Likkutei Torah · Parshas Nasso · Maamar 1
נשא את ראש בני גרשון וגו׳
“Lift up the head of the sons of Gershon”
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The big idea
The Mishkan journeyed through the wilderness to subdue the kelipos by revealing G‑dliness, and every person must do the same with the wilderness of his own evil inclination. The three Levite families who carried the Mishkan are the stages of that service: Merari the lower awe of standing and nullified will, Gershon the love drawn down from Aharon, and Kehas the higher awe that comes through the Torah.
The maamar in brief
The maamar asks why only Gershon’s count says “they too” and why only his service is “by the word of Aharon.” It first explains the journeys: the wilderness, home of the three kelipos, is barren because only holiness, rooted in bittul, gives. The G‑dliness revealed in the Mishkan subdued them of itself, preparing for the Future, when even this world’s concealment will cease. Inwardly, each Jew makes his heart a Mishkan through prayer with a pure heart, and drawing G‑dliness down through good deeds subdues the evil inclination. The Mishkan’s beams, curtains and vessels are the levels of service. The standing beams, carried by Merari, are silence and the nullification of will, reached through the bitterness of honest self-reckoning: lower awe. The curtains, carried by Gershon, are love, born in the Shema, running and returning through the mitzvos. The Ark and altars, carried by Kehas, are higher awe through the Torah’s wisdom. Merari’s name, mor twice, joins the two awes. Gershon’s love comes from Aharon, source of great love, whose final nun descends to every soul. “Lifting the head,” raising the will to its source, belongs to Kehas and Gershon.
Outline
- The questions, and why the Mishkan journeyedGershon alone is counted with “they too” and placed “by the word of Aharon.” The wilderness is barren because it is the source of the three kelipos, which lack bittul and therefore cannot give; the forty-two journeys, the Name of forty-two, were meant to subdue it.¶1–4
- Subjugation now, revelation in the FutureRevealed G‑dliness made the kelipos melt away, like the iskafya that must precede is’hapcha. Before G‑d’s Essence nothing conceals, since the world comes only from His speech; in the Future concealment will cease even for physical perception.¶5–8
- The Mishkan within the soul“I will dwell within them” means each Jew makes his heart a Mishkan through pure-hearted prayer. The evil inclination is the soul’s wilderness, and it is subdued by drawing G‑dliness down, through good deeds that need not wait for evil to be fully uprooted.¶9–14
- The standing beams and the curtainsThe beams, “acacia wood, standing,” like the standing angels, are silence and the nullification of will, the first halt before the walk of love. Merari reaches it through bitterness and lower awe; the curtains of techeles are expiring love, flesh over the bones, the service of Gershon.¶15–18
- In prayer: awe, love and the six attributesPesukei deZimra brings lower awe; the Shema brings love through contemplating all creation as one thought, a garment G‑d puts on to reign. This love is six attributes in running and returning, drawn through the mitzvos, as the six-fold curtains and tachash show.¶19–27
- Kehas, Torah and higher aweThe Ark held the hidden Tablets and the Menorah revealed their light; the altars are the refinements done through Chochmah. Lower awe leads to wisdom and wisdom to higher awe, which comes after love, as the Shemoneh Esreh follows the Shema.¶28
- Merari: mor twiceThe two myrrhs of the Mishkan, in the incense and in the anointing oil, are lower awe rising and higher awe drawn down; Merari joins them, and so carried the beams.¶29–30
- Gershon “by the word of Aharon”Gershon’s love is drawn from Aharon, alef-har-nun, the source of great love, whose final nun reaches every soul. Gershon drives out the animal soul; the Levites join the Infinite Light to the worlds, as the three hands of “Your hands established.”¶31–33
- Lifting the headThe Levites’ ascent depends on the Kohanim’s drawing down. Lifting the head, raising the lower will to the will above intellect through Torah, is said of Kehas and Gershon; Merari’s awe is the base from which one rises to them.¶34–35
Key concepts
- subduing the wildernessהכנעת המדבר
- The wilderness is the root of the kelipos, which lack bittul and so cannot give; the Mishkan’s journeys subdued it by revealing G‑dliness, and each person subdues the inner wilderness of his evil inclination the same way.
- iskafya and is’hapchaאתכפיא ואתהפכא
- Subduing evil and transforming darkness into light. Subjugation must come first; it is the path to transformation, in the individual and in the world’s future.
- standing (amidah)עמידה
- The standing of the beams and of the angels: silence, the nullification of one’s own will, the halt before love’s “walking” can begin.
- lower awe and higher aweיראה תתאה ויראה עילאה
- Lower awe brings the nullification of will and leads to wisdom; higher awe comes through the Torah’s wisdom and stands above love. Merari joins the two.
- running and returning (ratzo vashov)רצוא ושוב
- Love yearning upward and the Infinite Light drawn down through the mitzvos; each returning arouses a new running.
- lifting the headנשיאת ראש
- Raising the lower will, drawn from the intellect in the body, to the will above intellect, chiefly through the Torah.
The questions, and why the Mishkan journeyed ¶1–4
1נשא את ראש1 בני גרשון2 וגו׳. יש להבין למה נאמר בבני גרשון גם הם וגם מ״ש בבני גרשון דוקא ע״פ אהרן ובניו3 תהיה כל עבודת בני הגרשוני ולא נאמר כן בבני קהת ומררי.
“Lift up the head of the sons of Gershon,” etc. We need to understand why “they too” is said of the sons of Gershon; and also [why] it is said specifically of the sons of Gershon, “By the word of Aharon and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites,” while this is not said of the sons of Kehas and Merari.
The maamar opens with the verse in which G‑d tells Moshe to count the Levite family of Gershon (Numbers 4:22); “lift up the head” is the Torah’s idiom for taking a count. Two questions are raised: why Gershon’s count adds the words “they too,” and why Gershon’s service alone is said to be “by the word of Aharon and his sons,” with nothing similar said of Kehas and Merari.
אך הנה תחלה צריך להבין כללות ענין המשכן ונסיעתם במדבר. דהנה שרש טעם נסיעתם במדבר עם המשכן וכליו הי׳ כדי להכניע כח יניקת החיצונים ששרש יניקתם הוא במדבר דוקא.
But first we must understand the matter of the Mishkan and of their journeying in the wilderness as a whole. For the root of the reason for their journeying in the wilderness with the Mishkan and its vessels was in order to subdue the power of the external forces to draw nourishment, since the root of their drawing nourishment is specifically in the wilderness.
Before answering, the Alter Rebbe sets out the purpose of the Mishkan’s journeys as a whole. The “external forces” are the powers of kelipah, which draw their nourishment from holiness; their root is in the wilderness, and Israel traveled through it with the Mishkan in order to break that power.
The maamar poses its questions about the Levite family of Gershon and then turns to the underlying theme: the Mishkan journeyed through the wilderness in order to subdue the forces of kelipah rooted there.
The Kehot edition’s note lists several transcripts of this discourse, among them the Mitteler Rebbe’s, and quotes the closing line of an early printing: the Alter Rebbe said it at a wedding in Zhlobin, on the work of the Mishkan, its service and its burden.
Marei mekomos
- 1נשא את ראש · הנחת כ״ק אדהאמ״צ נדפס בסה״מ תקס״ז ע׳ קצב (וראה סה״מ הנחות הר״פ ע׳ מו). הגהות באוה״ת נשא ע׳ רלו (הקטעים שם הם מהנחת כ״ק אדה״א מסה״מ תקס״ז הנ״ל). רלח. כרך-ו ע׳ א׳תשלט. נדפס (בשינוים) בספר הר אפרים (להרב ר׳ אפרים זלמן ראזמאנן אבד״ק ניקאלייעב, אדעססא, תרנ״ז), ורשום שם בשער: דרוש א׳ . . אשר הרב המחבר ז״ל סדר . . כפי ששמע יוצאים מפיו הקדוש ז״ל [של רבנו הזקן]. ובפנים הספר כתוב: אמרות טהורות . . בפה קדוש .ֿ. שניאור זלמן יגדל שמו . . אשר סידר אותם אאמו״ר הרב ר׳ אפרים זלמן . . בעיר סמילא בשנת תק״ע לפ״ק. בסופו רשום: (נשלם הדרוש הנכבד שאמר אדמו״ר הרב הגדול מוהרש״ז על החתונה בעיר זלאבין על מעשה המשכן על עבודתו ועל משאו). וראה במאמרי אדהאמ״צ במדבר-א ע׳ קסז ואילך, שמיוסד על מאמר זה.
- 2נשא את ראש בני גרשון · Numbers 4:22
- 3ע״פ אהרן ובניו תהי׳ · Numbers 4:27
2ולכך במדבר אין שם גידול צמח ודשא כלל אלא שממון בלבד,1 כי ההשפעה היא מסט׳ דקדושה דוקא ואתה מחיה את כולם.2
Therefore in the wilderness there is no growth of plant or grass at all, only desolation; for bestowal comes specifically from the side of holiness: “and You give life to them all.”
A wilderness is barren because all growth and life come from holiness, as the verse says of G‑d, “You give life to them all” (Nehemiah 9:6). Where the side of holiness does not reach, there is no flow of life, only desolation.
And it is written, “Righteous is Havayah.” The meaning of tzaddik (righteous) is one who bestows and is a master of tzedakah (charity). And likewise, throughout the side of holiness there is this aspect.
The word tzaddik is read as one who gives tzedakah, so “Righteous is Havayah” describes G‑d as the One who bestows. The same trait of giving marks everything on the side of holiness.
The barrenness of the wilderness shows that life and bestowal flow only from holiness, whose defining trait is giving.
A note in the Kehot edition cites a discourse of 5563 explaining that the forty-two journeys were specifically in the wilderness, to subdue “the wilderness of the nations” by raising their “feminine waters” (mayin nukvin) to “the great and awesome wilderness,” the World of Tohu. Tohu is called wilderness and desolation because its light was abundant and its vessels few, so it existed only in a state of running upward (ratzo) and bittul.
Marei mekomos
- 1במדבר . . שממון בלבד · וע׳ לקמן סד״ה וידבר ה׳ כו׳ נשא. ובד״ה נשא דש׳ תקס״ג בענין מ״ב מסעות במדבר דוקא להכניע מדבר העמים ע״י העלאת מ״ן שלהם לבחי׳ המדבר הגדול והנורא שהוא עולם התהו ל׳ שממה בחי׳ מדבר, שזה הי׳ מחמת ריבוי האור ומיעוט [ה]כלי ע״כ הי׳ רק בבחי׳ רצוא וביטול, וזה נק׳ מדבר ושממה כו׳. ע׳ ספר אור התורה פ׳ ח״ש (קלא, ב), ע״ש. [כ].
- 2ואתה מחי׳ את כולם · Nehemiah 9:6
- 3צדיק ה׳ · Psalms 11:7
- 4צדיק ה׳ · Psalms 145:17
3והנה בהקב״ה החסד נמשך מצד הגדולה כמ״ש ארך אפים וגדל חסד.1 ובכל סטרא דקדושה החסד נמשך מצד הביטול שבטל לה׳ ונחשב לאין ואפס בעיניו לכן ראוי ליתן לזולתו שהוא חשוב יותר.
Now, in the Holy One, blessed be He, Chesed (kindness) is drawn from the aspect of greatness, as it is written, “Slow to anger and great in kindness.” And throughout the side of holiness, kindness is drawn from the aspect of self-nullification (bittul): that one is nullified to G‑d and is reckoned as nothing and naught in his own eyes; therefore it is fitting [for him] to give to another, who is more important.
In G‑d, kindness flows from His greatness, and the phrase “great in kindness” (Psalms 145:8) links the two. In created beings on the side of holiness, kindness flows from bittul: one who regards himself as nothing before G‑d sees others as more worthy than himself, and so gives to them.
The paragraph distinguishes the source of kindness in G‑d, His greatness, from its source in holy creatures, their self-nullification.
Marei mekomos
- 1ארך אפים וגדל חסד · Psalms 145:8
4וכמ״ש באברהם ואנכי עפר ואפר1 ולפיכך הי׳ עושה חסד עם כל בני2 אדם כו׳. משא״כ מי שהוא יש ודבר ואינו בטל צריך הכל לגרמיה ואינו בחי׳ משפיע.
As it is written of Avraham, “And I am dust and ashes”; and therefore he would do kindness with all people, etc. Whereas one who is a something (yesh) and a thing, and is not nullified, needs everything for himself, and is not at the level of one who bestows.
Avraham, who said “I am dust and ashes” (Genesis 18:27), is the model of bittul, and therefore of kindness to everyone; the Kehot note points to the Midrash (Bereshis Rabbah 49) on his welcoming of all wayfarers. Someone who feels himself a separate “something” (yesh) needs everything for himself and cannot be a giver.
ולכן במדבר הם נחש שרף ועקרב ג״ק3 ששם מקור הקליפות שהם יש ודבר נפרד ואין בהם בחי׳ הביטול לכן אין ממנו שום השפעה,
Therefore in the wilderness there are “snake, fiery serpent and scorpion,” the three kelipos (husks), for there is the source of the kelipos, which are a something and a separate thing and have in them no aspect of bittul; therefore no bestowal whatever comes from it.
