ראש חדש ד

And this is the bechinas Purim — for Haman, of the seed of Amalek, has always been a scourge [retzu'as mardus] for Israel, whose eye is always evil toward Israel. And immediately when Israel went forth from Egypt and the sea was split before them and Pharaoh and his troops were drowned in it, etc. — Amalek had an evil eye upon them and rose up against them. And Hashem, blessed be He, holds His hand over him in judgment and restrains His anger against him for a very long time — and through this very restraint Hashem wages war against him, as it were [kivyachol], in the bechinas "For a hand is upon the throne of Yah — war for Hashem against Amalek, from generation to generation" [Shemos 17:16]. For through this very restraint — that Hashem advocates merit on behalf of the wicked and holds His hand in the judgment of the wicked — the tzaddik is thereby saved. And this is ultimately the cause of the wicked man's downfall [as is explained there in the aforementioned ma'amar]. And this itself is what is explained there at its conclusion: that at first the face of Hashem is hidden within those who do evil [b'osei ra] in order to cut them off — meaning: at first Hashem hides His face from the tzaddik and grants greatness, as it were, to the wicked man, in the bechinas "For You behold toil and vexation — to give it into Your hand, etc." [Tehillim 10:14]. It thus emerges that the face of Hashem is hidden within those who do evil. And through this they have all their greatness and honor — because the face of Hashem is hidden within them. And all this is in order to cut them off, etc., as stated — for the Holy One, blessed be He, does not exact punishment from a nation until its measure is full. And therefore when Hashem sees that some wicked man whose eye is evil toward the tzaddik is growing powerful — and the time for cutting off the wicked has not yet come — then Hashem advocates merit on his behalf and holds His hand in judgment, and through this very act rescues the tzaddik, etc., as stated. And the tzaddik is strengthened through this and prays for his needs — and the tzaddik himself must also advocate merit on his behalf, as stated. And he must strengthen his heart to pray, as stated — until he merits to come to the bechinas Eretz Yisrael, and then he merits to see upon the wicked man what he wishes to see upon him. And Hashem knows the hidden things — and He knew that in the days of Moshe the time for Amalek's final downfall had not yet come, for they had not yet come to Eretz Yisrael. And therefore He held His hand over the judgment and did not command his complete destruction — as Rashi explained there: that he [Moshe] only cut down the heads of his warriors. From this [we learn] that they acted according to the Divine word. And this is the bechinas "And it was: when Moshe raised his hand, Israel prevailed, and when he let it rest, etc." [Shemos 17:11]. For Moshe fought him through the bechina of the Hand — for at first glance it is puzzling: why did Moshe let his hand rest so that Amalek would prevail? But Moshe also knew that the time for his final downfall had not yet arrived, and he was compelled to fight him with the bechina of the Hand in such a way as not to execute full judgment upon him — only the minimum necessary. But the remainder of the judgment that was due him He held in His hand — and through this very restraint they could be saved from him at that time, until they would merit to come to the bechinas Eretz Yisrael, when his complete downfall would come. And this is: "And it was: when Moshe raised his hand... and when he let it rest, etc." — as stated.

The reading of Parashas HaTamid on Rosh Chodesh: Based on what our rebbe, whose light should shine, wrote — that the aspect of tamid (the daily offering) is the tikkun (rectification) of prayer, in the aspect of "the prayers were instituted corresponding to the t'midin (daily offerings)" — see there. And behold, the blemish of prayer is through the blemish of the moon, which is the aspect of Malchus (Sovereignty), the aspect of prayer. And therefore on Rosh Chodesh, when the Holy One, blessed is He, said, "Bring upon Me an atonement," then the tikkun of the moon begins, for then it begins to become full. Therefore we then read Parashas HaTamid, which is the aspect of the tikkun of prayer, as above. For then, on Rosh Chodesh, the tikkun of the moon begins, which is the tikkun of prayer, as above. Halachah on the matter of Rosh Chodesh: Based on the teaching "Tik'u bachodesh shofar" ("Blow the shofar at the new month") — see there in Likutay Tinyana, siman 1, the entire teaching well, through to its end. And the summary of the matter is that there are three character traits that cause the loss of yirah (fear of G-d), which is the aspect of Yerushalayim. They are: the desires for food, for intimacy, and for money. And they are the aspect of the three watches of the night. And their rectification is through the Yamim Tovim (festivals), which are the three r'galim (pilgrimage festivals). And then one merits n'vuah (prophecy) through the malach (angel) that is made through yirah. And through n'vuah one merits prayer. And then one does not need medicines, for one is healed through the word of Hashem, which is the great Lender. For all the stars borrow one from another — the moon borrows from the sun, etc. And from there all the herbs receive their power. But when one holds fast to the aspect of prayer, the aspect of the word of Hashem, which is the great Lender, then one is healed through the word of Hashem and does not need herbs. For the power of healing is drawn into bread and water, because all the herbs return their power to their root, which is the word of Hashem, and then the power of healing is drawn into bread and water, etc. And this is the aspect of the glimmering of Moshiach, etc. And then one can make Rosh HaShanah. For Rosh HaShanah is a great chesed that He gave us — Rosh HaShanah, the Day of Judgment, on Rosh Chodesh, when Hashem Yisbarach Himself, as it were, has regret and says, "Bring upon Me an atonement for having diminished the moon." And through this we have an opening of the mouth to have regret and to seek atonement, etc. — see there, all of this well. And it appears that everything is connected to everything else, and its end is anchored in its beginning. For all of this is the aspect of Rosh Chodesh, in the aspect of the diminishing of the moon and its filling. For these three character traits that cause the loss of yirah, which is the aspect of Yerushalayim — they are in the aspect of the diminishing of the moon, from which the Sitra Achra draws sustenance, and from which come all the evil desires, in particular these three desires mentioned above. They are all from the aspect of the diminishing of the moon. For the desire for intimacy is drawn from the known klipah, which comes from the deficiency of the luminaries, as is written, "Let there be luminaries" (B'raishis 1:14) — written deficiently — this is Lilis, whose sustenance is from "luminaries" written deficiently — that is, the diminishing of the moon. And the desire for money also depends on the desire for intimacy, and its sustenance also comes from there, as is explained in the words of our rebbe in the teaching "Tzivisa tzedek," siman 23 — see what he brought there from the statement of the Tikkunim, which called the desire for wealth askara (a disease) for children — "it laughs at them with wealth in this world," etc. And this comes from "luminaries" written deficiently, as is known. And likewise the desire for food: the essence of the desire is in the aspect of "and the belly of the wicked shall be wanting" (Mishlei 13:25). For what is necessary for sustaining the body is not called a desire — only what is excess, the aspect of "the belly of the wicked shall be wanting," which is the aspect of "luminaries" written deficiently, the opposite of "a Tzaddik eats to satisfy his soul" (Mishlei 13:25), which is the aspect of full light — as is explained in the teaching "Vay'hi mikeitz," siman 54. Thus all these three desires are in the aspect of the deficiency of the moon, the aspect of "luminaries" written deficiently. And therefore they are alluded to in the words of our Sages of blessed memory in the three watches of the night, for their sustenance comes from there, from the aspect of the deficiency of the moon, which is the small luminary to rule the night. And therefore