haYom shiv’a v’arba’im yom, sh’heim shisha shavuot vachamisha yomim, laOmer: hod she b’malchut

“who seeks more than he needs hinders himself from enjoying what he has”

“the more possessions, the more worries”

r’ shlomo ibn gabirol urges us to consider the foolishness of consuming beyond one’s needs: instead of enjoying what he has, such a one enjoys only the comsuming moment. we find a parallel statement in Avot 2:7. both rabbis urge us to get real about what we truly need, anything beyond that leads to less appreciation in joy, and to worry over loss. neither is very attractive for the soul.

the sense of “completeness” that comes with knowing what you need (and not want) and the quality of simplicity that comes with stripping down to gratitude for what you need being supplied leads to the spirit trait of temimut (‘sincerity’, simplicity’ & ‘completeness’), which associates with hod.

hod in malchut is the way of making simplicity/wholeness sovereign. as we mentioned yesterday, bringing one’s desires into line with G’d’s is a great thing, and temimut haratzon, (simple will to do G’d’s Will) is the natural response. temimut halev is the simplicity/completeness of devoted effort to do G’d’s way. and temimut hama’aseh is the very hodlike attention to even the most minute detail of doing G’d’s mitzvot.

all 3 together make for the noble splendor of malchut well realized in the lower worlds. the nobility of the simple can make the most minimal into the majestic…just ask Sir-Sir jonathan ives, master designer of Apple’s minimal aesthetic.

in the world of spirit traits also…..

“less is more”

for even gratitude is made more sovereign when needs–and not mere wants–are met. being grateful for receipt of a want is for kids.

kabbalistically, in the joining of the ” lower union” of tiferet and malchut, the bride Shechinah/malchut, enters into hod, and the groom tiferet enters into netzach….the twin pillars of the Temple. bride Shechinah is the fullest expression of G’d’s Presence in the lower spirit worlds, and brings the thankfulness component of menuchah (‘contentment’) to the keeping of Shabbat….

“sanctuary of the King, city royal, arise, go out from amidst the turmoil”

as we sing in l’cha dodi to welcome the Shabbat Bride. the simple joy of a deliberately de-complicated day, a sincere time, a wholeness of way.

hod in malchut….simple majesty.

mussar for hod she b’malchut

with another….bein adam l’chaveiro when giving tzedakah today, be thankful to the recipient for letting you share in the doing of the mitzvah “loving your neighbor as yourself”.

with yourself….bein adam l’atzmo reduce your consumption of some nonessential in at least 1 area today. this, of course, will work some degree of tikkun in the entire olam.

kabbalah for hod she b’malchut

in assiyah….the world of doing/completion enjoy the intensity of the simple wonders in your life and surroundings. the scent of fruit, spices, candles……the spice of life is found in the small, sincerely enjoyed. find your favorite simple prayer…perhaps shema ….what is the scent in it that calls to you?

in yetzirah….the world of feeling/formation what is the simplest dish that you cook? is it one to which you attach contentment? joy? memories of the preparer when you were a child? what simple food brings you back to a time when you knew easy contentment? THAT was a time when you were sovereign of your realm. what’s changed?

in b’riyah….the world of thought/creation if i write e=mc2, do you think of the entire universe? now, how simple is that?

in atzilut….the world of nearness to G’d/intuition sexuality in marriage is an evocation of the rejoining of tiferet and malchut….of Shechinah with haKodesh baruch hu. is sex hard? or is it really like riding a bicycle? and is it better when you need it or when you merely want it?

kinyan 47 of 48 ways to acquire Torah

Ha’mech’aven et Sh’mu’ato….Think Over What You’ve Heard. when you think something over, you make richer sense of it. you may dwell on details of what you’ve heard (learnt), which is hod. or you may consider a broader context into which to place the learning, which is malchut. either way , the thinking over affixes the material in your mind….consider Talmud Yerushalmi B’rakot 5:1:

“who understands his/her lesson will not readily forget it”

haYom arba’im yom, sh’heim chamisha shavuot v’chamisha yomim, laOmer: hod she b’yesod

“surely it could have been created with a single utterance!”

but the world was created in 10 utterances. Mishnah (Avot 5:1) asks why. we should first remember that 10 is the number of completion, but also the number of “minimum sufficient” from the time of Sodom….Avraham stopped bargaining down the number of righteous whose presence could save the city from utter destruction at 10. not 11, not 9.

just like the sefirot….10, not 11, not 9. not surprising as the sefirot mirror the stops through which the creating of Creation happens. they are sometimes called the 10 building blocks. and the Zohar (III:2b) tells us that the Torah itself is 10-dimensional. and there are those commandments numbering….

