Y-H-W-H spoke to Moses, saying: "Command Aaron and his sons, saying: 'This is the Torah of the ascending-offering, the offering on its stake upon the altar, all night until the morning the altar's fire shall be lit upon it...Fire shall constantly burn upon it; it shall not go out.'" (Lev. 6:1-2, 6)
The rabbis say that the word "command" here shows a special urging, applicable now and in all generations. Said Rabbi Shim'on: Such urging is especially needed when there is a cost to the pocketbook.
This comment is difficult. Weren't all the commandments given for all generations? And what is the special cost to the pocketbook of this "ascending-offering"? There are other commandments that can be more costly, and they are not introduced by a special use of "command" to urge their observance.
Now the real purpose of the Torah God gave us is that through it we would bring our evil urge to submission. That is why the Zohar refers frequently to "struggling" with Torah, the same word that is used in the Aramaic translation of "a man struggled with him" (Gen. 32:25). This is to say that by means of Torah one can struggle with the evil urge and defeat it, since the light within Torah can turn the urge back toward goodness (Eikhah Rabbah Petihta 2). Through Torah one can cleave to our blessed God, who is hidden within Torah. He is the light within it.
This is the meaning of "I have seen people of ascent, but they are few" (b. Sukkah 45b). Through Torah you can rise upward, even setting aright the damage you had done. This is the Torah of the ascending-offering--that you can rise upward. All night until the morning--you can raise up even your own darkness and turn it into the light of dawn.
Fire shall constantly burn upon it; it shall not go out. By the light created in the first six days, Adam was able to see from one end of the world to the other. After he sinned the light disappeared; "the blessed Holy One hid it away for the righteous in the future." Before that sin the light was directly visible; only afterward was it hidden in the garments within which God hid the light, the garments of Torah. This is hinted at by the verse "God made them garments of skin" (Gen 3:21), which, in R. Meir's Torah was written as "garments of light" (Bereshit Rabbah 20:12). Thus did R. Meir teach the people of his generation, enlightening their eyes by showing them how to get to that light hidden within the Torah. Not everyone can reach that light, hidden as it is within the garments. But R. Meir (his name means "shining" or "bringing light") showed them the way.
Now we continue where we started. Through Torah a person can rise upward. This is the Torah of the ascending-offering. How? This comes about by approaching the hidden light, by looking into that hidden light that extends from one end of the world to the other ("vertically" as well as "horizontally").
This is the meaning of command, meaning "urge, now and in all generations." That which happens now and that which will take place in the future will all be the same to you. Present and future will become equal...in the hidden light of Torah there is no distinction between now and the future. So Rabbi Shim'on had to refer to the "cost to the pocketbook [kis]." If you study Torah and come to that hidden light, there it is no longer hidden behind any kissui, "covering" or garment. This Torah is like it was before Adam sinned, before God made the garments of light in which it came to be dressed. The light was directly revealed! This is the meaning of hesron kis. the "cost of the pocketbook"--the words really mean "the covering is removed."
That is why the rabbis said: "If only they would abandon Me [oti] and keep My Torah!" (Eikhah Rabbah Petihta 2, on Jer. 16:11). When you study Torah, you see letters (otiyot) before you. When you then meditate upon them, the gates of wisdom open up and you are able to understand the Torah in a mindful way. How do you get there? All you saw, after all, were letters.
It is not that you are so wise and capable of learning on your own; Y-H-W-H is the helpful Teacher. "Y-H-W-H grants wisdom from His mouth, awareness and understanding" (Prov. 2:6). Indeed, a person who studieis in some other way, not seeking the hidden light, will not find much use in such learning. He may become expertly learned in matters of religious practice, that is to say, in the letters of Torah. But that is not what God intended; that is not what is important. Through Torah you are supposed to rise higher than the letters, to that place where the light is without garments. You rise to the place where Torah is light, where it was before Adam sinned and there were no "garments of skin."
This is if only they abandoned oti, "My letter," the learning that is mere letters, and truly "kept My Torah," that which rises above the letters, the hidden light.
