Translated by Rabbi Shmuel Kesselman
General Editor: Rabbi Zalmy Avtzon
1. WHY IS THE MENORAH CONSTRUCTION MENTIONED IN OUR PARSHAH
At the beginning of our parshah, after the verses, “When you kindle the lamps, toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light,” and, “Aharon did so; towards the face of the Menorah he kindled its lamps,” the verse says: “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work of gold, from its base to its flower it was hammered work; according to the vision that Hashem showed Moshe, so did he make the Menorah.”
The commentators raise a well-known question: The opening verses of the parshah seemingly deal with instructing Aharon regarding how to kindle the lamps — “toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light.” However, the Torah already discussed the manner of the Menorah’s construction much earlier, in parshas Terumah.
How then is the verse “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah,” relevant to this parshah?
Now, since this question arises when studying pshuto shel mikra {the plain meaning of Scripture}, we need to clarify why Rashi does not address it in his commentary.
2. ANSWERS AND DIFFICULTIES
Ramban explains that the verse “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah,” serves “to indicate that for all generations, it must be hammered work, for this is an essential requirement.”
However, this explanation still does not resolve the difficulty according to Rashi’s approach: This law too, that for all generations the Menorah must be hammered from one piece of gold, should not have been written here, but rather in the earlier parshiyos, either parshas Terumah or parshas Emor.
Especially since that passage states (Vayikrah 24:3) “an eternal statute for your generations” — and Rashi identifies it as “the passage of the commandment of the lamps” (see also Ramban there [cited below in sec. 4]: “the purpose of this passage is for two matters...”). Thus, the law of “hammered work” should logically have been stated there. See the Talmudic discussion in Menachos 28a with Rashi’s and Tosafos’s commentaries.
In his commentary on our parshah, on this verse.
In the original command to create the Menorah, Shemos 25:31, ff.; and similarly when describing the actual construction of the Menorah, Shemos (37:17, ff.).
See Abarbanel, Alshich, Or HaChaim, and others; Sefer Hamaamorim 5566, p. 242.
{I.e., formed of one solid piece of gold.}
Bamidbar 8:4.
Bamidbar 8:2,3.
Or HaChaim explains that the verse comes to preclude a potential misunderstanding in the interpretation of the verses: “When you kindle the lamps” (according to his interpretation) means that the lamps {the vessels that held the oil} were not permanently fixed to the branches of the Menorah, but rather were removed and then placed back onto the Menorah. From this, one might have inferred about the other parts of the Menorah that after its initial construction, it need not remain “hammered work.” In other words, one might think that the verse’s requirement of “hammered work” applied only to the Menorah’s initial construction, but “afterward one could fashion it as desired.” Therefore, the verse adds, “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah... hammered work,” indicating that the requirement of “hammered work,” continues even afterward.
However, this explanation cannot be applied to Rashi’s approach. While one might argue that even according to Rashi’s approach in his commentary on the Torah, the lamps were not part of the single piece of gold made into the Menorah, and thus one could plausibly suggest that they were removed and placed on the Menorah each day. This interpretation, however, is incompatible with Rashi’s approach, as evidenced:
[Beyond the difficulty of suggesting, according to pshat, that since the lamps were separate and reattached daily onto the Menorah, one might infer this about all parts of the Menorah — since in the original command in parshas Terumah, it is clear that the entire Menorah must be “hammered work” (except for the lamps).]
In his interpretation of the phrase, “behaaloscha {when you kindle},” Rashi explicitly says: “Since flames rise, therefore the verse refers to ‘kindling’ with a word denoting elevation because one must kindle until the flame rises by itself.” This clearly shows that Rashi does not interpret “When you raise/kindle the lamps” as referring to the physical raising and placing of the lamps on the Menorah (as there would be no basis for his interpretation — the verse (according to pshat) speaks of the “flame” — “that the flame rises” — making the subject of the candle holders seemingly irrelevant.)
The question therefore remains: Why is the verse “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work,” mentioned here?
3. TOWARDS THE FACE OF THE MENORAH
We also need to clarify: What does the verse in our parshah add by saying, “When you kindle the lamps, toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light”? This instruction was already stated in parshas Terumah: “You shall make its seven lamps, and he shall kindle its lamps, and it shall cast light toward its face.”
