Chodesh Teves
1. Rosh Chodesh Teves always falls during the days of Chanukah. And according to what is known1 — that Rosh Chodesh includes all the days of the month (which is why it is called "ראש" ("Rosh," "head") — like a "head" in its plain sense, which includes all the limbs of the body) — it is understood that all the days of the month of Teves (which are included in Rosh Chodesh Teves) have a connection to the days of Chanukah.
Furthermore, there are two special days in the month of Teves: the fast of the Tenth of Teves, and the day of the hilula of the Alter Rebbe (24 Teves). Since these are days fixed in the month, it is reasonable to say that there is a connection between these days and the general theme of the month (as has been discussed many times2).
2. Regarding the month of Teves, our Sages say — on the verse3 "ותלקח אסתר אל המלך אחשורוש .. בחודש העשירי הוא חודש טבת" ("And Esther was taken to King Achashverosh .. in the tenth month, which is the month of Teves")*3 — that this is "ירח שהגוף נהנה מן הגוף" ("a month4 in which the body derives pleasure5 from the body"). Because in this month there are great colds — in the words of Rashi6: "מפני הצינה" ("because of the cold") — there is the pleasure of the body "from the body."
Every matter in physicality evolves from spirituality. So too in our case: the coldness of the month of Teves in physicality derives from the fact that at this time "the Sun of Havaye" — "כי שמש ומגן ה' אלקים" ("For the L‑rd G‑d is a sun and a shield")7 — does not shine so openly in the world; G‑dliness is concealed more in the concealment and hiddenness of the garments of nature.
— As is known8, the intensity of the sun's shining in the summer months is (also) a sign of the intensity of the light and holy "warmth" of "the Sun of Havaye"9 which is then drawn down into the world; and therefore in those months it is easier to come to the service of G‑d than in the wintry months. —
And precisely for this reason there is an advantage in the service of the month of Teves over the service of other months10.
And this is what our Sages allude to in the saying "a month in which the body derives pleasure from the body" — since man and woman are a metaphor for the Holy One, blessed be He, and the Congregation of Israel11 — that the service of Jews in the month when there is "cold" in the world brings about pleasure Above12.
3. Every matter in Torah is precise. It is therefore understood that the precise wording "in which the body derives pleasure from the body" also fits the inner explanation mentioned above, that it refers to the pleasure of the Holy One, blessed be He, from the service of Jews — because the pleasure Above from the service in the month of Teves comes mainly from the body of a Jew, and the pleasure is at the level of G‑dliness which is, so to speak, called "body."
The explanation of this: every matter that takes place in the "great world" is bound up with the service of man — the "small world"13.
The summer months, when "the Sun of G‑d" shines openly in the world, are (mainly) the time of the service of the soul. At that time the body does not conceal and hide the light of the soul so much, and therefore a Jew can (and consequently — must) occupy himself with matters of the soul in a way that he will sense the revelation of the light of the soul.
[And although for the sake of this service one must ensure that the body should not be in a state of materiality and coarseness — for the soul is, after all, clothed in the body, and it is revealed in and through the body; consequently the body must be a vessel that is fitting for the light of the soul —
this is only a preparation for the Jew's (main) service: he removes the covering that conceals and hides the light of the soul, so that afterwards he can be one who "serves G‑d with his soul"14.]
In the winter months, by contrast, when "the Sun of G‑d" does not shine so much and it is a time of coldness, then the (main) service of man is the service of the body14 — to toil in the work of refining and purifying the body.
And within the winter months themselves there is a difference between the month of Teves and the other months: in the other months there is still a certain "warmth" in the world, and this means that the purification of the ("coldness" of the) body comes (also) by virtue of the revelation of the light ("warmth") of the soul.
In the month of Teves, however, when there is the utmost cold in the world15, this indicates a state of concealment and hiddenness of the body that leaves no room for the revelation of the light of the soul; and then the service of refining and purifying the body consists (not of the revelation of the light of the soul, but) "from the body" — by virtue of the body itself16.
4. The Rebbe, my father-in-law, related (in the name of the Tzemach Tzedek) a story about the Baal Shem Tov: The Baal Shem Tov was very fond of light. Once (on a winter night), the disciples of the Baal Shem Tov did not have enough candles to light up the shul. The Baal Shem Tov said that they should take the icicles17 from the roof and light them. The disciples did so, and they burned. The Tzemach Tzedek remarked on this: "By the Chassidim and disciples of our teacher the Baal Shem Tov, icicles burned and gave light."
The Baal Shem Tov demonstrated how the icicles themselves — which are the very opposite of light and warmth — are transformed into light and warmth. That is to say, their burning was not in a way that they ceased to exist as ice; rather, the ice itself (remaining in its existence and form) became a thing that gives light.
