Likkutei Torah · Parshas Shelach · Maamar 1
שלח לך אנשים כו׳
“Send for yourself men” (Numbers 13:2)
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The big idea
The spies, men of great stature, wanted to stay in the desert and receive G‑d’s light only as far as the level of divine speech, fearing that its revelation below would nullify them. Joshua and Caleb knew that G‑d’s essential intent is a dwelling among the lower realms: the Infinite Light, “very, very” without limit, is revealed in the hidden and revealed worlds only through the practical mitzvos of the physical Land, for the highest is revealed specifically in the lowest.
The maamar in brief
Why did the spies, princes of Israel, refuse to enter the Land, and why is it praised as “flowing with milk and honey”? The Alter Rebbe begins with bread: man, made by a divine word, needs food because the sparks fallen into the lower creations have a loftier root than his own. So too the soul descends into this world to subdue the sitra achra and exalt G‑d’s glory, like light from darkness or a seed that rots before it grows. The worlds are concealments, chambers that hide the Infinite Light so that finite beings can exist; the soul first subdues the concealment by turning from evil, then makes the vessels receive the light through the 248 positive mitzvos, drawn from the supernal Chochmah. Milk and honey are Chesed and Gevurah drawn down through these mitzvos, kept fully only in the Land, which is aligned with the Land above. The spies wanted the light to stop at the level of speech, the “desert”; Joshua and Caleb knew that the highest is revealed in the lowest, as a hint in action reveals more than words. Even Torah wisdom is drawn down only through deeds and kindness, so the mitzvos must come first.
Outline
- The questions, and the secret of breadWhy did the spies refuse to enter the Land, and what is the praise of “milk and honey”? Nearly all the practical mitzvos depend on the Land. Man, though created by a divine word, lives from bread, because the 288 sparks that fell into the inanimate, vegetative and animal have a root loftier than his own source in Tikkun.¶1
- The soul’s descentThe soul descends into this lowly world to subdue the sitra achra, so that the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted, like the advantage of light that comes from darkness, or a seed that must rot before it sprouts.¶2
- Worlds of concealment and the limbs of the KingElijah’s prayer speaks of the Sefiros conducting the hidden worlds; olam means he’elem, and the Zohar’s chambers hide the Infinite Light so that finite beings can exist, until in this physical world no G‑dliness is seen. The soul subdues this concealment through “turn away from evil” and makes the vessels receive the light through “do good,” the 248 positive mitzvos, the “limbs of the King,” drawn from the supernal Chochmah.¶3–4
- Milk and honey: the spies, and Joshua and CalebMilk and honey are the two arms, Chesed and Gevurah, drawn down through the practical mitzvos, which are kept in their essential way only in the Land, aligned with the Land above. The spies feared that a revelation below would “consume” them and preferred the “desert,” the level of divine speech; Joshua and Caleb said “very, very good,” for G‑d desires a dwelling below, and the highest is revealed in the lowest, like a hint in action, a seal’s letters on wax, or the threads of tzitzis.¶5
- Moses’ prayersMoses, whose level was higher still, prayed 515 times to enter the Land, the purpose of creation, but did not merit it; it was Joshua who brought the people in.¶6
- Deeds and the drawing down of wisdomThe seven nations are the seven attributes of Tohu, refined through the mitzvos, while the desert reaches only the inner dimension and not Asiyah. As Iggeres HaKodesh explains, even the Torah’s wisdom, drawn into speech, needs the supernal Chesed aroused by charity and kindness; the Torah is called “desert,” yet everything is “to do in the land.”¶7–8
- The spies’ errorThe light of the Torah can be drawn down only after the fulfillment of the mitzvos: “if there is no fear there is no wisdom,” and “sanctify us with Your commandments” comes before “grant our portion in Your Torah,” as Israel said “we will do” before “we will hear.”¶9
Key concepts
- The Land of Israel aboveא״י שלמעלה
- The spiritual counterpart of the physical Land: the level of divine speech, Malchus, the lowest level within G‑dliness. The Land below is aligned with it, but the full revelation comes only through the mitzvos kept below.
- Milk and honeyחלב ודבש
- The two “arms,” Chesed and Gevurah: the drawing down of G‑dliness through the practical mitzvos, “the 248 limbs of the King.”
- The 288 sparksרפ״ח ניצוצין
- Sparks of holiness that fell into the lower creations in the breaking of the vessels. Their root is loftier than man’s own source in Tikkun, which is why man lives from minerals, plants and animals.
- Worlds as concealmentעלמין מלשון העלם
- The worlds, the Zohar’s chambers, hide the Infinite Light and reveal it only according to each being’s grasp, so that finite beings can exist without being nullified.
- Subduing the sitra achraאתכפייא סטרא אחרא
- “Turn away from evil,” through which “the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted”: the first stage, before the vessels can receive the light through “do good.”
- The limbs of the Kingרמ״ח אברין דמלכא
- The 248 positive commandments, each a drawing down from the supernal Chochmah, as the brain gives life to every limb.
- Desert and speechמדבר / ומדברך נאוה
- The level the spies wanted: a revelation that reaches only divine speech, the Land above, and not the physical world.
- Me’od, “very”מאד
- The Infinite Light without limit, drawn into the hidden and the revealed worlds only through the Land below; hence “very, very good.”
- A dwelling place among the lower realmsדירה בתחתונים
- G‑d’s essential intent in creation, fulfilled when His presence is revealed below as it is above, and even more, like light that comes from darkness.
The questions, and the secret of bread ¶1
“Send for yourself men,” etc. [We must understand] the matter of the spies, who were princes of the congregation, men of renown, etc., and for what reason they did not want to enter the Land of Israel.
The maamar opens with G‑d’s instruction to Moses to send men to scout the Land of Canaan. The spies were men of great stature, and the Alter Rebbe describes them in words the Torah uses elsewhere for distinguished leaders, “princes of the congregation, men of renown,” and the first question is why such men did not want to enter the Land.
וגם להבין מהות מדרגת א״י. הנה כתיב הארץ אשר נתתי להם ארץ זבת חלב ודבש4 ומה שבח הוא זה.
We must also understand the essential nature of the level of the Land of Israel. Now, it is written, “the land that I have given them, a land flowing with milk and honey”; and what praise is this?
A second question asks what the Land of Israel is in its essence. Scripture praises it as “a land flowing with milk and honey,” and the Alter Rebbe asks what this praise means; later in the maamar milk and honey are explained as the two “arms” of Chesed and Gevurah, the drawing down of G‑dliness through the practical mitzvos.
אך צריך להבין דהנה כל המצות מעשיות רובם ככולם תלוים דוקא בא״י5 ובפרט ענייני זרעים וקדשים (ובמדבר היו הקרבנות לפי שעה).
But this needs to be understood: all the practical mitzvos, nearly all of them, depend specifically on the Land of Israel, especially the matters of seeds and of holy things (and in the desert the offerings were [only] for the time being).
Before answering, the Alter Rebbe points out that nearly all the practical mitzvos depend on the Land of Israel, above all the agricultural laws (“seeds”) and the laws of the offerings (“holy things”). The offerings the Israelites brought in the desert were only a temporary arrangement.
הנה כתיב כי לא על הלחם לבדו6 יחיה האדם כי על כל מוצא פי ה׳ וגו׳ וצריך
Now, it is written, “For not by bread alone does man live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of Havayah,” etc. And we need
To explain why the mitzvos depend on the Land, the Alter Rebbe first brings the verse “Not by bread alone does man live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of Havayah.” The verse teaches that what keeps a person alive is not the bread alone but the divine word within it.
להבין היתרון שבלחם והלא האדם ג״כ במאמר נברא7 כמ״ש נעשה אדם8 כו׳ ולמה צריך האדם לקבל חיותו מהלחם דוקא.
to understand the advantage that is in bread. For surely man, too, was created through an utterance, as it is written, “Let us make man,” etc. So why must man receive his life-force specifically from bread?
