The Book of Genesis states that on the
sixth day of creation, God formed Adam’s body from the dust of the Earth, and
then breathed into that inert form the spirit of life (Genesis 2:7). This
implies that everything has an outer form and an inner spirit. The out form of
Judaism is the legal system of the Torah; its inner spirit is a way of
transformation, intimately bound up with the Torah's mandates, but leading to a
spiritual goal. This goal is da'at, the universal knowledge of God that
will spread to all creatures in time to come. It is the Jewish equivalent of
"enlightenment." The essays presented here reflect the teachings of
Chasidic master Rebbe Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810), who discussed this theme
at length in his mystical lessons and stories. A short biography of Rebbe
Nachman is presented as an appendix at the end of the book.
This work discusses five of Rebbe Nachman's
teachings. "Letting in the Light," taken from his magnum opus, Likutey
Moharan ("Collected Teachings of Our Master, Rebbe Nachman"), is
a general introduction to his ideas about spiritual transformation. The next
three teachings, which are to one degree or another connected to Chanukah, the
"Festival of Light," develop various facets of this theme. "The
Wheel of Transformation," taken from Sichot HaRan ("Talks of
Rebbe Nachman"), presents the Redemption of Israel as an inner paradigm.
"The Mysterious Guest," a story from another collection of diverse
material, Chayei Moharan ("The Life of Our Master, Rebbe
Nachman"), addresses the relationship between master and disciple.
"The Chandelier of Imperfections," a cryptic parable published
together with Sippurei Ma'asiyot, Rebbe Nachman's thirteen mystical
stories, addresses the theme of enlightenment and the tzaddik emet, the
"true righteous man" who has attained the highest wisdom. The final
teaching, “To Be Just Like Me,” discusses Rebbe Nachman’s epic tale, “The Seven
Beggars” and the nature of the gifts these mysterious figures confer upon the
unnamed newlyweds. This teaching represents the culmination of our
presentation, which is why we have made it the book's title.
These essays also includes numerous
insights from Rebbe Nachman's foremost disciple, Rabbi Nathan Sternhartz
(1780-1844), better known in Breslov circles as “Reb Noson,” who edited and
published all of his master's works, and penned numerous volumes of his own. A
Torah scholar of towering stature, creative thinker, inspiring teacher,
advisor, and spiritual guide, as well as an innovative system-builder, Reb
Noson uniquely possessed the qualities that would ensure that Rebbe Nachman's
flame would always continue to burn brightly.
I hope that this small volume gives the
reader at least a taste of what Rebbe Nachman taught. With the exception of the
last chapter, it is made up of written versions of classes I gave for the Breslov Center Brooklyn , NY
Dovid Sears
Lag BaOmer 5769 / 2009
1.
Letting in the Light
Likutey Moharan I, 172
Introduction
It is told that when the notoriously
acerbic Chasidic master Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk (1789-1859) was a little
boy, his schoolteacher once jestingly remarked, "I'll give you a penny (or
whatever a small coin was called in Poland
"I'll
give you two," the child shot back, "if you can tell me where He
isn't!"
God is absolutely transcendent - infinite, omnipotent, above all change, all limitations; an absolute unity and not a compound. Yet at the same time, He is right here with us, for "His Glory fills the world."[1] God is also immanent.
In Likutey Moharan II, 7 ("For
a Compassionate One Shall Lead Them"), Rebbe Nachman relates these two
ways of thinking about God to a passage from the Sabbath and Festival prayer
service.[2]
The congregation quotes the words of the Ministering Angels, who ask:
"Where is the place of His Glory (i.e., God's Revelation)?" - which is a rhetorical question meaning
that God is unknowable. Yet in the next breath, the worshippers declare
"His glory fills the earth!" How these two perceptions fit together
is a paradox that the rational mind cannot grasp; but in truth, they are two
sides of the same coin. God's essential nature is a total mystery; the
kabbalists call Him "E-l Mistater . . . God Who Conceals
Himself."[3]
Nevertheless, solve this riddle we must - for the very
purpose of creation is, in the Zohar's phrase "b'gin de-ishtimodin
lei . . . in order to know Him."[4]
Certainly this cannot mean intellectual knowledge, for it is utterly above our
heads. It is mystical knowledge.
Another story is told of Rabbi Barukh of Medzhibuzh (1757-1810). Once his grandson and a few friends were playing a game of hide and seek. After awhile the little boy came out of his hiding place, and realized that his companions had run away without even bothering to look for him. Crying, he ran to his grandfather and complained about his uncaring friends. Rabbi Barukh's eyes, too, filled with tears. "God says the same thing,” he explained. “He hides -- but no one bothers to seek Him!”
The first thing we must realize is that encountering God's hiddenness is not the end of the story, but only marks the beginning of our quest - even if we must begin anew again and again, even if we must do so seemingly ad infinitum.
The Chasidic Way
The Baal Shem Tov paved a unique path for seekers of God, a way not only to understand something of God conceptually, but also to experience Divinity.[5] To understand Rebbe Nachman's teachings, we must have at least an inkling of the approach of his illustrious great-grandfather, which he imbibed in his very mother's milk.
The Baal Shem Tov wanted us to realize that the world and the self are no more than a mask for Godliness. Thus, he taught:
"Shem'a Yisrael . . . Hear, O
Israel, the Lord, our God, the Lord is One" (Deuteronomy 6:6). When you
recite the word "One," you should contemplate that the Holy One,
blessed be He, is all that truly exists. A person must realize that he is
nothing - for the essence of a human being is the
soul, and the soul is but a "portion of God Above." Therefore,
nothing truly exists except the Holy One, blessed be He.[6]
This particularly applies to those times
when God seems to be completely hidden from us:
It is written, "And I will surely hide
(haster astir) My face" (Deuteronomy 31:18). As soon as you realize
that the Holy One, blessed be He, is hidden, there is no longer any
concealment, and all negativity disappears. Thus, the verse uses a double
expression of concealment - haster astir. There are times when
God will also hide the knowledge that He is present in the midst of His
hiddenness.[7]
That is, God is only concealed when we let
the world fool us. In truth, “no place is empty of Him.”[8]
God is right here, because there is nowhere else for the universe to exist but
within God! Anything less than this would contradict the basic belief that God
is infinite and absolutely one. The Baal Shem Tov also insists that perception
of God's omnipresence is not only attainable through "peak
experiences," but can illuminate our most ordinary activities:
When you realize that the Master of the
Universe is actually present in your every word and gesture, however great or
small, all confusions disperse that eclipse the light of the Essential Mind.[9]
This is the solution to the problem of
suffering, which is only possible when a person becomes alienated from God. As
the Baal Shem Tov states:
It is written, "I, I am the One Who
consoles you" (Isaiah 51:12) [repeating the word "I"]. When you
realize that the true "I" is God, and nothing exists aside from Him - then [the divine assurance is fulfilled
that] "I am the One Who consoles you."[10]
Thus, the Baal Shem Tov promulgated an
encompassing path illuminated by and directed toward this perception of God's
Oneness. The only catch was how to open our eyes so that we, too, might share
it. As we shall see in the following teaching, this was Rebbe Nachman's
concern, no less than that of his holy great-grandfather.
Letting in the Light
Likutey Moharan I, 172
In this brief lesson, Rebbe Nachman further
develops what scholars of religion term the Baal Shem Tov's panentheism - the belief that G-d is present within all
things, despite His ultimate transcendence. And he zeros in on our most
practical concern, namely how one can penetrate the illusion of the world and
glimpse the Divine Essence within all things. Rebbe Nachman explains:
Whatever one lacks - whether concerning children, livelihood,
or health - everything is from the side of the person
himself. For the light of God flows upon one continuously; however, through
evil deeds, each person makes a shadow for himself, so that the divine light
does not reach him.[11]
According to one's actions, a shadow is cast which obstructs the light of God.
The deficiency is commensurate with the deed that created the shadow.
Now, a shadow is produced by a physical
thing that stands before a spiritual thing (i.e. something of a more subtle
nature) - just as a physical stick or stone placed
opposite the light of the moon or sun will cast a shadow. Likewise, a solar or
lunar eclipse is due to the shadow of the earth.[12]
Moreover, the sun itself is physical in relation to that which is above it, and
casts a shadow against it.[13]
Therefore, according to one's materialistic
attachments and actions, one creates a shadow within him that prevents God's
light and bounty from reaching him. However, if a person nullifies himself and
no longer exists in this [illusory] world at all, he no longer casts a shadow,
and receives the light of God, may He be blessed.
The essence of the divine light is glory;
for "all that the Holy One, blessed be He, created, He created for His
glory, as it is written: 'For My glory I created it…' (Isaiah 43:7)."[14]
This is the meaning of "The entire
world is full (mi-lo kol ha'aretz) of His glory" (ibid. 6:3). That
is, if one is "not of the world altogether [mi-lo kol ha'aretz, a
play on words]" and has no part in this world at all - then he receives the light of God, which
is the divine glory.
This, too, is the meaning of "The wise
will inherit glory" (Proverbs 3:35 ),
for "wisdom comes forth from nothingness" (Job 28:12).[15]
Therefore, the wise, who are "nothing," are granted a perception of
glory. Having overcome all materialism, they do not create an obstructing
shadow.
The concluding paragraph of this lesson introduces the
idea that mystical perception also depends on one's emotional state:
When God, may He be blessed, displays a
joyous face (panim), this brings life and good to the world; and the
opposite is also true, God forbid. Similarly, when the tzaddik displays
a joyous face, it is good - and vice-versa.[16]
This is the meaning of the verse "See, today I have placed before you [lifneykhem,
which is etymologically related to the word panim, meaning 'face'] life
and good, as well as death…" (Deuteronomy 11:26) - that is, lifneykhem, according to
your face.
At a glance, this may seem to have a
somewhat tenuous connection to the previous theme. The lynch pin is Rebbe
Nachman's reference at the beginning of his teaching to both a solar and lunar
eclipse and the cosmic hierarchy (a subject to which we will return in
"The Chandelier of Imperfections"). Let’s take a closer look at his
words: “Likewise, a solar or lunar eclipse is due to the shadow of the earth.
Moreover, the sun itself is physical in relation to that which is above it, and
casts a shadow against it.” In kabbalistic terms, the sun and moon correspond
to mashpi'a, the "giver" or source of influence, and mekabel,
the receiver. On the one hand, the tzaddik is like the moon, being a
receiver in relation to God. On the other, he is like the sun, being a giver in
relation to the world, particularly to those on lower spiritual levels. Only a
perfect tzaddik can attain total bittul - absolute nullification of ego that
eliminates every trace of the shadow. Thus, in order to fulfill our potential,
we who occupy lower levels must receive illumination from the tzaddikim.[17]
With his last remarks, Rebbe Nachman lets us know that this illumination is conditioned by our approach, the "face" we display. God's "face," or manner of revelation, depends on our "face," meaning our spiritual state.[18] If we wallow in coarse materialism, we block the light. If we detach ourselves from worldly vanities and let go of our all-consuming self-interest, we immediately become receptors for Godliness - and, by implication, the light of the tzaddik, who transmits the divine light to us, just as the sun illuminates the moon.[19]
Hitbodedut: The Divine Conversation
Elsewhere, Reb Noson adds that he heard a slightly different version of this teaching from another disciple of Rebbe Nachman. This version is even more lucid:
You must nullify each of your negative
traits until you have annihilated the ego completely, as if it were utterly
non-existent.
Begin with one negative trait and nullify
it completely, until not a trace remains. Then work on your other negative
traits, one at a time, until they no longer exist. As you nullify the ego,
God's glory will begin to shine through and be revealed. God's glory is like
light, as the verse states, "And the earth is illuminated with His
glory" (Ezekiel 43:2).
After reiterating the analogy of the
physical object placed before the sunlight that casts a shadow, this second
version of the teaching concludes:
Thus, it is written, "The entire world
is full (mi-lo kol ha'aretz) of His glory" (Isaiah 6:3). When there
is nothing to cast a shadow and thereby obstruct the light, His glory is
revealed through all the earth.[20]
This corresponds to the path of hitbodedut
Rebbe Nachman delineates in Likutey Moharan I, 52 ("Ha-Ne'or
ba-Laylah / One Who Remains Awake At Night"). Through hitbodedut
- going out alone at night to a secluded
place where people do not commonly go even by day, and speaking to God in one's
own words - one may systematically nullify all
negative personality traits until one attains bittul, total
self-effacement. Rebbe Nachman's descriptions of this process in both lessons
are almost identical. By removing these negative traits, we remove the shadow,
allowing the light of God, who is the “Imperative Existent,” to shine forth.
(We should add that bittul is not to be confused with low self-esteem or
self-hatred, traits that are merely the "flip side" of
self-importance. We are supposed to hate our evil traits, but not become
morbidly obsessed with ourselves in so doing. Rather, bittul denotes
transcendence of the ego - seeing through the illusion of the self as
something that exists apart from God.) Thus, it seems that the most basic way
to put this teaching into practice is through hitbodedut.
The Art of Giving
Reb Noson uncovers still another dimension of this lesson's meaning by relating the negation of the shadow to tzedakah, giving charity, and by implication, performing all the commandments.[21]
The charity one gives to a needy person is
a most lofty thing; as our sages taught, it is comparable to fulfilling the
entire Torah.[22]
For through tzedakah, one removes the "shadow" and reveals
God's glory. All deficiencies are the result of the shadow, which blocks the
light. However, giving charity eradicates poverty and deficiency. Through this,
one removes the shadow that disrupts the light of God's beneficence.
Thus, the verse states in reference to
tzedakah, "With righteousness (tzedek), I shall behold Your
face" (Psalms 17:15 ).
When the shadow departs, the "light of God's face," so to speak, is
revealed. This is the aspect of "The entire earth is full of His
glory" (op cit.). This, too, is the meaning of the verse, "But unto
you who fear My Name, a sun of righteousness (tzedakah) shall
shine" (Malachi 3:20 )
- for when the shadow departs, the light of
the sun shines brightly. All this is accomplished by tzedakah.
Therefore, tzedakah effects
atonement for sin, as it states, "Redeem your sin through tzedakah…"
(Daniel 4:24). Sin creates a dividing barrier, a shadow that interferes with
divine illumination, occluding the revelation of God's face according to the
severity of the transgression. All harmful effects of sin are the result of
this obstruction of the light. However, tzedakah draws down heavenly
beneficence, directing it to the place of impoverishment and deficiency and
removing the shadow. Thus, by undoing the effects of sin, tzedakah effects
atonement.
This is why giving tzedakah is
equivalent to fulfilling the entire Torah. The encompassing purpose of the
Torah is to reveal God's glory, as it is written, "For My glory I created
it…" (Isaiah 43:7); in the holy Zohar's phrase, [the purpose of
creation is] "b'gin de-ishtimodin lei . . . that they should know
Him."[23]
Through the performance of all the commandments, the barrier, which is the
shadow, disappears, allowing the light of God's glory to shine through; and
this is especially true of tzedakah.[24]
The act of giving nullifies the root of all
negative traits: ego. It represents the shift from the illusion of the self as
“something special” – that is, an autonomous entity, seeking its own
gratification -- to the perception of true reality: the interconnectedness of
creation. And it expresses the ethic of striving to benefit all creatures that
goes hand in hand with this perception. In the words of Rabbi Moshe Cordovero
(1522-1570):
Divine wisdom gives life to all things. As
it is written, 'Wisdom gives life to those who possess it' (Ecclesiastes 7:12 ). Likewise, one should teach
the ways of life to the entire world, obtaining for them life in this world and
the World to Come, and providing them with the means to live. This is the rule:
one must be flowing with life toward all beings.[25]
The Commandments
The mitzvot, or commandments, too, express this paradigm of giving. The kabbalists compare the mitzvot to "620 pillars of light."[26] Each mitzvah is a channel for the divine light, bringing about an accord between God, Whose will it expresses, and man, who receives an influx of spiritual illumination in fulfilling God's will. Performing the mitzvot thus accomplishes the unification of the highest and lowest of the ten sefirot, or divine powers that make up the infrastructure of the universe. Keter, the "Supernal Crown" (which bears the gematria of 620) is the source of God's primordial will; thus it is conceived as hovering above all manifestation. Malkhut, "Kingship," reflects the fruition of that primordial will on the lowest plane of creation.
Because it transcends all form and limitation, Keter is also associated with the aspect of ayin (nothingness) in relation to the rest of the sefirot. Man, being "created in the divine image" (Genesis
When we give tzedakah or fulfill the mitzvot with bittul - no ego - we become spiritually reoriented. We understand that we are inextricably bound up with the entire universe, and with the One Who continually brings everything into existence, every moment. We realize that the "self" is but a note in a chord in the silent symphony of all creation. This perception is the Song of the Future World of which Rebbe Nachman speaks in the last discourse of his life:[28] the Song of the Four Letter Name YHVH permuted as yud, yud-heh, yud-heh-vav, yud-heh-vav-heh, corresponding to the Four Worlds: the Song of Oneness that we are all waiting to simultaneously sing and hear.[29]
Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, one of the seminal Jewish thinkers of the 20th century and a great admirer of Rebbe Nachman, also speaks movingly of this “Fourfold Song” and explains it as an expression of compassion:
There is one
who sings the song of his own soul, and within his soul he finds everything:
full spiritual satisfaction.
Another sings
the song of his people. He leaves the circle of his individual being because he
finds it without sufficient breadth, lacking an idealistic basis. He aspires
toward the heights, and attaches himself with ethereal love to the community of
Israel
There is
another whose soul expands until it goes beyond the boundary of Israel
There is still
another who rises toward even wider vistas, until he links himself with all
existence, with all creatures, with all worlds; and with all of them he sings
his song. Of one such as this, tradition has said that whoever sings “Perek
Shirah” [a rabbinic work mentioned in the Talmud which attributes various
Scriptural verses to the various birds and animals] every day is assured of a
place in the World to Come.
And then there
is one who ascends with these songs in one great symphony, and they all lend
their voices. Together they sing their songs with sweet delight, each
transmitting vitality and life to the other: a sing of happiness and joy, a
song of mirth and exultation, a song of gladness and joy!
The song of the
self, the song of the people, the song of humanity, and the song of the
universe all merge in him at all times, in every hour. And this unity rises in
its fullness to become the song of holiness, the song of God, the song of Israel
The name “Israel
Afterthoughts
Combining Meditation and Action
Reb Noson's teaching about tzedakah
can help us to resolve a seeming contradiction in Rebbe Nachman's main
discourse on secluded meditation and prayer, Likutey Moharan I, 52. The
first part of the lesson discusses the nature of the "Imperative
Existent," a term borrowed from Maimonides here meaning the Creator,
versus the "Contingent Existent" or “Possible Existent,” meaning
creation;[31]
and the role of the Jewish people in the divine plan. This section concludes
with the assertion:
To the extent that Israel
This indicates the primacy of our
performance of the mitzvot. By performing God’s will, we reconnect to
God and “complete the circle.” The second half of the lesson, however, takes a
different tack:
However, to be worthy of this, to become
incorporated in one's Source - that is, to return and be subsumed within
the Oneness of God, Who is the Imperative Existent - this can only be attained by negating the
ego (bittul). A person must nullify himself completely, until he becomes
subsumed within the Divine Oneness. And it is only possible to come to this
state of self-nullification through hitbodedut (secluded
meditation and prayer).
Rebbe Nachman explains that by going out at
night to an isolated place and engaging in this practice, one can transmute the
Contingent Existent, namely the illusion of the self, to the Imperative
Existent - to Godliness, which is the essence of all
things. The nullification of one's negative traits through hitbodedut
corresponds to "negating the shadow" in the teaching above.
