תורה 60

9. This is the aspect of the shofar. The shofar is the aspect of rousing from sleep; as is brought in the holy works, the shofar hints to: “Wake up, O sleeper, from your slumber.” This leads to unbinding the mouth of the mute and unbinding the mouth of the barren, as explained above.

This is likewise the aspect of tekiah, shevarim, teruah. TeKiAh is the aspect of an absence of speech, the aspect of “TaKAta (If you have shaken) hands with a stranger, you have been trapped by the words of your own mouth” (Proverbs 6:1, 2) ; teRUAh is the aspect of speech, the aspect of “The tzaddik’s lips yiRAU (provide sustenance) for many” (ibid. 10:21). SheVaRim is the aspect of trust, the aspect of “SiVRo (his hope) is in God, his Lord” (Psalms 146:5) ; which is the aspect of the reproductive organs, as it is written (Isaiah 66:9), “Shall I aShBiR (bring on labor) and not bring on birth?”

The shofar, which is the aspect of rousing from sleep, brings to the aspect of unbinding the mouth of the mute and unbinding the mouth of the barren, as explained above. This is the strength of the words that emerge with force from those who have been roused from their sleep, who were initially in the aspect of an absence of speech because they were like deaf-mutes, as explained above. But now, when they are roused from their sleep for the sake of God, so that they hear the rousing of the true sage, they begin to speak, as explained above. These words enter the reproductive organs, which are the aspect of the generation’s God-trusting people, and as a result special providence is granted to barren women; this being the aspect of Rosh HaShanah, since it was then that Sarah was granted special providence…, as explained above. All this is the aspect of the shofar blown on Rosh HaShanah, the aspect of tekiah, teruah, shevarim, as explained above.

And as a result of the special providence granted to barren women, fear is revealed, as explained above. This is the aspect of shofar, as it is written (Amos 3:6), “If a shofar is sounded in a city, are the people not frightened?…”

This is also the aspect of the shofar being narrow on top and wide at the bottom, which is the aspect of “From narrow straits I called out to God; God answered me with great expanse” (Psalms 118:5), as is brought. For by means of the shofar, as explained above, fear is revealed, through which one merits length-of-days—that is, to always expand and extend one’s days with increased holiness. This is the aspect of “narrow on top and wide at the bottom,” the aspect of “The fear of God is His treasure house,” the aspect of “He built her like a storehouse…,” as explained above.

And this is the aspect of the rectifications of Atik, which are the aforementioned aspect of length-of-days, the aspect of the beard, as explained above. For the beard, too, is narrow on top and wide at the bottom, as is brought in the Kavanot: The rectifications of the Beard are the aspect of “From narrow straits I called out…[God] answered me with great expanse…” At first it is narrow, but afterwards it progressively expands, as explained above. This is because the beard is the aforementioned aspect of length-of-days—that is, always expanding and extending one’s days with increased holiness, which one merits through fear, as explained above; all this being the aspect of the shofar, as explained above. Thus it is that by means of the shofar—which is the aspect of rousing from sleep, through which special providence is granted to barren women—fear is revealed, as explained above.

And fear subdues the vain beauty, as explained above. This is the aspect of the havalim (breaths) of the shofar, which is the aspect of “beauty is hevel.” For ShoPhaR connotes beauty, the aspect of “ShaPRu (beautify) your deeds” (Vayikra Rabbah 29:6)—i.e., the breaths of the shofar subdue vain beauty, since shofar is the aspect of revealing fear, as explained above.