Tanya: Chapter 9

First a technical point:
There is an apparent scientific incongruity I find in this chapter that bears explaining: the Baal HaTanya states that the left chamber of the heart contains blood whereas the right does not. Clearly this is scienifically false. Unless his definition of blood is different than our modern understanding of blood. What is different about the 'blood' in the left chamber of the heart compared to he right chamber? The blood in the left chamber is oxygenated, the blood in the right chamber is not.

Interesting coincidence perhaps, but what proof is there that the Baal HaTanya might be suggesting something like this? The Zohar discusses something conspicuously similar: From the moment a baby is exposed to the air of the world, it receives a yetzer hara, the Zohar explains.

So, while being far from conclusive, this Zohar at the very least provides reasonable support for our interpretation.

Now to the meat of the chapter:

What comes out of this chapter, if you look at the big picture is this: The major organ from which "drives" originate is the Heart. The Yetzer Hara, or the Animal Soul (nefesh haBehami) is rooted in the heart. What this means is that when our Animal Soul wants something, we feel a drive towards that thing, be it food, money, people, anything. On the other hand, our Godly Soul or our Yetzer Tov is rooted in the intellect. When our Godly Soul wants something, we know it is the right thing to do, but we don't feel driven to do it.

This is very heady. It implies that in order to give our Godly Soul mastery over our Animal Soul, WE have to make ourselves want it, WE have to supply the drive. To me it seems there are two major reasons HaShem created us this way: 1) The Animal Soul comes with a built-in drive for self-preservation purposes. Everything the Animal Soul wants are things we need. The difference is we need to learn to moderate this need and use it for the purposes of Holiness - Kadesh et Atzmecha b'mutar Lcha - Use what is permitted as a means to sanctify yourself [not for personal gratification.] 2) Our reward and relationship with HaShem needs to be based on our voluntary participation. Without free will to choose life how can we be rewarded for choosing it? HaShem says He places both life and death before us, and then He commands us to choose life. The fact that we submit to His Will is what makes us worthy to receive life. If we don't submit, we still receive our needs, our Animal Soul still drives us to pursue (against our will) what we need, but we don't really live. It's not us in the driver's seat living life unless we choose.

Tanya: Chapter 5

Here we drive home the concept that performing the mitzwoth, whether through speech or action, enclothes us in HaShem's divine Will. This echoes the concept of being hugged by HaShem mentioned in the previous chapter. Later on towards the end of the sefer he describes more of the metaphysics involved. That each of the 613 Torah ordinances and the 7 Rabbinic ordinances make up one of the 620 (gematriah of Keter) columns of pure light radiated from Keter. (the highest of the Sefirot) Each one of these columns of light enclothes one aspect of the soul's 613 limbs and sinews. These columns of light are the clothes of our soul in the world to come.

Still, the focus of this chapter is a deeper even more unique relationship that can be had with HaShem. Through the speech of one's lips during Torah study these spiritual clothes are formed, yes. But, through the depth of our understanding of the Torah's system of thought, our mind is impregnated with HaShem's divine Will. Torah learning, in this way, creates a union otherwise impossible in this physical world: To be totally encompassed AND encompass something to be touched and be touching every part of something simultaneously. This experience is possible only through Torah study.

[Intellectually] Grasping HaShem's Torah fills us with HaShem's Will, and just like food, it becomes a part of us, and makes us a part of Him. (We learned elsewhere [see a waxing wellspring: if you cant join em beat em] that food has the power either to become more like you or make you more like it. In the case of God's Will as food, I have to conclude that the relationship always works to make you more like God and not vice versa.) This Torah, the Baal HaTanya explains, is the food of the world to come.

For this reason, Torah needs to be read aloud when learning. The reading aloud is the action and the action itself becomes the clothes of our soul in Gan Eden. The lesson we internalize, the thought becomes the food of our soul in Gan Eden. The Zohar/Arizal explains that this is the essence of learning Torah "l'shmah" for its own sake - learning Torah for the sake of the soul.

Tanya: Chapter 4

What is the Torah? The Torah is HaShem's Will, tightened, focused, constricted until from Its humble presentation as ink on paper, we can bear witness to His true greatness.

HaShem is crouching impossibly low so that His first born son can reach up and grasp at Him with the tips of his stubby little newborn fingers. When we reach up, He picks us up, embraces us ever so gently and fills us with light.

Every time we open our mouths to say a berachah, open our hands to give tzedakah, open our minds to explore the Torah, we are reaching up. Thought, Speech, and Action. Three ways to bring the Torah into us, three ways to wrap the Torah around us. Each way appropriate and essential to a corresponding part of our soul.

Our souls are rooted (the Alter Rebbe explains towards the end of the sefer) in HaShem's Wisdom, two steps from th essence of creation. But the Torah is the first leap, it is God's Will. Our little Godly soul, rooted in the supernal Wisdom takes infinite pleasure being wrapped up in its source, the Divine Will.

This is an extravagant pleasure available to the soul only here in this world. In the world to come, our souls will enjoy without bound the flow of divine influx -- each soul in accordance with what their merits will bear. But in this world, this dark place of absolute opposites, a lofty soul of light in a body hewn of darkness, here God embraces us totally.

There isn't anything else like it. Not even in the world to come.

With every moment of mitzwah performance and Torah study we are experiencing spiritual ecstacy, performing what is patently impossible -- hugging the Creator, the Sustainer of all that is.

Note that the quality and depth of this experience is directly related to our mitzwah performance in thought and speech as well as in deed. The thought component of a mitzwah is learning the Torah, the halachoth that pertain to that mitzwah. The speech component is the Berachah, where relevant, or the speaking of the halachot aloud while you learn. The action component is the physical act of mitzwah performance, sometimes this is as little as the motion of one's lips while learning.

Again the highest level of this experience depends on the depth of one's study of the halachoth pertaining to each mitzwah, and the coincident performance and perfection of all the mitzwoth.One incomplete mitzwah holds us back from our true potential. The mitzwoth have a cumulative and amplifying affect, performing 612 is not even comparable to performing all 613. All the same, even just a single mitzwah effects the union we described here, and this union is inconceivable, incalculably precious.