The Secret of the Drops from the Garden of Eden: How to Merit the Wisdom that is Renewed Every Moment

Class No. 43 | 18 Tishrei 5756, 3rd day of Chol HaMoed Sukkos - Yahrtzeit (anniversary of passing) of Rebbe Nachman, in the Yeshiva

An in-depth article explaining how a new explanation of the Torah descends to the world every moment, and how one can merit that supernal wisdom and the drops from the Garden of Eden. The secret lies in performing true kindness and fulfilling the mitzvos with immense joy and enthusiasm, which elevates a person above the limitations of time.

In the book "Imrei Pinchas" (by Rabbi Pinchas of Koretz zt"l), a tremendous foundational concept is brought down: Every single hour, the explanation of the entire Torah changes. Every moment, a completely new explanation descends from Heaven. The question arises: How can a person merit such a pure mind to grasp the new explanation that descends to the world every hour?

Rebbe Nachman tells in his Sipurei Ma'asiyos (Tales of Ancient Times, in the Tale of the Seven Beggars, on the third day) about the wise man who was "wise like an entire day." That wise man told all the other wise men that if they were to gather all their wisdom since the beginning of Greek philosophy, someone with a pure mind could learn it all in just one hour. In contrast, he is wise like an entire day. The beggar with the heavy speech asked him: "Which day are you wise?" The wise man answered that he is not merely twenty-four times wiser than the other wise men, but rather he is wise like any specific day you might want—for example, the 1st of Tishrei 5756, or the 1st of Tishrei 5757. He knows all the new wisdom that is revealed every single day, every moment and second, until the end of all generations.

True Kindness and Honoring Parents with Self-Sacrifice

Despite the immense wisdom of that wise man, he admitted before everyone: "This man with heavy speech who asked me the question is even wiser than me." How is it possible to be wiser than someone who knows all the wisdom that Hashem bestows every second? The answer is that the man with heavy speech possesses literal Divine comprehension.

To understand this, one must know that this is merited through performing chesed shel emes (true kindness). True kindness is kindness done solely for the sake of Heaven, without any expectation of reward, honor, or salvation. A prime example of this is the mitzvah of honoring one's father and mother with mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice). It is told about Rabbi Dovid of Lelov zt"l that when he was a small boy of thirteen, a flaming fire for Hashem burned within him, and he ran away to study with the Maggid of Mezeritch zt"l for half a year. When he approached his home upon returning, his father, who was a fierce misnaged (opponent of Chassidus), realized his son had become a Chassid and looked for a stick to beat him.

Since the father was elderly and found it difficult to search, little Dovid told him: "Father, I will find the stick." He searched, found the stick, and handed it to his father, saying: "Father, take the stick and hit me as much as you want." When a person fulfills honoring his father and mother in such a way, all the blessings come upon him and reach him with tremendous speed.

48 Drops from the Garden of Eden

The holy Zohar reveals a tremendous secret: Four times a day, drops from the Garden of Eden drip down to the world. A great river flows out of the Garden of Eden and divides into four headwaters, and from them, 48 drops of the Garden of Eden drip every day. A person can literally live in the Garden of Eden in this world, provided he guards his holiness and his eyes.

"One who goes out to the marketplace should view himself as if he has been handed over to a sardiyot (executioner)" (Shabbos 32a)

Rabbi Pinchas of Koretz zt"l explains that the word "in his eyes" hints at guarding the eyes. Every time one goes out into the street, it carries the danger of blemishing the eyes, and a person must feel as if he is condemned to death if he fails, and in this way, he will be protected.

Who merits those 48 drops? The Gemara in Tractate Megillah says that there were 48 prophets for Israel. Each prophet merited only a single drop from the Garden of Eden once in his life, and from that one drop, he became a prophet for the rest of his days! In contrast, Adam HaRishon (the First Man), even after he was banished from the Garden of Eden, continued to receive all 48 drops every single day. From this, we can understand what immense wisdom Adam HaRishon possessed, ascending from wisdom to wisdom from moment to moment.

Ascending Above Time: The Secret of Joy in a Mitzvah

Rabbi Yitzchak Isaac Chaver zt"l, a disciple of the Vilna Gaon zt"l, explains the secret of these drops. He clarifies that the shattering and corruption in the spiritual worlds occurred only in the seven lower Sefiros (Divine emanations: Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferes, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, Malchus). These Sefiros govern the world and the dimension of time. However, the three upper Sefiros (Keser, Chochmah, Binah) exist above time and above free will. Great tzaddikim who merit to ascend and reach the intellects of "Keser, Chochmah, Binah" elevate themselves above the limitations of time and begin to receive those supernal drops from the Garden of Eden.

To reach these spiritual levels, a person must know that "there is no reward for a mitzvah in this world" – it is impossible to receive reward for the mitzvah itself in this world. The mitzvah is a tremendous, infinite spiritual light that is beyond comprehension. The Baal HaTanya zt"l brings the example of Nebuchadnezzar (Baladan ben Baladan), who, for taking three steps in honor of Hashem, received kingship over the entire world. If he had taken a fourth step, he would have destroyed the world. If so, how is it even possible to pay in this world for a single step a Jew takes for a matter of holiness?

The Chida zt"l in his book "Lev David" reveals a wondrous foundation: Hashem determines the reward in this world not for the mitzvah itself, but for the joy experienced in performing the mitzvah! The main thing is to rejoice in the mitzvah more than the mitzvah itself—to dance, to be enthusiastic, and to rejoice until the joy reaches one's heels.

"Greater is one who enjoys the labor of his hands than one who fears Heaven" (Berachos 8a)

The Chida asks: How is it possible that a person who does manual labor is greater than a God-fearing person who studies Torah? Rather, the explanation is that "the labor of his hands" refers to a person who exerts himself over the mitzvah—he dances, leaps, and jumps out of joy while performing it. Such a person, who fulfills "I rejoice over Your word like one who finds great spoil," will merit great spoil and tremendous abundance in this world in the merit of his joy, while the reward for the mitzvah itself is reserved for him in the World to Come.

Moharnat (Rebbe Nason of Breslov zt"l) explains that only through joy and enthusiasm can the mitzvah ascend higher and higher. Through joy, a person elevates the mitzvah from the Sefirah of Malchus through all the Sefiros, until it reaches the supernal intellects—Keser, Chochmah, and Binah. Only when one reaches there out of the joy of a mitzvah does he merit to receive those supernal drops from the Garden of Eden and grasp the Divine wisdom that is renewed every moment.

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