Blue

423. Rabbi Yitzchak said, Indeed it is so, because one day I was going with him on the road, and he opened his mouth with Torah. I saw a pillar of cloud standing from above down, and there was a light shining in the pillar. I became very frightened, and I said, Blessed is the man, that this is prepared for him in this world.

424. It is written about Moses, "And all the people saw the pillar of cloud stand at the door of the Tent, and all the people rose and worshipped, every man in his tent door" (Shemot 33:10). It was appropriate for Moses, who was the faithful prophet above all the prophets of the world. That generation that received the Torah on Mount Sinai saw many miracles and many mighty acts in Egypt and by the sea; THEREFORE, IT IS JUSTIFIED THAT THEY SEE THE PILLAR OF CLOUD. Here in this generation, the great merit of Rabbi Shimon accomplished this, that miracles should be seen through him.

425. "And blue" (Shemot 25:3): Rabbi Yitzchak said, Blue is from that fish that is in the Sea Genosar, WHICH IS THE SEA OF GALILEE, which is in the portion of Zvulon. This color is needed for the work of the tabernacle to show this color, AS IT IS WRITTEN BEFORE US.

426. He opened the discussion saying, "And Elohim said, 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide water from water'" (Beresheet 1:6). This firmament was created on the second day, WHICH IS THE LEFT COLUMN, because the work of firmament is from the left side. On the second day, WHICH IS THE LEFT SIDE, Gehenom was created, which emerges from the center of the fire of the left. With it, the sea was colored with the blue color, which is the throne of Judgment, MEANING MALCHUT WHEN IN THE ASPECT OF JUDGMENT.

427. This day, WHICH IS LEFT, took water which is of the right side, BECAUSE WATER IS CHASSADIM. These waters of the right were not revealed until the second day, WHICH IS LEFT. On this day OF THE RIGHT, WHICH IS THE FIRST DAY, the water was not revealed, but rather it changed, FOR THE LIGHT OF THE SIDE OF FIRE THAT PERTAINS TO THE LEFT WAS REVEALED IN IT, AS EXPLAINED BEFORE US. THAT IS because they were combined together and became perfumed the one by the other. AND HE EXPLAINS, The light of the first day was the first light of all the six lights OF THE SIX DAYS OF CREATION. This light was on the side of fire, as it is written, "And the light of Yisrael shall be for a fire" (Yeshayah 10:17). That light ESSENTIALLY is right, and is combined with fire, WHICH IS LEFT.

428. The first day of these six days is water, WHICH IS CHASSADIM, yet it was not the action of water that was made use of but that of light, which is from the side of fire, which is the second day. That was to show that the Holy One, blessed be He, created the world only upon peace, MEANING BY THE COMBINATION OF THE RIGHT COLUMN AND THE LEFT COLUMN WITH EACH OTHER THROUGH THE THIRD COLUMN THAT MAKES PEACE BETWEEN THEM. Everything was by way of peace. AND THEREFORE, everything that the first day did was done from the side of his neighbor, THE SECOND DAY. The second day, that craftsman, worked on the side of the first day, because each one performed the actions of its neighbor to show that they were combined together. The third day, WHICH IS THE CENTRAL COLUMN, was from the side of both of them, FOR IT COMBINES TWO COLUMNS, and it was purple, WHOSE COLOR IS A MIXTURE OF WHITE AND RED, WHICH ARE RIGHT AND LEFT. Therefore, it is written twice, "... that it was good" (Beresheet 1:4) on the third day, FOR IT CORRESPONDS TO THE TWO COLUMNS THAT ARE COMBINED IN IT.

429. Blue, WHICH IS MALCHUT FROM THE SIDE OF JUDGMENT, is THE ASPECT OF the second day and it is colored with two colors, red and black. Blue took its red from the very second day, FOR RED IS like the color of fire. This is Elohim, THAT IS THE SECRET OF BINAH AND IS THE SECRET OF GVURAH OF ZEIR ANPIN. Then the color gold inherits, for it is all one color, BECAUSE THE COLOR GOLD IS SIMILAR TO FIRE, ONLY THAT FIRE IS IN SMALLNESS AND GOLD IS IN GREATNESS. Blue emerges from the color red and when it goes down, the color red becomes distant and enters that place which is a sea, MEANING MALCHUT, where it is dyed with the color blue, MEANING THAT IT MIXES WITH THE COLOR BLACK AND BECOMES BLUE. That red enters the sea and the color becomes diluted and returns to the color blue. This is Elohim, WHICH IS MALCHUT, but ITS JUDGMENT is not strong like at first, REFERRING TO THE NAME ELOHIM WHICH IS IN THE LEFT OF ZEIR ANPIN.

430. The color black emerges from the meltdown of red when it melts and become weakened below in the melting of the filth, NAMELY THE FILTH OF THE SERPENT and goes down. First, there emerges from that filth the color red from strong filth. Because of the hard filth, it again turns into the color black. So we find that it is all drawn from the original red THAT IS IN THE LEFT COLUMN, BECAUSE IT WAS SMITTEN. All this was created in the second day, and this filth is called 'other Elohim.'

431. This black is so dark that its color is not observed from within the darkness. The holy luminary, WHO IS RABBI SHIMON, said so. This color black and this darkness, where was it colored? HE SAID, When this red was melted in the blue and the colors RED AND BLUE mixed, the essence of the filth melted into the abysses. Mire and dirt were formed there, as it is written, "And whose waters cast up mire and dirt" (Yeshayah 57:20). This darkness which is black emerged from this dirt of the abysses, which is not really so black as much as it is very dark. This is what is meant by, "And darkness was on the face of the deep" (Beresheet 1:2). Why is it called 'darkness?' Because its color is darkness and it darkened the faces of the creatures, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF THE FILTH OF THE SERPENT THAT CAUSED DEATH TO CREATURES. This is THE BLUE, WHICH IS red and black. Therefore, it is not written in the second day, "that it was good."