Parashat Tzav: What is the Connection Between the Eternal Fire and the Land of Israel?

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Parashat Tzav
What is the Connection Between the Eternal Fire and the Land of Israel?

How Can we Keep Our Fire Going While Constantly Breathing Continued Life into Others?

“I don’t know how I can go on anymore – everything is just too much,” cried a student (let’s call her Sarah) at my kitchen table. “I just want a simple life, enjoying the closeness with Hashem experienced here in the Holy Land in peace and quiet,” she continued. “There are so many demands on me – everyone wants my attention, and to engage in deep heart-to-heart conversations with me, it’s just all too much!” Sarah’s words reflected my own feelings of being overwhelmed with demands, dealing with various emergencies, and tedious administrative tasks on top of all the Pesach cleaning. I wish I could just peacefully settle on my land, softly playing my harp, prayerfully tending to the garden, and writing my books without all the interruptions. Sarah’s words, “I need a break; I can’t go on anymore!” couldn’t have reverberated more in my own heart. How can I keep my fire going when I am constantly having to breathe continued life into my institution? How many years have I had to write new rules? Dealing with challenging students and staff, ensuring we have enough money to pay our bills and avoid going into minus, tossing and turning in bed about losing a staff member, and trying to shift staff roles to make sure all the vital chores would be covered? For nearly 30 years, I have nursed and diapered, pulsating my blood, heartbeat, and essential life force to keep everything going. I, like Sarah, longed for peace and quiet to serve Hashem without interruptions. Yet, how do we grow in the Torah way and in our relationship with Hashem? Perhaps our understanding of serving Hashem is topsy-turvy. “What does it really mean to serve Hashem without interruptions for a Jew?” I asked Sarah. “Doesn’t the name Yisrael mean, ‘You have struggled with G-d and with people and you have prevailed’ (Bereishit 32:28)? Don’t we learn from this that it is precisely through the interruptions to our ‘peace and quiet’ that we serve Hashem in the highest way?” So perhaps we need to exchange our mindset – from assuming that the challenging drama with people and with figuring out the way of G-d are interruptions to our Divine service – to realizing that it may be the ‘peace and quiet’ that interrupts our true Divine service of continuous struggle.

The Eternal Fire on the Altar: A Flame Burning in the Soul of Every Jew
Reading the opening in Parashat Tzav describing the eternal flame of the altar encouraged me to keep my own fire burning. It is only when we allow the chametz (ego) of Amalek to inject the poison of doubt into our bloodstream that we feel our strength ebbing out. Our fire will remain steadfast, as long as we keep strengthening our emunah that whatever challenge we are undergoing, it is 100% designated from our Creator to help us grow. There is no greater way of serving Hashem than keeping the fire of emunah going. Perhaps this is why the Torah repeats how the fire on the altar must never be extinguished:

ספר ויקרא פרק ו פסוק ה וְהָאֵשׁ עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ תּוּקַד בּוֹ לֹא תִכְבֶּה וּבִעֵר עָלֶיהָ הַכֹּהֵן עֵצִים בַּבֹּקֶר בַּבֹּקֶר וְעָרַךְ עָלֶיהָ הָעֹלָה וְהִקְטִיר עָלֶיהָ חֶלְבֵי הַשְּׁלָמִים: פסוק ו וְאֵשׁ הַמִּזְבֵּחַ תּוּקַד בּוֹ לֹא תִכְבֶּה:

“The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be extinguished. The kohen shall kindle wood upon it every morning, and upon it, he shall arrange the burnt offering and cause the fats of the peace offerings to go up in smoke upon it. “A continuous fire shall burn upon the altar; it shall not go out” (Vayikra 6:5-6).

The repetition of keeping the fire of the altar burning suggests that this fire did not simply serve to cook the sacrifices offered to Hashem upon the altar. Rather, the eternal burning of the flame was crucial in and of itself, as an independent value, to arouse our internal flame – to keep going against all the odds – and burn away the doubts that weaken our spiritual determination.

