Creating Connection!
When creating a new person, there is no use in fashioning a being that is not connected to a higher world, to his neshama and to Hashem. It is of utmost importance that forms of connection are created perfection.
The main mitzvah of Leil haSeder is v’higadeta l’bincha and the recital of the hagadah. Hagadah means telling - an act by which we connect to ourselves - to our own neshamos - and to the neshamos of our children. Most importantly it is a vehicle to connect to Hashem is through speech. We talk about the tremendous miracles, thank Hashem for taking us out of Mitzrayim, and spend the entire night conveying messages of emunah and dveykus to Hashem.
The other mitzvos of the night are centred around the second form of connection - food. Pesach (which in the times of beis hamikdash was a korban) Matzah and Maror.
The Gaon would say that throughout the eight days of Pesach, every kezayis of matzah we eat is a mitzvah. It is also the only mitzvah we have today that we fulfill by eating. What is so special about matzah?
As discussed above, although food may seem very mundane, it is actually the greatest form of connection to Hashem. There are different elements of the food we eat. Some are vital for our health like vitamins. Some are less important. For life itself we need very little. In order to live all we need is plain flour along with some water, without salt, sugar, yeast, or any additives.
On Leil Haseder we are building a connection to Hashem in the greatest possible way. We do so by eating - by imbibing life. However, we do not just eat any food. We specifically ingest matzah which is composed of plain flour and water, and which did not even have time to ferment or incorporate any flavor or taste. This represents the essence of life in its purest form. By imbibing that we feel life and connect to Hashem in the purest fashion.
Through these two forms of connection we achieve great levels in building a person and connecting to Hashem. We read about the terrible galus and how Hashem saved us, the ten makos and kri’as Yam Suf, we ate matzah, maror, had a seudah, and felt so connected to Hashem that we burst out in halel and hoda’ah. We attained great levels of love and dveykus and are feeling so close and so high.
