a little chassidus
as an introduction...when hashem gave us the torah he gave us 613 mitvos. 248 positive and 365 negative commandments. each mitzva involves various organs if the body to be used in order to preform them. tifflin the arm and head-matza the mouth-shofar the ears- etc. however some of the mitzvos involve a feeling in the heart not an act of the body i.e. loving hashem fearing hashem in the heart or ben adam ladam.. "lo sachmod" not to desire anthers wife or possession etc. hence we see there is more to the mitzvos then just to do them or not.
now just like u have a mitvza that involves the mind of the human being...like the studying torah. (studying torah is a mitzva in its own right not only to learn in order to do.) you have among the mitzvos that involves the mind, the mitzva of knowing hashem as it says , and we repeat three times a day when we say the alenu prayer.
vydato hayom vhasvosa el levovecho ki hashem hu elokim...you shall know today and you shall retur to your heart that hashem is your g-d ...etc. what is the meaning of knowing hashem? how can we possible know hashem?
it is preformed by studying the teachings of the torah that deal with explaining to us about Hashem and His existence. in adetioan this studying helps as well in the prefomance of another mitzvah; the mitzvah to love and fear hashem, now since a feeling cannot be commanded upon a person the commandments means to study areas of the torah that explain hashems to us and then by being mis-bonen -concentarting upon this will them brings us to love and fear hashem for we now know better what it is we fear and love.
having explained that there is a mitzva to know hashem and to fear and love Him and that this can only be accomplished by studying areas of the torah that explain Hashem to us, we can focus on general concepts that can be studied. one area is masa bereshis- the act of g-d creation.
the other is masa markav -the acts of hashem in the chariot i.e. the spiritual world.
the study of masa bereshis, the act of creation is looking at the world that g-d created and seeing in it the order of creation as an indication in it that an Intelligent Being created it and continues to run it. we can learn two thing from creation a) that a creator created it, for nothing comes into existence by itself b) that this being that did create it is one of infinite abilities and greatness. this is seen by the infinite forms and diverse creators found in the creation itself.
hence you are learning about the existence of g-d and what type of existence He is through His work.
now this knowledge of G-d through creation is by its very nature a limited understanding of G-d for it is only an understanding which comes to us through creation which itself is limited. also it is important to know that "lo zeh kol elko shboro olomus" ; this is not the entirety of g-d that he created worlds". there is more to g-d then him being a creator. what we know from g-d in meditating upon creation is only the aspect of Him that relates to creation.
one might ask however creation comes -"yesh m'ayin"- "ex nihilo" and that power of creating something from nothing is impossible for man and logic hence the fact that g-d can create from nothing shows that he is infinite. so why are we saying that we can only have a limited understanding form g-d in creation when the creation itself teaches that g-d is infinite? this is true yet it does not explain why an infinite entity is able to act in such a fashion. it only states the obvious fact that the creation came form nothing. hence g-d is able to do the immposibale and is infinite but nature this does not explain what is the meaning if infinite.
the emotion that will come from the knowledge of g-d through creation is the love and fear of g-d that is tied to creation. meaning the love of g-d that he created you and gave and continues to to give you life and the fear is limited to that aspect as well.. a love of g-d that transcends creation is not possible from this knowledge.
though the person is willing to give his life for hashem in this level it is because to him he is only returning too a greater more encompassing life source of himself; to leave being only a creation and become part of the creator itself. it does not deal with hahsemn the way hashem transcends creation. where the soul of the person becomes totally non existent.
in the siddur this love is the love of bchol nafshicho- to love g-d with all you soul. even if he takes your soul for to you it means only returning your soul to the source of all life which is certainly greater then the life that is limited to the body.
let us explain a bit clearer the commanment to ... returning to your heart .in the verse. it implies that we have a commandment not only to "know g-d" which might be interpreted as only studying about him but in addition a study that brings to "love and fear of g-d" i.e. teachings involved directly with hahsem not just areas of the torah dealing with law-etc..in addition we must return it to the heart meaning to take it to heart. to bring forth emotions from the knowledge. this is only brought about by concentrating on the subject after it is understood. indeed the word "vyodata" which mean to know, in the bible is used to describe the relationship between adam and eve. that adam knew eve...knew her as husband and wife ..meaning to become one with her. we are commanded to know hashem; meaning to become one with g-d through concentrating on the knowledge we know of him. this then gives birth to emotions of love and fear for Him and we become with with Him. to mediate upon creation and coming to love of hashem.
this understanding is quite natural and a really does need for one to look into the torah to believe in a creator. logic itself dictates that there is a creator because we see that there is a creating being. since nothing can some into existence by itself logic dictates that there is a super power that creates. logic also dictates that this being operates on a level that we cannot understand or at least on a level above us for it created us. meaning that even if this supreme being is not infinite but finite it still is above us. but on a deeper level
logic also dictates that any being that creates something out of nothing itself cannot be limited but infinite.
even a philosopher with logic alone should come to a conclusion that there is a being above them and they should wish to learn all that there is about this being and wish to discover even by logic alone what is absolute good and absolute bad etc. to live according to the rules that this being has established in creation.....morality etc.
this all is still only masa bersehit.... the study of the act of creation.
... next i wish to focus on masa markava.....the works of the chariot....(spiritual worlds) and then g-d willing on masa elokim and then on etzem... the essence of hashem himslef.
