Attributes of the Soul

Six Chapters, Six Divine Attributes

Pirkei Avos essentially comprises five chapters. Chapter number six, which is in actuality a Beraisa,¹ was added as an appendix to Avos. The Holiday of Shavuos, which received its name from the Biblical phrase “seven weeks you shall count”² follows the six weeks of recitation of Pirkei Avos between the Holiday of Passover and Shavuos, at which time we are ready for the receiving of the Torah. Thus when surveying the numbers associated with Avos one notices the three numbers of five, six and seven playing a prominent role.

One can explain the significance of the numbers five, six and seven as they pertain to Pirkei Avos, in light of the fact that the six chapters of Pirkei Avos correspond to the six emotional attributes: Chesed (Kindness, love), gevurah (severity, judgment, awe), tiferet (beauty, harmony, compassion), netzach (victory, competitiveness, tenacity) hod (splendor, submission, gratitude) and Yesod (foundation, channeling, commitment) as will be explained below. There are, however, three ways of enumerating these attributes. As the Zohar states: “there are five, there are six and there are seven.”³ That the attributes are associated with the number five is due to the fact that of all the seven attributes, only the first five are regarded as the essential ones. They include the attributes of chesed through hod. When one views the basic structure of the attributes they consist of the first five. And this is the derivation of the “fifty gates of binah (understanding),” discussed in the Talmud:⁴ When we take these five attributes and view them through all their permutations (as each of the five is made up of an element of one of the total ten Attributes,⁵ we arrive at the number fifty.

The number six is applied to the attributes when they are counted together with yesod, which is “outside the body,” and is not regarded as one of the essential attributes. Rather, yesod forms the channel through which the other five attributes are introduced into the seventh attribute of malchus.⁶ After King David enumerates the five basic G-dly attributes he concludes: “For all in heaven and earth [are Yours]” The Zohar translates this verse by substituting the phrase “that which unites” as a translation of the word kol instead of “all.” Now the verse reads: “for that which unites heaven and earth.” Heaven and earth in this verse refer to the five upper attributes (heaven) and the lower attribute of malchus (earth). It is the attribute of yesod that channels the upper effluences to the lower.

Now the word “all” in Hebrew, which the Zohar translates as “that which unites” is kol, which has the numerical equivalent of fifty, alluding to the fifty specific forces (10 x 5) that are channeled through yesod into malchus.

The number seven thus applies to the attributes when they are joined (through yesod) with malchus, whose function it is to receive and then channel the energy of the upper six attributes to the outside world.

Accordingly, the six chapters of Pirkei Avos can be said to correspond to each of the six attributes and the Holiday of Shavuos is associated with the seventh attribute of malchus, which contains all of the energies of the higher attributes. In other words, through the recitation of the six chapters of Pirkei Avos, one elicits the full spectrum of one’s soul’s spiritual powers that prepare one for the reception and internalization of the Torah at Shavuos.

First Three Chapters: Chessed, Gevurah and Tiferes

One can see the correspondence of each of the six chapters to the six attributes:

The first chapter corresponds to the attribute of chessed-kindness. This is reflected in both the beginning as well as the end of the chapter.

The chapter opens with: “Moses received the Torah from Sinai.” That G-d gave His Torah, His “hidden treasure,” to mortal man is an act of unparalleled kindness. The chapter concludes with an emphasis on the virtue of peace. Peace and acts of loving-kindness are interrelated. Our Sages allude to this association in their comment on the verse: “Redeem my soul in peace.”⁷ Our Sages observe that the notion of peace here refers to the study of Torah and acts of loving-kindness etc.”⁸ As Rashi⁹ explains: “loving- kindness is also [an Talmud, Shabbos 88b.

expression of] peace. For when one personally performs an act of kindness for his fellow, he recognizes that he is his friend. This leads to brotherhood and peace.”

(Since we are taught that in the realm of holiness all the attributes are incorporated within all the others, one can also find teachings in chapter one that relate to the opposing attribute of gevurah-judgment. Chessed comprises elements of gevurah, although chessed is the predominant attribute, and the predominant theme of chapter one of Pirkei Avos.).

