“Speak to the children of Israel, that they should
take to Me an offering from
every person whose heart inspires him to generosity, you shall take My
offering.” (Exodus 25:2)
Our sages question
this request from the Creator, considering that He is the owner and master of
all His Creation. They conclude that His request is about us in our
relationship with Him. This offering is actually something we have to elevate
to Him. This elevation is necessary because it comes from the material
world, and must be sublimated in order for us to be united
with Him.
We call God's ways and attributes the means by which we conceive Him and relate to Him. We
do this when all aspects, levels and dimensions of
consciousness act according to those ways and attributes. God's love is our
essence and through this essence we are able to relate and communicate with Him,
for love is the means and the message in our hearts that inspire us to elevate
what comes from His love as the offering that He asks from us.
Is this offering something ethereal
and abstract like our soul in order to be sublimated to Him? Not really,
because all aspects, levels and dimensions of our existence are as
spiritual as our own Soul. This is what the Creator wants us to be aware of.
Hence asks from us that every part of our being must be essential elements
in our offering, which is our elevation in order to be with Him.
“And this is the offering that you
shall take from them: gold, silver, and copper (...)” (25:3-7)
Our sages reveal that the items mentioned in those five verses represent
particular traits and qualities of every part of our being. Gold symbolizes
the highest level of consciousness as the Soul through which we conceive and
know the Creator. Silver represents our awareness of the
material world and the means to grasp His ways and attributes.
Copper symbolizes feelings, emotions,
passions and instincts bound to the material aspects of life. Similarly, “blue,
and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats' hair” (25:4) represent
spiritual inspiration, creative material thoughts, as well as revitalizing
emotions, feelings, and passions.
In this context soul, mind and heart
encompass multiple levels and dimensions inherent to their own nature. These,
from the children of Israel, are summoned by the Creator to ascend to Him.
“And they shall make for Me a Sanctuary, and
I will dwell amid them [lit. in them].”
(25:8)
The Sanctuary achieves a dual purpose
because by elevating our lives to the Creator we simultaneously fulfill His
desire to dwell (be revealed by us) in the dimensions of the material world.
Our sages teach this as the entire task of man in the world: to reveal the
hidden Divine Presence in every aspect and dimension of God's creation. After
all, His Presence pervades everything and it is our endeavor to make it
tangible for us [Israel] in order to proclaim His oneness.
This is the profound meaning of His
words, “and I will dwell in them”, which means within each one of us and
also in our midst, in our surrounding reality. The Sanctuary represents the
highest awareness of our connection to God, and the Torah within the
ark is the means to connect to Him.
“And you shall place into the ark
of the Testimony, which
I will give you.” (25:16, 21)
Once the connection is established, “I will arrange My meetings with you there,
and I will speak with you, (…) all that I will command you unto the children of
Israel.” (25:22). We mentioned in previous commentaries that Moses symbolizes
our highest knowledge of the Creator, and only through it we communicate with
Him. In this capacity Moses directs the construction of the Sanctuary, and also
guides all aspects of consciousness (the children of Israel) for that purpose.
One of the fundamental elements of
this awareness is the manifestation of divine consciousness as the guiding light
in our life, and the tasks and duties in every aspect of our relation with the
material world.
“And you shall make a menorah of pure
gold (...)” (25:31)
Pure gold is the way we grasp the pristine quality of our
awareness of God. Let's remind ourselves that silver and copper are also
fundamental parts in the construction of the Sanctuary. We are not made only
with a soul but also with body, mind, thoughts, emotions, feelings, passions
and instincts, symbolized by silver and copper.
In the entire chapter 27 of the book
of Exodus, copper is highlighted as the metal for the base of the altar where
the Ark of the Testimony rests, and the metal for its utensils. This is
later emphasized in the last verse of this portion.
“All the implements of the Sanctuary
for all its labor, and all its pegs, and all the pegs of the courtyard [shall
be made of] copper.” (27:19)
Let's be aware that besides our soul and intellect, our body is mostly
dominated by the senses, emotions, feelings, passions and instincts we can't
put aside or separate from us. These are clearly the foundation where our
higher consciousness rests, and as such we must integrate them under the
guidance of love's ways and attributes as the harmonized unity we need to permanently connect
with our Creator.
Some of our mystic sages advice that
instead of fighting darkness our duty is to create light, as it is commanded to
kindle the menorah every day in the Sanctuary. Living in the light of God's love
is the way to create a place for Him to dwell (to be revealed) in the world.
The haftarah for
this portion reminds us how to do it.
“(…) if you walk in My statutes, and
execute My ordinances, and keep all My Commandments to walk in them;
then will I establish My word with you, which I spoke to David your father. And
I will dwell among the children of Israel, and I will not forsake My people,
Israel.” (I Kings 5:12-13)
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