This is also the meaning of the verse, (Devarim 4:1) “And now Yisroel, listen to the statutes and judgements that I command you to fulfill...”
Meaning that specifically now, in this time of golus, when bad is mixed together with good, the Divine soul is called “יִּש ְרָּ אֵַּׁל-Yisroel,” meaning that it needs to rule over and conquer the animal soul and transform it from bad to good.
However, regarding the future time after Moshiach comes, it says, (Zecharya 13:2) “And the spirit of impurity I (Hashem) shall remove from the earth,” and there will be no more unholiness at all, and there will be no more need for this battle. At that time, we won’t be called “יִּש ְרָּ אֵַּׁל-Yisroel,” implying ruling and conquering the animal soul. Rather, we will be called, “The people connected to Hashem.”
(ד) Chapter 4
Now, to understand the purpose of the descent of these two souls into this world, since even the life-giving animal soul was nullified in the Light of Hashem in its spiritual source before it descended through many levels of concealments and constrictions of Divine revelation.
Why did it descend so far that it would require the Divine soul to be sent down after it to refine it and elevate it? If both the Divine soul and the animal soul were aware of, and connected to Hashem in their respective spiritual sources, why did Hashem have to send the animal soul down and make it have physical desires, and then send down the Divine soul to elevate it again? The animal soul could have just remained in its source on High, where it was connected to Hashem.
To answer this, we first need to understand the nature of the battle between the two souls and its appointed time, as is explained in the Zohar, “The time for battle is at the time of prayer.”
Another quote from the Zohar: “Whoever kills the ‘snake’ is given the daughter of the King, and this is the idea of prayer.”
The explanation behind this: In Pesukei Dezimra, a person separates the bad of his animal soul from the good of his animal soul, as it is written, (Tehillim 149:6) “The praises of Hashem are in their throats (mouths) and a double-edged sword is in their hands.”
This implies that through praising Hashem, they fight their animal soul as though with a double-edged sword. The idea of a double-edged sword is that these praises cut down the bad of the animal soul in two ways: 1-They elevate the good of the animal soul above to connect to Hashem, and 2-They remove the bad of the animal soul to remain below and away from the person.
This happens when a person contemplates the greatness of Hashem before and during reciting Pesukei Dezimra:
Here, the Alter Rebbe mentions four different types of contemplation:
- 1-How He gives life to everything: Hashem gives life to every creature (including us), and just like we feel and recognize our own life (even though we cannot see it physically), we can recognize that there is a Life-force from Hashem that is present in us and in everything, without which nothing could move or function, since Hashem alone is the only source of all life.
- 2-How He creates everything: Hashem creates everything ex-nihilo (something-from-nothing). Even human intellect understands that something cannot create itself and that it could not have existed forever. Everything that is limited and definable must have a beginning and a source. Only Hashem, Who is Infinite and Eternal, could have created everything else. Everything that we see proves the necessity of Hashem, since whatever we observe can only exist because Hashem Himself is creating it each moment.
- 3-How everything is ‘nullified’ to Him: Here, the meaning of ‘nullified’ is that they have no independent existence. An analogy: The light of the sun is just an expression of the sun, and it has no existence or identity other than the sun. This can also be compared to a person’s thoughts and words. They are just an expression of the person, but have no independent existence apart from the person. So too, all of the creations are really just Hashem’s ‘words’ and ‘thoughts’ and ‘light,’ and our entire existence is only from Him. Were He to stop ‘thinking’ or ‘saying’ or ‘illuminating’ us, we would simply vanish, as if we never existed in the first place.
- 4-How everything before Him is considered like a non-entity: This means that we are an incomparably lower level of existence than His Existence. In comparison to His type of existence, it is as though we don’t exist at all. This can be compared to a person’s thoughts and words compared to his true essence and being: His thoughts and words have a very fleeting and transient existence, compared to his true essence. Each thought exists for only a moment and then vanishes. Similarly, our level of existence is as though it is like a non-reality compared to Hashem’s Eternal and Infinitely Real Existence.
As it is written, (Divrei Hayamim I, 29:11) “To You, Hashem, is the Greatness, the Might, the Splendor, the Victory, and the Majesty, for all on heaven and earth is Yours; to You, Hashem, is the Kingship, and You are exalted, supreme over all rulers.”
Meaning that all of the attributes (Greatness, Might etc.) Above (in Atzilus) are nullified to Him, (they are “Yours”), as it is written in the Tikunei Zohar, “Hashem is completely beyond all of the Attributes,” and He is exalted above and beyond them by infinite, uncountable levels.
The angels say, (Yeshaya 6:3) “Holy, holy, holy, is Hashem of Hosts, the whole world is full of His glory.” The word ‘קָּדוֹש ַׁ-Holy,’ also means ‘separate’ and ‘removed,’ meaning that Hashem is above and beyond the categories of just “Permeating all worlds” or “Encompassing all worlds.” He is actually totally beyond any relationship with worlds, at all. By saying ‘קָדוֹש -Holy’ three times, the angels are really saying that Hashem is three times removed and beyond our world. He is beyond the physical world, beyond the spiritual worlds, and beyond even the “Encompassing” worlds. He is totally beyond the whole concept or category of anything that has to do with worlds.
Like our Sages say, (Megilla 31a) “In the place where (you think you) find His greatness, there you (really just) find His humility.” Even though “His greatness (that we perceive in the creation) cannot be understood,” (Tehillim 145:3), nonetheless, He is way beyond the “greatness” that we are able to perceive, so that His “greatness” is considered like “humility” and “lowering Himself.”
