With regard to loving-kindness, we placed emulating God. But there are two modes of emulation. The former reflects the act of willfully emulating God. It requires a concerted effort, and the individual is going against his innate nature to act with compassion and forgiveness. Now we are looking at a mode of emulation that is natural.
The former emulation was the path available to every individual. But following God naturally in what we describe as “natural consciousness” is possible only for a tzaddik. Foundation is the sefirah associated with the tzaddik, the pious individual whose observance of the commandments and emulation of God is as natural as walking. This is the epitome of “Follow in His ways.” This is the positive meaning of the root “to emulate,” in Hebrew.
There is a negative connotation to the same verb, which means “to cut off ” (הדמ). We find this usage in certain verses, such as: “I had thought I would depart life in the middle of my days” (הָכֵלֵי אַמָי יִמְדִּי בִּתְרַמָי אִנֲא), meaning that life would be “cut off.”
