Likutei Moharan 29:11/ליקוטי מוהר"ן כ״ט:י״א

111 . This is the explanation [of what the Wise Men of Athens asked]: A certain man went see king a wife, but they didn’t give her to him — <“A wife”> alludes to “a God-fearing woman” (Proverbs 31:30). In other words, one who blemished by sinning generated in the Shekhinah an aspect of menstruation. Because of this, “the Serpent draws her to himself” and a separation is made between the Holy One and His Shekhinah. Thus:

2They didn’t give her to him — This corresponds to, “He will roar mightily over His habitation,” as above.

3What did he see that made him go to where there was a better one? — That is, when he wants to purify <the Shekhinah from her impurity>, he goes to the highest level—i.e., the General Remedy, which is higher than “a God-fearing woman.” This is alluded to in (2 Samuel 23:3), “The tzaddik rules with the fear of God.” For the tzaddik, who corresponds to the General Remedy, is above. He “rules with the fear of God,” which corresponds to Malkhut, as is written (Avot 3:2): “Were it not for the fear of the malkhut ….” And this is:

4He took a peg and pressed it in below — “A peg,” as Rashi explains, is a spike or a nail. It alludes to the words of Torah, as is written (Ecclesia st es 12:11), “The words of the wise are like spurs and nails.”

5pressed it in below — This refers to the lower levels, where there is no General Remedy. This is, “after Rabbi Shimon died,” for then speech is forbidden. Therefore:

6It did not go in — It was impossible then to speak words of Torah, as above.

7He pressed it in higher up and it went in — This alludes to “in the days of Rabbi Shimon”—“the bow of the Covenant,” the General Remedy—when speech is permitted.

8In other words, [Rabbi Yehoshua] showed them that it is impossible to rectify speech except by praising the tzaddikim, as this is the General Remedy for speech. And the same holds true for all things. The only way to rectify them is through the General Remedy, so as to elevate the mind from which all whiteness is drawn, as explained. And this is:

9He said: That one, too, has found his de st ined mate — This alludes to the mentalities, corresponding to, “flowing from Lebanon.”

10In other words, he chose for them the example of speech and showed them that rectification is impossible without the General Remedy. <He showed them> that while Rabbi Shimon was alive speech was perfected, but after the death of <Rabbi Shimon, they said,> “Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin.” As explained, this is the meaning of: He pressed it in below….

11This is likewise the case for all things; each one must be rectified through the General Remedy which applies to it. Earning a living, for example, is [rectified] through charity.

12The same is true of everything else; each thing has to be rectified by its particular General Remedy. This is because it is necessary to elevate the mentalities so as to draw whiteness from there, in order to rectify and whiten all the blemishes. And this is only possible through the General Remedy, as explained.

13And this is: That one, too, has found bat maZLeh — This corresponds to “noZLim from LeBaNon”—from the LiBuNa (whiteness) of the mind, as above.

14[All this is alluded to in the words (Proverbs 10:20),] “keseF nivchaR leshoN tzaddiK —choice silver is the tongue of the tzaddik,” [the last letters of which spell FRaNK.] {The explanation of this la st piece and the verse’s connection to the lesson will be clarified elsewhere.}