Lev. 1:2: "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When
a man from [among] you brings a sacrifice to the Lord". Why does the verse add in the words "from among you"? These words seem superflous. But rather the Torah is hinting to us that the offering has to be brought from among ourselves, meaning from our very own being.
The first offering mentioned in the Torah is that of Cain. Gen. 4:3-5: "...Cain brought an offering to G-d of the fruit of the ground; and as for Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and from their choicest. G-d turned to Abel and to his offering, but to Cain and to his offering he did not turn..."
So we see that the first criteria for an offering is that it must be the choicest. If we want G-d to turn to our offering it must reflect our greatest accomplishments in life, being willing to give those up or use them for G-d's purposes. And Moses is the shining example for the Jewish people in this regard.
Num. 12:3: "Now the man Moses was exceedingly humble, more than any person on the face of the earth!" How could Moses with all his accomplishments as a leader, as a man of faith, and a revolutionary remain humble? Because he maintained that if anyone else was granted access to the abilities and soul powers that he, Moses, possessed, they could perform better than he had at his tasks. How did Moses offer himself up to G-d? By looking at his accomplishments from G-d's perspective, realizing that all his powers were granted from on high and his achievements were all the result of these gifts and talents that he himself did not create.
Moses knew that he had great accomplishments. He knew the nature of the offering, but at any moment he was able to attribute these accomplishments back to their source - to bring what could be the source of pride and superiority back to his Creator to Whom he attributed all his successes.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
VaYakhel (Exodus 35:1-38:20) - The Sabbath that Built the Mishkan
Ex. 35:1:"Moses assembled the entire assembly of the Children of Israel and said to them...the seventh day shall be holy for you..."
Why does the Torah restate the significance of the Sabbath as a preface for the work of building the Tabernacle? Also, why does Moses have to assemble the entire Jewish people in order to tell them about the Sabbath?
The restatement of the Sabbath's importance, is in order to prevent the building of the Tabernacle to disrupt the Sabbath rest. The Jews may have thought that they would be allowed to desecrate the Sabbath in order to accomplish the building of the Tavernacle and the indwelling of G-d's presence in this world quicker. Comes the Torah and tells us that the Sabbath precedes the Tabernacle in importance. Essentially, we are being told that the ends do not justify the means.
As much as we know that G-d desires certain actions, even more significant is that these actions should be performed with purity and mindfulness, to the point that we are allowed to delay our actions in order to assure that underlying cleanliness of spirit.
The Alter Rebbe explains in the first chapter of the Epistle on Return, that the essential point of Return (aka Repentance) is to leave behind his past rebellion against the kingship of G-d and re-accept the yoke of heaven. The mitzva of Return is to stop and purify oneself before going out into the world to do G-d's will. This is the first priority before returning to the task of accomplishing one's material and spiritual goals in the world.
Why does the Torah restate the significance of the Sabbath as a preface for the work of building the Tabernacle? Also, why does Moses have to assemble the entire Jewish people in order to tell them about the Sabbath?
The restatement of the Sabbath's importance, is in order to prevent the building of the Tabernacle to disrupt the Sabbath rest. The Jews may have thought that they would be allowed to desecrate the Sabbath in order to accomplish the building of the Tavernacle and the indwelling of G-d's presence in this world quicker. Comes the Torah and tells us that the Sabbath precedes the Tabernacle in importance. Essentially, we are being told that the ends do not justify the means.
As much as we know that G-d desires certain actions, even more significant is that these actions should be performed with purity and mindfulness, to the point that we are allowed to delay our actions in order to assure that underlying cleanliness of spirit.
The Alter Rebbe explains in the first chapter of the Epistle on Return, that the essential point of Return (aka Repentance) is to leave behind his past rebellion against the kingship of G-d and re-accept the yoke of heaven. The mitzva of Return is to stop and purify oneself before going out into the world to do G-d's will. This is the first priority before returning to the task of accomplishing one's material and spiritual goals in the world.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Ki Tisa (Ex. 30:11-34:35) The Silver Light
Ex. 30:12 literally reads:"If you shall raise up the heads of the Children of Israel..." but is translated by some - "when you take the census". Obviously raising and counting are related for in order to count one has to usually pick up the object that is being counted. Nevertheless there is a special connection between this connotation of raising up the individual, with the act of giving the half-shekel in order to be counted.
The Zohar explains that the concept of half a shekel or half of a certain weight of silver signifies splitting a certain measure in half. This is similar to taking a certain compound and splitting it into its individual elements. When a person gives of themselves for the good of the whole they are splitting themselves into the part of the giver and the part that is being given. By giving up a part of myself, I bring about a revelation of the part of me who is the giver, and the influencer.
