Chapter 1
The first verse in the Parsha introduces the laws of purifying the “Metzora”:
“This will be the teaching for the Metzora on the day of his purification etc.” (Lev. 14:2)
At the beginning of the Parsha, it states: ‘Hashem said to Moshe, “This will be the teaching for the Metzora on the day of his purification: He should be brought to the Kohen, and the Kohen should go out of the camp and the Kohen should see, and if the Tzaraas was healed from the Metzora (then this will be the process of how to purify him).”’ (Vayikra 14:1-3)
The maamar continues to explain several of the details that are mentioned in the first few verses. The maamar will also explain the spiritual source of Tzaraas and the purification process of the Metzora, according to Chassidus.
The Spiritual Source of Tzaraas
It is explained in Eitz Chayim, the written teachings of the Arizal, that the cause of Tzaraas is due to the departure of “the Light of Chochma,” as stated in the Talmud, “a Metzora is considered as a dead person,” and it is written (Iyov 4:21) “they will die because they lack Chochma.” Thus, we see that the spiritual death that is expressed in Tzaraas comes from a lack of Chochma.
The Alter Rebbe will explain the idea of Tzaraas and its purification based on the teachings of the Arizal, which his student, R’ Chaim Vital, recorded in the work, Eitz Chayim. There, it is explained that the cause of Tzaraas is “the departure of the light of Chochma.” The maamar will proceed to explain the idea of Chochma, which is also referred to as the “Intellect of the Father.” Based on this explanation, we will come to understand the concept of the “light of Chochma” and why its departure causes Tzaraas.
Understanding Chochma and Bina
To understand this even slightly, we first have to understand the idea of the two parts of intellect referred to as: “The Intellect of the Mother” and “The Intellect of the Father.”
The Alter Rebbe will first explain the idea of “the Intellect of the Mother,” which is Bina, and afterward, will explain “the Intellect of the Father,” which is Chochma:
The idea of “The Intellect of the Mother” can be understood through the analogy that we derive from what is written: (Tehilim 113:9) “The ‘Mother’ of children is joyous,”
The ‘Mother’ is the idea that through the contemplation of Hashem’s greatness is born the love and joy and fiery flames of love for Hashem, which is the aspect of “running” [i.e. yearning] to leave the limitations of physical existence and to become included in the Essence of Hashem.
There are two parts to intellect discussed here, one called Chochma and one called Bina. Chochma is also called the “Intellect of the Father” and Bina is also known as the “Intellect of the Mother”.
The reason for which Chochma is called “Intellect of the Father” is as follows: The way the child comes from the father is through a single drop that contains the entirety of the child, which is then given to the mother to develop over the course of nine months, eventually becoming an actual person. So too, with regard to ideas, which begin in the part of intellect known as Chochma, where there is a flash of insight, which is then developed in the second aspect of intellect - Bina - into a fully constructed idea, which can be understood with all of its details. (Chochma is also related to imagination, abstraction, seeing the bigger picture, and is related to the right side of the brain and Bina is also related to logic, details, practicality, and is related to the left side of the brain).
In the service of Hashem, when a person comes to a deep understanding of Hashem’s greatness and he reflects on this, he can come to have a real and powerful feeling – stemming from a fiery love of Hashem - that he wants to leave the restrictions of the physical world and enter the reality of Hashem’s true existence. This is the idea that the “Intellect of the Mother” is called “the joyous mother of children,” since this deep understanding and contemplation is the “mother” of the feeling of love for Hashem and joy in the awareness of His presence and in the ability to connect to Him. (Thus, not only is the “mother” - the intellect - joyous in its awareness of Hashem’s truth, it is the “mother” of joy, since true joy can only come through this deep awareness).
However, because this is a very deep, personal awareness and feeling, it causes a person, who naturally desires what is best for himself, personally, to want to leave the limitations of the world and enter the reality of Hashem’s true existence. However, there is also a higher type of recognition and awareness of Hashem, where the person is not only focused on what is best for himself, personally, but is mainly aware of Hashem’s truth and of the fact that he must fulfill the Will of Hashem, as the maamar will continue to explain.
The Intellect of the Father
However, there is another aspect that is higher than the love of Hashem in a manner of flames of fire, which is the “Intellect of the Father.” The reason it is higher is that Hashem’s Infinite Light is manifest in “The Supernal Wisdom,” i.e., the “Intellect of the Father,” and through this revelation of Hashem’s Infinite Light into the Supernal Wisdom comes forth the aspect of self-nullification, to the extent that one does not even have the power to lift himself up spiritually, in a yearning to be included in the truth of Hashem, since this yearning means that he is “someone with an ego who loves Hashem,” as opposed to having a totally selfless devotion to Hashem.
