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americanmysticom · 3 years ago

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Moses then added his own blessings and warnings to those given by G‑d at Mount Sinai.

Drawing Down G‑d’s Blessings

Fifth Reading: Deuteronomy 27:11–28:6

https://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/dailywisdom.asp?tdate=8/26/2021

וּבָאוּ עָלֶיךָ כָּל הַבְּרָכוֹת הָאֵלֶּה וְהִשִּׂיגֻךָ וגו': (דברים כח:ב)

[Moses promised the Jewish people, “If you remain faithful to G‑d’s covenant,] all the following blessings will pursue you and overtake you.”

Deuteronomy 28:2

We are taught that on the Jewish New Year (Rosh HaShanah), G‑d decrees our livelihood and health for the coming year. And yet, we pray every day for health, sustenance, and many other Divine blessings. Is this daily prayer necessary, in that all has already been decreed on Rosh HaShanah?

This verse provides the answer to this question: G‑d’s blessings both “pursue” us and “overtake” us. On Rosh HaShanah, all the blessings necessary for their respective purposes descend (“pursue” us) to a certain level of reality where they wait in storage to be drawn down further (“overtake” us) into our physical world.

The vehicle for bringing blessings down to us is our daily prayer and devotion to G‑d.1

BLESSINGS & CURSES - ESPECIALLY SECRET SINS OF LEADERSHIP

Daily Study Chumash with Rashi Parshat Ki Tavo Thursday, 18 Elul 5781 / August 26, 2021

https://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/torahreading.asp?tdate=8/26/2021&auto=audio#auto=audio&author=13568&index=1

download audio; https://www.chabad.org/multimedia/filedownload_cdo/aid/979017

BIRTHDAY OF THE Baal Shem Tov & Alter Rebbe, Rabbi Schneur Zalman

CONTINUED; The G-dly Soul, A Reflection Invested in Man, who is Dust & Ashes, To Become a Chariot of G-d, Four Elements, Metaphor is the Language of Mystic Knowledge [Experience & Intuitive Adaptation]

Daily Tanya Iggeret HaKodesh, middle of Epistle 15

audio; https://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tanya.asp?tdate=8/26/2021&auto=audio#auto=audio&author=13568&index=1

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CONTINUED LETTER 15, IF WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE SOUL POWERS WITHIN US, WE CAN HAVE SOME TASTE OF UNDERSTANDING OF ON-HIGH

- THE BOOM

audio; https://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tanya.asp?tdate=8/27/2021#auto=audio&author=13568&index=1

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Now, as regards the totality of the ten sefirot [as they appear] in the soul of man,

וְהִנֵּה, כְּלָלוּת הַי' סְפִירוֹת שֶׁבְּנִשְׁמַת הָאָדָם,

it is known to all25 that the emotive attributes divide into seven general categories,26

נוֹדָע לַכֹּל [בְּדֶרֶךְ כְּלָל. בכתב יד ליתא], שֶׁהַמִּדּוֹת נֶחְלָקוֹת בְּדֶרֶךְ כְּלָל לְז' מִדּוֹת,

and each of the particular attributes in man derives from one of these seven attributes,

וְכָל פְּרָטֵי הַמִּדּוֹת שֶׁבָּאָדָם – בָּאוֹת מֵאַחַת מִז' מִדּוֹת אֵלּוּ,

for they are the root of all the attributes and their generality,

שֶׁהֵן שׁוֹרֶשׁ כָּל הַמִּדּוֹת וּכְלָלוּתָן,

namely: the attribute of chesed (“lovingkindness”), [which is a thrust] to diffuse benevolence [to all] without limit;

שֶׁהֵן: מִדַּת הַחֶסֶד לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ בְּלִי גְבוּל,

the attribute of gevurah (“stern limitation and contraction”), [which seeks] to restrain such a degree of diffusion or to withhold diffusion altogether27 [from certain individuals],

וּמִדַּת הַגְּבוּרָה – לְצַמְצֵם מִלְּהַשְׁפִּיעַ כָּל כָּךְ, אוֹ שֶׁלֹּא לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ [נוסח אחר: כָּל עִיקָּר] כְּלָל,

and the attribute of rachamim (“compassion”), [which seeks] to pity a person to whom compassion is appropriate28 and to extend benevolence to him as well, although he may be unworthy of it.

וּמִדַּת הָרַחֲמִים – לְרַחֵם עַל מִי שֶׁשַּׁיָּיךְ לְשׁוֹן רַחֲמָנוּת עָלָיו,

[Rachamim] is the mediating attribute between gevurah and chesed,

וְהִיא מִדָּה מְמוּצַּעַת בֵּין גְּבוּרָה לְחֶסֶד,

the latter of which would diffuse benevolence to all, even to a person to whom compassion is not at all appropriate,28

שֶׁהִיא לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ לַכֹּל, גַּם לְמִי שֶׁלֹּא שַׁיָּיךְ לְשׁוֹן רַחֲמָנוּת עָלָיו כְּלָל,

inasmuch as he lacks nothing and is in no state of trouble whatsoever.29

מִפְּנֵי שֶׁאֵינוֹ חָסֵר כְּלוּ�� וְאֵינוֹ שָׁרוּי בְּצַעַר כְּלָל.

