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The Arizal on the Torah
The large size green text is the direct translation of the Ari teachings.
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Silver, Sackcloth and Ashes(from Parashat Tzav in the writings of) Rabbi Yitzchak Luria
("
the
Ari") of Safed —translated and adapted from Sha’ar HaMitzvot and
Sha’ar Ruach HaKodesh by Rabbi Moshe Wisnefsky And G-d spoke to Moses, saying: “Command
Aaron and his sons, saying: This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt
offering itself shall remain where it is burned upon the altar all night until
morning, while the fire on the altar is kept going on it. The priest shall put
on his linen garment, and shall put his linen breeches on his flesh, and he
collect the ashes to which the fire has reduced the brunt offering on the
altar, and place them beside the altar. He shall then take off his garments and
put on other garments, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a clean place”
(Leviticus 6:1-4).
When he did this, the priest had to wear his regular linen garment. The
Ari zal discusses the significance of this. The priest personifies the attributes of silver, the whiteness of chesed. The Temple service was divided
between two classes of the tribe of Levi, the priests (kohanim), which
were those members of the tribe of Levi who descended directly from Aaron, and
the Levites, which were all other members of the tribe. The priests officiated
at the offering of the sacrifices while the Levites fulfilled other functions
pertinent to the maintenance of the Temple. The Levites also formed a choir and
an orchestra that accompanied the offering of certain sacrifices.
These two movements reflect the natures of the first and principle two sefirot
of the emotions: chesed (“loving-kindness”) and gevura
(“strength,” “power”). The downward flow of G-d’s beneficence into the world
expresses His chesed, while the ecstatic, upward soaring of the soul
expresses the ardent power (gevura) of human love and yearning for G-d
expressed in the song accompanying the sacrifice. In terms of color-imagery,
the sweet, downward flow of chesed is reflected in the pure transparency
of water or the purity of the colors white or silver, while the fiery flames of
gevura are reflected in the brilliance of red or gold. Accordingly, the
two metals silver and gold are associated with the sefirot of chesed
and gevura, respectively. Shining forth from him is the whiteness of the head of Arich Anpin. Although the emotions are inspired by the intellect, they do not
originate in the intellect. The intellect is a detached, cold, objective
faculty, and therefore cannot produce an emotion, which is an excited,
subjective response. All the intellect provides to the emotions is their
inspiration, that is, the subject material to which the emotion responds. In
fact, the greater the intellectual understanding of a given concept, the
greater and more intense the emotional response to it. But although the
intellect can stimulate, fire, and feed the emotions, it cannot produce
them, since they are not intellectual by nature.
This is reflected in our conscious lives as well, in the fact that the
emotions are the true test of a person’s personality. It is easy to spout
allegiances and philosophies of life on an intellectual level, but the extent
to which these have been truly integrated into a person’s life becomes evident
only when we see how he reacts emotionally to things. In any case, the root of chesed in the super-conscious is the
whiteness of Arich Anpin. The sefira of chochma as well is a referent for the high
priest. The high priest was distinguished in a number of ways from the rest of
the priests, most markedly by the four extra garments he wore (the breastplate,
the ephod, the headband, and the robe) and the fact that only he was
allowed inside the Holy of Holies, the inner sanctum of the Temple, and only
once a year, on Yom Kippur. His relationship to the rest of the priests was
analogous to that between the priests and the laity, in that he wore special
garments and had both special privileges and special duties. He was thus the
most special of the special, a sort of super-priest, who embodied all the
aspects of the priesthood but in a much more absolute way. Therefore, if a priest in general may be said to be a manifestation of
the sefira of chesed, the high priest would be the manifestation
of the sefira directly above chesed on the sefira-tree,
and this is chochma. This is why [the high priest] had to wear linen clothes [on Yom Kippur],
as it is written, “he shall wear a holy linen robe…” (Leviticus 16:4. This
chapter describes the rites the high priest performs on Yom Kippur). This is because sackcloth [which is linen]
manifests the 400 worlds. [The text of the Ari zal’s teaching now
refers to his explanation of these “400 worlds” in another text, which we will
now quote.] The dominant symbolic imagery in this passage is that of hair. Hair is
considered to be alive, since it is constantly growing, but the life force it
possesses is very limited, since it can be cut without causing any pain to the
person. It therefore signifies the transference of a highly limited and diluted
level of life force from the area of the body from which it issues. On the head of Arich Anpin there are 13 strands of hair and 13
white [i.e., bald] areas…. Four of the white areas together with four strands
of hair extend behind and below the head of Arich Anpin and reach down
to the head of Z’eir Anpin. These hairs thus cover Abba and Ima. Thus, Arich Anpin—the will—produces hairs, through which its
intense spiritual energy is transmitted in a highly diluted form to the lower
levels of creation. They bypass the intellect (Abba and Ima)
altogether; the intellect plays no role in the creation of the emotions (Z’eir
Anpin). These four hairs and four white areas are manifestations of the four yuds
in the milui of the Name Havayah whose numerical value is 72. The Name Havayah can be spelled out four different ways, as we
mentioned previously (in our discussion of parashat Teruma). When is
spelled out such that its numerical value is 72, four yuds are used.
