Parashat Naso
from Likutei Torah by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Gedalia Potash and William Schecter, MD
Friday, May 21, 2021
This draft has neither been edited nor approved by Rabbi Potash
The Elter Rebbe begins his discussion by quoting the first passage of this week’s Parasha: “Calculate the total number of the sons of Gershon…..” We must understand why the Torah says “also the sons of Gershon instead of just “the sons of Gershon”. Furthermore, the sons of Gershon were to be supervised by Aaron and his sons which was not the case with the two other sons of Levi, Kahat and Marari. But first we have to understand the purpose of the Sanctuary and its travel from place to place in the desert. The purpose of the travel with the Sanctuary through the desert was the subjugation of suckling of the strength of the spirituality of the Children of Israel by external forces represented by the desert.
What is the Elter Rebbe talking about here? Rabbi Potash explains: Holiness (Kiddusha) and Klipah1 (the external material layers surrounding the G-dly Soul exist together, but from where does the negativity represented by the Klipah receive its life force. The Elter Rebbe explains that the Klipah draws its life force from Holiness but in an indirect way, like a parasite, an external entity, living off the host, metaphorically suckling its life force from the host—Holiness.
In the desert there is an emptiness – there is no Kiddusha (Holiness). Generosity is a function of Holiness. Holiness is positive. Klipah is about self. Holiness is about others—nullification of self, seeing oneself as part of the big picture. Holiness is humility—serving others.
Therefore, the desert, a desolate place lacking vegetation, is unable to provide sustenance whereas Holiness gives life to everything. As it is written “G-d is righteous” (Psalm 145:17) meaning that G-d is righteous and is generous in giving Charity. And every aspect of Holiness has this attribute (of charity). G-d’s attribute of Chesed (Loving Kindness) is drawn from His Greatness as it is written “Slow to Anger and abounding in Loving Kindness (Psalm 145:8).
Rabbi Potash comments: We know that there is a connection between the Exodus and the Counting of the Omer. {The Counting of the Omer refers to the custom of bringing a sheaf of Barley each day to the Temple in Jerusalem following the Passover for 49 days between Passover-the Exodus from Egypt- and the Giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai-celebrated during the Holiday of Shavuot}. In the Exodus—we remove the Jew from Egypt. Counting the Omer—We remove the Egypt from the Jew. We have to stop seeing the world through the lens of Egypt – servitude and materialism. When we talk of the Tabernacle in the Desert, we are talking about the fact that for thousands of years after this event, the Jewish people will be wandering throughout the world and are required to bring Holiness to the rest of the world. So, the idea of the Tabernacle in the desert is to bring spirituality to the desolate world and prepare the world for the Utopian Era.
And in every aspect of Holiness, Loving Kindness is drawn from nullification of the material for the material has no worth in G-d’s eyes and therefore it is appropriate for man to give (share) with his fellow. The Elter Rebbe now uses the example of Abraham to illustrate this point. As it is written of Abraham: And I am dust and ashes and therefore would do acts of Loving Kindness with all men. But one who is concerned with material things, is not nullified and everything must be done for his own benefit. He exhibits no charity.
Rabbi Potash comments: One who exists and holds himself on high—everything he does is for himself-- for self-aggrandizement. The Elter Rebbe uses the word משפיע (Masphiah) which in modern Hebrew usually means to influence but in Chassidic terminology it means to sustain or provide for others. So, what the Elter Rebbe is saying is that Holiness is about self-nullification and providing for others whereas Klipah-the Animal Soul—is about providing for self.
Returning to the theme of the desert, the Elter Rebbe says therefore in the desert there are 3 negative living creatures: the snake, the Saraf (a type of fiery serpent) and the scorpion. These three creatures represent the 3 klipot1 which are an entirely separate entity lacking the attribute of nullification and therefore the Klepht are not the source of any sustenance.
Rabbi Potash comments: The Torah describes these three creatures which represent the three klipot. See reference 1.
Therefore, the travels of the Holy Ark and the Children of Israel in the desert was necessary to suppress the desert. Therefore, the Children of Gershon carried the Sanctuary to the 42 stations in the desert which has the attribute of מ״ב (MaV—one of the four Kabbalistic names of G-d)2.
Each Hebrew letter has a numerical equivalent MaV has the numerical equivalent of 42 corresponding to the 42 stations in the desert where the Children of Israel reposed during their journey. This number also corresponds to one of the Kabbalistic names for G-d. For a more complete discussion, see footnote 2.
Through the Divine revelation in the Tabernacle carried in the desert, there was a seamless subjugation of the animal components of the desert. The Elter Rebbe now quotes Psalm 68:3 saying that the desert will be subjugated “as wax melts at fire”. And the benefit of this subjugation was preparation for the world to come where it is possible for Divine revelation to occur in our lowly world as it is written “The Presence of the LORD shall appear” (Isaiah 40:5) and through this the beginning of the source of the concealment (of G-d) whose presence will subsequently be revealed in the world to come (the Messianic Age).
And the issue of this revelation is such that in the World to Come there will be no concealment of the existence and essence of G-d. For there is no change in G-d. He existed unchanged prior to the creation of the world and unchanged after the creation of the world.
Rabbi Potash comments: G-d Himself does not change. When we discuss concealment, it is referring to us, from our vantage point. From G-d’s perspective, He is present throughout the world. He doesn’t recognize the concealment. From our perspective He is concealed even though He is there. We just can’t see Him.