What is the connection between the two halves of Likutey Moharan I, 52? If hitbodedut brings us to the ultimate goal, why do we need the mitzvot? However, in light of Reb Noson's teaching about tzedakah, it all fits together.
Having engaged in hitbodedut to the point that all negative traits have been overcome, one's task is now to serve God through the performance of the commandments (and indeed in all of one's ways) with bittul - no ego. Fulfilling the mitzvot completes the unification of the Holy One, blessed be He, and the Shekhinah (Divine Presence), corresponding to the sefirot of Tiferet (Beauty) and Malkhut (Kingship), at the level of action. The mitzvot constitute a direct channel for the divine will, a paved path to Keter Elyon, the Supernal Crown that hovers directly above Tiferet, and precedes the entire array of the sefirot. Keter is called ayin (“nothingness”), because it transcends all limitation and form. It is also associated with the primordial divine will to create the universe. Thus, it is the source of the mitzvot, which in a detailed way express the divine will.
Performing the mitzvot with devotion and no self-serving motives causes all creation to ascend, as Rebbe Nachman states at the end of Likutey Moharan I, 52, together with the person who comes to realize his own nothingness before God, thus fulfilling the purpose of creation.
2.
The Wheel of Transformation
Introduction
After the sin of the Golden Calf, God
commands Moses, "Make a sanctuary for Me, and I will dwell among you"
(Exodus 25:8). The Children of Israel had estranged themselves from God and
Moses. However, through the Mishkan (Tabernacle) in the desert, and later
through the Holy Temple Jerusalem
The
The connection between the
Rabbi Ami said: Great is da'at, for
it was given between two Divine Names; as it is written, "A God [E-L] of
Knowledge [de'ot, a construct of da'at] is the Lord [YHVH]"
(Exodus 2:3).[32]
First the verse says "E-L," the
Divine Name associated with the attribute of lovingkindness; then it says "de'ot";
and then the Essential Divine Name YHVH, also known as the Divine Name HaVaYaH.
So enlightenment / da'at is couched between these two holy names.
The Talmud continues:
Rabbi Elazar said: Great is the Holy Temple
Just as enlightenment / da'at is
found between two Divine Names, so is the Holy Temple Holy
Temple
In
the teaching from Rebbe Nachman about Chanukah and the Holy Temple Holy Temple Holy
Temple
The
Hellenists asserted the superiority of man-made philosophy. Even their gods
were conceived in vividly human terms. By contrast, the Maccabees who led the
Jewish uprising asserted the superiority of divine intellect, prophecy, and the
paradigm of the Holy
Temple Holy Temple
The Wheel of Transformation
Sichot HaRan 40 (abridged)
Rebbe Nachman begins his discourse by
attacking philosophy - even the philosophical works of great
medieval rabbis - and by asserting the primacy of simple
faith: the basic Jewish belief that God creates and sustains the world, and
will renew it in an entirely wondrous manner in time to come. He states:
Concerning the order of creation, the
philosophers ask: why is a star a star, or a constellation a constellation? For
what misdeed were lower things, such as the various animals, consigned to lower
levels? Why isn't the opposite the case? Why is the head a head, and why is the
foot a foot, and why isn't the opposite the case?
Questions like these are discussed at
length in their books. However, in truth, this is "vanity and a
disturbance of the spirit" (Ecclesiastes 1:14 ). We do not need to question God's ways, because
"tzaddik vi-yashar Hu . . . He is righteous and just"
(Deuteronomy 32:4).
In truth, the entire world is a wheel of
transformation. It is like a dreidel, a toy top that spins around and
around. Man becomes angel, and angel becomes man; head becomes foot, and foot
becomes head, and similarly all other aspects of creation. Everything goes in
cycles, revolving and being transformed. All things exchange forms, lowering
the higher, and elevating the lower.[33]
For all things share one root.
There are transcendental beings such as
angels, which have no connection to the material. There is the celestial realm,
whose nature is very subtle. Finally, there is this lowly world, which is
completely corporeal. Although to be sure, each of these three is derived from
a particular place, nevertheless, they all share one root.
Rebbe Nachman's reference to a
"particular places" that share a common root reflects the kabbalistic
concept that every aspect of the Four Worlds of 'Asiyah / Action, Yetzirah
/ Formation, Beriah / Creation, and Atzilut / Emanation has
its root in the metaphysical superstructure of creation. The Zohar calls
this Adam Kadmon, "Primordial Man,"[34]
which, of course, is not any sort of man at all, in the ordinary sense of the
word. This awesome and purely abstract reality defies our grasp. We cannot
imagine what Adam Kadmon truly is, aside from that it is the substratum
of creation. However, what we can say is that all levels of creation reflect
the archetype of the human form, beginning with Adam Kadmon. The array
of the ten sefirot, too, conforms to this principle. As the Tikuney
Zohar states, "Chesed / kindness corresponds the right arm, Gevurah
/ might corresponds to the left arm, Tiferet…"[35]
and so forth. Thus, Rebbe Nachman acknowledges that every phenomenon has its
corresponding noumenon - its "particular place" in the
metaphysical worlds, which devolve from Adam Kadmon. On this highest
plane, all things share a common root.
Therefore, all creation is a wheel of
transformation, revolving and oscillating. Right now, something may be on top,
like a head, and another on the bottom, like a foot. Then the situation is
reversed. Head becomes foot, and foot becomes head. Similarly, man becomes
angel, and angel becomes man.
Our sages teach us that angels were cast
down from heaven to this lowly world. They entered physical bodies and became
subject to all sorts of worldly lusts.[36]
Many times angels were sent on missions to this world and clothed themselves in
physical bodies.[37]
We also find the opposite - cases where human beings became angels.[38]
For the world is a revolving wheel. It spins like a dreidel, with all
things emanating from one root.
The feet of some are also higher than the
heads of others; for in the supernal worlds, the lowest level of an upper world
is higher than the highest level of a lower world. Yet everything revolves in
cycles.
That is, the
hierarchy in creation is dynamic: nothing remains fixed, nothing exists
exactly as it did a moment ago, everything is in a constant process of
transformation; yet there is an encompassing unity within which all things are
subsumed. This oneness is beyond hierarchy, beyond division altogether. It is
the prima materia, the foundation of all diversity, as Rebbe Nachman
will soon explain. This oneness is what in another lesson Rebbe Nachman calls
emet, the true nature of things.[39]
It is also the domain of the holy, where Creator and creation meet.[40]
Although the
universe is unimaginably intricate and complex -- and in the Baal Shem Tov's
conception, reflects divine providence in its every detail[41]
- nevertheless, the essence of all things is
Godliness. In this sense, we may say that all is One.
It should also
be noted that Rebbe Nachman describes each level of creation in terms of its
relative coarseness and materiality. Transcendent beings are beyond
materiality; the celestial realm has only the subtlest material aspect; and the
earth is altogether physical. In kabbalistic terms, this reflects a process
known as tzimtzum - constriction of the divine light - and each level of creation, in general and
in particular, may be described as a "garment" for that which
precedes and transcends it. Thus, the hierarchy is one long scale, like a
musical scale, of devolving substantiality, level after level. However, this
scale is but the modulation of one "sound." That sound includes all
notes, and is present within all notes, a concept which Reb Noson develops
further in his Likutey Halakhot.[42]
The next section of our discourse relates
the symbol of the dreidel, tying in this seemingly “innocent” custom,
which is not mentioned in the Talmud or any primary sources, to the core issues
of Chanukah:
This is why we play with a dreidel on
Chanukah.
Chanukah is an aspect of the Holy Temple Temple Temple
That
is, what is inherently bound up with a higher level of the cosmic hierarchy
becomes revealed on a lower level, and what is inherently bound up with a lower
level of that hierarchy becomes spiritually elevated. As the Rebbe goes on to
explain:
God lowered His Presence into the Temple Temple Temple
The Temple Temple 8:27 ).
Yet God caused His Presence to dwell within
the Temple
Philosophy cannot explain how man can have
any influence on high. Nor can it explain how a mere animal can be sacrificed
and rise as a "sweet savor"[46]
and source of gratification before God, "Who spoke and His will was
fulfilled."[47]
How is "will" applicable to God? However, God showed that the truth
contradicts their logic. For in fact God brought His Presence below into the Temple
The power of the hyle, discussed in
their books, stands between potential and actual.[48]
Before anything comes into existence, it must exist in potential. Coming from
potential to actual, it must first pass through the in-between stage of the hyle.
All manifestation thus emerges from the hyle.
Thus, the hyle is the source of all
creation.[49]
The three categories of creation -
transcendental, celestial, and physical - all proceed
from this common root. As they change form from transcendental to physical and
vice-versa, they all revolve around this root, within which they are one.
This description suggests that the hyle
is not just a stage through which everything must pass in the voyage from
potentiality to actualization, but is a realm unto itself; an encompassing
reality, which stands above and beyond the hierarchy of creation altogether. It
is like the absence of color that contains all colors, the silence that
contains all sounds.
The letters on the dreidel are heh,
nun, gimel, and shin.
Heh stands for hyle.
Nun stands for Nivdal, the transcendental.
Gimel stands for Galgal, the celestial.
Shin stands for Shafal, the lower, physical plane.
The dreidel thus includes all
creation. It goes in cycles, alternating and revolving, one thing becoming
another.
Chanukah means "dedication,"
referring to the dedication of the Holy
Temple
Rebbe Nachman now turns to contemplate the
Redemption. The political victory of Chanukah was occasioned by the miracle of
the one flask of oil with the seal of the Kohen Gadol / High Priest that
burned for eight days. This miracle was a foretaste of the Redemption. Then,
too, all oppression will cease, the Jewish people will be restored to their
ancient homeland in peace, and the miraculous nature of reality will be
perceived by all. Thus, Rebbe Nachman asserts:
Redemption, too, will express this
alternating cycle, as in the paradigm of the Holy Temple
When the Israelites crossed the Red Sea after the redemption from Egypt Temple 15:17 ). Redemption was for the sake of the building the Holy Temple
This is the meaning of the letters on the dreidel.
They correspond to the initial letters of the verse "You redeemed the
staff of Your inheritance, Mount
Zion
Gimel is Ga'alta - "You
redeemed"
Shin is Shevet - "the
tribe"
Nun is Nachalatecha - "of Your
inheritance"
Heh is Har Zion - "Mount Zion
This is the paradigm of "You brought
them, You planted them on the Mount of Your inheritance." It is the aspect
of the Holy Temple
Thus, the Redemption is not only a matter
of liberation from the oppression of other nations. It is also a spiritual
phenomenon: liberation from inner conflict and our most basic misconceptions
about reality and the self, a correction of our deep confusion about nature as
an autonomous force, and an awakening to the miraculous and the divine. It is
this erroneous way of thinking - the true
"exile mentality" - that Rebbe Nachman attacks with his
critique of philosophy.
Spinning the Dreidel
To sum up the discourse, Rebbe Nachman
describes creation as a "wheel of transformation," giving three basic
models for this concept: the Holy
Temple
Afterthoughts
Answering the Philosophers
"The head becomes a foot, and the foot
becomes a head . . . All things exchange forms, lowering the higher, and
elevating the lower." This is actually Rebbe Nachman's answer to the
materialist philosophers cited at the beginning of the discourse. In truth,
nothing is a fixed entity; all existence is impermanent. There is no
"head" or "foot" in an absolute sense. One may ask: if this
is such an important point, why did Rebbe Nachman state it in passing, as if it
were a side issue? Perhaps he meant to imply that these philosophers do not
deserve a direct answer - because their questions are already
answers. They are not even listening. Rebbe Nachman's words are only intended
for those of faith; therefore, answering the philosophers is truly a side
issue.
Dreidel Ethics
"All things are different - but in their root, they are the
same." There is a wonderful teaching from the Baal Shem Tov related to
this concept that I like to repeat whenever I have a chance.
"Do not consider yourself superior to
anyone else," the father of Chasidism states. "In truth, you are no
different than any other creature, since all things were brought into being to
serve God. Just as God bestows consciousness upon you, He bestows consciousness
upon your fellow man. In what way is a human being superior to a worm? A worm
serves the Creator with all of his intelligence and ability; and man, too, is
compared to a worm, as the verse states, 'I am a worm and not a man' (Psalms
22:7). If God had not given you a human intellect, you would only be able to
serve Him like a worm. In this sense, you are both equal in the eyes of Heaven.
A person should consider himself, the worm, and all creatures as friends in the
universe, for we are all created beings whose abilities are God-given."[50]
If all creation is essentially one,
proceeding from one source, as Rebbe Nachman also states, we must show
compassion and respect for all of God's works. We are all spinning in the same dreidel!
The Dreidel and the Snake
The letters heh-nun-gimel-shin
traditionally inscribed on the four sides of a dreidel bear the gematria
of the word nachash / serpent.[51]
The verse states, "Now the serpent was more clever than all the animals of
the field that the Lord God had made" (Genesis 3:1). Archetypally, the
cleverness of the nachash is the root of materialist philosophy and
intellect as a power unto itself, cut off from that which is higher than
intellect, as Reb Noson explains.[52]
The Holy Temple
Moreover, kabbalistic sources point out
that the gematria of nachash
/ serpent is the same as that of Mashiach / Messiah.[54]
Nachash:
Nun = 50
Chet = 8
Shin = 300
Total =
358
Mashiach:
Mem = 40
Shin = 300
Yud = 10
Chet = 8
Total =
358
This is because the Mashiach brings
about the tikkun of the serpent and of our conventionally warped way of
thinking.[lv]
He can do so because he has slaughtered the "serpent" within himself,
transforming the very epitome of selfishness to pure altruism. He is thus
empowered to similarly elevate the rest of the world.
3.
The Mysterious Guest
Chayei Moharan, Sippurim Chadashim ("New Stories") 85
First day of Chanukah 5569 / 1808, in the
evening after lighting the first candle
A visitor came into a house and asked the
head of the house, "From where do you obtain a living?"
"I
don't have a steady livelihood at home," his host replied. "However,
the world provides me with what I need to live."
The
guest asked him, "What do you study?"
The
host answered him.
They continued conversing, until soon they
were engaged in a true heart to heart discussion. The host began to feel an
intense longing and yearning to reach a certain level of holiness. "I will
teach you," said the guest.
The
host was surprised. He began to wonder, "Maybe this isn't a human being at
all!" However, he looked again, and saw that the guest was talking to him
like a human being.
Immediately afterward he had a strong sense
of faith, and he resolved to believe in him. He started calling him "my
teacher," and said to him, "First of all, I would like to ask you to
teach me how to conduct myself with due respect toward you. Not, I scarcely
need add, that I could actually detract from your true honor, God forbid; but
even so, it is hard for human beings to be as meticulous as they should be in
these matters. That is why I would like you to teach me how to behave with due
respect."
"For
the moment, I don't have the time," he replied. "Another time I will
come and teach you this. Right now I must go away from here."
"I
also need to learn from you about this," said the host. "How far must
I go when I accompany you on your way, as a host is obligated to do when his
guests depart?"[lvi]
"Until
just beyond the entrance," he replied.
The
host began to think to himself, "How can I go out with him? Right now I am
with him among other people. But if I go out with him alone - who knows who he is?" He questioned
him and then told him, "I'm afraid to go out with you."
"If
I can learn with you like this," the visitor retorted, "then now,
too, if I wanted to do something to you, who would stop me?"
The
host went with him beyond the entrance. All of a sudden, the visitor seized him
and began to fly with him!
It
was cold for the host, so the other took a garment and gave it to him.
"Take this garment," he said, "and it will be good for you. You
will have food and drink and everything will be good, and you will live in your
house." And he flew with him.
In
the midst of this, the host gazed, and suddenly he was in his house. He
couldn't believe his own eyes that he was in his house; but he looked, and
there he was, speaking with people, and eating and drinking in a normal manner.
Then he looked back, and lo and behold, he was flying, as before. Then he
looked back and he was in his house. This went on for a long time.
After awhile, he flew down to a valley
between two mountains. There, he found a book which contained various
combinations of letters: alef, zayin, chet, which is dalet, etc.
Vessels were depicted in this book, and inside the vessels were letters.
Moreover, inside the vessels were the letters of the vessels, by which one
could create such vessels. He felt an intense desire to study this book.
In the midst of this, he gazed, and lo and
behold, he was in his house. Then he gazed, and there he was, in the valley.
He made up his mind to climb the mountain;
perhaps he would find an inhabited place there. When he came to the mountain,
he saw a golden tree with golden branches standing there. Hanging from the
branches were vessels like those depicted in the book, and within those vessels
were other vessels by which one could create such vessels. He wanted to take
some of the vessels away from there, but he was unable to do so, for they were
inextricably entangled in the branches.
In the midst of this, he gazed - and lo and behold, he was in his house.
This was most amazing to him. How was this possible? How could he be both here
and there at the same time? He wanted to discuss this with other human beings,
but how could one speak about such an astounding phenomenon to other people,
something that they surely would not believe?
In the midst of this, he looked out the
window and saw the same guest. He started begging him to come to him. However,
the guest replied, "I don't have time, because I am on my way to
you!"
"This itself is a wonder in my
eyes!" he cried. "Look, I am right here - what do you mean, that you are on your way
to me?"
The guest explained, "The moment you
decided to come with me, to accompany me beyond the doorway, I took the neshamah
(higher soul) from you and gave you a garment from the Lower Garden of
Eden.[lvii]
The nefesh (vital spirit) and ru'ach (lower soul) remain with
you. Therefore, whenever you attach your thoughts to that place, you are there,
and you draw an illumination from that place to yourself. And when you return
here - you are here!"
I do not know which world he is from, but
this much is certain: it is a world of good.
So far, it is not over, it is not finished.
Commentary
Before we start skating on thin ice, it
must be said that there are no classical commentaries on this story in the
Breslov literature. Therefore, all of our remarks are speculative. No doubt,
the story lends itself to many other lines of interpretation, as well.
Guest and Host / Ohr Makif and Ohr Pnimi
The "mysterious guest" has at
least two levels of meaning: most obviously, he represents the tzaddik.
He also represents the ohr makif, or "encompassing light,"
which in general alludes to the sefirah of Binah.[lviii]
This is the level of perception or being that is perpetually beyond one's grasp
- for as soon as it is internalized, another
ohr makif takes its place.[lix]
Thus, Binah is in a constant state of flux.
The Baal Shem Tov relates Binah to orei'ach,
the Hebrew word for guest.[lx]
Orei'ach (spelled alef-vav-resh-chet) can be divided into ohr-chet,
meaning "light of eight." This alludes to the eighth sefirah in
ascending order, which is Binah. Whenever one shows hospitality, this
creates a channel for internalizing the light of Binah:
The Baal Shem Tov, taught: When a guest
arrives, he brings his host Torah insights -
for the Torah insights the host receives from Above correspond to the nature of
his guests.[lxi]
The guest is a vehicle for the ohr makif.
However, every level of perception is an ohr makif in relation to the
level below it, which is called ohr pnimi, the "inner" or
"manifest light." The ohr pnimi corresponds to the host.
Sixteenth century kabbalist Rabbi Chaim
Vital explains that the light of the Chanukah lamp represents Binah, the
transcendent level, as it illuminates Z'er Anpin, or "Small
Face," which comprises the six lower sefirot that animate the
natural order.[lxii]
In less technical language: a ray of the limitless "shines" into the
finite. Rebbe Nachman's allegory of the guest and the head of the house alludes
to this kabbalistic model, as well.
"From where do you obtain a
living?"
The guest inquires as to the host's source
of livelihood. This is because the tzaddik is the parnes,
provider of sustenance. Thus the guest, who represents the tzaddik, is
entitled to ask his host this question.
