"Room" one hundred and twenty in the palace of Hayom Yom.
Shabbos Parshas Parah, 20 Adar II, 5703.
The daily teaching is divided into three parts: a practice specifically related to this Shabbos, the daily study portions, and the teaching.
The first practice relates to the haftarah. On this Shabbos we are in one of the four special parshiyos - Parshas Parah, during which we read the haftarah from chapter 36 in Yechezkel. In this haftarah, there is a difference between the Ashkenazic and Sephardic customs: Ashkenazim custom is to read the entire chapter 36 until its end, which concludes with the words "veyadu ki ani Hashem"; whereas Sephardim conclude two verses earlier, with the words "dibarti ve'asisi". And the emphasis here is that our custom for the haftarah follows the Sephardic custom, "Haftarah: Vayehi devar Hashem etc. dibarti ve'asisi", to read the chapter only until the words "dibarti ve'asisi".
The second point emphasized here is that "we say Av Harachamim". This was also discussed previously, on 13 Adar II regarding Shabbos Zachor - that there are various communities that do not recite prayers for the departed on the Shabbosos of the Four Parshiyos, and therefore do not say "Av Harachamim". However, our custom is that even though it is Shabbos Parshas Parah, and although there are those who do not do so, we do indeed say "Av Harachamim". These are the two references to the special custom for this Shabbos.
Study portions: We are on the final day of Parshas Tzav - Chumash, Tzav, Shevi'i, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, for the 20th of the month, we say from chapter 97 through chapter 103 inclusive.
Tanya, on this day we conclude chapter 37. The daily portion is from the words "Uvazeh yuvan" until the end of the chapter, on page 23.
The source of the daily teaching is a letter from the Rebbe Rayatz from 23 Sivan 5697. The teaching opens with something the Tzemach Tzedek told his son, the Rebbe Maharash - something related to him by his grandfather, the Alter Rebbe. In the teaching itself we see a special reference, in the name of the Maggid of Mezritch, to the altar in the Beis Hamikdash regarding avodas Hashem. We will learn what the altar is, and we will see that there are two things upon it: the sacrifice offered on the altar, and the fire with which the sacrifice is burned. And we will see that in the fire itself there are two levels: fire that comes from below, which is a mitzvah to bring "from commoners" (humanly produced), and fire that descends from above. These are the concepts we will address in the daily teaching. And of course, the matter is also connected to the parshah of the week, Parshas Tzav, which discusses the fire on the altar.
Let us read the language of the teaching: "Rabbeinu Hazaken related one of the teachings that my master the Maggid told me during yechidus". In the original letter it is recounted that the Alter Rebbe traveled to the Maggid of Mezritch in the month of Iyar 5524, and stayed there for about five months, until after Sukkos. The Maggid would deliver general divrei Torah to all the students, but there were divrei Torah that he said personally and in yechidus to the Alter Rebbe. And here we see one of the teachings that the Maggid told the Alter Rebbe personally - likely because this is a matter specifically related to the Alter Rebbe's approach, to the teachings of Chabad.
And so he says: "There was a teaching on the verse 'A constant fire shall be kept burning on the altar, it shall not be extinguished'", which is a verse from Parshas Tzav. What is the meaning of "a constant fire shall be kept burning on the altar"? There is a commandment here to kindle a fire on the altar, that the kohanim had to ensure every day to bring two logs of wood and ignite a fire on the altar.
And this is what he says: "That even though the fire descends from above" - although there was a constant descending Divine fire, as recounted in the Gemara, and from a chassidus perspective the intention is "in isarusa dile'eila", a Divine awakening initiated from above - despite all this, "it is a mitzvah to bring from a commoner", meaning that regardless of the fire descending from heaven, the kohanim are commanded every day to kindle a fire using two logs of wood that they bring.
And if a fire descends from above, why is the fire from below necessary? To this he says that it is quite the opposite: The fire from above will come precisely because the fire is kindled from below. In his words: "Because through an isarusa dilesata comes an isarusa dile'eila" - because the Jew awakens the inspiration from below, he merits a great revelation from above. So too here: Because he kindles the fire from below, they merit that a fire descends from above. "Because spirit brings spirit and draws down spirit" - the spirit from below brings and draws down a spirit from above. And as he elaborates: The spirit from below causes the supernal spirit to come. And what are the two expressions "brings spirit" and "draws down spirit"? Not only does it "bring spirit" - Divine power and strength from above - but rather "spirit from below brings spirit from above and draws down spirit from higher and higher", meaning the drawing down of the light from above goes far beyond the proportional value of the person's investment; everything begins with him, and the continuation is tremendous.
"And it is a positive commandment to kindle fire upon the altar" - this is the conclusion of the point, that it is a mitzvah to bring "from a commoner", as we said, that there is a positive commandment that every day they kindle and make a fire. But where is the fire transferred? Onto the altar. There is a combination of two things here - the altar, the sacrifice, and the fire that is brought upon the altar. How does everything connect together? What is the altar, and what is sacrificed upon it? "The altar is 'when a man among you brings an offering'" as stated in the previous parshah, Parshas Vayikra at the beginning of the book: "Adam ki yakriv mikem". The altar is the place where a person brings the sacrifice, and there is the well-known precise reading that "adam ki yakriv mikem" does not only mean to offer a physical animal, but rather to sacrifice the nefesh habehamis of the person - for it does not say "adam mikem ki yakriv" (a man of you who will sacrifice), but rather "adam ki yakriv mikem" (a man who will sacrifice of yourselves).
