Signs that rectify da'as

במד' הדעת מתחלק בד' מקומות חלק אחד בפה וא' בלב וב' חלקים בכליות ע"ש.

In the Midrash: the da'as (faculty of knowledge/awareness) is divided among four places — one part in the mouth, one in the heart, and two parts in the kidneys — see there.

The Sefas Emes opens with a Midrash mapping da'as — a person's faculty of inner knowing — across four bodily locations: the mouth, the heart, and (doubled) the kidneys.

ונראה שע"ז ניתן לכל איש ישראל ב' אותות מילה ותפילין מילה ושבת לתקן הדעת שבד' מקומות הנ"ל.

And it appears that for this reason every Jew was given "osos" (signs) — milah and tefillin, milah and Shabbos — to rectify the da'as in the aforementioned four places.

Corresponding to da'as in four places, every Jew received signs (osos) — bris milah, tefillin, and Shabbos — whose purpose is to repair and align the faculty of da'as across all four locations.

ומילה היא לחלקים שבכליות מילה ופריעה.

And milah corresponds to the parts in the kidneys — milah (the cutting) and pri'ah (the uncovering), corresponding to the two parts there.

Bris milah, which itself has two stages — milah and pri'ah — addresses the two portions of da'as located in the kidneys.

ותפילין של יד נגד הלב ושל ראש למען תהי' תורת ה' בפיך וכן שבת זכור בפה ושמור בלב וכן ע"י אותות אלו יכולין לתקן ולברר הדעת כנ"ל.

And the tefillin shel yad (of the arm) is opposite the heart, and the tefillin shel rosh (of the head, fulfills) "so that the Torah of Hashem be in your mouth"; and likewise Shabbos — "zachor" (remember) with the mouth and "shamor" (guard) with the heart. And thus, through these signs, one is able to rectify and refine (l'varer) the da'as, as above.

The remaining two places — heart and mouth — are addressed by tefillin (the arm-tefillin rests against the heart; the head-tefillin brings Torah "in your mouth") and by Shabbos (zachor spoken with the mouth, shamor kept in the heart). Together these signs work to refine da'as in all four places.

ואיתא בגמ' מה ציץ שאין בו רק אזכרה אחת אמרה תורה תמיד שלא יסיח דעתו תפילין על אחת כו"כ כו'.

And it is brought in the Gemara: just as the Tzitz (the High Priest's headplate), which contains only a single mention (azkarah) of Hashem's Name, the Torah said "tamid" (continually) that he should not divert his mind (heseiach ha'da'as) from it — tefillin, which (contain many mentions of the Name), how much more so!

The Gemara reasons a fortiori (kal va'chomer): if the Tzitz, bearing only one Divine Name, requires constant da'as so the Kohen Gadol never lets his mind wander from it, then tefillin, full of Divine Names, all the more so demand unbroken da'as.

היינו שהתפילין מסייעין לאדם לברר הדעת שלא יסיח דעתו.

That is to say, the tefillin assist a person to refine the da'as, that he not divert his mind.

The point is not merely a duty of concentration: tefillin actively help a person purify and steady his da'as so that his mind does not wander.

ויתכן לרמוז כן באמרם על מצחו תמיד וכי לא בעי מינם ומעיל לביה"כ אלא תמיד שלא יסיח דעתו.

And it is fitting to hint at this in their statement (regarding the verse) "on his forehead continually (tamid)" — but does the Kohen Gadol not need to sleep, and to remove (the Tzitz) when entering the privy? Rather, "tamid" means that he should not divert his mind.

Chazal already questioned how the Tzitz could be on the forehead "continually" when the Kohen must sometimes remove it. They answered that "tamid" does not mean literal constant wearing but constant da'as — never letting his mind wander from it.

ולכאורה אין מובן אכתי מה תמיד.

And at first glance this is still not understood — what does "tamid" (continually) mean (if he is allowed to remove it)?

The Sefas Emes presses the difficulty: even after Chazal's answer, how can the requirement be "continual" awareness if the Tzitz is physically off at times?

רק הפי' שהציץ עשה בו רושם שיהי' תקון הדעת שלו שלא יסיח דעתו וכמו כן הרשימה של התפילין בכל איש ישראל בעצם המוח ולב.

Rather, the explanation is that the Tzitz made an impression (roshem) upon him, so that his da'as would be rectified that he not divert his mind. And similarly, the imprint (reshimah) of the tefillin (is made) upon every Jew, in the very substance of the brain and heart.

The resolution: even when the Tzitz is removed, it leaves a lasting inner impression on the Kohen Gadol that fixes his da'as. So too tefillin leave a permanent imprint upon the brain and heart of every Jew — so that the rectified da'as endures "continually," even when the tefillin themselves are not worn.

ודו"ק:

And examine this well (dok).

The Sefas Emes closes with the customary invitation to reflect carefully on the idea — that the osos leave a permanent imprint that steadies a person's da'as.

Summary: The Midrash teaches that da'as is divided among four places — mouth, heart, and (doubled) the kidneys — and correspondingly every Jew is given the "signs" of milah, tefillin, and Shabbos to rectify each: milah (with its two stages, milah and pri'ah) for the kidneys, tefillin (arm against the heart, head bringing Torah to the mouth) and Shabbos (zachor in the mouth, shamor in the heart) for the rest. The Gemara's kal va'chomer from the Tzitz — which demands "tamid," never diverting one's mind — teaches that tefillin help a person refine his da'as. The Sefas Emes resolves how "tamid" applies even when the Tzitz is removed: it leaves a lasting impression that steadies the Kohen's da'as, and likewise tefillin leave a permanent imprint on the brain and heart of every Jew, so the rectified da'as endures continually.