028 —מאמרים מלוקט חלק ד - יום ד' פ' שופטים, אור לאדר"ח אלול ה'תשל"ב

B"H, Wednesday, Parshas Shoftim, Eve of Rosh Chodesh Elul 5732.

Ani LeDodi VeDodi Li ("I am to my Beloved and my Beloved is to me").

The phrase Ani LeDodi VeDodi Li forms the acronym for Elul^[1][2], and it is explained in Likkutei Torah in the maamar beginning with "Zeh"^[3] that in Elul there is an awakening from below—Ani LeDodi—while on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the flow is from above downward (an awakening from above), VeDodi Li. We need to understand: at the beginning of the maamar, it says that Elul is the acronym for Ani LeDodi VeDodi Li, but immediately afterwards it explains that in Elul it is only Ani LeDodi, while VeDodi Li is on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

The maamar continues, explaining that Elul is the time of the revelation of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy^[4]. It is explained that this revelation in Elul is for everyone, even the most distant^[5]. Like a king who, before entering the city, the people go out to greet him and receive him in the field, and then anyone who wishes may greet him, and he receives everyone with a pleasant countenance and a smiling face. We need to understand how this fits with what the Tur writes^[7], that from Rosh Chodesh Elul onward, we blow the shofar every day to warn the people to do teshuvah, as it is written^[8] "If a shofar is blown in the city, will the people not tremble?" Seemingly, since in Elul the king receives everyone with a pleasant and smiling face, the main avodah of Elul should be (apparently) love, and even the teshuvah of Elul should be (apparently) teshuvah from love. So why do we blow the shofar to arouse fear and trembling?

2) The explanation is that one of the differences between love and awe is that love comes through a revelation from above, while awe comes (primarily) through the person's own effort. Just as with the awe of a flesh-and-blood king: the people fear the king because they accepted him as their king^[9], for accepting the kingship is through the people—"You shall surely set a king over you"^[10]. Therefore, since in Elul the avodah is Ani LeDodi, the person's own effort, there must be awe. Furthermore, the main avodah in Elul, Ani LeDodi, is accepting the yoke of Heaven. This is what it says in Likkutei Torah, that the avodah of Elul is going out to the field to greet the king^[11]. Blowing the shofar in Elul to arouse awe and trembling is because the idea of "You shall surely set a king over you" is that his awe should be upon you^[12], and for the acceptance of kingship to be complete, it must be through the arousal of awe specifically^[13].

3) The matter can be understood in more detail based on what the Tzemach Tzedek writes in his maamar^[14] explaining the blowing of the shofar on Rosh Chodesh Elul: blowing the shofar in Elul is a preparation for the shofar of Rosh Hashanah. The difference is that the awe (and trembling) aroused by the shofar of Elul is lower awe, while the awe (and trembling) aroused by the shofar of Rosh Hashanah is higher awe. This is why it was instituted to blow the shofar on Rosh Chodesh Elul and throughout the month, because to reach higher awe, one must first have lower awe. Another reason for blowing the shofar in Elul before Rosh Hashanah is that during the Ten Days of Teshuvah, beginning with Rosh Hashanah, one must draw from the makif (encompassing light) to repair what was damaged during the year, and the drawing of the makif is through bittul (self-nullification). As explained in Torah Ohr^[15] on the verse^[16] "The heavens are My throne and the earth is My footstool; where is the house etc.? And to this one I look, to the poor and broken-spirited," that heavens and earth are Torah and mitzvos, and the drawing through Torah and mitzvos is an inner light, while the makif is drawn through bittul, "the poor and broken-spirited and one who trembles at My word." Therefore, we blow the shofar in Elul, because to draw the makif on Rosh Hashanah, there must be humility and trembling, and through blowing the shofar, one comes to trembling.

We need to understand: after all, by blowing the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, we also come to trembling^[17], and in fact, the trembling of Rosh Hashanah is greater than that of Elul, as explained above that the trembling from the shofar of Elul is lower awe, while that from the shofar of Rosh Hashanah is higher awe. Nevertheless, the drawing of the makif on Rosh Hashanah is through the trembling that comes from the shofar of Elul.

4) This will be understood by first explaining that the awe of Elul is lower awe, and the awe of Rosh Hashanah is higher awe. The difference, as explained in Tanya^[18] and elsewhere^[19], is that lower awe comes from contemplating G‑d's greatness in creating and sustaining the worlds, and the bittul in this awe is "bittul ha-yesh" (nullification of one's ego). Higher awe comes from contemplating G‑d's greatness and exaltedness beyond the worlds, where "all is as nothing before Him," and the bittul in this awe is "bittul b'metzius" (nullification of one's very existence). To reach higher awe requires a revelation from above, because what a person can attain through contemplation is only G‑dliness as it relates to the worlds, and to sense the exaltedness of the Infinite Light beyond the worlds requires a revelation from above. As it says^[20], "And Hashem commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear Hashem," that to reach awe of Hashem, higher awe^[21], is not possible through contemplation alone, but only through a revelation from above that is drawn through mitzvos^[22]. Thus, the awe of Elul is lower awe, and the awe of Rosh Hashanah is higher awe, because in Elul, when the king is in the field, his greatness and exaltedness are not felt^[23], and the awe then is (not from a revelation above, but) through the person's own effort, so the awe is lower awe. On Rosh Hashanah, when the king is in his palace, his exaltedness is felt, that he is elevated and separate from the people^[24], and in the nimshal, this is the revelation of the exaltedness of the Infinite Light beyond the worlds, so the awe of Rosh Hashanah is higher awe.

