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Orchard of Delights Pekudei
the Tabernacle and the Temple as a means of rectifying the sin of manner, a “big man.” It is ultimately a matter of perspective.
the Golden Calf, Achashverosh’s desecration of the golden Temple Just as the Tabernacle’s construction embodies deep spiritual
vessels and the golden garments recalls the sin of the Golden Calf. secrets, so too the human being’s physical anatomy reflects a much
A third link between the two episodes is that both involved eating higher reality. Significantly, the ten sefirot, one of the most basic
and drinking in an extremely impious fashion, as the Torah recounts, Kabbalistic paradigms for describing how an infinite God creates,
“They arose early the next day and offered up elevation offerings constantly recreates, and sustains the world, are regularly likened to
and they brought peace offerings [to the Golden Calf]. The people both the Tree of Life and the human physical form. Often, in artistic
sat to eat and drink and they rose up to licentious behavior” (Exodus renderings, the sefirot are superimposed onto the forms of a tree or
32:6). At Achashverosh’s feast, the impious festivities also descended a man.
into debauchery as witnessed by the king’s request (elucidated by Further, the Kabbalah teaches that in reality only a small part of
the Midrash) that Queen Vashti present herself naked to the men, the soul is enclothed in the body while the rest remains rooted in the
wearing only her crown. upper worlds. The lower aspects of the soul manifest in this world
and are always connected to the higher levels of soul whose influence
What, if any, is the relationship between the catastrophic effects
of the sin of the Golden Calf and Purim? As implied above, the is muted and mostly unconscious. At special moments, such as in
Giving of the Torah was supposed to return humanity to the utopian prayer, while dreaming, or during a peak experience, the higher level
state of the Garden of Eden – to humanity’s level of consciousness of soul is manifest more fully below. The higher the spiritual level
prior to Adam and Eve’s sin. The Torah was to be the Tree of Life one attains, the more the upper soul is drawn down into the body
from which man would now be able to partake. The impurity of where its influence and power are felt in this world.
the snake would be permanently removed and eternal life would We return now once again to the concept of the Tabernacle
become a reality. The Arizal explains that the main protagonists symbolizing all reality. The Tabernacle and its service teach us that
in the story of Purim are soul sparks of the very same characters although the lower worlds manifest the effects of what is taking place
in the Garden of Eden: Achashverosh and Vashti embody Adam in the upper worlds, the relationship is not merely one-sided. We, in
and Eve’s unrectified aspects, while Mordecai and Esther embody the lower worlds, also effect what takes place in the upper worlds
their rectified ones. The snake is none other than Haman. Thus, the through our thoughts, speech, and action. This bilateral influence is
Scroll of Esther can be read as describing the very same interplay fundamental to all Kabbalistic and Chassidic thought. The services
of primordial and archetypal energies as that which occurred in the in the Tabernacle, the Temple, and more recently our synagogues
Garden of Eden, yet this time with a happier ending. Mordecai and teach us that reality really is a two-way street: we are profoundly
Esther’s triumph did not signal the final redemption, but certainly affected by forces far greater than ourselves, by energies beyond our
brought about important rectifications. immediate understanding, yet we also have the ability, and even
responsibility, to effect the higher spiritual worlds, not just during
The Talmudic Sages allude to one such rectification when they
state that the Jews re-accepted the Torah at the time of Purim, in formal worship but in fact through all our actions. By doing so, we
a manner that was on a higher spiritual level than the manner in shape our own present and future.
which they accepted it at Sinai. At Mount Sinai, the Jews accepted Jewish tradition teaches that through our actions we become
the Torah willingly, but according to the Midrash there was a certain partners with God in creation (Shabbat 10). This implies that creation
implicit – if not explicit – sense of coercion. In Persia, the Jews is not a finished product; it is a work in progress, and we have a major
recognized God’s behind the scenes involvement and freely accepted role in determining its development. With this statement, we again
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