The Secret of the Dust: The Power of Lowliness to Change Nature
Lesson No. 75 | Wednesday, Parashas Miketz, 1 Teves 5757
A profound discourse explaining how, through the trait of shiflus (lowliness) and the recognition of our own nothingness, we can change the laws of nature and sweeten harsh judgments. Through the secret of the souls of the children in our generation and the revelation of the souls of the tzaddikim, the immense power of humility is revealed.
Nachum Ish Gam Zu and the Secret of the Dust of Avraham Avinu
When they sent Nachum Ish Gam Zu to Rome, he discovered on the way that his diamonds had been stolen and replaced with dust. Then Eliyahu HaNavi (Elijah the Prophet) came and said, "This dust is from the dust of Avraham Avinu (our Patriarch Abraham)." The holy book Degel Machaneh Ephraim (Parashas Vayishlach) explains that Eliyahu HaNavi was hinting a tremendous foundation to Nachum Ish Gam Zu: "If you want this dust to truly be better than diamonds, you must become dust yourself."
When a person makes himself like dust, he is capable of changing all of nature in the world. A person who is in the aspect of dust can change all four elements (fire, wind, water, dust), because all the elements come from the dust. Eliyahu hinted to him about Avraham Avinu—how did Avraham merit to throw dust that would turn into swords, and straw that would turn into arrows? Because Avraham himself was in the aspect of dust, as he said about himself that he is but dust and ashes.
If you too will be in the aspect of dust, you will see that greater miracles will occur from this dust than from the diamonds. A person who is in the aspect of dust and grasps the Supernal Intellect can transform all the elements and natures, and sweeten all the harsh judgments, through the trait of chessed (loving-kindness) of Avraham, which is the root of Godliness. Nachum Ish Gam Zu understood the hint, immediately turned himself into "dust" with complete bittul (self-nullification), and thereby achieved the complete tikkun (rectification).
Arrogance Versus Lowliness: The Path to New Attainments
The book Shem HaTov brings a profound foundation in the name of the great-grandson of the Maggid of Kozhnitz regarding the eternity of the Torah. The Torah is eternal, and even when the King Mashiach comes and the Resurrection of the Dead takes place, we will read the exact same Torah. If so, what prevents a person from attaining the light of the Torah right now? The only thing that disturbs a person is his arrogance.
A person tends to always walk around with a sense of superiority, thinking that he is the best, the most successful, the smartest, and the most understanding. But the truth is that a person must always walk with the opposite thought: "I am the worst of everyone; there is no one worse than me." Our holy Rebbe, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, teaches us (Likutey Moharan, Torah 12) to take the humiliations, unite with them, and elevate them. This is the secret of the "Green Line"—Queen Esther had a greenish complexion, and specifically because a person merits being humiliated and remains silent, he merits 310 worlds and the aspect of "Write me down for all generations." Yaakov Avinu (our Patriarch Jacob) also merited his high spiritual level because he was in the aspect of dust, as it is written, "Who can count the dust of Yaakov."
In order to merit a new spiritual attainment every day, a person needs a new level of shiflus (lowliness) every day, a lowliness greater than that of yesterday. While in the regular world, rising in rank means greatness, in Chassidus, spiritual ascent is the exact opposite: A Chassid searches for how to descend from level to level, how to tangibly see that everyone else is greater than him and more of a tzaddik than him.
"With Our Youth and With Our Elders We Will Go": The Secret of the New Souls
In light of this, Rabbi Yechiel Yaakov of Kozhnitz explains the verse, "With our youth and with our elders we will go." Why were the youth mentioned before the elders? Because it is written, "The smallest shall become a thousand, and the youngest a mighty nation; I am Hashem, in its time I will hasten it" (Isaiah 60).
If a person observes closely, he will see that the new souls descending into the world are higher and greater. In the future to come, the elders will learn from the youth, as it is stated, "For they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them" (Jeremiah 31)—the young ones will know before the great ones. Mashiach will come specifically from the young children, because they are greater than the elders.
Although there is a concept of the "descent of the generations," this does not refer to the souls of the tzaddikim and the unique individuals of the generations (such as Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the Baal Shem Tov, the holy Arizal, Moshe Rabbeinu, and the Seven Shepherds) who illuminated all the generations. Regarding the general souls, every day new souls descend with greater intellect and better character traits. The children of our generation are brought into the world with immense holiness; parents pray for them even before their birth and travel to tzaddikim, and therefore the youth and the young people today have greater minds and purer vessels.
The Mandrakes Yield Their Fragrance: The Revelation of the Souls of the Tzaddikim
Rabbi Nasan of Breslov (Hilchos Apotropsos, Halacha 2) brings in the name of the Eitz Chaim that the father is in the aspect of "Ohr Makif" (Surrounding Light) and the son is "Ohr Pnimi" (Inner Light). Our role is to bring refined and holy bodies into the world that will be able to contain these Divine lights.
The holy Zohar reveals a tremendous secret about the birth of souls through the action of Reuven. Reuven was only four years old when he went into the field, even before Yissachar and Zevulun were born. He told his mother Leah: "I went to the Chakal Tapuchin Kadishin (the Holy Apple Orchard) and strolled through the Supernal Palaces. I found there two souls in which the supernal angels, Metatron and Sandalphon, need to clothe themselves."
The Zohar explains that Reuven went to the south, in the secret of "He who wishes to become wise should go south," and ascended to the root of the Twelve Tribes. In that supernal field, where all the souls are hidden, he found the dudaim (mandrakes). Regarding this it is stated, "The mandrakes yield their fragrance, and at our doors are all choice fruits" (Song of Songs 7).
This secret is connected to the illumination of Chanukah, for on Chanukah we light thirty-six candles, corresponding to the thirty-six hidden tzaddikim who need to be revealed in the world. The lighting of the candles acts both to reveal the existing tzaddikim, and to know that we can constantly bring down new and holy souls into the world, souls that will illuminate the darkness of the exile and bring the Geulah (Redemption) closer.
Part 2 of 2 — Lesson No. 75
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