Torah Ohr · Parshas Mikeitz · Maamar 5
כי עמך מקור חיים באורך נראה אור
For with You is the source of life; in Your light we shall see light
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The big idea
The flow of life to the worlds is only “with” G‑d, not His essence; through Torah, mitzvos and the self-nullification of the heart, Israel draws His essential light down so that it is seen, and Israel is seen in that light.
The maamar in brief
The maamar asks two questions on the verse “For with You is the source of life; in Your light we shall see light”: what the two readings of “we shall see light” mean, and why the verse says “with You” rather than “You are.” It answers through Zechariah’s golden menorah, the source of Israel’s souls: its seven lamps are the divine attributes that shine on every Jew from above, fed by pipes from ever higher levels, all drawn down through “gold,” the left side. G‑d “enthroned on high” is beyond even Chochmah and Chesed, so entering the worlds is a lowering for Him. Seen from His loftiness, all is as nothing, the nations prevail in exile and His governance is like sleep. Seen “from heaven,” through the Torah, Israel appears great, like an object in a clear mirror. Heaven and earth, Torah and prayer, cause this lowering, when mitzvos are done with fiery love and the self-nullification of a servant, awakened by the roots of Torah and mitzvos, the two olive trees. So the source of life is only “with” G‑d, His light is seen through Torah and mitzvos, and Israel is seen in it.
Outline
- Two questions and the golden menorahTwo readings of “we shall see light” and the question of “with You”; the menorah as the source of Israel’s souls, its lamps and pipes as light from above, all drawn through gold, the left side.¶1–2
- He who is enthroned on high lowers HimselfG‑d is beyond Chochmah and Chesed, so His entering the worlds is a lowering; it comes through Torah and mitzvos, the limbs of the King, drawn down by an arousal from below.¶3–4
- Loftiness, exile and sleepFrom G‑d’s loftiness all worlds are as nothing: the nations draw life from it, and His governance is like sleep; the prayer “Awake!” asks for His essence to be revealed through Torah and mitzvos.¶5–7
- Looking from heaven: Israel seen through the TorahThrough the Torah Israel is seen as great, like an object in a clear mirror; mitzvos need the heart’s fiery desire, kindled by contemplating G‑d’s unchanging transcendence.¶8–9
- The crown, the servant and the cause of the loweringThe menorah’s bowl is the crown of Malchus; true service is accepting G‑d’s kingship beyond reason; heaven and earth, Torah and prayer, and bitter crying out draw the Infinite Light down.¶10–14
- The olive trees and the answerThe roots of Torah and mitzvos awaken the soul’s fiery longing; the source of life is only “with” G‑d, His light is seen through Torah and mitzvos, and Israel is seen in it.¶15–17
Key concepts
- An arousal from aboveאתערותא דלעילא
- Divine light given unprompted. Here it is the seven lamps of the menorah that shine on every Jew, even the wicked, as an encompassing light.
- The encompassing and the filling lightסובב כל עלמין / ממלא כל עלמין
- Light above the worlds and light within them; drawing light from the first into the second is the “water” that flows from high to low, a lowering for G‑d.
- Gold, the left sideזהב / שמאל
- Gold stands for Gevurah and for the fiery love and awe of the heart, through which every drawing-down from the highest levels comes.
- Limbs of the Kingרמ״ח אברין דמלכא
- The 248 positive mitzvos are united with the Infinite Light as a limb is with the soul, so through them His light clothes itself in Chochmah and Chesed.
- Self-nullification of willביטול רצון
- The servant’s acceptance of G‑d’s kingship beyond reason; it makes G‑d King, subdues the sitra achra and draws down the Infinite Light.
- Heaven and earthשמים וארץ
- The Written and Oral Torah, or Torah and prayer: the place into which G‑d lowers Himself and the means by which He is drawn to do so.
Two questions and the golden menorah ¶1–2
“For with You is the source of life; in Your light we shall see light.” Now, what is written, “we shall see light” (nir’eh or), has two interpretations.
The maamar opens with a verse from Psalms and notes that its last phrase, nir’eh or, can be read in two ways. The whole discourse will show how both readings are true.
הא׳ הוא כפשוטו שהאור נראה ומתגלה. והב׳ לשון רבים מדברים בעדם כלומר אנחנו נראה את האור.
The first is in its plain sense: that the light is seen and revealed. And the second is [as] the plural, spoken on their own behalf, that is to say: we shall see the light.
Read one way, the phrase says that light becomes visible. Read the other way, the Hebrew nir’eh is first person plural, so King David speaks for Israel: “we” are the ones who will see the light.
And to understand this, [we must] also understand what [is meant by] “For with You is the source of life,” and it is not written “For You are.” For it is written (Zechariah 4): “I saw,
The Alter Rebbe adds a second question: why does the verse say the source of life is “with You” rather than simply “You are the source of life”? The wording hints that the source of life is something beside G‑d, not His very essence. To answer, he turns to Zechariah’s vision of the menorah.
והנה מנורת זהב כולה וגולה על ראשה6 ושבעה נרתיה עליה שבעה ושבעה מוצקות לנרות אשר על ראשה ושנים זיתים עליה.7
and behold, a menorah all of gold, with its bowl upon its top, and its seven lamps upon it, seven and seven pipes to the lamps that are upon its top, and two olive trees over it.”
This is the prophet’s vision: a golden menorah with a bowl on top, seven lamps, pipes feeding the lamps, and two olive trees beside it. Each detail will be interpreted in turn.
וביאור הדבר כי הנה ענין המנורה הוא כמ״ש זה דבר8 ה׳ אל זרובבל. כלומר שהמנורה הוא בחי׳ דבר ה׳ הוא בחי׳ כנ״י מקור נשמות
And the explanation of the matter: the subject of the menorah is as it is written, “This is the word of G‑d to Zerubbabel.” That is to say, the menorah is the level of “the word of G‑d,” which is the level of the Congregation of Israel, the source of the souls
The angel explains the vision to Zechariah as “the word of G‑d to Zerubbabel.” The Alter Rebbe reads “the word of G‑d” as Malchus, which is also called the Congregation of Israel (Knesses Yisrael), the collective root from which all Jewish souls come. So the menorah stands for the source of the souls of Israel.
ישראל ושבעה נרותיה הם ז׳ מדות עליונות אהוי״ר והתפארות כו׳ שמאירים מלמעלה בכל נפש מישראל בבחי׳ אתעדל״ע שאפי׳ ברשע שורה עליו מלמעלה בבחי׳ מקיף
of Israel. And its seven lamps are the seven supernal attributes, love and awe and glorification, etc., which shine from above upon every soul of Israel as an arousal from above, so that even upon a wicked person it rests from above, in an encompassing (makif) manner.
The seven lamps are the seven emotive attributes of G‑d (love, awe, glorification and the rest), which shine on every Jew as a gift from above, not as a reward for his own effort. Because this light only hovers over the person as an encompassing light, it rests even on a wicked person.
