“The whole world is full of His glory,” and that reason for this praise is that they realize that He is their source of life, and it is only from the expression of Hashem’s words that they live and exist. Therefore, it is fitting for every creature to yearn for Him. The result of this awareness is that one’s soul should get excited and have a flaming feeling of love for Hashem.
Even though Jewish souls are higher than angels, we need to think about the awareness of Hashem that the angels have to get excited about Hashem. Why is this? The answer is that notwithstanding the superiority of souls over angels, we need to reflect on the love and fear of Hashem that the angels have, since these ideas will cause our human intellect to gain insight into Hashem’s greatness, so that it should also get excited about Hashem, in addition to our G-dly soul, which is anyways excited about Hashem on a higher level than the angels.
And this is the deeper meaning of what it says in the Shema prayer, “And I (Hashem) will give grass in your fields for your animals.” Meaning that Hashem will give spiritual awareness to the animal soul, whose spiritual nourishment comes through the angels called “grass,” since these angels are recreated every day, just like grass gets cut down and regrows on a constant basis.
Thought and intellect of the Torah is called “creation,” since they come from the subconscious, like something that comes from something else that is not similar and seemingly not connected. This is likened to the creation of the world as something-from-nothing. (In this case, nothing refers to something else that is totally not comparable, as if it came out of nowhere).
As it says in the verse, (Iyov 28:12) “And wisdom will be found from a level which is not comparable.”
Speech of Torah study is the aspect of formation, like when someone forms clay into a certain shape, he is just revealing the form that existed in potential within the clay, but he is not making anything essentially new. So too, speech is only revealing the intellect that was already there, but was concealed from other people.
Action is the aspect of performing the Mitzvos. Just like regarding a human king, the main recognition of his kingship is when people actually do what he says, and they follow his commands without changing anything, so too, regarding Hashem’s Kingship, like we see in the verse in Tehilim (93:1) that Hashem is called a King, “Hashem is the King, He ‘wears the garment’ of majesty.”
And this is also expressed in the saying of the Sages, (Sifra on Vayikra 20:26) “A person shouldn’t say that he doesn not eat pig just because he personally finds it repulsive. Rather, he should say that theoretically he could eat it, except for the fact that Hashem decreed on him that he is not allowed to eat pig.”
This is the idea of “Accepting the Yoke of the Heavenly Kingdom,” meaning that just like an ox takes a yoke that directs it where to go even though the ox doesn’t understand why it needs to go there, so too, we need to accept upon ourselves to fulfill Hashem’s decrees even if we don’t understand it at all.
This level of serving Hashem with total obedience, (like an ox that accepts the yoke), seems to be a very low level, since it is not connected to understanding and feeling. However, this is only from a superficial glance. In truth, this obedience and dedication to Hashem is connected to the highest level of connecting to Hashem, which refers to the connection to Hashem that transcends logic or understanding. Since “no thought can grasp Hashem at all,” the truest type of connection to Hashem isn’t based on logic and understanding. Rather, this deeper level of connection to Hashem is expressed in the simple obedience of fulfilling Hashem’s decrees even if we don’t understand them.
This idea is expressed in the following quote from Sefer Yetzira: “The end level (of simple obedience) is connected to the highest level (of super-rational connection to Hashem).”
This is the idea of what the Sages instituted in the prayers before Krias Shema, called Yotzer Or and Ahavas Olam: “וְי חֵּדַׁלְבָּבֵּינוַּׁ-and unify our hearts (לְבָבֵינו),” the word for our heart used is לְבָבֵינו, which is the word “לֵב-heart,” spelled with the letter ב twice, to give the meaning of two “hearts,” meaning two levels of our heart, since the these two “hearts” refer to the inner and outer dimensions of the heart.
The “inner dimension” of the heart is the level of the deep desire of the heart, with a true desire and yearning to connect to Hashem, since we are like “a son who is like his father’s leg,” meaning an inseparable part of the father. So too, we are inseparably connected to Hashem, which is why we have such a deep yearning to experience our connection with Him.
And, like we say, that “Hashem is our G-d,” meaning that He is literally “ours,” in the sense that He is truly connected to us, personally.
Because of our deep intrinsic connection to Hashem, there exists this deep love for Hashem, and there is no need for any contemplation to create this love, since it exists inherently and automatically.
However, the “outer dimension” of the heart is the love for Hashem that comes because of the need to remove the concealment of the animal soul, this is expressed in the verse, (Devarim 10:16) “You should remove the covering of your hearts,” this being the concealment of the animal soul’s desires that cover over the Light of Hashem’s Holiness.
