English translation — פורים א

Sicha 1<pg>170</pg>

A.

It is stated in Tractate Megillah<sup>1</sup>

: The students of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai asked him: Why were the enemies of Israel in that generation liable for destruction?..

Because they enjoyed the feast of that wicked one..

If so, in Shushan they should be killed; in the entire world they should not be killed..

Because they bowed to the idol.

And behold, the sin in the enjoyment "from the feast of that wicked one" simply is the eating of forbidden foods,

and as it is brought in the Midrash<sup>2</sup>

that Bnei Yisrael "came..

in doubt

(in danger)..

because they ate from the cooked dish of the gentiles".

And the famous question<sup>3</sup>

: Is eating forbidden foods so severe that because of it they would be liable for destruction, G-d forbid<sup>4</sup>?

!

[And in the Gemara they asked on this reason only why they would be killed "throughout the entire world",

meaning that regarding those of Shushan itself they agree that they are deserving of destruction<sup>5</sup>].

Also, one must be precise in the language of the Gemara "who benefited from the feast of that wicked man",

which implies that the sin is not the eating but the enjoyment<sup>6</sup>

of the feast of Achashverosh.

[Also, it is forced

(somewhat)

to interpret the intention as eating forbidden foods — for behold, according to Chazal<sup>7</sup>

that the feast was "according to the will of each and every man<sup>8</sup>

— according to the will of Mordechai and Haman",

and likewise it is explicit in the Midrash<sup>9</sup>

on the verse<sup>8</sup>

"And the drinking was according to the law, there was no compulsion" — "there was no compulsion regarding libation wine",

behold, that in the feast there were

(also)

kosher foods; and if the intention of the Gemara is that nevertheless the Jews ate forbidden foods,

it should not have been left unspecified but rather specified].

2.

There are commentators¹⁰,

that since this feast that Achashverosh made was on the cancellation of the building of the Temple<pg>171</pg>

(as it is brought in the Gemara¹¹

that according to the calculation of Achashverosh the seventy years of the Babylonian exile were completed and the Children of Israel were not redeemed — "he said now certainly they will no longer be redeemed" and he brought out the vessels of the Temple to use them etc.),

if so, "whoever benefits from that feast, it shows that he rejoices over the destruction of the Temple".

But superficially the matter is not understood¹²,

for what is discussed here is about the decree of destruction, G-d forbid, which includes also the infants

(who are not obligated),

and as is explicit in the Scroll of Esther¹³

that Haman's decree was upon the entire people,

"from youth to elder, infant and women."

And if so,

granted, if they were liable for destruction "because they bowed to the idol" it is understandable,

as is written in the commentaries¹⁴

that "regarding idolatry, destruction applies well, as with the [Golden] Calf, as it is written¹⁵

and I will consume them in an instant"¹⁶.

But how can it be said that for this, that they enjoyed etc. and showed that they were happy about the destruction of the Holy Temple — there would be a decree of destruction also upon those

(the infants)

who did not sin in this¹⁷?

3.

And this can be explained by prefacing what our sages, of blessed memory, said¹⁸

that the Children of Israel are compared to a "sheep

(one)

standing among seventy wolves",

and "great is the Shepherd

(the Holy One, blessed be He)

who saves her and protects her".

And this means that the situation of Israel among the nations is sometimes in a manner that their existence is miraculous, above nature,

similar to a "sheep standing among seventy wolves",

that there is no natural place for its existence,

but through the kindness of the Holy One, blessed be He

("great is the Shepherd")

saves them and protects them with a miraculous conduct above nature.

However,

In what matters are these words said, that Bnei Yisrael are guarded with special providence and the "seventy wolves" cannot touch them — when their conduct is in accordance with this,

that they rely on the Holy One, blessed be He, that He will save them and guard them.

But when they "oppose" this guarding,

by considering

(in their conduct)

the "wolves" and their natural powers — then they remove themselves, heaven forbid, from the miraculous guarding¹⁹

and place themselves under the governance of nature.

[In accordance with the explanation of the Rambam²⁰

on what is stated²¹

"And I will hide My face from them etc. and many evils will find them etc. because my God is not in my midst, these evils found me" — in the manner of finding,

that when a person separates himself from God,

"God is separated from him and he is then ready for every evil that might possibly find him",

meaning that he removes from himself His special providence "to escape from the hand of chance" — and consequently he remains "abandoned to chance"²².

