Tanya/ Iggeres Ha’Kodesh - The Holy Epistle, Epistle 15, Class 12
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Up to this point, the Alter Rebbe has explained how the seven middot exist within the Jew’s G‑dly soul. These emotive attributes are activated by the three intellective faculties—the sefirot of ChaBaD (chochmah, binah, and daat), which are now to be explained.
Now, the source and root of all the attributes are in the ChaBaD.
וּמְקוֹר וְשׁוֹרֶשׁ כָּל הַמִּדּוֹת הֵן מֵחָכְמָה־בִּינָה־דַּעַת,
That is: chochmah is the source of the intellect which apprehends G‑d and His wisdom, His greatness, and the holy attributes wherewith He conducts and animates all the higher and lower worlds;
דְּהַיְינוּ: הַחָכְמָה – הִיא מְקוֹר הַשֵּׂכֶל הַמַּשִּׂיג אֶת ה' וְחָכְמָתוֹ וּגְדוּלָּתוֹ וּמִדּוֹתָיו הַקְּדוֹשׁוֹת שֶׁמַּנְהִיג וּמְחַיֶּה בָּהֶן כָּל הָעוֹלָמוֹת עֶלְיוֹנִים וְתַחְתּוֹנִים,
binah is the contemplation of this apprehension of G‑d’s greatness and His holy attributes
וּבִינָה – הִיא הַהִתְבּוֹנְנוּת בְּהַשָּׂגָה זוֹ
in the length, breadth, and depth of one’s understanding,
בְּאוֹרֶךְ וְרוֹחַב וְעוֹמֶק בִּינָתוֹ,
The “length” of a particular concept—in this case, the greatness of the Creator—entails drawing it down from its lofty abstraction (by way of a parable, for example) to a level of intelligibility. The “breadth” of the concept refers to the multitudinous components and ramifications that await one’s mastery. Its “depth” refers to the challenge of plumbing its seemingly limitless profundity.
in order64 “to understand (or deduce) one matter out of another,”65
לְהָבִין דָּבָר מִתּוֹךְ דָּבָר,
and from this apprehension to beget its offspring,
וּלְהוֹלִיד מֵהַשָּׂגָה זוֹ – תּוֹלְדוֹתֶיהָ,
which are the attributes of love and awe,
שֶׁהֵן מִדּוֹת אַהֲבָה וְיִרְאָה
The thinker’s understanding of the greatness of G‑d gives birth to emotions—a love and a fear of Him.
and the other attributes born in the Divine soul, which contemplates and meditates upon G‑d’s greatness as to how “His greatness is unfathomable.”66
וּשְׁאָרֵי מִדּוֹת הַנּוֹלָדוֹת בַּנֶּפֶשׁ הָאֱלֹהִית, הַמַּשְׂכֶּלֶת וּמִתְבּוֹנֶנֶת בִּגְדוּלַּת ה'. כִּי, "לִגְדוּלָּתוֹ אֵין חֵקֶר",
One aspect of G‑d’s greatness is such that the Divine soul, when contemplating it, is overwhelmed by fear and dread.
וְיֵשׁ בְּחִינַת גְּדוּלַּת ה', שֶׁעַל־יְדֵי הִתְבּוֹנְנוּת הַנֶּפֶשׁ הָאֱלֹהִית בָּהּ – תִּפּוֹל עָלֶיהָ אֵימָתָה וָפַחַד
This is yirah tataah (“the lower level of fear”), which is an aspect of malchut.
שֶׁהִיא יִרְאָה תַּתָּאָה, שֶׁהִיא בְּחִינַת מַלְכוּת,
There is another aspect of the greatness of G‑d from [the contemplation of] which derives yirah ilaah (“the superior level of fear”), in which one is awed out of bashfulness.
וְיֵשׁ בְּחִינַת גְּדוּלַּת ה' – שֶׁמִּמֶּנָּה בָּאָה יִרְאָה עִילָּאָה, יִרְאָה בּוֹשֶׁת,
There is also an aspect [of G‑d’s greatness] from [the contemplation of] which derives ahavah rabbah (“the great love”),
וְיֵשׁ בְּחִינָה שֶׁמִּמֶּנָּה בָּאָה – אַהֲבָה רַבָּה,
and still another aspect [of G‑d’s greatness] from [the contemplation of] which derives ahavah zutta (“the lesser love”).
וְיֵשׁ בְּחִינָה שֶׁמִּמֶּנָּה בָּאָה – אַהֲבָה זוּטָא.
All these levels of ahavah and yirah are internal emotive attributes that are fathered by ChaBaD.
The same applies to the external attributes, i.e., chesed and so on; they, too, emanate from ChaBaD.
וְכֵן בַּמִּדּוֹת הַחִיצוֹנִיּוֹת, שֶׁהֵן חֶסֶד כוּ'.
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FOOTNOTES __________
64. Chagigah 14a.
65. Note by the Rebbe: “Two explanations (Or Hatorah, Bereishit, p. 2048 ff.).”