Freedom is Sechel Ruling Over Emotion

Okay, just to begin at the sort of beginning of the section where we had left off, although we read these lines already last time, and in the Meshech Chochmah from here:

ומפני שכל ישראל ממליכים עליהם המלך הראש זה כח השכל המשיג מציאותו יתברך ואחדותו המוחלט בחיוב המציאות

al kol hahargashos

היינו שנהרגים ושורפים גם בניהם רחמנא לצלן וכל האומה נשחטת ונחנקת בשביל מציאותו יתברך ואחדותו שמושג בשכל ובלתי מושג בבחינת מציאות

those lines we discussed a little bit.

וזה זכו ישראל ממה שירדו לים ומסרו עצמם על קיום אמונתו יתברך בלי להשלים עם המצרים ונוכל לומר מפני מה זכו ישראל למלכות היינו להמליך השכל על האיברים וההרגשות מפני שירדו לים.

So the Meshech Chochmah teitches as what when when the posuk says that והנה מצרים נוסע אחריהם, right, that they turned around and they see והנה מצרים נוסע אחריהם, and then Hakadosh Baruch Hu tells Moshe Rabbeinu דבר אל בני ישראל ויסעו. And again, the water doesn't split until they go into, until they enter the water. Surrendering to Mitzrayim at this point and their refusal to surrender wasn't because they they were refusing to go back to a life of avdus. It was בלי להשלים עם המצרים because of the the pagan culture, again, where the belief system is is built on a foundation of hargashos. That's what, that's what they continued into into the into the water without knowing, right, they weren't told that that Hakadosh Baruch Hu had, Moshe Rabbeinu doesn't tell them, you know, Hakadosh Baruch Hu told me and now I'm gonna I'll raise my my my my my staff and the waters are gonna split. They weren't told any of that. So they were being moseir atzmam on kiyum emunaso yisborach not to, again, go back and and be sucked into that pagan culture. And malchus doesn't mean political malchus. מפני מה זכו ישראל למלכות doesn't mean political malchus, but but their own spiritual within their own person, their own malchus,

היינו להמליך השכל על האיברים וההרגשות. וכן אמרו בתוספתא ברכות שיהודה זכה למלכות ששבטו ירד לים תחילה,

this Tosefta Berachos,

וזה בצאת ישראל ממצרים היתה יהודה לקדשו וכולו הים ראה שעל ידי הים נעשו ישראל מושלים על כל ההרגשות. לפיכך שנו חכמים אפילו עני שבישראל לא יאכל עד שיסב פירוש שאף על פי שנתמעטו ונגאלו לשעה וחוזרין ומשתעבדם ואבדי אחשורוש הוו

havu havu havu

הרי הן בני חורין ומלכים גמורים שממליכין השכל על כל ההרגשות.

The Meshech Chochmah is is addressing a very basic question.

בכל דור ודור חייב אדם לראות את עצמו כאילו הוא יצא ממצרים.

And then that serves as the basis for the chiyuv hallel. לפיכך אנחנו חייבים להודות להלל לשבח לפאר etcetera. The lashon bechol dor vador is an interesting lashon. And you know, do you find, I don't know, bechol dor vador? I don't know, I don't know, חייב אדם לברך אחר המזון. Mitzvos are al hadoros. So what's the what's the emphasis here in this context of bechol dor vador? So the shaila is like this. So nicha, right, im yirtzeh Hashem we'll sit down to the Seder next week. So we'll sit down in conditions which are exponentially better and more comfortable than the life of avdus that avoseinu had in Mitzrayim. So we we have what what to be thankful for. But what happens when they when they made a Seder in the concentration camps? What happens when they made a Seder in Siberia? Auschwitz was worse than Mitzrayim. So why is אנחנו חייבים להודות ולהלל? In their experience, I don't know, wouldn't they have been better off in Mitzrayim? And it's clear that that's what the Tanna is coming le-afukei, right? It's clear that there is such a hava amina so that the Tanna is is coming to to push back against that hava amina. Because the Meshech Chochmah doesn't stay with that, he says afillu oni she-beYisrael. Even an oni meduka, even someone who rachmana litzlan is so so impoverished that even he has to demonstrate haseiba, which the Rambam says is derech cheirus. So what's the peshat? So clearly, and and again, the Meshech Chochmah says it in in his way as part of this mahalach, but clearly it it means that the ikkar of yetzias Mitzrayim is that there was a permanent spiritual transformation. That that's the ikkar of yetzias Mitzrayim. It's not it's not simply the political reversal of of fortune and circumstances because then ein hachi nami, you shouldn't be bechol dor vador. You should measure, okay, so am I better off this year than then I would have been in Mitzrayim? And at some points in Jewish history, politically, in terms of physical conditions, the answer has been no at some points in in Jewish history. So that's what that's what the Meshech Chochmah here is saying also.