Moreover: Since the lamps were made to face the central lamp, as Rashi explains in parshas Terumah: “And it shall cast light toward its face — make the openings of the six lamps at the top of the branches which extended from its sides turned toward the middle one, so that when you kindle them they shall shine towards “its face”, {i.e.,} their light will turn in the direction of the central stem, which is the {main} body of the Menorah” — how can there be a command that they be kindled in a way that faces the central lamp, when this should happen automatically, since the lamps were initially made to be fashioned in this way, as the verse says in the context of its construction?
Perhaps we can suggest that Rashi addresses this question: On the words, “the seven lamps shall cast their light,” Rashi comments: “Of the six {lamps} on the six branches, the wicks of the three eastern ones must face toward the central one, and likewise the three western ones, the tips of their wicks must face toward the central one.” From the fact that Rashi changes his wording, “the wicks... the tips of the wicks” — in contrast to his commentary in parshas Terumah where he wrote, “the openings of the six lamps” — indicates that there is a special instruction here to Aharon: In addition to the fact that the openings of the six lamps {the vessels containing the oil and wicks} should be turned toward the central one, Aharon must also turn the wicks themselves so they face the central one. This is because doing this effects towards which direction “the seven candles shall cast their light.”
However, according to this explanation, we need to understand the language of the verse in our parshah: “toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light.” Since this verse introduces an additional instruction to Aharon’s kindling procedure, the verse should have expressed this in the language of a command to Aharon — “you shall cause the seven lamps to cast light” — rather than, “shall cast their light,” that the lamps shall cast their light!
4. RASHI AND RAMBAN
The explanation is as follows — by way of introduction:
Throughout the parshiyos dealing with the subject of the Menorah, we find a dispute between Rashi and Ramban:
a) In parshas Emor, where the command appears “They shall take for you pure olive oil, pressed for illumination, to kindle an eternal light, outside the curtain of the testimony in the Tent of Meeting, Aharon shall arrange it,” Rashi writes: “This is the passage of the commandment of the candles, and the passage of, ‘and you shall command’ {parshas Tetzaveh} was said only regarding the order of the Mishkan’s construction, to explain the necessity of the Menorah.”
Ramban, however, disagrees with Rashi in parshas Emor and explains that “the purpose of this passage” (parshas Emor) is regarding the kindling of the Menorah, because, “there (in parshas Tetzaveh) it only said ‘Aharon and his sons shall arrange it,’ and it might have been understood to mean either on the Menorah or without the Menorah if it were broken or lost... But now it explicitly says ‘on the pure Menorah,’ indicating that they should kindle only on the pure Menorah.”
In other words, according to Rashi, parshas Emor is the command of “the passage of the commandment of the lamps,” while according to Ramban, it is a continuation and elaboration of the mitzvah of kindling the lamps (from parshas Tetzaveh) specifying that the kindling must be performed specifically on the Menorah.
b) At the beginning of our parshah, Rashi explains: “Why is the passage of the Menorah juxtaposed to the passage of the princes? Because when Aharon saw the dedication offerings of the princes, {he felt distressed}... The Holy One said to him: ‘By your life, yours is greater than theirs, for you kindle and prepare the lamps.’”
Ramban questions Rashi’s interpretation and explains differently: Just as parshas Emor adds to parshas Tetzaveh (that the kindling must be specifically on the Menorah), similarly in this passage — “and here, when the Torah completed mentioning the setup of the Mishkan, it completed further all the laws of the lamps, commanding that all seven lamps should be lit towards the face of the Menorah for all generations, as the Torah mentioned at the craftsmanship of the Menorah... not without a Menorah and not without all of them illuminating toward its face.” (This should also be applied for all generations, for which reason, “in this passage, the Torah did not mention, ‘in the tent of meeting.’ This teaches us that the same law applies in the Beis Hamikdash.”)
5. RASHI — THE MENORAH ITSELF
Thus, it emerges that the point of dispute between Rashi and Ramban is the following:
According to Rashi, there are three separate passages regarding the Menorah: The command at the beginning of parshas Tetzaveh is part of the order of the Mishkan’s construction (of parshas Terumah); parshas Emor is “the passage of the commandment of the lamps;” and our parshah, “When you kindle the lamps,” is “the passage of the Menorah,” and its laws (not, “the passage... of the lamps,” as in parshas Emor).
