Glossary · Torah Ohr · Likkutei Torah
Kabbalas ol
קבלת עול מלכות שמים
Accepting the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven (kabbalas ol)
Accepting G‑d as King: nullifying one’s will before Him; from it the mitzvos are kept as a servant keeps his master’s decree, even without reason. In the Shema it precedes the yoke of the mitzvos.
The word קבלת עול alone may also mean the yoke of the mitzvos (קבלת עול מצות), which the Sages place after the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven; its opposite is פריקת עול, throwing off the yoke.
Where it’s explained
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 4, ¶8A mitzvah done as “the King’s command” seeks no reason, as if one were told to chop wood; it is accepting the yoke alone. Since in His essence He is exalted alone, His connection with created beings is chiefly as King, so He can be drawn down only through accepting the yoke of His kingship; through it the union above is made as well.
וזהו נק׳ מצות המלך שאין לבקש שום טעם כלל רק קבלת עול
- Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 10, ¶13Accepting the yoke is subduing the sitra achra, “nullify your will”: a people (am) is something that exists in its own right, and yet sets its will aside entirely before the King; whatever is not nullification of the will is not called service. Plainly, it is doing the opposite of what the heart desires, both in refraining and in doing more than one is used to.
ביטול הרצון גשמי הוא בחי׳ עבודה וקבלת עו״מ ית׳ דאין מלך בלא עם לשון עוממות שהוא יש ודבר ואעפ״כ מבטל רצונו מכל וכל
- Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 6, ¶37The first section of the Shema is accepting the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven, so that afterward one accepts the yoke of the mitzvos: though the mitzvos are the supernal will and draw supernal delight, they must be kept as decrees of the King, in bittul.
פרשה ראשונה שבק״ש שהוא בחי׳ קבלת עול מלכות שמים כדי שאח״כ יקבל עליו עול מצות
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 3, ¶27“Your name” is accepting the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven: by accepting His kingship His Name is called upon Israel. They accepted it willingly, and only one accepted willingly is called king, as against a ruler; therefore Malchus is drawn from Keser, the will.
ושמכם הוא בחי׳ קבלת עול מ״ש שמקבלים במצותיו ית׳ ונק׳ בחי׳ שם שנקרא שמו יתברך על ישראל בקבלת מלכותו עליהם
- Torah Ohr, Vayakhel 2, ¶18Being nullification of the will, accepting the yoke has no change: it is the “va’ed” (forever) that has no interruption. By this arousal from below one arouses above “Blessed be the Name of the glory of His kingdom forever,” a blessing and drawing from the essence of Ein Sof to become the Name of the glory of His kingship.
שבחי׳ קבלת עומ״ש שהוא בחי׳ בטול רצון אין בה שינוי והוא בחי׳ ועד שאין לה הפסק
Stated differently
Where accepting the yoke stands in the Shema, and whether it is the way to love or is itself the love “with all your might”
כדי להגיע עכשיו לבחי׳ ואהבת צ״ל ע״י קבלת עול מלכות שמים שזהו ענין בשכמל״ו שהצריכו לומר קודם ואהבתAccepting the yoke is “Blessed be the Name of the glory of His kingdom,” which the Sages required before “And you shall love”; now one reaches love only through it, and through it one can come to “with all your might.”
הגם שאחר קבלת מלכות שמים בק״ש נאמר ואהבתAccepting the yoke is drawing His kingship down into the lower worlds; after the acceptance of the Kingdom of Heaven in the Shema, “And you shall love” is said, and first a love to cleave to Him comes from it.
ובכל הנ״ל יובן ענין קבלת עומ״ש שקדמה לעול מצות היינו שהוא בחי׳ בכל מאדך בירור נה״בThe acceptance of the yoke that comes before the yoke of the mitzvos is “with all your might,” the refining of the animal soul.
Whether accepting the yoke is reached through contemplation, or accepted without grasping
ע״י התבוננות ביחודו ואחדותו כנ״ל יקבל עליו עול מלכות שמים באהבה ורצון ולא יהיה העול עליו למשאThrough contemplating His unity and oneness one accepts the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven with love and will, so that it is not a burden.
דאף שאין לו השגה כ״כ ברוממותו ית׳ עד שתפול עליו אימה מ״מ מתנצח לקבל עליו עומ״שThough he does not grasp His exaltedness enough for dread to fall on him, he prevails with determination and accepts the yoke, as one agrees to “set a king over oneself” before fearing him; this is called Netzach within Gevurah.
Main sources
Likkutei Torah, Shelach 3, ¶7Likkutei Torah, Shelach 4, ¶8Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 10, ¶12Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 10, ¶13Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 6, ¶37Likkutei Torah, Masei 3, ¶23Torah Ohr, Bereishis 3, ¶27Torah Ohr, Vayakhel 2, ¶18
Where it appears
In 59 paragraphs of 37 maamarim.
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 6 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 3 ¶7 ¶8 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 26 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 6 ¶18 ¶24 ¶25 ¶26 ¶37 ¶39 ¶42
- Likkutei Torah, Korach 1 ¶32
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 8 ¶6 ¶9 ¶14 ¶19
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 4 ¶8 ¶9
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 4 ¶48
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 6 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 4 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 3 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 19 ¶32
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 41 ¶20 ¶24
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 2 ¶27
- Torah Ohr, Vayakhel 2 ¶16 ¶18
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 3 ¶27
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 20 ¶22
- Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 7 ¶2 ¶9 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 2 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 15 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17 ¶11
- Likkutei Torah, V’Zos HaBerachah 2 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 10 ¶12 ¶13 ¶14
- Torah Ohr, Beshalach 1 ¶16 ¶18
- Torah Ohr, Tetzaveh 2 ¶23
- Torah Ohr, Toldos 2 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 42 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Pekudei 1 ¶14
- Torah Ohr, Parshas Zachor 1 ¶26
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 10 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 18 ¶22
- Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 4 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Yom Kippur 3 ¶12
- Torah Ohr, Ki Sisa 1 ¶24
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 2 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 3 ¶23
- Torah Ohr, Megillas Esther 8 ¶9 ¶11 ¶22 ¶24
Written with AI from the paragraphs of Torah Ohr and Likkutei Torah, each entry checked by a second AI reader and every Hebrew quote checked by code; not yet reviewed by a person. Our English: CC BY-NC 4.0.