English translation — מאמר החודש הזה לכם תשל"ה

With the help of Heaven.

Shabbat of Parshat Vayakhel-Pekudei,

Parshat HaChodesh,

25 Adar 5735*

"This month shall be for you the beginning of months..."1

And it is brought in the Midrash2

(cited in Rashi's commentary at the beginning of Parshat Bereishit):

Rabbi Yitzchak said: The Torah should not have begun except from "HaChodesh Hazeh Lachem" etc. So why did it open with Bereishit? Because of "the strength of His works He declared to His people, to give them the inheritance of the nations."3

And according to what is known4

that even a question in the Torah is Torah,

Torah of truth,

it can be said,

that this which is brought in the Midrash

(Torah of truth)

that the beginning of the Torah should have been with "HaChodesh Hazeh Lachem"

[and especially since the language of the Midrash is "the Torah should not have begun except from HaChodesh Hazeh Lachem,"

for the language "not... except" indicates that it is obligatory5]

is also in accordance with the truth,

that the Torah begins with "HaChodesh Hazeh Lachem."6

And as the Rebbe

(the Rebbe Rashab)

of blessed memory wrote in his maamar beginning with the word "Zeh"7

that Parshat HaChodesh is the essential beginning of the Torah.

Except that this matter

(that the Torah begins with "HaChodesh Hazeh Lachem")

is in the innerness,

while in revelation,

the beginning of the Torah is "Bereishit Bara."

And this can be connected according to what is known8

regarding the mediation between the two opinions about the time of creation9,

the opinion of Rabbi Eliezer that the world was created in Tishrei

(on the 25th of Elul10)

and the opinion of Rabbi Yehoshua that the world was created in Nissan

(on the 25th of Adar11)

—

that the actual creation was in Tishrei,

and the thought to create the world was in Nissan.12

And according to the known principle that thought is the innerness

(the intention and purpose)

of the action that follows the thought,

it follows that the actual creation which was in Tishrei is the externality of creation,

and the innerness of creation was in Nissan.13

And likewise regarding the beginning of the Torah,

that the Torah beginning with "Bereishit Bara" etc.

(the actual creation which was in Tishrei)

is in the externality,

but in the innerness,

the beginning of the Torah is "HaChodesh Hazeh Lachem"

(which refers to Rosh Chodesh Nissan).

2)

And this will be understood by prefacing the distinction between Tishrei and Nissan in several matters.

And among them,

that the drawing down in Tishrei is through arousal from below,

and the drawing down in Nissan is from above,

an arousal from above of its own accord.

For this is that the blessing for rain is on Shemini Atzeret

(Tishrei)

and the blessing for dew is on Pesach

(Nissan),

for rain is

a drawing down through arousal from below, and dew is

that which descends from above by itself.

And there is another distinction between Nissan and Tishrei,

that the vitality drawn down on Rosh HaShanah

(Tishrei)

for the entire year is within boundary and measure

(which in general is the vitality that is invested within the creations in their inwardness),

which is the root of the conduct of nature,

and that Nissan is the head of the months

[for that it is called by the name "head of the months" is because from it vitality is drawn to all the months,

in the manner of a head in its simple sense, from which vitality is drawn to all the limbs of the body]

it is regarding the drawing down of the light of the boundless, which is above worlds,

the root of miraculous conduct that is above nature.

And this is that the creation of the world was in Tishrei and the Exodus from Egypt was in Nissan,

for the creation of the world is that the world was created measured and bounded according to the laws of nature,

and the Exodus from Egypt is the exit from the boundaries and limitations of the world through the revelation of the light of the boundless, which is above worlds.

And it can be said that these two matters are dependent on each other.

For the drawing down that comes through arousal from below

(the service of the created beings)

is measured and bounded according to the manner of the lower one,

and the drawing down that comes through arousal from above of its own accord is according to the manner of the upper one.

And based on this one must understand,

that the thought to create the world was in Nissan,

what is the connection of the creation of the world

(measurement and limitation)

to Nissan

(the revelation of the light of the boundless).

3)

And behold, the dispute between Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua is also regarding the time of the future redemption.

For Rabbi Eliezer holds that in Nissan they were redeemed and in Tishrei they are destined to be redeemed, and Rabbi Yehoshua holds that in Nissan they were redeemed and in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed.

And the Tzemach Tzedek explains

that they follow their respective views regarding the manner of the redemption.

For Rabbi Eliezer holds that if Israel repents they are redeemed, and if not, they are not redeemed,

therefore he holds that in Tishrei they are destined to be redeemed,

for then repentance is accepted with greater intensity.

For this, that the redemption of the Exodus from Egypt was in Nissan and the future redemption will be in Tishrei, is

because they differ in their manner.

