Parshas Chukas English

D’ei Chochmah L’Nafshechah Parshas Chukas

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Shalosh Seudos1 of Parshas Chukas 5766

דבר אל בני ישראל ויקחו :לאמר' אל משה ואל אהרן לאמר זאת חקת התורה אשר צוה ה' וידבר ה"

"...אליך פרה אדמה תמימה אשר אין בה מום אשר לא עלה עליה על

“And Hashem spoke to Moshe and to Aharon, saying: This is the Torah’s

decree as commanded by Hashem: Speak to the Jewish people and have them

bring you a completely red heifer, which has no blemish, and which has never had

a yoke upon it.”2 The Pesiktah asks why this sacrifice has to be brought from a heifer, a

female cow, unlike most others which are brought from the male of their species. In

answer, it cites the opinion of Rav Eivoh: This could be compared to a serving woman’s

son who soiled the king’s palace. When the king heard of this he said, “Let the serving

woman come and clean her offspring’s filth off the palace floor.”3

It is well known that the first set of tablets that were shattered after the sin of the

golden calf were on a higher spiritual plane than the second pair that came to replace

them. The first set was rooted in the Tree of Life, an aspect of the hidden realm of

Torah. The second set was rooted in the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, an aspect

of the revealed Oral Torah, or more specifically the Mishnah. The Mishnah is compared

to a maidservant, or matrenusah.4 Although we blemished the first tablets and had to be

satisfied with the second set, the first tablets were not completely nullified. On the

contrary, the holy Arizal taught that even today the purpose and rectification of the

world is to return to serving Hashem in the spirit of the first set of tablets.5 This aspect

can be achieved through the mitzvah of Parah Adumah, the red Heifer. [Note: At Sinai,

1 The lesson was delivered at the third meal of Shabbos. 2 Bamidbar 19:1-2 3 Pesiktah D’ Rav Kahana 4:8 4 See introduction of Rav Chaim Vital to Sha’ar Hahakdamos, Eitz Chaim, Sha’ar 49:3 and Sha’ar Hagilgulim, Hakdamah #36. 5 From the commentary of the Arizal on Pirkei Avos.


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before the sin, the Jewish people tasted immortality. The sin of the golden calf reduced

them again to vulnerability to death and decay. Since the red heifer sacrifice is the

means through which the impurity associated with death is lifted, it is a rectification for

the taint of death brought on by the golden calf. “Let the serving woman come and clean

her offspring’s filth.”]

Tammuz—The Time of Repentance Approaches

The red heifer embodies repentance and purification. Our sages taught that we

will only be redeemed as a result of genuine repentance.6 Repentance is actually the

main purpose of existence that will be achieved in the ultimate future. As the verse

states: " לעבדו שכם אחד' לקרא כולם בשם הכי אז אהפך אל עמים שפה ברורה" —“For then will

I turn to the nations a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of Hashem to

serve Him united as one.”7 Repentance is the deepest depths, since everyone really

wants to repent. “All desire to fear Your Name.”8 This is especially true regarding the

month of Tammuz, since the very word Tammuz alludes to repentance. As Rebbe

Nachman of Breslov taught, Tammuz is an acronym for “the times of repentance

approach.” In Hebrew: ".זמני תשובה ממשמשים ובאים"

Every person seeks out the proper path for them to achieve closeness to

Hashem. There are two essential paths to repentance: the path of the first tablets, and the

path of the second. A person on the first path focuses on Yichudah Ila’ah, on the Upper

Unification. This entails knowing and recognizing that "אין עוד מלבדו" —“nothing exists

besides Hashem.”9 The second path is the one of Yichudah Tata’ah, the Lower

Unification.10

6 Sanhedrin 97b 7 Tzefaniah 3:9 8 This is echoed in Nechemiah 1:11 and in the prayer of Rabbi Tanchum, as brought in Berachos 33a. 9 Devarim 4:35 10 Tanya, Sha’ar Hayichud V’haemunah, chapter 7.