And similarly in our case: one must transform the coldness and darkness of the body to holiness — not (only) in that it becomes purified of its materiality through the light of the soul, but by virtue of the body itself.
5. How can one transform the body so that it will go out of its coarseness and materiality and become a manifestly holy body — and not by virtue of the light of the soul, but by virtue of the "physicality" within it?
The explanation of this is that, on the contrary, it is precisely the body that has a connection to the Essence17. The soul, in its nature, relates mainly to the level of light and revelation, and therefore its bond with G‑dliness is also through "revelation of light." In the physical body of a Jew, however, there is the choice of the Essence; therefore the bond of the physicality of the body with G‑dliness is deeper than the bond that comes about through the light of the soul, because precisely in the physicality of the body there is, so to speak, the power of the Essence, which is higher than the soul18.
However, the power of the Essence within the body is revealed specifically at a time of concealment and hiddenness, when the revelation of the light of the soul does not shine19 — this calls forth the power of the Essence, which is not, Heaven forbid, limited within the bounds of revelation.
And this is the inner meaning of "the body derives pleasure from the body"*19: the content of "body" is like the content of the word "Essence" (as in the expressions "גופי הלכות" ("the bodies," i.e., essentials, "of the laws"), "גופא דמלכא" ("the body of the King"), and the like) — the "pleasure" of the Essence of G‑dliness is [mainly not from the revelation of the light of the soul (by removing the concealment of the body so that this revelation may occur), but] "from the body"20 — that the body itself (and by virtue of itself) is transformed to holiness. And this is accomplished specifically "because of the cold" — at a time of concealment and hiddenness, as mentioned above.
6. And this is also the connection of the month of Teves to the days of Chanukah:
The purpose of the Chanukah lights is to bring about "והוי' יגיה חשכי" ("and G‑d illuminates my darkness")21 — to illuminate the darkness, even the darkness that is in the public domain outside, to the point that "illuminates my darkness" — the darkness itself "illuminates" and shines. And the power for this comes from "והוי'" ("and G‑d") (with the added letter vav), which indicates the level of G‑dliness that transcends the order of evolution (Havaye of Above).
And this is similar to the matter of "the body derives pleasure from the body": by virtue of the Essence ("body") of G‑dliness, even the darkness of the body itself is transformed to holiness.
7. In general, this is the difference between the service in the time of the Beis HaMikdash and the service in the time of exile. In the time of the Beis HaMikdash there was a revelation of G‑dliness in the world: "עשרה נסים נעשו לאבותינו בבית המקדש" ("Ten miracles were performed for our forefathers in the Beis HaMikdash")22, and so on. In the time of exile, however, "אותותינו לא ראינו וגו'" ("We have not seen our signs, etc.")23; G‑dliness is in concealment and hiddenness, to the point that "החושך יכסה ארץ" ("darkness shall cover the earth")24 — and then the service is that of "and G‑d illuminates my darkness."
[It may be said that this is also the inner reason why the Chanukah lights "אינן בטלין לעולם" ("are never nullified") and "נוהגת אף לאחר חורבן בגלותינו" ("apply even after the destruction, in our exile")25, unlike the lights of the Beis HaMikdash, regarding which "when the Beis HaMikdash does not stand .. the lights (of the Beis HaMikdash) are also nullified"25 — even though the Chanukah lights are a remembrance of the miracle that occurred with the lights of the Beis HaMikdash —
because the lights26 of the Beis HaMikdash are a drawing down of light (that relates to, and is) within the order of evolution — light within a vessel. Therefore, when the world is in a state of exile, concealment and hiddenness, "the lights (of the Beis HaMikdash) are nullified." The Chanukah lights, however, bring the essential light that transcends the order of evolution, and therefore no changes apply to them. They "shine" even in a state of utmost concealment and hiddenness, and they transform the darkness itself into light.]
With this one understands the connection of Teves to the Fast of the Tenth — the Tenth of Teves — since this is the fast over the beginning (and root27) of the entire matter of exile28 [like the coldness of the month of Teves], as is plainly so: the siege of Jerusalem (which began on the Tenth of Teves) led to all the subsequent matters of destruction. And the purpose of the fast is the service of teshuvah29 over the destruction and exile, to the point that this transforms the fast itself "לששון ולשמחה ולמועד טוב" ("to joy, to gladness, and to a festive day")30.
8. The matter of coldness exists also in the powers of the soul, and that is human intellect, as in the well-known saying31: "There is no thing as cold as natural intellect and human intellect."
The accomplishment of the revelation of the teachings of Chabad Chassidus through the Alter Rebbe, "the founder of Chabad Chassidus"32, is that he brought down matters of faith and G‑dly intellect into the garments of comprehension, to the point that even human intellect can have an understanding of G‑dliness — "and when the natural intellect understands a G‑dly concept .. this is the true resurrection of the dead."
