In the beginning Elohim [God] created: Elohim means judge. Indeed, just like the statutes of the Torah are called judgement [or laws]. Similarly, the properties of nature that the Holy One, blessed be He, ingrained in His world are called judgement [or laws]. As is explained in [Tractate] Shabbat 155, "'The righteous One knows the judgement of the poor ones' (Proverbs 29:7); the Holy One, blessed be He, knows that that the dog's food [supply] is sparse, etc.;" and the matter is not in the category of punishment, but rather this is [its] nature, and that is called judgement. And behold [regarding] the name, God/Judge, even though its simple understanding is the One who runs His world in judgement, nonetheless, here, its understanding is the One who creates His world with judgement. And this is its understanding in the Sifri, at the beginning of Parshat Ve'etchanan concerning the prayer of Moshe, "Lord, God/Judge, in judgement have you created the world." And there, we explained with His help, may He be blessed, why the Sages, of blessed memory, explained the intention of Moshe in this way. And also see, what I have written further, Genesis 9:16, and in the Book of Exodus 6:2.

The heavens and the earth: The clear simple explanation is that which was written by Ramban on verse 8, that [the Torah] is not speaking in this verse about the firmament that would on the second day be called, heavens; and about the dry land that would be called land on the third day. It [follows] from this that the firmament is not intrinsically and inevitably heavens, and so [too] dry land is not inevitably earth; rather [it is only that] the Holy One, blessed be He, called the firmament, heavens, and the dry land, earth; which is not the case in this verse - [instead, here] it is implied that, in essence and to begin with, their qualities are evident; which is that their names are heavens and earth, [even] without being given [these names.] Just like the name, dry land, is not [dependent on its] being given a name, but rather it is self-evident that dry dirt and soil is called dry land, based on its characteristics [and so will be explained about man, later.] And the explanation is that in the beginning of the creation, [it was] His will, may He be blessed, that all the workings of the world should be [by way of] emanator and recipient. An example is the sun and the seven planets that emanate to us. Nonetheless, they receive from what is higher than them. And about what is higher than them, we say in the prayer text, "who takes out the sun from its place and the moon from its dwelling place." And it is known that the movement of the sun and the moon is not in this fashion, but the intent is [regarding] the causes of motion of the sun and the moon. And they are called according to their action, as per the explanation of Rambam, of blessed memory, on the Tractate Avodah Zarah - the form of the sun is the 'constellation' of the sun. And behold, all of the emanators [together] are referred to by the name, heavens [shamayim,] because of the letters [that form the combinations], shem, yim: the meaning of shem [name] is the latent potential to emanate; and yim is an even number [to indicate] the plural [form] as with yadayim [hands] and raglayim [feet]; and eretz [earth] indicates the recipient, the nature of which is to run [ratz] to receive the emanation. [And see what I have written in the book of Deuteronomy in Parshat Ha'azinu Hashamayim and in Parshat Berakha on the verse (Deuteronomy 33:28), "even His heavens drop down dew."] And the verse did not explain anything about the highest emanators, since they cannot be fathomed, except by those of great intelligence. And whoever's mind is sharp will find a hint about it all, as it is with everything. And the earth begins from the higher waters, in the midst of which, afterwards God made the firmament. And the potential of the water above the firmament, and its form, was made different than the lower waters, as will be explained.

Chaos: This name rests on something that is not distinguished and differentiated from anything else. [Just] like a wilderness - where there is no recognition of different places - is called in the song of [Parshat] Ha'azinu, “and in the void.” And in [Tractate] Avodah Zarah 8, there is [found that the first] “two thousand years were chaos.” And the explanation [of this is that it was [a time of the] action of youth, without Torah – all of the actions of man were the same, without difference. And this is the intention of Targum Onkelos, [when he translates the word as] “empty;” that in an empty place, one part is no different than an other.

And void: This name [bohu, which when broken down is made up of 'in it' and 'it'] rests [on this concept] because much was included 'in it;' meaning from the dry land below the waters, to the end of the waters, the nature of all creation was included in it, [as well as] the potential of the creatures [that would be created] afterward.

**And darkness was upon the depths:**This is the element of fire that was within the ground, as even today there are many elements of fire [in the ground;] and if [the ground] releases them, the earth quakes.

