The Rebbe on How Animals Are Different From People

Welcome to a weekly program, The Inside Story of Chabad in America through the Mindel archives. This week's program is a continuation of last week. We spoke last week about the Manhattan group that the Frierdiker Rebbe and the Rebbe were very concerned [about], and they sent Rabbi Mindel every single week. They had questions. You have to look at last week's program. And they came back and they asked the questions, and then he [?] wrote down the questions, [the Rebbe?] wrote down the answers. So we did last week's program, and now we're going to continue.

This was based on [unclear], and the questions that that group had, that the Rebbe and the Frierdiker Rebbe were very, very concerned, and they wanted to know in details. And I'm going to do it now, a continuation, other questions that they had, and the Rebbe wrote. This is the ksav yad of the Rebbe, so I'm going to read the ksav yad and I'm going to translate that into English as much as I can.

[Reading in Hebrew: Sha'alah [unclear].] What's the question? What is the meaning of this, that it says by the creation, "And Hashem saw it was good"? Seemingly, here are two questions. Number one, what is the lesson that we can learn out from here, that Hashem saw it was good? And the second thing is, isn't it obvious? It's understood, everything Hashem creates is good, so why does it say so?

Here the Rebbe [?], before he answers this question, he wrote down a hakdama, an introduction. The introduction is an introduction, and then we'll see the answer after knowing the three introductions that the Rebbe gave.

[Reading in Hebrew.] What does it say here? The entire creation is divided into four levels. Number one, the inanimate species, like stones, earth, water, metal. Number two, the growing species, like trees, grass, plants and so on. The third is the living species: animals, fish, birds, insects. And the fourth thing is the speaking: people, which is man, who has intellect.

The man, that's different. There is a fundamental difference between the other three and man, that the other three can only be affected. They can only be a mekabel, but they cannot affect others; they cannot be mashpia. They [unclear], and they were created with the nature, as we're going to explain.

Then the Rebbe writes [?]: not only the inanimate and the growing species cannot affect and have a certain nature, as we see that they cannot even move, but even the living species, who does many things and changes to his surrounding, so you might think seemingly he does have the power to affect, it should be different. Contrary, you might think, contrary to what was just stated. But it will be shown, the Rebbe writes [?], that even the living species does not have the power, as the Rebbe is going to explain soon.

Now the Rebbe will explain how the animals can change and affect, but they're still different than man. Now, how do we see that animals do have an effect? We see, like [reading in Hebrew: [unclear] ha-nemalah [?]], it's because the ant gathers its food in the summer for the winter, because then it will naturally not have food. Also, the silkworm weaves clothes for itself, which is very appropriate for his situation. [Reading in Hebrew: [unclear].] I'm reading the Rebbe's handwriting here. The bee builds its honeycomb like an expert architect, and many like [them]. [Reading in Hebrew: [unclear].]

Nevertheless, we see things that are different, but they're not like people, because that's the nature, and he's really not adding anything to creation. Whereas the man, in addition to the fact that his actions are not forced, and because of his free choice he's able to oppose his natural will, moreover, he has the power to create and build in the world. Meaning that if his actions are done properly, he's able to fix the world, to purify, improve and illuminate it. And as the sages say, he becomes a partner with [unclear], with Hashem, in the creation.

That is the first introduction that the Rebbe gives to the answer that he asked in the beginning.

Now the Rebbe is giving a second introduction. [Reading in Hebrew: [unclear].] Engineer, yes. [Music] What is it? An expert engineer who makes a machine: just like there will be nothing missing in a professional machine from what is needed to do this job, so too there will be no part and thing in it that does not bring any usefulness to the job, and that it can be with it, it can be without it. And if this is not the case, then it's a lack in the one who made the machine. It has to be perfect. Because kal vachomer, how much more so, that the Creator of the world did not create anything for nothing in the world in general, and in particular, every part is important. And since a person was given power to purify the world and improve it, this shows that this is his mission here on earth, and this is what is expected from him. And this is not a choice; it's an obligation. So a man is different.

Now the Rebbe gives a third introduction. [Reading in Hebrew.] Okay. The true meaning of the word "good" is only something which is completely perfect. Because if you are able to improve it and perfect it more, then the thing that is holding back the perfection, that's bad. So it's as if there is bad in the perfect thing, and you cannot say [that] anything that has bad is true good.

Therefore, the answer: according to the first hakdama. Yes, and this is an answer to the question. Since a person is able to create and build in the world, as we said before, and more so, he must take part in building the world and improving it, and it was in the manner that the world was created, as we said in the example in the second [introduction], [unclear], a person can make two mistakes. What? First mistake. [Reading in Hebrew.] This gives room for two mistakes. One mistake: a person might say, it is with my power, and it is me who is improving the world, and only through my work is the world becoming from bad to good. [Second,] a person might say, because Hashem is unable to create a perfect world, that's why He created it in this manner.

That's why the pasuk says, [unclear] Hashem saw, from the beginning. I'll say that in English. So this is why the pasuk says at the end of every single creation, "And Hashem saw." When the Creator sees the thing that was created, He sees truly. He sees not only what is revealed and can be seen by everyone; He also sees what the thing has hidden in it, the potential of it. That's the word. So right in the six days of creation, as soon as He created, He saw that it was good. And good means completely good, perfect, because if it's not perfect, it's not good.

So this is the answer to these two mistakes that one can have: that Hashem was certainly able to create a perfect world, and also that He actually saw this perfection right in the beginning. [Reading in Hebrew: [unclear].] And the person, what did the person do? He's only megaleh, and the person's job is only to reveal in actuality what is already potentially there. [Unclear] this is true for himself: then he reveals the power that he has hidden in him, and through this reveals in the creation the hidden true good. And this is the answer to these people.

So in other words, Hashem sees the finished product. Only Hashem [saw that] it was good. So when we see the world, we might think that it's not good, that it's not quite finished, perfect. So Hashem is saying here: yes, in potential everything, every part, is created, and it's just that the man, a person, is the one that needs to finish the job. And this is the intention of creation of the world.

Now, over here, I think that the small words, I think that the Rebbe mentioned there, this is adding to this, so that we can and should finish it and be His partner. But yet, if that is the case, a man might come to the false conclusion, thinking, "It is I who did this." So that's why Hashem says, that I mentioned, that Hashem finished in the first day, in the potential, everything. And this is the answer to the group.

There's much more, right, but I think we have no time today. I don't know, next week we're probably going to, maybe I will use another... There's another question that the people asked, that the Mabul [?] destroyed the world, and why Hashem [?] had to build and destroy. That's another discussion. Maybe there's maybe five, six, seven pages. I don't know if we're going to do it next week, but [unclear] next week we'll have a program, maybe on something else. Thank you.