Only two biblical figures are explicitly
called "tzaddik": Noah and Joseph. The Midrash explains that
both deserved this title because they provided others with food.[lxiii]
In Noah's case, he fed the entire world in his ark until the floodwaters
subsided; in Joseph's case, he provided grain to all Egypt
Rebbe Nachman deals with this concept of
the tzaddik as provider in many teachings, especially Likutey Moharan
II, 7 ("For a Compassionate One Shall Lead Them"). There he states
that the world receives livelihood by virtue of the tzaddik, albeit
through the fusion of two levels inherent within him. The higher is represented
by the tzaddik's "son"; the lower is represented by the
tzaddik's "disciple." However, these terms are mean to be taken
more symbolically than literally. The perception of the son is expressed by the
Ministering Angels who ask: "Where is the place of His glory?" - indicating the transcendent level, the
aspect of "not knowing," the ohr makif / encompassing light.
The perception of the disciple is related to the antithetical declaration,
"His glory fills the world" - indicating
the immanent level, "knowledge of God," the ohr pnimi / inner
light.
In truth, these two perceptions are one,
and each completes the other. Those in the category of the "son," who
have attained the higher level ("Where is the place of His glory?"),
must be protected from total self-nullification in God's transcendent aspect.
They are like holy moths that would readily self-destruct in their compulsion
to reach the light. The knowledge that "His glory fills the world"
grounds them, creating the possibility of a perception of God. Thus, they may
experience the mystic's awe before the infinite mystery of the Divine.
Those in the category of the
"disciple," who occupy the lower level ("His glory fills
the world"), are protected from total self-nullification in God's
immanence. They are like people who immerse in the mikveh and stay under
the water too long. These “disciples,” too, must experience awe of God, because
the trace of wonderment they are granted - the admixture
of "Where is the place of His glory?" -
creates the existential distance needed for their perception. Otherwise,
everything becomes “white on white,” lacking all contrast.
Thus, process and spiritual growth are made
possible through this fusion of the perceptions of God's transcendence and
immanence; and livelihood is drawn forth to the world from the tzaddik
who has grasped the secret of this dualism, and as such, serves as the channel
for God's will to continually create and sustain the world. This is the concept
of "tzaddik yesod 'olam . . . the tzaddik is the foundation
of the universe" (Proverbs 10:25 ).
"The world provides me with what I
need to live"
Because the ohr pnimi derives its
life force from the ohr makif, the host actually receives his livelihood
from the guest. However, the host remains unaware of this. All he knows is that
somehow his needs are fulfilled. Thus, he replies, "I don't have a steady
livelihood at home, but the world provides me with what I need to live."
This answer suggests that either the host
lacks initiative, or he fails to appreciate the true source of his sustenance,
or both. In Likutey Moharan II, 7, the lesson cited above, Rebbe Nachman
says that to be a provider, one must have a certain malkhut, a certain
authority (although he seems to use the term in more than one sense), adding
"one can't be a shlimazal" -
a "loser." If so, what is our host? What is he telling us about
himself with his vague reply? At this point in his life, at least, he seems to
be a passive sort of fellow.
This
alludes to the paradigm of how the world was sustained prior to the Giving of
the Torah. Rebbe Nachman states in Likutey Moharan II, 78, that before
the Torah was given, humanity was involved only in derech eretz, mundane
pursuits. From this, the Midrash infers, "Derekh eretz (which can
also mean simple human decency) preceded the Torah."[lxv]
Since the Torah is the source of life - as it is
written, "For they [i.e. the commandments] are your life and the length of
your days" (Deuteronomy 30:20) - from whence did the world derive its sustenance? The answer:
from God's gratuitous kindness.
The
Talmud states that the twenty-six generations prior to the Giving of the Torah
correspond to the twenty-six repetitions of the refrain "for His kindness
is everlasting" in Psalm 136.[lxvi]
However, the Torah certainly existed prior to its revelation; indeed, the
Midrash informs us that all things came into being through the Torah, which
precedes creation.[lxvii]
The Torah was merely hidden. And where was it hidden? In the Ten Creative
Statements recounted in the first chapter of Genesis, with which God
continually animates the universe.[lxviii]
Thus, our host says that he is sustained "by the world," that is, by
the Torah that is hidden in the world, although he does not yet perceive it.
In
this lesson, Rebbe Nachman also identifies the tzaddik as the channel
for sustenance. He is the holy "prustok" (peasant or
simpleton) who must at times desist from studying or fulfilling the
commandments of the Torah in order to engage in mundane activities. At such
times he receives vitality from what the Midrash calls the "Treasury of
Unearned Gifts," the gratuitous kindness with which God sustained the
world prior to the Giving of the Torah.[lxix]
Then he, in turn, can confer this gratuitous kindness upon the true simpletons - the rest of us in our present
unenlightened state, enabling us to survive until we, too, become worthy of
receiving life directly from the holiness of the Torah.
Perhaps
the guest in our Chanukah story is the holy prustok, and the host
represents the spiritually ignorant masses that unwittingly receive life and
sustenance through him. This is what gives the guest the "right" to
inquire as to his host's means of livelihood. The guest wants him to realize
that he is being sustained by the tzaddik who is privy to God's Treasury
of Unearned Gifts.
"What do you study?"
Torah study, too, is the guest's business,
inasmuch as it reflects the influence of Binah / Understanding. The
first letter of the Written Torah is the bet of Bereshit ("In
the Beginning"); the last letter is the lamed of Yisrael
("Israel
A heart to heart discussion
It is said: "Words that come from the
heart, enter the heart."[lxxi]
Because the guest / tzaddik personifies the heart, he can reach the
heart of the other. He channels the ohr makif into the heart of the
host, who reciprocates by expressing his longing for greater levels of
illumination. This is one of the main benefits of our attachment to tzaddikim.
Rebbe
Nachman once observed, "I have three types of followers: those who come
for my shirayim (leftovers);[lxxii]
those who come to hear my Torah teachings; and those who are 'baked' in my
heart."[lxxiii]
Of course, every aspiring follower wants to be in the last category. But how
can this be accomplished? Say the Breslover Chasidim, "When the Rebbe is
'baked' in our hearts!" This is implied by the "heart to heart
discussion" in our story.
The host began to feel an intense longing
and yearning to reach a certain level of holiness
This arousal is due to influence of the
guest, who has put the host in touch with the deepest will of the heart:
longing and yearning for the holy.
"Maybe this isn't a human being at
all!"
Rebbe Nachman taught: "The tzaddik
looks like an ordinary human being, but in truth, he is something else
completely."[lxxiv]
Having transcended the ordinary self, i.e. the historically conditioned
personality, he becomes "something else." This is what the host finds
unsettling. The holiness and wisdom that rests upon the tzaddik is divine
- therefore, his human aspect, like a
garment, becomes nullified to that which it clothes. In the words of the Zohar,
"The Shekhinah (Divine Presence) speaks through his throat."[lxxv]
The ominous feeling that colors the host's
remark is due to his survival instinct: somehow he senses that the tzaddik
represents a threat to his existential status quo. Indeed, a little later the
mysterious guest remarks, "If I wanted to do something to you, who
would stop me?" This is a frightening prospect. However, the
dismantling of the "old self," i.e. the historically-conditioned
personality, is the necessary precondition for opening the disciple's mind to
entirely new vistas of perception: those of the tzaddik. The familiar
world must dissolve for one to see things in a new light.
Reb Noson alludes to this with the
following analogy:
Before a plant can grow, the seed must be
planted in the earth. There it loses its form, after which the new growth
sprouts forth. This takes place in the earth, which represents humility. The
destruction of the seed reflects the paradigm of nullification in the Infinite
Light. Just as the seed must lose its form, we must relinquish our selfhood and
attachment to physicality. Then, like a mighty tree, an entirely new way of
being can emerge.[lxxvi]
However, he looked again, and saw that the
guest was talking to him like a human being.
The host's subsequent observation that the
mysterious guest is speaking to him like an ordinary human being may hint to
the way the tzaddik must conceal his true nature when interacting with
ordinary people. (In Rebbe Nachman's tale "The Master of Prayer,"
this is symbolized by the disguises the Master of Prayer adopts when he leaves
his forest retreat and ventures into the world to converse with people about
the meaning of life.) Or it may bespeak the fact that the tzaddik
actually possesses two sides: an exalted "non-human" aspect, and a
simple, down-to-earth aspect. From a certain point of view, the latter may even
be the more important.
I once heard the story of how Rabbi
Gedaliah Aharon Kenig (1921-1980), of blessed memory, father of my teacher,
Rabbi Elazar Mordechai Kenig, became a Breslover Chasid. Prior to his marriage
in 1940, Reb Gedaliah lived with his parents in the Givat Shaul neighborhood of
Jerusalem
Standing alone in the tall grass, Reb
Gedaliah could hear his friend crying out to God in the distance. After an
hour, they rejoined and walked back home together. Reb Chaim Boruch's face
seemed to shine, as if he were returning from the Garden of Eden! However, when
he opened the door of his little apartment, he confronted a very
"this-worldly" scene: his wife contending with a crying child, the
room in a disheveled state, and unattended pots of food cooking on the stove.
Without hesitating, he picked up a broom and began sweeping the floor with the
same equanimity as he had exhibited a minute ago in the aftermath of hitbodedut.
This is what most impressed Reb Gedaliah. Now he vividly saw that Rebbe
Nachman's path not only led to deveykut (attachment to God), but also
enabled one to engage in the mundane with greater consciousness and focus.
This reflects the two sides of the tzaddik
we have been discussing: the "non-human" level associated with higher
spiritual states, and the "human" level associated with the affairs
of everyday life. Both are personified by the mysterious guest, who has
something to teach the host about each sphere.
"For the moment, I don't have the time
. . . Right now I must go away from here."
The guest leaves because there must be a
constant interplay between the ohr makif and ohr pnimi in order
for the world to endure and evolve, both physically and spiritually. This
principle applies to all levels of all "worlds."
"How far must I go when I accompany
you on your way?"
Perhaps this question concerning the honor
of the guest is related to Likutey Moharan I, 6, where Rebbe Nachman
states that true honor is attained only by self-effacement and teshuvah,
return to God. The path of teshuvah has two aspects: ascent to the One,
and return to the world and the realm of multiplicity. (This also corresponds
to the Reb Chaim Boruch's meditation in the field and subsequent housecleaning
in the story above.) As the Zohar states, "Worthy is he who can
enter and exit."[lxxviii]
That is, one must be adept in ascent and adept in descent.[lxxix]
The guest has attained this expertise, and is therefore deserving of honor.
Therefore, the host asks how far he should escort him.
"Until the doorway"
A doorway is a very special spot. (Maybe
this is why so many people instinctively like to stand in them and converse,
oblivious to everyone trying to get in and out!) Among other things, it is
where many of us place the Chanukah lamp in order to publicize the miracle.
This is because a doorway represents the interface between inner and outer - natural and supernatural, ohr pnimi and
ohr makif. The natural order is the "inner aspect," the ohr
pnimi; the supernatural realm is the "outer aspect," the ohr
makif. The former corresponds to the host, the latter to the guest. Thus,
the host must escort his guest beyond the doorway in order to honor his guest,
and thereby enter the supernal reality.[lxxx]
This
supernal reality is the aspect of the question of the Ministering Angels,
"Where is the place of His glory?" to refer back to Likutey
Moharan II, 7. It reflects a concept Rebbe Nachman invokes again and again:
"The ultimate knowledge is not knowing."[lxxxi]
Knowledge is, by definition, limited by the cognitive power of the knower and
the nature of the concept; perception on the transcendental plane is called
"not knowing," because it reaches to the Infinite. This is apparent
in the host's fearful musing, "Who knows who he is?"
It was cold for the host, so the other took
a garment and gave it to him
The host's coldness indicates that if left
to rely on his own power and merit, he could not fly. Only by being bound to
the guest - the tzaddik - may he rise above nature.
The
host's ability to cope with this new experience is represented by the garment the
tzaddik gives him. Rebbe Nachman refers to such a gift in another
teaching from Chayei Moharan, where he states that after someone dies,
he is brought to a certain synagogue in Jerusalem
When a dead person is brought there, they
bring him in clothing. Sometimes the person's clothes are missing something.
One person's garment might be missing a sleeve, another might be missing a
piece near the hem, and so forth, all in keeping with his deeds.[lxxxii]
The verdict depends on the clothes he wears when he is brought there, and his
place is allocated accordingly.
Once a dead man was brought there with no
clothes at all. He was completely naked. The verdict was that he should be cast
into the "Hollow Sling"[lxxxiii]
and destroyed, God forbid, because he was completely naked. However, a certain
tzaddik appeared, and took one of his own garments and threw it over this
person.
The court asked, "Why are you giving
him your garment?" The court objected to this. By what right should the
dead man be dressed and thus saved with clothing that did not belong to him?
The tzaddik answered, "I must
send this man on a mission for my own purposes, thus I am entitled to dress him
in my own garment. We see that sometimes an important nobleman sends his
servant to another nobleman, and the servant hesitates to fulfill his master's
bidding. His master asks, 'Why haven't you left, as I ordered?' The servant
replies, 'I don't have the appropriate clothes for going to that nobleman. He
is very great, and it is impossible to go there in clothes that are
unbefitting.' The master says, 'Hurry! Take one of my garments, put it on, and
run quickly to the nobleman, and do my bidding!' Similarly, I need to send this
dead man on a mission of my own, therefore I am giving him one of my
garments."
This is how the tzaddik saved the
dead man from the bitter punishment of the Hollow Sling. [Rebbe Nachman] told
this story to show the great power of the tzaddik to save his followers
in the World of Truth.[lxxxiv]
In giving the host a garment, the guest in
our story seems to be expressing some sort of "proprietorship" over
his new disciple. He confers upon him merit and protects him from harsh
judgments. Thus, the host becomes privy to higher perceptions that otherwise
would have been beyond his ken.
"You will have food and drink and
everything will be good, and you will live in your house."
Rebbe Nachman taught that no tzaddik departs
from this world without leaving behind a "blessing" - a channel through which his influence can continue
to be conveyed to the world. This blessing is personified by the son or
disciple who carries on his mission. (This, too, is discussed in Likutey
Moharan II, 7.) Through the son or disciple, the tzaddik attains
completeness.
In
our context, the mysterious guest remains in the world through the host.
Perhaps this is the mission he entrusts to the host, by virtue of which he may
be said to give him a garment.
Or
based on the same lesson, we could interpret this remark as indicating the
spiritual transformation of the host. "You will have food and drink and
everything will be good…" The very physicality of the host is the garment
he receives from the tzaddik, who takes him on his flight through the
supernal worlds. Materialism will no longer be misconstrued as an end unto
itself, but a "garment" to facilitate an entirely different mode of
being: the spiritual life into which the new disciple becomes initiated by the tzaddik.
All
of this is a pelleh in the eyes of the host, something wondrous, beyond our
grasp. Physicality and spirituality seem to be two opposites; yet the
tzaddik shows that nevertheless they can be brought together.
The
host's condition of flying and then finding himself back in his familiar
surroundings goes on "for a long time." It is only the first stage of
his journey and his connection to the tzaddik. This may correspond to
the World of Yetzirah / Formation, which is the domain of the angels,
often metaphorically described as having wings. Then the host reaches the next
level, the World of Beriah / Creation, which corresponds to the sefirah
of Binah.
After awhile, he flew down to a valley
between two mountains
In the works of the ARI, Binah is
related to a particular method of contemplating the Divine Name HaVaYaH.
The Name is vowelized with a tzeyre, or "ā" sound, represented by two horizontal
points underneath each letter.[lxxxv]
These two points allude to the dualistic mode of experience - light vs. darkness, good vs. evil,
activity vs. passivity, mercy vs. strict justice, etc. Dualism has its origin
(and becomes rectified) in Binah, as Rebbe Nachman states in Likutey
Moharan I, 48.
Binah is process. The sages define the "men of understanding (nevonim,
a construct of binah)" mentioned in Deuteronomy 1:13, to be
"those who can understand one thing from another."[lxxxvi]
The inference of one thing from another is also symbolized by two points. In
our story, this seems to correspond to the two mountains, between which the
host lands after his flight through the World of Yetzirah.
He found a book that contained various
combinations of letters
All things come into existence through
combinations of letters of the divine speech. Thus, the World of Beriah
/ Creation / Binah represents the infrastructure of the universe. It
is the root of language, the realm of holy letters.
Inside the vessels were letters. Moreover,
inside the vessels were the letters of the vessels, by which one could create
such vessels
The "one thing from another"
quality is also indicated by the allegory of the letters in the vessels, etc.
That the vessels contain the letters by which they can be created indicates
that this is the World of Beriah / Creation.
He felt an intense desire to study this
book
This suggests the teaching of the Tikuney
Zohar: "Binah / Understanding resides in the heart, enabling
the heart to comprehend."[lxxxvii]
The quality of Binah is expressed by the host's desire to understand the
essence of things.[lxxxviii]
He gazed, and lo and behold, he was in his
house. Then he gazed, and there he was in the valley
He returns to the mundane world, the World
of 'Asiyah / Action, but subsequently ascends to an even higher level.
This reflects the kabbalistic principle of a "descent for the sake of
ascent." By doing so, one elevates fallen "holy sparks," i.e. one
spiritually refines the world. Having accomplished this, the host can now
attain greater heights.
He made up his mind to climb the mountain;
perhaps he would find an inhabited place there
He decides to climb the mountain (note that
it is now one mountain, not two) in order to transcend dualism completely.
Although still in the World of Beriah / Creation, he now begins his
ascent toward the World of Atzilut / Emanation, the highest of the four
worlds. Atzilut corresponds to the sefirah of Chokhmah (Wisdom).
The mountain also may allude to the site of the Holy Temple Jerusalem Holy Temple
His
search for an inhabited place (yishuv) suggests cessation, the absence
of movement and change. The Creator is called "He Who sits (yoshev)
in Heaven" (Psalms 2:4), beyond temporality and change. This also refers
to yishuv ha-da'at, the "settled mind" attained through
contemplation and hitbodedut.[xc]
A similar allusion may be found in Rebbe
Nachman's tale, "The Lost Princess," where in the course of his
wanderings in the desert in search of the king's daughter, the Viceroy comes
across a side path. "Since I have traveled in this desert for so long and
still not found her," the Viceroy muses, "let me try this side path.
Maybe it will lead to an inhabited place (yishuv)." In Breslov tradition,
this "side path" is that of hitbodedut.[xci]
When he came to the mountain, he saw a
golden tree with golden branches
Gold is usually associated with Binah,
as the Zohar states explicitly.[xcii]
This is consistent with the tree bearing vessels that contain other vessels,
etc. "Vessels" is another term for the sefirot. Thus, gold
includes all ten sefirot in a "pre-natal state,"[xciii]
as it were, for Binah is the feminine principle, the “mother” of
creation, the cosmic womb.
The tree is one of the most basic models
used to describe the array of the sefirot. Thus, by encountering the
golden tree, the host is envisioning (albeit on a lower level) the sefirot
of the World of Atzilut / Emanation. To be sure, the sefirot are
operative on all planes, since everything is the product of their interaction.
However, the Zohar states that "lights and vessels" are one in
Atzilut.[xciv]
That is, in Atzilut there is no split between inner and outer, giver and
receiver, etc., for all is one. The "ten sefirot of
nothingness" in the Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Creation) allude to the
same concept. The host seems to be glimpsing the lights of Atzilut as
they are refracted through the World of Beriah / Creation, analogous to
the sefirah of Binah.[xcv]
Otherwise, he would be so completely nullified within the divine light that he
would be incapable of contemplation.