And one must say,

that this is also the intention of the Rambam

(at the beginning of the Laws of Fasts²³)

in explaining what is written²⁴

"And you walked with Me casually and I walked

(also I²⁵)

<pg>172</pg>

with you in wrath of casualness" — "That is to say, when I bring upon you trouble so that you return, if you say that it is casual

("This thing happened to us from the way of the world and this trouble chanced upon us"²⁶)

I will add to you the wrath of that casualness" — that it does not mean

(only)

that the Holy One, blessed be He, adds to the punishment and the trouble,

but that then the conduct of the Holy One, blessed be He, toward that person is in a manner of "casualness",

that His special providence is removed from him,

and in a way of automatic consequence he remains "abandoned to chance"²⁷].

And based on this, we can explain that this "they benefited from the feast of that wicked one" caused the decree of destruction — because it is not in the category of punishment for sin,

but rather this was a natural result of their conduct&lt;sup&gt;28&lt;/sup&gt;

:

The natural standing and situation of the children of Israel after "the king promoted..

Haman..

and elevated him..

above all the princes etc."&lt;sup&gt;29&lt;/sup&gt;

was similar to "a sheep standing among seventy wolves"; and their conduct

(even though it was before the time — but it proved that their thought and their feeling are)

in a manner of "they benefited from his feast etc." — negated the miraculous protection of "the shepherd is great".

For the fact that the children of Israel enjoyed that "that wicked one" invited them to his feast,

this is proof³⁰

that the existence of a wicked person

(Achashverosh)

was so important to them — that their participation in his feast was considered by them an "honor" so that they enjoyed it.

And their participation in the feast was not obligatory

(to be "Achashverosh the king"³¹

they were obligated in the honor of the kingdom³²)

— but they did it because of their enjoyment from

(their invitation to)

this feast³³.

And since the children of Israel themselves valued the

(seventy)

wolves" and enjoy the honor that they "receive" from "that wicked one",

then in this very thing they reject the miraculous protection of "

(the great)

shepherd",

and bring and lower themselves under the rule

(the natural)

of the "wolves",

which negates the existence of the "sheep"³⁴,

as above.

D.

For further clarification — and with an introduction:

It is known what Chazal said³⁵

that we do not rely on a miracle,

and the Torah said³⁶

"And Hashem your G-d will bless you<pg>173</pg>

in all that you do" specifically — for even though "the blessing of Hashem enriches"³⁷,

nevertheless this blessing does not apply to a person when he sits "idle"³⁸,

rather the obligation is incumbent upon him to do something for his livelihood,

"that you do".

However, on the other hand,

he must know and recognize that his work is only the making of a vessel&lt;sup&gt;39&lt;/sup&gt;,

that is,

that his efforts and his doing are not the cause and the factor that brings and invites his sustenance and livelihood,

but rather they are only a "vessel" for the blessing of the Holy One, blessed be He,

with which the Holy One, blessed be He, bestows upon him his sustenance and livelihood.

That is: the Holy One, blessed be He, desired that a person's sustenance be clothed and come in a natural vessel,

in natural ways,

and nature — He, may He be blessed, established and ingrained it in the world,

and therefore He commanded a person to make natural vessels for his livelihood,

but the substance of a person's sustenance is only "the blessing of the Lord" as above.

And since this is so,

there is no place to consider the occupation in itself,

since its entire essence is only a vessel in which "the blessing of the Lord" dwells,

and the main effort of a person must be to prepare and make himself worthy of "the blessing of the Lord".

And more deeply:

This that "the blessing of G-d enriches" is not only because a person's sustenance

(which comes to him through his business in natural ways)

depends solely on the Holy One, blessed be He

(the Director of nature)

— but rather this,

and the main point — that the children of Israel are not from the outset subject to the rule and conduct of nature; and as explained in several places,

that the children of Israel receive their vitality from the Name Havayah which is above nature⁴⁰,

meaning that He, blessed be He, oversees and conducts all matters of Israel with special providence and with miraculous conduct that is not limited by the laws of nature⁴¹.

