The purpose of all the songs in the Bible is to express
thanks to the Almighty, with great joy. Of all the songs,
the one that seems different is the Song of Ha’azinu. Its
literal meaning seems to be a rebuke of Jewish people
and a warning lest they deviate from God’s path. In a
certain sense, this is fitting, since the song of Ha’azinu
appears at the end of the Book of Deuteronomy whose
central theme is Moshe Rabbeinu’s reproach to the
people on the eve of their entering the Land of Israel.
However, the Chassidic approach is that it is
specifically those things that seem negative that contain
the greatest light. We should therefore read the Song of
Ha’azinu while keeping in mind that actually contains
infinite Divine pleasure, which brings to a climax the
depth of love that is hidden in open reproach. Indeed, in
Hebrew, the letters of “rebuke” ( תֹּוכֵחָה ) equal the value
of the words “out of love” ( תֹּוךְ אַהֲבָה ), or “love inside.”
Indeed, we see that immediately after this climactic end
to his reproach, Moshe Rabbeinu ends the Torah with a
parshah-long blessing, parshat Vezot Habrachah. Thus, in its
inner essence of rebuke and criticism is blessing (as
taught by the Ba’al Shem Tov, the Magid of Mezritch,
and the Alter Rebbe). Particularly, the blessing hidden
within open rebuke comes from the highest level and can
only descend incognito, concealed within harsh words.
Since the general them of Deuteronomy is reproach, it is
incumbent upon us to now reveal how it actually alludes
to the highest levels of Divine service and blessing that
we can merit receiving. Let us proceed to list the 11
stages of service that correspond to Deuteronomy’s 11
parshah’s with which we can merit bringing the out the
highest light from the apparent darkness.
The first parshah, Devarim, alludes to the word for
“leader.” Since it is in the plural it refers to both Moshe
Rabbeinu and Joshua, who overlapped to some extent in
their leadership. In parshat Devarim, these two leaders
unite,1 just as the all-inclusive soul of the leader of the
generation and the spark of Divinity within the soul of
every individual unite to become one. Every Jew contains
a spark of Moshe Rabbeinu, the all-inclusive leader, and
the way to reveal this spark is to identify and connect
with the Moshe Rabbeinu, the leader of the generation.
Thus the first stage of Divine service that reveals the
infinite pleasure hidden within the rebuke (in our times:
the state of exile we are still in) is nourishing our soulful
connection with the Moshe Rabbeinu of our generation,
the individual in whose words the Divine Presence is
heard.
The second stage is alluded to in the name of the
second parshah, Va’etchanan, meaning “I begged.” It is not
enough to merely identify the Moshe Rabbeinu of our
generation and create a bond with him. We must also
identify and empathize with the heavenly decree the
leader faces; in Moshe Rabbeinu’s case this was the
decision that he would not enter the Land of Israel. We
must then cry out from our innermost depths, his own
existential cry of “How long…?!” How long will the exile
last until we merit the true and complete redemption?
The essential characteristic representing the
identification of a true disciple of the Moshe Rabbeinu of
the generation is his ability to not only identify, but to
actually experience the leader’s existential distress.
We then proceed to parashat “Eikev,” which alludes to
Ikveta Demeshicha, a difficult time period where we know
the Mashiach is already present because we see his
figurative heels, but we cannot experience his complete
presence. In its first few words, parshat Eikev advises us
that, “Because you shall listen…” ( וְהָיָה עֵקֶב תִּשְׁמְעוּן ). By
listening and understanding that the Mashiach is already
here (even though his presence cannot be seen) we are
prompted to improve our conduct, altering the way we
approach even the lightest commandments of the Torah
and preparing us for the next stage: seeing!
The name of the next parshah, Re’eh, means “See!” The
next word in the parshah is Anochi, the form of “I” with
which the Almighty refers to himself in the Ten
Commandments. The true leader of the generation
reveals the aspect of Moshe-Mashiach described as the
“Infinite within the finite.” The stage of our service
described in parshat Re’eh is to actually see the Mashiach.
These first four steps allow those who have engaged in
seeking, identifying, and connecting with the Moshe
Rabbeinu of the generation to direct their efforts
externally and rectify the world, transforming reality
into a dwelling place for the Almighty, where God can be
revealed openly.
Transforming reality begins with the three communal
commandments that we the Jewish people were
commanded with upon entering the Land of Israel:
Appointing a king, annihilating Amalek, and building
the Holy Temple. These three commandments
correspond to the next three parashot in the Book of
Deuteronomy: Shoftim, Ki Teitzei, and Ki Tavo. Shoftim opens
with the commandment to appoint the religious judicial
court and continues with the commandment to appoint
a king. Ki Teitzei opens with a description of laws related
to making war and concludes with the war against
Mazal tov to Rabbi Chaim Moshe and Leah Jacobson on the upcoming upshernish of Yosef
Yitzchak David. May they merit speedily returning to our holy land.
Mazal tov to the parents of the new chayal betzivot Hashem, Yitzchak Feivish Eidelsohn, may
they merit to raise him to be a chayal, yereh shamayim, and lamdan, all in good health
Amalek. Ki Tavo opens with the commandment to bring
the first fruits to the Holy Temple.
Freed from the burden of war as described in Ki Teitzei
and Ki Tavo, we proceed to the final goal of the
communal commandments, the unity of the Jewish
people, described in the opening verses of parshat
Nitzavim. Complete Jewish unity is possible when all
Jews (from the greatest to the smallest) recognize their
common spiritual root as manifest in the soul of Moshe
Rabbeinu and the Mashiach.
From parshat Nitzavim we continue to Vayelech, wherein
Moshe Rabbeinu elevates higher and higher in order to
bring about the revelation of the 50th Gate – the
revelation of the Divine essence. Revealing the 50th Gate
came as an answer to his supplication from 38 years
prior, “Show me Your glory.”2
This week’s parshah, Ha’azinu, reveals the hidden
pleasure inherent in every event that occurred and will
occur in the history of our nation until the coming of the
Mashiach (revealing the 50th Gate), the resurrection of
the dead and life in the World to Come.3 It is then that
we will able to wholeheartedly identify with the words
spoken by Isaiah, “I thank you God for Your reproach…
You have comforted me.”4 The great tzadikim deeply
endeared parshat Ha’azinu because through its reading, we
merit being shown how the rebuke and the blessing
come together as one, as above.
Finally, we come to the termination of the Book of
Deuteronomy in parshat Vezot Habrachah where we read of,
“…The blessing that Moshe, the man of G-d, bestowed
upon the Children of Israel before his death.” When
Moshe Rabbeinu is fully revealed, “…before the eyes of all
Israel,”5 then end of the Torah reconnects with its start,
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the
earth”6 revealing to us all, “…the new heavens and the
new earth”7 that were always before God.
(Based upon the Daily Dvar Torah for Ha’azinu, 5768)
Notes:
1. The possibility of Moshe Rabbeinu and Joshua uniting in a single generation is one of the most important signs of
the coming redemption, as explained by the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
2. Exodus 33:18.
3. As alluded to in the seventh verse of the parshah.
4. Isaiah 12:1.
5. Deuteronomy 34:12.
6. Genesis 1:1.
7. Isaiah 66:22.
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου