Mystical Forty-two Journeys

"These are the journeys of the children of Israel, who had left Egypt by their hosts, under the leadership of Moses and Aaron." (Num. 33:1)

There were forty-two journeys in all. My grandfather [the Baal Shem Tov] explained that they exist in the life of every human being, from the moment of birth until the day of death.

This can be understood as follows: When a person is born and leaves the womb, that corresponds to the exodus from Egypt. Afterward, he journeys from one place to another, until he reaches the Supernal Land of Life [the World to Come, corresponding to the Land of Israel]. Thus it is written: "At the word of G‑d they encamped and at the word of G‑d they traveled" (Num. 9:23), which correspond to constricted consciousness and expanded consciousness.

I also heard from a certain individual that the forty-two journeys correspond to the forty-two letter name of G‑d, which is counted from the first night of Passover until the festival of Shavuot, and is completed with the receiving of the Torah. And although there are forty-nine days in all, each week is a complete unit, with the root of them all being forty-two.

These journeys are recorded in the Torah in order to teach us the right path to follow in our lives, and that all of our journeys are holy and pure. Thus, I heard from my grandfather in the name of the Brit Menucha, that [the place] Kivrot HaTa'avah [literally "burials of lust"] (Num. 11:34) corresponds to the sefira of chochma, for they buried there the people who lusted. Meaning to say, when a person attains the level of chochma, he loses all his [material] desires in his great attachment to G‑d.

Now we can understand how all the journeys were holy or contained aspects of holiness and exalted levels. Tav'erah [another place, literally "Burning"] was surely a lofty aspect (Num. 11:3). However, the Israelites distorted the nature of these places through their deeds, as it says about Kivrot HaTa'avah: "And [Moses] named the place Kivrot HaTa'avah, for they buried there the people that craved" (Num. 11:34). This applies as well to the other encampments, such as Tav'erah: And [Moses] named the place 'Tav'erah' ['Burning'], for G‑d's fire had burned them. Yet, had they not distorted these places, each one would have revealed its hidden light.

This is the meaning of "These are the journeys of the children of Israel…. And Moses recorded their goings forth, stage by stage, at G‑d's command; these are their journeys according to their decampments" (Num. 33:1): Moses wrote down the supernal significance of each journey, from the mother's womb until the Land of Life, so that each person should know the path to follow according to G‑d's word. However, "…these are their journeys according to their decampments." (Num. 33:1); that is, this is how they themselves distorted those encampments with their actions, for the end of the verse does not say: "at G‑d's command".

Understand this! And may G‑d teach us His straight and true path. Amen!

(Degel Machane Ephraim, parashat Masai)
Reprinted with permission from www.baalshemtov.org