Adapted from LikkuteiSichos Vol. III, Parshas Terumah
After giving the Torah to the Jewish people, G-d commanded them,
[1] "Make Me a Sanctuary," and promised them, "And I will dwell within." From that time onward, there was a place - or more particularly, a series of places
[2] - that served as a dwelling for G-d's Presence within our material world.
This concept, that a place on earth would serve as a dwelling for G-d, is problematic. The difficulty is not the question: How can G-dliness become manifest within the physical setting of our material world? For physical existence cannot interfere with the expression of G-dliness. It is no less appropriate for G-d to become manifest within the setting of our material world than within the spiritual realms.[3] He is infinite and omnipotent, and can manifest His presence wherever He desires. The difficulty is: Why is that manifestation confined to a single location? "The entire earth is filled with His glory."[4] Why then is there only one place that serves as a dwelling for Him in this world?
One of the explanations frequently offered to resolve the above question is that although G-dliness permeates every place within the world, this G-dliness is not openly revealed. In the
Beis HaMikdash, not only was G-d present, His presence was evident.
This, however, is not an adequate resolution. Indeed, it reinforces the question. The revelation of G-dliness is dependent on the service of the Jewish people, and that service can be carried out in any place throughout the world. Why then is there only one place which serves as G-d's dwelling?
To express this concept in halachic terms: The manifestation of G-d's Presence in the Beis HaMikdash is associated with the fact that it served as the center for the sacrificial worship of the Jewish people.[5] But why is the offering of such sacrifices confined to one particular place? Seemingly, the same sacrificial service could be performed in another location. And indeed, we find times in our history, when it was permitted to offer sacrifices in places other than the center of sacrificial worship for the nation as a whole.[6]
The question is reinforced by the fact that even in the present era when the Beis HaMikdash is in ruin, it still serves as the center of worship for the Jewish people. The site of the Beis HaMikdash is "the gate to heaven."[7] And our prayers, which were instituted in place of the sacrifices,[8] must be recited while facing this site.[9] Why is this necessary? Why must this spiritual service be associated with a physical place?
The questions mentioned above can be resolved by focusing on the nature of G-d - He whose presence is manifest in the
Beis HaMikdash. The
Avodas HaKodesh[10] states that the
Or Ein Sof (G-d's infinite light) is the ultimate of perfection. Accordingly, just as the
Or Ein Sof possesses an infinite dimension, it possesses a finite dimension. For were it not to possess a finite dimension, it would lack perfection.
To explain: Infinity appears more representative of G-d than finite existence, for finite existence has specific limits and G-d is, by definition, unlimited and unbounded. Nevertheless, were G-d to be only infinite, without having a finite dimension, He would also be limited, for the entire realm of finiteness would be apart from Him. In this sense, infinity would serve as a definition, confining and restricting the nature of His being.
In truth, however, G-d is neither finite, nor infinite; He is what He is, in a realm totally above human conception. When coming into revelation, He employs both the infinite and the finite. The most complete expression of Him comes in the fusion of the finite and the infinite, joining together these opposite thrusts in a transcendent manner.
This transcendent union of opposites was revealed in the Sanctuary and in the
Beis HaMikdash, the classic example being the ark in the Holy of Holies. The ark was two and a half cubits wide. There were ten cubits on either side of it, and yet the entire span of the Holy of Holies was twenty cubits. The two and a half cubits of the ark's width did not take up any space at all.
[11] The fusion between finiteness and infinity was openly revealed.
What is most significant is that all the measurements of the sacred articles in the Sanctuary and the Beis HaMikdash were required to be precise. If the size of the article exceeded the prescribed measure, or was smaller than it, they were not acceptable. Nevertheless, in this place where precise detail was so significant, a dimension of G-d's infinity which transcends the entire concept of space was revealed.
