המלך בשדה כל השנה – הרב אברהם גליק

00:00 Speaker 1 The Ribbish wants to have a dirah betachtaynim. So what's stopping him? He doesn't need a permit. In Australia we talk about a certificate of occupancy. You know, you build a house, you can't reside there. You can't move in unless the authorities sign off that everything is done properly. You need a certificate of occupancy to be able to occupy those premises. The Ribbish, chas v'shalom, doesn't need a certificate of occupancy from anybody. So he wants a dirah betachtaynim. So what's stopping him? Ribbish aleloim, make yourself a dirah, build your house, and move in. The point is that that's not the nisava. Chassidus adds to the lashon of the Midrash. Nisava HaKadosh Baruch Hu li yis lo dirah betachtaynim. Chassidus says dirah betachtaynim al yedei avodas atachtaynim. And that's essential to understanding the nature of the nisava.

01:06 Speaker 2 You know when you're at a good toychindike farbrengen and you wish it was being recorded? Welcome to Spreading the Springs, Conversations in Chassidus, a podcast farbrengen where we have real conversations about real Chassidus. Shalom aleichem. I'm sitting here at the Piksos to sit here with Rabbi Avram Glick from Melbourne, Australia, a teacher of Chassidus in multiple moistes for many, many years, many decades in Australia and a mashpia for the Anash community. And besides for a little familial connection that brought us together, Bashka Chapatis, I got to have a little bit of discussion with you then a few months ago about Chassidus and I'm very happy that I bumped into you, Baruch Hashem, that I realized you were in Crown Heights and I was able to chap you and you were gracious enough to give me the time to sit and discuss Chassidus in general and we'll go straight into the timely relevant sugya. We're now in Elul and Baruch Hashem we're going to post this during Elul but Amalach Hasadeh, the obvious sugya of Elul, we don't need to only listen to it during Elul. So maybe let's start Taka with the, let's go back to the Amalach Hasadeh in the Ketitoyah and I guess let's take it from there.

02:40 Speaker 1 Okay, thank you. Well, I have to apologize in a sense to those that will be listening because I'm here for a very short period and came Baruch Hashem for a simcha, which means that we have Sheva brachas each night and I'm really a little bit disorientated actually and the only time we could fit it in is now Erev Shabbos, which doesn't allow us enough time to do justice really to the whole inyan. So what I might have to do is just give the audience, people who are listening, some of the references, the Marim Mekames, and they'll just need to-

03:32 Speaker 2 Homework

03:32 Speaker 1 ... to supplement what we're doing, what we're discussing here, you know, beyond that with the various Marim Mekames.

03:42 Speaker 2 Sure.

03:43 Speaker 1 Okay, so the mashal of Melech Basadeh has actually become Niskabel beyond just the Lubavitch community, but in many communities now they are actually using this mashal to explain the special nature of Elul and even presenting it to small children. I know from various moistes where even children in kindergarten know the mashal of Melech Basadeh, you know, that and it's very much a chidush, I think, of Chassidus and especially Chassidus Chabad because traditionally people didn't view the month of Elul in this light, you know, of the Melech coming to be with the people and the Kabbalist Kolom Mesever upon him Yoffes. It's almost as though he's very relaxed with the people and happy to greet them and to meet them. Traditionally Elul was a time of extreme pachad, you know, people are concerned about whether they've done sufficient teshuva and what the din of Rosh Hashanah will bring. So this is sort of with the emphasis more on Yiddishkeit in light of the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov and the Naal Torebe. So in a way it's a very positive thing that it's actually become Niskabel in many communities, changing people's basic understanding of the relationship of the Ribbish and Bnei Yisrael and especially in the Chodesh HaRachamim. But that's the emphasis that we have an opportunity to do teshuva and all the positives, you know, related to teshuva, the various madregas of teshuva, teshuva me'ira but also teshuva me'ahava, which is emphasized in the mashal of the Melech Basadeh where he's The Kabbalists call

06:04 Speaker 1 him the ""So it's, it's, uh, more a, a time of, um, having the opportunity to, to become close to the melekh. That, that's the emphasis.

06:18 Speaker 2 Right.

06:19 Speaker 1 Um, but to take it further, um, you know, the way the mashal is usually presented, um, is that the king wants to have time with, uh, his subjects, those who wouldn't ordinarily have an opportunity to, to meet the king, that never get to the palace. Um, even those who, who would, they're very few and far between. Um, and, and the melekh wants to, to meet and, um, uh, receive, you know, the, the, the, the simple people that wouldn't otherwise have an opportunity to, to connect with him. So he goes out into the field. He leaves the, um, the, the, the palace and goes out into the field where he's with the, the peasants in the field and, uh... But he's very happy to do that and, um, you know, to, to give them an opportunity to see him. So the king leaves his palace, goes out into the field, and he's meeting the people who are there, the, the, the simple farmers, the peasants.

07:36 Speaker 2 Sorry, so if, if, if I was hearing this for the first time, my q- my first question would be, why doesn't the king just invite them to the palace?

07:45 Speaker 1 Because the palace is a, a place where there are protocols and that's where, you know, the king is almost a different persona. That's the king in his full majesty, um, where 」「s’motassim alecha melech」 means 」「sheteheyi moseh alecha」.

08:05 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

08:05 Speaker 1 The king rules with authority, with the ultimate authority, and, um, that, you know, that there has to be this, um, fear of the king. There needs to be that. The 」「lashon chazal」 is sa- is, uh, 」「sheteheyi moseh alecha」.

08:20 Speaker 2 Right.

08:21 Speaker 1 However, on the other hand, uh, the king wants from time to time to relate with, to the people, uh, in a more informal way, in a relaxed way, um, and to give them and everyone the opportunity to, uh, approach him. But there's clearly, you know, these two aspects of melucha. The m- nimshala aspect of it, the 」「yiras hamelech」 and we blow shofar. The, the Torah says that, uh, we blow shofar during the month of Elul-

08:55 Speaker 2 Yeah

08:55 Speaker 1 ...um, to instill yirah in, in, in, in, in the Am.

08:59 Speaker 2 Right.

09:00 Speaker 1 But having said that, uh, the king still wants on occasion, and that's, that's the 」「Chodesh of Elul」, to, um, connect in a different way. But you need both.

09:13 Speaker 2 Right.

09:13 Speaker 1 L- like, like we have the mitzvah of 」「ahavas Hashem」 and 」「yiras Hashem」. You, you really need both.

09:18 Speaker 2 Right. So it sounds like the two words 」「melech basadeh」 bring out those two points. It's not just that the king is making himself available, that's melech. He wants to specifically make himself available in the sadeih and to the anshei hasadeih in that framework. So, so in other words, the... In the nimshal, right? In the mashal, it's, it's pretty easy to just use that imagery, especially because we don't have a king anyway. It doesn't cost us anything to, to make up that mashal, so to speak. Um, but in the nimshal, what does that mean that Hashem is not looking to instill yirah? Like, and especially, you know, with what you just said about the Torah, that of course there's always gonna be that element of yirah. So... Or, or, or maybe let me ask the question differently. In the mashal, we understand that even according to Halakha, there has to be the 」「eimas hamelech」. So like I, like, like you said, it doesn't... It can't be that you just bring the people into the palace and the peasants, you know, just come into the palace like that. But in the nimshal, there's no rules. I mean, Hashem could do anything, so to speak. So why does Hashem have to davka create this situation of Elul? Or why does Hashem wanna create this situation of Elul where he's coming to us in the sadeih as opposed to just having a invitation to him, which I guess would be Rosh Hashanah in, in, in the m- in the,

10:45 Speaker 2 in the palace? Like, why is there a value, um, in Hashem specifically creating this structure like this, that there is a sadeih where he wants to meet us?

10:56 Speaker 1 So, um, I think based on what I'm, what I'll explain soon, uh, that, that, that will be answered. So I'd, I'd rather not just-

11:06 Speaker 2 Yeah

11:06 Speaker 1 ...focus on that directly now.

11:08 Speaker 2 Sure.

11:08 Speaker 1 But through the course of, uh, of, of what we'll be discussing, I think that will be made clear.

11:15 Speaker 2 Sure.

11:16 Speaker 1 Um, and if it's not, ask it again. Um, so there's a sicha of the Rebbe in, um, Likutei Sichos Chelek Dalet, where the Rebbe seems to turn this whole thing upside down, inside out, and it seems like a completely different mashal. Um, the Rebbe says there that, um, the meaning of melech basadeh, the mashal of melech basadeh is... And, and he quotes from Likutei Torah. This is the 」「lashon of the Alter Rebbe」。 Um, 」「Mashal hamelech shekodem bo le'ir」. Now, the way we explained it before is the king is leaving his palace, he's going out into the field to mingle with the simple people, with the peasants, the simple folk. But when you look into the Lashon in Torah-- in, in, in, in Likutei Torah, it's actually the reverse. The Alter Rebbe introduces the Mashal by saying, "Mashal Hammelech shekodem be'ir."

12:28 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

12:29 Speaker 1 So he's not coming from the city to the field. He's in the field, and he's heading to the city.

12:35 Speaker 2 Right.

12:36 Speaker 1 Now, that, that, that, that's not the way we usually understand it. And, you know, to, to almost complicate it more, the question is even stronger that the Alter Rebbe then says, "Yoitzin anshei ha'ir bekav habonov basoder." So we have a reversal of the roles as it's usually understood.

13:01 Speaker 2 Right.

13:02 Speaker 1 The Melech is coming to the city, but he's actually found in the field. "Kodem be'ir ha'ir." And the people are the anshei ha'ir. Yoitzin anshei ha'ir. They're not anshei ha'soder.

13:16 Speaker 2 Right.

13:17 Speaker 1 They're anshei ha'ir who are going out to the kav habonov basoder. So how do we mix it up that way? I mean, how do we get it, uh... You would think the, the mashal back to front. So in, um, Likutei Sichos, in Chelek Dalet, in the Hisafis, Aveilu, the Rebbe, he mazmer this, this whole thing and, uh, explains it to us that the, the Melech basoder, when we say that the king is in the field, there's the essence, there's the etzem, the, the king is obviously, obviously the Havishatah. And there's, uh, the etzem of the Melech, the etzem of Hashem, and there's the giluim as he presents and, um, you know, appears. So the Melech basoder, um, is actually the Havishatah as he finds himself, as he comes through dira b'tach teinim, hi lemata, and this is the ultimate kavana of everything.

14:39 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

14:40 Speaker 1 It's not as though he's leaving the palace and going out into the field. The Havishatah is nimtzah bechol atzmusi davka lemata. As we know that, uh, all the higher olamot are only a re'iyou velikus, a giliyu velikus, a ha'ara velikus, but the etzem is hi lemata. So now the Rebbe is saying that the Melech kodem be'ir, in other words, his real place is in the sader.

15:15 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

15:16 Speaker 1 And his real place is with the anshei ha'sader, with Yidden as we are hi lemata. And, uh, not, not even with, you know, neshamas as the alam ha'ilah and certainly not with the malachim and all of the, um, niveroim and netzolim and everything. The ikar kavana is hi lemata, and that's how the Alter Rebbe be- introduces the whole thing from the beginning.