And the spirit/wind of God was hovering upon the face of the waters: It was not blowing strongly in order to dry [the waters,] like other strong winds that are known by the name, spirit/wind of God, but rather it was hovering calmly.

Let there be light: It is known that this light is not the light that shines for [future] generations, and like other things in this section. And for this reason, it is not written concerning this, “and it was so.” Since also from the beginning, this light was only formed, so that it should be hidden for the righteous ones afterwards. So that there should not be a new creation afterwards, which was not [created] during the seven days [of creation,] God [now] said, Let there be light.” And the word, so, is to be understood as an expression of a foundation and base; like in (Proverbs 11:19), “ so (established) is righteousness for life." And for this reason, it is not written here, “and it was so.”

And God saw, etc.: It is not that He did not know before it came to be that it would be good, as he [then] saw after it came to be. But rather also in this did He come to establish the nature [of things], that seeing is better than intellectual belief and understanding of a matter; so much so, that they stated about Moshe in Shemot Rabbah, that Moshe, our teacher, was not energized when the Holy One, blessed be He, said that the Jews had made a calf like [he was] afterwards when he saw [it] with his eyes. Even though it wasn't considered a doubt for him before he saw it; but this is the nature [of things], that seeing with the eyes is more effective than intellectual processes. And here, the Omnipresent, may He be blessed, implanted it into nature in the story of creation, when He saw afterwards that this is how it was.

The light: And it is not written like in every [other] section, "and God saw that it was good." Since there are two understandings of the phrase, "that it was good:" A) That the thing was good for the goal for which it was needed. Even though its main purpose is not for a good goal, nonetheless according to what is needed, the thing is good; B) It is really good. And behold, in all of the creation, there are several things that are not good, like types of pests, but the Holy One, blessed be He, saw that for the sake of the creation, it was necessary that it be this way. But light is definitively good. So much, that [it is said about] any good thing that it is light, as it is found (in Ta'anit 7 and Bereshit Rabbah 26), every [time the word,] light is mentioned with Eliyahu, the verse is speaking about rain. And that is because [rain] brings good to the world. (And Ramban in the beginning of Parshat Miketz gives a forced explanation of the matter.) And so, all success is referred to as a 'bright day' and the lack of success, darkness of night.' To the point where the poet made [it] a metaphor and said (Psalms 121:6), At day, the sun does not dim and the moon at night. And later (Genesis 28:15), we explained that the intention is about the time of success and its lack. And this is the expression of Scripture [that tells us] that the Omnipresent saw that light was intrinsically good.

And God separated between the light and the darkness: The meaning of separation has two understandings: A) A partition that separates between two things that are the same or different; B) A spiritual separation between two things - that appear to the human eye to be the same - like the separation between a day that is holy and [one that is] profane, since according to how it appears, what is the difference between one day and the next? Or the separation between [something] pure and impure, and many others. And here it should not be explained in the second way. Since light and darkness are anyway different to our sight, and are the opposite of each other. But rather [it should be explained] in the first [way], that he made a screen to separate. Which means [that this screen is found] in the time that is not light and not darkness. And so the Omnipresent, may He be blessed, implanted that the darkness should not come immediately after the light; but rather that the light should diminish continuously until it becomes dark. And behold, we find in Scripture that sometimes it is written "that separates this from that," and sometimes it is written that "separates between this and that." Meaning that where there is not, in the matter of the separation, an attenuated version of this and that, it is written, "from." And where there is an attenuated version of this and that, in the matter of the separation, it is written, "between this and that." (And see Exodus 8:19 and Exodus 26:33 and in several places, and so is it in every place, by the will of the Highest, may He be blessed.) And here it is according to our words; that the hour that separates them is sometimes closer to the light and sometimes closer to the darkness. And so is the nature of creation in all things that are deemed light and darkness, that there is a [gradual] distinction between them. And in this way man is able to tolerate the difference, according to the way of nature.