The golden tree also may allude to the
Menorah or candelabrum in the Holy
Temple
Hanging from the branches were vessels like
those depicted in the book, and within those vessels were other vessels by
which one could create such vessels
The "book" he discovered in the
valley probably corresponds to the Torah in written form, while the golden tree
on the mountain corresponds to the Torah on the supernal plane. As stated
above, the Torah is related to Binah, since it begins with the letter bet
and ends with the letter lamed; together they spell lev
(heart), the locus of Binah.
Another
possibility is that the book and golden tree correspond to two aspects of the
"secrets of Torah." The ARI distinguishes between understanding the
Kabbalah at the conceptual level and at the level of direct perception.[xcvii]
Perhaps the book represents these mysteries at the level of ideas, and the
tree, at the experiential level.
He wanted to take some of the vessels away
from there, but he was unable to do so, for they were inextricably entangled in
the branches
The inseparability of the vessels from the
tree also indicates the unitary aspect of the World of Beriah, which it
receives from the World of Atzilut. This unity had not been apparent to
him when he saw the pictures of the vessels in the book. Rebbe Nachman mentions
that they are the same vessels; however, their manifestation differs according
to each spiritual level.
In the midst of this, he gazed - and lo and behold, he was in his house.
This was most amazing to him . . . How could he be both here and there at the
same time? He wanted to discuss this with other human beings
One might assume that the host needs to
speak with others about his amazing experience in order to gain affirmation, to
feel more grounded in the familiar. On a deeper level, though, his wish may
stem from his ascent to the supernal plane. He has already glimpsed the World
of Oneness, which is the repository of the potential for every human being to
experience the transcendental.
In the midst of this, he looked out the
window and saw the same guest. He started begging him to come to him. However,
the guest replied, "I don't have time, because I am on my way to
you!"
The host sees the guest through a window - i.e., the guest is on the
"outside," while he remains on the "inside." There is a
division between the two, yet they see each other. The window suggests that the
two dimensions intersect.
The host is in the "lower world,"
while the guest is ascending to the "supernal world" - to see the host. How is this possible? The
guest explains this paradox to his disciple:
"The moment you decided to come with
me, to accompany me beyond the doorway, I took the neshamah (higher
soul) from you and gave you a garment from the Lower Garden Eden
The "Lower Garden of Eden" is the
domain of the lower angels that traverse the worlds of Asiyah / Action
and Beriah / Creation. Rabbi Moshe Cordovero describes its nature
and purpose: "The Lower Garden of Eden is reminiscent of this physical
world, since the soul has not yet been purified of its attachments to mundane
involvements and pleasures."[xcviii]
He also states: "The entire purpose of this [Lower] Garden of Eden is to
prepare the soul by slowly but surely divesting it of physical attachments and
initiating into the spiritual dimension, until it is ready to receive sublime
perceptions and ascend to its source."[xcix]
Having received this garment from the Lower Garden of Eden, meant to wean him
away from his material attachments and preoccupations, the host is now able to
live in this world and the supernal world simultaneously. All this is the doing
of the guest, i.e. the tzaddik.
I do not know which world he is from
This is indicated by the term
"guest"; he is not a "householder," not a fixed entity.
This, too, is an aspect of the ohr makif: constant process, constant
spiritual development.
This much is certain: it is a world of good
Rebbe Nachman once observed that there is a
sort of good that exists in opposition to evil. However, the divine essence of
things is good without a dualistic counterpoint; we only borrow the word
"good" provisionally in order to describe it, because in truth it
cannot be named. [c] This would seem to be the sort of good that
Rebbe Nachman indicates here.
So far, it is not over, it is not finished
Since God is Infinite, there is no end to
the path that leads to Him. Yet He is right here with us in this world, right
now.
Summary
1. Spiritual ascent is only possible
through attachment to a true tzaddik who can guide us on the path of
return to God.
2. The beginning of the path is extremely
difficult; we may be beset by all sorts of fears and doubts and confusions.
However, all obstacles will vanish if we persevere.
3. Don’t try to figure out the tzaddik.
This is impossible, because he lives on a completely different plane, where things
work by different rules. Thus, he is a "mysterious guest" in the
world we take to be real.
4. The process and the path are
characterized by ratzo vi-shov, "advance and retreat,"
constant ups and downs. This is how it must be. But the ups do not remain the
same ups, and the downs do not remain the same downs.
5. God is Infinite; therefore, the path has
no end; the journey is never over. Yet at the same time, we have already
reached our goal. God is right here: "The entire earth is full of His
glory" (Isaiah 6:8).
6. The path of the true tzaddikim is
the most beautiful thing in the world. Therefore, we shouldn't waste our days
in hesitation and confusion, but accept the tzaddik's invitation to fly
with him. It only takes one step to cross the threshold.
Afterthoughts
More Guesswork
Rebbe Nachman mentions that the book the
host discovers in the valley between two mountains contained various letter
combinations: "alef, zayin, chet, which is dalet…" What
is the meaning of this cryptic reference?
Many years ago, a scholarly friend told me
that he once came across an answer to this mystery in a kabbalistic text that
discusses the kavanot (mystical meditations) for the "Shem'a"
("Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One [Echad],"
Deuteronomy 6:4 - the fundamental declaration of faith).
Unfortunately, he didn’t remember the exact source, and so far I have been
unable to track it down. However, the connection to the Shem'a is highly
suggestive, even without the kabbalistic source.
The meditation on the Shem'a
recommended by Rabbi Yosef Karo in his Shulchan Arukh / Code of Jewish
Law[ci]
analyses the word Echad / One (spelled alef, chet, dalet). He
subdivides the letter chet (8) into alef (1) and zayin
(7), explaining that we should contemplate that God is One (symbolized by the
letter alef) in the seven heavens (zayin) and the earth (alef).
Seven and one make eight, which is the letter chet. This gives us our alef,
zayin and chet. The last letter of Echad is dalet. The
Talmud states that one should prolong the recitation of both the chet
and dalet.[cii]
This gives us our "chet, which is dalet." Thus, the
four letters Rebbe Nachman mentions may be related to the meditation on the Shem'a.
In the morning communal prayer service, the
Shem'a and its blessings are found in the section which the kabbalists
associate with the World of Beriah / Creation. This might be the reason
why Rebbe Nachman mentions these letters specifically at this point in his
story. The host is now exploring the World of Beriah.
"So far, it is not over, it is not
finished"
This is not the only unfinished story in
Rebbe Nachman's repertoire, nor is it the best known one. "The Lost
Princess," the opening tale in his Sippurei Ma'asiyot, describes
the disappearance of a king's daughter, and how the royal viceroy sets off in
search of her. An allegory of exile and redemption on both the collective and
personal levels, this mysterious narrative culminates in the viceroy being
carried by a storm wind to a pearl castle atop a golden mountain, where the
princess is hidden. Here, too, Rebbe Nachman breaks off without revealing the
ending - but he assures us that in the end, the
viceroy succeeds in rescuing her. The World of Beriah is compared to a
"day that is entirely long."[ciii]
It is endless. Therefore, the rescue must be accomplished by the transcendence
of time and process altogether. This is associated with the highest of the four
worlds, Atzilut, the "World of Thought," or pure
consciousness. Rebbe Nachman tells us that this realm can be entered only
through silence.[civ]
4.
The Chandelier of Imperfections
Introduction
The verse states, "The Rock, His work
is perfect" (Deuteronomy 32:4). Yet we experience a world of
imperfections: everything is getting stronger or weaker, growing or decaying,
being born or dying. Everything is incomplete and of necessity exists within a
greater matrix of mutual interdependency. Thus, everything must use and be used
by other elements in the system.
When we dare to look inside ourselves, we
immediately confront our shortcomings and weaknesses, the inadequacy of our
wisdom, the limits of our talents and abilities. "Why did God create such
a world?" we cannot help but wonder. God's wisdom is perfect. Why didn't
He make a perfect world?
There is a rather mysterious parable from
Rebbe Nachman that deals with this question. After presenting a translation of
the parable, we will explore some of its possible meanings in our search for an
answer.
The Chandelier of Imperfections
Sippurei Ma'asiyot, Additional Stories
Once a son left his father and remained
with others in faraway lands for many years. After a time he returned to his
father and boasted that he had mastered the great art of making a chandelier.[cv]
He told his father to gather all the local craftsmen so that he could show them
his skill.
His father invited all the masters of the
craft to witness the expertise that his son had attained during the time of his
apprenticeship. However, when the son took out the lamp that he had made, they
all saw that it was quite inferior. The father went to them and asked them to
tell him the truth. They were forced to tell him the truth that it was very
poor.
Later the son boasted to his father,
"Didn't they see the wisdom of my craft?" The father replied that it
was not beautiful in their eyes.
The son retorted, "On the contrary,
through this lamp I have demonstrated my skill. I have shown each of them his
shortcoming. In this lamp, I have included the deficiencies of all the local
masters of the art. You did not realize that one considered one part ugly, but
another part very well made. The next one, however, considered the first part
beautiful, while for him the next part was poorly made. The same is true of
them all. What one considers bad, the other considers good, and vice versa. I
made this lamp out of imperfections and nothing else - in order to show them all that they lack
perfection. Each one has a shortcoming, since what is beautiful to one is
deficient to the next. However, in truth, I can make a perfect lamp."
[Rebbe Nachman then remarked:]
If people knew all the deficiencies and
lacks of a thing, they would know its essence, even if they had never seen it
before.
"Great are God's deeds" (Psalms
111:2). No man is identical with another. Adam possessed all possible human
forms - that is, the singular Hebrew word for man,
adam, includes all of these forms. The same is true of everything else.
All luminaries are included in the single word "light (ohr),"
and similarly the rest, the entire array of creation. Even the leaves of a
tree, no two leaves are exactly alike.
[Reb Noson adds:] Rebbe Nachman spoke of
this at length. He said, "There are certain types of wisdom attainable in
this world from which person could live exclusively, without eating or
drinking." He then spoke at length of this wondrous and awesome concept.
Commentary
Perfection and Imperfection
Rebbe Nachman asserts, "If people knew
all the deficiencies and lacks (chesronot vi-ha-nimn'aim) of a thing,
they would know its essence." This seems to be the key to understanding
the Chandelier of Imperfections. How does this axiom work? What does it really
mean?
First we must consider the meaning of a
"deficiency" (chisaron). This may denote something that is
wrong, or something that is incomplete. Indeed, it can mean both. The sages of
the Talmud state that one can attain such a level of repentance that
one's transgressions become meritorious deeds.[cvi]
We would be hard pressed to say that the deed retroactively changes. What is
past is past. We assume that the deed does not change (although God is all
powerful and can do whatever He wants); however, the context of the deed does
change. Now that one has accomplished such a high degree of repentance, the transgression
no longer estranges one from God, but serves the purpose of bringing one closer
to God. The "wrong" is no longer divorced from the purpose of life,
but reconnected to it. Given this, the words "wrong" and
"incomplete" may be synonymous. That is, lack of completion
inevitably goes hand in hand with error.
Another example of this is the rabbinic
saying: "If you have acquired knowledge (da'at), what do you lack?
And if you lack knowledge (da'at), what have you acquired?"[cvii]
Da'at represents a type of completeness, a perceptual connection to God.
Its lack will inevitably entail imperfection.
Since the king's son fashioned a lamp out
of the deficiencies of the master craftsmen, perhaps the object of the parable
is that the work of the other craftsmen lacked completeness, and
therefore was in error.
This, incidentally, is why observing the
Sabbath brings absolution for the sin of idolatry. The Sabbath represents
wholeness, being "last in deed, first in thought,"[cviii]
the culmination of the seven days of creation; idolatry represents mistaking a
limited power for the Ultimate Power, a part for the whole. Therefore,
"one who observes the Sabbath is forgiven for all his sins, even if he
worshipped idols like the generation of Enosh."[cix]
The Sabbath attests to God's Oneness, within which idolatry, which is an
expression of incompleteness, dissolves and is nullified.
Similarly, this is the meaning of the tashlikh
rite performed on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, when according to the
kabbalists, all creation returns to its Divine Source and is reborn. We
symbolically cast our sins, or deficiencies, into a body of water, representing
the Sea of Oneness
The son asserts that his lamp was made
entirely of deficiencies, yet each craftsman found beautiful the same component
that one of his colleagues recognized as lacking. Why did they have differing
views? This demonstrated that they possessed different levels of wisdom, but
none possessed completeness, none had attained perfection.
As the saying goes, "One man's ceiling
is another man's floor." There is a hierarchy of wisdom, symbolized by the
various craftsmen. The "ceiling" of each craftsman's wisdom is the
"floor" of the next craftsman's wisdom, and so on. However, to grasp
the true nature of the entire structure would require the attainment of absolute
wisdom, a truth beyond all relativism.
Rebbe Nachman states that through the
deficiencies of a thing, one may know its essence. The deficiencies are like a
shadow cast by this essence. Just as a shadow attests to the existence of the
object that casts it, so does imperfection attest to perfection.
In a similar vein, the Baal Shem Tov
explains that when evil results in good, it retroactively becomes a
"throne" for the good.[cxi]
(This is apparently related to the teaching of our sages cited above that the
sins of one who is sincerely repentant turn into merits.) God has
"hard-wired" creation so that the negative ultimately serves the
positive, and thus becomes transmuted to the positive. The Chandelier of
Imperfections symbolizes the dualistic realm -
yet it is the "shadow" of the perfect lamp, which symbolizes the
level beyond dualism, the level of God's Oneness. This world’s imperfection in
its entirety is the shadow of the transcendental. This, too, may be why the son
does not reveal his perfect lamp: it cannot be seen. At least, not the same way
as the Chandelier of Imperfections.
To return to our original question: why
didn't God create a perfect world? Put another way, what purpose does dualism
serve?
One answer is: in order for us to
"negate the negative," to borrow the insightful expression of
contemporary Breslov teacher, Rabbi Shlomo Aharon Gottlieb. True perfection,
which belongs to God alone, is a “given”; but it is highly concealed. Our task
is to remove the various illusions and erroneous ideas that cover it over. As
the Zohar states, “When the Other Side is quelled, the Divine Glory
ascends.”[cxii]
We cannot truly appreciate the positive until we have encountered the negative
and seen through it. This is the “negation of the negative.” Moreover, in so
doing, we become “partners with God in creation.”[cxiii]
Because the attainment of this perception is the reason why God created us.
This may be what Rebbe Nachman wishes to
teach us in saying that knowing the deficiencies of a thing leads to the
knowledge of its true nature. Through contemplating imperfection, we - who, by definition, are parts of an unseen
unity - can intuit the perfection of that whole.
That perfection is the essence of reality.
All of creation is truly a path that leads
to this realization; even the stones and ruts in the road serve their purpose.
This is why in Judaism night precedes day, and why in the account of Genesis,
darkness precedes light. Without "negating the negative," the
positive could not be revealed. We would have no frame of reference by which to
conceive it. The "negation of the negative" thus enables us to find
our way through the spiritual maze of creation, which in the Zohar’s
famous phrase only exists for the sake of knowing God (be-gin de-ishtimod’in
lei).[cxiv]
The Menorah
What is the meaning of the chandelier, or
more literally the "suspended Menorah?" And why is it specifically
made by this "son," the master craftsman?
We may venture to
answer these questions, too, by considering the cryptic remarks Rebbe Nachman
made after telling this parable, and in addition by considering some of his
other teachings about the Menorah - the
seven-branched candelabrum in the Mishkan (Tabernacle) and later in the Holy Temple
To recap Rebbe
Nachman's postscript:
"Great are God's deeds" (Psalms
111:2). No man is identical with another. Adam possessed all possible human
forms; that is, the singular Hebrew word for man, adam, includes all of
these forms. The same is true of everything else. All luminaries are included
in the single word "light," and similarly the rest, the entire array
of creation. Even the leaves of a tree, no two leaves are exactly alike. Rebbe
Nachman spoke of this at length. He said, "There are certain types of
wisdom attainable in this world from which person could live exclusively,
without eating or drinking…"
There is another
verse in Psalms that echoes the phrase "Great are God's deeds." Not
only are God's deeds great and wondrous, but they also reflect God's wisdom:
"Mah rabu ma'asekha Hashem, kulam bi-chokhmah 'asitah . . . How
abundant are your works, O God! You have made them all with wisdom"
(Psalms 104:24). According to the Talmudic sages, the Menorah, too, was
created by divine act.[cxv]
Thus, Rebbe Nachman's remarks suggest that the Menorah is at once a symbol of
God's deeds, which encompass all of creation, and His wisdom, which is the “blueprint”
and fundament of creation.
According to the Tikuney
Zohar, the Menorah represents Divine Intellect - "Menarta da reisha . . . The
Menorah is the head."[cxvi]
In Likutey Moharan I, 21, Rebbe Nachman explains this to mean that it is
possible for Divine Intellect to be grasped by man via a process of
purification. The seven branches of the Menorah correspond to the seven
apertures of the head: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, and one mouth. By
purifying these "vessels" for one's inner spiritual faculties - that is, by ridding oneself of all evil
traits - one may attain Divine Intellect and become
a "living Menorah."[cxvii]
However, like the
Menorah in the Holy
Temple
Moreover, it was
fashioned from one piece of gold, and was not a construct.[cxix]
The Menorah represents wholeness and what we could call “unity-in-diversity.”
How so? The seven branches correspond to the seven days of the week,
representing the paradigm of multiplicity; its formation from one unit of gold
alludes to the mystery of the encompassing Divine Oneness. Reb Noson explains:
"The Menorah was formed in this manner in order to express the light of
truth: to reveal that all diversity derives from God's simple unity."[cxx]
The requirement
that the Menorah be made from gold is also significant. Rabbi Dov Ber, the
Maggid of Mezeritch (1704-1772), relates gold to the prima materia. As
such, it is a vehicle for Chokhmah, divine wisdom. (Gold is usually
associated with Binah, understanding, which is figuratively the
"mother" of the seven lower sefirot. However, in this context,
the Maggid apparently wishes to stress the concept of
"unity-in-diversity" which is our present concern, as well.
Therefore, he alludes to Chokhmah as it is garbed by Binah.)[cxxi]
Within the hierarchy of creation, Chokhmah is the highest level. It is
the hyle discussed by Nachmanides and others, which came into existence
on the first day of creation, and from which all subsequent levels of creation
derive.[cxxii]
Rebbe Nachman
mentions this in Sichot HaRan 40 (presented above in slightly
abbreviated form as "The Wheel of Transformation"), where he expounds
upon the dreidel, or toy top with which children play on Chanukah, as a
symbol of transformation and redemption. At the end of that teaching, Reb
Noson, who edited Rebbe Nachman's works, adds that the hyle corresponds
to Chokhmah. Citing the Zohar, he divides Chokhmah into "koach-mah,"
literally, the "power of what," meaning the primordial Nothingness.[cxxiii]
This reality transcends all division. And it may be grasped - but only by he who has risen above his
sense of separate existence, or ego. This is the tzaddik, who, in having
overcome his negative traits, becomes a vehicle for the Divine. (In Rebbe
Nachman's works, one who attains this completely is called tzaddik emet,
or "true tzaddik" - personifying
the "point of truth among the tzaddikim."[cxxiv])
The creative
aspect of Chokhmah is underscored by the kabbalistic teaching that
compares Chokhmah to a seed: a simple, unitary point. Just as a seed
contains the entire tree in potentia, so Chokhmah contains all
manifest forms.[cxxv]
In the Divine Name HaVaYaH (yud-heh-vav-heh) this sefirah
is represented by the first letter, yud. The smallest letter in the
Hebrew alphabet, yud is but a single point; however, it bears the
numerical value of ten. This alludes to the paradigm of "ten lights in
one vessel," or ten sefirot in one.[cxxvi]
The Name HaVaYaH first appears in the Torah at the beginning of the
second chapter of Genesis, which describes the creation of man.
