Daily Renewal Through Love
בפרשת שמע ישראל כו' ואהבת כו'
In the parsha of "Shema Yisrael... and you shall love..." (Devarim 6:4-5).
The Sfas Emes opens with the parsha of Shema and its command to love Hashem.
והיו הדברים האלה אשר אנכי מצוך היום כו'
"And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart" (Devarim 6:6).
He cites the verse that the words of Torah must rest upon one's heart.
אמרו חז"ל שלא יהיו כדיוטגמא ישנה
Chazal taught that they should not be like an old royal decree (which one regards with indifference).
Chazal warn that Torah should not be treated like a stale, old decree that one no longer takes to heart.
בכל יום כחדשים
Rather, each day they should be like new.
Instead, each day the words of Torah should feel fresh and new to us.
הענין הוא דכתי' וחיי עולם נטע בתוכנו
The matter is as it is written, "and He planted eternal life within us" (from the blessing over the Torah).
He grounds this in the idea that Hashem planted eternal, ever-living Torah within us.
ובשעת קבלת התורה נחקקו העשרת הדברות בלבות בנ"י
At the time of the receiving of the Torah, the Aseres HaDibros (the Ten Commandments) were engraved upon the hearts of Bnei Yisrael.
At Har Sinai the Ten Commandments were actually engraved upon the hearts of Bnei Yisrael.
וכל דיבורי ה' חיים וקיימים
And all the utterances of Hashem are living and enduring.
Hashem's words are eternally alive, never becoming stale on their own.
אך כפי טהרת הלב במס"נ
But it is according to the purity of the heart, through mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice).
But accessing that living quality depends on the purity of one's heart and one's self-sacrifice.
ואהבת ה' בלב ונפש
When one loves Hashem with heart and soul,
When a person truly loves Hashem with his whole being,
כך נמצא התגלות הדיבורים בלב איש ישראל
correspondingly the revelation of these utterances is found within the heart of a Jew.
that love reveals the engraved words of Hashem within his heart.
ז"ש כשתאהב ה' כו' והיו הדברים הוי' חדשה תמצא דבר ה' בלבך כאשר חכמים הגידו מיד רוה"ק שורה בתוך מעיו כו'
This is the meaning of the verse: when you love Hashem, then "these words" will become a new matter, and you will find the word of Hashem within your heart, as Chazal said: immediately the Ruach HaKodesh (Divine spirit) rests within his innards.
Loving Hashem renews the Torah within you, drawing the Ruach HaKodesh into your very being, as Chazal describe.
וע"ז אמרו חכמים יגעתי ומצאתי תאמין
Concerning this Chazal said: "If a person says, 'I toiled and I found,' believe him" (Megillah 6b).
Chazal affirm that genuine toil in Torah is always rewarded with finding.
וכתי' אם תבקשנה ככסף כו' תמצא כו'
And it is written, "If you seek it like silver... then you will find..." (Mishlei 2:4-5).
Just as one searches diligently for hidden silver, so too one finds Hashem through earnest seeking.
שיש מטמוניות בלב איש ישראל כנ"ל
For there are hidden treasures within the heart of a Jew, as explained above.
These hidden treasures of Torah lie buried within every Jewish heart, waiting to be uncovered.
ובאמת בתורה יש תמיד התחדשות אך ע"י שאדם מטהר לבו יוכל לקבל ההתחדשות תמיד
And in truth there is always renewal within the Torah, but only through a person purifying his heart can he constantly receive this renewal.
The Torah is constantly renewing itself, but only a purified heart can receive that ongoing renewal.
וז"ש יהיו בעיניך כחדשים זה עבודת האדם
This is the meaning of "they should be in your eyes like new" (Rashi, Devarim 6:6) - this is the avodah (service) of man.
Rashi's instruction to see the words as new describes the active avodah required of a person.
אבל באמת מצוך היום כתיב
But in truth it is written "which I command you this day" (Devarim 6:6).
Yet the verse also says "this day," pointing to something beyond man's effort.
וזה המצוה לזכור מתן תורה בכל יום והיינו ע"י תיקון הנפש והגוף להיות מוכן לקבל אז מתגלה אליו הארת התורה המתחדשת בכל יום
And this is the mitzvah: to remember the giving of the Torah each and every day, namely through the rectification of the soul and the body so as to be prepared to receive; then the illumination of the Torah, which renews itself each day, is revealed to him.
