Explanations of the Prayer - Ashrei - Part 10

00:00 So we were in the middle of explaining the verse, “Hashem supports all who fall and straightens all who are bent.” The letter nun is missing here. We explained that King David did not include a verse beginning with nun because nun represents falling: “Fallen, she shall not rise again, the virgin of Israel.” The verse speaks of a fall from which there will be no recovery. That is a very, very troubling verse. It sounds as though the Jewish people have fallen in a way that leaves no possibility of rising again. So King David wanted to correct this. Instead of writing a verse beginning with nun, what did he write? One beginning with samech. And not only that: he wrote a verse that heals the soul. The prophet said, “Fallen, she shall not rise again,” and David said, “Hashem supports all who fall.” “Hashem supports all who fall and straightens all who are bent.” It says the opposite: every kind of fall has a remedy, a way forward—“Hashem supports all who fall and straightens all who are bent.” We mentioned several points about this from the siddur. There is material in the siddur on this whole subject. One point is also especially relevant now: the chapter of Tehillim for the Rebbe that we began saying this year on 11 Nissan. We began saying chapter 111, which contains the verse, “They are upheld forever and ever, fashioned in truth and uprightness.” “Upheld forever”—that too is the idea of support, of being upheld forever. There he cites a teaching of the Baal Shem Tov, or what the Rebbe said [unclear] this past Cheshvan, which was the Baal Shem Tov’s sixtieth year. So he spoke about support, about being upheld forever, and explained the whole subject of the letter samech at length in Chassidus.

02:08 And the whole subject—there he also brings in the whole idea of “supports all who fall” and “upheld forever.” The Rebbe also brings this in the maamar “Semuchim La’ad.” When we reach that verse, with Hashem’s help, we’ll see that in one of the maamarim the Rebbe also brings the Rebbe’s maamar for Purim. He brings it from the—“On that night.” No, in the Purim 5717 maamar he also discusses this subject. In serving Hashem, there are two kinds of falls. One kind of fall is part of serving Hashem. There are several kinds of falls a person can experience in serving Hashem. There is a fall that is part of serving Hashem, as it says even of a tzaddik, “A tzaddik falls seven times and rises.” So even a tzaddik sometimes experiences a fall. That is not a problem; it is simply ratzo vashov, an ebb and flow, and at times he needs to experience a fall. Generally speaking, when moving from one level of service to another, there has to be a period of nothingness in between. Like Rabbi Zeira, who fasted a hundred fasts to forget the Babylonian Talmud so that he could understand the Jerusalem Talmud as well. In other words, when a person moves from one kind of service to another, there is a certain period, a certain time, of falling. That fall can take several forms. Each of us can see it clearly in everyday life. It happens often with bochurim. That’s the stage of life they’re in; they have, how do you put it, youthful energy. There are ups and downs. As long as those ups and downs are within a normal balance—that is, there are days when things go well for him, as they should, and there are days when they do not go well. That does not

04:13 mean things are as they should be. So he is in a temporary state of falling, a few down days. That is what we call a fall in the normal course of things. It is a fall that leads to a rise afterward, because that is the pattern: a person falls and then gets up. A descent for the sake of an ascent. Even a feeling of emptiness is a kind of fall, and it is necessary for the change that allows him to rise. There is another kind of fall: a forceful fall. It is like throwing an animal down with all one’s strength, so that its body is broken, damaged, destroyed. In other words, it is a fall that causes harm. In a person’s spiritual life, that is when the fall is out of proportion to his standing and condition. Sometimes you see a person who has fallen in such a way that it is no longer just a matter of not feeling like davening or learning. He has fallen all the way to the other extreme, into matters belonging to the three utterly impure kelipos—things that are truly wrong. That fall is out of proportion, from one extreme to the other. It is already the kind of fall that really falls into the category of...

