Chapter Six Introduction In the last chapter the Rebbe explained that there are reasons for Israel’s faith: (a) The mazal dimension of the soul “sees” Divinity, and from this the mazal feeds the soul within the body with faith. (b) The revelation of the Essence of the Soul, which has an Essence Bond with the Essence of G-d. The Rebbe starts this chapter with establishing that a Jew’s self-sacrifice (primarily) comes from the faith that comes from the revelation of the Essence of the Soul. For sacrificing one’s self needs to come from a place that is of his Essence Beingness. Something external (i. e.
seeing something), regardless of how deep it touches (i. e. seeing), it isn't connected to one’s Essence Beingness.
With this we understand the flow of the Previous Rebbe’s mamor, how first the Previous Rebbe explains, (a) the concept of Moses being a “Faithful Shepherd” who feeds and sustains Israel’s faith, (b) and then he explains how this title and concept applies also to the “Moses of Each Generation”.
To understand this, the Rebbe is going to explain the difference between the two: Moses feeds and sustains the faith of Israel through giving Israel a “Da’as - Recognition and a Feel” in Divinity, which through this, Israel’s faith is internalized and digested Note: The intellect of Da’as is all about taking what Wisdom’s and Understanding’s intellectually grasp, and to internalize this into becoming an internal “Recognition and a Feel”, which then makes what one has intellectually grasped personal and one with it.
Thus, through Moses feeding and sustaining Israel’s faith with Da’as, Israel’s ‘encompassing’ faith, now becomes personal and one, meaning, “internalized” within Israel. The point being, that Moses’ primary focus is feeding Faith with Da’as, that the faith of Israel should be not only of (an external cause, of what) “Their Faith Saw”, but of their Essence, the Essence of their Soul. And as an outcome of feeding the encompassing faith of “Their Mazal Saw” with the Essence of the Soul, Moses is causing that the faith is internalized, and that the faith is now with Da’as.
However, by the Moses of Each Generation, when Israel are in a need of the power of Self-Sacrifice, this is the primary focus of the “Moses of Each Generation”, thus, in this situation it is more revealed within the “Moses of Each Generation” the concept of being a “Faithful Shepherd” (feeding the faith of Israel, that it be of the Essence of the Soul, internalized) than that of Moses, being the “Faithful Shepherd”, which the primary concept of a Faithful Shepherd is that the faith of Israel be of the revelation of the Essence of the Soul, and this is primarily through the service of self-sacrifice, which was by the (generation of) “Moses of Each Generation” more than it was by (generation of) Moses himself!
“ 6) And the concept is, that this which the faith of Israel is in a manner that he sacrifices himself for it (his faith), is (primarily) in the faith that comes from the Essence of the Soul.” The Rebbe is establishing a fundamental point of the mamor here: The power of having self-sacrifice for one’s faith can (primarily) only come from the faith that comes from the Essence of the Soul, which is the essence, the very beingness of the person.
Note: Elsewhere the Rebbe explains that one can only perform true (meaning, with no ulterior motive, neither one of fame or legacy, nor one of having a portion in the Garden of Eden) self-sacrifice when they see two choices (one of self-sacrifice, and one of compromising). It is only when one sees only one choice, that of self-sacrifice, that one can perform actual true self-sacrifice. And the reason to see only the choice of self-sacrifice, is because we are speaking of their very beingness, and there is no compromising one’s very beingness.
The Rebbe now explains why self-sacrifice can only come from the faith that comes from the Essence of the soul, and not from the “Their Mazal Saw”: “For the faith that comes from his seeing (‘Their Mazal Saw’), even though it is with great strength [as it is known that the authentication that comes from seeing is a greater authentication33].” The Rebbe acknowledges that the rule is (-Mechiltah D’Rabbi Yishmoel, Yitro 19:9) “There is no comparison of hearing to seeing”, meaning that the authentication of something that one saw is by him far greater than the authentication of something that he just heard about.
Thus, the faith that comes from what “Their Mazal Saw” is with a greater authentication by him. Nevertheless, what he “saw” is an external “something” that he saw, as is now deeply authenticated by him. However, for one to sacrifice his very life for that “something”, that “something” has to be of his very beingness! One sacrifices himself for his very beingness. For then, being any other way, other than his very beingness is impossible. --Note: The Rebbe explains elsewhere that if a person sees two choices (one being of self-sacrifice, and the other being of compromising) before him, then they will not be able to choose true self-sacrifice.
For true (meaning, with no ulterior motive of legacy, or even for receiving entrance to a greater the Garden of Eden) self-sacrifice can only be when they see no other choice, for they are being asked to compromise their very beingness. Thus: “And this which the faith of Israel is in a manner that he sacrifices himself for this (faith) is because his faith in Divinity is his very beingness, and therefore, it is impossible for him to denounce (his faith in G-d), Heven forfend.
Based on this, the Rebbe is going to now explain and validate what he said in the last chapter: In the previous paragraph we explained that: (a) Moses’ being called “Faithful Shepherd” is because he feeds and sustains the Faith of Israel that it should be of the revelation of the Essence of the Soul, and not of “Their Mazal Saw”, and that (b) for a Jew, “Sacrifices himself for it (his faith), is (primarily) in the faith that comes from the Essence of the Soul.
” “And in accordance to this (that self-sacrifice is from Israel’s faith that comes from the Essence of the Soul) we can explain that which is written in the (Previous Rebbe’s) mamor that this which Moses is a ‘Faithful Shepherd’ ((meaning) that he (Moses) feeds and sustains the faith (of Israel)) is also so concerning Israel’s Shepherds of every generation (the ‘manifestation of Moses of each generation’), which they strengthen the faith of Israel that they stand with self-sacrifice in their observance of Torah and Mitzvos.” With this the Rebbe is explaining the flow and order of the concepts of the Previous Rebbe’s mamor.
This which, after explaining the concept of Moses being a “Faithful Shepherd” the mamor then explains that this is also concerning the Moses of Each Generation, who they are the ones who strengthen the faith of Israel in the times of exile that they stand strong with self-sacrifice in their observance of Torah and Mitzvos.
The Rebbe is now going to explain this flow of concepts by explaining the difference between Moses being a “Faithful Shepherd” and the Moses of Each Generation being a “Faithful Shepherd”: “For seemingly, this which Moses feeds and sustains the faith (of Israel) is (as explained in many places34 and also in this mamor itself35) that through this that he (Moses) influences (flows, feeds) to Israel ‘Da’as’ (Knowledge: Recognition and ‘A Feeling For’) in Divinity, which through this the faith is internalized,” Moses, in Kabala, is the manifestation of the Emanation of Da’as.
There are entire series of mamorim that are dedicated to explaining what Da’as is. The Rebbe RaSHaB explains Da’as as a “Hakorah and Hargosha - ‘Recognition’ and a ‘Feeling For’”. This refers to the deepest intuition that comes from “binding one’s mind with a very firm, strong bond and firmly fixing one’s thought” and “he applies his Da’as and fixes his thought firmly and diligently on his understanding”. Thus, Da’as. on the one-hand is one of the Three Intellects, yet on the other-hand, it is the birth of Emotion Emanations. This is because in itself Da’as is something far superior to Intellect and to Emotions.