It is written,1 ראשית גוים עמלק, ואחריתו עדי אבד - “Amalek is the first among nations, and in the end he shall be destroyed.” The opening phrase means that Amalek is the source and root of the Seven [evil] Nations [the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, and so on] - yet he is separate from them.

Concerning the domain of holiness, too, it is written,2 אני ראשון ואני אחרון - “I am first and I am last....” In this verse, “I am first” refers to the aspect of G‑dliness which encompasses and transcends all worlds, and which is known as sovev kol almin; “I am last” refers to the aspect of G‑dliness which is immanent in all worlds, and which is known as memaleh kol almin. Though sovev kol almin is distinct from memaleh kol almin, it is its source and root.

The same is also true (though keeping in mind the distinction between holiness and its opposite) with regard to the forces of unholiness which are collectively termed kelipah. Amalek, personifying the toughest kelipah, is the spiritual source and root of all those nations, yet he is distinct from them.

The conclusion of the above verse (“and in the end he shall be destroyed”) seems to imply that the kelipah of Amalek contains no element that can be salvaged by means of the divine service called beirurim (i.e., the sifting and refining of materiality by elevating the Divine sparks embedded within it). The kelipah of Amalek, so it would appear, cannot be rehabilitated into something positive and thereby be brought to a state of rectification (tikkun). Rather, the only “rectification” of Amalek is its utter eradication and destruction. This is hinted at in the verse, “and in the end he shall be destroyed” - Amalek‘s consummation is its destruction.

However, we find [written in the words of our Sages] that3 “Some of the descendants of Haman [who in turn was a descendant of Amalek, converted to Judaism and] studied the Torah in public.”

Now, the study of Torah [even when pursued individually] is part of the avodah of beirurim. Public Torah study [is superior, in that it] recalls the verse,4 תרונה חכמות בחוץ - “The wisdom [of Torah] exults [even] outside....” I.e., even those external aspects of the universe which are prone to become (heaven forfend) sundered [from G‑dliness] can exult, for they too can be elevated by means of the beirurim wrought by Torah study.

Since Haman descended from Amalek5 [and Haman‘s descendants, far from being destroyed, even studied Torah in public], it follows that even the kelipah of Amalek may be rectified and elevated. How can one reconcile these two statements - that the total destruction of Amalek is deemed necessary [for he is considered to be beyond salvage and rectification], yet he can indeed be rectified and elevated [as in the case of his descendants]?

A solution may be found in the verse,6 קץ שם לחושך - “[G‑d] has set a limit to darkness....” I.e., He has limited the time during which the darkness of kelipah will be permitted to derive nurture and sustenance from the leavings of holiness, from the most extrinsic level of holiness. When that time expires the kelipah will be utterly destroyed and annihilated, leaving no vestige of itself, because it does not possess any intrinsic form of true existence; it is a non-entity.

[Pious Deceit]

[This is so] even though the forces of unholiness are extremely tenacious. Knowing what transpires deep in his own soul, every man can attest to how intensely his evil inclination and animal soul afflict and oppress him. Never pausing nor ceasing, they confront him with a test at every turn and confuse him with unwholesome thoughts.

Moreover, they incite him to err and stray from one thing to another by means of chicanery and deceit. At times they convince him that because of his supposedly high degree of piety and spirituality it is beneath his dignity to [exercise vigilance in order to] perform a particular mitzvah in the most scrupulous and beautiful manner possible; rather, they argue, he should [utilize this time to] engage in Torah study or the performance of [some other] precept. [Obviously,] the purpose [of inflating him with spiritual pretensions] is to harm him and deflect him from acting as he should.

At other times the kelipah [falsely] derides his spiritual efforts. “Such a [lofty] manner of spiritual service,” it argues, “is totally out of character; who are you to seek such exalted and rarefied forms of divine service?” The kelipah, of all things, becomes a “defender of truth,” demanding that everything be done with uncompromising sincerity - with the intent that the individual will simply refrain from doing whatever he ought to do.

All the above arguments illustrate the tenacity of the kelipah. It is particularly active when it comes to confusing the individual through dreams, which result from one‘s daytime thoughts.7 Here the animal soul marshalls all the power at its command to disturb and trouble him.

So, too, with regard to other mundane matters which are bodily necessities, such as food and drink, the animal soul deploys all its guile to convince the individual that the Torah obliges him to indulge [rather than simply to care for the proper maintenance of his health]. Moreover, the kelipah gives rise to the thought that it does not really matter how well he performs G‑d‘s commands, so long as he goes through the required motions. All the above serves to demonstrate the great strength of the kelipah. [How, then, can we say that it is really a non-entity?]

As is known, the sitra achra [lit., “the Other Side,” a euphemism for the world‘s unholy counterpart to holiness] derives its spiritual nurture from the “encompassing” [i.e., transcendent] level of Divinely-diffused life-force known as the makkif. Hence its strength, even though in essence it enjoys no intrinsic reality; it is a non-entity.

To clarify: As is known, in the realm of holiness there are ten Sefiros - “ten and not nine, [ten] and not eleven” - whereas in the realm of kelipah there are “eleven crowns.”8

There are ten Sefiros in the realm of holiness because in this realm each emanation of Divine illumination unites with its corresponding “vessel” [which is the attribute wherein it resides] and is not separate from it. [There are exactly ten “vessels” - the three intellective attributes of Chochmah, Binah and Daas, and the seven emotive attributes from Chessed through Malchus; hence the illuminations that unite with the “vessels” are likewise limited to ten.]