The difficulty is that man, too, was created by a divine utterance, “Let us make man,” so he already has a word of G‑d giving him life. Why, then, must he receive his life-force from bread, which is lower than he is?
אך הענין הוא כי מוצא פי ה׳ שבדצ״ח הוא ענין הרפ״ח ניצוצי׳ שנפלו בשבירת הכלים והאדם הוא מהתיקון
But the explanation is this: “that which comes forth from the mouth of Havayah” in the inanimate, vegetative and animal is the matter of the 288 sparks that fell in the breaking of the vessels, whereas man is from [the world of] Tikkun (rectification).
The answer draws on the Kabbalistic teaching of the breaking of the vessels: when the primordial vessels shattered, 288 sparks of holiness fell and became hidden in the lower creations. The divine word within the inanimate, vegetative and animal is these fallen sparks, while man comes from Tikkun, the rectified order.
Therefore man must receive his life-force specifically from the inanimate, vegetative and animal. For the root of the 288 sparks is very lofty, as is explained elsewhere.
For this reason man must draw his life-force specifically from minerals, plants and animals. The sparks within them have a very lofty root, loftier than man’s own source in Tikkun, and so the lower creations can give life to the man who stands above them.
The opening asks why the spies, great men, refused to enter the Land, and what the praise “flowing with milk and honey” means. The answer begins with bread: man, though made by a divine word, needs food, because the sparks of holiness hidden in the lower creations have a loftier root than his own.
The same question is raised in Likkutei Torah, Parshas Tzav: bread is of the vegetative level and man a speaking being far above it, so how can the bread give him life? The principle at work, that what has fallen lowest has its root highest, is what the rest of the maamar applies to the Land of Israel and the practical mitzvos.
Marei mekomos
- 1שלח לך אנשים · הנחת כ״ק אדמו״ר האמצעי נדפס בסה״מ תקס״ז ע׳ רכג ושם מתחיל ויהס כלב. חלק ממאמר זה בשינויים והגהות כו׳ באוה״ת במדבר כרך ה׳ ע׳ א׳תרא. הגהות בפ׳ שלח ע׳ תנט ראה כרך-ו ע׳ א׳תשע. מאמרי אדה״א במדבר-ג ע׳ תתקצא מיוסד על מאמר זה. לד״ה זה ראה ד״ה אם חפץ תשמ״ה.
- 2שלח לך אנשים · Numbers 13:2
- 3נשיאי העדה אנשי שם · Numbers 16:2
- 4
- 5כל המצות מעשיות ברובם . . דוקא בא״י · ראה תו״א מו, ב. וראה גם בהנסמן למאמרי אדה״א פרשתינו לע׳ תתקצא (נדפס שם בע׳ א׳רעט).
- 6כי לא על הלחם לבדו · Deuteronomy 8:3
- 7והלא האדם ג״כ במאמר נברא · ראה לעיל פ׳ צו יג, ב וש״נ.
- 8נעשה אדם · Genesis 1:26
- 9הרפ״ח ניצוצין · ראה סה״מ תקס״ה ע׳ תרמב.
- 10ששרש הרפ״ח ניצוצין הוא מאד נעלה · ראה לק״ת אמור לט, ג.
The soul’s descent ¶2
2וכמו כן ענין ירידת הנשמה לעוה״ז השפל דוקא הוא כדי לאכפייא לסטרא אחרא בכדי שעי״ז אסתלק יקרא דקוב״ה כיתרון אור הבא מן החשך1 דוקא.
So too, the matter of the soul’s descent specifically into this lowly world is in order to subdue the sitra achra (the other side), so that through this “the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted,” like the advantage of light that comes specifically from darkness.
The same principle explains why the soul descends into this lowly physical world: to subdue the sitra achra, the side opposed to holiness. In the Zohar’s words, when the sitra achra is subdued “the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted,” like the special advantage of light that comes out of darkness.
וכמו עד״מ מגרעין הנזרע בארץ שע״י הרקבון שנרקב ונפסד בארץ הוא צומח אח״כ בתוספת רב וכיתרון האורכו׳.2
It is like, by way of analogy, a seed sown in the ground: through the decay, as it rots and decomposes in the ground, it afterwards sprouts with great increase; and like “the advantage of the light,” etc.
A seed is the example: it must first rot and decompose in the ground, and only then does it sprout and yield far more than was sown. In the same way, the soul’s descent below leads to a far greater revelation, “the advantage of the light” that comes from darkness.
The principle of the first paragraph is applied to the soul: its descent into the lowest world, where it must subdue the sitra achra, brings about a greater revelation of G‑d’s glory, as a seed must rot before it grows.
In the Zohar (Terumah), bringing about the subjugation of the sitra achra is praised as the act through which the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted beyond any other praise. The maamar goes on to explain that the soul subdues it through “turn away from evil,” and then draws down G‑dliness through “do good.”
Marei mekomos
- 1כיתרון אור הבא מן החושך · Ecclesiastes 2:13
- 2לאכפייא לסט״א · Zohar II, 128b
Worlds of concealment and the limbs of the King ¶3–4
3וביאור הענין דהנה אליהו אמר בתיקונים1 אנת הוא דאפיקת עשר תקונין וקרינן להון עשר ספירן לאנהגא בהון עלמין2 סתימין דלא אתגלין כו׳.
The explanation of the matter: Elijah said in the Tikkunim, “You are He who brought forth ten rectifications, and we call them ten Sefiros, to conduct through them hidden worlds that are not revealed,” etc.
To explain this, the Alter Rebbe turns to the prayer of Elijah at the opening of the Tikkunei Zohar. There Elijah addresses G‑d as the One who brought forth the ten Sefiros in order to conduct through them the hidden worlds.
עלמין הוא מלשון העלם3 ונק׳ בזוהר היכלות היכל החסד היכל הגבורה היכל הזכות כו׳ ובתוכם נשמות שנהנין מזיו4 השכינה ומלאכים שעומדים באהבה ויראה ופחד כו׳
“Worlds” (almin) is from the word he’elem, concealment. In the Zohar they are called heichalos (chambers): the Chamber of Chesed (kindness), the Chamber of Gevurah (restraint), the Chamber of Merit, etc. Within them are souls that delight in the radiance of the Shechinah (Divine Presence), and angels that stand in love, awe and dread, etc.,
The Aramaic word for worlds, almin, is related to he’elem, concealment: a world is a level at which G‑dliness is hidden. The Zohar calls these worlds heichalos, “chambers,” each named for a divine attribute, and within them are souls who delight in the radiance of the Shechinah and angels who serve in love and in fear.
כמו מחנה מיכאל בחי׳ אהבה ומחנה גבריאל בחי׳ יראה ופחד כמארז״ל נהר דינור יוצא מזיעתן של חיות5 כו׳
such as the camp of Michael, the level of love, and the camp of Gabriel, the level of awe and dread, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “The river of fire comes forth from the sweat of the Chayos,” etc.
The angels are grouped in camps: the camp of the angel Michael serves through love, and the camp of the angel Gabriel through awe and dread. The Talmud’s teaching that the river of fire flows from the sweat of the Chayos, the holy angels, is brought as an example of that awe.
ואומרים שירה כל אחד ואחד לפי השגתו וההיכל הוא בחינת כולל6 שכולל כל הפרטיות שבתוכו
And they sing song, each and every one according to his comprehension. And the chamber is the level of an encompassing [whole], which encompasses all the particulars within it;
Each soul and angel sings G‑d’s praise according to the measure of its own comprehension. The chamber is a general, encompassing level that holds many particular levels within it.