Regarding this, it is written, (ibid.) “You should remove the covering of your hearts,” meaning that we need to remove this covering, namely, the animal soul’s desires, which act as a barrier, blocking out our feeling for holiness.
This is accomplished through the contemplation of Hashem’s Greatness in everything described in Pesueki Dezimra and the Blessings on the Shema, where we describe how the angels get excited about Hashem, like we say, “And the [angels called] Ofanim and Holy Chayos, with great excitement, lift themselves up to face the Serafim and praise Hashem by saying, Blessed be the Glory of Hashem from His place.”
Since the animal soul has its spiritual source in the angels, by describing the great excitement of the angels in their praise of Hashem, we are able to arouse the animal soul to also love Hashem.
This is a lower level of love, which comes from the “outer dimension” of the heart, since it is not the essential love that the Divine soul naturally has. Rather, it is a created love that is the result of contemplation to arouse the animal soul (whose love of Hashem is not inherent or natural). Thus, we are able to influence the animal soul to also love Hashem and to stop concealing Hashem’s Light.
However, regarding the Future Time (after Moshiach comes) it is written, (Devarim 30:6) “And Hashem will uncover your heart, and the hearts of your children, so that you may love Hashem with all of your heart and with all of your soul, in order that you may have true life.”
Only when Hashem helps us to uncover our hearts, such as after Moshiach comes, will we be able to truly and consistently experience the deeper level of love for Hashem that is in the essence of the Divine soul, called “the inner dimension” of the heart.
Through this combination of our own efforts in contemplation during prayer and Hashem helping us from above to remove the covering of the animal soul’s desires, we are able to have “וְי חֵּדַׁלְבָּבֵּינוַּׁ-and unify our hearts (לְבָבֵינו),” meaning that we can experience both the outer dimension and the inner dimension of the heart’s love for Hashem.
This process of needing to go through the outer dimension of the heart in order to reach the inner dimension of the heart is the usual order of service throughout the year.
However, regarding the Ten Days of Teshuva, it is written, (Tehillim 130:1, which we say in Shacharis during the Ten Days of Teshuva) “From the depths I call out to you Hashem,” meaning that from the depths of the heart, from the “inner dimension” of the heart, and like we say in Tehillim (27:8) during Shacharis and Mincha of Elul and Tishrei, “[Hashem says:] seek my פָּנָּי-countenance, [and man responds:] ַָּׁךיֶנָּ פ-Your countenance Hashem I seek,” the word פָנָי-countenance is connected to the word פ ְנִימִיו ת-inwardness, implying that the person is seeking the innermost aspect and connection to Hashem.
Since also Above in Divinity there is an “inner” and “outer” aspect, which is how Hashem’s revelation “סו בֵַּׁב-encompasses” all worlds and how His revelation “מְמ ל ֵּאַׁ-permeates” all worlds.
The level of “מְמ ל ֵּא-permeates” is the “outer” aspect, since it reflects the way in which Hashem creates and guides all the worlds directly. So, on that level we only see how “everything is ‘like’ nothing before Him.” But it is only ‘like’ nothing, and not “actual” nothingness, since at this level, the worlds still have some existence, just incomparably lower than the existence of Divinity.
However, through the “awakening from [us Jewish People] below [in this world]” in arousing the innermost aspect of our hearts for Hashem, this arouses the “inner” aspect of Hashem’s revelation, how it is “סו בֵַּׁב-encompasses all worlds.”
Specifically in Elul and Tishrei, and especially in the Ten Days of Teshuva, we have the power to arouse the innermost aspect of our hearts. This arousal then reveals the innermost aspect of Divinity (how Hashem’s revelation “encompasses” all worlds). At that level, the worlds not only are “like” nothing before Hashem, but they are literally nothing, since at that level, all living things can sense that there is nothing separate from Hashem at all.
The verses of chapter 27 from Tehillim, recited in Elul and Tishrei, continue (in verse 9): “Do not cast away your servant in anger,” meaning that there is a level down here [in this world] referred to as being “servants” to Hashem, like it says, (Vayikra 25:55) “For the Children of Yisrael are servants to Me [Hashem].”
And there is another level similar to what is referred to in the verse, (Yeshaya 41:8) “Avraham [the forefather of the Jewish People] loved Me [Hashem].” This level of the love for Hashem of Avraham Avinu is higher than the level of being just a “servant” of Hashem. This level is like the son of the king who connects to his father, the king, also out of love, in addition to the awe that all the regular citizens have for the king.