15:40 Speaker 2 Okay.

15:40 Speaker 1 Kodem be'ir. He's nimtzah basoder because that is where the etzem of HaKadosh Baruch Hu is. The dira is davka b'tach teinim. So that, that, that's just the background to help us understand where, where this is all coming from and why we have this seeming reversal of the roles.

16:04 Speaker 2 Right.

16:04 Speaker 1 Now, the people are called anshei ha'ir. They're not anshei ha'soder.

16:09 Speaker 2 Sorry, just before the anshei ha'soder. So by the end of the day, the palace is still in the city. So that, I guess, would be just for giluim?

16:17 Speaker 1 Yes. So that, that's, that's, that's how, um, the Rebbe in, in, in the Sicha explains this whole thing. It's, it's actually the opposite of what we think.

16:28 Speaker 2 It's like a downgrade.

16:29 Speaker 1 It's an upgrade because we're going from what would usually be our concept of, uh, giluim to etzem.

16:38 Speaker 2 Right. Yeah, no, I, I mean, the king going to the palace is like a downgrade.

16:41 Speaker 1 That's right.

16:42 Speaker 2 Yeah.

16:42 Speaker 1 So, so the... Yeah, I didn't understand that.

16:44 Speaker 2 Yeah.

16:44 Speaker 1 Yeah. So-

16:45 Speaker 2 Okay

16:45 Speaker 1 ... the place of the Melech is really in the sader. That's the dira davka b'tach teinim.

16:53 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

16:54 Speaker 1 But the people are anshei ha'ir. They're yoitzim min ha'ir. That's the way the Alter Rebbe puts it, that, uh, the people come from the city to greet the kav habonov basoder because the place of neshamas is actually lemala, and the neshamah descends down lemata into a guf, into the sader, but we're be'etzem anshei ha'ir.

17:24 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

17:24 Speaker 1 But we have a shlichus to do, and we, we come into the, the sader. So after we have this reversal on it, uh, you know, as a, of, of the roles, um, the Alter Rebbe then says, you know, the, the various lashonot of, um, um, kav habonov basoder upon him, yoffis, and the Melech is happy to interact with the people in the field, um, because this is where ultimately the kavana is of dira b'tach teinim. So then you have to wonder, well, why does he go back to the palace?

18:01 Speaker 2 Right.

18:02 Speaker 1 And hoil chin acharov, and they, they follow, you know, the king and, uh, um, accompany him back to the, the palace. Um, because as the Rebbe explains there in Ultimately, in the kavana of dirah betachtonim, which is the whole purpose of creation, um, there are these two elements. So you have the dirah, which is for the essence of the melech. A dirah is where the person himself, his etzem is and resides, and that's, uh, dirah is davka betachtonim. So the melech is nimtzah basadeh. That's his etzem. However, the shleimus of dirah betachtonim is that, um, he has to be begilui. That the dirah is a place where the melech is with his whole etzem. Now, that is davka betachtonim because the, um, olam hazeh hashmi is the dirah betachtonim for atzmus HaKadosh Baruch. The higher olam is, is where you have giluyim, but it's not etzem. That's the, the, the ruchnius. Um, um, but that is also an essential part of dirah betachtonim, meaning that we have both the etzem, but that the etzem should be begilui. And in order to ensure that the etzem is begilui, um, then we have to have the second part of the mashal-

19:47 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm.

19:47 Speaker 1 That the melech goes to the palace, holech im acharov. Um, and, and, and that's the second aspect of dirah betachtonim where we combine the etzem and the giluyim.

20:04 Speaker 2 Right.

20:05 Speaker 1 So it's, it's a combination of both.

20:08 Speaker 2 So even though it's a downgrade, it's a necessary downgrade, so to speak, to... For even though it's a downgrade to go to the giluyim, to go to the palace, but you're saying it's necessary.

20:19 Speaker 1 It's necessary because the kavana is-

20:21 Speaker 2 Mm-hmm

20:21 Speaker 1 ... that there should be gilui in this dirah.

20:25 Speaker 2 Right.

20:25 Speaker 1 That the dirah should have giluyim, um, and that we should be re-able to relate to the Aibishter both in terms of his etzem and in terms of the giluyim.

20:37 Speaker 2 Right.

20:37 Speaker 1 So holech im acharov and, uh, then when it comes to the giluyim, um, there are, you know, conditions apply. That not everybody can have access because if you're dealing with giluyim, you have to work on having those giluyim. The etzem is there anyway.

20:54 Speaker 2 Right.

20:56 Speaker 1 So, um, that, that, that's the way the Rebbe explains it. I haven't gone into all the details, but, um, as, as, uh, I said in the introduction, it's Erev Shabbos and, uh, um, some of the things that we will talk about-

21:08 Speaker 2 Ma'amarim

21:09 Speaker 1 ... we have to... Yeah, will just have to remain with Ma'amarim and Kovetz. So whoever, you know, wants to, um, to go into it more in detail, I'll, I'll give the Ma'amarim and Kovetz for each thing that we, uh, discuss.

21:22 Speaker 2 Sure. Appreciate that.

21:23 Speaker 1 So that, that's in, um, Chelek Dalet of, um, Likutey Sichos in the Chassidus for Elul.

21:31 Speaker 2 Right.

21:31 Speaker 1 There it's, it's more Barryos than this. Um-

21:34 Speaker 2 So be-be-before we touch onto the whole etzem and gilui, uh, combination, which, um, I'd love to hear the way you explain it. Uh, I, I think every Lubavitcher knows those, those, uh, words, etzem begilui. You know, like it's, uh, what we grow up with learning Chassidus and especially the Rebbe's Torah, dirah betachtonim and etzem begilui, and I would love to hear the way you explain that, you know, in, in relevant English terms, um, that we don't get stuck in the lingo that we're used to. Uh, but for that, I just wanna... I'm wondering about based on this explanation of the mashal, it's almost like why does that have to be Elul and Tishrei then? In other words, if the whole point is that the king is really in the field because the, the, the atzmus is nimtzah in the sadah, in tachtonim, and the whole point is that we are actually here. We're talking neshamas, but we have to come down lamata. That's... And therefore, we go to the sadah to mekabel panov. That almost sounds like you're the san neshamah lamata. In other words, that's bechalal the description of the whole kavan of, of the whole world. So what's, what is the emphasis on Elul? Even though, uh, it's hagufa, like maybe that's the idea that it's not just about Elul, but obviously, the Rebbe uses this for Elul. So in that aspect, what is the specialty of Elul in the general kavan of dirah betachtonim?

22:55 Speaker 1 Well, the main aspect of Elul is, uh, the seder im yonom. Ani l'dodi v'dodi li.

23:04 Speaker 2 Right.

23:04 Speaker 1 So the emphasis here in Elul is, um, that it's starting... The Aibishter wants to connect with us, right? So there's the ani, which is neshamas Yisrael, and, uh, the Aibishter wants to connect with us. Um, there are times when the king is in his palace, and it's our avoda to make ourselves, um, roy, deserving, um, to be able to, to meet the Aibishter, so to speak, through giluyim, which requires, uh, uh, our avoda throughout the year. But all of this is based on the fact that we have a connection which is an atzmusdike connection. The etzem of neshamas Yisrael and the etzem of HaKadosh Baruch Hu, which is the basis for all of the other aspects of our relationship, the giluyim. Right? So the etzem is the starting point. Not, not as you might think. You know, you start with giluyim, and then you work your way up to etzem. But we're saying it's the other way around, that, um, the ani l'dodi is the, the, the zman of Elul. In other words, you have both. You need both. You need the etzem, but that the etzem should be begilui. And the, um, the, the nature of the relationship of our etzem to the etzem of HaKadosh Baruch Hu is davka basadeh. You'll, you'll, you'll s- you'll see that because the Aibishter leaves his place of giluyim, going out into the sadah, where we have our etzem. We don't have so many, so, so much of the inyan of giluyim. In the sadah, the, the

25:04 Speaker 1 people are, are working in the fields, right? So, uh, it's, it's, it's the etzem of the people and the etzem of HaKadosh Baruch Hu. There's a, a mashal that, um, is given. Um, I'm not sure what the makkar is actually, but, uh, it's, it's something that I heard many, many years ago. Um, to explain this nekuda that really our connection to the Haveishter is through our etzem rather than being limited to Giluyim. Giluyim is a, an important aspect of our relationship, but the basis of our relationship, the ikar, is our connection with our etzem to the etzem of Hashem. So the mashal given is, um... And I, and I, and I say again, I'm, I'm not sure this is more, you know, that I would've heard at, uh, farbrengens over the years, so I don't have an actual makkar for it. Um, that the king, you know, and from time to time would come and visit his soldiers. The tsar. The tsar, the king. Um, but it was davka in a way that was unannounced, that they wouldn't know that the king is coming because he wanted to see them in their natural state and, uh, how they, his soldiers representing him, how they behave in such a way where it's not orchestrated.

26:44 Speaker 3 Right.

26:45 Speaker 1 Huh? So there is this, uh, platoon or whatever, the, the soldiers that are, um, are based next to a river. And it's hot, it's a hot summer's day, and they decide that they'll go for a swim. Now, they don't have bathing suits. They're, they're, they're, they're soldiers. They have their uniforms, but they wanna swim, so they have to un-undress and, uh, they go for a swim in the river just to cool down. All of a sudden, the king comes unannounced. What do you do? I mean, what, what are they going to do? They're, they're, they're, they're without any clothes and, and they're in the water. Well, the general or whoever it was there, uh, I'm not sure of his rank, he calls them all, "The king is here. The king is coming. Everybody has to present themselves now." So these four people that were in the water, in the river naked, they, they, they have no time to go and get changed and get dressed. So they come and they present themselves to the melech. You can imagine what sort of a situation that is. So the, the king is inspecting now his soldiers, and he's walking along and all of a sudden comes to these, uh, few people that are there, um, in, in, uh, without their uniforms, without any clothing. So you can imagine the king is, is aghast. How, how, how could you... What is this? That under ordinary circumstances, that, uh, is a merida b'melech, right?

28:36 Speaker 3 Right.

28:36 Speaker 1 That's, uh, that's, uh, chayim, hepach achayim. So the king says to them, "What, what is this?" And they say, "Uh, Your Majesty, um, we don't mean to be disrespectful, but the truth is, who actually serves you? Is it our clothing, or is it we ourselves that serve you? We serve you. With or without our clothing, we serve you in every situation. So even though we don't have our uniform and our clothing, we are still your subjects, and we are here ready to serve you with or without our clothes." This is our etzem, in other words, right?

29:22 Speaker 3 Right.

29:22 Speaker 1 There's the levushim, there's the, the garments, and there's the etzem. And, uh, they were, um, lucky enough that the king accepted their explanation. Oh, this is the kesher atzmi-

29:36 Speaker 3 Right

29:36 Speaker 1 ... without levushim. So the, the, the point is that, um, there's the aspect of our avoda which involves our levushim, the machshav dibur ma'ase and the, the mitzvahs. But then there's an underlying connection that we have with the melech, which is our etzem, and that's represented by the melech basader. The melech himself is not wearing his royal garments. He leaves the palace, and he goes to the field. Um, he doesn't... I wouldn't say he's dressed in overalls and working clothes, but not with his, uh, crown and his majestic, uh, clothing. He is wearing clothing, which is, that is suitable for the field, and the people are in the field. Um, so this represents the kesher that we have to the Haveishter through a, at the level of our etzem.

