AiynBase with R' Paltiel 12/6/09 Sunday 19 Kislev 5770
Page gimmel, just below middle of page - “umetachat”.
Right now we are looking at the fact that atzmus ohr ein sof is pashut betachlit (completely simple) and beyond the framework of hishtalshalus. It cannot be captured in any other way – it is itself.
It includes all of creation equally.
Hishtalshalus is facilitated by tzimzum. This is the reduction of the infinite light that took place.
The infinity was concealed.
Who is wealthier, the multi billionaire or the king? The multi billionaire is part of hishtalshalus. The power of the king cannot be described.
In halacha there is the concept of compensation based on an estimation of, “for what amount would someone allow such an injury to take place”. Thus, in principle, every limb has a certain value. But, what is the value of a head?
The melech is not “a limb” of the nation. He is the head of the nation. Therefore it is beyond the seder of hishtalshalus.
Imagine the king has all the facilities of king, but not the throne (this is not a factual mashal). Then you have the gvul aspect, without the infinite level. This is the meaning that there was a tzimzum of ohr ein sof.
The world view of creation is all on the gvul level – it is based on functionality. We are pointing out that it is not true. The gashmius/materiality is so rich that it represents something beyond function.
The light of day is qualitatively different from the light produced on earth. Our world is primarily dark and the sun is just the opposite – this is the ein sof aspect of light.
After the tzimzum came a revelation in the form of a kav/line, from which is formed the whole hishtalshalus/creation.
The ocean is like water, without end – you can't use it, you don't jump in a lake to drink – you take a little in a cup. The trickle is not limiting how much water you can get, except it is coming to you in a formatted/acceptable manner.
Kav does not limit the amount, but produces it in an orderly fashion.
It becomes manageable, since you have a defined presence.
The kav is like a conduit that is drawn from ohr ein sof. Thus this kav can be seen as flow of water that can be drawn into many vessels. Into this flow is contracted the flow of the river – and now you have the “functionality” of the water, and the infinity is concealed.
For video, click here.
AiynBase with R' Paltiel 12/4/09 Friday 17 Kislev 5770
page gimmel – few lines above middle - “royim”.
We're explaining shofar. Torah is called a path/derech. What is the relationship? Torah is the pathway through which the revelation of the light of infinity (ohr ein sof) is drawn into the world.
Ohr ein sof is pashut/simple and ungraspable and beyond the level of hishtalshalus. It cannot be thought of in terms of hishtalshalus. It is outside the gedder.
Hishtalshalus means chaining down, drawing down – to move something top down means to go from klal/abstract to prat/definable.
One common aspect that exist throughout seder hishtalshalus is that there is some kind of definition. Thus something that is pashut betachlis (completely simple) cannot be in the context of histalshalus.
What do we mean by “atzmus ohr ein sof”? Everything that we come in contact with and all that we attempt to understand has to have been in two states – present and not present – things are grasped from the edges – you lift a table from it's edge – the place where it is and is not. All we think of has this binary presence. Atzmus ohr ein sof does not have this – it did not come into being – is and is not is equal. What makes us relate to it? If there is a creation, there must be a creator.
There is level of where, "If you do good you don't contribute to Him and if you do evil you don't detract from Him."
By means of tzimzum this aspect of infinity becomes drawn down.
AiynBase with R' Paltiel 12/3/09 ThursdayNight 15 Kislev 5770
Continuing to look at how tshuvah relates to Hashem Himself...
Tshuvah aims at the etzem of the baal haratzon.
Imagine you are a guest in someone's home, and there is food and hospitality, but primarily what you're interested in is relating to the host himself.
Relating to the host himself is not sensed through any faculty.
Like at a fabrengen – people are sitting together – being in the primary relationship with another person. Only in pnimius hanefesh do you have the primary knowledge that you are for real and can experience the reality of others. Whether you're doing anything or not – you're there. In the world presence is based on activity.
Tshuvah is present/possible through the baal haratzon. Tshuvah is possible since he relates to us on an essential level.
