Tanya Illuminated

Words and Concepts You Will Need for This Chapter

Halachah (pl. halachot): Lit. “the way.” The way the Torah is to be implemented and the way to live as a Jew. A halachah is also a conclusive decision of how some mitzvah must be done, including how problematic issues and disputes are to be settled. When we study halachah, we are discovering what exactly G‑d wants.

To study halachah thoroughly, you would traverse all of Jewish history. You would begin with the relevant verses in Torah, then as their application appears in the Mishnah, discussed in the Talmud, debated among the early commentators, and codified by Maimonides and others. Most importantly, the Shulchan Aruch of Rabbi Yosef Karo has dominated our application of halachah since its advent over 450 years ago – but not without the glosses and responsa of other authorities of his era and beyond.

Rabbi Schneur Zalman is a key figure in the development of halachah as we study and apply it today.

For more on his contribution and influence, see the Introduction

For more on the development and application of halachah, read What Is Halachah?

Introduction

You did a mitzvah. You embraced G‑d and He embraced you. There is no moment beyond the moment of a mitzvah, not even in the highest heaven.

But have you changed? Or was it a moment that came and passed, leaving you more connected with your Creator in some subliminal way, but internally, consciously, pretty much the same person as before?

We learned, after all, that mitzvahs are clothing for the soul. Clothing is external. You can dress as any character you want, in whatever costume you want, without ever becoming that character. If you want to internalize an experience, you need a strategy to do so.

Living beings have such a strategy and it is called learning. To learn is to transform yourself, indeed, to transcend yourself. If you have learned something new and remain the same person as you were before you learned it, you can hardly be said to have learned anything at all.

In this chapter, Rabbi Schneur Zalman discusses learning Torah. When you grasp any nugget of Torah with clarity, digesting it and internalizing it, it not only becomes you and transforms you from the inside-out, it carries you to a place you could never reach on your own.

This is a paradigm shift in our understanding of its purpose and meaning – similar to the reconception of the purpose of mitzvahs in the previous chapter. Intuitively, we imagine that we learn Torah to gain knowledge. Here, we discover something quite different: We learn Torah to become that knowledge.

When you do a mitzvah, G‑d’s embrace surrounds you. When you learn Torah, divine wisdom, the fine details of G‑d’s desires, you grasp at least a glimmer of that embrace, bring it inside of you, and allow it to lift you and transform you. Indeed, you become that embrace.

Roundup

Here is what we know so far about the soul:

There are two of them, one mundane, the other divine.

The divine soul is divine at her very core. She has a full character of intellect and emotions. She has clothing of thought, speech, and action in Torah and mitzvahs through which she embraces G‑d and G‑d embraces her.

And she bonds and unites with G‑d through learning Torah, as we will learn now.

The Tanya's Introduction to Your Divine Soul — a roundup of the four chapters and their practical application. Chapter 2, Essence: connect to a tzadik to connect to your most inner self. Chapter 3, Structure: contemplate the divine to give birth to lasting emotions and attitudes. Chapter 4, Clothing: embrace with G-d through mitzvahs that are an outpouring of your soul. Chapter 5, Bonding: bond with G-d by wrapping your head around His innermost will and wisdom in Torah.

פרק ה'

Chapter Five

וּלְתוֹסֶפֶת בֵּיאוּר, בַּאֵר הֵיטֵב לְשׁוֹן "תְּפִיסָא" שֶׁאָמַר אֵלִיָּהוּ: "לֵית מַחֲשָׁבָה תְּפִיסָא בָךְ כוּ'".

The previous chapter mentioned the words of Elijah the Prophet, “No thought can grasp You….” Let’s take this idea of grasping the divine further and clarify it well.

How Your Mind Grasps an Idea

הִנֵּה, כָּל שֵׂכֶל כְּשֶׁמַּשְׂכִּיל וּמַשִּׂיג בְּשִׂכְלוֹ אֵיזֶה מוּשְׂכָּל,

Let’s say your mind has formed a concept of an idea and gotten it straight.

This means two things, from two perspectives.

