שמעתי ממורי כי ענין גלות מצרים היה שחסר מהם הדעת שידעו להכריע שיש בורא אחד. המחדש בטובו תמיד מעשה בדאשית. עד שבא משה. ועל ידי הנסים שעשה נתפרסם בעולם שיש בורא אחד המחדש תמיד. אמנם בחינת דעת זה שנתגלה ביציאת מצרים היה דעת דנוקבא. אך דעת דדכורא יתגלה לעתיד בימות המשיח. והיינו שיהיו עיניך רואות את מוריך (ישעיהו ל׳:כ׳) שיראו אותיות התורה והתפלה שלומדים ומתפללים. לנגד עיניהם. שהם עולמות מצוחצחות כו'. וזהו שאמרו חז"ל עין רואה ואוזן שומעת וכו' (אבות פרק ב') וזהו שאמר בעל הגדה (ברכות די"ב ע"ב) אמר ר' אלעזר בן עזריה הרי אני כבן שבעים שנה ולא זכיתי שתאמר יציאת מצרים בלילות, ר"ל שיוכל לפרסם חידוש העולמות שנקרא יציאת מצרים בלילות. שאין אורות ועולמות עליונים נראים. כי חשך הקליפות הנקרא לילות גורם זה שאי אפשר שתאמר יציאת מצרים שהוא פרסום חידוש העולמות. עד שדרשה בן זומא וכו'. כי סגולת הדרשה לשבר הקליפות. ואז היה יכול להראות פרסום יציאת מצרים. מה שאי אפשר להראות כי אם לעתיד יהיה נראה עין בעין. וזהו שאמרו חכמים כי תכלית זה יהיה לימות המשיח וכו' ודפח"ח: (תוי"י סוף וישלח).
The essence of the Egyptian exile was that the people lacked da’at,1Da’at refers to a direct, spiritual perception of G-d. See the Torah portion VaYetze, fn. 7. which is the abilityto conclude2The Baal Shem Tov uses a uncommon word to describe this lack of da’at: l’hachria – להכריע, which means to weigh and decide between multiple options in order to reach a conclusion. The nature of the da’at consciousness is the reconciliation of opposites (as in the unified, mystical experience). The lack of da’at, therefore, would mean that a person is trapped between opposites, unable to come to a single conclusion about the existence of G-d. that there is One Creator, “who in His goodness, constantly renews the act of creation.”3From the daily, morning prayers. Not until Moses came, and through the miracles he performed, demonstrated that there is One Creator who constantly renews the world. However, the aspect of da’at that was revealed in the Exodus was Feminine4Da’at d’nukba, in the Aramaic of the Zohar.; whereas the da’at that will be revealed in the future, in the days of the Messiah, will be Masculine.5Da’at d’d’chura. To briefly explain this complex idea: According to the Sages, there are two levels of prophecy – through a clear lens, and through an unclear lens, aspaklaria d’me’ira and aspaklaria d’eina me’ira. Feminine da’at, that was revealed at the Exodus, means that the Jewish people had a perception of G-d that was filtered through their emotions and intellectual facilities. Only Moses merited perceiving G-d through a clear lens, which means a direct, perception of Divinity and the workings of the supernal worlds. All Israel did attain this level briefly at the revelation at Sinai, although they lost it soon afterward. However, in the World to Come, this level of spiritual perception will be regained. Thus, the verse says: “Your eyes will behold your Master” (Isaiah 30:20). Then, everyone will see with their eyes the letters of Torah and prayers that they are studying and praying, for these are the purified worlds.6According to R. Yitzchok Isaac of Komarna (Otzar HaChaim, Behar), this is not merely a visual experience of the letters, but a perception of the absolute Oneness and Providence of G-d: “…each person will feel and see that the entire world is filled with His glory, for the darkness of the impure shells causes concealment and illusion, until the future time, when the glory of His kingdom will be revealed. And the entire world will see that everything is His simple Will, and that all that happened was through His direction, down to the smallest detail, and that the Master of the World was in each and every gesture, for the essence of the craftsman is in the object he creates, and the creation is like a snail, whose garment is of itself.” (See Baal Shem Tov on the Torah, parashas Vayigash, for more on the metaphor of the snail.) This is what the Sages said: “[Know what is above you,] an eye sees, and an ear hears.”7Pirkei Avos 2:1. R. Elazar bemoans the fact that he could not achieve a level of revelation comparable to that of the World to Come; that is, to “mention” the revelation, as one person says to another, “Do you see this before you?” Apparently, the term “Exodus from Egypt” is a general term for the revelation of da'at. In the original Exodus, the feminine da'at was revealed, and in the World to Come, masculine da'at will be revealed. The difference being that in the future redemption, speech itself will be revelatory, as the letters of prayer and Torah study will be seen. This is also