ולכן כתיב עליה שבבחי׳ זו שהוא בבחי׳ השראה מלמעלה בבחי׳ מקיף כולם שוים לטובה וכמארז״ל אכל בי עשרה שכינתא שריא וכמ״ש בתניא.910
Therefore it is written “upon it”: at this level, which is an indwelling from above in an encompassing manner, all are equal for good, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Wherever ten sit together, the Shechinah rests,” and as is explained in the Tanya.
The word “upon it” shows that the lamps sit above the menorah, encompassing it. On this level every Jew is equal for good, just as the Talmud says the Shechinah rests on any gathering of ten, without asking who they are.
The paragraph poses two questions on the verse “For with You is the source of life” and introduces Zechariah’s menorah as the key: the menorah is the source of Israel’s souls, and its seven lamps are the divine attributes that shine on every Jew from above, encompassing even the wicked.
An encompassing light (makif) affects a person without being absorbed into his understanding or conduct, which is why it can rest equally on the righteous and the wicked; an inner light (pnimi) varies with the recipient. The two readings of nir’eh or anticipate the end of the maamar, where Israel’s Torah and mitzvos make the light visible and Israel itself is seen in that light.
Marei mekomos
- 1כי עמך מקור חיים · הנחת כ״ק אדמו״ר האמצעי בסה״מ תקס״ג ע׳ נט. ראה לעיל בציונים לכ״ק אדמו״ר זי״ע. ראה ד״ה כי עמך מקור חיים תשל״ד. בלקו״ת נשא נט, ב. בהעלותך לד, ד. שלח לט, א. קרח נה, ג. מציין לד״ה זה.
- 2כי עמך מקור חיים · Psalms 36:10
- 3יש בו ב׳ פירושים · בסה״מ תקס״ג ע׳ נט מבאר ההפרש בין ב׳ הפירושים ”שכאשר יראה אור מתוך האור ה״ז ענין אספקלריא דלא נהרא כמו שרואין האור דרך מסך כו׳, וכאשר אנחנו נראה את האור היינו שנראה האור ממש ביתרון גדול”. ובד״ה כי עמך תשל״ד (מהנחה) מבאר: ”דהיינו שהכח לראות אור זה בעולם הוא רק בידי ישראל וכמבואר בכ״מ דכל הנבראים חוץ מישראל הרי הם בבחי׳ עומדים, שעומדים במקומם ובמדידה והגבלה שלהם, ולכן אין ביכולתם להמשיך אלא ענין שבמדידה והגבלה, משא״כ ישראל שהם מהלכים ולמעלה ממדידה והגבלה הרי יש ביכולתם להמשיך ע״י קיום התורה ומצות בחי׳ האור שלמעלה” ע״ש.
- 4כי הנה כתיב · בסה״מ תקס״ג שם מקשר ההמשך שכדי להבין ענין האור מהו, הנה כללות נש״י נמשלו למנורה.
- 5כי הנה כתיב וראיתי · Zechariah 4:2
- 6וגולה על ראשה · רש״י מבאר כמו גולות עליות (הושע טו, יט). בלקו״ת שה״ש כב, א מציין לכאן.
- 7ושנים זיתים עליה · Zechariah 4:3
- 8זה דבר ה׳ אל זרובבל · Zechariah 4:6
- 9אכל בי עשרה שכינתא שריא, וכמ״ש בתניא · Sanhedrin 39a:11
- 10כמ״ש בתניא · פ״ו. פי״א. בסה״מ תקס״ג ע׳ נט אינו מציין לתניא. בבוך 1103: בלק״א.
2ושבעה ושבעה מוצקות1 הם בחי׳ המשכות ממדריגות עליונות מבחינת סוכ״ע לאתעדל״ע זו. וכמה דרגין דא לעילא מן דא עד רום המעלות וכולם הם בחי׳ שבעה שבעה. וזהו לנרות אשר על ראשה.
And “seven and seven pipes” are the drawings-down from higher levels, from the level of the light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin), to this arousal from above. And there are many levels, one above the other, up to the very highest heights, and all of them are of the order of “seven [and] seven.” And this is [the meaning of] “to the lamps that are upon its top.”
The pipes that feed the lamps are channels drawing light from ever higher levels, up to the light that encompasses all worlds, into the gift from above that shines on every Jew. Each higher level repeats the pattern of seven, so the vision shows lamps fed from levels that themselves stand “upon its top.”
והנה כתיב מנורת זהב כולה שכל המשכות מלעילא לעילא מריש כל דרגין הוא ע״י בחי׳ זהב שהוא בחי׳ שמאל כמ״ש מצפון זהב יאתה על אלוה נורא הוד:23
Now it is written, “a menorah all of gold”: every drawing-down from the highest of heights, from the head of all levels, comes by means of the level of gold, which is the level of the left, as it is written, “From the north comes gold; upon G‑d is awesome splendor.”
The menorah is “all of gold,” and gold in Kabbalah belongs to the left side, the side of Gevurah. The Alter Rebbe states that every drawing-down from the very highest levels comes through this quality, and cites Job’s verse linking gold with the north, the side of the left.
The paragraph explains the pipes as channels that draw light from the highest levels into the gift that rests on every Jew, and introduces the idea that all such drawing-down comes through “gold,” the left side.
Silver is associated with Chesed and the right, gold with Gevurah and the left. That the highest flows come through gold anticipates the maamar’s point that they are drawn down by fiery love and by the bittul and bitterness of the soul, not by easy giving alone.
Marei mekomos
- 1
- 2והנה כתיב . . נורא הוד · מובא באוה״ת בראשית כרך א קפב, א. יהל אור ע׳ עג.
- 3מצפון זהב יאתה . . נורא הוד · Job 37:22
He who is enthroned on high lowers Himself ¶3–4
And the matter [is this]. It is written, “He who is enthroned on high, who lowers Himself to look upon heaven and upon earth.” “Heaven” (shamayim) means “there is water” (sham mayim), that is, the level of water,
The Alter Rebbe brings a verse from Psalms that describes G‑d as exalted yet lowering Himself to look upon heaven and earth. He reads shamayim (heaven) as sham mayim, “there is water.”
שהוא בחינת המשכה ממקום גבוה מסוכ״ע למקום נמוך להיות בחי׳ ממכ״ע והוא בחינת השפלה וירידה אצלו ית׳.
which is the level of a drawing-down from a high place, from [the light that] encompasses all worlds, to a low place, to become the level of [the light that] fills all worlds; and this is a lowering and descent for Him, may He be blessed.
Water flows from high to low, so “water” stands for light drawn down from the encompassing light, which is above the worlds, into the light that fills the worlds and enters them. For G‑d this is a lowering.
ופי׳ בשמים ובארץ (בביתי״ן הנוספין) מתפרש לשני ענינים. הא׳ שהוא משפיל א״ע כביכול לראות תוך השמים ותוך הארץ.
And “upon heaven and upon earth” (with the extra letters beis) is interpreted in two ways. The first: that He lowers Himself, as it were, to look into the heavens and into the earth.
In Hebrew the verse says “to look ba-shamayim u-va-aretz,” with an extra letter beis meaning “in” or “by means of.” The first reading takes it as “in”: G‑d lowers Himself to look into heaven and earth.
והב׳ כלומר שע״י בחינת שמים וארץ משפיל א״ע שהם הם הגורמים לבחי׳ ירידה והשפלה זו.
