BeRahamim LeHayim: PaRDeS HaBahir Wednesday Naso

Living with the Times“ Mystic Calendar  for

Wednesday-Naso PARSHA:  Netzah   of  Hod

by Rav Rahmiel Drizin:

Year: 5770 = 5 [Yesod] 7 [Hod] 7 [ Hod] 0 [Malkut]

Season: Spring  Alef א

Month: Sivan

Attributes of the month of Sivan: Ruling permutation of the letters of HAVAYAH:   יְוּהַהַ contained in the initial Hebrew letters of Yedotav U-letzela

Hamiskan Hasheinit – יְ דֹתָיו – וּ לְצֶלַע הַ מִּשְׁכָּן הַ שֵּׁנִית“…for its tenons and for the second side of the tabernacle…” (Exodus 26:19-20).

The month’s corresponding letter is: ז ZAYIN;

Human attribute: MOTION;

Body Part: LEFT FOOT; Left ear of Nok ;

Tribe: ZEVULUN;

Constellation: TE-OMIM (Gemini, the Twins).  Tiferet of Nok;

Color:  gold

Day Wednesday-Netzah:  Shavuot–Tiferet 2-8 Abba

Import of the Day http://www.chassidusonline.com/baalshemtov.html

In honor of the 250th Anniversary of the Baal Shem Tov HaKadosh this Shavout, from R. Tal Zwecker

The Baal Shem Tov’s vision

In a letter to his brother-in-law, Rabbi Gershon Kitover, the Baal Shem Tov relates: “On Rosh Hashanah of the year 5507 I made an ‘ascent of soul’… I ascended level after level until I reached the chamber of the Moshiach… And I asked Moshiach: “When will the Master come?”

And the Moshiach replied: “When your teachings will be disseminated and revealed in the world, and your wellsprings will spread outside…” (Keser Shem Tov 1:1).

There is a legendary tale of a meeting between Rav Shimshon of Sheptivka and the author of the Noda BeYehudah of Prague Rav Yechezkel Landau. Rav Shimshon was defending the honor of the Toldos Yaakov Yosef, the first sefer on Chassidus ever printed by the Baal Shem Tov’s student Rav Yaakov Yosef of Polnoy. During the visit Rav Shimshon was asked by the Noda BeYehudah to define the term chassid. What is this new group and its adherent the chassid?   “A chassid is one who repairs that which was broken down.” (Yosef Da’as p58)   Chassidus swept the European scene where for the masses Yiddishkeit was broken down, it filled their lives with light, hope and a sincere relationship with G-d who was near and close as a loving father. Chassidus breathed life and yiras shomayim (fear of Heaven) back into Yiddishkeit after the destruction of the second world war. Today as the new generation deals with “kids at risk” the Baal Teshuva movement, and an outside world that rejects the moral foundations of everythong we stand for. Where the youth in all circles are searching for love and meaning in life Chassidus can offer that and so much more to them.

Verse of the Day

they shall confess the sin they committed, and make restitution for the principal amount of his guilt, add its fifth to it, and give it to the one against whom he was guilty.		ז. וְהִתְוַדּוּ אֶת חַטָּאתָם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ וְהֵשִׁיב אֶת אֲשָׁמוֹ בְּרֹאשׁוֹ וַחֲמִישִׁתוֹ יֹסֵף עָלָיו וְנָתַן לַאֲשֶׁר אָשַׁם לוֹ:
for the principal amount of his guilt: This is the principal amount on which he has sworn [falsely]. — [B.K. 110a]		את אשמו בראשו: הוא הקרן שנשבע עליו:
to the one against whom he was guilty: The one to whom he is liable. — [Keth. 19a] [I.e., if the payee owes this amount to a third party, the thief must pay the third party.]		לאשר אשם לו: למי שנתחייב לו:

Remez:   Baal HaTurim:    See ParDes HaBahir for Sunday Naso on the Talmudic teaching that anyone put to death by a court of law should confess at the time of execution.