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The first path entails a certain danger, however. One who focuses too much on

the fact that everything is from Hashem can begin to feel that there is no need to repent

at all. “After all, is not everything from Hashem? Was not the fact that I did wrong also

a manifestation of Divine providence?” One who feels this way has fallen from the true

expression first path to the second lower path, at the very least! This is similar to the

explanation that the Maggid of Kozhnitz’s offered upon the verse, אין בה מום אשר לא "

" עלה עליה על —“that has no blemish, that never bore a yoke.” If one feels that he need

not repent since he has no blemish, it is a sure sign that he has never really assumed the

yoke of Hashem’s Kingship. [Such a person is exploiting his lack of understanding of

Hashem’s nature to free himself from any obligation, since “everything is from

Hashem.”]

The Hebrew word for blemish— "מ-מו" —is actually the final segment of what is

known as the “72 Name” since it comprises 72 triads.11 This Name represents

Chochmah / Wisdom, which parallels the Yichudah Ila’ah. While a person focuses on

this Name, he must remain aware of his spiritual flaws. He is so far from truly serving

Hashem because of these blemishes in his spiritual makeup. This Name represents the

world of angels. The word “blemish” [mem (40) vav (6) and mem (40)] has the

numerical equivalent to the name Elo-him. [aleph (1) lamed (30) hei (5) yud (10) mem

(40) = 86] The Name Elokim12 represents judgment, an aspect of the six lower sefiros—

Chessed / Kindness, Gevurah / Judgment, Tiferes / Beauty, Netzach / Victory or

Endurance, Hod / Splendor, Yesod / Foundation.13 These lower six sefiros are external

compared with the higher sefiros of Chochmah / Wisdom, Binah / Understanding, Da’as

/ Knowledge. This teaches us that even when one enters the aspect of deep

contemplation of Hashem’s immanence, he must be aware of his own distance and the

fact that such contemplation is not his by right but is merely a gift from Hashem. We are

11 Pri Eitz Chaim, Krias Shema, Chapter 1 12 Out of respect, we substitute letters of the Divine Name with kuf when pronouncing it aloud. 13 There are ten sefiros, or channels of Divine influence, that break down into the upper three known as Mochin / Mentalities, the lower six as described above, and the final sefirah of Malchus / Kingship.


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not really entering the inner sanctum of the King, since we aren’t really worthy because

of our flaws. One who feels spiritually perfect as a result of contemplating Hashem’s

existence is actually very far from holiness.

“Water, Water”

Our Rabbis tell us that Rabbi Akiva warned the four who entered Paradise:

“When you arrive at the ‘stones of marble’ don’t say, ‘water water.’ As the verse states:

‘He who speaks falsely will not be established before My eyes.’”14 The upper waters

represent Hashem and the lower represent the creation. When one approaches the

avodah, the service of the “upper waters,” he must understand that although he needs to

correct his faults through repentance, he must not act as though there are two separate

waters, above and below. This is false. When one reaches purity of the upper waters he

must realize that everything is one and there is absolutely no division between the

Creator and His creation. In this high place, everything is an absolute unity. If he cannot

maintain consciousness of this, he is falsifying in this high place and does not deserve to

be there.

Of course, on the surface this seems to contradict what was just said. Does one

retain an awareness of his spiritual blemishes when in the state of Yichudah Ila’ah or

not? Is this absolute unity not the opposite of remembering one’s individual spiritual

faults?