And according to this,

that for receiving this blessing of G-d⁴²

there must be human action

("which you do"),

is only because the Holy One, blessed be He, desired that this miraculous conduct should pass through nature,

and therefore He clothed these "miracles" in garments of nature,

action in natural ways — "in all that you do."

But this action is only an external "garment" entirely for the influence from above

(whose source is from the Name Havayah which is above nature).

[And one who considers his business without properly feeling the matter of "The blessing of G-d enriches" — to what is this comparable?

To a person who works with vigor and toil of soul in sewing bags to put money in them,

but does not engage in business matters to obtain the money itself...].

5.

And from all this it will also be understood regarding the situation of the Jewish people in the days of Achashverosh:

Bnei Yisrael who are in exile under the dominion of the nations must give honor to the monarchy&lt;sup&gt;43&lt;/sup&gt;

and the law of the kingdom is law&lt;sup&gt;44&lt;/sup&gt;,

and "seek the peace of the city..

and pray for it etc.'"&lt;sup&gt;45&lt;/sup&gt;,

etc.

Therefore,

when Achashverosh invited the Jews to the feast they were compelled to participate

(simply —&lt;pg&gt;174&lt;/pg&gt;

according to the will of this man Mordechai&lt;sup&gt;46&lt;/sup&gt;,

in a permitted manner,

with kosher foods etc.).

But together with this there had to be the knowledge and the feeling and the clear recognition,

that the existence of the people of Israel is not at all dependent on Achashverosh, G-d forbid

(even though he ruled over the entire world⁴⁷),

but only in the hands of the Holy One, blessed be He; and furthermore,

that the existence of the children of Israel is in the category of a miracle clothed in nature,

and sometimes a revealed miracle — like a single sheep among seventy wolves

(as above),

that "great is the Shepherd" who guards the children of Israel with a miraculous conduct above nature.

And this is the content

(the inner meaning)

in what they said that the sin of the children of Israel was in that "they enjoyed the feast of that wicked one": their participation in this feast was not because of honor of the kingdom and the like,

but because they valued Achashverosh so much that they erred to think that their existence depends⁴⁸

on the kindness of

(the king Achashverosh)

the wicked one — that is, a person who is the opposite of the fulfillment of the will of the Creator of the world! And therefore the possibility to participate in his feast brought them to pleasure and delight.

6.

According to the above regarding the nature of the sin of Israel in the days of Haman's decree,

will also be well explained the unique manner of the miracle of salvation in the days of Purim,

in which it differed from the miracle of salvation in the days of Chanukah

(and all the more so — from the redemption of Egypt)

— that the salvation of the days of Chanukah was through open miracles above nature

(delivering the mighty into the hands of the weak, etc.),

but not so the salvation of the days of Purim came through a miracle clothed in nature

(for "there was nothing visible to the eye that was above nature"⁴⁹)

—

One could say,

that this is in accordance with the cause of the decree in those days

[that the children of Israel lowered themselves under the governance of the ways of nature,

even to the governance of

(Achashverosh — being)

that wicked one,

and even to "they enjoyed the feast of that wicked one"⁵⁰]

:

A miracle clothed in nature teaches us,

that the miraculous conduct from above is not limited to "above nature",

in a manner that compels a disruption of the natural order,

but can also be clothed within the garments of nature itself.

The novelty in the miracle of Purim,

a miracle clothed in nature,

that it is a miracle like a revealed miracle,

therefore we recite the blessing "Who performed miracles" both on Chanukah

(a miracle that is not clothed in nature)

and on Purim

(a miracle clothed in nature),

namely, that what the Holy One, blessed be He, saved the children of Israel in the days of Purim was not in a manner of natural conduct,

but in miraculous conduct,

therefore "it is seen tangibly that all the causes were only above nature"⁵¹

— and nevertheless the miracle was clothed in garments of nature,

for also in the "nature" of the children of Israel is clothed a "miracle" that is above nature.

7.

