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BEGIN WITH A GRIN

Stalin was addressing an assembly of peasants in Russia, when a man in the crowd sneezed.

Stalin asked: Who sneezed?

No one responded.

Stalin says to one of his KGB agents, “Go shoot everyone in the front row.” So he shoots everyone in the front row.

“Now,” Stalin says, “who sneezed?” Again, no one responded.

“Shoot everyone in the second row,” so he shoots everyone in the second row.

Stalin, getting impatient, asks again: Who sneezed? A man in the middle of the crowd slowly raises his hand, and in a quiet voice says “Me.” Stalin looks out into the crowd and sees the man with his hand up and says, “Bless you.”

HISTORIC BALANCE SHIFT

Parshas Korach is, without a doubt, one of the hardest parshiyos in the Torah. A dispute rips apart the Jewish nation with seemingly legitimate complaints against government policy, the gap in equal rights and class distinctions, and what not?

[Unfortunately, it seems that not much has changed since Korach and his congregation… and today too, we are living through the problem of national divisiveness and challenging government policy.]

However, the question of all questions that needs to be asked is, as Rashi puts it, “Korach, who was smart, how did he get involved in such nonsense?” How did a wise person gets mixed up in a fight against Moshe Rabeinu?

All the gedolim throughout the generations, Rishonim and Acharonim, addressed this question, each with his explanation. Many lessons were derived by the Mussar and Chassidic greats about the negative power of disputes, about the proper honor that needs to be given to leaders of the people and its prophets, but this week, we will focus on something positive in this altogether painful parsha. Let’s look at the dispute of Korach with Geula eyes and derive lessons from it for the service needed today to bring Moshiach and the Geula.

One of the surprising explanations which appears in Chassidus (Likutei Torah) is that Korach wanted to advance the Days of Moshiach! Whoever reads this must be wondering, “What connection is there between a painful dispute and Moshiach? Isn’t Moshiach meant to bring peace and unity to the nation?”

The simple explanation, based on the Arizal (Shaar HaPesukim to Yechezkel) is that in the future, the Kohanim will be Leviyim and the Leviyim will be Kohanim, and this is precisely what Korach wanted! Korach, who was a Levi, and Moshe’s cousin, wanted to be a Kohen (the Kohen Gadol, in fact!). As for Aharon who was chosen to be a Kohen, Korach wanted him to be a… Levi! Just as in the Geula!

The Arizal explains an astonishing verse in Yechezkel (44:15) in which Yechezkel describes the service of the Kohanim in the Beis HaMikdash in the future. He says that, “The Kohanim, the Leviyim sons of Tzadok, who preserved the guardianship of My Mikdash when the Bnei Yisrael strayed from Me, they will approach Me to serve Me.” This occurred at the end of a special tour one of the ministering angels provided for Yechezkel of the third, future, Beis HaMikdash. After showing him the entire structure of the building with all its parts and details, he also told the prophet that the descendants of Tzadok the Kohen, who was a Kohen Gadol in the time of the first Mikdash, who preserved the guardianship of the Mikdash even during exile, when the Jewish people left G-d, are the ones who will merit to serve in the third Mikdash.

But the phrase, “the Kohanim the Leviyim” sounds odd, doesn’t it? After all, if they are Kohanim they’re not Leviyim, if Leviyim not Kohanim… The answer is that in the days of Moshiach there will be a role reversal, with the present day Leviyim becoming Kohanim and the Kohanim of nowadays becoming Leviyim, and this is how the Arizal explains the surprising verse, “and the Kohanim the Leviyim.” The Kohanim – who serve in the Beis HaMikdash, the Leviyim – will be the ones who are today called Leviyim.

Why should this happen? Why should their roles be reversed?

The Arizal goes on, in his wondrous explanation, which is based on an interesting fact and says that Yechezkel was the only prophet who uses the phrase, “the Kohanim the Leviyim sons of Tzadok.” Why is this so?

The root of Yechezkel’s soul is from Kayin (son of Adam, brother of Hevel), which is why he begins his prophecies, time after time, with the words, “And you, son of Adam (man),” because he really was the son of Adam, the first man!

Like Yechezkel, so too the Leviyim! The root of their souls comes from Kayin, while the source of the souls of the Kohanim is the soul of Hevel.

Kayin was Adam’s oldest son which is why he was supposed to receive the priesthood, but since he sinned, the right of the firstborn went to Hevel, and Aharon, who was from the soul-root of Hevel, became a Kohen. However, in the future, when the world will achieve its complete rectification and all sins will be rectified, including that of Kayin, the situation will revert to the way it was at first (and to the way it was supposed to be if not for sin). The Leviyim will get back their original job and will be Kohanim, while the Kohanim will revert to their “normal” state and assist the Leviyim.