כמו היכל החסד כללותו הוא חסד והפרטיות שבתוכו הוא חכמה שבחסד חסד שבחסד כו׳ וכל הע״ס וכמשל העיגול ובית שכוללים כל הפרטיות שבתוכם.78
for example, the Chamber of Chesed: its general and collective expression (klalus) is Chesed, while the particulars within it are Chochmah (wisdom) of Chesed, Chesed of Chesed, etc., and all of the Ten Sefiros; as in the analogy of the circle and of a house, which encompass all the particulars within them.
The Chamber of Chesed, for example, is Chesed as a whole, yet within it are all ten Sefiros, each as an aspect of Chesed: Chochmah of Chesed, Chesed of Chesed, and so on. A circle or a house is the same: one enclosing form that holds all the particulars inside it.
The Tikkunei Zohar says that the ten Sefiros “conduct” the hidden worlds. The Alter Rebbe explains that “worlds” means concealment, the Zohar’s chambers, each a general level that encompasses many particulars within it.
Two other maamarim of Likkutei Torah use the same reading of olam as he’elem. In Bamidbar, the body and the world conceal the holiness of the soul so that it is not stirred to longing for G‑d; in the second maamar of Sh’lach, the concealment is traced to the higher “circles,” from which in Atzilus the vessels cover the lights, until through many stages of descent the world appears to be a thing in its own right.
Marei mekomos
- 1אלי׳ אמר בתיקונים · ת״ז בהקדמה.
- 2לאנהגא בהון עלמין · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תנט יש הג״ה וקיצור לכאן.
- 3עלמין הוא מלשון העלם · Numbers 5:3
- 4נשמות שנהנין מזיו · Berakhot 17a
- 5נהר דינור יוצא מזיעתן של חיות · Chagigah 13b:14
- 6והיכל הוא בחינת כולל · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תנט יש הג״ה וקיצור לכאן.
- 7כמאמר רז״ל נהר דינור יוצא · חגיגה יג, סע״ב.
- 8
4וזהו פי׳ לאנהגא בהון עלמין עלמין הם בחי׳ ההיכלות בחי׳ הכוללת ולאנהגא הוא בחינת הפרטיות שבתוכם וההיכל הוא מעלים ומסתיר אור א״ס ב״ה שלא יתגלה להם כ״א לפי השגתם שלא יהיו בטלים בא״ס ב״ה לפי
And this is the meaning of “to conduct through them worlds”: “worlds” are the level of the chambers, the encompassing level, and “to conduct” is the level of the particulars within them. And the chamber conceals and hides the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, so that it is revealed to them only according to their comprehension, so that they should not be nullified in the Infinite One (Ein Sof), blessed be He; because
The Alter Rebbe now reads Elijah’s words: “worlds” are the chambers, the general level, while “to conduct” refers to the particular levels within them. The chamber’s task is to hide the Infinite Light, letting it shine to the souls and angels only in the measure they can grasp, so that they are not wholly nullified in the Infinite One.
שהם בעלי גבול מאין ליש ואינם מערך ומהות א״ס ב״ה שאין לו תחלה ואין לו תכלה
they are finite beings, [brought] from nothing into something, and they are not of the same order and essence as the Infinite One, blessed be He, who has no beginning and no end.
Created beings are finite, brought into existence from nothing, and bear no comparison to G‑d, who has no beginning and no end. Their existence as separate beings depends on the light being hidden from them.
ולכן צריך ההיכל להעלים ולהסתיר כו׳ (ובבחי׳ אצילות הוא בחי׳ אורות וכלים) עד שבהשתלשלות רבות נעשה שמים וארץ גשמיי׳ שאין נראה בתוכם אלקות כלל כ״א בבחי׳ יש ודבר נפרד בפ״ע1 בחי׳ סט״א
Therefore the chamber must conceal and hide, etc. (and on the level of Atzilus, it is the level of lights and vessels), until, through many [links in] the chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus), physical heavens and earth were made, in which no G‑dliness at all is seen, but only the level of a yesh (something), a thing separate unto itself, the level of the sitra achra (the other side).
For this reason the chambers must conceal; in Atzilus, the highest world, the same role is filled by the vessels that hold the lights. The concealment grows stage by stage until physical heaven and earth come into being, where no G‑dliness is visible at all and everything appears to exist on its own, a sense of separate existence that is the mark of the sitra achra.
וזהו ענין ירידת הנשמה לעוה״ז השפל דוקא ירידה לצורך עלי׳ כדי לאכפיא לס״א ע״י סור מרע
And this is the matter of the soul’s descent specifically into this lowly world, a descent for the sake of an ascent: in order to subdue the sitra achra through “turn away from evil.”
This is why the soul must descend into this lowly world, a descent whose purpose is an ascent. Its first task is to subdue the sitra achra by “turning away from evil.”
ועל ידי זה אסתלק יקרא דקוב״ה בכולהו עלמין2 שלא יהיו הכלים וההיכלות בבחינת מסתירים אור א״ס ב״ה
And through this “the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted” in all the worlds, so that the vessels and the chambers will not be in the mode of concealing the Infinite Light, blessed be He,
When the sitra achra is subdued, G‑d’s glory is exalted in all the worlds. The vessels and chambers then no longer serve to hide the Infinite Light.
רק שיהי׳ בחי׳ כלים לקבל גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה ע״י בחי׳ ועשה טוב3 מצות מעשיות רמ״ח פקודין רמ״ח אברין4 דמלכא5
but rather that they will be the level of vessels to receive the revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, through the level of “and do good”: the practical mitzvos, “the 248 commandments, the 248 limbs of the King.”
Instead they become vessels that receive its revelation, through “and do good,” the practical mitzvos. The Tikkunei Zohar links the 248 commandments with the limbs of the King, an image the Alter Rebbe explains a little further on.
רק שמתחלה צריך להיות בחי׳ סור מרע בחי׳ אתכפייא סט״א כמ״ש ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם6 ואחרי עיניכם וגו׳
Only, first there has to be the level of “turn away from evil,” the level of the subjugation of the sitra achra, as it is written, “And you shall not stray after your heart and after your eyes,” etc.
First, however, there must be “turn away from evil,” the subduing of the sitra achra. The verse of tzitzis states it: “And you shall not stray after your heart and after your eyes.”
ועי״ז אסתלק יקרא דקוב״ה ואז יכולים לקבל7 ע״י בחי׳ ועשה טוב גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה למטה ע״י רמ״ח מ״ע דאורייתא מחכמה נפקת89 והמצות הם רמ״ח המשכות מחכמה עילאה
And through this “the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is exalted,” and then they can receive, through the level of “and do good,” the revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, below, by means of the 248 positive commandments; for “the Torah comes forth from Chochmah (wisdom),” and the mitzvos are 248 drawings-down from the supernal Chochmah.
Once the sitra achra is subdued and G‑d’s glory exalted, the revelation of the Infinite Light can be received below through the 248 positive commandments. The Zohar says that the Torah comes forth from Chochmah, the divine wisdom, and so each of the 248 mitzvos is a drawing down from the supernal Chochmah.
ולכן נקראים אברין דמלכא כמשל האברים שנמשך בתוכם חיות מהמוח כנראה בחוש שבמוח מרגיש כאב של כל האברים כו׳ כמו כן ע״י המצות נמשך א״ס ב״ה מבחי׳ חכמה עילאה לעלמין סתימין ועלמין דאתגליין.
That is why they are called “the limbs of the King,” as in the analogy of the limbs, into which life-force is drawn from the brain, as is seen plainly: in the brain one feels the pain of all the limbs, etc. So, too, through the mitzvos the Infinite One, blessed be He, is drawn from the level of the supernal Chochmah into the hidden worlds and the revealed worlds.
This is why the mitzvos are called the limbs of the King. Just as every limb receives its life-force from the brain, which is why the brain feels the pain of any limb, so the mitzvos carry the Infinite One from the supernal Chochmah into both the hidden and the revealed worlds.
