To the chief musician, Give thanks, Rejoice O you righteous, Praise, Melody, Tune, Song, Blessing...

190. Rise, Rabbi Shimon, and let us hear new matters from your mouth on this verse: "TO THE CHIEF MUSICIAN UPON SHUSHAN-EDUT, A WRIT OF DAVID TO TEACH" (TEHILIM 60:1). IT first SAYS "To the chief musician (Heb. lamnatze'ach)." It contains THE LETTERS OF Netzach, THE MEANING OF WHICH IS nigun tzach (lit. 'pure melody'), and by it Hashem is called a man of war towards the nations of the world, but of Mercy and Judgment towards Yisrael. And the secret of the matter is contained in: "And when the wicked perish, there is joy" (Mishlei 11:10). THUS, WHEN HASHEM IS VICTORIOUS (Heb. MENATZEACH) OVER THE WICKED, THERE IS A PURE MELODY. Mem and Lamed OF THE WORD LAMNATZE'ACH are the secret of the seventy names that He has. Together with Netzach and Hod, they come to 72, which is the numerical value of Chesed. And the secret of the matter IS IN THE VERSE: "at Your right hand are pleasures (Heb. Netzach) forevermore" (Tehilim 16:11), FOR NETZACH IS TO THE RIGHT, WHICH IS CHESED.

191. HAVING CLARIFIED THAT LAMNATZE'ACH IS THE SECRET OF THE SFIRAH NETZACH, HE CONTINUES: about Hod IT IS SAID, "Give thanks (Heb. hodu) to Hashem" (I Divrei Hayamim 16:8). Of the righteous, WHICH IS YESOD, it is written: "Rejoice in Hashem, O you righteous" (Tehilim 33:1), and also: "Sing with gladness for Jacob" (Yirmeyah 31:6), WHICH IS AN INDICATION OF UNITY OF TIFERET, YESOD AND MALCHUT. FOR 'SING' IS YESOD, IN WHICH THERE IS SINGING. JACOB IS TIFERET AND GLADNESS IS MALCHUT. Of Tiferet it is said: "Praise (Heb. halelu) El" (Tehilim 150:1), "Haleluyah," "Praise Yah" and the name of Yud Hei Vav Hei, SINCE YUD HEI VAV HEI IS A NAME FOR TIFERET. Of melody and tune: these are Chesed and Gvurah, MELODY BEING CHESED, AND TUNE GVURAH; Of song and blessing: they are Chochmah and Binah, SONG BEING CHOCHMAH, AND BLESSING BINAH. Happy IS Keter and praise is Malchut.

192. AND HE ELUCIDATES, A psalm (Heb. mizmor), WHICH IS GVURAH, that has in it THE LETTERS OF Raz (lit. 'secret') and THE LETTERS OF Mum (lit. 'blemish') from the side of the tune (Heb. zemer) of the Torah and the tune of prayer. FOR WHEN THE LEFT COLUMN HAS CONTROL BY ITSELF, LIGHT TURNS INTO A SECRET, WHICH IS THE BACK PART OF THE LIGHT. AND THEREFORE IT HAS IN IT A BLEMISH, CONTAINING A HOLD FOR THE EXTERNAL FORCES, AND ALL OF THIS IS FROM THE SIDE OF HOLINESS. THE PSALM (HEB. MIZMOR) THAT IS SUNG BY a tune of the Other Side contains THE PHONEMES mum zar (Eng. 'a foreign blemish'). AND THIS IS WHY THEY SAID 'a tune (Heb. zemer) in the house is destruction in the house,' AND IT IS FROM THE ASPECT OF a menstruating woman, handmaid, daughter of idol worshippers, prostitute. And these are the letters of Mizmor, NAMELY 'MUM ZAR.' Melody (Heb. nigun) IS CHESED, containing THE LETTERS OF Gan (Eng. 'garden'), WHICH IS MALCHUT. And such is the beauty of the melody, which has in it Halel (Eng. 'praise'), like THE HALEL in "It is a night of watchfulness to Hashem for bringing them out of the land of Egypt" (Shemot 12:42). IN OTHER WORDS, NOT THE WHOLE MELODY IS CHESED, BUT ONLY THE BEAUTY OF THE MELODY TENDS TOWARDS CHESED, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF THE HALEL OF THE EXODUS FROM EGYPT, WHICH INCLINES TOWARDS CHESED. 'Happy,' with which everyone begins to offer praises, IS KETER, SINCE LIKE KETER, IT IS THE BEGINNING OF THE SFIROT, NAMELY, "Happy is that people, that is in such a case" (Tehilim 144:15). Of blessing, it is as in "I will bless Hashem at all times" (Tehilim 34:2), WHICH IS BINAH, FOR THE BOUNTY OF BINAH IS UNCEASING; of praise IS MALCHUT, as in "His praise shall continually be in my mouth" (Ibid.), FOR MOUTH INTIMATES MALCHUT.

