THE FULL REVELATION OF THE SHECHINAH IS ONLY THROUGH SELF-NULLIFICATION
Rashi in this week’s parshah states that Aharon saw that all the korbonos had been brought and everything had been done, and yet the Shechinah still had not descended. This was painful and he said: “I know that Hashem is angry with me, and that it is because of me that the Shechinah has not descended.” He said to Moshe: “Moshe, my brother. Should this happen to me, that I should enter and be shamed?” Immediately, Moshe entered with him and they entreated Hashem for mercy, and then the Shechinah descended.
We see from this that in spite of all the strenuous work that had been performed in the Mishkan, the Shechinah still would not come. This was not a coincidence. Rather, it is the very design of Creation, that the handiwork of man is not able to create the absolute reality of a Mishkan in its completion. The Shechinah did not descend – the Mishkan could only be assembled and disassembled. It was not permanent yet.
Aharon was afraid to enter because he knew that he would be ashamed. When a person is ashamed, his face turns to white. The Gemara explains says that if one shames someone else, it is a branch of murder. The shame causes the face to become white as the red color of the face drains, which is like removing a person’s blood and killing him.
The feeling of shame is therefore an example of bittul (self-nullification). When Aharon felt ashamed, he became essentially nullified to Hashem.
Only after all the actions for the Mishkan had been done, did the Shechinah descend! The Shechinah does not come as a result of bringing korbonos, from any actions. Rather, the Shechinah will fully descend only when all of the actions have ceased. Thus, there were two aspects in establishing the Mishkan. There was first a stage where Moshe was actively involved, and then there was a point where Moshe ceased from any actions. The stage of action eventually ceased, whereas the stage of non-action remained and did not cease.
For seven days, Moshe assembled and disassembled the Mishkan. Simply speaking, the assembling of the Mishkan was a more prominent level than disassembling it. During the seven days in which the Mishkan was assembled and disassembled, we can look at it simply that it was first assembled and eventually disassembled.
But the deeper understanding is that the disassembling of the Mishkan was more prominent! The deeper way to understand this is that it was assembled so that it could be disassembled, so that the actions of Moshe could be negated. [The cessation of action was revealed, which is the purpose. The purpose was self-nullification].
THE DEPTH OF MOSHE’S REFUSAL – SELF-NULLIFICATION
This was the depth behind Moshe’s refusal for seven days by the episode of the Burning Bush. When Hashem requested “Go and take them out”, and Moshe refused, this was not simply an act of refusal. Rather, it was the revelation of the place in Moshe’s soul which negates action.
The seven days of Moshe’s refusal to lead the Jewish people out of Egypt was essentially a revelation of how the redemption from Egypt was through “I, and not through an angel. I, and not through a seraph. I, and not through a messenger. Only through HaKadosh Baruch Hu, in His glory and Himself!”
This fact, that the redemption from Egypt would not come about through any means other than through Hashem Himself, is represented by the power of Moshe’s refusal to lead.
In an inner sense, the seven days of Moshe’s refusal was a removal of the seven active forces of the soul, also known as the “seven shepherds”, and the revelation that there is only one Performer – Hashem, for there is no one else besides Him.
Thus, Moshe said that “Since I refused [Hashem’s command] for seven days by the Burning Bush, I did not merit to serve [as Kohen Gadol] except for seven days.”
The depth behind this, as it has been explained here, is that Moshe’s refusal for seven days meant that he revealed the negation of action. For seven days, he removed his power of action, and therefore his actions of serving in the Mishkan would eventually cease.
This represents the light of the future, the era of Moshiach, symbolized by the “eighth day” of the Mishkan.
The day that Moshe ceased from his service in the Mishkan was the day that he stopped disassembling the Mishkan, and it remained as it is. When Moshe removed himself from action, this is exactly the power that allowed the Mishkan to remain eternal, from the eighth day onward.
This is the inner light that was contained in the eighth day of the Mishkan.
