| Introduction
A Microcosm
of the Temple
Sustenance,
Clothing, Shelter
Man in the Aura
of the Tzelem
Reverse Order:
Shelter, Clothing
Sustenance
Five Levels
of the Soul -
Inverted Seal
Food,
Drink, Air
The Secret of the
"Primordial
Atmosphere"
Clouds of Glory,
Miriam's Well,
Manna
The World -
A Home for G-d
Mezuzah |
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|
Kabbalah
and Modern Life - The Jewish Home
Part 4
Reverse Order--
Shelter, Clothing, Sustenance |
| Food,
gives inner light to a person |
To understand this in greater depth, we must reflect on the fact that even though
it appears from our above discussion that the highest level is the home, followed by the
clothing and then the food, it can be seen in the inverted order. The two different ways
of viewing the three basic components are not contradictory. They complement each other,
and ultimately are one and the same.
The food, which gives inner light to the person, is the
highest level. This is reflected by the fact that when the Jews were in the desert, they
ate manna, which was in the merit of Moses. The food is life force, which
enters the being of man. The inner life force is called mochin. Throughout
Kabbalah, the concept mochin, literally means "brain power." "Brain
power" means "life force." Inner life force, which derives from the two sefirot
of chochmah and binah, which are called Abba and Imma,
specifically derives from Imma. It is called mochin d'Imma. The mazon
corresponds to the first hei of G-d's name, which is binah, Imma. |
| The
emotions of the heart are the "uniform" of the intelligence |
Clothing encompasses man and protects him from the
elements. The l'vush, "clothing," represent midot, "character
traits." One of the Hebrew words for "clothing" is madim. The very
word for the emotive character traits in man, chesed, gevurah, tiferet, netzach hod,
yesod, which are the six basic emotions corresponding to the Six Days of Creation, are
called the madim, "clothing." Relative to the mind and consciousness
itself, the emotions are referred to as "clothing." Very often the soul is
referred to as having three layers of clothing; thought, speech and action, which clothe
both intelligence and the emotive powers of the heart. According to this, the emotive
powers are part of the inner being, or essence, of the soul, whereas the clothing is the
way the soul expresses itself, either to itself, as thought, or to the outside world as
speech and action. However, since everything is relative in the Torah, the midot
are called "clothing" relative to the intelligence. This is because the word midot
also means "clothing" or "uniform." The emotions of the heart are
the "uniform" of the intelligence. |
| In
Kabbalah, the home is always referred to as malchut, "kingdom" |
The l'vush corresponds to the vav
of G-d's name, which are the midot, tiferet. Tiferet, "beauty," is
the primary of the midot. This relates to the beauty of the clothing. The word tiferet
is used for the clothing of the High Priest, "l'chavod ul'tiferet." The
purpose of his clothing is to give him tiferet. This is another explicit reference
in the Torah that clothing relates to tiferet, the primary of the midot.
The food and minimal protection
afforded by the clothing enable man to live. However, he is not yet called a
"man," as he does not yet possess a home. In Kabbalah, the home is always
referred to as malchut, "kingdom." For this
reason, his home is also called his wife, Bayto zo ishto (Yoma 2a). The
woman represents malchut throughout the Torah. The home corresponds to the
final hei of G-d's name. |
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