צום העשירי

(16) The empire which is next [third], Daniel sees it as a leopard, because this empire corresponds to the third aspect within a Man. For the third aspect is the שכל, as this empire contained wisdom and understanding, as we will explain at length. For the entire essence of this empire was the search for wisdom, as is well known about the Greeks, as we will explain. And therefore their attention was fixed upon the Torah and to nullify it from Yisrael, for they didn't want this wisdom, specifically in that it [the Torah] is a great wisdom and more elevated wisdom than human wisdom which they [the Greeks] had. For it is the Torah, and it is the wisdom of everything. And this wisdom, which is upon everything, is not suitable to the nations, as is explained in the Midrash. So it says in the Midrash (Lamentations Rabbah 2:13): ""Her king and her leaders are in exile, Torah is no more": if a man should say to you: 'There is wisdom among the nations', believe it. See! It is written: "I will make the wise vanish from Edom, understanding from Esau’s mount (Obadiah 1:8)". If a man should say: 'There is Torah among the nations', do not believe it, as it is written: "Her king and her leaders are in exile, Torah is no more"." And thus the empire, which are the Greeks, did not oppose Yisrael except for regarding their Torah, as we will explain this idea.

(17) And this is what Daniel saw, that this third empire was in the form of a leopard, for this is the animal which is the most fierce, as it says in (Pirke Avos 5,20): "Be fierce like a leopard". This is the character attribute which is suitable to those are ready for wisdom, as the Rabbis said (Pirke Avos 2:5): "The intrinsically shamefaced cannot learn". Therefore also, the character attribute of Yisrael is fierceness, as we said in the Tractate Beitzah (25b) "It is taught in a Baraita in the name of Rabbi Meir: For what reason was the Torah given to the Jewish people? It is because they are [intrinsically] fierce. A Sage of the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught [the following with regard to the verse:] “From His right hand went a fiery law for them” (Deuteronomy 33:2); The Holy One, Blessed be He, said: These ones [the Jews] are fit to be given a fiery law. There are those who say [a different version of this baraita]: The ways of these people [the Jews] are like fire, as, were it not for the fact that the Torah was given to the Jewish people, no nation or tongue could stand up to them. And behold this is the same as what Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: There are three fierce ones: The Jewish people among the nations; [the dog among animals; and the rooster among birds.]". The explanation, that because they [the Jews] have the Torah, and for this reason their ways are fire, for fire is [definitionally] aggressive and fierce, therefore Yisrael are the fierce ones among the nations. And know, that matter is acted upon, and therefore human beings who are material entities, are definitionally not fierce and strong, but Yisrael who were given the Torah are fierce and strong entirely, and this concept we have explained in many place. [This is based in abstract philosophical tenet. In the Maharal's works he speaks of a dichotomy between matter and form, which in short the matter is the acted upon entity (i.e. the clay) while the form would be the acting entity (i.e. the hands).]. Therefore Daniel sees this nation [Greece], which is exceedingly eager for wisdom compared to any other nation, he sees it like a leopard which is the fiercest of all.

(18) Therefore, this nation [Greece] sought to have the Rabbis write for them a Greek Torah, as is explained in the Tractace Megillah (Megillah 9a) [This is a fascinating Gemara, so we must bring it for you to see:"There was an incident involving King Ptolemy, who assembled seventy-two Elders from the Sages of Israel, and put them into seventy-two separate rooms, and did not reveal to them for what purpose he assembled them, so that they would not coordinate their responses. He entered and approached each and every one, and said to each of them: Write for me a translation of the Torah of Moses your teacher. The Holy One, Blessed be He, placed wisdom in the heart of each and every one, and they all agreed to one common understanding. Not only did they all translate the text correctly, they all introduced the same changes into the translated text.]. Even though this nation [Greece] certainly has no portion in the Torah, as we have said, in any event they sought to write for themselves a Torah in their own language [Greek], for this would express that wisdom is suitable for them more than any other nation. This is what Chazal [the Rabbis of the Talmud] (Megillah 9b): "Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said: This is the reason [that we allow a Sefer Torah to be written in Greek], as it is written (Bereshit 9:27): "יפת אלוק'ם ליפת" “God shall enlarge/extend Japheth” [יפת is etymologically similar to the Hebrew term for beauty (יפה)]. The beauty of Japheth shall be in the tents of Shem." Which is to say, from the beauty of the children of Japheth, which is the Greek language, which is exceedingly beautiful [see Rashi on this Gemara], and meanwhile the Torah dwells in the tents of Shem, for it is permissible to have the Torah in their language. And all of this is because they [the Greeks] have exceeding wisdom compared to all other nations. And this comparative closeness itself was the cause of them wanting to annihilate the Torah, for a man is does not become jealous except of a man who resembles himself. Therefore, they [the Greeks] wanted to annihilate the Torah.