they cause the loss of yirah, which is Yerushalayim. For Yerushalayim is the aspect of Malchus, the aspect of the small luminary, and likewise yirah is also the aspect of Malchus, as is brought. And therefore these three character traits, which draw sustenance from the deficiency of the moon — which is the aspect of the diminishing of Malchus — therefore they cause the loss of yirah, which is the aspect of Yerushalayim, the aspect of Malchus. For the more these forces that draw from the diminishing of the moon overpower, chas v'shalom, the more the moon is diminished. And their rectification is through Yom Tov. For Yom Tov is the aspect of the tikkun for the diminishing of the moon, the aspect of the filling of the moon. For the festivals are counted by the moon, and they are its rectification, as is brought. And therefore all the three r'galim are at the time of the moon's fullness, for they are the aspect of its rectification and filling. And therefore Yom Tov is called the aspect of "And G-d saw the light, that it was good" (B'raishis 1:4) — which is the aspect of full light, the opposite of "luminaries" written deficiently. And therefore these three festivals, which are the aspect of the filling of the moon, rectify the three desires mentioned above, which are the aspect of the deficiency of the moon. And through this one merits n'vuah, and through n'vuah one merits prayer. For all of this is accomplished through the tikkun and filling of the moon, which is the aspect of the completeness of Malchus, as is known. And from there comes n'vuah, for n'vuah is drawn from the malach that is made through yirah. And the malach is the aspect of the Shechinah, the aspect of "Behold, I am sending before you an angel" (Shemos 23:20), as our rebbe, whose light should shine, explained. And it bestows n'vuah when it ascends above the place of n'vuah — that is, above Netzach, Hod, and Yesod. And this is accomplished on Yom Tov, as is known — understand this; see there at the end of the aforementioned teaching. And then one merits prayer, which is also the aspect of Malchus. And then one does not need medicines, for one can be healed through the word of Hashem, from which they all receive and borrow. For all the stars borrow one from another — the moon borrows from the sun. And let us be precise: why, of all the borrowings of the stars, did he single out that the moon borrows from the sun? After all, they all borrow one from another — so why did he specify the moon borrows, etc.? But it appears that all the borrowings of the stars — that they borrow one from another, and according to this the order of the celestial system is conducted — all of this depends on the borrowing of the moon from the sun. That is, the diminishing of the moon, which is the aspect of the diminishing of Malchus. And when His Malchus, Yisbarach — the aspect of the word of Hashem — is not revealed, then the borrowing is relevant, that they all borrow one from another. For everything is conducted in the order where this one receives from that one, and that one from that one, etc. But when the aspect of the word of Hashem is revealed, then all the borrowings are nullified. For then it is revealed that there is no compulsory order of nature or celestial system at all — rather, all of them as one receive from the great Lender, that is, the word of Hashem, for "His sovereignty rules over all" (Tehillim 103:19). And just as the highest sphere receives from the word of Hashem, so too the lowliest herb receives from the word of Hashem. For this master of prayer draws and reveals the aspect of Malchus, the aspect of the word of Hashem, below in this world of abundance, and draws His G-dliness, Yisbarach, below. Thus, through the revelation of the word of Hashem, which is the aspect of Malchus — which is the aspect of the tikkun of the moon and its filling — then all the borrowings, whereby they borrow one from another, are nullified. For they all borrow only from the great Lender, which is the word of Hashem. Thus all the borrowings of the stars are only through the diminishing of the moon — that is, the aspect of the diminishing of Malchus. And therefore he was precise: "all the stars borrow one from another — the moon from the sun" — for everything depends on this, as above. And then all the herbs return their power to their root, which is the word of Hashem. And this is the completeness of the aspect of the filling of the moon — when all the sparks that are clothed in all the things of the world, which come from the diminishing of the moon (which is the diminishing of Malchus, from which come all the sparks that are the powers clothed in all the herbs) — return to the holy Malchus. And now, through the aspect of the tikkun and filling of the moon, which is the aspect of Malchus, all the powers and