English translation — וישלח ב

Sicha in <pg>155</pg>

A.

The Rambam wrote<sup>1</sup>

"The impurity of idolatry is from the words of the Scribes and there is a hint to it in the Torah: 'Remove<sup>2</sup>

the gods of the foreigner that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments,

and there are four fathers of impurity in it etc. and the impurity of all of them is from their words."

And one should examine,

what did the Rambam see to bring a "hint in the Torah" on this decree

("from their words")

of the impurity of idolatry,

contrary to his way

(in most places, almost all of them)

that he does not bring a hint or support for rabbinic decrees

(even when there is an explicit hint in Chazal)³.

And even more perplexing: this hint from the Torah for the impurity of idolatry from the verse "Remove... and purify...",

is not found before us in the Mishnah and Gemara,

and also not in the midrashim of Chazal

(the early ones⁴)

that have reached us; and on the other hand,

it is explicit in the Mishnah⁵

"From where [is it derived] that idolatry imparts impurity...

like a menstruating woman, as it is said⁶

You shall cast them away like a menstruant",

and likewise they learned⁷

from the verse⁸

"You shall utterly detest it..." that it imparts impurity like a creeping thing,

and likewise it is compared to a corpse⁹

as it is said¹⁰

"And he cast its dust upon the grave of the common people"

(and as the Gemara concludes¹¹

for what halachic purpose was idolatry compared to a creeping thing,

to a menstruating woman, and to a corpse)

— these studies are merely support¹²,

as is explicit in the conclusion of the Gemara¹³

that "the impurity of idolatry is rabbinic" —

And if so,

Why did the Rambam bring a "hint in the Torah" from a Midrash that is not common,

And not from the explicit teachings in the Mishnah and Gemara?

And furthermore: In the next halachah, indeed the Rambam brings¹⁴

The teaching from "sheketz teshaktzenu" that idolatry imparts impurity like a sheretz,

And in the halachah after that — the teaching from "tizrem kemo daveh" that it imparts impurity like a niddah; and based on this, it will be most puzzling,

Why did the Rambam need to preface a "hint in the Torah" from the verse "hasiru goy" and not suffice with the explicit teachings in the Shas that he brought in the following halachos¹⁵?

2.

And one must say the explanation in this: The definition of the impurity of idolatry is to be explained in two ways:

A)

The decree of impurity applies to the object itself

of the thing that is worshipped,

and it comes in continuation of the prohibition of idolatry

(of the Torah),

for just as the Torah prohibited the thing that is worshipped from benefit etc. and it is an object of prohibition,

so too did the Sages add to decree that the name of impurity should apply to the thing that is worshipped.

b)

The decree of impurity is not connected with the application of the prohibition of idolatry

(from the Torah)

And it is only from the side of the person<sup>16</sup>,

in order to distance and separate the person from idolatry.

And although the impurity of idolatry has four primary sources of impurity that also render vessels impure,

from which it is proven that the decree of impurity of idolatry is in a manner that there is an application of impurity on the object itself of the thing worshipped

(and not only an application of impurity on the person,

who touches the idolatry)

— it can be said that this itself is only from the side of

(the distancing of)

the person,

because this stringency itself adds to the distancing of the person from it.

And one could say,

that this is the reason of the Rambam who wrote

(a)

that the impurity of idolatry "has a hint in the Torah",

(b)

and in this itself he brings the hint specifically from the verse "Remove the gods of the foreigner etc.",

and he was not satisfied with the hint "You shall utterly detest it"

(or "You shall cast them away like a menstruous thing")

which he brings afterwards:

The difference between the expositions in the Talmud

(that idolatry imparts impurity like a creeping thing and like a menstruant etc.)

and the hint from the verse "Remove etc." is: In the aforementioned expositions the abhorrence of the object of idolatry is emphasized

(that it is detestable like a creeping thing,

or impure like a menstruant),

but not so in the verse "Remove the gods of the foreigner which are in your midst and purify yourselves and change your garments" it speaks about the act of removing the idolatry from their midst.

