What Is Teshuvah? Discovering that You Never Sinned - Likkutei Torah "Shir Hamaalos Mimmamakim" #1

The Yeshiva.net We'll start a new mind today. It's page 123. Or some of days second column on the top it's going to say Jerusalem the Russia Hashanah. Page 123 Shir Hamalos Mi Ma'amakim Karasicha Hashem. So mind me that relates to a series of my true love and young kipper. Rosh Hashanah the whole season of Elul and Tishrei Yamin Noraim. And therefore it begins with the capital of Tehillim which is of course chapter 130. Tehillim Kuf Lamed which uh as you know the meaning of our resolve that has been embraced by most Kahilos that during a series of my true love we say Shir Hamalos Mi Ma'amakim Karasicha Hashem every day before Baruch after you stop Rosh Hashanah and then a series of my true love and Yom Kippur. Why was this Mizmor chosen? Shir Hamalos Mi Ma'amakim Karasicha Hashem. Well, the Mizmor also speaks about atonement Kimcha Slicha L'man Tivareh. We have this is from the color of an ice of here is going to discuss a deeper dimension of what this Mizmor conveys. So that's why he begins with the Pasuk Shir Hamalos Mi Ma'amakim Karasicha Hashem. This Maimer this discourse was said by the Alter Rebbe by the Baal Hatanya in the year Tav Kuf Nun Hey which means 1794. It was Tishrei time probably so therefore I say 1794 even though it was the new year of Tav Kuf Nun Hey. Shir Hamalos Mi Ma'amakim Karasicha Hashem. This is Tehillim Kuf lamed, as I said, 130 of Tehillim. So, he says, "Mimamakim uloshon sha'oiso oimek." The pasuk doesn't say Shir Hamalos, "Mimokom amuk umei mei amuk mimokom amuk." Mimamakim is loshon sha'oiso oimek. In dikduk of loshon kodesh, it's a loshon maf'il. There's oimek means depth. So, pasuk amuk amuk means enu deep deep. Ma'amek is you make depth. You cause there to be deep depth. You create depth. Oiso oimek. Mimamakim, from that which is ma'amek, that which creates depth. Misham, from there, from that which is oiso oimek, from there I call out to you, Hashem. V'luniskon l'eima b'siyusa d'shmaya And as it's brought in Kisvei Arizal, this was instituted to be said during the 10 days of teshuvah from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur. Now, there's a bracket here. These are footnotes from the Tzemach Tzedek, where he basically references where this pasuk is explained everywhere in Chazal, both in terms of nigleh and nister. So, the way he's explaining mimamakim, is that different than the word min hametzar, for example? B'chayira, yeah. Yeah. So, he says, "Bigemara, you have this pasuk in Brachos and Ta'anis and Medrash Rabbah Vayikra and Shir Hashirim Rabbah Eichah Rabbah in Zohar and Mikdash Melech and Ramaz." That This is before Google, before Otzar HaChochmah, so don't take this for granted. Everywhere that this pasuk is explained in in nigleh or nister, the Tzemach Tzedek references cuz that's how he he wanted to always give an encyclopedic, full, comprehensive coverage of every pasuk. Okay. We go now at at the The of the brackets, one, two, six lines later for one two three four six lines later. Key. What's the connection of this mizmor to the whole year? So he starts an explanation. A whole year a person may follow shviras liba. Shviras liba is of course an expression that we just learned in the beginning of Nitzavim. Ki bishviras liba according to the uninhibitedness of the heart. K'masher kasav as the pasuk says Yirmiyahu Yirmiyahu says They turned their back to me. They turned their back to me. In other words, this doesn't mean physically you turn your back. It means emotionally you're not interested in me. We're not we're not connected in an enthusiastic way. That's kipnu eilay oirev they turned their back. Aval baser simcha comes as simcha b'chol yom vayam every single day. Kol echad ve'echad nisgalah l'Hashem Yisbarach. Every day every soul becomes close to Hashem and nisgalah b'chol yom yosef. And becomes sublimated, elevated each day more ad Yom Kippurim until Yom Kippur. What happens Yom Kippur v'nasim kol nishmas Yisrael l'Hashem Yisbarach panim b'panim. Throughout these days until the crescendo, the zenith, the peak on Yom Kippur all the souls of the Jewish people become with Hashem panim b'panim face to face. Unlike the panim eilay oirev which is face to back or back to face or back to back, it's panim b'panim. V'hu machmas ratzon. It's always about ratzon. Sheyitsei'nu shel kol adam lisgalah l'Hashem Yisbarach b'vchinus panim. That there's the ratzon of a person to come close to Hashem face to face. It's about ratzon. In other words, the difference of back to back and face to face physically I could be looking at you, I could not be looking at you. Emotionally what it represents is you can't really be with your back to God because it's so So what's So what's straight you with your back? It's not like a person I could turn away to and I go away from you. That's where he says it's and the question is where your desire is, where your passion is, where your enthusiasm is. It's a famous martial that he brings elsewhere. If a person the martial has to pay severance pay to an employee who manipulated him or damaged the business or whatever they have they have some beef between each other. But the court says or the rabbi says you got to pay him. So he may come in every Friday for his check, but you don't want to give it to him face to face so you give it to the secretary. Or if you have to give it to him there's an expression come on the show you throw it over your back. In other words, you're not interested in giving it with with enthusiasm, with passion. You give it because you're forced to give it. So there's a relationship back to back which means people could be connected to each other. But they're not passionate about each other. They don't care for each other. There's no in there. There's no desire there. It's a compelled relationship. It's It's robotic. It's like you know, it's mechanical. It's there's no So it's not it's called a lion. Your back is directed to me. You may be right near me, but it's a lion. He says what that these are times that are invested with an energy that compels the soul to enter into an intimate face-to-face relationship with the with the lion. Now when you say about times of the year it's just important as a to understand that the way the is not that holidays are ceremonial. Meaning different times of the year you have different holidays to commemorate things. Because what's the difference between one day and another day? You know, the clock moves and ticks and It stop for anybody. And okay, so here you make a Hanukkah, you make a Purim, you make a Tu Bishvat, you make a Pesach. First day of Tishrei, you make a Rosh Hashanah. The 10th day, you make a Yom Kippur. So, it's holidays, yeah. Somebody once said he used to be an atheist, but he stopped because they don't have any holidays. You know what a what a atheist don't have holidays? What are you going to celebrate? You know, the random the random evolution of 15.3 billion years. What are you celebrating? Nothing ever happened. So, he so therefore he became religious. He wanted latkes. Okay. Maybe it's not such a joke. Maybe it's true, huh? They don't celebrate the Big Bang? That's what I said, 15.3 There's nothing to celebrate. What are you going to celebrate with the Big Bang? Beginning of evolution? So, and when when when are you going to celebrate Rosh Hashanah? When are you going to celebrate the Big Bang? I am a Hasid. But in Yiddishkeit, the pshat is different days are invested with different qualities. That's why throughout Chumash, Yom Tov is called mikra kodesh. It's a very strange expression, mikra kodesh. It calls out. It the day calls out. It's a mikra. It summons. It summons you to holiness. Days are invested with different qualities. The seventh day of the week has a certain energy, a certain quality. Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, the time has a certain energy. Elul, Tishrei, Sukkot, the time is invested with certain properties, with certain energies. So, when he says on Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, kol echad va'echad nisqariv. What what he's saying about This is halakha. Everyone is nisqariv? We know different people have different experiences Aseres Yemei Teshuvah. Some people are nisqariv, some people The the the the energy of the year, it's a time that the time is invested with that quality that somebody's whose antennas are sensitive to the energy of the time and sensitive to their own souls. The soul is then on a journey of cure. It's It's It's part of the quality of the time. And what is the cure of to become punim uponim? You wanted to say something? No, I think it was Dumskey you said many months ago. Ah, mikra kodesh la. The first line here. Hinei, now to explain this, tzarich lahavin, this is his intro. In it, tzarich lahavin inyan haneshamot Yisrael. For this you have to understand what is an neshama What are neshamot Yisrael? Say the word neshama. Neshama of a Yisrael, neshamot Yisrael, the souls of Yisrael. What is this? That's the question he raises in this ma'amar. Lahavin inyan haneshamot Yisrael. What is the What are neshamot Yisrael? Delo kemo shesaberu ha'olam. So nesh vedvelt means it's not what the world teaches what haneshamot What neshamot Yisrael are. And when he says delo kemo shesaberu ha'olam, he doesn't mean he doesn't mean a hefker velt. He doesn't mean the world the secular world. The The What he's talking about, you'll see soon, he's talking about the oilam, he means the Jewish world. Like kemo shesaberu ha'olam. What does the world say? What's a neshama? A neshama hi rach hachiyus vasechel shebetoch haguf. A body is a corpse on its own. The body needs electricity. A body is a battery, an engine. The neshama is the chiyus, it's the life force of the body. It's the chiyus, the life of the body. For a body to function, it's a body is not just a machine, it's a sophisticated and complex extraordinarily complex machine. There's no machine that comes close in its genius, in its intricacy, intricacies and brilliance and dazzling goinus like the body. It's literally second to second amount of 100 million neurons that work together in a brain to make decisions millisecond by millisecond and have 