Hey! - Haazinu
הֲלַה' תִּגְמְלוּ זֹאת עַם נָבָל וְלֹא חָכָם הֲלוֹא הוּא אָבִיךָ קָּנֶךָ הוּא עָשְׂךָ וַיְכֹנְנֶךָ (דברים לב, ו).
The song of Haazinu is a rebuke. Chazal say that the sign of a great leader is that before he dies, he rebukes his people, to get them to improve their ways and become better human beings. Moshe learned this from Yaakov Avinu who blessed his sons before he died and didn't shy away from rebuking those who needed it.
The Torah contains a number of words that seem to have an extraneous letter "Heh" and one appears in this week's parsha, in the above passuk. R' Bachyei points out that the Torah begins with one such word הבָּרְאָם וכו' (בראשית ב, ד)אֵלֶּה תוֹלְדוֹת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהָאָרֶץ בְּ and ends (actually two perakim before the end), with our passuk above. What is interesting, says R' Bachyei, is that the Heh in the beginning of Breishit is a הא זְעִירִי, the letter Heh is smaller than the other Heh's in the Torah, and the one in our parsha is a הא רַבָּתִי, larger than the rest of the Heh's in the Torah.
In this shiur I would like to explore the Hebrew letter Heh which harbors many secrets of Creation and the Torah. It is also a central pivot of the Lechem Hapanim and a major focus of sefer Meir Panim. However, the main reason for discussing it specifically here, is because it has direct bearing on Yom Kippur, which is fast approaching, and conceals a precious gem regarding our Avodah on Yom Kippur.
Let's set sail on our voyage of discovery by examining the physical structure of the letter 
(as it appears in the Torah, in "ktav stam"). The letter Heh is actually made up of two "sub-letters", the letter Dalet and an upside-down letter Yud. The letter ד is symbolic of the limits of our physical world (four corners of the earth), while the letter י is symbolic of HKB"H (the first letter in Hashem's name יוד-הא-ואו-הא). The combination of these two "sub-letters" indicates HKB"H's presence in the physical world. The Yud is upside-down, indicating that HKB"H's true presence in the world is concealed and not openly visible - it is something that we are required to reveal.
The passuk says בָּרְאָם וכו' (בראשית ב, ד)אֵלֶּה תוֹלְדוֹת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהָאָרֶץ בְּה and the Gemara (Menachot 29b) says that the correct way to read the word בְּהבָּרְאָם is as two separate words בְּהא בָּרְאָם . The Gemara quotes רַבִּי יְהוּדָה בַּר רַבִּי אִילְעַאי who says that HKB"H created two worlds, עוֹלָם הַזֶּה and עוֹלָם הַבָּא. HKB"H created one world with the letter Yud and the other with the letter Heh. How do we know which world was created with which letter? The above passuk in Breishit teaches us that it was הָאָרֶץ (עוֹלָם הַזֶּה) that was created with the letter Heh. The reason that this world was created with the letter Heh is because the letter Heh resembles a פְּרוֹזְדוֹר, a "corridor" before עוֹלָם הַבָּא. More on this later.
The letter Heh therefore embodies the power of creation. The Zohar (רעיא מהימנא, במדבר, פר' נשא, קכג, א) says that HKB"H created this world (and man) with the letter Heh. This world and everything in it are dependent on the radiance of the spiritual letter Heh and if this radiance is absent, even for a split second, this world and everything in it will cease to exist.
