KabbalaOnline.org Tetzaveh 5783 The Holy Ari Insights on the Torah Reading
KabbalaOnline.org Tetzaveh 5783 The Holy Ari Insights on the Torah Reading
Please Note: The bold text is the direct
translation of the classic text source.
The regular text is the explanation of the editor/translator
Fashion Statements of the High Priest
The Holy Ari
In this week's Torah reading, G‑d commands Moses to make the eight garments of the High Priest. Two of
these were the apron (ephod (see Ex.
28:6-12)) and the breastplate ( choshen (see ibid.
28:15-30)). The breastplate was a doubled-over piece of fabric that
rested on the chest of the High Priest, hanging by chains
from the shoulder straps of the ephod and fastened by a sash to the
waist section of the ephod. Inside the doubled fabric was inserted a
parchment inscribed with G‑d's Name, called the "urim v'tumim"
("lights and perfections" (ibid.
28:30)) The urim v'tumim served as a divine oracle that enabled
the High Priest to respond to questions of national consequence.
The
urim v'tumim were [a manifestation of] the 42-Name of G‑d
and the 72-Name of G‑d.
The 42-Name is formed by taking the name Havayah,
spelling it out, spelling out the spelling-out, and summing the number of
letters generated. The name Havayah itself comprises 4 letters. Spelling it out uses 10
letters:
Yud-vav-dalet hei-yud vav-yud-vav hei-yud.
Spelling out this spelling out uses 28 letters:
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yud |
yud |
yud |
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vav |
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dalet |
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vav |
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yud |
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vav |
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dalet |
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lamed |
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tav |
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hei |
hei |
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yud |
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yud |
yud |
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vav |
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dalet |
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vav |
vav |
vav |
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yud |
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vav |
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yud |
yud |
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vav |
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dalet |
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vav |
vav |
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yud |
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vav |
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hei |
hei |
hei |
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yud |
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yud |
yud |
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vav |
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dalet |
4 + 10 + 28 = 42.
It is explained elsewhere in the writings of the Arizal(Etz Chaim 14:5) that in each partzuf, the
name Havayah itself is manifest in the keter of that partzuf; the name Havayah spelled out
(once) is manifest in the chochma
of that partzuf; and the name Havayah spelled out as second time
is manifest in the bina
of that partzuf. In other words, the triad of keter-chochma-bina
represent the unfolding of the initial insight ( chochma) from its source (in keter) into its full intellectual
manifestation ( bina). Thus, the name Havayah thus manipulated to
give a numerical value of 42 is associated with the "head", i.e. the
intellect and pre-intellect.
The 72-Name is the name Havayah spelled out using the
letter yud.1 The numerical value of the all these letters
together is 72:
Yud-vav-dalet hei-yud vav-yud-vav hei-yud: (10 + 6
+ 4) + (5 + 10) + (6 + 10 + 6) + (5 + 10) = 72.
In the same passage just referenced, it is explained that the
emotions of each partzuf (the sub-partzuf of Zeir Anpin of
each partzuf) manifests the 72-Name. Thus, since the emotions are
anatomically associated with the heart and the torso, the 72-Name is spoken of
as being associated with the torso.
The urim, which manifested the 42-Name, were positioned
in the head, while the tumim, which manifested the 72-Name, were in the
torso. For the 42-Name is always associated with the head and the 72-Name with
the torso.
Thus, the urim are associated with the intellect and
pre-intellect, while the tumim are associated with the emotions.
The
ephod is mentioned elsewhere [as serving as an oracle], as
in the episode of Evyatar: "An ephod went down in his
hand."(Samuel I 23:6)
The full passage reads:
David
was told: "The Philistines are fighting with Ke'ilah and plundering the threshing
floors." David consulted G‑d [through
the urim v'tumim] , "Shall I go and attack these Philistines?" And
G‑d said to David, "Go; attack the Philistines and you will save
Ke'ilah." But David's men said to him, "Look, we are afraid here in Judah, how much more
if we go against the formations of the Philistines in Ke'ilah!" So David
consulted G‑d again, and G‑d answered him, "Arise, go down to Ke'ilah, for
I am going to deliver the Philistines into your hands." David and his men
went to Ke'ilah and fought against the Philistines; he drove off their cattle
and inflicted a severe defeat on them. Thus David saved the inhabitants of
Ke'ilah.
