Painting by Dovid Sears
By Rabbi
Nachman Goldstein, Rav of Tcherin, zatzal
Parpara’os
le-Chokhmah II, 119
Translated
and annotated by Dovid Sears
This is
the second installment of our translation of the Tcheriner Rav’s commentary on
this excerpt from Likutey Moharan Tinyana, Lesson 119 (end):
Rebbe
Nachman declared: “Everyone says that Olam Hazeh (‘This World’) and Olam Habah
(‘The World to Come’”) exist. As for Olam Habah—we believe that there is a
World to Come. It is possible that there is also an Olam Hazeh as well, in some
world somewhere. But here, we see that it is Gehinnom (Hell); for all beings
experience great suffering constantly.” Then he said, “There isn’t any Olam
Hazeh at all!”
To read
the first installment, click here.
The
Tcheriner Rav continues:
3) The
Rebbe’s intention in stating, “It is possible that there is also an Olam Hazeh
as well, in some world somewhere. But here, we see that it is Gehinnom…” could
be explained [as follows]: The entire essence of Olam Hazeh, which creates the
possibility of calling it “Olam Hazeh”—as something apart and disconnected
from Olam Habah—is only from the perspective of the doubt and the possibility
of designating it as such, for the sake of free will.
That is,
the Rebbe’s remark, “It is possible that there is also an Olam Hazeh as well,
in some world…” is not just a touch of “dark humor” in his description of this
world with all of its suffering as “Gehinnom.” Rather, it hints to a deep
concept: that the very existence of Olam Hazeh as a separate reality is based
on a person asking himself the question: “Is there an Olam Hazeh?” That is, can
we experience this world as neither an extension of Olam Habah nor of Gehinnom,
but as neutral ground, a reality unto itself, where it is possible to live “The
Good Life?” Asking this question allows us to have free will.
One who
misuses his free will and truly separates Olam Hazeh from Olam Habah, G-d
forbid, actually experiences Gehinnom in this world, and his life is full of
suffering. However, one who binds his thought firmly to Olam Habah will live a
good life in Olam Hazeh, as well. In truth, his life in this world will
also be an aspect of the life of the World-to-Come; as in [the blessing of
Chazal], “May you experience your [Eternal] world in your [present] life,”[1]
and in the teaching, “Better is one hour of teshuvah (repentance, or
return to G-d) and good deeds in Olam Hazeh than the entire life of Olam
Habah.”[2]
That is,
through teshuvah, one may experience “Olam Habah” here and now, in Olam Hazeh.
Study Chagigah
15a concerning “Acher” [“The Other,” i.e., Elisha ben Abuyah, the sage who
became a heretic], who “cut off his plantings” [i.e., lost his faith]; then he said,
“Since I have been banished from that world [Olam Habah], let me enjoy the
pleasures of this world [Olam Hazeh]!” Because he cut off his “plantings” from
their root, he became corrupted afterward, to such an extent that he imagined
that gratification might be found in Olam Hazeh [alone], without Olam Habah,
G-d forbid—when the truth is the opposite. For the angel Metat[3]
rules over the days of the week,[4]
which represent Olam Hazeh, However, in truth, “My Name is within Him” (Exodus
23:21); see Chiddushey Aggados [Maharsha] there, and understand.[5]
The Tcheriner Rav means to say that just as the angel Metat is not a
separate power, but is animated by the Divine Name within him, so Olam Hazeh (symbolized
by the six weekdays) is not a separate reality, but only an "antechamber"
(prozdor) and an extension of Olam Habah, if one has the eyes to see this
truth.
With this,
we can understand the teaching of Chazal in the Mishnah (Berakhos 9:5),[6]
that all blessings recited in the Holy Temple were concluded with the phrase “min
ha-olam … from the world.”
That is, the
text of each blessing recited in the Holy Temple would conclude with “Blessed
are You Hashem, G-d of Israel, min ha-olam…” followed by “Barukh chonen
ha-da’as … Blessed is He who grants knowledge,” or whatever the ending of the
specific blessing might be.[7]
Those who heard the blessing would respond, “Barukh shem kevod malkhuso le-olam
va’ed … Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom forever,” instead of
“amen.””[8]
However,
due to the damage caused by the heretics[9]
who said, ‘There is but one world,” this was emended so that the blessing would
conclude, “min ha-olam vi-ad ha-olam … from world to world.”[10]
This
formula makes it known that Olam Hazeh is nothing compared to Olam Habah,
unless it is like an antechamber to the “banquet hall,” as we have said.
