The Light of Sinai
Every Shabbat evening, as darkness descends upon the earth and the Shabbat departs, we perform the Havdalah ceremony. We fill a cup of wine, we thank G-d who distinguishes between the weekday and the Shabbat. We smell the spices and we say a blessing over the braided Havdalah candle.
Why do we light the Havdalah candle on Saturday night?
The Midrash[1] teaches that while Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden they experienced no darkness, as a constant Divine light shined in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden on Saturday night, which was the first time that they were engulfed in darkness. They were frightened by the darkness, until G-d gave them the wisdom to strike flint stones together and create fire. To commemorate the light created by Adam and Eve, we too light the fire every Saturday night.
Why is the discovery of fire so significant? Do we commemorate the first time Adam ate a tuna sandwich or took a swim or sang a song?
The Garden of Eden was a place where the Divine light shined. After Adam and Eve sinned, after they lost their innocence, they were expelled from experiencing the Divine light. They were devastated. They were overtaken by physical darkness. But more frightening to them was the prospect of remaining in spiritual darkness. They were afraid that they had forever lost the warm glow of spirituality which they had experienced. And then G-d gave them a profound insight. They understood that the human being must create his own light. The light may not be as glorious and brilliant as the sun, it may not light up all of the sky, yet, in some ways it is more precious and comforting than the sun. For it is light created not by G-d but by man.
As the Shabbat departs, as the holiness of the seventh day retreats, we may feel bereft of spirituality, we may be frightened of the mundane week that lays ahead devoid of the spiritual ecstasy of Shabbat. We therefore light the candle to remind ourselves that what G-d cherishes most are the man made spiritual candles of light.
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Six days before the Torah was given, the Children of Israel arrived at Sinai. For the next few days G-d instructed Moses to prepare the Jews for the great revelation, by sanctifying themselves. G-d also warned against climbing Mount Sinai, for anyone who would climb the mountain would die as a result of the intense holiness of the mountain. As the Torah relates:
And the Lord said to Moses, "Go to the people and prepare them today and tomorrow, and they shall wash their garments. And the Lord said to Moses, "Go to the people and prepare them today and tomorrow, and they shall wash their garments. And you shall set boundaries for the people around, saying, Beware of ascending the mountain or touching its edge; whoever touches the mountain will surely die' No hand shall touch it, for he shall be stoned or cast down; whether man or beast, he shall not live.[2]
The message was clear. G-d was about to descend on the mountain, therefore the people were not to climb the mountain lest they be consumed by the overwhelming awesome holiness of G-d.
The verse, however, continues and offers another detail. The verse states that the boundaries around Sinai were only temporary. As soon as the Divine revelation at Sinai was complete, the people are permitted to climb the mountain:
When the ram's horn sounds a long, drawn out blast, they may ascend the mountain[3].
Rsahi explains:
When the ram’s horn sounds a long, drawn-out blast, this is the sign of the withdrawal of the Divine presence and the cessation of the voice of God. As soon as the Divine presence withdraws, they are permitted to ascend the mountain.
Why was it important to emphasize at this point, before the revelation, that the boundaries around the mountain were only temporary? If the emphasis was the separation from the mountain, why mention that the separation had an “expiration date” and was merely temporary? Seemingly G-d could have waited until after the departure of the thunder, lightning, smoke and voice and only then notify the people that “all is clear” that they may once again climb the mountain?
The permission to climb the mountain after the revelation was not merely a trivial bit of information. It captured the essence of the experience of the Divine revelation at Sinai, therefore, the people had to hear it at the outset.
The revelation at Sinai, despite being the greatest Divine revelation of all time, was merely temporary. Moments after the revelation there was no lasting effect on the mountain itself. The mountain itself was no different from any other mountain and no different than it had been a few days earlier. Unlike the Temple Mount, which is considered a holy place despite the destruction of the temple almost two thousand years ago, Sinai is no longer a holy place.
Because holiness cannot be superimposed upon the creation.
G-d can descend amidst smoke and fire and speak to the people, yet that does not have a lasting effect on creation. In order for the creation itself to be transformed, change must come from below. Only through the organic effort of the the human to sanctify himself and the world around him is the mundane transformed to holiness.
G-d therefore tells the people that, yes, they are about to experience the most dramatic revelation of the Divine. Yet they must understand that imparting holiness into the world cannot come from above. G-d’s descent into our world will not leave a permanent mark. In order for the world to become transformed, people themselves must take action.
For the experience of Sinai to become permanent, we need to be the ones to connect heaven and earth. We need to engage in acts of holiness. We are the ones who light our candle and illuminate the night’s sky.[4]
[1] Bireyshis Rabbah, 12, 6.
[2] Exodus 19:10-13.
[3] Ibid 19:13.
[4] Inspired the teachings of the Rebbe, Lekutey Sichos, volume 22, Terumah, Sicha 1.