13. A Pomegranate
A Pomegranate, he said, implies to what our sages said, “Even the vain ones amongst you are as filled with Mitzvot as a pomegranate” (Iruvin 19). He said, Rimon (Pomegranate) comes from the word Romemut (Loftiness), which is above reason. And the meaning will be that the “The vain amongst you are filled with Mitzvot.” The measure of the filling is as much as one can go above reason, and this is called Romemut.
There is only emptiness in a place where there is no existence, as it is written, “hangeth the earth over nothing.” You find that what is the measure of the filling, of the empty place? The answer is, according to one’s elevation of oneself above reason.
This means that the emptiness should be filled with loftiness, meaning with above reason, and to ask of the Creator to give one that strength. It will mean that all the emptiness was created, meaning it comes to a person to feel thus, that he is empty, only in order to fill it with the Romemut of the Creator. In other words, one is to take everything above reason.
And this is the meaning of, “and God hath so made it, that men should fear before Him.” It means that these thoughts of emptiness come to a person in order for one to have a need to take upon himself faith above reason. And for that we need the help of God. It follows that at that time one must ask of the Creator to give him the power to believe above reason.
It turns out that it is precisely then that one needs the Creator to help him, since the exterior mind lets him understand the opposite. Hence, one has no other counsel but to ask of the Creator to help him.
It is said about that, “One’s desire overcomes one everyday; and were it not for the Creator, one would not prevail.” Thus, only then is the state when one understands that there is no one to help him but the Creator. And this is “and God hath so made it, that men should fear before Him.” The matter of fear is discerned as faith, and only then is one in need of God’s salvation.