זוהר, בהעלותך כ״הZohar, Beha'alotcha 25

Segment 1א׳

רִבִּי אַבָּא הֲוָה יָתִיב לֵילְיָא חַד, וְלָעֵי בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא. וַהֲווּ עִמֵּיהּ רִבִּי יוֹסֵי וְרִבִּי חִזְקִיָּה. אָמַר רִבִּי יוֹסֵי, כַּמָה אִינּוּן בְּנֵי נָשָׁא תַּקִיפוּ לִבָּא, דְּלָא מַשְׁגְחֵי בְּמִלֵּי דְּהַהוּא עָלְמָא כְּלוּם. אָמַר רִבִּי אַבָּא, בִּשְׂרָא דְּלִבָּא, דַּאֲחִידָא בְּכָל שַׁיְיפֵי גּוּפָא, קָא עָבִיד לוֹן. פָּתַח וְאָמַר, (קהלת ו׳:א׳) יֵשׁ רָעָה אֲשֶׁר רָאִיתִי תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ וְרַבָּה הִיא עַל הָאָדָם. יֵשׁ רָעָה: דָּא אִיהִי תּוּקְפָּא בִּישָׁא דְּלִבָּא, דְּבָעֵי לְשַׁלְּטָאָה בְּמִלֵּי דְּהַאי עָלְמָא, וְלָא אַשְׁגַּח בְּמִלֵּי דְּהַהוּא עָלְמָא מִדִי.

One night R. Abba was sitting and studying the Torah, R. Jose and R. Hizkiah being with him. Said R. Jose: ‘How obtuse are mankind that they have no regard whatever for the things of the other world.’ Said R. Abba: ‘This is caused by the badness of their heart, which spreads through all the members of the body.’ He then cited the verse: “There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is heavy upon man” (Eccl. 6, 1). ‘The evil here referred to’, he said, ‘is the evil residing in the hardened heart that longs to obtain dominion in affairs of this world, but is altogether regardless of the other world.

Segment 2ב׳

אֲמַאי אִיהִי רָעָה. קְרָא דְּבַתְרֵיהּ אוֹכַח, דִּכְתִּיב אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִתֶּן לוֹ הָאֱלֹהִים עוֹשֶׁר וּנְכָסִים וְגוֹ'. הַאי קְרָא קַשְׁיָא, כֵּיוָן דִּכְתִּיב וְאֵינֶנּוּ חָסֵר לְנַפְשׁוֹ מִכָּל אֲשֶׁר יִתְאַוְּה, אֲמַאי וְלֹא יַשְׁלִיטֶנּוּ הָאֱלֹהִים לֶאֱכוֹל מִמֶּנּוּ, דְּהָא אֵינוֹ חָסֵר לְנַפְשׁוֹ כְּלוּם אֶלָּא. רָזָא אִיהוּ, וְכָל מִלּוֹי דִּשְׁלֹמֹה מַלְכָּא, מִתְלַבְּשָׁן אִינּוּן בְּמִלִּין אַחֲרָנִין, כְּמִלֵּי דְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, דְּאִינּוּן מִתְלַבְּשָׁן בְּסִפּוּרֵי עָלְמָא.

Scripture continues: “a man to whom God giveth riches, wealth and honour…” (Ibid. 2). There is here an apparent contradiction, since it first says, “so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth”, and then goes on, “yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof’. If he is in want of nothing for himself, how can we say that God gives him not power to eat thereof? There is, however, an inner meaning here as in all the words of Solomon, and although we have to take note also of the outer garb, we must look deeper into the meaning of this verse, which is as follows.

Segment 3ג׳

תָּא חֲזֵי, אַף עַל גַּב דְּבָעֵינָן לְאִסְתַּכְּלָא בִּלְבוּשָׁא, הַשְׁתָּא הַאי קְרָא הָכִי קָאָמַר, דְּבַּר נָשׁ אָזִיל בְּהַאי עָלְמָא, וְיָהִיב לֵיהּ קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא עוּתְרָא, בְּגִין דְּיִזְכֵּי בֵּיהּ לְעָלְמָא דְּאָתֵי, וְיִשְׁתְּאַר לְגַבֵּיהּ קֶרֶן. מַאי קֶרֶן. הַהוּא דְּאִיהוּ קַיָּים, דְּאִיהוּ אֲתָר לְאִתְצַרְרָא בֵּיהּ נִשְׁמְתָא. בְּגִין כָּךְ בָּעֵי לְאַשְׁאָרָא אֲבַּתְרֵיהּ (נ"א עותריה) לְהַאי קֶרֶן, וְהַאי קֶרֶן יְקַבֵּל לֵיהּ, בָּתַר דְּיִפּוֹק מֵהַאי עָלְמָא.

There is a man to whom the Holy One, blessed be He, gives a certain riches which he may enjoy in the next world and which may remain with him as a capital, to wit, the ever-enduring capital, which consists of the realm of the bundle of souls. It is thus incumbent on man to reserve and leave behind him that capital, which he will receive after he has left this world. This capital is indeed the Tree of Life belonging to the other world, the fruit of which alone has any place or room in this world.