Parshat Ki Tisa
by Rabbi Avi Billet
The term "Kodesh
Kodashim" appears in the Torah 18 times – twice in Parshat Ki Tisa.
However, not one of these times does it refer to the Holy of Holies, the
section of the Mishkan/Tabernacle which houses the Aron/Ark.
The "Holy of
Holies," as it were, is called "Kodash HaKodashim," with the
letter "heh" defining the definite article as being "THE"
Holy of Holies – the room designated as the holiest place in the world.
In addition to the 18
Torah references, "Kodesh Kodashim" appears 5 more times in the
Bible. The phrase referring to the back room of the Mishkan appears 9 times,
thrice in the Torah and four times in Divrei HaYamim (Chronicles).
Referencing Rabbi Akiva
as the source, the Midrash describes the book of Shir HaShirim (Song of Songs)
as being "Kodesh Kodashim," the holiest of the books of the Bible(Shir
Hashirim Rabba 1, Medrash Tanchuma Tetzaveh 5, etc)
The difference between
the Holy of Holies (Kodesh HaKodashim) and the holiest of things (Kodesh
Kodashim) is literally one letter "heh" in the Hebrew. How could the
same term be applied twice, meaning different things, with only one letter
distinguishing between them?
The truth is, this
concept is not foreign to us. There are bosses, and there is The Boss. There
are Avot (ancestors), and there are The Avot (the Forefathers). There are gods,
and there is The One and Only God. The list goes on.
Is there a common theme
to all of the things described as "Kodesh Kodashim" (the holiest of
things) in the Torah?
The simple answer is
yes, as almost everything described as being the holiest of things are part of
the Mishkan. Sometimes it refers to the large Mizebach (altar) where animal
sacrifices were burned (Shmot 29:37; 40:10). Sometimes it refers to the inner
Mizbeach, where spices were burned (30:10,36).
At times the "holiest of things" refers all
the vessels of the Mishkan (one reading of Shmot 30:29), the Lechem HaPanim
(showbread) that was placed on the Shulchan (Table) in the Mishkan (Vayikra
24:9), or the fire representing the sacrificial order associated with the
Mizbeach (Bamidbar 18:9).
In the book of Vayikra the holiest of things is the
term used to describe Mincha offerings, a Sin offering, the Asham offering
(mostly in chapters 6, 7 and 10).
The only other reference in the Torah is to the concept
of a Cherem – items which are essentially consecrated to the Mishkan or to God
(Vayikra 27:28) when they are excluded from profane use. Rabbi Samson Raphael
Hirsch describes this designation as a person taking property given to him by
God and returning it to its original owner.
God in turn, as the Talmud (Arachin 29a) points out,
has designated this Cherem to the Priests, who may personally use it as
unconsecrated items – unless the designator specifically claimed the items for Temple
use.
Something which is "Kodesh Kodashim"
specifically, however, is "a sacred thing from which other sacred things
derive their sanctity." According to Hirsch, everything which is described
as Kodesh Kodashim "relates directly to man's actions, to the Torah and to
man's relation to it." It is the consecration of actions which is the main
foundation and basis of the Sanctuary, as it is the source of the consecration
of all of man's other relations.
The Mizbeach plays such a significant role in the
consecration of active man. This is why both Mizbechot stand in the center – of
the Mishkan itself and the outdoors, respectively – directly opposite the Aron.
It constitutes the true center of the area in front of and around the
Sanctuary.
In his commentary on Shmot 29:37 Hirsch argues that,
"In Judaism, the concept of holiness is inseparably connected with
sanctifying. Nothing becomes holy so that holiness should be concentrated in
it, while all else is left to the realm of the unsanctified. Everything becomes
holy in order to sanctify."
In a sense there is an
ideal holiness which in unattainable: The Holy of Holies, the Kodesh
HaKodashim. But there is also a holiness which is attainable, which is inspired
by the ideal, and that is Kodesh Kodashim, a holiness that is largely dependent
on actions. Whether it is an action that brings one close to God through the
Mizbeach, or one that assigns exclusion from profane use to define its
sanctification, it is the person who creates this admirable level of holiness
which draws inspiration from the Holy of Holies itself.
Our task is to take
action: to assign holiness to our endeavors. To make our davening a holy
experience. Our learning a holy experience. Our performance of every mitzvah,
each into its own unique experience. It will be what elevates our Shabbos to a
day of Kedusha, on top of a day in which we exclude the profane.
Perhaps we can now
understand why Shir HaShirim is referred to by Rabbi Akiva as "Kodesh
Kodashim." Shir HaShirim is a love song, some claim an allegory to the
love between God and the Jewish people. And love can be quite mundane and
physical. But love also has the potential to be holy, to sanctify, and to
elevate, and to consecrate man to his beloved, or more poignantly to his God.
May we be blessed to
achieve that level of love which is Kodesh Kodashim so we may yet merit to once
again admire the ultimate holiness that comes from the Holy of Holies, the
Kodesh HaKodashim, with the building of the everlasting Temple
in Jerusalem .
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