what is written in the Passover Hagadah: “Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah said, Though I am like a man of seventy years, I did not merit to mention the Exodus from Egypt in the nights.”8I.e., in the evening prayers, in the last passage of the Shema, that speaks of the commandment of tzitzit. This passage was included in the evening prayers because it mentions the Exodus, not because of the mitzvah of tzitzit, which does not apply at night. That is, to make known the renewal of the world – called “the Exodus from Egypt” – in the night, when the lights and supernal worlds are hidden. This is because the darkness of the impure shells, called “nights,” makes it impossible to mention the Exodus from Egypt, which is the revelation of the renewal of the worlds. “Not until Ben Zoma expounded….” For exposition has the power to break the shells.9The process of expounding upon the Torah, derush, brings to light previously unrecognized details of the text or clarifies issues that were difficult to understand. In both cased, it is as though a “shell” that covers the meaning of the text has been cracked. When Ben Zoma expounded upon the verse, he not only broke the shell of the Torah, he broke the “impure shells” that prevent the consciousness from experiencing a perception of G-d. Thus R. Elazar was able to make mention of the Exodus from Egypt in the night; that is, to reveal the presence of G-d even in exile – a foretaste of the revelation of the World to Come. Then it was possible to demonstrate the presence of the Exodus from Egypt, which would otherwise be impossible until the future,10The Komarna Rebbe explains that although this form of revelation will not be fully achieved until the World to Come, certain holy individuals throughout the generations, such as the Arizal, the Baal Shem Tov, or R. Elazar ben Azaria (as in this Mishna), were able to attain this level of revelation. when we will see “eye to eye.”11Isaiah 52:8: “Hark, your watchmen! They lift up the voice, together they sing; for they shall see eye to eye the return of the L-rd to Zion.” And this is what the Sages said,12That is, what the Sages said in the Hagada, in their disagreement with R. Elazar over the extra word in the verse: “all the days of your life.” R. Elazar says that the word “all” comes to teach us that the redemption from Egypt can be proclaimed in the nights, i.e., the period of exile, by breaking the impure shells. However, the Sages say that the world “all” comes to include the World to Come, when the revelation of Masculine da’at will occur. that this goal will be reached in the days of the Moshiach. Toldos Yaakov Yosef, VaYishlach
שמעתי ממורי כי ענין גלות מצרים היה שחסר מהם הדעת שידעו להכריע שיש בורא אחד. המחדש בטובו תמיד מעשה בדאשית. עד שבא משה. ועל ידי הנסים שעשה נתפרסם בעולם שיש בורא אחד המחדש תמיד. אמנם בחינת דעת זה שנתגלה ביציאת מצרים היה דעת דנוקבא. אך דעת דדכורא יתגלה לעתיד בימות המשיח. והיינו שיהיו עיניך רואות את מוריך (ישעיהו ל׳:כ׳) שיראו אותיות התורה והתפלה שלומדים ומתפללים. לנגד עיניהם. שהם עולמות מצוחצחות כו'. וזהו שאמרו חז"ל עין רואה ואוזן שומעת וכו' (אבות פרק ב') וזהו שאמר בעל הגדה (ברכות די"ב ע"ב) אמר ר' אלעזר בן עזריה הרי אני כבן שבעים שנה ולא זכיתי שתאמר יציאת מצרים בלילות, ר"ל שיוכל לפרסם חידוש העולמות שנקרא יציאת מצרים בלילות. שאין אורות ועולמות עליונים נראים. כי חשך הקליפות הנקרא לילות גורם זה שאי אפשר שתאמר יציאת מצרים שהוא פרסום חידוש העולמות. עד שדרשה בן זומא וכו'. כי סגולת הדרשה לשבר הקליפות. ואז היה יכול להראות פרסום יציאת מצרים. מה שאי אפשר להראות כי אם לעתיד יהיה נראה עין בעין. וזהו שאמרו חכמים כי תכלית זה יהיה לימות המשיח וכו' ודפח"ח:
(תוי"י סוף וישלח).
The essence of the Egyptian exile was that the people lacked da’at,1Da’at refers to a direct, spiritual perception of G-d. See the Torah portion VaYetze, fn. 7. which is the ability to conclude2The Baal Shem Tov uses a uncommon word to describe this lack of da’at: l’hachria – להכריע, which means to weigh and decide between multiple options in order to reach a conclusion. The nature of the da’at consciousness is the reconciliation of opposites (as in the unified, mystical experience). The lack of da’at, therefore, would mean that a person is trapped between opposites, unable to come to a single conclusion about the existence of G-d. that there is One Creator, “who in His goodness, constantly renews the act of creation.”3From the daily, morning prayers. Not until Moses came, and through the miracles he performed, demonstrated that there is One Creator who constantly renews the world.