The name of HKB"H יוד-הא-ואו-הא reflects four spiritual realms. The Yud in HKB"H's name reflects the highest, the עוֹלַם הָאֲצִילוּת, the realm where the אוֹר הַגָּנוּז, the unfiltered spiritual "light" of HKB"H resides. The first letter Heh, reflects the realm of עוֹלַם הַבְּרִיאָה, the power of thought with which HKB"H created our world (יֵשׁ מֵאַיִן - creation of something from nothing). The letter Vav reflects the third realm, עוֹלַם הַיְּצִירָה, the power of speech, the Ten Ma'amarot (Ten Sfirot) with which HKB"H created the world (יֵשׁ מִיֵּשׁ - creation of something from something that already exists, like transferring the flame from one candle to another) The second Heh, reflects the realm of עוֹלַם הָעֲשִׂיָּה, the physical manifestation of בְּרִיאָה that we humans are able to perceive in this world. The two letters Heh correspond to the two connected Sfirot בִּינָה (בְּרִיאָה) and מַלְכוּת (עֲשִׂיָּה). Both letters Heh are representative of Creation ּבְּרִיאָה, however the second Heh, the עוֹלַם הָעֲשִׂיָּה is a lower spiritual level than the first Heh עוֹלַם הַבְּרִיאָה.
There are in fact three types of letter Heh in the Torah - a הא זְעִירִי (a small Heh) like in the passuk אֵלֶּה תוֹלְדוֹת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהָאָרֶץ בְּהבָּרְאָם וכו' (בראשית ב, ד), a regular הא, like majority of the letters Heh in the Torah, and a רַבָּתִי הא (a large Heh), like in in our parsha above הֲלַה' תִּגְמְלוּ זֹאת. According to תּוֹרַת הַסּוֹד the size of the letter is indicative of which spiritual world it belongs to. The larger the letter, the more spiritual. The הא רַבָּתִי corresponds to theעוֹלַם הַבְּרִיאָה and is the first Heh in HKB"H's name. The הא זְעִירִי corresponds to the עוֹלַם הָעֲשִׂיָּה and is the second Heh in HKB"H's name.
As we said, the letter Heh is made up of two sub-letters, a Yud and a Dalet. The two letters Yud and Dalet make the word יד - hand. As we know a hand is made up of five fingers. Five is the gematria of the letter Heh. The letter Heh is symbol of ברכה (which can be written as ברך-ה). The number five features prominently in different blessings, for example בִּרְכַּת כֹּהֲנִים, where the Kohen spreads his hands in such a way that there are five "cracks", חֲרַכִּים, through which HKB"H's bracha passes (See shiur on parshat Naso), as it says דּוֹמֶה דוֹדִי לִצְבִי אוֹ לְעֹפֶר הָאַיָּלִים הִנֵּה זֶה עוֹמֵד אַחַר כָּתְלֵנוּ מַשְׁגִּיחַ מִן הַחֲלֹּנוֹת מֵצִיץ מִן הַחֲרַכִּים (שיר השירים ב, ט).
Another example is the Lechem Hapanim whose dimensions are based on multiples of the number five, the length is ten tefachim and the width is five tefachim (before the dough is folded into the special shape).
Perhaps the most significant correlation of the number five and the letter Heh is in relation to the female, the נֻקְבָּא. Both male and female share the letters אש in their names, however the male has an additional Yud added (איש), while the female has an additional Heh (אשה). Similarly in Lashon Hakodesh, to switch a male term to the feminine, a Heh is added (e.g. ילד/ילדה, מלך/מלכה). The Heh therefore has special significance to the female.
The female has a special בְּרָכָה, the ability to give birth. As we said, the letter Heh is comprised of the sub-letters Dalet and Yud. The Dalet is symbolic of the limits of the physical world (womb), while the Yud is symbolic of רוּחָנִיּוּת, the new Neshama in the womb. The passuk הֵא לָכֶם זֶרַע (בראשית מז, כג) implies that the ability to procreate is derived from the letter Heh (ר' זמיר כהן, הצופן, האות ה').
In the context of the Ten Sfirot, the first Heh in HKB"H's name יוד-הא-ואו-הא corresponds to בִּינָה, while the second corresponds to מַלְכוּת. Thus, the female is endowed with more בִּינָה than the male (Gemara, Nida 45b) and this is the reason why females reach the age of mitzvot (12) one year before the males (13) and is the basis of the passuk חַכְמוֹת נָשִׁים בָּנְתָה בֵיתָהּ (משלי יד, א). The Sfira of מַלְכוּת (the second Heh) is the Sfira of birth, the emergence of new life in the world.