These two extremes that are demanded and required from each and every Jew — on the one hand, one does not rely on a miracle and he must act specifically in a natural way,

And together with this he must recognize that all of nature in his life is only a "garment" and all his affairs come from the miraculous conduct from above —<pg>175</pg>

Were expressed in Esther's efforts in nullifying the decree⁵²

:

On the one hand she went to Achashverosh

(by the agency of Mordechai)

"to supplicate him and to request from him for her people"⁵³,

that for this she needed to find favor in his eyes,

and especially that

(a)

she was not called to the king "for thirty days"⁵⁴,

(b)

her coming to the king's inner courtyard⁵⁴

was "not according to the law"⁵⁵

and a real danger to life

("one law is to put him to death"⁵⁴),

And if so, certainly she was in need of special grace.

And together with this she fasted "three days night and day"&lt;sup&gt;55&lt;/sup&gt;

— a fast and affliction — which according to nature causes the absence of finding favor&lt;sup&gt;56&lt;/sup&gt;.

And seemingly — from whichever side: If the salvation was supposed to come through effort in natural ways — why do they fast&lt;sup&gt;57&lt;/sup&gt;

— and weaken thereby the possibility of finding favor in the eyes of the king?

And if Esther relied that the salvation would come in a miraculous way from above,

and therefore also the effort is

(only)

in this that they pray to the Holy One, blessed be He

(through a fast which is from the ways of repentance)

— why did she enter into actual danger of life to go to the king?

And according to the above it is understood,

that specifically such conduct is what nullifies and rectifies the sin "that they benefited from his feast etc.":

The foundation of the error that caused the "benefit" from the feast of that wicked one was in that they thought that when they are in a situation where they must exert themselves in the way of nature,

then "the government" is to the laws of nature and they are dependent on them — and in the conduct of Esther she showed them clearly,

that her going to Achashverosh is in a manner of only a "garment" for the salvation that comes from above,

in a manner of a miracle above nature.

And therefore first and foremost they need prayer and fasting in order to be worthy of this miracle; however, since the Holy One, blessed be He, desired that the miraculous salvation from above should have a hold in the ways of nature,

therefore Mordechai commanded her by the word of G-d — to go to Achashverosh

(even though there was danger in the matter).

And consequently it is understood that there is no place to consider so much the "garment"

(if it is not entirely in accordance with all that is required according to the ways of nature)⁵⁸

— for the main thing is not the garment through which the salvation comes,

but rather the cause of the salvation.

8.

One of the lessons that one must learn from this in the service of each and every one:

Bnei Yisrael were created souls in bodies,

in a manner that they are forced to occupy themselves with the needs of the body.

And since the Holy One, blessed be He, created them in this manner,

certainly this is His will, blessed be He,

that they occupy themselves with the needs of the body.

And the instruction comes from the days of Purim,

that even though they must occupy themselves with matters of the body — nevertheless the occupation must be not in a manner of "enjoyment",

for this occupation is only a "garment" and secondary to his main task in this world; the pleasure and delight of a Jewish person must be in the life of his soul,

the study of the Torah and fulfillment of the commandments etc.,

and the occupation with his material matters is only so that he will be healthy and whole and able to serve God⁵⁹.

<pg>176</pg>

And by this a person is tested whether he engages in his bodily needs for the sake of Heaven,

or not:

When the life of his soul is primary for him and the life of his body is secondary,

and this too — in order that the body be healthy and whole to serve God⁶⁰,

then all his vitality and pleasure are in the study of Torah and the fulfillment of the commandments,

and his occupation with matters of the body is out of necessity,

at any rate — without pleasure⁶¹

;

But when he makes the life of his body the main thing,

behold, when he comes to matters of his soul he says "What is my duty and I will do it"⁶²,

whereas when it is about that which touches his bodily needs,

he is invested in them and occupies himself with this with pleasure — "they enjoy" matters of his animal soul.

And this is the lesson of the days of Purim,

that all the salvation of those days was connected with this,

that the Jews recognized that the enjoyment from "the feast of that wicked one" is against the very existence

(his true nature)

of the people of Israel,

and through this they merited salvation and redemption,

And one connects redemption to redemption⁶³,

the redemption of Purim to the redemption of Passover — and including the true exodus from Egypt and the limitations of the body

— And as in the days of your going out from the land of Egypt I will show him wonders⁶⁴,

in the true and complete redemption through our righteous Messiah,

speedily in our days, literally.

(From sichos of Purim 5722,

5727)