In this week’s parsha, Tzav, we learn that
וְהָאֵ֨שׁ עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֤חַ תּֽוּקַד־בּוֹ֙ לֹ֣א תִכְבֶּ֔ה
The fire on the altar should be kept burning upon it. It must not go out.
This is then reiterated
אֵ֗שׁ תָּמִ֛יד תּוּקַ֥ד עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ לֹ֥א תִכְבֶּֽה
A continuous fire should burn upon the altar. It must not go out.
What does that practically mean? The Netziv explains
והאש על המזבח וגו׳. אפילו בשעת הוצאת הדשן לא תכבה לגמרי. או ללמדנו דבשעת הוצאת הדשן אסור לכבות את הגחלת. וכדאיתא ביומא ספ״ד דבראשו של מזבח כ״ע לא פליגי דחייב:
And the fire on the altar etc: Even at the time of removing the ashes, one cannot extinguish it totally. This teaches us that at the time of the removal of the ashes, it is forbidden to extinguish the embers/ coals.
Why is it so important not to extinguish this fire?
There is the practical answer- and the symbolic answer.
First, the practical answer. The original fire was divine in nature- coming directly from God. Keeping that original fire burning ensures that the fire on the altar always originates from that divine source, and a human-made fire, which may lack similar holiness, does not replace it.
See Leviticus 9:24.
וַתֵּ֤צֵא אֵשׁ֙ מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהֹוָ֔ה וַתֹּ֙אכַל֙ עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ אֶת־הָעֹלָ֖ה וְאֶת־הַחֲלָבִ֑ים וַיַּ֤רְא כׇּל־הָעָם֙ וַיָּרֹ֔נּוּ וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶֽם׃ Fire came forth from before יהוה and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar. And all the people saw, and shouted, and fell on their faces.
But then we get to the symbolic answer. It is likely that you have heard the symbolic answer in some way, shape or form before. Maybe you have heard of the pintele yid. Maybe you’ve heard Rav Hutner’s בלבבי משכן אבנה. The Hasidic rabbi Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter, more commonly known as the Sefat Emet, has a beautiful treatment/ explanation as to what it means that the fire on the altar must never go out.
He begins
דכ' אש תמיד תוקד כו' לא תכבה. דכ' מים רבים לא יוכלו לכבות. פי' שיש בכל לב איש ישראל נקודה טמונה בהתלהבות לה' שלא יוכל להיות נכבה
A continuous fire must burn on the altar- many waters will not be able to extinguish it. The explanation is that in every Jewish heart there is a flame/ rapture/ spirit of ecstasy and enthusiasm that cannot be extinguished.
The fact that he uses the wording “many waters will not be able to extinguish it” is a clear allusion to Song of Songs 8:7.
מַ֣יִם רַבִּ֗ים לֹ֤א יֽוּכְלוּ֙ לְכַבּ֣וֹת אֶת־הָֽאַהֲבָ֔ה וּנְהָר֖וֹת לֹ֣א יִשְׁטְפ֑וּהָ
Many waters cannot quench love/ nor rivers drown it
(Fun fact: I know this verse well because of Madeline L’Engle’s book, which I read when I was a tween or younger.)
Because of this allusion, we can understand that the Sefat Emet sees the continuous fire as pertaining to a kind of love.
He continues
והגם כי לא תכבה הוא לאו. אבל הוא הבטחה ג"כ.
Even though not extinguishing the fire is a negative commandment (one is not permitted to do so), it is also a promise [between God and the Jews] (i.e. that the fire will not be extinguished by God).
What kind of promise?
וכמו שכ' חז"ל אעפ"י שאש יורד משמים מצוה להביא כו'.
Just as it is written about by our sages of blessed memory that even though the fire would fall from heaven, it was still a mitzvah to bring it [my, as in Chana’s, understanding is that this refers to the fact that even though the fire would fall from heaven, the kohen still needed to actively prepare the wood to make sure the fire didn’t go out].
Why is this important? Because it indicates that there is a partnership- God will make sure the fire falls from heaven, initiating the relationship, but the kohen [priest] must actively prepare the wood and ensure that it does not go out. Similarly
כמו כן בנפש האדם שצריך להיות תשוקת רשפי אש בלב בוער לעבודת הבורא ית' ולחדש בכל יום זה ההתלהבות כמ"ש ובער עלי' הכהן.
So too when it comes to the soul of man- he needs to have desire like darts of fire in his heart burning to worship God, and he must renew that every day, so that his enthusiasm for God is akin to “the priest should kindle wood upon it [the altar] every morning.”
(Note the words רשפי אש are also from Song of Songs. See 8:6. Darts/ arrows of fire is a fitting image for passion; it goes deep.)
And
כל עובד ה' נקרא כהן. והתעוררות אהבה הנ"ל בלבות בנ"י הוא העבודה שבלב זו תפלה שבמקום קרבן. וכשיש זאת ההתלהבות. כל מחשבה זרה העולה על הלב נשרפת.
Everyone who truly serves God is called a kohen [priest] (in this context). And the awakening of the heart with love in the hearts of Bnei Yisrael [the Israelites] is the worship of the heart in the form of prayer that has taken the place of the korban [sacrifices]. And when this kind of flaming rapture/ enthusiasm/ ecstasy [for God] is in one’s heart, every foreign thought that comes upon one’s heart will be burned up.
(Feel free to correct my translations; they are approximations of the text.)
Here’s what the Sefat Emet is saying. We are guaranteed divine fire falling from heaven, just as occurred in the wilderness. We are, in effect, guaranteed a relationship with God- because God begins it, planting that soul, with its eternal memory of Him, within us. However, it is our job to tend to the fire, making sure we have kindling so that it will burn and burn and will not be extinguished. When we partner with God, dedicating ourselves to Him, living by His will, and loving him with all our heart, soul and might, we act as priests. We are preparing the kindling- within ourselves- to keep the eternal flame He has gifted us alive. That flame refers to our love for Him, our efforts to have a relationship with Him, and our overall connection to Him. When we accomplish this, constantly working to grow in our connection to God, to tend to the fire within, any negative outside influence or foreign thought, anything that would halt us or compromise our service of God, will be burned up within this holy flame.
I find that image both gorgeous and powerful. There is an altar that lives within us and it is our job to make sure the heavenly fire we have been gifted flares eternal. We are priests, crafting the perfect environment so that God’s fire can glow, and burn, and light us up from within.
I like being a priest. *smile*
Hope you do, too.