For this reason, the Gemara (Bava Metzia 59a) says that a man should take extra care to respect his wife, because it is through her that prosperity resides in their home and by doing so, he will become wealthy.
The letter Heh is not only connected to fertility, it also applies to material wealth. The process of material wealth parallels the birth process, except here it is the earth "giving birth to produce", by virtue of the power of the letter Heh, which is what Yosef was saying to the Egyptians וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹסֵף אֶל הָעָם הֵן קָנִיתִי אֶתְכֶם הַיּוֹם וְאֶת אַדְמַתְכֶם לְפַרְעֹה הֵא לָכֶם זֶרַע וּזְרַעְתֶּם אֶת הָאֲדָמָה (בראשית מז, כג). The Heh, five in gematria, is a pivotal point of the Lechem Hapanim which is the conduit for material prosperity in this world (see above – dimensions of the Lechem Hapanim 5 X 10 tefachim), which we learn from the bracha made on bread ה-מוציא לחם מן הארץ, the Heh causes bread to emerge from the earth. We also learn this from the passuk וַהֲרִיקֹתִי לָכֶם בְּרָכָה עַד בְּלִי דָי (מלאכי ג, י) - the word דָי are the sub-letters Dalet and Yud that make up the letter Heh.
When someone recites a בְּרָכָה, they are not chas vechalila "blessing" HKB"H (HKB"H blesses us, not the other way round), by reciting a בְּרָכָה (whether on food, drink, new clothes etc.), we are in fact using the human gift of speech (which separates us from the animals) – to invoke the two Heh's. By making a בְּרָכָה we acknowledge that HKB"H is the source of everything and express gratitude for what HKB"H gives us. This is the essence of a בְּרָכָה – verbally expressing acknowledgement ה-כר-ה and gratitude ה-כרת ה-טוב, the two Heh's, twice over. Thus, we bring down the Heavenly abundance.
This is why when someone does not recite a בְּרָכָה, they are neglecting to bring down the שֶׁפַע א-לוֹקִי to this world and the harm they are inflicting is not only to themselves but to the entire world!
The above are deep and profound concepts that lie at the heart of our very existence in this world and are applicable on a daily basis. However, since this shiur precedes Yom Kippur, I would like to focus on another aspect that pertains directly to our Avodah of HKB"H on Yom Kippur.
The letter Heh and the number five also have another fundamental function and that is the concept of שִּׂמְחָה (שמח-ה). The words שמח and חמש are interchangeable. It is not incidental that the origin of simcha is from the fifth level in Heaven called מָעוֹן, which is why we say in weddings שֶׁהַשִּׂמְחָה בִּמְעוֹנוֹ. This is the realm in Heaven where the angels sing שיר-ה to HKB"H (at night only – during the day they are silent, allowing us to do the singing). Here is another example of an "extraneous" Heh in the Torah הַשְׁקִיפָה מִמְּעוֹן קָדְשְׁךָ מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם (דברים כו, טו). What does the extra Heh add? It could just as well say הַשְׁקִיף מִמְּעוֹן. The extra Heh tells us that HKB"H watches over us from the fifth level level in Heaven, the origin of simcha and blesses us with the letter Heh.
This is not surprising, because the concepts of שִּׂמְחָה and בְּרָכָה are closely related - they both stem from gratitude ה-כרת ה-טוב. Someone who is שָׂמֵחַ בְּחֶלְקוֹ is someone who is expressing ה-כרת ה-טוב and bringing down the שֶׁפַע א-לוֹקִי to this world. In last week's shiur we explored the Three Principles of Faith brought by R' Yosef Elbo in סֵפֶר הָעִקָּרִים. I would like to take this process of "condensation" (R' Yosef Elbo condenses the Rambam's thirteen principles into three) one step further and propose - that there is in fact only One (primary) Principle of Faith from which all the others stem and which is the reason for our very existence. This principle is gratitude to our Creator ה-כרת ה-טוב and is based on the two Heh's. ה-כרת ה-טוב is the starting point of all the mitzvot in the Torah. You can go down the list 1 – 613 and you will see that at their core – lies the principle of gratitude.