The Torah describes the wilderness as the place of “snake, fiery serpent and scorpion” (Deuteronomy 8:15), which Kabbalah identifies with the three impure kelipos. The kelipos are self-assertion without bittul, so nothing flows from them; that is why the wilderness, their source, is barren.
והנה לכך הי׳ נסיעת הארון וישראל במדבר כדי להכניע את המדבר ולכך נשאו את המשכן במ״ב מסעות4 שהוא בחי׳ שם מ״ב.5
And this is why there was the journeying of the Ark and of Israel in the wilderness: in order to subdue the wilderness. And therefore they carried the Mishkan in forty-two journeys, which is the level of the Name of forty-two [letters].
Israel’s journeys with the Ark were meant to subdue that source. There were forty-two journeys, listed in Parshas Masei, corresponding to the Name of forty-two letters, a divine Name of ascent and of separating good from evil.
Bittul makes a being a giver and self-assertion makes it a taker; the wilderness, home of the three kelipos, is therefore barren, and the forty-two journeys were meant to subdue it.
The Kehot edition cites the Mitteler Rebbe’s discourses, which explain that through the Name of forty-two there is ascent and the refining of good from evil. That is why the prayer Ana B’choach, built on this Name, is said in the Shema at bedtime, to raise the soul from the chambers of kelipas nogah, and also before Kabbalas Shabbos, when the worlds ascend.
Marei mekomos
- 1ואנכי עפר ואפר · Genesis 18:27
- 2הי׳ עושה חסד עם כל בנ״א · Bereshit Rabbah 49:4
- 3נחש שרף ועקרב ג״ק · Deuteronomy 8:15
- 4במ״ב מסעות · המפורטים בפ׳ מסעי.
- 5שהוא בחי׳ שם מ״ב · במאמרי אדה״א כאן ע׳ קסח מבאר שענין שם מ״ב שעל ידו יהי׳ בחי׳ ההעלאה ובירור הטוב מן הרע, ושלכן אומרים בק״ש שעל המטה אנא בכח להעלות הנשמה מהיכלות דק״נ. וכן אומרים לפני קבלת שבת שהוא עליות העולמות ע״ש. וראה במ״מ לשם.
Subjugation now, revelation in the Future ¶5–8
5והיינו ע״י גילוי אלקות שהי׳ במשכן כשנשאו אותו במדבר ממילא נכנעו וכמ״ש כהמס דונג1 וגו׳ [ועמ״ש מזה ע״פ אלה מסעי].2
That is: through the revelation of G‑dliness that was in the Mishkan when they carried it in the wilderness, they were subdued of themselves, as it is written, “As wax melts,” etc. [And see what is written about this on the verse “These are the journeys.”]
The kelipos were not fought directly: the G‑dliness revealed in the Mishkan made them melt away of themselves, like wax before fire (Psalms 68:3). The bracket refers to the maamar on “These are the journeys” in Parshas Masei.
ותועלת הכנעה זו היתה ענין הכנה לע״ל שיוכל להיות גילוי אלקות בעולם השפל שלנו כמ״ש ונגלה כבוד3 ה׳ וגו׳
And the benefit of this subduing was in the nature of a preparation for the Time to Come, so that there could be a revelation of G‑dliness in our lowly world, as it is written, “And the glory of Havayah shall be revealed,” etc.;
Subduing the wilderness also prepared for the Time to Come, when G‑dliness will be openly revealed even in this lowly world, as Isaiah 40:5 promises.
שע״י שנכנע תחלה מקור ההסתר והיש יוכל להיות בו אח״כ הגילוי לע״ל [ואפ״ל שהוא כענין שבעבודת ה׳
for through the source of the concealment and of the yesh being subdued first, there can afterwards be the revelation within it in the Time to Come. [And it may be said that this is like the matter in the service of G‑d
The source of concealment and of self-assertion (yesh) must first be subdued; only then can the revelation later appear within it. The Alter Rebbe adds a comparison from a person’s own service of G‑d.
צ״ל תחלה בחי׳ אתכפיא בכדי שעי״ז יוכל לבא אח״כ לבחי׳ ומדרגת אתהפכא חשוכא לנהורא, ובלי בחי׳ אתכפיא תחלה לא יוכל לבא לבחי׳ אתהפכא חשוכא כו׳.
that there must first be the level of iskafya (subduing), so that through this one can afterwards come to the level and rank of is’hapcha chashocha linehora (transforming darkness into light); and without the level of iskafya first, one cannot come to the level of is’hapcha chashocha, etc.
In personal service, iskafya means forcing down the urges of the animal soul, while is’hapcha means transforming them so that the darkness itself becomes light. One cannot reach transformation without first passing through subjugation.
כמ״כ עד״ז כדי שלע״ל יהיה גילוי אלקות ממש בעולם השפל שיהפך החשך לאור ממש כמ״ש לעת
So too, in the same way, in order that in the Time to Come there be an actual revelation of G‑dliness in the lowly world, so that the darkness be transformed into actual light, as it is written, “At the time of
The same order holds for the world as a whole: for the darkness of this world to become actual light in the future, it must first be subdued. Zechariah 14:7 speaks of that future light.
ערב4 יהיה אור לכך הוצרך להיות תחלה בחינת הכנעת המדבר כו׳, ועמ״ש ע״פ אלה מסעי בע״א שעי״ז יש כח ביד האדם להכניע הגוף שלו כו׳].
evening there shall be light,” there therefore had to be first the level of the subduing of the wilderness, etc. And see what is written on the verse “These are the journeys,” in another way: that through this a person has the power to subdue his own body, etc.]
The subduing of the wilderness during the journeys was that first stage. The maamar on “These are the journeys” also explains, from another angle, that these journeys give every person the power to subdue his own body.
Revealed G‑dliness subdued the kelipos of the wilderness, and this subjugation (iskafya) prepares for the future transformation (is’hapcha) of the world’s darkness into light.
Marei mekomos
- 1כהמס דונג · Psalms 68:3
- 2ע״פ אלה מסעי · לקמן פח, ב.
- 3ונגלה כבוד ה׳ · Isaiah 40:5
- 4לעת ערב יהי׳ אור · Zechariah 14:7
6וענין הגילוי הזה שיהיה לע״ל הוא כי הנה באמת הרי קמיה עצמותו ית׳ אין שום בחי׳ הסתר והעלם כלל.
And the matter of this revelation that will be in the Time to Come is this: in truth, before His very Essence, may He be blessed, there is no aspect of concealment and hiddenness whatsoever.
The future revelation will not change anything in G‑d, for before His Essence there is no concealment even now. Concealment exists only from the side of created beings.
כי קמיה כולא כלא חשיבי1 ואין שינוי כלל בין קודם שנברא העולם לאחר הבריאה. כי גם עתה הוא אחד יחיד ומיוחד
For “before Him all is considered as nothing,” and there is no change at all between before the world was created and after the creation. For now too He is One, Alone and Unique,
The Zohar’s phrase “before Him all is considered as nothing” means that the world does not change G‑d’s state at all. He is One, Alone and Unique after creation just as before it.
כמו קודם שנבה״ע מאחר שכל עיקר התהוות הנבראים יש מאין הוא רק מבחי׳ אותיות הדבור בדבר ה׳ שמים נעשו.2
as before the world was created, since the entire coming into being of the created beings, something from nothing, is only from the level of the letters of speech: “By the word of Havayah the heavens were made.”
The reason is that creation “something from nothing” comes only from divine speech: “By the word of Havayah the heavens were made” (Psalms 33:6). Speech is an outward expression, not the Essence itself, so creating through it changes nothing in Him.
Concealment is real only for creatures; before G‑d’s Essence nothing hides Him, since the world was made only through His “speech.”
Marei mekomos
- 1קמי׳ כולא כלא חשיב · Zohar I, 11b
- 2בדבר ה׳ שמים נעשו · Psalms 33:6
7ועד״מ הדבור באדם שהוא בטל וטפל לגבי המחשבה ובלתי תופס מקום כלל וכלל רק אצל השומע הוא שהדבור
By way of analogy: speech in a person is nullified and secondary in relation to thought, and occupies no place at all whatsoever; only for the listener is it that the speech
The analogy: a person’s speech is secondary to his thought, and for the speaker it adds nothing and takes up no place. Only the listener receives the spoken words as something real.
נתפס ליש ודבר, וכך למעלה בחי׳ אותיות הדבור ביו״ד מאמרות12 לגבי הנבראים מהם יש מאין הם בבחי׳ יש. אבל לגבי עצמותו ית׳ הם בטלים כלא.
is grasped as a something and a thing. And so too above: the level of the letters of speech in the Ten Utterances, in relation to the created beings [that come] from them something from nothing, are at the level of yesh; but in relation to His Essence, may He be blessed, they are nullified as nothing.
So too G‑d’s “speech,” the Ten Utterances through which the world was created (Avos 5:1), is a real “something” only from the standpoint of the creatures that come from it. In relation to His Essence it is nullified as nothing.
The analogy of speech, which is real to the listener but nothing to the speaker, shows how the world is real to creatures yet nothing before G‑d.
Marei mekomos
- 1ביו״ד מאמרות · אבות רפ״ה.
- 2ביו״ד מאמרות · Pirkei Avot 5:1
8ולכך אע״פ שמצד בחי׳ התגלות אותיות הדבור נראה העולם לבחי׳ יש ודבר לעינינו, אבל אצלו ית׳ אין הסתר והעלם כלל וע״כ לע״ל שיתגלה כבוד ה׳ שהוא בחי׳ גילוי עצמיות אלקות
Therefore, although from the standpoint of the revelation of the letters of speech the world appears to our eyes as a something and a thing, yet with Him, may He be blessed, there is no concealment and hiddenness at all. And therefore in the Time to Come, when “the glory of Havayah will be revealed,” which is the level of the revelation of the very essence of G‑dliness,
Because the world is formed from the revealed letters of divine speech, it looks to us like a separate, independent thing, though for G‑d there is no concealment at all. In the Time to Come “the glory of Havayah will be revealed,” meaning that the very essence of G‑dliness will be revealed.
אזי ממילא לא יסתיר שום הסתר כלל ויהיה גילוי אלקות גם בעשייה עד שיראו כל בשר1 אפילו בהשגת שכלו הגשמיות. וכדי שיהיה גילוי זה לע״ל הוצרך להיות נסיעת המשכן במדבר להכניע אותו כנ״ל:
then of itself no concealment whatever will conceal, and there will be a revelation of G‑dliness also in the World of Asiyah (Action), until all flesh will see, even with the grasp of its physical intellect. And in order that there be this revelation in the Time to Come, there had to be the journeying of the Mishkan in the wilderness, to subdue it, as mentioned above.
Then concealment will no longer conceal, and G‑dliness will be seen even in Asiyah, the lowest world, by human understanding that is physical: “all flesh shall see.” The Mishkan’s journeys that subdued the wilderness were the preparation for this.
The future revelation will remove the world’s appearance of separateness even for the physical mind, and the subduing of the wilderness prepared for it.
Marei mekomos
- 1עד שיראו כל בשר · Isaiah 40:5
The Mishkan within the soul ¶9–14
9ב והנה זה היה ענין נסיעת המשכן בפועל ממש בבחי׳ עולם וכמ״כ הוא גם עכשיו ברוחניות בבחי׳ נפש.
2. Now, this was the matter of the journeying of the Mishkan in actual deed, on the plane of world; and likewise it is now as well, spiritually, on the plane of soul.
Section 2 moves from the historical Mishkan to its inner parallel. What happened physically in the wilderness happens now, spiritually, in the soul.
כי יש בחי׳ משכן בפרט בכל אחד ואחד וכל פרטי הענינים שבו הכל יש בנפש האדם.
For there is the aspect of a Mishkan individually in each and every one, and all the particular details in it are all present in the soul of man.
Every individual has a personal Mishkan, and every detail of the Mishkan has a counterpart within the human soul.
דהנה כתיב ועשו לי מקדש1 ושכנתי בתוכם וארז״ל בתוכו לא נאמר2 אלא בתוכם לפי שכאו״א מישראל צריך לעשות בחי׳ משכן בנפשו.3
For it is written, “And they shall make Me a Sanctuary, and I will dwell within them”; and our Sages, of blessed memory, said: It does not say “within it,” but “within them,” because each and every one of Israel must make the aspect of a Mishkan in his soul.
The proof is from the verse “I will dwell within them” (Exodus 25:8): it says “within them,” not “within it,” teaching that every Jew must make a dwelling for G‑d within his own soul. The Kehot notes cite this teaching from Reishis Chochmah and the Shelah, and the Rebbe explains that it adds to the verse’s plain meaning without displacing it.
The Mishkan and its journeys have a personal, inner counterpart: every Jew must make his soul a Mishkan.
