Parshas Lech Licha

1^st Mamar “Hinei Avram”

1.      Hinei Avram:[1]

See Volume 1 of our Chassidishe Parsha Torah Or Series under Parsha Lech Licha where we covered the following matters of this Mamar in detail:

1. The level of Avram
2. The purpose of the Mitzvah of Milah
3. The letter Hei added to Avraham
4. The ability to affect the world through Torah and Mitzvos
5. The drawing of G-dliness into the physical world
6. The reason Hashem commanded Avraham the physical Mitzvah of Mila?

A. Abraham represents kindness while his son Isaac represents severities:[2]

While our forefathers in general all represent the revelation of G-d in this world, they achieved this in different ways that complement each other. Avraham, represents the divine light of G-d in its sublime and transcendent state. On this level, the divine light is too high and intense for the world to be able to receive from it, and it was this job that his son Yitzchak came to fulfill. Yitzchak represents the attribute of fear and severity; darkness which is the opposite of light which was represented by his father. The attribute of Yitzchak allows the divine light represented by his father Avraham to be contracted and concealed enough for it to then be drawn below and received by the world’s inhabitants. Thus, although Avraham and Yitzchak represented two completely opposite attributes, they complemented each other, and helped each other achieve the joint goal of drawing G-dliness below. On this the verse states, “Veyehi Erev Vayehi Boker Yom Echad/and it was evening and it was morning and it was one day,” which means to say that in order for there to be the creation of an existence that can withstand the revelation of the one G-d so that it be nullified and subdued to him, there must be an aspect of darkness and an aspect of light, an aspect of day and an aspect of night, an aspect of divine light and an aspect of concealment and contraction.

The divine lesson: As parents, we all wish that our children come out to be just like us in emulating our good qualities and character traits. Often, however, it occurs that our children come out to be our exact opposite, and place their emphasis and excitement in matters that we ignore, while they tend to ignore the matters that we feel are important and we tend to excel in. For example, a father who is a great rabbi and Torah scholar wishes that his son likewise turn out to be a rabbi and Torah scholar. Well, what if the child turns out to rather place his emphasis and interest on business and wealth. The above teaching emphasizes to us that there is no need for our children to be exactly like us, as there are many avenues in service of G-d, and there are many missions that each Jew is given to accomplish. While the divine ordained mission of a father may be in the field of Rabbinics, the mission of his son may be in the field of business to make a living and give charity. Just as the world needs the Torah learner known as the Yosheiv Ohel, so too it also needs the businessman known as the Baal Eisek, and each one comes to complement the other. We should all learn to recognize the special qualities and interests and challenges of our children and try to channel them in the direction that is right for them even if it may not be right for us. Notwithstanding, we must simultaneously educate them with a Torah education so that they love the learning of Torah and strive to assiduously study it and become true Ovdei Hashem and Yirei Shamayim.

B. The purpose of Sefer Bereishis and the reason that it has no Mitzvos:[3]

Sefer Bereishis is a book of stories of our forefathers and does not contain any commands.[4] What is the purpose of this book if the entire purpose of the Torah is to relate its commandments? So its purpose is indeed one of great importance and surpasses that of simple storytelling. The stories that are related in the Torah that occurred with our forefathers, accomplished the spiritual prerequisites that were required in order for the Torah to be given. Our forefathers are the ones who in fact draw down the Torah in its spiritual form so that it can then be embellished in a physical form and be given to the Jewish people as actual commands which have ability to draw down G-dliness when they are fulfilled.

C. Why the Jewish people did not receive the Torah until after the Egyptian exile:[5]

It remains to be understood why the Jewish people were given the Torah so late in history, and as to why it was not given to the forefathers. Did the Jewish people not already merit the Torah in the days of our forefathers? The explanation is as follows: The Torah existed prior to it officially being given to the Jewish people on Sinai, however, prior to it being officially handed to the Jewish people it could only be fulfilled on a mystical and spiritual level. Accordingly, although our forefathers fulfilled the entire Torah prior to it being given, they only fulfilled the spiritual correspondence of the mitzvah’s and did not fulfill it in its physical sense. They were able through their actions to draw down G-dliness internally, to within the spiritual worlds but not externally into the physical world. The one exception to this was the mitzvah of circumcision, which was gifted to Avraham to be fulfilled in the physical sense, in order so Isaac would be born in holiness. Now, in order for the Torah and Mitzvahs to be drawn down to the physical world  and be fulfilled with physical objects and thereby imbue those objects with G-dliness it became necessary for them to go through the Egyptian exile. The bitterness of the Egyptian exile and the laborious work that the Jewish people had to perform is what allowed the Torah to be drawn down from a much higher level, so it then be able to descend to a much lower level, within the physical world. In other words, our forefathers only were able to access the Torah as it existed within Seder Hishtalshlus, and for this reason they were unable to draw it down into the physical world which is below Seder Hishtalshlus. However, the Jewish people through the Egyptian exile were able to access the Torah as it exists above Seder Hishtalshlus and were hence able to draw it down to below Seder Hishtalshlus, to within the physical world.

