Chapter 37

So far, the Alter Rebbe has explained, in the last two chapters, that Hashem He desires a dwelling place for Himself in this world, and that dwelling place is us, the Jewish people. Through faith in the oneness of Hashem, or through fulfilling Mitzvot In practice, we make ourselves a “home” for Hashem and we bring to Messiah.

But what about the rest of the world? How do we sanctify it and reveal it to Hashem in all material things? This is what the Alter Rebbe will explain in this chapter.

In the previous chapter, the Alter Rebbe said that the goal of all creation is to reach the Days of Messiah and the Resurrection of the Dead. This is achieved through our work of serving Hashem throughout this long exile (galut). Because, when we fulfill a Mitzvah, What's really happening is that we're bringing a revelation into this world. Hashem that is stored inside that Mitzvah.

It's like a container with a very rich perfume. When we bring it into a room, because the container is closed, we don't smell the beautiful aroma of the perfume inside, but it's there. In the same way, each Mitzvah It has within it the Will of Hashem, And when we fulfill it, we are bringing that Will into this world. Although we cannot enjoy that revelation now, when the time comes... Messiah all those energies that are within all those Mitzvot.

To understand how this affects the whole world (and not just our Animal Soul and body) we have to remember that the Alter Rebbe explained in chapters 6 and 7 that impurity is called “Sheath” (klipá) and that there is a “Shiny Shell” (klipat noga), where good and evil are mixed, which represents all material things permitted by the Torah, as food that it is kosher.

When we fulfill a Mitzvah practice, for example, tefillin, We are using various parts of a cow's hide. The cow receives its life force from the "shining rind," because it is something that the Torah It allows us to eat. So when we use that leather to put on tefillin, We are causing the life force of the "shining shell" of that leather to become Holiness, because it unites with the Will of Hashem within the Mitzvah of tefillin. And also the strength of our Animal Soul and the body (which also come from the “Shining Shell”), unite with the Will of Hashem in that Mitzvah, rising from the “Bright Shell” towards Holiness.

The Alter Rebbe explains that the same thing happens with the Mitzvot to study Torah and pray. Despite being Mitzvot that are spoken about (and not done), however, the law of the Torah requires that they be said¹, That is, we should verbalize our studies, prayers, etc., with our lips, rather than "reading with our eyes." Lip movement is considered the action of those movements. Mitzvot. Because if the Divine Soul had not convinced the Animal Soul and the body to pronounce those words of Torah Or prayer, the Divine Soul alone, could not have fulfilled those Mitzvot.

Furthermore, the Alter Rebbe explains that everything we ever ate was kosher, The body, which made it grow and stay healthy, also receives its life force from the "Shimmering Shell." So, when we complete a Mitzvah with the strength that food gave us, both one Mitzvah practice as tefillin or a Mitzvah spoken as studying Torah, the life force of that food that is inside the body rises from the “Shining Shell” towards Holiness.

In that way, through all Jews fulfilling the Mitzvot, everyone who receives life force from the “Shining Shell” will rise to the Holiness of Hashem, And here comes the Messiah.

The idea is this: we've already learned that there are two types of Mitzvot, Some are positive, like "do this," and some are prohibitive, like "don't do that." In total, there are two hundred and forty-eight. Mitzvot positive, and three hundred and sixty-five prohibitive. The two hundred and forty-eight Mitzvot Positive things are the way to bring Hashem to this world, as the Alter Rebbe explained, that with every action or word of Mitzvah, We bring to the world a revelation of Hashem. On the other hand, the three hundred and sixty-five Mitzvot Prohibitive, they are a way of protecting oneself from impurity, so as not to be bound to it in such a way as to be unable to unite with Hashem. When a Jew transgresses the Torah, God forbid, but the problem is that the life force of that transgression, which comes from the "impure shell," traps the Animal Soul and the body. Therefore, the Animal Soul cannot free itself from that impure energy and cannot approach... Hashem (until he repents)teshuvah)).

The Alter Rebbe explains that there is an additional problem when a Jew transgresses the Torah. He already explained in chapters 6 and 7 that there are three levels: Holiness, the "Shining Shell," and the "Impure Shell." The "Shining Shell" is an intermediate level between Holiness and the "Impure Shell." That is, the "Impure Shell" receives its life force from Holiness through the "Shining Shell." For example, when a Jew uses something that receives its life force from the "Shining Shell" to commit a transgression, such as eating beef that is not... kosher, energy is passing from Holiness to impurity.