30:42 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

30:42 Speaker 1 That, that's, that's what the Seder represents. We don't have the trimmings and, you know, the trappings of, of, of the levushim. Not quite to the extent of the soldiers that went for a swim in the river. I don't mean that.

30:55 Speaker 3 Right.

30:55 Speaker 1 But, uh, the emphasis here is the kesher of our etzem. Um, and, uh, the melech also is, uh, more- Sort of available to the people with his etzem. He doesn't have the trappings of the, you know, the, the, the royal garments and everything else.

31:18 Speaker 3 Right.

31:19 Speaker 1 So that-that's, that's really what this, uh, mashal is bringing out about the melech basader, that there is a time or a madrega where we connect with etzem, but at the same time, um, dirah b'tachinim requires that the etzem be begilui.

31:38 Speaker 3 Right.

31:39 Speaker 1 Now, for the etzem to be begilui, you need the situation of the palace where you see the, the royal majestic side of, of the melech, and it's a combination of both. In the mashal, they're in two different places.

31:55 Speaker 3 Right.

31:55 Speaker 1 One is in the sadeh and one is in the heichal hamelech. But, uh, in ruchnius, um, we have both and, and, and they're both aspects or, you know, different, different parts of, uh, our avoda Hashem and how we connect to Hashem with our etzem, but it should be begilui. We need the giluyim also.

32:15 Speaker 3 Right.

32:16 Speaker 1 So, um, and, and, and this occurs at Rosh Hashanah and prior to that in, um, in Elul, which, you know, when we go back to the mashal, um, you'd have to wonder, and I suppose this is sort of, uh, reframing your question, that, um, if you already have the melech basadeh and he's there with his etzem, and you are there with your etzem-

32:42 Speaker 3 Right

32:42 Speaker 1 ... not, not like the mashal of the soldiers swimming exactly, but, uh, you know, in a more, uh, sort of, uh, appropriate, uh, ofen that, um, you're meeting the melech in, in the sadeh. That's the etzem of the people with the etzem of the sadeh. Then why does it say, and Alter Rebbe continues the mashal, "Holchim acharov" that they then accompany the king and they go after him to the, uh, the, the, the city. But it's interesting that in the mashal, the Alter Rebbe refers to the, the people in the field not as anshei hasadeh. Alter Rebbe says in the mashal, "Yetzim anshei ha'ir lekabel panav basadeh." So the king is, is kodem ba'ir, so he's in the field. The people are in the city and they're going out, "Yetzim anshei ha'ir lekabel panav basadeh." So it would seem as though both the king is not in his regular place nor are the people in their regular place because we're, we're referred to there as anshei ha'ir, not as anshei hasadeh, which is not the way we usually understand the, the mashal. The way we usually understand it is that the king is going out of the city, not kodem ba'ir, and that the people are actually anshei hasadeh, yet the Alter Rebbe says anshei ha'ir. So the, the point here is that, um, we are here for a shlichus. Neshamas Israel, even as we are the mata, we're still anshei ha'ir. The neshamah is, is... its place is, uh, its etzem is Elekus, and,

34:29 Speaker 1 uh, we're given that designation of anshei ha'ir, but we're on a, on a, a shlichus, a mission to make the dirah b'tachinim. But the dirah b'tachinim is where the etzem of the melech actually is.

34:43 Speaker 3 Right.

34:43 Speaker 1 But we have to be magal that. So you need the giluyim to be magal the presence of the king in the sadeh. So holchim acharov, we go and we follow the king back to the city, meaning the union of the avoda in the form of, uh, giluyim. So there's the etzem and there's the giluyim and the, this, this, the emphasis in Elul is on the melech basadeh, that aspect of it, the, the etzem, this kashrus atzmi. Um, then in Tishrei, um, holchim acharov, and then we have to refine ourselves and do the avoda, not just of the etzem, but to make sure that the etz- etzem comes out begilui in our kochas, in our machshava dibur ma'ase, and, um, that, um, we have the combination really of both.

35:41 Speaker 3 Right. So what I'm understanding is that it's almost like, I mean, uh, to, to, uh, stretch it a little bit from the Alter Rebbe's, um, words, but the way I understand it is that if the Alter Rebbe wanted to use the mashal of melech basadeh for the general topic of dirah b'tachinim, which is obviously also a fundamental in Chassidus, then, then it would have stayed at mashal le-lemelech that he's in the sadeh and yetzer ha'ra

37:05 Speaker 1 Yeah. And, um, that, that is actually emphasized by the Rebbe In other Ma'amarim, what we've been talking about now is, is a, a sicha in Likutey Sichos. But in the Ma'amarim, the Alter Rebbe raises the question that, um, you know, Elul we say is, "Ani le-dodi ve-dodi li." So you have the, um, the, the Isaru Seder Esata. It's coming from us. We have to, um, approach the king. The, the Isaru Seder Esata, that's, that's the Ani le-dodi as opposed to the other pasuk in the Shir Hashirim, "Dodi li ve-ani lo." So the Rebbe asked the question in various Ma'amarim, "Ani le-dodi ve-dodi li," that the Alter Rebbe says in Likutey Torah that there's the ani first. That's our avoda approaching Hashem, Isaru Seder Esata. But ve-dodi li is the response of the Aishita to us. Melomaila lamata, Dodi li, which is in Tishrei with where you have the giluyim of, uh, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. Um, he's no longer in the field. That-that's where he's Behekal Malkhut. So why is it then that the ve-dodi li forms part of the letters of Elul?

38:34 Speaker 3 Okay.

38:35 Speaker 1 That's the whole reserve for, for Tishrei. It's clear from the Alter Rebbe's Ma'amarim, um, that ani le-dodi, the first half of the word Elul-

38:45 Speaker 3 Right

38:46 Speaker 1 ... is our avoda, Isaru Seder Esata, and then you've got the response of the Aishita ve-dodi li, but that's in Tishrei.

38:56 Speaker 3 Right.

38:56 Speaker 1 So what the, what the Rebbe explains is that in fact, our avoda of ani le-dodi when we're in the Sadeh, it has to be al menas. We know that hoil chin acharov.

39:14 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

39:15 Speaker 1 We're going to accompany the melech. We're not there yet. We're still in the Sadeh. But it is also, at least as a secondary part, the second part of the word ve-dodi li is as the melech is Behekal Malkhut. And, uh, then, you know, um, the, the, the emphasis there is as the melech is, is in his, uh, palace where we have to have the giluyim and all the trappings and the, you know, the, the aura and the protocols that go with the melech being basadeh, being Behekal Malkhut.

39:55 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

39:55 Speaker 1 But it's included in the Rosh Chodesh of Elul because it's al menas. Our avoda is that there should be also the gili of Tishrei. So from the beginning, we, we have, yes, the connection of etzem, but we always know that this has to bring to a birur and a zichron of our koach hagiluyim, not just etzem.

40:22 Speaker 3 Okay.

40:22 Speaker 1 The Machshava D'var Ma'ase, the koach pnimiyim. So the ve-dodi li, which is the Tishrei side of it, that the Alter Rebbe, the words that the Alter Rebbe uses are, um, the Muvcharim Sheba'am. Only they have access, not, not the Anshe Ha'ir who are basadeh. Not, not, not in a sade. There it's, it's the Muvcharim Sheba'am. Agav, the Rebbe, um, says that through the avodat Elul and, um, the fact that we are mekabel the melech, um, and he's mekabel us, and we have this connection of etzem, it's al menas. It's, it's in order that we will follow him 'cause the question is: Why do they go to the, to the city in the first place then? Why, why would they accompany him to the city? The city is a downgrade of all of this, right? It's giluyim as opposed to being in the sade where you have etzem.

41:23 Speaker 3 Right.

41:25 Speaker 1 But that's, that's the point that we're making, that the ratzon of Hashem in, in diru betach teinim incorporates two elements: the etzem, but that the etzem should be begili. In avoda, what that means is that we have the avoda coming from and stemming from the etzem of the nefesh, but it has to permeate and find expression also in giluyim, in our koach pratim, sechel, our middes, and our Machshava D'var Ma'ase. So the inyan of the giluyim, the ve-dodi li, like as the king is in his palace where he's in his full, you know, majesty.

42:12 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

42:13 Speaker 1 That is included in the Ois of Rosh Chodesh of Elul because it's al menas. We know that we need to combine both the etzem and the giluyim.

42:25 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

42:28 Speaker 1 So, um, so, so that Elul actually incorporates also the avoda of, uh, Tishrei in a sense.

42:38 Speaker 3 Right.

42:38 Speaker 1 But that, that's where we're heading.

42:40 Speaker 3 In avoda, it seems to make sense because it sounds like an avoda that means that in Elul you're inspired. That's... Let's say you have this inspiration. That would be the etzem. So already now in Elul, carry it out in, in the Machshava D'var Ma'ase. Don't wait for Tishrei to start your Machshava D'var Ma'ase. Is that, is that basically what it's saying?

43:00 Speaker 1 That's not the way it's framed, but I'm, I'm sure that that's, that's true.

43:03 Speaker 3 You know, and saying avoda, exactly like-

43:05 Speaker 1 You can't really, you can't really separate the, the etzem from-

43:09 Speaker 3 It's a time

43:09 Speaker 1 ... the giluyim.

43:10 Speaker 3 Right.

43:10 Speaker 1 In the mashal we gave before, which is, uh, you know, the soldiers that were there. They were that... They were without their levushim. So they were just, uh, lucky that the king accepted their explanation.

43:22 Speaker 3 Right.

43:22 Speaker 1 But, um, the ultimate of Avoda is that it's inspired by the Etzem, our Hiskashrus Atzmi.

43:31 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

43:32 Speaker 1 But that it has to find expression through the Levushim.

43:36 Speaker 3 Right.

43:36 Speaker 1 And that's the inclusion of V'doydili, the Tishrei side in Elul.

43:41 Speaker 3 Right. I'm curious because you, you probably have-- I mean, probably, for sure there's a lot of Chassidus that brings out the Etzem part of Rosh Hashanah as well. Uh, there's the famous, um, that it's the that it's like that, that it's a connection of the Etzem. The Rosh Hashanah includes the Etzem of the Yid, uh, with Etzem Hashem. I think there's also an emphasis when, like, Rosh Hashanah Shaloshah Bah Shabas, right? That we don't even have the Mitzvah of Shofar. There's, like, a Bier that it's... So in what way is Rosh Hashanah more Giluyim than, let's say, the Giluyim that you need to have during Elul? Like, why is Rosh Hashanah the pal-the palace? Why can we say that the palace is the way the Yid recognizes that the king is greater than him and submits himself to the king as opposed to lowering the king down to, to his level?

