ד' חשון – אגרת הקודש פרק כ"ו

The Alter Rebbe begins by quoting at length from the רעי"מ פ' נשא—the section of the Zohar known as Raaya Mehemna, Parshas Naso. The Zohar comments on the verse, "The wise will shine like the radiance of the firmament." It explains that this refers to those who study the Zohar itself: בהאי חבורא דילך, דאיהו ספר הזהר—with your composition, which is the Book of the Zohar.

The Zohar calls this radiance זהר הרקיע—the shine of the firmament. Why is it called that? Because the source of the Kabbalah, the inner secrets of Torah, is rooted in the spiritual level called זהרא דאימא עילאה—the radiance of the supernal Imo, which is the level of Binah. This is also associated with תשובה—teshuvah, specifically the higher teshuvah, as explained elsewhere in Chassidus.

The Zohar continues: באילין לא צריך נסיון—those who are involved in this, meaning those who learn the Zohar, do not require a test or trial. In other words, their spiritual standing is such that they are above the need for the birurim, the sifting and sorting between good and bad, which is necessary for others.

The Zohar goes on to say that in the future, עתידין ישראל למטעם מאילנא דחיי—the Jewish people are destined to taste from the Tree of Life, which is this Book of the Zohar. Through this, יפקון ביה מן גלותא ברחמים—they will go out of exile with mercy.

At that time, the verse will be fulfilled: "ה' בדד ינחנו, ואין עמו אל נכר" ("Hashem alone will lead them, and there will be no foreign god with Him," Devarim 32:12). This means that those who are connected to the Zohar, to the inner secrets of Torah, will be redeemed in a unique and elevated way, without the obstacles and challenges that come from the forces of evil or impurity.

The Zohar then contrasts the אילנא דחיי—Tree of Life—with the אילנא דטוב ורע—Tree of Good and Bad. The Tree of Good and Bad is defined as איסור והיתר טומאה וטהרה—the realms of forbidden and permitted, impure and pure. In the future, these will no longer have dominion over the Jewish people.

Why? Because their sustenance will come only from the side of the Tree of Life. In that realm, לית תמן לא קשיא מסטרא דרע—there are no questions from the side of evil, ולא מחלוקת מרוח הטומאה—and no disputes from the spirit of impurity. As the verse says, "ואת רוח הטומאה אעביר מן הארץ" ("I will remove the spirit of impurity from the land," Zechariah 13:2). In other words, the future will be characterized by clarity and purity, without the confusion and struggle between good and bad that defines much of Torah study today.

The Zohar continues: in the future, לא יתפרנסון ת"ח מע"ה, אלא מסטרא דטוב—Torah scholars will not be sustained by the common people, but only from the side of good. That is, they will eat only what is pure, kosher, and permitted.

They will not receive sustenance from the ערב רב—the mixed multitude, who eat impure, invalid, and forbidden things. In the present, there is a mixture, and sometimes the Torah scholars are supported by those whose own conduct is not pure. But in the future, this will not be the case; the support and sustenance will come only from a place of holiness and purity.

The Zohar describes the current era, when the אילנא דטוב ורע—Tree of Good and Bad—dominates. In this time, the sages are compared to Shabbos and Yom Tov: אינון חכמים דדמיין לשבתות ויו"ט. Just as Shabbos has only what is prepared for it during the weekdays, so too the sages have only what is given to them by the weekdays, meaning the ordinary people.

In other words, during exile, the Torah scholars are dependent on the support of the broader community, just as Shabbos depends on the preparations made during the week. The sustenance of holiness is drawn from the mundane, and there is an intermingling of good and bad, pure and impure.

But in the era when the אילנא דחיי—Tree of Life—will dominate, the situation will be reversed. The אילנא דטוב ורע—Tree of Good and Bad—will be subdued, and the common people will receive only what the Torah scholars give them: ולא יהא לעמי הארץ אלא מה דיהבין להון ת"ח.

