English translation — שמיני ב

Sicha page 27

A.

It is written in the Rambam¹

: "The poured stream is not a connection neither for impurity nor for purity²

How so? If one pours pure liquids into a impure vessel etc., behold the column of the poured stream is pure, and if one catches from the liquids that drip from the air, behold what he caught is pure..

In what case³

When he pours from cold to cold or from hot to hot or from hot to cold, but if one pours pure cold liquids into impure hot liquids, behold the poured stream is a connection and all the cold liquids that he pours from become impure, and the vessel from which he pours becomes impure because of the liquids inside it, for they became impure,

And why did they say that pouring cold liquids into hot is a connection? Because the steam⁴

of the hot rises like pillars of smoke and mixes with the poured stream and with the water in the upper vessel and makes the vessel impure, for the steam rising from the hot is considered liquid."

And behold, in the Commentary on the Mishnah<sup>5</sup>

the Rambam wrote: "Because the column of liquid which is called 'nitzok' becomes heated when its end is in the hot vessel,

and the vapor rises<sup>6</sup>

with the nitzok from within the hot impure vessel and heats the liquid which is in the upper vessel,

and therefore it becomes impure,

because the hot vapor connected them and it rises from the impure to the pure."

And in the Bartenura on the Mishnah there<sup>3</sup>

explained "cold to hot is impure": that the lower hot one raises vapor to the upper cold one and makes it impure<sup>7</sup>,

that the cloud that rises from hot things is considered like liquid.

And it seems at first glance that there is a distinction between the explanation of the Rambam in his Commentary on the Mishnah and the explanation of the Ra'avad: According to what the Rambam wrote in his Commentary on the Mishnah,

the law of impurity here is not only by virtue of contact alone,

but by virtue of the connection between them "that the hot vapor connected them",

whereas according to the explanation of the Ra'avad this is only because of the contact of the lower vapor

(which is considered a liquid)

with the upper cold one⁸.

However,

from the language of the aforementioned Rambam in the Book of the Hand,

it appears that he adopts a third manner: From the conclusion of his words "Why did they say..

because smoke<pg>28</pg>

"The hot liquid rises etc. and it makes the vessel impure, for the steam that rises from the hot liquid is considered liquid,"

it implies that the law of impurity is

(primarily)

due to the contact and mixture⁹

of the steam

(considered as liquid)

with the water in the upper vessel¹⁰,

But from what he wrote "And why did they say that one who pours cold liquids into hot liquids is a connection"⁹,

and moreover,

at the beginning of the law he wrote "But one who pours pure cold liquids into impure hot liquids, behold the poured stream is a connection" — it implies,

that the body of the stream

(and not only the vapor — as he wrote in the Commentary on the Mishnah)

is a connection when pouring from cold into hot.

And it requires clarification,

behold the poured stream is not a connection,

as the Rambam wrote in his Commentary on the Mishnah there²

regarding the stream,

"that this entire column is not like a single body"¹¹.

And it appears from his words,

that this very fact that the vapor of the lower one rises upward causes the stream and the poured stream to become "like a single body".

We see,

that there are here three manners — touching of the lower upon the upper by means of the breath

(according to the interpretation of the Ra'avad)

; connection of the lower to the upper by means of the breath

(according to the interpretation of the Rambam in his Commentary on the Mishnah)

; the connection by means of the breath is

(not a connection of the breath but)

of the poured liquid between the upper and the lower

(according to the interpretation of the Rambam in the Yad HaChazakah).

And the common denominator among them is that the lower prevails¹²,

that the lower acts upon the upper.

[And further to add,

according to the explanation of the Rambam in his Commentary on the Mishnah&lt;sup&gt;3&lt;/sup&gt;

regarding the opinion of R. Shimon concerning nitzok of hot into a hotter liquid,

"And R. Shimon says that this same matter itself obligates us to say regarding one who poured hot pure liquid into a vessel that has in it impure liquid hotter than it,

because from this impure one which is hotter, boiling vapor will rise with the nitzok and add to the heat of the pure liquid..

The halacha is not like R. Shimon because since both are hot, and even though the lower is hotter than the upper, not&lt;sup&gt;13&lt;/sup&gt;

will there appear to him a clear action in the liquid which he pours from it" — from this it is understood,

that the main action of the lower upon the upper is specifically when there is in this a "clear" and noticeable action].

2.

And this will be understood according to what the Rambam wrote&lt;sup&gt;14&lt;/sup&gt;

that most laws of the Torah were given in order to correct the opinions and to straighten all the deeds,

and so it is in our matter,

the laws of nitzok,

that there is in them instruction and lesson in the manner of hint in the inner dimension of the matters.

