Immediately Starting Over

Immediately upon completing the Torah on Shemini Atzeret we begin it again.

Since order and juxtaposition are significant in Torah, what is the link between the last phrase of the Torah, “before the eyes of all Israel,” and “In the beginning G-d created”?

1) “Before the eyes of all Israel” indicates unity among the Jewish people, and the true means to achieve this unity is to constantly remember that “In the beginning G-d created.” I.e., all human matters, whether spiritual (“the Heavens”) or physical (“the Earth”) come from the Creator and Controller of the world, “for He is the one who gives you the power to obtain wealth.” One who recognizes and senses that nothing comes “of itself,” but rather from G-d, will not see himself as a separate existence but as a part of all Israel.

2) The explanation of “In the beginning G-d created” according to Chassidut is: “In the beginning”-the beginning of Divine service is-”G-d created”-to reveal the G-dliness hidden in creation-”the heavens and the Earth” (that is, to reveal the Divine life-force that gives life to each created thing). How do we do this? By means of “before the eyes of all Israel.” When a person evokes and reveals the G-dliness within himself, i.e his divine soul, to the point that he reveals the soul’s essence, which is constantly tied to G-dliness, he can then reveal the G-dliness within the world.

(Likkutei Sichot, vol. 2, p. 437)