C. The reason the first mitzvah begins with the letter Alef:[6]

The letter Alef is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and represents the divine attribute of Keser. It is for this reason that the first commandment, which is the commandment of Anochi Hashem Elokecha, begins with the letter Alef. This comes to hint to the fact that through fulfilling the Mitzvah’s one draws down from the level of Keser.

D. Why Abraham left the city of Haran at the age of 75:[7]

Avraham was 75 years old when he left the city of Charan. The Kabbalistic meaning behind this is as follows: Our psyche was built by G-d in a way that there is a bridge between our mind and our hearts, to transfer the intellectual comprehensions of the mind into the heart for the sake of creating emotions that are in tune with the intellectual conclusion. For example, the bridge between the mind and the heart helps translate one’s comprehension of G-d’s greatness into a tangible feeling of passion in the heart. Now, this bridge is very narrow and is represented by the neck which indeed is the physical medium between the brain which is housed in the head and the heart which is housed in the chest. The period in which the intellect is traveling through the bridge on its way to the heart is referred to by the title of “Charan” which literally means wrath [as in this area there is neither intellect nor emotions], as it has already descended from its high sublime level of intellect and has yet to reach the emotions. This is then the spiritual meaning behind Avraham’s travels at the age of 75. The journey itself represents the travel of the level of intellect, which is represented in Avram’s name which means Av Ram- sublime intellect, into the level of emotion. Now this journey takes 75 years, as seven represents the seven emotional attributes times 10, being that each attribute is incorporated of 10 parts, for a total of 70. The other five represents the five aspects of kindness, for a total of 75. It is only when all these aspects came to a completion that Avraham was finally able to bring his intellect into a translated emotion.

E. How could our forefathers, Avraham and Yitzchak, bore such evil sons, such as Esav and Yishmael:[8]

Our forefathers, Avraham and Yitzchak, represented G-d’s divine attributes, although without their proper refinement. This is similar to gold after it is first excavated from the ground, when it contains much soot and dirt, and must be properly cured in order to then become pure gold. Accordingly, the severities of Yitzchak who came from Gevura of Hashem incorporated the head of Esav prior to his refinement. Likewise, the kindness of Avraham who came from the Chesed of Hashem incorporated Lot prior to his refinement. The Lot of holiness and of impurity: Lot, at this stage, represented the level of Chochma and Bina of the Kelipos and became its source. Prior to his refinement and extraction from Avraham, he would travel together with him. This explains why afterwards we find that from Lot derive the nations of Amon and Moav from whom was born Ruth the Moabite and Na’amah the Amonite, as also Lot himself originally derived from Holiness and through the final extraction, these great Jewish prodigies were derived from him. After this refinement, Avraham finally became refined of all of the impurity of Lot.

2^nd Mamar “Anochi Magen Lecha”

2.      Anochi Magen Lecha:[9]

See Volume 1 of our Chassidishe Parsha Torah Or Series under Parsha Lech Licha where we covered the following matters of this Mamar in detail:

1. The Chesed of Avraham
2. Level of Chesed of Avraham reaches even to Kelipos
3. Part of times of Mashiach is that evil will be abolished forever
4. Magen Avraham-The shield of Avraham to protect that the revelation of Chesed does not also reach the Kelipos

3^rd Mamar “Velo Yikra Od Shemecha”

3.      Velo Yikra Od Shemecha:[10]

A.    Why didn’t Hashem create us circumcised?[11]

The Midrash asks as to if the mitzvah of Mila is so great and beloved before G-d, then why did He not create man already circumcised? Why did He go out of his way and create man with a foreskin? The midrash responds that all matters that were created during the six days of creation requires some fixing, similar to raw foods that require cooking to be edible.

