Kedoshim: Sanctified for Praise
byContrary to popular belief, a blessing before eating doesn’t make the food holy but actually removes its kedusha (making it permissible to eat). The ‘after brakha’ then adds a level of holiness beyond nature.
Culture
Aḥarei Mot: Going In & Coming Out
byThe High Priest loses his identity as a result of the supreme pleasure inherent in being submerged in the Divine Presence. Therefore a rope is tied to him to remind him of his mission in the material world.
Metzora: Counting to Eight
byThe purified metzora waiting for seven days outside his tent parallels Moshe’s delay in returning to the people of Israel, after years of separation while in the house of Pharaoh & then later in Midian.
Tazria: Eight Types of Tzaraat
byThe Torah presents us with different forms of tzaraat, expressing various levels of moral decline.
Shemini: The ‘Eighth Day’ of Creation
byHuman history exists within the ‘seventh day’ of Creation while the Temple belongs to the ‘eighth day’ & therefore transcends the laws of our world.
Tzav: Disrupting the Chronology
byWhile the ‘Torah of Moshe’ teaches the korbanot in a way that’s relevant to righteous idealists, the ‘Torah of Aharon’ teaches these laws as they relate to the average person in need of cleansing from sin.
Accessing the Divine Light of Freedom
byEach year, on the 15th of Nisan, the Divine light of freedom shines into our world. That’s why it was appropriate for Israel to leave Egypt on this date.
Vayikra: Order of the Korbanot
byThe subtle distinction between how Vayikra & Tzav list the order of the korbanot reflects a strong difference in the perspectives of Moshe & Aharon.
Pekudei: The Essense of the Mikdash
byThe world advances through the dialectical relationship between historical periods with & without a Temple (an ’embassy’ of higher worlds).
Vayaq’hel: Shabbat & the Mishkan
byThe deeper connection between the 39 malakhot of Shabbat & the construction of the Mishkan.
Ki Tisa: The Ideal Versus the Real
byHaShem’s choice of Israel isn’t like some human decision that could be revoked, but rather an act that transforms the nation into a Divine creation that for all eternity won’t ever be changed.
Tetzave: Divine Service & Offerings
byThe priestly garments – intended ‘for honor & for glory’ – are designed to act upon the ‘negative imagination’ by purifying & transforming it into a force of prophetic ‘pure imagination.’