The Letter Tzadi - Why Do the Righteous Inherit the Land?

The Zohar explains the secret behind Isaac's request to Esau to hunt game before he passed on blessings that would make Esau the "heir apparent" of Abraham's dynasty, at the time Isaac thought Esau was righteous.

"Come and see. At the time when Isaac said to Esau 'go to the field and hunt me game'. The word 'hunt' is written in the Torah with a hey [like 'tzeid Hashem']. For Isaac's intention was to say: go to the field of sacred apples, which you always say is the place of your prayer, and draw upon me the holy Shechina representing the secret of the letter hey in the name of Hashem so that you may be blessed from it when I bless you. This is what he told him 'and I will bless you before Hashem', for he wanted to give him a real share in holiness, not just a regular blessing. At that moment, the Throne of Glory trembled, for if Esau were blessed, the snake, who is the Sam-mael, Esau's angelic force, would be freed from his curses, and Jacob would remain with them.

Therefore, when Jacob entered before Isaac, Micha-el, the minister of kindness and blessings, entered with him. And wherever Micha-el is found, the Shechina is revealed with him. Isaac sensed the scent of paradise and said: 'the scent of my son is as the scent of a field that Hashem has blessed.' Therefore, he blessed Jacob [thereby appointing him as the continuation of Abraham's lineage]. And when Esau entered later, Gehenna entered with him, meaning Lili-t named the snake, which is the female of the Sam-mael, Esau's angelic force. And Isaac trembled exceedingly, for he initially thought Esau was not on that side. And when he saw this, that Esau belonged to the realm of the Other Side, he said about his blessing to Jacob: 'and indeed blessed shall he be.'"

Tzadi Numerology

The numerical value of Tzadi is ninety, ten times the value of Tet, which is nine. This signifies Tzadi's completion of the cycle of nine, indicating the world's cyclical nature and the reward-and-punishment system of bringing good to the good and bad to the bad, as explained with the letter Tet earlier. The wise individual who observes the cycles of the world, knowing their origin from dust and eventual return to dust - as in "know from where you come and where you are going" - overcomes their impulses and becomes a tzaddik, thereby inheriting the good. This is as it is said: "Say of the tzaddik (Tzadi) that he is good (Tet)."

The letters of the title "Tzaddik" allude to the daily connection a tzaddik has with the Creator through their mouth. Tz; Ninety amens. D; Four holinesses. Y; Ten kaddish prayers. K; One hundred blessings.

Bent Tzadi (Tz) and Straight Tzadi (Ts)

The Talmud explains: "Bent Tzadi, Straight Tzadi - bent tzaddik, straight tzaddik." Meaning, in this world, the righteous seem to be people burdened under the weight of their labor, as they toil and tire in battling the desires and temptations of the physical world. However, in the future, when the evil inclination will vanish from the world and the time for reward arrives, they will stand upright like the simple letter (Ts). As it says in Isaiah: "And your people will all be tzaddikim, they will inherit the land forever." Meaning the "tzaddik" initially bent, will merit to inherit "land", where the Tzadi is upright. The word "land" here refers to the life of the world to come, as the sages expound in the Talmud regarding this verse: "Every Israelite has a part in the world to come. As it says: 'and your people will all be tzaddikim, they will inherit the land forever'." Even though some may sin, all Israel has a part in the world to come. And the explanation is, since the Creator's purpose in creation is to bestow goodness upon others, this goal will also be achieved with the wicked - after they are cleansed of their sins through suffering, or once they themselves cleanse themselves through repentance while still in this world. As Maimonides writes in the Laws of Repentance: "Great is repentance that brings one close to the Shechina. As it says: 'Return, Israel, unto Hashem your God.' Repentance draws the distant near. Yesterday, this one was hated by the Creator, despised, distant, and an abomination, yet today, he is beloved, and pleasant, near, and dear." And once someone is cleansed and refined by repentance or through suffering, they also merit the life of the world to come and receive their reward for all the mitzvot they observed. For there isn’t a Jew who hasn't observed numerous mitzvot from the 613 commandments. As the sages say on the verse in the Song of Songs: "as a slice of pomegranate are your temples", the Almighty praises Israel "even those among you who seem empty are full of mitzvot like a pomegranate".

In the bent Tzadi and in the final Tzadi lies the answer to the well-known question: "Why is there a righteous person who suffers?" As the sages say in the Talmud: "Hashem brings suffering upon the righteous in this world [thereby cleansing them from their minor sins], so they will inherit the world to come." This is the upright final Tzadi, symbolizing the end, the world to come, where the tzaddik who is currently bent, stands upright magnificently. The purpose of the suffering is to either cleanse and purify the individual from transgressions or to elevate the person from their mundane material routine, to a higher spiritual outlook. The Talmud uses a metaphor, comparing tzaddikim to a tree that stands entirely in a pure place, with some of its branches leaning toward an impure place. Thus, when those branches are cut, it relieves the tree, as it is now entirely pure.

