תרומות ומעשרות ד

[This section connects to the above.]

And therefore our Sages of blessed memory taught that all of Israel mourned for Aharon more than for Moshe, because Aharon was one who loved peace and pursued peace. For the essential quality of the eulogy is over the departure of peace, and through the eulogy one draws peace back once more, as above. And therefore Aharon — who loved peace even more, for he merited the priesthood which is in the dimension of peace, as it says, "behold, I give him My covenant of peace, and it shall be for him a covenant of eternal priesthood" (Bamidbar 25:12-13) — therefore the eulogy for Aharon was even greater.

And therefore the Kohanim are warned with an extra warning regarding the prohibition of korcha and cutting, as it says, "they shall not make a bald patch…" (Vayikra 21:5) — for with them the warning is doubled. For the prohibition of kericha and cutting is a blemish of the illumination of the face, a blemish of peace, as above. And the Kohanim have even greater need for peace, as above. As it says, "My covenant was with him, life and peace" (Malachi 2:5). Therefore this warning is doubled with them. And therefore the Kohanim bless Israel with peace, as it says, "May Hashem shine His face upon you… may Hashem lift His face toward you and grant you peace" (Bamidbar 6:25-26). For through the illumination of the face — "may Hashem shine His face" — one merits peace: "and grant you peace", as above.

And all the offerings that the Kohanim bring are in the dimension of peace — for they make peace between Israel and their Father in Heaven. And therefore all the offerings are from domesticated and undomesticated animals and birds — for this is the essential quality of peace: to bind and draw those most distant toward Hashem, to elevate from animal to human being — for the essential quality of peace is between those most distant, as above. And therefore all the offerings are through the Kohanim specifically — for they are in the dimension of peace, as above.

And therefore Haman rose up at the time when Israel sought to return to Jerusalem and engage in the service of the Temple — and he and his descendants first nullified and suspended the work and construction of the Temple. For Jerusalem and the Temple are in the dimension of peace, as above — for there all the offerings are brought and all the lower levels are bound to Hashem, which is the dimension of peace. And therefore Haman sought to nullify this — for he is a man of strife and an enemy, from the seed of Esav of whom it says, "and his wrath has kept watch forever" (Amos 1:11). And his root is hatred and controversy. And he sought to disrupt the peace, which is the essential rectification of the world, as above. And therefore the Megillah concludes with peace, as it says, "speaking peace to all his seed" — for this is the essential rectification of Purim, that great peace is drawn down, and so forth, as above.

And therefore on Purim, whoever extends a hand to receive is given, even a non-Jew. For all of this demonstrates the great multiplication of peace — as our Sages of blessed memory taught: one provides for the poor of non-Jews together with the poor of Israel, for the sake of the ways of peace. But now on Purim one must fulfill this even more intensely, for now one must draw down great peace even with the nations of the world, so that they will all return to the faith of Israel through the great multiplication of peace. In the dimension of "then I shall transform for all the peoples a clear lip…" (Tzefanya 3:9) — which is the dimension of "and it was reversed, so that the Jews had dominion over their enemies" (Esther 9:1). For they will return to our faith willingly, and we will reign over them according to our will, for they will submit themselves to us willingly. And this is the dimension of the reversal: the Jews had dominion over those who hated them — for now they are jealous of us because we are firm in our faith, and because of this they harass us. And this is the essence of the severity of the exile and the subjugation we endure from them. But in the future the matter will be reversed, in the dimension of "then I shall transform" — for on the contrary, they will willingly turn to our faith through the great multiplication of peace that will exist then, as it says, "nation shall not lift sword against nation" (Yeshaya 2:4). And then they will submit to us willingly, for they will bow and lower themselves before us of their own accord. And this is the dimension of "the Jews had dominion over those who hated them", as above.

And this is the dimension of what people do on Purim — that they disguise themselves and cover their faces, and pretend to be of another nation, of Yishmael or another people, and the like. This is in the dimension of meshanin mipnai darkei ha-shalom — altering oneself for the sake of the ways of peace. For when one needs to greatly multiply peace, one must sometimes alter oneself and conduct oneself with a kind of cleverness for the sake of peace — changing one's face to many expressions for each and every person according to their will, for the sake of peace. And this is the dimension of "when lowliness is exalted among the sons of men" (Tehillim 12:9) — and our Sages expounded: when a person is in need of people, his face changes to many expressions. For one must conform oneself to each and every person according to their wishes in order to hold onto peace with them, in order to draw them and bring them close to Hashem. And this is: "when lowliness is exalted" — when one must raise and elevate those who are low and degraded from the baseness of the exile. And then "his face changes like a lid to many expressions" — for one must change one's face before each and every person according to their wishes. This is in the dimension of altering oneself for the sake of peace.