For the redemption of the Exodus from Egypt was through the revelation from above,

and therefore it was in Nissan.

And the future redemption will be through repentance,

the service of Israel,

and therefore it will be in Tishrei.

[And this is also the reason for this, that the redemption of the Exodus from Egypt

(and likewise the redemptions that followed)

was a redemption after which there was exile,

the aspect of female,

and the future redemption will be an eternal redemption after which there is no exile,

the aspect of male,

for if a man emits seed first, a female is born,

[if] a woman emits seed first, a male is born].

And Rabbi Yehoshua holds, "Not with silver shall you be redeemed,"

not through repentance and good deeds

[for even if they do not repent they are redeemed],

therefore he holds that in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed.

And this, that the future redemption will be an eternal redemption,

the aspect of male,

even though the future redemption will also be through a revelation from above,

it is,

for the revelation of the future is from an exceedingly lofty place,

such that even when a man emits seed first, a male is born.

As it is written,

"And of Zion it shall be said, 'A man and a man was born in her,' and He, the Most High, will establish her."

For when the revelation is from an exceedingly lofty place,

and "He, the Most High, will establish her,"

then,

"A man and a man is born,"

for even when a man emits seed first, a man is born

(male).

And one must understand,

that regarding the manner of the redemption, the halachah follows Rabbi Eliezer,

as the Rambam wrote

that Israel is only redeemed through repentance,

and regarding the time of the redemption, it is brought in several discourses

that in the Midrash

it decided and ruled anonymously according to the view of Rabbi Yehoshua, that in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed.

And one can say the explanation of this,

based on what is said in Tanya,

that all the revelations of the future depend on our deeds and service during the time of exile.

For this matter is

(simply)

according to all opinions.

Except that according to Rabbi Yehoshua,

this, that through our deeds and service during the time of exile the revelations of the future will be drawn down,

is

(not from their own essence,

but rather)

because in our deeds and service during the time of exile there is the power of the revelation from above

(as will be explained in section 5).

And based on this, one can explain the reconciliation of these two rulings,

that Israel is only redeemed through repentance and that in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed,

for this, that Israel repents at the end of their exile and immediately they are redeemed,

is,

because in the performance of repentance by Israel at the end of their exile there is the power of the revelation from above,

the matter of Nissan.

4)

And this can be understood based on what is stated in the Midrash:

A parable of a king, etc. He did not cease cherishing her

until He called her "My daughter," etc. He did not cease cherishing her until He called her "My sister," etc. He did not cease cherishing her until He called her "My mother."

And it is explained in the discourses,

that these three matters

(daughter, sister, mother)

correspond to the three pilgrimage festivals.

For at the Exodus from Egypt

(Pesach),

when Israel were in a state of nakedness and bereft of mitzvos,

and the redemption was through a revelation from Above,

the King of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, revealed Himself upon them in His very glory and redeemed them,

they were called by the name "My daughter,"

for a daughter is a level of receiver,

who has nothing of her own and is only a receiver of that which is given to her from Above.

And at the Giving of the Torah

(Shavuos),

they are called by the name "My sister,"

for through the Torah they become brothers and companions to the Holy One, blessed be He.

And in general terms,

through the Torah, Israel become one with the Holy One, blessed be He,

[as is known in the explanation of the statement,

"Israel, the Torah, and the Holy One, blessed be He, are all one,"

for through Israel being one with the Torah, they thereby become one with the Holy One, blessed be He].

And through Teshuvah

(which is above Torah),

they are called by the name "My mother,"

for they, as it were, bestow influence upon the Holy One, blessed be He.

As it is stated,

"Go out and see, O daughters of Zion, King Shlomo with the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding," and it is taught in the Mishnah

that "the day of his wedding" is Yom Kippur,

for through the Teshuvah of Yom Kippur

(for on Yom Kippur is the perfection of Teshuvah),

the Congregation of Israel crowns the Holy One, blessed be He, with a crown.

And since the revelation of Teshuvah and atonement of Yom Kippur is [manifested] in the festival of Sukkos,

therefore the primary aspect of "mother" is in Sukkos.

And it is explained in the discourses,

that [the fact] that the future redemption will be in Nisan,

even though Nisan is the level of "daughter"

(lower than "sister" and "mother"),

is [because],

the superiority of "sister" and "mother" is connected with the existence of the working person

(for through his service he becomes a brother to the Holy One, blessed be He,

and beyond this, he, as it were, bestows influence upon the Holy One, blessed be He).

Therefore,

through the service of "sister" and "mother," one reaches

(and becomes a brother and a mother)

only the level of light that pertains to the chain of descent

(the existence of the person).