By splitting up my world into what is essential and what is superflous I open myself up to reveal an inner light which can transform my surroundings and my environment into a better world. Everyone has an inner light that when it reveals itself can distinguish intrinsically between right and wrong, good and evil. By revealing this inner guiding light I can pick out the good parts of my world and work with them to create a new reality, along with new sources of light.
How can I raise myself up by my own bootstraps? By letting go of what is unnecessary and distracting and clinging to the essential oneness that is within. This oneness then radiates out to every aspect of my life and transforms it from a barren selfish and separate element into a fruit-bearing living organic being.
Based on Derech Mitzvosecha by the Tzemach Tzedek.
The Zohar explains that the concept of half a shekel or half of a certain weight of silver signifies splitting a certain measure in half. This is similar to taking a certain compound and splitting it into its individual elements. When a person gives of themselves for the good of the whole they are splitting themselves into the part of the giver and the part that is being given. By giving up a part of myself, I bring about a revelation of the part of me who is the giver, and the influencer.
By splitting up my world into what is essential and what is superflous I open myself up to reveal an inner light which can transform my surroundings and my environment into a better world. Everyone has an inner light that when it reveals itself can distinguish intrinsically between right and wrong, good and evil. By revealing this inner guiding light I can pick out the good parts of my world and work with them to create a new reality, along with new sources of light.
How can I raise myself up by my own bootstraps? By letting go of what is unnecessary and distracting and clinging to the essential oneness that is within. This oneness then radiates out to every aspect of my life and transforms it from a barren selfish and separate element into a fruit-bearing living organic being.
Based on Derech Mitzvosecha by the Tzemach Tzedek.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Tetzave (Ex. 27:20-30:10) - Pure Pressed Oil
In Ex. 27:20:"Now you shall command the Children of Israel that they shall take for you pure pressed (well ground) olive oil..." There is a syntactical issue with this phrase. The adjective pressed or well ground must be going on the olive. Therefore, it would be logical to assume that the adjective, pure is also going on the olive. In short, the Torah is telling us that we should use pure (or clean and unblemished) olives and we should grind them well for this oil (see Ibn Ezra). However, Rashi rejects this reading of the verse and prefers to read the pure as going on the oil meaning oil that is clean of sediment.
The hint for this understanding is from the beginning of the verse. G-d addresses Moshe in the second person, "Now you". This means that Moshe himself is to supervise the oil for lighting the lamps in the Tabernacle. Moshe in the desert did not have olives from which to make oil. All he had was ready made oil that the Jews would have brought out with them from Egypt. In this oil, one could not distinguish whether it was made from clean unblemished olives or not. The only criterion that would make sense in this case is that the oil should be clean of sediment. This would apply to the oil they had with them in the desert.
The inner meaning behind the pure pressed oil that comes out of the olives is the self-sacrifice of the soul when it is faced with the trials and tribulations of the Exile. Just like an olive that is pressed, and reveals its inner essence, so also the soul reveals its inner essence when pressed by the decrees of our oppressors. This is why the Torah emphasizes that this commandment is being overseen by Moshe in the Desert, which itself represents a state of exile. Finally, because this commandment has its context in the desert, in the exile, then the final outcome is judged on its own purity and not on the purity of its ingredients. There are many different levels of souls but the self-sacrifice that the soul reveals is of the same essence across the board.
The hint for this understanding is from the beginning of the verse. G-d addresses Moshe in the second person, "Now you". This means that Moshe himself is to supervise the oil for lighting the lamps in the Tabernacle. Moshe in the desert did not have olives from which to make oil. All he had was ready made oil that the Jews would have brought out with them from Egypt. In this oil, one could not distinguish whether it was made from clean unblemished olives or not. The only criterion that would make sense in this case is that the oil should be clean of sediment. This would apply to the oil they had with them in the desert.
The inner meaning behind the pure pressed oil that comes out of the olives is the self-sacrifice of the soul when it is faced with the trials and tribulations of the Exile. Just like an olive that is pressed, and reveals its inner essence, so also the soul reveals its inner essence when pressed by the decrees of our oppressors. This is why the Torah emphasizes that this commandment is being overseen by Moshe in the Desert, which itself represents a state of exile. Finally, because this commandment has its context in the desert, in the exile, then the final outcome is judged on its own purity and not on the purity of its ingredients. There are many different levels of souls but the self-sacrifice that the soul reveals is of the same essence across the board.
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