71. The second stage is the world of Nekudim, which emerged from upon the partition of the first level194The first three partzufim of Adam Kadmon emerged as a result of the direct light impacting the partition in a fusion through collision and creating returning light. The partition initially contained opacity of the fourth level, then was purified to the third level, then the second. Each level of opacity created a different height of returning light, with the fourth level creating a height of Keter, the third level creating one of Ḥokhma, and the second level creating one of Bina.
At this point in the process, the second constriction occurred, leading to the ascent of Malkhut to Bina in every sefira from that level onward. The partition in this context has opacity of the first level, since the previous levels were purified from the partition in the previous fusions through collision. that is attached to Malkhut, in which ten sefirot emerged at two distinct times.195As this section explains, as a result of the new situation created by the second constriction, the creation of the partzufim of Nekudim requires two stages.