Marei mekomos
- 1ועשו לי מקדש · Exodus 25:8
- 2בתוכו לא נאמר · כ״ה בכ״מ בדא״ח. ולע״ע לא מצאתיו אלא בראשית חכמה (שער האהבה פ״ו קרוב לתחלתו). ובשל״ה (ש׳ האותיות אות ל׳. מסכת תענית רד״ה מענין העבודה. פ׳ תרומה חלק תו״א — שכה, ב. שכו, ב. — ועוד). (הערת כ""ק אדמו״ר בס׳ המאמרים ה׳תש״ח ע׳ 132). ראה לקו״ש חכ״ו ע׳ 83 הערה 49. שם ע׳ 173 הערה 45. לקו״ש-לא ע׳ 237 בהערות. ראה לקו״ש-כו ע׳ 170 הערה 31. נתבאר בד״ה אלה פקודי המשכן תש״ל (נ׳ בסה״מ מלוקט ח״ה ע׳ קצט).
- 3לעשות בחי׳ משכן בנפשו · בלקו״ש חכ״ו ע׳ 83 מפרש שאין זה עוקר פי׳ הפסוק ממשמעותו ופשוטו (דאין מקרא יוצא מידי פשוטו), אלא שזה מוסיף על הפי׳ הכללי שכל אחד צריך לעשות מקום להשראת שכינתו ית׳ בנפשו פנימה ע״ש.
10והיינו להמשיך בחי׳ גילוי אלקות בנפשו בעבודה שבלב זו תפלה12 כשיהיה לבבו טהור כמ״ש לב טהור ברא לי אלקים3 כו׳ וכמ״ש בר לבב כו׳
That is, to draw down a revelation of G‑dliness into his soul through “the service of the heart, which is prayer,” when his heart will be pure, as it is written, “Create in me a pure heart, O G‑d,” etc., and as it is written, “pure of heart,” etc.;
Making the soul a Mishkan means drawing a revelation of G‑dliness into it through prayer, which the Sages call “the service of the heart.” This requires a pure heart, as in “Create in me a pure heart, O G‑d” (Psalms 51:12).
דכאשר לבבו טהור מכל סיג4 בלתי לה׳ לבדו אזי נקרא משכן לשכון בו גילוי אור ה׳ וכמ״ש נקי כפים ובר לבב כו׳
for when his heart is pure of all dross, of anything other than for G‑d alone, then it is called a Mishkan, for the revelation of the light of G‑d to dwell in it; and as it is written, “Clean of hands and pure of heart,” etc.,
A heart free of every admixture, devoted to G‑d alone, is itself called a Mishkan, a place where G‑d’s light dwells. Psalms 24 describes the one who may ascend G‑d’s mountain: “clean of hands and pure of heart.”
ישא ברכה5 מאת6 ה׳ דפי׳ ברכה הוא המשכת גילוי אלקות בנפשו כו׳ [וזהו ג״כ משארז״ל טהרה מביאה לידי קדושה78 ע׳ בר״ח].
“shall receive a blessing from Havayah”; for the meaning of “blessing” is the drawing down of a revelation of G‑dliness into his soul, etc. [And this is also what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Purity leads to holiness.” See in Reishis Chochmah.]
That person “shall receive a blessing from Havayah” (Psalms 24:5), and “blessing” (berachah) here means the drawing down of G‑dliness into the soul. The Sages’ teaching “purity leads to holiness” says the same: a purified heart brings holiness to dwell in it.
Prayer with a pure heart turns the soul into a Mishkan, where the revelation of G‑dliness dwells.
Marei mekomos
- 1בעבודה שבלב זו תפלה · Taanit 2a:11
- 2בעבודה שבלב זו תפלה · Sifrei Devarim 41:18–19
- 3לב טהור ברא לי אלקים · Psalms 51:12
- 4טהור מכל סיג · ראה לקמן כו, ד. ואתחנן י, א.
- 5נקי כפים . . ישא ברכה · Psalms 24:4
- 6ישא ברכה מאת ה׳ · Psalms 24:5
- 7טהרה מביאה לידי קדושה · ספ״ג דשקלים. [כ].
- 8טהרה מביאה לידי קדושה · Jerusalem Talmud Shekalim 3:3:5
11ועי״ז ידחה ויכניע ג״כ ההסתר של נה״ב המסתיר ומבדיל ונראה לו העולם לבחי׳ יש ודבר נפרד והיינו מפני גסות חומר נפשו הבהמית.
And through this he will also thrust away and subdue the concealment of the animal soul, which conceals and separates, and [by which] the world appears to him as a something and a separate thing; and this is because of the coarseness of the matter of his animal soul.
The animal soul’s concealment makes the world look like an independent thing, separate from G‑d, and it comes from the coarseness of the animal soul’s material nature. Prayer with a pure heart pushes this concealment back.
אבל כשלבבו זך וברור יראה בעין שכלו איך שאין מסתיר באמת וכמו שהוא למעלה דקמי׳ כלא כו׳.
But when his heart is pure and refined, he will see with the eye of his intellect how in truth there is nothing that conceals, just as it is above, that “before Him [all is] as nothing,” etc.
With a refined heart a person perceives with his mind’s eye that nothing truly conceals G‑d, just as above “before Him all is as nothing.”
כי ע״י זכות לבו נמשך גילוי אלקות גם בבחי׳ ההסתר וההעלם שלא יסתיר, וזהו כמו שהי׳ נסיעת המשכן בבחי׳ מדבר שעי״ז הי׳ מכניע את המדבר כו׳.
For through the purity of his heart a revelation of G‑dliness is drawn down even into the level of concealment and hiddenness, so that it does not conceal. And this is like the journeying of the Mishkan in the level of wilderness, through which it subdued the wilderness, etc.
The purity of the heart draws G‑dliness into the very places of concealment, so that they no longer conceal. This is the inner equivalent of the Mishkan journeying through the wilderness and subduing it.
In the soul, as in the wilderness, revealed G‑dliness subdues the concealment of the animal soul, so that the world no longer appears separate from G‑d.
12וכך הוא בנפש עכשיו הכנעת היצה״ר שהוא ג״כ בחי׳ מדבר שהוא ארץ לא זרועה1 דהיינו המעשים והדבורים והמחשבות אשר לא לה׳ המה כו׳
And so it is in the soul now: the subduing of the evil inclination, which is also the level of wilderness, which is “a land not sown,” namely the deeds, the words and the thoughts that are not for G‑d, etc.
In the soul, the “wilderness” is the evil inclination: like “a land not sown” (Jeremiah 2:2), it yields nothing holy. It consists of the deeds, words and thoughts that are not devoted to G‑d.
And this is [the meaning of] “where no man (adam) dwelt.” The meaning of adam is what is written, “And upon the likeness of the throne was a likeness as the appearance of a man (adam),” etc.:
Jeremiah (2:6) also calls the wilderness the place “where no man (adam) dwelt.” Here adam is read as the supernal “Man” that Ezekiel saw upon the likeness of the divine throne (Ezekiel 1:26), that is, G‑d’s revealed presence.
לא ישב שם כי ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם5 כתיב כמ״ש מזה בד״ה אני לדודי.
he “did not dwell there,” for it is written, “And they shall make Me a Sanctuary, and I will dwell within them”; as is written about this in the discourse beginning “I am my Beloved’s.”
G‑d’s presence does not dwell in that wilderness, for He dwells only where a Sanctuary is made for Him: “and I will dwell within them.” The text refers to its fuller treatment in the discourse beginning “I am my Beloved’s.”
The evil inclination is the soul’s own wilderness, a barren place where G‑d’s presence does not dwell until a Sanctuary is made there.
Marei mekomos
- 1ארץ לא זרועה · Jeremiah 2:2
- 2אשר לא ישב אדם שם · שם ב, ו. ותי׳ אשר לי׳ שם [כ].
- 3לא ישב אדם שם · Jeremiah 2:6
- 4ועל דמות הכסא דמות כמראה אדם · Ezekiel 1:26
- 5ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם · Exodus 25:8
13וע״כ צריך להכניע בחינת מדבר זה שהוא היצר הרע והיינו ע״י המשכת גילוי אלקות בנפשו.
Therefore one must subdue this level of wilderness, which is the evil inclination; and this is through drawing down a revelation of G‑dliness into his soul.
Just as the Mishkan subdued the wilderness, a person must subdue his evil inclination, and this too is done by drawing a revelation of G‑dliness into his soul.
[ובמ״א נתבאר בענין בה״א כלה נאה וחסודה1 שלא יהיה ההמשכה לפי ההעלאה אלא אדרבה תחלה יהי׳ ההמשכה מלמעלה למטה
[And elsewhere it is explained, on the subject of “Beis Hillel say: ‘A bride who is beautiful and gracious,’” that the drawing down should not be according to the ascent; rather, on the contrary, first there should be the drawing down from above to below;
The bracketed passage recalls a teaching given elsewhere on Beis Hillel’s wedding praise, “a bride who is beautiful and gracious,” from the Talmud. There it is explained that divine light should be drawn down first, from above, rather than only in proportion to a person’s own ascent.
דהיינו שהמעשה הטוב יהיה אפילו קודם לסור מרע2 בדקות ולא ימתין בועשה טוב עד שיהיה תחלה סור מרע בתכלית.
that is, that the good deed should come even before turning from evil in [its] subtle [forms], and one should not wait with “do good” until there is first “turn from evil” completely.
In practice, a person should do good deeds even before he has refined away every subtle trace of evil. He need not finish “turn from evil” before beginning “do good” (Psalms 34:15).
The evil inclination is subdued by drawing G‑dliness down, and in practice good deeds need not wait until evil has been uprooted completely.
Marei mekomos
- 1כלה נאה וחסודה · Ketubot 17a:1
- 2סור מרע · Psalms 34:15
14והיינו משום שעי״ז ההמשכה שבועשה טוב אזי ממילא יפלו כל החיצונים כי מעט אור דוחה הרבה מן החושך ויבוא לסור מרע בתכלית כו׳,
This is because through this drawing down that is in “do good,” all the external forces will fall of themselves, for a little light dispels much of the darkness; and he will come to “turn from evil” completely, etc.
The reason is that the light drawn down through good deeds makes the external forces fall away of themselves, since a little light dispels much darkness. In the end this brings a person to turn from evil completely.
ועד״ז הוא ענין מסעות המשכן במדבר שע״י המשכת גילוי אלקות. ממילא נכנעו הקליפות כמ״ש ויהי בנסוע הארון1 כו׳ וינוסו משנאיך כו׳.
And in the same way is the matter of the journeys of the Mishkan in the wilderness: that through the drawing down of a revelation of G‑dliness, the kelipos (husks) were subdued of themselves, as it is written, “And it was, when the Ark journeyed,” etc., “and let those who hate You flee,” etc.
The Mishkan’s journeys worked the same way: when the Ark set out, Moshe said, “Arise, Havayah, and let Your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate You flee before You” (Numbers 10:35). The revelation of G‑dliness made the kelipos flee without a battle.
וכך בחי׳ זו בנפש שע״י המשכת אלקות מלמעלה למטה במעשה הטוב ובעסק התורה ותפלה אזי ממילא יכנע גשמיות הגוף ונה״ב כו׳].
And so it is with this aspect in the soul: that through drawing down G‑dliness from above to below, through the good deed and through occupation with Torah and prayer, then of itself the physicality of the body and the animal soul will be subdued, etc.]
In the soul too, drawing G‑dliness down through good deeds, Torah study and prayer subdues the body’s physicality and the animal soul as a matter of course.
Revealed light, not a direct struggle, is what makes darkness give way, both in the Mishkan’s journeys and in the soul.
Marei mekomos
- 1ויהי בנסוע הארון · Numbers 10:35
The standing beams and the curtains ¶15–18
15והנה במשכן היו ג׳ דברים קרשי המשכן ויריעות המשכן והכלים היינו ארון ומנורה ומזבח כו׳.
Now, in the Mishkan there were three things: the beams of the Mishkan, the curtains of the Mishkan, and the vessels, namely the Ark, the Menorah and the Altar, etc.
The Mishkan had three components: the standing beams that formed its walls, the curtains spread over them, and the vessels such as the Ark, the Menorah and the Altar. The maamar will match each to a level of divine service and to one Levite family.
Now, first we can explain the matter of the beams, which are called “acacia wood, standing,” which is along the lines of the angels being called “standing,” as it is written,
The beams are called “acacia wood, standing” (Exodus 26:15), and the Alter Rebbe links this to the angels, who are called “those who stand.” An earlier maamar in Bechukosai explains that the angels are so called because each stays fixed at one level.
שרפים עומדים4 וכמ״ש במדרש שיר ה שירים רבה סוף פסוק צאינה וראינה למעלה שרפים עומדים אף למטה עצי שטים עומדים,5 ופי׳ שרפים עומדים היינו
“Seraphim standing”; and as is written in the Midrash Shir HaShirim Rabbah, at the end of [the comment on] the verse “Go forth and see”: Above, “seraphim standing”; so too below, “acacia wood, standing.” And the meaning of “seraphim standing” is
Isaiah saw “seraphim standing” above G‑d (Isaiah 6:2), and the Midrash pairs the two: above, the seraphim stand; below, the acacia beams stand. The Alter Rebbe now explains what the angels’ standing means.
כמאמר ואשר משרתיו כולם עומדים ברום עולם ומשמיעים ביראה כו׳ (ועיין בזהר תרומה דף קס״ט ע״א ודק״ע ע״א).
as the saying, “And His ministers all stand in the heights of the universe and proclaim in awe,” etc. (And see in the Zohar, Terumah, folio 169a, and folio 170a.)
