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Chapter Twenty Eight: FEAR OF HEAVEN

It is written in the Torah, "And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God?" (Deut. 10:12). And it is writen, "You must revere the Lord your God" (ibid., 10:20). And it is written, "And the fear of the Lord which is His treasure" (Is. 33:6). And they said (Shabbath 31b, and see Berakoth 33b), "The Holy One has nought in His world save for the awe of Heaven," as it is written, "And unto man he said, "Behold (hen), the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom" (Job 28:28). (The fear of the Lord is unique in God's affections — Rashi, (ad. loc.) The Hebrew word hen can be interpreted to mean "one" for in Greek they pronounce the word "one" as "hen."

And Raba said, "When man is led in for judgment he is asked, 'Did you deal faithfully (i.e., with integrity) did you fix times for learning, did you engage in procreation, did you hope for salvation, did you engage in the dialectics of wisdom, did you understand one thing from another?' " (Shabbath 31a). Even then, if reverence of the Lord is his stored-up treasure, all is well; if not — nothing else avails. This can be compared to a man who said to his messenger, "Bring me up a kur of wheat to the upper floor." He went and brought it up. The man said to him, "Did you mix in with the wheat a measure of humtin, (a soil which is used to preserve the wheat)?" He answered, "No." The master said to him, "It would have been better if you had not brought it up." And Rabba, the son of Rabbi Huna said, "Every man who possesses knowledge of the Torah but has not within him fear of God is like a treasurer to whom they have delivered the key of the inside vaults, but the keys of the outer doors they did not deliver to him. What good is it?"

R. Jannai proclaimed : "Woe to him who has no courtyard yet makes a gate for same!" (Shabbath 31b, Yoma 72b, and see Rashi on ותרעא). In the same manner the Torah is merely the gate by which we enter the courtyard of fear of Heaven. And Rabba said to the Sages (Yoma 72b, and see Rashi on תרתי), "I beseech you, do not inherit a double Gehinnom, to busy yourself with Torah in this world and not to keep her precepts, and you will merit Gehinom after your passing! In your lifetime you did not enjoy this world because you busied yourself with study. After your passing you will lose the world to come."

Now we see that everything depends upon Fear of Heaven, and that the whole Torah is of no use to a man unless it is accompanied by Fear of Heaven, which is the very peg upon which everything hangs. And it is Fear of Heaven alone that stands by a man forever and ever. And thus did David testify, "The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever" (Ps. 19:10). And thus also King Solomon testified and said, "And God hath so made it, that men should fear before Him (Eccl, 3:14). And it is written, "Better a little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure and turmoil therewith" (Prov. 15:16).

Therefore it is important to know that there are three kinds of fear : The first is a very inferior kind, for example, a man who actually has no fear of God, but when he does a good deed he does it because of people for, if he does not do this good deed — whether it be in study or in charity or in prayer or in anything else — they will not trust him and will hold him in contempt; therefore whatever he does is only to find favor in their eyes. And if this man acts thus all his life, in the end he will be utterly lost, for his intention is not to serve the Holy One, Blessed be He.

The second kind of fear is when a man does fear God but he does so because of the punishment of Gehenna, or because he may not enter Paradise, and it is for this reason that he strengthens himself to do a good deed. Such a man, even though he fulfills the whole Torah with this intention, and even though it is good that he should be fearful before the Holy One, Blessed be He, who will bring him to judgment, nevertheless he has not attained the essence of goodness, for his whole intention in his service is merely for his own good and not for the honor of the Holy One, Blessed be He.

But the third kind of fear of God is the precious pearl. This is when he fears the Holy One, Blessed be He, for no reason in the world, except that he trembles before Him and all of his limbs shudder with awe as he remembers His Greatness and His Might. Now this is a very profound thing for people to understand, since the way of people is that they do not do their deeds unless they hope to derive some sort of profit or to avoid some injury to themselves. And if one of these considerations does not apply, then they consider the deed worthless and empty.

