Nachal novea; makor chochma -
A flowing river; the source of wisdom (Mish. 18:4)
Animals can be divested of their spiritual pollution only by dying.
Therefore, it is strictly forbidden to eat the limb of any animal until
it has died. This law applies even to Gentiles. When something dies or
decays, it returns to the earth. The earth contains the spiritual
energies of truth, as the verse says, "Truth will sprout from the
earth." (Psalms 85:12) Thus, death and decay connects physicality to the
energies of truth and to Hashem, the source of all truth. This means
that death and decay purifies the physical world from the spiritual
pollution caused by Adam's sin. It is why it is necessary for everything
to die.
These processes adequately filter out all of the spiritual impurities
contained in milk, eliminating the need to slaughter the animal prior to
drinking its milk. The same is true of honey, and so there is no need to
kill the bees prior to ingesting it.
Rav Noson teaches that, in a similar vein this is where Shimshon HaGibor
(Samson) fell into error. When the righteous and holy Shimshon saw that
the Jews were being severely oppressed by the Philistines, he knew that
salvation could come only through reconnecting them spiritually to
Hashem. In order to accomplish this, the inherent good that lay dormant
within them had to be activated and brought to the surface. However, the
spiritual energies of evil that the Philistines had used to dominate and
oppress the Jews were so powerful that Shimshon realized that under such
circumstances it would be almost impossible to activate that good to
bring salvation. In other words the forces of evil had swallowed up all
of the energies of goodness in the Jewish people, to the point where
they could not be released through normal means. In order to free the
energies of goodness held captive within the depths of evil, Shimshon
believed that he had no choice but to utilize the spiritual mechanism of
birth which has the ability to free the energies of goodness trapped
within even the lowest depths of impurity, just as a physical birth
brings a newborn out from deep within the womb. Utilizing this unusual
mechanism required that Shimshon commit a very grave sin, one of the
worst and most spiritually polluting sins possible--he married a
Gentile, a woman from the Philistines.
As mentioned above, Shimson realized that the goodness of the Jews was
trapped in the depths of impurity. He thought that there was no way that
it could be extricated, other than through the mechanism of birth. He
therefore decided to marry a Philistine woman in order to produce
offspring that would liberate the goodness of the Jews trapped within
the depths of impurity. However, Shimshon made a grave error. He did not
realize that the Torah's strict prohibition of such relationships
indicates that anyone who so involves himself will cause tremendous
spiritual damage to the upper worlds and to his own soul. This type of
relationship does not even guarantee the desired results, of extracting
the good trapped within the depths of evil. Although the concept exists,
it is not for a human being to take into his own hands. Shimshon should
have left the job of extricating the energies of goodness from the
forces of evil to Hashem, just as Hashem draws out kosher honey from the
unkosher bee.
In all, Shimshon had relationships with three Philistine women. Of the
three, only the first union was sanctioned by Hashem, the latter two
were not, as the verse says, "(Shimshon's) father and mother [who were
strongly against his marrying a Philistine woman] did not know that [his
plan] was from Hashem. [Shimshon was informed through Divine inspiration
to convert and marry this particular Philistine woman, for she was a
righteous woman]. For [Shimshon] sought a pretext to fight with the
Philistines." [Hashem brought this about so that Shimshon would be able
to fight the Philistines without putting the rest of Israel in danger.
Every act of destruction that he would inflict upon the Philistines
would be perceived as an act of personal vengeance, not as an act of
rebellion of the Jewish people as a whole. Therefore, the Jews would not
be blamed for Shimshon's actions, and he could fight the Philistines
without endangering the Jews.]" (Judges 14:4) Since Shimshon had been
commanded by Hashem to convert and marry the first Philistine woman, he
erroneously concluded that it was part of his divinely ordained mission
to continue to fight the Philistines in this manner, using the pretext
of personal vendetta to reek havoc against them and therefore he
subsequently involved himself in two other relationships. However,
Shimshon didn't perceive that the two latter relationships were
motivated by his personal desire for the two women, and not from the
pure motives of Divine inspiration. In addition, through the acts of
vengeance against the Philistines for the murder of his first wife,
Shimon had already accomplished the goal of terrorizing the Philistines.
No further action on his part was necessary.