Because the attribute of chesed is unlimited, it desires to benefit even someone who lacks nothing. The attribute of rachamim, by contrast, being also compounded of gevurah, will not seek to diffuse indiscriminately. At the same time, rachamim pleads the cause of any individual who is in a pitiable state, however unworthy he may be.

Because [the attribute of rachamim] is the mediating attribute, it is called tiferet (“beauty”),

וּלְפִי שֶׁהִיא מִדָּה מְמוּצַּעַת, נִקְרֵאת "תִּפְאֶרֶת",

by analogy with beautiful garments

כְּמוֹ בִּגְדֵי תִּפְאֶרֶת עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל,

which are30 dyed with many colors blended31 in a way that gives rise to beauty and decoration.

שֶׁהוּא בֶּגֶד צָבוּעַ בִּגְוָונִים הַרְבֵּה מְעוֹרָבִים [בּוֹ. בכתב יד ליתא] בְּדֶרֶךְ שֶׁהוּא תִּפְאֶרֶת וְנוֹי,

To a garment dyed in one color, however, one cannot apply the term tiferet, which implies the beauty of harmony. And since the attribute of rachamim is compounded of chesed and gevurah, the term tiferet is appropriate.

מַה שֶּׁאֵין כֵּן בֶּגֶד הַצָּבוּעַ בְּגָוֶון אֶחָד לֹא שַׁיָּיךְ בּוֹ לְשׁוֹן תִּפְאֶרֶת.

Afterward, once the attribute of either chesed, gevurah, or tiferet is aroused to dispense benevolence, as the diffusion is realized,

וְאַחַר כָּךְ, בְּבוֹא הַהַשְׁפָּעָה לִידֵי מַעֲשֶׂה,

that is, at the time of the actual diffusion,

דְּהַיְינוּ בִּשְׁעַת הַהַשְׁפָּעָה מַמָּשׁ

it is necessary to deliberate how to diffuse in such a way that the recipient will be able to absorb the effusion.32

צָרִיךְ לְהִתְיַעֵץ אֵיךְ לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ, בְּדֶרֶךְ שֶׁיּוּכַל הַמְקַבֵּל לְקַבֵּל הַהַשְׁפָּעָה,

For example, when one wishes—and this is a powerful desire—to convey and teach an intellectual subject to his son:

כְּגוֹן שֶׁרוֹצֶה לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ דְּבַר חָכְמָה לְלַמְּדָהּ לִבְנוֹ,

If he will tell it to him in its totality, just as it appears in his own mind, the son will be unable to understand and to absorb it.

אִם יֹאמְרֶנָּה לוֹ כּוּלָּהּ כְּמוֹ שֶׁהִיא בְּשִׂכְלוֹ – לֹא יוּכַל הַבֵּן לְהָבִין וּלְקַבֵּל,

This could happen either (a) because the concept as understood by the father is too abstract and subtle for the son and needs to be lent a more tangible garb, such as a parable, or (b) because the concept is too comprehensive and too diverse and needs to be broken down into digestible segments, only some of which will be presented to the son.

Rather, one needs to arrange [it] for him in a different order and context, such as by providing an example from an alternative context,

רַק שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לְסַדֵּר לוֹ בְּסֵדֶר וְעִנְיָן אַחֵר,

“every word fitly spoken,”33 presenting first one side of the issue at hand and then the other,

"דָּבָר דָּבוּר עַל אוֹפְנָיו",

little by little, a little of the concept at a time.

מְעַט מְעַט,

The concept thus needs to contract with regard to its “length,” by lowering its stature until it is within the grasp of the recipient, and with regard to its “breadth,” by reducing its manifold details to match the capacity of the son or student.

This deliberation, regarding how best to present the concept, is referred to [by the terms] netzach and hod.

וּבְחִינַת עֵצָה זוֹ נִקְרֵאת "נֶצַח" וְ"הוֹד",

These [attributes] are “the kidneys that advise,”34 in a manner similar to their physical counterpart,

שֶׁהֵן "כְּלָיוֹת יוֹעֲצוֹת";

and they are also (in spiritual terms) the two testicles that prepare the spermatozoa,35

וְגַם [נוסח אחר: וְהֵן] "תְּרֵין בֵּיעִין", הַמְבַשְּׁלִים הַזֶּרַע,

Like their physical counterpart, the attributes of netzach and hod adapt the effusion of the concept.

i.e., the drop that issues from the brain.36

שֶׁהִיא הַטִּפָּה הַנִּמְשֶׁכֶת מֵהַמּוֹחַ,

That is, [they adapt] an intellectual subject deriving from the father’s mind in such a way that it will not issue unmodified, i.e., as a very subtle concept in his brain and intellect,

דְּהַיְינוּ דְּבַר חָכְמָה וָשֵׂכֶל הַנִּמְשָׁךְ מִשֵּׂכֶל הָאָב, שֶׁלֹּא יוּמְשַׁךְ כְּמוֹ שֶׁהוּא שֵׂכֶל דַּק מְאֹד בְּמוֹחוֹ וְשִׂכְלוֹ,

but that it change somewhat from the subtlety of his intelligence and become a somewhat less subtle concept,

רַק יִשְׁתַּנֶּה קְצָת מִדַּקּוּת שִׂכְלוֹ וְיִתְהַוֶּוה שֵׂכֶל שֶׁאֵינוֹ דַק כָּל כָּךְ,

so that the son will be able to absorb [it] in his mind and understanding.

