Tanya with Rochel Schmukler

Understanding the Torah offers an incredible advantage above all other mitzvot: the Torah we study literally becomes part of our very being, which is why it is called "bread." Firstly, it integrates into us; secondly, it provides nourishment and life energy to our soul. In this way, Torah is like food for the soul, while mitzvot are the garments that clothe it. Our Sages teach that Torah is equivalent to all the mitzvot because it not only sustains the soul but also acts as a garment as we strive to understand it. And when we articulate the words of Torah out loud, it envelops us in an encompassing Divine light.

The Divine soul has three garments through which it finds expression: thought, speech, and deed, specifically through the 613 mitzvot of the Torah. The intellect of the Divine soul is expressed through the garment of thought, while its emotions—love and awe—manifest through the garments of speech and action. Speech and action become the expression of emotions because the true fulfillment of the mitzvot is driven by love. Fear, on the other hand, is expressed by observing the prohibitive Divine commands, which can stem from either an external fear of rebelling against Hashem's sovereignty or a deeper fear, where one feels ashamed to do anything or nurture anything that Hashem despises.

Returning to our experience with chochmah and binah: once awe and fear of Hashem are born, our hearts become ignited with a fiery passion for Him. Chochmah and binah are the father and mother that give rise to love and fear of Hashem. Indeed, all other emotions stem from this union, as every emotion is a derivative of these primary emotions of love and fear. Now, let’s consider the third "mother," the third intellectual faculty that gives rise to emotion: daat. Daat is not about acquiring new information; rather, it is the personalization of what we have perceived with chochmah and understood with binah. Through the daat experience, we deeply connect with this knowledge, allowing it to profoundly touch and transform us. It is only by focusing our minds on what we have perceived and comprehended about Hashem that we can cultivate lasting and vibrant emotions for Him.

Now let's look at the mechanism of the intellectual-emotional response. Every idea starts with a seminal point of inspiration, the point of chochmah. This point of inexplicable potential hovers just above our grasp, we don't own it and cannot explain it until we delve deeply into it, fleshing it out into its parts and particulars through the power of binah. When we apply this process to our intellectual appreciation of Hashem's astounding greatness, an awe of His transcendent majesty is born in our mind and moves to our heart as a real, palpable emotion.

Now we comprehend how cleaving to Torah scholars is akin to attaching to the Shechina. By connecting with holy people who represent the level of the “brain,” we can experience and manifest G-dliness. But what about those who rebel against Torah scholars and defy them? Are they still connected? Yes, they are, but their spiritual nourishment originates from an external space, lacking intimacy and vitality.
Another crucial aspect to consider is the influence of parents on the child’s soul. The Zohar teaches us that the holiness of parents during conception significantly impacts the spiritual quality of their child’s soul. However, the Zohar speaks not of the soul itself but rather of its “garment”—the medium through which it manifests and expresses its essence. The refinement level of this “garment,” whether pure or coarse, greatly influences the soul’s ability to express itself and receive divine influence. Nonetheless, the essence of the soul remains independent of parental influence. Sometimes, a sublime and lofty soul is born to parents of lowly or sinful character.

All Jewish souls originate in the wisdom of Hashem, yet we observe a multitude of differences among them. Let's revisit the analogy of the seminal drop originating in the father's mind. Just as all parts of the body, from the brain to the toenails, stem from the same essence, so do Jewish souls originate from one Source. However, as the drop undergoes a nine-month gestation period in the mother's womb, it progressively descends from its source, eventually giving rise to even toenails. Similarly, Jewish souls, having traversed the downward gradation of worlds, acquire lower levels of consciousness. The secret lies in our oneness, and by connecting with Torah sages who represent the "brain," we can come to know and manifest our own essence, no matter how low we have descended.