Chapter two corresponds to the attribute of gevurah-judgment. As is the case with the first Chapter, suggestions of gevurah can be found in both the opening and closing remarks of the chapter. One of the first statements of the chapter read: “and you shall calculate the loss of a Mitzvah against its gain.” And another one is: “Know what is above you.” These statements summon us to be judgmental about our deeds and are motivated by the attribute of gevurah.. Similarly, at the end of the chapter, it is stated, “the day is short, there is much work, the workers are lazy… and the master is pressing.” This statement too is demanding and judgmental, expressive of the attribute of gevurah.

(There are, however, statements in Chapter two that are reflective of the attribute of chessed. This is because, as stated earlier, in matters of holiness each attribute incorporates elements of all the others. However, the dominant theme, reflected in the beginning and end of the chapter, is clearly gevurah.)

Chapter three corresponds to the third attribute of tiferes, beauty or harmony. This is alluded to in one of its opening statements, “Reflect on three things.” The number three alludes to the attribute of tiferes, because it is the third element that synthesizes the other two attributes of chessed and gevurah. This, then, is what is implied in the phrase “reflect on three things,” when one reflects on the attribute of tiferes, one perceives three things.

In truth, much of Avos is filled with sets of three teachings. This is so because all of Torah is associated with the number three. As the Talmud describes how G-d gave: “a threefold Torah, to a three-fold nation, through [Moses] a third child [born after Miriam and Aaron] on the third day [of preparation] of the third month.”¹⁰ Yet, nowhere is the number three as pronounced as it is in this chapter where it states emphatically “Reflect on three things.” Here the number three is a matter that we ought to pay extra attention to because this chapter is particularly partial to the number three as it is the chapter that corresponds to the third attribute of tiferes.¹¹ Last Three Chapters: Netzach, Hod and Yesod.

Chapter four corresponds to the attribute of netzach, victory or tenacity. The chapter opens with, “Who is a chacham-wise person?” This is an allusion to the attribute of netzach, which is an extension and final manifestation of the attribute of chochma, following the scheme in which the Ten Attributes are divided into three “directions” or modalities. It is well known that the right modality comprises: chochma-wisdom, chessed, kindness and netzach-victory.

This explains the import of the question, “Who is a wise person?” If the Mishnah were to be referring to the attribute of chochma itself, there is no sense in asking chochma, “who is a chacham?” However, now that we say that the Mishnah corresponds to the attribute of netzach, which simultaneously extends from chochma, but also obscures it, the question can be asked, “Who is a Chacham?” This can be interpreted to mean, where can one find the true expression of the attribute of chochma? And the answer is, in the attribute of netzach, because of the principle that “the beginning is wedged in the end.”¹² Thus, the answer to the question “where does chochma truly manifest itself?” is: “in the attribute of netzach.”¹³ With the foregoing analysis that chapters three and four correspond to the Divine attributes of tiferet-beauty and netzach-victory, respectively, we can shed light on the difference in phraseology that we find in these two chapters:

In the beginning of Chapter three it is stated that in order to avoid sinning one should reflect on how we will be judged by G-d in the future. The Mishnah thus states that we should reflect on: “before whom you will give a judgment and an accounting, before the Supreme King of Kings, the Holy One Blessed is He.” Compare this to a similar statement at the end of chapter four: “against your will you will give judgment and an accounting before the Supreme King of Kings, the Holy One Blessed is He.”

In light of chapter three’s objective of providing us with a meditation that would dissuade us from sinning, it would have been fitting to include the strongly worded statement: “against your will,” in the notice that we will be judged by G-d. Wouldn’t the knowledge that we have no choice in the matter and no way of escaping the reality of being judged by G-d, contribute to a more sober view of sin? Why then does chapter three omit the reference to the fact that judgment will be made against our will, while it is included in chapter four?

