Verse 189 And master, you are the one who told us in Rabbi Yochanan's name that there are only two arms of the world." He replied: Yes. But here "rays" allude to the two rays that are below them. And what are they? He said: With the anger of your head. And what is above? He said: The fear of God.

Commentary: What we are talking about here is the extension of awareness that takes place in response to one level influencing another level. There is subtle interplay of energies taking place between thoughts and our emotions. When it says the anger of your head we are talking about a projection of thought that starts out below and then ascends naturally by the attraction of what is called the fear of God. The pathways within are described in this manner in order to convey the spatial confluences of the various levels of discovery engendered by these questions and answers. The techniques used here throughout the Bahir and its corollary the Zohar apply to the study of consciousness through direct inquiry.

190. And what is the fear of God? It is the first light. Rabbi [Meir] thus said: Why is it written (Genesis 1:3), "And God said, 'let there be light,' and there was light"? Why does it not say, "and it was so"? But this teaches us that the light was very intense, so that no created thing could gaze upon it. God therefore stored it away for the righteous in the Ultimate Future. This is the measure of all merchandise (Secorah) in the world. It is also the power of the precious stones that are called Socheret and Dar. And upon what is the attribute of Dar? This teaches us that God took a thousandth of its radiance, and from it He constructed a beautiful precious stone. In it He included all the commandments. Abraham came, and He sought a power to give him. He gave him this precious stone, but he did not want it. He was worthy and took Kindness as his attribute, as it is written
(Micah 7:20), "Kindness to Abraham." Isaac came, and He sought a power, but He gave it to him and he did not want it. He was worthy and took the attribute of Strength, which is [called] Terror. It is thus written (Genesis 31:53), "And Jacob swore by the Terror of Isaac his father." Jacob came and wanted it, but it was not given to him. They said, "Since Abraham is above and Isaac is below him, you will be in the centre and take all three." What is the centre? It is peace, as it is written (Micah 7:20), "You give Truth to Jacob." Truth is identical with Peace, as it is written (Esther 9:30), "Words of Peace and Truth." It is likewise written (2 Kings 20:19), "For peace and truth will be in my days." This is the meaning of the verse (Isaiah 58:14), "I will feed you with the inheritance of Jacob your father." This is a complete inheritance (Nachalah), comprising Kindness, Terror, Truth and Peace. It is therefore written (Psalm 118:22), "The stone despised by the builders has become the chief cornerstone." This is the Stone that was despised by Abraham and Isaac, the builders of the world, and that then became the chief cornerstone.

Commentary: What is this first light? It is the moment of aha when you make the discovery within that has been sitting there on the tip of your tongue. This is the light as is said above that was stored away for the Righteous. Then it goes on to say that it is the "measure of all merchandise (Secorah) in the world." Let's think about this process. When you encompass an idea to the point that it thrills you this represents a raised state of discovery within. This discovery within may be extended without. This is where the idea of merchandise comes into play. The merchandise represents all of those things which mirror our expressions. Think about this. No matter what it is what your are thinking about that will make your world and your ultimate happiness. That is why we
are talking about these stones Socheret and Dar. They are symbolic of this first flash of inspiration that must be followed up on in order to uncover the secrets of our lives. Each of us receives the power that is closest to our inmost nature. Abraham received Kindness and Isaac, Terror while Jacob received Peace which the text reminds us is the same as truth. Let’s take a look at this center that is called Peace that is the stone the builders rejected. Consciousness proceeds from the Mystery yet our connection to Mystery is in myriad ways. As we see in this verse Abraham connected via Kindness and Isaac connected via Terror more commonly known as the fear or awe of Hashem. It is only Jacob who is able to maintain the center. This attribute of the center is where thoughts of Hashem arise in their pureness most powerful form. It was natural for Jacob to assume this level due to the evolution of thought that had been taking place ever since Abraham reached up and was connected-contacted here in Gen 12:1

‘Now the LORD said unto Abram: 'Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will show thee.’

And then when he calls there upon the name of the Lord in Gen 13: 3-4

(3)And he went on his journeys from the South even to Beth-el, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth-el and Ai; (4) unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first; and Abram called there on the name of the LORD.

There comes a moment in our lives when we realize that our thoughts are much more than random associations. They have meaning and keep growing in depth and higher in wisdom as we ourselves learn how to listen to the dictates of this inner dialogue making the necessary corrections in order to unify our awareness within the totality of being. When we speak about what Abraham received and what he was given it is noteworthy to mention this first contact, which comes from Hashem and continues until we have Abraham actively seeking this contact-connection at the altar he has made.
The complete inheritance or Nachalah is comprised of both the ability to receive the word of Hashem and the calling to reach for Hashem as in asking for this connection-contact to be a part of you during the times you need it the most. Man has to be active in his ascent becoming conscious of the pathways that lead to Hashem. It is this complete unity that Jacob symbolizes and this is the stone that the builders rejected in that they reached a certain level of unity and went no further. The level of unity intimated by Jacob’s attainment is that of the resolution of opposites that occurs in Mind as various forces are balanced in its center.