Seeing the table (and everything else)

Aeter with R' Paltiel 7/24/09 Friday 3 Menachem Av 5769

Second line from top of page pay gimmel.

In atzmus malchus is inherently present.

Even before the creation of the world there was “He and his name alone” - aztmus is everywhere and the everywhere is atzmus.

The Alter Rebbe explains that the guf is totally dependent on the neshama, nevertheless with all its dependency the neshama and the guf are two separate things. There you can say the neshama is everywhere and the guf depends on it. The guf and the neshama are equally butul and representative of atzmus.

Atzmius ha malchus – what is this term is pointing to? We said that middot hamalchus is that he extends everywhere. This extending everywhere has a principle behind it – what is the concept?

Seeing a table one knows that this table did not make itself – someone put it together. This deduction is chitzoni hasechel and does not say anything about what the table is. It is possible to argue differently, but not to disprove the counter argument.

Deeper sechel says – this is a keili that has a function – the real reason that we know it was put together is because there is here in the table a function that is beyond the wood. Chitzoni hasechel is a derivative of pnimius hasechel.

Etzem hasechel is at a different level completely. Usually one sees the gashmi. From etzem perspective, one sees at first glance of the table, the human presence – human design and concept. Then the question of did it make itself, is completely moot. We have chitsoni because we have this essential insight.

When we look at the world and its harmony, we see also behind it – hashamayim mesaprim kvod kel (“.. the skies declare the glory of G-d... -Ps”) - looking at the world one sees G-d.

The world doesn't speak for itself – it represents the one who made it – this is the etzem. It is beyond logic and beyond pnimi. We see it this way since we have a soul.

Atzmius hamalchus is similar. What is behind the recognition that he extends everywhere? This is the atzmius hamalchus – like looking a the world and not seeing world at all. We see world at a true presence and the truth of its presence is G-d.

At this level you see that everything is elokus and elokus is everything – not that the object is subservient to it and wouldn't survive without it.
He and his name – the name is the way we express who he is.




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