The raven is saying, "Who
prepares food for the raven, when his young ones cry out to G-d?" (Job
38:41)
Rabbi Tarfon would say: The day
is short, the work is much, the workers are lazy, the reward is great, and the
Master is pressing.
He would also say: It is not
incumbent upon you to finish the task, but neither are you free to absolve
yourself from it. If you have learned much Torah, you will be greatly rewarded,
and your employer is trustworthy to pay you the reward of your labors. And
know, that the reward of the righteous is in the World to Come.
Hod shebeGevurah (glory and
gratefulness within the context of discipline and judgment)
During the twelfth week, it is the
turn of the raven to exclaim with great humility that it is G-d that provides
prey when its young roam in search of food. (Job 38:41) This is the week of Yud
Tes Kislev, known as the Rosh Hashanah of Chassidism, the day in
which the Alter Rebbe was released from prison and the yahrzeit of
the Maggid of Mezeritch.
After being falsely accused of
treason by the enemies of Chassidism, to the point of being threatened with the
death penalty, the Alter Rebbe, through the help of G-d, emerged victorious.
The release of the Alter Rebbe on Yud Tes Kislev directly led to a new
phase in the history of Chabad philosophy. The Alter Rebbe saw it as not only a
vindication of his work in earthly courts, but in the Heavenly Court as well.
The Alter Rebbe became much more open and expansive in his teachings.
The redoubled efforts to spread the
Alter Rebbe’s teachings, celebrated this week, brought Chassidism’s warmth and
love for Judaism into the coldest and most indifferent part of the Jew: the
intellect. Geographically, the capital of "intellectual Judaism” was in
Vilna, Lithuania, where the Alter Rebbe was sent as an emissary.
Chassidism has the power to uplift
even the animals that are the most distant from Hashem. The raven was
literally kicked out of Noah's Ark for not obeying its rule of celibacy.[1] The raven is also known for its cruelty and
indifference to its offspring. However, even the raven can redeem itself. When
Elijah the Prophet fled from the King Ahab and his evil wife, G-d determined
that precisely the raven, which does not even provide for its own young, should
bring food to Elijah.[2]
At the time Elijah ran away, he was
overcome by despair and complained to G-d about the rebellious state of the
Jewish people. G-d sought to teach Elijah that, like the raven, we all have the
potential for warmth and good; it just needs to be revealed.
Interestingly, the very word for
raven in Hebrew, orev, reveals that potential. Orev is related
to the word arev, which, as explained in Week 3, means “responsible for
the other,” as well as “sweet” and “mixed together” as in the saying, Kol
Israel Arevim Zeh LaZeh, which means that “all of Israel is responsible for
(sweet to and mixed together with) one another.” This saying also encompasses
practically the entire basis of Chassidism and the Torah: to love your fellow
as yourself.
The number twelve represents the
twelve tribes of Israel. Despite our differences, and setbacks, we all are
mixed together and responsible for one another and sweet to one another. Upon
his deathbed, Jacob was very concerned about the differences among the
different tribes. The Talmud teaches that his twelve sons
responded to his concern by calling out in unison: “Listen O Israel (a
reference to Jacob), Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is One.”[3]
In Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Tarfon
reminds us that "the day is short, the work is plenty, the workers are
lazy, the reward is great, and the owner insists [urges]." (II: 15) There
is also a strong connection between the New Year of Chassidism and the teaching
of Rabbi Tarfon. Chassidism came to light up a fire in order to awaken those
who were depressed and spiritually asleep. It was like an alarm clock, a spiritual
wake-up call: time is short, now is the time to serve G-d![4]
In this week, the sefirah combination
results in hod shebegevurah. This week, we are inspired by the Alter
Rebbe, who after facing the gevurah of incarceration, reveals even
more the hidden secrets of the Torah through the teachings of the Chabad
Chassidism. The sefirah of hod is connected with the inner
dimensions of the Torah, the Kabbalah, just as Lag Ba’Omer, which is hod
shebehod. Lag Ba’Omer is the yahrzeit of Rabbi Shimon Bar
Yochai, who wrote down the seminal kabbalistic work, the Zohar.
A lesson for this week is that even
the raven and its offspring recognize G-d’s kingship and the importance of
requesting one’s sustenance directly from G-d.[5] We
inspire ourselves in the song of the raven, who knows that it is never alone -
G-d is always by its side.
[1] Midrash Tanchuma, Noach
[2] 1 Kings 17:2-7
[4] Hayom Yom, 17th of Av,
79a
[5] Psalm 147:9
[Gematria Thought: The number twelve is also closely
associated with Elijah the Prophet himself, “a man whose eyes have seen twelve
generations." Bear in Hebrew, dov, has the gematria of
twelve. The Tanach teaches us that before Eliyahu rose to Heaven,
Elisha asked Elijah to bequeath to him twice Elijah’s own power.[6] Shortly thereafter, Elisha purified the waters of
a city, and was insulted by a group of youths. When Elisha responded to their
insult, two bears immediately appeared and killed them.[7]
Elijah is most likely the biblical
figure most associated with the revelation of the hidden and mystical secrets
of the Torah. Elijah’s own teacher, Achiah HaShiloni was also the
teacher of the Ba’al Shem Tov. It is therefore quite appropriate that he should
be connected to the week of Yud Tes Kislev, given that the Alter
Rebbe, who was freed on Yud Tes Kislev, taught the kabbalistic secrets
revealed by the Ba’al Shem Tov.
The number twelve is also linked to
time: there are twelve months in the year, twelve halachic hours during the
day, and twelve halachic hours during the night. In the Jewish calendar, a
daytime halachic hour (shaah zmanit) is defined as 1/12 of the time it takes
from sunrise to sunset. A nighttime shaah zmanit is 1/12 of the time
between sunset and sunrise. The exact amount of time of each of these hours
varies throughout the year. When the days are long, as in the summer, a daytime
halachic hour is equivalent to more than sixty minutes. In the winter, when
days are shorter, the daytime hour amounts to less than sixty minutes.
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