Likkutei Torah · Parshas Shemini Atzeres · Maamar 7
טוב לחסות בה׳ וגו׳
It Is Better to Take Refuge in G‑d
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The big idea
A Jew can retain the Torah he learns and the prayer he prays only after the mitzvos have betrothed him and set him apart for G‑d, a betrothal drawn from the light that encompasses all worlds. Contemplating that light breaks the heart and crumbles evil, and to take refuge in G‑d Himself, with self-sacrifice, is better even than cleaving to the Torah.
The maamar in brief
The festival prayer asks “Sanctify us with Your mitzvos” before “grant us our share in Your Torah.” A share in the Torah is atzeres, “retention”: holding what one learns through review and memory, and holding prayer firmly in mind and heart. Retention comes only after kiddushin. As a groom first betroths his bride with a perutah, G‑d gives the mitzvos, whose intent is to set a Jew apart from cravings and bad traits; without them he “expels” what he receives. This betrothal is drawn from the light that encompasses all worlds, the “ring” in which past, present and future are one and the word “greatness” does not apply. Contemplating it breaks the heart: what did not concern one a few years ago and will be gone a few years hence is not worth craving. Then evil is “crumbled” and blown away like smoke, for it has no substance: first PaZeR, “scatter,” then KaSheV, “hearken.” Finally, the opening verse: “man” is the Torah and “nobles” are the Patriarchs, yet it is better to take refuge in G‑d Himself, beneath His encompassing light as beneath a chuppah, through self-sacrifice in the Shema.
Outline
- Mitzvos before TorahThe prayer asks to be sanctified by the mitzvos before it asks for a share in the Torah: atzeres is retaining Torah and prayer, which is possible only after kiddushin, the mitzvos that set a Jew apart. The betrothal is drawn from the light that encompasses all worlds, beyond time and beyond “greatness.”¶1–2
- A heart broken by time“Yours, Havayah, is the greatness”: greatness belongs to the Name that came into being through contraction and drawing down. Contemplating this, a person sees that everything bound by time passes away and stops craving it: “Who is wise? One who sees what will be born.”¶3–4
- Crumbling the sea, dispersing the smokeThe contemplation crumbles the sins cast into “the depths of the sea,” so that they have no standing as a “something”; this is PaZeR KaSheV. Wickedness vanishes like smoke before a light wind, for in truth it has no substance.¶5–6
- Better to take refuge in G‑d“Man” is the Supernal Man, the Written Torah with its 248 positive and 365 negative commandments, and “nobles” are the Patriarchs. Better still is refuge in G‑d: the encompassing light spread over a person like a chuppah or a tallis, which circumcises the heart and revives it, reached by giving over one’s soul at “One” in the Shema.¶7
Key concepts
- Atzeres (retention)עצרת / קליטה
- Holding the Torah one learns and the prayer one prays firmly within, through review, memory and the binding of mind and heart; its opposite is “expelling.”
- Kiddushin (betrothal)קדושין
- Being set apart and separated for G‑d. The mitzvos are His betrothal gift, and their intent is to separate a person from cravings and bad traits.
- The ring of kiddushinטבעת קדושין
- The light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), from which the betrothal is drawn: a level where everything is equal before Him, past, present and future in one instant, without any change.
- A broken and crushed heartלב נשבר ונדכה
- What comes of contemplating G‑d’s infinity: everything bound by time becomes equal in one’s eyes, and one no longer craves it.
- PaZeR KaSheVפז״ר קש״ב
- The mnemonic of Shemini Atzeres, read as an order of service: first “scatter,” crumbling whatever stands as a “something,” and afterwards “hearken” to His words.
- The Supernal Manאדם העליון
- The “likeness like the appearance of a man” upon the throne: the Written Torah, whose 248 positive and 365 negative commandments correspond to a man’s 248 limbs and 365 sinews.
- Taking refuge (lachasos)לחסות
- Sheltering beneath a cover, like the canopy or tallis spread over groom and bride: G‑d, who “wraps Himself in light as in a garment,” spreads His encompassing light over the soul. It is higher than the Torah and is reached through self-sacrifice in the Shema.
For children · ages 9–13
Taking shelter in G‑d
The big idea
The mitzvos set us apart for G‑d so that we can hold on to the Torah we learn, and giving ourselves fully to G‑d, beneath His light, is higher still.
On Shabbos and Yom Tov we pray, “Sanctify us with Your mitzvos,” and only then, “grant us our share in Your Torah.” Why this order? Atzeres, as in Shemini Atzeres, means “holding in.” A share in the Torah means holding on to what we learn, by reviewing and remembering it, and holding our prayer firmly in mind and heart. First the mitzvos must set us apart for G‑d, as a groom first betroths his bride. The mitzvos are meant to free us from bad traits and from wanting things too much. This gift comes from G‑d’s light beyond time, where past, present and future are one. Seeing this, a person realizes that what they want so badly today meant nothing a few years ago and will be gone in a few years. Then the bad crumbles and blows away like smoke, for it has nothing real inside. Shemini Atzeres has a memory-sign, PaZeR KaSheV: first “scatter” the bad, then “hearken” to G‑d’s words. Holding on to the Torah is good, but better still is “to take refuge in G‑d”: to stand beneath His light as beneath a chuppah, giving ourselves fully to Him at “One” in the Shema.
The mashal
When a groom marries his bride, he first betroths her with a perutah, a small coin of value, and she is set apart for him. So G‑d first gives us the mitzvos, which set us apart for Him, and only then can we hold on to His Torah. At the wedding a chuppah, or in some places a tallis, is spread over the couple, and from then on they belong to each other; so G‑d spreads His light over us like a chuppah.
Questions for the Shabbos table
- Why do we ask G‑d to make us holy with His mitzvos before we ask for a share in His Torah?
- Why does the maamar say that the bad in a person can be blown away like smoke in a little wind?
- What is one thing you learned this week that you can review, so that you hold on to it?
Explanation © likuteitorah.com, CC BY-NC 4.0: retold for children from our translation and explanation, with AI assistance; not yet reviewed by a human editor.
