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Tasteful Elevations
This is the offering of Aaron on the day that he was anointed (Lev. 6:3)
Then you will eat, yes eat, and be satiated...(Joel 2:26)
Two things are accomplished through eating: 1) the
human being gains strength - body and soul are kept together, and 2) the food is
spiritually elevated. The physical archetypes of Mineral, Vegetable or Animal
are elevated by becoming the flesh and blood of Human. Furthermore, when a
person then uses the strength gained from food to serve G-d, as in the statement
"I was created to serve my Master" (end of Kidushin), the food then
ascends to a level that is beyond the world of the created [and enters the realm
of the Creator. This elevation of the food is part of the "Avodat Habirurim",
the task of elevating the sparks of holiness that are scattered through the
physical world.]
In the Messianic era, a second elevation and
refinement will take place. In Kabbalistic terms, the elevation and refinement
that is accomplished in the pre-Messianic Era is that of Ban thorough
Mah. In the future, Mah itself will undergo a refinement and
elevation.  | | " The souls of today will be considered "animals" in comparison to the souls of the future..." | | |
Food is rooted in the celestial angels. Man's
consumption of food causes an elevation for the celestial angels, which are
called "beasts". Just as angels are considered "animals" in comparison to human
souls, so too in the future, the souls of today will be considered "animals" in
comparison to the souls of the future. They will therefore need a second
elevation.
This will be achieved through the banquet of the wild
Ox and the Leviathan, which will be eaten by the righteous. A spark of the each
soul in need of elevation will be manifest in the Ox and Leviathan and will be
elevated through their consumption by the righteous.
(The Ox and the Leviathan refer to the two different
types of souls - Mah and Ban: those that are sourced in Alma
D'itkasya, the World of Concealment (related to the Leviathan, a sea
creature), and those that are sourced in Alma D'itgalya, the World of
Revelation (related to the Ox, a land creature).
Now we can understand a mysterious Midrashic statement
in parasha Tzav ( Midrash Rabba 8:2), on the words "This is the
offering of Aaron on the day that he was anointed" (Lev. 6:3):
And he said to them, "From the eater came food..." (Judges 14:14)
This is what the verse means: Samson wondered in his
heart: The lion eats all other animals and now it is a source of food?
Similarly, Aaron eats all the offerings and now an offering issues from him.
Which one is that? "This is the offering of Aaron."
[The reference is to the riddle that Samson proposed
to the people of Timnah during his wedding feast. The inspiration for the riddle
came from the sight of a beehive and honey that Samson noticed in the carcass of
the lion that he had slain a while earlier.]
It is known that the sacrifice was consumed by two
parties: 1) the altar - known as "the lion of fire" (as mentioned in the Zohar
on parashat Tzav p. 32b, and 1:6b) and 2) the priest. | | " It is impossible for an unrefined being to refine or elevate..." | | |
In other words, the lion of the altar and Aaron (the
priest) elevate and refine the offering.
Now, we have explained elsewhere ( Tanya 1:28)
that one who achieves elevation and refinement must himself be a refined being.
It is impossible for an unrefined being to refine or elevate.
[The Alter Rebbe makes this point in Tanya, where he
emphasizes that one should not attempt to "elevate" extraneous thoughts.
Although the Baal Shem Tov ( Keter Shem Tov sec. 171) advocates such
efforts, the Alter Rebbe clearly stated that such efforts were appropriate only
for the completely righteous (Tanya 1:28):
"He should not be a fool as to engage in elevating the
drives of the extraneous thought for such things apply only to the righteous who
do not experience self-generated extraneous thoughts but rather receive those of
others. But he who experiences extraneous thoughts that stem from his own
darkness in his heart, how can he elevate it above when he himself is tied
below"?] | | " Eating is for the purpose of elevating the sparks that are in the food..." | | |
As the Sifri says (end of parashat Ekev):
"You have failed to conquer what is near your palace -
and you are going to conquer outside your land?! It is therefore forbidden to
eat before praying in the morning. Because eating is for the purpose of
elevating the sparks that are in the food; and before prayer, one is not in a
position to do so. For how can he elevate the food when he himself is still tied
below. It is only through prayer - which is called a time of war in the Zohar -
that divinity is drawn upon the soul through the eighteen blessings of the
Standing Prayer, in which one says, "blessed are You G-d..." [the Hebrew word for
"blessing" meaning "draw down" as well] - only then is one able to eat and
thereby elevate the food. As the Talmud says:
"The verse begins with the Altar and ends with the Table." | | " One brings atonement through the table..." | | |
[This quote is from Berachot 55a, citing
Ezekiel 41:22: "The altar was three cubits tall...And he said to me: "This is the
table that is before G-d." The Talmud cites the verse to indicate that as long
as the Temple stood, the altar brought atonement. Once the Temple was destroyed,
one brings atonement through the table - inviting and serving the poor at one's
table. The Alter Rebbe is using the expression to mean that the altar - prayer -
must precede the table - eating.]
How then can it be said that Aaron, who is the one who
eats - and thereby elevates - the offering, and thus must be fully refined
himself - needs himself to bring an offering, implying that he is need of
elevation?
This is what the Midrash means in comparing this verse
to Samson's riddle: How is it that the eater (relating to the "lion",
"Aaron") becomes the food (relating to "honey", i.e. needs refinement
through an offering)? The answer can be found in the final words of the phrase:
"on the day that he was anointed". In order to draw the spiritual energy of this
anointment - sacred oil (in Hebrew, "shemen mishchat kodesh"), a
double expression of transcendence - Aaron had to reach a new level of
refinement (similar to the second refinement that the souls will undergo in the
future). [Adapted from Likutei Torah of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi and a Maamar
from the Lubavitcher Rebbe called "V'achaltem" 5747]
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