כְּדֵי שֶׁיּוּכַל הַבֵּן לְקַבֵּל בְּמוֹחוֹ וַהֲבָנָתוֹ,

This is truly analogous to the seminal drop which descends from the brain;

וְהוּא מַמָּשׁ, עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל, כְּטִפָּה הַיּוֹרֶדֶת מֵהַמּוֹחַ

it is extremely tenuous, and, through the kidneys and the two testicles, it becomes truly concrete and corporeal.

שֶׁהִיא דַקָּה מְאֹד [מְאֹד], וְנַעֲשֵׂית גַּסָּה וְחוּמְרִית מַמָּשׁ בַּכְּלָיוֹת וּתְרֵין בֵּיעִין.

This process parallels the progressive concretization of a concept as it descends to match the capacity of the recipient.

The Alter Rebbe now speaks of yet another function of the attributes of netzach and hod—separating a concept into its various components.

Netzach and hod are also referred to as “grinders” and “millstones” because they “grind the mannah for the righteous,”37 like the heaven which is named Shechakim (שְׁחָקִים), for it “grinds (שּׁוֹחֲקִים) the mannah for the righteous.”

וְגַם "נֶצַח" וְ"הוֹד" נִקְרָאִים "��ְׁחָקִים" וְ"רֵחַיִים" שֶׁ"שּׁוֹחֲקִים מָן לַצַּדִּיקִים",

Just as, by way of example, a person who grinds [wheat]38 with millstones crumbles it into very fine parts,

כְּמוֹ, הַטּוֹחֵן [חִטִּים] בָּרֵחַיִים, עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל, שֶׁמְּפָרֵר הַחִטִּים לַחֲלָקִים דַּקִּים מְאֹד,

so, too, does the father need to taper the insight or the intellectual subject he wishes to convey to his son,

כָּךְ צָרִיךְ הָאָב לְהַקְטִין הַשֵּׂכֶל וּדְבַר חָכְמָה שֶׁרוֹצֶה לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ לִבְנוֹ,

and to divide them into many parts, relating [them] to him gradually, with devices and discernment.

וּלְחַלְּקָם לַחֲלָקִים רַבִּים וְלוֹמַר לוֹ מְעַט מְעַט בְּמוֹעֵצוֹת וָדַעַת.

Dividing a concept in this way so as to be able to determine what should be presented and what should be withheld is a contraction of the concept’s depth. Thus, netzach and hod serve to contract its length, breadth, and depth—the concept in all its dimensions.

The category of netzach also comprises prevailing39 and standing up against anything, from within or from without, that withholds from his son the transmission of beneficial influence or learning.

וְגַם בִּכְלַל בְּחִינַת "נֶצַח" הוּא לְנַצֵּחַ וְלַעֲמוֹד נֶגֶד כָּל מוֹנֵעַ הַהַשְׁפָּעָה וְהַלִּימּוּד מִבְּנוֹ מִבַּיִת וּמִחוּץ,

“From within” means firmly resisting the attribute of gevurah and tzimtzum within the father himself,

מִבַּיִת – הַיְינוּ לְהִתְחַזֵּק נֶגֶד מִדַּת הַגְּבוּרָה וְהַצִּמְצוּם שֶׁבָּאָב עַצְמוֹ,

for it arouses (within his will) contentions against his son,

שֶׁהִיא מְעוֹרֶרֶת דִּינִים בִּרְצוֹנוֹ עַל בְּנוֹ,

arguing that he is not yet fit for this [profound knowledge].

לוֹמַר שֶׁאֵינוֹ רָאוּי לְכָךְ עֲדַיִין

There now follows a parenthetical note in the text which states:

(A note in the manuscripts: Omission.)

(בכתב יד נרשם: חָסֵר)

I.e., according to some of the manuscripts which were compared to the previous printed editions of Iggeret Hakodesh when the current edition was being prepared for publication,40 there is an omission here in the text.

The Rebbe notes that prevailing over influences “from without” is even more important to explain than prevailing over influences “from within.” The fact that this explanation is lacking points to an omission in the text.

In addition: According to the translation offered above that “The category of netzach also comprises…,” there is nothing amiss in the Alter Rebbe’s failure to explain a corresponding aspect within hod, for hod comprises no such corresponding aspect. However, the translation may also be rendered: “In general, the category of netzach also entails….” If this is indeed the proper rendition, then the question arises, why was there no corresponding statement as to the general function of hod? Its absence likewise demonstrates that there is an omission in the text.

The Alter Rebbe now goes on to explain the attribute of yesod.

The category of yesod is, by way of example, the bond by which the father binds his intellect to the intellect of his son

וּבְחִינַת "יְסוֹד" הִיא, עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל, הַהִתְקַשְּׁרוּת שֶׁמְּקַשֵּׁר הָאָב שִׂכְלוֹ בְּשֵׂכֶל בְּנוֹ

while teaching him with love and willingness, for he wishes his son to understand.

