Honoring the Masculine and Feminine

The first time the Ten Commandments are recorded, [the commandment to keep the Shabbat] is phrased: "Remember…", and the words "as [G‑d, your Lord,] commanded you" are not included.

The Ten Commandments are recorded twice in the Torah. The first time is in the historical context of when they were given at Mt. Sinai, (Ex. 20:2-14) and the second time is in the context of Moses' review of the Exodus just before He passes away at the end of the forty-year trek in the desert (Deut. 5:6-18). These two versions of the Ten Commandments are largely the same, but there are some slight differences, which allude to various things.

The two versions of the first verse of the commandment to keep the Shabbat compare as follows:

Similarly, [the commandment] to honor parents does not include the words "in order that it be well with you, as [G‑d, your Lord,] commanded you".

The next commandment after the commandment to keep the Shabbat is the commandment to honor parents. These two versions of this commandment compare as follows:

To explain: These two commandments, observing the Shabbat and honoring parents, are equivalent. The [latter] is honoring one's bodily parents, while the [former] is honoring one's spiritual parents, i.e. Zeir Anpin and Nukva, who are referred to as the "two Shabbats" in the Sages' statement that "if the Jewish people would keep two Shabbats properly, [they would be redeemed immediately]." (Shabbat 118b)

Inasmuch as every Jewish soul is produced by the union of Zeir Anpin and Nukva, these partzufim may be considered our spiritual "parents".

The Sages' statement that we would be redeemed if we would keep two Shabbats is usually understood to mean two Shabbats in a row. Elsewhere, however, the Arizal, however, comments that the mystical meaning of this statement is that we must keep the two aspects of the Shabbat, the feminine and masculine aspects, which are the Shabbat night and the Shabbat day. Thus, the two Shabbats are clearly Zeir Anpin and Nukva, and by "honoring" them, that is, observing the Shabbat in accordance with its mystical dynamics, we fulfill the commandment to honor our "parents" spiritually, and will be redeemed.

This is the mystical meaning of the verse: "Everyone must fear his mother and his father, and keep My Shabbats." (Lev. 19:3) [The fact that the Shabbat is here referred to in the plural alludes to] these two Shabbats, which correspond to the father and the mother.

Now, there are two aspects of [observing the] Shabbat. The first is to observe the [laws of] the Shabbat in all their details, in order to fulfill the commandment that He (may He be blessed) commanded us, and not for any other motive. The second is to rest from work on the Shabbat because we enjoy the fact that we rest from our work.

You know the Sages' explanation of [the liturgical passage,] "Let Moses rejoice in the portion he was given", that Moses asked Pharaoh to grant the Jewish people one day off a week from making bricks in order that they have strength to produce more on the other six days. Pharaoh agreed, and gave them the Shabbat off. (Shemot Rabba 1:32; Midrash Tehillim 119)

This, then, is what the Torah intends [to imply] by saying "You shall speak to the children of Israel…": [G‑d tells Moses,] "You, [Moses,] who asked Pharaoh to give them a day of rest, i.e. the Shabbat, must now yourself go tell them that from now on they must not observe the Shabbat for their own benefit, but rather because these are My Shabbats. I am the one obligating them to observe this commandment; therefore, they should observe it only for My sake, and not for their own." This is why the word "But" is prefaced to this verse. It implies that they should observe [the Shabbat] only because they are "My Shabbats, for it is a sign…to know that I, G‑d, sanctify" them, and not for their own benefit or enjoyment.

There is, of course, nothing wrong with enjoying observing G‑d's commandments, but this motivation must always be held in its proper perspective. We must always observe all of G‑d's commandments unconditionally, as an expression of our unconditional love for Him. As Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi put it: "If G‑d had commanded us to simply chop wood [for no apparent reason], we would chop wood with the utmost enthusiasm." Once we have committed ourselves to observing the commandments unconditionally, there is also room for appreciating their tangible benefits.

As I said, the plural "My Shabbats" alludes to Zeir Anpin and Nukva. The first [version of the Ten] Commandments does not include the words "as [G‑d, your Lord,] commanded you", in order that it allude to the first reason [for observing the Shabbat], the one that includes the reason of [the Jewish People's] benefit. This [aspect of] the commandment is the one that our human logic can relate to, and it [i.e. our logic] decrees that [we should observe the Shabbat] "in order that your ox and your donkey [rest]…". (Ex. 23:12)

In the second [version of the Ten] Commandments, the Torah mentions the second reason, which is [solely] in order to fulfill the Creator's command, this being the meaning of the phrase "as G‑d, your Lord, commanded you".