And to the darkness, He called night: The Sages, of blessed memory, explained in the beginning of Tractate Pesachim, that the Holy One, blessed be He, called to darkness and appointed it over the night. [By this,] our Rabbis taught us that we should not say that darkness is only the absence of light, like when - in the middle of the day - we close the windows, it becomes dark. For, if so, it would not be a creation. But in truth, darkness is a creation, on its own as well, as it is written (Isaiah 45:7), "and created the darkness." And it is great distortion to say that darkness is only the absence of light. But rather, God makes both of them, just as He concerns Himself over holiness and impurity. (And see what I have written later, Genesis 27:9.) And to the question, "what does this creation help, behold, even without [its] creation, there would be darkness in the absence of light?," the Sages, of blessed memory, have taught us (in the chapter "Chelek" and in Bereshit Rabbah, Parshat Noach and in the Talmud Yerushalmi in the first chapter) that the light of a fire does not shine during the day in a dark place, [with the same brightness] as it does at night when darkness reigns. And from this, lofty people were able to know while they were sitting in the dark, when it was day and when it was night - in which darkness rules. And as it is with the light and darkness of day and night, so too is it thus with all things that are compared to light and darkness; since there are many bounties that man does not feel so much when he is successful, until he becomes poor and he sees the bounty [that he once had]. And [He], may He be blessed, implanted this into His world.

And it was evening and it was morning: The explanation is that at the time that it was evening here, it was morning in another place on the face of the earth (Ba'al HaMeor, Tractate Rosh Hashanah, Chapter 1).

And it separated: Meaning a screen that separates.

The water from the water: [This] will yet be explained in the next verse.

And God made the firmament and He separated, etc.: This verse says, 'explain me according to the simple meaning.' Since behold, this verse ends "and it was so," and [so] what is the verse missing? And also, why is it written, "and He separated, etc." - behold the firmament separates automatically? And also the difference [is noteworthy,] that [here] it is written, "between the waters, etc and the waters etc. and not, "the waters, etc. from the water," as in the previous verse. And also here it should have written, "between the waters that are above the firmament and the waters that are below the firmament." But to begin with, we must understand - is the screen between the waters according to its simple understanding not essentially needed for that day [alone]? Since behold, on the morrow, God said, "let the waters gather, etc." and the lower waters were submerged very much; and if so there was no need for a screen that would separate between them and this is a wonder. But even more difficult is that which is found in Chagigah 15, that Ben Zoma peeked and saw that there is only two or three finger breadths between the higher waters and the lower waters, as it states, "And the spirit of God was hovering over the waters." And [this is] surprising, since, behold they are far from each other like the sky is [far] from the earth. But all of this is explained according to the Midrash Kohelet, that [states] that the firmament is not the lower skies, that are upon the earth, but rather it is a second firmament, within which the luminaries were placed later and [which] is called the firmament of the skies and not just skies, and the Sages, of blessed memory, brought an explicit verse [to prove this] (Nehemiah 9:6), "The skies [and] the skies of the skies and all of their hosts." And according to this, the explanation of, "let there be a firmament in the waters and it will separate the waters from the waters" is understood. Meaning [that it is] between the waters that are above the lower ones and the waters that are above the higher skies which [comprise] the [actual] firmament. (And similar to this is found in the Guide for the Perplexed 2:30.) (And this is as is found in Shemot Rabbah 33: Above - "let there be a firmament in the waters;" Below - "and the curtain will separate for you between the holy and the holy of holies" (Exodus 26:33). Behold, the separation between the two waters is compared to the separation between the holy and the holy of holies, and this is as I have written.] From this, [we see that] the understanding of the separation of this verse is not a screen that separates, but rather an unusual entity between these waters. And the matter is clear that both of them are not in the form of waters that are visible to us in the lower world. Rather, the waters are purified and provide good and kindness in a different from, that is referred to here with the name, 'water;' and that is [God's] running [of the world] which emanates great goodness and kindness. And about this [concept of 'water'], it is written (Psalms 42:8), "The depths call to the depths [for the voice of Your water channels]." And it is written (Psalms 65:10), "the stream of God is full of water;" and many [other] verses and midrashim [relate to this], and [this] is called by us, 'the upper waters.' And in truth, everything that is under the second firmament is exactly the running of the world through nature, and the luminaries and the 'constellations' control it and [they] are called 'lower.' And the verse [here] informs us that God separated between running the world through kindness and emanation - which is above the firmament, meaning above the running of the 'constellations;' and the waters that are below the firmament - which is the running [of the world] exactly by the 'constellations.' And for this reason, it is written "from on top of the firmament," the meaning of which is [to convey] not on top of on top; as is found in in the Chapter Mitsvat Chalitza about the wording of the verse (Deuteronomy 25:9), "from on top of his foot." And so [too] is the understanding of "from on top of the firmament," close to the firmament and not far [from it]. And it comes to make us understand that the intention is not that the upper waters are kindness that appears through complete and absolute miracles. For, if so, there would be no need for a separation from the kindness that is in nature, since it is automatically separated. And so [too], there would be no need to say that the waters that are under the firmament, means the physical waters and the ones that we see; for, if so, they are certainly not comparable to the upper waters. But rather, it is necessary to separate between the running [of the world] through providence and 'through hiding it from nature;' and between the running [of the world] through the 'constellations,' exactly according to nature. And this is what Ben Zoma peeked at and said that there is not more than two or three finger breadths between them; and it is hinted to in the earlier verse "and the spirit of God," meaning His providence, may He be blessed, "was hovering upon the face of the waters," which is the network of kindness in nature. And the meaning of "and God made the firmament" is that He refined and set it up on its essential foundations, (as I have written in Parshat Ha'azinu on the verse [Deuteronomy 32:6], "He is your maker," and in several places), which means that the bottom face of the firmament would extend more towards the lower waters - which is exactly natural - and the upper face would extend more to the higher waters, like any thing that separates between two items. And [the reason that] it is written [here] "between" and "between" is as I have written earlier on verse 4. And this firmament is from the wonders of the Perfect Knowledges, may He be blessed, such that His providence, may He be blessed, is mixed together with nature, for each person according to his deeds. And about this, it is written (Psalms, 19:2), "and the work of His hands is spoken by the firmament;" that the Holy One, blessed be He, always does wonder [and] supervises his creatures and, nonetheless, gives nature dominion together [with His providence].