בִּשְׁעַת לִמּוּדוֹ עִמּוֹ בְּאַהֲבָה וְרָצוֹן, שֶׁרוֹצֶה שֶׁיָּבִין בְּנוֹ;

Without this [bond], even if the son would hear the very same words from the mouth of his father [41as he speaks and studies to himself],

וּבִלְעֲדֵי זֶה, גַּם אִם הָיָה הַבֵּן שׁוֹמֵעַ דִּבּוּרִים אֵלּוּ עַצְמָם מִפִּי אָבִיו [שֶׁמְּדַבֵּר בַּעֲדוֹ וְלוֹמֵד לְעַצְמוֹ]

he would not understand [them] as well as now,

לֹא הָיָה מֵבִין כָּל כָּךְ כְּמוֹ עַכְשָׁיו,

when his father binds his intellect to him and speaks with him face-to-face42 with love and desire, because he desires very much that his son understand.

שֶׁאָבִיו מְקַשֵּׁר שִׂכְלוֹ אֵלָיו וּמְדַבֵּר עִמּוֹ פָּנִים אֶל פָּנִים בְּאַהֲבָה וָחֵשֶׁק, שֶׁחוֹשֵׁק מְאֹד שֶׁיָּבִין בְּנוֹ,

The father does not merely want to enlighten his son; his desire stemming from yesod is powerful because it is driven by pleasure.

[43In the holy handwriting of the Tzemach Tzedek, of blessed memory, (in the discourse entitled Ki Yedaativ, sec. 13,44 where this passage is quoted,) the above words (“as he speaks and studies to himself”) are not to be found.]

[בכתב יד קודש אדמו"ר בעל צמח צדק נשמתו עדן, (בדרוש "כי ידעתיו" סעיף י"ג שהועתק שם לשון זה) – ליתא תיבות אלו]

The reason for this omission: Not only is there a difference between (a) what the son passively absorbs when he hears his father studying independently and (b) what he absorbs when his father actively teaches him, but even when the father is actually teaching, the presence or absence of the quality of yesod will determine whether or not his son’s mind will be ignited by the fire of his own desire to communicate.

And the greater the desire and delight of the father, the greater is the influence and the learning,45

וְכָל מַה שֶּׁהַחֵשֶׁק וְהַתַּעֲנוּג גָּדוֹל, כָּךְ הַהַשְׁפָּעָה וְהַלִּימּוּד גָּדוֹל,

because then the son is able to absorb more and the father communicates more, proportionally.

שֶׁהַבֵּן – יוּכַל לְקַבֵּל יוֹתֵר, וְהָאָב – מַשְׁפִּיעַ יוֹתֵר,

For through the desire and delight, and with a contented disposition, his own insight is heightened and amplified so that he can bestow enlightenment upon his son and teach him.

כִּי עַל־יְדֵי הַחֵשֶׁק וְהַתַּעֲנוּג, מִתְרַבֶּה וּמִתְגַּדֵּל שִׂכְלוֹ בְּהַרְחָבַת הַדַּעַת לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ וּלְלַמֵּד לִבְנוֹ

(46This parallels, to draw a metaphor from [the attribute of yesod in] the sphere of the truly physical, the profusion of spermatozoa that results from heightened desire and delight,

(וּכְמוֹ עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל בְּגַשְׁמִיּוּת מַמָּשׁ, רִבּוּי הַזֶּרַע הוּא מֵרוֹב הַחֵשֶׁק וְהַתַּעֲנוּג,

through which much is elicited from the brain, which is its source.

וְעַל־יְדֵי זֶה מַמְשִׁיךְ הַרְבֵּה מֵהַמּוֹחַ,

This is why the Kabbalists, seeking to illustrate the imparting of knowledge out of a sense of pleasure, used the analogy of a physical union, for there are a number of similarities between these two expressions of the attribute of yesod, as will be explained.)47

וְלָכֵן הִמְשִׁילוּ חַכְמֵי הָאֱמֶת לְזִיוּוּג גַּשְׁמִי, כְּמוֹ שֶׁיִּתְבָּאֵר).

Now, these emotive attributes—those involved in imparting enlightenment, and the like—are the external aspects of the soul.

וְהִנֵּה, מִדּוֹת אֵלּוּ הֵן בְּחִינוֹת חִיצוֹנִיּוֹת שֶׁבַּנֶּפֶשׁ,

Within them are vested the inner attributes, which bring about the external attributes involved in the actual imparting of knowledge,

וּבְתוֹכָן מְלוּבָּשׁוֹת מִדּוֹת פְּנִימִיּוֹת,

i.e., the faculties of love and awe, and so on.

שֶׁהֵן בְּחִינוֹת אַהֲבָה וְיִרְאָה כוּ'.

This may be compared to the case of a father who bestows enlightenment upon his son because of his love for him,

דְּהַיְינוּ, עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל, בָּאָב הַמַּשְׁפִּיעַ לִבְנוֹ מֵחֲמַת אַהֲבָתוֹ,

The internal aspect of the attribute involved is love, and its external aspect is kindness.

and withholds his influence because of his dread and fear lest [his son] come to some downfall, heaven forfend.