With the foregoing premise, that chapter three corresponds to the Divine attribute of tiferes, the question can be answered. The attribute of tiferes represents the ultimate expression of divine light. (This is so, because of the unique position that tiferes occupies within the three modalities, into which all the Ten Attributes are divided, right, left and center. Tiferes is associated with the center, and in Kabbalah we are taught that only the middle line rises above the Ten Attributes, to the level of keser-the Crown.). “Chapter three,” which represents this great revelation, negates the need to serve G-d with compulsion and coercion. In the environment of tiferes, the mere knowledge that we can be judged, even if it were not inevitable, would suffice to keep us away from sin.

Netzach-victory, by definition, represents a state of concealed G-dly light, because the fact that one is victorious implies that there are adversaries that necessitate eliciting the attribute of netzach-victory, to overcome them. When one serves G-d, utilizing the attribute of netzach of his soul, it implies that one does not have the ability to reach G-d through the power of his intellect. It also suggests that one’s emotions of love and reverence are likewise dormant. One must evoke the faculty of victory to overcome the adversaries to G-d’s will. From this vantage point one must be apprised of the inevitability of G-d’s judgment.¹⁴ Chapter five corresponds to the attribute of hod-splendor, submission or devotion.¹⁵ Chapter six corresponds to the attribute of yesod-foundation, channeling or commitment. Thus, this chapter is not an integral part of the Pirkei Avos, but it is a Beraisa that is considered to be “outside of the body” or an appendix to the primary body of the Mishnah. This is analogous to the attribute of yesod, which is the channel or conduit of the other attributes into the realm of malchus.¹⁶ It is not an integral attribute, just as chapter six of Pirkei Avos is not an integral part of the Mishnah,¹⁷ but nevertheless it is connected to it, just as yesod is connected to the upper five attributes.

From the book Introduction to Pirkei Avos (Biurim L’Pirkei Avos) by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, adapted from the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe and published by the Jewish Discovery Center.

Footnotes

1. [A Beraisa is a statement authored by the rabbis of the Tanaitic period that culminated with the redaction of the Mishnah by R. Yehudah HaNassi. Many of the teachings of these Sages were not included in the Mishnah, due to R. Yehudah’s insistence that the Mishnah contain only the highlights of Jewish law. All the “extraneous” (hence the name Beraita, which means “outside”) material thus, was deleted from the Mishnah, but compiled in separate works by his disciples, particularly the Tosephta by R. Chiya and R. Oshiya. Pirkei Avos, while one of the sixty tracts of the Mishnah was augmented with an additional sixth chapter, which is not a Mishnah but a Bereisa. – Translator’s note.] ↩

2. Vayikra ↩

3. Zohar, vol. 3, p. 254a. ↩

4. Rosh Hashanah 21b. ↩

5. [The ten attributes refer to the seven discussed here, which are essentially emotional powers, and the three intellectual faculties and attributes: chochma, binah and da’as. When one looks at any of the attributes they can be view in a general way as being one attribute, or they can be viewed as being predominantly one attribute but also containing various admixtures of the other nine. Thus we can have chessed, kindness in it purist form and we can have chessed with a tinge of chochma or any of the other attributes. Thus the total number of attributes that emerge from the basic five is 50. – Translator’s note.] ↩

6. [Human anatomy and the process of reproduction is employed frequently in Kabbalah as a metaphor to describe the relationship of the five basic attributes to the sixth and seventh. The five are representative of the “two arms” and “two legs” and the “torso” (the head is representative of the three intellectual attributes, which serve as the source for the lower emotional ones.). All of these features are channeled through the reproductive organ (yesod) into the womb (malchus). The reproductive organs, which are responsible for generation of life parallel the attributes of yesod and malchus, sixth and seventh attributes, respectively. Translator’s note.] ↩