Sod: כְּעַן צָּרִיךְ לְאָהַדְּרָא עַל פֶּתַח הַתְּשׁוּבָה. וְכִי מִכַּמָּה מִינִין אִיהוּ תְּשׁוּבָה דְּעַבְדִין בְּנֵי נָשָׁא, כֻּלְּהוּ טָבִין, אֲבָל לָאו כָּל אַפַּיָיא שָׁוִין. אִית בַּר נָשׁ דְּאִיהוּ רָשָׁע גָּמוּר כָּל יָמָיו, וְאִיהוּ עוֹבֵר עַל כַּמָה פִּקוּדִין דְּלָא תַּעֲשֶׂה, וּמִתְחָרֵט וּמוֹדֶה עָלַיְיהוּ, וּלְבָתַר כֵּן לָא עָבֵד לָא טַב וְלָא בִּישׁ. לְדָא וַדַּאי יִמְחוֹל לֵיהּ קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, אֲבָל לָא דְּיִזְכֶּה לִתְשׁוּבָה עִלָּאָה. אִית בַּר נָשׁ לְבָתַר דְּיֵיתוּב מֵחַטָאָיו, וּמִתְכַּפֵּר לֵיהּ, אִיהוּ אָזִיל בְּדֶּרֶךְ מִצְּוָה, וּמִתְעַסֵּק בְּכָל כֹּחוֹ בִּדְחִילוּ וּרְחִימוּ דְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא. דָּא זָכֵי לִתְשׁוּבָה תַּתָּאָה, דְּאִתְקְרֵי ה’. וְדָא אִיהוּ תְּשׁוּבָה תַּתָּאָה. וְאִית בַּר נָשׁ לְבָתַר דְּמִתְחָרֵט מֵחוֹבוֹי, וְיַעְבִיד תְּשׁוּבָה, וְיִתְעֲסָק בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא בִּדְחִילוּ וּרְחִימוּ דְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, וְלָא עַל מְנָת לְקַבֵּל פְּרָס. דָּא זָכֵי לְאָת ו’, וְאִיהוּ בֶּן יָ”הּ, וְעַל שְׁמֵיהּ אִתְקְרֵי בִּינָה, וְדָא גָּרִים דְּתָשׁוּב ו’ לְגַבֵּי ה’. וּמִלַּת תְּשׁוּבָה כַּךְ הִיא, תָּשׁוּב ו’ לְה’. וּלְעוֹלָם לָא שַׁרְיָא ה’ בְּבַר נָשׁ, וְלֹא ו’, (דף קכ”ג ע”ב) בְּלָא דְּחִילוּ וּבְלָא רְחִימוּ, דְּאִינּוּן יָ”הּ, יִרְאָה וְאַהֲבָה קָרֵינָן לֵיהּ וַדַּאי. וּמִתַּמָּן אִתְיְיהִיבוּ הַתּוֹרָה וְהַמִּצְּוָה דְּאִינּוּן בֵּן וּבַת. וּבְגִין דְּיִשְׂרָאֵל מְקַיְּימִין הַתּוֹרָה וְהַמִּצְּוָה, אִתְקְרִיאוּ בָּנִים לְּקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב, (דברים יד) בָּנִים אַתֶּם לַיְיָ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם   Naso 123