When Evyatar son of Achimelech fled
to David at Ke'ilah, he brought down an ephod with him.
Saul was told that David had come to Ke'ilah, and Saul thought,
"G‑d has delivered him into my hands, for he has shut himself in by
entering a town with gates and bars." Saul summoned all the people for
war, to go down to Ke'ilah and besiege David and his men. When David learned
that Saul was planning to harm him, he said to the priest Evyatar, "Bring
the ephod forward." And David said, "O G‑d, G‑d of Israel, Your servant has heard that Saul intends to come to Ke'ilah
and destroy the town because of me. Will the citizens of Ke'ilah deliver me
into his hands? Will Saul come down here, as Your servant has heard? O G‑d, G‑d
of Israel, please tell Your servant!" And G‑d said, "He will come
down here." David continued, "Will the citizens of Ke'ilah deliver me
and my men into Saul's hands?" And G‑d answered, "They will deliver
you." So David and his men, about six hundred in number, left Ke'ilah at
once and went wherever they could. And when Saul was told that David had got
away from Ke'ilah, he did not set out.(Ibid. 23:1-13)
So we see here that when it was not possible for the king to
consult the urim v'tumim in the Temple, he consulted the ephod, which
served as a portable oracle.
But
[the ephod] was not really [an oracle on the same
order] as the urim v'tumim, because the latter may be consulted only
in the Temple or Tabernacle,
whereas they used to take the ephod from place to place in order to
consult with it.
It is therefore written, "you shall be whole [in
Hebrew, ' tamim']
with G‑d, your G‑d." (Deut.
18:13)
By revocalizing the Hebrew word for "whole", "
tamim", it
may be read "tumim". Thus, the verse can be read to mean
"You shall [consult] the tumim only when you are with G‑d, your G‑d
[i.e. in His sanctuary]".
This means that you should cling to the body of the King, as we
have stated, for in the tumim was the 72-Name, which is associated with
the torso.
Once we have the association between tumim and tamim,
and that between the tumim and the body, we can translate this verse, "You
shall be [with] the body of G‑d, your G‑d."
Similarly,
it is written, "Jacob was a sincere[in
Hebrew, 'tam'] man," (Gen.
25:27) implying that he clung to the body of the King.
Whereas Abraham
personified G‑d's "right hand", the side of chesed, and Isaac personified G‑d's "left hand",
the side of gevura,
Jacob personified G‑d's "torso", the middle axis of tiferet, the
pivot and fusion of all the emotions. Here, the mystical association of tam
with tumim and tumim with G‑d's "body" alludes to this,
for the verse can be read "Jacob was a man of the tumim,"
which in turn means "Jacob was a man associated with [G‑d's] 'body.'"
Thus, "to cling to the body of G‑d" means to emulate
His emotions. As our Sages say, "What does it mean: 'You shall walk
after the L-rd, your G‑d'? (Deut.
13:5) Is it possible for a human being to walk after the Divine
Presence? Is it not written, 'For G‑d, your G‑d, is a devouring fire'? (Ibid. 4:24) Rather, it means to emulate G‑d's
attributes. As He clothes the naked…so should you also clothe naked. G‑d visits
the sick…so should you also visit the sick. G‑d comforts mourners…so should you
also comfort mourners. G‑d buries the dead…so should you also bury the
dead." ( Sotah 14a)
It
is therefore written in that context, "Bring[in
Hebrew, 'havah'] a correct['tamim'] answer."
(Samuel I 14:41)
The full passage is:
Saul said [to his
soldiers] , "Let us go down after the Philistines by night and plunder
them until the light of morning; and let us not leave a single survivor among
them." "Do whatever you think is good," they replied. But the
priest said, "Let us approach God first." So Saul inquired of God [through
the urim v'tumim] , "Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You
deliver them into the hands of Israel?" But this time He did not respond
to him.
Then Saul, [realizing
the urim v'tumim did not work because someone in his army had sinned,] said,
"Come forward, all chief officers of the troops, and find out how this
guilt was incurred today. For as G‑d, who brings victory to Israel, lives: even
if [this sin] was through my son Jonathan, [the sinner] shall be put to
death!" Not one soldier answered him. And he said to all the Israelites,
"You stand on one side, and my son Jonathan and I shall stand on the
other." The troops said to Saul, "Do what you think is proper."