50 or 60 trillion cells coordinated in a body. So, this is dumb. Where did the body become such a gun oil on that already in the fetus in in in the womb of its mother? Right? How it develops and creates and functions throughout life. From one cell of a sperm and an egg to develop into a full body and then to function as a full body. This is the Very few miracles could come close to that miracle. So, what is this attributed to? It's attributed to we say there's a neshama. There's a life force. There's a spiritual life force in the in in the body that so to speak the spiritual DNA that has its code, that has its wisdom and is responsible for the highest of the body. Okay. Now, this is not a bad definition for the soul. It's a definition that's given in many many smarter men. Then he adds vesech. The capacity for inquisitiveness, the capacity for understanding. Because the first definition exists in every animal. And not only in every animal, even in a bush, in a flower, in a tree, any living organism. The smallest organism is also brilliant. It's brilliant in ways that people can't imagine. Today we begin to scratch the surface a little bit of of of of the brilliance of a a flower. Never mind of of a bee or a mosquito or or or a beetle. Especially a beetle. But but never mind the human brain. But this is highest. Then you have the the ability of seichel. Seichel is that what they call the homo sapien is a curious animal. Is inquisitive, can ask questions about what truth is. So, he says shibeteiha adam sheboy masik is a sham is baruch. Through which one could comprehend the reality of the ribono shel olam of Hashem, which is unique to the soul of the human being. Because the soul of an animal as far as we know what we observe, it has one question and that is where is my next meal coming from? And for many people that's also the only question. Where is the next meal coming from and when is the next meal coming? And that's important. The neshama is the ability to be able to ask questions that are more abstract, more transcendent. What's truth? Is there truth? Where do I come from? Who created the world? Essentially then the neshama would be the capacity for seichel. So seichel you can understand God, you can understand other things. You could study mathematics. You could study astronomy, you could study biology, you could study many things. But vadai ain't in the neshama system. This is not the ultimate definition of neshama system. The truth of a soul is that it's not just a life force, it's not just an intellectual capacity to understand transcendent reality even though that's true, but that's not the real definition of a neshama. The real definition of a neshama is chelek elokei mimaal. So to speak a fragment or a piece of Hashem himself and God is beyond seichel so therefore in essence the neshama is not just an intellectual creature. A spiritual creature, a profound creature, but rather in its ultimate definition the neshama is actually a chelek elokei mimaal. It's ke vayochal a piece of Hashem himself. I say ke vayochal cuz chelek of course is a euphemism. It doesn't mean chelek that it's a divisible reality that you cut into parts like a birthday cake or like a cheesecake that you put the part of Chelek here is reflective that the quality of the neshama is divine. It's a spark, it's a fragment, it's an inyan of the divine himself. Ah, you'll ask a question. There's hundreds of works of Jewish philosophy. The oilam, the world that he describes here, who is he talking about? He's talking about the world of the Rambam, the world of Rabbeinu Saadia Gaon, the world of the Ralbag, the world of the Sefer HaChinuch, the great Rabbeinu Bachya, the great Jewish philosophers of Machshavah Yisrael who all discuss neshama. And they discuss a neshama. The Rambam, for example, has the chiyus and has the seichel, the capacity for seichel, for haskalah, for curiosity, for understanding. So when he says like the world says what I told you, it doesn't mean a boorish a world, a brute world. It means a sophisticated Jewish world. So now you're saying it's not that, it's something else. That's why he's bothered by this. He says, "Acha inyan, let's put it into context. Sha neshama of a base premise Yaakov Yisrael." talk about the neshama on two levels. You could The first Jew, the grandson of the first Jew, Yaakov Avinu, the father of Klal Yisrael has two names, Yaakov and Yisrael. Every Jew has two names. Every Jewish soul has two colors. There's the Yaakov of the soul and the Yisrael of the soul. All the sefarim that speak about about soul in terms of chiyus in terms of seichel are addressing the Yaakov dimension of the soul. When he said it's not like the world says what a neshama is, IT'S REALLY SOMETHING ELSE, it's addressing the Yisrael dimension of the soul. So therefore, there's no contradiction. All the descriptions about a neshama that you learned are true when you want to address the Yaakov dimension of the soul. The description he says here, it's chelek Eloka mi ma'al, and therefore, just like God is beyond intellect, God is not just an intellectual mind who understands things. Hashem is beyond seichel, therefore the neshama is also beyond seichel. That's the Yisrael dimension of the soul. And he starts explaining. "Ve nakdim, let's introduce lahavin to understand peshush hashamayim kis'i va'aretz hadem raglav." Shaya Navis says in daf and heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool. So it's a euphemism. The Navi says Hashem says so to speak I sit on the heavens it's like my chair and the whole earth that you see it's my footstool. What does he mean by a footstool? He's trying to say that it's a low plane of reality. Basically a is a footstool. You're sitting on a couch you pick up your feet you want to support your feet on something you put it on a footstool. SO THE WHOLE EARTH THE WHOLE PLANET EARTH it's not like Shamayim is my throne I sit on it. The earth is it's my footstool. Hashem I'm kissy this the heaven is my throne is a much higher plane a much higher space. And and this is the it's true. Why? The angels above I am them they stand constantly with all and reverence without any alien thoughts. They're always cognizant of godliness in a very revealed way. I'm number it's when it comes to the earth you have no revelation of godliness. So Shamayim here is not only referring to the physical heavens but Shamayim is talking about spiritual planes. So for example you have the spiritual creatures they don't have any thoughts or no distractions no alien thoughts. They're always cognizant of godliness because there's always revelation of the reality of Hashem in the earth. It's not like that there's many distractions and many questions and dilemmas and problems because there's no revelation of God whatsoever in our world. It's not that it's a much lower space in terms of spiritual sensitivity so it's called the footstool. But this itself is strange the says the Navi tells us I need Hashem to miss it. I God have never changed. And he teaches, what does it mean lo shinisi? Means there's absolutely no change. Heaven, Earth, before creation, after creation. Ani Hashem lo shinisi, there's no changes of Ani Hashem. Why are we saying here on the other hand that heaven and Earth are so different? A chateerus tells us, uh the answer for this is Benei yesh beis preenus, sovev kol olamim u'memalei kol olamim. There's two dimensions, sovev kol olamim and memalei kol olamim. Sovev, it transcends the worlds. Memalei fills the worlds. Vehinei bechinus sovev kol olamim ein shum shinui. Kodem habriah, acher habriah, bechol olamim elyonim vetachtonim beshava, ki eigel shemis'agel umis'avev afla mata. When we speak about sovev, there's no change before creation, after creation, higher worlds, lower worlds, heaven, Earth. It's identical every space, every moment, every circumstance, every situation. Even creation has not changed that in the slightest. Like an eigel, it's called sovev, it's like a circle. A circle, you don't say there's a property on the top of the circle that's different than the bottom of the circle. Mis'agel umis'avev, it's a full same circle, higher or lower. It take, let's say, a samach. Ach, if it would would be a perfect right? Anyway, and if you turn it around, it's going to be the same. If you turn it over on its head, it's not going to change. You You take an aleph, you take a yud, you take any letter of the aleph beis, right? You turn it to the side, you have a different letter. It's a different letter, depends. It's all about positioning. There's the higher part, there's the lower part, there's the right, there's the left. A full circle, any direction. Put it on this side, put it on that side. Today you say but turn it over. The matter, the mile, you mean small, it's all the same circle. This is so of column. And he says it's beyond intellect and it's beyond time. Past, present, and future is all in one moment. Say column six. Which say column can't comprehend. It's basically the name you give off key which is higher higher of the year. Was, is, and will be all in the same word in one moment cuz it transcends the properties of time and therefore space. This man say column and market. There is change and we just said there's heaven and earth and they're so different. This is when you are addressing the molecular. The mission says in period created the world through 10 distinct utterances. It says 10 times by your mayor in Berachot. The mission says it doesn't say 10, it says nine. Berachot is also a minor. By your mayor in Berachot etc. Every creation or set of creations were created through an utterance through a dibur. My more is never home different my more is. And there's an evolutionary process and the star show means there's a chain of the utterance let there be light and then there is light. Let there be heaven and there's heaven. That's the first two days. You hear this day one, you hear the key is day two and then it continues. And the change is always from the recipient's perspective key call oil and mass equal to the signal. Every world comprehends and experiences things according to its capacity. The ocean my own kiss you that that's why the novice says the heaven is my throne. Higher worlds