Now we must return to the gates of repentance. The repentance that people do consists of various types. All are good but all are not equal. There is a person who is completely wicked all his life and transgressed many negative commandments, but he regrets and confesses them. He then does neither good nor bad. Surely, the Holy One, blessed be He, will forgive him, but he will not merit the highest repentance. There is also a person who has repented and has his sins wiped clean. He pursues the way of the precepts and does them with all his might, with awe and love for the Holy One, blessed be He. That person will acquire the lower repentance, called Hei,  which is a lower degree of repentance.
Then there is a person that studies the Torah with awe and love for the Holy One, blessed be He, after regretting his sins and doing repentance but not for any reward. That person acquires the letter Vav  and is the son of Yod-Hei. Binah is named after him [See yesterday’s PaRDeS HaBahir where Binah is parsed as Ben (son) of Yod-Hei]. That causes the return of Vav to Hei. The word Teshuvah ( ‘repentance’)  means Vav shall return (tashuv) to Hei.
Neither Hei nor Vav ever dwell on a person without awe and love, which are Yod-Hei, which we surely call awe and love. From there, the Torah and the precepts were given, which are the son and daughter. Since Yisrael observe the Torah and its commandments, they are called the children of the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written: “You are the children of Hashem your Gd” (Devarim 14:1).   BeRahamim LeHayyim: . וְהִתְוַדּוּ אֶת חַטָּאתָם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ  “And he shall confess the sin he did” Today is Shavuot, which falls during the week of Naso [See What’s in a Name for Naso].  It is also the yartzeit of David HaMelek, King David, “David Melek Yisrael Hai VeKayam!”  King David  teaches us about how to do teshuva.  Here’s the story in its entirety: וַיִּשְׁלַח יְהוָה אֶת-נָתָן, אֶל-דָּוִד; וַיָּבֹא אֵלָיו, וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ שְׁנֵי אֲנָשִׁים הָיוּ בְּעִיר אֶחָת, אֶחָד עָשִׁיר, וְאֶחָד רָאשׁ. 1 And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him: ‘There were two men in one city: the one rich, and the other poor. ב לְעָשִׁיר, הָיָה צֹאן וּבָקָר–הַרְבֵּה מְאֹד. 2 The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds; ג וְלָרָשׁ אֵין-כֹּל, כִּי אִם-כִּבְשָׂה אַחַת קְטַנָּה אֲשֶׁר קָנָה, וַיְחַיֶּהָ, וַתִּגְדַּל עִמּוֹ וְעִם-בָּנָיו יַחְדָּו; מִפִּתּוֹ תֹאכַל וּמִכֹּסוֹ תִשְׁתֶּה, וּבְחֵיקוֹ תִשְׁכָּב, וַתְּהִי-לוֹ, כְּבַת. 3 but the poor man had nothing save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and reared; and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own morsel, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. ד וַיָּבֹא הֵלֶךְ, לְאִישׁ הֶעָשִׁיר, וַיַּחְמֹל לָקַחַת מִצֹּאנוֹ וּמִבְּקָרוֹ, לַעֲשׂוֹת לָאֹרֵחַ הַבָּא-לוֹ; וַיִּקַּח, אֶת-כִּבְשַׂת הָאִישׁ הָרָאשׁ, וַיַּעֲשֶׂהָ, לָאִישׁ הַבָּא אֵלָיו. 4 And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him, but took the poor man’s lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.’ ה וַיִּחַר-אַף דָּוִד בָּאִישׁ, מְאֹד; וַיֹּאמֶר, אֶל-נָתָן, חַי-יְהוָה, כִּי בֶן-מָוֶת הָאִישׁ הָעֹשֶׂה זֹאת. 5 And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan: ‘As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this deserveth to die; ו וְאֶת-הַכִּבְשָׂה, יְשַׁלֵּם אַרְבַּעְתָּיִם:  עֵקֶב, אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה אֶת-הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה, וְעַל, אֲשֶׁר לֹא-חָמָל.  {ס} 6 and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.’ ז וַיֹּאמֶר נָתָן אֶל-דָּוִד, אַתָּה הָאִישׁ;  {ס}  כֹּה-אָמַר יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, אָנֹכִי מְשַׁחְתִּיךָ לְמֶלֶךְ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְאָנֹכִי הִצַּלְתִּיךָ, מִיַּד שָׁאוּל. 7 And Nathan said to David: ‘Thou art the man.  Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; ח וָאֶתְּנָה לְךָ אֶת-בֵּית אֲדֹנֶיךָ, וְאֶת-נְשֵׁי אֲדֹנֶיךָ בְּחֵיקֶךָ, וָאֶתְּנָה לְךָ, אֶת-בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל וִיהוּדָה; וְאִם-מְעָט–וְאֹסִפָה לְּךָ, כָּהֵנָּה וְכָהֵנָּה. 8 and I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that were too little, then would I add unto thee so much more. ט מַדּוּעַ בָּזִיתָ אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה, לַעֲשׂוֹת הָרַע בעינו (בְּעֵינַי), אֵת אוּרִיָּה הַחִתִּי הִכִּיתָ בַחֶרֶב, וְאֶת-אִשְׁתּוֹ לָקַחְתָּ לְּךָ לְאִשָּׁה; וְאֹתוֹ הָרַגְתָּ, בְּחֶרֶב בְּנֵי עַמּוֹן. 9 Wherefore hast thou despised the word of the LORD, to do that which is evil in My sight? Uriah the Hittite thou hast smitten with the sword, and his wife thou hast taken to be thy wife, and him thou hast slain with the sword of the children of Ammon. י וְעַתָּה, לֹא-תָסוּר חֶרֶב מִבֵּיתְךָ–עַד-עוֹלָם:  עֵקֶב, כִּי בְזִתָנִי, וַתִּקַּח אֶת-אֵשֶׁת אוּרִיָּה הַחִתִּי, לִהְיוֹת לְךָ לְאִשָּׁה.  {ס} 10 Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from thy house; because thou hast despised Me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. יא כֹּה אָמַר יְהוָה, הִנְנִי מֵקִים עָלֶיךָ רָעָה מִבֵּיתֶךָ, וְלָקַחְתִּי אֶת-נָשֶׁיךָ לְעֵינֶיךָ, וְנָתַתִּי לְרֵעֶיךָ; וְשָׁכַב עִם-נָשֶׁיךָ, לְעֵינֵי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ הַזֹּאת. 11 Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. יב כִּי אַתָּה, עָשִׂיתָ בַסָּתֶר; וַאֲנִי, אֶעֱשֶׂה אֶת-הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה, נֶגֶד כָּל-יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְנֶגֶד הַשָּׁמֶשׁ.  {ס} 12 For thou didst it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.’ יג וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל-נָתָן, חָטָאתִי לַיהוָה;  {ס}  וַיֹּאמֶר נָתָן אֶל-דָּוִד, גַּם-יְהוָה הֶעֱבִיר חַטָּאתְךָ–לֹא תָמוּת. 13 And David said unto Nathan: ‘I have sinned against the LORD.’  And Nathan said unto David: ‘The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.

