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by Rabbi E. Tauger The Month When the Mortal Mind Meets G-d Historically, Kislev is known as a month of redemption for the Jewish people. Two major festivals celebrated during the month of Kislev gives it its spiritual flavor. These two holidays - Yud-Tes Kislev and Chanukah - commemorate redemptions experienced by our people in the past. Moreover, they each contribute a facet to the spiritual message that will lead to the ultimate Redemption which our people and mankind as a whole will experience in the future. Who Will Hold the Torch? What was the essence of the conflict that led to the Chanukah miracle? It was a clash of cultures. The armies of Greece had conquered most of the Western world. Why? Not because the Greek people were inherently stronger than the inhabitants of other nations. But they had superior education. And that led to superior planning. They knew how to structure a military campaign better, how to make the best arms, how to provide a more developed supply line, and how - through advanced communication - to maintain their empire after the military victory. One of the techniques they used to maintain their empire was the export of their culture. They maintained - and history bore out the truth of this thesis - that as Greek philosophy, art, and sport spread throughout the world, primitive people would realize the advantages of the Greek way of life and adopt it as their own. Hence, conflict would not arise between a region's indigenous population and the ruling Greek culture. Quite the contrary, local people from all nationalities would aspire to advance themselves by becoming Greek. The Greeks tried this approach in Eretz Yisrael as well. They offered people theater, poetry, stadiums, and sculpture. At first, the Jews responded positively, curiously tasting these foreign experiences. But then, they drew back. This was not for them. What was wrong with the Greek approach? It celebrated man, but it did not recognize anything above man. It put an emphasis on wisdom, but saw wisdom as an end in itself, not as a medium to reach higher than wisdom. The Greeks saw knowledge as a torch and sought to carry that torch from continent to continent. The Jews appreciated a pure flame that burns with a light that is higher than the intellect. They refused to have that higher light be contaminated by mortal understanding. A Battle for the Temple's Light This was the essence of the struggle for the Menorah. Our Sages relate that when the Jews reconquered Jerusalem, they could not find pure oil. In other words, the Greeks had not destroyed the oil for the Menorah, instead they had made it impure. Implied is that they wanted it to keep burning, but they wanted its light to shine with a Greek touch. The Jews refused. The Menorah's purpose was to illuminate the world with G-dly light, a light that transcended mortal thought. That light had to be pure. And when the Jews put their lives on the line for this ideal, G-d responded with a miraculous series of events that enabled the weak to defeat the mighty, and a cruse of oil fit to burn one day to give light for eight. A Struggle for the Mind Centuries later, in Eastern Europe, a similar struggle was played out in different circumstances. Scholasticism had begun to dominate Judaism. Study was given paramount importance in the structure of the Jewish community. Indeed, our people's entire way of life revolved around producing scholars who would probe the Talmud and comprehend its nuances. Was this wrong? In essence, not, but in practice, it had its short-comings. The restraints of human intellect are twofold. Firstly, there is an upward limit; the essence of G-d transcends the reach of wisdom. Ultimately, study even when guided by the spiritual direction of the Torah, is motivated by a mortal mind, and man's mind is limited. Man's thoughts cannot reach G-d in His infinity. And secondly, there is a downward limit, for intellect remains abstract and by nature, will not be extended into those realms of experience or to those types of people who do not fit in the realm of intellect. Into this environment, came the Baal Shem Tov. He declared: "G-d desires the heart"; that every Jew possesses a soul which is an actual part of G-d, infinite and unbounded as the Creator Himself. Two generations later, the Baal Shem Tov's heir Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, yextended this thrust further. This infinite potential, he taught, must control and mold the workings of the mind. The Mitzvah of Torah study is very important, it is equal to all Mitzvot combined, but the study must be fueled by the infinite G-dly potential within our souls. This message was a little bit much for certain elements of society to handle. Rabbi Shneur Zalemn was denounced to the Russian Czar and tried for treason. To obtain his freedom, he had to explain these refined concepts to the materialistic, pleasure-seeking Russian noblemen. The infinite spiritual potential that the Baal Shem Tov sought to reveal had to be communicated in a manner that even these persons could comprehend. And miraculously, this process was successful. On Kislev 19, the Czarist regime liberated R.Shneur Zalmen from prison and granted him the authority to continue spreading his teachings. A Foretaste of the Future Knowledge features prominently in the prophecies of the Redemption. As Isaiah states: "The world will be filled with the knowledge of G-d as the waters cover the ocean bed." This knowledge will be different than the knowledge of G-d we know at present. It will not be man with his limited human intellect, straining to understand an infinite G-d. Instead, G-d will reach out to man and communicate His infinity so that we can comprehend Him. One of the Rambam's 13 principles of faith is to await Mashiach and the Redemption. The intent is not merely to sit passively in daily expectation, but to anticipate the Redemption - to focus our thoughts, and in that way our lives - on the mindset that will prevail in that future era. This has a lot to do with the lessons of Chanukah and Yud-Tes Kislev: appreciating that our minds are limited. Afterwards, we must look for some deeper thrith and then take that deeper spiritual truth and internalize it, making it the focal point for all our experience.