comprehend more godliness. The earth is my footstool. That's a lower which does not comprehend so much. It comprehends less. So the altar ever here the distinguishes between two different forms or projections of divine energy. One column and one what is the difference? The means as we learned quite a few times he fills the world. What does it mean he fills the worlds? That represents the the energy that is tailor-made and custom-made to every according to its unique chemistry. It's really the other way around. The chemistry of every is tailor-made is based on the type of divine energy that creates it and sustains it and relates to it. It's physical properties. It's let's call it it's atomic structure. It's molecular structure is basically based on based on the the energy that is being communicated to this according to what is plan and design and will was for this so you can't compare the energy of the reality of Iraq how Iraq perceives itself or how we perceive it to the reality of a human mind to the reality of an animal to the reality of a blade of grass to the reality of a star. Everything has its unique properties physical properties based on spiritual properties. That's the that's it fills everything and here there's major differences. You can't compare the perceptiveness of heaven to the perceptiveness of earth. You can't compare entirety can't compare until Mr. Khan. you can't compare one person to another person. This is the individuated source of creation, which changes with every person, every day, every moment, based on the mekabel, based on what I could perceive according to my mind. It's a tutorial. It's like It's like uh you have one tutor could teach 10 kids a day. Every child gets a different type of shiur, a different type of lesson. Why? Based on what this person can perceive, what this person can experience. That's all memaleh kol olam. And even if it's the same shiur, but every person takes it differently based on who they are. So, memaleh kol olam is the energy that every olam could take according to its capacity. Of course, there's shinuim. Creation changed a lot, and you can't compare one person to another person, one state to another state, heaven to Earth. That's memaleh kol olam. What's sovev kol olam? Sovev is like a circle. That's why it's called sovev. What do we mean it's like a circle? He doesn't mean spatially it's like a circle. It means conceptually it's like a circle. There's no difference between the grain of sand's RELATIONSHIP TO SOVEV and the highest angels' relationship to sovev. Either grain of sand, you look at it and all you see is a grain of sand. You don't even see a drop or any glimmer or ray of divinity. And here you're talking with an an angel or a soul or a higher world, Gan Eden, Olam Haba. The difference is in memaleh kol olam. Now, that's what they project in a manifested way based on how they define their identity. But, sovev is the divine presence, the divine energy, that remains fully infinite, fully divine, just like it was before creation. And creation hasn't changed that a bit. And a lower world and a higher world, sovev kol olam is fully present cuz in that circle any place, any higher, lower, there's no difference. The infinite presence of Hashem is in every situation, in every circumstance, in every reality, in every moment, in every person, in every creature in its full infinite intensity as it was before creation without any difference. I Mitzvah this there's no difference. I mean Hashem is here. Mitzvah this there's no difference. Why then do people feel so different and why there's so many different Madregas? That's only Mitzvah Memaleh Kalamin. Memaleh Kalamin is that Hashem allowed it to be a Tzimtzum that his Ohr should be restricted and limited as explained that length in Tikun HaShofar and other Maymorim. Where there is a tremendous restriction and limitation and every Nivera and every world gets according to a dosage according to its capacity, physical capacity, emotional capacity, spiritual capacity and again it's the other way around. It's the type of Ohr that gets communicated to it that creates that type of that type of identity. And as we discussed a few times, this is the two streams of consciousness which allow and not only allow but welcome and warrant two very different experiences of life. One is where there is unique individuality where one is different than the other and you cannot have one person being like any other person. On the contrary, Memaleh Kalamin means Assur Mumar Nivera Olam. Every creature has its unique Mimer and if I want your Mimer, I'm already confusing my Seder HaHishtalshelus. It's a confusion of my Seder HaHishtalshelus and just like a man is not an animal, a person is not an Every person has their own Neshama, their own unique Ohr, THEIR OWN MEMALEH KALAMIN. Just like in the body, you can't compare what the brain needs to what the heart needs to what the foot needs. It's a whole different experience. Each one has its function, its uniqueness, his or her individual mission, destiny, purpose, identity on every level. That's Mamale. And then there's another component where there's an absolute oneness and harmonious unity where everything is really part of one collective save of Kalamin where the highest and the lowest are all in the same space. The space of save of Kalamin, but by definition save of is not felt and experienced in the individual parameters of one's identity because what allows there to be these parameters, what allows there to be these walls, these realms is that the energy is restricted and tailor-made to the individual capacity of of the of the person. Like the tutor who teaches every student differently because if you just have the Russia Shiva giving a sheer to the 6-year-old and the 10-year-old and the 20-year-old and the 25-year-old in base medrish, nobody will understand a thing. Certainly the kids will go right over their head. I mean, I know what happens. But you can have a classroom and you have a teacher and it's but no one understands a word cuz it's not tailor-made to the individual capacity of the person. So this answers the question of we two strands in Tanakh, two streams in Tanakh and on one level everything is the same and on another level there's shamayim and there's eretz, there's malochim and there's earth and there's higher and there's lower and there's before creation, there's after creation. We say in the morning shalom shalom shalom which means not only you were there before and after because then the word who would have been extra, right? It's not that you were there always, you know, you're like the ultimate witness. The who it says this in Tanya the who explains that what that it's the same it's the same reality but but there's a big difference. Now, if this is the case when it comes to the entire existence of the universes, he now makes this and he says, "Now, let's take this back to the individual person." Back to the individual person. Now, there is again a long brackets here, but we're going to go to after the brackets. The brackets go for around 10 lines till the word Vihinei. The line starts Vihinei. Vihinei k'moisha b'khol achiyus yesh b's p'nimus olam u'molay olam. Just like in the general flow of divine energy, there's two dimensions, sovev and memalei. K'mo kein b'nishmas adam yesh gam kin'in b's p'nimus eilu. Here is the key. In the soul of the human being, you have these two aspects. The memalei and the sovev are projected in the neshama itself. Al zeh nemar in this pasuk says in Bereishis, "Vayivra Elokim es ha'adam." Vayivra es ha'adam b'tzalmoi, b'tzelem Elokim. In the end of the story of creation, it says Hashem created man b'tzalmoi, in His image. B'tzelem Elokim, in the image of Elokim. Obviously, there's a redundancy. Could have said Vayivra es ha'adam either b'tzalmoi or b'tzelem Elokim. B'tzalmoi means in His image. Not in His image, b'tzelem Elokim. So, he says, "There's two different neshamos." A tale of two souls. There's two neshamos. There's the neshama that is b'tzalmoi, and there's neshama that's b'tzelem Elokim. V'zehu inyan b's p'nimus, Yaakov Yisrael. That's what we meant when we said the neshama has two dimensions, the Yaakov and the Yisrael. Vayivra es ha'adam b'tzalmoi. How many images does God have? It's b'tzalmoi or b'tzelem Elokim? So, he teaches it. Tzalmoi refers to memalei olam. Tzelem Elokim refers to sovev olam. The neshama is both the neshama is both an expression of the neshama is also an expression of save of column. The neshama also has the dimension in it of save of column. That's one is called the of the soul one is called the what's the difference? So he says finish Jacob after the brackets finish Jacob you'd Jacob. Jacob is made up of two words Jacob Jacob is of course the soul the soul of the foot. And Jacob is the youth of the Jacob. Why was Jacob named Jacob? So the says and told us because when he comes out he's holding on to the soul of his brother he's literally holding on to his foot. So we call him Jacob. That's a way that's a way to name a child. You're holding on to the soul of your brother so we name you based on the foot of your brother. Not even his own foot he wasn't even holding on to his own foot. So it's a very cute way of a baby coming out today there would be pictures and then and what's apps and videos of of of this cute little twin brother holding on. So that becomes his name Jacob I'm holding on to your soul so that's my name. So of course this describes something about Jacob himself. Not just about his own but his own Jacob but himself. So you'd Jacob that's Jacob. What does this represent? You'd is Jacob. Generally the letter you'd represents conception the ability of the soul to have the the ability of a soul to have the soul that can comprehend godliness that's you. Then you have the feet of the soul. The head of the soul metaphorically speaking is the intellectual spiritual capacity of the soul to comprehend godliness. That's the youth. Then you have the legs of the soul, in other words, the the extension of the soul, and that is it's a it's the fact that it's an electric so to speak an electrical force that can give life to all of the 248 limbs of the body. So, when we spoke before that the soul is