English translation — מאמר באתי לגני תשי"ב

With the help of Heaven,

10 Shevat,

5712*

"I have come to My garden,

My sister, My bride."

And it is brought in Midrash Rabbah

(in its place)

"To My garden" means "to My bridal chamber,"

to the place which was My primary [dwelling] initially,

for the primary [dwelling of the] Shechinah was in the lower realms,

and through sins—namely, through the sin of the Tree of Knowledge, the Shechinah departed from the earth to the first firmament,

and through other sins it departed from firmament to firmament until the seventh firmament.

And afterward, righteous ones arose and brought down the Shechinah from firmament to firmament,

until the seventh came,

and all sevenths are beloved,

who is Moshe,

and he brought it down below to the earth.

And this is [the meaning of] "The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever,"

that the righteous shall inherit the land, which is the Garden of Eden, because they draw down and cause to dwell

the Shechinah in the lower earth,

for this is the ultimate purpose of the creation and coming-into-being of the worlds.

And the primary revelation of what they drew down of the Shechinah below,

was in the Mikdash,

as it is written,

"And they shall make for Me a Mikdash, and I will dwell in their midst."

And behold, our Sages, of blessed memory, precisely noted regarding this,

"It does not say 'in it,' but rather 'in their midst,'

within each and every one of Yisrael,"

meaning that in each and every one of Yisrael,

by his performing within himself those same services that were in the Mikdash,

through this the primary Shechinah dwells within him,

as it was at the beginning of the creation of the worlds, and even more than at the beginning,

and a primary dwelling place is made in the lower realms.

And behold,

one of the primary services

that were in the Mikdash,

is the service of the offerings,

which is a spiritual service.

For even the service of the offerings that was in the Mikdash,

where they offered a physical animal,

behold, this too was a spiritual service,

and a proof of this is from the matter of the participation of the Kohanim in their service and the Levi'im in their song and music at the time of bringing the offering,

which are spiritual matters,

and as it is written in the Zohar,

that the Kohanim [draw down] in silence and with the desire of the heart, a drawing down,

and the Levi'im with song and music, which is a matter of elevation from below to above.

Thus, even the service of the offerings in the Mikdash is a spiritual service,

and all the more so the service of the offerings as it is in each and every one of Yisrael,

which is a spiritual service,

and this is what is written at the beginning of the section of the offerings,

"Adam, when he brings from you an offering to Havayah,"

and it is known

the explanation of the Alter Rebbe, of blessed memory, regarding this,

that it should have said "Adam from you, when he brings,"

and what is it saying, "Adam, when he brings from you"?

Rather, the explanation is,

"Adam, when he brings,"

when a person comes to draw near to G-dliness,

for this is the matter of an offering,

for

it is called an offering only because it brings near,

for offerings are a matter of drawing near the powers and senses,

then "from you is an offering to Havayah,"

you must bring an offering from yourselves.

And this is that just as the matter of offerings in physicality is that they take a complete and living animal and slaughter it,

meaning they extract from it the life-force,

and afterward is the offering of the fats,

that the fat is burned in the fire upon the altar,

and even more so in the burnt-offering,

the beginning of the offerings,

which is a wholly burnt offering to the altar,

so too is it in the service of the offerings in spirituality,

that there must be a complete animal,

meaning he must examine himself that the animal within him is complete,

meaning also the body and the animal soul,

and the examination must be for his own sake,

not in the manner of "a commandment of men learned by rote,"

for in this way the examination will not be good and sufficient.

But when he knows that the matter affects him in his very life's soul,

then he examines himself in every corner of his soul,

in the intellect and the emotions, and particularly in the three garments—thought, speech, and deed,

and then he will know all his matters that require correction.

And because the matter affects him in his life's soul,

he will do and actually fulfill the necessary corrections so that there will be no blemish in him.

And after the examination, then he will desire to be an offering,

that he slaughters it,

meaning that the flesh etc. remains intact, but they extract from it the life-force,

that he extracts the life-force from physical matters,

meaning that the body of the physical things remains,

but he uses them only in order to have additional strength in the service of Havayah,

as per the saying,

"Wine and fragrance enlighten,"

for

"I ate the meat of an ox, I did not scrutinize the taste of the thing."

