The Book of Splendor (1558) - Page 20

Main Text (Zohar)

Divine service and prayer are a service to the Holy One, Blessed be He original: HaKadosh Baruch Hu, consisting of praise for Him and the directing of words with joy and will, to arrange the holy praise as is fitting and to unify the Name. Thus it is written:

Know that the Lord, He is God Psalm 100:3

For this is the essence of the sacrifice term: Korban (sacrifice/offering), from the root meaning "to draw near": to bring Mercy near to Judgment so that everything becomes sweetened. He opened his discourse saying: A sacrifice is not found except from one who has sinned before his Master and returns to Him, breaking the bitterness of the soul, as it is written:

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit Psalm 51:19

To establish the Name and the connection, for these were not found with him previously. Rather, they established it thus: that those who are dependent and shining in their sickness, and the binding of their illness, do not possess joy or clarity. And we have learned: "One should not stand [to pray] from a state of sadness" Babylonian Talmud, Berakhot 31a, for a person should not stand before his Master in sadness, as he cannot then establish his proper state. Rather, the matter is that he must always be prepared... The OCR contains several corrupted or phonetic strings here: "kham adam se'or sheki pitchis," likely reflecting difficult manuscript shorthand or damaged text... all of this hints at what King David said: Your mercies are the dwelling and the foundation of life within the inner secrets of the levels of Kindness term: Chesed and Fear term: Pachad/Gevurah, which are the openings of the world. Therefore, a person must intend in his devotion to face the Holy of Holies, which are the holy supports and all the exiles. And like these twenty-two crowns and the devotion that is taught here, this "Joy" is the Assembly of Israel term: Knesset Yisrael, a mystical personification of the Jewish people and the Divine Presence/Shekhinah. And they established Joy for her, as it is written:

For with joy you shall go out... Isaiah 55:12

And Israel is destined to go out from exile through this Joy. And what is she? She is the Assembly of Israel. And regarding this:

Serve the Lord with joy Psalm 100:2

As it is written:

Come before Him with singing Psalm 100:2

For his perfection is not complete without Joy, and the binding... was a greater perfection. And the perfection of this Joy is recognized and becomes known, and this is the preparation of a person before his Master. Then "Know that the Lord, He is God" becomes as one word; the transgression is removed to the Crown Keter to unify the Holy Name as is fitting, and to bind this to that so that all becomes one. This is the service of the Holy One, Blessed be He. They said to him: Rabbi Chama, is it not written so? Blessed is the portion of the righteous who labor in the Torah and know the ways of the Holy One, Blessed be He. They rose and went on their way... Rabbi Abba opened and said: "As a cherub covering..." referring to the golden figures on the Ark thus they established it, that a person should not be covered when entering the synagogue, but if your fear is as it was at first... for you have established the exile before the Holy One, Blessed be He... This refers to the Throne. "Join toward Your holy Temple"—this refers to Isaac, and he needs to include them in the Throne and enter the synagogue and reveal his exile. Then it is written:

And He said to me, "You are My servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified." Isaiah 49:3

If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd Leviticus 1:3. Rabbi Yose said: What is the difference between "from the herd," "from the flock," and "from the birds"? If all is one, why are they distinguished from one another, since from all of them one thing is accomplished? Rather, whoever has the means brings from the herd. And if he cannot, then from the flock. And if he cannot, then from the birds. For it is written: "And if for the Lord..." for the Holy One, Blessed be He, does not burden a person more than he is able. Rabbi Eleazar said: According to the sin, so he offers. There are times when a wealthy man must offer a bull because his sin was greater in sinning before his Master. Another offers from the flock because his will was not so great in sinning. A poor man, whose means are not great and whose will is like yours, offers that which is lighter than all... and their offerings are recognized, each one individually, and the Holy One, Blessed be He, sees the pressure of each one according to the weight of his heart. Rabbi Eleazar went to the house of Maon as a guest. He said to him: We have learned that because of three things famine comes to the world, and yet we find only the wealthy [suffering?], for their hearts... and they are not found like the poor...