Matzot and the counting of the Omer

61. Come and behold: this anger is idolatry, the Other Side, as we have said. Thus, a person must guard himself against it and separate from it. Therefore, it is written: "You shall make you no molten Elohim" (Shemot 34:17). "Make you" MEANS you shall NOT harm yourself. And immediately following, it is written: "The feast of unleavened bread shall you keep" (Ibid. 18). "Keep" refers to the side of Holiness that a person should keep and not exchange it for the Other Side. If he exchanges it FOR THE OTHER SIDE, he becomes defiled and defiles whoever comes near him.

62. This is a place called "Shmor" ('observe', 'be careful with', 'guard') NAMELY MALCHUT THAT IS CALLED "SHMOR": therefore it is written, "The Festival of Matzot shall you observe, seven days shall you eat matzot as I have commanded you" (Shemot 34:18). These seven days OF THE FESTIVAL OF MATZOT, are not like the seven days of Sukkot (holiday of the booths), BECAUSE THOSE OF SUKKOT are supernal, NAMELY THE SEVEN SFIROT CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD AND MALCHUT OF BINAH THAT ZACHAR AND NUKVAH ASCENDED AND CLOTHED. BUT THOSE OF THE FESTIVAL OF MATZOT are of below, NAMELY THE SEVEN SFIROT CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD AND MALCHUT OF MALCHUT. Therefore DURING THOSE OF SUKKOT we say whole Hallel AND DURING THOSE OF THE FESTIVAL OF MATZOT, we do not say whole Hallel. And because they are SEVEN DAYS of below, OF MALCHUT, it is written "seven days shall you eat Matzot." The word "Matz-t" is found wanting, namely, missing the letter Vav, TO SHOW, that it was still (the interval) prior to the dwelling upon them of the supernal days (that incorporated) the secret of the letter Vav, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN.

63. If you ask: if the secret meaning of the feast of unleavened bread has been sanctified, SINCE ON THE FIRST NIGHT OF PESACH, MALE AND FEMALE WERE SANCTIFIED AND RECEIVED THE MOCHIN OF SUPERNAL ABA AND IMA, THAT IS, THEY ROSE TO BE A GARMENT TO THEM, why did MALCHUT AGAIN go down from Her place? Have we not learned that 'One should enhance (raise), and not lessen (Lower), (the importance of) holy matters'? Why did She go FROM ABA AND IMA down to the lower seven days?

64. Come and behold: it is written, "And make atonement for himself, and for his house" (Vayikra 16:6), TO TEACH that one who atones has to atone for himself first, and afterward for his household. Similarly this grade, NAMELY MALCHUT, started to be sanctified and to emerge into Holiness DURING THE FIRST NIGHT OF PESACH, in order to atone for Herself. As soon as She was sanctified, She had to atone for Her household and sanctify them. Therefore, She came down to sanctify Her house. How are they sanctified? It is through Yisrael below. Once they were sanctified, they need to raise Her up, because when the house of the Queen, WHICH IS MALCHUT, is sanctified, She then rises to be connected with the supernal days above.

65. For this purpose, we make a reckoning, MEANING THAT WE COUNT THE OMER, standing on our feet, because the days that we count are supernal days, NAMELY THE SFIROT OF ZEIR ANPIN, WHICH IS MALE. Likewise, every time a person enters the supernal days OF ZEIR ANPIN, both in prayer and in praise, that person must stand on his legs so that the legs and body SERVE there, IN ZEIR ANPIN, EQUALLY together. The legs and body MUST stand like a man who stands with power, and not like a woman who customarily sits. Also, for the praise of the Upper World, ONE SHOULD STAND.

66. Since THE COUNTING OF THE OMER is the secret of the Male, FOR WE DRAW THE SUPERNAL SFIROT OF ZEIR ANPIN, women are exempted from this counting. Only the men are obligated to count, in order to bind each one properly. Thus, "All you males shall appear" (Shemot 23:17), for the males are obligated to appear, but not the women. This is because the secret of the Covenant is in the Male but not in the Female. Since the secret is above IN THE MALE, IN ZEIR ANPIN, women are not obligated.

