Humility and rectifying the animal soul

להו"ר שהוא יום ערבה ותקנו בו רוב בקשות בהושענות.

Regarding Hoshana Rabbah, which is the "day of the aravah" (willow), on which they instituted the bulk of the supplications in the Hoshanos.

The Sefas Emes turns to Hoshana Rabbah, distinguished by the special mitzvah of the willow and by the abundance of pleading prayers (Hoshanos) recited on it.

דכתיב אדם ובהמה תושיע ה' ובמד' אדם בזכות בהמה.

For it is written, "Man and beast You save, Hashem," and in the Midrash: man is saved in the merit of the beast.

The verse (Tehillim 36:7) pairs "man and beast," and the Midrash reads it to mean that man is saved in the zechus of the "beast" — a phrase the Sefas Emes will unpack as referring to the trait of self-effacement.

ד"א שערומין בדעת כאדם ומשימין עצמן כבהמה.

Another interpretation: those who are clever in knowledge like a man yet make themselves like a beast.

A second reading: the "merit of the beast" means people who possess human wisdom and understanding, yet humble themselves as though they were simple beasts, without ego.

והכל ענין א'.

And it is all one matter.

Both interpretations point to a single idea — the avodah of bittul, making oneself small before Hashem.

שעיקר הוא הביטול שמתבטלין אל הקב"ה כמ"ש בהמות הייתי עמך.

For the main thing is the bittul (self-nullification) — that one nullifies himself to Hashem, as it is written, "I was as a beast before You."

The essence is bittul: nullifying one's own sense of self before Hashem. The Sefas Emes cites Tehillim (73:22), "I was as a beast before You" — Asaf's expression of standing before Hashem in complete humility, like an animal with no claim of its own.

ובנ"י יש להם זה הביטול ולא האומות כמ"ש המעט אתם ממעטין עצמיכם.

And Bnei Yisrael possess this bittul, and the nations do not, as it says: "[Not because you are] the fewest — for you make yourselves small."

This quality of self-effacement belongs uniquely to Bnei Yisrael. Chazal read "ha-me'at" (Devarim 7:7) as a praise: Hashem loves Yisrael because they minimize themselves, unlike the nations who exalt themselves.

וז"ש דלותי ולי יהושיע דרשו חז"ל לי נאה להושיע.

And this is the meaning of "I was brought low, and He saved me" — Chazal expounded: "to Me it is fitting to bring salvation."

On the verse "dalosi v'li yehoshia" (Tehillim 116:6), Chazal read "li" as referring to Hashem: precisely to the one who is lowly and humble, "li na'eh," it is fitting for Hashem to bring salvation.

כי יש להם בחי' דלות.

For they possess the aspect of lowliness (dalus).

Bnei Yisrael are characterized by dalus — a sense of their own smallness and dependence on Hashem — which makes them fitting recipients of His salvation.

כמ"ש בכל מקום שנא' מך עני ואביון דל אינו אלא ישראל שהם דלים ורשים בעיניהם.

As they said: wherever "poor, afflicted, destitute, lowly" is mentioned, it refers only to Yisrael, who are poor and impoverished in their own eyes.

Chazal teach that the Torah's terms for poverty allude to Bnei Yisrael — not necessarily materially poor, but humble and "impoverished in their own eyes," seeing themselves as having nothing of their own apart from Hashem.

וזה עצמו פי' בזכות בהמה.

And this itself is the meaning of "in the merit of the beast."

This humble self-effacement is exactly what "the merit of the beast" signifies — being saved through bittul.

אכן עיקר הפי' שצריכין לזכות ולטהר ולתקן גם חלק הבהמיות.

However, the main interpretation is that one must refine, purify, and rectify even the bestial part.

The Sefas Emes adds a deeper layer: "in the merit of the beast" also means the avodah of cleansing and elevating the animalistic dimension within a person himself.

כי באדם יש ג"כ נפש הבהמיות.

For within a person there is also the nefesh ha'behamis (the animal soul).

Every person contains a nefesh ha'behamis, the animal soul bound to the body and its physical drives.

שהוא חלק הגוף.

Which is the portion of the body.

This animal soul is the life-force of the physical body, distinct from the holy neshamah.