Since through tshuvah you draw down the etzem, which includes everything, thus all the revelations/strings/ratzonot are restored too.
The result is acceptance and affection, greater than before the sin. This is since all is re-established by the drawing down of etzem.
The etzem pre-existed all the other ratzonot. Yet He wanted to create a world that contained all the different mitzvot. So etzem contains all, but mitzvot (gilui harotzonot) is the way He reveals Himself. After tshuvah all the ratzonot are gilui, with nimshach of the etzem.
Before tshuvah they were nimshach due to His will, but now after tshuvah they are nimshach not due to will, but due to Him Himself.
This is like the way the king is represented in the country vs. how he is represented by his own presence. All the variety in the country represented the greatness of the king, but when he comes to visit all works in harmony due to his presence.
Blowing of the shofar is part of the matter of tshuvah, so we have the question of how would the chachamim do away with the mitzvah lest the shofar be carried in a public domain.
The principle of tshuvah is in the heart – not a mitzvah of deed.
Tshuvah is a cry from the heart, so you may say the shofar is not so primary, and can thus be removed, nevertheless, tshuvah is also expressed in deed. In this way shofar is really part of tshuvah.
Further, the main part of tshuvah is to effect that the nefesh habahamit turns and comes back to its connection with Hashem. Also the cause of the break in the connection is due to the nefesh habahamit – this is why we blow the horn of a ram. This represents the animal aspect is also included.
So it is very difficult to understand how they decided to nullify a mitzvah due to this concern.
At a certain level the connection of the nefesh habahamit is even stronger than the nefesh ha-elokis. There are different levels of its involvement and it gets affected by the process.
For video, click here.
AiynBase with R' Paltiel 12/3/09 Thursday 16 Kislev 5770
Page base 2 – bottom third (at the word “be-emet”).
The difference is being explained between tshuvah and all other mitzvot. Tshuvah has to do with essence, rather than ratzon galui.
Tshuvah comes from the depth of the heart.
Lower tshuvah is leaving the sin and resolving never to repeat it. Here too there is an additional notch that assures it will never recur. He goes beyond the external effects, “I can't look at myself in the mirror” to something deeper – the bother at the level of pnimius hanefesh.
We have to bear it in mind, since our natural orientation always misses it. We think in terms of cause and effect, but Nefesh is a living thing and its life is in, and of itself. Nefesh is chai be-etzem. Its life and interest in, and of itself.
How does one become of this inner point? That is because he is aware of the Creator and he becomes a real presence, and thus goes beyond cause and effect.
Tshuvah is focussed on the Commander. Your regret is not 'cos “you did something wrong”, it is since you offended the Commander. How? You transgressed His will? Your concern is for the offense given.
Tshuvah is the principle that you recognize the severance of the relationship to the One who commands the mitzvah.
Higher tshuvah surely too has these qualities... and the Rebbe doesn't elaborate. On the lower level you have the sin and the return, on the higher level it consists of, “if I recognize my metziut I can't stand it – I have to connect to Him”!
There is a constant movement, “I see the truth, and I understand it, and in the understanding it becomes mine, and that's not the real thing, so I have to go higher, back to the truth.”
by definition higher tshuvah is of the inner essence.
AiynBase with R' Paltiel 12/2/09 Wednesday 15 Kislev 5770
Page base 2 – above the middle (anochi mi she anochi).
The rebbe is explaining that mitzvot of tshuvah and the fact that it exists here below, means that in contrast to all the mitzvot, which are rooted in atzmus and express His will, tshuvah represents the One who wills it.
An offender, who insulted another, recognizes in his essence, that he has created a schizm. Beyond that he realizes there is nothing to restore. We see in this way that tshuvah relates not to the ratzon as much as to the Him who is the One who is the origin of will.
When is repentance considered return to Him? When it is a matter of pnimius hanefesh – ie when it is not concerned with a blemish, but with essence. When yidden sinned at the golden calf, Moses our teacher said to Hashem, “don't take offence, it's just a cow!”