All this is regarding matters that are permissible,

and particularly in matters of a mitzvah,

like eating on Shabbos and Yom Tov,

or tzitzis from physical wool and tefillin from physical leather,

meaning physical things with which they themselves perform a mitzvah,

and not only the command of "In all

your ways know Him."

And this is the service of the offerings,

to extract the life-force from physical matters,

so that he uses them only for the service of Havayah,

for then it is "from you an offering,"

from yourselves.

And when a person brings "from you an offering,"

then it is an offering to Havayah, that he draws near and unites with Havayah.

B)

However, when he contemplates his standing and situation, for his own sake as above,

behold,

often,

he will see and prove that even if currently he is not a transgressor,

nevertheless, "my sin is before me always,"

for his sins that he committed during the course of his life,

and among them also those he committed before Bar Mitzvah,

as stated by

the Mitteler Rebbe,

they exist,

because he has not yet corrected them.

And a proof that he has not corrected them,

for if he had done teshuvah properly,

then,

not only would he not have the matter of "one transgression leads to another,"

but,

on the contrary,

from the fact that he became a baal teshuvah,

his service from now on should have been with greater strength

than it was until now,

for that which he was previously in a land of drought and the shadow of death,

this would have aroused in him a greater longing for G-dliness.

But in his contemplation of his true standing and situation,

without being lenient with himself and without deceiving himself at all,

he feels in his soul the complete opposite of this,

that not only did his previous standing and situation not bring him to the great love that "willful sins

become for him like merits,"

but,

on the contrary,

this caused him and brought him to a state of thickness and coarseness,

to the point that he is in the pattern of "one transgression leads to another."

From all this there is a clear proof that regarding him, the matter of "my sin is before me always" is not in a manner that he has already done proper teshuvah, but rather that according to his present standing and situation, the previous teshuvah is insufficient and he now needs a more elevated teshuvah,

but rather that from the outset he never corrected his matters at all,

and they are a separating screen between him and his Father in Heaven,

and they interrupt and prevent the service of Havayah.

Now, when he contemplates all this and also knows the greatness of the matter of offerings, which is the drawing near of the powers and senses,

until he is included in the fire from above,

and the secret of the offering ascends to the secret of Ein Sof, as will be explained,

he asks himself,

what connection does he have to the matter of offerings,

and how can he desire to be an offering to Havayah,

when he has no soundness in him,

and to remove this difficulty, my father-in-law, the Rebbe, adds

to the explanation of the Alter Rebbe on the word "from you,"

and says,

"From you" means "from you, and in you the matter depends,"

it depends on yourselves,

that without regard to his standing and situation and all that has passed over him until now,

that he knows the plagues of his heart,

nevertheless, "in you the matter depends,"

to the point that each and every one can say, "When will my deeds reach the deeds of my forefathers Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov."

And this is "from you an offering to Havayah,"

in you the matter depends to be an offering to Havayah,

to draw near and unite with Havayah.

For offerings are specifically to Havayah,

not to Elokim, which has the numerical value of nature,

but specifically to Havayah,

and as explained in the Zohar

on the verse "One who slaughters to Elokim shall be destroyed,"

that the matter of offerings is specifically to Havayah,

above the name Elokim.

And in truth, it reaches even higher,

"before Havayah,"

for the secret of the offering ascends to the secret of Ein Sof,

which is above even Havayah,

for the name Havayah, even though it is above the name Elokim,

nevertheless, its four letters allude to the contraction, expansion, flow, and diffusion,

which is an order of Hishtalshelus,

but Ein Sof is above Havayah,

and to there the service of the offerings reaches.

And this is what concludes regarding the matter of the offering "for his acceptance before Havayah."

For before this it says "an offering to Havayah," and at the conclusion of the matter,

after it says "from the animal, from the cattle, and from the flock,"

it says "before Havayah,"

and the Tzemach Tzedek explained,

"before Havayah" means above Havayah.

And this is the matter of offerings,

that the service is not only with the G-dly soul,

but rather "from the animal, from the cattle, and from the flock," which is the animal soul,

and particularly as it was in the Mikdash,

where the service of the offerings could be with a literal physical animal,

that through this he reaches "before Havayah,"

the secret of Ein Sof.