And the superiority of "daughter"

(who has nothing of her own and is only a receiver from Above)

is in the matter of self-nullification.

And through this, one reaches the very Essence of Ein Sof.

And this is that in Nisan they are destined to be redeemed,

for in the future redemption there will be a revelation of the Essence of Ein Sof,

and this revelation is through self-nullification

[for this is that which is written of Moshiach,

"a poor man riding on a donkey,"

specifically "poor"],

the level of "daughter."

5)

And it can be said,

that the reason why these revelations of the future depend specifically on our deeds and service during the time of exile,

is,

that the matter of self-nullification is primarily in the service during the time of exile.

And as explained elsewhere,

in the service during the time of the Holy Temple,

since there was then perception of G-dliness and they would "ascend on foot" and also see G-dliness,

the existence of the person who perceives and sees was also felt,

but in the time of exile,

and especially in the generation of the heels of Moshiach,

the service is in self-nullification,

not from the perspective of the person's existence, but only from the perspective of G-dliness.

And it can be said,

that the power that exists in these generations to withstand all the trials that did not exist

(as much)

in previous generations,

including the trial of not being ashamed before those who mock,

which is a very great trial,

is,

that when a person withstands a trial by strengthening his own powers,

since his powers are measured and limited,

there are things that he is not capable of overcoming,

but not so in the generation of the heels of Moshiach,

where the service is in the aspect of "daughter,"

not from the perspective of the powers he has, but from the perspective of his self-nullification to G-d,

it is therefore understood,

that regarding G-dliness, there are no limitations.

And it can be said,

that this matter

(the superiority of the aspect of "daughter" during the time of exile)

is hinted at in what is explained in the discourses

(cited above)

that the three matters of "daughter," "sister," and "mother" correspond to the three pilgrimage festivals.

The order of these three matters, that "daughter" is lower than "sister" and "mother,"

is like they correspond to the three pilgrimage festivals,

the time of the Holy Temple.

But the aspect of "daughter" during the time of exile,

which is the self-nullification stemming from the essence of the soul,

is not included in these three matters

and is above them.

6)

Based on this, we can explain the reconciliation of the two rulings regarding the redemption,

that Israel are redeemed only through repentance and that in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed,

for this repentance that Israel perform at the end of their exile

[for in the exile itself,

the essential concealment and hiding of the exile is at its end],

is in a manner that is felt within them,

that this repentance they perform is not from the perspective of the self-perception of the person performing repentance51

but because the Torah promised that at the end of the exile they will repent.

The quality of Nissan,

bat,

which has nothing of its own and receives from above.

And although repentance is by his will and choice52,

as the Rambam states that ultimately Israel will repent,

the action and labor of Israel

[and unlike the awakening of repentance that comes through the proclamations from above53],

nevertheless, the performance of repentance by Israel at the end of the exile is not from their own self-perception on their own,

but because the promise of the Torah acts upon them so that they will repent.

And it can be said,

that this is what it means that Israel repent and are immediately redeemed32,

for when the performance of repentance is from the person himself

(who is in a state and perception that is fitting for repentance),

although repentance in general is in a manner of leap54

nevertheless there is in it some order and gradation.

For since the person is limited,

even in his leap there is order55.

First he comes to lower repentance and then to higher repentance55

until he is completely redeemed from the state

(exile)

that existed before the repentance.

And this that Israel repent at the end of their exile and are immediately redeemed,

is,

because this repentance is in the manner of bat

(from the side of the Torah's promise),

that the self-nullification of bat reaches the very essence of Ein Sof that is above the chain of descent

(as above in section 5),

therefore,

the repentance of bat is above order and gradation

(above even the order of a leap).

7)

Now, this that the promise of the Torah acts upon the person so that he repents on his own,

is the union of Nissan and Tishrei.

For this repentance

(at the end of the exile)

that Israel perform repentance by their own power,

from below upward

[and unlike the Exodus from Egypt,

where Israel's desire to leave the impurity of Egypt and cleave to Him, blessed be He, was from the revelation from above,

therefore their exodus from Egypt was in the manner of "ki"56

the people fled57],

is the concept and virtue of Tishrei.

And this that the performance of repentance is from the side of the Torah's promise,

therefore it is in a manner of being immediately redeemed,

above order and gradation,

is the virtue of Nissan.

And as explained above

(section 2)

that the virtue of Nissan over Tishrei is that in Nissan there is the drawing down of the unlimited light.