In contrast, according to Ramban, parshas Tetzaveh is the passage of the mitzvah of kindling the lamps, and the commands in parshas Emor and our parshah both constitute details and completions of the laws of kindling the lamps (the kindling must be specifically on a Menorah, and the lamps must illuminate toward its face).
Based on the above, it follows that there is also a difference between Rashi and Ramban in how to interpret the verse “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work....”
According to Ramban, since the content of the passage (“When you kindle the lamps toward the face of the Menorah the seven lamps shall cast their light...”) is a continuation of “the laws of the lamps” — the kindling of the Menorah — then the conclusion, the verse “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work...,” is also a detail and completion of the laws of the lamps, necessary for fulfilling the mitzvah of kindling the lamps. Just as the kindling must be specifically on a Menorah (and not, “without a Menorah”) the kindling must be on a Menorah that is “hammered work,” and if not, it invalidates the kindling of the lamps.
However, according to Rashi, who calls this passage “the passage of the Menorah” (as mentioned) it emerges that the main focus in our parshah is (not the kindling of the lamps) but rather the craftsmanship of the Menorah mentioned in the verse “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work....”
But we still need to clarify: The passage apparently speaks (primarily) not about the Menorah itself but about the mitzvah of kindling the lamps, “toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light”?
Thus, it is evident that the matter of “toward the face of the Menorah,” relates (not so much to the fulfillment of the mitzvah of kindling the lamps but rather) to the actual Menorah itself.
6. FACING TOWARDS
The explanation is as follows:
In the verses in parshas Terumah dealing with the construction of the Menorah, it says, “You shall make a Menorah of pure gold, hammered work shall the Menorah be made; its base and its stem, its cups, its knobs, and its flowers shall be from it.” Subsequently, the verse says “And six branches coming out from its sides, three branches of the Menorah from one side and three branches of the Menorah from its second side.”
Thus, although the entire Menorah was “one hammered piece of gold,” there is a distinction between the central stem — “the body of the Menorah” — and the “six branches”: In the body of the Menorah, no separate parts were visible; it was clearly one vessel and unit. However, with the six branches, although they were made from the same “block of gold,” after the Menorah’s construction, it was not visibly apparent how they constituted one piece of gold, one with “the body of the Menorah.”
However, when Aharon fulfilled the command, “When you kindle the lamps, toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light,” whereby all six lamps cast their light toward the face of the Menorah — toward the central lamp — it became apparent not only that this was one Menorah, but how all the lamps were part of (and a subsidiary detail of) the body of the Menorah, the central lamp.
Therefore, although practically the command here relates to Aharon’s act of kindling and Aharon’s action with the wicks (and not an action connected with the Menorah’s construction — the formation of the lamps’ openings), nevertheless, its content and nature relates (also) to the Menorah itself.
This is why the verse does not use the language “you shall cause the seven lamps to cast light,” in the style of a command to Aharon, but rather, “the seven lamps shall cast their light,” because the content and nature of the command “toward the face of the Menorah” is (not only a law and mitzvah in the act of kindling of the “gavra” {person} but rather) a law in the, “cheftza” {object} of the Menorah.
7. AHARON’S WORK
A question arises:
At the beginning of his commentary on the parshah, Rashi concludes that because “his (Aharon’s) mind was then weakened when he saw he was not with them in the dedication, neither he nor his tribe,” the Holy One consoled him saying, “You kindle and prepare the lamps.” Meaning, the primary subject of the parshah is the kindling and preparing of the lamps. How does this align with the above explanation that the parshah’s content is (not {so much} about the act of kindling and preparing the lamps itself, but rather) “the passage of the Menorah,” relating to the body of the Menorah?
The explanation is as follows:
We have discussed at length that Hashem’s statement, “(By your life, yours is greater than theirs) for you kindle and prepare the lamps,” does not refer (only) to Aharon’s kindling of the lamps itself (meaning that this is greater than the princes’ dedication of the altar). Rather, Hashem means that “you kindle and prepare the lamps” constitutes the method of dedicating the Menorah. Specifically, throughout all twelve days when the princes brought their offerings for the dedication of the altar, Aharon was kindling and preparing the lamps, which constituted the dedication of the Menorah (and “yours is greater” applies in several aspects, as explained there).
