[Avodah] timtum halev

[Micha Berger]

On Mon, Mar 08, 2010 at 02:13:07PM -0500, Samuel Svarc wrote:
: It's surprising to me that someone can even believe in such a concept
: at all, but to say "guarantee" seems to be a denial of 'bechira', c'v,

This is just an aspect of my problem with "Practical Qabbalah". By adding
all these metaphysical forces, one removes events from the domain of
the straight bechirah, hashgachah, sekhar va'onesh domain and gives
them explanations that allow for events that aren't Din or Rachamim,
perhaps not even letav.

Which is why every time I see that our group of regulars shifted, I
manage to find a way to re-raise the question RETurkel asks:
: If some treif substance is batel is there any reason not to eat the
: combination because it contains some treif substance which will cause
: timtum halev. How because it is allowed to be eaten does it remove
: timtum halev

Similarly, the mezuzah that was hung and checked kedin, but kelapei
Shemaya galya there is a flaw in it. Why would it protect any less?


On Mon, Mar 08, 2010 at 11:52:03AM -0500, Rich, Joel wrote:
: IIRC It's a machloket - some say that you should eat it because those
: sparks in the previously treif portion were meant to be raised by your
: eating (pls don't ask me what that means), others say there is no timtum
: because halacha determines reality, others say yes timtum because there
: is some element of treif.

Three positions. I would have listed them thus:
1- Treif is a consequence of a metaphysical reality. Even if halakhah
says that we don't have to worry about the damage in this case, if
someone happen to have erred and ate cheilev, then the damage is still
there.

2- Metaphysical realities are a consequence of halakhah. Therefore, if
it's mutar, then there are no ill effects.

2b- ... AND since this allows the redemption of something otherwise
treif, there is even an added benefit to the universe.

I happen to think this machloqes is the fundamental difference between
the Gra's Qabbalah and that of Chassidus. The NhC writes that all
metaphysical changes are a consequence of changes to people, for only
the neshamah includes all the kochos from all the olamos. Thus, the only
way for action in olam ha'asiyah can impact higher olamos is via its
pull on a neshamah which then pulls in that olam.

This was central to my whole (provocatively named) Maimonidian Qabbalah
category on Aspaqlaria. (The name comes from the parallel the Leshem
makes between the various tzuros in the various olamos and the Rambam's
definition of mal'akh.)

-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             "'When Adar enters, we increase our joy'
micha at aishdas.org         'Joy is nothing but Torah.'
http://www.aishdas.org    'And whoever does more, he is praiseworthy.'"
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