Mitzvos before Torah ¶1–2
“It is better to take refuge in G‑d, etc.” Now, in the prayer of Shabbos and Yom Tov we say “Sanctify us with Your mitzvos” first, and afterwards “and grant us our share in Your Torah.”
The maamar opens with a verse from Hallel that it will interpret only later (paragraph 7). It starts instead from the order of a phrase in the Shabbos and Yom Tov Amidah: we first ask G‑d to sanctify us through the mitzvos, and only then ask for our portion in the Torah.
כי אי אפשר להיות חלק בתורת ה׳ בלתי אם יקיים מצותיו קדשנו במצותיך תחלה וביאור הענין כי ענין ותן חלקנו בתורתך הוא כדכתיב ביום השמיני עצרת תהיה לכם3.
For it is impossible to have a share in the Torah of G‑d unless one fulfills His mitzvos; [hence] “Sanctify us with Your mitzvos” [comes] first. The explanation of the matter: the theme of “grant us our share in Your Torah” is as it is written, “On the eighth day there shall be an atzeres for you.”
The order is not accidental: a real share in the Torah depends on first keeping the mitzvos. To explain what “a share in the Torah” means, the Alter Rebbe turns to the verse that names the festival of Shemini Atzeres.
פי׳ עצרת קליטה שכנס״י [שכנסת ישראל] קולטת טיפת החכמה דהיינו התורה שירדה מרצונו וחכמתו ית׳ אלא שנתגשמה כמ״ש מוריד הגשם ובהיות כל איש ישראל לומד התורה וחוזר על לימודו ותופס בזכרונו היטב נק׳ בחי׳ זו בחי׳ קולטת
The meaning of atzeres is retention: the Community of Israel (Knesses Yisrael) retains the drop of Chochmah, that is, the Torah, which descended from His will and His wisdom, may He be blessed, except that it became physical (nisgashmah), as it is written, “He causes the rain (geshem) to descend.” And when every Jew studies the Torah, reviews his learning and holds it well in his memory, this level is called the level of “retaining.”
The word atzeres is read as “holding in” or retaining, like a womb that retains the seed. The Torah is a “drop” of G‑d’s wisdom that has come down into physical form, just as “geshem” (rain) shares its root with “gashmiyus” (physicality); a Jew who learns, reviews and remembers the Torah “retains” it.
וכן בענין התפלה שהיא ע״י הדעת והתקשרות במוחו ולבו שיתקע בחוזק במחשבתו בבחי׳ הרגשה וכענין שאמרז״ל [שאמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] הכר את בוראך456 שנתפס לתוך מוחו וגם לתוך לבו להיות לו רעותא דלבא מעומקא דלבא לה׳ לבדו
So too with prayer, which is through Daas and binding [oneself] in one’s mind and heart, so that it be fixed firmly in his thought, in a felt way; as in what our Sages said, “Recognize your Creator”: that it be grasped within his mind and also within his heart, so that he have “the desire of the heart,” from the depth of the heart, for G‑d alone.
Prayer is the second way of retaining: through Daas, deep attentive connection, the knowledge of G‑d is fixed in both mind and heart until it is felt. “The desire of the heart” is a phrase for a longing that comes from the heart’s depth and is directed to G‑d alone.
Now, by way of analogy: when a man takes a wife, he must first betroth her, giving her one perutah or the value of a perutah,
An analogy from marriage law: a betrothal (kiddushin) takes effect when the man gives the woman something of value, at least a perutah, the smallest coin.
רק שתהי׳ [שתהיה] דבר שתוכל לקנות לה חיי נפשה כך א״א להיות כנ״י [כנסת ישראל] בבחי׳ קולטת כ״א כאשר ימשוך לה חיות אלקות מלמעלה.
only that it be something with which she can buy herself the sustenance of her life. So too, it is impossible for the Community of Israel to be in the state of “retaining” unless He draws down to her G‑dly life-force from above.
The perutah is, in principle, something that can buy the woman her sustenance. Likewise, the Jewish people can “retain” Torah and prayer only after G‑d first gives them a gift of G‑dly life-force from above, a kind of betrothal.
(ועמ״ש סד״ה וארשתיך לי9 כו׳ וידעת) וענין הקדושין הוא כמ״ש והייתם קדושים כו׳ ואבדיל אתכם לי כו׳
(See also what is written at the end of the section beginning “And I will betroth you to Me, etc.… and you shall know.”) And the concept of kiddushin (betrothal) is as it is written, “And you shall be holy, etc.… and I have separated you to Me, etc.,
The parenthesis refers the reader to another maamar on betrothal. Kiddushin is then defined by verses about holiness: to be holy is to be set apart by G‑d as His own.
to be Mine, etc.” And this is the meaning of “Behold, you are betrothed (mekudeshes) to me”: that you shall be set apart and separated for me, for my name.
The betrothal formula “you are mekudeshes to me” is read in the same light: it means that she is set apart exclusively for her husband. So too, the mitzvos set the Jew apart for G‑d.
וזהו ענין כוונת כל המצות כי מצות צריכות כוונה.12 פי׳ לדעת המכוון בהם והמכוון הוא להיות מובדל מן התאוות ומכל מדות הרעות.
And this is the intention of all the mitzvos, for “mitzvos require intention”: that is, to know what is intended by them; and what is intended is to be separated from the cravings and from all bad traits.
This is why the Sages say that mitzvos require kavanah (intention): one should know what they aim at. Their aim is to separate a person from cravings and bad character traits, which is what makes him “betrothed” and able to retain.
The paragraph explains why “sanctify us with Your mitzvos” precedes “grant us our share in Your Torah”: the mitzvos are G‑d’s betrothal gift that sets the Jew apart, and only then can he “retain” (atzeres) the Torah and prayer.
The image of Knesses Yisrael “retaining the drop of Chochmah” draws on the Kabbalistic picture of Malchus as the receiving partner of Z’eir Anpin; Shemini Atzeres is the day of that union. The betrothal gift “from above” anticipates the next paragraph, where the ring of kiddushin is identified with the encompassing light (sovev).