The primary essence of the dedication is not so much the action of the service, the (offering or) kindling of the “gavra,” but rather what it accomplishes: the completion of the craftsmanship and sanctification of the “cheftza,” the Menorah. This enables the continuation of the service — kindling and preparing the Menorah — in a complete sense.
8. ONENESS THROUGH DIFFERENT TYPES OF AVODAH
The explanation according to the inner dimension of Torah:
The soul is called a lamp, as the verse says, “The lamp of Hashem is the soul of man,” and all Jewish souls collectively are called a Menorah, which has seven lamps, corresponding to seven levels of Divine service.
This contains two aspects: First, Jewish souls exist at their source, where “they are all compatible and have one Father,” standing in integration and unity, to the extent that all Jews are one entity. Second, after each soul is drawn down from its source, each Jew becomes a separate existence, distinct from others, with each possessing unique qualities that correspond to their mission: “I was created to serve my Creator.”
This corresponds to the two aspects in the Menorah: “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work of gold from its base to its flower it is hammered work” — indicates the unity of the Jewish people as they exist at their source — “one hammered piece of pure gold,” they stand in complete unity, without distinction of levels between them.
Afterward, they are divided into seven branches, seven different modes in Divine service.
This is what the verse teaches: “When you kindle the lamps.” How should the Jewish people operate when each “lamp of Hashem... the soul of man” performs their particular service? This must be done in a way of “toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light.” It should be visibly apparent that each individual’s particular avodah does not constitute a matter unto itself, but rather all are connected; each one reveals that the essence and content of their particular service is the general point of “(I was created) to serve my Creator,” which shines equally in every mode of service.
9. TWO WAYS TO EFFECT UNITY
This concept involves two approaches: Whether “This is the craftsmanship of the Menorah: hammered work” is significant as a detail in the kindling of the lamps (according to Ramban’s view); or conversely, that “toward the face of the Menorah the seven lamps shall cast their light,” completes the craftsmanship of the Menorah (according to Rashi’s view).
Viewing Aharon’s effect on the Jewish souls — “When you kindle the lamps” — one can see how it is according to its simple meaning and how it is according to its inner dimension and purpose:
Rashi, who focuses on the pshat of the text, interprets Aharon’s action of “When you kindle/raise the lamps” in its simple sense. He causes each Jewish soul individually to experience an elevation, to be drawn to its source and root, which is Aharon’s level — the Queen’s attendant — who elevates Jewish souls to their source and root. In that space they exist as one hammered entity.
Thus, it emerges that the meaning of the kindling action is elevation to the level of “hammered work.” Therefore, Rashi learns that the main subject in our parshah is “the passage of the Menorah” — the craftsmanship of the Menorah, specifically the aspect of the Menorah being “hammered work.” The kindling of the Menorah in the manner of “toward the face of the Menorah” is part of the “hammered work,” completing the unity achieved through the hammered work in the craftsmanship of the Menorah.
Ramban, however, whose commentary includes not only “pshat,” but also “pleasant things to those who know chein” — secrets of the Torah — aligns his interpretation with the inner purpose of the elevation of the lamps by Aharon: The ultimate purpose of elevating Jewish souls is, after all, to create a home for Hashem in the lower realms, specifically in this lowest world, the public domain.
From this, we can appreciate that the purpose of hammered work — the unity of Israel as they are from their source and root — is to extend this unity to the place where the souls stand in division as seven different lamps, different modes of avodah, that there too the unity from their source should be drawn down, and this is expressed in that “toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast their light.”
Thus, according to Ramban, the main focus here is the kindling, but for the kindling to be proper, it must reveal the unity of “hammered work” that exists in the essence of the soul.
Based on talks delivered Shabbos parshas Behaaloscha 5730 (1970)
{In Kabbalistic terminology, “the public domain” (reshus harabim) refers to our physical world where Hashem’s unity is concealed, creating the illusion that many separate entities exist independently, as opposed to spiritual realms where Hashem’s singular presence is clearly revealed.}