וּמוֹנֵעַ הַשְׁפָּעָתוֹ מִפַּחְדּוֹ וְיִרְאָתוֹ, שֶׁלֹּא יָבֹא לִידֵי מִכְשׁוֹל, חַס וְשָׁלוֹם.

The father’s fear and dread are thus the internal aspect of his gevurah, the attribute that completely or partially withholds the flow of instruction.

The remaining emotive attributes are all offshoots of love and fear (as explained in Part I, ch. 3, above), and accordingly, they too possess internal and external aspects.

Having dealt with the middot, the seven emotive attributes of the soul, the Alter Rebbe now proceeds to discuss the intellective attributes which give birth to them.

The source and root of these internal and external emotive attributes,

וּמְקוֹר וְשֹׁרֶשׁ מִדּוֹת אֵלּוּ, הַפְּנִימִיּוֹת וְהַחִיצוֹנִיּוֹת,

is the ChaBaD—an acronym for the intellectual faculties of chochmah, binah, and daat—of one’s soul,

הוּא מֵחָכְמָה־בִּינָה־דַּעַת שֶׁבְּנַפְשׁוֹ,

for a person’s emotive traits are in proportion to his intellect.

כִּי לְפִי שֵׂכֶל הָאָדָם – כָּךְ הֵן מִדּוֹתָיו,

This is empirically evident; with a child, for example, whose ChaBaD are in a state of pettiness, all his emotive traits, too, relate to insignificant things, and as he matures in age and understanding, his emotive traits correspondingly aspire to worthier goals.

כַּנִּרְאֶה בְּחוּשׁ, שֶׁהַקָּטָן, שֶׁהַחָכְמָה־בִּינָה־דַּעַת שֶׁלּוֹ הֵן בִּבְחִינַת קַטְנוּת – כָּךְ כָּל מִדּוֹתָיו הֵן בִּדְבָרִים קְטַנֵּי הָעֵרֶךְ.

With adults, too, the emotive traits develop in proportion to the intellect, for “According to his intelligence is a man praised.”48

וְגַם בִּגְדוֹלִים "לְפִי שִׂכְלוֹ יְהוּלַּל אִישׁ",

Since the term “man” (איש) is an appelative for the emotive traits (cf. the verse, “As is a man, so is his gevurah”49), the previously quoted verse is teaching us that a person’s emotive traits are praiseworthy in proportion to the stature of his ChaBaD.

For the extent of his love and kindness corresponds to the extent of his wisdom,

כִּי לְפִי רוֹב חָכְמָתוֹ – כָּךְ הוּא רוֹב אַהֲבָתוֹ וְחַסְדּוֹ.

and all his other internal and external traits likewise have their source in his ChaBaD.

וְכֵן שְׁאָר כָּל מִדּוֹתָיו פְּנִימִיּוֹת וְחִיצוֹנִיּוֹת, מְקוֹרָן הוּא מֵחָכְמָה־בִּינָה־דַּעַת שֶׁבּוֹ.

Most important to the development of the spiritual emotions is one’s daat, which derives from one’s chochmah and binah.

וְהָעִיקָּר – הוּא הַדַּעַת שֶׁבּוֹ, הַנִּמְשָׁךְ מִבְּחִינַת הַחָכְמָה וּבִינָה שֶׁבּוֹ,

A thinker first grasps the essence of a concept through the seminal flash of illumination afforded by his faculty of chochmah; he next understands it fully by means of the analysis and amplification which are the function of his faculty of binah; ultimately, he must immerse himself in concentration on the concept, binding and unifying himself with it to the point that—beyond mere intellective comprehension—he also senses and experiences it with his faculty of daat.

It is this faculty that is critical to the development of his middot, such as the spiritual emotions of love and awe of G-d, for daat provides them with their substance and vitality, as explained in Part I, ch. 3.

This is readily observable, for the differences between the emotive traits of various people corresponds to the differences in their respective degrees of daat.

כַּנִּרְאֶה בְּחוּשׁ, כִּי לְפִי שִׁינּוּי דֵּעוֹת בְּנֵי אָדָם זֶה מִזֶּה כָּךְ הוּא שִׁינּוּי מִדּוֹתֵיהֶם.

CONTINUED CHAPTER 15, NOW THE G-DLY SOUL & CLEAVING EMMULATION BY CLEAVING TO HIS ATTRIBUTES

- THE LIVING TREE

- STAND FIRM AND INSIST ON VICTORY!

Daily Tanya Iggeret HaKodesh, middle of Epistle 15, Shabbat, 20 Elul 5781 / August 28, 2021

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Now, all this—the abovementioned effect of the emotive traits upon the resultant teaching or influence—is only by way of allegory and does not provide a completely true picture of the sefirot as they exist within man’s soul,

וְהִנֵּה, כָּל זֶה הוּא רַק עַל דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל לְבַד,

for all this applies to the rational soul, which is the lower one in man, and derives from kelipat nogah.

כִּי כָּל זֶה הוּא בַּנֶּפֶשׁ הַשִּׂכְלִית הַתַּחְתּוֹנָה שֶׁבָּאָדָם, הַבָּאָה מִקְּלִיפַּת נוֹגַהּ.