Gratitude begins with a simple smile, reflecting HKB"H's default facial expression (obviously HKB"H does not have a face or a facial expression, however, in order to understand HKB"H's attributes and emulate them, the Torah describes them in terms that we humans can conceptualize). So more accurately - our facial expression of a smile reflects the default way HKB"H regards us and continues to as long as we are doing His bidding. This is why the Lechem Hapanim are smiling (shaped like a smile), why the Menorah is smiling (candelabra shaped in a U pattern like smile). A smile is the first sign of gratitude and is the foundation of the entire Torah תַּחַת אֲשֶׁר לֹא עָבַדְתָּ אֶת ה' אֱ-לֹקֶיךָ בְּשִׂמְחָה.
We have spoken of how the letter Heh is made up of the letters יד meaning hand. There is another word used for hand in the Torah and that is the word כף. In sefer Meir Panim I prove that any time the word כף is used in the Torah it can either mean hand or …. Smile. Above we have already established the correlation between a smile and מָעוֹן, the 5th level in Heaven.
The natural progression from a smile is - praise שיר-ה and ברכ-ה, which are verbal, using the צֶלֶם א-לוֹקִים, the power of speech for the purpose it was intended – to praise and express gratitude to HKB"H.
This is the starting point to Yom Kippur. We must approach Yom Kippur with a profound sense of simcha and gratitude, because Yom Kippur is perhaps the next most precious gift HKB"H has given us, after life itself. Yom Kippur is the gift of - fixing errors. כִּי אָדָם אֵין צַדִּיק בָּאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר יַעֲשֶׂה טּוֹב וְלֹא יֶחֱטָא (קהלת ז, כ) Every human at some point in their lives takes a wrong turn, "messes up" – that is what it means to be human. HKB"H gives us life, but He also gives us the gift of allowing us to "continue living" and not wiping us out because of lack of gratitude – by allowing us to make amends, to do tshuva. This is the gift of Yom Kippur.
R' Bachyei says on the passuk הֲלַה' תִּגְמְלוּ זֹאת, that despite all the good HKB"H did for us, we were ungrateful. However, the remedy lies in the letter Heh and, unlike the Heh in the beginning of the Torah בְּהִבָּרְאָם, which is a small Heh, indicating its "reduced" power, the Heh at the end of the Torah, is a large Heh, a הא רַבָּתִי. Moshe severely rebukes Am Yisrael, but before he dies, he leaves us with a parting gift, the secret of the הא רַבָּתִי. It is this secret that will allow Am Yisrael to survive throughout the generations, to never reach a point of extinction, in order that they will eventually arrive safely at their allotted destination – the Geulah.
R' Bachyei says that the power of the הא רַבָּתִי, the large Heh, is תְּשׁוּבַת הַנְּשָׁמוֹת, the power of tshuva, the gift of Yom Kippur.
How does this work?
If you remember, we said above that the letter Heh resembles a פְּרוֹזְדוֹר, a "corridor" before עוֹלָם הַבָּא. If you examine the letter you will notice that the Yud is positioned underneath the Dalet in such a way that there are two "openings", one below and the other on the side, so that the space under the Dalet is a kind of a "corridor". This structure is the pictorial representation of the process of tshuva. During a person's life they may make mistakes and fall into the abyss (through the bottom opening). However, that is not the end of the story. There is a second opening - on the side. A person who has fallen, can lift themselves up and renter the corridor through the side opening so that they are sitting on top of the Yud (which resembles עוֹלָם הַבָּא).
This is Moshe's parting gift to Am Yisrael before his death – the remedies for the malady. The power of the Heh – the חֲמִשָּׁה חֻמְשֵׁי תּוֹרָה given to us by Moshe Rabbeinu and the power of the Heh, the secret weapon of tshuva to ensure Am Yisrael's continued survival, despite our human failings.
