Page 628 - 24107

24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Cyan
24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Black
#24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Yellow
24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Magenta
#
#24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Yellow 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Magenta 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Cyan 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 20 - A | 18-01-28 | 12:12:06 | SR:-- | Black
#
Orchard of Delights
can be compared to prayer’s ability to awaken our dormant potential
and enable us to actualize it.
The similarities between the word “ed” (spelled ayin-dalet), which
means witness – as in the heaven and earth being appointed witnesses
in Ha’azinu’s first verse – and the word “ed” (spelled alef-dalet),
which means mist – as in the mist that arose and was needed for
the creation of man – allude to the beautiful connection between the
power of creation and power of prayer. Quite simply put, prayer has
the power to create. Although the first letter in each word is different,
they are homonyms, and the Kabbalah explains that the letters ayin
and alef are interchangeable, especially if a deeper meaning between
words is being sought.
Kabbalah and Chassidut discuss at length two types of spiritual
arousal or awakening: Awakening from Above and Awakening from
Below. Rain represents Awakening from Above, whereas dew or mist
symbolizes Awakening from Below. These two concepts are further
symbolized by heaven and earth, which are called upon to witness
Moses’ prophecy. Just as in creation, where the rising mist and
Adam’s prayer preceded God’s answer of rain, so too human beings
should strive to draw nearer to God through their own Awakening
from Below. Then, they should pray for God’s “response,” a further
“awakening” from above.
Prayer is one of the most potent ways to facilitate this two-way
channel between God and humanity. Often, though, when we are
unable to awaken or arouse ourselves, God initially bestows His
grace from above. Paradoxically, on a deeper level, we should note
that even the original awakening from below often comes secretly
from above.
The Jew’s ultimate task is to constantly bear witness to the world
that there is one God. This is the Jewish people’s way of giving
“greatness to our God.” The cardinal declaration of this belief,
recited in the Morning and Evening Prayer Services, is the Shema:
“Hear O Israel, God our God, God is One” (Deuteronomy 6:4). In
a traditional Torah scroll, the letters “ayin” of the word “shema”
(hear) and “dalet” of the word “echad” (one) are written unusually
628
20 Vayeilech
The Kabbalah delights in delving into the holy words of the Torah
in order to reveal their hidden dimensions. By permuting the letters
comprising these words, the Kabbalah uncovers new associations
and correspondences that reveal the inner dynamics and essence
of the words. These in turn reveal the Torah’s concealed depths.
The Torah’s status as a song is alluded to by a permutation of the
Torah’s very first word – “bereishit” (תישארב). In the Tikkunei Zohar,
a classic Kabbalistic work, this method is used extensively to reveal
the meaning of this word. On its deepest level, these permutations
even reveal secrets concerning the very mechanics of creation (see
“Permutations of the Word Bereishit” in Bereishit).
Alluding to the notion of Torah as song, the word “bereishit” can
be permuted to spell “shirat av” (בא-תריש), literally meaning “the
song of the father” or “the cardinal/essential song.” (The word “av”
is spelled alef, beit and can be pronounced as either “ab” or “av”
because the letter beit can be pronounced as either beit or veit.) Alef
and beit – are the two first letters in the alef-beit, the Hebrew name for
the alphabet. Thus, the permutation “shirat av” could also be read
as “the song of the alef-beit.” This permutation reveals an awesome
insight: the Divine speech of our Father in Heaven was in fact a
song, the song of the alef-beit, the Hebrew letters. God, in effect, sang
the world into existence, and He did this by reciting the words found
in the Torah!!
In Pirkei Avot (5:1) we find the following statement: “With ten
utterances the world was created.” Pirkei Avot is certainly not
considered a mystical treatise or a collection of allegorical sayings.
It is a collection of the Sage’s ethical and moral teachings; therefore,
this dictum can be accepted at face value. The normative tradition,
as brought down in Pirkei Avot, unambiguously declares that the
instrument through which God created the world was, indeed, Divine
speech.
This tradition is based directly on the Torah’s account of creation.
Nine times during the course of creation, the Torah records a
Divine utterance, followed immediately by the very act of creation
mentioned. For instance, on the first day of creation, the Torah states:
“And God said let there be light – and there was light.” The Rabbis
621