The mouth as the soul's circulation

במד' זאת תהי' תורת המצורע.

In the Midrash: "This shall be the law of the metzora (the one afflicted with tzaraas)."

The Sefas Emes opens with the verse introducing the laws of the metzora, on which the Midrash will be brought.

הה"ד ולרשע אמר אלקים מה לך לספר חוקי כו'.

This is as the verse states: "But to the wicked, Hashem said: What right have you to recount My statutes…?" (Tehillim 50:16).

The Midrash links the metzora to the verse rebuking the wicked for "recounting" Hashem's statutes — a hint, since the metzora's sin is connected to speech.

דמ"ש בכ"מ תורת המצורע תורת הזב כו' הוא משום שכל התקונים וכל המעשים נעשה הכל בכח התורה.

For that which is said in many places — "the law (toras) of the metzora," "the law (toras) of the zav," etc. — is because all the rectifications and all the deeds are accomplished entirely through the power of the Torah.

The Torah repeatedly uses the word "toras" because every tikkun and every act is brought about by the power of the Torah itself.

וכפי מה שמתקן מעשיו זוכה להתקרב אל התורה.

And according to how a person rectifies his deeds, he merits to draw near to the Torah.

The more a person sets his actions right, the closer he is able to come to the Torah.

וזה תיקונו דכולא באורייתא איתכלילו.

And this is his rectification, for everything is included in the Torah.

His repair lies in reconnecting to the Torah, since all things are contained within it.

וכ"ד יש לו שורש בתורה.

And every single thing has its root in the Torah.

Everything that exists has its source-root within the Torah.

ומכ"ש נפש הישראלי.

And all the more so the soul of a Jew.

This is especially true of the neshamah of a Jew, which is rooted in the Torah.

וכ"ז שיש בו פגם וקילקול א"י להתדבק בשורשו.

And as long as there is a blemish and corruption in him, he cannot cleave to his root.

So long as a person bears a flaw, he is blocked from attaching himself to his source in the Torah.

וז"ש מה לך לספר כו'.

And this is the meaning of "What right have you to recount…"

This is why the wicked one is told he has no business "recounting" the Torah's statutes — his blemish severs him from the Torah's root.

ואיתא כי צרעת בא מלה"ר מוציא רע.

And it is taught that tzaraas comes from lashon hara (evil speech) — "motzi ra" (one who brings out evil).

Chazal teach that the affliction of tzaraas is a punishment for lashon hara; the very word "metzora" is read as "motzi ra," one who brings forth evil.

פי' דיש ללמוד תיקון הנפש מהגוף.

The explanation is that one can learn the rectification of the soul from the body.

The Sefas Emes will draw a parallel: the workings of the physical body teach us how the soul is meant to function.

ונודע דעיקר חיות האדם בלב וריאה והדם שנמצא בלב מתפשט בכל האברים וחוזר ללב.

And it is known that the essence of a person's life is in the heart and lungs, and the blood that is in the heart spreads out to all the limbs and returns to the heart.

Physically, life centers on the heart and lungs: blood flows from the heart out to every limb and circulates back to the heart.

וזה קיום האדם דמו בנפשו כו'.

And this is the sustaining of a person, "his blood is in his soul…"

This circulation of blood is what sustains life, for "the blood is the nefesh."

והריאה להוציא אויר ולהכניס אויר.

And the lung serves to expel air and to draw in air.

The lungs breathe out and breathe in — a constant exchange with the outside.

וכמו כן בנפש האדם עיקר כוחן של ישראל בפה.

And likewise in the soul of a person — the essential strength of Yisrael is in the mouth.

Paralleling the body, the spiritual power of a Jew is concentrated in the mouth, in the faculty of speech.

והוא להוציא מפנימיות האדם דיבורים בתורה כמאמר חיים הם למוציאיהם בפה.

And this is to bring out from the inner depths of a person words of Torah, as it says, "they are life to those who bring them out through the mouth."

The mouth's holy purpose is to draw out a person's penimiyus (inner depths) as words of Torah; the Torah's words are "life to those who utter them" aloud.

ואיתא דברים היוצאין מן הלב נכנסין אל הלב.

And it is taught: words that come out from the heart enter the heart.

Chazal say that words spoken sincerely from the heart penetrate the heart of the listener — and, as the Sefas Emes will explain, return to one's own heart.

פי' שכל דיבור בתורה שמוציא האדם כראוי בכל לבו נכנסין הם ללבו ומוצא בהם טעם חדש והוא ממש כדמיון הילוך הדם מהלב לכל האברים וחזרתו ללב.

The explanation is that every word of Torah that a person brings forth properly, with his whole heart, enters back into his heart, and he finds in it a new taste — and this is exactly like the image of the blood's flow from the heart to all the limbs and its return to the heart.

Just as blood circulates out from the heart and back, so a heartfelt word of Torah goes forth and returns to the speaker's own heart, renewed — he discovers a fresh "taste" and deeper understanding in his own words.

והוא ע"פ הפסוק כל הנחלים הולכים כו' מקום שהנחלים הולכים כו' שבים כו'.

And this accords with the verse, "All the rivers flow… to the place where the rivers flow, there they return…" (Koheles 1:7).

The rivers flowing to the sea and returning to their source illustrate the same cycle of going out and coming back.

וכמו כן להיפוך מוציא רע הוא שיש ג"כ יצה"ר בלב אדם בשמאלו כמ"ש לב כסיל לשמאלו כו'.

And likewise, in the opposite direction, "motzi ra" (bringing out evil): for there is also a yetzer hara in a person's heart, on his left, as it says, "the heart of a fool is to his left."