[Luminary and Light]

Moreover, because in the realm of holiness the Divine illumination unites with the vessels, they too possess essential and absolute existence. [This is so] even though the light itself does not exist essentially and absolutely. Only He whose existence derives from His very own being and essence and is not dependent on any other factor can be said to possess true, essential and absolute existence, whereas light does not derive from its own self, rather it derives from the Luminary.

(This, by the way, explains why this illumination is termed “light without end” (Or Ein Sof) rather than “light without beginning” - for indeed it does have a beginning, namely, the Luminary Who can freely choose to illuminate or not to illuminate. As Rambam states,9 “This is what the Prophet says: והוי-ה אלקים אמת - ’And the L-rd G‑d is true,‘ meaning that He alone is the truth; nothing else is true as He is.” For absolute truth is that which exists independently of everyone and everything else - a condition which can be ascribed solely to G‑d Himself, Whose existence derives from His very own essence and being. In contrast, all that which issues from Him exists only by His volition and sufferance, and not independently.)

The same is true with regard to light: it exists only because the Luminary desires it to exist. If, then, even the light does not possess essential and absolute existence, how is it possible for the vessels - which merely unite with it - to possess essential and absolute existence?

The explanation is as follows: One of the main characteristics of light is that it cleaves to the Luminary, Whom it therefore resembles. Hence, when the Luminary desires that the light should possess essential and absolute existence, it attains such a state. When the light later unites with the vessels and the vessels nullify themselves to it, they too - through the intermediacy of the light - will attain essential and absolute existence.

This is also implied in the phrase,10 הוא קיים ושמו קיים, נכון וכסאו - “He endures and His Name endures; His throne is firmly established....” The term “He” refers to the essence (Atzmus) of the Ein Sof-light, Whose existence derives from His very own essence and being and Whose independent existence is eternal. Since the Luminary desires the existence of the light (which corresponds to His Name), His Name therefore also endures eternal and absolute existence.

(In fact, within Or Ein Sof itself there are two levels - “He” and “His Name,” which allude respectively to the “essence of the light” and the “diffusion of the light.” The term “He” [as implied by the use of the third-person pronoun] is that which is concealed, hence, the “essence of the light”; the term “His Name,” which bespeaks revelation, refers to the “diffusion of the light,” for diffused light also has essential and absolute existence.)

It is G‑d‘s Will that the light unite with the vessels. The vessels of Tikkun [i.e., the vessels and attributes of the World of Atzilus] are nullified to the Divine radiance [that shines within them]. Thus they, too, attain a state of essential and absolute existence.

(Nevertheless, with regard to the vessels the phrase used is, “His throne is firmly established” [indicating a lesser degree of permanence and independence than that of “endures”]; i.e., the vessels are not on the same level and of the same degree of “endurance” as are “He” and “His Name.” This is because “He” and “His Name” possess these qualities intrinsically, while the vessels are inherently merely vessels, and not at the level of illumination and light.

The term used is therefore nachon, which implies being fit, ready and established. When the vessels are in that state, i.e., when they are nullified to the light and long for it - for the Hebrew word keli (“vessel”) shares a root with kilayon (“yearning to the point of expiry”) - they are united with the light. At that time, the unity within the light [i.e., the union of the light with its source, the Luminary] is also found within the kelim, and they, too, attain an essential and absolute existence.

[The Soul‘s Yearning is Immutable]

There is a source [in the literature of Chassidus] that explains that “His throne is established” alludes to Jewish souls, for they are fit receptors into which the Divine illumination can be drawn. Hence they possess essential and absolute existence, in the sense that they are not subject (G‑d forbid) to elimination or change.

This is demonstrably observed. Every individual feels this to be so within his own soul: he is aware of the extent of his distance from G‑dliness as a whole, and particularly aware of his dismal spiritual state with regard to the proper performance of this mitzvah or that. Especially so, regarding the inward aspects of his divine service - in arousing the emotions of love and fear of G‑d in his heart, and in his endeavors at engaging his mind in the contemplation of G‑dliness. Similarly he realizes that his soul is arid in other spiritual areas: G‑dly concepts fail to take a grip on his life.

Nevertheless, in spite of all the above, from time to time he is bestirred with an urgent yearning for G‑dliness; he desires to fulfill all his duties and thirsts for any and all G‑dly illumination. True, his soul‘s intrinsic state is such that he is always yearning - except that the world and his mundane concerns engage him so much that he finds himself bewildered (may Heaven protect us).

We palpably observe that during those times at which he tears himself away from the mundane concerns that afflict and press upon him, he will experience actual physical delight upon apprehending a G‑dly perception, to the same degree that he delights in his own personal affairs.

All these [holy] sensations result from the essential aspect of the soul, which intrinsically possesses absolute existence. Thus, notwithstanding all the concealments and obstructions brought about by the world and his worldly affairs as a whole, and by his body and animal soul in particular, the individual is always able to rouse himself - to shake off the grit and grime that conceal and obscure [the G‑dliness within].

Nevertheless, this state is referred to by [no more than] the phrase, “His throne is established,” for achieving it requires spiritual effort; the possibility remains that things may (G‑d forbid) be otherwise. At the same time, the soul itself [in its essential state, as it stands apart from the body and animal soul,] enjoys genuine and absolute existence.

In contrast, the kelipos and sitra achra derive all their spiritual nurture from the “encompassing” [i.e., transcendent] level of Divine life-force known as the makkif, which does not garb itself within them and surely does not unite with them. This explains why in the realm of kelipah there are “eleven crowns” - ten forces of kelipah apart from the light of holiness which [nurtures them from afar but] does not unite with them. They thus have no real or lasting existence in their own right; they are merely sustained [from afar] by the “encompassing level” of Divine life-force. This is their allotted portion until the End of Days, when their ultimate end will come about and they will be nullified, no trace of them remaining.