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From the Rabbi:
As we move onward in the Sefirat HaOmer we're now in the week of Netzach. Netzach, which means both victory and eternity is the sefirah of determination, drive, overcoming obstacles, and breaking through barriers. It's also the trait which endures forever and therefore is manifest in those moments, people, ideas and relationships which transcend their moment in time and remain everpresent and always true. The person in Torah who embodies this trait is Moshe Rabbeinu. The Torah he channeled is our eternal law, embedded in the very fabric of creation and bound to manifest reality like the DNA of the Earth. Although it was brought into the world through enormous human effort, it's not of Human origin. Moshe's Torah, like the Midah of Netzach is about God working in and through us. The holiday of Netzach is Purim in which, though God is not mentioned, we see Him working through the heroic efforts of Esther and Mordechai. In Netzach we're active, but it's not really us alone, it's God working through us. Time becomes a vessel for the expression of eternity.
The partner Sefirah of Netzach is called Hod. Hod is sometimes translated as 'splendor' or 'elegance', but its also the root of the word for surrender and gratitude. Our prayer on awakening מודה אני is a recognition that our life itself is a total gift which we have no part in producing. God works upon us and it has nothing to do with our effort. Try as we might we cannot create life out of dead matter. That doesn't mean we don't respond to God's gift, we certainly do - we give thanks, but in that gratitude is the clear recognition that it's not because of or through our actions. In Hod awareness, every moment is a unique gift that cannot and will not last. Like the Miracle of the Chanukah oil, from our point of view it's out of our hands, if the light continues to burn by God's miracle, it's not because of us.
In the cycle of the 49 Parshiot, the entire book of Leviticus is the Sefirah of Netzach. The entire purpose of the Mishkan was in order that God should 'dwell within us' - that itself is a Netzach dynamic. However within Netzach, the two parshiot we read this week, Acharei Mot and Kedoshim are the sub-sefirot of Netzach of Netzach and Hod of Netzach and the dynamic of the two sefirot is evident within the Parshas.
Parshat Acharei Mot opens with the laws and elaborate rituals of Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur is the pinnacle of the Temple Service in which the High priest must do it all exactly right. Yet, when he does do it all correctly, when we do fast and do say five prayers, the end result is that God forgives us through the power of the day, not because we did X, Y and Z. We need to do it, but at the end we see it was God working through us. That resolution and recognition allowing God to be with us even in our sins is what facilitates the forgiveness and restoration of our good standing with Hashem. It also empowers us to undertake the work of building the Mishkan which began, and begins again every year on the day after Yom Kippur. God Dwells within us and works through our action. Netzach!
Parshat Kedoshim on the other hand begins with the commandment "Kedoshim Tihiyu - Y'all Be Holy" which of course is a strange commandment because it's not about doing or even feeling X Y or Z. It's about BEING Holy. It's really not so much a commandment as a pronouncement. Henceforth, you WILL BE Holy, it's not your choice. You ARE Holy, because I say so. We can't do anything about it. Through our actions or we can neither get out of that Holiness nor increase it. It's a gift bestowed upon us by God and we can only receive it. Because of that Holiness we have to act certain ways, but if we fail to, our essential Holiness remains entanct. Oh, we can ignore it, deny it, and act like we're not Holy, but that doesn't change it. Like the dedication of the Temple, we can't MAKE God's Glory appear, that comes entirely as a Gift from above, and all we can do is accept and appreciate it. Hod!
Together these two traits interplay throughout our lives. We have moments of one and moments of the other. They are two distinct skills, applying effort and determination to allow God to work through us; and learning to, as the saying goes, "let go and let God". Together, these sefirot make up our spiritual legs and the constant dynamic between them - doing for God and accepting His gifts - together make the process we call Halacha, walking.
Shabbat Shalom,
Reb Shlomo
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