(19) ...And therefore it is said that the third empire is connected to the beast which is a leopard with four wings (Daniel 7:6), for wisdom expands to all directions and wide and far, and it has no borders whatsoever, rather it extends to every place. And therefore it is compared to the leopard which has four wings, for wings illustrate [the concept] of expansion in all four directions, and we have already explained this in another place, and it's clear in all places. And therefore it is said about this nation [in the first vision of Daniel] (Daniel 2:39 "[then yet a third kingdom, of bronze,] will rule over the whole earth". For after this nation possess wisdom, behold the intellect (שכל) expands throughout the entire world, as this is the concept of the intellect (שכל). And therefore corresponding to the attribute of the intellect, they ruled over the entire world, and all was according to this attribute (the שכל). And therefore this empire did not oppose Yisrael except in line with the Torah שכלי, and the Mitzvot of the G-dly Torah. [The Greek nation decreed specifically upon Bris Milah, on Rosh Chodesh, and Shabbat]. And thus all aspects of this third empire was to nullify from Yisrael the influence of G-dly Torah, and G-dly matters [supra-rational mitzvot] specifically.

(20) ...This nation wanted that there should not be, G-d Forbid, a G-dly influence/element to Yisrael.

(21) This is what is said in the Midrash (Vikyra Rabbah 13:5) {R' Hartman suggest Bereshit Rabbah 2:4} "the Greeks darkened the eyes of the Jews with their decrees, that they said to them, 'write on the horn of an ox that you don't have a portion in the G-d of Yisrael'." For the third empire said to Yisrael 'write on the horn of an ox' specifically [the Maharal is highlighting the specific and odd detail in Midrash's telling of the Greek decree to the Jewish people]. The explanation of this can be found in the [Talmudic] chapter 'One doesn't stand' (Berachos, 32b) "[The Gemara cites a Midrash on the following verse from Isaiah, relating to the sin of the Golden Calf and Moses’ supplication for forgiveness:] “But Zion said: The Lord has forsaken me and the Lord has forgotten me. [Can a woman forget her suckling baby, that she would not have compassion for the child of her womb? These may forget, but you I will not forget”] (Isaiah 49:14–15). The Gemara seeks to clarify: Forsaken is the same as forgotten. [They are synonymous; why repeat the same idea twice?] Reish Lakish said: The community of Israel said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, even when a man marries a second wife after his first wife, he certainly recalls the deeds of his first wife. Yet You have not only forsaken me, but You have forgotten me as well. "Can a woman forget her suckling child?"(Isaiah 49:15) The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Israel: My daughter, I created twelve constellations in the firmament, and for each and every constellation I have created thirty armies, and for each and every army I have created thirty legions [ligyon], and for each and every legion I have created thirty infantry division leaders [rahaton], and for each and every infantry division leader I have created thirty military camp leaders [karton], and for each and every military camp leader I have created thirty leaders of forts [gastera], and on each and every leader of a fort I have hung three hundred and sixty-five thousand stars corresponding to the days of the solar year. And all of them I have created only for your sake; and you said 'the Lord has forsaken me and the Lord has forgotten me'? [The verse goes on to say: “Can a woman forget her suckling baby"] The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to the community of Israel: Have I forgotten the ram offerings and firstborn animals that you offered before Me in the desert? The community of Israel replied to Him: Master of the Universe, since there is no forgetfulness before the Throne of Your Glory, perhaps you will not forget my sin of the Golden Calf? God responded to Israel: “These (אלה ) too shall be forgotten.” (Isiah 49:15). [“These” is a reference to the sin of the Golden Calf, regarding which Israel said: “These [אלה ] are your g-ds.”]. The community of Israel said before Him: Master of the Universe, since there is forgetfulness before the Throne of Your Glory, perhaps You will also forget the events revolving around the revelation at Sinai? G-d said to Israel: "I [ואנכי] will not forget you"(Isiah 49:15). [the revelation at Sinai, which began with: “I [ואנכי] am the Lord your G-d.”]. End quote. [The Maharal will now quote a line from this Gemara to explain in greater depth]. Let us note that the quote from the Gemara of the Jewish people to Hashem was: "Have I forgotten the ram offerings and firstborn animals that you offered before Me in the desert?" yet, the quote could very well have been "All the Korbanot which we have offered to you" [the Maharal is highlighting the odd specificity of the Jewish people's statement, in which they refer to only ram offerings and firstborn animals, rather than all sacrifices]. This odd specificity comes to teach us, that there is no deviation of the Jewish people from Hashem, because they were created by Hashem in essence and first, and therefore there is no removal or deviation at all such that forgetting would be relevant to them [the Jewish people relative to G-d]. And because in the desert was the first Korban, for the first Korban is the principal and essence of the matter, and because it is first - for all firsts are principal, which is the essential, which is to say not incidental/happenstance, and matters which are principal and essential are not forgotten. For a matter which is not primary, but which is merely incidental is indeed forgotten, because it is happenstance; but a matter which is the essential, it isn't forgotten. And therefore [G-d] says "Have I forgotten", the essential matter, i.e. that [the Jewish people] "brought Korbonot in front of me in the desert". And this [the essential and unforgettable nature of the Jewish bringing that first sacrifice to Hashem in the desert] teaches that the Jewish people are Servants to Hashem in their essence. [Can a woman] "forget" [her suckling baby?] - this statement [above in the Talmud] should be read as wonder, for the question comes from the incompatibility of this [both in the verse referring to a woman and child also in its application of the Jews and Hashem] to forgetting, for it is a matter which is definitionally essential.