Their status will be as if they do not exist in the world, כאלו לא הוו בעלמא. The flow of sustenance and spiritual influence will be entirely from the side of holiness, with the Torah scholars elevated above the rest of the people, rather than dependent on them.

The Zohar concludes that even in the future, the distinctions of איסור היתר טומאה וטהרה—forbidden and permitted, impure and pure—will not be removed from the common people. דמסטרייהו לית בין גלותא לימות המשיח אלא שעבוד מלכיות בלבד—for them, the only difference between exile and the days of Moshiach will be the end of subjugation to foreign powers.

Why? Because אינון לא טעמי מאילנא דחיי—they do not taste from the Tree of Life. Therefore, וצריך לון מתניתין באיסור והיתר טומאה וטהרה—they will still require the study of Mishnah regarding forbidden and permitted, impure and pure. In other words, for those who have not reached the level of the Tree of Life, the ordinary halachic distinctions will still apply, and their avodah will remain within the realm of birurim, of sorting good from bad.

At first glance, the simple reading of this passage in the Zohar, especially for those lacking deeper understanding, suggests that the study of איסור והיתר וסדר טהרות—the laws of forbidden and permitted, and the order of Taharos (purities)—is associated with the אילנא דטוב ורע—the Tree of Good and Bad.

This would imply that these areas of Torah, which deal with distinctions between pure and impure, permitted and forbidden, are somehow not on the level of the אילנא דחיי—the Tree of Life, but rather are rooted in the realm of mixture, of good and bad. The Alter Rebbe will now begin to address and clarify this apparent implication, as it raises many difficulties and questions, both in terms of the honor of the revealed Torah and in light of the teachings of our sages.

In addition to all the issues already raised, there is a further, very great wonder in this claim. It directly contradicts the plain meaning of the verses and the teachings of our Sages, who state that כל התורה הנגלית לנו ולבנינו נקרא: "עץ חיים למחזיקים בה" ("a tree of life to those who grasp it," Mishlei 3:18)—all the revealed Torah that has been given to us and our children is called a tree of life. This applies to the entire Torah, not just to the Sefer HaZohar alone.

The implication that only the Zohar is the עץ חיים—Tree of Life, while the rest of Torah is not, is a tremendous novelty and is at odds with the way the Torah itself and our Sages describe the revealed Torah. The Torah as we have it, in all its revealed aspects, is itself called the Tree of Life.

This is especially striking when we consider that, in the times of the Sages, the Kabbalah—the mystical teachings of the Torah—were גנוז בימיהם—hidden in their days. The Sefer HaZohar itself was concealed, and the entire wisdom of Kabbalah was not accessible to the general public or even to most Torah scholars.

Only a select few, יחידי סגולה—exceptional individuals, had access to these teachings. For the vast majority, the Torah they learned and discussed was the revealed Torah, the Nigleh, and not the Kabbalah or the Zohar.

Even for those rare individuals who did study Kabbalah, it was done בהצנע לכת—with utmost secrecy and modesty, not in public. This is as stated in the Gemara, where it is clear that the study of these mystical teachings was reserved for very few and was not a matter of public knowledge or discussion.

As the Arizal writes, it is specifically in these later generations that it is permitted—and even a mitzvah—to reveal this wisdom of Kabbalah. In earlier generations, however, it was not permitted to teach these secrets openly. Even Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai himself, the author of the Zohar, said in the Zohar that permission was given to reveal these teachings only to himself and his close companions, and not to the public at large.

Furthermore, this idea leads to an even greater difficulty. If we were to say that only the Zohar is the עץ חיים—Tree of Life, then it would follow that the study of איסור והיתר—the laws of what is permitted and forbidden, and certainly the laws of monetary matters, would not be able to override the mitzvah of prayer. Prayer, after all, was instituted based on the secrets of the Zohar and the lofty unifications known to those who are versed in these mysteries, such as Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his companions.

