The Sun, Which is the Tzaddik, is Higher Than All the Candles β’ A Lesson for the Days of Chanukah from the Righteous Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a
What is the secret of Chanukah and how is it connected to Chana the prophetess? Why did Alexander the Great bow to Shimon the Tzaddik and how is this related to guarding the covenant? And how can it be that the sun is higher than all the candles?
Presented here is a fascinating lesson on the days of Chanukah from the righteous Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a:
The Guest of Chanukah
It is written in the intentions of the Ari, that 'Chanukah' is the letters 'Chana 26'. Chana is the one who began to bring down the light of Chanukah to the world. Chanukah with a 'vav' in the middle is Chana 26 = 'blood of man', for on Chanukah all the blood in a person is transformed.
Rabbi Natan explains in the laws of gifts (Halacha 5:1): What is the meaning that Chanukah is Chana 26? 26 is the Name of Hashem. What does it mean Chana is Hashem? Rather, Chana began to bring down the light of Chanukah to the world, for Chana saw what would be until the end of generations. (And therefore she said in her prayer:) "The bows of the mighty are broken, and the stumbling are girded with strength" β this refers to Chanukah. 'The bows of the mighty are broken' refers to the Greeks, the Macedonians, 'and the stumbling are girded with strength' refers to 'the mighty in the hands of the weak'. The stumbling who went without strength, only for the sake of Heaven β they achieved might.
"And Chana Prayed"
All this Chana includes in her prayer. "The sated hire themselves for bread, and the hungry cease." The seventy, says the Gemara in Megillah 15b, are the 70 sons of Haman, that besides the ten who were hanged, another 70 sons became beggars. All this Chana prophesied in her prayer. The sated hire themselves for bread and the hungry cease.
We return to the verse "The bows of the mighty are broken, and the stumbling are girded with strength", the bow of the sitra achra, of the mighty, of the Macedonians. As it is written in the Targum, she prophesied about the kingdom of Macedonia, for Alexander was from Macedonia. He conquered all of Greece, and after that Persia, and after that the whole world and Eretz Yisrael, until he saw the image of Shimon the Tzaddik (Yoma 69a).
The Image of the Tzaddik Triumphs
For the tzaddik β his image goes before all the kings. Before all the kings goes the image of the tzaddik, and he knelt before it, bowed, prostrated with outstretched arms and legs. And all the ministers were astonished. Because (initially) he told them: "Now we are going to destroy Eretz Yisrael, we are going to destroy the Holy Temple, we are going to uproot the name of Israel from the world." Everyone rejoiced and exulted, and there was joy and exultation throughout the camp. "And the shout of joy passed through the camp." The entire camp was heading towards Jerusalem until they reached Antipatris. When they reached Antipatris, suddenly they saw Shimon the Tzaddik. The king fell from the chariot full length, with outstretched arms and legsβ
Just as Antoninus knelt before Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi and said (Avodah Zarah 10b): "Who will make me a mattress under you in the World to Come!" I want you to try to step on me. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says to him: "You rule over the whole world, you are the emperor of the whole world. How can I dare to step on the emperor of the whole world?!" And then Antoninus prostrated before Rabbi with outstretched arms and legs and said: "Rabbi, who will grant me to be a mattress under you in the World to Come!"
The Power of Guarding the Covenant
When a person is a tzaddik, when a person guards the covenant, does not raise his hands below his belt, (as the Gemara says in Shabbat 118b that this was the conduct of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi), then all the kings of the world naturally come to bow to him. Because it is written "And he shall smell with the fear of Hashem." The smell is the kedushah (holiness) of the covenant, the good smell a person has is the kedushah of the covenant, that if he does not see any woman he merits through this "And he shall smell with the fear of Hashem," that all the kings will come and bow before him, kneel before him. Like Alexander the Great who fell before Shimon the Tzaddik full length with outstretched arms and legs, like Antoninus the Emperor who fell before Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi. Every day he would come to him, cook his food, clean his room, and afterward would bow and say: 'Rabbi, when you go to bed, step on me! I want to be the footstool of your feet, and the dust under your feet in the World to Come.'
The First Neshamah
And all this Chana saw in her prophecy. She saw how the bow of the mighty, how Alexander the Great bows to Shimon the Tzaddik. "There is none holy like Hashem, for there is none besides You, and there is no rock like our God." For before the tzaddik, the whole world bows. The whole world bows before the tzaddik, whether knowingly or unknowingly, for he is the life spirit of the whole world, he is the life spirit, the first neshamah created before all creation β this is the neshamah of the tzaddik.
And this is what is written "The bows of the mighty are broken, and the stumbling are girded with strength." The Targum says: about whom did Chana prophesy? About the kingdom of Greece. When was Chana? Chana was a thousand years before the kingdom of Greece! About a thousand years before the kingdom of Greece, Chana prophesied about the kingdom of Greece and said: I see how all the bows are broken before the Hasmoneans. "The bows of the mighty Macedonians will be broken, and the house of the Hasmoneans who were weak will have miracles and might performed for them."
The 13 Attributes of Mercy
For they were only five. Rashi says twelve, and so there is a Midrash that says twelve. We know of five, maybe these were the famous five, the mighty ones, but Rashi brings twelve, and so it is brought in the book 'Beit HaMidrash' that there were twelve. Apparently, they (the five) were the leaders, they were the mighty ones, or the others were more tzaddikim, hidden among the vessels. And Mattityahu, who was the High Priest with the twelve sons, this corresponds exactly to the thirteen attributes, the thirteen attributes of mercy that need to be focused on when lighting the Chanukah candle, "El Rachum VeChanun" etc.