Simply, חָטָאתִי לַי-ה-וָ-ה “I have sinned against Hashem“.  No hemming or hawing.  No excuses.   This was his shining moment.  This moment propelled him to serve as the fourth leg of Hashem’s Chariot.  And this differs from what his kingly predecessor Shaul HaMelek said when confronted that he missed the mark:

יג וַיָּבֹא שְׁמוּאֵל, אֶל-שָׁאוּל; וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ שָׁאוּל, בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה לַיהוָה–הֲקִימֹתִי, אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה.	13 And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said unto him: ‘Blessed be thou of the LORD; I have performed the commandment of the LORD.’
יד וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, וּמֶה קוֹל-הַצֹּאן הַזֶּה בְּאָזְנָי, וְקוֹל הַבָּקָר, אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי שֹׁמֵעַ.	14 And Samuel said: ‘What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?’
טו וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל מֵעֲמָלֵקִי הֱבִיאוּם, אֲשֶׁר חָמַל הָעָם עַל-מֵיטַב הַצֹּאן וְהַבָּקָר, לְמַעַן זְבֹחַ, לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ; וְאֶת-הַיּוֹתֵר, הֶחֱרַמְנוּ.  {פ}	15 And Saul said: ‘They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.’
טז וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, אֶל-שָׁאוּל, הֶרֶף וְאַגִּידָה לְּךָ, אֵת אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה אֵלַי הַלָּיְלָה; ויאמרו (וַיֹּאמֶר) לוֹ, דַּבֵּר.  {ס}	16 Then Samuel said unto Saul: ‘Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night.’ And he said unto him: ‘Say on.’
יז וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל–הֲלוֹא אִם-קָטֹן אַתָּה בְּעֵינֶיךָ, רֹאשׁ שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אָתָּה; וַיִּמְשָׁחֲךָ יְהוָה לְמֶלֶךְ, עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל.	17 And Samuel said: ‘Though thou be little in thine own sight, art thou not head of the tribes of Israel? And the LORD anointed thee king over Israel;
יח וַיִּשְׁלָחֲךָ יְהוָה, בְּדָרֶךְ; וַיֹּאמֶר, לֵךְ וְהַחֲרַמְתָּה אֶת-הַחַטָּאִים אֶת-עֲמָלֵק, וְנִלְחַמְתָּ בוֹ, עַד כַּלּוֹתָם אֹתָם.	18 and the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said: Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.
יט וְלָמָּה לֹא-שָׁמַעְתָּ, בְּקוֹל יְהוָה; וַתַּעַט, אֶל-הַשָּׁלָל, וַתַּעַשׂ הָרַע, בְּעֵינֵי יְהוָה.  {ס}	19 Wherefore then didst thou not hearken to the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst that which was evil in the sight of the LORD?’
כ וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-שְׁמוּאֵל, אֲשֶׁר שָׁמַעְתִּי בְּקוֹל יְהוָה, וָאֵלֵךְ, בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר-שְׁלָחַנִי יְהוָה; וָאָבִיא, אֶת-אֲגַג מֶלֶךְ עֲמָלֵק, וְאֶת-עֲמָלֵק, הֶחֱרַמְתִּי.	20 And Saul said unto Samuel: ‘Yea, I have hearkened to the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
כא וַיִּקַּח הָעָם מֵהַשָּׁלָל צֹאן וּבָקָר, רֵאשִׁית הַחֵרֶם, לִזְבֹּחַ לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, בַּגִּלְגָּל.  {ס}	21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal.’
כב וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, הַחֵפֶץ לַיהוָה בְּעֹלוֹת וּזְבָחִים, כִּשְׁמֹעַ, בְּקוֹל יְהוָה:  הִנֵּה שְׁמֹעַ מִזֶּבַח טוֹב, לְהַקְשִׁיב מֵחֵלֶב אֵילִים.	22 And Samuel said: ‘Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in hearkening to the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
כג כִּי חַטַּאת-קֶסֶם מֶרִי, וְאָוֶן וּתְרָפִים הַפְצַר:  יַעַן, מָאַסְתָּ אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה, וַיִּמְאָסְךָ, מִמֶּלֶךְ.  {ס}	23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, He hath also rejected thee from being king.’
כד וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-שְׁמוּאֵל חָטָאתִי, כִּי-עָבַרְתִּי אֶת-פִּי-יְהוָה וְאֶת-דְּבָרֶיךָ:  כִּי יָרֵאתִי אֶת-הָעָם, וָאֶשְׁמַע בְּקוֹלָם.	24 And Saul said unto Samuel: ‘I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words; because I feared the people, and hearkened to their voice.
כה וְעַתָּה, שָׂא נָא אֶת-חַטָּאתִי; וְשׁוּב עִמִּי, וְאֶשְׁתַּחֲוֶה לַיהוָה.	25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the LORD.’
כו וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל-שָׁאוּל, לֹא אָשׁוּב עִמָּךְ:  כִּי מָאַסְתָּה, אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה, וַיִּמְאָסְךָ יְהוָה, מִהְיוֹת מֶלֶךְ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל.	26 And Samuel said unto Saul: ‘I will not return with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.’

Shaul came up with really good excuses why he did not kill Agag, nor the females, nor all the animals.  And we know the result of this miss-take [See PURIM!] On this day in the merit of King David many read the entire book of Psalms. We should pledge our selves (bli neder/without taking a vow) to do teshuva when confronted with an obvious miss-take.  In his merit.  And in our own. The Ba’al Shem Tov taught:

