The Secret of the Melody: How to Sweeten All the Judgments from Upon the Jewish People

Lesson No. 305 | Wednesday, Parashas Bamidbar, 1 Sivan 5761 - "Nachalei Netzach" Yeshiva, Mea Shearim - Part 1

Speech accompanied by songs and melodies clothes the Shechinah (Divine Presence) in "illuminating garments" (levushin d'nahirin), and thereby sweetens all judgments and awakens mercy. Through the immense power of the Torah, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi went out with mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice) to teach those suffering from incurable diseases, and in the merit of this, he was privileged to enter the Garden of Eden while still alive.

Prayer is an aspect of a spiritual union, and about it, it is said:

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament tells of His handiwork" (Psalms 19:2).

The Torah is composed of fire and water. When a person speaks words of Torah, water vapors rise from his speech, and the speech itself is fire. These represent the souls that are present within the prayer, and this is the secret of the verse, "And for My praise, I will restrain it for you" (Isaiah 48:9). The souls, together with the prayer, are called "glory" (kavod), because they clothe us, just as Rabbi Yochanan used to call his garments "my honorers" (mechadbuday).

The souls and the prayer illuminate one another. The souls illuminate the prayer through the aspect of raising "feminine waters" (a spiritual awakening from below), and the prayer illuminates the souls through the aspect of new Torah insights (chiddushim). When a person merits that the letters of the Torah become clothed within prayer, the prayer illuminates the souls, and new Torah insights are created. From these new Torah insights, tens of thousands of souls return in teshuvah (repentance)—hundreds of thousands and millions. All those souls are clothed in the prayer and are spiritually attached (in the secret of ibbur) to the tzaddik of the generation, in the secret of the verse:

"The virgins in her train, her companions, are brought to You" (Psalms 45:15).

The souls are brought to the tzaddik of the generation with clarity and melodies.

The Power of the Melody to Sweeten Judgments

Through playing music and singing, all judgments are nullified. The holy Zohar says that the holy Patriarchs would sing to Hashem all day long. King David also said: "Awake, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp; I will awaken the dawn" (Psalms 57:9). Melodies are the garments of the Shechinah (Divine Presence). When the Shechinah (Divine Presence) is clothed in the illuminating garments ("levushin d'nahirin") of songs and melodies, then the following verse is fulfilled:

"And I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant" (Genesis 9:16).

This is similar to a parable of a king who was angry with his son, but when he sees the queen dressed in beautiful, radiant garments, immediately "the king's wrath subsided" and he has mercy on his son.

The holy Shechinah (Divine Presence) is found within the letters of prayer, and it is she who speaks from the throat of the one praying, as we say: "Hashem, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare Your praise" (Psalms 51:17). The speech of prayer is the Shechinah (Divine Presence) itself. Regarding the verse "with my sword and with my bow" (Genesis 48:22), Rashi and the Targum explain that this refers to prayer and supplication. Whoever guards the bow of the covenant, his prayer will shoot forth like arrows from the hand of a mighty warrior.

The voice of the melody gently plays the letters of prayer in the three colors of the rainbow. The one who controls the voice is composed of fire, water, and wind, which correspond to the three Patriarchs. The Patriarchs are the melodies themselves, three illuminating colors through which Hashem remembers the everlasting covenant. This is the hint given to Noah—that Hashem will save the world in the merit of the three Patriarchs who will sing before Him all day long. This is also why Ruth the Moabite is named as such, as the Zohar states: "For she saturated (rivta) Hashem with songs and praises."

Illuminating Garments and Faith in the Sages

When someone sings the letters of prayer with songs and melodies, Hashem immediately hears and accepts his prayer. When the singing is done with great purity and clarity, the person clothes the Shechinah (Divine Presence) and the letters in "illuminating garments." Only when prayer is recited with melodies and songs does Hashem see it, and then all judgments are sweetened from upon the Jewish people, and no Jew will have to be killed.

Just as a rainbow cannot exist without colors, so too, prayer cannot exist without melodies. When the melodies shine with great purity, this is called the "merit of the Patriarchs," and then "the king's wrath subsided" and all judgments are sweetened. The moment a person believes in the *tzaddik*, all judgments are already sweetened. Through faith in the Sages (emunas chachamim), when a person believes that all the words of the tzaddikim are awesome secrets and the deepest of mysteries, he clothes the prayer in illuminating garments.

The Self-Sacrifice of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi

When Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai asked Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, "Has a rainbow been seen in your days?", the inner meaning referred to prayer accompanied by melodies and songs. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi worked his entire life to illuminate the Shechinah (Divine Presence), brought many people back in teshuvah (repentance), and in the merit of this, he was privileged to enter the Garden of Eden with his physical body.

The Talmud in Tractate Kesubos tells an awesome story about Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi. During that time, there were people who suffered from a highly contagious and severe disease ("ba'alei ra'asan"). No one wanted to come near them or study Torah with them. The disease was so terrible that if a wind blew from their direction, everyone would flee, fearing that the wind carried the disease on its wings.

Within the illness, a sort of creature would develop inside the brain, growing larger and eating the brain. To treat this, complex brain surgeries were required. They would take three hundred cups of a special drink and pour them slowly and carefully over the skull to soften the bone until it became as soft as butter. Afterward, they would bring the patient into a marble house, and from there into a sealed house with seven layers of bricks, so that not a breath of wind could enter.

When the skull was completely softened, they would cut it with a knife and lift it carefully. Inside, a giant creature was revealed, eating the brain. There was immense danger in touching it, because if it was startled, it would dig its claws into the brain and destroy it completely. Therefore, they would bring four myrtle leaves and place them under the four legs of the creature. The leaves created a barrier between it and the brain, and then they would immediately grab it with tongs, pull it out quickly, and burn it in fire, so that it would not return to that person.

The Healing Power of the Torah

The danger was so great that Rabbi Yochanan would warn people to beware of the flies of those sick individuals. Rabbi Zeira would run away from the wind blowing from their direction, Rabbi Elazar never entered their tent, and Rabbi Ami and Rabbi Assi refused to eat eggs from the same alleyway where the sick people lived. But Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: "I have no fear! I will bring them to teshuvah (repentance)."

"In the holy Torah, there is no illness that cannot be healed, no paralysis that cannot be healed, and no cancer that cannot be healed." Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi would associate with them and study Torah with them, for it is "a loving hind and a graceful doe" (Proverbs 5:19). He gathered the sick into a large hall and sat to learn with them closely, out of faith that the Torah would heal them.

When his time came to depart from the world, the Angel of Death was sent to him. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi made one final request: to see his place in Gan Eden (Paradise). They walked for many days until they reached the giant walls of Gan Eden. The Angel of Death lifted him high so he could peek inside, but Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi gave a tremendous leap into Gan Eden and remained inside with his physical body. The Angel of Death only managed to grab the edge of his cloak, but Rabbi Yehoshua swore that he was not leaving. The Angel of Death refused to give up, and they went to ask Hashem how to decide the matter...

Part 2 of 2 — Lesson #305

→ Previous Part

All parts: Part 1 | Part 2 (Current)