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In connection with the celebration of Yud-Tes Kislev, the question is often asked: Why is it necessary to study Chassidus? Before Yud-Tes Kislev, and even after Yud-Tes Kislev, there were many fine Jews who have not delved into this study. Why is it so necessary? This question was put to Reb Lazer, a chassid of the Alter Rebbe who had journeyed from Eretz Yisrael to study Chassidus. He had been living in Jerusalem, married to the daughter of a wealthy man who provided for his daily expenses. He was instructed by the leading spiritual lights of the Holy Land. Nevertheless, once when one of the Alter Rebbe's chassidim visiting the Holy Land conveyed a teaching from his master, Reb Lazer was struck by the depth and power of the concept. "Where did you hear this?" he asked the visitor. And upon hearing that the source of the teaching was the Alter Rebbe who lived in Liadi, Reb Lazer backed his bags and set out on the road. He had to hear more teachings like this. It was not an easy journey. He suffered many losses and even broke his leg. But when he arrived in Liadi, he felt that it had been worth it. The teachings the Rebbe delivered were living Torah, words of spiritual fire . When he was asked why he journeyed to Liadi, he would reply: "The answer is the same. It's the question that is different." And he would explain: "When I was studying Torah in Jerusalem, I had a difficulty. There I was living in the holy city, spending my days solely in prayer and study, without any concern with material things. 'How is it possible,' I would question, 'that G-d could give me ample reward for the holy life that I was leading?' I would answer: 'He is omnipotent. There is nothing beyond His capacity.' "Today, after being exposed to the teachings of Chassidus, I have gained a new appreciation of what spirituality really means. And I have a question: 'How can G-d stomach to listen to the prayers and study of such a materially oriented person as myself?' To which I give the same answer: 'He is omnipotent. There is nothing beyond His capacity.' "The transition from my first conception to the present was worth all the difficulties of the journey from Eretz Yisrael."
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month Parshas Toldos This Torah reading relates that Isaac desired to bless Esau before his death and that Jacob, through cunning, was able to obtain those blessings for himself. Consider: Esau was a hunter, spoke uncouthly, and lusted after material pleasures. Jacob was "a dweller of tents," an artless man given over to study. Who would be the natural choice to receive the blessings necessary to perpetuate the spiritual heritage initiated by Abraham? Why then,did Isaac seek to bless Esau? Even if we say that Esau tricked him, there is only so far a person can be deceived. The answer is alluded to in Rashi's statements at the beginning of the Torah reading. Rashi explains that Jacob and Esau were battling over the inheritance of two worlds, the physical and the spiritual. Why was this battle necessary? Let Esau have the physical and let Jacob take the spiritual! The point is that G-d's intent is that the physical and the spiritual be joined, that a dwelling for Him be created within this material world. This ideal will be realized in the era of Mashiach when mankind will live in material prosperity amidst an outpouring of G-dly knowledge. Isaac wanted to reach that state immediately. Hence he desired to convey the blessings on Esau, hoping that this would empower him to fuse the material with the spiritual. Parshas VaYeitzei This Torah reading describes Jacob's journey from Eretz Yisrael to Charan. Charan is identified with the arousal of G-d's anger. Accordingly, this descent from the spiritual heights of the holy land to the environment of deception that prevailed in Charan is compared to the descent of the soul from the spiritual realms to its birth in the body. The parallel goes deeper. In Charan, Jacob married, raised a family, and amassed material wealth. This is, in brief, the story of the physical circumstances of each person's life on this material plane. In the middle of the Parasha Jacob is summoned by G-d to return to Eretz Yisrael. In the parallel, this is an indication that our life on this material plane is merely temporary. And so, it becomes clear, that what's important is the quality of that life. How much depth and meaning was one able to gain and impart to others? Parshas VaYishlach This week's Torah reading relates that after moving the camp of his family in preparation for the confrontation with Esau, Jacob returned to his previous campsite. Why? Our Sages say that he was looking for some small household utensils that he had left behind. This begs a question: Jacob was prodigiously wealthy. Why did he need to go back for several jugs and pots? In reply, our Rabbis explain that every material entity a Jew possesses has sparks of G-dliness which his soul is destined to elevate. Unless he elevates these material entities, his mission on earth is not complete. Therefore, affluent as he was, Jacob showed concern for these small utensils. Parshas VaYeishev This Torah reading relates how Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery. An obvious question arises: Joseph's brothers were not spiritual nobodies. Each one of them was holy and particularly, Levi, one of the two instigators of the sale, was distinguished for his sensitivity. So how could they have sold their brother? Our Sages explained that Jacob's descent to Egypt was ordained previously. G-d had foretold to Abraham that his descendants would be oppressed as slaves and to fulfill that prophecy, Jacob and his children had to descend to Egypt. In His kindness, however, G-d spared them some of the hardships of the descent. Joseph alone suffered as a slave. And that for only a limited period. Ultimately, because he was sent to Egypt previously, he, his father, and their households were able to enjoy prosperity for almost half of the Egyptian exile. Joseph realized the positive dimensions of having been sold into slavery. Therefore he did not vent anger against his brothers. Instead, he reassured them not to fear and encouraged them to see themselves as no more than G-d's medium to accomplish this purpose. Similar concepts apply with regard to each of us. For all of us have points in our lives when we suffer adversity. We must realize that it is merely the external dimensions of these situations that may appear negative, the inner driving force is G-d's kindness.
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1 Kislev - A day of thanksgiving, celebrating the Rebbe's return to health in 5738 9 Kislev - The Mitteler Rebbe's birthday and yahrzeit 10 Kislev - The anniversary of the Mitteler Rebbe's release from prison 14 Kislev - The Rebbe's wedding anniversary 19 Kislev - The yahrzeit of the Maggid of Mezeritch 19-20 Kislev - Yud-Tes Kislev; the anniversary of the Alter Rebbe release from prison 20 Kislev - The anniversary of the printing of the Tanya 25 Kislev - Chanukah |