Masonic, Occult and Esoteric Online Library
Zohar: Bereshith to Lekh Lekha
By Nurho de Manhar
Symbolism of the Divine Life and Human Destiny
"AND the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it"27a (Gen. 11:15). The question may be asked: "Whence did He take him?" The answer is: "From the four elements, fire, air, earth and water, which form the basis of man's physical body and are symbolized by the words 'And a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from thence it was parted and became into four heads'" (Gen. 11:10). That is, the Holy One formed man from these four elements and placed him in the garden of Eden, into which a man enters again whenever he repents of his wrongdoing and conforms his life to the good law, until at length, divested of mortality, he is placed again in the heavenly garden; that is, he enters into and becomes a conscious participant of the divine life and clothed with immortality. "To dress it and to keep it," meaning to keep and observe all the precepts of the good law, obedience to which imparts to and endows him with power to control these elements and drink of the river of the water of life--as disobedience causes him to drink of the bitter waters flowing from and by the tree of evil, symbolizing the tempter, so that instead of ruling and controlling the elements he becomes their slave.
Then occurs what is written concerning the children of Israel when they came to the waters of Marah: "They could not drink of the waters for they were bitter" (Ex. xv. 23). Disobedience to the good law of rightdoing always, sooner or later, results in bitterness of life, thought and feeling, and only by rightdoing can the words of scripture be accomplished.
"And the Lord showed him a tree, which, when he cast into the waters, the waters, though bitter, were made sweet." The tree here spoken of is the "Tree of Life," the Divine or Higher Life. "And if thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God and wilt do that which is right in his sight and will give ear to his commandments, I will put none of these diseases upon thee which I have brought upon the Egyptians, for I am the Lord that healeth thee" (Ex. xv. 26). What does all this mean, What is the secret doctrine or teaching inculcated in these words? It is that when this our human life becomes dark and embittered with sorrow and sadness through weakness and failing to live in accordance with the good law; there is only one agent or power that can clarify it and cause it to become again pure and sweet and clear; it is the Divine within us, "healing all our diseases, redeeming from all evil, and satisfying with good things, so that our youth is renewed like the eagles" (Ps. ciii. 4, 5). It was through the instrumentality of Moses that the waters at Marah were made sweet, and he therefore represents the Messiah.
Of Moses it is said: "And the rod (mateh) was in his hand." The word rod designates Metatron, the angel before the throne or Divine Presence and from whom cometh life or death. When it is changed or transformed into a rod, it is a source of help and assistance to man, as it then comes from the side of good. When, however, it is transformed into a serpent, it is then not a blessing, but otherwise to him, and this is why Moses in his fear fled from it.27a-27b The Holy gave it into the hand of Moses and so was formed and came forth the oral and written law relative to things lawful and forbidden. But immediately Moses struck the rock with it; then was it taken from him as it is written: "And the Egyptian had a rod in his hand and Benaiah plucked it out of his hand" (2 Sam. 23:21). The rod of Moses symbolizes also the serpent or tempter, who was the cause of the captivity of Israel. The words "And from thence it was parted into four heads" have yet another symbolical and occult meaning. Blessed is he whose study is in the secret doctrine, for, when the Holy One takes his soul unto himself, it leaves the body formed out of the four elements, and rising on high is placed at the head of the four Hayoth, or living creatures, to whom the words refer: "In their hands shall they bear thee up" (Ps. xci. 12).
"And the Lord God commanded the man, saying: 'Of every tree of the garden thou mayst freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it'" (Gen. ii. 16, 17). Now, wherever the word zav (commandment) is found in Scripture it is to forbid idolatry, the tendency toward which comes from the liver (chabad), which word signifies hard, bitter, or grievous, and therefore idolatry is called or termed a hard service. The liver moreover is the seat of rage and wrath, and this is why it is said that whoso giveth way to anger and rage is as culpable as he who commits an act of idolatry. And this is the meaning of the words "And God commanded the man," that is, in forbidding idolatry he also forbade the indulgence in anger, for they proceed from one common source and lead to the shedding of blood and "whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed" (Gen. ix. 6). The penchant for murder comes from the liver and is as a sword in the hand of the angel of death,27b and "The end or results of it is bitter as wormwood and sharper than a two-edged sword" (Prov. v. 4). The word "saying" signifies the spleen, of which it is said "she eateth and wipeth her mouth and saith, 'I have done no wickedness,'" (Prov. xxx. 20). This organ has no orifice nor canal, but is a solid substance with veins and arteries and absorbs dark blood from the liver. Adultery is therefore in scripture symbolized by the spleen, as its perpetration leaves no traces behind it, whilst murder becomes quickly detected by bloodmarks and therefore men fear to commit murder more than adultery.
When these sins of idolatry, murder and adultery, cease to prevail among mankind, in that day there shall be one Lord, and his name One. On this account a man who is a true Israelite will find his unity in the secret doctrine, which is as a tree of life to them that lay hold of it, and "happy is everyone that obtaineth her" (Prov. lv. 18). This tree of life is the Matrona, symbolized by the tenth Sephira Malcuth (Kingdom). This is why Israelites or children of light are called Beni Melchim (sons of kings). It is also why the Holy One said: "It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helpmate for or against him" (Gen. ii. 18), by which is meant the Mischna, which is as a helpmate to the Schekina and proved of great benefit during the captivity by teaching what was lawful and what forbidden, what was pure and what impure. If Israel, however, should cease to respect the Mischna as a spouse, then instead27b-28a of a helpmate to him, it would become a helpmate against him and there could never he harmony between them until the cause of dissonance were done away by purity of life and worship.