05:29 Now, section 16 of the Purim maamar explains this in very strong terms. The whole subject is connected to Purim. In light of this, you can make the connection. That is what is meant here by “Hashem supports all who fall”: all who fall, every kind of fall. There is a fall that follows the normal pattern, and there is a fall that does not. Whatever kind of fall may occur in serving Hashem, one must not despair. A person falls into despair and says, “I’m in a bad place,” and thinks there is no way he will ever get out of that state. Many people fall into that way of thinking, and it brings them to despair, inner unrest, and so on and so forth. So the verse says here, “Hashem supports all who fall.” What kind of fall? Whether it is a fall in the normal course of things, as in “A tzaddik falls seven times and rises,” or a fall that is out of all proportion—even if, G-d forbid, he has fallen to the very depths. Of that too we say, “Hashem supports all who fall.” Hakadosh Boruch Hu gives us support, help and assistance, so that help reaches the person from Above—help to do teshuvah. Sometimes it comes through the heavenly voice mentioned in the name of the Baal Shem Tov. Sometimes it comes in other ways: help is given to him from Above. “Hashem supports”—he is given all sorts of help from Above, in the manner of support. When you support a person, you sustain him. Hakadosh Boruch Hu supports him and gives him strength to hold on. Similarly, “and straightens all who are bent.” The difference between someone who has fallen and someone who is bent is like the difference in physical terms. Someone who has fallen has fallen; his whole body is on the ground. Someone who is bent, by contrast, has not yet fallen. He is still standing, but he has become somewhat bent over.

07:30 So what is the difference between someone who has fallen and someone who is bent, just as there is a difference physically? The difference exists spiritually too. Someone who has fallen has already fallen into improper things, perhaps even in actual practice. That is a fall: he has actually fallen into things that are not good, whatever they may be. Someone who is bent has not yet fallen and is still holding on, but he is bent over. That is, he lowers his head, as an animal does. There is the concept of bowing in holiness, and the difference between prostration and bending the knee. If you have completely nullified yourself to G-dliness, that is called prostration. With bending the knee, you still retain a sense of yourself; it is only bittul hayesh, nullification of the ego. But that can also exist. By contrast, with a fall, the whole body has fallen. In other words, his spiritual state has already fallen downward; he has actually fallen into undesirable things. And then there is the matter of bending: he is beginning, at least on his part, to enter a decline in his desires. He has not yet reached the point of actually falling, but he is already beginning to feel a pull in his heart. He bends himself toward undesirable things, at least to the extent of bending. Of this it says, “Hashem supports all who fall and straightens all who are bent.” Based on this, the Tzemach Tzedek also explains in one place that King David’s inclusion of the verse “Hashem supports all who fall and straightens all who are bent” changes the meaning as well: Hakadosh Boruch Hu does not let a person fall. On the contrary, He supports him and helps him out of all his straits and difficulties. Accordingly, this also changes the meaning of what the prophet Amos...

09:22 It says, “Fallen, she shall rise no more, the maiden of Israel”—and this too is “for the sake of Yosef.” It’s very interesting that the Tzemach Tzedek explains how this verse changes “for the sake of Yosef.” What does “for the sake of Yosef” mean? There’s an interpretation people give—I don’t know who says it, or whether it’s a derash; I don’t know if it might be in the Gemara. I don’t remember right now. But they say that, for the sake of Yosef, the verse should be punctuated differently. Instead of saying, “Fallen, she shall rise no more, the maiden of Israel,” you say: “She has fallen, but she shall not fall again.” She won’t fall another time. “Rise, maiden of Israel!” You change the entire cadence and punctuation of the verse, and its plain meaning changes completely. For the sake of Yosef: she has fallen, but she will not fall again. Rise, maiden of Israel—the maiden of Israel will rise. But even before that, the Tzemach Tzedek gives a very interesting explanation according to the inner meaning: the verse really does say, “Fallen, she shall rise no more, the maiden of Israel,” without changing its cadence. “Fallen, she shall rise no more, the maiden of Israel.” He says that the Geulah of Moshiach will be a Geulah in which G-d’s Essence is revealed. That revelation will show that it is specifically down here that the purpose is fulfilled. The purpose is precisely to make a dwelling place in the lower realms, so there will be no need to rise. Not because she won’t be able to rise—she won’t need to. What does “rise” mean? It means having to go upward, as though holiness is above and below is the place of kelipos, so you have to leave the world in order to ascend. But no: G-d’s Essence will be revealed right here below, and therefore there will be no