The chambers of the worlds hide the Infinite Light so that finite beings can exist, and the concealment reaches its lowest point in this physical world. The soul descends here first to subdue the sitra achra, and then, through the 248 positive mitzvos that flow from the supernal Chochmah, to turn the concealing vessels into vessels that receive G‑d’s light.
The two stages, “turn away from evil” and then “do good,” correspond to the two effects described here: first the concealment of the sitra achra is subdued, and only then can the light be revealed in the vessels. The image of the limbs rests on the brain giving life to every limb; in the same way the supernal Chochmah, the source of the Torah, is drawn into the worlds through each mitzvah.
Marei mekomos
- 1יש ודבר נפרד בפ״ע · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ שנט יש הג״ה וקיצור לכאן.
- 2אסתלק יקרא דקוב״ה בכולהו עלמין · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תס יש הג״ה לכאן.
- 3רק שיהי׳ בחי׳ כלים . . ע״י בחי׳ ועשה טוב · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תס יש הג״ה וקיצור לכאן.
- 4רמ״ח פיקודין רמ״ח אברין · ראה ת״ז ת״ל. ובהנסמן במאמרי אדה״ז-פרשיות לע׳ רפג.
- 5רמ״ח פקודין רמ״ח אברין דמלכא · Tikkunei Zohar 74a:8
- 6ולא תתרו אחרי לבבכם · Numbers 15:39
- 7ואזי יכולים לקבל · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תסא יש הג״ה לכאן.
- 8דאורייתא מחכמה נפקת · Zohar II, 121a
- 9דאורייתא מחכמה נפקת · Zohar, Yitro 21:378–22:389
Milk and honey: the spies, and Joshua and Caleb ¶5
And milk and honey are the level of the “two arms,” Chesed (kindness) and Gevurah (restraint), “right and left, and between them the bride,” etc.; and as it is written, “and beneath are the everlasting arms,” etc.,
The Alter Rebbe now explains “milk and honey”: they are the “two arms” of the Sefiros, Chesed (kindness) on the right and Gevurah (restraint) on the left, with “the bride” between them, in the words of the Shabbos song Azamer Bishvachin. The verse “and beneath are the everlasting arms” alludes to these two arms.
שהוא בחי׳ המשכת אלקות ע״י מצות מעשיות רמ״ח אברין דמלכא וארץ ישראל מכוונת5 כנגד א״י שלמעלה
which is the level of the drawing down of G‑dliness through the practical mitzvos, “the 248 limbs of the King.” And the Land of Israel is aligned directly opposite the Land of Israel above
These two arms stand for the drawing down of G‑dliness through the practical mitzvos, which the Tikkunei Zohar calls “the 248 limbs of the King.” The physical Land of Israel is set exactly opposite a “Land of Israel” above, its counterpart in the divine realm.
(עיין בשה״ש רבה ס״פ כמגדל דוד בפי׳ מכון לשבתך מכוון נגד שבתך זה בהמ״ק שלמעלה)6
(see Shir HaShirim Rabbah, at the end of the section “Like the tower of David,” on the explanation of “the place (machon) of Your dwelling”: “aligned (mechuvan) opposite Your dwelling,” this is the Holy Temple above).
The Alter Rebbe supports this from the Midrash on the Song of Songs, which reads “the place (machon) of Your dwelling” as mechuvan, “aligned opposite” Your dwelling. The Temple below stands directly opposite the Holy Temple above.
Therefore the essence of the mitzvos is specifically in the Land of Israel. And the spies were on a very high level, and they did not want to lower themselves to the practical mitzvos,
Because the Land below is aligned with the Land above, the mitzvos are fulfilled in their essential way only in the Land of Israel. The spies, who stood on a very high spiritual level, did not want to lower themselves to a service of physical deeds.
שהוא בחי׳ המשכת אור א״ס ב״ה למטה ואמרו על א״י שהיא אוכלת יושביה10 שהיה בדעתם שאם יהיה גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה למטה כמו למעלה יתבטלו ממציאותם לגמרי.
which is the level of the drawing down of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, below. And they said of the Land of Israel that it “consumes its inhabitants,” for it was their view that if there were a revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, below as [there is] above, they would be completely nullified out of their existence.
The practical mitzvos draw the Infinite Light down to the lowest level. The spies called the Land one that “consumes its inhabitants” because they feared that so great a revelation below, as it is above, would make them cease to exist altogether.
וזהו אוכלת יושביה ורצו להיו׳ במדבר דוקא ומדברך נאוה11 שהוא המשכת אור א״ס ב״ה לבחי׳ הדבור בחי׳ מלכות בחי׳ א״י שלמעלה ונקראת בשם בחי׳ ארץ לפי שהיא בחי׳ התחתונה שבאלקות כמ״ש והארץ הדום רגלי12 כו׳.
And this is [the meaning of] “consumes its inhabitants.” And they wanted to be specifically in the desert (midbar), [as in] “and your speech (midbarech) is lovely,” which is the drawing down of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, into the level of speech, the level of Malchus (sovereignty), the level of the Land of Israel above. And it is called by the name “land” because it is the lowest level within G‑dliness, as it is written, “and the earth is My footstool,” etc.
The spies preferred the desert, midbar, which the Alter Rebbe connects with midbarech, “your speech”: a revelation that reaches only as far as the level of divine speech. That level is Malchus, the Land of Israel above, called “land” because it is the lowest level within G‑dliness, as in “the earth is My footstool.”
(ועמ״ש בד״ה13 והיה מספר בני ישראל) וכתיב ה׳ בחכמה יסד ארץ14 אבא יסד ברתא1516 בחי׳ הדבור דבר ה׳ ששרשו מחכמה וכנראה ממשל התינוק שכל זמן
(And see what is written in the discourse beginning “And the number of the Children of Israel shall be.”) And it is written, “Havayah founded the earth with wisdom”: “the Father (Abba) founded the Daughter,” the level of speech, the word of G‑d, whose root is from Chochmah (wisdom). And this is seen from the analogy of an infant: as long as
Divine speech has its root in Chochmah: “Havayah founded the earth with wisdom,” which the Zohar renders “the Father (Chochmah) founded the Daughter (Malchus).” The Alter Rebbe refers the reader to his discourse on “And the number of the Children of Israel shall be,” and begins an illustration from a young child.
שאין לו מוחין דיניקה בשלימות אע״פ שיש לו קול אותיות פשוטים אעפ״כ אינו יכול לדבר ולצרף את האותיות והוא מחמת שאין החכמה בשלימות לחלק הקול ולצרף האותיות כרצונו כו׳.
he does not have the intellect (mochin) of nursing in completeness, although he has voice and simple letters, he nevertheless cannot speak and combine the letters; and this is because the Chochmah is not complete, to divide the voice and combine the letters as he wishes, etc.
A small child already has a voice and can utter single sounds, but until his intellect is complete he cannot shape the sounds into words. Speech depends on Chochmah to divide the voice and combine the letters at will, and in the same way divine speech is founded on Chochmah.
ורצו המרגלים שיהיו כל ההמשכות מחכמה עילאה לבחי׳ דבור17 א״י שלמעלה ששם יש ג״כ בהמ״ק וירושלים18 וכל הבחי׳ (כמ״ש בגמרא בפ״ק דתענית דף ה׳ ע״א ובזח״ג פ׳ שלח דקס״א ע״ב)
And the spies wanted all the drawings-down from the supernal Chochmah to be into the level of speech, the Land of Israel above, where there is also a Holy Temple and Jerusalem and all the levels (as is written in the Gemara, in the first chapter of Taanis, page 5a, and in the Zohar, Part III, Parshas Sh’lach, page 161b).
The spies wanted the whole flow from the supernal Chochmah to stop at the level of speech, the Land of Israel above, which has its own Holy Temple and Jerusalem, as the Talmud and the Zohar teach. Such a service, entirely in the spiritual realm, would not have required them to enter the physical Land.
