The procedures for the sacrifices all allude to inner, psychological processes that we must undergo in order to draw close to G‑d. (As mentioned above, the Hebrew word for “sacrifice” [korban] means “drawing close.”)
Slaughtering the animal alludes to how we slaughter – i.e., renounce – our animalistic orientation toward life. Sprinkling the blood on the Altar alludes to how we then re-orient our enthusiasm (signified by our warm blood) toward G‑dliness. Placing the fat of the slaughtered animal on the Altar alludes to how we re-orient our sense of delight (signified by fat, which results from indulging in eating foods that trigger feelings of delight in our brain) toward G‑dliness. Burning the animal by fire on the Altar alludes to the consumption of our animal nature by Divinity, meaning that our formerly animalistic drives become drives for goodness, as we transform the world into G‑d’s home.1
Join the Discussion