From The Masters Of Kabbalah and Chumash (5 Books of
Moses)
13th century - "RambaN" - Rabbi Moshe ben
Nachman
14th century - "Bachya" - Rabbi Bachya ben
Asher
16th century - "Alsheich" - Rabbi Moshe
Alshech of Tsfat
17th century - "Shelah" - Rabbi Yeshaiya
Horowitz
18th century - "Ohr HaChayim" - Rabbi Chaim
Ben Attar
Ramban
"Unto His habitation shall you seek" [12:5]
The meaning thereof is that you are to come from distant countries asking:
"Where is the road leading to the House of G-d?" and you should
say to one another, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of
the Eternal, to the House of the G-d of Jacob" [Isaiah 2:3] similar
to the expression, "They shall inquire concerning Zion with their
faces hitherward" [Jeremiah 50:5]. And in the Sifre it is stated:
"You shall seek -seek [the place where G-d intended that His House
be built] through the command of the prophet. I might think that you are
to wait until the prophet tells you [when and where to build it]; Scripture
therefore states, unto His habitation shall you seek, and thither you
shall come - seek and find [the place], and afterwards the prophet will
tell you [whether your choice is the correct one]. And so you find it
in the case of David etc."As it is said, "O Eternal, remember
unto David all his affliction, how he swore unto the Eternal, and vowed
unto the Mighty One of Jacob, 'Surely I will not come into the tent of
my house….until I find out a place for the Eternal, a dwelling place
for the Mighty one of Jacob'" [Psalms 132:1-5] And whence do
you know that he did it only by command of the prophet? Because it says,
"And Gad [the prophet) came that day to David, and said unto him:
'Go up, rear an altar on the threshing floor of Aravnah the Jebusite'"[II
Samuel 24:18]
And by the way of the Truth, [the mystic teachings of the Kabbalah] "lishichno
(unto His habitation) shall you seek" means that you are to inquire
after His Glory [that abides there]; "and there you shall come
to appear before the Lord, Eternal G-d, the G-d of Israel" [Ex.34:23].
It is on the basis of this expression here [l'shchno -unto His
habitation] that the Sages have spoken of the Shechinah ("Divine
Presence").
(credits)
Rabbeinu Bachya
"You shall surely give him and your heart shall not grieve when
you give him because for this thing the Lord your G-d will bless you..."
[15:10]
We must appreciate that poor people, by reason of their dissatisfaction
"spread around" the presence of the attribute of Justice so
that it is poised over Israel ready to strike. This is what Psalm 102:1
"Prayer of the poor," is all about. The very word tefilla
(prayer) [as opposed to bakasha (request), techina (plea)
and similar words, Ed.] represents a struggle, a wrangling. It has a negative
connotation, is used when two litigants strive against one another. This
is what prompted the sages to say that a poor man is considered like a
dead man (Nedarim 64). The wealthy man, by contrast, spreads around the
attribute of Mercy seeing wherever he goes he reflects blessings received.
He may be compared to the sun, which enables the moon to at least shine
with reflected light. He who dispenses charity is as if illuminating the
eyes of the poor when the latter receives his blessing through the rich
man. This is why the Torah warns that all the paths of Torah should be
paths of loveliness and peace. That people who claim to be Torah oriented
should practice the virtues associated with Torah, and by giving charity
in the manner prescribed enable the attribute of Mercy to abound on earth.
By doing so he will ensure that the attribute of Mercy at least becomes
an integral part of the attribute of Justice, which is already poised.
This is what ensures the continued existence of the universe. The world
cannot exist unless both these attributes are working side by side (Bereishit
Rabba 12:15).
You are aware (of the kabbalistic concept) that the performance of acts
of charity on earth will have impact on the attribute tzedek in
the celestial regions. According to Zohar Bechukotai 113 the Tree of Knowledge
represents death whereas the Tree of Life represents life. Giving charity
(for the right reasons) saves from the clutches of death and results in
the opposing forces of tzedek and malchut being able to
function together in harmony for the benefit of all mankind. This attribute
tzedek is mystically identified with the Knesset Yisrael,
the spiritual concept of "Israel." It is also the "mate"
of the "Shabbath." (compare Bereshit Rabbah 11:9). All of the
above explains Moses' concern with warning the people to be concerned
with fulfilling this mitzvah very meticulously.
(credits)
Alsheich
"...You may eat as much meat as you wish...but you must slaughter...in
the way I have prescribed.... Just, be extremely careful not to eat the
blood since the blood is the life...you must not eat it...."
[12:20-24]
For objective reasons, it is better for animals to be consumed by human
beings than to die of natural causes and not having their existence sublimated
through absorption in the body of a human being, i.e., a superior species.
