"Two clean, live birds"

Synopsis

Rabbi Shimon says that when a man comes with repentance to be purified, God and the Shechinah return to him.

Birds Holiness (Kedushah) Hyssop Kedushah (Holiness) Priests Purification Repentance Shechinah Torah

18. He opened the discussion, saying: "Then shall the priest command to take for him to be cleansed two clean, live birds, and cedar wood, and scarlet and hyssop" (Vayikra 14:4). Come and behold: when a man worships his Master and studies the Torah, the Holy One, blessed be He, rests upon him and the Shechinah joins with him. When a man is defiled, the Shechinah departs from him and the Holy One, blessed be He, draws away from him. All the sides of his Master's Holiness draw away from him and the Defiled Spirit rests upon him, as do all the sides of Impurity. When a man comes to purify himself, he is assisted. Then, after he was purified and after repenting, all that departed from him, NAMELY THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED BE HE, AND HIS SHECHINAH, return to him and rest upon him.

18. פָּתַח וְאָמַר, וְלָקַח לַמִּטַּהֵר שְׁתֵּי צִפֳּרִים חַיּוֹת טְהוֹרוֹת וְעֵץ אֶרֶז וּשְׁנִי תּוֹלַעַת וְאֵזוֹב. ת"ח, ב"נ דְּמִשְׁתַּדֵּל בְּפוּלְחָנָא דְּמָארֵיהּ, וְאִשְׁתְּדַּל בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא שָׁארִי עֲלוֹי וּשְׁכִינְתָּא אִשְׁתַּתְּפָא בַּהֲדֵיהּ. כֵּיוָן דְּב"נ אָתֵי לְאִסְתַּאֲבָא, שְׁכִינְתָּא אִסְתָּלָקַת מִנֵּיהּ, קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא אִתְרְחִיק מִנֵּיהּ, וְכָל סִטְרָא דִּקְדוּשָּׁה דְּמָארֵיהּ מְרַחֲקִין מִנֵיהּ, וְשָׁארִי עָלֵיהּ רוּחַ מִסְאֲבָא וְכָל סִטְרָא דִּמְסָאֲבָא, אָתֵי לְאִתְדַכְּאָה מְסַיְּיעִין לֵיהּ. בָּתַר דְּאִתְדָכֵּי וְאַהְדָּר בִּתְשׁוּבָה, הַהוּא דְּאִסְתַּלָּק מִנֵּיהּ אַהְדָּר, וְשָׁארִי עֲלוֹי.

Birds Congregation Ezekiel Hyssop Living Creatures Priests Prophets Purification Red Shechinah Yud Hei Vav Hei (YHVH)

19. Come and behold: it is written, "Then shall the priest command to take for him to be cleansed two clean, live birds..." HE ASKS: Do I not know that when it says, "two birds," it means that they are "live?" WHY IS "LIVE" WRITTEN? HE ANSWERS: It was already explained that "live" MEANS actually living, as it is written, "I beheld the living creatures" (Yechezkel 1:15), WHICH corresponds to the place from which the true prophets draw inspiration, NAMELY NETZACH AND HOD, CALLED 'LOWER LIVING CREATURES.' In regards to, "A cedar wood," we have already learned THAT THIS IS TIFERET, and "scarlet" is the red side of Gvurah OF THE SHECHINAH, which associated with him at first. "Hyssop" is the small Vav, WHICH IS YESOD, that gives sustenance to the Congregation of Yisrael, THE SHECHINAH. Therefore, "cedar wood and hyssop," WHICH ARE TIFERET AND YESOD, go together, MEANING THAT THEY ARE CONSIDERED AS ONE. Therefore, Vav and Vav are together as one WHEN IT IS UTTERED IN THE NAME YUD HEI VAV HEI, SINCE VAV IS PRONOUNCED VAV. One IS above, NAMELY TIFERET, and the other IS smaller, NAMELY YESOD, and they are called the upper Vav and the lower Vav. All of them - THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED BE HE, WHO IS TIFERET AND YESOD AND THE SHECHINAH - return and rest upon him AS BEFORE, for he is purified. Corresponding to those THAT RETURN TO HIM, WHICH ARE TIFERET AND YESOD AND THE SHECHINAH, are "cedar wood and hyssop and scarlet" below, which pertain to that purification, which come down from THE SFIROT above.

19. ת"ח, כְּתִיב וְלָקַח לַמִּטַּהֵר שְׁתֵּי צִפֳּרִים חַיּוֹת טְהוֹרוֹת. כֵּיוָן דְּאָמַר, שְׁתֵּי צִפֳּרִים, לָא יְדַעְנָא דְּאִינּוּן חַיוֹת, אֶלָּא, הָא אוּקְמוּהָ, אֲבָל חַיּוֹת, חַיּוֹת מַמָּשׁ. כד"א וָאֵרֶא הַחַיּוֹת, לָקֳבֵל אֲתַר דְּיַנְקֵי מִנַּיְיהוּ נְבִיאֵי מְהֵימְנֵי, וְעֵץ אֶרֶז הָא אִתְּמַר, וּשְׁנִי תּוֹלַעַת, סְטָר סוּמָקָא דִּגְבוּרָה דְּאִשְׁתַּתֵּף בַּהֲדֵיהּ בְּקַדְמֵיתָא. וְאֵזוֹב, דָּא ו' זְעֵירָא, דְּיָנִיק לֵיהּ לִכ"י, ובג"כ, עֵץ אֶרֶז וְאֵזוֹב, אַזְלָן כַּחֲדָא, וְעַל דָּא ו' ו' כַּחֲדָא אִשְׁתְּכָחוּ, חַד עִלָּאָה, וְחַד זְעֵירָא, וְקַרְיָין לוֹן, ו' עִלָּאָה, ו' תַּתָּאָה. וְכֻלְּהוּ אָהַדְרוּ לְשַׁרְיָא עֲלוֹי בְּגִין דְּהָא אִתְדָּכֵי, לָקֳבֵל אִלֵּין, לְתַתָּא, עֵץ אֶרֶז וְאֵזוֹב וּשְׁנִי תּוֹלַעַת אִשְׁתְּכָחוּ בְּדַכְיוּתָא דָּא, וְתַּלְיָין מֵאִלֵּין עִלָּאִין.