אבל יהושע וכלב אמרו טובה הארץ מאד מאד19 שע״י א״י שלמטה דוקא בחי׳ מצות מעשיות דוקא יומשך בחי׳ אור א״ס בחי׳ מאד בלי גבול בבחי׳ עלמין סתימין ועלמין דאתגלין וזהו מאד מאד.
But Joshua and Caleb said, “The land is very, very good”: for specifically through the Land of Israel below, the level of the practical mitzvos specifically, there will be drawn down the level of the Infinite Light, the level of me’od (“very”), without limit, into the level of hidden worlds and revealed worlds. And this is “very, very.”
Joshua and Caleb answered that the Land is “very, very good”: only through the physical Land below, where the practical mitzvos are kept, is the Infinite Light drawn down, the level of me’od, “very,” which has no limit. This light reaches both the hidden and the revealed worlds.
ב׳ פעמי׳ מאד. עלמין סתימין ועלמין דאתגלין כי באמת עיקר כוונתו ית׳ שיהי׳ דירה בתחתונים דוקא כמארז״ל נתאוה הקב״ה להיות לו דירה בתחתונים202122 כו׳
“Very” twice: hidden worlds and revealed worlds. For in truth His essential intent, may He be blessed, is that there be a dwelling place among the lower realms specifically, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to have a dwelling place among the lower realms,” etc.,
The two words “very” correspond to the hidden worlds and the revealed worlds. G‑d’s essential intent in creation is a dwelling place among the lower realms, as the Midrash says: “The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to have a dwelling place among the lower realms.”
ושיהיה נגלה לעין כל בשר23 ושיהיה הגילוי למטה כמו למעלה ואדרבה ביתר שאת ויתרון א ור הבא מן החשך דוקא כו׳.
and that it be revealed to the eye of all flesh, and that the revelation be below as it is above, and, on the contrary, with greater eminence, and [with] the advantage of light that comes specifically from darkness, etc.
G‑d desires that His presence be revealed to all flesh, below as it is above. The revelation below is even greater, just as light that comes out of darkness has a special advantage.
כי באמת כל שהוא מדרגה היותר גבוה מאד מתגלה בדבר היותר תחתון דוקא ביתר שאת ולמשל מבר שכל גדול שא״א לו לגלות חכמתו להמקבל שכלו בדבור
For in truth, whatever is a very much higher level is revealed specifically in the lowest thing, with greater eminence. For example, a man of great intellect who cannot reveal his wisdom in speech to the one who receives his intellect,
The Alter Rebbe states a general principle: the higher a level is, the more it is revealed specifically in the lowest thing. His first example is a man of great intellect whose wisdom is too deep to be passed on to his student in words.
but by a hint, in an action specifically, he can reveal [it] with greater eminence, like the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory, “For the wise, a hint is enough.”
What words cannot convey, a hint given through an action can reveal even more powerfully, as in the Sages’ saying, “For the wise, a hint is enough.” In the same way, the highest divine light is revealed through physical deeds.
עוד משל מחותם של אבן טוב בהיר שע״י בהירותו אינם ניכרים האותיות בו ונכרים ונתגלים האותיות על השעוה דוקא בגילוי לעין כל וז״ש וראיתם אותו וזכרתם26 את כל מצות ה׳ וכו׳ שע״י מעשה
Another analogy: a seal of a bright precious stone, in which, because of its brightness, the letters are not discernible, while on the wax specifically the letters are discernible and revealed, openly to every eye. And this is [the meaning of] what is written, “And you shall see it and remember all the commandments of Havayah,” etc.: that through an action,
A second analogy: on a seal cut in a bright gemstone the engraved letters cannot be made out because of the stone’s brilliance, yet they show clearly on the wax. The verse of tzitzis, “And you shall see it and remember all the commandments of Havayah,” expresses the same idea of the higher revealed through the lower.
שהוא בחי׳ הסתכלות בל״ב חוטין הגשמיים יבא מזה לוזכרתם את כל מצות ה׳ לפי שהטלית הוא בחי׳ אור מקיף והציצית
which is the level of looking at the thirty-two physical threads, one comes from this to “and remember all the commandments of Havayah.” For the tallis is the level of encompassing light (Or Makif), and the tzitzis,
Looking at the thirty-two physical threads of the tzitzis brings a person to remember all of G‑d’s commandments. The tallis itself stands for an encompassing light (Or Makif), a light too high to be held within.
שהם ל״ב חוטין בחינת ל״ב נתיבות27 החכמה28 שנמשכים ע״י או״מ ואי אפשר שיורמז כי אם במעשה דוקא היפך מחשבת המרגלים כו׳.2930
which are thirty-two threads, are the level of the thirty-two paths of Chochmah, which are drawn down through the encompassing light; and it is impossible for it to be hinted except through an action specifically: the opposite of the thinking of the spies, etc.
The thirty-two threads correspond to the thirty-two paths of wisdom of Sefer Yetzirah, which are drawn down through that encompassing light. So lofty a level can be alluded to only through a physical action, the opposite of what the spies thought.
Milk and honey stand for Chesed and Gevurah drawn down through the practical mitzvos, which are kept in their essential way only in the Land of Israel, the counterpart of the Land above. The spies wanted G‑d’s light to flow only as far as the level of divine speech, while Joshua and Caleb knew that the highest light is revealed specifically through deeds in the lowest place, G‑d’s dwelling below.
Likkutei Sichos, as the Kehot note quotes it, explains that the main service in the Land of Israel is the practical mitzvos, while in the desert, where the manna refined them, it centered on the Torah; it is like the teaching that study is great because it leads to action. It also notes the precision of the word “consumes”: in eating, what is eaten becomes like the eater himself, flesh of his flesh.
Marei mekomos
- 1בחי׳ תרין דרועין · ת״ז בהקדמה (פתח אלי׳). באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תסב יש הג״ה וקיצור לכאן.
- 2תרין דרועין חו״ג ימינא ושמאלא · Tikkunei Zohar 17a:16–17
- 3ימינא ושמאלא ובינייהו כלה · זמירות לשבת (אזמר בשבחין).
- 4ומתחת זרועות עולם · Deuteronomy 33:27
- 5וארץ ישראל מכוונת · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תסב יש הג״ה לכאן ומציין ללקו״ת פ׳ ואתחנן ב, ד.
- 6מכון לשבתך מכוון נגד שבתך זה בהמ״ק שלמעלה · Shir HaShirim Rabbah 4:11
- 7והמרגלים היו במדרגה גבוה מאד · באוה״ת שלח ע׳ תסג נמצא הג״ה לכאן.
- 8ולא רצו . . למצות מעשיות · ראה להלן בהוספות להערות וציונים. ראה דרך מצותיך קפא, א ואילך. לקו״ש-ד ע׳ 1042. לקו״ש לפ׳ שלח — תשמ״ו.
- 9למצות מעשיות · ”כי עיקר העבודה בארץ ישראל הוא קיום המצות מעשיות (וגם העבודה בעשי׳ דרשות — בכל דרכיך דעהו), משא״כ במדבר, (וגם הזיכוך שעל ידי המן הוא בעיקרו בנוגע לתורה). והוא ע״ד תלמוד גדול שהוא הכנה ומביא לידי מעשה”. לקו״ש-ד ע׳ 1043. וראה שם ע׳ 1046 ואילך.
- 10אוכלת יושבי׳ · Numbers 13:32
- 11ומדברך נאוה · Song of Songs 4:3
- 12והארץ הדום רגלי · Isaiah 66:1
- 13ועמ״ש בד״ה והי׳ מספר בנ״י · לעיל פ׳ במדבר ה, ב.
