Мусар к Дварим 33:26

Were it not for seasons of dread and moments of terror, nothing would prevent his ascent into the heavens, his embrace of the arms of the world, and, in his knowledge of good, his becoming like God.

אין כאל ישרון רוכב שמים בעזרך ובגאותו שחקים. אשריך ישראל מי כמוך . We find a daring statement in the Midrash of Rabbi Nechunya ben Hakaneh to the effect that if someone studies Torah לשמה he is גומל חסד, performs an act of kindness for the Almighty. He quotes the above verse רוכב שמים בעזרך ובגאותו שחקים as his source, explaining that the Torah says that as a result of such study G–d helps us and enables us to ride the heavens; this in turn leads to G–d's majesty expressing pride in the skies. Thus far the Midrash.

When Moses (in his parting address to the Jewish people in פרשת וזאת הברכה) wanted that his blessing should apply to the people of Israel, he "awoke," or activated the six "pillars." The word אשדת in 33,2 is to be read as two words אש דת. The letters in those two words represent the first letters each of the four pillars אמת-שלום-דין תורה. The other two "pillars" חסד-עבודה are mentioned by Moses a little while later in verse 8 where Moses speaks of תמיך ואוריך לאיש חסיד"ך, referring to the tribe of Levi. Moses goes on to say in verse 10: ישימו קטורה באפך. We know that the choicest of all sacrifices i.e. עבודה is the incense, קטורת. At the very end of his blessings (verse 26), Moses speaks of רכב שמים בעזרך, that with Israel's (i.e. Yeshurun, Israel in its most ideal state) help G–d "rides" the heavens. When Isaiah 66,1 has G–d describe the Heaven as His throne, this is a reference to "G–d riding." When Moses says in 33,25 at the end of the blessings: וכימיך דבאך, "Your strength corresponds to Your days," this is an allusion to the six days of Creation. The six pillars are also called days. Torah is called "day," as we know from Exodus 19,1 where Israel's arrival at Sinai- the source of Torah- is described as occurring ביום הזה, "On 'this' day they arrived in the desert of Sinai." Rashi comments that the reason the Torah employs the words ביום הזה, "on this day," instead of the more appropriate ביום ההוא, "on that day," is to urge us to love the words of Torah as dearly to-day as on the day they were first received thousands of years ago. We know that עבודה is called "day" because the Torah (Leviticus 7,38) writes in connection with the service in the Temple: ביום צוותו, from which we derive that the service has to be performed by day. The connection between the pillar גמילות חסדים and "day" is found in Psalms 42,9: יומם יצוה ה' חסדו, "May G–d command His kindness by day." Our sages (Chagigah 12b) say that anyone who is preoccupied with Torah study at night will have a thread of G–d's kindness extended across to him from the day. We know that the pillar דין is related to "day" from Deut. 21,16: והיה ביום הנחילו את בניו, "On the day he will transmit his estate to his sons as an inheritance, etc." Judgments are not handed down at night. The pillar אמת is the integration of two opposing forces. This corresponds to the concept "day" which is the harmonious blending of opposites i.e. evening and morning into a single unit (Genesis 1/5).