44:32 Speaker 1 Well, we're not lowering the king down to our level. The, the Melech himself-

44:36 Speaker 3 Right, right

44:37 Speaker 1 ...goes to the field, and that's because the ultimate purpose of, uh, creation is Dina Betachtonim, that HaShem wants to be with us in Tachtonim. Um, th-that-that's, that's an integral part of our relationship with the HaShem, Dina Davka Betachtonim. Um, but at the same time, he wants that it should be Bagili. And, you know, this, this, um, the question you raise is really, uh, I, I, I suppose, um, a question that could apply to many, if not most of the Maimon of Chassidus, that when it comes to Rosh Hashanah, you'll emphasize the Ma'alos of Rosh Hashanah, the Kabbalah of HaMelchus, and, uh, you know, the, this, the unique aspects of Rosh Hashanah that you have only on Rosh Hashanah.

45:31 Speaker 3 Right.

45:32 Speaker 1 And then when it comes to Yom Kippur, you know, Yom Kippur is the ultimate, and then we have, "No, but it's in Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret and, and, uh, every Yom Tov," you know, you find like that, that union. So, um, what that means is that, um, there's a unique aspect of the Avoda of Rosh Hashanah which you don't have in other Yom Imtevim.

45:54 Speaker 3 Right.

45:54 Speaker 1 So when it comes to Rosh Hashanah, we emphasize that, um, because now is this man where this union is Meir. When it comes to Yom Kippur, you know, the, the unique aspect of Yom Kippur is Meir, and therefore that's the emphasis, uh, and the focus of our Avoda. And each one is unique in its own way.

46:13 Speaker 3 Right.

46:13 Speaker 1 So we have many ways in which HaShem gives us opportunities to connect to him, to his Etzem and Bagili. And, you know, uh, when you learn the Maimon associated with the various, um, Yom Imtevim, the, the Maimon explain the unique nature of our connection. Um, but it's true. I mean, uh, uh, I suppose it's true that, um, you know, that, uh, where Mekabel, it's the, the, the HaMelchus Shomayim on Rosh Hashanah, that's the unique nature of our relationship, and HaShem chooses us, Yifcha Lono V'Sanach Loseno, and we appoint him as our king, we Mekabel the HaMelchus. So that's the unique nature of Rosh Hashanah, yes. And, um, you have, from Rosh Hashanah, you have a Me'ein of that throughout the rest of the year in all Torah Mitzvahs.

47:12 Speaker 3 Right.

47:12 Speaker 1 So, um, in Elul, we're emphasizing that particular aspect of our relationship with HaShem, the Melech Basodah, um, and the opportunities for Teshuvah. In this Oifun, Oifun as it is in Elul, when it comes to Tishrei, there'll be a, a different emphasis. Um, and you know, the, you'll, you'll see through the Maimon of Tishrei that now this is the focus. So, uh, we, we, we emphasize the unique nature of, of Rosh Hashanah on Rosh Hashanah to help us with our Avoda there. But that's, um, not to say that Elul doesn't have its unique features and aspects, and that's what we, uh, emphasize, uh, now.

48:00 Speaker 3 Right.

48:01 Speaker 1 So, um, in broad terms, what it means is that, um, you know, every aspect of our Avoda combines our relationship with Hashem, combines the Etzem with Giluyim. That the Etzem, not to the exclusion of Giluyim, but that the Etzem should be Davka Bagili.

48:25 Speaker 3 Right.

48:26 Speaker 1 And in different times of the year, on different, uh, Yom Imtevim, we have the opportunity to make that connection through the Mitzvahs or whatever it is, but not necessarily to the exclusion of other Yom Imtevim, but with a different emphasis. So when it comes to Rosh Hashanah, you know, you learn the Maimon, you think that there's nothing greater than Rosh Hashanah. And when it comes to Yom Kippur, nothing greater than Yom Kippur. But they're all true.

48:50 Speaker 3 Right.

48:50 Speaker 1 It's just different Oifunim in how we, we actually make that connection.

48:55 Speaker 3 Right. So I think it's pretty clear about like, especially with the Mashal of the, the soldiers and the Tsar, what it would look like, Etzem without Giluyim. What would be the opposite? What would be Giluyim without Etzem? Like, why, why is the Alter Rebbe... In other words, it sounds like that the, that the whole Vart of Melach Basodah is showing you that no, the Etzem of the king i- the way the Rebbe explains it, that the Etzem of the king is in the Mata, and that's... So wh-why is that so important to Chassidus beyond Elul?

49:28 Speaker 1 Because that's the, the whole purpose of creation. If HaShem wanted to have Giluyim, so you have more Giluyim L'maala than you have L'mata. He has Malachim, and, uh, he could have stopped the Briya at Atzilus. He didn't need to continue the whole Seder Hishtalshelus into Briya, Yetzira, and then into Asiya, and Asiya of Gashmis. Um, and as the Alter Rebbe says, the Lashon in, uh, Tanya, "Tachtin She'entachtah L'mata Mimeinu." So, um, that, that, that's, that's, uh, ultimately the purpose of everything, that it should be the, um, Etzem and the Giluyim. But if he wanted just the Giluyim, you-- he, he has, uh, many opportunities for Giluyim in Atzilus and Briya and Yetzirah.

50:15 Speaker 3 Right. Right. I, I, I meant to cla- let me clarify. I meant in the Yitzah Avodah. What, what would it-- what would be the problem of a Yitzah Avodah being from his, from the Yitzah Giluyim without his Etzem? Like, what would that look like, and what would be the problem? In other words, right, it, it has to mirror. Just like you said before about the Malach Basada, that it's the Etzem of the Yitzhin in the field with the Etzem of the king. So the Hashem invested his Etzem in, or his Etzem is in this, in, in, uh, Olam HaZatach, Tanchantach, Tanchat Menuch, and now he wants us to serve him from his Etzem.

50:50 Speaker 1 Yeah. I, I, I'll put it this way. Um, I think this will answer your question. If not, you know, persist. Um, the, the Inyan of, um, Dirah Betachtanim has to be Mitzad Betachtim. In other words, let, let's... I'll, I'll answer you in a Jewish way with a, with a question. Um, the Abishah wants to have the Dirah Betachtanim. So what's stopping him? He doesn't need a permit.

51:28 Speaker 3 Right.

51:29 Speaker 1 In Australia, we talk about a, uh, certificate of occupancy. You know, you build a house, you can't, you can't reside there. You can't move in unless the authorities sign off that everything is done properly. Um, and you need a certificate of occupancy to be able to occupy those premises.

51:46 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

51:47 Speaker 1 The Abishah, Chas Vashalom, doesn't need a certificate of occupancy for every- from anybody. So he wants a Dirah Betachtanim. So what's stopping him? Ribono Shel Olam, make yourself a Dirah, build your house, and move in. What, what's it got to do with us? Why, why do we have to make the Dirah? He can, he can make it, and he can make most probably even more perfect Dirah. So the point is that that's not the Nisava. Chassidus adds to the Lashon of the Midrash, Nisava HaKadosh Baruch Hu Li Yisloi Dirah Betachtanim. Chassidus says, Dirah Betachtanim Al Yedei Avodas HaTachtanim.

52:27 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

52:28 Speaker 1 And that's essential to understanding the nature of the, the Nisava. The Abishah obviously could build a, uh, an Olam Gashmi and move in, and he'll have a Dirah Betachtanim. But that's not what he wants. That's not the Nisava. The Nisava is that we should invite him in, that we should make the Dirah, and we should bring the Abishah into the Dirah. So there's, um, the Inyan of the, you know, um, the Kavones and the, the, that aspect of our Avodah, the Giluyim. But the Dirah Betachtanim has to be Davka through Neshamas Yisrael, and it's Davka Betachtanim, um, because the higher Olamas, as the Alter Rebbe explains in, in Perek Lamid Vov of Tanya, that the higher Olamas are Giluyim.

53:21 Speaker 3 Right.

53:22 Speaker 1 They can't house Atzmos. Atzmos is here Lamata in... because the Chavas HaGashmius is from Atzmos. It's not from Giluyim. Chavas HaGashmius is from Atzmos.

53:37 Speaker 3 Right.

53:38 Speaker 1 But the Abishah doesn't wanna just be found in the Tachtanim. Chassidus adds to the Lashon of the Midrash, Al Yedei Avodas HaTachtanim. So our role is to be Mamshich the Etzem because we are part of Atzmosi Yisborach.

53:58 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

53:59 Speaker 1 The Olam HaGashmi is created Davka B'Koach HaAtzmos, not through the higher Olamas where there's Giluyim. You need the Koach HaAtzmos, as the Alter Rebbe explains in, in Siman Chof of, uh, Iggeret HaKodesh.

54:16 Speaker 3 So there has to be the Dirah Betachtanim is the Nisava. It has to be Davka from us, so there has to be that aspect of the Avodah. Um, the higher Olamas are not, uh, a keli for Atzmosi Yisborach. And but the Kavana is that this Dirah, which is for Atzmosi, which has to be Davka Lamata, where you have the Koach HaAtzmos to create Yesh MeAyin. But the Abishah wants it, it should be Bagili. So they're all integral parts of the Nisava. That it has to be for the Etzem, but that the Etzem should be Bagili. And that requires in our Avodah both aspects. We have to have an investment, so to speak, of our Etzem to, to, to, um, create the k- connection with the Abishah, Atzmosi. And that's Davka in Olam HaZe HaGashmi, which is never B'Koach Atzmosi. But you also have to have that it should be Bagili. Right.

55:39 Speaker 1 So of course, the Abishah could make a Dirah Betachtanim and move in. But that's not the Nisava. That's not what he wants.

55:47 Speaker 3 Right.

55:47 Speaker 1 He wants it, it should come Davka from us.

55:50 Speaker 3 So if I understand correctly, you're saying that the reason why we need to approach it with our Etzem also is because in our Etzem is where the whole Kavana is.

56:02 Speaker 1 Not just the kavana, but also the koach.

56:04 Speaker 3 Oh, the koach. Oh, right. So in other words, that, that's what, that's what m- that's what is able to receive and, and channel the etzem of Hashem.

56:14 Speaker 1 And to transform, in a sense, the koach atzmus, the koach of the Aibishter creates Yashmeem, which is in Olam. But Olam mitzah d'atzmus is Lashon Helen.

56:29 Speaker 3 Right.

56:29 Speaker 1 The etzem, the nature of a etzem is that it's, uh, not begili.

56:33 Speaker 3 Right.

56:33 Speaker 1 The nature of a etzem is that it's built in its galut.

56:36 Speaker 3 Right.

56:37 Speaker 1 So that becomes our avoda, and that the Aibishter wants to make us shufim with him, that we should make the dira. And only Bnei Yisrael, only Neshamos Yisrael are capable of doing that.

56:53 Speaker 3 Okay.

56:53 Speaker 1 Not the higher beings, the Malachim and so on, and not even the Neshama as it is, l'maala. Davka, the Neshama as it comes lamata to, um, be mahapach, so to speak, the, uh, the gashmius of the Olam, that it should reflect Elokos. And that's because we are Mushshuf Shin Atzmus, and we have that koach. But we-- But the Aibishter wants that the dira should be latzmusai, but it should be begili.