And because the third stage is difficult to attain, the Sages have permitted us to perform the commandments out of fear of punishment and hope of reward. Therefore you will find blessings and curses in the Torah, to frighten the heart of the reader in order that his heart may be aroused, as we do with a child — because he is still small in wisdom we stir up his heart by giving him nuts and fruits as his reward. And we find that the boy does not study in honor of the Torah, because he does not know its value and sees no good in his studies, but he regards his studies as an ordeal, and the reason that he works and studies is to obtain the fruit. And this is just like one who performs a task that is not important in his eyes except for the profit that is in it.

But if we were to promise a boy, "Study, and I will give you a beautiful wife, or a house, or you will become king," he would not study because of such promises. His heart would be more aroused by the promise of one piece of fruit than by these, for it does not know the benefits to be derived from having a good wife or being king. And thus it is the method of the Torah; to arouse the heart of man with things with which he is familiar and which he knows to be good, to draw his heart to do what is good. And all this we must do for a man, because his wisdom is small and weak, and he has not the understanding to discern the secret of the matter, and this is what is called studying the Torah not for its own sake. Therefore, do not be like that boy, but seek the truth for the honor of the truth. However, such an attitude requires great wisdom and discernment.

Therefore it is important to inform you of the power and might of the soul, and then you will devote your intelligence to the uppermost foundation of all. And this matter is like the case of the king's son, a boy of a year or two, who was kidnapped and taken a distance of a thousand parasangs or more. And he was raised in the house of a villager and was taught the work of a villager and he did not think about or remember the time of his royal state, for he did not recognize or know anything of it. And after he had reached maturity of thought, someone came to him and informed him, "You are a king's son!" But he did not tell him what manner of prince he was. Then his heart swelled with pride but he did not pay too much attention to this information for he did not know who his father was. And after this another bearer of tidings came to him and told him which king was his father and told him his country and his land. Then his heart became even more proud and he longed to go there. Nevertheless, his heart felt suddenly cast down as he thought, "Even if I do go there, they will pay no attention to me for they will not recognize me." After this the king heard where his son was and he sent members of his household who knew certain signs on his body, and he sent with them nobles and garments of royalty with the command to bring his son to him. And when these emissaries came to him and saw him and recognized him and showed him the royal garments, then his heart became exceedingly proud. And after they had dressed him and mounted him on the horse that the king was accustomed to ride, then he knew his power and his might and there was now within him the heart of a king and he was exceedingly proud. So it is with the soul. The soul is the daughter of the king, breathed into man from the very Throne of Glory and brought into a body that is soiled, and which has a great desire for this world and many sorts of longings. Before the soul is aware that she is the daughter of the king, she is drawn after all the longings of the body and forgets her Exalted Father. But when they show her the heavens and the stars, and the sun and the moon, how they move with even and precise motion, and they tell her that she was created by the Same One who created them, she feels herself more and more exalted. And when they teach her the secret of the Unity of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and the secret of the wisdom of the soul, then she clothes herself in her royal garments and enters into the secret of reverence. And even a man who does not know all this, but who thinks about this lofty concept from the depths of his heart, and discerns the might of God, Blessed be He, then such a one will clothe himself with awe in his heart, as it is written, "Lift up your eyes on high, and see : who hath created these? He that bringeth out their host by number, He calleth them all by name; By the greatness of His might, and for that He is strong in power, not one faileth" (Is. 40:26).

Also consider that the Holy One, Blessed be He, has given permission to no people in the world to tell His praises other than Israel, as it is said, "The people which I have formed for Myself, that they might tell of My praise" (Is. 43:21). And it is written, "For thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy God" (Deut. 7:6). And it is written, "And the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be His own treasure" (Deut. 26:18). And it is written "To make thee high above all nations" (Deut. 26:19). And the Holy One, Blessed be He, did not give any creature the ability to know the Name, Blessed be He, save to Israel, as it is written, "Unto thee it was shown, that thou mightest know that the Lord, He is God; there is none else beside Him" (Deut. 4:35). And it is written, "And what great nation is there, that hath statutes, and ordinances so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day" (Deut. 4:8). And it is written, "Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; and Him shalt thou serve" (Deut. 6:13).