A similar concept applies regarding the Beis HaMikdash as a whole. Although it was part of our material world, miracles which reflect unlimited spirituality were revealed openly in that setting on a daily basis.[12]
On this basis, it is possible to resolve the initial question: why was there only one place on earth for G-d's Presence to be manifest? The aim of the
Beis HaMikdash is to enable the Jewish people to relate to G-d's essence, the level which transcends both finiteness and infinity. Therefore:
- There is a restriction to a specific place - thus indicating that the revelation of His presence does not reflect merely the limited conception of infinity mentioned above.
- Within that single place, there is an infinite revelation, demonstrating that the Beis HaMikdash reflects a level that transcends even the most perfect conception of finite existence. Through our sacrifices and our prayers, we seek to develop an active bond of closeness with this transcendent dimension of G-dliness.[13]
Although the
Beis HaMikdash can only be built in one specific place, "from there, light issued forth to illuminate the entire world."
[14] This influence grants the Jewish people the potential to create "sanctuaries in microcosm"
[15] throughout the world.
This concept is implied by G-d's promise which was coupled with the command to build the sanctuary, ofu,c h,bfau, translated above as "I will dwell within." Our Rabbis[16] note that this phrase does not state ufu,c, "within it," i.e., the Sanctuary, but ofu,c, which means "among them." The construction of the Sanctuary enabled the Jewish people to bring the Divine Presence into every dimension of their lives, as it is written,[17] "Know G-d in all your ways."
In this manner, it is possible to experience an awareness of G-dliness in the midst of one's ordinary, mundane activities. To cite an example: The table on which we eat our food is considered as equivalent to the altar in the Beis HaMikdash.[18] To both is applied the verse,[19] "This is the table before G-d."
This approach will lead to the ultimate fusion of the spiritual and the material which will take place in the Era of the Redemption. For then it will be revealed that the entire world is a dwelling for G-d.[20] May this take place in the immediate future.
Notes:
- (Back to text) Shmos 25:8.
- (Back to text) For the Sanctuary accompanied the Jewish people on their journeys through the desert. Even after the Jews entered Eretz Yisrael, the Sanctuary was located in several places until the Beis HaMikdash, G-d's eternal home, was built in Jerusalem. See Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 1:1-3 and the essay "Towards the Complete Fulfillment of a Mitzvah."
- (Back to text) Indeed, according to Chassidic thought, our world is a more appropriate setting for the revelation of His essence.
- (Back to text) Yeshayahu 6:3.
- (Back to text) Thus at the very beginning of Hilchos Beis HaBechirah, the Rambam states that the mitzvah of building a "house for G-d" involves it being "prepared for sacrifices to be offered within."
- (Back to text) Zevachim 14:4, Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 1:2.
- (Back to text) C.f. Bereishis 28:17; note the commentaries on the verse.
- (Back to text) Berachos 26b.
- (Back to text) Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Tefillah 5:3, Shulchan Aruch, Shulchan Aruch HaRav 94:1.
- (Back to text) Part 1, Ch. 8.
- (Back to text) Yoma 21a.
- (Back to text) See Pirkei Avos 5:5 and other sources.
- (Back to text) Even when it was permitted to offer sacrifices on private altars, these sacrifices lacked this transcendent dimension. Moreover, when focusing more particularly on this concept, it is clear that this dimension was revealed more prominently in the Beis HaMikdash than in the Sanctuary that traveled with the Jewish people in the desert. For, in contrast to the Beis HaMikdash which was built - and will be rebuilt - on one specific location, the Sanctuary traveled from place to place.
- (Back to text) Rashi, Menachos 86b. See also the essay "The Design of the Menorah."
- (Back to text) C.f. Yechezkel 11:16.
- (Back to text) Shelah 69a. See Basi LeGani, 5710, ch. 1 (English translation, Kehot, 5750).
- (Back to text) Mishlei 3:6. See also Mishneh Torah, Hilchos De'os 3:3, Sichos Yud-Beis Tammuz, 5722.
- (Back to text) See Berachos 55a.
- (Back to text) Yechezkel 41:22.
- (Back to text) See Tanya, ch. 36.
Who Will Build the Third Beis HaMikdash, Man or G-d?