(22) The forgetfulness that is being mentioned here, it is not akin to the forgetfulness found by humans, for G-d forbid should one say that Hashem could possible forget. Rather the forgetfulness being mentioned here alludes to a deviation or removal from Hashem, as the verse says (Isiah 49:14) "Zion says, 'The L-RD has forsaken me, My Lord has forgotten me.'" Behold [forgetting] alludes to the deviation or removal from Hashem. And it says there (Isiah 49:15) "Can a woman forget her baby?" for there is no deviation to the fruit of the womb of a mother from the mother, for there is tremendous joining and connection between a mother and her child, therefore there is no deviation or separation between Yisrael from Hashem, due to the tremendous joining and connection between Yisrael with Hashem, from the aspect that they [the Jews] are considered children [of Hashem]. This concept is seen by their offering sacrifices in front of Hashem in the desert, for it's not regular or common for bulls [for the sacrifices] to be found within the desert, and even still they [the Jewish people] sacrificed. And all of this is because the essence of Yisrael is that they are created for this [a connected conjoining with Hashem], and it is impossible for them [the Jews] [to exist] without this, and specifically in such that in the beginning when Hashem took Yisrael as a nation, therefore at the beginning as soon as they leave, even if they were in the desert, so they brought sacrifices, and this connection illustrates the essential aspect of Yisrael.

(23) And there is also a deviation in this matter, in such that Yisrael were separated from Hashem through the act of the [Golden] Calf, that immediately after [Hashem] took them out of Egypt, and gave them the Torah, they made the Calf. And this illustrates that there is separation and deviation for Yisrael in a matter from Hashem, away from the essence of Yisrael; for if there was to Yisrael a complete connection to Hashem vis-a-vis their essence, they never would have made the Calf in the first place, and in such that Hashem took Yisrael as a nation, and immediately after he takes them from Egypt, and gives them the Torah, they make the Calf, and this concept teaches that certainly there is here [in the relationship between Yisrael and Hashem] deviation and separation. And just as there is to them [the Jews] a connection and closeness to Hashem vis-a-vis their essence, so too there is also to them separation vis-a-vis their essence. And this is because just like a father has a connection and relationship to his son which is bidirectional, for this one is the father, and this one the son, so too there is to them a distinction on these ground. For a father and a son they are essentially different, for this one is the father and this one the son, and this is considered separation. And therefore certainly there is separation and deviation vis-a-vis this, and therefore they [the Greeks] said to Yisrael (Vayikra Rabbah 13:5) "'Write on the horn of an ox that you don't have a portion in the G-d of Yisrael'." For from the aspect of the Calf, which Yisrael made the Calf immediately after [Hashem] gave them the Torah, this matter teaches that there is deviation and separation with their [Yisrael's] essential makeup.