From under the skies: Meaning the regular skies, which is perceivable to us, and not below the firmament of the skies, as later on the fourth day.

To one place: Not really one place, but rather several connected places, from which the waters surrounding them, gathered.

He called seas: A gathering [of water] is called a sea, and many gatherings are called seas. This is the simple explanation of the thing. And the exegetical understanding [drasha] is known.

Grass: It is a species, the entire purpose of which is the herb and not the seed. And if so, its main purpose is that the leaf be more distinguishable, and this is the understanding of 'grass' as I have explained in the song of Ha'azinu.

Herbs, that give off seed: The purpose of which is the seed, whether small or large. And behold, it doesn't state now, “according to its specie,” as it states by the fruit of the tree; [meaning] and with it, since it [nonetheless] states in the adjacent verse, “and the earth brought forth grass, herbs that give off seed, according to its specie.” And also [noteworthy] is that the main point of the adjacent verse seems unnecessary. Firstly, we must explain the meaning of, “according to its specie,” or [what it means] when “according to its specie,” is written concerning what grows on the ground or the creations with living souls. And [the Torah need to say this] because there is almost no species, within which are not included several sub-species. As with wheat, we find in Eichah Rabbah, …................?. And so [too,] there are many in each species. And at the time of the creation, only one wheat plant came, which was the best of that strain, but within it was the potential for several types. And about this, [the Sages] said in (Tractate Rosh Hashanah 11), “all creatures were created with their varieties.” And the main [meaning] here is, as written in Tosefot, that “varieties” [tsivionan] is related to the phrase [tsvi ha'arets,], which means with the greatest possible beauty. But it is not like the Tosefot wrote - that 'they are completely finished' is the meaning of the phrase [that is also] there: “they were [all] created in their stature;” but rather, 'in the most praiseworthy manner,' is its correct meaning. And also included in the meaning of “in their varieties,” is that every fruit has different times as to when its beauty is most apparent. And with the fruit of the ground, the main beauty is at the time where it has not finished its growth and [at which time] the leaf appears green; which is not the case, when it is completely finished, behold [at that time] the herb withers and is not in its [greatest] beauty. But with a tree, it is not like this – even when the tree is completely finished [for that year], the leaf stays in its beauty; and is included in the understanding of 'varieties' at the time when they appear most beautiful. From here, it follows that it is not relevant to say, “according to its species” then, since, behold in the first coming forth, there was nothing but leaves. And [so] all of the types were the same in [any particular] strain. For this reason, “according to its species” is not written in the proclamation. Which is not the case with the trees, about which it is written, “according to its species;” since at the time that it first came out, many types were included in it, and all of them were one specie; and for this reason [with trees,] there is no [prohibition] of mixing species (kelayim), as is known [from] the Chapter, “Elu Terefot,”

Fruit tree: The nature of the tree is different then the seeds, which only grow from planting [them] and not from [placing them] in its trunk; which is not the case with a tree – we can graft a branch and it grows [into] a tree. And this is [the meaning] of 'fruit tree;' within its tree is included the potential for the fruit.