לפיכך שנו חכמים אפילו עני שבישראל לא יאכל עד שיסב. פירוש שאף על פי שנגאלו לשעה.

Meaning, in terms of the political geulah, it wasn't permanent. It was lesha'ah, it was temporary. There were going to be future very oppressive galuyos. וחוזרין ומשתעבדים ואבדי אחשורוש הוו. Right? It doesn't mean only Achashveirosh but Achashveirosh as as representative. But nevertheless,

הרי הן בני חורין ומלכים גמורים שממליכין השכל על כל ההרגשות.

But they left Mitzrayim with a capacity to transcend. any physical adversity and then any future shibud would only be a shibud haguf but it wouldn't be a shibud haruach, it wouldn't be a shibud hanefesh. And in the Baruch She'amar we highlight this also, right? I mean we say it as in terms of le'asid lavo, but lechora, it's that that was to a degree it happened in Mitzrayim, geulatenu ufadut nafshenu, that there's two bechinos. Umikan zachu

ממסירות נפשם שיורדו כל ישראל לים רק בשביל אמונת מציאותו האמיתית האחד יתברך המושגת רק בשכל בהיר בלי ציור והרגש כלל.

If one's belief is again the pagan belief which is built upon hargashos, so then one's entire reality and one's entire value system is olam hazeh. If one has the genuine belief, so then, as as as the Rambam writes, that that we think that what's physical is real and that what's not physical isn't real, and the truth is really punkert, that what's most real is not physical and that what's physical is is least real. And and that's that's the the the same mindset that that Meshech Chochma is is describing here. ובקושי השעבוד של מצרים כמעט היה נשכח through the years of of intense suffering in Mitzrayim, the emuna had almost been forgotten. והיו עובדים עבודה זרה. He's lechora alluding to, again, not only in terms of what the Rambam writes in the end of Perek Aleph of Hilchos Avoda Zara, the fact that they were oved avoda zara, but when he says that the emuna was kimat haya nishkach, so that's actually the kimat is is is the Rambam's lashon וכמעט קט היה והעיקר ששתל אברהם נעקר. It was on the verge of being forgotten.

והיו עובדים עבודה זרה ככל מצרים עד שהלכו הימים לישראל במצרים וחזרו ללמוד מעשיהם ולעבוד עבודה זרה כמותם שהיו עובדים לנילוס שהיה משקה להם והיוצא בזה עבודת הצאבא שביאר במורה חלק ג רק לפי שנקבע בהם האמונה האמיתית מאבותיהם אברהם יצחק ויעקב ברגע אחד חזרו לאמונתם האמיתית.

So remember the beginning of of this of this piece after the Meshech Chochma had quoted from the Chovos HaLevavos and said, despite the fact that the Chovos HaLevavos says that the emuna, the pure belief, is what you would think would could only be associated with someone who's a who's an accomplished profound philosopher or a navi, but אף על פי כן it's something that kol Yisrael have. So initially the Meshech Chochma said that that's p'shat in vaya'aminu. That it traces back to the avos. Now he says it traces back to Krias Yam Suf, and here, here's the kosuv hashlishi is the capacity that we demonstrated and remained part of our identity ledoros at Krias Yam Suf was based upon the legacy, the morasha from the avos.