(24) And on this it was said that (Isiah 49:15) "Though she might forget" [This is the latter half of the verse quoted above which said "Can a mother forget her child? While that phrase rhetorically suggests no, this latter half of the verse seems to suggest indeed it yes is possible. Maharal explains]. The explanation of the word "might" is that it [is a word that expresses] a difficult/harsh language, as we have seen in the 2nd chapter of [tractate] Yevamos (21a): "As Rabbi Levi said: The harshness of the punishment for using dishonest measures is more than the punishment for transgressing the prohibition of forbidden relationships, as with regard to this [forbidden relations], it is stated only: “These אל,” [(Leviticus 18:27) "for all those [אל] abhorrent things were done by the people who were in the land before you"] whereas with regard to that [dishonest measures], it is stated: “These [ אלה]” [Deuteronomy 25:16) “For all that do these [אלה] things, even all that do unrighteously, are an abomination unto the L-rd your G-d”]. [This implies that the word אלה indicates harshness and not the word אל. For everyone who does those things, everyone who deals dishonestly, is abhorrent to the L-rd your G-d.] And all uses of the word אלה implies difficult/harsh language, as it's written (Ezekiel 17,13) "and he carried away the nobles of the land" which is a language which is harsh and difficult. And it is said even though this subject, which is a connection of a mother to its child in the womb, which is a subject which is harsh and difficult if there would be here separation and deviation, so then it's fitting that according to Yisrael who are his [Hashem's] children so there shouldn't be deviation and forgetting regarding this matter, but in any event there is indeed deviation and separation in this matter for a father and a son are indeed different, as we mentioned. And therefore there is a deviation when Yisrael does not do the will of Hashem, and so enters the forgetfulness, when Yisrael are not connected to Hashem as his son. Even if this is a harsh matter, there is still forgetfulness.

(25) But the connection and bond that Yisrael has with Hashem is from another aspect, which is a connection from the cause itself. And a connection through the cause, there is no entity which is from the cause which is changeable. For from the perspective of the cause there is no change, it's just the transformation is from the perspective of the caused entity, which is definitionally in flux. And this is because Yisrael has no matter in themselves until there was deviation relevant to them, rather it is that Hashem chose them, and this matter is vis-a-vis the cause [Hashem]. Therefore, "I am" (for Hashem said to them "I am Hashem your G-d", for this is from the perspective of the cause, and there is no forgetting for to it, anything which is from the cause. And this is because "I am" is from the perspective of Hashem being their [the Jews] cause, and specifically a cause which obligates, as is proven with the language "I am Hashem your G-d that took you out of Egypt" (Exodus 20:2). And already many wise people have asked challengingly, it's not mentioned here any Mitzvah, for rather if it was [a commandment] the verse would have said 'I am Hashem your G-d that took you out of Egypt, therefore I will be to you a G-d', and here this matter isn't said as a commandment whatsoever. [The Maharal is highlighting that the first "commandment" is actual not in the form of a commandment at all, for the verse does not say 'I will be to you a G-d' but rather a statement of a fact independent of the Jews 'I am Hashem']. After the 10 commandments, and the removal of "I am" from the entirety of the 10 commandments, as we have explained in the book "Tiferet Yisrael "(CH 37). But the essential explanation is this, that if it had said 'I am Hashem your G-d that took you out of Egypt, therefore I will be to you a G-d', if so this would have implied that Hashem's being a G-d to the Jews would be dependent on the Jews, and thus this [the relationship] would have been from the perspective of the caused entity, who are receivers [not causers] of Hashem being their G-d. [In summation, Hashem is the causative entity while Yisrael are the caused entity. Causative entities are antithetical to any fluctuation, while caused entities are intrinsically in fluctuation. We see in the nature of the first of the ten commandments that our connection to Hashem is defined through Hashem, the cause, not through us, the caused. Therefore, fortunately for us, while the connection from our perspective can be severed or 'forgotten', from Hashem's perspective our connection is intrinsic or 'unforgettable']. And if so, it is impossible that there could be a removal in this, a matter which is from the perspective of the cause, for Hashem is the cause and binds Yisrael, and this is from the perspective of the cause and there is no separation here whatsoever. And therefore Yisrael said (Exodus 24:7) "We shall do, and we shall understand". And if they had said 'We shall understand, and we shall do', they would have has understanding [Daas] in and of themselves, as does every creation which has self-awareness. And they wouldn't have had this thing [proprietary Daas], rather they would have been drawn out from Hashem, who is the cause, and all is from the perspective of the cause and not from their own perspective, and [to the extent] that is as if they weren't an entity unto themselves. And therefore, "we shall do" precedes "we shall understand", and they were not dependent on their own proprietary Daas, rather it was all [the Sin of the Golden Calf] decreed upon them from from Hashem, that they should do [it] without choosing the matter from their Daas. If so, they didn't have proprietary Daas. And an entity which has no existence unto itself, but only is dependent upon the Blessed One, there is not relevance to removal or deviation [divergence] from it. And this is what it says (Isaiah 49:15) "I never could forget you", it's explanation, even though there is deviation and removal, even if they are considered children, as we have said, in any event from the perspective of the Source [The upper/transcendent], which is Hashem the Blessed One, and they are not independent to themselves, there is no deviation for them, and behold [this is expressed in the verse] "I never could forget you". For this that Yisrael are called children to Hashem be Blessed, and this matter is from the perspective of the receiver, that they are called children, and this isn't from the perspective of the Source [Upper/Transcendent], and for this matter [the recipient's perspective] there is deiation and removal. But ואנכי - "And I am", which is the Blessed One your G-d. This is as it says (Exodus 20:2): "I am Hashem your G-d", which is to say that I am Hashem your G-d and I am not dependent on you, rather it's essentially obligated from Hashem the Blessed One who is the Source, and from Hashem the Blessed One who is the Source is obligated that 'I am your G-d'. And this matter which is essentially obligatory is [definitionally] unchanging, and they have accepted me for their G-d, and such this matter obligated in every facet. And therefore (Isaiah 49:15) "I never could forget you", for this matter is from the perspective of the Source.

