שלח

In the Zohar, it is explained (Zohar, Part 1, Page 92) that the serpent attempted to seduce Eve in various ways. The method he employed was to wait for her to say the letter 'Mem' (מ), and then he took that letter and bound it to his arm. He waited until the woman said the combination of the letters 'Vav' (ו) and 'Tav' (ת) four times, and then he connected them with the letter 'Mem' to create the word 'Mavet' (מות), meaning death. This is the language used: "And he continued with words, drawing Eve's heart with words until she began with the letter 'Mem', and said, 'From every tree of the garden we may eat' (Genesis 3:2). Immediately, the serpent took the letter 'Mem' and placed it on his left arm, waiting for the letters 'Vav' and 'Tav' to come forth from her mouth, to form 'Mavet'."

The text teaches that the letters 'Vav' and 'Tav' flew and ascended to join with the letter 'Mem'. The letter 'Mem' would rise and fall, not connecting with them until the letters 'Vav' and 'Tav' flew around the letter 'Mem' from four directions. This is as it is written, "She took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave to her husband with her, and he ate" (Genesis 3:6). It teaches that the letter 'Mem' was surrounded by the four winds, and the 'Mem' was in the middle, representing death from all directions.

The verse from Jeremiah (9:20) states, "For death has come up into our windows," and from Psalms (89:49), "Who is the man that shall live and not see death?" Immediately, the serpent had dominion over her, and he cast impurity into her. The Holy One, blessed be He, descended to see, as it is written, "And the man and his wife hid themselves" (Genesis 3:8).

From these words of the Zohar, we learn that there is a concept of a square with four sides, which is the aspect of the letter 'Mem' creating 'Mavet'. In the book "Kol Bochim" by Rabbi Avraham Galanti, it is explained that according to the teachings of the Ari (Rabbi Isaac Luria), the closed 'Mem' indicates the aspect of holiness surrounding the four Klipot (shells) from the four directions. This square includes the four winds of the world, where four Klipot reside, three of which are impure and have no rectification. These are mentioned at the beginning of the Book of Ezekiel: 'Stormy wind', 'Great cloud', and 'Flaming fire'. The fourth Klipah, which has a rectification, is 'Nogah' (brightness), which surrounds holiness.

This square, which Adam tasted from the Tree of Knowledge, created a mixture of good and evil, as the serpent did by mixing them. This mixture affected the worlds of Beriah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah, and the blemish ascended to the higher aspect in Atzilut. Since then, this square has ruled over the soul of creation as a whole, and only by approaching holiness and passing through the impure square, breaking it and subduing it, can one draw near to the holiness that dwells in the square of holiness. This square corresponds to the four living creatures of the throne.