57:21 Speaker 3 Right.

57:22 Speaker 1 So you need to, to, to, to... Actually, to have both.

57:25 Speaker 3 Right. So I think, I think it's pretty clear that, in other words, when you say the, that the avoda is that we should have both the etzem and the gilui. So what it means to have the avoda of gilui, I think is the easier part to understand. It means mashavah d'ramasah, you know, practical, doing what needs to be done. What, what's the best way to understand what does it mean to have the avoda of etzem? In other words, not the philosophical part of that, the koach of etzem. It connects the koach of Hashem, and that's where the kavana is, and that's where the, um... That's where, like you said, that's where the koach of us carrying it out. But in avoda, what is it-- What's the best way to explain what is... How do we have the avoda of etzem? What does that look like?

58:04 Speaker 1 Just as the expression of etzem is in gashmius, not in ruchnius, because ruchnius is, uh, ha'ara, not etzem.

58:13 Speaker 3 Right.

58:13 Speaker 1 It's like the rays of the sun and not the etzem of the sun. They reflect the sun, they magal of the sun, but they're not etzem. Um, in the same way, um, there's within the, the, our neshamas and the gufaim, and in avoda. When you're saying in avoda, what would that be in avoda? In avoda, you also have the equivalent of the avoda mitzah d'atzem. Now, that can be in different eifanim. It can be through a form of Kabbalas HaMalchus Shomayim, where you just accept that this is what the Aibishter wants. And if he would have wanted us to chop wood, ilu nistavinu lachtaveytzem, we'd do that.

59:05 Speaker 3 Right.

59:06 Speaker 1 We just do whatever we're told, whatever we... The Aibishter wants-

59:10 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

59:10 Speaker 1 We do that. There's no real sechel, middes involved in that aspect of it, that commitment, that basic commitment that we're dedicating ourselves and our etzem to the Aibishter. This is our etzem, and that's deeper than the kochas. Beyond that, that's Kabbalah seul.

59:33 Speaker 3 Right.

59:33 Speaker 1 We just accept naaseh that which the Aibishter wants. But a- anyway, even in naaseh, I'll come back to that in a second, but with naaseh, with nishma, you also see this combination of the etzem and giluyim.

59:47 Speaker 3 Right. Right.

59:48 Speaker 1 The naaseh is the etzem. We just... I'm a Kabbalah, and we do what we have to do just to fulfill the ratzon of the Aibishter. There's no sechel involved necessarily in that. It could be even lachtaveytzem. But then we follow that up with nishma. It's like we said in the Moshe of the Alter Rebbe, that they meet the melech basada, which is the etzem, where he is betachton in the etzem, but holchim achrov-

1:00:17 Speaker 3 Right

1:00:18 Speaker 1 ... to the ir. You have to have the nishma also. The nishma is the gili aspect of our avoda, where we do understand, because the Aibishter gave us sechel, he gave us middes. We, we, we, we are to connect with the Aibishter with our whole being, totally, with every aspect of ourselves, our etzem, but also with our giluyim. Um, it, it, it, it makes no sense to say that we do Torah or mitzvahs purely with Kabbalah seul, and then with our sechel and our middes, the richer parts of our own neshama, they're not involved in, in serving Hashem. They're, they're, they're going to be elsewhere. You can understand that's a disaster for us, right?

1:01:06 Speaker 3 Right.

1:01:06 Speaker 1 Uh, if you're not going to have chayus and simcha and, uh, th- the satisfaction of your sechel having, uh, be- feeling a fulfillment through Torah mitzvahs, you'll, you'll unfortunately seek it elsewhere. So yes, there is the basic commitment of our etzem.

1:01:28 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:01:28 Speaker 1 The naaseh, where giluyim at that... in that a- aspect are, are not really relevant. It's deeper than sechel. It's l'meila mitambadas. But it has to be coupled with our sechel that we've been given and the middes that we have, and that we, um, have to actually serve Hashem b'simcha. And the way you do that is by experiencing the, the richness that there is and the zchus that we have in being able to be mekayem Torah and mitzvahs. Is the Kabbalah seul, the naaseh, but there's also the nishma. The nishma is the giluyim. So you need, you need both. And, um, um, we, we, we see this in, in various aspects of our Torah mitzvahs. So we say mitzvahs ain't trifles, kavona. In, in one sense, the, the ikar is the ma'asa. Ma'asa hu ha'ikar.

1:02:33 Speaker 3 Right.

1:02:33 Speaker 1 That's the expression of our etzem. We just do what we're told. Um, but as we said before, that the, the etzem should be begiluy. We have to also involve our koichez hagiluyim.

1:02:48 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:02:49 Speaker 1 To, to have ahavas Hashem and yiras Hashem through our middes and yedeas Hashem through our seichel. Otherwise, chas v'shalom, they'll be left out of, of, of our connection, and you have only etzem without giluyim. Um, that, that's a recipe for disaster really because, um, you, uh, unfortunately, if you don't find that simcha and tainug in Torah mitzvahs, you'll look for it elsewhere.

1:03:18 Speaker 3 Right. So is it that the etzem comes from the giluyim? Because it's, like, we say etzem begiluyim, it makes it sound like as if we're all in a state of etzem, and then, oh, now we have to do the work and bring it to giluyim. But... And, and maybe philosophically that's true, but it sounds like practically we're more in a state of giluyim, and the avoda is to, to understand and connect to our, our etzem through the giluyim.

1:03:49 Speaker 1 There's different ways of approaching this whole inyan. Um, when it comes to etzem, we can talk about it on, on two levels. We were speaking till now etzem as in Kabbalah of Zohar, Machshaveh Chai, Naaseh, Kedem, Nishma.

1:04:07 Speaker 3 Right.

1:04:09 Speaker 1 There is another aspect of, of, um, etzem, which is not about Kabbalah of Zohar, but it's like, um, a, a mesirus nefesh maybe. Um, in other words, Kabbalah of Zohar generally would be lower than the giluyim of machen and seichel and middes.

1:04:36 Speaker 3 Right.

1:04:37 Speaker 1 Kabbalah of Zohar is reishis ha'avoda, ikra v'sharsha. That's how the Alter Rebbe says, yiras Hashem and, and, uh, Kabbalah of Zohar, Machshaveh Chai is the reishis ha'avoda. Then you have, um, you know, the, the other aspect of ourselves, our seichel and our middes, which also have to be connected to the Ein Baishtah and serve the Ein Baishtah. It's not just about Kabbalah of Zohar. But then following that, you have a higher form of, of, of, of Naaseh or of Etzem. The expression of Etzem, which is, uh, I suppose the hiskallus in the language of Chassidus, the hiskallus, uh, and, and the, like, like the Alter Rebbe explains in, in Perek Yud Tes of Tanya, where we merge, so to speak, with the Ein Baishtah. Um, and, and there, this is a, a Madrega which is, um, in some ways similar to Kabbalah of Zohar, but it's not based on, um, seichel and middes. But in Kabbalah of Zohar, it could be because you don't have the capacity for Kabbalah of Zo- for, for seichel and middes. A Mishpachit-

1:05:54 Speaker 3 Right

1:05:54 Speaker 1 ... a Mishpachit can serve Hashem, um, with Kabbalah of Zohar.

1:05:58 Speaker 3 Right.

1:05:58 Speaker 1 And he does, and, uh, that's not to say it's inferior, but he's not, not, not capable of, of the richness, so to speak, of, um, of, of the nishma. The ultimate, however, is that you start with the Kabbalah of Zohar, the Meida Ani, and then you progress to the, you know, if you t- put it on a daily avoda, you go into, um, Sukat Hazimrah, Birchas Kriashah, and the hisbonanus of Kriashah. And then you come to Shemoneh Esreh where you're completely bottle again. Kav the Kamimore.

1:06:35 Speaker 3 Right.

1:06:36 Speaker 1 So there's another aspect to the Naaseh, which is the ultimate merging of the pitul b'metsios of the neshamah, like the flame that is absorbed into its shoresh. Um, that, that's, that's a different aspect of the, um, the etzem. So it starts with etzem, the Meida Ani, if you to do it on a daily basis.

1:07:02 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:07:02 Speaker 1 It's enriched by the, um, seichel and the middes and the simcha and the tainug. But then comes the, um, ultimate pitul b'metsios of the merging of the neshamah with the Ein Baishtah, um, which is more about, um, mesirus nefesh than, than just Kabbalah of Zohar. They're connected, obviously.

1:07:28 Speaker 3 Right.

1:07:28 Speaker 1 Um, Chassidus says all Madregas of Yirah. Yirah tata and Yirah ilah, they're all connected because essentially they're one thing, but different Madregas within, you know, the same aspect of avoda. So what is the etzem? What is the etzem and why do you need it? The etzem, first of all, is the basis of the avoda.

1:07:52 Speaker 3 Right.

1:07:53 Speaker 1 It's the, the yesod. Reishis ha'avoda, ikra, sharsha, like the yesod, the foundation of a building. You don't stay with the yesod. You don't, you don't have a building if you just have yesod. You build all of the other floors. Can have a, a, you know, um, an empire state building with all the other floors. But Chabad Hasiduts then comes a higher form of, of the etzem, which is the complete bitter in the sense of the merging of the neshamas and the Aveshta.

1:08:29 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm. Right. So in other words, the, the, the, the tool to do gilyim properly is etzem, but then also the goal of the gilyim is to be in touch with that etzem.

1:08:43 Speaker 1 So it's, um, yeah. Actually, the... I know it's beyond the scope of our discussion here, but, um, when the Alter Rebbe says, "Reishit ha-avoda ikra vesharsha," that, uh, he's talking about Kabbalah of Zohar, which is the nasah, which is more associated with the etzem. He uses all of these expressions, and we know in Tanya, the Alter Rebbe is, uh, very, very didactic in his lashonahs.

1:09:13 Speaker 3 Right.

1:09:14 Speaker 1 So he's the reishit ha-avoda, ikra, vesharsha. Um, it seems to be sort of, you know, like, uh, using, uh, just, uh, superfluous, uh, expressions there. Chas v Shalom. But, uh, but one of, one of the ways in which we understand that is that, you know, the yesod of opinion is the yesod. That's it. It's, it's down under the ground, and then you build up the building. But there's no interaction other than the yesod is the basis.

1:09:42 Speaker 3 Right.

1:09:42 Speaker 1 There's no actual interaction with the yesod and, uh, the higher floors. But when the Alter Rebbe says, "Reishit ha-avoda, v'ikra and veshersha," the shorashim, it's like the roots of a tree. The roots of the tree nourish-

1:09:57 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:09:57 Speaker 1 -the trunk and the branches and the leaves and the fruits. They continue to get their nourishment from the shorashim. So the Kabbalah of Zohar, the reishit ha-avoda, is not just the beginning, and now we're moving on.