From these verses we learn that Israel is obligated to fear God, Blessed be He, and to occupy themselves with meditation over His Torah, and to fulfill His commandments and that from their meditation over the Torah they will understand the meaning of its directives and the new interpretations that may be obtained from each verse and they will grow wise in order to know God, may He be Blessed, and His strength and His power and his greatness and His great works, awesome and wondrous, as it is written, "Say unto God : 'How tremendous is thy work!' " (Ps. 66:3). And it is written, "Come, ye children, hearken unto Me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord" (Ps. 34:12).

Nothing in the world outweighs reverence — not silver, not gold, not pearls and not all the hidden treasures; they are all as nothing when compared to reverence for the Holy One, Blessed be He. For it is said, "Fear of the Lord which is His treasure" (Is. 33:6). Therefore, a man should hasten to treasure up in his heart a thing that is the very treasure of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and a man should learn in this world that every man tries to hoard all the good that he can. And one who can store up the things that kings treasure will certainly do so. If this is the case, then where is there a man who will not treasure up that which is treasured by the King of Kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He?

And now I will cause you to know that wisdom which treats of life, the spirit, and the soul, in order that you may acquire the quality of reverence for the Holy One, Blessed be He. The seat of life is in the liver, for blood is life, and it longs to eat and drink and it loves dominion and the attainment of its desires, because the liver is filled with blood and longs for delights and pleasures. And this is "the full soul loatheth a honeycomb" (Prov. 27:7). The spirit is the heart, and it seeks power, greatness, and royalty; it is in the heart of people to chase after honor. Therefore the pride of the heart is called arrogance, and it is this spirit which prompts the minds of people to try to obtain mastery over others and to make themselves great. The soul is wisdom, and it dwells in the mind like a king at the head of his troops. It is similar to the glory of its Creator, and it rejects the pleasures of men and the vanity of their delights. The soul imparts wisdom and intelligence, and all of its thoughts are to serve the Holy One, Blessed be He, in reverence. And it ponders, what will be the end when the body dies and withers away? How will she, the soul, return in purity to Him who Created her and caused her to enter the body?

A man has two masters, and when he dies he is freed from both of them. As it is said, "The small and great are there alike; and the servant is free from his master" (Job 3:19). The two masters are the spirit and the life, for they think only of pleasures, of multiplying wealth, eating, drinking, and being happy, of doing according to all the thoughts of the heart and the sight of one's eyes, and of speaking vanities and of pleasing the body. But the soul turns those thoughts upside down and says, "What good is it and what profit will there be to a man in all of his work at which he labors when in one moment he ceases to be and the body withers away, and then where is his wisdom and his beauty? If so, then there is no good except to serve the Holy One, Blessed be He, and to cleave unto Him.

The spirit says one thing and the soul says another. If the life and the spirit are stronger, then the soul grows weaker, as she has not the strength to stand up against them. Therefore, one who occupies himself with eating and drinking will never grow wise. But when the soul grows stronger than the spirit and the life, then the eyes of the soul are opened to understand the highest forms of wisdom. Therefore, the soul must weaken the spirit from which come wrath and arrogance, and must weaken life, which is the mistress of lust. And when the soul strengthens itself with wisdom it leads to modesty.

Now even an animal has life and spirit, for an animal has desires and gets angry just as man does. But man has a superior soul that speaks and that can distinguish between truth and falsity. And when the body dies then the life of lust and the life of the spirit die and there is left the form of the superior soul which is wisdom and which does not die when the body dies. As it is said, "And the spirit shall return to God who gave it" (Eccl. 12:7). This means the spirit of wisdom. And when a man sins then the essence of his life and the essence of his spirit die, as it is written, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die" (Ezek. 18:4). And Moses, our teacher, the man of God, said, "That soul will I destroy from among his people" (Lev. 23:30). From this you can understand that we call by the word nefesh or "life" that which dies. After the death of the wicked man, the wise soul is hurled as though from a sling far away from salvation because it listened to the spirit and the life. But the righteous person in whom the soul was uppermost and was stronger than spirit or life — that soul is found beneath the Throne of Glory. But the fool who hearkened to the spirit and to the life, his soul will be utterly cut off. And the wise man who listened to the supernal soul that was breathed into him from the Throne of Glory — his soul will merit the great good which is treasured up.