67. Here, we have learned a secret: throughout the seven supernal days OF ZEIR ANPIN, one of the lower days OF MALCHUT becomes holy. This lower day OF MALCHUT is called a week, because it is sanctified from the seven supernal days. Similarly, it is so for each and every seven of these fifty supernal days, until (but not including) THE FIFTIETH DAY, MEANING THAT THE FIFTIETH DAY IS NOT INCLUDED AMONG THOSE WHICH AMEND THE LOWER DAYS. When there are 49 supernal days present, then below, IN MALCHUT, HER seven days are sanctified, BECAUSE EACH DAY IS AMENDED BY SEVEN SUPERNAL DAYS. FOR THROUGH CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD, YESOD AND MALCHUT OF CHESED OF ZEIR ANPIN, CHESED OF MALCHUT IS AMENDED AND THROUGH CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD, YESOD AND MALCHUT OF GVURAH OF ZEIR ANPIN, GVURAH OF MALCHUT IS AMENDED, AND SO ON IN THIS MANNER. Each one THAT IS AMENDED IN MALCHUT is called a week, because it enters into those seven SUPERNAL DAYS. Therefore, it is written: "Seven complete Shabbatot shall there be," (Vayikra 23:15), WHICH INDICATES THE SEVEN LOWER DAYS, WHICH ARE CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD, YESOD AND MALCHUT OF MALCHUT, AS EACH ONE IS CALLED A 'WEEK'. Because they are female, BEING THE SEVEN SFIROT OF MALCHUT, the Torah uses the feminine suffix FOR THEM, AS IS WRITTEN: "SEVEN COMPLETE SHABBATOT SHALL THERE BE" (FEM.).

68. When THE SEVEN SFIROT OF MALCHUT are sanctified through them, THE 49 SUPERNAL SFIROT, the House, WHICH IS THE SEVEN SFIROT OF MALCHUT THAT WERE NOT CORRECTED DURING THE FIRST NIGHT OF PESACH, is prepared so a wife would unite with her husband, NAMELY, SO MALCHUT WOULD JOIN WITH ZEIR ANPIN. Then it is called Shavuot (holiday of weeks',) after the females, MEANING THE SEVEN SFIROT OF MALCHUT THAT ARE CALLED 'SEVEN WEEKS', AS MENTIONED ABOVE, over which the supernal days dwell, WHICH ARE THE 49 DAYS OF ZEIR ANPIN, through which they are sanctified. Therefore, it is written "in your (feast of) weeks" (Bemidbar 28:26), WHICH MEANS that they are yours. It is not written 'in the feast of weeks', BECAUSE JUST AS THE SEVEN SFIROT OF MALCHUT WERE SANCTIFIED, WHICH ARE CALLED 'WEEKS', Yisrael below were also sanctified with them, BECAUSE YISRAEL BELOW DEPEND UPON THE SANCTIFICATION OF MALCHUT, FROM WHOM THEY RECEIVE; THEREFORE, IT SAYS: "IN YOUR WEEKS."

69. When we reach 49 days, that supernal day which is above them, the fiftieth day, WHICH IS BINAH, rules over the 49 days - NAMELY THE 49 SFIROT OF ZEIR ANPIN, which are the secret of the entirety of the Torah, MEANING ZEIR ANPIN THAT IS CALLED 'TORAH', that has 49 aspects. Then the supernal day, WHICH IS the fiftieth day, BINAH, by means of the awakening of the lower beings, produces the Torah - WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, MEANING THE MOCHIN OF HIS THREE FIRST SFIROT, which is the entirety of the 49 aspects CORRECTED THROUGH THE COUNTING OF THE 49 DAYS.