Marei mekomos
- 1טוב לחסות · שמע״צ תקנ״ז. ראה רשימת המאמרים שבסו״ס מאמרי אדה״ז — הקצרים ע׳ תריז הערה 73. ולהלן ברשימת הכת״י.
- 2טוב לחסות · Psalms 118:8
- 3
- 4הכר את בוראך · Sotah 10b:8–9
- 5הכר את בוראך · Bereshit Rabbah 85:11
- 6הכר את בוראך · Nedarim 32a:17–19
- 7שנותן לה א׳ פרוטה או שוה פרוטה · Kiddushin 2a:4–5
- 8פרוטה או שוה פרוטה · ריש קידושין.
- 9סד״ה וארשתיך לי · לעיל פ׳ במדבר ט, ד.
- 10והייתם קדושים כו׳ ואבדיל אתכם לי כו׳ להיות לי · Leviticus 20:26
- 11הרי את מקודשת לי · Kiddushin 5b:10
- 12מצות צריכות כוונה · Berakhot 13a:22–25
2ולכן תקנו חז״ל [חכמינו זכרונם לברכה] לומר אשר קדשנו במצותיו בברכות המצות ועי״ז יוכל להיות לו בחי׳ קליטה הנ״ל בתורה ותפלה משא״כ בלא בחי׳ קדושין הנ״ל א״א להיות לו בחי׳ קליטה הנ״ל ונק׳ פולטת ח״ו [חס ושלום]
Therefore our Sages instituted the saying of “Who has sanctified us with His mitzvos” in the blessings over the mitzvos; and through this one can have the above-mentioned “retention” in Torah and prayer. Without the above-mentioned level of kiddushin, however, it is impossible for him to have the above-mentioned “retention,” and he is called “one who expels,” G‑d forbid.
The blessing said before a mitzvah, “Who has sanctified us with His mitzvos,” expresses this betrothal. With it a person can “retain” the Torah and prayer; without it he is like a womb that cannot hold the seed and “expels” it, G‑d forbid.
והנה ענין המשכת בחי׳ קדושין הנ״ל הוא מלמעלה מבחינת סוכ״ע בחי׳ טבעת קדושין ששם שוה הכל אצלו היה
Now, the drawing down of the above-mentioned kiddushin is from above, from the level of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), the level of the ring of kiddushin, where everything is equal before Him: “was,”
The betrothal comes from sovev, the light that surrounds all worlds and is not limited by them. The ring of kiddushin, a circle without beginning or end, symbolizes that encompassing light, for which past, present and future are all the same.
הוה ויהיה ברגע אחד ואין בו שום שינוי ח״ו [חס ושלום] וכמ״ש גדול ה׳ ומהולל מאד1 ולגדולתו אין חקר פי׳ שגדולת ה׳ היא מאד בלי שיעור והפסק
“is” and “will be” in one instant, and there is no change in Him whatsoever, G‑d forbid. As it is written, “Great is G‑d and exceedingly praised, and His greatness is unsearchable”: that is, the greatness of G‑d is “exceedingly” [great], without measure or interruption,
For that level there is no change and no before and after. The verse from Psalms is brought to distinguish two things: G‑d’s greatness as it extends without limit (“exceedingly”), and something beyond greatness altogether.
וכמו שאמרז״ל [שאמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] מן הארץ2 לרקיע כו׳ רגלי החיות כנגד כולם כו׳ אבל ולגדולתו אין חקר פי׳ ולגדולתו בעצמו אין שייך לשון גדולה
as our Sages said, “From the earth to the firmament, etc.… the feet of the Chayos are equal to all of them, etc.” But “and His greatness is unsearchable” means: to His greatness itself, the term “greatness” does not apply.
The Talmud describes the vast distances of the heavens, and the feet of the Chayos (angels of the Chariot) equal to all of them: that is greatness beyond measure. “His greatness is unsearchable” goes further: in G‑d’s own essence the very idea of “greatness” is out of place.
וזהו שארז״ל [שאמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] במקום שאתה מוצא גדולתו3 של הקב״ה שם אתה מוצא ענוותנותו שצלו ית׳ גדולה לענוה יחשב
And this is what our Sages said, “Wherever you find the greatness of the Holy One, blessed be He, there you find His humility”: for with Him, may He be blessed, greatness is reckoned as humility,
This is why the Sages link G‑d’s greatness with His humility: from His own perspective, to be “great” over the worlds is a lowering of Himself.
כי לשון גדולה נופל על התפשטות אורו בבחי׳ א״ס ואין קץ כו׳ ולא על מקור האור וחיי החיים שהוא מתגדל על דבר שהוא כאין ואפס ממש.
because the term “greatness” applies to the spreading forth of His light in the manner of the infinite and the endless, etc., and not to the Source of the light and the Life of all life, who [would thereby] be made great over something that is truly as nothing and naught.
“Greatness” describes His light spreading infinitely. The Source of that light is not made great by towering over creations, for next to Him they are nothing at all, and to be “great” in comparison with nothing is no greatness.
The betrothal drawn down by the mitzvos comes from sovev, the level beyond time and change, which the paragraph describes through the idea that true Divine greatness is beyond the term “greatness” itself.
The contrast between infinite “greatness” and G‑d’s essence parallels the Chassidic distinction between the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof) as it spreads forth and its Source. The Kehot note sends the reader to Likkutei Torah Va’eschanan for another discussion of greatness and humility.
Marei mekomos
- 1גדול ה׳ ומהולל מאד · Psalms 145:3
- 2מן הארץ עד לרקיע כו׳ רגלי החיות · Chagigah 13a:3–4
- 3במקום שאתה מוצא גדולתו · Megillah 31a:12–13
A heart broken by time ¶3–4
3וז״ש [וזהו שכתוב] לך הוי׳ הגדולה. פי׳ כי מדת גדולה היא רק הוי׳ שנתהוה ממך והיינו ע״י צמצום והתפשטות והמשכה שע״ז מורים אותיות שם הוי׳ יו״ד צמצום כו׳.
