And when Moses lifted his hands, Israel was stronger (than Amalek). This passage from the Torah reading on Purim provokes the question why this was necessary in the case of the battle with Amalek, while when it came to the later battles with the seven nations in the Land of Canaan, there does not seem to be any equivalent.
The Mishnah states ‘Were the arms of Moses waging war? Rather, when the Israelites looked upwards to their Father in Heaven, they were strengthened in their battle’.
Amalek is called the ‘First of the Nations’ (reshit goyim), and in this sense Amalek is beyond the other nations, although connected with them. The Sages comment on the text ‘and Amalek battled against Israel in Refidim’, that the reason why Amalek could attack was because the Jews had weakened (rafu) their study of Torah. This shows there was a spiritual cause to the problem with Amalek.
This means that if we can understand the nature of the inner service of the Jew, we will understand the nature of the attack by Amalek, and how it differs from the battles against the seven nations of the land of Canaan.
The soul has three aspects which are ‘inward’, which operate within the person. These are Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah. The Neshama, the highest, is based in the mind, particularly in the Sefirah Binah, Understanding. When the mind contemplates the existence of the Divine creative energy in everything which exists, the way in which ‘the Holy One fills the universe as the soul fills the body’, and the way G-d created the universe in all its variety and in all its immensity, and then goes on to think of G-d as transcending existence, because He is utterly beyond the universe, as the Sages said: ‘He is the place of the universe, but the universe is not His place’, and then goes on to realise that G-d is beyond even that level, He is utterly beyond even the transcendent radiance... through this use of one’s mind, one is serving G-d with the faculty of Binah, understanding.
This can activate the aspect Ruach of the soul, which is the aspect which expresses emotions, like the seven Sefirot which are enlivened and inspired by Binah. In this case, the emotions of love of G-d, and awe of G-d, and so on. Then there is also the third aspect of the soul, Nefesh, which relates to practical action: to keep away from evil, and to do good, through which the person could be so dedicated to the Divine that he or she could not think of turning aside from any of the 248 positive commandments or 365 negative commandments.
All these aspects of our inner being have to be dedicated to G-d. This is the mission of our Neshama coming into the world, to bond with G-d through these aspects. Through this and particularly through Torah study, the Neshamah can reach higher and higher, even to the Essence of the Divine.
This kind of service is like the battle to conquer the seven Canaanite nations of the Land of Israel. Using one’s rational mind and understanding – Binah, Understanding – one bonds with G-d through one’s seven emotions, reaching higher and higher.
But there are a further two aspects of the Soul – Chaya and Yechidah. These are beyond ‘rationality’. Chaya (life) relates to Wisdom, higher than Understanding (for ‘wisdom gives life’), to the radiance which is beyond the vessels of Binah and below. And Yechidah is the expression of utter unity with the infinite Divine, such as with self sacrifice for G-d, totally beyond Reason. This is a level not of reason and understanding, but of utter selflessness.
It is this higher level which is needed for the battle with Amalek. Because Amalek is the ‘First of the Nations’, on a level beyond Reason. Indeed, his attack was beyond reason, for surely he saw the great miracles which had protected the Jews, such as the Splitting of the Sea. Despite this, he attacked. So too, we have to go beyond reason in our dedication to the Divine.
Further, in the Torah reading for Shabbat Parshat Zachor, Amalek is described as ‘one who made you cold’ (asher karcha). At that point when the person seeks to go beyond their rational thought, in their enthusiasm for G-dliness – Amalek dampens their ardour.
When Moses held up his hands, beckoning the Jewish people to gaze towards their Father in Heaven, he was seeking to arouse the Moses in each person, that aspect of the person which is dedicated to G-d, as Moses is. The quest for bitul, selflessness, utter dedication, and positive enthusiasm is the way we can achieve the same effect now.
So we see that in order to conquer the seven nations, which is as much as to say, to channel our seven types of emotion to focus positively on the Divine, we can use the power of our rational mind, Binah, understanding.
But in the battle against Amalek we have to summon a higher force, transcending understanding, the inner Moses within each of us. The Rambam tells us that Moses was the exceptional Prophet who was able to converse with G-d without losing his bodily senses. He is therefore the example of utter dedication to the Divine.
In this second level of battle, we are also helped by hearing the reading of the Torah on Shabbat Parshat Zachor, and indeed the positive spiritual effect of hearing any Torah reading. So too by carrying out Mitzvot, which are given to us by Hashem, and bring a sacred power to us.
These aspects are from above downwards, from G-d to us, and express the way that G-d says ‘I will eradicate Amalek’, empowering us to eradicate his force with our own power, as it says in Parshat Zachor - ‘you should eradicate Amalek’.
This will especially be achieved ‘when G-d makes you rest from all your enemies, in the Land which G-d is giving you’, with the coming of Moshiach Tzidkenu, swiftly mamosh.
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