1:10:11 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:10:12 Speaker 1 Certainly, we are moving on, but together with the chayas that comes from the shorashim and, um, it accompanies us-

1:10:22 Speaker 3 Right

1:10:22 Speaker 1 ... at, at all levels, just as the, the shorashim nurture every part of the tree. They're not just the basis. So you have the Kabbalah of Zohar aspect culminating in, in the ultimate mesirat nefesh and the merger of, uh, neshamas Yisrael and the Aibishter, um, at every level of our avoda.

1:10:42 Speaker 3 Right. Or, or maybe in other words, it's not like the etzem and then gilyim, it's the etzem b'gily. The, the etzem itself is kind of gily, right? So again, just trying to, just trying to imagine that in practical avoda, that means that, like, the fact that you're doing mitzvahs, you feel in the, uh, i-individual mitzvah that you're doing, how this mitzvah is the sum total of your whole connection with Hashem. Is that, is that right? Like the, the gily, the gily is obviously the individual mitzvah. The etzem is understanding that beyond just the literal mitzvah, but in the mitzvah is lo- herein lies the entire connection of the Yid and Hashem. Obviously not limited to that, but that's how it's... That, that's what's happening right now.

1:11:30 Speaker 1 It's a means to a, a deeper connection-

1:11:32 Speaker 3 Right

1:11:33 Speaker 1 ... the connection of the etzem. But, uh, I would put it a little differently that, um, we're connected to the Aibishter with our total being, with our etzem and our gilyim, not to the exclusion of either. Um, and that, that, that's, that's really the ultimate of avoda that, uh, Hasiduts, um, introduced, I suppose, and developed. That, um, simcha, for example, is a big part of our avoda.

1:12:06 Speaker 3 Right.

1:12:06 Speaker 1 It's not just about Kabbalah of Zohar. And the reason for that is because they're supplementary. You need both. We wanna serve Hashem with our total being, with our etzem and with our gilyim, and they accompany each other at, uh, at every stage.

1:12:24 Speaker 3 Right. Right.

1:12:27 Speaker 1 So, um, yeah. So the melech is basar there. He's here below, and the ultimate tachlis of k- of, of, of everything is the rotson of the Aibishter, the dirah b'tachtonim. But that has to be coupled with, as we've ex- been talking about, the gilyim. So he goes back to the heichal, um, still the etzem of the melech. But now he's in his, uh, royal clothing and with, with a gilyim. That's, that's, that's basically what, uh, what the moshel is saying. Um, and there the Alter Rebbe says that only the mufkarim sheba'am can, can gain access there. It's not with the, um, the, the, the simple people.

1:13:15 Speaker 3 Right.

1:13:15 Speaker 1 The Rebbe adds to this just, uh, in, in, in the Rebbe's very unique way, I suppose, with the expression of the Rebbe's, ours, Yisrael, and he's empowering us through the maamarim and, uh, through his interaction. That the, the Rebbe adds to the lashon of the Likutei Torah, where he says that, uh, Tishrei, it's only the mufkarim sheba'am that can gain access. The, the Rebbe says that, uh, after the avoda below and hoilichim acharov, we accompany the king.

1:14:01 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:14:01 Speaker 1 Everybody, every Yid becomes mufkarim sheba'am.

1:14:04 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:14:05 Speaker 1 So it's not... It, it's exclusive, yes, to mufkarim sheba'am, but the Rebbe extends that to every Yid, that every Yid becomes mufkarim sheba'am. Um, in, in a, a different way, um, you know, we're talking about the avoda of etzem, which is represented by sod. And, um, that, that, that's the avoda b'tachtonim. And then the higher olamos is, uh, as the heichal hamelech, and that's with the higher levels of our neshama. Um, but more specifically in avoda, in, in the maamar, Basili, Gani, Topshin, Lamed, Lamed Aleph, um, the Rebbe explains the two aspects as of our avoda. Um, the iskafia and isapcha. And the lashon of the third ikar, Rebbe, there is iskafia mevieli dei ishapcha.

1:15:18 Speaker 3 Right.

1:15:20 Speaker 1 Now, we-we've been explaining that the dirah b'tachtonim involves the etzem and the giluyim, both of the Aibishter and of our own avoda, etzem and giluyim. So, the question then is, you know, with regards to our avoda, um, you have the avoda of iskafia, which is shayar to the beinoni mainly. The beinoni is not, uh, able, um, in his state as a beinoni to be mahapach the middos. He has iskafia, he controls them, he's in full control, and he never does, uh, any averus, machshava dibur ma'ase.

1:16:11 Speaker 3 Yeah.

1:16:11 Speaker 1 But he wasn't mahapach his, his, uh, yetzer hara. He's operating at the level of iskafia. Um, and the Freidiker Rebbe mentions both, iskafia v'ishapcha. That's how we make the dirah b'tachtonim. The Rebbe raises the issue of, um, what is the role here of iskafia and ishapcha specifically. Um, in Tanya, in Perek Chaf Zayin, now the Rebbe speaks to the beinoni. Although Tanya is a sefer shel beinonim. But he speaks to the beinoni and he says, uh, in, in encouraging the beinoni, um, not in the sense of, um, consolation prize. You know, you, you didn't... You're not, you're not gonna be a tzadik. You're not shayar to the madrega of tzadik, but, uh, second, second place is also not too bad, you know. You're, you're a beinoni. Now, the Rebbe doesn't take that approach, obviously. And, um, now the Rebbe quotes from the Zohar that the avoda of the beinoni, kad iskafia sitra achra is talui karov l'kudsha brich hu. Lemela, yatir mikul ha shfochah achara, higher than any other form of avoda, including ishapcha. In that Perek, the Alter Rebbe is telling the beinoni, 'Uleileh kach nivra.' You were created to be a beinoni. You are offering nechas ruach to the Aibishter, which a tzadik can't give.

1:18:01 Speaker 3 Yeah.

1:18:01 Speaker 1 Right? That's, that's the theme there. And that the avoda of the beinoni is actually in some ways higher than that of the tzadik. Uleileh kach nivra. You were chosen to give Hashem the pleasure of matamim, lashon habim, of iskafia. And quotes the Zohar, where Zohar says clearly that, um, the avoda kad iskafia sitra achra is, is higher than any other form of avoda. Any other form, even that of a, of a tzadik. And yet on the other hand, we say that you need iskafia and ishapcha, and the lashon there is iskafia hamivili dei ishapcha, meaning that ishapcha is higher.

1:18:46 Speaker 3 Right.

1:18:46 Speaker 1 So how, how does that work? So in that ma'amar, towards the end of the ma'amar, I think it's actually in Sifjut Deis, um, the Rebbe resolves this issue and explains that the madrega that we're mamshich through iskafia is superior to anything that a tzadik does. Because through the avoda of iskafia, the bittul associated with iskafia, the fact that, um, he's oved elokim, the iskafia aspect of avoda, the bittul going against your nature, is, uh, higher than any other form of, of, of elekos. But that's lemela. That's in terms of the madrega lemela.

1:19:46 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:19:46 Speaker 1 The kavana of dirah b'tachtonim is that it should be b'gili lamata. So I'm saying this behemshcha-

1:19:53 Speaker 3 Right

1:19:53 Speaker 1 ... it's what we were saying before.

1:19:55 Speaker 3 Right.

1:19:55 Speaker 1 The combination of etzem and gili. So the iskafia is mamshich the etzem higher than shfochah achra, higher than any other kind of service, including iskaf- ishapcha. However, the kavana is that it shouldn't be just lemela. The kavana is that it should be b'gili hi lamata, dirah b'tachtonim.

1:20:24 Speaker 3 Right.

1:20:25 Speaker 1 How do we make the tachtonim a keli for this madrega? You have to have ishapcha. Ishapcha chashecha lanaira by refining the olam. And a beinoni doesn't do that because... Or he can't do that because his avoda is adarabi iskafia to, to, to be kofer himself and, and his interaction with, with Gashmius.

1:20:52 Speaker 3 Right.

1:20:53 Speaker 1 The tzadik is able to be mahapach and to transform it into, um, kedusha. So you need the combination of both. That's how the Alter Rebbe explains... The Ha-Ha of the Rebbe, how Rebbe explains this. Towards the end of that ma'amar, I think it's a few days.

1:21:08 Speaker 4 Right.

1:21:09 Speaker 1 Um, that iskafya amivili de isapcha, you need both. You need the etzem to be mamshik the highest possible madregas, and that's through iskafya. But that it should be begilul mata, that's through the avoda of refinement of the olam, the isapcha chashech onen heya to make the olam a kli for elikus, and that's the avoda of the tzadik. So you need both.

1:21:37 Speaker 4 Right. So technically, the beinoni also has both in his literal avoda 'cause it's not like he's as a person, whoever this beinoni is, right? Every, every year, every chasid, hopefully, in that sense. Um, there are parts of his life, of course, that he has to be doing his iskafya, and he has to be subduing and fighting. And there are parts of his life where he already, you know, conquered and it's smooth sailing in that sense, which I guess would be isapcha. Is that, is that correct?

1:22:09 Speaker 1 Is that your own idea or is it you're basing it on something?

1:22:12 Speaker 4 I mean, what, what would isapcha be?

1:22:15 Speaker 1 Well, you... Be pashtus, you would say isapcha is only for tzadikim. That's the madrega of a tzadik. It's not the ma- it's not the avoda of a beinoni.

1:22:22 Speaker 4 At all? Uh-

1:22:23 Speaker 1 Okay. So why I'm saying that, why I'm questioning you is because the Rebbe actually addresses this issue, the very issue that you raised.

1:22:31 Speaker 4 Okay.

1:22:32 Speaker 1 So, uh, you can say Baruch Shekivanti, I suppose. Uh, the Rebbe at the end of, uh, Perek Chof Zayin, where, you know, the Alter Rebbe rounds off this inyan of the beinoni and his avoda and the ma'ala of the beinoni, right? That's the whole thing of Perek Chof Zayin.

1:22:52 Speaker 4 Right.

1:22:53 Speaker 1 That he shouldn't be downcast, he shouldn't be be'atzvus. It's in the context of atzvus and simcha that, "Ulelekach nivra," you were chosen for a special avoda. You're giving Hashem the special nachas of his iskafya, which we said of... From the ze'ar is higher than any other form of avoda. Or like the Alter Rebbe gives the Moshel Gasmi the matanim of, uh, spicy foods and, uh, you know, um-

1:23:20 Speaker 4 Food

1:23:21 Speaker 1 ... that, that sort of thing. The-

1:23:22 Speaker 4 Yeah

1:23:23 Speaker 1 ... the, um, it's a special, special ta'anog. Towards the end of the Perek, the Alter Rebbe says that if the beinoni continues to strive, and we know that we're under oath to try to be a tzadik. The b'shtadel, that's how the Alter Rebbe explains it. You have to be mekayem the, the shevua, and even if you don't get there, you have... We're under obligation, we're under oath to try to get there. And the Alter Rebbe says that if he's tried and genuinely tried and it doesn't help and he c- he doesn't seem to be able to, um, harness, you know, the yetzer hara and to transform him, what should he do? He says, "Yevakesh rachamim", you have to ask for mercy from the Aibishter, and the Aibishter will, um, be mamale his, uh, desire.

1:24:17 Speaker 4 Mm-hmm.

