CHOCHMAS NASHIM: KORACH:
HARD TO SWALLOW
By: Suri Davis
עֲשָׂרָה דְבָרִים נִבְרְאוּ בְּעֶרֶב שַׁבָּת בֵּין הַשְּׁמָשׁוֹת, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן, פִּי הָאָרֶץ, וּפִי הַבְּאֵר, וּפִי הָאָתוֹן, וְהַקֶּשֶׁת, וְהַמָּן, וְהַמַּטֶּה, וְהַשָּׁמִיר, וְהַכְּתָב, וְהַמִּכְתָּב, וְהַלּוּחוֹת. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים, אַף הַמַּזִּיקִין, וּקְבוּרָתוֹ שֶׁל משֶׁה, וְאֵילוֹ שֶׁל אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים, אַף צְבָת בִּצְבָת עֲשׂוּיָה:
Ten things were created on the eve of the Sabbath at twilight, and these are they: [1] the mouth of the earth, [2] the mouth of the well, [3] the mouth of the donkey, [4] the rainbow, [5] the manna, [6] the staff [of Moses], [7] the shamir, [8] the letters, [9] the writing, [10] and the tablets. And some say: also the demons, the grave of Moses, and the ram of Abraham, our father. And some say: and also tongs, made with tongs.
Akeidat Yitzchak 1:21:17:
Anything created after the creation of man was created only after all the forces of nature had been assigned their respective tasks and had thus been placed at man’s disposal. Beings created later signify then that they belong to the physical world only marginally, that they are as yet incomplete, waiting to be assigned their eventual function, seeing that the Sabbath arrived before they could be assigned their proper place in the scheme of things. Having been created before the Sabbath makes these beings part of the yesh me-ayin process, part of the Creation ex nihilo; on the other hand, their ultimate function is left to a free willed decision by whoever will put such beings to use.
- The mouth of the Earth that swallowed Korach and his followers.
- The mouth of the well that provided water to the Jews in the desert.
- The mouth of the donkey that spoke with Bilaam, who wanted to curse the Jews.
- Noah’s rainbow
- Manna that fed the Jews in the desert.
- Moses’ staff.
- The shamir worm that cut the stone for the holy Temple, since metal was not permitted to cut the stone, as metal is used for implements of war.
- Jewish letters.
- The implement of writing that G-d used to create the double-sided inscription of the commandments on the tablets on Mount Sinai, at the time the Jews were given the Torah
- The tablets themselves.
[11.] Tongs for which to make other tongs.
Those who keep Shabbos can feel the transition of Shabbos. When afternoon hits, even in the midst of Shabbos prep, there is a shift away from the regular schedule, focusing on Shabbos as work and school slip into the physical/metaphysical la la land, where one is working, but working towards Shabbos. I guess to explain it, would be how one feels at the dentist when getting gas for a procedure. One is awake, but doesn’t feel the pain, or one can feel the pain, but it doesn’t matter, it’s a rising above the physical world, while being part of it. Then when one lights the Shabbos candles, its like when the clock runs out on the Chopped shows. Frantic countdown to Shabbos, and suddenly the clock runs out on the week, and peace descends at that moment.
A review of the list above, which were created during this frantic Shabbos countdown period in the Heaven is an amalgam of the physical world being elevated for G-d’s purpose, it has merging elements of the physical and spiritual. It is G-d’s desire that we take the material and elevate it to the spiritual.
In this week’s parshah, G-d takes the Earth and He elevates for the purpose of stopping Korach’s mutiny. Korach who our Rabbis tell us had a desire to get closer to G-d by being a Jewish leader, took a holy desire of getting closer to G-d, and bastardized it, and then G-d took the lowly Earth and elevated it to remove Korach and his followers and keep His own plan in place, which was to ensure that Moses and Aaron remained as G-d’s appointed leaders.
On Friday, look at your routine, and feel the transition action. Turning the stove into a blech. Turning on the urn. They are on our preshabbos task list, but as you do these Shabbos prep tasks, feel them, say to yourself “lichvod Shabbos kodesh/in honor of the Shabbos” and elevate them to ramps that elevate your spirituality as Shabbos nears, and the candles are lit as we close out our week and pull down the holy spirit and elevate our spirits to meet up for the 25 hours of Shabbos.
Shabbat shalom.
-Suri