This is the deep mystery of the parah adumah, the red heifer. The Arizal

explained that the parah adumah is an aspect of Binah that also stems from Malchus.15

This is the root reason why the ashes of the heifer have the paradoxical effect of

purifying the impure while also defiling the pure when lifted not for their intended

purpose. It has an aspect both of Binah, with which it purifies the impure, and Malchus,

with which it imparts impurity on the pure. This is because Binah is an aspect of the

upper waters, while Malchus is an aspect of the lower waters. What one grasps of the

14 Chagigah 14b 15 Sefer Halikutim, Parshas Chukas, 19


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Creator is an aspect of Binah, while what one must rectify and correct is an aspect of

Malchus. This is reflected in the statement of the sages: “There is only a hairsbreadth of

difference between the upper and lower waters.”16 A hair, nimah, often refers to the

aspect of Yesod, Foundation.17 This teaches that the first step of the avodah of the parah

adumah is that a person has a sense that he is defiled, that he has flaws. Only then can

he become purified through the aspect of Yichudah Ila’ah, where everything exists in a

state of unity with Hashem. It is only when one yearns for such spiritual completion

because he is aware of his faults that he knows that he has advanced properly to an

aspect of Yichudah Ila’ah. One who feels righteous cannot enter into this process. If he

tries, he will fall into the aspect of the red heifer with the power to defiling the pure.

Spiritually, this means that the heifer confers impurity on one who feels he is flawless

and pure.

The Megaleh Amukos writes that the inner essence of the parah adumah is

aligned with klipas nogah—the area just outside of the realm of holiness that

comprises a mixture of good and evil.18 If one perverts the aspect of parah adumah as

described before, one falls into a confused mixture of good and evil. We see, then, that

the parah adumah contains elements of Binah, Yesod, Malchus, as well as klipas

nogah. This is symbolized by the form of the letter alef, which depicts the bridging of

the upper and lower waters to make a single unity. [The gematria of alef is one.] One

who blemishes this falls from the upper waters into klipas nogah. But if he grasps the

Yesod, that hairsbreadth link that connects the upper and lower waters, he reveals that

he is still aware of his blemishes and yet yearns to enter the upper waters. To

accomplish this, he must know that everything is one unity. He must not blemish the

unity by saying “water, water”—by acting as though there are two types of water,

rather than absolute unity.

16 Chagigah, 15a 17 See Kehilas Ya’akov under Nimah. 18 Megaleh Amukos, Parshas Chukas; Klipas nogah literally means, the “shining husk”—see Yechezkel 1:4—the “shining husk” is the innermost and final of the four klippos that preceded Yechezkel’s vision.


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Miriam’s Well

This is expressed in the song of Miriam’s well: " אז ישיר ישראל את השירה הזאת

"עלי באר ענו לה —“Then the Jewish people sang this song: Rise, O well, respond to [this

song].”19 The well is an aspect of the feminine element of Yesod, which is related to the

nimah, or hair. This is the hairsbreadth of awareness of one’s flaws that is vital for the

person who continually yearns for Hashem. Be’er, well, also represents the masculine

element of Yesod, since the word be’er comprises the same letters as the word eiver.20

The upper waters represent Hashem’s transcendence, while the lower waters

represent His immanence. These aspects are also parallel that hierarchical relationship

between the teacher and his student—the one in the superior position always longs to

give to the one in the subordinate position. This is what it means to always strive for the

level of the first luchos, and this is expressed in the Name Makom, Place, since one

knows that Hashem is absolutely unique and draws the entire world, everyone in every

place, to repentance.

One who wishes to access this pinnacle of holiness must realize his impurity,

which is the starting point of repentance. Although one must feel blemished even as he

approaches the aspect of Yichudah Ila’ah, he must not feel so blemished that he forgets

that Hashem will surely purify him completely and enable him to fulfill his spiritual

potential. Feeling the former while forgetting the latter could lead a person to give up

completely, G-d forbid. Such forgetfulness and despair is yet another manifestation of

making too much of a distinction between the upper and lower waters. Even so, one

needs to have a sense of his blemish to arouse within himself an intense yearning for

Hashem. This yearning enables him to access the lofty level of Arich Anpin, “the Long

Face,” an expression of Ra’avah D’ra’avin, Hashem’s ultimate will.21 One who accesses

Yichudah Ila’ah doesn’t distinguish between the lower and upper waters since he truly

19 Bamidbar 21:17 20 Eiver means “limb” and often refers to the masculine member. See Sha’ar Hapesukim, Vayeitzei 28 21 Arich Anpin is another way of referring to Malchus within the uppermost sefirah of Kesser / Crown.