3)

Now, regarding the sacrifices and also regarding the drawing close of the powers and senses,

the physical sacrifice was included in the supernal fire,

and likewise in the service of the sacrifices within each and every Jew,

the Rebbe, my father-in-law, explains in the maamar,

that the sacrifices need to be included in the supernal fire,

and it is the fiery sparks of the Elokis soul,

which is the supernal fire.

As it is written,

"Its sparks are sparks of fire, a flame of Y-ah."

For the root of love in the Elokis soul is from the supernal fire, the flame of Y-ah,

therefore, even the love in the Elokis soul when it is below,

is called supernal fire.

And the explanation of the matter, why it calls the supernal love and that of the Elokis soul a flame of Y-ah,

is that it is stated in Sefer Yetzirah

that the ten Sefiros are like a flame bound to a coal,

and the Rebbe Maharash explains

that there are two aspects in this,

the flame within the coal and the flame above the coal.

Now, the flame above the coal can also exist by itself,

except that it has no tangible existence or substance,

and therefore the Mishnah says

that one who carries out a flame on Shabbos is exempt,

from this we know the two aspects,

that there is a flame by itself, so it is relevant to discuss the law of one who carries out a flame, but the flame has no tangible existence or substance, therefore one who carries out a flame is exempt.

Now, before the world was created,

which includes also before the emanations, as stated in the books of Kabbalah,

He and His Name alone existed,

and afterwards the Sefiros were emanated,

these two aspects,

the ten Sefiros hidden within their Emanator and the ten Sefiros as they were emanated,

are analogous to the two aspects of the flame.

For the flame within the coal,

even though it is more intense,

but as it is within the coal,

there is no existence of a flame,

and certainly there are no details of the flame.

For its existence is not discernible there, only the existence of the coal is discernible.

Rather, there are proofs and evidence that a flame exists also within the coal,

and on the contrary, it is more intense,

but what is discernible is only the coal.

And likewise,

and even more so,

is the entire matter of the ten Sefiros hidden within their Emanator,

for what exists there,

is only the Emanator,

except that there are proofs from the matter of the ten emanated Sefiros that there are ten Sefiros hidden within their Emanator.

And afterwards the ten Sefiros were emanated,

but even after their emanation they are bound to their source, namely the ten hidden Sefiros,

like the flame above the coal which is bound to the flame within the coal.

And this is its entire existence,

for if it becomes separated from its source,

it would be naught and nothing,

it would cease to exist entirely.

And this is the flame of Y-ah,

for just as the flame which exists as it is within the coal,

and as it is above the coal and bound to it,

and the flame above the coal can also exist by itself in separation,

so too is it in the order of the chain of descent,

the revealed ten Sefiros,

even though they are bound to their source,

for He and His life are one, He and His limbs are one,

like the flame above the coal which is one thing with the flame within the coal which is one with the coal,

nevertheless, due to the multiplicity of the chain of descent, it is possible,

ultimately,

for there to be room for error regarding separation,

and as our sages said,

it is written, "and whoever wishes to err will err,"

that the Supreme One says, "and whoever wishes to err"

(through the writing)

"will err."

Meaning, that from the aspect of the flame, there can be room for the error of separation.

And the flame itself is the flame of Y-ah,

for the Yud also has its upper point,

meaning the revealed ten Sefiros and the hidden ten Sefiros,

both of them are the flame of Y-ah,

in which there is no separation,

G-d forbid.

And the love in the Elokis soul is also called the flame of Y-ah,

for "In the beginning" is for the sake of Israel who are called "first,"

that the entire chain of descent is for the sake of Israel,

it is understood from this that all the aspects in the chain of descent have their parallel and are active in Israel.

And likewise is it regarding the matter of the flame of Y-ah, which acts in Israel so that they should have the flame of Y-ah,

love for G-dliness.

For it is written,

"For He loves you, Havayah your G-d,"

and the explanation is given in Chassidus,

He draws forth love within you and loves you, and these are interdependent,

and "For He loves you, Havayah your G-d" refers to the Essence of Ein Sof, blessed is He,

that from the aspect of the supernal flame of Y-ah, this is also brought about in Israel.

And in this there are,

generally,

two modes of love.

For just as above there are the ten Sefiros as they are in the Emanator and as they are emanated,

so too in love there are two such modes.

For the emotions come from the intellect,

for when one contemplates matters that bring about love for Him, blessed is He, he generates love for Havayah.