Now incline your ear and you will understand and know that the soul dwells in the mind, and that is the seat of reverence for from there goes forth the thought. And the thought raises itself and grows within the chambers of the mind just as the waves of the sea raise themselves. The soul seeks and searches and pays close attention to all deeds. And the mind travels far in its wisdom and looks with its vision at many things. For a brief moment it thinks about this and that and it runs and returns from matter to matter. The Rock of Ages has made man wise and given him intelligence and taught him wisdom and knowledge.

With this wisdom man remembers all that is past and foresees coming events. And with this wisdom he makes wheels and mills that grind without labor. And with this wisdom he raises armies and maintains troops and encourages them, and prospers in his rule, and conducts his government and holds it. And with this wisdom he spreads nets in the depths of the oceans and rivers to catch fish from the depths of the deep. And with this wisdom he traps animals of the deserts, and with it he snares the birds that fly in the heights of heaven. And with it he knows how to withstand the ills of the body and how to heal it (by seeking medicines), and he can distinguish between the benefit and the harm of drugs. And he learns to recognize roots and herbs and all sorts of fruits, cold and warm, moist and dry. And with it he knows what medicines to give the body to drink in order to restore it to its strength.

And behold, your eyes see the greatness of man and his glory, whom the Holy One, Blessed be He, has made great and uplifted above all creatures and has caused him to rule over all the lower creatures. And there is no power in the mouth to tell the greatness of the works which man can do in this lower world. And even in the upper world man sends his longings, and he flies and soars on the wings of wisdom. And even though this body goes into the earth like those of the cattle and the creeping things, his soul goes on in the upper world because of the greatness of its wisdom. And this soul stands and knows the wisdom of science that is in the realms above and the wisdom of science in the firmaments, and the movement of the stars and the measure of their heights. Even though the body of man is very small, his soul is greater and wider than heaven and earth, for the soul knows their height and their extent, and the ways of the sun and the constellations and all their divisions; everything enters into the soul. And since everything is contained in it, surely it must be greater than all of them for if this were not so, then the soul would not be able to contain everything, for it is impossible to cause the waters of the ocean to enter into a small leather bottle.

And now that we have seen that man rules with his wisdom in two worlds, the lower world and in the upper world, every man ought to think and consider well why the Holy One, Blessed be He, caused him to know all this. It can only be to give him the intelligence to serve Him with a complete heart, for when he understands and knows the great and awesome wonders, then it will be apparent to him why he should subdue himself and subject his body to his soul. For all these great wisdoms come from the soul and not from the body. For it is the soul that leads the body, just as a man who rides on a horse leads it and turns it in every direction that he wants. If this is so, then the horse is secondary to the man, and man is not secondary to the horse. Therefore, woe, misery, and alas to those who enslave the soul to the body and make the principal part sumit to the secondary one.

And one should be able to realize that since the upper world serves the lower world, for example, the sun and the moon and the stars, certainly it should be clear that all this is not for the pleasure of the body, that it should enjoy the pleasures of this world, for in this world there is no real substance, but it is dust and worms and vermin and constantly subject to plagues and ready to die. The sun and the moon and the stars, however, are pure and clear, and how could it be that all this great activity should minister to the body which withers away and grows constantly poorer ? It is for the soul which is clear and pure and is lifted up to the heavens and even higher, and which is greater than heaven and earth, for the knowledge of heaven and earth enters into the soul and the soul contains them. In truth, this is logic and also great proof that the heaven and the earth were created for the needs of the soul and to serve her.

And it is the soul which reflects upon this and clearly distinguishes it and asks, "Who am I that heaven and earth were created for my need?" This can be only so that I shall serve the Holy One, Blessed be He, understand His wonders, praise Him, and laud Him. And were it not for the Torah which purifies and whitens the soul of man, what need would he have of this world? Can anyone then seriously believe that the world was created for the delight of the body, for darkness and for lowly values.

