莱赫·莱查·佐哈尔 16

1R. Simeon was once on a journey in company with his son R. Eleazar and R. Abba and R. Judah. As they were going along, R. Simeon said: ‘I marvel how indifferent men are to the words of the Torah and the problem of their own existence!’ He proceeded to discourse on the text: With my soul have I desired thee in the night, yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early (Is. 26, 9). He said: ‘The inner meaning of this verse is as follows. When a man lies down in bed, his vital spirit (nefesh) leaves him and begins to mount on high, leaving with the body only the impression of a receptacle which contains the heart-beat.

2The rest of it tries to soar from grade to grade, and in doing so it encounters certain bright but unclean essences. If it is pure and has not defiled itself by day, it rises above them, but if not, it becomes defiled among them and cleaves to them and does not rise any further.

3There they show her certain things which are going to happen in the near future: and sometimes they delude her and show her false things. Thus she goes about the whole night until the man wakes up, when she returns to her place. Happy are the righteous to whom God reveals His secrets in dreams, so that they may be on their guard against sin! Woe to the sinners who defile their bodies and their souls!

4As for those who have not defiled themselves during the day, when they fall asleep at night their souls begin to ascend, and first enter those grades which we have mentioned, but they do not cleave to them and continue to mount further.

5The soul which is privileged thus to rise finally appears before the gate of the celestial palace, and yearns with all its might to behold the beauty of the King and to visit His sanctuary. This is the man who ever hath a portion in the world to come,

6and this is the soul whose yearning when she ascends is for the Holy One, blessed be He, and who does not cleave to those other bright essences, but seeks out the holy essence in the place from which she (originally) issued. Therefore it is written, “With my soul have I desired thee in the night”, to pursue after thee and not to be enticed away after false powers.