And the second, that is to say: that by means of the level of heaven and earth He lowers Himself, for they themselves are what cause this descent and lowering.
The second reading takes the beis as “by means of”: heaven and earth are the very cause of G‑d’s lowering. What “heaven and earth” mean in this sense is explained later in the maamar.
וביאור הענין כי פי׳ המגביהי לשבת אין ר״ל שהוא ית׳ גבוה בבחינת מקום שהרי הנה מקום אתי5 כתיב והוא ית׳ מקומו של עולם6 כו׳.
And the explanation of the matter: “He who is enthroned on high” does not mean that He, may He be blessed, is high in terms of place, for indeed it is written, “There is a place with Me,” and He, may He be blessed, is the place of the world, etc.
G‑d’s being “on high” cannot mean height in space, since He is the place of the world and not contained in it. The verse “There is a place with Me” and the Midrash’s teaching that G‑d is the place of the world make this point.
אלא פי׳ גבוה במעלה ועילוי אחר עילוי עד אין קץ ותכלית שהוא קדוש ומובדל מגדר עלמין
Rather, it means high in stature, rising level upon level without end or limit, in that He is holy and set apart from the bounds of the worlds.
His height is one of stature: He is beyond every level without limit, holy and apart from the whole category of worlds.
The worlds are made through Chochmah and built through Chesed, as two verses in Psalms say. G‑d is above even the supernal Chochmah and Chesed, and they cannot be compared to Him at all.
וכדכתיב לך ה׳ הגדולה כו׳ שמדת הגדולה היא בטילה אליו ואין עולה בשם גדולה כלל.
as it is written, “Yours, O G‑d, is the greatness,” etc.: the attribute of greatness is nullified before Him and does not even merit the name “greatness” at all.
Even the attribute of “greatness” in the verse “Yours, O G‑d, is the greatness” is nullified before Him. Compared to G‑d, it does not even deserve the name “greatness.”
וכן בחינת חכמה נחשבת לגבי הקב״ה כעשי׳ גשמית כמ״ש כולם בחכמה עשית אלא מה שמתלבש אור א״ס ב״ה בחכמה וחסד ומתפשט תוך עלמין הוא בחינת ירידה והשפלה גדולה.9
And likewise the level of Chochmah is considered, relative to the Holy One, blessed be He, like physical making, as it is written, “You made them all with wisdom.” Rather, the fact that the Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof), blessed be He, clothes itself in Chochmah and Chesed and spreads out within the worlds is a great descent and lowering.
Even Chochmah, the highest intellect, is to G‑d like physical making, as the verse calls creation through wisdom a “making.” So when the Infinite Light clothes itself in Chochmah and Chesed and spreads into the worlds, that is a great descent.
Through the verse “He who is enthroned on high, who lowers Himself to look upon heaven and earth,” the paragraph shows that G‑d’s true height is beyond even Chochmah and Chesed, so every entry of His light into the worlds is a great lowering, and it introduces two readings of “heaven and earth” as the place and the cause of that lowering.
The pun shamayim / sham mayim is found in the Talmud and Midrash; here it serves to show heaven as the channel of descent from sovev to memalei. That Chochmah is “like physical making” before G‑d is a recurring theme in Tanya and Chassidus: even the highest level of creation is no closer to the Infinite One than the lowest.
Marei mekomos
- 1והענין כי הנה כתיב · מובא באוה״ת יתרו ע׳ א׳כה. ראה סה״מ תרכ״ט (הוצאת תשנ״ב) ע׳ לג. ושם ע׳ רצב נעתק קטע מכאן. וראה גם אוה״ת נ״ך כרך א ע׳ תקע.
- 2המגביהי לשבת · Psalms 113:5
- 3
- 4המגביהי לשבת המשפילי לראות בשמים ובארץ · Psalms 113:5–6
- 5הנה מקום אתי · Exodus 33:21
- 6והוא ית׳ מקומו של עולם · Bereshit Rabbah 68:9
- 7כולם בחכמה עשית · Psalms 104:24
- 8ועולם חסד יבנה · Psalms 89:3
- 9לך ה׳ הגדולה · I Chronicles 29:11
4והנה בחינת התלבשות זו היא בבחינת תורה ומצות. וכמארז״ל הקב״ה מניח תפילין הקב״ה מתפלל12 ואמרו מלמד שנתעטף הקב״ה3 כו׳. ואמרו ג׳ ראשונות יושב ועוסק בתורה4 כו׳.
Now this clothing is by way of Torah and mitzvos. As our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “The Holy One, blessed be He, puts on tefillin”; “The Holy One, blessed be He, prays”; and they said, “This teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, wrapped Himself,” etc. And they said, “[During] the first three [hours] He sits and occupies Himself with Torah,” etc.
G‑d’s light clothes itself in Chochmah and Chesed by way of Torah and mitzvos. The Talmud describes G‑d as putting on tefillin, praying, wrapping Himself in a tallis and studying Torah, showing that the mitzvos exist above as the very garments of G‑d’s light.
וכן עד״ז כל המצות. וזהו אשר קדשנו במצותיו במצותיו דייקא שהמצות רמ״ח פקודין הן רמ״ח אברין דמלכא5 כלומר
And likewise all the mitzvos in this way. And this is [the meaning of] “who has sanctified us with His mitzvos”: “with His mitzvos” precisely, for the mitzvos, the 248 commandments, are the 248 limbs of the King. That is to say,
The blessing says “who has sanctified us with His mitzvos,” stressing that they are His. The Tikkunei Zohar teaches that the 248 positive commandments are the 248 “limbs of the King.”
כמו למשל אבר הגשמי שהוא בטל ומתאחד עם החיות הרוחני השוכן בקרבו כך כל המצות הם בטלים ומתאחדים באור א״ס ב״ה ממש ובהם
just as, for example, a physical limb is nullified and united with the spiritual life-force that dwells within it, so all the mitzvos are nullified and united with the Infinite Light, blessed be He, itself; and in them
A physical limb has no will of its own and is wholly united with the soul that gives it life. In the same way the mitzvos are wholly united with the Infinite Light itself.
ועל ידיהם נמשך גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה להתלבש בבחי׳ חכמה וחסד וקדשנו שבאתעדל״ת בעשיית האדם מצות ה׳ גורם אתעדל״ע ורוח אייתי רוח ואמשיך רוח67 כו׳:
and through them the revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, is drawn down to clothe itself in the level of Chochmah and Chesed. And “who has sanctified us”: for by an arousal from below, when a person performs G‑d’s mitzvos, he brings about an arousal from above, and “a spirit brings a spirit and draws forth a spirit,” etc.
Through the mitzvos the Infinite Light is drawn down into Chochmah and Chesed. When a person does a mitzvah below, it awakens a response above; the Zohar puts it as “a spirit brings a spirit and draws forth a spirit.”
The paragraph identifies Torah and mitzvos as the channel through which the Infinite Light clothes itself in Chochmah and Chesed: the mitzvos are G‑d’s “limbs,” united with His light, and a person’s performance of them below draws that light down from above.