And now, when we see that man was chosen out of all the creatures because of his great wisdom and because of his many deeds, for all other creatures are subservient to man, and he has the strength to learn wisdom, to understand the deep secrets, the mysteries of the lower world and the upper world, this is a clear sign to man that his soul will be bound up in the bond of life if he fulfills the Torah. A parable will illustrate this. There was once a king who invited his servants into the innermost chambers of the palace and showed them his treasures and his pearls and all his precious jewels. And he caused them to govern and rule over all of this and he revealed his secrets to them, and he warned them that they should serve him faithfully and that then he would give them great goodness and he would exalt them many, many times over what they had been heretofore. And this would be to them the sign that he had revealed to them his secrets and his treasures, the fact that he had caused them to rule over his earth in truth. Thus, the Holy One, Blessed be He, showed man His greatness and His glory, and revealed to him His secrets from His highest to His lowest, and caused him to rule over everything. Certainly in this way He demonstrates man's destined greatness in the future, if only he will be careful in the service of the Holy One, Blessed be He.

There is also a great proof that the soul comes from above, for we see that no man is satisfied with what he already possesses, but he always seeks a state higher than his present one. If he has a thousand, he longs for two thousand. If he rules this country, he wants to rule over another country as well. And there is no king or nobleman that does not seek a higher state than that one in which he finds himself. And this comes from the fact that the soul is not content with these boons but is constantly longing for greater virtues. For the soul is superior to all created things. And therefore man walks erectly because of the soul. And all the rest of the creatures go on their bellies or bent downward.

And inasmuch as the soul comes from above, from the Throne of Glory, therefore the body in which the soul dwells has within it the likeness of all the world. And therefore man is called a microcosm. The soul is like its Creator and the body is like the lower and upper worlds.

And now listen to this wondrous wisdom! Just as God is the Most High and rules over man and over all the world above and below, so does man, as long as he does the will of his Creator. For at the time of the making of the golden calf, the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses, "Let me alone, that I may destroy them" (Deut. 9:14). And in the affair of Korah, the earth swallowed them and all that belonged to them, by the word of his mouth (Num. 16:28—32). And in the case of Elijah, of blessed memory, he swore that there would be no dew or rain except at his word (I Kings 17:1), and he brought on fire (I Kings 18:36—38, II Kings 1:10—12), and he slew the prophets of Baal (I Kings 18:40), and he resurrected the dead (I Kings 17:17 — 24), and he decreed concerning Elisha, that Elisha should have twice his spirit (II Kings 2:9—10, and see Sanh. 47a and Hullin 7b).

Thus all the holy men that were on the earth were able to rule over what is above and what is below through the will of the Holy One, Blessed be He, when they did His will. Therefore, you must be careful to fulfill His laws, His judgments, and His commandments, in order that you may merit the great good which is stored up. And just as God knows and understands what is behind and what is before, so does man to whom God has given wisdom. And just as God sustains and gives bread to all flesh, so does man sustain the members of his household and his servant and his animal. And just as God repays both good and bad, so does man. And just as God creates the structure of the world and the foundations of the earth, and the spreading of the firmament and the gathering of the waters, so also is man made to build, to found, to spread aloft, to gather water, to produce seed, to cause to sprout, to plant and to do all things, but only with exertion and trouble, and everything in accordance with the Will of the Creator.

And just as no creature can see God, so no creature has the power to see the soul. And just as God knows the future, so does man, at such time as his spirit and his body rest from engaging in the labor necessary to provide for his needs, and when the spirit of life relaxes and is free from occupying itself with the needs of the body. Then he may see the future in his dreams. And he may even see the spirits of the dead, and places that he has never seen and people whom he has never seen, and great things and visions, which he is unable to perceive when he is awake. And just as there is no creature in the world that knows the secrets of God, so can no creature among men know the secrets that are in the heart of man, but only God, as it is written, "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man" (Ps. 94:11).