11:18 rising. You won’t need to rise anymore, because G-d’s Essence will be revealed right here below. Yes, in the lower realms. So that is the meaning. In this way, the entire meaning of the verse changes for the sake of Yosef: it refers to the revelation of Moshiach. Then it will be a case of “Hashem supports all who fall,” not in a way that requires rising, but right here below. Just as we are in this physical world, Hakadosh Boruch Hu will be revealed here in the physical world. So that is the meaning of this verse, “Hashem supports all who fall and straightens all who are bent.” The Rebbe tells a story. In a sicha on Parshas Naso, the Rebbe discusses this idea of “supporting.” He points out that “supports” also means “helps.” He brings up something about support—later they discuss how it relates to those who are bent, whom we mentioned. He explains that support need not come from above; it can also come from below. When you support something so it won’t fall, you can stand above it and hold it up. But you can also support it from underneath. “Supports” means sustains—holds or keeps something in place. The thing providing support can sometimes be below what it supports, holding it up so it won’t fall. Spiritually, sometimes Hakadosh Boruch Hu supports a person from above. But there is also the reverse: a person can, so to speak, support G-dliness. It is as though the Shechinah falls into exile. Malchus—the Shechinah—is in exile. There is the concept of “the Shechinah in exile.” Souls living down here have the power, through their service of Hashem, to support Malchus—to hold it up, as it were, and lift it from its fall. So he explains

13:22 there in the sicha, in [unclear], that this also relates to a chossid and a Rebbe. Usually, the explanation is that the Rebbe supports the chossid—“supports” spelled with a samech—as though the Rebbe holds the chossid up so he won’t fall. That is what a Rebbe does. When we think of a chossid and a Rebbe, the Rebbe holds you up so you won’t fall. But there is also the reverse: a chossid supports the Rebbe. A chossid has the power, by conducting himself according to the Rebbe’s wishes and doing what the Rebbe wants, to provide support from below. As we said, you can support something from underneath. So a chossid has the power to support the Rebbe, to hold up the Rebbe. That is how he presents the idea there. He also tells a story about Reb Motl Poltaver [unclear], who once came out of yechidus with the Rebbe Maharash—with the Rebbe of [unclear]. He was crying and said that in earlier times there were chassidim, and so the Rebbe was a Rebbe to chassidim. They aren’t chassidim. So the Rebbe said something to him about the verse: the chassidim uphold the Rebbe. When they are chassidim, they uphold the Rebbe. So the Rebbe connects this to the idea of supporting, with a samech—“Hashem supports all who fall”—that chassidim have the power to uphold the Rebbe. I’m just mentioning the verse because it also relates to the chapter we began saying this week, “Hashem supports all who fall,” chapter 145. Then he goes on and says, “The eyes of all.” Just in connection with this idea of support and falling: there is a fall that is part of the usual course of things, and there is a fall that is not. There’s a story people tell. I heard it in the name of [unclear], who told it. A young man went into yechidus with the Rebbe. Rabbi Shapira of [unclear] related that he himself, as a young man, once went into yechidus with the Rebbe

15:15 and, as young men do, complained to the Rebbe that his service of Hashem wasn’t stable. He had ups and downs. So the Rebbe told him, “What’s the problem? It’s not a problem; it’s actually something to be expected. That’s how it should be. Ups and downs—that’s the order of things. That’s how avodah works. Don’t make an issue of it.” The main thing is not to remain stuck in a downturn, until it becomes a complete collapse and you’re thrown far away. I’m adding that last part word for word. In any case, that is the idea of “Hashem supports all who fall.” We need to know that Hakadosh Boruch Hu always pulls us out of the mud. We just have to give Him our hand. The Rebbe also said once, yes, “We’ll always pull you out of the mud, but give us your hand.” And it says here: “The eyes of all look expectantly to You, and You give them their food in its time.” So now he goes on to explain this in connection with the fact that the verse speaks about everyone. This whole sequence of verses speaks about Hakadosh Boruch Hu giving us a hand, giving us strength and help. Even if there was an allusion to someone who fell and lost his standing, who fell into all kinds of undesirable things, he can nevertheless do teshuvah. Hakadosh Boruch Hu supports us, helps us, gives us a push, and helps us rise. So he continues, “The eyes of all look expectantly to You.” Everyone therefore places their hope in Hakadosh Boruch Hu, because we know that He is the One who holds us up. So even if there has been a fall and so on, Hakadosh Boruch Hu supports us. That is why “the eyes of all look expectantly to You.” Or, according to the slightly different way the Rabbi explains it, the plain meaning follows the preceding verses in a somewhat different way. He

