Hidden Reasons of Chukim
במדרש זאת חקת שאוה"ע מונין את ישראל מה טעם מצוה זו כו'
In the Midrash: 'This is the chok (statute) of the Torah' — the nations of the world taunt Bnei Yisrael, asking, 'What is the reason for this mitzvah?' and so forth.
The Sfas Emes opens with the Midrash that the nations mock Bnei Yisrael over the Parah Adumah, a mitzvah whose reason is hidden, asking what its purpose is.
כתבתי במ"א דמשמע שיש טעמים רק שא"י להתגלות בעוה"ז שאין משיגין בעוה"ז הטעמים שאין להם התלבשות בענין מעוה"ז ולכן מרע"ה שהי' למעלה מן הטבע נאמר לך אני מגלה טעמי פרה
I have written elsewhere that this implies that there are indeed reasons, only that they cannot be revealed in this world, for in this world one cannot grasp those reasons that have no garment in any matter of this world; and therefore to Moshe Rabbeinu, who was above nature, it was said, 'To you I reveal the reasons of the Parah (the Red Heifer).'
He explains that a chok does have a real reason, but its reason has no 'garment' it can wear in this physical world, which is why it stays concealed; only Moshe Rabbeinu, who rose above nature, was shown the reason of the Parah.
וכמ"ש במד' שלעתיד יתגלו הטעמים לא יהי' (עוד) אור יקרות וקפאון כו' יהיו צופים כו' ע"ש
And as the Midrash states, that in time to come the reasons will be revealed — 'there will no longer be precious light and congealment,' and 'they will be as those who gaze,' see there.
The hidden reasons are not lost forever — the Midrash teaches that in the future they will all shine forth clearly to those who gaze upon them.
פי' שכל מה שעושין בעוה"ז בדרך חוקה לעתיד יראה כל איש ישראל מה פעל ועשה מה שהי' נסתר במעשה המצות בעוה"ז והולכתי עורים בדרך לא ידעו פי' שלא היו יכולין להשיג בדעתם הפנימיות
The meaning is that whatever a person does in this world in the manner of a chok (a decree performed without comprehension), in time to come every man of Yisrael will see what he accomplished and brought about — that which was hidden within the performance of the mitzvos in this world; 'and I will lead the blind on a path they did not know' — meaning that they were unable to grasp with their minds the inner dimension.
Everything a Yid does now in pure obedience without understanding will one day be revealed to him in its full inner meaning; right now Bnei Yisrael are like the blind, led on a path whose depth they cannot yet perceive.
וז"ש שם מי עור כי אם עבדי כו'
And this is the meaning of the verse there, 'Who is blind but My servant,' and so forth.
He brings the verse 'Who is blind but My servant' to describe this very condition of serving Hashem without sight of the reasons.
פי' שכל עבד בו"ד ע"כ רואה מה שרבו מצוה לעשות אבל עבדי ה' עושים מעשים שאינם יכולים להשיגם ונקראים עורים והקב"ה לעתיד יגלה להם מה שעשו
The meaning is that every servant of flesh and blood therefore sees what his master commands him to do, but the servants of Hashem perform deeds that they cannot comprehend, and they are called 'blind'; and the Holy One, Blessed is He, will in time to come reveal to them what they did.
Unlike a human servant who sees what his master wants, Hashem's servants carry out deeds beyond their comprehension and are thus 'blind' — but Hashem Himself will ultimately show them what their deeds accomplished.
ומ"ש אלה הדברים עשיתים כו' י"ל נמי על העושין המצות ואין עוזבין אפילו שאין מבינים הטעמים
And that which is written, 'These things I have done,' and so forth, may likewise be said regarding those who perform the mitzvos and do not abandon them even though they do not understand the reasons.
The verse 'These things I have done' also speaks of those loyal Yidden who keep the mitzvos faithfully even without grasping their reasons.
ובאמת ע"י התמימות שעושין בדרך חוקה זוכין אח"כ להשגת הטעמים
And in truth, through the temimus (wholehearted simplicity) with which they act in the manner of a chok, they merit afterward to attain the reasons.
Precisely this wholehearted, simple obedience is what earns a person the eventual gift of understanding the reasons.
