Three soul-levels and three Shabbosos

במדרש ימלא ה' כו' משאלותיך שהיו מתאוין בני ישראל לדגלים כמ"ש ודגלו עלי אהבה ע"ש גם על הפסוק מי זאת כו' איומה כנדגלות.

In the Midrash: "May Hashem fulfill all your requests" (Tehillim 20:6) — for Bnei Yisrael longed for the degalim (the tribal banners), as it says "and His banner (diglo) over me is love" (Shir HaShirim 2:4); see there. Also on the verse "Who is this… awesome as the bannered hosts (ayumah kanidgalos)?" (Shir HaShirim 6:10).

The Midrash teaches that Bnei Yisrael yearned for the degalim — the banner-formations of the camp in the wilderness — and the verses show that these banners were an expression of love and an awesome, exalted distinction.

משמע שהדגלים הוא מדריגה עליונה ביותר.

This implies that the degalim are an exceedingly lofty level.

The verses' praise indicates that the arrangement into banners reflects an especially high spiritual madreigah.

והענין הוא כמו דאיתא בזוה"ק שאדם קונה לו נר"ן מדריגה אחר מדריגה זכה יתיר כו' ע"ש.

The matter is as stated in the Zohar, that a person acquires for himself nefesh, ruach, neshamah (the three soul-levels) one level after another — if he merits more, [he acquires more]; see there.

The Zohar describes a graduated acquisition of the soul: a person first attains nefesh, then ruach, then neshamah, ascending step by step as he merits.

כן בנ"י ביציאת מצרים קנו להם נפש ובמתן תורה רוח ובמשכן וביהמ"ק נשמה.

So too Bnei Yisrael, at the Exodus from Mitzrayim, acquired for themselves nefesh; at Matan Torah, ruach; and in the Mishkan and Bais Hamikdash, neshamah.

The nation as a whole climbed these three rungs historically: the Exodus gave them nefesh, the giving of the Torah gave them ruach, and the building of the Mishkan and Mikdash gave them neshamah.

ואיתא כי במעשה מצות זוכין לנפש ובדברי תורה לרוח ובמחשבה ורעותא לנשמה.

And it is taught that through the performance of mitzvos one merits nefesh, through divrei Torah one merits ruach, and through thought and ratzon (will/yearning) one merits neshamah.

The same three levels are attained through three modes of avodah: action (mitzvos) reaches the nefesh, speech and study (divrei Torah) reaches the ruach, and pure inner thought and desire reaches the loftiest level, neshamah.

לכן להדגלים זכו על ידי התשוקה ורעותא דלבא שהוא מדריגה שאין לזכות לה רק ע"י הרצון כנ"ל.

Therefore they merited the degalim through longing and the yearning of the heart (re'usa d'liba), which is a level that can be attained only through ratzon, as above.

Because the degalim correspond to the neshamah-level, they could be earned only through deep inner yearning and desire — the very faculty by which the neshamah is acquired.

וכן סדר הג' מדריגות יפה כלבנה ברה כחמה איומה כנדגלות כסדר נר"נ כנ"ל.

And likewise the order of the three levels — "beautiful as the moon, radiant as the sun, awesome as the bannered hosts" (Shir HaShirim 6:10) — follows the order of nefesh-ruach-neshamah, as above.

The three praises in the verse ascend in the same sequence: "moon" parallels nefesh, "sun" parallels ruach, and "awesome as the bannered hosts" parallels the highest, neshamah — the degalim.

ואפשר שהם ג' השבתות שמצינו במרה ובסיני ובמלאכת המשכן.

And perhaps these are the three "Shabbosos" that we find — at Marah, at Sinai, and at the building of the Mishkan.

He suggests these three soul-levels also correspond to three distinct teachings of Shabbos given at three moments: Marah, Sinai, and the construction of the Mishkan.

שיש בחי' שבת בקבלת נפש יתירה ורוח ונשמה.

For there is an aspect of Shabbos in the receiving of the additional nefesh, ruach, and neshamah.

Each of these three Shabbos-teachings corresponds to receiving an additional measure of one of the three soul-levels.

דהיינו בשביתה מעשי' וכן במרה ובפרשת המן והכינו אשר יביאו וישבתו והוא בחי' שמור כי בחי' נפש צריך שמירה לכן כתיב שם כאשר צוך במרה.

That is: in the cessation from action — and so it was at Marah and in the passage of the manna, "and they shall prepare what they bring in… and they rested" — and this is the aspect of "Shamor" (Guard), for the level of nefesh requires guarding; therefore it is written there "as Hashem commanded you" [referring] to Marah.

The first Shabbos-dimension is resting from physical labor, taught at Marah and with the manna. This corresponds to nefesh and to the command "Shamor" (guard the Shabbos), since the nefesh — bound up with action — needs guarding and restraint.

וזכור הוא בפה קידוש היום קבלת הרוח.

And "Zachor" (Remember) is with the mouth — the kiddush of the day — the receiving of the ruach.

The second dimension, "Zachor," is fulfilled through speech — reciting kiddush — and corresponds to the ruach, the soul-level attained through words, given at Sinai.

ובמשכן כתיב אות היא ביני כו' לדעת כו' ודרשו חז"ל בצינעא שלא נתגלה בחי' הנשמה יתירה ע"ש.

And regarding the Mishkan it is written "it is a sign between Me [and Bnei Yisrael]… to know [that I am Hashem]," and our Sages expounded "in private (b'tzin'a)" — that it is not revealed; this is the aspect of the neshamah yeseirah; see there.

