Opening The Wellspring Of Wisdom
במדרש כי המצוה הזאת כו'
In the Midrash on the verse "For this mitzvah" and so on.
The Sfas Emes opens by citing the Midrash on the opening verse of the parsha, "For this mitzvah," which he will now expound.
חיים הם למוצאהם מי שמוציאם בפה
"They are life to the one who finds them" (Mishlei 4:22) — this refers to one who brings them forth with his mouth.
The verse calls the Torah "life to the one who finds them," and the first reading is that this refers to one who articulates the words of Torah with his mouth.
ד"א מי שמוציאם לאחרים
Another interpretation: one who brings them forth to others.
A second reading of "who finds them" is one who brings the Torah forth and teaches it to others.
ד"א מי שממציא אותם כו'
Another interpretation: one who originates them, and so on.
A third reading is one who originates and brings the Torah into being through his own avodah.
דכ' בפיך ובלבבך לעשותו
For it is written, "in your mouth and in your heart to do it" (Devarim 30:14).
He grounds these three readings in the verse that speaks of Torah being "in your mouth and in your heart to do it."
הם ג' דברים דיבור ומחשבה ומעשה שעל ידיהם זוכין לפתוח מעיין החכמה
These are three things — speech, thought, and deed — through which one merits to open the wellspring of wisdom.
Speech, thought, and deed are the three faculties through which a person merits to unlock the inner wellspring of wisdom.
ונק' כולם מוציאהם בפה
And they are all called "the one who brings them forth with his mouth."
All three together correspond to the first reading, "the one who brings them forth with his mouth."
ומוציאם לאחרים הוא ע"י התלהבות התשוקה שבלב כמ"ש חז"ל דברים היוצאים מן הלב נכנסין אל הלב
And "one who brings them forth to others" is accomplished through the burning yearning of the heart, as Chazal said, "Words that issue from the heart enter the heart."
The second reading, bringing Torah forth to others, happens through the heart's burning yearning, for only words that come from the heart penetrate another's heart.
ולעשותו היא בחי' המצות והם למצוא הארת התורה שגנוז בכל מעשה בראשית בכח המצות שנק' נרות שמאירין למצוא אור התורה בכל מקום
And "to do it" is the aspect of the mitzvos, which serve to find the illumination of the Torah that is hidden within every part of Maaseh Bereishis, through the power of the mitzvos, which are called candles that give light to find the light of the Torah in every place.
The phrase "to do it" refers to the mitzvos, whose function is to uncover the Torah's light concealed within all of creation; the mitzvos are like candles that reveal that light everywhere.
וז"ש שממציא אותם כנ"ל
And this is the meaning of "one who originates them," as explained above.
This act of uncovering the Torah's hidden light is precisely what the third reading, "one who originates them," means.
ובכח אלו הג' משיגין הד' מדרגות שנזכר בפסוק לא נפלאת לא רחוקה שהם בחי' חכמה ובינה
And through the power of these three, one attains the four levels mentioned in the verse "It is not hidden... it is not far off" (Devarim 30:11), which are the aspects of chochmah and binah.
Through speech, thought, and deed, a person reaches the levels the verse describes as not hidden and not far off, namely chochmah and binah.
ובמדות אהבה ויראה שהם גנוזין בלב לכן נחשבין למדרגה אחת וזהו בלבבך
And in the middos of ahavah and yirah — since they are hidden in the heart, they are reckoned as a single level, and this is the meaning of "in your heart."
Ahavah and yirah, both concealed within the heart, are counted as one level, which is what the verse means by "in your heart."
ואיתא בזוה"ק דע"ז נא' הנסתרות לה"א דמאן דעסיק בתורה ומצות מתגלה לכל
And it is brought in the Zohar HaKadosh that concerning this it is said, "The hidden things belong to Hashem our God" (Devarim 29:28), for whoever occupies himself with Torah and mitzvos, it becomes revealed to all.
The Zohar applies the verse "the hidden things belong to Hashem" here, teaching that one who engages in Torah and mitzvos has these hidden matters revealed to all.
ודחילו ורחימו הוא בלב בלבד
And dveikus through fear and love is in the heart alone.
Dveikus attained through fear and love resides in the heart alone and is not openly visible.
[ויתכן לפמ"ש שזה העדות שדווקא בכח אלו העבודות שבלב יכולין ללמד לאחרים ולא בדברים הנגלים]. ואלו הב' הם בכח סייעתא דשמיא ולא האריך הפסוק בהם שנק' נסתרות לה"א
[And it may be said, according to what was written, that this is the testimony — that specifically through the power of these avodos of the heart can one teach others, and not through revealed matters.] And these two are accomplished through the power of siyata diShmaya, and the verse did not elaborate upon them, for they are called "the hidden things" that belong to Hashem our God.
The avodos of the heart, fear and love, are what enable a person to truly teach others, yet they depend on siyata diShmaya, so the verse leaves them unelaborated as "the hidden things" belonging to Hashem.
ולא בשמים ולא מעבר לים הם בחי' תורה ומצות
"It is not in heaven" and "it is not across the sea" (Devarim 30:12-13) are the aspects of Torah and mitzvos.
The verse's statements that the Torah is not in heaven and not across the sea correspond to the aspects of Torah and mitzvos themselves.
וזה תלוי בעבודת האדם בעובדא ומילולא כנ"ל לכן מסיים הפסוק לאמר מי יעלה כו':
And this depends upon the avodah of a person, through deed and speech, as explained above; therefore the verse concludes "saying, Who shall ascend" and so on (Devarim 30:12).
All of this rests upon a person's own avodah in deed and speech, which is why the verse closes by speaking of who shall ascend to bring it down.
Summary: The Sfas Emes expounds the Midrash on "For this mitzvah," reading the verse "life to the one who finds them" in three ways: one who brings Torah forth with his mouth, one who brings it forth to others, and one who originates it. He maps these onto the verse's three faculties of speech, thought, and deed, through which a person opens the wellspring of wisdom and uncovers the Torah's light hidden within all of creation by means of the mitzvos, which are like candles. He explains that the heart contains both the intellectual levels of chochmah and binah and the middos of ahavah and yirah, the latter reckoned as one level since they lie concealed within. Drawing on the Zohar, he distinguishes the revealed avodah of Torah and mitzvos, which is "not in heaven and not across the sea," from the hidden avodos of the heart that depend on siyata diShmaya and remain "the hidden things" belonging to Hashem. Ultimately, everything depends on a person's own avodah in deed and speech, which is why the verse concludes by asking who shall ascend to bring the Torah down.