The “spirit brings a spirit” teaching describes how the arousal from below, the person’s own act and intention, draws forth a corresponding arousal from above. Calling the mitzvos the limbs of the King means they are not merely commands but vessels wholly one with the will they express.
Marei mekomos
- 1הקב״ה מניח תפילין, הקב״ה מתפלל · Berakhot 6a:17–18
- 2הקב״ה מתפלל · Berakhot 7a
- 3מלמד שנתעטף הקב״ה · Rosh Hashanah 17b:5
- 4ג׳ ראשונות יושב ועוסק בתורה · Avodah Zarah 3b:7
- 5רמ״ח פקודין הן רמ״ח אברין דמלכא · Tikkunei Zohar, Tikkun 30 · 74a:8
- 6ורוח אייתי רוח ואמשיך רוח · Zohar II, 162b
- 7ורוח אייתי רוח ואמשיך רוח · Zohar, Terumah 66:669–678
Loftiness, exile and sleep ¶5–7
And this is [the meaning of] “Look down from heaven and see,” and “Look down from Your holy dwelling, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel.” For
Two verses ask G‑d to “look down from heaven,” and the second asks Him to bless Israel. The Alter Rebbe will explain why the blessing depends on G‑d’s looking “from heaven,” and first explains G‑d’s loftiness.
הנה כתיב רם על כל גוים4 ה׳ שהעכו״ם מקבלים חיות5 מצד רוממות ה׳ והתנשאותו בעצמותו כביכול שהוא מצד עצמותו ומהותו רם ונשא מגדר עלמין עליונים ותחתונים ואין להם יחוס ושייכות אליו כלל
it is written, “G‑d is high above all nations”: the idolatrous nations receive life-force from the side of G‑d’s loftiness and His exaltation in His essence, as it were, in that, by His very essence and being, He is exalted and lifted above the bounds of the worlds, higher and lower, and they have no relation or connection to Him at all.
“G‑d is high above all nations”: the verse links the nations with G‑d’s loftiness. In this teaching, the nations draw their life-force from the level where G‑d is utterly beyond the worlds and they have no relation to Him; there the worlds are as nothing, so no distinction between them is felt.
ומזה נמשך ממשלת העכו״ם על ישראל בזמן הגלות גוים מרקדין בהיכלו6 כו׳. כי שממית בידים תתפש7 והיא בהיכלי מלך שאינו תופס מקום כלל.
And from this comes the dominion of the idolatrous nations over Israel in the time of exile, [as it is said,] “Nations dance in His sanctuary,” etc. For “the spider grasps with its hands, yet it is in the king’s palaces,” since it does not occupy any place at all.
From this source comes the nations’ power over Israel during exile, which the Sages describe with the image of strangers in G‑d’s sanctuary. The verse about the spider, which lives even in a king’s palace because it takes up no space, illustrates how something counted as nothing is not pushed out.
The paragraph begins to explain “Look down from heaven and bless Your people Israel” by first describing the opposite: the nations’ life-force and their power in exile come from G‑d’s loftiness, where all the worlds are as nothing before Him.
This is one of the passages that speak of the nations and the exile. The Alter Rebbe’s point is about two modes of G‑d’s relation to the world: from His essence, which is beyond all worlds, nothing has standing and distinctions are not felt; through Torah and mitzvos, the light is drawn down into Chochmah and Chesed and Israel is “seen” and blessed, as the next paragraphs explain.
Marei mekomos
- 1וזהו הבט · מובא באוה״ת פ׳ וירא כרך ד תשס, א. ואתחנן ע׳ שלב. וראה אוה״ת פ׳ זכור ע׳ א׳תשפו מענין הבטה והשקפה.
- 2הבט משמים וראה · Psalms 80:15
- 3והשקיפה ממעון קדשך · Deuteronomy 26:15
- 4רם על כל גוים ה׳ · Psalms 113:4
- 5שהעכו״ם מקבלים חיות · ע׳ בספר המאמרים תש״א ע׳ יא.
- 6גוים מרקדין בהיכלו · Yoma 69b
- 7שממית בידים תתפש · Proverbs 30:28
6וכך כל העולמות עליונים ותחתונים כולא כלא ממש חשיבי קמי קוב״ה וכדכתיב כי נשגב שמו לבדו12 רק הודו וזיוו והארתו על ארץ ושמים.
And so all the worlds, higher and lower, are considered truly as nothing before the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written, “For His Name alone is exalted; only His glory and radiance and light is upon earth and heaven.”
All the worlds are as nothing before G‑d. The verse “His Name alone is exalted; only His glory is upon earth and heaven” means that only a glimmer of His light relates to the worlds, while He Himself is exalted beyond them.
וזהו כד סליק קוב״ה לעילא כו׳. ר״ל שנסתלק החיות מההארה למעלה מעלה לבחי׳ עצמותו ומהותו
And this is [the meaning of] “When the Holy One, blessed be He, ascends on high,” etc. That is to say, the life-force is withdrawn from the radiance far, far upward, to the level of His essence and being.
The Zohar’s phrase “when the Holy One, blessed be He, ascends on high” is read as the withdrawal of the life-force from that glimmer back up to G‑d’s own essence.
ואזי העולמות אינם תופסים מקום כלל והנהגת העולמות הוא בבחי׳ שינה3 כביכול כאדם הישן שנסתלק שכלו מהכלי שהוא הגוף למקורו ושרשו ולא נשאר כ״א כח הדמיון שהוא רשימו כו׳.
And then the worlds do not occupy any place at all, and the conduct of the worlds is in the manner of sleep, as it were, like a sleeping person whose intellect has withdrawn from its vessel, the body, to its source and root, and nothing remains but the power of imagination, which is an impression (reshimu), etc.
Then the worlds count for nothing, and G‑d’s governance of them is like sleep. In sleep the intellect leaves the body and returns to its source, leaving only the imagination, a mere trace; so too only a faint impression of G‑d’s light is left directing the worlds.
The paragraph explains that when the divine light withdraws to G‑d’s essence, the worlds count for nothing and His governance of them is like sleep, with only an impression of His light remaining.
In a sleeping person the imagination runs on without the guidance of reason, which explains how in exile the world can seem to be run without order. The reshimu, the impression left after a withdrawal of light, is a key term in the Arizal’s teaching on the tzimtzum.
Marei mekomos
- 1וכדכתיב כי נשגב שמו לבדו · בספה״מ תרכ״ט שם ע׳ לג נוסף כאן הג״ה: ”(שגם בחי׳ נשגב סוכ״ע הוא ג״כ מבחי׳ שמו)”.
- 2כי נשגב שמו לבדו · Psalms 148:13
- 3והנהגת העולמות הוא בבחי׳ שינה · בסה״מ תש״ח שם העיר כ״ק אדמו״ר זי״ע ”ראה עד״ז במאמר פורים תש״ח פ״ו ואילך. ד״ה בלילה ההוא ש״ת (בס׳ המאמרים)”. ראה יהל אור לקאפי׳ עג ע׳ 260.
7ולכן כתיב ויקץ כישן1 ה׳ וכתיב עורה למה תישן2 ה׳ שיהיה גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה בחכמה וחסד בבחינת עצמותו ומהותו ית׳ בכבודו ובעצמו ויאר פניו3 פנימיות רצונו כו׳. והיינו ע״י המשכת התומ״צ.