And therefore on Purim — when the multiplication of peace is greatest, even with all the nations, for Purim alludes to the final redemption, when the memory of Amalek shall be utterly obliterated. And as our Sages of blessed memory taught: all the festivals will be abolished, except for Purim. For the essential final redemption — when the memory of Amalek is obliterated — is in the dimension of Purim, and then peace will be multiplied greatly, as above. And therefore on Purim people change their faces to many expressions — this is in the dimension of altering oneself for the sake of peace, as above — in order to draw all of them toward Hashem, as above. In the dimension of "then I shall transform for all the peoples a clear lip, to call all of them in the Name of Hashem…" — for all of this is brought about through peace. In the dimension of "speaking peace to all his seed" — for through peace one has the power to draw the entire world in its entirety toward His service, to worship Him with one consent, as above. Amen and amen.

Cutting and Tattoo-Incision, Halacha 4 — see in Halachos of Shaving, Halacha 4; and in Halachos of Interest, Halacha 5.

From Likutay Halachos, Yoreh De'ah, Vol. 1 — Complete Translation

Based on the discourse "Maishra d'Sakkina" (Torah-Law of the Knife), Likutay Moharan, Part I, Siman 30. The hairs are the aspect of Chochma Tata'a (Lower Wisdom), which is the essence of comprehension — the aspect of Malchus (Kingship). See there. And one must draw life-force to it, and therefore one must elevate it to the light of the Countenance (Ohr HaPanim) that illumines at the Three Festivals, which are the aspect of Binah to Ba (Understanding as a Mother-womb). And one must cut it away from the Four Kingdoms, which are the Sitra Achra (Other Side), so that they should have no nourishment from the Wisdom — the aspect of Malchus — which is the aspect of dales (poverty/the letter Dalet). And this is accomplished through Chesed (Loving-kindness) — the aspect of Avraham — and Chesed is revealed through rebuke. See there.

Now, the pe'os (sidelocks) and the beard are the light of the Countenance — the splendor of the face, the aspect of the comprehension of Chochma (Wisdom). As it is said: "And you shall honor the face of an elder" (vehadarta pnei zaken) — the beard is the splendor of the face, the light of the face, which is the aspect of Chochma, as it is said: "The wisdom of a man illumines his face" (chochmas adam ta'ir panav). For the beard is the aspect of the Thirteen Attributes through which the Torah is expounded, as is elaborated in the teachings of our Rebbe — see there — and these are the essence of the comprehension of Chochma. Therefore, the beard and pe'os are hairs, for they are the aspect of the comprehension of Chochma, and the essence of comprehension is in the aspect of hairs, which is the Lower Wisdom, as is explained there. And this is the aspect of the Thirteen Attributes, which are the aspect of the beard, as mentioned above — namely, the aspect of measures and contractions (middos u'tzimtzumim) for the supernal Intellect, as is explained there — for this is the aspect of hairs, the aspect of shi'ura d'atun d'Oraisa (the measure of the donkey of the Torah), which are the aspect of middos (measures/attributes).

Therefore it is forbidden to pass a razor over the beard and pe'os, for there is the very essence of life and length of days — which is the aspect of zaken (elder/beard). "It is not proper for the shortener to be raised over the lengthener," as our Sages of blessed memory said regarding the altar. Therefore it is forbidden to cut and destroy them — on the contrary, there is the very core of the elevation of the Lower Wisdom, for they are the light of the Countenance as mentioned above.

This is the aspect of the two pe'os and the beard — corresponding to the Three Festivals, which are the light of the Countenance, as mentioned — for the two pe'os are the aspects of right and left, and the beard is in the middle. This is the aspect of the Three Festivals, which correspond to the Three Patriarchs: right, left, and middle. The essence of the light of the Countenance is the beard, which is the very essence of the comprehension of Chochma. And through the two pe'os — which are the aspects of right and left, the aspects of Chesed and rebuke (for Chesed is right and rebuke is the aspect of Gevuros, left) — through these one merits the aspect of the beard, the aspect of the light of the Countenance, as mentioned above.

As is explained there: all the other hairs, even though they too are the aspect of mosar mochin (overflows of the intellect), nevertheless, because they are in the aspect of surpluses, the Sitra Achra has a grip on them — for that is the very source of their nourishment. Therefore when they grow very long, one must cut them, in the aspect of "cut it to four" (chtecho l'arba), so as not to give them nourishment from the Lower Wisdom, which is the aspect of "four," as mentioned.

Therefore it is a great mitzvah to shave on the eve of each Festival, in order to cut away from the Four Kingdoms, so that it can ascend at the Three Festivals — the light of the Countenance, as mentioned above.

Based on the discourse "U'veyom HaBikkurim — 'v'es ha'aravim tzivisi l'chalkelecha'" (On the Day of the First-Fruits — "and I commanded the ravens to sustain you"), Likutay Moharan, Part II, Siman 4. See there carefully.

For one must make a vessel and channel through which to receive Chesed, and this is accomplished through yirah (awe/fear), and yirah is accomplished through ratzon (will). The essence of ratzon is accomplished through attachment to the root of ratzon, which is the aspect of the metzach ha-ratzon (the forehead of will). Corresponding to this there is the aspect of metzach ha-nachash (the forehead of the serpent), which is the opposite of ratzon. The essential nourishment of the metzach ha-nachash comes from the elders of the generation in whom there is no wholeness — those who do not add in holiness and knowledge as they age, and so on, as is explained there. For this, charity (tzedakah) helps, and so on, as explained there.