Shabbos HaGadol and the supernatural mode of gadlus

בגמ' העלו ביום הראשון תשביתו ראשון דמעיקרא דכתיב הראשון אדם תולד כו'.

In the Gemara: "On the first day you shall remove (the chametz)" — "first" means from the outset (i.e., the fourteenth, before the festival), as it is written, "Were you born the first man (rishon)?" etc.

The Gemara derives from "ba'yom ha'rishon" that chametz must be removed already from the fourteenth of Nissan, taking "rishon" to mean "prior/first," and the word evokes the verse "Were you the first man (Adam) born?" — pointing toward the theme of "firstness."

הענין שנק' י"ד ראשון לאשר בו קיימו בנ"י מצוה הראשונה שעלי' אמרו חכמים שהיה צריך התורה להתחיל מהחודש הזה לכם שהוא מצוה ראשונה רק משום כח מעשיו הגיד כו'.

The matter is that the fourteenth is called "first" because on it Bnei Yisrael fulfilled the first mitzvah — about which the Sages said that the Torah should have begun from "This month shall be for you," which is the first mitzvah, except that "the power of His deeds He told..." etc.

The fourteenth is "first" because on it Bnei Yisrael performed their first mitzvah (the Korban Pesach). Rashi (citing the Midrash) says the Torah really should have begun with "HaChodesh hazeh lachem," the first commandment, and started instead with Creation only "to tell the power of His deeds."

והיינו שבנ"י עיקר תהלוכתם עפ"י התורה מדריגת מרע"ה שהוא בחי' שם הוי"ה ב"ה.

That is, the essential way of Bnei Yisrael's conduct is according to the Torah, the level of Moshe Rabbeinu, which is the aspect of the Name Havayah, blessed be He.

Bnei Yisrael's true path runs by the Torah, the rung of Moshe Rabbeinu, corresponding to the Divine Name of Havayah (the transcendent Name above nature).

לכן נק' בני ישראל ראשית שעלו במחשבה לקדמונו של עולם.

Therefore Bnei Yisrael are called "reishis" (the first/beginning), for they arose in the thought of the Primordial One of the world.

Bnei Yisrael are termed "the first" because they arose in Hashem's primordial thought, preceding creation itself.

והוא המדריגה שהי' מוכן להיות קודם חטא אדה"ר.

And this is the level that was prepared to exist before the sin of Adam HaRishon.

This elevated level is the one that was meant to exist before Adam's sin — the world's original, untainted state.

לכן רמזו ראשון אדם.

Therefore they hinted "the first man (rishon Adam)."

This is why the Gemara's allusion to "rishon Adam" is apt — it connects this mitzvah to the restoration of Adam's original, pre-sin level.

שהתחילו עתה לתקן מדריגה הראשונה עפ"י התורה שהוא עץ החיים.

For they now began to rectify the first level, by means of the Torah, which is the Tree of Life.

Through this first mitzvah, Bnei Yisrael began to repair that original level by means of the Torah, which is the Eitz HaChaim — undoing the damage of Adam's sin with the Tree of Knowledge.

והוא בחי' גדלות.

And this is the aspect of gadlus (greatness/expanded consciousness).

This restored level is the state of gadlus, an expanded mode of being.

דיש קטנות וגדלות כידוע לאנשי מדע.

For there is katnus (smallness) and gadlus (greatness), as is known to people of knowledge.

As those versed in these matters know, there are two general states — a constricted "smallness" and an expanded "greatness."

והקטנות הוא הטבע בחי' מעשה בראשית כח מעשיו שהאלקים מנהיג הטבע עפ"י צמצום שהוצרך כביכול לצמצם ולעכב בחי' הגדלות כמ"ש שאמר לעולמו די.

And katnus is nature — the aspect of "ma'aseh bereishis," "the power of His deeds" — that Elokim conducts nature through tzimtzum (contraction), for, as it were, He had to contract and hold back the aspect of gadlus, as it is written that "He said to His world: Enough."

Katnus corresponds to the natural order, governed by the Name Elokim through tzimtzum — Hashem had to contract and restrain the expansive light of gadlus, as Chazal say He told the expanding world "Dai" (enough).

וכמו שהחכם צריך להקטין עצמו ללמוד עם הקטן.

And just as the wise man must make himself small in order to learn with a small child.

This is like a great scholar who must contract his own wisdom to teach a young child at the child's level.

אבל ביציאת מצרים התחיל הנהגת הנסים וביטול הטבע.

But at Yetzias Mitzrayim there began the conduct of miracles and the nullification of nature.

At the Exodus, however, a new mode began — open miracles that override and nullify the natural order.

הוא בחי' גדלות בשם הוי"ה ית'.

This is the aspect of gadlus, through the Name Havayah, may He be blessed.

This miraculous conduct is the state of gadlus, associated with the transcendent Name Havayah that is above nature.

לכן נק' גם השבת שקודם פסח שבת הגדול דהי' מקחו בעשור בשבת קודש.