This standing is described in the blessing before the morning Shema: G‑d’s ministers “all stand in the heights of the universe and proclaim in awe.” The parenthesis refers the reader to the Zohar on Parshas Terumah.
והענין הוא כי אין עמידה אלא שתיקה6 ופי׳ שתיקה היינו בחי׳ ביטול העצמות מכל וכל,
And the matter is that “standing” is nothing but silence; and the meaning of silence is the level of the utter nullification (bittul) of one’s very self,
The Sages teach that “standing” means silence (Sotah 39a). Inwardly, silence is the utter nullification of one’s very self.
that is, the level of the nullification of the will: that a person should have no other will besides the will for the One G‑d; and as it is written, “And besides You I desire nothing,” etc.
Concretely, this is the nullification of one’s own will, so that a person wants nothing but G‑d, as in “And besides You I desire nothing” (Psalms 73:25).
The Mishkan’s standing beams, like the standing angels, represent silence and the nullification of one’s own will before G‑d.
The Kehot edition notes that Or HaTorah explains this silence as reaching up to the highest level within Keser.
Marei mekomos
- 1והנה תחלה י״ל ענין הקרשים · קטע מכאן מובא בסה״מ תרל״ה-ב ע׳ שסב.
- 2עצי שטים עומדים · Exodus 26:15
- 3שהמלאכים נק׳ עומדים · ראה לעיל פ׳ בחקותי מה, א.
- 4שרפים עומדים · Isaiah 6:2
- 5למעלה שרפים עומדים אף למטה עצי שטים עומדים · Shir HaShirim Rabbah 3:11:2
- 6אין עמידה אלא שתיקה · Sotah 39a:2
- 7ועמך לא חפצתי · Psalms 73:25
- 8במדרש שהש״ר ס״פ צאינה וראינה · בסה״מ תרל״ה שם מציין למד״ר פ׳ תרומה.
- 9
And as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Nullify your will,” etc. [See in Iggeres HaKodesh, the passage beginning “To give you understanding.”] And the reason this level is called “standing” is
The nullification of will is the Mishnah’s “Nullify your will before His will” (Avos 2:4), discussed in Tanya’s Iggeres HaKodesh, letter 11. The Alter Rebbe now explains why this state is called “standing.”
that when he has the love and the cleaving to G‑d, this is the level of walking; and as it is written of Avraham, “going and journeying,” etc.
Love of G‑d and cleaving to Him are movement, a “walking” toward Him, as with Avraham, who went “going and journeying” (Genesis 12:9).
אך קודם שיגיע לבחי׳ הילוך ואהבה זו צ״ל תחלה בחי׳ עמידה זאת היינו לעמוד ולשתוק
But before he reaches this level of walking and love, there must first be this level of standing, that is, to stand and to be silent
Before one can walk in love, one must first stand: stop and fall silent.
מן התפשטות והילוך שבלעומת זה, והן הרצונות זרות שהאדם רוצה וחפץ ומשתוקק לדברים זרים זהו נק׳ ג״כ הילוך ע״ד מ״ש ויבא הלך7 לאיש העשיר8
from the spreading forth and the walking of the opposite side; and these are the alien desires, in which a person wants, desires and longs for alien things. This too is called “walking,” along the lines of what is written, “And there came a wayfarer (helech) to the rich man”
The standing is from the walking of the opposite side, the alien desires through which a person longs for things foreign to holiness. Scripture calls this too a walking, as in the parable of “a wayfarer (helech) who came to the rich man.”
(בש״ב י״ב ד׳) שהוא ההילוך דלעומת זה וזהו הלך שהולך ומתחזק שמתחלה הוא כאורח כו׳ ע״ש בפרש״י.
(in II Samuel 12:4), which is the walking of the opposite side. And this is “helech” (wayfarer): that it goes on and grows stronger, for at first it is like a guest, etc.; see there in Rashi’s commentary.
In Nasan’s parable, the wayfarer is the evil inclination. Rashi there explains that it is first called a wayfarer, then a guest, and finally the master of the house, for it keeps growing stronger.
וצ״ל משלחי רגל השור והחמור910 דהיינו למנוע הילוך של היצה״ר (כדאיתא בגמרא פ״ק דע״ז דף11 ה׳ ע״ב ובפרש״י שם ועיין זח״ב שמות ד״ה סע״ב12 בשלח דס״ד סע״ב ובהרמ״ז ר״פ מקץ).
And one must be [among] “those who send forth the foot of the ox and the donkey,” that is, to restrain the walking of the evil inclination (as is found in the Gemara, the first chapter of Avodah Zarah, folio 5b, and in Rashi’s commentary there; and see Zohar, Part II, Shemos, folio 5, at the end of side b; Beshalach, folio 64, at the end of side b; and in the Ramaz at the beginning of Parshas Mikeitz).
The Talmud reads “those who send forth the foot of the ox and the donkey” (Isaiah 32:20) as people whose evil inclination is given into their own hands. Here it means stopping the evil inclination’s walking.
וכדי שיתהפך מהילוך זה להיות ההילוך באלקות הוא ע״י שיבא תחלה לבחינת עמידה והוא בחי׳ ביטול רצון [וכנ״ל שע״י אתכפיא הוא הדרך לבוא לבחי׳ אתהפכא כו׳ ועמ״ש בד״ה קחו מאתכם תרומה. בפ׳ ויקהל].1314
And in order that he be transformed from this walking, so that the walking be in G‑dliness, [this] is through first coming to the level of standing, which is the level of the nullification of will [and as mentioned above, that iskafya (subduing) is the way to come to the level of is’hapcha (transformation), etc.; and see what is written in the discourse beginning “Take from among you an offering,” in Parshas Vayakhel].
To turn this walking into a walking in G‑dliness, one must first come to standing, the nullification of will. This is the same rule as above, that subjugation (iskafya) is the way to transformation (is’hapcha).
Standing means first halting the outward movement of foreign desires, and only this nullification of will opens the way to the movement of love toward G‑d.
The Kehot edition quotes the Mitteler Rebbe’s discourses on this passage: this nullification comes only from bittul in one’s very essence, not from any stirring of love and cleaving.
Marei mekomos
- 1וכמארז״ל בטל רצונך · אבות פ״ב מ״ד. ובמאמרי אדה״א כאן ע׳ קעב מפרש ”וזהו רק מצד בחי׳ הביטול בעצם דוקא שלא מחמת התפעלות אהבה ודביקו׳ כלל”.
- 2בטל רצונך · Pirkei Avot 2:4
- 3ועיין באגה״ק ד״ה להשכילך בינה · סי׳ יא. ובסה״מ תרל״ה-ב ע׳ שסב מביא כאן קיצור מהאגה״ק.
- 4ע׳ באגה״ק ד״ה להשכילך בינה · Tanya, Iggeres HaKodesh 11:1
- 5הלוך ונסוע · Genesis 19:2
- 6הלוך ונסוע · Genesis 12:9
- 7ויבא הלך · Rashi on II Samuel 12:4
- 8
- 9משלחי רגל השור והחמור · Isaiah 32:20
- 10משלחי רגל השור והחמור · Avodah Zarah 5b:3–4
- 11בגמרא פ״ק דע״ז דף ה׳ ע״ב · ”שיצרם מסור בידם מפסוק משלחי רגל השור והחמור” — סה״מ תרל״ה-ב ע׳ שסג.
- 12זח״ב שמות ד״ה סע״ב · Zohar, Shemot 8:60–10:67
- 13בד״ה קחו מאתכם תרומה בפ׳ ויקהל · תו״א פט, ג ”שע״י אתכפיא יכול לבוא לבחי׳ אהפכא” — סה״מ תרל״ה שם.
- 14והיינו בחי׳ ביטול הרצון · ראה גם באוה״ת בראשית כרך ה׳ דף תתקפה, ב ומבאר שם שענין השתיקה מגיע בבחי׳ העליונה שבכתר.
17וזה היה ענין קרשים עומדים ועמידה וביטול רצון זה נמשך ע״י יראה וזהו כולם עומדים1 ברום עולם ומשמיעים ביראה.
And this was the matter of the “standing” beams. And this standing and nullification of will is drawn forth through awe; and this is [the meaning of] “they all stand in the heights of the universe and proclaim in awe.”
The standing beams are this nullification of will, and it comes through awe, as the angels “stand … and proclaim in awe.”
וזה היה ענין עבודת בני מררי נושאי הקרשים שכדי לבוא לבחי׳ יראה ועמידה זו זהו ע״י המרירות בהיותו ממארי דחושבנא על ימי חלדו אשר רובם ככולם בחושך ילך כו׳
And this was the matter of the service of the sons of Merari, the bearers of the beams: that in order to come to this level of awe and standing, this is through bitterness (merirus), through his being one of the “masters of accounting” over the days of his life, most of which, as good as all, “in darkness he goes,” etc.;
The family of Merari, who carried the beams, embodies the path to this awe: bitterness (merirus), the name Merari meaning bitter. A person becomes one of the “masters of accounting,” who honestly reckon how most of their days were spent in spiritual darkness.
ועי״ז מעורר רחמים רבים שיוכל לבוא לבחינת בטל רצונך וכמ״ש מזה ע״פ קול דודי2 בענין על מצות ומרורים3 כו׳ ע״ש,
and through this he arouses abundant compassion, so that he may be able to come to the level of “Nullify your will”; and as is written about this on the verse “The voice of my Beloved,” on the subject of “with matzos and bitter herbs,” etc.; see there.
This bitterness arouses great divine compassion, enabling him to reach “Nullify your will.” The text refers to its discussion of “matzos and bitter herbs” in the maamar on “The voice of my Beloved.”
והנה מזה נמשך אח״כ לבא למדרגת האהבה והרצון לה׳ בבחי׳ כלות הנפש וזהו ענין היריעות תכלת וארגמן4 כו׳
And from this one is afterwards drawn to come to the rank of love and of will for G‑d, in the state of the soul’s expiring (kelos hanefesh); and this is the matter of the curtains of “blue (techeles) and purple,” etc.,
From this awe one is drawn afterward to love and desire for G‑d, to the point of the soul’s expiring in yearning (kelos hanefesh). This love is the Mishkan’s curtains, woven of “blue (techeles) and purple.”
for techeles is an expression of kilayon (expiring): “My flesh and my heart expire.” And see what is written on the subject of “My flesh expires” in the discourse beginning “The Song of Songs.”
Techeles is linked to kilayon, “expiring,” as in “My flesh and my heart expire” (Psalms 73:26), the soul’s yearning to the point of expiring. The maamar on “The Song of Songs” develops this meaning.
The bitterness of honest self-reckoning, the service of Merari, brings awe and the nullification of will, and from it comes the expiring love symbolized by the techeles curtains.
Marei mekomos
- 1וזהו כולם עומדים ביראה · מכאן ואילך ראה בסה״מ תרל״ה שם.
- 2ע״פ קול דודי · לקו״ת שה״ש יד, ד.
- 3על מצות ומרורים · Numbers 9:11
- 4תכלת וארגמן · Exodus 26:1
- 5כלה שארי ולבבי · Psalms 73:26
- 6בד״ה שיר השירים · לקו״ת שה״ש א, א.
18והוא החופה על הקרשים שהוא בחי׳ הביטול רצון הנ״ל. והוא ג״כ כדמיון שיש באדם עצמות ויש בשר וגידים1 החופפים עליהם.
And this is the canopy over the beams, which are the level of the nullification of will mentioned above. And this is also like the way that in a person there are bones, and there are flesh and sinews that cover over them.
The curtains, which are love, spread over the beams, which are the nullification of will. The human body offers a parallel: bones underneath, covered by flesh and sinews.
ובחי׳ העצמות זהו היסוד2 שעליהם נבנה הבשר והגידין והוא בחי׳ כל עצמותי תאמרנה3 ה׳ מי כמוך כו׳, בחי׳ ביטול רצון וזה צ״ל באדם כל היום
And the level of the bones is the foundation upon which the flesh and the sinews are built; and this is the level of “All my bones shall say, ‘Havayah, who is like You,’” etc.: the level of nullification of will. And this must be in a person all day long;
The bones are the foundation on which flesh and sinews are built, and they correspond to “All my bones shall say, Havayah, who is like You” (Psalms 35:10), the nullification of will. This must be present in a person all day long.
ומזה יבא אח״כ לבחי׳ בשר וגידים הוא בחי׳ אהבה [כי בשר הוא יסוד האש4 וגידים בחי׳ דם ורוח] וזהו עבודת בני גרשון:
and from this he will afterwards come to the level of flesh and sinews, which is the level of love [for flesh is the element of fire, and sinews are the level of blood and spirit]. And this is the service of the sons of Gershon.
On this foundation he can then reach love, the “flesh and sinews,” since flesh corresponds to the element of fire and sinews to blood and spirit. This love is the service of the sons of Gershon, who carried the curtains.
Nullification of will is the skeleton of divine service and love is its flesh; Merari carried the first, in the beams, and Gershon the second, in the curtains.
The Kehot edition quotes the Mitteler Rebbe: though the bones lack the spiritual life-force of the blood, which is the soul, they are what holds the whole structure of the body standing.