And therefore the Rambam precedes that the foundation for the impurity of idolatry is the "hint in the Torah 'Remove etc.'",

that by this he informs us,

that the matter of this impurity is

(not from the aspect of the object of idolatry,

but rather)

from the aspect of the person,

in order to separate him and distance him from it — "Remove the gods of the foreigner etc."¹⁷,

except that in order that this distancing be complete they decreed that it should impart impurity like a creeping thing and like a menstruant etc.

That is to say: if the Rambam had not prefaced this hint,

then from the expositions in the laws that follow it would be understood that the impurity of idolatry is from the aspect of the object itself of the thing worshipped,

that it is abominable like a creeping thing etc.

And therefore he was compelled to preface that the "hint in the Torah" about the general content of the decree of impurity of idolatry is from the verse "Remove the gods of the stranger etc."

(which emphasizes that its matter is the removal of idolatry from the border of Israel),

and from the other verses we learn only the details of the laws of impurity of idolatry

(that it is compared to a creeping thing,

a menstruant woman, and a corpse).

3.

And we must explain the reason that the Rambam stated according to the second manner above,

that the content of impurity of idolatry is only a decree to distance a person from idolatry

(and not from the aspect of the object itself of idolatry,

like the prohibition of idolatry which is from the Torah)

— and with a preface:

a)

The prohibition of idolatry differs from other prohibitions of benefit,

that all prohibitions of the Torah are something that has existence,

but idolatry has no substance.

For even though the thing that is worshipped has existence,

nevertheless, that this thing is an existence of idolatry — it is only the imagination of the idolater,

that in his false imagination he says "You are my father, to a tree, and to a stone, you gave birth to me"¹⁸,

but in truth it is "false..

vanity and there is no benefit in them"¹⁹,

and they are not<pg>157</pg>

but mere wood and stone²⁰.

But not so with other prohibitions,

that also the name of the prohibition

(and not only the thing that is prohibited)

is something that has substance

(according to Torah),

like an ox that is stoned,

leaven on Passover,

and also in prohibitions of eating like neveilah and treifah etc. — that in all of them, their being a prohibited existence comes from something that has existence.

And therefore we find that there is a special law regarding idolatry,

that it is forbidden to do anything that honors it and gives it substance²¹.

b)

The application of the prohibition of benefit is not comparable to the matter of impurity,

for a prohibition is only a negative matter,

which nullifies the importance of the thing

(meaning that it is impossible to benefit from it,

to the extent that it loses all its value)

; but not so the application of "impurity" includes that the evil and abomination in the worshipped object has substance, to the extent that it has the power to affect a person,

that one who touches it becomes impure,

and because of this it is forbidden for him to enter the Temple and to eat sacred foods.

And therefore the Rambam holds that the decree of impurity of idolatry is not from the aspect of the object itself of idolatry,

for then it would appear that there is in the prohibition of idolatry some substance

(that the worshipped object has an intrinsic impurity that causes impurity to the person who touches it&lt;sup&gt;22&lt;/sup&gt;)

— rather it is entirely only from the aspect of the person who worships idolatry,

as above.

4.

And it can be said — as a hint at least — that from these words of the Rambam

(who brings "a hint in the Torah" from this verse

(of "Remove etc.")

on the impurity of idolatry),

one can learn a general explanation regarding the matter of idolatry.

Behold, at first glance there is room for a question — how is it possible that in the world of the Holy One, blessed be He, there should be an existence of idolatry, which is a denial of His unity, may He be blessed?

And along the lines of the question that they asked the elders: "If He does not desire idolatry, why does He not abolish it?"²³

And even though they answered that "Behold, they worship the sun and the moon and the stars and the constellations,

should He destroy His world because of fools?

(with wonder)

"²³

[And also they answered their claim that "He should destroy

(only)

a thing that has no need for the world, and leave a thing that the world has need of"²³]

— nevertheless, it is still not clear: how does the Holy One, blessed be He, allow that there should be a thought in a person's mind that there is an existence of idolatry in the world, so that there is a need to destroy it?