Therefore it is written, “And G‑d awoke as one asleep,” and it is written, “Awake! Why do You sleep, O G‑d?”: that there be a revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, in Chochmah and Chesed, at the level of His very essence and being, may He be blessed, in His glory and His very self, and “may He make His face shine”: the inner dimension of His will, etc. And this is through the drawing-down of Torah and mitzvos.
The verses “G‑d awoke as one asleep” and “Awake! Why do You sleep?” ask that G‑d’s governance be no longer like sleep, but that His very essence be revealed in Chochmah and Chesed, with the inner dimension of His will shining. This awakening is brought about by drawing the light down through Torah and mitzvos.
The paragraph turns the image of sleep into a prayer for awakening: the revelation of G‑d’s essence and inner will in the worlds, brought about through Torah and mitzvos.
“May He make His face shine” is read as the inner will (pnimiyus haratzon), in contrast with the outer will that sustains the worlds as a mere glimmer. The phrase “in His glory and His very self” is taken from the Haggadah’s description of the Exodus, when G‑d acted not through an intermediary.
Marei mekomos
- 1ויקץ כישן ה׳ · Psalms 78:65
- 2עורה למה תישן ה׳ · Psalms 44:24
- 3ויאר פניו · Psalms 67:2
Looking from heaven: Israel seen through the Torah ¶8–9
8וזהו הבט משמים וראה והשקיפה ממעון קדשך1 מן השמים שם מים23 שהיא בחי׳ התורה שנמשלה למים4 ואזי וברך את עמך את ישראל
And this is [the meaning of] “Look down from heaven and see,” and “Look down from Your holy dwelling, from heaven”: [heaven, shamayim, is] “there is water” (sham mayim), which is the level of the Torah, which is likened to water; and then “and bless Your people Israel.”
Now the Alter Rebbe answers why the blessing of Israel depends on G‑d’s looking “from heaven.” Shamayim is read again as sham mayim, “there is water,” and water is a common image for Torah, so G‑d’s looking “from heaven” means looking through the Torah.
כי ע״י בחינה זו נהי׳ אנחנו עם בני ישראל נתראים לפניו לדבר חשוב5 שכל עיקר ההשגה והגילוי הוא
For through this level we, the people of the Children of Israel, will be seen before Him as something of importance, for the whole essence of comprehension and revelation is
When G‑d looks at the world through the Torah, Israel appears before Him as something of real importance, unlike the view from His loftiness where everything is as nothing. This is because all comprehension and revelation of G‑d come through the Torah.
ע״י התורה והתורה היא אצלנו בהתגלות וזהו נפתחו השמים6 ואראה מראות אלקים בחינת אספקלריא המאירה שע״י בחי׳ שמים.
through the Torah, and the Torah is with us in a revealed way. And this is [the meaning of] “The heavens were opened and I saw visions of G‑d”: the level of the clear, shining lens (aspaklaria hame’irah), which comes through the level of heaven.
The Torah is revealed and given to us. Ezekiel’s words “the heavens were opened and I saw visions of G‑d” describe the clear, shining lens of prophecy, and the Alter Rebbe links that clarity to “heaven,” that is, to the Torah.
הנה מתראה לפניו כביכול כאלו עד״מ רואה במראה המאירה שהיא מכלי זכוכית שע״י המראה נראה הדבר שרואין בה לדבר גדול יותר ומשובח יותר ממה שרואין אותה כך בלא מראה.
[Israel] is seen before Him, as it were, as if, by way of analogy, one looks in a shining mirror made of glass: through the mirror, the thing seen in it appears greater and finer than it appears when seen without a mirror.
A good glass mirror can make what is seen in it look larger and finer than it looks to the naked eye. The analogy prepares the claim that follows about how Israel looks when seen through the Torah.
כך ע״י הבטה והשקפה בבחי׳ התורה שם נראים לפניו ישראל שהם מקיימי׳ התורה בבחי׳ שבח וגדולה.
So, through looking and gazing by way of the Torah, there Israel, who fulfill the Torah, are seen before Him with praise and greatness.
Seen through the Torah, which Israel keeps, Israel appears before G‑d with praise and greatness. The Torah acts like that mirror, magnifying Israel’s worth in G‑d’s eyes.
וזהו ומי כעמך ישראל7 גוי אחד בארץ פי׳ שהם ממשיכים להיות שורה ומתגלה בחי׳ הוי״ה אחד שיהיה שורה בארץ התחתונה.
And this is [the meaning of] “And who is like Your people Israel, one nation on earth”: that is, they draw down the level of “Havayah is One” to rest and be revealed, so that it rests in the lower earth.
The verse “who is like Your people Israel, one nation on earth” is read as describing Israel’s task: to draw the oneness of Havayah down so that it rests and is revealed on the lowest earth. Israel is “one nation” because it brings G‑d’s oneness into the world.
The paragraph explains that when G‑d looks at the world “from heaven,” through the Torah, Israel is seen as precious and great, like an object magnified in a clear mirror, and their work draws G‑d’s oneness down to the earth.
The “shining lens” (aspaklaria hame’irah) is the Talmud’s term for Moshe’s clear prophecy, in contrast with the “non-shining lens” of other prophets. The Mitteler Rebbe’s transcript, cited in the notes on the first paragraph, connects the two readings of nir’eh or to these two kinds of lens.
Marei mekomos
- 1השקיפה ממעון קדשיך · Deuteronomy 26:15
- 2מן השמים שם מים · ראה בלקו״ת שה״ש יד, א בפי׳ מן השמים.
- 3שם מים · Chagigah 12a
- 4בחי׳ התורה שנמשלה למים · בספר המאמרים תש״ח שם: [שנאמר הוי כל צמא לכו למים כו׳ שזה קאי על בחי׳ התורה כו׳].
- 5אנחנו עם בני ישראל נתראים לפניו לדבר חשוב · מובא באוה״ת פ׳ בלק ע׳ א׳כח. ע״ש.
- 6נפתחו השמים · Ezekiel 1:1
- 7ומי כעמך ישראל · I Chronicles 17:21
9והנה ארז״ל מצות צריכות כוונה1 היינו כוונת הלב רעותא דלבא להמשיך אא״ס ב״ה ממקורא דכולא שיומשך ויתגלה בבחי׳ חכמ׳ וחסד.
Now our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Mitzvos require intention”: that is, the intention of the heart, the desire of the heart (re’usa d’liba), to draw down the Infinite Light, blessed be He, from the Source of all, so that it be drawn down and revealed in the level of Chochmah and Chesed.
The Sages’ rule that mitzvos require intention is read here as the heart’s desire to draw the Infinite Light down from its source into Chochmah and Chesed. The mitzvah is the channel; the heart’s longing is what moves the light through it.
וזהו בחי׳ הזהב שהזהב הוא מנוצץ כעין ניצוצי וגחלי אש לוחשות. וכך צריך להיות בחי׳ רעותא דלבא ברשפי אש האהבה.2
And this is the level of gold, for gold sparkles like sparks and glowing coals of fire. And so must the desire of the heart be, with flames of the fire of love.