וזהו ענין שהקדימו בנ"י נעשה לנשמע שע"י המעשים בלי השגת הטעמים יזכו אח"כ לשמוע שהוא השגת הטעמים
And this is the matter of Bnei Yisrael placing 'we will do' before 'we will hear' — that through the deeds performed without grasping the reasons, they will merit afterward to 'hear,' which is the attainment of the reasons.
This is why Bnei Yisrael said 'naaseh' before 'nishma' — the doing without understanding is what brings them later to 'hearing,' which is the grasp of the reasons.
ובעת מתן תורה שהיו מתוקנים למעלה מהטבע היו משיגין הטעמים ואחר החטא נעלם מהם וזה שאוה"ע מונין להם במה שאבדו מדריגה זו
And at the time of the giving of the Torah, when they were rectified and above nature, they would grasp the reasons; but after the sin this became hidden from them, and this is what the nations of the world taunt them with — that they lost this level.
At Matan Torah, in their rectified state above nature, they actually perceived the reasons; the sin caused this to be hidden, and the nations' taunt is really about this lost madreigah.
אך ע"י השמירה בדרך חוקה עוד יכולין לזכות להשגת הטעמים
But through their guarding it in the manner of a chok, they can still merit to attain the reasons.
Yet the path back is open: by faithfully keeping the chukim with simple obedience, Bnei Yisrael can still regain the attainment of the reasons.
וכן בש"ק שהוא מעין עוה"ב זוכה להשגת הטעמים לכן מבקשין יגלה לן טעמי
And so too on Shabbos Kodesh, which is a foretaste of the World to Come, one merits the attainment of the reasons; therefore we request, 'Reveal to us the reasons.'
Shabbos, being a taste of Olam Haba, restores this perception too — which is why we daven that Hashem 'reveal to us the reasons.'
כי ימי החול הם בחי' נעשה וש"ק נשמע דכתי' ביני ובין בני ישראל אות הוא כו' כי ששת ימים עשה כו' וביום השביעי שבת
For the weekdays are the aspect of 'we will do,' and Shabbos Kodesh is 'we will hear,' as it is written, 'Between Me and Bnei Yisrael it is a sign,' and so forth — 'for in six days He made,' and so forth, 'and on the seventh day He rested.'
The weekdays correspond to 'naaseh' (action) and Shabbos to 'nishma' (hearing/understanding), as the verse ties Shabbos as a sign to the six days of making and the seventh of rest.
א"כ הנייחא ותכלית הבריאה שהוא טעם הבריאה להיות לפניו ית"ש נחת רוח
If so, the rest and the ultimate purpose of creation — which is the reason of creation, to be a satisfaction (nachas ruach) before Him, may His Name be blessed —
The true tachlis and reason of all creation is to give nachas ruach before Hashem.
זה נגמר בשבת קודש
this is consummated on Shabbos Kodesh.
That purpose is brought to completion specifically on Shabbos Kodesh.
וזהו בחי' הטעמים
And this is the aspect of the reasons.
This consummation of creation's purpose on Shabbos is itself the aspect of the revealed 'reasons.'
ובימי המעשה הוא בהתלבשות תוך המעשה כמ"ש ששת ימי המעשה יהיה סגור שער חצר הפנימית שהוא בחי' הטעמים שהוא הפנימיות של כל הדברים
And during the weekdays it is in a state of being garbed within the deed, as it is written, 'The six working days the gate of the inner courtyard shall be closed' — which is the aspect of the reasons, which is the inner dimension of all things.
During the week the inner reason lies garbed and hidden inside the deed, like the inner gate that stays shut the six working days — that inner gate being the concealed pnimius of everything.
וביום השבת יפתח שהוא פי הבאר שנפתח בש"ק ובש"ק מחזירין לבנ"י הכתרים מהקדמת נעשה לנשמע ויכולין להרגיש הטעמים
'And on the Shabbos day it shall be opened' — for it is the mouth of the well that is opened on Shabbos Kodesh; and on Shabbos Kodesh the crowns are restored to Bnei Yisrael from their having placed 'we will do' before 'we will hear,' and they are able to sense the reasons.
On Shabbos that gate opens like the mouth of the well, and the crowns Bnei Yisrael earned through 'naaseh' before 'nishma' are returned to them, letting them sense the reasons.