And it can be said,

that this that specifically in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed,

even though in the repentance at the end of the exile

(through which the redemption will come)

there are both concepts and virtues,

of Nissan and of Tishrei,

is,

because the power for the union of Tishrei and Nissan in the service of man is that the ultimate58

intention in the creation of Tishrei

("In the beginning He created")

when the world was created with measure and limitation, is so that through the service of Torah and mitzvos there will be in it the revelation of Nissan

("This month is for you").

And this is that the thought to create the world was in Nissan,

for thought is the intention and purpose of the action that follows the thought

(as above in section 2),

for the intention and purpose of the creation of the world of Tishrei

(measure and limitation)

is that there be in it the revelation of Nissan which is above limitation.

But in order that the intention be completed, that even in the limited there be a revelation of the unlimited, the creation was actualized in a way that in the revelation the intention was not felt within it.

Through this a limited world was created.

And through our deeds and our service, and especially in the time of exile,

it is revealed that the inwardness

(the intention and purpose)

of the limit that was created in Tishrei is that there be in it a revelation of the unlimited light.

And this is that the performance of repentance at the end of the exile

(the action and work of man who was created in Tishrei,

limit)

is in a manner of unlimited light

(Nissan),

for through our deeds and our service it is revealed that the inner content of the limit created in Tishrei is the unlimited light of Nissan.

And this is that in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed,

for then it will be revealed that even the limit of Tishrei,

its inwardness is the unlimited light of Nissan.

8)

And this is what Rabbi Yitzchak said: The Torah should not have begun except from "Hachodesh Hazeh Lachem,"

for this matter is also according to the truth

(as above at the beginning of the maamar),

because the fact that the Torah begins with "Bereishis Bara,"

even though the matter of Torah is the drawing down and revelation of the Ein Sof light, which is beyond relation to worlds,

is

because the intention of Torah is to draw down the revelation of the Ein Sof light, which is beyond limitation, into the limitation of worlds,

and therefore the Torah also contains the narrative of Maaseh Bereishis, in order to draw the unlimited light of Torah also into the world and to make from it a dwelling place for Him, blessed be He.

However, in order that the revelation of the unlimited light of Torah should also be in the world as it is in reality

(outside of the Torah, so to speak),

therefore it opened with "Bereishis,"

so that the narrative of Maaseh Bereishis

(and likewise the portions after it)

precedes the portion of "Hachodesh,"

the first mitzvah with which Israel was commanded,

so that through the study of Torah and the fulfillment of mitzvos, there should be a revelation of the unlimited light of Torah also in the part of the world as it was before the fulfillment of Torah and mitzvos.

And since this opening with "Bereishis" is so that the revelation of the unlimited light of Torah and mitzvos

("Hachodesh Hazeh Lachem")

should also be in the matter of "Bereishis" as it is before the portion of "Hachodesh,"

it follows

that in the innerness of matters—the beginning is with "Hachodesh Hazeh Lachem,"

for the innerness of "Bereishis"

(which is before the portion of "Hachodesh")

is "Hachodesh Hazeh Lachem."

9)

And it is known

that the creation of the world on the 25th of Elul was in the aspect of "Koh,"

and on the day when Adam, the first man, was created

(the first of Tishrei)

a revelation of G-dliness was made in the world,

the aspect of "Zeh."

However, the revelation that came about through Adam is incomparable to the revelation of the Giving of the Torah.

And based on this, it can be said

that this—that "Hachodesh Hazeh Lachem" is the innerness of "Bereishis Bara"—is superior to the matter that the teshuvah of man is in a manner of unlimited

(above, section 7).

For the connection of the unlimited and the limited through the fact that the teshuvah of man is above limitation is a revelation of the unlimited light of Torah and mitzvos in the world as it is at the level of "Zeh,"

and this—that "Hachodesh Hazeh Lachem" is the innerness of "Bereishis Bara"—is a revelation of the unlimited light of Torah and mitzvos in the world that was created on the 25th of Elul, as it is at the level of "Koh."

And it can be said

that this revelation will be primarily in the redemption that follows the teshuvah at the end of the time of exile.

For through the revelation of the unlimited light in the world as it is at the level of "Zeh"

(man)

through the teshuvah at the end of the time of exile,

there will afterwards be

(immediately)

the revelation of the unlimited light also in the world

as it is at the level of "Koh,"

and through this the intention of a dwelling place in the lower realms will be completed, in the lowest level beneath which there is no lower.

And also this matter is included in that in Nissan they are destined to be redeemed

[for "they are destined to be redeemed" refers to the redemption that follows the teshuvah],

that also the revelation in the world that will be in the redemption

(through the teshuvah of Israel beforehand)

will be in the aspect of Nissan,

the unlimited light that is beyond relation to worlds.

And the revelation will be in a manner that this will be the innerness of the world itself,

in the true and complete redemption through our righteous Moshiach, speedily and truly.