That makes a fruit, the seed of which is in it. Which means the pit, which is the seed that is located in the fruit. And also within in [and not just the tree] is the potential of the tree.

And it was so: That they were formed, like at the time when they are in all their varieties/beauty. And [only] afterward And the earth brought forth, etc.: The [herbs] were [now] completed, such that it would [now] be relevant to say also about them, "according to their species." And since also with the species that are not eaten, there is a seed, [the eventual emergence of their seed differentiated each sub-specie with them as well] (as is found in Bava Metzia 105a concerning weeds, once a seed falls, it falls.) For this reason [in this verse], it is also written with the herbs, "according to its species;" and a second sprouting forth [besides the implied sprouting forth of the previous verse].

And trees that make fruit: Since there are trees that, even though they exist from year to year, nonetheless the [leaves of the] tree do not exist in the winter; and the root in the ground is only [acting upon] the trunk. And the beauty/variety of these species is like with the fruit of the ground, [in that] the leaves wither with the completion of the fruit. For this reason, [the verse] repeats the sprouting forth [with the trees also]. And it is worth knowing that [the phrase,] "according to its specie," includes many more sub-species than [the phrase,] "according to its species," as I have written in the Book of Leviticus 11:12, see there.

To separate: According to their movement, a separation was made between the day and the night. And there is also the dawn and the dusk, which are what separates the two ends [of the day.] And this is [what is meant by] 'between, and between.' (And see the adjacent verse, Genesis 1:17.)

And they will be for signs: We explained, in the Book of Exodus 7:9 and in several places, that its meaning is that it [allows one to] time a natural [process]. And this is impossible without luminaries.

And for appointed times: The change of seasons; cold and heat and so forth, all of which occurs through the luminaries.

And for days and years: To know the change from one day to another, and so [too] with years; all of which is only through the movement of the luminaries.

And they were etc., to shine upon the earth: Since it is possible that their radiance would be visible by having them suspended in the firmament and the radiance would be above, as with the light of a candle. For this reason, [the Torah] explains that [the luminaries were] "to shine upon the earth;" that the light would shine specifically upon the earth.

And it was so: The two luminaries were made by the word of God and were placed in front of Him. And still while they were not yet placed, then And God made, etc.: He arranged them so that they would rule in the midst of the world.

The large luminary to rule the day: He made it to be appointed over that which is in their nature to grow by day, and also [over] the many precious stones and metals that are made during the day.

And the small luminary to rule the night: Over that which grows, and the metals and the stones, the nature of which is to be made at night.

And the stars They too rule, each one, over a specific thing, as is known.

And He placed, etc.: At the time of the act, the order was reversed from the time of the pronouncement - at first, they came into the firmament of the skies to shine upon the earth, and afterward to govern, and afterward to separate. And the reason [for this] is simple; that at the first instant that the Holy One, blessed be He, placed them in the firmament, they shined upon the earth, but they still did not act upon their rulership until they moved. And in their moving, they impacted upon the earth, and they still had not separated [anything] until the evening.

And to separate between the light and the darkness: By this, the verse adds that besides their coming to separate between the day and the night, they also came to separate between the light and the darkness. Since, in truth, even if the luminaries were equal in their light, nonetheless, they would still be different in their appearance; and day would be divided and distinguishable from night. But rather, they also came to separate between the light and the darkness; since the light of the sun is so strong, that even on a cloudy day [when] the light of the sun is [altogether] covered with clouds, nonetheless the day is light - 'and on a cloudy day, it is all sunny.' Which is not the case with the light of the moon - if the clouds cover the light, behold it becomes dark. And all of this is with regards to the light of the luminaries, but on the first three days, within which the first light was in use, the same separation that came between the night and the day separated between the light and the darkness; that in the absence of light came the night and darkness together.

