(Sicha, 20 Menachem-Av 5749)
A. The Yartzeit of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson
On 20 Av, 1989, hundreds of children from Chabad summer camps joined the Rebbe from the Mincha prayer, coming especially for the occasion. The Rebbe began speaking about how his father’s entire life was famously devoted to Torah study, and it would be fitting to quote a teaching of his on a Mishnah being studied forn his Yahrtzeit, one thast could be understood by children.
B. The Mishnah
In Mikvaot, the Mishnah discusses imersssion of vessels that become ritually impure, and if a needle immersed on the mikvah steps is kosher (Source 1).
C. The Needle’s Purpose
The Mishnah according the the Kabbalah
A needle sews and connects to distinct entities and makes them one.
In this sense, it means connecting this world’s materialism to G-d. For example: when a Jewish child makes a blessing over a glass of water, saying “Shehakol nihiyah bidvaro,” they are connecting the physical water with G-d.
When sewing, an incision must be made in the cloth for the needle to go through. In the spiritual parallel, in order to connect the physical with G-d, a hole must be made in the physical, with the needles tip, represented by the Jew’s strength to not be intimidated by the world’s physicality.
D. The Purity on the Front Lines
To connect the physical with G-d, we cannot remain in the Holy Temple – we must go out into the world, first immersing ourselves so that we aren’t affected by the negativity of exile and the world.
We must take the “waters of wisdom” – the Torah – and transfer them on to the needle ensuring we are permeated with Torah.
(Where does the immersion take place? In the heights of the cave, an elevated part of the cave, close to the opening, which alludes to exile. In exile, we never go too far inside the cave where we may get lost in its depths.)