a highest and the soul is a seichel, that's the youth and the eikev. The youth of the neshama is the spiritual quality that it could comprehend godliness. The eikev of the neshama is the raglei haneshama, the feet of the neshama which is so to speak an extension of its core, which gives chiyus to the whole body. U'bchinus Yisrael, then you have the Yisrael of the soul. Yisrael of the soul, Yisrael is two words, lei rosh. The first letter of Yisrael is yud, the last letter is lamed, and the middle is shin, reish, aleph. So, it's lei rosh, it's the opposite of Yaakov. Yaakov is eikev, the soul, the foot. Yisrael is lei rosh, which means my head or a head to me or a head for me. And those are the two names of Yaakov. At one stage in life he's called Yaakov. At a later stage in life he has a name transformation to Yisrael, and the pasuk says, "Why am I naming you Yisrael?" The angel that he was fighting with tells him, "Ki sarisa im Elokim v'im anashim vatuchal." Rashi says sarisa from the word sar. You became a sar, a prince, a minister, a leader. You wrestled. That's also a concept of a rosh, a leader. Here he says, "Yisrael is lei rosh." What is that? U'bchinus neshama she'l'maalah min haguf u'min haseichel. This is the aspect of the soul that transcends the body and it transcends the seichel. So, therefore we made here a shalom bayis between the two streams of the way the two streams in Yiddishkeit, the way a neshama is described. In many sefarim, what you'll hear about on is the life force and the seichel and that's Yaakov. Yud Akev, that's Yaakov. That's one aspect of the neshama. When he said, "Don't think it's like the world says a neshama is chiyus and seichel." He wasn't negating it exclusively. He was saying that's one aspect of the neshama. Then there's that aspect of the neshama that's Yisrael, that's higher than the guf and higher than the seichel. What do we mean it's higher than the guf and higher than the seichel? Not that it's not in the guf. Not that it's not in the seichel. Just like sovev kol almin is in the guf also, in the seichel also. But it means it's not defined just as a force that gives vitality to the body. Not only is it not defined as that, it's not even defined as an intellectual spiritual creature, like an angel, that's capable of being an antenna to very deep truth and the greatest truth, which is the truth of God. That's all Yaakov of the soul. Yisrael of the soul is lema'ala min haguf ulema'ala min haseichel. So, what is it? Uvchinah zu, this p'nimiyus of the soul, this dimension He echad, yachid, u'meyuchad im Hashem yisbarach b'li shum perud b'shum oifen. This dimension of the soul is, using the words of the piyut, echad, yachid, u'meyuchad, is one, singular, united, indivisible, cannot be fragmented, cannot be separated, is completely one and unified with Hashem, b'li shum perud, without any separation, b'shum oifen, under any circumstances. This dimension of the soul cannot be separated from Hashem ever. It's always completely united with Hashem. It could never be separated. Why? Because its definition is a chelek Eloka'i mima'al. If the definition of a neshama is a spiritual life force or an intellectual capacity, sometimes its relationship could be compromised. But because we said that this aspect of a neshama is what? It is a chelek Eloka'i mima'al. So, it could never be not what it is. It You cannot be what you're not. You could be what you can be, but you cannot deny who you are in your very core and your very essence. Some things you can't just you can't a person can't undo. So therefore, the neshama of Yisrael is not only a spiritual life force or intellectual capacity. What is it? It's Echad Hashem Yisbarach. So therefore, nothing ever can separate it from Hashem because it's very essence, it's very identity is the divine. So this is the neshama, one aspect which is a reflection of mamalei kol ha'olam, and one is a reflection of sovev kol ha'olam, and one is b'tzalmi, one is b'tzelem Elokim, one is Yaakov, one is Yisrael. Mamalei kol ha'olam of the neshama means the way the neshama so to speak assumes an identity of a spiritual creature based on the divine energy that comes into it. Vayivra Elokim et ha'adam. B'tzalmi, AND STILL THERE IT'S DIFFERENT than every other nivra. It's b'tzalmi. You don't say that about an animal. You don't say that about any other creature. It's uniqueness of b'tzelem Elokim ossa et ha'adam, that the neshama is b'tzalmi. There's a deeper element in the neshama, b'tzelem Elokim, which is not a reflection of mamalei, but it's a reflection of sovev kol ha'olam, meaning that it's fully fully one. It is It is part of the divine itself, the divine reality itself, beyond seichel, beyond guf. It's not defined by time, by space. In some circumstances, it's connected. Some circumstances, not connected. Sometimes it's attached, sometimes it's detached, sometimes it's aware, sometimes it's unaware. ITS VERY CORE IS DIVINE. SO EVERY MINUTE, every space, every circumstance, every experience, every moment of life, through all situations, it remains what it is, and that is fully divine. Echad Hashem Yisbarach. Period. Is that part of me, or is that more like a makif or mazal, that that part of the neshama? You want to know if it's this part of you or it's more of a makif? It's not part of you and it's not a makif. That is you. That's what he's going to explain. Not only is it part of you, not only is it makif, that is the you. We'll see in a moment. We'll see you soon. And this dimension exists in every single Jew, even a kalim. Kal shebechol kalim means a light-headed among the light-headed. Like kalus rosh is light-headedness. What we would call in English somebody who's very apathetic or indifferent. She's kal shebechol kalim. Or somebody once said kal shebechol kalim means even the kal shebechol kalim. Even the kal shebechol kalim, right? So even a kal shebechol kalim, if he has an neshama, this exists. Why? You'll say, "WHERE'S THE KAL SHEBECHOL KALIM?" WHERE'S THE TORAH? WHERE'S THE RUCHNIUS? WHERE'S THE MITZVOS? WE GO BACK to sovev kol olam. In the mala kolam, and it's about the perception. What you're feeling. This changes. There's a higher Jew, there's a lower Jew. There's a heavenly Jew, there's an earthly Jew. There's a higher soul, lower soul. There's a soul on Yom Kippur, there's a soul after Yom Kippur. Right? There's a soul on Labor Day, there's a soul on Memorial Day. Or on July 4th. It's a different There's before the challenge, there's after the challenge. Good mood, bad mood. Mitzad this pnimius of the Yisrael. What's the Yisrael? The leirosh. In other words, sovev it. So every situation, what is it? It's Elokus mamash. So just like there's no difference in space and time, there's no difference between people. So even the kal shebechol kalim has this pnimius. NOW HERE HE ASKS THE million-dollar question. What are you talking about? Read through Gemara, read through Medrashim, read through Sifrei Mussar. Whoever heard of this? Doesn't it say that Jews get cut off from God? What's the whole issur kares? Well, my he's asking A COSTA V CHORUS THE CHORUS ON A FISH. IT SAYS HE CHORUS THE CHORUS ON A FISH. THE SOULS that cut the soul OFF FROM GOD. SINS. I SAID sins that cut you off from God. Person reads through person reads through most of it especially. You see what they say about separation. Half the most of the literature of these days, yeah? You separate it you have to reconnect. You severed he chorus the chorus on a fish. The nervous gets cut off. Cut off from who? Cut off from the nation of Israel. Physically, spiritually in terms of how it's expressed. Okay, there's different ways how it's expressed. But the concept is he chorus the chorus on a fish. This is a big question. What do you mean that in every Jew even a culture of the column there's a dimension that's me you could A DIMENSION THAT'S NOT SHY TO BE SEPARATED. IN OTHER WORDS, culture of the column means a Jew sins. Does everything wrong in the book. You're telling me he's completely one. What's How do you say this? How do you say this? Now, I want you to understand the significance of this question. In all Jewish circles today you'll hear constantly thrown around. People will read a story in a newspaper about someone to say the pint of right? The the pint of there's some Jewish aspect. So some explain it simply as culture. You know, do you say the pint of Irish man? Could you say the pint of Irish man? The pint of China man? You know, it's some people touch the culture. You come from a culture of 4,000 years with genes. So something stays the chicken soup. The chicken soup doesn't completely get obliterated. Okay. That's how some explain it. But uh I guess by more tired Jews it means what some of the sham there's a there's there's a there's a Vegas. Huh? The think the think the the spark. The spark, the nitzos, right. Not not just culture, not my mother's chicken soup, my grandmother's chicken soup, 3,000 years, kneidlach, matzah maror, it does have an impact. It does play games with your chromosomes or whatever with your your mice, so it has an impact. Okay. So that's that's that's that's just, you know, whatever, every culture has its its unique hang-ups, whatever it may be. Here it may be religion, may be God, may be Yom Kippur, may be Rosh Hashanah. But you call it also on a spiritual level, kedusha, dveikus, and so on and so forth. When did this language develop? Pintele Yid, neshama, a Yiddishe neshama, hot a Yiddishe neshama, hot a Yiddishe neshama. When did this this this language develop? So generally, if you look in the Torahs of the Baal Shem Tov and the Beis Medrash of the Baal Shem Tov, there's a tremendous focus on this. In all the books of all the students of the Baal Shem Tov throughout all the generations, already first generation from the Baal Shem Tov on, everywhere, you know, you you open up Kedushas Levi, you'll open up Noam Elimelech, whatever, any sefer of of that, but even though the concept you have also in Gemara, you'll have Al Pi you'll have a Rambam in Hilchos Geirushin where you have a lot of force somebody to give a koifein is actually a meritzni, what what is meritzni help him? Rambam in Hilchos Geirushin perek beis halacha chof, right? You force a guy