The power for redemption was granted at the moment of Creation, as our Sages say about the verse, “...and the spirit of G-d was hovering over the face of the water”—“this is the spirit of the King Moshiach.” However, this power did not materialize within creation; instead, the mission was given to man, that he should prepare the world to receive the light of redemption.
This raises a question: why did G-d not create the world as a world of redemption from the outset?
The explanation is that G-d desires precisely what seems to be an inner contradiction: on the one hand, a material and physical world that senses itself as an independent existence, and at the same time, within it shines the highest Divine light. This is the meaning of the saying, “The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to have a dwelling place in the lowest realms”—that it should be a “lowly world,” yet at the same time, a “dwelling” for G-d.
Therefore, this mission was given to man, within whom too there exist contradictions that seemingly cannot be reconciled. In this lies man’s power and uniqueness.
Body and Soul
All other creatures were created in one instant by G-d’s utterance. When G-d said, “Let the waters swarm a swarming of living creatures,” immediately all water creatures were brought into being, body and soul together. The same occurred with the creation of birds and land animals.
But in the creation of man, we see a clear distinction between body and soul. First, the body was formed: “And the Lord G-d formed man of dust from the ground”—a lifeless form; only afterwards did He breathe into him a soul.
Here two opposite extremes stand out: man’s body was created from the lowest element of creation—lifeless dust; yet his soul came through a special act of G-d: “...and He breathed into his nostrils the soul of life...” On this the Zohar says: “One who blows, blows from within himself”—meaning, the soul comes from the innermost essence of G-d, so to speak.
The Union of Opposites
This disparity between body and soul reflects the two opposite poles of man’s personality. On the one hand, through his body, he has inclinations lower than the lowest of creation. On the other hand, he possesses an exalted spiritual soul, which in its essence transcends all of creation and its limits, enabling man to rise to wondrous heights of spirituality and goodness.
The joining of body and soul in man is a wonder that only G-d can bring about. But within this union, man has been given the power to enable the soul to rule over the body, and to direct the behavior of the lowly body according to the path of the soul. The purpose of human life is that man—in his conduct and way of life—should unite “above” and “below,” infusing holiness into the lowest reality.
Thus, the lowliness of man’s body is one of his greatest virtues: it enables him to elevate even the inanimate realm to holiness. When a Jew eats for the sake of Heaven and uses his body for the service of G-d, he uplifts not only himself but the entire world, from its lowest elements to its highest levels. In this way, he prepares the entire world for the light of redemption.
And when one is not intimidated by the world’s darkness but instead proclaims, “let there be light,” and illuminates the world with the light of the inner dimension of Torah—then “there was light,” meaning that in actuality the light of the inner dimension of Torah shines throughout the entire world.
Through this, we merit the revelation of... the actual coming of Moshiach, for when “your wellsprings spread outward,” then “the Master will come—the King Moshiach.” This is the ultimate purpose of creation: that G-d should have a dwelling place in the lower realms.
(the Rebbe, Shabbat Bereshit, 5713—1952)