The law not to eat blood is repeated so that one should not achieve the
reverse from that which the Torah desires, namely for the human being
to be dragged down to the level of the animal by consuming its very life
force.
The important lesson to be learned from all this is that if G-d is concerned
about the pure animal achieving its maximum potential, even though it
is a relatively inferior species, how much more must He be concerned about
man, the superior species achieving his maximum spiritual level. The lesson
applies not only to mundane consumption of meat, but to all the commandments
listed in Deuteronomy. All have the aim to facilitate our spiritual elevation.
(credits)
Shelah
"..and the firstborn of your cattle and of your sheep."
[12:6]
The mystical dimension of the firstling of the pure male animals is an
allusion to the people of Israel, who have been described by G-d as His
first-born (Ex. 4:22). They are without blemish, a perfect congregation
whom G-d has also called "sheep of My pasture"(Ezekiel 34:31).
This is why they [these unblemished sheep] may only be eaten by the priests.
When such firstlings have become blemished and been redeemed, they may
be eaten by ordinary Israelites. The deeper reason for this is because
the Israelites themselves also possess some degree of sanctity, for they
have been called "Adam". Adam used to be holy and would have
remained holy had he not sinned. This firstling animal was also holy until
it contracted a blemish, the equivalent of sin. Just as sinful man can
redeem himself, as we know from the verse "I give men in exchange
for you"(Isaiah 43:4), so can this animal be redeemed. This is the
mystical dimension of the "scapegoat", which carries our sins.
The Torah (Lev. 16:22) speaks of the he-goat of the azazel, which atones
for the sins of a firstling animal contracting a blemish.
(credits)
Ohr HaChayim
"Observe and hearken to all these words, etc." [12:28]
Moses may also have phrased this verse to reflect a statement in the
Zohar volume 3 page 193 that the sins a person has committed act as a
lock, precluding him from unraveling the secrets of the Torah. You find
a similar comment in the Shulchan Aruch of the Arizal in the section of
Torah study. He wrote that the gates of understanding to the words of
Torah are the questions which trouble normal human beings. This is the
mystical dimension of the kelipot, the spiritually negative forces
which have been created by man's own sins.
Moses tells us that if you truly wish to understand that there are answers
to these questions which trouble you in your faith, you must first shamor-observe
the commandments whose meaning bothers you. Then, subsequently veshamata-[lit.
and you heard], you will be able to understand the answer to the question
which previously troubled you.
(credits)
Sources
Ramban
- credits
Adapted from the 13th century classic by the illustrious scholar, philosopher
and defender of the faith, Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman-known as 'RAMBAN' or
'Nachmanides', a master kabbalist in his own right and a major link in
the transmission of Jewish mysticism-based on the excellent annotated
English translation, Nachmanides on the Torah, by Rabbi Dr. Charles B.
Chavel
Bachya
- credits
Selected with permission from the seven-volume English edition of The
Torah Commentary of Rabbeinu Bachya, as translated and annotated by Eliyahu
Munk. Rabbi Bachya ben Asher [1255-1340] of Saragosa, Spain, was the outstanding
pupil of Rabbi Shlomo ben Aderet (the "Rashba"), a main disciple
of Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (the "Ramban"). Several books have
been written about the Kabballah-based portions of R. Bachya's commentary.
Alsheich
- credits
Adapted from Torat Moshe - the 16th commentary of Rabbi Moshe Alshech,
the "Preacher of Zefat" on the Torah, as translated and condensed
in the English version of Eliyahu Munk)
Shelah
- credits
Rabbi Isaiah Horowitz was born in Prague around the year 1565. He served
as Rabbi of Cracow and other congregations before he was appointed as
the Rabbi of the community of Frankfurt on Main in the year 1610. In 1916,
Rabbi Horowitz moved to Prague where he became the Chief Rabbi of the
city. He moved to Eretz Yisrael about 1621. He was rabbi in Jerusalem
and in Tiberias, where he died in or about 1630. In addition to his magnus
opus, Shenei Luchot HaBrit, he also compiled an edition of the prayer-book
with a comprehensive commentary. Many of his innovations, including his
formulation of the Kol Nidrei prayer, have become part and parcel of the
Ashkenazi Siddur.
Ohr HaChayim
- credits
Selected with permission from the five-volume English edition of Ohr HaChaim:
the Torah Commentary of Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar, as translated and annotated
by Eliyahu Munk.
The holy Rabbi Chayim ben Moses Attar was born in Sale, Western Morocco,
on the Atlantic in 1696. His immortal commentary on the Five Books Of
Moses, Or Hachayim, was printed in Venice in 1741, while the author was
on his way to the Holy Land. He acquired a reputation as a miracle worker,
hence his title "the holy," although some apply this title only
to his Torah commentary.
|