This “lower soul” naturally inclines to “lower” (i.e., corporeal) matters so that even its intellect goes only as far as understanding the composition, and so on, of mundane things. For although the kelipah, which is the source of this soul, is kelipat nogah, a kelipah whose darkness is relieved by a ray of good, nevertheless, it is wholly bound up with mundanity.

But in true fact, with regard to [the sefirot in] the higher, Divine soul, which is a “part of G-d above,”50

אַךְ בֶּאֱמֶת לַאֲמִיתּוֹ, בַּנֶּפֶשׁ הָעֶלְיוֹ��ָה הָאֱלֹהִית, שֶׁהִיא "חֵלֶק אֱלוֹהַּ מִמַּעַל",

all the internal and external attributes are [directed] to G-d alone: the Divine soul is concerned with spiritual things alone so that both its (internal) love and (external) chesed are concentrated purely on G-dliness.

כָּל הַמִּדּוֹת, פְּנִימִיּוֹת וְחִיצוֹנִיּוֹת, הֵן לַה' לְבַדּוֹ.

For because of one’s love of G-d and because of one’s great desire to cleave unto Him,

כִּי מֵחֲמַת אַהֲבַת ה' וּמֵרוֹב חֶפְצוֹ לְדָבְקָה בוֹ,

he desires with all his being [to practice] chesed in order to cleave to His attributes.

הוּא חָפֵץ חֶסֶד כְּדֵי לִידָּבֵק בְּמִדּוֹתָיו,

This accords with the teaching of our Sages, of blessed memory, on the verse, “And to cleave unto Him”51: “Cleave unto His attributes.”52

כְּמַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ־זִכְרוֹנָם־לִבְרָכָה עַל פָּסוּק "וּלְדָבְקָה בוֹ": "הִדָּבֵק בְּמִדּוֹתָיו".

Just as G-d is compassionate, so should mortal man be compassionate; just as G-d has an innate desire to practice kindness, so should a person’s inner desire to practice kindness be motivated by a desire to cleave to G-d.

As to the attribute of chesed, then, both its internal aspect (love) and its external aspect (kindness) are directed purely to G-dly things.

It is likewise with the attribute of gevurah, whose internal aspect is fear; it, too, is experienced only for G-dly causes:

וְכֵן בְּמִדַּת הַגְּבוּרָה –

for example, to punish and chastise the wicked with the punishments of the Torah,

לְהִפָּרַע מִן הָרְשָׁעִים וּלְעָנְשָׁם בְּעוֹנְשֵׁי הַתּוֹרָה,

and also to prevail over one’s [evil] inclination and to sanctify himself in that which is permitted to him,53

וְכֵן, לְהִתְגַּבֵּר עַל יִצְרוֹ וּלְקַדֵּשׁ אֶת עַצְמוֹ בַּמּוּתָּר לוֹ,

and to put up a fence and a hedge around the Torah,54

וְלַעֲשׂוֹת גָּדֵר וּסְיָיג לַתּוֹרָה,

because of the dread and fear of G-d, lest he might come to sin, heaven forfend.

מִפְּנֵי פַּחַד ה' וְיִרְאָתוֹ, פֶּן יָבֹא לִידֵי חֵטְא חַס וְשָׁלוֹם.

In order to ensure that he will not come to sin, a person may thus choose to sanctify himself and refrain from “one hundred portals of the permissible so as not to transgress in one portal of the prohibited.”55

To summarize the above conclusions regarding the first two of the seven middot, or spiritual emotions: Not only is a man’s attribute of chesed directed to G-dly matters, but so, too, is his attribute of gevurah—both in its internal aspect, viz., the fear of G-d, and in its external manifestations in his rigorous observance of the Torah and its mitzvot.

Likewise, by exercising the attribute of tiferet (lit., “beauty”), [a man seeks] to glorify G-d and His Torah in all ways possible, such as by possessing a beautiful sefer Torah, beautiful tefillin, and the like,

וְכֵן לְפָאֵר אֶת ה' וְתוֹרָתוֹ בְּכָל מִינֵי פְּאֵר,

and to cleave to His praises [by praising G-d] with all the faculties of his soul:

וּלְדָבְקָה בִּשְׁבָחָיו בְּכָל בְּחִינוֹת נַפְשׁוֹ,

that is, by intellectual and thoughtful meditation on the greatness of G-d, which blossoms into the singing of His praises,

דְּהַיְינוּ בְּהִתְבּוֹנְנוּת שִׂכְלוֹ וּמַחֲשַׁבְתּוֹ,

and likewise, when he speaks, his praises are not empty words but grow out of his preparatory meditation.

גַּם בְּדִיבּוּרוֹ.

“[Praising G-d] with all the faculties of his soul” thus means that the worshipper utilizes his intellect and emotions as well as all three “garments” of his soul (i.e., the soul’s media of self-expression), viz., thought, speech, and action (for speech constitutes mini-action56). Alternatively, “[praising G-d] with all the faculties of his soul” may mean: all those aspects of the soul that relate to praise, i.e., intellect, thought, and speech.