- 14ה׳ בחכמה יסד ארץ · Proverbs 3:19
- 15אבא יסד ברתא · Zohar III, 248a
- 16אבא יסד ברתא · Zohar, Pinchas 121:822–831
- 17ורצו . . כל ההמשכות . . לבחי׳ דיבור · באוה״ת כאן ע׳ תסז נמצא הג״ה לכאן.
- 18בהמ״ק וירושלים · Zohar, Sh'lach 11:84–92
- 19טובה הארץ מאד מאד · Numbers 14:7
- 20נתאוה הקב״ה להיות לו דירה בתחתונים · ראה תנחומא בחוקותי ג. נשא טז. ראה תניא פרק לו ובליקוט פירושים שם.
- 21נתאוה הקב״ה להיות לו דירה בתחתונים · Midrash Tanchuma, Nasso 16:1
- 22נתאוה הקב״ה להיות לו דירה בתחתונים · Midrash Tanchuma, Bechukotai 3:1
- 23ושיהי׳ נגלה לעין כל בשר · Isaiah 40:5
- 24די לחכימה ברמיזא · Zohar III, 229b
- 25די לחכימא ברמיזא · Zohar, Ki Teitzei 18:88–20:98
- 26וראיתם אותו וזכרתם · Numbers 15:39
- 27ל״ב נתיבות חכמה · ראה ס״י א, א.
- 28ל״ב נתיבות החכמה · Sefer Yetzirah 1:1
- 29ע״פ וללבן שתי בנות · תו״א כג, ב.
- 30
Moses’ prayers ¶6
And Moses our Teacher, peace be upon him, who was of the level of the “generation of knowledge” and on a very high and exalted level, did not have the possibility of coming to the Land of Israel.
Moses belonged to the level of the “generation of knowledge,” the generation of the desert, and stood on an exceedingly high level. Yet it was not possible for him to enter the Land of Israel.
ואף על פי כן התפלל תקט״ו תפלות כמנין ואתחנן23 לבא לארץ ישראל מפני שזהו עיקר המכוון ותכלית הבריאה כנ״ל ואעפ״כ לא זכה ויהושע דוקא מכניס כו׳:
Even so, he prayed 515 prayers, the numerical value of va’eschanan (“and I pleaded”), to come into the Land of Israel, because this is the essential intent and the purpose of creation, as mentioned above. Nevertheless he did not merit [it], and it is specifically Joshua who brings [them] in, etc.
Even so, Moses prayed 515 times to enter the Land, the numerical value of va’eschanan, “and I pleaded,” because the Land, where the practical mitzvos are kept, is the essential intent and purpose of creation. He did not merit it, and it was Joshua who brought the people in.
Even Moses, whose level was higher than that of the spies, knew that the purpose of creation is fulfilled in the Land of Israel through deeds, and pleaded 515 times to enter it; yet it was Joshua who brought the people in.
In Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan, Moses’ plea to “cross over and see the land” is explained as a wish to draw into the land above, the Community of Israel, an arousal from above that comes without an arousal from below. Such a revelation, the Alter Rebbe says there, is not drawn down below into actual understanding.
Marei mekomos
- 1משה . . מבחי׳ דור דעה · ראה ע״ח שער הארת המוחין פ״א.
- 2תקט״ו תפלות כמנין ואתחנן · ועל״ק במסעי (צד, ד). וש״נ. [כ].
- 3ואתחנן · Deuteronomy 3:23
Deeds and the drawing down of wisdom ¶7–8
7ב (וזהו דא״י ארץ שבעה עממין שע״י בירור ז׳ מדות דתהו ע״י המצות מעשיות עי״ז נמשך גילוי אור א״ס בכולהו עלמין ודרך כלל הם ג״כ ז׳ היכלות.
2. (And this is [why] the Land of Israel is the land of seven nations: for through the refinement of the seven emotive attributes (middos) of Tohu by means of the practical mitzvos, through this the revelation of the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) is drawn down into all the worlds; and in general terms they are also the seven chambers.
This added section explains why the Land of Israel was the land of seven nations: they correspond to the seven emotive attributes of Tohu, the world whose vessels broke. Refining those attributes through the practical mitzvos draws the Infinite Light into all the worlds, and in general terms they also correspond to the seven chambers.
משא״כ מדבר זהו ההמשכה רק למעלה בפנימית ולא בחיצוניות עלמין והיכלות דעשי׳ ועיין מזה באגה״ק סד״ה ויעש דוד שם שכדי להמשיך הגילוי בעשי׳ זהו ע״י המעשה דוקא כו׳ ע״ש.
Whereas the desert: this is the drawing down only above, in the inner dimension (pnimiyus), and not in the outer dimension (chitzoniyus) of the worlds and chambers of Asiyah (Action). And see about this in Iggeres HaKodesh, at the end of the discourse beginning “And David made a name,” that to draw down the revelation into Asiyah, this is through action specifically, etc.; see there.
The desert, by contrast, stands for a drawing down that stays above, in the inner dimension of the worlds, and does not reach their outer dimension, the worlds and chambers of Asiyah. The Alter Rebbe refers to Iggeres HaKodesh, where he explains that the revelation reaches Asiyah only through action.
ובאמת כדי להיות ההמשכה למטה היינו ע״י שההמשכה ממקום עליון יותר כמ״ש במ״א ע״פ אל עליון גומל חסדים טובים.
And in truth, for the drawing down to be below, this comes about through the drawing down being from a higher place, as is explained elsewhere on [the words] “G‑d Most High, who bestows good kindnesses.”
For light to reach the lowest level, it must in truth be drawn from a higher source. The Alter Rebbe points to an explanation elsewhere on the words of the prayer, “G‑d Most High, who bestows good kindnesses.”
וגם להפך שבמעשה דוקא לפי שהוא למטה מבחי׳ הדבור יוכל להיות הגילוי מבחי׳ עליונה יותר וכענין לחכימא ברמיזא מה שא״א להתגלות ע״י אותיות הדבור כו׳.
And also the reverse: specifically in action, because it is below the level of speech, there can be the revelation from a higher level, like the matter of “for the wise, by a hint,” what cannot be revealed through the letters of speech, etc.
The reverse is also true: precisely because action is lower than speech, it can reveal a higher level. Like a hint to a wise man, action conveys what the letters of speech cannot.
וביאור ענין זה יובן ממ״ש במ״א בביאור ע״פ ששים המה מלכות1 כו׳ אחת היא יונתי2 כו׳ גבי מעלת הנשמות על המלאכים שמבחי׳ דבור כו׳ ע״ש.
The explanation of this matter will be understood from what is written elsewhere, in the explanation on the verse “There are sixty queens,” etc., “My dove, my perfect one, is but one,” etc., regarding the superiority of the souls over the angels, who are from the level of speech, etc.; see there.
The Alter Rebbe refers to his explanation of the verses “There are sixty queens” and “My dove, my perfect one, is but one,” which discusses the superiority of the souls over the angels. The angels derive from the level of divine speech.
ועמ״ש ע״פ והארץ הדום3 רגלי4 ע״י שמתקן מעשיו כו׳ נעשים מוחו ולבו זכים אלף פעמים ככה ע״ש והיינו לפי שעי״ז ממשיכים ממקור הח״ע ופנימיותה ועוד
And see what is written on the verse “And the earth is My footstool,” that through his rectifying his deeds, etc., his mind and heart become a thousand times as pure; see there. That is, because through this one draws down from the source of the supernal Chochmah (wisdom) and its inner dimension. And further,
He also refers to his explanation of “And the earth is My footstool,” where one who rectifies his deeds makes his mind and heart a thousand times purer. Deeds have this effect because they draw from the very source and inner dimension of the supernal Chochmah.