Yet, we see that the study of these areas of Torah does in fact override prayer. This is a contradiction: if prayer is based on the Zohar, which is supposedly the true Tree of Life, how could the study of other areas of Torah, which according to this claim are not the Tree of Life, take precedence over it?

But this is not the case. As the Gemara states, דר"ש בן יוחאי וחביריו, וכל מי שתורתו אומנתו - אין מפסיקין לתפלה—Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his colleagues, and anyone whose occupation is Torah, do not interrupt their learning even for prayer.

This applies even when they are engaged in the study of the revealed Torah, not just Kabbalah. The fact that Torah study can override prayer, even for those learning areas such as monetary law, shows that all of Torah is considered the Tree of Life, not just the Zohar.

This is true even when one is involved in the study of דיני ממונות—monetary laws, as was the case with רב יהודה. All of his learning was in נזיקין—the laws of damages, and yet, he would only pray once every thirty days, when he would review his learning, as the Gemara relates.

This demonstrates that even the study of areas of Torah that deal with interpersonal matters, which might seem less lofty, still have the status of Torah that overrides even prayer. This further proves that all of Torah is the Tree of Life.

In the ירושלמי—Yerushalmi, in the first chapter of Berachos, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai holds that one does not even interrupt Torah study for קריאת שמע—the recitation of Shema, except when learning מקרא—the written Torah, but not when learning משנה—the Mishnah. For Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the Mishnah is even greater than the written Torah in this regard.

This shows that the revealed Torah, including Mishnah and even areas such as monetary law, is of the highest importance and is called the Tree of Life. It cannot be that only the Zohar is the Tree of Life, while the rest of Torah is not.

Here, the Alter Rebbe points out that the Zohar does not actually distinguish between the different orders of Mishnah—זרעים, מועד, קדשים, טהרות, and נזיקין. In other words, the Zohar does not say that only certain parts of Torah Shebaal Peh, like Nezikin (damages), are associated with the עץ הדעת טוב ורע—the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Bad—while others are not.

This is significant because, as discussed earlier, one might have thought that perhaps only the order of Nezikin, which deals with monetary disputes and damages between people, would be considered more connected to the mixture of good and bad. But the Zohar makes no such distinction; all the orders of Mishnah are treated equally in this regard.

This raises a strong question: how can it be that the entire breadth of Torah Shebaal Peh, all the Mishnah and Gemara, would be classified as stemming from the עץ הדעת טוב ורע? This seems very difficult to accept, especially given the exalted status of all parts of Torah.

Furthermore, the Zohar itself appears to contradict this idea in several places. For example, in the Zohar and in רעי מהימנא—the section of the Zohar called Raya Mehemna—it is stated that the Mishnah is compared to a maidservant, a שפחה, while the Written Torah is compared to the queen or the mistress of the house.

This analogy is used to illustrate the relationship between the revealed and the hidden aspects of Torah, but it does not mean to denigrate the Mishnah. In fact, the Zohar itself sometimes seems to elevate the status of the Mishnah, and at other times to lower it, which shows that the Zohar is not consistent in this regard. This inconsistency further complicates the idea that the entire Mishnah could be considered as coming from the עץ הדעת טוב ורע.

Moreover, the מקרא—the Written Torah, which is the Torah of Moshe Rabbeinu—is certainly greater than Kabbalah. The revealed Torah, the Chumash, is on a higher level than the secrets of Torah.

This is a foundational principle: the Written Torah is the direct word of Hashem, and its holiness and authority surpass even the deepest mystical teachings. Therefore, it is impossible to say that the Written Torah would be considered on a lower level, or that it would be associated with the עץ הדעת טוב ורע.

The Zohar itself describes the Written Torah as the king, מלכא, while the Mishnah is called the queen, מטרוניתא. In the language of Kabbalah, the Written Torah corresponds to the level of Yesod Abba—the foundation of Chochmah (wisdom) as it is invested in Zeir Anpin, the emotional attributes. This is as explained by the Arizal.

