136. It is written, “And you will love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” It is also written, “‘And now what have I here?’ declares the Lord, ‘for My people have been taken without cause.’” The Creator’s love for Israel, although the iniquities caused Him to depart from among them and they were dispersed among the nations, He demands their affront. When Israel are in their land, the Creator is entertained in His garden, Malchut, and approaches Israel, and hears their voice, and is praised in them.
137. Since their iniquities caused Israel to be exiled from the holy land, the Creator does not enter His garden, Malchut, and is no longer entertained with her. Moreover, He cries out and says, “‘And now what have I here?’ declares the Lord,” and it is written, “Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.” “Here” is the Shechina. Here, too, the word “Here” is the Shechina. “For My people have been taken without cause” is as it is written, “you have been sold for free.”
138. Since the day when Israel were exiled from their land, there have not been joy before the Creator, as it is written, “I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.” And all this is because of the love that the Creator loves them, as it is written, “‘I have loved you,’ says the Lord.” This is why it is written, “And you will love the Lord your God.”
“And you will love” means that a person must connect to Him with high love, that any work that one must do for the Creator, he will do with love. There is no work such as the love of the Creator; love is the entirety of the Torah, since the Ten Commandments in the Torah were included here.
139. Nothing is more favorable to the Creator than one who loves Him properly, as it is written, “with all your heart.” What does “with all” mean, since it should have said “with your heart,” and “with your soul,” and “with your might,” so what is “with all your heart”? It comes to incorporate two hearts, one good and one bad. “With all your soul,” with two souls, one good and one bad. “With all your might,” whether he receives a windfall inheritance, or in some other way, and whether he earned it.
140. One who loves the Creator is crowned with Hesed from all sides, and acts kindly to all, and does not worry about his own body or money. How do we know this? From Abraham, for because of his love for his Master, he had no mercy for his own heart, or his soul, or his money.
141. “For his heart,” meaning Abraham did not mind his own will because of the love for his Master. “For his soul,” meaning he did not pity his son or his wife because of his love for his Master. “For his money,” since he would stand at a crossroads and dispense food to the whole world. For this reason, he was crowned with the crown of the Sefira Hesed, as it is written, “Mercy [Hesed] to Abraham.”
One who is connected with the love of his Master is rewarded with this. Moreover, all the worlds are blessed thanks to him, as it is written, “And Your Hassidim shall bless You.” Do not pronounce it “shall bless you,” but “shall bless Koh [the Lord],” that the Hassidim, those who have been rewarded with the Sefira Hesed, will bless the Shechina, who is called Koh. Thus, even the Shechina is blessed thanks to them.
143. It is written, “No eye has seen any God besides You, who will act for those who wait for Him.” Why is it written, “who will act”? It should have written “You will act,” as it is written, “besides You,” in second person.
144. Rather, as it is written, “to behold the pleasantness of the Lord and to visit in His hall.” “The pleasantness of the Lord” is abundance that comes from holy Atik, Keter, with whom the Creator is entertained. Pleasantness stems from Atik, and to visit in His hall means the hall that is the highest of all, Bina. Here, too, “No eye has seen a God besides You, who will act.” Who will act? That Atik that is the most hidden, since this abundance depends on him. This is why it is written, “will act,” in third person. Happy are those that the love of their Master adhered to them. For those, their portion in that world is immeasurable.
145. How many sections upon sections there are to the righteous in that world, and the section that is higher than all is for those that the love of their master is tied to them, since their section is tied to the hall that is the highest of all, since the Creator is crowned in love by this.
146. That hall, the highest of all, is called “love,” and everything stands on love, as it is written, “Many waters will not quench the love.” Everything stands in love since the holy name HaVaYaH is like that. The Yod of HaVaYaH, Hochma, her tip that is above never parts from her, the Keter, since in love, the Keter is on her and never parts from her.
The Hey of HaVaYaH, which is Bina, the Yod, which is Hochma, does not part from her. They are together in love, and do not part from one another, and so is the Hey of HaVaYaH, which is as it is written, “And a river comes out of Eden.” The river, Bina, comes out of Eden, Hochma, and Bina always comes out from Hochma, and they are forever adhered together with love.
147. When Vav-Hey, ZA and Malchut, adhere to one another, they adhere in love together, a groom with a bride, whose way is always in love. It follows that the Yod in the first Hey, the first Hey with Vav, Vav with the bottom Hey, always connect with one another in love, and everything is called love. Hence, one who loves the king becomes connected in that love. This is why it is written, “And you will love the Lord your God.”