USE YOUR BALANCE, DON’T LOSE IT

As amazing as this is, it raises a powerful question about the entire story about the dispute of Korach. According to this, what was so terrible about Korach? What did he do already? He just wanted to bring Moshiach sooner, and what’s bad about that? Isn’t it what ever novice Lubavitcher is trying to do?

Chassidus has a lot to say on this and we will bring a summary from which we can learn important and practical lessons about bringing the Geula.

Kohanim are rooted in the sefira of chesed while Leviyim are from the sefira of gevura. The essential difference between the two are in the manner in which they relate to G-dliness. An analogy to this is brought in Chassidus. Picture two people, one standing on a mountain and the other in a valley. There are two ways to connect the two of them; either the one on top comes down (which Chassidus calls “hamshacha”) or the one down below will make the effort to ascend (which Chassidus calls “haalaah”).

The chesed of the Kohanim represents the first option, while the ideal that guides the gevura of the Leviyim is the second option. This is tangibly expressed in the difference in which the Kohanim and Leviyim served in the Mikdash. The service of the Kohanim wasn’t done with a commotion and passion, but in silence and intention that the offering be willingly accepted by G-d, and through this, spiritual and material abundance will be drawn down to the world. The service of the Leviyim, in contrast, entailed singing and playing music while the offering was brought and their job was to effect the ascent of the offering and the ascent of the physical and material aspects of the world to supernal holiness.

In Tanya (chapter 50), the Alter Rebbe explains that this is the essential difference between the “element of water” which is drawn downward and the “element of fire” which constantly seeks to ascend. It’s the difference between “gold” which is like fire and “silver” which is more like water. It’s the struggle between competing forces that began at the dawn of history between chesed and gevura, between drawing down and raising up, between Kayin and Hevel, between water and fire, between Kohanim and Leviyim, and so on. So, who is right? Which is really better?

The answer is, it depends when! True, for now, the main thing is to draw G-dliness down to the world, so that the world remains in its present existence and becomes permeated with G-dly light, which is why now the Kohanim are the primary force and the Leviyim are subservient to them. But in the Geula, the situation will change. After the goal of making Him a “dwelling down below” will be achieved, there will no longer be a need for the Shechina to descend below; there will only the service of G-d in a way of rising up ever higher into infinity…

Therefore, the souls of Leviyim will become the main driving force while the Kohanim will become secondary to them.

Korach wanted to ignore the world, to disconnect from the need to draw G-dliness down into creation, into the environment, into the societal structure. He wanted to disconnect, to close himself off and be involved only with his self-perfection and his personal attainments, and this was the start of his downfall!

When we, G-d forbid, ignore G-d’s will and deal only with personal elevation and cleaving to spiritual levels, without looking at the world around us and seeing how we can carry out our mission “to rectify the world,” the result is that the imbalance produces undesirable results, even destructive results, and this was the actual sin of Korach!

The lesson to learn from Korach’s mistake is simple and all-encompassing. There are many situations in which we need to use our judgment about what approach to take, whether to use chesed or gevura, whether to be like water or fire. The answer is that nowadays, in most instances, we should prefer chesed over gevura. Even if, occasionally, we need to use gevura, it has to be done in a calculated, limited way in order to prevent destructive results which only lead to discord!

TO CONCLUDE WITH A STORY

We will end with an amazing story about how the Chassidic approach to chesed changed a person’s life. Professor Avrohom Yosef Polichenko, a computer expert who specialized in futuristic science, was one of the leaders of the leftist, socialist movement of Argentinian Jewry. In his articles which were published in the newspapers, he expressed his extreme anti-religious views.

One day, he decided that in order to bolster his anti-religious approach and express it in the most persuasive way, he needed more information about religious Judaism. He asked many rabbanim to teach him Judaism and told them his purpose. None of the rabbis agreed until he came to a Chabad shliach who was willing to teach him Torah while completely ignoring his goal.

Professor Polichenko began learning Torah and his views gradually began to change until he became a religious Jew. He convinced his wife and both of them became Chabad Chassidim. As a Lubavitcher Chassid he had a strong connection with the Rebbe so that the Rebbe even called him, “My Chassid in Argentina.”

We will end with a miracle story. One time, Professor Polichenko asked the Rebbe about wearing a woolen Tallis. He was highly allergic to wool since childhood and Chabad is particular about wearing a woolen Tallis Koton and Tallis Gadol. The Rebbe’s answer was that he should wear ones made specifically from wool.

The incredible thing was, as soon as Professor Polichenko started being particular about only wearing a woolen Tallis, not only didn’t it bother him but he was no longer allergic to wool!

Good Shabbos!

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