27 Feb Purim; Fire and Secrets of the Heart
Purim;
Fire and the Secrets of the Heart
Inspired by the teachings of Harav Yitzchak Ginsburgh and Rabbi Moshe Genuth
(Faith & Confidence Lecture Series)
There are 4 Elements of Creation; earth, air, water, fire. Fire is the most elevated of the 4. Fire was the essential element of creation. Fire can destroy, or purify and elevate ( as it does in the ceremony of the Korbonos).
Prior to Purim we read parshas Tetzaveh where the Torah speaks about the Menorah and its lighting.
Fire burns upwards to its source of Ein Sof (One Infinite Light). The lighting of the menorah or our Shabbos candles Is an act of capturing the elemental fire and transforming the spiritual light of fire to physical one… always ascending back to it source Ein Sof and carrying with it our tshuvah and mitzvoth.
The letters and words of the Torah are referred to as ‘The Fire of Torah’.
As we learn and live Torah, we accumulate the words and letters of Torah that are the ‘fuel to be ignited’ through our mitzvoth. So long as there is a source of ‘fire’ through learning and living, the letters and words of Torah, our tshuvah and mitzvoth will continue to able to become ignited and elevated.
When we light the menorah, there is a practice to ‘better the flame’ (done by the husband) when first lighting the candle and immediately extinguishing it thereby removing the klipot (outer shell) of the wick. The wick becomes ‘carbonized ‘and more quickly able receives and accept the flame when lighting at the time the blessing.
The key in this idea is the removal of the klipot in order to better receive, capture, ignite and elevate the elemental flame of Creation.
On Purim, we look to reveal the concealed and remove the barrier or ‘klipot’ from our heart. We then make it most possible to access the deep secrets of our heart as we have learned, that with G-d as our partner the flames of our heart can become most effectively elevated to the intellect of our mind.. , and our mind and our heart can be ignited and unified as one.
Leib Getzel (Lawrence) Lax
Addictions and Counseling
http://lawrencelax.com
lawrenceJlax@gmail.com