To this they add: In Parshas Vayikra it spoke about "adam ki yakriv mikem", and Parshas Tzav adds that after you know that you must sacrifice your nefesh habehamis, you must bring fire. "And the sacrifice itself is not sufficient", and one should not be satisfied with merely offering the nefesh habehamis, but rather "you must pass a fire over the sacrifice which is from you" - that the avodas Hashem should be with enthusiasm and warmth, and not just the act that you did, but also the warmth, the enthusiasm and the fire. This is a very important component in the matter.
Now the Maggid concludes his explanation. Until now he only addressed the words "A constant fire", and explained the concept of the altar; and what is the conclusion "it shall not be extinguished"? The simple meaning is that the fire must never go out. But here the Maggid provides an inner explanation: "And this fire shall not be extinguished (lo sichbeh) - meaning it extinguishes the "lo" (the negative)". "Lo" is a term for negative and undesirable matters; and if a person ensures that there is fire and warmth, it will automatically extinguish the "lo" and bring down all undesirable matters, and the Divine enthusiasm will be with you always. This is the teaching that the Maggid told the Alter Rebbe.
[Before we continue: In a sichah in 5737 the Rebbe cited this entire teaching, and said that the directive from this - that the "lo sichbeh, it extinguishes the 'lo'" - is that a person should not suffice with studying chassidus by himself alone, but rather there must be hafotzas hamaayanos to others as well. When one influences others, it causes the enthusiasm to be much more active, and automatically accomplishes the "lo sichbeh". And the Rebbe said there that the power to do this was given by the Alter Rebbe to every chossid in an unlimited manner, since "whoever gives, gives with a generous eye"; this is not commensurate with the person's abilities, but rather he receives it according to the abilities of the giver, and in this matter the Alter Rebbe gives tremendously. The Rebbe also closely analyzes the word "constant" in the verse "A constant fire shall be kept burning on the altar": A person must maintain the enthusiasm constantly, for if he allows himself breaks, during the breaks a renewed coldness of the "lo" enters, which makes the continuation of the avodah more difficult; but when it is a "constant fire", and he maintains the enthusiasm constantly, he does not allow these cracks to open a path for coldness].
Let us continue the teaching that the Maggid told the Alter Rebbe: "My master told me this teaching ten times" - during that period when the Alter Rebbe went in to him, the Maggid told it to him ten times. It is not noted whether he repeated it ten times on that same occasion, or if over time he told it to him ten times, but he repeated it ten times. And why? "In order to engrave it into the ten faculties of my soul" - each time he engraved it into an additional faculty of the soul, until all ten faculties of the soul would be permeated with this message.
"And he said to me" - the Maggid said to the Alter Rebbe: "You are my student, you are in need of the constant fire". For he spoke to him personally, in a teaching said to him in yechidus and not to all the students. And why do you need this "constant fire"? "Because you have been tasked to extinguish the great 'lo' of the misnagdim" - there is a great "lo" that you must extinguish, and since you will contend with a great "lo", you are given the power that all ten faculties of your soul will be engraved with this message, so that you will succeed in this. And not only to extinguish the "lo", but, as he concludes, even to transform it into good.
"You will extinguish the 'lo' and Hashem, blessed be He, will transform the 'lo' into a "hen" (yes)" - that there will be a complete nullification of the negative side, that there will be no opposition whatsoever, but on the contrary, the misnagdim themselves will transform into a "yes" and will themselves be the ones studying, spreading and engaging in the inner dimensions of Torah, until this matter will conquer the entire world.
In conclusion, we will see in an interesting way the connection to the continuation of the books of the Yad Hachazakah of the Rambam. We are currently in Sefer Zeraim; after Hilchos Kilayim and Hilchos Matnos Aniyim, we now reach Hilchos Maaser. In Hilchos Maaser there is the verse "Aser te'aser es kol tevuas zar'echa". There is an interesting maamar of the Rebbe, dibur hamaschil "Aser te'aser", on Parshas Re'eh 5719, which explains the connection of "aser te'aser": Chazal say "Aser bishvil shetisasher" (Tithe so that you may become rich), and it is explained that the maaser is the final part, the tenth - the tenth of malchus, the smallest part; but when one works with the lowest faculty of the soul, the faculty of malchus, "te'aser" - this impacts all the ten, and shines into all the middos up to the highest. And not only that, but "so that you may become rich", which draws down even more than this.
If so, there is a hint here to the concept that the Maggid drew down into all ten faculties - which relates to Hilchos Maaseros - that all ten faculties of the soul will be permeated with this message of "A constant fire shall be kept burning on the altar, it shall not be extinguished". [Afterward there is a conclusion to this teaching, how the Tzemach Tzedek reacted to the words, but we will see this with God's help in tomorrow's teaching, 21 Adar II.]