כי א״א ג״כ להמשיך גילוי ח״ע ע״י התורה כ״א ע״י מעשה המצות והוא כמ״ש באגה״ק שם סד״ה ויעש דוד שם וז״ל לכן ארז״ל האומר אין לי אלא תורה5 בלי גמילות חסדים אפילו תורה אין לו
for it is also impossible to draw down the revelation of the supernal Chochmah through the Torah except through the deed of the mitzvos. And this is as written in Iggeres HaKodesh, there, at the end of the discourse beginning “And David made a name”; these are its words: “Therefore our Sages, of blessed memory, said: One who says, ‘I have only Torah,’ without acts of kindness, even Torah he does not have,
Moreover, the revelation of the supernal Chochmah cannot be drawn down through the Torah alone, only through the deed of the mitzvos. The Alter Rebbe quotes his words in Iggeres HaKodesh, which cite the Sages: one who says “I have only Torah,” without acts of kindness, does not have even Torah.
אלא בתורה ובגמ״ח כי הנה אורייתא מחכמה נפקת6 ובאורייתא מתקיים עלמא ובאינון דלעאן בה כי בדיבורם ממשיכים הארות והשפעות ח״ע מקור התורה לבחינת אותיות הדבור שבהן נברא העולם כו׳
but rather [he must engage] in Torah and in acts of kindness. For behold, ‘the Torah comes forth from Chochmah,’ and ‘through the Torah the world is sustained, and through those who toil in it’; for by their speech they draw down illuminations and influences of the supernal Chochmah, the source of the Torah, into the level of the letters of speech, with which the world was created, etc.
The Torah comes forth from Chochmah, and the world is sustained through the Torah and those who study it. Through their speech they draw the light of the supernal Chochmah into the letters of speech with which the world was created.
והרי המשכה זו היא בחי׳ ירידה גדולה ולזה צריך לעורר חסד עליון הנמשך כמים ממקום גבוה למקום נמוך באתעדל״ת בצדקה וחסד תתאה שממשיכים חיים וחסד להחיות רוח שפלים ונדכאים7 וז״ש אל יתהלל חכם בחכמתו8 כו׳
Now, this drawing down is the level of a great descent, and for this one must arouse the supernal Chesed (kindness), which flows like water from a high place to a low place, through an arousal from below, by charity and the lower Chesed, by which they draw down life and kindness to revive the spirit of the lowly and the crushed. And this is [the meaning of] what is written, ‘Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,’ etc.,
This drawing of Chochmah into speech is a great descent, so it needs the supernal Chesed, which flows down like water from a high place to a low one. That Chesed is aroused from below by charity and kindness to the lowly, and the verse “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom” alludes to this.
כ״א בזאת יתהלל כו׳ כי אני9 ה׳ עושה חסד כו׳ כי החסד הוא הממשיך חיי החכמה למטה ואם לאו הרי נקראת חכמתו לבדו בלי המשכת חיים ממנה
‘but rather in this let him glory,’ etc., ‘that I am Havayah who does kindness,’ etc. For Chesed is what draws the life of Chochmah down below; and if not, then it is called ‘his wisdom’ alone, without the drawing down of life from it,
The verse goes on: let him glory rather in knowing “that I am Havayah who does kindness.” Kindness is what carries the life of wisdom down below; without it, wisdom remains “his wisdom” alone and gives no life to anything beneath it.
ח״ו עכ״ל וכנודע שגם למעלה המשכת הח״ע בבחי׳ אותיות הדבור נמשך ע״י המדות עליונות וזהו בחי׳ יעקב אותיות יבקע המשכת החכמה הבוקע דרך המדות ונמשך בהדבור. וכמ״ש במ״א ע״פ מאמר הזהר ס״פ קדושים)
G‑d forbid.” End of quote. And as is known, above too the drawing down of the supernal Chochmah into the level of the letters of speech is drawn through the supernal emotive attributes; and this is the level of Yaakov, [whose] letters are yivka (“will break through”): the drawing down of Chochmah that breaks through by way of the emotive attributes and is drawn into speech. And as is explained elsewhere on the saying of the Zohar at the end of Parshas Kedoshim)
The quotation from Iggeres HaKodesh ends here. Above, too, Chochmah reaches the letters of speech only through the emotive attributes; this is the name Yaakov, whose letters spell yivka, “will break through,” wisdom breaking through the attributes into speech.
(page 86a), on the verse “You are My witnesses,” etc. And see also what is written about this on the verse “And it shall be tzitzis for you,” regarding “for this one was taken from man.”
The Alter Rebbe also refers to his explanations of the Zohar’s teaching on “You are My witnesses” and of the verse of tzitzis, where he discusses “for this one was taken from man.” Both treat the same theme at greater length.
ומכ״ז יובן ענין חטא המרגלים כי הנה עם היות אשר התורה נק׳ מדבר כמ״ש במדרש רבה פ׳ חקת פי״ט ע״פ וממדבר מתנה.1314
And from all this, the matter of the sin of the spies will be understood. For although the Torah is called “desert,” as is written in Midrash Rabbah, Parshas Chukas, chapter 19, on the verse “And from the desert, Mattanah,”
From all this the sin of the spies becomes clear. The Midrash links the Torah with the desert, expounding the verse “and from the desert, Mattanah” about the Torah given in the desert.
אך עכ״ז כתיב בה הכל לעשות בארץ. ארץ היינו בחי׳ מצות מעשיות. כי גם להיות המשכות ח״ע לבחי׳ הדבור א״א כ״א ע״י קיום המצות מטעם הנ״ל.
nevertheless it is written in it that all is “to do in the land.” “Land” means the level of the practical mitzvos. For even for there to be drawings-down of the supernal Chochmah into the level of speech is impossible except through the fulfillment of the mitzvos, for the reason mentioned above.
Yet the Torah itself says that everything is “to do in the land”: its purpose is the practical mitzvos. Even the flow of the supernal Chochmah into speech, the level the spies wanted, cannot come about without the mitzvos, for the reasons given above.
This added section explains that the practical mitzvos refine the seven attributes of Tohu and bring the light into the outer dimension of the worlds, which a service of the desert cannot do. Even the Torah’s wisdom, drawn into speech, depends on deeds of kindness and on the mitzvos, which is why the spies’ preference for the desert was a mistake.
In Torah Ohr the Alter Rebbe explains “the earth is My footstool”: the Community of Israel is called the “foot,” and the foot has an advantage the head lacks, for the feet carry the head where it wishes to go and hold its life-blood. The same principle runs through this section: the lowest level, action, draws from the highest source.
Marei mekomos
- 1ששים המה מלכות · Song of Songs 6:8
- 2אחת היא יונתי · Song of Songs 6:9
- 3ע״פ והארץ הדום · תו״א א, ב.
- 4והארץ הדום רגלי · Isaiah 66:1
- 5האומר אין לי אלא תורה · Yevamot 109b:4–5
- 6אורייתא מחכמה נפקת · Zohar, Mishpatim 20:500–502
- 7להחיות רוח שפלים ונדכאים · Isaiah 57:15
- 8אל יתהלל חכם בחכמתו · Jeremiah 9:22
- 9כי אני ה׳ עושה חסד · Jeremiah 9:23
- 10אתם עדי · Zohar, Kedoshim 17:104–18:108
- 11והיה לכם לציצית · Numbers 15:39
- 12כי מאיש לוקחה זאת · Genesis 2:23
- 13וממדבר מתנה · Bamidbar Rabbah 19:26
- 14וממדבר מתנה · Numbers 21:18
8וע״ז נאמר אל יתהלל חכם בחכמתו1 כו׳ אלא ע״י חסד ומשפט וצדקה בארץ2 דייקא עי״ז ממשיכים בחי׳ ח״ע. ועמ״ש בד״ה כי תשמע בקול.
And of this it is said, “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,” etc., but rather through “kindness, justice and righteousness in the land” specifically: through this one draws down the level of the supernal Chochmah (wisdom). And see what is written in the discourse beginning “When you hearken to the voice.”