Upon the earth on the face of the firmament of the skies: There are two types of birds: those that fly upon the earth, [meaning] only close to it; and those that fly high upon the face of the firmament of the skies. And for this reason, [the verb] fly is written in the piel [grammatical form]. And this is not coming to make that which is flying small, as with [the other letters] that become double [in this form] and as is written in HaPirchon under the entry, fly. But here it is impossible to say this, since, behold, it is written "upon the face of the firmament." But rather the meaning of the doubling [of the letter fay] is [to signify] two types of flying. And in Bereishit Rabbah, Chapter 1, there is [someone] who interprets from this that the angels were also created on the fifth [day], since it is written, "firmament of the skies" - and that [refers to] the 'skies of the skies,' as we have written above, Genesis 1:7. And therefore, they interpreted that it is speaking about angels as well. And behold, it is as it is written, upon the face of the skies, upon the face of the firmament of the skies; and this is [frequently] the way of Scripture.

And He created etc., to their species: The verse informs us that even though that at the time of the Holy One, blessed be He's, pronouncement, several species came forth in the water and with the birds; nonetheless, the Holy One, blessed be He, continued to create several species from those that already came out also afterwards. For example, the chicken that came out from the pronouncement, [resulted] in many species with the same characteristics as the chicken and they are all [considered] one species. And so [too] is it with all those mentioned in this verse.

Living [soul] creatures, according to its specie: At the time of the pronouncement, the command was that a living soul should should come out, that has several types that grow like it. Like a lion, that has several types that differ in their from and within [all of] them is the one soul of the lion.

Beast [behema]: The difference between an animal and a beast is not like Ramban, of blessed memory, wrote; that an animal eats meat; as we find in the second chapter of (Bava Kamma 19b), "and if you want, I will say that it is a deer [that we are speaking about, which is indeed an animal - as opposed to a beast - and nonetheless does not eat meat.]" And about the dog, there is an argument of the Tannaim in Tractate Kelayim, as to whether it is a type of beast or animal; and there is none that eats meat more than it. But rather, the difference is that the animal is naturally wild; if not that he is domesticated, by raising and accustoming him to change his nature. And a beast is the opposite - that he is tame by nature; if not that he is raised in a forest and, [getting] accustomed to this, changes his nature to become wild. (And see what I have written later, Genesis 2:19 and Genesis 3:13 and in Genesis 6:20, and in Leviticus 17:13.)

And God made, etc.: Making is often the finishing touches of a matter and [relates] to the inner form of that thing as I have explained above and in several places. And the explanation of the verse is, that beyond that at the time of God's proclamation, the lion came out - and within him were included several types of lions, according to their external form; God also made their inner forms according to their species, such that the nature of one type of lion is not exactly the same as the nature of another. And nonetheless, they are all species of lions, by way of one detail common to all of them, and based on this detail they are all called lions. And so [too] with the ox, and so forth. All of this is with regards to the creatures of the dry land, and it is not the case with the creatures of the sea - [with them,] it was not like this. And all types of chickens are perfectly similar in character and they are only different in their outer appearance and appear like two types of chickens. And the Creator, may He be blessed, knows the reasons of the [details of the] creation; why the creatures of the dry land were created differently than the creatures of the sea.

The creeping things of the ground: Since there is a difference between earth and ground; as earth is a [more general] category that includes both the dry places of inhabitation and the places of rivers and lakes; which is not the case of ground, which is only dry land - 'examine and find' [this to be true]. And in that there are also several creeping things of the waters, which were [already] grouped under the creation of the swarming things of the water, in the seas; for this reason the verse was precise [to indicate] that in this proclamation only the creeping things of the ground were created.