The same mechanism works in reverse for evil: the yetzer hara sits in the left side of the heart, as Koheles hints ("the fool's heart is to his left").

וכשמוציא הבל שמאלי לחוץ מכניס בו רוח שטות כנ"ל.

And when a person brings out a "left-sided breath" outward, he draws into himself a spirit of folly, as above.

When a person speaks evil — exhaling the "breath" of his left/lower side — he inhales back a ruach shtus (spirit of foolishness) into himself, the dark mirror of the holy cycle.

ולשון ופה האדם הם המחברין הבל ורוח לנפש האדם.

And a person's tongue and mouth are what join the breath and spirit to the soul of man.

The mouth and tongue are the connectors that bind "breath and spirit" — whether holy or foolish — to a person's soul.

וז"ש מות וחיים ביד לשון כדאיתא במדרש.

And this is the meaning of "death and life are in the hand of the tongue," as it is taught in the Midrash.

Because the tongue can draw in either holy life or foolish death, the verse declares that life and death are literally in its power.

ועוד שם כי גדול לה"ר מע"ז וג"ע וש"ד שנק' גדול ולה"ר נק' מדברת גדולות לשון כפול ע"ש.

And further there [in the Midrash]: that lashon hara is greater than avodah zarah, gilui arayos, and shefichus damim, which are called "great," while lashon hara is called "speaking great things" — a doubled expression — see there.

The Midrash teaches lashon hara outweighs even the three cardinal sins (idolatry, immorality, bloodshed); each of those is "great," but lashon hara is "speaking great things," a double measure of greatness.

פי' הדברים כי כל אלו הם כוחות באדם למשל ג"ע וש"ד שהם בכח האדם למשול על חבירו להורגו וכן להטיבו ולהשפיע לכל מי שרוצה.

The explanation is that all of these are powers within a person: for example, gilui arayos and shefichus damim, which lie within a person's power to rule over his fellow — to kill him, and likewise to benefit him and bestow upon whomever he wishes.

Each cardinal sin reflects a genuine human power. Bloodshed and immorality express a person's power over his fellow — to destroy or, conversely, to benefit and give to others.

אבל הגדולה להשי"ת בלבד היא.

But the "greatness" (gedulah) belongs to Hashem alone.

True "greatness," however, belongs only to Hashem, not to man — and misusing these powers usurps what is His.

והוא בחי' אברהם ויצחק שמסרו כל החסד והדין להשי"ת אשר לו הגדולה והגבורה.

And this is the aspect of Avraham and Yitzchak, who handed over all the chesed and the din to Hashem, to whom belong "the greatness and the might" (Divrei HaYamim I 29:11).

Avraham (chesed/benefiting others) and Yitzchak (din/power over others) each surrendered their attribute back to Hashem, acknowledging that "the gedulah and the gevurah" are His.

וכן ע"ז בכח העובד לעשותו אלהים אחרים לכן נק' גדול שבכח האדם לתת כח אלהות למי שעובד לו.

And so too avodah zarah: it lies within the power of the worshipper to make it into "other gods"; therefore it is called "great," for it is within a person's power to grant a force of divinity to that which he worships.

Idolatry too reflects a real human power — a person can, in a sense, "empower" the thing he worships, granting it a false aura of divinity; hence it is "great."

והוא בשקר והוא נגד מדתו של יעקב שהוא אמת.

But this is a falsehood, and it is opposed to the attribute of Yaakov, which is truth.

Avodah zarah is a lie, the direct opposite of Yaakov's middah of emes (truth).

ולכן ייחד עליו הקב"ה אלקותו שהוא אלהים אמת.

Therefore the Holy One, blessed is He, attached His Godliness to him (Yaakov), for He is the true God.

Because Yaakov embodies truth, Hashem — the true God — associated His Name specifically with Yaakov, the antidote to the falsehood of idolatry.

ולה"ר כולל הכל והוא נגד דהע"ה שהוא מלכותו ית' והנהגתו את העולם.

And lashon hara encompasses them all, and it stands opposed to David HaMelech, who represents His blessed Malchus (kingship) and His governance of the world.

Lashon hara contains all three sins together, and it is the opposite of David, who represents Hashem's Malchus and His ongoing rule over the world.

וז"ש מדברת גדולות לשון דיבור והנהגה שכל האברים נמשכין אחר הפה והלשון כנ"ל:

And this is "speaking great things" — the term "speech" implies governance, for all the limbs follow after the mouth and the tongue, as above.

"Speaking great things" connotes rulership, because just as Hashem governs the world through speech (Malchus), so a person's whole body is led by his mouth and tongue — which is why lashon hara, the corruption of that governing power of speech, is the gravest of all.

Summary: The recurring phrase "toras ha-metzora" teaches that every tikkun is accomplished through the power of Torah, the root of all things and especially of the Jewish soul; a blemish like lashon hara severs a person from that root ("what right have you to recount My statutes"). The Sefas Emes learns the soul's workings from the body: just as blood flows from the heart to the limbs and back, and the lungs exhale and inhale, so the mouth's holy purpose is to bring forth words of Torah from one's penimiyus — words spoken from the heart return to the heart renewed. In reverse, "motzi ra" exhales the breath of the yetzer hara and inhales a ruach shtus, so "death and life are in the hand of the tongue." Lashon hara outweighs even the three cardinal sins because each of those misuses a real human power (chesed, din, and granting false divinity) that the Avos restored to Hashem, to whom alone belong gedulah and gevurah; lashon hara, the corruption of speech itself, opposes David's Malchus — Hashem's governance through speech — since the whole body follows the mouth and tongue.