Marei mekomos
- 1עצמות . . בשר וגידים · ראה לקמן פ׳ פנחס עז, ד ואילך.
- 2ובחי׳ העצמות זהו היסוד · ”אע״פ שאין בהם חיות הרוחני שבדם הוא הנפש כו׳ עכ״ז הן עיקר קיום מעמד ומצב כל בנין הגוף” מאמרי אדה״א כאן ע׳ קעג. נתבאר בארוכה בביאה״ז לאדה״א דף קכב, א ואילך. ביאה״ז להצ״צ כרך ב ע׳ תתרל. אוה״ת שופטים ע׳ תתנד.
- 3כל עצמותי תאמרנה · Psalms 35:10
- 4כי בשר הוא יסוד האש · ראה לקו״ת פ׳ בהעלותך לא, ג. פ׳ פנחס עז, ד. בפ׳ ברכה צז, ד.
In prayer: awe, love and the six attributes ¶19–27
19ג והנה בעבודת ה׳ בתפלה בחי׳ ביטול רצון הנ״ל צ״ל ע״י התעוררות יראה תתאה בפסוד״ז וברכת יוצר אור1 בסיפורו מיראת
3. Now, in the service of G‑d in prayer, the level of nullification of will mentioned above must come through the arousal of lower awe (yirah tata’ah) in Pesukei deZimra (the Verses of Praise) and in the blessing “Who forms light,” in one’s recounting of the awe
Section 3 applies this to prayer. The nullification of will comes through lower awe, aroused in Pesukei deZimra and in the blessing “Who forms light,” which describes how the angels stand in awe and self-nullification.
וביטול המלאכים, ולבוא לבחי׳ הילוך ואהבה הוא ע״י התבוננות באמרו אהבת עולם כו׳ שמע ישראל2 כו׳ שהוא בחי׳ היכל האהבה פי׳ שמע ל׳ הבנה3 כידוע.
and self-nullification of the angels; and to come to the level of walking and love is through contemplation, as one says “With an everlasting love,” etc., “Hear, O Israel,” etc., which is the level of the Chamber of Love. The meaning of Shema (“Hear”) is a term of understanding, as is known.
The “walking” of love comes through contemplation in the blessing “With an everlasting love” and in the Shema, which corresponds to the Chamber of Love. Shema (“hear”) also means “understand,” so reciting it calls for contemplation.
The order of morning prayer mirrors the Mishkan: the Verses of Praise and the blessing over the angels bring lower awe and standing, and the Shema with its blessing brings love.
Marei mekomos
- 1וברכת יוצר אור · באוה״ת כאן פ׳ נשא ע׳ רלט מציין שכאן מפרש באופן אחר ממה שנתבאר לעיל פ׳ במדבר ב, ג, ע״ש.
- 2שמע ישראל · Deuteronomy 6:4
- 3שמע ל׳ הבנה · I Samuel 3:10
20והוא ענין ההתבוננות בגדולת ה׳ איך שכל העולמות כולם ג״ע עליון ותחתון וגם מה שעתיד להיות באלף השביעי1 לעתיד לבוא וגם עד נ׳ אלפים יובלות2 כולם עלו במחשבה א׳ לבד קמי׳ עצמותו ית׳
And this is the matter of contemplating the greatness of G‑d: how all the worlds, all of them—the higher and the lower Gan Eden, and also what is destined to be in the seventh millennium, in the Time to Come, and also up to fifty thousand jubilees—all of them arose in but one thought before His Essence, may He be blessed;
The contemplation is of G‑d’s greatness: all the worlds, the lower and higher Gan Eden, the seventh millennium of the Time to Come, and even the fifty thousand jubilees, all arose before Him in a single thought. Everything that will ever exist is only one thought for Him.
וכמאמר צופה ומביט עד סוף כל הדורות3 והבטה זאת במחשבה א׳ היא לבד כמ״ש בזהר ובמדרש4 דבמחשבה א׳ ברא הקב״ה כל העולמות.
and as the saying, “He looks and gazes to the end of all the generations”; and this gazing is in one thought alone, as is written in the Zohar and in the Midrash, that with one thought the Holy One, blessed be He, created all the worlds.
This is what the Rosh Hashanah prayer means in saying that G‑d “looks and gazes to the end of all generations”: His gaze is one single thought. The Zohar and the Midrash say likewise that with one thought He created all the worlds.
Contemplating that all of creation, through all its ages, is a single thought before G‑d is the meditation from which love is born.
Marei mekomos
- 1באלף השביעי לע״ל · Rosh Hashanah 31a
- 2נ׳ אלפים יובלות · ראה לקו״ת שה״ש ג, ד וש״נ.
- 3צופה ומביט עד סוף כל הדורות · זכרונות במוסף דר״ה.
- 4בזהר ובמדרש · על״ק עקב (טז, ד). וש״נ. [כ]. ראה הנסמן לקמן בשה״ש ט, ב. שבכמה מקומות מצויין לזהר פ׳ שמות ובכמה מקומות לבראשית. ובכ״מ למדרש הנעלם ע״ש. וראה גם לקמן פ׳ נצבים מז, ג: ובמדרש. במאמרי אדה״א כאן ע׳ קעה: ”וזהו שנק׳ בזהר ובל׳ רז״ל”.
21ועד״מ המחשבה באדם התחתון שאינה רק בחי׳ לבוש לבד לנפש וכ״ש למעלה כי לא מחשבותי מחשבותיכם1 כתיב [ועמ״ש בזה בד״ה רני ושמחי2 בת בפ׳ מקץ].
By way of analogy: thought in the lower man is nothing but the level of a garment for the soul; and all the more so above, for it is written, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts.” [And see what is written on this in the discourse beginning “Sing and rejoice, O daughter,” in Parshas Mikeitz.]
Even in a person, thought is only a garment, an outer expression, for the soul; all the more so above, where “My thoughts are not your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8). So G‑d’s “thought” of creating the worlds is no more than a garment for Him.
וזהו ה׳ מלך גאות לבש3 דהיינו מה שעלה במחשבה לפניו להאציל ולברוא העולמות אבי״ע בכדי שיהיה הוא ית׳ מלך על עם הנה מחשבה זו הוא מה שנתלבש בלבוש.
And this is [the meaning of] “Havayah reigns; He has clothed Himself in majesty”: that is, what arose in thought before Him, to emanate and create the worlds of Atzilus (Emanation), Beriah (Creation), Yetzirah (Formation) and Asiyah (Action), in order that He, may He be blessed, be King over a people—this thought is His having clothed Himself in a garment.
This explains “Havayah reigns; He has clothed Himself in majesty” (Psalms 93:1). G‑d’s thought to bring the four worlds into being, so that He might be King over a people, is a garment He put on, not His Essence.
שאינו כמו הרצון והמחשבה במלך ב״ו שרוצה למלוך על עבדיו שעבדיו הם מהות ודבר גם בזולת מלכותו עליהם ע״כ שייך רצון למלך למלוך עליהם.
For it is not like the will and the thought in a king of flesh and blood who wants to reign over his servants: his servants are an entity and a thing even apart from his reign over them; therefore a will to reign over them is applicable to the king.
A human king’s desire to rule is natural, because his subjects exist independently of his rule. The desire to reign over them therefore has real meaning for him.
משא״כ למעלה שהעולמות כולם מתהווים יש מאין ממנו ית׳ ע״י רצון זה א״כ כדי שיהיה רצון זה למלוך עליהם הוא רק ע״ד בחי׳ לבוש שמתלבש ברצון ומחשבה זו.
Whereas above, where all the worlds come into being something from nothing from Him, may He be blessed, through this will—if so, in order that there be this will to reign over them, it is only in the manner of the level of a garment: that He clothes Himself in this will and thought.
Above, however, the worlds come into being from nothing only through this very will. A will to reign over beings that exist only by that will can only be a garment that G‑d puts on.
G‑d’s will and thought to reign over the worlds is only a garment He puts on, unlike a human king, whose subjects exist apart from his rule.
Marei mekomos
- 1כי לא מחשבותי מחשבותיכם · Isaiah 55:8
- 2בד״ה רני ושמחי · תו״א לו, א.
- 3ה׳ מלך גאות לבש · Psalms 93:1
Therefore it says, “Havayah reigns; He has clothed Himself in majesty”: that is, the supernal thought that arose before Him, “I will reign,” is only the level of a garment alone.
The verse says “He has clothed Himself in majesty” to teach that the supernal thought “I will reign” is only a garment.
וזהו יביאו לבוש מלכות3 אשר לבש בו המלך שהמלכות הוא רק בחי׳ לבוש לבד. [אך יביאו לבוש מלכות כתיב דבאתעדל״ת תליא מילתא להמשיך רצונו ית׳ במחשבה זו והיינו ע״י קיום התומ״צ.
And this is [the meaning of] “Let them bring royal apparel which the king has worn”: that Malchus (sovereignty) is only the level of a garment alone. [But it is written, “Let them bring royal apparel,” for the matter depends on an arousal from below, to draw His will, may He be blessed, into this thought; and this is through the fulfillment of Torah and mitzvos.
Esther’s “Let them bring royal apparel which the king has worn” (Esther 6:8) likewise shows that kingship (Malchus) is only a garment. Because it says “let them bring,” the garment depends on what is done below: through Torah and mitzvos we draw G‑d’s will into this thought of reigning.
G‑d’s kingship is a garment, and our Torah and mitzvos, an arousal from below, are what draw His will into it.
Marei mekomos
- 1ה׳ מלך גאות לבש · Psalms 93:1
- 2אנא אמלוך · ועל״ק בבי׳ (כא, ד). וש״נ. [כ].
- 3יביאו לבוש מלכות · Esther 6:8
23וזהו ענין המשכן ושכנתי בתוכם וזהו ענין הפעם ילוה אישי אלי1 כו׳ היינו המשכת אור א״ס להיות נמשך בבחי׳ מחשבה זו כמשי״ת לקמן], וזהו ההתבוננות בשמע ישראל2 ה׳ אלקינו.
And this is the matter of the Mishkan, “and I will dwell within them”; and this is the matter of “This time my husband will be joined (yilaveh) to me,” etc.: that is, the drawing down of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), that it be drawn into the level of this thought, as will be explained below.] And this is the contemplation in “Hear, O Israel, Havayah is our G‑d (Elokeinu).”
The Mishkan, “I will dwell within them,” is the drawing of the Infinite Light into this garment of thought, and Leah’s words “this time my husband will be joined to me” (Genesis 29:34) express the same joining. In prayer, this is what one contemplates in “Hear, O Israel, Havayah is our G‑d.”
פי׳ שהוא מתלבש במחשבה זו. וזהו אלקינו בחי׳ צמצום ואח״כ אומרים בשכמל״ו שמברכים וממשיכים בחי׳ מל׳ גם בעולמות בי״ע.
The meaning is that He is enclothed in this thought. And this is “Elokeinu”: the level of tzimtzum (contraction). And afterwards one says, “Blessed be the Name of the glory of His kingdom forever and ever,” for one blesses and draws the level of Malchus also into the worlds of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah.
Havayah, G‑d’s infinite being, enclothes itself in this thought, and “our G‑d” (Elokeinu) is the contraction (tzimtzum) that makes this possible. “Blessed be the Name of the glory of His kingdom forever” then draws His Malchus down into the lower worlds of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah.
(ועמ״ש סד״ה ביום השמיני שלח).34 ומהתבוננות זו נולד ונמשך בחי׳ ואהבת והאהבה הוא ענין היריעות דרך כלל כמשי״ת
(And see what is written at the end of the discourse beginning “On the eighth day he sent [the people away].”) And from this contemplation is born and drawn forth the level of “And you shall love”; and the love is the matter of the curtains, in a general way, as will be explained;
The parenthesis refers to a discourse on “On the eighth day he sent the people away,” which the Kehot note tentatively identifies with a maamar for Shemini Atzeres. From this contemplation the love of “And you shall love” is born, and in a general way this love corresponds to the Mishkan’s curtains.
but in particular they are six emotive attributes (middos), as it is written of the angels, “With two he would cover his face,” etc., “and with two he would fly,” that is, running and returning (ratzo vashov).
In detail the love has six aspects, the six emotive attributes, like the six wings of the seraphim (Isaiah 6:2). Their flying is “running and returning” (Ezekiel 1:14): yearning upward and then returning below.
Contemplating the Infinite enclothed in the thought of kingship gives birth to love, which in general is the curtains and in detail is six attributes moving in running and returning.
Marei mekomos
- 1הפעם ילוה אישי אלי · Genesis 29:34
- 2שמע ישראל ה׳ אלקינו · Deuteronomy 6:4
- 3סד״ה ביום השמיני שלח · אולי הכוונה ללקו״ת שמע״צ פח, א.
- 4ביום השמיני שלח · I Kings 8:66
- 5בשתים יכסה פניו · Isaiah 6:2
- 6רצוא ושוב · Ezekiel 1:14
Therefore the Name of forty-two [letters] has seven verses, and in each one six words. And this is [the meaning of] what is written of the curtains, “fine linen (shesh) and purple,” etc.:
The Name of forty-two letters is the prayer Ana B’choach: seven lines of six words each, matching the six attributes. The curtains were made of shesh, “fine linen,” a word that also means “six.”