17:18 says that “the eyes of all look expectantly to You” means that all created beings hope and wait. “Look expectantly” is an expression of hope, as in “whose hope is in Hashem his G-d,” and so on, in the verse “Fortunate is he whose help is the G-d of Yaakov.” It means expectation, hope—one of the expressions of trust. “The eyes of all look expectantly to You”: all created beings—all creatures and everything Hashem created—hope, trust, and expect Hakadosh Boruch Hu to give to them and provide for them. “And You give them their food in its time.” Hakadosh Boruch Hu gives all those who ask their food and the things they need. He gives it in its time. That is what we understand from the sequence of the words. According to the Rabbi’s explanation, all created beings truly know and feel that they depend on Hakadosh Boruch Hu. So all of them wait, hope, and expect Him to provide what they need, materially and spiritually—all created beings, [unclear]. And Hakadosh Boruch Hu gives to each one in its time. On the plain level, “in its time” means at the proper time for each individual. It could have said “in their time,” but it says “in its time.” So the plain meaning emphasizes the time for each one separately. Not just in general: each one has its own time, its own needs. And so He gives to each one. So, so, so, what does he go on to say? That Hakadosh Boruch Hu really provides for everyone. And that is why he goes on to say that even someone who has not behaved as he should might say, “Surely I don’t deserve it.” That is,

19:31 I was in a state where I hadn’t behaved well; I was in an unbecoming state. Even so, if Hakadosh Boruch Hu provides for everyone, then all the more so for the Jewish people. Surely Hakadosh Boruch Hu should provide for them and give to them, “Hashem supports all who fall,” and so on. That is more the plain meaning of the matter. We could have understood it that way, but that is not [unclear]. Let’s go in order. It seems the fellows are tired today. These are the days of Chol Hamoed. [unclear]. This verse speaks about the connection of all souls—in fact, of all living beings—to G-dliness. In other words, this is something felt by all souls, by all created beings, and particularly by Jewish souls: they are connected to G-dliness. They feel that the source of all life is G-dliness, and therefore all their longing, all their thirst, and all their desire for connection are directed toward receiving sustenance from Above. That is the meaning of “the eyes of all.” Why does it say “the eyes of all”? Why specifically eyes? What is being emphasized? “The eyes of all”—because the eye is associated with looking. What does the eye have to do with connection? It is explained that, as is known, the eye creates the strongest connection. There is something about looking: when one person looks at another, the connection formed through the eyes is a very deep one. This is discussed particularly in the Shulchan Aruch. There is also the whole idea of “dove’s eyes”: a dove has the ability to look at its mate, and among doves this connection through looking can even lead to conception. It is a connection that reaches much deeper things. The soul, too, has this quality. That is the meaning of “the eyes of all”: “the eyes of all” refers to connection

22:12 associated with the sefirah of Yesod, the place of connection. That is why it says “all”—kol refers to the sefirah of Yesod, as in “all that is in heaven and on earth.” Regarding the sefiros, we know the verse, “Yours, Hashem, are the greatness, the might, the beauty, the victory, and the splendor, for all that is in heaven and on earth.” “All” refers to the sefirah of Yesod, which is called kol, as we mentioned, because it unites heaven and earth. So here, too, “the eyes of all” refers to the connection between heaven and earth, between created beings and G-dliness. How does that connection happen? This is what the verse says: “The eyes of all look expectantly to You.” The connection of all created beings, and particularly Jewish souls, is through the sefirah of Yesod, the place of connection. And, on a different plane, one can say that this also relates to the tzaddik, to the Rebbe—“the tzaddik is the foundation of the world”—who brings about the connection of the entire world with G-dliness. So because of this connection, “the eyes of all look expectantly to You”: there is always hope, anticipation, trust, and thirst for G-dliness. Then the verse says, “And You give them their food in its time.” It is explained at length that the verse says “in its time,” not “in their time.” In the order of these ideas, “in its time” is masculine and refers to kol, to this aspect of Yesod that bestows. In other words, the meaning of “And You give them their food” is that Hakadosh Boruch Hu provides food and sustenance for each and every soul “in its time”—according to the time and the capacity of the connection through Yesod. Yesod is masculine; it is the foundation of Malchus and the power of [unclear]. That is why the verse says “in its time” in the masculine. And if we apply this verse to a person’s inner life, it means that through a chossid’s connection—which is the “eyes of all”

24:18 “look expectantly to You”—through the connection of chassidim, whose eyes are directed toward G-dliness with thirst and longing, who wait, hope, and want to be connected to G-dliness through their connection to the Rebbe, then “You give them their food.” The mashpia thus brings about their receiving sustenance. We need to receive it “in its time”—at the time of the one who bestows. In other words, it will be according to the Rebbe’s capacity. That is the deeper meaning, as explained in Mayim Chayim.