The aspect of the Intellect of the Father, also called Chochma in the person refers to two stages of Intellect which are connected:
- The first stage is the initial flash of insight that a person has (or a basic idea that he just learned), which contains within itself all of the details that he will later understand in Bina.
- The second stage is that, after he understands all of the ideas and details through Bina, he comes to see the bigger picture and gains an acute awareness of the essence of the matter, in a higher and deeper manner than he could have by simply looking at each the details separately.
Since both of these stages are “the bigger picture” and work in abstraction, they are both called Chochma “the Intellect of the Father,” in contrast to the detailed understanding and concretization of Bina, the Intellect of the Mother.
Three Stages in Conscious Awareness
In the service of Hashem this means that there are three stages in conscious awareness:
- The initial knowledge of Hashem’s existence and how He creates the world etc. before getting into the details.
- The detailed knowledge of Hashem’s existence etc. and the contemplation thereof.
- After contemplating all of the details of this concept, he comes to “see” and directly relate to the essence of this truth; namely, that Hashem is the only thing that is true and real, and the only desire of any value is to fulfill Hashem’s will, since he realizes that he is nothing more than a part of His plan and His true existence.
When a person reaches this third stage, he is sensitive enough to receive from a deeper part of his soul, where Hashem’s Infinite Light is expressed more fully. This is described in Tanya (Chapter 18 and onward), where it explains that in the subconscious part of the G-dly soul, which is the source of his G-dly soul’s intellect, a Jewish person “sees” the truth, that there is nothing besides Hashem. This is why every Jew has the power for self-sacrifice, since in this deeper part of the soul, called Chochma, is revealed the Ultimate Truth, that there is nothing besides Hashem, which is an expression of Hashem’s Infinite Light.
However, this is hidden within the soul and is only revealed in either one of two ways: The first is that a person comes to a test of faith (for example, a person is threatened to deny Hashem, G-d forbid, or give up their life) and they discover that they have this innate awareness and connection to Hashem’s true unity. The second way is by reflecting on Hashem’s unity and how he is part of Hashem’s unity, until he reveals that this truth was hidden in his soul the entire time. When a person reveals this connection through contemplation and nullifies him/herself to the truth of Hashem that is within him/herself, then he won’t even have enough ego left to have a yearning to leave the world in order to enjoy G-dliness. He will completely recognize that Hashem is the only thing that exists, thus, the only thing to possibly desire is that Hashem’s will be fulfilled (and not even that he himself connect to Hashem).
From this we can see that there are actually three aspects of Chochma: 1- The hidden subconscious, which is the source of revealed intellect; 2- The flash of insight that comes into revealed intellect before being broken down into details; 3- The “coming to see the bigger picture” after contemplating all the details. This third level is where he “sees” the essence of the idea.
An Analogy: Standing Before the King
An analogy for this can be drawn from a person coming to see a king: Before he sees the king, he prepares himself by contemplating the greatness of the king. With this, he comes to have a yearning to see the king. However, when he actually comes to see the king, he is so awestruck that he loses his sense of self and can only stand silently, awaiting the king’s orders.
So too, when one is contemplating the greatness of Hashem, he has a great yearning to leave the physical world and be included in the truth of Hashem. However, when, through all of his meditation, he comes to reveal the true connection that he has to Hashem Himself and “sees” the truth face to face, so to speak, then he loses his ego and knows that the only thing that matters is to fulfills Hashem’s will in this world.
Bowing in Shemona Esrai
This is also the idea of the few occasions that we bow in Shemona Esrai, as explained in many places.
During Shemona Esrai it is like one is actually standing before the King. Unlike the previous parts of the prayer service, where one is contemplating the greatness of Hashem as a “preparation” to “meet with Him,” in Shemona Esrai it is like he is standing directly before the King. The idea of bowing is that one is completely nullified to Hashem. The reason for bowing to a king is that one is so nullified that he doesn’t have the power to stand up with confidence, but is bowed over or falls to the ground. So too, the bowing in Shemona Esrai shows the total nullification that occurs when standing directly before Hashem.
This idea of standing before the King, and especially the idea of bowing in total self-nullification during Shemona Esrai, is an expression of “the Intellect of the Father.” As explained above, this is the part of the intellect of the soul where it “sees” the truth of Hashem and is totally nullified and included in that truth, to the point that the person does not feel himself.
If Your Heart Runs, Return to One
And this is the meaning of what is stated in the Sefer Yetzira, “If your heart runs, return to One,” meaning that through the self-nullification of “the Intellect of the Father,” there is drawn forth the aspect of “return,” which means to draw down G-dliness below into the physical world.
When the person loses their sense of ego and the natural mode of self-interest, doing only what he thinks is good for him, he becomes thoroughly permeated with the awareness that Hashem is the only thing that exists and that the only thing worth desiring is that Hashem’s will should be fulfilled. This recognition causes the person to return to the world, the place where he can actually fulfill Hashem’s desire by keeping the Torah and Mitzvos.
