It is written in this holy parsha: וחרה אפי בו ביום-ההוא ועזבתים והסתרתי פני מהם והיה לאכל ומצאהו רעות רבות וצרות ואמר ביום ההוא הלא על כי-אין אלקי בקרבי מצאוני הרעות האלה ,ואנכי הסתר אסתיר פני ביום ההוא על כל-הרעה אשר עשה כי פנה אל-אלקים אחרים “Then My anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall come upon them; so that they will say in that day: Are not these evils come upon us because our G-d is not among us? And I will surely hide My face in that day for all the evil which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods” (Devarim 31:17-18).

Now, to turn unto “other gods” is a code for any disconnection from Hashem. This can occur in its most revealed manner in any kind of idolatry – a perversion of Divine consciousness – or in the disdaining of His laws, ordinances and guidance. All matters and nothing is left without accountability. Each act, emotions and thoughts are registered Above. Each aspect of a being is seen and judged by its merits or fault. And the celestial scale is perfect, for His is the Judge of Truth. Even a “simple” Amen* has incalculable weight. See, “We have learnt that he who descends to אבדון Avadon, the place [in Gehinnom/Hell] also called תחתית Tachtit, ‘bottom’, never ascends again, and he is called ‘a man who has been wiped out from all worlds’. And we have learnt that to this place they take down those who scorn to answer Amen [when they hear a legitimate Torah bracha/blessing], and for all the Amens which they have neglected they are judged in Gehinnom and taken down to that lowest storey which has no outlet, and from which they never ascend” (Zohar 286a, Vayelech). And I saw that the gematria of Avadon (alef-bet-dalet-vav-nun, ou 1 + 2 + 4 + 6 + 50) is 63, that being the same numerical value of the letters samech and gimel (60 + 3). These two letters together form the root of the word for “dross” [SiGim], as in the verse, “Everyone is dross, completely foul” (Tehillim 53:4).

Now, it is the individual’s gas ruach (“crude spirit”) that makes him scorn Hashem and His Torah, as in the fundamental act of testimony and sanctification of His Name: saying Amen for a bracha. And the Zohar is so forceful about this, thus we can infer that to deny saying Amen to a bracha is the quintessence of an arrogant man’s crude spirit. The proud man is one who prostrates to other gods, particularly to the biggest of them all: his “interior god”. Hence, the reason for his punishment being so severe, as described in this terrifying verse of the Torah. Behold, the only tzeruf/anagram of SaG is GaS; and the gematria albam of Avadon plus the kolel is 214, the same gematria of ruach (reish-vav-chet = 200 + 6 + 8 = 214), meaning spirit. Avadon is truly the place for those with a gas ruach. And for those that dare not to believe that these punishments will follow him even beyond the grave – a time of retributions – the Torah reveals it is otherwise. As the Torah is a Divine message, each letter and verse are infinite portals of understanding. All truths of the universe exist therein. Regarding those who ignore Hashem, the pasuk/verse says, ומצאהו רעות רבות וצרות umetsauhu raot rabot vetsarot, “and many evils and troubles shall come upon them”, with gematria albam 728: the same numerical value of the expression חיים אחר המות chayim achar hamot “life after death”. There is life even after the physical life, and the Divine Reckoning will follow as promised in the Torah. And even when we treat something that seems to be so “minor”, as a simple Amen, if this is scorned, then “many evils and troubles shall come upon them”, incredibly, with gematria katan 91: the same numerical value of the word Amen (alef-men-nun, 1 + 40 + 50 = 91); and the gematria atbash is 1309, the same as מהתחתנות mehaTachtonot, “from the bottom”. It is time to awaken!

* Amen is a reshei tevot/acrostic of KEl Melekh Ne’eman (Talmud, Shabbat 119b).