Weekly Story: Because You Said It
by Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon
Being that Gimmel Tammuz was this past Thursday I will post two points. The first one is something I recently heard from Rabbi Nissim Mangel Sheyichye, and the second one is something I said during a farbrengen on Wednesday night.
As always, your feedback and comments are greatly appreciated and most welcomed.
When Hashem mentioned to Moshe His thought of destroying the Jewish people, Moshe argued that it would Chas V’sholom cause a Chillul Hashem, as the nations would say that Hashem realized that He won’t be able to overcome.the thirty-one nations. Hashem responded סלחתי כדבריך – I will forgive them because of what you said, meaning in order that there will not be a chillul Hashem.
Reb Levi Yitzchok of Berditchov asks, Hashem has the ability to make sure that this thought doesn’t enter their mind, or He could do a miracle to prove that He could destroy them and there wouldn’t be a Chillul Hashem. Reb Levi answers, since Moshe said it would cause a Chillul Hashem, and Moshe doesn’t lie, so Hashem would not be able to stop that from happening. The only way to prevent a chillul Hashem was that He did not kill the Jewish people. So the translation and meaning of those words, is not merely saying that Moshe’s words convinced Hashem, but rather that Moshe’s words created a reality that so to say “forced” Hashem to follow. This is similar to the saying of our sages, that a tzaddik decrees and Hashem fulfills the tzaddiks decision.
This is very pertinent to us as we are approaching and now after Gimmel Tammuz.
We all heard the Rebbe sayiing numerous times that we are in the generation that will welcome Moshiach. Some explain as the Rebbe said in sichos, open up your eyes and see this reality. Others explain it as a tefilla.
But no matter how you choose to view it, the Rebbe, the Moshe Raibenu of our generation said this statement, and as the tzaddik Reb Levi Yitzchok of Berditchov explained, when Moshe says something that in itself creates that reality.
So let us take the Rebbe’s words to heart, and prepare ourselves to greet Moshiach, speedily in our days.
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The Rebbe Maharash once related the following story.
The Alter Rebbe once instructed a messenger to go to a certain town and tell two noted chassidim that he needs money for a certain purpose.
The messenger arrived and relayed the message to the first one of them that the Rebbe mentioned. He said, The Rebbe sent me here and instructed me to tell you that he needs money.
The chossid inquired, do you know how much money the Rebbe needs?
No, was the reply. I gave over the entire message, exactly as the Rebbe said it.
Please wait here for a few moments, replied the chossid.
He got up and went out of the room and began collecting all the money that he had available in the house. He placed them in a bag and handed it to the messenger, adding bezras Hashem I plan to go to the Rebbe tomorrow and we will see if the Rebbe needs more, and if yes, I’ll start selling possessions.
The messenger then went to the second chossid and he repeated the exact same message. That chossid also asked the exact same question, did the Rebbe specify how much money he needs?
Hearing that the Rebbe had not, the chossid replied, bezras Hashem I will travel tomorrow to the Rebbe and will ask him.
The shliach returned and placed the money on the table saying this money is from the first chossid the Rebbe instructed me to go to, and he mentioned that he would be coming to see if the Rebbe needs more.
And did you meet the other chossid, the Rebbe asked?
Yes, he also asked me how much money the Rebbe needs, and when I replied that the Rebbe didn’t specify, he said he will come and ask the Rebbe how much is needed and will give whatever amount the Rebbe mentions.
Hearing this the Rebbe said quietly, yes, but will he come before or after the fact?
The messenger didn’t understand the Rebbe’s remark.
The next morning the two chassidim woke up early. The first one went immediately to the barn and hitched his horses to the wagons. When he arrived, he was allowed to enter and asked the Rebbe if the Rebbe needs anything else.
The Rebbe told him, return home and move to a different place.
The chossid didn’t ask any questions. He returned home, packed up the necessities that he could take along and sold or gave away the other possessions and began driving.
When his children asked him, Tatty, “what is happening, why and where are we going?”
He replied, the Rebbe told me this morning to move, so we are moving. Where, I don’t know, but somehow, we will see a sign from Hashem and we will know where we should settle.
Meanwhile the other chossid also arose early. He went to shul to daven and learn something. He then returned home, ate breakfast, instructed his workers what to do, and had the wagon prepared. As he was about to go to the Rebbe, a storm broke out and lightning hit a house on his street and in a few minutes the fire spread to every house on the street.
Miraculously he managed to save his family, but that was it. All of his possessions were destroyed.