This is what King David meant in Tehillim, (ibid.) “I should not be only on the lower level of a plain servant who only has awe for the king, rather, I should be on the higher level of the servant” who also has love for this king (like the son of the king).
Regarding this level (of being Hashem’s servant with love also), we find the truly righteous are called “servants,” like “Moshe, my servant,” (Yehoshua 1:2) and “David my servant” (Shmuel II 3:18), and they certainly also had love for Hashem.
And this is the implication of the verse, “Do not cast away ב ְא ף-with anger, your servant.” The term “ב ְאַף,” which can mean “with anger,” can also mean, “with ‘also,’” as in the verse, “א ַׁף-also I [Hashem] have עֲש ִיתִיַׁו-made it,” meaning the level of service of Hashem involving only dry action, without any knowledge or feeling, like a servant who serves his master and fulfills his will even though he doesn’t understand the reason behind each thing he does.
We find that the verse connects the word “אַ ף,” which can mean either ‘anger’ or ‘also,’ with the word “עֲש ִיתִיו-I have made it/done it,” which implies action. The connection between these two words is that there is a level of service of Hashem involving only action, without love and an inner feeling. This level is connected to ‘anger,’ since the master is upset that the servant has no knowledge or feeling behind what he is doing. Likewise, it is connected to ‘also,’ since this type of service (of only action) is like something added on to the real, inner nature of the person, it is ‘also’ something he does, even though it is not who identifies himself as. This is what King David is requesting from Hashem: “Do not cast me down to the lower level of service that involves dry action, without love and feeling.”
Through uniting both levels of the heart, the inner and outer aspects of the heart, in Krias Shema, there will then be the revelation of Hashem in the Torah that one studies after prayer, which is referred to in the verse, (Yeshaya 43:7) “Whatever is called by My Name, [i.e. the Torah which is called ‘Hashem’s Names’], for My honor [i.e. for Hashem’s revelation] I have created it, formed it, and made it.”
Therefore, the two aspects of the Written and Oral Torah are called ‘two witnesses,” as it says, “[Moshe says,] I call upon you to testify [as witnesses],” and he was speaking to the Torah, as it says, “Listen ‘Heavens’- [meaning the Written Torah]- and I will speak, and the ‘Earth’- [meaning the Oral Torah]- to the words of my mouth, let my teachings [of Torah] flow like rain and my words should drip like dew, etc.”
The fact that Moshe starts off by talking to the “Heavens and Earth” and immediately continues discussing his teaching of Torah, shows us that even the “Heavens and Earth” mentioned above were also referring to two levels of Torah.
This is because there are two levels of the Torah:
Study That Brings to Action
One level [i.e., the Oral Torah] is “study that brings to action,” which is when someone learns in order to know the halacha of what to actually do if he should come to a certain situation involving those halachos. This type of learning requires that he not only understand the information, but he must know it well enough that it should be engraved in his mind and heart, to know right away what to do in that situation according to halacha.
Regarding this level, it is written, “Let my teachings flow like rain,” comparing this level of Torah study to ‘rain.’
We find regarding rain that it is written, (Yeshaya 55:10-11) “Just like the rain... comes down from heaven and fulfills My [Hashem’s] desire for its descent... and does not return to heaven until it saturates the ground and gives it the power to produce and grow [vegetation]...”
This shows that rain gives the ground the ability to actually produce vegetation, which a person can actually eat and derive energy from, and from that energy one can pray and say, “And you shall love Hashem with all of your heart etc.”
So too, this level of [the laws of the Oral] Torah is called “strength,” meaning that it gives the person the power to pray and say [and experience in his heart] “And you shall love Hashem.”
Just like rain saturates the earth and gives it the power to produce nourishing vegetation, so too, when a person understands and fully absorbs the knowledge of the Torah laws from the Oral Torah, to the extent that he knows how to fulfill the halacha right away, in any situation, this ‘Torah rain’ gives him the power to produce a love for Hashem through his contemplation in prayer, just like rain enables the ground to produce vegetation.
Now, the Alter Rebbe continues to explain that this works both ways: Not only does this ‘Torah rain’ empower him to love Hashem in prayer, but the love of Hashem during prayer empowers him to full internalize and absorb the message and ideas of his Torah learning, similar to how rain is absorbed into the ground.
However, for his learning to become like energizing ‘rain’ for him, he first needs to experience the totally selfless dedication to Hashem described in the contemplation of Krias Shema, as explained above.
This is similar to how rain comes with thunder [and lightning] and clouds.