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understands that Hashem orchestrates the entire creation. One must elevate the be’er,

the waters of Malchus, completely.

Rashi writes that Moshe grasped the secret of parah adumah, and so it will

always be called after his name.22 Moshe always draws the aspect of continual teshuvah

and yearning upon the Jewish people. One needs to enter the Heichal Livnas Hasapir,

the heavenly Chamber of Sapphire Stone, where one uses his flaws to empower him to

truly yearn for Hashem’s salvation so that Hashem will truly purify him. The seeker

then exists in a state of complete unity with the upper waters since Hashem is the one

who purifies him through his being completely subsumed in Him.

The Desert Serpents

There are two issues that can deter a person from accessing the aspect of the

parah adumah. He may not continually yearn for Hashem, and he may not truly believe

that Hashem will purify even him even if he does long for purity.

This helps to explain the episode of the serpents in the desert. The serpents

represent the evil within the Jewish people that blocked their divine service, and that can

block ours as well. To rectify this, Hashem tells Moshe to put a snake on a banner. This

indicates that in order to defeat the snake, the evil within, one must lift it up to its source

above.

We find in the Talmud that a snake resembles the shape of a person’s spine.23

The Vilna Gaon explains that the head of the snake parallels the base of the spine, while

the tail of the snake parallels the site of the knot of the head tefilin. This point is

associated with the aspect of Leah.24 Hashem told Moshe at the burning bush to grab the

tail of the snake.25 If one wants to be relieved of the potential damage of the snake he

must grab it by the tail which corresponds to his own head. This indicates that one needs

to repent by entering the higher realms of Yichudah Ila’ah, the upper waters which are

22 Rashi on Bamidbar 19:2 23 Bava Kama 16a. 24 Eitz Chaim, Sha’ar 4, chapter 3 25 Shemos 4:4


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in the realm of thought. One must not only repent in deed, but one must also resolve to

purify one’s thoughts.

The Light in the Firmament

The Zohar explains that one draws the Upper Waters down to the Lower

through the elements of Light, Water, and the Firmament— רקיע, מים, אור .26 One’s head

is an aspect of light. It is the seat of all one’s potential and is associated with masculine

energies. The lower parts of a person are an aspect of the firmament, which is the

feminine energy of action: the ability to actualize potential.

This is the inner meaning of the verse that describes four things that are

unknown: "דרך נחש עלי צור" —“The way of a serpent upon a rock…”27 We understand

this more clearly when we juxtapose it with Hashem’s instructions to Moshe: " ודברתם

"לעאל הס —“…speak to the rock.”28 The main way to neutralize the serpent and break

through the stone-like barrier of evil within is through the power of speech. Through

speech, one will understand how to repent. Speech is an aspect of light, as in the verse:

"ך יאיריברד פתח" —“The opening of Your words give light…”29 One must understand

how to repent by connecting to Hashem in an aspect of Yichudah Ila’ah, through doing

holy Yichudim, and experiencing dveikus30 to Hashem. It is not enough to only reach the

aspect of the firmament that represents action. [Note: The source of light is above the

firmament, but it is the light of the Source that fills the firmament. This is the

illumination of holy acts through holy thought.]

This was the content of Hashem’s argument about the failing of Moshe and

Aharon: "יען לא האמנתם בי להקדישני לעיני כל ישראל" —“For you did not have faith in Me

to sanctify Me before the entire Jewish people.”31 It is not enough to merely follow the

26 Zohar II:167a; Pardes Rimonim, Sha’ar 8, chapter 20; Eitz Chaim, Sha’ar 11, chapter 6. 27 Mishlei 30:19 28 Bamidbar 20:8 29 Tehillim 119:130 30 Dveikus is the spiritual, mental, and emotional state of bonding with Hashem. 31 Bamidbar 20:12


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path of the second tablets, the path of action and repentance over any bad one may have

done. One cannot withstand the “serpents” and idolatry as steeped in negativity as Ba’al

Pe’or through this path alone.32 One must elevate the serpents to their source by

connecting to the upper waters, as explained already at great length. One must truly

yearn for Hashem and trust that He will turn everything bad to good and blessing.