“At first,
they would conclude with the words “min ha-olam … from the world”—because
the two worlds are actually one. “However, due to the damage caused by the
heretics”—these words need to be explained. [That is,] even though there are
two worlds, Olam Hazeh is unworthy of any consideration at all, unless it is
connected to Olam Habah.
Study what
is written in Sichos ha-Ran, sec. 40, regarding the four aspects, which
are the Hyle (hyuli); the Transcendental (nivdal); the Celestial
(galgal); and the Lowly (shafal). They make up the [four aspects
of the] “revolving wheel” [of creation], which in its source is entirely one. And
the primary revelation of this [mystical truth that creation is a “wheel of
transformation”] is in the Holy Temple, which exemplifies the paradigm of “the
superior below and the inferior above.”
In the
above-mentioned talk, Rebbe Nachman expounds upon the Chanukah Dreidel as a
symbol of the impermanence and constant change of all elements in creation,
which is thus like a spinning top, or a wheel of transformation. The four
aspects of creation correspond to the four letters traditionally written or
inscribed on the Dreidel: nun, gimmel, heh and shin. (In the Rebbe’s teaching,
Nun stands for “Nivdal,” the Transcendental; Gimmel stands for “Galgal,” the
heavenly constellations, or the celestial realm; Heh stands for “Hyuli,” which
is the state of pure potential prior to creation, and which might be said to be
the state of “neither the chicken nor the egg”; and Shin stands for “Shafal,”
the lowly material plane of existence.) Then Rebbe Nachman relates this concept
of the “Cosmic Dreidel” to the paradigm of the Holy Temple and to the Final
Redemption, when this truth will be universally comprehended. (We have
translated Sichos ha-Ran 40 with a tentative commentary of our own in a
separate posting here.)
4) With
this, it is all the more understandable that the blessings in the Holy Temple
concluded with “min ha-olam … from the world,” as mentioned above. For [the
Holy Temple] was where the revelation of this occurred: that the paradigm of
Olam Hazeh is utterly bound up with the paradigm of Olam Habah, in a state of complete
unity. Because the Blessed One, who transcends everything, constricted Himself
(so to speak) and caused His Shekhinah (Presence, or Divine Immanence) to
become manifest below in the Holy Temple, which existed in this physical world.
Likewise, the Korbanos (sacrifices), taken from physical things, ascended as a
“gratifying fragrance” to G-d, and as the holy Zohar states,[11]
“the ascent of the Korbonos was unto the Eyn Sof (Infinite One).”
So it is
clear that everything is bound together in one unity, and that is why they used
to say “min ha-olam … from the world.” (And that is why in the Holy Temple,
permission was granted to pronounce the Essential Divine Name [HaVaYaH],
reflecting the verse, “Wherever My Name is mentioned, I will come unto you”
(Exodus 20:21), as our Sages state.[12]
According to Rashi’s explanation (ad loc.) [i.e., that the Name HaVaYaH
may only be pronounced in the place where the Shekhinah is manifest], this is
an aspect of Olam Habah—for then, the Name [HaVaYaH] will be pronounced the
way it is written, as our Sages state.[13]
“However,
due to the damage caused by the heretics”—who declared that there is only one
world [Olam Hazeh], denying the existence of Olam Habah, which is an inner
spiritual reality, and asserting that there is only the materiality of Olam
Hazeh. Therefore [the Sages] amended the blessings to conclude “min ha-olam
vi-ad ha-olam … from world to world.”
That is,
although they appear to be two worlds, this is only for the sake of free will.
However, in truth, Olam Hazeh is not considered to be anything compared to Olam
Habah; for whichever way you choose, if one separates it completely from Olam
Habah, G-d forbid, it is certainly worthless; what is worse, it is Gehinnom!
Thus, [Olam Hazeh] cannot be called a “world” [unto itself] at all (“for it
would have been better never to have been created”[14]).
The main
point is that the name “Olam” [in “Olam Hazeh”] truly applies when it is connected
and bound to Olam Habah. Then, “in the place where the masculine is mentioned,
the feminine is not mentioned” (Zohar, op. cit.); for then, it is
incorporated into Olam Habah in a state of complete unity.[15]
To read Part 3, click here.
[1] Berakhos 17a. Alternately, “May you see your world [i.e.,
may your needs be provided] in your lifetime [in this world], and may your end
be the life of the World-to-Come” (Rashi, ad loc.).
