 The Ninth of Kislev is the Yahrtzeit of Rav Dov Ber Schneerson of Lubavitch (1773-1827), 2nd Lubavitcher Rebbe, known as the Mitteler Rebbe. He was the son and successor of his
father Rav Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the Baal HaTanya (the Alter Rebbe), and uncle and father-in-law of the Tzemach Tzedek. Rav Dov Ber assumed the leadership of Chabad upon his father's passing in 1812. In 1813 he settled in the town of Lubavitch, which was to serve as the movement's headquarters for the next 102 years. In 1826, Rabbi Dov Ber was arrested by the Czarist government on slanderous charges. His day of release, Kislev 10 is celebrated to this day as a "festival of liberation" among Lubavitch Chassidim.
The Portal of Rosh HaShanah
I. To understand the concept of Rosh HaShanah: In truth, it is necessary to comprehend, why is [the holiday] called Rosh HaShanah, “the head of the year,” and not “the beginning of the year”?
Behold we say: “This day is the beginning of Your deeds, a remembrance of the first day.” From this wording, it appears that every [year], Rosh HaShanah does not bring about a true new development, merely “a remembrance of the first day.” The opening clause, however, states: “This day is the beginning of Your deeds,” implying that Rosh HaShanah is the time for the renewal of the world with regard to the entire spiritual cosmos as a whole [and every entity within it] in particular. How then can the concluding clause say that it is only “a remembrance of the first day”? Seemingly, there is a conflict between the beginning of the phrase and its conclusion. It is also necessary to understand why a reference is made to “the first day.”
[In explanation:] At the outset, it is necessary to understand the expression Rosh HaShanah. The implication is that [the day] functions like the head in relation to the body and its limbs. By analogy, just like in the human body, the head has two dimensions:
a) It controls the functioning of all the limbs. All of the limbs follow the will that is [revealed] within the brain in one’s head. It serves like a leader of men who controls them according to his will.
b) All of the limbs are included in the brain, because the source for their fundamental [makeup] comes from the brain within the head, i.e., from the brain is drawn down light and life-energy for all the inner organs and external limbs through the nervous system that extends from the brain to all the limbs. From this comes [the possibility] for sensation and movement. If so, certainly the life-energy for all the limbs exists in a hidden state within the head and is manifest in revelation from that hidden state in a particular individualized manner afterwards. Accordingly, even after the limbs become individual entities in their own right, the head directs them according to its desires, as explained above. Indeed, the two factors are interdependent. Since the limbs receive their spiritual life-energy from the brain, the brain naturally becomes the one which leads them and directs them.
( The source for this phenomena is [the fact] that even when an infant is in its mother’s womb, the beginning of its formation is from its head and from the head, all of the other limbs and organs develop, as explained in another source. If so, even after all the 248 limbs have been come into existence, they are all included in the brain in a hidden state, i.e., in a spiritual way. [For example, the power of] movement that activates the hand exists within the brain in a spiritual way. Similarly, the power of movement and the ability to walk manifest by the feet exists in its source in the brain in a spiritual way. The same applies for all the limbs. Accordingly, after the other limbs have been formed, there exists within the brain, the power of direction to convey to them the physical power and the vitality that is felt within them [to follow] its will. As soon as the desire to move one’s hand arises in the brain, [an impulse] flows through delicate nerves within the makeup of the hand to move it according to the will of the brain. Similar concepts apply with regard to the movement of the feet.
This forces us to say that there is a source for all the fundamental vitality of movement in the general source, the brain. Since it is the beginning, [the primal matter,] from which man if formed, it includes his entire [makeup] in a state of oneness in a spiritual sense.
BRACKETS USED BELOW BECAUSE PARENTHESIS WITHIN THE BRACKETS
{For [the process through which] matter is brought into existence (which is referred to as the building of the keilim in Etz Chayim) resembles [the process through which] form is brought into existence (which is referred to as the building of the oros). With regard to the droplet of mayin dochrin and mayin nukvin, the spiritual form, the soul, is also drawn down first into the brain. This is [manifest] in the drop [of sperm] that is drawn down from the brain and includes all the spiritual powers of the soul. A similar pattern applies with regard to bringing into being the matter [in which] the form is manifest. The actual physical brain is brought into being first, [before the other limbs]. In particular, [this applies with regard] to the view that maintains that the material structure [of man] is brought into being before his spiritual structure.}
{As explained in other sources, there is an inner [schema] of man and an external [schema]. And there is an intermediate schema which connects the inner and external ones. [The nature of this pattern can be explained by dividing @@ost##, the Hebrew term for “man” into] @@o s t##. The alef refers to the light of the form, the spiritual soul as it comprises all of the physical powers that are afterwards manifest in the limbs, e.g., sight, hearing, even the ability to walk [which is manifest] in the feet. All of [these powers] exist in an essential spiritual state within the soul. This constitutes the inner man.