Likewise, by exercising the attribute of netzach, [a man seeks] to prevail triumphantly against anything that would restrain [him] from the service of G-d and from cleaving unto Him,

וְכֵן לַעֲמוֹד בְּנִצָּחוֹן נֶגֶד כָּל מוֹנֵעַ מֵעֲבוֹדַת ה' וּמִלְּדָבְקָה בוֹ,

and against anything that would restrain [the state of revelation in which]57 the entire earth is filled with the glory of G-d,

וְנֶגֶד כָּל מוֹנֵעַ מִלִּהְיוֹת כְּבוֹד ה' מָלֵא אֶת כָּל הָאָרֶץ,

like the wars for G-d fought by King David, peace to him, which derived from his attribute of netzach.

כְּמִלְחֲמוֹת ה' אֲשֶׁר נִלְחַם דָּוִד הַמֶּלֶךְ עָלָיו־הַשָּׁלוֹם.

Likewise, by exercising the attribute of hod,58 which implies self-abnegation, and acknowledging the transcendence of that which defies his mortal understanding, [a man seeks] to prostrate himself and to [self-effacingly] praise G-d,

וְכֵן לְהִשְׁתַּחֲווֹת וּלְהוֹדוֹת לַה',

Who animates and creates everything and before Whom everything is essentially nonexistent and esteemed as truly nothing and null.

אֲשֶׁר מְחַיֶּה וּמְהַוֶּה אֶת הַכֹּל, וְהַכֹּל בָּטֵל בִּמְצִיאוּת אֶצְלוֹ, וְכוּלָּא קַמֵּיהּ כְּלָא חֲשִׁיב, וּכְאַיִן וָאֶפֶס מַמָּשׁ.

Though we cannot apprehend just how everything is truly as null before Him,

וְאַף שֶׁאֵין אָנוּ מַשִּׂיגִים אֵיךְ הוּא הַכֹּל אֶפֶס מַמָּשׁ קַמֵּיהּ,

nevertheless, we acknowledge and genuinely concede that in absolute truth, such is the case.

אַף־עַל־פִּי־כֵן, מוֹדִים אֲנַחְנוּ בְּהוֹדָאָה אֲמִיתִּית שֶׁכֵּן הוּא בֶּאֱמֶת לַאֲמִיתּוֹ.

From the very depths of his soul, the Jew acknowledges that G-d’s “supernal daat” and knowledge that everything is essentially nonexistent before Him is true and that the mortal understanding of our “inferior daat”—that creation does indeed exist, except that it is nullified to Him—results from the limited compass of our earthbound perspective.59 This acknowledgment results from the self-abnegation expressed by the attribute of hod.

This [attribute] also includes the expression of gratitude60 to G-d for all the favors that He has bestowed upon us,

וּבִכְלָל זֶה גַּם כֵּן, לְהוֹדוֹת לַה' עַל כָּל הַטּוֹבוֹת אֲשֶׁר גְּמָלָנוּ,

so that [we] should not be ungrateful, G-d forbid.

וְלֹא לִהְיוֹת כְּפוּי טוֹבָה חַס וְשָׁלוֹם.

This [attribute of hod] also includes the offering of thanks to G-d for all His praiseworthy [deeds], and His attributes and His workings in the emanation and creation of the upper and lower worlds,

וּבִכְלָל זֶה, לְהוֹדוֹת עַל כָּל שְׁבָחָיו וּמִדּוֹתָיו וּפְעוּלּוֹתָיו בַּאֲצִילוּת וּבְרִיאַת עֶלְיוֹנִים וְתַחְתּוֹנִים,

for they are praiseworthy to no end,61

שֶׁהֵם מְשׁוּבָּחִים עַד אֵין תַּכְלִית [נוסח אחר: חֵקֶר],

and are becoming and befitting Him, blessed and exalted be He.

וְנָאִים וּרְאוּיִם אֵלָיו יִתְבָּרֵךְ וְיִתְעַלֶּה,

The term [hod is here to be understood] as in the phrase hod vehadar (“majesty and splendor”62).

וְהוּא מִלְּשׁוֹן "הוֹד וְהָדָר".

And likewise [engaged in one’s Divine service is] the attribute of [yesod (lit., “foundation”), as in the phrase], “The tzaddik is the foundation of the world,”63

וְכֵן בְּמִדַּת "צַדִּיק יְסוֹד עוֹלָם",

In the above analogy, it was by means of the attribute of yesod that the father communicated with his son and disciple through bonds of desire and pleasure. So, too, in the realm of Divine service, the attribute of yesod involves cleaving to G-d with intense desire and pleasure,

so that one’s soul is bound up with G-d, the Fountainhead of Life,

לִהְיוֹת נַפְשׁוֹ קְשׁוּרָה בַּה' חַיֵּי הַחַיִּים,

cleaving to Him with an attachment and a desire, out of a wondrous love and delight, all of which are expressions of the attribute of yesod.

וּלְדָבְקָה בוֹ בִּדְבִיקָה וַחֲשִׁיקָה, בְּחֵשֶׁק וְתַעֲנוּג נִפְלָא.