[2] Avos 4:22. Another interpretation of
this Mishnah is that our divine service in this world of bechirah / free
will and conflict is most precious to Hashem, and therefore of greater worth
than the “reward” of Olam Habah, when “the tzaddikim will sit with their crowns
on their heads and delight in the ziv ha-Shekhinah (the spiritual
illumination of the Divine Presence)” (Berakhos 17a).
See Likutey Moharan I, 21:4, which
explains that our divine service through bechirah (free will) depends
on the inability to understand the paradox of Divine foreknowledge (yediah)
and human bechirah; the resolution of this paradox will be internalized
in the future, when “the tzaddikim will sit with their ‘crowns’ (i.e., higher
spiritual states, or makifin) on their heads (literally ‘bi-roshehem,’
‘in their heads,’ meaning that they will grasp such paradoxes).” Then they will
transcend the human level and attain that of the angels. This lesson is
available online here.
https://breslovcampus.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Pages-from-LM_V3.pdf
[3] In full, “Metatron.” It is customary
to abbreviate the names of angels and to avoid pronouncing them, unless they
are the same as those of human beings (such as Michael, Gabriel, etc.). This is
because, according to the kabbalists, mentioning the names of angels can be a
way of invoking them.
[4] See Likutey Moharan I, 11:5,
based on Yevamos 16b (Tosafos, s.v. pasuk zeh sar ha-olam amru);
Zohar I, 126a (Midrash ha-Ne’elam).
[5] Maharsha (loc. cit.) explains that
“Acher” perceived Metat as a divine power unto himself, not because of an
“innocent mistake” but due to his own spiritual flaw. In fact, the verse explicitly
states that Metat’s wondrous power was entirely due to the Divine Name that had
been vested within him.
[6] In the Gemara, Berakhos 63a.
[7] An example of such a blessing in
Hebrew:
אתה חונן לאדם דעת,
ומלמד לאנוש בינה, חננו מאתך דעה בינה והשכל
ברוך אתה ה' אלהי ישראל
מן העולם ועד העולם ברוך חונן הדעת,
[8] See Rashi on Berakhos 54a,
s.v. kol chosmey berakhos she-bi-mikdash (citing Ta’anis 7b).
[9] Chazal affirmed the immortality of
the soul as a fundamental Jewish belief, based on Scriptural analysis. The heretical
Sadducees (Hebrew: Tzadokim), who rejected the Oral Law, did not believe in the
Afterlife because this doctrine is not overtly stated in the Torah.
[10]
The Tcheriner Rav refers the reader to Rashi on Berakhos 63a,
citing the Tosefta (27).
[11] Paraphrase of Zohar I, 65a.
[12] The Tcheriner Rav cites Sotah
38a, which discusses Birkhas Kohanim, the Priestly Blessing. In the Holy
Temple, the Divine Name HaVaYaH was pronounced as it is written.
However, use of the explicit Divine Name was discontinued after the passing of
Shimon HaTzaddik (fourth century BCE) (Yoma 39b).
[13] The Tcheriner Rav cites Berakhos,
chapter 9, which appears to be a scribal error. There, the Gemara discusses the
blessings recited in the Holy Temple, as cited above; however, the
pronunciation of the Divine Name as it is written (Yud-Heh or HaVaYaH,
and not as Alef-Dalet or A-D-N-Y) is mentioned in Pesachim
50a.
[14] Eiruvin 13b. The Gemara attests
that for two and a half years, Beis Hillel and Beis Shammai debated the issue
of whether it would have been better if man had not been created, and they
finally agreed that it would have been better had he not been created. Various
reasons are offered for this conclusion (e.g., see Maharsha, ad loc.), although
the Gemara does not discuss the nature of the debate at all. Rebbe Nachman
explains that it would have been “better had man not been created” to be from
the standpoint of the inevitable suffering of all living creatures in this
world. But from the standpoint of Olam Habah, creation is certainly “very
good,” as the Creator deemed it to be, for there the ultimate goal of creation
is attained (see Likutey Moharan Tinyana, 39).
[15] The Tcheriner Rav references the Zohar,
Hakdamah (1b-2a), concerning the verse, “Raise your eyes above and see who (mi)
created these (eileh)” (Isaiah 40:25) … These letters (mem-yud) combined
with these letters (alef-lamed-heh) and formed the Name E-L-H-Y-M.”
The Tcheriner Rav adds, “See there, for it is relevant to our subject.” This somewhat
cryptic passage of the Zohar may be read here.
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