Chokhmah is also closely related to the term adam.[cxxvii]
The Zohar lists four terms for man, of which adam is the highest,
and refers to the faculty of wisdom or intellect.[cxxviii] As Rebbe Nachman mentions in Likutey
Moharan II, 82, the word adam has the gematria (numerical
value) of mah (45) - "what?" - indicating nullification of ego.[cxxix]
Thus, only a person who has overcome the ego deserves to be called "adam."
Only he has truly attained wisdom; only he is a true human being.
The Baal Shem Tov
explains this as follows:
The Talmud
states: "Who is a fool? One who loses what (mah) he is given."[cxxx]
That is to say:
The word adam has the gematria of mah ("what" --
in the sense of no ego: “What is it?”). This is the Divine Name YHVH when
expanded with alefs, which are conferred upon it from the supernal
worlds.[cxxxi]
Yud = yud (10), vav (6), dalet (4)
Heh = heh (5), alef (1)
Vav = vav (6), alef (1), vav (6)
Heh = heh (5), alef (1)
Total = 45
And "a
person (adam) cannot sin unless a spirit of folly enters him."[cxxxii]
[Thus, having lost his wisdom, he forfeits his stature as adam. He has
lost touch with the Divine Name YHVH and the paradigm of mah.]
When one cleaves
to the Holy One, blessed be He, Who is the ruler of the world, he becomes
adam. The Holy One, blessed be He, effects countless constrictions of His
light through countless worlds to bring about this unification with man, who
otherwise could not bear His radiance. For his part, man must divest himself of
all physicality [i.e. physical desire and dependency] to the point that he can
ascend through all the worlds and attain unity with God, until he becomes
utterly nullified. Then he is called "adam."[cxxxiii]
This “unity” is
the level of existential wholeness where there is no subject-object split, no
sense of self. Thus, Moses, the "humblest of men," could declare to
his antagonists, "And what (mah) are we?” (Exodus 16:8). The
kabbalists render this, “And we are mah (nothing)."
The Tikuney
Zohar tells us: "The soul of Moses extends from generation to
generation, from one tzaddik to the next."[cxxxiv]
Thus, a popular kabbalistic song that praises the legendary first century sage
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai (whose disciples composed the Zohar) declares:
" 'Let us make man' was said referring to you!" That awesome
tzaddik who has reached the very essence of the soul - and in so doing, the essence of all souls - is an extension of Moses, the
"humblest man on the face of the earth." As such, he, too, is called
"adam."[cxxxv]
The unity of
creation in its root, namely Chokhmah, is also reflected by the fact
that Adam was created as a singular being. True, Eve was included within him - as an unconscious Siamese twin, according
to the sages[cxxxvi]
- but he is nevertheless described as alone.
(And aside from fulfilling the commandment of preserving the species, it is the
purpose of man and wife to regain this primal unity through the marital
relationship.) Evidently this is why Rebbe Nachman made those seemingly
desultory remarks about the greatness of God's deeds, the singularity of Adam,
and the paradox that all separate forms, not one of which is exactly the same
as another, proceed from a single point of origin. That is, duality and
multiplicity come from the Divine Oneness. Like the Menorah, whose seven
branches are made from one piece of gold, this is a pelleh - a wonder that exceeds human reason.
Rebbe Nachman
also relates this to the paradigm of one light and many lights. Light is
another metaphor for wisdom, which is bound up with the light-giving Menorah.
As Rabbi Moshe Cordovero (“RaMaK”) states, "The Menorah represents the
Shekhinah (Divine Presence) . . . which receives the light of Chokhmah .
. . This is why the Menorah was positioned on the south [side of the
sanctuary]; for 'one who desired Chokhmah would pray facing the south.'
"[cxxxvii]
This, too, supports the notion that the Menorah is a vehicle for the light of Chokhmah,
causing it to spiritually illuminate the world.
In stating that
the Menorah represents the Shekhinah / Divine Presence, RaMaK implies
that it is a vehicle for the sefirah of Malkhut / Kingship.
However, this may not be a true contradiction. A cognomen for Malkhut is
Chokhmah Tata'ah, "Lower Wisdom," in that it channels the light
of Chokhmah Ila'ah, "Supernal Wisdom," to the lowest plane.
Therefore, RaMaK adds: "This is why the Menorah was positioned on the
south [side of the sanctuary]; for 'one who desired Chokhmah would pray
facing the south.' " The Menorah / Malkhut embodies the mystery of
oneness-in-multiplicity, and shines the light of apprehending this mystery to
the world. This is the key point of the Chokhmah Tata’ah / Lower Wisdom.
This
concept may be better understood in context of another teaching of Rebbe
Nachman. He states:
"Every
universe [in the hierarchy of worlds] and every created thing has a unique form
and structure. For example, the form of the lion differs from that of the
sheep, both in its abilities and anatomy. This also applies within the lion
species: each one is different from the rest. The distinctions between all
creatures are implicit in the letters and combinations of letters [with which
they are named in the Torah]. One who is worthy of understanding the Torah can
understand its allusions to the distinctions between all creatures - and he can understand their unity, that
is, their point of origin and final destiny; for the beginning and end of all
things is undifferentiated Oneness. "[cxxxviii]
That is, Chokhmah
Ila'ah / Supernal Wisdom. Reb Noson
relates this teaching to an informal talk he heard from Rebbe Nachman shortly
before the Sabbath during Chanukah of 1805. At that time, the Rebbe said:
All forms and
characteristics of all humanity were included in the word "adam"
recorded in the Torah when God said, "Let us make man (adam)"
(Genesis 1:26 ). When God uttered the word "adam,"
man was created. The diversity of the entire human race was included in this
word. Similarly, with the word "animal" recounted in the Torah's
description of creation the diverse forms of all animals were created, and thus
with all creatures.
Reb Noson then
paraphrases Rebbe Nachman's remarks appended to the parable of the Chandelier
of Imperfections, concerning how all humanity was included in the word
"man," all lights in the word "light," and all leaves in
the word "tree."[cxxxix]
The singularity of the three things Rebbe Nachman mentions – man, light, and
tree – indicates the paradigm of Oneness. This is the level beyond time, beyond
process. Thus, Rebbe Nachman concludes his remarks with the declaration that
there are certain types of wisdom that preclude the need to eat or drink.
Eating and drinking are part of the process of deriving sustenance. When the tikkun
of creation is complete, this need will no longer exist. Like Moses who neither
ate nor drank during the forty days and nights he stood on Mount
Sinai to receive the Torah, one who stands at the fountainhead of
creation derives life directly from its source. In the hour of his loftiest
spiritual ascent, the tzaddik emet is sustained by Chokhmah
alone.[cxl]
The Son and the Master Craftsmen
Our assumption is that the son is the tzaddik
emet, whom Rebbe Nachman relates to the term ben (son) in Likutey
Moharan II, 2, and elsewhere. This is the paradigm of Moses, "master
of all prophets." The other craftsmen are the other tzaddikim, the
paradigm of the prophets inferior to Moses.
Why must the son
relativize the wisdom of the rest?
He must do so
because their wisdom collectively represents the present state of creation,
which by definition is an aggregate of things imperfect and incomplete. Their
wisdom is bound up with the hierarchy of nature, with time and process, whereas
the wisdom of the son, or tzaddik emet, surpasses all this. Thus, only
the son can make a "perfect Menorah"; that is, only the transcendent
level of wisdom the son has attained can rectify all imperfection.
"In truth, I
can make a perfect lamp," he boasts.
How? What is the
basis of this claim? By knowing the "negative," as it were, the son
still has not overtly demonstrated the "positive," i.e. the Divine
Oneness. Nevertheless, by virtue of containing all imperfections, his lamp alludes
to Oneness - it is the “flip side of the coin.” And, in
fact, it represents the path to the perception of Oneness. The negation of the
negative is the springboard by which one grasps the positive.
Reb Noson
preserved another startling declaration from Rebbe Nachman that addresses the
theme in our parable:
I know forms of
wisdom that cannot be revealed. If I were to begin to disclose a modicum of
this wisdom, people would be able to live by the delight of comprehending it
without eating or drinking. The entire world would cease due to expiry of the
soul, from longing to hear my wisdom. People would relinquish this life because
of the wondrous sweetness and delight of the wisdom I would reveal. However, I
cannot reveal this wisdom to mankind. As soon as I begin to converse with
people, I want to hear what the other has to say -
for in his words I hear sublime things. Therefore, this great and awesome
wisdom cannot be revealed.[cxli]
If Rebbe Nachman
possessed such wondrous wisdom, what could he possibly receive from others, who
occupy a lower spiritual rung? Perhaps this is another case of the question
being the answer. Precisely by contemplating imperfect wisdom, the tzaddik can
intuit perfection. With his silence, he induces the sublime from the
seeming ordinariness of the other person's words.
This is why the
son must "put down" the rest, and perhaps why Rebbe Nachman made his
seemingly self-glorifying remarks, cited by Reb Noson in Chayei Moharan
("The Life of Our Master, Rebbe Nachman"). For example: “All of the tzaddikim
are nothing compared to me – and I am more ‘nothing’ than all of them!”[cxlii]
The Chandelier of
Imperfections, symbolizing the present state of reality, is made of the other
craftsmen's deficiencies. At the same time, their lack of recognition of the
son's superiority is the precondition for this state of creation, which is
characterized by incompletion and process. That is, as long as the highest
wisdom is hidden, the process of creation is operative; and by
implication, as long as the true master craftsman - the son, who is the tzaddik emet - is hidden, and the other tzaddikim do
not recognize his wisdom, there is a Chandelier of Imperfections to
contemplate.[cxliii]
The tzaddikim are
the "foundation of the world,"[cxliv]
in that they take responsibility for its spiritual elevation. However,
those who have not reached the highest level cannot complete this task. The
ultimate tikkun depends upon the tzaddik emet. This, too, is why various sections of Rebbe
Nachman's "Tale of the Seven Beggars" describe a debate among various
masters and the mysterious beggar who surpasses them all. As Rebbe Nachman
Goldstein of Tcherin points out in his commentary on this story, the tikkun of
everything depends on the lesser tzaddikim recognizing their limitations
and acknowledging the beggar who alone can rectify everything, namely the tzaddik
emet.[cxlv]
Perceiving the Perfect Chandelier
One may still ask: what does this debate in
Rebbe Nachman's parable have to do with us? Who among us can even be counted
among the "local craftsmen," who according to our line of
interpretation are also tzaddikim? Yet as Reb Noson states in his
Introduction to Likutey Moharan, Rebbe Nachman's teachings are relevant
to everyone. There is something we, too, can learn from the "Chandelier of
Imperfections." Like the local craftsmen, we must recognize that only the
tzaddik emet can show us our deficiency, and bring us to our tikkun
ha-neshamah (healing of the soul). The mission of this unique tzaddik
is to enable everyone to behold the perfect chandelier - and in so doing, to become transmuted to
it.
This concept
pervades Rebbe Nachman's writings. For example, he once remarked, "When
people become close to the tzaddik emet, they taste the Garden of Eden;
for the holy Zohar states that the tzaddik is the 'tender of the
garden.' "[cxlvi]
This implies that to some degree, they become "part" of the tzaddik,
and therefore can share something of his state of being and divine perception.
Like the unity the Menorah, this perception of God’s unity utterly transcends
ordinary intellectual constructs. The Rebbe further discusses the fusion of the
minds of the tzaddik and his disciples in Likutey Moharan I, 129,
his discourse on the verse that describes the Land of Israel 13:32 ). That is, just as food becomes
transmuted to the nature of the one who consumes it, so the inhabitants of the Land of Israel
In the same vein,
Rebbe Nachman once told his followers: "Anyone can reach my level and
become exactly like me. The main thing on which everything depends is
sincere effort and devotion."[cxlvii]
This, too, suggests that an essential connection is made between master
and disciple. One becomes "exactly like" the tzaddik. To be
sure, one must do one's share of the avodah, the hard work. However, as
the Talmudic sages observe, "The prisoner cannot free himself."[cxlviii]
In addition to laboring in divine service, one must bind oneself to the tzaddik
emet.[cxlix]
As Rebbe Nachman also said:
When one does not
bind himself to the tzaddik emet, all his devotions are like the
contortions of a person trying to imitate someone else - like a monkey imitating a human . . .
There is really no way to serve God except through the tzaddik emet.[cl]
Through
attachment to the tzaddik emet, one gets in touch with his very essence - the "spark" of the tzaddik
emet within himself - and no longer serves God in a state of
spiritual sleep, or with self-serving motives. According to Rebbe Nachman, one
who fails to do so will just go through the motions of divine service, studying
Torah in a state of constricted consciousness and praying in a state of
constricted consciousness, like a monkey imitating a human. He lacks true
intellect.
Therefore, the
first thing we must know is that there is a tzaddik emet, as the present
parable demonstrates. Then we must do our part. We must turn to the "master
craftsman," so that he may fix the damage we have incurred and restore us
to "factory specifications." By studying Rebbe Nachman's teachings
and by following the paths in divine service they chart, we can undergo a
complete spiritual transformation.
Again, to cite
the example of Likutey Moharan I, 21, we must sanctify the “seven
branches of the Menorah “ – corresponding to the seven apertures of our eyes,
ears, nose and mouth – to receive the shefa Eloki, or divine influx. We
must train our eyes to see in a new way, an entirely positive way: our ears to
hear the words of the wise; our nostrils to inhale and exhale the breath of
life, imbued with awe of God; our mouth to speak words that reveal truth and
wisdom and God’s praises, not falsehood, slander, and scorn. At the beginning,
this may seem an extremely dauntng task. However, just as the caterpillar is
destined to turn into a butterfly, the ordinary self is destined to give birth
to the tzaddik within us. Everything depends on one’s ratzon, his
inner resolve. The primary arena for this inner work is hitbodedut: secluded
self-examination and plumbing the depths of the mind and heart. But Rebbe
Nachman's path includes all Jewish religious practices - Torah study, meditation and prayer,
performance of mitzvot and virtuous deeds -
and extends to all areas of life.
"If I so desired, I could make a
perfect lamp…"
The son's claim to be able to make a
perfect lamp is not just a boast. Through his teachings and disciples, the
tzaddik emet will accomplish everything that he set out to achieve. As
Rebbe Nachman said, "I have finished, and I will finish…"[cli]
The Psalmist assures us, "The world will be built with
lovingkindness" (Psalms 89:3). Behind the stage curtain, a new world and a
new state of being free of ignorance, exploitation, and conflict, are in the
process of being formed. This emerging "world of lovingkindness" is
symbolized by the perfect lamp, free of all deficiency. It is the transforming
vision of God's Oneness perpetually waiting in the wings of history.
This is what we
are all truly yearning for, even in the midst of our deepest confusions. It may
be but a glimmering coal in the ashes of destruction. However, as our sages
state, "The Mashiach (Messiah) will be born on the Ninth of Av."[clii]
This day commemorates the most tragic event in Jewish history - the destruction of the Holy Temple Jerusalem
Afterthoughts
Two Divine Names and Rebbe Nachman's
Parable
By definition, the Divine Name HaVaYaH
is primary, yet the Name Elokim (alef-lamed-heh-yud-mem) appears
first in the account of creation, specifically in connection with the physical
universe. HaVaYaH does not appear until the creation of man. Why?
There are various
explanations of this in the biblical commentaries. But based on Rebbe Nachman's
parable, we could say that this is because the physical universe reflects the
hiddenness of the Creator, like the Chandelier of Imperfections; however, the
true source of creation is HaVaYaH - the
miraculous, transcendent aspect of divinity, corresponding to the unseen
perfect lamp.
HaVaYaH is also associated with God's mercy, which
is revealed through the creation of man. This is because only man can come to
realize: "HaVaYaH hu ha-Elokim, ein ode milvado - God (HaVaYaH) is the Lord (Elokim),
nothing else exists but Him" (Deuteronomy 4:39 ). In so doing, we spiritually elevate the natural
world, which was created with the Name Elokim.[cliii]
Two Menorahs, Two Trees
Rebbe Nachman mentions three things,
including the leaves of a tree. We equated the Menorah to a tree, which
similarly has a base (corresponding to a tree's roots), trunk, branches, and
even leaves and flowers below the cups that hold the oil and wicks. The tree
also symbolizes both the hierarchy and unity of creation. Thus, the
"map" of the ten sefirot that provide the spiritual
infrastructure of creation is called a "tree." And, of course, the
verse states, "Man is a tree of the field" (Deuteronomy 20:19 ). The human form is yet
another level of the metaphor.
Indeed, the human
form is reflected on all levels of creation, for man is the focal point of
creation. Avot de-Rabbi Nathan calls man a "small world," a
microcosm of the universe.[cliv]
Thus, the Zohar’s concept that "the Menorah is the head"
further suggests that the mystery of unity and multiplicity, which is the
mystery of divine wisdom, has a connection to our heads, too. God wants to
impart this perception to man.
We discussed the
difference between the Divine Name HaVaYaH - yud-heh-vav-heh - and Elokim
that appear in the first chapter of Genesis. According to the classic
commentary of Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, 1040-1105), HaVaYaH is
related to divine mercy, whereas Elokim is related to divine justice.
However, in the Kabbalah, the Divine Name Ekyeh - alef-heh-yud-heh - is associated
with mercy and the transcendent level of Keter, the Divine Crown;
HaVaYaH is associated with the sefirah of Tiferet, Beauty and
Harmony; and Elokim is associated with Gevurah, Might. Elokim
doesn't present a problem, since the attributes of justice and might invariably
go hand in hand. However, the Divine Name HaVaYaH seems to bear a
different meaning according to the kabbalistic view.
On closer
examination, we see that there is no true contradiction. Based on a passage
from the Zohar, the holy ARI explains that the sefirah of Tiferet
mirrors the sefirah of Keter on a lower plane.[clv]
Tiferet is associated with the paradigm of the "Small Face" (Z'er
Anpin), meaning that God reveals His face, as it were, in an immanent
manner. Keter, by contrast, is associated with the "Great
Face" (Arikh Anpin), alluding to the way God's face is revealed
above, on the transcendent plane. Each sefirah expresses the divine
mercy, albeit to a different degree. The Thirteen Attributes of Divine Mercy
enumerated in Exodus 34:6-7 are associated with Keter. This is absolute
mercy. However, nine of these attributes are repeated in Numbers 9:14. They are
associated with Z'er Anpin / Small Face, which in Lurianic terminology
is the partzuf, or composite of sefirot, that corresponds to Tiferet.
This is mercy as it exists in relation to strict justice, its opposite.
The concept of Tiferet
leads us to another interesting line of inquiry, another dimension of
meaning. The first and all-encompassing moral test Adam was given involved a
tree - actually, two trees. For the Tree of
Knowledge of Good and Evil grew in the same place as the Tree of Life.[clvi]
Some commentaries contend that their branches were intertwined, like a spiral
or braid.[clvii]
Kabbalistically, the Tree of Life is identified with Tiferet, while the
Tree of Knowlege is identified with Malkhut, Kingship. The latter is
also an aspect of din, strict judgment, as in the rule of Talmudic
jurisprudence "dina de-malkhuta dina / the law of the kingdom is
the law."[clviii]
This suggests that the Divine Name HaVaYaH, corresponding to Tiferet,
is the Tree of Life, the central point and root of creation. So perhaps we can
say that in Rebbe Nachman's parable, the Tree of Life is the perfect lamp, and
the Tree of Knowledge is the Chandelier of Imperfections - corresponding to good and evil, dualistic
perception, the hierarchy of creation, and the local craftsmen who, lacking the
wisdom bound up with the Tree of Life, must inevitably disagree with each
other.
