Pardes Rimmonim 1

After we have been occupied with the subject of the Sefirot and the necessity of their existence, and the subject of the devotion to them among the wise ones, it is necessary for us to know their what-ness and their general names, which is agreed upon among the commentators, and especially in the words of Rashbi of blessed memory. And this is it: The first one [is] Keter/Crown, the second one Chochmah/Wisdom [which one receives], the third one Binah/Distinction, the fourth one Gedolah/Greatness or Chesed/Generosity, the fifth one Pachad/Fear or Gevurah/Force, the sixth one Tif’eret/Adornment, the seventh one Netsach/Victory, the eighth one Hod/Splendor, the ninth one Yesod/Foundation, and the tenth one [is] Malkut/Kingdom. And these Sefirot are [the] ten names which are not to be erased, and the[se] names and the Sefirot are all one matter, as the spirituality of the names are themselves the Sefirot. Keter is [the name] אהי"ה, and it is found in Scripture only three times in one verse (Exodus 3:14) “And God said to Moses: ‘I am who I am’ (אהי"ה אשר אהי"ה)’, and He said: ‘Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: “אהי"ה has sent me to you.”’” But the reason why it did not come [to be written more often] in the Torah, and other dilemma’s that are in this explanation, it will be explained in the Gate of the [Divine] Names [Gate XX], with help of HaShem. And the name of Chochmah is י"ה/Yah, and there is much written of them in the Torah, doubled in the Prophets and tripled in the Writings. In the Torah it is written: “My refuge and strength [is] Yah/י"ה ” [Exodus 15:2], and similarly “because a hand is on the throne of Yah/ י"ה” [Exodus 17:16]. Doubled in the Prophets: “I will see Yah, Yah in the land of the living.” [Isaiah 38:11], which is in “the poem of [king] Hezekiah” [Isaiah 38:9]. Tripled in the Writings: “Out of the distress I called Yah, and he answered me in the wide Yah.” [Psalms 118:5], and [there are] many [places] similar to them. And the name of Binah is the four-letter name [Tetragram] vocalized as Elohim/God, written in the Torah, doubled in the Prophets, tripled in the Writings. Written in the Torah: “My Lord יהו"ה by what will I know that I will take into possession…” [Genesis 15:8], and as this one [there are] many [places]. Doubled in the Prophets: “יהו"ה my Lord is my strength, and He will place my feet etc.” [Habakkuk 3:19], and as this one [there are] many [places]. Tripled in the Writings: “I will come with the strength of my Lord יהו"ה, I will mention your righteousness alone” [Psalms 71:16], and as this one [there are] many [places].And the name of Chesed is the name El/א"ל, and there many [places] of them in the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings. In the Torah: “And he called him El, the God of Israel.” [Genesis 33:20], and as this one [there are] many [places]. And in the Prophets: “El God HaShem knows” [Joshua 22:22], and as this one [there are] many [places]. And in the Writings: “The El, His way is complete” [Psalms 18:31], and as this one [there are] many [places].And the name of Gevurah is Elohim/God, written in the Torah, doubled in the Prophets, tripled in the Writings. Written in the Torah: “And Elohim/God tested Abraham…” [Genesis 22:1], and as this one [there are] many [places]. Doubled in the Prophets: “And there was a fear of Elohim/God…” [I Samuel 14:15], and as this one [there are] many [places]. Tripled in the Writings: “Do arise, Elohim/God, and do judge the earth…” [Psalms 82:8] and as this one [there are] many [places].And the name of Tif’eret is YHWH, written in the Torah, doubled in the Prophets, tripled in the Writings. Written in the Torah: “And YHWH said”, “And YHWH spoke” and besides them [there are] many [places]. Doubled in the Prophets: “Thus spoke YHWH” and besides them [there are] many [places]. Tripled in the Writings: “YHWH spoke to me: you are my son.” [Psalms 2:7], and as this one [there are] many [places].And the name of Netsach you will not find on its own, only coupled with the name of Hod, by reason that the two of them have one name, and that is Tsebaot/Of Hosts. And this [name] is not found in the Torah at all. But in the Prophets many [times]: “Thus spoke HaShem Tsebaot”, and besides them [there are] many [places]. And on the name of Yesod, all later commentators have explained [that] its name [is] special: El Chai/Living God. And it is difficult that El Chai is not among the names that are not to be erased, as the word Chai is not holy, as what is seen in tractate [Babylonian Talmud] Shevuot (35a), that it is not a name [not to be erased], only El [is listed there]. And the name El, which is holy, is borrowed from Chesed [of which it is the name] by way of the special names and their part. And Rabbi Abba included this opinion in the book of the Zohar, parasha Vayikra (page 11a), and this is what it says: ‘The sixth and seventh [name], they called them Tsebaot. The eighth [name] El Chai, as you say: “Because there HaShem commanded the blessing: Life etc.” [Psalms 133:3], and this is the Righteous One [Yesod], as all living beings go out from him.’ Until here the citation.