A Sacred Tool for Spiritual Endurance

This eternal flame is not merely a technical detail of ritual worship. It symbolizes the ever-present relationship between Israel and Hashem. The fire and flame that must never be extinguished reflect the spark of divine connection that is meant to burn constantly within the heart and soul of every Jew.  The Maggid of Kozhnitz, author of Avodat Yisrael, quotes a teaching from the Siddur haAri, citing a tradition from the prophet Eliyahu, that a spiritual remedy for distracting thoughts, is to recite the verse: אֵשׁ תָּמִיד תּוּקַד עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לֹא תִכְבֶּה/Aish tamid tukad al hamizbeach lo tichbeh – “A constant fire shall burn on the altar; it shall never go out” (Vayikra 6:6). This verse serves as a spiritual tool to remove impure thoughts and ignite inner holiness. The Maggid takes this further, identifying the Yetzer Hara – the evil inclination – as one who schemes “to kill his fellow,” meaning the Yetzer Tov (good inclination), through devious and misleading thoughts. These words seem to speak directly to Sarah and me, reminding us, as Rebbe Nachman is famously known to say: כִּי אֵין שׁוּם יִאוּשׁ בָּעוֹלָם כְּלָל – “There is no despair whatsoever in the world” (Likutei Moharan Mahadura Batra 78). When the yetzer hara gets the better of us (G-d forbid), making us feel that we can’t go on, reciting, אֵשׁ תָּמִיד תּוּקַד עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לֹא תִכְבֶּה pulses renewed emunah into our spiritual arteries, strengthening our determination and stamina to keep going – as the old proverb says, “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going!” (Joseph P. Kennedy). The Maggid interprets the verse, “From My altar you shall take him to die” (Shemot 21:14), to mean that by invoking this verse about the eternal flame, we awaken the soul’s passion for holiness and dispel impurity – let me add: the impurity of despair. (Avodat Yisrael, Parashat Mishpatim, v’Chi Yazid Ish al Re’ehu l’hargo b’Ormah etc.). This teaches us that the inner fire of the Jewish soul, sparked by Torah and mitzvot, is deeply connected to the fire on the altar.  The eternal flame thus becomes a metaphor for our spiritual endurance – a fire that must be safeguarded, fed, and kept alive.

Eretz Yisrael – The Only Home for the Eternal Mikdash

The eternal flame, though kindled through divine service everywhere, reaches its full brilliance only in Eretz Yisrael. Although Parashat Tzav takes place during the Israelites’ wilderness period, the mitzvot surrounding the offerings and the constant fire are destined for ultimate fulfillment in the final Beit Hamikdash (Temple). According to Ramban all the details of the Mishkan are essentially a blueprint for the Temple in Jerusalem. Scripture alludes to this when it says, “For I have not dwelt in a house from the day that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle. In all places wherein I have walked among all the children of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the tribes of Israel whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying: ‘Why do you not build for Me a house of cedar?’” (II Shemuel 7:6–7; see Ramban on Bamidbar 16:21). This reveals a deeper truth: the Mishkan was a temporary vessel for the eternal Temple, which could only find permanence in the Land of Israel. The Shechinah accompanied Bnei Yisrael in the desert, but her true home is in the land that Hashem chose. As it states, “For Hashem has chosen Tzion; He has desired it for His dwelling place” (Tehillim 132:13). This makes Eretz Yisrael not only our homeland but also the spiritual address for divine presence, and for the fire that must never go out. Just as the offerings must be brought only in the place that Hashem chooses, so too the ongoing spiritual service of the Jewish people reaches its apex only in the Land of Israel.

