The three hundred fifty-fourth "cheder" in the palace of Hayom Yom.
Tuesday, 18 Marcheshvan 5704.
Shiurim: Chumash, Chayei Sarah, Shlishi, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, the 18th of the month, we say chapter 88 and chapter 89.
Tanya, on this day we begin Iggeres 29 in Iggeres HaKodesh. We begin from the start of the letter, from the word "eishes", and the shiur concludes on page 149 at the word "v'rachach-tes".
The Rebbe brings the daily saying from the "luach hatikkun" (list of corrections) that the Rebbe Rashab compiled on his personal copy of Torah Or, containing various corrections. This time these corrections concern printing errors. Let us read the first line in Hayom Yom: "In Torah Or, parshas Chayei Sarah, at the end of the maamar beginning "Lehavin mah she'amru rabboseinu zichronam livrachah yafeh shaah"" - which is the second maamar in that week's Torah Or. At the end of that dibbur hamaschil, in the last passage on page 16, in the second column at the bottom, in the final twelve lines of the maamar, there are several printing errors, and the Rebbe Rashab corrects them.
"And this is how it should read".
We will study the passage inside the Torah Or in order to understand what is being discussed, and along the way we will incorporate and read the wording of the saying as it appears in Hayom Yom. In this maamar the Alter Rebbe speaks about tefillah and explains certain portions of it; in the preceding passage he explains Krias Shema, and in the final passage - the last twelve lines - he explains a point connected to the tefillah of Shemoneh Esrei.
Let us read the passage inside: "V'hinei b'inyan berachos". Here it is worth adding a correction of the Rebbe that does not appear in Hayom Yom: after the word "b'inyan" the Rebbe adds "ches-yud" - "b'inyan ches-yud berachos" (the eighteen berachos) - since he is not about to speak about the concept of berachos in general, but specifically about Shemoneh Esrei; therefore the Rebbe adds that word.
"V'hinei b'inyan ches-yud berachos" - what is the wording of all the berachos? "Baruch atah Hashem"; every berachah concludes with these three words. What is their literal meaning? The Alter Rebbe explains: the meaning of "baruch" is an expression of drawing down and abundance, that there should be here an abundance of the matter. Of what? We say "Baruch atah Hashem". First let us explain what is alluded to in the name Havayah, and about this he says that we wish to say that the name Havayah should now be revealed.
What is the name Havayah? A name of four letters - yud, hei, vav, hei - which symbolizes every G-dly revelation within seder hishtalshelus; it is an aspect of contraction and expansion: the yud is contraction, the hei is expansion, the vav is a drawing down, and the final hei is a further expansion. And the request is that the entire G-dly drawing down expressed in these four letters should be in the aspect of "atah", in the second person, present before us - that it should be "atah", in a manner of direct presence and in a revealed way, a revelation of G-dliness in the world. This is the central goal: that there should be a revelation of G-dliness in the world.
Now, what actually happens in practice? Why do we not feel this revelation? About this he says: "V'ach lihyos ki haguf hu hamastir umachshich" - nowadays, when the neshamah is within a body, the body conceals from us and does not let us see the G-dly revelation. And when will this be revealed in the world? Only in the future to come will there be a revelation of G-dliness, the name Havayah will be revealed in the world, and "v'ra'u chol basar" - the entire world will be able to sense it, "v'yihyeh b'bechinas bittul", and the whole world will be nullified to G-dliness.
Here comes the Rebbe Rashab's first correction: he opens a parenthesis at the word "aval" - which in the printing appears as running text, without parentheses - and this parenthesis closes (four lines before the end of the passage) at the word "lagefen", [where a closing parenthesis already appears there, except that he removed the opening parenthesis that stood before the words "v'ayein mah shekasuv", and enlarges the letters to the regular font, so] that the parenthesis (which begins at the word "aval") ends at the word "lagefen". In other words, there is an entire passage there that is in parentheses.
In order to understand this, one must skip over the parenthesis and then return to it afterwards. For behold, it was said that in the future to come there will be a complete revelation of G-dliness. And further on (after the parenthesis, after the word "lagefen") he explains what the G-dly revelation that will be complete is - that it is the aspect of "cheifetz" (desire), for it is written "kol asher chafeitz Hashem asah"; the G-dly desire and will shall be revealed in the world in the future to come.
