Moshe, Torah, and the unity of Klal Yisrael

ביום השמיני עצרת תהיה לכם.

"On the eighth day there shall be an atzeres (assembly) for you." (Bamidbar 29:35)

Shemini Atzeres stands apart as its own day, gathering up everything that preceded it into one final ingathering.

כי הג' רגלים הם בזכות הג' אבות.

For the three festivals correspond to the merit of the three Avos (forefathers).

Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukkos each draw their light from one of the Avos — Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov.

ושמ"ע הוא בזכות כלל בנ"י.

And Shemini Atzeres is in the merit of the entire Klal Yisrael (collective body of the Jewish people).

Beyond the individual merit of each of the Avos, this day belongs to Bnei Yisrael as one united whole.

והוא שמחת תורה דביקות בנ"י בתורה כמ"ש אורייתא וקוב"ה וישראל כולהו חד.

And this is Simchas Torah — the deveikus (clinging) of Bnei Yisrael to the Torah, as it is said: "The Torah, the Holy One blessed is He, and Yisrael are all one." (Zohar)

The joy of this day is the bond uniting the Jewish people with the Torah, a bond in which Yisrael, Torah, and Hashem become a single reality.

וע"י הכנת האבות נגמר אח"כ כחן של בנ"י.

And through the preparation of the Avos, the power of Bnei Yisrael was afterward completed.

The Avos laid the groundwork, and only after that foundation could the full strength of the nation come to fruition.

ע"י מרע"ה שהוריד התורה מן השמים לכלל ישראל.

This was through Moshe Rabbeinu, who brought the Torah down from heaven to all of Yisrael.

Moshe was the channel through whom the Torah descended from above and became the inheritance of the entire nation.

כמ"ש במד' רבות בנות כו' ואת עלית על כולנה.

As it is said in the Midrash: "Many daughters have done valiantly… but you have surpassed them all." (Mishlei 31:29)

The collective of Yisrael united around the Torah rises above all the separate merits that came before it.

וזה הרמז בגמ' למדני כל התורה כשאני עומד על רגל אחד.

And this is the hint in the Gemara: "Teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot." (Shabbos 31a)

The convert asked for the essence of the entire Torah condensed into a single point.

והשיב לו הלל ואהבת לרעך כמוך זהו עיקר התורה ואידך פירושא זיל גמור.

And Hillel answered him: "Love your fellow as yourself" — this is the essence of the Torah, and the rest is its commentary; go and learn. (Shabbos 31a)

The whole Torah revolves around the unity of love between Jews, with all the rest serving to explain and enable that core principle.

פי' כל התורה והמצות הם עצות איך לבוא לאחדות השלימות.

That is to say, all the Torah and the mitzvos are counsels for how to arrive at complete unity.

Every mitzvah is in truth a piece of guidance leading toward the perfect oneness of Klal Yisrael.

וזה גמר התורה כשנעשין בנ"י קהלה אחת בלב ונפש.

And this is the completion of the Torah — when Bnei Yisrael become one congregation in heart and soul.

The Torah reaches its purpose only when the people are joined together as a single body with one heart.

ולכן הוצרך מקודם ג' רגלים לתקן כל אחד דבר מיוחד ואח"כ רגל אחד שמ"ע.

Therefore the three festivals were needed first, each one to rectify its own particular matter, and afterward the single festival of Shemini Atzeres.

Each of the three festivals refines a distinct dimension, and only then does the unifying day of Shemini Atzeres draw them all together.

וכתיב תורה צוה לנו משה מורשה קהלת יעקב.

And it is written: "Moshe commanded us the Torah, an inheritance for the congregation of Yaakov." (Devarim 33:4)

The Torah given through Moshe becomes the lasting heritage of the entire assembled nation.

צוה לנו הוא שלומד לנו דרך לדבוק בתורת אמת ע"י המצות הערוכות לפנינו ושרשם מאוד נעלה.

"Commanded us" means that he teaches us a path to cling to the Torah of truth through the mitzvos set before us, whose root is exceedingly lofty.

Moshe shows us the way to attach ourselves to the true Torah by means of the mitzvos, which appear simple yet stem from a very exalted source.

ומשה רבינו היה הממוצע כמ"ש אנכי עומד בין ה' וביניכם.

And Moshe Rabbeinu was the intermediary, as it is said: "I stand between Hashem and you." (Devarim 5:5)

Moshe served as the bridge connecting Bnei Yisrael to Hashem and to the Torah.

וכן הוא לעולם שבאמצעיות משה רבינו יש לנו דביקות בתורה ובה'.

And so it is forever — that through the mediation of Moshe Rabbeinu we have deveikus (attachment) to the Torah and to Hashem.

For all generations, Moshe remains the conduit through which our bond with Torah and with Hashem is maintained.