This is the reason that Moses was not interred within the precincts of the Holy land and no one knoweth to this day the place of his sepulchre. The sepulchre signifies the Mischna which was prevalent over the Matrona in the early days of Israel, during which the King and Matrona became separated from the celestial spouse. Therefore saith the scripture: "For three things the earth is disquieted and for four which it cannot bear. For a servant when he reigns; and a fool when he is filled with meat, for an odious woman when she is married, and a handmaid when she takes the place of her mistress" (Prov, xxx. 21, 23). The servant that reigns refers to Samail or Satan. The handmaid that takes the place of her mistress, designates the Mischna, whilst the fool filled with meat denotes the strangers living in the camp of Israel who were ignorant and foolish.
Again Rabbi Simeon spake and said: "And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every fowl of the air" (Gen. ii. 19). Woe unto those whose hearts are hardened and eyes blinded so that they are unable to understand and appreciate the teachings of the secret doctrine and know not that the "beast of the field" and the "fowl of the air" symbolize those who are ignorant and, though possessing life (nephesh) and soul (haya), are of no advantage or benefit either to the Schekina whilst in captivity, or to Moses who never quitted or forsook her for a moment, or, in other words, who recognize not the reality of the Divine Life nor the existence of the Higher Self.
Here Rabbi Eleazar asked a question: "What was the great object of life with an Israelite during the time of Moses?"
"Eleazar, my son," replied Rabbi Simeon, "why dost thou ask such a question as this? Hast thou not read and studied the words of Scripture? 'I am he who declares the end from the beginning and from ancient times the things that are not yet done'" (Is. xlvi. 10).
"Yes," replied Rabbi Eleazar, "and I recognize them as true."
This is why we are taught by tradition that Moses is not dead and is therefore called "man," of whom it is said: "There was not found a helpmeet for him" (Gen. ii. 20). But everything was against him and he found no help in bringing the Schekina out of captivity as it is written: "And he looked this way and that way and he saw there was no man" (Ex. ii. 12). At that moment, scripture saith: "And the Lord God caused a deep28a sleep to fall upon the man and He took one of the ribs and closed up the flesh thereof" (Gen. ii. 21). "The Lord God" denotes the Divine Being as father and Mother; "a deep sleep" the captivity, which is also the meaning of the words "a deep sleep fell upon Abraham" (Gen. xv. 12). "And He took one of the ribs"--from whom? From the virgins of the Matrona. The divine Father and Mother took a virgin from the white or right side of her, designated in scripture as "fair as the moon" (Cant. vi. 10). "And closed up the flesh in its place," signifying the union of the celestial with the animal nature of man. The words "for that he also is flesh" (Gen. vi. 3), refer to Moses, whose physical form radiated light golden hued like that of the sun, as it is written: "The face of Moses was as the face of the Sun," whilst that of the virgin of the right side was like the moon. Therefore scripture saith: "Thou art fair as the moon and clear as the sun" (Cant. vi. 10). Another signification of the words, "And closed up the flesh in its place" is that the Father and Mother wished to protect (vaisgor) her, as it is written: "And the Lord shut (vaisgor) him in (Gen. vii. 16).
"And of the rib which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man" (Gen. ii. 23). In this verse is an allusion to the mystery of the marital affinity. We are taught that when this affinity is ignored and disregarded the consequences are most injurious. The Holy One in his operations has worked on the law of affinity, as it is written: "The Lord (IHVH) hath built Jerusalem" (Ps. cxlvii. 2). The V in the divine name IHVH is the son or child of I and H, the Father and the Mother, to whom scripture refers: "And the Lord God made of the rib which he had taken from man." This rib denotes the middle column in the sephirotic Tree of Life symbol of the virgin, of whom it is written: "For I, saith Jehovah, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her" (Zech. ii. 5).
It is for this reason that the future temple, glorified and perfected humanity, built and formed by the Holy One, will endure forever. It is of this temple that scripture speaks. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the former (Hag. ii. 9), which was built by man's hands, but this shall be built by the Holy One, and is alluded to by the Psalmist:28a-28b "Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it" (Ps. cxxvii. 1). The words "And the Lord God formed the rib he had taken" equally apply to Moses, who, when building the tabernacle in the wilderness, foresaw the future tabernacle God would form, as it is written: "And for the second side (rib) of the tabernacle on the north side there shall be twenty boards" (Ex. xxvi. 20). The north side here refers to the side of the sephirotic tree called Chesed (mercy), and known as the white side. "And closed up the flesh thereof." The word flesh signifies the red side of the tree which is called Geburah (power), and at this time were fulfilled the words: "His left hand is under my head and his right hand doth embrace me" (Cant. ii. 6), as also the words: "This is now bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh." She shall be called ashah because she was taken from aish (man), that is to say, that the virgin humanity is a union of the man or father representing the male principle, with the mother, representing the female principle.
When the temple just referred to is completed, each individual will find his companion or mate-soul predestined from the beginning to become united with him, and then will be realized the words of the prophet: "And I will also give you a new heart and a new spirit will I put within you" (Ezech. xxxv. 26), as also the words of another prophet: "And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions" (Joel ii. 28), alluding to the renewed state of humanity in the future, as tradition expresses it. The son of David or the Messiah will not appear until all souls now incarnating shall have reached perfection and accomplished their destiny, and those who have lost their Higher Self and have failed to become united with it shall be exterminated from the world. "And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed" (Gen. ii. 25), referring to the time when licentiousness and sensuality shall disappear and vanish out of the world and nothing exist causing a sense of shame and immodesty.
