[Avodah] Shabbat-B'Shabbato: Can Beauty and Eternity Join Forces?

[Micha Berger]

As long-timers know, the question of the role of aesthetics in Yahadus is
something that instrigues me. "Yaft E-lokim leYefes, veyishkon be'ahalei
Sheim." Is that a rejection? A call for partnership?

Here is a thought on the subject. If anyone has access to Machanayim,
Sivan 5755, where RYS discusses the thought at more length, please let
me know.

-micha

Shabbat BeShabbato
Translated by: Moshe Goldberg
Published by the Zomet Institute of Alon Shevut, Israel
Under the auspices of the National Religious Party
...
GUEST COLUMN
Can Beauty and Eternity Join Forces?
Rabbi Yeshaya Steinberg
Rabbi of Ramot Sharet, a teacher in Yeshivat Hakotel
and Head of Ziv Hatorah Institute, Jerusalem

Moshe's name does not appear in this week's Torah portion. Some explain
this as the response to Moshe's statement, "Eradicate me from Your book"
[Shemot 32:32] -- see Baal Haturim. Others note that this portion is
read close to the date of Moshe's death, on the seventh of Adar. We
will try to show that there is another reason for Moshe's name not to
appear, one that is related to the contents of the Torah portion, which
includes the first discussion of the issue of beauty as a holy value:
"Aharon's garments, for the purpose of glory and splendor" [28:2].

Rashi finds it difficult to explain the form of the Ephod, the vestplate,
and he summarizes as follows: "My heart tells me" that it is like
riding clothes worn by ladies. How is it that Rashi was familiar
with the fashions of the women of French high society? According to
legend, in his attempt to understand the form of the Ephod, Rashi went
outside. Suddenly, a group of noble girls rode by in a flash, forcing
him to stand close to the wall. He could not avoid looking at the girls
and their clothing. He returned home in an agitated state, wondering,
"Why did G-d do this to me?" And he decided that it had been a way for
G-d to show him the form of the Ephod.

The conclusion is that the verse, Rashi, and all of us together are
involved in external appearance -- glorious clothing. Why should this
matter to us? After all, isn't it true that "Grace is false, and beauty
is vain" [Mishlei 31:30]?

Since nothing has been created without some purpose, and certainly
not the power of beauty, it must be that the Torah can show us how to
sanctify this too. "This is my G-d and I will glorify Him" [Shemot
15:2] -- make yourself beautiful with mitzvot. For this reason the
sages praised the Temple which was built by Herod, which was the most
beautiful structure in the world (Bava Batra 3a). Mitzvot and holiness --
concepts which are abstract and foreign to the physical world -- need
beauty in order to help the people like them. The fact that the High
Priest has an advantage over the other priests in his outer appearance
gives him an opportunity to act as both "our messenger" and as "G-d's
messeger." Aharon, who is described by the trait of "hod" -- glory --
has a reputation of being loved by all and of pursuing peace. Beauty
and glory are tools for bringing separate elements close together and
for creating general harmony, as is seen from the fact that the service
of G-d is meant to be appreciated by the masses. Rabbi Kook felt that
esthetics and cleanliness are the most important way to decorate a
mikveh. He explained that a mikveh is perceived as an anachronism, and
may therefore cause women to refuse to immerse themselves, and this is
why attractive elements are needed in a mikveh. The same approach is
also true of synagogues and holy vessels. This is clear from all the
artistic items found in Jewish museums.

This is all relevant for the "pillar of holy service." It is not found in
relation to the "pillar of Torah." For this reason, Aharon, the messenger
who forms a bridge between beauty and holiness, is characterized by the
trait of glory. The trait of Moshe -- the essence of Torah itself --
is Netzach, eternity, shrouded in mystic purity of the future. Glory and
beauty fade with time, they are not "eternal." Caesar's daughter could
not restrain her astonishment at seeing Rabbi Yehoshua, and she cried
out, "How can such great wisdom reside in such an ugly vessel?" [Taanit
7a]. The rabbi's reply was that a vessel made of gold will harm wine that
is put into it and will also become black itself. This is not true of a
simple cup made of glass. The inner secrets of Torah do not need external
enhancements, which can even cause it harm. Only "holy service," which is
also meant for the simple people, must be combined with external beauty.

The Torah portion of Tetzaveh, the repository of beauty, is not a
suitable place for Moshe. And this explains why he chose to be erased
from this portion.

(I have always wondered if Shai Agnon, in his story "Two Torah Scholars
who Lived in Our City," was influenced at all by the differences between
Aharon and Moshe. After all, he named the character with no external
presence Moshe Pinchas...)

Purim, which is approaching, is a source for study about beauty. It
is a holiday of "garments," an external view that is typical of the
descendents of Rachel. Mordechai, as Yosef before him, is well versed in
worldly matters, the seventy languages of the world, and he eventually
wears glorious and beautiful garments. Evidently the statement "We
are still slaves of Achashverosh" is the price of excessive need for
worldly tools. Perhaps this is the reason that the ultimate redeemer
is not the son of Yosef but the son of David, a descendent of Leah and
not Rachel. External beauty carries with it the danger of hiding an
internal truth. And when the truth does appear -- in Rachel, in Yosef,
and in those who continue his path -- it is short-lived and does not last
for all eternity. The mitzva of remembering Amalek, the important mitzva
related to Purim, is related to eternity because it involves redemption
-- when G-d's name and His throne will achieve their complete form (see
Shemot 17:16). Esav is conquered by the sons of Rachel, but Amalek falls
into the hands of Mashiach, son of David, because Leah has "great gifts."

(See the above ideas in an expanded form in my article "Esthetics in
the Approach of the Maharal," Machanayim, Sivan 5755.)