Kabbalah - Rabbi Aryeh Rotenberg

260702.Pinchas v010
Pinchas: Verse 10
לב"נ דְּבָנֵי בִּנְיָין שְׁפִּירָן, יָאָן לְמֵחֱזֵי, אִסְתָּכַּל בִּיסוֹדָא, וְחָמֵי לֵיהּ שְׁקִיעַ עֲקִימָא מִכָל סִטְרִין. הָא בִּנְיָינָא לָא שְׁלִים, עַד דְּסָתַר לֵיהּ, וְאַתְקִין לֵיהּ כְּמִלְּקַדְּמִין. מִסִּטְרָא דְּהַהוּא בִּנְיָינָא דִּילֵיהּ, אִשְׁתְּכַח טַב וְשַׁפִּיר. מִסִּטְרָא דִּיְסוֹדָא, בִּישׁ וְעָקִים. וּבְגִין כַּךְ, לָא אִקְרֵי עוֹבָדָא שְׁלִים, לָא אִקְרֵי בִּנְיָינָא שְׁלִים. בג"כ צַדִיק שֶׁאֵינוֹ גָּמוּר אִקְרֵי, וְנִדְחֶה. וע"ד כְּבַלַּע רָשָׁע צַדִּיק מִמֶּנּוּ.
HE IS LIKENED TO a man who constructs beautiful and attractive buildings. Look at the foundation and see how it is sunken and twisted in all directions. The building will not be perfect until he has demolished it and rebuilt it as it was, NAMELY, AS IT SHOULD BE. Thus in terms of the superstructure of the building that he constructed, everything was good and fine but in terms of the edifice's foundation it is bad and twisted, and for this reason is not referred to as a perfect deed, and not considered a perfect building. AND SO IT IS WITH THE INCARNATED MAN. ALTHOUGH IN TERMS OF HIS DEEDS HE IS RIGHTEOUS, NEVERTHELESS, SINCE HE HAS NOT YET REMEDIED THE EFFECTS OF THE SINS HE COMMITTED THE FIRST TIME THAT HE CAME INTO THE WORLD, he is called 'an incompletely righteous person' because of it and he is held back BY A WICKED MAN. And about this SCRIPTURE SAYS, "When the wicked devours the man that is more righteous than he" (Chavakuk 1:13).
Pinchas: Verse 11
ת"ח, מַאן דִּמְקַנֵּא לִשְׁמָא קַדִישָׁא דְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, דַּאֲפִילּוּ לָא יִזְכֵי לַגְּדּוּלָה, וְלָא אִתְחֲזֵי לָהּ, רָוַוח לָהּ וְנָטִיל לָהּ. פִּנְחָס לָא אִתְחֲזֵי לֵיהּ בְּהַהוּא זִמְנָא, וּבְגִין דְּקִנֵּא לִשְׁמָא דְּמָארֵיהּ, רָוַוח לְכֹלָּא, וְסָלִיק לְכֹלָּא, וְאִתְתָּקַּן בֵּיהּ כֹּלָּא וְזָכָה לְאִשְׁתַּמְּשָׁא בִּכְהוּנָה עִלָּאָה. מֵהַהִיא שַׁעֲתָא, פִּנְחָס בֶּן אֶלְעָזָר בֶּן אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן, דְּאַשְׁלִים לִתְרֵין דַּרְגִּין, בְּגִין דְּקַנֵּא לִשְׁמָא דְּמָארֵיהּ, דְּאִתְתְּקַן מַה דְּאִתְעַקָּם.
Come and see: One who is zealous for the Holy Name of the Holy One, blessed be He, even if he is not designated for greatness and is not worthy of it, he earns it and gains it. Pinchas was not worthy OF THE PRIESTHOOD at that time, but because he was zealous for the name of his Master, he earned everything and rose to the highest position, and everything was put right within him, and he was privileged to serve in the supreme priesthood. From then on he was referred to as Pinchas the son of Elazar, the son of Aaron the priest, WITH THE WORD 'SON' OCCURRING TWICE since he completed two levels, THAT IS, HE MADE GOOD FOR HIMSELF AND ALSO FOR THE SOULS OF NADAV AND ABIHU WHICH HAD INCARNATED IN HIM, WHO ARE THE SONS OF AARON AND IT IS THEREFORE WRITTEN "THE SON OF ELAZAR, THE SON OF AARON." And this was because he was zealous for the name of his Master and put the wrong right, FOR HE CORRECTED HIMSELF AND ALSO THE ASPECT OF THE SOULS OF NADAV AND ABIHU THAT WERE INCARNATED IN HIM.
