Allegories in Chabad Chasidic Philosophy

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Allegories in Chabad Chasidic Philosophy

Chassidic Philosophy uses allegories to explain many of its concepts. 

Reasons given for this are:

a)      The torah speaks in human terms in order for us to be able to better understand.

b)      The source and true definition of the physical object is its spiritual and divine dimension. 

Hence the physical derives from the spiritual and is its true counterpart.

The Alter Rebbe the founder of the Chabad  Chassidic philosophy used many  allegories in his books. Beginning with the second chapter of his Sefer Ha’Tanya ,  his primary book of Chassidus,  where he uses the allegory  of “Av-Father” ,  to explain the uniqueness of the Jewish soul as compared to all other beings.

The Allegory:  The father of a son, though he may do many activities has a unique connection with his son. The father when fathering a child gives his essence into the child. While when he does other activities, though he might but his heart and mind into it, he is not putting his very essence into it.

Hence the seed that the farther emits for the mother to conceive contains in it more than just a physical part of the brain or combination of cells but a piece of the father’s essence.

Thus the son is always connected to his father, even after birth and senses that connection.

The lesson:

 

Story : if u touch with body u will feel body

Note:

Hence when using the allegory of   “Av-Father” and so too any of the other allegories that are used we must be in mind.

a)      The allegory only explains certain aspects   and not all aspects of the primary idea.

b)      The same allegory can be used in many different wasy , each time focusing on another aspect of it.

all allegories, we must realize that they reflect and became so because of the spiritual energy from which they come. The spiritual/ divine energy of what the allegory truly is became actualized in a psychical form.  In the allegory of father,    the true definition of father in the spiritual realms came down into this world in a physical form that is reflective of what a father above. But that is not the only definition and certainly not limited by what we can understand from that allegory.