In many things man appears to be a little like God, in proportion to the little strength and the brevity of life that God has given man. The Holy One, Blessed be He, has added the evil inclination for man's good or for his evil, to test and try him as to whether he will choose the good or the evil, and to give him an opportunity to improve himself, to build and to plant, or to ruin and to uproot, or to slay, to rebuke, to gather wealth, to make war, to rule, to plunder, or to be full of wrath. And if there were no evil inclination, then, out of the fear of death, he would not have children and he would not build a building and he would have no desire to buy cattle or any other article, and he would not plant or sow, for he would say in his heart : Since the decree of death has been leveled against mankind, why should I work for another's benefit? And then the whole world would be lost and ruined.

And the Holy One, Blessed be He, created the world from the day of its beginning only so that is would be built and guided, in His Great Mercy, by men. And when a man strengthens himself with his good inclination to subdue the evil inclination so that he does not sin before his Creator, but uses his evil desire to serve God, Blessed be He, with fear and without sin or transgression, then this is his good, happy is he and happy is she that bore him.

Just as man in a little way is like God, so is the structure of his body like all the world. He made the dome of his head like the expanse of the upper heavens. He made the roof of his mouth in which are planted the teeth and molars, like those heavens which are above us. And just as this lower heaven which is over us separates the upper waters from the lower waters, so does the roof of the mouth divide between the moisture of the mouth and between the moisture of the head and between the moisture of the upper crust. And just as God as caused His Divine Presence to dwell in the upper heavens which He spread over the waters, as it is written, "Who layest the beams of thine upper chambers in the waters" (Ps. 104:3), so has He caused the spirit of the soul of life and knowledge and understanding to dwell in the crust of the head which forms a crust around the brain and its moisture. And observe and understand the truth, that if the crust of the brain should be torn or pierced then the man would die at once because in it dwells the spirit of life.

And just as God, Blessed be He, has caused His Divine Presence to dwell in the west, so has he placed the brain in the back of the head, over the ears, and caused the spirit of life to dwell over the brain. And just as all the world is sustained and functions through the power of One God, so does all the body function through the power of one spirit of life which God, Blessed be He, has given it, and this spirit endures in it to give it health and remains until its end comes. And if some evil spirit should infect the body, it could not endure as at first.

And just as God has placed in the expanse of the heavens two lights and five planets so has He created in man's head seven servants: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils and the mouth. The right eye is like the sun and the left eye is like the planet Venus; the right nostril is like Mercury and the left is like Mars; the mouth, the tongue and the lips are like Jupiter, the moon, and Saturn. And just as air was made to fill the space between the firmament and the earth so was there made in the body of man the space in the chest and the body. And just as God caused the wind to blow in the atmosphere which fills the void of the world, so does the breath of the wind of life go forth from the lungs which are in the chest and body, and fills the void of the body. And just as He spread the earth over the water so did he solidify and spread the flesh which is on the liver and the belly and the bowels and the spleen, and the flesh that is between the lungs and between the liver, the spleen, the bowels and the belly.

And just as God, Blessed be He, made some birds, fish and animals that are too tame and loving to plunder one another, and others that are cruel and prey upon and swallow one another, so also did he make men. The good men may be compared to the good birds and cattle as it is said, "My dove, my undefiled" (Cant. 5:2). And it is said, "And ye are My sheep of My pasture" (Ezek. 34:31). And evil men may be compared to evil beasts. To a lion, as it is written, "He is like a lion that is eager to tear in pieces" (Ps. 17:12). And some are like bears and wolves, as it is said, "Her judges are wolves of the desert" (Zeph. 3:3).

In the world there are trees and herbs and good and bad fruit. Some of them have a pleasant aroma and fruit that is good for nourishment and healing. And there are herbs and roots and fruit that can slay, like the herbs which produce deadly poison or like the thorn and the thistle. The good flora may be compared to good people, as it is written, "As a lily among thorns… As an apple tree among the trees of the wood" (Cant. 2:2—3). And the evil flora to evil people, as it is written, "But the ungodly, they are as thorns thrust away" (II Sam. 23:6).

