The Mystical Insights of the Letter 'Tet': A Journey Through Torah and Kabbalah

In the Torah, the first instance of the letter 'Tet' appears in the word "good". The Talmud also discusses 'Tet' in the phrase: "and He will be good to you". What does it mean when it's said that Hashem saw "and behold, it was very good"? When someone encounters a crocodile, they might not think that the creature is going to do something good... Moreover, everyone feels differently about what is good for them at any given time. Goodness is about achieving a goal. Hashem saw that creation had met its purpose. The expression used by the Sages, "and He will be good to you" clarifies this: it is what is good for you, what you need. That is true goodness.

Therefore, goodness relates to the goal, the place you aim or need to reach. In contrast, evil is straying from that goal, missing the mark. The problem is that a person's way often seems right to them. By nature, people don't truly know what "good" is. In many cases, a person may think something is "good" because it is pleasurable, such as tasty food or other desired things, even though there might be more important matters.

Thus, in a positive and ideal sense, 'Tet' symbolizes true goodness. But in reality, it represents what a person desires, which is not always the straight path to good. All desires deemed good by a person are symbolized by 'Tet'. For this reason, it also has a negative aspect expressed in the Midrash of Rabbi Akiva's letters: don't read it as 'Tet' but 'Titan' (meaning clay), a material where one sinks and cannot move forward, "Jeremiah sank in the mire". The way we are created includes a strong inclination toward false good, toward the tide, and even the form of the letter 'Tet' suggests an inward coiling. A person can master their nature or get consumed by it.

The numerical value of 'Tet' is nine. This number is also connected to the letter's significance, as the word "nine" in Hebrew relates to turning, as in the verse "Hashem turned to Abel and his offering", and turning implies choosing a goal and moving toward it, like in the verse mentioned, indicating that Hashem chose Abel's offering and turned to it, and that closely ties with the letter 'Tet', whose shape illustrates a sudden turning.

The meaning of 'Tet', therefore, involves the direction a person gives to their body, will, and actions. The "good" is a marker that a person follows, turns toward, and wants to reach. However, which marker a person sets for themselves depends on their choice, what they regard as good.

On one hand, there is a goal, but on the way to it, there can be slowdowns, mistakes, deviations, all built upon the letter 'Tet'. Even the words used for straying from the path: divert, deviate, stray – are all connected with 'Tet'. Likewise, sin, starting from missing the mark to the sin itself, which is a failure to achieve one's purpose in the world. The boundary is thin: on one side is a journey, where a person walks for pleasure; it is good for them, but in a moment of losing direction, it can become a struggle, a path too difficult, without a goal. A missile is a remarkable example of an object aimed at a target, and its name derives from "casting", a precise throw, like King Saul hurling a spear at David. Against the missile, an interceptor is deployed...

Several uses of the letter 'Tet' express the Midrashic association linking it to clay. Sin comes from a dulling of the heart, a blockage. One fails to feel, wrapped, as it were, in a layer of plaster. A person sinks within sin, confident that it is good for them, but they wander in circles within the clay. Sealing, wrapping, as described in the Mishnah: auxiliary, covered. And also impurity, created by sin, a layer that blocks, setting a false objective. What lies beneath the sealing is hidden, or buried, absorbed.