וגם שיורד נשמה יתירה והוא החלק שיש לכל איש ישראל שלא נפגם ע"י החטא לכן הוא משומר בשמים ונותנין לאדם רק בש"ק ובו יכולין להשיג הטעמים שהם מעין עוה"ב
And also a neshamah yeseirah (additional soul) descends, which is the portion that every man of Yisrael possesses that was not blemished by the sin — therefore it is guarded in Heaven and given to a person only on Shabbos Kodesh, and through it they can attain the reasons, which are a foretaste of the World to Come.
The neshamah yeseirah of Shabbos is the unblemished portion of every Yid, kept safe in Heaven and granted only on Shabbos, and through it one tastes the reasons that are a foretaste of Olam Haba.
וזה העדות שבנ"י מעידין בשבת קודש כי ששת ימים כו' וביום השביעי שבת
And this is the testimony that Bnei Yisrael bear on Shabbos Kodesh — 'for in six days,' and so forth, 'and on the seventh day He rested.'
By keeping Shabbos, Bnei Yisrael testify that Hashem made the world in six days and rested on the seventh.
ע"י שמשתנים בש"ק כמ"ש אין דומה הארת פניו של אדם כו'
Through their being transformed on Shabbos Kodesh, as it is written, 'The radiance of a person's face is not the same,' and so forth.
Their very testimony is valid because on Shabbos they themselves are transformed, their faces shining differently than during the week.
א"כ הוא עדות שביום זה מתגלה הטעמים והפנימיות מטעם כי בו שבת
If so, it is a testimony that on this day the reasons and the inner dimension are revealed, by virtue of 'for on it He rested.'
Thus the transformation is proof that on Shabbos the reasons and inner dimension are revealed, all by virtue of 'for on it He rested.'
ומ"מ צריכין להמשיך הארת השבת קודש לכל הימים
And nevertheless one must draw down the radiance of Shabbos Kodesh to all the days.
Still, the avodah does not end on Shabbos — one must draw its radiance down into all the weekdays.
וזה באר חפרוה שרים בש"ק שמשיגין הטעמים נקראו שרים וע"י כן נשאר רשימה וחקיקה גם בימי המעשה ע"י הרצון והשתוקקות אל השבת
And this is, 'A well that the princes dug' — on Shabbos Kodesh, when they attain the reasons, they are called 'princes,' and through this an imprint and an engraving remain even during the weekdays, by means of the yearning and longing for Shabbos.
The 'well dug by the princes' alludes to those who attain the reasons on Shabbos and are thereby called princes, leaving an engraved imprint that carries into the week through longing for Shabbos.
וזהו כרוה נדיבי עם במחוקק כו' שנק' חוקה בחול:
And this is, 'The nobles of the people dug it, with the mechokek (the lawgiver / the one who decrees),' and so forth — that which is called a chok (decree) during the week.
And the 'nobles digging with the mechokek' hints at the chok — the hidden inner dimension that operates during the ordinary weekdays.
Summary: In this piece the Sfas Emes addresses the taunt of the nations over the Parah Adumah and the chukim generally: a chok does have a true reason, but in this world that reason has no garment in which to be revealed, so we serve Hashem 'blind,' carrying out His mitzvos without grasping their depth. Yet precisely through this temimus — doing in the manner of 'naaseh' before 'nishma' — Bnei Yisrael merit eventually to attain the reasons; what was lost after the sin is regained through faithful, simple observance. The Sfas Emes then maps this onto time: the weekdays are 'naaseh,' the garbed and hidden action, while Shabbos Kodesh is 'nishma,' when the inner gate opens, the crowns of Sinai are restored, and the neshamah yeseirah lets a Yid taste the reasons that are a foretaste of Olam Haba. Shabbos, the completion of creation's purpose of giving nachas ruach to Hashem, is itself the aspect of the revealed reasons, which is why our keeping it is true testimony and why we are transformed upon it. Finally, the avodah is to draw this Shabbos radiance into the weekdays through yearning for Shabbos, so that an engraving of the inner dimension — the chok — remains even amid the ordinary days, as hinted in 'a well the princes dug, the nobles of the people, with the mechokek.'