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Masekhet Atzilut
An Ancient Kabbalistic Text
Translation & Commentary
By
HaRav Ariel Bar Tzadok
Copyright © 2009 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.

“Eliyahu
Eliyahu Ben Yosef opened, it is written, (Psalm 28),
“the secret of HaShem
em is for those who fear Him and
His covenant is forr those who acknowledge them.”
From this we learn that the Holy One blessed be He
does not reveal His secretss other th
than to those who
fear Him.

Even
ven if a man of Israel were to study Bible, Mishna,
Talmud, Agadah and Tosafot,, but he has no fear [of G
G-
d], then in vain does he swim
m in the mighty waters. All
his efforts are for naught.

And the one who [truly] fears Heaven [he] pursues the
concealed and [the] Ma’aseh Merkava which is the
essence of wisdom and knowledge, as it is written,
(Psalm 102), “the
the beginning of wisdom is the fear of G
G-
d.”

The fear [of G-d]d] is a brass shield and an iron sword

and [the] one [who possesses it] will not be afraid of
anything,, as it is written, (Isaiah 33), “the sinners in
Zion were in fear.”.” They were in fear of sinning, but
they were not afraid. [This is] because the Shekhina
was adorned before them and protects them and reveals to them sublime secrets.

This is “the secret of HaShem is for those who fear Him.” And it is written, (Job 21) “the fear of
HaShem is wisdom, and turning from evil is understanding.” (Masekhet Atzilut 1)

These wise words speak for themselves. Unfortunately, although people read the words, they often
overlook their message. The text here clearly states that without one possessing the honest and
sincere personality trait of Yirat Shamayim (fear of Heaven) any and all study of Torah, the greatest
mitzvah of them all is consider null and void. Without the fear of Heaven all religious observances are
hypocritical (Sefer Ba’al Shem Tov, Shemot 1).

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Copyright © 2009 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.
 KosherTorah.com

Our text here does not simply state nebulously that one has to be Yirat Shamayim; it actually spells out
for us what the expected Yirat Shamayim needs to be. One who is truly Yirat Shamayim will by nature
have a personality that first seeks out the secrets of Torah as an academic pursuit and then continues
in the meditative practices of transcending physical space/time through the expansion of consciousness
here called Ma’aseh Merkava.

Read the words above; they are quite clear. Without these two pursuits of the study of the secrets of
Torah and the practices of Ma’aseh Merkava, one is not considered to be Yirat Shamayim; and without
being Yirat Shamayim, one is considered to be a hypocrite, whose entire efforts in Torah study are a
complete waste of time. These are strong and harsh words, but disagree as one may wish, these are
the words written by the ancients who proclaim them to be true!

Learning the secrets of Torah can never be accomplished through academic pursuits alone. One can
read and learn all the books about Kabbalah ever written and still walk away completely ignorant of
what it means to bond with HaShem and to practice Ma’aseh Merkava. Like with all other mitzvot of
the Torah, it is not the learning that counts but the doing (Lo HaMidrash HaIkar Eleh HaMa’aseh).

When it comes to embracing the secrets of Torah one cannot do this from the pages of a book, one
needs practice. The practices of Ma’aseh Merkava are meditative exercises used to expand human
consciousness. Only in this higher enlightened state can one gaze into the Torah and intuitively
perceive the secrets therein. Mere human academic accomplishments do not expand human
consciousness to the point of granting one this psychic insight.

Fear is instinctual. Love is acquired. Fear is innate and natural; one does not need to learn it. Either
one has it or one does not. Look to the natural world for example. Animals have instinctual fear of
that which can cause them harm. Because we human beings have lost our connection to the natural,
we have lost our natural instinct of fear. This is much to our own harm. As we can see with society’s
ills, all our societal and individual harm comes about because we have forgotten our instinct to stay
away from that which harms us. We use our intellect to justify all type of unjustifiable behaviors.
Such lack of vision always leads to death.

When one learns the secrets of Torah one is not learning a topic but rather a new way to think and see.
One learns to see the depths in everything, even the depths of that which is on the surface. The
depths of a thing in Torah language are called the heart of the matter. And we are taught to love G-d
with all our hearts and to place His words upon our hearts (Deut. 6:5-6). Love is something acquired.
We do not naturally love; we learn to love. Yet, we are equally commanded to fear G-d. Indeed, our
Sages teach that the fear of G-d comes before the love of G-d.

