Above and Before the Kabbala
Adapted by Zechariah Goldman from the Writings of the Ari
I the author, adjure on the great name of G-d, anyone
into whose hands these [kabbalistic] pamphlets fall, that he should read this
introduction. If his soul desires to enter the chamber of this wisdom, he should
accept upon himself to complete and fulfill all that I write, and the former of
creation will testify upon him, that to him will not come damage to his body and
soul, and to all that is his, and not to others, because of his running after
good, and one who comes to purify and come close, first before everything fear
of G-d, to attain fear of punishment, for awe of G-d's greatness that is the
more internal fear, he will not attain, except from the maturation of wisdom.
His essential involvement in this knowledge should be,
to eliminate the thorns from the vineyard, for those who engage in this wisdom
are therefore called tenders of the field.  | | " ...he needs [to heed] the admonition: turn from evil and do good; and pursue peace" | | |
And certainly the evil shells will be
aroused against him, to seduce him and to cause him to sin; therefore, he should
be watchful that he not come to sin even unintentionally, so that they will have
no relation to him. Accordingly, it is necessary to guard against [adopting]
leniencies [in Torah Law], for the Holy One Blessed Be He is exacting with the
righteous, like a thread of hair. For this reason, he needs to abstain from meat
and wine during weekdays, and he needs [to heed] the admonition of "turn from
evil and do good; and pursue peace."
Pursue peace: it is necessary to seek peace, and not
to be demanding in one's home, whether for an insignificant or a significant
matter and certainly a person should not succumb to anger, G-d forbid!
And he needs to distance himself to the ultimate
distance [from evil].
Turn from Evil:
To be cautious in all the details of the commandments,
and even the words of the Sages for these are included in [the negative
commandment] do not stray [from the word that I [G-d] command you].
To rectify the damage [one has done] before one goes
to the coming world. | | " To be cautious in all the details of the command- ments, even the words of the Sages " | | |
To be careful not to get angry even when disciplining
his children; in principle, he should not get angry at all.
In addition, he needs to be watchful of arrogance,
specifically in matters pertaining [to his observance] of Halacha, for
the power [of arrogance] is great, and in this regard arrogance is a terrible
sin.
With every pain he suffers, he should examine his
deeds, and [then] return to G-d.
He should also immerse [in a mikva] at the
necessary time [as soon as possible after any seminal emission].
He should also sanctify himself during marital
relations so that he should not [egoistically/sensually] benefit.
There should not pass any night, [where he does not]
think every night what he did during the day, and [he should] confess [and
repent]. | | " he should refrain from any speech that is not of a mitzva and necessary" | | |
He should also minimize his business dealings, and if
he has no livelihood, except through business, he should intend that Tuesday and
Wednesday from noon and on, the intention should be [that these times are set
aside] to the service of his creator.
Any speech that is not of a mitzva and
necessary, he should refrain from, and even in a matter of a mitzva he
should desist [from speaking] during prayer.
And do good:
To awaken at [Torah defined] midnight to recite the
order [of the Tikun Chatzot] in sackcloth and ashes, and great crying,
and with intention [fulfilling], all that comes out of his mouth. And afterwards
he should immerse in Torah for whatever time he can be without sleep, and at
least a half hour before dawn, he should awaken to immerse in Torah study.
He should go to the synagogue before dawn, before the
obligation of talit and tefillin, to be watchful that he should be
one of the first of the ten [men that make a minyan].
Before entering [the synagogue], he should accept upon
himself the positive commandment "and you shall love your neighbor as yourself,"
and only then enter.
To complete the hint [alluded to in the word]
tzadik [tzadi = 90 - dalet = 4 - yud = 10 - kof = 100] every
day, that is [comprised of] 90 amen's, 4 Kedushot, 10 Kadishes,
100 Blessings.
Not to interrupt his awareness from [the sensations of
holiness and consciousness emanating from] his tefillin during prayer,
except for Amida and while engaged in Torah study.
It is necessary to be wrapped in talit and
tefillin when he immerses himself in Torah study [during the day and
afternoon].
To meditate, during prayer, on the [kabbalistic]
intentions, as it is written in Etz Chaim.
That he always places before his eyes the [Divine]
Name, a product of four [letters] Havaya(h) [ Yud-Hei-Vav-Hei], and
he should never veer from it, as it is written I have placed G-d before me always.
That he meditatively focus while reciting all the
blessings, and specifically the blessings before enjoyment [made over eating in
general].
His labor in Torah needs to be, Pardes, and do
not think that they will reveal to him secrets of Torah when he is empty of
knowledge, as it is written [in Scripture that] [G-d] gives wisdom to the wise.
And one needs to be cautious that he not let escape from his mouth anything of
this wisdom, that he has not heard from a man who is not worthy to depend on, as
Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and his colleagues have warned. [Etz Chaim, Introduction, p. 22-23]
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