1:24:17 Speaker 1 And, uh, he'll, he'll be able to come to this isapcha that he's, that he's looking for, that he wants so desperately, right?

1:24:26 Speaker 4 Right.

1:24:26 Speaker 1 He's tried. The Alter... That's how the Alter Rebbe answers, uh, ends the, the, the Perek.

1:24:32 Speaker 4 "Ki chelek hashamai," that's, uh-

1:24:34 Speaker 1 Yeah.

1:24:34 Speaker 4 Yeah.

1:24:34 Speaker 1 Yeah. And that he'll, he'll achieve, you know, full, not just control, but he'll be able to be mahapach. So the Rebbe questions this, but one, one... Just a moment. The, the, the whole point of this Perek is to tell the beinoni-

1:24:49 Speaker 4 Right

1:24:50 Speaker 1 ... that your avoda is not inferior. It's not second rate. "Ulelekach nivra", you were chosen. You have the zechus. You were chosen to give the Aibishter the nachas ruach in iskafya. So at the end of the Perek, the Alter Rebbe is saying, "No, but you'll, you'll succeed, and you'll be able to be mahapach the, the yetzer hara, and, uh, you'll achieve iskaf- isapcha." So it seems to be sort of going against everything that the Perek is actually saying. On that, the Rebbe answers that you can be a beinoni in certain aspects of your avoda, but you can also be a tzadik in other aspects. Now, the tzadik of bein- of Tanya is a tzadik in every way.

1:25:42 Speaker 4 Right.

1:25:43 Speaker 1 The beinoni of Tanya can have elements of his avoda which are like that of a tzadik-

1:25:50 Speaker 4 Mm-hmm

1:25:50 Speaker 1 ... in, in sort of specific limited areas. So overall, he's a beinoni. But still, in certain aspects of his avoda, in certain parts, he could, um, have, uh, you know, the, the... Or have reached the madrega of, uh, of that of a tzadik.

1:26:10 Speaker 4 Right.

1:26:10 Speaker 1 So that which you said before is actually, um, the Rebbe's pirush in, in, in Tanya.

1:26:17 Speaker 4 Right. And it sounds like it's... Going back to the general theme that we're talking about, like etzem begiluy, it sounds like that would be important, not just as a pirsham Tanya, so to speak, to be... To answer a stira in, in, in the, in the Perek, but in context of the way we view the whole avoda of dir b'tachtonim, we wanna have that begiluy. It sounds like it matches up to the, the, the, the tachtonim is more like... It sounds like, I mean, my understanding, this, the tachtonim is more like the iskafya, like where there's a tachsin shetachtah matam menu, but the dirah means that it should be begiluy.

1:26:53 Speaker 1 And for that you need the avoda of, um, isapcha-

1:26:57 Speaker 4 Right

1:26:58 Speaker 1 ... to transform the tachsin, that you should be a keli, not just to subdue and to control, but to be mahapach him.

1:27:06 Speaker 4 Right.

1:27:07 Speaker 1 Um, I'm just gonna raise another issue which, um- Seems to throw a spanner in the works here. Um, and that is that, um, there's the Maimar, the Rebbe's Maimar, um, Mugadic Maimar. It's, uh, 18 Omar Amachasani Meavron, where the Rebbe says based on the Maimar of the Rebbe Rashab. The Rebbe Rashab's Maimar is Parsha Zocher, Tofrishayin Ches. Um, but the Rebbe in this Maimar in Toreshayim Lamed Zayin brings that, um, the ultimate inion of, um, Dirah Betachtainim is somewhat like someone who hadar bebase chaverai. Like someone who's living in someone else's house. That the Hebryshta has a dirah here Betachtainim, but his door bebase chaverai. Um-

1:28:20 Speaker 3 It's wild

1:28:20 Speaker 1 ... I don't, I don't think we find it in a lot of places, but it's, uh, found in, in that Maimar, in Tofrishayim Ches and in the Rebbe's Maimar, which was Magia, so it's very, uh, much bediuk. Um, how do we understand that? What does that mean? That, uh, it's not a dirah which is the Hebryshta's dirah. It's base chaverai, it's someone else's dirah. I'm, I'm not really going to try to explain it, uh, because I don't think we can explain it.

1:28:56 Speaker 3 Right.

1:28:56 Speaker 1 'Cause the Rebbe concludes there with a dayin tzaruchim. So if it's a dayin tzaruchim by the Rebbe, it's, uh, we're, we're certainly not, uh, capable of, uh, offering an explanation. Um, but, um, the, the, the basis of the whole and the whole thing, um, is that, um, losit lavi, hopefully bekarov mamash, you know, Mashiach's coming, and it'll be bekarov mamash. That, um, we, um, that there'll be a tzimtsum. The tzimtsum will not be nisbatel.

1:29:40 Speaker 3 Hmm.

1:29:41 Speaker 1 But rather it'll be nisapach legili. So the tzimtsum will still have a role, but we will see how the inion of the tzimtsum, the guv, um, all of the restrictions, uh, are not really magbil the Hebryshta at all. And that, um, the whole inion of the tzimtsum is, um, not just bishvil hagili. That's another whole discussion. There's two aspects of the tzimtsum, where it's bishvil hagili or the etzem inion of tzimtsum and helim-

1:30:16 Speaker 3 Right

1:30:16 Speaker 1 ... is an expression of the chayas of the Hebryshta, um, in and of itself. Um, so the Rebbe says that, um, in the Meis Hamashiach, the tzimtsum will not be nisbatel, but rather it'll be nisapach. So we'll see how the tzimtsum and all the aspects of guv that are associated with the tzimtsum are really an expression of the Hebryshta being klei rochah. However, that's all milo meila. It's at gidre haTachtainim. The, um, the, it's, it's still not within the gidre haTachtainim that you should have helim, which is begili.

1:31:01 Speaker 3 Right.

1:31:02 Speaker 1 So it's, it's sad the teva of the Tachtainim or the gidre haTachtainim, they remain in a state of chaverai, base chaverai. Something like that. Uh-

1:31:13 Speaker 3 Right.

1:31:13 Speaker 1 Anyway, I, I, I really don't wanna take it far. I'm just, I'm just flagging this inion because if people want to do some research, uh, and, and, you know, and take it further.

1:31:22 Speaker 3 Right.

1:31:22 Speaker 1 There is this aspect of dirah haTachtainim, which you don't find very often, but it's there. Um, and it's in a, in a Movidika Maimar. Um-

1:31:31 Speaker 3 To tie it back, it sounds like that's Melach HaSadeh, right? You know, like the... You know, it was the focus of that it, that, like we started off, that he's not bringing the people to his palace. He davka wants to meet them in the Sadeh.

1:31:43 Speaker 1 Through the gidre haTachtainim.

1:31:45 Speaker 3 Right.

1:31:45 Speaker 1 That's, that's, that's true. Yeah. Um, yeah. Look, um, the... There's another aspect to this whole thing. Um, before we go further-

1:32:04 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm

1:32:04 Speaker 1 ... I, I just wanna mention that, um, this mashal of Melach HaSadeh, the Alter Rebbe, there is a similar mashal which is brought Bashem the Baal Shem Tov, Keser Shem Tov.

1:32:19 Speaker 3 Mm-hmm.

1:32:19 Speaker 1 Uh, it seems that variations of this mashal were, um, sort of, uh, taught by the Baal Shem Tov and the Talmidi HaBaal Shem and the Maggid, um, use this mashal, not the way the Alter Rebbe presents it, but a variation of that mashal, uh, in, in a different way. Um, the, in, in Keser Shem Tov, um, I think it's, it's, um, it's Shin Yud Beis, so if people wanna look it up and, and see that. Um, the Baal Shem Tov asks the question, which is the Gemara's question actually, that we find two pesukim which seem to contradict each other. That on the one hand we say that, um, dir shu Hashem behimotzai, that's in the Haftarah that we read on Taanis Esther. "Dirshu Hashem behimotzei." S-so seek Hashem when he can be found. That means that he's not always found, but when he can be found, behimotzei. And on the other hand, we say, "Michar Shemech Aleichem buchol kareinu elav," that He answers us always. "Buchol kareinu elav." There's no specific time, behimotzei.

1:33:38 Speaker 3 Right.

1:33:39 Speaker 1 So Gemara raises that question, and, um, Gemara says, "Well, when is the behimotzei? When is that, the time that He's, uh, found, that He can be found?" That's referring to the Aseres Yemei Teshuva. So it's generally speaking, this time of the year, time of Teshuva and Elul. And, you know, but they're the Gemara that says it specifically in the Aseres Yemei Teshuva. So that's behimotzei and that, um, buchol kareinu elav, the, at any time, the Baal Shem Tov says, um, this is, um, a, like Deveshder, he says, "Behimotzei," actually behimotzei and, and buchol kareinu elav, he resolves it by saying that behimotzei... Deveshder is always available to us in the times of the Beis Hamikdash, in the times of Galus, um, in every situation. But behimotzei and bu-kar, uh, buchol kareinu elav, there is zman of Galus where Deveshder is actually closer to us than in the time of the Mikdash.

1:34:58 Speaker 3 Hmm.

1:34:59 Speaker 1 Which is, uh, Chiddash. I mean, the way the Gemara says, "Kam beyachid, kam be-

1:35:02 Speaker 3 Right. Sibur.

1:35:03 Speaker 1 Sibur. Um, but the Baal Shem Tov says that we're talking here. When is, when is He more readily available? In zman of Galus.

1:35:15 Speaker 3 Hmm.

1:35:16 Speaker 1 And to, to understand that, he gives a mashal of a melech who is baderach. He's, he's traveling, and he's staying, I think the lashon there is a pundak, in an inn somewhere, staying there. So he's not in his palace, he's not in the Heichal HaMalchus. He's traveling and he's, uh, in a pundak. Then people can gain access to the melech. He's more readily available, accessible, and he's happy to, to hear, you know, what people want and to, to relate to them. So he says that this is why we find that zman of Galus, there are certain aspects of HaAvoda which are actually, um, easier for us, and the Deveshder is closer to us in zman of Galus.

1:36:11 Speaker 3 Wow.

1:36:12 Speaker 1 Right? So it's a similar theme. Um, and, um... But when you look at it, I mean, I, I'm not aware of that, which doesn't mean anything. Just because I'm not aware of it doesn't mean it's not there. But, uh, you know, um, but, uh, I'm not aware of, of my moreh or siger where the Rebbe makes this sort of connection and points out what's unique in the way the Alter Rebbe presents this concept. So Alter Rebbe's not talking about zman of Galus. Alter Rebbe is talking about it in terms of Elul.

1:36:50 Speaker 3 Right.

1:36:50 Speaker 1 Elul and Tishrei. Um, but I think one of the major differences, um, is that the way the Baal Shem Tov, uh, and the Talmidei HaMagid, you find this mashal in many Seforim of the Talmidei HaBaal Shem, but not the way the Alter Rebbe presents it. Alter Rebbe presents it specifically with regard to Elul and Tishrei.

1:37:16 Speaker 3 Right.