(for it is simple that if it were the will of the Creator that there should not be an existence of idolatry in His world — it would not be possible that a human being should imagine in his eyes to worship idolatry)?

And the answer to this is hinted in what the Rambam wrote, that the source for the law of impurity of idolatry is in what is said "Remove the gods of the foreigner etc.",

that is: that there is a possibility for the existence of idolatry in the world is only so that this matter itself — that there is no place for the existence of idolatry — should come

(not as a natural thing,

but)

through the deed of the Children of Israel,

to remove the gods of the foreigner; because since "for the work of Your hands You long"&lt;sup&gt;24&lt;/sup&gt;,

that the Holy One, blessed be He, wants that matters of holiness should come and be revealed through the service of Israel,

therefore also in the matter of faith in God it is so,

that His will, blessed be He, is that the Children of Israel

(in their own power)

reveal this faith in the world&lt;sup&gt;25&lt;/sup&gt;.

And therefore He created&lt;pg&gt;158&lt;/pg&gt;

the Holy One, blessed be He, His world in such a manner that the existence of idolatry is possible,

in the manner of the verse "and whoever wants to err, let him err"&lt;sup&gt;26&lt;/sup&gt;,

so that the Children of Israel will need to reveal the falsehood in idolatry and that it has no substance,

through which they nullify the matter of idolatry and reveal the true faith in the one God.

5.

And behold, the words of our master, the Alter Rebbe, in the Tanya²⁷ are known,

that every act of transgression is, in a subtle sense, a matter of idolatry.

For the true faith in His unity, blessed be He, is²⁸

not

(only)

that there is no other deity besides Him,

heaven forbid,

but rather that there is no other existence besides Him, blessed be He,

for the true existence of every created being is only the "word of God" that enlivens it and brings it into being from nothing to something constantly; therefore,

anyone who considers himself "an entity and a thing in his own right"

(because he does not feel that he has no existence besides Him, blessed be He)

this is

(in a subtle sense)

a matter of idolatry and "denial of the true unity"²⁹.

And it is found,

that the commission of a transgression

(whatever it may be),

that by this he considers himself as an entity and a separate thing from Him, blessed be He,

this is

(subtly)

also denial of His true unity, blessed be He

(that there is nothing besides Him).

And so it is regarding the forbidden things themselves,

since they provide the possibility for the act of transgression of man, which is denial of His true unity,

it is found,

that they oppose the "true unity"³⁰.

And from this it is understood,

that just as was explained above regarding the existence of idolatry simply,

that in truth it has no substance or existence and is only an imagination of the worshiper,

and furthermore,

that the intention in this itself

(that there is a possibility that such an imagination should exist in the thought of the worshiper)

is only so that there should be the action of Bnei Yisrael to remove it,

"Remove the gods of the foreigner etc." — so it is

(in a refined sense)

regarding all forbidden things,

that this that they are an object of prohibition,

which gives the possibility for a person to deny His true unity,

is not an intrinsic matter in the object itself,

but only for the sake of the service of Bnei Yisrael,

as will be explained below.

6.

And the matter is understood based on what is explained in Tanya³¹,

that the possibility for the existence of a yes and a thing separate from His unity, blessed be He, is only because of the concealment of the face,

which covers and conceals the divine power that is in the creations

(which brings them into existence constantly from nothing to something)

; however, this concealment is only relative to the creations,

that relative to them this concealment has existence,

and causes that it should appear to them that there is some existence without Him, blessed be He,

but relative to the Holy One, blessed be He, there is nothing that conceals or hides before Him,

and there is nothing separate from Him, blessed be He³²,

and therefore "All³³

believers that He alone is as He was before the world was created, exactly...

without any change."

And superficially, it requires explanation: since the absolute truth is that there is no existence for any thing in the world without Him, may He be blessed,

(And that which does not appear so to the eyes is only because of the concealment of the face that covers the truth)

— why is there force in the laws of the Torah

(which is the Torah of God and the Torah of truth)

for the existence of those things as separate things from His unity, may He be blessed,

until they become&lt;pg&gt;159&lt;/pg&gt;

forbidden and impure etc. in truth

(according to the Torah)&lt;sup&gt;34&lt;/sup&gt;?