The third dimension, taught with the Mishkan, is the "sign" of Shabbos that is hidden and private — corresponding to the neshamah yeseirah, the inner, concealed soul attained through thought and will.

ובגמ' דשבת איתא המענג השבת ניצול משיעבוד מלכיות דכתיב והרכבתיך על במתי ארץ.

And in the Gemara of Shabbos it is taught: one who delights in the Shabbos (ha'me'aneg es haShabbos) is saved from subjugation to the kingdoms, as it is written "and I will cause you to ride upon the heights of the earth" (Yeshayahu 58:14).

The Gemara (Shabbos 118) lists three rewards for delighting in Shabbos; the first is deliverance from foreign domination, the "subjugation of the kingdoms."

תו המענג השבת נותנין לו נחלה בלי מצרים והאכלתיך נחלת יעקב.

Further: one who delights in the Shabbos is given a boundless inheritance (nachalah bli metzarim), [as it says] "and I will feed you the inheritance of Yaakov."

The second reward is an unbounded, limitless inheritance — "the inheritance of Yaakov" — without restriction or constraint.

תו המענג כו' נותנין לו משאלות לבו דכתיב והתענג על ה' ויתן לך כו'.

Further: one who delights [in the Shabbos] is granted the requests of his heart, as it is written "delight in Hashem, and He will grant you [the requests of your heart]" (Tehillim 37:4).

The third reward is the granting of one's heart's desires — fulfilling the verse "delight in Hashem and He will give you the requests of your heart."

והם ג' השבתות הנ"ל.

And these are the three "Shabbosos" mentioned above.

These three Gemara rewards align with the three Shabbos-dimensions (nefesh, ruach, neshamah) introduced earlier.

לכן בשבת דשמור ניצול משעבוד מלכיות.

Therefore, in the Shabbos of "Shamor," one is saved from subjugation to the kingdoms.

The first reward — deliverance from foreign rule — corresponds to the "Shamor"/nefesh dimension, which requires guarding against outside domination.

ויתכן שזה הכוונה במאמרם ז"ל אלו שמרו בנ"י שבת ראשונה לא שלטה בהם אומה דכ' ויצאו כו' ויבא עמלק.

And it may be that this is the intent of their saying: had Bnei Yisrael kept the first Shabbos, no nation would have ruled over them, for it is written "and they went out…" and [then] "and Amalek came."

Chazal teach that if Israel had properly kept that first Shabbos, no nation could have dominated them; the juxtaposition of their going out and Amalek's attack hints at a failure connected to Shabbos.

ותוס' הקשו למה נק' שבת ראשונה.

And Tosafos asked: why is it called the "first Shabbos"?

Tosafos question the term "first Shabbos" — what is the significance of "first" here?

ולפימ"ש אתי שפיר שהוא מדריגה ראשונה של השבת דשמור וצריך שמירה ושם נכשלו בני ישראל ושם הי' כח לעמלק ליגע בהם.

And according to what we have written, it fits well: it is the first level of Shabbos — that of "Shamor" — which requires guarding, and there Bnei Yisrael stumbled, and there Amalek had the power to touch them.

The Sefas Emes answers Tosafos: "first Shabbos" means the first, lowest rung — the "Shamor"/nefesh level that demands vigilant guarding. It was precisely there that Israel failed, which is what gave Amalek the opening to attack.

ומ"מ אח"כ תיקנו.

Nevertheless, afterward they rectified it.

Despite that initial failure, Israel subsequently repaired the breach.

ואחר שהחלישו את עמלק כתיב וישבות העם ביום השביעי.

And after they weakened Amalek, it is written "and the people rested on the seventh day."

Once Amalek was subdued, the verse records that the people kept Shabbos — the tikkun of the earlier lapse, restoring the "Shamor" dimension.

נחלה בלי מצרים הוא בחי' יעקב.

"A boundless inheritance" is the aspect of Yaakov.

The second reward — the limitless inheritance — corresponds to Yaakov, and to the second Shabbos-dimension.

התורה.

The Torah.

This boundless inheritance of Yaakov is the Torah itself.

שהעוסק בה הוא בן חורין בחי' רוח זכור.

For one who engages in it is a free man (ben chorin) — the aspect of ruach, "Zachor."

One immersed in Torah becomes truly free; this corresponds to the ruach level and to "Zachor," the second Shabbos-dimension, expressed through speech and study.

והתענג על ה' הוא ברצון וברעותא דלבא וכמ"ש במד' בבחי' הדגלים כנ"ל דו"ק ותשכח:

And "delight in Hashem" is through ratzon and the yearning of the heart (re'usa d'liba), as the Midrash states regarding the aspect of the degalim, as above — examine this closely and you will find it.

The third reward, "delight in Hashem" granting the heart's desires, is attained through pure will and inner yearning — the very faculty by which the neshamah and the degalim are acquired, as the Midrash taught about Israel's longing for the banners. The whole structure thus comes full circle.

Summary: A person ascends through three soul-levels — nefesh, ruach, neshamah — acquired respectively through action (mitzvos), speech and Torah study, and pure inner thought and yearning (ratzon). Bnei Yisrael climbed these rungs nationally at the Exodus, Matan Torah, and the Mishkan, and they merited the lofty degalim through deep heartfelt longing, the faculty that reaches the neshamah. The same three levels map onto three dimensions of Shabbos — "Shamor"/nefesh (resting from labor, which guards against foreign domination, the lapse that let Amalek strike), "Zachor"/ruach (kiddush and Torah, making one a free man), and the hidden neshamah yeseirah (delighting in Hashem through inner yearning) — corresponding to the Gemara's three rewards for one who delights in the Shabbos.