SAYS THE SCRIPTURE, "Her sound is like that of a snake on the move..."

51. And now the other nations that hold to the tail OF MALCHUT, rise above and dictate and harm, and the head is bowed to the dust, as it was said, "is fallen; she shall no more rise" (Amos 5:2). Still, the head guides the tail and preserves it, as it says, "they made me the keeper of the vineyards" (Shir Hashirim 1:6). Which refers to the idolatrous nations, who are in the tail. Rabbi Yehuda then came close and kissed his hands and said: If I had not asked anything in this world except this question, and I gained this answer, it would have been sufficient. For now I understand THE ASPECT OF the idolatrous nations, and how their dictatorship is led. Praiseworthy is the lot of Yisrael, for about them it is written: "For Hashem has chosen Jacob to Himself, Yisrael for His peculiar possession" (Tehilim 135:4).

52. Rabbi Elazar asked him: What is the definition of, "peculiar possession," WHEN THE SCRIPTURE SAYS, "YISRAEL FOR HIS PECULIAR POSSESSION?" He said to him: The three patriarchs are alluded to, and they are called 'possession,' both above, WHERE THEY ARE REFERRED TO AS CHESED, GVURAH AND TIFERET, and below, NAMELY ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND JACOB. And likewise are the priests, Levites and Yisrael, THAT ALSO CORRESPOND TO CHESED, GVURAH AND TIFERET, and everything is the same. And they are the possession of the Holy One, blessed be He, above, and the possession of the Holy One, blessed be He, below. And that is what is written: "then you shall be My own treasure (also: 'possession') from among all peoples" (Shemot 19:5). THAT IS, BECAUSE THEY HAVE PRIESTS, LEVITES AND YISRAEL, WHO ARE CALLED 'POSSESSION.'