10 is also just 1 with nothing next to it…yet it represents the entirety of the made world. 1 is a mirror image of the ein sof (‘without end’), and the world was intended to be other than G’d. what is other than the explicit nature of G’d? well, simply put: many. and 10, as the minimum sufficient for a completion, is the representative of many. but it need be written with only a single numeral-character other than 1, but not a multiple of 1, so to speak. 2 would not do….but 1 next to nothing would. all of Creation amounts to nothing beside the All of G’d. and sadly, the number 10 also represents how G’d is, from the point of view of Creation…in the view of so many humans…. “next to nothing”. that is what hiddenness will getcha.

and yet this particular nothing of 0 is distinct. and this is where hod she b’yesod comes in. for humility in foundation is like the 0 next to the All of 1. and the world is further humbled, if you will, by its brokenness. yet the multiplicity of Creation is also its wonder and splendor. hod is splendor, after all.

bit the Mishnah goes on to explain that there are 2 primary ways of understanding this:

“to exact payment from transgressors who destroy a world of 10 utterances”

notice that it is not to punish transgressors of the 10 commandments, as so many will blithely tell you, but to “exact payment” from them. and what is the payment? t’shuvah, which itself is G’d’s reaction to the broken multiplicity of the world. t’shuvah is return to the oneness that is G’d. that is the payment….a drawing down of multiplicity (the dark side of left) back through adherence to the 10, with a powerful spiritual movement toward cleaving to G’d….becoming 1 with The One.

and the second reason?

“to better reward the righteous who sustain a world of 10 utterances”

and the reward for the tzaddikim? it is being tzaddik at all, for the tzaddik has made hod a yesod, humility and hiddenness is foundational for those who have perfected all 10 attributes and the 10 attributes of their interactions with the Creation around them. hod in yesod. from nothingness in multiplicity to oneness in hiddenness.

a paradoxical world indeed, this world of 10. and we are mindful of it on this 40th day of sefirat haOmer. this is the last set of 10 in the count, after all…..we’ve only 9 days left. for those who like NASA….it’s countdown time in the final couting up.

a paradoxical world of 10 utterances. and we are all in it together. ultimately in shalom, a wholeness of 1….no chaser.

mussar for hod she b’yesod

with another….bein adam l’chaveiro lower your expectations with folks around you…not to think less of them, but simply to require nothing more than what is whole in them. everything beyond that is a multiplicity, and neither of you need that….nor does the world need more man-made fragmenting.

with yourself….bein adam l’atzmo examine your stuff. consider the Morris ideal: have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or find to be beautiful. as stuff goes, peace comes….small really is splendid.

kabbalah for hod she b’yesod

in assiyah….the world of doing/completion in hod we see the small details…all of them. in yesod we see foundations and systems. does the highest level of soul comprose all the details of the lower levels of soul? or does it transcend them, forgetting all that is more earthly. consider the paradox of doing both. the birchat haShachar prayers give thanks for the great and the small. extend them in your prayers today.

in yetzirah….the world of feeling/foundation systems are built of small connections interlinked. a household runs through the work of the mom, the work of the dad, and work now and then by whoever else is in the house. they don’t all do it all….to each a particular. take on a new responsibility in your household (or if you are a mom, give one up). consider what better use of your time you might now make in building new connections in a broader community.

in b’riyah….the world of thought/creation examine the small interlocking pieces of the world…open up a device and see how the processor connects to the storage device connects to the ports, etc. meditate on what sort of cog in the wheel you are. could you be better as a different piece?

in atzilut….the world of nearness to G’d/intuition Moshe had to wear a veil to enable people to look upon him without being dazzled by the splendid light G’d’s presence had left there. there were 2 sides to that veil…Moshe’s view was not perfectly clear….neither was the view of Moshe from outside the veil. meditate on how we all erect a veil before us, protecting what is private, not seeing what we care not to see. what is proper hiddenness?

kinyan 40 of 48 ways to acquire Torah

Ma’amido al haShalom….Setting Up Others for Peace. Hillel says it very well, pointing to Aharon as the symbol of hod and saying to make his way your foundation. remember that wholeness is 1, not even the roundest of zeroes.