And one of the explanations in this — that this that the forbidden things have force and existence according to Torah,

is only so that there should be the service of Israel,

to overcome them and push them away etc.,

And in the language of the Rambam

(the aforementioned)

— "remove the foreign gods etc."

That is: the object of the prohibition in itself has no truth

(and is only because of the concealment that covers the truth),

And the "truth" that is in the existence of the prohibition is only from this that it was given existence and force

(according to Torah)

so that there should be the service of Israel,

for "You desire the work of Your hands"

(as above),

that they should push away the forbidden things and overcome them,

as above.

7.

And from here we learn great strengthening in the service of man on earth.

For sometimes a man can come to a feeling of weakness in his service when he sees all the obstacles and hindrances in the world regarding matters of holiness,

And that to overcome them requires a great war etc.,

And from where will he have the force to win this war?

And upon this comes the teaching,

that the entire reality of the opponent is only because of the concealment that covers the truth that "there is nothing besides Him" and there is no existence for any thing in the world without Him, blessed be He,

therefore,

if a person attaches himself to God until His true unity is revealed in him,

then automatically the existence of the opponent will be nullified,

like darkness that is dispelled before light,

for in truth it has no existence at all,

as above.

And as explained³⁵

also in the explanation of the verse³⁶

"When you go out to war against your enemies",

that this is a hint to the war against the evil inclination

(which is called the "enemy" of man)

— and more generally it refers to the war against all enemies of God — that man must know

(immediately upon his going out to war),

that in essence he is "above

(and beyond)

your enemies",

for only Israel, who are attached to God, have true existence³⁷,

but "your enemies" who are opponents to holiness,

have no strength and true existence.

And if so, why did Hashem do thus that there should be the findings of "your enemies,"

that to the eyes it appears that they have strength and ability against holiness?

Behold, regarding this the answer is at the beginning of the verse,

"When you go out to war,"

that all the intention is only so that Bnei Yisrael should go out to war and bring out and reveal in actuality their powers in nullifying the enemies of Hashem.

And with this is explained the contradiction in the conclusion of the verse — "

(When you go out to war etc.)

and you take its captivity captive":

The explanation of "his captivity" is,

that they take from the enemy the things that were in captivity with him,

And in our matter³⁸,

that the external forces

(your enemy)

has no validity and existence from itself, G-d forbid,

but only what fell into its captivity from the border of holiness.

<pg>160</pg>

But according to this, the conclusion of the verse "and you shall take captive its captivity" is not understood — since this is "captivity" — your property,

why is it said "and you shall take captive"?

Surely the departure from the domain of the enemy is not a matter of captivity

("and you shall take captive"),

but rather the opposite,

return to its true place,

in the border of holiness,

and it should have said "and you shall return its captivity."

But they are the two opposites mentioned above regarding the reality of the side of impurity

("your enemy")

: on one hand,

they have no reality of their own,

but only what they take in "captivity" from the border of holiness; and together with this, they are given validity according to Torah,

for without this the existence of the service of Israel would not be possible

[for if they did not have validity according to Torah,

and all their opposition to holiness would be mere imagination,

there is no novelty in this that a person defeats the enemy].

And this is what is written "and you shall take captive its captives",

for even though it speaks of "its captives",

a thing that has no reality of its own but only because of holiness,

nevertheless there must be

(from the side of Israel)

an action of "and you shall take captive",

as if they are in the possession of the enemy,

for only through this is the novelty of Israel emphasized,

in that they defeat and conquer the enemy under the authority of holiness.

And this is the entire reality of your enemies,

not that they have a reality, God forbid,

but only so that the children of Israel may take what is theirs

("and you shall take captive its captives"),

in the manner of Rashi's words³⁹

regarding the Land of Israel,

"the entire land is the Holy One blessed be He's,

by His will He gave it to them and by His will He took it from them and gave it to us",

that is,

that the giving to them was from the outset only in order to take it from them and give it to Israel⁴⁰.

(From the talk of Shabbos Parshas Shoftim 5748)