Yom Kippur as a day above nature

בגמ' קודם יו"כ מפרישין כ"ג כו' פרישת ז' ליום אחד ע"ש.

In the Gemara: before Yom Kippur they separate the Kohen Gadol, etc. — a separation of seven days for one single day; see there.

The Mishnah teaches that the Kohen Gadol is sequestered for seven days in preparation for the one day of Yom Kippur. The Sefas Emes will explain why a full week's preparation is needed for this single day.

הענין כי יוהכ"פ הוא יום אחד מיוחד בשנה שהוא מעין עוה"ב כמ"ש במדרשים שדומין למלאכים ומתגלה בו הנהגה שלמעלה מהטבע.

The matter is that Yom Kippur is one unique day in the year that is a foretaste of Olam Haba, as the Midrashim say that on it [Bnei Yisrael] resemble malachim, and a mode of conduct above nature is revealed on it.

Yom Kippur is set apart from ordinary time — a taste of the World to Come, on which we rise to the level of angels and Hashem governs by a hanhagah (conduct) that transcends the natural order.

והכה"ג הי' מתהפך ממש כמלאך כמ"ש (בזוה"ק) [במד'] על וכל אדם לא יהי' כו' ע"ש.

And the Kohen Gadol would literally be transformed like a malach, as it says (in the Zohar) [in the Midrash] on the verse "and no man shall be [in the Ohel Moed]" (Vayikra 16:17), see there.

On Yom Kippur the Kohen Gadol himself became angelic — Chazal read "no man shall be there" to mean that at that moment he was no longer in the category of an ordinary man.

וזהו כענין שכתוב במלואים ביום השמיני קרא משה כו' כמ"ש שם באורך.

And this is like what is written regarding the days of the milu'im, "on the eighth day Moshe called," etc., as is explained there at length.

The same pattern appeared at the inauguration of the Mishkan: seven days of preparation, and on the eighth day a revelation above nature — paralleling the seven days of preparation before the one day of Yom Kippur.

כי היא בחי' שלמעלה מהטבע בכח התשובה שהתעוררו בנ"י שירד אש מהשמים.

For it is an aspect that is above nature, through the power of the teshuvah that Bnei Yisrael aroused, such that fire descended from Heaven.

The descent of heavenly fire at the milu'im was the fruit of the people's teshuvah — a supernatural response drawn down by their return to Hashem.

וע"ז דרשו לעשות לכפר מעשה פרה ומעשה יוהכ"פ.

And on this Chazal expounded "to perform, to atone" (Vayikra 8:34) — [referring to] the service of the parah and the service of Yom Kippur.

The double expression "to do, to atone" is read as alluding to two later avodos that flow from the same root: the parah adumah and the Yom Kippur service, both channels of supernatural atonement.

והכל ענין אחד בחי' התשובה שהיא למעלה מהנהגת ימי בראשית כמ"ש ימים יוצרו ולא אחד בהם זהו יוהכ"פ.

And it is all one matter — the aspect of teshuvah, which is above the conduct of the days of Creation, as it says "days were formed, and not one among them" (Tehillim 139:16) — this is Yom Kippur.

Teshuvah operates beyond the natural order established in the six days of Creation. The verse hints at a day that is "not one of them" — a day outside the ordinary count of created days — and that day is Yom Kippur.

וזהו הענין שכ' שלא לבשן אהרן לגדולתו כו'.

And this is the matter that is written, that Aharon did not don them [the special garments] for his own self-aggrandizement, etc.

Chazal stress that Aharon wore the priestly vestments not for personal honor. The Sefas Emes now asks how such a caution could even be necessary.

והיתכן שהי' מתגאה אהרן בהיותו לובש בגדים יקרים.

And is it conceivable that Aharon would grow haughty from wearing precious garments?

Surely a tzaddik like Aharon would not feel pride over fine clothing — so what does it mean that he did not wear them "for his greatness"?

רק שבגדים הם המלבושים וכ' בגדי קודש הם.

Rather, the garments are "garbings," and it is written "they are holy garments" (Shemos 28:2).

The point is about what a garment is: a levush, an outer wrapping. The Torah calls them bigdei kodesh — holy garbings — pointing to their inner function.

ונהפך מלבוש הגוף שהוא לבוש להנשמה ונתלבש במלבושי קודש כדאיתא בפייט בענין מראה כהן.

And the garbing of the body — which is itself a garment for the neshamah — was transformed, and he became clothed in holy garbings, as appears in the piyut concerning "the appearance of the Kohen."

Normally the body clothes the soul. When Aharon donned the holy vestments, even his physical body was elevated into a holy garment — the radiant "mar'eh kohen" the Yom Kippur piyut describes.

ובאמת אם הי' לו קצת נגיעה בזה לא הי' יכול להתלבש בהם כלל:

And in truth, had he had the slightest personal interest in this, he would not have been able to don them at all.

The very ability to wear the bigdei kodesh and be transformed by them depended on having no self-interest whatsoever. The smallest negiah (personal bias) would have made him unfit to be clothed in them — which is precisely why it can be said that he did not wear them for his own greatness.

Summary: Yom Kippur is a day above nature — a taste of Olam Haba on which Bnei Yisrael become like malachim and the Kohen Gadol is literally transformed into an angel. The seven-day preparation, like the seven days of the milu'im that drew down heavenly fire, expresses the supernatural power of teshuvah that operates beyond the order of Creation. And Aharon's holy garments could transform even his body into a holy garbing only because he wore them with utter bittul, without a trace of self-interest.