פריה ורביה והלכות אישות ב

Likutay Halachos — Evven Ha-Ezer — Pirya V'Rivya V'Ishus 2

The general principle is that a person needs to be in joy constantly, and to strengthen himself in joy so much until he seizes the sorrow and sighing — which are all the melancholy and sadness — he seizes them and brings them into the joy against their will, until he transforms the sorrow and sighing into joy. For specifically through what the Evil Inclination introduces into his heart sorrow and sighing and melancholy, through this specifically he will be very joyful. For he will say in his heart: even though I am so far from the Blessed Name, nevertheless I am of the seed of Israel, and He did not make me a gentile, and I merit every day to fulfill several mitzvos — tzitzis and tefillin and several blessings and holy words in prayer and Torah that I merit to say each and every day. And on the contrary, this is the essential source of my joy — that one as far away as I should also merit to don tefillin every day, which are the crowns of the King, etc., and similar things with the other mitzvos that all Israel fulfill every day. And one who strengthens himself until he comes to such joy, until he transforms all the sorrow into joy — this is a very great thing. And this alone is the essential mitzvah of joy: to be so joyful until one transforms the sorrow and sighing into joy. And from this, great yichudim [unifications] and very great delights are made above, in all the worlds, as we understood from the words of Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, at the time we merited to hear this wondrous and awesome chiddush [novel teaching] — the exceedingly great level of this aspect, when one merits such joy until he transforms the melancholy and all the sorrow and sighing into joy, etc.

And this is the aspect of "joy and gladness shall they attain", etc. — that the joy and gladness pursue and reach and seize the sorrow and sighing into the joy against their will, etc., as explained there; see there. And see there further nearby (Torah 24), what is written there about the greatness of the mitzvah to be in joy constantly. For through joy one merits healing for all manner of illnesses and pains, for all manner of illnesses come through the corruption of joy. For joy is the aspect of the ten kinds of melody, which enliven all the ten kinds of pulse upon which all human vitality depends, and all healings — all of which depend on the ten kinds of pulse, whose vitality comes through the ten kinds of melody, which are the aspect of joy, etc. And therefore the essential thing in serving Hashem — especially for those who are far away and coming to draw close to the Blessed Name — is that they should strengthen themselves with all their might to be in joy constantly. See there regarding the greatness of the extraordinary warning that Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, warned in many expressions, that a person should compel himself with all his strength to be only joyful always. And this is the aspect of the holiness of the Bris, whose essential [attainment] is through joy, as understood in the words of Rabbeinu, of blessed memory, in many places — that the essential holiness of the Bris is merited through joy. And as I heard from his holy mouth explicitly, that the essential intensification of this desire of immorality is through sadness and melancholy; therefore one needs to strengthen himself exceedingly to be in joy constantly, as mentioned above.

And this is the aspect of the mitzvah of procreation. For it is known that the essential grip of sadness and melancholy is in the aspect of the woman, which is sitra d'nukba [the feminine side], which is sitra d'dina kashya [the side of harsh judgment], where the essential grip of sadness lies, which is tokfa d'dina [the force of judgment]. And this is the aspect of what is said regarding the feminine side: "Her feet descend to death" (Mishlei 5:5). For sadness is the aspect of the side of death, as is known in our teachings many times. And this is the aspect of "and her end is bitter as wormwood" (Mishlei 5:4), etc.; the aspect of "And I find more bitter than death the woman" (Koheles 7:26), etc. — the aspect of sadness and melancholy, the aspect of sorrow and sighing, which grips the woman more [than the man], as mentioned above. For even though all this is said regarding a bad woman, a harlot, nevertheless it is known that their entire grip upon holiness descends from sitra d'nukba. And the essential joy and gladness is in the aspect of sitra did'chura [the masculine side], in the aspect of "strength and gladness are in His place" (Divrei HaYamim I, 16:27), which is said regarding the holiness of the Bris — for in it is strength, and it is the gladness of the Matronisa, etc.

And this is the aspect of the mitzvah of procreation, that a person needs specifically to fulfill this mitzvah in holiness and purity. And through this mitzvah, he merits to seize the melancholy and the sorrow and sighing into the joy, in the aforementioned aspect — the aspect of "joy and gladness shall they attain, and sorrow and sighing shall flee." And this is the aspect of "he shall gladden his wife" in the matter of a mitzvah, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said. For the essential holiness of the conjugal union is through joy, which is the holiness of the Bris as mentioned above. For this is the essential aspect of the unification and the conjugal union of mitzvah, through which husband and wife are joined. And then the aspect of sorrow and sighing is sweetened and nullified — the sadness, the force of harsh judgment that grips the woman. And through the holiness of this mitzvah, the sorrow and sighing is nullified and transformed into joy, which is the essential holiness of the conjugal union, the aspect of the holiness of the Bris as mentioned above. And therefore our Sages, of blessed memory, said: "One who dwells without a wife dwells without joy", etc. And as it is said: "And he shall gladden his wife" (Devarim 24:5), etc. For this is the essential [meaning of the] mitzvah of the conjugal union — to transform the sorrow and sighing into joy, which is the essential perfection of joy as mentioned above. That is, to unify and include the wife within the husband, so that the sorrow and sighing that grips the woman, in sitra d'nukba, shall be transformed into joy as mentioned above. And therefore one who dwells without a wife dwells without joy, for there is no perfection to the joy of the man when he is alone. For there is no perfection to the joy except when one transforms sorrow and sighing into joy, which is the essential perfection of joy as mentioned above.