1:37:18 Speaker 1 The way the mashal is, um, brought there is that the king happens to be on a journey. He's traveling. His intent is not to be with the people.

1:37:33 Speaker 3 Right.

1:37:33 Speaker 1 But when he's in that situation, and he's pundak in that environment, in that situation, people can, uh, take the opportunity to approach him, and he is available and accessible. Now, Alter Rebbe is saying the opposite almost. The melech davka-

1:37:56 Speaker 3 Right

1:37:57 Speaker 1 ... in the nimshal anyway. In the mashal we said it's kedem bo le'ir.

1:38:00 Speaker 3 Right.

1:38:01 Speaker 1 But in the Kotzker Sichos, uh, in Chelek Daled there where this whole thing is found, Rebbe says in the nimshal, the Alter Rebbe says, uh, the other way around, that the melech leaves the Heichal and goes out to the sod, and he wants to be with the people. So it's specifically for that purpose.

1:38:19 Speaker 3 Hmm.

1:38:19 Speaker 1 He wants to connect with Bnei Yisrael, not just it's incidental, you know, that, uh, he happens to be on a journey and you can connect with him. So, uh, and also in the various Maamarim, and the Mugdiker Maamarim especially, the, uh, the, the Rebbe is, um, mefarret, you know, the various lashonus of the Alter Rebbe that, um, that, um, Mekubal is kulam rasei upon him yafas. Mare upon him sechakeis. All of these lashonus the Alter... Our Rebbe explains, you know, in, in detail.

1:38:55 Speaker 3 Right.

1:38:55 Speaker 1 So although there is a similar mashal brought from the Baal Shem Tov, um, now the Rebbe's mashal is taking it to a completely different level.

1:39:06 Speaker 3 Right.

1:39:06 Speaker 1 It's, it's expressing the chibah, the ahavah of the melech to the am, that he wants to be with the people, and he's b'simcha to be there. The mashal of the Baal Shem Tov doesn't sort of, uh, go that far. He doesn't, doesn't explain it that way. He, he happens to be on a journey and people can, can, can approach him.

1:39:27 Speaker 3 Yeah. It sounds like the whole vort of etzem, the way the Rebbe explains from in, in, like you said, in Chelek Daled, would only come out based on Alter Rebbe's understanding.

1:39:36 Speaker 1 Yeah, exactly. That, uh, this is where the ratzon of the melech is.

1:39:41 Speaker 3 Right. Which connects to the whole dirbach tefilin piece.

1:39:43 Speaker 1 Yeah.

1:39:43 Speaker 3 Yeah.

1:39:43 Speaker 1 Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Um, look, I think we, um, need to round it off. It is Erev Shabbat, so Zed-

1:39:50 Speaker 3 Yeah.

1:39:51 Speaker 1 Um, the... I'll, I'll just bring also one more point that I think is especially important for our generation. Um, the, the Rebbe in a sicha of, um, Shabbos Tisha B'Av. It was a Tisha B'Av nitra. It's in, um, taf shin mem ches. sikkah. Um, so the Rebbe there explains that, um, whereas, you know, we have to go through Galus, and the, the Galus brings out the, the deeper koafus of Bnei Yisroel. «כִּי מְנַצָּה ה' אֱלֹקֶיךָ אֶת הַמִּשְׁחָה לְאֹדָהּ» And we have the Avoda fiskafya. Um, and, and, you know, the challenges of Galus bring out the, the deeper koafus of the neshamah. Um, now, the Rab-- I mean, the Rebbe says there something which seems to be, um, a very big chidush on the surface anyway. Um, that the, the ultimate in Avoda is not even the highest madrigas of «יִסְרָן הָאֵר הַבָּא מִן הַחֹשֶׁךְ». That's the male of Galus. Right. The male of all of our nisyonos and challenges is that the «יִסְרָן הָאֵר» is comes. «יִסְרָן הָאֵר הַבָּא מִן הַחֹשֶׁךְ». In that itself, chidush brings three different, uh, pirushim, but we're limited in time and, you know, ultimately, it means not just that you appreciate the ohr more when it comes after dark. You've experienced the darkness, and now, you know, you experience the light. You appreciate it more. Um, that doesn't show that the light is, is a different light. Right. It's not a different caliber light. It just means your experience of the light is enhanced because you've experienced the darkness, and

1:42:02 Speaker 1 now you have light, so you appreciate it more. The ultimate inyan, the highest form of «יִסְרָן הָאֵר» means there's a yisran in the ohr itself. Mm. It's a higher form of ohr. And the yisran, the ultimate highest form of ohr, is davka min haChoshech as we said before, that in zman hagolos and zman hanisyones, it brings out deeper koachus that you wouldn't be able to, uh, to be magala otherwise. So having said all of that, the Rebbe then says, "That's not the tachlis." And the, the tachlis is kedusha b'tahara asa. Pure kedusha. Not even a yisran ha'or which comes min haChoshech. It's... He doesn't use these words, but it's almost as though the ohr is a little bit tainted. Mm-hmm. It's coming from the Choshech. Mm-hmm. Those are not the Rebbe's words exactly, but I mean, the, the concept is not the ultimate level of ohr. The ultimate level of ohr is it has no shaiachus to, to Choshech. It's the etzem. The etzem which is higher than any form of galus or, or Choshech. And the gily of that madrega, which the Rebbe says... I'm, I'm not sure if that's the exact lashon of the Rebbe. But you can see it's, it's, uh, Tisha B'Av nidcha on, on taf shin mem ches, um, that there's kedusha b'tahara asa. Pure kedusha. And, uh, that, that, that's the ultimate. But to get there, there are the stages of, you know, the, the avoda of, um, Beis Hamikdash and avoda of Galus. And then eventually we come

1:43:50 Speaker 1 to, you know, uh, the ein leid milvadei and shomess Yisroel and, um, v'chola vadcha v'ein zar mitoch. Just pure kedusha and shomess Yisroel and Hamishna. Um, the... I think that, that helps us to some extent anyway to understand the nature of our avoda now. Um, when I say now, referring to, you know, when the Rebbe said on multiple occasions that we don't have the avoda of Avodas Habirurim anymore. The, the quota of Avodas Habirurim has been fulfilled. There's no impediment. There's no, there's no barriers to, to Mashiach coming kol hakol kitzim, and anything that needs, uh, you know, to have been done has been completed. Teshuva, Ahavas Yisroel. Um, in the end of the maimar of mata tztza ve'aref, the Rebbe says that, um, you know, um, even mitsva de guf, although the Alter Rebbe says, uh, you have to have, uh, the guf as tofil and make the neshama the ikar to have Ahavas Yisroel. The Rebbe says, "Nowadays, even the biror of the guf has been completed, and we can have Ahavas Yisroel even mitsva de-guf." Im yomi Mashiach on the guf. Um, our avoda is no longer the inyan of Avodas Habirurim. Possibly, you know, it's connected to this concept of kedusha b'tahara asa. We're already in a zman where we can be shaiach. We, we can in our avoda focus on the asei tov, not even the biror of the ra. The biror of the ra, we... You know, previous generations and our generation, uh, the various forms of galus, we've,

1:45:54 Speaker 1 we've, we've done all of that. Now, our... uh, the focus of our avoda is asei tov. Or in the lashon of that, that's either the kedusha or the taharasa. Mm-hmm. So that's the ultimate which goes beyond even the maalas of jisran oer haba min ha'chesed. Right. Beyond even that. This is like the whole chamacharov. This is the- That's the heichal ha'melach already. Right. Heichal ha'melach, right. That, uh, we're, we're, we're mufkarim. We've been made mufkarim. We've done all of that, and now we have access to the heichal ha'melach. Yeah. So, um, you know, the Rebbe has, uh, in Megillat Tas, I suppose, um, that, uh, this is the nature of our avoda now. It's, it's, uh, not milchama against the ra anymore. The Rebbe actually connects it to, um, the siyum of parash-- of, of, um, Sefer Bamidbar, Nasi, the beginning of Devarim, where, where the Bnei Yisroel, uh, like in the beginning of Sefer Devarim, um, Moshe Rabbeinu is talking to Bnei Yisroel and preparing them to go into Eretz Yisroel, but the place where they're found is labeled in two different ways. Actually, where were they? Um, one of the ways in which the Torah describes their actual place of where, where, where the, where all of this is happening is Be'er Bas Mayov. But also, it's referred to as Ever HaYarden. Right. And it's the same place. What are these two lashonas? Be'er Bas Mayov and the Ever HaYarden. Be'er Bas Mayov. Be'er Bas is from the lashon Be'er, Erev, Choshek. Mm-hmm.

1:47:57 Speaker 1 And the Choshek of Mayov. Be'er Bas Mayov is our avoda against the Choshek, against the Sitra Achra to, to... In other words, the Galus. The avoda of Galus. To, to have the milchama against the, the, the forces of, uh, darkness. But then the Torah refers to the same place as Ever HaYarden, meaning you connect it already to Eretz Yisroel. This is designating the place not as Mayov, but Ever HaYarden. It's, it's shayeach now to Eretz Yisroel. Right. In other words, the Rebbe explains that these are the two stages of our avoda. This is the siyum of the avoda of Galus, the Be'er Bas Mayov. We've completed that. Now we're by Ever HaYarden. Mashiach hasn't come b'poel, but our avoda can be in the nature of Ever HaYarden. Davka in the kav of Asei Tov and, um, Kedusha B'tahara also. The question then is, why isn't Mashiach here? The Rebbe asked that question and doesn't answer it. Right. He doesn't answer the question. He says, "Ein imovin klal u'klal." He doesn't wanna answer it, because if you answer it, that means you're justifying it- Complacent ... to some, to some extent. Right. The Rebbe doesn't want under any circumstances to justify us being in Galus. In the same way that the, that, that, that the Rebbe, um, never gave reasons for what we call the Holocaust. The Rebbe says he doesn't want to offer explanations. I heard this from the Rebbe on a number of occasions, because that would justify it in some way. There's no

1:49:52 Speaker 1 justification in Sechel Adam. We have to say, we just accept it. We don't understand, but we're not going to justify it by offering rational explanations. And the same is true, uh, in our matzav now. Right. You know? Um, we're still in, to some extent, in Galus, even though our avoda is the avoda of, uh, Asei Tov and ma'alim ba'kodesh in kedusha gufa. Not, not the birur ara. We're not, we're not... Our avoda now is not Be'er Bas Mayov. It's Ever HaYarden. So why hasn't it happened b'poel? "Ein imovin klal u'klal," the Rebbe says. He doesn't wanna justify it, but it has to happen and should happen. So Hashem should, uh, grant, um, that, uh, well, it's, it's teshuva v'elo today. Just so happens, uh, hasgacha protis, establishment of Temimim and Finias HaTorah. So Hashem should, uh, should make it happen already, lamateh mei'hasarat tochim, and give everyone, kol klal Yisroel, a ksiva v'chasima tova, l'shana tova u'mesuka, b'toeva nirava nigla. Amen. Hashmez u'ruchnez and, uh, niska zein zakh mitn Rebb, lamateh naguf, lamateh mei'hasarat tochim, u'hu yigaleinu. Amen. Amen. Thank you very much.