הֲרֵי הַשֵּׂכֶל תּוֹפֵס אֶת הַמּוּשְׂכָּל וּמַקִּיפוֹ בְּשִׂכְלוֹ,

Your intellect now grasps the idea and mentally encompasses it.

וְהַמּוּשְׂכָּל נִתְפָּס וּמוּקָּף וּמְלוּבָּשׁ בְּתוֹךְ הַשֵּׂכֶל שֶׁהִשִּׂיגוֹ וְהִשְׂכִּילוֹ.

And, from the other perspective, it means the idea is now grasped, encompassed, and enveloped within this mind of yours that has gotten it straight and formed a concept of it.

וְגַם

There is another dynamic, as well:

הַשֵּׂכֶל מְלוּבָּשׁ בַּמּוּשְׂכָּל בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁמַּשִּׂיגוֹ וְתוֹפְסוֹ בְּשִׂכְלוֹ.

While you are actively grasping the idea and trying to get it straight in your mind, your mind is enveloped within the idea.

Entering and Grasping — two ways your mind relates to an idea. Mind Immersion (a person swimming in water): when you study something, trying to understand it, you immerse yourself within that idea, fully enveloping yourself within its world. Mind Grasp (a person drinking water): once you understand the idea well, it's like having a solid grasp and grip — you bring the idea fully within your mind, and you envelope it.

דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל: כְּשֶׁאָדָם מֵבִין וּמַשִּׂיג אֵיזוֹ הֲלָכָה בְּמִשְׁנָה אוֹ בִּגְמָרָא לַאֲשׁוּרָהּ עַל בּוּרְיָהּ הֲרֵי שִׂכְלוֹ תּוֹפֵס וּמַקִּיף אוֹתָהּ,

For example: You’ve understood some halachah of the Mishnah or the Talmud and you’ve got it thorough and clear. Your mind now grasps that halachah, encompassing it.

וְגַם שִׂכְלוֹ מְלוּבָּשׁ בָּהּ בְּאוֹתָהּ שָׁעָה.

And, as well, at the time you were pondering this halachah, your mind was enveloped within it.

Grasping Torah, Grasping G‑d

וְהִנֵּה, הֲלָכָה זוֹ, הִיא חָכְמָתוֹ וּרְצוֹנוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ־בָּרוּךְ־הוּא,

Now, this halachah is G‑d’s essential wisdom and will.

שֶׁעָלָה בִּרְצוֹנוֹ, שֶׁכְּשֶׁיִּטְעוֹן רְאוּבֵן כָּךְ וְכָךְ דֶּרֶךְ מָשָׁל וְשִׁמְעוֹן כָּךְ וְכָךְ – יִהְיֶה הַפְּסַק בֵּינֵיהֶם כָּךְ וְכָךְ.

G‑d desires that if Reuven presents a certain argument, for example, and Shimon puts forth another, the final ruling between them will be such-and-such.

וְאַף אִם לֹא הָיָה וְלֹא יִהְיֶה הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה לְעוֹלָם לָבֹא לְמִשְׁפָּט עַל טְעָנוֹת וּתְבִיעוֹת אֵלּוּ,

And even if such a case with these particular claims and demands never came to judgment and never will

מִכָּל מָקוֹם, מֵאַחַר שֶׁכָּךְ עָלָה בִּרְצוֹנוֹ וְחָכְמָתוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ־בָּרוּךְ־הוּא, שֶׁאִם יִטְעוֹן זֶה כָּךְ וְזֶה כָּךְ, יִהְיֶה הַפְּסַק כָּךְ,

– nevertheless, what matters is that this is G‑d’s will and wisdom: If one person would argue like this, and the other would argue like this, this will be the ruling.