This is why the menorah is of gold: gold sparkles like glowing embers. So too the heart’s desire in doing a mitzvah should burn with the fire of love.
והיינו כשיקיים מארז״ל בכל יום3 יהיו בעיניך כחדשים. דהיינו כשישים אל לבו ויתבונן במוחו ושכלו מ״ש אני ראשון ואני אחרון.4
And this is when one fulfills what our Sages, of blessed memory, said: “Every day they should be in your eyes as new.” That is, when he takes to heart and contemplates with his mind and intellect what is written, “I am first and I am last,”
This fire comes when one fulfills the teaching that the words of Torah should be new to you each day. One brings this about by contemplating that G‑d is “first and last,” beyond all time.
ואני הוי״ה לא שניתי5 ואתה הוא קודם שנברא העולם כו׳. וזהו פי׳ הא׳ של בשמים ובארץ דהיינו שמשפיל א״ע לתוך בחינת שמים וארץ:
and “I, G‑d, have not changed,” and “You were [the same] before the world was created,” etc. And this is the first interpretation of “upon heaven and upon earth”: that He lowers Himself into the level of heaven and earth.
G‑d does not change: He is the same before and after the world’s creation, so the world adds nothing to Him. Realizing that His light enters heaven and earth at all becomes the first reading of “lowers Himself to look upon heaven and earth”: G‑d lowers Himself into them.
The paragraph explains that a mitzvah must be done with the heart’s fiery desire, the “gold” of the menorah, which comes from contemplating G‑d’s unchanging transcendence; this completes the first reading of G‑d’s lowering Himself into heaven and earth.
Contemplating “I, G‑d, have not changed” shows that creation is a pure descent for G‑d, nothing He needs, and that awareness kindles the love that longs to draw Him down. The phrase “You were before the world was created” is from the morning prayers.
Marei mekomos
- 1מצות צריכות כוונה · Berakhot 13a:22–25
- 2שהזהב הוא מנוצץ . . ברשפי אש האהבה · מובא ביהל אור ע׳ עג.
- 3בכל יום יהיו בעיניך כחדשים · רש״י דברים ו, ו. בשם הספרי.
- 4אני ראשון ואני אחרון · Isaiah 44:6
- 5ואני הוי״ה לא שניתי · Malachi 3:6
The crown, the servant and the cause of the lowering ¶10–14
10וביאור פי׳ הב׳ שבחינת שמים וארץ הוא הגורם ההשפלה יובן עם מ״ש וגלה על ראשה1 שפי׳ גולה הוא מלשון גולת הכותרת2 שהיא בחי׳ כתר למעלה מן הראש. והיינו בחי׳ כתר מלכות עטרת תפארת.
And the explanation of the second interpretation, that the level of heaven and earth is what causes the lowering, will be understood from what is written, “with its bowl (gulah) upon its top”: gulah is from the expression gulas hakoseres, “the crown of the capital,” which is the level of a crown above the head. And this is the level of the Keser (Crown) of Malchus, the crown of Tiferes.
The second reading, that heaven and earth cause G‑d’s lowering, begins from the bowl “upon its top” in Zechariah’s menorah. Gulah is read as the crowning bowl of a pillar’s capital, a crown above the head, which is Keser of Malchus, the crown that Malchus forms for Tiferes.
The paragraph introduces the second reading of “upon heaven and upon earth” by interpreting the menorah’s bowl as a crown above the head, the Keser of Malchus.
In Kabbalah, Malchus is the “crown of her husband” (Proverbs 12:4), the crown of Tiferes, and is rooted in Keser. The next paragraphs explain that this crown is formed by Israel’s acceptance of G‑d’s kingship.
Marei mekomos
- 1וגלה על ראשה · Zechariah 4:2
- 2מלשון גולת הכותרת · I Kings 7:41
11והענין כי זה כלל גדול בעבודת ה׳ שהעבודה שמצד הרצון והבחירה שמחמת השגת המשכילים קרבת אלקים כי טוב אין זו נק׳ בשם עבודת עבד
And the matter [is this]: it is a great principle in the service of G‑d that service which comes from one’s own will and choice, because the thoughtful grasp that “nearness to G‑d is good,” is not called by the name “the service of a servant.”
Service that comes from a person’s own understanding, because he grasps that closeness to G‑d is good, is not yet the service of a servant. It still rests on his own will and reasoning.
כי עיקר העבודה היא לקבל עליו עול מ״ש שהיא למעלה מן הטעם והדעת המושג וכמ״ש שום תשים עליך מלך1
For the essence of service is to accept upon oneself the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven, which is above reason and above knowledge that can be grasped, as it is written, “You shall surely set a king over yourself,”
The core of service is accepting G‑d’s kingship beyond reason, as the Torah commands “You shall surely set a king over yourself.”
וכמארז״ל בטל רצונך מפני רצונו23 שיהיה לו ביטול רצון וכאלו אין לו רצון אחר כלל רק לקיים מה שמצוה עליו השי״ת ובקבל׳ זו אתכפיי׳ סט״א4 ואסתלק יקרא דקוב״ה כו׳.
and as our Sages, of blessed memory, said, “Nullify your will before His will”: that he have self-nullification of will, as though he had no other will at all except to fulfill what G‑d, may He be blessed, commands him. And through this acceptance the sitra achra is subdued, and the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is raised up, etc.
The Mishnah’s “Nullify your will before His will” means having no will of one’s own except to do what G‑d commands. Such acceptance subdues the sitra achra, the side opposed to holiness, and so raises G‑d’s glory, as the Zohar teaches.
The paragraph sets out a great principle of divine service: true service is the acceptance of G‑d’s kingship beyond reason, nullifying one’s own will before His, and this subdues the sitra achra and raises His glory.
The Zohar’s teaching on itkafya (subduing the other side) says that when the sitra achra is subdued, G‑d’s glory rises in all the worlds. Here acceptance of the yoke, not intellectual delight, is what achieves it.
Marei mekomos
- 1שום תשים עליך מלך · Deuteronomy 17:15
- 2בטל רצונך מפני רצונו · אבות ב, ד.
- 3בטל רצונך מפני רצונו · Pirkei Avot 2:4
- 4אתכפיי׳ סט״א · Zohar II, 128b
12וזהו ברוך אתה הוי״ה אמ״ה שנמשך להיות בחי׳ מלכותו על העולם מחמת ביטול רצון להיות עבד לו. ואזי נמשך מלמעלה להיות בחי׳ מלך כי אין מלך בלא עם.1
And this is [the meaning of] “Blessed are You, G‑d, our G‑d, King of the world”: that the level of His kingship over the world is drawn down because of the self-nullification of will, to be His servant. And then it is drawn down from above to become the level of King, for there is no king without a people.
The blessing formula “King of the world” expresses G‑d’s kingship, and it comes about through people nullifying their will to be His servants. As the saying goes, there is no king without a people, so it is the people’s acceptance that makes G‑d King.
וזהו כי לי בני2 ישראל עבדים פירושו שע״י שיהיו בבחי׳ עבדים אזי יהיו לי ואזי יומשך גילוי אור א״ס ב״ה ממקורא דכולא.