So, the Written Torah is not only on a higher level than the Mishnah, but it is also described in the Zohar as the king, the source of authority and holiness. This further reinforces that the Written Torah cannot be considered as coming from the עץ הדעת טוב ורע.

Additionally, the process of deep analysis in Torah—pilpul, the back-and-forth of questions and answers, which the Zohar sometimes associates with the side of רע—the side of negativity or impurity, and with the רוח הטומאה—the spirit of impurity, is actually something that we find even by Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai himself.

Even while he was in the cave, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai engaged extensively in this kind of learning, delving into questions and answers, resolving difficulties, and engaging in the dialectic of Torah. This shows that such pilpul is not inherently negative, but rather an essential part of Torah study, even for the greatest Tannaim and even in the most elevated circumstances.

In fact, it was specifically in the merit of the suffering that Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai endured in the cave that he merited to reach such heights in Torah. The Gemara relates that Rabbi Shimon said to Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair that for every difficulty he encountered, he was able to resolve it with twenty-four answers—כ"ד פירוקי—twenty-four solutions.

He told him: "אילו לא ראיתני בכך כו'" ("Had you not seen me in this state, you would not have found me so," Shabbos 33b)—had he not endured the suffering, he would not have reached this level of Torah. In other words, the challenges and hardships he endured were the very cause of his extraordinary depth and breadth in Torah learning.

In truth, the main occupation of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his son during their years in the cave was the study of Mishnah—specifically, the six orders of Mishnah that existed in their time up until Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi compiled them into the form we have today.

This means that their primary focus was not on the study of the Zohar or its mystical teachings, but rather on the revealed aspects of Torah, the Mishnah. This further demonstrates the centrality and holiness of the Mishnah, even for those who were the greatest masters of Kabbalah.

After all, the book of the Zohar and its companion work, the Tikunei Zohar, could be completed in two or three months. It is certain that Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai did not repeat the same material twice, so if their main study in the cave had been the Zohar, it would not have occupied them for all those years.

This makes it clear that the vast majority of their time was spent learning Mishnah and the revealed Torah, not exclusively the secrets of Kabbalah. This is further evidence that the revealed Torah is not, G‑d forbid, something secondary or lesser, but is itself the essence of Torah study, even for the greatest Kabbalists.

Our Sages of blessed memory also said: "מיום שחרב בהמ"ק אין לו להקב"ה אלא ד' אמות של הלכה בלבד" ("From the day the Beis HaMikdash was destroyed, the Holy One, blessed be He, has nothing in His world but the four cubits of halachah alone," Berachos 8a).

This statement is brought as a powerful proof that the revealed part of Torah—halacha, the legal discussions and rulings—is of the utmost importance and is the very dwelling place of the Divine Presence in exile. The Sages did not say that Hashem's place is in the secrets of Torah, in Kabbalah, or in the ספר הזוהר—the Book of the Zohar. Rather, they said that Hashem's presence is found specifically in the four cubits of halacha, the practical, revealed law.

This is especially striking because, as discussed earlier, in the times of the Sages, the teachings of Kabbalah and the Zohar were hidden and not accessible to the public. The Sages were referring to the nigleh—the revealed Torah, the Mishnah, the Gemara, the halachic discussions. This was what was available and practiced by all, and it is this aspect of Torah that is called the עץ חיים—the Tree of Life—for all who hold fast to it.

Therefore, it is impossible to say that the revealed Torah, the halachic discussions, are merely the עץ הדעת טוב ורע—the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, as if they are somehow inferior or mixed with impurity. On the contrary, the Sages teach that in the time of exile, when the Beis HaMikdash is destroyed, Hashem's presence is found specifically in the study and practice of halacha. This demonstrates the supreme value and holiness of the revealed Torah, and it cannot be relegated to a lower status compared to the secrets of Torah.

This teaching is one of the many proofs the Alter Rebbe brings to show that the revealed Torah is not, G‑d forbid, to be considered as something lesser or tainted, but rather it is the very foundation and dwelling place of the Divine in our world, especially in the time of exile.