sparks return to their root. And this itself is the filling of the moon and its rectification, as above. And this is the aspect of the glimmering of Moshiach. For the filling of the moon is the aspect of the Malchus of Moshiach, when Yisrael are destined to be renewed like it. And then will be fulfilled, "And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun" (Yeshayahu 30:26), and there shall be no diminishing in it at all. And therefore then one can make Rosh HaShanah. For Rosh HaShanah is on Rosh Chodesh. And this is a great chesed from Him Yisbarach, for on Rosh Chodesh Hashem Yisbarach said, "Bring upon Me an atonement" — and therefore we have an opening of the mouth to seek atonement. Thus the essential Rosh HaShanah is through the aspect of the filling of the moon and its rectification. For Hashem Yisbarach's saying, "Bring upon Me an atonement for having diminished the moon" — this itself is its rectification and filling. For then it begins to become full, since Hashem Yisbarach has regret over its diminishing. And therefore, through all the aforementioned aspects, which are the aspect of the filling of the moon, through this one can make Rosh HaShanah, which is specifically on Rosh Chodesh — when the tikkun of the moon and its filling begins, the aspect of "Bring upon Me an atonement," as above. And this is why we say Hallel on Rosh Chodesh. For Hallel is the opposite of the klipah, which is the aspect of y'lalah (wailing), as is brought in the words of our rebbe, whose light should shine. For its sustenance comes from "luminaries" written deficiently, as above. And on Rosh Chodesh the tikkun begins; therefore we then say Hallel, which is the opposite of it. And we say only half-Hallel, for then it is only the beginning of the filling and rectification. The essential completeness of the tikkun is on Yom Tov, and then we say the complete Hallel. Also, Rosh Chodesh is the aspect of the beginning of teshuvah. For then Hashem Yisbarach said, "Bring upon Me an atonement." And from this, teshuvah was drawn down into all created beings, so that all of them receive a stirring of teshuvah on Rosh Chodesh, as our rebbe, whose light should shine, wrote. And this is alluded to by the saying of half-Hallel — that is, Hallel with skipping — for so too the ba'al teshuvah cannot go in order from level to level; rather, he must skip and leap over many levels, as is brought on the verse, "The angels of hosts flee, they flee" (Tehillim 68:13). And as is brought in the holy Zohar. Also in the Torah reading on Rosh Chodesh, it is impossible to read in order, and one must skip backward. And it is possible to allude this also to the aspect of teshuvah that is on Rosh Chodesh. For the ba'al teshuvah does not proceed in order, and the way of the ba'al teshuvah is that he sometimes needs to go back in reverse, as is brought in the name of the Ba'al Shem on the verse, "And He will lead us beyond death" (Tehillim 48:15) — that at first they assist him from Above to go and run in the ways of Hashem, and afterward they leave him, and then he goes backward, and then he returns to go in order. Also, in Hallel the Malchus of Dovid and Moshiach are alluded to, as is brought. Also alluded to in Hallel is the aforementioned aspect — that is, what is explained above, that we have an opening of the mouth to come and have regret and do teshuvah, since He Yisbarach Himself has regret and says, "Bring upon Me an atonement." And this is: "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. From Hashem this came about" (Tehillim 118:22-23). That is, if one wonders about the ba'al teshuvah — how did he merit to be accepted? And this is "the stone that the builders rejected became," etc. — that is, the ba'al teshuvah who blemished with whatever he blemished. And this is "the stone that the builders rejected" — they rejected him on account of his many blemishes, and now he merited to become the cornerstone. And the matter seems astonishing. But in truth, "from Hashem this came about" — that is, from Hashem Himself, as it were, this came about, that teshuvah should be effective. For this was drawn down from Him Yisbarach, since He Himself, Yisbarach, said, "Bring upon Me an atonement." Therefore we too have an opening of the mouth to have regret and to do teshuvah. And this is "from Hashem this came about" — that from Hashem Himself, as it were, this came about, that teshuvah should be effective, since He Himself has regret, as above. But in truth, "it is wondrous in our eyes" (Tehillim 118:23) — for in our eyes it is truly a wonder how teshuvah can be effective and how we can have the audacity to come before Him with our sins and have regret. But "from Hashem this came about," as above.

Likutay Halachos - Hilchos Rosh HaShanah 4

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