שית גוונין ומכסה עורות תחשים34 שתרגומו ססגונא5 וארז״ל [פ״ב דשבת דכ״ח] ששש בגונין הרבה היינו ששה מדות הנ״ל [ועמ״ש בענין רצוא ושוב בפסוק וקבל היהודים6 כו׳].
six colors. And the covering of tachash skins, which the Targum renders sasgona, and our Sages, of blessed memory, said [chapter 2 of Shabbos, folio 28] that it rejoices (sas) in many colors: that is, the six attributes mentioned above. [And see what is written on the subject of running and returning on the verse “And the Jews accepted,” etc.]
The “six colors” and the tachash skins point to the same six attributes: the Targum calls the tachash sasgona, and the Talmud explains that it “rejoiced (sas) in many colors” (Shabbos 28a). The bracket refers to Torah Ohr on “And the Jews accepted” for running and returning.
The number six, in Ana B’choach, in the linen curtains and in the many-colored tachash, points to the six attributes of love.
Marei mekomos
- 1שם מ״ב יש בו ז״פ · תפלת אנא בכח.
- 2שש וארגמן · Exodus 26:1
- 3ומכסה עורות תחשים · Exodus 26:14
- 4
- 5ססגונא · Onkelos Exodus 26:14
- 6בפסוק וקבל היהודים · תו״א צו, ג.
25וענין רצוא ושוב באדם הרצוא הוא האהבה והשוב הוא המשכת אור א״ס ב״ה ע״י מצות מעשיות שהן רמ״ח אברין דמלכא
And the matter of running and returning in a person: the running is the love, and the returning is the drawing down of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, through the practical mitzvos, which are “the 248 limbs of the King,”
In a person, running (ratzo) is the soul’s love yearning upward, and returning (shov) is drawing the Infinite Light down through the practical mitzvos. The mitzvos are called “the 248 limbs of the King.”
כמו האבר שהוא כלי לגילוי האור והחיות כו׳ וע״י המשכה זו שהאדם ממשיך עליו גילוי השראת אור א״ס ב״ה ע״י המצות
like a limb, which is a vessel for the revelation of the light and the life-force, etc. And through this drawing down, in which a person draws upon himself the revelation of the indwelling of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, through the mitzvos,
Just as a limb is the vessel through which the soul’s life is revealed, each mitzvah is a vessel for G‑d’s light. By doing the mitzvos a person draws the indwelling of the Infinite Light upon himself.
כמאמר אשר קדשנו במצותיו הנה עי״ז חוזר ומתעורר אה״ר בנפש האדם [ע׳ מ״ש בפסוק ראשי המטות]1 וזהו משכני אחריך נרוצה.2
as the saying, “Who has sanctified us with His commandments,” through this, great love (ahavah rabbah) is aroused once again in the person’s soul [see what is written on the verse “The heads of the tribes”]; and this is [the meaning of] “Draw me; after You we will run.”
This is the meaning of the blessing “Who has sanctified us with His commandments.” The drawing down in turn arouses great love again in the soul, as in “Draw me; after You we will run” (Song of Songs 1:4): first G‑d draws, then the soul runs.
Love is the upward running and the mitzvos are the downward returning, and each returning arouses a new running.
Marei mekomos
- 1ע׳ מ״ש בפסוק ראשי המטות · לקמן פא, א.
- 2משכני אחריך נרוצה · Song of Songs 1:4
And it is written, “With an everlasting love I have loved you; therefore I have drawn you with kindness,” etc. It follows that there is running after the returning, and returning after the running.
Jeremiah 31:2, “With an everlasting love I have loved you; therefore I have drawn you with kindness,” shows that love drawn from above in turn draws the soul. So running and returning follow one another in a continuous cycle.
וזהו ענין בני גרשון שנשאו2 היריעות3 היינו המשכת אה״ר הנמשך ע״י קיום המצות באהבת עולם שהוא הרצוא שקודם השוב כו׳.
And this is the matter of the sons of Gershon, who carried the curtains: that is, the drawing down of great love, which is drawn through the fulfillment of the mitzvos, into everlasting love (ahavas olam), which is the running that precedes the returning, etc.
The sons of Gershon carried the curtains (Numbers 3:25–26), which stand for the great love that is drawn, through keeping the mitzvos, into everlasting love. This everlasting love is the “running” that precedes the “returning.”
Running and returning alternate, and the service of Gershon, the curtains, is the love that the mitzvos draw down.
Marei mekomos
- 1אהבת עולם אהבתיך · Jeremiah 31:3
- 2בני גרשון שנשאו את היריעות · Numbers 3:25
- 3בני גרשון שנשאו היריעות · Numbers 3:25–26
27וגם היריעות הם מקיפים כמו שהמצות הם לבושים לנפש.12 נמצא עבודת בני מררי נושאי הקרשים3 שהן בחי׳ עצי שטים עומדים זהו יראה תתאה שממנה נמשך בחי׳ העמידה וביטול רצון.
And also, the curtains are encompassing [lights] (makifim), just as the mitzvos are garments for the soul. It follows that the service of the sons of Merari, the bearers of the beams, which are the level of “acacia wood, standing,” is lower awe, from which the level of standing and nullification of will is drawn.
The curtains are also makifim, encompassing lights, just as the mitzvos are “garments” for the soul, as Etz Chaim teaches. To sum up: Merari’s beams, “acacia wood, standing,” are lower awe, the source of standing and the nullification of will.
The curtains are encompassing garments like the mitzvos, and Merari’s beams are lower awe, the base of the whole structure.
Marei mekomos
- 1שהמצות הם לבושים לנפש · ע״ח שמ״ד, פ״ג.
- 2שהמצות הם לבושים לנפש · Sefer Etz Chaim 44:3
- 3בני מררי נושאי הקרשים · Numbers 3:36
Kehas, Torah and higher awe ¶28
28ואח״כ בחי׳ בני גרשון נושאי היריעות היינו התחברות ב׳ בחי׳ אהבה אהבת עולם ואהבה רבה.
And afterwards [comes] the level of the sons of Gershon, the bearers of the curtains: that is, the joining of two levels of love, everlasting love (ahavas olam) and great love (ahavah rabbah).
Next comes Gershon, who carried the curtains: the joining of two loves, everlasting love (ahavas olam) and great love (ahavah rabbah).
ועבודת בני קהת נושאי הארון והמזבחות1 כו׳ זהו בחי׳ יראה עילאה שהיא למעלה גם מבחי׳ אה״ר, כי
And the service of the sons of Kehas, the bearers of the Ark and the altars, etc., is the level of higher awe (yirah ila’ah), which is above even the level of great love. For
Kehas, who carried the Ark and the altars, represents higher awe (yirah ila’ah), which stands even above great love.
הנה בארון היה גנוז הלוחות2 כדכתיב מגלה עמוקות מני חשך3 כמ״ש עמקו מחשבותיך4 והגילוי היה ע״י המנורה וכמ״ש ותורה אור5 שנמשך בחי׳ אור וגילוי מבחי׳ ההעלם דישת חשך סתרו6
in the Ark the Tablets were hidden away, as it is written, “He reveals deep things out of darkness,” as it is written, “Your thoughts are deep”; and the revelation was through the Menorah, and as it is written, “and the Torah is light”: that the level of light and revelation is drawn from the level of the concealment of “He made darkness His hiding place”
The Tablets were hidden in the Ark, as in “He reveals deep things out of darkness” (Job 12:22) and “Your thoughts are deep” (Psalms 92:6). Their light was revealed through the Menorah, “and the Torah is light” (Proverbs 6:23), a light drawn out of the concealment of “He made darkness His hiding place” (Psalms 18:12).
(ועמ״ש בד״ה ששת ימים7 תאכל מצות בפי׳ ויהי הענן והחשך ויאר8 כו׳). והנה בחכמה אתברירו910 כי כל התורה היא לברר בירורים וזהו ענין המזבחות.
(and see what is written in the discourse beginning “Six days you shall eat matzos,” on the explanation of “And there was the cloud and the darkness, and it lit up,” etc.). Now, “through Chochmah (wisdom) they are refined,” for the whole Torah is to effect refinements (birurim); and this is the matter of the altars.
The parenthesis refers to a maamar on “Six days you shall eat matzos.” The altars stand for refinement (birurim): through Chochmah the good is separated from the evil, and the whole Torah exists to accomplish this.
ולכן היה זה משא בני קהת שהוא כמ״ש ולו יקהת עמים.11 יתכנשון עממיא12 כו׳ שהוא ענין הבירורים. וע״י חכמה נמשך ג״כ בחי׳ יראה עילאה.
Therefore this was the burden of the sons of Kehas, which is as it is written, “And to him shall be the gathering (yikhas) of the peoples”: “the peoples shall gather together,” etc., which is the matter of the refinements. And through Chochmah the level of higher awe is also drawn forth,
That is why Kehas carried them: Yaakov’s blessing “to him shall be the gathering (yikhas) of the peoples” (Genesis 49:10), rendered “the peoples shall gather,” shares the root of the name Kehas and means gathering in, that is, refinement. Chochmah also brings higher awe.
כנודע ממאמר אם אין יראה אין חכמה13 אם אין חכמה אין יראה14 דמתחלה צ״ל יראה תתאה דאם אין יר״ת א״א לבוא לבחי׳ החכמה וזהו בחי׳ הקרשים הנ״ל.
as is known from the saying, “If there is no awe there is no wisdom; if there is no wisdom there is no awe”: that first there must be lower awe, for if there is no lower awe it is impossible to come to the level of Chochmah; and this is the level of the beams mentioned above.
The Mishnah’s “If there is no wisdom there is no awe; if there is no awe there is no wisdom” (Avos 3:17) is read as speaking of two kinds of awe. First comes lower awe, without which one cannot reach Chochmah; this is the beams.
ואח״כ אם אין חכמה אין יראה עילאה שכדי לבוא ליראה עילאה זהו ע״י התורה דמחכמה נפקת1516 (וכמשנ״ת לעיל בד״ה וידבר אלקים את כל הדברים האלה),17
And afterwards: if there is no wisdom there is no higher awe; for in order to come to higher awe, this is through the Torah, which “issues from Chochmah” (and as was explained above, in the discourse beginning “And G‑d spoke all these words”).
Then Chochmah, the Torah that “issues from Chochmah,” leads to higher awe: without wisdom there is no higher awe. The text refers to its earlier treatment in the maamar “And G‑d spoke all these words.”
נמצא בחי׳ בני קהת זהו יראה עילאה שלאחר אה״ר וזהו בחי׳ שמו״ע שאחר ואהבת דק״ש:
It follows that the level of the sons of Kehas is higher awe, which comes after great love; and this is the level of the Shemoneh Esreh, which comes after “And you shall love” of the Shema.
Kehas therefore is the higher awe that follows great love, just as in prayer the Shemoneh Esreh follows the love of “And you shall love” in the Shema.
The three Levite families map onto the stages of service: Merari’s beams are lower awe, Gershon’s curtains the two loves, and Kehas’s Ark and altars the higher awe that comes through the Torah’s wisdom.
On “through Chochmah they are refined,” the Kehot note says the exact wording was not found, and points to the Zohar (Part II, end of 254b), which speaks of being refined in thought.
Marei mekomos
- 1בני קהת נושאי הארון והמזבחות · Numbers 3:31
- 2בארון הי׳ גנוז הלוחות · Exodus 25:21
- 3מגלה עמוקות מני חשך · Job 12:22
- 4עמקו מחשבותיך · Psalms 92:6
- 5ותורה אור · Proverbs 6:23
- 6ישת חשך סתרו · Psalms 18:12
- 7בד״ה ששת ימים · לעיל צו טו, ד.
- 8ויהי הענן והחשך ויאר · Exodus 14:20
- 9בחכמה אתברירו · נסמן לעיל פ׳ ויקרא ד, א. פ׳ צו יג, ב. לה״ק ל״מ [לשונו הקדוש לא מצאתי] (ע׳ זח״ב רנד, סע״ב) מבו׳ מחשבה ואיתבריר, יעו״ש. [כ].
- 10בחכמה אתברירו · Zohar, Pekudei 51:663–674
- 11ולו יקהת עמים · Genesis 49:10
- 12יתכנשון עממיא · ראה הנסמן במאמרי אדה״ז — פרשיות לע׳ תריא הערה כתרגומו.
- 13אם אין יראה אין חכמה · אבות ג, יז. ראה תניא פרק מב.
- 14אם אין יראה אין חכמה אם אין חכמה אין יראה · Pirkei Avot 3:17
- 15דמחכמה נפקת · Zohar II, 85a
- 16דמחכמה נפקת · Zohar, Mishpatim 20:500–502
- 17דמחכמה — לעיל בד״ה וידבר . . כל הדברים האלה · לעיל טו, ד ואילך.
Merari: mor twice ¶29–30
29ד ואמנם מה שהיו בני מררי נושאים הקרשי׳ היינו להעלות ולחבר יראה תתאה ביראה עילאה.
4. And indeed, the fact that the sons of Merari carried the beams is in order to raise up lower awe and join it with higher awe.