&lt;pg&gt;29&lt;/pg&gt;

And the explanation of the matters:

"Upper" alludes to the true "Upper,"

the Holy One, blessed be He, of Whom there is no higher,

and "lower" alludes to created beings,

and in particular this physical world,

which is "the lowest in degree, than which there is no lower beneath it"¹⁵.

And the concept of "nitzok" between the upper and the lower hints at the continuous connection, as it were, of the upper — the Holy One, blessed be He,

with the lower — the world.

That is: the connection between the upper — the Creator,

and the lower — the created beings,

is not only at the beginning,

at the creation of the world in the six days of Genesis,

but the coming into being of the world is in a continuous manner,

and as the explanation of the Baal Shem Tov¹⁶

on the verse¹⁷

Forever, O Lord, Your word stands firm in the heavens,

"Your word that You said, 'Let there be a firmament'¹⁸...

they stand and endure forever within the firmament of the heavens and are clothed within all the firmaments forever to give them life, as it is written¹⁹

and the word of our God shall stand forever, and His words²⁰

are living and enduring forever",

and as our master, the Alter Rebbe, elaborated in the Tanya¹⁶

in explaining the matter,

that the coming into being is continuous,

and it is a continuous renewal from nothing to something,

and it is found that the lower

(and likewise all the worlds)

is connected with the upper

(the Creator)

in a continuous manner.

And the law of the Torah teaches us that "nitzok is not a connection either for impurity or for purity": this connection of the Creator and the created beings is only regarding the matter of coming into being,

but not regarding the matter of impurity and purity,

that is: the divine power within the created beings does not act and influence them in relation to the manner of their attachment to the Creator²¹,

because it must be²²

"and you shall choose life",

the service of man through his free choice,

that man himself through his service must choose life and good.

And therefore, even though the lower is connected with the upper,

it is possible for there to be with him a state of "impurity",

which is the opposite of the connection with the upper,

and likewise on the other hand,

in order that there be a state of "purity",

the purity does not result from his connection through the flow of the upper,

but comes about through his connecting with the upper by his own power.

And this matter is hinted in this — that "In what matters are these words said

(that the pouring is not a connection)

in a goat from cold to cold..

But..

one who pours cold liquids into hot is a connection":

The difference between cold and hot simply is,

that the thing as it is in itself is in a state of cold,

and the matter of heat indicates movement and action in it

(and even that hot in completeness raises bubbles)

— and as is seen simply in water,

that water from the sea and from the river, in itself they are cold&lt;sup&gt;23&lt;/sup&gt;,

and in order that they become hot&lt;pg&gt;30&lt;/pg&gt;

There is a need for an action of heating — and its spiritual meaning,

that the matter of warmth is something that is done specifically through the work of man,

and were it not for the work,

as the creation is in itself,

this is a state of cold,

and specifically through work is made the connection from the upper to the lower.

3.

And behold it is known that even though the work of man is from his free choice,

nevertheless there is in this a giving of power from above,

as our sages of blessed memory said²⁴

were it not for the Holy One blessed be He who helps him, he cannot overcome it,

and not only in the essence of the work,

but also before the work,

as our sages of blessed memory said on the verse²⁵

who preceded Me and I will pay,

that the ability of man to fulfill commandments comes from the Holy One blessed be He.

And beyond this: since "You will long for the work of Your hands"²⁶,

it follows,

that the reason for creation and all of the creation of man is because of the longing and desire of the Holy One, blessed be He, for the service of man,

and since this is the intention of the Holy One, blessed be He, in the creation of the world,

it is understood,

that it is impossible that the intention of the Holy One, blessed be He, should not be fulfilled, heaven forbid

[And furthermore,

above "there is no power lacking action"²⁷,

and from this it is understood,

that since the intention of creation is the longing of the Holy One, blessed be He, for the service of the lower one,

it is indeed done so in actuality].

And this is the inner explanation of "a poured liquid is not a connection" — that the help of the Holy One, blessed be He, for the service of man,

is not revealed,

and is not felt by man,

in order that there should be the possibility for free choice,

that his service should be in his free choice and in his own power.

But after the work of man,

the connection is made with the help and assistance from above,

that it is revealed that also this work belongs to the help and the drawing down from above.