Moreover, while five letters M, N, Ts, P, K are bent, serving as conduits for flowing abundance, the form of their simple (final) letters stand erect, like they are fixed and stable (similarly the final Mem represents stability). In the Tzadi expressing 'justice', this indicates that while the system of justice in creation is rooted in the bent Tzadi, constantly searching for justice, the judgment is rooted in the simple Tzadi, whose two heads represent the two initially opposing sides and arguments, but the judgment decisively determines justice.

Even the Messianic times, when the tzaddik will stand upright in grandeur and the absolute divine justice will be revealed to all, is hinted at through the letter erect Tzadi, final Tzadi.

Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev writes, based on Midrash, that through the secret of the four final letters hinting at redemption, kh, m, n, p, four were saved: the three patriarchs and Moses our teacher. But through the secret of the letter Ts, the complete redemption for all of Israel will come, as it is the letter of the tzaddik and the final justice. This is the secret of the verse about the redemption: "From the ends of the earth, we have heard songs of glory to the Tzaddik." The simple interpretation of the verse announces that "after Israel remains among the nations, one in a city and two from a family" - as Rashi says there on the previous verses: "So shall it be among the earth, among the nations, as an olive tree after its harvest", and as indeed, to our sorrow, occurred in the Holocaust - "they will ascend with songs from the ends of the earth. What are these songs? 'Glory to the Tzaddik'. In the future, there will be a status and revival for the tzaddikim" (Rashi's language). However, according to the secret, the verse hints that the redemption of the letters 'from the ends' which are the four final letters m, kh, n, p, their songs we have already heard in the land. As the merit of their redemption was already proven in the patriarchs and Moses our teacher. Where will the rising and revival in the final redemption come from? 'Glory to the Tzaddik'. From the letter Ts. Because Israel's majesty will rise by the merit of the letter Tzadi, which is the secret of the tzaddik's righteousness, and Hashem's justice in His world.

The Letter Tzadi According to Kabbalah

According to mystical teachings, the letter Tzadi symbolizes the ninth sefirah, "Yesod". This is the secret of the verse: "and the tzaddik is the foundation of the world." Indeed, the gematria of Tzadi, ninety, is the ninth in the tens group.

The Tzadi has two heads: one resembles a Nun and the other a Yud. The Nun hints at the sefirah of Malchut (feminine) and the Yud to the sefirah of Yesod. Initially, Adam was created back-to-back like Siamese twins, as written "You formed me back and front"; and they were separated then, but return united, now face to face in holiness, in marriage and sanctification. And anyone who guards their covenant in holiness not to stumble in the trials of desire, such as forbidden gazing, impurity, etc., is called a tzaddik. It is fulfilled in them what is written: "light is sown for the tzaddik", measure for measure. For he who guards the holy covenant and his seed in sanctity receives double portions of the supernal light that elevates and exalts him, serving him like seed sprouting and producing abundant abundance.

Therefore, the perfect title: "tzaddik", is granted only to one who maintains the sanctity of the covenant. Since the place of the covenant corresponds to the sefirah of Yesod as previously mentioned, and to this person, it is said: "and the tzaddik is the foundation of the world". Hence, Joseph earned the title "Joseph the tzaddik" after withstanding the trial with Potiphar's wife, as explained in the Zohar.

Such a person, who withstands the trials of maintaining the covenant, reaches the title tzaddik and also attains sovereignty in many areas of his life, as Joseph the tzaddik did in his time. Because the crown of Yesod is Malchut, like a crown.

Guarding the Sanctity of the Covenant – Connection vs. Short

The importance of guarding the sanctity of the covenant is understood by the known principle that all human actions in this world, both positive and negative, have a similar impact in the spiritual realms, which are the foundations of a person's soul. Thus, although a person's longing to connect with a spouse stems from a pursuit of completeness, as a person's soul is originally composed of a male and female part, as explained in the Zohar, fulfilling this aspiration improperly can cause massive damage and destruction, equal to the tremendous benefit and rectification it can achieve if done according to the Creator's will. Just as when feeling hungry for physical food, one should choose good food for the body and not poisoning substances that destroy the body; in feeling the need for a spouse, one should choose a modest Jewish woman, God-fearing, with good character, and sanctify her only according to the laws of Moses and Israel. Only then can the peak of their relationship resemble the laying of tefillin or any essential electrical connection that creates abundant light and blessing. However, fulfilling this legitimate need in a prohibited manner is like a short circuit, causing explosions, fires, and detriment. It is worth mentioning that due to the exaltation and significance of the interpersonal connection according to the secret, it is ingrained in the world's nature that the creation of future generations of people depends on it. Indeed, precisely because of the profound dignity and importance of this, great is the seductive temptation in it for evil as it knows that failing in this matter is a great fall. Therefore, one who withstands the trials of guarding the covenant, earns the title tzaddik, and dominion.

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