הֲרֵי כְּשֶׁאָדָם יוֹדֵעַ וּמַשִּׂיג בְּשִׂכְלוֹ פְּסַק זֶה כַּהֲלָכָה הָעֲרוּכָה בְּמִשְׁנָה אוֹ גְּמָרָא אוֹ פּוֹסְקִים,

That being so, when you know this halachic ruling and you understand it as it is set out in the Mishnah, the Talmud, or the later halachic adjudicators,

הֲרֵי זֶה מַשִּׂיג וְתוֹפֵס וּמַקִּיף בְּשִׂכְלוֹ רְצוֹנוֹ וְחָכְמָתוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ־בָּרוּךְ־הוּא,

your mind comprehends, grasps, and encompasses G‑d’s desire and wisdom.

דְּלֵית מַחֲשָׁבָה תְּפִיסָא בֵּיהּ וְלֹא בִּרְצוֹנוֹ וְחָכְמָתוֹ, כִּי אִם בְּהִתְלַבְּשׁוּתָם בַּהֲלָכוֹת הָעֲרוּכוֹת לְפָנֵינוּ,

You are grasping G‑d who cannot be grasped by any thought, and neither can His will or His wisdom. Yet, clothed within these halachot that have been made accessible to us, you do grasp them – His wisdom, His will, and He Himself.

וְגַם שִׂכְלוֹ מְלוּבָּשׁ בָּהֶם.

And, as you are learning, your mind is immersed within them as well.

The Wondrous and Exclusive Union

וְהוּא יִחוּד נִפְלָא שֶׁאֵין יִחוּד כָּמוֹהוּ וְלֹא כְּעֶרְכּוֹ נִמְצָא כְּלָל בְּגַשְׁמִיּוּת, לִהְיוֹת לַאֲחָדִים וּמְיוּחָדִים מַמָּשׁ מִכָּל צַד וּפִנָּה.

This is an amazing union. There is nothing like it or even approaching it among physical things, nothing at all: You grasp Torah, and your mind and G‑d’s become an absolute, singular oneness from every angle and in every way.

וְזֹאת מַעֲלָה יְתֵרָה גְּדוֹלָה וְנִפְלָאָה לְאֵין קֵץ אֲשֶׁר בְּמִצְוַת יְדִיעַת הַתּוֹרָה וְהַשָּׂגָתָהּ עַל כָּל הַמִּצְוֹת מַעֲשִׂיּוֹת, וַאֲפִילוּ עַל מִצְוֹת הַתְּלוּיוֹת בְּדִבּוּר, וַאֲפִילוּ עַל מִצְוַת תַּלְמוּד תּוֹרָה שֶׁבְּדִבּוּר.

This is an enormous, amazing quality of the mitzvah of knowing Torah and understanding it that places it immeasurably beyond all the action-mitzvahs – indeed, even immeasurably beyond those mitzvahs you do by speaking, and even immeasurably beyond the mitzvah of learning Torah aloud.

כִּי עַל יְדֵי כָּל הַמִּצְוֹת שֶׁבְּדִבּוּר וּמַעֲשֶׂה, הַקָּדוֹשׁ־בָּרוּךְ־הוּא מַלְבִּישׁ אֶת הַנֶּפֶשׁ, וּמַקִּיפָהּ אוֹר ה' מֵרֹאשָׁהּ וְעַד רַגְלָהּ,

Because when you perform a mitzvah by speaking or doing, G‑d surrounds your soul like a garment and His light encompasses her from head to foot.

וּבִידִיעַת הַתּוֹרָה, מִלְּבַד שֶׁהַשֵּׂכֶל מְלוּבָּשׁ בְּחָכְמַת ה', הִנֵּה גַּם חָכְמַת ה' בְּקִרְבּוֹ

But when you acquire Torah knowledge, not only is your mind enveloped within G‑d’s wisdom, but G‑d’s wisdom is also integrated within you.

מַה שֶּׁהַשֵּׂכֶל מַשִּׂיג וְתוֹפֵס וּמַקִּיף בְּשִׂכְלוֹ מַה שֶּׁאֶפְשָׁר לוֹ לִתְפּוֹס וּלְהַשִּׂיג מִידִיעַת הַתּוֹרָה, אִישׁ כְּפִי שִׂכְלוֹ וְכֹחַ יְדִיעָתוֹ וְהַשָּׂגָתוֹ בִּפְשַׁט־רֶמֶז־דְּרוּשׁ־סוֹד.