Every time a Chanukah candle is lit, another attribute and another attribute must be focused on, until we reach the eighth attribute. After "El Rachum VeChanun Erech Apayim VeRav Chesed VeEmet Notzer." On the eighth day, we already reach Notzer. The seventh day is Emet, so we reach the attribute of Emet and after that we reach Notzer, to will. Rabbi Natan asks: what about the other attributes? [Rather], when we reach the eighth attribute called 'Will' = 'Notzer' Chesed for thousands β then all the candles are lit, all over the world all the candles are lit, all thirteen attributes are completed on the eighth day, "El Rachum VeChanun Erech Apayim VeRav Chesed VeEmet Notzer Chesed for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin and cleansing."
The Inner Good of a Jew
And then all sins are forgiven. On the eighth day of Chanukah, it is the 'seal within a seal', all sins are forgiven, because [it is fulfilled] "And you shall be to Me a treasured possession among all the peoples." Because all the sins of the people of Israel are only superficial, they do not enter the inner essence of any Jew. The most wicked Jew says: "Who has not made me a Gentile", the most wicked Jew β his children will already study in yeshivas. As we see in our generation, Jews come who did not know the form of a letter at all, did not know there is a Torah in the world. Everyone carries within them the genes of their ancestors and forefathers, who were all holy Jews. All the grandfathers were holy Jews who did not open their eyes in their lives. There is no person who does not have a grandfather who did not see Elijah the prophet. Everyone can hear from their fathers, from their grandmothers about a grandfather from a hundred years ago, a hundred and fifty years ago β who had a revelation of Elijah.
And this is what brings everyone to return in teshuvah, because when Chanukah comes, everyone can see Elijah the prophet. Because on Chanukah, the Rebbe enters the neshamah of each and every one, when we say: 'In the merit of Rebbe Nachman' then our Rebbe enters the neshamah of each and every one!
The Neshamah of Our Rebbe is Revealed
When Chanukah arrives, as soon as the candle is lit and we say beforehand: 'I hereby connect myself to Rebbe Nachman ben Simcha ben Feiga', we connect to the true tzaddik who is the head of all creation, he is the 'Bereshit' = 'Head of the House', immediately he enters the neshamah of each and every one.
The Rebbe tells a story (in Chayei Moharan section 85), how after lighting the candle suddenly the door opens and someone enters. It was Elijah the prophet, like on the night of the Seder β the door is opened for Elijah the prophet to enter.
And this is what happens every day when the candle is lit β the true tzaddik enters, Elijah the prophet enters. "Suddenly a guest enters." Who is the guest? Sometimes a person drives away Elijah the prophet, a poor person comes, knocks on the door, says: "No, I don't have time now" and this (exactly) was Elijah the prophet. And this is what our Rebbe tells us what happens the moment the candle is lit: suddenly a guest enters.
Do Not Drive Away the Guest!
The guest enters and the host does not drive him away. And he sits beside him, talks with him, tells him his troubles. The guest asks him: What do you make a living from? He says: 'I make a living from the world'. They converse, and suddenly the host begins to feel such longing, suddenly feels that something enters his heart, he has never felt such longing in his life, feels some longing! Some yearning! Some awakening! Some longing for Hashem! Longing for this guest, begins to love him. He doesn't know what's happening here, after all, some person just entered here after lighting the candle; who is he? What is he? But the longing grows and grows. He begins to feel that he can no longer hold back. He says: 'Maybe you can teach me something?' He begins to feel that perhaps this guest is not ordinary. Maybe you can teach me something?!
Our Rebbe explains here: when Chanukah arrives, a guest enters your home, just leave your desires, leave the blemishes of the covenant, the blemishes of the eyes. A guest comes β do not drive him away, and then the guest enters your heart! Into the heart!
The Secret of Chana and Elkanah
(With Chana there is another verse). It is written "And the man went up from his city year by year." The holy Ari says in Pri Etz Chaim, "And the man went up" β when Chanukah comes, there is an ascent for all the worlds. Elkanah and Chana ascend, Chana ascends to Binah, Binah of the Name Sag. Chana is the gematria of Sag, Elkanah ascends to Abba, Abba is Yud Kei Vav Kei.
Yud Kei Vav Kei in its fullness is 72, but if written in reverse Yud is 20 Yud Yud Hei 35 together is 55, Yud Hei Vav is another 57, 55 plus 57 is 112, and finally there is Yud Kei Vav Kei full, another 72. 112 plus 72 is 184. 184 is the gematria of Elkanah. Elkanah without Aleph is 185, and Yud Kei Vav Kei in reverse is exactly 184. Elkanah is the name 184 (with the kolel), he is the name of Abba, he ascends higher and higher, he unites with Chana which is the Sag, and then such Torah innovations begin to be received. And then the host yearns.
The Sun Above All
Because every Chanukah, with every lighting of the candle, one ascends higher. Because the 'Shamash', says the Kabbalistic book 'Yashar', is the aspect of 'Abba', "Seraphim stand above him." The sun is higher. This is the tzaddik, the tzaddik is the aspect of Abba from whom Binah emerges, and afterward all seven sefirot emerge from Binah. And this is the secret of Chana's prayer "Until the barren has borne seven and she who has many children languishes." Who is the barren who bore seven? This barren one is the Supernal Mother, this is Chana.
This barren one is Chana who merits to give birth to all seven sefirot. For one who merits the aspect of Chana, of the Supernal Mother, he merits all seven sefirot: Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, Malchut. Chana continues to bring to the world all seven sefirot and this is until the barren has borne seven, until the barren has borne seven.
(From a lesson on Tuesday, Parshat Miketz, 26th of Kislev 5769. The lessons have been slightly edited, and if we erred or did not stand on the intended β our mistake lies with us, and not to attribute God forbid anything unworthy to our teacher the Rav shlit"a)