Tzitzis opens the eyes to see the Shechinah

בפרשת ציצית.

On the passage of tzitzis.

The Sefas Emes opens his discussion of the mitzvah of tzitzis at the close of Parshas Shlach.

במד' אור זרוע לצדיק.

In the Midrash: "Light is sown for the tzaddik." (Tehillim 97:11)

He cites the Midrashic verse that hidden light is "planted" for the righteous — a light he will connect to the seeing that tzitzis awakens.

כי ציצית פרש"י מלשון מציץ מן החרכים שזו המצוה לפתוח עיני איש ישראל כמ"ש בגמ' הזהיר במצות ציצית זוכה להקביל פני השכינה דכתיב וראיתם אותו כו'.

For "tzitzis," as Rashi explains, is from the language of "peering (meitzitz) through the lattices" — for this mitzvah is to open the eyes of the Jew, as the Gemara says: one who is careful in the mitzvah of tzitzis merits to greet the face of the Shechinah, as it is written: "and you shall see it..." (Bamidbar 15:39)

The very word tzitzis is linked to "peering through the lattices." Its purpose is to open a Jew's spiritual eyes; whoever guards this mitzvah merits to "see" the Shechinah, since the Torah commands "you shall see it."

והנה כתיב ג"פ ציצית.

Now, the word "tzitzis" is written three times.

He observes that the parsha mentions tzitzis three times, a number he will tie to the three Avos and the three pilgrimage festivals.

מעין ג"פ בשנה יראה.

Corresponding to "three times a year he shall appear/be seen (yera'eh)." (Shemos 23:17)

The three mentions of tzitzis parallel the three festivals when every Jew would "appear" before Hashem — both rooted in the theme of seeing and being seen.

שהם בזכות ג' אבות שהנבואה ניתן להם כדכתיב וארא אל אברהם כו'.

For these are in the merit of the three Avos, to whom prophecy was given, as it is written: "And I appeared (va'eira) to Avraham..." (Shemos 6:3)

Both the three tzitzis and the three festivals draw on the zechus of the Avos, who were granted nevuah — for Hashem "appeared" to them, again the language of seeing.

מרוב אהבת אאע"ה אל הבורא ית' נגלה אליו.

From the abundance of Avraham Avinu's ahavah (love) for the Creator, He revealed Himself to him.

Avraham's pathway to seeing Hashem was love: his overflowing ahavah drew the Divine revelation toward him.

ויצחק מרוב היראה.

And Yitzchak, from the abundance of his yirah (awe).

Yitzchak reached revelation through his defining trait of yiras Shomayim, his powerful awe of Hashem.

יראה לשון ראיה.

"Yirah" (awe) is of the same root as "re'iyah" (seeing).

The Sefas Emes points to the wordplay: yirah and re'iyah share letters, hinting that awe itself is a mode of true spiritual sight.

ויעקב מתוך האמת.

And Yaakov, through emes (truth).

Yaakov's avenue to revelation was his attribute of truth, the middah of "titen emes l'Yaakov."

והקב"ה נתן לבנ"י המצוה שיוכלו לבוא למדריגת האבות.

And Hashem gave Bnei Yisrael the mitzvah so that they could come to the madreigah (level) of the Avos.

The mitzvah of tzitzis is a gift enabling ordinary Jews to access the same elevated "seeing" that the Avos attained through love, awe, and truth.

וגם זה אמת שע"י מצוה זו חל השגחת הקב"ה על איש ישראל כמ"ש מציץ מן החרכים.

And this too is true, that through this mitzvah the hashgachah (providence) of Hashem rests upon the Jew, as it says "peering through the lattices."

The seeing works in both directions: not only does the Jew come to see, but Hashem's watchful providence "peers through the lattices" and rests upon him through the mitzvah of tzitzis.

וכמו כן בראי' ברגל בא לראות ולהיראות כמ"ש יראה יראה.

And likewise with the "seeing" on the festival, one comes "to see and to be seen," as it says "yera'eh / yireh" (he shall be seen / he shall see).

The aliyah l'regel embodies the same two-way seeing: the Jew comes to behold the Shechinah and simultaneously to be beheld by Hashem, as encoded in the dual reading of the verse.

והנה כתיב אתה הראת לדעת שיש לבנ"י בחי' ידיעה וראי' כמ"ש במ"א לפי שהם עדות וכתיב או ראה או ידע ובזוה"ק וארא כי בחי' ידיעה למעלה מראי' דרגא דמרע"ה.

Now it is written, "You have been shown, to know" (Devarim 4:35), indicating that Bnei Yisrael possess both an aspect of knowing (yedi'ah) and an aspect of seeing (re'iyah), as explained elsewhere, since they are witnesses — and it is written "whether he saw or whether he knew" (Vayikra 5:1); and in the Zohar (Va'eira) that the aspect of "knowing" is higher than "seeing," the level of Moshe Rabbeinu.

The verse "You have been shown, to know" pairs two faculties: seeing and knowing. Because Bnei Yisrael serve as Hashem's witnesses, both are required. The Zohar ranks yedi'ah above re'iyah — knowing is the loftier, more inward rung, and it is the level of Moshe Rabbeinu.

ואפשר שלכך ניתן להם עתה מצות ציצית.

And it is possible that for this reason the mitzvah of tzitzis was given to them now.

The timing of tzitzis — right after the episode of the meraglim — is no accident; it responds to the people's spiritual state at that moment.

כשנפלו ממדריגתם ולא נמשכו לגמרי אחרי הנהגת מרע"ה.

When they fell from their level and were not drawn entirely after the leadership of Moshe Rabbeinu.

After the sin of the spies the people had descended, no longer fully bound to Moshe's exalted path of "knowing."

הוצרכו לבחי' ראי' שהיא למטה מידיעה:

They needed the aspect of "seeing," which is lower than "knowing."

Having lost their grip on the higher level of yedi'ah associated with Moshe, they were given tzitzis — a mitzvah of re'iyah, "seeing" — a more accessible rung that could still reconnect them to Hashem's hashgachah.

Summary: The mitzvah of tzitzis is meant to open the spiritual eyes of the Jew, enabling him to "see" the Shechinah and to draw Hashem's providence upon himself. Its threefold mention parallels the three Avos — who attained revelation through love, awe, and truth — and the three festivals of "seeing and being seen." Bnei Yisrael possess both seeing and the higher faculty of knowing; tzitzis was given precisely after the fall of the meraglim, to restore them through the more accessible avodah of "seeing" when they could no longer hold to Moshe's level of "knowing."