224. He said to him, What new discovery was there now when you came to me? He said, The head of the Yeshivah opened the discussion saying, "And Joseph shall put his hand on your eyes" (Beresheet 46:4). That is A TIDING OF gladness. HE INQUIRES: Why is it required to close the eyes of a dead person? HE RESPONDS: Since the eyes are the colors of this world and the appearance and shape of this world is contained in them, IT FOLLOWS THAT WITH THE CLOSING OF THE EYES, he closes off to him this world and its appearance. When his eyes are closed, the entire world is dimmed to him AND IF they dim for him the sight of his eyes, he has no sight of this world from there onwards. Rabbi Shimon said, The expositions of those who went before us are beautiful; their wisdom surpasses those of the holy angels.

225. He said to him: Why should it have been Joseph who placed his hand rather than all the other sons? If you think that he told him so as a result of his good tidings, THAT JOSEPH IS STILL ALIVE, then it should have said, 'You shall see Joseph alive.' WHY DID HE SAY: "AND JOSEPH SHALL PUT HIS HAND ON YOUR EYES?'' He said to him: "put his hand" is because he was his beloved. Therefore, he closed from him the light of this world and he took it himself. Whoever closes the eyes of his beloved shows by that: Your sight of this world is lost, and I take your sight instead. From now on, they will prepare for you a different sight of that world. THIS IS THE REASON THAT THIS MATTER WAS GIVEN TO JOSEPH, SINCE HE WAS MORE BELOVED TO JACOB THAN ANY OF HIS SONS.

226. Rabbi Shimon asked, What good will this provide to the dead and what benefit is there in it? Whoever will ask about this, IT IS NECESSARY to tell him that there is a need to open the eyes OF THE DEAD in order to show him that he will return to the sight of this world as before - MEANING, HE WILL BE RESURRECTED WITH THE DEAD TO LIFE.

227. He said to him, Oh, holy pious one. Certainly, if the sight of this world were not closed off to him entirely and he didn't lose it completely, he would have no sight and portion in that world, for this world has an opposite polarity from the world that we are in. During the time of the resurrection of the dead, even the tiniest thing will not occur of the activities of this world, since everything will first be destroyed by that dew, MEANING THE DEW OF RESURECTION. It will remove from him all the filth and then he will become like dough, and from it the body will be made like a new creation. So it is here, IN THE UPPER WORLD EVEN BEFORE THE RESURRECTION.