“be among the followers of Aharon, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving people and bringing them closer to the Torah”

haYom sh’nayim v’esrim yom, sh’heim sh’losha shavuot v’yom echad, laOmer: chesed she b’netzach

“has the kindness of netzach disappeared forever?”

this is how r’ Joseph ben Abraham Gikatilla, 13th century kabbalist and student of Abulafia, translates Psalm 77:9, doubling down on the significance of the “l’netzach” as both the sefirah of the name and the sense of eternity or forever.

the king james version in contrast, translates it (remember it is verse 8 in christain bibles) more colloquially as “is His mercy clean gone for ever?”—imagine! “clean gone” used to be the king’s english!!!

but back to Gikatilla, who was reading very carefully, for the next verse goes on “is His promise come to an end for evermore?” ‘forevermore’ is “l’dor vador”, which we usually translate as ‘from generation to generation’, even though that is not a close reading. but, thinks Gikatilla, if “l’dor vador” means eternity, than what is meant by the use of “l’netzach” in the first part of the verse?

being a good kabbalist, he immediately associates the presence of the word “chesed” (‘loving-kindness’) with netzach with more than just an expression of eternity. netzach is also victory, and we know that G’d’s victory does not change…

“the Netzach of Israel [G’d] shall not deceive and not regret (read shall not change His mind), for He is not a man who regrets” (1 Samuel 15:29)

chesed is directly connected to netzach on the right side of the sefirotic tree. the effects of chesed need not even pass through tiferet (the 3rd sefirah of the chesed-gevurah-tiferet triad), so they are very direct and exert great influence on the work of netzach. the persistence of netzach, the power of it, is not to be regretted anymore than that of loving-kindness. only the dark side would even consider taking the eternity away.

so, how do we work with this chesed-netzach nexus in the first sefirah of the triad that starts the 4th week of the Omer count? well, in kabbalistic thinking, the only real impediment to the extension of G’d’s loving-kindness in the world is the imposition of death since the transgression of the Foreparents, Adam and Eve. netzach is associated with the bringing of Moshiach…specifically with the practical steps needed to help bring that ultimate tikkun about. netzach is all about the sort of victory that is t’shuvah, ‘repentance’. t’shuvah argues against the harsh decree…which ultimately means death (look again at the unetane tokef).

the Lurianic teaching is that in kedushah, in marriage, which is the lower union of tiferet (last week’ sefira hashavua) and malchut (the still to come final week’s sefirah), the union of the spouses takes each to a higher sefirah: the groom to netzach and the bride to hod, both intermediated by yesod, the sefira of the genitalia. yes, sex is more than it might sometimes seem, chevrei. the groom enters into a state of consciousness of timeliness within time. a little bit of immortality, a fending off of death, in the possibility of engendering new life and the ‘out of the world’ sensations that go with it. (we’ll talk more about the lovely bride next week, don’t worry, ladies).

is it any surprise then, that chassidut (‘chassidic philosophy/kabbalah’) associates netzach with bitachon, ie, ‘confidence’? and the forcefulness in G’dly action that comes of bitachon. so chesed in netzach is loving-kindness dispensed through and with confidence. and it is the chance for us to look at the obstacles that seem to keep us from loving well as a glass half full! why? well, we are imitating the spirit ways of G’d, whose victory/netzach is eternal/netzach and never a matter of regret or doubt. it is for us to make the Netzach Yisrael (‘G’d’) manifest in the world. G’d opens G’d’s hand and satisfies the needs of every living thing. for us, then, the hand that we open to offer with chesed is held wide open and extended as far as our powerful right arm can reach in netzach….there ain’t no pullin back.