The master
craftsman, the tzaddik emet, alone can reveal the perfect Menorah,
because he is a "living Menorah." Having partaken of its
divine fruits, he can lead us to the Tree of Life.
An Upside-Down Menorah
The Chandelier of Imperfections is not just
a Menorah, but it is an upside-down Menorah. Perhaps this may be understood by
our considering another one of Rebbe Nachman's seemingly self-aggrandizing
remarks. He states, "I am a most beautiful and wondrous tree with the most
wondrous branches, and below, I rest deeply in the ground."[clix]
What is this
"ground?" We might say that it is the ground of being, the ground of
creation: Oneness. Creation itself may be described as an upside-down tree, its
roots "above" in Ein Sof, the Infinite, and its branches
"below" in the realm of multiplicity.
It is like an
upside-down Menorah. Breslover Chasidim point out that the word
"Menorah" contains the same letters (mem-nun-vav-resh-heh) as "Moharan"
- "our master, Rebbe Nachman."[clx]
5. “Just Like Me.”
When faced with the blandishments of olam
hazeh (or sometimes just the thought of them), Breslover Chassidim
typically caution each other with a one-word reminder: “Tachlit!”—meaning
“Don’t forget the true goal!” As Rabbi Nachman observes (Likutey Moharan
I, 268): “If a person doesn’t consider the tachlit, of what purpose is
his life?” Life is not a cosmic accident. It has a God-given purpose, which we
must not lose sight of.
What is the nature of this tachlit?
In the same lesson from Likutey Moharan, the Rebbe states what may seem
to be obvious to any religious Jew: the purpose of life in this world is to
serve God. But he also explains that our divine service, though surely its own
intrinsic reward, goes hand in hand with another dimension of the tachlit—at
the level of consciousness. This is the da’at, or higher awareness,
associated with the “Future World.” As the famous prophecy goes: “The knowledge
(de’ah, a construct of da’at) of God will fill the earth like the
water that covers the sea” (Isaiah 1:9). This is the Jewish equivalent of
enlightenment in its most universal aspect. For the da’at of the Future
World will reach all beings on all levels, from the highest to the lowest, like
the vastness of the water in the prophet’s metaphor (for more on this subject,
see the end of Likutey Moharan I, 21).
In Likutey Moharan II, 19, the Rebbe
brings out another facet of this idea, telling us that this higher awareness is
attained by performing the mitzvot and serving God with simplicity and
faith, the cardinal virtues of his path. Clearly, the two dimensions of
consciousness and action are inextricably connected. He similarly states at the
beginning of Likutey Moharan II, 37: “The main purpose is only to labor
and procede in the ways of God for the sake of His Name, in order to merit to
recognize God and know Him. This is the tachlit—and this is what God
desires: that we perceive Him.”
He adds that this goal must not be
approached in a materialistic way, but in keeping with the deepest longing of
the soul. “One person might labor all of his days and pursue worldly desires in
order to fill his belly with them,” he explains, “while another might strive to attain the
World to Come—but this, too, is called ‘filling one’s belly.’ For he wishes to
fill his belly and gratify his desire with the World to Come! The only
difference is that he is a little wiser than the first . . . However, I don’t
choose to emulate either of them. All I want is to ‘gaze upon the pleasantness
of God’ (Psalms 27:4).”
Thus, the Future World is not just the
equivalent of cashing in our chips after a lucky day at the casino. It is
actually the culmination of our avodah (spiritual effort): the
experience of “gazing upon the pleasantness of God.” This may be attained by
the meritorious after death, as well as by the tzaddikim even in this world.
The Gemara (Berakhot 17a) says as much when it cites the custom of the
sages to bless each other with the words: “May you behold your Hereafter (olam
habah) in this life!”
Olam habah is more than a future realm or state of
being, but a sublime perception that may be experienced here and now by the
tzaddikim – and by those who are attached to them.
One way we can achieve this, the Rebbe
tells us, is by conquering our anger with compassion (Likutey Moharan I,
18). In so doing, we transcend our innate selfishness and get in touch with a
greater reality – the transpersonal, integrated reality that is so vividly
perceived by the tzaddikim. Another way is by heeding the guidance and advice
of the tzaddikim, which not only sets our feet in the right direction, but also
establishes a spiritual bond between us and the awesome sages who prescribed
such holy advice (Likutey Moharan II, 39).
Rabbi Nachman talks about the primacy of
this relationship with the tzaddikim as it bears upon our reaching the true
goal of life in his tale of the “Seven Beggars,” the culmination of the
thirteen mystical stories for which the Rebbe is best known. The narrative is
too lengthy and complex to retell here, but we can summarize a few of its key
features: after a storm wind ravages the world, turning sea to dry land and dry
land to sea, two little children, a boy and a girl, escape into a vast forest.
There, hungry and thirsty and frightened, they encounter seven wandering
beggars, who appear one after the next each day, and give the lost children
bread and water, as well as a blessing. The nature of these blessings is that
the children should become like their benefactors in a particular way. For each
beggar possesses a physical disability—one is blind, one is deaf, etc.—but the
seeming disability masks an awesome holy power. These blessings are assurances
that the children will one day acquire the same lofty spiritual levels.
Eventually, the homeless boy and girl find their way back to civilization and
join a band of wandering hoboes, who adopt them and look after them.
These beggars represent the great tzaddikim
throughout history, who sustained us again and again during our long and bitter
exile; while the lost children represent the male and female aspects of the
Jewish people (or maybe the Jewish people, represented as the groom, and the Shekhinah/Divine
Presence, represented as the bride). The seven blessings, and subsequently,
seven gifts, are that the children should become “just like” their nameless
benefactors. This echoes the Rebbe’s declaration mentioned in the previous
chapter, “I can make you tzaddikim ki-moni mamash, just like me!”[clxi]
On the one hand, this sounds pretty democratic: it means that we can all get there.
On the other, it indicates that everything essentially depends on the tzaddik,
who confers his attainments upon those who follow his guidance. Let’s take a closer look at the nature of
those blessings and gifts.
- The
Blind Beggar
The blessing of the Blind Beggar is: “You
should be old like me; that is, you should have a long life, like mine. You
think that I’m blind, but actually, I’m not blind at all. It is just that for
me, the entire duration of the world’s existence doesn’t amount to even the blink
of an eye . . . I am extremely old, but I am extremely young. In fact, I have
not yet begun to live – but nevertheless, I am very old.” He goes on to
describe a contest with other sages about whose memory is the greatest. The
Blind Beggar alone remembers the primal Nothingness (Yiddish: “Ich gedenk
gohr-nisht!”) that altogether precedes creation. (He is therefore the
“Elder on the Side of Holiness” and the “Elder of Elders”; see Chayei
Moharan 123 and 272, citing an expression of the Zohar.) And this
sublime realization is his gift to the newlyweds – and to us all when we reach
the hour of “finding” or spiritual discovery, the unification that is
comparable to a wedding. (In Likutey Moharan I, 65, the tachlis
is related to the paradigm of closed eyes, which can perceive the
transcendental reality and not be distracted by worldly illusion.)
- The
Deaf Beggar
The blessing of the Deaf Beggar is: “You
should be like me; that is, you should live a good life, like mine. You think
that I’m deaf, but actually, I’m not deaf at all. It is just that the entire
world does not amount to anything to me, that I should listen to its
deficiencies. All sounds come from deficiencies, since everyone cries out about
what he is lacking. Even the world’s joys are due to deficiencies, since one
only rejoices when his lack is filled . . . However, I have a good life in
which nothing is lacking.” In the story he tells as proof of his claim, he
alone is capable of saving a mythical Land of Wealth, once perfect in its delights,
but now corrupted by an evil king and his emissaries. The Deaf Beggar guides
the populace to purify themselves of the three poisons of profane speech, which
had ruined the sense of taste; bribery, which had ruined the sense of sight;
and sexual immorality, which had ruined the sense of smell. Purged of these
evils, the ill-tended garden in the midst of the land reverts to its former
Eden-like state, and the lost gardener, who had been taken for a madman, is
discovered and restored to his former position. Implicit in this sub-plot is
the idea that the “good life,” which is the spiritual life, may be experienced
through our very senses, if only we would purify ourselves of these
toxins.
- The
Beggar With a Speech Defect
The blessing of the Beggar With a Speech
Defect is: “You should be like me. You think that I have a speech defect. I
don’t have a speech defect at all. Rather, all the words in the world that do
not praise God lack perfection. [Therefore, I seem to have a speech defect,
since I cannot speak such imperfect words.] But actually, I don’t have a speech
impediment at all. Quite the contrary, I am a wonderful orator and speaker. I
can speak in parables and verses that are so wonderful that no created thing in
the world doesn’t want to hear me. For the parables and lyrics that I know
contain all wisdom.” In the course of the tale he tells to “prove” his claims,
the Deaf Beggar indicates that his parables and verses sustain the entire
universe – and they reflect the animating wisdom of all seven days of creation,
which were created through the divine speech. (In Likutey Moharan I, 65,
the tachlis is also related to the perfection of speech, in the Rebbe’s
description of “making echad / unity of the words of prayer” in the
course of davenning.)
- The
Beggar With a Crooked Neck
The blessing of the Beggar With a Crooked
Neck is: “You should be like me. You think I have a crooked neck, but actually,
my neck isn’t crooked at all. Quite the contrary, it is very straight. I have a
most beautiful neck. However, there are vapors in the world, and I don’t want
to exhale and add to these vain vapors. [This is why my neck seems to be
crooked: I twisted my neck to avoid exhaling into the atmosphere of the world.]
But in fact, I have a most beautiful, wonderful neck, since I have a wonderful
voice. There are many sounds in the world that are unrelated to speech. I have
such a wonderful neck and voice that I can mimic any of these sounds.” In the
extremely obscure tale that the Beggar With a Crooked Neck goes on to relate,
this power seems to be the root of all music and prophecy. This is suggested by
the symbolism of the two estranged birds that the Beggar With a Crooked Neck
reunites, which allude to the two K’ruvim, or winged angelic forms that
hovered over the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy Temple and, according to
Chazal, served as the channel for prophecy. The Rebbe also implies that this
power brings about the spiritual unification associated with the Messianic
Redemption.
- The
Beggar With a Hunchback
The blessing of the Beggar With a Hunchback
is: “You should be like me. I am not a hunchback at all. Quite the contrary, I
have broad shoulders (Yiddish: breiter pleitzes, which also means the
ability bear difficult responsibilities). My shoulders are an example of the
‘little that holds much’ (a concept found in the Midrash).“ Reb Noson later
adds: “The hunchback was on the level of the intermediate zone between space
and that which is beyond space. He possessed the highest possible concept of
the ‘little that holds much,’ at the very end of space, beyond which the term
‘space’ no longer applies . . . Therefore, he could carry [his companions] from
within space to a dimension that transcends space.” In the tale the Beggar With
a Hunchback tells to prove his point, this dimension is symbolized by the
wondrous “Tree That Stands Beyond Space,” evocative of the biblical Tree of
Life, in the branches of which all beings find repose and peace.
- The
Beggar Without Hands
The blessing of the Beggar Without Hands
is: “[You think there is something wrong with my hands.] Actually, there is
nothing wrong with my hands. I have vast power in my hands – but I do not use
the power of my hands in this physical world, since I need it for something else.”
In the course of the story he tells, this other purpose turns out to be the
healing of the Queen’s Daughter – another symbol of the collectivity of souls.
This healing is accomplished through the Ten Types of Song, corresponding to
the Ten Types of Charity, Ten Types of Pulse (mentioned in the Tikuney Zohar
– which seem to be a little different than those used in Chinese medicine), and
the beggar’s ten invisible fingers. Then he tells the newlyweds, “And I am
giving this power to you as a wedding present.”
- The
Beggar Without Feet
The blessing of the Beggar Without Feet
remains a mystery. This final section of the story remains untold until the
Mashiach – who in kabbalistic symbology is associated with the feet – arrives
and reveals it to us, may it be speedily in our days!
To sum everything up, the gifts of the
Seven Beggars are: long life / transcendence of time (eyes); good life /
transcendence of need and desire (ears); oratory that contains all wisdom /
transcendent speech (mouth); wondrous voice that can produce all sounds /
transcendent sound or cosmic music (neck); ultimate degree of “the small that
contains the great” / transcendence of space (shoulders); miraculous healing
power / transcendence of mortality and sadness (hands); and presumably either
perfect faith, or kingship, or joy (all of which are aspects of Malkhus
/ Kingship), corresponding to transcendence of self, or ego (feet). They make
up one structure, just as the parts of the human anatomy to which they
correspond form one structure. Acquiring these sublime powers through the grace
of the tzaddikim enables one to reach the tachlit at the individual
spiritual level.
This is supported by a few more
descriptions of the ultimate goal in the Rebbe’s teachings. In Likutey
Moharan I, 18, the tachlit equals the “primordial thought,” or
divine intention that underlies all of creation. This primordial thought is
revealed only at end of the process it sets into motion, and is the aspect of “ayin
lo ra’asah / no eye has seen it” (another hint to the symbolism of the
Blind Beggar in our story). (Cf. Likutey Moharan I, 8, citing Berakhot
34b, where this phrase indicates Chokhmah and the non-dualistic level.
This is supported by the principle that “He and what He enlivens are one, He
and what He causes are one—in the ten sefiros of Atzilus / World
of Emanation” [Tikuney Zohar, Introduction, 3b], the realm which
corresponds to Chokhmah; see the explanation of this in Sefer
HaTanya, Iggeret HaKodesh 20).
In Likutey Moharan II, 83, the tachlit
is related to the paradigm of “Mekomo shel Olam / Place of the World“—the
ohr makkif (encompassing light) or “supra-domain” of creation
altogether. And in Likutey Moharan II, 39, the tachlit is related
to Shabbos, the olam ha-neshamot / world of souls, and at the
experiential level, the lucid perception of God. This may correspond to the
“Tree That Stands Beyond Space” in the tale of the Beggar With a Hunchback.
The qualities that the Seven Beggars confer
upon the bride and groom are various expressions of being rooted in the “whole”—the
transcendent Divine Unity—and not being stranded in the “part,” the illusion of
creation as something autonomous, hopelessly conflicted, separate from God. The
preeminent tzaddikim represented by the beggars in the Rebbe’s story are those
who have fully attained this wholeness and seen through worldly illusion.
Therefore, they are uniquely capable of correcting our confusions and elevating
us from the spiritual quagmire, so that we, too, may reach the luminous goal
for which we were created.
Afterthought
In Likutey Moharan (quoted above),
the Rebbe teaches that we must engage in the avodah of Torah study,
performance of the mitzvos, prayer (especially hitbodedut) and
self-improvement in order to reach the tachlit. However, in the story of
the Seven Beggars, the main factor seems to be the tzaddikim who bestow their
wondrous gifts upon the newlyweds. Is there a correspondence between what the
Rebbe is saying in each body of work, or not?
Maybe we can read avodat atzmo, personal
spiritual work, into two elements of the story. First, the children must attain
maturity before their companions escort them to the chuppah and beg
leftovers from the royal banquest in order to put together a wedding feast.
Maybe this maturation process equals personal avodah, which elevates one
from a lower level to a higher level. Second, the bride and groom express their
yearning for each beggar to join them before the desired guest miraculously
appears. This yearning is a key factor, too. We must make what the Zohar
calls an “itaruta de-letata / awakening from below” before we can
experience a reciprocal “itaruta de-le’eila / awakening from above.” The
longing for the beggars on the part of the bride and groom indicates hitkashrut
le-tzaddikim, creating a spiritual bond, which is up to us, as well. These
two factors are the prerequisites for our ability to receive the greatest gifts
of the tzaddikim: to become “just like them mamash.”
6.
One Last Story
The Jewish mystical tradition has long been
kept "under wraps." As the Talmud states, "The mysteries may be
revealed only one-to-one, and the disciple must be a sage who already
understands on his own."[clxii]
Yet beginning with the Chasidic movement, these secrets have been increasingly
revealed - even to those who fail all of the
admission requirements. This begs the question: If the student is unprepared,
what can the teacher hope to accomplish? The sages of the Mishnah describe four
types of students: “the sponge, the funnel, the strainer, and the sieve.”[clxiii]
The sieve is praiseworthy in that it allows the flour dust to pass through, but
retains the fine flour. This applies to the study of the Torah’s revealed
teachings. How much more so, the secrets of Torah!
Rebbe Nachman
acknowledged the problem of unworthy students;[clxiv]
yet he revealed even more than his predecessors.[clxv]
This seems self-contradictory. However, he gave a parable to explain why he
divulged so many profound secrets through his teachings and stories, although
it did not seem possible that his words would achieve their purpose.
Once there was a
king whose only son became so sick that the doctors despaired of healing him.
Then one of the great medical experts arrived. The king begged him to do
anything he could to save the crown prince. The doctor told him the truth:
there was little chance of success. Still, there was one last resort. If they
tried it, who knows? It might work.
"I'm
reluctant to reveal this method," the medical man said to the king.
"It will be very hard to use it, and I don't want the king to become angry
with me."
The king told him
not to worry, and pressed him to divulge this last possible cure.
"You should
know," the doctor began, "that your son's condition is so critical
that it is now impossible to give him a single drop of medicine. It is
extremely difficult for him to swallow. However, there are certain remedies
made from precious stones that are so expensive that the smallest bottle would
cost thousands of gold pieces. What the king must do is to fill barrels full of
these precious remedies, and then pour buckets of them over the prince. The
costly remedies will go to waste, but the prince will become a little stronger
due to his body absorbing them. And it is possible that as they pour all of
these gallons over him, a tiny drop will enter his mouth - then he might be healed."
The king
immediately agreed and ordered his servants to empty the royal treasure trove,
if necessary, to save his son. They followed the doctor's instructions, and
finally the prince was cured.[clxvi]
Reb Noson adds:
It is precisely because we are so crushed by our sicknesses - the sicknesses of the soul - that the tzaddik, like a master
physician, is forced to pour such priceless remedies over us, even though it
seems that virtually all of them will go to waste. Nevertheless, these healing
words surely have an effect on us. And perhaps in the course of time, a drop
will pass our lips. Then we will be healed at last, both spiritually and
physically!
Appendix: Who was Rebbe Nachman?
Rebbe Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810) was a
great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov ("Master of the Good Name," Rabbi
Israel Medzhibozh
Yet Rebbe Nachman was an
"original." He declared that he received his Torah teachings from
"a place no one had reached before."[clxix]
At the same time, he spoke to all. With all their kabbalistic depths, his
teachings are full of practical advice and inspiration, stressing the
importance of simple faith, starting anew in every moment, and attuning one's
mind to perceive divinity in every facet of creation.
Another pervasive theme is attachment to tzaddikim,
those who have reached the highest goal and thus can enable the rest of us get
there, too. Rebbe Nachman even intimates that he will help others find their
way back to God after his physical death. He compares this to a chain of
rescuers trying to save someone sinking in quicksand. The first one pulls the
second, who pulls the third, etc., until they have extricated the drowning man.[clxx]
So, too, even after his physical passing, the tzaddik can continue to
benefit the living through his teachings and followers.[clxxi]
Prior to his passing from this world at the
untimely age of thirty-eight, he predicted, “I have finished – and I shall yet
finish…”[clxxii]
The survival and, in recent years, exponential growth of Breslover Chasidism
has vindicated the Rebbe’s words. Today numerous yeshivot have been
established in Rebbe Nachman’s name; his works are widely studied in both
religious and secular circles; Breslover synagogues may be found all over the
world; and several large Breslov communities have been established in Israel
One of the greatest testimonies to Rebbe
Nachman’s enduring influence is the annual pilgrimage to his burial place in Uman , Ukraine
[2] Musaf,
Kedushah.
