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BEGIN WITH A GRIN

When G-d wanted to give the Ten Commandments, He approached all religions and asked if anyone was interested. The Muslims’ answer was: “No, because it says ‘thou shalt not murder.’” The Christians’ answer was: “No, because it says ‘thou shalt not commit adultery.’” The Buddhists’ answer was: “No, because it says ‘thou shalt not steal.’” The Jews’ answer was: “If it’s free, we’ll take two…”

NOTHING NEW?

We all know that this coming Shabbos, we’ll stand in shul and hear the reading of the Aseres HaDibros for the umpteenth time. Most likely, almost every child in cheder knows that the Ten Commandments appear twice in the Torah – first in our parsha, Yisro, and second in Parshas Vaeschanan, toward the beginning of Sefer Devarim.

The simple question that occupies many commentators is – why the repetition and duplication? Why does the Torah, which is so precise with every word and crown, repeat itself? Does G-d worry that after six months of not hearing the Ten Commandments, we’ll forget them? Or perhaps there are Ten Commandments for winter and Ten Commandments for summer? Or in other words, from a different angle, if the Shema Yisrael isn’t written twice in the Torah, why write the Ten Commandments twice? And, as always, how does this contribute to bringing the true and complete Geula?

In a wonderful sicha, the Rebbe explains the central point of this duplication while examining the differences between the two versions. The main difference is that the first commandments were spoken by Hashem Himself, while the latter commandments were spoken by Moshe as part of the book of Devarim which “Moshe spoke of his own accord.”

This difference might sound completely trivial, but the Rebbe finds in it a wonderful lesson about the essence of Torah and its influence on the entire world.

There are two layers in Torah – on the one hand, the Torah is G-d’s wisdom and will, a ‘hidden treasure’ beyond human comprehension, as the Zohar states that “Torah and G-d are completely one.” On the other hand, the Torah was given to us, mortal humans, so that we might learn its instructions and internalize its guidance to bring them into our daily lives.

This means that our approach to Torah must be dual and contradictory. On one hand, when a Jew approaches to study a verse in Torah, a saying in the Mishna, or a debate in the Gemara, he must look at the text before him as “words of the living G-d,” with clear and absolute knowledge that before him stands “the word of G-d” in all its glory. “The word of G-d” which in and of itself is beyond all understanding and comprehension. This knowledge and recognition will bring any simple person to a sense of nullification, a feeling of nothingness before the holy words he is about to read and study. After all, what is a mortal before the pure word of G-d?

On the other hand, the knowledge that Hashem gave the Torah here, below, in this world, to souls in bodies, to human beings who eat and drink, creates in one’s heart a different feeling, polar and contradictory, towards Torah study. The person understands that the Giver of the Torah, G-d, wants him (the person) to use his intellect to understand the Torah fully. Moreover, G-d doesn’t want us to be satisfied with the Torah as it is, but His true desire is for the Jew/s to meditate on the Torah to such an extent that they innovate new insights, add light and depth to its understanding, to the point where they reveal new laws that were not known until now.

In simple words, the student must feel on one hand their complete nullification, and on the other hand, their free existence to innovate. And this is exactly the reason for the duplication of the Ten Commandments. Once in our parsha, by G-d, and once in Parshas Vaeschanan, by Moshe.

In our parsha, we emphasize the nullification to the word of G-d coming directly from the Creator of the world, while in Parshas Vaeschanan, we emphasize the existence of the Jew who is studying the Torah, and his ability and need to use the qualities he was given to understand and internalize the Torah, just like Moshe.

SOMEBODY NEEDS TO KNOW

Each version of the commandments has an advantageous quality that the other doesn’t have, and therefore the Torah repeated the commandments, so that we internalize the need for both qualities. The advantage of the first commandments is that the word of G-d reaches the Jewish people directly without any intermediaries, not even through Moshe, and therefore complete nullification to G-d is felt in the first commandments. Conversely, the advantage of the latter commandments is that G-d’s word penetrates the reality and boundaries of the lower worlds, and it completely unifies with them, until they understand it in their minds, as happened with Moshe.

