Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Mashal and Nimshal

A commentary to the beginning of Ramchal:

כאשר פתוח לרוחה היה פתח ההשפעה בהיות בית המקדש קיים, כן נסתם בזמן חורבנו, ולקח הס"א כח ככח אשר לקחה על פי חטאי אבותינו אשר חטאו. ומאותה שעה – גלגולי דברים נתגלגלו למעלה, לפי מדרגות הצריכות להתקן. כל יום מאור חדש הוא, ולפי טבע המאור ההוא, ולפי הפגם הנפגם בו, ולפי התיקון הפרטי הצריך לו, כך נמשכו דברים למטה בעולם

In translation:

When the Beit Hamikdash was standing, the gate of influence was wide open, but it was closed at the time of its destruction, and the Sitra Achra took power, as much power as it took, according to the sins of our fathers, who sinned. From then on, things rolled upwards, according to the levels that need to be fixed. And every day is a new light, and according to the color of that light, according to the flaw that is in it, and according to the particular Tikkun that it needs, so rolled things downwards, to this world.

This is the Nimshal of the Mashal of Cheth HaEgel, and this is also the Nimshal of the Mashal of the sin of Adam and Chavah. The Nimshal is the creation of levels of spirituality, spiritual Madregot, by the Midah of Rachamim, in the new world of Galut. Before the time of Galut, the gate was wide open. Prophets were abundant. Instead of destruction by the Galut, by the Midah of Din, of the great majority of Klal Yisrael, the Midah of Rachamim intervened and created the Madregot. This was a great Tikkun, in the face of the sins of our fathers, who sinned. The Tikkun was achieved by Moshiach ben David, i.e. by Zerubavel. After the Tikkun, the spiritual level of the sinners is lowered, saving them from being destroyed. As a result, the nation of Israel survived, while prophecy stopped, and Moshiach ben David "disappeared."

Now, the Madregot have a lowest level, which is reached at the "end of time." This is the darkness that is coming over the world. At the lowest level, it will suddenly disappear, when the Tipah of the Yesod reaches reality. This is the Tikkun of Moshiach ben Yosef, the Moshiach of Rachamim. The Tikkun of Moshiach ben Yosef does more than repair the world, his Chochmah causes the world to be a better place than it ever was before. After the Tikkun of Moshiach ben Yosef, Moshiach ben David will reappear, and finish the Tikkun that was interrupted.

הִנֵּה יַשְׂכִּיל עַבְדִּי יָרוּם וְנִשָּׂא וְגָבַהּ מְאֹד

(Yeshaya 52:13)