When a truly great sage plays checkers with children and shows them how well he knows the game, much better than they possibly could, this is just his humility that he is lowering himself to their level to even be involved with them. In truth, the fact that he is even talking about checkers is just his humility. He would rather focus on loftier matters. So too, the “greatness” of Hashem that can be perceived within creation (despite the fact that it is completely impossible for human understanding to grasp even the slightest details of how Hashem created the world), is really just Hashem’s humility, since He must lower Himself have any involvement with the world.
When a person will reflect deeply into understanding and contemplating this and similar concepts, then automatically “all the workers of evil will disperse,” (Tehillim 92:10), meaning that the bad in his animal soul will dissipate. Since the bad and the “opposite side from holiness” has no life of its own at all, it only receives its life from the “outermost aspect” of holiness, through the possibility of a Jew transgressing against one of the 365 Negative Mitzvos (that command us what not to do).
The “outermost aspect” of holiness in this context: Hashem wants us to have free choice to choose to serve Him. Therefore, He “allows” unholiness to exist so that we can choose not to follow unholiness. Unholiness does not exist for itself, but only to enhance the side of holiness, so that holiness can overcome and negate unholiness. Therefore, the life-force of unholiness is described as being from the “outward aspect,” since it is only an “external” consideration that exists for some other purpose. It does not have any essential value or merit.
They are, therefore, nullified to a revelation of and appreciation of holiness, just as physical darkness is dispelled before physical light. Since unholiness receives its life from the possibility of choosing against holiness by transgressing against the Mitzvos, when a Jew comes to love Hashem and dedicates himself to keep the Mitzvos and not commit any sins, this removes life from the unholiness of his own animal soul and from the unholiness of the world in general.
(ה) Chapter 5
However, it is not enough to merely “separate” the bad. Rather, it must be completely nullified, as it is written regarding the wicked nations of Canaan, (Devarim 20:17) “You shall completely destroy them.” This is done by transforming the darkness of the animal soul into light. The process of contemplation on Hashem’s greatness during Pesukei Dezimra that is described above is effective only in “separating” the bad of the animal soul, but not in eradicating it. This is because when one realizes that Hashem is much greater than himself, it only subdues his ego, but it does not nullify his ego. He still feels that he also has his own existence.
However, during Shema, a Jew can arrive at a true recognition and feeling that Hashem is not just our Creator, Who is much greater than us. Rather, he is the only existence whatsoever. This recognition leaves no room for ego at all. Thus, any possibility of going against Hashem is completely removed.
This total removal of the bad of the animal soul is through Krias Shema, as it is written, (Bamidbar 25:7) “And Pinchas the son of Elazar, the son of Aharon, saw (that Zimri was sinning with a Midianite woman) and he got up from amidst the congregation and he took the רוֹמַ ח-spear in his hand (to kill them, thereby stopping the plague against the Jewish People).”
This “רוֹמַ ח-spear” is a reference to the “six words describing Hashem’s Oneness” which are the six words of the verse “ש ְמ עַׁיִּש ְרָּ אֵּלַׁ ה' אֱלֹהֵּינו ה' אֶחָד -Hear Yisrael, Hashem who is our G-d, Hashem is One.” These six words, together with the general count of the 248 words of Krias Shema (the number 248 in Hebrew is ר=200 מ=40 ח= 8) all together make up the word “רוֹמ ַׁחַׁ-spear,” (which has the letters of רמח and ו, since the verse of Shema itself has 6 words, and 6 in Hebrew is ו ).
Meaning that just like when using a spear in battle, one completely removes the life of the enemy person (like in the verse quoted where Pinchas killed Zimri with a spear), so too, through Krias Shema one completely nullifies and destroys the bad of his animal soul.
To explain this, we need to first explain the idea of the verse, “ש ְמ עַַׁׁ יִּש ְרָּ אֵּלַׁ ַׁה'ַַׁׁהַׁ וניֵּהֹלֱא'ַַַׁׁׁאֶחָּד-Hear Yisrael, Hashem who is our G-d, Hashem is One.”
The meaning is: After the worlds were created it is possible to say that Hashem is “אֶחַָּׁד-One,” since the word “אֶחַָּׁד” means that Hashem is the אַׁ-One Master over the ח-8 aspects of the 7 heavens and the 1 earth, and דַׁ-the four directions of the world, north, south, east, west.
So too above, in the spiritual realms, after Hashem’s Attributes were revealed from Him, it is possible to say that Hashem is “אֶחַָּׁד-One” over them; He is א-One master over the ח-8 aspects of the 7 Attributes of “1-Greatness, 2-Might, 3-Splendor, 4-Victory, 5-Majesty, 6-for all on heaven and earth is Yours, 7-to You Hashem is the Kingship, and (the 8th aspect is that) You are exalted, supreme over all rulers,” and the ד- four aspects of the angels described as “animals” that have “four faces” described in the verse, (Yechezkal 1:10) “The face of a 1-lion on the right side of all four angels; and the face of an 2-ox on the left side of all four angels; and the face of an 3-eagle for all four angels; and the main face they had was 4-the face of a man etc.”
We see from all of the above that one level of Hashem’s Oneness-אחד is reflected in how He is the One Master-א of the 8 aspects-ח and 4 directions-ד of the physical world. On higher level, He is the One Master-א over the 8 spiritual levels of His Attributes in Atzilus-ח and the four aspects (‘faces’) of the angels-ד .
And “He unites all of them” (Zohar II 114b), since of all creation are nullified to Him, so through all of creation being nullified to the One Creator, also all of creation becomes unified under Him.
However, compared to Hashem’s true Essence, the way He is before the worlds were created, we cannot in any way refer to Hashem as “אֶחַָּׁד-the One Master of all worlds,” since He is completely beyond the entire category of ‘worlds.’