And why did he count Netsach and Hod [as] sixth and seventh although they are [actually] seventh and eighth [in the order of the Sefirot] as is known? [It is] because Rabbi Abba began to count the [divine] names from the name Jah [which is] from Chochmah, as is explained there. And the explanation is that the Righteous One is called El Chai by reason that life is going out of him [= the Righteous One], and he said ‘that all lives go out from him’, because the root of lives, they are above in Chochmah and Binah, as is written (Ecclesiastes 7:12): “Chochmah/Wisdom will enliven those who possess it”, and as we will explain in the Gate of the order of the special names [Gate XXI] with help of HaShem. And to this he said that the reason that Yesod is called by the name of El Chai, although the root of the lives are [further] above as it [the Sefira Yesod] is their spring according to their departure outwards [= further downwards, towards Malkut], and because of this he uses the expression “that go out” which is according to [their] departure.

See that Rabbi Abba explained that the name of Yesod is El Chai. And Rabbi Elazar differed from him and said that its name is Shaddai/ שדי, and this is what he says: ‘The ninth is Shaddai, as it [=Yesod] says to the world: Enough!/Dai/די, for Dai is supply, and supply does not come to the world except out of the Righteous One who is the Foundation/Yesod of the world, which said to the world Dai/Enough!’ End of citation.

And since it is difficult for Rabbi Elazar that the name Shaddai (שדי) [has as] explanation that (ש) it says to the world Dai (די)/Enough!, which is that it limited it [= the world] as they [= the elements of the world] were expanding from its narrownesses and going, until it said to it [= the world]: Dai/Enough! [= that suffices!]. And this is not justified for Yesod, as the creation of the world is by means of the Architect which is Malkut, and therefore verily it is this one [= Malkut] who says to the world: Dai/Enough! And to this [difficulty] he [= R. Elazar] said: Shaddai, [with the] explanation: supply and nourishment. And the nourishment, it is from the side of Yesod, and it is supplying nourishment to the world, and this is ‘nourishment does not come to the world except out of the Righteous One, who is the Foundation/Yesod of the world’. And he intended to say: out of the Righteous One, as he is the Foundation/Yesod that causes the world to stand, and this is why he repeated his expression and said ‘the Righteous One, who is the Foundation of the world, who said to the world: Dai/Enough!’. And even if this is so, we do not deny that the name El Chai is in Yesod, as Rabbi Abba has explained, but [we hold] that it is not a holy name as the rest of the names which are not to be erased, but [it is] a special name as the rest of the special names, and it occurs in Scripture (Psalms 84:3) “My heart and my flesh will sing to El Chai”. But the name Shaddai is written in the Torah: “And El Shaddai will bless you and will make you bear fruit and make you numerous.” [Genesis 28:3]. Doubled in the Prophets: “as the voice of Shaddai in their going” [Ezekiel 1:24], tripled in the Writings: And Shaddai will be in your need…” [Job 22:25]. And the name of Malkut [is] Adonai/My Master, written in the Torah, doubled in the Prophets, tripled in the Writings. Written in the Torah: “Now may the power of Adonai be great”[Numbers 14:17] and [there are] many [places] similar to them. Doubled in the Prophets: “The matter which Adonai sent to Jacob” [Isaiah 9:7] and [there are] many [places] similar to them. Tripled in the Writings: “Adonai, you will open…” [Psalms 51:17] and [there are] many [places] similar to them. And it came into the tradition that there are in Scripture 134 occurrences of them, and the reason you will find it in the Torah commentary of Chizkuni [Chizkuni on Genesis 1:1], at the beginning of it he says that this number corresponds to the [numerical value of the] first and last letters of East (מזרח), West (מערב) and South (דרום ) [the sum of the numerical value of מח, מב and דם is 134] to say that these three directions are closed with the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, and therefore 134 (קלד) is an expression of closing, just as “keys” (אקלידי) [Aramaic]. But the North is not in the number as it is open to punish the wicked ones, but in the time to come the Holy One, blessed be He will close it. Similar and more, see there and you will find [further] reasons extending on this explanation. And these ten names that have been mentioned are palaces for the spirituality of the Sefirot, and this spirituality is a garment for the innermost spirituality that is hinted at by the four-letter name [Tetragram] which is in each and every Sefira. And this subject, and besides it the explanation of these names and the subjects of the Sefirot, will be explained in the Gates that follow with help of HaShem, and each one [of these subjects will be explained] at a place that is fitting for it.

And see, this Gate is [now] completed, and thanks to God who helped us, may He help us, Glory Selah forever Amen.