The Fire of the Soul – Kindled in the Land

The spiritual air of the Land makes one wise (Babylonian Talmud, Baba Batra 158b). It also deepens our connection to Hashem, heightens our awareness of His presence, and attunes us to the inner fire. Parashat Tzav reminds us that true divine service is not sporadic or seasonal – it is constant. The eternal flame is not just on the altar but within us. The fire that must never go out reflects the spark of divine connection that is meant to burn constantly within the heart of every Jew. That flame finds its fullest expression only in the place where it was divinely kindled – Eretz Yisrael. The Zohar teaches: “A constant fire on the altar – this is the Torah, about which it says: ‘Is not My word like fire?’” (Yirmiyahu 23:29; cited in Rav Tzaddok of Lublin, Pri Tzaddik, Parashat Tzav 4).  The eternal flame on the altar alludes to the inner fire of the Jewish soul – a flame kindled through Torah and mitzvot. Each act of divine service fuels that fire, like a new log placed on the altar of the heart, keeping the inner fire alive and glowing, especially in the sacred atmosphere of Eretz Yisrael. During the ongoing challenges of Israel’s current war, we witness the holiness of the Jewish flame of endurance. It is only through the eternal flame of emunah that our brave soldiers get their strength to keep fighting for everlasting peace. The Shelah HaKadosh writes that although the fire descends from heaven, it is still a mitzvah to bring fire from below. This teaches us that our earthly effort to maintain a spiritual flame invites divine response – our inner fire awakens the heavenly flame (The Shelah Hakodesh, Mesechet Pesachim, Matzah Ashira). Shelah’s message comes to life in the way the IDF and world Jewry are aroused to keep the flame of emunah burning – drawing down the Divine response of protection and miracles as never before.

Returning to the Place of the Flame

Just as the altar’s fire in the Mishkan was a continuation of the fire from Sinai – where the mountain burned with divine presence – so too did this fire descend from heaven and rest specifically on the altar of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. No other place was worthy of it. In our days, as we continue to yearn for the rebuilding of the Beit Hamikdash, we must remember that the foundation of that eternal house is built by our daily commitment to keep our inner altars alive. Living in Eretz Yisrael, learning her Torah, loving her holiness, and praying for her redemption – these are our logs and oil. The altar fire is not only a divine gift, but also a human calling. The faithfulness of the Temple fire is an invitation: keep your own flame burning. By nurturing the flame of emunah, we can overcome the temptations of despair and despondency. Just as the altar must be stoked daily, so too must we cultivate the fire of faith within us, until our inner flame becomes an everlasting light. In a world that seeks to dim the Jewish flame, the Land of Israel stands as the place where we can keep it burning – with faith, with love, and with tenacity. Just as the fire of the Tabernacle altar was never extinguished, and continued to burn upon the Temple altar, so too will it burn eternally in the final Temple we await. May we soon see the fire return to its rightful place – and may the holy flame within each of us rise up to meet it.

How do Blessings Release the Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Yoke so we Can Walk Upright?

 

Parashat B’Har/B’Chukotai
How do Blessings Release the Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Yoke so we Can Walk Upright?

The Power of Blessing
“Please bless me that I will be able to write well!” I ask my husband and son every Friday, the only time available to devote to writing my weekly blog. “May the words flow from you, to write beautiful Torah that will inspire many women!” replies my son, and with this blessing, I’m empowered to focus on the challenging work of writing a cohesive parasha article incorporating a spiritual healing exercise. When I need a break, I jump to the much more enticing work of doing some dishes, cleaning the floor, or picking greens. Yet the words of the blessing continue to reverberate until I triumphantly greet the Shabbat queen all done! “Do not take the blessing of a commoner lightly” (Babylonian Talmud, Megillah 15a). Understanding its immense power, I always close an EmunaHealing treatment with a blessing. How much greater are the Divine blessings that open Parashat B’Chukotai. The first letter of the blessings is an א/alef – from the word אִם/im – ‘if” – “If you walk in my statutes.” The last letter of the blessings is a ת/taf – from the word קוֹמֲמִיּוּת/komamiyut – ‘upright,’ which concludes all the blessings in the parasha. The fact that the blessings begin with alef and conclude with taf teaches us that the Torah blessings depend on keeping the entire Torah from alef to taf (from A-Z). Thus, the lack of blessings reflects a blemish in mitzvah observance. This confirms the EmunaHealing principle that every hardship we face has a spiritual root. Although there are only eleven verses of blessings but thirty verses of curses, Rabbeinu Bachaya explains that the blessings are nevertheless the main thing because they encompass the entire alphabet beginning with the first letter alef and ending with the last letter taf. In contrast, the range of the curses in Parashat B’Chukotai is truly short, as their first letter is a ו/vav while their last letter is ה/heh, the letter that stands next to vav. Moreover, describing blessings requires fewer words, since each blessing includes a vast expanse as Pardes Yosef explains that a blessing must be completely good without any lack. For example, if a person is blessed with good health, perhaps she is lacking sustenance, if she has both, she may lack children, etc. If one detail is lacking the blessing is not considered a true blessing. This is not so with the curses; each curse adds an additional hardship. The numerous curses are actually a blessing in disguise, as their purpose is to bring us back to the straight path. Therefore, Hashem brings the lightest curses first to give people a chance of teshuva, if that doesn’t work, He gradually intensifies the curses step by step until the person does teshuva. Yet, when it comes to blessings, they are all available to us all at once as long as we walk in Hashem’s ways.