However, when he deepens himself in the intellect,

as is proper,

and he is immersed and unified in the intellect,

then the emotion has no existence,

for the emotion is included in its cause and is not by itself.

And only when he removes himself from the cause and descends to the effect,

then the opposite occurs,

that primarily the existence of the emotion is felt,

it is in revelation,

except that it is bound to the contemplation that generated it,

specifically to the intellectual arousal within the contemplation,

and this gives life and intensity to the emotion.

And as in the analogy of the flame above the coal,

which is bound to the flame within the coal, for through this the flame has constant existence, life, and intensity,

so too is it with love, which must be bound to the love as it is included in its cause.

And this is the flame of Y-ah, in which all the sacrifices that are offered are included.

4)

Now, it was explained above that sacrifices are "before Havayah," meaning above Havayah.

Consequently, it is understood that also the supernal fire in which the sacrifice is included,

is above Havayah.

And in the service, it is,

that the service is above reason and intellect.

For just as in the service of the sacrifices in the Holy Temple, they specifically offered an animal,

so too is it now,

that prayers were instituted corresponding to the daily offerings,

the service of the Elokis soul must be specifically in the animal soul,

and not the service of the soul by itself.

And specifically this service reaches above reason and intellect,

above the order of the chain of descent.

And even though the service of the soul by itself is also through the body and in the body,

for the giving of the Torah was specifically to souls in bodies and the fulfillment of the commandments is through the body,

and even the commandments of the heart's duties, as explained in many places,

nevertheless, it is possible that it will not be connected to the body,

and will not affect it.

For example,

when one studies Torah and prays, during the time he is within the four cubits of halachah and the four cubits of prayer, he stands in a state of refinement,

but when he moves away from this,

when he finishes his study and prayer,

he catches himself that he is in the same coarseness as before, and sometimes even more self-centered due to the satisfaction he has from his service.

And it can be said that this is analogous to the difference between fulfilling commandments with a separate object and fulfilling commandments with the body.

For fulfilling commandments with a separate object, like tzitzis with physical wool and tefillin with physical parchment, no change is discernible

to the physical eye in the parchment and the wool,

the changes that need to be made in the parchment and the wool so that they are suitable for fulfilling the commandment,

these changes are through human craftsmanship,

but the changes made through the preparation and fulfillment of the commandment are not discernible.

In a similar way, it is possible in the fulfillment of commandments through the body and in the body,

that it will be like fulfilling them with a separate object,

meaning that the body will only be a medium through which the soul studies Torah and fulfills commandments.

But this is not the purpose of the service; rather, the purpose is the service with the body and the animal soul, to transform them from one extreme to the other,

so that it will be discernible in the body that it is a body that studies Torah and fulfills commandments, and all the more so that this will be discernible in the animal soul.

For then,

not only will it not be connected to forbidden things,

but it will also be devoid of permissible things,

that even in matters of permission, he will feel a desire only for what is necessary for the health of the body in order to serve the Almighty.

But if his service is the service of the soul by itself,

and the body is only a medium,

then this is not the intended purpose and it is not a sacrifice of desire before Havayah.

Therefore, the service must be specifically with the body and the animal soul,

that he should work and work over the body and the animal soul.

And as stated by

the Rebbe

(the Rebbe Rashab)

of blessed memory, that the soul came into being from the lights,

for the totality of the lights is His revelations,

and the body came into being from the Essence, whose existence

is from His Essence, and there is no prior cause or reason for it, G-d forbid,

and the soul,

which recognizes the superiority of the body in this,

wants to attain the Essence,

and therefore it desires to unite with the body and the animal soul and to work them over,

therefore, the will and intellect of the soul itself obligates,

demands,

to unite with the body,

not to serve through it as with a separate object,

but rather to unite with the body,

and to serve together.

However, in truth, this is still not sufficient to be for desire before Havayah,

for all this is service that comes from reason and intellect,

that the soul understands the superiority of the Essence and therefore wants the Essence, and therefore serves with the body.

And even though it is holy reason and intellect,

nevertheless, it is reason and intellect.

But the purpose of the service is,

that it should not be for the sake of the good and superiority that he will receive through the service,

but rather in order to fulfill the supernal will,

and the supernal will is that He, blessed is He, should have a dwelling place in the lower worlds,

meaning specifically in this world,

and therefore the soul, which is a part of G-d from above,

"You are children,"

feels,

senses,

the will of the Father, and therefore its service is specifically with the body.