Pinchas: Verse 12
Rabbi Yehuda began: "Preserve my soul; for I am pious: Save Your servant..." (Tehilim 86:2). One has to look at the end of the verse, and then at the whole verse. At the end of the verse it says, "who trusts in You." HE ASKS, Should it not have said, "who trusts You?" HE ANSWERS: apparently David promised not to be asleep when midnight passed, as it is written: "At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You" (Tehilim 119:62). He should have said, "I arose," but THE MEANING IS, I will arise and be bound to You forever.

260701.Pinchas v004
Pinchas: Verse 4
Rabbi Shimon said: It is as if all those who are privileged to engage in Torah at midnight and ad the day begins to dawn come with the Queen to welcome the King, grow stronger and take possession of the Shechinah. Moreover, a thread of grace hangs over such a one, as the sages have explained.
Pinchas: Verse 5
Come and see: Everyone who is privileged to be strengthened in the Shechinah gains protection for himself from those matters that are considered to be opposed TO THE SHECHINAH. Who is protected? Those who do not falsify by the sign of the Holy Covenant LIKE MATING WITH the daughter of a foreign El. And he who is careful, as it were, the Congregation of Yisrael is linked to him, in turn, and protects him and welcomes him. And this is even more so if he has been privileged to attain it, THE SIGN OF THE HOLY COVENANT.
Pinchas: Verse 6
Rabbi Shimon said: Yisrael at that time would have deserved to have been extirpated from the world had not Pinchas first done the deed OF KILLING ZIMRI AND COZBI, and thus the anger abated. This is what is said: "Pinchas, the son of Elazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned my wrath away" (Bemidbar 25:11). Another explanation: "Pinchas, the son of Elazar, the son of...:" Rabbi Shimon said, The word son occurs twice to complete the act.
Pinchas: Verse 7
Rabbi Shimon said: When the soul of a person reincarnates, MEANING A SECOND TIME AROUND, without gaining merits to be changed for the better, it is as though he betrays the truth of the King and I apply to him the verse, ."..or has found that which was lost, and have lied concerning it, and have sworn falsely..." (Vayikra 5:22). "And have lied concerning it," MEANING TO THE SOUL, it would have been better for him had he not been created, FOR IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER HAD HE NOT REINCARNATED INTO THIS WORLD.
Pinchas: Verse 8
We have learned: A totally righteous person is not put off BY AN EVIL PERSON AND MAY CHALLENGE HIM, but one who is not totally righteous is held back AND IS FORBIDDEN TO CHALLENGE AN EVIL PERSON. HE ASKS, Who is totally righteous? And who is incompletely righteous? And could it be that one who is not perfect in his deeds is nevertheless called 'righteous,' THAT IS, THAT YOU REFER TO HIM AS AN INCOMPLETE RIGHTEOUS? FOR SOMEONE WHO IS LACKING IN HIS DEEDS, ACCORDING TO HOW THEY SHOULD BE, OUGHT TO BE CALLED 'EVIL.' HE ANSWERS, it is known that a totally righteous person is one who has not undergone crooked incarnations THAT IS, HE IS NOT INCARNATED and within his OWN inheritance he constructs edifices, puts up walls, digs wells and plants trees. THAT IS TO SAY, ALL THE GOOD DEEDS THAT HE DID PERTAIN TO HIM, FOR HE HAS NO NEED OF IMPROVING OTHERS.