The rabbis say that the word "command" here shows a special urging, applicable now and in all generations. Said Rabbi Shim'on: Such urging is especially needed when there is a cost to the pocketbook.
This comment is difficult. Weren't all the commandments given for all generations? And what is the special cost to the pocketbook of this "ascending-offering"? There are other commandments that can be more costly, and they are not introduced by a special use of "command" to urge their observance.
Now the real purpose of the Torah God gave us is that through it we would bring our evil urge to submission. That is why the Zohar refers frequently to "struggling" with Torah, the same word that is used in the Aramaic translation of "a man struggled with him" (Gen. 32:25). This is to say that by means of Torah one can struggle with the evil urge and defeat it, since the light within Torah can turn the urge back toward goodness (Eikhah Rabbah Petihta 2). Through Torah one can cleave to our blessed God, who is hidden within Torah. He is the light within it.
This is the meaning of "I have seen people of ascent, but they are few" (b. Sukkah 45b). Through Torah you can rise upward, even setting aright the damage you had done. This is the Torah of the ascending-offering--that you can rise upward. All night until the morning--you can raise up even your own darkness and turn it into the light of dawn.
Fire shall constantly burn upon it; it shall not go out. By the light created in the first six days, Adam was able to see from one end of the world to the other. After he sinned the light disappeared; "the blessed Holy One hid it away for the righteous in the future." Before that sin the light was directly visible; only afterward was it hidden in the garments within which God hid the light, the garments of Torah. This is hinted at by the verse "God made them garments of skin" (Gen 3:21), which, in R. Meir's Torah was written as "garments of light" (Bereshit Rabbah 20:12). Thus did R. Meir teach the people of his generation, enlightening their eyes by showing them how to get to that light hidden within the Torah. Not everyone can reach that light, hidden as it is within the garments. But R. Meir (his name means "shining" or "bringing light") showed them the way.
Now we continue where we started. Through Torah a person can rise upward. This is the Torah of the ascending-offering. How? This comes about by approaching the hidden light, by looking into that hidden light that extends from one end of the world to the other ("vertically" as well as "horizontally").
This is the meaning of command, meaning "urge, now and in all generations." That which happens now and that which will take place in the future will all be the same to you. Present and future will become equal...in the hidden light of Torah there is no distinction between now and the future. So Rabbi Shim'on had to refer to the "cost to the pocketbook [kis]." If you study Torah and come to that hidden light, there it is no longer hidden behind any kissui, "covering" or garment. This Torah is like it was before Adam sinned, before God made the garments of light in which it came to be dressed. The light was directly revealed! This is the meaning of hesron kis. the "cost of the pocketbook"--the words really mean "the covering is removed."
That is why the rabbis said: "If only they would abandon Me [oti] and keep My Torah!" (Eikhah Rabbah Petihta 2, on Jer. 16:11). When you study Torah, you see letters (otiyot) before you. When you then meditate upon them, the gates of wisdom open up and you are able to understand the Torah in a mindful way. How do you get there? All you saw, after all, were letters.
It is not that you are so wise and capable of learning on your own; Y-H-W-H is the helpful Teacher. "Y-H-W-H grants wisdom from His mouth, awareness and understanding" (Prov. 2:6). Indeed, a person who studieis in some other way, not seeking the hidden light, will not find much use in such learning. He may become expertly learned in matters of religious practice, that is to say, in the letters of Torah. But that is not what God intended; that is not what is important. Through Torah you are supposed to rise higher than the letters, to that place where the light is without garments. You rise to the place where Torah is light, where it was before Adam sinned and there were no "garments of skin."
This is if only they abandoned oti, "My letter," the learning that is mere letters, and truly "kept My Torah," that which rises above the letters, the hidden light.
Here is Hasidism as its most polemical self. The Me'or Einayim is arguing against those who regard only the outer letters, not seeing what dwells within them. The goal is to rise higher than the letters, to the "light without garments." How can we do this without leaving the outer world, even Torah itself, behind Here there is none of the ambiguity of other texts. The purpose of the outer is only to bring us to the true light within. Otherwise, it is of little value.