Therefore the Shabbos before Pesach is also called "Shabbos HaGadol" (the Great Shabbos), since the taking (of the Pesach lamb) on the tenth fell on the holy Shabbos.

The Shabbos before Pesach is called "the Great Shabbos" because in Egypt the Pesach lamb was designated on the tenth of Nissan, which that year fell on Shabbos.

והמפרשים מקשים למה תלה הגדולה בשבת.

And the commentators ask: why was the "greatness" attached to the Shabbos (rather than to the day of the tenth itself)?

The commentators wonder why the name "Great" was given to the Shabbos rather than to the calendar date of the tenth, when the lamb was actually taken.

אבל נראה כמו שהי' קבלת התורה בשבת כן התחלת המצות הוצרך להיות בשבת.

But it appears that, just as the receiving of the Torah was on Shabbos, so too the beginning of the mitzvos had to be on Shabbos.

The answer: just as Matan Torah occurred on Shabbos, the very first mitzvah likewise had to begin on Shabbos.

שכל סדר הנהגה חדשה הוצרך להיות בשבת.

For every new order of conduct had to begin on Shabbos.

Any inauguration of a new spiritual mode must take place on Shabbos.

שבכח השבת יכולין להעלות המעשים להשורש ולשנותם במדריגה שלמעלה מהטבע.

For through the power of Shabbos one can elevate deeds to their root and transform them to a level above nature.

This is because Shabbos has the power to raise actions back to their root and lift them above the natural order — exactly what initiating the new, miraculous mode required.

ולכן נק' שבת הגדול שהתחיל בו בחי' הגדלות כנ"ל.

Therefore it is called "Shabbos HaGadol," for the aspect of gadlus began on it, as above.

Hence the name "the Great Shabbos" — on it the state of gadlus, the supernatural mode of conduct, was inaugurated.

וזהו ב' הטעמים שכתוב בשבת כי בו שבת וגם כי עבד היית במצרים כו'.

And this is the meaning of the two reasons given for Shabbos: "for on it He rested," and also "for you were a slave in Egypt," etc.

This explains the two reasons the Torah gives for Shabbos — one rooted in Creation ("He rested") and one in the Exodus ("you were a slave in Egypt").

כמ"ש במ"א עפ"י המדרש בא כובד אבן כו'.

As is written elsewhere, based on the Midrash: "the heaviness of a stone..." etc.

He references a teaching elsewhere built on the Midrash about "the heaviness of a stone" (from Mishlei), contrasting burden with the ease of holiness.

שמעשה בראשית אינו יגיעה וכעס אויל כבד כו'.

That ma'aseh bereishis (the work of Creation) is not toil — "and the anger of a fool is heavier..." etc.

Creation involved no real "labor" for Hashem; the verse "the fool's anger is heavier" hints that genuine heaviness/toil belongs to the lower, constricted realm, not to the Divine act of creation.

הרי כל מעשי בראשית טפל.

Thus all the works of Creation are secondary (tafel).

The whole natural order of Creation is, in the end, secondary and subordinate.

ועיקר המכוון להתגלות הנהגה עליונה וביטול הטבע.

And the essential intent is the revelation of a higher mode of conduct and the nullification of nature.

The true purpose of Creation is for a higher, supernatural mode of conduct to be revealed, with nature nullified before it.

וכמו כן בהנהגות התחתונים התחיל זו השינוי.

And likewise, in the conduct of those below, this change began.

This same transition began as well in the conduct of human beings here below.

שמקודם הי' עבודת הצדיקים בבחי' הטבע כמו דרך ארץ שקדמה לתורה.

For beforehand the avodah of the tzaddikim was in the aspect of nature, like the derech eretz that preceded the Torah.

Before the Exodus, even the righteous served Hashem within the natural mode — comparable to the derech eretz that came before the Torah, the conduct of the Avos.

ועתה.

And now.

But from the time of the Exodus onward.

התחיל בחי' עבודה עפ"י התורה ומצות ה'.

There began the aspect of avodah according to the Torah and the mitzvos of Hashem.

A new mode of service began — avodah governed by the Torah and its mitzvos, the supernatural rung of gadlus.

ובכל שנה בזה הי"ד מתעורר בחי' ראשית הנ"ל.

And every year, on this fourteenth, the aspect of "reishis" mentioned above is aroused.

Each year, on the fourteenth of Nissan, that original "firstness" — the pre-sin, supernatural level — is reawakened.

ובכח זה יכולין להשבית החמץ.

And through this power one is able to remove the chametz.

It is precisely by drawing on this awakened "firstness" that we are able to nullify and remove the chametz.

וז"ש אור לי"ד בודקין לאור הנר.

And this is the meaning of "On the eve of the fourteenth we search by the light of a candle."

This sheds light on the practice of searching for chametz on the night before the fourteenth by candlelight.

הוא בחי' נר מצוה.

It is the aspect of "the mitzvah is a candle (ner mitzvah)."

The candle of bedikas chametz alludes to "ner mitzvah" — the mitzvah itself is a lamp.