And it is found,

that in the work of man and his connection with the "Upper One" there are in general three levels and stages:

as it is in the open,

that what is seen and revealed is the service of man by his own power and from the side of his free choice, and there is not seen in this a connection and relationship with the giving of power from above;

afterwards the inwardness of this is revealed,

that his service was through the giving of power of the Holy One, blessed be He, which was clothed in him,

namely that there is a connection between his service and the help of the Holy One, blessed be He, from above;

And afterwards it was revealed even more,

that the service of man is itself his entire existence and creation,

to the extent that it is impossible to be otherwise,

since the entire cause of his creation is because "You desire the work of Your hands"

(and as our master the Alter Rebbe brought to law in his Laws of Torah Study²⁸

that "no one rejected from Him shall be cast off"²⁹,

for all of Israel will ultimately repent³⁰).

But this very thing is revealed specifically through the service of man,

for even though the intention of the Holy One, blessed be He, must come into actuality,

to the extent that "there is no power lacking action",

nevertheless this is as the "action" is included in the "power"; and the revelation of this matter in actual deed is through the service of man

(in actuality)³¹.

<pg>31</pg>

And one could say,

that they are the three manners in the law of cold into hot that were mentioned above:

According to the explanation of the Ra'av,

that the lower hot one raises vapor to the upper cold one,

that is to say that it is entirely from the side of the work and ascent of the lower to the upper

(And there is no connection here with the upper)

— and this explanation emphasizes the matter of free choice in the work of man,

that it is entirely work in his own power;

Explanation of the Rambam in his Commentary on the Mishnah,

that the ascent of the warm vapor effects the connection with the upper

(and not only that the lower touches the upper)

— emphasizes,

that the service of the lower ones effects the connection with the help and power from above,

that it is felt that man's service is in the power of the "upper",

the help from above.

And the words of the Rambam in the book Yad "Behold, the pouring is a connection" emphasize even more,

that through the service

(the warmth)

of the lower, it is revealed that ultimately all this is the matter of the pouring itself,

namely the divine power that enlivens it

(as above),

for all its creation and coming into being by the Holy One, blessed be He, was from the outset for this intention,

the innovation and action of man's service,

"for the work of Your hands You yearn."

4.

However, it must be understood: the halacha that "one who pours cold liquids into hot liquids is considered a connected stream" was stated regarding impurity — "one who pours pure cold liquids into impure hot liquids, the pouring is a connection and the liquids become impure,"

and what is its spiritual meaning?

[And even though through man's action he reverses the will of God, he thereby causes descent and exile also to the aspect of the divine spark within him and within the world,

And as our master, the Alter Rebbe, elaborated in Iggeret HaTeshuvah

(in the Tanya)³²,

"Yaakov, the rope of His inheritance, is written³³,

as a parable: like a rope whose one end is above and its other end below,

if a person pulls its second end, its first end will also be shaken and drawn after it, etc., and so exactly in the root of man's soul and its source from the aspect of the lower Hei...

he draws down and brings down its influence through his evil deeds and thoughts into the halls of the sitra achra, as it were",

Behold, this is not a matter of connection,

but on the contrary,

that it lowers and interrupts, as it were, the influence of the lower Hei from its place].

And the explanation of this is:

The hint in this particular is — that the essence and completeness of warmth is through the transformation³⁴

of impure matters,

hot unclean liquids,

to purity and holiness — which is accomplished through the work of repentance.

And the explanation of this:

It was explained earlier that the matter of warmth indicates the service of man,

and the main service of man by his own power and from his own side is in the service of teshuvah:

Righteous ones who are attached to G-dliness and their service is by means of feeling G-dliness — then the service is not so much from their own side,

but rather from the revelation from above;

But not so the baalei teshuvah,

that the teshuvah comes not through a revelation of light,

for the baal teshuvah before his teshuvah was distant from G‑dliness,

and is not connected to a revelation of light,

but it is from the side of the baal teshuvah himself³⁵,

and likewise his service even after he has done teshuvah,

that its essence is from himself and with his own strength,

as it is stated in the Zohar³⁶

that a baal teshuvah draws [it] with strength<pg>32</pg>

more

(that one should say the explanation of this,

that this is from the aspect of the superiority of service with one's own strength,

which is their strength),

therefore specifically this service has the matter of the greatest warmth.

And then the true connection and in the ultimate perfection with Above is made,

and as is known³⁷

that the soul as it is above is on the level of a tzaddik,

and through its descent below it reaches the level of a baal teshuvah,

for in the place³⁸

where baalei teshuvah stand, even tzaddikim cannot stand,

and even that tzaddikim also need to do teshuvah,

for through the matter of teshuvah the true root of the soul is revealed,

"And the spirit³⁹

shall return to God who gave it"⁴⁰,

And the ultimate perfection is,

that even the tzaddikim will merit the level of teshuvah⁴¹,

Mashiach came to bring back the tzaddikim in teshuvah⁴².

(From the sicha of Shabbos Parshas Ki Seitzei,

5748)