The Rebbe Maharash continued, both of them were chassidim, but the difference was, one when he heard the Rebbe said something, he acted immediately on it and did whatever he could at that moment. What I don’t understand, I will find out later. The second one was also willing to give the Rebbe everything, but he wanted to first understand it.
We just witnessed the thirty second year of concealment, not being able to see the Rebbe with our physical eyes.
Yes, we all heard or even personally experienced wondrous miracles of the Rebbe during these years, but nevertheless by many there are questions that are on our or our children’s mind.
So when one has a lack of clarity, which one of those two chassidim are we going to emulate and become?
A Taste of Chassidus
ויקח קרח – And Korach Argued Likkutei Torah Bamidbar p. 52A
Korach was an exceptional knowledgeable person, so what caused that he decided to argue against Aharon’s appointment of becoming the Kohen Gadol?
The Midrash Rabbah explains that Korach was upset that Aharon and every Kohen is higher than a Levi. He believed that a Levi should be higher, as indeed we are taught that when Moshiach comes the Leviim will become the Kohanim. That demonstrates that they are intrinsically higher, so his argument was, why will that be only in the era of Moshiach and not now?!
Chassidus explains that while we have to fulfill mitzvos in the prescribed way the Torah specified with physical items, we should realize that the Torah alluded to spiritual concepts. In this maamar, the Alter Rebbe clarifies two such concepts.
One of the differences between a Kohen and a Levi is, that before a Levi is allowed to work in the Beis Hamikdash, all the hair of his body must be shaved off, while Aharon is praised (Tehillim 133:2) with his beard. And by understanding the reason of this difference, we can understand the argument of Korach and his mistake.
Hair represents two opposite concepts. On one side hair grows, which demonstrates that it is alive. Yet, unlike nails and any other part of the body, you don’t feel anything when they are being cut, which shows that they are not alive.
This alludes to the way G-dliness enters into our lives.
As is discussed thoroughly in Chassidus, there are basically two levels of light: the higher level is called Ohr Hasoivev, which hovers and surrounds the world, as it is too strong for the world to receive it and not become nullified, and Ohr Hamimaleh, the lower level that enters each entity in the magnitude it can accept.
Being that our mission is to reveal Hashem’s essence in this world, the question becomes, if that level was too powerful for the world to receive and contain it without becoming nullified, how can the world now receive and contain it without becoming nullified?
And that is what hair represents. On one hand it definitely brings out or bringing down light (life) from above. But at the same time the body doesn’t feel it,
So when the entities of the world would feel the presence of the higher level of Ohr Hasoivev, they would definitely become nullified, and therefore by Creation Hashem concealed it that it shouldn’t be seen or felt. But when we do a mitzvah and bring/draw down G-dliness into this world, it is brought down like hair that comes out of tiny pores, that it is not felt and therefore, nothing becomes nullified.
Furthermore, the world becomes elevated and refined to such an extent, that when it is felt in the world, the world is then a proper receptacle to receive and contain that G-dly revelation.
So Aharon who connects the Jewish people to Hashem, his responsibility is to bring G-dliness to them. Therefore, he is praised for the aspect of having a beard. However, a Levite who in Kabbalistic terminology is connected to the sefira of Gevurah (strictness and tzimtzum), if they constrict further, it can give power to kelipa, and therefore, a Levite has to shave and remove all hair.
But Korach argued, being that he is the son of Yitzhor and the word Yitzhor(eicho) is connected to oil and the way Hashem created the world is that oil floats above all liquids, therefore, he believed that he should be higher than Aharon who was just annointed with some oil, while he is from “oil” itself!! And as mentioned above Beis Shammai’s source is also gevurah, and when Moshiach comes, may it be speedily in our days, the opinion of Beis Shammai will be above the ruling if Beis Hillel.
As a further proof, he argued that the reason that the blue thread of the tzitzis is called tichelis, is because ticheilis has the same root as Kuluh, which means to cut off any connection to anything bad. So Korach said and argued that a tallis that is made completely from this blue dye, shouldn’t need the string of the tzitzis to also be ticheilis to cut off any connection to anything bad. Let the intense revelation of G-dliness cut them off on their own.
However, his mistake was, when can the light of Soivev shine on its own and not nullify the world, that is only after the world is refined and elevated, but until then it has to come down in tiny increments and therefore even that tallis which is completely dyed with ticheilis, is obligated to have a thread of ticheilis.
Rabbi Avtzon is a veteran mechanech and the author of numerous books on the Rebbeiim and their chassidim. He is available to farbreng in your community and can be contacted at avtzonbooks@gmail.com.
