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Orchard of Delights
The notion that Nadav and Avihu’s sin was drinking wine before
making the offering has stronger textual support (that is to say, it
is closer to peshat) than any other interpretation mentioned above,
as immediately after the incident the Torah warns Aaron and his
sons not to drink wine before performing the Tabernacle service. In
an intriguing mixture of peshat and sod, Rabbi Ari Kahn artfully
explains how Nadav and Avihu’s inebriation was deliberate; they
were attempting to mend what Adam had rent asunder by eating
from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, for according to one
rabbinic tradition, the Tree of Knowledge was a grape vine (Genesis
Rabbah 15:7). Furthermore, Rabbi Kahn argues that by approaching
God in the Tabernacle, Nadav and Avihu attempted to fix Adam
and Eve’s mistake of hiding from God after they ate from the Tree of
Knowledge of Good and Evil. (See Rabbi Ari Kahn’s Explorations,
Parashat Shemini for further elaboration.)
It is interesting to note that Noah also attempted to rectify Adam
and Eve’s sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and
Evil by planting a vineyard after the flood waters had subsided.
Since Adam and Eve had been banished from Eden as a result of
the corrupting influence of wine, Noah hoped to rectify their sin
and begin rebuilding the world anew on the right foot by planting a
vineyard. However, not only did he fail to rectify Adam and Eve’s
sin, his subsequent intoxication led to a further rip in the fabric of
existence (“Noah’s Tragic Flaws”).
On an even deeper level, Nadav and Avihu’s offering can be
understood in the context of their father’s recent actions. Aaron had
been reluctant to stand up to the people during the sin of the Golden
Calf. (Although some commentators have praised Aaron’s reluctance,
claiming that by participating – after trying to stall until Moses’ return
– he prevented the children of Israel from committing the additional
heinous sin of killing him, we will take a different approach here.)
In order to understand Aaron’s actions better it is useful to realize
that the Arizal taught that Aaron was a reincarnation of Haran,
Abraham’s brother (this is alluded to by the following remez: the last
three Hebrew letters of Aaron’s name form Haran’s Hebrew name).
Abraham’s revolutionary monotheistic teachings and his attacks on
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Vayikra א ָר ְקִּיַו
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In Hebrew, the book of Leviticus is called Vayikra, which means “and
He called.” The book of Leviticus begins with the word “vayikra,”
as God calls to Moses from the Tabernacle inviting him to initiate
the Tabernacle service, the model or template for all future Divine
service. God’s call to Moses on Rosh Chodesh Nisan (the first day of
Nisan) is related to the Sage’s statement, “Who is the wise one? One
who sees that which is born” (Tamid 32a). In context, the answer
refers to one who comprehends the birth of the new moon, but in a
broader sense, it refers to one who discerns what consequences an
initial act may lead to.
The Midrash calls Rosh Chodesh Nisan “the day of the ten
crowns,” a phrase alluding to the ten rituals that were performed for
the first time on this day, for it was on this day that Moses erected
the Tabernacle in the desert and the cohanim began performing
the Tabernacle service on Israel’s behalf (Bereishit Rabbah 3:12).
Parenthetically, this service was also performed in the Temple and
even became the basis for synagogue prayer after both Temples
were destroyed. (For further elaboration, see “The Tabernacle, the
Temple, and the Synagogue.”)
Rosh Chodesh Nisan is also significant for several other reasons. The
first mitzvah the Jewish people received as a nation was to establish
Nisan as the year’s first month and to set up the Jewish calendar
according to the secrets that God taught Moses. This first mitzvah
is publicly recited once a year before Rosh Chodesh Nisan as part of
Parashat Hachodesh one of the four special portions read between the
new moon of Adar, the last month of the year, and Pesach, which
occurs in the first month of the year, in Nisan. We learned above
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