As mentioned above, there are forms of evil that were given over to man
to eliminate and there are others that only Hashem can do away with. The
latter case is Shimshon's. Thus, when Shimshon was on his way to marry a
Philistine woman, he encountered a dead lion with honey exuding from its
mouth. This was orchestrated by Hashem to hint that the action Shimshon
was about to take was wrong and that he should leave the business of
extricating the trapped energies of goodness from the forces of evil to
Hashem, just as Hashem alone is able to purify the honey that comes from
the impure bee, as the verse says, "Who can bring a clean thing out of
an unclean thing [no one else but Hashem]? (Job 14:4) Since Shimshon's
action, although taken with the best of intentions, was prohibited by
the Torah, he was severely punished when the Philistines captured him
and bored out his eyes. [Note: The holy Ari said that in addition,
Shimshon was blinded in all four of his subsequent incarnations to atone
for his sin].
Concerning the final redemption, the verse says, "And it shall come to
pass on that day [of the coming of the Messiah], that a great shofar
shall be sounded, and the lost [Jews] in the land of Assyria and those
exiled in the land of Egypt shall come and they shall prostrate
themselves before Hashem on the holy mountain in Jerusalem." (Isaiah
27:13) San'cherev, the king of Assyria, was the first to exile the Jews
from their land and the ten tribes have been lost ever since. They did
not even return during the second Temple period as did many of their
brethren from the tribes of Yehudah (Judah) and Binyamin (Benjamin). The
verse tells us that the ten lost tribes will not return to the land of
Israel until the final redemption, at the time when all the spiritual
pollution caused by Adam's sin will have been transformed to purity. As
mentioned above, the shofar is associated with the concepts behind
honey. Therefore, the shofar mentioned in this verse refers to the era
of the coming of the Messiah when all of the impurity of the entire
universe will have been transformed, thus eliminating all evil, as the
verse says, "And it shall come to pass on that day [the coming of the
Messiah], says Hashem(I will cause the(spirit of impurity to pass out of
the land." (Zechariah 13:2) This and the previously mentioned verse
suggest that the law associated with honey alludes to the final
redemption, when all impurity will be converted to purity.
We can now understand how exile can bring about rectification and
atonement for sin. Sin caused the energies of goodness and holiness to
be scattered throughout the world. We Jews, in our exile, have been
scattered throughout the world in order to find and redeem the holy
sparks of goodness. Through the observance of the Torah to the best of
our abilities,we have been able to extract these lost holy sparks that
fell into the depths of impurity and return them to the side of
holiness. Thus, in remaining loyal to Hashem despite the impurity of
exile, we are able to bring purity to the entire world. From the depths
of exile, the seeds for the final redemption are derived, which is like
pure honey derived from the impure bee.
In the meantime, two others [came by the marketplace]. [Elijah] came
[again and] said to [Rav Beroka], "These, too, are destined for the
hereafter. [Rav Beroka] went up to them, [and] said, "What do you do?"
They replied, "We are comedians, we go to cheer up those who are
depressed. Additionally, whenever we see two people involved in a
dispute, we strive hard to make peace between them. [They devoted their
comic talents solely to these types of situations, all for the sake of
Heaven]. (Talmud: Taanis 22a)
Adam's sin spiritually polluted the entire universe, intermixing evil
with the all the good of the initial creation. This spiritual pollution
manifests itself in the physical realm by the great effort and
preparation needed to benefit from anything physical (one example is the
long and arduous process of plowing, planting, harvesting, etc. to make
bread). Producing anything in this world involves sifting or removing
the bad and unnecessary elements from the good. Since every physical
object has a spiritual essence, perfecting it physically perfects it
spiritually as well. When all negative elements are removed from both
the physical and spiritual levels, that segment of the world is divested
of the spiritual pollution caused by Adam's sin.
AND THE CLEANSING OF DEATH
The food we eat has a strong influence upon our mind which is the main
faculty through which we can perceive and come close to Hashem.
Therefore, to prevent confusion that could cause us to stray from the
pathways that lead to Hashem, it is of the utmost importance that our
food be cleansed of as many spiritual toxins as possible. Since death
purges animals from the dangerous spiritual toxins of falsehood and evil
that are strongly embedded within them, the Torah prohibited consumption
of any living creature and their byproducts until after it has been
ritually slaughtered. Rav Noson points out that milk and honey are the
only two exceptions to this rule. He says that this indicates that milk
and honey are automatically cleansed of their spiritual toxins through
the extensive natural processing involved in their production. Milk
production accompanies the birth of all mammals and is the final step in
the long and complex processes of bringing forth offspring in both man
and animals.
