In the previous section we saw that even the lightest of the light, the kal shebekalim, is ready to give up his life for the sanctity of Hashem's Name. In this section we will see how that fact becomes an argument that every single person can put to his own heart, and why "the level of the beinoni is the level of every man" - and, on the other side, which level is not demanded of the beinoni at all.
Even a person who is a kal shebekalim: the moment he reaches a situation where the yetzer hara can no longer seduce him and confuse him with the claim that "nothing really happened," he stops short and says: I do not want to be cut off from the Almighty. So it turns out that even the lightest of the light does not want to be disconnected from Hashem. He disconnects himself right and left only because he is not paying attention and does not think that he is disconnecting; but the moment he becomes aware that this is a question of connection or disconnection, he too does not want to be cut off.
If so, says the beinoni to himself: am I worse than the kal shebekalim? If he, the moment he is aware that this is a question of connection or disconnection, is prepared to pay for that connection even with his life, then I will not be less than he is. I too am prepared to stop myself, because I do not want to be cut off.
And more than that: the kal shebekalim does not know the truth. He imagines that the disconnection is created only at that final question of mesirus nefesh, and in all the rest of the 613 mitzvos it seems to him that nothing has happened. I, by contrast, am not confused. I know the truth, that every sin is a disconnection. And if the kal shebekalim is ready to give up his life at that red line of mesirus nefesh for kiddush Hashem, then I am ready to give up my life over one small thought that is not in accordance with Hashem's will.
This is the argument the beinoni says to his heart, and this is what will hold him up so that he does not fall. And if he has thought this through and nonetheless fell, then he is worse even than the kal shebekalim, and there is nothing more to add here. For a normal human being does not want to be cut off.
In the Alter Rebbe's words: "ואפילו קל שבקלים יכול למסור נפשו על קדושת ה'" (even the lightest of the light can give up his life for the sanctity of Hashem's Name) - even a person on the very lowest level does not want to be severed from the Almighty; "ולא נופל אנכי ממנו בודאי" (and I am certainly not less than he is) - surely I am no worse than he: if the kal shebekalim is ready to die for kiddush Hashem, shall I not summon the courage to overcome and not fail?
And why, then, does the kal shebekalim not withstand the test all the time? "אלא שנכנס בו רוח שטות" (it is only that a spirit of folly has entered into him), and this spirit of folly confuses him in two matters:
"ונדמה לו שבעבירה זו עודנו ביהדותו ואין נשמתו מובדלת מאלקי ישראל" (it seems to him that with this sin he still remains within his Jewishness and his soul is not separated from the G-d of Israel) - the spirit of folly soothes him and tells him that nothing has happened, that his soul is connected and everything is fine, and it paves the road for him to carry on as if all were in order.
"וגם שוכח אהבתו להשם המסותרת בלבו" (and he also forgets his love of Hashem that is hidden in his heart) - the confusion is so great that he forgets that there is within him a love for the Creator of the world, and he does not notice that he is acting against Hashem's will.
To this the beinoni responds: "אבל אני אינני רוצה להיות שוטה כמותו לכפור האמת" (but I do not want to be a fool like him and deny the truth) - I am not foolish as he is. He pays attention only at the one mitzvah of "I am Hashem your G-d" and "you shall have no other gods before Me," whereas I pay attention also at "honor your father," also at "remember the Shabbos day," and in every utterance and in every detail - because it is all one and the same matter. That is the whole difference between him and me: how far one extends the principle. But if he is prepared to give up his life, I too am prepared to give up mine.
And this is also the conclusion of the very first sentence of the chapter: "the level of the beinoni is the level of every man" - every person can say this argument to his own heart, and therefore every person has the strength to hold his ground on this line of the beinoni and not to fail.
"מה שאין כן בדבר המסור ללב" (which is not so with a matter that is entrusted to the heart). But to uproot the yetzer hara from the heart, so that a person should have no cravings whatsoever, that he be completely neutralized and not even need to contend with all these arguments, that is not the level of every man, and not everyone can stand there. "דהיינו שיהא הרע מאוס מאוד בלב ושנאוי בתכלית שנאה" (namely, that evil be utterly repulsive in the heart and hated with a complete hatred) - to be on that level of hatred of evil, like a complete tzaddik; "או אפילו שלא בתכלית שנאה" (or even not with a complete hatred), like a tzaddik who is not yet complete - "הנה זה אי אפשר שיהיה באמת לאמיתו אלא על ידי גודל ותוקף האהבה לה' בבחינת אהבה בתענוגים להתענג על ה' מעין עולם הבא" (this cannot truly and genuinely come about except through the greatness and intensity of the love of Hashem, on the level of "love of delights," to delight in Hashem with a taste of the World to Come).
A person for whom evil is genuinely repulsive is already living in the World to Come and tasting it while still here in this world - and this does not belong to every man, but to tzaddikim alone. And why do they arrive there? Because from the outset the Almighty formed them with the potential to reach it. Not everyone can reach it, and therefore it is also not demanded of everyone.
"ועל זה אמרו רז"ל" (and concerning this our Sages said) - concerning this level, of love of Hashem in delights, and out of it an absolute hatred of evil, our Sages said: "עולמך תראה בחייך כו'" (may you see your world in your lifetime), that he merited to see his World to Come in his own lifetime and to live in Gan Eden while still in this world. This is a rare thing, "ואין כל כל אדם זוכה לזה" (and not every person merits this) - to taste in this world the true delight of Gan Eden, "כי זהו כעין קבול שכר" (for this is something of the nature of receiving reward) - one who already in this world lives with a true love of G-dliness, with love and delights, has in effect already received the reward for his service and has moved to another level.
