{"id":176,"date":"2017-05-08T14:37:06","date_gmt":"2017-05-08T14:37:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/?p=176"},"modified":"2017-05-08T14:37:06","modified_gmt":"2017-05-08T14:37:06","slug":"daat-tevunot-21-59-68","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/2017\/05\/08\/daat-tevunot-21-59-68\/","title":{"rendered":"Da\u2019at Tevunot 2:1 (# 59-68)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Da\u2019at Tevunot<\/em>\u00a02:1 (# 59-68)<\/p>\n

1.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll now concentrate on humankind, whose existence is the whole point of G-d\u2019s actions, and who are the only entities who serve G-d\u00a01<\/sup>. In fact, understanding humankind will help us to understand all that preceded this discussion, given that humankind was the target of all that was spoken of there.<\/p>\n

And we\u2019ll concentrate on three things when it comes to that: on man\u2019s makeup\u00a02<\/sup>, his actions, and on the consequences of his actions\u00a03<\/sup>. Then we\u2019ll touch on the subject of the resurrection of the dead, which we\u2019d cited early on\u00a04<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

2.<\/p>\n

The first thing to concentrate on when it comes to that last point is that there\u2019d have to be an eventual resurrection of the dead and a subsequent reconnoitering of body and soul because, given that G-d granted man both a body and a soul to use in his Divine service, it only follows that\u00a0both<\/em>\u00a0would be rewarded in the end, not just the soul\u00a05<\/sup>. After all, isn’t it said that “G-d withholds reward from no one” (Baba Kama<\/em>\u00a038A)?<\/p>\n

And we\u2019d also need to dwell on the astounding fact of man\u2019s body and soul being initially joined 6<\/sup>, then separated, then fully joined in the end, since those phenomena certainly have their effects on a person\u00a07<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Footnotes:<\/p>\n

1\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>That is, up to now we\u2019d concentrated on G-d\u2019s being and His full sovereignty; we\u2019ll now concentrate on ourselves and the role we play as the subjects of His sovereignty in the playing out of G-d\u2019s great designs. And also, the truth be known, because nothing whatsoever is quite as absorbing, labyrinthine, and evocative to us as humanity.<\/p>\n

Ramchal follows this same pattern in the first three chapters of\u00a0Derech<\/em>\u00a0Hashem<\/em>\u00a0in fact, going from the study of G-d to that of humankind.<\/p>\n

2\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>I.e., on his being comprised of a body and soul, as well as on\u2026<\/p>\n

3\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>I.e., on the things that affect his body and soul in life, the Afterlife, and in the World to Come (in fact, Ramchal\u2019s real object of interest will prove to be the latter, given that the resurrection of the dead\u00a0 — the professed subject at hand — is \u201cmerely\u201d a stop along the way to the World to Come).<\/p>\n

4\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>See our discussion in \u201cRamchal\u2019s Introduction\u201d.<\/p>\n

5\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>Others reasons for the resurrection will be discussed later on in this chapter.<\/p>\n

Besides, if only the soul were to be rewarded, then the body would have been nothing more than an indentured servant of sorts who worked long and hard for the soul, who — while it was indeed fed, clothed, and provided for in life — would still-and-all have nothing of its own to claim in the end.<\/p>\n

6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>He\u2019s ostensibly speaking about the simple fact that our bodies and souls are conjoined when we\u2019re conceived, but on a more esoteric level he\u2019s referring to the idea cited in\u00a0Iggrot Pitchei Chochma v\u2019Da\u2019at\u00a0<\/em>19 about the original and fundamental unity and self-sameness of body and soul.<\/p>\n