to say I want TO GIVE A GET, AND IT'S A kosher get. That's a joke. A minute later he's going to say the only reason I said I want to do it because to to get rid of these guys. So the Rambam says no, that keivan shehu Yisrael, since he's a Jew, roitzo laasos kol hamitzvos ul'histareik min aveiros, rak yitzro hu, shetakfo yam when you koifein is and he says roitzani, so you're being mevatal the external influences. Okay, so the concept you have, but in the Baal Shem Tov's Torah it's very developed, I should say it's accentuated, it's emphasized, it's discussed a lot. Guess they covered all the visitors from whom on the Maharam is filled with it. Of Nachman's Torah and but all the Talmudia of Ba'al Shem Tov any stream and I don't mean exclusively them, you'll have it in most in most forum, you'll have it in the Akudat, you'll find it by the Ramchal also, etc. etc. but over there it was very much emphasized. But Kidarkoi of the Ba'al Tanya, this is what he's questioning. Is this a new development to Judaism? It says he Kores to Kores Nefesh that sometimes you say "Sorry, you were cut off. You're alienated. You're not mine anymore. You cut yourself off. There's no Dveikus anymore." How do you tell me a statement even a Kal ShebeKalim has a dimension that's never separated? This is not just a small question of Alum de Shepilpul of Toisfus. He's asking a question. He's questioning in the very Yesod that there's something in every Jew under all circumstances that can't be separated from GOD EVEN A GREAT sinner who's doing the Kores Sura Kresus. That's a Shaila. What's his answer? I it says he Kores to Kores Nefesh because he transgressed serious Aveidus which are make you liable with Kores. Kores means you get cut off. That's a Shaila. So, here the Ba'al Tanya gives his answer and SAYS IT'S ALL TRUE, BUT you have to put it in context. Zeh Nemar Apkhinas Yaakov She Nikhris u'Meshorash. Aval Apkhinas Yisrael Einan Nifredis me'Emes u'Varukh b'Shim U'Mif. There's two layers of identity. ALL THE MY MAURICE CASA, ALL THE THAT DEAL WITH CAR IS are of course 100% true. They're addressing the layer and identity of Jacob. Jacob could get cut off. Jacob could be connected and Jacob could get cut off. Depends on how Jacob lives. Depends on how it uses its mind, how it uses its heart, how it lives in its behavior. On Jacob you say everything in car is to car is a message. Never on Israel. Israel ain't no difference from Israel cannot ever be separated from it. Why not? Because again it goes back to these two streams of Mamalian side. There could be a change based on the recipient. How open am I to receive the energy? If I cut myself off, I don't receive the energy cuz the definition of the energy is that I absorb it. If I don't absorb it, I didn't get it. Cuz the definition of Mamala is it fills me. If it doesn't fill me, I put a stopper, I close my eyes, I don't see it, I close my ears, I don't hear it, I close my nose, I don't smell it, I close my mouth, I don't taste it. I shut myself off from it. The definition of me having it is that I experience it, I internalize it in some way. So therefore if I don't, I don't have it. But then the show me that side of Kalam and over there, what's the definition of it having it? It's not I perceive it in a way that I can internalize it and necessarily feel it in my faculties. The state of side of Kalam and means that it is a state of the self that is completely divine. It is divine. That's what it is. It is divine. If it is divine, nothing it can do can take it away from the divine. That's what it is. A person for example can decide that he's a horse. You can eat like a horse. We know that there's people that way. You could live like a horse. You could behave like a horse, but you still won't be a horse. You're still a human being. Are you living like a horse? You're behaving like a horse. Fine. But the person cannot be not a person. I'm still a person even if it's not expressed that way. Since Israel is a miracle of a common mouth, it's a miracle. So therefore, it it it is what it is. It it's always one. It cannot be disconnected. I got to take a horse and a fish. That was said on Jacob, not on Israel. The sick and the goodness of the world, the goodness that we learned was that just like the Hashem we speak about the sources in Zion. It says "You are my miracle of the world." You save of the world. We talk about two forms of divine energy. One that is restricted and limited and tailor-made and custom-made to the individual capacity and identity of every single creature, diamonds, a kind of a double of a hook, this world, higher worlds, all the way to the highest highest in the world and the shamans. And then there's save of the world which is the outer world, actually in the world, outer world of the machine in the world and the outer world of the machine in the world. Where there's no change whatsoever, pre-creation, post-creation, higher worlds, lower worlds, higher creatures, lower creatures. Shabbos, Yom Tov, this time, that time, all space, all time is really equal because save of the world represents God in his full uninhibited infinite expression and presence. And therefore, there's absolutely no differentiation and that's why it's called save of like the eagle. From any angle, it's always the same circle, the same shape, in other words, the same intent, symbolically the same intensity, the same energy, the same presence. It's just one is not perceived consciously in the parameters of a creature because for me to be me, I have to only have a limited energy so I should be able to be me. We know even within ourselves, if our brain would not be such a good filter and would not serve as a filter for maybe 99.9% of our emotions that are subconscious, it would be very difficult to survive. Thank God our brain, our conscious brain, filters out so much information from inside and gives us only a little trickle and even that's not so easy to deal with. But so even to to to to to find out more of yourselves of of yourself is is overwhelming. Imagine a person to experience in a conscious way the infinity of save of Kalamin. If all if if that would happen, everything would appear as is. It would be part of the infinite. So the individual identity and experience and ups and downs of every single person is all based on the male Kalamin that trickling little drops of energy that's called Hashem fills the worlds, fills the worlds like a water fills the cave where that the cave could contain it, can experience it. Like a sheer that is tailor-made to the student, a tutor who speaks to the student according to his level, his degree. You can be teaching him a possible the possible may have that allow you to speak about this possible for 10 hours or a mission that you can speak about for 2 weeks or a sugar that's complex but you're literally giving over one dimension that works according to the Caleb to the confinements of his brain. Which save of Kalamin represents the uninhibited infinite presence of God in his own reality not mitigated, not diluted, not compromised as the wine is not diluted by water. That's what we call save of. Then the Neshama also operates in these two levels cuz the Neshama is but sell them so therefore the Neshama also has both of these dimensions. Yaakov and Esau. What are these two dimensions of the Neshama? The Yaakov dimension of the Neshama represents Esau represents save of. And then the good of the difference was Right? Then the good of the difference was the mamale of the neshama is he said two things. Number one, the yud and then number two, the akev, the seichel of the neshama and the chiyus of the neshama. And that is just like mamale kol olam. It's the way we experience a trickle of our soul. We experience our soul as the electricity of the body, the life force of the body, the chiyus of the body, the vice spiritual vitality of the body. That which gives the guf all the ramachim of the body, that give them their battery, the engine, the fuel, what we call the soul, the consciousness. And that itself, that's no small thing. Just like mamale kol olam is no small thing. God creating the world and vivifying vivifying the universe is no small is no small matter. It's basically all in the world word ribono shel olam. The master of the world, boreh borei olam. Borei olam. The mamale is no small thing. Mamale itself, of course, is infinite when we speak about it in in terms of the human capacity, right? I mentioned to you once in Yerushalmi in maseches Sanhedrin that ilu kol boi olam Yisrael einam nicholim leevro afilu yitush echad. If all of humanity comes together, 7 billion people with all the scientists and chemists and engineers, they couldn't create even one flea, one mosquito. So, that's no small work of art, work of magic to create, work of of of of stupendous nature and ability. But, nonetheless, it's called mamale. So, there's the neshama as the vivifying force of the body. There's the neshama even deeper as the seichel, the the consciousness of a soul. An animal also has a consciousness. An animal also has a life. And everything everything in the world has a life force, but the human life force, the soul, is the the seichel of the soul that it can even be masig Elokus. It can even be masig transcendent truth, The origin of truth, the source of the of the universe, the fact that the universe has has a creator and understand that at least on some level, we mean on some level that which a brain brain of the soul could wrap itself around as he spoken he says I'm licking a shame. A shame of kale. The name at least the name the reputation the projection. But then there's another aspect of the neshama. What's that? So of column. What is that? That's the neshama as is. Not the way the neshama trickles down into our body. In other words, I feel that I'm alive. I maybe can't define what it is, but a person feels that they're alive. Maybe we don't know how to articulate it. We we still don't know what it is exactly. Nobody can define what it is. But but a person feels something. A person has a mind. A person has a consciousness. A person breathes. A person has a life. However, you define it, you can define it in so many different ways, but this is something we can wrap our vocabulary