The intermediate man refers to the source for the 365 gidim that serve as the nerve system to connect the essential spiritual potential [of the soul] to be manifest in physical vitality, i.e., the powers of the limbs as they exist in a physical sense, from the head to the foot. [The latter is] referred to as the external man with his 248 limbs.
These two forms of man exist entirely within the brain and from it extend forth the particular powers of the limbs, in one schema in a physical sense and in another schema in a spiritual sense, one being dependent on the other. They become perfectly one as the spiritual will of the soul connects to the actual physical organ of the brain to be expressed in the will to move and walk with one’s feet and the like.
This serves as a general analogy to understand the renewal of life-energy on Rosh HaShanah which is called the head in the spiritual realms with regard to the themes of olam, shanah, and nefesh. These three correspond completely to the three schemes of man described above. Olam corresponds to the external man in which the Divine power is enclothed, for example, the schema of the external man as [is true with regard to] the angels which are called the eyes and the feet of the Schechinah, as it is written: “And he saw….”
Shanah refers to time, the six thousand years [of the world’s existence]. This corresponds to the intermediate man [whose purpose is] to join the light of the inner man to the external man. (This relates to concepts explained in another source where it is noted that the term: @@ufan##, “Draw after you” is numerically equivalent to 365 together with the kollel. [This refers to the Divine service of] drawing down the sublime days, [i.e., time as it exists in] Malchus of Atzilus to the worlds of Beriyah, Yetzirah, and Assiyah. The latter are referred to as the lower days. [The intent is] to bring out the 365 days as they exist in the head from their hidden spiritual [source] to revelation, [taking them] from a state of nothingness to one of existence in the worlds of Beriyah, Yetzirah, and Assiyah.)
Nefesh refers to the inner man, i.e., Malchus of Atzilus as it exists within Atzilus before it has been enclothed within the lights and vessels.
This is the intent of the phrase “This is the day….” Rosh HaShanah is the building of the skull of nukvah which is called “the head” because within it, all of the particulars of olam, shanah, and nefesh are included in a hidden state. Afterwards, they come out in revelation. This follows the opinion that the world was created in Tishrei. Even according to the opinion that the world was created in Nissan, this is also true as explained in another source at length.}
(Similar concepts apply with regard to each individual G-dly soul. It possesses these three levels of olam, shanah, and nefesh in a general manner. On every Rosh HaShanah, one is judged with regard to the general state of his spiritual vitality as it exists and in physical matters, [he is judged] with regard to the life of the body. This pattern is followed, because man [as he exists on the physical plane was created] in the image of the sublime man.)
It is thus understood that the brain includes the entire vitality for the limbs in a refined, hidden, spiritual state and afterwards, [the different powers] become manifest, each one in a manner in which it can be sensed. For example, the power of sight which can be sensed in the eye was included in the brain in a hidden, spiritual state and afterwards comes into revelation through the organ of the eye. Similarly, the power to walk which can be sensed in the feet has its root and source in a hidden, spiritual state within the brain. [Only] afterwards is it revealed through the organ of the feet. Similar concepts apply with regard to all the powers [manifest] by the inner organs, the heart, the liver, the lungs, and all the other individual organs. All of the particular limbs have delicate nerves that have a spiritual source within the brain. Were this not to be the case, they would not be able to carry out their function at all. (The proof of this concept is that if the organ of the brain is damaged, all of the vitality for the inner organs and external limbs will be lost in one moment.) They all exist in a hidden state in the brain and come into revelation with vitality that can be sensed in the movement and activity of the limbs, each one according to its function and activity.
Thus there are two factors: a) that in a hidden state, the brain includes all of the other limbs, and b) in a revealed state, its influence is drawn down to each limb individually in a very particular manner.
It can be understood from this that even if a particular limb loses its vitality because it has been injured physically, the spiritual light and vitality of the limb has gone back to its source, i.e., the hidden state [in which it exists] in the brain. It remains within [the brain] and is not revealed within that particular limb. Nevertheless, in essence, the power is not lacking and exists in its source. The lack is only in its revelation within the limb.
Similarly, there are times when, for a particular reason, the vitality for a particular limb will not be drawn down at all from its source in a hidden state within the brain and will not at all be revealed within a particular limb. Even though there is no sign of life from its source, it still exists in an essential state within its source. It, however, remains included in the spiritual vitality of the brain. It can thus come into revelation from its hidden state at times, because there is nothing essentially lacking, merely, the activity [of the power] and its revelation. Thus as long as the general spiritual vitality for the limbs exists in the head in a spiritual state, there exists the possibility for vitality to be drawn down to all the individual limbs without any lack at all.
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