The beginning of wisdom, like the pasuk says above, is the fear of G-d, not the love of Him. Fear is
instinctual. When we regain our instincts, we are using our physic intuitive knowing. When we
reacquire that, we achieve wisdom. Wisdom is the sefirat Hokhma; Hokhma is intuition and therefore
also instinct. Thus when we regain the instinctual, we have regained wisdom/Hokhma. The sefirat
Hokhma corresponds in Kabbalah to the Olam (dimension) of Atzilut, the domain of the Divine.
Therefore to regain instinct is to touch the Divine. This is the beginning of wisdom/Hokhma/Atzilut.
This and only this is the true Torah, like the section above clearly states.

Yirat Shamayim serves as both a shield of defense and a sword to attack. How is this so? The answer
again is instinct. Every martial artist and warrior knows that in spite of however much training they
receive in theory, their ability to be victorious is based upon their experience. Like I said above, Lo

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Copyright © 2009 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.
 KosherTorah.com

HaMidrash HaIkar Eleh HaMa’aseh. Every fighter fights on instinct. He/she knows in advance when to
block and when to strike. One can in essence sense the next move of one’s opponent faster than one’s
eyes or brain can process it. One acts with a speed faster than intellectual processing and is already
blocking or striking, without having to think about it. The mind actually slows down the warrior.
His/her body acts instinctually, faster than what the senses can process. Every successful warrior
knows this to be true.

As it is with a warrior of the flesh, so is this true with warriors of spirit. They fight with instinct. They
know in advance what is and what is not proper. They can instinctually recognize the good and with
equal instinct recognize the bad. They have awareness that transcends words and still can be justified
with simplicity without the need to be overly-philosophical and having to convince or “brainwash.”

True Yirat Shamayim is not superficial superstitions and fears. Such is the way of the fool, never the
way of the wise. Only those who know living Torah know wisdom. Only that which is alive can keep
one alive. Thus living Torah keeps one alive. Without this wisdom/Yirat Shamayim, one’s Torah is
dead, and like the text says above, all one’s efforts in learning such “dead” Torah is worthless. This is
the difference between what we call the “dead” Torah of Mashiah Ben Yosef and the living Torah of
Mashiah Ben David. Those with wisdom will understand here the secret of redemption.

Instinctual wisdom keeps one away from harm; whereas evil is understood and recognized
intellectually. Evil is harmful; this should not only be instinctual; it should also be logical. Therefore
when we approach something that we may or may not feel to be dangerous, we use our senses coupled
with our intuitive internal wisdom and explore, analyze and discover the truth of the matter. Once we
have discovered the truth of a thing it is easy to explain its danger (or lack of it). Proper
understanding brings with it simplicity and clarity. Simplicity is here the key.

When something is clearly understood one can explain it simply and easily. Without such an
understanding we must question what one really knows. Too much talk covers up ignorance. Simple,
straight, logical talk shows understanding. Yet, if someone says something simple, but stupid, we
recognize the lack of understanding and also the lack of wisdom in such words and ideas. These must
be dismissed.

The instinctual mind of wisdom “smells” in superficiality the weakness and falsehoods in such
positions. This is how we use our intellects to ascertain truth. We distinguish between fears of
foolishness and the fear of Heaven.

Embracing living Torah means using both our Binah brain and our Hokhma brain. Only when the two
are merged together do we then use our full minds. Without a full mind, no one can have full Torah.
Without full Torah, there is a great shortage in the soul and thus in the world.

In Pirkei Avot it is said that a Voice cries out from Sinai everyday saying, “woe to the world for the
disgrace shown to Torah.” Who today has the inner ear to hear the inner Voice? Only those with
combined understanding (Binah) and wisdom (Hokhma) have the inner ear to hear (Ta Shma) and the
inner eye to see (Ta Hazeh). The proof of this is not in words, but in actions; actions of simplicity,
actions of instinct, actions of wisdom (not superstitious foolishness) and actions of truth. This is the
living Torah, the mighty shield and sword in our hands.

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Copyright © 2009 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.