around. That's the mamali of the neshama, the yakov of the neshama, which is yud and akif. And then you have the Israel of the neshama, the head of the neshama, the of the neshama, which is a reflection of so of column and meaning what the neshama is in its actual core, what it is. What is it? Not the way it's perceived and projected and experienced, which is only a reflection, a ray, a glimmer. What is the neshama? He says this is beyond the body, even beyond beyond being it's a holy coming now. It is part of the divine. And therefore, he says it's in and if many is even it can't be separated. It's the in his in his language from period of life. It's completely one united, singular, intimately uh unified for eternity with God, and there cannot be any separation under any circumstances. Even a kalish of a kalish, even the most light-headed of Jews possesses this because this is the inherent state of who, of what his or her neshama is. I, he, or she has done many things or said things or thought things or lived a life that would seem to compromise the dveykus with Hashem, he says, "No, this aspect of the soul, the core of the soul, is always unified. There's nothing you can do to sever it from God." I the pasuk says he kareis, he kareis on nefesh to certain aveiros that warrant kareis, which means, as the pasuk says, "Venikresah nafshi." The soul gets cut off. He says the klal is that's always said on the level of yakif. That aspect of the soul that is a limited dimension that is experienced in the consciousness of the human being, that could be severed. However, when you speak about Yisrael, no peirud hashayach beshum oif. Omar shekosev, two lines from the bottom, 120 for the right column. Omar shekosev, here we have a starke kasha. Shabbos Shuva, there's going to be a haftorah, and that haftorah comes from the novi Hoshea, the prophet Isaiah. And how does he start off? Why is it called Shabbos Shuva? Shuva Yisrael ad Hashem Elokecha. Now, who has to return? Yaakov or Yisrael? Shuva Yisrael. It doesn't say Shuva Yaakov. Shuva Yisrael ad Hashem Elokecha. Omar shekosev, Shuva Yisrael ad Havaya Elokecha velo choide utmua. YISRAEL LO CHOTA. YISRAEL, WE SAID, NEVER SINNED. VELO EINENU NIFRADIS, AND THEREFORE NEVER SEPARATED. LO METZARECH LESHUVA, doesn't have to return. What does it mean Yisrael lo chota? He means all chet cannot come from Yisrael. Yisrael by definition cannot be in a chet. Cuz what is Yisrael? Yisrael is divine. Is complete. That is its identity. It is, so to speak, a reflection, a spark, a glimmer, a fragment of the divine energy, of the divine presence, of the divine reality, of the creator. So chet is not shayich to Yisrael. So when a person sins, when a person alienates themselves from God, it never involves the Yisrael dimension. The Yisrael always remains wholesome, sacred, pure, divine, connected. So what's the shuv Yisrael? Come back, Yisrael. Achazahu sham Yishayahu navi says that's why Yishayahu navi knows your problem. So that's why he says, "Ki chashalta ba'avonecha." Shuva Yisrael because you stumbled on your sin. And the key word here is chashalta. Why am I saying shuva Yisrael, not ki? You have to return cuz you sinned. Why am I saying shuva Yisrael, ki chashalta ba'avonecha? Al derech moshel, let's give a moshel. Adam manich shel beraglav even hakaktana. A person is walking on the road and on the bottom on the on the road there is a rock and he doesn't realize there's a rock. So his foot stumbles upon the rock and he trips. U'mizeh naifol kol gufo. So his whole body falls verosho magi'a la'aretz. Bakok gadol lo machmash rosho gavoha yoter. And he trips, even the head bangs down to the to the earth, bakok gadol because the head is actually higher. So he says, "Kach hu hanimshal, but where did the person stumble?" The person stumbled His foot. in his foot, not in his head. The head was walking. But usually a person is walking, you're walking, you have balance. That's why you could walk. The person stumbles, so now they trip, they lose their balance, and the body falls. This is a nimshal. That's the word kashalta, kashalta, like from the word kishalon, a stumbling block. When when you have a rock there, a stumble it's a stumbling block, you trip over it. It's called a kishalon. When a person stumbles even on what we call a lighter aveda, for example, he had the ability to learn Torah and he did not learn. Or a bitul mitzvah asah, for example, he had the ability to give tzedakah and he did not give tzedakah. Certainly when he transgresses a mitzvah lo ta'aseh, in other words, even when he's mevatel a mitzvah asah, which is passivity, he could do something and he could not and he does not. I could give tzedakah but I don't. I could learn Torah but I don't. So, the aveda was passive. Certainly when he transgresses a mitzvah lo ta'aseh, in other words, actively, that's why it's even though to the person it appears as a insignificant transgression, a minute aveda. So basically would appear to him like his foot got pushed away from its standing, from its position. And it slipped a little bit. It slipped There's a rock there and it slipped. The rock would be like the aveda that causes the leg to slip. Even also in this situation when he stumbles with this sin, Who stumbles? The foot, the legs of the neshama, which is Yaakov, So what happens now is the head of the neshama, the Yisrael of the neshama, is out of balance. It's not in sync with the foot. It's now turns to the other side. They're not working in a seamless They're not working together in a synchronized fashion when you're walking straight. So, the head, the torso, the thighs, the feet, the legs, and the feet are all in one kaima. They're They're working in unison. So, the person There's a flow from the head to the feet. When the person slips, when the person stumbles on the oven, so they get out of sync. They lose literally physically they lose their balance. So, he says the ainam me'eira ba'akova. The head is not shining anymore. There's no flow. There's no ha'ara. There's no light from the head into the heel. Hainu example for this is k'may al lavana shemisha hakash min hashamesh. It would be like when the moon during the time of the month that it comes distant from the sun, meaning It's not that the sun is not shining. Of course the sun is shining. It's just V'CHETZYA HATACHTON HU CHOSHECH. THE LOWER half of the ball, the 180 degrees, the half of the ball of the moon that we observe, which is called chetzya hatachton, the lower half that's observed to the to the to those who who live on the planet Earth, is choshech. It's dark. Why? Cuz there's no sun? No. Lifnei she'einam mekabeles min hashamesh. Because the moon is not in the position where it can uh receive and then reflect the light of the sun. It doesn't have light of its own. Kach, on this the pasuk says ha'rishaim b'choshech yidmu. The rishaim live They They compare their life to a life of darkness. What's p'shat? Va'haneshama sheb'toch haguf einam me'ira tlav. The neshama that's in the guf does not shine in the guf. Hainu she'einam me'ir b'ma'am p'nimas Yisrael she'b'p'nimas shemesh. Yisrael is the sun. Yaakov is the moon. And the sun is not being reflected in the moon, but the sun is not affected at all. The sun is not reflected at all. About that of David into him a VINE A CAVE I USE SO MANY. THE SIN OF my of my souls of a cave I my oak cave surrounds me. Peter e mayo shut even though the head only happens on the level of a cave a vine a cave I all hate happens on the level of a cave. Meaning it happens only in the feet of the soul. The sins that is no flow from the race to the regular. Even though it's in a cave I but the use of any now is out of sync with the regular. The meaning this is also trapped in the passage. They pass over my head. In other words, they cause the feet not to be able to receive the energy from the head of a lot that so much of This is what show of is. What did he explain here? You type of the Nakuda. The Nakuda here is show of Israel show of a cave of a car. Not because Israel got separated. Israel never separated. Israel never sinned. Israel is in complete perfect the vagus with a sham under all circumstances and situations. And there's nothing the person can do to tarnish effect damage and undo that relationship. There's a state of inner well-being and wholesomeness that cannot be compromised even by a human being who committed some of the greatest mistakes in his life. And genuine mistakes, grave grave errors. The Israel will not be affected. Why? Because it can't be. Because by definition it is chelek elokai mimaal, that's what it is. I shuvu Yisrael ad Hashem Elokecha ki chashalta ba'avonecha. What can happen in life is that you don't know about your Yisrael. You're disconnected from experiencing your Yisrael. When a person is walking, the head is in unison with the feet. When the person stumbles, ki chashalta ba'avonecha. So who who stumbles? Not the head. The head doesn't hit the rock. The feet hit the rock. Chashalta ba'avonecha. But what happens as a result of that? The person loses balance. The head is letzas acher of the guf. And that's why the person falls. Because they don't have that synchronization, that chibur, that ichud between the rosh and the guf and the regel. What does this mean on a spiritual level? What it means is the moshol of the sun and the moon. The sun is always shining. You cannot say, "Oh, today the sun is not shining." The question is does the moon reflect the light of the sun? Does the moon not reflect the light of the sun? The moon, when it's dark, doesn't change the sun. The sun is completely intact. But the position of the moon at certain points of the month don't allow us to see in the moon the light of the sun. So what happens at a certain point in life is what does hate do? What do certain experiences in life do? They don't allow you to access and to feel your wholesomeness, your sacredness, your intimacy with God. Because there's no synchronization, there's no flow of energy that comes from the rosh to the regel. The sun is completely intact, but the moon is not reflecting THE SUN. AVONA KEVA'I yisuch beini. And therefore we say shuvu Yisrael ad Hashem Elokecha, you need to do chuva. What's chuva? Chuva is not