Therefore, if all Jews fulfill the two hundred and forty-eight Mitzvot positive bringing to Hashem to the land, and we take care of the three hundred and sixty-five Mitzvot prohibitive, preventing the “impure shell” from receiving its vitality from the “shining shell”, we bring to the Messiah. Because, upon reaching Mitzvot We raise the energy of the "Shining Shell" toward Holiness and prevent impurity from feeding, as if we were taking away all the food from impurity. It follows that we completely nullify the "Impure Shell" and fill the world with Holiness. Welcome! Messiah!

And what does everyone have to do with all Jews? Why did the Alter Rebbe say that if all Jews fulfill the Mitzvot, Does everyone rise to holiness? Because each Divine Soul is responsible for raising a part of the world; that is, each of us has a specific mission to raise a part of the world to holiness. And that is achieved by fulfilling the two hundred and forty-eight Mitzvot positive things using the world, for example, what we eat, drink, and all the material things we use Mitzvot, like cowhide for the tefillin. And taking care of the three hundred and sixty-five Mitzvot prohibitive, so as to prevent the world from becoming impure.

With this, the Alter Rebbe answers the question of the “Average Man” posed at the beginning of chapter 35: Why did my soul descend to this world? Before descending, I was much better off. I could perceive Hashem much better and was closer to Hashem. The answer is that the Divine Soul did not descend to this world for its own benefit, but for the benefit of the Animal Soul, the body, and the part of the world that it is responsible for elevating to Holiness.

With these ideas, the Alter Rebbe explains why our sages² They say that charity (tzedakah) is one of the Mitzvot most important. In most of the Mitzvot, We use a part of our body, thus elevating a part of our Animal Soul and the body. For example, tefillin on the arm, tzitzit in the body and so on. But with the Mitzvah of tzedakah Something very special happens. When a person works to earn a living, they use their whole body. Then, by giving away that hard-earned money to help another person, they elevate many parts of their Soul Animal and their body at the same time. That's why it's a Mitzvah that brings closer the coming of Messiah with great force.

(Even if someone doesn't work to earn money because they already have plenty, a large part of their Animal Soul and body also rise with this) Mitzvah, because, with that money he gave to help someone else, he could have bought something for himself, like a new car, a new suit, etc.)

Having said all this, the Alter Rebbe poses a contradiction and resolves it. On the one hand, it emerges from everything he has learned that the most important thing is the Mitzvot practices. On the other hand, our wise men³ They say the study of Torah is comparable to all the Mitzvot. So, what's more important: Mitzvot internships or study of Torah?

The Alter Rebbe explains that in the study of Torah There are several advantages that we don't find in the Mitzvot practices:

1) They rise to Hashem the “Clothing” of the soul of thought and word.

2) They rise to Hashem The “Tools” of the Intellect (Wisdom, Understanding, and Comprehension). It's like saying we improve the way we think (fulfilling the Mitzvot These practices do not improve how we feel love and fear of Hashem, It only affects the “Clothing” of the action soul and not the emotional “Tools” of the soul (see chapters 3 and 4 on the “Tools” and “Clothing” of the soul).

3) The revelation of Hashem which is achieved through the study of Torah is far superior to that achieved with the Mitzvot practices (as if we were to say that the perfume of Torah It is of much higher quality than the rest of the Mitzvot).

But our wise men⁴ They clearly state that the main thing is not study, but action, the Mitzvot practices. Why do they say that? Because Hashem He desires a dwelling place for Himself in this world, and for that purpose the Divine Soul descended here. The only way to achieve this is by fulfilling the Mitzvot practices.

(This also explains why the law is that if we are studying Torah and the opportunity arises to fulfill a Mitzvah In practice, if there is no one else who can fulfill it, we must discontinue the study of Torah and fulfill the Mitzvah⁵. Because the Mitzvah practical is the way to make that “house” for Hashem. But what if there's someone else who can do that? Mitzvah, We must continue studying, because the study of Torah (is very high).

The Alter Rebbe ends the chapter by explaining another virtue in the study of Torah. When we study Torah, It's like we're calling Hashem. The example he gives is that of a child calling his father to come to him, so they can be together. Similarly, those who study Torah, is calling Hashem so that he will come and be with him. That's why, when we are studying Torah, We must pay attention, because Hashem He is with us.