Continual yearning does not mean that one never falls. Even if one falls, one

can access an aspect of continuous yearning by striving for Hashem with his entire self.

The main thing is the quality of yearning. This caliber of yearning enables one to

convert the water of Torah, into light—into pure dveikus, connection with Hashem.

Moshe struck the rock, however. He thought that the Jewish people were in

danger of falling to klippas Nogah, into the confusion of good and evil which one can

easily fall to when endeavoring to access the aspect of parah adumah. This was why he

hit the rock—to represent forging a different path. To first correct one’s actions and only

then to try and access Yichudah Ila’ah. However, Hashem didn’t approve of this path,

since the true way to rectify the snake is to raise it up to the Source.

This is all the more true now, when the time for teshuvah of Tammuz is

approaching. We must grab the snake by its tail and elevate it to the Source. We must

follow the path of the true tzaddikim: yearning for true closeness to Hashem while

singing a new song to Him, a song of faith that He will transform us to true tzaddikim.

The Path of the Tree of Life

The verse states in Koheles: " אשר עשה האלקים את האדם ישר והמה בקשו חשבונות

"רבים —“Hashem made man upright, but they sought many calculations.”33 Hashem

created us to learn Torah and pray with intense dveikus. We started out with the

capability to naturally follow the path of the Tree of Life. This is the way of Yichudim

that would have enabled us to enter into and enjoy many spiritual worlds. " לחזות בנועם

"ולבקר בהיכלו' ה —“To gaze upon the pleasantness of Hashem and visit in His

32 Bamidbar 25:1-9 33 Koheles 7:29


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chamber.”34 But we chose instead to go in the path of many calculations. We fall into

the trap of working on bettering ourselves spiritually while forgetting Hashem’s love

and closeness. The only real way to rectify ourselves is to lift the snake on a banner, to

connect to the Source. This is the meaning of the verse: " עשה לך שרף ושים אותו על נס

"והיה כל הנשוך וראה אותו וחי —“Make for yourself a serpent and place it on a banner, and

all who have been bitten will see it and live.”35 This is referring to raising the snake to

its source by following the path of the Tree of Life. As the verse states, "ובחרת בחיים" —

“And choose life”—go in the path of the Tree of Life. If we tread this spiritual pathway

we will certainly correct the Tree of Knowledge as well.

Moshe and the Parah Adumah

The main way to truly follow this path is to connect to a true tzaddik. This is the

significance of the fact that Parah Adumah is always associated with Moshe’s name.

This explains the words of Shlomo HaMelech: "אמרתי אחכמה והיא רחוקה ממני" —“I

said, ‘I will become wise,’ but it is far from me.”36 The wisdom that Shlomo HaMelech

sought was the understanding of the paradoxical nature of the parah adumah.37 When

one wishes to connect to the Yichudah Ila’ah, the light of Chochmah, he must know that

he is far. He can only attain this greatness by connecting to Moshe Rabbeinu who really

did understand the secret of this mitzvah.

The Zohar states that in the sixth millennium, the staff of Moshe will be

discovered.38 Of course, this is the staff that turned into a snake. As the verse says:

"והמטה אשר נהפך לנחש תקח בידך" —“And the staff that turned into a snake, take it in

your hand.”39 This signifies that before the final redemption we will be empowered to

access the towering level of the first tablet, the pathway of the Tree of Life. This is the

34 Tehillim 27:4 35 Bamidbar 21:8 36 Koheles 7:23 37 Yoma 14a 38 Source not provided in original. 39 Shemos 7:15


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path that the Ba’al Shem Tov revealed when he asked Moshiach when he will arrive and

Moshiach replied, “When your maayanos, your wellsprings, spread outward.” This was

the path of the tzaddikim, to make Yichudim and transform the water of Torah into the

light of dveikus. They rectified everything at its source by continually yearning for true

connection to Hashem with their entire being. Although they didn’t make distinctions

when in the Upper Waters, they still were able to maintain the yearning through the

nimah, that hairsbreadth of their blemishes that require repair.