7. Psalms 55:19. ↩

8. Berachos 8, beginning side a. ↩

9. Ad loc. ↩

10. Shabbos 88a. ↩

11. [The Rebbe does not mention whether there is a connection between the concluding Mishnah and the attribute of tiferes. Perhaps, tiferes is alluded to in the word “parpara’os” (condiments) that is mentioned there. That word has all the letters of the word tiferes in a different arrangement. In addition, that Mishnah speaks of the “body of Halacha.” As noted earlier, the Zohar refers to tiferes as “the body” or “torso” in the configuration of the attributes. In addition, that Mishnah connects (synthesis or tiferes) the two distinct areas of Torah, the basic laws that pertain to impurity (gevurah) with the condiments to wisdom that can perhaps be related to chessed, as can be said to be figuratively sweet (a characteristic of chessed) - Translator’s note.] ↩

12. Sefer Yetzirah. ↩

13. [This Kabbalistic explanation is also consistent with the Mishnah’s answer to the question: “He who learns from every person.” As the Rebbe states, netzach is an offshoot and outgrowth of chochma. When can one’s tenacity and desire to prevail be a positive trait? Only when one’s stubbornness is a product of one’s chochma. When the trait of stubbornness does not “learn from every person,” i.e. look for guidance from the higher attributes, particularly chochma, the highest of all the attributes, then netzach is not a desirable trait. As was mentioned in the preceding essay, chochma is the level of conceptual thought, where the ideas that emerge are still very much in an amorphous state, because they derive from and are still “under the influence” of the soul that transcends articulation. When one’s attribute of netzach is connected to chochma, i.e., when one’s stubbornness is an expression of the soul’s true feelings, not obscured by intellectualism and other influences, that is where chochma is truly expressed because it has manifested itself in the most basic aspect of one’s be- havior. One is prepared to act defiantly and tenaciously until they prevail. A person whose trait of netzach is unadulterated with no connection to his chochma will be the least likely candidate to accept what others say. Only when the netzach is expressive of and tempered by the humbling atmosphere of chochma will the otherwise obstinate person be receptive to others. – Translator’s note.] ↩

14. [Here too, the concept of netzach is alluded to in the end of the chapter, for the statement “against your will you will give judgment..” appears at the very end of Chapter four. Translator’s note.] ↩

15. [The connection between the attribute of hod and chapter five was not explained in the Rebbe’s original discourse. Perhaps, one may suggest that Chapter five discusses the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in several places. Mishnah 5 details the ten miracles that transpired in the Bais Hamikdash-the Holy Temple. Likewise, Mishnah 20 concludes with a prayer for the speedy rebuilding of the Bais Hamikdash. The Talmud (Berachos 58a) declares that hod refers to the Bais Hamikdash. Perhaps, also, Mishnah 20 (immediately before it prays for the restoration of the Bais Hamikdash) deplores the brazen individual and hails the modest. Brazenness derives from netzach, while modesty is associated with hod. This could explain why the prayer for the rebuilding of the Holy Temple follows the statement about brazenness and modesty, because the Temple that is associated with hod will instill the feeling of modesty and temper the brazenness. Furthermore, Mishnah 20 is authored by Yehudah ben Teima. The name Yehudah, is etymologically linked to hoda’ah, or submissive acknowledgment—the attribute of Hod. In addition, the sage mentioned last in this chapter is Ben Hei Hei. The letter hei denotes the number five and hod, which also begins with a hei, is the fifth attribute. – Translator’s note.] ↩

16. [In this talk, the Rebbe did not explicitly cite the connection of the beginning and end of Chapter six to the attribute of yesod. One might suggest that it is implicit at the beginning, which refers to the style of the Beraisa that is analogous to the Mishnah. This is precisely the role of yesod, which while distinct from the Mishnah, contains nothing essentially that is not implicit in the Mishnah. Likewise the end of the chapter states: “all that was created was created for His glory.” The word all-kol has been interpreted by the Zohar (see above) as a reference to yesod. Furthermore, the Mishnah concludes with the verse: “G-d will reign forever and ever.” This can be seen as an allusion to how the six attributes—including yesod, represented by Chapter six—ultimately leads to the attribute of malchus, G-d’s eternal and exclusive reign over the entire world. – Translator’s note.] ↩

17. Adapted from the talk of Shabbat Parshat Teitzei, Tavo 5741. Based exclusively on a listener’s account. ↩