And just as below the earth God made the depths and mud and mire, so did He make in man the upper intestine and the bowels which receive food and drink. And just as from mud and mire there swarm creeping things of various kinds, so do there swarm, in the bowels of man, from the mires of the dregs of the food and drink, various creeping and worm-like things, long and short, big and small. And just as God made a gathering of waters in the world, so has he made a gathering place for the urine, namely the bladder of the urinary tract.

And just as He made the pillars of the earth below the earth, so has He made as the foundation of the structures of the body, the bones of the pelvis on this side and that, and the two thighs. And just as He made stones which are firmly set in the depths and from between which the water goes forth, so did He make the two kidneys so that from between them and from their sinews the water of the legs, that is to say the urine, goes out to the urinary tract; and also the semen crosses and goes forth from between them to the testicles. And just as deep calls unto deep, as it is written, "Deep calleth unto deep" (Ps. 42:8), so does the upper bowel, which is the stomach, call to the intestines to receive the rest of the food and the drink. And the bowels call to the sinews of the kidneys, which are like tubes, to receive the water. The urine is pressed out and separated from the food in the intestines to go to the urinary tract. And the tubes of the kidneys call out to the sinew of the urinary tract to receive those waters, to cause them to be gathered within the bladder which may be compared to the lowest depth, for it is the lowest of all the bodily depths. Moreover, that intestine calls to the intestines leading from the stomach to receive the excrement.

And just as God made the rivers to water the world, so did God make veins in the body of man. These are the vehicles of the blood that draw forth the blood to nourish all the body. And just as there is in the world clear water and muddy water, sweet, salty and bitter water, so it is with man. From his eyes there goes forth salt water, from his nostrils cool water, from his throat warm water, from his mouth sweet water, and from his ears, bitter water. And the waters of the urine are bitter and fetid.

In the world, there are cold winds and warm winds. So is it with man. When he opens his mouth and blows, then his breath is warm. And when he closes his mouth and blows, then his breath is cool. The thunders of the world are like the voice in man; the lightning of the world is in the face of man when it shines like lightning. There are constellations in the world, and those who view the stars can tell the future from them. So are there signs in man. When a man has a rash, which does not come from a boil or a louse or a mite, experts in this matter can foretell the future. And so it is with the lines in the palm of a man's hand and with the form of his features that people may know the future. Now this wisdom was in the possession of the wise men of old but has been forgotten by the later ones. Similarly the wise men can tell the future by trees and herbs, and this is according to what they said concerning Rabban Johanan ben Zakkai that he knew the language of the date palms (Sukkah 28a). The meaning of this is that he was expert enough to perceive the motion of the date palms and from this he could tell the future (Aruch 68).

And just as from the south, which is the right side of the world, there go forth warmth and the dews of blessing and the rains of blessing, so from the right side of man there goes forth warmth from the gall which hangs near the liver; and likewise the moisture of blood goes forth from the liver, which is in the right side of man. And just as evil goes forth to the world from the north, so does cold go forth from the left side of man, from the spleen and from the black bile which dwells within the spleen. And just as evil goes forth to the world from the north, so does every bad and severe illness come from the black bile which dwells in the spleen on the left side. And just as in the northern side of the world dwell all sorts of injurious and terrifying things, and winds and lightning and customary thunder, so is this found in the source of the black bile in the spleen on the left side, for from it are generated every evil and severe sickness, such as consumption, and the fourth fever, and all kinds of madness, and fear, and trembling of the limbs.

And just as the clouds ascend, for they are like the smoke which ascends from the earth, and just as the clouds raise up water from the depths to the air of the heavens to cause rain to fall upon the earth, so does smoke go up from the upper intestines and brings up moisture to the mouth and to the head. And from that moisture which goes up from the intestine roll the tears and the mucus of the nostrils and the spittle of the mouth. And just as in the world God created mountains, so did He create in the body of man the shoulders and the sinews of the arms and the patellas on the knees. And the joints of the ankles and all of the other sinews which unite all the limbs. And just as God created in the world stones and strong, hard rocks so did God create in man the teeth and the molars that are harder than iron and any bone. And just as He created in the world hard and soft trees, so did he create in man hard and soft bones. And just as he created in the world, earth that is thick and hard, moist and soft, so did he create in man the flesh which is similar to the soft earth and the skin which is similar to the hard earth.

