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Simchah

שמחה

Joy (simchah)

Joy is the revealing of what was hidden: delight coming into revelation. It comes from Binah, grasping G‑dliness; joy in a mitzvah below arouses joy above, which draws light beyond the usual order.

Where it’s explained

  1. Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 2, ¶1Binah, “a joyful mother of children,” is joy, because joy is the revealing of the hidden: it comes when one grasps the hidden things of Chochmah well. All year the light of joy is held in the vessel; on Sukkos it breaks the vessel and is seen by all, in song and dance.כי השמחה היא גילוי ההעלם לכן נמשך דוקא מבחי׳ בינה שהוא כשמבין ומשיג תעלומות חכמה
  2. Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 4, ¶15Joy is the revelation of delight (taanug): when delight comes into revelation, joy is born in the revealed heart, and the more delight is revealed, the greater the joy.נודע שהשמחה היא התגלות התענוג שהעונג כשבא לידי גילוי אזי נולדה ונתהוה השמחה בהתגלות הלב
  3. Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 4, ¶1Simchah is joy revealed outwardly, as on Sukkos, “the time of our rejoicing”; gilah is joy still within the heart, covered by trembling (“exult with trembling”), as on Rosh HaShanah.ההפרש שבין שמחה לגילה הוא כי השמחה נקרא בהגלות נגלות השמחה מבחוץ
  4. Likkutei Torah, Tazria 3, ¶9The joy of a mitzvah below arouses the supernal joy, which annuls judgments. As a king in his joy goes beyond his bounds and shows himself to small and great alike, the supernal joy draws light from the very essence of the Emanator, beyond the gradual order, so that above and below, right and left are merged.שהשמחה גורם הגילוי והוא שהאור בא ונמשך מעצמות המאציל בתוספות ועילוי רב שלא כדרך וסדר ההדרגה
  5. Torah Ohr, Vaeira 4, ¶2In the soul, “love in delights” is the soul’s joy in G‑d its Maker (“serve Havayah with joy”). Joy comes from contemplating Or Ein Sof (“call to Binah”): contemplating its revelation below, the flames of love break out of the body’s confinement.שהשמחה היא מחמת התבוננות באור א״ס. וכדכתיב כי אם לבינה תקרא

Stated differently

Whether joy in serving G‑d is also of the animal soul, or is from the G‑dly soul and its innermost level (yechidah), not clothed in the animal soul

Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 34, ¶12שמחה של מצוה שהוא ג״כ מבחי׳ נפש הבהמית כמ״ש בשמחה ובטוב לבב שעיקר השמחה הוא בלב ששם משכן נפש הבהמית

The joy of a mitzvah (the second “shoe”) is also of the animal soul: joy is chiefly in the heart, where the animal soul dwells; sadness is murky blood in the heart, joy is clear blood.

Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 17, ¶2שמצד הגוף ונפש הבהמית הוא נבזה בעיניו מאד והיותו בשמחה הוא מצד נפש האלקי׳

Joy is a strengthening and elevation of the soul that comes from humility: from the side of the body and the animal soul he is despised in his own eyes, and his being in joy is from the side of the G‑dly soul.

Torah Ohr, Bereishis 8, ¶26שהיא מבחי׳ יחידה שבנפש שאינה מלובשת כלל בלבושי הגוף והנפש הבהמית

The soul’s joy in G‑d, as it cleaves to its root, has no counterpart on the other side: it is from the yechidah of the soul, which is not clothed at all in the garments of the body and the animal soul.

Whether joy, as revelation, applies in the present time

Torah Ohr, Beshalach 2, ¶9עתה בזמן הזה לא שייך בחי׳ שמחה שהשמחה היא מבחי׳ התגלות

On “there we will rejoice in Him”: now, in this time, joy does not apply, since joy is of revelation, and now this level has no revelation, only faith, because of the body’s concealment.

Likkutei Torah, Shemini 1, ¶1כמארז״ל שבזמן הבית אין שמחה אלא בבשר דהיינו מצות שלמי שמחה שהיו מביאים בכל יו״ט כו׳ ועכשיו אין שמחה אלא ביין

The joy of the festival is the revelation of Or Ein Sof, drawn and revealed through mitzvos in deed: in Temple times through the meat of the peace-offerings of joy, and now through wine.

Whether joy applies to Chochmah, which is above grasp, or only where there is grasp (Binah)

Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 2, ¶9בשבת מוחין דאבא שהוא מה שלמעלה מההשגה לא שייך שמחה כ״א ביטול ועד״ז בחי׳ מים צלילין דח״ע לא שייך שמחה

A festival has joy because it is mochin d’Imma, grasp; on Shabbos, mochin d’Abba, above grasp, joy does not apply, only bittul, and so with the clear waters of Chochmah Ila’ah. Through Yom Kippur, Chochmah shines on Sukkos within grasp, so there was joy in the water libation.

Likkutei Torah, Tzav 6, ¶7ובגילוי זה לא שייך שמחה ותענוג שאין השמחה והתענוג נראה ונרגש אלא במה שיש תפיסא והשגה

In the revelation of Shabbos, the bittul of grasp before Or Ein Sof, the essence of Chochmah far above the Torah, joy and delight do not apply: they are seen and felt only where there is grasp.

Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 6, ¶20וחכמה יש בה גילוי התענוג כנודע שכשנופל איזה דבר חכמה באדם מתמלא שמחה ותענוג

The Torah comes from Chochmah, and Chochmah has the revelation of delight: when some point of wisdom comes to a person he is filled with joy and delight; so the Torah reveals the supernal delight hidden in the mitzvos.

Main sources

Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 2, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 2, ¶9Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 4, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 4, ¶15Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 5, ¶6Likkutei Torah, Tazria 3, ¶9Torah Ohr, Vaeira 4, ¶2Torah Ohr, Bereishis 8, ¶26

Where it appears

In 361 paragraphs of 143 maamarim.

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.

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