| |
The Death of Death
Adapted by Rabbi Eliyahu Touger from Sefer HaMa'amarim Melukat
II p 280
Until mankind's task of refinement is completed, good and
evil are intermingled with each other.
This includes even the era of the Holy Temple, and even the era of King Solomon's
reign, when "the disk of the moon was full". Until that time, death will
continue to exist, so that the existence of evil will not be perpetuated. On
this basis, we can understand the verse "He will swallow up death
forever" (Is. 25:8).  | | " The righteous will return to the earth for an hour before the Resurrection..." | | |
This is also the reason why the bodies of the righteous will
return to dust an hour before the Resurrection of the Dead (Shabbat 152b;
see also Zohar, Vol.II, p.108b). Before this time, no worm will have had
dominion over them, and their bodies
will remain intact for hundreds and even thousands of years. Nevertheless,
before the Resurrection of the Dead, even the righteous will return to dust. (See the Midrash Tehillim to Psalms 119:9)
The reason for this is that the sin of the Tree of Knowledge
brought about a blending of evil with every element of worldly existence.
Therefore, even the bodies of the righteous will require refinement. [This refinement can, however, be brought about by
complete self-nullification, as reflected in the prayer [Berachot 17a;
included in the daily liturgy]: "Let my soul be as dust to all." When
this divine service is completed, there is no need for the tzadik's body
to actually return to dust.]
In the Era of the Redemption, after the Resurrection of the
Dead, the prophecy "And I will cause the spirit of impurity to depart from
the land" will be fulfilled. Then there will be no more death, and the
body will live forever.
This applies even according to the opinion [of Rabbi Chanina in Bereishit Rabba
26:2; see also Pesachim 68a; Sanhedrin 91b] which interprets the verse: "And a
youth of 100 years will die," (Isaiah 65:20) according to its simple
meaning, for the verse applies only to non-Jews. With regard to the Jews, by
contrast, the prophecy "He will swallow up death forever" will be
fulfilled. | | " The body will be on a higher rung than the soul..." | | |
Moreover, even the death which this opinion maintains will
occur with regard to non-Jews does not mean actual death, but rather falling
[from ones spiritual level], as our Rabbis say "A person who falls from
his rung is called 'dead'." (See Zohar, Vol. III, p. 135b.)
The Rebbe Maharash explained this phenomenon of
death, i.e., the descent that will take place with regard to the gentiles: as
the sparks of holiness contained within them will be refined, they will ascend
and the evil within them (the material body which can be termed evil when
compared to the sparks of holiness which they contain) will descend. [This is
their "death".]
This does not apply with regard to the Jewish people. Their
bodies will ascend and derive sustenance from holiness as their souls do.
Indeed, in that era, the body will be on a higher rung than the soul, as
alluded to in the mystical interpretation of the verse "the female will
encompass the male". (Jeremiah 31:21) [The "female" refers to
the body which in the present era is a recipient from the soul. In the Era of
the Redemption, this will change, and the body will become a source of positive
influence.]
All this will actually take place in a revealed matter
within the context of our material world, with the coming of the true and
ultimate Redemption, led by Mashiach; may this take place in the near
future. [from "Anticipating the Redemption" Vol. II (S.I.E., 1997), pp 77-78]
|