And this is the connection of the day of the hilula of the Alter Rebbe — when "כל מעשיו ותורתו ועבודתו אשר עבד כל ימי חייו" ("all his deeds, his Torah and his service which he performed all the days of his life")33 stand in utmost perfection — to the month of Teves34: through the "deeds, Torah and service" of the Alter Rebbe it was accomplished that "because of the cold" — from the cold, unexcitable mind itself — there should come forth the "body derives pleasure"35: the pleasure and warmth of holiness.
(From the sichos of Shabbos Parshas Vayeshev, 5735)
Notes
1) Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 58, end of side a. Ateres Rosh, Shaar Rosh Hashanah, end of ch. 2. It is also alluded to in the Mishnah (beginning of tractate Rosh Hashanah): "On the first of Nissan is Rosh Hashanah for kings and for festivals" — even though the festival in it falls in the middle of the month (see the Gemara there, 4a) — see Likkutei Sichos, vol. 7, p. 409, note 4.
2) See also above, p. 183, and the sources noted there.
3) Megillah 13a. Cited in Rashi on Megillas Esther on this verse. For an explanation of this saying of our Sages according to Kabbalah, see at length Likkutei Levi Yitzchak, Letters, p. 249ff. Based on this, the connection of the hilula of the Alter Rebbe specifically to the month of Teves is explained there (namely, that his hilula is like the matter of "And Esther was taken to the king etc. in the tenth month etc."); see there at length. See also below, notes 16 and 34.
*3) Megillas Esther 2:16.
4) The reason for the change here from the Scriptural expression "חודש" ("month") requires investigation and searching in the commentaries — especially in light of what is written that in a kesubah one writes "חודש" (unlike in a get), because of "When a man takes a new (chadashah) wife" (Levush, Even HaEzer, end of sec. 62; sec. 127, par. 3).
5) This is the reading in Ein Yaakov and in all the manuscripts (of the Talmud) — Dikdukei Soferim on Megillah there. This is also the reading in Rashi on Megillah and on Megillas Esther there. In the printed editions of the Talmud before us: "in which a body derives pleasure." It may be said that the practical difference is which is the main novelty (and therefore placed first): the body (and not the soul), or pleasure (and not its opposite). This is not the place to elaborate.
6) Megillah there. Similarly in Megillas Esther there.
7) Tehillim 84:12.
8) End of the maamar "Bayom HaShemini Atzeres" 5632, and 5677 (the first). Likkutei Sichos, vol. 1, p. 4 (and note the end of the maamar "Lehavin Inyan Simchas Torah" 5707, in a somewhat different manner). See also the end of the maamar "Lemaan Yeidu" 5678; Sefer HaMaamarim 5708, p. 28, and the sources noted there; Likkutei Sichos, vol. 2, p. 547; vol. 8, p. 310ff.
9) In the maamar "Bayom HaShemini Atzeres" 5632, reference is made to Likkutei Torah, maamar "Shechorah Ani Sheshezafatni HaShemesh," that it is the level of "yecheratz," etc.
10) Like the advantage of the service of teshuvah (which stems from distance) over the service of tzaddikim (see the maamar "Lehavin Inyan Simchas Torah" there).
11) The entire Song of Songs is founded on this, as is known from the Midrashim of our Sages. Note also that Achashverosh and Esther (about whom this saying of our Sages speaks) refer to the Holy One, blessed be He (maamar "Balaylah Hahu" 5700, end of ch. 4, and the sources noted there; and so too in Mechir Yayin on Megillas Esther (by the Rema) 10a) and to the Congregation of Israel (Torah Ohr 93d; 94, beginning of side d).
12) Based on what is explained in the text, it may be said that this is the inner reason why Rashi (Megillah and Megillas Esther there) explains the matter of "the body derives pleasure from the body" in a favorable sense — "that it was intended from Heaven to make her beloved to her husband" (and not as the Maharsha explains in Chiddushei Aggados there).
13) Tanchuma, Pekudei 3. Tikkunei Zohar, Tikkun 69 (100b). And elsewhere.
14) Regarding the difference between those who serve G‑d with their soul and those who serve G‑d with their body, see at length Hemshech 5666, p. 157ff; Sefer HaMaamarim 5708, p. 210ff. See also the maamar "Ki Seitzei" 5674 (in Hemshech 5672).
15) See Rashi on Noach 8:22.
