Knowing the world from above through Torah

במד' והיית רק למעלה מוטב הי' לשאול לשאול באורים ותומים למעלה כו'.

In the Midrash, on "and you shall be only above": it would have been better to inquire — to inquire through the Urim VeTumim from above, etc.

The Sefas Emes cites the Midrash that contrasts seeking guidance from above (through the Urim VeTumim) with seeking it from below.

פי' רק למעלה שאפי' לידע תהלוכת הטבע בעוה"ז הכל צריכין בנ"י לידע מכח התורה.

The meaning of "only above": that even to know the workings of nature in this world, Bnei Yisrael must know it all through the power of the Torah.

"Only above" teaches that even worldly, natural knowledge should be drawn down from the Torah, not sought from below.

וע"ז כתי' גל עיני ואביטה.

And concerning this it is written: "Uncover my eyes that I may behold [wonders from Your Torah]."

Dovid HaMelech's prayer asks that his eyes be opened to perceive everything through the lens of the Torah.

אחז"ל הבטה היא מלמעלה למטה.

Chazal said that "habatah" (beholding) is from above to below.

The very word for this seeing implies a gaze that flows downward — from the higher vantage of Torah onto the world below.

פי' שאם עיני האדם פתוחות בתורה רואה מתוך התורה כל הנפלאות הנעשין גם בטבעיות היפוך האוב וידעוני בעד החיים אל המתים.

The meaning is that if a person's eyes are open in the Torah, he sees through the Torah all the wonders that occur, even in natural events — the opposite of the ov and yidoni (necromancy), which seek "on behalf of the living to the dead."

One whose vision is rooted in Torah perceives everything, even nature, from its living source above — the very reverse of necromancy, which seeks knowledge from the dead, from below.

כי הטבע מקבל חיות משורש העליון.

For nature receives its vitality from the supernal root.

Nature itself is not the source of life; it is sustained by a higher root above it.

ולכן ע"י חכמת הטבע יכולין לידע משהו מלמעלה.

Therefore through the wisdom of nature one can know something of what is above.

Studying nature can indeed yield a glimpse of the higher reality, since nature reflects its source.

אבל הוא כדורש בעד החיים אל המתים.

But this is like one who "inquires on behalf of the living to the dead."

Yet to reach upward by way of nature is a backward path — drawing from the lifeless lower realm rather than the living source.

ובנ"י צריכין להיות רק למעלה ומשם ידעו מה שלמטה כנ"ל:

And Bnei Yisrael must be "only above," and from there they will know what is below, as above.

The proper path for Bnei Yisrael is to stand with the Torah above and from that vantage understand everything below.

Summary: Bnei Yisrael are to be "only above" — drawing all knowledge, even of the natural world, downward from the Torah rather than seeking it from below. To approach the higher truths by way of nature is a reversal akin to necromancy; the proper way is to view all of reality from the living root above.