And this is what is written, “Yours, Havayah, is the greatness”: that is, the attribute of greatness is only Havayah, which came into being from You, namely through contraction, spreading forth and drawing down, which the letters of the Name Havayah indicate: the yud, contraction, etc.
The verse “Yours, Havayah, is the greatness” is read to mean that greatness belongs only to the level of the Name Havayah, the power that brings creation into being. The letters of the Name trace that process: the small yud is contraction (tzimtzum), and the following letters are expansion and extension.
וע״י התבוננות זו נמשך לאדם ג״כ לב נשבר ונדכה1 שיהיה שוה בעיניו כל עניני העולם שנופלים תחת הזמן עבר הוה ועתיד והוה ולא יתאוה להם ולא ישית לב אליהם כלל
And through this contemplation a person also comes to have a broken and crushed heart, so that all the matters of the world that fall under time, past, present and future, and are transient, will be equal in his eyes; he will not crave them and will not set his heart to them at all,
Contemplating that all of creation is only an outflow of G‑d, and nothing next to Him, breaks a person’s heart and humbles him. Everything bound by time then becomes equal and fleeting in his eyes, and he stops craving it.
כי יאמר ללבו הרי קודם זה כמה שנים לא עלתה על לבי לכל לחשוב ולהרהר בענין זה ואחר כמה שנים לא יהיה הדבר ולא יבא כלל.23456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930
for he will say to his heart: “Behold, several years ago it did not occur to me at all to think and ponder about this matter, and after several years the thing will not exist and will not come [to mind] at all.”
The practical reflection: a few years ago I never thought about this thing, and a few years from now it will be gone and forgotten. Why then should it capture my heart now?
From the idea that “greatness” is only Havayah’s act of creation, the paragraph draws a practical meditation: worldly matters, bound by time, are passing, and seeing this gives a broken heart that no longer craves them.
The link between the letters of Havayah and the stages of contraction, expansion and drawing down is a standard Kabbalistic teaching. The meditation mirrors the level of sovev described above, for which “was, is and will be” are one: a person who sees past and future as equal to the present reflects that timeless view in his own life.
Marei mekomos
- 1לב נשבר ונדכה · Psalms 51:19
- 2איזהו חכם הרואה את הנולד · Tamid 32a:7
- 3ואת רוח הטומאה אעביר · Zechariah 13:2
- 4אתה פוררת בעזך ים · Psalms 74:13
- 5ותשליך במצולות ים · Micah 7:19
- 6פז״ר קש״ב · Rosh Hashanah 4b:13–14
- 7אין אני והוא יכולין לדור · Sotah 5a:14
- 8מארבע הרוחות באי ופחי בהרוגים · Ezekiel 37:9
- 9אם ישים אליו לבו · Job 34:14
- 10ארור הגבר · Jeremiah 17:5
- 11אל תבטחו בנדיבים · Psalms 146:3
- 12אך הכוונה הוא על אדם העליון · ביהל אור ע׳ תנ כתב שכ״ה ביר״ק ערך בטחון סעי׳ ד בשם ציוני.
- 13ועל דמות הכסא · Ezekiel 1:26
- 14כיון שפירש טליתו עלי׳ שוב אינו יכול לבגוד בה · ראה קידושין יח, רע״ב. וש״נ.
- 15עוטה אור כשלמה · Psalms 104:2
- 16וע׳ עוד מענין עוטה אור · כל המ״מ מובאים ביהל אור עה״פ ע׳ שצז.
- 17להחיות לב נדכאים · Isaiah 57:15
- 18להושיבי עם נדיבים · Psalms 113:8
- 19נדיבים אלו האבות · ראה בהנסמן להלן בהוספות להערות וציונים.
- 20להושיבי עם נדיבים אלו האבות שהן הן המרכבה · ביהל אור ע׳ תנא הקשה שלכאורה זה אינו מובן, אך מאחר שגם פי׳ מבטוח באדם היינו באדם העליון, כמו״כ י״ל בענין מבטוח בנדיבים ע״ש בארוכה.
- 21האבות שהן הן המרכבה · Bereshit Rabbah 47:6
- 22נדיבי עמים נאספו · Psalms 47:10
- 23ע״פ כרוה נדיבי העם · ראה לעיל חקת סב, ד.
- 24ובפ׳ ויקהל ע״פ כל נדיב לבו · תו״א פט, ד. וראה שם קטו, ד.
- 25ובד״ה מה יפו פעמיך · לקמן שה״ש מד, ג.
- 26שבבחי׳ אדם ונדיבים יוכל להיות נפילה · מובא בביאוה״ז להצ״צ כרך ב ע תתפד.
- 27ומלתם את ערלת לבבכם · Deuteronomy 10:16
- 28ופחי בהרוגים ויחיו · Ezekiel 37:9
- 29שו״ה כו׳ — והוא בחינת טל · כאן הוא סיום המאמר בהכת״י שבלי הגהות הצ״צ. ובשני כת״י יש כאן שורה נוספת: טל וכו׳ והוא ע״י שידע להתבונן הטיב בדבר בעצמו כי כל גוים סבבוני אז ישוב וירחמהו ממקור הרחמי׳ כמ״ש במ״א. ע״כ.
- 30לך הוי׳ הגדולה · I Chronicles 29:11
4ולכן גם עתה יהיה דומה בעיניו כאלו הוא קודם הזמן הזה ואחריו. וזהו איזהו חכם הרואה את הנולד1 שרואה בבחי׳ ראיה
Therefore now too it will seem in his eyes as if it were before this time and after it. And this is [the meaning of] “Who is wise? One who sees what will be born”: who sees, in a manner of
Since the thing did not exist before and will not exist after, the person sees it now as if it were already gone. This is the Sages’ definition of a wise man: one who “sees” the outcome.
ממש מה שנולד אח״כ שלא יהיה הדבר הרע כמ״ש ואת רוח הטומאה אעביר מן הארץ וגו׳ וגם אחרית כל דבר הוא רמה ותולעה והוה ונפסד.2
actual seeing, what will be born afterwards: that the evil thing will not exist, as it is written, “And I will remove the spirit of impurity from the land, etc.”; and also that the end of every thing is worms and maggots, transient and perishing.