It can be added that the need to blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah to reach higher awe, even though it is a time of revelation of His kingship, is because time is a category of the world^[25], so the revelation of the Infinite Light on Rosh Hashanah as it relates to time is still connected to the worlds, and the revelation of the Infinite Light as it is holy and separate from the worlds is primarily through mitzvos, "Who has sanctified us with His commandments"^[26]. Since the shofar on Rosh Hashanah is a mitzvah, the awe and trembling from its sound is complete nullification, higher awe. Based on this, we can further explain why the awe from the shofar of Elul is only lower awe: because the shofar of Rosh Hashanah brings about such tremendous awe and nullification (higher awe) due to the mitzvah of shofar, while the shofar of Elul is not a mitzvah (and we do not recite the blessing "Who has sanctified us with His commandments"), so the awe and nullification from the shofar of Elul is only "bittul ha-yesh," lower awe. Nevertheless, this awe is a preparation for the higher awe of Rosh Hashanah, because to reach higher awe, one must first have lower awe (as explained above).

5) It is known^[27] that to progress from lower awe to higher awe, there must first be love. The order of avodah is awe, love, love, awe: the first awe is lower awe, then two levels of love—minor love and great love—and then higher awe. From the lower awe of Elul, we reach the higher awe of Rosh Hashanah by first having love. This can be explained based on what it says in Likkutei Torah, that when the king is in the field, he receives everyone with a pleasant and smiling face, and pleasant and smiling faces represent love. By the king receiving everyone with a pleasant face, and especially by showing a smiling face, this arouses love in them ("As water reflects a face to a face"^[28]). Based on this, we can say that the details of the parable in Likkutei Torah allude to these four levels: going out to greet the king is lower awe; then the king receives them with a pleasant face and shows them a smiling face—these are the two levels of love (pleasant face—minor love, smiling face—great love); and then, when the king enters his palace—this is higher awe.

6) Although in the levels of awe, the awe of Elul is lower than that of Rosh Hashanah, as the awe of Elul is lower awe and that of Rosh Hashanah is higher awe, nevertheless, there is an advantage to the awe of Elul over that of Rosh Hashanah. The awe and nullification of Rosh Hashanah, since it is a time of revelation of His kingship^[29], is not a novelty. Since "all is as nothing before Him, and the more one is before Him, the more one is as nothing"^[30], the fact that Israel are in a state of nullification and higher awe during Rosh Hashanah, when they are in His palace, is not a novelty. [Similar to the nullification in Atzilus, which is not a novelty^[31], since in Atzilus the Infinite Light is revealed. Likewise, in Atzilus itself, the nullification in the Sefirah of Chochmah, where the main nullification is, is not a novelty, for in Chochmah there is the revelation of "He alone and there is none besides Him"^[32]. All the more so the nullification of Kesser, for although it is a pure light, nevertheless it is "black" before the Cause of Causes^[33], meaning that Kesser is nullified (like the color black is not elevated compared to white) relative to the Infinite Light above Kesser (the Cause of Causes)^[34], and this is not a novelty, since Kesser perceives^[35] that it is incomparable to the Infinite Light.] The awe and nullification in Elul, when the king is in the field (when his greatness and exaltedness are not felt), and nevertheless Israel are in a state of nullification, accepting His kingship, and even blow the shofar to arouse awe and trembling (so that the acceptance of kingship will be complete)—this nullification, even though it is "bittul ha-yesh," is very precious in the eyes of Hashem^[36]. It can be said that through the king's pleasure from the people going out to greet him (accepting his kingship) while he is in the field, there is an even greater increase in his receiving everyone with a pleasant and smiling face. Furthermore, the advantage of the awe and nullification of Elul over that of Rosh Hashanah is not only because it is a novelty, but also in the nature of the nullification^[37]. The nullification that comes through revelation, since it is due to one's recognition and feeling of the greatness of the revelation (which is incomparable to oneself), is still connected to the person's own existence (his recognition). The true aspect of nullification is in the avodah of accepting the yoke, like a servant, who, because of the master's yoke upon him, is compelled to fulfill the master's will.