that Israel has to return. Chuva Israel out of Shamalacha, Israel has to be reflected in the Yaakov. Ki chashalta ba'av Nachash, so what do you need chuva? You need chuva to be able to figure out who to be able to access your inner purity that that was always there that you don't know you're not aware of. Because the head don't control the feet or because the feet have something to the head can tell them. Yeah. It's because the feet are not in a position where they're capable of sensing the light, the information that comes from the head. There's a disruption. The head should have informed the feet. Should have Yeah. Right. No, the head has to inform the feet. I'm sorry. The head has to inform the feet because the feet don't know I can't feel it. Right. The moon thinks the sun just stopped shining. So someone has to tell the moon that no, the sun never stopped shining. It's still there, but have to realize that the sun No, the No, no. Israel remains intact like the sun. This Israel remains. The point is the person falls, the head is not in the same in the same uh alignment alignment with the body. That's the point. Right. Right. Huh? So that's why you need chuva Israel, this is where you need chuva. You need Israel to come back. Israel, you have to return. Not that the Israel was the Israel was never separated. But you don't feel that you weren't separated. You feel that you were separated, so you need to bring the Israel back. You need to align this the moon with the sun. Okay, let's discuss chuva Israel with some sincerity Shamalacha. Okay, the Gemara says gair shin is gair who got cut in shnilo domi. It's a process of birth. Gair is a process of birth. That's a pshat gair got cut in shnilo domi. Yeah, the Chida also says that it says in in in Shas he always had there's a loshon koton shin is godol, right? It should have said shin is guyer. Why did it say gair shin is guyer? The loshon should have been shin is guyer, koton shin is godol. You don't say godol shin is godol. Why did he say gair shin is guyer? So, the Chida writes because even before that there was a mitzvah What compels him to become a gair is that before that there was already the spark of the Jew in him. That's why he wants to become a gair. Why should somebody be compelled to go through a I'm talking about genuine gairs. They really want to convert to the Jewish people, not some for an external reason. That's a good shaila, but it's not for now. Now, here we have here we have a uh fundamental yesoid that of course relates to t'shuva, but really relates to all distortions of life. Avoinus in terms of sins, but also avoinus in terms of mistakes, and in terms of uh traumatic or difficult experiences. So, you have here a fundamental idea that's being conveyed. And that is Never do you have to create well-being. You never have to create a self that is healthy. You never have to create a self that's wholesome, a self that's confident, a self that's joyous, a self that's powerful, that's optimistic, that is uh that has self-esteem, that has what we would call the stamina to live. You have to access it. You have to find it. Because there is a space that's immune from all sin and therefore immune of course from all mistakes and therefore of course immune to all abuse. So even a human being who has endured traumatic experiences throughout their life either because of causes within themselves or causes outside of themselves, either maliciously or unintentionally, but as a result of loved ones or as a result of a strangers and often a person feels like damaged goods. Damaged goods. And now when I'm 20, I'm 30, I'm 40, I'm trying to reinvent myself after reinvent myself. So the side of Tanya establishes here is not just like side of Kalam there's nothing ever that can change it. No circumstances, no circumstances, no experiences, no decisions can destroy and undermine and obliterate the core soul of the person which is essentially a Kalam and which is always always always in a wholesome state. And it's always like the divine. So it says there's confidence and joy in his space. So anything that's in his space is full of confidence and full of joy. So when the Israel state you have all the confidence, all the wholesomeness, all the all the purity, it's basically impeccable, it's basically as invincible as the divine. I'm the same as you and you're the same as The challenge in life is am I aware of that part of me? Am I cognizant of that part of me? Am I in touch with that part of me? Can I live by that part? Can I breathe that part? Can I experience it? Can I feel it? Can I operate? Can my operating system be navigated and governed by Israel? What sin does to a person is it creates alienation from your perfect self. So that you don't know who you are. You don't know how good you are. Which brings us to another very dear very powerful and maybe daring idea. This means that sometimes what's worse what becomes the greatest sin is not the sin. Because the sin happened on the level of Yakif. The problem is that as a result of the sin you think you're a sinner. That's what happens. On the sin you could do chuva. On believing that you're a sinner, on this it's very hard to do chuva. Because this you think is coming from your yetzer tov. I did an avera, do chuva, ask mechila. YOU COULD DO CHUVA THEN. SO THE THING. IT'S NOT A IT'S NOT A JOKE. YOU SHOULD SEE HOW HE discusses boruch atah Hashem chanenus. Not a joke, do chuva. But when I think that I'm damaged, I'm a sinner, I'm the the guilt that sets into my psyche, I think it's coming from my yetzer tov. I I hate myself for it. That sin is sometimes worse than the original sin. That's why I said before slichos of Simcha Bunim of Shush Kessed, right? What's the slach lanu avinu ki chatanu by ma'ariv after Yom Kippur? How much could people sin between the ille and ma'ariv? What they do already? Everybody's in a rush, so nobody's talking b'chlal, right? What What What are the averos? So it's not a joke you can get up by ma'ariv and say slach lanu avinu ki chatanu. Okay, so there's different perushim. I mean, the Gemara says Boba ben Buta he said uh question is you have to bring a What do you have to bring a chatas shmeina machris Yom HaKippurim? Okay, the Gemara discusses it. There's a lot of biurim on this, but Reb Simcha Bunim of Shush Kessed one ta'am slach lanu avinu ki chatanu, what's the chet? The chet is first the sin that I don't believe that you really forgave me. I don't really believe you forgave me. I I don't believe that there's a clean slate. I'm still going back to the damaged version of self. It's like a scratched CD. What they used to call a scratched record. You remember and it repeats the same note. You're stuck on it. You're stuck. So, you have that CD replaying in your in your in your brain that I'm a het, I'm a mistake, I'm damaged. And you have this especially with people who has been have been through difficult experiences, consciously or unconsciously, and they almost can't get out of it. They remain stuck in that space. So, that in a way becomes even worse than the het. Why? Because the het, okay, it it it it caused the foot to stumble and fall. But now I think that there's no head anymore. That's who I am. I don't realize I don't recognize the Yisrael. That's why shuva Yisrael, that's what shuva is. But you know what real shuva is? Real shuva is this. Real shuva This shuva, of course, fixing the avera, fine. That's the basics. I insulted you, I go over to you, I apologize. I go to God, I say, "I'm sorry. I made a mistake. I have remorse, resolution." That's how shuva the Rambam defines it in Hilchos Shuva. But the the mahus, the real essence of shuva, what he teaches here, shuva Yisrael adonai Elohecha, is the real realization that you never sinned. That's what shuva is. Shuva is the realization that you never sinned. What do you mean, you did? No, no, you did not sin. You did not sin. If you were in touch with you, you would have not sinned. The reason you sinned was because you were not in touch with you. If you You have been aware of your Yisrael, if you would be cognizant of your Yisrael, you would never sin. In other words, you never sin. YOUR YISRAEL NEVER SIN. YOU WERE alienated from yourself. You didn't feel yourself. You had a void. And the reason you have a void is cuz YOU DON'T KNOW HOW GOOD YOU ARE. YOU DON'T KNOW HOW HOLY you are. YOU DON'T KNOW HOW SACRED YOU ARE. Of course you need sin. You got to fill that void somehow. Ask any couple. If a couple is having the most amazing, incredible relationship with each other. Amazing. Really fulfilling. I don't only mean it looks good for the pictures. I mean really, really fulfilling. How often do you think there would be betrayal of the relationship under those circumstances? Person doesn't have to go anywhere else. Why? Because your your your void is being filled. This this is awesome. It's beautiful. The chet ha'egel happened only because Zeh Mosha ish Elohim adonai Elohim. I don't know what happened to my Mosha. He went up the mountain. I don't have him anymore. Elohim adonai Elohim. So now you need substitutes. So in a relationship you understand if you're feeling the presence of the other person, if you're breathing their ear, if there's a real dveykus poshtin gashmius, you don't have to go elsewhere. The reason you're going elsewhere is because you're unsatisfied. That's why people always go elsewhere. You have to fill voids. This pain that you got to dull. People don't like to be in pain. You have to paint You have to dull pain. All addiction is based on this. Or b'chlal habits, or whatever they are. Even not addictions, just habits, instincts. It's you're reacting to danger. You're reacting to a feel feeling of uncertainty. Temper outbursts, rages. People become what they don't want to become because they are not full. They're not fulfilled. Why they not fulfilled? Cuz they don't know how good they are. Cuz they don't know about their Yisrael. So the real teshuvah means realizing that you never sinned, that the Israel never SINNED, YOU NEVER SINNED, FORGET. YOU WEREN'T YOU, THAT'S WHY YOU SINNED. SO, MILA, what is chuva? Chuva is learning about the you that never sinned, learning about the you that never that that never went wrong. That's