He sees, as vividly as with his eyes, that evil will be removed from the world in the future, and that every physical thing ends in decay. Seeing the end robs the temptation of its hold now.
The broken-hearted meditation is the wisdom of “seeing what will be born”: the wise person sees now that evil and worldly allure will pass away.
Marei mekomos
- 1איזהו חכם הרואה את הנולד · Tamid 32a:7
- 2
Crumbling the sea, dispersing the smoke ¶5–6
5וזהו אתה פוררת בעזך ים1. פי׳ ים נק׳ כמה בחי׳ שהם מצולות ים כמ״ש ותשליך במצולות ים כל חטאתם ואתה מפרר ומפזר אותם בעזך
And this is [the meaning of] “You crumbled the sea with Your might.” That is: several levels are called “sea,” namely “the depths of the sea,” as it is written, “And You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea”; and You crumble and scatter them with Your might,
The verse “You crumbled the sea with Your might” is read as referring to sins, which are cast into “the depths of the sea.” G‑d crumbles and scatters them.
היינו ע״י בחי׳ התבוננות הנ״ל אין לו תפיסת מקום כלל להחשב בבחי׳ יש רק יפרר ע״י בחי׳ לב נשבר ונדכה וזהו סימן של שמיני עצרת פז״ר [פייס זמן רגל] קש״ב [קרבן שיר ברכה].
that is, through the above-mentioned contemplation, [the thing] has no standing at all to be reckoned as a “something” (yesh), but he will crumble it through a broken and crushed heart. And this is the mnemonic of Shemini Atzeres: PaZeR KaSheV.
Through the contemplation above, evil loses its claim to be a real “something” (yesh), and the broken heart crumbles it. The Alter Rebbe finds this in the Talmud’s mnemonic for Shemini Atzeres, PaZeR KaSheV.
פי׳ מתחלה פזר בבחי׳ פירור הנ״ל ואח״כ קשב אמריה כי כשאין לו בחי׳ פיזור ופירור הנ״ל אמרז״ל [אמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה] אין אני והוא יכולין לדור בעולם אחד.2 פי׳ כשתופס מקום בעולם.3
That is: first “scatter” (pazer), in the manner of the above-mentioned crumbling, and afterwards “hearken (kashev) to His words.” For when one lacks the above-mentioned scattering and crumbling, our Sages said, “I and he cannot dwell in one world”: that is, when he takes up place in the world.
The mnemonic is read as two words: “pazer,” scatter, and “kashev,” hearken. First one must shatter one’s sense of self; only then can one listen to G‑d’s words, since G‑d says of the arrogant person, who fills up space in the world, that He and he cannot dwell together.
The broken heart “crumbles” sin and self-importance, and this is the order hinted in the mnemonic of Shemini Atzeres: first scatter (pazer), then hearken (kashev).
In the Talmud, PaZeR KaSheV is a mnemonic for the ways Shemini Atzeres is a festival in its own right. The Alter Rebbe reads its letters as a sequence of divine service. The Kehot note points to Likkutei Sichos for a discussion of the exact wording “kashev.”
Marei mekomos
- 1
- 2אין אני והוא יכולין לדור בעולם אחד · Sotah 5a:14
- 3
6והנה כתיב וכל הרשעה כולה בעשן תכלה שבקל יוכל לדחות כמו העשן שהרוח בא ועוקרו אפי׳ [אפילו] הוא נושב
Now it is written, “And all wickedness will be entirely consumed like smoke”: that it can easily be driven away, like smoke, which the wind comes and uproots even when it blows
Evil is compared to smoke: it looks thick and real, but even a slight wind drives it away.
מעט כמ״ש מארבע הרוחות בואי ופחי בהרוגים האלה ויחיו1 מפני שבאמת אין בהם ממשות כלל רק אם ישים אליו לבו2 להתבוננות הנ״ל:
only a little, as it is written, “Come from the four winds, and breathe into these slain, that they may live”; because in truth they have no substance at all, provided only that he sets his heart to the above-mentioned contemplation.
Ezekiel’s call to the winds (the Hebrew “ruach” means both wind and spirit) shows that a breath of spirit is enough. Evil has no real substance, and it vanishes as soon as a person turns his heart to the contemplation described above.
The paragraph concludes the first theme: evil has no substance, and the contemplation of the passing nature of all worldly things drives it away easily, like wind blowing away smoke.
Marei mekomos
- 1מארבע הרוחות בואי ופחי בהרוגים האלה ויחיו · Ezekiel 37:9
- 2אם ישים אליו לבו · Job 34:14
Better to take refuge in G‑d ¶7
7וזהו טוב לחסות בה׳ מבטחח באדם טוב לחסות בה׳ מבטוח בנדיבים.1 ופי׳ בזהר שאין הכוונה על האדם הגשמי ונדיבים הגשמיים שא״כ לא היה אומר טוב לחסות בה׳ וגו׳.
And this is [the meaning of] “It is better to take refuge in G‑d than to trust in man; it is better to take refuge in G‑d than to trust in nobles.” The Zohar explains that the intent is not to the physical man and physical nobles, for if so, it would not say “It is better to take refuge in G‑d, etc.,”
Now the maamar returns to its opening verse. A problem: if “man” and “nobles” meant ordinary people, the verse would be saying that trusting them is good, only that trusting G‑d is better.
דמשמע שגם לבטוח באדם ובנדיבים טוב הוא אלא שיותר טוב לחסות בה׳ דהא כתיב ארור הגבר אשר יבטח באדם2 וכתיב אל תבטחו בנדיבים3 וגו׳.
which implies that to trust in man and in nobles is also good, only that it is better to take refuge in G‑d; yet it is written, “Cursed is the man who trusts in man,” and it is written, “Do not trust in nobles, etc.”
That cannot be, since other verses curse the one who trusts in man and forbid trusting in nobles. So “man” and “nobles” here must mean something holy.