ותיקון הגוף ע"י הביטול כנ"ל.

And the rectification of the body is through bittul, as above.

The way to rectify and elevate this bodily, animal part is precisely through bittul — the same self-nullification before Hashem.

ולכן איש ישראל אפילו יגבי' אותו המקום עד לשמים צריך לזכור שיש בו ג"כ חלק בהמה.

And therefore a Jew, even if his standing is raised up to the heavens, must remember that he too contains a "beast" portion.

However lofty a person's spiritual level, he must never forget that he still possesses an animal soul that requires refinement — this awareness itself keeps him in humility.

ואז נמשך גם חלק בהמיות אחר הנשמה ונתקן הכל.

And then the bestial portion too is drawn after the neshamah, and everything is rectified.

When a person remembers and works on his animal soul through bittul, that lower part becomes drawn after the neshamah, and the whole person — body and soul — is set right.

וזהו אדם ובהמה תושיע ה'.

And this is "Man and beast You save, Hashem."

The salvation of "man and beast" thus means that Hashem saves the whole person — both the human, spiritual dimension and the elevated animal dimension within him.

וזה עצמו אגודת הד' מינים שדרשו חז"ל שהם נגד בני תורה ומצות ושפלים.

And this itself is the binding of the four species, which Chazal expounded as corresponding to those who have Torah and mitzvos and those who are lowly.

The bundling of the arba minim — including species with neither taste nor fragrance — teaches that even the "lowly," those lacking Torah and mitzvos, are bound together with the rest, mirroring how the bestial part is joined to the holy.

ובאמת תערובות זה נמצא גם בכל פרט כמ"ש.

And in truth this mixture is found also within every individual, as we have said.

The blend of "higher" and "lower" is not only among different people but exists within each single person — the neshamah and the nefesh ha'behamis together.

ועיקר הישועה בזכות ערבה שהוא השפלות ודלות.

And the essence of the salvation is in the merit of the aravah, which represents lowliness and humility (dalus).

The willow — having neither taste nor smell — symbolizes the lowliest, most humble element, and it is precisely this dalus that brings the salvation of Hoshana Rabbah.

ומבקשין על המים בזה הזכות כמ"ש יזל מים מדליו דרשו חז"ל על עניים שמהם תצא תורה כי אין מים יורדין רק למקום נמוך.

And we plead for water in this merit, as it is written, "water shall flow from his branches," which Chazal expounded as referring to the poor, from whom Torah will come forth — for water descends only to a low place.

On Hoshana Rabbah we pray for the coming year's rain in the merit of this humility. The verse (Bamidbar 24:7) "water shall flow from his branches" is read by Chazal as a promise that Torah ("water") flows from the humble poor — for just as water flows only downward to low ground, so the waters of Torah settle only upon those who make themselves low.

ואפילו בלעם הרשע קינא לבנ"י במדת הדלות שיש בהם שהוא כלי לקבל מי התורה.

And even Bilam the wicked envied Bnei Yisrael for the trait of dalus within them, which is a vessel to receive the waters of Torah.

Even Bilam, in his prophecy, recognized and envied this quality of humility in Bnei Yisrael, for it is precisely the vessel that makes them fit to receive the living waters of Torah.

ולכן נקראו ערבי נחל קח על מים רבים כמ"ש יזל מים כו' וזרעו במים רבים:

And therefore they are called "willows of the brook," "planted by many waters," as it is written, "water shall flow… and his seed shall be by many waters."

Bnei Yisrael are likened to the willows of the brook (Vayikra 23:40), which grow beside flowing water; through their humility they are "planted by many waters," continually drawing the waters of Torah and blessing — the culminating theme of Hoshana Rabbah and its willow.

Summary: Hoshana Rabbah, the day of the willow, centers on the avodah of bittul and dalus — humble self-nullification before Hashem. "Man and beast You save" teaches that one is saved in the merit of the "beast": both by humbling oneself like an animal and by refining the nefesh ha'behamis within, drawing the bodily, animal part after the neshamah so the whole person is rectified. The lowly willow embodies this humility, which is the vessel — envied even by Bilam — for receiving the waters of Torah, for water flows only to a low place.