Back to all articles →

A Prayer According to the Instruction of Morinu HaRav to Print, and That Everyone Should Read and Contemplate These Holy Words

עורך ראשי
A Prayer According to the Instruction of Morinu HaRav to Print, and That Everyone Should Read and Contemplate These Holy Words

Sefer Megaleh Amukos on Va'eschanan - Ofan 172
(This is the continuation of the commentary from Ofan 73)
He wanted to merit the four Torah portions of the Tefillin. Rashi's Tefillin are the secret of Imma (the Divine Mother/Understanding). Rabbeinu Tam's Tefillin are the secret of Abba (the Divine Father/Wisdom). And the Tefillin of Shimusha Rabba are the secret of Arich (Arich Anpin, the Long Face/Divine Will). All three are hinted at in a single verse: "Keep the perfect (Tam) and behold the upright (Yashar), for the end of that man is peace (Shalom)." Thirteen times 72 (the Divine Name of Ayin-Beis) represents the 13 Attributes of Mercy, which equals the gematria (numerical value) of "Shalom" when spelled with a large Mem. This is the secret of the word "Gavia" (goblet), which spells out 13 (Yud-Gimel) and 72 (Ayin-Beis). This is the secret of the Midrash: when Yosef spoke, a Heavenly Voice emerged and declared, "Abundant peace (Shalom Rav)." The secret of Tefillin is Yabok (יב"ק, numerical value 112), which is the secret of the three Divine Names: Ehyeh (21), Havayah (26), and Adnus (65) [which together equal 112]. This is the secret of the teaching, "The Holy One, blessed be He, lays Tefillin." The Names Havayah (26) and Elokim (86) also equal Yabok (112). There are 21 mentions of Hashem's Name in the Tefillin; Havayah serves as a sheath for Ehyeh.
It is well known and famous that there are three types of Tefillin: Rashi, Rabbeinu Tam, and Shimusha Rabba. Rashi's Tefillin are the secret of Imma, Rabbeinu Tam's Tefillin are the secret of Abba, and the Tefillin of Shimusha Rabba are the secret of Arich. All three are hinted at in one verse: "Keep the perfect (Tam) and behold the upright (Yashar), for the end of that man is peace (Shalom)" (Psalms 37:37). "Keep the perfect (Tam)" refers to Rabbeinu Tam's Tefillin, which are the secret of Abba. "Behold the upright (Yashar)" refers to Rashi's Tefillin, which are the secret of Imma. Therefore, it says "and behold" (u're'eh), because there is a level of comprehension there, since Binah (Understanding) is called "Mi" (Who), which stands for questioning, as brought in the Zohar (Bereishis 18a). "For the end of that man is peace (Shalom)" refers to the Tefillin of Shimusha Rabba (who is called Rav Sar Shalom, the Great Prince of Peace), which are the secret of Arich, who is called "Man" (Ish). This is the secret of the verse, "And a man (Ish) whose head becomes bald (yimaret)" (Leviticus 13:40), which refers to Arich, because the word MaRaT (מרט) is an acronym for "Ma Rav Tuvcha" (How abundant is Your goodness) (Psalms 31:20), which is rooted in Arich. And it is called "peace" (Shalom) in the secret of the verse, "Abundant peace (Shalom Rav) to those who love Your Torah" (Psalms 119:165). This means "Shalom" spelled with a large Mem, a closed Mem, which brings the numerical value of "Shalom" to 936 (תתקל"ו). This is the secret of 13 times 72, because there reside the 13 Attributes of Mercy, which are absolute loving-kindness, called the Supernal Chesed. This is what is written in the Midrash Bereishis (Bereishis Rabbah 92:9): When Yosef said, "The man in whose hand the goblet (Gavia) was found, he shall be my slave, and as for you, go up in peace (Shalom)" (Genesis 44:17), a Heavenly Voice emerged and declared, "Abundant peace (Shalom Rav) to those who love Your Torah." Because "Shalom Rav," which equals 936, is the secret of "Gavia" (goblet), meaning 13 (Yud-Gimel) times 72 (Ayin-Beis).
This is what Moshe meant when he said, "And I pleaded (Va'eschanan) to Hashem at that time" (Deuteronomy 3:23). He was referring to when You said, "And you shall see My back" (Exodus 33:23), which is the secret of the hand-Tefillin, "but My face shall not be seen," which is the secret of the head-Tefillin. And this is why he opened his prayer with the Name Adnus (Lord), because the hand-Tefillin are the secret of Adnus. For the Tefillin are the secret of Yabok (112), as brought in Reishis Chochmah, because the four Torah portions of the hand-Tefillin correspond to the four letters of Adnus, which serve as a sheath for the four letters of Havayah. (Because Adnus is the sanctuary for the Name Havayah, in the secret of "And Hashem is in His holy sanctuary" [Habakkuk 2:20]). And the four portions of the head-Tefillin correspond to the four letters of Havayah, which serve as a sheath for the four letters of Ehyeh. (Therefore, there are 21 mentions of Hashem's Name in the Tefillin, corresponding to the numerical value of Ehyeh [21]). These three Names equal the gematria of Yabok (112). This is the meaning of the teaching, "The Holy One, blessed be He, lays Tefillin" (Berachos 6a). This means that the Tefillin are the secret of "The Holy One, blessed be He" (HaKadosh Baruch Hu), whose numerical value is exactly Yabok (112), which is the gematria of these three Names: Ehyeh, Havayah, and Adnus, as brought in the Zohar (Mishpatim 116a, 217a).
And this is what is written, "You have begun to show Your greatness" (Deuteronomy 3:24) - these are the Tefillin which are the secret of Abba, which is the line of Chesed (Loving-kindness). "And Your strong hand" refers to the Tefillin of Imma, which is the line of Din (Judgment). Therefore, Moshe prayed, "Let me cross over" (E'ebrah), because the word E'ebrah (אעברה) contains the exact same letters as Arba'ah (ארבעה - four). This means, "Let me see the land, and there I will merit the four portions of the head-Tefillin." And this must specifically take place in the Land of Israel, because regarding the Tefillin of the Master of the World, it is written in them, "Who is like Your people Israel, one nation in the land" (I Chronicles 17:21) (Berachos 6a).
Then Hashem answered him, "Rav lach" (It is much for you / Enough for you). This means: Not only will you merit the Tefillin of Abba and Imma, but you will even merit the "Rav" - which are the Tefillin of Shimusha Rabba, which are the secret of "Shalom Rav," which are the secret of Arich. And this is what is written, "Go up to the top (Rosh) of the summit" (Deuteronomy 3:27), which is the secret of Arich as mentioned, because Arich is called "Rosh HaLavan" (The White Head). And this is what is written afterwards, "And we settled" (Vaneshev) (Deuteronomy 3:29), which in gematria corresponds to the 13 Attributes of Mercy, as brought in the Zohar.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Receive Torah articles and inspiration directly in your inbox