And this is [the meaning of] “For the Children of Israel are servants to Me”: it means that by their being in the state of servants, they will then be “to Me,” and then the revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, will be drawn down from the Source of all.
“The Children of Israel are servants to Me” is read as cause and effect: by being servants they become “Mine,” and through that the Infinite Light is revealed from the Source of all.
The paragraph shows that G‑d’s kingship over the world, and with it the revelation of the Infinite Light, is drawn down by Israel’s self-nullification as His servants.
“No king without a people” is a classic Chassidic principle: kingship requires subjects who are separate yet submit willingly. The Kehot note cites Likkutei Torah reading am (people) as from omemus, “dimness,” meaning separate beings who nevertheless nullify their will completely.
Marei mekomos
- 1אין מלך בלא עם · נסמן לעיל ה, א. לקמן נג, ד. מה שמבואר כאן בענין ביטול רצון, מצויין בלקו״ת ואתחנן יא, ג: דאין מלך בלא עם לשון עוממות שהוא יש ודבר ואעפ״כ מבטל רצונו מכל וכל, וכל דבר שאינו בביטול הרצון אינו נק׳ עבודה כלל (ועמ״ש בפ׳ שלח ע״פ ועתה יגדל, וע״פ כי עמך מקור חיים). ע״כ.
- 2כי לי בנ״י עבדים · Leviticus 25:55
And this is [the meaning of] “who lowers Himself to look upon heaven and upon earth”: that is, by means of the level of heaven and earth, which are the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, and sometimes
Now the second reading is applied: “heaven and earth” are the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, and they are what bring G‑d to lower Himself.
שהם נקראים בחינת תורה ותפלה ועי״ז גורם ירידת והמשכת אור א״ס ב״ה כי התפלה היא מבחי׳ ארץ שהיא בחי׳ ביטול רצון להיות כעפר.
they are called Torah and prayer, through this he brings about the descent and drawing-down of the Infinite Light, blessed be He. For prayer is of the level of earth, which is the self-nullification of will, to be like dust.
Sometimes heaven and earth are called Torah and prayer. Prayer is “earth” because it expresses the nullification of one’s will, to be like the dust of the earth, and through Torah and prayer the Infinite Light is drawn down.
The paragraph completes the second reading: heaven and earth are Torah and prayer, or the Written and Oral Torah, and through them a person brings about the descent of the Infinite Light.
“Like dust” echoes the prayer “let my soul be like dust to all,” said at the end of the Amidah. Earth receives everything and asserts nothing of its own, which is the bittul of prayer.
Marei mekomos
- 1המשפילי לראות בשמים ובארץ · Psalms 113:6
14וזהו ענין הצעקה במרירות צעק לבם1 ויצעקו אל2 ה׳ בצר להם ועי״ז ופרעה הקריב3 כי ע״י אתעדל״ת מעומק׳ דלבא במרירו׳ נפשו מפנימיות נקודת הלב אזי אתכפיי׳ סט״א ואסתלק יקרא דקוב״ה וכו׳
And this is the matter of crying out with bitterness: “Their heart cried out,” “And they cried out to G‑d in their distress,” and through this, “And Pharaoh drew near.” For through an arousal from below, from the depth of the heart, in the bitterness of one’s soul, from the inner dimension of the point of the heart, the sitra achra is subdued and the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is raised up, etc.
Bitter crying out from the depth of the heart is an arousal from below that subdues the sitra achra. The Alter Rebbe brings verses about Israel crying out in distress, and “Pharaoh drew near,” which the Midrash reads as Pharaoh bringing Israel near to repentance through their fear.
וכן ע״י התורה והמצות אשר קדשנו במצותיו שהעלנו בקדש העליון כו׳ כמ״ש במ״א רוח אייתי רוח4 ואמשיך רוח5 ה׳ וגילוי אור א״ס ב״ה ממקורא דכולא.
And likewise through the Torah and the mitzvos, “who has sanctified us with His mitzvos,” for He has raised us up into the supernal holiness, etc., as is explained elsewhere: “a spirit brings a spirit and draws forth a spirit” of G‑d, and the revelation of the Infinite Light, blessed be He, from the Source of all.
Torah and mitzvos also raise a person into supernal holiness. As the Zohar says, a spirit from below brings a spirit from above, and so the revelation of the Infinite Light is drawn down from its source.
The paragraph adds that the descent of the divine light is drawn down both by bitter crying out from the depth of the heart and by Torah and mitzvos.
The inner point of the heart is the soul’s deepest core; bitterness that comes from there is not sadness but the soul’s pain at its distance from G‑d, which breaks the hold of the sitra achra.
Marei mekomos
- 1צעק לבם · Lamentations 2:18
- 2ויצעקו אל ה׳ בצר להם · Psalms 107:6
- 3ופרעה הקריב · Exodus 14:10
- 4כמ״ש במ״א רוח אייתי רוח · Zohar II, 162b
- 5רוח אייתי רוח ואמשיך רוח · Zohar, Terumah 66:669–678
The olive trees and the answer ¶15–17
15וזהו בחי׳ מנורת זהב כו׳ בחי׳ שמאל וכמ״ש מצפון זהב יאתה1 כו׳. אך הגורם לבחי׳ ומדרגה רבה זו וביטול רצון זה. הנה כתיב ושנים זיתים עליה2 אחד מימין הגלה וא׳ על שמאלה.
And this is the level of “a menorah of gold,” etc., the level of the left, as it is written, “From the north comes gold,” etc. But as for what causes this great level and rank, and this self-nullification of will: it is written, “and two olive trees over it, one on the right of the bowl and one on its left.”
The fiery self-nullification just described is the “gold” of the menorah, the left side. The Alter Rebbe now asks what causes this great level and points to the two olive trees standing on either side of the menorah.
The paragraph identifies the fiery service with the menorah’s gold and introduces the two olive trees as what brings it about.
In the Likkutei Torah passage cited in the notes, gold is identified with awe (yirah), which is why it belongs to the left side.
Marei mekomos
- 1מצפון זהב יאתה · Job 37:22
- 2ושנים זיתים עלי׳ · Zechariah 4:3
16וכתוב אחד אומר אשר הם מריקים הזהב1 פי׳ שע״י2 נמשך בחי׳ הזהב והם הם בחי׳ התורה והמצות בשרשם שמהם נשפע בחינת התעוררות בנצוץ אלקות שבאדם
And another verse says, “which pour the gold out of themselves”: meaning that through them the level of gold is drawn down. And they are the level of Torah and mitzvos in their root, from which flows an arousal in the spark of G‑dliness that is in a person,
The olive trees “pour out gold”: they are the roots of Torah and mitzvos, which awaken the spark of G‑dliness in a person. The gold of fiery love is drawn from them.
לעורר את האהבה כרשפי אש ומרירות על נפשו מעומקא דלבא בצר לו בגלותא במאסר הגוף ולהיות כלתה נפשו להשתפך אל חיק אביה3 בכלות הנפש לצאת מנרתקה.
to arouse love like flames of fire, and bitterness over his soul from the depth of the heart, in his distress in exile, in the prison of the body, and that his soul should yearn to pour itself out into the bosom of its Father, in the expiry of the soul, to leave its sheath.
