THE AVODA OF TEVES
Rav Morgenstern

TEVES

Using The Light of Chanukah & Divesting Oneself From The World

During these days, every individual should strengthen himself a great deal, as the light of Chanukah is still shining [in the month of Teves], and that gives the power to make all these days holy. Through the holiness of the lights of the Menorah which were lit on Chanukah, one gains power to divest himself from the entire reality on this world, whether through Torah study or through tefillah.

One needs to live all the time in the place of yichud (Hashem’s unity with all the worlds) in the innermost depths of the heart, to be connected to the inner daas of “I place Hashem opposite me, constantly”, to turn to the Creator at all times in the depths of the heart, deep down, which is the unified level of the three levels of infinite light which are He surrounds all worlds, He fills all worlds, and no place is empty from Him.

It is such a deep place that it’s impossible to understand it. It is the point known as the “Binyamin HaTzaddik” within, the internal “holy of holies”, the Kodesh Kodashim, and it is beyond even the level of tefillah. As a hint [to this], the Kohen Gadol would daven outside of the Kodesh Kodashim, and [only] once he davened, he was permitted to enter into the Kodesh Kodashim and go further within holiness. The Kodesh Kodashim is certainly associated with tefillah, but it refers to a deeper kind of tefillah, which is silent and with no audible words. It is “I am prayer”, or the Shechinah, which is called the Ani (“I”) of Hashem.

We need to recognize how to enter into being totally divested from physicality, constantly, and to ascend higher to the most hidden places. We should not be fazed by any of the situations that we experience personally or globally, just as the greatest tzaddikim continued to live in their pnimiyus by taking the way of yichud at all times, no matter what situation they were in the midst of. It is to live in the upper daas, to enter into the root of all roots in the innermost dimension, to rise to Mocha Stimaah, and from there to Radla, to rise so high that we can draw forth and reveal the glory of Hashem.

Teves – A Time For Dveykus and Leaving All Imprints of This World

The sefarim say that the word “Teves” is from the word tov, “good”, because Hashem is entirely good and does only good and kindness to His Creation.

The light of Chanukah enters into Teves, and it can draw blessing into the rest of the year.

The sefer Karnayim says that if one is mistalek (lit. “is removed”) in Teves, he is immediately integrated in the Shechinah. The Mitteler Rebbe explained that this doesn’t refer to a person who dies in Teves; rather, it means that in the month of Teves, a person can remove Teves. It is an evil force which tries to deter people from learning Torah lishmah. Through weakening this kelipah, the souls of tzaddikim become “impregnated” within our own souls, and then we can receive added spiritual strength to be zocheh to the complete Geulah.

During these days of Teves, the main avodah is to kill the kelipos, like a “striking down of the firstborn” Egyptians. There are tzaddikim who get up every night at midnight to wage war against the kelipos, and they are attached with Hashem from midnight until morning, connected to holy names of Hashem. The main thing is to unify the Torah with the Creator, so that at the morning, there is “yichud Kudsha Brich Hu v’Shechintei”.. Every night, this revelation begins, and even one moment of it is exalted and great, and certainly if we are involved with it all night. All the more so if we continue to be involved with it during the entire day, and if, finally, we are zocheh to complete it.

During these holy days we need to learn Torah lishmah, because the Geulah depends on learning Torah for the sake of dveykus (attachment) to Hashem, learning the Torah for Hashem’s sake, learning the letters of the Torah so that through it we will become connected to the G-dly light in it, for that is the main aspect of the Geulah, that the Torah should connect us to the ohr Ein Sof, to Hashem’s infinite light which is in the Torah.

Through connecting to the holy names of Hashem and to thoughts of emunah, we become connected to the ohr Ein Sof, and sweeten the harsh judgments that bring concealment upon Creation which prevent people from having dveykus in the Ein Sof. In doing so, we weaken the kelipas kelev in the period of Teves, which prevents one from learning Torah lishmah, which is to learn Torah out of a search for dveykus, to search all the time for the purpose of life, and not simply to know more Torah, but “to become integrated in the King” (l’ishtava b’gufa d’Malka).

May Hashem help us during this time in which there is a “striking of the firstborn”, which is preparing us for the holiness of the splitting of the sea, that we should be zocheh to learn Torah lishmah. It is through this kind of learning that the Arizal says that the souls of tzaddikim become “impregnated” within our souls – for they want to become enjoined with our souls, through the secret of “Whoever comes to be purified, he is assisted.”

When a Jew believes in this, and he learns Torah lishmah and he thinks about holy names of Hashem, and he searches for dveykus in Hashem, the tzaddikim help him and elevate him to these places, and even though we are undeserving in our deeds, the tzaddikim still want to elevate us so that we will be zocheh to go in the ways of their avodah.