And just as among the trees and the herbs there are those that produce fruit and seed and those that do not, so are there among men those who beget children and those who do not. And just as He causes grass to sprout from the earth, so does He cause man to sprout forth the hair of the head and the beard. And just as there swarm animals and creeping things in the woods and in the land, so do similar things swarm in the head of a man and in his hair. And just as God created in the world the signs of the Zodiac and stretched it in the firmament from east unto west from end to end and the stars and the constellations and all things in the world are attached to it, so did He create in the body of man the white spinal cord which is in the hollow of his spine. And it stretches from the end of the brain of the head unto the bone at the base of the spine, and the twelve parts as well and the ribs and all the limbs of the body are attached to it from here to there. And just as in the year there are three hundred and sixty-five days so are there in man three hundred and sixty-five sinews.

The end of the matter is that the work of creation and the mystic world are all hinted at somewhat in man. And one who understands the secret of this thing will understand the wonders of the Lord, may He be Exalted. Therefore, man is called a world in miniature. And because the body of man is formed in the pattern of the upper world and the lower world, therefore there has been given within him the soul which is somewhat similar to its Creator.

And therefore David said (see Lev. Rabbah 4:8), just as the soul fills the body and carries the body and outlives the body and is unique in the body and does not eat things of the body, sees and is not seen, and is pure within the body and does not sleep, so does the Holy One, Blessed be He, fill His world, as it is said, "Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord" (Jer. 23:24). And He bears His world, as it is said, "I have made, and I will bear; Yea, I will carry and will deliver" (Is. 46:4). And He outlasts His world as it is said, "They shall perish, but thou shalt endure" (Ps. 102:27). And He is alone and unique in His world, as it is said, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One" (Deut. 6:5). And eating does not apply to Him, as it is said, "Do I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?" (Ps. 50:13). And He sees and is not seen, as it is said, "Which are the eyes of the Lord, that run to and fro through the whole earth" (Zech. 4:10). And He is pure in His world, as it is said, "Thou that art of eyes too pure to behold evil" (Hab. 1:13). And He does not sleep as it is said, "Behold, He that keepeth Israel doth neither slumber, nor sleep" (Ps. 121:4). Therefore the soul which has within it all these qualities should come and praise the Holy One, Blessed be He, Who has within Himself all these qualities.

The soul sits and ponders who created it and then she clothes herself with humility and reverence of the Lord, may He be Blessed. Therefore a man must understand himself and comprehend his duty, and know whence is his origin and his root, and how he was formed out of a fetid seed. How, after this he became a bit of flesh, how there was breathed into him a supernal spirit, and how he was provided with bones and sinews, blood and brain, and clothed with skin and flesh. How the features of his face were formed, how his brow was set up, how his nostrils were pierced from within, and how the throat was made so that man could breathe and smell. How his ears were fashioned to hear, and the sockets of his eyes to see, and how in his eye there are several colors. How he has eyelids, and a mouth and throat, and a palate and tongue, and lips to open and to close, and molars of the jaw, joints of hands and legs, the hollow of his body, and fingers with their joints and nails.

He will understand how each is different from the others and how he was imprisoned for nine months in his mother's womb and came forth naked, blind, deaf, and unable to walk. All these he will think about and say in his heart, "Who opened your eyes and your ears? Who made for you all the elements of your body? Who made your hair black in your youth and even if you should wash it with all the soap in the world you could not whiten it? And yet in the days of your old age, it grows white by itself." Upon such matters should you ponder. And then you will be modest, lowly of spirit, and reverent of God.

"The end of the matter, all having been heard: fear God, and keep His commandments; for this is the whole of man" (Eccl. 12:13).

Finished and completed, Praise to God, Creator of the World.