This is why, after “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,” the verse speaks of “kindness, justice and righteousness in the land”: wisdom is drawn down specifically through deeds done in the land. The Alter Rebbe refers to his discourse beginning “When you hearken to the voice” for more on this.
עוד יש לבאר כללות ענין זה באופן אחר קצת עפמ״ש בד״ה וידבר דעשרת הדברות בענין עסק התורה שנאמר וכל חפצים לא ישוו בה3 ואפילו חפצי שמים4 וע״ש בענין אם אין חכמה אין יראה.5
This matter as a whole can be further explained in a somewhat different way, according to what is written in the discourse beginning “And [G‑d] spoke” of the Ten Commandments, on the matter of occupying oneself with the Torah, of which it is said, “and all desirable things cannot compare to it,” even the desires of Heaven; and see there on the matter of “if there is no wisdom there is no fear.”
The Alter Rebbe adds that the whole matter can be explained in a somewhat different way, following his discourse on the Ten Commandments, which deals with Torah study, of which it is said that “all desirable things cannot compare to it,” even the “desires of Heaven,” that is, mitzvos. That discourse also discusses the Mishnah “If there is no wisdom there is no fear.”
Jeremiah’s words show that wisdom is drawn down only through kindness and righteousness done in the land. The Alter Rebbe then points to a second way of explaining the matter, based on the relationship between Torah study and the mitzvos.
The Talmud sets two verses side by side: “all your desires cannot compare to it” implies that the desires of Heaven can, while “all desirable things cannot compare to it” includes even them. It resolves that a mitzvah others can perform does not set aside Torah study, while a mitzvah that cannot be done by others does.
Marei mekomos
- 1אל יתהלל חכם בחכמתו · Jeremiah 9:22
- 2חסד ומשפט וצדקה בארץ · Jeremiah 9:23
- 3וכל חפצים לא ישוו בה · Proverbs 8:11
- 4ואפילו חפצי שמים · Moed Katan 9b:2–3
- 5אם אין חכמה אין יראה · Pirkei Avot 3:17
The spies’ error ¶9
And in the same way, the spies did not want to enter the Land and fulfill the mitzvos, but only to be in the desert, [as in] “and your speech (midbarech) is lovely,” etc. But in truth
In the same way, the spies did not want to enter the Land and keep its mitzvos, preferring to stay in the desert, at the level of “your speech is lovely,” a revelation in divine speech alone. In truth, however, they were mistaken.
טעו בזה טעות גדול כמש״ש בענין אם אין יראה אין חכמה2 שא״א כלל להמשיך אור התורה כ״א בהקדים תחלה בחי׳ קיום המצות
they made a great error in this, as is written there on the matter of “if there is no fear there is no wisdom”: that it is not at all possible to draw down the light of the Torah except by first putting before it the level of the fulfillment of the mitzvos.
Their great error is explained by the Mishnah “If there is no fear there is no wisdom”: the light of the Torah can be drawn down only when the fulfillment of the mitzvos comes first. Fear of Heaven, expressed in keeping the mitzvos, must come before wisdom.
וזהו אם אין יראה כו׳ וכמאמר קדשנו במצותיך ועי״ז אח״כ ותן חלקנו בתורתך ובמתן תורה שהיה התגלות התורה בתחלה זהו הוראת שעה
And this is “if there is no fear,” etc.; and as in the words “sanctify us with Your commandments,” and through this, afterwards, “and grant our portion in Your Torah.” And at the Giving of the Torah, where the revelation of the Torah came first, this was a ruling for that hour alone,
The same order appears in the prayer: “Sanctify us with Your commandments,” and only then “grant our portion in Your Torah.” At the Giving of the Torah the Torah was revealed first, but that was a special arrangement for that hour alone.
אבל לדורות א״א להיות כן וגם ישראל הבינו זה ולכן הקדימו נעשה לנשמע3 כו׳ ע״ש באריכות:
but for all generations it cannot be so. And Israel, too, understood this, and therefore they put “we will do” before “we will hear,” etc.; see there at length.
For all later generations the mitzvos must come first. Israel understood this at Sinai, which is why they said “we will do” before “we will hear”; the discourse the Alter Rebbe cites explains this at length.
The spies’ error was to think that the light of the Torah could be received without first keeping the mitzvos in the Land. In truth fear of Heaven and deeds must come first, as Israel showed when they said “we will do” before “we will hear.”
The Talmud tells that when Israel put “we will do” before “we will hear,” a heavenly voice asked who had revealed to G‑d’s children this secret, which the ministering angels use. Deed before understanding is the same principle that, in this maamar, makes the physical Land the place where the Infinite Light is revealed.
Marei mekomos
- 1ומדברך נאוה · Song of Songs 4:3
- 2אם אין יראה אין חכמה · Pirkei Avot 3:17
- 3הקדימו נעשה לנשמע · Shabbat 88a:8
Finished the maamar?
Mark it as learned; it counts toward the week and the year’s siyum.
In one’s avodah
A person may not seek to stay in spiritual heights, as the spies wished, and avoid the practical mitzvos: G‑d’s intent is fulfilled through deeds below. The service begins with “turn away from evil,” subduing the sitra achra, and continues with “do good” through the positive mitzvos; Torah study must be joined with acts of kindness and charity, and the mitzvos must come first, as Israel said “we will do” before “we will hear.”
Questions for discussion
- Why does man, who was created by a divine word, need bread to live, and how does the answer prepare for the question about the spies?
- What does it mean that olam (world) comes from he’elem (concealment), and why must the chambers hide the Infinite Light?
- Why did the spies fear that the Land “consumes its inhabitants,” and what did they want instead in the “desert”?
- How do the analogies of the wise man’s hint and the gemstone seal show that the highest is revealed in the lowest?
- Why can the light of the Torah not be drawn down without first keeping the mitzvos, and how does “we will do” before “we will hear” show this?
Key terms in this maamar
- The Name Havayahהוי׳
- The Tetragrammaton: G‑d as transcending time and bringing all into being.
- Life-forceחיות
- The divine vitality that sustains every creation. ×3
- The sitra achra (the other side)סטרא אחרא
- The realm opposed to holiness. ×1
- The Holy One, blessed be Heקב״ה
- The Sefirosספירות
- The ten divine attributes through which G‑d relates to creation.
- Chesed (kindness)חסד
- Expansive giving. ×12
- Gevurah (restraint)גבורה
- Measure, limitation and judgment. ×1
- The Shechinah (Divine Presence)שכינה
- G‑d's presence as it dwells in the world. ×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”. ×2
- Chochmah (wisdom)חכמה
- The first flash of insight. ×14
- The Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof)אור אין סוף
- G‑d's light as it is, beyond all limits, before any contraction.
- The Infinite One (Ein Sof)אין סוף
- G‑d's own boundless essence.
- The World of Atzilus (Emanation)אצילות
- The highest world, still one with G‑d. ×1
- Lights and vesselsאורות וכלים
- Divine revelation and the forms that contain and express it. ×1
- The chain of descending worlds (hishtalshelus)השתלשלות
- The step-by-step descent of divine light from the highest level down to this world. ×1
- Malchus (sovereignty)מלכות
- Kingship: the level through which G‑d's word creates and rules the worlds. ×2
- The intellect (mochin)מוחין
- Chochmah, Binah and Daas as a whole. ×1
- A dwelling place among the lower realmsדירה בתחתונים
- The purpose of creation: that G‑d be at home in this world. ×2
- The emotive attributes (middos)מדות
- Love, awe, compassion and the rest. ×3
- The inner dimension (pnimiyus)פנימיות
- The innermost core of a level.
- The outer dimension (chitzoniyus)חיצוניות
- The external, expressive aspect. ×1
- The World of Asiyah (Action)עשיה
- The lowest world, including our physical one.
- An arousal from belowאתערותא דלתתא
- Human initiative that draws down a divine response.
- The World of Beriah (Creation)בריאה
- The first world of separate existence. ×1