7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup>Now, the whole idea of the dead coming alive — stepping back into their old bodies as if they were pants and shirts, dusting themselves off, and going on with life again — is stupendous, though it\u2019s actually hardly more astonishing than the phenomenal idea of human beings being conceived and born then dying in the first place. Still and all, the idea of the resurrection of the dead is too out of our experience for us to accept outright. Yet belief in the eventual resurrection of the dead is a tenet of our faith that\u2019s cited many times. We\u2019re told, for example, that \u201cyour dead will be revived\u201d (Isaiah 26:19), and that \u201cmany that sleep in the land of dust will awaken\u201d (Daniel 12:2). The most straightforward and lengthy depiction of it, of course, is the one laid out in Ezekiel 37: 1-14.<\/p>\n

In fact, we cite the resurrection of the dead in our daily and special prayers (E.g., Elokai Neshama Shenanatta Bi<\/em>,\u00a0in Shemone Esrei<\/em>,\u00a0as Keil Malei Rachamim<\/em>, etc.).<\/p>\n

Also see\u00a0Berachot<\/em>15b,\u00a0Ketuvot\u00a0<\/em>8b,\u00a0Kiddushin\u00a0<\/em>39b,\u00a0Megilah\u00a0<\/em>7b,\u00a0Sanhedrin\u00a0<\/em>90-91,\u00a0Shabbat\u00a0<\/em>88b,\u00a0Yoma\u00a0<\/em>72; Rambam’s\u00a0 Commentary to\u00a0Perek Chellek<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Hilchot Teshuvah<\/em>\u00a03:6, 8;\u00a0Tosafot<\/em>,\u00a0Baba Kama<\/em>\u00a016b\u00a0veHu<\/em>);\u00a0Emunot v\u2019De\u2019<\/em>ot 6:7; Ramban\u2019s\u00a0Torat ha-Adam<\/em>\u00a0(end of\u00a0Sha’ar ha-Gemul<\/em>); and\u00a0Sefer HaIkkurim<\/em>\u00a04:30.<\/p>\n

Also see Ramchal\u2019s own\u00a0Ma\u2019amar<\/em>\u00a0HaIkkurim<\/em>\u00a0\u201cB\u2019inyan<\/em>\u00a0HaGemul<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

In his discussion of the combination of body and soul elsewhere Ramchal harkens to the idea that this refers to the next level of discussion in the Kabbalistic writings after the aforementioned\u00a0Tzimtzum<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Kav\u00a0<\/em>(see note 1 to 1:15 above): the creation of the arcane and largely unfathomable realm known as\u00a0Adam Kadmon<\/em>\u00a0(\u201cPrimordial Man\u201d). See his remarks in\u00a0Clallim<\/em>\u00a0Rishonim<\/em>\u00a08,\u00a0Klach<\/em>\u00a0Pitchei Chochma 30-31,35,\u00a0(c) 2017 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman<\/p>\n

(c) 2017 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman<\/p>\n

Feel free to contact me at feldman@torah.org<\/a><\/p>\n

———————————————————-<\/p>\n

Rabbi Feldman’s new annotated translation of Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag\u2019s \u201cIntroduction to the Zohar\u201d is available as \u201cThe Kabbalah of Self\u201d on Kindle here<\/a>. His annotated translation of Maimonides’ “Eight Chapters” is available here<\/a> and his annotated translation of Rabbeinu Yonah\u2019s “The Gates of Repentance” is available here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

He has also translated and commented upon “The Path of the Just” and “The Duties of the Heart” (Jason Aronson Publishers).<\/p>\n

Rabbi Feldman also offers two free e-mail classes torah.org entitled \u201cSpiritual Excellence<\/a>\u201d and \u201cRamchal<\/a>\u201d that can be subscribed to.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Da\u2019at Tevunot\u00a02:1 (# 59-68) 1. We\u2019ll now concentrate on humankind, whose existence is the whole point of G-d\u2019s actions, and who are the only entities who serve G-d\u00a01. In fact, understanding humankind will help us to understand all that preceded … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2,3,4,5,6,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hashkapha","category-jewish-thought","category-kabbalah","category-luzzatto","category-ramchal","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iqo7-2Q","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":178,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176\/revisions\/178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/daattevunot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}