And as for the [Divine soul’s] attribute of malchut, [the worshipper seeks thereby] to accept upon himself the yoke of G-d’s sovereignty and of His service,

וּבְמִדַּת מַלְכוּת, לְקַבֵּל עָלָיו עוֹל מַלְכוּתוֹ וַעֲבוֹדָתוֹ

like the service of any servant to his master, i.e., out of awe and fear.

CONTINUED, LAST PART OF CHAPTER !5, Notice that this is a treatize that links intellectual faculties with emotion, and appropriatly places thought process [linked to G-DLY ATTRIBUTE] that begits emotion,

- THE SPARK

- THE BOLT OF LIGHTNING

Daily Tanya Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle 15, Sunday, 21 Elul 5781 / August 29, 2021

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Up to this point, the Alter Rebbe has explained how the seven middot exist within the Jew’s G-dly soul. These emotive attributes are activated by the three intellective faculties—the sefirot of ChaBaD (chochmah, binah, and daat), which are now to be explained.

Now, the source and root of all the attributes are in the ChaBaD.

That is: chochmah is the source of the intellect which apprehends G-d and His wisdom, His greatness, and the holy attributes wherewith He conducts and animates all the higher and lower worlds;

binah is the contemplation of this apprehension of G-d’s greatness and His holy attributes

in the length, breadth, and depth of one’s understanding,

The “length” of a particular concept—in this case, the greatness of the Creator—entails drawing it down from its lofty abstraction (by way of a parable, for example) to a level of intelligibility. The “breadth” of the concept refers to the multitudinous components and ramifications that await one’s mastery. Its “depth” refers to the challenge of plumbing its seemingly limitless profundity.

in order64 “to understand (or deduce) one matter out of another,”65

and from this apprehension to beget its offspring,

which are the attributes of love and awe,

The thinker’s understanding of the greatness of G-d gives birth to emotions—a love and a fear of Him.

and the other attributes born in the Divine soul, which contemplates and meditates upon G-d’s greatness as to how “His greatness is unfathomable.”66

One aspect of G-d’s greatness is such that the Divine soul, when contemplating it, is overwhelmed by fear and dread.

This is yirah tataah (“the lower level of fear”), which is an aspect of malchut.

There is another aspect of the greatness of G-d from [the contemplation of] which derives yirah ilaah (“the superior level of fear”), in which one is awed out of bashfulness.

There is also an aspect [of G-d’s greatness] from [the contemplation of] which derives ahavah rabbah (“the great love”),

and still another aspect [of G-d’s greatness] from [the contemplation of] which derives ahavah zutta (“the lesser love”).

All these levels of ahavah and yirah are internal emotive attributes that are fathered by ChaBaD.

The same applies to the external attributes, i.e., chesed and so on; they, too, emanate from ChaBaD.

Now, the faculty of daat must be vested within all these [emotive attributes],

for it represents the bond with which the soul is bound and embedded in this apprehension

as it apprehends some aspect of G-d’s greatness, from which one of these attributes is born within it.

Once the soul has apprehended some aspect of G-d’s greatness, it must bind itself to this comprehension through the faculty of daat.

For by a momentary removal of daat from this apprehension,

the emotion born of it is also withdrawn

from its [prior] state of manifestation in the soul [back] into concealment [within the soul],

to exist there in potentia but not in actuality.

It is the faculty of daat—a prolonged and constant involvement in the subject being contemplated—that reveals and actualizes the emotive experience of love or fear.

That is why the term daat is applied to coition,67 for it signifies a bond that results in issue, just as out of daat are born the emotions.

This is the faculty of daat tachton, the lower level of daat, which extends into the attributes and vests itself in them to animate and sustain them.

There is also a faculty of daat elyon, a superior level of daat, through which the source of the intellect that apprehends the profundity of a concept is bound and connected [to it]—

like a point or a flash of lightning that flashes over one’s mind—

so that [the concept] will extend downward.

The profundity of the apprehended concept will thereby come to be understood

with extensive clarification, in length and breadth,

this stage being the function of the faculty of binah, which is known as rechovot hanahar (lit., “the expanses of the river”), as will be explained in its place.68

The faculty of daat elyon unifies chochmah with binah. For chochmah is the intuitive flash of illumination that would vanish as quickly as it appeared, if it were not anchored by daat in the comprehension of binah, whereby this seminal point assumes length and breadth. Chochmah is thus likened to a wellspring whose waters issue forth drop by drop while binah is likened to a broad and deep river. It is the function of daat elyon to draw the wellsprings of chochmah into the river of binah.

The function of daat tachton, by contrast, is that of binding the intellective faculties of ChaBaD with their resultant emotions so that one’s intellectual activity will illuminate them and provide them with vitality and continuity.

In summary, this discourse demonstrates how all the ten faculties of the Divine soul engage in an ongoing relationship with their G-dly source. Indeed, to recall the Alter Rebbe’s opening lines, an understanding of this dynamic within oneself enables one to experience the truth of the verse, “From my flesh shall I behold G-d,’’ and to gain some measure of understanding of the supernal sefirot.

[THERE IS ONE STANDARD YOU CAN TRUST, ONE NARRATIVE OF G-D TRUE AND GRACIOUS, THE THRESHING FLOOR FOR THEY WHOM ARE NOT]

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