7) Based on this, we can explain what is said in the maamar, that the drawing of the makif on Rosh Hashanah is primarily through the awe and trembling that comes from the shofar of Elul, because the drawing of the makif (the house) through trembling (and trembling at His word) is mainly when the trembling is in a manner of nullification and humility, "the poor and broken-spirited." As explained in the maamar, the more a person humbles himself, the higher the makif that is drawn. Therefore, the main drawing of the makif is through the awe and trembling of Elul, because the awe and trembling of Rosh Hashanah come from sensing the revelation above, and the nullification that comes from sensing the revelation is not in a manner of humility. The main aspect of "the poor and broken-spirited," nullification in a manner of humility, is in the awe and trembling of Elul.

It can be further explained that the advantage of the awe of Elul over that of Rosh Hashanah is that since the awe and nullification of Elul come through the avodah of Israel—Ani LeDodi, whose root is in the Essence—therefore, the drawing through this awe and nullification is a drawing from the Essence. This is the inner reason why from the lower awe of Elul, we later reach the higher awe of Rosh Hashanah, because through the awe of Elul, the Essence is drawn, and through this, all the revelations are drawn afterwards.

8) Similarly, this applies to the teshuvah of Elul: blowing the shofar in Elul is (as brought above from the Tur) to warn Israel to do teshuvah, and this has an advantage over the teshuvah of Rosh Hashanah. Although the teshuvah of Elul is for undesirable matters, as is clear from the writings of the Arizal^[38] that Elul is the acronym for "Ina Leyado Vesamti Lach"^[39], that the cities of refuge are a rectification for undesirable matters [and it can be said that the teshuvah of Elul is alluded to in "Ina Leyado Vesamti Lach," that the atonement of the cities of refuge is for unintentional killing^[40], because through the teshuvah of Rosh Chodesh Elul, intentional sins become like unintentional ones, and the teshuvah of Elul is to rectify the unintentional], and the teshuvah of Rosh Hashanah, which comes after the undesirable matters (even the unintentional ones)^[41] have already been rectified through the teshuvah of Elul, is mainly higher teshuvah^[42]. Nevertheless, there is an advantage to the teshuvah of Elul over that of Rosh Hashanah. The teshuvah of Rosh Hashanah is alluded to in the mitzvah of shofar, as the Rambam writes^[43]: "Although the blowing of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah is a decree of the verse, there is a hint in it: 'Awaken, sleepers, from your sleep, etc., and return in teshuvah.'" Even though the teshuvah alluded to in the shofar is above the mitzvah of shofar^[44], and as is known regarding a hint, that the matter hinted at is higher than the thing that hints to it, and it does not clothe itself in the thing but is only a hint^[45], nevertheless, the fact that the matter is hinted at in the thing is because there is a similarity between them. Since the shofar of Rosh Hashanah is a mitzvah, the teshuvah hinted at in it is also connected to the avodah of Torah and mitzvos. The main advantage of teshuvah, that it reaches the Baal HaRatzon (the Master of Will, above the will of mitzvos)^[46], is the teshuvah of Elul. For the reason teshuvah reaches above the will of mitzvos is^[47] because Israel preceded the Torah^[48], and therefore, the main advantage of teshuvah is when it comes from the person (Israel) himself—the teshuvah of Elul, Ani LeDodi.

9) This is the meaning of Ani LeDodi VeDodi Li as the acronym for Elul: the inclusion of VeDodi Li in the acronym is because through the avodah of Ani LeDodi (in Elul), the drawing of VeDodi Li on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is effected, for the avodah of Ani LeDodi reaches the Essence, from which all revelations are drawn (as explained above), so in Ani LeDodi of Elul, the drawing of VeDodi Li is also included. It can be said that this is why the shofar blasts of Elul (according to Chabad custom^[49]) are Tashrat, Tashat, Tarat—all the sounds blown on Rosh Hashanah—because in the blasts of Elul are all the matters found in the blasts of Rosh Hashanah. And the reason that in Elul we blow ten sounds and not one hundred may be because the blasts of Elul (since they are the root of the matters drawn on Rosh Hashanah) are above division.

10) May it be His will that through our deeds and avodah^[50], especially through the avodah of Elul, we bring and hasten the redemption even more, as is alluded to in the fact that Elul is the acronym for "LaHashem Veyomru Leimor Ashira"^[51], for then all the sparks will leave exile^[52].

And since in Elul the king receives everyone with a pleasant and smiling face, it is certain that the king fulfills the request of each and every Jew, that they be inscribed and sealed for a good and sweet year, both in spiritual matters—in Torah study and mitzvah observance—and in material matters—children, life, and abundant sustenance, and certainly regarding the main request: the true and complete redemption through Moshiach Tzidkeinu, may he come and redeem us and lead us upright to our land, speedily, mamash.

Summary

This maamar explores the unique avodah of Elul, focusing on the lower awe (yirah tata'ah) and the personal initiative of Ani LeDodi. The Rebbe teaches that this humility and self-nullification prepare us for the higher awe of Rosh Hashanah and draw down the deepest Divine revelations.