And he stayed there and dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth Genesis 28:12. Jacob knew the majesty of the Tetragrammaton The four-letter name of God, written here as "Y' D' V' D'" to avoid writing the holy name directly., may He be blessed, but he did not know through which gate he should enter to reach Him. Therefore, the Blessed Name showed him the way of entry. From where do we know this? As it is written: "And he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth... and behold, the Lord stood above it" Genesis 28:12-13. He said: "Behold, see the gate through which one enters the ladder," as it is written of it, "and behold, the Lord stood above it." And what is written after this? "And Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 'Surely the Lord is in this place... and this is the gate of heaven'" Genesis 28:16-17. Thus, Jacob merited to perceive the gate through which one enters the courts of the Lord, may He be blessed, as it is written: "This is the gate for the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it" Psalm 118:20. And since he perceived this gate, he merited to enter the twelve diagonal boundaries Diagonal boundaries|A concept from the Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Creation) representing the structural limits of the universe., which are the secret of the upper and lower worlds. Everything is held together by the secret of the thirteen attributes through which the Torah is interpreted, and the secret of the twelve tribes (which are thirteen) Counting the two sons of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh, or including Levi., and the secret of the twelve months (which are thirteen in the secret of the leap year) referring to the intercalary month in the Hebrew calendar.

And Know

When Jacob came and perceived the place of the gate, he ascended to the top of the ladder—something that Abraham and Isaac did not merit or perceive. For Abraham and Isaac only reached the place of the "shoulders," and this is the secret of "underneath are the arms of the world" Deuteronomy 33:27. They did not ascend further. Were it not for this, the descendants of Jacob would have no survival among the nations, between Ishmael and Esau. Those "shoulders" are called the "heights of the earth." The secret of the reward is "the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac," but above them is "and the God of Jacob" Exodus 3:6—the Middle Line Middle Line|The central column of the Sefirot, representing balance and harmony, associated with Jacob. which ascends until it takes hold of the Crown Crown|Keter, the highest of the ten Sefirot.. "This your stature is like a palm tree," but above it, "and your breasts like clusters" Song of Songs 7:8. And the secret of "He made him ride on the high places of the earth" Deuteronomy 32:13, and "you shall tread upon their high places" Deuteronomy 33:29. "The eternal God is a dwelling place, and underneath are the arms of the world; and He drove out the enemy from before you, and said, 'Destroy!'" Deuteronomy 33:27. "And Israel shall dwell in safety alone, the eye of Jacob" Deuteronomy 33:28—and not the eye of Abraham or Isaac. For Abraham and Isaac are the "arms" and they are "underneath," because Ishmael, Esau, and the seventy crowns The seventy guardian angels/nations of the world. take hold of them. But

Jacob, who merited to perceive the gate and ascend by way of the ladder, took hold of the Middle Line unto the height of heights, unto the Infinite Infinite|Ein Sof, the Boundless Divine reality before emanation. by way of the "Neck." Therefore, concerning Abraham and Isaac, it is written: "Lift up now your eyes... westward and northward and southward and eastward" Genesis 13:14. And so too with Isaac. But with Jacob, it says: "And you shall spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south" Genesis 28:14, which is a "heritage without boundaries." Because no ministering prince of any of the nations ascends to that place. Regarding this, it is said: "For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself" Psalm 135:4, certainly, "Israel for His own treasure." And it is written: "Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord" Isaiah 58:14—certainly—"and I will cause you to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father." The heritage of Jacob, and not the heritage of Abraham and Isaac.

And after

we have informed you of these principles, know that the secret of this gate which Jacob merited and perceived is the secret of the Tenth Sefirah, which is called:

Shekhinah

And the sign is: "And Israel shall dwell in safety alone, the eye of Jacob." And when Jacob perceived this gate, which is the secret of the Shekhinah called Righteousness (Tzedek), the scripture cries out and says: "Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter into them, I will praise the Lord" Psalm 118:19. And it is added: "For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself." And to what place shall I enter? To the place called the Neck—"I will enter into them, I will praise the Lord." For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself, and this is the secret of: "As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness" Psalm 17:15. That is to say: Since I have merited to find the gate, I shall then enter to see the face of the King.

And after

you have known this, know that this gate through which one enters to perceive and see the face of the Blessed King is the secret of the Unification of our Creator, may He be blessed. It is the secret of the Blessing Hebrew: Berakhah that the Blessed Name handed over to Abraham. For all types of flow and emanation that are drawn from the Upper Eden, which is called the Crown (Keter), by way of Beauty (Tiferet) which is called the River, all enter into the Tenth Pool Hebrew: Berikhah, which shares the same root as Berakhah (blessing)., which is the secret of Kingship (Malchut). Regarding this, it is written: "The wells of Abraham and Isaac." And the Blessed Lord handed over to Abraham this "Pool" so that all the nations would be blessed by it, and this is what He said—