• The Divine lesson: G-d purposely created the world with flaws in order to give man a chance to rectify them. G-ds greatest pleasure is not simply to have a perfect world, which He Himself could’ve created to begin with if He wanted to. Rather, His greatest pleasure is to see the world being perfected by man. This is similar to the pleasure that a parent has when he sees his toddler learning how to walk. Such a pleasure would not be experienced by the parent if the child was naturally born with the ability to walk. Specifically witnessing the child place effort in walking until he perfects his walking is what gives the parent pleasure. The same applies regarding the world, that more than G-d wants a perfect world, he wants to see man improve the world’s imperfections. A great lesson can be learned from this regarding our own selves and our children. One way of looking at one’s natural struggles and deficiencies is with melancholiness which draws one toward sadness and depression over his low state and feeling of low self-worth. Likewise, one may look at a child who has learning disabilities or behavioral challenges as a child who is lacking and deficient due to his imperfection. In truth, however, the correct way of looking at one’s inner struggles and deficiencies is with the positive perspective that G-d gave him these challenges specifically so he can fix them or improve them, and G-d gets much greater pleasure for his efforts than He does from the person who was naturally born perfect without these struggles and challenges. In fact, it is a sign that specifically he has the tools to rectify these deficiencies, in contrast to those who were naturally born without them. A similar concept was witnessed in the Rebbe’s perspective towards the disabled, regarding whom the Rebbe refused to call them in the negative connotation of disabled, or crippled and the like, and rather called them Metzuyanim which is those of excellence, as he viewed them as containing special powers and capabilities that no one else had and for which reason only they were given the challenge of the disability.[12]

B.     Spiritual Level of Chol Hamoed-Chulin Al Taharas Kodesh:[13]

The days of Chol Hamoed are unique in the Jewish calendar, as they are partially holy but remain partially mundane. The reason for this is as follows: There exist two forms of weekdays. One form of weekday is a day which is completely mundane and corresponds to the chambers of the evil of Noga. The second is a weekday that is built upon holiness and contains a ray from Holiness which penetrates into the mundane weekday. This is the level of Chol Hamoed.

1. The effect of Shabbos on weekdays:^[14]

Upon one guarding the Shabbos properly, it draws a ray of the holiness of the Shabbos to the six days of creation. It affects the three days that preceded the Shabbos and the three days that come after Shabbos. This turns the mundane weekday into a weekday that is imbued with a glimmer of holiness, similar to mundane food that is made with purity and holiness. This is the purpose of performing Havdala on Motzei Shabbos as it draws down the holiness of Shabbos to the following week.

D. The Melacha of the weekday is elevated on Shabbos:^[15]

One is instructed to specifically work during the week as Scripture states “with the sweat of your brow you shall eat.” The 39 activities that are prohibited to be done on Shabbos are not just allowed to be done during the weekday but are specifically to be done during the weekday. Through doing so one is able to draw down a new revelation of G-d’s name Havayah. This then eventually becomes elevated through Shabbos as Shabbos represents rest and nullification. Furthermore, the Shabbos only becomes a Shabbos for a person who did the work during the week, as it states the one who troubled himself on Erev Shabbos will eat on Shabbos. It is not possible for the whole week to be Shabbos and it rather must be preceded by days of labor, just as Shemoneh Esrei must be preceded by Pesukei Dezimra and Birchas Shema. [During the week, man is meant to be involved in mundane activity in order so Shabbos can then elevate it to a level of nullification to G-d. If one did not work during the week then there is nothing for Shabbos to elevate. Hence, weekday labor and Shabbos are complimentary of each other and one without the other does not fulfill its purpose.]

E. Mila is similar to Shabbos:^[16]

The mitzvah of circumcision is similar to the mitzvah of Shabbos. Just as Shabbos elevates the weekday labor, so too, the circumcision allows the Jew to affect and elevate the outside world. Prior to the circumcision, Avraham had a blockage from being able to affect the outside world and elevate its sparks to be incorporated within G-dliness. After the circumcision, Avraham became known as the father of the nations, Av Hamon Goyim, and could now elevate the mundane.

1. All nations in the future will see that Hashem spoke:^[17]

It states in scripture that in the future G-d will turn all the nations to speak in one language. This means that all of mankind will serve G-d in unison. This will result from a great revelation of the speech of G-d which is a revelation of the G-dliness of the attribute of Chochmah.

[1] Torah Or 11a-12a

[2] Torah Or 11a-b

[3] Torah Or 11c

[4] See Mamarei Admur Hazakein Parshiyos Hosafos p. 10

[5] Torah Or 11b

[6] Torah Or 11b

[7] Torah Or 11b

[8] Torah Or 11b

[9] Torah Or 12a

[10] Torah Or 12a-b

[11] Torah Or 12a

[12] See Sichos Kodesh 5736 Vol. 2 p. 633; Healthy in Body Mind and Spirit Chapter 9 p. 111-116

[13] Torah Or 12a

[14] Torah Or 12a

[15] Torah Or 12a

[16] Torah Or 12a

[17] Torah Or 12a

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