Posts tagged ‘Creation’

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September 9, 2011

Primordial Letters – part i

by Digital Maggid

This is from the agodes – the sacred legends of our ancestors.

When the Holy Blessed One wanted to create the world, the twenty two letters of the Alefbeis, which had been engraved with a flaming feather from the crown of Hashem Yisboroch (The Name, may it be blessed), went down and stood before Him and every one of them begged him, pleading: “I beg You, G!d, create Your world with me!”

The first to come and stand before the Creator was the letter Tav (ּת) who said to Him: “Ribono Shel Oylam, I wish that You would create Your world with me, because with me You will give the Torah to the Jews through your servant, Moshe. The Holy Blessed One answered: “After 3,306 years, when the Temple is brought to desolation, I will order that the letter Tav (ת) be hung from the foreheads of the tsadikim (righteous ones) and the angel of destruction will come and afflict the sinners, and he will see the sign on the foreheads of the tsadikim and he will leave them and do nothing bad to them.”

And so it actually came to pass, when the Holy Blessed One decreed that Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) should be destroyed, He called the angel of destruction and said to him: “Go to Yerushalayim and pick out in her the tsadikim and the resha’im (evil ones), and every tsadik upon whose forehead is written the letter Tav (ת) in ink you shall let live, and every resha upon whose forehead is written the letter Tav (ת) in blood, you shall kill.” The letter Tav (ת) became sad that she was no longer required.

Thereafter, the letter Shin (ש) entered and stood before the Creator and said: “I beg you my G!d, create Your world with me, because I am the initial of Your holy name Shaddai.” The Oybershter (G-d) answered her: “I cannot, because sho (vanity) and sheker (falsehood) begin with you and sheker has no feet and how can I create the world with a letter that has no feet?” And the letter Shin (ש) went forth from G!d with disappointment.

Next entered the letter Resh (ר) and said to G!d: “I beg you, my G!d, create Your world with me for I am also a refuah (remedy) for all maladies.” The Holy Blessed One answered her: “You are the initial of re (bad) and resha (evil) and with you my children will sin when they say, ‘nitnah rosh v’nashuvah mitsraymah’ (appoint a leader and return to Egypt).” [Numbers 14:4] The letter Resh (ר) was ashamed and went out.

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August 4, 2011

Legends A.3b

by Digital Maggid

Un azoi vi di me’oros vos vern bashafn inem fertn tog, untersheidn in di velt tvishn tog un nacht, azoi oich vel ich gæn far zæ mit an emud-ænen beitog tsu firn zæ inem veg un mit an emud-esh beinacht tsu leicht far zæ dem veg.

And as the luminaries that get created on the fourth day, distinguishing in the world between day and night, so also will I go before them with a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way and with a pillar of fire by night to light the way before them.

Un azoi vi ich bashafn himl-ufos un yam-fish inem fiftn tog, azoi oich vel ich makhn fli’en dem s’lav funem yam. 

And as I create sky-birds and sea-fish on the fifth day, so also will I make fly the quail from the sea.

Un azoi vi ich vel bashafn inem zekstn dem mentsh un ich ihm areinlægn a neshama, azoi oich vel ich zæ gebn di toirah vos iz a boim fun lebn far di vos hitn ihr.

And as I will create the man on the sixth day and place a soul in him, so also will I give the Torah that is a tree of life for those who guard her.

