Likutei Amarim Chapter 16/17 Class 4/1

End of Chapter 16 Beginning of Chapter 17

אך צירוף זה מצרף הקב״ה כדי להעלות מעשה המצות ועסק התורה, הנעשים על ידי מחשבה טובה הנ״ל, עד עולם הבריאה

But G‑d effects this joining of tevunah to action in order to elevate the performance of the commandments and the Torah study — which are carried out through the influence of the “good thought” (viz., the tevunah) mentioned above — into the World of Beriah;

מקום עליית התורה והמצות הנעשים על ידי דחילו ורחימו שכליים, אשר בהתגלות לבו ממש

the World of Beriah being the level to which ascends the performance of Torah and mitzvot when motivated by a fear and love deriving from one’s meditation, and which are truly revealed in one’s heart.

אבל בלאו הכי נמי עולים לעולם היצירה על ידי דחילו ורחימו טבעיים המסותרים בלב כל ישראל בתולדותם, כמו שכתוב לקמן באריכות

However, even without this joining they rise to the World of Yetzirah, by means of the natural fear and love which are latent in the heart of all Jews from birth, as will be later explained at length.10

In summary: Even he who cannot create a conscious, palpable love and fear of G‑d in his heart, can serve G‑d with a perfect service through the tevunah-emotions. Thereby, too, his performance of the Torah and mitzvot will ascend to the same level as that motivated by a revealed love and fear of G‑d.

——— ● ———

FOOTNOTES

10. Chs. 38, 39, 40.

Chapter 17

ובזה יובן מה שכתוב

With this explanation — that even a fear and love of G‑d which remain concealed in one’s mind and heart suffice to infuse one’s fulfillment of the commandments with vitality, thereby perfecting and elevating them, we will understand the verse:1

כי קרוב אליך הדבר מאד, בפיך ובלבבך לעשותו

“For this thing is very near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.”

The verse states that it is easy for one to fulfill Torah and mitzvot with all three “garments” of the soul — thought, speech and action. The words “with your mouth” refer to speech, “with your heart” — to thought, and “that you may do it” refers to action. In a deeper sense, however, “your heart” refers not only to the power of thought, but also to the heart as the seat of the emotions — love, fear, and so on. The verse is telling us, then, that it is within easy reach of every Jew to fulfill the mitzvot with a feeling of awe and love of G‑d. Concerning this, the Alter Rebbe poses the question:

דלכאורה הוא בלבבך נגד החוש שלנו

At first glance, [the statement that “this thing is very near to you]…in your heart” seems contrary to our experience — in our experience we find that it is no simple feat to acquire a spirit of love and fear of G‑d.

והתורה היא נצחית

(2Yet the Torah is eternal),3 hence it could not refer only to Moses‘ generation — “a generation of understanding” — but must hold true for our own age as well.

שאין קרוב מאד הדבר, להפך לבו מתאוות עולם הזה לאהבת ה׳ באמת

In our experience we see that it is not a “very near thing” to change one’s heart from worldly desires to a sincere love of G‑d, for by nature one is inclined toward the former.

And as is written in The Duties of the Heart,4 “Desires for worldly pleasures are unable to dwell in the heart together with a love of G‑d.” In order to attain a love of G‑d, therefore, it is necessary for one to change his nature from one extreme to the other — by no means an easy matter!

וכמו שכתוב בגמרא: אטו יראה מילתא זוטרתי היא

Indeed, commenting on Moses‘ statement: “What does G‑d ask of you, but to fear Him?” theTalmud queries:5 “Is fear of heaven a small matter?”

This indicates, as the Rebbe points out, that even in Moses‘ generation (and surely in subsequent generations) it was no simple matter to acquire a fear of G‑d.

וכל שכן אהבה

And if this is true of fear of G‑d, then how much more so — a love of G‑d, for fear of G‑d is generally more easily attainable than love of G‑d.

Thus, not only our experience, but also this quotation from the Talmudseems to contradict the verse which states that fear and love of G‑d are “very near to you.”

וגם אמרו רז״ל דצדיקים דוקא לבם ברשותם

Moreover, our Sages also said6 that only tzaddikim have control over their hearts — to arouse a love and fear of G‑d whenever they so desire.

This latter quotation intensifies the question, as the Rebbe points out. Not only is it not “very near” to us to achieve a love of G‑d, but on the contrary, it is possible only for tzaddikim, who are a minority. Surely the Torah does not address only tzaddikim; how, then, can it state that a love of G‑d is very near to us, indicating that our heart is in our control, that we can divert it from mundane desires to a love of G‑d?

אלא דלעשותו רצונו לומר: האהבה המביאה לידי עשיית המצות בלבד

But the words “that you may do it” refer to a love which merely leads to the fulfillment of the commandments, although, strictly speaking, it is not an actual love.

The author thus interprets the words “that you may do it” as a qualification of the earlier phrase “for it is near to you…with your heart.” What is “near to you with your heart” (i.e., What sort of love is easily attainable)? That love which pertains to action (“that you may do it”).

Thereby we may also understand the order of the words in the verse. The words “in your mouth, in your heart, that you may do it” refer to the three “soul-garments” of thought, speech, and action, as we have observed earlier. However, the order in which they are listed in the verse is difficult to understand, for it seems to be neither an ascending order (action, speech, thought) nor a descending order (thought, speech, action). Why is the middle faculty, speech, put first, followed by thought (“in your heart”), and then action (“that you may do it”)? However, according to the interpretation of the words “that you may do it” given here, this is readily understood. These words follow immediately after the words “in your heart,” for they serve to explain and to qualify them: the love of which the verse speaks here (“in your heart”), is that which leads to action (“that you may do it”).

שהיא רעותא דלבא שבתעלומות לב, גם כי אינה בהתגלות לבו כרשפי אש

This means the hidden desire of the heart; even if it does not burn openly like a flaming fire, yet it can still lead one to fulfill the commandments.

FOOTNOTES
1. Devarim 30:14.
2. Parentheses are in the original text.
3. Maimonides, Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah, 9:1.
4. Chovot HaLevavot, introduction to Shaar Ahavat HaShem.
5. Berachot 33b; Megillah 25a.

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