However, the aspect of da’at that was revealed in the Exodus was Feminine4Da’at d’nukba, in the Aramaic of the Zohar.; whereas the da’at that will be revealed in the future, in the days of the Messiah, will be Masculine.5Da’at d’d’chura. To briefly explain this complex idea: According to the Sages, there are two levels of prophecy – through a clear lens, and through an unclear lens, aspaklaria d’me’ira and aspaklaria d’eina me’ira. Feminine da’at, that was revealed at the Exodus, means that the Jewish people had a perception of G-d that was filtered through their emotions and intellectual facilities. Only Moses merited perceiving G-d through a clear lens, which means a direct, perception of Divinity and the workings of the supernal worlds. All Israel did attain this level briefly at the revelation at Sinai, although they lost it soon afterward. However, in the World to Come, this level of spiritual perception will be regained. Thus, the verse says: “Your eyes will behold your Master” (Isaiah 30:20). Then, everyone will see with their eyes the letters of Torah and prayers that they are studying and praying, for these are the purified worlds.6According to R. Yitzchok Isaac of Komarna (Otzar HaChaim, Behar), this is not merely a visual experience of the letters, but a perception of the absolute Oneness and Providence of G-d: “…each person will feel and see that the entire world is filled with His glory, for the darkness of the impure shells causes concealment and illusion, until the future time, when the glory of His kingdom will be revealed. And the entire world will see that everything is His simple Will, and that all that happened was through His direction, down to the smallest detail, and that the Master of the World was in each and every gesture, for the essence of the craftsman is in the object he creates, and the creation is like a snail, whose garment is of itself.” (See Baal Shem Tov on the Torah, parashas Vayigash, for more on the metaphor of the snail.) This is what the Sages said: “[Know what is above you,] an eye sees, and an ear hears.”7Pirkei Avos 2:1. R. Elazar bemoans the fact that he could not achieve a level of revelation comparable to that of the World to Come; that is, to “mention” the revelation, as one person says to another, “Do you see this before you?” Apparently, the term “Exodus from Egypt” is a general term for the revelation of da'at. In the original Exodus, the feminine da'at was revealed, and in the World to Come, masculine da'at will be revealed. The difference being that in the future redemption, speech itself will be revelatory, as the letters of prayer and Torah study will be seen.
This is also what is written in the Passover Hagadah: “Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah said, Though I am like a man of seventy years, I did not merit to mention the Exodus from Egypt in the nights.”8I.e., in the evening prayers, in the last passage of the Shema, that speaks of the commandment of tzitzit. This passage was included in the evening prayers because it mentions the Exodus, not because of the mitzvah of tzitzit, which does not apply at night. That is, to make known the renewal of the world – called “the Exodus from Egypt” – in the night, when the lights and supernal worlds are hidden. This is because the darkness of the impure shells, called “nights,” makes it impossible to mention the Exodus from Egypt, which is the revelation of the renewal of the worlds.
“Not until Ben Zoma expounded….” For exposition has the power to break the shells.9The process of expounding upon the Torah, derush, brings to light previously unrecognized details of the text or clarifies issues that were difficult to understand. In both cased, it is as though a “shell” that covers the meaning of the text has been cracked. When Ben Zoma expounded upon the verse, he not only broke the shell of the Torah, he broke the “impure shells” that prevent the consciousness from experiencing a perception of G-d. Thus R. Elazar was able to make mention of the Exodus from Egypt in the night; that is, to reveal the presence of G-d even in exile – a foretaste of the revelation of the World to Come. Then it was possible to demonstrate the presence of the Exodus from Egypt, which would otherwise be impossible until the future,10The Komarna Rebbe explains that although this form of revelation will not be fully achieved until the World to Come, certain holy individuals throughout the generations, such as the Arizal, the Baal Shem Tov, or R. Elazar ben Azaria (as in this Mishna), were able to attain this level of revelation. when we will see “eye to eye.”11Isaiah 52:8: “Hark, your watchmen! They lift up the voice, together they sing; for they shall see eye to eye the return of the L-rd to Zion.” And this is what the Sages said,12That is, what the Sages said in the Hagada, in their disagreement with R. Elazar over the extra word in the verse: “all the days of your life.” R. Elazar says that the word “all” comes to teach us that the redemption from Egypt can be proclaimed in the nights, i.e., the period of exile, by breaking the impure shells. However, the Sages say that the world “all” comes to include the World to Come, when the revelation of Masculine da’at will occur. that this goal will be reached in the days of the Moshiach.
Toldos Yaakov Yosef, VaYishlach