“Wherever a person’s thoughts are, that’s where he fully is.” (Keter Shem Tov 43, 56) Shavuot, 5770 (2010) Based on Sod Yesharim (Radziner Rebbe) While HaShem revealed the Torah no bird chirped, no fowl flew, no ox lowed, the Ophanim stirred not a wing, the Seraphim ceased their “Holy, Holy, Holy’s,” the sea did not roar, and no creature peeped…the whole world held still in breathless silence while the voice reverberated: I AM HASHEM YOUR GOD [and spoke the Commandments that changed our world.]… (Shmot Rabba 29:9) We Jews pride ourselves in the fact that our religion began as a collective revelation. An estimated four million people (divided into 600,000 family units) simultaneously experienced a direct encounter with the infinite One.¹ A searing revelation of Presence engraved the souls of an entire nation with the-truth-of-the-universe compressed into a single burst of light.  Its impact continues to impel their generations to be seekers and servants of G‑d, and is certain to do so till the end of time. Tradition teaches that each family that exited Egypt embodied a root soul, one of 600,000 that comprise the pool of neshamot incarnating, generation after generation, as the Israelite nation.  Every Jew from that point onward embodies a different sliver of one of those 600,000 root souls—actualizing a drop of its potential through the odyssey of his or her life. This means that every Jewish soul carries a memory trace of that Sinaic encounter. And it is partly because of this—because we heard it with our own “ears” so to speak—that we are bound by the covenant that was sealed that day.  Somewhere, deep down, our soul remembers that earth-shaking event and the obligations it undertook at the mountain’s base. But wait! The fact is we only committed to 10 Commandments that day.  How did our obligations mushroom into 613? Our sages explain that, in fact, all of the mitzvot are included in those original ten.² One proof is that the Ten Commandments contain 620 letters corresponding to the 613 Torah mitzvot plus 7 rabbinic commands. But it’s even more complicated than that, for our own history attests that we actually only heard the first two commandments direct from HaShem.³ Their revelation was so intense we feared for our lives—our souls flew from our bodies at each word. HaShem revived us with His resurrecting dew, the same drops He will use to restore souls to bodies in the end of days. We “died” over sixty times in those first two commandments. It was just too much, and finally we begged Moshe to be our intermediary and relay the message to us. Even so, says the Oral Tradition, these first two Commandments, themselves, are comprehensive—every other mitzvah is simply a detail of how to fulfill one of these all-inclusive two. The First Commandment which declares the fact of God’s existence is the root of all the “248 positive directives,” those that require us “to do” a certain act of service. The Second Commandment, which forbids the worship of idols, is the root of all “365 negative commandants” that instruct us to abstain from a specific wrong-action. And really, says the midrash, both the positive and the negative are contained within the first one.  If we really understood what it means that G‑d is one, as expressed through the First Commandment, our instinctive and reflexive response to the world would always accord with spiritual law—we would naturally and spontaneously choose the high road including any mitzvah relevant to the moment. And so, the entire Torah is contained within the first commandment, which is not actually a command at all, but a declaration of truth: “I am HaShem your G‑d who brought you out of the land of Egypt…” Every Jewish soul heard these words straight from their Creator.  And according to R. Tsadok HaKohen, the prophesy emanated from within and was vocalized through our very own voice box.⁴ The world was completely still when this truth-that-contains-all-other-truths was revealed. There could be no interference to distort its reception. The slightest static at this critical moment would garble the message for eternity. This global hush also proved that there were no dissenting views. Each creature was awed to silence when their Creator now revealed Himself as a personal G‑d—who speaks through prophesy, guides history, and demands virtue. We took this First Commandment in as best we could but its implications were bigger than we could bear.  The goal of our lives individually and collectively is to achieve an ever-deepening integration of what it means that G‑d is one. And towards this end, says the midrash, HaShem restates this fundamental truth over and over and over again. Each day HaShem rebroadcasts the First Commandment out into the world. Why don’t we hear it?  What keeps us from taking it in? The Sod Yesharim explains that we must reproduce the original conditions of its revelation. We must designate a time in our day to quiet our thoughts and cease activity. If we want to receive the First Commandment into our heart, bones, cells and spaces then we have no choice but to hush the static. And the tool for quieting chatter is meditation (in one form or another). If HaShem bothers to reiterate the First Commandment each day then we need to make the silent space to hear His message. Let it be on this Shavuot, as the Torah is revealed anew, that we draw its precious teachings deep inside our souls. May it inspire an abundance of good deeds, joyful study, loving prayer and fruitful silence. And may the transformation born from this service radiate to the outskirts of the world. And may the Torah’s holy lights resolve the schism between truth and peace, and in so doing, bring Mashiach now.

Rahmiel Drizin