That awakening stirs fiery love and bitterness over the soul’s exile in the body, and a longing to pour itself into its Father’s bosom, to leave its sheath. The soul in the body is like a prisoner who longs to return home.
The paragraph explains that the roots of Torah and mitzvos are what awaken the soul’s fiery love and bitter longing, the “gold” that draws down the divine light.
The image of the soul longing to pour itself into its Father’s bosom is developed in Tanya, chapter 50, where it describes the “love like flames of fire” that comes from the left side.
Marei mekomos
- 1אשר הם מריקים הזהב · Zechariah 4:12
- 2שע״י · בבוך תניא-ברוק הגי׳: שעל ידם.
- 3להשתפך אל חיק אביה · תניא פרק נ. ראה גם לעיל כז, א, ולקמן סז, א וש״נ.
17וזהו כי עמך מקור חיים1 ר״ל שמקור החיים והמשכות שפע אור אלקי בכל העולמות עליונים ותחתונים הוא בטל וטפל לגבי קוב״ה בכבודו ובעצמו כי הקב״ה בכבודו ובעצמו אינו בגדר המשכה והשפע׳ כלל
And this is [the meaning of] “For with You is the source of life”: that is, the source of life and of the drawings-down of the flow of divine light into all the worlds, higher and lower, is nullified and secondary relative to the Holy One, blessed be He, in His glory and His very self. For the Holy One, blessed be He, in His glory and His very self is not within the category of drawing-down and flow at all.
Here the opening question is answered: the verse says the source of life is “with You” because that source, the flow of light to all worlds, is not G‑d’s essence. It is secondary and nullified before Him, while G‑d Himself is beyond any flow at all.
אלא שבאורך נראה אור דהיינו ע״י הארת אור התורה ומצות שהן הן בחי׳ אברין דמלכא שם בחי׳ המשכה להיות נראה אור ונתגלה בבחי׳ גילוי
Rather, “in Your light we shall see light”: that is, through the shining of the light of Torah and mitzvos, which are the “limbs of the King,” there is a drawing-down, so that light is seen and revealed openly.
“In Your light we shall see light” is the first reading: through the light of Torah and mitzvos, the “limbs of the King,” G‑d’s essential light is drawn down and becomes visible.
וגם אנחנו נראה כי מאחר שעל ידינו מתראה האור הרי אנחנו נראים באור זה ומתגל׳ הארת קדוש׳ ישראל כמ״ש ומי כעמך ישראל2 כו׳:3
And also “we shall see”: since the light is seen through us, we are seen in this light, and the radiance of Israel’s holiness is revealed, as it is written, “And who is like Your people Israel,” etc.
The second reading is that “we shall see”: because the light is revealed through Israel, Israel too is seen in it and the holiness of Israel shines out. This returns to “who is like Your people Israel.”
The final paragraph answers both opening questions: the source of life is only “with” G‑d, not His essence, and through Torah and mitzvos His light is seen, and Israel is seen in that light.
The transcript of the Rebbe’s 5734 maamar adds that the end of the verse, “one nation on earth,” belongs here too, and wonders why the discourse did not quote it in this final paragraph: whether a censor removed it or the Alter Rebbe said it this way. The words “one nation on earth” were quoted earlier, in paragraph 8.
Marei mekomos
- 1כי עמך מקור חיים באורך נראה אור · Psalms 36:10
- 2ומי כעמך ישראל · I Chronicles 17:21
- 3וגם אנחנו נראה . . כמ״ש ומי כעמך ישראל כו׳ · בד״ה זה בספה״מ תשל״ד (הנחה) מוסיף: ”ויש להוסיף בזה דסיום הכתוב (מי כעמך ישראל) הוא גוי אחד בארץ, היינו שישראל הם למעלה מכל האומות [וצ״ע מדוע לא הובא סיום הכתוב בהדרוש, אם זהו מחמת השמטת הצנזור או שכך אמר רבינו הזקן בדיבור]”, ע״ש.
Finished the maamar?
Mark it as learned; it counts toward the week and the year’s siyum.
In one’s avodah
Do the mitzvos with intention: the heart’s fiery desire to draw G‑d’s light down, kindled by contemplating that He is unchanged by creation, so that the mitzvos are new each day. Above all, accept His kingship beyond reason, nullifying your will before His, and let prayer be “earth,” humble as dust; cry out from the depth of the heart over the soul’s distance in exile. Through this His light is revealed in the world and Israel is seen in it.
Questions for discussion
- Why does the verse say “with You is the source of life” rather than “You are the source of life”? What does that imply about the flow of life to the worlds?
- How can the same light rest equally on the righteous and the wicked, and what is the difference between encompassing and inner light?
- Why does G‑d’s loftiness leave the worlds “asleep,” and how do Torah and mitzvos “awaken” Him?
- The maamar says service from one’s own understanding is not yet “the service of a servant.” What does accepting G‑d’s kingship add?
- How does the image of a mirror explain the way Israel is “seen” when G‑d looks through the Torah?
Key terms in this maamar
- An arousal from aboveאתערותא דלעילא
- Divine initiative, unprompted by us.
- The emotive attributes (middos)מדות
- Love, awe, compassion and the rest. ×1
- The Shechinah (Divine Presence)שכינה
- G‑d's presence as it dwells in the world.
- The light that encompasses all worlds (sovev kol almin)סובב כל עלמין
- Divine light too great to enter the worlds; it 'surrounds' them and affects them from beyond.
- Chochmah (wisdom)חכמה
- The first flash of insight. ×7
- Chesed (kindness)חסד
- Expansive giving. ×6
- The Infinite Light (Or Ein Sof)אור אין סוף
- G‑d's light as it is, beyond all limits, before any contraction.
- The Holy One, blessed be Heקב״ה
- ×5
- Life-forceחיות
- The divine vitality that sustains every creation. ×3
- An arousal from belowאתערותא דלתתא
- Human initiative that draws down a divine response.
- The reshimu (impression)רשימו
- The trace left after the tzimtzum. ×1
- The inner dimension (pnimiyus)פנימיות
- The innermost core of a level. ×2
- Willרצון
- Desire; in G‑d, the level above intellect. ×6
- The Name Havayahהוי׳
- The Tetragrammaton: G‑d as transcending time and bringing all into being.
- Keser (the Crown)כתר
- The level above intellect: divine will and delight. ×2
- Malchus (sovereignty)מלכות
- Kingship: the level through which G‑d's word creates and rules the worlds. ×1
- Tiferes (beauty)תפארת
- Harmony of kindness and restraint; associated with compassion. ×1
- Self-nullification (bittul)ביטול
- Setting aside one's own sense of self before G‑d. ×4
- The sitra achra (the other side)סטרא אחרא
- The realm opposed to holiness.
- Teshuvah (return)תשובה
- Returning to G‑d; not only repentance.
- The Name Elokimאלקים
- G‑d as concealed within nature, measuring and limiting. ×2
- Daas (knowledge)דעת
- Deep connection to an idea, bridging intellect and emotion. ×1
- Hod (splendor)הוד
- Acknowledgment and yielding. ×1