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August 2, 2011

Legends — A.3a

by Digital Maggid

Oich mit di malachei-hashares hot zich der bashefer barotn æder er hot bashafn zein velt un er hot tsu zæ gezogt: “Ich vil bashafn a velt.” Hobn zæ ihm gefregt: “tsu vos?” Hot er zæ ge’entfert: “tsulib æn folk vos zein namen iz Yisroel.” Hobn zæ vider gefregt: “Un vos iz zeyer charakter?” Hot er zæ gezogt:

And the Creator conferred with the ministering angels before creating his world and said to them: “I want to create a world.” And they asked him, “What for?” He answered them: “For the sake of a people whose name is Israel.” They further asked: “And what is their character?” He said to them:

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August 2, 2011

Legends — A.2

by Digital Maggid

Der Oibershter hot gezen di shæne ma’asei fun di tsadikim, un er hot bashafn di velt k’dei di tsadikim zoln mekabeil zein di Toira un ihr mekoim zein. A tanei hot der bashefer zich aoisgenumen mit di ershte bashafenishn:

The Holy One saw the beautiful acts of the tsadikim (righteous ones), and created the world in order that the tsadikim might receive the Torah and fulfill Her. The Creator made a caveat with the first creatures:

“Oib di Idden veln oif zich nemen di Toira — vet di velt væter ekzistirn, un oib nisht — vet der Oibershter zi tsurikkern tsu tohu-v’bohu.”

“If the Jews take the Torah upon themselves, the world will continue to exist, and if not — the Oibershter (Gd) will turn it back to chaos.”

Durch dem in onhæb, æder di Idden hobn mekabeil gevæn di Toira, hot di erd moira gehot un getsitert, tomer veln di Idden nisht mekabeil zein di Toira, un ales vet vider vern tohu-v’bohu. Un ven di Toira iz gegeben gevorn oifn Barg Sinai un di Idden hobn gezogt, “na’asei v’nishma” iz gleich di erd shtil un baruhigt gevorn. Oich di andere bashefenishn zenen tsufridn un gevorn bei zich zicher az zæ veln ekzistirn oif shtendig.

Obviously in the beginning, before the Jews had received the Torah, the earth was afraid and trembled, lest the Jews not receive the Torah and everything would again become chaos. And when the Torah was given on Mt. Sinai and the Jews said: “We will do and we will hear,” the earth immediately became still and calm. And the other creatures were glad because they would get to continue to exist.

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August 1, 2011

Legends – A.1

by Digital Maggid

I just got this new set of Aggodes, legends, in Yiddish. This is old stuff, our mythology and legends, but I think most of us probably haven’t read more than a smattering of it. At least I haven’t. And I think it’s pretty cool, so even though it isn’t strictly chasidish, it is our ancient mystical tradition, so I thought I’d share some of it as I am making my way through it. So here goes:

A. Before the world was created (Æder di velt vert bashafn)

Di velt iz noch nisht bashafn gevorn: nisht licht un nisht finsterish, nisht voser un nisht himl, nisht trikenish un nisht yam, nisht zun un nisht lavanah, nisht kæn chiyus un nisht kæn bahæmah, un oich nisht der mentsh der oisgevelter fun di bashafung.

The world hadn’t yet been created: neither light nor darkness, neither water nor sky, neither dry land nor sea, neither sun nor moon, neither animals nor beasts, and not even man, the chosen of creation.

Un ver iz gevæn far di ale? Di Toirah!

And who was it all for? The Torah!

Tsvæ-toiznd yor æder di velt iz bashafn gevorn hot der aoibershter bashafn di Toirah: zi iz geshribn gevorn mit a shvartsn feir oif a veisn feir un iz gevæn tsugebindn tsu di hand fun hakadosh-baruch-hu.  Un fun vanen væsn mir az zi iz nisht geshribn oif a sefer? Væl s’zenen noch nisht bashafn gevorn bahæmos un chiyus m’zol kenen fun zæ opshindn di pel un tsugrætn farmet  farn shreibn di Toirah; un oich iz zi nisht gevæn oisgekritst oif zilber oder gold, væl di metaln zenen noch nisht bashafn gevorn.

Two thousand years before the world was created, Gd created the Torah: she was written with black fire on white fire and was bound by the hand of the Holy Blessed One. And how do we know that she wasn’t written in a book? Because as yet no animals or beasts had been created from which to take the hides to prepare the scrolls for writing the Torah on; also, she was not engraved in silver or gold because the metals hadn’t been created yet.

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