אך הכוונה הוא על אדם העליון והוא מ״ש ועל דמות הכסא דמות כמראה אדם4 והוא בחי׳ תורה שבכתב שיש בה רמ״ח מ״ע [מצות עשה] ושס״ה ל״ת [לא תעשה] כמראה אדם שיש בו רמ״ח אברין ושס״ה גידין
Rather, the intent is to the Supernal Man. This is what is written, “And upon the likeness of the throne, a likeness like the appearance of a man”; and this is the level of the Written Torah, which has 248 positive commandments and 365 prohibitions, “like the appearance of a man,” who has 248 limbs and 365 sinews.
“Man” is the Supernal Man, the human likeness Ezekiel saw upon the Divine throne. This “Man” is the Written Torah, whose 248 positive and 365 negative commandments correspond to the 248 limbs and 365 sinews of the human body.
(וכמ״ש מזה בד״ה ויאכילך את המן בפ׳ עקב) ובודאי טוב ויפה לדבק בתורתו ית׳ אך יותר טוב מזה לחסות בה׳.
(As is explained about this in the section beginning “And He fed you the manna,” in Parshas Eikev.) And certainly it is good and fine to cleave to His Torah, may He be blessed; but better than this is to take refuge in G‑d.
Cleaving to the Torah, the Supernal Man, is certainly good. Yet the verse says that “taking refuge in G‑d” is better still.
לחסות פי׳ מלשון מחסה ומסתור והוא כמו למשל ענין מכסה החופה שבמדינותינו מקדשין תחת יריעה ובכמה מקומות פורסין טלית על החתן וכלה.
“To take refuge” (lachasos) is from the term “shelter” (machseh) and “cover.” It is like, by way of analogy, the covering of the chuppah: in our countries they betroth under a canopy, and in several places they spread a tallis over the groom and bride.
“Refuge” (chasiyah) implies being covered and sheltered. The Alter Rebbe compares it to the canopy (chuppah) of a wedding: in his lands it was a sheet held over the couple, and elsewhere a tallis was spread over them.
ואמרז״ת [ואמרו רבותינו ז״ל] כיון שפירש טליתו עליה שוב אינו יכול לבגוד בה5 כך הנה אצלו ית׳ כתיב עוטה אור כשלמה6.7
And our Sages said, “Once he has spread his tallis over her, he can no longer betray her.” So too, of Him, may He be blessed, it is written, “He wraps Himself in light as in a garment.”
The Sages taught that once a man has spread his tallis over his bride he may not betray her, because the covering creates a permanent bond. G‑d too “wraps Himself in light as a garment,” and spreads it over His people.
ופורש טליתו מעטה לבושו מבחי׳ סוכ״ע להחיות לב נדכאים8 (ועמ״ש באגה״ק [באגרת הקודש] על פסוק זה דעוטה אור ועמ״ש בביאור ע״פ
And He spreads His tallis, the wrap of His garment, from the level of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), “to revive the heart of the crushed.” (And see what is written in Iggeres HaKodesh on this verse, “He wraps Himself in light”; and see what is written in the explanation on the verse
This covering comes from sovev, the encompassing light, and its purpose is to revive the broken heart. The parenthesis that follows begins a list of places where the verse “He wraps Himself in light” is discussed.
כי ביום הזה יכפר בענין לבושיה כתלג חיור דקאי על התורה שהיא בחי׳ חשמל העליון מלמעלה מאצילות כו׳. וע׳ עוד מענין עוטה אור בשמות רבה) (פט״ו [פרק ט״ו / פרשה ט״ו] ור״פ י״ז) תרומה (פל״ג).
“For on this day He shall atone,” regarding “His garment is white as snow,” which refers to the Torah, which is the level of the supernal Chashmal, above Atzilus, etc. And see further on the theme of “He wraps Himself in light” in Shemos Rabbah) (chapter 15 and the beginning of chapter 17), Terumah (chapter 33),
In another maamar, G‑d’s garment “white as snow” (a phrase from Daniel’s vision) is the Torah, rooted in the “supernal Chashmal,” a level higher than Atzilus. The list of Midrash references begins with Shemos Rabbah.
ויקהל (פ״נ [פרק נ׳ / פרשה נ׳]) אמור (פל״א) ובזח״ג [ובזהר חלק ג] (דרמ״ה ב׳ נ״ט ב׳. ח״א [חלק א׳] ל״א סע״ב [סוף עמוד ב]. צ׳ ע״א. קמ״ב ב׳. ח״ב [חלק ב׳] ט״ל ב׳ צ״ח סע״א [סוף עמוד א] קס״ד ב׳ ר״ט א׳).
Vayakhel (chapter 50), Emor (chapter 31); and in Zohar, volume III (245b, 59b; volume I, 31b at the end, 90a, 142b; volume II, 39b, 98a at the end, 164b, 209a).
The list continues with further chapters of the Midrash and with many passages of the Zohar that discuss G‑d’s garment of light.
ובספר עמ״ה [עמק המלך] שער עולם הבריאה פ״ג [פרק ג׳] פי׳ עוטה אור כשלמה עולם המלבוש כו׳ והיינו אותיות התורה שהם בחי׳ לבושו ית׳.
And in the book Emek HaMelech, Gate of the World of Beriah, chapter 3, he explains “He wraps Himself in light as in a garment” as the World of the Garment, etc.; that is, the letters of the Torah, which are the level of His garment, may He be blessed.
The Kabbalistic work Emek HaMelech calls this garment “the World of the Garment,” which the Alter Rebbe identifies with the letters of the Torah: the Torah is how G‑d “clothes” Himself so as to be revealed.
ועמש״ל [ועיין מה שכתוב לעיל] סד״ה ביום השמע״צ [השמיני עצרת] ובביאור ע״פ את שבתותי תשמרו וענין הנדיבים הוא מ״ש להושיבי עם נדיבים9 שכל ניצוצות נשמות ישראל מתעלים בי״ט.
And see what is written above, at the end of the section beginning “On the day of Shemini Atzeres,” and in the explanation on the verse “You shall keep My Shabbosos.” And the matter of “nobles” is what is written, “to seat me with nobles”: for all the sparks of the souls of Israel are elevated on Yom Tov.