וכמו דאיתא במד' דב' טפחים של הלוחית היו ביד משה וב' טפחים כביכול בידו של הקב"ה.

And as is brought in the Midrash, that two handbreadths of the Luchos (Tablets) were in Moshe's hand and two handbreadths, as it were, in the hand of the Holy One blessed is He.

The Tablets were held jointly — one portion grasped by Moshe and one portion, so to speak, grasped by Hashem.

כן הוא בין משה לבנ"י.

So it is between Moshe and Bnei Yisrael.

Just as the Tablets joined the Divine and the human grasp, so Moshe himself is divided between the upper and lower realms.

חלק אחד ממשה הוא בתורה.

One part of Moshe is in the Torah.

One dimension of Moshe is bound up entirely with the Torah above.

וחלק אחד בכלל ישראל.

And one part is in the collective of Yisrael.

His other dimension is rooted within the people of Yisrael below.

כמ"ש שנק' איש האלקים מחצה איש ומחצה אלקים.

As it is said that he is called "the man of God" — half man and half divine.

Moshe's very title expresses his dual nature, partaking of both the human and the Godly.

ואיתא כי מש"ה רבינ"ו גי' תרי"ג.

And it is brought that "Moshe Rabbeinu" has the gematria (numerical value) of 613.

The very name of Moshe equals the number of the mitzvos, hinting that he embodies the entire Torah.

כי פנימיות ציור האדם הוא רמ"ח ושס"ה איברים וגידים רוחניים שהם ממש התרי"ג מצות.

For the inner form of a person consists of 248 limbs and 365 sinews — spiritual ones — which are literally the 613 mitzvos.

The penimiyus (inner structure) of the human being is itself the 613 mitzvos, each spiritual limb and sinew corresponding to a mitzvah.

ומשה רבינו זכה לזה הציור בשלימות לכן נק' איש אלקים.

And Moshe Rabbeinu attained this form in its completeness, therefore he is called "a man of God."

Because Moshe fully realized this spiritual form of the 613 mitzvos, he merited the title that fuses man and the Divine.

ועל ידו יכול כל איש ישראל למצוא חלק בציור הזה.

And through him every Jew is able to find a portion in this form.

Because Moshe perfected this inner form, every individual Jew can lay claim to his own share within it.

וז"ש ולכל היד החזקה כו' אשר עשה משה לעיני כל ישראל.

And this is what is said: "and for all the strong hand… that Moshe wrought before the eyes of all Yisrael." (Devarim 34:12)

The Torah concludes by stressing that Moshe's deeds were done before, and on behalf of, all of Yisrael.

הרבותא שכל מה שעשה משה רבינו הי' לכללות ישראל.

The remarkable point is that everything Moshe Rabbeinu did was for the entirety of Yisrael.

Moshe's accomplishments were never private; they were performed for and shared by the whole nation.

שכל איש ישראל יש לו חלק בזה.

That every Jew has a portion in this.

Each and every Jew possesses a real share in all that Moshe achieved.

כמו בתורה שיש לכל איש ישראל חלק.

Just as in the Torah, where every Jew has a portion.

As with the Torah itself, in which each Jew owns a personal share, so too in the legacy of Moshe.

וזה המשך סוף התורה לבראשית.

And this is the connection of the end of the Torah to "Bereishis" (the beginning).

This explains why the close of the Torah loops back to its opening word, joining end to beginning.

שבכח התורה שנק' ראשית עשה משה רבינו כל אלה המעשים.

For it was by the power of the Torah, which is called "reishis" (beginning), that Moshe Rabbeinu performed all these deeds.

The strength behind all of Moshe's works flowed from the Torah, which is the very first principle of creation.

כי משה רבינו הוא התורה ממש.

For Moshe Rabbeinu is literally the Torah itself.

Moshe and the Torah are not two separate things; he is its living embodiment.

וכמו שהתורה נקראת ראשית שהיא הראשית והשורש של כל הדברים.

And just as the Torah is called "reishis," for it is the beginning and the root of all things.

The Torah is named "beginning" because it is the source and root from which everything else springs.

כן נק' משה רבינו ראשית כמ"ש וירא ראשית לו:

So too Moshe Rabbeinu is called "reishis," as it is said: "And he saw the first portion for himself." (Devarim 33:21)

Because Moshe is the embodiment of the Torah, he himself bears the name "beginning," the root and first portion of all Yisrael.

Summary: Shemini Atzeres and Simchas Torah celebrate the unity of all Klal Yisrael bound to the Torah, completing what the three festivals and three Avos began. Moshe Rabbeinu — whose name equals 613 and who is the Torah's living embodiment — stands as the intermediary joining every Jew to the Torah and to Hashem, so that the "end" of the Torah returns to its "beginning," and each individual finds his own portion in both the Torah and in Moshe's deeds.