Pinchas: Verse 9
An incompletely righteous person IS one who constructs edifices on someone else's inheritance, THAT IS TO SAY, WHOSE SOUL IS ON ITS SECOND INCARNATION BECAUSE HE WAS WICKED THE FIRST TIME, WITH THE RESULT THAT ALL HIS GOOD DEEDS ARE NEEDED TO REPAIR THE SOUL FROM THE FIRST TIME THAT IT CAME INTO THE WORLD, AND SO HIS EDIFICES ARE BUILT WITHIN SOMEONE ELSE'S INHERITANCE. He digs wells within it and cultivates it, restores the foundation stones to the way they were, and labors there, but does not know whether it will remain his. For in terms of himself, THAT IS, ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS IN THIS INCARNATION, he is good, and is considered righteous person. But in terms of the legacy, THAT IS, IN TERMS OF HIS DEEDS ON THE FIRST TIME HE CAME INTO THE WORLD, he is not so. THAT IS TO SAY, HE HAS NOT YET REMEDIED THE EFFECTS OF THE SINS COMMITTED THE FIRST TIME.

260630.Pinchas v001
Pinchas: Verse 1
וַיְדַבֵּר יְיָ' אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵאמֹר, פִּנְחָס בֶּן אֶלְעָזָר וְגוֹ,' רִבִּי אֶלְעָזָר פָּתַח וְאָמַר, שְׁמַע בְּנִי מוּסַר אָבִיךָ וְאַל תִּטּוֹשׁ תּוֹרַת אִמֶּךָ. שְׁמַע בְּנִי מוּסַר אָבִיךָ, דָּא קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא. וְאַל תִּטּוֹשׁ תּוֹרַת אִמֶּךָ, דָּא כְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל. מַאי מוּסַר אָבִיךָ, מוּסַר, דָּא אוֹרַיְיתָא, דְּאִית בָּהּ כַּמָּה תּוֹכָחִין, כַּמָּה עוֹנָשִׁין. כד"א, מוּסַר יְיָ' בְּנִי אַל תִּמְאָס וְאַל תָּקוֹץ בְּתוֹכַחְתּוֹ.
"And Hashem spoke to Moses, saying, Pinchas, the son of Elazar..." (Bemidbar 25:10-11). Rabbi Elazar began, "Hear, my son, the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the Torah of your mother" (Mishlei 1:8). "Hear, my son, the instruction of your father..." refers to the Holy One, blessed be He. "and do not forsake the Torah of your mother," refers to the Congregation of Yisrael. What is the instruction of your father? Instruction is the Torah which contains a number of rebukes and punishments, as it is said: "My son, do not despise the chastening of Hashem, nor be weary of His correction" (Mishlei 3:11).
Pinchas: Verse 2
וּבְגִין דְּכָל מַאן דְּאִשְׁתְּדַּל בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא בְּהַאי עָלְמָא, זָכֵי דְּיִפְתְּחוּן לֵיהּ כַּמָּה תַּרְעִין לְהַהוּא עָלְמָא, כַּמָּה נְהוֹרִין. בְּשַׁעֲתָא דְּיִנְפּוֹק מֵהַאי עָלְמָא, הִיא אַקְדִימַת קַמֵּיהּ, וְאַזְלָא לְכָל נְטוּרֵי תַּרְעִין, מַכְרֶזֶת וְאוֹמֶרֶת, פִּתְחוּ שְׁעָרִים וְיָבֹא גּוֹי צַדִּיק. אַתְקִינוּ כֻּרְסְיָין לִפְלָנַיָּא עַבְדָּא דְּמַלְכָּא. דְּלֵית חֲדוּ לְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא אֶלָּא מַאן דְּאִשְׁתְּדַל בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, כ"ש ב"נ דְּמִתְעַר בְּלֵילְיָא לְאִשְׁתַּדְּלָא בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, דְּהָא כָּל צַדִיקַיָּיא דִּבְגִּנְתָּא דְּעֵדֶן, צַיְיתִין לְקַלֵּיהּ, וְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא מִשְׁתְּכַח בֵּינַיְיהוּ, כְּמָה דְּאוּקְמוּהָ הַיּוֹשֶׁבֶת בַּגַנִּים חֲבֵרִים מַקְשִׁיבִים לְקוֹלֵךְ הַשְׁמִיעִינִי.
And since everyone who engages in Torah in this world is worthy that a number of gates, a number of lights to the World to Come, be opened for him, therefore when he departs from this world THE TORAH precedes him, going to all the gate keepers proclaiming, "Open the gates, that the righteous nation...may enter in" (Yeshayah 26:2). Prepare a seat for so-and-so, the King's servant! The Holy One, blessed be He, has no joy other than with one who engages in Torah. How much more so with a man who rises up at night to engage in Torah, for all the righteous in the Garden of Eden are attentive to his voice and the Holy One, blessed be He, is among them, as they put it: "You that dwell in the gardens, the companions hearken for your voice: Cause me to hear it" (Shir Hashirim 8:13).