This explains also why [in the second version of the Ten Commandments, the commandment to keep the Shabbat] begins "Guard the Shabbat day to keep it holy." The second [version of the Ten] Commandments is from the female principle, which is alluded to by the word "guard", as is known. (Zohar III:224a)

The Hebrew word for "remember", "zachor", is related to the word for "male" ("zachor"). "Remembering" is the active aspect of observing the Shabbat, and refers to the active declaration of the day's holiness made at its beginning (in Kiddush) and end (in Havdalah). "Guarding" is the passive aspect of observing the Shabbat, and refers to the passive cessation from work, which opens us up to the heightened divine consciousness informing reality on the Shabbat.

[The feminine principle] now [i.e. in the second version of the Ten Commandments,] tells the Jewish people: "Guard the Shabbat day, as Zeir Anpin - alluded to by the words 'G‑d, your Lord' - has already commanded you previously, in the first [version of the Ten] Commandments."

The name for G‑d in the phrase "G‑d, your Lord" is the divine name Havayah, which is associated with Zeir Anpin.

Now, there are also two reasons for [observing the commandment of] honoring parents. The first is because it is a commandment dictated by human logic, namely, that a child must honor his father and mother because they created him, brought him into the world, and ceaselessly exerted themselves on his behalf. The second is in order to allude to His commandment to honor our spiritual father and mother, i.e. the Holy One, blessed be He, and the Community of Israel, that is, Zeir Anpin and Nukva.

The Sages typically refer to G‑d as "the Holy One, blessed be He". In Kabbala, this appellation is said to refer to Zeir Anpin, which is "holy", i.e. "removed" from the world, relative to Nukva, which descends into the lower realms, as we know. The Sages often refer to the Divine Presence, or the Shechina, as "the Community of Israel" (Knesset Yisrael), indicating that it is the collective origin of all Jewish souls, the womb from which they emerge as they descend from Atzilut into the lower worlds.

In the first [version of the Ten] Commandments, the Torah mentions the first reason, by saying "in order that your days be long", referring to the increase of the six extremities [of Zeir Anpin], which are called "the six days of Creation".

The six "extremities" of Zeir Anpin are the six sefirot that metamorphose into this partzuf: chesed, gevura, tiferet, netzach, hod, and yesod. They are called "extremities" since they are associated with the six directions of the three dimensions of space. These six sefirot are associated as well with the six days of Creation. The association with the dimensions of space and the days of Creation (i.e. time) alludes to that aspect of Zeir Anpin that forms the conceptual framework for the physical world. In other words, by keeping the commandment to honor one's physical parents, we increase the life-force reaching this world. This divine beneficence is expressed in this world as long life.

But the second [version of the Ten Commandments] refers to the proper, spiritual reason for performing this commandment, which produces an abundance of divine beneficence, and therefore two types of reward are mentioned. The first is "in order that your days be long", referring to the increase of the six extremities, as mentioned. In addition, [there is the reward of] "in order that it be well with you", which refers to the influx of higher mentality. Mentality is alluded to by the word for "good" or "well" [in Hebrew, "tov"], as we have explained in our commentary on the phrase "who does good deeds of loving-kindness [chasadim tovim]" in the first blessing of the Standing Prayer. This indicates that performing this commandment for its spiritual motivation will cause one's intellect to mature, as well. This is why [in the context of this reason] it is written, "as G‑d [Havayah], your Lord, commanded you."

By observing this commandment on the spiritual level, honoring Zeir Anpin and Nukva by increasing divine consciousness in the world, we are rewarded in kind: we achieve a higher level of divine consciousness and spiritual maturity.

Another allusion to the above may be found in the fact that the word "et" alludes to an additional entity. The two words "et"in the verse "Honor your father and your mother" allude to your spiritual, supernal father and mother, i.e. Zeir Anpin and Nukva.

The Hebrew particle "et" is usually not translated into English and serves simply to indicate the direct object. However, the Sages often interpret its presence in verse to indicate an allusion to something besides the explicit object of the verb. Here, the "et" before the word for "father" alludes to Zeir Anpin and the "et" before the word for "mother" alludes to Nukva.

[Translated and adapted by Moshe-Yaakov Wisnefsky from Likutei Torah and Shaar HaPesukim; subsequently published in "Apples From the Orchard." available at Kabbala Online Shop]

Reprinted with permission from Chabad of California. Copyright 2004 by Chabad of California, Inc. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this work or portions thereof, in any form, without permission, in writing, from Chabad of California, Inc.