mussar for chesed she b’netzach

with another….bein adam l’chaveiro doing kindness for someone can change the world for the better in ways that none of us can fully imagine. know that. KNOW that. it is not accident that l’netzach netzachim (‘forever and ever’) is related to l’dor vador (‘forever, as handed down from generation to generation’), so know that the action you take today in loving-kindness has eternal impact on the world. now, what kind thing are you going to do for someone today? (and therefore forever?)

with yourself….bein adam l’atzmo it’s a little trendy for me, but might work well for others, so here goes: formulate a mission statement for your life….or at least for the next decade or so…..do some personal long-term strategic planning (not tactical!) for your walk with G’d.

kabbalah for chesed she b’netzach

in assiyah….the world of doing/completion consider how you can make your good work in the world persistent. remember a time in which you lost yourself in the doing of hard work….for any sort of good end. look to that sort of losing yourself as the model to repeat in your efforts in loving-kindness.

in yetzirah….the world of feeling/formation a person needs a good dose on energizer bunny netzach when faced with chronic problems. family problems, friendship problems, spiritual problems with G’d, ch’v. all need chesed to be extended and not a one-off sort of thing. and the big issue with chronic problems is not the problem itself, but rather our accumulating negative feelings about something that just won’t go away very easily….seem like they never will. netzach is also the power of invention in these times…the energy that emboldens giving a shot at a new way of addressing chronic problems….and the energy to keep doing the necessary repetitive approaches as well. meditate on how G’d manages to put up with us and our failings day after day, week after week, month after month….l’dor vador!

in b’riyah….the world of thought/creation let’s extend the idea begun in yetzirah….every obstacle we face in actualizing our personal mission statement, our moral strategic plan, is chronic until we overcome it. we organize and break things down into manageable parts in our work, right? contemplate one of the areas of improvement you have identified….sigh, if you like….but break it down into steps…and consider it some loving-kindness for your own psyche!

in atzilut….the world of nearness to G’d/intuition athletes talk about “breaking through”, or what we used to call “getting a second wind”. we all of us get a second wind daily if we open up to that fresh neshamah (breathed/breathing soul’) that is breathed into us daily. meditate on part of the daily morning prayer “Nishmat Kol Chai”: “ruach kol basar t’fa’er….tamid” (the spirit (ruach) of all flesh shall honor You…..always). can anything but persistent actions ‘honor’ the Eternal?

kinyan 22 of 48 ways to acquire Torah

Emunat Chachamim….Belief in the Wise. actually it is faith in the teachings of the wise, and belief in the goodness of their efforts in the world. we may doubt whether some teachings are less helpful for us, but we should never turn aside the teaching of our great rabbis and thinkers completely, even when we have good reason to disagree, for we must know, have emunah (‘belief’ in the form of trust) that they intend good in all their teachings. and that they have more claim to wisdom than most of us! Torah is learning as well as teaching:

“faith is the essence of Torah”

now, go study and engage deeply with Torah with that in mind…learn from the wise wherever they are found.

haYom arba’a asar yom, sh’heim shnei shavuot, laOmer: malchut she b’gevurah

“by 3 things does the world endure: by truth, justice, and peace”

r’ Shimon be Gamliel teaches this, quoting a verse from Zechariah: “truth and peace/wholeness judge in your gates” (8:16). judgment in your gates smacks of malchut (sovereignty) and gevurah (justice). and malchut in gevurah is a clear extension into the larger nonjewish world as well. why?

consider the 7 noachide laws, derived by Chazal (Sanhedrin 57-8) from the book of Genesis up to the story of Noach, hence ‘noachide.’ they are as follows, 6 negative and 1 positive final law: 1. no idolatry, 2. no cursing G’d, 3. no murder, 4. no adultery or incest, 5. no theft, 6. no eating a limb from a live animal, and 7. DO organize a judicial system. any people that abides by these 7 rules is meeting the minimum baseline for being G’dly. any that don’t, aren’t. nota bene that these rules are thought to have held in the world from before the time of Avraham Avinu. chesed has not yet opened out. it was a time of din, ‘severe justice.’

we should focus on the word ‘endure’, i think. r’ shimon is not talking about the ideal case, but by the barest minimum. his focus is like that of the noachide laws. take a look again at the noachides….there are 2 concerning human:G’d interactions, 3 concerning the lowest common acceptable denominator of action between human and human, with the 7th requiring another human behavior to administer the observance of the other 3 human:human rules. so far we are in baseline Torah and well within the 10 utterances, and the also the enhanced set of 613 mitzvot that come to apply to jews.

