Parshas Terumah introduces us to the Mishkan that Hashem commanded us to build as a resting place for the Shechinah [Divine Presence]. Although the Shechinah could not be seen, its presence could be experienced through the daily miracles that took place (Avos 5:5) and palpable connection that could be perceived there.
Although we no longer have the Mishkan or Beis HaMikdash today, the Zohar HaKadosh teaches (Shemos 5b) that the Divine Presence permanently remains at the Kosel Ha’maaravi.
Rav Yisroel Reisman notes that the Kosel is renowned for its ability to melt the hearts of people who come to visit, even those who are irreligious and shocked to find themselves moved by the experience. Where does this power come from? Rav Nota Schiller, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Ohr Somayach, explains that the prevalence of ba’alei shita is one of the primary challenges of our generation. A baal shita is someone who is arrogantly convinced that his choices and decisions are always right. Because he lacks humility, he is unwilling to listen to others, and it is virtually impossible to convince him to even consider the possibility that his path in life could be wrong.
One of the few ways to shake up a baal shita is an encounter with the Divine, but the Gemara says (Sotah 5a) that the Shechinah departs when it encounters haughty people, commenting that it cannot coexist with them. As a result, the baal shita misses out on one of the rare opportunities to have his worldview called into question and critically examined, and he blindly continues down his chosen path.
The Kosel is unique in that it is the one place on Earth that Hashem promised His Divine Presence will never leave. As a result, when an arrogant person goes to the Kosel, he is exposed for the first time to the Shechinah that usually avoids him. Because the Shechinah remains at the Kosel eternally, it can overpower and melt away the baal shita’s overconfidence, leaving him vulnerable and receptive to contemplating other perspectives for the first time in his life.
As an allusion to this concept, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz points out that the first letters in the words: נפשי ו היהתכל לעפר כ – “may my soul be like dust to everyone” – can be rearranged to spell כותל. This reveals to us