This spelling out of the Name is associated with the sefira of chochma. [The numerical value of] each of these [four] yuds [is 10, and
they] each inter-include another 10. This yields 400, which is the numerical
value of the word for “sackcloth” (sak). As we mentioned on a previous occasion, inter-inclusion is the hallmark
of holiness. Now, the strands [i.e., the threads of the sackcloth] manifest the hairs
themselves of the above-mentioned four strands [of the hair of Arich Anpin],
while the holes in between the threads of the sackcloth manifest the four white
spaces. The latter look like black white paper on which is written black
letters, i.e., the [dark] hairs. And in fact, on the head of Arich Anpin
they are as white as white snow. Corresponding to these, in the realm of evil opposite the world of Atzilut,
there are 400 red [hairs]. These are called the “garment of hair” (Genesis 25:25) of the red-haired Esau. Almost all aspects of the created order have corresponding entities in
the realm of evil, as it is written, “You have made one opposite the other”
(Ecclesiastes 7:14). This is in order to afford man the possibility of free
choice. Nonetheless, the choice is weighted in favor of good and holiness, as
the ensuing discussion will demonstrate. Whereas Abraham personified the Divine attribute of chesed, Isaac
personified gevura. Esau, the son of Isaac, personified the fallen, evil
aspect of gevura. He is therefore associated with the color red. This accords with what I have taught you, that in the evil realm
opposite the world of Atzilut, the only evil that has been rectified is
that opposite Z’eir Anpin and its Nukva, which are [the
archetypes of] the wicked Esau and his wife. But the evil that is opposite Abba
and Ima of the world of Atzilut did not undergo the rectification
process of becoming a partzuf, but rather remained simple points,
similar to how the primordial kings [i.e., the sefirot of Tohu] were
before they were rectified. Herein lies the essential superiority of intellect over emotion. Whereas
the evil emotions (evil love, hatred, etc.) can function harmoniously (i.e.,
behave as a partzuf), the evil intellect cannot. On the side of evil,
then, intellect is always subservient to emotions, that is, it serves simply as
a way to justify and rationalize the emotions (and devise plans to satisfy
them) rather than as a way to direct or influence them. In contrast, since the
holy intellect can behave as partzufim, it has the power of its combined
elements working together and can therefore influence the emotions. Now, you already know that in the holy [side of creation] there must be
hairs in order to achieve proper rectification, that is, in order to diminish
the light such that it can be channeled through the tubes of the hairs in a
highly filtered way. This is necessary in order that the lower realms be able
to bear the light without being nullified and dying, as happened originally. The concept of these hairs, which form part of the rectification
process, are not to be found in the evil that is opposite Abba and Ima
of the world of Atzilut, only in the evil opposite Z’eir Anpin
and its Nukva, which are [the archetypes] of Esau and his wife. Hair, as an element of rectification, appears only in the context of a partzuf. The phenomenon of hair which occurs in the realm of holiness at the
level of Abba and Ima occurs in the realm of evil at the level
opposite Z’eir Anpin and its Nukva. This is why Esau was born
entirely covered with red hair, while Jacob—who was [the archetype] of Z’eir
Anpin of holiness—was not hairy (Genesis 27:11). This is because the entirety
of Atzilut is completely rectified, and therefore hair is necessary only
at the level of Abba and Ima, leaving Jacob [i.e., Z’eir Anpin]
without hair. The intensity of light at the level of Z’eir Anpin—the
emotions—is dim enough that there is no “danger” of it producing hair. The evil
life force that will be channeled into the world as a result of this hair
(i.e., that of Esau, the evil Z’eir Anpin) will be enough to sustain the
realm of evil, but not enough to empower it to perpetrate its designs on
creation. As we said above, the existence of a minimal amount of evil in the
world is necessary in order to afford man free choice. This is the mystical meaning of the 400 men who accompanied Esau (Ibid, 32:7). They correspond to the 400 [levels] mentioned above, which in turn are referred to as the 400 silver shekels [with which Abraham paid for the Machpelah cave] (Ibid, 23:16).
That is, a contraction of the life force of holiness through the channel
of hair to the realm of evil would be disastrous at these levels, since the
intensity of their light is much greater than that of Z’eir Anpin.
Transmission of life force this way from them to the realm of evil would grant
evil much too much power. Now, when a person puts sackcloth on his loins, he weakens the power of
those 400 hairs whose numerical value is that of the word for “sackcloth.”
[This is so also because] these hairs are similar to sackcloth, which is made
out of strands of hair-like material. He causes these supernal hairs to be
whitened like white snow, and then the 400 white areas between them, called the
400 silver shekels, together with the [energy in the] empty holes between the
strands of the sackcloth will shine forth through the holes in the sackcloth. The sackcloth will then become white like silver, and become like the
holy linen tunic [worn by the High Priest on Yom Kippur]. For the word for
“linen” [bad] transforms into the word for “sackcloth” [sak] in
the system of atbash. [Thus ends our ari from elsewhere in the writings of the Ari zal.