It’s within you in the form of the Torah that your mind comprehends, grasps, and encompasses – according to your mind’s ability to grasp it with your particular way of thinking, your capacity for knowledge and your level of comprehension in the four realms of Torah’s orchard.

Torah as Bread

וּלְפִי שֶׁבִּידִיעַת הַתּוֹרָה, הַתּוֹרָה מְלוּבֶּשֶׁת בְּנֶפֶשׁ הָאָדָם וְשִׂכְלוֹ וּמוּקֶּפֶת בְּתוֹכָם, לָכֵן נִקְרֵאת בְּשֵׁם "לֶחֶם" וּ"מְזוֹן הַנֶּפֶשׁ".

So, since knowing Torah means that Torah is invested within your soul and mind and encompassed by them, therefore Torah is called bread and nourishment for the soul.

כִּי כְּמוֹ שֶׁהַלֶּחֶם הַגַּשְׁמִי זָן אֶת הַגּוּף כְּשֶׁמַּכְנִיסוֹ בְּתוֹכוֹ וְקִרְבּוֹ מַמָּשׁ, וְנֶהְפָּךְ שָׁם לִהְיוֹת דָּם וּבָשָׂר כִּבְשָׂרוֹ, וַאֲזַי יִחְיֶה וְיִתְקַיֵּם,

It is just like physical bread: You consume it, actually integrating it within yourself to nourish your body. It’s metabolized to become your own blood and flesh. And now you live off its energy.

כָּךְ בִּידִיעַת הַתּוֹרָה וְהַשָּׂגָתָהּ בְּנֶפֶשׁ הָאָדָם שֶׁלּוֹמְדָהּ הֵיטֵב בְּעִיּוּן שִׂכְלוֹ עַד שֶׁנִּתְפֶּסֶת בְּשִׂכְלוֹ וּמִתְאַחֶדֶת עִמּוֹ וְהָיוּ לַאֲחָדִים –

The same occurs when your soul consumes knowledge and comprehension of Torah: You learn it well. You study it until it becomes embedded in your mind, until it is part of you. You and this Torah you are learning become one.

נַעֲשָׂה מָזוֹן לַנֶּפֶשׁ וְחַיִּים בְּקִרְבָּהּ מֵחַיֵּי הַחַיִּים אֵין־סוֹף בָּרוּךְ־הוּא הַמְלוּבָּשׁ בְּחָכְמָתוֹ וְתוֹרָתוֹ שֶׁבְּקִרְבָּהּ.

Then it becomes nourishment for your soul. Your soul now has life within her from the One who gives all life, the Infinite G‑d. He is there, clothed within His wisdom and His Torah that are now integrated within your soul.

Heaven’s Food

וְזֶהוּ שֶׁכָּתוּב: "וְתוֹרָתְךָ בְּתוֹךְ מֵעָי",

That’s the meaning of the verse, “Your Torah is within my bowels.”

וּכְמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בְּ"עֵץ חַיִּים" שַׁעַר מ"ד פֶּרֶק ג', שֶׁלְּבוּשֵׁי הַנְּשָׁמוֹת בְּגַן עֵדֶן הֵן הַמִּצְוֹת,

And, as it says in Etz Chaim, portal 44, chapter 3: The clothing of the souls in the heavenly Garden of Eden are the mitzvahs they performed in this world.

וְהַתּוֹרָה הִיא הַמָּזוֹן לַנְּשָׁמוֹת שֶׁעָסְקוּ בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה בַּתּוֹרָה לִשְׁמָהּ, וּכְמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בַּזֹּהַר וַיַּקְהֵל דַּף ר"י.

But their nourishment is the Torah they learned in this world – provided that these souls engaged in Torah for its own sake, as written in Zohar, Parshat Vayakhel, folio 210.