Rav Noson says that the law permitting consumption of both milk and
honey without first having to kill the creatures that produce them
teaches us a valuable lesson about free choice. He explains that one of
the reasons we are required to study Torah and perform the commandments
is that the spiritual energies that are emitted through these actions
help to reduce the taint of Adam's sin, which brings the world closer to
perfection. Torah study and performance of the commandments elevates
every physical item and connects it to its spiritual source in the upper
worlds. Our sages tell us that even Hashem Himself performs all of the
commandments, so to speak, on His exalted level. For example the Talmud
says that Hashem dons tefillin (Talmud: Berachot 6) and fulfills the
commandment of visiting the sick (Talmud: Sota 14) As, explained above,
the fulfillment of the commandments brings the world closer to
perfection. Rav Noson says that since both Hashem and man are required
to fulfill the commandments, it is evident that they are both
responsible for working to bring perfection to the universe. This also
means that there are certain tasks that are left for man to accomplish
and other tasks that only Hashem is capable of doing. Ritual slaughter
which spiritually elevates a particular animal is a case where human
effort is required whereas the purification of milk and honey is
accomplished by Hashem alone.
Our discussion touches upon the complex subject of man's efforts verses
Hashem's predetermination. For example, if our annual income is
determined by Hashem, why is it necessary to go to work? Rav Noson
explains that although Hashem indeed provides us with our annual income
without the actual need for any effort on our part, He nevertheless
desires that we exert ourselves to earn a living, despite the fact that
human effort truly has nothing to do with earnings. Rabbi Nachman said
that this is one of the paradoxes that cannot be understood in this
world. If we were given to understand this concept, it would eliminate
free choice. For if we could clearly see that Hashem provides for our
every need, we would not have to choose to have faith. There would be no
need for faith if everything were obvious. Doubt provides the freedom to
choose between good and evil. Therefore, although Hashem does not need
our efforts, He wants us to do our part in working to perfect the world,
as if He needs our work. This is best illustrated by the above cited
example of ritual slaughter, which demands human involvement as opposed
to milk and honey, which do not. In the Messianic age, when free choice
will be abolished, will we be able to understand this concept fully. Rav
Noson cites the Talmud (Avoth 1:14) to illustrate this point: "He
[Hillel the elder] used to say, 'If I am not for myself, who will be for
me? If I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now when? Rav Noson
elaborates: 'If I am not for myself'--if I don't make every conceivable
effort to perfect the universe and my spiritual situation through my own
efforts, the study of the Torah, and the fulfillment of the
commandments, then I will lose out on my eternal reward in the hereafter
and on the bliss of coming closer to Hashem. 'And if I am only for
myself, what am I'--without Hashem I have absolutely no ability to do or
accomplish anything. I must hope and pray for His assistance in
everything I do. One might argue, "If everything is determined by
Hashem, why then must I fulfill the commandments and work toward
perfecting the world, my efforts are superfluous? I won't work or
fulfill the commandments until I can understand why Hashem needs my
participation." 'And if not now when?--this paradox cannot be understood
in this world and if one doesn't fulfill Hashem's will now, he will lose
out on eternal reward. For when the Messiah reveals the answer to this
paradox, it will be too late to gain reward--reward only comes when
there is free choice. Therefore, we must work to serve Hashem with pure
and simple faith despite not being able to resolve this issue.
Rav Noson uses the prohibition against mixing meat and milk to highlight
this unresolved issue. Meat and milk are together in the very same
animal. Yet meat must entail human effort--ritual slaughter--while
Hashem provides milk unilaterally. In addition, meat and milk are
permitted for consumption separately, but forbidden when mixed together.
Again, this paradox cannot be understood in this world, so we must have
simple faith and do as Hashem has commanded us. Due to the limitations
of human intelligence, we cannot comprehend these apparant
contradictions. Nonetheless, those who scoff at this law will lose out
in the hereafter. Rav Noson says that we must be very careful when
probing the mysteries of the Torah. We should question subjects that
fall within the grasp of human intelligence as much as possible. At the
same time, we must recognize the limitations of human intellect and
realize that there are subjects which are beyond our grasp. In such
cases, when our persistent questioning leads to no answer or seeming
incongruities, no matter how hard we search, we must then rely upon
simple faith.