Releasing Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Blocks
Hashem’s blessings are always available to us if we would only overcome the blocks that prevent us from receiving them. Just as we learn in EmunaHealing, there are physical, emotional, and spiritual blocks, so do the blessings pertain to each of these three realms.  

ויקרא פרק כו פסוק ג 

אִם בְּחֻקֹּתַי תֵּלֵכוּ וְאֶת מִצְוֹתַי תִּשְׁמְרוּ וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם: (ד) וְנָתַתִּי גִשְׁמֵיכֶם בְּעִתָּם וְנָתְנָה הָאָרֶץ יְבוּלָהּ וְעֵץ הַשָּׂדֶה יִתֵּן פִּרְיוֹ:

“If you walk in My statutes and keep My mitzvot and do them, I will give your rains in their time, the Land will yield its produce, and the tree of the field will give forth its fruit” (Vayikra 26:3-4).

The three conditions for receiving the Divine blessings are:

1. Walking in Hashem’s statutes 2. Keeping the mitzvot 3. Doing them.

It seems to me that these three have the ability to overcome the three realms of blocks:
1. Walking in Hashem’s statutes, which are beyond the comprehension of the human mind, requires abundant emunah. This overcomes the spiritual block which includes lack of: Hashem’s Light, Tefilah (prayer), Emunah (faith), etc.
2. In order to be able to accept keeping the mitzvot we must overcome the emotional blocks such as fear, lack of commitment, bitterness, lowliness, and depression, which are all emotions that impede a person from making serious commitments to take positive actions.
3. Carrying the mitzvot out into action requires overcoming physical obstacles such as sickness, tiredness, lack of means etc. 

It is interesting to note that the blessings themselves pertain to these three realms:

Physical (blessings of sustenance): “I will give your rains in their time, the Land will yield its produce, and the tree of the field will give forth its fruit. Your threshing will last until the vintage, and the vintage will last until the sowing; you will eat your food to satiety, and you will live in security in your land” (Vayikra 26:4-5).

Emotional (eradicating fears, and rectifying interpersonal relationships): “I will grant peace in the Land, and you will lie down with no one to frighten [you]; I will remove wild beasts from the Land, and no army will pass through your land; You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you; Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you. I will turn towards you, and I will make you fruitful and increase you, and I will set up My covenant with you. You will eat very old [produce], and you will clear out the old from before the new” (Vayikra 26:6-10).

Spiritual (closeness with Hashem, becoming an abode for the Divine): “I will place My dwelling in your midst, and My Spirit will not reject you; I will walk among you and be your G-d, and you will be My people” (Vayikra 26:11-12).

The Rise of Humanity
The last verse of the blessings incorporates all three realms of human rectification as a result of overcoming physical, emotional, and spiritual blocks that will allow us to grow to reach our perfected state of uprightness:

ספר ויקרא פרק כו פסוק יג 
אֲנִי הָשֵׁם אֱלֹהֵיכֶם אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם מִהְיֹת לָהֶם עֲבָדִים וָאֶשְׁבֹּר מֹטֹת עֻלְּכֶם וָאוֹלֵךְ אֶתְכֶם קוֹמֲמִיּוּת:

“I am Hashem, your G-d, Who took you out of the land of Egypt from being slaves to them; and I will break the pegs of your yoke and lead you upright” (Vayikra 26:13).