And in this there is also an advantage even over the aspect of a servant,

for the servant, even though his service is also not for the sake of the reason and pleasure he has in it,

nevertheless, the servant only fulfills the command of the master,

meaning he knows the master's command but does not feel his will and does not know why he wants this,

unlike the soul,

"You are children to Havayah your G-d,"

even though its service is also not for the sake of reason,

but rather to fulfill the will of the Father,

nevertheless, it feels the will and knows its reason.

And this is that after it says "from yourselves a sacrifice to Havayah," it concludes "from the animal, from the cattle and from the flock,"

that "from yourselves a sacrifice to Havayah" refers to the Elokis soul,

but in order for the secret of the sacrifice to ascend to the secret of Ein Sof,

above Havayah,

for this it must be "from the animal," the service with the animal soul and the body,

and it must be specifically detailed service,

"from the cattle and from the flock,"

to contemplate and delve into the details of his soul and his service with the body and the animal soul,

and then it is for desire before Havayah.

5)

Now, the introduction to the portion of the sacrifices is "And He called to Moshe,"

which is the granting of ability

for the service of the sacrifices.

For even though "from yourselves a sacrifice to Havayah,"

it is dependent upon you and within you to be a sacrifice to Havayah,

but because he is in a lowly state, and the more he contemplates,

the more he sees his lowliness and distance and becomes depressed,

therefore the opening is "And He called to Moshe,"

which is the granting of ability and power to every person to be a sacrifice to Havayah,

and even "before Havayah."

Therefore,

it does not say who is the caller,

for it is from a very high and awesome place, the light of Ein Sof that surrounds all worlds,

"You are holy," which is above "Your Name is holy."

For Moshe is the shepherd of Israel,

and it is stated in the Midrash

that they tested him in this, that he tended to the smallest ones,

for specifically from this it is evidence that he is a proper shepherd,

and so it is in every generation,

for the extension of Moshe is in every generation,

they are the shepherds of Israel in every generation,

they are the ones who draw down the power for the service of the sacrifices,

being the intermediary

that connects,

the intermediary between Havayah and you.

He is the connecting intermediary,

unifies,

worlds with G-dliness through souls.

And this is the making of a dwelling place for Him, blessed is He, in the lower worlds,

"And they shall make for Me a Sanctuary and I will dwell within them," within each and every one,

which is incumbent upon each and every one.

And one of the primary services in this is the service of the sacrifices,

as mentioned above,

to contemplate his standing and situation honestly, without self-deception,

and nevertheless it is said to him, "from yourselves and within you the matter is dependent" to rectify it so that it will be perfect without blemish,

and to offer "from yourselves a sacrifice" and "a sacrifice from the animal."

And this is through the connection,

which adds to it and elevates it,

in the extension of Moshe that is in every generation,

for in this extension is also found the Essence,

and through this he connects with the "And He called to Moshe,"

of which no thought can grasp at all,

and the flame of Y-ah is drawn down,

the supernal fire,

in which the sacrifice is included, and through this, "and I will dwell within them."

And likewise regarding our generation,

the shepherd and prince of Israel who taught us the straight path,

in whose ways and paths we should walk,

the deed that should be done and the deed that should not be done,

through this the power was given and drawn down,

that each and every one, in whatever state he is in,

in one moment and in one instant,

can prepare to offer "from yourselves a sacrifice to Havayah,"

so that his powers and senses will be included in the supernal fire,

and even more, that also the body and the animal soul,

"from the animal, from the cattle and from the flock,"

he will offer, and through this they will be for desire before Havayah, above Havayah.

And as the Rebbe stated in the maamar,

that when the other side is subdued, the glory of the Holy One, blessed is He, is elevated in all worlds,

that He who surrounds all worlds, who is equally in all worlds,

will be drawn down through the service of subduing the other side,

the service with the body and the animal soul.

And when each and every one

fulfills this,

then also the totality of the life force of this world will ascend to holiness,

and the glory of Havayah will fill the entire earth,

which is the purpose of the days of Moshiach and the resurrection of the dead, the purpose and perfection of the creation of the worlds,

speedily in our days.