Pinchas: Verse 3
Rabbi Shimon said: This verse has in it the secret of wisdom. "You that dwell in the gardens" (Shir Hashirim 8:13) refers to the Congregation of Yisrael, THAT IS MALCHUT, which is with Yisrael in exile and accompanies them in their troubles. "the companions hearken for your voice..." (Ibid.) refers to the camps of the higher heavenly ANGELS, all of whom listen to your voice, the voice of your praises in exile. "Cause me to hear it" (Ibid.) is as it is said: "let me see your countenance, let me hear your voice" (Shir Hashirim 2:14). "let me hear your voice" refers to the voice of those companions who engage in Torah, for I have no praise such as those who engage in Torah.
Pinchas: Verse 4
Rabbi Shimon said: It is as if all those who are privileged to engage in Torah at midnight and ad the day begins to dawn come with the Queen to welcome the King, grow stronger and take possession of the Shechinah. Moreover, a thread of grace hangs over such a one, as the sages have explained.

260629.Pinchas ver035
Pinchas: Verse 35
(A) Rabbi Yosi said: A rainbow comes to protect the world. It is like a queen wearing royal apparel who appears before the king every time he is about to hit his son because he has sinned against him. The king sees her and his anger with his son leaves him and he rejoices with her, as it is written: "and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant" (Beresheet 9:16). And this is why a rainbow appears in the world, only in the royal apparel of Malchut. THESE GARMENTS OF MALCHUT ARE: WHITE, RED AND GREEN, AND THEY SUGGEST THE THREE COLUMNS AS WILL BE EXPLAINED. When there is a righteous person in the world, he upholds the covenant and thus protects the world. But if there is no righteous person, then there is a rainbow to indicate that the world is about to perish but SURVIVES because of it.
(B) Rabbi Elazar said: This rainbow, NAMELY MALCHUT, has never worn anything except the apparel of the patriarchs, NAMELY, CHESED, GVURAH AND TIFERET OF ZEIR ANPIN, NAMELY green, red and white. The raiment of Abraham is green, and it was so colored when Ishmael issued from him. 'Red' is Isaac, who acquired this color when Esau issued from him. This red stretches down to the planet Mars - Ma'adim (from red - Heb. adom), which Esau is holding onto. White is the fine garment of Jacob, whose good countenance never changed, FOR HIS BED WAS PERFECT AND THERE WAS NO BLEMISH IN HIM.
(C) Rabbi Aba said: That is good, but the Holy Luminary, NAMELY RABBI SHIMON, said, 'White' is Abraham, who was purified ('whitened') in the white-hot heat of the fire BY NIMROD, WHO CAST HIM INTO UR (FIRE) OF THE CHALDEES. 'Red' is obviously Isaac, and 'green' is Jacob, who is between the other two colors, FOR GREEN INCLUDES WHITE AND RED. THIS GREEN STANDS FOR THE GREEN COLOR OF THE SUN. And about Jacob it is written, "Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale" (Yeshayah 29:22) because his whole bed was perfect. AND THE INTERPRETATION OF this is: "Jacob shall not now be ashamed" because he shall not be seen in red like Isaac, who fathered Esau. "neither shall his face now grow pale." This means that he shall not be seen in white like Abraham, who fathered Ishmael. Instead he took the colors WHITE AND RED and enveloped them to adorn himself in his ancestors. HE INCORPORATED WITHIN HIMSELF THE TWO PATRIARCHS ABRAHAM AND ISAAC, WHO ARE WHITE AND RED, AND THIS IS WHY HIS COLOR IS GREEN, WHICH INCLUDES WHITE AND RED. And the rainbow, NAMELY, MALCHUT, puts on these garments OF WHITE, RED, AND GREEN when it appears before the King, ZEIR ANPIN.
