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Orchard of Delights Tzav

God calls (“vayikra”) Moses on Rosh Chodesh Nisan from this place. Even the appellation “Jew” – derived from the name “Yehudah”
The alef instead of appearing at the beginning of the Torah, as the (Judah) – means “thanks” and “praise.” When Judah was born,
first letter of creation, adopts a central role on this day in the holiest Leah exclaimed: “This time I will praise God!” (Genesis 29:35).
of places. More than a mere ritualistic expression or superficial lip service,
a constant state of praise, thanks, and acknowledgment pervades
The alef being written especially small in the word “vayikra” also
alludes to the great secret of tzimtzum revealed by the Kabbalah. Jewish consciousness and, in fact, defines the very nature of the
When God “thought” of creating the world, an existential problem Jew and the essential nature of his or her relationship with God.
became immediately apparent. Since no reality can exist beyond (or
outside) the infiniteness of God, where could a finite, “independent”
world possibly find “space” to exist? The Arizal explains that God
“contracted” Himself, as it were, in order to create, a “vacuum” or
womb-like space in which a finite world could then be created. Into
the “vacuum” God shone a ray of light and the world came into being.
The letter alef, which has the numerical value of one, represents the
oneness and unity of God, while the second letter of the Hebrew
alphabet, beit, signifies the duality of the world and God’s seeming
act of contraction to make “space” for the world. (See “One Becomes
Two in Order to Become One” above.)

The act of tzimtzum, which allowed the world to come into existence,
is the sod, the foundational secret, of the Temple in Jerusalem. Just
as God contracted Himself in order to allow the world to come into
existence, He likewise contracted His infinite presence, as it were, in
order to allow the Jewish people (and the world) to perceive Him in a
finite place. The small alef alludes to our ability to actually experience
and comprehend this paradox.
In a sense, we spend our lives trying to live within the paradoxical
context of God both revealing and hiding Himself in the world.
Jacob called the ladder – stretching from the earth to the heavens,
in the very place where the Temple was eventually built – the “gate
to heaven” (Genesis 28:10-17). A Jew must constantly be a ladder
between eternal and temporal time, between infinite and finite space.
“Who is the wise one? One who sees that which is born.” The small
alef, representing the paradox of creation, beckons us to connect
ourselves to the mystery of all life.

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