שלח

The opening of the garment of the tallit (prayer shawl), whose obligation is only when it is square, requires explanation. This obligation is in the secret of the sacred square of the Chayot HaKodesh (Holy Living Creatures) that are beneath the Throne, as it is written in the Tikkunei Zohar: "Whoever wraps themselves in the wrapping of a mitzvah, it is as if they have established the Throne of Glory for the Holy One, Blessed be He" [Zohar, Tikkunei Zohar 21b]. The Vilna Gaon explains on this site: "This means that the four corners correspond to the Chayot on the Throne, which is the garment of Adam of Atzilut (Emanation), etc., and similarly, the tzitzit (fringes) are on the Throne, etc. Therefore, it is said that the blue (techelet) resembles the Throne."

In our portion, we find that the square of the tallit is a protection and a connection to the Throne, as it is written in the Zohar: "Every day a person who wears tzitzit becomes complete" [Zohar, 3:123b]. This means that by wearing the tzitzit properly, one draws down complete lights to the face of the tzitzit, which are rectified in the four corners. Through this, one draws down seventy lights to Rachel, which is the secret of the blue (techelet), which is dyed with the blood of the chilazon (a specific sea creature), and these seventy lights are drawn to Leah, who is above. Then, the evil side cannot gaze upon this person, as it is written: "And you shall see it and remember" (Numbers 15:39), and the evil eye cannot harm him.

As mentioned above, the square of the tallit is a protection against the evil eye, for the Sitra Achra (Other Side) seeks to ensnare the Israelite man in its net. However, through the power of wearing the tzitzit and its merit, one is included in the sacred chariot and Throne, and the forces of impurity are driven away. Through the mitzvah of the tallit, one becomes in the aspect of holiness, and the external forces are removed from their grasp. This is similar to the prayer before wrapping the tallit: "And through the mitzvah of tzitzit, may my soul, spirit, and breath be unified," and "As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovers over its young, spreads its wings, takes them, and carries them on its pinions" (Deuteronomy 32:11), protecting them from external forces.