(D) Come and see: The secret of the Holy Covenant is the letter Yud that adorns itself with a supreme heavenly impression, NAMELY THE CORONA OF YESOD OF ZEIR ANPIN and this is recorded forever in the everlasting covenant. And because Pinchas was zealous for the Covenant, that letter Yud was inserted into the spelling of his name. The Yud in the spelling of 'Pinchas' is a small one, WHICH IS THE SECRET OF MALCHUT, THE SECRET OF THE CORONA OF YESOD, FOR 'PINCHAS' HERE IS SPELLED WITH YUD, which is definitely the Covenant, which emanated from the upper holy Yud BECAUSE MALCHUT EMANATES FROM YUD OF YUD HEI VAV HEI IN THE SECRET OF THE FATHER ESTABLISHING HIS DAUGHTER. And this is why PINCHAS has a perfect existence before the Holy King and shall never perish from the world. And because of this he was without guilt at Peor. For he never lost himself from the world's holiness. "or where were the upright cut off?" this refers to Nadab and Abihu, who did not totally perish from the world BECAUSE THEIR SOULS INCARNATED IN PINCHAS, WHO CORRECTED THEM.

260628.Pinchas ver034Rabbi Yehuda says the rainbow appears to remind people of God's promise never again to destroy the world, and we also hear that the rainbow appears whenever there is no righteous person to protect the world. When Rabbi Elazar talks about the green, red and white colors in the rainbow that correspond to the three patriarchs, Rabbi Aba disagrees with his assignment of each color. He ends by talking about the letter Yud in Pinchas' name, and mentions that Nadab and Abihu were reincarnated in Pinchas.Relevance
This one passage alone is so potent that one heartfelt reading has the power to forever establish serenity in our souls and lasting peace in the world.
Sin is a constant trademark of man. And although transgressors physically outnumber the few righteous men of this world, the good deeds of these saintly souls outweigh all the sins of the wicked combined. Such is the power of Light over darkness. The righteous, we're told, protect us with their presence. And the rainbow, which appeared after the Flood as a sign of God's promise never to destroy this world, protects us when there are no righteous men among us.
The reason for this tale is crystal-clear - the Zohar is drawing upon the righteous and the rainbow to lay gently a blanket of protection over the entire world. And because this truth is emerging through the Zohar for the first time in history, the effect is unprecedented: Judgments looming over the horizon are cast off to sea forevermore as we evoke the name of Pinchas. The Earth's waters, once used to destroy mankind, are restored to their pre-Flood molecular structure. This divine substance transmutes into waters of healing that regenerate the soul and the cells of body.
The Zohar speaks of the colors green and white, which are healing colors. They shine here brightly; and they rectify us, heal us, and make us well again.
The color red - attributed to the war planet Mars, and to our Left Column trait of receiving - sparkles! Its illumination brings personal and global conflict to a peaceful end. Moreover, the seed of all conflict and strife - the brothers Isaac and Ishmael, and Jacob and Esau, combine and blend into one color, just as the colors of the rainbow unite into the color of white. This exquisite unity engenders love between the brothers, and among their posterity - the Jews, the Moslems, the Christians, and the entire family of man. Intolerance is thereby banished from the hearts of humans. Racial and religious barriers dissolve into nothingness.
The letter Yud is inserted into the spelling of our own spiritual name, into our essence, so that we experience an existence of perfection. Metaphysically, we will never again perish from this world.
The true hidden colors of the Three Columns burst forth in this breathtaking moment of meditation, marking the end of our personal and global exile. Our Lower World of Malchut joins together with the Upper World of Zeir Anpin; and in the process, the garments of black worn by Malchut are replaced "with the garments of the shining colors of the secrets of the Torah." Namely, darkness is removed, eternally, from civilization.
[Verse 36] Moses tells the Rabbis that Elijah is Pinchas so they must come up with some new interpretations. Rabbi Yehuda's opinion is that the rainbow does not shine with its proper colors, but the colors hint at the merits of the priests and Levites and Yisrael in all their beauty. Next we hear that Malchut in exile can only be dressed in black, and that the rainbow is really the angel Metatron, the eldest servant of God. God's promise to look at the rainbow and remember His Covenant refers to the shining secrets of the Torah, for light signifies all the mysteries of the Torah. Lastly we hear that every one of the names of God testifies about God who is above everything, and that all of Yisrael, as they are all the sons of Adam, must serve God.