Saul then said to G‑d, "G‑d of Israel, Bring a
correct tamim[answer] ." Jonathan and Saul
were indicated by lot, and the troops were cleared. And Saul said, "Cast
the lots between my son and me"; and Jonathan was indicated. Saul said to
Jonathan, "Tell me, what have you done?" (Ibid.
14:36-43)
In this passage, Saul casts lots as an oracle, since the urim
v'tumim would not work for him. Before doing so, he prays to G‑d that He
show him the correct answer using this method. In this prayer, he uses the
unusual expression, "bring [havah] something correct [tamim],"
the latter term alluding to the tumim.
Why did he use this expression? It was because the intention was
to allude to the fact that the numerical value of the word "havah"
is 12, referring to the twelve tribes that clung to the body of the King.
The twelve tribes are associated in Kabbalah with the twelve lines required to draw a
cube, which is the basic geometric form of three dimensions of physical space
and spiritual "space." They are thus associated with the 6 emotions (
midot,
literally "measures" of space) that anatomically make up the
"body" of G‑d, the partzuf of Zeir Anpin.
Although the patriarchs are associated with the three primary midot
(chesed-gevura-tiferet), the sons of Jacob, the heads and progenitors of
the tribes, are associated with the midot as a whole, particularly as
they are projected onto the three lower worlds of Beriya, Yetzira, and Asiya.
For
the tribes are [twelve] letter vav's, and the numerical value of vav
is 6, such that the numerical value of 12 vav's is 72, for as we said,
the 72-Name is associated with the torso.
In summary, the urim v'tumim together manifest the full
sefirotic development, from the pre-intellect (keter) through the
intellect (chochma and bina) and the emotions (midot).
They thus channel the divine message down into the world, where it can be
articulated through the High Priest wearing them within his breastplate.
Translated and adapted by Moshe-Yaakov Wisnefsky from Sefer
HaLikutim and Ta'amei HaMitzvot; subsequently published in
"Apples From the Orchard."
Reprinted
with permission from Chabad
of California. Copyright 2004 by Chabad of California, Inc. All rights
reserved, including the right to reproduce this work or portions thereof, in
any form, without permission, in writing, from Chabad of California, Inc.
Footnotes: 1.According to Rabbi Shalom Sharabi, the 72-Name
mentioned here is not the usual 72-Name formed by spelling out the name Havayah
using the letter yud and then taking the numerical value, for then we
would expect it to be contrasted by another one of the spellings-out of the
name Havayah, i.e. the 63-Name, the 45-Name, or the 52-Name. But here,
it is contrasted with the 42-Name. Therefore, he concludes that the 72-Name
mentioned here is the Divine Name composed of the 72 three-letter Names formed
by juxtaposing the three consecutive 72-letter verses of Ex.
14:19-21, which we have described previously.
Rabbi Yitzchak Luria
[…Ashkenazi ben Shlomo] (5294-5332 = 1534-1572 c.e.); Yahrtzeit (anniversary of
death): 5th of Av. Buried in the Old Cemetery of Tzfat. Commonly known as the Ari,
an acronym standing for Eloki Rabbi Yitzchak, the G-dly Rabbi Isaac. No
other master or sage ever had this extra letter Aleph, standing for Eloki
[G-dly], prefaced to his name. This was a sign of what his contemporaries
thought of him. Later generations, fearful that this appellation might be
misunderstood, said that this Aleph stood for Ashkenazi, indicating that
his family had originated in Germany, as indeed it had. But the original
meaning is the correct one, and to this day among Kabbalists, Rabbi Yitzchak
Luria is only referred to as Rabbenu HaAri, HaAri HaKadosh [the holy Ari] or
Arizal [the Ari of blessed memory].
Moshe Yaakov Wisnefsky is a scholar, writer, editor and anthologist living in
Jerusalem. He is a co-founder of Ascent Institute of Safed and one of the first
contributing writers for KabbalaOnline.org. He has produced two monumental
works: "Apples from the Orchard: Arizal on the Weekly Torah and a Chumash
translation with commentary based on the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe
(Kehot).
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