For now, He is One and Unique, the same as He was prior to the creation of the World and after the creation of the World and the main thing concerning the genesis of the creations from nil to existence is only the attribute of the letters of the words. For the Heavens were created with the Word of G-d. By way of analogy, man’s speech is null and subordinate to his thought. The speech is only important when another person hears the speech. Then the content of the speech is grasped and comes into existence. Similarly, the words spoken in the 10 utterances of G-d which created the World from nil (Let there be light, etc.), themselves have the attribute of existence. But these words are as nothing vis à vis the immensity of G-d which is unfathomable. Therefore, although the revelation of the letters of G-d’s speech appear to the world as existence and an entity to us, but for G-d, revelation is not necessary for He does not perceive any concealment at all and if this is the case, in the future to come when G-d’s Glory will be revealed and will have the attribute of the Divine also in action so that man will perceive G-d even with his material intellect.
Rabbi Potash comments: In the time to come the aspect of concealment will totally disappear. In the Utopian Age the physical mind will be able to grasp the essence of G-dliness.
And for this revelation to take place, it was necessary for the Tabernacle to travel through the desert to suppress the “Klipah” represented by the desert.
Rabbi Potash comments: Even speech and the articulation of words is far removed from G-d’s essence. Even though we use the word speech (dibur) when talking about creation—which seems like a non-tangible reality, dibur is considered distant and far from G-d’s pure essence.
The metaphor of words has to be understood from all angles. For the one who is reading or hearing, the words are a revelation. For the one who is communicating it may be a diminishing or concealing experience. That is, his words do not fully express the entirety of his thought or the essence of his being. The listener understands that he is not receiving the entire experience. The person who is speaking often has a much greater understanding of the issue than that which he is communicating.
- Klipah: According the Kabbalistic thought, the G-dly Soul is surrounded by an infinite number of layers or peels (Klipah in Hebrew means peel, like the peel of a banana). The first three Klipot contain only evil elements which are not subject to Holy transformation. These three klipot are represented by the Snake, the Saraf and the Scorpion which dwell in the desolate desert as discussed above. The fourth Peel, the Peel of Light (Klipat Noga) contains both evil and G-dly elements. It is this Klipah which is subject to transformation by subjugation of the evil elements contained within.
- שם מ״ב: The name MaV. This name MaV is one of the names of G-d according to Kabbalah. The Hebrew letter מ has the numerical value of 40. ב has the value of 2 so מ״ב = 42. What has this got to do with G-d? The Prayer Ana BeKoah has 42 words in it. This prayer is recited at special times when we are trying to raise the spiritual level of our Soul from one level to a higher level. For example, it is recited in the Kabalat Shabat Service immediately before the Song Lecha Dodi Likrat Kalah. You can find it in any standard Siddur. The reason for this is that we are trying to separate our spiritual level during the 6 days of the week to a higher level on Shabat. There are a total of 42 words in this prayer. There are also 42 stations in which the Children of Israel stopped on the way from Egypt to the Land of Israel. According to Kabbalah, the reason that there were 42 stations (or stops) for the Children of Israel in their 40 year sojourn in the desert is that at each stop they ascended to a higher spiritual level, leaving behind the experience of materialism and servitude in Egypt, in preparation for their entrance into the Land of Israel.
Here is the prayer Ana BeKoah with its translation for your interest
אָֽנָּא בְּכֹֽחַ גְּדֻלַּת יְמִינְ֒ךָ תַּתִּיר צְרוּרָה:
Please, by the force of Your great right hand, release the bound one.
קַבֵּל רִנַּת עַמְּ֒ךָ שַׂגְּ֒בֵֽנוּ טַהֲרֵֽנוּ נוֹרָא:
Accept the prayer of Your people; strengthen us, purify us, awesome One!
נָא גִבּוֹר דּוֹרְ֒שֵׁי יִחוּדְ֒ךָ כְּבָבַת שָׁמְרֵם:
Please mighty One— those who seek Your unity— preserve them like the apple [of Your eye.]
בָּרְכֵם טַהֲרֵם רַחֲמֵם צִדְקָתְ֒ךָ תָּמִיד גָּמְלֵם:
Bless them, purify them, have mercy on them; Your benevolent righteousness [may You] always bestow upon them.
חֲסִין קָדוֹשׁ בְּרֹב טוּבְ֒ךָ נַהֵל עֲדָתֶֽךָ:
Mighty, Holy One in Your abundant goodness lead Your community.
יָחִיד גֵּאֶה לְעַמְּ֒ךָ פְּנֵה זוֹכְ֒רֵי קְדֻשָּׁתֶֽךָ:
Unique One, Exalted, turn to Your people who are mindful of Your holiness.
שַׁוְעָתֵֽנוּ קַבֵּל וּשְׁמַע צַעֲקָתֵֽנוּ יוֹדֵֽעַ תַּעֲלוּמוֹת:
Accept our prayer and hear our cry, [You] Who knows hidden thoughts.
בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם כְּבוֹד מַלְכוּתוֹ לְעוֹלָם וָעֶד:
Blessed [is His] Name, Whose glorious Kingdom is forever and ever.
The last sentence is not really part of the prayer but is a standard Blessing said after every reference to G-d.
