In the previous lesson we stopped at the end of chapter 44, on daf 64a (page 127), at the passage beginning with the words «ולא עוד». Let us first review briefly what we learned, and from there continue on.
In this chapter we learned about two levels of love that exist naturally in every single Jew, and in which the two categories of ahavas olam and ahavah rabbah are blended together. The first level is called the love of «נפשי אויתיך» (my soul desired You), and the higher level is called «כברא דאשתדל בתר אבוה ואימיה» (like a son who exerts himself after his father and mother). We discussed both of them, and the difference between them, at length in the previous lessons.
The blending in them lies in two aspects. On the one hand, these loves exist in the very nature of a Jew and do not depend on a person's avodah at all, and in that respect they are like ahavah rabbah, which comes as a gift from Above. On the other hand, it is up to the person to contemplate them, to speak about them and to accustom his mouth and tongue to them, and then the love will be aroused and come out into revelation within him.
We also learned in the earlier chapters that a love born out of the power of contemplation is more elevated than a love that comes naturally: the intellectual love ascends to the world of Beriah, while the natural love ascends to the world of Yetzirah. That is where we concluded the previous lesson.
The Alter Rebbe now adds that the quality of these loves is greater still: «ולא עוד אלא שב' בחינות אהבות אלו הנזכרות לעיל הן כלולות מן בחינת אהבה רבה» (and moreover, these two categories of love mentioned above include within them the category of ahavah rabbah). Since these loves are embedded in the very nature of every Jew, they include within them the aspect of ahavah rabbah, which is greater and loftier than the intellectual love and fear that result from the contemplation of the mind. Therefore, even though the avodah of one who arouses the natural love ascends to the world of Yetzirah, and the intellectual love ascends to the world of Beriah, nevertheless, since these loves include ahavah rabbah within them, they belong even to the world of Atzilus. And the love «אשר האהבה נקראה לעיל בשם 'אהבת עולם'» (which was called above by the name ahavas olam) is the intellectual love.
«רק שאף על פי כן» (yet nevertheless): despite all these superior qualities of the natural love that exists in every single person, a person should not content himself with merely arousing the love already within him and tell himself, «It is enough for me to be accustomed to this matter with my mouth and tongue.» Rather, «צריך לטרוח בשכלו ולהשיג ולהגיע גם לבחינת אהבת עולם הנזכרת לעיל, הבאה מהתבונה ודעת בגדולת ה'» (he must labor with his intellect to grasp and attain also the level of ahavas olam mentioned above, which comes from understanding and knowledge of the greatness of G-d), as we learned in chapter 43 and in the chapters preceding it. A person must exert himself in his intellectual grasp and contemplate those matters he is capable of comprehending, until they arouse in him a sense of closeness, feeling, attraction, enthusiasm and warmth for matters of holiness:
The greatness of G-d and the wonder of the Divine.
«מה רבו מעשיך ה'» (how manifold are Your works, O G-d).
The renewal of creation at every single moment.
Hashgachah pratis, individual Divine providence.
[Avraham Avinu indeed reached the loftiest levels through the power of his contemplation, but here we are speaking of levels that are within the reach of every person.]
At first glance one may ask: what is the advantage of a love that a person toiled for and reached by his own power, over arousing the great love that already exists within him as a gift? With this gift most of the road has already been paved for him, and all he need do is awaken what is already there; whereas through his own contemplation he may never reach such intensity at all.
To this the Alter Rebbe answers: the labor of the intellect is needed «כדי להגדיל מדורת אש האהבה ברשפי אש ושלהבת עזה ולהב העולה השמימה» (in order to enlarge the blaze of the fire of love with flashes of fire and a mighty flame, a blaze rising heavenward).
Consider two people:
The first is told that he is already registered in the system, he already has his ticket, he is already inside and on the list, and all that remains is for him to reflect on what he has received, to speak about it and to feel his connection to it. Even if he loves and treasures his standing, he will not arouse it with enthusiasm and with a going out of his limits, since he knows the thing is already in his hand.
The second is told that there is a wonderful circle that he is not part of, and perhaps he will merit to enter it. He will begin to study about it, to contemplate it, to understand its preciousness and the wonder of it, and when it is evident that he longs for it with all his might, perhaps they will bring him inside. His love for the matter will be a fire: he understands that it is not in his hand, and therefore he will yearn and do everything to attain it.
So too in the nimshal. When you tell a Jew that by his very nature, as a child of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, there is within him a love for the Creator, whether on the level of «נפשי אויתיך» or on the level of «כברא דאשתדל», and all he need do is arouse what is hidden within him, speak about it and contemplate it, then even when love is aroused in him, it will not be a love of fire. For the Holy One, blessed be He, is close to him, He is his very soul and life and He is his father, and the whole matter is found within him. His attraction is like the attraction of a son who loves his father standing right beside him, not like that of a son whose father is far from him and who seeks with all his strength to reach him.
This is the difference between water and fire. Water is the mashal for a love that flows quietly and simply, while fire is enthusiasm and vitality. Therefore a person must not content himself with the natural love and its arousal, but must labor with his intellect and contemplate deeper matters, and this contemplation will enlarge the blaze of the fire of love with such intensity «עד שמים רבים לא יוכלו לכבות וכו'» (until many waters cannot extinguish it, etc.). «Many waters» is a term for the worries of parnassah and all sorts of worldly matters, and even they will not succeed in extinguishing this feeling, for it is like a fire that lets nothing stand in its way.
In summary: in this section we learned that the two categories of natural love, «נפשי אויתיך» and «כברא דאשתדל», include within them the aspect of ahavah rabbah, which is greater and loftier than the intellectual love and fear, and in that respect they belong even to the world of Atzilus. Nevertheless, a person must labor with his intellect and attain also the level of ahavas olam that comes from understanding and knowledge of the greatness of the Holy One, blessed be He, for it is specifically one's own contemplation that enlarges the blaze of the fire of love with flashes of fire and a flame rising heavenward. The natural love resembles water flowing quietly, while the love that comes from intellectual toil is a fire that many waters, the worries of parnassah and the affairs of the world, cannot extinguish.
In the next section we will continue with the words of the Alter Rebbe and delve further into the explanation of the superiority of the love that comes through the power of contemplation.