Given that a chariot represents what it does — the various ways God administers the cosmos from His throne — we now understand why we\u2019re taught that “The subject of \u2026 the workings of the chariot (may not be expounded to anyone other than) . . . a sage who has an innate understanding (of it). (In fact,) whoever (else) speculates on it would have been better off not having come into the world” (Mishna Hagigah<\/i>\u00a02:1). That\u2019s so because knowledge of God\u2019s ways in the world can lead one astray.<\/p>\n
Yet we\u2019re taught that\u00a0\u201cThe account of the\u00a0Chariot<\/i> is a great matter while the discussions of Abaya and Rava\u201d — which is to say, the discussions upon which all practical Halacha are based — \u201cis a lesser matter\u201d (Sukkah 28a). And that a Torah scholar who appears before God after his death is asked, \u201cMy son, since you occupied yourself with the study of the Talmud, did you gaze upon the\u00a0Chariot? For in My world there is no real pleasure except when sages are sitting occupied with the words of Torah and gaze and look, behold and meditate upon\u201d the realm of the Chariot as well (Midrash Mishlei<\/i>, Chapter 10). So it\u2019s obviously a vitally important subject of study.<\/p>\n
Interestingly enough, though, the above Midrash starts to veer off onto a discussion of the Divine Throne rather than on the Chariot per se, thus equating the two.<\/p>\n
This could be explained by the fact that the word \u201cchariot\u201d isn\u2019t cited in the first chapter of Ezekiel, as we indicated, while \u201cthrone\u201d is (twice in 1:26). But that didn\u2019t seem to affect the change, given that the term Chariot continued to be used after the codification of The Book of Ezekiel, as we see from the Post-Biblical references. So, when and why did the concern for the Chariot become a concern with the Throne?<\/p>\n
(c) 2013 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman<\/p>\n
Feel free to contact me at feldman@torah.org<\/a><\/p>\n ———————————————————-<\/p>\n AT LONG LAST! Rabbi Feldman’s translation of Maimonides’ “Eight Chapters” is available here<\/a> at a discount.<\/p>\n You can still purchase a copy of Rabbi Feldman’s translation of “The Gates of Repentance” here<\/a> at a discount as well.<\/p>\n Rabbi Yaakov Feldman 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 on www.torah.org entitled “Spiritual Excellence<\/a>\u201d and \u201cRamchal<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Given that a chariot represents what it does — the various ways God administers the cosmos from His throne — we now understand why we\u2019re taught that “The subject of \u2026 the workings of the chariot (may not be expounded … Continue reading