[3] Rabbi
Avraham Maimon, a disciple of 16th century kabbalist Rabbi Moshe Cordovero,
composed a mystical song paraphrasing Isaiah 45:15 ("For You are a
Self-Concealing God") that is still widely sung today during the Third
Sabbath Meal.
[4] Zohar
II, 42b. This concept is often cited by the Chasidic masters, e.g. Rabbi
Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl
[5] Thus,
when Rabbi Dov Ber, the Maggid of Mezeritch, first visited the Baal Shem Tov,
his future mentor challenged his understanding of a recondite kabbalistic text
that discussed the names of various angels. When the Maggid countered by asking
the Baal Shem Tov to offer a better explanation, if indeed he knew one, the
Baal Shem Tov began to speak. The room immediately became suffused with light,
and the Maggid actually beheld the awe-inspiring angels in question. Later, the
Baal Shem Tov explained, "Your interpretation was not incorrect - but it
had no soul!" (Keter Shem Tov, Kehot 1982 ed., sec. 424).
[6] Likkutim
Yekarim 161; in the Breslov literature, cf. Rabbi Nachman Goldstein of
Tcherin, 'Otzar ha-Yirah, Emet va-Tzedek, "Bittul el Ohr Ein Sof,
sec. 9 (citing Likutey Halakhot).
[7] Rabbi
Yaakov Yosef of Polonoye, Toldot Ya'akov Yosef, Bereshit.
[8] Hakdamah,
Tikuney Zohar.
[9] Rabbi
Yitzchak Eizik Yehudah Yechiel Safrin of Komarno, Nesiv Mitzvotekha, cited
in Sefer ha-Baal Shem Tov, Vayelekh, note 6.
[10] Rabbi
Gedaliah of Linitz, Teshu'ot Chen, Tzav.
[11] Also cf.
Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl New Square
[12] It is
almost certain that Rebbe Nachman was familiar with Rabbi Pinchas Elijah
Horowitz of Vilna's Sefer ha-Brit (Brunn, 1793), the first half of which
attempts to integrate 18th century science with rabbinic and kabbalistic
thought; see Mendel Piekarz, Chasidut Breslov (Jerusalem 4:12 -13,
Rabbi Pinchas Elijah states that a lunar eclipse is caused by the shadow of the
earth, while a solar eclipse is caused by the shadow of the moon. Therefore, it
is unclear if Rebbe Nachman disputed this, or if there is an error in the text.
Perhaps significantly, a similar version of this teaching appears in Sichot
HaRan 136 that does not mention this point.
[13] That is,
the terms "physical" and "spiritual" are relative. This is
implied by the Midrash, which states, "The light of the sun is dark when
compared to the light that God created on the first day of creation"
(Genesis Rabbah 3:6). Similarly, the Zohar declares, "Even the
Supernal Crown (Keter Elyon) is considered 'black' before the Cause of
Causes" (Tikuney Zohar, Tikkun 70, 135b).
[14] Avot 6:11.
[15] We have
translated the verse in keeping with its context. More literally, it should be
rendered "Wisdom - from whence (me-ayin)
does it come forth?"
[16] This is
because "tzaddikim resemble their Creator" (Likutey Moharan
II, 52); also see Rabbi Gedaliah Aharon Kenig, Chayei Nefesh, chap. 18,
passim.
[17] I am
grateful to Rabbi Symcha Bergman for this insight.
[18] Rebbe
Nachman interprets the verse "And Hezekiah turned his face to the
wall" (Isaiah 38:2) to mean that he turned his awareness within, "for
one's true 'face' is one's state of mind" (Sichot HaRan 39).
[19] Thus,
Abraham interceded on behalf of Sodom Israel Israel 10:17 .
[20] Sichot
HaRan 136 (abridged).
[21]
Throughout the Jerusalem Talmud, tzedakah is simply termed "the mitzvah
(commandment)." Thus, tzedakah implicitly includes all of the
mitzvot; see Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, Sefer ha-Middot, Tzedakah
II, 14; Rabbi Gedaliah Aharon Kenig, Chayei Nefesh, chap. 23.
[22] Yerushalmi
Pe'ah 1:1.
[23] Zohar
II, 42b.
[24] Reb
Noson Sternhartz, Likutey Halakhot, Hil. Tzedakah 3, s.v. vi-zeh
bechinat mitzvat tzedakah.
[25] Tomer
Devorah ("Palm Tree of Deborah"), chap. 3.
[26] Rabbi
Schneur Zalman of Liadi, Sefer ha-Tanya, Igeret ha-Kodesh, Letter 29,
149b (p. 298), citing Pardes Rimonim 8:3, et al.
[27] Rabbi
Chaim Vital, Etz Chaim, Sha'ar Drushey A-B-Y-'A, 1. "Ani" is
spelled alef-nun-yud. Rearranged, these letters also spell "ayin";
also cf. Rabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch, Likkutim Yekarim, 154; Rabbi
Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl, Me'or Einayim, Likkutim, s.v. Ma'amar
"Tik'u ba-chodesh shofar." The latter teaching relates this to
the paradigm of the soundings of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah: the first
long sound represents the transcendent divine essence, which precedes creation;
the broken sound represents the realm of multiplicity; and the third long sound
represents the return to the divine essence.
[28] Likutey
Moharan II, 8 ("Tik'u / Tokhachah").
[29] This is
called the Shem be-Achorayim, or "Divine Name That Goes Back to the
Beginning." That is, each of the four "phases" of the Name
begins with the first letter yud, in a pattern of 1, 1-2, 1-2-3 , 1-2-3-4. These four
phases correspond to the Four Worlds, and collectively represent what the Zohar
calls "The Song That Will Be Awakened in the Future" (Tikuney
Zohar, Tikkun 21, 51b).
[30] Rabbi
David Cohen, ed., Orot ha-Kodesh (Jerusalem: Mosad HaRav Kook, 1985)
Vol. II, “Be-Achdut ha-Kolelet,” 30 (pp. 444-45). Cf. Reb Noson’s
homiletical interpretation which compares the Fourfold Song to four levels of simchah
(joy): the simple song corresponds to
the spark of faith that is “hardwired” into the soul of every Jew; it is a
“simple” song because in the depths of his being, every Jew believes in the
absolutely simple Oneness of God. The doubled song corresponds to one’s faith
in the true tzaddikim. The tripled song corresponds to one’s discovery
of the good points that one still possesses, despite all of one’s past
failings; and the quadrupled song corresponds to one’s present ability to latch
onto the good and to accept with joy the “yoke of the kingdom of heaven.” In
doing so, one’s life becomes an expression of the fourfold Song and a vehicle
for the four letters of God’s Name Y-H-V-H (Likutey Halakhot, Minchah
7:53).
[31]
Maimonides uses this terminology in Mishneh Torah, Hil. Yesodei ha-Torah
1:1-5, as well as in Guide of the Perplexed I, 53 (4) and 57. Given
Rebbe Nachman's well-known antipathy toward philosophical works, even those of
great authorities such as Maimonides, it may seem surprising that he uses such
expressions. However, Rebbe Nachman also asserts that the tzaddik must
contemplate philosophical works in order to extricate souls that fell away from
faith due to their influence; see Likutey Moharan I, 64 ("Bo el
Para'oh"). Moreover, "Mechuyav Ha-metziyut / Imperative
Existent" as a coinage for the Deity was accepted by several prominent
kabbalists, including Rabbi Isaiah Horowitz, Siddur ha-SheLaH I
(Jerusalem: Ahavat Shalom, 1998), p. 133, and Rabbi Pinchas Eliyahu Horowitz of
Vilna, Sefer ha-Brit I, 20:15 (109b-110a). This issue is discussed by
Rabbi Bezalel Naor in "Shir Na'im as a Reply to Maimonides,"
which appears as an appendix in my Shir Na'im: Song of Delight (Spring
Valley, NY: Orot 2005), pp. 123-126.
Chapter
2: The Wheel of Transformation
[32] Berakhot
33a.
[33] Exodus
Rabbah 31:14; also see Shabbat 151b, Sukkah 5:6, Ketubot
10:6.
[34] Tikuney
Zohar, Tikkun 19 (42a); Tikkun 69 (115a-b); Tikkun 70 (120a,
133b). This concept is discussed at length by the Safed kabbalists; e.g. Rabbi
Moshe Cordovero, Pardes Rimonim, Sha’ar ‘Erkhei ha-Kinuyim 23:1; Rav
Chaim Vital, Eitz Chaim, Drush ‘Iggulim ve-Yosher (11a-13a); ibid. Sha’ar
Drushei Nekudot 1 (34a); ibid. Seder Atzilut 3 (17a), et passim; Arba’
Me’ot Shekel Kesef, Drush Adam Kadmon, beg. (9b, 44b), et passim.
[35] Tikuney
Zohar, Hakdamah, "Patach Eliyahu."
[36] These
include the "Benei Elokim / Sons of the Lord" mentioned in
Genesis 6:1-2; Abraham's angelic visitors in Genesis, chap. 18; Lot's guests in
Genesis, chap. 19; and the stranger identified with the angel Gabriel who
directed Joseph to his brothers in Genesis 37:15-17 (according to Rashi); also
see Genesis Rabbah 26:7; Zohar III, 208b; et al.
[37] Yoma
37a; Yerushalmi Berakhot 1, 5, 9, et passim.
[38] One
example is Enoch in Genesis 5:24; see Targum Jonathan, ad loc. Another
is Elijah in II Kings 2:1.
[39] E.g. Likutey
Moharan I, 51, which equates the terms echad / one, tov /
good, kadosh / holy, and emet / one.
[40] Ibid.
[41] Tzava'at
ha-Rivash 4, 84, 120; Sha'ar ha-Otiyot, Hashgachah Peratit; Shivachei
Baal Shem Tov 150; et al. These and other such teachings are translated in
my anthology, The Path of the Baal Shem Tov (Jason Aronson 1997).
[42] Reb
Noson Sternhartz, Likutey Halakhot, Hil. Peryah
vi-Rivyah 3:21.
[43] In the
original, Rebbe Nachman speaks of both the Mishkan / Tabernacle and the Holy Temple Temple Temple 7:11 .
This lesson, too, was delivered on Chanukah. Reb Noson states that the makifin,
or "surrounding powers," mentioned in that lesson are an aspect of
the dreidel, since these surrounding powers encompass and constantly
change (Sichot HaRan 40, end).
[44] Pesachim
50a; Bava Batra 10b.
[45] Tanchuma,
Pekudei 1; Zohar I, 80b.
[46] Genesis
8:21, et al.
[47] Rashi, Zevachim
46b.
[48]
Nachmanides mentions the hyle in his commentary on Genesis 1:1-2,
apparently alluding to the words of Maimonides in Moreh Nevuchim II, 26;
also cf. Rabbi Chaim Vital, Etz Chaim, Sha'ar Drushei A-B-Y-'A, 1; Rabbi
Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl, Me'or Einayim, Bereshit, Ma'amar 4, et al.
This concept is discussed again in "The Chandelier of Imperfections."
[49] In an
addendum to this teaching, Reb Noson adds that the hyle is equivalent to
Chokhmah.
[50] Tzava'at
ha-Rivash, 12.
[51] Cf.
Rabbi Pinchas of Koretz, Imrei Pinchas (Bnei Brak 2003), vol. 1, "Chanukah,"
68, who states that the letters on the dreidel equal "Mashiach
/ Messiah."
[52] Likutey
Halakhot, Hil. Shabbat 6:8; ibid. Hil. Shilu'ach ha-Ken 5:18 ; et passim.
[53] Shabbat
146a; cf. Zohar I, 52a.
[54] Rabbi
Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (Ramchal), Adir Bamarom (R. Yosef Spinner, ed.),
vol. I, p. 339, citing Zohar III, 119b, re. the verse: “Kolah
ki-nachash yelekh / [Egypt Livorno ed., p. 15b of the hashmatot), which
describes the final battle between the nachash and Mashiach. I am grateful to Rabbi Avraham Sutton for locating these sources.
Subsequently I came across another mention of this gematria in a
Chasidic text, Sefer Ohr ha-Ganuz, Va-etchanan, Ofan Chet (69a) by Rabbi
Yehudah Leib Hakohen, a close disciple of the Maggid of Mezeritch.
[lv] Another
connection between the nachash and Mashiach is that both are
symbolically associated with the feet; see Sichot HaRan 93; Likutey
Halakhot, Hil. Keriyat ha-Torah 1; ibid. Hil. Hoda'ah 6:4; ibid. Hil.
Ribit 5:14 ; Rabbi
Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl
Chapter 3: The Mysterious Guest
[lvi] Sota
46b. Tanna D’vei Eliyahu Zuta 16:43
states that a disciple who escorts his Torah teacher receives divine blessing.
The same text adds (16:46 )
that when one escorts a traveler embarking on a journey, the traveler will be
protected from harm.
[lvii] The Zohar
describes the Garden of Eden as having a higher level for the neshamah,
which is the seat of thought, and a lower level for the ru'ach, the seat
of the emotions; see Zohar I, 138a.
[lviii] See
Rabbi Avraham ben Nachman, Kokhvei Ohr, Chokhmah u-Binah, who associates
Rebbe Nachman's teachings with the sefirah of Binah.
[lix] Likutey
Moharan II, 7:6.
[lx] Sefer
Baal Shem Tov, Vayeira, 4, citing Toldot Yitzchak, Likutey ha-Shas.
[lxi] Rabbi
Moshe Chaim Ephraim of Sudylkov, Degel Machaneh Ephraim, Vayeira.
[lxii] Pri Eitz
Chaim, Sha'ar Chanukah, 4. The three "upper" sefirot are Chokhmah
/ Wisdom, Binah / Understanding, and Da'at / Knowledge,
corresponding to three aspects of the mind. The six "lower"
sefirot are: Chesed / Kindness, Gevurah / Strength, Tiferet
/ Beauty or Harmony, Netzach / Eternity or Victory, Hod /
Splendor, and Yesod / Foundation, corresponding to the two arms, torso,
genitals, and two legs. The seventh and last sefirah is Malkhut /
Kingship, which is a partzuf unto itself, corresponding to the feminine
archetype.
[lxiii] Tanchuma,
Noach, 5.
[lxiv] Ta'anit
24b; cf. Rabbi Yisrael of Koznitz, Avodat Yisrael, Likkutim, Ta'anit.
[lxv]
Leviticus Rabbah, 9:3.
[lxvi] Pesachim
118a.
[lxvii] Genesis Rabbah 1:2, 8:2; Zohar I, 134a, II, 161a‑b.
[lxviii] This
idea echoes a fundamental Chasidic teaching. On the verse, "Forever, O
God, Your word stands in the heavens" (Psalms 119:89), the Baal Shem Tov
explains that "Your word" alludes to the Ten Creative Statements,
which bring the universe and all it contains into existence. If the
"letters" of these divine statements were to depart for even a
moment, everything would revert to nothingness; see Rabbi Schneur Zalman of
Liadi, Sefer ha-Tanya, Sha'ar ha-Yichud vi-ha-Emunah, chap. 1; Rabbi
Chaim of Chernowitz, Be'er Mayim Chaim, Bereshit, s.v. bereshit bara,
7.
[lxix] Deuteronomy
Rabbah 2:1; Tanchuma, Va'eschanan, 3; cf. Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Ohr
Yakar, Vayelekh, 1:15 (p. 27), who relates the "Treasury of Unearned
Gifts" to the sefirah of Keter.
[lxx] Tikuney
Zohar, Hakdamah, "Patach Eliyahu."
[lxxi] A
rabbinic maxim quoted by Rabbi Moshe Ibn Ezra, Shirat Yisrael, p. 156.
[lxxii] Based on
earlier rabbinic precedents, it is customary for a Chasidic Rebbe to distribute
to his followers portions of the foods from which he has partaken. These
leftovers are known as "shirayim." This communal eating
creates a spiritual bond among the participants, causing the holiness of the tzaddik
to extend to all, bringing healing and blessing; see Rabbis Mordechai Scharf
and Yisrael Menachem Mendel Brecher, Yesod 'Olam, 11:5-7, citing various
sources.
[lxxiii] Oral
tradition cited by Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Bender, Si'ach Sarfey Kodesh,
vol. II, 1-102.
[lxxiv] Likutey
Moharan II, 116; cf. Sichot HaRan 14.
[lxxv] Zohar
III, 232a; Exodus Rabbah 3:15, with gloss of Rabbi David Luria (RaDaL); also
cf. Zohar III, 7a, 231b, 265a; Tikuney Zohar, Tikkun 18, 35b;
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, Tanya, Igeret ha-Kodesh, Letter 25,
139a-b; Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, Likutey Moharan II, 77. This is not to
be confused with the pagan idea of divine incarnation, which is entirely
foreign to Judaism. Rather, the tzaddik is a merkavah, a vehicle
for the holiness that God confers upon him, not a deity himself. Therefore, it
is forbidden to worship even a true tzaddik or prophet, but God alone.
In the Breslov literature, see Rabbi Gedaliah Aharon Kenig, Chayei Nefesh,
chap. 7, citing Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, Nefesh ha-Chaim, 3:9, et
passim.
[lxxvi] 'Otzar
ha-Yirah: Bittul el Ohr Ein Sof, 13, citing Likutey Halakhot.
[lxxvii]
"Chabad" is an acronym for the three sefirot of Chokhmah
(Wisdom), Binah (Understanding), and Da'at (Knowledge). The school of Chasidism
[lxxviii] Zohar
III, 292a; cf. Chagigah 15b re. Talmudic sage Rabbi Akiva, who alone
among his peers was able to enter and leave the "Orchard," or
supernal realm, unscathed.
[lxxix] Rebbe
Nachman alludes to the "ascent" and "descent" of the Living
Creatures (Chayot), a class of angels described in Ezekiel 1:14.
[lxxx] Breslov
tradition has it that this teaches us an important lesson in divine service:
one must cast aside his former habits in order to serve God, and rely upon the
guidance of the tzaddik. (Si'ach Sarfey Kodesh, vol. IV, 71).
[lxxxi] Bechinat
Olam 13:13, cited by Rebbe Nachman in Likutey Moharan I, 24:8; II,
7:6, 83; Chayei Moharan 282; cf. Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Elimah
Rabbati, p. 36; Rabbi Aharon of Zhelichov, Keter Shem Tov (Kehot
1982 ed.), sec. 3.
[lxxxii] Zohar
I, 229b; II, 210b; III, 101a.
[lxxxiii] Hebrew: Kaf
ha-Kelah, mentioned in I Samuel, 25:29. This punishment entails the
soul being cast from place to place, without rest; see Zohar I, 238b;
III, 59a; Rabbi Eliyahu de Vidas, Reshit Chokhmah, Sha'ar ha-Kedushah 10:11.
[lxxxiv] Chayei
Moharan 102. Cf. TB Eruvin 19a. The Patriarch Abraham prevents those
who keep his covenant from entering Gehenna; also see Zohar III, 220b; Tikuney
Zohar, Tikkun 32, 76b; et al. Rebbe Nachman returns to this subject in
Chayei Moharan 298, 602.
[lxxxv] E.g.
Rabbi Chaim Vital, 'Etz Chaim II, Hekhal 'A-B-Y-A, Sha'ar Klallot
A-B-Y-'A, 42:2:2; Pri Etz Chaim, Sha'ar ha-'Amidah 19 ("Hashivenu")
(Ashlag ed., p. 243).