Just as we came out of the Egyptian slavery to freedom, at the future redemption we will be free from the angel of death – the yetzer hara (negative impulse) – corresponding to “I will break the pegs of your yoke.” Since there is no greater yoke than the yoke of the yetzer hara, only when we break this yoke can we become “upright in our land.” (Chatam Sofer, Vayikra 26:13). Based on our correlation between the blessings and the three realms of human experience, physical, emotional, and spiritual, we can understand that Hashem will empower us to break “our yoke” which encompasses our blocks in each of these realms respectably. Perhaps this is why the verse states “…break the pegs of your yoke…” Each peg could refer to one of these three kinds of blocks which will disintegrate, to allow us to walk upright in our land. The Talmud explains that the word קוֹמֲמִיּוּת/komamiyut means a double stature, which refers to the rectification of Adam and Chava to each grow to their full stature of height (Based on Babylonian Talmud, Chagiga 12a). This will only be fulfilled in the future (Rabbeinu Bachaya). At that time there will be no more hindrance to our physical, emotional, and spiritual freedom. Therefore, we will no longer be bent over, burdened by the various blockages that weigh us down. Rather, we will walk with a healthy posture, with our heads completely erect (Based on R. Yosef Bechor Shor).

EmunaHealing Exercise for Releasing the Pegs of our Yoke and Walking Upright

1. Make yourself comfortable and take several deep breaths. Get in touch with your body. How do you feel? Do you experience any tension anywhere? Perhaps in your shoulders? Does your lower back ache or are your feet sore? Breathe into these body parts, and on the out-breath release any tension or soreness, let them completely disintegrate.  
2. Envision yourself performing a mitzvah with enthusiasm and vigor. It may be a mitzvah that has been difficult for you to connect with. Imagine yourself excited about serving Hashem even through this less preferred mitzvah. Engage your body in the action of doing the mitzvah and allow yourself to feel how keeping this mitzvah energizes every part of your physical being.
3. Now imagine receiving the blessings of abundance. You will eat your food to satiety, and you will live in security in your land. Open yourself to receive all these blessings that Hashem is offering you and let them fill you and heal your body completely.
4. Shift your awareness once more to your breath. Do you feel any fears or other negative emotions? Allow yourself to bring any emotional block to your awareness. Perhaps you have low self-esteem because you grew up with a critical mother. Or perhaps you are afraid of certain kinds of people due to being bullied as a child? Inhale divine light into your fears and any negative emotions such as jealousy or anger and release them with your exhalations. Breathe in divine light and breathe out any negative feelings, breathe them out, out, out, out!
5. Envision yourself making a serious commitment to entering a covenant with Hashem. Imagine the excitement you experience by manifesting your love of G-d and feeling G-d’s love of you. Like in a marriage, you are lovingly happy to tie yourself to serve your Creator. Feel how your commitment opens your heart and disintegrates your fears and any other negative emotions.
6. Now envision yourself receiving the blessings of emotional freedom. There will no longer be any reason to fear, for “I will grant peace in the Land, and you will lie down with no one to frighten [you].” Imagine how any fights, arguments, or disconnect from people in your life gradually become transformed to the deepest, most caring, and loving relationships. Your heart is warming towards these dear people in your life. Communication will flow easily between you, engendering mutual understanding.  
7. Shift your awareness back to your breathing. Is there anything holding you back from truly believing in Hashem and walking in His statutes, even those which are totally beyond your comprehension? Allow yourself to bring any doubts and worries to your attention. What is the root of these doubts? Do you allow yourself to let go of these spiritual blocks and infuse yourself with complete emunah? Breathe the lights of emunah into your keter (crown) on top of your head and offer a silent prayer to Hashem to let your doubts disintegrate to allow yourself to rely on no one but Hashem.
8. Now envision yourself becoming infused and illuminated by the light of emunah – total faith in Hashem and His Torah. Breathe into any doubts and worries and allow them to release on the out-breath. Meditate on the verse, “I will place My dwelling in your midst, and My Spirit will not reject you.” Can you feel Hashem dwelling within you? Perhaps in your heart or in your womb? Hashem won’t reject or abhor you. If you feel any disgust with yourself, let it go as you know that it is not G-dly. “G-d has promised that He will never reject you.”
9. Become aware of your posture and straighten yourself. Feel Hashem’s light pulling you upward as if through an invisible string from your toe to your head, pulling you close to Himself. Lift your head upward and stand erect and upright. Rise to your higher self!