And the Rebbe Rashab corrects that it should read "v'chesiv", which is a further correction - in the printing it appeared as "k'dichsiv", and there is a correction to "v'chesiv" - and his intent is, as the verse says "Hodo al eretz v'shamayim", that in the earth and the heavens there is only a very small G-dly illumination, one sees only a radiance; and nevertheless, even in this world, which seemingly contains only a G-dly radiance, there will be in the future to come a complete revelation of the Holy One blessed be He, beyond the aspect of the radiance and the expansion of the life-force. So that even in a place where there is only radiance, there will be a complete G-dly revelation.
And then comes the last correction: in the printing it reads "b'sachlis", and the Rebbe corrects it to "aval tachlis". The Alter Rebbe comes to explain why in truth the revelation will be specifically here below: "aval tachlis" - for what is the ultimate purpose of the intention? "Lihyos lo yisbarach dirah b'sachtonim". "Sof maaseh b'machashavah techilah", which is called "na'utz sofan b'techilasan". And therefore Chazal said "eretz nivre'ah techilah" and so on. There is a dispute whether the heavens were created first or the earth; and what is the answer? That in practice the heavens were created first, as it says "Bereishis bara Elokim es hashamayim", but in thought the earth came first, since it is the ultimate purpose of everything. And this is the matter that "aval" - in the future - it will be revealed below.
Now let us read the parenthesis that we skipped, which begins from the words "aval achshav". He comes to explain what happens nowadays, while Mashiach has not yet come - what happens with the G-dly revelation. And he says in the parenthesis: "aval achshav", in the time of galus, when a person davens Shemoneh Esrei, he does not see the bittul revealed in a complete way; and therefore what must he do in practice? "Ach tzarich sheyar'eh al kol panim inyan habittul b'chitzoniyus" - at the very least he should show in his body that now he must nullify himself; he does not feel the bittul, but he makes a movement of self-nullification.
How is this movement expressed? "Bichriah v'hishtachavayah". And how far does he bow? Not in a complete prostration, but "b'rosh hakorei'a", as it says "korei'a b'Baruch" - the head bows slightly downward during Shemoneh Esrei. And in what is the G-dly revelation in tefillah expressed? In the berachos - "rofei cholim", "go'el Yisrael", "mevarech hashanim" - which are the channels through which the G-dly abundance is revealed and through which one sees G-dly conduct; they are vessels for the aspect of the drawing down and revelation of G-dliness.
And then he adds a further point. It says in the Gemara that one who bows in Shemoneh Esrei lowers his head; and how far must he lower it? What is the measure? The Gemara says "ad sheyir'eh issar k'neged libo" - an "issar" is the name of a small coin: if a small coin were lying on the floor, with a slight bending a person would be able to see it; that is the sufficient measure of the bowing.
And what is the allusion in this statement, "v'hakorei'a tzarich sheyir'eh issar k'neged libo"? What is its meaning? He explains that one who bows must understand in his head what he is doing, but he should strive that at least in his heart there should be something - like an "issar", a very small amount. The meaning: the main drawing down will be in the mind - nowadays one does this mainly in the mind, in comprehension - until it spreads also into his heart, even a little; and this is what the Gemara means by "the aspect of an issar", that at least a little should be in the heart. And see what is written further on in the explanation of "osri lagefen". With this the parenthesis ends.
We have studied the passage together with the Rashab's corrections. Now let us read the wording in Hayom Yom, as the Rebbe abbreviates it, and understand what is written here. And this is how the printing should read: ""v'yihyeh b'bechinas bittul (aval [here the parenthesis begins] achshav ... heino bechinas issar v'ayein mah shekasuv l'kaman [at which point he enlarges the font to the regular size] b'pirush osri lagefen) [here the parenthesis ends] shehu bechinas cheifetz v'chesiv [instead of k'dichsiv] Hodo ... toch kaf-ayin, aval tachlis-hakavanah" [instead of v'sachlis hakavanah]".
These are the textual corrections and the corrections of printing errors that the Rebbe Rashab entered in his Torah Or.