“Let Your Soul Know Wisdom”

This is the meaning of the phrase: "דעה חכמה לנפשך והיא כתר לראשך" —“Let

your soul (nefesh) know (d’ei) wisdom (Chochmah), and it will be a crown (Kesser) for

your head.”40 One path is to connect the aspect of Chochmah to the nefesh, and to

convert the aspect of water associated with the nefesh to ohr, the illumination of

Chochmah. Then it will be a “crown for your head.” Through yearning, one comes to

the level of ravah d’ravin, “will of wills,” which is sourced in Kesser / Crown, as

discussed above. In this way one rectifies the blemish of Moshe striking the rock at the

waters of Merivah. Even when entering the highest place, one continues to yearn

regardless of the fact that he recognizes that everything is Elokus and it is all absolute

unity. This inspires ever more yearning for closeness to Hashem and further

rectification. One then does even more teshuvah, which is an aspect of, “guard your holy

mitzvah, observe your holy Shabbos.” [Note: Shabbos is the embodiment of the never-

ending cycle of yearning and repentance—the name Shabbos itself means shavta—you

repented. All of this is alluded to in the form of the letter alef.41]

This is why the haftorah of Chukas is: "ויפתח הגלעדי היה גבור חיל" —“And

Yiftach of Gilead was a powerful warrior…”42 Yiftach represents the illumination of

40 From the Shabbos zemer “D’ror Yikrah,” based on Mishlei 24:14. 41 Likutei Moharan I:6 42 The haftorah is the weekly portion of the prophets that parallels, and is read after, the weekly Torah portion. Shoftim 11:1


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Chochmah, since Chochmah is referred to as "פתח" —“The opening of Your words give

light…”43 This is an aspect of the Upper waters.

All spiritual delights are included in the world, are part of the Yichudah Ta’atah,

the lower yichud. And this is especially true when a Jew feels a connection to all his

fellow Jews and to the Torah. Sometimes Hashem deprives a person of this pleasure in

order to enable him to access the Yichudah Ila’ah. Sometimes it is only through loss and

the longing that it engenders that we come to realize that Hashem is our portion. As the

verse states: "אלוקיכם 'בנים אתם לה" —“You are children to Hashem, your G-d.”44 We

see this with Yiftach. When he was shamed by his “brothers,” it says: " ארץ טובבוישב" —

“And he settled in a goodly land…”—this means that he came to true dveikus.45 This is

indicated by the word tov, “good,” which has the same numerical value as the first

letters of the verse: "את השמים ואת הארץ" –“…the heavens and the earth.”46 Sometimes

Hashem gives a bounty which is an aspect of the lower waters, aretz—the earth. At

other times, He shines upon us the light of shamayim, the heavens, which is an aspect of

the upper waters. The verse tells us that eventually Yiftach becomes a katzin, an officer.

This means he will truly unify the upper and lower waters—that he will connect the two

“extremes” or kitzvos. This is the song of Miriam’s well. In addition to the spiritual

pleasures of a new song, one enters and is included in the Yichudah Ila’ah.

Hashem should help us draw true understanding down into this world and merit

to repent during these days as “teshuvah approaches” so that we will truly return to

Hashem. May we merit to be redeemed through this repentance, and may our eyes see

Your return to Tzion in mercy, speedily and in our days. Amen.

Translated and Adapted by Rav Micha Golshevsky.

43 Eitz Chaim, Sha’ar 8, chapter 1; Tehillim 119:130 44 Devarim 24:1 45 Shoftim 1:3 46 Bereishis 1:1; See Sode Yesharim II:2

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