Хасидус к Тегилим 29:7

For the shofar of Rosh Hashanah is a ram's horn, the aspect of Isaac's ram, which is the aspect of the sound of the shofar of the giving of the Torah. And it is like that which, on Rosh Hashanah, we remember the sounds of the Shofar of the giving of the Torah, as it is written [in the additional prayer of Rosh Hashanah, "You were revealed, etc." And this sound of the shofar of the giving of the Torah went out with fire and torchefires, etc., as it is written: All the people saw the sounds and the torchfires, etc. (Exodus 20:15). And likewise in many verses. For at the time of the giving of the Torah, the entire Jewish people was in the aspect of converts. For that was the beginning of their being brought close to their Father in Heaven. As they then left the impurity of Egypt into the holiness of Israel, as Rashi explains there. And that is why we read Ruth on Shavuot. Because Shavuot, which is the giving of the Torah, is the aspect of bringing converts and penitents close. And that is why there was the sound of the shofar, fire, and torchfires, with the giving of the Torah. As all of this is the aspect of the fire of judgment mentioned above. It was to burn away the evil that had grasped onto them from the impurity of Egypt. And that is why the Torah was given in fire, meaning with the aspect of the fire of judgment mentioned above. For the Torah itself is called judgment. And since the fire of judgment was fully aroused then at the time of the giving of the Torah — as it is written: and from amidst that fire we [editor's note, the verse reads, you] heard His words, etc. (Deuteronomy 4:36) — they were therefore completely purified from the grasp of the evil. It is as they said (Shemot Rabbah 51:8), "Engraved [charut] on the tablets (Exodus 32:16) — freedom [cherut] from the angel of death, etc." For the impurity of the [primordial] serpent was completely negated. As their impurity left at the time of the giving of the Torah, by way of the aforementioned aspect of the fire of judgment, which was aroused by the sound of the shofar. For it has the power to arouse the fire of judgment, in the aspect of the voice of the Lord kindles flames of fire (alluding to Psalms 29:7). And the main corruption that occurred after that with the sin of the [golden] calf was only through the mixed multitude, who were in the aspect of converts who are forbidden to convert. For the aforementioned fire of judgment does not have the power to subdue the evil within them, as is properly explained in the previous essay at the end. And that is the aspect of [the letters] mem and samech on the tablets mentioned in the previous essay just mentioned. As the tablets — which are the Torah, through which their evil was subdued and their impurity ceased, since it was given from amidst the fire of judgment — are themselves in the aspect of mem and samech previously mentioned, which is the circle and the square mentioned above, which is the aspect of the negation of evil, as mentioned above.

We were only worthy of receiving a small amount of their teachings, as they are scattered about in various books, and not in any one authoritative volume. None of the words of the Baal Shem Tov were ever committed to writing in his lifetime. All of his teachings were passed on to us in the writings of his students and student’s students in the generations after his death. Why didn’t the students of the Baal Shem Tov write down his teachings in his lifetime? All of his students were holy geniuses, and when each one would hear his Rebbe’s words, he would expand upon it from his own knowledge. In this way each one operated, according to the qualities of his own soul and spirit. Due to each student’s great sanctity and driven persistence in his Torah study and Divine service, they could not find the time to properly commit the Baal Shem Tov’s teachings to writing. The few teachings that we have today are like a lone sheaf of wheat gathered from the words of his students, and it bears the crown of the good name.¹⁴⁶See Mishha Pirkei Avot, 4:13. Even the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov’s students are few, scattered hear and there in holy books, and these teachings are the portal through which we can enter into the chambers of kedusha (sanctity). Similarly, most of the teachings of the Great Maggid were not written down, even though most of the students of the Baal Shem Tov learned with the Rabbi Dov Baer. The Great Maggid also raised many new students in his tenure as leader of the Hassidic movement, yet this tenure only lasted for a few years. He was already at an advanced age when he first became a disciple of the Baal Shem Tov, and so little of his teachings, sublime and lofty, dividing the flames of fire,¹⁴⁷See Psalms 29:7, “The voice of God divides the flames of fire.” and so deep - who may fathom them!¹⁴⁸See Kohelet 7:24. - were actually put in writing.