It was Simchat Torah, the holiday that celebrates the completion of the Torah, and the disciples of the great Chassidic master Rabbi Mendel of Horodok were awaiting him. They approached his student, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, to ask their revered Rebbe to join his followers. Rabbi Shneur Zalman found the Chassidic master deeply engrossed in his thoughts. ‘The chassidim are waiting for you,’ he told him.
‘I cannot join them!’ was the response. Rabbi Mendel explained to his student that he knew of one hundred teachings on the Biblical verse of ‘Atah Hor’eisa,’ which is recited prior to the joyous hakafot - dancing with the Torah. ‘I cannot recite the verse without a proper comprehension of its significance,’ cried Rabbi Mendel.
‘Rebbe!’ said Rabbi Schneur Zalman. ‘When you will reach a full comprehension of the hundred meanings, you will discover another hundred...’
‘You are right,’ said Rabbi Mendel, ‘Come, let us go to hakafot, let us go rejoice with the Torah.’
An interesting verse in this week’s portion, Bechokosei, reads, ‘You will eat the very old [grain] and you will remove the old to make way for the new.’
A homiletic interpretation understands ‘the very old’ to symbolize G-d, who represents eternity. One ought to satiate one’s hunger with G-d.
Yet we should never get stuck in our old understandings of G-d which can hinder our growth and spiritual journey. The only definition of G-d in Judaism is that He has no definition.
The Chassidic master, Rabbi Elimelech of Liszhensk, asks: Why do we begin blessings by addressing G-d in second person, ‘Blessed are You, Lord our G-d’, and then conclude by addressing Him in third person, ‘Who has sanctified us with His commandments’?
In the beginning of one’s spiritual journey, G-d seems very near. You feel that you ‘have G-d,’ that you grasp His depth.
But as you continue to climb, you discover the gulf between you and infinity. When you come close to truth, you can begin to sense how far you are from truth.
When Abraham took Isaac to the akeida - the binding of Isaac, the Torah tells us that ‘On the third day, Abraham looked up and saw the place from afar. Abraham said to his attendants, ‘You stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go yonder….’’
Why did Abraham take his attendants along if he was to leave them behind anyway? Because it was only Abraham who ‘looked up and saw the place from afar.’ Only Abraham realized how remote he still was from the Divine mountain. His attendants actually thought that the place was near. At that moment, Abraham knew that they were not ready to accompany him on his journey toward G-d.
Thus is the paradox of one’s spiritual process. The closer you become, the further you must become. And G-d sends forth His promise: ‘I will heal he who is far and near.’
Excerpts from an article by Rabbi YY Jacobson