הקדמה

36. “Dalet and gimmel entered etc.”The letters dalet and gimmel entered [and] also said the same. He also said to them: It is enough for you to be with one another, since paupers will not cease from the earth and they must be treated [li-gmol] with kindness. The dalet is poor because she is called dalet, from the term dalut [poverty]. The gimmel performs [gomelet] kindness with the dalet. Therefore, you must not separate from one another and it is enough for you to nourish one another.

Explanation: The case of the dalet has already been clarified, in section 24 above, s.v. Ve-zeh (see there), where it was explained that although the dalet receives shefa from the gimmel, and the corner on the roof [of the dalet] protrudes with [the bestowal of the light of giving, the Sitra Aḥara still has the strength to grasp hold of [the dalet], to separate her [from the gimmel], and to forge the letter resh with her, so that again she becomes poor [resh] and wretched. He thus said to them: “It is enough for you to be with one another,” i.e., you require extra protection so that you can “be with one another,” and the gimmel will bestow upon the dalet, “since paupers will not cease from the earth.” The opposite [side]1This term refers to the forces of the Sitra Aḥara, which have been described previously as corresponding to the side of good, in a structural parallelism. has the strength to separate you and revert the Malkhut, which is called “world,” into the aspect of being poor [resh] and wretched. “They must be treated with kindness,” for then [the dalet and gimmel] require an awakening from below, to give charity to the wretched, in order to restore the dalet so that it receives from the gimmel once again. Consequently, “it is enough for you to nourish one another,” as it is enough for you if you can keep yourselves in [a state of] pairing, nourishing each other, so that the kelippot will not be able to control you. Therefore, I will not create the world with you.