Shabbos Night (2 of 10)

 (In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl)

K’gavna 

(In chassidic shuls, this piece of Zohar is said right before the start of Maariv, the nighttime prayer.)

Just as the six points of the sefirot unite Above to become one, the Shekhinah, too, unites her six points, Below. The two are aligned perfectly, in harmony, face to face (as it were). The Blessed Holy One is One. Above no one sits on His Throne of Glory until she—the Shekhinah—is as One in her realm as He is in His. This needs to happen in order for them to “unite” utterly. (We have been taught elsewhere {Zohar 2:134b] that Hashem is One and that His Name, aka the Shekhinah, is One.)

The secret of Shabbos? The Shekhinah’s name is Shabbos. This name has become unified in the One so that union with the One can take place.

The secret of the Shabbos (Friday) night prayer is linked one of the Shekhinah’s secrets. She is the secret of the Throne of Glory. She becomes fully integrated so that His August Royal Majesty will sit on His Throne.

When does the Shekhinah prepare herself? As Shabbos begins she becomes one within herself, totally detaching from the Sitra Achra (the Other Side, i.e., the evil side). All judgments leave and she remains, alone in union with the Holy Light. She crowns herself with many crowns, for the Holy King Who awaits her in the higher world, Atzilut.

All the demons created by anger, by haters and complainers flee—they can’t get out of her sight fast enough—to hide in the Sinkhole of the Great Deep. With their departure, no other force holds sway in the lower worlds, Beriyah, Yeztirah and Asiyah. All people, all beings, call out, loud and clear, in Hashem’s Name.

The Shekhinah’s face radiates the Holy Light. She is crowned by the prayers of the Jews; {Rebbe Nachman teaches* to say this next phrase with extra enthusiasm and joy} they, each and everyone, is crowned with a brand new soul, special for Shabbos. Now we can begin Maariv, to bless it joyfully, with shining faces. We can say, “Barkhu es Hashem hamevorakh”—”Hashem” means Hashem; “es” means the Shekhinah. We honor her by beginning Maariv with a blessing for her.

© Copyright 2014 148west.com/O. Bergman

* Sichot HaRan/Rabbi Nachman’s Wisdom #270

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