As just mentioned, the excess negative energy generated by the sins of gossip and slander is counteracted and overcome by studying the Torah “excessively”; this generates an excess of positive energy. However, in order for our study of the Torah to indeed elicit Divine energy and infuse it into creation, we must study it with pure motives, namely, in order to fulfill G‑d’s will and disseminate Divine consciousness, rather than for personal interest or as an intellectual pursuit. Therefore, just as a priest had to officiate at the purification process of a person formerly afflicted with tzara’at, our study of the Torah must be overseen by our inner “priest.” The priest in the Tabernacle (and later, in the holy Temple) personified total self-nullification to G‑d; similarly, we should strive to study the Torah with a pure and humble heart.1
In the course of the sacrificial rites performed on the formerly afflicted person, the officiating priest must apply some of the blood of one of the sacrifices to various points on the person’s body.
A Pure and Humble Heart
וְלָקַח הַכֹּהֵן מִדַּם וגו':
(ויקרא יד:יד)
The priest must take some of the blood.
Leviticus 14:14
Footnotes
1.
Likutei
Torah 2:24c- 25a; Likutei Sichot,
vol. 12, pp. 81–82.
Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson (11 Nissan 1902–3 Tammuz 1994) became the seventh rebbe of the Chabad dynasty on 10 Shevat 1950. He is widely acknowledged as the greatest Jewish leader of the second half of the 20th century, a dominant scholar in both the revealed and hidden aspects of Torah, and fluent in many languages and on scientific subjects. The Rebbe is best known for his extraordinary love and concern for every Jew on the planet, having sent thousands of emissaries around the globe, dedicated to strengthening Judaism.
Moshe Yaakov Wisnefsky is a scholar, author and anthologist, and is editor-in-chief at Chabad House Publications of California. He is the author and translator of Apples from the Orchard, gleanings from the writings of the Arizal (Rabbi Isaac Luria, 1534–1572) on the Torah, and is the author and editor-in-chief of the Kehot Chumash produced by Chabad House Publications, featuring an interpolated translation of the Torah with commentary adapted from the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
Moshe Yaakov Wisnefsky is a scholar, author and anthologist, and is editor-in-chief at Chabad House Publications of California. He is the author and translator of Apples from the Orchard, gleanings from the writings of the Arizal (Rabbi Isaac Luria, 1534–1572) on the Torah, and is the author and editor-in-chief of the Kehot Chumash produced by Chabad House Publications, featuring an interpolated translation of the Torah with commentary adapted from the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
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