then there is the odd 6th: you must not eat a limb from a live animal. not that i would, mind you, but honestly, now, were you to pick a law to rank up there with the biggies of murder, idolatry, adultery and theft, would you pull this one out of your hat?

but let’s consider malchut in gevurah and truly understand what happens spiritually when malchut is introduced into any interinclusion. the real test of malchut is whether the trait of the week has become systematically a part of our approach to the world. all week long, we’ve been judging in the gateway to our soul all week doing the interinclusions in gevurah. have you internalized chesed, tiferet, netzach, hod, and yesod therein? if so, how might we test it?

“i care not much for a man’s religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it”

again we learn at the feet of r’ avraham…..lincoln (the beard shoulda been a giveaway). yes, that is how i would test it too. a G’dly people judge truth and wholeness in the entirety of Creation. not just within their own society and within their own kind and locale, but without in the larger world. the world itself can only endure when we bring justice to the gates of our own lives, to the openings out (not just in!) of our spirits in the world.

and the measure of that just view of Creation is ‘wholeness’. you will not eat your way through an animal piecemeal….nor will you wantonly destroy fruit trees when waging war….nor will you, my jews, eat anything treif. treif means ‘torn,’ chevrei, and it is the extension of the noachide rule against hacking away at life into concern for life even in the manner of its being killed. meat is murder barely sanctioned by the Torah, and only by specific permission to those in the time of severe judgement, who had barely survived the great flood brought on by general wickedness:

“if you crave to eat meat (Deuteronomy 12:20) ….[you] shall pour out its blood, and cover it with earth” (Leviticus 17:13)”

if you crave…..if you cannot exercise malchut in gevurah, sovereign control over your sever will to kill, then at very least cover over the living evidence of your wrong…bury the life lost as you would one of your own. strong stuff. but it is earth day on this day of the sefirah. we continue to slash and burn, to drill, baby, drill, to tear animals apart and tear up the habitat that all of us depend on.

what exactly will it take for us to see the truth, judge wholeness as the greatest good, and open the gates of our souls to the entirety of creation? you see, we should have eaten from the tree of life…….

mussar for malchut she b’gevurah

malchut-gevurah with another…bein adam l’chaveiro we keep Shabbat in remembrance of Creation. share the menuchah of the undisturbed world with someone…take a nature walk today and know the justice of the Creation without our interference.

malchut-gevurah with yourself….bein adam l’atzmo “oh, i just couldn’t give up steak!” really? i mean, really? “surely i will require your lifeblood” for killing (Genesis 9:5). malchut is mastery over your spirit-infused world. get a grip and give up that burger.

kabbalah for malchut she b’gevurah

in assiyah….the world of doing/completion the Shekhinah is the feminine indwelling Presence of G’d in Creation. indwelling just as the nefesh soul within us. a nefesh indwells in every aspect of creation from stones through grasses through critters and trees. go ahead, hug a tree today. hug a cute primate as well, but embrace the nefesh you encounter in every piece of Creation you encounter.

in yetzirah….the world of feeling/ formation on Shabbat you are blessed with an ibbur, a pregnancy of additional soul. the indwelling presence should be strong within you. feel the strength of the Presence within you and around you on this day.

in b’riyah….the world of thought/creation there came a time as you grew from toddler to child that you knew that just tearing things up was wrong. it was destructive, not creative. it is forbidden to tear things on Shabbat in traditional circles. avoid tearing anything today, and consider how many things you thoughtlessly tear daily.

in atzilut….the world of nearness to G’d/intuition find a time today to sit in Creation and chant “modeh ani lefanecha” until you fully see the Face of G’d in all that you behold.

kinyan 14 of 48 ways to acquire Torah

Miyut Sechorah….Moderation in Business. the moderation spoken of here is keeping your work in perspective. do not let it overwhelm all else you do. and do not pursue it with the lust for which you pursue justice. and, on this earth day, be mindful of how business is the leading excuse for depredation and tearing of the Creation.

walkinTorah

to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your G'd

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