ע"י שבו נעשה מצוה ראשונה מכל בני ישראל.

Because on it the first mitzvah of all Bnei Yisrael was performed.

This day carries the light of mitzvah because on it Bnei Yisrael performed their very first mitzvah collectively.

וכן נעשה למעלה שמתעורר עתה עת גאולה ורחמים על בנ"י.

And so it is done above, that there is now aroused a time of redemption and mercy upon Bnei Yisrael.

Correspondingly, in the upper worlds, this season awakens a time of geulah and Divine mercy upon Bnei Yisrael.

כמ"ש ואעבור עליך כו'.

As it is written, "And I passed over you," etc.

This is the moment Yechezkel describes, when Hashem "passed over" Bnei Yisrael in mercy.

שראה שאין בידם זכות ונתן להם דם פסח כו'.

That He saw they had no merit in their hands, and gave them the blood of the Pesach (and the blood of milah), etc.

Seeing that Bnei Yisrael lacked merits, Hashem gave them two mitzvos — the blood of the Pesach offering and of circumcision — through which to be redeemed.

כמו כן בכל שנה בימים אלו מחפשין זכותן של בנ"י.

So too every year, in these days, the merits of Bnei Yisrael are searched out.

Each year in this season, just as we search for chametz, the merits of Bnei Yisrael are "searched out" from above.

ועי"ז מבערין החמץ כפי בדיקת התחתונים.

And through this the chametz is destroyed, in accordance with the searching of those below.

This heavenly search for our merits, paralleling our own searching below, is what enables the chametz (the yetzer hara, symbolized by leaven) to be destroyed.

כמ"ש בחור שבודק עד מקום שידו מגעת והשאר מבטל בלבו ונגמר הביעור בכח שלמעלה.

As is stated: a hole — one searches as far as his hand can reach, and the rest he nullifies in his heart, and the destruction is completed through a power from above.

Just as with a hole one searches only as far as the hand reaches and nullifies the rest in his heart, our searching has limits; the full destruction of chametz is completed by a power from above, in response to our effort.

ובודקין לאור הנר כמ"ש בגמ' למדנו חיפוש מנר כו'.

And we search by the light of the candle, as the Gemara says: we learned "searching" from the (verse mentioning a) candle, etc.

The Gemara derives the use of a candle for searching from the verses linking a lamp with searching (in Tzefaniah and Mishlei).

הענין שבודקין למעלה לאור הנרות ונשמות של בנ"י שלמטה כמ"ש נר ה' נשמת אדם חופש כל חדרי בטן.

The matter is that above, they search by the light of the candles and souls of Bnei Yisrael below, as it is written, "the candle of Hashem is the soul of man, searching all the inner chambers."

The heavenly "search" uses the very souls of Bnei Yisrael as its lamps, for "the soul of man is Hashem's candle" — Hashem searches all the hidden inner chambers by the light of our neshamos.

פי' הקב"ה מחפש כל החדרים בכח הנשמות.

Meaning: the Holy One, blessed be He, searches all the chambers by the power of the souls.

Hashem searches out every hidden recess through the power of Bnei Yisrael's neshamos.

ואיתא חור שבין אדם לחבירו זה בודק עד מקום שידו מגעת כו'.

And it is stated: a hole that is between one person and his fellow — each one searches as far as his hand can reach, etc.

The halachah of a shared hole in a wall — where each neighbor searches only his own reachable portion — is now applied as a metaphor.

פי' שיש חורים שאין א' בלבד יכול לבדקו.

Meaning that there are holes that one individual alone cannot search.

Some hidden places cannot be searched by a single person on his own.

וכמו כן בכללות ישראל כשהיו מתאספין ביחד בי"ד לשחיטת הפסח ודאי היו משביתין כל החמץ.

And likewise regarding the totality of Yisrael: when they gathered together on the fourteenth for the slaughtering of the Pesach, they certainly removed all the chametz.

When all of Bnei Yisrael assembled together on the fourteenth for the Korban Pesach, their combined effort certainly removed all the "chametz" entirely.

אבל עתה נתפזרנו ויש חורים שאי אפשר לבודקן רק בכללות כל בני ישראל:

But now we are scattered, and there are holes that cannot be searched except through the totality of all Bnei Yisrael.

In our scattered state of galus, certain hidden recesses can only be searched and purified through the collective unity of all Bnei Yisrael together — pointing to the need for achdus to complete the spiritual "bedikah."

Summary: The fourteenth of Nissan is "first" because on it Bnei Yisrael performed their first mitzvah, beginning to restore the original, pre-sin level — the supernatural mode of gadlus associated with the Name Havayah and the Torah, which the Exodus inaugurated in place of the constricted natural order (katnus). The Shabbos before Pesach is called "the Great Shabbos" because every new mode of conduct must begin on Shabbos, which elevates deeds above nature. Each year this "firstness" reawakens, empowering the removal of chametz; just as we search our homes by candlelight, Hashem searches our hidden recesses by the light of our souls — yet in scattered galus, full purification requires the collective unity of all Bnei Yisrael.