Rav Noson explains that on the holiday of Shavuot, which commemorates
the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, the custom is to first eat dairy
preceding the meat meal. This custom illustrates that although Hashem
controls everything and does not actually need our efforts--which can be
compared to the production of milk--we must still try our best and act
as if everything is dependent upon us--represented by eating meat. The
custom to eat dairy prior to meat also demonstrates our faith in Hashem
and His commandments, upon which the entire Torah is dependent.
Furthermore, since our logic tells us that meat and milk are derived
from the same animal and should therefore be permitted together, our
eating them separately on Shavuot, the day most associated with Torah,
clearly proclaims our faith in Hashem and His Torah. This custom
confirms that observance and fulfillment of the Torah is based and
dependent upon faith.
Rav Noson says that the permission to eat honey, which is derived from
the excretions of the not-to-be-eaten bee, is even less comprehensible
than the prohibition of mixing milk and meat. How can honey be kosher
when it is derived from a non-kosher source? Again, this contradiction
cannot be resolved until the coming of the Messiah. This law is
associated with another paradox. There are many instances where a person
comes to violate the laws of the Torah and the wishes of Hashem, but
astoundingly, the negative action is precisely what Hashem desires. For
example, Pharaoh enslaved the Jews and ignored Hashem's command
(delivered through His prophet Moshe (Moses)) to free them. Hashem
actually wanted the Jews to be enslaved and afflicted in Egypt. The
harshness of the Egyptian servitude strengthened the Jews both
spiritually and physically and caused Hashem's Name to be glorified and
magnified through the many miracles He performed there. Incredibly,
Pharaoh helped carry out Hashem's desire, and nonetheless, he was
punished for his great wickedness in enslaving the Jews.
KOSHER HONEY FROM A NON-KOSHER SOURCE
Rav Noson paraphrases a teaching from Rabbi Nachman that explains how
the mechanism of birth works: "There are times when the forces of evil
see that the energies of goodness are being magnetized to return to the
side of holiness. In such an instance, the forces of evil attempt to
overpower the good even more, trapping goodness within the deepest
depths of evil, the recesses of evil thought (evil thought being the
depths of impurity). When goodness becomes trapped within the recesses
of evil thought, it emerges through the offspring they [the forces of
evil] bear. [The Zohar teaches that the seed originates in the mind and
then descends to the reproductive organs. (Zohar Chodash15a)] So,
because goodness is concealed within the inner recesses of the thoughts
of the forces of evil, from where offspring issue, it emerges in the
seed [that produces the] offspring of the forces of evil. Evil is then
incapable of overpowering the energies of goodness that dwells within
it. [This goodness then influences the offspring of the forces of evil
to move to the side of holiness]. This is how goodness trapped within
the depths of impurity can return to holiness. This concept explains why
certain Gentiles are motivated to convert to Judaism and others aren't
and how wicked people sometimes produce righteous offspring. (1 Lekutai
MoHaran 17:7) Rav Noson uses this teaching to explain the motives for
Shimshon's actions.
Rav Noson says the basis for the custom to eat honey on Rosh HaShana
(the Jewish New Year) is consistent with our teaching. Rosh HaShana is
the first of the ten days of repentance which culminate with Yom Kippur,
the day of Atonement, when complete repentance is achieved. Through
sincere repentance, all of one's sins can be turned into merits and the
sinner can be transformed into a saint. Therefore, repentance transforms
impurity into purity, just as pure honey comes from the impure bee. On
Rosh HaShana the shofar (ram's horn) is blown to help us to humble our
hearts, facilitating the repentance process. The shofar itself
symbolizes repentance. That the shofar, vital to the repentance process
of Rosh HaShanah, is derived from an animal teaches that the sinner, who
has fallen into animalistic behavior, can attain purity through
repentance. Since the shofar is a strong part of the transformation
process, it is akin to honey. So, we eat honey on Rosh HaShana as an
acknowledgment of the day's transformative properties, extracting purity
from impurity, saintliness from sinfulness.
Milk is also a kosher food derived from a non-kosher source. Milk is
derived from blood and represents the Exodus from Egypt. Just as the
redemption from Egypt was not the complete and final redemption, for the
Jews were eventually sent back into exile for their sins, indicating
that there still remains a spirit of impurity in the world; milk lacks a
total and complete purification from its spiritual impurity, evidenced
by the prohibition of mixing it with meat. As explained above, honey
represents the final redemption, where all the impurity of the world
will be eliminated and milk represents the Exodus from Egypt, an
incomplete purification. Thus we have the custom to eat honey on Rosh
Hashana, but on Shavuot [the holiday that commemorates the giving of the
Torah that was the direct result of the Exodus from Egypt] we eat milk.