This important lesson about the need to bridge between nullification to the Creator and human existence in spiritual avoda takes on added importance when it comes to bringing the Geula. We all know that the true and complete Geula can be summarized in two words that every beginner Chabadnik knows: “dira ba’tachtonim” [a dwelling in the lower realms]. These two words connect the two opposites we discussed earlier.

The “dira” [dwelling] – which we are supposed to build/establish is “a dwelling for Him.” We must reveal the essence and being of the Creator, the highest levels of divinity, within creation. This is only possible through complete nullification to Him through Torah. Because Torah (as mentioned above) is one with Him, and therefore through complete nullification and adherence to Torah, we can bring Him, G-d, into the world.

But this dwelling must be established “ba’tachtonim” [in the lower realms] – within the reality of created beings, within the reality of the lowly world in which we live. And this can only be done when we use the powers given to us. So, while the ‘dira’ symbolizes bittul, the ‘tachtonim’ symbolizes our experienced reality. And to bring the Geula, there must be perfect coexistence between these two opposites.

From this, we can learn an important moral lesson regarding one’s avoda in bringing the Geula: one cannot suffice with one-directional divine service, one cannot focus only on the work of nullification, and on the other hand, one cannot deal only with our personal reality. We must do both in a unified way.

A practical example of this can be seen from the instruction the Rebbe learned from the above. On the one hand, everyone must increase in Torah study, with absolute knowledge that this is “the literal word of G-d,” and at the same time, they must invest their entire mind, to the extent of all their soul’s powers, to understand the words of Torah with their own intellect. A combination of nullification together with reality, simultaneously.

This is also the way to influence others – on the one hand, one must transmit things to them ‘as they are,’ without changing or lowering the message. And on the other hand, one must cause them to internalize those things in every fiber of their being, until they become inseparable from them. And through the perfect connection and proper fusion between nullification and reality, we will soon merit the complete Geula.

TO CONCLUDE WITH A STORY

Let’s end with a story about the need for bittul together with reality. A great deal is written in the talks of the Rebbe Rayatz about the amazing Chassid R’ Michel of Opoczk, to the extent that it was said about him that he had ruach ha’kodesh etc.

In the journal HaTamim (vol. 1 page 76 and on) appears the following story. Once it happened that one of R’ Michel’s students, Rashbatz (later the head mashpia in the yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim) traveled to Lubavitch to the Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek. R’ Michel entrusted him with a letter for the Tzemach Tzedek but warned him not to dare open it. Initially, Rashbatz kept his request, but midway through his journey, his curiosity overcame him and he opened the letter, and to his great surprise, he found that the paper was blank!

When he arrived at the beis medrash in Lubavitch, he fell asleep on a bench for some time. While awakening from his slumber, he heard the voice of one of the elder Chassidim calling out loudly and asking who had arrived from R’ Michel’s home with a letter from him. He immediately answered the Chassid that the letter was with him. The elder shouted at him asking why he hadn’t answered earlier, saying this was already the third time he had called out looking for the letter’s bearer, and the Tzemach Tzedek was already waiting for his arrival. He was called to enter immediately to see the Tzemach Tzedek.

He entered the Rebbe’s room in awe, and all his bones trembled with fear. The Tzemach Tzedek took the letter from his hands and severely rebuked him for opening the letter.

Regarding this story, one might ask: if R’ Michel was capable of writing a letter without words, why did he need to send it with a human messenger? Was he not capable of writing a letter in thought or through ruach ha’kodesh?

Perhaps we can explain this based on what was discussed above – in order to connect between a Chassid and his Rebbe, there needs to be a connection that includes both bittul (a letter without words) together with reality (physical delivery by a person).

Good Shabbos!

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