The mitzvah is to relive the giving of the Torah daily by refining body and soul, thereby meriting the fresh daily illumination of Torah.
כמ"ש שמע ישראל מכלל שיש תמיד דבר ה' שצריך האדם לשמוע הדברים כענין שכ' בכל יום בת קול יוצאת מהר חורב
As it is written, "Shema Yisrael - Hear, O Yisrael," which implies that there is always a word of Hashem that a person must hear, in the manner of that which is written that each day a bas kol (heavenly voice) goes forth from Mount Chorev.
The word "Shema - Hear" implies an ever-present word of Hashem to be heard, like the daily bas kol from Chorev.
וכל אלה הכחות נמצאים בלבות בנ"י ממש וכתי' וקשרתם כו' והיו לטוטפות
And all these powers are found literally within the hearts of Bnei Yisrael, and it is written, "And you shall bind them... and they shall be as totafos (tefillin between your eyes)" (Devarim 6:8).
These spiritual powers truly reside in Jewish hearts, which is why we bind them as tefillin.
שיעשו הדיבורים רושם ושינוי ממש בנפשות בנ"י
That these utterances should make a genuine impression and an actual change within the souls of Bnei Yisrael.
The point of tefillin is that the words of Torah leave a real, transformative imprint on the soul.
מדמצינו שנק' התפילין אות משמע שניכר באיש ישראלי רשימות של קדושה
Since we find that the tefillin are called "a sign" (os), this implies that imprints of kedushah (holiness) are recognizable upon a Jew.
Tefillin being called "a sign" shows that marks of kedushah become visibly recognizable on a Jew.
וזה עיקר מצות תפילין שהם עדות כמ"ש וראו כל ע"ה כו' שם ה' נקרא עליך דרשו חז"ל אלו תפילין שבראש
And this is the essence of the mitzvah of tefillin, that they are a testimony, as it is written, "And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the Name of Hashem is called upon you" (Devarim 28:10) - which Chazal expounded as referring to the tefillin of the head (Berachos 6a).
The essence of tefillin is to serve as testimony, with the head-tefillin showing Hashem's Name resting upon a person.
ובוודאי הכל תלוי כפי המס"נ שנמצא באדם
And certainly everything depends upon the measure of mesirus nefesh that is found within a person.
The degree to which this imprint is manifest depends on a person's measure of mesirus nefesh.
ויש בכל איש ישראל חלק מזה כפי הרצון והאהבה להש"י כך נמצא בו רשימה
And in every Jew there is a portion of this; according to the will and the love for Hashem Yisbarach, so is the imprint found within him.
Every Jew possesses a share of this imprint, proportionate to his will and love for Hashem.
ואם זוכין למס"נ בפועל אז מתגלה הרשימה ג"כ בפועל ממש
And if one merits to mesirus nefesh in actual practice, then the imprint too is revealed in actual practice.
When one achieves actual self-sacrifice, the imprint becomes revealed in actual deed.
ואם יש קצת אהבה טמונה בלב נמצא הרשימה ג"כ בפנימיות עכ"פ:
And if there is a little love concealed within the heart, then the imprint too is found at least within his innermost depths.
Even a small hidden love in the heart still leaves the imprint present, at least in one's inner depths.
Summary: The Sfas Emes teaches that the words of Torah, especially the Aseres HaDibros given at Har Sinai, were engraved upon the hearts of Bnei Yisrael and remain eternally living and renewing. Whether a person experiences this renewal each day depends on the purity of his heart and his love for Hashem, accomplished through mesirus nefesh; the more one loves Hashem with heart and soul, the more the living word of Hashem is revealed within him, drawing in the Ruach HaKodesh. The mitzvah "which I command you this day" calls upon a Jew to relive the giving of the Torah daily by refining body and soul, thereby meriting the fresh daily illumination of Torah, like the bas kol that issues forth from Chorev each day. Tefillin, called "a sign," testify that these living words leave a real and recognizable imprint of kedushah upon the soul of a Jew. The strength of that imprint corresponds precisely to one's measure of love and self-sacrifice: actual mesirus nefesh reveals it in deed, while even a hidden love preserves it within one's innermost depths.