193. RETURNING NOW TO THE VERSE: "TO THE CHIEF MUSICIAN UPON SHUSHAN-EDUT, A WRIT OF DAVID TO TEACH" (TEHILIM 60:1), IT HAS BEEN EXPLAINED THAT "LAMNATZE'ACH" IS NETZACH. AND HE CONTINUES "upon Shushan-edut" is Hod, that is Shoshan (Eng. 'rose') in which the red controls the white, while with Netzach the white controls the red. But what is Edut (Eng. 'testimony')? This is the Righteous one who is the Covenant, NAMELY YESOD, which holds the heaven and the earth WHICH ARE ZEIR ANPIN AND MALCHUT. This is as it is written: "I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day" (Devarim 4:26), WHICH IMPLIES THE UNITY OF TIFERET, YESOD AND MALCHUT, FOR 'I CALL TO WITNESS' IS YESOD, WHILE THE HEAVEN AND EARTH ARE TIFERET AND MALCHUT. What is "writ" (Heb. michtam)? It forms the two words mach and tam; mach (Eng. 'humble') is the Righteous, NAMELY YESOD, while tam (Eng. 'complete') is the Central Column, NAMELY TIFERET, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF THE BODY, on the level of "Jacob was a plain (Heb. Tam) man" (Beresheet 25:27). We count the body and the covenant, WHICH ARE TIFERET AND YESOD, as one, WHICH IS WHY MACH AND TAM ARE WRITTEN AS ONE WORD: MICHTAM. "to teach:" This is Chesed and Gvurah, for from there was the Torah given 'to study and to teach.'

194. THE FAITHFUL SHEPHERD said to him: What you say is all very well, but SCRIPTURE SAYS: "To the chief musician upon the Shminit (Eng. 'eighth')" (Tehilim 12:1). THIS MEANS that Netzach should not move from Hod, which is the eighth Sfirah, and that is why he says: "To the chief musician (Heb. lamnazte'ach) upon the eighth," RATHER THAN "TO THE CHIEF MUSICIAN UPON SHUSHAN," AS YOU HAVE IT. The Holy Luminary, RABBI SHIMON, responded: If that is so, IF YOU WANT TO BE SO PEDANTIC, ONE CAN ASK AN EVEN MORE PROFOUND QUESTION. Your level is that of Binah; why, then, was it taught that He gave Hod to Moses, as it is written: "And you shall put some of your honor (Heb. hod) upon him" (Bemidbar 27:20)?

195. THE FAITHFUL SHEPHERD replied: That is a good question that you have asked. THE REASON IS THAT the letter Hei OF YUD HEI OF THE YUD HEI VAV HEI increases AND IS MULTIPLIED by the Yud OF YUD-HEI, making five times ten, which are the fifty gates of Binah, whose extension is from Chesed to Hod, namely five SFIROT. And in each of the Sfirot there are ten, making fifty SFIROT, THAT RECEIVE THE FIFTY GATES OF BINAH, and there is, therefore, just one extension from Binah to Hod; SO, WHEN MENTIONING HOD THEN BINAH IS INCLUDED. Then comes the Righteous, WHICH IS YESOD, and by himself takes all fifty gates OF BINAH, he is equivalent to all five, SINCE YESOD INCORPORATES ALL FIVE SFIROT: CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH AND HOD. And he is called 'all,' (Heb. kol = fifty) because he takes all fifty gates. And so also does the bride (Heb. kalah), WHICH IS MALCHUT, take all FIFTY GATES, WHICH IS WHY SHE IS CALLED 'KALAH,' NAMELY KOL, AS YESOD, HINTING AT THE FIFTY GATES, WITH THE ADDITION OF HEI, SHE BEING FEMININE. Said RABBI SHIMON: Now surely everything is falling into place.

196. Moreover, THE LETTERS OF Lamnatze'ach can be re-arranged as mal with Netzach. And that mal is MEM AND LAMED of Chashmal (Eng. 'electrum'), WHEN REMOVING MEM AND LAMED from Chet Shin, WHICH ARE THE FIRST AND LAST LETTERS OF CHAYOT ESH (ENG. 'LIVING CREATURES OF FIRE'). And these are Hod and Netzach, which correspond to the two lips, NETZACH BEING THE UPPER AND HOD THE LOWER LIP. Therefore the lips are called 'muttering living creatures of fire.' And in Chagigah the question is asked: 'Until where is the study of the divine Chariot?' And the answer was given: From "And I looked" (Yechezkel 1:4) until "electrum" (Yechezkel 1:27), WHERE THE WORD CHASHMAL (CHET SHIN MEM LAMED) FORMS THE INITIALS OF CHAYOT ESH MEMALELOT (ENG. 'MUTTERING LIVING CREATURES OF FIRE'). For from the side of Gvurah, NETZACH AND HOD are called 'living creatures of fire,' and the river that flows from the sweat of these LIVING CREATURES OF FIRE is Yesod. All three of them, THAT IS NETZACH, HOD AND YESOD, form a Chariot for the splendor (Heb. Tiferet) of man, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN.

197. The study of the divine Chariot is Malchut, INASMUCH AS IT IS MADE BY THE CHARIOT THAT IS NETZACH, HOD AND YESOD, and in these three (NETZACH, HOD, and YESOD) are Chochmah, Binah, and Da'at OF MALCHUT, FOR CHOCHMAH, BINAH AND DA'AT of MALCHUT ARE MADE FROM THE HEADS of NETZACH, HOD AND YESOD OF ZEIR ANPIN. For this reason the sages of the Mishnah taught: 'The study of the divine Chariot may not be expounded by one alone, unless he is a sage who understands of his own knowledge.' THIS REFERS TO ONE WHO HAS MERITED CHOCHMAH, BINAH, AND DA'AT, SINCE A SAGE PERTAINS TO CHOCHMAH, 'WHO UNDERSTANDS' PERTAINS TO BINAH, AND 'OF HIS OWN KNOWLEDGE IS DA'AT.'