Torah Realizing Creation's Potential
האזינו השמים ואדברה זה בחי' עשרת הדברות
"Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak" (Devarim 32:1) — this corresponds to the aspect of the Aseres HaDibros, the Ten Commandments.
The opening word addressed to the heavens hints at the Aseres HaDibros, the revelation of Torah given from Above.
ותשמע הארץ אמרי פי הוא בחי' עשרה מאמרות
"And let the earth hear the words of my mouth" (Devarim 32:1) — this is the aspect of the Asarah Maamaros, the ten utterances with which the world was created.
The corresponding phrase addressed to the earth hints at the ten utterances of Creation, which are the foundation of the physical world.
והוא בחי' תורה שבע"פ שהקב"ה נתן התורה שבנ"י יתקנו כל הנעשה בעשרה מאמרות ע"י התורה
And this is the aspect of Torah She'be'al Peh, the Oral Torah, for the Holy One, Blessed is He, gave the Torah so that Bnei Yisrael, through the Torah, would rectify all that was made by way of the ten utterances of Creation.
The Oral Torah is the bridge between these two: Hashem gave it so that Bnei Yisrael could repair and elevate the entire created world that was formed through those ten utterances.
שהתורה היא ביאור ופירוש הבריאה
For the Torah is the elucidation and explanation of the Creation.
The Torah is not separate from Creation but is its inner explanation, revealing what the world truly is.
וע"ז איתא שצדיקים מקיימים העולם שנברא בעשרה מאמרות
And concerning this it is taught that the tzaddikim sustain the world that was created with the ten utterances.
Because tzaddikim live by the Torah, they uphold and give endurance to the world that was made through the ten utterances.
ולכן נאמרה שירת האזינו ע"י משה ויהושע שהוא חיבור תורה שבכתב ושבע"פ
Therefore the Shiras Ha'azinu was said through Moshe Rabbeinu and Yehoshua, for it is the joining together of Torah She'bichsav, the Written Torah, and Torah She'be'al Peh, the Oral Torah.
Shiras Ha'azinu was transmitted through both Moshe Rabbeinu and Yehoshua because it embodies the union of the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, paralleling heaven and earth.
ואמר יערף כמטר כו' שתכלית התורה להוציא על ידה מכח אל הפועל כל אשר הטמין הקב"ה בעולם
And he said, "May my teaching drip like rain" (Devarim 32:2) — for the purpose of the Torah is to bring out through it, from potential into actuality, all that the Holy One, Blessed is He, concealed within the world.
The verse comparing Torah to rain teaches that the Torah's aim is to draw out from potential into actuality all the hidden potential that the Holy One, Blessed is He, planted in the world.
כדמיון המטר שע"י מוציאין מן האדמה מכח אל הפועל כל הפירות:
Like the analogy of the rain, through which one brings forth from the earth, from potential into actuality, all the fruits.
Just as rain draws the latent fruits out of the ground into actual produce, so the Torah draws out the hidden Divine potential concealed in Creation.
Summary: The Sfas Emes reads the opening verse of Ha'azinu as pairing two realms: "the heavens" correspond to the Aseres HaDibros given from Above, and "the earth" corresponds to the ten utterances through which the world was created. The Oral Torah is the link between them, given to Bnei Yisrael so that they might rectify and elevate the entire created world by means of the Torah, which is itself the inner explanation of Creation. For this reason the tzaddikim, who live by the Torah, sustain the world founded on the ten utterances, and Shiras Ha'azinu was transmitted through both Moshe Rabbeinu and Yehoshua as a joining of the Written and Oral Torah. Finally, the comparison of Torah to rain teaches that the Torah's ultimate purpose is to bring forth from potential into actuality all the hidden Divine potential that the Holy One, Blessed is He, concealed within the world, just as rain coaxes the latent fruits out of the earth.