Why does the Alter Rebbe expand here on the subject of tzaddikim, which is not part of the discussion of the beinoni? Because in these chapters he begins to answer the questions he raised in chapter one. In chapter thirteen we saw his answer regarding the "rasha," and here he comes to answer a further question. In chapter one he brought the words of Iyov, "Master of the world, You created tzaddikim, You created reshaim," and the difficulty was raised: the Gemara says that with regard to the soul, before it descends into the body, it is determined in advance whether it will be wise or foolish, strong or weak, poor or rich - but "tzaddik or rasha it did not say," that is not decided in advance. If so, how can Iyov say "You created tzaddikim," when it is not decided in advance who will be a tzaddik? This is a contradiction.
Here the Alter Rebbe leads us to the answer. "Tzaddik or rasha it did not say" means that the Almighty does not decree in advance that this particular person will only keep mitzvos and never sin, for were He to decree so He would be stripping him of the power of choice, whereas free choice is given to every person (and without it a person would be a kind of "robot"). But although choice is given to all, and each one can do mitzvos and each one can do transgressions, the Almighty did create souls that possess the potential and the capacity to reach the state of tzaddikim - and that is "You created tzaddikim."
And there are those in whom it is evident from birth, like Moshe Rabbeinu, of whom it is said that "the whole house was filled with light," and as the saying goes, "bugin bugin miktafei yedia," that a gourd is recognized from its stalk - the wise and the righteous are recognizable from childhood. Yet not in every person born as a tzaddik is it apparent to all eyes: one who is himself a tzaddik can identify who the tzaddik is, but the surrounding world does not necessarily notice. In any case, the potential of "You created tzaddikim" is planted in him from the very start.
And this is the conclusion of the line: "כי זהו כעין קיבול שכר, וכדכתיב 'עבודת מתנה אתן את כהונתכם' וגו' כמו שכתוב במקום אחר" (for this is something of the nature of receiving reward, as it is written, "I give your priesthood as a service of gift," etc., as is explained elsewhere) - the service of the kohanim in the Beis Hamikdash is not merely a technical labor of sprinkling the blood and the rest of the rites. As the Zohar says, the kohen's service is an inner service, a service of infinite love for the Almighty. The kohen stands on a lofty level and has a revealed love of Hashem (and here too there is a hierarchy: ordinary kohanim and the Kohen Gadol). And kohanim are born kohanim; of this it is said, "I give your priesthood as a service of gift" - the kehunah is given as a gift from Above, and it cannot be bought with money.
[There is a story of a man who came to the rav to purchase the kehunah with money. The rav told him: it is impossible. He thought the rav was asking him to double the sum, and added: I will pay more, I want to be a kohen. He kept raising the offer, until the rav asked him: why do you want this so badly? He answered: my father was a kohen and my grandfather was a kohen, I want to be a kohen too!... But the kehunah cannot be acquired and cannot be bought. One is born into it.]
And accordingly, the level of the tzaddik too is a gift from Above, and this is "You created tzaddikim." "ולכן אמר איוב 'בראת צדיקים', כדאיתא בתיקונים" (and therefore Iyov said "You created tzaddikim," as it is stated in the Tikkunim) - as is written in Tikkunei Zohar, "שיש בנשמות ישראל כמה מיני מדרגות ובחי'" (that among the souls of Israel there are many kinds of levels and categories) - from the outset, before the soul descends into the world, its spiritual potential is set. And here the Alter Rebbe cites some of the categories listed there: "חסידים גבורים המתגברים על יצרם מארי תורה נביאים כו' צדיקים כו' ע"ש" (chassidim; mighty ones who overcome their evil inclination; masters of Torah; prophets, etc.; tzaddikim, etc., see there). It is explained that this list encompasses all the middos, corresponding to the sefiros and the seven emotive attributes:
Chassidim - corresponding to the attribute of chesed.
Giborim, the mighty who overcome their yetzer - corresponding to the attribute of gevurah.
Marei Torah, masters of Torah - corresponding to tiferes, which is the attribute of truth.
Nevi'im, prophets - corresponding to netzach and hod.
Tzaddikim - corresponding to the attribute of yesod.
In any event, what is relevant to our subject is this: tzaddikim are a type of soul that possesses from the outset the capacity to arrive at a state in which evil is truly repulsive to the heart and there is a love of G-dliness in delights.
To summarize: in this section we learned the argument that every person can say to his own heart. If even the lightest of the light is ready to give up his life rather than be cut off from the Almighty, and his whole deficiency is the spirit of folly that makes him imagine that with this sin he still remains within his Jewishness and that makes him forget his hidden love - then one who knows the truth, that every sin is a disconnection, is ready to give up his life even over a single thought that is not according to Hashem's will. This is "the level of the beinoni is the level of every man." Uprooting evil from the heart, however, so that it be utterly repulsive and hated, is possible only through a love of delights that is a taste of the World to Come, and that belongs to tzaddikim alone. With this, the question from chapter one on Iyov's words "You created tzaddikim" is answered: the Almighty does not decree a person's deeds in advance, but there are souls created with the potential for this level, as a "service of gift" and as brought in Tikkunei Zohar.
In the next section we will deal with what is demanded of the beinoni, the path that "every person should draw after," to be careful in thought, in speech and in deed.