16) Similar to what is explained (Hemshech 5672, vol. 3, p. 1366ff) regarding two ways of transforming darkness into light: through the light, or through the darkness by virtue of itself; see there at length. See also Likkutei Levi Yitzchak there (p. 252) that the matter of "the body derives pleasure from the body" is the matter of sweetening the gevuros in their root — and this is the matter of transforming darkness by virtue of itself, as explained in the Hemshech there (p. 1325ff). See also below in the text, section 5.
17) Sefer HaSichos, Summer 5700, p. 174.
17) Regarding all this, see Sefer HaSichos Toras Shalom, p. 120ff.
18) This is why the ultimate reward will be for souls in bodies specifically (according to the view of the Ramban etc., as the Alter Rebbe rules — Likkutei Torah, Tzav 15c; Sefer HaMitzvos of the Tzemach Tzedek, mitzvah of tzitzis, ch. 1; and elsewhere), to the point that the soul is nourished from the body (see Hemshech VeKachah 5637, ch. 48ff).
19) Similar to what is explained, that self-sacrifice is found more in the heel than in the head (maamar "Ein HaKadosh Baruch Hu Ba BeTrunya" 5685 (in Sefer HaMaamarim 5685, p. 256ff; Sefer HaMaamarim Yiddish, p. 5ff)). And elsewhere.
*19) See also Likkutei Sichos, vol. 1, pp. 326–327.
20) Note that "The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to have a dwelling place in the lower realms .. this very physical and material world" (Tanya, ch. 36) — and it is known that this desire is in His Essence, may He be blessed (Hemshech 5666, end of p. 7ff; p. 445ff; and elsewhere).
21) See at length the maamar "Ki Atah Neiri" in Torah Ohr, Shaarei Orah, and Or HaTorah, discourses on Chanukah. And elsewhere.
22) Avos 5:5.
23) Tehillim 74:9.
24) Yeshayahu 60:2.
25) Ramban, beginning of Parshas Behaalosecha.
26) See Torah Ohr 34a ff. Likkutei Sichos, vol. 3, p. 811ff.
27) Note that specifically regarding this fast it is said "בעצם היום הזה" ("on this very day") (Yechezkel 24:2) — as with Yom Kippur, "the essence of the day." And in Abudraham (cited in the Beis Yosef on Tur, Orach Chaim, sec. 550) it is stated that if it were to fall on Shabbos (at the time when the months were sanctified by sighting the new moon), one would fast (see Minchas Kohen, first edition, vol. 3 [reference unclear in OCR]; below, end of p. 420ff, and note 178; Likkutei Sichos, vol. 20, p. 354, and note 29; and elsewhere).
28) Note also that the Torah portions read in the month of Teves deal with the descent to Egypt and the Egyptian exile.
29) See Rambam, Laws of Fasts 1:2; there, beginning of ch. 5.
30) Regarding all this, see below there, and the sources noted there.
31) HaYom Yom, 9 [Teves?], p. 61 [reading uncertain]. Kuntres Toras HaChassidus, beginning of ch. 4.
32) Wording of the Rebbe, my father-in-law (HaTamim, vol. 4, p. 51 [191]; Sefer HaSichos 5703, p. 188; and elsewhere).
33) Wording of the Alter Rebbe in Iggeres HaKodesh, explanation of sec. 27. See also there, sec. 28; Siddur, p. 304, end of side b ff.
34) See Likkutei Levi Yitzchak there (p. 254) regarding the connection of the hilula of the Alter Rebbe to the month of Teves by virtue of the matter of sweetening the gevuros (see above, note 16, that this relates to what is said in the text on the explanation of "the body derives pleasure from the (physical) body"). Note also that Iggeres HaKodesh, sec. 20 — which explains the superiority of physicality, in which specifically there is the power of the Essence, whose existence is from His own Essence, etc. — was written by the Alter Rebbe "in the days before his passing, in the village of Piena" (Derech Mitzvosecha 170a). See at length Likkutei Sichos, vol. 16, the sicha for 24 Teves.
35) Based on what is known (maamar "Padah BeShalom" 5685 — in the name of his father, the Rebbe Rashab — 19 Kislev 5679) that by the Alter Rebbe's clothing Chassidus in garments of comprehension, the very essence of the inner dimension of the Torah was drawn down, and through this the essential intent is fulfilled — that the matters below become vessels for G‑dliness — the connection specifically to "the body derives pleasure from the body" is also understood. See Kuntres Inyanah Shel Toras HaChassidus, sec. 18; end of sec. 20; above, p. 287ff.
Key Lesson
The cold and darkness of Teves, and of exile, are not merely obstacles to be overcome by the light of the soul; the body itself, which carries the power of G‑d's Essence, can be transformed into holiness. Like the Baal Shem Tov's icicles that burned, and like the Alter Rebbe's Chassidus that brought G‑dliness into cold human intellect, our service in times of concealment brings G‑d the deepest pleasure.