Musar sur L’Exode 26:24

We have here an allusion to the fact that the cause is fond of the effect, i.e. the hidden longs for the revealed. Our sages (Pesachim 112a) articulated this thought when they said that more than the calf desires to suckle on the teats of its mother, the cow is anxious to nurse its calf. In פרשת ויקהל 36,1 the Torah writes: אשר נתן ה' חכמה ותבונה בהמה, "whom G–d had given wisdom and insight." Shemot Rabbah 48,3 states that the word beheimah in the above verse is to teach us that it was not only man whom G–d imbued with wisdom but also the animals. Betzalel was the only one who was privy to the wisdom possessed by the animals. Perhaps the Torah wants to hint at the proverb we quoted earlier that the mother cow is more anxious to nurse its calf than the calf is anxious to be nursed. It is all an allusion to the close connection between cause and effect. We are taught a lesson in reciprocal attachment and unity, i.e. that nothing exists outside of G–d Himself, that He is inextricably involved with all that He has created. It is this lesson the Rabbis wanted to teach us when they said that מקדש and משכן can be used interchangeably; the exterior, visible part, is called משכן, whereas the interior, invisible part, is called מקדש. We have a further clear allusion to this relationship between cause and effect, the visible and the invisible, when the Torah describes the way the קרשים, planks of the Tabernacle, were joined together. The Torah (Exodus 26,24) uses the term "תאמם, twins," when describing the manner in which these planks were joined to each other. When ??? they are described as תמים, perfect. We have here a description of the essence of the Tabernacle, i.e. that it was a microcosm.

המנורה. I have earlier described how the shape of the candlestick had much in common with the shape of man. It had to be of a single piece, not joined together. This alludes to the need that man's heart should be Heaven-oriented. At the same time a Jew's heart should also be oriented towards his people. The additional words in (25,31) "its base, its stem, etc,” all point out the lesson that a Jew must feel at one with all parts of his people, be they rich or poor, well learned or not. This same thought is also alluded to in the Torah's description of how the boards forming the walls of the Tabernacle are to be joined. The Torah speaks about ויהיו תואמים מלמטה, "they shall be joined at the bottom;" when this is the case there will also occur יחדיו יהיו תמים למעלה, that the Jewish people, i.e. the concept of כנסת ישראל in the Heavenly Regions will be whole.

"תורת השם תמימה", "G–d's Torah is perfect," refers to the aspect of Torah we have previously called רשימו, a category of נשמה, actually "the soul of souls." This "soul" is absent in our lives, since we have explained that our souls are souls which have parted [temporarily] from the original all-embracing soul. Only in the future, will Torah be able to become manifest in that degree of perfection, תמימות. An example of the "perfection" that is lacking in Torah while we are here on earth is the תמימה aspect of the red heifer that the Torah prescribes, but that we cannot comply with because of the exalted and mystical nature of that legislation. Once that stage is reached, the משפטי ה' צדקו יחדו level, also the most profound aspects of the social legislation of Torah will become known, and we shall have attained that spiritual niveau. It sounds strange that Torah should have been presented in a sequence which requires much of it to be restudied as we reach higher intellectual and spiritual levels. When we examine Torah legislation there actually is no such thing as "earlier" and "later" in terms of time. We must not make the mistake of thinking that certain parts of Torah should have preceded other parts. In the highest realms, the hidden mystical domains, there is no such thing as "time," i.e. "before" and "after." Everything is צדקו יחדו.