Adir BaMurom — Chapter 3: Preparations for the Revelation of Secrets; The Order of the Idra

[Continuing from Chapter 2:] These matters are further linked to the matters of gilgulim [transmigrations of souls] in the secret of Kayin and Hevel, as is known — for they go to rectify all the blemishes [pegamim] that were blemished in the world. And corresponding to this, Rashbi had with him Rabbi Eliezer his son — in the secret of the totality of the two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. And it emerges that while Rashbi was in the cave, the aspect of the teiva [ark] came to be — for the Zohar to be produced as described — during which all those luminaries that had been hidden until that time owing to the concealment of the thread became revealed. And it was necessary to rectify that secret of the light of which it says: "For all the children of Israel there was light in their dwellings" [Exodus 10:23]. And the revelation of the lights [alternate: the letters] — in the secret of the Yud of Shaddai. But it was necessary to accomplish great tikkunim there, and to remain there until those tikkunim were complete. And the totality of the tikkunim is the secret of: "The judgment of the wicked in Gehinnom is twelve months" (Eduyos 2:10) — and this is the matter of the carob tree [חָרוּב — charuv] that grew for them — which is the churban [חוּרְבָּן — destruction: same root ח-ר-ב as charuv = carob; the wordplay is intentional and central to the Ramchal's teaching] — and in more particular detail, its secret is the 102 carobs [ק״ב חרובין] associated with Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa. And the matter is: that the purification of the soul is either through Gehinnom or through teshuva. For "every kind goes to its own kind" [Aramaic: kol zina azil le-zinei] — and thus the soul must descend into Gehinnom until the zuhama [spiritual impurity / filth] separates from it and it cleaves to its root. Or it ascends to Imma through the secret of teshuva, cleaves to its root, the zuhama separates from it and is cast downward.

And you have already heard the matter of "tohu, vohu, and darkness upon the face of the deep" — how the forces of impurity would grasp hold, chamber by chamber [me-medurah], of souls, on account of the dominance of the kelim alone. Therefore, upon Rashbi's ascent to Imma in the secret of the cave as described — he needed to extract all the souls of Israel from the grasp of the tehom [the deep / the abyss], which is Gehinnom. Therefore they needed to remain for twelve years — to draw the aspect of this yichud — for they needed to join the Name הוי״ה in its twelve permutations [tzirufim] to אהי״ה and אדנ״י in their permutations, and each permutation of the twelve permutations of הוי״ה blessed be He required one year. Thus in twelve years the tikkun was already complete — namely the drawing of the Name הוי״ה blessed be He — and then they emerged.

Therefore they needed to remain first for twelve years and afterwards twelve months. And all of this is in the secret of the 102 carobs [ק״ב חרובין] — for there are three Names: אהי״ה הוי״ה אדנ״י — which together have the numerical value of יב״ק [= Yud-Beis-Kuf = 112], and their secret is: yichud [unification — the Yud], bracha [blessing — the Beis], kedusha [holiness — the Kuf].16

When the thread is not established so as to be revealed [alternate reading: "at all"], then the matter of the yichud is obscured and only kedusha and bracha remain — and this is called charuv [carob — wordplay: also desolate/destroyed], in the secret of the 102 carobs. For when the yichud is revealed, the Sitra Achra has no dominion whatsoever. And it thus emerges that the Name הוי״ה is concealed, and only the secret of אהי״ה and אדנ״י remains — these are the Kuf-Beis alone.

But the tikkun was not yet thoroughly complete until they also sat an additional twelve months — to accomplish the great joining of the three Names, which together make twelve: the twelve letters of הוי״ה אהי״ה אדנ״י.16 And there is a great difference between one tikkun and the other: the first is the drawing of the Name הוי״ה blessed be He to the Kuf-Beis [kedusha + bracha] already present; and the second is the joining of the הוי״ה that was drawn with the Kuf-Beis, so that they become in one equalization [hashva'a] — as they must be in the secret of YaB"K. For the first required years — because it is more particular and no tikkun had yet been accomplished at all, and beginnings are difficult. And afterwards months sufficed — for it is more general, and moreover since a tikkun had already been accomplished at the beginning, it was easier to complete.