Kiddush Levanah: Under the Light of the Silvery Moon (Part 13)
“My walk on the moon lasted three days. My walk with
(Charles Duke – Lunar Module Pilot, Apollo 16)
Kiddush Levanah continues with the following passage from Shir HaShirim (2:8-9): The voice of my beloved – behold! It came suddenly, leaping over mountains, skipping over hills. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young hart. Behold! He was standing behind our wall, observing through the windows, peering through the lattices.
What is the connection of these two beautiful, lyrical verses from Shir HaShirim to Kiddush Levanah? According to the Yalkut Shimoni, a Midrashic work comprised mostly of Aggadic teachings, these verses are alluding to the Mashiach’s arrival. “The voice of my beloved” is the announcement that we all crave to hear, that the Mashiach has finally arrived. Despite all the spiritual hurdles, the mountains and the hills that are strewn in his way, the Mashiach will leap over them effortlessly as he heralds in the Final Redemption. As Rashi describes it: the Final Redemption will emerge so rapidly that the Mashiach will seem like a gazelle that is nimbly and gracefully rushing towards us.
Shlomo HaMelech, in Shir HaShirim, then continues with some of the most inspirational and uplifting words ever written: “Behold! He was standing behind our wall, observing through the windows, peering through the lattices.” Shlomo HaMelech describes to us how Hashem has always been with us at every moment throughout our history. Even in the bleakest of times, Hashem is watching over us and ensuring that the beautiful light His chosen nation brings into the world will never be extinguished.
Shlomo HaMelech uses three different descriptions to portray Hashem’s presence: a wall, a window and latticework. Each one is describing Hashem’s love for us in a different way. The Yalkut Shimoni understands “our wall” to be referring to the Kotel Hama’aravi (Western Wall) because the Shechinah (Divine Presence) never departed from the Western Wall. (Shemot Rabbah 2:2) So too, we find in the Zohar HaKadosh (Mishpatim 116) that the Shechinah rests on the Western Wall. It is true that it is not possible to see through a wall, but that does not preclude our state of certainty that Hashem is truly there. The windows are a reference to the windows of the Batei Kenesiyot (Synagogues) and the Batei Midrashiyot (study halls). Hashem watches how we gather together to pray to Him and to learn His holy Torah. Perhaps, it is possible to also understand the windows as referring to the windows of our hearts. Hashem looks into the deepest recesses of our hearts to find the sparks of greatness and holiness within us. The Midrash then goes on to explain that the latticework is a reference to the way that the Kohanim (priests) configure their fingers when they bless us. Birkat Kohanim (Priestly Blessing) is the ultimate gift from Hashem to us, as it is the source of our blessings in this world.
I once heard an additional explanation from my Rebbe as to why Shlomo HaMelech uses the allegory of latticework to describe our relationship with Hashem. When the latticework is very closely threaded together, it is not possible to see what is on the other side unless one is very close to the openings. Even when we behave in a way that pulls us away from Hashem, and stops us from being able to see Him clearly, Hashem, with His infinite love for us, is always as close to us as can be. As Shlomo HaMelech so poignantly describes, Hashem is “peering through the openings.” He sees us clearly. We, on the other hand, by not choosing to do as our Father in Heaven demands of us, distance ourselves from the latticework and lose our clarity of Who is waiting for us on the other side.
In the insightful but somewhat unsettling words of Rabbi Avigdor Miller, “We were not born winners; we were not born losers; we were born choosers.”
To be continued…