"Let Us make man:" God did not say, "let Us make a being like an animal in Our likeness," and afterwards call [him] 'man;' and as it is actually written later in Genesis 5:2. But the phrase, "let Us make man," means that there is no need to give [man] this name; rather his character shows that he is man. But, if so, it is difficult: why is it written afterwards that the Holy One, blessed be He, called their name, man; which implies that there was a need to give a name, and as I wrote regarding the name, sky and earth (shamayim ve'aretz). But rather the matter is like this - that man is different from all the species; since all the species were created in such a way that the species was unitary in its purpose and character; which is not the case for man, who rose in [God's] thought to be of two [types of] character. The one would be cleaving to his God, ready and serving in the world like an angel [does] in the heavens. And the second is [such] that he would be political and [take care of] his [own] needs; even though he would nonetheless do the will of God, it would not be on the level of the first. And behold, according to the first characteristic, he is automatically man (adam) based on the phrase 'I will be similar to the most High' (edmee le'elyon) - meaning that within him are included all the powers of the creation and he rules over everything. And behold, he is like the firstborn son of a king, who rules like the king. And because of this, everyone understands that he is the son of the king, in that they see him ruling over every detail. Which is not the case with a son of the king, who is not the firstborn; and the king [merely] makes him rule over some detail and his fellow over another detail, and so [too] with all those that govern the kingdom. It comes out that all of them together are similar to the king; but each one by himself is only similar to the king when he is given the name [of ruler] over that detail that he governs. And thus is man: the individual of spiritual stature is different then the simple individual. And in the Talmud, Shabbat 112b, they hinted to these two types of men. And it stated in the first version [of a particular statement], "this is not a man;" and in a second version, "this is an example of a man," the explanation [of this being] a man of spiritual stature. But the general human species is called man by the nature of the matter, in that they as a group rule over the entire creation. And this is according to [God's] plan. (And so [too] with the name, Israel, which indicates being higher than the nature of creation and the running [of the world]; it will be explained later in Parshat Vayislach that the whole nation is called Israel, but concerning individuals, some are called by the name Israel and some have not reached this.) And, if so, in the statement, "let Us make man," its explanation is [that it refers to] the general species of man and it is certainly called man even without being given the name; since in this general species is the creation dependent, and in this detail, they are similar to the Creator, may His name be blessed. And Adam (Adam Harishon) specifically, before he sinned, was worthy of being called man without being given the name; but after he sinned, he was given the name, man; and it will be explained further.

"In Our image:" The [meaning of the letter] bet is [to be understood] as in, 'within' or as in, 'with;' since man has a [guiding] 'constellation;' and Rashi has explained [in] Shabbat61b that it is an angel, and this is the image of God that surrounds him and protects him from danger. (And see later, Genesis 4:14 and in the Book of Numbers 14:9.)

"According to Our likeness:" The image is according to our likeness; and automatically, man - who is clothed in it - is in the likeness of God; and in this is the power [of man].

"And let them have dominion,etc.:" That other creatures do not injure him quickly.

"And in all the earth:" [Refers to] the animals in all parts of the world, and not to the fish of the seas and the birds of the skies, since it is impossible for man to dominate them, except in a place where he can reach; and this is not 'in every place.' Which is not the case with animals, [they are dominated] in all the earth (and see verse 28.)

In the image of God: All of nature was included in him. And from the time that it arose in the thought and word [of God] that there should be nature, then the Omnipresent, may He be blessed, was called by the name, God. And since all of nature is included in man, behold, he is in the image of God. But this is not [the case] except in the man of stature, as [Adam] was before the sin. Afterwards Male and female, He created them: The verse here is not coming to explain about this species that it was more male and female than any of the [other] creatures, but rather to teach us that they are two [separate] creatures like is explained later. And because the male of this species is not at all similar in his character to the female of this species, and as was stated by Kohelet (Ecclesiastes 7:28), "One man out of a thousand I have found, and one woman, etc.," meaning that a man of stature, similar to his Creator, with the image of God, is found one in a thousand. Which is not the case, with women, who only fit the second description of man who is called man.

And He blessed and He said: It is also a blessing and it is also commands of warning; that they should engage in being fruitful and multiplying, in order that the blessing be established. Which is not the case with fish: as they are not subject to command, it is only written, "and he blessed."

"And over all the beasts:" Which is not the case with the fish and the birds; there are many that man [is not able to] reach, as I have written, which [in turn] is not the case [with] beasts; all of them are in the category of [human] dominion.

And behold, it was very good: Besides that every detail was good on its own - according to the will of the Holy One, blessed be He - also grouped together with all of the creatures combined, they were very good; in that every [creature] compensated for the lack of the other. And in this expression Very good: was included [the fact] that there are pests in the world, [since] even though they are not good on their own, nonetheless, they are essential for the good of all the creatures. (And see the explanations of Gr'a, ztz'l, and see what I have written on the Book of Numbers 14:7 on the verse, "the land is very, very good.")