Sunday, February 28, 2010

Mishpatim – Killing the Killer

If one strikes a man so that he dies, the one who killed must also be killed.” - Literally “killed, he must be killed.”

This is a hint to Cain who killed Abel - for when Abel was later reincarnated as Moses, he was called “a man,” as in “...this man Moses...” First time Cain was reincarnated as an Egyptian, whom Moses killed, and the second time Cain was reincarnated as Korah, and again Moses killed him.

But if he did not lie in wait, only God caused this to happen through him, then you will separate for yourself a place of refuge.”

God told Moses to separate three cities of refuge - literally for Moses himself. Angel Samael was acting as an avenger of blood for the Egyptian. The angel's claim was that Moses did it intentionally, and therefore he should be killed. But in truth Moses' purpose was to help the Egyptian's soul and to correct it, and that is why Moses killed him by pronouncing the explicit name of God, which made his killing unintentional. This is why “he did not lie in wait” - talking about Moses, but “God caused this to happen” - still talking about Moses, and thus “you will separate for yourself a place of refuge to run there (שמה) ” for Moses (משה).

Art: Frederick Arthur Bridgman - By the City Gate


Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Yitro - Further Transmigrations of Cain and Abel

"And Yitro, the Priest of Midian, the father-in-law of Moses, heard..."

The Priest of Midian is the name of a high spiritual force of Evil. Every force of Good in the Kingdom of Holiness has a force corresponding to it in the Kingdom of Evil. The force corresponding to the Priest of Midian is the Foundation of the spiritual entity called the Father of the Cosmic Man. The earthly Yitro had a connection to this power, which is the source of jealousy and struggle. The opposite of it is Love.

Yitro took with him his daughter Tzipora, Moses' wife, and brought her to Moses. Yitro was the reincarnation of Cain. After he abandoned his connection to the power of Evil, he began correcting his killing of Abel in the previous life. Moses was the reincarnation of Abel, and Cain killed him because of an extra twin sister born with Abel. Tzipora was the reincarnation of this sister. In the previous life, Cain took her away from Abel, and in this life, Yitro brought her to Moses.

When Yitro came to Moses, he said, "I am your father-in-law Yitro." The first letters of this phrase constitute "achi" - (your brother), hinting to Moses that he is Moses' brother from before. As Cain, he denied that there is judgment in the world. As Yitro, he added to Torah laws dealing with judgments. Later he was reincarnated as Korach, and this was the "and Korach got a bad deal for himself," that is, he took the soul of Yitro. Korach then arose against Moses, corresponding to Cain, who arose against Abel. Once underground, Korach was forced to proclaim that his judgment was true.

Art: Sebastiano Ricci - Moses Defending the Daughters of Jethro

Beshalach - The People of Israel

"And it was when Pharaoh sent the people of Israel, and God did not want to lead them through the land of the Philistines..."

Every "and it was" (vayihi) sounds like a sigh and denotes some pain. Here the pain came about because Pharaoh sent "the People of Israel," the "mixed multitude" together with the nation.

When the Torah mentions "Bnei Israel," the Sons of Israel, it means the genuine part of the Jews. However, it calls them "Am Israel," the People of Israel; it means the people who do good for their own honor and as a means to achieve power. The People of Israel could turn back to Egypt, and it was because of them that God did not lead the nation directly to Israel. The mixed multitude is called "Erev Rav" because they achieve the positions of importance (Rav) through their desire for power throughout history.

When Moses saw that, he understood that he needed to take the remains of Joseph with him – because now Moses knew that it would be necessary to split the Red Sea, and it will happen in the merit of Joseph, "The sea saw and fled..."

Art: Antonio Fillol Granell - The glory of the people

Monday, February 1, 2010

Bo – For Seven Days You Will Eat Matzot

For seven days, nothing leavened should be found in your houses, and anybody who eats leavened food, his soul will be cut off from the congregation of Israel...”

What does the concept of “cut off” entail? It is known that when a righteous person dies, his soul immediately goes up at the time of his departure, making waves of desire emanate from the Cosmic Female (Nukva) toward the Cosmic Male (Zeir Anpin) and causing them to unite.

This is discussed in the Book of Zohar in the following way. When the Righteous One (Cosmic Male) dresses with Jealousy and unites with the Female, this is connected to the qualities of Joseph since the numerical values of Joseph and Jealousy are identical. That is why the Sages said, “A man may be jealous of his wife because a special spirit of purity entered him.” A man who especially loves his wife may become jealous because of their great love. We find then that Jealousy can be a virtue and a sign of completeness, not a defect. This is the complete union between the Cosmic Male and Female, encompassing all worlds. This love transcends physical love, and their souls are in constant union.

In contrast, those who are not righteous cannot ascend after their death and cannot create waves of pleasure, and this is the secret of being “cut off” since they do not return to Heaven from which they were formed and remain below.

Art: Paul Hermann - The Lovers