Section 4 explains why Merari carried the beams: their task was to raise lower awe and join it with higher awe.
דהנה שם מררי מורה על זה, כי הנה במשכן היו ב׳ פעמים מור אחד בשמים ראש מר דרור1 שבשמן המשחה, הב׳ בסממני הקטרת מור וקציעה.2
For the name Merari indicates this: for in the Mishkan there was myrrh (mor) twice: one, in “the finest spices, pure myrrh (mar dror),” of the anointing oil; the second, among the spices of the incense, “myrrh and cassia.”
The name Merari hints at this, for it contains mor, myrrh, twice. Myrrh appears twice in the Mishkan: as “pure myrrh” in the anointing oil (Exodus 30:23) and as myrrh among the incense spices (Kerisos 6a).
והענין כי המור נעשה מדם חיה3 שנק׳ ידוע4 כשנקרש הדם ונעשה בושם (ועמ״ש מזה בד״ה חייב אינש5 לבסומי בפוריא).6 והוא ענין אתכפיא ואתהפכא חשוכא לנהורא.
And the matter is that myrrh is made from the blood of an animal called yadua, when the blood congeals and becomes a fragrance (and see what is written about this in the discourse beginning “A person is obligated to become intoxicated on Purim”). And this is the matter of iskafya (subduing) and is’hapcha chashocha linehora (transforming darkness into light).
Myrrh comes from the blood of an animal called yadua, which congeals and becomes fragrant. Blood turned into fragrance is the pattern of iskafya and is’hapcha: darkness subdued and transformed into light.
וזהו ענין מור דסממני הקטרת שהוא ריח והעלאה ממטה למעלה וע״י העלאה זו מעורר המשכה מלמעלה למטה והוא מר דרור שבשמן המשחה שנק׳ מירא דכיא7 שהוא חכמת התורה שהוא ג״כ בחי׳ יראה עילאה.
And this is the matter of the myrrh among the spices of the incense, which is fragrance and ascent from below to above; and through this ascent one arouses a drawing down from above to below, which is the “pure myrrh” of the anointing oil, which is called mira dachya; this is the wisdom of the Torah, which is also the level of higher awe.
The myrrh of the incense is fragrance rising from below, an ascent, and that ascent arouses a flow from above, the “pure myrrh” of the anointing oil. The Targum calls it mira dachya, and it stands for the wisdom of the Torah, which is higher awe.
Merari’s name, mor twice, points to the Mishkan’s two myrrhs: the incense myrrh of lower awe rising from below, and the anointing-oil myrrh of higher awe flowing from above.
Marei mekomos
- 1בשמים ראש מר דרור · Exodus 30:23
- 2מור וקציעה · Keritot 6a:15
- 3המור נעשה מדם חיה · Tur, Orach Chayim 216:1
- 4המור נעשה מדם חי׳ שנק׳ ידוע · ראה טוא״ח סרט״ז בתחילתו.
- 5בד״ה חייב אינש · תו״א צו, א. וראה במראי מקומות שם.
- 6חייב אינש לבסומי בפוריא · Megillah 7b:7–8
- 7מירא דכיא · Onkelos Exodus 30:23
30והמור שבקטרת שהוא אתכפיא ואתהפכא דחשוכא לנהורא הוא בחי׳ יראה תתאה והוא הגורם המשכת יראה עילאה,
And the myrrh in the incense, which is iskafya (subduing) and is’hapcha (transformation) of darkness into light, is the level of lower awe; and it is what brings about the drawing down of higher awe.
The myrrh of the incense, which subdues darkness and transforms it into light, is lower awe, and it is what causes higher awe to be drawn down.
ולכן מררי היינו פי׳ ב״פ מור דהיינו התחברות ב׳ בחי׳ מור הנ״ל. ולכן הם נשאו הקרשים שהוא ג״כ ענין חיבור יראה תתאה ביראה עילאה.
Therefore Merari means mor (myrrh) twice, that is, the joining of the two levels of myrrh mentioned above. And therefore they carried the beams, which is also the matter of the joining of lower awe with higher awe.
Merari, read as mor twice, therefore joins the two kinds of myrrh, lower awe and higher awe. That is why the sons of Merari carried the beams, which also join lower awe to higher awe.
Merari’s name and his carrying of the beams both express the joining of lower awe with higher awe.
Gershon “by the word of Aharon” ¶31–33
31וזהו ע״פ אהרן ובניו תהיה כל עבודת בני הגרשוני דדוקא גבי עבודת בני הגרשוני נאמר ע״פ אהרן,
And this is [the meaning of] “By the word of Aharon and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites”: that specifically regarding the service of the sons of the Gershonites it is said, “By the word of Aharon,”
Now the second question of the opening is answered: why Gershon’s service alone is “by the word of Aharon.”
כי עבודת בני גרשון שנשאו היריעות שהם בחי׳ מקיפים והוא להמשיך בחי׳ אהבה עליונה שהיא בחי׳ מקיף בששה מדות וגוונין שבמדות הנפש כנ״ל.
for the service of the sons of Gershon, who carried the curtains, which are the level of makifim (encompassing [lights]), is to draw down the level of supernal love, which is the level of a makif in the six attributes and colors that are in the emotive attributes (middos) of the soul, as mentioned above.
Gershon’s curtains are encompassing lights (makifim), and his task is to draw down a supernal love that encompasses the six emotive attributes of the soul and their “colors.”
והמשכה זו היא דוקא ע״י אהרן שהוא הוא מקור האה״ר ובחי׳ ורב חסד1 ולכן נק׳ אהרן א׳ ה״ר ן׳2 כי הר היא בחי׳ אהבה
And this drawing down is specifically through Aharon, for he is the very source of great love (ahavah rabbah) and the level of “and abundant in kindness.” Therefore he is called Aharon: alef, har, final nun; for har (mountain) is the level of love,
Such a drawing down can come only through Aharon, the source of great love and of the divine attribute “abundant in kindness” (Exodus 34:6). His name spells it out: alef, har (mountain), final nun, and “mountain” stands for love.
ולכן אברהם אוהבי קראו הר3 אך אהרן מת בהר ההר4 שהיא אהבה עליונה יותר מבחי׳ אברהם (כמ״ש ע״פ ועשית בגדי קדש5 לאהרן כו׳)
and therefore Avraham, “who loves Me,” called it “mountain.” But Aharon died on the Mountain of the Mountain (Hor HaHar), which is a love higher than the level of Avraham (as is written on the verse “And you shall make holy garments for Aharon,” etc.).
The Talmud says that Avraham, whom G‑d calls “who loves Me” (Isaiah 41:8), called the Temple site a “mountain” (Pesachim 88a). Aharon died on Hor HaHar, “the mountain of the mountain,” a love higher still than Avraham’s.
And this is alef-har. The alef is the level of pele (wonder), which is of the supernal attributes that are above intellect, and which are called in the Zohar “the mountains of darkness.”
The alef of “alef-har” is read as pele, wonder (the same letters reversed): the supernal attributes that are above intellect. The Zohar calls them “mountains of darkness,” since they lie beyond comprehension.
ונו״ן הפשוטה היא בחי׳ ירידת והמשכת אור אה״ר זו למטה לכל נש״י כי אהרן הוא משבעה רועים8 המפרנסים לנש״י.
And the final nun is the level of the descent and drawing down of the light of this great love below, to all the souls of Israel; for Aharon is one of the seven shepherds who sustain the souls of Israel.
The final nun, a straight letter that reaches down below the line, stands for this love descending to all the souls of Israel. Aharon is one of the “seven shepherds” who sustain the souls of Israel.
ולכן בני גרשון שנשאו יריעות המשכן שהוא ג״כ העלאת והמשכת וחבור ב׳ בחי׳ אהבה אה״ע ואה״ר היה זה דוקא ע״פ אהרן ובניו דאהרן הוא מקור בחי׳ אה״ר ורב חסד.
Therefore [with] the sons of Gershon, who carried the curtains of the Mishkan, which is also the raising up, the drawing down and the joining of the two levels of love, everlasting love (ahavas olam) and great love—this was specifically “by the word of Aharon and his sons,” for Aharon is the source of the level of great love and “abundant in kindness.”
Gershon’s carrying of the curtains, the joining of everlasting love and great love, therefore had to be “by the word of Aharon,” the source of great love.
ולכן נק׳ ג״כ גרשון בנו״ן פשוטה דייקא. (משא״כ גרשם שהוא במ״ם) שיש בו ג״כ מבחי׳ נון פשוטה דאהרן
Therefore he is also called Gershon, with a final nun specifically (whereas Gershom is with a mem), for there is in him too [something] of the level of the final nun of Aharon;
The name Gershon also ends in a final nun, unlike Gershom, which ends in a mem. This shows that Gershon shares something of Aharon’s final nun.
כי הנו״ן פשוטה רומז9 על ההמשכה למטה מטה וכדי שיהיה ההמשכה למטה היא ע״י בחי׳ עליונה יותר כנודע מענין ועברתי בארץ מצרים אני ולא מלאך.10 ע״כ דוקא מבחי׳ אה״ר דאהרן יוכל לימשך למטה בכל נפש .1112
for the final nun alludes to the drawing down far, far below; and in order that there be the drawing down below, it is through a higher level, as is known from the matter of “And I will pass through the land of Egypt”: “I, and not an angel.” Therefore it is specifically from the level of the great love of Aharon that it can be drawn below, into every soul.
The final nun points to a drawing down to the very lowest levels, and reaching so low requires a higher source, as with the Exodus, of which the Haggadah says “I, and not an angel” (Exodus 12:12). So only from Aharon’s great love can love reach every soul below.
Gershon’s service is “by the word of Aharon” because the love it draws down comes from Aharon, the source of great love, whose name and whose final nun express a love that descends to every soul.
The Kehot note cites Torah Ohr on Tetzaveh: Aharon, the man of kindness and the High Priest, draws great love from the Infinite Light down to all the souls of Israel, and his priestly garments are the garments of that love.
Marei mekomos
- 1ורב חסד · Exodus 34:6
- 2אהרן א׳ ה״ר ן׳ · ראה ספר הערכים-חב״ד-ב טור סח.
- 3אברהם אוהבי קראו הר · Isaiah 41:8
- 4אהרן מת בהר ההר · Numbers 20:28
- 5ע״פ ועשית בגדי קדש · תו״א פב, א.
- 6ונק׳ בזהר טורי חשוכא · ח״ג רמט, ב. ועל״ק כאן (כג, א). ובשה״ש (טו, ג). [כ].
- 7טורי חשוכא · Zohar, Pinchas 104:696–105:706
- 8אהרן הוא משבעה רועים · תיקונים שבז״ח (קד, א). לקוטי שיחות ח״כ ע׳ 643.
- 9הנון פשוטה רומז · ראה מא״א אות נו״ן ס״א.
- 10ועברתי בארץ מצרים אני ולא מלאך · Zohar, Vayera 27:413–416
- 11גרשון הוא לשון גירושין · ראה לקו״ש חי״ג ע׳ 19.
- 12ועברתי באמ״צ אני ולא מלאך · Exodus 12:12
32והנה גרשון הוא לשון גירושין כי ימינך ה׳ דוקא תרעץ אויב.1 הוא בחי׳ נה״ב משא״כ מקו השמאל יש יניקה כו׳ גם היריעות והמקיף מסמא עיני החיצונים.
Now, Gershon is an expression of geirushin (driving out), for “Your right hand, Havayah,” specifically, “shatters the enemy,” which is the level of the animal soul; whereas from the line of the left there is drawing of nourishment, etc. Also, the curtains and the encompassing [light] blind the eyes of the external forces.
The name Gershon suggests geirushin, driving out: the right hand of G‑d, kindness, “shatters the enemy” (Exodus 15:6), the animal soul, whereas the left side gives the kelipos a place to draw nourishment. The encompassing curtains also blind the external forces.
וזהו מקדש אדני כוננו ידיך2 פי׳ שמדרגת הלוים הוא שהיו מחברים אור א״ס בעולמות, שהרי באמת אין ערוך לך
And this is [the meaning of] “The Sanctuary, Ado-nai, that Your hands established.” The meaning is that the rank of the Levites is that they would join the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) with the worlds; for in truth “there is no comparison to You.”
“The Sanctuary, Ado-nai, that Your hands established” (Exodus 15:17) refers to the Levites, whose rank is to join the Infinite Light with the worlds, though in truth the worlds bear no comparison to Him.
ולכן כדי שבאתעדל״ת יהיה3 אתעדל ״ע זהו ענין הלוים שהוא לשון חיבור כמ״ש הפעם ילוה אישי אלי.45 שהם הגורמים חיבור זה.
Therefore, in order that through an arousal from below there be an arousal from above, this is the matter of the Levites (Leviim), which is an expression of joining, as it is written, “This time my husband will be joined (yilaveh) to me”: for they are the ones who bring about this joining.
For an arousal from below to bring an arousal from above, the Levites are needed: Levi means joining, as Leah said, “this time my husband will be joined to me” (Genesis 29:34). They are the ones who bring about this joining.
Gershon drives out the forces of the animal soul, and the Levites as a whole join the Infinite Light to the worlds, bridging what has no comparison.
