I am definitely not a believer that the Zohar was written by Rashbi, and I do believe that the Zohar — and especially the Arizal — are responsible for many of the problems we are having today, especially with the Chareidim/Chasidim and many of the “voodoo Judaism” rituals that have permeated throughout Orthodox Judaism.
Having said that, this one line from the Tikunei Zohar (74:1) can be beautifully interpreted through the philosophy of the Rambam. Moshe de León (the real author, in my view) was deeply well versed in the Rambam’s writings — he even had a personal copy of the Moreh Nevuchim (Guide for the Perplexed) written specifically for him — and likely had Rambam’s rational ideas in mind.
The Tikunei Zohar (74:1) states:
דאורייתא וקדשא בריך הוא כולא חד
(“The Torah and the Holy One, Blessed Be He, are entirely one.”)
What does this actually mean? Not, God forbid, a literal pantheistic identity where the Torah is God.
According to the Rambam, “Torah” itself is not only the literal text and mitzvot but also the deep rational understanding of God and how He runs the world. The study of physics (ma’aseh bereshit) and metaphysics (ma’aseh merkavah) — what we today call science and philosophy — is itself part of Torah, because these very subjects form the foundation of Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah (the opening section of the Mishneh Torah), where Rambam places them as the core principles for knowing God (see especially chapters 1–4, in which he identifies these sciences as the “secrets of Torah” and explains that contemplating creation and God’s governance leads directly to love and fear of Him).
Only once we have this broad, rational “Torah” do we see how man brings the Divine into reality: through Imitatio Dei — by imitating the divine middot (characteristics) that God embedded in the Torah and mitzvot as the ideal blueprint for life.
When we internalize this Torah and actually live its commandments, our thoughts and behavior become godly. By imitating God’s middot we are perfecting our own thoughts and character, our behavior, society, and the entire world — all by fulfilling Ratzon Elokim (God’s will) with every single thought and action. In this way man truly becomes the “tzel” — the living shadow and reflection — of God in this world.
Rambam supports this powerfully:
In Mishneh Torah, Hilchot De’ot 1:5–6:
“We are commanded to walk in these intermediate paths… as it says, ‘And you shall walk in His ways’ (Deuteronomy 28:9).”
“Just as He is called Gracious, you shall be gracious; just as He is called Merciful, you shall be merciful…
A person is obligated to accustom himself to these paths and to resemble Him to the extent of his ability.”
In Sefer HaMitzvot, Positive Commandment 8:
We are commanded to emulate the Holy One to the best of our ability, explained by the Sifrei as: just as God is called merciful, be merciful; just as gracious, be gracious.
And in the climactic final chapter of his masterpiece, Guide for the Perplexed 3:54: After acquiring knowledge of God and His providence, one “will then be determined always to seek lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness and thus to imitate the ways of God.”
Rambam considers all of mankind equal in the sense that they are all individually a Tzelem Elokim and have the same equal potential to meditate (intellectual contemplation of His ways and creation) and imitate God's ways — no one person is more special or holy than another.
Unlike Christianity and many Chareidi and Chasidic sects of Judaism that worship their leaders (both alive and dead), authentic rational Judaism according to the Rambam sees every human being as having this same equal potential.
It’s fascinating to note that ancient idol worshippers often viewed their statues (also called tzelem) not as the gods themselves but as vehicles or shadows meant to channel divine power(see MN 3:29). Judaism completely revolutionizes this idea: Man is the true Tzelem Elokim. Endowed with the unique ability to think abstractly (as Rambam explains in Guide for the Perplexed 1:1, where the image refers to our intellectual form), and by imitating God’s ways while doing His will, man becomes the authentic living shadow and representative of the Divine on earth.
Bottom line: By embodying this broad Torah, man creates the living unity described in the Zohar — דאורייתא וקדשא בריך הוא כולא חד — because by “pulling” the Torah into reality through his thoughts, choices, and actions, God’s will becomes fully present and manifest in man’s inner world, his behavior, and the outcomes he produces in the world around him. The Torah and the Holy One are one through the human being who lives them perfectly.
The "Torah" thus become our greatest opportunity — a dynamic partnership with the Creator to align reality with perfection.