When a person only feels himself, then his main concern (even spiritually) is to enjoy the experience of leaving the physical world and being completely submerged in the awareness of Hashem’s truth. But, when a person realizes and “sees” that spirituality is about Hashem’s desire and not at all about himself, he will want to fulfill Hashem’s plan and desire to have a dwelling place in the physical world through the Torah and Mitzvos.
This is the idea that “if your heart runs” with a yearning to leave the limitations of the physical world and experience the spiritual bliss of being absorbed in the awareness of the truth of Hashem, then “return to One,” by returning to the physical world to reveal the truth of the Oneness of Hashem, which this is the true desire and plan of Hashem.
This recognition comes specifically through “the Intellect of the Father.”
The Role of Torah as a Vessel
And for this process of drawing down G-dliness, there need to be numerous vessels to be able to receive this revelation, and these are the letters of the Written Torah and the Oral Torah.
Just like a fire cannot be grasped and remain in the physical world without a wick and fuel, so too, Hashem’s revelation cannot have a place to be revealed without something to grasp onto and give it expression in the physical world.
Fire is naturally attracted to its source above the earth, and only when something tangible is burning, does the fire have a chance to be expressed in the physical world. So too, Hashem’s revelation, which is coming from an infinitely higher level of existence than the physical world, needs something physical that relates to it and expresses it here below.
The “wick and fuel” for the “fire” of Hashem’s revelation are the letters of the Torah, since they are showing and revealing Hashem’s infinite Will and Wisdom, which is essentially unchanged from the way it is in its supernal source.
The Alter Rebbe now mentions the letters of the Written and the Oral Torah, and as the maamar continues, he will explain the significance of both:
Leah and Rachel: Thought and Speech
And this is what is written in the Eitz Chayim as follows:
“And remember this general principle, that these two divine emanations, which are referred to here as Leah and Rachel, are only able to be properly formed in their places [Bina and Malchus of Atzilus] after the revelation of “the Intellect of the Father” (here a reference to Chochma of Atzilus) in the divine emanation of Ze’eir Anpin [the six emotional attributes].”
The Eitz Chayim is describing the two modes of expression of the “intellect and emotions” of Atzilus – Chochma and Bina - the “intellect of Atzilus,” and Ze’eir Anpin - the “emotions of Atzilus.” One mode of expression is called “Rachel,” and the other one is referred to as “Leah.” These two aspects are only complete when the Ze’eir Anpin - the six “emotional attributes” in Atzilus - is fully revealed in them, and specifically, when Ze’eir Anpin is permeated with the revelation of “the Intellect of the Father,” i.e., Chochma of Atzilus.
To illustrate, by way of analogy: Only when a person’s emotions (Ze’eir Anpin) are permeated with a sense of purpose and dedication, which comes from his G-dly soul’s Chochma (“the Intellect of the Father”), can he be complete in his thought, speech and action (”Leah” and “Rachel”). If a person does not have a deep maturity and a sense of purpose that comes from his Chochma, then he won’t be driven to think, say and do the things through which he will fulfill his purpose. Even if a person has Bina and can logically understand the need to do the right thing, if he lacks the submission to the truth and responsibility and maturity that come from Chochma, he won’t drive himself to think, say and do the right things all the time.
The maamar will proceed to explain these ideas further, starting with the idea of “Leah” and “Rachel:”
Since “Leah” is the aspect of the letters of thought and the aspect of the Written Torah, because “the 600,000 letters of the Torah” refer to letters of thought as opposed to written letters.
The idea of “Rachel” and “Leah” is that as the two wives of Yaakov - who represented and embodied Ze’eir Anpin, the “six emotions” of Atzilus – they correspond to (and represent and embody) two aspects that reveal a person’s emotions: 1- Thought; and 2- Speech and action. Thought is a garment of the soul that reveals a person’s emotions (and intellect) to oneself. Speech and action reveal a person’s thoughts, feelings, and intellect to something or someone outside of oneself. Leah corresponds to thought, and Rachel to speech and action, as the maamar will continue to explain.
“Leah” is the older sister "הגדולה", who corresponds to the garment of thought, which is an expression of Bina (the “greater” letter "ה"), and is connected to the higher level of the Torah, the way it exists in Bina, which is the Written Torah (the source of the Oral Torah). There are 600,000 letters of the Written Torah (written in thought), which is twice as many as the approximate 300,000 letters written on the physical parchment of the Torah scroll.
And “Rachel” is the aspect of the letters of speech, the Oral Torah.
In the Torah there are letters that are not written, but are present in thought, such as the vowels and cantillation marks, which are not written but are present in the mind, and these are the source of the written letters.
