Come from the Four Winds, O Wind

217) Ezekiel said, “Then He said to me, ‘Prophesy to the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, ‘Come from the found winds [directions], O wind.’’” From this verse, we know the place from which the wind [Ruach] comes out. How could Ezekiel prophesy about the wind? It is written that man does not control the wind or contains the wind. But while man does not govern the wind, the Creator controls everything, and Ezekiel was prophesying by Him.

The spirit [in Hebrew Ruach is both “wind” and “spirit”] was already in a body in this world, since there were dead there in the cave, which he revived. This is why he prophesied on him, “Come from the four winds, o wind,” from that place that was limited in its pillars in the four directions of the world, the bottom throne, Malchut, a throne for ZA. She has four pillars, the four directions of the world, HG TM, where the spirit stands before it returns to a body in this world.

218) If the spirit of people clothes in the form of a body in this world while in the Garden of Eden, and it is there, it should have written, “Thus says the Lord God, ‘Come from the Garden of Eden, o wind,’” and what is “from the four winds”?

219) The spirit does not come down to this world before it rises from the Garden of Eden on the earth to the throne, Malchut, which stands on four pillars, HG TM. When the spirit rises there, it suckles into it from that throne of the King and comes down to this world. The Guf [body] takes from the four directions of the world, which are the four foundations—fire, wind, water, and dust—and the wind also takes from the four directions of the throne—HG TM—on which it is established.

220) One day, a Jew was walking in the desert and saw a lovely looking tree with a cave beneath it. He approached it and saw that that cave was emitting all the fragrances in the world. He braced himself, entered that cave, and climbed down some degrees in a certain place where there were many trees and scents and perfumes that he could not bear.

221) And there he saw a man with a scepter in his hand, who stood by a door. When he saw the Jew, he was surprised and came and stood by him. He said, “What are you doing here? Who are you?” The Jew was terrified. He told him, “My teacher, I am from the friends. I saw this and that in the desert and I walked into this cave and came down here.”

222) He said to him, “Since you are from the friends, take this bundle of writings and give it to the friends, to those who know the secrets of the spirits of the righteous.” He struck him with the scepter in his hand and the Jew fell asleep.

In his sleep, he saw many armies and camps coming as they were going to that place, and that man struck with the scepter and told them, “Go by the way of the trees.” As they were walking, they flew up in the air and rose, and he did not know to which place. He heard voices of many camps and did not know who they were. He woke up and saw nothing, and he was afraid in that place.

223) In the meantime, that Jew saw that man. The man told him, “Did you see something?” He told him, “In my sleep, I saw this and that.” He said, “On that road, the spirits of the righteous walk to the Garden of Eden, to enter there. And the voices of many camps that you had heard from them is because they stand in the garden in their forms from this world, and they delight in the spirits of the righteous that come there.

224) “As the body is built in this world by tying four elements—fire, wind, water, and earth—and takes form from them in this world, the spirit is depicted in the Garden of Eden from the four spirits that stand in the garden, which are HG TM. And the spirit clothes there, and from them it forms the shape of the body that was depicted in this world. Had it not been for those spirits, which are the airs in the garden, meaning HG TM from the light of Hassadim, called “air,” they would not have been depicted at all and the spirit would not have clothed there.

225) “Those four spirits are tied together to each other, and the spirit was depicted and clothed in them as the body is depicted in the connection of the four foundations of the world—fire, wind, water, and dust. This is the reason why Ezekiel said, ‘Come from the four winds, o wind,’ from those four winds in the Garden of Eden that it clothed and depicted in them. And now take this bundle of writings and go along and give it to the friends.”

226) Rabbi Elazar said, “This must be the clarification of the thing, and the Creator must have provided me with this verse from the four directions so we would reveal its meaning.” The man gave the bundle of writings to the friends, and when Rabbi Elazar took it and opened it, a house of fire came out and surrounded him. He saw what he saw in the bundle of writings, and the bundle flew out of his hands.

227) Rabbi Elazar said, “Who can stand up to the secrets of the King, as it is written, ‘Who shall dwell in Your tabernacle? Who shall abide in Your holy mountain?’ Happy is this way and the time we had encountered you.” From that day forth, Rabbi Elazar was happy, but he said nothing to the friends of what he saw in the bundle of writings. While they were walking, they came across a well of water. They stood by it and drank from the water.