what chuva is. Chuva is discovering that there's a self that was never in a bad space. The fact And if you keep on talking about what a bad space you're in, that's not chuva. It sounds like chuva, but it's the opposite of chuva. When people talk about I'm in a terrible bad space, I'm so bad bad, sounds like chuva, right? Guilt, it's it it sounds very Jewish. Sounds very Jewish. Huh? You'll be Michael but something the Hasidic. The Hasidic don't have a monopoly on this. Some other Jews also have guilt, trust me. Not only the Hasidic. Okay, you you may have an extra dosage of it, fine. So, hit the mitzvah. You know, but uh but it's not it's not limited. Right. It sounds very chuvadic. I'm bad, you're bad, it's not dust, it's not stick schmutz, did it by now, whatever. All these good all these all these beautiful things are meant to inspire people. So, they may be meant to inspire people, but the messages people are hearing is often the exact opposite of what real chuva is. Cuz real chuva means that you're actually not in a bad space. You're in a wonderful space. You're in a perfect space. Now, just see that in yourself. You know. Somebody once shared with me something very moving, very deep. They went They had a lot of emotional trauma in their life, a lot a lot. Very sensitive, very sensitive and bright soul, spiritual soul. And he went for this very heavy uh treatment of it. And it was it did very well. He had good professionals dealing with it. And at some point they do like a meditation where you meet your inner child the way it was before all the experiences. You know, you try to meet yourself as a 1-year-old child, a 2-year-old, a 3-year-old before you went through everything you went through and you tried like to interview it. Like, you know, what it was like, you know, what type of person were you like? Which, if you wish, if I want to make this a contemporary Yisrael, in many ways is an inner child. It's it's an inner core divine child. There's a Shamash Shmuel who says uh I think in Vayigash, Yehudah tells Binyamin Shura benafsho. He says the Zohar says, "Hanashama nikra naar." I can't go to my father and tell him the naar is not with me. Venafsho kshura benafsho. Venafsho kshura benafsho. And that's when Yosef comes out of hiding. Yosef essentially is the Jew who goes into hiding, right? He puts on masks. He becomes an Egyptian prime minister. Vayaka Yosef es Achav lo yikiru. Yehudah says, "Ech el el avi venari nenuiti venafsho kshura benafsho." He reveals the kesher of Binyamin to Yaakov. Binyamin comes out of prison. Yosef comes out of hiding. So, anyway, this guy, so in this meditation they go back to childhood, mom's young childhood. I guess it's a whole visual, a whole process. So, he told me that at some point he got very emotional and he started to cry. And he starts speaking to his inner child. And he tells his inner child, "I just want to apologize. I want to apologize for abandoning you. I abandoned you. I just I I gave you to the wolves. I let the sharks take over. I didn't know better cuz I was a young kid. I didn't have the maturity, the wisdom, the the confidence to discern, you know, right from wrong, healthy functionality from abuse, and so forth. But I abandoned you. I just let you be eaten up and devoured and destroyed." And he tells me that his inner child spoke back to him and said, "I'm actually fine. I was always fine. I was just waiting for you to come back to me." "You don't have to apologize to me. I was fine. I went into hiding. I was fine. I'm protected. I'm a protected being. Nobody No one abuses me. I'm good. I was waiting for you to come back to me." And this changed his life. Why did it change his life? Because he realized at that point he didn't have to apologize to his inner child. His inner child was completely wholesome. Yisrael is good. I'm good. Why am I good? Because I was never bad. Nothing I'm not bad. I'm good. I'm wonderful. You're a chelek Eloka mima'al. It's not It's not a joke. That's what you really are. The problem is you don't know who you are. I was waiting for you to come back. So you say "Shuvi Yisrael Adonai Elohecha." Not that Yisrael has to do teshuvah. YISRAEL, COME BACK. LET ME FEEL YOU. KI. WHY KI? KI CHASHALTA bo ve'ein bo. And the regel stumbled and therefore got out of sync with itself. And therefore avodah keva'i. Yisuvaini. I told you once a vort from Rabbi Yehoshua Ber Soloveitchik. I think I told you. Some incredible rich vort. The Gemara says in Chagigah that Elisha ben Avuya told Reb Meir he can't do teshuvah. Why? So the Yerushalmi says in Chagigah in Bavli, it's the Kitzin Yerushalmis Berachos that he was horseback riding in Kippur shel Choli as b'Shabbos. Horseback riding on Yom Kippur on Shabbos. Where? On the Har Habayit. From all places, he chose to go horseback riding Yom Kippur Shabbos on the Har Habayit. And when he came on his horse, he went by Beit Kodesh Hakodashim. This is after the Churban. He hears a bas kol from the Kodesh Hakodashim on Yom Kippur. Shuvu banim shovavim chutz m'Acher. Children, come back. Shuvu banim, it's a pasuk in Yicheskel. We say it in the Eicha. Shuvu banim, we say it in Slichos. Shuvu banim shovavim, come back children who went astray. Shovavim are, you know, SHOVAV, TROUBLEMAKERS. CHUTZ M'ACHER. BESIDES ACHER. HASHEM TOLD ME NO CHIYUV. That's what he said. So, the question is the klal in Halacha, ein davar omed bifnei ha'teshuva. The Rambam says in Hilchos Teshuva, everybody could do teshuva, even Menashe. Menashe and Achav, Chizkiyahu, killed Yeshayahu, could do teshuva. Suddenly, here there's a man who can't do teshuva. Oops. Matan Nazach. Why? Everybody could do teshuva besides Elisha ben Avuya. One Jew in history is off off limits. The Shalah Hakadosh writes that he shouldn't have listened to the bas kol. Because the Gemara says, kol mash'lim l'ha'ba'al habayit asay chutz m'tzeit. Whatever ba'al habayit tells you in the house, you have to do besides if he tells you to leave the house. You come to somebody's house, you listen to the host. If the host says leave, you don't have to listen. Elisha ben Avuya, he has to listen to whatever Hashem says. The moment Hashem says say I don't want you, get out of my house, chutz m'Acher, is I don't have to listen to you. Shalah's vort. No small vort. Shalah Hakadosh. But this is a shaila. But that's what he should have done. But how can the bas kol even say this? So, some of parshanim say, eima sh'kein im bas kol, Torah l'shamaim hi. All nice and good, BUT HOW CAN THE BAS KOL SAY? BAS KOL IS NOT SUCH a sheker. It's a bas kol from where? It's a titus. It came from Kodesh Hakodashim. Yeshiva said as I In Yerushalmi, the the story is a drop different than in Bavli. In Bavli, in Chagigah daf tes vav, it says, "Shuvu banim shuvavim chutz me acher." In Yerushalmi, it says, "Shuvu banim shuvavim chutz me Elisha ben Avuya." So, what did the Bas Kol say? Did the Bas Kol say, "Everyone is welcome besides acher" or did the Bas Kol say, "Everybody is welcome besides Elisha ben Avuya"? And why did the Chazon make that distinction in Bavli one version, Yerushalmi another version? Halachah ka Bavli. The Bas Kol said, "Shuvu banim shuvavim chutz me acher." That's what it said. What he heard was "Shuvu banim shuvavim chutz me Elisha ben Avuya." What the Bas Kol was saying is "Elisha ben Avuya, of course I want you to come back. You're my child. Shuvu banim." He's talking to him, "You're my child. Chutz me acher. I don't want the acher. The acher in you I'm rejecting. Take your acher and leave it outside. Leave it chutz. Your perception of yourself as an acher, as a foreigner, as an alien, as a as as an intruder, that I don't want. That I reject. But that's not you. You're my ben. You're my child. Of course I want you. Shuvu banim. YOU'RE MY CHILD. CHUTZ ME ACHER. LET GO of your acher. Elisha ben Avuya, let me tell you your story. You're a child. You're a good boy. You're my kid. A bar bar bar kar da vu a ban amata. Al am I one day this this black cloud, this dibbuk, as he put it, this shvartze dibbuk, set into your psyche and you decided that you're a you're a mean you're an apikores, you're an alien. You became an accomplice to the Romans. But that's not you. You're a ben. That's what the Boskol said, but what did he hear? He heard something else. He heard Shuvu Bonim Shevavim Chutz Me'Elisha Ben Avuya. In his mind, Elisha Ben Avuya and Acher became synonymous. He was the Acher. There was no distinction and there was no Elisha Ben Avuya and Acher. Elisha Ben Avuya was the Acher. I am the Acher. There's no Acher in me. That is who I am. I am damaged. I AM SCARRED. I AM ABUSED. I WAS MOLESTED. I WAS WOUNDED. I AM THE SINNER. I. THE moment that happens, he extricated himself from redemption, from healing. Because what what's what what somebody says to you and what you hear them say to you is not the same thing. Never the same thing. That's a big klal in life. What you say and what your wife hears you say, never the same. What your wife says and what you heard her say is usually not the same. Ask. You'll see. What did you mean? You'll see. It's the exact opposite of what you thought. That's the klal in life. Very lucky couples who have such communication that what he says, she hears and what she says, he hears. Most people, they can't hear what the other person said. What they hear is what they want to hear, what they capable of hearing based on their own stuff, their own issues. The Gemara says, but there are Shadim right to Malachim. I say Hashem tells Bilam, "No. No." Then suddenly, "Yes." What you want to hear, that's what you hear. You want to hear yes, so says I and I say yes. What he heard was Chutz Me'Elisha Ben Avuya. So what's the essence of T'shuva? The essence of T'shuva is to be able to hear. Shuvu Bonim Shevavim Chutz Me'Acher. Yom Kippur She'Choli Es Ba'Shabbos, THERE'S A BOSKOL. AND THE BOSKOL SAYS, "You're a child. You're Yisrael. You're not You're not a sinner. I HAVE AN ACHER? YOU HAVE AN ACHER." BUT THE WHOLE reason you sin is only because the akira in you, it's not you. You never sinned. You're a ben shuva bonum. This class is brought to you by the yeshiva.net. Please help us continue the classes. Make even a small contribution at www.theyeshiva.net/donate.