(26) And behold! This subject has been explained in the worlds of the Scholars of Greece, in what they wanted in this that they said (Bereshit Rabbah 2:5) "They wrote on the horn of an ox that they have no portion in the G-d of Yisrael". For they said that onsidering that Yisrael made the Calt as soon as they were taken out from Egypt, so that illustrates that they, G-d forbid, have no portion in the G-d of Yisrael. For an entity which is essential is first, and the Calf was first. And this is what they mean when they wrote on the 'horn of the ox', whereas they didn't write it on paper, for the horn is from the ox itself [i.e. it is an entity which extends from the creation, and while not an essential part of the creation is an extension of the creation], which means to say that they made the Calf, and this Sin is an essential matter to them, and not a matter of happenstance, and therefore they do not have a portion in the G-d of Yisrael. And one does not have an entity which is harder than a horn, and they said that this thing [the Sin of the G.C.] was to Yisrael from the aspect of their stick-neckenedess which they exhibited, and their stick-neckedness certainly was from their intrinsic perspective, and therefore the Calf was from their perspective, so says Hashem be Blessed in the act of the Calf (Deuteronomy 9:13-14) "I see that this is a stiffnecked people. Let Me alone" [end of verse: and I will destroy them and blot out their name from under heaven, and I will make you a nation far more numerous than they]. So said the Greeks, and they didn't understand the response to this, which is stated in the versed (Isaiah 49:16) "I never could forget you": And all of this, because this nation [Greece] wanted to negate from Yisrael the attribute of Transcendent G-dliness which there is to Yisrael, and therefore they [Greece] decreed upon them [Yisrael] to nullify from them the G-dly Torah. And even also the fourth kingship decreed destructions (? - unsure of translation) upon Yisrael in various things, however it's not similar. For the fourth kingship didn't do this because they said to us the 'transcendent G-dly attribute' as the Greeks said, rather they [the Romans] wanted to destroy them [the Jews] for they [the Jews] wouldn't do as they [the Romans] has decreed upon them, and they wanted to murder them therefore they decreed upon them decrees and destructions. And this was their fundamental drive to murdered, as we will explain. But the Greeks were not driven for their [the Jews'] destruction, rather they said that they didn't have a portion in the Blessed, but indeed we do have the G-dly attribute.

(1) There are days when the entire Jewish people fast because of the calamities that occurred to them then, to arouse [their] hearts and initiate [them in] the paths of repentance. This will serve as a reminder of our wicked conduct and that of our ancestors, which resembles our present conduct and therefore brought these calamities upon them and upon us. By reminding ourselves of these matters, we will repent and improve [our conduct], as [Leviticus 26:40] states: "And they will confess their sin and the sin of their ancestors."

(2) These days are the following:
The Third of Tishrei. This is the day on which Gedaliah ben Achikam was slain and the ember of Israel that remained was extinguished, causing their exile to become complete.
The Tenth of Tevet. This is the day Nebuchadnezzar, the wicked, the King of Babylon, camped against Jerusalem and placed the city under siege.
The Seventeenth of Tammuz. Five tragedies took place on this day:
a) The Tablets were broken;
b) In the First Temple, the offering of the daily sacrifices was nullified;
c) [The walls of] Jerusalem were breached in [the war leading to] the destruction of the Second Temple;
d) Apostmos, the wicked, burned a Torah scroll; and
e) He erected an idol in the Temple.