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Orchard of Delights
which all worlds, physical and spiritual, would evolve. (For a more
detailed explanation of this process, see “The Small Alef of Vaikra”
above, and The Mystical Nature of Light, pp. 59-60.)
Another important set of Kabbalistic concepts that utilize the
relationship between circles and lines are the two basic models
for the arrangement of the sefirot as either concentric circles, one
within another, or as three vertical lines. The sefirot in the previous
primordial World of Tohu (World of Chaos) are in general associated
with the construct of concentric circles. These were the sefirot that
broke in the cataclysmic “breaking of the vessels.” In our World
of Rectification, which is still in the process, as it were, of “picking
up the pieces,” the sefirot are now associated with the shape of our
present sefirotic model – three vertical lines.
In these two Kabbalistic paradigms, the circle precedes the line
and therefore the line symbolizes a more “mature” developmental
stage. Despite this understanding, the World of Tohu is not to be
viewed negatively. There was nothing intrinsically wrong with the
light of tohu; rather, since its vessels were not mature enough to hold
that world’s powerful light, they broke.
A third Kabbalistic concept that reflects the relationship between
circles and lines is the comparison between the transcendent and
immanent natures of God. On the one hand, God transcends time
and space and any description whatsoever, while, on the other hand,
He is ever-present and immanent in every aspect of reality. God in
His transcendent role is referred to as Sovev Kal Olmin ([The One
Who] Surrounds All Worlds). Note that the word “sovev” begins
with the letter samech. God, in His immanent role, is referred to as
Malei Kol Olmin, ([The One Who] Fills All Worlds). Once again, the
images associated with these concepts are of God, as it were, either
encircling all worlds (Sovev Kal Olmin) or of His entering into all
worlds in the shape of a line descending from above to below (Malei
Kol Olmin).
Having placed the relationship between circles and lines in a
Kabbalistic context, we can now return to our original question
about why the subject of communal offerings and the holiday cycle
appear in this portion, and show how this relates to the three lines
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Chukat
the concept of process and achievement. The Ba’al Shem Tov taught
that if you want to pull someone out of a muddy ditch, you must
sometimes be willing to get dirty, by descending into the ditch to
lend him a hand. Sometimes other means may work but ultimately
one must be willing to get dirty in order to accomplish the task at
hand.
This principle can be applied to many situations in life. Very
little in life is handed to us on a silver platter; in order to achieve
our goals we must be willing to role up our sleeves and work hard,
suffering many less than ideal situations along the way. Rarely does
one complete a degree, perfect an art, master a technique, succeed
in a profession, or amass wealth without tremendous effort, much of
which is not immediately rewarding. Thus, the modern catchphrase
“No pain – no gain” or the much more ancient Jewish teaching, “the
reward is commensurate with the suffering” (Pirkei Avot 5:26).
When applied to the laws of the red heifer, this principle sheds some
16 light on the matter. Those who work hard to prepare the red heifer’s
ashes, which will purify others, become impure in the process, but
since the goal is purifying others, the temporary impurity is a small
price to pay. If giving to others was always so easy and the results
were always so immediately apparent and gratifying then everyone
would constantly sacrifice for others. The truth is that oftentimes
giving is difficult and entails much self-sacrifice and not everyone is
willing to act so altruistically.
A beautiful insight into how this principle works in terms of life
and death and Torah study can also be learned from this passage.
The Rabbis derive this insight homiletically from the juxtaposition
of the laws of the red heifer and the next passage dealing with the
legal ramifications of a person dying in a tent. Although, on a literal
peshat level, the latter passage seems to deal with the subsequent
ritual purity of the tent and the articles within it, on a derash
level, the Talmud explains that the tent in the verse is the “tents
of Torah,” based on the fact that the Torah states elsewhere that
“Jacob was a sincere man, a dweller in tents” (Genesis 25:27). Since
the Sages understood the tents that Jacob dwelled in to be the “tents
of Torah” (that is, the study hall or metaphorically, the Torah way
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