One of the major themes of the Rosh Hashana prayers is the final
redemption, as we say, "Grant(a flourishing of pride [lit. horn, for the
horn is the pride of the animal] to David, Your servant, and an array of
light to the son of Yishai (Jesse), Your anointed [referring to the
Messiah], speedily in our days." Since, on Rosh Hashana, we work to
atone for our sins and remove impurity through repentance and we pray
for the final redemption, honey is very appropriate on this holiday.
However, on Shavuot it is fitting that we eat dairy.
When the Torah was given to the Jews, the angels were jealous and
strongly protested. The convincing argument that silenced the angels'
protests came from the three angels who had visited the patriarch
Abraham. Then, they had consumed meat and milk together as the verse
says, "[Abraham] took cream and milk and the calf (meat) which he had
prepared, and placed these before [the three angels]; he stood over them
beneath the tree and they ate." (Genesis 18:8) The reason the holy
angels ate forbidden food is that there is no impurity or evil in
heaven, and therefore such food would have no negative impact on them.
This incident silenced the angels' protests because the laws of the
Torah can only apply to beings who have free choice. Angels have no free
choice. Free choice means that one has an equal opportunity to choose to
do good as well as evil. The angels had no response for this argument
and their protests were silenced. Since the Torah was given on the
strength of this argument, we therefore have the custom to commemorate
the giving of the Torah by eating both dairy and meat during the same
meal, albeit separately on Shavuot. (Lekutai Halachot: Yorah Dayah:
Hilchot Devarim Ha'Yotzim Min Ha'Chai 4:36-46)
At times, holiness can be derived even from the profane(Rav Beroka of
Bei Chozai used to frequent the marketplace of Bei Lefet. Elijah [the
Prophet] frequently appeared to him. [Once Rav Beroka] said to [Elijah],
"Is there anyone in this marketplace who is destined for the hereafter?"
[Every Jew has a share in the hereafter, but most people must first
undergo the painful process of spiritual cleansing before they can enter
paradise. Therefore, Rav Beroka asked is there anyone in the marketplace
who is worthy of entering paradise without having to undergo the process
of painful spiritual cleansing. (Eitz Yosef)] [Elijah] answered, "No."
In the meantime, [Rav Beroka] saw a certain man who was wearing black
shoes. [In those days, it was not customary for Jews to wear black
shoes. (MaHarsha)] Furthermore, he had no fringes on the corners of his
garment [which Jews are required to wear by Torah law, so he didn't
appear to be Jewish]. [Elijah] said to [Rav Beroka], "This [person] is
destined for the hereafter." [Rav Beroka] ran after [and caught up with
him]. [Rav Beroka] said, "What do you do?" [The man] replied, "Go [away]
today and come [back] tomorrow." The next day [Rav Beroka returned and
again] asked, "What do you do?" [The man] replied, "I am a jail guard,
and I incarcerate the men separately, and the women separately [on
different sides of the jail], and I place my bed between [the men] and
[the women], so that they should not come to [do] that which is
forbidden. When I see an [imprisoned] Jewish female whom the Gentile
[wardens] are focusing their attentions on, I risk my life to save
her([After discovering that this man was indeed a worthy person, Rav
Beroka sought an explanation for his attire, which was not considered
appropriate apparel for a Jew.] "Why do you not have fringes [on your
clothes as is required by Torah law], and [why] do you wear black
shoes?" [The man] said, "I come and go amongst the Gentiles, [and I
therefore do not wear fringes or the customary footwear] so that they
will not know that I am a Jew." [The man would inconspicuously round off
one of the four coners of his garment, so as not to actually violate the
Biblical law, which requires one to attach fringes to all four cornered
garments (Ben Yehoyada)]. "[I do this so that] whenever [the government]
issues a decree [that is detrimental to the Jews], I inform the Rabbis
[immediately], and they pray for [Divine] mercy and annul their
decrees." [Rav Beroka continued,] "Why, when I said to you, 'what do you
do?' did you respond to me 'Go [away] today and come [back] tomorrow?'"
He answered, "At that moment, [the government] had just issued a decree
[against the Jews], so I said [to myself], 'Let me first go and inform
the Rabbis, so that they may pray for [Divine] mercy concerning this
matter [and have it annulled. Therefore I had no time to converse with
you.]'"