Marei mekomos
- 1ימינך ה׳ דוקא תרעץ אויב · Exodus 15:6
- 2מקדש אדני כוננו ידיך · Exodus 15:17
- 3כדי שבאתעדל״ת יהיה אתעדל״ע זהו ענין הלוים · ראה גם אוה״ת נשא ע׳ רלז. (הגהות למאמר זה).
- 4הפעם ילוה אישי אלי · ויצא כט, לד.
- 5הפעם ילוה אישי אלי · Genesis 29:34
33וזהו שהיו נושאים המשכן וכליו ואח״כ הי׳ חני׳ העלאה והמשכה. וזהו מקדש אדני כוננו שיהיה גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה למטה ושכנתי בתוכם, ידיך הם ג׳ ידות יד הגדולה יד החזקה1 יד הרמה.2
And this is [why] they would carry the Mishkan and its vessels, and afterwards there was the encampment: ascent and drawing down. And this is [the meaning of] “The Sanctuary, Ado-nai, established”: that there be a revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, below—“and I will dwell within them.” “Your hands” are three hands: the great hand, the strong hand, the uplifted hand.
The Levites carried the Mishkan, an ascent, and then set it down in the encampment, a drawing down. “Your hands” in the verse are the three hands of the Exodus: the great hand (Exodus 14:31), the strong hand (Exodus 6:1) and the uplifted hand (Exodus 14:8).
יד הגדולה שהיא בחי׳ ורב חסד הוא ענין עבודת בני הגרשוני. ויד החזקה בחי׳ שמאלו תחת לראשי3 הוא בחי׳ בני מררי.
The great hand, which is the level of “and abundant in kindness,” is the matter of the service of the sons of the Gershonites. And the strong hand, the level of “His left hand is under my head,” is the level of the sons of Merari.
The great hand, “abundant in kindness,” is Gershon. The strong hand, “His left hand is under my head” (Song of Songs 2:6), the left side of restraint, is Merari.
ויד הרמה זהו בחי׳ בני קהת כי רמה לשון רוממות והוא בחי׳ בני קהת שהיו נושאים הארון והלוחות כו׳:
And the uplifted hand is the level of the sons of Kehas; for ramah (uplifted) is an expression of exaltedness, and this is the level of the sons of Kehas, who would carry the Ark and the Tablets, etc.
The uplifted hand, ramah meaning exaltedness, is Kehas, who carried the Ark and the Tablets.
The three “hands” that establish the Sanctuary correspond to the three Levite families: kindness to Gershon, strength to Merari, exaltedness to Kehas.
Marei mekomos
- 1יד החזקה · Exodus 6:1
- 2יד הגדולה, יד החזקה, יד הרמה · Exodus 14:31
- 3שמאלו תחת לראשי · Song of Songs 2:6
Lifting the head ¶34–35
34והנה הכח להעלאה זו שע״י הג׳ לוים. א״א להיות כ״א ע״י המשכה בתחלה מלמעלה וזהו ע״י הכהנים,
Now, the power for this ascent that is through the three [families of] Levites cannot be except through a drawing down first from above; and this is through the Kohanim.
The Levites’ power to raise things up needs a prior drawing down from above, and that comes through the Kohanim.
ולכן לא היו הלוים מתחילים בעבודתם כ״א ע״י הכהנים כמ״ש ושמו איש איש על עבודתו כו׳ וכמ״ש במ״א (ועמ״ש עוד מענין ג׳ ידות בד״ה חייב אינש לבסומי1 בפוריא).
Therefore the Levites would not begin their service except through the Kohanim, as it is written, “And they shall appoint each man to his service,” etc., and as is written elsewhere. (And see what is written further on the subject of the three hands in the discourse beginning “A person is obligated to become intoxicated on Purim.”)
That is why the Levites began their work only when the Kohanim assigned it, “each man to his service” (Numbers 4:19). The parenthesis refers to Torah Ohr on Purim for more on the three hands.
וזהו ענין נשא את ראש בני גרשון גם הם2 ומה שבבני מררי לא נאמר נשיאת ראש.
And this is the matter of “Lift up the head of the sons of Gershon, they too,” and why “lifting up the head” is not said of the sons of Merari.
This also answers the first question: why Gershon’s count says “lift up the head … they too,” while Merari’s count has no “lifting of the head.”
See in [Midrash] Rabbah, at the beginning of Parshas Nasso: because Kehas was among the bearers of the Ark, which is the Holy of Holies, etc.; and Gershon was holy,
The Midrash (Bamidbar Rabbah, at the beginning of Nasso) explains that Kehas was counted first because he carried the Ark, the Holy of Holies, while Gershon was “holy.”
דהיינו שהיה בכור5 וכתיב קדש לי כל בכור6 כו׳ משא״כ בבני מררי כו׳ ע״ש, ויש לפרש דהנה מבואר לעיל בפי׳ שאו את ראש7
that is, he was a firstborn, and it is written, “Sanctify to Me every firstborn,” etc.; which is not so with the sons of Merari, etc.; see there. And it may be explained: it was explained above, on the meaning of “Lift up the head,”
Gershon was holy because he was the firstborn, and firstborns are holy, “Sanctify to Me every firstborn” (Exodus 13:2); Merari had neither distinction. The Alter Rebbe adds his own explanation, from the meaning of “lift up the head” given earlier, in Bamidbar.
דהיינו לקשר בחי׳ רצון התחתון הנמשך מבחינת ראש ומוחין המלובשים בגוף ולחברו ולהעלותו לבחינת הרצון שלמעלה מן השכל שהוא מבחי׳ מזליה כו׳ (ע״ש ר״פ במדבר).
that it means to bind the level of the lower will, which is drawn from the level of the head and the intellect (mochin) enclothed in the body, and to join it and raise it up to the level of the will that is above intellect, which is from the level of “his mazal,” etc. (see there, at the beginning of Parshas Bamidbar).
There, lifting the head means binding the lower will, which comes from the intellect enclothed in the body, and raising it to the will above intellect, which comes from the soul’s root above, called its mazal.
והנה עיקר העלאה זו זהו ע״י עסק התורה שהיא בחי׳ רצון העליון וכמש״ש בענין אחזתיו8 כו׳
Now, the main [part] of this ascent is through occupation with the Torah, which is the level of the supernal will, and as is written there on the subject of “I grasped him,” etc.,
This elevation comes mainly through Torah study, for the Torah is the supernal will, as was explained there on “I grasped him and would not let him go” (Song of Songs 3:4).
ובשאר דוכתי וכמש״ל בד״ה וידבר אלקים את כל הדברים גבי אם אין חכמה אין יראה.9
and in other places; and as is written above, in the discourse beginning “And G‑d spoke all the words,” regarding “If there is no wisdom there is no awe.”
It was also explained in other places, including the maamar “And G‑d spoke all these words,” on “If there is no wisdom there is no awe.”
Since lifting the head means raising the will to its supernal source, chiefly through Torah, it is said of Kehas, the bearers of the Ark, and of Gershon, but not of Merari.
Marei mekomos
- 1בד״ה חייב אינש לבסומי · תו״א צה, ג.
- 2נשא את ראש בני גרשון גם הם · Numbers 4:22
- 3לפי שקהת הי׳ מטועני הארון · Bamidbar Rabbah 6:1
- 4קדש הקדשים · Exodus 26:33
- 5וגרשון . . בכור · Genesis 46:11
- 6קדש לי כל בכור · Exodus 13:2
- 7שאו את ראש · Numbers 1:2
- 8אחזתיו · Song of Songs 3:4
- 9ושמו אותם איש איש · Numbers 4:19
35ולכן גבי בני קהת שהיו טוענין את הארון שבו הלוחות נאמר נשא את ראש.1 וזהו ענין קדש הקדשים עמ״ש בד״ה וישב יעקב ובד״ה שבת שבתון.
Therefore regarding the sons of Kehas, who would carry the Ark in which the Tablets were, it is said, “Lift up the head.” And this is the matter of the Holy of Holies; see what is written in the discourse beginning “And Yaakov dwelt” and in the discourse beginning “A Shabbos of complete rest.”
Kehas carried the Ark with the Tablets, the Torah itself, so of them it says “lift up the head.” This is the meaning of the Holy of Holies, discussed in the maamarim beginning “And Yaakov dwelt” and “A Shabbos of complete rest.”
אלא שבבני גרשון שהיו נושאי היריעות שהוא ג״כ ענין התחברות אה״ע באהבה רבה לכן נאמר בהם ג״כ נשא את ראש בני גרשון גם הם כו׳
But with the sons of Gershon, who were the bearers of the curtains, which is also the matter of the joining of everlasting love with great love, it is therefore said of them too, “Lift up the head of the sons of Gershon, they too,” etc.
Gershon’s curtains, the joining of everlasting love with great love, also belong to this elevation, so of them too it says “lift up the head … they too.”
אבל עבודת בני מררי הוא בבחי׳ יראה הנמשכת מן הראש והמוחין לכך לא נאמר בהם נשיאת ראש אלא שעי״ז יבא אח״כ לבחינת ומעלת קהת וגרשון שהוא ענין נשיאת ראש.2
But the service of the sons of Merari is at the level of awe that is drawn from the head and the intellect; therefore “lifting up the head” is not said of them. Rather, through this one will afterwards come to the level and rank of Kehas and Gershon, which is the matter of “lifting up the head.”
Merari’s service is awe drawn from the head and intellect, so “lifting of the head” is not said of them. Yet through that awe one later reaches the rank of Kehas and Gershon, the true lifting of the head.
The maamar concludes: “lifting the head” is said of Kehas and Gershon, who embody Torah and love, while Merari’s awe is the foundation from which one later rises to them.
Marei mekomos
- 1נשא את ראש · Numbers 4:2
- 2שהוא ענין נשיאת ראש · ראה לקו״ש ח״י ע׳ 53.
Finished the maamar?
Mark it as learned; it counts toward the week and the year’s siyum.
In one’s avodah
Make your own heart a Mishkan: pray with a pure heart and draw G‑dliness down through good deeds, without waiting until evil is completely uprooted, since a little light dispels much darkness. Begin with “standing”: an honest reckoning that brings bitterness, lower awe and the nullification of will. From there contemplation in the Shema gives birth to love, and Torah study brings the higher awe that lifts the head.
Questions for discussion
- Why does the maamar say that bittul, and not greatness, is the source of kindness in created beings, and how does this explain the barrenness of the wilderness?
- Why must iskafya come before is’hapcha, and how does the subduing of the wilderness prepare for the Future revelation?
- Why may a person do good before he has fully turned from evil, and what does this teach about the order of divine service?
- How do the beams, the curtains and the Ark correspond to lower awe, love and higher awe, and why is “lifting the head” said only of Kehas and Gershon?
- What does Aharon’s name, alef-har-final nun, teach about why Gershon’s service was “by the word of Aharon”?
Key terms in this maamar
- The Name Havayahהוי׳
- The Tetragrammaton: G‑d as transcending time and bringing all into being.
- The Holy One, blessed be Heקב״ה
- Chesed (kindness)חסד
- Expansive giving. ×8
- Self-nullification (bittul)ביטול
- Setting aside one's own sense of self before G‑d. ×11
- The World of Asiyah (Action)עשיה
- The lowest world, including our physical one.
- The animal soulנפש הבהמית
- The soul that animates the body and its drives.
- Willרצון
- Desire; in G‑d, the level above intellect. ×18
- The World of Atzilus (Emanation)אצילות
- The highest world, still one with G‑d.
- The World of Beriah (Creation)בריאה
- The first world of separate existence. ×1
- The World of Yetzirah (Formation)יצירה
- The world of the angels and emotions.
- Malchus (sovereignty)מלכות
- Kingship: the level through which G‑d's word creates and rules the worlds. ×3
- An arousal from belowאתערותא דלתתא
- Human initiative that draws down a divine response.
- The Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof)אור אין סוף
- G‑d's light as it is, beyond all limits, before any contraction.
- Tzimtzum (contraction)צמצום
- The self-concealment of the Infinite Light that makes room for finite worlds. ×1
- The emotive attributes (middos)מדות
- Love, awe, compassion and the rest. ×5
- Life-forceחיות
- The divine vitality that sustains every creation. ×1
- Chochmah (wisdom)חכמה
- The first flash of insight. ×8
- An arousal from aboveאתערותא דלעילא
- Divine initiative, unprompted by us.
- The intellect (mochin)מוחין
- Chochmah, Binah and Daas as a whole. ×2
- The Name Elokimאלקים
- G‑d as concealed within nature, measuring and limiting. ×3
- Yesod (foundation)יסוד
- The channel that connects and transmits. ×2
- The kav (line of light)קו
- The thin ray of light drawn into the space left after the tzimtzum. ×1
- The general and collective expression (klalus)כללות
- That which encompasses the particulars as one: their general and collective expression (the klal, as against the prat). Never “sum”, “sum total”, “totality” or “general principle”, as if the particulars were added up (וכללותן היא מצות הצדקה is “their general and collective expression is the mitzvah of charity”). Render by sense: “their general and collective expression”, “that which encompasses them all”, “X in general”, “X as a whole”. Keep התכללות as “inclusion” / “inter-inclusion”. ×1