In other words, intellect and emotion are direct expressions of the soul, and are always bound up with the essence of the soul. They cannot exist separate from the essence of the soul in any way.
However, the “garments” of thought, speech, and action, are a step removed from the essence of the soul. They are bound up directly with the intellect and emotions, but not directly with the essence. (In these “garments” themselves the only garment that is directly bound up with the intellect and emotions is the “garment” of thought. Whereas speech and action can only exist as a derivative of thought, since, without thought (on some level) one cannot speak or decide how to act.) These garments exist with a degree of separation from the soul, since the a person can act by copying someone else (or being forced by them to act a certain way contrary to their essential nature), and the same applies to speech, and even a person thoughts could be based on someone else’s feelings or ideas, not from withing one’s one inner self.
It comes out that there are two opposite ways to look at the relative significance of intellect and emotion versus thought, speech, and action:
- From the perspective of the essence of the soul, intellect and emotions are truly revealing it, whereas thought, speech, and action are concealing the true nature of the essence, in things that have a degree of separation from the soul.
- However, from the perspective of another person, the only way we know anything about another person is by looking at their actions, listening to their words, and trying to figure out their thoughts. The other person’s intellect and emotions are not directly accessible to another person. So, from that perspective, the garments of thought, speech, and action are revelation, whereas intellect and emotion are concealed.
The point is that these two stages of expression of the soul - “united garments” of intellect and emotions, and “separated garments” of thought, speech, and action - are the system, the method, of how the essence of the soul can relate to something outside of itself.
The essence of the soul is so spiritual and intangible that is has no way to relate to anything else directly, only through the stages of this interface system of “united garments” and “separated garments.” It uses its own “interface system” to relate to something outside of itself, whether to a physical body, or through the body to other people or objects.
Based on this, we can extrapolate an analogy for how the Infinite Essence of Hashem, and His Infinite Light, which are completely undefinable and intangible, interact with worlds and creations using its own “interface system” of Sefiros, as will be explained.
Before we continue with the analog, Hashem’s “interface” system of Sefiros, we will present here a basic chart of the makeup of the soul, which will help us later in understanding the various levels of Hishtalshelus (system) of the Sefiros. (Some of the aspects of the soul’s makeup described in this chart were not mentioned yet in the maamar, but will be important later in the analogy.)
System of the Soul:
LevelDescriptionEssenceSingular, indivisible, uncompounded. Contains in abstract potential all the soul powers and life force that derive from it, but in the essence they do not “exist” as anything other than possibilities of the essence.Kochos Makifim-Encompassing soul powersPleasure: The first revelations/expressions of the soul are the soul powers of pleasure and will power. Pleasure is closest to the essence of the soul.Will Power: “Will power” is the “external aspect” of pleasure, since a person wants what they have pleasure in. These two soul powers “encompass” all the subsequent soul powers (in particular, the soul powers of intellect and emotion, and the “garments” of thought, speech, and action).
General Life-force: In addition, from the soul comes a general life-force that encompasses the entire body equally, in the sense that the brain is “alive” just as much as the feet are “alive.”SubconsciousIn between the “encompassing” soul powers and the consciously felt “internalizing” soul powers are the subconscious, potential soul powers. This is the (more direct) source of conscious intellect and emotions, that lies between the essence and the consciousness. Relative to the truly “encompassing” soul powers of pleasure and will power, the subconscious is the beginning of “internalizing” soul powers. However, relative to the conscious soul powers, the subconscious is still considered “encompassing” in a certain sense. (See Hosafos for a chart of more details of this “subconscious” state of the soul.)Kochos Penimi’im-Internalizing soul Powers (Tikunim-Adornments)The next level of soul powers is those that come into the limitations of the body, and become internalized in the body. This is both in spiritual soul powers of intellect and emotion, and in the specific life-force that is adapted to every body part. These soul powers are called “Tikunim” adornments, since they reveal the inner beauty and power of the soul, without concealing it.
Intellect
The first of the “spiritual” internalizing soul powers, it can receive new insights from the subconscious intellect, and it is the source, or the trigger, of the emotions, depending on the type of emotion. The intellect is for the soul itself to understand ideas, and in that level, the soul does not need to relate to anyone outside of itself.
Emotion
The second of the “spiritual” internalizing soul powers, it is created or awakened through the intellect, and it is the main driving force behind thought, speech, and action, since, a person needs to have an emotional desire for something in order to think, say, or do something (of his accord, without being forced). The purpose of emotion is for the soul to be able to relate to something outside of itself, to either want to connect to something with love/kindness, or to stay away from something with hate/anger. The conscious emotions are also called “the lower level of desire,” and, in a certain sense, have a deeper connection than intellect to the “encompassing soul powers” of essential pleasure and essential will power.
Specific Life-force
The specific life-force that is adapted to each and every body part, the power for the eye to see being different from the power of ear to hear, and so too in every body part a different “internalized” life-force.
Garments of the soul
These are the external expressions of the soul, as it relates to something outside of itself. These are “garments” directly for the intellect and emotions, and indirectly for the pleasure and will power, and even more indirectly, for the essence. Thus, the essence of the person is also expressed and found even in his “garments” of thought, speech, and action, but only through this system of soul powers. Depending on the “transparency” of the various levels of this system, a person’s actions may directly reflect the state of essence, or completely contradict the essence, or somewhere in between (which is most of the time in most people).
Thought
The first expression of the intellect and emotions is from the person to himself, in his own thoughts. Thoughts themselves are not the “actual” intellect and emotions, but they reflect and reveal the intellect and emotions in the person to himself. Thus, they are the “threshold,” as it were, between the self and outside of the self, where the self can look at itself “from the outside,” as it were.
Speech
The second expression of the intellect and emotions, how the soul actually relates to and connects with another person.
Action
The third expression of the soul, how the soul interacts with physical objects that are not other souls (but could be the body of another person who has a soul, such as giving someone a hug).