After more cross-references, the Alter Rebbe explains the “nobles.” On Yom Tov the souls of Israel rise, and the verse “to seat me with nobles” describes that elevation.
“To seat me with nobles”: these are the Patriarchs, who are themselves the Chariot, as it is written, “The nobles of the peoples are gathered, the people of the G‑d of Abraham.”
The “nobles” are the Patriarchs, of whom the Midrash says “they are the Chariot”: they were wholly given over to G‑d’s will, as a chariot is to its rider. The verse from Psalms links “nobles” to “the G‑d of Abraham.”
(ועמ״ש ע״פ כרוה נדיבי העם ובפ׳ ויקהל ע״פ כל נדיב לבו. ובד״ה מה יפו פעמיך בענין בת נדיב) ואעפ״כ [ואף על פי כן] טוב יותר לחסות בה׳ כי
(And see what is written on the verse “which the nobles of the people dug,” and in Parshas Vayakhel on the verse “everyone whose heart is generous (nediv),” and in the section beginning “How beautiful are your steps,” regarding “O daughter of the noble.”) And nonetheless it is better to take refuge in G‑d, for
After pointing to three other maamarim on the word “noble,” the Alter Rebbe returns to the verse: even so, taking refuge in G‑d is better than the “nobles.”
הנה אמר דוד כל גוים סבבוני14 פי׳ שבבחי׳ אדם ונדיבים יוכל להיות בחי׳ נפילה להיות כל גוים סבבוני כו׳
behold, David said, “All nations surrounded me”: that is, in the level of “man” and “nobles” there can be a level of falling, so that “all nations surrounded me, etc.”
The reason is found in the next verse of the same psalm: “All nations surrounded me.” Even at the holy levels of “man” (Torah) and “nobles” (the Patriarchs) a person can fall, and the forces opposed to holiness can close in on him.
אבל בשם ה׳ שהוא בחי׳ סוכ״ע כי אמילם אכרות ואמול ערת הלב כמ״ש ומלתם את ערלת לבבכם15 וכמ״ש מחיה מתים כו׳
But “in the Name of G‑d,” which is the level of the light that encompasses all worlds, “I will cut them off” (amilam): I will cut off and circumcise the foreskin of the heart, as it is written, “And you shall circumcise the foreskin of your heart,” and as it is written, “He revives the dead, etc.,”
“In the Name of G‑d,” the encompassing light beyond these levels, one can “cut them off.” The Hebrew amilam is read as “I will circumcise them,” removing the heart’s coarse covering.
כמ״ש ופחי בהרוגים ויחו16 והוא בחינת טל (ועיין בויקרא רבה אמור פ״ל ועמ״ש מזה בד״ה ויאכילך את המן שע״ז נאמר אשר לא ידעון אבותיך17 כו׳ והוא למעלה מבחינת אדם העליון.
as it is written, “and breathe into the slain, that they may live”; and this is the level of dew. (And see Vayikra Rabbah, Emor, chapter 30; and see what is written about this in the section beginning “And He fed you the manna”: that of this it is said, “which your fathers did not know, etc.,” and it is above the level of the Supernal Man.
This level revives even the spiritually “dead,” like dew, which in Jewish tradition is the image of resurrection. A long parenthesis now opens: the manna, unknown to the Patriarchs, also comes from a level above the Supernal Man.
וענין לחסות בהוי׳ י״ל [יש לומר] שזהו ענין פסוק ראשון דק״ש [דקריאת שמע] שמע ישראל18 הוי׳ אלקינו למסור נפשו באחד. שזהו למעלה מבחי׳ התורה. כמ״ש בד״ה מה יפו פעמיךהנ״ל ו בביאור ע״פ אחת היא יונתי.
And the matter of taking refuge in Havayah, it may be said, is the theme of the first verse of the Shema, “Hear, O Israel, Havayah is our G‑d…”: to give over one’s soul at [the word] “One,” which is above the level of the Torah, as is explained in the section beginning “How beautiful are your steps,” mentioned above, and in the explanation on the verse “My dove is but one,”
“Taking refuge in Havayah” is identified with the first verse of the Shema, where a Jew is ready to give up his life at the word “One.” That self-offering reaches higher than the Torah itself.
ובביאור ע״פ ונקדשתי בתוך בנ״י [בני ישראל] וסד״ה כי קרוב אליך הדבר מאד ועי״ז נקראו נש״י [נשמות ישראל] ראשית תבואתה19 שהם הממשיכים גילוי אור א״ס בחכמה עילאה שהיא התורה שהיא בחי׳ לבושיה.
and in the explanation on the verse “And I shall be sanctified among the children of Israel,” and at the end of the section beginning “For the matter is very near to you.” And through this the souls of Israel are called “the first of His harvest,” for they are the ones who draw down the revelation of the Infinite Light into the Supernal Chochmah, which is the Torah, which is the level of His garment.
By this self-sacrifice the Jewish souls are called “the first of His harvest”: they are prior even to the Torah, and they draw the Infinite Light into Chochmah, the Torah, which is G‑d’s “garment.”
וכמ״ש סד״ה ועשית בגדי קדש. ולעיל סד״ה ביום השמיני עצרת. בפי׳ שמחת תורה שהתורה שהיא בחי׳ אור כשלמה היא בשמחה ע״י שאור א״ס ב״ה נמשך ומלובש בה ע״ש.
And as is explained at the end of the section beginning “And you shall make holy garments,” and above, at the end of the section beginning “On the eighth day, an atzeres,” on the meaning of Simchas Torah: that the Torah, which is the level of “light as a garment,” is in joy because the Infinite Light, blessed be He, is drawn down and clothed in it; see there.
This is linked to Simchas Torah: the Torah, the “garment of light,” rejoices when the Infinite Light is drawn into it, and it is the Jewish people who draw it in.