רק לפי שנקנה בהם האמונה האמיתית מאבותיהם אברהם יצחק ויעקב ברגע אחד חזרו לאמונתם האמיתית וזבחו אלהי מצרים לעיניהם וכשראו כח האמיתות עוד ביום ההוא עשו במסירות נפש מפני זה זכו להמליך השכל על ההרגשות.

And so he says in the Medrash

ויסב אלקים את העם דרך ים סוף, לפיכך שבחו חכמים עד שיסב

as we've explained. Meaning the Medrash sees, darshans, a remez to haseiba from the posuk ויסב אלקים את העם דרך ים סוף. So the Meshech Chochma says, well just because it's the same word? So ויסב אלקים את העם דרך ים סוף means Hakadosh Baruch Hu took us on a circuitous route, took us around, took us on a circuitous route. So the fact that it's the same lashon of vayasev as in אפילו עני שבישראל לא יאכל עד שיסב means it's a remez? He says no, it's not only linguistic. No, it's the fact that we were going to encounter Yam Suf that that's the makor for אפילו עני שבישראל לא יאכל עד שיסב. The fact that we were going to encounter Yam Suf, the fact that we would be moseir nefesh at Yam Suf, that that would again clinch the spiritual transformation of Yetzias Mitzrayim and that would be the basis for the din haseiba bechol dor vador and the

אפילו עני שבישראל לא יאכל עד שיסב כי זה החירות הגמורה כי השכל ימשול על ההרגשות.

See, the yesod is it's difficult to overstate its importance. In life, so on one level a person isn't in control of anything. A person is in control of absolutely nothing. From one moment to the next a person can't what's most basic, he can't ensure his own health, he can't ensure anything. A person has no control over anything, zero control over anything. Me'idach gisa, a person is in complete control that he can always control what his attitude is to what happens. And in that sense agam that a person cannot, again we're supposed to make hishtadlus and we do make hishtadlus and usually the Ribbono Shel Olam lets our hishtadlus work out and he crowns it with success. So that reality of being in that nothing is under control, so we live with an illusion that if you organize enough and you're systematic that you're in control. A person isn't in control of anything. But one thing that al pi ha'emes a person is in control of is his reaction to his attitude towards what happens. And that's again meshes well with what the Meshech Chochma is talking about here: כי זה החירות הגמורה כי השכל ימשול על ההרגשות. And so he says mishchu, back to the posuk, משכו וקחו לכם צאן למשפחותיכם ושחטו הפסח. So Rashi quotes the drashos Chazal משכו ידיכם מעבודה זרה, withdraw from avodah zarah. וכן אמר משכו מעבודת כוכבים וההרגשות. So what's the, how does one channel... the emotional side of our humanity, where does one channel that? V'hahargashos tikechu limitzvos, לחיי המשפחה ואהבת ריע. And that's why the Korban Pesach is se l'veise avos, v'limnos im hash'cheinim. V'hamuchvan haamiti שיהיה הסתחדות האומה בכללה. Again, even though in terms of being moneh on a Pesach it's only with a microcosm, it's with some other people, but hamuchvan haamiti שיהיה הסתחדות האומה בכללה. ולכן נשים בראשון חובה. That everyone is chayiv in Korban Pesach.

וכל ישראל עולים לבית הבחירה בשער אחד לקיים מצות פסח.

And by being mechayev everyone in Korban Pesach, so that ensures that even nashim are peturos from re'iyah, yeira'eh kol zechurcha, but Pesach they do go.

וכל ישראל עולים לבית הבחירה בשער אחד לקיים מצות פסח. ומטעם זה כתבה התורה ושחטו אותו כל קהל עדת ישראל שכל ישראל שוחטים פסח אחד. היינו שכוונת התורה הסתחדות האומה בכללה. ובזה יהיו עסוקים כל ההרגשות.

And again all the emotions should be focused, should be channeled in that direction,

לא שישאו באמונה אלקית באיזה תמונה ואיזה ציור. ואם תאמר איך יוכלו כל ישראל לבוא למעלה רמה כזו,

al zeh amar והגעתם אל המשקוף ואל שתי המזוזות. So the Medrash says,

זה אברהם יצחק ויעקב שהמהם באו לכם כל האמיתיות והדת.