We now return to the original text we began with.] Now, when an [ordinary] priest performed the duty of “lifting up the
ashes” of the altar, he also had to wear a linen garment. The truth is that the priestly garments (other than those of the high
priest) were all of linen, and all the priests wore these linen garments
whenever they performed any of the rites in the Temple. However, it is
interesting to note that the fact that they were made of linen is not
specifically mentioned when the commandment to prepare these garments is given
(Exodus 28), but it is mentioned here, with regard to the commandment of
“lifting up the ashes.” This would seem to indicate that the fact that the
priestly garments were made of linen is somehow intrinsically connected to this
mitzva.
The fact that in the process of burning the sacrifice there is a part of
the animal that cannot ascend on high, i.e., the ash, indicates that this
element of the animal cannot be assimilated into holiness. When he removed this element, the priest had to wear linen garments in
order to accomplish that which was described above in reference to the
sackcloth. In other words, removing the residue of the sacrifice that could not be
assimilated into Divinity is analogous to neutralizing the 400 evil hairs of
Esau, which provide sustenance for the forces of evil. In Chassidut, the Kabbalistic dynamic just described is translated into
psychological terms reflected and relevant to daily life, as follows: The
sacrificial service is paralleled by the process of prayer. In both cases, the
animal elements of man are elevated and refined by the fiery passion of the
heart aroused by singing G-d’s praises and contemplating His infinity. However,
also in both cases, there is an element of residual animal life force that
cannot be elevated. In man, this “ash” is the depression he feels over his own
animal nature after having experienced the transcendence of Divine reality in
prayer. Feeling the closeness of G-d and the ecstasy of ascent should
grant a person enough frustration with his material nature to inspire him to
work on it, but not throw him into depression over it. Depression, though not
an explicit sin, is the gateway to all other sins, since it engenders despair
and hopelessness. How tragic it would be for the holy experience of prayer and
Divine closeness to leave a person with the dejected feeling of his own
worthlessness that would in turn make him give up! Thus, before he even begins to pray, he should separate himself from
this negativity, this leftover ash that will result from his ardent, fiery
service of G-d. Therefore we read this passage of the Bible before morning
prayers, in order that it be as if we performed this rite in the Temple. We are
thus protected, with G-d’s help, from any negative side effects of ecstatic
meditation and prayer. Biography of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria More articles from Rabbi Yitzchak Luria Rabbi Moshe Yaakov Wisnefsky is a scholar, writer,
editor and anthologist. Originally from Los Angeles, he moved to Israel in
1977, and currently lives in Jerusalem. |
In this passage, which opens this week’s Torah-reading, the Torah
describes the commandment known as “lifting up the ashes” (Maimonides, Mishneh
Torah, Tamidin uMusatim 2:10-15). This was one of the first things done in the
daily Temple service, after the fire on the altar had been burning the sacrifices
all night. In this ritual, the priest (kohen) would collect a certain
amount of the ashes on the top of the altar and place them on the ground next
to the altar; these ashes would be absorbed into the ground on the spot. This
was done every morning. In addition, whenever the ashes on the altar
accumulated such that there was no more room on the wood, the priest would
collect these ashes and take them outside the camp (or, when the Temple was
built in Jerusalem, outside the city walls) and deposit them there.
Spiritually, a sacrifice consists of both an “upward” and “downward”
Therefore, the emotions must have their own independent source in the
soul apart from the intellect. This source is in the partzuf of Arich
Anpin, which is higher (and precedes) both the partzufim of the
intellect (Abba and Ima) and that of the emotions (Z’eir Anpin).
And here we see an interesting thing: while in the conscious part of the soul,
the intellect is higher and precedes the emotions, in the super-conscious will
(Arich Anpin), the situation is reversed; the source of the emotions is
higher and precedes that of the intellect. In other words, up there in the
super-conscious parts of the soul, the emotions are superior to and more “real”
than the intellect. It is only in our conscious lives that the intellect is
superior to the emotions, because in the process of becoming conscious the
emotions suffer a fall in that they become tainted by the ego. But “up there,”
in our purer selves, our emotions are more the “real thing” than our intellect.
Now, the forces of evil seek to overcome this situation and undergo the
rectification process [of becoming a partzuf] as well all the way up to
the levels that are opposite Arich Anpin, Abba, and Ima of
Atzilut, and thus be able to channel their light through hairs the same
way as is done in the side of holiness. Referring to this, Scripture states:
“If you will ascend like an eagle, and put your nest amongst the stars, I will
pull you down from there, says the L-rd.” 
The ashes are produced by the residual holiness of the altar and its
inassimilable elements, such that what is left is only ash, similar to dust. |
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