ועמ״ש בפ׳ יתרו בד״ה זכור ושמור בדבור אחד. שהענין שנש״י [שנשמות ישראל] ממשיכים ע״י מס״נ [מסירות נפש] בק״ש [בקריאת שמע] שיהיה גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה שלמעלה מבחי׳ אדם שעז״נ [שעל זה נאמר]
And see what is written in Parshas Yisro, in the section beginning “‘Remember’ and ‘Keep’ in a single utterance”: the matter is that the souls of Israel, through self-sacrifice (mesirus nefesh) in the Shema, draw down a revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, which is above the level of “man,” of which it is said,
Through self-sacrifice in the Shema the Jew draws down a light higher than “man,” higher than the Torah in its measured form. Scripture says of this level, “He is not a man.”
כי לא אדם הוא20 נמשך ומתלבש בעסק תורתם ועבודתם בקיום המצות שבבחינת אדם וזהו ענין על שלא ברכו בתורה21 כו׳ ועמ״ש בד״ה וכל בניך ובד״ה השמים כסאי בפי׳ לעשות ולקיים):
“for He is not a man”; it is drawn down and clothed in their occupation with Torah and in their service in fulfilling the mitzvos, which are in the level of “man.” And this is the matter of “because they did not recite the blessing over the Torah, etc.” And see what is written in the section beginning “And all your children,” and in the section beginning “The heavens are My throne,” on the meaning of “to do and to fulfill.”)
That higher light is then clothed in their Torah study and mitzvos, which belong to the level of “man.” This explains the Talmud’s saying that the Land was lost “because they did not bless over the Torah first”: they studied without first connecting to the Giver, who is above the Torah.
The paragraph explains the opening verse: “man” is the Torah (the Supernal Man) and “nobles” are the Patriarchs, both holy; yet “taking refuge in G‑d,” the encompassing light reached through self-sacrifice in the Shema, is higher still, for it can overcome any fall and revive the heart.
The Kehot note records that the reading of “man” as the Supernal Man is found in Yalkut Reuveni, quoting the Tziyoni. The chuppah image connects back to paragraph 1: the mitzvos are the betrothal, and the chuppah, the encompassing light, is the covering that makes the bond permanent. A note in paragraph 3 records that one manuscript ends the maamar at “this is the level of dew,” so the long parenthesis may be a later gloss.
Marei mekomos
- 1טוב לחסות בה׳ מבטחח באדם טוב לחסות בה׳ מבטוח בנדיבים · Psalms 118:8–9
- 2ארור הגבר אשר יבטח באדם · Jeremiah 17:5
- 3אל תבטחו בנדיבים · Psalms 146:3
- 4ועל דמות הכסא דמות כמראה אדם · Ezekiel 1:26
- 5כיון שפירש טליתו עליה שוב אינו יכול לבגוד בה · Kiddushin 18b:4
- 6
- 7עוטה אור כשלמה · Psalms 104:2
- 8להחיות לב נדכאים · Isaiah 57:15
- 9להושיבי עם נדיבים · Psalms 113:8
- 10האבות שהן הן המרכבה · Bereshit Rabbah 47:6
- 11האבות שהן הן המרכבה · Bereshit Rabbah 82:6
- 12האבות שהן הן המרכבה · Zohar, Pinchas 123:842–856
- 13נדיבי עמים נאספו עם אלקי אברהם · Psalms 47:10
- 14כל גוים סבבוני · Psalms 118:10
- 15ומלתם את ערלת לבבכם · Deuteronomy 10:16
- 16ופחי בהרוגים ויחו · Ezekiel 37:9
- 17אשר לא ידעון אבותיך · Deuteronomy 8:16
- 18שמע ישראל הוי׳ אלקינו · Deuteronomy 6:4
- 19ראשית תבואתה · Jeremiah 2:3
- 20כי לא אדם הוא · I Samuel 15:29
- 21על שלא ברכו בתורה · Nedarim 81a
Finished the maamar?
Mark it as learned; it counts toward the week and the year’s siyum.
In one’s avodah
A person should first sanctify himself through the mitzvos, with the intention of being separated from cravings and bad traits; then he can retain his Torah study, by reviewing it and holding it in memory, and his prayer, by binding his mind and heart to G‑d alone. He should contemplate that whatever is bound by time did not concern him a few years ago and will be gone a few years from now, until his heart is broken and he no longer craves it: first “scatter,” then “hearken.” And he should give over his soul at “One” in the Shema, drawing a light higher than the Torah into his Torah study and his mitzvos.
Questions for discussion
- Why must “Sanctify us with Your mitzvos” come before “grant us our share in Your Torah,” and what does it mean to “retain” Torah and prayer?
- How does the analogy of betrothal with a perutah explain the purpose of the mitzvos and the intention they require?
- In what sense does the word “greatness” not apply to G‑d Himself, and how does contemplating this lead to a broken heart?
- What is PaZeR KaSheV, and why must “scattering” come before “hearkening”?
- If cleaving to the Torah (“man”) and to the Patriarchs (“nobles”) is good, why is it still “better to take refuge in G‑d”?
Key terms in this maamar
- Chochmah (wisdom)חכמה
- The first flash of insight. ×2
- Daas (knowledge)דעת
- Deep connection to an idea, bridging intellect and emotion. ×2
- Life-forceחיות
- The divine vitality that sustains every creation. ×3
- The light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin)סובב כל עלמין
- Divine light too great to enter the worlds; it 'surrounds' them and affects them from beyond.
- The Holy One, blessed be Heקב״ה
- The Name Havayahהוי׳
- The Tetragrammaton: G‑d as transcending time and bringing all into being.
- Tzimtzum (contraction)צמצום
- The self-concealment of the Infinite Light that makes room for finite worlds. ×2
- The World of Atzilus (Emanation)אצילות
- The highest world, still one with G‑d. ×1
- The World of Beriah (Creation)בריאה
- The first world of separate existence. ×1
- The Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof)אור אין סוף
- G‑d's light as it is, beyond all limits, before any contraction.
- Self-sacrifice (mesirus nefesh)מסירות נפש
- Giving oneself over entirely to G‑d.
- The emotive attributes (middos)מדות
- Love, awe, compassion and the rest. ×1