וְ"לִשְׁמָהּ", הַיְינוּ כְּדֵי לְקַשֵּׁר נַפְשׁוֹ לַה' עַל יְדֵי הַשָּׂגַת הַתּוֹרָה, אִישׁ כְּפִי שִׂכְלוֹ, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בִּ"פְרִי עֵץ חַיִּים".

In this context, “learning Torah for its own sake” means studying it to connect your soul with G‑d by grasping it with your particular intellect, as explained in Pri Etz Chaim.

Then that Torah becomes spiritual food for your soul in the heavenly Garden of Eden.

Parenthetically: Nourishment As Clothing

This chapter of Tanya presents a single point around which everything else revolves: the amazing union that is achieved through integrating Torah wisdom into your mind.

Parenthetically, Rabbi Schneur Zalman notes that this is not the only thing learning Torah accomplishes. Learning Torah is also a mitzvah, and like every other mitzvah, learning Torah encompasses you with divine light. The divine light of Torah, however, has an advantage. It encompasses you with light you are capable of grasping and internalizing.

[וְהַמָּזוֹן הִיא בְּחִינַת אוֹר פְּנִימִי,

(When we say the Torah is nourishment for the soul, we mean it is an inner sort of light that your soul can absorb.

וְהַלְּבוּשִׁים בְּחִינַת מַקִּיפִים.

When we say the mitzvahs are clothing for the soul, we mean they provide an encompassing sort of light, beyond anything that can be absorbed and internalized.

וְְלָכֵן אָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ־זִכְרוֹנָם־לִבְרָכָה, שֶׁתַּלְמוּד תּוֹרָה שָׁקוּל כְּנֶגֶד כָּל הַמִּצְוֹת,

With this, we can explain why our rabbis said that Torah study outweighs all the other mitzvahs combined:

לְפִי שֶׁהַמִּצְוֹת הֵן לְבוּשִׁים לְבַד,

This is because the mitzvahs provide clothing alone.

וְהַתּוֹרָה הִיא מָזוֹן וְגַם לְבוּשׁ לַנֶּפֶשׁ הַמַּשְׂכֶּלֶת שֶׁמִּתְלַבֵּשׁ בָּהּ בְּעִיּוּנָהּ וְלִמּוּדָהּ,

Torah, however, is at once both nourishment and clothing for your divine, thinking soul. Even though Torah is an inner sort of light, nevertheless, when your soul is engrossed in studying Torah and learning more of it, she clothes herself within it.

וְכָל שֶׁכֵּן כְּשֶׁמּוֹצִיא בְּפִיו בְּדִבּוּר, שֶׁהֶבֶל הַדִּבּוּר נַעֲשֶׂה בְּחִינַת אוֹר מַקִּיף, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בִּ"פְרִי עֵץ חַיִּים"]:

All the more so when you speak out loud whatever you are learning. Then the breath of your speech becomes a kind of all-encompassing light, as stated in Pri Etz Chaim.)

What Have We Discovered

When you do a mitzvah, you and G‑d embrace. When you wrap your head around the Torah you learn, you and G‑d are one.
In Torah study, clarity is key. Immerse yourself well enough in the subject that the subject will be totally immersed and assimilated within you. It will transform you.
We learn Torah not just for knowledge, but principally to connect with the divine will and wisdom that is embedded within that knowledge.
Torah is food for your soul, giving her vitality and strength.

Notes

Tikunei Zohar, 17a.
See Shulchan Aruch HaRav, Hilchot Talmud Torah 2:1, where Rabbi Schneur Zalman uses these same words to describe learning the reasoning behind a halachah. Without knowing the reasoning, he writes, you are unable to correctly apply your knowledge.
Proverbs 25:21; Talmud, Sukkah 52b, Rashi. Zohar II, 61b.
Psalms 40:9.
In most versions of the Etz Chaim, this appears in portal 43.
Sha’ar Hanhagat HaLimud, s.v. “Mori.”
Sefer HaMa’amarim 5665, p. 336.
Mishnah, Pe’ah 1:1; Rambam, Pirush HaMishnayot, ad loc; Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Talmud Torah 3:3.
Sha’ar HaTefilah, ch. 1.