[lxxxvi] Rashi, ad
loc., citing Sifré.
[lxxxvii] Tikuney
Zohar, Hakdamah, "Patach Eliyahu."
[lxxxviii] The
"secret" of the letters is also part of the esoteric meditative
tradition of the Baal Shem Tov, passed down from master to disciple and only
mentioned in writing in hints. Recently an anonymous Chasidic scholar in Jerusalem
[lxxxix] Cf. Likutey
Moharan I, 49, re. the "lower Jerusalem Jerusalem
[xc] Likutey
Moharan II, 10; Sichot HaRan 228; et al.
[xci] Oral
tradition cited by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, Rebbe Nachman's Stories (Breslov
Research Institute 1983), p. 37.
[xcii] Zohar
II, 148a.
[xciii] Ibid. I,
267a, which states: "Why is gold called zahav (spelled zayin-heh-bet)?
Because it includes three categories. The zayin [which has the numerical
value of seven] stands for the seven sefirot [Chesed through Malkhut,
known as the emotional powers]; the heh stands for the final heh
[in the Divine Name YHVH, representing Malkhut, the feminine principle
as a separate category]; and the bet stands for Chokhmah and Binah
[the intellectual powers]." Cf. Maggid Devarav le-Yaakov, below,
note 121.
[xciv] Tikuney
Zohar, Hakdamah, 3b, cited in Tanya, Igeret ha-Kodesh 20.
[xcv] This
concept is discussed by Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, Tanya, Igeret
ha-Kodesh, Letter 19, citing the ARI, et al.
[xcvi] The
Menorah in the Holy
Temple 7:14
(p. 21); Pardes Rimonim, Sha'ar 'Erkhei ha-Kinuyim, 23:13 ; and cf. Rabbi Chaim Vital, Sha'ar
ha-Mitzvot, B'ha'alotekha, (Ashlag
ed., p. 68); Sefer ha-Likkutim, Tetzaveh (Ashlag ed., p. 186).
[xcvii] Rabbi
Chaim Vital, Sha'ar ha-Mitzvot, Ekev, s.v. amnam ha-talmidei
chakhomim yesh bahem koach (Ashlag ed., p. 101).
[xcviii] Ohr
Yakar al ha-Zohar, Vayakhel, 4:11 ,
p. 77.
[xcix] Ibid. p.
72.
[c] Sichot
HaRan 55.
[ci] Shulchan
Arukh, Orach Chaim 61:6.
[cii] Berakhot
13a; cf. Zohar I, hashmatot, 256b.
[ciii] Kiddushin
39b. The World of Beriah also parallels the "World to Come."
[civ] Likutey
Moharan I, 234. Rebbe Nachman goes on to discuss the difficulty of
silencing the mind. The remedy he prescribes in this lesson is telling stories
of the divine providence manifest in the lives of the tzaddikim. Because such
divine providence reflects the animating divine wisdom that underlies creation,
it provides a way of clearing away mundane attachments so that one may enter
the "World of Thought," i.e., the essence of consciousness.
Chapter
4: The Chandelier of Imperfections
[cv] Hebrew: menorah
ha-teluyah, or heng leichter in Yiddish.
[cvi] Yoma
86b.
[cvii]
Leviticus Rabbah 1:6.
[cviii] Rabbi
Shlomo Alkabetz, "Lekha Dodi" (liturgy)
[cix] Shabbat
118b.
[cx] In
Hebrew: “Yesh ‘inyan she-ha-kol nit’hapekh le-tovah.” The phrase “yesh
‘inyan” could also be translated as “there is a matter,” or “context,” or
“category.“ See Reb Noson Sternhartz, Likutey Eitzot, Hitchazkut 36.
[cxi] Rabbi
Yaakov Yosef of Polonoye, Toldot Yaakov Yosef, Bo.
[cxii] Zohar
II, 128b.
[cxiii] Shabbat
119b.
[cxiv] Zohar II, 42b.
[cxv] See
below, note 118.
[cxvi] Tikuney
Zohar, Hakdamah, 13b.
[cxvii] This
reflects a basic principle in divine service found throughout Jewish mystical
works. For example, sixteenth century kabbalist Rabbi Elijah de Vidas, a
leading disciple of Rabbi Moses Cordovero (RaMaK), writes: "The Holy One,
blessed be He, is sanctified and removed from the deficiency of this mundane
world, and His holiness and spirituality are limitless, as we declare, 'His
holiness cannot be measured' (liturgy, 'Yigdal'). Therefore, the tzaddikim
who seek His Oneness must be divorced from materialism and sanctified in
thought, which is the root of all aspects of holiness, preceding them all and
being the final goal of them all. This is the intent of the verse, 'And thou
shalt be a holy people unto Me' (Exodus 22:30 )
- 'holy' denotes the supernal holiness, which is
the mystery of thought [i.e. higher consciousness]" (Reishit Chokhmah,
Sha'ar ha-Kedushah, 1).
[cxviii] Rashi on
Numbers 8:4, citing Tanchuma.
[cxix] Ibid.
[cxx] Likutey
Halakhot, Hil. Kiley Behemah 4:17.
[cxxi] Maggid
Devarav le-Yaakov (Kehot ed.), 236. This teaching is closely related to the
present discussion:
We must
understand why the Torah mentions gold before silver, and water before fire.
Gold is a sevenfold structure. The letters of the word zahav (gold)
allude to the seven (zayin) "days" [an allusion to the seven sefirot]
produced by the five (heh) types of articulation - i.e.
they come forth from the divine speech. [This accounts for the letters zayin
(7) and heh (5) in the word zahav.] The final letter bet includes
all the words of the Torah - for the
Torah begins with the letter bet [of "Bereshit - In the
beginning…"]; and it is axiomatic that the first letter of the Torah
includes all the rest, just as the first letter one speaks includes everything
one wishes to say. That which exists in the part also exists in the whole,
albeit in the primordial root of intellect, which is the hyle -
represented by the letter yud [in the Divine Name YHVH].
We can
see this even with our senses, when a new perception enters a person's mind.
Afterwards he reflects on how all this had been hidden from him, and then [the
new perception] suddenly occurred to him, bringing with it an effluence of the
primordial intellect. In our case, too, the bet of the word bereshit
contains all of the words that follow afterward.
Thus, the
bet contains a dagesh, a dot inside the letter indicating
emphasis [i.e. it should be pronounced like a "b," not like a
"v"]. The Zohar refers to this as a "point in the
chamber," for the bet is like a chamber that contains all other
letters. However, they exist within the power of the hyle. Thus, the
inner point alludes to the letter yud, representing the hyle,
unformed chokhmah / wisdom.
This
[corresponds to] the oversized mem, the closed letter mem [shaped
like a square, and pronounced like the consonant "m"] - such as
the [anomalous] oversized mem in the phrase "to the one with
greatness in dominion (le-marbeh ha-misrah)…" (Isaiah 9:6). [The
letter mem in "le-marbeh" is written as in the form of a large
final mem, which is shaped like a square. According to one line of
thought, the verse speaks of the Messiah. The Zohar states that the
large closed mem alludes to Binah, recondite wisdom.] Thus, zahav
(gold) includes all "seven types of gold" [i.e., the seven sefirot].
This is why it precedes silver.
That
is, the dot in the letter bet represents the sefirah of Chokhmah
garbed within Binah. This corresponds in turn to the "closed"
or final mem, representing the transcendental wisdom of the Mashiach /
Messiah. In summation, the Maggid relates gold to the seven sefirot (Chesed
through Malkhut); five articulations (corresponding to the five gevurot
/ constrictions of Binah); and the letter bet with a dagesh
/ dot that begins the Torah, alluding to Binah / Chokhmah / hyle.
Cf. Imrei Tzaddikim (Ohr ha-Emet, Zhitomir 1901 ed.) 19c, in
which the Maggid relates the root of the ten sefirot in Chokhmah
to the medieval alchemists' quest to transmute base metals to gold.
[cxxii]
Nachmanides discusses the hyle in his commentary on Genesis 1:1, in
connection with the phrase tohu va-vohu ("formless and void").
He cites the Sefer ha-Bahir, which states: "And what is tohu?
It is something that astonishes people. Then it was turned into bohu.
And what is bohu? It is something that has substance, [being a composite
of the words] bo-hu [literally, 'in it there is substance']."
Nachmanides identifies the hyle with tohu.
[cxxiii] Zohar
III, 28a, 235b; also see Rabbi Chaim Vital, Etz Chaim II, Sha'ar
Drushei A-B-Y-'A, 1, who relates the hyle to the sefirah of Keter.
Although Reb Noson identifies the hyle with Chokhmah, sometimes Keter
is called Chokhmah, since Keter, too, may be considered the
point of origin of all manifestation. Therefore, it is possible to resolve this
seeming contradiction. Moreover, since Nachmanides associates the hyle with
tohu, he seems to identify it with the sefirah of Chokhmah,
unlike Rabbi Chaim Vital, who conceives the hyle as preceding tohu /
Chokhmah. This could be resolved by proposing two uses of hyle, one
relative (Chokhmah), and the other absolute (Keter). We have used
these terms less rigorously in our commentary.
[cxxiv] Likutey
Moharan I, 66:4; also see Rabbi Gedaliah Kenig, Chayei Nefesh, chap.
21, for further discussion.
[cxxv] Likutey
Moharan I, 74; also see Rabbi Chaim Vital, Etz Chaim II, Heikhal
Z'er Anpin, Sha'ar Drushei ha-Tzelem, 9:25:1; cf. Rabbi Schneur Zalman of
Liadi, Tanya, Igeret ha-Kodesh, Letter 5 (107a).
[cxxvi] Or
"ten lights in one vessel"; Rabbi Chaim Vital, Etz Chaim I, Heikhal
Adam Kadmon, Sha'ar Akudim, 1:6:1.
[cxxvii] Zohar
I, 47a, et passim.
[cxxviii] The
other three terms are ish, gever, and enosh. Ish denotes
the emotional attributes, whereas gever denotes strength, and enosh
denotes weakness; see Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Ohr Yakar al ha-Zohar,
Bereshit, Sha'ar 6, 46:2 (p. 226); also cf. Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak
Schneersohn of Lubavitch, On the Teachings of Chasidus, sec. 7, pp.
23-24.
[cxxix] The
Divine Name Mah corresponds to Tiferet / Z'er Anpin. These terms
describe the channel by which the light of Chokhmah may reach the lowest
levels of creation, albeit in more constricted form. The ARI identifies the
Menorah with Nukva de-Z'er Anpin. In non-technical language, this is the
deep wisdom of Torah as it becomes available to the world; see Rabbi
Chaim Vital, Eitz Chaim II, Sha'ar Tikkun ha-Nukva, 7 (Ashlag ed.
p. 165); Sefer ha-Likkutim, Tetzaveh (Ashlag ed., p. 186).
[cxxx] Chagigah
4a.
[cxxxi] The
letter alef, being first in the Hebrew alphabet, alludes to God's unity.
Thus it is associated with the "supernal worlds." The Divine Name "Mah"
corresponds to the World of Yetzirah / Formation. As such, it rectifies
the World of 'Asiyah / Action below it.
[cxxxii] Sota
3a.
[cxxxiii] Rabbi
Aharon Hakohen of Zhelichov, Keter Shem Tov ha-Shalem (Kehot 2005 ed.),
292a, b.
[cxxxiv] Tikuney
Zohar, Tikkun 69, 112b.
[cxxxv] Rabbi
Chaim Vital, Sha'ar ha-Gilgulim, Hakdamah 11.
[cxxxvi] Berakhot
61a.
[cxxxvii] Pardes
Rimmonim, Sha'ar 'Erkhei ha-Kinuyim, 23:13 ,
citing Bava Batra 25b.
[cxxxviii] Sefer
ha-Middot, Da'at II, 1.
[cxxxix] Sichot
HaRan 306.
[cxl] Rebbe
Nachman once told his mother, Rebbetzin Feige, that he had reached this level,
quoting the verse, "Wisdom gives life to its owner" (Ecclesiastes
7:12). The anecdote appears in Chayei Moharan 238.
[cxli] Sichot
HaRan 181.
[cxlii]
Paraphrase of Chayei Moharan 269.
[cxliii] This
interpretation reflects Rebbe Nachman's axiom in Likutey Moharan I, 21,
that as long as one does not grasp the supra-rational solution to the paradox
of man's free will and divine omniscience, free will remains in place.
Similarly, as long as the Divine Oneness symbolized by the "perfect
lamp" is hidden, the Chandelier of Imperfections exists - in order
to serve as a springboard for the intuition of that Oneness.
[cxliv] Proverbs
10:25. Accordingly, the Zohar expounds: "When the Holy One, blessed
be He, created the universe, He established it on one pillar, and ‘tzaddik’ is
its name. [The tzaddik] preserves the world, and he sustains the
world" (Zohar I, 208a).
[cxlv] Rimzey
ha-Ma'asiyot, Ma'aseh 13, Fourth Day, s.v. al kein lo hodiy'a lahem rak
chisaron sheleimutam. It seems that what Rebbe Nachman means by "tzaddik
emet," at least in this context, goes beyond the concept that there is
one preeminent living tzaddik in every generation. The tzaddik emet
is one who has attained universality, and thus can reveal an entire new
dimension of Torah wisdom that had previously been hidden within the
"mind" of the Infinite One. As such, he may remain the preeminent
tzaddik for many generations. This is implicit in Rebbe Nachman's
assertion: "From the time of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who was a unique
figure, as is well known, until the time of the ARI (Rabbi Isaac Luria
(1534-1572), of blessed memory, the world was quiet. That is, in the
intervening period, there were no new revelations comparable to those of Rabbi
Shimon . . . From the time of the ARI until that of the Baal Shem Tov (Rabbi Israel
[cxlvi] Sichot
HaRan 252, citing Zohar II, 166b.
[cxlvii] Sichot
HaRan 165. Some have contrasted this statement with the view of Rebbe
Nachman's older contemporary, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, that tzaddikim
are born as such, while beinonim ("intermediates," who are
neither perfectly righteous nor wicked) must battle their evil inclinations all
their days and cannot become tzaddikim through their own efforts; see Tanya,
chaps. 12-15. Perhaps this seeming contradiction may be reconciled according to
Rabbi Schneur Zalman's words in chapter 14 (end), that through what the
kabbalists call 'ibbur (literally "impregnation"), the soul of
a tzaddik may combine with that of an ordinary person, if the latter is
deemed worthy. Then the intermediate, too, may experience the inner
unity of the tzaddik. This very concept may be implied by Rebbe
Nachman's phrase "and become exactly like me." That is, through
striving to serve God according to Rebbe Nachman's teachings, one may be deemed
worthy to be granted this fusion with the soul of a tzaddik - namely
Rebbe Nachman - and thus enter the category of tzaddik,
as well.
[cxlviii] Berakhot
5b.
[cxlix] Chayei
Moharan 299, et passim. In this vein, he also once remarked: "I could
turn you all into awesome, perfect tzaddikim. But what would come of it?
If so, God would be serving Himself." Reb Noson adds: "In other
words, it was his wish that we labor in divine service on our own, using his
spiritual empowerment and holy advice - not that
he should grant us everything gratuitously" (ibid. 330).
[cl] Sichot
HaRan 111; also cf. Likutey Moharan I, 123; ibid. II, 45. This is
similar to the mystical rationale for appointing a king given by the Tzemach
Tzedek of Lubavitch (Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, 1789-1866), Derekh
Mitzvotekha, Mitzvat Minui Melekh, 108a: "This is the perennial
responsibility of the king - to
enable the creatures to be nullified to God by virtue of their being nullified
to [the king], who in turn is nullified to God [to a far greater degree]."
[cli] Chayei
Moharan 322.
[clii] Eichah
Rabbati 1:57, et al.
[cliii] See Likutey
Halakhot, Hil. Matnat Shekhiv me-Ra’ 2:2 (continuation of Hil. Matanah
1), where Reb Noson espouses and elaborates upon the kabbalistic metaphysical
view sometimes described as acosmism. As a precedent, he cites Rabbi Isaiah
Horowitz (1555-1628), Sh'nei Luchot ha-Brit (Be-'asarah Ma'amarot
1:5; in Jerusalem
[cliv] Avot
de-Rabbi Nathan, chap. 31.
[clv] Rabbi
Chaim Vital, Eitz Chaim I, Heikhal ha-Ketarim, 2:13:9, citing Zohar
II (Sifra de-Tzniuta), 176b-177a; also see Rabbi Joseph Gikatilla, Sha'arei
Orah (Gates of Light), Gates 5, 10, who relates the quality of mercy to
both Keter and Tiferet.
[clvi] Midrash
ha-Gadol, Bereshit 3:24.
[clvii] Rabbenu
Bachaya on Genesis 2:9.
[clviii] Gittin
10b; cf. Zohar II, 227a-b.
[clix] Chayei
Moharan 245. Another possible interpretation would be that the tzaddik's
beneficial influence reaches deep below into this corporeal world.
[clx] Oral
tradition cited by Shimon Zayis, The Candelabrum: Tales of the Talmud (Jerusalem:
Breslov Research Institute 1988), Introduction; conceptually, cf. Reb Noson
Sternhartz, Likutey Halakhot, Hil. Behemah vi-Chayah Tehorah 4:30.
Chapter
5: “Just Like Me”
[clxii] Chagigah
11b.
[clxiii] Avot
5:15. The full text is: “There are four categories of those who sit before the
sages: a sponge, a funnel, a strainer, and a sieve. A sponge absorbs
everything; a funnel takes in from one end and spills out from the other; a
strainer allows the wine to flow out while retaining the sediment; and a sieve
allows the flour dust to pass through while retaining the fine flour.”
[clxiv] E.g. Likutey
Moharan I, 59, 60, et passim.
[clxv] Indeed,
the name "Nachman" has the numerical value of "megaleh sod
/ reveal a secret"; see Nachal Sorek (Jerusalem: Meshekh ha-Nachal,
1989), Inyanim Shonim, 1022.
[clxvi] Chayei
Moharan 391.
[clxvii] See
Rabbi Natan Zvi Kenig, Neveh Tzaddikim, chap. 1-2. Reb Noson mentions
the tradition that Rebbe Nachman's mother was known as a
"prophetess," i.e., she possessed ru'ach ha-kodesh (divine
inspiration) and was privy to supernormal perception, in Chayei Moharan
114.
[clxviii] Aside
from his holy parents and other family members, Rebbe Nachman knew many of the
greatest tzaddikim of his generation. Most living disciples of the Baal
Shem Tov and Maggid of Mezeritch visited Medzhibozh when he was a child, often
staying in his parents' home; others he met later in young adulthood, during
his travels. These included Rabbi Yaakov Yosef of Polonoye, Rabbi Chaim of
Krasna, Rabbi Aharon of Tetiev, Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl
[clxix] Chayei
Moharan 353, hashmatot; cf. Likutey Moharan I, 15:4.
[clxx] Sichot
HaRan 209 (end); cf. Likutey Moharan II, 7:4; Chayei Moharan
225 (end).
[clxxi] For a
brief outline of the normative Breslov doctrine, see Rabbi Shmuel Horowitz, Tziun
ha-Metzuyenet, 78, citing Likutey Halakhot, Hil. Shluchin 5, et al.
In English, contemporary Breslov teacher Rabbi Chaim Kramer discusses this
issue in Crossing the Narrow Bridge (Jerusalem: Breslov Research
Institute 1989), chap. 17 (esp. pp. 343-359).
[clxxii] Chayei
Moharan 322.
[clxxiii] Ibid.
403.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment